//------------------------------// // Project Erroria Arc Part 9: Innocent Pain // Story: MLDC: SHAZAM, Equestria's Mightest Mare! // by Michael_Ravencroft //------------------------------// The morning rays of the sun pierced through veil of sleep, rousing from slumber the occupant of the lavish bed. She stirred and groaned but for a moment before coming to full consciousness. The mare rose up, sitting in her bed. Her black mane was the picturesque of “bedhead”, wild and spread all over the place. She blinked her eyes a few times, getting the sleep out of them before those orbs of fuchsia rested upon the clock on her night stand. “Hmmm, eight, about time I rise,” said the mare. A glow of lilac appeared beneath the mass of hair, parting it to allow her horn to show. The unicorn mare focused her magic and raised a bell from a drawer in her nightstand. With a ring, the doors to her bedroom were opened up, showing quartet of maid ponies. The four mares bowed to the unicorn and as one said, “Good morning Mistress Thorn!” Thorn smiled lazily at her maids. “Good morning, let’s get started ladies.” Thorn slowly got out of bed and swayed a little as she stood, still a bit sleepy. One of the maids, a pegasus mare, asked, “What would you like for breakfast this morning Mistress?” “Hmmm…coffee…toast…some eggs…nothing extravagant…” “Yes ma’am!” The pegasus mare quickly made her way downstairs to alert the chef. The other three set to work on helping their Mistress get ready for the day. A unicorn maid used her magic to make the bed, while two earth pony maids helped guide their mistress to the large bath down the hall. Once there, the maids removed their own clothing and drew the bath for her. Thorn was still groggy but was aware enough to know she was in the baths, and aware enough to enjoy the view of her maids disrobing. The two mares helped Thorn into her bath, bringing various shampoos and brushes. One earth pony mare helped get Thorn’s unruly mane under control, combing it delicately as if it were as brittle as thin ice. The other mare went to work lathering Thorns coat, applying enough pressure to both wash the fur and massage her limbs. Thorn didn’t know why she just didn’t fool around with these two, a little extra time alone with them wouldn’t be all that bad, but she needed to get to work, else her superiors bitch and moan about it. After both mares were done attending to their mistress, they exited the large bath and went to grab towels. Thorn exited the waters and stood on the smooth, heated, marble floor. The two maids returned, towels in hoof, and began drying off Thorn carefully, and thoroughly. Once their work was done the two maids stood aside and waited for their mistress’ next order. “Thank you, dears. You may enjoy the baths a little while longer,” said Thorn. “You are most gracious Mistress!” They said in unison. “Oh, and depending on how today goes, I may have need of you to help me…‘unwind’.” Both earth mares blushed but bowed and nodded nonetheless. Thorn continued her routine after that, arriving back to her room where the unicorn maid from earlier styled her mane and helped her with her outfit. A business suit for the modern mare, being one of importance was something that came with a lot of work, one of which being their looks. Once she was done, Thorn left her lavish manor for her routine work. Thorn Blackforest was a mare of the ponies, most notably, she was widely known for her charity work with many different orphanages in many different cities around Equestria, as well as her advances in magical scientific research, or Magi-Science for short. She made it a point to visit some of the orphanages, whenever her schedule allowed it. The look on the faces of each of the children she visited was always bright and glowing, you’d think Celestia herself had come to see them. But today wasn’t about going to those orphanages, no, she was needed for an important meeting. And it wasn’t good to keep her constituents waiting. Thorn made her way to a carriage, drawn by four strong stallions, while a stallion butler opened the carriage door for his mistress. Once inside the stallions neighed in unison and took off down the dirt road. Thorn looked out the window, sighing as she enjoyed the view of the forest that surrounded her estate. It took a good hour before the carriage made it past the gate that marked the boundary of her land. Once Thorn was sure they were to a certain point down the road the unicorn mare set to work. She gave three loud taps of her hoof against the carriage, signaling to the stallions. The four neighed in affirmation that they heard her. Thorn concentrated her magical energy, her horn glowing with intense mana energy. A few feet down the road a magic circle appeared. The circle then caved in on itself, forming a gateway. The stallions galloped full speed towards the portal, close to the chest harness that kept them secured was a medallion. The medallion glowed with inscribed rune markings, glowing the same color as the magic portal. Once they neared the portal, the medallions coated the stallions and the carriage in a protective field. The carriage passed through portal, the carriage and the stallions running down the pathway of light down to the exit far away. Inside the carriage Thorn used her magic to open a secret compartment below her hooves, the contents of which held a black cloak and a mask that had a painting of black vines with thorns coming from them. “Time to get ready,” said Thorn. HOURS LATER… A portal opened up in the darkness, shining its ethereal light upon the stone structure of the room. A carriage burst out of the portal and skidded to a halt. The four stallions who were pulling it were now donned in black armor, with helms that covered their faces from view. A flash of light went off, revealing a lanky unicorn stallion as he used his magic to open the carriage door. Thorn stepped out, wearing a black cloak and the mask. The lanky stallion also wore a mask, but it was blank, symbolizing his role in everything. The lanky stallion bowed to Thorn as he spoke, “Hail to the Kingdom.” “Hail to the Kingdom,” replied Thorn. “Have the others arrived?” “Yes milady, they have. They await your presence at the King’s Table.” Thorn nodded and began walking, the lanky stallion lead the way, his horn glowing with magical light to illuminate the way. It was more than a simple light spell, the room, like the rest of their hidden fortress, was layered in magical wards. Some would cause disorientation, confusing any would be intruders from discerning where they were, practically making them run in circles until madness overtook them. Others ensnared, some killed, and a few even made you hallucinate pleasurable scenarios. Only the Blank Masks were given the spell needed to escort their superiors to the required destination. Most would think this would be a great opportunity to kill, but