• Published 22nd Jul 2014
  • 541 Views, 20 Comments

Ryujin - bestponydash



One year has past since Tirek and all has been well. Until two dragon brothers come busting through a portal from another world. Love, loss, and new friendships will follow

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CH. 6: New Friends, New Life

The ponies were still inside the castle, talking about their lost friend and trying their best to comfort each other; they had all been through a lot in the past two days. Suddenly a bright red spark erupted in the middle of the room and a second later, Ryujin stood before them. He held his head high, turned, and looked at all of them.

He took a deep breath, "It's over."

The ponies looked at one another.

"Well, what will you do now? Are you going back to your world?" Dash asked.

Ryujin looked at the pony with his head high and determination and respect in his eyes. He walked out of the middle of the room and faced the mane six. Spike came around the corner and slowly walked to his pony friends. Ryujin slowly dropped to one knee, lowered his head, and closed his eyes.

"W...What's he doing?" Dash whispered to her friends.

Suddenly Ryujin's body ignited in red flames; the ponies gasped at the sight. After a few seconds, the flames died down and left Ryujin kneeling on the floor, unmarked. He opened his eyes and stood up straight.

He glanced around, "I have sworn myself to the six of you."

The ponies blinked and looked at one another blankly.

Spike smiled, "It's his dragon code. You know, like the time I agreed to do whatever Applejack said."

Applejack rolled her eyes, "Oh pony feathers, not this again."

Ryujin walked forward, "Don't worry, it's not that extensive."

"What do you mean?" Spike turned his head.

"You're still a young dragon so I'll completely explain the code to you. The code is different for all dragons; each decide for themselves the extent in which they have to abide. However, one detail remains the same no matter how far you take the code."

The ponies leaned forward.

"If a dragon activates his or her code, like I just did, they can never abandon those who they have sworn to....In other words-"

"You can never go home," Twilight interrupted.

Ryujin slowly nodded, "...Right. At least not while you all are still here."

The ponies looked at him, surprised.

"Darling, why would do such a thing?" Rarity asked.

Ryujin looked at the group proudly, "My father was very clear in this area; 'if someone provides to you, a kindness, you must always repay the favor.' You all saved my life in town, and you came to save me a second time at the castle even after I got your friend killed. The only way to repay you all was to activate my code and pledge to help."

Dash turned her head, "What does that mean exactly?"

"MY code," he gestured to himself, "states that I must always defend you all and that I must do my best not to let any kind of harm come your way. Each dragon's code demands different things."

"You say 'each dragon's' but you're only the second dragon we've met that follows a code," said Twilight with a proudly smiling Spike standing next to her.

"Well, not all dragons follow the code, it is a choice. When a dragon is very young, he or she is given the choice to either live by a code or not; most choose to not, my brother for example. That was another reason him and my father often argued."

"So what are you gonna do now?" again asked Dash.

Ryujin stood and thought about it, "I...guess, try to fit in as best I can. And of course I'll need a job, not to mention a place to stay."

Twilight smiled, "Well that shouldn't be too hard, we can help you fit in. As for you having a place to stay, you can keep your room here in the castle. It's not like I will use it."

Ryujin's ears lifted, "Really? You're sure?"

"Although I don't know about any jobs for you. But you're a dragon; don't you have some sort of hidden stash of treasures?"

"Well yeah, but even if you all help me go get it, the money I've stored won't be worth anything here."

"Well in any case I'm sure you'll be fine," Twilight said waving her hoof gently.

Ryujin looked around at the ponies; all of them had bright smiling faces that left him astonished. How, he wondered, could they still manage to smile? How after everything, could they still be willing to help? He looked around and felt something he had not felt for the past two years; a sense of belonging, a sense of family.

He slowly smiled, "Thanks, all of you."

Pinkie widened her grin, "That's what friends are for."

Ryujin's head shot up, "It's only been two days and you already consider me a friend?"

"Well you did save our lives after only being in this world for a few minutes, so yeah." Dash smirked.

Ryujin chuckled and walked toward his friends, his new family.

Unfortunately things were not this touching deep within the crevices of the Ever-free forest. On the surface stood a small and modest cave entrance that spread several echoed voices from within. Deep below ground, in the darkest depths of this cave ( lit only by some bioluminescent fungi ), were hundreds if not thousands of strange dark creatures with bright glowing eyes. These black pony-like beings had been surrounding something in the middle of the dark and dripping cave. This something was the torn, beaten, and rotting corpse of Shinigami. Standing over him was a large being with a pale blue mane, emerald eyes, razor-sharp teeth, and a rough and torn tail.

The creature addressed her army, "Tonight, my children, we receive our salvation! No more scavenging, no more going hungry! We will have our revenge! And we will start with Ponyville...with Twilight Sparkle."

The changeling army roared as their queen turned to face the corpse in front of her. Chrysalis lowered her head and concentrated; her battered horn soon glowed so intensely that the changelings had to shield their eyes. From the surface, the cave entrance emitted a beautiful light in the darkness of the forest, and it only seemed to be getting brighter. Suddenly a strong ray of energy shot from Chrysalis's head and struck Shinigami's body.

