//------------------------------//
// Chapter 13 - A Look Inside 
// Story: Spring Surprises 
// by TheGJ90 
//------------------------------//

Soon enough, the girls divided up into groups at their chill host's recommendation. The Rainbooms sat at their spot together in a circle, with each band member close enough to each other to hold hands at a moment's notice. Octavia and DJ-P0N3 sat in front of each other with very little space between them. The CMCs, mimicking their beloved elders, sat together in a circle of their own. They were already giggling over the movie jokes they were making. Tree Hugger was rummaging through the incense sticks on the shelf at the far end of the tent. Positioning-wise, the Rainbooms sat to her left, with the musical lovebirds directly behind her, and the movie club trio to her right. All three groups were at a good distance away from both their host and the shelves. This meant that there was enough space for her mat, which was resting between her and the lovebirds. After a moment or two, she found a incense stick that she felt was fit for the occasion. She then took it with her right and grabbed the matchstick with her left. With brisk movement, she spun around on her right foot to look at the girls and asked them;

"I want to be sure of some things before we begin: are any of you allergic to certain plants and/or their aromas?"

The girls shook their heads, which prompted her to also ask;

"Okay, are any of you asthmatic?"

Seeing that they all shook their heads again, she looked at Twilight and asked her with a smile;

"Where's that adorable furry friend of yours?"

The egghead, with a smile of her own, told her truthfully;

"I thought it best to let him play with Winona and Ray at Sweet Apple Acres. He doesn't get many opportunities to enjoy wide open spaces."

Just a thought of Spike running around the vast farmlands with Ray riding on his back like a scaly cowboy made Twilight, the CMCs, Sunset, and Fluttershy giggle adorably as Tree Hugger returned to the shelf. She then placed the incense stick back on it for a moment, so that she could take the striker into her now free hand. With a quick swipe of the striker's brownish end, the matchstick was lit. She carefully returned the striker to its place on the shelf and reclaimed the incense. Slowly, she hovered the newly lit flame just below the tip of the stick and waited patiently. After a few seconds had passed, smoke began to rise from the darkening tip, prompting her to move the matchstick away from it. With several quick air sweeping motions, she snuffed out the flame before returning the matchstick to the shelf while holding the now burning stick steady and away from anything flammable. With her newly freed hand, she angled herself to grab an empty bowl from the shelf that held the tea items. After turning around again, she walked around each group of girls at a snail's pace while gently waving the burning wood. Every wave she performed was done with focus and intent, a fact that was not lost on her guests as they watched her work. During this process, she raised the burning end of the wood up to her lips and blew the smoke above the heads of each girl sitting on the grass. It took her a few minutes to complete her task in utter silence. Once done, she returned to the yoga mat and sat down on it in the lotus position. She then placed the bowl on her lap, and put the incense into it with the burning bit angled on the side to face the general direction of the girls. Twilight was the most attentive of the bunch, having watched Tree Hugger's actions with her natural inquisitiveness. It was she who commented on them first as she took a whiff of the scent that the hippie had filled the room with;

"I may not be familiar with what you just did, but..."

Finding the scent pleasing to her senses, she closed her eyes to better enjoy the second whiff she decided to take before finishing with a relaxed sigh and opening her eyes back up;

"I do appreciate the pleasant odor."

"Ah like this 'ere scent too, Sci-Twi.", noted a happy Applejack, who closed her eyes as well before breathing deeply through her nose and exhaling audibly with a content grin. She then added calmly;

"Makes me feel like Ah'm sittin' on the porch at my house, lookin' out at the farm after a hard day's work."

Tree Hugger expressed a slight well-meaning chuckle before explaining to the girls;

"What I did was use this incense to cleanse the tent of any negative energy that would have otherwise interfered with our session."

She then gave Applejack a sly smirk and asked her;

"Can you tell us what kind of tree this incense came from?"

Always up for demonstrating and improving her knowledge on trees, she closed her eyes and took another hearty whiff of the scent that filled the room. That was all it took for an old memory to be unlocked. Seeing it play out in her mind caused the farmer to belt out a strong laugh before opening her eyes and answering with a smile;

"Cedar... Land's sake, does it take me back!"

Hearing her big sister's words caused Apple Bloom to recall that same memory, which drove her to guffaw with Applejack before exclaiming joyfully while smiling at her;

"Ah remember smellin' it too! We were on that vacation trip with Granny and Big Mac!"

The older Apple grinned back at the little one before adding with nostalgia in her grin;

"Eeyup! We went to that forest that was teemin' with cedar trees. The smell of the wood alone made our walk through the forest mighty relaxin', Ah tells ya'."

Apple Bloom shook her head, her own smile holding strong, and noted;

"Yeah, Ah tried to climb up one of them for fun..."

She looked around at the other girls as she finished as she smile turned considerably sheepish;

"Let's just say that Ah'm mighty glad that Big Mac was there to catch me."

Everyone had a good laugh over the short tale of Apple Family shenanigans. Once they all quieted down, Tree Hugger explained;

"Yeah, cedar incense is great for calming one's nerves and creating a sense of safety within and around yourself. Given what we're going to do here, it will serve us well."

Twilight smile over her words and responded while already feeling calmer by the second;

"You've made a logical choice then, given the current state of my nerves."

Pinkie Pie, much to the amazement of her six friends, was bouncing in place far less frequently than usual by this point, and even then, her bounces were tiny in height. As she bounced, she exclaimed while expressing that giant smile of hers that ought to be her exclusive property and trademark;

"The special tree smell is working already, I've never felt so chill before!"

As much as the other Rainbooms enjoyed the sight of what was Pinkie's version of being chill, they knew they had to get things moving. So, with a chuckle, Sunset suggested to their peppy pal;

"Let's make you feel even more chill, okay Pinkie?"

The happiest Pie in the world looked over at her and nodded in joyful agreement. Without a moment's notice, Sunset began to guide Pinkie;

"Deep breath in..."

The party planner, while still bouncing, followed the instruction with a comically large gasp before holding her breath with her cheeks puffed like that of a chipmunk. Deciding to roll with it while containing the urge to guffaw again, the human-pony girl continued on;

"Deep breath out slowly..."

