• Published 11th Sep 2013
  • 1,539 Views, 35 Comments

A Reaper's Travels - KillerSteel



A spirit comes across Equestria, and decides to pay his close friend - and boss - a visit during his travels, only to find Equestria is much different from when he last saw it.

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Chapter 5: Pink And Lavender

It took quite a while for Rainbow to regain some manner of thought, but as the group left the Carousel Boutique with the caring farewell of their host, something had been lost in the pegasus' eyes. Some manner of purpose, or simply will, and it disturbed her escorts as they weaved through the backstreets of Ponyville, avoiding as many eyes as they could. Before long, the cream-colored, sweet-smelling walls of the bakery came into view down the street, and the sight made Rainbow take pause, her escorts taking a step further before stopping as well.

"Does something trouble you, Rainbow Dash?" Luna turned her head to the mare, raising her eyebrow slightly.

Rainbow blinked a few times before registering that somepony was talking to her, looking up at Luna. "Huh? S-Sorry, was thinking of something..."

"Just asking if something troubles you." Luna's eyebrow fell back down, leaving a worrisome expression behind on her face.

"Oh, um... n-nothing! Nothing. D-Don't worry about me!" Rainbow stammered as she raised her forehoof, waving it back and forth. She quickly put on her most determined face, hoping to hide the telltale cracks in her conviction.

"Hmm... you are certain?" Luna's eyebrow began to rise again as Reaper scanned the street beyond, folding his arms.

"Y-Yeah, I'm sure, very sure. I can do this." Rainbow took a calming breath, though her nerves were still fried from the titanic task before her. "I can do this..."

"You can, huh?" Reaper looked back at the pegasus, scanning her expression for a moment before turning back to the street. "I've got some doubts about that."

"What're you talking about?" Rainbow looked back at the spirit, eyeing the back of his head. “You got something to say to me?”

“Your voice is doing all the speaking for me, kid.” Reaper sighed, shaking his head a little. “You’re shaking, your voice isn’t as strong as it used to be...”

“S-Shut up. I’m fine.” Rainbow grit her teeth and walked forward, heading towards the entrance of the alleyway. “I’m just... confessing to my friends. Pinkie’ll understand. I know she will...”

Understand a mass murderer? I’m having troubles doing that, and if I didn’t know her story, she’d be in a lot worse a situation... Reaper’s eyes followed the advancing pegasus before turning back to the bakery in front of them. “So... any idea what’s waiting for us, Boss?”

“Admittedly, I’ve not a hint, Reaper. I only pray that it goes better than our discussion with Miss Rarity and little Spike.” Luna shook her head before pulling her hood up and following Rainbow, Reaper following suit shortly after. The flow of ponies heading out of the bakery thankfully slowed to a stop, only one or two popping out every now and then, leaving the street in relative silence. Even at that late hour, Sugarcube Corner bustled with activity. Their walk met a few whispered words between passersby, but none attempted to stop the trio as they walked up the steps, Rainbow at the head.

“Hello! Welcome to Sug—” The mare behind the counter stopped as she saw Rainbow walk in, replacing her typical smile with a look of surprise. “Rainbow-dear?! Oh, it’s been too long!”

“H-Hi, Mrs. Cake... long time no see, yeah.” Rainbow took another breath, steeling herself for what was to come. “Um... i-is Pinkie here?”

The stuttering turned Mrs. Cake’s look from surprise to concern, brow furrowing a bit. “Rainbow Dash, are you feeling alright? You look rather pale...”

“I’m fine, I’m fine. Just, is Pinkie Pie in? I need to talk to her.” The last few words came out with a moderate squeak, the pegasus fighting to keep her voice stable. Calm down, for the love of Luna, Rainbow! It’s j-just a talk. That’s all!

Despite the request, Mrs. Cake marched over to Rainbow and put a hoof to her forehead, pushing some of her locks out of the way. “No fever...”

“I’m fine, seriously!” Rainbow swatted the hoof away from her forehead, only to see the mare zip around to her side and check her wings. “M-Mrs. Cake!”

“I have to make sure, Rainbow-dear! You never stutter unless something’s wrong!” A grumble from the pegasus responded the worried mare as she continued her checks, moving around Rainbow, lifting up her robe in places to check her legs, checking the lustrous quality of her tail for any changes in shine or color.

“The only thing that’s wrong is...” Rainbow stopped herself before saying something she'd regret - even if the word wanted out of her head -, and looked over at Mrs. Cake. “Stop.”

The command halted the mare’s search for something physically wrong, looking back at Rainbow. She remained silent, though her concerned expression ebbed slightly at the power in Rainbow’s voice.

“I’m here to see Pinkie Pie. Is she here?”

“In her room. Though I wouldn’t go up there so soon, I think she’s planning something...” Mrs. Cake leaned in and put a hoof beside her mouth, looking around the bakery. “You didn’t hear it from me, but I think she’s planning a party...”

Something normal... thank the stars. Rainbow sighed, a smile creeping up on her face as she nodded. “I’ll be ready for any kind of prank she’s got as a booby trap.”

“I won’t keep you then, dear. You two have fun.” Mrs. Cake offered a grin back and skipped over to the counter, sitting down behind it. She raised her eyebrow at the two robed figures at the wall, tilting her head slightly. “Er... might I help you two?”

“Apologies, Mrs. Cake, for the intrusion.” Luna lowered her hood and bowed slightly. “We’re merely here, seeing Rainbow along her way.”

“P-P-P-P-P—” The words died in her throat as her jaw hit the floor, staring at the Princess of the Night.

“Please, you needn’t be so formal. Address me as ‘Luna’, if you would.”

“Uh, a-are you sure, Pr— dh, er, L-Luna?” Mrs. Cake’s stuttering brought a wider smile to Rainbow’s face. Heh! And she said my stuttering was weird... The thought brought a chuckle, however short-lived, from her.

“Quite, fair Mrs. Cake. I again apologize for the intrusion.” With a bow and sweep of her hoof, Luna stood and made her way to the steps, quickly followed by Rainbow Dash. Reaper lagged behind to inspect the strange coloring and sickeningly sweet scent of the bakery, a light sneer hidden by the shadow of his hood.

