//------------------------------// // Medusa Opens Up // Story: 🐍 Medusa // by Phantom-Dragon //------------------------------// "Okay, this is getting too complicated, even for us," Applejack muttered as she continued to pace back and forth, while ranting, "First we got ourselves Medusa, a cursed gorgon we all thought was dead.. surprise, she's alive and she's real." "As real as a donut!" Pinkie Pie chirped, to which everyone looked at the pink girl with unamused glances. Getting back on topic, Applejack continued, "Then out of the blue, we're under attack by monsters that came out of Greek fairy tales, and–" "Mythologies," Twilight corrected. "Excuse me?" the country girl asked. "Well, the correct term is Greek mythologies, not fairy tales." Twilight lectured. "There's actually a big difference between mythologies and fairy tales." Annoyed, if not incredulous at their bookworm friend, Rainbow Dash angrily berated, "IS THAT ALL YOU CARE ABOUT?" Twilight flinched, with Spike jumping into her arms, taken aback by the athletic girl's angry outburst, "Or did you just forgot that we had to fight our way through a monster-infested street to arrive at a dock where we fought a giant crab, only to find our friend missing without a trace!? AND ALL YOU CARED ABOUT WAS FIXING SOMEONE'S LITERARY ERROR?" Holding her book up like a shield, Twilight quivered in fright as she looked back into the blazing eyes of Rainbow Dash, "Force of habit?" she squeaked in her defense. "I'm sorry?" "Rainbow Dash!" Fluttershy scolded. "You ought to be ashamed of yourself! You know better than to intimidate Twilight like that!" Taking a slow deep breath, Rainbow Dash managed to calm herself, "You're right. I'm sorry," Rainbow Dash apologized to Twilight. "I'm just really worried about Sunset right now." "We all are," Applejack spoke on behalf of herself and their friends in the room. "What with those monsters out there on the loose." "And the Box of Grogar, let's not forget about that," Pinkie Pie reminded, holding up Sunset Shimmer's journal, with informations and a sketch of the said box written from Twilight on the designated page. "Apparently, the box will continue to create monsters as long as it remains opened. So all we gotta do is find it and close it. Tight shut. Lock it up like Fort Knox." "Great," Rainbow Dash grumbled. "If we can find it first! It could be anywhere, along with Sunset!" "Which raises another big question," Twilight began. "Why would those monsters want to take Sunset?" "Or why didn't they come for me?" Medusa hissed under her breath, which went unheard. "We could definitely use Sunset right about now," Applejack frowned. "Just one touch of those monsters, and she can trace their origins back to the box. I mean, she did once say she can trace the origins of a snowflake, just by touching one." See MLP: EQG's special Holidays Unwrapped. While the girls continued to exchange their thoughts and worries, Spike turned his head to see Medusa pulling her hood over her snakes and head, as she proceeded to leave the room. With a kick of his leg, the little dog sprinted to chase after the saddened gorgon, out onto the balcony to see her perching her arms on the railings, while gazing longingly off into the distance. Sensing the little dog's presence, the snakes beneath Medusa's hood all let out a hiss, "SSSSSSpike," she hissed, greeting the dog without having to turn around. "Maddie," Spike barked, returning the greeting as he sat down beside the gorgon. With her eyes closed solemnly, her snakes hissing quietly to match the mood of their mistress, "For ssssso long I've dreaded of bringing sssssuch missssery and chaosssss upon everyone in thisssss day and age," Medusa sighed. "But I never once thought it could be like thisssss." "No one's blaming you for anything, Maddie," Spike assured. "I know," the cursed gorgon hissed solemnly, looking down at Sunset's geode which she wore around her neck in remembrance of the girl. "And yet, it feelssss as if I am to blame," she clutched the amulet tightly. "Thissss awful feeling of heartbreak...it....it'ssss nothing compared to the yearssss of taking ssssso many livesssss unwillingly." The rest of the Rainbooms soon made themselves known as they gathered around Medusa and Spike. They had just heard Medusa expressing her self-guilt, "Maddie, please, ya can't keep talking yourself down like that," the girl frowned sadly. "It's not getting us anywhere." "You're right," Medusa hissed. "And I'm ssssssorry, for not trussssting you all at the beginning," dipping her head, while pulling her hood even lower over her face, Medusa sighed. "If I had jussssst told you the truth, then maybe none of thisssss would happen. But now it'ssss too late," a small tear trickled down from Medusa's cheek, "SSSSSunsssset issss gone. And I never got to tell her." Seeing the distress the cursed gorgon was in, noting how she was quivering in both fear and sorrow, Fluttershy gently walked up and puts a comforting hand to her shoulder, though she flinched a bit from the touch, "Shhhh, it's alright," Fluttershy cooed. "You don't have to talk about it, if you don't want to." "Yeah, right now, Sunset is our main concern," Rainbow Dash said. At the mention of Sunset, Maddie looked down at her hand clutching Sunset's geode, lifting the amulet up to look in her open palm. "I'm not giving up on you," Sunset's words echoed. "Like Princess Twilight would say, we're friends until the end." 