He lit up and shook rigorously for several minutes; Chrysalis's legs began to wobble from fatigue. After another minute or so the magic began to dim until it was almost dark in the cave once again. But just then, the light returned ten-fold in a massive magical explosion. This explosion flung Queen Chrysalis back against the cave wall; several changelings were also pushed back.

When the light finally ceased, the changelings warily looked up to find a large silver figure glistening before them. Shinigami appeared to be completely healed again.

He angrily glanced around, "Where am I? what is this?"

Queen Chrysalis slowly stood, panting, and walked over to him.

She smiled ominously at him, "Now you can finish what you started."

"What? Who are you? Where are we?" he growled.

"I am Queen Chrysalis and these are my children," she gestured forth, "I brought you back to life."

Shinigami shook and rubbed his head, "Where's my brother?"

"I'd imagine the other dragon is still in town, which is why we need you."

"What are you talking about?"

"Now that You're alive, we can take our revenge."

Shinigami glared at the Changeling queen, "So you thought that I was going to help you because you revived me? what's stopping me from just eating you."

The changelings became alarmed and readied themselves to protect their queen. Shinigami turned to them and grinned. He let out a deep and grainy growl.

"I would prefer if you didn't harm them," Chrysalis interrupted.

He gave the army one last growl before turning back, "Why should I care what you would 'prefer'?"

Chrysalis began to get agitated, "Because we can help one another."

Shinigami wrinkled his brow and took another step closer to the queen, "How many times must I explain this to you WORTHLESS INSECTS; I don't need anyone's help."

Chrysalis took a few steps back, "We can give you two things you could never have yourself."

"And what would be those two things?" he folded his arms.

"An army of changelings," she nervously smiled and gestured, "and my magic."

Shinigami looked around at the army before him; his mind wandered back to the old castle and the book he had been reading.

"Now that you mention it I have heard of you before, you tried to take over the capital city, right?"

"It's called Canterlot, but yes. And if it wasn't for a CERTAIN pony I would have succeeded."

"Yeah I read you got your ass handed to you," Shinigami chuckled.

Chrysalis became outraged, but she knew she stood no chance against this dragon; she stayed quiet, grinding her teeth.

Shinigami turned to leave, "You made me laugh so I won't kill you this time, consider yourself lucky," he headed for the cave exit.

"Wait, you can't just leave!"

Shinigami growled and quickly turned to face her, "I can do whatever I-"

He looked down; something was different. He glared as his hands glowed a profound black aura.

"W...What is this? What have you done to me?"

Chrysalis stared in amazement, "My spell must have had...side effects."

Shinigami raised his hands; pulled them back, and threw them forward. Suddenly a large ball of black magic shot from them and banged against the cave wall, knocking loose several rocks. The changelings' eyes followed the burst as it traveled through the air. Shinigami lowered his hands again and thought. After a few moments he bagan to slowly grin as he stared at his new magic; a devilish plot soaring through his mind.

He turned to Chrysalis, "On second thought, your right; we have the same enemies. After all, you did bring me back to life, and not to mention you gave me magic in the process."

Chrysalis hesitated at first, wondering if he was really telling the truth. But after a while she decided to trust the dragon, he was, after all, her only hope.

She turned to her army, "You see, my children, now we will march on Ponyville and take revenge on those who foiled our previous plot. We will rule all of Equestria and never go hungry again!"

The changeling army roared and rejoiced before Shinigami. He looked around with an ominous smile stretched across his face.

He turned to Chrysalis, "Of course we will have to prepare for this attack."

Her smile faded, "What do you mean? We're ready now."

"If we're going to do this, we must have every advantage we can get."

She turned her head, "What do you propose?"

Shinigami looked at his hands once again, "Have you ever taught magic to anyone else?"

Chrysalis smiled at her new ally and began to laugh. Shinigami smiled as well.

Back in the castle, every pony put on a smile for Ryujin, even if Zecora was still on all of their minds. The mane six took him out into the town and began to introduce him to every pony else. The response of the townsponies were to be expected; some ran in terror, some growled in anger, and others were simply curious. After Ryujin had seen the entirety of the town, he had lost some of his spirit.

Ryujin scratched at his head awkwardly, "I think it's gonna be quite a while before anyone accepts me here."

Applejack approached the dragon, "Aw cheer up sugar cube, they just need a little time. Trust me, they'll come 'round."

"If you say so."

Pinkie Pie smiled and hopped forward, "AJ's right; and besides, Nightmare Night is coming up in about a month. That's the perfect time to get every pony to warm up to you."

"That's a great idea, after all it worked for princess Luna," Twilight added.

"What's Nightmare Night?"

"It's an amazing holiday with candy, costumes, and lots of fun." Pinkie ferociously explained.

Ryujin's smile reemerged, "I guess it's worth a shot."

He decided to continue to try his best to gain the ponies' favor.

After that, the days began to pass more quickly. The ponies trudged through thier jobs and tried to return to thier previous happy spirits. Unfortunately death is not easily forgotten. Ryujin had begun to establish himself in Ponyville, accepting jobs from those who offered and getting better accuainted with his pony friends.

