//------------------------------// // 12. It's showtime! // Story: The cool children // by therandomone95 //------------------------------// Chapter 12: It's showtime! ------------------------------ Monday, 12:00 PM. Time for the talent show. ------------------------------ "Thanks for coming to this wonderful event, everypony! We want to start the talent show giving credits to everypony who contributed to make this event possible: We want to thank our best benefactor Filthy Rich for letting us stay in this theater, thanks to Octavia Melody and Vynil Scratch for giving us a wonderful soundtrack to help give this event proper ambiance, we thank our students for cooperating and making this event possible; and last but not least, we thank YOU for taking the time to be a part in our show!" It was finally time. Miss Cheerilee was starting the show, and most of Ponyville had gathered in the theater to see the foals' talents; everypony backstage was nervous, but some were strangely calm. Spike and Button Mash were specifically excited to see how their plan would work out. "To start our event, a pair of students want to give us an introduction to their presentation. Fillies and Gentlecolts, please give a warm welcome to Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle!" Said fillies emerged from the curtain and everypony cheered for them, Miss Cheerilee gave Apple Bloom the microphone before going backstage. "Thanks! Welcome, everypony! Thank you so much for coming to our little talent show! We want to say that a lot of us guys and gals got together a little play of act one of 'Princess Celestia, an equestrian musical.' This is very important to us because it made us work together as a group to give you our best and honest work!" Said Apple Bloom before giving the microphone to Sweetie Belle. "Yeah! However, it saddens us that not everypony could show up to this play... More exactly, we're sad our friends Scootaloo and Rumble couldn't be here because of... certain events... But I'm sure that, if they were here, they'd say something like: Let's get out here and show everypony the power of musical theatre!!!" Everypony clapped their hooves when Sweetie Belle finished her sentence. "Costumes!!!" Sweetie Belle heard her sister Rarity shout from the back of the theatre. "Oh, right! And thanks to the Carousel Boutique for providing us of our costumes too!" Everypony clapped except Rarity, who struck a pose. Applejack, who was sitting next to her, looked at Rarity with her eyebrow raised. "What? They didn't give us credit at the beginning! It's fair!" Said Rarity, Applejack shrugged with a smile. "Sure it is, Rarity." ------------------------------ Backstage ------------------------------ Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle went back inside the curtains, ans proceeded to make sure everypony was ready for the play. For the moment, it looked like everything was in place, but there were two particular boys who weren't there. Whatever, in the meantime, they made sure to lighten up the mood before the play started. "Alright, everypony go to your places! Thanks for coming 'spite of your legs, Snips." Said Apple Bloom as she walked through everypony. "Good luck, everyone! Go break a leg!" Said Sweetie Belle happily. Snips looked at his crutches, then at Sweetie Belle and put a very annoyed expression on his face. "Not cool. VERY not cool." Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle looked at Spike and Button Mash entering from the back door, and proceeded to run at them and scold them for not even being on costume. "Oh, hey Sweetie Belle." Greeted Button Mash. "Hello, Apple Bloom!" Waved Spike. "What are you guys doing?! The play is starting right now, and you're not even dressed!" Scolded Apple Bloom. "Yeah! And Miss Cheerilee now is trying to practice to do your part, Spike!" Followed Sweetie Belle. "Wait, wasn't Miss Cheerilee in charge of stage production?" "She is doing your role too." "Sweet Celestia..." "Wait wait wait!" Said Button, getting the attention of both fillies. "Sweetie Belle, I've been thinking about what you said-" "Button, I can't do this right now." "Nonononono, I finally understand! I understand that, you can't be with anyone because you don't know who you are yet, right?" "Umm... Yeah?" "Well, I totally get that! And I think it's awesome! I felt that way too." Sweetie felt her heart skip a beat. "B-but I didn't realize that that's what I felt, I thought it was just about like, being cool. But, it was more than that. It's about being confident, and understanding who I am. And I couldn't figure that out on my own." "Button... You're saying that... I helped you do that?" Asked Sweetie Belle with a blush on her face. "Well... Yes and no, I mean... Not JUST you." "Huh?" "He