A Rainbow's Shadow

by slowlearner46

Chapter 2

“What do you mean Nightmare Moon?!” The stunned pegasus stumbled back from the mirror. Twilight having the decency to turn away the reflective surface with her magic. This was not something that any of the ponies in that room expected that day. Accidents happen, they knew that, but it wasn’t a normal occurrence for one of their physical features to change dramatically like this.
“Your...eye Rainbow. Those colors, y-your pupil. I can never forget where i have seen that before” Twilight said with almost certainty, that worried smile never leaving her face.
“But...but why?”
“I don’t know, but i plan to figure out” Twilight stated, replacing her uneasy look with curiosity. Hoof to her chin, she leaned in closer to get a look. An awkward silence carried on as she leaned in closer. It was enough to make Dash uncomfortable. Just as the cramped pegasus was opening her mouth to object to any further examination, Twilight cut her off.
“You haven’t been playing around in poison joke have you?”
“Umm...no. Not that i can remember,” Rubbing her hoof against the back of her neck in thought, “Besides, wouldn’t there be blue spots or something?”
“Well not exactly. Rarity, applejack, and fluttershy didn’t have any” Twilight explained.
“Oh. Right,” Still speaking in a confused tone, “But i am pretty sure. I wasn’t anywhere near the Everfree Forest recently” Still rubbing the back of her neck, Rainbow Dash just got a prickling thought in the back her mind.
“Pinkie Pie, This isn’t some prank is it?” Rainbow Dash whispered, giving the pink pony a hurt look from across the room. Twilight stopped looking at Rainbow and turned her attention to Pinkie Pie, who was being abnormally quiet this whole time. They both noticed that she was deep in thought and wasn’t even noticing the two staring at her. Her eyes shifted left and right as if she was physically looking for answers in the wooden floor at her hooves. Her mouth moving silently as if trying to figure out an equation in front of her. It wasn’t until Rainbow Dash cleared her voice that she snapped out of her thought process.
Huh?” Pinkie realizing the eyes that were on her, “Oh no no no no. I would never go this far with a prank. That’s when a prankster turns into a meany pants bully” She objected to the claims, waving her hoofs out in front of her. “Besides, I would be laughing if this was a prank, even though it isn’t. Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye” Going through the motions of the swear named after her.
It was enough to convince the other two that she was innocent in all of this. Twilight shrugged and went back to scrutinizing Rainbow’s eye. But the latter kept looking at Pinkie Pie. She was just happy that her friend wouldn’t hurt her like that. Pinkie can go a bit over the top with her pranks, but Dash didn’t like to think that she might hurt a pony just for some laughs. Dash gave her normally energetic friend a smile, but her own face grew into a more serious glare.
Rainbow Dash was suddenly afraid. Very afraid. She wanted to dart out of that building and run as fast as she can, away from this pony. Sweat began to form from her brow and the more she stared the worse her fear grew. It felt as if time slowed down to a near stop. She tried to move or fidget, but she couldn’t. Why was she feeling these emotions? She didn’t do anything wrong. Yet when she looked into those blue eyes, she felt nothing but fear. ‘She knows! That insignificant little foal knows. I can sense it, but how?!’
Rainbow Dash shook her head violently trying to get that voice out of her head, making Twilight lean back in surprise. When she looked back up at Pinkie Pie she was no longer glaring, but held a caring smile. Maybe she was going crazy. Maybe she needed to get more sleep during the night. Yeah, that was it.
“Sorry” She mumbled, apologizing for scaring Twilight like that.
“It’s fine, get dizzy?”
“Yeah, my eye...just hurt”
Twilight just nodded and gave her friend a small smile.
“Well if you don’t mind, I would like to take you to the library and see if we can figure this out”
“Sure” Rainbow nodded and Twilight began to walk towards the door, “You coming with Pinks?” The former asked, turning her neck to look at her.
“Oh I would, but I have to watch the store, and if i don’t watch the store than something might happen and then we wouldn’t make any money. The cakes wouldn’t be happy if i didn’t do my job. And if the cakes aren’t happy, then I’m not happy, and i like being happy. An-”
“Pinkie! A simple ‘No thanks’ would do” Twilight told the rambling pony, losing some of her patients.
“No thanks!” She grinned ear to ear, almost mocking the serious pony.
“Anyway, we’re going to have to cover that eye. Not sure how the ponies walking around town might think of it. Do you have your sunglasses?” Twilight asked hopefully.
“No, I left them at home. I could get there and back real quick, I bet no one will even get a chance to look at me” Rainbow would normally gloat right about now, but after today’s events, she didn’t quite feel herself.
“No, too risky,” Twilight shot down her friends suggestion. “I might be able to cover it with a masking spell”
Twilight’s horn began to glow with the purple aura that signifies her magic, bringing it down meet Rainbow Dash’s corrupted eye. Eyes closed in concentration, Twilight let her magic flow threw her body and reach out towards her goal. The light from her horn intensified for just a moment, before dying. Twilight breathed a bit heavily. It may have been a fairly simple spell, but illusion spells always take their toll on her, especially when it is used on other ponies besides herself.
“Ahh it worked!” She beamed with her success. “Take a look”
Twilight’s horn glowed again, wrapping itself around the mirror that was placed on a nearby table and bringing it in front of the cyan pegasus’s face for her to see the spell at work.
Rainbow Dash took a look at the mirror and once again saw two normal, pink eyes. Albeit one of them was bruised severely and was swollen to the point where she couldn’t fully open her eyes, but it was still better than what it was.
“Now that spell will only last for an hour, so we shouldn’t waste much more time here. Bye Pinkie Pie,” Twilight’s magic reached over to the counter to pick up her box of muffins that pinkie brought out before she accidently caused pummeled Rainbow. Reaching into her saddlebags with her spare magic, Twilight threw some bits on the counter “And thanks again for the muffins.”
Twilight opened the door with her hoof and started for the library, Rainbow Dash close behind. Before walking out she turned her neck back to look at Pinkie Pie, who was back behind the counter and organizing the treats in the display case.
“Hey Pinks”
“Yeah Dashie?” Pinkie responded with smile
“Don’t feel bad about hurting me. I know it was just an accident and I’m tough enough to deal with it,” She gloated with hoof to the chest, before deflating. “I just don’t want you beating yourself about it”
“Okie Dokie Loki” Keeping her grin at full force.
“Haha, I’ll see you later Pinks” Rainbowdash waved before turning around to catch back up with Twilight, taking off into the air and leaving behind a rainbow contrail.
Pinkie waved and smiled until her friend was finally out of view. It was only then that she let her smile turn into a frown and her hoof drop down to the ground. Staring out to where her friend’s contrail was just starting to dissipate, she could feel her body start to shake and tears form in her eyes. Her head drooped down until it meet the glass counter top where she let out a single sob. “P-please...don’t make me hurt you Dashie...please.”

