> Twilight's Dollhouse
>  by Kaidan
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> I. A Mint Green Mare
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The soft clicking sound of hooves echoed down the empty corridor. Twilight walked slowly with her head held low. Both ears were flattened against her head, her tail was dragging on the ground. She was going to comfort Cadance for the loss of her husband. It was hard enough for Twilight to deal with Shining’s death. Now she had been asked to offer her emotional support to Cadance.

This was supposed to be a new chapter of her life. Indeed it was, but for the wrong reason. Twilight was coronated a princess less than a month ago and now she had been appointed as the caretaker for an emotionally devastated princess of love.

She knocked softly on the door to Cadance’s chamber three times. “Cadance?” Twilight called out.

The widow was likely crying or sleeping. Words of comfort and advice from her closest friends floated through her mind. The words seemed hollow and she could not figure out what to say first. After knocking again and waiting for five minutes, Twilight let herself in.

Both of her eyes scanned the room for her sister-in-law.  She stepped over some empty wine bottles on the floor nicking one with her hoof. The sound of the rolling bottle cast an eerie echo into the room. When it hit the wall with a thud, Twilight flinched.

“Cadance, I—I’m here for you.” Twilight swallowed a lump in her throat. “Can—may I talk to you?”

Her eyes flitted over the bed sheets that had been thrown about the floor. The old oaken bed frame creaked as she lifted the blankets to look under the bed. Twilight turned towards the balcony. It was empty save for the shadows of a tree branch cast down by the full moon.

“Cadance? Are you here?” Twilight asked.

Twilight headed to the last room she had to check. The bathroom light slipped through the edges of the door, and there was red wine trickling out from underneath it. Several more wine bottles, doubtless from a priceless vintage, littered the floor.

She nearly slipped when the first hoof stepped into the spilled red wine. Glancing down revealed the wavering reflection of a trembling alicorn. Her heart sped up as worry gripped it in a vice.

“Cadance?” The long silence that followed created a strong sense of urgency.

Twilight tried the door handle and found it was locked. She banged it in anger with her hoof and rammed the door. 

“Sorry, but I’m coming in!” She shouted.

She took a deep breath and tensed her muscles. Her heart beat even faster with each passing second. She had to get in that bathroom now. Twilight unleashed all her energy on the lock, cracking the wood around it to splinters.

The door hinges squeaked as she barged in. Her hooves lost their purchase in the wine, sending her tumbling onto her face. She slowly stood up after coming to a rest on her side. Shaking the fluid out of her mane, she looked around for her sister-in-law.

Cadance was taking a bath. Twilight began to sigh in relief before she saw a wave of red water pour out of the bathtub. The pupils of both her eyes dilated as she looked down in horror.

This was not red wine. It was blood.

She looked at Cadance, afraid to get any nearer. It felt like her heart froze completely and time stretched endlessly before her. Twilight’s first instinct was to rush in and save her. . . yet all she could think about was the watery blood.

Her eyes scanned the room frantically and her ears amplified every splash as she stepped towards her sister-in-law. She felt her heart beat once. After a few more agonizingly slow steps, it beat again.

A slow breath filled Twilight’s lungs, and she shuddered as she exhaled.

Cadance lay in a crimson sea, her forelegs floating in the water. Two vicious, deep cuts were visible running the length of her legs. The flowing faucet caused continual tides to lap over the rim of the porcelain basin. 

Twilight  forcibly vomited on the floor. Her muscles squeezed her stomach so tight that she barely had time to breath between the waves of nausea.

She looked back up at the tub and screamed. She felt her heart seize as her knees locked.

Floating in the tub was a lavender alicorn with a twisted smile. “Come in, the water’s fine.”






***************************************************************



Twilight spasmed in bed, causing a loud thump as her skull collided with the head of the bed. She began kicking and screaming as soon as she was awake, not stopping until she had fallen off the bed. She examined her legs, one at a time, to make sure she had not cut them.

Twilight breathed a small sigh of relief. She had not killed herself. She was not the alicorn in the bathtub.

Panicked steps scraped along the wooden floorboards. “Twilight! Where are you? Are you ok?” Spike yelled.

“In here,” she croaked.

In an instant the dragon had leapt on the bed, and found her cowering in the corner.

“Spike,” Twilight sobbed. Just seeing him made her feel safe enough to start crying. She began to weep uncontrollably, burying her head in her hooves against the wall. Twilight wailed for her brother and sister-in-law.

Spike repeated his routine for the fourth time this week. He quickly fetched the clean blanket he kept near the bed, and covered Twilight in it. He then curled up next to her so that she could drape a foreleg over him.

“It’s okay, Twilight. It was just a bad dream. You’re not Cadance. You’re my sister, and I love you. You’ll never be alone,” Spike re-assured.

Twilight was gasping and sobbing too much to reply. Instead, she just pulled her last remaining brother in closer for a hug. She did not loosen her grip. Twilight refused to let go. She would never lose a friend again.




***************************************************************



Twilight crouched over Sugarcube Corner and ignored the recurring nightmare. The sole thought allowed in her head was the recreation of the replica bakery. Ever since becoming Princess Twilight, she had needed a hobby to help alleviate all the stress that came with the title. Every day she had to settle disputes, sit in on city council meetings, and approve new laws. Every night brought about unwanted memories. 

It turned out that building a one/twelfth scale replica of Ponyville was the perfect solution. It gave her something to focus on so that she could ignore all her other worries. Once she had started building the town, Twilight was unwilling to stop. Soon she had expanded her basement to fit all of New Ponyville in it.

The last touches to Sugarcube Corner were in the kitchen. She added a small trap door to the cellar where flour was stored, a few tiny cupcake pans, and an empty bowl. Once she had finished, she closed the two halves of the tiny dollhouse and flew back to the edge of the town.

From the doorway, she looked out over the city. Ponyville was finished; from the town hall to Sweet Apple Acres. Dash’s replica cloud house floated above the town and Fluttershy’s cottage was near the Everfree. She had recreated the forest by cross-breeding several species of bonsai plants until she recreated the proper colors and sizes. Even the river running through it contained real water.

Still, something crucial was missing. The idea had come to her when Rarity insisted she come over to get her dresses tailored for her new wings. Sweetie had an intricately detailed dollhouse. Everything from the tiny stallion and mare, to the wallpaper and carpeting, was perfect.

Now all Twilight needed to complete her town were some dolls. She couldn’t play with her friends if she didn’t have any dolls. She walked over to the wall detailing her plans. First up was Lyra and Bon Bon. It may take a while to get started, but it would be worth it.

Months of careful planning had lead up to this exciting moment. Study of criminal records from the Ponyville police station had taught her much. Each time she invited a new pony to move into her dollhouse, she would change the Modus Operandi. Lyra would be over shortly for some tea, and a worried Bon Bon would be over next morning for some breakfast. 

If all went according to plan, she would never have to suffer the pain of another funeral. Twilight’s nightmare would never come true.

