> Unexpected Love Life of Dusk Shine: Resurrected
>  by kman123
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> Introduction
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In this world, Twilight Sparkle was never born...as a girl. Instead we follow the young Dusk Shine, personal protege of Princess Celestia Vi Equestria of the royal Canterlot City-State, and Goddess of the realm of Equestria. Asocial bookworm, nerd, and unbeknownst to him, super cute pretty boy.

Introduction:

A long time ago in the magical land of Equestria, there lived three tribes of humans: Fae, Harpy, and Man. Leading them were the two regal sisters known as the Goddesses of Day and Night. These two sisters ruled together and bestowed harmony throughout the lands. In doing so,the eldest sister used her powers to raise the sun at dawn. The younger brought out the moon at night. Thus, the two sisters maintained balance for their kingdom and their subject: Every race of being that existed within the realm. But as time went on, the younger sister soon grew to become envious.

The mortals relished and played in the day her elder sister brought forth, but shunned and slept in her beautiful night. One faithful day, the younger sister refused to lower the moon to make way for the dawn. The Elder sister tried her best to reason with her, but it was too late...the bitterness within her heart had already consumed her, transforming her into the malevolent demon of darkness: Nightmare Moon. Since then, she had vowed to shroud the land in eternal night. Reluctantly, the elder sister was able to defeat her younger sister by harnessing the most powerful magic known to mankind: The Elements of Harmony. Using it, she defeated her sister and banished her to the moon and, afterwords, the elder sister took responsibility for both the sun and the moon...

"And Harmony has been maintained in Equestria for generations since. Hmm…Elements of Harmony; I know that sounds familiar...but where?" a young man at the age of 17 with short, lavender hair and a long-sleeved, lavender coat with light-blue pants, purple boots, and a purple star mark on the back of his right hand, read aloud as he sat under a tall oak tree in a luxurious garden near a beautiful marble fountain with a cherub on top. Standing up, the young man ran off as he passed a trio of girls about his age: Rainbow Wishes, Lyra, and Twinkle shine. Shine smiled slyly as she stared at his backside, "There you are, Dusk! Our friend Moondancer is having a get-together in the west castle courtyard for her birthday. You wanna come?"

Looking back for a second, the young Dusk replied, smiling, while rubbing the back of his neck, "Oh, sorry, girls, I can't...I have a lot of studying to catch up on. No time for parties!"

To that, Twinkle gave a loud and annoyed sigh , muttering, "Does that guy every do anything else besides studying? I think he's more into books than friends or parties. Why do all the cute boys have to be such weirdos?"

Running as fast as he could, Dusk Shine headed straight towards his private studies at the Canterlot Library. Nothing could distract him, for he was on an important mission! Party invitations? No way! Stopping to say hello? Not a chance! Doors? Ha! He laughed at doors!

"Spike? SPIIIKE?!" Dusk Shine hollered for his assistant. "Where are you? I have got something important!"

"Spike! It's no time to be playing. There's work to do" Spike groaned, as he was buried under a mountain of books that fell on top of him, via the shock-wave caused by the door from Dusk Shine's careless entrance. Irate, the young, green-haired imp sprung out from under the books and shouted with an angry expression as a cross-shaped vein appeared on his temple, "What the hell?! You almost killed me, you idiot!"

"Sorry about that, Spike, but this is urgent," Dusk apologized for the incident he and continued to the matter at hand.

"Quick, we need to find Predictions and Prophecies!" Dusk ordered, having a worried expression on his face.

"What for?" inquired Spike, annoyingly. "No time to explain! Just get it!" shouted Dusk, not looking at his foster brother as he picked up various books with both hands and, magically, with the magical stone embedded on his forehead. Having such a flawless argument on Dusk's side, Spike delivered the book on record time. Dusk flipped to the index with great haste and impatience, overlooking the small rips he was with each page.

"Elements of Harmony: See Woman in the Moon?" Dusk Shine read aloud.

Spike arched an eyebrow. "You interrupted me from getting ready for my nap to do research on an old bedtime story? You've been reading too much into the Equestria Inquirer."

Turning away from his book, Dush Shine shot a deadpanned look at his assistant. "First of all, I've already told you that that paper is written by hacks," Dusk stated matter-of-factly. "Second, much of my research is based on cold, hard facts from thousands of years ago and that determines the fate of Equestria, so I won't take any chances!"

"You said the same thing last week about the 'Elder Gods', big bro, which, I might add, haven't appeared in 40 thousand years," retorted Spike, skeptical about his surrogate brother's claim.

"Like I said, fate of Equestria," Dusk repeated, soaking in a damp corner. "Besides, Lyra was the one who talked me into it, you know how she is!" He muttered under his breath.

Spike sighed at that, pulling out the Woman in the Moon book and tossing it to Dusk with a bored and annoyed look on the imp's face. Woman, Woman...Aha! The Woman in the Moon, myth from olden times. A powerful, cannibalistic demon-goddess said to have attempted to shroud the land of Equestria in darkness, but was defeated and imprisoned in the moon by the power of the Elements of Harmony. Legend has it that on the longest day of the thousandth year, the stars will aid in her escape, and she will bring eternal night and vanquish the sun goddess! Dusk gasped as he read that last part in his head, coming to a quick conclusion: "Spike! You know what to do, right?!"

"You want me to take a letter to the princess?" he asked.

"Excellent idea, Spike," said Dusk Shine. "You're always thinking ahead. That's why you're my number one assistant!" Clearing his throat, Dusk began to say what he wanted written down.

Dear Princess Celestia

My dearest teacher, my continuing studies of Fae Magic have led me to discover that we are on the precipice for disaster! By delving into Professor Nebula's ancient literature class, it has come to my attention that the mythical 'Woman in the Moon' is none other than 'Nightmare Moon', retuning to Equestria to bring forth her 'Night Eternal' and her cult of followers to end your regime! Nightmare Moon's return from her imprisonment shall occur on the long day of the thousandth year, which is tomorrow during the Summer Sun Celebration. Considering Nightmare Moon's cannibalistic reputation, perverse and twisted tastes, and heretical followers, it's imperative that we act now to ensure that this prophecy must never come true. I await your quick response.

Your faithful student,

Dusk Shine.

Looking over the letter, Dusk Shine had to make sure that everything was written, perfectly. Why it could be the most important letter to send in his entire life. "Okay, it looks good. Now send it, immediately, Spike," Dusk demanded in a refine tone.

Spike breathed his magic green fire from his mouth and onto the letter, causing it to evaporate.

"Uh, I dunno about this, big bro. The princess is a little busy getting ready for the Summer Sun Celebration. And it's like, the day after tomorrow. Prophecy, or not, I don't think she'll even have time to read your end-of-the-world letter."

Not soon after, the letter was replied as the young imp belched it out of his mouth.

"See, what did I tell you! Does she wish to take immediate actions?" Dusk asked. Picking up the letter, Spike began reading it to himself. "So, what does it say? Scramble the troops? Evacuate the citizens? Call my brother to lead us in a final battle of good versus evil?" at the end of the sentence, an image of knights appeared as they shouted from the top of their lungs: "This is Equestria!"

"It says to get a life," Spike answered with a straight face. Then, everything in the background shattered like glass and became dark as Dusk exclaimed, "Eh?!" in reply.
> Lesson 1A: Mio Amore, no Me Gusta
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

My dearest student, Dusk Shine

Get a Life. You are grown man, and therefore too old to be reading such fairy tales. You know that I value your diligence and that I trust you completely, but there is more to a young man's life than studying and staying up late, researching conspiracy theories, reading and collecting manga, as well as reading porn at the 4chan bookstore. Yes, I've read your receipts and collection. You really need to hide your stuff better. Anyways, to expand on your social life, I have scheduled you and Spike to oversee the preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration, hosting in Ponyville.

Your concerned teacher

Princess Celestia Vi Equestria

P.S. There is an ulterior motive to your task: Make some friends!

After reading the letter, Spike turned to look at his brother. "Dusk?" he said with a worried expression.

Dusk sighed. He had never been more degraded in his entire life. The thoughts that coursed through his mind were filled with anger and devastation: She only wants to get rid of me!

"Big bro..." Spike said with worry.

Without looking at Spike, Dusk shine continued to speak as he stared at the moving landscape, "Everyday, I do my best to make the princess proud and prove everyone wrong. But even still, everyone still sees me as some sort of crackpot conspiracy theorist with an overactive imagination."

"Maybe it has something to do with that time you thought Slenderman was inside your closet," Dusk's expression faded into shock as couple beads of sweat fell from his face.

Stuttering; Dusk shouted with a rebuttal, "I-I was only eight at the time! Now, I'm seventeen, and everyone should be taking me more seriously. Especially, the princess!"

"Hey, big bro, we're here!" exclaimed Spike; 20-minutes-later, the floating, pegaus-driven chariot that was bringing Dusk and Spike was flying over a small town; looking over Ponyville with boredom and cynicism, Dusk Shine blinked a few times before letting out a deep sigh. Spike got a sad look on his face. "Well, look on the bright side. At least the princess arranged for you to live in the old library. Cheer up!"

"You know, you're right! Thank you, Spike, you're great!" replied Dusk Shine, causing Spike to smile proudly, "Yeah, I've heard

"I can't get myself down like this...it's just a minor problem," He stated, confidently. "Once we get to the library, I'll find the proof I need of Nightmare Monn's return, stop her, prove that I'm a hero and regain the respect from Celestia, herself!" standing up, Dusk flashed a pose of determination at the end of the sentence.

Spike curiously blinked at hearing that response, "But, what about making friends?"

"The princess told me I was in charge of the preparations. Being her student, I have to perform my royal duties; Equestria's fate doesn't rely on me making friends," Scoffed the lavender-haired bishounen; stepping off of the chariot, Dusk continued walking until he and Spike reached the center of town. The two observed as the decorations were being hung for the festival. "Wow, look at how everyone's working so hard on the preparations for the festival!" exclaimed Spike, excitingly. "Maybe we should join in on the fun?"

"There's no time to waste on having fun." Putting on a deadpanned look, Spike was annoyed by that response.

"Oh, come on, big bro. Why not we just introduce ourselves; maybe, there's someone around here that's like you? Give it a try, please?" He begged with pleading eyes,. In truth, Spike loved his older brother dearly, but he could tell that, deep down, he was lonely, and that he was worried about him.

Dusk sighed, annoyed and defeated, he trudged over to the nearest person he saw; standing near the decorations was a tall, human girl with pink, curly hair, blue eyes, and large breasts, wearing a pink top with three balloons on the front that exposed her midriff, blue daisy dukes with brown suspenders over her shoulders, brown fingerless gloves, pink stockings with two different patterns (One with blue and yellow polka dots and one with blue and yellow stripes), and a pair of brown knee-high boots. on the back of her right hand was a mark with three balloons, each having the same color was her stockings.

Dusk took a deep breath. "Um, hello miss, m-my name is Dusk Shine and this is my brother, Spike. Could you tell us the way to get to Sweet Apple Acres? We need to-" before he could finish, the pink-haired girl jumped two feet into the air as her eyes bulged while letting out a deep gasp, bolting away to Celestia-knows-where at lightning speed. Both Dusk and Spike stared with large droplets of sweat forming on their temples.

"Well, I thought she was kind of 'peculiar'." Spike commented while screatching his chin, timidly.

Dusk retorted, skeptically, "Many psychologists would have a different opinion."

Moving along, Dusk Shine walked up to another girl with aqua greenish hair, yellow eyes, and was about the same height, wearing a dark yellow dress with a light tanned top over it, and a pair of ankle-high boots. He wanted to ask her the same question he did with the pink-haired girl; tapping her on the shoulder, Dusk was stunned when she turned around. "Lyra?! W-what the hell are you doing here?!" the woman was, indeed, his conspiracy theorist friend and gifted fae, Lyra Heartstrings; seeing her cause Dusk to cringe in surprise.

