//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: Getting Even // by Mint //------------------------------// Twilight awoke in a daze, which was unusual for her. She almost obsessively got the recommended amount of sleep as prescribed by the Canterlot Medical Biannual General Assembly, but not last night. The sunlight streaming in from the window finally roused her from her sleep. She sat up, yawning. Her hair was disheveled and there were bags under her eyes. The pony rubbed her eyes, trying to think. She felt something heavy on her feet. When she looked she saw Spike's head on the edge of bed. He certainly was sleeping in, he usually cooked breakfast by now... Then Twilight remembered. Spike had returned yesterday. They had stayed up late talking. When Twilight went up to bed however, Spike woke up. He asked if he could sleep close to Twilight and the unicorn happily agreed. Spike managed to slither up to the second floor and lay his head on the edge of the bed. Twilight fell asleep much easier than she had in years, momentarily forgetting all of her problems. Now that she was awake she turned to her side. There lay the princess of Equestria, Luna. She was sprawled out like a filly, quietly snoring. Her eyes were twitching in the sunlight however. Twilight smiled. The grand alicorn looked cute like that, almost like she was harmless. The unicorn reached over and closed her curtains. She carefully edged out of bed, avoiding waking the two other inhabitants. She then tip-toed downstairs to fix her own breakfast. To avoid making too much noise, Twilight grabbed a few handfuls of hay for her morning meal and sat down to think. Once she had time to ponder however, dark thoughts billowed out. She had a tricky and dangerous plan to enact. She had one driving purpose, nail Bridleburg to the wall. Twilight sighed. This was going to be troublesome. She took a few quick gulps of water and wiped her mouth. When she hopped off the stool however, Spike came walking down the stairs, yawning with his great jaws. "Morning Twilight." He said, walking past her. He opened a cupboard where he had stored some of jewels he brought with him. He picked out a ruby and began munching on it, enjoying the sweet taste. "What are we going to do today?" Twilight brought a brush to her hair with her magic. She began straightening out her messy locks. "Sorry Spike," Twilight began. "I promise we'll hang out this afternoon. I have some personal things to attend to first." "But I'm your assistant." Spike said with a mouthful of ruby. "What sort of personal thing could you have to do that I can't help you with?" "I made a promise Spike." Twilight replied. "I wish you had told me you were coming, I could have freed up my schedule." "I didn't even know I was coming." Spike said, motioning his head towards the bed upstairs. "That princess went and found me even though she didn't know where I was." "She is something else." Twilight said, feeling a little wistful about the rather cute alicorn still sleeping. "I'm interested to see what she'll do next." Twilight figured her hair as good enough and set the brush down on the other side of the room. "I've got to go Spike, try not to get into any trouble." "Sure." Spike said, reaching into the bookcase. He pulled out an old dictionary Twilight never read. When he opened it a comic book fell out. It apparently was about a masked detective unicorn and his sidekick dragon. "I've got to catch up on my reading." Twilight stood dumbfounded for a moment. Had that been there the whole time? She just shook her head and proceeded out the door. The walk to Sweet Apple Acres was a quiet one. Most ponies had already settled in to work for the day and the few walking around weren't in a talkative mood. Twilight was constantly yawning and stopping to brush her eyes. It was incredibly rare for her to not sleep enough and her body was intent on punishing her. When she finally did arrive at her destination she saw that the Apples were hard at work. Apple Bloom, now old enough to pull her own weight, was dragging her feet. She had a basket on either side of her back filled with apples. She dumped them in a large bin before sauntering off to get more, like a zombie. "Hurry it up!" Applejack said as she trotted past her, carrying just as many apples. "Nothing will wake you up better than a healthy apple-kicking!" Apple Bloom muttered in response and didn't speed up at all. As Applejack emptied her apples into the massive bin Twilight approached her. "Well howdy-do Twilight!" Applejack exclaimed. "I've been gettin' a lot of visits from you lately." Twilight tried to speak, but ended up yawning. "Well golly, you look as bad as Apple Bloom. Her and those gall-derned crusader friends of hers were up to their necks in trouble last night." "I was up to no good too actually." Twilight replied. "Is Macintosh around? I need to talk to him." "He's always around." Applejack said, as if the question was obvious. "I just sent Apple Tree after him to see if he can get big red to accept a marriage proposal." "Another one?" Twilight asked. "This one is really good though!" Applejack said. "She's a friend of our fourth cousin. She's a Strawberry and if our families connect together we'd own nearly a third of the farms in all of Equestria!" "With the Apples, Oranges and Strawberries I don't doubt it." Twilight replied. Farming families sure lacked creativity with names. "Sometimes it's not about convenience, logic and what's good for everypony else." "Read that in a book?" Applejack said, her eyes half-shaded. "Maybe." Twilight replied. "He's awfully busy Twilight." Applejack said. "What is it you want to talk to him about?" "W-Well...it's...a secret..." Twilight said shakily. She hadn't been counting on Applejack being nosy. "A secret eh...?" Applejack grinned and leaned close to Twilight. "You can tell me!" Twilight shrunk back. "I...I made a promise..." Twilight remembered abruptly that she was a terrible liar. Applejack grinned. "Oh come on..." Applejack began. "I won't share." "Uh...well...uh...Macintosh has...a secret admirer. I'm...delivering a message for her!" "Oh really!" Applejack instantly jerked her head up, a big grin on her face. "That's good to hear! Who is it? Is she nice?" "Incredibly." Twilight said, relieved that Applejack bought that. "She's also very pretty." "He ain't going fer that whole arranged marriage thing." Applejack said, thinking. "Maybe he'll go along with it if the mare already likes him. Alrighty, give it your best shot! He's over in field three, that way." Applejack pointed in one direction. With an encouraging pat from Applejack on her shoulder, Twilight marched away. It was a lot harder to find him