//------------------------------//
// Chapter XI: Never Made 
// Story: Regret 
// by I Am The Night 
//------------------------------//


Chapter XI: Never Made


It didn't take long for you and Applejack to clean up and freshen the place to burn the evidence of the existence of sex having ever happened. About ten minutes later, Twilight and the others had returned with a couple of boxes of pizza; one with plain cheese, and one topped with daffodils.

Dinner officially made.

Of course, your excitement for pizza didn't really make its way into conversation as the eight of you began to chow down. Other than the occasional 'please pass the cutter' or 'pass the pepper', it was relatively quiet at the table that stood near the window, with nothing but constant chewing of dough and cheese to fill the silence.

In all honesty, this had to be the most quiet you've ever heard. Sure, you could count the four days you were cooped up in your home, but even then, you could still hear life happening outside. But here, it was very quiet, which came to be more shocking to you, considering how many ponies lived here compared to Ponyville, not to mention you were in a hotel, with possibly hundreds of ponies. Perhaps it was because you were further away from them? But even then, that wouldn't make sense. You'd be bound to hear at least one pony make noises outside or behind these walls.

But you were so focused on hearing voices so distant, you didn't even hear Twilight's close voice until she yelled your name, to which it knocked you out of your trance. At this point, everyone was looking like you like you were dumb. Of course, Rainbow was the only one who did think you were dumb.

"Sorry, what?" you say as a first response.

"I said, can you please pass the hot sauce?"

For a second, you looked at her confused, but when you realize what she was talking about, you quickly shook your head and mentally slapped yourself in stupidity.

"Oh, sure. Sure, here you go, sorry," you say somewhat quickly as you hoof her the hot sauce. 

You never seemed to understand why she liked hot sauce to begin with. From what Pinkie told you about the time she first came to Ponyville, Twilight practically drenched herself in cold water upon accidentally drinking hot sauce. Perhaps she got used to it over time? You never really knew.

However, the whole awkwardness didn't end after you gave Twilight the sauce. This sparked a conversation of concern.

Again with the concern? Really?

"Darling, are you feeling alright?" Rarity asked with a caring voice. "You're not allergic to pizza or anything, are you?"

Wait, what? Allergic to pizza? Really?

Shaking your head to object her question, you explain your thoughts in a shorter, but vocal way.

"Have you guys noticed that it's much more quieter here than in Ponyville? Like, aren't there ten million ponies living in this city? So, how exactly is this city much more quieter than a town of three hundred?" You lift a hoof, shaking it slightly in effectiveness for your statement. "I mean, yeah, it was loud earlier when we were helping Lilly, but... I don't know, it just sounds so... eerie now. Is it just me? I think it's just me."

Rarity and the others looked at each other with uncertainty, while Rainbow completely ignored them, having been enveloped in the newest edition of Daring Do. Of course, it wasn't the edition you planned to give her for her birthday, as that edition wouldn't be out for another four months.

But just looking at the cover made you remember the gift almost immediately. You were always wondering when you were going to just give her the gifts as an apology, but just the way she was acting made you reconsider sometimes. Make her wait for the book. Make her miss the Wonderbolts Show.

But that would have just been hurtful, no matter what.

However, back to your thoughts, the others decided to let your words pass by, unable to come up with a response to it, and just keep eating, looking up at you every once in a while with a bit of concern. Rainbow, as always, showed signs of not-caring, but you yourself didn't care at the moment.

Once everypony got back to eating, you took the time to really look at the scene in front of you.

The table you had been sitting at was rounded, in a circle shape, with a total of eight chairs, one for each of you. Two boxes of pizza and extra plates sat about on the table. A candle sat in the center of the table, illuminating the short area. Of course, there was risk of the candle falling and setting either a box or the table on fire, but Rarity made sure it was safe and secure.

Meaning, she moved everything away from the candle, not made sure the candle wouldn't fall or trip. Something was bound to happen, but honestly, at this point, you didn't really care all that much.

"And... you're thinking about this stuff now? Out of nowhere?" Rainbow questioned after several moments of silence.

"Well... yeah, why not? I mean, you can hear it too, can't you?"

"Pfft... you really are a weirdo," she says before taking another bite into a slice of pizza.

"Rainbow," Twilight scolds her quietly, but enough for the rest to hear. Regardless, the pegasus didn't seem to acknowledge Twilight's glare as she continued eating her food.

You groaned quietly. "Can I ask you something? Why exactly do you dislike me so much?"

"Darling, don't-" Rarity begins, but you politely cut her off.

"Don't worry, I just want an honest answer. Not the same answer we got last week. I want the truth." Rainbow looks up at you, her nostrils flaring faintly with frustration.

At this point, she stops chewing her food and is now looking right at you, her eyes like daggers piercing into yours. It doesn't scare you, but it was honestly unsettling. Very slowly, Dash put her book down onto the table, quite close to the candle, dangerously close, in your opinion.

"... I really hate you."

Your eyes darted left and right slowly.

"... O... kay... that doesn't answer my question. You mind actually giving me something better?"

"You guys, don't do this right now, please," Twilight interjects with a concerning voice, "this is supposed to be a fun trip, remember?"

"Well, it would have been fun if he hadn't come along!" Rainbow slightly raises her voice and turns to Twilight. "You know, every single day, I have to put up being around him! All day, every day, when I want to hang out with just you guys, he's there following you! Because he knows I'm coming along! Meanwhile, he's always tripping over things and destroying Celestia-knows-what, and me and the other pegasi have to clean up his mess—"

"What, you think I do that on purpose?" you respond in an annoyed tone.

"Yeah, I do! This happens all the time, and I'm stuck fixing your crap! And then you think that I don't care, and you contin-no, no, no...try to flirt with me, like it's gonna make it all go away! And then there's the stupid letters and poems and that you keep sending me every other month because you think it's gonna make you win me over! Well, guess what? It doesn't work like in fairy-tales!"

When Rainbow stops talking, she breathes silently but somewhat heavily, trying to regain her breath. For a second, she closes her eyes, but when she opens them, she continues to talk.

"You always keep saying that you care about me. But I always keep asking, all by myself... Do you think I give a buck about you?"

For a moment, you open your mouth as if to say something, but no words could form, so you close it again, snorting quietly.

"Because I don't. Ever since you came into Ponyville, you have been nothing... but complete... trouble. Even Derpy has caused less problems than you, and that is saying something!"

You softly stomped a hoof on the table. 

"Oh, you're one to talk. So you're saying I'm the one that sabotaged the Weather Factory to keep my pet from going into hibernation? Something that happens to animals literally every winter? Yeah, real genius of me, I gotta say. But hey, I guess I got some competition if you're also causing trouble so ponies would look to you as a savior."

"Well, at least I didn't burn down somepony's house and ruin their life!"

You grit your teeth as she recalled that moment.

"At least I'm not the one that tripped over a bale of hay and nearly burned down my best friend's barn! At least I'm not the one who tried helping Lyra Heartstrings with groceries and almost got her run over by a wagon! And hey, at least I'm not the pony that nearly burned down an entire town on my birthday!"

Your heart was beating quick in your chest, and nothing you could do would slow it down. Applejack and Twilight looked upon you with worry, as if you were going to suddenly drop dead from a heart attack.

"Here's a bucking favor for you. You wanna show how much you love me? You wanna prove to the world that you care about all of us?! Walk out that door and don't come back! EVER!"

Silence roared over the table. Everyone stared at Rainbow Dash like they had just seen a ghost standing in front of them. You could tell by their expressions that they could not believe what she had just said. And neither could you. 

You looked at Dash, then back to the table. Closing your eyes, you felt the fabric and sighed. 

"You know what? I'm out of here."

That alone seemed to change her expression. Her eyebrow raised only a smidgen, and the look of anger and frustration faded only slightly, but you don't know if it was ever showing concern. You never really took the time to look at her face, and honestly, you didn't really want to.

Getting up from the table, you apologized to the others and started for the door. Twilight called out your name and yelled, "Wait!" but for the first time since you met her, you didn't listen to her. You kept on walking.