"Oh, hey, Dusk! I'm just here looking for Elder God signs! Rumors of a mysterious traveler living in the nearby forest drew me to this place. Probably, a cultist to one of the gods? Also, I'm helping out with the music for the Celebration, but with the Elder Gods! You know I can't resist finding clues!" She licked her lips, perversely, while rubbing her hands together. Just then, before she could ask Dusk anything, the lavender haired boy and his pointy eared assistant disappeared, leaving Lyra confused.

Dusk and Spike had finally stumbled upon sweet apple acres, after running away from Lyra and finding the directions from a girl with dark blue and pink hair. "Here it is, Spike, sweet apple acres," Dusk Shine announced as they approached the arch fence gate with an apple sign hanging under it.

Spike started reading from the list. "According to the list, the first thing to do is check out the food, which is overseen by someone named 'Applejack'."

Walking into the farm, Dusk soon heard a loud "YEE-HAW!" startled, they saw that it came from a girl with blonde hair, kicking an apple tree with her right leg, causing many apples to elegantly fall into several buckets. Having long blonde hair, freckles, and green eyes, she was dressed like a typical cowgirl with an orange blouse with the sleeves rolled up, blue jeans under brown chaps, brown cowboy boots, and a hat. On the back of her right hand, there was a mark of three red apples on the back of her right hand.

Spike whistled at seeing the display. "Wow! She's amazing. She might even be stronger than Shining Armor!" they waltzed over.

"Good afternoon. My name is Dusk Shine, and I'm-"

"Howdy there, sugarcube! It's a pleasure to meet ya. Welcome to Sweet Apple Acres! Here, we like meetin' new people and makin' all kinds of new friends!" Said the blonde cowgirl, as she smiled big with the tip of her hat. "Names Applejack, proud member of the Applejack Family! What can I do ya for?!" she reached out her hand and winked, the action catching Dusk Shine off guard.

Shrugging his shoulders, he bowed slightly with great refinement as anyone from Canterlot would, and kissed her hand tenderly. Might as well... he thought.

"Whoa, nelly," Though Applejack. "Is this city boy flurtin' with me?!" Eyes-widened, Applejack blushed hotly as she was stunned by Dusk's gesture. "Is-is he just like Caramel? No, no, not again!" Spike couldn't help but chuckle from seeing it. Applejack was still blushing, feeling embarrassed with streams of steam appearing on her head as Dusk continued talking. "I am here by order of the Princess-" He announced with such formality; however, before he could finish his sentence, Applejack slammed a bucket on top of his head, knocking him unconscious.

"Big Bro!" Shouted Spike. Dusk Shine was lying on the ground with the said bucket on top of his head, a pool of blood under him, dripping out of his mouth, his eyes white and groaning. "Hey, don't you think you kinda overdid it?!"

Applejack pondered and then nodded her head. "Not at all, bud. Had to give him somethin' to teach him not to go overboard with me." She remarked in a southern drawl.

"The only thing he's going to learn is what exists in the afterlife!"

"Sorry, little guy, but ah ain't got time to worry about yer friend! Ah'm busy waitin' for some Canterlot folks who're coming over!" AJ remarked as she turned away from Dusk and Spike.

Pushing the bucket off of Dusk's head, Spike replied while helping his brother up, "That would be us!"

"Eh?" AJ inquired as she turned back.

"We came from Canterlot the festival preparations! The guy whose head you just crushed was chosen by Princess Celestia, herself, to supervise everything!" AJ's face turned pale with every word she heard, following it with a nervous gulp. What did she just do? She knocked out an important nobleman from Canterlot who was suppose to inspect on her families food and judge if they were worthy for the festival! She dashed over and shook the lavender-haired boy awake; once he came to, she shook his hand while flashing an apologetic smile. "Ah don't think we've been properly introduced. Name's Applejack! Sorry fer what happened. Good thing it didn't get ugly.

Annoyed; Dusk shine shouted with a glare, "I have a skull fissure and it didn't get ugly?"

"Ya'll are lucky to come here first, purdy boy. Yer just in time fer the Apple Family Reunion!"

Shocked; Dusk shine tried to decline the offer, "Oh, no, no, I just needed you to tell me what food you'd be serving."

"That's th' great thing about th' Apple Family!" she said, proudly. "Ah can do both at once!" Ringing the dinner bell, AJ yelled at the top of her lungs "SOUP's ON, EVERYPONY!" suddenly, a loud rumbling appeared; so strong that it shook the earth a bit.

"Spike, where's that noise coming from?" Dusk asked with a puzzled expression; Spike, on the other hand, was too busy staring at the stampede that was in front of him. "Hey where are you taking me?! Leave me...wait...Help!" just then, Dusk and Spike were both tossed into a chair with a table in front of them.

"Meet the Apple Family!" AJ announced with pride, again. She took a deep breath and announced them all. "Apple Cobbler, Caramel Apples, Apple Cupcake, Apple Pie, Apple Flan, Apple Fridder, Apple Bumpkin, Golden Delicious, Red Delicious, Goldie Delicious, Apple Strudel, Apple Tart, Baked Apples, Apple Brioche, Apple Cinnamon Crisp, Apple Rose, Great Auntie Applesauce, Applejohn, Lil' Red, Applebuck Apple Seeds, Hayseed Turnip Truck, Apple Dandy, Apple Cider, Apple Salade, Braeburn Apples, Apple Juice, Aunt & Uncle Orange, along with Sherbet Orange, Orange Crush, Babs Seed Orange, and mah side of the family: Lil Applebloom, Big Macintosh, and finally, Granny Smith!" Applejack gestured to the oldest on in the ground. "Come on, Granny Smith, wake up! Our new buddies have come to stick around the party!" waking up, Granny Smith, gingerly, stood from her walking chair and joined the party.

Gazing at the mountain of food that was on the table, Dusk became nervous with three droplets of sweat forming on his forehead. "They don't actually expect us to eat all that?"

Spike only smiled with drool coming out of his mouth. "I have no problem with that!"

Dusk Shine became even more nervous as many of the Apples began to stare at him. "Ah think they like you!" said Applejack. "I'd even say that you're part of th' Family!" hearing that, Dusk lost all expression on his face.

"Actually, I'm not that hungry." Looked down at the table with worry. "Besides, I have a lot of things to do, preparing for the apocalypse and all!" The Apple Family made an "Aww!" sound in disappointment. Suddenly, the AJ's little sister, Applebloom, walked up to Dusk.

"Arent'cha gonna stay fer brunch?" she asked with big, teary eyes. Dusk couldn't help but look into those soul-crushing eyes of sadness that could pierce into your soul.

I gotta remain strong! I need to prepare for Nightmare moon! He thought, trying to muster the will power. "I'm sorry, but...I have to...get ready...Nightmare Moon..." he tried the best he could to let her down, gently.

"Now, Applebloom, this handsome young man has some very important things to do, but a Canterlot gentleman would never disappoint a young girl, right?" Granny teased Dusk, as she looked him over.

Sighing in defeat, Dusk Shine replied with his head down, "I'll stay for brunch." then the rest of the Apple Family shouted a loud "Yeehaw!".

In no time, the young ladies of the Apple Clan, constantly bludgeoning him with flurry questions, soon encircled Dusk. "How old are you? Are you single? Do you have a girlfriend? Do you personally know the princess?" Dusk would do his best to answer each question, but it was hard to keep; he would even stress eat the apple delights to keep his nerves calm. Applejack looked at Dusk with a small grin on her face as she blushed a bit.

"Big Sis!" Applebloom slowly walked up to her sister with a big smile, looking up at her. "Yer boyfriend's really cool!"

Applejack's jaw nearly touched the floor as all color on her body faded into white.

"Yeah, it was sure nice of ya to bring him along," Granny laughed.

"H-he ain't mah boyfriend!" AJ exploded with a sense of embarrassment throughout her body.

"He sure is a cute one."

"Granny!"

Trudging through the streets, Dusk Shine had eaten too much at the Apple Part; his stomach was so full, it felt like it was about to burst. "What's next on the list, Spike?" he groaned.

"Weather Patrol," Spike Answered.

"I wanna puke..." Dusk grumbled, losing all expression.

"I'm impressed by how much you've eaten. The food was delicious. I hope we have the same luck next time; an imp's stomach is much more resilient than a human's," Spike chuckled, unaware that his brother wasn't paying attention; turning back, he saw Dusk Shine vomiting into a barrel. "Big bro?"

Spike just sighed at that display, turning his attention back to the list. "The person in charge of Weather Patrol is Rainbow Dash."

Dusk stared at the cloudy sky. "Well, she's obviously slacking off," Dusk snorted. "How are we going to watch and admire the sunrise with all these clouds in the sky?" Suddenly, out of nowhere, a rainbow-colored blur appeared and crashed into Dusk, and then everything went dark.

Struggling to breathe, the lavender fae was unable to see or move. Covered in mud, he felt a soft, warm, and squishy pillow covering his face. It took him a moment to realize that the pillow on his face was actually someone's ass. Upon raising her goggles, the rainbow haired girl became aware of what she had crashed into. Jaw dropped; Dusk tried to say, "Get off me", but it came out more like, "Mmph mmph mfhmfh!" it must've been really rude to a person whose black shorts-covered behind was sitting on him.

Next thing that happened, the said girl switched from sitting on him to punching him right in the face. "WHAT IN CELESTIA'S NAME DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING, YOU FREAK?!" the flat chested girl shouted, followed by a loud scream and an almighty crash. Dusk landed back on the ground with several bumps on his face and a few cracked ribs. "ARE YOU ONE OF THOSE PERVS IN MY FANCLUB?! STAY THERE AND DIE!"

Weakened, Dusk shine protested, "You're...wrong..." standing back up, he did his best to explain while avoiding the tomboy's sharp glares. "I'm...from Canterlot! I don't know anyone here!"

"Canterlot?" the rude tomboy asked; her mood then automatically changed. She then examined the lavender fae before helping him up. "Say, egghead, you said you're from Canterlot."

"Egghead?" he repeated, taking that with much offense.

"Have you seen them? Have you seen Spitfire?" the tomboy asked.

Dusk Shine could only answer with, "Who?"

"The captain of the Wonderbolts!" she answered, irately.

"The Wonderbolts? Sorry, but I'm not much of a sports fan," Dusk stated, deadpanned, expressing his ignorance on the subject.

"The Wonderbolts, dumbass! The most talented acrobats in all of Equestria! The ones who always make it to the finals in the Equestria games and always takes gold in the aftermath!" she shouted as a Wonderbolt poster appeared behind her out of nowhere as stars and lights appeared in the background, as well. "They'll be in the celebration tomorrow, and I'm going to show them my moves! They'll practically beg the great Rainbow Dash to join them!" cackled the tomboy loudly with such arrogance and narcissism.

"Are you Rainbow Dash?" Dusk ask with curiosity and a little irritation.

"The one and only!" she answered, proudly, while striking a pose. "Captain of the weather teams and fastest flier in all of Equestria!"

"And a slacker..." Dusk scoffed with a deadpanned tone.

"What did you say punk?" Rainbow roared, glaring at Dusk.

"No offense but the sky needs a little tidying up, and you're off doing stunt-flying all day," Dusk criticized with a sly gaze. Summoning her blue, translucent wings from the blue tattoo on the upper side of her back, Dash was floating too feet off the ground. That's the power of a harpy, for you.

"I could clear these skies in ten seconds flat, pretty boy!" bragged Rainbow Dash.

Dusk looked a Rainbow Dash and said, skeptically, "Prove it!" with a smirk.

Dash growled, she didn't like her talents to be questioned; lowering her goggles, she flew with lightning speed and, in a blink of an eye, she expelled all of the clouds from the sky, making it clear for the festival. "She's amazing!" whistled Spike as he watched Dash bursting through the clouds like a bullet. Dusk, however, only remarked with "She's good."

"What did I say?" said Rainbow Dash. "Ten. Seconds. Flat!" she remarked, leaning on a cloud, smiling, with both arms crossed, condescendingly. "And as a bonus." kicking the cloud, a shower of rain fell on Dusk Shine, drenching him completely in water. "That'll help you get the dirt and humiliation off and as an apology for beating you up earlier, I'll help dry you up, too. Tornado Style!" Dash giggled deviously.

