• Published 3rd Mar 2013
  • 4,848 Views, 1,865 Comments

House that Heartbreak Rebuilt - Jet_Black1980



This month Heartbreak and Rarity go head to head while trying to get her a house. A surprise visitor or two or three will show up along the way.

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I Feel Like a Monster

Chapter 44

I Feel Like a Monster

“Ow! What the h-hay?” Heartbreak yelped as the pitted chain pulled her forward. Reaching up, her hooves tapped at it. The metallic clink produced made her aware of the collar with which she was now yoked. “Seriously, what the fffet is going on? Where am I?”

“Poniesss thessse daysss,” The boy shook his head, sighing and letting part of the chain in his hand dangle. “No apologiesss for interrupting my recital?” He was met only with a glaring frown.

“Not until I get an answer to what’s going on,” Heartbreak retorted.

“My, my, my. Aren’t we demanding?” The boy proceeded to play with his end of the chain like a toy. “What do you think isss going on?”

Heartbreak was silent for a moment. “I don’t know...”

The boy’s face broke open with a disturbingly wide grin. “Doesss that concccern you? Worry you?” He scooted up to the edge of his cage before grasping them in his hands. “Are you afraid?”

Heartbreak took a deep breath. “No,” she finally answered.

“Why not?” the boy asked. “You’re in a ssstrange place, chained to sssome sstranger and locked in a cage. If I were you? I would be very concccerned.”

“Let’s just say that it’s been four months since I was turned in...to...” She paused and shook her head. “Why am I telling you this?”

The boy tilted his head. “Why indeed...”

Heartbreak frowned. “Stop that!”

“Ssstop what?” the boy asked, looking at his fingers and jiggling the chain.

“Stop talking like this is all some sort of riddle!” Heartbreak exclaimed, stomping her hoof on the ground in frustration. “Ugh... I was going to say that I am used to waking up in strange places... but I’m beginning to suspect that you already know that.”

“Oh? And why isss that?” The boy asked, leaning forward in a mock interested pose.

“Because this is a dream...” Heartbreak looked at the boy in the eyes. “This is a dream, right?”

=====================================================================

The Crusaders listened to the subtle noises that were made by the old floor boards, as Heartbreak wandered about her house. After she passed the doorway and an audible ‘thump!’ of a body falling heavily on a bed could be heard, the three fillies waited a few more minutes before saying anything.

“Way to go with the plan, Sweetie Belle!” Scootaloo grumbled, crossing her hooves.

Sweetie Belle frowned. “I didn’t want to interrupt her story! I really did like it! And besides, I didn’t need to use the bathroom.”

“I told you that you should have drank more water...” Scootaloo replied disappointedly. “So now what? Do you still want to go with the plan, Applebloom?”

“I thought we already tried the plan,” Sweetie Belle interrupted.

“She doesn’t mean where we try ta get H.B. ta tell a story and ya go to the bathroom, Sweetie Belle,” Applebloom replied sighing. “She means the plan where we sneak into H.B.’s room and look at her mark while she’s asleep!”

“Oooooh,” Sweetie Belle replied, rubbing her face and laughing a bit. “Yeah, that plan.”

“Applejack is always tellin’ me: ‘Once yer committed ta somethin’, ya oughta stick to it ta the end,’”

“I wasn’t asking about what your sister would say, Applebloom! I was asking about what we should do!” Scootaloo retorted.

“No need ta get yer tail in a twist, little miss ninja!” Applebloom took a deep breath. “Yes, we’re gonna see this thing through. Ya think it’s been long enough fer her ta fall asleep, though?”

Applebloom’s question was answered with a soft snoring that echoed through the hallway.

“Oh yeah...” Scootaloo nodded her head, looking back at her friends before somersaulting out of bed and striking a pose! “Super Cutie Mark Crusaders Ninja Force Team Go!”

Applebloom groaned. “There she goes again with that ninja thing...”

“What does that even mean?” Sweetie Belle asked, a look of confusion plastered on her face.

“Pssssh! Don’t you two know anything? ” Scootaloo replied dismissively. “All ninja teams have some super cool catch phrase they say before going on secret, dangerous missions!”

The two fillies rolled their eyes at their friend. By now, Scootaloo’s ‘ninja’ kick was starting to leave ‘annoying’ and reach into the realm of goofy hijinx.

“Sure ya do there, Scoots.” Applebloom replied, patting her friend on the shoulder. Suddenly, she and Sweetie Belle joined in on the posing.

“Ha! No pony can resist the power of the ninja pose!” Scootaloo smirked. “Alright! Let’s do this!”

The three fillies peered out into the darkened hallway. The drape on the far window flittered with a draft and the dim moonlight was casting elongated shadows along the floorboards.

Scootaloo swallowed a bit. Something about this echoed the time where she was having nightmares about the Olden Pony, though she wasn’t quite sure what it was.

“Aren’t ninja’s spost’a be fearless?” Applebloom taunted. Truth be told, she too was getting a slight shiver over the darkened passageway. She didn’t know why, she’d been down many darker and spookier places before!

“Of course we are!” Scootaloo straightened up. “But as Ninja leader, you should go first!”

“How come Ah’m ‘Ninja leader?’” Applebloom asked.

Scootaloo rolled her eyes. “Because you’re the leader for most everything else we do! Now come on! We’re burning moonlight!”

Applebloom gave Scootaloo a look of disapproval, before swallowing and slipping out into the hallway. Finding that everything seemed safe enough, she motioned the others to follow.

As the three fillies crept down the hallway, the aura of creepiness just seemed to persist... Like something was watching them, poking out from the shadows of normally harmless objects. All this wasn’t helped by a few odd looking hoofblown glass sculptures whose faces seemed to follow the fillies as they made their trek. As the girls passed the linen closet, a small ‘creeeak’ noise came from behind them.