Pinkie did as instructed by exhaling slowly and audibly with her lips puckered, almost as if she was trying to whistle. Applejack, who caught on to Sunset's use of her own personal calming technique, smiled with pride as she watched in silence. Pinkie's bouncing became less frequent as she exhaled, which was just what Sunset needed to see. Encouraged, she went on;

"Let your breathing go back to its natural rhythm... focus on it..."

The pink girl did exactly that, which caused her body to bounce even less...

"And let you body and mind relax on their own...", the former bad girl finished. As Pinkie Pie's bouncing became more and more occasional by the second, her smile slowly lost some of its size, yet it also gained a semblance of visual relaxation that her friends had never seen on her face before. Eventually, her body had stopped bouncing completely, allowing her to be still. Yet, unlike in normal circumstances, she did not appear to be even remotely bored or agitated. Everyone else in the circle, including Sunset, looked at what they were witnessing with eyes wide with shock. The CMCs, Octavia, and P0N3 were just as shocked. What everyone in CHS considered to be nigh-impossible had actually happened:

Pinkie Pie completely relaxed!

Her response to this feeling of physical and mental chillness was, true to form, one that could only come from her mouth;

"Wooooaaaahhh, even chilling out like this can brrrrriiing a smiiiillle to a girl's faaaaace...", she uttered with a drawn out slur that, to the uninitiated, made her sound like she was either considerably tired or considerably something else. It was amazing that she was sitting still at all. Of course, to her fellow Wondercolts, this was Pinkie being Pinkie, so no cause for alarm was noticed. Once the group overcame their shock, Sunset looked at each of her friends to silently check on them. With nods and thumbs up, they showed to her their readiness, which prompted her to look over at Tree Hugger and declare with a confident grin;

"We're ready!"

"We've got this, everyone!", Octavia added with dignified confidence and a nod to the circle of musicians. Upon noticing this, they showed their appreciation with smiles. They also appreciated the devil horns DJ-P0N3 had showed them soon after. As for the CMCs, their show of support was simple, loud, and filled to bursting with hope and love;

"WONDERCOLTS FOREVER! YAY!"

There were beaming grins all around the tent as Rainbow exclaimed in response;

"Awww yeah! Let's get this done!"

The girls waited quietly as Tree Hugger, after taking a deep breath to steady herself, began by asking the Rainbooms and the odd musical pair;

"I ask that you save any and all judgements for after the session. Are we clear?"

They nodded their heads, which signaled her start giving them her soft-spoken guidance;

"Let's begin by closing our eyes and taking several deep breaths to start bringing peace to our minds. If any of you have practiced meditation before, this will be familiar to you."

Twilight perked up upon hearing this and said out of excitement while looking at the hippie;

"I have taken up that practice, actually!"

Realizing that she interrupted her without thinking, Twilight's nerves started to rise within moments. Thanks to the incense filling the room, those nerves did not shoot up as high as they normally did, but the poor nerd still felt bad and nervous regardless. She looked off to her right side, only to hear Tree Hugger's words of comfort;

"That's awesome, righteous learner, and be at ease! You've done nothing wrong.", she told her with gentleness in every word. Recognizing that she did not, in fact, cause any trouble with her blabbing, Twilight took a quick breath to recenter herself and went back to gazing at Tree Hugger, this time with a look of gratitude. With a short nod, the ever-zen girl went back to providing instructions while the nine girls performed their deep breathing, with the CMCs watching closely with supportive grins.


Five minutes later


At this point in the process, the participating girls felt considerably relaxed. Their thoughts came and went without judgement or interaction, as suggested by Tree Hugger. Some, like Pinkie Pie, found this part to be challenging to pull off at first. But, by now, everyone involved was at a similar level of peacefulness. Thus, it was time for the guided visualization, which their instructor began in soft earnest;

"To visualize is to imagine. A person's imagination is amazingly powerful. So much so, that you could say that it's magical."

That got a few soft snickers from the girls, with the CMCs politely covering their mouths to hold back their giggles. Tree Hugger went on without skipping a beat;

"With that said, imagine your ideal place of safety and comfort... A place where you can feel at ease without fear of danger or ridicule... It can be anywhere you want... At any time you want... Let your breathing keep you focused as you build that place up..."

She waited in silence as the girls imagined what such a place would be for each of them. Octavia's was a music room filled with all of the instruments, amenities, and quietness fit for the discerning string player, where she could play her music or listen to music in peace. DJ-P0N3's, true to form, was a fully decked out music studio where she could jam to her electric tunes without a care in the world. Rainbow Dash's was a big white fluffy cloud high in the sky that she could take a nap on without having to deal with all of the troubles and boring stuff in the world. Rarity's was one that she already had in real life: The dream dressing room that Applejack had constructed for her. Applejack's was her family barn, complete with a stack of hay that she could lounge on to recover from a hard day's work. Pinkie Pie's was a bakery's kitchen filled with the numerous smells created by her favorite sugary baked goods. Fluttershy's was a forest that had this little pond that she could sit at while feeding the duck family that swam in it. Twilight's place of peace, like Rarity's, drew inspiration from real life. It was her bedroom, which, like her laboratory, held the honor of being her personal sanctuary. That left Sunset Shimmer, who imagined herself sitting on the bed in her old home, specifically the loft she used to live in, decorative lights around her bed and all. Tree Hugger watched the girls carefully for about two minutes before continuing on with a truly soothing voice;

"Here in this space, you can prepare for the journey ahead... Take a moment now to make whatever preparations feel right to you."