Finally the one month marker had passed and the day of Nightmare Night arrived; every pony was finishing thier preparations for the evening. The morning light shined on Twilight's castle and into Ryujin's room and illuminated his face, which was wrinkled and disturbed. He quickly turned in his bed until his eyes finally shot open. He sighed and blinked tiredly before sitting up. For a minute or so Ryujin sat at the edge of his bed, staring with the same distant look that had been on his face every morning for the past two years. Eventually he shook his head and stretched to yawn, slowly rising to his feet. The dragon wandered to the bathroom to wake himself up, his feet patting on the crystal floors.

When he emerged he took a deep breath and made his way to the main hall. There he found Twilight listing materials followed by Spike holding a long piece of paper and quill and repeating the word "Check."

He approached them, "Hey guys, what're you doing?"

Twilight turned, "Oh, your up, good. We could use all the help we could get."

Ryujin rubbed his face one more time, "With what?"

"Nightmare Night; this year has to be perfect. Ponies...haven't really been the same lately."

Ryujin lowered his head a bit, "Right."

Spike raised his eyes, "But tonight will change all that. There's going to be games, decorations, and I've heard that princess Luna is coming again."

Ryujin remembered what his friends had said and became determined to change his reputation, "Is there anything I can do?"

Twilight thought for a few moments, "We need some pony who can fly to help put up some of the decorations. You could start with that; and if you need any help go and find Rainbow, she's probably taking one of her mid-morning naps."

Ryujin nodded and headed out to start his work while Twilight continued to list and Spike continued to "check." He pushed open the castle doors and spread his wings, the morning wind brushing against him. A few flaps later and he was soaring over Ponyville with the warmth of the sun on his back. He examined every pony hard at work getting everything ready. He eventually found the spot that would serve as the center point for tonight. He quickly descended and made a quiet landing among the ponies.

He looked around at the banners, tables, game boothes, and food stands that plastered the town. Ponies were all over, running about and trying to make everything just so. Quickly he saw some discarded banners lying on the ground. Ryujin reached down to pick them up when Pinkie came hopping around the corner with a big smile on her face, checking every pony's process and congratulating them on a job well done. She eventually made her way to Ryujin who was gathring up the ends of the banners and scanning for the perfect place to put them.

"Those would look great right over there," she pointed between two adjacent buildings.

"Alrighty then," he said as he flew up and began to tie the banner up. "How's this?" Ryujin asked when he was done.

"Fantastic! Now I've got to get over Sugarcube Corner and taste...I mean 'check on' the food for tonight."

Pinkie zoomed away leaving a trail of dust behind. Ryujin flew down with a chuckle in his throat and walked over to another discarded banner. As he picked it up he found that more and more fabric lay beneath; there was no way he could pick it up and hang it properly all by himself. He looked around seeking assistance until he spotted a lone cloud with a familiar rainbow-colored mane hanging off the edge. Ryujin took a deep breath, dropped the banner, and flew up to this cloud.

When he reached the cloud he saw Rainbow curled into a ball, her chest slowly rose and fell as she snored. A small breeze pushed through her mane, brushing it back and out of her face; allowing the golden rays of the sun to illuminate the whole scene.

Ryujin hesitated to wake her, "Uh...Dash."

No response.

"Dash, hey," he gently tried again.

Dash slowly blinked and wiggled, "Huh, what?"

She turned around to find Ryujin floating beside her.

"Oh hey," she yawned, "What's up?"

"Sorry but I needed some help with the decorations," Ryujin pointed.

Dash stood and looked down at the pile of fabric on the ground.

"Oh, sure. Just gimme a sec."

Ryujin nodded and flew down. Dash yawned again and stretched for a few moments before stepping off her cloud and joining her friend.

But as Ryujin and the ponies were putting up decorations, Shinigami was busy with a different kind of preparation. There were just enough rays of light peaking through the trees to brighten the forest floor and all the living creatures that roamed it. Shinigami sat alone on top of the changelings' cave, concentrating. His hands soon began to glow as his brow creased. The black magic became more promising as it started to spread to the dragon's arms, then his shoulders. After a few minutes Shinigami's entire body was covered with the black aura. He suddenly wrinkled his brow even more and the magic surrounding him increased. Shinigami struggled for a few seconds; his body began to rise from the stone and float in mid air.

Before long, Queen Chrysalis walked out from the dark cave and looked up to see Shinigami's progress.

She smiled with her razor teeth, "You learn fast."

Shinigami opened his eyes; the strain of the spell no longer showed, "I've always had that going for me."

The dragon quickly stood up, still being suspended only by his magic. He raised his arms and his whole body followed his command. He floated forward and down until his feet were safely on the ground. Once landed, the magic quickly receded back into Shinigami's hands.

He walked forward, "Why are you teaching me pointless spells? I don't need to levitate myself if I can fly."

"Learning to levitate others is easier if you already know how to levitate yourself."

Shinigami rolled his eyes, "I suppose."

Chrysalis raised her head and her horn began to glow. With one motion there was a large poof of smoke and when it cleared a changeling stood before the two of them.

Chrysalis smiled with a cocky expression, "See for yourself," she pointed.