"Twilight, Dash is here!" Spike shouted.

"In a minute!" Twilight shouted back. After turning the lights out, she climbed up the stairs out of the basement. As she did, Twilight heard Spike and Dash talking. She slowed down to listen in before opening the door into the library.

"Becoming a princess has been hard on her, Dash," Spike stated.

"I guess, but ever since the funerals she never goes outside anymore. We're worried about her."

"Celestia told me we all grieve differently. I'm keeping an eye on her. She'll be fine."

"Well if she does need anything. . . even if I am at the audition, just send somepony to get me."

Twilight locked the door behind her as she stepped into the library. “Dash! It’s great to see you,” she exclaimed.

“Hey, we were supposed to meet for flying lessons this evening.” Dash was floating in the doorway with her forelegs crossed.

“Oh, that was tonight? Sorry, Dash. I was so bus—”

“Yeah, yeah,” she interrupted and crossed her forelegs. “Busy being a princess, busy mourning, busy with a book. You never come outside or want to hang out anymore.”

Twilight smiled and walked up to her friend. “Look, I know you have the Wonderbolt tryouts next week and I don’t want to distract you from practice. Why don’t you come for lunch after your tryouts to celebrate? We can spend the rest of the week playing.”

“Heh, I don’t need practice, I’ve already got it in the bag. Pinkie Promise?”

“Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye,” Twilight recited. “We’ll spend the rest of the week playing once you get into the Wonderbolts.”

“Alright, see you then.” As Dash flew off she heard the pegasus whisper egghead under her breath.

Spike got the door for Twilight and closed it. “Alright, Twilight, I’m headed up to bed.”

“Okay, Spike, have a good rest.”

She went to the bookshelf to consult a few notes and passages from a spell book. All the preliminary formulas showed that her spell would work perfectly tonight. She double-checked them again before putting them back on the shelf.

By the time Twilight was done, Spike was fast asleep. He was a heavy sleeper, but tonight was not the time to take chances. She cast a sleeping spell on him and headed downstairs to prepare for her guest.

Twilight went into the kitchen and put a kettle on the stove. She took out two tea cups and some sugar cubes. She placed tea bags in both and a crushed green herb in only one of them. Once the kettle began to whistle, she carried it out to the table in the main room of the library. As if on cue, she heard a pony knocking at the door.

She walked over and pulled the door open with magic. "Lyra, come in. I'm so glad you could make it, and you remembered to bring your lyre."

"Thank you," Lyra replied. "I was. . . well. . . surprised you'd want my help."

"I've always found the lyre fascinating, and soothing. I haven't been sleeping well since. . . you know."

"Of course, I'd be glad to help you fall asleep. It's funny, nopony has ever asked me to play them a lullaby before."

Twilight averted her gaze to the floor and hid a small grin. "Yeah, you can see why I was a bit embarrassed and didn't want you to tell anypony."

"Your secret is safe with me. I didn't even tell Bon Bon I was headed out."

"You are a truly kind pony, Lyra. I wish it hadn't taken me this long to start hanging out with you.” Twilight looked up to give her a wide smile. “How about we get some tea?"

"That sounds great."

Twilight lead her over to the table and levitated the kettle. She poured the hot water into the tea cups and they waited for the tea to steep.

"So, Lyra, have you finished the fantasy novel you checked out?" Twilight inquired.

"Oh, I did. I'm amazed you found a fantasy I hadn't read yet about humans. Novels about them seem to have gone out of style decades ago." Lyra levitated the book out of her saddlebag and placed it on the table.

"You even turn your books in early. You're definitely a friend worth keeping forever."

"Shucks, you're starting to sound like Bonnie." Lyra smiled and levitated the tea bag out of her cup.

"Sugar?" Twilight levitated two cubes into her cup, removed the tea bag, and took a sip.

"No thanks. So I was thinking, maybe I could check out that vampire romance novel I keep hearing about next. The one with the mare and the vampony?" Lyra asked.

"Oh, you wouldn't like it. I've read better bedtime stories to Spike."

Lyra levitated her teacup up and took a sip. "This tea is wonderful."

"Thanks, it's a special recipe. I just invented it tonight, can you taste the different flavors in it?"

"Hmm." Lyra raised the tea cup back to her mouth and began taking more sips. "Well, it's green tea of course, a tad bitter though. Uh. . . cinnamon, and. . . somet—hing else." Lyra began opening and closing her mouth and smacking her tongue. "Muh tongue—ish numb."

"Oh dear, do you have any food allergies?"

Lyra set the cup down and began wheezing. "Ah—dun thin so." She clutched her stomach in pain and rested her head on the table. Her muscles contracted between her shoulders and neck. Small retractions were forming between her ribs as her muscles struggled to keep expanding her lungs.

"This is most troubling, I suppose I should do something. . ." Twilight took another sip of her tea, as Lyra slowly opened and closed her mouth. "Hmm, what did I put in it again? Green tea, cinnamon, lilac. . . what was the other one?"

Twilight stared at Lyra as she twitched involuntarily. She couldn't move at all by this point and her breathing came in short gasps every ten seconds.

"That's right, the other herb was hemlock! Oh dear, I do believe you're allergic to it," Twilight cackled.

Lyra's eyes went wide in shock, before drooping back to a neutral position.

"Hmm, well I'm afraid I've given you a lethal dose, but I'm not a barbarian. I suppose the least I can do is test out a new immortality spell on you. Here, let me help you with that."

Twilight wrapped her magic around Lyra's chest and expanded her lungs for her, helping her breath. "I wouldn't want you passing out before the best part, now would I?"

She levitated a spell book down onto the table from a nearby shelf. "You were so kind to come over here and play me a lullaby, you even turned your book in early! You have passed my test. Now you can be my friend forever."

Twilight looked back at her and saw she wasn't smiling. "Aren't you happy?" After a moment, she began to laugh. "Of course, you can't smile. Let's get this over with before you suffer any more, sweetie."

Twilight expanded Lyra's lungs for her again, supplying a precious few more seconds consciousness.

"Now, I'll be honest. You've got the honor of being my first new friend. I'm not sure if this spell is painful, but you've been such a good sport I'll do my best to make it quick. It’s quite simple, really. Flesh is weak and even alicorns can die." Twilight looked away for a moment before continuing. “With a few spells I wrote, I’ll be able to give you a body that never ages or dies. You’ll never leave me. I’ll never have to say goodbye to a friend again.”

Lyra's head was laying on its left side, squishing an ear. She stared straight ahead, the tea set taking up most of her vision. Above her, or to the right of her slanted world, stood the mad purple alicorn. Lyra tried to scream for help, but couldn't lift a hoof.

She felt the hemlock as it had slowly paralyzed her. Now it felt as if a rockslide had pinned her beneath thousands of pounds of gravel. Not a single muscle in her body responded to her commands. Even the muscles keeping her lungs working had ceased functioning. Were it not for the few breaths Twilight was giving her, she'd already be dead. Even with them, her heart and brain would not last much longer.