The door opened with ease, but unlike the common story hero, you didn't look back to the others, and continued walking. With an assuring click, the door shuts behind you, and you begin to walk away. You just couldn't stand to be in there for the time being. You really just needed some time to yourself. That was all.

But not more then twenty feet away from the door, you hear it open. Turning around expecting Applejack or Twilight, you actually notice Spike, surprisingly, heading towards you.





"Where're you going?" he asked.

For a second, you were considering lying to him, convince him to go back inside the room so you could be alone for a while. But you quickly realized that would be a terrible thing to do to him. Spike was your friend, your buddy, your 'bro'. And bros told each other the truth.

"I'm heading out for a bit," you simply say, "... I can't be around her right now, Spike. I... just can't."

While Spike seemed upset at the fact you were leaving, he did seem to understand you. Even he had said at a time that he couldn't stand her, so it didn't come off as a surprise. You were willing to tell him to go back to the room so you could have some peace, but then he spoke up first.

"Can I come with you?"

And you didn't really know what to say. Sure, you couldn't reject his offer, but you really wanted to just be by yourself, and you also didn't want to run the risk of him getting lost, especially in a big city like Manehattan.

"Are you sure about that?"

"Of course," he replied with a smirk on his face, "I'll let Twilight know I'm with you. Plus, you look like you could use some company."

That was only half a lie, you thought. Sure, you wanted to be alone, but really, there was no harm in having somepony—or somedragon—tag along.

"Okay then," you shrugged, turning around towards the elevators, "You sure you can keep up?"

"Duh. I carried a cart of luggage while walking with you, remember?"

"True."

And so as you began to walk once again towards the elevators, Spike stayed at your side. For the first couple of minutes, from getting into the elevators, going down to the first floor, and walking outside to the front of the hotel, the two of you didn't really seem to say anything between each other, mostly because you had nothing interesting to say, really.

But once the two of you were outside, you honestly had no idea what to do next.

"So where do you wanna go?" you asked him, looking out to the endless string of buildings. You were hoping that, maybe, he had a place worth checking out in mind. You were hoping it wasn't some kind of restaurant. Though you only had two slices, that pizza really filled you up.

"How about Vanilla Sky?"

Ugh. Too soon.

"Spike," you say, "We just had pizza. I'm kinda stuffed right now."

You didn't want to crush his 'dream', but it was true. Any more food, and you'd likely be spilling chunks, and you didn't want to give anypony the displeasure of cleaning your mess---again.

"We don't have to eat there, you know," he reiterates, "Vanilla Sky is a place where you can hang out or eat. We can just find a table and chill out for a bit. You know, until you're ready to come back—well, until they're ready for us to come back. Plus, I've got an old offer to take care of."

The young drake smiled with excitement as he imagined something circling in his head.

You were already curious at what his 'offer' was.







The closest Vanilla Sky was five blocks from the hotel, and at the pace you walked, it took only ten minutes to get there. And while the place was very full of ponies eating, drinking, or just having casual conversations, there were still a lot of tables to choose from, so the two of you picked the one closest to the bar table.

You weren't one to drink, but according to Spike, he's got a connection.

At first, the 'connection' had you already assuming things.

But then the giant bowl of gems came out, and you slapped yourself mentally for thinking stupid thoughts. Sure, you were relieved, but you felt stupid all the same. You were more surprised at the size of the bowl and the amount of gems inside of it.

The two of you sat down at the table nearest to the bar and got yourselves comfortable. Though you weren't hungry, you did feel a bit parched, so you decided to order yourself a Jizzy Fizzy. Name or not, it's addicting.

Spike didn't seem to mind what drink he got, so he was given a different soda, a Cloud Cola. It was, in your opinion, the second best soda next to Jizzy Fizzy.

For a couple of minutes, while you sipped your soda, Spike dove into the bowl and ate all kinds and shapes of gems and jewels. For a second, you wondered what they tasted like.

Probably blood when you try eating one. That's more likely.

After a few minutes of silence and crunchy eating between the two of you, you finally speak up to Spike.

"How do you know that guy?" You point towards the bartender, who seems to be paying attention to other customers or bar-sitters.

Spike holds up a claw for a moment, trying to finish swallowing a gem. "When me and the others came to Manehattan last year, we came here on our last day. The bartender said that I was his first dragon customer ever!"

You raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Yeah!" Putting another gem in his mouth, he quickly chews and swallows it before continuing. "He said that I can have free gems whenever I come here!"

"And he managed to recognize you after a year?"

"Well, I am the only dragon customer he's ever had."

"True."

Eventually, Spike once more becomes indulged in his sparkly treats, every once in a while taking a drink of his cola. You honestly couldn't help but chuckle a bit. But soon enough, your chuckles faded, and the smirk on your face disappeared, replaced with a slight frown. You quickly seem to find yourself taking a look at your environment.

As late as it was, the Vanilla Sky was full of life. Ponies, seemingly from all four corners of the world, were gathered here to eat, drink, talk, and even party, judging from the somewhat muffled music in the very back.

Looking towards the front door, you notice ponies coming and going as they please. Sometimes, it was a single pony. Other times, it was a young couple, married or not. But sometimes, it was like a train of ponies came waltzing in for a good time. The amount of ponies who entered compared to those who left was crazy, yet there were still a good ton of chairs to be taken.

As you look up to a nearby clock, you notice the time, 8:42. You and Spike have only been gone roughly twenty minutes.

Which reminds you...

"Spike," you say to him, getting his attention. "Did you tell Twilight we're-"

But before you could finish the question, Spike belches out a letter, seemingly from Twilight. It did catch a few ponies' attention, but they quickly went back to their business.

Spike unrolled the parchment and began to read it. You ask what it says, to which Spike decides to hoof you the letter after a few seconds of reading it.



Spike,

The girls and I are having a talk with Rainbow about her behavior earlier. Do you think you two can keep yourselves busy until we're finished? I think it's best if it's just girl-talk for a while.

-Twilight



Moving the paper aside, you ask Spike what they meant by 'having a talk' with Rainbow.

"My guess? It's probably some kind of intervention."

"Intervention?"

"Yeah. You know, how they make somepony sit down and talk about their problems, try to come up with a solution, that sort of thing---That's probably what they're doing with her right now." He could only snort. "Good luck to them."

After a couple of seconds, Spike wrote down a reply letter. Once it was signed, he engulfed it in a burst of green flame and patiently awaited for the return letter, which came after what must have been twenty seconds. It was nothing special, just a simple "thank-you".

Once the letter trade had been finished, Spike put away whatever parchment paper he had and almost immediately went back to eating his jewels, the bowl only less than a fourth empty, despite him having eating for the past twenty minutes. Either he was a really slow eater, or there were too many gems for you to count.

You also went back to the same behavior you were doing prior. The moment the environment peaked your interests, you observed it with interest.

The big 'eyesore' you noticed right away at first was the design of the Vanilla Sky. The building, outside and inside, was white to give the impression of 'vanilla', but at the same time, it was also a bright blue to symbolize the sky. There were plans for a spell to make the designs more realistic, as in 'clouds moving and the sun shining'. But after several failed attempts, the owners abandoned the idea and settled for artificial sunlight and made the designs as realistic as possible. It was rather impressive to you.

But regardless of impressiveness, it was seemingly unable to make you crack a smile. Spike didn't take long to notice this, and he didn't take it all that positive.

"... You okay?" he asked, bringing your attention to him.

You stare at him for a second or two, but sure enough, you nod and reply, "Yeah. I'm fine."

But Spike seemed to be able to see through your lie, so he didn't let the problem go away just like that. He put the bowl aside and focused his attention on you.

"It's about Rainbow---isn't it?"

...

You couldn't deny it, really. No matter how much you tried to focus on something else, your mind always wandered back to Dash. Had it been a week ago, it probably would've been something romantic. Now, it was anything but.

Before your mind could trail off, you nod again, but this time, there was no vocal response, but just a sigh.