than the unicorn thought. "Field three" as Applejack described it was huge, as they all were. Plus, it wasn't like Twilight could tell one tree from another like Applejack could. The earth pony even named and babied them for goodness sake. Twilight spent much longer than she wanted to wandering around from tree to tree, getting the distinct feeling that she had no idea where she was going. When the sun was high in the sky, signaling lunch, the unicorn sighed and began walking back towards the barn. Lo and behold, just when she had given up and was walking back to where she started...she heard them! It was Apple Tree's droll voice. She instantly trotted off into that direction. As she rounded a particularly large tree she spotted them, bucking apples and picking them up to put them in large buckets. "'Bout lunch time." Apple Tree said. Macintosh reared back and smacked a tree, easily knocking off most of the apples. "Eeyup." The red stallion replied, picking up his crops. "Sooo...given anymore thought to the proposal?" Apple Tree asked. "Nope." Macintosh replied. "Could you at least think about it?" Apple Tree asked. "You're only bothering me because Applejack is pestering you." Macintosh retorted. "Well, yeah." Apple Tree said, as if it were obvious. "I'm not going to marry somepony because you want sis off your back. I'm also not going to marry somepony simply because it's convenient for the rest of the family." Apple Tree paused, with a curious expression on his face. Macintosh's response seemed to puzzle him. "So when will you get married?" Apple Tree asked. Twilight wondered if the stallion even knew if there were more reasons to get married than the two Macintosh mentioned. "When I feel like it." Macintosh replied. He dragged a full bucket of apples to a waiting cart. Twilight figured now was as good a time as any. "Hey boys!" She exclaimed walking into the clearing. Both of the stallions turned to her. "Twilight." They said at the same time with the same inflection. 'That's a little disconcerting.' Twilight thought with a shiver. 'Is everypony in their family exactly the same?' "Good to see you!" Twilight replied politely. "Apple Tree, how have you been?" "Okey." He replied. "We hardly ever talk to each other." Twilight said. "We should do it more often." "Do you have something to talk to me about?" Apple Tree asked. "Well...no..." "Then why would we talk?" Twilight's face was blank for a moment. How was she supposed to respond? Apple Tree asked it as if it were an obvious question...and it kind of was if the unicorn thought about it for a moment. Twilight cleared her throat. "A-Anyway...I need to talk to Macintosh alone for a moment." She quickly began thinking up excuses as to why she needed to speak him alone better than the one she fed Applejack. "Okey." Apple Tree replied. He began walking towards the barn, presumably for lunch. Twilight deflated a little. Was he really that simple? The moment Applejack's husband walked away however, Twilight was at a loss for words. Just how did somepony open a conversation that led to Fluttershy's husband? The unicorn beat her hoof back and forth and chuckled nervously. "Sooo...how have you been?" Twilight asked in a weak voice. "Sis didn't send you here to propose to me did she?" Macintosh asked. "Wh...wha...wha...What! NO! NO!" Twilight blushed furiously and babbled for several moments. "Never can be too sure." Macintosh replied, picking up some apples. "She's been single-minded lately." "S-So why not get married?" Twilight asked. "Most of your relatives have arranged marriages, can it really be that bad, and you get to court them first don't you?" "I'll make my own decisions." Macintosh replied. "Not my family. I'll get married when I feel like it." Twilight tilted her head. She always thought that Macintosh was a simple, family pony. Why would he refuse so much? "Oh well, it's not my business." Twilight said. She stepped closer to Macintosh, looking left and right to make sure no one was close. The red stallion eyed her suspiciously, wondering what she was doing. Twilight leaned close to his face and began whispering. "I need your help with something deadly serious and you can't tell anypony." "Ooookay..." Macintosh said slowly, sure that the conversation was about to go into an area that would make him uncomfortable. "Bridleburg is selling Fluttershy." Twilight said, her teeth gritting. Macintosh's expression fell. Twilight could see something spark and burn in his eyes. "He what!" Macintosh said in a low voice. "I need you to help me. I have a plan to make Fluttershy turn on him. I need you...to pose as a buyer." Macintosh's expression fell again, this time to a dumbfounded one. "You want me to do what?" He asked. "Bridleburg might not trust you to send Fluttershy out alone the first few times, so you might have to do it more than once." "You want me to do what?" "And...it'll have to be convincing...so you might have to actually...do it." There was a long stretch of silence. The red stallion's jaw was hanging open. "You want me to do what?" "Macintosh please." Twilight begged. "You're the only one I can count on! I want to make him pay, but I can't unless Fluttershy agrees to speak against him!" "W-Why can't you just turn him in now?" Macintosh asked. "Because, they would have to catch Fluttershy in the act for them to do anything, she'd be in trouble too and there's no way she would survive a trial, much less prison!" Macintosh flinched. That made sense. He backed up a few paces, with one of his front hooves up. He stared off into the orchard, as if thinking. He ground his teeth back and forth for a moment. "We don't have any money." He stated. "We won't until the harvest is completed." "I have a lot of money saved up." Twilight replied. "My grandparents are bankers actually; they set up an account for me with a higher rate of interest than normal." Macintosh sighed and lowered his head towards the ground. If Twilight wasn't mistaken...he seemed sad. "Okay, I'll do it." "Good." Twilight said. "Meet me after your work today." "Fine." He lifted his head back up. He instantly furrowed his brow. "What is that?" "What?" Twilight turned around. Storm clouds, seemingly out of nowhere, were billowing out of town. Both of the ponies stood dumbfounded. 'What could possibly create storm clouds?' Twilight thought. Then something grim hit the pit of her stomach. 