"Hey wait," Before Dusk could object, he was taken away by a whirlwind made by Rainbow Dash, blowing him in a spiral for a couple of minutes. After it had ended, landed back down while noticing Rainbow Dash and Spike's gazes.

"What?" he asked. "What's so funny?" then the two began giggling.

"Your hair!" Spike answered. "You look like a clown!"

"No, no! He looks more like Napoleon Dynamite!" Dusk corrected; both her and Spike howled in laughter, rolling on the ground while holding their sides.

"Haha, you're funny, egghead! Really funny!" giggle Rainbow Dash playfully.

"Dusk Shine, my name is Dusk Shine!" he explained sternly. The tomboy grew a wide and sly smirk after finally learning his name. "Well, 'Mr. Dusk Shine', you don't seem like a bad guy. Maybe if we hang out together, my coolness might rub off on you."

"Never!" seethed Dusk Shine, gritting his teeth as a cross-shaped vein formed on his head.

Taking to the skies, Dash waved goodbye and said, "Well, see you later, little elf and Mr. Dusk Egghead!" she then zoomed off high into the sky, soon becoming nothing more that a shimmering blue star in the distance.

"Wow, she's so awesome!" Sighed Spike in a chill way; however, he was slightly annoyed that he was called an "Elf" when, in fact, he was an imp. Turning to his brother, he saw him wandering off and ran to catch up to him, "Bro, wait up!"

Dusk glared sternly at Spike, "We don't have time to waste. Hopefully, we won't run into any more crazy girls."

to be concluded
> Lesson 1B: Mio Amore, no Me Gusta
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Walking into the town hall, Dusk shine and Spike examined the decorations that were being hung intricately by the decoration team. The next thing on his list was meeting with the decorations expert who went by the name of Rarity and her team, consisting of Sweetie Belle, Coco Pommel, Suri Polomare, and other people who aren't really important to the story what so ever. The pillars were covered in bright, colorful ribbons to amplify the beauty and luxury of the building. Good he though looks like everything is coming together nicely. Maybe I can slip out without talking to anyone.

"Decorations…beautiful…" Spike said dreamily.

"Yes, the décor is coming along nicely, Spike," Dusk agreed.

"I'm not talking about the décor, you idiot, I'm talking about her!" grabbing Dusk Shine's head, he turned his attention to the center stage. "I'm talking about that drop-dead gorgeous goddess standing over there! She's the most beautiful girl to walk the face of Equestria!" before them was a girl with long purple hair with swirl and curl locks, fair skin, c-cup sized breasts, and a purple star tattoo under her left eye and a purple diamond mark on the back of her right hand, wearing a white, long-sleeved blouse, a long light-purple skirt, and a pair of purple ankle high boots with black stockings. On her forehead was a gem that was similar to Dusk's, except that it was silver like a pearl, showing that she was a Fae, as well. The young woman was putting up a ribbon with much elegance, carefully perfecting her precision as to not leave any flaws.

"Her?" Dusk inquired, with deadpanned confusion. Then realization struck him. "Spike, are you crushing on that girl?"

Spike didn't even try to deny it, getting on his knees and begging to his brother, "You have to be my wingman, Big Bro! I'll do the dishes and make my bed for the rest of my life!"

Deadpanned; Dusk Shine pointed out to his li' brother, "You do all that stuff, anyways."

"I promise I won't ever tell your mom where you hide your 'special' magazines," pleaded Spike, twiddling his fingers.

"Then it was your fault that mom wouldn't look me in the eye for an entire week, and why dad gave me a whole speech about 'Boys in Growth'!" grumbled Dusk, angry at Spike as a cross-shaped vein appeared on his temple. His cousins and former babysitter, Cadence, gave him the same look over that.

"Do it, or I tell everyone we know that you still sleep with that raggedy old doll," Spike threatened, believing he got his brother right where he want him.

"You leave Miss Smartypants out of this!" Dusk shouted, angrily.

Teary eye, Spike took on a submissive stance and held his hands in prayer. "Please! Big Bro!"

"Fine," relinquished Dusk, with an annoyed grumble. "I'll try to lend a hand. Just keep your hormones calm for a bit." Walking up, he approached the purple-haired beauty. "Good afternoon, miss," he greeted with false enthusiasm. "I'm Dusk Shine. I'd like to introduce you to my good friend Spi—"

"OH SWEET MOTHER OF CELESTIA!" scream the girl in horror. "Wh-what in the world is that thing?!"

"His name is Spike," deadpanned Dusk Shine, which Spike shouted "HEY!" in annoyance.

"Oh no! I mean your hair," explained the elegant accented woman.

"My mane?" feeling the top of his head, Dusk recalled the horrible hairdo he got from Rainbow Dash. "I was going to fix it when I got home…" he shrugged, already having gotten over it and decided not to care.

"Heavens no!" the girl shouted, slamming her heel down on the stage floor. She began to slowly push the lavender-haired boy and moved him elsewhere. "I cannot allow a person to walk around in public with such a mess! My principles would never allow that!"

Dusk then remarked, trying to get away from the woman, "Well, we were just about to leave…"

Grabbing his face, her eyes became lifeless as a dark aura suddenly surrounded her. "I never take 'no' for an answer!" her voice became dark and terrifying.

Dusk shivered with his face becoming pale as beads of sweat fell from his face. "Y-yes ma'am!"

Later that day, Dusk was dragged out of the town hall and brought to the woman's shop, Carousel Boutique, and learned that the woman's name was Rarity Gem. Independent from her parents, she lives with only her little sister, Sweetie Belle Gem, and had a brother traveling over seas, as well as being the premier fashion designer in all of Ponyville, rivaled only by her dear friend Suri.

"Excuse me, Miss Rarity…I really don't want to be a bother," remarked Dusk, his head covered in foamy shampoo and conditioner.

"Don't worry, darling. It's the least I can do," Rarity remarked, looking through her hair-care products with her manicured hands, which, by the way, had a tattoo of three diamonds on her right hand. Spike, all love-struck with a dopey grin, was helping Rarity out.

"But I really must know the name of the ruffian responsible for inflicting this monstrosity on a young man."

"It was that multi-colored haired harpy," Dusk explained, bluntly.

"That would be Rainbow Dash, I presume?" sighed Rarity, irritated while rubbing the bridge between her beautiful and elegant face.

"A friend of yours?"

Rarity shook her head in a dignified and hoity way. "I wouldn't call her a friend, per se," Rarity retorted, hovering a blow dryer over Dusk's head and a curling iron after washing his hair. "I truly have no reason to be friends with such an unrefined girl." Once she was done, she showed Dusk to a mirror. "There, all done! Rarity, you are a talent. It suits you magnificently, as if you had been born with it," giggled the fashionista, showing the young Fae her work. He had a very familiar haircut, a cute and adorable one. His hair was flattened out and lengthened with a curl on the back with longer, more together with bangs.

Dusk's face was expressionless and deadpanned as he set all of his feelings and new appearance set in, then he just hung his head down low and sight before staring a Rarity while flashing a half-hearted smile, "Even though my face is a little feminine, you do realize I'm a boy, right?"

"Oh! Of course, Darling, I just thought that this style would suit you." She pulled out an elegant dress from her dress rack and presented it to Dusk Shine.

"You really wanted me to wear that?!" Dusk Shouted.

"No? well then, my deepest apologies. Oh, pardon me, I still haven't caught your name, yet, good sir," said the purple-haired fashionista as she grabbed a comb and started doing dusk's hair, again.

"My name is Dusk Shine," Smiled dusk as he addressed himself with his hair returned to its' original style.

Spike, also, addressed himself, "And I'm Spike!"

"Dusk Shine?" Rarity gasped. "The Dusk Shine?! The personal protégé of Princess Celestia?!" she asked, neigh demanded. She walked forward, leaning her face closer to Dusk.

"I-I guess so…wait, how do you know who I am?" This surprised Dusk, mostly due to the fact that he's never been to Ponyville before.

"Darling, please," Rarity dismissed, passively. "A boy performs the magical equivalence of nuclear fusion at age eight, gets his identity mark of magic itself on the back of his right hand, and becomes what Celestia calls 'The son she never had?' I'd be surprised if that never made the papers." She remarked, waving her hand nonchalant. "I even have a magazine with your face on it, as well!" out of nowhere, she held up an issue of "Canterlots' Bachelors" with a picture of Dusk sleeping in a sexy pose without a shirt on. Jaw dropping, Dusk was flabbergasted by this How the hell did they get a picture of that?! He shouted mentally while losing all expression.

"Oh, it is an honor to finally meet you! It's almost as if I'm meeting a prince!" Rarity squealed, starry-eyed as she met one of her top-five idols.

Spike saw an opportunity and tried to impress her. "Hey, well, I'm basically Dusk's brother! So, that makes me a prince too, right?"

Raising an eyebrow, Rarity looked at the little imp and asked, "Excuse me, but who might you me?"

"I'm Spike!" said the imp, all teary-eyed and disappointed of not being noticed. "I've been helping you for like two hours!" Unfortunately, Rarity completely ignored Spike and was already at Dusk Shine's side again, holding both of his hands with hearts floating above as her face blushed with her eyes looking into his.

"Tell me, Mr. Dusk Shine. Do you have a girlfriend? A strapping, young man should have at least a thousand young ladies from Canterlot begging to be with you," giggled Rarity, hopping that she might have a chance, still stuck in fan-girl mode as she fawned over the young Fae.

"Actually…" Dusk trailed off, avoiding eye contact, as he blushed a bit. Aside from my cousins, the princess, and my babysitter, the only girls I've ever talked to so far are Lyra Heartstrings and Moondancer. Thought Dusk, recalling the fact that he didn't have any real friends in Canterlot and that Moondancer and Lyra were more like colleagues than friends.

"You know, Mr. Shine, I've always believed in destiny, and what it was has prepared for me. It has given me so much; ever since I was a little girl, I knew I would meet my sweet princes, someday." Twirling around, Rarity clapped her hands together and sighed around Dusk. She then began to imagine it all. "That he and I would be united with each other by the Red String of Fate. Our love would be able to outshine even Celestia's divine sun! And one day, we would have our happy ending, always together." Rarity fantasized, visualizing Canterlot castle and Dusk in a tux, herself in the most beautiful wedding dress, as rose petals down upon them and wedding bells ringing in the background.

Dusk gulped; he was unable to see the fantasy, but he could see on her drooling and starry face more or less what she was thinking. Turning towards Dusk, Rarity let out a happy sigh once more. "Do you believe in destiny, Mr. Dusk Shine? Oh, I just know we're going to be the best of…companions," she said with a sly smile, as she opened her starry eyes.

Hearing no response, she turned and noticed that Dusk and Spike had already left the Carousel Boutique as evident of the door fully opened. Stunned; Rarity blinked with her mouth gaping in confusion. "D-darling…?" a drop of sweat fell from her forehead as she trailed off.

Giving out a sigh of relief, Dusk looked backing, making sure that the fashionista, Rarity, wasn't chasing after him, slowing down from running and began walking, nervously, "Good, she's not following us, the last thing I need is a crazy fan chasing after me wearing a wedding dress." Spike was walking beside Dusk, crossing his arms while, angrily, having both eyes closed. "Hey big bro…you totally ruined my first impression, jerk!" Spike shouted at his surrogate big brother; his eyes opened and formed a comical glare as they were blinded with jealousy.

"That insane mare could have kidnapped us, and you care about your first impression?!" Dusk retorted, giving his foster brother the same expression. Dusk turned to walk away, exhaling an annoyed sigh while trying to regain his composure. "I don't have time to be helping you with that psycho. Besides, I don't understand the whole idea of having a girlfriend. I mean, love is just an emotion that has the ability to make anyone stupid and oblivious to what's truly important."

Spike nodded in understanding, replying to Dusk, "Well, big bro, I guess someone as intelligent as you would never fall for that kind of stuff, right…um, big bro?" Suddenly, Dusk stopped by his tracks; his face turned red and his eyes became wide, his heart was beating fast as he stared off into the distance. That was when Dusk met…her.