The girls prepared mentally themselves in their own ways. Octavia brought her trusty cello and bow to bare. She also found a small photo of her and P0N3 hugging each other that was nestled between her cello's string. She carefully pulled it out and, after gazing at her paramour with love in her heart, inserted it into her right pants pocket. The DJ herself grabbed her smartphone, which was placed on the turntable in front of her. With experienced fingers, she opened up a music app and selected one of her favorite playlists before connecting her headphones to the phone. She then grabbed the same photo Octavia had acquired, which was also on the turntable, and looked upon her pictured girlfriend with a grin filled with love. After that, she tucked it away in her right pants pocket for good luck. Rainbow Dash shoved her right hand into the cloud she was sitting on, rummaged in it for a brief moment, and pulled out from the white fluff her geode. Rarity walked over to one of the white drawers in her dressing room and pulled it open with her right hand. Seeing her item of choice, she took it out with the same hand, revealing it to be her own geode. Applejack looked around the barn to find a toolbox resting on the dirt next to the stack of hay she was sitting on. She got off of it and walked over to the toolbox. Upon closer inspection, she saw that it was red with yellow unlocked latches and a purple handle. Feeling the love from her family and friends pushing her onward, she unlatched the toolbox and opened it up, revealing just the right tool for the job at hand. Wasting no time, she took the item, which was her own geode, into her right hand. Pinkie Pie found the biggest, pinkest, most delicious-looking cake in the kitchen. It was a triple-layer chocolate cake covered with pink frosting that stood like a skyscraper while making the other confections look meager in its presence. With absolute glee and abandon, she shoved her right hand into the bottom layer of the cake! After moving her hand in the now damaged food for a moment, she felt what she was searching for, grasped onto it, and ripped it out of the cake. She then opened up her right hand to look upon her prize, revealing her geode, which was, by some miracle, as clean as can be. Fluttershy asked the ducks to help her prepare for what she called a 'really scary, but really important task'. The biggest duck saluted her with his right wing and began swimming to the shore behind him, leaving his fellow ducks to watch over their guest. Once upon the shore, he ran to one of the trees in the forest as fast as he could with his webbed feet and stopped behind it. After a few seconds, he ran back to the shore, got into the pond, and swam over the Fluttershy with her geode held safely in his duckbill. After giving the helpful critter a few loving head pats and thanking him sweetly, she carefully took the geode into her right hand. As for Twilight, she reached under her bed's pillows with both hands and pulled out a hope chest that bore the same shade of lavender as her skin. Keeping it secure was a lock that could only be unlocked by a single password. It was good thing she knew it by heart after writing down a dozen times before burning the evidence. Once she unlocked the hope chest on the first try, she opened it up to find her geode sitting safely inside. Resting at each side of the geode were three small pictures. The two on the left depicted her sharing happy moments with the Rainbooms and her old Shadowbolt team. The one on the right showed her sitting with family: Twilight Velvet, Night Light, Shining Armor, Cadence, and Spike. Her heart soaring, she took the pictures and carefully placed them in her pockets before taking the geode into her right hand. That just left Sunset, who started by taking her magical journal from the shelf near her bed. After sitting down on the bed to rest the journal on her lap, she opened it up flipped through its pages to find one of the messages left for her by the Princess of Friendship. One particular message got her eye, which prompted her to stop flipping to read it. It was both simple and appropriate for the situation at hand;

Scars, be they invisible or not, heal when they are tended to. I know you'll tend to yours, my faithful friend.

There it was again. That wonderful pulling sensation born from the very core of her being. She noticed that, this time, it wasn't trying to tempt her into sinking into its blissful influence. Instead, it was just... existing, as if silently reminding her that it would be there for when she was ready for it. Feeling even more at ease than before, she closed the journal and placed it on the bed before getting back up. Looking over at her nightstand, she saw that her geode was resting there, waiting to be claimed by its rightful owner. With her sideways smirk at full strength, she did exactly that with her right hand. What each Rainboom did in their minds was unique to them, and yet, they also shared an aspect that united them: They all placed their geodes upon their hearts and softly made the same vow;

"The promise we made, we will fulfill. With goodness of heart and strength of will."

In real life, the CMCs and Tree Hugger witnessed something that amazed the little ones and pleased their host. The Rainbooms, without any conscious awareness or instruction, gently closed their right hands into fists and placed them upon their hearts for about five or six seconds before lowering them to their sides. They then held each other's hands with a slow tenderness that was made to be comforting. All of this wasn't done in perfect unison, to be clear. Some of them moved their arms more quickly, while others were slower to move their own. But, the fact that they performed these actions while their awareness was focused entirely inward wowed the kids, who looked at them with wide eyes. Of course, they had to work hard to hold themselves back from loudly cheering for the band. They knew that, to support them and their two other friends who were also in the midst of their own deep dives, they had to be quiet. So, instead of cheering, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo held their hands together and raised them up to their chins in a praying position. With gentle smiles that could light up the Las Pegasus Strip, they closed their eyes and did their best to mentally share their seemingly endless supply of hope with the meditating girls in silence. Tree Hugger watched the peaceful faces of the nine girls under her watch with quiet focus for roughly three minutes before continuing her gentle guidance;

"When you are ready, using your imagination, look around the area you're in and you'll find a tall door standing proudly before you... It can be of any color and material that's familiar to you..."

She waited for fifteen to thirty seconds, which was time enough for each girl to clearly envision their door. Each door bore the colors that matched perfectly with their owner's visual style, with their iconography carved onto its center. After thirty seconds had passed, Tree Hugger instructed them further;

"To gaze at the scars that eyes cannot see, you must open the door.... But, before you do this, it wouldn't hurt to give yourself a little protection..."

Some of the girls were about to grab their doors' knobs before their guide's words drove them to stop themselves before the could pull them open. Others were more cautious, with Fluttershy feeling more than a little terrified of what could possibly be hiding behind her door. Once she heard her friend's suggestion regarding protection, her fear weakened considerably, for she knew something of what that meant. Tree Hugger paused for a moment before going further;

"Think of all that is good and true about yourself and the life you've lived... Let these truths and the feelings bound to them rise up to the surface without judgement..."

It didn't take long for the girls to reveal hints that they're doing this to those in the waking world. Such hints came in the form of growing smiles and short giggles, though in the case of Octavia, she had let out a chuckle that was reigned in by natural dignity. Sensing her cue, the hippie added;

"These righteous things are now coming together to form a beautiful light that shines before you in the color that feels right to you..."

For most, the process of allowing their lights to form was easy. But, for Sunset and Twilight, it was made more difficult by two uninvited guests...


Do you really want to see a picture of your life's ugliness, Sunny?