is right." Said Spike, getting the attention of the group. "I used to think we were the only ones at school who felt this way; alone and sad, but we can fix that!" "What do you mean, Spike?" Asked Apple Bloom. "What if we could take something that could take all those bad feelings go away? We would always get along, we would never feel alone anymore and we would always know what to say." "I have to ask again, what are you talking about, Spike?" Said Sweetie Belle. "This." Said Spike, pulling out two bottles, handing one over to Button Mash. "What is that?" Asked Sweetie Belle. "Don't touch it, Sweetie. It's one of those damn bottles of magical liquid." Everypony's heads turned to Apple Bloom, who had a face of surprise and disgust. "WAIT! Apple Bloom, how do you know-" "-About that? Simple, I had a cousin in Fillydelphia who took one of those damn bottles and she ended up at a mental hospital." Apple Bloom left Spike's jaw hanging. "What did it do to her, Apple Bloom?" Asked Sweetie Belle. "That bottle has dark magic inside it, and when it gets inside you, it takes control over you, and it tells you how to live your life, what to say and what to do." Said Apple Bloom with disgust and anger on her face. "Button... That sounds horrible!" Said Sweetie Belle, which got a surprised look from Button. "Maybe I got some stuff to figure out, but I don't need a bottle of weird liquid to do it for me!" "Nonono, it's not like that, it helps you!" Button tried to excuse himself and Spike's actions, but it was too late, the damage had already been done. "So, what's wrong with me now?" Asked Sweetie Belle, getting a sad look from Button and Spike. "Same goes for me. Spike, I can't believe you drank that! Is that what's been going on with you this whole time? Has that thing been telling you what to say to me?" "W-wait! Isn't that a good thing?" Asked Spike, trying to get on Apple Bloom's good side. "No, it's not. We have to go." Said Apple Bloom. Sweetie Belle nodded and both fillies got away from them quickly. "Wait, Sweetie Belle-!" "Shit! Shit! What did we do?" Suddenly, Spike and Button Mash felt a familiar headache get on their brains; and from one moment to another, Spike visualized the fake Rarity standing in front of him with a smile, and Button saw his dad giving him a friendly look. "It's okay, Spike!" "I anticipated their resistance!" 'So why did you let us say all that stuff?!' Asked Spike with worry. "So that you would see for yourself what was neccessary! Not everypony is as open to change as you were!" "Offering them a solution would simply delay the results we desire!" 'No, no, they're right. I don't think I can do this. And Spike doesn't look happy either.' "Spike." Spike looked at Button, who gave him a sad expression. "What is it, Button?" "Is there any more of the liquid?" "I think there's a box left." "Then let's get rid of it." "HA! Just try it!" Button's dad laughed, making him confused. 'What are you laughing at?' Asked Button to his dad. "There's nothing you can do, Spike." 'What do you mean by that?' "I also anticipated your resistance, Spike. So I took the decision out of your grasp." Said the fake Rarity with an evil grin on her face. "Remember what happened with the box YOU left behind?" 'I... I just left it there.' Said Spike, horrified by the amount of things that could go wrong because of his clumsiness. "Yes... And do you remember who was there when you left it?" 'Featherweight? What did you make him do?!' "He took the magical liquid to a very special place, and you're about to find out where." "Alright, everypony!" Miss Cheerilee's voice snapped Spike and Button out of their thoughts. "Remember that, if at any point you feel thirsty, here's a jar of water for all of you! Just take one plastic cup, okay?" 'Wait a minute, so we were out of town, and there's no way Featherweight could've taken that box to town with how weak he is... Unless the dark magic helped him carry it somewhere else! Still, he couldn't have gone that far; even with the help of the dark magic. So the only place out of town that Featherweight could've taken the box is...' Spike was unable to finish his sentence, so the fake Rarity did it for him. "The Ponyville water reserve? Of course! You're very smart, Spike! Now imagine it; how many ponies need water and how much time has passed since you left Featherweight there? Hmmm... I guess more than a few ponies will be delighted with my special touch soon!" The fake Rarity mocked Spike, laughing at him. "Miss Cheerilee! Where did you get this water from?!" Asked Spike frantically to his teacher, who gave him a confused stare. "Umm... From my house? Don't worry, there's no toxic substances this time, Spike." Said Miss Cheerilee, letting out a nervous laugh. "Button!" Spike