Shinigami glared at the queen for a moment before turning his atention to the changeling minion before him. He took a deep breath and raised his hand. The changeling quickly became nervous and looked to his queen for assistance, but Chrysalis simply stared at Shinigami with anticipation in her eyes. Shinigami's hand once again began to glow black and the changeling began to grow more uneasy.

The dark magic suddenly shot from Shinigami and blasted the side of the changeling, who had closed his eyes in anticipation of some form of pain. After a minute the changeling opened his eyes to find that he was completely unharmed. He looked around and let out a sigh of relief. He was at ease....until he looked down.

Shinigami's hand was steady as he held the changeling ten feet off the ground. He smiled in shock of his own abilities after only one month. The changeling, on the other hand, was frantically shaking and shouting to be put down. Soon enough, Shinigami's arm began to wobble and he complied with the creature's wishes. After he had safely landed the changeling, Shinigami's magic suddenly flew back into him and disappeared.

Chrysalis let out a small hah, "You see, I told you."

Shinigami did not thank her, "What's next?" he asked with a monochromatic tone.

Chrysalis's triumphal smile faded, "Don't you think you should practice levitation a little more?"

"I got that already," he raised his voice, "what's next?"

The queen became increasingly irritated, "Alright, let's see how well you can teleport."

Shinigami smirked, took another deep breath, and readied his hands again.

The day advanced quickly for both Ryujin and Shinigami. Morning turned to afternoon and afternoon turned to evening. All during this time the ponies were preoccupied with the much anticipated Nightmare Night until finally it was time. The town was lit with countless lanterns of blue, orange, yellow, red, green, and purple; the night was filled with the vast combinations. Banners covered the buildings and hung above the many different food and game boothes. The ponies behind these boothes smiled as they offered corn, apples, cotton candy, chocolates; pin the tail on the pony, pop the balloon, toss the spider, and many other games and treats.

The streets were crowded with werewolves, vampires, zombies, gouls, ghosts, goblins; alicorn princesses, fairies, pirates, knights, witches, and several ( less extreme ) animals. But even among so much variation, every pony had one thing in common; a smile across thier face for the first time in one month.

Earlier, Ryujin had returned to his room in the castle to have a nap before joining in the festivities. He managed to get about half an hour when a loud knock woke him. Ryujin opened his eyes and gazed at the ceiling; another knock came. Ryujin looked to the door and quickly rose to his feet. He rushed over and opened the door to find a crazy-haired Twilight with a white lab coat, cracked goggles, and shined black shoes.

"Are ya ready? Every pony's already started!" she said with a huge smile and a small jump.

Ryujin looked the pony up and down with a grin on his face, "So who are you?"

"I'm glad you asked. I'm am the mad genius scientist Victor Van Frankenhoof."

Just then, Spike came running down the hall until he reached Twilight. He was covered in green paint and had several fake stitches spreading all over his body. His head scales were black and unorganized, and his eyes were surrounded by red painted bags.

"And I am the deranged psycho monster created by Dr. Frankenhoof," he said as he stood by Twilight's side.

Ryujin bent down and took a closer look at the young dragon, "Is that right? Well, deranged psycho monster, are you ready for some candy?"

"Absolutely!"

Ryujin patted the young one's head and laughed. He slowly rose to face Twilight again, who was chuckling along with him.

"I still need to change so don't wait up. I'll be out soon."

Twilight nodded and turned to leave, "Don't be too long."

Ryujin smiled and closed his door again. He wandered over to the window and opened it wide; the ponies outside seemed to be having a grand time and Ryujin was eager to join them. He quickly turned and opened his dresser, reached in, and began to pull out several garments and began to get dressed. When he was finished, he walked over to the mirror and examined any flaw in his design. The mirror revealed a black shirt, pants, and tail cover, all of which were covered by a thin layer of fur. His feet were covered with grey except for the toes, which had elongated silver talons. On his head, he placed two large silver eyebrows and covered the spikes on the top of his head with more silver hair. Lastly, across his chest was a large section of fur protruding out.

Ryujin looked all around himself and found the cloth section of his costume to be ready; next was the paint. He quickly exited his room and rushed to the bathroom. He grabbed the paint on the side of the sink and began. He painted his face grey and black and did the same with his hands. The claws on his fingers and wings were painted silver. The wings themselves were painted grey with a hint of brown to seem thinner.

"And for the final touch," he reached beside the sink and grabbed a pair of large fangs that extended down to his chin when placed in his mouth.

When he was all done, Ryujin took one last look at himself; he was ready. He turned and headed for the main doors dressed as the perfect vampire fruit bat.

Burst after burst of black magic erupted in the dense Ever-free forest. Shinigami stood, his legs wobbling from exhaustion, with his eyes shut tight and his brow creased. He extended his hands and forced more power to come forth. In one final push, he focused his magic, fatigue causing him to show his teeth, and let forth another poof of black smoke. But when it cleared and Shinigami opened his eyes he found that he was still in the same spot as before; just like all his other attempts.

He quickly dropped to one knee and began panting heavily. Chrysalis strolled out from her cave behind Shinigami and came up on his left side. She looked at the dragon with a smug grin on her face.

"Not so easy is it?" she smirked.

Shinigami growled in annoyance, "What do you want?"

"Just checking your progress," she said as she began to circle Shinigami.