In the waking world, their hands clenched into tight fists and their breathing became more erratic. In Sunset's mental space, she heard the vile voice of her she-demon spit verbal poison at her. But, this would hardly damage her heart or her resolve. Sunset growled while trying to resettle herself, her eyes locked on the door before her as she spoke;

"I'll see what I need to see no matter how ugly it looks!", she declared resolutely from within her mind, as if daring the demon to come at her directly. Meanwhile, in Twilight's own mental space, she had the displeasure of listening to Midnight Sparkle's unhelpful commentary;


Wooow! The hippie is NOT a total imbecile!


The twisted voice of the winged monster spoke words that were dripping with annoyance. That annoyance was quickly joined by venom as she added;


But really, there's no useful knowledge that can be discerned from this glorified pseudoscience!


The friendly scientist had a response prepared mid-sentence, which she delivered with absolute certainty as soon as her demon finished with her snide remark;

"This place, this experience is proof enough that what you call 'pseudoscience', I call a field worthy of being understood.", she exclaimed with unshaken resolve. Right then and there, before their demons could comment further, the positive qualities of Sunset and Twilight, their memories of the moments that made them, and the related positive feelings all broke through whatever blocks those foul inner voices had conjured up before they could be strengthened. Rising to the surface of their minds, from within their places of deeply powerful safety and peace, these wonderful aspects of the young ladies who carried them coalesced to form beautiful lights that flew around them like playful balls of energy. Sunset's bore an amber color, while Twilight's was lavender. Sunset watched her light fly around with a smirk, enjoying the fun distraction from the vocal remains of the monster she used to be. Twilight giggled happily as she gazed at her light, it's own playful antics reminding her of how bouncy and playful Spike could be when he was especially happy. As for the others, their lights behaved differently for them too. Applejack's orange light zoomed to different parts of the barn, as if checking to see if everything was in order. The farmer noticed this and, with a small smile, thought to herself;

"Heh, Ah reckon this little critter took a cue from an Apple or two!"

Pinkie Pie's light, which was just as pink as her skin, was also an equal to her in terms of sheer hyper-activeness. Bouncing and zooming about every which way, it's behavior kept her attention with ease. With a giant teeth-baring grin, she joyfully declared with a happy hop;

"You are the funnest ball of light EVER!"

She then tried to chase after it for the fun of it, her laughter filling the kitchen. Rainbow Dash watched in awe as her cyan light performed all sorts of tricks in the air: Loop-de-loops, corkscrews, barrel rolls, and the like. It finished by doing numerous laps around her cloud at wicked fast pace that she respected. Once it stopped to float just below her chin, she raised her right fist, which still held her geode, to the sky while yelling out with pride;

"That was awesome, little light dude!"

Rarity was marveling at her purple light via a mirror in her dressing room with the dignity and grace she was known for;

"Goodness, darling! You are positively radiating with beauty that is magnificent in its simplicity! I admit to being a tad jealous, honestly.", she gushed as she watched the light float next to her in their reflections shown by the mirror. It did a few quick bounces in place to show gratitude that she instantly picked up on. Oh, how she wished she could give it dresses to try on! As for Fluttershy, she was enamored over how adorable her light, which was colored like her light-pink hair, was being. It played with the ducks in the pond, who were swimming after it while quacking happily. Giggling over the sight, she softly gushed while wearing a beautiful smile worthy of protection;

"Oh, it's so wonderful that you're making friends with those feathery babies!"

As if responding to her heartfelt complement, the light zoomed up to her and floated in place. Once she started to really look at it, she felt a sense of peace flow into her being that was gentle and powerful in equal measure, making her believe that everything would be okay. Octavia was playing on her cello one of the numerous classical pieces she had mastered over the years, Beethoven's Symphony No.5 in C minor to be precise, with her grey light as her attentive audience. With her eyes closed and her whole being in tune with the music, she had just finished the ending of the first movement before stopping to look over at her light. It floated in place without moving an inch until she bowed her head with a polite smile, giving it the clearance to bounce happily in the air to show what she was sure was its approval of her performance. DJ-P0N3 was having a full-on dubstep jam session via her turntable, with her light bouncing to the beat of her glorious room-vibrating wubs being blasted at full volume from the oversized speakers in her studio. The DJ wasn't playing a song she knew. Instead, she had found a beat and allowed it to take her away, her skills and experience conspiring with her instincts to guide her actions. The music being played was passionate, confident, and unapologetic about what it was. Just like its creator. As she played without remorse or relent, she felt something stir deep within her: an old feeling that was there for her from the moment she had scratched her first vinyl record. Meanwhile, Octavia was suddenly overcome with the urge to 'jam out' as her beloved would enthusiastically put it. When she began playing her cello again, she quickly found a rhythm that was to her liking. Using this rhythm as a foundation, she played the first notes that came to her head and allowed her skills, experience, and instincts to take over from there. The music she was playing was strong, dignified, and unapologetic about what it was. Just like its creator. During her impromptu performance, Octavia felt something stir deep within her: a feeling so old that it was born when she had performed on stage for the first time. It was a feeling she shared with her beloved DJ. One of the things that, through all of their arguments big and small, they could agree on without hesitation:

Their unending desire to move people through the power of music.

As the meditating girls became more at ease by the second, Tree Hugger, who had given them a few minutes to enjoy the presence of their lights, went back to guiding them with the gentleness that came from years of experience;

"When you're ready, look at your light and ask it to help you see your scars..."

When each of the girls did this after stopping their fun time, the lights flew around them a few times before slowly moving into their chests. Recognizing the surprise and trepidation in their partners, they stopped about halfway in as Tree Hugger encouraged the girls with the soft sweetness of an honest friend;

"Don't be afraid of your lights... let them help you... let them in..."

Out of the folks in the participating group, it was Sunset who had the hardest time with lowering her defenses. A small part of her, the part that still felt terrible guilt over her past misdeeds, believed herself to be undeserving of this light and its assistance. It took remembering how much she had grown to realize how ridiculous that notion was. With a tiny smile, she released her negativity and allowed her light into her being while softly expressing to herself, both in her mental space and in real life, the phrase that had become her mantra over the years;

"My past is not today."

