Code Lyoko: EG

by Azure Sandora

04: Anxiety

Author's note: Rarity speaks a lot of Russian in this episode, so if there are terms you're not familiar with, let me know.

Theme Song: A World Without Danger

04: Anxiety

In the Ice Sector of Lyoko, Rainbow Dash and Applejack were already transferred in Lyoko. Fluttershy was in between them as they took turns defending her with their weapons as four bloks had them surrounded.

“Hey Twilight, is help coming yet?!” Rainbow Dash asked blocking a shot with her kunai, which was really hard.

“Rarity just called me! She says that she's on her way! Pinkie Pie's back at the school protecting everyone!” Twilight said from the real world.

“Well, tell Rares ta hurry up!” Applejack said, using the nickname that she suddenly started calling Rarity by. That did not go unnoticed by anyone.

In the lab, Twilight heard the elevator move behind her. A second later, the phone app on the super computer came up, showing Rarity's Lyoko avatar.

“Twilight, I'm here,” Rarity said on the phone.

“Great timing,” Twilight said, “Head right to the scanner room, and I'll transfer you in.”

“Dah,” Rarity said hanging up. Twilight got to work immediately getting the transfer process started up.

“Transfer Rarity!” Twilight said as Rarity stepped into her scanner. She turned around just as it was closing, completely unaware of the black specter that followed her inside.

“Scanner Rarity!” Twilight continued, scanning Rarity and matching her with her avatar on Lyoko, “Virtualization!” Twilight pressed the enter key, sending Rarity into Lyoko, but was shocked to see something appear on her screen. Rarity's avatar appeared post rendered, and a red exclamation point was over it.

Rarity: ERROR

“Huh?” Twilight asked, suddenly afraid. That had never happened before.

In the Ice Sector, Rarity took form before falling to her feet.

“Rarity, hold on!” Twilight said suddenly, stopping Rarity before she ran off.

“Is something wrong, Twilight?” Rarity asked.

“I was going to ask you that,” Twilight said, “Something came up during the transfer. How do you feel?”

“I feel fine,” Rarity said, “Nothing, er… abnormal? I think that's word.”

“Hmm… maybe I should pull you out to examine you,” Twilight said. Rarity shook her head though.

“No time. Dash and AJ need me,” Rarity said, “If nothing is wrong then I should go forward.”

“Mmm...” Twilight sounded like she really didn't like the idea, “Alright, fine, but I'm saving your information on the super computer so I can take a look at it after the trip to the past.”

“Dah,” Rarity said rolling her eyes. Seriously, she felt fine. Whatever it was, she didn't plan on staying in Lyoko long enough for it to be a problem anyway.

She ran forward as fast as she could, which since she was wearing armor wasn't too fast. On Lyoko, she was physically the strongest next to Pinkie Pie, but she had better defense. Sadly her speed suffered, and she didn't have any long ranged abilities as far as knew. As such, she was primarily the tank of the team.

At least, that's what Pinkie Pie called her. She herself played a few video games, but she didn't play them nearly as much as Pinkie Pie or Rainbow Dash. She started playing more after they started on Lyoko.

When she reached the tower, she saw Rainbow Dash and Applejack trying their best to defend Fluttershy, who was in between them cowering a bit. Four block, two on each side, took turns firing at them, and they were covered on all sides.

One blok got through Applejack's defense, hitting her in the chest.

Applejack: 20 HP

She didn't care if they didn't die in Lyoko. She hated seeing Applejack get hurt. Immediately she ran over to the blok that hit Applejack screaming in rage and stabbed it in the eye, destroying it.

Applejack took that opening as her chance to shoot the other one killing it. At the same time, Rarity ran to Dash's side and blocked a shot allowing Dash to jump straight into the air and throw her two kunai at the final two bloks killing them.

“Fluttershy, go now!” Dash order when she landed. Fluttershy nodded and ran to the tower, fazing into it.

Inside the tower, Fluttershy ran to the center, and calmly floated upward to the upper platform. When she landed, she ran over to the holographic keyboard and got to work on breaking its security.

Once security was broken, the touch screen appeared in front of her. She placed her hand on it.

Fluttershy looked down as the numbers on the walls fell into the abyss below, followed by a white flash that shot out.

In the real world, Twilight pushed the enter key, “Return to the past, now!”

For her and everyone else, their entire world went white, and they all found themselves back at where they were before the attack.

For Applejack and Rarity, that meant they were in a park near the lake, right outside of Canterlot, together.

“Honestly, Ah'm mighty glad we ended up back here,” Applejack said sitting down on the grass next to Rarity.

“Dah, I feel same way,” Rarity said, “I never tire of this sight.”

“Ya know, ya never told me why ya love this place so much,” Applejack said, “Ya were about to, but...”

“XANA interrupted us,” Rarity finished rolling her eyes, “He has no sense of decency.”

“Well, accordin ta Twilight, it takes XANA at least a day ta reboot, so he can't stop us this time,” Applejack said smiling at Rarity, who was blushing.

“In that case, I'll tell you,” Rarity looked out at the setting sun peacefully, “This is my special spot for when I need to calm down.”

“When ya need ta calm down?” Applejack asked, “What do ya mean?”

“Well, you are friend, so I can tell you,” Rarity said, “I suffer from… what was American translation, Chronic Anxiety…?” she said/asked, wanting confirmation if she said it right.

“Chronic Anxiety, Ah think Ah heard of somethin like that,” Applejack said. She thought it was cute how Rarity had trouble with bigger words.

“Dah, so you know what it means?” Rarity asked.

“Sort of. Ya deal with feelin anxious and tense, right?”

Rarity nodded, “Sometimes I even have panic attacks.”

When she said that, Applejack was shocked. Did she ever have panic attacks after fighting on Lyoko? Did she worry about XANA?

“Rares, Ah'm sorry,” Applejack said, “That's gotta be rough, 'specially with everything goin on these days.”

“That's why I have special place,” Rarity said, “Here, I feel safe. There's nothing here that upsets me, so when I have argument with my parents or sister, feel tense about assignment, or dealing with anxiety attack, I come here,” she closed her eyes smiling, “No matter what, I always leave here feeling calmer.”

“Ah see,” Applejack lied down on the grass and smiled, “It's mighty touchin, sharin this place with me.”

“Well, you are special to me,” Rarity said lying down and snuggling up next to Applejack, “I've wanted to take you here for a while, so you'd be part of this place too.”

“Rares...” Applejack didn't know what to say about that. Their relationship was a funny one, as Applejack didn't quite know what they were. They never outright said that they were girlfriends, even after their one date, which ended with them playing laser tag against each other.

