A veritable orchestra of crickets filled the woods surrounding Sweet Apple Acres. The sun just nestled below the horizon painting the sky in fading pinks and oranges. Out amid the thinly packed trees stood a clubhouse built upon a platform supported by four sturdy legs and a tree. The two-story architecture belied the young fillies who had built it and who were only now lighting their lamps out of necessity.
Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle sat in the main and only room of the Cutie Mark Crusaders Clubhouse (yay) with pieces of paper scattered upon the floor, each sheet bearing an insane number of notes, not all of which were very focused (Sweetie Bell threw out the term “organized chaos”). A map of Ponyville hung on the wall with little red and blue pins stuck into arbitrary points around town.
“Caramel just seemed ta be goin’ to usual places,” Applebloom said. “Market, hardware store, bank, the same kinda places he’d normally go.”
“Really? This is normal for him?” Scootaloo exclaimed. “He doesn’t go anywhere fun? He’s gotta be the most boring stallion in town.”
“Well, he normally goes out with some of the other stallions,” Sweetie Belle indicated, garnering quizzically raised eyebrows from her fellow crusaders. “What? That’s what the other adults said when they were following him.”
“That’s… a really good observation,” Applebloom complimented.
“The world isn’t about to end, is it?” Scootaloo jested.
“Hey, I make good observations!” Sweetie Belle protested. “Like with Derpy, she also didn’t pick up her usual order from Sugarcube Corner!”
“That’s right, she only bought one muffin, and it wasn’t even her favorite kind,” Scootaloo said.
“It looks like somethin’s takin’ away their personalities,” Applebloom observed. “They’re not doin’ things that aren’t needed.”
“Who doesn’t need to have fun?” Sweetie Bell asked. The question brought a nervous silence to the clubhouse.
Knock knock knock
The three young fillies jumped, with Applebloom yelping only slightly louder than Sweetie Belle. The three exchanged wary glances.
“Who could that be?” Applebloom whispered.
“What if it’s the thing that’s causing all this?” Scootaloo whispered her response.
“Who’s there?” Sweetie Belle asked loudly of the visitor, eliciting shocked and horrified looks from her compatriots. “What?”
“It’s um… It’s me…” came the weak and worried response. “It’s, ahem… it’s Diamond Tiara…”
“What’s she doin’ here?” Applebloom whispered angrily.
“What are you doing out here?” Sweetie Belle called, approaching the window, again receiving indignant looks from the others. Upon reaching the window, Sweetie’s demeanor changed. She tapped on the window to get Tiara’s attention. “What’s wrong?”
“I just… can I come in? Please?” Diamond Tiara’s voice was barely audible inside the clubhouse, but Applebloom could tell their visitor was either crying or about to start.
Sweetie Belle opened the door and ushered the young pink filly with her namesake diamond tiara atop her head into the CMC clubhouse. Her gaze hung low and her legs and lip trembled, and misty tears welled in the corners of her eyes. The four stood in awkward silence, none of them sure how to proceed.
“Diamond Tiara?” Applebloom asked. “What’re ya doin’ all th’way out here?”
“Yeah! Can’t you be a snob somewhere else?” Scootaloo stabbed. “We’re trying to help ponies, and that’s a little more important.”
Tiara’s eyes clenched shut, squeezing liquid sorrow into a more freely flowing rivulet.
Applebloom and Sweetie Belle both shot mean looks at the pegasus, who in turn huffed and turned away.
“What’s wrong?” Sweetie Belle asked softly.
It took Diamond Tiara a few seconds to stem the tide before she could answer.
“It’s… It’s Silver Spoon…” she choked through tightened throat and reddened eyes. “She turned grey…”
“Isn’t she grey already?” Scootaloo jabbed again.
“Wait, did anything disappear?” Applebloom prompted.
Diamond Tiara nodded weakly.
“Her cutie mark.”
Applebloom and Sweetie Belle gasped while Scootaloo softened up enough to turn around to face her tormentor.
“Did she act different?” Sweetie Belle asked.
“She was…” Tiara fumbled for the words. “Blank… she acted… grey…”
“When did this happen?” Applebloom asked.
“About an hour ago…” Diamond Tiara’s throat tightened around her voice. “We were walking around the comma…”
The three other fillies looked to each other for confirmation that her statement made no sense.
