Six

by TryingToActProfessional

Six: Ch.16

I’m not sure how long I was out, but it was dark out when I came to.

I groan and sit up, stretching and cracking my back as I get out of bed….Wait, bed?

I look, and notice I’m still in Princess Luna’s room, and I was sleeping in her bed…

I’ll be hung for sure….

“Six? Are you awake?” I hear Luna call through the closed door.

“U-uh, yeah!” I call out. The doors slowly open, and Luna steps inside, shutting the door behind her. She seemed different. Like her body had grown a little bit. She matched Princess Celestia in stature now.

“Luna? What...happened to you?”

“When you purged the Nightmare from me, I was able to retain my full form again. Six, why….why did you do that for me?!” She squeaks. I can hear her crying softly in the pitch black room.

“Princess…?”

“You...you could’ve died….The Nightmare could’ve killed you! Why did you risk your life to save mine?!”

“Your life is more precious than mine. If I had died, I would’ve been forgotten eventually. But you, you and your sister are eternal. And if I hadn’t purged her from you, you may have died, or worse.”

She sniffles, and suddenly wraps me in a tight hug.

“Thank you….I owe you my gratitude!”

“You don’t need to...Anyone would’ve if they could. I just happened to have the ability to.”

Six, I have news.

Right now? I’m talking to the Princess!

No, you need to listen. Pyre’s escaped. When I purged Nightmare Moon, he hitched a ride and flew out of the room. I watched him do it!

This is bad….At least he won’t last long...and he isn’t able to possess anyone...right?

Let’s hope for everyone’s sake that he can’t.

“Six, what’s wrong?” Luna asks.

“O-Oh, uh..nothing. Just thinking.”

Let me talk to her.

Shade, you’re still weak from the purge. You should rest.

Let. Me. Talk. To. Her.

Fine.

“Hello, Princess.” I say casually.

She lets go of me and looks up into my eyes.

“Shade….You….you should be resting….”

“I can’t rest...I’ve come to tell you that Pyre has escaped our body.”

“He what? When? How?”

“The purge must have torn him out of our body, but we think he won’t last long without our body to host him.”

“Thank you….”

“I felt you needed to know.”

“Not that, Shade….Thank you for saving me.” She kisses my cheek softly, and I blush slightly.

“It was nothing. Your life is precious, and I would gladly have been erased to save you.”

“Aren’t you...Six’s demon?”

“Truthfully, n-Ggrn, not now, Six! Let m-me...Aah, jeez...Sorry, Princess. He, uh...passed out. Heh….”

Why did you do that?! We should tell her!

Did you forget what happened last time you told someone!? The hospital? The shock therapy? Huh?!

I….haven’t forgotten….

Then do you see why we can’t say?

….yes….

“Six? Is everything okay?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah. Just a little, uh...meeting of sorts. All done, though. So, um….I-I should probably get back to my room...Actually….Wait, am I gonna be killed for sleeping in your bed?”

“Of course not! It was I that put you there!”

I sigh with relief. “Thank you….”

“Shall I….take you back home?”

“Actually, Princess….I’d like to ask you a favor….If that’s alright.”

“Of course! Anything!”

“I would, uh….like to purchase some land in Ponyville to build a house….”

“I could arrange it at once! There’s a large patch of land to the north of Ponyville just inside the town limits. Would that be acceptable?”

“That would be great! But, just give me time to get the bits together…”

“No need. You’ve saved us, and this is the least we can do. I’ll also personally take care of the building materials.”

“You don’t have to do that, Princess….”

“I must insist. I just ask one thing of you, Six. And this is personal to me.”

“Anything.”

“Keep the citizens of Ponyville happy. Practice your purging methods, and you could start a business. But you must learn to expel your own negativity in a healthy way.”

“Okay….I will.”

“Good. For now, I’ll send you back to your room at Princess Twilight’s castle. I’m sure she’ll have missed you. And young Applejack as well.” I blush hotly, making her giggle.

