//------------------------------// // No Regrets // Story: Episode 3: Mageismoiras // by mr lovecolt //------------------------------// Twilight Sparkle stood, once again, at the entrance to the Ponyville Cemetery. The small, rolling hills lined with tombstones beckoned her inside. Once inside, Twilight Sparkle watched as the tree limbs waved in the wind, yet no matter where she looked, it seemed as though all of the tree limbs bent towards her, as though the wind itself had chosen Twilight Sparkle as its vortex. She took a few hesitant steps forward, but as if to confirm her suspicions, the tree limbs continued to move in her direction. The sky was purple, and Luna’s moon hung just above the horizon. In the distance, Twilight Sparkle saw the familiar figure of a yellow pegasus sitting at the top of a hill next to the statue of The Hostler. Each hoof clop that she made echoed into the night, until the sound began to rise like thunder. Twilight Sparkle shook her head in an attempt to ignore the sound, and her trot turned into a gallop as she climbed the hill to reach Fluttershy. Just as before, graves opened to her left and right, and the sound of barking dogs joined in with the sound of her hooves. “Fluttershy!” Twilight Sparkle called for her friend over and over again, but Fluttershy didn’t move. Twilight Sparkle continued to run upwards, but was stopped by a hoof grabbing her own. She looked down and found herself staring into Airheart’s eyes. Her orange mane was matted against her head, and the wounds from where Twilight Sparkle had severed her wings bled out. Twilight Sparkle began to drag herself away, but Airheart’s grasp only grew tighter. She began to buck at Airheart, whose body had only begun to crawl out of the newly opened grave. When Twilight Sparkle felt as though she was finally free of Airheart’s grasp, Airheart leapt out of the grave and clamped her teeth onto Twilight Sparkle’s tail. Twilight Sparkle screamed. “Fluttershy!” Twilight Sparkle cried, “Help me, please!” Fluttershy remained still. Twilight sparkle noticed that her attention was drawn to a house in the distance. As she struggled to free herself form Airheart’s hoof and teeth, she tried to see what Fluttershy was so focused on. As if it were a mirage coming into focus, the familiar farmhouse of Sweet Apple Acres came into view. Twilight Sparkle opened her mouth, but another hoof wrapped itself around her and pulled her into the darkness of the open grave. ***** Spike sat at the top of the stairs and rocked back and forth. When Twilight Sparkle had come in the night before carrying a saddlebag full of notebooks, she had told him not to disturb her under any circumstance. That was almost sixteen hours ago. Spike looked at the clock, which read just past four o’clock. He had tried to sleep downstairs, but every time he closed his eyes, the sound chalk scratching against a chalkboard pricked at his ears. Twilight Sparkle had been writing something furiously in her studies, and Spike had resigned himself to the fact that he wouldn’t sleep that night. The near constant scratching of chalk had finally stopped almost an hour ago, only to be replaced by the sounds of Twilight Sparkle’s moans and cries. Spike stood up, steadied himself, and pushed open the door to their room, the room Twilight Sparkle had chosen to further whatever studies it was she was doing for Fluttershy. What can possibly be so wrong with Fluttershy’s eyes, Spike asked himself as he stepped into the room. Spike looked around the room in confusion as pages of handwritten letters littered the floor. Some of the pages were written in blue or green ink, but a few had splotches of red on them. A pile of notebook bindings were stacked in the corner of the room next to the chalkboard. Some of the bindings had pictures of animals on them, while others had detailed picture of flowers and plants. Spike took another step into the room and felt a piece of paper crumple under his claw. He reached down to look at what he had stepped on. Spike held in his claws a picture of a family of rodents. The larger mouse was waving in the picture, but was trapped in a wheelchair, while the mouse’s wife stood lovingly by his side, looking off into the corner. The mouse pup sat in front of the larger mouse, who Spike deduced was the mouse pup’s father. Wait, Spike thought, I’ve seen this family before. And this is Fluttershy’s hoof writing. Spike dropped the picture on the floor and looked around at the littered pieces of paper. Most of them began with dates, followed by Fluttershy talking about her day. These are all pieces