//------------------------------// // Shattered Moon (Part 2B) // Story: Diamond's Dusk // by The Dragon Warlock //------------------------------// Rainbow smirked as she looked down upon the unconscious ponies. “Now that’s what I’m talking about!” she shouted. Twilight rubbed her horn from the intense amount of magic use Pinkie had put her through. “Ugh, my horn and head are sore,” she whined. She heard a low groan, and looked over to its source, and saw a yellow unicorn struggling to keep his balance as his horn glowed. He aimed his horn up where Rainbow was flying. “No!” Twilight shouted. The unicorn fired an energy blast from his horn. He smiled contently and turned around, only to be met with a hoof coming at him. Before he could react, Twilight hit him in the face, and was knocked out as he hit the floor. Twilight looked up to the sky. “Rainbow, watch out!” she warned. “Huh?” The blue pegasus turned her head, and saw the white ball of energy was inches from her. She screamed in agony as the ball connected with a wing. Everypony looked up as they heard Rainbow’s scream of agony, and gasped. “Rainbow!” cried out Applejack. “Somepony catch her!” Pinkie ordered. Rainbow opened her eyes and saw she was falling to the ground. She tried to flap her wings but felt a sharp pain in her left one. She looked over at it and saw it was bent at an unnatural angle, with several feathers burnt and charred from the blast.. She looked back to the ground, and couldn’t help but gulp. She closed her eyes, and waited for the impact. There was no impact though. She didn’t feel the concrete hit her, nor did she feel like she was falling down. She opened her eyes to see two black hooves holding her, then looking up. Her face turned a deep crimson red as she saw a black pegasi with a silver mohawk in a Wonderbolt’s training uniform and goggles. “Th–Thunderlane?” asked Rainbow in awe. “How did you…?” Thunderlane blushed a little and said, “I know you’re used to saving other ponies, but you wouldn’t mind if there was a role reversal, right?” Rainbow tried to hide her blush, and nodded. “Yeah, I don’t mind you saving me.” Fluttershy breathed a sigh of relief as she saw her friend being rescued. Unknownst to her though, two ponies were sneaking up on her from behind. As they made their attempt to hit her, a large shadow loomed over them. They turned and saw a very muscular white pegasus with a furious look on his face. Before the two ponies could do anything, the pegasus grabbed both of them by the neck, and made them gasp for air. “Nopony hurts Fluttershy!” he yelled. He slammed both ponies’ heads together. They both collapsed onto the ground. Fluttershy turned around and blushed as she saw the muscular pegasus standing over the knocked out guards. “Bulk!” she cried out with joy. She ran over and hugged him. Bulk returned the hug, but made sure not to squeeze Fluttershy too hard. Fluttershy heard groaning and looked down to see the two ponies on the ground. She looked back at Bulk. “Did you do that to them?” Bulk nodded. “They were going to hurt you,” he said. “I wasn’t being too over assertive like you warned, right?” Fluttershy giggled and shook her head. “Oh, no. You didn’t do anything wrong. I’m actually grateful for what you’ve done.” Her face then turned a deep shade of red. “In fact, I’m so grateful, maybe….maybe I can….um….” she muttered something to herself. “What?” asked Bulk. “Would….would you mind if I treated you to dinner for helping me?” she asked in a small voice. Bulk smiled and let out a loud, “YEAH!” Fluttershy squeaked a little as she was hugged by the large white pegasus. She too returned the hug, and kissed him on the cheek. Bulk’s face went red and he giggled stupidly. Applejack wiped her forehead and let out a sigh of relief. “Hey there,” a stallion’s voice called out. The farmer pony turned around and raised her hoof. The stallion gasped and put his hoof up. “Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Wait a minute!” Applejack stopped herself, and her heart skipped a beat as she looked upon a blue pegasus in a Wonderbolts uniform. “Oh….sorry, Soarin,” she said while trying to hide her blush. “Wh–what are you doing here anyway?” “Just checking on my favorite pie-making pony,” he answered bluntly. Applejack rubbed the back of her head. “Well, heh, thanks for checking on me, pie boy.” Soarin raised an eyebrow. “Pie boy, eh? Mind if I get one of them from you for coming to your rescue?” Applejack laughed and answered, “Well, truth be told, you’re a little late.” She leaned in and kissed Soarin on the cheek. “But I suppose I could bake one, and we could share it together if you want.” She blushed and winked at him. Soarin’s eyes went wide, and his face went red. “Uh….sure!” he hastily said. “Aww! Does that mean I’m too late for the party?” a stallion asked in a sarcastically sad tone. Applejack and Soarin turned around to see an orange stallion with a poofy brown mane wearing an umbrella hat, carrying a large saddlebag. “Hey, what are you do–WHOA!” Applejack was cut off as a pink blur sped past her. The orange stallion grunted as he felt something tight around him. He looked down and saw a jubilant Pinkie Pie. “Cheesy!” she shouted joyfully. “I’m sorry you couldn’t be here for this! Maybe you can help me plan the celebration party!” Cheese Sandwich chuckled and hugged Pinkie back. “That sounds great! But I’m definitely not using those emergency