“Did either of you hear that?” Sweetie Belle whispered. The little unicorn looked over her shoulder just in time to see the closet door in the hallway slowly opening, before it suddenly slammed shut. “Ee-” Scootaloo put her hoof up in front of Sweetie Belle’s mouth, silencing the scream that desperately wanted to climb its way out.

The little orange filly put her own hoof up in a hushing motion. “Shhh!”

The white little unicorn gave a whimpering apologetic look before being pushed forward by Scootaloo’s sharp ‘come on already’ gestures.

=====================================================================

I narrow my eyes at the boy. If this is a dream, it’s hard for my eyes to adjust to the dim light of this cell. But with some effort, I get a good look at his face.

He has a pale, pasty complexion that highlights the fact that he needs a good washing. His hair is black and seems to run in flat squiggles. His skin is almost taught over his face, not like he’s a skeleton under a human face, but like he hasn’t eaten in a really long time. Emaciated. That’s the word I’m looking for. He’s emaciated.

“You think thisss isss a dream, then?” He asks me, clicking the chain against the ground.

“Yes,” I reply, frowning at the boy in the cage. “And if this is a dream? I don’t want to be a fetting pony.” I glare at my hooves and concentrate. I want hands, damn it! Give me hands! I grunt and struggle to push my limbs into remembering what it was like to have fingers, toes and feet. I push my face and body into recalling what they are really meant to look like. But for some reason, it’s slow work. “Grrrrrrr-ugha!”

“Like wading through molassssssesss, that wasss,” He comments, cocking his head. “Wasssn’t it?” The boy across from me laughs and pulls the chain.

“Oh goodie,” I start out in a sarcastic manner. “I’ve always wanted to know what it was like to be treated like a dog.” He only grins at me and gives a light chuckle. “Who are you, anyhow?” He suddenly looks offended.

“Who?” He proceeds to move on to puzzled. “Who?” he leans forward. “Who?”

“Yes, ‘who,’” I reply irritatedly. “Seriously, the who-owl joke only has so many miles in it before it gets old.”

“Why isss it alwaysss a ‘who’ that needsss to be involved with you?” The boy asks, glaringly.

“Because it’s one of ‘those’ dreams again,” I reply, tugging at the metal collar around my neck. Looking down, I check to see that everything is in order, no stupid surprises of ‘Oh hey! Now you’re a human girl! Ha! Ha! Ha!’ going on here. Good, I’m ‘me’. The old me at least.

“And what, pray tell, are ‘thossse’ dreamsss?”

“Where an aspect of myself anthropomorphizes into something I can recognize, and then has an argument with me,” I reply, looking at my hands and stretching my fingers. For some reason they feel stiff and sore. I really hope that doesn’t mean anything...

“And you have come to the conclusssion that isss what isss happening now?” Ugh, for a dark and dank dream, this is starting to become rather boring. Oh sure, the symbology behind it is interesting and everything but - abruptly I am yanked forward and given a face full of pain as the dull metal bars of my cage are forced to have a meet’n’greet with them. “And what part of you do you sssupossse I represssent, eh?”

“Gah! What the fffet was that for?!” I scream, rubbing my nose. The sensation is... intense, almost real feeling but not quite. He watches me, as if transfixed by the spectacle of me in discomfort is... gratifying somehow.

“Anssswer the quessstion,” he replies in an almost commanding voice. “What part of you do think I represssent?”

“I don’t know,” I shake my head free from the pain. “The ill mannered, masochistic, and self-destructive part?” I blink and pause. “You’re not Goth Bunny, are you?” His face twists up and it almost seems like I have offended him in some way. I brace myself as he looks like he is going to tug hard on the chain again. But when I don’t feel myself faceplant against the cell bars? I relax. The sudden clang and pain prove that was a mistake.

“Goth Bunny!?” He exclaims angrily, before pulling at the sides of his face. “Goth Bunny?!”

“Seriously! Can you stop smacking me against the cell bars?”

“Do I look like sssome tarted up anthropomorphic bright pink ‘goth’ lapine to you?!” As he screams his question, his black hair starts to form into tight curls and I swear his eyes flash a bit of red.

“Geez, calm down...” I rub my nose and sniff a bit. “It was only a -”

“No! You’re comparing me to that pathetic sssliver of your psssyche?!” He grabs the bars and pushes his face against them. “You’re comparing me to your ssself-doubtsss and fearsss?!” I glare at him and come to a realization.

“You know what?” I ask throwing my hands up. “I don’t care if I get to be huuuymon here. I don’t have to take this kind of abuse. I get enough of it in the waking world. And yeah, a good deal of it might be... self inflicted-” I reluctantly admit. “-But, this is a dream and I can wake up any time I want to. Which is what I am going to do-”

“Wait!” He holds out a hand and looks up at me. “Yesss, you could do that. But then you won’t know what part of yourssself I am.”

I frown. “Frankly, who ever you are? I don’t give a fet.”

“You ssshould,” He replies menacingly. I rub the bridge of my nose and eye him worriedly.

=====================================================================

The three fillies arrived at Heartbreak’s bedroom door. The soft snore could be heard from the mare within.

“Alright Scoots,” Applebloom said quietly. “Ya ready?”

“Me? Why do I have to go in?” Scootaloo asked, eyeing the soft rise and fall of blanket as Heartbreak slumbered.

“Because!” Applebloom quietly exclaimed.

“Because why?” Scootaloo asked.

“Well, fer one, you appointed me the leader of this here group.” Applebloom replied. “An secondly, yer the only one that can make it in there without makin’ too much noise, little-miss-ninja!” She tapped her hoof on Scootaloo’s wing.

“Uhm, yeah, of course!” She replied, rubbing her ankle. “But wouldn’t it be smarter for one of you two to come with me? ‘Cause you know...” Scootaloo flicked her wings.

