//------------------------------// // Act I: Chapter 2 // Story: Miss Sparkle, Psychopath // by Adda le Blue //------------------------------// Tick. Tick. Rarity glared up at the clock. Tick, tick... According to its arms, it had only been two minutes since she'd last checked it. She was sure it was lying. The mares' conversation hadn't lasted long. Rainbow Dash was quite positive that Twilight Sparkle was behind her condition. She'd told them so proudly, as if she was simply bragging about a new stunt. Her four friends had tried to find another culprit, but every villainous power they'd faced in the past was unlikely to be involved. Even their go-to troublemakers - Discord, the chimeric lord of chaos, and Chrysalis, queen of the vicious changeling race - weren't realistic possibilities. Tick. Every sign pointed to one pony. “Rainbow Dash?” called a disinterested nurse's aide. A rolling tide of five ponies surged toward the door. “Wait!” the filly said hurriedly, throwing up her hooves to hold back ponies twice her size. “We can't have that many of you back here.” Pinkie hopped past her. “But we have to help Rainbow Dash!” she squealed on the way through the door. “I don't think...” The little aide sighed and brushed her dark curls out of her eyes. “Applejack, bring her on in. Can the rest of you just wait out here?” “Of course,” Fluttershy said quickly. “We don't want to get in the anypony's way, do we?” Rarity scowled. “Great. This way, Applejack.” As soon as the door between them closed and Rarity's magic winked out, the pegasus on the farmer's back began to stir. “Rainbow,” AJ warned. “I said I'm fine,” she growled. “You shouldn't have taken me here in the first place. I was supposed to stay in the library!” “If you don't settle yourself down I'm gonna tie you there,” the sturdy mare threatened. “It's only a short walk. You can deal with it until we get to your room.” The filly looked up at the two adults with mingling professionalism and uncertainty. “Should I get a wheelchair?” “I got it!” Pinkie offered, and before anypony could object she zoomed off the way they'd come. With Pinkie Pie gone, Applejack took the opportunity to lean close to the little filly. “Look, do you have a unicorn on staff that specializes in, you know, brain stuff?” she asked quietly. “We're going to need somepony with a lot of talent here.” “What's wrong with her this time?” she asked with a roll of the eyes. “Somepony put a spell on her. Her head's all kinds of messed up.” The aide cocked her head and glanced at Rainbow Dash. “What do you mean, messed up?” “Hey!” their charge said loudly. “I'm right here!” Applejack ignored her. “I'm thinking maybe she drank a love potion or something.” “Do they still make those?” the aide asked. “Not that I'm curious or anything.” “Incoming wheelchair!” Something hit Applejack's legs, sending her rearing into the air to keep her balance. Rainbow Dash slid from her back to be deposited neatly into the chair. Pinkie stood behind it with hooves on handles, looking quite proud of herself. “Pinkie!” AJ barked as she straightened her hat. “You can't do that here. This is a hospital!” “Um... Her room is right here,” the aide said. She gestured to the open door on their right. The farmer glared at the party pony, who smiled back as she wheeled her friend past. Without being prompted Rainbow Dash flew from the chair to the waiting bed. “Let's get this over with,” she muttered. “I have to get back to the library before Miss Sparkle comes back.” AJ shuddered. “Don't worry, RD,” she assured her, “we'll get you right as rain in no time.” “I'll let the nurses know where you are,” the aide said as she excused herself. “Thanks, Nursery Rhyme!” After the filly left nopony spoke; the air grew stale and tense as the three friends waited, and Rainbow Dash's occasional venomous glares only made matters worse. Thankfully it was no time at all before the door snapped open once more. “Look who it is,” the nurse said with a patronizing smile as she stepped into the room. She nudged the door shut with a bump of her powder blue flank. “Welcome back, Rainbow Dash.” “Morning, Tenderheart,” Applejack greeted her. The mare nodded to her as she trotted up to the table. “I was wondering whether you'd turn up here. The nurses and I have a bet riding on what you'd be in for.” Rainbow glowered at her. “Come on, RD.” Applejack gave her a good-natured elbow to the ribs. “You know she don't mean nothing by it.” Her friend scowled and crossed her hooves. “So, Rainbow, it seems you're back due to yet another head injury.” She sighed. “And I was hoping for a wing,” she said wistfully. “Looks like Snowheart wins the pot.” “How many times do I have to say it? My head's fine,” she argued. “That's not what it looks like.” The nurse shook her mint-green mane out of her eyes and leaned closer to inspect the pegasus's bandages. “What did you do to your eye? Did you scratch it on a tree branch while you were flying around?” Rainbow growled. “My eye's fine!” she insisted. “Well, by the look of this bandage it's been weeping. I don't want to take any chances. How long has it been since you got injured, and since you last changed the bandage?” “I'm not injured, okay? I'm just keeping it safe.” The nurse stared coolly at her. “And the bandage?” Her patient shrugged, unhelpful as always. “Um... Four days, maybe. It takes me a while to do it right by myself.” Tenderheart cringed. “Let's just get that off. We don't want the eye to get infected, do we?” She stretcher her hooves toward the weather pony's head. Rainbow jerked her head back. The nurse wasn't having it. “Rainbow, we've been through this plenty of times,” she said firmly. “Just let me do my job and you'll be back to your tricks in–” She slapped her hoof away. “Miss Sparkle said no!” Tenderheart sighed and put on her best firm-doctor expression. “Rainb...” A moment later the words registered. “Wait. What?” Rainbow crossed her