Perhaps her friends had recognized this at some instinctual level, perhaps it was simply a case of good timing. Either way, the rest of the Rainbooms fully embraced their lights along with her soon after that phrase was uttered. Tree Hugger watched with soft sweetness in her eyes as each band member allowed peacefulness to cover their faces like blankets, their hands still holding each other with unconscious firmness. The CMCs, having just finished sharing their hope with the others, had caught Sunset's phrase instantly when she uttered it. Upon opening their eyes, they allowed love, warmth, and understanding to flow from their faces as they gazed at their Phoenix Friend and her band-mates, giant grins and all. They turned their heads to check on Octavia and P0N3. Like the band, they were also expressing smiles layered with peace while holding hands in a way that was subtly romantic to those who knew them. Satisfied, the CMCs looked back at the Rainbooms and watched them closely, their hope as strong as ever.

In the mental spaces made by the girls, something lovely was happening to them. Each girl's body had begun to glow in the same color that their light had borne. It was a glow that was quite pleasant to the eye, much to their relief as they inspected themselves. They could each feel their best qualities growing in strength within them. For Sunset and Twilight in particular, this also had the effect of seemingly shutting up the voices of their demons, a benefit that they appreciated greatly. Before any of them could fully enjoy this new development, however, Tree Hugger gave them more instructions;

"Return your focus to the door... when you are ready, my friends... take the knob with your hand..."

After taking a moment or two, the length depending on the person, the girls looked over at their doors and took hold of the knobs. They didn't have to wait long to get the word from their guide as the lady of peace told them;

"With a good twist and a pull, open the door and see what your eyes cannot..."

While some were more hesitant than others, they all opened the doors, letting themselves get a vivid taste of what they sought to face and overcome. Back in the waking world, Tree Hugger kept her gaze locked on those she had guided, her expression maintaining its state of zen. The CMCs watched with bated breath and giant grins. They had no clue as to what was going on in the heads of their sisters and friends, but they were certain that this deep dive wouldn't be a problem for them. Why wouldn't they be so confident? These nine ladies were Canterlot Wondercolts! They had faced all sorts of dangerous stuff and came out stronger for the trouble every time! No scar or demon could scare them!

Right?





What the Rainbooms saw in their minds insisted on challenging that belief with the intensity of a vengeful spirit! Their hands tensed and clenched tightly, something that the CMCs were quick to notice. Yet, it was the growing instability of the band members' breathing that made the kids feel a twinge of worry clash with their confidence. It took slightly over thirty seconds for the band to suddenly come out of their meditative state with a loud collective gasp that made the kids lean back out of shock! Instinctively, the CMCs got up and rushed over to them, determined to aid them as best as they could. They were halfway to the group when they saw each Rainboom look over at them with expressions of pure horror. Fluttershy, like Sunset and Twilight, was holding her chest for dear life with her right hand, her eyes raining tears filled with terror as she sniffed and whimpered. Rainbow Dash, even though she both looked and felt terribly afraid, was quick to walk over to her old friend and place her hands on her shoulders. The athlete also whispered words of encouragement that helped to soothe Fluttershy's mind and heart. The rest of the band helped each other and her out in a similar fashion, their friendship refusing to buckle under the weight of fear. Tree Hugger gazed at them quietly, her peaceful demeanor cracking just enough to let her own concern for them peak through on her face. As for the CMCs, they had stopped running while watching the band with eyes as wide as they could reasonably be. They had seen the Sonic Rainbooms look this shaken up only once before and that's a memory they would never forget. Mentally reaffirming their desire to help those girls out, they checked on Octavia and P0N3 again to be absolutely safe before proceeding further. In stark contrast to their seven friends, the musical couple was gracefully exiting out of their meditative state. If what they had seen inside of their minds troubled them, then they didn't show it as they opened their eyes and stretched their bodies. Clearly, they didn't notice the gasp that rang out from the band. But, once they saw the worry on the CMCs' faces, they quickly turned to see what was going on with the seven young performers. Seeing the terror that gripped them, the pair got up and walked with the kids to give support to the magical band that had done so much for so many people.

The Rainbooms were practically showered with words of genuine encouragement and hugs aplenty, all of which helped them recover from whatever nightmarish visions they had witnessed during the session. While Octavia and DJ-P0N3 went on to help a silent Tree Hugger prepare more cups of tea for everyone, the CMCs kept on helping the band. They had already hugged the entire roster, but they made sure to give special attention to their sisters, Sunset, and Twilight by giving them extra tight hugs that lasted a bit longer than the others. It didn't take long for the Rainbooms to show their appreciation for the kids' combined efforts, whether it be through giving them hugs as well, ruffling their hair in the case of their sisters, and other little acts of goodwill. Rarity hummed a little tune with Sweetie Belle, Rainbow arm-wrestled with Scootaloo, and Applejack play-wrestled with Apple Bloom. Thankfully, their match was not really intense, but their laughter sure was! Soon after, all of the girls were enjoying some newly made tea while sitting on the grass. Apple Bloom, her clothes and bow dirtied up from the play-wrestling, asked Sunset while gazing at her, worry oozing from her voice;

"Ah don't mean to pry too hard, but what in all that's good and green did ya'll see?"

Sweetie Belle, while giving Rarity a concerned glance, chimed in with a worried squeak;

"You all seemed so serene for a while, but then you suddenly became horrified!"

"It looked like you were reacting to jump scares that were actually scary!", noted an equally worried Scootaloo, who's eyes were fixed on Rainbow Dash. The every member of the band looked over at the CMCs. Their fear still held strong on their faces. After a few seconds of tense silence, Rainbow stood up with the speed of a rocket during takeoff. She turned her body to face Tree Hugger, who had never left her position from earlier, and told her with honesty in her heart;

"I don't blame you for what happened, Hugs."

A small, but confident smirk formed on her face as she added;

"I don't think any of us do."

Tree Hugger, appreciative of the athlete's kind words, gave her a peace sign as well as a serene smile. She was quick to notice that the other girls were smiling back at her in silent agreement, their shared terror from earlier weakened a tiny bit. Rainbow turned her back to face the CMCs with a serious expression. After sighing a bit, she started explaining in a surprisingly calm fashion, given the subject manner;

"I know it wasn't some weird dream and I'm not sure if it being one would have been better..."

