Do I Let Her Suffer?
Blossom kept running.
She continued running until a fire burned in her lungs and she was on the verge of collapsing on the ground from sheer exhaustion. She ground to a halt and looked around to see where she had ended up.
The Everfree Forest.
A gasp died in her throat and she looked around to see how far in she had come. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that she was only a hundred hooves away from the edge.
However, her relief gave way to sorrow when the reality of her situation washed over her. She was caught; there was no two ways about that. Even if she didn't admit what she had done, she couldn't go back to the Apples ever again. If she tried then Apple Seed would likely tell her aunts, uncle, and mother why Blossom wasn't allowed near the farm anymore. If they found out, then where would it end?
There was, of course, still the matter with Silver Spoon. She had broken into her house to kill her and had an argument with Aunt Rarity right in front of her. Blossom mused that it was only a matter of time before the police came to get her for good. It was attempted murder, even if Blossom hadn't done anything.
Blossom slowly reached up to her horn with her hoof. She figured that she only had days to use it before she was arrested for trying to kill Silver Spoon. She whimpered and began sobbing again as the hopelessness of her situation fell over her.
"You know, instead of crying like a foal over the fact that you're going to lose your horn, you could use it and get out of here," Rarity observed.
Blossom looked over at her aunt who was lounging against a tree. Blossom weakly scoffed and shook her head. "And go where exactly?" she muttered. "They'll look for me at dad's place and he's the last family I have right now."
Rarity rolled her eyes. "Oh please, Blossom, you have the single most useful attribute that a pony who needed to hide could possibly ask for. If you want to avoid life in prison and keep that horn of yours then I'd suggest actually using it."
"I don't know where I'd go!" wailed Blossom. "I don't wanna run!" Blossom exhaled deeply and wiped her eyes with her foreleg. "Not to mention that when they take me they're gonna find out that I killed Golden Necklace and Fire Ruby."
Rarity raised an eyebrow in interest. "Oh? And why would they find that out?"
Blossom took a few shaky breaths in before she finally answered. "Because I'm gonna tell them," she whispered.
Rarity let out a groan of frustration and took a few steps closer to Blossom. "You know, this all could have been avoided if you had just slit that pathetic mare's throat in the first place! Yes, they'd be looking for a murderer and they'd suspect you, but they'd have no solid proof, particularly if you got rid of the body!" Rarity's eyes narrowed. "You're a weakling."
"I'm not weak!" Blossom wailed. "I don't wanna die!"
"And you won't if you just listen to me as you should have from the beginning!" hissed Rarity. "Just change your appearance and get out of Ponyville while you still can. Run and you don't have to die."
Blossom stared dejectedly at the ground, her ears dropped and tears falling from her eyes. She could only sit here, thinking about how her life was ruined while her aunt stood beside her. A million options raced through her mind, but through all of that, Blossom realized one thing: there was a correct answer, there was a right thing to do. Slowly she raised her head and wiped her eyes. "Yeah, Aunt Rarity, I do."
Rarity's eyes widened and she took a surprised step backwards. "What did you say?" she whispered.
"I think I do," she repeated. "Even if I could get away, why should I? I'd just be leaving Mommy to suffer even more."
"You did it for ten years," Rarity pointed out. "She's accepted it, I figured that you had to. If you give up now you waste everything that she gave her life for! You're doing her a disservice if you just give up."
Blossom blinked back a fresh wave of tears, but managed to get the resolve to respond. "They wouldn't have killed me for killing Golden Necklace and Fire Ruby."
Rarity glowered at Blossom and walked right up to her. "But they would have institutionalized you," she stated. She tapped the end of Blossom's horn. "And you would have also had to say goodbye to this as well as your cutie marks. She lived her life and wanted you to have yours."
"Mom was in her thirties!" Blossom snarled, batting away Rarity's hoof. "She didn't live her life because of you! You took her childhood away from her and then I came and took the rest!" Blossom angrily stood up and stared her aunt directly in the eye. "It doesn't have to be that way anymore!"
"Well go on then," Rarity yelled, "go on and throw away every sacrifice that she made for you! Make those ten years of rotting away in an institution for nothing!"
"She's innocent!" Blossom howled. "She didn't hurt anypony!"
"Nevertheless, she made that sacrifice for you and you're spitting in her face if you don't accept it."
"And I'm torturing her if I keep letting her take the blame for my mistakes!" Blossom retorted. "I'd rather upset her by ruining ten years of her life than torture her by destroying the rest of them too!"
Blossom and Rarity continued to glare at each other, each one unwilling to give quarter in their argument. However, Blossom was the first one to speak up. "I only have one more thing to do, then I'm turning myself in whether you want me to or not!"
