Starlight Glimmer tapped her hoof impatiently. She was trying to remain calm but the situation had everyone on edge. Upstairs, Twilight Sparkle and Double Diamond were trying to calm down the sobbing Spoiled Rich. Starlight hadn’t heard any noise coming from the bedroom for over an hour, and yet Twilight and Double had not yet returned from her room.
In the family room, Rarity was gently asking Filthy Rich and Diamond Tiara about what happened. “I don’t mean to make you uncomfortably Mr. Rich, but is there anything else you can remember from the attack? Anything at all? Even the slightest detail can help.”
Mr. Rich sighed. “It’s just like I’ve been telling you. We were all sleeping at the time. Suddenly, I heard one of the windows breaking. I got outta bed as fast as I could, but whatever attacked us was faster. Our bedroom door burst open and suddenly there’s this thick, green smoke filling our room. I tried to hold my breath but I must have inhaled some of the smoke already. I started to feel really dizzy, the room’s spinning, and I couldn’t make anything out. The attacker just looked like this black blur.”
“A black blur, you say? You’re sure about the colour?” Starlight asked.
“No. It was too dark for me to make out any details. Maybe it had a black coat but I can’t say for sure. If it even had a coat.” Mr. Rich shrugged. “Pretty soon I pass out completely. I woke up a few hours later. Me and Diamond are fine…but Spoiled…”
Diamond gave them a numb nod. She had been very quiet during Rarity’s questions, still recovering from the shock of it all. “Y-yeah. I was knocked out by some green smoke too.”
Rarity sighed and glanced at Starlight. “Well that doesn’t give us much to go on, does it? How are we supposed to continue this investigation when we don’t have any clues?”
There was a light knock on the side of the wall, before Applejack stepped into the room. “Uh, howdy. So how’s the investigation going?”
“Poorly, I’m afraid. Unless you’ve discovered a clue?” Rarity asked hopefully.
“Afraid not. I just stopped by to see how you were doing, and because this little one wanted to lend a helping hoof to Diamond Tiara,” Applejack said as she stepped aside.
“Howdy!”
Starlight grimaced as the filly strolled into the room, carrying a bouquet of bright yellow flowers. “Sorry to drop by unannounced but I merely wanted to offer my condolences. Or is it sympathies? I brought flowers!” she said cheerfully.
Diamond’s face twisted into a furious scowl. “You!” She lunged across the room and pinned the filly against the wall.
Everyone in the room stared at Diamond in shock. The only one who didn’t seem concerned was the filly. “Oh ho, ho, ho! Now we’re talking!” she said with a triumphant grin.
“Shut up! I know it was you!” Diamond cried.
“Why, whatever are you talking about dearie?” the filly asked with an innocent smile.
“Don’t play dumb! Yesterday I was picking on you and you called me out on being a bully! The very next morning, my mom has lost all her beautiful fur! And she has the word ‘bully’ written on her face! How could you do this?!”
The filly titled her head to the side. “You think I did this? My dear little diamond, I was having a sleepover at Applejack’s farm. Ask Apple Bloom, she’ll vouch for me. Ask Scootaloo if you want, I went to sleep before her and her bed was right next to mine. How could I have possibly left the farm without somebody spotting me, let alone accomplish this masterpiece of madness?”
“She’s right. I was watching those fillies like a hawk,” Applejack promised. “Now put her down, Diamond Tiara. I know you’re madder than a…than a…” The equal mark on Applejack’s flank pulsed a little before she shook her head. “I know you’re mad but you can’t go blaming this filly for something she didn’t do. I know she’s a little odd but I don’t think she would do something this cruel.”
“A little odd? More like a freak of nature,” Diamond grumbled.
The filly smiled. “Thank you!”
Diamond grumbled some more before she took her hoof off of the filly. If Starlight was being honest with herself, she wanted to blame the filly too, but she made a good point. There was no evidence linking the filly with this mysterious attacker. Really, how could a little girl even be capable of something so monstrous?
“If you didn’t attack my mom, then why are you here?” Diamond asked.
The filly smiled gently. “We may not have made the best first impressions on each other but I really do want to see you smile again. I know a desperate soul when I see one so I came to offer these flowers and my friendship.” She held out the yellow flowers for them to see.
Diamond’s expression softened before she lowered her head. “I’m not desperate.”
