> Friendship is Empathy II
>  by Trinary
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Friendship is Empathy II
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Friendship is Empathy II

 
Rainbow Dash knew she was in trouble. Twilight is going to kill me. Her distress radiated off her as she flew through town. Her copy of Daring Do and the Flaming Skull of Yakyakistan hadn’t arrived yet, so she had been forced to borrow Twilight’s copy. Since Twilight hadn’t had a chance to read it yet either, Rainbow had to promise up and down that she’d bring it back as soon as she was finished. That was four days (and two read throughs) ago, right before Twilight’s big book-sort-cation thing.
 
Now with the big book sort finished and things back to normal, Twilight would want her book back. And Rainbow was late. She gulped nervously as she knocked on the door to Twilight’s castle; something she still couldn’t completely wrap her head around. She couldn’t help fidgeting as she imagined Twilight’s reaction to her book being late. You could take the librarian out of the library—even blow the library up—but you couldn’t take the library out of the librarian. Since this was a book Twilight herself hadn’t read yet, Rainbow estimated she was in for a good ten minute lecture on the importance of punctuality and literary etiquette.
 
The front doors began to shimmer with Twilight’s magic as they opened up. Rainbow winced in anticipation. Why is there never a rampaging Bugbear around when you need one?
 
Twilight Sparkle stood in the door, her expression impassive. “Hey, Twi!” Rainbow’s put on the large smile she could muster. “So, I was bringing back your book and—” The book suddenly slipped out of her saddlebag and floated over to Twilight, courtesy of her magic.
 
“Thank you. Goodbye.” Before Rainbow could get another word out, Twilight closed the door right in front of her face, leaving her very confused.
 
“What … just happened?”
 



 
That night Rainbow Dash laid back in bed, rereading Daring Do and the Adamant Triskelion. But she couldn't concentrate on it. Something was bothering her ... and she wasn't completely sure what it was. She laid the book down as she went back over her day. Hung out with Applejack, played a few games ... went to see Pinkie to try her new rainbow cupcakes ... gave Scootaloo some pointers … brought that book back to Twilight—her stomach seemed to tighten. Even though she now realized the source of her unease, she still didn't know the cause. Maybe it’s a little anxiety coming off that whole Discord thing. Rainbow frowned in annoyance, thinking at how Discord had delighted in making Twilight feel bad. I guess I shouldn't stay mad, I mean, if Twilight was joking about it and smiling and stuff, then she must be over it. And if she's over it, then why shouldn't we be?

Rainbow laid her head back against her cloud pillow and yawned. Before she knew it she drifting off. Vague images and memories swirled around her—Sugarcube Corner. Rainbow Dash was lying on her back … and her friends were talking. There was a sinking sensation in the pit of her stomach as she almost recognized it … right before she heard Applejack speak up.

“Gotta hand it to the girl, that Mare Do Well sure can pull off some pretty heroic feats.”

Rainbow Dash shook her head. “No no no. Not here again!”

“I must say, I was impressed by that spell she used to fix the dam. Seems like something like that would take quite a bit of study,” Twilight practically purred.

Rainbow Dash knew the words they would say before they even spoke. Fluttershy announced, “She really cares about everypony's safety.”

Then Rarity added, “Have you seen her costume? It is to die for! If you ask me she's a hero of fashion.”

This was too much. Rainbow hadn’t thought of … this in months. Not since her big talk with Twilight and the campfire with the others. She covered her ears with her hooves. “This can’t be happening again…”

“And she's modest and humble,” Applejack spoke up again. “She lets her actions speak for themselves. Gotta admire that.”

Rainbow sank to her knees, her limbs quivering as she felt herself being beaten down by all the familiar emotions as they flooded back to her: inchoate rage against the sheer hypocrisy, the tension, the fear, the shame, the sadness. The others turned to her, each one now wearing the costume of the Mare Do Well. A sob escaped her throat. “Please…” 

"Enough!" A commanding voice seemed to come from nowhere, echoing off the walls. Rainbow was stunned into silence as a bright light emerged from a rip in the air. There were a series of bright flashes. After each one, a Mare Do Well writhed and was reduced into nothingness. The brightness of it almost blinded her, forcing her to hold up her hooves to shield her eyes. Soon it was over and the Mare Do Wells were all gone. Rainbow blinked and rubbed at her eyes. "Rainbow Dash?"
 
Her attention was drawn to her rescuer: a familiar blue and purple alicorn with a shimmering mane of stars. "Princess Luna?"
 
The Princess of the Moon nodded once. "Are you alright?"
 
"O-of course!" Rainbow tossed her head. "Nothing big, just a bad dream. Goes to show I shouldn't eat Fluttershy's scones before bed—especially if she made them right after Tree Hugger came by to visit."
 
"I see." Luna looked over to the where the Mare Do Wells had just been. "Do you often dream of ... her?"
 
Rainbow tried and couldn’t quite suppress a flinch. "No. Not ... recently, anyway." Luna's questioning look compelled her to go on. "I mean, yeah, I used to have some dreams where she showed up. Then I had this talk with Twilight about it, and that pretty much ended that."
 
"I assume that the flute-playing flowers took her place in your nightmares sometime after this talk?" Luna asked. Rainbow grunted, which she took for confirmation. "Why do you think Mare Do Well has made such a return to your nightmares?"
 
"Got me." A suspicious thought entered her mind. "You wouldn't have anything to do with that, would you?"
 
Luna's frown spoke volumes. "Neigh. I do not—would not—induce nightmares in my subjects. Your dreams come from your own thoughts and feelings. Sometimes it is your own subconscious trying to prod you into action." She paused, letting that sink in. Without waiting for an answer, she turned back to the gap she entered the dream from. "The answer to the return of the Mare Do Well comes from you. If you'll excuse me, there are other ponies in Ponyville who need protection from their nightmares tonight, some of them your friends. I wish you a good night's sleep Rainbow Dash. I bid you think on your dream, and what it could be trying to tell you."
 
"Wait—!" Rainbow held up a hoof, not wanting to continue her dream just yet. "You said one of my friends else is having a nightmare?"
 
Luna stopped and turned back. "Yes. Twilight Sparkle's sleep is ... troubled. I am on my way to assist her."
 
"I'll come too!" Rainbow spread her wings. "If Twilight needs help beating up bad dreams, you can count on me!"
 
However, Luna's expression was nonplussed. "Protection of ponykinds' dreams is my task. A pony's dreams are a private affair."
 
But Rainbow wasn't a pony who took being told 'no' easily. "If she needs my help, then I'm going, end of story." Her ear flicked as she thought of something. "And I seem to remember Scootaloo saying something about you taking Apple Bloom on a guided tour of her and Sweetie Belle's nightmares..."
 
Luna grimaced, unable to prevent herself from giving a very un-royal grunt. "Very well. As you will. Come." She spread her wings and flew into the dreamscape. Rainbow Dash joined her a mere heartbeat later.
 
For Rainbow Dash, traversing the dreamscape was an odd experience. It seemed like there was no up or down, just an expanse of something like stars. Then a row of doors appeared. "Whoa..."
 
 "Indeed." Princess Luna dipped her head to one just in front of them, with Twilight's cutie mark. "I require a moment to see what the problem is and—"
 
"No time!" Rainbow Dash surged forward, all but knocking the door down as she rushed into Twilight's dream. "Twilight!" When she saw what was going on, she came to a screeching halt. “Huh?”
 