'Friends until the end of time,' Medusa thought loudly, remembering Sunset's words. "SSSSunsssset," she hissed, turning to the Rainbooms and Spike. "Yessss. We musssst find her. SSSShe would've done the sssssame for me. For all of usssss." she nodded. Rainbow Dash smiled, admiring the gorgon's loyalty, "Attagirl, Maddie!" she said, giving the cursed gorgon a thumbs up. "Now we're talking!" Applejack joined in. "Yeah! The story still lives!" Pinkie Pie chirped. "We can find Sunset! I just know we will! But first, we just need a clue." "But before we begin ssssearching," Maddie began. "I should at leasssst tell you my sssstory." the Rainbooms and Spike all looked to the gorgon with surprise on their faces. "Seriously?" Rainbow Dash frowned. "Now you want it to be story time?" "RAINBOW DASH!!!" the Rainbooms and Spike berated the athletic girl, before they turned their attentions back towards Maddie. "You were saying, darling?" Rarity insisted. "I never told Sunset Shimmer my sssstory," Medusa explained. "Or any of you, becausssse I was afraid to relive the hurt. But sssshould anything happen to any of you, becausssse of me, then I ssshould at leasssst tell you all, while I ssssstill have you. All of you." With that, the Rainbooms, and Spike, all got comfortable as they braced themselves for what Medusa had to say, "We're listening," Fluttershy insisted. Taking a deep breath, Medusa hesitantly began, "I don't remember much of my childhood. But assss you all know, I wasn't alwaysss a monsssster. At leasssst, not like thissss. I remember I wassss jusssst like all of you...or at least, mosssst of you," she said, directly at Spike. "A normal human being, and like ssssome otherssss, I had a family. Sisssstersssss, that isssss." "You mean, it's just you and your sisters?" Applejack asked for clarification. "No mom or dad?" "I don't even know who they are," Medusa answered. "I don't even remember their faccessss. At that time, it wassss jusssst me and my sssssisssstersss, and that wassss all that mattered to me. Thosssse were happier dayssss, but they're all jusssst memoriessss now, and I've forgotten them. They were before....before..." "Before what?" Fluttershy asked. "Before...Athena." "Before Athena cursed you?" Rainbow Dash asked. "RAINBOW!" the friends berated. "What? I was just asking." Shaking her heads in disapproval of her friend's interruption, Applejack turned to Medusa and gestured, "Continue." Resuming where she left off, Medusa continued her story, "I don't know why she picked me, of all humanssss. I...believe it or not, I wassssn't alwayssss so beautiful then. Even as a human, I was regarded as abnormal to everyone. My sssssisssterssss, however, were beautiful. They were welcomed by all, and they were courted by many admirerssss. And yet, I wasssss selected by Athena. I wasssss invited into her temple, to become her protĂ©gĂ©. I remember how much my ssssissstersss had inssssisssted upon me to accept, ssssaying it was such a big honor to be accccc epted assss such by the godessss, hersssself. And ssssso I did." "For sssseveral yearssss, I sssstudied under Athena'ssss tutelage, learning all the knowledge sssshe wishesss to impart me with. But sssstill, I wasss never happy. While I remained sssshunned in the sssshadowssss of Athena, my sssssissstersss continued to grow more and more beautiful each day, while I wassss forgotten by the world. It wassss assss if I no longer exxxisssted and the world ssssseemed more joyful that way. I wassss...I..I..." taking a few deep breaths to calm herself, together with a few gentle strokes from Fluttershy across her long serpentine tail to calm her, Medusa composed herself enough to continue the story. "I felt alone. I....I thought I wassss forgotten, and no longer had any valuesss to the world. I felt worthlesssss. Even worsssse when Athena had tassssked me with making a friend." "I tried sssssso hard to make a friend, but it wasssss a futile endeavor then. No one would ever be friendssss with an abnormal persssson, such assss myssself," Medusa looked down, with tears running down her cheeks as she