Lyra had time to ponder what sort of sick joke this was as Twilight's horn began to glow. She could still feel and think. Lyra was trapped there, watching, as the purple aura slowly crept over her right hoof.

Her hoof went ice cold. The entire limb went rigid and began to feel smooth. A shiny mint green foreleg rested on the table, and appeared to be made of plastic. Lyra wanted to be shocked, scared, or any emotion she could. Twilight provided her with another breath as she stared at her leg.

"Good, Lyra, this is going well. I was worried it might not progress so smoothly, let's finish up your other legs then, shall we?"

Lyra's mind flashed back to Bon Bon. She cared deeply for her roommate. She feared now she would never see her again, or anypony else for that matter. She wanted so badly to hug her one last time, or to bake one last batch of her favorite chocolate covered cherries.

The icy cold plastic spread over all her legs, turning them numb. Where the paralysis on her lungs felt like compressing weights, her legs felt weightless. It was like swimming in a frictionless liquid. Her mind raced, trying to make sense of the various sensations flowing through her.

"Good, I suppose I'll quickly finish your mane and tail, then start the chest cavity. It's only fair to warn you, this is where it may get unpleasant." Twilight scribbled down a few notes and resumed the spell.

A chill ran down Lyra’s spine as her flanks were covered in plastic. She could feel her childhood fear of claustrophobia returning to her. It felt like she was being wrapped up in plaster. The numb plastic feeling was replaced by one of pressure and fear. Lyra screamed as loudly as she could in her mind as the plastic finished sealing her inside her new skin.

A tear rolled down Lyra's cheek as a chunk of ice formed in the pit of her stomach. The plastic was seeping inside her, turning her abdomen into solid plastic.

As the liquid flowed through her, a fire burned in her lungs. Her vision was fading black, and she wondered how long it had been since she breathed. Her heart was pumping so slowly, and she was so sleepy. She imagined herself yawning as the plastic touched her diaphragm, sending a tickling sensation up her spine.

"Hang in there, Lyra, you're doing great."

Another tear rolled down her cheek, staining the last patch of thin fur that would soon vanish like the rest of her beautiful coat. The last jolt of pain she would ever feel occurred when her heart stopped beating. Her lungs had been turned to solid plastic, no longer were they able to return blood to the heart.

Lyra felt as if a minotaur were stomping on her heart over and over, until finally the plastic swallowed it whole. It was then Lyra realized something else, her entire head had gone numb too. She could feel nothing, her entire body was weightless and blissful.

"Very good, Lyra. I hope you enjoyed yourself, I know I did." Twilight began scribbling more notes in her journal. 

"Total time 45 seconds, core temperature and vitals stable until complete conversion. Subject successfully paralyzed by 110mg hemlock, concentrated. Noted slight bitter taste to tea. Delivery method effective, requirement to manually breathe for the victim leaves much to be desired. Further adjustments to the spell should allow for quicker transformations.

"Last step, darling, and you'll never have to be alone again."

Lyra felt herself levitated from the table and laid on the ground. She could feel her body stretching, warming up where Twilight bent it with her magic. She felt so rigid, yet when Twilight touched her she was molded like soft clay.

A sensation of gentle pressure covered her entire body evenly. Her eyes were still fixed forward, so she could not see what Twilight was doing. As she watched the bookshelf in front of her, it started getting taller. Next she noticed it was getting further away too. Lyra realized she was shrinking, Twilight was shrinking her.

A large purple hoof stepped in front of her, then another. Twilight's enormous head bent down into Lyra's view. She smiled at the tiny green mare, then levitated her back onto her hooves.

"Yes yes yes! It worked perfectly, oh Lyra, I'm so happy. Now we'll get to be together forever. Come on!" Twilight was giggling like a school filly. "Oh, almost forgot." She levitated the lyre in front of Lyra, then shrunk it down to match her size.

"Okay, now we're ready!" She carried Lyra and her instrument down into the basement. She felt a slight tingling as they passed through the lower door.

The lights flicked on and Lyra saw something horrifying. The entire basement was filled with a miniature replica of Ponyville. Every building, tree, plant, and park bench was meticulously crafted.

"I'm just so excited I don't know where to start!" Twilight exclaimed. "Well, as you're my first resident, I guess a little embellishment is in order. You see, over on this wall is my plan."

Lyra's gaze was directed to the wall. On it there were names, photos, buildings, and hundreds of strings. It was too much info for her to take in at once, yet she could tell every single pony Twilight knew was listed on it.

"This is my schedule and checklist. Now, I know how lonely you'll be with just the two of us, so I've made an exception for you. Normally I would have to be slightly more meticulous to cover my tracks, but I just wouldn't feel right until I re-unite you with Bon Bon."

Lyra was hovered in front of a small sticky note. A green string attached it to Lyra's picture. On the note, it simply read 'Bon Bon, breakfast Tuesday 8 am. Gas line explosion, Bon Bon residence, 0830.'

"See, Lyra!" Twilight chuckled. "Since you were such a good sport, I'll keep my plans with Bon Bon tomorrow. You'll get to see her first thing in the morning! Oh, I do hope she enjoys my tea."

Lyra wanted to scream and beg for Bon Bon's life. She loved that mare, she didn't want anything to happen to the one best friend who had always been there for her. Lyra wanted to cry, and almost thought she could feel a tear rolling down her hard plastic cheek.

"Oh, Lyra, I'm sorry." Twilight levitated a small cloth up and wiped Lyra's cheek. "I know you're sad now, but it'll be okay. Look at what I made you." She jotted a quick note before levitating Lyra to her new home.

Lyra was floated in front of Bon Bon's house. Twilight hovered her inside expertly. "Remember when I visited you to loan you that fantasy book? I scanned your house and I've recreated it down to the last detail! The bakery in the kitchen, the small counters to sell sweets in the parlor, even your bed and music stand! Once your best friend joins you here tomorrow, the three of us will have so much fun playing!"

Lyra was set down, facing out the window. Her lyre was levitated gently next to her.

“Oh, I’m so excited. I can hardly wait to show you what I have in store tomorrow! I would hate to leave you here, worrying all night. I’ll tell you the big surprise. I’m going to test my ‘come to life’ spell on you and Bon Bon! We’ll get to spend all morning playing together.” Twilight headed towards the door to leave the basement. “Good night, Lyra.”	



***************************************************************



Twilight could hardly sleep that night. For once it was a giddy excitement and not a fear of loss that kept her awake. She woke up and went to prepare for her breakfast with Bon Bon. As soon as the two ponies had moved into New Ponyville, in her basement, they could finally play. It would be a nice way to spend the day. 

Twilight hurried to get everything ready as Spike prepared to leave for a shopping trip with Rarity. She often talked him into carrying all her bags. Even though she could easily levitate them, Spike enjoyed doing it.

