//------------------------------// // Rap Battle #26: Results and Aftermath // Story: Epic Rap Battles of MLP // by enigmaMystere //------------------------------// Is it safe? The curtain to the bedroom window opened slightly, a light blue eye peeking out apprehensively. There was the sound of scuffling, and a yellow ear pressed against the door. I think the coast is clear. The mare sighed in relief, a small smile on her lips. “...thank goodness...” She reached under her bed, pulling out a large, gray latex outfit. “...I hate this outfit...but how else am I supposed to perform in high-society?” She shook her head, carefully stepping into the outfit, pulling it up. She zipped it up, making sure it covered her blue mane beforehand. She looked into the mirror on her vanity cabinet. A classy gray mare stared back, her light blue eyes standing out in contrast to her otherwise-dark palette. “...can’t believe I forgot...” She reached into one of the drawers, retrieving her contact lenses. With painstaking concentration, she put the plastic disks into her eyes, blinking them into place. Once more, she looked into the mirror. Purple eyes looked back. She nodded satisfactorily, a pleased smile on her face. “...and the disguise is complete, once more...” She sighed, opening the door to her room. “Thanks again, Pinkie...” “Are you sure this is safe, Twilight?” The lavender mare glanced up from her notes, taking in the burgundy pegasus in front of her. Said pony was standing on a portable stage they borrowed from their dressmaker friend. Well, to be a bit more accurate, it was the unicorn’s dressmaker friend. The feminine stallion accidentally insulted the fashionista the first time they met, and things went downhill from there. The studious pony smiled, placing a gentle hoof on her friend’s foreleg. “Don’t worry, Enigma. I’ve studied this spell multiple times. I’ve tried it on Fluttershy - and even myself - to make sure it’s safe!” She moved back to the notebook on the desk, reading it once more. The pegasus fidgeted slightly, still unsure. “...well...if you did it on yourself and ‘Shy...why do you need me?” “Oh, that’s easy!” She nodded to herself and stood in front of the other pony. “I need to know how this would affect a pegasus stallion - to see if there’s a difference caused by gender, of course - and you were the first one I could find.” “...you mean ran into...” Enigma sighed, rubbing his still-sore neck. “...fine...just...promise me you won’t make me explode, or something...” Twilight nodded, focusing her magic on the other pony. “I promise nothing like that would happen. Now, concentrate. Picture the mane color you’d like to change to.” He rolled his eyes before closing them. Seriously, what is the point of learning a spell like this? He pictured the dark blue and electric blue of his marefriend’s mane and tail. ...it’s a lot softer than I’d originally thought...especially when she uses it to tickle my nose...heh... Of course, that thought led to other thoughts, ones that were enough to make his cheeks turn a slight shade darker. That’s when he noticed the tingling. His eyes snapped open, watching as the magic around him faded. “...what was that?” He looked down at the unicorn in front of him, noticing how exhausted she looked. She returned the stare, exasperated. “I should ask you the same thing! I found myself using four times the magic I needed for Fluttershy and myself!” She sighed, glancing at the shock of blue mane covering the pegasus’s head. “Glad to see it worked, though. I would’ve been really upset if it didn’t.” Enigma watched her move back over to her notes, apparently trying to figure out what happened. He shrugged, stepping off the small stage to see for himself. He immediately froze. “...Twi?” She turned her head to him, though her eyes were still on her notebook. “Mmhmm?” He quickly realized she wasn’t really paying attention. He shook his head, remembering when she’d done this before. Thankfully, he knew just what to do. “Twilight, don’t make me rearrange the books in here!” She quickly snapped her eyes to his, concerned. “Please, I just reshelved this-” She paused, finally noticing the worry in his eyes. “...Enigma? What’s wrong?” He gulped, glancing over his shoulder. “...something’s...missing...” She tilted her head in confusion, looking at his flank. “What do you mean? Your tail’s still