“Shoot... I should come here sometime for a snack. Might make my travelling a bit quicker with just how much sugar’s in the air,” he whispered, taking a whiff. Sickeningly sweet or not, my sweet tooth’s going mad. Doesn’t help much that I haven’t eaten in... uh... well actually, probably a few days. Ate enough to feed an army last week. An image of his dream came back to him, threatening to flip his stomach end over end, a groan escaping him as he held it still. “Ohhh, don’t think about that...”

Luna looked back with a raised eyebrow. “Stomach trouble?”

“A bit... d-don’t worry about me.” With another groan, Reaper made his way up the steps, hunched over and clutching his stomach. Stupid stomach... my one weakness: overeating...

“I do have some antacids down here if you need them!” Mrs. Cake called out, finding yet another target for her worries.

“I-It’s alright! I’ll b-be— oh jeeze... I’ll be fine...! Th-Thanks though.” Reaper stammered, nearly tripping over his own feet as much as his words. After quite a battle - and several instances of Luna stopping him from just falling over and dying, much as he wished to drop dead -, they made it up the steps, entering the warmly lit hall. It lacked real overhead lighting, instead using skylights, the sun acting as a natural clock. Well, beyond th-the sickness... at least it’s warm.

A short walk lead them down the hall to a single door on the right, mumbling and the sound of scratching quills against parchment coming out like a constant buzz of activity. Rainbow set herself in front of the door, lifting a hoof to knock. She hesitated, hoof shaking a bit as her mind took another detour towards doubt.

“Would you like us to come with you, Rainbow?” Luna whispered, standing next to her.

After a moment of thought and a gulp, Rainbow nodded, and Reaper reluctantly moved out from the sunlight and over to Rainbow’s side. Time ticked by as the mare refused to move, shuddering again as she dove down as far as she could into her mind, seeking out some source of confidence. Pinkie... s-she’ll help me! I know it! Just... knock, darn it! If it doesn’t happen now, it’ll just happen later! A swift nod acted in her hoof’s place, forehead slamming itself against the door. “Ow!”

“Door’s open! Come in!” The cheerful voice cried out before going right back to its mumbling.

Ok... she doesn’t know I just tried to knock her door down with my face. That’s good. Rainbow rubbed her forehead, groaning a little before placing her hoof on the doorknob, taking a moment to gather her courage. The click of the door sounded more like a firecracker going off, the door creaking open slowly as she stepped in. Her eyes scanned the ceiling before slipping in through a crack in the door.

Reaper raised his eyebrow and pushed the door open fully, pretty quickly regretting it as something fell down on his head. A white cloud surrounded him, every breath forcing him into a coughing fit as he flailed his hands to get the dust away, before a sneeze blew him off his feet and onto his rear end. “Gah, what is this stuff!?”

“Ha, gotcha!” Pinkie grinned as she pointed at the fallen figure, white chalk dust all over him. She snorted a laugh, Rainbow quickly joining in the laughter. Even Luna contributed with a small chuckle of her own while Reaper lay there, defeated and staring at the ceiling. Luna shook her head and offered a hoof to him, pulling him back up onto his feet, and the two stepped into the room while he tried to brush the dust off his robes.

Ah, darn it... Reaper grumbled to himself as he tried to get the black of his robes to shine through again. C’mon, I’m the Grim Reaper! I’m supposed to look menacing, not like something pulled out of Celestia’s pantry! As Reaper fought with his robe, Pinkie’s laughter died down as she inspected the three new arrivals.

“Wow, those are some funny get-ups. What’s the occasion? Oh, is it a party!?” Pinkie sprang out of her seat at the idea of there being a party featuring robes. “Oh, oh, lemme get ready!”

Rainbow simply shook her head. “No, Pinkie. No party.”

“Awww! That’s too bad. Oh well, back to work!” With as much energy as she’d had springing out of her seat, she sprang back into it and immediately got back to her scribbling, numerous statistics, notes, diagrams and drawings all over the master schematic of... whatever she was designing, pencil going all over the place. Man, even I’m having trouble sorting out this chicken scratch! Note to self, ask Twilight for note-taking lessons... She giggled at the practical nonsense she was drawing out; it happened every week and something would come around, she just never had any idea what it would be.

Reaper and Luna stood by the door as Rainbow moved over to Pinkie’s side, sitting down and observing the lines drawn on the large parchment, tilting her head slightly. ...Guess I could shoot the breeze for a bit... my confidence just keeps getting shot here. C’mon Rainbow, she’ll be fine... she’ll understand. “So, what’re you working on, Pinks?”

“Just another invention of mine. Got bored, so I thought ‘Hey, what if I could make something that could float on water and fly through the air?’ And then I got some parchment out and started drawing! See? These are the pontoons and this is the propeller!”

“Um... why is the propeller down in the water?” Rainbow just stared at the confusing notes, seeing building instructions written three different ways over the master diagram, and a hugely technical conglomeration of bits and pieces that would probably fry her brain if she stared at it too long. Her eye twitched before she looked away, the headache getting worse than the growing lump on her forehead.

“That’s the engine, silly! Anyway, it’s still in the design stages. Have to get all the parts, tools, balloons and rubber bands first!” Pinkie stuck her tongue out as she added an inventory list to the side of the blueprint, the parchment struggling to hold all the scribbles, drawings, writings and other things done with a pencil on paper. “Anyway, what brings you by?”

“Huh? Oh, uh, n-nothing. Just wanted to check on you. Hehehe...” Rainbow grinned as a hint of worry came through her eyes, quickly cast away as she looked back at the drawing.

“What’s up with the escort then? Oh, did you finally get accepted into the Wonderbolts!? Captain Spitfire’s been holding that in front of you for years!” Pinkie bounced in her seat, again distracted by something more interesting than the ‘scritch scritch’ of her pencil.

“Um... w-well—”

“Oh, or you got into the Guard! They give escorts to new trainees, right? Maybe you’re already a Sergeant? Oh, that’d be cool! Sorry, plans, gotta make way for a party!”

“P-Pinkie, that’s not—”

“Or that robe, maybe you’re practicing for Nightmare Night? How far away is that? One, two, three, twenty, forty... four months, I think? Or two? Hm! Need to start sorting out my own costume, actually! Maybe I should go as a chicken, or— oh! We could go as master and disciple, like in one of those horror stories!” Pinkie giggled before slouching, squinting one eye and widening the other as she raised her hooves, rubbing them together. “Yeeees, Masterrrr... hehehe!”