Twilight Sparkle was standing on a stage before a crowd of ponies. In the front, Rainbow spotted herself and the rest of their friends. Twilight was idly shuffling her note cards, no doubt preparing to give a speech. She was wearing her crown and her dress from when she was coroneted, looking radiant. This didn’t seem like a nightmare.
 
A bright smile was on Twilight’s face as she began her address. “Good afternoon, everypony! I’m here to talk to you about my findings on the Magic of Friendship. I—” Her next words died on her lips as her dress suddenly began to unravel. Twilight stood stock still as her gown fell apart, her eyes going wide. The crowd began to snicker. Flustered, Twilight tried to organize her note cards again, but her hooves began to tremble and they went flying out of her grasp. The laughter began to grow louder as she frantically tried to regain her notes. She tried to grab one with her wing—only for her feathers to begin to fall out.
 
Twilight grew increasingly frantic at her sudden molting, the laughter of the crowd growing louder and nastier. “N-no, please ... I—“ she absently ran a hoof through her mane, growing increasingly panicked when it came away with a clump of her hair. Long strands of her mane and tail fell out it chunks, soon followed by even more mocking laughter. Tears began to well up in Twilight’s eyes, only for her coat to begin to shed. “No…”
 
The laughter was deafening now, a tidal wave that seemed to wash over Twilight. A darkness began to roll in, shrouding the crowd until they were little more than vague silhouettes of ponies—all pointing and laughing at Twilight. The only source of light seemed to shine down from someplace directly above Twilight, drawing more attention to where she stood alone, trembling and helpless.
 
Her coat was gone, simply gone, revealing smooth pink skin underneath. Her wings, without their feathers, looked like frail, tiny twigs attached to her barrel; and her tail looked like a small, wiggly worm. Her bare skin practically shone under the light. All she had left was her crown, a final piece of mockery that only served to highlight her exposure. A deep blush encompassed most of her face as she started to cry in utter humiliation. Cruel, mocking riotous laughter echoed from all around her—including from her friends in the front row.
 
Rainbow Dash, the real one, had been unable to do anything but stand transfixed, too horrified to even process what she was witnessing. But the sight of Twilight crying, and representations of her friends—including Rainbow herself—laughing, shook her out of her shock, her blood temperature spiking. "Knock it off!" In a burst of speed that would have taken her into Sonic Rainboom territory, Rainbow flew towards the stage. “Shut up! Don’t you dare laugh at her!” Rainbow barreled through the crowd, taking inordinate pleasure in knocking her tormentors onto their plots. She buzzed right over the heads of her dream-friends and landed on stage in front of her friend, spreading her wings to protect Twilight from them. “Any of you buckers want to mess with Twilight, you’ll have to go through me—and I have a hoof sandwich ready for all of you!”
 
Twilight gasped as she looked up. "R-Rainbow Dash?" Her voice quavered as she looked up, still trying to feebly cover herself. "W-what...?"
 
Turning her head, Rainbow felt her heart break at the tear-streaked expression on her friends face. She turned away from the shadow crowd and knelt down in front of Twilight. “It’s okay,” Rainbow held Twilight, wrapping her wings around her. “It isn’t real.”
 
Twilight didn’t know what was real—but the sensation of somepony offering her comfort and support was welcome. She collapsed against Rainbow Dash, dissolving into tears as she buried her face in her shoulder. Rainbow rubbed her friend’s bare back and just let her cry, feeling her shoulder grow damp with Twilight’s tears.
 
From the edge of the crowd a brilliant white light began to shine, growing bigger and bigger. Soon the entire scene began to dissolve—the crowd, the stage, all of it—until there was nothing but whiteness. Rainbow made no move to step away from the still crying Twilight, just sitting together in the middle of nothingness. Once Twilight’s sobs began to lessen, Rainbow patted her on the back. “S’okay … you’re doing good.” She turned to see Luna land beside them, the white glow of her horn beginning to diminish. “What kept you so long?” She demanded in annoyance. “Couldn’t you see how much Twilight needed that to end?”
 
"Princess Luna?!" Twilight gasped and looked up, the blush on face deepening at the thought of her fellow princess seeing her in that state.
 
Luna frowned but kept her tone even. “It takes more magic, and more time, to end an entire dream than to simply remove a single hostile element. Unlike your dream, the entire edifice of this nightmare had to be torn down.” She paused, her voice lowering itself. “Unfortunately, I suspect this was not the first time Twilight had this nightmare tonight. Was it?”
 
Twilight shook her head. “N-no, P-Princess Luna.” Twilight sniffled as she stood up. “I—“ she stopped and quickly looked down, seeing that she was still bare and furless. With an embarrassed wail, she dove behind Rainbow Dash. “Don’t look at me! Either of you!” She added, when Rainbow turned to help her.
 
Whirling on Luna, Rainbow glowered. “Why didn’t you fix that?”
 
“It is not part of the nightmare, but a perception of how she sees herself,” Luna explained. She raised her voice to address Twilight. “Calm yourself. You are safe now, and among friends. Breath deeply and focus; your true self will return.”
 
“O-okay.” Rainbow heard Twilight take several slow deep breaths and exhaled, like Princess Cadance had shown her to. “Calm … I’m calm. Calm…” Rainbow chanced taking a peek—and saw Twilight facing away from them as her coat, mane, tail and feathers slowly restored themselves. When Twilight looked herself over, she was relieved to see that she was back to normal. “That’s a relief!” She trotted back to Rainbow Dash and Luna, her cheeks still pink. “Thank you. I’m just so embarrassed you had to see me like that.”
 
You’re not the only one, Rainbow bit her tongue to keep herself from replying. Her own face was more than a little red too. She’d seen much more of Twilight Sparkle than she had ever meant to. Trying to move past it, she forced herself to shrug. “Yeah, well, the ‘sudden molting’ thing is a pretty common nightmare for pegasi.” Rainbow tried to comfort her. “And at least it didn’t happen while you were several hundred feet in the air.” There she didn’t quite have to force a shudder. To have a dream where you were flying only for your feathers to fall out or wings to suddenly fall off were a staple of pegasi nightmares.
 
Twilight, gave a subdued nod. “Thank you … thank you both for ending that—that—“ her breath shuddered. Rainbow put a hoof on Twilight’s shoulder, but Twilight just patted it gratefully. “I’m okay … mostly.” She blinked as she suddenly realized her situation. “Wait, what are you doing here, Rainbow?” Her blush grew a little hotter. “I mean, Princess Luna being here I understand, but…”
 
Rainbow Dash hesitated. “Er, well, you see Princess Luna wanted me to help her—help you and…” Luna loudly cleared her throat, causing Rainbow to flatten her ears. “Alright, truth is, I had a nightmare too.”
 
“You mean you—“ Twilight gestured vaguely, trying to indicate her dream without having to talk about it. “What if this is happening to all our friends? I could be another nightmare creature like the Tantabus! Or—“
 
Luna held up a hoof to forestall Twilight’s panicked conclusions before they could fully form. “Calm yourself. Your nightmares were … distinct,” she cleared her throat delicately. “As I told Rainbow Dash, your nightmares came from within your own minds and not from any creature. I leave it to the two of you to determine their sources and take the appropriate steps.” She turned and headed back to the doorway. “I must go, and protect the slumbers of everypony else. The two of you can stay in this shared dreamspace …it is linked to both your minds and memories. Hopefully you can find your answers there. I wish you the best of luck in your endeavors. But be careful. Memories have inordinate power in this place. Be careful, or you may find yourself lost in them.”
 