"Fine then," snapped Rarity, "I can't wait to see you explain this one to Comet and your father. You're going to have a lot of fun telling that filly why she has to watch the sister she just got get put down!"
Blossom flinched back at the mention of Comet, something that Rarity didn't fail to notice. A wide grin split her face and she began pressing her advantage. "You remember how much it hurt you to find out who I was, right? Well, do you really want to put Comet through that?" Rarity giggled. "I can see it now, she finds out everything about how her sister was a murder which leads her to finding out about me. Ooh, imagine the emotional pain of her discovering who I was."
"Shut up!" Blossom growled shakily, but Rarity paid her no heed.
"Of course your death or incarceration would make national headlines," Rarity mused, "'The Ponyville Butcher's Niece Executed for Murder!' Yes, then all of Comet's classmates find out!"
Blossom covered her ears. "I'm not listening to you anymore!"
"Comet's classmates find out, and in a city as big as Baltimare there are going to be far more than two classmates of hers that are willing to tear her to shreds for who her sister was. Foals are social cannibals who tear each other apart at the first sign of weakness!"
"Go away! Leave me alone!"
"Let's say that the torment continues day after day until she's miserable, let's say that one day she thinks that she's cornered and has nowhere else to go! Let's say..." At this Rarity smiled and gleefully licked her lips. "Let's say that she finds the out that you and I did."
Blossom's eyes widened and she let out a gasp. "Comet isn't going to be like either of us!" she growled. "She is going to be a happy, successful mare!"
"Something your mother said of you if I recall correctly," Rarity observed. "You seem quite the opposite of that if I'm reading into this right. Think about all of the pain you could spare her by just letting things play out. Silver Spoon technically cannot prove that you were in her apartment the other day."
"I told you to leave me alone!" Blossom screeched.
"Face it, Blossom, all you have to do to keep everypony happy is just run or ignore the problem! If you give yourself up then you die, you waste your mother's life and Comet slowly becomes a kill--"
Rarity's words were cut off when Blossom let out a snarl of anger and swung a nearby tree branch into the side of Rarity's head. The older mare gasped and hit the ground, blood pouring from a large wound where the branch had connected.
Blossom stared down at the limp form of her aunt for a few seconds before, to her horror, Rarity let out a little chuckle. "Didn't that feel wonderful?" she whispered.
With a cry of panic Blossom turned around and ran out of the forest.
* * * *
Two days later, Blossom was sitting in one of the empty visitation rooms at the institution where her mother was being held. She had come here far too rarely for her liking, she mused. Not that she should have had to come here at all. Her mother should have come in to see her, not the other way around.
After a few more minutes, the door opened and a grinning Sweetie Belle was led inside by one of the guards who told the two of them that they had half an hour. Sweetie Belle thanked the guard and immediately walked over to Blossom to give her a hug. "How are you doing, Blossom?" she cooed as she nuzzled the top of Blossom's head.
Blossom allowed herself a few seconds to bask in her mother's affections, knowing that this could very well be the last time that she ever hugged her mother. It would be time, soon. She would be going directly to Canterlot after she left, provided that everything went well and that her fears were unfounded.
Finally she broke away from the hug and forced herself to answer. "Mom, I need to talk to you about something, something really important."
Sweetie Belle cocked her head and Blossom directed Sweetie Belle to a chair. "What's the matter?" she asked. "Did something happen?"
Blossom's lower jaw quivered at her mother's confused looks, and she had to hold back a wave of tears that would have left her a sobbing mess on the floor. "Mommy, I'm scared," she whimpered.
"Scared of what, Blossom?" asked Sweetie Belle. "What happened?"
Blossom took a deep breath and shakily ran a hoof through her mane. "I..." Inhale. Exhale. "I'm gonna turn myself in, Mom. I'm gonna tell the princesses that I was the..." Her words were cut off as emotion overtook her and she began sobbing. Sweetie Belle squealed in fear and rushed over to her daughter's side and wrapped her in another embrace.
"Blossom, you don't have to do that!" she wailed. "Mommy's fine, she was happy to keep you safe like she did!"
"Mommy I'm sick!" Blossom cried. "I-I'm scared that I'm gonna hurt somepony! Aunt Rarity keeps telling me to and I almost did!"
"Blossom, you killed Diamond Tiara because she cut off your ear!" Sweetie Belle insisted. "She was gonna hurt you and you made sure that she didn't. That doesn't make you a bad mare!"
"But I am a bad mare!" Blossom sobbed. "I almost killed Miss Spoon a few days ago!"
Blossom's admission struck Sweetie Belle silent and she held her sobbing daughter in shock as she processed what she said. "Did you?" she finally whispered.