cheese dips. Speaking of which, did they help you?” “Somewhat,” said Applejack. Cheese and Pinkie broke off the hug, and the stallion said in a nonchalant tone. “I guess I still have some kinks to work out. But it was a blast at least.” Applejack slapped her forehead and slid her hoof down her face. “I think I need to take a long shower just to get the leftover cheese off of me.” “Well you’re already getting one,” said Cheese in chipper tone. He extended his hoof to feel the rain. Applejack sighed and shook her head. “I don’t think you get what I mean.” “Hey! Are you all done chit chatting!?” a mare asked in a commanding voice. Everypony looked up to see a yellow pegasus with a fiery mane and in a Wonderbolts uniform land. Two pegasi were standing next to her and surveying the damage. A couple more flew in and landed near the yellow pegasus. Soarin and Bulk ran over and saluted. “Captain Spitfire!” they shouted in unison. “At ease,” she ordered. Spitfire looked around the roof and saw the ponies lying on the ground, and some of them moaning. “Ugh...my wing,” groaned a mare’s voice. Spitfire looked over and saw Rainbow Dash being held by Thunderlane. She could see Thunderlane holding onto what seemed to be Rainbow’s mangled wing. “Hold on, Rainbow!” assured Thunderlane. “I’m right here for you!” “I'm coming, cadet!” shouted Spitfire. Spitfire had a concerned look on her as she and the rest of Rainbow’s friends rushed over. Spitfire checked her wing and saw it was twitching. "I'm...okay," groaned Rainbow. "It's nothing serious." "Don't be foolish, Dash," Spitfire scolded. "You're not in good shape. It's a wonder you haven't collapsed yet." Spitfire took a look at the messed up wing, and tried to see how badly it was hurt. "Ah!" Rainbow yelped as she felt Spitfire's hoof on her wing. “Sorry, Dash," said Spitfire. "I do have good news. The wing doesn’t look too bad, but the twitching isn’t a good sign. We need to get you down to an ambulance for treatment.” She looked over at Thunderlane and Bulk. "Take Dash down to an ambulance for immediate treatment." “Yes, ma’am!” shouted Thunderlane and Bulk as they saluted. They grabbed Rainbow by the arms, and carried her to the roof entrance. Twilight stepped forward and asked, “Captain Spitfire?” Spitfire turned around and raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t you Princess Celestia’s student?” she asked. “Yes I am,” answered Twilight. “Are her and Princess Luna here?” Spitfire nodded. “They came as quickly as they could after they asked for our help. We just brought some other cadets to help out in case things got too messy. They’re both downstairs talking to the media about your friend’s condition.” “You mean Rarity?” asked Spike. “The very same,” said Spitfire. Rarity and Spike looked at each other with worry on their faces. “What about the rest of the ponies here?” asked Twilight. “There’s somepony I don’t think the princesses are going to be happy to see who’s behind this.” “We’ll help take them into custody,” stated Spitfire. “We just got to wait for the Royal Guard to fly up here and bring the chains.” A loud banging noise caught the group’s attention. They turned around and saw two white pegasi in golden armor carrying a large box. “Ah, right on time,” said Spitfire. She looked back at Twilight and her friends. “You all get going. We’ll take care of it from here.” Twilight nodded and looked at the others. “Come on, everypony. I think it’s time to finally clear everything up.” “I just hope everypony understands,” said Rarity in a somber tone. Spike grabbed Rarity’s hoof. “Me too, Rarity, me too.” They all walked off and headed down the roof entrance stairway. Rarity took several deep breaths as she approached the main entrance of the building. She could see the flashes of cameras, and a large group of ponies waiting outside. She couldn’t help but gulp a little nervously. “Rarity?” a voice asked. She looked down and saw Spike looking at her with a worried look. “Yes, Spikey?” she asked. “Are you ready for this?” he wondered. Rarity took a deep breath and said, “To be honest, I’m not. I know I got to do this though. I need to let them know the truth in more ways than one.” “What do you mean by that?” asked Spike. Rarity looked forward and said, “You’ll know soon enough.” Rarity and the others stepped through the door. The unicorn was greeted with gasps, some screams, and the numerous sounds of cameras clicking. The flash from the cameras made Rarity’s eyes dizzy and she raised a hoof to cover them. She kept it up to shield her eyes, but managed to get a look at the crowd around her. There were various ponies of all races carrying cameras, writing stuff in a notepad, or carrying microphones in their hooves. All of them were being blocked by a long row of royal guards, both Solar and Lunar. “It’s hard to believe this is true,” one pony said. “It’s like something out of a story,” said another. “Is she really Nightmare Moon, or not?” “How long has Miss Rarity been hiding this?” “That’s enough!” a mare’s voice ordered. “Rarity has suffered enough.” Rarity and the others looked over and saw Princess Celestia and Princess Luna looking at them with sincere smiles. The group bowed down to the princess, and more cameras flashed. “Rise, my fellow ponies,” ordered Princess Celestia. Twilight rose up and smiled. “It’s good to see you again, Princess.” “We’re sorry it took so long, Twilight,” said Princess