"Well you've checked. Now go away so I can get this."

Shinigami stopped panting and rose to his feet; Chrysalis took a few steps back. Shinigami closed his eyes again and extended his arms. Just like before, black streams of magic ran over his body. Chrysalis watched, slow shaking her head. Shinigami quickly opened one of his eyes and caught a glimpse of her disappointed glare. He suddenly let out a large sigh and dropped his hands; his magic zooming back.

"What, what is it?" he snapped.

"Your doing it wrong." Chrysalis said with a calm smile at the sight of Shinigami's frustration.

"What're you talking about?"

She sighed, "You need to focus on where you want to go exactly, not just on moving somewhere in general."

"I'm doing 'exactly' what I should be. Now leave be before I eat you or something," Shinigami turned his back to the queen and closed his eyes again.

Chrysalis wrinkled her brow and stormed off, "Fine stay there and fail!"

Shinigami slowly turned and checked to see that she had gone. When he was satisfied, he quickly looked around; his gaze widened when he spotted a large boulder in the distance.

"Fine, I'll try it your way."

One last time he closed his eyes, readied his hands and concentrated. But this time thought only of the boulder. As the magic covered his body, Shinigami continued to think: the boulder, the boulder, the boulder, the boulder. Finally the poof came and Shinigami opened his eyes.

He looked down to where he stood and he looked back to where he once stood. He was now.....a few feet closer to the boulder. He looked around with both relief and utter disappointment, not to mention extreme exhaustion.

"Well...it's better than nothing," he sighed.

Ryujin made his way through the castle doors and walked to where the festivities were thickest. The ponies around seemed happy and distracted by the colorful lights, fun games, and candy. Ryujin walked throughout the place until he heard something he had not expected.

"Hey you!" a voice called.

Ryujin looked around until he spotted a small zombie waving him over to one the balloon pop booths. He was suprised to say the least but he made his way over.

"How 'bout it big guy, wanna give it a go?" asked the vender.

Ryujin smiled at this development. He began to think that perhaps this meant the ponies were ready to accept him.

"Sure."

"Alright just take a dart," he pointed to seveal darts on the table in front of them, "and pop a balloon to win a prize," he moved his hoof to point to the back wall of the stand.

Ryujin picked up one of the darts and focused on a large orange balloon in front of him. Just then the ponies around stopped what they were doing and glanced over. Ryujin felt the eyes on him, perhaps this was more than just an innocent game; perhaps the ponies were seeing it as some sort of gesture. Maybe this was a sign that things would start to get better. These thoughts rushed through Ryujin's head as he took aim and threw.

A second later, a loud pop was heard and pieces of orange fell to the ground. Ryujin smiled and gave a victorious HA.

"Well done," the vender praised and handed Ryujin a small stuffed bear.

After that the ponies went back to thier own games; it was just a small event, but Ryujin had a feeling it made the ponies feel a little better about him. He thanked the vender and walked on through the streets.

He walked until he saw Twilight and Spike gathered among a sizable crowd surrounding the apple bobbers.

He walked to their side, "Hey guys."

The two turned to face him, "Oh good, you made it," Twilight exclaimed, "And it seems you already won something," she pointed to the bear.

Ryujin smiled, "Yeah," he took a glance around, "looks like everything turned out alright."

Spiked jumped with enthusiasm in his step and candy in his arms, "I'll say! This is shaping up to be one of the best Nightmare Nights yet!"

Ryujin smiled with the small dragon, then suddenly noticed the commotion at the front of the crowd, "What's all this about?"

"Oh yeah come look," Twilight gestured him forth.

Ryujin walked closer and gazed above the ponies. He watched as Rainbow Dash and Applejack frantically pulled apple after apple out of their barrels while constantly checking the other's progress. Beside each pony was a large pile of exrated fruit and a referee counting a fast as possible. The crowd cheered as the two plunged into the water again and again.

Twilight shook her head and chuckled, "Those two are at it again; always trying to prove whose better."

Ryujin laughed, "Aw come on, Twilight. Haven't you ever gotten caught up in a competition?"

"Not nearly as much as these two, let me tell you."

Spike jumped in place to get a view over the ponies' heads, "I can't see."

Ryujin looked at the poor struggling youngling and kneeled down to him, "Hop on," he pointed to his shoulders.

Spike smiled and climbed Ryujin's back. The larger dragon stood up, giving spike the perfect view for the final moments of the event. As Dash and AJ lifted out of the water one final time, the referee called time and proclaimed the final tally.

The crowd hung in suspense, "Rainbow Dash: 30. Applejack:....30. It's a tie!"

A huge AAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWW rushed through the crowd.

"Aw shoot, not again," AJ disappointedly stamped, her head dripping.

Dash and AJ walked two one another, "Next time for sure," the two said simultaneously.

The crowd dispersed and Twilight and Ryujin joined their soaked friends.

"Another tie," Twilight exclaimed.

Spike cheered from Ryujin's shoulders, "Yeah but this was a close one!"

The group looked at Spike.

Dash flew up to him, "Well look at you; getting a bird's eye view huh?"

"You could say that."