of Fluttershy’s diaries; Spike grimaced as he looked up to Twilight Sparkle’s bed. The chalkboard caught his attention, however, and he turned to it. Numerous pages of Fluttershy’s diaries had been taped onto the edges of the chalkboard. A series of dates and names lined one side of the chalkboard, with a line that connected to each red inked page of diary on the other side. In the middle of the chalkboard, in large letters, Twilight Sparkle had written ELEMENT OF KINDNESS, with two lines going to ANGER and REGRET. Surrounding the main diagram were a series of illustrations showing filled-in ponies and hollow ponies. One of the ponies had two smaller ponies above it, with arrows in different directions. Another pony was crossed out. The words FATE and MAGIC appeared in numerous locations across the chalkboard. Another stifled moan echoed in Spike’s ears, and he climbed the final flight of stairs to the bed that Twilight Sparkle was sleeping in. He watched as Twilight Sparkle grimaced, and then began to toss and turn. Her wings fluttered beneath the quilt, and sparks of magic erupted from her horn. Spike began to raise his claw to try to wake her up, but Twilight Sparkle shrieked and jolted upright in her bed. Spike froze. He watched as Twilight Sparkle’s mouth motioned to speak, but no sounds came out. He then watched as she lowered back onto her pillow and resumed her troubled sleep. Spike inched forward and lifted the quilt as his lip quivered. Twilight Sparkle’s wings were fully displayed, and she lay prone on the bed. He lifted his body as gently as he could onto the bed and then nestled his body into the space between her barrel and her wing. Spike felt Twilight Sparkle’s body stop trembling and her wing immediately wrap itself around him. He squeezed his eyes shut, and tears began to fall out of them. Now it was his body that trembled. Please don’t leave me, Twilight. There was a knock at the door downstairs. Spike sighed, and then he left the bed. He winced when he heard Twilight Sparkle begin to whimper again, but he had no choice. The library was open again. Maybe he could just tell whatever pony was there that they were reshelving. Spike trudged down the stairs to the front door and opened it. The wind had picked up since that morning. Grey clouds hung overhead, spread haphazardly across the sky. Spike would have made a comment to the visitor about how it must have been Rainbow Dash’s day for weather patrol, but his eyes widened when he saw who it was. “Why, Spike, darling,” Rarity said as she entered the library, “You look like you haven’t slept in days.” “I haven’t,” Spike croaked out, suddenly feeling awkward about his appearance, “Twilight’s been doing some serious studying. But she’s sleeping now.” “Oh, well then, maybe I should try to come a little bit later,” Rarity replied, “I so wanted to speak with her about something. Oh, you poor thing. Why don’t you just get some rest? I can always come back another time.” “Thanks,” Spike smiled, “It’s just her working on this issue with Fltutershy and all.” Rarity’s head quirked to the side. “So, she told you about what happened?” “No, not really,” Spike replied as he held back a yawn, “Something about her eyes, though. Twilight’s been keeping her in the basement until she finishes whatever spell she’s working on.” Spike couldn’t help but look on in confusion as Rarity’s eye began to twitch and her mouth began to fall open. “I’m sorry, dear,” Rarity replied, “But could you repeat that?” Spike nodded and then turned to the basement. As he opened the door, he turned to Rarity. “We have to keep it pretty dark.” Spike said, “Something about her eyes and being really sensitive to light.” ***** Twilight Sparkle didn’t know how long she fell. But she could feel the hooves surround her. Not just the hooves of Airheart, but countless hooves, all reaching out just to touch an inch of her body. Every time she tried to call out, a hoof wrapped itself around her muzzle. Beneath her, a tiny pinpoint of light appeared. She continued to fall, and the speck of light grew. Twilight Sparkle landed on a hill. It was the hill that she often went to in her dreams, because it was the same hill where she and Fluttershy would meet for stargazing. She looked down and saw that Fluttershy was there, nuzzled against her barrel. A smile spread along her nuzzle as she wrapped one of her wings around Fluttershy. “You’re going to be a great Princess, Twilight.” “As long as I have you, then it may happen.” “I’m not as important as the others.” “You are the most important to me. Fluttershy, I want to tell you-” The