Blossom shook her head. "No Mom, she's physically fine and I didn't touch her. She's probably going to tell somepony, though. I'm surprised that she hasn't already."
"Blossom, why would you do that?" Sweetie Belle asked sadly.
"Because Aunt Rarity told me to," she whimpered. "She told me that she'd go away if I killed somepony so I tried to kill Miss Spoon. I don't know why her, but Aunt Rarity said she'd go away if I did!"
Sweetie Belle sighed sadly and nuzzled Blossom again. "Blossom, that just means that you need to start seeing Dr. Mind again, that's all. You don't need to turn yourself in." Tears began rolling down Sweetie Belle's face and she hugged her daughter tighter. "You don't have to die."
"Apple Seed found out that I killed Golden Necklace and Fire Ruby," Blossom admitted. "She told me she didn't want to see me anymore and that I needed to give myself up."
"Oh Blossom, you don't need to do that just because she said so!" Sweetie Belle insisted. "Just..." Sweetie Belle paused for a moment. "Just tell her... something."
Blossom wiped her eyes with her hoof and scoffed sadly. "Is that what we've come to?" she mumbled. "Are you so used to this emotional hell that we've put you in, that you're willing to stay here because of something I did?"
"Blossom, Mommy's okay! I'm not suffering here, I promise you!"
"Yes you are," Blossom muttered. "You've been suffering every day for the last ten years because of me." Blossom broke away from the hug and stood up. She stared directly into her mother's eyes with a bravery that she didn't know she had in her. "You're a completely innocent mare who never hurt anypony in your entire life. I failed you when I killed them, I know I did, but you don't have to suffer for me anymore. It's time I did what I should have done ten years ago."
Sweetie Belle whimpered and wrapped her forelegs around one of Blossom's own. "Blossom, I didn't want you to die! I still don't want you to die! I'm fine here; you should just go see Dr. Mind, a-and we'll think of something to tell Apple Seed, okay?"
Blossom shook her head. "No, not okay, Mom. It's not okay that you have to go through this for me. Apple Seed was right; they were all right. I am dangerous and I do need to make amends for my past mistakes." Blossom bit her lip. "Starting with freeing a mare who never hurt anypony in her life."
At this, Sweetie Belle slowly shook her head. "Blossom, I've done bad things too," she whispered. "I deserve to be in here too, Blossom, because I've hurt ponies too."
Blossom was silent for a few seconds as she digested the news, before she slowly pulled her leg out of her mother's grasp and sat down to look her directly in the eye. "Mom, what happened?"
"It was back when your aunt was still alive," Sweetie Belle admitted. "I did some things that I regret and I killed a mare that Rarity had brought home to kill." Tears began dripping from Sweetie Belle's eyes, and she looked down at the floor. "I didn't mean to kill her, but I did."
Blossom slowly nodded. "Who else knows?" she asked quietly.
"Just Dr. Mind and Twilight," said Sweetie Belle.
Blossom breathed a huge sigh of relief and she allowed a small smile to cross her face. That would be easier, then. "I've been working on a spell in the past two days, just in the small chance that you said that."
Sweetie Belle looked up at Blossom, confused. "What are you talking about?"
"Since you lived with Aunt Rarity while she was doing those things, I suspected that you might have seen or done something that would make Princess Celestia keep you in here, so I worked on a spell as a little insurance. I crossed my illusion magic with a memory reading spell. It's safer than the variety that just erases memories. I've been perfecting it for the past two days."
Sweetie Belle's eyes widened as the impact of Blossom's words hit her and she tried to back away from her daughter but the younger mare was quicker and she shot a beam of light directly into Sweetie Belle's forehead just underneath the horn. Instantly the world faded away from Blossom, and she was plunged into her mother's memories. She saw their most recent conversation, the one they had been having before this and focused her magic until she could travel back. The images of the memories began zooming past Blossom, and she had to focus to see where she was. There was Sweetie Belle in the hospital after Blossom had been attacked by Diamond Tiara, then she was getting transferred to Hoofington, then she was getting her horn back. The memories came faster and in the blink of an eye Blossom was seeing memories of when she herself was but a filly, then when she was a baby, then Sweetie Belle was single.
On and on the memories went until Blossom saw Sweetie Belle as just a filly. At a funeral with the statue, being carried up the stairs by Rarity, in the basement with...
Blossom gasped and she screeched the memories to a halt. She moved forwards a bit and saw the basement in all of its twisted glory. There on the table was an earth pony mare that Blossom didn't recognize, Aunt Rarity with a straight razor in her grasp, and her horrified mother looking on. Blossom knew what she had to do.
She took a deep breath and began casting her illusion magic over the memory. Of course if somepony was looking for this memory they would recognize the illusion and change it back, for she was not destroying the memory entirely, she was merely changing it. Her mother would never know the difference if she did it right.