Dash was now at eye level with Ryujin and he got his first definitive look at her costume. She was wearing a green collared shirt with two shirt pockets and cufflinks. She was also wearing a tan and green hat; all of which were soaking wet.

The pony quickly noticed Ryujin examining her attire, "Pretty cool huh," she said looking at her costume.

"Yeah. Uh, what are you?"

Dash's jaw dropped, "WHAT! You've never seen a Daring Do costume before?"

Ryujin stared, lost, "Who's Daring Do?"

Dash stared in gasp and suddenly fainted.

"Daring Do is a famous explorer and the main character in Rainbow's favorite book series," Twilight explained.

Dash quickly zoomed back up, "Daring Do is the bravest, boldest, most amazing pony in the world! Besides me, of course."

"Really."

"Hey look!" Spike suddenly said, pointing off into the distance, "I can see Princess Luna's chariot."

Ryujin looked up at him, "Making use of your bird's eye view?"

Spiked laugh.

Then, Dash creeped up next to Spike, "Ya know I bet I could help you get an even better look."

"What do you mea- WWWOOOOAAAAHHHH," Dash suddenly lifted Spike high in the air and flew around at extreme speeds, sending candy pouring down.

Whe she finally came down, Spike was toppling over from dizziness and fright. Dash watched and tried but couldn't help falling down in laughter.

"Rainbow! That's not funny," Twilight gathered the disoriented dragon.

Dash continued to laugh, "It's hilarious."

Ryujin chuckled and picked Dash off the ground.

Dash looked at him, "What are you do-"

Ryujin suddenly took off faster than sound and zigzaged through sky. Dash screamed as she got a taste of her own medicine. Ryujin landed again and placed Dash on the ground.

Dash's eyes spun in her head and she struggled to stand, "uuggghhhh, that wasn't funny."

The other ponies and dragons laughed and laughed some more.

"I beg to differ, RD," AJ chuckled.

Dash stood up, shook her head, and began to giggle along.

The ponies all around began to make thier way to the center of town, where Luna was stepping out of her chariot. She smiled and greeted every pony and every monster.

"Come on yall, let's go greet'er"

It was now that Ryujin noticed Apllejack's costume. She was completely covered in wooden attire and had a large set of razor-sharp teeth.

"Timberwolf?" Ryujin asked.

"Yup. And pretty accurate if'n I do say so myself," she looked at his costume, "Vampire fruit bat?"

Ryujin knodded with approval.

"Nice."

Suddenly Princess Luna spotted the group and joined them. One by one the ponies greeted her with smiles across their faces. Luna was happy to be back.

"Hello every pony. I am eager to get started with the festivities once again."

Ryujin waved, "Hey Luna, how ya been?"

"Very well, thank you," she smiled.

"Well alrighty then," he looked around, "What shall we do first?"

Dash pointed, "I think I see Rarity, Pinkie, and Fluttershy over there. Come on."

The group walked on. Luna and Twilight were near the rear while every pony else rushed forward.

"It's good to see that everything is beginning to seem normal again."

Twilight glanced over to her fellow princess, "It hasn't been easy, but I think tonight will give ponies around here a push in the right direction."

Luna looked on to her friends who were getting farther and farther away, "And how has he been?"

"Who, Ryujin?"

Luna nodded, "After...IT...happened, he completely blamed himself. I think he does that quite often actually."

Twilight looked over to the dragon, who was now laughing with Pinkie (cotton candy) and Rarity (a crystal pony), "Well, I can't speak for him but I think he's gotten better in this passed month."

"It's just, I have a feeling he is hiding his true thoughts and feelings."

Twilight's smile faded, "Why do you say that?"

"Before I was banished, I had hurtful thoughts that I kept hidden for a long time. I have learned to recognize when some pony else is doing the same. I don't want to see him become bitter as I did."

"You're worried about him?"

"Yes. I know it sounds strange, but could you watch him. To see if you notice what I suspect?"

Twilight saw the worry in Luna's eyes, "Alright."

Luna showed a small smile, "Thank you Twilight Sparkle."

"Hey guys! You coming or what?" Dash called from across the street.

Twilight and Luna waved and began making their way over.

Shinigami tried again and again but simply couldn't reach the boulder in one go. After so many tries his legs felt like they would give out at any moment. Another poof came and again Shinigami saw that he had failed.

"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHH," he burst with frustration.

He panted and sweated heavily, his body struggled to move, and his vision began to blur. Shinigami trudged on, back to his starting position in front of the cave. He only had a few steps left when his eyes suddenly rolled back and he fell to the ground with a loud THUMP.

Chrysalis heard the noise from inside and wandered out to investigate.

"What was-" she turned and saw the unconscious dragon at her hooves, "Crap."

She quickly readied her horn and sent streams of emerald magic that covered Shinigami from head to toe. The dragon lifted off the ground and followed Chrysalis as she ran back into the darkness of the cave. She zoomed down to the deepest debts to where her army rested.

"WATER," she commanded.

The changelings became alarmed and confused until they saw Shinigami float in after their queen. One minion ran to the water supply in the corner and gathered a large amount in a jug. He galloped to his queen's aid. Chrysalis quickly snatched the jug and began pouring the liquid into Shinigami's mouth. Shinigami slowly peeked open his eyes for a few seconds before passing out again.