With a flash of blue, I was back in the tower bedroom. It was dark, and I couldn't see a thing.

“Damn it….I need to learn light magic….” I shuffle my feet slowly across the floor towards the bed.

You know they’re afraid of you.

I stop dead in my tracks, hearing a familiar, yet new voice. It was mine, but more….calm and sad.

What are you talki-

You’re just a burden to them. All of them. They only use you for your powers. You’re…

USELESS

I feel a twinge of pain in my chest as he says that.

I-It’s not true….they all like me….they’re my friends...my family….

How can they be your friends if you’re a freak? They just pity you. It would be better if you’d just

DISAPPEAR

I feel another pain in my heart.

I-It’s not true….Applejack, she-

Only showed interest in you after you let her talk to her grandmother. And Twilight sees you as another lab rat to study. And even the Princesses….they just want your powers. If they found out how to replicate them, you’d be cast aside like garbage.

That’s….that’s not true! I am useful!

Name one thing useful that you did. Not your powers, you.

I…..

I couldn’t think of a single thing….

Exactly. You’re just a pathetic, cowardly wimp that can’t stand up for himself and is nothing but a burden to everyone.

Th-that’s n-

You bottom feed off of Twilight, you haven’t found a job, and your own parents loathe you. You were useless back then, and you’re useless now. What kind of man are you that your own sister had to stand up for you?

I clench my fists tightly, tears streaming down my cheeks.

It’s not true….they love me…

You deserve to die.

They want me around!

You deserve to die.

They’re my f-family……

You deserve to die.

I….I…..I deserve to die….

They obviously hate you. I bet they only keep you because the Princesses ordered them to keep you around. If not for that, you’d be back in Canterlot, moping around. You couldn’t even get a job if you tried. You had to mooch off of the Princess for a place to stay. Pathetic.

I-I deserve to die….

Besides, who would love a one-armed blindfolded freak like you? I bet your sister died just so she could get away from you!

I…….

Hmmmm?

I want to die….

You what?

I want….to die….

Then, let me take over. You won’t need to do anything.

What the Hell?! Six, snap out if it! This...thing isn’t in control, you are!!!

I deserve to die….

I feel my body walk on its own, towards the balcony of the tower.

YOU DON’T DESERVE TO DIE, YOU IDIOT! Everyone needs you to live!

I want...to die…..

No, you don’t!!

Why….why won’t everyone just LET ME DIE?!

I suddenly feel weightless, my feet no longer on the floor as cool air rushes through my hair as I plummet to the floor.

F-Finally….

But….release never comes….

When I open my eyes, I see Applejack holding me in her arms. She looked both furious and relieved.

She sets me down, her fists clenched tightly. I can see tears streaming down her cheeks, and it makes my chest tighten.

“WHAT THE HELL WERE YA THINKIN?!” She slaps me hard across the face, knocking me to the ground.

“YER LUCKY AH SAW YA JUMP ER YOU’D BE….” She grits her teeth and kicks me square in the chest, knocking the wind out of me.

She stays standing over me, breathing heavily and shaking. I cough and start to cry.

“Why…..won’t you all just let me die…..”

“Wh-whut…?”

“WHY WON’T YOU ALL JUST LET ME DIE!?!?!?” I jump up, screaming at the top of my lungs.

“Everything bad that’s happened since I’ve gotten here was my fault! MINE! And no matter what stupid or selfish thing I try, you all just won’t let me DIE! WHAT THE HELL DID I DO TO DESERVE SUCH KINDNESS?! I’VE DONE NOTHING BUT BE SELFISH THIS WHOLE TIME! I’VE USED ALL OF YOU TO GET A HOUSE, AND CLOTHES AND YOU ALL JUST KEEP….You keep saving me….”

I drop to my knees, punching the ground the best I can.