Again, it was silent between the two of you. Your head hung low and you found yourself staring at the table for a couple of moments. You knew Spike was staring at you with that look concern that everyone seems to have. It wasn't all that bothersome, but honestly, there was too much concern.

"Why do you like her so much?" Slowly, you lift your head and look at him. You didn't seem to have a right-away answer, so Spike only added on to his question. "I mean, ever since you moved to Ponyville, she's been making fun of you, talking behind your back, and pushing you around. If anypony ever did that to me, I'd go somewhere else in a heartbeat. So why aren't you leaving?"

"Spike-"

"I just... don't want you to be miserable, dude."

His words, his tone, his look---It didn't take long for you to realize that he was really worried for you. Of course, anyone would be worried in your situation, what with this being almost similar to that of domestic abuse.

Of course, that was what they seemed to make it out as. But you didn't want them thinking that.

"I always had the feeling that... she was the one for me. I mean, other than Pinkie, she's the first girl I ever laid eyes on in that town, and something... I don't know...connected me to her, like we were meant to meet. Destiny, you know? Something cheesy. When I met her for the first time, she was so amazing. She could pull off moves that I've never seen anypony else do. Every time she talked, I was always so interested in what she had to say. I loved hearing her voice."

You paused, laughing at yourself.

"She was—and I'm saying this really—the first girl I have ever fallen in love with. And that was saying something. She made me feel things I've never really felt before. Sure, that sounds stupid, but it's true. She was the one girl I really felt happy being around. I always loved hearing her talk, watching her fly, just... being with her. I knew I really loved her... and I felt that she knew it too.

You sighed.

"But... obviously, she never loved me back."

Your speech ended with a sigh. You felt as if a weight had been lifted off your shoulders, though a majority of it still remained, and it seemed to leave Spike stunned. You never knew why he was stunned; it wasn't that big. But you weren't him. He probably took it differently than you did.

But after you spoke, it was once again silent between the two of you, nearly for twenty seconds. You took his silence as a sign that he was still stunned, so you didn't take much note of it. You did seem to notice, however, that he seemed to look rather...sad towards you, like he felt sorry for you.

You never questioned it, you simply let him think what he wanted.

After doing nothing but looking about and leaning on the table with your forelegs, you decide to sit back up properly and take a drink. But as you grabbed the drink and lifted it to you, before the edge of the cup ever touched your lips, Spike responded and broke the silence.

"If she doesn't love you tonight, she's not worth it."

That left a frog in your throat. You were lucky you weren't actually drinking yet, otherwise you'd be coughing all over the poor dragon, who only seemed to laugh briefly at your mild inconvenience. But as soon as he noticed you weren't laughing back, he eyed you again.

"I... don't really love her anymore, Spike."

After a moment frozen in place, he shook his head. "Whoa... what?"

"I know, I know, that whole thing is complicated, and I know Twilight and the others brought us here to help the two of us get together... but I think it just made things worse. This whole week, it's been nothing but tartarus between us, and tonight was that big push, you know?"

"I... I-I guess. But I don't understand. It doesn't take a week to just fall out of love with somepony, right?"

But you only shrugged. "It can take just a second, if the moment's right."

"Really?" You nodded. "So... was it like that with you?"

You shook your head and sighed. "It was a few days for me, really. I think that whole thing at the party was what did it in for me. I guess I just didn't realize it until we got to Manehattan. Then everything she kept saying and doing after that, and... well, you know. I guess I'm just seeing things clearer now. If only it didn't take me years to find that out."

Looking down at the table, you caught your breath, trying to block out the constant batter of music and chatter from other restaurant-goers. You were almost afraid of looking up at Spike until he put his hand on your hoof.

"I'm sorry, bud."

You snorted with laughter. "It's fine."

Spike retreated to his seat, looking over one of the few gems left in his bowl, hesitant to eat it just yet. "So... what now? What do you want from her?"

"Honestly," you answered as truthfully as you could, "I think I just wanna be her friend again. It kinda killed me to be yelling at her like that and bringing up that stuff."

"Even though she was doing the same thing right after."

"... True. I guess both of us went too far in our own way."

"I didn't think you went far enough."

You rolled your eyes at the drake, but couldn't help but chuckle again. "Still, I hope Twilight can talk some sense into her and the two of us can just... start over."

"Sounds like a challenge."

"Eh. Wouldn't really regret it, if that were the case."

Despite some reluctance, Spike eventually agreed. You knew if something happened between him and Rarity, he'd want to start fresh if it meant being friends again. But the two of them were such good friends, you couldn't see them falling apart like you and Rainbow. And you hoped you never had to.

Spike raised his cup of gems and motioned it towards you. It was clear what the intention was, and so you lifted your glass towards his and clink the two together, before bringing the cup back to your lips and taking a well needed sip of Jizz.

...

That...could have been worded better.






For the next hour,  you and Spike got more drinks, and he got more jewels. Apparently, the bartender had a steady supply of gems in the back just for Spike, if such an occasion as this were to happen. He even volunteered to deliver a steady supply back home, and Spike wasn't one to back down from an offer like that.

Once another bowl was set on the table and your drinks were refilled, you and Spike once more began a steady conversation. It was the first real bro-ly conversation you two have had in weeks. It was nothing personal, just business getting in the way, as usual.

The first thing you started the conversation with was how business in Canterlot was doing. You've only rarely gone to Canterlot, and that was typically for either the Grand Galloping Gala or important business, important meaning anything evil, really. There was no section of evil. If 'evil' ever pops up with Celestia, there's no other question or excuse.

Of course, you've only rarely intervened in such business. It was mostly because you had no vital part in it. You were no element of harmony. Then again, you probably are... somewhere, that is. Spike and Twilight would visit Canterlot every month for typical princess business, with Spike keeping check of her royal duties. You couldn't help but ask how things were going up there. 

"Things are good. Twilight's actually getting better at her work."

"I can see that," you add with a faint smile, "She's not as exhausted as she was in the beginning."

"Yeah... I think she can really handle it now. She's even been discussing some ways to extend friendship outside the borders of Equestria!"

"What do you mean by that? Isn't Equestria already peaceful?"

"Well," he hesitated slightly, holding another jewel in his claws, "not exactly. There's been a few problems going around recently, but it's nothing too serious."

"Problems?"

"Robbing, vandalizing, public exposure..."

Robbing was no surprised to you. But public exposure? Really? Sure, ponies ever rarely wore clothing, but... really? With children around?

Spike was quick to notice the disgust on your face. "Okay, maaaybe it's a bit more serious than I said it was, but... trust me, iit could be a lot worse."

Okay, you had to agree with him on that one. "Point taken," you marked with another sip of your drink.

Once the cup hit the table again, your mind once more began to trail off, and you begin to wonder what the others were doing. Probably still trying to 'rehabilitate' Rainbow, no doubt. Just even mentioning her name in mind made you begin to think of her again. Spike seemed to notice this, but decided not to knock you out of it, and just let you think of Rainbow; who she was, how she lived, what others knew her to be.

And it made you think for the future ahead.

How in Equestria were things going to be once you all got back to Ponyville? A year from now? Ten years? Let's say you and Applejack decided to stay friends after... that. And let's say, for the sake of this prompt, you and Rainbow finally made amends and became friends, then sometime down the line, ended up feeling something for each other. What would that be like? Romantic? Awkward? Depressing? Would the two of you be sitting down at the table five years from now and eating grilled cheese and talking about your day plans?

That sounded so boring. 

Also, you didn't know this place served grilled cheese.

Before you could even answer your own thoughts, Spike belched out another parchment letter, once more gaining attention from other ponies. The parchment letter landed on the table, just between the two of you. Putting his jewel down in the bowl, Spike picked up the letter, unraveled it, and began to read it.

"What is it?" you ask, "another letter from Twilight?"

But slowly, he shook his head. "It's from Rainbow."

"What?" You grabbed the parchment letter from him. Unraveling the letter again, you begin to read it in your head.



