//------------------------------//
//  "Battle of the Faux Princesses" Part 2 CMC vs Gabby Gums 
// Story: PONY POV SERIES SEASON 8: FINALE! 
// by Alex Warlorn 
//------------------------------//

  

Shady Daze sat in the living room of the manor at the top of the World Tower. The cheerful music had been turned off, and the omnipresent collection of treats were starting to gather dust. The rainbow colored couches and play-sets sat unused. Night Gale's game system lay in the corner like a gutted beast, lifeless.

Shady Daze found that Night Gale's save data was all corrupted and useless... she'd be sad when she found out. He didn't feel it'd be right to occupy himself with any of the video games without her permission.

'I wonder where Sunny Daze is, I bet she and Peachy would love to visit here,' Shady thought. He hadn't given his sister or family much deep thought lately. It was his purpose in life to serve the Princesses. But the Princess had told him, and Marcie Pan and Fawn Doo to 'take time off, doing, what you want to do.' Which left Shady Daze unsure. He'd kept his maid uniform on just for comfort. Had he done something wrong? Did the Princesses not want his service for now? Had he done something to upset them? They'd seemed sad. But he wouldn't insult them by asking anything aloud of course.

Truffle had been told to 'spend time with your family', and being a good special friend, he did exactly what Tootsie told him to do. Doing anything else would make him a bad coltfriend... right? Marcie Pan and Fawn Doo had made more PheNOMNOMenons than they knew what to do with, and had completely filled the pantries and the serving trays.

Shady Daze didn't so much as notice the endless stream of noise coming from Cloud Kicker and Thunderlane's room. Night and day, nothing but the creaking of bedsprings, and cries of things Shady Daze was thankfully too young to understand.

Princess Animatia Erroria had stood at the door some while ago, on her hocks, crying, saying how she was sorry. Then she had cut herself. Shady had moved to help her, Alula had snarled at him to stay back, with glowing eyes and echoing voice. But when Tootsie had found her and begged her to let her heal her, Alula let her.

Shady Daze wondered why he hadn't seen Rumble at all, shouldn't he be living at the Tower along with his big brother? Shady Daze wanted to ask Thunderlane about it, but he seemed to always be busy, and good servants didn't interrupt.

Everything was so confusing right now, but as a lowly servant, it wasn't his place to meddle in things. But... he felt sad. They'd been a happy little family, hadn't they? Miss Diamond Tiara was always moody now, but now she had friends. But why hadn't Silver Spoon come to visit? Or even written at all? Why hadn't Rumble? Why hadn't Shady's own family? Why hadn't Miss Diamond Tiara's parents bothered to move into the Tower yet? She must have been lonely without them. 

Moth had come through, dragging a cocooned Lyra and Bon-Bon behind her.

"Princesses Animatia Erroria and our little Liza Doolots are repelling invaders to the castle... Liza didn't want us to get caught in the crossfire." Moth had leaned down and whispered. "Between you and me. I think Liza was worried Bon-Bon was going to take things too far."

Shady Daze had just nodded as Moth took them back to their room.

Shady Daze was surprised when Marcie Pan and Fawn Doo sat down on either side of him. He was even more surprised when he realized, "You're naked!" He blushed.

"We're ponies," Marcie said matter of fact. "And we're not working right now. It's strange actually having so many of our tasty treats that we can just sit down and relax, we normally can't keep them in stock fast enough."

Shady Daze was surprised trice when he saw Fawn Doo's mane and tail wasn't in its normal curls and now naturally flowed down. "Fawn, what happened to your mane?"

"I felt like trying a new style."

"I thought your curls were natural."

"They are. They're what everypony sees me with... they're what everypony says it is... therefore it is. But if it wasn't, I'd put it in curls because I'd want to myself to look pretty for the clientele. Looking pretty make the treats taste better too, remember?"

Shady Daze nodded slowly. "Are those your natural colors?"

"Yes," The mares echoed.

"Do you like wearing the pretty dresses like I do?" Asked the colt.

"Yes," they again echoed.

"Then why aren't you wearing them like me?"

"Because they were itching!" Marcie declared. "No matter how much we like them, we still need to do the laundry, speaking of which... Were they really expecting you to take care of this whole manor by yourself kid? The Riches should bring some of their staff to live here already."

"It's... it's what I'm supposed to do, I'm a lowly servant and-"

"Enough already!" Fawn said, and before Shady Daze could protest, she pulled the maid dress off him. "Kid, you need some leisure time!"

"Give that back!" Shady said, trying to grab it rather adorably as Fawn playfully kept it out of his reach.

"Later! After you've had some fun that DOESN'T relate to maid work!" Fawn said, and Marcie nodded.

"Besides," Marcie said. "You've been working hard non-stop, this thing is starting to stink."

Shady blushed a little.

"Shady, have one." Marcie tossed a PheNOMNOMenons to the startled earth pony.

He stared in shock. "But-but-but! These are for the princesses and their families!"

"Another rule of working in this business, kid, there'll always be leftovers, and it's a crying shame to throw them in the trash," Marcie said smirking. "Let me ask you, have you even TRIED one yet?"