“Stupid! Stupid! Stupid people!!! I DON’T DESERVE YOUR KINDNESS! OR YOUR LOVE! OR YOUR FRIENDSHIP!! I JUST-” I knock myself off balance and fall to my left, landing with a heavy thud. I curl up and cry openly, not caring anymore about hiding it…

“I’m just useless…..” I grip a handful of dirt tightly, my tears turning it to mud.

There was a long moment of silence. When I eventually look back up at Applejack, her expression went from anger before to….sadness.

“Y-ya really think….ya don’t….deserve ta live…?”

“No….I don’t…..There’s nothing to live for…..I’m….alone….”

She kneels down at my side and grabs my arm, yanking me up onto my knees. He has tears in her eyes, but a smile on her face.

“Y-yer just n-not lookin in the right places. Six, ah…..” She tenses up briefly.

She suddenly hugs me tightly, crying silently into my shoulder.

“Y-y-yer not alone….ah-ah’m yer friend….Ah...ah need ya….”

“You just want me so you can talk to your grandma…”

She tenses up and backs up, looking me square in the eyes.

“Y-yer not Six….He...he don’t think that….”

“I’m his depression incarnate. And yes, he does. I can only relay what he already feels deep down.”

“Y-yer lyin….A-ah know a liar when ah see one!” She shouts.

“I’m not a liar. I tell the hard truth, and the truth is that he doesn’t want to live anymore.”

“You….Ya bastard! Give him back!”

“It’s a pity….He once thought you were pretty, but then he realized you used him for his power. You only took interest after he sent your Grandmother to Heaven.”

“H-he thought a-ah was….That ain’t true! He’s mah friend!”

“If that’s true, then why did you only start to show interest once he was useful to you? The orchard, then the grave? Face it. You and all the others have used him all this time. Everyone has.”

“That ain’t true! Six, don’t listen ta this...liar! We do love ya! Yer one of our friends! We need ya! And ah ain’t gunna let ya do nothin dumb to yerself again!”

She grabs her lasso from her hip, and before I can move, she ties me up tightly, binding me so fiercely that I can’t move a centimeter.

“Do whatever you please, but he has decided that he no longer wants to suffer.”

“Ah don’t care. Ah’m gunna make both of ya understand that yer loved!”

“How pitiful. You still say you love him?”

“Wh-ah-ah didn’t say ah loved him...h-he’s mah friend! But...ah-n-not love like that….”

Now.

I use my magic to teleport out of the restraints, appearing behind the castle.

“It’ll be over soon. They’ll forget you in an instant…”

I deserve to die…..I want to die…..

I make my way towards the Everfree Forest, and I snag a piece of rope from Fluttershy’s cottage as I pass.

Soon, Six. You’ll be free. You’ll be with her again.

I deserve to die…...I want to die…..I w-

I go into the trees, and go back through a clearing towards a path. It won’t be far now.

I hear a flutter of wings above me, and I narrowly dodge Dash as she tries to grab me from behind me.

“Waagh!” She slams into a tree as she zips past.

“Too slow…”

“Six! Snap out of it! Come on, this isn’t you!”

“You don’t know anything about him, Dash. Don’t pretend to care…”

I take the moment of hesitation she has as I say that to go further into the trees.

I manage to find a tall tree and nod, throwing the rope up into a branch. I start tying a knot when I feel something around my wrists.

When I look down, a set of handcuffs were attached to my wrists.

“Gotcha, Sixie! No friend of mine is gonna be sad!” Pinkie chirps.

“Your parties don’t make him happy….They make him more sad… You’re no friend of his.” I use magic to release the cuffs as her hair deflates like a balloon.

“H-he...doesn’t think of me as a friend?”

“No.” I say flatly.

I deserve to die…...I want to die…...I won-

Pinkie curls up under the tree, crying. Before I can get the noose around my neck, a purple aura yanks it all out of the tree and makes the rope disappear. Twilight, and the rest of her friends have found me. Pinkie joins them, still a bit defeated.

“Six, I know you’re in there! You need to fight this guy! He’s lying to you!” Twilight yells.