After she had changed the memory in the basement from that to Sweetie Belle taking a nap in her room, she went through her mother's mind again and changed any memory that had that basement in it. She hoped that it would work in the end but she had used the illusion spell so that changing the original memory would change all subsequent memories regarding the original as well. She hoped that it worked as well as she wanted it to.
Eventually she found nothing else she felt that she needed to change, and powered down her horn. She was brought back to the physical world where she saw her mother staring blankly at her. Blossom gave her a small smile and wrapped her into a hug. "Out of all three of us, you, me, and Aunt Rarity, one of us deserves a happy ending, okay?"
Blossom felt hot tears drip onto her shoulder as her mother snapped out of her stupor. "Blossom, you don't need to turn yourself in."
"But you've never hurt anypony, Mom," Blossom whispered.
"Blossom, that doesn't matter!" sobbed Sweetie Belle. "I just wanted to protect you! You didn't deserve to die!"
Blossom leaned her head on Sweetie Belle's shoulder and let her mother cry.
* * * *
Seven hours later, Blossom was walking into Canterlot towards the palace. Her mother had calmed down after a few minutes, but had resumed her hysterical sobbing once Blossom had left. The only thing that gave Blossom the strength to go through with this was the knowledge that her mother wouldn't have to cry like that anymore because of her. She knew she would cry if the princesses decided to execute her, and she almost hoped that they did, but now the wound she had inflicted would heal.
She mused that changing the memories of Working Mind and Twilight had been simple enough. All she had to do was ask to see them and ask about when they had found out that Sweetie Belle had been in the basement. She had finished that task in just under an hour between the two of them. Now the only pony who knew what her mother had done was herself.
As she walked forwards and the castle grew larger, her legs began shaking in fear. This was it, this was really the end for her. This was her last time in the sunshine, to see the world without bars between her and the outside world.
At worst, that is.
At best she wouldn't live to see sundown.
She growled at her weakening legs and began running in the hopes that the act would take her mind off of her fears which would allow her to make it to the castle without collapsing. Her efforts proved fruitful and she made it to the entrance and stopped just in front of a trio of rapidly approaching guards.
"Halt!" said the lead one, just as she stopped. "State your business or you must vacate the grounds immediately!"
"I need to speak with the princesses," Blossom said simply.
The guards stopped in front of her and the lead one scowled. "If you must then there is a waiting period that--"
"I want to report a double murder."
The guard's jaw dropped and his eyes widened while he two behind him exchanged disbelieving glances. The cowardly part of Blossom's mind told her to run, to get out of there and try to pretend that the whole thing was a joke, but it was too late to turn back now. She shakily took a deep breath in. "I'm only gonna talk to the princesses about it and I want to get it done as soon as possible."
Her words snapped the lead guard out of enough of his shock that he managed to beckon her to follow him, and he led her to the throne room. Given the time of day, there were several ponies waiting outside to see the princesses themselves. The guard who had led Blossom to the doors walked up to one of the guards standing at attention in front of the entrance and she whispered something in his ear and pointed back to Blossom. The other guard nodded and opened the door, beckoning Blossom inside.
Bloss om nodded and followed the guard in. Thankfully the room was already empty, meaning that Celestia wouldn't have to kick anypony out to hear her confession. As she entered Celestia's line of sight, the sun goddess widened her eyes and stood up off of her throne. "Blossom? What are you doing here?"
Blossom's eyes flickered over to Luna who was staring at her contemplatively. Blossom half expected Luna to know just what she had to say.
Pushing those thoughts out of her head, Blossom held her head high and stood in the center of the room. "Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, I'd like to report a d--" Blossom's words were caught in her throat as her nerve left her for a moment but she cleared her throat and forced herself to be brave. "A double murder."
Celestia gasped and even Luna's eyes widened as she stood up off of her own throne. "Blossom, what happened?" asked the sun goddess.
Blossom took one last deep breath and blinked away her tears of fear as she forced herself to admit what was likely to be the death of her. "Before I do I want to make a deal."
Celestia uneasily frowned and she took a step towards Blossom. "What are you talking about?"
"The deal is is that my mom goes free once I tell you what I have to say. She's served more than her time for what happened and she deserves to be free. If you don't like the terms of the deal then I serve three years for perjury, my mom continues rotting away, and a murderer gets away forever. Or you can accept the deal and catch one."
The two princesses exchanged a glance and Luna nodded. Celestia sighed and looked back at Blossom. "Very well. If your information leads us to the capture of a murderer, your mother shall go free. What do you have to say?"