'An alicorn!' "Meet me at my house!" Twilight quickly said to Macintosh. "I've got to go!" Twilight began teleporting quickly. She blinked in and out of the trees, going as far as she could. She couldn't go very far with much proficiency. Twilight made it out of the farm, but she was exhausted. Teleportation was one of the most complicated spells for a normal unicorn. Lifting things was simple, although the heavier the object, the harder it was. Teleportation was completely different. It involved disintegrating yourself and reassembling again somewhere else in the exact same form, without a hair out of place (ideally). Now Twilight set out into a dead run. She galloped as quickly as she could towards her house. The storm clouds were fast consuming the town. Everypony was wandering around, staring up at the sky. The sky was also beginning to rumble, signaling a storm. Twilight had to move quickly. If the guards in the Everfree Forest saw this, they would come as well. Then Luna would have to leave! 'No more leaving!' Twilight thought in her desperate run. 'No one else is leaving! Never again!' Twilight ran until her legs burned and she could barely breathe. As she approached her house she saw that Spike was standing outside. The clouds were indeed swirling from above her house. Twilight ran up to him. The dragon appeared bewildered and concerned. "Twilight!" He exclaimed as she desperately gasped and wheezed. "You have to do something! Luna's gone crazy!" "What...happened...?" Twilight gasped between breaths. "I don't know, I think she's having some kind of nightmare." Spike quickly explained. "She just started screaming! I tried to calm her down, but she kicked up this wind inside the library and blew me out! Now these storm clouds are coming out of nowhere!" Twilight coughed a few times, clearing her throat. She began to march towards her house, still huffing and puffing. "Be careful Twilight!" The unicorn reached for the doorknob and pushed the door open. She only made it two paces before a powerful wind pushed her backwards. She tumbled back out of the house, but quickly jumped back up. A crowd was beginning to gather. It was the last thing Twilight needed. The unicorn rushed inside and slammed the door behind her. She was immediately thrown against it, as another powerful wave of air blasted around her. Twilight cracked her eyes open when she landed on the ground. Luna was hovering in the middle of the room. She had terrifyingly angry expression on her face. Her eyes were glowing and her hair whipped in all directions. "Princess..." Twilight begin. "NO!" Luna screamed. Her horn glowed abruptly. Another wave of wind swept around the library, sending books everywhere. Twilight expected this and braced herself, this time not being thrown against a wall. Luna slammed onto the ground, the whole house shaking. "I WON'T GO BACK!" She was shrieking at the top of her lungs. It wasn't a commanding voice, but one of desperation. "What are you...?" Twilight tried to say. "YOU CAN'T MAKE ME GO BACK!" She shrieked again. "I WILL NOT GO BACK TO THE MOON!" 'She is having a nightmare.' Twilight thought. 'I have to wake her up.' Twilight stood up. What greeted her however was a blood-curdling scream. It was the most painful and awful one Twilight had ever heard. It was one that was mixed with rage, pain and sorrow. It stuck a knife right into Twilight's heart. When Luna finally stopped however, the unicorn saw that her eyes no longer glowed. Instead they were slit, like a cat's. 'She's turning into Nightmare Moon! I have to stop her!' Twilight began approaching. "NOOO! I WILL NOT STAY HERE! YOU CAN'T MAKE ME! NOOOOOO!" Another wave of wind swept around the room. Twilight held her ground, despite nearly being blown off her feet. She continued marching, closer and closer. "YOU CAN'T LEAVE ME HERE! YOU CAN'T! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!' Luna's mane turned deep purple and began flowing in all directions. Her body began turning black in veins across her body that expanded all over her coat. Twilight finally stood before her. The alicorn was foaming at the mouth and her slit eyes were filled with rage. Twilight didn't know exactly what to do. She did the only thing she could think of. She lunged forward and wrapped Luna in a tight embrace. "Stop, stop." Twilight whispered. "You're not on the moon. You're not. Calm down." "I CAN'T BE HERE!" Luna shrieked. "I CAN'T BE ALONE!" "You're not alone. I'm here. I'm here with you." Twilight could see the veins of black beginning to recede. Luna's mane returned to its normal color. "That's it. Calm down." "I don't wanna be here..." Luna said in a weak voice. "I don't wanna be alone...not again..." Tears began dropping on Twilight's shoulder. As the princess blinked them away, her eyes returned to normal. "I can't be alone again...I can't..." "You're not. You're not alone. I'm right here with you." Luna lifted her head and Twilight backed away to see. Luna blinked a few times, as if a little stunned. She stared right at the unicorn for a moment. "Twilight?" She asked. "All better?" Twilight asked with a smile. Luna paused for a moment, then her chin quivered and her eyes watered. "Oh Twilight!" The princess leaped forward and wrapped the unicorn in a hug this time. "It was awful! I was on the moon again! I was all alone again! I was alone for so long! I can't do it again. I won't do it again! I'd rather die!" "You're not alone." Twilight said, returning the princess's hug. "I'm right here. You won't have to do it again, I promise." The alicorn was shaking in fear. Twilight had never seen somepony so upset before. "Twilight...my friend..." Luna said quietly. Abruptly however, she slumped over, nearly knocking Twilight over. "Princess? Princess?" Twilight asked as she shook her. The unicorn gazed back and saw that she was passed out. She reached up with her hoof and felt the Princess's forehead. "Spike! Spike!" The dragon quickly entered the home. "What is it? Did you get her?" He asked quickly. "She's burning up, she must be sick!" Twilight shouted. "Get her up to bed, I'll brew something up!" "Okay!" Spike replied. He easily lifted the alicorn and carried her up the stairs. Twilight trotted over and stuck her head out the door to the crowd. "Sorry everypony!" Twilight said with a smile. "I left a weather experiment out and it got out of hand. I fixed it now." The crowd instantly murmured and began dispersing, some expressing relief and others complaining about how reckless Twilight was. The unicorn briefly gazed up to confirm that the clouds were, indeed, breaking up. Then she slammed the door again and locked it behind her. Twilight managed to give the Princess a potion used for lowering fever and let her sleep. Now she sat beside her on the bed, above the covers. She didn't think alicorns could even get sick. The princess however was tossing and turning in her sleep, apparently having fitful dreams. Now Twilight had a new problem. Nightmare Moon still existed. Luna could still