"Now, follow me, please," said the girl. She was a pale, young girl with pink, silk-like hair that flowed down to her waist, standing about the same height as Dusk and having teal colored eyes; she was wearing a pale-yellow shoulderless sweater with long sleeves and green shoulder straps, a long green skirt that stretched down to her ankles, and a pair of green loafers on her feet. Lastly, on the back of her hand was a mark of three pink butterflies. Her kindheartedness was evident even here; she was leading a chorus of songbirds with a beautiful voice so innocent and pure, coming from her gorgeous and delicate mouth it made the animals singing with her seem like nothing in comparison.

"Uh, big bro? Five minutes ago you became paralyzed with that silly smile on your face…and now you're drooling," Deadpanned Spike with a roll in his eyes.

"That's not true!" he shouted loudly, turning his attention to the little imp.

"It is, just look!" pointing at the young mare, Dusk looked and saw how startled the young girl as her birds flew away. "Great, she looks like she's about to cry."

An awkward silence fell. The young woman did her best to hide behind her long hair, hiding her tears as she began to back away. Snapping out of his trance, Dusk Shine wailed his arms as he rushed to her side, declaring the truth, "I-I'm not a pervert or a stalker! I'm Dusk Shine of Canterlot. Emissary of her royal highness, Princess Celestia! What's your name?!" He asked trying to get things more out of this aura of awkwardness.

The young woman gulped now, "M-my name i-is Fluttershy." She said nearly inaudibly.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" he asked, again.

"Fluttershy," she mumbled even quieter.

"Didn't quite catch that?" asked Dusk curious as he invaded Fluttershy's personal space to get a better listen and prevent her from backing away further, which she kept doing for some reason.

Against her better judgment, Fluttershy let him get closer, as close as he was next to her now. "Fluttershy." She said still ultra-quiet.

"Her names Fluttershy. She's the last one on our list and is in charged of the music preparations!" Spike stated while snapping her fingers.

"A baby imp!" she shouted ultra-loudly, shoving Dusk Shine aside while pushing him right in the face.

Rushing towards Spike, she wrapped her arms around him and affectionately rubbed her face against his. "Oh, I've seen a baby imp before. He's so cute!" Dusk was left sitting on the ground, looking up in confusion with a deadpanned expression, "Eh…?" he muttered.

"Wait, wait! What's his name?!" asked Fluttershy, ultra giddy, having a very cheerful smile on her face.

Spike spoke up. "I'm Spike!" greeted the little imp in a friendly tone, shaking Fluttershy's hand.

"Hi Spike, I'm Fluttershy. Oh, it's very nice to meet you."

The imp boy snidely chuckled at this development. Things were starting to get very interesting for the little imp. "Well, well, well. Looks like somebody's interested in getting to know me. So, what do you want me to tell you?"

"Absolutely everything," said the animal hobbyist. In the midst of this conversation, Dusk glared at Spike, flashing daggers directly at his former assistant/foster brother as a cross-shaped vein formed on his forehead. He immediately learned two things. The first thing was that this was exactly like the situation with Rarity, only with a role reversal. The second thing was that both of them knew what was going to happen here. Spike was going to tell Fluttershy his life story, and she won't look in Dusk's direction. Spike was going to enjoy every minute of this, and there was nothing Dusk Shine could do.

"Okay," Spike said smugly as he walked beside Fluttershy. "Well, I first started out as a young little demon, having been summoned from some unknown dimension…"

The following was the worst five hours of Dusk Shine's life. From every time-out Dusk got to the embarrassing braces he wore in his tweens, Spike spared no detail about himself or his interactions with Dusk and his family. He even told Fluttershy about his smartypants doll. "HOW DARE YOU, SPIKE! THAT CONTRACT WAS SIGNED IN BLOOD!" Thought Dusk with a vein on his forehead and the look in his eyes clearly showing maximum levels of anger and irritation. Dusk was glaring, furiously, at Spike, thinking of how Spike had betrayed him; the trio had finally reached the library.

"…And that's the story of my whole life!" Fluttershy happily nodded, having intently listened to every word Spike had said. "That's amazing!"

"Oh yeah, my big bro and I will be staying in Ponyville's Library until the festival ends!"

"The Ponyville Library! You mean that old library in the tree?" Gulped Fluttershy as she began to shiver. "Is something wrong?" Dusk asked, arching an eyebrow not really seeing what was wrong. Fluttershy now had an aura of dread as her left eye showed no light and her hair covered her right eye. "That's the scariest place of all after the Everfree Forest…It's the most haunted place in all of Ponyville and it is haunted by the previous owner of the library, Madam Artemis Fowl." Fluttershy explained with her legs trembling.

Dusk just chuckled at this absurd story. "Haunted? Seriously? I don't think a simple building is scary enough for ponies to say that." Dusk then turned around and took a look at the actual place; a large bead of sweat fell from his forehead, the whole thing made his old clubhouse look like a 5-star hotel. "This is the place Princess Celestia wants me to live in?!" Spike merely nodded at that looking over at the address once again. "Y..yup, it's written right here, big bro." Fluttershy got in front of the duo and spread herself to block their path. "See, I told you. Not even the adults come around here!"

Dusk scoffed, clearing his throat while pushing Fluttershy aside. "Excuse me, but I don't believe in such things as ghosts, things like ghosts and spirits are just part of some old superstition, those are just mere beliefs. Unlike magic, there is no real data or believable registers for such things." Dusk began lecturing unaware of the white shadow rustling inside the library, he smugly explained all of this to Fluttershy who nodded with a happy smile. "Wow, Mr. Shine, you're really smart." She blushed a bit at hearing his lecture on ghosts and spirits, making her feel safe to hear they weren't real.

Dusk nodded, pounding his chest and smugly smirked, "But of course, back in Canterlot, Princess Celestia used to call me the best student she has ever had in a century."

Spike chuckled while leaning on Dusk's side, "And everyone else just calls him insane." Teased Spike, to which Dusk glared, pointing off into the distance.

"Say isn't that one of your birds over there?" Fluttershy turned to look to where Dusk was pointing; with a mighty fist strike, Dusk bonked Spike right on the head, knocking him to the ground with a large bump on his head. "I' don't see any of my birds?" Fluttershy retorted, to which Dusk replied, "Really?" "Oh, but what happened to that little imp?" Asked Fluttershy, Dusk merely shrugged and replied, "I guess it's time for his nap, he is a growing boy, you know."

"Oh, poor thing," Fluttershy said with concern. "You must simply get him to bed…you know, he's baby, after all. Well, see you later, Mr. Shine; I got to get back to my singing practice."

"Goodbye Fluttershy, I promise to take him straight to bed. Also, please call me Dusk. I'm still 17, so I can't be called a "mister", yet." He gently smiled at Shy with his face slightly glowing red.

Fluttershy gave a nod and smiled ever so sweetly, "Oh my, what a coincidence, we are the same age…Well then, goodbye Dusk." Shy gently smiled, revealing both of her eyes as she looked at Dusk as she walked away. Dusk once again blushed hugely as her cute smile was near hypnotic.

Shaking it off, Dusk cleared his throat and regained his composure. "Now that we've got some time, I'd better start my investigation of Nightmare Moon. "Dusk declared now once more serious.

"Do you actually want to stay in this place, big bro?" Spike asked in worry.

Dusk chuckled and retorted, "It's a library, Spike; nothing is going to hurt us."

"Just look…the movers left our things outside, they didn't even want to go inside," said Spike, holding a badly written note in large childish block letters on bubble printed notepaper. "I'll have to report that to their superiors; I think the shift leader was named 'Ditzy', or something!" he said looking at Spike as he stood in the dark entryway.

"Big bro…I don't want to stay in here, its dark and scary!" snickering echoed throughout the dark room from Dusk. "Spike, don't tell me you get scared of a tale meant to scare little kids?" taunted Dusk as he walked deeper within the library. "That, coming from the guy who believes in Nightmare Moon?" Spike shot back. "Th-that's different."

It was too dark for the duo to see, prompting Spike to shout, "Oh, come on, could you please do something with the lights?"

"Hold on, give me a sec," Snapping his finger, Dusk's gem lit up on his forehead; a sly smile quickly formed on his face once the light came on. "Spike, I think you should learn a little from me. Look, I'm totally calm before this darkness, prepared for any possible…"

"SURPRISE!" shouted a pink haired girl hanging upside down from the ceiling just an inch away from Dusk's face, causing the young fae to scream in horror and fainting to the ground.

Dusk groaned as his eyes opened seeing Spike calling out to him. Facepalmed; he sat up and asked Spike, "What happened? I can't remember."

"Well, bro first we got inside. Then you turned on the lights and passed out." Spike explained, leering at him as he tried recomposing himself. "Oh! You also screamed like a little girl!" giggle the mysterious girl, hanging on the ceiling while throwing confetti; Spike replied with a "haha." Dusk turned, becoming irritated by the pink haired girl. "Yeah, that was the best part!" she added, throwing in another giggle at the end.

Dusk raised a brow at her, becoming really weirded out this odd piñata girl hanging precariously from the ceiling; he was, also, surprised by the fact that, while slowly spinning, he got a glimpse at her large cleavage. The girl grinned, widely, pulling out a pair of scissors from her back pocket and cutting herself down; she hit the ground, but instead of a thud, there was a silly squeak sound. She, then, waltzed over with a big grin. "My names Pinkie…Pinkie Pie, but you can just call me Pinkie, 'kay cutie?" Spike gasped ashe pointed at her. "I remember you!" Dusk just rolled his eyes with an annoyed sigh. "I remember her, too, Spike. So, why are you invading my house?" said Dusk in a deadpanned tone.

"Why? Well, the reason why is because I had just set up your own super epic big surprise welcome party for you!" she shouted loudly, and with great pride as a huge flash of smoke, lights and confetti explode; standing behind her, more people appeared, flooding Dusk's house with a wide grinning, busty pink-haired girl flailing her arms in excitement.

Of course, a surprise party, what are the odds? I swear, it's like the universe, or God, hates me.

"So, so, so, were you surprised, huh, huh, huh?" said a high-pitched voice that Dusk found irritating.

The annoyance rambled as Dusk walked over to get a well-deserved drink, "Very surprised. Libraries are supposed to be quiet." He glared looking back at Pinkie who just had this big dopey grin on her face. "Oh, please, what kind of welcome party would that be if it was quiet?! I mean, duh! Boring!" She skipped following Dusk to the punch bowl.

"Y'see, I saw you when you first got here, remember? And I've never seen you before, and if I've never seen you before, which means that you're new to town since I know everyone in town and I mean everyone in Ponyville! And if you're new, that means you haven't met anyone yet, and if you haven't met anyone and if that's not enough since we run in syndication and I haven't met you yet, so that means I'm either in a rerun or fanfic?"

"So, which is it: Rerun or fanfic? Rerunfanficrerunfanficrerunfanfic…anyway, then you showed up as a cute bishounen! And if you're a bishounen, then that means I'm in a shipfic! So, if I'm in a shipfic and you're a cute bishounen, then that must mean I'm one of the female leads! And if I'm one of the leads and I saw you before anyone else, then that puts mean in like the lead in Akamatsu logic, that must mean I get to have you in the end, because finders-keepers losers-weepers, right?" Winked the odd girl who to Dusk was speaking gibberish.

"Oookay, since I didn't understand half of what you just said; then, that's pretty obvious, since I moved in today," explained Dusk as Pinkie was still talking despite him interrupting. Does she ever stop talking and what's Akamatsu logic? Is that a Yamato thing?"

"Oh and also if you're new in town then that must mean you don't have any friends yet and if you don't have any friends, yet, then you must be sooo lonely and that makes me sooo super sad!"

Sweet, Celestia, if I spend another minute with this girl, I might go completely insane! Thought Dusk as he refused to make eye contact. He poured himself a cup from what appeared to be a soda bottle and placed a straw in it as Pinkie continued to ramble on. "Then, I had an idea! I'd throw a great big ginormous super-duper welcome party and invited everyone in Ponyville! You know, it was hard to find some people who were willing to come here. A lot of people didn't come or just ran when I mentioned this place. But, anyway, this is a real fun party!" right when he took a sip, he felt something off with the drink. "So, are you having fun?" she giggled playfully, only to have Dusk dramatically spit out his drink all over her face.