“Ah know that ah was gettin’ on ya about the ninja thing, but yer the best one ta do this, “ Applebloom sighed, her expression softening. “We’ll be right outside the door keepin’ watch if ya need us. ”

“Yeah,” Sweetie Belle said smiling. “You’ll be in and out before she even knows it! Oh, here are the drawings we did earlier so you can compare.”

“Thanks,” Scootaloo took the drawings before she flapped and hopped slowly as best she could over the old and warped wooden floor. She made note of the few creaky floorboards near the bed that she’d stumbled upon earlier that day before landing as quietly as she could. Peeking over the bed where Heartbreak was sleeping, she saw that the mare was laying flat on her back, a position which most ponies didn’t usually take. And one that was extremely inconvenient for what the Crusaders wanted to do.

Heartbreak’s hooves were laying atop the old heavy looking blanket. Her eyes were shut tight and she seemed pretty deep in her slumber.

Out like a light! I didn’t think that we wore her out that quickly!” Scootaloo thought to herself. “Which is perfect for what we want to do! However...” She reasserted her dilemma. “How am I going to get that blanket off her and then have her turn to the side, so that I can take a closer look at that cutie mark?!

Just then, an idea popped into the filly’s head. A horrible, wonderfully inspired idea at that. “That might work! Thank you, Skeeterroll!” she spread her small wings and nosed around the feathers. “It’s been awhile since my last preening, so there’s sure to be one or two that are- ah-ha!” She pulled out a loose feather with her teeth. “Alright, let’s see if we can do this without waking her up...

The little pony stood up and reached forward with her newly acquired feather, which lightly touched the tip of Heartbreak’s muzzle. At first nothing happened, but then the mare reached up and rubbed her nose, grumbling slightly before her left hoof fell to her side and off the blanket. Scootaloo quietly snuck to the other side of the bed, and carefully repeated the process until she rubbed her nose again and turned to her side. The mare set her head on her hooves and smacked her lips. Heartbreak’s frame now looked like one of her marks would be facing upwards, instead of the side.

Awesome. Alright, now to get that blanket off her...” Scootaloo thought, as she returned to the other side. She tilted her head, looking over the bed once more. “Huh, I wonder why the blanket isn’t burning like the pants did? That doesn’t make too much sense.” The filly took the old musky blanket in her mouth, and started an arduous task of gently pulling it. “Carefully....Carefully...Almost...Almost...

“Scoots! What in tarnation is takin’ so long!” Applebloom’s hushed voice said from the doorway.

Scootaloo dropped the blanket in her mouth, and ducked down as quickly as she could - while waggling her hooves at her friends who were looking at her through the crack in the door. “Shhh! You’ll wake her up!” she replied, as quietly as she could.

Just then, Heartbreak stirred in her sleep. “What do you mean...” She yawned really wide. “by...” She muttered, before returning back to her slumber.

Applebloom looked at her friend apologetically. “Sorry...”

“Has she-” Sweetie Belle started.

“Shhh!” Applebloom hushed.

“You shhh!” Sweetie Belle countered in a whispering tone.

“Would you both, ‘shh!?’” Scootaloo asked quietly. “I’ll have a good look in just a minute!”

Scootaloo lay quietly for a moment - just in case Heartbreak was roused more from her sleep - before peeking up over the bed again. “Jeez, really, really sound sleeper! Right, just that one part and I can get a better look at her flank...

She took the corner of the blanket in her mouth again, and tugged the corner at the end of the bed until it slipped, exposing Heartbreak’s back hooves, and - most importantly - cutie mark to the open air.

Scootaloo almost squeed at her accomplishment. “Alright wings. Don’t fail me now. Let’s get up-

The little filly lightly hopped up before she struggled and fought to flap her wings. They had been through a lot more exercise than they were used to, but as she softly landed on the bed, her efforts were rewarded.

Whew! I swear, will these things ever just grow in?” She quietly bapped her forehead. “Focus, Scoots! Alright, let’s get a good look at this mark and find out what it really looks like.” she thought as she pulled out the drawings which the three of them had done. Her head bobbed up and down from the mark to the drawings, from the drawings to the mark. She shook her head in confusion. “That’s not right, none of these even look close to that crack thing in the middle of her cutie mark! I swear it looked more like an upside-down tree! Now it looks like a jagged line! Almost like two faces facing each other...What gives!?

=====================================================================

“I know I’m going to regret asking this, but why should I care?” I ask waving my hand dismissively. He gives me a bemused smirk.

“Becaussse, I know... thingsss,” He replies vaguely.

“That’s not a very good incentive to stay dreaming you know,” I reply, rolling my eyes.

“Oh really?” He asks playing with the chain. “What if I were to make it interesssting? Guessssss who I am, and I will anssswer one quessstion on anything, honessstly.”

“One question with an honest answer?” I shake my head. Great, whatever part of me this is? It seems to like to play mind games with me. “Seriously, I can’t think of an-”

“You can’t think of anything?” He twirls the chain. “What about thossse little thingsss you have been noticing that aren’t just quite right?” He looks up at me. “Or who the Indigo Princessssss wasss?”

“...” Damn it, now he has my attention. If he is a part of my subconscious mind, he’s bound to have picked up on things that I didn’t. Including clues to who the random alicorn was. But why the fuck my subconscious mind would take this form and be taunting me like this, that’s anyone’s guess. Dreams are weird. “Why would I care about... about that?”

“We both know why you would care about that. Remember? I’m in your head,” He scoots close to the bars of his cage. “You care becaussse you ssstill feel guilty over what happened. Oh yesss, it was only a brief exchange, but the way you acted? You’d be lucky if ssshe would talk to you the next time you sssaw her.” The pang of guilt turns into a sliver that pierces into my heart. You’d think that bringing up things like this again and again would make me grow numb to the emotion, but with me? It’s like reopening an old wound and applying salt.

“S-s-shut up,” I sniff hard. “I-I don’t even know if she was real.”

“Well, if you want to know... How’sss about we play a game of ‘Yesss or No’? I’ll even throw in a little sssurprissse at the end. Sssomething you definitely get to know.”