recalled some of the hurtful words the people had said to discriminate her, to belittle, and talk down to her. "That's awful!" Fluttershy gasped with the Rainbooms and Spike nodding their heads, sharing their shock and disgust with the kind girl. "Awful?" Medusa muttered. "Awful doessssn't come closssse to the day when beauty had at lasssst found me, and I wassss loved by all. I thought I had found friendsssship, but it wassss all lie!" the pipes broke and tears poured excessively down Medusa's cheeks as she continued, "I thought I had found friendssss, companionssss, and love with the beauty I was gifted. But when Athena ssssaid otherwissse, I... I... I... I lossst everything...and everyone I oncccce knew...they were gone. They left me alone." "Oh you poor thing," Fluttershy whimpered, sniffling a bit of tears in empathy for the gorgon. "That's the saddest story ever!" Pinkie Pie bawled, blowing her nose. "What did you expect? Sunshine and rainbows?" Spike asked in sarcasm. "SSSSSo yessss," Medusa frowned. "In her own way, Athena did curssssed me, yessss. But not like thissss. SSSShe curssssed me with a clarity." "Uh...elaborate on 'clarity,'" Twilight asked. "By that I mean, how exactly did Athena give you a clarity?" "By taking away my beauty, the people I thought were my friendssss immediately rejected me!" Medusa hissed in disdain. "I wassss humiliated. I wasss deemed an abomination by thosssse who ssssaw me, disssgusssted by my appearancesss, and my uniquenesssss. And I couldn't hide away in Athena'ssss temple, ssssinccce she had forbidden me from ever returning, until I could find some real friendssss. Friendssss who would love me, for being me, assss she putsss it." "Wow, sounds like you had it rough," Rainbow Dash frowned. "Oh, sorry. Go on." The look of contempt turned to sorrow on Medusa's face as she continued, "I wassss all alone. I had nowhere elsssse to go. And I couldn't asssk my sisssstersss for help. Not when they were ssssso happy with their livessss, and with their loved onessss. I wassss angry. I wasss sad. I wasss.... I dessssperately prayed to the godssss to ressstore my beauty. But I misspoke, and I wassss so foolissssh and selfissssh to asssk for ssssuch a thing. Insssstead of granting my wisssh, I wassss curssssed by the godssss to be thissss way." Tears trickled down even harder on Medusa's face, as she covered her eyes, struggling to hold her tears back, "I wassss already an outcassst as a normal human. But this cursssse had made me a freak of nature. And you all know the resssst." "Maddie..." Rainbow uttered in shock, shedding a single tear as she looked solemnly at the gorgon. For so long, the world and all the Greek Mythologies have described her to be a terrifying creature that haunted the nightmares of storytellers; a merciless demon sorceress; and a selfish, arrogant woman of beauty. But to actually hear it from Medusa herself, and to see her saddened, guilt-ridden, if not traumatized, it had completely changed everyone's perspective on the gorgon. The more they actually got to know her, the more they realized how human she really is. "SSSSo you sssssee, it wassss my fault that I'm like thissss," Medusa hissed tearfully. "Becausssse I wasss so selfish and ssssso stupid to ever be beautiful for friendsssship. Huh?" Medusa looked to find herself embraced in a group hug by the Rainbooms and Spike. "You poor thing," Fluttershy sobbed. "But why–" "No one has to endure all that, just to go lookin' for a friend," Applejack frowned, while struggling not to cry, even though it shows. "But why?" Medusa sobbed, finding it even harder to speak, from the overwhelming sensation of love than it was with sadness. "I'm a monsssster. And even if you could lift my cursssse, say that my true form issss even more repulsive than–" "We don't care!" Spike barked. "Human, or not. We still want to be with you!" "You....you sssstill want to be with me? After all the troublessss I've put you through?" Medusa asked, with a single tear trickling from her eyes. "But I don't undersssstand. I'm a terrible creature. I kill the livingssss. Men, women, children, animalssss, they were all doomed to sssssuffer the ssssame fate of my curssssse. I've tried sssso hard to hide mysssself. But ssssomehow, they sssstill died. I'm really sorry to you, for SSSSunssset, to everyone." "I'm sssso sssssorry," Medusa continued to sob. "I'm so ssssorry for all the hurt that I've caused. I'm sssso ssssorry that everyday I wake up and I'm ssssscared that I'm going to hurt sssssomeone elsssse. Because I know I will. I know I will hurt more and more innocccccent beingssss. I know I alwayssss will, because every time I lay my head down to sssssleep, I'm always returning back to my garden of sssstatues, and just sssseeing them alwayssss