Hey, Spike. It's Rainbow. Listen, can you guys come back to the hotel? I need to...tell you guys something, especially him. It's time I apologized. For real this time.

-Rainbow Dash



You found yourself somewhat surprised after reading the letter. Rainbow was ready to apologize? How did they manage to make her change her mind? What did she want to tell them?

With these thoughts in mind, Spike took out a blank parchment letter and a quill with ink on it, seeming to be ready to write a return letter. But you stopped him before he could put anything down.

"... Do you think I could write this one?" you asked politely.

He turned his head and smiled. "Sure, dude."

Hoofing you the parchment letter and still wet quill, he gave you a subtle, but reassuring, nod, to which you snorted and shook your head with laughter. Grabbing the quill, you positioned the parchment letter close to you. With the letter already set in mind, you begin to write it down. It took a minute or so to write everything down, but once it was done, you placed the quill down and reviewed it to see if it was good enough.



I'm sorry too. I was honestly being kind of a jerk about the whole thing. I shouldn't have walked out. It was childish of me, and I'm sorry about that. We're on our way back right now.



It seemed perfect to you, but something was missing. It didn't seem complete. You wanted to be sure loose ends would be tied, and you wanted them to know you wouldn't make the same mistakes again. Grabbing the quill, you added another couple of sentences. When you finished, you place the quill once more on the table and take a look at the added words.



Maybe after this, we can start fresh. I'll try not to be a screw-up this time around.



You admitted in your mind that it did sound like a statement that tried to deliver guilt, but you wanted to be honest. With your signature to finish it off, you roll up the parchment and hoof it to Spike, to which he engulfs it in flames, now off to be read by Rainbow.

You did feel nervous about the letter already, but honestly, it felt good to lift more of that weight off your shoulders.

It felt really good.

With a sigh and a smile, you look towards Spike. "You ready to go?"

He grinned. "Yeah."

Finishing off the remainder of his gems, Spike got up from the table and headed towards the bar to return the bowl. 

The bartender only chuckled. "Keep it."

"Really?"

"Yeah. That's a rare bowl, only twenty of them in existence. Could be worth a fortune when the time's right."

The dragon stumbled over his own words, gripping onto the bowl tightly as he laughed. "U-Uh... W-Wow, thanks!"

"You're welcome, kid," the bartender replied. "And don't think I forgot about that offer of yours. You could use that bowl with it anytime you'd like."

With a grin of excitement, Spike thanked the bartender and waved him goodbye as he started towards the door. You stood just beside the door and waited for him to reach you. Once he was next to you, you asked him once more if he was ready to leave.

"Yeah, definitely," he added, looking back at the bowl in his claws.

It honestly made you chuckle.

Nevertheless, you turned towards the door and opened it, but a kind couple came walking through. You apologized, but they insisted it was fine and let you two by.

You were glad not everypony in Manehattan were total jerks. Well, at least not ponies in this part of the city, that is.

Holding the door open for Spike to walk through, you followed behind him, letting it shut behind you. Remembering the path you had gone, the two of you took your stroll back to the hotel.

And on the calmest of nights too.






By the time the two of you had left the Vanilla Sky, it was already fairly late, but luckily, it wasn't too too late. Even at this time of night, the city was still bustling with life, loud ponies, and extravagant crowds from all corners of the world. It reminded you a lot of Las Pegasus, only more fashionable, and less laid back.

As rude as some ponies were in this city, they did know how to live a little regardless. Maybe, in some cases, a little too much. However, it did nothing to hinder the journey back.

So, not wanting the walk to be quiet and boring, you decided to spice it up with a conversation.

"So why'd the bartender let you keep the bowl?" you ask.

Turning his head towards yours while also managing to keep track of his movement, he added:

"He said this is one of only six of this kind of bowls in the world! One of the rarest!"

"And he let you keep it?"

"Yeah! He said, when the time is right, I could sell this thing! It'd be worth a fortune!"

"Why would you want to sell something like that?" you ask, curious and confused at his thought-of tactic.

"Duh," he begins, "Rare and pricey bowl plus selling it equals---a sea of gems just for me!"

Okay, it's thoughtful. Selfishly thoughtful, that is.

Speaking of selfish, the topic brought up a devious idea in your head, so you use it to your advantage and toy with him for a bit.

"Just for you?" you ask with a smirk on your face.

Spike just looks at you, wondering why you asked that question. But when he realized, he turned his head away and blushed in apparent guilt. 

Way to go, jerk.

"...And maybe Rarity too."

You laughed and decided to stop toying with him. "Look, do what you want with the bowl. Use it for food, sell it, share it with Rarity... It's yours. Do what you want."

Giving a smile for reassurance, you pat him on the back too. He smileed again after a second or two, and kept the bowl held tightly in his claws.

But of course, there was always the risk of somepony stealing it, or bumping into him and him dropping it. Especially with so many ponies around, that risk was high.

"Here," you say as you lean towards him, "Put it in my satchel. It'll be safe in there."

With a nod, Spike gets closer towards you and holds his claws out towards the satchel in order to open it. But as he opens the flap of the satchel, his face turns to curiosity and somewhat surprise.

"Are these..." he begins, "... Rainbow's gifts?"

Wait, what?

Only for a second, you turned your head towards him in order to see the satchel.

And he wasn't lying.

You had the satchel with Rainbow's gifts still lodged inside of them. You must have grabbed the wrong one on the way out of the room. Of course, it was confusing, what with them being almost identical.

As creepy as it sounded, the scent probably would've helped you tell the difference.

In the midst of looking backwards, you and Spike didn't seem to notice the oncoming couple of city mares. The four of you bumped into each other and nearly fell on your rears. As a result, the bowl goes flying into the air, only to come back down a second later. But before it was able to crash into the ground and shatter, Spike was able to catch it almost perfectly, the bowl only an inch from the ground.

With a sigh of relief, you get back up on all fours, the mares doing so too.

Only they didn't seem too happy about it---as expected.

"Hmmph!" one of the mares called out, "How irresponsible! Do you not know how to walk properly, you clumsy fool?"

She reminded you a lot like Rarity in some ways---but this mare was a bitch. That was the only difference.

And regardless of it, you honestly had enough---but you weren't willing to start a war between the two.

Luckily, they didn't seem to say much, only stare at you in an angry manner---well, one of them, anyway---before walking away, the same mare bickering about you.

"If we weren't in such a hurry, I'd teach him a lesson in treating a lady right!"

"Relax, Velvet dear. It was only an accident."

"But of course! It had to be a stallion! It's no wonder this society is so doomed! Too many delinquents in the gene pool nowadays."

If you weren't so willing to let it go, you probably would've said something then and there. But honestly, you didn't have the energy for it.

Ignoring the slowly fading mares, you turn back to Spike, who seemed to be holding the bowl tightly in his clutches.

"You okay?" you ask him, snapping him out of his little trance.

"Y-Yeah, I'm fine. You?"

With a nod, you say, "Yeah. I'm good... but man, I hate city ponies sometimes."

After a couple of seconds, you start to look around the environment for a clock, any clock that could tell you the time. Eventually, through a store window, you notice a grandfather clock slowly ticking by, reading 9:06.

Turning back to Spike, you add, "Come on. We should get going. Just put that bowl in my bag for right now."

"O-Oh. Right."

Walking back over to you, Spike once more opens the flaps of the satchel, and without saying a word, properly places the bowl in the satchel, nice and snug right next to the gifts, before closing the flap.

The two of you then continue to walk. For about ten seconds, apart from the sound of the city's life around you, it was quiet.

But eventually, Spike spoke up again, and as you expected, it was about the presents.

"You haven't given her her gifts yet?" he asked.

Turning your head only slightly while still moving, you respond, "No, not exactly."

"Why?"

"Well... I was gonna. At the party, just before everything happened, my gift was picked up and was being carried over. I was so excited about it too."

"Is that why you slipped?"

"... Yes. But you know I didn't mean to slip, right?"

"Yeah, I know that, but... you know, I was just wondering... what are the gifts, anyway?"