“Mornin’ Twilight, I haven’t seen you smile in a while,” Spike stated.

“Yeah, Spike, I am feeling a bit better today,” Twilight replied.

“So you finished your scale model of Ponyville? Think I can see it sometime?”

“Maybe, but for now I’d like to continue to use the basement as a place I can go to be alone. Celestia has recommended I start holding a longer ‘Twilight Court’ where ponies can come petition my advice. Mayor Mare is even going to allow me broader control of the town. The job is tough and I really like the peace and quiet downstairs.”

“That’s great,” Spike cheered. “I’m glad you’re finally moving on. You were so worried your friends were going to leave you.”

“It's fine Spike,” Twilight giggled. She forced a smile. “They’re gone now, but I can’t let that ruin my life. After all, you and me are going to live to be thousands of years old. I’ll just have to get used to funerals and making new friends.”

“Wow, you’re taking the thought much better now. I can’t wait to see what happens to the Cutie Mark Crusaders when they have kids. I just hope they invent fireproof timber for building houses by then.”

Twilight laughed at the mental image his comment invoked. “You’re too much, Spike. Run along or you’ll be late to meet Rarity.”

“Okay, see you later!” Spike ran out the door, taking her quite literally.

She checked the clock on the wall. It was twenty minutes to eight, just enough time to prepare a meal for Bon Bon. The library didn’t open until nine, so they would have plenty of time together.

Twilight had selected wormwood to use this time. It would depress her nervous system, preventing the earth pony from fleeing and allowing them time to chat. She had decided early on to experiment with several methods and spells for incapacitating ponies. Twilight would have to stick to her carefully laid plans to slowly lure every pony in town into her dollhouse.

The smell of burning pancakes brought her out of her reflections. Twilight realized she’d been cooking the whole time her mind wandered. It was ten minutes to eight, and she hastily took the eggs, hay pancakes, and some orange juice to the dining table. After setting the table, she levitated the wormwood over and crushed it to a fine dust in her magical grip. She added it to the orange juice and mixed it into the eggs with some pepper.

A frantic knocking sounded at the front door. Twilight’s frown disappeared. Either Bon Bon was early, and panicking, or some other pony had dropped by to ruin everything.

Drawing the door open slowly with magic, she was relieved to see Bon Bon. “Hi, is everything alright?”

“No, Twilight, it’s not! Lyra wasn’t home this morning. She always tells me when she’s going out. Even her lyre is gone!” she frantically whined.

“Calm down, why don’t you come inside and tell me what happened? We can still have our breakfast,” Twilight cooed.

“No, there’s no time! What if something bad happened? She acts so immature for her age, so naive. Something terrible could happen!”

“Bon Bon, relax.” Twilight commanded, her eye twitching. “I’m princess for a reason. Come, calm down, and I’ll leave to get the elements looking for her. You can stay here and relax at the library.”

“Okay,” she whimpered. “But, what if she went into the Everfree looking for humans again?”

“She’ll be fine, come in.”

The two ponies went to the dining room table and sat down to eat breakfast. Each began to work on their meal. Bon Bon was in a hurry to finish and find Lyra, cleaning her plate before Twilight was halfway done.

“How was the meal Bon Bon?” Twilight asked.

“Delicious,” she yawned. “I must not have got enough sleep,” she added.

“Oh, well feel free to lie down if you’d like.”

“No, I want to go find Lyra,” she objected.

“And I told you, I’ll handle it.” Twilight’s eye twitched again.

“Are you alright, Twilight?”

“I’m fine! Ugh, are you always this difficult?”

“I don’t understand,” Bon Bon replied.

“Look, I brought you here to have a breakfast, just us two friends. All you seem to care about is Lyra, don’t you want to be my friend?”

“Uh, no offense, but this is the first time you have ever invited me over, Twilight. I don’t need friends. What I need is to find Lyra.”

Bon Bon stood up and started to walk towards the door. Her legs went limp and she quickly stumbled, hitting the counter and falling to the ground.

“Heh, we’re not friends,” Twilight cackled. “That makes this so much easier. You see, I need to head over to your house and plant some evidence before the gas line explodes.”

Her victim moaned. “Gas? Twi—I don’t feel so good.”

“I can fix that, but now I’m not sure I want to. Lyra was so sweet and polite, and here you are running your mouth. I can fix that too.”

Twilight rummaged through a nearby closet and returned with some pliers levitating in her magical grip.

“What—why are you talking about our gas line? and Lyra?”

The curtains around the kitchen closed, and Twilight latched the doors shut. A quick dampening spell and her preparations were complete.

“What I’m talking about, Bon Bon, is leaving your teeth at the scene of your death. I’d leave you there for being so rude, but Lyra was so nice. . . I think she deserves her best friend.” She cackled softly as she watched the mare twitching. “Maybe you’ll have a change of heart, once I change your heart!”

Bon Bon was slowly struggling her way across the floor. She felt nauseous and her senses and muscles were barely reacting to her commands. “What, don’t do this! Is this all because of your brother?”

“Don’t bring my brother into this!” Twilight jammed the pliers into her mouth and ripped out a pair of molars. She dropped them into a bowl as Bon Bon screamed in agony.

“Wha—the buck—Twilight. If you wanna kill—me you psych—itch, just use magi—nd get it over with!” she mumbled.

“Oh, I might do that for a friend, yet I’m enjoying this too much now. I wouldn’t want to waste any magic, either, I still have to turn you into a doll.” Twilight ripped out her upper incisors.

Bon Bon was crying and drooling blood. “Plea—sowwy—so sorwy. . .” She continued to sob as she lay on the floor, giving in to her despair.

“Sorry you were rude, or sorry that this hurts?” she shouted while tearing out four teeth at once.

It took her a minute to recover from the pain and reply, during which Twilight waited patiently. With a slurping sound, she started to speak. “For bein—rude. I was juz sho worrie—for Lyra.”

“Apology accepted. Now, let’s get out the rest of those teeth.” Twilight dropped the pliers to the floor.


Bon Bon’s eyes went wide in horror. She could feel Twilight’s magic gripping all her remaining teeth. She felt the pressure building against her jaws as she pulled. Her mouth opened, trying to beg for mercy. When the pressure became too great, she closed her eyes.

The teeth popped out with a quick, sharp pain. Bon Bon waited for a moment to open her eyes. She heard a loud cracking sound. When her eyes opened, Twilight and the teeth were gone. She closed her sore gums, which seemed to have been numbed a bit by the spell.

Her body felt like a sack of wet dirt as she dragged it across the floor. It took all her focus and energy just to move a foot. Her head ached, her heart was beating irregularly, and she felt ready to vomit. Whatever Twilight had done to her had left her vulnerable and in great pain. She looked back in fear when she heard another loud crack.

“There, I’ve planted your teeth at—Bon Bon! Look what you’ve done!” Twilight yelled. “You’ve smeared blood all across the kitchen floor!”