"Uh... no?" Shady replied. Being naked felt strange after wearing the dress for so long.

"Then come on! They'll just go stale otherwise! Seriously, the shelf life of these things isn't exactly measured in centuries." Marcie kept it to herself the fact the things had never lasted long enough to find out their shelf life.

Fawn leaned over. "For us? Please?"

Not sure what else to do, Shady obeyed. His taste-buds exploded, and maybe all the cells in his body! "THESE ARE SO GREAT!"

"Thanks, we weren't called the 'snackubi' for nothing." Marcie smirked.

"What's that mean?"

"... Never mind."

The sisters admitted, it was still a delight to see a pony so charged up at their creation... it was almost as delightful as the jingle of bits when the pink party pony every year emptied her wallet into their coffers.

Marcie took one and began munching on it, and tossed one to her sister. It had been quite a while since they'd enjoyed their own sweets themselves.

At that moment, a thought sparked within Shady. He took out one of the many boardgames that littered the living room but magically still had all the pieces neatly stored (and wasn't one of Mr. Discord's 'mix and match games' that no sane mortal could 'comprehend'), likely having never been used.

"Wanna play?"

+

Scootaloo's diary (journal!)

Next thing I knew, we were on a yellow and red airship, sailing through the sky without any ground. I didn't see anypony else on board besides Alula. We were on a flat, round container made of glass the size of a hoofball field with what I guessed was the main engine inside. Figures, video games always have some fancy place for the final fight...


Sweetie Belle's diary

Tootsie and me landed on ... well, it looked like a big flat ocean, as reflective as a mirror. It splashed as I got up, but I could stand on top of it, like it was solid. Above us was the sky, and I swear it was kinda like the sky was too close or something. I was fighting alone right now. At least the scenery was pretty.

-

Both Alula and Tootsie spoke unprompted. "The only way in or out is sealed by both our determination, it won't break until one of us does. Diamond Tiara has a message, 'Reach the top and you'll have a bad time. Go back to your pocket happy endings you've made.'"

Both Sweetie and Scootaloo unknowingly said together. "I'm not giving up!"

-

Tootsie said. "I'm sure you'll put up a hard fight, and I'll remember how really hard it was to beat you, and really remember how tough you were." Then her tone changed, becoming almost wistful. "... Then you train really hard and become super powerful to beat me... only to find I've died in the meantime."

Four huge crossbows appeared around me like compass points, firing all at once. I barely dodged when four more appeared and blasted giant spell arrows where the first four hadn't. I didn't think, I just moved. 

What? You think somepony as obsessed with 'law of the jungle' as Chryssy didn't teach me 'don't think, feel?' 

Tootsie shot an arrow into the water-floor, and then a whole SLEW of arrows shot up from beneath the water's surface! They shot up in two lines closing behind me and I ran! Then it me! I'm being herded! I dared look down and jumped as a magic arrow came out of where I'd been! Thankfully, the upside-down arrow shower ended.

"Ever wonder heroes don't just use their best spell first?" Tootsie asked.

"Because once it's out there others can figure out how to beat it. And relying on just one spell to always win never works." I retorted, "Exitium Herba!"

She dodged my attack so fast she left an after image.

"What do you know? You're right," she said.

= Megalomania - Live-A-Live =

White changeling flames rose around Tootsie, and she turned into a mass of star spiders! They fell from the sky, weaving a web above me even before they landed. I used my horn magic to cut the net open before it covered me on reflex. The creepy spiders burst into flames again and merged into three timberwolves that came at me from different directions! I use a flash bang spell to confuse the wolves and run out their way and they clawed each other instead. But If I keep using that, Tootsie'll see it coming too. This is not good.

The wolves flash flamed and turned into one Tootsie again. She fired her bow at me but I run, jump, duck, and fire back a spell bolt at her that she just avoids again. Dang, that spell's faster than that blade spell, hoped it'd catch her off-guard.

"You can't dodge forever!" I shouted.

"You have more reason to protect this world than me."

Tootsie flashed flames again, but she grew bigger, and bigger, until she was as big as a redwood. When the flames died away she was made of wood, her body creaked as she stomped on the ground. Her roots sprang underwater towards me, then surfaced and flowers bloomed on her spurs. The flowers all pointed at me, and I saw yellow pointy things inside. The shot at me together. I stopped most with my telekinesis, and I ducked from a lot, and finally used the ones I'd grabbed with my magic to knock the rest off-course.

I shot the best fireball spell I could muster right at Tootsie's center. She shape-shifted before it hit, turning back to her fake Alicorn self. My fireball ended up missing and hit the water, exploding in a mass of steam. I fired a bolt at where I knew she'd be, but she somehow dodged again coming right out of the cloud!

"Even if not for Diamond's quest, I don't want everypony to hate me and Alula."

She shape shifted into a giant again... but this time... she was... a giant pony robot. Weapons like Button's mom and that big ape in the chaos zone had appeared from openings inside her. Along with big long metal cones on the end of little arms. Then little red beams of light all pointed at me!