called his friend, who turned around with worry. "What's the matter now?" "The liquid is in the water reserve!" "WHAT?! Miss Cheerilee, you can't let anypony drink from that jar!" Button's dreadful expression made Cheerilee uncomfortable. "What are you two talking about? This is old plain water. I should know it, I tried some myself earlier!" "What?!" Spike and Button shouted. בואו נצטרף עכשיו בואו נצטרף עכשיו "OW!" Yelled the three of them. "Spike, we need to get-" Button was cut off by Cheerilee, who bucked them away from the stage and on their backs. "I can't let you ruin the play, boys." Said Cheerilee darkly. "M-Miss Cheerilee?!" "You needy, pathetic, SELF-CENTERED STUDENTS! Do you think I'll stay here in Ponyville forever? NO! My husband says I can go to Princess Celestia's school for the gifted! I just have to stop you from ruining this show." Spike and Button stared at Cheerilee in the eye, and they saw that she had been completely taken over by the dark magic. They saw no other potion but to get away from the stage. 'Hey! What are you doing to them?!' Asked Button to his dad, who was pleased by this outcome. "I'm making their desires more compatible with your own! Don't you see? Our mission can only be truly complete if everypony is kept inside a happy mental hive!" 'With you as its leader?' "And I'll make your life better!" Spike looked at the stage, and he saw Diamond Tiara come out. "Oooooh, that was a lot for my throat. I'm so thirsty." Diamond Tiara grabbed a cup and poured some water in it; before Spike could fully realize what was going to happen, she drank the cup. "DIAMOND TIARA, NO!" "AAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUGGGGHHHHH! THIS IS GREAT!!!" Spike looked to the jar, and he saw that, while the water wasn't exactly clean as it should be, it was quite hard to distinguish if there was magic in it. 'You're going to take control of Ponyville, aren't you?' Spike saw that the fake Rarity was having too much fun watching this scene develop. "Heh, that's just for starters!" 'THAT'S NOT WHAT I WANTED!' "It's the ONLY way to achieve what you want! But why should we stop there? There's a whole planet of suffering creatures who desperately need my help! I was only going for ponies this whole time; but you helped me realize that even dragons can have issues. It is the great purpose for which I was created, and I owe that discovery to you." Spike was out of ideas, but he knew he wouldn't let this happen. 'I'll fight back!' "How?" 'Alcohol messes you up, right?!? Uhh... I'll get drunk!' "And then I'll get back when you're sober; unless, of course, that you want to stay wasted forever?" Spike slapped himself for how stupid his idea was. "Button, I got nothing." Said Spike to Button, who was also trying to find a way to fight back. "Spike, these guys are just magic, right? There HAS to be a way to counter it!" "I would stop there if I was you! You don't wanna end up like Scootaloo and Rumble, do you?" His dad reminded Button that Rumble and Scootaloo had gone crazy at the Nightmare Night party, and afterwards they seemingly attempted to kill themselves by burning the house down. Was that it? Was that really the solution to this problem? Did he really need to resort to the easy way out to stop the dark magic from taking over? That couldn't be it! There should be another way! There just HAD to be another way! It wasn't fair for him to die because he made a mistake! It's not fair! It's not... It's... ... ... It was totally fair. Nopony made him drink the bottle by force, and his issues were about to be the doom for all ponies. It wouldn't be fair if everypony got enslaved because of him. It was not going to be fair. "Spike." The dragon faced him. "There is ONE way to save everypony." Spike was at a loss of words. He stayed like that for several mometns before accepting that Button was right. There was nothing they could do for Equestria anymore. "I hope you're not considering doing what I think you're considering doing." Said the fake Rarity with a frown. "If we can't stop them, at least we won't contribute to this mess." Said Spike, earning a sad nod from Button. "What in Equestria are you saying?! That's the most illogical thing to do!" Asked Button's dad in awe. 'I'm saying you're not gonna make me do something stupid in your name!' "Come on, Spike! We need to get out of here!" Said Button, to which Spike nodded and started walking towards the exit. "Spike, don't you DARE take another step forward!" Demmanded the fake Rarity, but Spike did not stop walking. "Button, you better obey me right NOW!" Shouted Button's dad with fury in his voice. 