“Sorry, Pinkie. They’re just coming along with me.” Rainbow smiled a bit as she looked over at Luna and Reaper. Luna had a jovial smile on, clearly enjoying the show going on, while Reaper more stared down at his clothing, still having a hard time with the chalk dust. At that point, he was flailing his arms just to get the sleeves clean.

“Huh. Too bad.” Pinkie shook her head in disappointment before turning back to the two robed beings at the door. “So, what brings you t—” Her eyes went wide as she gasped, finally registering the pony standing at her door. “Princess Luna!? I had no idea you were coming! Oh no oh no oh no! Hang on, wait right there!” A sudden blast of wind rocketed past Luna and Reaper as Pinkie raced out of the room, sprinting off down the hall. Most of the chalk dust decided to take up wind surfing, being pulled off Reaper's cloak and away through the wind tunnel of the door.

“...Well. She’s interesting.” Reaper mumbled, patting off the rest of the dust. Should learn how to clean clothing through a wind storm. Pretty effective!

“Oh, you don’t know the half of it, Reaper.” Luna chuckled to herself, shaking her head a bit. “She’s certainly a character.”

Reaper opened his mouth to answer, only to be cut off by a cupcake landing perfectly between his teeth, brow furrowing as his tongue hit the icing. “Mph?”

“Mphph!” Luna mumbled around her own cupcake, a tray of four more sitting in front of them as they looked at each other. Reaper took his turn to laugh as he pulled out the cupcake. Luna simply grumbled in response and pulled hers out of her mouth, holding it in an aura.

“Silence, Reaper!”

“Or what? C’mon, that was hilarious!” His laughter was cut off by the 'foonk' of another cupcake shoved into his mouth, a sinister smile on Luna’s face. Reaper simply folded his arms and leered at her in mock anger, finally pulling the second cake out of his mouth and digging in. “Jokesh ashide... that’sh pretty good!”

“Indeed.” Luna took a dainty bite out of her own cupcake, nodding at the taste. “Remarkably sweet... yet a sour tinge to balance it out. The cake remains bitter, while the icing offers most of the taste... interesting!”

“No kiddin’.” Reaper gulped down the delectable delight before taking another chunk out of the treat. “Sheesh, I gotta learn how t’ bake. Thish is aweshome!”

The two looked back over at Pinkie and Rainbow, the pink mare having set herself up in a rather simple dress, bowing before the Princess.

“Pinkie Pie, raise—" Luna interrupted herself, swallowing another bit of the cupcake, “Raise your head. You needn’t be formal.”

“Ok!” Pinkie jumped back to her hooves and grinned. “Enjoying the cupcakes?”

“Better ‘n any cake I’ve had in a while!” Reaper nodded as he threw the last of the first cake into his mouth, the moist delicacy melting on his tongue. “Oh, that is good!”

“I try!” Pinkie grinned as the two enjoyed her treats. “So, anything you need, Your Highness? Tall Guy?”

“Reaper works.” He turned the second cupcake in his hand, looking it over. The blue icing spiralled upward in a perfect corkscrew shape, sprinkles expertly placed on every curve. “Work of an artist, right here...”

“Indeed. Pinkie, meet Reaper.” Luna gestured to her servant as she grabbed another cupcake in her magic, twirling the two in their combined aura.

“Nice ta meet ya, Reaper! Freaky name, though.” Pinkie’s smile remained resolute, not a single hint of worry in her.

“I get that a lot.” He shifted his eyes back to Rainbow, eyebrow rising a bit. “So, I think our friend here has something she wants to talk about...”

Rainbow jumped a bit, looking over at him. “Huh?”

“What’s going on?” Pinkie looked back at Dash, raising an eyebrow of her own before walking over to her, purple dress happily hanging onto her. She watched Rainbow’s eyes dart to different areas of interest in the room, trying as hard as they could to avoid her own eyes.

“Um... nothing. Nothing’s going on, don’t worry... just came by to chat, you know?” Rainbow rubbed her foreleg, eyes turning back to Pinkie’s chest.

“Well, it has been a while since we last talked. How’s work?” Pinkie looked over her shoulder for a moment as she spoke, staring at Reaper and Luna.

“Don’t worry about us, Pinkie.” Luna offered a gentle smile before taking another bite out of her cake. “We will simply enjoy our treats here.”

“If you’re sure...”

Luna waved a hoof to Pinkie, nodding. “We are.”

With the reassuring words, Pinkie turned back to her friend. A flash of worry came through as she leaned down to look at Rainbow properly, her friend simply turning her eyes away. A few more attempts passed, which eventually resulted in Pinkie’s head hanging upside down to catch Rainbow’s stare at the floor, and her brow furrowed at the continuous failures. “Rainbow, is something wrong? You won’t look me in the eye!”

“N-Nothing’s wrong, Pinks. Just... it’s been a while, y’know? Haven’t talked to my friends in a while, so I’m getting used to everything again...” Rainbow mumbled, staring off at the blueprints again as Pinkie righted her neck, leaning her head to the side to get a bone cricked back into place. A satisfying ‘pop’ comes from her neck, followed by a smile.

“I know the feeling! Guess I could start, then... that blueprint there is actually something I came up with a while ago.” Pinkie walked back over to the blueprint, pulling it off her drafting board and laying it out on the floor. Rainbow kept her eyes off the designs, eye twitching a bit again.

Not gonna risk a headache again... A tiny one lit in her brain after she nicked a startlingly large number on the diagram.

“This is my solution to something else, actually. It can float on water and fly in the air, and it’s supposed to be for use by any earth pony! That’s why it’s powered by this bicycle gear system. Just push on the pedals and off you go! Really easy!” Pinkie grinned at her obvious genius. “I’m gonna try building one by next week, but the design’s a little cramped, so I need a pegasus pony to help me.”

“A pegasus, huh? G-Guess I could help out.” Rainbow turned back to stare at Pinkie’s mane, avoiding the complex math below her chin.

“Not you. You’re too big.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Rainbow grumbled, puffing out her cheeks.

“It means you’re too big, Rainbow. This is built for somepony like a filly! Even I’m too big for it, and I’m really flexible!” Pinkie looked back up at Rainbow with a raise of an eyebrow.

“I’m flexible, too... I could fit,” The pegasus grumbled and folded her forelegs, staring indignantly at Pinkie.

“Well, maybe after Scootaloo gets a shot in it.”

Rainbow’s frustration vanished into surprise, eyes going wide as her ears drooped a little bit. “Uh... w-why Squirt?”

