//------------------------------//
// Nightmare Night 
// Story: Flash Sentry, Defender of the Peace S8 
// by Banshee531 
//------------------------------//

Nightmare Night, the night where everypony dressed up and asked for candy from others. To some, it was kind of pointless, but it was always a good experience. And the School of Friendship was planning on enjoying the event as much as any other place in Equestria. Twilight had decided to throw a Nightmare Night party for all the students, who would all be dressing up in whatever outfit they wanted while enjoying an extra big Pinkie party.

Currently, the students of Rarity's Generosity class were working on their costumes. They were all sitting in a circle, either on sewing machines or doing it by hoof...claw...paw...you get the idea. Ace smirked as he sewed up the last piece of fabric, the young jakhowl holding it up for all to see. "How's this look?" Ace asked Gallus, who glanced it over before nodding.

"Not bad," Gallus replied before holding up his own costume. "But what do you think of this?"

Ace stared at the costume before tilting his head, "Is...it a goat?" He asked, seeing the horns on the head area.

"No!" Gallus yelped, "It's the arimaspi! I'm going as an arimaspi skeleton!"

"Oh...well, I have no idea what an arimaspi is." Gallus chuckled and put on the mask he had just made. It did look rather skull-like with large horns on the top and had a large round hole in the center that had glass covering it to hide Gallus' eyes. "Okay, that looks cool." He then held up his costume and put it on. "But it's not gonna be as cool as mine."

Gallus watched him put on his mask, which was a combo of white and green with a blue spike on the top. "What is that?"

"It's a creature from a book on legendary beings. This one was part of a duo and he had blades coming out of his elbows, which he used to protect his partner, who was some kind of magical princess."

"Huh. Cool."

"Ha!" Smolder laughed, "Well, nobody's gonna have a better costume than me." She held the costume up and everyone instantly recognized it.

"Flashfire?" Mira asked, getting a nod from Smolder.

"Who else!" She responded, remembering how amazed she was when Professor Flash had shown her the first issue of the dragon superhero he enjoyed. Ever since then, Smolder was a big fan of the series too. "Just watch. I'm gonna win the best costume contest." She put the yellow mask on and everyone chuckled at this, all looking forward to the contest Twilight had announced that would be taking place during the party.

"I think my costume is gonna be the best," Ocellus added as she held up a cloak that looked an awful lot like the one they had been searching for during the spell-venger hunt a few weeks previously. She put it on, only to see that it was a little big for her.

"Don't you think you should shorten it a bit?" Smolder asked, but Ocellus just shook her head.

"It'll fit fine once I've finished the rest of the costume." In that moment, Ocellus was consumed by the burst of fire. The next thing the students knew, she was now an orange unicorn stallion with a brown mane and tail. "Tada! Clover the Clever, at your service."

"Hey!" Ace yelped, "That's not fair! Using your changeling magic to make yourself more like the real thing!"

"Head-mare Twilight didn't say I couldn't!" Ocellus laughed before turning back. The others frowned, but knew they couldn't argue with that, instead going back to their costumes.





In another area of the school, Heart, Soul, Silverstream, Yona, Sandbar and Cozy were in Pinkie's class.

They were all making decorations for the Nightmare Night party, working on making bats out of cardboard and other creepy looking images. "You're all doing great!" Pinkie told them as she bounced around the classroom. She then spotted Silverstream and laughed at seeing the hippogriff cover her bat in sparkles and sequins. "Nightmare Night decorations aren't usually supposed to be so colorful, but I like where you're going with it."

"Thanks," Silverstream replied before grabbing a bunch of arts and crafts equipment. "More glitter! More sparklies! More EVERYTHING!" The rest of the students all laughed as they continued their work, all the while talking about what their costumes would be.





Out in the corridors, Flash, Twilight and Applejack were putting up the decorations while discussing their plans for the night. "We've still got to do the main hall," Twilight commented as she stared at her clipboard. "But that has to wait until the students have all completed the decorations. Pinkie's already gotten all the party food prepared and Rainbow's working on the games..."

"Sounds like everything coming along nicely," Flash added.

"Almost," Twilight flickered through the list. "There's still one thing that we need to find. Another chaperone."

"What for?" Applejack asked, "If the nine of us workin' here is enough to keep the school going from day to day, won't it be enough to keep the students under control during the party?"

"Except it won't be the nine of us," Twilight countered, "Don't forget, Fluttershy's not gonna be there. We need somepony to replace her." The pair nodded, now remembering Fluttershy's fear of Nightmare Night. "Plus, we need to be prepared in case some of us are called by the map or something else during the event."

"And we should have enough ponies to take shifts," Flash chimed in, "You really wanna hear Pinkie complain about needing to be all responsible every second of the night instead of getting to go out and enjoy herself? If we get enough ponies to help, we can all enjoy the night and keep the place under control."

"Huh," Applejack put a hoof to her chin before nodding, "Good point. Ah'll see if ah can find anypony happy to help out."

"That would be a big help," Twilight added as they put up the last of the decorations. The rest of the day went by with just as much excitement, with everypony constantly working on making it the best night they possibly could. And when the school day ended, Applejack headed home, smiling at the sight of Ponyville being decorated just as well as the school.

"Gotta love Nightmare Night," she chuckled as the farm came into view. And as she got closer, she spotted somepony flying around the backyard. Rogue was playing fetch with Winona, the thestral having grown quite close to the dog in his time there.