Luna. “We came as quickly as we got your message. We just needed some time getting our soldiers and the Wonderbolts together to help.” “Well it’s over,” said Rarity. “I have my friends to thank for helping me out.” “Yes, you’re lucky to have such good friends around.” Princess Celestia looked around and noticed Trixie, who was shaking a bit nervously. “I’m sorry, but who are you?” Trixie looked at the princess and stuttered, “I–I am T–Trixie, your highness.” Celestia raised an eyebrow. “Trixie, is it? Aren’t you that mare who caused my student some trouble in the past?” Trixie flinched a little and bit her lip. “Um….well….” “Hold it!” objected Twilight. She put a hoof in front of Trixie. “Princess Celestia, you don’t have to worry about her anymore. She’s since changed, and she helped us out. Everything has since been made up for.” “She’s right,” said Applejack, “she did help us out.” The others nodded and what Twilight said about the magician. Celestia smiled. “I’m happy to hear this. Though, I had no idea you were that close to her, Twilight.” Twilight looked confused, but she looked down and saw she was holding Trixie’s hoof. Both of them blushed and let go of each other. “Speaking of clearing things up,” stated Luna. “Perhaps you can clear some things for us.” “Like what?” asked Spike. “For starters, we have captured several ponies who seem to have knowledge of military fighting. Do you happen to know how these ponies were, or if there was a member of the Equestria military ordering them around.” Twilight looked at the others, who shrugged at her, and then looked back. “We’re not really sure, but I remember something about a major.” “Major?” wondered Celestia. “Let me go!” a stallion’s voice barked. “I said let me go, damn it!” The group turned around and saw Heavy Duty  in chains resisting against two royal guards. “That’s enough, sir!” shouted one of the guards. “It’s over!” “You don’t understand what’s going on!” Heavy shouted. “You’ve all made a big mistake.” He then noticed two large shadows overlapping him, and looked up. His heart nearly stopped as he looked at the stern faces of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. “Major Heavy Duty of the 66th Legion,” said Luna in an icy tone. “I thought I recognized some of them from the previous inspection.” Heavy bowed down and said, “Princesses! You don’t understand what’s going on! Nightmare Moon has taken control of you two, and–” “That will be enough, major,” Celestia interrupted. “I think you need to hear the full story, along with your other partners in crime.” Heavy got up and raised an eyebrow. “Partners?” Luna pointed behind her, and Heavy saw two ponies being watched by three royal guards. The two ponies were covered in cheese and shaking violently. “Bit Bags? Golden Rule?” inquired Heavy. “What the hay happened to you guys?” “Let’s just say I never want to see another slice of cheese in my life again,” Bit said bitterly. “Agreed,” stated Golden. Applejack couldn’t help but laugh and shouted, “Join the party, partners!” “Guards,” said Celestia. “Place the major over there with the others.” The guards saluted and pushed Heavy to move forward. “Now for the other question.” Luna suddenly looked a little subdued. “Is it true that a certain pony was behind this whole thing?” Twilight and her friends looked a little nervous and looked at each other. “You don’t need to lie, my faithful student,” said Celestia in a somber tone. “I’ve already got a witness who told us everything.” “Who is it?” wondered Spike. “Me,” a voice answered. Spike and the others turned to the right and saw Quick Note approaching them. “You told them everything?” wondered Rarity. “Everything I knew,” replied Quick. “From the planning of this whole thing, to who was behind it from the start.” Twilight nodded and said, “I see then.” She looked at Celestia. “Princess, I know you won’t like this, but it’s true the one behind this was–” “OUCH!” a stallion cried out in pain. “Watch where you touch me!” The group turned to the doorway, and saw four royal guards coming out with two ponies in chains. The first one, Twilight and her friends recognized as Blueblood and was wincing pain. The second was Suri trying to hide her face, and had a fearful look on her. A royal guard placed a hoof on the prince, but both yelped in pain. “I said watch it!” ordered Blueblood. “I can’t even feel my face from what just happened!” “You’re going to need to move it,” a guard said. “The princesses will be wanting a word with you.” Blueblood’s face went whiter than usual, and gulped loudly. “M–my aunts?” “Yes, Prince Blueblood,” came the voice of Luna. “I think we both would like a word with you about this.” The prince looked over and felt like a bucket of ice drop into his stomach as he looked upon the scornful expression of both princesses. The sound of cameras clicking and flashes went out again, but Blueblood felt too terrified to notice, or care. “That’s the prince?” one camera pony asked. “Certainly looks different from the last time I saw him.” “I heard some nasty things about his actions, but nothing like this!” “Heh! This is going to be good for the tabloids!” “I see the headline now: From royal prince, to attempted killer.” Blueblood finally found the courage to speak up again. “Aunt Celestia, you don’t understand,” he pleaded. “I know Nightmare Moon has gotten to you all, but you must believe me when I say you’re both under her mind