Leaning your head a bit, you could feel a smile coming on, and that feeling of excitement only returned slightly, but you could feel it was there.

"Well... Inside, it's a couple of tickets to that upcoming Wonderbolts show—"

"The Wonderbolts Wonder Spectacular?!" With a smile, you nodded. "How the heck did you afford them?! A ticket costs, like, a thousand bits!"

"I won them. That little challenge Blossom Meadow usually does every once in a while on the radio? All I had to do was answer a question about Star Swirl The Bearded, and they were mine, no trouble at-"

"Wait," Spike stopped you, "you were Caller 22?"

What are the chances of him also hearing that too?

"Heh... Twilight told you, huh?"

"No, I was with Twilight when I heard it. We were trying to get tickets for Rainbow Dash, but... well, we were kinda slow."

"Yeah..." You started scratching the back of your hoof with a pint of guilt. "Sorry about that."

"Ah," he waves one of his claws, "it's fine. At least you were able to get the tickets before anypony else could."

"That's true."

"What's the other gift?"

"The next Daring Do book. Not the current one. The new one."

"What? How'd you manage to get that?!"

"The day before Rainbow's birthday, I went to—wait, you know about the whole Daring Do incident last year, right?"

"Yeah. Rainbow wouldn't stop talking about it, remember?"

"Oh... right." You chuckle awkwardly. "Anyway, I went to Daring's house the day before Rainbow's birthday, and she was kind enough to give me an early copy of the book."

Spike seemed to raise an eyebrow, a bit of suspicion on his face.

"She gave you a copy? Just like that?"

"Yeah, I was a bit suspicious too at first. But apparently, she seemed to recognize me after a bit, and from what I heard, her and Rainbow hang every six moons or something. I can't remember, but the point is, she was nice enough to give me a copy," you finished with a shrug and a smirk, only to remember the third gift. "Oh! And guess who gave me this thing?"

For a second, Spike seemed to think about who could have given the bag to you, but it didn't take long to guess.

"She gave you this, too?"

"Yeah," you answered. "Apparently, she has a bunch of these, so she figured, what better way to give Rainbow a gift than a satchel that belonged to her idol?"

"Why didn't she give it to Rainbow herself?"

"Two reasons," you say while extending two wingers, "one, she has a lot of time and things on her hooves. Two, she... didn't seem to know Dash's birthday was coming up until I told her about it. The two kind of... fit together when you think about it."

Looking back in front of him, Spike takes in the situation almost too calmly. 

"Huh," he mumbled simply. "Rainbow thinks you're unlucky. But then here you are, with more luck in one day than anypony in a lifetime... what's your secret?"

You could only trill your lips.

"It's not luck, really—okay, maybe just a bit— but I like to think life decided not to do me in for once. Even if it was only a day, it was good while it lasted."

"Oh, come on," Spike groaned, nudging your side a bit, "what makes you think that's it?"

"The whole week so far?"

That did seem to silence Spike for a couple of moments, but soon enough, he went on talking.

"Your life's been a whole run of good luck. Sure, everypony's gonna have some bad luck in their life. Remember that time at the Equestria Games? My whole singing charade?"

Oh dear Celestia, you remember that, clear as day, as if it happened yesterday. The whole thing in itself was, as hurtful as it was to say it, cringe-worthy at best. Even after a year, ponies in the Crystal Empire still talked about it as if it was today's news. Even trying to get him to leave kindly left you embarrassed by everyone else. You never knew why, but you did feel awkward nonetheless.

"Yeah, I do,"

"When I started packing to leave, you and Twilight came in to talk me into staying. Don't you remember what you said?"

It took a couple of moments for you to truly remember, but when you did, you nodded and recited it.

"Luck will always conquer malevolence, no matter how great or cruel it may be."

You always thought it was a stupid quote, the stupidest. It originally came from your mother, but you never really liked it. You assumed it would have maybe done something at the time, but nowadays, you think it was just silly. But Spike seemed to prove you otherwise.

"When you first said that, I told you that would never help me at all. But when that ice cloud started falling... I remembered what you said. That was why I did what I did. And guess what? I saved everypony in that entire stadium."

You had to admit, you were surprised. You didn't think a stupid quote would really be responsible for saving hundreds of ponies, yet here was Spike, proving you wrong.

"Luck conquered malevolence," he said with a smile and a wink.

It made you laugh a little, but you didn't keep your eyes away from the sidewalk. Luckily, there weren't as many ponies around, so there was less of a risk in bumping into someone else.

"Even when bad luck happens, there's always someone willing to bring good luck, even when they don't think it. I think the good luck starts tonight."

"You really think so, huh?" you debated.

"I just don't think so. I know so."

Looking forward, Spike's smirk widened, and his face is now plastered with determination and confidence. He seemed much more happier than he had in this past week. You don't know why, but for some reason, tonight seemed like the best night for him so far.

"In my honest opinion—I think tonight's just the beginning."

Looking down to Spike, his smile was wide, and he seemed very happy. And as expected, it made you smile with joy too.

Maybe Spike was right. Maybe luck doesn't always run out.

Maybe tonight was the beginning.

"Think again, you piece of shit."

Almost immediately, the sound of the voice stopped you dead in your tracks, and it startled you. Slowly, but carefully, the two of you began to turn around to see the source of the voice. But before you could even truly see the physical source, you were met with a quick kick to the gut. You heard Spike scream your name as he was picked up by his scales, and you your mane.

"Alleyway, now. Resist, and you're bucking dead."

You nodded. "Okay, okay. We'll go. Just... don't hurt us."

"Don't talk."

Another chill went down your spine from his words, but nonetheless, you obeyed him.

With a sturdy hoof keeping Spike close to you, you begin to walk forward. As you near him, you being to walk around him, and as you take a real look at him, his stare never left you... and neither did that cold smile of his.

Once you pass him, you take a left into the alley, only having been a couple hooves away. The two buildings that made the alleyway were connected with a metal fence with a door attached to it. The door was open, waiting for you to step through.

When you did, you took a good look at the alleyway. Up top, you get a good view of the several lights of apartments that shine and illuminate the upper halves. But at your level, light was almost entirely absent, despite the lights of the city shining about. 

From behind, you could hear the sound of the metal fence door shutting with a loud mix of clanks. Turning around, you watched as the stallion locked the door shut. Once he was finished, he turned around and noticed you staring at him. A knife was present in his hoof, but he never charged.

You were willing to fly off, but noticing that the guy was also a pegasus, and the fact that he was bigger you, he was probably stronger... and faster.

He'd probably kill you before you even touched the ground. And Celestia knows what he'd do to Spike, if he didn't kill him too.

For a couple of seconds, the stallion stared at you, and the air between you and him was tense, chilling... fearful.

Your mind tried to think of what to say before he had a chance to say or do anything; anything that could save you and Spike, you were willing to do it.

"L-Look," you began with a stutter, "I-I don't have any money with me. I left it back at my hotel. This satchel... it has nothing but a book and a worthless vase in it! They're worth nothing! Please, you don't have to do—"

Before you could react, the stallion swung his knife at you and cut your side. It wasn't enough to do any deep damage, but it was enough to bleed. Plenty. You screamed and knelt to the pavement, clutching your wound tightly to keep the blood flow small. Spike ran to your side, asking if you were okay.

"He's fine, you little shit," the stallion remarked. "I wouldn't bet on that forever, though."

With a shiver, Spike leaned in closer towards you, the fear now growing within him. He was too afraid to move, too afraid to do anything.

Suddenly, the stallion shouted into the darkness further into the alley. "We got the stallion! The one you were talking about!"

You and Spike turned around into the blackness, trying to see whoever he was yelling to, but couldn't see anything but a faint, black silhouette. He seemed to be hiding in the dark, followed by two other silhouettes, so it was clear he was not alone... and that you were outnumbered four to two.

After a second, the silhouettes slowly emerged from the darkness, and each of them immediately carried smiles on their faces, and knifes in their hooves or wings. They did nothing but stare at you with grim intent, but they had no reason to frown.