I had a swarm of death headed right for me! I used my telekinesis to grab the metal pillars and blocked the beams and zillion metal arrowheads! The metal pillars themselves went boom!

I brought up the best shield spell I could and ran for it, so Tootsie used up the rest of her arsenal on where I used to be with the explosion blocking her view. I took another shot, but again she just shape-shifted to avoid my spell.

"You're the one who stands to actually lose somepony."

Toostsie landed, turning into a manticore as she landed and leapt at me claws and fangs showing. I slid under her, thanks for the floor being, ya know, water! She spun in the air with her wings and her scorpion tail struck down right at me, but I caught it with my magic. She turned into a Cragadile and the sudden change in strength took me off-guard! I'd just barely formed half a shield to take some of the hit as I went flying. That hurt. A lot.

She shifted into a cyclops and reached down to grab me, but I blasted her in the palm, making her cry out and jerk back. Thank goodness cyclopses' have no depth perception. Wonder if that's why there aren't any anymore.

Then she fell back and turned into a slingtail and summoned a boulder to throw it at me! Instead of throwing it back with my magic, I deflected it off-course, and gave another shot. Tootsie again shape shifted and did an after image dodge.

"Does he know that he's going to cease to exist, if you win?"

Tootsie blasted me with a unicorn spell that I dodged, then pegasus twisters that I deflected, followed by using earth pony strength to make stone pillars pop out of the water. I just barely saw them in time.

That was when she turned into an Ursa. That one made me scream. She roared at me. Then she might have been trying to eat me as she scooped me up into her muzzle, but I managed to zap her in the roof of her mouth (I didn't hold back anymore than I felt like I needed to conserve mana) and she fell back, coughing me out.

We did the dance again of her shifting back to her pony shape as I tried to her between the eyes with my magic attack.

"Does he know it was everypony believing that made him like you?"

The next form she took was a chimera. I sang a wordless aria even as I ran away from her, making the snake head woozy, slowing her down. I turned back to look only in time to see her shift into a cockatrice! I screamed again and shut my eyes. I heard Tootsie flap close, guessing she was going to pry my eyes open. Think! Okay! Hope this works! I telekinetically pulled the water between us up right in front of me. I heard Tootsie give a cry at seeing her own reflection, then the cry turned into a shriek that tore the wall of water between us apart. I opened my eyes to see a turquoise griffin with purple feathers headed straight at me.

My instincts screamed at me to run and never look back. I was facing my natural predator. The only way for a mouse to win against a cat is to not act like a mouse, Sweetie Belle. I did the last thing my instincts wanted me to do, and the last thing Tootsie's griffin instincts would have expected and ran straight for her. I felt my horn pierce something (unicorns have more than just a flight reflex).

I heard Tootsie gasp and she changed again, now I saw a phoenix. Uh-oh. This time my barrier didn't stop me from getting singed as the phoenix was reborn and I was forced back from the burst of phoenix flames.

Tootsie shifted back to her default form. I took another shot, and her after image dodged me again.

"... You like him for real now, don't you?"

Was I imagining things, or was she starting to breath a little harder?

Next came the big adult blue dragon! She flew up and she spat not fire BUT LIGHTNING at me, and I was standing on a big lake of water! I managed to jump up and with my telekinesis delaying my landing. She didn't zap me in the air. Guess she needed to recharge. She flew at me though, claws, fangs, razor sharp wings and tail, all reaching out to rip me to pieces!

My next idea was more crazy as I used my magic to split apart the water below me, letting me fall below as she swooped above me! The water closed in around me as my magic gave out. I began to float to the top and to my relief I broke the surface instead of suffering a slow suffocating death.

The giant dragon was replaced by Tootsie, who again just dodged my shot.

"You don't want to see him vanish."

She shifted into SOMETHING but I didn't see what as she dived below the water like the magic surface tension wasn't there. I looked around for where she might pop up from, before finally looking down. And I saw a giant set of jaws rushing up from below. I rolled out of the way, JUST IN TIME as I felt some of the strands of my mane get pulled out of my scalp. The giant sea serpent rose into the sky, blocking out the sun, and crashing back into the 'ground', and turning back into Tootsie. She dodged my shot again, but now I could DEFINITELY see she was breathing hard.

"And yet you're helping erase him."

This time... she turned into a hydra... all four heads looked over me. The heads snapped down like a cobra trying to take a bite out of me! One dove underwater in case I tried that again. Another head had their eyes closed as they attacked just in case I tried to use my flash spell. Another reached in behind me to cut off escaping.

I remembered Pinkie Pie talking about the bog hydra and dove straight under her legs to dodge instead. She let her entire weight drop down on me, I blasted a hole in the water underneath and fell, now out of rang of the head she'd had prepared for that. I swam underneath until I got to the other end of her. Her body stank at turning around quickly. Her form shifted back to her 'normal' self. I fired a bolt one more time and she dodged, but I noticed this time she didn't leave an after image from moving so fast any more.