turn into her! Twilight had always thought that the elements of harmony had completely destroyed that evil part of the princess, but apparently not. Was it really safe to let her wander around like this? What if she had another nightmare and couldn't be calmed down? Perhaps it was safer to keep her locked up. But then... She had been crying. Something so evil could never cry like that. Her screams during the nightmare were ones of terror and sadness. Twilight had never really thought about it…but she had been on the moon, alone for one thousand years. The unicorn couldn't even comprehend how horribly lonely that must have been...and that scream... It was awful. It was unlike any Twilight had heard before. It was filled with pain and anguish. Twilight hoped she never had to hear it again. Twilight stayed by Luna's side until somepony knocked at her door many hours later. Twilight knew who it was. She told Spike to stay by Luna's side and trotted down the stairs. When she opened the door the red stallion was waiting for her. "Ready?" Twilight asked Macintosh. "Nope." He replied, shifting the piece of hay in his mouth around uncomfortably. "Neither am I." Twilight stated, closing the door behind her. The walk over to Fluttershy's house was a long one, or at least it seemed to be. Twilight and Macintosh said nothing to each other. Just what did one talk about in this situation? The red stallion continued chewing and moving around the piece of hay in his mouth nervously. Twilight alternatively gazed between him, the ground and the scenery, as if trying to change the subject in her mind. They finally began trotting down the final road, just before their destination. Just out of sight, Twilight stopped Macintosh. "Okay," Twilight began. "You have to make this convincing. Buy her and then pick a place away from town. He may not trust you right away…so we might have to do this a couple of times." Macintosh gulped, clearly disturbed by this. "Wh-What if…" He began, his voice shaking. "What if what?" Twilight asked, beginning to get nervous that he was flaking. "What if Fluttershy is there?" Twilight flinched. She hadn't thought of that. How would the delicate pegasus pony react if she saw one of her friends going in to...buy her? Twilight was hoping to do this as painlessly as possible, but this would probably leave Fluttershy a wreck. Twilight sighed. The only other option was to turn him in now, which would get Fluttershy in trouble as well. There would be no way she would be able to deal with the shame from that. Even if she got off with no charge she would...have to leave town. "Try not to look at her." Twilight said. "Tell him the ponies at the lumberyard sent you. Try to be quick and don't do anything stupid...not yet." Macintosh nodded. He took a deep breath, turned and marched towards Fluttershy's house. After only a few knocks with Macintosh's hoof the door swung open. Bridleburg stood in the doorway, his eyebrow cocked. He stared the country stallion down suspiciously. "You...I know you...I've seen your face before." He said, trying to remember. "Macintosh." The red stallion responded, trying to keep calm. "Yes, you were at the wedding." Bridleburg stated. "Anyway, what do you want?" "I-i-i-is Fluttershy home?" He asked nervously. "She's out...working." Bridleburg replied curtly. Macintosh ground his teeth together. He knew what that meant. "Anything else?" "I…I want to make a purchase." Macintosh said, feeling a knot in his stomach. "Purchase?" Bridleburg asked. "The…ponies at the lumberyard sent me." Bridleburg's expression instantly lightened and a smug smile set over his face. "Oh, I see." He said with satisfaction. "Do come in, let's talk." Macintosh trotted inside. The house had changed quite a bit. It was now filled with rich trinkets and expensive furniture, likely from Bridleburg's newfound source of wealth. He sat on a plush chair, signaling for Macintosh to sit on the opposing couch. The stallion declined. "I always had a feeling about you." Bridleburg stated. "Y-you did?" Macintosh replied, sounding shocked. "Yes, you see, I'm not blind." Bridleburg replied with a sly smile. "I remember your face because I saw it at the wedding, giving those sideways, longing glances to my wife in her wedding dress." Despite the fact that Macintosh was already red, it was obvious to see that he was blushing deeply, from his face all the way to his chest. Bridleburg laughed. "I was wondering when you'd be around, of course I didn't exactly put up posters. I always knew she'd go for high prices, being so cute and helpless." "You...you planned this from the beginning?" It was extremely difficult for Macintosh to hold back the venomous tone under his breath. He could feel the veins in his neck beginning to pop from how strained they were. When Fluttershy married he had hoped, with every fiber of his being, that she would be happy and safe. To hear that she wasn't and he had been just uselessly kicking apples the whole time made him sad. This however...made his blood boil. "I didn't plan to marry her the whole time if that's what you mean." Bridleburg replied shrewdly. "She wouldn't 'work' however unless she had a 'commitment' from me. It was the only thing she was particularly stubborn about. Mares huh?" Macintosh could feel a burning behind his eyes as his vision turned red. It took every ounce of strength not to attack and kill this stallion. "So, let's talk about a place. Do you have somewhere in mind?" Macintosh gulped and tried to think. "Our barn, in the afternoon, everypony else will be working. It'll be empty." "And no one else will show up?" "No. They'll have no reason to be there." "Better hope your right. If you get caught it's on your and her head." Macintosh felt his eye beginning to twitch. "She can see you tomorrow, that okay?" "I may...want more than once..." Macintosh said through gritted teeth. "You may be out of luck there." Bridleburg replied. The red stallion was abruptly interested. "What? Why?" "I'm about to take her on a trip." Bridleburg stated calmly. "My old friends, most of them unseasonably rich, have taken a liking to the pictures I've sent them. We'll be hopping around from place to place, wherever their vacation homes happen to be. It'll take about a month, and I can't guarantee that if they make me a very nice offer for her, I won't take it." The usual boiling anger erupted inside Macintosh, however, dashed on top was fear. They could lose Fluttershy to some rich pervert! He couldn't allow that to happen. "Tomorrow afternoon." Macintosh said. "At the barn." "Okay, just be sure to have to money." Bridleburg replied. "It'll be 300 bits, paid before tomorrow." Macintosh flinched at that