To Blossom's surprise, the words came easily. She had expected to find herself a blubbering mess on the ground at the question, but it was as if some unseen force was giving her strength to counteract the ten years of cowardice she had submitted herself to. With one final pause, she raised her head to look Celestia directly in the eyes. "Just over ten years ago, I was cornered in the woods by my classmates Golden Necklace and Fire Ruby. In my fear, I took a rock in my magic and hit them both in the head. They did not attack me, they never said that they would; I was the first pony in that situation to resort to violence and I killed them both. My mother is innocent of that crime."
Celestia's jaw dropped and Luna took a few steps forwards, her eyes hardened. "Dost thou swear that thou art saying this because it is the truth and not to spare thy mother?"
"Read my mind!" growled Blossom. "Read my mind so that you know I'm telling you the truth!"
Celestia gasped and even Luna looked a little unsettled. "What did you just say?"
Blossom growled in frustration. "I, the unicorn Joyous Blossom do hereby give Princess Celestia and Princess Luna the right to read my mind to determine that what I am saying is true!"
Celestia closed her mouth and took a deep breath. "Do you understand what the implications of your request are? Do you realize what you are asking us to do?"
"I do," said Blossom. "Just get it over with."
Celestia nodded and the two sisters fired up their horns, shooting a beam of blue light into her mind.
* * * *
Blossom frowned and looked around. Where was that ball? Punter kicked it far to be sure, but there was no reason to think that it couldn't be found in a few minutes. It had gone in a straight line.
Blossom used her magic to push through some bushes and found herself in a small clearing. This was it, she decided, the ball couldn't possibly have gone any further than this. Blossom scanned the clearing and to her delight, her eyes landed on a large red ball stuck in a shrubbery about twenty feet from where she now stood. Now she could go play with her friends again!
Humming happily to herself, she skipped over to the ball and encased it in her magical glow. She lifted it out of the bush and gave it a chidingly playful frown. "Now let's get you back to school, and don't you run off anymore, okay?"
"'Don't run off', yeah we'd say the same to you," said a chillingly familiar voice from behind her.
Blossom gasped and the ball fell out of her telekinetic grip and bounced away as she turned around. To her horror she saw none other than Fire Ruby and Golden Necklace standing behind her, each grinning evilly at her. She whimpered and took a step backwards. "Go away," she mewled. "Leave me alone, I didn't do anything to you!"
Golden Necklace let out a caw of a laugh and the duo began advancing towards the frightened filly. "Or what? Are you gonna kill us? Are you going to be just like that psycho aunt of yours?"
"Oh wait, you already are that crazy!" cackled Fire Ruby. "You're just the crazy bastard foal of an evil mommy and in inbred daddy."
"Go away!" Blossom begged as she took another step backwards.
"You wanna know how I think you'll die? I think you're gonna butcher half a town and then the princesses are gonna come and put you down just like your aunt. Mommy told me she whined like a wounded dog when they put her to sleep. I wonder if you're gonna start crying when you die?"
Blossom backed up but tripped over a rock and fell to the ground. Fire Ruby and Golden Necklace both cackled again and continued advancing. "Poor, gullible psycho," Fire Ruby said in mock sympathy.
Golden Necklace snorted. "Gullible is right. It was too easy, freak. I just had to tell Punter to kick it out here as far as he could and then suggest that you go get it. He has a crush on me, so I have him wrapped around my little hoof. Poor fool. He was so easy to manipulate, just like Mommy taught me."
Blossom began sobbing but her fear combined with the fall locked up her legs and she couldn't back away anymore. "No, please leave me alone!" she sobbed.
Golden Necklace's mocking smile twisted into an angry frown as she stepped forward again. "You didn't have to go and get us expelled, you know. What's the matter, you can't take knowing that your aunt was a psychopath and that you're probably going to turn out just like her?"
Blossom desperately wished that her mother was there to ward off the bullies to take her back home, where they wouldn't be there. She even thought that she heard her mother calling out to her that she was coming, but nopony was there. It was just her and them. "Please leave me alone! I didn't do anything to you! Don't come any closer!"
Golden Necklace evilly shook her head just as Blossom's eyes landed on the rock she had just tripped over. The second she saw it, a surge of what felt like anger, but was somehow something else, surged through her body. It was as if some chemical had been injected into her, and now...
Now she wanted to hurt Golden Necklace. There was a rock nearby. She could hurt her with that, and she'd stop talking and go away. Maybe she'd even leave her alone forever if she hit her with the rock.
The filly in question advanced another two steps forwards with her crony behind her. She was within Blossom's range now. "Nopony can hear us out here. Punter did a good job. Now it's--"
With one more surge of the new feeling, Blossom grabbed the rock in her magic and slammed it into Golden Necklace's head as hard as she could. The filly fell to the ground without a sound and Blossom didn't even need to look to see that she was dead.