givessss me a pit in my sssstomach. I caussssse that. It's my fault. It's my fault. Everything is my fault. Everyone dies because of me. I can't bring them back. It's my fault. It's my fault! I'm jusssst sssscared! I really am!" "Shhhh, there, there," Fluttershy cried. "It will be all okay. You'll see." "Darling, it's all over now," Rarity weeped. "So just let it go." "The past is the past, Maddie," Twilight said tearfully. "I know that because Sunset told me that once. And if she were still here, she would say the same thing to you. Now please, you have to be strong for her." Slowly catching her breath, the gorgon looked to the Rainbooms and Spike, "Again, why are you all doing thissss?" Medusa sobbed. "Why? I don't undersssstand. I've killed sssso many innocccccent creaturessss. I'm a monsssster. Why are you ssstill insistent on giving me your friendssship, even when I don't dessserve it?" "Don't talk down on yourself, Maddie," Rainbow advised. "How can I not?" Medusa whimpered. "I think that everyday becaussssse of what I do to the world. What I contribute. What my desssstiny issss. It'sss a terrible, terrible desssstiny. I have to live everyday. Kill people accidentally, hurt them in an indirect way. It'ssss the inevitable. How does that not make me a monsssster?" "Just because you think you're a monster, doesn't exactly make you a monster," Applejack explained. "Because a real monster never regrets its actions to kill, right? But you regret, so that's definitely saying you still have a heart, right?" the rest of the Rainbooms and Spike all exchanged agreements with the country gal. "Perhapsssss." Medusa hissed. "I ssssupposssse that'sss true. I don't know. Everyday, I regret my actions. I regret my choicesssss. I regret who I am. I feel terrible for any life I take. Any misssstakes I've made. Any sssstonesss I've created." "Exactly that darling," Rarity smiled. "Like we did with Sunset Shimmer, we can forgive you for your past...boo-boos." "Besides, if it weren't for you, I'd be lost in your garden, back on the island, and I might never see Twilight again," Spike added. "And I was an outcast, just as much as you were," Twilight joined in. "In fact, after absorbing so much Equestrian magic that unintentionally turned me into a demon sorceress, I can understand how scared you were." Medusa whimpered, taking in short breathes, as a smile formed on her face, "You....you all are very special....you have beautiful smiles..." "And they're all for you, Maddie!" Pinkie chirped. Medusa sobbed tears of joy as she smiled, "If it's not too late, could I be... still be... a part of your... friendship? I would like to be... loved again. I would like to be part of your world. And your hugs felt so warm... so alive..." "What kind of a question is that?" Rainbow Dash smirked. "You are our friend!" "Definitely!" Fluttershy smiled. "Affirmative!" Twilight added. "Darn tootin'!" Applejack hollered. "Here here!" Rarity joined. "Don't I get a say in this?" Spike asked. Pinkie Pie was sobbing and babbling nonsense, "My heart! It's too full!" she continued to weep. Later that night, the friends were all in bed, getting their rests before they could start a new day tomorrow, with the search for Sunset Shimmer being their main agenda. Back in her shared room with Fluttershy, Medusa was on the balcony, gazing across the horizon, while holding Sunset Shimmer's geode close to her chest. "Are you alright, Maddie?" Fluttershy asked the gorgon. "Are you having trouble, falling asleep?" "I...I'll be fine," Maddie sighed. "I hope SSSSunssset issss alright. Wherever she issss." "Oh, I know. I'm worried about Sunset too," Fluttershy whimpered. "All alone out there, with those horrible monsters. Oh, I just hope we can find her in time." "And thisss...thisss boxxxx of Grogar you sssspeak of," the gorgon continued. "I...for all we know...Sunssset might be one of those monsssstersss already. I hope we sssstill have the chancccce to save her." "I'm sure we will," Fluttershy said, as she walked over to lovingly pet a few of Medusa's snakes. "Because we saved you, didn't we?" Medusa reached her hand up for Fluttershy's hand, feeling the soft, gentle warmth of the girl's loving touch, "Yessss." she hissed. "SSSSSo you have." Fluttershy let out a yawn, "It's getting late. Let's go to sleep. We've got a big day tomorrow." "Yessss, of coursssse," Medusa followed, slithering back into the room, encircling her coil around the bed, before she crawled into bed with Fluttershy. "Fluttersssshy?" she hissed. "Yes?" "Thank you, for everything," as if the first time in a long time, Medusa's lips curled into a genuine loving smile. Fluttershy couldn't help but smile back, seeing how happy her gorgon roomie looked for the first time, "Of course. Anytime."