Chapter 6: Forgiveness, part 2
In Twilight’s castle, it was time for Starlight’s biggest challenge as a changed pony: winning over Rainbow Dash.
She already did so with Fluttershy, Pinkie, Applejack, and Rarity. And of course, she did with Twilight...and she didn’t really need to “win over” me.
To help Starlight, Twilight and I had brought her four newest friends to the room with the Cutie Map. Twilight herself had left to bring back Rainbow, so the rest of us were still waiting. The mares were -- save for Starlight -- in their thrones, I was standing up, and Starlight was beside me. I figured Spike was still doing whatever he ran off it do earlier, because he wasn't in the castle.
Applejack said, “Well, y’all, Twilight should be back with Rainbow any minute now.”
“Yeah. But will Rainbow even want to see me?” Starlight asked in an unsure voice.
Rarity answered, ”It might not be easy, but Twilight is great at solving problems. I'm sure she thought of something.”
In an oddly cheerful voice because of her next words, Pinkie said, “True, true. But then again, she did have to dump Starlight on Sam because she didn’t know what to do with her and--”
I interrupted, “Not helping, Pinkie Pie.”
Pinkie frowned. “Sorry.”
Fluttershy suggested, “Um...let's just say that she ‘trusted Sam with Starlight’ and not ‘dumped Starlight on him’, if anypony don't mind?”
Pinkie smiled again. In her normal voice, she commented, “Works for me, and that sounds waaaaaay better than what I said.”
“Uh, girls? How about we focus on supporting Starlight when Twilight gets back with Rainbow?” I suggested.
“I agree, Sam. Let us be there for...oh.” Rarity set a hoof on her cheek, apparently surprised by what she said.
“What? What’s wrong?” Pinkie asked.
“It just felt weird to say we are ‘here for Starlight’ after she stole our Cutie Marks.” Rarity gasped and looked at Starlight. “Uh, no offense.”
Starlight sighed. “Well, after what I did, none taken.”
Suddenly, we heard voices that were growing progressively louder. All of us shut up and turned our heads toward the door the voices seemed to be coming from.
A few seconds later, the door opened in magenta magic, revealing Twilight and Rainbow. Once Rainbow’s eyes locked on Starlight, she gave an icy glare at her.
There was a chilling silence. For a moment, no one moved.
Rainbow broke that silence by pointing a hoof at Starlight and asked, “Why is she here?”
I asked, “Huh? You don’t know?”
“No, or I wouldn’t have come!” Rainbow looked at Twilight with a weaker glare. “Twilight, you said you had ‘something you wanted to show me’?”
Twilight smiled nervously while rubbing her neck. “W-Well, I do, or I guess I should say ‘somepony’: Starlight, and she wants to apologize--”
Rainbow huffed, spun around, went out of the door, and closed it. No, slammed it, and it even made the library vibrate. This would be even harder than we thought.
“Well, at least she didn’t call Starlight Sam’s pet again like you said she did,” Pinkie commented. At least she tried to look on the bright side.
Applejack said, “But even that would have been more progress than this.”
Fluttershy asked, “Why didn’t you tell her that Starlight was here, Twilight?”
“I--I was, but when I brought Starlight up, Rainbow...didn’t say nice things about her and I panicked. I thought that if I could bring Rainbow here, maybe we could coax her to at least try to listen to Starlight.”
Starlight looked down. “And obviously, she doesn’t want to.”
“Now what?” Pinkie asked.
Twilight set a hoof under her jaw and rolled her eyes up briefly. “Okay, I have an idea, a much better one. Rainbow may not give Starlight a chance if I ask her by myself, but maybe she will if we all do it.” Twilight looked at me. “Sam, you stay here with Starlight.”
I asked, “Oh, you don’t need me to come?”
Twilight shook her head. “You don’t know her as well as the rest of us and she’s really mad right now, so she might not listen to you. But, I promise it is nothing personal.”
“That’s...fair, I guess. In that case, Starlight and I will hang back while you girls talk to Rainbow.”
“Thanks, Sam,” Twilight said with a smile.
Applejack, Pinkie, Rarity, and Fluttershy hopped off their thrones and followed Twilight out of the door Twilight and Rainbow came in.