Truth was, Applejack was beginning to fall in love with the purple haired Russian girl lying next to her. There were so many things that Applejack loved about Rarity. How she spoke, how she walked, how she carried herself, how competitive she was, how fancy she dressed and how it contrasted with how ferocious she was at times. She loved her eyes, her hair, the way she smelled, her busty figure, wide hips, the way she pouted when she couldn't get her way…

And those lips, which Applejack still craved to have pressed against her own. They were always done with the same shade of lipstick, and it looked great with her blue eyeshadow. There was so much about this girl that it drove Applejack crazy.

The only reason she never acted was that she didn't know if Rarity felt the same way, or even liked girls. She thought, maybe, but then again maybe Rarity was just an affectionate person in general.

Well, there was a time and a place to worry about that. According to Rarity, this wasn't the place, so Applejack figured it wasn't the time either.

When night came, Applejack walked Rarity back to her place and then started heading back to the dorms. Rarity hoped that Applejack understood exactly what she meant by showing her that place. There was something else she had wanted to say to Applejack, but she once again chickened out when it came time.

So instead, she fell onto her bed holding onto her pillow, imagining that it was Applejack she was holding. She knew her parents would hate it, but after today she was finally able to confirm her feelings for the blond haired American. Thinking about said feelings brought tears to her eyes, partially from happiness, but partially from fear of being shunned by her parents.

“Ya tebya lyublyu… Applejack...” she said through her tears. Her heart began racing a bit as she began falling to sleep. Maybe she was just tense about the upcoming math test she had tomorrow, or maybe she was just afraid of what would happen when her parents learned that their eldest daughter was a lesbian.

The next day, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight were all walking outside to the vending machines. Fluttershy was there too technically, as she had hacked Twilight's iphone so it had limited connection to Lyoko.

“So come on,” Dash urged, “Tell us what happened.”

“Nothin happened, alright?” Applejack said putting her hands into her pockets, “We jus' talked fer a bit.”

“That must have been some conversation,” Pinkie Pie taunted, “Since you came back to the dorms so late.”

“I think they're absolutely adorable,” Fluttershy said from Twilight's iphone, “They're chemistry in battle is really good too.”

“Come on, not you too,” Applejack groaned, “Ah'm serious, y'all. Rares an' Ah 're jus' friends.”

“But you'd like to be more than friends, right?” Dash asked. Applejack just tipped her hat over her eyes as an answer, “Ha! I knew it! You've got a crush on her!”

“Not like it matters,” Applejack said, “She don't feel the same 'bout me no how.”

“That's a big assumption, Applejack,” Twilight said, “Unless you actually told her how you feel.”

“I bet that's what they were talking about at her “special place”,” Pinkie Pie said with air quotes.

“Seriously though, why else would she show you her special place where she calms down?” Dash asked.

“Maybe 'cause Ah'm her friend an' she trusts me?” Applejack suggested.

“I'm her friend,” Dash said, “She didn't take me to her special place. Pinkie Pie is her friend, and she didn't take her to her special place. She and Twilight have the same math class even, and she didn't take her to her special place.”

“Ah think Ah get yer point,” Applejack sighed, “Ah looked it up though, an' Russians typically ain't too keen on homosexuality. She ain't gonna risk her family givin her grief to be in a relationship with another girl.”

“Homo… sexuality?” Fluttershy asked, “I'm not familiar with that term.”

“That's when someone likes someone else of the same gender,” Pinkie Pie explained happily.

“Oh, so does that mean all of us engage in the homosexuality?” Fluttershy asked.

“Not… quite,” Dash said, “You see, the difference is that we're all just friends, and we're not attracted to each other. Applejack here is attracted to Rarity, as in she wants to hold her hand, hug her, kiss her-”

“Oh look, there's Rares right now!” Applejack said quickly, rushing off to see Rarity. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie burst out laughing, and even Twilight suppressed a slight giggle. Fluttershy tilted her head to the side in confusion.

“Oi! Rares!” Applejack called out. Rarity jumped with a start before turning to Applejack and sighed in relief.

“Oh, AJ. It's you,” Rarity said placing a hand to her chest.

“A little jumpy today, huh?” Applejack asked.

“Today is math test,” Rarity said, “I always get nervous when test comes, even if it's subject I'm good at.”

“Ahh. Yeah, me too,” Applejack said, “Ah don't know what it is 'bout tests, but they're always intimidatin.”

“Dah...” Rarity said, biting her lip and shuffling a bit. That action wasn't missed by Applejack. Was it possible that she actually did…

“Hey Rarity!” Pinkie Pie called out suddenly, once again startling Rarity.

“Geez, is Pinkie Pie really that scary?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“I'm… just nervous, is all,” Rarity said looking away a bit.

“You're worried about the test?” Twilight asked Rarity, “Don't worry. It's just basic trigonometry.”

“You're the only person who can say “basic” and “trigonometry” in the same sentence,” Rainbow Dash groaned.

“I like trigonometry,” Fluttershy said.

“You're a computer program, so you don't count,” Rainbow Dash said deadpanned.

“Don't worry,” Pinkie Pie said putting an arm around Rarity, who tensed up for a second, “I'm sure you'll be fine.”

“D-dah...” Rarity said, “I… need to get to class. Izvinite!” Rarity said pushing past everyone and walking off as fast as she could. Everyone watched her walk off in confusion.

“Was it something I said?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“She was probably just upset that we interrupted her private time with her beloved,” Dash said, earning a slap on the arm from Applejack. Twilight looked at Fluttershy on her phone, silently asking her if she thought the same thing.

Rarity didn't seem upset. She seemed more… afraid.

Twilight wasn't nervous about the math test. In fact, she knew she was going to get an A. She'd never tell anyone her secret, but she never studied for the tests. All she did was do the homework and pay attention in class, and she was fine.

From what she had heard of Rainbow Dash's test scores, she could have stood to do both.

Twilight finished her test as fast as possible so she could consider Rarity, who sat in the seat a bit in front of her. Even though Rarity was an upperclassman, she and Twilight shared the same math class as Twilight was a special advanced student. She didn't take extra courses anymore, so she had to stay ahead somehow.

From where Twilight sat, Rarity looked really nervous about something. She was breathing heavier than usual, and every now and again she would look at the students around her. She looked like she was in a lion's den or something.

That wasn't normal.

After she finished her test, Rarity quickly walked up to the teacher and placed her test on his desk. Before the teacher could say anything to her though she ran back to her seat and sat down, lying her head down and covering her face with her arms. It looked to Twilight like she was trembling, or maybe even crying.

“What is going on?” Twilight asked herself.

When the other students finished their tests and class ended, Twilight walked over to Rarity.