control! You must fight it, and kill her at once before her influence spreads further!” The princess looked at Blueblood with blank looks. The crowd fell silent and didn’t use their cameras. Twilight and her friends looked at each other with raised eyebrows. The only sound that rang out was the rain hitting the ground, and the occasional rumble of thunder. Blueblood gritted his teeth and shouted, “What’s everypony’s problem!? Why are you all silent!?” He looked over to Rarity and barked, “Go on, you! Tell them what you’ve done!” Princess Luna slapped her hoof against her forehead, and shook her head. “You can’t be serious, nephew.” “What do you mean if I’m being serious or not!?” asked Blueblood. “Of course I’m taking such a turn of events seriously!” Princess Celestia had an amused look on her. “You are referring to Rarity turning into Nightmare Moon, correct?” The prince nodded. “That’s right! I heard you both talk about it, and not wanting to let the public know! I know you two are under her mind control, thus I am here to save Equestria from a great evil!” There was a deadly silence again as everypony stared at Blueblood with shock, disbelief, and some trying to hold back their laughter. Princess Luna slapped her forehead and again and groaned. She looked up at her sister with an irritated expression. “I knew we should have told him from the start, but you didn’t listen.” The prince raised an eyebrow. “Told me what exactly?” he wondered. Across the wider Manehatten area, it’s citizens continued with their lives, unaware of what had happened at the fashion studio. “WHAT!?” an infuriated yell echoed across the city. Everypony stopped what they were doing as they looked around for the source of the scream. They soon shrugged indifferently and went back to their routine. Prince Blueblood looked both awed and furious. His whole body trembled with shock, and his jaw dropped. He took several deep breaths, and his eyes went wide. Finally, he managed to say, “This….this is a joke! There’s no way that happened!” “I’m afraid so, Blueblood,” said Celestia. “Rarity was the victim of a curse by none other than Nightmare Moon herself. By day, she is her old self, but by night, she turns into her nightmare form.” Blueblood shook his head in defiance. “N–no! Impossible! Unacceptable! I know what I heard! You said you couldn’t let anypony else know of this!” “And for a good reason,” Luna said contemptuously. “If the rest of Equestria knew about this, who knows how they would react? Considering your past history with Rarity, we both knew that you would take this chance to turn the public against her. We were hoping that if you didn’t know this and we found a cure to Rarity’s curse, then maybe we could have prevented you from your ambitions. We knew you had a grudge against Rarity, but we never thought it would get like this.” Blueblood raised a hoof and tried to think. “But, but, but, but, but….” he stammered. “ARGH! Are you bucking kidding me!?” a mare screeched. The whole crowd turned their attention to Suri, who was looking beside herself and panting. “You mean to tell me that I came out of hiding to help a prince for something that he mistook as a threat!?” she bellowed. “I was better off on the streets than being forced to do this!” Princess Celestia raised an eyebrow. “Excuse me, but have I seen you before somewhere?” Suri looked at Princess Celestia, and her anger quickly changed into fear. She gulped a little and said, “Um….no, not at all. Just some normal pony is all. Heh, heh, heh….” She put on convincing smile. The solar princess didn’t seem so sure. “I could’ve sworn I have seen you before in maybe the papers, or perhaps in–” “YOU!” bellowed an infuriated mare’s voice. Suri felt her stomach flip, and an icy chill ran down her spine. She slowly turned around to see an angry Hoity Toity, and Photo Finish looking beside herself. Even with her signature glasses on, Suri could see the firey rage in her eyes. The pink pony gulped nervously as sweat built up on her head. Photo pointed a hoof at Suri. “You! You! You! You!” Photo was shaking violently in anger. Suri chuckled nervously. “Um….hi, Photo,” she said in a small voice. “I heard the show had some…erm, technical difficulties?” “How dare you come back to mein studio and ruin ze show mein fiancè and I worked so hard on!?” barked Photo. “Fiancè?” one photographer pony asked. He trotted up to Photo. “Miss Finish, we heard rumors of you and Hoity together. How long has this–” Photo Finish looked at the camera pony with a snarling face and stared him down. The pony nervously put his camera down and backed away. “Um….maybe another time,” he squeaked. The camera pony then galloped away from Photo as quickly as possible. Photo and Hoity pushed the royal guards holding them back and marched up to Suri. The former fashionista stepped back and gulped again as she looked at the livid expression of Photo. “It vasn’t enough for you, vas it!?” accused Photo. “It vasn’t enough zat you had to steal designs and fabric from ze other ponies to make yourself successful! You not only ruined ze fashion show Hoity and I worked so hard on, but to attempt to kill one of mein best fashionistas!?” “Wait a minute!” cried out Suri as she backed up. “I can explain! Honestly!” “Explain what!?” demanded Photo. “How can you explain destroying mein show, and wrecking most of ze studio!? Do you have any idea how long it’ll take to repair it!?” Suri wiped her forehead. “But….but….” “But nothing!” bellowed Photo.  “Is zere no decency to you, Suri Polomare!?” “Wait. Is that really Suri?” one photographer asked incredulously. Another camera pony laughed. “Man! We are just making a killing out here tonight with all this breaking news!” “Can it get any better?!” another asked. The cameras once again flashed and clicked, but Suri was too terrified by the look on Photo Finish to care. “If you think for one minute I will–” “Miss Finish, that will be enough,” ordered Princess Celestia. The blue pony looked at the princess and grudgingly bowed. “Mein apologies, your highness. I am just livid to see….her again.” “Calm yourself, dear,” said Hoity. “We’ll let the princesses deal with her.” He pulled her away and hugged her. Celestia approached the nervous Suri. “I thought I recognized you from the papers. I honestly didn’t think you would be involved in this.” “Wh–what are y–you going to do to m–me?” wondered Suri in a scared tone. “I’m not sure yet,” answered Celestia. “Considering what Rarity told Luna and myself in the past about what you’ve done, there may be a very strict punishment.” Suri looked more nervous and asked in a feeble tone, “H–how do you know Rarity?” “That’s easy,” said Celestia. “Both of us are good friends with Rarity.” “F–friends!?” Suri asked in a panicked voice. “Y–you’re friends with her!?” “Indeed, Miss Polomare,” replied Luna. “We’ve been close friends with Rarity for a few years now. Hurting one of our friends or loved ones could end with somepony being strictly punished, or maybe even… banishment.” Suri’s eyes went wide and tears built up in her eyes. She could feel whatever anger she had left turn into fear and terror as she looked upon the stern look of the night princess. She leaped over to the princesses’ hooves, and kissed them. “I’m sorry!” She cried tearfully. “I’m sorry I took her designs and fabric! I’m sorry I nearly killed Rarity!” She kissed both princesses’ hooves a few more times, earning awkward looks from each princess. “I’ll do anything to make up for it!” pleaded Suri. “I’ll give back the remaining fabric! I’ll pay you both whatever I got left! I’ll even scrub all the floors in Canterlot! Just don’t banish me–hhe–heee!” Suri broke down in tears and cried uncontrollably. Princess Celestia looked to Luna with a stern look. “Sister, I do wish you wouldn’t be so overdramatic about these things.” The night princess huffed. “Well she should know the penalties for harming our friends.” Celestia shook her head and looked back at the weeping Suri. “Miss Polomare, please rise up and dry those eyes.” Suri feebly got up and wiped her eyes. She sniffled and said in a weak voice, “Y–yes, your highness?” “We are not going to punish you, much less banish you to the moon,” said the solar princess. Suri breathed a sigh of relief. “Does this mean I’m free to go?” she asked hopefully. “Not even close,” replied Celestia. “You will still be punished, but not by me nor my sister. I think it’s only appropriate that Photo Finish and Hoity Toity decide your punishment. Especially with how you’ve helped create quite a mess.” She looked at the two fashion ponies. “Is that fine with you two?” Photo looked at Hoity, and both whispered to each other. They would give a dark glance at Suri every now and then as they talked to each other. After a minute of whispering, they both nodded and looked at Princess Celestia. “It’s a deal,” agreed Photo. “We will take her and punish her for what she did.” She trotted over to Suri and stared her down. “But just because you’re not being dealt with by ze princess doesn’t mean you’re going to get off easy,” she threatened. “I vill make you sorry.” Suri gulped and wiped more sweat from her forehead. Princess Celestia looked at Prince Blueblood. “I do have to say that you earn some of my thanks for this.” Twilight, her friends, and Luna looked shocked. “WHAT!?” they yelled in unison. Spike stepped forward. “Princess, no offense, but why are you thanking somepony that nearly killed Rarity?” The solar princess waved a hoof. “Let me explain,” she stated. “What I mean is that he involved three ponies that we have been monitoring for some shady dealings.” The crowd muttered with each other, and looked confused. Luna smiled and nodded. “Ah, I remember now. The investigation we both have been keeping an eye on.” Celestia nodded. “Indeed. We’ve had our suspicions about their activities, but they were always careful. Since Blueblood got them involved though and are being arrested, we can now investigate further into these deals.” Blueblood seemed confused at first, but a dreadful thought then hit him. “Y–you don’t mean….?” “We have some testimony from Quick Note about one of them,” said Luna. “We’ve heard some rumors of bribery and corruption with law enforcement.” Golden Rule flinched a little and her eyes widen. “Some illegal hunting and poaching,” said Celestia. “Ack!” yelped Heavy Duty in a fearful tone. “Some embezzlement as well,” finished Luna. Bit Bags gulped and was shaking. “All thanks to you, nephew,” said Celestia. “I’m sorry you have most likely lost three friends of yours, but you’ll probably get a bit of a lighter sentence for helping bring them to justice.” The solar princess looked at Golden Rule. “I certainly hope you remember some of your lawyer skills, Miss Rule. I’m certain no lawyer in the world would take this case. Even if we summoned the best