the spell had a failsafe, it needed to detect another being’s life force, specifically Thorn’s. Else the spell would cancel out and leave the Blank Mask to the horrors that awaited them within. The Blank Mask and Thorn continued walking until they arrived an intimidating pair of large, wooden double doors. The Blank Mask used his magic to open the doors, allowing tendrils of light to brighten the area. When Thorn’s eyes adjusted, she was able to see the full assembly. A long table stretched out before her, made of black marble. There were chairs made of the same material, and each had a cloth sash draped over them, embroidered with a symbol. At the head of the table was a throne like chair, the “King’s Chair” as they called it. Although none of them held the title of king, they kept it there for when a true king was named. Thorn walked behind the chairs of her fellow members until she found her seat, bearing the sash with a black rose on it. Once seated, the assortment of twelve ponies placed their right hooves on the table and spoke as one. “We embrace that which is denied us. We embody all that is dark and light. We struggle to enlighten the masses. We slay those who would maintain the status quo. We take hold of our desires and make them a reality. We await the day when our True King is crowned. We shall rejoice, and follow him unto glory. We are the Kingdom, and their time will come.” The twelve stamped their hooves against the black marble table, creating a loud and thunderous echo within the stone room. “I, War Blade, would like to open our meeting with the following debacle of an operation that took place,” said the stallion with a mask that had streaks of red on it. “Indeed, the Agents we dispatched to Ponyville have failed twice in a row, that’s two times too many,” said the unicorn mare with gear symbols on her sash and mask. Thorn scoffed. “I do not see how these are my blunders. My Agents were created to slay alicorns, from what our surveillance has shown, my Agents use of Xanthos has indeed harmed the Princesses. Proving that they can be killed.” “Yes, well, they can’t kill ONE alicorn, some knew mare that wields thunder and lightning! How do you explain that?!” War Blade shouted back. “They seemed to have damaged this ‘Shazam’ during both battles, but whatever magic this mare possess is very versatile and powerful. Besides, I’m the head of the Magi-Science Division, such things should be asked of the head of the Arcane Research Division!” Thorn countered. Eyes turned to an earth pony mare, with a flower symbol like that of Thorn’s. “What say you, Pink Tulip?” The unicorn mare with a gear mask asked. Pink Tulip brought her hoof to where her mouth was and giggled lightly. “Well, from what I’ve gathered, she uses magic from a time before Equestria. Possibly dating back further before the Warring Tribes Era. Caballeron’s findings in the desert were most helpful.” “I can’t believe you hired that tool, he would’ve ran off with all that treasure and left you high and dry,” said a pegasus stallion with a mask that had bit coins on it. “Money I have plenty of, it’s what he found there that intrigues me. Especially after the appearance of that male alicorn, Black Adam. He was a rather rough customer, nearly killed the Princesses and the Elements of Harmony bearers, singlehoofededly.” “And that’s the problem,” said another member. “He was beaten by another who matched him in power and strength. Whatever this magic is, we need to understand it better.” “And YOU, Black Rose, need to figure out how to make us stronger Agents! Or have you forgotten that it is the Magi-Science Division’s duty to create a suitable King’s Vessel –” Thorn stamped her hoof the table. “Do not remind me what my duty is! I am limited, Xanthos is unstable, and will not easily bend to my experiments. Working with living ponies has helped to craft what it will do, but if we had a sample of this magic that Shazam uses, I may be able to make many breakthroughs in a single day!” “Hmm, I might be able to help you with that,” said Pink Tulip, “it may take a few days, but I believe I can get you a sample of this magic for you.” The other members murmured silently at this. Thorn looked to Pink Tulip dubiously, she was a curious one, and Thorn made it a point not to get too involved with her matters. However, if her projects were to move forward she needed a sample of the magical power of Shazam, and with the alicorn hero vanishing and appearing at the drop of a hat and out of the blue, it was going to be a difficult task to get it from her. “Very well, Pink Tulip, I will accept your cooperation in this, contact me via the standard method should you get it,” said Thorn. Pink Tulip giggled, but there was a bit of a sultry tone in it that made Thorn cringe for some reason. “In that case, I move that we – for the time being – suspend assassination plans for the Princesses.” “Gears you can’t be serious?! We have yet to attack Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, why not try with her?!” War Blade asked. “Because, the Crystal Heart protects the Crystal Empire, and the Crystal Ponies are fiercely loyal to their new Prince and Princess. After suffering under the yoke of oppression that was their King Sombra, they would rather die than let their new royals be slain and return them to dark times,” said Gears. War Blade harrumphed and sat down. Another point that Thorn agreed with, the Crystal Heart was still a relatively unknown power, strengthened by love, it could – in theory – automatically repel the malicious nature of the Xanthos magic, and prevent the Agents from getting into the Empire. Add to that, Gears’ telling of the Crystal Ponies’ loyalty and drive to protect their Princess, they would be another problem. “For now,” Thorn spoke, “as Gears said, we shall suspend assassination attempts until Shazam’s power can be analyzed by me. She was not part of the equation when the Kingdom was first founded, and thanks to her we have been setback, we should’ve already had all four Princesses killed and taken control of Equestria. So let us take a step back and see what needs doing first. All in favor, say ‘I’.” “I!” All but War Blade answered. “Majority rules,” said Thorn. HOURS LATER, PONYVILLE GENERAL HOSPITAL Scootaloo wanted to see her that night, but Cheerilee and Mrs. Milano had told her that visiting hours were over and that she needed her rest. It was only out of that regard for her secret fillyfriend that she kept from going Shazam and visiting her in the middle of the night. But by dawn’s early light Scootaloo’s was wide awake and hopping on Cheerilee’s bed like a foal on Hearth’s Warming morning. Knowing the urgency, Cheerilee got herself ready as well as Scootaloo before making their way to the hospital. Once there, Cheerilee asked Nurse Redheart where Alula was and the white earth pony mare gladly showed them the way. Once they