She marched over to Bon Bon who was a bloody, sobbing mess. “So—sowwy, pwease—just end it,” she begged.

“Alright, I need to take some notes first. If you don’t make another peep, I’ll make it as quick and painless as I can.” Twilight levitated a journal over to her.

Bon Bon, wormwood trial. Herb left victim unable to defend self or escape while remaining fully alert and able to respond to verbal stimuli. She scores a nine on the Glascolt Coma Scale. Irregular heartbeat and breathing, but stable. Not suitable for use on unicorns, will work effectively for other races.

Thanks to the wormwood I was able to converse with Bon Bon, though all I learned was how rude she was. The application of pain quickly caused her to submit to my will. It would appear that pain is the best way to ensure compliance in combative subjects. I will now attempt the altered version of the spell.

A very soft whimpering continued as her floating quill scratched the last couple words onto paper.

“Alright, I’m rather exhausted and I still have to show up at the scene of your death to help the investigation. Looks like you’re lucky, I’ll make this quick after all. I plan to use this as a combat spell, if necessary. I need you to struggle to make sure it’s effective.”

Twilight charged her horn and aimed at Bon Bon’s face. Her eyes went wide with terror as the unicorn’s horn turned black. A large blob shot forward from the horn, hitting her in the face.

“Now, I’m going to use a spell that should return most of your mobility. Try not to break anything while I’m taking notes.”

Bon Bon felt a tingling sensation in her spine. She was suddenly in full control of her body again, and she gasped violently for air. The thick black fluid was pulled into her throat. Everywhere it touched went numb and stuck together. She reached her hooves up to try and wipe it away from her mouth as she spat it out. Her hooves became stuck instantly.

Subject reacted violently to spell, subduing self nearly instantly. Studies into changeling magic to improve spell efficacy advised.

As her hooves tried to pull the goop off her face, she felt it spreading down her neck and legs. Where her mouth and nose had once been, she felt something akin to plastic. The magic had hardened on her face. By the time she came to this realization, she could feel her lungs turning numb. The plastic slowly crossed into her blood vessels.

Subject quickly asphyxiated, however the spell seems to be preserving her longer than intended. This would allow a unicorn advanced in magic additional time to devise a counter spell.

Icy fluid flowed through her veins. Her skin was already numb down to her shoulders and she could feel the spell covering her flanks. Meanwhile she felt thousands of tendrils throughout her body. Bon Bon twitched for a last time before the spell had taken control of her entire body.

Her vision returned as she felt the last patches of her skin go numb.

Time of conversion: 22 seconds. Shows great promise over other spell. Perhaps I will ask them which hurt more when we have our playtime tomorrow.

Bon Bon was unable to move and pondered what had happened. She couldn’t feel anything but a cool slick coating where her fur should have been.

“Oh, you have to see this, Bon Bon. You look wonderful,” Twilight exclaimed. “Here, let me get a mirror.”

Seconds later a mirror was lowered into her field of vision. She saw her reflection, only it was wrong. Her skin had a glossy sheen to it, and her legs wobbled slightly. She almost looked like a glazed candy or perhaps something that had been polished.

She watched as Twilight poked her with her hoof, then stomped on her. Bon Bon’s side was very bouncy. She could feel the hoof, but felt no pain. Did she get turned into rubber?

The library rumbled as something in the distance exploded.

“Dang, the spell must have gone off early. I guess we’ll have to cut our playtime short. I never imagined the spell would turn you into latex, that’s really odd. I wonder if it has something to do with your genetics. Maybe it was the inverse sine wave calculations I had to do to stabilize the transmutation matrix?”

Bon Bon watched in the mirror as she began to glow, and shrink. Twilight wasted no time turning her into a tiny doll. She then bounced her on the floor, giggling as Bon Bon flew through the air. The library was a whirl of color until she came to rest on the floor.

The door to the library flew open as someone ran in. Twilight quickly canceled the spells in the kitchen, and focused on a spell to cover up the blood until she could clean it properly.

“Twilight,” Dash shouted. “A gas line ruptured and took out three houses!”

“What? That’s horrible!” Twilight exclaimed. It was only supposed to take out Bon Bon and Lyra’s house. Oh well.

“Yeah, come on we’ll need your magic.” Dash looked around the kitchen and saw the half-finished meal and the empty plate.

“Oh, Spike and I had breakfast earlier. I’ll follow you.” She levitated Bon Bon into her mane as soon as Dash turned around, and followed her out of the library.

Twilight whispered to the passenger in her mane. “Oh isn’t this exciting! You get to come with me and witness your own death! Then, when we get back, I’ll introduce you to Lyra and you can tell her all about it.”










> II. An Electronic Music Pony
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Twilight turned the lights on and smiled. She headed over to Lyra’s house quickly, and levitated her and Bon Bon out. She loomed over the tiny ponies and had set aside plenty of time to play with her newest friends.

“I’m so glad I finally have time to play. You would not believe the day I’ve had,” Twilight explained.

She levitated a book over and flipped it open. Lyra and Bon Bon were set down in front of the book.

“Alright, I’m going to test a come to life spell on you. I mean, you were never really dead. I have to animate the plastic to allow you to move and speak again. I don’t expect any trouble from either of you. I can reverse the spell easily, and I could really use my two new best friends right now.”

Twilight began channeling a spell on Bon Bon. “I hope you don’t mind, but I’m testing it on you first, just in case. . .”

Bon Bon had been trapped in the plastic prison for almost a day now. She couldn’t move, and was only aware of what was in front of her eyes when she had been put away for the day. Now, she felt a tingling sensation. The first thing she noticed was her legs felt softer, and she was able to bend them. Soon, she was walking.

Twilight smiled as Bon Bon walked towards her. “This is great!”

“You monster! How could you do this to us?” Bon Bon asked.

“Mind your manners, I did this so we could always be happy.”

“You think we’ll be happy being a toy for a psychotic witch? No thanks.” Bon Bon ran towards the basement steps as quickly as she could, which wasn’t very fast at all.

Twilight frowned and lowered her ears slightly. “You can’t escape so you might as well make the most of it.”

Bon Bon continued to run out of the replica town. When she crossed the border where the painted floor of the town ended and the wooden basement floor began, she fell to the ground. A spell around the town prevented her from escaping by turning her back to an inanimate doll.

“See? Come now, Lyra, hopefully you can show a little appreciation.”

Twilight lit up her horn and seconds later, Lyra began to examine her new plastic hooves. While she was doing this, Twilight floated Bon Bon back over and re-animated her.

“Okay, what should we play first? I rebuilt the bowling alley, or we could visit the Everfree. I hid a treasure in there and we could go find it!” Twilight leaned down to look more closely at the tiny mannequins.

“Lyra, are you okay?” Bon Bon asked.

“Yeah,” she replied. “I. . . I don’t know what to think of all this.”