lawyer ever, he wouldn’t take your case.” Golden gulped, and looked over at Prince Blueblood with a scornful look on her. Blueblood’s eyes widened and his body was shaking. “But….but….but I’m the hero here,” he muttered. “I did everything right….I’m supposed to be hailed throughout Equestria for my actions.” “You will be,” said Spike. “I think you’ll be remembered for just how stupid you made yourself look.” Heavy screamed in frustration. “You idiot! I knew this was a bad idea from the beginning! You not only made a fool of yourself again, but you tricked us into this whole thing!” “Wait until I get a hold of you!” threatened Golden. The prince flinched and was shaking harder. “P–please! Wait!” he objected in a shaky voice. “I…I had no clue about Rarity! I was only doing what was right! I...I was going to save the world! I was going to be a hero. I...I…” His eye twitched like crazy and he muttered angrily to himself. He put his hooves on top of his head and clinged to his ruined mane. “N….NNNNNOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!” he screamed insanely. Blueblood pulled on his mane as he yelled wildly. “I’M THE HEROOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!” Images of Rarity, the fateful night of the Grand Galloping Gala, and Nightmare Moon raced through his mind at a fast rate. Everypony gasped as they saw Blueblood pulling and ripping out stands of his burnt mane. He was holding onto large strands of them in his hooves, and had an even larger bald spot on his head. His body twitched as he had a shocked expression on him and stared up into the sky. Celestia frowned and put a hoof on Blueblood to calm him down. She looked over and said, “Guards, you may take them all away now to be processed. Just keep my nephew under close watch, please.” The guards saluted, and proceeded to take the emotionally drained Blueblood, Suri, Golden, Heavy, and Bit into a nearby boxed chariot. After they were escorted in and secured, the doors closed, and the chariot took off into the sky. The crowd watched the chariot until it was out of sight. They all began talking and whispering to each other about what had happened. “Talk about a nervous breakdown,” said one pony. “I’ll say,” a camera pony agreed. “I got to wonder what’s going to happen to the prince now.” “All of this stemming from an apparent hatred towards somepony who scorned him,” another said. Princess Celestia stepped forward and said, “I think that’s all, everypony. You may continue to take photos of those who are being arrested, but there will be no further conferences or announcements about the arrests here.” Twilight looked a little uncomfortable as the crowd talked amongst themselves again. “Are you alright, Twilight?” wondered Trixie. The unicorn nodded slowly. “I am, but I couldn’t help but feel a little bad about what happened to Blueblood.” “Kind of hard to feel bad for him after all he’s done,” said Spike. “But I didn’t expect him to react like that.” “So what do we do now?” asked Pinkie. “Throw a party to celebrate?” “I don’t think so, partner,” said Applejack with a yawn. “I think I’m just ready to go get a shower to get the remaining cheese out of my coat, and hit the hay.” Cheese rubbed his chin. “Hmm….I need to think of a way to make these cheese supplies less sticky to those affected by it. I’ll have to go back to that old party board again!” “I think maybe you should just scrap it,” suggested Rainbow. As the group talked with each other, Rarity stayed out of it and thought to herself. She looked at Spike, who was chatting with Twilight and Applejack. She thought back to the roof, and the sudden confession the dragon made to her. She then thought of what she wanted to say to him before being cut off by her friends checking up on the two of them. ….Spikey, she thought. Do I dare bring up what happened on the roof? “Rarity?” Before the unicorn could ponder her own question, her thoughts were broken by a voice. She looked down and saw Spike with a soft smile on his face. “Are you ready to go back?” he wondered. “Princess Celestia is offering to take you to her castle to place you under protection until she and Princess Luna find a cure.” “We can leave now if there’s nothing else, Rarity,” said Twilight. The unicorn looked at Spike and stared at him with a blank expression. She wanted to open her mouth and say something to him, but she felt torn on the inside. One side of her wanted to talk about what he had said on the roof. The other half wanted to forget that ever happened. Numerous thoughts buzzed in her head, and she felt a little disoriented from it. “Are you okay, Rarity?” wondered Spike in a worried voice. “You’re looking like Twilight after one of her all nighters.” “Spike!” scolded Twilight. Rarity waved a hoof with a chuckle, “It’s nothing, really.” The dragon sighed dejectedly. “I guess we’ll get going then.” He began walking towards a nearby chariot where two royal guards were waiting. Rarity bit her lip, and stomped her hoof. “Wait!” she called out. The yell caused Spike, his friends, the princesses, and the crowd of photographers to turn their attention to Rarity. The unicorn felt a little nervous from the staring crowd, and gulped a little. She shook her head and took a deep breath. I know what I need to say, she told herself. I just need the courage to break the news to Spike. She looked at the dragon and said in a sincere tone, “Spike, we need to talk.” Spike