were at the door to Alula’s room Nurse Redheart paused and looked down to Scootaloo. “Listen now, Alula went through a very bad attack and is a little weak. She’s still resting and I can’t let you stay with her long, is that alright?” Redheart asked. No it’s not “alright”, I want to stay with Alula as long as it takes! Scootaloo looked up to Cheerilee and then to Nurse Redheart, she then sighed heavily, knowing that acting overprotective wouldn’t help Alula. But, I don’t want her to get worse because I kept her from getting rest. “Alright, that’s fine,” said Scootlaoo. Redheart nodded and smiled kindly at the pegasus filly. She slowly opened the door and motioned for Scootaloo and Cheerilee to enter, but the maroon mare shook her head. “I know you need to see her Scootaloo, and I don’t want to intrude on you two. I’ll be right outside if you need me.” Scootaloo smiled, her heart swelling with happiness at how Cheerilee knew how important it was to be with her special somepony in her time of need. With that, Scootaloo entered the room, hearing the soft click of the door shutting behind her. The room smelled sterile, as hospitals often did. It was one of the things that Scootaloo disliked about the hospital, well, what twelve-year-old enjoyed the hospital. For her, too many bad memories were connected to this place. The numerous times that she could’ve told a doctor about what her mother was doing to her, all the times she could’ve cried out for help, all gone because she was too afraid. And, there was no telling what her mother would’ve done to keep her or the doctor silent about her abuse. Scootaloo shook the bad memories away, there was no time to worry about the past. The pegasus filly walked further into the room, hearing the soft beeping sound of the ECG monitor. Scootaloo choked back some tears, there were wires going from Alula to the monitor, hidden underneath her hospital gown. An IV tube ran from her neck to a bag of clear fluid that released a steady drip. Luckily, from what she could tell, Alula wasn’t hooked up to anything that was breathing for her. Scootaloo got closer to the bed, and carefully dragged over a chair so she could get a better view of her fillyfriend. Scootaloo flapped her wings and set herself in the chair, scanning over Alula’s body to see if there were any scars or signs of surgery. For a moment, Scootaloo considered channeling her ancient mystic powers, and using them to heal Alula. But, then again, what would that do to Alula? For a pony who randomly switched between the three tribes, who knew what effect that might have on the healing magic. The pegasus filly growled and gritted her teeth, feeling helpless to do anything for somepony she cared about. Alula stirred, and Scootaloo went still. Alula moaned a little, her eyes weakly fluttering open. Her violet eyes fell upon Scootaloo and a weak smile formed on her lips. “S-Scootaloo?” “Y-Yeah, it’s me Alula!” The, at the moment, earth pony filly slowly looked down at herself. It didn’t take her long to realize where she was, making her release a dry chuckle. “Guess it was worse than I thought…I really wished you didn’t have to see me like this…” Scootaloo shook her head and nuzzled the side of Alula’s face gently. “Stupid, I don’t care. I was just worried about you when I heard that you were in the hospital. Do you remember what happened?” “Barely…I just remember my head really hurting…my body felt like it was wanting to tear itself apart from the inside out…and then, there was this weird flavor in my mouth. It tasted metallic, like iron or something?” Scootaloo gulped, she knew what that taste was, she knew it all too well from the battles she fought, she could never forget that taste. The irony taste of one’s own blood. “S-So, how are you feeling now?” “I feel really tired…and a little weak. But I think I’m alright. What about you? You said you were meeting the Princesses for a pet playdate.” The orange filly rubbed the back of her head nervously, chuckling the whole time. “Well…ya see…things went alright, then things went crazy, and then –” “Scootaloo.” Alula interrupted. “Just tell me what happened. No secrets between us.”   Scootaloo knew that telling her about the attack was probably a bad idea, but then again they did make a secret promise to not keep things from each other. So, reluctantly, Scootaloo divulged the sorted details of the Pony Pet Playdate. Everything from how Princess Celestia embarrassed Cheerilee, to the appearance of the Kingdom Agents, her battle with said Agents, the transformation of the pets, and the subsequent debriefing and returning of the pets after the battle. Despite the danger of the story, Alula looked a little entertained. If nothing else, Scootaloo knew how to make a dangerous situation sound like a fun time. Once she was done, Alula carefully reached out with her left hoof towards Scootaloo. The pegasus filly placed her hoof over Alula’s and looked back to her. “I’m glad you’re safe, and everypony else too…” “C’mon Lu, you don’t really think some freaky badguy ponies are going to beat me? I’m a superhero, we always kick butt and save the day.” Alula chuckled. “I know, but still, be careful.” Scootaloo nodded slowly. “I will, I got Twilight and Murmur looking out for me, and now I have the pets saying that they’ll lend me a hoof when I need one. So, I’m not alone, not anymore.” “I don’t want you to ever be alone either.” A gentle rapping was heard from the door, Scootaloo and Alula looked back and saw that Nurse Redheart had stuck her head inside. “Scootaloo, sorry, but I need to cut this short, Alula needs her rest.” Scootaloo wanted to protest, but glanced back to Alula and saw the tired look in her eyes. No doubt she was trying to stay awake and alert because she was there, and didn’t want to fall asleep and miss her. “Okay,” said Scootaloo. “Alula, I promise I’ll be back. I’ll come by every day!” Alula smiled and nodded to her. “I’d like that Scootaloo, but you don’t have to.” She then lowered her voice into a hushed whisper. “I know you have things you need to do as Shazam.” “Hey, don’t worry about those things. Just concentrate on getting better. My birthday’s in a few weeks, and if you don’t get better, then I’m spending it here with you. In this small, cramped hospital room, which Pinkie Pie will fill with balloons and confetti until it’s all hanging out the windows!” Alula chuckled and nodded back to her fillyfriend. “Alright.” Scootaloo spread her wings and flapped to lift herself out of the chair and back onto the floor. She moved the chair back and gave Alula a smile before heading out. Once she was outside, Scootaloo saw Cheerilee sitting against the wall and waiting patiently for her adopted daughter. “How is she?” Cheerilee asked, her voice full concern. “She looks okay, she sounds exhausted though. Guess it’ll be better to come back tomorrow. Right?” Scootaloo asked as she glanced