ground opened once again, but this time, it was Fluttershy who was dragged into the darkness. Twilight Sparkle found herself frozen as hooves wrapped themselves around Fluttershy and pulled her away. Fluttershy disappeared, and everything turned black. ***** Twilight Sparkle awoke in her bed. She immediately felt that it was afternoon, but as she looked outside, all she could see were sheets of grey clouds dotting the sky. She turned her attention to the small telescope at the window. Saturday, September fourteenth, she thought, the day before Princess Luna created the first asteroid. Fluttershy would love to see it. An odd sensation rushed through Twilight Sparkle’s body. The left side of her barrel felt warm. It was the same side that Fluttershy had leaned against in her dream. Twilight Sparkle smiled as she stretched her wings and made her way back to the chalkboard she had been working on. The pages from Fluttershy’s diaries littered the floor, and she checked over them a third time to make sure that she hadn’t forgotten a passage that would indicate anger or regret. As it turned out, Fluttershy had a system of organization, as well. The entries written in green were meant for Fluttershy describing her daily events – going to the bazaar, tending the animals, or travelling through the Everfree Forest. The entries written in blue were when she wrote to herself – building confidence, mainly. But it always seemed to be after the blue entries that the red entries would appear. Twilight Sparkle turned to the chalkboard and shook her head. She hated the knowledge that so many of her attempts to break out of her shell ended up with these red entries. February 4, 1004, I didn’t mean to. I really didn’t mean to. Why did I have to tell Rarity about the problems with the dress? I should have known it was perfect. Just because I took a class on the History of Fashion in college, I just had to go and show her what I knew. I just didn’t want her to think I was stupid. But she asked. She kept asking. She wouldn’t stop. Even when I asked her to. She made me do it. There was a push pin on the entry, with a piece of string that went across the board and attached to another push pin that held Rarity’s name. One of the previous passages she had read already had a string leading from Cheerilee to Big Macintosh. April 8, 1004, Why didn’t Princess Celestia just say she was a phoenix when I first saw her? Are there secrets about all of her animals that she keeps? Is that why they don’t like me? Is that why they won’t love me? She knows I care for animals? How could she show such a thing to me and not expect me to try to help it? I will learn about the animals. I know about all animals. I will get her animals to love me. A shiver ran up Twilight Sparkle’s spine as she attached a push pin both to Princess Celestia and Royal Garden Animals. She turned her attention to another passage, dated for when she had forgotten to write a letter to Princess Celestia. October 15, 1004 I just laughed at her. I should have seen the fear in her eyes. I’m such a terrible friend. Twilight Sparkle has been so wonderful to me, and I just laughed at her. She never laughs at me. She never laughs at how useless I am. She never laughs at how weak and helpless I am. And I laughed at her. Twilight Sparkle placed her hoof on the passage as a small sob escaped from her lips. You aren’t weak and helpless, Fluttershy,Twilight Sparkle thought, you just need somepony to let you know how wonderful you are, just as you are. She slowly wrapped a string around the pushpin and strung it over to her own name. There was one more red passage that Twilight Sparkle needed to go over, and she had already attached a string to Pinkie Pie and Rarity. March 3, 1005, Iron Will was not the monster. All he taught was assertiveness. I’m the monster. I liked the feeling. I liked the way the ponies looked at me. How they all ran to the back of the line. I felt so strong. But why did I feel so happy doing it. I was mean, and I enjoyed it. Even when I yelled at Pinkie Pie and Rarity, I enjoyed it. I finally- The passage had been torn in half, and Twilight Sparkle could make out the shapes of teeth marks at the bottom of its remnants, as though Fluttershy had seen what she had written and immediately wanted to get rid of it. Twilight Sparkle scratched her head. All of these passages seemed to express regret. Twilight Sparkle couldn’t figure out the reason why the fact that this was the passage that was ripped off, but she knew that there had to be anger in it. The sun had disappeared. Twilight Sparkle felt that it