“It’s a trail we walk…” Diamond Tiara explained, noting their confusion. “We start at her house and walk around the town. We come out to the farms and head back… ending at… my house… we called it that because it sorta looks like a comma from above…”
“That’s a tradition for you,” Sweetie Belle stated.
"W-we’ve done it since we w-were lit-tle…” sobs racked Tiara’s chest and throat. “E-ev-ver since we were allowed out on our ow-ho-ho-hownnn…”
Diamond Tiara reduced to a weeping, quivering mess right before the CMC. Normally, they would have kicked her out by now. The urge to drag the wealthiest bully in town to the Everfree and leave her there still itched at their minds. Something was not normal, though. Something about how she fell apart discussing the habits old friends intimately shared struck the girls as unusual. No, unusual was wrong. This was wrong. The whole situation was wrong. Something that could take a pony from their own bodies was terrifying, and the CMC wouldn’t dare abandon anyp- anyone victimized by such a horrifying thing.
As long as she wasn’t lying.
“She’s making this up,” Scootaloo accused. “You heard how she talked about Derpy and Caramel, and now she’s saying it happened to Silver Spoon? She’s just trying to humiliate us again.”
She’s certainly done that before.
Diamond Tiara’s track record was muddy with a dash of raw sewage, and that was being nice about it. Everything from property damage to blackmail with photographs taken by an unwitting stalker, clearly nothing was below Diamond Tiara, not even exploitation of a crisis.
“Ah’m sorry,” Applebloom agreed, albeit shaky in conviction. “Ah just don’t know if we can trust her.”
Diamond Tiara’s eyes widened like a lost little foal as the tears welled and fell. Her stance hunched and her head bowed in defeat. From quivering lip and clenching chest issued quiet, stifled sobs. She turned toward the door like the gallows awaited her on the other side, dragging her hooves across the wooden floor.
Sweetie Belle touched Diamond Tiara’s foreleg, stopping her.
The two stood looking at each other for a time, neither filly saying a word. Applebloom noticed Sweetie’s eyes scanned all of Tiara’s face, all the while holding the arches of empathy in her brow and mouth. Sweetie Belle pulled Diamond Tiara into a full hug which, though momentarily stunned, Tiara returned, silently crying into Sweetie Belle’s shoulder.
Some minutes passed before Tiara had calmed and Sweetie spoke.
“She’s not lying.”
“What?” Scootaloo shouted indignantly. “How do you know?”
“Rarity’s my sister,” Sweetie Belle explained. “She’s said things she didn’t mean and made promises she never kept. I know what a lie feels like. But sometimes, she was honest. Sometimes, she kept her promises. I know how strange that sounds, but Diamond Tiara doesn’t feel like a lie right now.”
“Yer right, that does sound strange,” Applebloom said. “And ah totally understand.”
Scootaloo’s pure shock and disbelief burned in her eyes as she gave Applebloom the are you kidding me stare.
“Scoots, please,” Applebloom begged. “You’ll just have to trust us.”
“I promise she’s telling the truth,” Sweetie Belle reassured.
“Ugh! Fine,” Scootaloo groaned her concession. “But if she’s lying, you each owe me a milkshake!”
“Wait! This ain’t our usual crusadin,” Applebloom said. “We really should go tell Twilight.”
“Rainbow Dash talked to her earlier,” Scootaloo explained. “She said she needed more proof of something weird before she could do anything.”
“Then let’s go find some!” Sweetie Belle chimed.
Diamond Tiara smiled weakly but with a relieved hopefulness that said all that needed saying given the situation. Even so, she still voiced her appreciation all the same as the group embarked.
“Thank you.”
* * * * * * *
Twilight stared. The paralytic realization of the situation that her own inaction had caused locked her in place, lost in the pleading cries of a terrified child. For the first time since her coronation, Twilight saw just how much and how little had really changed; the responsibility of protecting her subjects and the new access to the magic to do so being all that had changed. In the end, she was still the same unicorn who loved books, cherished her friends, and cared for the well-being of others.
She just needed to lift the crown from her eyes.
Twilight hesitantly stepped closer, causing both Pinkie and Fluttershy to look up for any kind of help or instruction.
“It’s okay, Dinky,” Fluttershy comforted. “Twilight’s here.”
“We went right for the best,” Pinkie Pie said with uncharacteristic sobriety. “We got the best Princess for the job.” The little one looked up, her crying lessened. “I told you we were serious about finding your momma.”