towards Nurse Redheart. “Of course, as her condition improves we’ll allow her longer visits and more visitors. I don’t doubt that the rest of your friends will want to visit as well.” “C’mon Scootaloo, let’s go and get some breakfast and we’ll figure out something afterwards.” Scootaloo sighed, there was nothing left to do until tomorrow. With that, Cheerilee and Scootaloo headed off to town to get something to eat. SWEET APPLE ACRES Babs was struggling a little, for the past few nights now really. Since the first day Babs came to stay with her cousin, Apple Bloom insisted on the both of them sharing her bed. Did they have a spare guest room? Yes. But Apple Bloom wanted to spend as much time with her favorite cousin as possible, so having her sleep in the same bed as her was the best solution. While Babs loved the idea, she didn’t quite feel…safe about doing that. More so for Apple Bloom’s sake than her own. Babs didn’t really trust herself, being that close to Apple Bloom and risking acting upon her incestuous feelings. Which was why she declined the offer at first, offering instead – privately – that she sleep on the floor. A way of penance from when Babs kicked Apple Bloom out of her own bed when she was acting like a bully towards the Crusaders, her friends for life. Apple Bloom considered the incident water under the bridge, and even gave Babs her famous, big, teary, puppy dog eyes. Babs couldn’t say no after that, so, in the end, she was sleeping next to AB for many nights now, waking up to her sleeping face. Inhaling her scent before, during, and after they went to sleep. When Babs woke up this particular morning, she was sweating bullets. Somehow, in the middle of the night, Apple Bloom had cuddled up next to Babs, ending up wrapped in Babs’ forelegs. Apple Bloom unconsciously nuzzled against Babs’ chest fur, making happy moaning noises as she got comfortable. Babs’ heart was hammering in her chest, face heating up from how this looked. She was already a teen mare, and Apple Bloom was just a few months behind her. Babs was already struggling a little with understanding feelings of love, but she knew how she felt for Apple Bloom, it wasn’t a simple crush or a matter of wanting to experiment with someone safe. She was sure of it, this was love. Was it wrong? Yes. Did she care? No. Well…maybe a little. This was always going to be that nagging voice in the back of her head trying to talk to her out of what she was planning, but her mind was made up. Babs was going to confess to Apple Bloom, for good or bad, come Tartarus or high water, that was her plan. Still though, if Cuz keeps donin’ stuff like this I won’t be able to keep to my stupid plan! Babs dared to look down at the sleeping filly in her forelegs, gulping at the peaceful expression on Apple Bloom’s face, and her unkempt red mane. Dammit, why do ya have to be so cute?! Her gaze became more concentrated on Apple Bloom’s lips, enchanting her, calling to her. I…I can’t…If I kiss her and she wakes up…! I could ruin what we have! Or she could totally be cool with it and just write it off as a secret between cousins. Heck, she may even like it. Babs mentally face hoofed herself. Please, wishful thinkin’ much?!   “Mmmm…” Babs froze, feeling Apple Bloom nuzzle closer to her chest and breathing lightly onto it as she continued to slumber. The Manehattan filly held her cousin closer, feeling her heart beat just a little faster from this moment. Babs blew up at her bangs, seeing a few strands of neon red mane block her view, she didn’t know why, but there was something about seeing Apple Bloom without her big pink bow on that made her look a little more mature, but still, she’d never say to get rid of it. It looked too cute on her cousin to tell her to not wear it. The bronze colored filly gently maneuvered her right hoof to her cousin’s head, noticing a few strands of her apple red mane block her face from view. As she did, Babs still felt that sensation in her stomach, the metaphorical butterflies, fluttering as she unknowingly began leaning in closer to Apple Bloom. Closer and closer, centimeter by centimeter, she was closing the gap. Her gaze focused on her cousin’s lips, her desire to kiss her but once driving her body almost against her will. “Mmmm…” Suddenly, Apple Bloom’s eyes lazily fluttered open, and Babs froze as her heart practically stopped then and there. Apple Bloom’s eyes were open now, a drowsy look was upon her face, meaning her conscious mind had yet to catch up. Maybe, Babs contemplated, she still had time to – “Babs…? What’re ya doin’…?” I spoke too soon. Crap, crap, crap, crap, crap, CRAAAAAAAP!!! Think Babs Seed, think, else she’s goin’ to start gettin’ weirded out! With little recourse, Babs decided to kiss Apple Bloom, but not in the place she originally intended. The bronze Manehattan filly placed her lips against Apple Bloom’s forehead, giving her a quick peck before pulling back and smiling bashfully. “Ya just looked too darn cute sleepin’, couldn’t help it,” said Babs with a nervous chuckle. Apple Bloom blushed and squirmed a little in Bab’s embrace, but smiled back at her nonetheless, her last minute change seemingly worked. “Aw, Babs, that’s sweet. And Ah ain’t that cute, Ah’m just average.” Babs scoffed. “Please, you look a lot better than those gussied up mares and fillies back home. They got so much make up and products on it almost makes ‘em look like clowns at the circus.” Apple Bloom chuckled at the thought of seeing such a mare, Rarity was the closest to the statement, but even she never went overboard with the beauty makeup. Except for when she apparently entered the Best Young Fliers competition in Cloudsdale, but that was another matter. “You’re, well, I guess the word is ‘natural beauty’? Ya don’t need fancy makeup or anythin’, you look…um…prettier without that stuff,” said Babs, dangerously edging to the line. The yellow filly’s face went redder, nopony had ever said she was pretty. Cute, a tomcolt, a hard worker, her sister and Granny had said she looked pretty, but with an accompanying country-ism. This was actually the first time somepony said she was straight out pretty, and without anything like a dress or an accessory like her bow. For some reason, Apple Bloom was feeling a warmness in her cheeks, she didn’t know why she felt like that, and it was just Babs, her cousin, her family. Why was her compliment making her feel flustered? And on that note… “Uh, Babs, why are ya holdin’ meh close like this?” Babs chuckled, knowing that this wasn’t her doing. “Youse rolled around in your sleep, and ended up like this, Cuz. Even nuzzled up against me and everythin’.” Apple Bloom was now as red as the fruit her family grew, backpedaling – albeit slowly – out of Bab’s forelegs, and curled in on herself. “Ah’m so sorry! Ah wasn’t tryin’ to be weird or nothin’, it just happens when Ah sleep, Ah shoulda said somethin’!” “Hey, hey, don’t