“Because! She’s not fully grown yet, and I need a pegasus test pilot in case something goes wrong! If it sinks, or the rudder breaks, or one of the pontoons shatters on a landing, or the propeller breaks, or any other kind of problem, she can bail out and fly away!” Pinkie grinned. “She’s perfect, especially since you’ve been teaching her so much about flying!”

“Uh... I guess that m-makes sense. Why not anypony else, though?” Get the subject away from Squirt... get it away!

“Are you kidding? Scootaloo’s the go-to mare for this! Everypony else doesn’t wanna get into one of my whirly-thingies. Call ‘em ‘death traps’... sheesh, seriously? My contraptions are just as safe as any others!” Pinkie snorted and folded her forelegs, taking up an exaggerated mimicry of Rainbow’s pose. “Who cares if the rudder strings are ropes? Cords are expensive! Rumble didn’t want to, Archer didn’t want to, Featherweight didn’t want to, nopony wanted to! Scootaloo was my first choice, obviously, but she had— Oh my gosh, I completely forgot!

Rainbow jumped at the sudden shout. “F-Forgot what!?”

“Her exam! I completely forgot it was yesterday! Oh, she’s going to be home any minute and I’m not ready! Shoot, um, uh...!” Pinkie quickly spun around and charged at Luna and Reaper, skidding to a halt in front of them. “Princess!”

“Er... yes?” Luna looked down at Pinkie, brow raised.

“Ok, I’ve got a party to set up in an hour! I need lots of things! Can you help me!?” Pinkie bounced in place in a state of pure panic, little squeaks coming out with every landing.

“W-Well, er... I don’t know how I’ll be able to help...”

“Oh, don’t worry, I just need you to do about fifty things for me in the space of half an hour! No problem, right!?”

“F-Fifty thi—”

“Ok, first, I need the auditorium! So I’d like you to go to Mayor Mare and request use of the auditorium for the full day! I need to figure out a theme, too, and all my supplies are locked up in the basement, and, and! Ohh, there’s not enough time!” Pinkie fell to her rump and furiously scratched at her mane. “C’mon, think!”

While Pinkie had a panic attack in front of the Princess and her servant, Rainbow was having one of her own, pupils shrinking as the darkness closed on her vision, focusing a tunnel aimed at the pink mare. A party...? In Scootaloo’s honor? But, when she doesn’t come... th-the whole town’s gonna be there! Her ears drooped completely as Luna and Pinkie talked back and forth to each other, the voices becoming muffled, drowned out in the growing storm of her mind. I’m... g-gonna admit this... t-to the entire town? I can’t... I can’t!

“Umm, maybe I should use a Wonderbolts theme? Yeah, she passed her exam, so I should ask Captain Spitfire to come by! Could you help me with that, Princess?” Pinkie put her forehooves together in prayer, using her best puppy dog eyes to convince Luna.

“I-I do not know, the Wonderbolts are very busy!” Luna’s ear flicked as she rubbed her temple. Please, somepony, make her stop!

“She’d come by, though! Really nice! Oh, I have to start sorting that stuff out! Hang on, I have to make a list!” Pinkie spun around quickly and got back to her hooves, sprinting for the end table by her bed. A hoof pressed up against her chest stopped her in her tracks, legs still sprinting. “Hey!”

“W-Wait, Pinkie!” Rainbow picked Pinkie up off the ground, legs flailing under her. “Hey, st— gfh!” Rainbow’s head recoiled as one of the hooves took a bit too long a stride, and introduced itself to her forehead. Right on the lump that was growing there. “Ouch!”

“Oh, sorry!” Pinkie immediately folded up her legs, staying surprisingly horizontal in Rainbow’s grasp. She quickly reached out with her forehoof and gave the bump a gentle rub before curling back up, wincing. “Oh, that was a bad hit...”

“D-Doesn’t matter... I’ll be fine.” Rainbow set the mare down on the ground before rubbing at the bump, groaning a bit. “Ohhh, headache...” A quick shake of the head cast away the dizziness, at least, though her headache simply got worse from the cranial beatdown. “A-Anyway, Pinkie...”

“Yeah? Oh, do you wanna help set up the party, too!?” Pinkie stayed curled up on the floor in fear of kicking Rainbow in the stomach. Naughty legs!

“I... um...” Rainbow stared at the ground, taking a deep breath as her hoof dropped back to the floor. Make myself sick being so dodgy... I know what I did. My friends are going to learn about this, and then I’ll have to tell Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle... She closed her eyes and remained still, gathering up her words. “Pinkie... we can’t do the party.”

“Well, why not? Oh, her parents already set one up, right? Of course they did! Silly me.” Pinkie smiled from her spot on the floor, giggling. “Of course they’d do the party planning for their daughter!”

“It’s... not that, either. Pinkie... s-she didn’t pass.”

A sharp gasp shattered the short-lived silence, Pinkie jumping back to her hooves. “Oh gosh, I’m so sorry! I know how much work you put into training her... where is she? She needs a hug right now!”

What followed was simply silence. Very sudden silence. The mare just stood knee deep in it for a while, looking around as sound made itself scarce. I did set up soundproof windows so I could concentrate... Her eyes went from Rainbow to Luna, to Reaper, then back to her friend, her worry increasing with each passing target. “Rainbow, where is she? She’s home, right?” Her voice lost a bit of its energy, her mane starting to deflate.

Rainbow winced, baring her teeth as she tried to gather up the words. “N-No...”

“Then... wh-where is she? She didn’t get hurt, did she? She’s not in the hospital, right!?” Pinkie’s eyes widened as her mane and tail straightened out, panic starting to erupt in her mind, taking the form of a very real volcanic eruption in her mind. “Oh, please tell me she’s not injured!”

The silence simply cast more molten rock and boulders from the volcano in Pinkie’s head, reaching for the town at the mountain’s foot. She shuddered, each passing second, a memory of her getting a rather terrible ‘doozie’ lighting up in her mind. Her hoof moved up to her mouth, a small gasp entering her. “She’s... in the hospital, isn’t she? D-Did she hurt her wing, or leg...?”

“No... i-it’s nothing like that...” Rainbow’s teeth began to hurt from just how clenched her jaw was, but she refused to look up at her friend. I heard her mane deflate... s-she’s probably...