“Oh sweetheart, it’s okay.” The filly placed the flowers on the floor and gave Diamond a hug. “I’ve been where you are now. Saddened by the ill fortune of a loved one. Confused and angry at the world. Uncertain what the future may hold. But I clawed my way up from rock bottom. I’m made of stronger stuff than that and I think you can be too. I promise you, you and your family will survive.”
Diamond’s face twisted with emotion, her eyes watering a little. “Why…why are you being nice to me?”
The filly slowly released Diamond and smiled at her. “You didn’t really mean to be a bully to me yesterday, did you? And if I offended you in some way, then I apologize for that. But we can’t let a petty school fight get in the way of those we care about.”
“Thank…you,” Diamond whispered softly. “I just…I don’t know what to do. Some kind of monster broke into our house and I couldn’t do anything about it! I just…”
“There, there,” the filly said gently as she rubbed Diamond’s back. “You may be a little spoiled in your wealth; a little rough around the edges…but you’re a diamond, aren’t you? You can survive this.”
“I…I can’t…” Diamond whispered, her little body shaking with fear over the thought of another attack.
The filly’s smile became a bit brighter as she softly sang. “You’re a diamond – that means you’ll never break. No matter what be the cost of the paths we take. Whatever we have to do to win in the end.”
Starlight frowned. “I really don’t think this is the time for a song.”
“Yes, well, that’s because you have no music in your soul,” the filly said, childishly sticking her tongue out at Starlight.
“It’s okay,” Diamond said to Starlight. “She’s just trying to help, in her own freakish way.”
“See? We’re all better.” The filly smiled and turned to Rarity. “So, what brings you here Miss Rarity?”
“Well, a mystery this big requires an investigation. I’m afraid nopony got a good look at the attacker so I offered my services to help track down this monster.”
“Why don’t you just call a detective?” the filly asked sweetly.
Starlight frowned. “Because we have no need for one. When everypony is equal, there is no conflict. Nopony needs to fight or steal from anypony when we all share the same philosophy. Aside from the rat and last night, there has never been a crime or an attack in Ponyville since we have all embraced our equality.”
The filly chuckled. “You haven’t been to Canterlot or Manehatten recently, have you?”
Starlight’s eyes narrowed. “What are you talking about? I get reports from members of our community from both cities. Princess Twilight is in contact with Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. There is no conflict. There is only equality. Equestria is at peace.”
The filly giggled some more. “He, he, he!” She turned to Rarity and said, “Well, setting aside Starlight’s charming fantasy, shall we return to my previous question? If you didn’t need a detective before, I think you need one now. Of course, I’m not trying to discredit you Miss Rarity. I’m sure your deductive skills are up to the task.”
“Thank you, darling.” Noticing the glare Starlight was giving her, Rarity gave her a forced smile and said, “But I’m afraid that I’m no better a detective than anypony else. I am simply the pony who volunteered, anypony could have done just as good as me.”
Princess Twilight and Double Diamond walked down the stairs. “Starlight, we have a problem.”
Starlight groaned. “What is it now?”
“We’ve managed to get Spoiled to stop crying, but now…we can’t get her to do anything,” Double said.
Twilight nodded sadly. “She’s become completely unresponsive.”
“Oh, I wouldn’t worry about that,” the filly said with a wave of her hoof. “The old gal’s just had a bad shock. It’s just a tiny, little mental breakdown. Or would that be post-traumatic stress? I always get medical terminology mixed up…” the filly said as she rubbed her chin in cheerful thought.
Mr. Rich scowled at her. “That’s my wife you’re talking about! Can’t you take this seriously?”
The filly smiled at them. “Oh darling, you’re never going to get far in life if you take it too seriously. Now rest easy little ponies, for I have the answer to all your problems.” She held up the yellow flowers for them to see. “Much like myself, these flowers hide quite a few secrets behind their pretty faces. I found out about these in the Botanical Legends that Princess Twilight let me borrow. They have quite a…intoxicating aroma. Simply wave them under her nose and old Spoiled should be up and running again.”
Starlight frowned. “Now wait a minute. How do you know those flowers are safe?”
The filly shrugged cheerfully. “You got a better idea?” She giggled and said, “He, he, wait, wait. Don’t answer that, I just remembered who I was talking to.”
“She brings up a good point, darling,” Rarity said.