sweat it! Not like ya did anythin’, I’m cool with it, really,” said Babs with all sincerity. Apple Bloom looked up at her cousin, seeing that her expression was sincere and honest. “Still…sorry.” “Hey, you say ‘sorry’ again, I’m boppin’ ya one on the back of the head, got it?” Babs mocked threatened. Apple Bloom gave a small smile and nodded. “Good, and I don’t mind it, really. It’s kinda nice wakin’ with somepony next to ya.” “It is, actually…Well, alright, but if ya start to feel weirded out we can put a pillow between us or somethin’.” Babs reached out and placed a hoof on her cousin’s foreleg. “Trust me, Cuz, it ain’t a problem.” *Knock* *Knock* Babs and Apple Bloom looked to each other and then to the door. Apple Bloom shrugged, neither one was expecting to be woken up by Big Mac or Applejack. “Come in,” answered Apple Bloom. The door opened and showed Applejack, hatless, her face a little solemn looking. “Um, Sis, Babs, Ah think ya need to come downstairs. There’s somethin’ ya need ta know.” It was sometime later that the Crusaders met up at the treehouse. Scootaloo and Aura had arrived first, both looking downtrodden, Scootaloo resembled this the most. Sweetie Belle, Babs, and Apple Bloom arrived together, having all heard the news about Alula’s hospitalization. Once all were assembled, the fillies sat in a circle and waited for somepony to speak. “Is she…alright?” Sweetie asked. “She’s weak, but she looked alright. They won’t allow any more visitors today, she needs to rest.” Scootaloo answered. “What happened to her? Did she get into an accident or somethin’?” Babs asked. Aura sighed. “No…Yes…? It’s hard to really put into words what happened, but I was there when it happened…” The fuchsia filly hugged herself as she trembled from the memories. “She was in so much pain…and there was nothing I could do!” Scootaloo draped her left wing over Aura’s back, comforting her orphan friend the best she could. “You don’t have to tell us Aura, it’s alright.” Aura shook her head. “No, Sweetie, AB, you two saw how she was the first time this happened, right?” Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle nodded, remembering how they, along with Pinkie Pie, found the young filly in pain and semi-conscious. “Well…it was worse than that…” ONE DAY AGO Aura and Alula had been moved into the same room, since Scootaloo left the Wayward House, her bed was vacant, and Mrs. Milano saw it that Aura was with a friend she knew as well as Scootaloo. It was a good arrangement as far as Aura was concerned, it afforded her future opportunities to tease and embarrass Alula about Scootaloo and her being fillyfriends. She was happy for them, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to enjoy watching Alula squeak, blush, and just die of embarrassment from the things Aura had planned. I’m such a bad filly, thought Aura as she chuckled sinisterly. “Aura, you okay?” Alula asked. “Oh just fine my dear Alula, just fine.” Alula was clearly skeptical of that statement, and it didn’t help that Aura had this wide grin on her face akin to a Cheshire Cat. “Uh-huh…ooookay, guess I’ll just take your word for it.” “Yes, yes you will. So, how’re things with Scootaloo?!” Aura asked excitedly. Alula blushed noticeably, she was currently sporting pegasus wings, so the sudden question made them flare at the same time she blushed. “E-Everything’s fine, we’re good!” “Ugh, Alula, don’t go all ‘fine’ and ‘good’ with me! I want to know all the dirty, gritty details!” Alula raised an eyebrow at the words “dirty” and “gritty”. “Just what exactly do you think we do?” Aura shrugged. “Well I don’t know, but I have an active imagination~” The vanilla pegasus filly groaned inwardly. “I’m going to hate myself for asking…but, what do you imagine?” Aura grinned wider. “So glad you asked!” The fuchsias earth filly dove under her bed, disappearing in the shadows. A few seconds passed and Aura had yet to surface, making Alula wonder how deep, or rather, how far the she went. Given that the wall was on the right side of the bed, the only open space was before Alula. The pegasus filly slowly crept forward, hearing the sounds of shifting objects and other things coming from shadows. Alula lowered her head, trying to peek into the shadows of the bed. “No peeking!” “GAH!” Alula jumped back, actually, she flew into the air, nearly hitting her head on the ceiling before landing on her bed. Suddenly, a large journal was tossed from under Aura’s bed, sliding to the middle space between their beds. The earth filly finally emerged from the mysteriously deep underbelly of her bed. “How – what the – huh?!” “Heh, heh, sorry that took so long. I gotta remember to reorganize down there.” She then glared back at the shadows. “Or get somepony who can properly organize!” “Bite me, filly!” “Don’t make me come down there and actually bite you! I’m a biter, you know that!” A low whimper could be heard from under the bed before a grunt accompanied it. Alula’s right eye was twitching, hearing a mysterious voice from under her bed, and Aura arguing with said voice was just Pinkie Pie levels of weird. Morbid curiosity begged her to ask Aura what it was, but a little voice in her head warned her against that. “Okay then, now let’s see.” Aura sat down before her journal and began flipping through the pages. “You can come down, it’s alright.” Alula cautiously stepped hoof onto the floor. Once she did, Alula quickly flipped up the blankets, taking a look under her own bed, noticing that the shadows weren’t as dark, allowing her to see the wall on the other side. This only confused her further. “Oh don’t worry, he likes it under my bed.” “Who – I – You know what, never mind, it’ll just keep me up at night.” Alula sat down across from Aura and eyed the journal dubiously. “So what’s this journal about?” Aura chuckled. “This, my dear Alula, holds my various stories and ideas of how each of my special pairings interact when in a relationship. Yours and Scootaloo’s made up…mmm…I’d say fifty-one percent of my works. Ah, like this one!” Aura pointed to one title and Alula followed her gaze, reading aloud “‘You Don’t Need Wings to Fly’? What’s that?” “Basically a scenario in which two orphan fillies, who are friends, grow closer and closer. Scootaloo wishes to fly, but like before she got her cutie mark and all, and tries desperately to do so! You, Alula, stand by her side, comforting her when she fails, and cheering her on as she manages to lift off the ground. Like in this excerpt.”   