“Hello…” Twilight began, but faltered off when she heard just how stupidly formal that sounded. In a situation like this, she needed to be more personable and sensitive.
Sensitive…
Twilight decided it best to throw deliberation to the winds and let her feelings guide her.
Drawing closer, she knelt down to bring her face to the same level as the young filly.
“My name is Twilight Sparkle,” she introduced, her voice maternally soft. “What’s yours?”
“D-d-dinky d-doo,” answered the little filly.
“Pleased to meet you, Dinky,” Twilight said. “Would you please tell me what happened to your mother?”
“S-she came h-home from-m work y-yest-terday,” the foal explained, still stuttering through her sobbing. “B-but she was wrong. Mommy’s eyes aren’t i-in straight, but they w-were yesterday. Her cutie mark was g-gone. She only brought one muffin.”
“How many does mommy normally get?” Twilight questioned.
“T-two,” Dinky explained. “O-one for me, one for h-her. We eat together.”
“How was she acting?” Twilight pressed.
“She was calm,” Dinky said. “Like she didn’t care…”
Twilight drew a blank. How was anypony supposed to respond to that? How could anything make that better? Though her mind was lost, her heart knew exactly where it was supposed to be. She took the crying Dinky Doo into a motherly embrace, stroking the back of the little filly’s head and easing her with quiet reassurances.
“Your mother does care. Every mother does,” Twilight said. “Whatever’s wrong with her, I promise, I’ll find what it is and bring your mommy back safely.”
Dinky Doo sniffled, wide eyes projecting a smile of hope.
“Really?” she said.
“I’m a mare of my word,” Twilight said. “You’ve got a princess helping you and mommy. I’ll get the whole army if I need to make sure she’s safe.”
The little one erupted, clinging to Twilight with tightest hug she could muster. “Thank you, thank you, princess!” Twilight hadn’t noticed at first, but there wasn’t a dry eye in the house, nor in the armor for that matter.
* * * * * * *
“I’ve got it right here, signed and stamped.”
“Could she tell the difference?”
“There’s nothing to tell. This is a legit work order for a legit work request.”
“Thank you. I’ll need a couple minutes; you can give it to her when I’m done.”
“Sure thing, princess.”
Twilight turned away from the older white and grey gentlecolt wearing the blue uniform of post office manager. Twilight nodded to guards as she entered the break room, just as Derpy punched back in from break.
“Good afternoon, Derpy,” Twilight greeted.
“Good afternoon, Princess Twilight,” Derpy said, bowing before royalty. Twilight noted the lack of surprise and nervousness she knew ponies had at a surprise visit from a princess. The parasprite catastrophe still haunted Roseluck’s nightmares.
The sight of the now solid grey mare screamed something was indeed wrong. The bleaching of her mane and tail somehow didn’t stand out as much as her demeanor. The pegasus behaved flat and calm, simultaneously bored and boring. She spoke and moved with the same energy and manner as being wide awake but none of the spunk and electricity of being conscious. Her trademark skewed eyes now flat and straight with no trace of her usual kindness or curiosity. Twilight prided herself in being able to articulate any feeling or situation but somehow her vocabulary failed her; but she owed it to the mother and her daughter she could have helped to try. An old romance cliché often described a lover’s eyes as being pools one could lose oneself in. Looking deep into her patient’s eyes, Twilight saw only an empty and stripped rock quarry.
Whoever this is, it isn’t Derpy.
Twilight cleared her throat.
“Derpy, I have a special job for you,” Twilight said. “I’ve put in the order and your boss should be here in a few minutes with the finished invoice.” Derpy nodded her comprehension. Such an understated response left an awkward pause. “How have you been doing, if you don’t mind my asking?”
“I have been fine,” Derpy said. “The bills have been paid.
The bills have been paid? Who talks like that? Why would that be important?
“I’m guessing usual expenses? Rent, utilities, those sorts of things?” Twilight asked.
“Yes. They can pile up,” Derpy said.
Something so mundane is worth mentioning, but why?
“With the weather lately there’s a higher mold and pollen count than normal. Have you been having allergies?” Twilight tested, she had a hunch.
“No, I have had no such allergies,” Derpy said.
“With the weather lately there’s a higher mold and pollen count than normal. Have you been having allergies?” Twilight said.
“No, I do not have allergies at this time,” Derpy said, not batting an eye at the deliberate repetition of a question.