"So I'd say we're both doing things we hate for the 'greater good,' wouldn't you?"

I clenched my teeth.

More crossbows. They began firing in a circle, I ran, trying to stay just ahead of them, then jumped as they fired a second arrow at me all at once. Then I felt Tootsie grab me with her magic and toss me into a wall of water that rose out of the ground, I used my own magic to right myself, then she slammed me into the ground, and then slammed me into a 'ceiling,' and then onto the ground again. I kept using my magic to keep from becoming a pancake.

Then there was a glitter below and I rolled out of the way as the arrows shot upward.

Then Tootsie as her 'normal' self flew at me and made direct eye contact. Her eyes and horns glowed. "Reflection Deflection!"

I screamed and brought up everything I knew about mundane mental magic to the forefront. Our magics exploded on contact and knocked us both back.

Then Tootsie dove into the water again, I got ready for the sea serpent... but what emerged... it could have been a seapony... but it looked wrong somehow. You know that bad feeling you get when you see a deformed pony? That you know it isn't their fault they're that way, but something about them makes you uncomfortable all the same? It was like that. Something in me...the same thing I think that makes me feel natural when I get pruney hooves felt sicker than I thought I should.

Her fins reminded me of seaweed. Her tail fin wasn't curled like a seapony's, or like a brush like a merepony's would be, it looked like a fan. And her body reminded more of a snake than a fish. 

I'd seen a picture of a siren in a dusty book once when we were trying to be Cutie Mark Crusader Historians... she wasn't like that either.

Something about her...felt the same kinda wrong as Umbra Breeze, Abandon, and Shub. Not as bad, but that almost made it WORSE.

Then... she began to sing... it was beautiful the way a bowl of white sugar was sweet.

"This mag-gic has-the pow-wer to flaw-less-lyyyyy en-slave a town full-of Ali-corns and dra-gons who just need-to-hear-it!"

I felt the music flowing over me... overwhelming everything else, overwhelming everything that made me, me, reducing me to ... to...

"YOU MOCK OUR BLOOD!" Not-quite-me snarled. If I'd seen my eyes, I'd be sure they were glowing red! Then the magic crystal I'd bought at Flim Flam's store appeared right in front of me, and it turned a glowing blood red. Lines shot from it like the spikes in a sound wave. I know it sounds weird, but I didn't question it anymore than I'd question my own horn. I trusted Button when his stat screen said it was safe. "I'm never letting magic like that exist in this world!"

"Diamond told me your mentor said the same thing in a former life, she died." If Tootsie was freaked out by my change, or knocking back her shallow singing, she didn't show it.

She began to sing again. Wordless. Massless. Wavering of green music lines and notes swam through the air to me with the force behind it like a tidal wave.

I sang back. I hit a piercing high note like an opera singer. The red crystal in front of me quivered, and red sound waves rippled out from it. I pushed her music back like a juggernaut against an army of firehoses. The water rippled and waved from my voice.

"This doesn't make sense! It shouldn't matter if you're the goddess of music herself! If you have ears, your mind should be putty now!"

"Chryssy was the master of mind control magic, you think she didn't teach me how to defend against it?"

"Impossible! Why would the wicked queen teach you a way to resist mind magic when she used it on you?!"

"Yes, she used one kind, the same kind Diamond Tiara used on you: lies, and telling me what I wanted to hear. I'm done talking! Let's see which monster taught us best!"

I began to slowly trot forward. The entire ocean rose behind Tootsie, its entire might being channeled through her. The tidal wave became a tsunami.

"You-can't-win! You-won't-win!" Her singing became louder, bigger, weightier, like reality was bending to her music.

I felt a two-pronged headache from within and without. My horn hurt, my throat hurt, but I kept singing! Her voice kept getting louder, mine kept getting BETTER.

And I didn't stop trotting forward!

"The-rules-say-I-win! The-rules-say-you-lose! You-can't-do-this! SIIIIIIIT-DOOOWNNNN!!!"

I felt like the world was shaking. I got closer, and closer, and closer to this insult to us. This pale imitation. This wretched mockery. This lousy knockoff! We would put her in her place!

Now I was right face to face with her!

I felt something big form behind me, I couldn't see what. Whatever it was, it scared Tootsie!

"Fair-well to the show,
Our time is now.
Your time's been running down.

Feel my wave of sound,
As it crashes down,
Dare to look away,
I'm the one to stay!"

And my music, washed away hers.

"This-was-not! Supposed-to hap-peeeeeeen!"

Her voice shattered, changeling flames were washed away even as they formed, leaving behind Tootsie. Her barding shattered next and blew away. She was blown away. The ocean came crashing down around us.

Tootsie horn was smoking, her wings twitching, she laid on the ground like a heavy sack. She struggled to get up. Her bow lay next to her, unbroken, undamaged, unblemished. Her horn couldn't even get a spark off. Her legs couldn't even inch to her weapon. Her eyes rolled up at me.

"How... how could you do that..."

"I used the full recital of a spell that calls the last darkness, and survived after it should've damaged my horn. There's a lot I can take."