"Here we...GO!" He threw the ball and Winona ran off to get it, Rogue laughing as he landed and waited for her to come back.

"Havin' fun?" He spun around to see Applejack, the grin on his growing slightly wider.

"Who wouldn't have fun with such a good girl?" he chuckled as Winona ran back and dropped the ball at his hooves. "Though I could do without the dog slobber," he laughed as he felt the slime on his hoof. "So, how was school?" He threw the ball at Applejack, who batted it flying with her tail.

"Great. Everypony's lookin' forward to the Nightmare Night. We're having a big ol' party at the school and everypony's going in their favorite costumes."

Rogue nodded at this, remembering the Nightmare Night he had enjoyed the first time he was there. He remembered the costume Rarity had made him, that of a blind superhero that fought crime using sound, and he loved the candy collection he got with the CMC and the many games in the town plaza. The memory made him hope he could repeat it this year.

"Hey," Applejack chimed in, taking the batpony out of his thoughts, "Ah just had a thought. You think you'd mind helpin' out at the school?"

"Me?" Rogue pointed to himself, "What could I do to help?"

"It's nothin' big. We need a bunch of ponies to keep watch at different times that night. All yah have to do is come to the school and make sure nopony does anything too crazy at the party for an hour. Then somepony else'll come by and take over for yah."

"So I'll be in charge?"

Applejack shrugged, "Maybe. I think Twilight's gonna have it be one teacher and one chaperone, working together while the others enjoy themselves. What'd you say?"

"Sure," Rogue nodded, "I don't see why not. Sounds like fun."

"Great," Applejack nodded back as Winona ran up to them with her ball. As Applejack continued to play with her pooch, Rogue now thinking about the idea of being alone with Applejack during Nightmare Night. The two could work together as chaperones for the school and when that was over, they could go have fun together all on their own. Rogue's chest suddenly felt really tight as that idea formed in his head, the bat pony deciding he needed to make this Nightmare Night the best night Applejack had ever had. But how?





The next day...

Rogue let out a yawn as he made his way through the town to Rarity's boutique. He had agreed to collect the costumes for himself and the Apple family, who were all preparing for the festivities. As he arrived at the building, he knocked and waited in the shade of the building so he didn't have to suffer the sun's horrible glare.

A few moments later, the door opened and Rarity saw him. "Rogue. So nice to see you darling. Come to collect the costumes?"

"Yup!" Rogue nodded, stepping into the store and taking off his shades. As he did this, he couldn't help but notice Rarity was looking a little ragged. "Are you okay? You look like you've barely gotten any sleep."

"Oh yes," Rarity sighed, "Nightmare Night's my most productive time of year...unless there's some sort of fashion line I have to make. So many ponies wanting a costume to wear that I've been making outfits for half the town. As you can probably guess, it takes a lot of work."

"Well, I hope you haven't worked so much you won't have enough energy to enjoy tonight."

"Oh, even if I'm exhausted, I intend to enjoy myself as much as possible. Even if it means spending the next seventy-two hours afterward in a never-ending sleep. Now, where did I put-aha!" She removed several costumes from off the rack, then floated them over, "So, what do you think?"

Rogue stared at the clothes, seeing the many different costumes he and the Apple Family would be going as. Applebloom was planning to be a Kirin, having been interested in them since seeing one at some point Rogue didn't know about. Big Mac's was a large wolf costume, as he was apparently doing a couple's costume with Sugarbelle. Then there was Applejack's, which was a very shiny costume that looked like it was made out of metal. A toy axe was connected to the sides and a cone-shaped hat could be seen. "What is Applejack going as anyway?"

"The tin-mare," Rarity replied, "She would have gone as it last year, but the costume got damaged the night before and she had to go as something else." Rogue blinked at this, remembering that she had dressed up in a blue and white dress with her mane tied in pigtails, though she didn't seem happy about it. "And I hope you enjoy your costume. I designed it after I heard what Applejack was going as."

Rogue raised an eyebrow at hits as he held up the last one, seeing it was a very furry costume with holes in the back for his wings and a blue and red vest, the mask being that of a monkey. "What am I going as?"

"A flying monkey," Rarity laughed, "The wings are supposed to be feathered, but I'm sure you'll managed." As she said that, another customer arrived and Rarity rushed over to help with them.

Rogue quickly got the costumes properly folded in his hooves, putting on his shades and heading out the door. Looking around, he saw the place was properly creeped up. Ponies were carving pumpkins and preparing the booths for the night that was about to come. He then noticed Fluttershy running around the marketplace, grabbing as many carrots and other vegetables she could find.

"Are you okay?" The mare jumped at this, only to turn and sigh.

"Oh, hello Rogue. I'm fine. Just wanting to make sure I have everything my animals and I need before the sun sets."

"Are you really just gonna sit out the whole night?" Rogue asked, Fluttershy nodding back. "Sounds like a waste. Shouldn't you at least try and enjoy Nightmare Night, even if it's only once?"

"Oh, I already tried. But even though I was able to get into the spirit of things, it just wasn't for me. I'd much rather spend my time at my house, snuggled up with all my friends reading a book. That's my idea of the perfect nightmare night." She grabbed some more pears and headed off, leaving Rogue to head back to the farm. He arrived as Granny Smith finished feeding the chickens.

"So," Granny Smith spotted him, "Got the costumes?"