“Oh, quit your worrying! I’ve been inhaling their lovely scent the whole journey to this beautiful house.” To demonstrate, the filly held up the flowers and took a huge sniff. “Mmm. You really should try this. It feels like a lightning bolt!” The filly’s body shivered with delight. “Like electricity coursing through your veins…”
The other ponies looked a little uneasy as the filly closed her eyes and licked her lips. “Um, I don’t think I trust what those flowers are doing to you. Isn’t there something safer we can use for my wife?” Mr. Rich asked.
“Oh, do stop interrupting me,” the filly said. “This only happens with people who are wide awake. If Spoiled is truly as zonked out as you say she is, this should merely bring her back to her senses, nothing more.”
“I don’t know about this…” Double mumbled, fidgeting a little.
The filly smiled and rolled her eyes. “Diamond, why don’t you go bring these up to your mommy dearest since the grown-ups are apparently too busy to help her.”
As she passed the flowers to Diamond, Mr. Rich bit his lip. “I may not know much about you little one, but if you can help my wife the Rich family will be eternally in your debt.”
The filly’s smile brightened. “Ooh, I love making new friends!”
“Now wait just a minute!” Starlight shouted, trying to get their attention. “Are we really putting our trust in a bouquet of flowers? Delivered by a filly who still doesn’t understand our way of life no less!” She frowned at Diamond and said, “Put those down, they could be dangerous.”
The filly smiled, slowly brushing Diamond’s mane a little. “It’s your decision, my dear. But let me ask you this…if you love someone, isn’t it worth a little danger?”
“Back away from her! Diamond Tiara! Put those down before you hurt yourself!” Starlight cried.
Diamond glanced at the filly before she scowled Starlight. “You’re not the boss of me!”
The filly grinned as Diamond ran upstairs. “Atta girl!”
Starlight glared at the filly. “If anything happens to her…”
“I’ll be the first to know,” the filly said with a wink. “Well, I do believe my work is done here. I know when I have overstayed my welcome so I’ll be out of your hair for now.” She turned to walk out the door before she paused. “Oh, Applejack darling, might I have your permission to poke around your farm for supplies? We’ll need to get all the preparations in order before the town meeting.”
Applejack raised an eyebrow. “What town meeting?”
The filly grinned at them. “Why, to discuss the mysterious monster attacks, of course! There’s been no announcement but I assumed that either Starlight or more likely Princess Twilight would call a town meeting in order to alert the public on how to defend themselves!”
Princess Twilight’s eyes widened. “You’re right! We need to gather up everypony in Ponyville right away! Rarity, can you stay behind and make sure Mrs. Rich is alright?”
“Absolutely, Twilight!” Rarity said with a smile.
“Outstanding! Shall we all meet at Sweet Apple Acres then? I’m looking forward to it!” the filly said cheerfully.
“Wait a moment! Twilight, we need to talk about…wait, where are you going? Why Sweet Apple Acres?!” Starlight asked. But Twilight and Applejack were already heading out the door.
“Well, we’ll be sure to send you an invitation, my dear. I bid you adieu, my friends and Starlight.” The filly waved at them cheerfully before she skipped out the door.
“Wait! Come back!” Starlight cried out. Her head was spinning. First Diamond disobeyed her orders despite the risk to her safety and now Princess Twilight and Applejack were leaving her behind to deal with Spoiled Rich. They were doing it for a good reason of course, but it was still so frustrating for her.
She turned to see Mr. Rich, Double Diamond, and Rarity heading up the stairs and quickly followed them to see if Mrs. Rich’s condition had improved.
Spoiled Rich was staring up at the ceiling, her eyes glassy and her mouth hanging open. Diamond was desperately waving the bouquet of flowers under her nose. “Come on mom! Wake up!” she cried.
Starlight sighed as Spoiled Rich remained unresponsive. She was about to grab the flowers with her magic when the older mare slowly blinked.
“D-d…Diamond…” Spoiled croaked out.
“Mom?” Diamond asked hopefully.
“Honey?” Mr. Rich whispered as he gently grasped his wife’s hoof.
Rarity smiled as Spoiled slowly came back to reality. “It appears the little filly’s flowers work.”
“Apparently…” Starlight muttered. She reached out to Spoiled. “Mrs. Rich, now that you’re awake can you tell us who did this to you?”
What happened next, no pony saw coming. The second her hoof touched Spoiled, the older mare stared at Starlight with wide eyes before she let out a piercing scream.