But you weren't focused on them all; only the one leading them.

"... S... Swift Shadow?"

Swift Shadow, the stallion you chased down and tackled to the ground for stealing Aqua Lilly's purse. It didn't take much for you to remember him, seeing as he was now standing in front of you for the first time in four days. He didn't look any different; in fact, he looked worse for wear. Tattered hoodie, dirtied face, matted mane and tail. He looked like the average Manehattan thug.

He smiled grimly. "Not so tough looking now that you're stuck here with me... are you?"

You couldn't say anything proper to him; all you could do was try and back away, taking Spike with you, but the stallion behind you kicked you forward. Your wound bled more, and you winced. As you went forward, Swift Shadow grabbed you with his hooves and held you against the wall.

"It's been a long time coming, you bastard. You think you can just be the hero, get the girl, and everything will be okay? I don't fucking think so."

"I... I..."

He smacked your hoof away from your wound and started to rub it aggressively. You let out a pained scream, trying to get away, but he held you firmly in place, all while arguing with you.

"You think you were just gonna stop me? Just like that?!" He punched you in the wound, forcing you to your knees. "Nopony talks to me like that, ever! Not even a little snitch like you."

"I-I... please—"

"Please nothing. I told you you better hope I didn't get out. I got out, and you didn't even prepare."

"But... the officers... they said—"

"I wasn't dangerous, I make up these lies, I haven't hurt a single po—yeah, no, I killed them. Every single one of them. Every single bastard, bitch, and their little bastard offspring—dead. Chopped them up and burned what was left. I don't do this shit on my own."

You stared at Swift with a confused but fearing expression. "W... What...?"

"Yeah... you weren't expecting to hear that... were you?"

"L-Look... Swift... Please... You don't need to do this; you don't need to... kill us. The dragon, he... he's just a kid. He didn't do anything wrong. Just... take the bag. You can sell it, make some bits, I don't care... Just please let us go. Let him go—"

"Yeah, you see, that shit's not happening. You see, you said my name, and now the kid knows my name, and if I let him go, he's gonna tell your friends, and they're gonna know my name, and... you see where I'm going with this shit? It'll snowball, and I'll get in trouble, and—as much as I love it—I kind of fucking hate going to prison. Besides... I wasn't gonna let you go anyway."

You swallowed the spit in your mouth, tilting your head and gently pleading with him, but he didn't care to listen.

"W-Wait."

"Knock him down and hold the kid."

Almost immediately, the stallions begin to act on his command, all while Swift simply watches the events unfold before him. 

The stallion behind you runs up and grabs Spike, seemingly without much trouble. Spike begins to panic and yells your name, shaking himself and trying to get free from the stallion's clutches, but to no avail.

You turn around and see this happen, but before you could act in helping Spike or fighting the stallion, you feel the impact of metal slamming into one of your hind legs.

Pain almost immediately filled your leg, and you nearly fell down, but as the adrenaline in your body came to life, you knew you had to react quickly.

Turning around as quick as you could on three legs, you watched as the stallion holding a metal bat in his hooves readied himself for another swing. But before it could make contact with your body, you grabbed it at the last second, and for a couple of tense and fearful moments, it was a struggle between you and the stallion, as the two of you battled it out in taking control.

You each turned left, then right, up and down. At first, you felt as it you would lose it.

But a shot of adrenaline kicked in at the right moment.

With the strength you had, you took a sharp turn to the left, succeeding in ripping the bat out of the stallion's clutches. Handling it properly in your hooves, you didn't hesitate to swing it.

You heard the thud of his head making contact with the end of the bat. The stallion went flying a few hooves to your right, stumbling only slightly, before crashing into a set of garbage cans. He didn't seem to be out cold, but he didn't seem to be willing to get back up anytime soon.

Bat in hooves, you were ready to face the other two.

But before you knew it, one of them had pinned you to the wall, the bat flying out of your hooves and landing several hooves away. The stallion pinning you held a knife towards you, attempting to stab you, but you were quick in holding him back. The two of you struggled, and slowly, the blade was getting closer and closer to you.

Another shot of adrenaline through your body helped you move it away at the right time. With enough speed, you were able to throw it to the ground, out of reach from the two of you.

Using your strength, you tried pushing the stallion forward, pushing yourself away from the wall. Successfully, you got yourself away from the wall, but continued to push the stallion forward, up until he himself was pinned against the wall, but it only lasted for a moment.

The stallion was somewhat stronger than you, so it didn't take much for him to push himself away. Knocked slightly off balance, you were left defenseless. So he took a swing at your face.

You swore you could hear something in your head crack the moment his hoof made contact. You don't know what it could have been; a tooth, your skull, maybe your jaw. You didn't know---and right now, you didn't care.

As quick as you could, you managed to block the stallion's second attack by putting your hooves up. Whenever he took a swing, you blocked or dodged; once you had the chance, you took your own swings. You managed to get a couple of hits in his cheek and nose, but no matter how hard or quick you hit him, he wouldn't go down.

The moment you took another swing, he took it as a chance to grab you. His intent was to tackle you down, but when you didn't go down, he tried his best to strike you from the side. Though you took most of his blows, you were able to block a couple of them, despite the pain burning in your sides.

Eventually, you took this position as a chance to hit him back. Hard.

With enough strength and willpower, you pulled your head backwards and headbutted him as hard as you could. The pain was sickening, your head in some of the worst pain you've ever felt. It even made you dizzy. But nonetheless, it was able to get the job done. With a stumble of his hooves, the stallion fell to the ground, apparently out cold. It surprised you how he was knocked out and not you, but you didn't ponder on it too long.

In the short silence of grunts and anger, you heard Spike call out your name, telling you that you could do it, seeming to cheer you on, despite his situation.

But his cheers were cut short as the stallion holding him began to cover his mouth, his cheers now become panicked and muffled screams, and his struggling only increased.

"Spike!" you yelled to him.

With a push, you started running towards the stallion, ready to charge at him and help your friend.

"Let him go! Spi—"

Before you could ever finish his name, you found yourself tackled against the wall, the right side of your head slamming into it hard, but you managed to keep yourself conscious from all the pain.

But mid-impact, you let out a gasp as you felt pain strike you within. Not from your head, but from your side.

Somewhat in a state of shock and dizziness, you slowly began to turn your head to the left and downward, to where the source of the pain came from. The stallion, still pinning you against the wall, held the handle of a knife against you—a knife that was now buried into the side of your stomach. And it only took you a second to realize what had just happened.

He stabbed you.

...

The bastard actually stabbed you.

You were expecting the pain to have been more of that than being slammed against a wall by force. Maybe your brain wasn't rendering it properly after that headbutt---but, while you did feel it and while it did hurt, it didn't seem to---hurt all that much.

But it did affect you, regardless of how it felt.

Continuing to look down at the blade, you watched as the liquid that kept you alive began to run down from the mark, dripping down your sides and falling to the ground, drop after drop. It honestly tickled, and while it didn't make you laugh or smile, you felt like chuckling nonetheless.

Maybe it was your mind that was blocking out the pain, and for a moment, you felt almost nothing. But as the stallion noticed your face, how calm it was, he twisted the blade to the right.

And your pain sensors went into overload.

Possibly nearly damaging your vocal cords, you let out a deafening scream that pierced the air around you, all while the stallion continued to twist the blade further clockwise. Eventually, however, he slid the blade out, and with it, blood came leaking out, dripping to the ground. Turning to your left, you took a look at the knife that was in your body only moments ago.

It was glistening red with blood.

Your blood.

And it made you absolutely... sick.

After a few seconds of the blurred out noise of Spike screaming to stop, the stallion holding the knife took another swing at you. 	The knife once more pierced your flesh. You screamed again, but it was not as loud as before, but more of a gasp. This time, the blade entered the front of your stomach, just above your belly button. Only this time, he didn't twist it like before. Quicker than before, he pulled the blade out. It took longer than before for the blood to start coming out.