Now, we feed off of her. We consume her negativity, feast on it, grow stronger. My horn glowed. I used my telekinesis and straightened her out, pinned her to the ground, and leaving her underside exposed. My eyes narrowed. Hers widened. She looked ready to cry. Her lip quivered. I lower my horn.

We could feel it. Fear. Anger. Despair. Sorrow. All there for us to take. Rip them from her!

I reared up, charged up my horn, and stabbed downwards. And stabbed the watery 'ground' next to her.

Yeah, ya see? Never doing that. Ever. K'? Been there, done that, no thanks. I control the magic, it doesn't control ME.

The crystal's red color and I imagine my eyes' too faded, along with whatever was behind me.

Her eyes were focused in panic on where I'd stabbed. Tootsie's heart looked like it was trying to punch its way out. She looked at me scared, confused, and everything else.

"...So...who were you thinking of when I did that?"

She panted in terror. "W-what?"

"Who were you thinking of?"

She looked like a deer in the headlights...where did that expression even come from?

"...When you thought you were going to be never-heard-from-again...who were you thinking of?"

"...M-my guardians... about Auntie Moth... about Diamond... about Alula... about... Twist and Truffle... Pipsqueak, Ruby, Noi, Dinky, Moonlight..."

"...So was I," I explained. "...How much they'd cry if I actually did it...just like when I was fighting them, I thought of how much YOU'D cry if either of them was never-heard-from-again...Why do you think we held back in that fight?"

She gulped.

I sat down next to her. We were soaked anyway. "You've been thinking about Diamond plan and all the bad stuff you've done, but did you think about how they'd all feel if you were never-heard-from-again when you went into a duel to the death?...Did that ever cross your mind in all this until you thought you were going to die?"

+++

Scootaloo's diary JOURNAL!

Alula swung her pole arm about a few time like a gymnastic baton, slammed it into the deck of the ship, and sighed.

"I hope Night Gale visits after we save the world, though I don't wanna be the one to tell her about Mr. Umbra Breeze."

"Who?" I asked.

"I... Just a friend I met." She looked straight at me and she took off into the air. "You should know that Scootaloo can't fly! Everypony knows that!"

I couldn't see them or feel them, but I knew they were there, those snake slug bugs, and I knew my cape pushed them back. "A bajillion ponies and changelings saw me fly in Canterlot! I remember the whole class' jaws dropping when they saw me fly when we got back from Canterlot! Screw that!" I bite back at her.

I buzzed into the air on equal level with her.

"EXACTLY, Scootaloo!" Alula shouted. "Those who watch! THEY don't WANT YOU to fly! They want you to stay grounded for the rest of your life! You appeal to more of them as a cripple! You're more 'interesting!' But I don't want to see you grounded again! Or never having been able to fly at all!"

"...Really? Thanks for that. I didn't notice when your stupid curse did EXACTLY THAT in the Rainbow Factory," I replied. "...But let's say you're right...if the price of me flying is Rainbow Dash and Cheerilee being killers or Princess Celestia being something awful, or the I-don't-want-to-THINK-about-how-many other awful things I've seen these past few days...Pinkie Promise you'll take me to the press to turn everything back, let me do it, then cut my wings off."

Did I mean it? What do you think?

Alula eyes widened, and she sighed, she looked sad. "What Umbra Breeze did was evil. He wasn't doing it for anypony but himself. And I'm evil for helping them. But Scootaloo... even after our world was supposedly freed, our world keeps spinning back to align with what goes on back when we started out. I know this all sounds like nonsense to you. It's better that way. 

"But Diamond Tiara found the way, she and Discord made something good out of Umbra's evil plan, and you've been helping, while we played princess. We'll help the rest or be punished if you want after the watchers go away.

"Would you erase every bad things that happened BEFORE Umbra Breeze? Why erase these bad things from happening? You won. You saved Cheerilee, Rainbow Dash, and the rest. Now let me save you! Otherwise, someday, you'll end up not able to fly again. Let Diamond Tiara free the world completely! Remember how, in Canterlot... you were told not to go save Sweetie by yourself... you took Sweetie out a window! When you COULDN'T fly! Wasn't that selfish and stupid? But you did it for the right reasons. Can't you trust ME that I'm doing this for the right reasons too?"

"...Let me ask you one thing...How many ponies are in danger this second?" I asked. "...Or this one? Or this one? Or this one?...Think about that...then tell me why Diamond's plan more important than all of them. If you're really trying to save everypony, then you'd have saved them first, THEN pulled off Diamond's big plan...And before you say 'because you were at the door step:' we got our flanks in gear BECAUSE we learned about her plans (and no, ain't tellin' yah HOW). So, tell me, Alula...why is everypony who's in danger less important than me flying? What's the point of Diamond Tiara 'freeing the world' if a lot of ponies are never-heard-from-again to enjoy it?"

Alula asked. "You were good at dancing, but when did you dance last? It's just too 'lame' you think."

"I dance in the sky!" I blurted out, then cover my mouth and blush.