raised an eyebrow and looked around. “Um….now?” he wondered. “Can’t this wait until we get into the chariot?” Rarity shook her head. “No, darling. I need to say this now before I lose my nerve.” The dragon tilted his head in confusion and said, “Okay….so what’s up?” “It’s about what you said on the roof,” replied Rarity. Spike’s eyes went wide, and his face went red with embarrassment. “Um….Rarity, that was just um….in the heat of the moment,” he nervously said. “I didn’t mean to put you in such a place like that.” “Spikey, it’s okay,” assured Rarity. “I did some thinking about what you said, and I think it’s time you heard it from me.” She trotted over and placed a hoof on his shoulder. Spike opened his mouth to say something, but couldn’t find the words. “I heard what you said about me, darling,” said Rarity. “I have to say I had no idea I had such a positive impact on you. I also have to confess one thing, Spike. I have had my suspicions about what you felt towards me for a long time.” The crowd of camera ponies looked confused and muttered to each other, but Rarity didn’t pay attention to them. Spike was shocked. “Y….You knew all along?” he wondered. “I thought you had some crush on me,” answered Rarity. “At first I thought it was merely some crush that would go away over time, but… but I see it’s not the case.” Rarity could feel butterflies in her stomach, but shook it off. “How so?” asked Spike. “You see, I had thought that over the course of time, things would change,” said Rarity. “Why, I was surprised to see you still being so concerned over me, and helping me out all this time. Even at times when I was unaware of some of your advances.” Spike looked a little discouraged. “I see,” he said in a hollow tone. He felt a hoof touch his chin, and pushed his head up. He saw Rarity smiling softly at her. “I’m not done yet, Spike,” she said. “I do have to say I truly appreciate all you’ve done for me, and I do apologize for not giving you the thanks you truly deserve for it. However, I have to agree on Prince Blueblood with one thing: anypony who dates a different species may be shamed.” Spike opened his mouth to object, but Rarity put a hoof over it. “Let me finish. It’s true that some ponies are against the idea of such relationships. Some may turn these ponies away. Others could start rumors and mudslinging to further alienate a pony.” Spike looked down and felt his heart sink. He nodded slowly and muttered, “I understand then. I’m sorry I wasted your time, Rarity.” He turned to walk away, but felt something pulling him back, and turn him around. He looked up to see Rarity again. “Honestly, Spikey Wikey,” she sighed. “It’s rude to leave a lady in the middle of a conversation. There is one more thing I need to say to you.” “I already know what you’re going to say,” said Spike somberly. “I already know the answer.” Rarity raised an eyebrow. “Is that so?” she wondered. She pulled him in and brought both of their faces close together. “All I have to say to what Blueblood said, Spike, is three simple words.” The dragon gulped and felt his heart racing. “T–that is?” “I. Don’t. Care,” she whispered. She then leaned in and perched her lips, and kissed Spike on the lips. The dragon’s eyes went wide with shock as he felt his lips connect with Rarity’s. The shock soon gave way to the feeling of his heart fluttering, and his sadness melt away into joy. They both closed their eyes and embraced each other as they kissed, unaware of the numerous gasps and cameras going off. “Whoa! I was wrong! This night can get better!” a photographer said. “The first pony and dragon relationship in Equestria?” one reporter asked. “Can this work out?” “This could ruin Rarity’s career!” another shouted. “Is she sure she wants to risk it all for one dragon?” Rarity and Spike broke off the kiss, and stared at each other with hearts in their eyes. The snuggled against each other, and felt the warmth coming from each of them. After minute, Rarity said, “Spikey, I’m so sorry it took so long to tell you this, but I do love you. I’ve been fooling myself with ideals and thoughts that would hurt me, but now I realized that I was only hurting myself further with my actions.” “....Rarity,” whispered Spike. The unicorn released her grip on Spike, except for holding his claw, and turned to the crowd of photographers and reporters. She smiled and shouted, “Do you hear me, world!?  I don’t care what happens! I don’t care if most, if not the whole, social elite turn me down for it! I don’t care how many ponies say it’s wrong! I have a lot of wonderful friends, and a true prince that has never left my side for a moment with me! Put that in your paper!” Rarity took several deep breaths after her speech, and looked back at Spike. “I’m sorry you had to see me that way, Spikey. I just needed to get that off my chest.” “Rarity?” a voice called. Rarity and Spike looked over to see Twilight and her friends looking pretty happy. “Ah, darlings,” said Rarity. “I know you all saw and heard what I said. If any of you have any objections, then I–” “Rarity,” said Twilight. “Why would you think we have any objections?” Rarity raised an eyebrow. “You truly don’t mind?” “Course not, sugarcube,” answered Applejack. “We don’t care if you’re dating Spike, another stallion, or even a mare. Though, I honestly can’t see you dating a mare.” “We’re happy for you,” said Fluttershy. “Just wait until the party to show how