All Starlight and I could do was wait.
Twilight and her friends had just run out of Twilight’s castle and begged Rainbow to return to them. With the exception of Rainbow, the mares were standing outside of the castle’s doors; Rainbow was flapping her wings to hover over the ground.
“Okay, why did you drag me here to see Starlight, Twilight? I don’t want to see her!”
Twilight said, “Look, I know you’re still mad, but Starlight truly is sorry and a changed pony!”
“Why? Because she changed her mane style? And where are her collar and leash?”
“They are off, and they are going to stay off,” Rarity declared in a serious voice with her head up, showing the matter was not up for debate.
Rainbow huffed. “Whatever, but it doesn’t mean I have to talk to her."
Pinkie begged, “Come on, Rainbow, she’s not a meanie creepy-pants that took our Cutie Marks anymore. She just wants to be friends now.”
Rainbow again huffed and crossed her forelegs. “Ha! Me? Her? Friends? Don’t make me laugh!”
Twilight countered, “Okay, Rainbow, we know Starlight was...not a great pony. But, you should have seen how she was when she apologized to us.”
"There was no lyin' in her words when she came to me to say sorry," Applejack said.
Rarity echoed, “Yes. The poor dear looked like she was about to cry when she was telling me how she felt.”
Rainbow uncrossed her forelegs and stared at Rarity. “Wow, Rarity, you’re calling her ‘dear’?”
“Why, yes. Is that a problem?”
“N-No, call her whatever you want.”
Twilight took a few steps toward Rainbow. “Okay, listen to me, Rainbow. I don’t ask you for much, but--”
Rainbow interrupted, “Uh...you know that you have asked me and our friends to help you save Equestria, right?”
Twilight gasped, her eyes grew, and she stuttered unintelligibly. It is true that Princess Twilight Sparkle didn't ask Rainbow Dash for much on a personal level. However, asking for assistance to save the world was anything but a small request.
Even so, Rarity countered, “Oh, please, Rainbow Dash. You love playing hero, so you would have begged to come along even if Twilight had refused to let you help.”
Rainbow rubbed the back of her head and stuttered, “W-Well, maybe, but, I--”
Twilight begged, “Please, Rainbow. Just give her a chance. Starlight doesn’t have her magic, so it’s not like she could take your Cutie Mark.”
Fluttershy echoed, “Yes, so what do you have to lose?”
“I...I…” Rainbow gritted her teeth and looked away. Her pride screaming not to relent yet she couldn't deny that this was a losing argument. She relaxed her teeth and faced her friends. "FINE! I’ll let her ‘apologize’. But I won’t guarantee that I’ll forgive her.”
Twilight wiped her forehead with a relieved smile. “We’ll take it, and thank you, Rainbow.”
With Rainbow willing to at least hear Starlight out, the six ponies went back into the castle.
About a minute after the mares ran after Rainbow, Starlight and I were still staring at the door they went out of. I was almost wondering if this was a bad idea.
“Oof, they’re still not back yet. This may be even tougher than I thought,” I commented.
“And I thought it was going to be tough to begin with.”
I looked to Starlight, forcing a smile. “Well, don’t give up yet. From what I know about her, Rainbow has a good heart. I think, deep down, she wants to be friends, but is just too mad to see it. Like how, for a while, you were too mad to feel remorse about stealing Cutie Marks?”
“That’s true. I just hope she’ll calm down enough to see it.”
The doors the mares went out in opened again. Twilight and the gang, including Rainbow, walked in and toward Starlight and me.
Like before, there was silence in the room.
“Uh, nice day, isn’t it, Rainbow?” I asked, hoping to lighten the mood.
In a nervous but cute voice, Twilight echoed, “Oh, yes, it is, right?”
“Yep, yep, yep,” Applejack answered in a nervous voice too. This was the first time I saw her truly nervous.
One by one, the others, save for Rainbow and Starlight, also “agreed.” Rainbow and Starlight said nothing, but kept their eyes on each other. Rainbow had a scowl on her face and Starlight had a fearful frown.
After we were done talking about the weather, we endured another awkward period of chilling silence.