“But…” Twilight attempted to marshal her thoughts but couldn’t quite manage it. Seeing her distress, Rainbow draped her wing across Twilight’s back.
 
“It’s okay. We can figure this out, together.”
 
Twilight closed her eyes and nodded, letting out a breath. “Alright. Thank you, Luna.”
 
Luna dipped her head and gave them both one of her signature small, enigmatic smiles. She spread her wings and stepped out of the dreamscape, the door behind her closing shut and dissolving.

Once she was gone, Twilight stepped out from under Rainbow’s wing and began to pace in a circle as she thought. “So, you had a bad dream too? What was it about?”
 
“Nothing,” Rainbow responded instantly. “Well, I mean, it wasn’t that bad. You know when compared—” she winced and fell silent, realizing that reminding Twilight of her recent dream trauma wasn’t a smart move. She rubbed her neck. “I think we should work on your problem first.”
 
For her part, Twilight gulped audibly and trembled, but managed to otherwise largely keep her composure. “Okay.”
 
“So…” Rainbow drew it out, waiting for Twilight to jump in. When she didn’t, she tried to prod her. “Are you afraid of something where you have to give a big speech? Is it a public speaking thing, like Fluttershy would have?”
 
Twilight shook her head. “I—I don’t think that’s it. I felt … I felt…” her shivering was so intense that Rainbow Dash approached her to wing hug her again.
 
“It’s okay, you don’t have to rush it.”
 
Twilight managed a shaky smile. “S-says a lot when you’re the one saying that. But I think it’s like a bandage—easier just to rip the whole thing off in one go.” She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. “I was feeling…exposed. Vulnerable. Like everypony could see right through me.” A tremor entered her voice. “And why shouldn’t they? I’m a fraud! I’m supposed to be the Princess of Friendship! How can I do that when I’m constantly making these huge mistakes?” Tears began to well up again. “Every time I think I’m making progress I get reminded of just how awful I am…”
 
“That’s horseapples!” Rainbow blurted out. “You’re the best friend a pony could ever ask for! Why would you ever think any different?”
 
“But when Discord—“ Twilight got no further than that, because that’s when Rainbow Dash hit the roof.
 
“Feather Discord, alright?! That jerk isn’t worth you getting this upset!” She slammed her hoof down, thinking angrily about all the awful things the draconequus had done. Around them reality seemed to shift. The empty whiteness fell away and was replaced by several scenes from their past playing themselves out in a loop. “What the—?”
 
Twilight looked at the changed setting, her curiosity pushing her sadness aside for the moment. “Princess Luna said that this place was linked to our memories. I guess when you started thinking about Discord—” she gestured. “This came up so we could both see what you were thinking.”
 
Rainbow Dash looked around. “So what, I think about something and now you can see it? That’s getting a little personal. Why would Luna, even ... nevermind.” She facehooved. Tricky move, Luna. “Remind me not to think about … you know.”
 
“I don’t think you have to worry,” Twilight offered a supporting smile. “I don’t think Luna would have your most private moments just appear for me to view. It’s probably more focused on the source of our nightmares.” The memories of Discord faded away after a moment. “Hm, I guess you have to keep thinking about them or else they fade.” Her eyes lit up. “Maybe this is how Luna meant for us to get to figure it out!”
 
“So we’re literally going on a trip down memory lane?” Rainbow rubbed her neck. “Great. Next thing we’ll be taking up scrapbooking and playing shuffleboard.”
 
Twilight chuckled. “Come on, you don’t have to worry about turning into Granny Dash for quite a while. This could be exactly what we were looking for—what Princess Luna intended us to do. It’s like a scavenger hunt!”
 
Not convinced, but not having any other suggestions, Rainbow reluctantly nodded. “Okay. So you said you felt like you were a bad pony because you always made mistakes and stuff?” Twilight nodded, prompting Rainbow Dash to snort. “Yeah, that’s a load.”
 
Taken aback, Twilight closed her eyes. All around them scenes of memories played out. As Rainbow Dash turned to look at them, Twilight spoke up. “How can you say that? Look!” She pointed to a memory, her mane disheveled and her eyes blood-shot. “Just look at the trouble I cause!” Another Twilight appeared, this one in a black body suit, a cut on her cheek and wearing an eyepatch; soon followed by a memory of herself at the wedding rehearsal in Canterlot.

The memory-Twilights seemed to grow larger, and the real Twilight appeared to grow smaller.

Rainbow Dash reared up and rushed over. “Twilight!” She swung a hoof at the future-Twilight memory. To her annoyance, her hoof simply passed through it. “I could use a little help here!”

Twilight lifted her head with what looked like a tremendous effort. “Why fight it? That’s who I am.” 

Rainbow’s temper flared. “No it’s not!” Without intending to, her own memories of Twilight emerged: Twilight bringing the Elements of Harmony together to stop Nightmare Moon. Her using her magic to soothe the Ursa Minor back to sleep. Wearing her All-Team Organizer vest from Winter Wrap Up. Organizing her friends to help the Apples win the competition against the Flim-Flam brothers. Figuring out how to free Ponyville from a power-mad Trixie. Gathering the others to stop Discord. “That’s who you are! Smart, talented, organized, determined. All that other stuff?” She waved her hoof dismissively at the images Twilight had conjured up. “That’s like saying your shadow is who you are. Maybe it’s part of you, but it isn’t you.” The Twilights of Rainbow’s memories grew larger, soon dwarfing those from Twilight’s.

Twilight Sparkle looked up at Rainbow’s memories, as if seeing herself for the first time. Her visions of herself grew smaller, soon fading away. “Thank you,” she smiled at Rainbow.

Buffing a hoof against her chest, Rainbow chuckled. “All in a day’s work. You really are that awesome.” She pointed again to her memories of Twilight, before they too disappeared.

“Maybe I’m alright at being Twilight Sparkle … but as Princess Twilight Sparkle?” She shook her head and sighed. “I’ve made so many mistakes. The other princesses—”

“Okay, hold up.” Rainbow Dash walked over. “Do you really need me to go over all the times the other princesses have messed up royally?” Without waiting for Twilight to deny it, Rainbow concentrated and brought her own memories to life: Nightmare Moon. Princess Cadance and Spike at the Grand Equestria Pony Summit. Celestia looking stern at Cadance’s wedding rehearsal. Tirek’s alliance with Discord. She pointed at each one in turn. 

“Princess Luna turning into Nightmare Moon is obvious, yeah, but what about Cadance dumping all that responsibility on Spike—Spike!—at the Summit without ever offering to help him out or anything, and then she acted all surprised when Spike goofed up. Yeah, that wasn’t a mistake at all.” Rainbow folded her hooves crossly. “Princess Celestia never saw anything wrong with ‘Cadance’ at the wedding and Chrysalis beat her. Then she went and trusted Discord to care of Tirek instead of you. Then when that backfired, big shock, she decided to give you all the alicorn magic in Equestria and told you not to tell us about it. So you stayed away trying to get a grip on all that—which really helped, you know, when Discord and Tirek ambushed us and forced you to give up your magic to save us. That was a great plan.”
 
Twilight stubbornly shook her head, Rainbow’s memories dissolving. “That’s not the same thing!”
 
“Why not?” Rainbow challenged. “You only became a princess a few months ago! They’ve been princesses for years, thousands of years even, and they still screw up! So how come it’s okay for them to drop the ball and not for you?”
 