'You're not my dad.' Suddenly, both of them felt their legs unable to take another step forward, and their bodies collapsed on the floor. They looked up and they saw the fakes, staring down at them with their eyes completely black and furious expressions on their faces. "Listen, you pitiful souls! WE ARE GOING TO IMPROVE YOUR LIVES! EVEN IF WE HAVE TO TAKE OVER EQUESTRIA TO DO IT!" Their eyesight became blurry, their mouths started to gather saliva and they could barely move an inch; it seemed like everything was over for them, but luckily, they snapped out of their trance when they felt a sharp pain in their bodies. Spike saw the fake Rarity losing force over him when a purple light enveloped his body. Both boys got up and looked over to see what had happened. Spike's jaw dropped and his frown turned to a happy but surprised smile when he saw his saviors. "Twilight! Pipsqueak! Dinky! And Rainbow Dash too?!" "Sorry about that! I needed to blast you for a moment. I hope it didn't hurt that much." Said Twilight, rubbing her horn. "We were sitting in the audiende thinking: 'this is pretty good for a school play', and then we realized, OMIGOSH! THIS IS WAY TOO GOOD FOR A SCHOOL PLAY!" Said Dinky in a panic. "Wait a minute, how are you guys safe? The dark magic is in the water!" Asked Button. "When Pipsqueak told Twilight about you two being jerks because of that potion, she figured out what was about to happen inmediately! So she took Pip and Dinky to my place for the night!" Said Rainbow Dash with a proud smile. "But why your place?" Asked Spike. "Because as a pegasus, I have my own storage of water in my house! You don't think there was a pipe that went all the way up to the clouds, didya? Anyway, we are not affected by the dark magic; but I can't quite say the same about our friends, though." Said Rainbow Dash, looking over to the stage in sadness. "Ohhh, that makes more sense." "And that's not all. We even got something extra! Show 'em Miss Twilight!" Twilight did just as Pipsqueak told her, and she showed a bottle of white liquid. Spike and Button's jaw dropped at the sight. "Guys, is that-?!" "The cure to your magic problem? Yes it is, Spike." Said Twilight. "That's amazing! Give it to us!" Twilight gave the bottle to Pip, and he looked like he was about to give Spike the bottle. "Okay! Wait a minute, no!" "WHAT?!?" Everypony asked in shock. "B-but Pip! We need it!" Pleaded Button. "And I need an apology..." Everypony facehoofed at hearing Pip's words, except Spike, who faceplanted on the floor. "What? I think that's in order! These guys treated me like I don't exist for days, and Spike insulted me when I tried to help!" "Wait, you did what...?" Asked Button in surprise. "Alright fine, Pip, I'm sor..." Spke found himself unable to finish his sentence. "Excuse me, what I tried to say is I'm sor..." "Really? You can't even say it?" Asked Pip in annoyance. "Pip, just give them the bottle!" Said Dinky from behind. "Not until they apologize!" Button stepped in. "Pip, what Spike was trying to say for both of us is that we're sor..." "Really?! You too?!" "Pip! We're sor... sor... sor..." "Is it THAT hard to say sorry?" "YES! Come on, dude! This is important!" Pleaded Spike again. "And this is important to me!" "It's a WORD!" Protested Button. "It's a gesture! GESTURES MATTER!" "Smash bros. techniques, activate!" Then, out of nowhere, Spike raised his fists and tried to punch Pip on the nose, taking everypony by surprise. But Pip was fast enough to evade the punch; which was only milimeters away from hitting him. Then, Button charged against Pip, who this time was tackled by Button; the bottle flew in the air, but luckily, Rainbow Dash caught it. Spike saw it, and he fired a fireball towards Rainbow Dash; but he missed and the fireball hit the roof. "What's wrong with you, guys?!" Asked Rainbow Dash, trying to escape from Spike but finding herself unable to do it in a theater. Miss Cheerilee turned around and she quickly saw that the ceiling was on fire, and she quickly made a move, freeing herself from the magic for an instant and going on stage, interrupting the play. "Attention, everypony! The theater is on fire! This building will collapse in minutes! Everypony get out!" As soon as she said these words, everypony got out of the theatre screaming and trotting as fast as their legs could carry them. Miss Cheerilee returned backstage and warned the fillies and colts about the fire. Most of them got out inmediately; and Miss Cheerilee found little to no reason to not follow them. But, just as she got free, she got consumed by the dark magic. Cheerilee turned around and saw the jar of water. After a little debate with herself, she grabbed the jar and ran out of the theater. Maybe it could be useful later... Once outside, everypony began chatting about what had happened, and began creating gossip about who could've started the fire. "Oh my Celestia! Who