“So, Starlight, nice manestyle, I guess,” Rainbow finally said through gritted teeth.
Starlight smiled. “You think?”
“I guess. Though, I think the ‘collar’ look suits you better.”
Twilight facepalmed, or “facehoofed” in her case. “Come on, Rainbow! You said you would hear Starlight out, not make fun of her!”
“Yeah, yeah, I did. So, what are you waiting for, Starlight? Say you’re sorry so we can get this over with.” Rainbow flapped her wings to hover in the air and crossed her forelegs. She didn’t have to say ‘I’m waiting”: the motion she did with her forelegs “said” it.
Starlight took a deep breath, and then took an even deeper one. It sounded like she gulped after the last deep breath. “Rainbow Dash, I know what I did was wrong--”
Rainbow uncrossed her forelegs and scoffed, “Yeah, like that’s news.”
“Rainbow!” Applejack shouted.
“Fine, fine. Keep going.”
Starlight took another deep breath. “Okay. As I was saying, I was way out of control in that village when I stole your Cutie Mark and what made you special. However, I’m turning over a new leaf and becoming a good pony.”
“Ha, you? ‘Good pony’? Don’t make me laugh!”
Rarity yelled, “Okay, that is enough! Rainbow Dash, I understand that you are upset, but you are not even trying to hear Starlight out!”
“Yeah! I’ve never seen ya like this! What’s yer problem?” Applejack questioned.
Rainbow pointed a hoof at herself. “What’s MY problem?! How could you guys just forgive her so easily after what she did?!”
Pinkie countered, “Okay, what she did was...bad. But we forgave Discord when he turned on us for Tirek!”
Fluttershy asked, “So why can’t you do the same for Starlight?”
Rainbow landed to the floor and through gritted teeth said, “It’s...it’s...”
“‘It’s what?” I asked.
Rainbow gritted her teeth even harder and shut her eyes. After a moment, Rainbow flew open her eyes. In the loudest voice I’ve heard from her, she shouted, “It’s because she almost took away my chance to see my little sister fly!!”
That...was unexpected. For the fourth time, there was a chilling silence. This one was the most uncomfortable one yet.
Pinkie finally asked, “Wait, what?”
Twilight asked, “You’re mad because Starlight almost made you not see Scootaloo fly?”
In a far calmer voice, Rainbow explained, “Yeah. I didn’t tell you all this, so I guess I’ll tell you now.” It was Rainbow’s turn to take a deep breath, then gave a frown. Not an angry one, but a sad one. Her ears drooped. “When we were stuck in that village, without our Cutie Marks, the worst thing wasn’t that I didn’t have my Cutie Mark. It was that at one point, I wasn’t sure if I would get a chance to be there for Scootaloo again.”
Scootaloo? I rubbed my chin, trying to think of who Rainbow was talking about. “Is she that little orange filly with the small wings that I see together with Apple Bloom and Rarity’s little sister...uh...Sweetie Belle?”
Rainbow nodded her head. “Yeah, that’s her. She looks up to me, thinks I’m the greatest pony ever. I’ve never had a pony that was like a little brother or sister, or looked at me as their big sister...until Scootaloo. Knowing she does...make me truly feel awesome.”
Rainbow wiped her eyes. She always talked big, so seeing her like this was both jarring and sad. That annoyance I felt at her all but left.
After that eye-wiping, Rainbow continued, “She can hover in the air a little, but I don’t know if she will ever truly fly. But if she does, I want to be there to see her face to feeling that breeze high in the air. And for that matter just...be there for her, every step of the way.”
Rainbow’s sad frown turned into an increasingly angry one, and she stared daggers at Starlight again. Tears welled in her eyes as she continued, “And Starlight tried to take that away and she SMILED when taking it! I still can’t get that stupid smile out of my head! What if we didn’t break out? What if...*sniff*...I never saw Scootaloo again? What if she thought I abandoned her?! I don’t get scared easily, but…*sniff*...when I thought I might not be there for Scootaloo, my little sister, and that she might have thought I left her...*sniff*...I wasn’t scared. I was terrified!”
Rainbow spent the next five or so seconds weeping. Fluttershy ran over to rub her on the back with a wing, wearing a sympathetic frown. I could now see why she was so mad at Starlight. I didn’t know what to say, even if I wanted to say something.