number. That was a lot of money. He could plant a whole new orchard of apples for that much. He hoped Twilight could pay, even if her grandparents were bankers. "Okay." Macintosh stated. "Good! Pleasure doing business with you!" Twilight saw that Macintosh was trotting quickly out of the house. Once the door slammed shut behind him, he began galloping. As soon as he was by the Twilight's side, she could see that he was alarmed. "We can't wait!" Macintosh said quickly. "Huh? What happened?" Twilight asked, now alarmed herself. "He's about to take Fluttershy across Equestria, he might sell her...permanently!" A wave of dread swept over Twilight. This just kept getting better. "When is this supposed to start?" Twilight asked. "After tomorrow, when I made the appointment!" Twilight stared off into the woods, desperately thinking. There was no way Bridleburg would trust Macintosh right away, but they couldn't take the chance that Fluttershy wouldn't come back. "I'll have to do it tomorrow then." Twilight said. "I just hope she comes alone." "I'm coming with you!" Macintosh said. "What?" Twilight replied, her voice abruptly raising a few octaves. "He planned this...the whole time! He married her just so he could use her! I want to trample him!" "That's exactly why you have to stay away!" Twilight replied sternly. "If you beat him up, you'll be in trouble. We have to keep this quiet. We can't be reckless Macintosh. If we mess this up Fluttershy will be the one who pays!" Macintosh grimaced, not liking the idea of this. "I can't just do nothing." He stated. "You're not." Twilight replied. "You've set him up and now it's up to me to catch him in the trap. You have to trust me Macintosh." The red stallion didn't like it, but he wasn't as smart as Twilight was. Perhaps she was right...although he doubted it. "He wants 300 bits, before the end of today." Twilight flinched at that number as well. No wonder three of those lumber ponies had to share. That greedy Bridleburg was trying to milk Fluttershy for all she was worth. "I have that much." Twilight said. "Not much more than that, but I have it. Let's hurry before the bank closes." Twilight returned home gave Macintosh the money and began brooding deeply. These were certainly dark times for Ponyville she lived in. The magical days she spent with her wonderful friends seemed like a lifetime ago. It all changed so quickly. Twilight never even thought during those happy days that they might someday end. Now she was trying to get Fluttershy's husband locked up for selling her as a prostitute. Rarity and Rainbow Dash were gone. Applejack and Pinkie Pie lived in their own world. She had sent Spike away, so that he might be a dragon. Even Zecora was returning to her homeland. The slow creeping shadow of isolation began seeping its way into her heart. When she opened the door to her home, Spike instantly slithered over to the door. "Luna's been sleeping since you left." He explained. "I made some food in case she wakes up, what was Macintosh doing here? You gave him that bag, was it full of money...?" Spike stopped. Twilight was wearing a very heavy expression. Her eyes were filled with forlorn and her hooves dragged on the ground. "Twilight, are you okay? What happened?" 'What happened?' Twilight echoed in her head. 'Yes, what did happen? What happened to all of us?' "We..." Twilight began, gazing at the ground. "We...we grew up Spike." She lifted up her head to her beloved assistant, no longer the tiny thing that could ride on her back. "And it sucks. It all sucks. Nothing went right. None of us kept our promises. All of us chased our own ambitions... everypony... but me." Spike's slit eyes were now filled with sympathy and sadness. "Oh Twilight..." He said gently. He swung his head around her body, allowing her to wrap her hooves around his neck. "I'm sorry Spike." Twilight said into his ear. "I'm ruining your visit." "It's fine." Spike said. "You should've come and seen me if you were so sad." "I didn't want to disturb you." Twilight said. "Just so I could complain." "You could never disturb me Twilight." Spike replied honestly. Twilight sighed. She felt the weight of the world on her shoulders, but with her hooves around Spike it was a little lighter. "Sorry I've been so busy, some things came up." Twilight said. "I have some things to do tomorrow, but after those, how about we hang out? We'll do whatever you want." "That sounds great." "I'm going to bed, I'm exhausted." Twilight released Spike and trotted up her stairs. She approached her bed, already rubbing her eyes with fatigue. When her hoof came back down however, she was surprised to see that Luna's head had risen from her own pillow and was staring around with a blank expression. Twilight froze, wondering what the Princess was doing. The unicorn then noticed that her guest's eyes were glazed over and distant. 'Is she still asleep?' Twilight thought. She walked around her bed and to the princess's own side. She calmly began stroking the alicorn's head. "There, there, what is it?" Twilight asked. She was actually quite scared that Luna would go off again, awakening Nightmare Moon. The princess lifted her hoof and pointed it towards Twilight. The unicorn instantly became uncomfortable. "Wh-What? Me?" Luna shook her head. She pointed to Twilight's chest, particularly one side. "My...my heart?" "I can hear." Luna said in a whisper, sounding as if she were far away. 'She can sense emotions...' Twilight thought. 'even when she sleeps.' "Did I wake you?" Twilight asked nervously, her hoof over her heart. "It sings." Luna said. "Huh?" "It sings to me, and the song is so sad." Twilight tilted her head. Singing? She must be really out of it. "Go back to sleep." Twilight cooed. Luna instead leaned forward. She put her face right in front of Twilight's. The unicorn blushed a little, unaccustomed to somepony else being so close to her. "The Spark grows." 'Th-The Spark?" Twilight tried to think. The last time somepony mentioned a spark it had to do with the Elements of Harmony. Was that what Luna was talking about? "It will explode soon, and the new generation will come." 