"But when is the last time you danced on the ground? You're slowly being stripped of what makes Scootaloo special, you're being compressed into a 1-D version of you! Everypony in the world was slowly dying already! We're going to make it so they can live again! Shouldn't YOU be out fixing ponies instead of wasting your time here?! When is the last time you used your scooter since you learned to fly Scootaloo?!"

I search my mind for something, anything... but... I haven't even touched a board, let alone my Scooter... not since I rescued Sweetie Belle.

"You liked it so much! You were happy! You felt alive! The entire Rainbow Dash Fan Club knows it! We all got scrapped knees trying scooting out because of you and we all loved it and thanked you for it! But suddenly poof, it's gone once you got your cutie mark. Don't you get it?!" Alula hissed, she actually sounded ANGRY.

"Don't tell me you're blaming cutie marks now!"

"No. I'm not. I'm saying that if you stop Diamond Tiara, we'll all become empty shells. How's that of living?! Maybe that blue butterfly on your flank ISN'T the cutie mark you were meant to have, but you were given it anyway, and you're being made to fit it instead of the other way around. It has to end Scootaloo!"

"So...Scootaloo scooters? That's what makes her Scootaloo...is that it?" I asked, thinking over what she said. "Isn't saying THAT making me a 1-D shell?...And more importantly...if me not flying is what these THINGS want...why are you angry I'm doing more flying than riding my scooter?"

"... Because scooting is what made you happy, just like you always wanted to fly. But your love for dare devil tricks with it got swept under the rug. When is the last time you did anything that wasn't 'what would Rainbow Dash do?' You helped us all see how great Rainbow Dash was, even when she got jealous of Mare-Do-Well! But it's DIFFERENT for you Scootaloo, you're becoming like a little robot that only knows how to imitate her! ... I don't want to see the 'you' that makes you 'you', die."

"You mean like Cheerilee did, like Dash did, like-"

"Like my big sister has!" Alula shouted. "Because of ME! But you brought them back! They're free! But if you undid the final step, then YOU'LL be the one who becomes like that, followed by Rainbow Dash, Cheerilee, until we're all just dolls filling out one role, forever! My big sister taught me that I couldn't grow up being just a copy of her! Have you ever done anything that makes you not a copy of Rainbow Dash?! What do I have to say to get through that wonderful thick head of yours?"

"...I'm doing something that's not what a copy of Rainbow Dash would do right now."

She blinked. "Huh?"

"Now that you're vulnerable, Rainbow Dash would've just knocked you out as quick as she could with a chop to your neck in this one spot while you were talking because she doesn't LIKE to talk and knows knocking you out saves everypony quicker," I said, and I meant it. "I didn't want to fight you, I didn't want to HURT you. So I'm trying to talk you down, tell me, can you see Rainbow Dash standing here rattling off all this philosophical junk?!"

"... If it was for a friend... maybe... Scootaloo... answer me one thing... were we friends before? Or just club mates?"

"...Not as close as me the others, or heck, even you and Tootsie...but I like to think we were," I said.

"Then I have one last thing to tell you."

"Unless it's 'I give up' I don't wanna hear it." I was getting sick of this. I'm not Sweetie Belle or Apple Bloom, I only have so much patience.

"But it's something you need to hear, cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye."

No pony alive makes a Pinkie Promise in vain. Even if some weird cosmic thing tried to keep her away, she'd find a way to make it here and make Alula face her wrath.

"What is it?"

Alula shook her head. "Diamond let me look into The Truth...and I saw the truth about you. I now know everything about you. Didn't you once question WHY your parents taught you forgery, basic play acting, and how to invent plausible backstories for yourself? Aren't you curious why you never once starved after making friends with Sweetie Belle? How you always buzzed while other foals flapped?"

"Y-you-you know?! W-what are you talking about?!"

"Your parents loved you and abandoned you anyway, why in TARTARUS would they do that? You didn't think! What your parents really were! What YOU really are! You 'half-bug-pony!'"

It was like the world blew up.

"...That's impossible...I'm not a changeling...That's just another of your stupid rumors!"

"This is no rumor. Pinkie Promise."

"You're lying!"

"Tell me where my logic falls apart. Tell me how what I'm saying doesn't make sense."

"I'm not a freaking bug! I drink milkshakes, not love! I'm a pegasus! I'm not one of them! I'm not! I'm not!"

"I never said you were...I said one of your parents was. You inherited some of their traits. And seriously, you stood on a soapbox telling Sweetie Belle she was being silly for thinking ponies wouldn't accept changelings as friends, but you still insult them like the fighting isn't over."

"Calling them bugs doesn't-I mean! There's no way you can know any of this! That part didn't get put in any paper!"

"I said I know because Diamond showed me and Tootsie The Truth. I saw so many things, horrible and wonderful. And she was there. In Canterlot. She told me every detail. How she was sabotaging the changelings left and right to let YOU stop Chrysalis before the wicked queen stabbed her with a poison arrow and she had to heal."

My head was spinning.

"So, you owe Diamond Tiara a thank you for saving Equestria."