After Rainbow had calmed down, Twilight, in a voice full of compassion, said, “Oh, Rainbow, I had no idea. Why didn’t you tell us you felt like that?”
Rainbow wiped her eyes. “I...didn’t want to admit that I was scared. I hate it. Especially now that I’m trying to be a strong big sister for Scootaloo.”
Rarity said, “Well, as a fellow older sister, I understand, Rainbow. But, Discord did that too by helping Tirek capture us, so why aren’t you mad at him? Or are you?”
“M-Maybe I am just a little bit.” Rainbow wiped her eyes again. “But even so, Discord still got what he had coming to him when Tirek turned on him, and then he helped us beat him. In fact, I can kinda get where he was coming from, and we could have been a little nicer to him, I guess. But what has Starlight Glimmer done, besides wear a collar and that ring on her horn for a couple of days? And what could her reason be for doing what she did?”
After a moment, Starlight did something she had done a lot already: take another deep breath. Her frown became a determined one. “Rainbow, all of you, I will tell you why I did what I did.”
Twilight asked, “You will?”
“Are you sure? Because when you tried to before--” Rarity started.
Starlight interrupted, “I know, but I didn’t know that I hurt Rainbow this bad. So she deserves to hear it, as well as the rest of you. I’ll just force myself to say it, no matter how hard it is for me.”
“Well, it better be a GOOD reason, Starlight. That’s all I have to say,” Rainbow said with a huff.
“But first, I’ll start with the easy part.” Starlight sighed and looked toward the ceiling. After a short pause, she explained, “When I was a filly, my best friend was a colt named Sunburst. For as long as I can remember, we were inseparable. We played together, laughed together, studied magic together, and he was always there for me. If not for him, I might not be nearly as good in magic as I am, or was. I was always able to learn spells quickly, but I couldn’t do them without somepony giving me directions or advice. Sunburst did that.”
“Hmm. Okay, so does this ‘Sunburst’ have something to do with that plan of yours?” Fluttershy asked.
Starlight lowered her head to face Fluttershy and nodded. “Yes. One day, after he had stopped a bunch of books from falling on me with a burst of magic, his Cutie Mark appeared. It was in magic, so his parents rushed him off to Celestia’s School of Gifted Unicorns, and I never saw him again. Because of a Cutie Mark, I was left behind like...I was nothing.” Starlight looked down and wiped her eyes.
I knelt to Starlight and said, “Starlight, I’m sorry that happened, and I’m sure it was bad. But, why didn’t you try to make another friend? Weren’t there more foals around?”
Starlight looked up at me with watery eyes. I was already seeing sadness, but now anger was there too. Although it didn’t feel like it was aimed at me, or at anyone in the room. “Do you really think that I didn’t consider doing that?! I...*sniff*...I wanted to, but the thought of another Cutie Mark taking another friend from me...I just couldn’t do it! Have…*sniff*...any of you been left behind and had nopony there for you, making you feel like you're nothing?! The chance of it happening again scared the Tartarus out of me!”
All in the room, even Rainbow, had our mouths open. I had no idea Starlight felt like this. Fear of being left alone. I wasn’t sure if Starlight could have even kept going. But when she calmed down a tad, she found the strength to do so.
“That is why I didn’t ‘just make another friend' and why I hated Cutie Marks. But when I got a little older, I became able to learn magic by myself, and when I saw how strong my magic had grown, an idea came to me. I left home, traveled across Equestria in search of a spell that could take Cutie Marks, and later found it. Anger was clouding my judgment, but I still thought that by taking Cutie Marks, I could prevent everypony from being left behind and alone, like I was.” Starlight looked down and added, “And...to never be alone myself, so I will confess that it wasn't 100% selfless.”
Fluttershy set a hoof on her cheek. “So, I was right. You really were trying to help us.”
Pinkie said, “Yeah, and you and I were kinda doing the same thing. Though, I keep ponies from feeling sad by making them laugh, not by taking their Cutie Marks.”