She spun around to look at the large group of girls, who were all quite attentive, and continued on;

"I saw the most important moments in my life happen before my eyes, one by one."

She aimed her head up at the roof of the tent with renewed pride flowing from her eyes;

"Moments of pure awesomeness...", she exclaimed with the confidence and manure-eating grin she was so well known for. They both faltered in favor of a regretful frown as she looked down at the grass before her feet. With a softer remorseful voice, she added;

"And moments of absolute lameness."

For a brief moment, she couldn't bring herself to look Sunset in the eye. But then, her courage rose up to assist her, pushing her to glare right at the Human mare, who gave her a look of unflinching support. The rest of the girls showed the normally brass cyan girl a similar level of support. Emboldened by their silent help, Rainbow went on while keeping her eyes on the others;

"I didn't just see those memories..."

She felt herself visibly shudder as she gently hugged her arms for comfort, unable to hide the rising fear inside. After a moment of hesitancy, she spoke further with a shaky voice;

"I felt what I was feeling when those memories were made. Kinda like how your Memory Magic works, SunShim. But, for me..."

She paused for a moment to figure out her next set of words, her mind still reeling from what she had just endured. When the average person was in her position, they were likely to shut their eyes to grasp onto more comfort. But, Rainbow Dash would rather be awesome than average. In spite of her feelings, she kept her gaze on Sunset while continuing to tell her story to the others;

"It felt like those emotions were cranked up to eleven, which was seriously intense! But, as I watched the memories play out, I noticed something new in them...", she noted as calmly as she could. That got a inquisitive head tilt from Tree Hugger, while the eyes of the other Rainbooms grew wide upon hearing this. The girls listened intently as Rainbow continued while expressing confusion on her face;

"There was a thick pitch black cloud of smoke in every memory I saw. It was the size of a person and it was just... floating there... always behind me..."

Another shudder came over her while she glanced at each of her band-mates. They nodded at her while not appearing to be overly shocked by her words: a clear sign that they had seen something like that cloud as well. Rainbow spoke again, this time with an even softer tone that was just a few decibels above Fluttershy's loudest indoor voice, which was thankfully loud enough to reach the group's ears;

"After I saw the moment when Sunset lost her memories..."

She sharply released her grip on her arms, stretched her arms out from her sides, and belted out a loud;

"BOOM!"

The girls were visibly taken aback by Rainbow Dash's sudden visual and vocal impression of an explosion. Fluttershy in particular expressed a terrified 'eep!' before trying to hide behind the bangs in her hair while still keeping her eyes on her childhood friend. Rainbow took a moment to calm down while allowing her arms to rest at her sides. She added with her head lowered to face the grass, her voice riddled with resignation;

"The she-demon suddenly threw a fireball in my face while laughing like a maniacal super-villain..."

Hearing about that got another 'eep!' from Fluttershy, only at a slightly higher volume than before. She hid behind Rarity out of impulse, yet she still paid attention to Rainbow by poking her head out from the side of her friend's back. Rarity herself appeared mortified by this revelation, with the rest of the band, along with Octavia and P0N3, looking no less concerned. The CMCs visibly shuddered in fright, remembering perfectly well what the athlete's vision had referenced. Rainbow Dash looked back up at Sunset with eyes filled with sadness and guilt. After a second of silence, she finished clearly;

"I didn't have the Princess to save me that time..."

Sunset Shimmer shot up like a bullet fired upwards and stood as still as a statue. For a moment, shock covered face, only for it to be replaced by understanding, concern for her friend, and deeply rooted regret. The witnesses of the Fall Formal Incident recalled the same dreadful words at the same time;


"She needs to be dealt with!"


Sunset's regret grew in strength, but her desire to help her friends crushed it like a Yak smashing a log underhoof. Before she could act on that desire, she was distracted by the far from subtle sounds of movement that played out around her. When she looked to see what was up, she found that, one-by-one, the rest of the six wonderful girls who she proudly called her friends were standing up. Their expressions spoke of resignation, fear, and unresolved hurting that they would not turn away from. Goodness, Pinkie's hair looked like it was trying to hold on to its poofiness for dear life! Just the sight of all of this was enough to make Sunset want to do just about anything to help them. But, she had to check something first. It was a possibility that seemed obvious to her, given the situation. But, she felt it was better to be safe than sorry;

"All... All six of you went through something like that too?!", she asked with sadness dripping from every word she uttered as she gazed at each band member. The nods she got from her friends made her want to cry for them. She knew they didn't deserve this: to be haunted by demons and Celestia knows what else! But, there would be time for tears later. Her friends needed her help! Her silent show of understanding was a good way to start. Just then, the demon inside her had chosen this moment of vulnerability to drip some toxicity into her psyche, effectively butting in like the world's worst roommate;


Hahahaha, they weren't kidding around when they admitted to being haunted by you! You better watch your buddies, or they just might turn demonic!


She quickly held her head with both hands and closed her eyes while trying to get the monster in her head to take a hike. But, the meditation session's harrowing result had left her mental strength weakened. So, all she got from her efforts at that point was the wretched demon's maniacal laughter. Twilight was not fairing any better as Midnight Sparkle chimed in just before she could try to comfort Sunset;


Oh, imagine if I could meet with your friends' demons! The dark secrets they would reveal would be deliciously fascinating!


The nerd was several steps away from hyperventilating as she held her heart with her right hand while attempting to use Cadance's calming technique to regain some kind of mental footing. The other Rainbooms' plight was no less intense for them. Pinkie, who's hair continued its desperate struggle to keep its poofiness alive, tried to hold back a flood of tears. Fluttershy felt a little better after the comforting she had gotten earlier. But, she was still stressed and terrified enough to tightly hold onto her arms while trying to not whimper, her face filled with fear and sadness. Rarity tried to maintain the dignity that was expected of a lady as sophisticated as her, even as her hands trembled so much while holding her teacup that it rattled repeatedly on its plate. Applejack tried to work through her powerful emotions on the inside, but not even her tilted stetson could hide her erratic breathing and deep frown. Rainbow had her arms crossed while appearing quite grumpy over the whole situation. But, anyone who knew her could easily tell that she was hiding her own negative feelings. Octavia and DJ-P0N3, when they had connected the dots, were both shocked and deeply concerned for the band in equal measure. The cello player in particular was kicking herself for not bringing her trusty instrument along, for she knew it would have come in handy at this point. Her beloved DJ, however, was strongly considering taking her headphones off, setting the volume to max, and unleashing the power of the wubs to give those girls something cool to vibe to. The CMCs were stunned, but only for a few seconds. Like Octavia and DJ-P0N3, they had figured out what was going on based on what was revealed by Rainbow Dash. The sadness and horror being shown to them by the seven girls who they loved so dearly aggravated them. Thus, they were determined to help them overcome such dreadful feelings!