"Yup," Rogue replied, "Are you sure you don't want to come out and have fun?"

"Oh, no. These old bones stopped being up for Nightmare Night a long time ago. You young'uns will just have to have more fun in mah place." She let out a yawn. "Whelp, I'm gonna go take a nap. I'll probably be up half the night giving out candy."

"Who'd come all the way out here just to get a bit of candy?" Rogue asked, but Granny laughed and told him a lot of ponies. He watched her leave before looking down at costumes before flying up to the second floor and through a window into the hallway. He hung Mac and Applebloom's costumes up on the doors before heading back out and to the School of Friendship.

When he arrived, he headed straight for the teacher's lounge. He gave it a knock and a few moments later, the door opened to a smiling Twilight, "Hey Rogue. Dropping off the costumes?"

"You know it," Rogue replied as he flew in and saw several more costumes hanging from hooks on the wall. Flash was also there, helping Spike as he was busy working on something. "What are you two doing?"

"Spike's trying to finish his costume," Flash grumbled, "We keep telling him not to leave it until the last day, but does he listen? No!"

"Hey! I'm a busy dragon!" Spike yelled as he continued sewing, "And I always get it done on time. Heck, might I remind you that the first year we were in Ponyville, I finished with my costume before the two of you and all you had to do was cut holes in a bedsheet." Flash and Twilight rolled their eyes as Twilight saw Rogue hang the costumes up.

"Tin-mare and the flying monkey. I didn't think you and Applejack were doing a couples costume."

"Couple?" Rogue spun around with wide eyes, "I don't know what you're talking about. We're not a couple!"

The other three leaned back at his slight outburst, surprised by this and then, Flash and Twilight shared a smirk. "I never said you were," Twilight laughed, "But it's clear you'd like to be." Rogue's face began to turn red, "Oh? Is that how we looked before we got together?"

"Nah," Flash shook his head with a chuckle, "We were way worse. Like, a ton of tip-hoofing that frustrated everypony, especially Cadance." He pointed at Rogue at this, "Come on, it's clear as the nose on your face. You like Applejack. There's nothing wrong with that."

"There isn't?" Rogue asked.

"Of course not," Twilight waved her hoof, "And I'm willing to bet Applejack likes you too. You two enjoy spending time together, don't you?" Rogue nodded, "Then you should tell Applejack how you feel."

"What?! It's not that easy!" Rogue yelped, "And Applejack isn't the kind of mare that likes lovey dovey stuff!"

"Neither is Rainbow," Flash added, "And she's married. You don't have to make some big romantic gesture for Applejack to tell her how you feel."

"I...don't?"

"Nope," Spike chimed in, "Applejack's a simple mare. She'd probably see something like that as a big waste of time. She's the Element of Honesty, so be honest with her."

"He's right," Twilight nodded, "Maybe you should try and tell her how you feel tonight...when you two aren't watching over the party of course."

"But what if she says no?" Rogue asked, "I could end up ruining our friendship."

"Everypony has that fear," Flash commented as he patted his shoulder, "I was worried of losing Twilight as a friend if we didn't work out as a couple. But now look at us. You've gotta be willing to take the plunge. Cause if you don't, another pony might try and snatch her up. Somepony's already tried to get her attention once."

"They have?!" The three nodded, saying his name was Trenderhoof. Rogue sighed, but nodded. "Fine, I'll try and tell her. But I'm doing it when it's just the two of us alone. No way am I having anypony else see if she turned out to reject me."

Flash and Twilight nodded again, both agreeing that was perfectly alright. They then spent the next little bit discussing what Rogue would say, agreeing that he needed to be direct and to the point. Once that was done, Rogue left to find Applejack. He first looked for her in her classroom, but found her lesson had already ended before going around town, but she was nowhere in sight. And when he did finally find her, she was in Sugarcube Corner surrounded by several of her friends.

Rogue groaned at the sight, knowing this was gonna take a while.





That evening...

As the sun began to set, the ponies of Ponyville were eagerly awaiting the start of Nightmare Night. Many were already dressed in their costumes as they watched the sun slowly disappear behind the horizon. Some moaned at how long it was taking, a few even thinking Celestia was keeping it up just to mess with them.

But finally, the last rays of light vanished below the horizon and the ponies all cheered as they rushed out their houses. And in the School of Friendship, the teachers and agreed upon chaperons were all getting dressed. Rogue felt a little embarrassed in his flying monkey suit, but the others said it looked good on him.

Flash was dressed in his traditional ghost sheet costume while Twilight was dressed in a lab-coat, goggles and a wig of white frizzy hair. Rainbow was wearing a white dress with a black wig that was styled backwards and had white streaks running up it while Soarin was wearing a bulky black suit and had a headpiece on that made his head look more square. Both he and Rainbow had bolts attached to their necks.

Pinkie and Wild were both dressed like clowns while Rarity was in a kimono and ceremonial headdress. Lightning was next to her, dressed in a samurai costume with a plastic sword strapped to his side. Spike was, to Rogue's confusion, dressed as a dragon. A silver-colored dragon with his green spikes sticking out the back and his wings had been painted silver. Springer was dressed like a cowboy, wearing boots, a hat and leather jacket with a belt around his hip that holstered a water gun. Starlight was dressed up like something Rogue had never seen before. Her mane was green and curled at the ends while she wore a fur dress that was a mixture of green, black and purple. Her front hooves had green fur gloves that went up to her knees while her back ones had bracelets made of the same material. And finally, Grand was dressed like a zombie.