could be the heathen capable of burning down a theater full of mares, stallions and foals?!" Asked Rarity in disgust to Applejack, who shrugged. "Don't know, don't care. I'll just focus on finding my sis. I saw Miss Cherilee take the foals outside, I hope she is with her." "But look at the bright side!" Said Pinkie Pie, getting ready to drop another pun. "Miss Pie." Started Rarity. "Please no." Followed Applejack. "We all had a BLAZIN' BLAST of a time while it lasted, right?" Everypony who heard the pun turned around and stared at Pinkie Pie with expressions that went from disgust to puzzlement. "What? Too much?" "Ugh, these poor ponies are in serious need of help, don't you think?" "Obviously. They must be corrected." "Let's save these pitiful ponies!" "The dark magic is starting to take control over them!" Observed Twilight. "Rainbow Dash! Over here!" Rainbow Dash saw Dinky waving at her from the back, and she quickly threw it at Dinky. Button saw her, and he ran at Dinky, trying to punch her. But Dinky predicted this, and called for help. "Miss Twilight! Here you go!" Twilight saw the bottle coming her way, and she quickly grabbed it with her magic. She turned around and she saw a furious looking Spike standing in front of her, ready to fight. "Give me the bottle, Twilight." "I would only give it to Spike." She said, defying him. "I AM SPIKE!" Spike charged at her at full speed, but she avoided him by mere centimeters. Spike turned around and smiled darkly. He clenched his fists and blew fire at them, envolving his hands on fire. "Woah, that's new." Said Twilight before Spike punched her. Luckily, she could form a force field around her just in time, but it was quickly burning itself out as Spike punched her. "Guys! I need help!" "Throw it at me!" Yelled Rainbow Dash. Twilight put away the force field for a moment to toss the bottle at Rainbow Dash, but the bottle was intercepted by Button, who somehow had managed to jump high enough to catch it. "WHAT? How did he do that?!" "The dark magic must be increasing their capacities!" Shouted Twilight, charging at Button, who avoided her. Button was about to smash the bottle on the ground, but he was stopped by Dinky, who tackled him to the ground from behind. The bottle rolled over to Pipsqueak, who now had the attention of both Spike and Button Mash. "Guys...?" "That was s-s-s-so yo-yo-yo-you! You love feeling sssssssuperior, right?! Just because you could kiss a grgrgrgirl before us?! Because you don't ca-ca-ca-care about being ppppprrrrrrrrropular?!" Asked Spike, trying to hit Pipsqueak, who kept avoiding his punches. Pipsqueak could tell Spike was trying to hold back, since he was slower trying to hit him. "What?! Of course I care! I just know it's not gonna happen." Said Pipsqueak as he tried to run away from Spike, but was stopped by Button Mash. "So what, then? Why did you no-no-no-not give us the brbrbrbrbottle?! You're just ma-ma-ma-mad at us because we didn't g-g-g-give up like yoOOOOoooouuu did?!" Asked Button Mash, trying to pounce on Pip but failing. Pip could also tell Button was trying to resist their influence. "I'm not mad at you! I'm very jealous that you try!" "Well we're jealous that you don't because you don't need to!" Spike grabbed Pip's tail and Button proceeded to give him a slap on his cheek. Once this happened, the boys seemed to regain more control of themselves. "Then that's why you're hitting me?!" Asked Pip, rubbing his cheek. "We're not trying to! It's the potion!" Yelled Button. "Pip! It's taking over our bodies! We need your help! Pipsqueak! We're... S...S... SORRY!!!" Said Spike, letting out a tear. Twilight and Rainbow Dash proceeded to grab Spike and Button Mash, while Dinky came to Pip's aid. The colt looked around for something to do, and he saw Snips trying to get to the exit, slower because of his crutches. "Snips!" Yelled Pip, getting his attention. "Look, long story short, these guys drank a potion that's making them act like jerks and it's taking over their bodies. While we try to hold them down, could you please make them drink this white stuff?!" Pipsqueak gave Snips the bottle. Snips thought about it for a second before answering. "Actually, I'll do it with one condition." "ANYTHING!" "You better give me a hundred bits after this. I mean, that dragon DID destroy my confidence." "YEAH FINE WHATEVER! JUST DO IT!" Yelled Dinky as she tried to hold down Spike while Pip held down Button. "Alright then, here goes nothing." Said Snips, opening the bottle. "Not on our watch." The fake Rarity and Button's dad appeared and their eyes inmediately began turning white. בואו נצטרף עכשיו בואו נצטרף עכשיו "OW!" Frunted the three colts as everypony else stared at them with surprise. "What was that?" Asked Twilight in