'Okay, that one made no sense.' Twilight thought, finally coming to the conclusion that Luna was delirious and just saying random things. "That's lovely." Twilight said sweetly. "Now go back to sleep." The unicorn pushed the princess's head back onto the pillow. "Just hope Celestia made the right choice with you." Luna muttered as she snuggled back into the bed. "She did, she did." Twilight stated patronizingly. She rubbed the princess's head before trotting over to her side of the beds. She had a long day tomorrow, probably the longest of her life. Princess Luna sat up in her bed. She groaned a little, rubbing her head. It was full of cobwebs. She had been delirious, that she knew. What she didn't know was what happened. All she could remember were some vague horrible dreams and some dreams about her childhood. She decided to forget about it. She reached up with her hoof and attempted to smooth out her rough mane, which was sticking out in all directions. She gazed out the window and squinted. How long had she been out? The sun was already past midday. She swept the covers off of her body and hopped out of bed. Her legs wobbled from disuse. The princess rocked back and forth for a moment before finding her balance. She gyrated her head, causing her neck to issue a popping sound. She yawned once and then finally proceeded down the stairs. When she arrived at the ground floor, she was greeted by a curious sight. Spike was on his back, with his stomach in the sunlight from a window. Luna stared at him for several moments. She then asked the question that was on her mind. "What are you doing?" Spike gazed up from the floor. "Welcome back to the land of the living." Spike replied jokingly. "I used to do this all the time when I lived here. I still like it, it turns out." "Oh." Luna replied nonchalantly. "How long was I out?" "Completely, or just out of it?" "Uh, both?" "A day and a half." Luna appeared flabbergasted. That had never happened to her before. She had felt some strong enough emotions in the past before, but never one that knocked her out, for over a day at that. "Good grief." Luna said, rubbing her head with her hoof. "Where's Twilight?" "She said she had some business to take care of." "Business?" "She won't tell me what it is, but says it's vitally important." This instantly piqued the princess's interest. Considering what she had learned before she passed out, she didn't like how that sounded. "Did she say where?" "Nope...well..." "Well?" "Macintosh came over here last night and Twilight gave him quite a bit of money." "Macintosh? Money?" Luna tilted her head this time. This made less and less sense. "Macintosh is Applejack's brother." Spike explained. "Oh yeah, the big red one." Luna said. She only ever recalled seeing him once in her life. "She gave him a lot of money. It was a big bag. I could've bought a whole new pile of jewels with it, I bet." Luna liked this situation even less now. With her magic, she brought a brush over to her and began smoothing out her flowing mane. "Where can I find this Macintosh?" She asked authoritatively. "He's probably still working at their farm." Spike said. "Stay here." Luna commanded, quickly bringing her cloak around her and marching out the door. "That'll be a tall order, but I'll manage." Spike said with a sneaky grin. He laid his head back down and resumed enjoying the warm sunlight on his stomach. "Hurry it up!" Bridleburg hissed as Fluttershy and himself trotted up to the barn. "I've already got the money!" Fluttershy however, was dragging her feet. Her face was low to the ground and her expression was incredibly downtrodden. "Couldn't...couldn't it have been somepony else?" She asked weakly. "You know any other red stallions named Macintosh with an apple on their flank?" He snapped back. Fluttershy bit her lip. 'It can't be true...' She thought. 'He...he wouldn't. Even if he knew...he wouldn't...' Macintosh was a kind stallion. There was no way he would do something like this to her. That's what she kept telling herself. They finally arrived at the large red barn. Bridleburg scanned around, making sure no one else was near. He leaned into the door, but it was too dark to make anything out inside. "Macintosh, you here?" He asked. "Yes." A voice whispered. It was too quiet to make out the source definitely, but it was good enough for the greedy stallion. "Alright, get in there." Bridleburg stated. Fluttershy flinched backwards. She couldn't believe it. This was...really happening! Her eyes began to tear up at the thought of it. One of her friends...was going to use her! Fluttershy's husband narrowed his vision. He walked towards her, outstretched his hoof and looped it around her neck. He then shoved her into the barn. "Get to work!" Before she could change her mind, he slammed the door behind her. "Honestly, do mares ever get a clue?" Fluttershy kept her back against the door, huddling in the dark. She expected somepony to grab her or pull her away from it. Instead, there was silence. The pegasus pony finally dared to look around. The barn was completely dark, save for some light seeping through the cracks in the structure. She couldn't see anypony however. She cautiously walked forward. "M-M-Macintosh? A-a-are you th-there?" She stammered. There was a long paused. "No, he isn't." Said a familiar voice. Fluttershy gasped and held her breath. A pony trotted out into the light. "Twilight!" Fluttershy exclaimed. Princess Luna aimlessly walked around the farm. This place was far too big for its own good. If she could fly, she could find anypony in a matter of minutes, but she couldn't risk being seen. So she was forced to engage in the more layman form of travel, on hoof. It wasn't so bad. The sunlight peeking through the leaves on the trees was quite lovely. She was, however, becoming impatient. These people needed a bell or something to summon them. Of course, they probably didn't get many visitors. Finally, the alicorn spotted one of the trees shaking. That could mean only one thing, somepony was bucking it. Luna trotted over to see Applejack kicking the poor plant quite violently. The country pony halted when the princess arrived, with a rather surprised look on her face. "Why I declare!" Applejack said, bowing briefly. "We haven't got this many visitors in a long time. What can I do ya for princess?" "Had a lot of visitors?" Luna asked. "Well yeah." Applejack began. "There was all of you the day before yesterday, Twilight yesterday and you today. Most activity I've seen since the Apple family reunion." Luna couldn't imagine such a quiet life, what with all the activity in the Canterlot castle. "Listen Applejack, I need to speak with Macintosh." "Well tarnation!" Applejack shouted. Luna cringed a bit. Did she say something wrong? "What's with everypony wantin' to see Big Mac? First Twilight comes to talk to him and then he's acting all nervous-like since! He was downright desperate for us to get to work today. Made us eat our lunches on the go. What do you want to see him for? Is there something you people are keepin' from me?" Luna gulped and shuffled her hooves a moment. Applejack was leaning closer, sensing something interesting. Luna thought desperately, trying to come up with anything. Something rather random sprung