"You all look great," Twilight commented as she put on a pair of rubber gloves. "Now, I've made a timesheet for all of the times we're gonna be watching over the party." She took out a scroll and placed it on the wall. "We'll all be watching the first hour to make sure nothing bad happens when it starts up. Then, pairs of two will keep an eye on everything and switch with another pair every twenty-five minutes. This'll be your time and your partner."

Everyone looked at the scroll and saw their names besides who their partner was followed by the time they needed to be watching over the party. In order, it was Applejack and Rogue, Spike and Springer, Rainbow and Soarin, Rarity and Lightning, Pinkie and Wild, and Starlight and Grand.

"Everyone understood? You just need to keep everything under control for twenty-five minutes, then you can have the rest of the night free to do whatever you want."

"How come you and Flash aren't on that list?" Rainbow asked.

"We're gonna be here the entire night," Flash chimed in, "You didn't expect us to leave just two ponies here to run the whole thing, did you?" Rainbow nodded back and as the clock struck the hour, they all smiled as it meant the party was about to start.

"Alright ponies," Twilight exclaimed, "Let's get out there and show our students the best night of their lives!"

"YEAH!" They all cheered before heading off to the cafeteria, which had all the tables and chairs to the side, turning the middle into a dance floor. Tables lined the far walls and were covered in plates of snacks and drinks, just waiting for the party goers to come and enjoy themselves. And they soon came just as Twilight unlocked the cafeteria doors, the students beginning to strut into the room dressed in their outfits.

Heart was wearing plastic armor similar to what Flash wore in his Shining Guardian form while Soul was dressed like a doctor with a lab-coat and stethoscope. Ace was wearing the full costume of the being he was talking about. His chest was green and had a red spike sticking out of his chest and back, while his elbows had green plastic blades sticking out of them while his whole bottom half was white. Mira was dressed similar to Ace, only her mask didn't have the spike on its head and she was wearing a white dress with green arms and her mask had green hair on it.

Gallus was wearing his arimaspi skeleton costume while Ocellus was dressed in the redone Clover the Clever outfit, the changeling remaining in her true form. Smolder was dressed as Flashfire, wearing a yellow mask and purple suit while Sandbar was dressed as a Vampire, Cozy dressed as a princess, and Yona was wearing a furry mask with her normal green back blanket gone. Silverstream was the most interesting of the costumed students, wearing a pink shirt with blue overalls and a pink hat that had a white spot on the front with a pink S inside it.

"Welcome every-creature," Twilight waved her hoof as the last of the students arrived. "I'm happy to see everypony getting into the spirit of the holiday." The students all cheered at this as Pinkie zipped over to the boombox with the music they would be playing that night. "Tonight is a night I hope you'll all remember as a great one you got to have with your friends. Now, enjoy yourselves, but please remember this is still a school, so please don't do anything too insane." The students laughed at this as the head-mare nodded, "And without further droning from me-"

"LET'S GET THIS PARTY STARTED!" Pinkie cheered before hitting the on button, the boombox beginning to play music as the students all cheered and started dancing. The teachers and chaperones all chuckled at the sight before going to the side, some trying to act dignified, but eventually the rhythm of the music got the best of them and started dancing as well.

One of the only ones not dancing was Rogue, who didn't feel like making a fool out of himself. That is, till Applejack clanked over to him. "Come on Rogue." She grabbed him by the leg and dragged him onto the dancefloor, "Can't have yah looking like a sad sack all on yer own." Rogue cried out as he was pulled along, soon being surrounded by the students and teachers who were moving their bodies in ways that he felt were unnatural.

"But...I don't know how to dance!" Rogue replied.

"Nopony does!" Applejack laughed, "This ain't some fancy pants contest where yer supposed to move in a certain way. Just do whatever feels right. Heck, look at those two!" She gestured over to Flash and Twilight, the pair kicking their back legs up and swinging their front ones around like psychos.

Rogue couldn't help but laugh at this, but still stood in place for a few moments as Applejack swayed her body from side to side and stomped her hooves on the ground. After a few moments, Rogue let the music flow through his body. This caused his hoof to tap on the ground while his head started bobbing, Applejack smiling at this. And as he listened to it more, his dancing grew more enthusiastic.

"That's the way!" The farm-pony cheered, "YEE-HAA!" They continued to dance around, Rogue following her lead and beginning to laugh along with her as their dancing go more intense. They kept this up for a few songs, only to soon get exhausted and headed over to the snack table to get a few drinks. Twilight was also there, studying the punch like it was a bomb about to go off.

"What's up Twi?" Applejack asked as Twilight took a sip from each bowl.

"Nothing," she responded, "Just...had to check the punch."

"Why?"

"Celestia warned me. I asked her for some tips on throwing a good school party and she told me to periodically check the punch bowl. One time a party at her school got a little out of hoof because somepony poured hard cider into it."

"Yikes," Applejack gulped, "What happened?"

"She didn't say. Guess she was a little too embarrassed." Twilight then looked at the time and saw the first hour of the party was quickly drawing to a close. "Everypony else will be heading out soon. You two sure you're okay watching over the place for another half hour?"

"No problem Twi," Applejack waved her hoof, "This is kinda fun, right Rogue?"