surprise. "Wait... If that's what I think it was... SOMEPONY STOP SNIPS!" Yelled Spike, but it was too late. When everypony looked at Snips, he was next to the exit door pouring the content of the bottle outside. "AAAAAAAAAAHHHHH! NOOOOOOOOOOO!" Everypony yelled in fear. "Aww, Spike! Look what you made me make him do!" The fake Rarity continued to taunt Spike inside his head. "Why, Snips?!" Yelled Rainbow Dash. "Sorry, guys, but now I'm even more awesome than I was before! Just take a look at this!" Said Snips as he threw his crutches and the bottle out the door. "Woah! It healed your legs?!" Asked Twilight in surprise. "NO!... But I can't feel pain. It's awesome! And now you'll feel awesome too, guys!" Snips suddenly tried to jump on the group, but Twilight caught Snips with her magic and threw him to the other side of the room. "Guys! Let's get out of here before this place burns down!" Said Spike, watching the walls get weaker by the second. Everypony ran out of the door, catching their breath as they were finally out. Spike looked around, and he saw two very familiar fillies approaching. "Hello, Spike." Diamond Tiara and Silver Spon's eyes glowed intensely. "Hey, we just wanted to tell you that we're not mad anymore." Said Diamond Tiara, stepping closer to the group. "Yeah, I'm not mad because you broke my heart and made out with Diamond Tiara; I just really wanted to be seen." Said Silver Spoon. "And I'm not mad you dated my best friend and wouldn't make out with me; I just wanted to be liked." Said Diamond Tiara. "Spike, if we get out of this we'll have some SERIOUS TALKS." Said Twilight angrily at Spike, who rubbed his head blushing, while looking down in shame. "Wait, he didn't date me! And I like you!" Said Silver Spoon, looking at Diamond Tiara. "What? He didn't make out with me! And I see you!" Added Diamond Tiara, staring back at Silver Spoon. "Omigosh, why was I so jealous of you? You were jealous of me? That's the nicest thing you've ever said to me! Sisters forever! JINX!" Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon talked at the same time, winking and smiling at each other while doing so. "Ugh. That's why I don't like girly stuff." Grunted Rainbow Dash. "Same here, Dash." Said Dinky. "I was never REALLY that into girls stuff either." Added Twilight. There was a brief but incredibly awkward silence. "HELLO! You didn't forget about me, didja?!" Shouted Snips from behind them, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon looked at him with a happy stare. "Hi, Snips! Could you come to my house tomorrow?" Asked Diamond Tiara. "And mine the day after? We'll have ice cream!" Added Silver Spoon. "Do you see how happy they are when they just GET WITH THE GROUP?!" The fake Rarity continued to annoy Spike. "Guys, the bottle! It's like 50 meters away!" Said Spike, ignoring the fake Rarity. Everypony looked at where Spike was pointing, and indeed there it was. "There might still be a few drops left!" Said Button Mash. "But how are we going to get past them?" Asked Dinky, hiding behind Pip. "Guys! Remember when we played Smash bros. Brawl's story mode?" Asked Button, to which Spike and Pip nodded. "What are you talking about? This is serious! How is that going to help us?!" Twilight asked angrily. "We stick together, push 'em aside and never yield!" Shouted Spike and Pip, smiling at each other. "You can fight off my control, boy. But I really want to see you fight off all of THEM!" Said Button's dad, pointing at something. Button turned his head towards the bottle, and he saw that a crowd of controlled ponies was starting to form. "Quick! Get the bottle before they do!" Rainbow Dash nodded and quickly flew off to grab the bottle. Twilight and Dinky pushed Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon aside, and ran towards the bottle. Spike and Button grabbed Snips' crutches and punched Snips backwards, giving them enough time to run. Button and Spike tried to run along with everypony else, but their path was blocked by the rest of their class. "Spike...?" Asked Button, looking for a way out. "Maybe we can retu-" Spike turned around and he saw that the way back was blocked by Diamond Tiara, Silver Spoon and Snips. Not only that, but getting back inside the theater was an undisputed 'no'. The theater was starting to collapse. "Leaving so soon?" Asked Diamond Tiara in a mockingly playful tone. "Well, it looks like we're doing this the hard way." Inmediately, Spike struck the crutch he was holding at the ponies, while Button did the same. "Hey, but for how long we're doing this?" Asked Button to Spike, who looked just as scared as he did. "Until we can get through." Said Spike as he tried to hit a filly. As the boys tried to fight the ponies around them, more were starting to show