from her mouth and she regretted it the moment it came out. "Well...you see...I...I think he's kind of cute..." Luna closed her eyes and cringed the second she said that. It sounded so lame. Applejack however instantly bloomed into a smile. "Well cook me up and call me a fritter!" Applejack exclaimed. Luna opened her eyes for a moment and had to think about that one, not sure what she said for a moment. "It's you!" "Huh?" "Oh, Twilight must have come here yesterday without tellin ya. She said that there was somepony that liked Mac and she wanted to talk to him about it. It was you wasn't it?" "Y-Yeah." Luna said, quickly rolling with it. "It was me. Totally me." "It'd be mighty fine to have royalty in the family!" Applejack said. She put her hoof on her chin, stared up at the sky and had a big grin on her face. The princess would have to guess that she was fantasizing about it all. "So...uh...where is he?" "Oh! He's just over that hill. Knock 'em dead honey! I'm rootin' for ya!" Luna laughed nervously as she trotted away. That was awkward. She might have just married into the Apple family. True to Applejack's word, as soon as Luna rounded the hill she saw Macintosh absolutely murdering an apple tree. He was repeated kicking it, despite the fact that most of the apples had already fallen off. He had frustrated look on his face, as if he were taking his problems out on the tree. Luna trotted over to him, without him even noticing. Once she cleared her throat however, he finally stopped kicking and stared at her. There were hoof marks in the poor tree's trunk. "Huh, who're you?" Luna reached up and removed her hood. "Oh, I...uh...forgive me..." He attempted to kneel with the apples on his back. "Forget that!" Luna exclaimed, waving her hoof in front of him. "What are you and Twilight doing?" "Wh-What?" He asked, taken aback. "You two are up to something!" Luna accused. "She came to see you yesterday, she gave you money last night and now no one knows where she is. What's going on?" Macintosh's mouth moved a bit, but no sound came out. Finally however, he lowered his head and stared at the ground. "I can't tell." He stated, sounding sad. "I'm a princess you know." Luna said, actually sounding a little cross. "I could order you." "Even then ma'arm, I can't tell." He said, still sounding solemn. Luna fumed for a few moments. She wasn't about to come this far and be stopped, time to switch gears. A mischievous smile came across her face. "You know Macintosh, Applejack's under the impression that I have a crush on you." "Wh-what?" The red stallion stumbled backwards. "I suppose I could go over that hill and tell her we're getting married." "What?" Macintosh didn't know how to respond to that. "Think she'd say no? That she wouldn't tell the whole town? That she wouldn't just call up a band, the mayor and the entire apple family to start this whole thing tomorrow?" Macintosh's eyelid began twitching. Luna stood beside him, rubbing her head against his neck and making him very uncomfortable. "Of course you'd have to be sent to etiquette schools to learn proper manners and how to be a excellent diplomat and politician. Being my husband, messing up in front of dignitaries would have dire consequences for the whole nation. It could start a war! You're going to have to make a tour of the entire nation, introducing yourself to crowds of thousands. It would take years!" "You wouldn't." Macintosh said. "Try me boy." She said with a wide grin. "I'm the monarch. I can do whatever I want, even if you say no." Macintosh gritted his teeth. He had a feeling she wasn't bluffing. He gazed at the ground. It was probably over already anyway. "We found out that Bridleburg was selling Fluttershy out." "He what!" Luna shouted, stepping away from the stallion. "Twilight set it up so I would pose as a buyer so she could talk to Fluttershy and convince her to turn on him." "She what!" Luna could feel both anger and concern wash over her. Twilight hadn't listened to a word she said! "Where, when!" Luna's voice was becoming loud and commanding. The wind had also mysteriously begun picking up in the orchard. "At the barn, now, but it's probably already over." Luna instantly turned and bolted towards the large red building. "No, wait! I..." Macintosh took off after her, but the apples on his back weighed him down. Applejack turned and saw Luna tearing the orchard at a speed that would put Rainbow Dash to shame. Macintosh was following behind her, a scared expression on his face. Applejack frowned. "Ya blew it didn't ya Mac? Sigh...and I already had a good band picked out." ~*~ "Twilight, what are you doing here?" Fluttershy shouted, feeling confused and scared. "I know everything Fluttershy." Twilight said. Fluttershy gasped and blushed deeply. She felt humiliated. She had tried to be so careful. How could this have happened? "It's over now. You have to turn him in." "I...I can't." Fluttershy said in a weak voice. "I've...come so far..." "What are you talking about!" Twilight shouted. "Once he can regain his wealth, he's going to let me open veterinarian stations all over Equestria. I can help so many animals! All I have to do is work like this for a little while..." "Oh come on Fluttershy!" Twilight shouted, a little harsher than she intended. "He never intended to do that from the start! He's just using you to get money for himself! He told Macintosh that he intends to take you around the country to sell you!" "He...wouldn't do that..." Fluttershy's eyes filled with tears. "He intended to sell you permanently to one of his rich friends! He only cares about himself and money! Look at his cutie mark!" "But he said...he said..." "He lied Fluttershy." Twilight said, walking over to her friend. She put her hoof on her shoulder. "He's using you, making you do things you don't want to do just for his own greed. You have to see that. He'll never give any of that to you. He's just going to use you and when he's done he'll throw you away! You can't let him do this. You have to turn him in. I'll help you. Come on..." "I just...I wanted...I wanted it to be true..." Fluttershy sobbed. "I thought...that if we finally got the money...I could stop...I just...I just wanted to help everypony..." "I know." Twilight said, tightening her arm around Fluttershy's shoulder. "But first you have to help yourself. You can do this." "I...I..." Before Fluttershy could say another word however, the door to the barn swung open. "What is going on in...!" Bridleburg stepped inside, finally hearing enough noise to get his attention. His neck instantly stiffened and a gaze of anger filled his face. "I should have known. All you small-town hicks stick together." Twilight pulled Fluttershy