there.” “No,” he groaned, shuffling his legs nervously and urgently jerking his head back over his shoulder, “something’s missing!” She stood there for a few moments, uncomprehending, before it suddenly hit her. “...oh, Celestia...uh...” She circled around behind the other pony and saw what he was talking about. “...well...now we know where the extra magic went...right?” She sheepishly smiled, a small ‘squee’ sound coming from her as she did so. He stared at her as if she’d suddenly sprouted wings. “...seriously, how do you mares do that? Are you part squeaky-toy?” He sighed, rushing out the door. “...I hope this is reversible...” Twilight watched him leave before glancing at the notebook once more. "...I suppose my work with the 'Talent Enhancer' Potion will just have to wait..." She shook her head, pulling out a quill and starting to calculate a way to fix the poor pegasus back. A certain white unicorn lay on her couch, watching the two ponies across her lemonade table whisper to each other. Next to her on the recliner, the pink party pony watched as well, an oblivious smile on her face. Eventually, the twins broke their huddle, turning to the other two. “Okay, so Pinkie has to do whatever we say, right?” The unicorn shook her head, frowning softly. “Not anything. It has to be within reason. Not to mention that it’s limited to three separate requests.” She glanced over at the aforementioned mare, confused and curious. “...you seem rather nonchalant about this whole thing...” Pinkie giggled, nodding her head happily. “Of course! After all, she won fair and square!” She leaped off the recliner, hugging the cross-eyed mare. “Congrats again, Ditzy!” The gray pegasus stared blankly into the distance over the other mare’s shoulder, jaw agape in surprise. “...thanks, Pinkie...” She carefully pulled away and scratched her head, thinking a bit. “...well...to begin with, could I have the key back?” The party pony smacked her forehead, giggling. “Silly me! I completely forgot!” She reached a hoof into her mane and pulled out a key, smiling brightly. “You dropped it in the middle of the marketplace. I was gonna give it to you when you came into the shop!” Everyone there just stared at her. Vinyl sighed, a bemused look on her face. “...if you had it in the first place, why didn’t you just give it to her?” “She asked me for a rap battle. How could I refuse something as fun as that?” She giggled, giving the key to the cross-eyed pony. “Here you go!” Ditzy sighed in relief, holding the key close to her chest. “...I got it back...the Doctor won’t have to know I lost it...” The three left, the other gray mare talking to Pinkie. “We’re gonna talk about those other two requests later...” Vinyl groaned, rubbing the side of her head. “...thank goodness that’s over...” The door clicked open, causing her to jump, startled. Annoyed, she stood up and approached the entrance. “Did one of you forget something?” A dark red muzzle poked inside, followed by the rest of the pegasus. There was a confused expression on his face. “...I don’t think so?” He entered the house, placing a wing on her back. “...Vi...could we go upstairs? I have something...strange...I need to tell you...” The disk jockey was about to ask why they couldn’t just talk there, but she recognized the worried tone in his voice. After a few seconds, she nodded, smiling reassuringly at him. “Of course, E.” They started their walk together up the stairs, enjoying their embrace. “Just remember, E, I’ll love you no matter what.” He sighed, muttering to himself. “...I’ll hold you to that...” “This is not funny, Sombra!” The black unicorn was too busy laughing to reply immediately to the black kitten glaring at him. When he finally had his breath back, he wiped a tear from his eye, looking up at her. “I don’t know, Airfare Tune, it seems pretty bucking funny from where I’m standing!” He quickly fell back into his fit of laughter, rolling on the floor. Said feline growled, sauntering forward and grabbing the wand which the hysterics-stricken conqueror dropped. She quietly pointed it at him, a smirk on her cute little kitty face. ZAP! The unicorn’s laughter stopped immediately - or, rather, the now-turned puppy stopped laughing. Somehow, his regalia had morphed to fit his new shape. It didn’t keep him from looking downright adorable, even considering the caustic look he was giving the cat. “Fine. I