Dusk ran out of the room, screaming "Water! Water!" as he dashed through the large crowd. Everyone just looked at him with confused and surprised expressions. Looking at the bottle, Spike picked it up and read the label, "hot sauce" however; his attention turned when he saw Pinkie Pie licking her face and exclaimed, cheerfully, "Yummy!" Deadpanned; Spike stared at her with a large droplet of sweat on her forehead, along with everyone else around her.

Late at night, Dusk was sitting in front of an old well outside of the library since all the sinks in town were currently being used to fill up tubs for bobbing apples, brooding as he stared at the night sky. Depressed he sat there, feeling the night air blowing into his hair. "I was suppose to come here in the name of Celestia, but…since I came here, I've been hurt, violated, kidnapped, and almost poisoned." sighed the young fae loudly in utter depression. "I've been her apprentice since I was a little colt, and I've always trusted her. But…she sends me here like she was trying to get away from me. I wonder what she was thinking sending me here?"

"Maybe she has something big?" remarked Pinkie Pie, her head popping out of nowhere, her eyes the size of dinner plates with cute rosy cheeks shimmering in the night.

"Where the hell did you come from?!" shouted Dusk in a deadpanned and shocked tone, which matched his stunned jaw dropped face.

"Secret!" exclaimed the pink-haired girl, giggling as she got behind Dusk and placed her back against his. "Big bro, I've been looking all over for you!" turning his attention, Dusk Shine saw Spike waddling up the hill towards them. "I'm sorry, Spike…I just needed some fresh air." Spike saw Pinkie alone with his big brother and grinned sinisterly, "You sure that's it? I mean your up here all alone with the party planner; you sure you weren't making some 'magic' with her?" taunted Spike, placing a hand over his mouth and letting out a slight chuckle. Pinkie whistled innocently as a halo appeared over her head. "No, Spike, no danger here and don't bother asking me to come back down to the party, no you or miss funbags, over there." Dusk pointed his thumb at Pinkie at the end of the sentence.

"Why not? There's plenty of time until the ceremony begins and I was only joking if that's why?" Dusk glared back at Spike in a very cruel way. "No and that's not why; you want to know why I don't? Fine, it's because I think parties are ludicrous and a complete waste of time!" he said, calmly and seriously, with a dark tone in his voice. Pinkie overheard and her expression became dark and blank. "How can you say that about parties?!" screamed Pinkie as it echoed throughout the night. "Eh?" was all Dusk could say. He was totally stunned as a bead of sweat formed on his temple. "How can someone say that about parties?! Don't you know that parties are an important part of life?! They fill the hearts of every creature with joy and happiness!" grabbing Dusk by the hand, she glared at him and pulled him with force. "If you think so, then I have no choice."

"Wait, where are you taking me…miss Pinkie!" Dusk tried to protest, but could not free himself from Pinkie Pie's strong grip. Wherever the young girl was taking him, it was going to be somewhere he wouldn't like.

To Be Concluded
> Lesson 1C: Mio Amore, No Me Gusta 
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"This is Ponyville's trademark celebration! The Summer Sun Celebration!" Dusk and Spike were led out from the library and were brought to the center of town by Pinkie Pie; the large festival taking place amazed them. "There are games, lots of yummy food, and a ton of fun! People from all over Equestria come here to have fun with their friends! You're gonna love it!"

Indeed, the festival was fantastic, so many different types of food from across Equestria and a lot of game stalls with people of all ages, smiling and laughing at their enjoyment. "I see…this does seem amusing," Dusk remarked, examining everything around him. "Back in Equestria the Celebrations, there, sucked, and the Summer Sun Celebration, there, was always brief; the only highlight was Celestia raising the sun," Said Spike, following Dusk from behind. "See, See, these kinds of parties brings friends and families together." Pinkie pointed it out, cheerfully hoping up-and-down while seeing a family of harpies enjoying the event.

"Wow, Pinkie, that is amazing!" said Spike being very impressed, he found the festival pretty cool and, so was Pinkie's outlook on life. "That's why I love parties! It brings out the best in everyone!" Pinkie giggled again as she skipped around the stalls followed by Dusk, who just shot a glare at her, still annoyed with her, but didn't want to say anything.

Dusk had had enough of Pinkie and walked passed her, standing on top of another hill and stared at the moon. "Is something wrong, Dusky-Wusky? Don't you want to play any games?" Asked Pinkie, looking afraid and concerned for Dusk who reverted back to his depressed and saddened state. "Yeah, big bro, we came all this way and we hadn't have any fun!" Dusk shivered another outburst building up now. "Fun…" Dusk scoffed, trialing a bit while building up a sentence. "YOU THINK I CAME TO PONYVILLE TO HAVE FUN?! BECAUSE I WANTED TO?!"

"All I came to do was prepare for the coming of Nightmare Moon! I don't have time for fun!" Growled the young fae, looking at Pinkie in the eyes with utter disdain. Lowering her head, Pinkie's hair started to deflate, not that Dusk noticed or even cared about. "Right now, I should be doing something way more important than this!" Dusk slammed his foot down, receiving a "Big bro…" from his imp assistant in grimace. "So I would really be grateful…if you could leave me alone." Unbeknownst to the young fae, Pinkie's arms reached around Dusk's neck…then, next thing you know it, he was pulled into a powerful hug with his face pressed against Pinkie's chest, he couldn't help but smell her, noticing the scent of cotton candy and pure honey; his face turned red as he felt the soft and squishy feel of Pinkie's well-formed mounds; her hair was even poofyer than before. "Ah! Don't be silly, you're just grumpy because you have no friends to have fun with! So why don't we start by being friends?!" Dusk blushed very deeply once he was friend from her grasp. "Hehe!" Pinkie giggled; Dusk's jaw dropped, nearly touching the ground, with his nose starting to bleed, still feeling the sensation of Pinkie's breasts.

"What was all that about?!" Shouted Dusk, once again at a loss with Pinkie, she just shrugged and giggled. "My grandma told me that hugs are the one thing that takes the anger away, haha!" Flabbergasted; Dusk didn't believe Pinkie Pie, finding the explanation ridiculous and bizarre, especially for a woman of her "gifts". "No way that would work!" pitted Dusk as he crossed his arms. "Kay, kay, now that you're happy, let's go and play some games! Come on, I'm going to win myself an enormous Ursa Major Plushie!"

Facepalmed; Dusk tried to correct himself, saying, "No, I mean is…" but he was interrupted when Spike remarked, "Come on, big bro. The world isn't going to end if we have a little fun…right?"

"Well, yeah, how 'bout a smooth for good luck?" said Pinkie, pecking Dusk on the cheek while wrapping her arms around his. Dusk chalked it up as "Not one of the weirdest things that happened today," and mentally prepared him for the worst. "Now let's play some games!" Declared Pinkie, pumping her fist in the air and dragging Dusk to one of the stalls, again, though he seemed to be in a slightly better mood. However, four dark shimmering stars gathered around the moon, coming into alignment as the image of the "Mare in the Moon" began to vanish.

People gathered around in the Town Hall, making idle chitchat as they clambered with anticipation. Rainbow Dash, on the other hand, hung at the rafters, stationed to prevent sudden gusts of wind. She possessed a bored look on her face due to still being stuck on duty; Rarity, standing on stage near Mayor Mare, remarked on how fabulous her work was; AJ and her brother, Big Mac, were standing in the front row with Applebloom sitting on her brother's shoulders with a cute smile. "We'll get to see the princess, right?" Asked the little girl, to which her brother gave her an "Y'up." Finally, Fluttershy was standing with her birds, telling them to get ready for the show.

Dusk walked in with Spike walking beside him and Pinkie Pie holding an Ursa Major plushie. "This is going to be exciting, isn't it?! I know I'm excited!"

"Uh yeah, Miss pinkie," said Dusk a bit on edge. Time was running out, hoping that Celestia would have called his brother, Shining Armor, in case of an unexpected crisis. Dusk Shine looked around, taking notice of the Royal Guard, but no sign of his brother.

The Mayor of Ponyville, Mayor Ivory-Scroll Mare walked up onto the podium; clearing her throat, she announced to the entire audience, "Ladies and gentlemen, I thank you all for taking the time to stay up and witness this special occasion, for this day will be a day to remember! It is my greatest pleasure to officially introduce, and welcome, our guest of honor, our ruler and protector, the sovereign of the three tribes, Princess Celestia Equestria!" declared the Mayor with joyous passion; however, when the curtains flew open, there was nobody there.

However, there was a malevolent black pentagram appearing on the spot with a circle at the end of each star tip, each carrying elemental runes of earth, fire, water, air, and darkness, in the center surrounded countless runes and a crescent moon symbol; coming out of the circle was an irie, yet seductive, voice: "Greetings, my loyal subjects, did you miss me?" "T-that's not the princess!" shouted Pinkie in shock at seeing a dark form appearing out of the circle. Dusk looked and growled in rage. The dark shape took form, turning into a tall, beautiful woman with dark, demonic eyes, sharp fangs, and long, violet translucent hair that sparkled like the night sky; she was dressed in dark bronze gladiator top with her arms covered in armored sleeves and fingerless gauntlets, a helmet with a white gemstone in the center, and a long violet skirt that reached down to her legs, along with a series of tentacles made out of her own shadow.

"My children, my precious subjects…rejoice. Your true queen has returned, enjoy this celebration for it will be your last; daylight shall never come again and the night shall rule over the realm for eternity." The woman cackled loudly, echoing through the town hall filling everyone with fear and dread as her shadow came to life and destroyed the ceiling, exposing the sky, revealing no sunrise, but only unholy night.

To Be Concluded…
> Lesson 2A: Nightmare Moon
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The mysterious woman appeared on stage, cackling loudly, "Ah, it's been so long since I've seen your precious sun-loving faces." Silence fell over the hall, as everyone looked up at the dark, translucent-haired woman in azure armor. There was shock, confusion, and fear evident on the faces of everyone, all but one…Dusk Shine, who glared at the woman with an unafraid stature.

Throughout the hall, the same question escaped nearly every man, woman, and child present: "Where is Celestia?" Yes, everyone asked over and over again, much to the annoyance of the shadow woman. "Thou long for Celestia? Does my crown no longer count, since I have been imprisoned for a thousand years? Am I no longer worthy of your devotion?!" Roared the dark entity loudly at the frightened crowd.

Dusk was flabbergasted as he watched the scene unfold, completely ignoring Spike while he shuttered and exclaimed, "B-big bro!" Mayor Mare stood as intimidating as she could with her face as angry as plain as day, "What have you done to our princess?!" demanded the mayor; clearly a woman of courage, she stood tall for those under her chagrin. "Do you really want to know?" teased the dark woman, flashing a malevolent grin at the mature mayor. "Royal guards! Seize her! Only she knows where the princess is!" the mayor ordered, watching the guards charge at the mysterious woman; the woman just smirked, finding this spectacle rather amusing.

A pair of harpy guards zoomed at her, dive-bombing towards Nightmare Moon as she cackled, "Oh, such stubborn children!" she shouted as lightning was cast down upon the guards, electrifying them severely as they all fell to the ground; two more guards appeared from a different direction with Nightmare Moon, simply, laughing maniacally as tentacles appeared from her shadow, striking at them right in their abdomens and sending them to the ground, like the others, as they squirmed in pain. All spectators were shocked as they watched her display of cruelty and power; the tentacles then grew jagged mouths and encircled the guards. "Did you really think you could lay a hand on me? Insignificant creatures like you have only one purpose in this world…to serve as a meal!"

The woman's face shifted wickedly as the tentacles shot down at the guards to devour them; just then, out from the crowd zoomed a rainbow and cyan streak. A powerful kick knocked the tentacles together and sent them into hitting the observation deck. Flying up in the air was Rainbow Dash with an angry expression on her tomboyish face. "Oh, what do we have here? A young naysayer who defies me? That look in your eyes is of that of pure courage and determination, meaning that you are truly foolish and not grasp an understanding of the situation."