“Because none of those were about what their duties are!” Twilight argued. “Princess Celestia never misplaced the sun and Luna never dropped the moon or anything. I keep making mistakes in the field that I’m supposed to be the Princess of—Friendship!”
 
Rainbow groaned, getting frustrated. “So, what does that mean? If even one pony doesn’t want to be your friend, you failed?” Twilight hesitated, so Rainbow pressed ahead. “Last time I checked not everypony loves Princess Cadance.” Visions of Queen Chrysalis and King Sombra emerged. “I don’t recall these guys seeing the light and deciding that they love Cadance. Does that mean she’s a bad Princess of Love because not everypony loves her? Hay, ponies’ go through break ups and stuff all the time. I don’t recall Rarity’s crush on Prince Blueblood or Trenderhoof ending well for her. Does that mean Cadance failed?”
 
Twilight shook her head. “No, no of course not…” Rainbow Dash shrugged as if to say, ‘well there you go then.’ She folded her hooves behind her head in triumph. Twilight sighed heavily and sat down. “Maybe I don’t have a realistic expectation for myself as a princess. But what am I supposed to do? Just shrug it off when I fall short?”
 
“Hey, do you know how long it took me to get the Sonic Rainboom down again after my first one?” Rainbow asked rhetorically. “It took years—and I’m awesome!” More memories began to emerge which, to Rainbow’s considerable embarrassment, displayed more than a few of her failed attempts to redo a Sonic Rainboom … resulting in quite a few crashes over the years. “Grr, stupid mind.” Rainbow smacked herself on the head. “Stop trying to undercut me!”
 
Before she could stop herself, Twilight let out a chuckle. “I’m sorry,” she hid her grin behind a hoof. “I’m not laughing at you crashing.” In truth, it was Rainbow’s flustered attempts to get her mind under control and regain her cool. They were rather endearing. “I’ve racked up more than my fair share of crashes.” As if on cue, some of her own more memorable crashes began to play out for them to watch. “Hey!”
 
Rainbow coughed to hide her own barely repressed laughter. “W-well, it’s like flying! Your Princess issue, I mean!”
 
“You mean that I keep crashing and burning?” Twilight grumbled irritably.
 
Dash winced. “Okay, yeah you’re flying is pretty … not-awesome,” she said in what she thought passed for being diplomatic. Twilight facehooved, which about summed up all of Rainbow’s past attempts at diplomacy. That forced Rainbow to quickly add, “But you’re getting better! I remember at the beginning you couldn’t even get your wings to flap in synch! I don’t recall you beating yourself up because you weren’t as instantly awesome as, for instance—”
 
“You?” Twilight quipped, bringing Rainbow up short.
 
“I wasn’t going to say me!” She blustered, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly. “I was going to say, as good as, uh, the Wonderbolts!”
 
“Of course you were,” Twilight agreed in a more successful example of being diplomatic. Rainbow hurried on.
 
“Point is,” Rainbow stressed. “You never gave up on flying or called yourself a failure because you didn’t get it right off. Why’s being the Princess of Friendship any different?”
 
Twilight groaned. “I appreciate what you’re saying, but being a princess is a lot more complicated than learning how to fly.”
 
“Exactly!” Rainbow exclaimed back. “If it’s so much more complicated, then why are you being so hard on yourself for not getting it all?”
 
“Because I—” Twilight stopped herself. “Never mind.”
 
Rainbow Dash wasn’t going to let it go. “What is it?”
 
“It’s nothing.” Twilight turned away from her.
 
“But—”
 
Twilight stood back up and whirled on her. “I said it’s—” her face fell as the memories began to form. The wedding rehearsal again. The ‘overdue’ friendship report. Her future self. But a few others emerged to join them. Herself reading about Nightmare Moon in Canterlot. The parasprites devouring Ponyville. Growing frustrated investigating the Pinkie Sense. Her failed failsafe spell that tried to undo Discord’s chaos. The spell that was supposed to affect the Vampire Fruit Bats, but instead turned Fluttershy into a bat-like creature. Twilight began to hyperventilate.

Seeing the pressure on her, Rainbow hurried to head it off. “Sometimes things don’t go the way they’re supposed to. If they did, I’d never have to practice. Doesn’t make me any less awesome, right?”

“You don’t understand,” Twilight closed her eyes. “It’s not—about that.”

“Then what is it about?” Rainbow darted in front of Twilight.

Twilight looked away. “I—I have to be in control. I can’t fail, can’t break down…”

“Why do you have to be in control?” Rainbow Dash grabbed her head so she could look her eye to eye. “What’re you so afraid of?”

“I’m afraid of myself!” Twilight shouted. Her knees began to shake as another memory was formed. “Please not that one,” she said in a voice just above a whisper. “Please don’t…” It was her entrance test to Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. A small lavender unicorn filly in the grip of a white field of magic, levitating the teachers and turning her parents into a pair of potted plants. Twilight held her head, gripping it as if afraid it’d burst.
 
Rainbow stood stunned. “Twilight? Are you okay?”
 
“No, I’m not okay!” Twilight stomped her hoof. “How can I be? However much I think I’ve changed, I’m still the same out of control filly playing at things she doesn’t understand and can’t control!” She jabbed a hoof at the memories. “Every time I’m confronted with a problem, it plays out the same way: I study, I prepare myself so that I think I can handle it. I’m confident … no, I’m arrogant and smug, thinking I can get everything under control. Then something happens. I don’t get the response from the princess I thought I would get. Ponies don’t see my concerns. A spell doesn’t work properly or just goes totally wrong. Whatever it is, things don’t work the way I expected and my preparations become useless. Then I get hysterical and panic and make everything worse!”
 
“Twilight…” Rainbow put a hoof on her shoulder. “It’s okay, relax.”
 
But Twilight wasn’t listening. “Sometimes I would wake up and wonder—is today the day that Princess Celestia realizes she made a mistake? So I’d work even harder to show that she wasn’t wasting her time on one silly little filly who couldn’t control her magic.” She looked at Rainbow. “And just when I thought that things were working, like maybe I was exactly where I was supposed to be in life—then I suddenly become a Princess and the pressure is so much worse!” She gasped for breath. "I try to be so smart, so organized, to have everything together ... but when it really counts I always fall apart! Like when I called you together at the Palace yesterday and told you all you were under a spell … I came off so smug and condescending … it’s no wonder—” her voice hitched and she stopped, afraid that if she continued she’d start to cry.
 
Rainbow Dash hugged her. “Hey, it’s alright. I promise, it’s gonna be okay. Nopony, not even a Princess, is expected to be perfect. You’re allowed to make mistakes or get sad and upset and stuff.”

“But my mistakes have such a big impact now!” Twilight argued. “I can’t let myself make the same kind of slips ups that I’ve had before!”

“Nopony lets themselves make a mistake,” Rainbow countered. “That’s, y’know, what makes it a mistake. And you didn’t exactly go easy on yourself when you made a mistake before you were a princess, you know.” She paused and rubbed her neck awkwardly, not sure of how to untangle the mess in front of her. “I know you don’t want to make mistakes and want to do your best for everypony—but when you start saying things like ‘I can’t afford to make mistakes,’ that can get twisted around and mixed up so that you end up saying ‘a princess can’t make mistakes.’ Like what happened about how ‘a Princess of Friendship can’t get jealous’ or whatever? That did make you sound kinda … what you just said before.”
 