“Rarity, are you-” right when Twilight's hand touched her back, Rarity yelped in shock and looked up at Twilight with wide, fearful eyes. It lasted for only a split second, but Twilight noticed it.

“Dah Twilight, what is wrong?” Rarity asked, her accent just a tad stronger than usual.

“I wanted to know that,” Twilight said, “You look really tense about something. Are you okay?”

“Fine!” Rarity said quickly, “Just fine! Late for next class! Uvidimsya!” Rarity said rushing out the classroom, leaving a very confused Twilight.

“XANA?” Twilight asked, wondering if this had anything to do with that error she saw on Lyoko the other day.

It was time for Applejack and Rarity's fencing class. As usual, Twilight came to see the class, 1) because Applejack and Rarity were in it, 2) because it was exciting to watch, and 3) because she needed to keep a close eye on Rarity.

According to both Dash and Pinkie Pie, she was the same when they saw her too. She damn near jumped out of her skin when Pinkie Pie screamed her name down the hall, and Rainbow Dash caught her sitting in a stall in the girl's room saying something in Russian over and over. She didn't understand what she was saying but it sounded like a mantra to Dash.

“Alright,” the teacher called out, “I'm pairing you up for sparring practice. Applejack, you and Rarity are partnered up as usual.”

“Yes sir,” Applejack saluted. Rarity, who jumped at the sound of her name, gave a silent salute before putting on her helmet and facing Applejack.

Her stance seemed all wrong. It was tense, and all throughout the match Applejack kept getting through Rarity's defense a little too easily. This wasn't the Rarity she remembered. Rarity was ferocious in battle, and fought like her life depended on it.

This person was too afraid to barely move.

After getting her first point, Applejack stood up, “Rares, what's up?” Applejack asked, “Yer usually better than this.”

“Nothing!” Rarity said in a stronger accent, “I… I fine! Continue duel!”

Applejack could tell that something was up with Rarity, but she shrugged and did as she was told. Rarity hated when someone took it easy on her, and Applejack respected her too much to ever do so.

So they continued to fight, and Applejack got the second point, actually managing to knock the rapier out of Rarity's hand. Rarity actually fell to the floor in shock, and looked up at Applejack breathing heavily.

“Rares!” Applejack called out, dropping her rapier and throwing off her helmet. As she knelt down to help Rarity, the teacher ran up to them.

“What happened here?” he asked.

“Ah don't know,” Applejack admitted, “She's jus' a little outta it today,” Applejack took off Rarity's helmet and cupped her face with her hands, “Ya alright, sugercube?”

“I… I…” this time Rarity couldn't bring herself to answer, so she just swallowed and nodded quickly.

“Ah'll take her to the infirmary,” Applejack said helping Rarity up. As they left, Twilight ran out after them.

“Please AJ you don't have to come with me,” Rarity said, calming down a bit as her accent became more subtle.

“Yer right, Ah don't,” Applejack said, “Seriously though, what's the matter? You can tell me anythin.”

“AJ...” Rarity said looking into Applejack's eyes, “I'm… having bad panic attack is all.”

“All day?” Applejack asked, clearly skeptical.

“This is how it is sometimes,” Rarity explained, “Though, usually it dies down after a while.”

“Why don't ya get changed an' go home fer the day,” Applejack suggested, “Some rest outta do ya some good.”

Rarity nodded, “Thank you, AJ.”

As Rarity walked to the locker rooms, Twilight approached Applejack.

“Twilight, Ah don't think this is normal,” Applejack said.

“Fluttershy and I saved her data from the last transfer. We'll analyze tonight,” Twilight said.

That night in Twilight and Applejack's dorm, Twilight was on her computer looking up the information on Rarity's data. Since she was on her home computer there wasn't a lot she could do by herself, but Fluttershy was helping.

Applejack was lying on her bed thinking about Rarity. The look of fear in her eyes wasn't something she was used to seeing. Rarity may have suffered from anxiety issues, but she wasn't afraid of anything.

“Oh dear...” Fluttershy said, catching both Twilight and Applejack's attention.

“What's wrong?” Applejack asked.

“Twilight, look at this,” Fluttershy said, sending information on Rarity to Twilight's page. Applejack didn't understand anything she was seeing, but the grave look on Twilight's face said everything she needed to know.

“This is bad,” Twilight said.

“What's wrong with her?” Applejack asked.

“According to this data, Rarity was infected with a virus when she entered Lyoko the last time,” Twilight explained, making Applejack panic.

“What?! Is she gonna be alright?! What does this virus do?!” she asked frantically.

“We don't know, on either account,” Fluttershy said seriously, “It'll take time to analyze this information. Why don't you two get some rest?”

“What about you?” Twilight asked.

“Remember, as a program on Lyoko I don't need sleep,” Fluttershy said, “I'll work through the night until I figure out what's wrong with Rarity.”

“Fluttershy, thank you,” Applejack said, “Ah don't know what Ah'd do if Rarity...”

Fluttershy bowed, “I'll do everything I can, Applejack. I promise.”

Fluttershy vanished on the screen, and Lyoko disconnected from Twilight's computer. Twilight turned her computer off and then went to her bed.

“We'll figure this out, Applejack,” Twilight said, “Rarity will be fine.”

“Ah sure hope so,” Applejack said lying back down on her bed.

Rarity didn't leave her room once she got inside. In fact, she had even locked the door to make sure no one could get in. She didn't know why, but for some reason she was terrified. None of her strategies were working to calm herself down either. In fact, she felt like she was actually getting more afraid every second.

“Nado uspokoyitsa...” she said to herself over and over, tears forming, “Nado uspokoyitsa...”

The following morning, Twilight filled everyone in on what she saw with Rarity. They all decided to stay by the gate to confront her.

“I didn't know we could get infected by viruses,” Pinkie Pie said.

“When you transfer into Lyoko, you become data just like Fluttershy,” Twilight explained, “During that time, anything is possible while you're being transferred in.”

“Does Fluttershy know what the virus is doing to Rarity yet?” Dash asked.

“Not yet,” Twilight said, “She said she'd contact me the second she figures it out. Until then, we need to keep an eye on her.”

“Speakin of which,” Applejack said looking out. They saw Rarity walking up to the school, but something seemed really odd. She wasn't walking with her usual confident stride. Instead she was walking with her head low, looking around at everything like it was a beast getting ready to strike at her.

Applejack was the first to walk over to her.

“Heya, Rares,” Applejack said, taken aback when Rarity screamed and flinched. She seemed to calm down a bit when she realized who it was.

“A-AJ,” Rarity said, “I'm… sorry for… screaming...”

“It's alright,” Applejack said, “What's the matter?” she motioned for the others to stay back, as Rarity was still clearly apprehensive.