arms in front of her chest and glared down at her opponent. “Miss Sparkle said don't touch!” she repeated. “Who is Miss Sparkle?” she said, looking askance at the two earth ponies. “Is that- Is that Twilight Sparkle?” “Don't call her that,” Rainbow insisted. “She said to call her Miss Sparkle from now on, okay?” Tenderheart turned anxiously to the two mares. “Do you know anything about this?” “That's why we're here,” Applejack replied. “I'm not really sure what's going on with her, but I'm sure there's a good reason.” “Yeah!” Pinkie agreed brightly. “It's not like Twilight would go bonkers and stick Rainbow Dash in her basement and hypnotize her into being her slave forever.” “Right!” her companion nodded. “And even if she did, she wouldn't make Rainbow call her Miss Sparkle like she's some kind of businessmare. Now that's silly!” Applejack's eyes tightened. “Or a teacher?” Tenderheart supplied. The smile fled her muzzle. She chewed her lip. “Right...” “Hey!” Rainbow shouted. “Are we done? I have someplace to be!” “Well, I'm sorry, Applejack, but we don't have any unicorns on call at the moment. I think we'll need to transfer her to Canterlot.” “We don't need to go to Canterlot,” Pinkie reminded them. “Canterlot is coming to us! Twilight will be back in just a couple of hours.” “Oh no!” Rainbow Dash leaped off of the bed. “Where do you think you're going?” Tenderheart exclaimed. Rainbow Dash pushed her aside. “I have to make sure that basement is spotless before she gets back!” She buzzed toward the door. AJ caught her tail in her teeth and jerked her back. “Oh no you don't!” she exclaimed through clenched teeth. “You're staying put 'til we can figure out what's wrong with you!” Rainbow spun and wove her hooves in her tail. “Bite me!” She gave the strands a jerk. Applejack's jaw didn't give an inch. “Long as I have to,” she said with a snarky wink. “Hey Rainbow Dash, wanna see a cool trick?” Pinkie asked suddenly. “Look at Tenderheart!” Rainbow swiveled her nose toward the nurse, who stared back motionless. “Pinkie, she's not doing anything. What kind of a distraction is that?” Light shone into her right eye; unaccustomed to the sudden glare, she was left blinded. Rainbow cried out and covered it with her hoof. “Ow! Darn it, Pinkie!” Pinkie Pie bounced away with the bandages in hoof and struck a pose. “Ta-daaa!” Applejack took the opportunity to tackle her friend. “Why don't you just cooperate, you stubborn mule?” she said as she clambered atop the pegasus. “No offense!” Pinkie called, just in case. Tenderheart crept over, watching for sudden movements and flailing limbs. She was used to Rainbow's and Applejack's behavior on these visits. “Let me see it.” “No!” Applejack straddled the pegasus's hips and pried her hoof from her eye. The cheek and lower eyelid were damp and crusted, but at least it didn't look unhealthy on the outside. “Come on, RD, you know you've been beat,” AJ gloated as she forced Rainbow's left hoof away as well. “Pony up.” “No!” “Rainbow...” “Miss Sparkle said nopony can see it yet!” Alarm bells went off in the back of Applejack's skull. “Well, she didn't mean us,” Pinkie Pie reasoned. “We're her friends! We share everything!” She sighed inwardly at the pink pony's quick wit. “That's right,” AJ agreed. “She's always wanting to show us some new experiment or another!” “I'm not an experiment,” Rainbow said glumly. “I'm her marefriend.” “So she'd be even more excited to show off for her friends.” “Yeah! So what did she do?” Pinkie pestered her. “Did she give you night vision? Or super eagle-eye vision?” “Twilight cast a spell on your eyes?” Nurse Tenderheart yelped. “Doesn't she know how dangerous that is?” “Miss Sparkle said that's too dangerous,” the pegasus reminded her with a smug grin for the nurse. “We asked her that months ago, remember?” “Ooh! Or x-ray vision?” Rainbow would have facehoofed if she'd had a free hoof, but both were still in the farmer's grip. “Look. Even I don't know what she did.” “Come on, Rainbow,” Applejack coaxed her. “Give us a peek. We just want to make sure everything's working like it should.” “But I think it was supposed to be a surprise,” she said uncertainly. “I think she wanted to be here when I showed everypony.” “Please?” Rainbow fidgeted and bit her lip; her good eye looked for the door. “The sooner you show us, the sooner we can get back to the library,” Applejack said reasonably. “Alright?” “Oh...” RD sighed. “Fine. But you can't spoil it for anypony else.” She opened her eye. “How does it look?” she said with an apprehensive smile. The two friends stared at it, one in quiet surprise and the other in open-mouthed shock. Nurse Tenderheart slowly rose up between them, and when she saw it her eyebrows shot up. “What'd she do?” Rainbow asked excitedly. “I know she did something, but she wouldn't tell me what. Come on, how awesome is it?” “Um... Rainbow Dash,” the nurse began, but she didn't know how to say it. She pointed to the little mirror standing on her desk. The pegasus jumped upright – Applejack clambered off to let her – and zipped over to it. “I don't even know how to take that,” Applejack muttered. “Is that...?” Rainbow squealed in excitement. “Omigosh omigosh omigosh! Do you girls see that?” Rainbow exclaimed. “It's like she gave me a little piece of herself! You know what that means? She wants me to be perfect, like her!” She reached her hooves around Pinkie Pie and shook her. “I told you she loves me!” Pinkie stared back with her head cocked to one side. “Even if Twilight did go bonkers and stick Rainbow Dash in her basement,” the usually-bouncy earth pony said slowly, “and hypnotize her and make her call her Miss Sparkle like she's a teacher or something, there's no way she'd even think of maybe coloring her eye violet like hers like... like a sign of ownership.” “No.” The word could have been agreement or denial. Pinkie's lip quivered. “No, that doesn't sound like her at all...”