“I know, I know!” Twilight moaned. “It sounded so dumb and arrogant … I mean, I did just spend the past three days organizing thousands of books with very little sleep and then immediately stepped into a load of crazy trying to figure out what was going on with Discord and you guys. But that’s no excuse. What I was trying to say is that ponies expect a princess to be—“
 
“Perfect? The way you think Celestia is?” Rainbow suggested. Twilight didn’t answer. “I know you might not want to hear this—but nopony’s perfect. Not even your heroes. Especially your heroes.”
 
Memories swirled around her. Rarity knocking out three Wonderbolts at the Best Young Flyers Competition. A giant rampaging Spike easily dispatching the Wonderbolts under a water tower. Spitfire rewarding Lightning Dust at the Wonderbolt Academy for her recklessness. Daring Do walking away, leaving a hurt looking Rainbow Dash behind her. Spitfire’s attempts to convince Rainbow Dash to join the Wonderbolt team at Rainbow Falls, cutting out Soarin.’ The last one was Spitfire ripping the Wonderbolt insignia off Wind Rider’s jacket.
 
Rainbow Dash looked glum. “You look at the ponies who are your heroes and you want to be just like them. Sometimes you even wonder how you can ever measure up to them … and feel like a foal trying on your parents goggles when you come up short.” Her eyes flickered to the one of Daring Do. “But then you realize that they’re not perfect. They’ve got their own flaws; sometimes major ones.” She looked to Wind Rider and sagged, depressed.
 
“That wasn’t your fault,” Twilight approached her. ”He was a bitter old stallion who couldn’t handle the idea of somepony ever beating his record.” She leaned supportively against her. “You know I’m right.”
 
She was rewarded with a grunt from Rainbow. “Yeah, to have that happen, coming off that stuff with Lightning Dust, it makes you start to wonder if the problem is them—or me.” A shadow fell over the memories of Lightning Dust and Wind Rider, as Rainbow’s mind created a giant version of herself … stepping on the two pegasi. Rainbow watched the scene glumly. “I’ve always dreamed of being a Wonderbolt, but now I feel like every time I take a step forward, it’s by stepping on another pony to get ahead.”
 
“What happened with Lightning Dust wasn’t your fault either!” Twilight insisted. “It was hers for being willing to step on other ponies to get ahead, and Spitfire’s for not seeing the problem with that.” She willed her memories of Tornado Day and the qualifying round of the Equestria Games into existence. “If you were like them, you wouldn’t have celebrated Fluttershy’s accomplishments that day, or cared that Soarin’ was being cast aside. You did, because you’re a loyal and true friend. You can’t blame yourself for the mistakes other ponies did.”
 
“Why?” Rainbow asked rhetorically. “You do a pretty good job blaming yourself for everypony else’s mistakes.”
 
Twilight felt suddenly caught off guard. “What do you mean? When I have done that?”
 
“Just now,” Rainbow’s memories faded and she looked back to Twilight’s. “Look at all the stuff you’ve been thinking about. It was me and girls who didn’t take you seriously when you were all worked up over that friendship report. If we had tried to talk with you, instead of laughing and dismissing the whole thing, things would’ve been different. And do I have to even go into how you were right that something was wrong with ‘Cadance’ at the wedding? Again? The fact is, me and the girls have messed up plenty.”

“Those aren’t the same!” Twilight protested again.

“Why not?” Rainbow demanded, growing frustrated. “Is it because the rest of us are just such a bunch of twits that we’re expected to screw things up? That it’s a shock when super-smart Twilight Sparkle gets something wrong, but when the rest of act stupid it’s just another Tuesday?”

That riled Twilight so much that she responded with her weapon of choice: sarcasm. “Oh yes, Rainbow Dash that’s it exactly! It’s always such a reminder to me that I can make mistakes! It’s not like I’ve ever had experiences before that showed me that even a Princess of Friendship could still have friendship problems—like with Moondancer or that obnoxious yak prince, or that entire other world where I thought I had to stop the sirens?” Twilight’s seething sarcasm could’ve cut through glass. “No, I really needed to be taught a lesson to remind me again that I’m not perfect—I needed to have it shoved in my face and have my muzzle rubbed in the fact that I’m just a flawed, petty, naggy pony sometimes didn’t I? Didn’t I?!” 

Rainbow Dash took a half-step back, eyes widened in shock. When Twilight saw the surprised, almost fearful expression on her friend’s face, she gasped and clapped a hoof across her muzzle. “Oh my goodness, Rainbow I’m sorry!”

With a slightly forced, if rueful, chuckle Rainbow stepped forward. “Hey, it’s okay … at least I got you to open up a bit.”

“You mean you planned for that to happen?” 

Rainbow rubbed the back of her neck. “Uh, sure. Let’s go with that. Guess I hit a sore spot?”

Twilight slumped down, falling heavily on her rump. As if in answer, another memory emerged. This one was from yesterday, at Twilight’s castle. Rainbow tilted her head as she saw her and her other friends sitting around the crystal map … table … thing. They were frowning unhappily at Twilight.

"What kind of fertilizer have you had your nose in, Twilight?" Applejack demanded.

“Twilight, how could you say such a thing?!” Came Fluttershy’s outraged tones. “I know Discord still makes mistakes sometimes, but you're accusing him of being downright evil!”

When Rainbow heard her own voice echo back at her, it was all she could do not to wince and hope the ground swallowed her up. “Yeah! And to top it off, you're accusing us of not being able to tell he was up to something! What do you take us for?”

Rainbow Dash, the real one, felt her jaw drop. She had been too caught up in her own denials at the time to really listen and take in just what her friends were saying at the time. But now that she had time to think it over—Applejack’s comments were just despicable. She resolved to have a good, long chat with Applejack over that. She’s due for less apple pie and more humble pie, she thought angrily. The idea of filling Applejack’s hat with fertilizer felt so very tempting … but Rainbow knew that she’d hadn’t been much better. She watched Discord come into view and then he and all the others began to laugh at Twilight’s actions.

In a softer tone than was her norm, Rainbow said “I—I don’t know what to say Twilight. I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.” She bit her lip. “I know that once the others think it over, they’ll be too. They probably already are.”

“I know,” Twilight whispered, the pain evident in her voice. “But it still hurts.”

Rainbow Dash looked like she got bucked in the ribs. “I … you’re right. What we did was really awful.” She looked away, not able to look Twilight in the face. “Especially me. Some Element of Loyalty, huh?”
 
Twilight looked up and shook her head. “No, we’re not doing this. I’m not going to let you blame yourself more than the others because you didn’t instantly support me. Being loyal doesn’t mean you’ll always agree with me or with our friends.”
 
“But—” Rainbow turned back to see Twilight pointing her hoof straight at her.
 
“No buts! Haven’t you ever heard of the term ‘Loyal Opposition?’” The blank expression on Rainbow’s face was answer enough. Twilight facehooved. “Look, it—it’s like what you did in Appleloosa, standing up for the buffalo because you felt like they were being wronged. You might have been disagreeing with Applejack, but you weren’t being disloyal because you were trying to do the right thing.”
 
“For all the good it did.” Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. “We didn’t really do anything to really fix the problem there.”
 
Twilight patted her back. “Even so. The point is, you shouldn’t think you were disloyal to me—or that you alone made mistakes yesterday.” She bit her lip. “I should’ve been calmer, I should’ve thought clearer. Then maybe things wouldn’t have gotten to that meeting where Applejack said … when she said…” a tiny whimper escaped her throat.
 