I hated it. More than you could imagine but, "Yeah... I'm grateful... now I know WHY my parents left me..." It felt like swallowing bitter medicine. "And it wasn't because I couldn't fly. It was because they loved me. And... I'm sorry a friend of Silver Spoon's took a hit for the team and helped us out, whatever her own stupid reasons."

"You know all about stupid reasons don't you, Scootaloo? 'She's not stuck being stuck up like you' sound familiar? I was THERE when you said that to her and Silver Spoon! She had every bad thing she thought throw into question, and you told her that couldn't be anything more than she was!"

I shivered. The look in Alula's eyes wasn't her normal holier than thou shtick, or her stupid 'I'm bad, but I feel bad so that makes it okay' junk. It's the look any of my friends have when I see another friend of mine hurt by somepony else.

I thought about what to say next...

"Well I...You see..."

...Oh buck it. I didn't want to say it...I didn't want to DO it...but...

"...I was wrong, and I admit it. Silver proved me wrong."

I looked up...might as well go all the way. "HEY DIAMOND! You're watching, right? Through those stupid eye things Apple Bloom found, right? Well LISTEN:...I was wrong. Silver WASN'T stuck being stuck up! And NEITHER are you!...And I PINKIE PROMISE I BUCKING MEAN IT! CROSS MY HEART HOPE TO FLY, STICK AND CUPCAKE IN MY EYE!"

I swear I felt like the entire world just gasped. And I swear... I didn't feel humiliated or 'sappy', I felt... lighter. Like I'd just had weights cut away.

"Scootaloo... it's funny how alike we can be.... but we never once hanged out just us two, together as friends, isn't it?" Alula let out a small laugh.

"What do you mean?"

"I know what it's like to not have your parents there. I know what it's like to have a big sister you look to and has to take on the burden of looking after you even if she's less happy for it, you want to BE HER... I can see why you made friends with Sweetie Belle; you and her are a lot alike too. You two and Apple Bloom. You were kindred spirits long before you started looking for your cutie marks...you saw the good in Silver Spoon...I saw the good in Diamond Tiara...Most saw only an arrogant flier in Rainbow Dash, you saw the real hero underneath. All any of you ever did was see Diamond Tiara as your bully, she wasn't a person. I wanted her to see she didn't need to see the world as the enemy. I wanted you to understand that before I beat you, Scootaloo. Because Big Sister Cloud Kicker taught me to NEVER GIVE UP!"

Thunder clouds began to crack and boom around us.

I shouted. "You're right, Alula! About everything! I wanted to see those two as just bullies. And I hated Chrysalis for twisting my best friend! And I let it spread under the surface! Thanks for that, Alula!

"But I do know what it's like to think you know somepony! When Dash took me in, I never dreamed I'd have her spanking me or telling me to go to bed or yelling at me for leaving my toys all over the floor! But...but she did all that BECAUSE she loves me! I couldn't see Dash as my idol anymore! But she became something more! Family! I got to know her more! And if Dash and me get to be a family, then I can't say the way my life has changed since Discord almost ruined the world is wrong! You're right, I don't want to live in a world where I'm not family with Dash anymore! And I'm gonna have to face it when I see my parents again! And sometimes... maybe growing up... means... that ... maybe... you gotta give up some things. Maybe. Dash told me from the very beginning that 'never never never ever EVER giving up' was how you act as an idiot! Not a hero!"

"Then give up!"

"How about you?!"

"... Fine. Let's find out who saves the world." Then she surprised me when she landed, and gave me a formal karate bow of respect.

I landed, and I returned the bow.

She picked up her polearm with her magic. I flashed my wing blades.

We both knew we were done talking. Neither of wanted this fight. We'd both said everything we could think of to prevent it. But both of us wouldn't back down. If I had to break her resolve to get out of here, then let's do this. I just hope when Cloud Kicker is back to her right mind she'll forgive me for any bruises I give Alula.

At the next flash of light, we charged each other.

= Mortal Kombat Movie Theme =

Alula had more reach with her weapon, but I had the tighter defense. And she had a minimal range with that pole arm! I caught it with my wings blade. Then she tried to blast me with that horn of hers! Dang it!

Alula flew away from me and took the high air. Her horn charged up and began to fire balled lightning down at me. I kicked them back at her! Instead of kicking them back and making this a game of volleyball, she just dodged them and flew behind me. I turned around on a dime. And saw her charging up one several times bigger than I was and threw it right down at me.

I flew like crazy to get out of the blast zone as it hit the deck of the ship and exploded in a dome of wild lightning. She switched to straight up unicorn magic and fired pot shots at me, but I was too fast for her. Then she flew back towards me, and caught me in her magic. Not happening. I broke free using my flight field. She looked surprised as I kicked her in the face, making her nose bleed.

"You didn't see Dash teach me that, did you?"

Alula slashed with her pole arm, giving me a close shave.

"Shouldn't you be crying for mommy about now?!" I yelled.

"You think I haven't had my falls and bloody noses?!" Alula shouted, stabbing at me with her weapon making her do a dancing dodge around it. Oh right, she was cutting herself before. Kinda forgot that. Or didn't WANT to remember that.