“Then what is it? I g-got a doozie this morning, and I don’t know what it was for! Did something happen!?” Pinkie placed her hooves on her friend’s shoulders, forcing herself to not shake the sense out of the pegasus. “Tell me!”

“P-Pinkie Pie... s-she...” Two tears fell from Rainbow’s eyes as she slowly opened them, staring at the floor. “Won’t... be coming home.”

“Why not!? S-She’s trying the exam over again, right!? So she can pass! Th-Then she’ll come home, and we’ll all have a party to celebrate, right!?” Pinkie’s pupils shrank as an answer didn’t come, grip tightening slightly. “Right!?

“...Wrong...”

“How am I wrong!? What could have happened that’d keep her in Cloudsdale!?” Pinkie screeched, leaning in further towards Rainbow’s face, hyperventilating. “What’s going on!?”

Rainbow shut her eyes as tightly as she could and roared out, not wanting her psyche to stop the words.

“She’s dead, Pinkie Pie!!”

And then, all was quiet, the only sound in the room being the breathing of only three beings. Pinkie just... sat there, staring in horror at Rainbow, a stuttered breath finally making its way into her as she stepped back, a hoof clutching her mouth in shock. “Oh holy C-Celestia...” She fell to her rump, hind legs surrendering to her weight, their strength sent to her tears as they began to fall. “I’m... s-so, so sorry, Rainbow...”

“D-Don’t b-be...” Rainbow looked back at her friend, her stomach doing backflips. I h-hate to do this to you Pinkie... b-but you have to know. A-All my friends have to know! She felt sick, felt like a monster for the coming words.

The sentence that came was synonymous with a tremendous explosion in Pinkie’s head. “S-She’s dead... b-because of me...”

A duo of blinks from Pinkie was the only response as her hoof fell back to the floor, stunned. “What...?”

“I...” Rainbow sniffed, unable to shed more than the two tears from before, “I... k-... k-k...”

No... n-no, that’s not what the doozie meant! She can’t be dead!! Pinkie’s mouth curled back as she took deeper breaths, the tears increasing in volume.

“I... killed... her...”

The words simply deafened her. All sound fell away from Pinkie’s mind as the words landed in the pit of her stomach like a cupcake made of concrete. Her mind was... quiet, though. Silent. Still. Her vision shifted, moving away from her room and to a town, a massive volcano standing behind it; the explosions she’d heard. The town’s streets ran thick with lava, ponies burning, melting in the volcano’s fury, screaming for help. All their screams and prayers fell on deaf ears, Nature's wrath carrying on its destructive will. She watched the town begin to burn, roofs catching fire, families dying in each other’s hooves, another silent detonation sending a quake through her very being.

And she simply sat there, doing nothing. What could she do? Lava was too hot to move for an earth pony. It was already at the edge of the town, not reaching an inch further towards her. I w-wanna help... but I can’t move lava. A twitch came from her eye as she saw Scootaloo running towards her, the lava barrelling down an alley to reach her. She tripped. She screamed. She felt her legs be consumed by the lava, and watched as Pinkie did nothing.

What could she do, after all? Nothing. The single thought rolled through her head as the town burned to the ground, leaving her alone amidst a blazing Tartarus, not a friend in sight.

The eruption had to have a cause, of course. Why would it go off on its own? Everything had a reason. It only made sense. Twilight always said that. Why would Pinkie try and believe otherwise? That eruption... th-that killed Scootaloo... The thought brought an image of Rainbow Dash rising from the inferno, her mane completely red from the searing magma dripping off her body. She walked to the edge of the town and sat down, staring back at Pinkie with just as empty a look in her eye as Pinkie. Another twitch of the eye came to her.

Scootaloo died... because Rainbow killed her.

“Pinkie...?” Rainbow stared at her friend’s blank expression, the whisper hopefully reaching her. “P-Pinkie?”

“...Th-This... is a joke... right?” Pinkie whispered, eye twitching a bit.

“I w-wish it was, Pinks...”

“Don’t... y-you’re lying...” Her voice grew a bit of strength, a shiver running down her back.

“...I’m not. I...” Rainbow’s eyes fell to the ground. “I k-killed her in a rage... I killed h-her, a-and others... I r-regret it... I regret it all...” Rainbow’s voice shook and broke in her throat, another sniffle coming out. “I r-regret everything...”

Pinkie’s expression returned to a neutral stance. A neutral frown, her pupils went back to their usual size, her ears drooped and her mane and tail remained deflated. She just stared at the pegasus in front of her, the light gone from her eyes.

“Pinkie... a-are... you alright?” Rainbow gulped, taking a step towards her friend. “Pinkie...?”

She didn’t even see her move.

Her jaw slammed shut as a pink hoof collided with her chin, throwing her head back before another landed in her chest. “Guh!” She stumbled backwards and opened her eyes, seeing Pinkie had stepped in towards her and turned, hindlegs curled like springs. She barely got a gasp out before an impact akin to an angry train crashed into her stomach, throwing her into the wall. She struggled to take a breath, clutching her stomach before Pinkie moved up and grabbed her head, pulling it up to stare into her eyes.

Barely a second passed with the enraged glare before a heavy punch met Rainbow’s cheek, followed by another to the other cheek, her head soon becoming a simple ball between Pinkie’s hooves, each punch crashing into her cheeks, jaw, temple, everywhere the angered mare could reach on Rainbow’s head.

A primal scream came from Pinkie as a final punch landed in Rainbow’s chest, winding her again, before she felt herself pressed up against the wall, hooves around her neck and crushing down with all the force of a Hydra. “You... y-you...”

“P-P... in... kie...!” Rainbow gasped, grabbing Pinkie’s legs. Panic settled in her mind as the very real threat of death moved in with each missed breath. All of Pinkie’s earth pony strength came out as she bore down harder and harder on Rainbow’s neck, rage flaring in her mind.

Murderer... murderer! Murderer! She screamed out in her mind, another voice lighting up alongside it.

Don’t do this, Pinkie! The other voice cried out, sounding more upbeat than the internal snarl of Pinkie.

Why not!? She killed Scootaloo!! Because of her, a friend isn’t going to come home! Her hooves pressed down harder on Rainbow’s neck

And you’re about to kill somepony, too! Stop!

I don’t care! She took one of my friend’s lives! Murderers aren’t friends!

And what do you think everypony else will say!? You’ll be just as bad as her!

...