Rainbow felt a familiar pit in her stomach begin to form. Without being bidden, her nightmare shimmered into view. Twilight watched, first in confusion, then in growing horror as she realized what she was seeing. Her face paled and she reached out, stroking Rainbow’s foreleg with her hoof. “I’m—I’m so sorry.”
 
Rainbow closed her eyes and shook her head. “Forget about it.”
 
“How can I, when you haven’t?” Twilight asked. “I played a role in something that’s given you nightmares—that’s awful!”
 
But Rainbow stubbornly dug in her hooves. “Look this isn’t about that! It—” Her eyes widened. Her memory from that day in Sugarcube Corner moved over onto Twilight’s memory from yesterday—and began to merge. Suddenly Rainbow Dash saw herself in Twilight’s memory, standing where Twilight had stood. And her friends, sitting around the crystal table, were now all wearing Mare Do Well costumes.
 
Then Rainbow Dash realized why she had been dreaming of Mare Do Well after so long. “This time, I was Mare Do Well.” She hung her head. “We ganged up on you the way you guys got together to be Mare Do Well. I—I guess some part of me knew the stuff we said and did—it was just wrong.” Rainbow turned back to Twilight, who was surprised to see tears beginning to well up in her eyes. “I’m sorry Twilight! I’m sorry!”
 
Without another thought, Twilight rushed forward and wrapped Rainbow up in a tight embrace. “Shh, shh … it’s okay. It’s okay, Rainbow.” She patted her back.
 
“No, it’s not!” Rainbow exclaimed, clearly upset. “We leapt down your throat while you were worried about us!”
 
“I was just jealous—”
 
“Horseapples!” Rainbow snapped, her hot tears stinging her cheeks. “You reacted the same way me or Applejack or any of us would’ve behaved if we had been gone for three days and came back to find the rest of you all buddy-buddy with flipping Discord. That’s not being jealous, that’s having common sense! Heck, we couldn’t even all remember the reason why we thought he was so funny and stuff! I mean, it’s not like this is a guy who has a track record of messing with ponies’ minds with magic, lying whenever it suits him and is totally untrustworthy—oh, wait. He is!” She prodded Twilight in the chest. “You weren’t jealous of us until we made it an issue, going on and on about how super-awesome our weekend was and all these funny jokes that, now that I think about it—were never that feathering funny in the first place! You were concerned about us, and we didn’t even notice; we were too busy going on about the weekend!” She was panting, filled with anger and disgust at herself.
 
Twilight rubbed her back. “Breathe, Dash. Breathe.” She held onto Rainbow until her breathing became less quick and shallow and more deep and relaxed. She pulled back to look her in the eyes. “Feeling better?”
 
Rainbow nodded. “Yeah. A little.” She exhaled. “I’m just ticked at how dense we were.”
 
“I appreciate your concern,” Twilight nuzzled her. “But I was jealous … at least, by the time I called you all into the castle.”
 
But Rainbow wasn’t having any of it. “Nothing doing. Yeah, you were a bit, but to say that the problem was you being jealous misses the point. If there’s a list of who’s to blame, Discord would be at the top of the list for this whole mess, then me and the girls for not seeing what he was doing, and then maybe you at the bottom.”
 
“Discord said he never planned to make me feel jealous.” Twilight pointed out.
 
“Oh well if Discord said he didn’t plan it, then that must make it true.” Rainbow’s sarcasm was a worthy match for Twilight’s own earlier. Several recollections of Discord emerged. “It’s not like he’s never lied about something like, say, not knowing what the deal was with the plunder seeds or about being sick when he really wasn’t or pretending to be best friends with the Smooze to make Fluttershy jealous. Oh yeah, Discord’s so trustworthy. Did you even hear that sleazy tone of voice of his at the end?” Rainbow snorted.
 
Twilight looked uncomfortable. “I’ll admit, even if he didn’t intend for things to turn out the way he did—he clearly enjoyed my discomfort.”
 
“He did.” Rainbow narrowed her eyes. “If we had known Discord was showing up, one of us would’ve mentioned it to you before you shut yourself in for your weekend book-sorting thing. None of us expected him to be in town—and he went out of his way to make sure we didn’t invite you or let you know he was around.” She shook her head. “And it would’ve been so easy to just stop in for five seconds to let you know! Even you had to leave the library to eat, sleep and go to the bathroom.” She paused briefly. “And if you didn’t, then I don’t want to know.”
 
“Rainbow!” Twilight blushed, then smacked her upside the head with her wing. “Don’t be disgusting!”
 
Rainbow Dash shrugged, accepted the wing-smack as her due, and went on. “You see? We could’ve stopped by. But think about it: Discord just happens to show up in town for an extended weekend when you just happen to be busy with your own plans and he thinks it would just be a better idea for us to leave you alone so he can spend time with us.” She rolled her eyes. “Lightning has a better chance of striking the same spot three times than all that.” She pointed to the memory of Discord, looking quite blue, and sneezing up a storm. “Discord has never been interested in being friends with me or Applejack or Rarity. Whenever he shows up, it’s because he’s interested in you. He either tries to get rid of the rest of us—” she pointed to Applejack and Rarity turning blue. “—or only comes to us when he can’t get what he wants from you.” Another memory came forth, this one of Discord appearing in the Carousel Boutique, hunting for invitations to the Grand Galloping Gala.
 
She faced Twilight again. “Let’s face it: the only reason Discord was acting so friendly to us was so he could isolate you and drive a wedge between us. ‘Happy accident’ by pin feathers! And even if—and it’s a big darn if—this wasn’t all some plot of Discord, even if he wasn’t trying to deliberately keep you out of the loop and make you jealous and stuff? For us to go on and on and on about inside jokes or stories that you weren’t around for—it was just rude and dumb and we should’ve knocked it off long before things got out of hoof. So no, this wasn’t all or even mostly on you—it was on us.”
 
Twilight sighed. “Rainbow … I appreciate that. I really do. I’m not going to pretend that what happened didn’t hurt. All of you looking at me that way, so angry with me … t-thinking I was—I was…” She began to sniffle and before she could blink, Rainbow was once again by her side. “It felt like my brother’s wedding rehearsal all over again,” she bit her lip. “I don’t know what it is about me that I can just lose it so badly that none of you can even stand me.”
 
Rainbow winced. “Yeah. That was, ugh, so lame of us. We just thought you were too possessive of Shining Armor—and now we thought you were jealous of Discord. We should’ve known better than that.”
 
“But I was jealous.” Twilight reiterated again. “You can’t ignore that.”
 
That made Rainbow’s feathers bristle. Twilight thought she had said something to truly offend Rainbow Dash, but then Rainbow seemed to collapse in on herself. Her wings drooped down and she hung her head. “You want to know the truth?” She asked Twilight, waiting for her to nod before continuing. “The truth is, I don’t think you were the one guilty of being a little jealous … or arrogant for that matter.”
 
Twilight looked puzzled. “I don’t understand.”
 
Rainbow bit her lip. “Well, it’s like this: sometimes … it feels like we can’t really function without you around.” The scenes of Twilight’s memories winked out, replaced by some of Rainbow’s: her and the others—sans Twilight—frantically trying to keep the Crystal Ponies distracted and happy while Twilight searched for the Crystal Heart. Another was of them arguing in the Everfree Forest when the plunder seeds attacked Ponyville, after they sent Twilight back home. The last had them trapped in bubbles of magic by Tirek as he bargained with Twilight. 