“Fine, I’ll play your stupid game,” I take a deep breath and cross my arms. “Is this like twenty questions?”

“Of courssse,” He lays back and waves the chain back and forth above his head. “You get a number of quesstions, twenty in number - well, nineteen now - and have to guessssss what I am.”

“Wait, nineteen? Did that first question count as a question?”

“Yesss, Nineteen and probably.”

“Probably?”

“Maybe.”

“Maybe?!”

“Perhapsss.”

“Perhaps - Ugh! Isn’t this yes or no?! Aren’t you meant to answer yes or no?!”

“Yesss, this is yesss or no. And not alwaysss. Sssometimesss, the anssswersss are rather vague. Though, I’ll be nice and tell you that you jussst wasssted ssseven of your twenty quessstionsss.” He turns his head smirking at me. “I sssugessst that you choossse your wordingsss more wisssely... That’sss if you want your prize.”

“Right,” I rub my face. I can’t believe that I am being outsmarted by myself! “I don’t know what part of me you are. And you could be anything. You’re English, or at least you sound it. You’re young, but you look nothing like I did when I was young.”

“I ssshould alssso tell you that deduction ssshould be done at the end of our little game. Otherwissse, you forfeit all your other quessstionsss,” He crosses his hands over his head and puts his foot on his knee. “And I doubt that you’re sssmart enough to deduce what I am off the number of quessstionsss you’ve asssked.”

“Fine,” I take a deep breath, how the hell do I figure out what they are?! For all I know they could be my frustration! My confusion? A twisted version of my conscience? Wait, maybe the form he’s taken will tell me something. Alright, H.B. Let’s pay attention to the details and watch our words. “The form you’ve taken, do I know them?”

“Nope,” Comes the reply. Damn it, so a vague concept with a pension for riddles and causing pain.

“Have I ever seen you before?”

“Perhapsss,”

“Let me rephrase that-”

“There are no repeat quessstionsss,”

“Right, of course not,” I take a deep breath. “Have I felt you before?”

“Depends.”

“Depends?” I cringe and realize that I have just wasted another question.

“Heh, yesss. It depends on your definition of ‘felt’.” Ugh, my frustration is growing at the vagueness of the answers to these questions.

“Alright, have I felt you recently?”

“Oh mossst definitely.” He says running the chain through his fingers. The repetitive clinking is beating my nerves to the point past irritation.

“Could you stop that!?” Crap! There goes another question.

“I could,” He says, letting the idea of a further question of ‘will you stop it?’ hang in the air. Oh, not this time. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me seven times, well... then I’m an idiot. I count in my head how many questions I’ve used up. Thirteen, great I have seven questions left. And I don’t think I’m any closer to answering what the fuck this thing is... I need to ask more pointed questions.

“Are you a good part of me?”

“Heh, not really.” He turns and looks at me, holding his head up with his hands.

“What do you mean by that?!” I hold up a hand while trying to push down the dissatisfaction I’m getting from how far I’ve gotten with them. Which is nowhere-land. “Right, I know. Yes or no.” As I hear nowhere land in my head, I’m reminded of the Beatles. The movie ‘Yellow Submarine’ to be precise. It’s weird how the mind works sometimes, but the disjointed connection causes me to do as Jeremy suggested that the band do when they were looking for Pepperland. Be empirical, look around. “Is anything around me here that can give me a clue as to what you are?”

“Oh yesss! Many thingsss!”

“Is this one of them?” I hold up the chain.

“Could be,” he says shrugging. I stretch the chain and relax it in my hands a couple of times.

“Are you something that I’ve always had?”

“Nope,” Ha! A breakthrough! And with only three questions left!

“Alright, I think I know what you are.” I try to say confidently, though it doesn’t sound like it. My voice sort of trembles and I bite on my lower lip.

“Are you sssure? You know if you take a guessssss now, you forfeit thossse lassst three quessstionsss!” I just nod. “Alright then, what do you think I am?”

“Are you my curses?” His expression drops and he bites his lower lip. And for a moment I think that I have hit upon something. Up till the instant that he chuckles, sits up and looks at me dead in the eyes.

“No, I am not your cursssesss...” Fuck, I thought I really had it! Seems like I can’t even win in my dreams. “Awww, don’t look ssso sssad, you’re not going to go away empty hooved... There’sss still your sssurprissse... But if you want it... You ssshould come clossser...” He holds up a shiny piece of something in his hand and reaches it through the bars. Sighing, I feel compelled to at least take whatever scrap of information this stupid thing is offering. “Come clossser.... just a little clossser...”

As he repeats that phrase, I feel a sudden apprehension. “I... I think I’ve changed my mind.” I sharply pull my hand back into my cage. “‘Cause seriously? That’s creepy.”

“That’sss alright... The game hasss done it’sss job...” He sits down and wrings his hand with a horribly devious smile on his face.

“W-what do you mean by that?” I ask, swallowing hard.

=====================================================================

Scootaloo’s eyes darted back to the drawings in her hooves. This wasn’t just confusing anymore: this was beginning to turn dangerous. The longer she stayed here, the better and better the chance of her getting caught! She looked at the cutie mark in front of her. This time, much to her astonishment, it appeared that it had changed once again! This time, the cracks appeared in a more star-like pattern.

A sudden fear gripped Scootaloo and she jumped back, her wings set into a flutter. “What the hay!?” She quickly covered her mouth and looked around. Sound sleeper or not, making any loud noises was sure to wake Heartbreak up! However, when the tan form didn’t rouse from her slumber, the filly sighed in relief. She looked to her friends who were just outside the door. “I think I want to-” Just then, something caught her attention out of the corner of her eye...

It was the mark. Turning her head, the little filly almost could swear that it was...moving.