Chrysalis gave a sigh of relief and placed Shinigami down to rest for the night.

"The fool's gonna kill himself."

Twilight and Luna reached the rest of the group, who were waiting in line for the test your strength game.

"I bet you I can crack the bell," Dash smugishly said to Applejack.

"we'll see."

The first pony up was Rarity, "Are you sure about this, I just shined my hooves."

The operator of the game began to chuckle in his throat.

"What?"

"Little lady, I don't think this is the type of game for you."

Rarity huffed and walked up to the pressure pad. She lifted her hind legs and bucked hard. The hammer flew up and stopped just under the bell. The vender stared up with his mouth open.

Rarity smirked at the pony, "Maybe it's YOU that should find a different game."

She walked back to her friends, who were cheering and applauding her. Next up was Dash.

"Alright, let me show you how it's done."

She walked up to the pire and bucked. The hammer rose and struck the bell with ease.

"Top that."

AJ smirked and approached the game; she turned and sent the hammer up to the bell with a huge ding. She was about to take a victory lap when there was a loud CRACK behind her. Every pony watched as the pire began to split and fall. The group suddenly turned there attention to the little filly alicorn in the shadow of the pire, her ears down and mouth open in terror.

"Oh shit," Ryujin said as he bolted to the filly's side.

He quickly made his way around the faling structure and grabbed the pony. The pire was right on top of them now, so Ryujin jumped to the side and out of the way. Every pony gasped as it crashed to the ground in a heap of dust. The mother of the filly quickly sprinted to where Ryujin lay. Ryujin slowly turned and revealed the small pony wrapped up in his wings, scared half to death. He released the pony and she ran to her mother.

"Thank you so much," the mother said.

Ryujin nodded and stood up and dusted himself off; he looked around to find every pony in town had seen the whole thing. Suddenly, one random pony began to stomp his hooves; soon more and more did the same. Rujin looked around at the town cheering for him, he smiled.

For the rest of the night Ryujin felt completely at ease, he played games and laughed with his friends; he even joined in on some of Dash's pranks. He listened to the different stories of the mane six about their various adventures and fights. And he began to meet some of the other townsponies. Nightmare Night was a success.

By the end of the night, the ponies were beginning to take the young ones home and the venders began cleaning up their booths. The goup was walking when Spike began to yawn.

Twilight turned to him, "Well I guess it's some psycho monster's bedtime."

Spike became alarmed, "What? I'm not tired, I just-" he couldn't help but yawn again.

"I'll take him home," Ryujin offered.

"But i'm not tired!" Spike pleaded.

"Come on," Ryujin picked up the small dragon and took his small lantern of candy.

"Thanks," Twilight gestured.

Luna smiled at the sight of the two dragons together like that.

Ryujin waved and made his way back to the castle with Spike in his wing. By the time he reached the front doors, he could here Spike snoring; Ryujin smirked at the sight. He walked in and down the hall to Spike's room. He unwrapped the youngling, put the candy on top of the dresser, and raised his hand. Ryujin's hand glowed with red until a small poof covered Spike. When it cleared, Spkke was completely clean of his costume. Ryujin tucked him in bed and closed the door on his way out.

He walked back outside to find that Luna's chariot had arrived to take her back to Canterlot. Ryujin quickly covered himself in magic and teleported to his friends. Every pony was saying their goodbyes when Ryujin appeared before them.

"Leaving?"

"Yes I must return to Canterlot to prepare for my duties."

She began to get in her chariot, Ryujin approached it before it took off.

"Well, thanks for coming."

"It was most enjoyable," she smiled, "but it must have been even better for you. Every pony opened up to you for the first time."

Ryujin smiled, "Yeah, I think things will be different from now on."

"If you could, I would very much appreciate it if you would write to me and tell me how things progress."

"Uh, sure. I can do that."

"Thank you, I look forward to hearing from you."

"See ya later."

Luna smiled and nodded, Ryujin stepped back. He walked back to the mane six as the chariot took off; every pony was waving goodbye.

"Well, I reckon it's time to turn in," AJ said once Luna was out of eye sight.

"I agree; I need my beauty sleep," Rarity gestured to herself.

The mane six said their farewells and headed home. It was very late when Ryujin and Twilight entered the castle and cleaned themselves up. The two said good night and went to thier rooms. Ryujin got into bed with a smile on his face; he knew that tonight was a great advancement for him. However, something was keeping him from closing his eyes. His smile faded for he knew that if he fell asleep, his good mood would be ruined. For some time he stared at the ceiling until he was too tired to think, he had to sleep. Ryujin closed his eyes and eventually lost consciousness.

When he was awakened, it was morning and the sun was shining through the window. He looked around at the crystal room in pure surprise. He gave a huge sigh of relief and rose to his feet. His eyes closed as he yawned and stretched. He slowly walked out his bedroom door and closed it behind him. He was about to walk to the bathroom when his ear twitched. There was a strange noise coming from the throne room.

"Twilight? Spike?"

No response.

Ryujin slowly walked down the hall until he reached the corner; the noise got louder, it was a kind of choking sound. Ryujin began to get nervous as he peaked around the corner. He saw Twilight lying on the floor, covered in blood.