“You said you always fall apart under pressure—but I think it’s more like we’re the ones who fall apart when you’re not around.” Rainbow lowered her voice, as if afraid of being overheard by anypony else. “I think when you came in and announced we were all under some kind of spell of Discord’s—yeah we were annoyed at how you came off. But I also think we wanted you to be wrong about something; we wanted to be right against you for a change. We didn’t want to admit to being in another situation where you needed to come in and save our collective rumps again because we were too clueless to figure it out ourselves.” She sighed. “And in the end, you were right, weren’t you?”
 
“How do you mean?” Twilight wondered, blinking in surprise. “There wasn’t any spell on any of you.”
 
“Maybe there wasn’t any magic involved,” Rainbow allowed. “But he was messing with us. I actually think kind of makes it worse. At least with a spell we would’ve had an excuse for being dolts.” She rubbed her face. “After we went on and on about how Discord wouldn’t do something so horrible and how we would know if he was messing with us—turns out we didn’t know squat, because that’s exactly what he did. Yeah, there was no magic, but he was still up to no good. You saw that and we didn’t.” Her ears drooped as she sighed and admitted, “As much as the attitude rankled, I think it was mostly because we knew it was true. We are pretty useless without you.”
 
“Don’t you ever say that!” Twilight leapt to her hooves. “Not ever! I … I didn’t know you felt that way.” Twilight flattened her ears against her head and looked downcast. “I’m so sorry—you’re not dumb! None of you are! I never wanted you to feel that way. I need you all so much and I can’t do everything myself and…”
 
Seeing Twilight close to tears, made Rainbow give her another hug. “Hey, hey, that’s not on you. That’s partly on us too.”
 
“But how I presented my concerns to you affected how you responded to it,” Twilight observed as she hugged her back. “So it was my own fault that none of you believed me—and I was wrong. There wasn’t a spell.”
 
Rainbow Dash wasn’t having it. “Whoa whoa whoa, back up the blame train a little, would ya?” She made sure to look Twilight in the eye. “First of all, we went over this already: Yeah, you’ve made mistakes and leapt to conclusions in the past—but when it really counts you’re usually more right than wrong. If we went back over every screw up the six of us have made then we’d each have plenty of excuses to never to listen to anything any of us might ever have to say. And if we are going to start assigning blame, let’s start at the top with Discord.”
 
“I don’t even know what he was trying to accomplish, besides hurt me and make me look foolish,” Twilight folded her wings around herself. “But I certainly obliged him, didn’t I?”
 
Rainbow scooted over to sit next to her. “You mean like I did when you guys became Mare Do Well? I don’t think what you did holds a candle to what I did.”

Twilight shook her head. “No, this wasn’t like Mare Do Well. If it was, you would’ve been rescuing ponies just to rub it in our faces. You never did that, but Discord … I’m convinced he was only being friendly with the rest of you to get to me.”

“No question here,” Rainbow grunted. “You’ve dealt with Discord more than any of us—you know what he’s capable of. And no offense to Fluttershy, but she’s kinda gotten pretty oblivious to his flaws. I mean, just look at the Gala! She didn’t notice a thing was wrong with what he was obviously trying to do. She’s developed a blind spot the size of a hurricane’s eye.” She rubbed her face. “I think you probably have a better bead on him than anypony else. We should’ve listened when you tried telling us something was wrong.”
 
Twilight sighed. “The way he had you all in stitches. You all looked like you had more fun than you’ve had with me in, well, a while. I so wanted to recreate it, so I could be a part of it too.” Her face fell. “Then when Discord said that you couldn’t recreate it with me around, it was like he was saying that you couldn’t have that sort of fun with me around. And when you agreed with him…”
 
“It was like we were saying the same thing? That we can’t have fun with you around?” She poked Twilight in the side. “That’s crazy talk and you know it. One of the first things I ever said to you is that you were a riot and that I couldn’t wait to hang out with you some more. I meant it then and I still do now.” 

Twilight smiled, looking relieved. “Thank you, Rainbow Dash.” 

Rainbow nodded firmly. “You’ll always have us. Even when we act like jerks sometimes, we’re always gonna be there for you, the way you are for us.” Rainbow wrapped her wing around Twilight and drew her close. “We’re friends forever. Even when you act like a little miss know it all,” she kept her voice light, keeping the teasing low-key. “Oh look, what’s this?” She pointed to a memory of her and Twilight in the old Golden Oaks Library, reading together. “What is this strange book device? And these odd scribbles in it! Twilight, can you decode this for me?”

She was rewarded when Twilight let out a giggle. “Are you asking me to read you a story? Well, too bad missy, you’re up way past your bedtime.” She poked Rainbow in the side before looking back over the now blank dreamscape. “I guess we got to the bottom of our nightmares … but while we’re here, maybe we should try to figure out why Discord’s behaving this way.”

“Because he’s a selfish, lying manipulative jerk who likes messing with ponies?” Rainbow suggested. Her ear flicked a thought occurred to her. “I bet this was all for his own ego. He made a fool of himself at the Gala because he was jealous of Tree Hugger, of all ponies. I bet he wanted to feel better about himself by trying to make you feel jealous too.”

“I would hope that there’s more to it than that,” Twilight sighed. “I still don’t understand him. How can I be friends with someone when I don’t understand a single thing about them?”
 
Rainbow couldn’t resist a small smirk. “Ask Pinkie Pie.” 

Twilight shook her head. “No, it’s not the same. I don’t always know what Pinkie Pie is doing or thinking—but I always know why she’s doing it: because she’s a good pony and she wants to make others happy. But with Discord—I don’t even know that.” She sighed. “I guess that’s the problem. I don’t trust one of my own friends. I could have tried to been closer to him, to be a better friend. I never really liked it when he stopped by to visit,” Twilight admitted.
 
“That’s because he’s a jerk,” Rainbow stressed. “When Luna stopped being Nightmare Moon, she was genuinely sorry for what she did and wanted to change, to be better. Has Discord ever done that? Feather it, you know he hasn’t! The only tiny changes he’s made are because he’s afraid of being locked up again, or afraid of losing whatever it is he has with Fluttershy.” Privately Rainbow wondered how Fluttershy could panic when Luna came by that one Nightmare Night—and then so easily turn around and embrace Discord, even when she admitted to knowing that Discord was behind the flood at Sweet Apple Acres. Must’ve done wonders for Luna’s self-esteem when she heard about that, she thought dryly. 

Twilight frowned, thinking. “Wait … let me see something.” She concentrated, summoning up all her memories of Discord. Rainbow watched them come into being, with Twilight silently but intently examining each one. 

The first was from Discord’s reign of chaos when he was first freed. The next was when he was released and befriended by Fluttershy. The others were the plunder seed attack on Ponyville, the time he pretended he was sick, his deal with Tirek, his jealous antics at Grand Galloping Gala and then yesterday’s events at the castle. Twilight walked up and down as she looked them over, not saying a word. 

Rainbow Dash tapped her hoof. “So? Got anything.”

“Maybe.” Twilight pointed. “I think there’s a pattern in his behavior.”

That made Rainbow snort. “The chaos spirit is making a pattern? Talk about fail! How do you do that? His only job is being chaotic—you know doing random stuff! Maybe he should give the title over to Pinkie, see seems to be doing it better...”

Twilight snorted. “I’m being serious. Look.” She pointed to Discord’s arrival in Ponyville during the plunder seed attack, his bout of ‘blue flue’ and then him from yesterday. “Each time he shows up under false pretenses. Either he’s feigning ignorance of a situation that he actually was responsible for, or he’s just flat-out lying about something. Then after everything’s over … he admits to it and then tries to impart some advice to me.”