“Honestly, for the Princess of Friendship, you really don’t see that you...ALL OF YOU have been horrible “friends”? You’ve cared little about how he’s doing and what he’s feeling and more about what he can do and how he can benefit you. You all should be ashamed to even call yourselves his friends. He has no friends. He just has meddlesome people that pity him because he’s some new toy with a broken piece.”

They all look stunned, especially Applejack and Pinkie Pie.

“I’ve decided that you all are unable to speak the truth freely to him because you all know I’m right. So…” I snap, and I bind all of them to a tree with my magic, and I use dissipation magic on Twilight and Rarity to keep them.

“I’ll be forcing each of you to tell him their honest opinions about him.”

“That’s simple…” Twilight interrupts confidently.

“Using a Truth Spell.”

They all look shocked. I grin, tapping my chin.

“What’s the matter? Afraid to confirm my truths? Hmm...I could just kill him while you all watch, but that would be too fast. So, I’ll do it at the same time.”

I cast the spell on Rainbow first, while I get another rope woven from vines.

“Go on, Dash. What do you think of Six, hmm?”

She winces, biting her tongue.

“I-I….I think his powers are scary….”

“As I th-”

“But he’s a really nice guy, and he’s kinda hot…”

I nearly drop the rope.

“Wh-wha….Did I cast this spell wrong?”

They care….

No!

I cast it on Fluttershy next.

“You! Spill it!”

“I..I...m-meep….” She blushes hotly.

“Hmm...Resilient. What do you think of Six?”

“H-He’s gentle and kind, and….I’m not scared of you or his powers! They help so many people!”

I clench my teeth tightly.

They want me….

“You! Rarity! What do you think of him!” I cast it on her.

“W-well, I suppose that he is rather intimidating...but, I think he’s much too bashful to do anything to any of us! I….I even think his scars are sexy….”

I look at her, extremely confused, then turn to Twilight, who was grinning.

“You! You’re stopping the truth spell! How!?” I yell, pointing at her accusingly.

She scoffs. “It’s obvious that you were wrong. Give up.”

I cast the spell on her.

“What do you think of Six? Be honest.”

She bites her lip, her gaze not meeting mine.

“Well, um….Okay, it’s true! In the beginning, he was mostly just someone for me to study from! But, as I got to know him better, I realized that I…..I…..I like him!”

I think my heart stopped….

She...likes me?

Shut up, you!

“One of you has to hate him!” I cast the spell on Pinkie next.

“You! What-”

“I think he’d be great in bed! He’s just so big, and- Oopsie, did I say that out loud?”

My nose is bleeding….

I look to Applejack last. She looks nervous.

“Of course. After all the things I said to you earlier, you’ve grown to hate him.”

I cast it on her. “What do you think of him?”

She gulps, her eyes darting around. The others look at her nervously.

“Ah...ah….ah…..” I raise a brow.

She winces. “AH LIKE HIM A LOT, CONSARN IT! And it ain’t because he talked ta Granny! He talked ta me like ah was just a regular girl, not some slab of meat fer a griffon ta oggle. He made me feel like ah wasn’t just some dumb country bumpkin!”

Not one…..

You were wrong….They want me here….

“N-no! Nngh...N-no, yo-you’ll regret this! I will not let you torment my friends anymore!” I finally break free and gasp, finally able to breathe again. Being in my head’s a bit stuffy. They all collapse to the floor as his magic fails.

I drop to my knees, tears in my eyes. They...they all really want me here….I actually have friends….

I won’t deny that you have friends now, Six. But I refuse to believe that this world is better for you than Heaven.

Believe what you want. But, as far as I’m concerned….

I look around at the girls, who were helping each other up, smiling nervously.

This is Heaven...

Comments

[TryingToActProfessional]

9406119
Think of it this way: He's already spent a majority of his life feeling useless, and his sister was always there by his side to protect him. The loss of his left arm was symbolic for the severance of that protection from his sister, leaving him to feel like he's truely alone.

[rikusorasephiroth]

Very nicely handled.