He gasped and sprinted to the princess, "Twilight what happened?!"

Twilight slowly turned her head to face him, "You could have saved us."

"What?"

A different voice came from behind him, "You could have saved all of us."

Ryujin's eyes widened as he turned. The room began to darken all around him and a cold chill rushed through the air. Ryujin looked up to find a towering dragon standing over him.

"Mom?"

"Why didn't you save us?"

"I-I didn't know he was going to hurt you. I-"

"Of course you knew! You knew and you did nothing to help! Now it's going to happen all over again and the result will be the same."

"No. Mom, I-"

The dragon disappeared into the darkness.

Ryujin stood up and banged his head, "Alright, wake up. Wake up."

He put his hands down. But when he did so he saw Spike lying on the floor next to Twilight, not moving. Ryujin began to panic and breathe heavily. He turned to run when he saw Rarity, Pinkie, and Applejack dead in the middle of the thrones.

His breathing quickened, "This isn't real. This isn't real."

He ran to the front door but blocking it were the bodies of Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash. Suddenly he heard one of them take a breath. Ryujin ran to them to find that Dash was still alive.

He leaned down and held her in his arms, "Dash? Dash, what happened?"

She moved her lips and whispered something.

"What?" he put his ears to her mouth.

"This is your fault."

Ryujin moved his head away, "What? No, no. I didn't-"

Dash's head suddenly became limp and dropped. Her body became cold in Ryujin's arms. Ryujin starred at her dead body and felt tears under his eyelids.

"No, this isn't real," a tear ran down his cheek and dripped onto Dash's face.

Suddenly there was a noise behind him; someone was coming. He turned to find another dragon towering over him; this one had blood dripping from his claws and teeth.

"No, it can't be...I- I killed you."

Shinigami smiled a red smile and raised a claw. Ryujin put up his arms to defend himself but it was too late. He saw the claw come down on his face and everything went black.

Ryujin's eyes shot open in a gasp. He jumped up and panted on his bed. He looked out the window and saw the moon and stars glistening in the night. He ran from his bed and sprinted to the throne room. It was completely empty. Ryujin's panting calmed.

He rubbed his bloodshot eyes, "I need some fresh air."

He walked out the door and spread his wings. His wings flapped and took him to the roof of the castle, where he landed. Ryujin sat down and put his head in his hands; several minutes passed. After he calmed down his head rose and he watched the moon big in the sky. After a few more minutes he heard a flapping noise behind him.

"What're you still doing up?"

Ryujin turned to find Dash standing behind him, "I could asked you the same."

Dash walked to his side, "Couldn't sleep," she sat down next to him.

"I know the feeling."

The two watched the moon for a while until Ryujin looked over to Dash. Her coat was shimmering in the moonlight and her eyes were illuminating their ruby color; Ryujin saw the night sky reflect perfectly in those eyes. Her mane flowed with the cool night breeze that tickled his scales. He could help but stare.

Dash took notice, "What?"

"Uh, nothing. It's nothing."

"...Some night, huh."

Ryujin chuckled, "Oh yeah."

The two turned back to the moon.

"So what's your world like?" Dash finally asked.

"My world?"

Dash ginned, "Sure."

"Oh, well, me and my family lived in a forest region. The trees were too tall to see the top and there were streams with cystal clear water. To get to school we would take a long trail that led right through the middle of the wood."

"Dash faced him, "Why didn't you just fly there?"

"...I don't know. I just liked the look of the forest."

"What about when you left home?"

Ryujin smiled, "When I left to practice magic I travelled all over. I saw giant volcanos that constantly spurt out lava like rain. I saw the vast water lands to the east which had huge bogs and blue lakes; and I stayed up in high mountain temples that stretched above the clouds. I travelled for years and every year brought a new wonder to my eye."

Dash saw the passion in hs eyes, "So why'd you give it up?"

Ryujin slowly dropped his smile and looked down, "Can I tell you a secret?"

"Okay."

He lifted his head again, "I lied before."

She turned her head, "What?"

"Back in the castle; I didn't activate my dragon code."

"Then what was the fire and everything?"

"A light show, that's all it was."

"Well why did you lie?"

He sighed, "I wanted to stay here....After my parents died, my home lost all its wonder and I needed to leave. That stuff I said about returning a kindness was all fake."

Dash sincerely smiled at the dragon, "If you wanted to stay, all ya had to do was say so."

Ryujin's ears shot up, "Really?"

"Sure; we all know what you're going through."

"What do you mean?"

Dash widened her eyes; she had said too much, "I uh. I just mean every pony experiences loss. We've all been there."

Ryujin looked into dash's eyes; she was hiding something. He was about to speak when Dash suddenly stood up.

"Look at us getting sapy," she smirked, "I better go. Lots to do tomorrow."

Ryujin stood up, "Right, right."

Dash jumped to a hover, "See ya later."

He waved, "Yeah, see ya. And Dash..."

She turned.

"...Thanks."

Dash smiled and nodded before taking off. Ryujin watched with a smile as she flew away. Once she was gone he made his way back down and into the castle for the rest of the night.

Author's Note:

I'm Back :yay:

Opinions in the comments. :scootangel:

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