“I don't know,” Rarity said, “I've never had panic attack this long before. Heart won't stop racing, and I'm afraid of even the slightest...” she actually started crying. This was the first time Applejack had ever seen Rarity like this. Even at her worst she was more of a raging she-demon. This Rarity was broken, and terrified.

Applejack did the only thing she knew to do. She embraced Rarity tightly, unaware of the shocked expression on her face.

“It'll be alright,” Applejack said softly, “Ah promise, we'll figure this out. Jus' try ta stay calm, alright?”

Rarity nodded and returned the tight embrace, “Thank you, AJ. Thank you so much!”

This sight was hard for everyone to watch. Rarity was the oldest, and essentially like a big sister to all of them. Seeing her like this was too much, and all of them wished they could do something to help her.

Rarity let go of Applejack, squeezed her hands, and then walked into the school. Applejack stood there watching her as the others gathered around her.

“So? What did she say?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“She's having a really long panic attack,” Applejack said, “Ah think it's getting worse.”

“Fluttershy, please hurry,” Twilight urged, holding her phone tightly, “I'm getting really worried about Rarity.”

Inside her home tower in the Forest Sector, Fluttershy was hard at work analyzing Rarity's digital code. It was complicated as she didn't really know what she was looking for, but she felt like she was getting somewhere.

“Don't worry, Rarity,” Fluttershy said to herself as she worked, “I'll find out what XANA did to you.”

In math class, Twilight kept her eye on Rarity constantly, so much that everyone was beginning to notice. When the teacher called Rarity up to the front of the class, she slowly stood up and walked to the front board, placing the chalk on the board, but froze.

“Miss Dostoevskaia, we're waiting,” the teacher said to Rarity, who flinched at his words. She put the chalk on the board, and tried her best to solve the problem, but for some reason she just wouldn't move. When Twilight saw her tremble she had to take action.

“Um, I can answer it, sir!” Twilight said suddenly. Everyone turned to her except for Rarity, who was still as a board.

“As long as someone answers the question,” the teacher said, “You can return to your seat, Miss Dostoevskaia.”

When she didn't move right away, Twilight walked over to her and put a hand on her back. The poor thing looked absolutely terrified.

“It's okay, Rarity,” Twilight said, “I'll take over from here.”

Instead of returning to her seat, Rarity actually ran out of the classroom bursting into tears.

“Miss Sparkle, do you know what's going on?” the teacher asked her.

“I'm afraid not,” Twilight said. That was what Fluttershy was trying to figure out.

Later in the school day, Rainbow Dash saw Rarity walking down the hall. One of the students called out to her to say hi, but her reaction was actually really odd.

She backed away from the student, and then ran down the hallway into the girls room.

Dash ran in after her, and heard her in the same stall she was in yesterday crying. She was also saying the same thing over and over, but this wasn't a mantra like last time.

“Pomogite mne… Pomogite mne...” she sobbed. Rather than risk startling her, she instead slowly walked out of the room. She then saw Rarity's little sister, Sweetie Belle walk past her.

“Hey, Sweetie Belle,” Dash called out running after her.

“Hi Dash,” Sweetie Belle said. Unlike the rest of her family, she had no trace of an accent. She must have been born in America.

“You know full Russian, right?” Dash asked. Sweetie Belle nodded, so Dash continued, “Do you know what pomogite… mne means?”

“Pomogite mne? That's Russian for “help me”,” Sweetie Belle explained, “Why?”

“Oh, no reason,” Dash said looking back at the bathroom door.

“Is this about my sister?” Sweetie Belle asked, catching Rainbow Dash's attention, “I know you're friends with her.”

“Yeah, she's a good friend of mine. How is she at home?” Dash asked.

“Well, lately she has been avoiding our parents, but last night she ran right into her room and locked the door. She was up earlier than anyone, and she had left out before I could catch up with her, so I haven't seen her all day.”

“I see,” Dash said folding her arms considering what she just heard.

“Do you know what's wrong with Rarity?”

“No I don't,” Dash said putting her hand on Sweetie Belle's shoulder, “But I promise we'll figure it out and save her, alright?”

Sweetie Belle nodded and skipped off. Clearly this was something on her mind all day. Rainbow Dash looked back at the bathroom, thinking about what Sweetie Belle told her.

“Help me, huh?” Dash said. She'd have to tell this to the others when she saw them.

After school, Rainbow Dash of course told Pinkie Pie what she learned first. According to Pinkie Pie, Rarity had freaked out on Trixie, screaming something to her in Russian before running away crying.

“Looks like this is getting worse,” Rainbow Dash said.

“I hope Twilight and Fluttershy figure out what's wrong with her soon,” Pinkie Pie said. Almost on cue, their phones chimed letting them know they had texts.

Twilight: Come to my room! Fluttershy found out about the virus!

“Speak of the devil,” Rainbow Dash said. Immediately they ran to Twilight's room. Applejack was of course already there, and Fluttershy was on the screen too. Sadly, no one saw Rarity anywhere.

“Well? What's the news?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“It looks like XANA is using Rarity's anxiety,” Twilight explained.

“When a human feels anxiety, it's because of an over stimulation in their brain,” Fluttershy said, “It would seem that XANA has found a way to induce this stimulation himself. This is what the virus is doing to Rarity.”

“That's why she's so afraid right now?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“But ya didn't find an activated tower, did ya?” Applejack said.

“XANA wouldn't need to activate a tower for too long to infect one of you with a virus,” Fluttershy explained, “He only activates towers to do something that requires more memory than he naturally has. Infecting someone mid transfer would be too easy.”

“I've already updated the security on that program,” Twilight said, “So we won't have to worry about him doing this to anyone again, but we need to do something about Rarity fast.”

“You talk like her life is in danger or something,” Rainbow Dash said, afraid of the answer to that statement.

“Oh, her life is in serious danger,” Fluttershy said gravely, “The virus is increasing in power over time. Pretty soon, she'll be in a state of constant terror.”

“Also, Rarity's heart rate increases along with the virus' power,” Twilight added, “If we don't fix this soon, her heart could give out and she'd die.”

“Oh no...” Pinkie Pie said covering her mouth in horror. Rainbow Dash gritted her teeth in anger, and Applejack slammed her fist against the nearby wall.

“XANA!” Applejack said venomously, “Yer takin this too far!”

“What if we used Return to the Past?” Pinkie Pie suggested, “It fixed my eyesight that one time. Couldn't it fix Rarity too?”

“I already thought of that,” Twilight said, “Sadly, the reason why Return to the Past worked then was because the issue was based here in the real world. That virus is Lyoko based, so just like all of us, it'll come too if we use Return to the Past.”