"Err...yeah," Rogue nodded. "And heck, if we do our turn early, we won't have to worry about coming back later and can enjoy the rest of the night however we want."

Twilight nodded at this, only for a bulb to go off in her head, "Say, do you two mind doing a quick patrol of the school the make sure nopony's snuck off? Apparently, that's something else that happens during a Celestia party. I doubt any-creature here will do that, but better safe than sorry."

"You got it Twi," Applejack replied, "We'll take a look around and send anypony we find messin' round back here." Twilight nodded again and the pair headed off, leaving the cafeteria and beginning to search around the place. The pair walked in silence as the music continued to play in the background. But slowly, it got quieter before the pair were eventually walking in complete silence.

"See anythin'?" Applejack asked him, Rogue reaching up to his face.

"Ah can barely see anything in this mask." He pulled the monkey face off of him and gasped, "Geez. That thing gets seriously hot."

"Why'd yah pick it then?"

"I didn't. I asked Rarity to make me something she thought would look good and she made me this since she thought it would go well with your costume."

Applejack blinked at this, only to facehoof, "Oh yeah. Can't believe ah didn't realize it before. You and I have costumes from the same storybook."

Rogue nodded as they reached the courtyard and looked up at the moon. "You went as a character from that story last year, right?" Applejack nodded, "And then the two years before that. What, are you gonna be a big green head next year?"

"Maybe," Applejack laughed as she sat on the fountain. "It's a really good book with a lot of great characters. And the other books are just as good."

"Is that why you like it so much?" Rogue asked, sitting next to her. "Going as all the characters...it must be your favorite book."

Applejack nodded. "It wasn't always, but ah guess it grew on me over the years. Especially after what happened in Manehatten."

"Huh?" Rogue raised an eyebrow, Applejack chuckling back.

"Oh yeah, ah never told yah that story. See, ah wasn't always the farm gal yah know. When ah was really young, ah wanted to leave the farm life and go live it up in dah big city. So ah left Sweet Apple Acres and moved to Manehatten to live with mah aunt and uncle there. Ah was living the high life and learning to be the respectable lady."

The two shared a look before they both burst out laughing. "So...let me get this straight? You were trying to be Rarity?" They laughed again.

"Pretty much. Why? That sound silly to yah?"

"It's just...really hard to imagine you acting all high and mighty and trying to pick which spoon to use."

"Well, yer right ta laugh. Ah might have hit in there, but it just wasn't me. Ah realized ah missed home way too much. That's when ah saw this amazing rainbow leading all the way home. So ah followed it and when ah got back, mah cutie mark appeared and ah knew ah was right where ah belonged."

"What does that have to do with the story?" Rogue asked, entertained but still unsure what she was getting at.

"You ever read that story?"

"No, but Twilight once summarized it for me when I asked about that costume you wore last year."

"Well, think about the plot. A farm girl is whisked away from her quiet farm life and finds herself in a strange new world, full of unusual but amazin' things. But despite all that, all she really wants to do is go home and be with her family. And then a magical thing helps lead her home."

Rogue blinked at her, only to slowly nod, "You identify with the girl cause the same thing happened to you."

"Yup. Replace ruby horseshoes with a rainbow and her adventure is an exaggerated telling of mah time away from home. When ah got back, ah was lookin' for a book ta read ta Applebloom and found that one. As ah read it, ah realized ah was just like the girl in the story. It's been mah favorite ever since. Cause it reminds me of mah own time away from home and helps remind me why ah came back. It reminds me of who ah am."

"I get it," Rogue nodded, "Everypony wants to have something to remind them of home." He looked up at the moon, "Like me. When I first went to find my family, all I thought about was meeting them and finding out who I really was. But after I met my mom and Banshee and had all those questions answered, I realized that wasn't where I belonged. Sweet Apple Acres was my home. Not because it was where the golden apple trees are, but because it was the first place I truly felt wanted."

Applejack smiled back at this. "Well, mah family are happy you're with us now. Things have gotten a lot more lively with you around the farm, helping out when you can." Rogue was happy to hear this, the stallion opening his mouth to respond, only to see Applejack get up. "Well, we should probably get back before Twilight comes and starts tellin' us off for not actually looking for anypony. I don't think any of them are out here doin' what they shouldn't be."

Rogue's mouth stayed open for a second more, only to silently sigh and got off of the fountain as well before following her. And when they got back to the cafeteria, they found the other chaperones had all left to go have some fun on their own. Many of the students had chosen this time to take a break from dancing and grab a bite to eat, many sitting on chairs around the dancefloor and eating to their heart's content.

"You're back," Twilight chimed in, "Find anything?"

"Nope," Applejack told her. "Nopony in the school except the ones in this classroom." Twilight sighed in relief at this and thanked them both as the music changed to a certain song. "Ah yeah!" Applejack exclaimed as she pulled Rogue with her back onto the dance floor, the pair beginning to dance alongside Gallus, Silverstream, Ace, Mira, Heart and Cozy Glow.

Their enjoyment continued until the end of their shift, Twilight thanking them again and saying they were free to do whatever they wanted the rest of the night. The pair quickly exited the school and passed Spike and Springer as they headed into town, where they found the place full of ponies in all kinds of outfits. Cute ones like ladybirds and bunnies while others were scary looking like mummies and werewolves. They even spotted Derpy, who to their amazement had chosen to dress as Tempest Shadow back when she attacked Canterlot. Besides her was her little sister Dinky, who they assumed was dressed like Grubber.