“She blew up our house! The gas line even took out our neighbor's house, killing Blossom and Rose!”

“That’s horrible but—”

“But what? She’s obviously gone insane with grief, or maybe she was always crazy! I told you when she moved to town she was bad news!” Bon Bon yelled.

“That’s it, Bon Bon. I’m going to leave you in the punishment box so you can think about how rude you’ve been. If you don’t learn to behave, I’ll stop re-animating you,” Twilight scolded.

She levitated her into the air while Bon Bon continued to shout. “I’ll never play with you! Psycho whore stinking mare of a wyvern emo flank-lick—” The lid to the small shoebox sized prison closed shut, muffling her insults. She was now inside a dark metal box at the New Ponyville police station. It served as solitary confinement until dolls fixed their attitude. There was some very faint tapping as she explored her new prison.

Lyra had finished examining her new body. She had spent all night panicking and trying to move. As a foal she was afraid of being buried alive, and that is what being unable to move felt like. She looked up at Twilight and thought about the best way to ensure she never got frozen again.

“Um, Twilight? How was your day, you seem stressed.” Lyra tapped on her hoof to get her attention.

Twilight turned back and quickly wiped a tear away. “Oh, uh it was fine Lyra. I just had to go to a city council meeting, investigate the gas line explosion, and then I thought Bon Bon and you would want to have some fun with me. . .”

Lyra pondered the mare in front of her. It was a different mare than the one who had poisoned her tea and trapped her in a miniature figurine. Twilight looked so scared and vulnerable, as if she genuinely couldn’t relate to her real friends anymore.

She decided to be Twilight’s first friend. Lyra would try to get her to open up, and maybe find a way to undo all of this in the process.

“I’d like to go for a walk and you can tell me about it. Did you recreate the lake?” Lyra asked.

“Yeah, it’s right over here.” Twilight grabbed her to levitate her to the lake.

“I’d like to walk,” Lyra repeated. “So, friend, tell me why the day was so tough.”

“Oh, I guess it’s the usual. Lots of boring city ordinances and my friends are all too busy to hang out. Dash is practicing for the Wonderbolts, Applejack is looking to expand the farm further and it’s applebuck season. Pinkie’s been visiting her parents more often, Fluttershy went to help start an animal shelter in Canterlot. Rarity and Sweetie, well, between all those dresses and their visits to their parents in Manehatten, they can’t play either.

“It’s just me, Spike, and you two. . . I have to re-examine my schedule if I’m going to convince all my friends to move into New Ponyville with me.” Twilight looked away towards the basement door and wiped a hoof across her face. “Pretty soon, they’ll all leave and forget about me.”

“I won’t forget about you, Twilight. I may not be thrilled at what you did, and how you did it, but there’s no changing that now. I’d like to be your best friend and make the best of this. Would you like that?” Lyra asked. She already knew how Twilight would reply, thus gaining her trust.

“Yes! That’d be wonderful. Look, here’s the lake,” Twilight exclaimed. Her demeanor changed to giddiness as soon as her smile finished forming.

Lyra walked up to the edge of the lake and examined her reflection. She looked much the same as she did when she was a pony. The only difference was the unnatural shine to her skin where there should be fur. Her hair appeared stiff, and yet it almost swayed like real hair.

Lyra noticed her cutie mark, and then sat down and started to cry.

Twilight looked at the mare and felt a twinge of guilt. Her friends were supposed to be happy, not sad. “What’s wrong best friend?”

“I just realized. . . I’ll never get to play my harp again,” Lyra cried.

“Oh, but I think I can fix that and we can play together! You’re still you, I just need to adjust the spell to allow you to tap your magic. It won’t be nearly as strong, in fact you probably won’t be able to do anything beyond levitate objects your own size and play lyre, but I think you’ve earned it.”

Twilight left her by the lake to grab the book and lyre. She then began quietly making calculations in her head. Her horn lit up, encasing Lyra’s plastic horn.

“There, try it now,” Twilight cheered.

The lyre was next to Lyra, and she began to focus on it. The magic felt so different and weak, and yet she was able to hover the instrument over to her. With a few tentative plucks, she began to play a lullaby on the lyre. 

The miniaturized lyre was the same one that she had played all of her life. If nothing else, at least Twilight hadn’t taken away her music.

The lullaby ended and Lyra set the instrument down.

“That was beautiful, Lyra.”

“Thanks, it’s. . . what I was going to play before you turned me into a doll,” Lyra muttered.

“I meant to ask for my notes, was it painful being transformed?” Twilight inquired.

“Not until the end.” Lyra shuddered. “When it reached my lungs and heart it felt like an anvil was crushing them. Why poison me and do all that anyway? Can’t you just cast a spell to do it instantly?”

“No, it’s complicated. It all boils down to weakening the pony to a near-death state, suspending their essence while their body is transformed, and restoring it to them. A unicorn would have time to counter the effects. This is the only way to make a pony immortal.” Twilight brushed a hoof down Lyra’s back, causing her to shudder. “I’m. . . I’m sorry if the hemlock hurt too much.”

"It was painful, but probably not as painful as your Sister-in-law's funeral. So I forgive you for the hemlock."

"Yes," she replied. "The funeral was painful. Can you imagine when I have to go to Applejacks funeral to comfort Applebloom? Then Applebloom's funeral to comfort her kids, then their kids, and their grandkids? My whole life will be one friend dying after the next. I can't. . .I just can't live like that." Twilight stifled a sob.

Lyra gasped. "I'm so sorry, Twilight. I had no idea. You make it sound so horrible." She had never imagined watching everypony she knew die. She didn’t even want to think about how she would die one day. Lyra realized that the concept of never dying, spending her entire life as a doll, was just as frightening.

"But it'll all be okay. We'll all be together forever soon, perfect and cheerful just like I remember. Come on, what do you want to do next?" Twilight asked.

Lyra smiled warmly. Many thoughts were going through her mind. Twilight seemed to genuinely want to be her friend. Lyra would be able to learn all sorts of valuable info about the spells trapping her here. At the same time, Lyra also saw a mare in pain with nopony else to talk to.

“Want to go to the bowling alley with me?” Lyra trotted off happily with her lyre in tow.


***************************************************************


Lyra and Twilight had explored most of the town, forgetting entirely about the angry candy maker in the lockbox. The two were laughing and cheering each other on in no time.

The end to their games came when a loud bass sound started thudding through the library.

“Ugh, Vinyl again. She’s the worst neighbor in Ponyville,” Twilight complained.

Lyra took her place on her favorite park bench. It wasn’t the real bench where she spent her afternoons playing the lyre, yet it brought her some comfort all the same. “Are you going to ask her to turn it down?”

Twilight’s eyelid was twitching each time she heard the bass rhythm. “No, I’ve had enough. I’m going to adjust the schedule and turn her into a doll tonight.”

“Wait, shouldn’t you just ignore it?” Lyra hoped she could at least buy Vinyl some time.

