Rarity was helping Twilight and Meeny find the books they were looking for. Twilight watched intently as her friend looked through her files thoroughly. Twilight then leaned foward.
"Anything?"
"Nothing yet. I can only do so much with the information you've given me. NONE. .... *Sigh* I'm sorry Twilight, but I simply just can't determine what is wrong with Rainbow Dash."
"There must be something." Rarity said. "Maybe you've missed something."
"Look. Insanity doesn't just appear out of no where. It has to have occured by a natural cause, which can be triggered by continuous stress, an undeveloped part of the mind, simple hypnosis or even trauma. Either that, or she has comsumed a poisoned substance or had a curse put upon her. That's everything there is to it. I've been taught it, read it, been shown it and even experienced it myself so DON'T insult my intelligence and say I've missed something."
"There is something I forgot to mention." Twilight added.
"What?" Both Rarity and Meeny said.
"Well, before Pinkie was found murdered in SugarCube Corner, Rainbow Dash looked, well ....Tired."
Rarity looked confused. "Soooo... sleep caused this?
Meeny scoffed. "Of course not silly. Although sleep deprevation is quite uncommon for such an athletic pony."
"And also." Twilight added. "She didn't seem to be herself. She seemed... distant. But she was also jumpy. I hadn't spoken to her for weeks because she just ignored me every time I tried to communicate with her."
Twilight could see the wheels turning in Meenys's mind. Just then a sudden ephiphany struck her.
"That's it!" Meeny squeaked, before holding the confused mare by her shoulders. "Twilight you're a genius!"
"I am?"
Meeny dashed off and picked up the only book that wasn't open.
"Like I said before, the brain can crack under both natural causes and simply by sabotaging it. The fact she was suffering from sleep deprivation, and her lethargic attitude all, are both symptons of nightmares."
"Nightmares." Rarity said. "How can nightmares have caused all of this? We all still have nightmares but I don't go killing anypony because of them."
"No Rarity. These aren't your simple falling from the sky, drowning or being chased by a bear nightmares. These nightmares are some of the most gruesome, horrifying and explicit nightmares a pony could suffer. Sometimes they can be a terrible as watching your friends mutilating your body as you lay there to watch them feast on your insides!"
Rarity gagged. She tried to clear the thought of the gruesome image in her mind.
"But Meeny, this still doesn't explain how this could have happened."
"Well the only way these kinds of nightmares can be implanted in the mind is through a very special poison. I mean really old fashioned stuff, really nasty too. It lingers in the mind for the rest of that pony's life, playing the same nightmare over and over again. Whatever happens to that pony's phsyce, that is, whether they go insane or commit suicide, can't be specified. It all depends on how strong the mind is."
"Poor Rainbow. Who would do this to her? Why didn't she tell anypony about what she was going through?" Twilight said, with tears welling up in her eyes.
"I can't even begin to imagine what she's going through." Rarity said. "Is there any way we can help her?"
Meeny Moe looked at Rarity and then Twilight. before she sighed in frustration.
"I. .... I'm sorry, as far as I know, there isn't anything that's known to us that can help her. This stuff eats away at the mind till there is nothing left but anger and hate."
"No! There must be something we can do. There's gotta be something! Anything!" Twilight began, trying desperately to hold back her tears as Meeny walked up behind her and placed a hoof on her shoulder, trying hard to comfort her unicorn friend.
"I'm sorry Twilight. There really isn't anything we can do. It's not her anymore. She's forgotten about you."
"Forgotten? ..... You said forgotten." Twilight thought hard for a second before it hit her. "That's it! If I just use my memory spell on her she'll remember everything! Do you think it will work?"
Meeny paused, trying to clear her mind.
"I. ..... I suppose it's never been done before. It's a long shot. .... It COULD work."
"Then that's all we need." Twilight began to get excited.
Rarity stepped foward. "But we still don't know where she is."
Twilight's mood dropped just as quick as it fired up.
"You're right. .... *sigh* .... any ideas Meeny?"
"Well, with any kind of mental disturbance, I suppose she'd go to a dark and creepy place. Somewhere scary. Kinda clichéd if you ask me."
Twilight looked at Rarity, clearly concerned and worried about having to venture to such a location.
"Soooo... would the Everfree Forest be our best bet?"
"It'd be a good place to start, but, you're still not seriously thinking of going after her are you?"
"She's my friend and she'd do the same for me. Goodbye Meeny. Thank you so much for all your help."
"Good luck." Meeny shouted as Twilight and Rarity ran out of the room. "You're gonna need it."