The voice spoke some sense, certainly. Pinkie’s grip loosened, allowing Rainbow a glorious breath, but kept her hooves on Rainbow’s neck. The glare kept its strength, staring straight through Rainbow’s eyes. “...Why’d you kill her?”

“It... w-was... my job...”

“Your job... was to kill Scootaloo? That doesn’t make sense.” The boiling anger gave her voice a flat tone, as sharp as a razor.

“N-Not... n-no... m-my job is... t-to...” Rainbow struggled for air, taking as much in as she could, fighting against the iron grip of her friend turned assailant. “M-Make... Spectra...”

“Spectra?” Pinkie raised her eyebrow slightly.

“L-Liquid... rainbows... S-Squirt... is... g-gonna be... a rainbow... soon...”

“...Excuse me?” Pinkie’s eyes widened as her pupils shrank again, hairs springing up from her flattened mane, starting to look more and more like a field of spines. “Rainbows... are... dead ponies?”

“Yeah.” Rainbow felt herself be tugged forward, then slammed back into the wall, a hard punch slamming into her cheek.

“And you did nothing to stop it!?” Pinkie’s face burned with rage; her teeth grinded together so hard, fragments would be scraped off. Her mane stood on end as if she’d been electrocuted, and her pupils were pinpricks in a sea of white. She let loose another punch, drawing blood as one of Rainbow’s teeth broke.

“C-Couldn’t... s-stop...” Rainbow’s eyes spun as her lack of oxygen and the beating blurred her vision, her forelegs falling away as Pinkie dropped her back onto the floor. She slammed her hoof into the floor and roared, panting.

“You... killed... a little filly! A pony who was just starting their life! Why!?” Pinkie glared at her enemy, snorting.

“Because...” Rainbow simply slumped a bit. “She failed her test...”

“That’s it...? Th-That’s all it took for you to murder her!? I oughta knock all the teeth out of your skull and throw you out the window!” She fell onto her rump and grabbed her head, groaning. “Why, Rainbow!? Why didn’t you stop it!?”

“I... d-didn’t... have a choice, Pinks...” Rainbow tried to raise her head, but the throttling made many of her muscles cry out in agony, her head dropping back down. “I was... b-blind...”

“Shut up! I don’t care! You k-k... ngh!” With a final scream, Pinkie spun around and charged out between Reaper and Luna. “I hate you!” She raced down the hall to the bottom floor, her hoofsteps fading away as she ran further and further.

Silence moved back in afterwards, but only for a few moments before another set of hoofsteps came racing back to the room, Mrs. Cake arriving at the door. “Wh-What hap— Rainbow!” She quickly galloped in and checked over Rainbow, gently adjusting her head and legs to look for injuries. “Oh dear, oh dear, what happened!?”

“A... troubling encounter, Mrs. Cake. It was something we anticipated.” Luna sighed, shaking her head. “What we hadn’t anticipated was the following reaction...”

“Oh, that Pinkie Pie... I never thought she’d get like this. Depression, maybe, but... I’m going to talk with her later. This kind of attitude won’t be tolerated! Wait here, Rainbow-dear, I’ll get some first aid supplies!” With a slight nod from Rainbow, Mrs. Cake ran back out, a very troubled expression on her face. Reaper moved into the center of the room, looking over Rainbow with a grimace.

“That’s two of your friends now... not sure how long it’s gonna be before one of ‘em really does add another appointment to my list.” He shook his head and placed his hands on his hips, sighing. “They haven’t got a lotta love for a killer, do they?”

Rainbow simply stared at the ground between her hind legs, trying not to pass out from the throbbing in her jaw and skull, the storm in her head thankfully quelled by the pain. Taking her silence as an answer, Reaper took a seat at the end of the bed, looking over at Luna for some kind of guidance. “Now what, boss?”

“If Rainbow is willing, we simply continue... those that remain are Twilight, Applejack... and Fluttershy.”

Rainbow twitched at the mention of her closest friend, eyes widening. “N-No... I...”

“Rainbow?” Luna stepped into the center of the room, crouching down to look at the pegasus.

“I... c-can’t... t-tell her...” Rainbow groaned as another shot of pain raced through her, coughing. “I c-can’t... tell Fluttershy... I c-can’t do this.”

“So, the brave pegasus is running away, huh?” Reaper folded his arms, looking over at Rainbow. “It took two ponies to pull you this far down? Thought you ha—”

“Reaper!” The man quickly silenced himself as Luna glared at him, looking away from his boss. “How dare you say such things...”

“Sorry.” He turned his eyes back to the floor, staying silent. Piss off the boss, and I’m asking for eons of hurt...

Satisfied with the silence of her servant, Luna turned back to Rainbow, looking her over. A simple emptiness existed in Rainbow’s eyes, like her soul had left the body and run away to the stars. This poor mare... she’s crushed. With a sigh, she sat back up and awaited the baker’s return, closing her eyes. She isn’t long for this world... should I have her continue? Could she, even? The mere walk here was enough to knock her off balance, and this... what just happened was enough to steal the light from her entirely.

"I can't..." Rainbow whispered, shuddering as the world blurred below her. "Not Fluttershy... n-not Twilight... not AJ. I can't torture them with this... I just..." Her voice fell away as her eyes slowly closed, legs losing strength. "Want to... dis... appear..."

The last thing she heard was a loud 'thud', as a sharp pain ran up through her shoulder, before the darkness stole her away.


"What now?" Reaper folded his arms as he leaned on the wall, staring across the room at the pegasus in the bed. The pink and blue managed to bring out the look of Rainbow's injuries so much better than the wooden floor, but all it did was make him wince with a phantom pain of his own. "And would it kill this mare to get some darker colors? At least so that I didn't see the welts on her face?"

"If you don't want to see it, you needn't look at it, Reaper. And... I'm not sure. I'm just glad Mrs. Cake allowed us sanctuary for the time being." Luna shook her head as she sat next to the bed, looking over Rainbow's slumbering face. The first-aid work had gone quite well, most of her injuries being treated with ice packs or bandages, but the pressure on her neck had left a near-permanent bruise. Whispers reached out to the Princess, accusations, interrogations, terrible insults from very familiar voices; Rainbow's friends had become her torturers. "...She's shattered. Even now, her dreams are plagued with predictions."

"If she can't go on, we can't very well force her to." Reaper rubbed his brow with the back of his hand, sighing. "And here I thought we'd actually get to the end."