“If we can get Rarity back into the scanner, I could run a program that would remove the virus from her biological make up,” Fluttershy said, “Once that's done, Twilight can delete the virus from her end.”

“But ta do that we need her in the scanner, right?” Applejack asked.

“And there comes the hard part,” Twilight said, “Convincing her to come with us. Hopefully she isn't so bad off that she'll run from us, but I doubt she'll be too keen on going to the factory right now,” Twilight's computer made an odd sound, almost like an alarm, “And just when we thought it wasn't going to get any worse… Fluttershy, is that…?”

Fluttershy looked to the side and then bit her lip, “Sorry Twilight, but it is. I'm feeling vibrations, and they're pretty strong too.”

“Now we have to contend with an activated tower and saving Rarity?” Rainbow Dash groaned, “XANA doesn't know the meaning of the term “day off” huh?”

“He probably knows we're onto how to rescue Rarity,” Twilight said, “Either that or he's trying to speed up the process of killing her.”

“Pinkie Pie, you go with Twilight,” Applejack said, “Dash an' Ah will search fer Rares.”

“Just in case she runs off?” Dash asked.

“'Tween yer free runnin an' my skates, we can cover a lot of ground,” Applejack stated.

“Be careful out there,” Twilight said, “We don't know what XANA has in store for us outside.”

“We'll be fine,” Rainbow Dash said, “It's Rarity we need to worry about.”

With that both Rainbow Dash and Applejack ran out of the room.

“Alright, we'll meet up with you in Lyoko,” Twilight said to Fluttershy.

“I'll wait for you in my tower,” Fluttershy said before breaking connection. Twilight got up from her chair and turned to Pinkie Pie.

“Let's go!” Twilight said. Pinkie Pie nodded and they both ran out of the school to the secret passage.

When Rainbow Dash found Rarity, she was backed up against a wall by Trixie, who was fussing at her about something. Rarity for her part looked absolutely terrified of Trixie, almost like Fluttershy when she was by herself in front of a krab.

“Just what is your problem?!” Trixie fussed, “Bumping into me like that and then screaming like a maniac?!”

“Pomogite mne… Pomogite mne!” Rarity cried, not looking in Trixie's direction at all.

“Damn it!” Dash shouted running up to them. She just knew this was going to end badly.

“What the hell are you saying?” Trixie asked harshly, “Trixie doesn't speak whatever dumb language that is!”

“Hey!” Dash shouted, catching Trixie's attention, “Pick on someone your own size!”

“For your information, Rarity is older than Trixie!” Trixie fussed, “And besides, Trixie wasn't fussing, she was-” Rarity shoved Trixie out of the way screaming, “Hey!”

Rarity ran right out of the school building, screaming the entire time.

“Shoot!” Dash shouted, “Smooth move, Trixie!” Dash ran right past Trixie, who threw her arms out annoyed.

“What did I do?!” Trixie shouted, “Freaks!”

Dash pulled out her cellphone and called Applejack.

“Found her?” Applejack asked.

“Sort of, but not before Trixie did!” Dash said running to the front gate.

“Damn it! Did Trixie do anythin?”

“Only scared her half to death, causing her to run out of the school!”

“Alright, Ah got my skates on, so let's go after her!”

“Meet you right outside!” Dash hung up and pushed through the doors leading outside.

When Rarity made it outside, she accidentally bumped into Vice-Principal Luna, knocking her down and falling back.

“Ugh, Rarity, please watch where you're going!” Luna fussed. Something about this woman seemed even more frightening than before, because Rarity couldn't bring herself to even get up. She just backed away from Luna in fear.

“Pomogite mne! Pomogite mne!”

“Rarity?” Luna asked, raising an eyebrow, “I've heard from multiple students that you've been making quite a stir today. Come along.”

“Nyet!!!” Rarity screamed trying to back away. Luna grabbed her arm stopping her, but Rarity began pulling away from her frantically, screaming loudly as if she were about to be attacked.

“Rarity Dostoevskaia, what on Earth is the matter with you?!” Luna asked, wrapping her arms around the frantic teenager, “You act like I'm a monster or something!”

“Pomogite mne!!! POMOGITE MNE!!!!” Rarity screamed. By now there was a crowd gathering around them. Applejack skated up and saw this, realizing that she had to take action.

“Don't worry Rares, Ah'll save ya!” Applejack shouted skating over to the fire alarm and setting it off. Immediately everyone stopped paying attention to Rarity, and even Luna loosened her grip on her.

“What? Who set off the-” Rarity stomped on Luna's foot hard forcing her to let go, and immediately ran off campus, “Rarity, wait!”

Applejack sighed, and then skated after Rarity, who surprisingly ran really fast in high heels.

Twilight and Pinkie Pie made it to the computer lab, where Twilight immediately got connected to Fluttershy.

“Fluttershy, are you there?” Twilight asked.

“Twilight, it's terrible! I hacked into the news, and I saw a number of traffic lights going off! I think XANA is controlling the traffic systems of your world!” Fluttershy said. Before Twilight could say anything, Applejack's phone number came up on the computer.

“Twilight, we lost Rares!” Applejack said.

“What?! How did that happen?!” Twilight fussed.

“Thank a combination of Trixie bein a bitch as usual an' Luna bein a cunt, as usual!” Applejack groaned. Twilight pinched the bridge of her nose as Pinkie Pie spoke to Dash on her cellphone.

“Twilight, Dashie told me that Rarity ran into town!” Pinkie Pie said.

“That's the last place she needs to be!” Twilight said, “Applejack, did you hear that?”

“Yeah, Ah did! Let me guess, XANA?”

“He's taking control of the traffic system! It's going to be utter chaos out there in the city!” Twilight said as Pinkie Pie ran to the elevator going down.

“She'll die either from fear or getting hit by a car!” Applejack said.

“I'm sending Pinkie Pie into Lyoko to get Fluttershy into the tower! Just make sure Rarity is safe!”

“Ah will, don't worry! Ah won't let anythin happen ta her!” Applejack hung up, and Twilight got to work on the transfer procedure.

“Alright Pinkie Pie, I'm starting up the transfer! Transfer Pinkie Pie!” Twilight said, closing the scanner as Pinkie Pie stepped inside, “Scanner Pinkie Pie! Virtualization!”

Pinkie Pie took form and landed right in front of what had been christened Fluttershy's Home Tower. It was the same as any other activated tower in the Forest Sector, but it was surrounded by a large open field.

Fluttershy ran out of the tower and over to Pinkie Pie.

“Did you track down the tower?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“I didn't have the time sadly,” Fluttershy said, “But if we follow the vibrations we'll be able to find it.”