“No,” Twilight replied.

Twilight began to overlook the roster of the ponies living in Ponyville. She adjusted a few strings on the board, re-arranged a couple photos, and checked a few boxes on a checklist.

“There, that wasn’t too hard. I’ll get her and Octavia tonight. You three can play music together so that’s perfect! I’ll just put the house up for sell after shrinking and hiding all their personal effects, and everypony will think they moved out.”

“Are you sure? I mean, I wouldn’t want you to rush and make a mistake,” Lyra stated.

Another particularly loud drop shook the library. “Ugh, no, I’m ending this now. I need to get you and Bon Bon back to your house.” Twilight levitated Lyra towards her house, and pulled Bon Bon out of the box.

“Filthy no-good double-crossing spoiled bra—” Bon Bon was cut off as the spell allowing her to move and speak was turned off.

“Wait!” Lyra shouted. She flattened her ears and tucked her legs in as she hovered. “Please, don’t turn me back into that. It’s so horrible being trapped in my body, unable to move. Can I please stay like this? I know if I try to escape I’ll just wind up like Bon Bon did.”

“Hmm. . .well I guess it couldn’t hurt, you’ve been great company tonight and I want to make you happy.” Twilight’s smile vanished as she narrowed her eyes. “Just don’t go doing anything to lose my trust, or else.”

Lyra gulped as she was set down outside her house next to Bon Bon. This was the Twilight that had poisoned her the other night. The sad Twilight, the one who just wanted to play with her friends forever, had receded back inside her.

“Yes, Twilight. Be safe,” Lyra said.

Twilight walked up the stairs silently, locking the basement behind her.

Lyra turned her attentions to Bon Bon, who had been frozen with an angry grimace on her face.

“Oh Bon Bon, must you provoke her? It’s not like we could reverse the spell without her help. And look at you, she’s obviously not stable. She could leave you like this forever. Won’t you at least try to be nice to her, for me?” Lyra begged.

Bon Bon couldn’t respond or move. All she could do was shed a tear from within the plastic figurine.

Lyra wiped the tear off and hugged her. “I know, Bonnie, I know. . .I’m going to turn you around so you have a nicer view, then I’m going to explore this New Ponyville. Maybe I can find something useful, or at least a good hiding place Twilight doesn’t know about. If we’re patient, maybe we can find a way out.”

Lyra trotted off towards town square, looking back to smile at Bon Bon before she walked out of sight.


***************************************************************


Twilight banged on the door again. It was a futile effort. Vinyl likely had severe hearing damage by now, and the music was still at full volume. She looked around, then used her magic to open the door. She locked it behind her.

Heading to the door to the basement, the music continued to get louder. Dust fell from the wooden beams of the ceiling from the loud music. This would be a good opportunity to test her spell on a pony that had not been subdued or weakened by herbs.

She made a mental checklist in her head, preparing the scientific method for a real world trial. As she walked down the stairs she could barely hear herself think over the music.

Twilight opened her mouth yelling at the DJ, to no avail. Finally, she pulled the plugs out of the wall, silencing all the equipment.

“Octy, what did I say about doin—oh. Hi Twilight, was uh. . . was it too loud?” Vinyl asked sheepishly.

“Yes, Vinyl, it was. And you’re never going to do it again if you want to be my friend,” Twilight threatened.

Vinyl leaned over the table and raised her hoofs in a gesture of surrender. “Geez, I’m sorry, ok? We can be friends, I just forget how loud I get sometimes. So, all is forgiven?”

The corner of Twilight’s mouth rose up in a smirk. “Almost, there’s just one last thing I wanted to say.”

Vinyl cocked her head to the side, listening intently. Twilight fired up her horn, focusing the magic as quickly as she could. By the time Vinyl realized she was casting a spell at her, she had little time to react.

The DJ panicked, releasing as much energy as she could at the incoming projectile. It deflected to the side. “Twilight what on—” Vinyl was cut off as she narrowly dodged another projectile. She turned for a second as she heard a horrible grating sound. Her subwoofers and equipment were being covered in black ooze.

“No Twilight! Not my equi—” Vinyl was cut off. A large mass had attached itself to the side of her head. She looked back at Twilight through her one uncovered eye.

Twilight stood on the steps smiling. “It’s over, Vinyl.”

“What on Equestria?” she complained. She fired up her horn and pulled at the mass on the side of her head. She could feel it spreading down her neck and towards her nose. The magic seemed to have little effect on it. Her blue aura surrounded and slowed the ooze, but she didn’t know any defensive magic to remove it.

Vinyl did the only other thing that came to her mind: she charged Twilight. If she tackled her, then she could at least take Twilight with her.

Twilight gasped and jumped to the side as the blind DJ hurtled past where she had been standing. Vinyl hit the wall with a loud thud, and fell to the ground.

Vinyl felt a sharp pain in her horn as she collided with the wall. She tried to focus magic on anything, but couldn’t. She wanted to stand up, but her front hooves were glued to the mass. It was creeping down her mouth and nose and it was getting hard to breath.

Vinyl kicked out with her rear legs, which were now covered in the goo also. They stuck to whatever they hit, Vinyl couldn’t tell. She laid there near the stairs, spread out and convulsing.

All that was left was the feeling of the thick goop rolling down into her stomach and lungs. Vinyl’s last thoughts were of Octavia. Would she think Vinyl had abandoned her, abandoned their relationship?

Twilight quickly shrank the DJ down, examining the vinyl figurine. “Heh, fitting, Vinyl is now vinyl. It’s almost like my magic has a sense of humor.”

She headed upstairs to get Octavia. The earth pony was a loose end now, and once she was gone the house could go up for sale. Upon reaching her room, she found that Octavia and her cello were gone.

“Crap, if she’s at a concert there’s no telling when she’ll get back. . .unless I convince Vinyl to tell me.”


***************************************************************


“So that’s your situation, Vinyl. Lyra here has been such a wonderful pony that I let her keep the spell active. Bon Bon was quite rude, and spent a couple hours in a small locked box. I’m going to animate you and ask you some questions. How you answer will determine what I do with you,” Twilight explained.

Vinyl gasped for air as feeling and movement returned to her. She then realized what a hollow gesture it was, as she had no lungs or even throat.

“Luna’s nipples, what the hay did you do to me? What was that spell?” Vinyl asked.

“Didn’t we just cover that, Vinyl? I told you, I turned you into a doll so you can be my friend forever! Seriously, am I going to have to pin a list to the wall? ‘Frequently Asked Questions About Your New Life as my Immortal Best Friends’?” Twilight mocked.

“I sorta get the how and why,  but really. . .all this because I am too loud?” Vinyl inquired.

“Nope, though your loud music did bump you to the top of my list.” She narrowed her eyes and gazed straight at Vinyl. “If you want to be happy, tell me where Octavia is.”

“You leave her out of this!” Vinyl shouted.