It was thankfully an uneventful trip to the library. Twilight was sure that the spell would fool everypony, but that didn’t stop her from being overly nervous. Rainbow Dash just fluttered besides her for the 5 minute walk it took to get there. Neither had said anything during that time, both occupied with their thoughts concerning the past hour. Rainbow didn’t like the quiet, but she wasn’t in the mood to talk either.
The library was a mess as always, probably the result of Twilight’s studies. Books and scrolls stacked up in corners and beside desks. A trash can, over filled with crumpled parchment,  was next to the desk Twilight usually writes her notes on.  Rainbow Dash didn’t mind, her house was usually a mess and at times could easily rival the battle ground she saw around her.
“Sorry for the mess, spike’s helping rarity with finding gems,” Twilight said to her chagrin, “even after reminding him what happened last time, so i haven’t really been organized”
“You did this in one morning?” Rainbow Dash gaped, “How is that even possible?”
Twilight just gave a sheepish smile, “I have a lot of studying to do. I’m going to make some tea, want some?”
Dash stuck out her tongue at the thought of drinking that leaf water everyone else seems to find enjoyable. That was all the answer Twilight needed before heading to the kitchen. After a few seconds of boredom, Dash remembered that she had a book to read. Finding the sofa, she laid down and took out Twilight’s gift out of her saddlebag. It was a good way to spend time when she was waiting for something and right now she was waiting for her friend to finish brewing her grass soup so they can figure out what to do next.
It didn’t take much longer for the librarian came back from the kitchen levitating a small china cup to her side. She walked over to her desk and surrounded all the books and papers that covered it, levitating them out of the way. After she had room, a piece of parchment as well as an inkwell and quill floated out from a draw and onto the desk in front of her.
“What are you doing Twi?” Dash said from behind her book, looking around it at Twilight writing on her parchment.
“I’m writing a letter to the princess,” Twilight answered, “I’m hoping she might have some answers. And even though i don’t have spike, i actually learned a spe-”
‘No.’ Rainbow Dash stared ahead into nothing. She could see Twilight’s mouth move, but couldn’t hear the words. She couldn’t hear anything, but the battle growing in her mind. ‘We can’t let this happen. That insolent snob knows too much. She will ruin everything we have worked towards.’ Rainbow tried to shake her head again to loss the stray voice that invaded her mind, but found that she couldn’t even make her body move. She kept trying to move her hoofs, mouth, anything, but all in vain. ‘This pony must stop.’ Rainbow’s body shot up, not under her own volition. Her mind was racing, trying to figure out what was happening to her. One hoof went forward and she started moving towards Twilight. ‘We must stop her.’ She was getting closer. Her resistance seemed to slow whatever was controlling her, but it wasn’t enough to stop herself completely. She was right behind Twilight now. Her front hooves slowly rose above her head. The purple unicorn completely oblivious to what was happening. ‘She must die!’ With a final push, the being inside Rainbow Dash took over. She could feel hatred towards her friends flow through her. Anger towards the ponies who ignored the night. The want to beat this pony in front of her.  She felt it push against her mind. She fought it, but it hurt more than any physical wound. It was like her soul was being ripped right out of her body. Time seemed to stop. A small whisper escaped Rainbow Dash’s mouth, but it was not her voice.
“Die”