"Wanna try at the spider toss?" Applejack asked, Rogue smirking and nodding back. The pair ran over and grabbed a spider before throwing it, the spiders flying through the air and landing on the webs. They both cheered and high-hoofed before continuing onward.

And when they approached Sugarcube Corner, they saw Pinkie and Wild along with Mr. and Mrs, Cake. Mr. Cake was wearing a black and white striped suit and tie with his hair slicked back and died black along with a drawn-on mustache while Mrs. Cake was wearing a black flowing dress and a long black wig. Pound and Pumpkin were also dressed up, Pound wearing a black and white striped T-shirt while Pumpkin was wearing a black dress with white spots.

Big Mac and Sugarbelle were coming up the street at this, Mac wearing his wolf costume while Sugarbelle had a red cloak on her back with its hood up and holding a basket.

The three couples noticed the pair and smiled, waving at them as they passed. "How cute," Mrs. Cake giggled, "They chose a couples costume as well."

"I didn't even know they were dating," Mr. Cake added.

"They're not," Pinkie chimed in, "Or...at least not yet." They all smirked as they watched them continue on, the pair looking around. They then arrived at the town hall, which was decorated better than anywhere else in Ponyville.

"Come in!" Mayor Mare exclaimed, "Come in! Come and experience the terrors of the haunted halls."

"They turned town hall into a haunted house?" Rogue asked, Applejack smirking.

"Sounds like fun. Let's go take a look." Rogue nodded and the pair headed inside, finding the hall had been turned into a maze. They walked in and turned left as mist and shadows filled the place. "Doesn't look so scary."

"Especially for somepony that can see in the dark." Rogue commented, the pair turning another corner, only to find a bit more darkness. Only one light in the hallway before them was working and even that one was flickering while a bunch of windows lined the left wall despite them being a fair way into the building. When they stepped up to the windows, they saw they were looking out to a red skied night that was pouring with rain despite there being no clouds in the sky.

The pair then spotted a shape in a window corner, Rogue at first thinking somepony was hanging a mop outside the window, but then a flash of lightning appeared behind it and the shape gained a pair of bright red eyes to make them realize it was a head...that was staring at them upside-down from outside. The pair flinched at this, quickly running away from the window, Rogue glancing back long enough to think that the eyes were following them.

As they moved, they heard a creaking sound from up ahead and tried to see if there was a pony ahead of them. But there wasn't as they continued deeper into the haunted house. The next few scary things were the basic stuff, foam spiders, creepy moans and blood dripping from the ceiling. The blood had taken them by surprise, a single drop landing on Applejack's back and making her shiver.

"This place...ain't scary," Applejack whispered, "Sure, that window was a bit of a surprise, but that ain't enough to scare me. This place is probably better for little foals and-" In that moment, a door to her left shot open before something leapt out at her.

"GYAA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA!" A witch pony cackled right in Applejack's face, making her cry out and stagger back into Rogue.

"WHOA!" They both cried as they landed in a pile together, their hearts beating a hundred miles an hour until they realized the witch was an animatronic that quickly retracted into the room it shot out of, the door closing behind it. They then looked at one another and saw how close they were to each other, a blush appearing on both their faces as they pulled away. "Yeah..." Applejack repeated, "Not scary at all."

"Yup." Rogue nodded as they got up and headed further into the maze of terror.

They assumed they were getting close to the exit and as they drew near, only for another sound to catch their attention. "What's that?" Applejack asked, the pair lifting an ear...and hearing the sound of crying, weak sobs that echoed in the darkness.

"Think somepony was going through it alone and got so scared they couldn't move?" They continued down the corridor as the crying go louder, the high-pitched tone of the voice making them realize it was a child crying. And when they turned a corner, they spotted a little filly hiding in a dark corner.

"Hey," Applejack spoke as comfortingly as possible, "Ya'll okay?" But the little filly continued to sob, "Why yah crying?"

"She's gone," the filly replied without looking at them.

"Who's gone?" Rogue asked.

"My momma."

"Where is she?" Applejack asked. "Maybe we can find-"

"She's gone," the filly interrupted her.

"Alright," Rogue held out a hoof, "Would you like to come with us then?"

"She's gone. My momma." The older ponies shared a glance, only to look back at the filly as she continued, "She's gone. She-she's gone. She's gone. My momma. She's gone. My momma-gone-she's-momma-my-gone-momma-momma-gone."

"I think she might have been scared insane," Rogue whispered to Applejack. The farm-mare frowned before reaching to touch the filly. But as she did this, the filly's head turned. And by turned, it did a complete one eighty while the rest of her body remained completely still. And when the filly's face was revealed, the two saw her eye sockets were empty and had blood pouring out of them.

They thought it was staring at them, only to follow the eyes to the ceiling above them. And when they looked up, they were greeted to the sight of a pony clinging to the ceiling with spider-legs in places of hooves and a row of stained red teeth. "It's momma."

"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"





Outside the haunter halls, Rogue and Applejack sat on a bench, the pair curled up into a ball and rocking back and forth.

"What sicko thought that up?" Rogue asked, Applejack shivering at the memory.

"Ah'm bettin' Time Turner's the one that made all those things. But if he actually came up with 'em, he's got a seriously twisted mind." They remained there for several more minutes, letting the memories of that horrible event replay in their minds.