Luna placed a hoof on the bed, gently rubbing Rainbow’s concealed leg. “I’m impressed she even made it this far. It takes conviction to confess such a crime to one’s closest friends.” Softer words wouldn’t have been heard in the room, even with how quiet it already was.

“I don’t like the idea of her giving up now. She did promise the kid...”

“If she surrenders now, then...”

A small clink of metal stole Luna’s attention as she looked over to Reaper, raising her eyebrow. “What was that?”

The clink came again, Reaper reaching around behind him. He gripped empty air before pulling hard, a scythe coming into view with a whistle of air. The scythe shuddered, producing the same mysterious sound from before. “Scarlet?”

“But... she shouldn’t be hungry right now. You handled somepony yesterday.” Luna furrowed her brow before a lightbulb lit in her head, and her eyes shot wide. “Unless...”

“Ahhh, hell...” Reaper grit his teeth as he walked over to the window, checking outside. There’s only one reason Scarlet would act like this... someone’s about to get added to my list! A quick inspection of the street didn’t reveal much, though that only stacked onto the spirit’s worries. “You think she’s coming back?”

“She may have been enraged, but there’s not a chance she would come after her.” Despite the words, Luna looked back to the door, a hint of fear lighting up in her expression. “Though, Scarlet is rarely wrong in this sense...”

“Never a quiet day, is it?” A sigh came after his words as Reaper walked back over to the bed. “Doesn’t help that she doesn’t like being specific.”

“She doesn’t?” The Princess looked over at her servant, raising an eyebrow. She received a non-chalant shrug in return, along with a grumble.

“She likes to play games a lot. Guessing games tend to be her favorite. This just happens to be one of them... given my work, I get until I feel the passing of a soul to guess. Kind of entertaining, though it’s kinda morbid in this situation.” Reaper sneered at the scythe held at his side. If a scythe could chuckle, Scarlet would have. Instead, she just made a series of clinks which her partner understood all too well. “...Ha ha, Scarlet. You’re a riot.”

“Though... concerning Rainbow Dash. What should we do?”

“If she’s the one Scarlet’s referring to, then we’d better avoid the streets. Take her from place to place through teleportation.” He looked over at Luna, folding his arms with Scarlet leaned against his elbow. “Could you manage that, boss?”

“Please. You’re speaking to a Princess of Equestria.” Luna turned her nose up with a smirk, just letting her poise do all the speaking for her. “Just let me compose a note for Mrs. Cake.”

Reaper took on an exaggerated smile and a roll of the eyes, “Oh, by all means, take your time.” Reaper simply shook his head and sat down at the end of the bed while Luna went about her work, retrieving a piece of parchment and a quill. After a quick writing session, the note was prepared and nailed to the door. Her horn shined, and just before the spell was cast, only one question as asked.

“Did you really have to use such a big spike?” Reaper narrowed his eyes at the black knife-like object in the door, pinning the note to it, before the world was stolen from his sight. I think the great big magic knife is gonna say a lot more than the note for some reason...


“No... s-stop, don’t... come any c-clo— AH!

The voices vanished from her mind as Rainbow sprang upright on the couch, panting as sweat rolled down her brow. Her eyes scanned the room, panic running laps through her mind. Wh-Where are they!? I know they’re here!

“Look who woke up.”

Rainbow froze up as the voice came to her, right next to her ear. She slowly looked to her side, whimpering a bit, before being greeted by the grinning face of pure evil.

“Hi.”

AHHH!” The face then met Rainbow’s hoof as she punched him square in it, and wasted no time in getting behind the couch, curling up on the floor. “G-Get away from me!”

Reaper, meanwhile, was flat out on the floor, eyes spinning from the hard hoof crashing into his nose. “Anyone get... the license plate on that thing that hit me?”

Luna simply sighed as she sat on a nearby chair. The light of the sunset had died two hours ago, the spirit and two ponies awaiting Rainbow’s awakening. Those ponies being Luna, and a certain librarian who was now checking over Rainbow’s battered body, magic very carefully weaving through every inch of the sky-blue coat. “Y-You shouldn’t scare her like that!”

“An’ now I know why... she throws one heck of a straight.” The spirit groaned and rubbed his would-be shattered nose - a hit like that would destroy a barn -, content to just lie there and recover.

"Rainbow, are you alright? You're really hurt..." Twilight carefully lifted her friend back onto her hooves, using very gentle applications of her levitation. Her muzzle scrunched in concentration as she tried not to break the pegasus further, all the bandages and bruises noting something very horrifying in her mind. "Princess Luna never told me what happened... just that you needed a place to rest." Her words fell off as she scanned Rainbow's face, her eyes, the faded color in her coat, the dullness of her mane. She leaned a bit closer, lowering her voice to a whisper. "What happened to you, Rainbow?"

The only response was avoidance as the pegasus moved away from her and back around the couch, climbing onto it and pulling the blanket over her head. A gulp raced down Twilight's throat as worry started to grow into panic. "Uh... P-Princess?"

Luna shook her head and closed her eyes, remaining quiet. The only sound in the room besides the occasional rustling of the blanket was the groaning from Reaper, his eyes still enjoying their joyride in their sockets. Please, somepony speak up! Twilight bit her lip and moved back around in front of the couch, sitting down as close as she can to her friend's head. She leaned down and prodded lightly at the blanket with her nose, speaking in as gentle a tone she could manage. "Rainbow, please. Speak to me. I-I'm starting to panic."

No response.

"Rainbow, please! I just want to know what happened to you. Why're you so hurt? Did s-somepony assault you? Did you have an accident?" Twilight's eye twitched a little as the silence refused to break, the blanket slowly rising and falling with its guest's breathing. What happened here? Why isn't she talking to me? D-Did she really get that badly hurt!? Oh no, no no no no! S-Stop thinking, Twilight, you're gonna go to a really dark place and panic's gonna rocket straight up to your head and then comes the nausea and the dizziness and... a-and... oh no... She swayed a little, blinking hard as the world blurred. She shook her head hard to right her vision, focusing on her target. Don't assume! Whatever you do, don't assume.

Twilight sat still, watching the rise and fall of the blanket, every instinct screaming for her to throw the blanket away and pull her friend into a hug, every thought demanding that she leap straight to the bottom of the mystery and figure things out, even if it meant hurting Rainbow. She held herself back, sitting still, proper and calm like a noble in the presence of the Princesses. Which wasn't far from the situation she was in, feeling Luna's eyes join in her watch over Rainbow Dash.