I slashed at her with the wings blades, making her have to defend with her weapon like it was a staff and fly back from me. Then I saw her somehow charge up her flight field to where I could SEE IT, and she zoomed at me like a comet! But then I saw her back side wasn't covered and did a diving kick at her back.

"YEOW!" She slashed with her weapon, I got away, but she still left a red mark on my front.

I zigzagged and moved in for another exchange, but this time when we clashed I moved in to just punch her, she struck back with one of her back hooves! And dang did it hurt when our hooves met!

"I'm the one wearing barding, remember?" She said. Then she THREW ME back to the deck of the ship, and I had to roll out of the way as she stabbed the deck where I'd been. "AND I'm the one with Earth Pony strength to boot!"

I bit my tongue and didn't say that strength wasn't everything. I'm going to have to think here.

I jumped off against the deck while her pole arm was still in the floor, tackling her, but she pulled her pole arm free too.

We moved like lightning. I don't think anypony's eyes but a pegasus' could have kept up with us. Sparks flew from our blades clashing like we were setting the sky on fire. We zipped through clouds, using the lightning to our advantage when we could, grabbing it with our weapons and slashing at each other with it. We didn't slow down. We didn't let up. I pushed, and she pushed back harder. She pushed, and I pushed back harder. We both used the ship to keep from getting completely disoriented.

She created several wild ball lightning that flew madly at me I could almost hear giggling that exploded as they hit each other trying to hit me, Alula didn't wait for them to clear and just flew around the blasts spinning her pole arm like rotor with her magic. I flew around her faster and bit her by the tail and threw her, dodging her spear. 

"Aren't you getting tired?!" I shouted.

"I'M A GYMNAST! YOU THINK I WOULDN'T HAVE STAMINA?!"

We battle upside down, sideways, none of it mattered, we were focused only on each other now. Alula twisted and spun her pole arm like it was seventh limb. I slashed and spun with my metal wing blades, enhancing them with the standard wing blade spell, extending their reach and their force. I was like a whirlwind.

For a moment, I could almost hear Rainbow Dash cheering me on. And I knew Alula was hearing her real big sister's voice pushing her on too.

We both cried out. We weren't just fighting each other, we were fighting what the other's big sisters had taught her. Dash, you taught me to defend myself, so that's what I'm going to do!

My heart skipped a beat when Alula's polearm struck the center of one of wing blades while it was extended, shattering it. I didn't miss a beat and saddled her pole arm, kicking her in the face and gut, and using leverage and my other wing blade to break it into a staff and a dagger.

I spun around and using all four of my legs to give her a cartwheel of kicks. She responded by folding her wings and diving, doing a river dance on my gut. 

I turned around and knocked her off balance for a moment. She fell, I grabbed her wings and bent them the wrong way. I kicked her away as she nearly stabbed me with her now much shorter pole arm and knocked me with the staff.

Alula didn't call out her magic as she sent a fireball, another lightning ball, and a burst of ice daggers all my way. But I was JUST a tiny bit too fast for her.

I did a spiral around her, then switched to a random zigzag JUST as she began tracking me, and dived into a cloud and managed to kick her in the horn, making her lose her magic grip on her weapons. She did a back flip in mid air and kicked me with both legs in the jaw. I turned the momentum to my advantage and kicked her in the shoulders. She took the time to grab her dagger in her mouth.

I felt like a crazy hornet, we dove in and out of clouds trying to ambush each other but always just a bit too late!

We slashed madly through the sky. Time lost its meaning. Space lost its meaning. All there was was the two of us. And we kept going at it! Until finally... we both crash landed back on the ship... sucking wind. My legs and wings all felt like lead, and it wasn't some stupid gravity spell from her. One look confirmed she'd just hit empty too.

"Hey... no far... I can't... run out of juice the same time as you." I panted.

"... that's... that's my line..." She panted back.

"Looks like... your big... sister... trained ya pretty well after all."

"Back.... back at ya."

"You... you aren't going to win this, Alula." I panted.

"Why's... that? Have a stamina restore item somewhere... in there?"

"Not... not really... but you said we only leave when one of us breaks and... you did tell me ... about my parents... you patched up... the one part of me that would have broken...and you got me to admit that telling Diamond and Silver were stuck being stuck up was bad, which I think had been weighing my heart down for awhile... thanks. I'm free."

Alula... let out a small laugh... "I... you're welcome."

She slowly tossed off her barding. "There... now I've... I've got..." She tried to get up, but just sat back down. "Okay... five minute break?"

I didn't tell her that taking your armor off wouldn't help much unless it weighed a ton.

"... Let me... say a few things then." I breathed.

"Didn't you say... all you were going to?"

"... Maybe... maybe seeing you up there up close and personal... made me think of something...Or recall something maybe...hard to tell sometimes."

"Oh really? What?"

"Tell me what made you care about Diamond Tiara this much... what set off everything?"

"... It all started Hearts and Hooves Day..."

- To be Continued