“Aaahh! Evil! Horrible, little evil!” Spoiled screamed as she shrunk into her covers.
“Mom!” Diamond cried.
Mr. Rich glared at Starlight. “What did you do to her?!”
“Me? Nothing! I just touched her!” Starlight exclaimed, eyes wide with confusion and concern.
“Everyone please be calm!” Rarity begged. “Spoiled Rich, the nightmare is over! You’re safe!”
“N-not safe! The thing is still here! I can feel its slime all over my skin!” Spoiled cried.
“Spoiled Rich, please, we just want to help you! Who did this to you?” Starlight asked.
“Everypony give her some room!” Mr. Rich ordered. “She needs to breathe!” Everyone did as he asked and waited for her to calm down. After several minutes, Spoiled’s sobbing began to simmer.
“I…I apologize, Ms. Glimmer,” Spoiled said, sounding more like her old self. “I’m just…I’m so relieved that beast is gone.”
“Well, we’re glad you’re feeling better Mrs. Rich,” Rarity said with a smile.
Spoiled Rich huddled up in her covers. “You…know what attacked me, right? You’ll slay this beast, won’t you?”
“I’m afraid we don’t know who attacked you. Mrs. Rich, I don’t want to pry, but for the safety of Ponyville I must ask…what happened?” Starlight said.
Spoiled gulped. “It was…horrible. Sickly, green smoke filling the room. Then I woke up…only to find myself tied to my own bed.”
Starlight’s eyes widened. “What?”
“When we found her, all four of her legs were tied up to the bedposts,” Double said, holding up a pile of rope. “The knots were really hard to untie.”
“The room was pitch black. I couldn’t see a thing. But I could feel the monster’s hot breath. I could feel something slimy hitting my stomach.” Spoiled shuddered in disgust in fear. “The whole time, it cut off my beautiful mane and tail with its wicked claws. I could feel it as the demon tore off my fur, strip by strip. And it…it whispered…things in my ear…”
“Do you remember what the voice sounded like? What did it say?” Starlight pressed her.
Spoiled shuddered. “I…I can’t…I can’t! I can’t, I can’t, I can’t!” she cried as she hid herself under the covers.
“Mom? Mom?!” Diamond cried.
“I…I’m sorry…” Spoiled whimpered. She took a few deep breaths. “I’m sorry Diamond Tiara…for everything.” She faced Starlight and said, “Please, I just…I want to be alone with my family.”
“Are you sure?” Rarity gently asked.
“Yes. Just leave me.”
“Very well,” Rarity sighed. “Starlight, perhaps we should see to that town meeting.”
“Maybe,” Starlight mumbled. Her eyes narrowed in…honestly, she wasn’t sure. Her emotions were all over the place.
As the two mares turned to leave, Spoiled suddenly sat up, a haunted look in her eyes. “It wants you,”
“W-what?” Starlight asked as her eyes widened.
“It. Wants. You,” Spoiled told her. She stared at Starlight for several seconds before her eyes rolled up and she collapsed on the bed.
As Spoiled slowly drifted into sleep, a very unnerved Starlight made her way out the door without another word.
“Who wants seconds?!” Apple Bloom shouted cheerfully.
“Me! Me!” Rainbow Dash shouted, wings and forelegs swinging wildly.
Starlight walked into the apple orchards, her expression torn between joy and anger. She had heard from Sugar Belle that the Apple family was distributing apple cider during the town meeting in order to help lighten every pony’s mood. Starlight felt as if the situation was very grim and didn’t need to be lightened but Applejack was being stubborn about it. It was nice that the ponies of Ponyville were being happy, but it was also infuriating that they weren’t doing what they were supposed to do.
“Starlight! You won’t believe it! The cider tastes good again!” Rainbow cried with joy as she drank her seventh glass of apple cider. “It finally tastes good again! Applejack, you make the best cider in all of Equestria!”
“Well, I-I’m sure my apple cider tastes the same as it always has,” Applejack said with a forced smile as Starlight glared at her.
Rainbow didn’t take the hint. “Oh come on AJ. When we had the official cider season two months ago, your cider tasted like dirt! Not as bad as what Flim and Flam tried that one time, but still pretty bad.”
“Now hold on,” Starlight held up a hoof. “The Flim Flam brothers are respected members of our community. The cider they make tastes just as good as Applejack’s.”
Apple Bloom frowned at her. “Hey, my sister and Rainbow Dash are having a conversation. Go bother somepony else.”