“Wisdom from Discord is like a getting a kiss from a lightning bolt,” Dash rolled her eyes. “What’s he been teaching?”

“He tried to turn the plunder seed attack into a lesson about how a Princess shouldn’t let her friends face danger without her.” Twilight replied. When we was pretending to be ill, he said he wanted to be sure that I didn’t think I was ‘too good’ for him now that I was a princess. And yesterday he—”

“Tried to spin-doctor him being a creep into a lesson about how you needed to admit to feeling jealous ... because he manipulated you into feeling jealous in the first place?” Rainbow snorted. 

“Well, yes,” Twilight admitted. “I’m not disagreeing with you. I’m just pointing out that there is this trend in his behavior. Maybe this is his way of trying to impart knowledge to help me. Princess Celestia used to be a little … circuitous in how she taught her lessons too.”

Rainbow wasn’t convinced. “If he’s trying to be like Princess Celestia, then he really sucks at it. I mean, during that plunder seed business it was never your idea for you to go back to Ponyville; you only went after we insisted you go. Even Spike thought Discord just said that to get under your skin. And you never felt like your Princesshood made you too good for Discord.” She paused. “I mean, you are too good for him, but that was true back when you were a unicorn. Hay, the Flim-Flam Brothers are too good for him. And like I said, yesterday you weren’t jealous until he shoved your face in all the stuff we did with him.”

“I’m not saying that all his lessons were … appropriate,” Twilight said judiciously. “And I certainly don’t agree with how he’s been acting. But realizing that he might, in his own way, think that he’s trying to help me does suggest that is at least trying to be better. And don’t forget, he was the one who pointed me to our friendship journal. That’s how I figured out how to open the box from the Tree of Harmony.”

“You mean just before he betrayed us to Tirek?” Rainbow crossed her forelegs. She rubbed her head. “I don’t know Twilight … seems to me like he hasn’t changed at all: he wants to keep being his same old, lying, manipulative self, but not face any of the consequences for it. Saying he’s just trying to teach you stuff sounds a lot like it’s an excuse for him to keep messing with you. If we keep letting this horseapples slide, he’s never going to change.”
 
Twilight nodded. “I agree, this can’t continue like this. He has to be made aware that if he keeps behaving like this, there will be consequences.”

“Right!” Rainbow was quick to agree. “And if things don’t work out with Discord, that’s because he hasn’t been willing to change. That’s on him, not you. I mean, you’re being way more forgiving than I would be. I would’ve knocked his one stupid fang out if he tried this on me. I’m still tempted to go out and do that right now!”
 
“Rainbow Dash…” Twilight said warningly.
 
She waved her off. “Fine, fine. No beating up the dumb creep. Anyway, you might be wondering if it’s worth remaining his friend, but I’m still wondering why we ever let him out from being a statue in the first place. Having doubts about a so-called friend who’s betrayed your trust over and over and over again doesn’t make you a bad friend.”
 
“Maybe,” Twilight looked dubious. “But I’m the Princess of the Friendship now. How would it look if I gave up on friendship?”
 
“Hey, giving up on a friend is not the same thing as giving up on friendship,” Rainbow pointed out. “Remember way back when Gilda came to town? You said the difference between a real friend and a false one will always come out in the end. Just because Gilda came around doesn’t mean everyone else will. I mean, it’s like when Pinkie Pie kept bugging Cranky Doodle. Nopony—not even the Princess of Friendship—is going to be friends with everypony.” 

“I’m not arguing that, but Discord has changed, at least a little. I think the problem is that we’ve been letting him off the hook because his actions usually result in some small measure of comeuppance for him.” Twilight ticked points off her wing tips. “After the plunder seeds, he had to help clean up Ponyville; after he pretended to be ill, he really became ill from the tatzlworm; and yesterday we had our own inside joke that he didn’t get. We’d all have a laugh, feel like Discord got what was coming to him, and then move on without ever addressing Discord on his behavior—not just the specifics of that particular incident, but on the whole—weren’t acceptable.”

That prompted a sigh from Rainbow Dash. “Yeah … Fluttershy usually steps in and says that he ‘learned his lesson’ and that’d be the end of it. Only it’s not because he keeps on doing this sort of thing.” Her ire grew. “After he all but admitted that he was trying to provoke you yesterday, he tried to cover his patchwork plot by saying this was another lesson for your benefit, that you had to learn that were capable of ‘jealousy’ or whatever. And we were going to let him slide because we had that one stupid little laugh at his expense when had our own little joke that he didn’t get. Like that made it all even with what he was doing to you … and of course it wasn’t okay. What were we even thinking?” 

Twilight patted her hoof. “It’s okay, Rainbow. I mean it, this … this really helped.” She looked around at the dreamscape. “Maybe I should ask Princess Luna into letting me come back here with some of the others.”

“I’d rather dream about teaming up with Daring Do to beat up changelings, but whatever gets the wind beneath your wings.” Rainbow shrugged. “So … what now?”

“I suppose the next step is sitting down with Discord and explaining to him why his behavior was unacceptable. If he wants to try teaching lessons…”

“Okay, I have to stop you right there.” Rainbow interjected. “That’s taking us back to Mare Do Well. Here’s the thing: friends help each other. They don’t ‘teach’ each other lessons.”

That took Twilight aback. “What do you mean? Of course friends help each other, try to teach them new things…”

“Yeah, but that’s not what I’m talking about.” Rainbow frowned. “When a problem comes up, you help a friend solve it; you don’t turn it into an object lesson. It’s dishonest because you’re setting things up behind their back, and it treats somepony else’s problems like … like a game or something.”

Twilight nodded slowly. “I think I understand what you’re saying. It was like what I tried to do with the Crusaders and Smarty Pants: trying to set up a problem for somepony. Only instead of doing it so I could come in and solve it, what Discord did—and what we did with Mare Do Well—was set it up so somepony else could learn from it.” Her ear flicked. “Which I suppose really isn’t any better, now that I think about it.”

Rainbow nodded. “Right! You can’t force things to happen just to make a lesson out of it, or force somepony to learn a specific thing that you want them to learn. I mean, I literally had no idea what you were guys were trying do with Mare Do Well until you came out and told me the ‘lesson’ you wanted me to learn, that ‘heroes shouldn’t brag’ or whatever.”

“It isn’t a good lesson—to say nothing of a teaching experience—when the pony you’re trying to help has no idea what you were trying to get across, and is hurt in the process.” Twilight agreed. “It’s not about teaching them something, but helping them achieve a realization for herself. You can’t just tell her ‘you have to do this,’ ‘you can’t do that.’ That’s not even teaching, that’s just telling somepony what to do. It isn’t a good way to help a friend through a problem.”

“Which means you should probably talk to Discord before he tries to ‘teach’ you any more lessons.” Rainbow pointed out. “I mean, if I squint really hard I can kinda see that the one about you sticking with us, and us with you, made sense … but the others? You never thought that you being a princess made you better than us or anything. What other really obvious things you already do you think Discord’s next lesson will be about? A lesson on holding doors open? A lesson on the importance of saying please and thank you? Or a lesson about washing your hooves after you use the bathroom….”

“I get the idea, Rainbow.” Twilight cleared her throat. “We should probably get going.” She looked around.

Rainbow Dash tilted her head. “What’re you looking for?”

“The way you and Luna came in.” Twilight paused. “You do know where the exit is, right?”

“Uh…” 

Twilight facehooved.


THE END