No, has to be a trick of the light!” Scootaloo shook her head. “From her breathing! After all, cutie marks don’t-” Her thoughts paused as she swore she saw it actually move again, the cracks in the lower half becoming.. wider. Like a demented mouth opening and closing slightly.

Like it was saying something.

Scootaloo’s wings flitted a bit as she drew closer. “A closer look won’t hurt...” As she did so, her hoof raised up with intent to poke. “It’s only a cutie mark... what’s the harm?

But as her hoof encroached upon Heartbreak’s mark, Scootaloo felt a wrongness. A wrongness that was so palpable that what little colour in the room seemed to be drained away. A horrible feeling that she couldn’t shake.

The cracks and the patches in the mark were no longer merely tricks of light. With her hoof ever-so-close, they were growing and shrinking. Changing and reshaping. There was no doubt that there was a face in those cracks. And now she could match words to it’s moving mouth.

Come closer...come closer... just a little closer...

Scootaloo grabbed her hoof and pulled it away! As she did so, the face started to fade back into the linework. “What the fet!?” She looked at her hoof and then at the mark. She shook her head and looked horrified. She frowned and looked at the mark a little closer. This time, nothing occurred. “Did that just really happen?

She thought about looking at it again, but the unsettling feeling about this thing just wouldn’t leave her be. “I better get-

“Scootaloo!! Come on! Tell us who’s right already!!” Applebloom whisper-shouted.

Scootaloo jumped in fright and like a bullet in a loaded gun, her hoof sprang forward and hit Heartbreak square in the middle of her cutie mark. A small creaking noise was uttered from her throat and fear flooded the little filly’s being as cold, inky, black cracks started to make their way up her arm...

=====================================================================

The boy’s face in front of me twists and changes. It turns completely black and a white crack forms down the middle. His eyes open. They’ve lost any and all colour and are lacking pupils. If this wasn’t so utterly disturbing, I would comment about him contracting, ‘Youngbloods.’ It was a thing that happened in the Ninety’s with comic book characters. Look it up. His mouth opens a long, wide, jagged looking smile that has no real teeth.

“W-w-what are you?” I ask, frozen in my seat.

The jail cell that we are in jars as the roof is ripped off by a horrible wind that sounds like a howling storm. The sky is set aflame and I feel like I am being roasted alive.

I’ll give you a hint... Even if you aren’t going to remember mossst of thisss dream, I’m not your friend...” The little boy gets really close to me, his mouth is opening wide. It’s like a carved jack-o-lantern smile. Well, if the smile was red and made me want to run screaming into the night. He lets out a disturbing giggle. “You ssshould really wake up now... that sssurprisss I told you about isss done...

The noise being generated by the wind is getting louder and louder. It’s almost familiar. Like I’ve heard something like this before... Where have I heard this sound before? Waking up and my senses quickly returning to me, I realize what that sound is: Screaming.

I’m the one screaming. Why am I screaming? I feel a burning coming from my flanks and it feels like I am being branded all over again. Why does it feel like this? Turning my head, I find out why.

My eyes go wide as I see Scootaloo on my bed, her face is frozen in horror and her mouth is open wide. There is a tiny gasping noise coming from her throat and it almost seems like her eyes have gone black. Her hoof certainly has. I don’t know why I’m explaining this in such a nonchalant manner. Maybe it’s how utterly over the top it seems. Maybe it’s the shock of waking up to this maybe- wait. My leg is burning and writhing. And it finally hits me.

Scootaloo is touching your mark, you fucking idiot!

From that moment I react, attempting to pull away from the filly, however she seems almost latched to my flank. Either she actually is, or she’s leaning forward in order to keep touching the fucking thing. I don’t care! Not again! Fuck! Fuck! Ouch!

“Uuugh!!! Scootaloo!!” I attempt to get her attention! But it’s no use, she’s... frozen... I smack her hoof away from my mark and she almost goes limp. I quickly jump up and catch her in my arms. I look her in the face angrily. “What the fet are you doing in here?! Why are you touching my mark?! Why-”

That’s when I realize two things:

One, Sweetie Belle and Applebloom are in the room, staring at me in horror and on the verge of screaming. They’re clutching each other tightly and crying. Two: Scootaloo isn’t responding. I look at her directly in the face.

“Scootaloo? Scoots?” I shake her. Oh please no. Please, No! No! Please, no! “Scootaloo! Scoot-A-Loo! Come on! Wake up!” I start to hug her limp body tightly and press my ear against her chest. It still sounds like there is a heartbeat in there, but there’s no response. The lights are on, but nopony is home. I have only one hope, oh fuck, please let this work! “Sweetie Belle! Down stairs! The cupboard! The chocolate! Now!!”

“What?!” Sweetie Belle asks terrified.

“Get the chocolate from the cupboard! Now! ” I look into Scootaloo’s blank eyes. Fuck, I’ve broke her. “I’ve broke her! Fuck! No! Not Scootaloo! Please! She gets a bad enough time in fan fiction! Please, no!” Looking over I see that Sweetie Belle is still frozen. “Sweetie Belle! Now!”

The little filly races out of the room and down the stairs. Applebloom snaps out of her daze. “W-what’s wrong with Scootaloo?!” She asks.

“Come on, Scoots, come on, come back to us! Come on!” I chant. I know that Applebloom is asking questions, but I don’t want to answer them. I just want Scootaloo to wake up! “Come on, Scootaloo! Wake up!”

“What did ya do to her?!” Applebloom shouts accusingly at me. “She isn’t dead is she?!”

I turn and look at her. “Why were you in my room!? Why was she touching my mark!?” Scootaloo still feels like a limp noodle in my arms. I force her head forward as it looks like she might choke on her own tongue. Fuck! Where is Sweetie Belle?! “C-c-come o-on, Sc-c-c-ootaloo!”

Sweetie Belle races back into the room, chocolate in mouth. I don’t waste any time in grabbing it from her with my mouth and shoving it into Scootaloo’s. I don’t care if it looks like I am kissing both of them for a moment. I don’t care if part of it broke off in Sweetie Belle’s mouth. All I care is that this works. I really hope it works, come on! Work!