Starlight’s jaw dropped at the earth filly’s disrespectful tone. Applejack blushed and said, “She uh, she didn’t mean that.”
Starlight frowned and shook her head. “I’m sure she didn’t. Please be a little more respectful Apple Bloom. We’re all friends here.” She turned to Rainbow and said, “Where’s Twilight?”
“She was out somewhere in the orchards last I checked,” Rainbow said as she drank her eight glass of cider.
Starlight sighed. “Well, I wouldn’t want to keep you from spending time with your friends. I’ll find her myself.”
She began to walk through the orchard, past the many apple trees. Occasionally she walked by a couple of ponies drinking cider and talking with each other. After ten minutes of searching for Twilight with no luck, Starlight was ready to turn back when she felt something brush against her horn.
“Say now, what have we here?”
Starlight looked up to see the filly hanging from an apple tree, her tail wrapped around a branch. “Why, it’s a pony. A lost, little pony,” the filly giggled.
Starlight scowled in annoyance. “What are you doing up there?”
“Enjoying the fruits of our labor, of course. Care to join me?” The filly plucked an apple off the tree and offered it to her. “Come on now. Just one little bite.”
Starlight wrinkled her nose in disgust. “That apple is rotten. How can you even think of eating that?”
The filly smirked. “Yes, it is rotten. It’s not the only one. Actually, over half the apples in this orchard are looking a little worse for wear.”
The filly slithered down from the tree before she touched the ground and began to juggle the apple with her hooves. “Tell me something, exactly how much thought did you put into your little equality philosophy? Everyone being equally good at everything, with nobody being better?”
“What are you babbling about now?”
“Haven’t you heard the age old expression? Nobody’s good at everything, but everyone is good at something.” The filly stopped juggling and smirked at her. “Really, isn’t that a much healthier belief to hold?”
“You don’t understand the burden and the torment that a life with special talent leads to,” Starlight argued. “If you let me-”
“Speaking of healthier standards to live by, have you actually eaten any of the same food that your citizens have been sampling?” the filly said as she circled Starlight. “Not exactly what I’d call fine cuisine. Or even health inspector approved. Now what are you going to do when all the farmers and food providers are equally bad at doing their jobs? Applejack used to have a cutie mark involving apple bucking, but thanks to you she has lost her special talent. So how do you keep a talentless town from starving, little star? You gonna keep them all fed with nothing but Sugar Belle’s muffins or should I bring out the plates of cardboard and get it over with?”
“Stop that!” Starlight scowled. “These apples are perfectly safe to eat! We don’t need cutie marks to grow food! Anypony can do it.”
The filly merely chuckled darkly and shook her head. “You really are oblivious, aren’t you?”
Before Starlight could yell at the filly, another pony came their way. “Ooh, Starlight! Have you tried this cider? It’s tastes wonderful!” Sugar Belle said as she finished off her second glass.
The filly gasped dramatically. “You haven’t tried it yet? Oh now that won’t do at all. Excuse me! May I have your attention everyone!” she shouted. A few nearby ponies turned towards her. “Could someone fetch me a glass of cider or two? There’s a very special glass I saved just for Starry here. Does anyone recall where I left it?”
“Here you go!” Scootaloo said as she ran up to the filly and gave her two glasses of cider. “Right where you told me they’d be.”
The filly grinned at her. “Thank you, sweetheart.” She turned to Starlight and said, “So how about it, little star? How would you like a glass of the best apple cider I have ever tasted?”
The filly held up a glass. It was just an ordinary glass of cider, but it made her feel uneasy. The filly was grinning at her intently. Something about this particular grin was very unsettling.
“I…I’d rather not,” Starlight gulped.
“What’s the matter, dearie? You’re acting as if it’s poisoned!” the filly laughed. “Well allow me to ease your fears.” She smiled and drank the entire glass of cider, licking her lips as she savoured the taste. “Mmm. Absolutely intoxicating.”
Starlight stared at her in mild disbelief. The truth was, she really did think that the cider had been poisoned in some way. Now surely a little filly would never use a real poison, but she thought maybe the little troublemaker had added dirt or her spit to it or something.
“Um, thanks but no thanks,” Starlight said.
“What? Come on Starlight, it tastes great!” Sugar Belle said.
“Yeah! You really need to try some!” Scootaloo added.