The cyan harpy growled, and then snorted, angrily, "I don't know who the hell you are, but there's no excuse for trying to eat other people!" Glared dash as she hovered in the air as everyone watched in awe of her bravery, the evil demon just smiled, sly and rather arrogantly as she looked the little defender over.

"Aw, what an adorable harpy. I am a queen that listens to her subjects. Tell me, what can your queen do for you?" Teased the demon woman. Dash listened to the offer, becoming sickened by the arrogance.

"Oh really? Well, your 'highness,' what I would really like is…that you return to the damned hole you came from!" Dash shouted as she zoomed down at Nightmare Moon in super-sonic speed, putting the guards to shame.

"Oh, little one, do you really think you can harm me?!" Dash thrust her legs, preparing to land a kick on the woman; however, the woman disappeared into a cloud of black smoke, smothering Dash and sending her crashing against a wall. Dash was truly shocked and so was everyone in the room.

"Eh? I flew right through her. How? No! That damned monster escape!" Dash looked around as she hovered in the air. Dash looked down, wondering why everyone was still looking so shocked and scared. "Grrr…I swear, I'll give her a good kick…in the…ass…" Feeling an evil aura, Dash was unaware that Nightmare Moon was right behind her; she had Dash cradled between her wings and grinned evilly as her mouth contorted and became full of fangs and her jaw unhinged with a dark magical light festering inside of it.



"Rainbow! Look out!" screamed Fluttershy; Dash gasped, her eyes becoming wide in shock. In a giant flash of light was a giant magical blast of dark energy shooting out of Nightmare Moon's mouth. All of this was happening in a split second, yet time was standing still as Rainbow Dash slowly turned around with fear now on her face. There was a huge explosion as smoke engulfed the area; Dash fell lifelessly towards the ground at high speed. Dash focused his mana, catching Rainbow with a spell and setting her down.

"RAINBOW! Rainbow! Please be okay…" Fluttershy tearfully shouted, flying down to her childhood friend with tears in her eyes as she cradled her close, looking over with great concern.

"Impressive, you saved her just in time. That protection spell was effective enough to reduce the impact from my Eclipse Cannon just in time. She would've been turned to ashes by now if it weren't for you. You have my respect, young fae." Sneered the evil woman as she landed very gracefully onto the ground without even making a sound. "Dusk Shine?" Fluttershy looked to Dusk as all this was explained; a blush appeared onto her buttercream face at his firm and brave stance.

"Tell me, young fae; from the look in your eyes, I can tell that you've been preparing for this day by looking into your eyes, but do you know who you are standing up against?" cackled the evil woman once more, she seemed to love the sound of her own voice.

"Ooh, ooh I think I can figure that out, I just love guessing games! Ooh, ooh, um, Hokey Smokes! How about…Queen Meanie! No! Black Snooty!" Squealed Pinkie as she got between Dusk Shine and the mystery woman with a huge playful grin on her face. "This is the best stage play ever!" she shouted, happily, jumping in place with her breasts jiggling. Dusk and Nightmare just flashed a deadpanned stare at this display of Pinkie's misunderstanding, having a large droplet of sweat appearing on their temples.

The semi-suave/semi-nerdy magician sighed as he used his magic to move Pinkie behind him. "Stand back, this is all on me." Standing tall, Dsuk was face-to-face with the demon woman, trying to regain with composure. "I know who you are. You're the 'Woman in the Moon'…Nightmare Moon!" Dusk declared to all the Ponies to whom all were shocked and surprised. Even the girls responded, surprisingly, as well.

Rarity: "Oh Celestia!"

Applejack: "It can't be!"

Pinkie: "Who?"

Afterwards, Dusk heard the cries of everyone else within the Hall: "That's not possible!" "It's a lie" "Isn't that just an old fairytale?!"

"Well, well, well...it seems that someone here does remember me. Then, you also know why I'm here." Dusk gulped with a somewhat reluctant nod. Nightmare Moon turned around to face the audience and announced, regally, "Oh, my children. Fear not. Rejoice! The sun has fallen so the night may last forever! And you'll witness the birth of a new era; an era of total darkness with me as your new Queen!"

Dash winced and groaned as her head bled over her barely opened left eye as she looked at Dusk who stood in front of her almost protectively as her dear old friend, Fluttershy, held her. "Fluttershy, wha-what happened?" Rainbow coughed at a loss, everything had just happened so fast and thought that she should've been dead by now.

"Dusk Shine…he-he saved you, Rainbow, he used a magical barrier to shield you from the blast and then caught you from falling," Fluttershy explained, to which Dash was in awe blushing deeper.

Children clung to their mothers in fear s Nightmre Moon shot her long hair at Dusk grabbing him by the neck with her right hand by the neck before he could do anything while pulling him closer to her. "And you, noble fae, would you honor me by stating your name?"

Dusk merely huffed, standing tall while looking unafraid, "My name is Dusk Shine, Princess Celestia's most loyal student." Proudly declared Dusk, to which Nightmare Moon raised a brow.

"Ah, so you're Celestia's prized pupil. Well, Dusk, in the end, anything that belongs to Celestia…" she pulled Dusk even closer than before, almost to her face. "…Will be mine." She then pulled Dusk into a lewd kiss while having a wicked look in her eyes, as she pushed him away. "Even her most loyal student will belong to me! We shall meet again, Dusk Shine!" Chuckled Nightmare Moon maniacally as she disappeared, leaving only a puff of smoke behind.

Both Rarity and Dusk were stunned to silence, the former fainting from all this drama, especially since she had just witnessed her new found prince having his first kiss stolen by queen of evil, which shocked dusk Shine so much that a million thoughts coursed through his head now, including how good it felt to lock lips with her which is something he never wanted to admit. Snapping out of his daze, Dusk needed to do some research on the situation and what better way to do that than at the Ponyville Library. So, without hesitation, he ran out of Town Hall and headed straight home with Spike by his side.

Unbeknownst to him, Rainbow Dash took notice of this and became suspicious. Where the hell is he going? She thought; despite being injured, Rainbow still managed to stand up and prepared to follow him, telling the other girls to follow him, wanting the exact same answers as he did, leaving the crowd in a panic while the remaining members of the Royal guard tried to keep the crowd calm.

To Be Concluded
> Lesson 2B: Nightmare Moon
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

A few-hours-ago…

Canterlot—the capital city-state of Equestria and the headquarters of the imperial family, as well, as the cultural epicenter of the entire country; today was a day just like any before as the "Imperial Council" and the "Knights of the Square Table" gathered in one place to discuss this years' Summer Sun Celebration, sitting at the same large, rectangular table under their square nook. Walking into the room, a woman with long ethereal hair, pale, beautiful skin, magenta colored eyes, a white gem on her forehead, and a mark resembling the sun on her right hand, wearing a long white gown with golden bracelets on her wrists, a gold sash around her waist, yellow heels, and a golden tiara with a purple in the center, appeared before everyone. It was no other than Princess Celestia who was now sitting down at the head of the table. "It's good that you are all here today; as you know, every year, the Summer Sun Celebration is a time when I raise the sun and bring light upon the world, commemorating the coming of the summer solstice, which is adjusted to the new waning schedule, and I have selected Ponyville for the honor, this year, if you can call it that, am I right?" winked Celestia, taking her tea cup and raised it to her mouth to take a few sips.

Iron Justice, the captain of the Square Table, chuckled with a slight smirk, "Yeah, it's a disaster for a town to set up, especially since we only tell them about it three days ahead of time, it's a laugh riot to see them get all worked up, thinking up events about what we knights should do, including who is going each time." The gray-haired man laughed heartily, being the jokester of the group.

Swift Ace, however, was the only one to see through the princess's façade and into the sadness within her. "So, um, since it's me and Silver Lance this time we'll all be going together, right Princess?" she nudged Celestia, trying to get her attention.

"Of course, Swift, you know how I enjoy spending time with all of you, Silver, Iron, and everyone else in my dear inner circle; my closest friends, yet only two must come with me while the rest stay in Canterlot to maintain their stations in case of emergency." Smiled the elegant sun-goddess, as always, her kind, yet sorrowful, smile pulled the heartstrings of Swift Ace who loved the princess with all her heart.

"Pardon me, princess, it seems that a scroll has just arrived," Interjected Raven, Celestia's advisor, readjusting her glasses as she opened the scroll. "Oh, it's from Dusk shine, allow me to read it. Surely, it's must be a rather impressive research finding." Raven looked upon the scroll with a small grin; however, it faded into a deadpanned expression as she handed it to the princess.

Celestia read the scroll, arching a royal brow before giggling, "Oh, that dear boy, so concerned about the woman in the moon, I suppose I should reply post haste, such a silly little child, as always." She rolled her eyes as she sent the message.



Soon enough, Celestia, along with Swift Ace and Silver Lance, were preparing to head over to Ponyville as they rode in the royal chariot and soon landed near town hall. Celestia exited the chariot, followed by her two guards. The sun had already gone down and night had already begun, Ivory Scroll, AKA Mayor Mare, had been the first to greet them, bowing in front of Celestia, Swift, and Silver.

"It is an honor to have you here in our esteemed town hall, your highness, I have cleared out my office so you can get ready." Grinned the mayor, seeking approval from her monarch, Celestia merely nodded with a gentle smile as she headed for the mayor's office.

"Swift, Silver, I need to discuss with the both of you about something important…dismiss all of the guards surrounding the office, have them all go to the gathering stage, that is my order."

Silver was surprised to hear that, "But, princess, that would leave you totally open; what if someone was to attack, I won't allow that!" Shouted Swift in a dramatic tone of voice, which she always used to sound tougher.

"Just do as she say, Swift, if Celestia wants to be alone before the ceremony, then so be it, it's best not to try and argue, okay?" Silver grabbed Swift by the ear like a child and led her outside the office, much to Swifts protest.

Celestia sighed; now, walking to the window, she looked up at the night sky as tears flowed down her cheeks. "One thousand years…it's nearly time for you to come home, oh, when did it start?" Celestia closed her eyes, reminiscing back a long time ago then anyone could possibly live. Opening her eyes, she began wiping the tears on her face; suddenly, she gasped, seeing the image of the woman on the moon vanished before her as a single shooting star fell into the Everfree Forest. "So my redemption begins…goodbye, Dusk, I leave the rest to you." She said to herself before vanishing in a flash of light, teleporting her to the roof and sending up a magical flare.

Celestia stood atop of the weathervane on top of Town Hall as a black cloud encircled her. "Hello Celestia…do you want to see the moon raise one last time? Now, enjoy the Sun, you treacherous manipulator!" the monstrous dark cloud cackled, maniacally. Celestia screamed in agony, but the cloud prevented any sound from being heard, glowing as bright as the sun and ascending straight into the heavens; soon, she became one with the sun, suffering the same fate as the one she loved, centuries ago, as the dark cloud continued cackling in glee.



Present day…

Meanwhile, Dusk had returned to the library and was now flipping through books, hoping to find the one he was looking for among the millions of books within Golden Oaks. Elements, elements, elements…no, this isn't right, there's nothing in this book. No, that's not it, either. Ugh, why can't I find anything on the elements of Harmony?!"

"Yeah…we gotta...stop…Nightmare Moon…" Dusk turned his attention to the sleeping imp lying down on the ground, talking in his sleep as he trailed off between sentences. "You are a baby imp, after all." After tucking Spike into bed, Dusk resumed his search. "Now, how can I defeat Nightmare Moon without the elements of Harmony?"

"And just what are the Elements of Harmony and how come you know so much about Nightmare Moon, huh?!" shouted a high-pitched, tomboyish voice; Dusk looked up, seeing Rainbow Dash hovering above him with her arms crossed and with a glare; she had entered through the open window, demanding answers from the young fae.

"Well, are you a spy, huh?!"

Just as Rainbow had gotten in Dusk's face, she was interrupted by Applejack, "Simmer down, Sally. Ah reckon he knows what's goin' on, don't'cha Dusk?" stated the cowgirl who was much calmer than her athletic rival.