happy we really are for this!” shouted Pinkie. “Are you sure you meant what you said?” wondered Twilight. “I know there are some ponies who are still against the idea of fillyfoolers and coltcuddlers. It could be worse now that you’ve confessed to having feelings for Spike.” Rarity just smiled and said, “I stand by what I said, Twilight. No matter what happens from here on out, I will remain by Spikey Wikey’s side.” Spike smiled and said, “But I still have some questions left to ask you, Rarity. How come you haven’t said much about how I felt up until this point?” Rarity opened her mouth to speak, but then felt a sharp jab in her chest. She stumbled a bit and held her chest. “Rarity, are you okay?” asked Spike in a worried tone. The unicorn looked at Spike with a pained look on her, but nodded. “I….think so,” she replied. “I just don’t know what hap–ACK!” Another sharp jab hit Rarity, this time in the head. She groaned and fell to the ground. Spike and his friends let out a gasp and looked at each other with concern. “Rarity!” cried out the dragon. He looked over to Princess Celestia. “What’s wrong with her!?” The solar princess frowned and said, “I’m not sure. I’ve never seen a pony suddenly have such pain like that so suddenly.” Rarity got up slowly and rubbed her head. She could feel her stomach flipping around, her heart racing, and sweat was building up on her. Her body was shaking, her breathing became rapid, and everything became a blur to her. “I….ah….don’t know what’s…..AH!” screamed Rarity. She stumbled around and felt like her body was on fire and having nails hammered into her. She twitched wildly and tried to hold back her screams, but the pain got worse and worse. Eventually, she let out a deafening scream and she fell to the ground in pain. All of a sudden, a large black flame erupted around Rarity, making everypony gasp. Spike couldn’t take it anymore. He ran over and had tears in his eyes. “RARITY!” he cried out. He felt a force pull him back, and looked to see an aura bringing him back. He was pulled back towards Twilight, and he looked at her with a furious expression. “Let me go! I have to help her!” “Spike! I’ve never seen this happen before!” yelled Twilight. “I don’t even know how we can help her!” “What do we do now!?” wondered Trixie. “Everypony, back away!” ordered Princess Celestia. The crowd wasted no time in obeying the princess’ orders. They all backed away far from the black flame. Some even ran off down the street and screamed in terror. A large blue dome then formed around the remaining crowd, Spike, his friends, and the two princesses. Celestia looked at Luna and nodded. “Good job, sister!” she commended. “I just hope this holds off from whatever happens to Rarity,” said Luna. Spike ran off from Twilight to leave the dome, but when he ran up to it, the shield was solid as a rock. He pounded against it and looked on in horror at the mare he loved was burning in that flame. “RARITY!” he tearfully shouted. A loud buzzing noise then rang throughout the city, making everypony yell in agony and cover their ears. All of a sudden, a sinister voice started whispering. “In her heart veiled, a secret scaled, A dark unknown desire, With my last spark, I made my mark, This curse shall not expire.” “A blight you'll be, when ponies see, Your countenance at night, Until revealed, this pain concealed, Forever shall be your plight!” The voice continued whispering the same thing for a minute. The black flame around Rarity intensified, but Spike noticed something weird about it. He saw something coming from the flame and gasped. “Look!” he pointed. The group looked at the flame and saw two large wings form from the fires. Then the shape of a unicorn’s head formed, with two bright white spots where the eyes would be. It then grew four legs, and a part of the flame became a a tail. Then, to everypony’s amazement and awe, the pony shaped flame stepped forward and looked around. Nopony knew what to say, much less how to respond to the flame-based creature. It took a long look around the crowd for a minute, and then looked back at where Rarity fell over. “....Heh….” a chuckle emitted from the flames. “Ah ha–ha–ha–ha–ha!” it laughed in a mare’s voice. It then turned over to Twilight, her friends, and the princesses, who all looked ready to fight. “It’s been so much fun,” she said. “I was kind of hoping maybe she wouldn’t do it so I can technically live on in this body, but that is not the case.” The flamed pony looked at Spike. “You got lucky, whelp. Let’s see whether she keeps her promise or not. Now, I shall join the last part of Nightmare Moon in Tartarus. Maybe we’ll go say hello to….no, she said that he would drain our magic. So long, little ponies.” Celestia looked at Luna, and they both nodded. Their horns glowed, and both shot out a few energy beams. Each blast hit one of the blue domes, and they all broke and shattered. Spike immediately ran off and headed for the smoke. “I’m coming, Rarity!” he called out. “Hold on!” He then found himself skidding to a stop as the shadow of a pony stepped out of the smoke. Right in front of him was a trembling Rarity, who looked both emotionally and physically drained. She looked down to the dragon and whispered faintly, “....Spike?” Suddenly, Rarity fell over and could see the panicked look on Spike’s face. Before she could realize what was happening, everything went black and silent for the fashionista.