“C-c-c-come on, Scootaloo! Chew it! Chew It!” I push her mouth closed. The other crusaders are looking at me dazed and confused. I don’t know what they’re thinking about me, but It’s surely not anything good. I move Scootaloo’s jaw up and down with my ankle. I really hope this will work! It has to work! “Come on! Come on, Scootaloo!”

Did I mention that I was crying? Well, not anymore, all that I am left with right now is a steady stream of sobbing hiccups and the fear that Scootaloo will never wake up again. This is my fault, this is my doing, this filly will never achieve what she is meant to because I happened to her.

“C-c-come on...” I try hugging her again. That’s what works in the shows right? Hug them tightly enough and they wake up! That’s what happens! Why isn’t this working? Come on! Work damn, you! Come on!!

Just then I feel something move on my shoulder. It is a small movement, but it is still movement. I pull Scootaloo away only to pull her back tightly after I see that she is chewing on the chocolate in her mouth and her eyes are tracking me.

“Huh...wha...?” Are the first words that come out her mouth.

I feel a smile coming to my face and hug her even tighter. This is the happiest moment of relief I have ever felt. Scootaloo will be alright. She’ll be fine. I sniff hard, I’ve never been so happy before. However, the joy in this moment is tainted by my feelings of guilt and shame.

“F-f-forgive me, Scootaloo... please... please... forgive me...” I whisper under my breath, hugging her as tightly as I can again. Scootaloo is shaking and I am sure is terrified of me. But it’s the only thing I can think of saying. How do you explain everything horrible that has happened to me to some little filly that hasn’t even earned her cutie mark yet? “Please forgive me, Scootaloo...Please....Please...” I repeat, sniffing hard while moving my hoof back and forth through her mane.

Rarity’s voice enters my ears. “What is all the commotion going on in here!?”

My face twitches and one thought enters my head. “Rarity... She brought them here. She brought them here! This happened because she brought them here!

==============================================================

Rarity looked a bit petrified at the scene before her. Heartbreak was sitting on her bed clutching Scootaloo in her arms as if she had been pulled out of a fire. “What’s going on in here?!” She asked gawking.

Heartbreak brushed her hoof through Scootaloo’s mane once more before letting her go. “Applebloom, take your friend, p-p-please. I need to have a talk with Rarity.”

Applebloom almost instantly jumped up on the bed and looked over her fine feathered friend. “Scoots?” She asked her voice dripping with concern. “Are ya alright?” Heartbreak got off the bed and walked over to Rarity.

There was a terrible twitch on her face and she was biting her lip. “Just where the h-h-hay were you, Rarity?!”

“Asleep in my room downstairs! What’s wrong? Why are you crying? Why are they crying?!” Rarity asked looking over the three fillies.

Heartbreak glared at Rarity and attempted to pull her off to the side. “Asleep in your room?! Could you not hear me screaming?!”

Rarity looked undignified. “I had my ear muffs on, and you gave me the one room in the house that is clear on the other side of this one! The only reason I came up here is because I awoke to my sister crying on her way out of the kitchen!” She took in the breath of the situation unfolding before her, her mind jumping to the worst conclusion as she saw the tears running down the fillies’ cheeks. “What happened?!” she asked.

Heartbreak twitched and looked to the ground. “I didn’t do anything to them, Rarity. If that’s what you’re implying. They-”

“H.B.! They’re crying! And I didn’t say that you-”

“Would you let me finish!” Heartbreak said seethingly. “Scootaloo came into my room and I woke up to find her touching my mark!”

Rarity’s eyes went wide and she looked at Scootaloo. She hadn’t seen what happened to Cream Puff, but Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie seemed a little shaken by the incident. Part of her didn’t want to believe what Heartbreak had told her regarding the mark. After all, there hadn’t been any problems with other ponies following the incident. Save for perhaps that lovely pair of pants that she had made for her, but surely that was an entirely different matter. Wasn't it? “Girls? Could you take Scootaloo back to your room?”

Sweetie Belle looked up at her sister. “But Rarity!”

“Please. Just go back to your room, we’ll talk about all this in the morning.” Rarity said calmly.

As the three fillies walked to the door, Scootaloo looked up at Heartbreak. Her eyes filled with questions, pain and an air of rage. The tan mare could only respond by backing away from the girls, and looking turning her head to look away.

When Rarity closed the door she was met with a cold, dark glare.

“What’s wrong, Darling?” Rarity asked, cowering slightly away.

“Where do I start, Rarity? ‘Cause I thought we had established that my mark is, in fact evil, and that anything young, cute and innocent should be kept away from it at all times. So unless you had a case of the, ‘derpies,’ over the past few days, you have no excuse for what just happened!” Heartbreak said shaking her hoof at Rarity.

“Hmph, if you were so worried about it, you could have locked your door, darling.” Rarity calmly retorted.

“With my hooves?!” Heartbreak retorted at the unicorn as she threw her hooves in the air.

“There’s no reason to take that tone with me, little Miss Heartbreak." Rarity frowned and glared back at Heartbreak. "Nor is what happened, which I am not sure of what just happened to begin with, in anyway my fault!” She took a deep breath through her nostrils in an attempt to calm herself. “I just want to know what happened.”

Heartbreak sat down and rubbed her temples. “Not your fault?! Rarity! You brought them here! And when I protested, you told them that I didn’t want them to come and used their-” she waved her hooves in the air in frustration. “Cute-filly-pony-raybeam powers on me!”

“I have no idea what you are talking about,” Rarity replied, humphing and walking to the sewing table on the far side of the room. She lifted several linens off the chair before sitting down.

Heartbreak followed her. “Yes you do! I know that somehow you found out that I find it really hard to say no to a colt or filly giving me an overly cute face! Though most of you have that same problem... I just have a bigger problem with it than-” She shook her head and reasserted herself. “But that isn’t the issue or the problem at present!”