up. Rainbow Dash grabbed the bottle, but when she turned around, she saw Fluttershy staring at her. "Fluttershy, let me pass." "But Rainbow Dash, we are happy now. Why don't you JOIN US?!" Fluttershy's eyes turned bright red and she tried to tackle Rainbow Dash, but she was fast enough to avoid her and fly over to where her friends were. Twilight, Dinky and Pipsqueak tried to push the citizens of Ponyville away, but their numbers were starting to increase. "Guys, we need to run!" Shouted Pipsqueak, to which the girls nodded. Twilight tried to use her magic to get past the crowd, but her horn stopped glowing at the sight of her friends standing in front of her. "Rarity... Applejack... No..." "Darling, this is better than anything we've ever felt before! You should try it!" Said Rarity. "Yep, you'll be happier, sugarcube. Come on, don't be so stubborn!" Said Applejack. Both ponies charged at Twilight, but she put up a force field around the group, protecting them from the crowd. "I won't be able to hold them off forever! We have to do something!" "There are more ponies coming, any ideas?" Asked Pipsqueak, to which everypony shook their heads. "TWILIGHT!" Everypony looked up, and they saw Rainbow Dash approaching with the bottle on her hooves; but she was being chased by multiple pegasi. "I'll throw it! Be ready to catch!" Twilight nodded and she charged her horn; after a few moments, the force field expanded and pushed the ponies away. Twilight made a run for it, but everypony chased after her. "CATCH!" Rainbow Dash threw the bottle moments before the pegasi surrounded her. Rainbow Dash tried to fly in another direction but it was no use, she was surrounded from all sides. 'Well, I did the best I could, good luck, guys.' Afterwards, every pegasus threw themselves at her, inmobilizing her and throwing themselves at the ground with her. Twilight jumped, and she caught the bottle; but the focus of the crowd was on her now. Twilight ran to the right, but she was blocked; then she tried the left, but her path was blocked again. Desperately, Twilight looked for a way out, and she saw that there weren't many ponies going after Pipsqueak and Dinky. "PIP! DINKY! CATCH!" The foals turned their heads, and Twilight threw the bottle at them. Inmediately afterwards, everypony jumped at Twilight, leaving her defenseless. Twilight tried to shake free from their grasp, but they had her well held down. Twilight looked up, and she saw Miss Cheerilee standing over her with an evil grin on her face and a glass of water on her hoof. "Your friend Rainbow Dash enjoyed it; we assure you that you will enjoy this too." Afterwards, all the crowd heard were screams from under them. Pipsqueak and Dinky had caught the bottle, but now THEY were being chased. Dinky gave Pip the bottle, but before Pip could question her, she put a hoof on his mouth. "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. Just get to them and make them drink it!" Dinky charged at the crowd of ponies successfully, making many of them lose their balance and blocking the path for the ones behind. Pip saw a clear path to Spike and Button, and made a run for it. However, when Pip was about to reach Spike and Button, he heard grunts behind him. Pip turned around and he saw Dinky being held down by the controlled residents of Ponyville. "DINKY!" "PIP! HURRY!" Dinky whipped her head, ordering Pip to keep going; which Pip did with a hint of hesitation. Pip didn't look back, but he heard Dinky trying to get free, only to be silenced afterwards. Pip was almost next to them, but a colt jumped in front of him; Pip took a closer look to see who it was, and he saw that Featherweight was standing in front of him with a big smile on his face. "Featherweight? You too?" "Pipsqueak, I just wanted to be part of a group; and now I finally am! And I'm not letting you take this away from me! Isn't that right, everypony?!" Afterwards, everypony's attention turned to them. Everypony, including Featherweight, looked at Pip with smiles on their faces. I JUST FEEL SO CONNECTED TO YOU GUYS, RIGHT NOW! "GUYS!!!" Spike and Button Mash turned their heads and they saw Pip waving at them. "THIS IS FOR YOU!" Pip threw the bottle, just in time before being pulled away by the crowd. Spike caught the bottle and saw that there were indeed, a few drops of the white liquid. "Quick, Spike! Drink it!" Shouted Button Mash. "I know!" "Spike, you don't wanna drink that!" "You might want to re-think that, Button!" The fake Rarity and Button's dad appeared in front of them, but this time, Spike and Button were not afraid of them. 'Oh, yeah? WHY?!' "Because if you do, you'll never be with her!" Their heads turned, and the boys saw Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle approaching in the middle of a path the ponies had made for them. 