Rainbow said, “O-Okay, Starlight, I’ll admit that I’m surprised. But still, why did you smile after taking our Cutie Marks? We weren’t exactly happy about it, but you didn’t care at all how we felt! If anything, you enjoyed it!”
Starlight sighed. In a voice full of sadness and regret, she explained, “I...I don’t know why I did that, Rainbow. Maybe it was the bad, no, evil, in me showing, or maybe it was because I didn’t feel like I was nothing at that moment, and it just...happened. But if it makes you feel better, I feel like nothing now.”
Rarity asked, “Hold on, Starlight. You said that you felt like you were ‘nothing’ in your story, and now you said that you are nothing, correct?”
“Yes.”
Twilight asked, “But how did being friends with Sunburst help you not feel that way? And what did you mean by 'not having nopony there for you' after he left?”
Starlight grimaced. I had a bad feeling that we might have wished those questions were never asked. “As for the first question, it’s because, other than in spells, I wasn’t that good in other things. I was quick to panic. I didn’t have much confidence in most things outside of magic, so having a friend helped me feel like I was worth something. And as for the second question...”
Starlight whimpered and tears flowed from her eyes. The most heartbroken frown yet appeared on her face, but she was quiet for a second. I was about to say that she didn’t have to say anymore.
But before my mouth opened, with her voice breaking, Starlight confessed, “I said I had nopony there for me because…*sniff*...there wasn’t. My parents were never there for me and I don't think they even cared about me. So when Sunburst left, I had no pony. I was nothing. It was…*sniff*...just...nothing.”
I gasped. My heart broke. Her parents DIDN'T CARE for her?! I didn’t have many friends and my mom wasn’t...there. But, at least I had my dad growing up, and he was there for me until he passed on two years ago when I was twenty. But Starlight didn't have her parents at all? I had to fight to keep my hands from shaking when I asked, “W-Why were your parents not there for you?”
Starlight wiped her eyes, which were more watery than ever. “I really don't know why. But I do know that when I was upset, scared, or otherwise needed them, they just told me it 'wasn't a big deal' and didn't try to comfort me. I even had nightmares over it. That…*sniff*...made me think I was nothing if my parents did, but Sunburst helped me not think that way. Until he left. And then...”
Somehow, the tears from her eyes poured even more, getting the part of the floor under her face wet. Starlight’s voice broke even further when she added, “Then I…*sob*...was all alone. Weak. Nothing. It wasn’t until I learned to train myself in spells when I felt like I…*sob*...was something again.”
Applejack muttered, “Oh...wow. ah knew ya had yer reasons for hatin’ Cutie Marks, but...wow.”
Twilight gasped, like she just remembered something. “And now I understand why you said you would be ‘nothing’ if I took away your magic, and then cried for so long after I did. I thought it was because you just didn’t want to lose it, but now that I know the real reason...oh gosh.” Now Twilight’s eyes grew watery. “Starlight, I am so sorry. I wasn’t trying to be cruel, I promise I wasn’t, and if I--”
Starlight fell to the floor, covered her eyes and said, “No, don’t be sorry, because even when I tried to help others, I…*sob*...still messed up. I might have even made you all feel like you were nothing when I took your Cutie Marks, the last thing I wanted to make another pony feel! In fact, thinking about the failure I am, I don’t deserve you all as friends. I don’t deserve to have my magic back. And…*sob*...I should have that collar on me again, or even be in Canterlot Dungeon because I…*sob*...I’m NOTHING!!”
Starlight stopped talking and only wept. The floor under her face became even wetter, about to become a small puddle. I’ve seen others cry before, but not like this. My body just felt numb from it, and the others seemed to be just as stunned. Not even Rainbow Dash.
Somehow, I willed myself out of my little paralysis, leaned down to Starlight, picked her up, and hugged her, with her face against my chest. Her wailing barely lessened from it. Seeing Starlight like this sent daggers in my heart. She even reminded me of myself when I lost my dad. That made me want to help my friend feel like she’s something again that much more, and there was one thing that could do it. I gritted my teeth, gently laid the still-bawling Starlight down, and looked directly at Twilight.
In the most serious, no-nonsense voice I had, I ordered, “Twilight Sparkle, now.”
“‘Now’ what?” Twilight asked.