“With the weather lately there’s a higher mold and pollen count than normal. Have you been having allergies?” Twilight asked for a third time.
“No, The pollen has not given trouble yet,” Derpy stated.
She’s not even annoyed. She just… responds.
“Derpy, how has Dinky been doing lately?” Twilight asked.
“She has been okay. She ran out last night, but she will be fine,” Derpy said.
“How was she when she left?” Twilight asked, astonished at how nonchalant Derpy was over her daughter running away and just how little significance the sentence seemed to hold.
“I could not tell,” Derpy said.
“What facial expression did she have?” Twilight asked.
“She was crying,” Derpy said.
“Could you tell how she was feeling?” Twilight asked.
“No I could not,” Derpy said.
She could see her own daughter was crying, but can’t associate an emotion or mood with it.
The last breakthrough left just one final thing to check. Twilight was going to hate herself for this and would likely be hated for it as well.
“Derpy, you are an unskilled waste of flesh,” Twilight said, the wrenching guilt squeezing at her head.
“Okay,” Her answer was flat. No anger, no frustration, not even mild annoyance. She was simply calm, taking it all in stride.
“We have an important job for you,” Twilight said, louder than was necessary, glancing over toward the door to make sure the manager got the message. “I am going to give a speech in one week and I need you to make sure each and every house in Hoofington and Mareseilles gets a flier with the information. The job is going to take a long time, but I’ve organized a hefty bonus with your boss. Do you think you’re up to the task?”
“Yes I am, princess,” Derpy said. The manager entered with the work order, followed by Twilight’s guards who brought crates of freshly printed leaflets.
“Ah, perfect timing!” Twilight said. “The guards will carry the crates to the local post offices and you will pass them out. Are you set?”
“Yes I am, princess,” Derpy gave her answer and the team set out. Between travel distance and number of houses, even Rainbow Dash wouldn’t be able to do this until evening. Twilight went to meet with the others and saw Rainbow Dash galloping toward her in rage. Twilight barely had time motion to her guards to hold their positions before a hoof struck her in the jaw.
“How dare you say that! I never thought you were so snobby!” Dash roared, drawing nervous stares from everypony nearby and confusing the guards. Twilight’s magic restrained the furious pegasus after the second blow, holding her in mid air to calm down.
“Rainbow Dash, please listen to me,” Twilight’s eyes misted over, partially because of the hit, mostly out of guilt. “I didn’t want to insult her like that, but I had to test something.”
“What could you possibly be testing by calling her a waste of flesh?” Dash snorted like a bull.
“Did you notice how little she reacted?”
Rainbow Dash’ face glowed with the wide-eyed look of enlightening realization. Her muscles relaxed and her huffing slowed to a heavy breath.
“Did you notice how she didn’t even get irritated when I asked the same question worded the same way three times in a row?”
Rainbow’s breathing slowed to normal. Twilight’s magic dissipated, releasing Dash from the restraint.
“You were right, something happened to Derpy. I should have listened to you in the first place,” Twilight said. “Now I know whatever happened affected more than just her behavior. She seemed unable to connect with other ponies on emotional levels. Even Discord didn’t do that and I don’t think he even could.”
“So what do we do now?” Rainbow asked.
“I was going to use this time to talk to Derpy’s co-workers and all of Derpy’s friends, but now I think this is more personal in nature. There might be something she doesn’t tell others. We need to know what that is.”
“No,” Rainbow Dash refused. “I’m not snooping around her house.”
“Rainbow Dash, you know I wouldn’t even suggest if it wasn’t an emergency,” Twilight coaxed. “I’m convinced there’s something she doesn’t feel she can trust anypony to tell them and it may be what’s causing this.”
“What couldn’t she tell us?” Rainbow asked.
“Do you know where Dinky came from?”
The dead silence filled volumes.
“Okay, let’s go…” said Rainbow Dash
* * * * * * *
“Mommy gave me a key to get into the house if I ever came home and she wasn’t here.”
“May we please use it?”
“Okay, Miss Fluttershy.”
“Okay, the two of you, take up your positions, and try to look a little less… militant.”