With another swing, he stabbed you a third time. Then a fourth time, then a fifth time, then a sixth time.

The other stallions jumped in, knives at the ready, and took swings at you. You tried to push them away, hoping to fight them off, but it was a pointless fight; the stallions dug their knives into your body again and again, making new holes for blood to pour out. You heard Swift tell them to "Stop, you fucking idiots," and a second later, they pulled their knives out of you and watched you squirm. You had been stabbed nearly twenty times, if you could remember to count it all.

It honestly surprised you, regardless of how dizzy or ill you felt, how you were even still alive at this point. You thought a single stab would kill you in seconds, like in books that you've read before. But this wasn't a book, so... maybe it was different. You were hoping it was different.

In an instant, your body gives out, and you collapsed to the ground, falling on your back. You let out a weak grunt of pain, and with the little bit of strength you had left, you took a look at your body. Not only were you bruised in several spots, but you were drenched in blood, lots of it making your fur sticky and wet. You could see blood slowly and gently gushing out of their sources.

But you were only able to look at it for a second before the pain made you drop your head back to the ground.

You started to wonder how you managed to go from a peaceful stroll back to the hotel to make amends, to lying and dying in a dark alleyway, filled with brand new holes. And even then, you still wondered how you lasted this long.

But as you focused on death in particular, you felt your mind go numb for a moment. Your vision started to blur, and you wondered if this was it, if this was the part where your life would flash before your eyes for the last time, and like all things, your life would end.

Sure enough, you began to have visions, but they weren't the last thing. But what were the visions that you had?

... Rainbow, of course.

You always said to yourself, you wanted Rainbow to be the only thing on your mind when you died. And sure enough, there she was, in your mind, playing with Scootaloo or flying in the clouds or napping on a tree somewhere. There she was, talking to her friends and laughing along with them whenever the fun times were had, meeting you for the first time as you entered Ponyville, yelling at you at her birthday party and insulting you any chance she got, coming to terms and saying she was sorry.

There she was, crying as your coffin was lowered into the ground.

And there he was.

As the visions faded away, your mind came crawling back to the alleyway. The stallion you headbutted was once again awake, seeming to watch you intently. He raised his hoof as if calling to attention.

"Look who's finally awake!"

Looking to the right of him, you noticed Swift Shadow appearing to be talking to Spike, though you never heard what he said. Once his man notified him of you having woken up, he turned towards you, a cigarette sitting in his mouth, almost completely burnt out.

"Fucking finally. Time to get this shit over with."

"Would you get it over with already?" the stallion carrying Spike said, "I wanna have a go at his little friend while he's still breathing!"

Though your mind was blurred and racing, you could still see Spike's face, still afraid and even more scared than before, even to the point of tears falling down his face. You knew that he knew what the stallion meant by.

"Ruin him, and I'll kill you."

Weakly moving your head up to get a further look at Swift, you watch him as he begins to take his cigarette out of his mouth, and blows its final plume of smoke. Looking at you, face to face, he smiles. Then without a hint of hesitation, he starts to punch you in the face. Your head flew back, hitting the pavement, but you still had the strength to lift it.

"Fuck! You!" He exclaimed with every punch. "You snitching! Mother! Fucker!"

After several punches, he sits back on his haunches, catching his breath, an expression of clear anger on his face, with steam practically coming out of his snout. Turning around, he demands one of the stallions hand him the metal bat. Without question, they give him the bat. Gripping it in one hoof, Swift Shadow leaned back over to you and talked to you softly.

"Here's what I'm gonna do next. First, I'm gonna bash your skull in like a fucking golf ball. Second, me and my boys are gonna do your little friend in over there. You know dragons are durable as tartarus? We ain't ever tried it before. And then third and last, I'm gonna kill him, and burn both your bodies. Make it look like an accident. One hell of an accident."

You tried to beg one more time, but all that could come out was a choked cough of blood. Swift got up from the ground and stood on his hind legs.

"I'm gonna make sure you never snitch again. Say your prayers, asshole!"

And with those last words played out in your fading mind, Swift quickly lifted the bat into the air.

With a final, single swoop, you feel the cold metal smash your skull in. And as it does, your life, everything that you were, and everything that you ever would have been, ends.

You were gone.






Spike



It was horrifying the things that could happen in only a few minutes.

One minute, my best friend and I were walking back to our hotel and hoping to make things better between all of us. And the next minute—he has his head smashed in with a metal bat.

I couldn't even remember how loud I screamed as I watched it happen. All I could remember was his... his... face. I knew it was him... Of course I knew it.

But the face. It was so... so... mangled.

When the stallion Swift was done, he took a napkin out from his hoodie, whistled a tune, and just wiped away the blood... as if it was nothing. But to him, that's all it was—nothing.

And what was I doing as I watched it happen? I panicked. I shook and twisted and flailed about as much as I possibly could, but... I was never able to get myself free. I may have been strong. But the stallion holding me was much stronger than I ever could have been at my age.

After Swift wiped the bat off almost entirely, he threw the napkin onto the ground, next to my friend's body. Giving the bat back to the other stallion, he set his sights on me again. He had this twisted, ugly smile on his face, just like the other stallions.

"Now, where were we?"

And just with that, my panic only grew. As he and the other two advanced towards me, I started to thrash about, shake, even try to hit the stallion holding me. But no matter how hard I tried, he was always stronger. I grew scared. I knew exactly what they were going to do to me! They were going to use me! Use me like a doll and then throw me away when they were done!

I didn't know what to do!

And as the other two stallions got closer towards me, I tried kicking my legs at them, trying to hit them away. But all they did was laugh and say, "Ooh! This one's a fighter!"

Eventually, as I kicked and screamed and flailed about, I started yelling at them.

"No! Get away from me! Stay away!"

But all they did was laugh at me and taunt me as they got closer. One of them tried grabbing my legs in an attempt to hold me down. They never stopped after I hit them. I was scared beyond belief. I thought this is what would become of me. I thought this is where I would end.

I thought this is where I would die.

And that was when the adrenaline kicked in.

With the stroke of fear and sudden strength, I let loose my fire. The flames were big, fierce. It caught the stallions in front of me completely by surprise. One of the stallions stepped back as they were caught in the fire. They didn't ignite, but their face and parts of their body became badly burned, even from just a single second. The other stallion, the one with no mane, was more unfortunate.

Within only a couple of seconds, he burst into flames, immediately beginning to flail about and scream, "Put it out!"

The stallion who held me let go, and with panic quickly settled in, I quickly turned around and blew my fire into his face. He too screamed and lit up in flames. The fence door behind him was quickly melted from the fire, and with a great crash, he fell onto the boiling hot fence.

"Oh, fuck this!" I heard Swift yell, before he ran away into the darkness of the alleyway, with another stallion. When I turned around, he was gone.

The stallion on the fence's screams, along with the other stallion, filled the air. His body became stuck to the hot melted fence. Every time he tried to get up, his skin would stick to the metal, coming off in slices, muscle and burnt tissue becoming visible beneath. His body began to bleed heavily, even if some of the blood began to evaporate from the flames.

For several moments, he and the other stallion continued to scream as they fought to survive. But no matter what they tried and failed to do, their screams grew silent quickly. Just like that, it was over, and they were... dead.

I... I killed someone.

As quick as they began, the stallion's movements against the melted fence came to an end, his body almost instantly becoming limp on the structure. His body continued to burn. After he died, I turned around to the other. He was also dead.

When the initial panic died down, I ran to my friend's side. But as I stood over him, I gasped and felt sick as I saw and smelled the sight before me.

The smell of iron was rich in the air. But his body---it was drenched with blood, so much that there was even a small puddle around his belly button. Just smelling it made me want to puke from how---strong it was.

But I couldn't focus on that. Not now.

At the chance I got, I started screaming, "Help! Somepony help!!"

I never understood why nopony came the whole time this was happening. It was like the whole city became deserted in an instant. One moment, we were surrounded by rich snobs, and the next, we were all alone. But rather than focus on that, I continued screaming into the streets, hoping somepony, anypony, would hear and come to my—his—aid.