“I know you’re still worried about Spoiled Rich, but this will ease your nerves,” Applejack said as she walked over to them.
“I have to agree,” Princess Twilight said as she came by carrying her own glass. “The filly suggested this emergency cider season in order to bring Ponyville together for this town meeting. A little positivity to remind us that even with a dangerous monster on the loss, we have nothing to fear as long as we have each other.”
As more and more ponies pressured her to try the cider, the filly smirked at her. “Isn’t this what you wanted, Starlight? Everyone is agreeing. Everyone is doing the exact same thing. Even me. So why are you the one who is rejecting equality now? You of all ponies deserve this.”
“I…I…” Starlight stammered. She was trapped and she knew it. There was no way out of this without looking paranoid and untrusting to the eyes of Ponyville. She shouldn’t be so nervous about a little drink but the filly’s huge grin was far too ominous.
“It tastes fine, Starlight. Go ahead,” Applejack said with a smile.
“Listen to your friends, dearie. Trust us,” the filly said, her voice a snakelike whisper.
Eventually, Starlight gave in and accepted the second glass of cider. She put on a confident smile for her community and made a toast. “To equality and harmony!”
The filly’s grin threated to split her face in half as she watched Starlight drink. Thankfully, the filly didn’t bother her for the rest of the day, and Starlight was able to concentrate on the town meeting.
That night, Starlight put her favourite book aside and slipped under her covers. She thought that the meeting had gone very well. New rules had been put into place, the curfew had changed from 9 pm. to 7 pm, and most importantly the filly was being moved to one of the guest bedrooms in the castle. Starlight didn’t trust the filly to continually have sleepovers with her friends every night. This way she could stay close and keep an eye on the troublemaking blank flank.
As she closed her eyes and drifted off into sleep, she felt confident that things were finally improving.
Starlight opened her eyes and smiled as the sunlight crept into the room. She got out of bed and made her way towards the kitchen. “Good morning Starlight.”
An alicorn Starlight Glimmer smiled at her. “Good morning Starlight!” She placed a plate full of bland, unappetizing muffins in front of the unicorn Starlight. The two Starlight’s ate in silence, both of them grinning at each other.
“Well, it’d better get going.” Starlight said.
“Good morning Starlight!” Princess Starlight said as she waved cheerfully at her.
Starlight left the castle and strolled leisurely through the village called ‘Pony Town’. She had a dentist appointment to get to that day, and she felt herself smile as she was greeted by every pony she passed.
“Good morning Starlight!” a pegasus Starlight said.
“Good morning Starlight!” an earth pony Starlight said.
“Hello girls!” Starlight said as she waved to a young pegasus, a unicorn, and an earth pony with a pink bow.
“Good morning Starlight!” the three fillies said simultaneously with big grins.
“Good morning!” she said as she passed by a rather large pony.
The other Starlight Glimmer grinned at her. “Eeyup!”
Eventually, she arrived at the door to the dentist’s office and walked inside. Another Starlight Glimmer was washing her hooves at a sink, her back turned to her. “Have a seat. I’ll be right with you.”
Starlight found a cold, metal seat in the center of the room and settled into it. “I don’t believe we’ve met before. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is-”
“Oh, it’s quite alright my dear. I know exactly who you are and what you have done. So allow me to introduce myself.”
The Starlight Glimmer picked up a clipboard with her magic and levitated it in front of her pale, smiling face. “My name is Doctor Psycho Path.”
Starlight smiled. “It’s a pleasure to meet you Doctor Path.”
The other unicorn mare giggled. “No need for such formalities, my dear. Doctor Psycho will do just fine.”
Starlight’s brow furrowed. For the first time she stepped into the office, she sensed that something wasn’t right. “Wait…I thought most of the professional doctors in Equestria quit their jobs. All the doctors we have now are volunteers because everypony is equally skilled at medicine as everypony else. Why do we still have a dentist?”
“Now what a horrible thing to say to the person doing your checkup! Trying to get rid of me, dearie?” Doctor Psycho asked.
“Oh, I would never want to get rid of you!” Starlight quickly apologized. “You are an equally valued member of our community. I’m just trying to wrap my head around this.”
“Well, let’s not focus too much on me. Today, I want to focus on you. Open wide, and let’s see that smile.”
Starlight did as she was told and grinned widely for the doctor. The other unicorn examined Starlight’s teeth before she frowned. “My, my. Tsk, tsk, tsk. Looks like someone hasn’t been taking very good care of themselves.”