behind her. Bridleburg stepped into the barn, shutting and locking the door behind him. Twilight wasn't scared however. He was an Earth pony, by himself. "It's over Bridleburg!" Twilight exclaimed into the darkness. She couldn't see him, but knew he was there. "Is it?" The greedy stallion said. "Fluttershy's going to turn you in!" Twilight threatened. "All I have to do is write a letter to the princess and she's off the hook and you're on for everything!" "That so?" His calm voice was putting Twilight off. "You won't be able to use her anymore for your...!" Twilight didn't get to finish. She got a rude surprise. A crate, one used to ship apples in, came zooming out of the darkness. Twilight wasn't sure how he did it, but he had managed to hurl it at her. The unicorn was completely taken by surprise. The large box smacked into the side of her head with considerable force, shattering upon impact. Twilight's vision exploded into stars. She wobbled on her legs before collapsing onto the ground. Despite desperate attempts to move or do magic, her body wasn't registering. Fluttershy screamed. Bridleburg emerged out of the dark, dragging another box. "You need to learn your place." He said, standing over Twilight. "Once I teach you, I'll just bash your head in with this other one and take my wife away anyway." Twilight tried to jump up and attack him, but her body only twitched. Bridleburg cackled. Twilight could feel her lower body being lifted up by him. 'That...filthy...wretched...' Twilight thought, trying to fight him. It wasn't working. "No! Please, don't!" Fluttershy shouted. Twilight could feel her yanking on Bridleburg. "Get off me!" Bridleburg bellowed. "I'll do whatever you want! I'll go wherever you want! I'll let you sell me! Just please, don't hurt Twilight!" "I said get off me you whore!" There was then a loud cracking noise, like a hoof hitting something hard. Fluttershy shrieked and cried, before slamming onto the ground. Bridleburg cackled evilly. Twilight could feel him press his body against her back. 'I'll kill him...I'll kill him...I'll...' Then she heard it. Twilight could feel her stomach drop. A blood-curling scream issued from outside. It was a sound that Twilight had only heard once before. It was filled with pain, sadness and anger. It stuck a knife into Twilight's heart...but not in the same way it did before. The entire barn shook. A few of the boards from the roof came loose and plummeted to the ground. Bridleburg dropped Twilight and stared around, confused. "What is this?" He shouted. "Some kind of trick?" Abruptly, the light changed. It wasn't the bright, yellow rays of the sun. Instead, it was pale and white. He gazed up at the ceiling. "What! Is that...the moon?" 'No no no no no no no no!' Twilight thought, trying to move. Her body, however, wasn't obeying. Her hooves twitched uselessly. There was yet another scream, this one filled with fury. It made Twilight's blood run cold. 'This can't be happening! No!' Then everything went silent. Fluttershy lifted her head cautiously, a rather large bump forming on the side of her face. Bridleburg turned his head back and forth, staring around. The full moon was high overhead, despite the fact that it was still in the afternoon. Then Fluttershy gasped, covering her face with her hooves. Bridleburg whirled around and froze. Something was seeping through a crack in the barn...a crack large enough for somepony to look through. What was pouring in was like a purple, sparkling mist. Tons of it whipped inside and collected in front of them. It swirled quickly around in the air. Then, in a flash of light, a pony appeared. Fluttershy shrieked in fear. "Nightmare Moon!" 'No no no no! Stop, stop!' Twilight tried to scream, but all that escaped was a moan. Bridleburg abruptly appeared pale. His knees were shaking. "Well, well, well..." Nightmare Moon stated, grinning widely. She briefly, and quite casually, stretched out her hooves and wings, as if she had just awakened from sleep, which in her case was true. "What have we here?" "It's...it's not what it looks like..." Bridleburg said, in a very high-pitch and weak voice. "Oh really?" The terrifying pony replied, still smiling. "Because it looks like you were about to rape my best friend. Glad you're not doing that. Thank you for clearing that up." Bridleburg gulped. "Lovely night." The mare gazed up at the moon. "A little early, but everypony loves a little change-up every now and again. Of course, moonlight is the perfect atmosphere for revenge..." Abruptly, the other crate Bridleburg had was hurled at the much larger alicorn. He had grabbed it with his two front hooves, reared back and two legs and hurled it. The crate struck a part of her face that wasn't covered by her helmet and shattered like the last one. Nightmare Moon didn't even flinch. She didn't even move. Then, still casually, she reached up with her hoof and swept some of the extra bits of wood off her face. She then stared at Bridleburg, her cat-like eyes not betraying an ounce of emotion. "Ouch." She said, in a very calm voice. Bridleburg began backing away. "My turn." Her voice abruptly got very deep and devilish. The purple mist the pony had for hair drew back. Then, in one giant motion, it swept across the barn. Bridleburg was hit in the chest. He instantly went flying, as if he were nothing more than a ragdoll. He was struck with such force that he crashed through the wall of the barn and continued to soar. Nightmare Moon cackled, as if she had just told the funniest joke in the world. "Up for a little game?" She cooed. Her body then melted back into mist and wisped out the new hole in the barn. Fluttershy lay on the ground, stunned. What had just happened? Suddenly, the barn door shook. The Pegasus pony flinched, not expecting the sound. The door rattled a few more times. Then, without warning, it burst open, the lock flying off. Macintosh came running in, spinning his head around. His eyes widened when he saw the state of the two mares. "What happened!" He shouted, running over. "I knew I should have come! Twilight! Twilight!" He attempted to lift her up, but she was rather limp. She had a gash on her forehead and a trickle of blood was leaking out. Fluttershy quickly stood up and dashed over, helping the red stallion lift her friend up. "Stop...her..." Twilight said weakly. "What?" Macintosh asked as Fluttershy heaved her friend over his shoulders so she would be held up. "Fluttershy...stop her..." Twilight said. "What...me...why? I thought this is what you wanted." "No...she's trying to change...she doesn't want to be alone..." "I don't understand." "If you don't stop her...all of that will be ruined...she...she'll kill him!"