"Hey Applejack!" The two looked up and saw the CMC standing in front of them, Applebloom dressed in her kirin outfit while Scootaloo was dressed as Daring Do and Sweetie Belle was dressed as a robot. "Hey Rogue. You two go check out the haunted halls?"

"They let you in there?!" They both cried, the three girl nodding their heads.

"Yeah!" Scootaloo cheered, "It was awesome! That last scare at the end sent goosebumps up my spine. What about you two? Were you scared?" The two shared a look before quickly getting out of their curled up sitting arrangement and tried to looked more relax.

"Us?" Rogue asked before laughing, "As if. We weren't scared."

"Yeah," Applejack nodded, "That place didn't scare me one bit." It took a lot for the Element of Honesty to tell a small fib, but this was a special occasion. "So, what about you three? Havin fun this Nightmare Night?"

"Yeah," Scootaloo exclaimed, "We already got a bunch of candy. My teeth are gonna have holes in them by the time I'm finished eating it all."

"I'll remember to tell Flash that," Applejack chuckled, making Scootaloo glare at her.

"What about you two?" Applebloom asked, "Are you having fun tonight?"

They shared another glance and smiled. "Yeah," Rogue nodded, "Tonight's been pretty great."

"Really great," Applejack added before looking over at a nearby clock. "But it's gettin' kinda late." She turned her attention back on the CMC, "Ya'll should really be headin' home now." The girls all moaned at this, Applebloom asking if they could stay out a little while longer. "Fine," she sighed, "But only another...twenty minutes. Then ya'll head home." The girls cheered and ran off as Applejack got up and stretched. "Maybe we should go see if everythin's alright at the school."

Rogue nodded again as they headed back to the school. Along the way, they saw less and less ponies out. Most had probably exhausted themselves from all the scares and gone home while others had likely gone to offer some of their candy to the Nightmare Moon statue. They soon arrived back at the school and as they stepped into the halls, they heard the music still playing in the cafeteria. And as they approached, they heard Twilight's voice being amplified.

"Has every-creature had a good time?" She asked, getting a bunch of cheers from the students. "I'm happy to hear. Now, I'm sure many of you have been wondering who the winner of the costume contest is." The two arrived at the cafeteria and stepped inside to see everyone looking at Twilight. "Now, has everypony cast their votes?" The students all nodded back, "Good. We've counted up the votes, and now its time to announce our winner."

Everyone stood giddily, Applejack and Rogue moving over to where Flash, Grand and Starlight were standing. Twilight opened the envelope and read, "And the winner of the contest is...Yona with her Gnawbacca costume." They all cheered as Yona moved up onto the stage, her expression hidden behind the furry mask she was wearing.

"Really?" Rogue asked, "Isn't she wearing the smallest costume of the whole lot?"

Applejack shrugged at this as Twilight congratulated Yona and gave her the prize of a giant bar of chocolate, Yona smiling as she took it and returned to the others. "Well, I'm sure we've all had a lot of fun tonight. But even so, it's time to bring this party to an end." They all moaned at this, Twilight nodding. "I know, I know. But if it lasted forever, it wouldn't be special. So how about we enjoy one final song before we all head off to bed?" The students cheered as Flash switched the boom box on, the music echoing throughout the cafeteria as everyone began to dance.

Rogue turned to see Applejack go snag some of the last of the punch while the bat pony looked back and watched the students dance around. Heart and Cozy danced together, along with Gallus and Silverstream, Yona and Sandbar and a few others he didn't know the name of.

And as he watched, Flash and Twilight walked up to him. "Hey there." Flash chimed in, "So how'd it go? You tell her yet?"

"No," Rogue shook his head, "I haven't had the right time."

"You've had all night," Flash replied, "You'll need to do it soon, or you're gonna lose your nerve, and then it'll seem impossible to tell her."

"I guess," Rogue sighed, "Okay. I'm gonna do it when we get back home. No holding it off any longer. And no matter what happens, I'm not gonna regret it." The two smiled at this and wished him luck, the pair leaving to dance to the last song as Rogue watched Applejack down the punch.

"I hope..."





The moon was high in the sky when Applejack and Rogue arrived back at the farm. On their way back, Ponyville had been as quiet as a ghost town. The lack of ponies and creepy decorations had done a lot to help the place look ominous, though Rogue hadn't been scared since he was used to things being like that.

Looking up at the farmhouse, they saw the light in the kitchen was still on, but the rest of the house was pitch black. Applejack headed inside while Rogue sat down and looked up at the moon. As he did, he remembered the first time he had ever seen it, when he had been chased out of his first home by the multi-headed drakeladon.

Back then, he thought he would never find another place to call home. But now that he had spent so long in Equestria, with the Apple Family and all his new friends, he realized that place had never been his home. It had been his prison, one the drakeladon had freed him from. And now, no matter how awkward things were gonna get after tonight, he had a home he could always feel safe in.

"Looks like everypony's asleep," Applejack told him as she walked back out of the house. She had removed some of her costume and Rogue began to do the same while the farm-pony carried a tray of drinks. She gave him a bottle and the pair sat down side by side, "To a great Nightmare Night."

"To a great Nightmare Night," the clinked their glasses and downed half the bottle, Rogue letting out a sigh as he leaned back, Applejack looking at him.