Silence filled the clearing. Birds did not chirp, the wind did not blow, and even the delusions that she had had of her mother calling out to her that she was coming had been silenced. The silence was short lived, though as Fire Ruby let out a piercing shriek of terror. Blossom's eyes flicked up to the shrieking filly and the new feeling surged through her once more. It didn't matter that she wasn't attacking her, it didn't matter that she was sobbing or calling for her mommy, the new feeling told Blossom to hit her with the rock to make her stop screaming.
So she did.
Blossom dropped the rock and looked sadly at the two ponies whom she had killed with her own hooves. Now that the new feeling had gone away, it had been replaced by sadness and fear. She was like her Aunt Rarity. They were right all along, both of them were.
She heard a noise in front of her and she raised her head to see what it was. It was her mother. Her mother was looking on in shock at the two ponies that she had just murdered.
"I guess you were wrong, Mommy," she whispered. "I guess I really do have those sad feelings like Aunt Rarity."
* * * *
Blossom suddenly found herself back in the throne room. The princesses had clearly seen enough and were staring at her now. Luna was blank but Celestia was holding back tears. It was a solid minute before the sun goddess managed to say anything. "Joyous Blossom... you are under arrest for the murders of Golden Necklace and Fire Ruby."
Blossom nodded and held her forelegs out when two of Celestia's royal guards walked up to her. As expected, they secured them with hoofcuffs and after she had stood up, they led her out of the room to whatever fate lay in store for her.
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I'm going to be so sad when this finishes!
I love this story!
Thy princess approves greatly!
Seriously man, it's gotten to the point that every time I see an update for this story, I roll a cig, open up that nice bottle of semi-dry Riesling and pour myself a glass, and I relax in my Lay-Z-Boy with my computer screen on my big screen LCD. It's become my own little "Bronywriter" ritual. Pretty soon I will have a nice velvet smoking jacket and an old hound dog at my feet while I read your stories before an open fire.
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I do fear, BW, that when the day comes that there will be no more updates for this story, that I shall look upon my life and realize there is nothing better to read in this world, and what will be the point? That day shall truly be both the happiest and saddest day in my life. The day I realize I had the chance to read this story as it was being written, and the day I realize it will be one chilly day in Hell before I see something as good as this.
But... damn you and those cliffhangers!!!!!!!!
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I doubt that she will be executed.
Wow.
2460136 If you're serious about that ritual then awesome! As for the end to this, yes the end of the trilogy is soon, but I have announced a whole bunch of side-stories detailing the side characters, an endeavor that I also opened to the public.
2460225 I am serious, actually. I am primarily either a Riesling or Sangria drinker, but for a good BW story, I prefer a semi-dry Riesling that is made locally, here in Cedar Rapids, IA. It has it's usually fruitiness to it, and perhaps a little heavy on the nutmeg, but overall not too dry, and it manages be SLIGHTLY dry without a heavy bitterness overpowering the taste. If you are not a wine drinker, I still wholeheartedly recommend any kind of semi dry Riesling. Try it while reading a story you love, and I guarantee both the wine AND the story will be -ahem- "20% percent cooler."
And I'm sure you don't want to give away too much, but these little side stories, how in-depth will they be? Like are we talking family of murdered victims? Or perhaps internal dialogues of the ponies closest to Rarity/Sweetie/Blossom? Eh... maybe you shouldn't tell me. Gotta love that suspense!
And I'll love to see other people's takes on this. I myself have a couple things floatin' in this empty cranium of mine, but I doubt I could write something as simply sublime as your work is. Might still see me submit something though...
Damn. On one hand, it's good to see Blossom take control over her own fate at last. On the other, she now seems to have the best skill set an assassin could possibly hope for - Ability to change shape at will, and now the ability to wipe or alter memories. I really don't want to see her die, but she needs to accept the fact that everything in her life has in someway made her a better killer.
2460136 You appear to have forgotten the goblet of brandy to go along with that fantasy of yours.
2460251 I turn 21 a week from today, maybe I'll try something like that out then.
The stories are pretty all the above. It's just examining the ripples that the trilogy made.
As for you not being able to write something as good as this... whatever, Mr. 'Just Pull the Trigger Onto Equestria Daily'. You've got writing talent. I'd love to see whatever it is you come up with!
2460255 To me brandy is consumed by people who wish to appear classy, whilst at the same time appearing completely NOT. If one wishes to indulge his/her senses completely, and MUST do it using a harder liquor. then one must indulge in spending more money on a nice single malt whisky.
Brandy does not TOUCH mine lips.