“And just what is the problem that you are blaming me for, Heartbreak?” Rarity demanded. “Because quite frankly it feels like you are blaming me for something that I am completely unaware of!”

“Do I have to repeat myself, Rarity? You brought those three little fillies here despite my wishes!” Heartbreak fumed.

“You keep repeating that point, Heartbreak. But you're not explaining anything!” Rarity slammed her hoof on the sewing table sending small bits of dust flying everywhere. “Yes, I brought them here! You know why I brought them here?”

“No, why don’t you tell me why, Rarity?” Heartbreak asked darkly.

“Because I am at my wits end with you! I have tried everything just to get to know you, offered you things that any normal pony would jump at the chance to have for free! Tried to treat you to nice things, helped you get a house, bought you a bike, even tried to get you to get out some!”

“Fetlocks, you sound almost like my mother. Only she kept trying to just get me to do chores. And I would do them, but she kept trying to get me to do something else that to this day I can’t figure out.”

“Was it perhaps, oh I don’t know...” Rarity tapped her chin. “Make some friends?!”

Heartbreak glared at Rarity. “Not in the slightest. But we’re not going down that path to nowhere! Look! None of those things you just mentioned you would have done if Twilight hadn’t forced you to!” She hissed. “And most of it all was done under gize of manipulation!”

“So we’ve come full circle to this little argument, have we? No longer burying the hatchet and trying to, ‘forgive and learn from our mistakes,’ are we?” Rarity said glaring at Heartbreak.

“This isn’t about that, Rarity!” Heartbreak pointed at the wall next to her. “This is about them! Scootaloo touched my mark! For normal p-p-ponies? I’m sure that isn’t a problem! I was having some sort of terrible dream about something, and I just wanted to wake up! But when I woke up, I found that my nightmare wasn’t over! Scoots looked like she was almost latched to the thing! Like she couldn’t let go! And when I had to remove her hoof?! She looked like she was in a coma, Rarity! I was afraid that she wasn’t going to wake up! And then you just tell them to, ‘go to bed and we’ll talk about this in the morning,’ as if the whole thing was nothing!”

“Why bother?” Rarity asked sharply. “And why do you even care? You said no after that filly got hurt after the library. And none of us have asked since, because we know what the answer would be. It's why I didn't bring it up, even after that thing of yours burned clean through denim. You might not like what just happened, but you are the one who doesn't want anything done about it! Are more concerned with your precious secrets than what your mark might do to others or yourself?"

“That is completely untrue! And why do I care?! Why!? What kind of flip-fetting fra-acking mind-screw of a question is that?!” Heartbreak tried to yell as quietly as she could. “Because she’s Scootaloo! That’s Why!”

“That’s not an answer.” Rarity said, frowning at the over abundance of f-related words Heartbreak had just used.

“What do you want from me, Rarity!?” Heartbreak fumed.

“What I want to know is if you actually care about that filly or just care about hiding away in your broken down home isolated away from other ponies.”

“Rarity, did it ever come across your mind that it might be both?! That I do care if I hurt others, and that I want to live in this house due to its isolated location?! That way, I don’t have to worry about things like this!” Heartbreak retorted.

“You can’t be an island to yourself, Heartbreak. Nopony can.” Rarity stated matter-a-factly.

“Watch me!” Heartbreak nearly shouted.

Rarity took a deep seething breath. Perhaps now is a good time for her to taste her own medicine. “Right, and how well is that going to work?”

“I don’t know...” Heartbreak looked at Rarity with a questioning glance.

“Nonsense! You know almost everything about those who live in Equestria and the inhabitants of Ponyville. And while I have no issues with leaving somepony who just wants to be miserable, and alone, out there near the Everfree Forest, for the rest of however long you have? There are others who won’t leave you be.”

“I’ll just tell them to leave me alone,” Heartbreak said evasively.

“Oh, because that’s just been working splendidly for you, so far, hasn’t it, darling?” Rarity replied tossing her mane. “Back in Whinneapolis, you told the bellhop to leave us be, but he was intent on carrying your bags to your room for you.”

“That was just the Whinneapolis, ‘nice,’” Heartbreak replied.

“Oh? Or what about Brick House? You seemed hesitant to acknowledge knowing her, but she was insistent that you were somehow friends.”

“I already explained what happened! We met once last month at a party I took Dib to and I didn’t want to offend her! I did it in a gentle manner!”

“And during yesterday’s song, when the girls were getting on your nerves and you sang to them to leave you alone? You were practically shouting it through your teeth!” Rarity continued.

“They tricked me into singing with them! I was stern to be sure! I didn’t shout, I just reminded them that my house is under construction and that I didn’t want them getting hurt!”

“Do you know what’s going to happen when you tell others to leave you be? They are going to want to know what’s wrong. They are going to try to fix the problem. They are going to keep coming. Because that’s how we ponies are. And if you think you can just box yourself off, well, I won’t stop you from being alone. But you’re going to have a hard time trying to shake Pinkie Pie off.”

“I’ll think of something! I’ll tell them that I’m busy! That I have a project that I have to do by myself!”

“You’ll even lie to get them to go away?” Rarity asked. “Now who’s being the manipulative mare?”

“I-I,” Heartbreak stammered.

“This was a point that I wanted to get to when we were on the train but couldn’t,” Rarity started to walk around Heartbreak. “It was an important point too.”

“W-what fetting point was that, Rarity?” Heartbreak asked sullenly. Rarity got up into Heartbreak’s face and tapped her chest.

“That when it comes down to it, we are more similar than either of us would like to admit.”

“I never thought I would see the day when I heard-”

“Let me finish,” Rarity said curtly. “You and I have many differences, this is to be certain. But we both do our fair share of manipulation. I manipulate in an attempt to bring others together, whereas you manipulate to keep them apart.”