“Take. That. Ring. Off. Her. Now!”
Twilight looked toward Starlight with a conflicted frown, but my eyes stayed on Twilight. It was obvious she wanted to take that ring off, and might have been moments away from doing it, but was worried about “abusing” her power as a princess. For my credit, I’m not one for someone to go on power trips to do whatever they please either, unless it's for a very good reason. But this time, I couldn’t have cared less.
To further show that point, I demanded, “And I do not care if you ‘need’ Rainbow’s permission! You’re a princess, so just do it!”
“You heard him, Twilight. Take it off. She’s been through enough.”
That voice that just spoke was the last voice I thought would say it. I was so focused on Twilight that my eyes were off Starlight, so I missed what just happened in front of me. Until I looked.
Rainbow Dash was sitting in front of Starlight, hugging her. I even saw a tear come from Rainbow’s eyes. Starlight stopped wailing, but kept whimpering.
“Of all the reasons I thought you had, they don’t come close to what it actually was. I thought you were just mad at the world, or a dictator that only cared about herself, not because you’re a heartbroken pony that thought you were nothing. Yet...instead of just lashing out against anypony nearby, you went on to try to keep ponies from getting hurt like you were. Even if how you did it was...not great.”
“Maybe, but I still…*sniff*...screwed up. I’m nothing, just like…*sniff*...I always have been.”
Rainbow let Starlight go, placed her hooves on Starlight’s face and made her look at Rainbow in the eyes. “No, you listen to me, Starlight Glimmer. You are NOT ‘nothing’. You were NEVER nothing, but were just scared and lonely. I don’t know why that ‘Sunburst’ didn’t get in contact with you if you two were so close, but whatever. I forgive you for what you did, and you can have me as a friend. I’ll never abandon a friend, so don’t worry about me doing that. None of us will, right, guys?”
“Right!” the rest of the mares said at the same time, then all ran to Starlight and Rainbow. They all joined in a group hug, with Starlight in the middle. She stopped whimpering and even smiled. It was a cute, heartwarming sight.
In a voice full of happiness, Starlight said, “Thank you.”
After another moment, all the ponies looked at me.
Twilight asked, “Hey, Sam?”
“What?”
Rainbow asked, “Why are you still there?”
Pinkie told me, “You’re our friend too, so get in here, silly!”
"Oh, sorry. I was thinking about how Starlight didn’t have her parents there for her. It made me think about my dad."
Twilight asked, "Your dad? What happened to him?"
Starlight gasped. "Wait, don't tell me your parents weren't there for you either?!"
"Oh no, it wasn't that! Well, my mom wasn't, but..." I sighed. I already felt bad killing the mood, but at this point, there was no turning back. "My dad...died two years ago. I guess I still miss him even more than I thought."
No one said anything. But the next thing I knew, I felt myself get pulled to the group by magic, and I was already in a kneeling position. Both Twilight’s particularly friendly smile and her glowing horn told me who it was that moved me. Maybe what I just said made her, and for that matter all of them, want me in their group hug that much more.
I wrapped my arms around as many of them as I could, and we all stayed like that for a while. I think I understood then and there why Twilight loves giving friendship speeches and can sometimes be so corny about them. Friendship is...no, I can’t say it. It’s too corny, no matter how true it is.
When we broke up our hug, there was just one more thing that needed to be done.
Twilight’s horn glowed again, and the ring around Starlight’s horn vanished.
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Glad to see this moving along so well
10082078
Me too.
That was a great chapter and redemption for Starlight
YAY!!!!!
Why did Donnnnn cancel his story?
10082092
I really didn’t want to, but I just couldn’t find it in myself to finish it. Luckily, Pink here is dong an amazing job
Excellent chapter! Well done!
media.giphy.com/media/YRuFixSNWFVcXaxpmX/giphy.gif
WAY better than how the show handled Starlight's redemption in my opinion!
Also, yes on Sparlight!
Awesome chapter here, also yeah Sparlight, go for it!!!!!!
10082104
Thanks, and glad that it looks like I'm doing the story justice so far!
10082090
Thanks!
10082091
Glad you like this chapter more then you did the final chapter of "Alicorns and Beards".