Scootaloo cried hard, after all the months of training and hard work, she could still not get more than two feet of the ground. But, then, her heart was nearly broken in two when her mentor, Rainbow Dash, returned from the doctor. “I’m sorry Scoots…the docs…they said you have a disease that’s keeping your wings from getting stronger…” “What does that even mean?! Just give me a shot or some spell to fix me then!” Scootaloo shouted. “It’s not that simple, it’s a born illness, Scoots. If it was something you caught, maybe Twilight or one of those doctors in Canterlot could maybe fix it! But…you were born with it. It’s a part of you, I’ve already asked Twilight – begged her – do something! She gave me the same answer: ‘I’m sorry’. Scoots, if we caught this when you were younger, maybe we could’ve made it not as bad, but at this point, all they can do is give you therapy to keep your wings strong and healthy.”   “Aura that’s horrible! How could you write that about that happening to Scootaloo!” Alula scolded. “It’s part of the story, it adds drama and gets ya in the feels! See, even you’re tearing up!” Alula wiped a couple of tears from her eyes with her wing tips. “That doesn’t matter! What if that actually happened?!” Aura rubbed her foreleg as she answered. “Honestly, I knew it wouldn’t. Call me crazy or whatever, but I just had this feeling like Scootaloo would fly one day, and whether it was literally or metaphorically, I didn’t know, but I just knew. And, it helped to write out the fear, made it easier to forget.” Alula was a little shocked at that revelation, the only reason she knew that Scootaloo wasn’t going to end up like that was because she believed in her, and also when she told the tribe-shifter about her secret identity as Shazam. “If it makes you feel any better, you end up kissing her and making her feel like she can fly, in the metaphorical sense of the word. And the two of you spend the rest of your lives together happily, growing up here and eventually moving out together and living in the same place.” Alula blushed hard, she was happy that Scootaloo was her fillyfriend, and in truth, she hadn’t thought that far ahead. Alula wanted to be with Scootaloo, and the thought of living together, as a couple, growing up together as lovers, it made the young filly’s heart go aflutter. “Well…so long as it has a happy ending, I’m good with it, I guess,” said Alula. Aura nodded. “Good, but of course, that’s just one of many others. I…ahem…even wrote certain things…” The filly’s face blushed at mentioning this. “What sort of ‘things’ Aura?” Alula immediately dreaded asking that. Aura turned a few pages of the journal, landing on a story that was entitled “The Passion of the Two Orphans”. The earth filly turned the journal around to face Alula, apparently wanting her to read it instead of Aura reading it aloud. With a little uneasiness, Alula read the passages of the story. It was apparently written in this story that Alula and Scootaloo were in their early twenties, much like Rainbow Dash and Princess Twilight were currently. It started out innocently enough, apparently they were living together, which was sweet. They had a nice house, in Ponyville of course. Were still friends with Aura and the other members of the CMC. As night fell in the story, however, things started to take a turn.       “Why does Scootaloo keep staring at my flank?” Alula asked. “Keep reading,” answered Aura. A couple of sentences later. “Why am I swiping at her cutie marks with my tail?” “Keep reading.” Another couple of sentences later Alula’s face became redder. “I-I don’t think we’d kiss each other like that! Using our tongues?! Eww!” “Keep reading…” A whole paragraph later had Alula quickly slamming the book closed, wings flared out fully, face glowing red. Aura drew circles in the floor with her right hoof, face about half as red as Alula’s was. “W-W-Why did I…Why did Scootaloo?! The bed…hooves…wings…screaming…! What the hay is a wingbo –?!” “Yeah, so, anyway, that’s just a couple of things. That last one may or may not be a product of the part of my imagination that sits in the gutter…” Aura quickly put her hooves into a prayer position and bowed to Alula. “Please don’t tell Mrs. Milano or the other foals!” Alula blinked, trying to shake off the shock of what she just read. Unfortunately, she was not going to be forgetting any of that anytime soon, but she did understand why Aura was begging her. “Y-Yeah…okay, I won’t. Just, um, promise you won’t write anymore like that about us…I mean, Scoots and I are together now so…” Aura nodded in agreement. “Of course! I haven’t written anymore since you two told me, these were from a month ago, I was having writer’s block.” The earth filly raised an eyebrow. “Do you, by chance, want to keep that story for yourself?” “N-NO! HAY NO!” Alula shifted her gaze away. “………Maybe hide it until Scootaloo and I are…older.” Aura winked at her friend. “Will do. HEY MANNY, FILE THE RISQUE ONES UNDER ‘SPECIAL REQUESTS’ SECTION! CAREFULLY!” Aura brought the journal to her, positioning behind her left hind leg before kicking it back under the bed. “For a filly of your age, you have a vivid, and yet, dirty imagination at times.” “I don’t pay you to criticize Manny, I pay you to file and keep things neat and organized,” replied Alula. There was a low grumble and spluttering within the darkness. “You don’t pay me at all!” “Not with that attitude I won’t.” Suddenly, something long and green slithered out from under Aura’s bed, causing Alula to shriek with horror as she once again went airborne. Aura looked back and saw the green tentacle slithering out from under her bed, watching as it began to coil towards her. Aura quickly sidestepped the tentacle and gave it a bite. The tentacle retreated back under the bed, whimpering a like dog. “You bit me!” “I told you I was biter, now be a good boy!” “Yes ma’am.” Aura sighed frustratingly. “Honestly, he’s a nice…whatever he is, but he can be so stubborn. Alula?” Aura looked around not seeing Alula, she then looked up and saw said filly. Hooves against the ceiling, wings flapping at a rapid pace to keep her clinging to the ceiling, and shaking like a leaf. “What the hay was that thing?!” “Heh, heh, yeaaaaaah…mind keeping that a secret too? I promise he’s not dangerous, Scootaloo lived here this whole time with Manny under my bed and she’s fine!” Aura hung her head low. “You probably want a different roommate now…?” Alula stopped clinging to the ceiling and floated down to Aura, seeing the saddened expression on her face. “I’m sorry, it just startled me. I don’t want change rooms, you’re my friend, and whatever that is, and as long it behaves I’m fine.” Aura smiled broadly and threw her forelegs out, hugging Alula. The pegasus filly was a little surprised, but that wore off, allowing her to return the hug. Just then, a sharp pain shot through her skull, causing Alula to rip herself away from Aura. “AAAAHH!” “Alula?!” Aura cried. “M-M-MRS. M-M-MILANO…G-GET HER!!” Alula yelled as pain surged through her body. Aura shook her head and bolted out the door, yelling for the matron of Wayward House at the top of her lungs. Alula collapsed onto the floor, her body was once again wracked with the soul tearing pain like before, but for some reason it was even more intense