In my panic, I tried to see if he still had a pulse. Taking a claw and putting it up to his neck, I waited for a pulse. For a second, when I didn't feel a thing, I became scared, already fearing the worst had happened, and I almost began to cry right there and then.

But then I felt a single beat, and then another after that, but a couple of seconds after that. It was there, but slow. But he was still alive.

Thank Celestia, I wanted to cry in joy.

I continued to shout to the streets, waiting for someone to hear. After a minute of continuous shouting and crying for help, I was already starting to give up on anyone listening. But just before I stopped shouting for the last time, like angels, they came. A couple of ponies, a mare and two stallions, stumbled upon the scene. The mare screamed in horror as she saw the burning corpse of the stallion on the melted fence. The other two stallions were just as horrified, but they seemed to be left speechless.

And soon enough, their eyes fell towards me. It was not in a bad way, it was more of a "What in the hell happened" way.

Before they had any chance to say or do anything, I yelled to them, "Call an ambulance! Help him, please!"

Quickly knocking themselves out of their shock, though the mare seemed to be hyperventilating, one of the stallions said to the other stallion, "Go find a phone, now! Go!"

The other stallion nodded and ran off. The stallion still here, along with the mare—who was still panicking, but lesser now—started making their way towards me, then seeing the state that my friend was in. As they knelt down, they looked in shock as they saw all the bruises, stab wounds, and other marks on his body... even the blood.

"Cerberus Almighty, what the hell happened to him?" the stallion asked.

Looking back to him, I... I didn't know what to say. At this point, the panic died down a bit, but my emotions only seemed to get the better of me.

"I... I-I..."

It was at this point... I couldn't take it. As if something took hold of me, I felt myself breaking down, mentally and physically. I burst into tears, the water falling down my face like salty rivers.	I covered my face with my claws, unable to hold back the tears any further. Eventually, I did take them away, using them to wipe the tears, but they only kept coming.

The stallion only watched me in what must have been sorrow. Even the mare seemed more sorry, though I could tell she was more scared and sick of the whole scene around her. For several minutes, the three of us sat there, me crying around my friend, as we waited for their other friend to return with help.







After a few minutes, the stallion came back, letting us know help was on the way. Not more than a minute after, the sounds of sirens filled the air, only getting closer and closer.

Before we knew it, there were ambulances and police carriages standing outside the alleyway, along with photographers and news reporters. Even the regular city-ponies we had seen before began to emerge, some with looks of horror, shock, disgust, or even relief on their faces.

Grabbing a stretcher, the EMTs weren't hesitant on getting him to the hospital. For a minute or two, they seemed to be trying to figure how how to get him on the stretcher without hurting him any further. Once they knew what to do, they quickly lifted him in a cautious manner and placed him onto the stretcher. They yelled certain orders to each other to help him. I don't remember what they said; I was more focused on making sure he got there okay.

And alive.

The ride to the hospital was fast and hurried. A normal ride that would have taken maybe fifteen minutes was done in five. Of course, the sirens blared from the top of the carriage, so city-ponies knew it was an emergency.

Along the way, EMTs in the back where him and I were did what they could to help him.

"Make sure you keep his oxygen steady!" one of them say.

"He's losing blood fast! We need to pressurize the wounds NOW!" a female EMT yells.

The whole situation was a scramble of orders and doings. He was given an oxygen mask, and they did whatever they could to prevent the wounds from bleeding any further, at least until they got to the hospital.

After five minutes of bickers and orders, we finally reached the hospital: Manehattan General.

It was one of the biggest hospitals in the entire city, a building that spanned up to nearly seventy stories high. Even after being to the city a second time, I was never able to get used to buildings being so tall, even after growing up in Canterlot.

As quick as they could, the EMTs opened up the back doors of the ambulance, held his stretcher carefully, and lifted it onto the ground; once all four wheels touched the concrete of the front entrance, they began to roll him inside.

I began to follow them in, but before I did, I looked around the outside for a moment, looked for something that would tell me where we were.

As quick as I could, I managed to find a street sign. Illuminated by a street light, it read, "53rd Sonata Avenue."

I didn't even realize it until now. They don't even know it yet... do they?

Keeping the address in mind, I hurried on into the hospital. I wasn't too far behind, but they were still somewhat far from me. The main hallway was crowded with doctors, nurses, and even patients, all trying to get where they needed to be as quick as possible.

At the end of the hallway, I saw the EMTs making their way into an elevator. I tried running after them, but before I could reach the elevator, the doors shut, and I was forced to take the elevator that was next to them. And judging from the reflections of the elevator, they were going to the 17th floor.

Getting in the elevator, I pressed the number '17' on the pad, and as quick as it opened, the elevator shut its doors and flew its way up. Within less than twenty seconds, it stopped on the 17th floor.

Looking around, this floor wasn't as crowded as the first, so it didn't take long for me to find the EMTs and the stretcher. Chasing after them, I could hear them still giving orders and telling other ponies in front of them to move, and they weren't being rude about it, just directive.

For a good ten seconds, they continued down a hallway, telling each other to watch his oxygen or give him more blood. But soon enough, they eventually reached the ER, or Emergency Room.

And as I expected, I was denied access. Those that denied me instructed me to go sit in the waiting room and wait for any further information, should something else happen. I was never one to argue to a hospital worker, regardless of the situation, so rather than protest, I did what they said and made my way to the waiting room, which was just nearby.

You'd expect the waiting room to be full of ponies, even at night, but here, it was almost completely empty, except for a couple of ponies, both of which were asleep. Finding a seat all by myself, I sat down in a chair. 

Even though I tried my best to relax—and I really did—fear and worry always came back to me, and it only brought me down further. I was once again scared, and you didn't need an explanation to know why.

As much as I tried to keep myself calm, I eventually found myself breaking down in panic and tears again, but I did my best to be sure the ponies nearby weren't disturbed. But I found it hard to do.

After a couple of minutes of panicked, silent crying, I remembered once again. They didn't know. I needed to tell them.

They needed to know.

With a sniffle, I get off my chair and start looking around the floor for a telephone that I could use. Eventually, I managed to find one. I hopped onto the chair, grabbed the telephone, and began to dial the number for our hotel room. Once I dialed it correctly, there was the dial-tone, and all I had to do was wait. And as I waited, I tried my best not to cry. I tried keeping it in as much as I could.

Eventually, the dial-tone ends, signaling the phone was picked up, and someone was on the other line.

"This is Princess Twilight Sparkle."

As much as I wanted to laugh at how cheesy that sounded, my emotions overshadowed that. It took me a few moments to get the strength to talk, but even when I did, I couldn't stop sniffling.

"Twilight—...—sniffle—... something... something's—"

I was having so much trouble speaking that I couldn't even get a proper sentence out right now. But halfway through my words, Twilight cut me off quickly, already knowing that something wasn't right.

"Spike? What's wrong?" she asked me. Already, I could tell she was worried about me.

And in the midst of the conversation, I nearly started to freak out as I tried to explain.

"S-Something happened, Twilight. I was so scared...! I was so scared, I didn't know what to do! I didn't—"

But she stopped me before I could go on any further.

"Spike-Spike, just calm down. Where are you?"

"Manehattan General Hospital, 53rd Sonata Avenue... Please get here quickly, Twilight—I'm so scared."

"Just stay there, okay? We're on our way."

Without hesitating, she hung up the phone, leaving the hang-up tone to ring in my ear. After a couple of seconds, I put the phone back on its hook and walked back towards the waiting room, but when I got there, the other two ponies were gone, leaving the place entirely empty.

Picking the same seat as I had sat in before, I propped myself back up on the chair and tried to keep myself calm. But like before—that didn't work. So, curling up into a ball, I let my emotions get the best of me, and I wasn't afraid to let the tears flow again, the salt sticking to my face and dripping to the floor as I began to cry again, worried beyond belief.

I wasn't just hopeful for good news. I was scared.

I was truly, truly scared.