"Wait…I-I agree with Applejack! He did save you, Rainbow!" Said Fluttershy who appeared behind Applejack

Dash snorted angrily, now still glaring, "I don't remember anything about that and even if he did, I didn't ask for his nerdy help!" she then blushed a little at the end.

"Well, he did, so don't you dare lay a hand on him! He's a victim, as well! He was almost violated by that monster!" Chidded in Rarity who had snuck up behind Dusk, wrapping her arms around him and pulling him into a tight embrace, much to Dusk's surprise. Rarity could see it all engrained into her eyes, or rather her interpretation of the whole thing, as the giant demonic woman had enwrapped Dusk within her tentacles and proceeded to force herself onto him. "That evil creature desecrated our poor, noble prince Dusk Shine, violating him and stealing his innocence!"

Deadpanned; Dusk sighed and turned to AJ, "Is she always like that?"

To which, Applejack just rolled her eyes, "Ever since we were kids, Ah barely know her; don't see too much of her since we got outta school."

Dusk also rolled his eyes at that: "Okay, moving on. I read about the prediction of Nightmare Moon. Some mysterious objects called the 'Elements of Harmony' are the only things that can stop her, but I don't know where they are, where to find them; I don't even know what they do."

"The Elements of Harmony: A Reference Guide, doi," Pinkie pointed out with a giggle, having seemingly appeared out of nowhere as she didn't arrive with the others.

"Where did you find that?!" screeched Dusk; he had search high and low for the book in question and yet Pinkie was the first to find it like it was nothing.

"It was under E!"Chimmed Pinkie, taunting the lavender-haired fae in a singing tone before tossing the book to him.

"There are six Elements of Harmony, but only five are known: Kindness, Laughter, Honesty, Generosity, and Loyalty. The sixth is a complete mystery. It is said that the last known location of the five elements was in the Ancient Castle of the Two Goddesses." Dusk lectured, reading out loud. "The castle is located what is now known as the 'Everfree Forest'."

Just then, all of the girls' faces became pale and their eyes became bugged out in fright. "They're…in…the…Everfree…forest!" shouted each of the girls; all of whom were aware of the demonic forest.

"Are you loco in the cocoa, sweetie?! The Everfree Forest?!" shouted Pinkie, grabbing Dusk by the arms in concern, scared of the idea of him travelling to such a place.

"According to this guide, that's where they are. Why? It's just a forest."

Fluttershy was completely shocked to hear him say that; she wondered how someone could be brave enough as to live in a haunted library, stand up against the 'Princess of Darkness', herself, and scoff at the forest; the shy beauty blushing at his bravery.

"I must agree with Pinkie Pie, here. The Everfree Forest is a very dangerous place," Warned Rarity, trying to convince her beloved from getting hurt.

"Well, Ah believe we have ta prepare fer ta trip," chuckled AJ, flashing a sly grin as she winked at Dusk. "Ifin we gotta go, den we gotta go."

"Yeah, AJ's right; besides, I never back down from a challenge!?" Rainbow added, waving her fist and flashing a "bring it on" expression.

Dusk was rather surprised by all this. They' all really care about me this much? This is absurd; I just met them all today; still, I can't put them at risk. Dusk just huffed to them all, now giving them a determined, yet steely, glance. "Listen, girls, I appreciate the gesture, but I think I can handle this on my own. I'll be back as soon as possible.

"No can do, sugarcube. We sure ain't lettin' any friend of ours go into that creepy place alone. We're stickin' to you like caramel on a candy apple," Applejack stated, arguably, with both of her arms crossed. "Especially, if there's candy apples in there. What? Those things are good!" giggled Pinkie, ruining the serious mood.

Dusk flashed a glare. "No, look I'll be back!" his gem lit up, along with his eyes, with a purple glow, followed by a blinding flash of light and Dusk was gone, much to the concern of the others.

"He's gone!" screeched Rarity.

"Wh-what do we do?! We can't just let him wander the forest along?!" Squeaked the shy harpy girl, looking around at the now Dusk-less room.

"What the hell is he thinking?! We got to find him fast!" Dash fumed, hating to be ditched. Events echoed in her mind, lying near death and being saved by him. She had to hate him; she just had to. Dusk made her feel weak; to fix this, to fix her pride, she had to repay her debt. It was the Dashian way.
> Lesson 3A: Honesty and Kindess
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dusk appeared before the forest, standing on the boarder between it and Ponyville. “Okay, here I go. From what the guide, the Elements of Harmony are located inside the Everfree Forest…p-piece of cake.” He walked lightly into the forest, shivering a bit. “A-alright, I-I should be by the opening grove of the Everfree Forest! Now that I’m here, I have to find the elements and stop Nightmare Moon, but where the hell is the castle.” Right in front of the young fae were four crossroads; since there were no signs, he didn’t know which way to go. Suddenly, he heard thumping sounds coming twelve feet from the left. He followed the sounds; his heart racing as beads of sweat fell from his brow. After he got close, he discovered the sounds were coming from pale young man with black hair and dark bags under his eyes; in his hands, he was hammering a straw doll onto a tree, impaling it through the heart with iron nails, which the young fae found pretty peculiar; however, what else was peculiar about the boy was that, in his mouth, he was chewing on the same nails he was using.

The young man stopped, taking notice of Dusk as he turned his attention to him. “Uh, hi, c-could you tell me how to get to the Castle of the Two Goddesses, please?” asked Dusk, slightly intimidated by the strange boy. The boy smiled sinisterly; he answered the fae’s question: “Sure; all you have to do is go straight back to the crossroads and head straight through the center; you’ll have to cross through a cliff, and riven, but once you do, you’ll be there in about…an hour.” He trailed a little, talking while he chewed on the iron nails.

“T-thanks for the help!” Dusk grimace, backing away and sprinting until he was back at the crossroad; he had enough of the creepiness and prayed to whatever god was out there that he wouldn’t run into anything bizarre and disturbing until he made it to the castle.



He walked straight through the center of the crossroads. “O-okay, now that that’s over I can resume finding the Elements of Harmony and stop Nightmare Moon. But, first, I need to find a way down this cliff. Regardless, there’s no time for distractions,” groaned Dusk, unaware that he was being watched by a pair of glowing slatted eyes. Suddenly, Dusk slipped and lost his footing, causing him to fall off the cliff. “Woah!” screamed Dusk, grabbing hold of the ledge, his under-trained and lanky body unable to lift himself up. “So stupid!! How could I end up like this?! If I can’t get out of here, this place will become my grave!” hollered Dusk; placing a foot on another ledge below, he attempted to give himself the leverage upwards; suddenly, the ledge under his foot broke, making him dangle by his one hand. He growled, furiously, trying to hold on as best as he could; unbeknownst to him, the ledge under his hand broke, as well, but before he fell to his death, Dusk felt something gripping at his hand. “Well, well, would you look at that? Looks like the cavalry arrived just in time!” looking up, Dusk was flabbergasted to see a familiar face, letting out an “Eh?” as a droplet of sweat formed on his temple. “Applejack?!” dusk exclaimed, surprised to see the cowgirl hovering above him.

“You’re lucky Ah’m as good as Ah am to track runaway farm animals,” Dusk felt insulted; he shouted, “Are you comparing me to a pig?” Applejack snickered, “Hmm, Ah was thinkin’ more on somethin’ smaller; like a chicken.” “Never mind that! You have to help me up, please, “Dusk begged; now, with a serious expression, Applejack replied, “That’s easier said than done. This ledge is gonna crumble any second now; it would be easier to pull you up, but if I do that, then we’ll both end up in the bottom of this mountain. And staying like this ain’t gonna help, either.” She explained, pointing out every scenario there was. Dusk looked at Applejack with dismay, shouting at her, “There’s gotta be another way we can solve this!”

Applejack paused for a moment; then, she finally spoke. “Ah see only one way to get us out of this mess…but Ah have to let you go,” she stated, closing her eyes as she focused. Eyes widened; Dusk couldn’t believe what he was hearing, he only knew the cowgirl for just a short period of time, but didn’t believe she was capable of something so drastic. “Are you crazy!? That doesn’t make any sense?!” he whimpered, too afraid of his imminent death to comply, knowing full well that if they continued holding on, then both of them will die, but if he lets go, then he will die. How could he make such a choice? “Dusk, do ya trust me? Listen! You’re goin’ to be fine. We’re both going to be just fine. It all comes down to one thing…” said Applejack, having the purest and most trustworthy look in her beautiful, emerald eyes that Dusk had ever seen. Looking at each other, it was like they were staring into each other's souls.

“Those eyes…so beautiful,” he whispered; finally, he released his grip, slowly, descending down the cliff as a sudden feeling of calmness swept across his body. Now, all that awaited for him was the solid ground and the blissful kiss of death, herself. Suddenly, he stopped, but obviously not on the ground. His eyes shot open, seeing Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy catching him in mid-air. “Oh my god, I’m alive” Dash and Fluttershy were at the bottom, so Applejack knew it the whole time. I can’t believe I doubted her,” Dusk smiled, sighing contently as the two harpy girls gently placed him on the solid ground.



Later that night, Dusk met up with the rest of the girls and as they walked in a silence that went way passed awkward, Dusk knew he had to say something to Applejack. Walking up to the cowgirl, Dusk rubbed the back of his head and blushed. “Umm...back at the cliff,” he tried to explain, not used to giving others thanks for his rescue.

“Yeah, what?” asked AJ, a curious look crossed her freckled face.

“I-I just wanted to say...thanks for saving me, and all.” His face was red and flushed with a large amount of embarrassment. “The way you told me to trust you when you were about to let go, I thought you were crazy, but seeing that you knew what you were doing, I shouldn't have doubted you.” 

“I-it's nothin' to worry about, partner.” AJ's hat was now covering her eyes as she walked a bit slowly, hiding the red coloring her cheeks. “I-it's not I was worried about ya, or anythin', y-you were just hangin' there, and Ah thought it be the right thing ta save ya.” So, they' all kept on walking, ready for whatever else would come their way. Then, Dusk finally spoke to break the silence, “So, none of you have ever entered the Everfree Forest?”

“Ugh, heavens no! Just look at it—it's dreadful and it isn't natural at all. They all say it does not work the same as the rest of the world,” chimed Rarity, puffing up her hair a bit, which had a bit of flash. “I wish I had brought my hairspray or perhaps a giant hat. Yes, I have the perfect camouflage print sunhat at home.”

“Not really what I was asking, Rarity,” Dusk rolled his eyes, turning his attention to the others. “This is the creepiest place I've ever seen; what I'm asking is what makes these woods so unnatural? Why do the animals around here are so aggressive? Why does the weather around here contrast to that outside?”

“Nobody knows?!” teased Dash, with a spooky and playful tone. “You know why? Because anyone that's come here have...never...come...out!” she grinned wide and deviously at the end of the sentence.

“Well, that's absurd. There has to be a logical explanation for all this abnormality. High mana concentration, the magical creatures, the bizarre weather...I need to investigate all this further, if I get the chance to do so,” huffed Dusk, unafraid of Rainbow's tale, which caused her to pout a bit.



While the group continued walking, Dash kept boasting on how she had saved Dusk's life, much to his discontent. Just then, a might roar, like a lion's, was echoed throughout the forest. “A manticore!” cried Dusk; the group stopped dead in their tracks and awaited for the beast to come.
> Lesson 3B: Honesty and Kindess
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The monster peered at them with one turquoise eye on the left and a golden eye on the right, staring at the flabbergasted group with its’ mouth wide open while its’ dripping fangs exposed.

“We got to find a way to get pass that thing!” Dusk ordered while taking point.

Oddly enough, Rarity pushed the lavender fae behind while taking a pose. “Can’t let Applejack be the only one to strut her stuff, now can I, my Dusky?” smiled the fashionista, as the manticore lunged. Stepping back, Rarity launched a crane kick right at the beast’s head, knocking him back a bit as it scatted against the ground; getting up, the creature cracked it’s neck and let out a bellowing roar that took Rarity aback, causing her hair to loose its’ volume and height, which made her scream, twirl, and faint on top of Dusk; you could almost see a joyous grin after she landed on top of the boy. Walking up to them, the beast raised its’ claws and was preparing to slash the two in half; unbeknownst to the creature, a large weight jumped on the manticore’s back, causing it to lose its’ balance and began hoping and moving without any control.