It turns out, so was Tree Hugger.

The kids were about ready to rush up to the Rainbooms to give them emergency movie club hugs alongside their two older pals when the hippie stood up, walked passed them, and stopped to stand between them and the group of clearly troubled teenagers. She closed her eyes as the CMCs, Octavia, and P0N3 stopped moving to watch her out of curiosity. After taking a deep breath, Tree Hugger began to perform a chant with a voice that was as clear as the sky and as gentle as a light breeze. Her chant was elongated and well-practiced, not to mention remarkably simplistic. It was also technically wordless, though the sound she was making could be transcribed into writing. The CMCs fondly remembered this sound, thanks to their history with the peace-lover. Their worries were eased as big smiles formed on their faces. A single beautiful thought popped up in their heads;

"The 'om' chant!"

Octavia and P0N3 were confused by the chant at first, but quickly found it to be quite relaxing. Like their three younger friends, they kept their gaze on the Rainbooms. Thus, the five of them got to see something remarkable.

Whatever the band of friends were thinking, feeling, or doing was dropped from the moment the chant had reached their ears. Sunset and Twilight opened their eyes to gaze at each other, their demons interrupted by the heavenly sound that echoed throughout the tent. For a second or two, the seven girls just stood motionless with wide eyes. But then, a wave of soothing calmness flowed through their beings like ocean waves hitting the shore of a beach. With each gentle lengthy utterance of the chant, another wave struck them from within, weakening the hold their torments had on them. Each Rainboom's breathing became steadier over time. Sunset and Twilight eventually allowed their hands to rest at their sides. As if guided by some inner force, the band sat down again and reformed their circle as their sense of calm grew stronger and stronger. Earlier, their minds were utterly rattled by chaos borne from the negative feelings and thoughts wrought by what they had experienced during their meditation session. Now, that chaos was slowly fading away. But, the demons would not give up yet. Multiple times, Sunset and Twilight's demons tried to slip more lies and threats into their hearts, while the former tried to torment the other five girls as well with the visceral memories of their failures. But, Tree Hugger's chant would undermine their wicked efforts without fail. Slowly, the demons' strength became weaker and weaker. Yet, some unconscious part of Sunset and Twilight was holding on to their troubles, same for the other band members. As if she was sensing this, the tranquil young lady called out to them in between chants;

"It's okay, Sonic Rainbooms! You deserve to let go for a while!"

In their minds, they were on the brink of doing exactly that, with all that was good and true about them rising up to help them take the plunge into mental and emotional ease. The demons went in for one last mental attack, only for Tree Hugger to give the girls one more good push;

"You deserve to bliss out!"

With closed eyes, the Rainbooms took a deep breath in and exhaled audibly in unison as they internally gave themselves permission to let go. To them, it was as if the chant was carrying them away from their troubles and into a place of comfort and rest. Their bodies became more and more relaxed while their minds followed suit. It only took a few seconds after letting go for tiny blissful smiles to form on their faces, their breathing stabilized and calm. As relief flowed through the CMCs, Octavia, and P0N3, Tree Hugger continued chanting for a good two minutes to make sure her friends were completely at ease. While she did this, a thought popped into her zen-like mind;

"What will you radical magical girls do about what you have seen?"





By the time the chant was finished, the Rainbooms' renewed sense of calm helped them return to themselves, to their hearts. They gave Tree Hugger smiles filled to bursting with appreciation and gratitude once she was done. It was Applejack who calmly expressed that gratitude with a tip of her hat;

"Thanks a bunch, sugarcube."

With a gentle nod and a chill smile, the host of the tent responded with sweetness in her words;

"I saw that you needed a distraction from what was terrorizing you and few things can be more distracting than some sonic bliss."

"It most certainly did the trick, darling!", Rarity happily exclaimed with rejuvenated grace as she enjoyed her cup of tea, her hands having regained the steadiness of a seamstress. Sunset, with a sideways smirk, clarified things for the group while gazing at each of her friends;

"That chant was a great source of relief, Tree Hugger. But, we'll need more than relief to keep our Pinkie Promise."

"Precisely!", Twilight said in agreement. While looking at the friends who sat with her, she noted;

"Our session has hammered home the fact that besting our demons and healing our scars will be notably difficult. Perhaps more so than any magical problem we've ever faced up until now."

She closed her eyes and called upon her memory of the day when they had made the fateful pledge that started them on their journey. Feeling more motivated than before, she opened her eyes and told the girls with increased conviction while adjusting her glasses with her right hand;

"All the more reason for us to keep that promise."

She watched them express their agreement with that sentiment with head nods, smiles, and thumbs up. She then turned her attention over to Octavia Melody, who was sipping her own tea politely, and told her;

"Perhaps hearing about what you and DJ-P0N3 have gone through could help us figure out our next course of action?"

Slowly, the maestro of strings lowered her teacup onto its plate and placed the both on her lap, her eyes closed in thought as she did this. With a sigh, she opened up her eyes and told Twilight with proper tact;

"I do not know about my beloved's experience, but I know mine was powerful in its own right. I'll need time to process it first before speaking of it in detail, if you don't mind."

Twilight understood her request within moments of hearing it. With an affirming nod, she responded plainly;

"I think we all need time to process what we've just endured."

The rest of the girls responded with several verbal and non-verbal variations of 'yep'. Satisfied, she checked on P0N3, who was sitting to Octavia's right side while vibing to the music that blasted in her headphones. The egghead decided it was best to let her be as she turned her attention towards Tree Hugger. Her inquisitiveness at full strength, she asked;

"What do you think? We could certainly use some advice right about now."