than last time. The young filly grunted and screamed, her head felt as if it wanted to split open, her body felt like it was tearing itself apart from the inside out. Each breath she took hurt, making her want to stop breathing, but she couldn’t. She had to keep breathing, no matter how much it hurt she had to keep breathing. Soon she heard the rapid thudding of hooves echo through the floorboards, and in no time Aura and Milano appeared in the doorway. The matron mare gasped in horror at what she saw, hoping that it wasn’t as Aura described, unfortunately it was. Milano rushed to Alula’s side, she threw her saddle bag onto the floor and fished out the pain medication that the doctors prescribed for when an attack happened. The brunette mare managed to pop off the cap and get a couple of pills out. “Alula, sweetie, I need you to try and swallow these pills, it’ll help stop the pain so we can take you to the hospital!” “I-I can’t! It hurts – AAAAAAH!!!” Alula continued to thrash around as every possible nerve in her body ignited with a jolt of pain. Aura was panicking, she didn’t know what to do to help. Milano knew in this state that Alula couldn’t swallow of her own accord. “Aura! Hurry and get me a glass of water now!!!” The earth filly complied, dashing out of the room and towards the bathroom. Some of the staff and other orphans were crowding outside of the room, watching anxiously and worriedly as Alula continued her howls of pain and spastic thrashing. Milano used her inborn earth pony strength to keep Alula from thrashing about too much and hurting herself against the furniture or walls. “Milano, I called the hospital, they’re sending EMT ponies right now!” A staff member shouted. “We need to stabilize her, c’mon Aura!” “OUT OF THE WAY!” Aura cried. The crowd parted way for the filly, who was miraculously balancing a glass of water on her back as she skidded to a halt before Milano. “I got the water, now what?!” Milano took the pills into left hoof, she sighed, knowing that what she was about to do would seem wrong but it was the only way to get them down. She popped the pills into her mouth, and quickly took a sip of water. Milano maneuvered Alula onto her back, tilting her head up just a bit. Milano, to the surprised gasps of everypony, placed her lips onto Alula, forcing the young filly’s mouth open as she let the water carry the pills down her throat. Alula coughed a bit, but felt the pills and water flow down her esophagus and down into her stomach. Milano quickly retracted her lips, gasping for air having had to keep her muzzle pressed against Alula’s to force her into swallowing. Luckily, the pills were strong medicine, Milano knew it wouldn’t take long before they started working. Milano brought the filly into an embrace, her ears were assaulted by her constant screams of pain, but she held on. Even while Alula thrashed and writhed, she kept holding her. Trying to help lessen the frightening experience by offering her presence as comfort and security to the young filly. A minute passed and Alula’s thrashing started to subside, ten seconds past and her cries lowered. Upon the second to third minute Alula wasn’t crying out in pain anymore, sobbing and sniffling, body still in an amount of pain, but compared to earlier it was ignorable. “Shh-shh, I’m here Alula, you’ll be alright, the medicine is kicking in, just give a little more time. I won’t leave you, honey,” said Milano in her most comforting, motherly voice. “I-It hurts all over…my head…my body…” Milano gently stroked Alula’s mane, doing so as if touching brittle glass. “We’ll get you to the hospital, and then everything will be alright.” Alula felt reassured by Milano’s words, she held onto them, not wanting to think about the pain. But unfortunately, this episode was far from over. Alula’s body glowed red, her wings retracting back into her body. Aura saw this and quickly bucked the door, slamming it shut to keep others from seeing Alula’s tribe-shifting. Milano watched as a unicorn horn sprouted from her forehead, making the mare jerk her head back before it punctured her neck. The horn suddenly retracted, and then she was an earth pony, but then the wings popped out again, then the horn, and then wings left. Her body was randomly cycling through the three different tribes. Alula opened her eyes, which had rolled back into her head as her body convulsed from the rapid shifts. The glow around her body began releasing bursts of red light, firing a bolt for Aura. The filly dodged the bolt, nimbly rolling to the right as the bolt struck the wall behind her, scorching it on impact. Another one was fired, hitting the ceiling, a third shot through the window, a fourth struck the nightstand. Feeling the energy against her unprotected fur and skin, it was as if hundreds of jagged needles were digging into her skin and sawing through it, as if protesting her contact with Alula. Milano bit down on her lower lip, enduring the pain and refusing to relinquish the filly. Suddenly, to the shock and horror of both Milano and Aura, the red energy snapped, cancelling itself out as her purple aura came back into existence. But even that snapped away, and Alula went completely limp in Milano’s grasp. She then heard a loud cough like retching. Milano figured Alula had vomited, it didn’t bother her. After giving birth and raising two colts she’s seen her share of spit up, throw up, and other things. However, Milano wasn’t prepared for the look of pure horror on Aura’s face, having gone pale. Milano was about to ask what was wrong, when she realized it wasn’t Milano herself she was looking at, rather, it was where Alula was resting. The mare looked down at herself, her eyes nearly bulged out of her skull upon seeing what the wet substance actually was. Blood had stained her coat, a lot of it. Milano pushed back on Alula, showing that the blood had come from her mouth. All that was heard after that was a loud scream.  