10082127
10082144
Thanks, and got two yays for Sparlight I see.
10082169
Nice to see you noticed!!!!!
Bring on the Sparlight!
10082249
One more for Sparlight!
Eh, not a fan for Sparlight (the crush is fine, but making it a thing is, well, another thing for me) but if enough people want it than go for it.
Glad to see a new chapter.
Her collar's off, and her "lease"...she doesn't have one. She's not renting a house, or anything.
Rainbow, I think you meant "leash" there.
Well, if Rainbow blows Starlight off again - quite likely - then one thing she'll lose is her hide, since her friends would likely tear verbal strips off of her. Her credibility too, since her friends would no longer trust her as much again.
The Wedding, Dash. How did Twilight forgive you for betraying her trust by placing your loyalty to the fake alicorn you just met over your loyalty to your friend?
The only pony who received a brainwashing was Shining Armor, so you can't claim "mental spell" like he could, like the goddamn Death Eaters did.
You weren't any better, Dash. Glass buildings and rocks, gal, glass buildings and rocks.
Dude. Starlight had captured a PRINCESS against her will. That's a crime against royalty, and there's no way Celestia, Luna, Cadence and Shining Armor wouldn't notice the complete disappearance of Princess Twilight and her friends.
You'd have been freed eventually anyway, though the town might've been razed to the ground first. There's a reason why normal ponies are practically worshipful of Celestia, and two more alicorns? Along with an annoyed and sad alicorn foal? Yeah, no, Starlight would've been captured, you freed, and Starlight forced to release ALL the cutie marks.
10082392
Glad to see you wouldn't really be mad about Sparlight if it happens. The "voting" is still open, so it may not happen.
10082495
Not that it'll make things much different, but Rainbow doesn't know about Flurry yet. At this point in the timeline, not even Cadance knows she got knocked up
And thanks for pointing out that error with "lease"
I’d rather not see Sparlight.
Not big on the Sparlight thing, but it’s your story, dude.
10083541
I'm letting it be reader's choice about if Sparlight happens. Personally, I'm neutral toward it, which is why I'm letting you guys pick. My plans with the story won't change too much rather it happens or not, though.
10083036
Another "no" for Sparlight I see.
i can't see sparlight as a thing, they came off as just good friends for me, nothing more
It was all a masterful ruse! The moment the ring comes off, everyone gets their cutie mark stolen again! Mwahaha.
No for Sparlight from me. I like the idea of him having a little crush on her but no for the actual ship.
If there are any ships I wanna see Sam get with Starlight.
I think a relationship between Sam and Starlight would work better. Also (if it were me) find a way to get her back in the collar, as to keep up with the picture of the book, (maybe as a relationship thing?), otherwise (at least in my eyes) having sam ending up with an engraved collar wouldn't make much sense.
But you do you, either way I'll read it.
That's a no on sparlight for me lol.
/Edited to make a little more sense./
10088521
10088717
No for Sparlight, but might want Sam and Starlight to get together? That last part is something for me to keep in mind at least.
Im really enjoying this story. There are not enough Starlight stories on here.
Please no Sparlight, That ship does not sit well with me....
In fact any ship involving spike does not sit well with me, It comes across like an adult dating a child.
Like others have said Sam and Starlight being a thing would be cute.
Eh, I'm not the biggest shipper in the fandom, and I can already tell by the popular vote that Sparlight ain't happening, but if you go through with the Samlight suggestion that's eating up the comment section, then I demand to see Starlight put her collar back on with the tag plainly visible.
10089989
Glad you're enjoying it so far!
10091414
I may or may not have given thought about that last part.
10138301
Oh, I can believe it.
Stray quotation mark. These quotation marks are a pain sometimes, aren't they?
And an extra apostrophe. Weird how these things just slip by, huh?
That should be 'were'. Why? Because if you make it "You was just scared and lonely," that would be grammatically incorrect. Plus, it just sounds weird, doesn't it?
10082127
oh yes, very much so, :D
Well, I was bullied by two female students and a female teacher (who couldn't deal with my special needs - I've got Aspergers' Syndrome, a mild form of autism) for almost the entirety of Year 6. That was a rough, horrible year.