“Yeehaw! Giddyup der, ya little doggie!” out of nowhere, Applejack rode on top of the beast like a bull in a rodeo, taking off her Stetson and swung it around in the air as the manticore tried to buck her off repeatedly, bouncing away from Dusk and Rarity before it could do anything else to them. Soon or later, AJ was sent flying into the air and falling right into a bush and getting tangled up in the vines. “W-what the hell?! Ah can’t move!” shouted Applejack, trying her best to get herself free.

The manticore turned its’ attention back to the others; however, the creature was then encircled by Rainbow Dash, spinning around it at high speed while creating a mini-tornado around it, which made the creature dizzy. “I got this! Time for me to do what I do best! Showing off, Dash-style!” Dash’s tactic was proven the least helpful as when the beast roared, it swiped it’s tail at the harpy; unable to dodge, Rainbow Dash was sent flying away into a tree, falling down and landing flat onto the ground and unable to get up.

All of them were out of commission, except for Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy; Pinkie Pie began running around in fear, screaming: “RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!” while Fluttershy remained calm. Walking up to Dusk and Rarity, she stood in front of the manticore, stretching her arms out and trying to protect her two friends. The young, pink-haired harpy, who seemed to be afraid of her own shadow, was standing up to one of the most dangerous, fiercest beasts in the Everfree Forest.

Looking up at the monster, the young girl pounced down with her big cute exposed eyes; seeing this, everyone around her was shocked, screaming at the harpy to get out, including Dusk who shouted, “Fluttershy; what the hell do you think your doing?! Get out of the way!”

“Shh…it’s okay. Oh, you poor baby,” she cooed, in a sweet, motherly tone of voice. The beast stopped in its’ tracks, looking totally confused, yet the manticore became submissive in a matter of seconds as Fluttershy began petting its’ head. “You’re just a harmless, little kitten, aren’t you? I think I know what you need, but it’s going to hurt a bit!” reaching out for its’ paw, Fluttershy grabbed it and pulled a dark, evil-looking thorn right out of the center paw. Suddenly, the manticore’s left eye returned to normal as she disposed of the thorn by throwing it away.

Soon, Fluttershy had the beast on its’ back, purring like a cat as she rubbed its’ stomach. “Aw, you’re just a cute, little kitty, aren’t you?! Yes you are!” everyone was in shock as they were surprised at what was happening right now. Licking her face, the manticore was displaying so much affection to the pink-haired harpy as everyone regained their senses. Dusk had enough time to pry the clinging Rarity off of himself, walk over to Fluttershy, and expressed a confused look on his face about the ordeal that occurred. “How did you know there was a thorn in its’ paw?”
“I didn’t; I just had a hunch after seeing how much in pain it was and just took a chance to help the poor thing. Sometimes, we all just need to show a little kindness.” The pink harpy smiled sweetly to Dusk, causing him to fluster, becoming enamored by the girl’s kindness. Hugging Fluttershy, the manticore put her down and left, allowing the party to move forward.

Up in an ancient castle that appeared to be falling apart, a young fae girl looked at the group through a telescope, watching their every move and became surprised after seeing them deal with the manticore. “I must report this to the empress!” she gasped, heading down from the watchtower and inside the castle.

Lying in a circular, queen-sized bed, Nightmare Moon stared up through the skylight and gazed at the moon. She basked in its’ illuminating glow while scowling in contempt as she took a sip of the crimson wine in her golden chalice. She mentally mocked, “Well, my sister. It seems our millennium-long battle is now at an end.” 

Suddenly, the bedroom doors swung open as the young fae entered hectically. “My empress! The trespassers have made it passed the Manticore! They’re almost on their way to the castle!” the fae screamed in hysterics.

Nightmare Moon turned her attention away from the moon and laughed condescendingly. She stood up and stared at the young girl, walking over to her while revealing her bare, slim body.

The young fae’s face flushed as her mistress approached even further, taking in the image of her beautiful skin. Placing both hands on her shoulders, the demon woman remarked, “Let them proceed! They’ll never get pass the bridge without avoiding the sea serpent, and if they do, I’ll take much amusement from skinning them’ all alive!” she then brushed the side of the girl’s cheek, smiling, “My little Nightingale. That worried expression does not suit the beautiful face of my Shadowbolt captain. Come. Join me to my chambers. I will ease your frustrations.” The young girl sighed amorously as she followed her mistress to her bed, disrobing herself and slid into the covers.

Dusk Shine and the girls continued their journey. After the manticore incident, the young fae boy, made sure to keep his guard up: Be alert! Danger it up ahead! Nightmare Moon still has some more tricks up her sleeve and if I let my guard down… “What’ cha thinking, Dusky?!” Dusk screamed. He fell to the ground, on his back, as he looked to see the busty pink girl standing in front of him.

“Darling!!” Rarity exclaimed. Running to his side, she wrapped around Dusk’s body and squeezed him tight. “My sweet prince! Are you alright?! You’re not hurt anywhere, are you?!” she even began pressing his face against her chest as she affectionately “comfort” him.

Crossing her arms, Dash walked up to the two with an irritated face, stating, “Hey, Rarity! If you don't mind, we have a schedule to keep up before the end of the world!”

“Where are we, anyway?” asked Dusk Shine, examining his new found surroundings as he set foot on the white stoned floor.

It was a large bridge, hovering over a big waterfall on the side of the mountains, there were giant statues of the two goddesses of the sun and the moon, reaching their arms out, attempting to touch the heavens.

“This place is hug!!!” screamed Dusk astonishingly.

Applejack turned and smiled at the fae boy. She remarked, “I was just as surprised as you the first time I was here.” then she turned her attention to Pinkie Pie and said, “you know something, Pinkie. Granny Smith told me...this is the place where Princess Celestia fought Nightmare Moon. That's why they call it...The Valley of the End.”

All Pinkie could say from that was, “Haven't I heard that name before” while staring at the cowgirl with a blank face and a goofy grin.
All of them had stop to take a break. They had been walking for a long time and needed to catch a breather.

Dusk was irritated by the way his party was acting. It was a serious situation they were all in, yet everyone of them took the time to laugh and converse with one another.  Even Pinkie was skipping around as she cheerfully sang: “A party under the sky is starting! Let me give you a tip if you want to be friends...” he thoughts about it while he stood watching them.

These girls...Do they think this is funny?

He even started overhearing his traveling companions.

“Darling, your hair is so pretty!” Complimented Rarity.

Fluttershy blushed and replied stuttering, “You r-really think so?”

Rarity continued, “Oh, but of course! Please, tell me your secret!” with Fluttershy answering, “I...I just like to wash my hair in the lake.”

He then shifts his attention to Applejack and Rainbow Dash's conversation.

“I've never been here beofre? How do you know so much, Applejack?” questioned Rainbow Dash.

Applejack replied straightforwardly, “I came here with Granny Smith and my brother a long time ago.” she received a surprised “Really?!” from an ecstatic Rainbow Dash.

Finally, having enough of it, Dush snapped. He turned around and yelled furiously GIRLS!! CAN'T YOU BEHAVE LIKE ADULTS AND ACT LIKE YOU CARE FOR WHAT'S GOING ON?!”

however, no one seemed to be paying attention. They were all too busy gazing at the beauty of the fall and the sight of the forest they lied below them. Even Pinkie was had a camera out from nowhere as she said to Applejack, “Whoa! Hey, AJ! Come check out this view!”

“hehe...i know, right?” was the cowgirl's response.

Dusk's jaw immediately dropped, nearly touching the ground. He irate, “Are you ignoring me?!”

Rubbing the bridge of his eyes, Dusk Shine clapped his hands with such force, it made a loud, thunderous sound. That then got the girl's attention. “Alright ladies. Recess is over...we must keep going,” he announced sternly, sauntering towards them. “Remember, it was your decision to come with me, so...” as he trailed his sentence. He took a head start forward. He turned and continued, “Let's not waste anymore time!”

They all proceeded pass the bridge. Once they were on the other side, they entered the other half of the forest. Dusk Shine was up a head and was surprised when Applejack started walking beside him.

“Hey sugarcube,” she called.

“Is is true that Princess Celestia Teachesyou herself?”

Dusk arched a brow and answered, “Yes. I receive my lessons directly from her.”

“Oh! I thought the princess was always busy and didn't have time for such things.” the fae boy's response piqued the cowgirl's curiosity. They conversed the entire time while walking up the pathway. She smiled warmly as she looked at the boy.

“She must really care about you very much, sugarcube.”

“Well, every once in a while she has to leave. There are many teachers in the academy, so I attend to one of their lectures. But there is one in particular...who is always there to help me with anything I need when the princess is away. I have great repsect for him...” He corrected the cowgirl. Applejack arched an eyebrow, intrigued by who Dsuk was talking about. Dusk smiled when he mentioned “...Professor Spell Nexus.”

Unbeknownst to the two, their closeness sparked a fire within a certain fae. Rarity growled with animosity as she gritted her teeth. Seeing her Dusk Shine rubbing elbows with another girl made her want to rip her own hair off. Fluttershy was startled by her friend's anger, taking a step back while a droplet of sweat formed on her temple.

Rarity quickly dashed, shoving the country girl to the side as she got into Dusk's face with a blush on her own. “Oh, Mister Shine! I would also love to hear about your exciting and interesting life in the great city of Canterlot!” Dusk blushed at how close the fashionista was, much to the chagrin of Applejack. “I have always dreamed about living in our kingdom's capital! I have trained myself in the subtle ways and the refined manners of the big city.” 

She went on, bragging about how eloquent she was, adding haughtily while smirking at the bumpkin, “My dear Sir, I am sure you will find that discussing your experience at the Royal Academy with an elegant, educated young lady such as myself will prove to be much more rewarding and satisfying than doing so with someone like Applejack...” that hit nail right one the board.

“Woah! Woah! Now you hold it right there, Sugarcube. Just what the hay are you trying to say?” she interrupted in an irritated manner, demanding the fashionista's response.

With a flip of her hair, the violet-haired fae smiled contemptuously, answering as she walked around the cowgirl, “Oh, dear Applejack. What i'm trying to say, my simple and rustic friend, is that Mr. Dusk would rather have a conversation with someone feminine and eloquent for a change.”

stomping her foot, Applejack barked, “that's enough, missy! Despite what you might think, I’m not that dumb! If you continue insulting me then i'm gonna—”

“You're gonna what?” Rarity called out applejack's threat. Then she started taunting, “Oh wait! Let me guess. Taking under consideration that you behave like a wild gorilla than an uncivilized brute...then I suppose you would follow your most basic instincts and threaten me with physical violen-” she was then cut off. Her face contorted when she saw Applejack charging at her.

What-what?! N-now just wait a second, Appleja-

fortunately, it wasn't to attack her. Right when she got close, Applejack tackled the pompous fashionista, saving her from a shadowy figure that nearly assaulted her from out of the blue. Everyone looked and were terrified as hundreds of bloodthirty ravens surrounded them all.

Rarity was in sheer fright, trembling tearfully while mumbling, “T-those things...They...they almost k-killed me...”

Applejack shook her back to reality, telling her loudly, “Get a hold of yourself, Rarity!”

The raven spread their wings, flying up and trying to land another blow.

“Watch out, girls!” Dusk warned.

Rainbow Dash summoned her wings and flew by, shouting proudly, “I got this, egghead!” however, as she got close to them and tried to land a powerful blow, the ravens outnumbered the tomboy, striking her down and causing her to fall. She laid limp, twitching and grown as she bled.

“Rainbow Dash!” they shouted in unison. Fluttershy ran to help tend to her childhood friend while the remaining five held their guard up from another bombardment. This were no ordinary ravens for their eyes glowed sinisterly. They were another one of Nightmare Moon's obstacles ad, this time, it will take all of the six to figure out how to survive.