“Be careful,” Twilight said, “You're the only one in Lyoko right now who can protect Fluttershy. If you get devirtualized you can't go in for another twelve hours.”

“I know,” Pinkie Pie said walking forward, “I'll be careful. Come on Fluttershy!”

The two girls ran forward, following the vibrations on the ground. Up ahead they saw three kankrelats approaching them. Right when they fired, Pinkie Pie stopped and pushed Fluttershy aside out of the way.

The way they were lying on the ground was really suggestive, as Fluttershy was on her back and Pinkie Pie lying over her wagging her tail.

“Leave them to me, Fluttershy,” Pinkie Pie said, “I'll protect you.”

“Thank you,” Fluttershy said with a smile. Pinkie Pie ran back in front of the monsters on all fours and hunched over in her fighting stance.

“Alright boys,” Pinkie Pie said, “Let's see you take on the Queen of the Jungle!”

The kankrelats fired at Pinkie Pie, who jumped to the side out of the way and rolled into a ball.

“Spin Tackle!” she shouted, charging into the kankrelat in the middle killing it. Rather than come out of the ball, she simply turned around and charged in the opposite direction in an attempt to hit the one on the left. Sadly it moved to the side and she missed, which forced her to come out of the ball. That left her wide open for an attack to the back.

Pinkie Pie: 80 HP

“I thought you said you were being careful!” Twilight fussed.

“I am,” Pinkie Pie said, “I'm not good enough to make it past this level and not get hit yet.”

The two kankrelats fired at Pinkie Pie, who did a series of elegant gymnast back flips out of the way. When they stopped firing, Pinkie Pie ran up to them and jumped into the air.

“Homing Attack!” she shouted, turning into a ball again and launching into one of the kankrelats killing it. When she bounced off it, she hit the second one too, killing it. Fluttershy ran over to Pinkie Pie as she stood up licking her paws.

“That was wonderful, Pinkie Pie,” Fluttershy said.

“Nya...” Pinkie Pie mowed bashfully with a giggle. The nice moment stopped though when they heard something approaching them from behind. Two krabs and a megatank, “Twilight, we have a problem!”

“Yeah, I see it,” Twilight said looking at her screen, “Take Fluttershy down the path to the left! There's another tower there. You two need to hide in there.”

“Can I even enter towers?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“Anyone can enter a tower, but Fluttershy is the only one who can deactivate them,” Twilight explained.

“Got it. I'll take her there,” Pinkie Pie said. Twilight saw the yellow and green arrows begin moving away from the red arrows to the tower she had spotted. She also saw a number of other monsters heading their way too.

“Looks like XANA is trying to make sure we lose Rarity,” Twilight said, “But I may have an idea. Fluttershy, when you guys get to the tower, I'm going to need you to send me a particular file.”

“Do you have a plan?” Fluttershy asked.

“To get you guys out of this, not at all,” Twilight admitted, “But in terms of getting Rarity here safely, let's just say XANA isn't the only one who can activate towers.”

The city was just as Twilight said it was, absolute chaos. Applejack tried skating as fast as she could, but the lights kept changing in sudden ways making cars almost hit her.

“Whoa!” she shouted, skating onto the pavement just in time before a bus hit her, “Shoot! At this rate Ah'll never reach Rares in time!”

Applejack thought about the state of mind Rarity was in at the moment. Who knows how many close calls she had running through town. If she wasn't dead from being hit by a truck or something, she was about to die of a heart attack.

Applejack pulled out her phone and called Rainbow Dash, “Dash, any sign of Rares?”

“Sorry, but no,” Dash said.

“And I just got a call from Twilight. She says that things are getting really bad on Lyoko, and they need back up,” Dash continued. She was standing on a bridge looking out at the traffic.

“Alright, you go back ta the factory an' help them,” Applejack said.

“What about you? This place is crazy right now; you can't find Rarity on your own.”

“Ah'll manage. Somethin tells me that Rares is still in there, even if she's terrified. If Ah'm right, then Ah might know where she is right now.”

Dash hated leaving Applejack alone, but she did have the best chance of finding Rarity and bringing her to the factory. Still though…

“What about getting her to the factory? How are you going to do that?” Dash asked.

Ah'll manage, jus' trust me, alright?” Applejack asked. Dash sighed on the other end before responding.

“Got it. I'll leave it to you. Be careful,” Dash said before hanging up. Applejack then quickly began skating too the one place Rarity would be. Right now things were terrifying, so she needed a place to calm down.

A place where she felt safe…

“Twilight, we're in the tower,” Fluttershy said as Twilight got the program ready.

“Okay, send the data over to me,” Twilight requested. A second later, her computer beeped, “Bingo! Alright XANA, let's play a game of red light, green light.”

Somewhere else in the forest sector, a tower was activated, but this one's aura turned green instead of red.

“Yes! It worked!” Twilight cheered, “I activated a tower!”

“Great, but why?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“Well, I figured that if XANA can activate towers to make the super computer do what he wants, I can do the same,” Twilight explained, “Once Applejack and Rainbow Dash find Rarity, I'll get to work on clearing their path.”

“It'll have to be up to Applejack,” Dash said as the elevator opened behind Twilight, “She sent me over here to help on Lyoko.”

“Great timing,” Twilight said, “Head to the scanner room. I'll send you a bit away from the tower Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy are hiding in.”

Rainbow Dash gave Twilight a thumbs up as the elevator closed. Once she was sure Rainbow Dash was ready, Twilight got to work.

“Transfer Rainbow Dash!” Twilight said, closing the scanner once Dash entered, “Scanner Rainbow Dash! Virtualization!”

Once Rainbow Dash took form on Lyoko and landed, she looked around for the tower. She figured that the tower being attacked by two krabs, a megatank, and three hornets was the one.

“Got you,” Dash said kneeling down prepared to run, “Super Sprint!” she shouted, running at high speed creating a blue streak behind her. She jumped into the air and threw a kunai at one of the krabs killing it, and landed on the megatank looking right at the exposed eye.

“Bulls eye!” she shouted throwing her kunai into the eye and flipping off the megatank. As she landed the hornets began firing at her, but she flipped forward out of the way throwing two kunai at the hornets. She missed one but hit the one next to it.

“Hey, I cleaned up a bit here! How about giving me a hand?” Rainbow Dash asked. A second later Pinkie Pie ran out of the tower on all fours and jumped straight into the air pouncing onto the final krab.

“Razor Wheel!” Pinkie Pie shouted, rolling into a ball and just rolling in place on top of the krab, killing it in a few seconds. Rainbow Dash threw two more kunai at the remaining hornets killing them as Fluttershy emerged from the tower.

“Thank you,” Fluttershy said, “But what about Rarity?”