The team going into the home of Derpy needed to remain small for the sake of secrecy. A high traffic market on street level meant there would be many eyes that might notice things out of the ordinary, such as a princess with a full contingent of armed guards entering and snooping around the home of a seemingly random pegasus mare. Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Dinky Doo, and one earth pony guard accompanied Twilight into Derpy’s apartment while two more unicorn guards took post across the street at a nearby café. The plan was for everyone with a royal appearance to try and cover it up to avoid raising suspicion. For Twilight, it was a simple matter of changing mane style and wearing a hat and long coat. The bluish grey of Twilight’s garb made her look almost like a repair mare at a glance fixing a utility problem in one of the apartments.
The guards only needed to remove their armor… for Twilight to realize just how out of place they looked. The military training resulted in a buff physique and strong muscle tone that inherently drew attention, whether they wanted it or not. The guard who would be entering the apartment wore a grey coverall jumpsuit that was strangely easy to find in a town with no industrial sector. Twilight merely requisitioned unused utility apparel from the Ponyville dam, taking only a few in the less common sizes to fit the guards.
The two who would be waiting across the street took a table, each looking past the other to watch down the street. Nothing could make those two look less like guards, though Pinkie Pie’s joke about a candy swirl sombrero sounded like a good start. The grey jumpsuits would have to do along with a backstory about just getting off work.
The team ascended the stairs and found their way to apartment 4, the home of the first patient. Dinky inserted the key and opened the door.
“Okay, everypony, be careful. I’m sure Derpy would not be happy with us snooping like this, so don’t go digging,” Twilight instructed. A nod of agreement passed among the group while they entered and the guard took post at the door. Twilight stopped, lowering her voice. “Hey, you were the one who yelled at me earlier, right?” The guard’s eyes widened in shock and shame before Twilight held up a hoof to stop him. “Listen, I want to know it’s alright. I’m sorry for putting you in that position. But if it wasn’t for you, I probably would have walked right out of Ponyville,” she said. Her speech seemed to be working, helping him return to a less tense state. “What's your name?”
“My name is Stone Wall,” the earth guard answered, more than a little bewildered.
“Stone Wall, I hereby order you to do whatever it takes to bring me back if I zone out like that again, especially if I’m about to miss something important, like an appointment,” Twilight said.
“Yes, your highness!” he said, smiling and stomping a hoof in salute.
Satisfied and positively beaming, Twilight entered the apartment, leaving the gua- Stone Wall to his job.
Inside, Twilight found a mostly neat and clean apartment. It was furnished with softer hues of blues and greys and had all the necessities: kitchen, main living room, two bedrooms, a laundry room, and a bathroom. Rainbow was examining the living room while Pinkie Pie went through the kitchen. Both appeared to grasp the weight of the situation as neither seemed too energetic or goofy, for a change.
“I’ve got some book cases over here,” Rainbow called. “Got a few book series, some picture books and… what is this? Is this an album?”
Twilight levitated the bound collection over to her and scanned through the pages. The photographs showed various things of no discernible connection, at least not readily apparent. The photographs consisted of forests, plains, meadows, mountains, aerial views of towns, low angles of buildings, even a few pictures of ordinary ponies going about their daily lives and different animals caught seemingly unawares doing their usual things. A picture of a manticore taken from above looked like the beast had no idea it was being observed, or even how close the observer was. Similarly, several bears and even a hydra had been photographed from a frightening proximity.
The last quarter of the book contained pictures of athletic events. The pictures bore an expert quality and captured beautiful details. A Wonderbolt beat his wings at the lowest point of a dive. A minotaur heaved a huge javelin, striking the perfect stance for a throw. A young earth pony in gymnast attire launched herself into a forward flip, the moment captured as her body, mane, and tail formed a spiral in the air. In each case the amount of detail was astonishing, from the shine of the equipment to the individual beads of sweat in their coats and on their brows.
“She wants to be a photographer.”
“What?” Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash said in unison, Pinkie Pie pulling her head from a cupboard.
“Derpy took all these pictures, look at the paper,” Twilight said, excited in her discovery. “She developed these herself. It’s the only explanation for why she has pictures of these specific things.”
“If she wants to be a photographer, why isn’t she one now?” Pinkie Pie asked.
“I’m guessing for the same reason she’s taking care of a unicorn filly,” Twilight said, lowering her voice. “Speaking of which, where are Fluttershy and Dinky?”
“Fluttershy thought Dinky shouldn’t hear what we might find,” Rainbow said.
“It might hurt her,” Pinkie Pie finished.