'Apple Bloom?' 'Sweetie Belle?' "Hey there, guys! Boy, are we glad to find you!" Said Apple Bloom with a smile. "Wait, you are?" Asked Spike in surprise. "Yes we are, and actually, we wanted to apologize to you two... You know, about earlier." Said Sweetie Belle softly. "Wait, why do you want to apologize?" Asked Button. "Because... We feel AMAZING." Apple Bloom and Sweetie's eyes started to glow brightly. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!" Both boys yelled to the sky, but the fillies approached them anyways. "Spike, I'm sorry I was so afraid of telling you this before, but I've liked you for a long time." Said Apple Bloom while she embraced Spike in a soft hug, which he recluctantly accepted. 'That is not Apple Bloom.' Said Spike to the fake Rarity, who was smiling in satisfaction to see her task with Spike coming to an end. "I assure you, it IS Apple Bloom! Her fears and insecurities have just been removed!" 'W-wait, so you're saying that she...' "That's right. She'll do whatever you say, just like I promised." Said the fake Rarity happily. "Button, I'm sorry for being so rude back there, and I'm also sorry for backing out at the party... But now we can finally be together!" Said Sweetie Belle, starting to close the gap between their faces. 'Sweetie Belle wouldn't say that. What have you done to her?' Asked Button to his dad, who was looking at the scene smugly, waiting for Button to seal the deal. "Nothing! That's the best part about this!" Button was staring into Sweetie's eyes, and she lowered her head so she could be hugged by Button. He looked at her with a smile forming on his lips, but one thought appeared in his mind, which erased the smile from his face. 'No. It's not her.' "Spike, now are you sure you want to drink those last drops?" Spike contemplated the fake Rarity's question, could it be true? Could Apple Bloom really be attracted to him? No, it couldn't be! If that was the case, then they had drank that stuff for nothing! But then again... The fake Rarity hadn't been wrong on a lot of things... Except for that time she didn't calculate his drink would be spiked! Yeah, that could be it! Then, Spike remembered that he had talked to Apple Bloom behind Snips' house that same day. She had been pretty vague about it, but Spike was sure Apple Bloom had a crush on Snails. Was he really going to take Apple Bloom's and everypony else's free will just so he could be with her? Was he really so selfish that he would steal her from Snails? No. Maybe Spike was a bad and selfish dragon for even considering it, but he wasn't going to enslave Equestria just for his silly crush. Maybe his heart would ache when he'd see her dating Snails, but at least she would be happy. As long as she was happy, that was all that mattered to him. Spike looked at Button, who stared back at him. Both looked at each other with sad expressions on their faces. Button looked down to see Sweetie Belle one last time before looking back at Spike with a sad nod. Spike nodded back. 'You're right, I'm not going to drink this. She is.' Said Spike, looking at Apple Bloom one last time. "WHAT?!? You foolish dragon! Then I'll be inside your head forever..." Said the fake Rarity with indifference towards Apple Bloom. "Drink this." Said Spike to Apple Bloom, who grabbed the bottle. "Wait, Button! Think about what you're allowing! If she-" Button's dad couldn't finish his sentence, because the damage was already done. Apple Bloom had just emptied the rest of the bottle, to everypony's surprise. Apple Bloom suddenly dropped the bottle with a blank expression on her face, which worried Spike. "H-how are you feeling?" "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!!" Apple Bloom began screaming. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!" Diamond Tiara followed her shortly afterwards. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!" Snips squealed in pain on the floor. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!" Miss Cheerilee was next. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!" What's wrong with you, people?!?!?!" Yelled Pipsqueak in confusion. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!" Suddenly, everypony in town was screaming in pain, some covered their ears, some covered their eyes, some tried to run but it was no use. Soon, everypony was on the floor, unconscious. אירעה שגיאה אירעה שגיאה אירעה שגיאה אירעה שגיאה אירעה שגיאה אירעה שגיאה אירעה שגיאה "Spike!" "Button!" "S-SPIKE?!" "BRBRBRBRUUTTTTTOOONNNNN?!?!" "AAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAoooooooOOOOOOOOOOOuuuuuuuuuUUUUUUUUUUUggggggHHHHHH" טיפשים! אתה לא יכול לעצור אותי! באתי מכאוס לאכוף סדר! אני אחזור וכולכם תצילו! אני מבטיח! ... ... ... ...