“What do you mean?” Starlight asked.
“Just look at yourself. A philosophy with huge flaws in it, paranoid delusions of cutie marks, a self-centered and self-serving need to make everyone act exactly the same, a hatred of free thought, and a huge pile of anger issues.” Doctor Psycho shook her head. “You’re in terrible condition.”
“Hold on, none of that is true!” Starlight denied. “And I thought you were a dentist. You’re supposed to be looking at my teeth.”
“Well, your smile is completely insincere too. And I’ll have you know that a dentist is perfectly capable of treating the brain. Unfortunately, your mind is too far gone. So I’m afraid everything will have to go.”
Starlight’s eyes widened. “What do you mean?”
Doctor Psycho grinned. “A lobotomy of course!”
“What? But I don’t need a lobotomy!” Starlight cried.
“Settle down now. Move around too much and the anaesthesia won’t kick in. Lucky for you, I’ve got my two nurses working on that.”
“Nurses? What are you – Aaahhh!” Starlight screamed as she looked down, only to discover to very large snakes wrapping all four of her legs tightly to the chair in their coils. The two snakes opened their mouths and sank their fangs deep into Starlight’s flesh.
“Starlight, meet Nurse Venom and Nurse Toxic. Guess which one is the brother,” the doctor said with a wink.
“Stop! You can’t do this!” Starlight cried as she tried to struggle.
“Don’t bother, darling. What my friends are currently injecting you with is more than enough to completely paralyze you. You’ll find that limbs and your magic are currently unavailable to you. Lucky for you, you won’t feel a thing during our little…operation. Now let’s see what toys I get to play with today!”
The crazed doctor levitated a tool box over and began to dig through it. “Scalpel? No, too small. Power drill? Close, but we have a lot to cover. Ah, here we are! Perfect!”
Starlight’s eyes widened as the doctor revved up a chainsaw. “You’re insane!”
The other pony smiled at her. “What, the name Doctor Psycho wasn’t a big enough clue? Let’s add obliviousness to your long list of problems that shall soon be cured.”
The pale-faced, insane doctor hovered over Starlight. Her face stretched into a grin so wide, blood began to drip out the corners of her mouth. “Now if you feel at all uncomfortable during this procedure, just remember that you were the one who made the appointment. In other words…
“You brought this on yourself.” She raised the chainsaw high and giggled. “Smile wide, dearie!”
“Wait! P-please, don’t do this!” Starlight begged. “I’ll do anything you want! I’ll-”
Everything after that was cut off as Doctor Psycho shoved the chainsaw down her throat. Starlight desperately tried to scream, but she was too busy choking on the spinning chainsaw and the fountain of blood.
“Neh, heh, heh, he! Aha, ha, ha, ha! Bwa, ha, ha, ha!” Doctor Psycho laughed.
Starlight’s world was spinning. Her vision was fading. She knew that she was dying and yet because of the snake venom, she just felt numb. She shut her eyes tight, hoping it was all just a nightmare. She almost got what she wanted.
Starlight felt herself fall off the chair. The roar of the chainsaw faded until it shut off. “Well, I think that turned out perfectly! Let’s take a look at our masterpiece!” She felt the world tilt upwards and soon she was staring at Doctor Psycho. “Now that’s much better! Quite the improvement if I do say so myself.”
Starlight tried to curse the doctor. She tried to call forth every hex, jinx, and spell she knew to blast the lunatic. She tried to run, to yell, kick, or scream at her attacker. But nothing came out. She didn’t understand. Was she still paralyzed or…
“Oh, but I’m sure you’re not going to simply take my word on it. See for yourself!”
Doctor Psycho held up a mirror for her. Starlight’s eyes widened in fear. It was one of the very few options left to her. All she saw was a pair of terrified eyeballs floating in a pool of blood.
“Dear, oh dear, what a mess we have made. I think you stained my uniform!” the doctor smoothed out her blood-soaked lab coat. “Not that I’m complaining. Red is such a beautiful colour. Still, somebody is going to have to clean up this mess. But I don’t want to inconvenience my vegetarian friends so I better get to it.”