The other girls looked expectantly at their host as well. She was not at all fazed by having so many eyes glaring at her at once, given her peaceful expression. On the inside, however, she was deeply contemplating things;

"A black smoke that's always behind them... six share one demon, while one has her own... I wonder..."

Whilst Tree Hugger pondered in silence, Rainbow Dash looked away out of impatience to speak to her friends with a frustration-laced grunt;

"I'm glad we took a closer look at our scars, but we still got these annoying blocks in our heads to break through, remember?"

"Um, I'm sure we haven't forgotten about that. I certainly haven't.", noted Fluttershy in her soft voice, her demeanor back to its usual level of shyness as she gazed at Rainbow from behind her bangs. Applejack calmly added her own point to the conversation, her arms crossed;

"Darn tootin'. But, our demons represent them blocks and now we've got a better idea of how they can slow us down. We just need to figure out how to bust through them. It's like breakin' down a wall: ya' gotta find the weak spots and hit them in the right ways."

Hearing this caused Tree Hugger's lidded eyes to rise up slightly, as if a rather weighty thought had just come up in her mind. Twilight noticed this seemingly minor change, but didn't think much of it as her host mentally decided;

"Some of them may accept the idea right away, while others may not..."

Just then, an idea popped up, one that she liked very much. Her mind was sound, but she knew better than to ignore her heart's take on things. With a breath, Tree Hugger closed her eyes and tuned into her breathing in silence. She did this for five seconds before opening her eyes and making a fateful decision;

"I shall plant a couple of seeds... and see what the girls will cultivate."

With that settled, she looked over at Twilight and declared;

"You asked for my advice and you will have it.", she began with her chill voice, which got the girls' attention before they could discuss things further. With a relaxed grin, she spoke to the band;

"I could interpret what you have seen inside of yourselves in many ways. But, what I want you all think about is this:"

She gave the CMCs, Octavia, and DJ-P0N3 a quick glance with her eyes before returning her focus on the Rainbooms and asking;

"What do your scars represent to you?"

The Wondercolts who took part in the meditation session quietly contemplated that question. The CMCs watched them closely, hoping that any answer they could give would, in turn, help the kids help them heal. As silence crept into the tent, Tree Hugger stood up and suggested to Twilight, who was already mentally going through a dozen possible answers at once;

"Perhaps a far out book may help you find your answer?"

She had her at 'book'.

Twilight shot up to her feet, her eyes and face beaming with joy as she rapidly nodded her head. Noticing this adorable sight made the other girls give the bookworm knowing smirks. Sunset, in particular, was finding immense enjoyment in watching her friend be her brainiac self. Tree Hugger guided Twilight over to the shelves that housed her collection of books. Once they stopped within inches of them, the hippie told her;

"You can borrow a book from me so that you can arm yourself with knowledge. Each book here was written by a respectable author."

Twilight looked over at Tree Hugger and exclaimed with excitement in every word;

"Oh, I'm going to do so much research!"

She pulled one of the books out of its shelf and began to quickly skim through it while holding it by its spine with her right hand. It didn't take long for her to find something in the back of the book that made her even more thrilled;

"Oh. My. Gosh! This one has a bibliography! There are so many sources to look up!", she declared before squeeing with unrelenting glee, which made her friends politely chuckle in support of the lovable nerd. But then, she realized something that was of immense importance to her. It simply had to be addressed;

"How silly of me, I didn't read this book's title!", she exclaimed with a slightly embarrassed chuckle. Within moments, she closed the book and took a good look at its front cover. The covered showed both the title and the author's name below it. They were both written in large cursive white font that gave away the item's age;


A Primer on the Self

By: Barrel Jung


"The self...", Twilight uttered softly, her mind filling with ideas on what such a concept could mean within the context of the text and the goal she and her friends were striving towards. Midnight tried to slip a unhealthy phrase in between those ideas, but they were so numerous in number that they crushed said phrase before the egghead could recognize its laughably brief existence. She looked back at Tree Hugger and noted with a sigh;

"As much as I would love to read all of these books right away, I have school work, magical experiments, and so many other important things to deal with as it is!"

She closed the book from its spine with her right hand and added while exhibiting confidence and gratitude with the smile on her face;

"I will borrow this book for now and grab some more later as needed. Thank you, Tree Hugger! I'll make sure to return it to you when I'm done!"

"Righteous.", was the hippie's heartfelt response, her peaceful grin on full display. Soon after that, the girls helped their host clean up and made ready to leave so that they all could tend to their own business. Tree Hugger noted to the group as she ushered them out of the tent;

"Think well on what you have experienced today, my friends. You may come back if you need more guidance and there is nothing wrong with seeking professional help if you feel you need it."

Each of the girls thanked her either verbally or silently, with Sunset noting to herself to check with a certain profession in CHS when possible. But, before the group could make for the boats, the biggest eco kid in their school asked;

"May I speak with the CMCs real quick?"

The movie buffs in question looked up at their sisters, who nodded at them to give them permission while looking a tad confused. With that, the trio ran up to Tree Hugger and stood to listen to her words, which she uttered with a soothing gentleness;

"My offer to help you through a guided meditation session still stands. You have my word that I'll be with you every step of the way."

The CMCs gave their friend's offer some thought. Yes, such a session could become scary like it did for the Rainbooms, but it could help them in some way. This, they knew without a doubt. Then again, they still had some crusading left to do and they didn't want to delay their efforts too much. Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo looked at each other, as if they were having a wordless discussion. They then looked at Tree Hugger as the young Apple responded on her club's behalf with a polite tone;

"We'll keep that in mind for later, sugarcube."

All three movie buffs showed neutral expressions on their faces that their host quickly noted in her head as a sign that trouble may be brewing. As tempted as she was to resolve this right then and there, she also knew that the kids had their families and friends watching over them. So, she figured they would be fine for the time being. After giving them a nod, she turned around to walk back into her tent while the group of girls returned to their boats. The journey home was largely made in silence as the girls who had meditated felt the need to rest a bit. They definitely needed the rest, given that school was poised to open back up very soon...