PRESENT, 3 DAYS LATER… Scootaloo had gone to visit Alula, she promised to stay with her fillyfriend as along as she could until they booted her out. But Scootaloo swore that Nurse Redheart was letting her stay a little longer than normal. If she was, she didn’t say anything, and Scootaloo wasn’t about to jinx a good thing. Thankfully, each day that past Alula seemed a little better. Scootaloo could still hardly believe what happened to her, inwardly she cursed herself for not being there when the filly she cared about was in pain and possibly dying. If it wasn’t for the Kingdom Agents the playdate could’ve ended on time and she could’ve visited Alula, maybe even used her magic to stop it before it got this bad. But there was no sense in beating that dead horse, what was done was done, and the good thing was that Alula was getting better. “Seriously, I can’t believe you haven’t met Manny yet!” Alula shuddered under her blankets. “I can’t believe you actually knew about a thing like that living under Aura’s bed!” “Nah, Manny looks creepy as hay, but he’s just a big push over.” Scootaloo assured. “Aura had to bite him to get him to behave,” said Alula with a deadpan expression. Scootaloo chuckled nervously. “Okay, so he’s got some issues with behaving, tough love helps.” Alula gave her a dubious look, but chuckled nonetheless. Scootaloo placed her hoof over Alula’s, smiling at her fillyfriend warm heartedly. The bedridden filly smiled back, enjoying the warmth of Scootaloo’s hoof on her’s. “So how much longer did the doctors say you were going to stay?” Scootaloo asked. Alula sighed heavily. “Mrs. Milano was here when the doctors came in, they told us that whatever caused my attack they can’t find.” “Seriously?” “Seriously.” Scootaloo shook her head at this revelation. “C’mon, they’re doctors! They have to know what’s wrong with you so they can fix it!” “They don’t know, and neither do I. I wish I did so I could tell them.” Alula coiled her hoof around Scootaloo’s, gripping it tightly. “I don’t want to feel that again…it was so scary…and it hurt so much more than before…!” “Well…maybe I could use my powers! I mean, what’s the point in having the magic of six gods if I can’t use it to heal you?! O-Or I could go back to the Rock of Eternity’s library! I’m sure Murmur and I could find something in all that mess about what’s happening with you!”   “Scootaloo,” Alula spoke up, “it’s alright, and you don’t need to do all that. I’m feeling better, a little weak, but I will be back on my hooves soon. Besides, it’s not fair of you to use your powers like that on me. What if there’s another attack and you’re not at full strength because you used a lot of your magic to heal me?” Scootaloo lowered her head. “I…Well, what are the chances of an attack happening as soon as I do that?” Alula gave her a deadpan expression. “Right…we live in Ponyville, forgot.” Scootaloo sighed dejectedly, she really wanted to help Alula, but she also had a responsibility as the Champion of Magic. She needed to be at a hundred percent for whenever the Kingdom attacked again. “I get it, I won’t do that. But least let me ask Murmur to check up on this in the library.” “I-I don’t mind that, but I don’t want Murmur to run herself ragged because of me.” The orange filly blew a raspberry. “You kidding, you should see her when she’s buzzing around the library searching for something. I think she’s just happy to be doing something now that a new Champion was chosen.” A solemn look befall Scootaloo. “She must’ve felt so sad each time a Champion passed on, growing old while she stayed young. I wonder…” Alula tilted her head inquisitively. “Wonder what?” “Quicksilver, the Champion before me. He looked really old, probably older or as old as Princess Celestia and Luna. Black Adam stayed in his Champion form for thousands of years and never aged a day, at least until he changed back to normal and he became dust.” Scootaloo looked at herself, and then to Alula. “If I did that, I could be, like, immortal, live forever…and watch everypony I love go…” “You wouldn’t be alone. Princess Twilight, Princess Luna, Princess Cadance, and Princess Celestia would still be around. If the other three knew who you really were, I’m sure they’d help you not feel as sad anymore.” Scootaloo shook her head in frustration. “Yeah, but, how did they do it?! I can barely imagine Cheerilee, Twilight, you, or any of my friends dying in an accident or killed by somepony! I mean, what would be the point in having a special somepony after you?! I don’t think I could l-love somepony else after losing you!” Despite the sad notion of that thought, Alula couldn’t help but blush, having realized just how much she meant to Scootaloo. “Well, I know I wouldn’t want you to be sad forever. I would want you to be happy, and really, if you did find another special somepony after I was gone I’d be cheering you on! Because I know how happy they’ll make you, and you them.” The orange pegasus filly’s eyes glistened with tears from hearing Alula’s words. She quickly rubbed them and pouted. “Great, now you’re making me get all sappy! I don’t do sappy!” “Could you at least do one more sappy thing for me?” Alula asked. Scootaloo sighed. “Sure.” “C-Could…um…could you kiss me?” Orange wings flared, and crimson colored Scootaloo’s face. Both fillies had nervous looks, fidgeting where they were as they a response was awaited. After what felt like an eternity of waiting, Scootaloo nodded and gave an “Mmm-hmm”. Alula blushed harder and closed her eyes, leaning up towards Scootaloo and holding her position. Scootaloo glanced about the room, making sure nopony was around. She didn’t mind getting sappy when it was just the two of them, but she really didn’t want to lose her tough filly rep for it in public. Scootaloo kept her eyes open as she leaned forward, bringing her muzzle and Alula’s close to within a hair’s breathe. The pegasus filly closed her eyes and closed the gap, pressing her lips against Alula’s. Neither one of them was old enough to know anything more advanced…well…in Scootaloo’s case she might know, but those were memories better left buried and forgotten. No, this was a simple butterfly kiss, but even this simple action conveyed their feelings for each other. Both fillies parted, looking at each other through half-lidded eyes. Scootaloo rested her forehead against Alula’s, both of them breathing as one and just enjoying this moment between them. “OH MAH GOSH!” Alula and Scootaloo quickly broke their contact and looked towards the source of the voice. Standing in the doorway was Apple Bloom, ears against her skull, her mouth hanging open as her eyes widened and her pupils became pinpricks. “A-Apple Bloom, this is…uh…well…I…” “You…You were kissin’ Alula…and then you were…Ah…Ah need to go,” said Apple Bloom in a daze. “Apple Bloom wait!” Scootaloo cried out. But it was too late, the youngest Apple sibling dashed away, running full speed down the hall and towards the entrance. When Apple Bloom rounded the corner she accidentally ran into Babs who dropped whatever items she bought at the hospital gift shop. She groaned in pain, rubbing her head and preparing to cuss out the pony who ran into her, that is until she saw who it was. “Cuz, what’re ya doin’ runnin’ around?! I thought you were goin’ ahead of me to see Alula?” “Ah…Ah just…they were…Ah’m sorry Babs I need to go!” Apple Bloom picked herself up and kept running through the sliding glass doors and down the road. Babs got up, she looked to the entrance Apple Bloom went out through, and then to the hallway where Alula’s room was. But before she could decide on which direction to go, another pony came skidding out of the hallway, nearly knocking into Babs. The bronze filly recognized this pony and quickly blocked her off. “Scoots!” “Babs!” “What the heck is wrong with Apple Bloom?!” Both asked in unison.