won’t laugh any more. Now give me the bucking Transmorgrifier.” The feline rolled her eyes and tossed the wand over. “Here.” She glanced around, noticing it was just the two of them. “...say, Sombra, have you seen Chrysalis?” There was a small flash and a loud ZAP! She turned to look at the other being. He, back in his original form, looked at her, quirking an eyebrow. “Crystal-Less? I think she left a while back. Now hold still.” He pointed the wand at her, smirking calmly. “Don’t want you turning into something else, do we?” ZAP! “..oh...I feel so...guilty...” A familiar yellow pegasus was sitting in her house, watching the sun as it rose. It was one of the few times she could watch it without the danger of hurting her eyes. “...if only I’d been there...I could’ve talked you out of it...” “Au contraire, Fluttershy!” She jumped in surprise, quickly turning to look at the source of the noise. As soon as she saw the lion’s paw poking out of her kitchen, she knew who it was. She rushed over, pulling the door open. The first thing she noticed was her table. On the other side sat her friend, a small salad between them on the wooden surface. “Did you miss me?” He got up, smiling playfully. “I missed you.” She smiled softly at him, slowly walking up. “I did...I’m sorry I wasn’t there...” She glanced away in shame, finding herself staring at the bowl of food. “...what is this?” He chuckled deeply, gesturing to said food. “Why, it’s something I made myself - I believe it’s called ‘Caesar salad’?” He snapped his talons, causing a fork to form in the air in front of him. He grabbed it and picked up some of the salad. “Romaine lettuce with parmesan cheese and a specially-made dressing. I’m sure you’ll love it.” He held it out to her, smiling brightly. She reached out for the fork, but he pulled it away, shaking his head at her. “Not so fast! I want to do something nice, but I want to do it my way.” He brought the fork forward once more, grinning. “Open wide, Fluttershy.” She looked at him, confusion clear on her face, but did as she was told, opening her mouth for him. She watched as he put the food in her mouth, gratefully eating each bite. She didn’t see it, but he discretely snapped his tail, causing a few items to appear in the front hall. He glanced at the door with every forkful of food he gave her, a small frown on his face each time. On the fifth bite, the door he was looking at opened, a burgundy pegasus stepping inside. “Hey, ‘Shy. Vi asked me to-” He stopped, staring at the scene in front of him. From where he was standing, with the candles, rose petals and the sight of Fluttershy being fed by Discord, he was unsure what to think. “...uh...” The draconequus stared straight at the red pony, a even look on his face. “This is exactly what it looks like.” Enigma, slightly embarrassed and softly blushing, slowly backed out the door, closing it as he did. The butter-yellow mare gave Discord a stern look, frowning softly. “Why did you do that?” He shrugged, smiling cheekily. “What? I thought it would be funny.” The burgundy pegasus sighed, starting back on the road to town. “...I didn’t expect that...” He walked for a while before he saw another pony approaching him from the other direction. As he got closer, he recognized their iconic purple shades, a small smile forming on his lips. “Hey, Vi! What’re you doing here?” The mare took her shades off, rolling her red eyes. “Applejack’s dog ran into the forest and she asked me to get her back safely.” She looked over at him, grinning brightly. “Since you’re here, though, do you mind helping me find her?” He chuckled, shaking his head. “I see. Sure, I’ll help you find Winona.” They started to turn around, walking back towards the opening of the Everfree Forest. He draped his wing over her back, wanting to make sure he didn’t get separated from her. On the other side of Equestria, a pony entered an ancient antechamber. She approached the pedestal, a giddy smile on her face. “After all this time...all the turmoil...every single pony and griffon who tried to betray me...I’m about to retrieve the-” She stopped mid-sentence, staring down at the almost-empty space where the relic was supposed to be. In its place was a single golden feather. She stood there for a few moments in stunned silence. Then she raised a hoof to the sky, shouting at the top of her lungs. “BUUUUUUUUUUUU-”