But put it in a goblet and I'll be pimp for a day, no problem.
fc07.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2011/344/e/0/do_you_know_who_you_talking_to__by_johnjoseco-d4ioy7g.png
2460272 There are certain kinds of scotches that I like if that counts. There's a kind that is loaded with honey that I particularly enjoy but I can't quite recall what it is exactly.
2460276 Isn't that Mead?
2460267 Yes do so. Just make sure if you get hammered on your 21st, don't do it with either wine or whiskey. Drink beer, or vodka. Trust me, makes that next morning 1000 times more bearable.
And good. I can imagine having the first serial killer in all that time MUST have had some domino effect on the rest of the world. "Oh my, what do we do with our foals, will they make it to school safely with serial killers running around?"
And hey, hey, hey. That was a fluke. None of you REALLY know how seriously drunk I was when I wrote that. The fact that it made onto EqD was/is/always will be a fluke. Doesn't mean I'm not going to ride along with it though. Yeah, I'm sure I can think up something for this "Secret Life of..." universe. In fact, I got an idea swimming around right now...
2460284 No, I'm pretty sure that the particular brand is, in fact, scotch but just an unusual kind.
2460276 Well there are tons of drink recipes that just involve honey and scotch. Try a couple out to find your preference. My only advice is, if you go with scotch, always, always, ALWAYS get single malt.
MightWILL cost more, but totally worth it.2460289 1. I'm an RA here at my school and the rest of the 21+ members of the flock (the proper term for a group of RAs) are presumably taking me out drinking so I don't know how much control I have over what I will be sampling.
Yep. I'm excited for it! I look forward to seeing what you have in store for the universe. The more diversity in the writers we have the better! Also, do take solace in the fact that your story made it onto EQD but The Secret Life of Rarity (and likely the sequels) never will.
2460290 Hmm, I'm trying to remember that brand... I usually drink my scotch just on the rocks so... is it Drambuie or something like that? Drambooy, draymboie, I can't remember.
2460296 See, I don't get that. This story is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO worthy of being on EqD! This is one of the few stories a fandom can look upon and know that a fan has truly made a work of art, and be proud of it! "Hey I belong to a group of some pretty Celestia damned talented people!" Rest assured, even if it never makes it onto EqD, I've been spreading the word to all my brony buds, whether I know them online or personally, "READ THIS STORY." I know a couple have and absolutely love it. I even got a non-brony to read it and he loved it! Even went as far as watching a few episodes with me for some canonical back story.
Seriously, I don't want to live on this planet anymore if nearly every brony didn't at least KNOW of this story.
2460309 Wow, you do all of that for this story? I'm really honored! Basically the original can never be on EQD because of how violent it is and I doubt that they'd take the sequels just for being the sequels.
Another chapter :3
Nicely done!!
2460315 Hey man, this is really good stuff. I'm picky about what I read, and this lines up right in my group of "Shit that I, and everyone else with working eyeballs should read." So on top of feeling honored, feel proud. What you wrote certainly will not just fade out over the next couple months, or years even.
I guarantee you, I'll be sitting on my porch when I'm 108, taking to my brony buddy on my IPad 12.3 (which by that point, won't even be a pad, just an implant in your eyeball), talking about this story. Hell I may even print this off, bind it and tuck it safely with all my other books in my mini "library." (With permission, of course)
2460334 Permission granted for the first one in a few weeks. The other two aren't even close to being mechanically print-worthy.
2460338 Haha I will keep that in mind! I wonder what I'll bind them in. Maybe I'll get some nice tanned leather from that shop down the road...
Well, I for one am proud of Blossom for doing the right thing in the end.
Something just occurred to me: How exactly do hoofcuffs work? I doubt she can walk well on her hind legs, but maybe that's the point.
Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh boy... once AGAIN, we get to a cliffhanger.
Though I suppose I understand it's to make us eager with anticipation for the coming chapters, though having to wait almost a week for this seemed... cruel, imo. Even if I've hardly thought about it, the last few days, except every single time I saw a new submission in the Feed box. 
Anyway, it was quite awful and sad, but at least Joyous Blossom seems to have silenced the voice in her head and Rarity following her around... even though I'm not sure physically HOW Blossom did so, managing to hit her, but eh, it's Equestria or her own personal demon, I guess. //dl.dropbox.com/u/31471793/FiMFiction/emoticons/shrug_Twilight_Sparkle.png Well, I'm surprised Blossom tampered with the minds of ponies and didn't tell anyone else she's discovered a new spell, even if it is technically a violation of privacy, as it's reading their memories and then changing things like that. But at least SB's own demon should be taken care of... and hopefully, unlike the memory erasure spell Rarity attempted in the first book, nothing will have gone wrong next time we see Twilight and the rest, I'm sure.