must have been five or six o’clock. She was starting to get hungry. She opened the door to the main level of the library, only to find Spike and Rarity sitting on a sofa, sipping tea. As soon as the door opened, Rarity’s eyes turned straight up to Twilight Sparkle’s. Twilight Sparkle slowly descended the stairs. “Oh, hey Rarity,” Twilight Sparkle said, “How long have you been here?” She reached the bottom of the stairs just as Rarity set down her cup of tea. She could tell that Rarity was tense, given how her muscles moved. She must not have been focused, though, because she leaned forward and set the tea cup on the table using her hoof instead of her magic. Rarity sat upright and took a deep breath. “Not long.” Rarity replied, “I was hoping to get some advice from you, but then I learned that you are already trying desperately to help out another one of our dear friends.” Twilight Sparkle cringed. Rarity may not be a Canterlot pony, she thought, but she is certainly good at letting a pony know what she knows without telling them that she knows. “So Spike tells me that Fluttershy seems to have a problem with her eyes?” Rarity asked. Twilight breathed a sigh of relief. At least she hadn’t told Spike about what happened. She turned to Spike, who simply looked straight up at her. For the first time, she couldn’t read his eyes. She took a seat in a chair in front of the two of them. Her eyes darted from Rarity to Spike, and she thought about whether or not to simply tell them both about what was happening. If I tell them, Twilight Sparkle thought, I can get their help with Fluttershy. But they don’t know about fate magic, so how can they help? She knew that Rarity knew Fluttershy was dead. She knew Spike thought she had a problem with her eyes. Do I tell Spike that I’ve been lying to him, Twilight Sparkle thought, or do I play along? Surely Rarity wouldn’t want me to tell all of this to Spike. “Yes,” Twilight Sparkle replied, giving Rarity a knowing look, “But I have learned a very particular kind of magic that can fix Fluttershy to how she was.” “Her eyes, you mean?” Rarity asked. “Y-Yes,” Twilight Sparkle continued, “Spike, you’ve seen the work I’ve been doing for Fluttershy, right?” Twilight Sparkle stared at Spike for a moment. He didn’t speak. His eyes turned to Rarity’s for a moment, and then back to hers. “Yes,” Spike replied, “I have seen the work you’ve been doing for fix Fluttershy’s eyes. She’s been working really hard, Rarity.” Twilight Sparkle watched as Spike and Rarity’s eyes met. Show them the board, Twilight Sparkle thought, show them how you’ve been working to save Fluttershy. Tell them… tell them… “Well,” Rarity said as she stood up, “I had come over for something, but I must admit I forgot what it was, so I’ll be going. If you need me, I’ll be at Sweet Apple Acres.” The moment was gone. Twilight Sparkle watched as Rarity began to head towards the door. “Would you mind if I… saw you out?” Spike asked. Rarity turned around. “Oh Spike,” Rarity replied as a small smile appeared, “You are such a gentledrake.” Twilight watched as the two walked towards the door. They opened the door and walked out. The door slammed shut. Twilight Sparkle looked at the door to the basement and immediately ran towards it, using her magic to open it. She ran through the door and slammed it shut. ***** The wind had picked up significantly since the sun had touched the horizon. Rarity and Spike looked out at the trees as their leaves scratched against one another. A few ponies trotted about, but since Mayor Mare’s address in regards to the timberwolf problem, most ponies preferred to remain indoors any time sunset drew near. The Ponyville fountain still spurted out water; each cascade that landed on the cement sent a crashing sound outward into the evening air. Rarity looked down at Spike, who had started shaking. She knew that Spike couldn’t feel cold due to his scales, so she gently wrapped a hoof around his shoulder. Spike looked straight ahead, his body still shaking. “I’m sorry, Spike.” Rarity said. “Twilight…” Spike began, “Twilight… lied to me.” Rarity bent down to place her muzzle to Spike’s cheek, but he jerked away. Rarity pulled away and tilted her head. “Rarity,” Spike said as he scratched his claws together, “I… I just want to say that I am happy for you and Big Mac.” Rarity could see that Spike had now turned his attention to the ground. His body still shook. Rarity took a breath. The leaves continued to scratch against one another, as though they clawed each other and against the limbs they were attached to in an attempt to