“Yeah, weren't you helping Applejack find her?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“Applejack said she has it covered,” Rainbow Dash stated, “Besides, looks like you need me more anyway.”

“That's the truth,” Fluttershy said, “I think I'm feeling stronger vibrations this way. There might be a short cut.”

“Then lets go!” Pinkie Pie said. The three of them ran in the new direction, hoping that the tower was close by.

When Applejack reached the park, she was both saddened and pleased to see that she was right. Sitting on the grass in front of the lake, hugging her knees and crying, was Rarity.

Applejack quietly removed the wheels on her shoes and walked over to Rarity as slowly as she could. This was her only chance to get Rarity to come with her, and she was probably the only one who could calm her down. In fact, when Applejack thought back to the last two days, Rarity always did calm down a bit when she got close to her. This would work. She'd save her. She had to save her.

“Rares,” Applejack said softly to get the crying teen's attention. Rarity looked up suddenly and turned to Applejack, beginning to back away, “No no, don't run. Ah ain't gonna hurt ya, alright?”

She felt odd, talking to Rarity like she would a wild animal she was trying to help, but the softer tone seemed to work. Rarity stopped backing away, but she was still trembling.

“Pomogi mne!” Rarity sobbed, not taking her eyes off of Applejack, “Pomogi mne!”

“Ah don't understand ya,” Applejack said, thinking about what she was probably saying, “Hold on. Are ya… cryin fer help? That's it, ain't it?”

Applejack slowly approached Rarity holding her hand out. Just as she expected, Rarity flinched back away from her hand. When she looked back at Applejack though, she was greeted with the most gentle smile.

“Yer safe here, remember?” Applejack said, “Ain't nothin here ta hurt or upset ya. Ah'm a part of this place now, remember?”

“Apple… jack…!” Rarity ran into Applejack's embrace bursting into tears, “Pomogi mne...”

“Ah will,” Applejack said embracing Rarity, “Ah'll help ya. In order ta do that, we need ta get ya to the factory.”

“Factory…?” Rarity asked before vehemently shaking her head, “Nyet!!”

“Rarity, listen ta me!” Applejack said with a little more force, “XANA infected a with a virus! We can get rid of it, but ya have ta get in the scanner first!” Rarity shook her head crying, “It'll be fine. Ah'll be with ya all the way.”

Rarity and Applejack met eyes, and Applejack could tell that she was beginning to calm down, if only a little.

“Applejack… protect… me…?” Rarity asked, her accent so strong Applejack almost didn't know she was speaking English this time.

“Ah'll protect ya no matter what,” Applejack said squeezing Rarity's arm and smiling.

“Take… me… to factory...” Rarity said. Applejack sighed in relief and pulled out her phone to call Twilight.

“Twilight, Ah got her,” Applejack said, “Ah'm gonna try ta get ta the factory, but the way there is...”

“Not a problem,” Twilight said, “I'll clear a path for you. Just get moving.”

Applejack had no idea what Twilight was talking about, but she shrugged it off and put her skates on. She then let Rarity get on her back so she could skate through town.

As they skated through town, Applejack noticed that anytime a traffic light tried to mess them up, a blue surge of energy shot through it correcting it. Was that Twilight?

In the lab, Twilight was frantically keeping XANA off Applejack and Rarity. Using the signal from her cellphone, Twilight was able to keep an eye on Applejack using a satellite, but XANA was too good. He kept changing patterns, forcing Twilight to alter what programs she used.

Still, the idea that activating towers gave her this much power was both amazing and terrifying. It was so natural, it almost seemed like this was what Lyoko was made to do. Who would make something like this, and why?

Those were questions to ask after Rarity was cured.

“You're a great opponent, XANA,” Twilight said, “But no matter how good you are, you can't beat the power of the human race.”

Back on Lyoko, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy made it to another clearing where they saw the activated tower XANA used surrounded by kankrelats. Off in the distance they saw the tower that Twilight activated, but it was being attacked by a megatank.

“Twilight! The tower you're using is under attack!” Dash shouted.

“I see it,” Twilight said with a groan.

“Are Applejack and Rarity close yet?” Fluttershy asked.

“Not yet,” Twilight said, “They're only about halfway there. I need someone to protect that tower until they get here.”

“Dashie, I can handle these guys,” Pinkie Pie said, “You go protect that tower.”

“On it!” Dash said, zooming off using her super speed. When she reached the megatank she ran in a triangle formation around it, creating two clones of herself.

The megatank fired at one Rainbow Dash, but it turned out to be a clone. The second Dash jumped up and tried throwing a kunai at the megatank, but she was deleted. Right before the megatank could close though, the real Rainbow Dash jumped on it and threw her kunai right into its eye. She flipped off it causing it to roll into a raised platform and explode.

Rainbow Dash turned back to Pinkie Pie's side and saw a krab approaching her from behind.

“Pinkie Pie, watch out!” Dash shouted. Pinkie Pie turned around too late as she took the blast directly, devirtualizing instantly.

Pinkie Pie: 0 HP

In the real world, Pinkie Pie's scanner opened up, revealing a very tired and bummed out Pinkie Pie.

“Shoot...” Pinkie Pie sighed, “I was about to level up, too...”

The krab slowly approached Fluttershy as she backed away, almost falling off the edge. In front of her were two kankrelats and the krab, and she had no way of defending herself.

Rainbow Dash was about to rush over to help her, but she saw two krabs walk up to Twilight's tower and start firing at it.

“Damn! I can't do both!” Dash said, as she already used her special ability too many times.

“Dash, forget about the tower! Protect Fluttershy!” Twilight urged.

“Argh!” Dash shouted, zooming back over to Fluttershy's side. She jumped over all the enemies and landed perfectly in front of Fluttershy holding a kunai ready, “You okay, Princess?”

“Yes, but what about-” Fluttershy's question was cut off as the krabs fired at Twilight's tower. It sparked, and the green aura vanished.

“No!!!” Twilight shouted, slamming her fist at the dashboard. Pinkie Pie placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

“It's not over yet,” Pinkie Pie said, “Applejack is almost here. She'll protect Rarity.”

“I know she'll protect her,” Twilight said, “But now XANA has full control of traffic again. Unless Rarity can stay calm her heart will give out from fear.”

Applejack noticed there was a sudden change. The blue electricity suddenly vanished, replaced with the red electricity of XANA, and they were having a lot more close calls.

“Twilight must've lost control,” Applejack reasoned, considering Rarity on her back who was now trembling, “Rares, Ah need ya ta close yer eyes an' trust me, alright? Ah'm gonna get us ta the factory, but it ain't gonna be pretty.”

“Trust… Applejack...” Rarity said, “Always trust… Applejack...”