“I do not!” Heartbreak protested.

“You have shown me nothing to convince me otherwise!” Rarity said, stomping her hoof.

“Oh no no, you are not going to get me this time with your reverse psychology tactics. Those things don’t work if you know that they are being used, you know,” Heartbreak said, trying to regain her composure.

“You would know that all too well now wouldn’t you? After all, you’re so well practiced in using such things. What do you think you were doing when you were goading Twilight into touching your mark? Hmmm? Oh, and how about when Manifest Destiny was being flirtatious with you? How quickly you cut down his ego so that others would discontinue any future attempts at interacting with you? Threatening the construction worker ponies into getting them to behave themselves? And what about Diamond Tiara? A little filly, for Celestia’s sake! You realize how much I am going to explain to Filthy Rich, once his daughter tells him what happened?” Rarity said standing over Heartbreak. “Face it, Heartbreak. We do have a striking commonality, because when it comes down to it, when you are under pressure, you will resort to practically the same manipulations as I do!”

Heartbreak’s composure began to crumble and she took a few steps back.

“What? No sarcastic quips? No clever comments? Nothing to say? I want to know what you have to say, Heartbreak! I’m all ears here!” Rarity seemed to tower over the mare’s cracking mask. “What do you have to say to that?! Oh please, wise Heartbreak, you know everything! Educate me.” Heartbreak went quiet and turned away.

“Well?” Rarity demanded. Heartbreak continued to walk to the door, refusing to say a word. “Answer me!”

A twitch rolled over Heartbreak’s face and she sniffed hard. “Fine, Rarity...” She turned and looked at Rarity with glistening tear filled eyes. “You win.”

Rarity blinked in confusion. “I...win?”

Heartbreak threw her hooves up. “Yup! Congrad-u-fetting-lations, you pointed out that I can be a hypocrite. Good. Job.” Her voice trembled. “You win. Congrats.”

Finally! “And what are you going to do about it?” Rarity asked.

A seething glare came off Heartbreak. “What is there to do about it?” She went quiet for a moment. “You win, Rarity.”

“Darling, that’s not what I-”

“No! You win, Rarity. Congratulations. You. Win.” Heartbreak said, fighting back tears. “I’m a hypocrite and the great and wise Rarity is the best teacher of all! Trying to teach me, the lowly-” she closed her eyes and bit on her lip before forcing out, “-Heartbreak, a lesson about not being manipulative by throwing every moment that I manipulated others in my face.” She twitched and slow clapped her hooves. “Good job. Thank you, Rarity.” Her whole face twitched and she sniffed hard. “I can’t wait to write to the Princess about this ‘lesson.’ I can see that letter now.” She cleared her throat. “Dear Princess Celestia, today I learned that I am a fetting manipulative hypocrite. Signed, nothing-but-a-heartbreak-pony.’

“H.B....” Rarity said reaching out.

“No!” Heartbreak almost shouted. “No. You. Win. Rarity. Thank you. Lesson learned.”

“I just wanted you to see that what you were doing was wrong, and isn’t the way to earn yourself any friends,” Rarity said her ears starting to droop.

“And. You. Did.” Heartbreak said, glaring at Rarity. “Thank you. Thank you for showing me that I’m nothing but... but a canker-nag,” she said, rubbing her face and coughing. Rarity looked like she wanted to stop her from leaving, but she waved off at the unicorn. “I’m too tired to deal with anything more, Rarity. I’m going to check in on the girls. You know, the three little fillies who were meant to help you teach me something about generosity? The ones who are over in the other room scared out of their wits and emotionally scarred? And then I’m going try to get some sleep. Something that you, yourself, should do,” she said, pointing at the bed.

“But darling, this is the only other bed is downstairs on the other side of the house or the one that the girls are sleeping in. Where are you going to sleep?”

“Where all fetting hypocritical cankernags sleep, Rarity. On the fetting guest room couch!” Heartbreak replied, glaring back for a moment.

“Darling, please, I was just-”

“Trying to help me and do something for my own fetting good. I’m sure.” Heartbreak paused when she walked through the door frame. “Rarity, I want you to think about something while you sleep on what is essentially my nice warm bed.” Her hoof tapped on the wood as she gathered her thoughts. “That could have been your sister who had touched my mark. Your sister who might not have come out of a depression-induced coma. Your sister I had to force feed chocolate to. This might sound manipulative of me, but maybe you ought to think about that.”

“H.B.-”

“You sleep well, Rarity.” Heartbreak said leaving the room, her tail whipping to the side.

As Heartbreak departed the scene, her hoof beats echoed through the old house. She clutched her chest and bit her lip as each one leaving a hard painful mark on her heart.

In the darkened silence, Rarity found herself at odds with what had just happened. In one hoof, she had finally said what she had been dying to say ever since the train ride to Whinneapolis. Something that she hoped would get Heartbreak to see the light, open up to the generosity of others and realize how she could better herself. However, it had just done the opposite. Forcing Heartbreak to reflect on her journey and interactions with others had only made her become more hostile and closed off.

Rarity covered her mouth and shut her eyes tightly. Wasn’t she right about all this? Wasn’t she right about how Heartbreak could have interacted with the situations she brought up?

Yes, of course you are, darling. Heartbreak is just refu- Rarity stopped and her thoughts were interrupted by a glimmer of light out of the corner of her eye. Turning her head, she jumped in surprise as she saw the outline of the mane, and thought it was another mare looking back at her. Then she saw the horn, and realized that it was only her own reflection in a mirror on the other side of the room. She looked down and felt a few tears run down her cheeks.

Being right never felt so wrong.

Author's Note:

Oooooh Boy. How will this get resolved!? Yeah, I know there's a lot here and things seem very bleak. But the good news is that it will be like an hour before the next chapter comes. Here is the Chapter Art for those who can't see.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj2/sabertooth1980/Chapter44WakingNightmares_zpsd1135ce5.jpg