The pale doctor lowered herself towards Starlight, a hungry grin spreading across her face. “You really have turned out spectacularly. So much better than your previous self. So tranquil. So calm. So colourful. So…delicious…”
The pony’s tongue lowered to the floor as she took the first long lick…
Starlight gasped as her eyes snapped open. She remained stunned, confused, and terrified as she shivered under her covers. It was the most horrific nightmare she had ever experienced. But before she could regain control over herself, she felt something else.
Something was crawling up her neck. Something long, cold, and slimy.
“Aaahh!” Starlight screamed as she leapt out of bed. She instinctively sent out a wave of telekinetic energy and blasted whatever had been licking her out of her bed. The force of Starlight’s magic nearly destroyed her bedroom as books, scrolls, and all her personal belongings were launched to every corner of the room. Starlight quickly scurried towards the door, keeping her eyes trained on the lump moving underneath her bedcovers.
“Starlight?!” The door swung open as Princess Twilight burst into the room. “What happened? I heard you screaming!”
Starlight tried to explain what happened, but all she could manage was terrified blubbering.
“Ugh,” a familiar voice moaned from underneath the covers. “Did anyone get the number on that train? Seriously, that magic can’t be normal…”
Starlight’s face twisted into a furious scowl. Grabbing the sheets with her magic, she flung her covers off to reveal the filly. “You!”
“Me!” the filly sang cheerfully, throwing her hooves up in the air. “Wait, what am I doing here?” She lowered them and glanced around the room. “Must have been some party.”
Starlight’s magic grabbed the filly and pushed her up against the wall, the enraged unicorn growled at her. “You diseased, filthy, parasitic, abomination!”
Twilight gasped at the hatred in Starlight’s voice. “Starlight! Put her down!”
“Ignore her. By all means little star,” the filly grinned. “Keep going.”
At the sound of the filly’s encouragement, Starlight realized what she was doing – in front of an alicorn princess, no less – and released her.
The filly made a show of running to Twilight and hiding behind her. “Princess Twilight! Starlight is picking on me!”
“Will someone please explain what’s going on here?!” Twilight angrily demanded.
“She was in my bed!” Starlight screamed.
Twilight frowned at the filly. “Is this true?”
The filly innocently shrugged. “I’m a sleepwalker. So…maybe?”
Twilight smiled sadly at her. “Oh. I’m sorry to hear that. Look Starlight, it’s not her fault. A sleepwalker can’t control what they do while they’re like that.”
“She was licking me in my sleep!” Starlight screamed.
The filly blinked in confusion. “I was?”
“Yes!”
“Oh. And you’re upset about that?”
“Yes!”
“Would you prefer if I licked you while we’re awake?”
“NO!”
The filly giggled. “Wow, you really need to learn how to take a joke. Darling, I can’t help what I do when I sleepwalk. I apologize if you are – understandably, I’ll admit – freaked out, but don’t you think destroying your bed was a tiny bit of an overreaction?”
“Overreaction?!” Starlight screamed. “I just woke up from the worst nightmare in pony history to you licking me in my sleep and you think I’m overreacting?!”
“Well that can’t be right, now can it?” the filly grinned. “You can’t have a nightmare if you never dream. Really Starlight, you seem to be forgetting your own philosophy more and more these days.” She leaned closer to Starlight. “Are you feeling well? Is there…something you’re not telling us?”
Starlight’s fury faded as her fear returned in full force. Instinctively, her tail swished around to cover her flank even though she knew all they would see was an equal sign. “N-no.”
Princess Twilight sighed. “It is way too late for this. We should all go back to bed. Starlight, if you want to talk in the morning I’ll be here.”
Starlight’s jaw dropped as the filly smiled and skipped out of the room. “You…you’re just going to leave it at that? She licked me in my sleep!”
“And that was really creepy and very inappropriate of her,” Princess Twilight frowned. “But what you did was worse. Starlight, you pinned up a defenceless filly against the wall and threatened her! You’re older than she is; you should know better than that.”
Starlight stared at her in disbelief. “You’re taking her side. Why are you taking her side?!”
Twilight sighed. “I’m not taking anyone’s side, Starlight. Just…please go back to bed. We’ll talk more in the morning when she’s not around. Is that okay?”
Starlight didn’t say anything but after a few seconds she nodded. As Twilight left the room, Starlight levitated her sheets back onto her bed and did a quick reorganization of her room with her magic. She settled back into bed, closed her eyes, and wished for sweet, peaceful sleep.
She remained awake for the entire night, the echoes of crazed laughter ringing in her ears.