Twilight only nodded. Heading into the kitchen, Twilight found a tiled floor with moderate wear and tear. In fact, everything in the kitchen had clear signs of use from nicks in the wood to dents in the counter. The few appliances that were present were only the most necessary: microwave, refrigerator and a toaster. The cupboards and drawers had full sets of dishes and silverware but not quite enough to fill the spaces. The refrigerator looked stocked but still had a good amount of empty space on the shelves.
“Utilitarian,” Twilight said. “She has only what they need. I’m going to check the bedroom.”
Twilight made her way down the hall passing Dinky’s room where Dinky showed Fluttershy her toys and games. Twilight paused. The young filly’s room had full furnishings and many toys. Nothing huge, but to see such a stocked room after two that were so bare struck the princess as important.
Entering the master bedroom, Twilight found a few wall hangings around a bed with a simple wooden frame. The walls were painted a bluish-purple with worn brown carpeting. A golden glimmer on the night stand caught Twilight’s eye. Going over to investigate, Twilight moved her head as close to the round object as she could. Twilight gasped, using her magic to lift the golden hoop up and maneuver it front of her eyes, inspecting every detail.
The door swung open.
“Twilight? Are you okay?” Pinkie Pie said as she and Rainbow Dash entered. “We heard you gasp…”
“Twilight?” Rainbow said. “Is that…”
“A wedding ring.”
Silence fell upon the three friends. None of them knew exactly how they should react to the revelation.
Twilight noticed an inscription along the inside of the ring:
You’re already perfect
“Rainbow, did Derpy ever mention being married?”
“No.”
“Did she ever mention being engaged?”
“Never.”
“Girls,” Twilight said, voice stern and solid. “I take back what I said earlier. We’re going to go digging now. There is something Derpy never told anypony, and I think it has to do with her current state.”
Twilight expected some sort of protest. All she got was a silent delay before her friends complied, the three of them searching through drawers, the closet, even under the bed.
“I found something,” Rainbow said, clearing random items and clothing from around a trunk. With a click, the trunk opened.
Photographs, medals, love letters, every relic of a beautiful romance lay before them. Right on top, so the owner wouldn’t have to search, was a framed photograph of Derpy, wearing a wedding dress and a smile of divine bliss.
Standing beside her in the picture, in full ceremonial uniform with a chest full of medals, was a unicorn stallion with white mane and blue coat.
The three stood in awe. How could this be the Derpy they know? Why hadn’t she told them any of this?
“All of my medals and ribbons pale before the honor of your loving attention. I would give all of them up and go through Tartarus and back just for the radiant beauty of your smile,” Rainbow said, reading one of the letters. Pinkie Pie blinked away a tear.
Twilight’s lavender magic moved the items around with gentle care as though they were holy artifacts. She sifted through letters and photographs before coming to the husband’s medals. She lifted them up and examined them one at a time.
“Medal of valor, medal of strength,” Twilight recited, going through the six medals, stopping at the last, stunned by the words. “Medal of Nobility,” Twilight said as she processed just what this meant and how to convey it to Pinkie and Rainbow. “It’s one of the highest honors given to members of the Royal Guard. It’s given to those who fell doing something of extreme honor and bravery above and beyond the call of duty.”
Twilight set everything back the way it was. Tears misted her eyes as she closed the trunk, unable to cover it with the junk that had been there before. Rainbow turned away heading into the main bedroom, keeping her back to Twilight and Pinkie. No matter how she tried to hide it, the gasping movement in Rainbow’s shoulders told Twilight her friend was crying.
“Why,” said Rainbow Dash, her voice cracking. “Why didn’t she tell us?”
“I can’t answer that,” Twilight said, still trying to cope with the revelation. “You’ll have to ask her.”
“Twilight?” Rainbow asked, pausing through the welling tears. “Could you promise me the chance to ask her?”
“I’ll do everything,” Twilight said. The words carried a comforting warmth and determination. A sensation she hadn’t felt since her own reports on friendship undid the corruption of Discord.
“She’s not the only one. Applejack told me.”
“No she isn’t.”
“We need to help him too. I’m in.”
With a nod, the three departed, picking up Fluttershy and Dinky Doo on the way. Fluttershy picked the little filly up and put her on her back. Still misty-eyed, Dash turned to the little unicorn on Fluttershy’s back.
“Dinky?” Rainbow Dash said. “You’ve got the best mom in the world.”
“I know.”