"You feeling okay?" Rogue turned to her with a raised eyebrow, "You haven't had a golden apple since this afternoon. You sure yer okay?"

"I'm fine," Rogue replied, "I guess my resistance to my own poison's been going up. Now I can go about twenty-four hours before it starts making me feel unwell."

"That's good," Applejack nodded, "Guess it won't be long before ya'h completely immune."

"Yup."

"Which means yah won't be tied down ta this place anymore." Rogue went wide-eyed at this, only to see a frown on her face, "Any idea what yer gonna do when yer immune?"

"No," Rogue shook his head, "Never really thought about it."

"Ya'll could go back and stay with yer family."

"Do you want me to leave?"

"NO!" Applejack cried, then blushed at her sudden outburst. "Ah mean...yer a good worker. Ya'll keep the farm protected at night. Ah'd hate ta lose that. But...ah know ah'd hate to be away mah family that long."

"Maybe," Rogue nodded, "But...aren't I with my family?" Applejack went wide-eyed at this, "My mom and my brother might be my blood, but you all were the ones that took me in. Even after I stole from you, you were willing to help me. You gave me a place to stay, and you gave up part of your land so that I could have the apples I needed to survive. Even though I was an outsider, you made me feel like part of the family. And thanks to you all, I got to make friends in this town. I got to learn and experience so many things that I never even dreamed of seeing when I was in my cave."

Applejack smiled at this, "Ah'm happy you were able to find a place here. And yah've helped out a lot since coming. Guarding the orchard at night, helping Mac and Applebloom when they were having trouble with Sugarbelle, and coming to save us when the Changelings attacked. We might have let you stay because we felt sorry for you, but ya'll more than earned the right to call this place yer home."

"Thanks," Rogue glanced back at the farm, "This...this is my home. I might not have been born here. I might not have spent a good portion of my life here. But this is where I feel safe. This is where I want to be when my time on this earth ends. Right here, in Sweet Apple Acres." He slowly turned to her, "With you."

Applejack felt a bit of heat grow on her face, unable to respond as Rogue stared at her. That is, till he steeled his courage and thrust his head forward. Applejack's eyes went wide as Rogue's lips touched hers, the farm-pony's entire body freezing while her brain shut down at this, her heart now feeling like it was about to explode.

And as Rogue pulled away, the mare remained still, the bat-pony frowning as he looked away. "I'm sorry. I...I knew this was a mistake. Flash and Twilight said it was a good idea and...and..."

"Why'd...you do that?" She slowly asked, Rogue now looking down at the ground. "Please, tell me."

Rogue remained silent for a moment, then took a deep breath. "Because I really like you." He turned back to her, "I like you a lot." Applejack's heart continued to pound, feeling that heat on her face come back, "I don't know when it started. I don't know why, but every time I think about you, I can't help but feel this tension in my chest." He got up and walked away from her, "Sometimes you're all I can think about. When I see you working in the fields, sometimes I can't look away from you as you're working. I just..." He looked back at her again, "I like you. I'm not sorry for it. You're the most important pony in my life and if you don't care about me the same way, I understand. I just couldn't keep my feelings a secret any longer."

Applejack stayed where she was, staring at him for several moments as her brain began to shift its gears again. Then, couldn't stop herself from beginning to laugh. Rogue's eyes went wide hearing this, his heart beginning to break apart. "You...you're laughing at me?"

"No," Applejack shook her head, "Not you. Just...this whole situation." Rogue raised an eyebrow at this, "Ah...ah always figured ah'd be the one member in mah group to go her whole life without somepony actually likin; me. Never thought ah'd get confessed to like this."

"But Flash said somepony already tried to ask you out!" Applejack tilted her head at this, "Trend...something?"

"Trenderhoof? He didn't really like me. It was just one of those love at first sight kinda things. Those aren't real emotions. Not like this." She got up and moved over to him, "Yah really like me that much?" Rogue nodded, "Well ah'll be."

"So?" Rogue asked, "What does this mean? Like I said, it's okay if you don't like me back. I just-" He didn't get to finish as Applejack pulled him in for another kiss. This time, his eyes went wide, only to close them as he kissed back, the pair staying like this for about a minute.

And when Applejack pulled back, they stared into each other's eyes. "Ah don't really know how ah feel about yah," she replied, "But ah know ah like yah more than ah like most other stallions." Rogue slowly smiled back. "And I want yah to stay here until yer dyin' day too. Stayin here...with me." They leaned in and kissed again, neither sure what else to do in that moment.

And when Rogue pulled away, he inquired about that very thing. "So...what happens now?"

"Ah'm not sure," Applejack looked up at the night sky. "Ah guess the best thing ta do is...go on a date, like what the others did. Maybe we'll find we're not meant to be more than friends, or we'll find out we're a perfect couple. Only way ta figure that out is ta try things and see how it works out."

"Yeah...I guess." Rogue slowly said, "But...if things between us don't work out...can we still be friends?"

Applejack nudged him back, "Always." She held out a hoof and he took it, Applejack pulling him closer and the two hugging for several more moments. Applejack then pulled away and after giving Rogue one final smile, she headed inside.

Rogue remained there for a little while longer, then his face broke out into a smile as he leapt into the air. "YES!" He cheered, throwing his hooves up high before letting himself drift back down. He landed and stared up at the sky, his hooves behind his back. "Nightmare Night," he whispered to himself, "It really is the most magical of nights."