Applejack smiled and waited for Rarity to close her eyes and tighten her embrace. Applejack then skated forward into the street as fast as she could.

When she reached the intersection, all the lights turned green at the same time, confusing the drivers and making the cars swerve out of control. Two cars came close to hitting Applejack, but she swerved out of the way just in time.

She could see the factory in the distance. She just needed to get across the street and she was home free.

Right as she was about to make a break for it, a light turned green just as a truck was coming through. Applejack fought the urge to scream and skated away from the truck as it chased her. The was the only path to the factory.

I'm not going to fail, Applejack thought, Rarity is counting on me.

She jumped onto the pavement just as the truck driver tried turning. His truck fell over, but Applejack managed to get out of the way and skated right to the factory.

Once she crossed the bridge she grabbed the rope and swung to the bottom all with Rarity still holding onto her tightly. She landed right in front of the elevator using her skates' breaks.

“Made it!” Applejack shouted running into the elevator, “Rarity! Are ya alright?” Applejack asked as Rarity got off her back, deathly silent, “Say somethin, please!”

Rarity blind sighted Applejack with a kiss, right on the lips. It wasn't expected at all, but it proved something to Applejack. Her lips felt heavenly pressed against her own.

When Rarity separated from Applejack, she looked into her eyes with a look of pure adoration.

“Hero,” Rarity said, still breathing heavily, “Applejack… hero...”

Applejack blushed, realizing that the kiss was probably just spur of the moment. Her emotions had to be going crazy right about now after all. Applejack pulled out her phone as she pushed the button on the elevator.

“Twilight, Ah made it,” Applejack said, “Rarity's safe an' sound.”

“Thank God!” Twilight said, “Head straight to the scanner room. I'll start the antivirus program.”

“Got it,” Applejack said hanging up. Rarity walked over to Applejack and took her hand holding it to her heart, “Yer gonna be okay, Rarity.”

Rarity smiled peacefully. Her heart was still racing, but somehow Applejack had a feeling it was less from her anxiety and more from… something else.

Maybe there was more to that kiss than she thought…

“Fluttershy, I'm getting the program started,” Twilight said, “Can you deactivate the tower and separate the virus from Rarity at the same time?”

“Yes, I can,” Fluttershy said still hiding behind Rainbow Dash as she blocked the enemy fire, “Are they here now?”

“They are.”

“Rainbow Dash, I need an opening to get to the tower,” Fluttershy said.

“It won't be pretty, but one opening coming up!” Dash said, throwing her kunai at the kankrelats killing them. As she didn't have time to spawn two more, she took the krabs shot right in the chest.

Rainbow Dash: 0 HP

As Rainbow Dash devirtualized, Fluttershy ran to the tower as fast as she could, fazing into it.

Fluttershy ran into the center of the tower, and floated up to the platform above her. After she elegantly landed, she calmly walked over to the control panel and got to work, this time starting up the program to help Rarity and breaking the security of the tower.

“Ah'll see ya on the other side,” Applejack said to Rarity smiling. Rarity gave Applejack a look of gratitude as the scanner closed. Inside, she was scanned as if she were being sent into Lyoko, but this time she felt as if something were being removed from her.

“Nice try XANA,” Twilight taunted, “But you lose this time!” she pressed a key, sending an antivirus program through Rarity's system. On the screen it showed Rarity's Lyoko avatar being scanned, and this time a green plus sign appeared over it.

Rarity: CLEAR

After she finished the work on Rarity, Fluttershy placed her hand on the touch screen in front of her.

Fluttershy looked down as the coding on the wall flowed into the abyss below her. A second later a bright light shined in the abyss and a white flash shot out of the tower and Lyoko.

In the real world, Twilight pushed the enter key, “Return to the past, now!”

The white flash engulfed everything around them, returning everyone to where they were approximately two days before all of this.

For Applejack and Rarity, this meant once again emerging in the park in front of the lake. This time they were both lying on the grass, Rarity snuggled up against Applejack.

“This is the third time we've come here on this day, ain't it?” Applejack said jovially.

“Well, this is my favorite day,” Rarity said softly, “Day you became important part of my life.”

“Rares, Ah...” Applejack looked away slightly, afraid to ask the question on her mind. Now she was certain of her feelings; she loved Rarity with her whole heart. She just wasn't sure of Rarity's feelings. Did she kiss Applejack out of affection and genuine feeling, or did was that kiss due to her emotions running wild.

“You are… special one,” Rarity said snuggling closer to Applejack, “Saved my life. I'll never forget this day, or what you did for me.”

“Ah'd do it again if Ah had to,” Applejack said pulling Rarity in closer to her, “Ah'll keep ya safe, always.”

Rarity closed her eyes smiling, “Ya tebya lyublyu… Applejack...” Rarity said softly. Applejack had no idea what she just said, but something told her that she knew the response.

“Ah… love you too… Rarity...”

“Well, I'm glad that's over,” Twilight said to Fluttershy on her computer screen.

“XANA seems to now realize that you and the others are actual threats to his plans,” Fluttershy said, “We need to be careful.”

“I need to finish that materialization program soon,” Twilight said, “If I do that, we can pull you out of Lyoko and shut the computer down.”

“I know you'll do it, Twilight,” Fluttershy said, “I have faith in you.”

“Thanks Fluttershy,” Twilight said smiling. Fluttershy smiled at Twilight, but then looked to the side, “What's wrong?”

“Um, question. In your world, is it uncommon for females to like other females?”

That question caught Twilight off guard, but she thought about it.

“Not really, no,” Twilight said, “In recent years, the number of girls who are openly bisexual or lesbian has risen greatly, what with gay marriages being made legal and all.”

“So, it wouldn't be weird if let's say… I liked someone who was a female? Someone who was my very dear friend, and that I was anxious to one day meet in person?”

“Uhh…” Twilight began blushing when she realized what Fluttershy was saying, “Not at all. In fact, I bet that… person might feel the same way, and is counting the days till she gets to meet you in person too.”

“When I finally get to meet them,” Fluttershy said looking bashful, “The first thing I want to do is kiss them.”

“Ack! W-w-what?!” Twilight shouted, now afraid of what Fluttershy was saying, confirmed when Fluttershy started giggling.

“I can't wait. See you soon, Twilight,” Fluttershy said lovingly before logging off. Twilight sat back in her chair thinking about the implications of what Fluttershy said. Did a computer program just fall in love with her?

And was Twilight actually turned on by that thought?

In her tower, Fluttershy giggled to herself. She felt so happy right now, as she confirmed that her feelings weren't strange at all, and that the one she had feelings for might have felt the same way.

“I can't wait, Twilight,” Fluttershy said, “We'll be together very soon, I know it.”