After that, I went to a boys' private high school, while the rest of my friends (and back then, I had quite a few, due to youth making it easier to make friends) went to a boys' public high school. The lack of any girls didn't exactly help my resulting dislike of girls; instead, it helped it grow. Never once went to any dances with girls' schools, or dated; just satiated my teenage urges by dreaming of videogame girls or some of my teachers.
Now, I cannot stand aggressive, violent women, or those that are possessive, demanding, whiny, or rude. For example, take Persona 4 - I much prefer Yukiko over Chie, because the latter is too tomboyish, while the former is quiet, gentle, more demure, and overall more feminine. Movies? I detest Wonder Woman, Rey, Captain Marvel, Black Widow, and many more; they're not well-behaved women, in my eyes.
The existence of pro-woman, anti-man double standards doesn't help either, honestly. Why can a girl get angry at, and slap, her boyfriend/husband if he "dares" to look at another woman, but he can't do the same if she looks at another man? Why can girls force their boyfriends into buying them stuff to "prove he loves her" (which just shows she loves his money more than him, in my eyes)? Why can wives kick their husbands out of their beds, forcing them to sleep on the couch, but husbands can't do the same thing to their wives?
Why is child custody so heavily against fathers? Why are divorce settlements also so heavily against ex-husbands? Why can girls and women get away with false rape/sexual harassment accusations made for their own benefit, not caring in the least how it effectively nukes their male targets' reputations and lives?
Needless to say, I really do not like the vast majority of today's women; far too powerful, and far too many character flaws being seen as "acceptable" and "normal". I much prefer the 1950s and 60s, in this area, over the 2010s; back when these abominable traits weren't anywhere near as normalised - not like I was alive then, so I really have no idea how it was actually like.
10205039
Feminism is real.
10205039
I didn't say anything before since I usually stay out of these kinds of things, but "vast majority of women" is overdoing it, don't you think? Some women are like that, but I know/known a lot of women that are not. In fact, one girl I used to know was always buying stuff for her boyfriend. By the time they broke up, I can't remember how much total she spent, but it was at least in the hundreds of dollars.
Also, as was pointed out, in the 1950's-1960's women was treated as second-rate citizens without the rights they should have had, so that time period had its own abominations...even if it was good to the men. Or white men, since black men had their own, racial issues to deal with.
10205039
"wellbehaved " means easily controllable
So you want women to be " quit " and " shy " and "more feminine"
I wish men were :
not self centered
actually nice
didnt think that women were evil
But you know, this is ONLY the vast majority.
10205039
I get your feelings. I was bullied all trough school by both students and faculty and abused by my parents, I bipolar disorder and OCD and spent most of my time in school in special ed(yes I was a short bus soldier), in fact it's one of the things that lead to not only me being a bit antisocial, but also put a deep distrust of authority figures, maybe even one of the reasons why I've never had any long term relationships with anyone unless they're were manipulative, emotionally abusive and generally toxic. Don't get me wrong, I still hold a lot of resentment towards the people who did that to me. I used to be angry at the world, lashing out at everyone at me because I somehow felt that the world deserved all the hate and harm that was inflicted onto me, but over time with the help f people I can call homies, they helped me through a lot of my problems.
Let me tell you this for a fact, if you love someone, you don't raise your hand to them. I've reached the point in my life that if I were to date someone again, if they ever struck me for just simply looking at someone, it doesn't matter if they're a man or a woman, they'd be picking up their teeth off the ground as they watched me walk away from them. As far as you saying that you long for the 1950's and 60's. You mean the time period when you would have been thrown in a hospital and subjected to electro-convulsive or insulin-convulsive "therapy" because they thought it would cure autism, or the time period when gay people could be arrested for just being gay or the time when black people could be beaten and arrested for sitting at a lunch counter or drinking from the wrong fountain? And don't even get me started on the lynchings of of non-white people and the fire bombings of black and hispanic churches.
I understand that what you went through seriously messed you up, but please for your sake don't go all red pill, wearing bed sheets and screaming "lock her up" because of the actions of some people with a fucked up mentality.
Shoot, am I too late to vote for Sparlight?
10513861
Yep, too late.