escape. “Spike,” Rarity said, “You are a wonderful dragon. You are kind and loyal, even by pony standards. A dragoness would be lucky to find you. And thank you for the advice.” Rarity leaned down and kissed Spike before he could have a chance to react. Spike looked up to Rarity, opened his mouth to speak, but instead turned and went back into the library. Rarity looked at the now closed door. Spike, Rarity thought, if only that one thing were different. Rarity turned and made her way to Sweet Apple Acres. ***** Twilight Sparkle sat in the darkness of the basement, the only light being the series of candles she had set around the room. Twilight Sparkle had discovered that the light of the candles was weak enough to not affect Fluttershy as badly. She sat in front of Fluttershy; each time she cocked her head, Fluttershy did the same. Canterlot Garden animals, Twilight Sparkle thought, and she watched as Fluttershy’s head drooped downward. Hearts and Hooves Day, Twilight Sparkle thought, and she watched as Fluttershy’s head drooped down once again. Twilight Sparkle’s horn glowed, and the chalkboard materialized a moment later. “Most of Fluttershy’s bodily reactions to telepathic linked messages brings similar results: the drooping head indicated regret, but without the ability to see Fluttershy’s eyes, I cannot ascertain the motive behind the head droop, thus leaving my assumptions to regret or anger at each suggestion.” Twilight Sparkle’s experiment was interrupted by the sound of a door opening. She looked up and saw Spike at the top of the stairs. Even from here, she could see an odd look in Spike’s eyes. He descended the stairs slowly, but his eyes never left hers. As he drew closer, the look became clearer. She had seen that look before. She had seen it in Discord’s eyes. Spike reached the bottom of the stairs and turned his attention from the chalkboard to Fluttershy. He then looked back into Twilight Sparkle’s eyes. “Twilight?” Spike asked, “What’s going on?” Twilight Sparkle could see it in his eyes. He knew. She closed her eyes and sighed. Before she could say anything though, Spike continued. “You lied to me, Twilight,” Spike said as he held up a claw, “What did you do to Fluttershy, Twilight?” Twilight Sparkle watched Spike make his way to Fluttershy, who remained motionless. “Spike, Princess Celestia ordered us not to tell anypony. I-” “She was dead, Twilight. And now she’s a zombie… thing.” “She is not a zombie!” Twilight Sparkle shouted as she threw a hoof on the floor, “Fluttershy is in there! There is just… it’s hard to explain.” Twilight Sparkle turned away from Spike. The candles continued to flicker in the darkness. “Rarity and Applejack told Big Mac.” Twilight Sparkle turned back to Spike. “They did what?” “Well, if you had a special somepony, or anypony important in your life, wouldn’t you want them to know? Aren’t I important to you?” Spike shook his head and turned to climb the stairs. When he reached the top of the stairs, he turned once more to Twilight Sparkle. “Maybe it is just how things work for you ponies.” Spike closed the door, leaving Twilight Sparkle alone with Fluttershy. She wanted to chase after him, but something he said stopped her in her tracks. Special somepony? Twilight Sparkle turned to the chalkboard and stretched a piece of string in between Rarity and Big Macintosh. She turned to Fluttershy. “Rarity is Big Mac’s special somepony.” Twilight Sparkle said as she tilted her head. Fluttershy’s head tilted along with hers. “Every time you’ve wanted to talk with him, you’ve seen him with another mare.” Twilight tilted her head in the other direction. Fluttershy followed suit. She looked over to the chalkboard. The words ANGER and REGRET called out to her. She turned to Fluttershy and looked down at the elemental necklace that she wore, and the while wondering what it would take to get this creature out of her. She wanted Fluttershy back. Doctor Stable's words entered Twilights head once again. I would hate to think of what would happen to Equestria if we were to lose one of you. Twilight Sparkle smiled and turned back to Fluttershy. She slowly nodded her head. Fluttershy eventually mimicked her movements. “Cheerilee never hurt, you, Fluttershy,” Twilight Sparkle said as her continual nodding began to send strays of hair standing on end, “Rarity has not hurt you.” Twilight leaned in until her muzzle was inches away from Fluttershy’s ear. “Big Mac is the one who is hurting you.” A white glow emanated from the floor, and Twilight Sparkle watched as the light began to consume Fluttershy. Moments later, she was gone.