Minutes passed by, the moon drawing a slow path across the sky as the stars twinkled around it, their light carefully letting itself into the quiet room, hoping its unannounced arrival wouldn't be met with anger. It slowly illuminated the couch, the blanket, and temptation once again swelled in Twilight's mind. More carefully than tucking Spike into bed, she gripped the blanket with her magic and slowly lifted it and pulled it back. A pair of magenta eyes looked back up at her, before turning away and closing.

The pegasus turned her head away, speaking so quietly, Twilight had to lean in to hear a single word. "...Just... wanna sleep..."

"Oh." Understanding clicked and spun in Twilight's head, and she quickly nodded. "R-Right, we can... w-we can talk in the morning." She threw a nervous grin on as she gently pulled the covers back, tucking her friend in. She leaned forward and planted a small kiss on Rainbow's forehead before she could think, though only snoring came as a reaction. "Sweet dreams." The whisper fell like a rock in her gut.

A hoof alighted on Twilight's shoulder, and her eyes turned back to see Luna. "Twilight Sparkle..." Her eyes turned from Twilight to Rainbow, a haunted look in them. "We've much to discuss."

"What do you mean?" Twilight blinked, keeping her voice as soft as she could, despite the trembling in her own chest and the racing of her heart. "What's wrong...?"

"...Reaper."

"Yeah." The spirit stayed on the ground, staring up at the ceiling as he sobered up.

"We..." A sigh escaped the Princess as she closed her eyes. "We can't let this continue."

"...Figured as much." Reaper sat up, using an arm to prop himself up as he looked over at the slumbering pegasus. "She's had it."

"Wh-What do you mean 'she's had it'? C-Can't let what continue?" Twilight's eyes darted from Luna to Reaper, then back again, mane starting to spring out of place. "P-Princess, I need to know. What's going on?"

"Twilight. Rainbow had come by to speak with you about something that occurred in the past. Something that has now begun to haunt her." Luna's hoof found its way from Twilight's shoulder down to the floor, sitting next to Twilight's. "She had come to... confess."

"Confess? Confess what? Y-Your Highness, not knowing any of this is really not doing much good for me." Twilight's hoof moved up and scratched at the back of her mane, hairs springing out more and more.

"Confess to you, what she'd confessed to her friends so far. It is a bit of a story, but you are aware of Scootaloo, yes?" Luna's eyes never left the slumbering pony, a flick of the ear catching her attention for a moment.

"Yeah. She'd left Ponyville a few years ago, and went back to Flight School in Cloudsdale. It was after Rainbow had helped her learn to fly." Twilight's brow furrowed as the gears started turning, situations building and falling in a flash as she tried numerous different trains of thought. "Something... something happened to her?"

"Yes. I wish I did not have to tell you this... but I'm afraid that Scootaloo will... not be coming home."

Twilight's eyes shot wide and her pupils shrank, ears dropping like weights as the words combined into a single conclusion in her mind. Her head turned slowly, looking over at Reaper. It's a lie... i-it's a lie, isn't it...? The spirit simply shook his head.

"'Fraid it's true, miss."

"Oh... h-holy Princesses..." Twilight shuddered as a hoof made its way to her mouth, trying to hide a whimper as tears sprang up from her eyes. "No..."

Luna pulled her into a soft hug with a leg, feeling each quiet sob against her coat as Twilight held onto her for dear life, fighting to just hold back the flood of emotion. The Princess stayed silent, lightly rubbing Twilight's back as the mare emptied her tears and sobs.

"No... i-it can't be true! S-She... f-failed her exam, didn't she?" A shiver raced down her spine as the horrible situation seemed unavoidable. She failed, and now she has to take the whole course over again! Another five years before she can try again! And she can't even come home!?

"She did." Luna's voice grew dark. "But something worse occurred as a result."

"What? But... b-but what's worse than being held back? A-All her work, thrown away like trash...! I-I can't bear the thought of that! What could be worse!?" Twilight's voice cracked on her final words, shuddering harder under the hoof of her friend.

"She's dead."

The shudders suddenly stopped as Twilight's mind froze, the words stabbed into her like a knife. ...Dead...? Her eyes widened as her lungs stopped working, heart skipping a beat as the implication made its way through the frozen hell of her thoughts. Dead... dead... d-dead...? No... s-she means something different. She has to! Th-There's no way this could be true!! Scootaloo... h-how could she possibly die!? She screwed her eyes shut and started ripping open every dictionary she could think of in her mind, seeking out some alternate definition of the damning word. Dead, there has to be another meaning! Something just as bad, but she's still alive! She has to be! She has to be! She has to be!!!

With every flip of the page and every definition scanned, every word only supporting the heaviest of meanings, her worries stacked up like a pile of books, reaching higher and higher into the sky. Eventually, another pile was started. Then another. Then another. She built a tower, a wobbling, crumbling tower of terrible fear and panic as she searched for that one key meaning, the meaning that would eliminate her worries altogether.

But it never came. The tower became too tall, and with the final page discarded, it collapsed. Her horn flashed for only a moment before she was gone, leaving Luna's hoof to rub at the air for a few moments before moving back down to the floor. Reaper sat up properly, rubbing his eyes as the temporary blindness assailed his senses. "Gah... stupid teleportation. Always so flashy." He grumbled, blinking a few times before he could see again. "...Weird way to cope with that."

"That isn't of our concern, though I wish I could say it was within our duties to comfort her. This is Rainbow's chosen mission... at least now, all that remains is Applejack and Fluttershy." Luna looked back at her servant, eyes devoid of their original purpose. "I wish we could just take her away from all this..."

"It is what it is, boss. She chose this, and now she has to go through with it. Who're Fluttershy and Applejack?" Reaper raised his eyebrow and folded his arms. Pretty silly names, though after hearing 'Plum Puck', nothing surprises me anymore.

"Two mares, one stubborn, the other shy. Both are the remaining Elements of Harmony." Luna shook her head and sighed. "And sharing this news with Fluttershy is going to be the most difficult part of this quest..."

"Why's that?" Reaper raised his eyebrow.

"Because, of everypony I've ever met... she has the most innocent heart."

"Which makes her...?"

The Princess turned back to the sleeping pegasus, and a dark flame lit in her eyes.


"The most unpredictable... and the most dangerous."

Author's Note:

Well holy shit. About time I got this done!