I should feel even more sad, though honestly, I woke up reading this after nodding off earlier, so... read it in a hurry, kinda. Now what will become of poor Blossom, based on the laws enacted when she was a filly, already after the murders had happened. Will she get a trial, even if the Princesses already read her mind? Will she get put down? Will she lose her horn? Will others look down on her, including her own family (adopted and actual, aside from maybe SB)? Will she get out? Well, guess that's for you to know and us to find out... I really hope the finale, even if it probably won't be the next chapter, will come out soon, since we're so close to the end!
And answer said questions... 
2460366 It's a hobble essentially. As a pony they'd be tight enough that she couldn't just slip them off so they prevent her from running.
Oh please don't let Blossom die too! Pleeeeease!
Oh and please update as fast as you can. I'm dying to know what happens!
Hulk want ending! Now!
Why do I have a feeling, that all of Blossom's illusions will disappear when she dies?
>Royal Sisters decide place Blossom on Sweetie's place. She sits there without her horn, and is tormented by the-part-of-her-mind-that-pretends-to-be-Rarity. At the end, she kills herself, and BAM, Sweetie gets her memories back, wants to do something, but... it's too late
>Royal sisters decide, that Blossom will end like her aunt (probably Blossom will be begging them for this), she dies, everyone cries, and then, BAM, memories come back, and again- too late
SB commits suicide
Man, there are still so many possible endings...
And then Luna was like "I was right! THE ENTIRE TIME, you aint blowing me off ever again!"
2460315
Well, I think more than a hundred emails from various persons (if at least half of the people liking it sends and email, of course, what... can be arranged) would convince EQD to at least check it out, and/or think (again, if they already did it once) about featuring it.
We can always dream
2460699 If you think that it can be pulled off, go for it! I would love to see this thing on EQD. They put Cupcakes on there after a write-in campaign.
2460119
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2460788
Thank thee kind citizen.
Thy princess appreciates thy reply.
So luna/celestia skipped past the part where blossom forged everones memories?
2460986 Why would they have any reason at all to search those memories? They knew exactly where they were going whereas Blossom had to search around a bit for Sweetie Belle's. Both princesses knew the exact time and date of the murders so they had no reason to go anywhere but there. It's like driving around a neighborhood to find a house you're going to and driving straight there because you could find it in your sleep.
2461000
Ah
Thanks for clearing that up
Wow. I came to the site to get the next chapter of Secret Life, and now I have some serious feels. I really hope you don't kill her. Sweetie couldn't take that, and I don't think Comet or the surviving Mane 6 could either.
Kind of heart warming that she covered up the painful memories in Sweetie, then changed Twilight and Dr. Mind's knowledge that Sweetie ever killed. I can't wait to see how they deal with Blossom. Aside from hiding it for all those years, she was still just a scared filly at the time. Once they find out about Silver, and I think they may catch on to Sweetie's sudden change in behavior, I wonder how that'll change their punishment.
Did they ever pass that law not to use the death penalty on fillies? And if they did, was Blossom grand-fathered into it?
Welp. This is going to make me cry, isn't it? I hope the next chapter is here soon, because the wait for this nearly drove me bonkers.
2460315 I highly doubt that they would reject it for the violence. I am in the middle of a Dead Space crossover with 5 times the amount of violence and gore that Secret Life has, and I found it on EQD. That's not even including the constant brutal dismemberment of necromorphs and atmospheric gore, much like Rarity's trophies. It's also nowhere even close to how good this series is, or anything else you've written, for that matter.
OMG i can't wait for the last chapter! knowing the weak little wuss that i am, i cried
... again. UGH YOUR SO GOOD AT WRITING I JUST.... UGH RIGHT IN THE FEELS. IF I COULD MARRY WRITING I WOULD MARRY THIS TRILOGY!!! 
If you kill Blossom so help me I will get mad. Maybe Celly and Woona can finish the new law, and get her off easy with the new age limit? Whatever happens I REALLY hope Blossom doesn't die.
So next chapter is the end?
I kinda want to see Blossom go mental, change her shape into Rarity and kill a bunch of ponies or something. But I guess it's too late for tha now
OH FUCK OH FUCK OH FUCK OH FUCK OH FUCK OH FUCK OH FUCK OH FUCK OH FUCK OH FUCK OH FUCK
OH MY FUCKING SWEET SKATEBOARDING VELOCIRAPTOR CHRIST THIS IS GETTING EPICCER THAN FUCKIN SHIT
I have a feeling that the ending is going to make me cry so hard that I die of dehydration. Which is an incredibly good thing. I'm being completely serious when I say that I want you to make me go into the fetal position and start bawling.
Did you just reuse the paragraph describing her hitting Rarity?
she did the right thing but...what if she gets the needle
I wont let them 