“I’m going to find her and bring her here, with or without your help. If I have to do it without your help. . .it will be unpleasant.”

“She’s off at a concert and she’ll be long gone when she sees what you did to trash my equipment!”

“Vinyl,” Lyra implored. “Please, don’t make her angry.”

“What, and you’re on her side now? She’s psychotic. Just look at Bon Bon!” Vinyl pointed to the mare that was still standing motionless on all four legs.

Twilight levitated some string and thumb tacks over to Vinyl, fastening her to the ground. She was forced onto her belly by the strings. “Well, I suppose I need to motivate you. I’ve learned pain is such a good motivator, shall we test that out?” Twilight asked.

“Hey, let me go!” Vinyl yelled.

“Twilight, please,” Lyra begged.

The light on the ceiling that simulated the sun grew in intensity, until it lit the room up just like the real sun would have.

“First, a demonstration.” Twilight pulled one of Vinyl’s hooves forward and shoved a thumb tack through it.

“Ow! What the hay, stop that!” Vinyl yelled.

“Tell me exactly when Octavia will be back so I can intercept her,” Twilight demanded.

“Never, you're not turning her into some twisted plaything!” Vinyl tugged at her hoof.

Twilight drove a thumb tack through her other leg. “Your loyalty would make Dash proud, but it’s just going to get you punished here.”

She levitated a large magnifying glass over next to Vinyl. It focused the artificial sun’s rays. The painted ground where the light was focused was already charring black and smoking.

“No!” Lyra yelled. She pulled at the thumbtacks trying to free Vinyl.

“Lyra, stay out of this!” Twilight ordered coldly.

Lyra could feel the heat from the magnifying glass, and ran. She hid behind a nearby row of bushes and covered her plastic ears.

“Go ahead, kill me and get it over with,” Vinyl shouted.

“As you wish.” Twilight focused the light onto Vinyl, quickly melting a hole deep into her side.

“Gah! It—No—wait!—please!” Vinyl screamed. A white hot spear skewered her side, penetrating straight through it. She felt sensations of molten, sizzling plastic, and as if some part of her soul were being torn off. The pain had been unbearable, worse than anything she had ever felt as a pony.

The magnifying glass was set down, and Vinyl looked back to find the wound. She could see the burnt plastic and a horrible residual pain lingered.

“Tell me when Octavia will be back, and I might fix that for you.”

Vinyl lowered her head in shame. “Tomorrow, 6pm at the train station.”

She hardly noticed as Twilight fixed the wound, restoring her to perfect condition. Twilight then reversed the spell, freezing Vinyl. “I told you we could all live in bliss. If you two remember what you learned here today we can even be best friends.” 

Vinyl and Bon Bon were moved back to their respective houses. Twilight then noticed that Lyra was still out there somewhere. “Lyra? Are you hiding from me?”

She returned to find Lyra still cowering behind the same bush from earlier. Twilight gently tapped her with her magic.

“Lyra, are you alright?” Twilight asked.

“N-n-no,” Lyra mumbled.

“I’m sorry, was it Vinyl?”

“Y-yes.” Lyra wiggled her muzzle further under her hooves to hide her eyes.

“Lyra, I had to know when Octavia was coming back. She could ruin everything. I fixed Vinyl as good as new right after.”

“P-p-please don’t do that to B-bon Bon,” Lyra cried, trembling.

Twilight bit her lip and looked at her best friend shaking there. “Ok. I promise never to hurt you or Bon Bon like I did to Vinyl. If she keeps misbehaving, I’ll just continue to use solitary confinement, I won’t hurt her.”

Lyra looked up from behind her bush, meeting Twilight’s giant eye that was only a few inches away. “O-okay.”

“Poor thing, I won’t make you watch that ever again. Would it cheer you up if we went outside?”

“You can do that?” Lyra asked as she stood up. “I can go outside?”

“Well, not without my help to keep the spell active. And I can’t exactly be showing off my new Lyra toy to the whole town a day after your death. But we can head up to my balcony and have tea.”

“Normal tea, this time?” Lyra inquired.

Twilight joined in the laughter. “Yes, normal tea.”












> III. A Muscular Red Stallion
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

 
Twilight sat on her balcony, sipping at her tea. Lyra sat next to the tea saucer, staring longingly out at the clear blue sky. A couple clouds floated by in the distance, and the sound of birds filled the air.

“I wish New Ponyville was this beautiful. It’s dreary, especially when you turn the lights out."

"I've been planning to finish the moon and sky today, actually. Then it will have a day/night cycle that follows the real one," Twilight explained.

"I think that'll be wonderful. What happens after that, though? You're really going to bring every single pony to live in New Ponyville?"

"Well, not all ponies deserve my gift of immortality, only my friends. And I'll have to do it gradually and carefully, so nopony notices when an entire town vanishes overnight."

Lyra pondered this for a moment. She had gained Twilight's trust, but what could she do with it? For now, it was enough that she had ensured Bon Bon wasn't taught a harsh lesson. 

Perhaps she could help more ponies, but that meant admitting defeat. If she accepted her new role, then she accepted that every pony would have to live forever as a plastic doll.

"Once you get more ponies, will I still be your best friend?" Lyra asked. She stood up and looked over at Twilight.

"Of course, Lyra, you were my first doll. You'll always be special to me."

Lyra smiled. She was in, now she'd just have to wait for some miracle to allow her to free an entire basement full of trapped ponies at once. Hey, Lyra thought. Stranger things have happened.

“Could you do me a favor?”

“That depends,” Twilight stated.

“I’m afraid of you freezing me because I had claustrophobia as a filly, and it brought those memories back. I spent the whole first night screaming and panicking and—and please don’t ever do that to me again,” Lyra sobbed.

“Lyra,” Twilight cooed. “You’re my new best friend, so I won’t freeze you anymore.”

“What if the others are scared too? I know Bon Bon hasn’t behaved, but I can only imagine how horrible she must feel being stuck all the time. Can you please start letting everypony stay free?” Lyra begged.

“I’ll double-check the warding spells and consider it, but only once you promise to tell me if Bon Bon and Vinyl start plotting anything,” Twilight ordered.

Lyra was wondering how to reply when she heard somepony approaching the balcony. Escape was her number one goal, however she was starting to feel concerned for Twilight.

"Oh hey, Twilight, I didn't realize you'd be up here having tea. I was supposed to clean the deck furniture today. Oh. . . is that Lyra?"

Lyra had frozen the second she heard Spike's voice. The little dragon was unlikely to overpower Twilight and free them, so she did the only other thing that came to mind. She played the role of an inert plastic toy.

Twilight recovered quickly from her shock, looking back and forth between the now-motionless Lyra and Spike. He had gotten home early. "Remember the replica I built? I’m making a figurine of every pony in town to put in it. Since Lyra died. . . I made hers first."

"Oh, that makes sense. Why build a replica town without replica ponies?" Spike asked.

"Exactly, Spike. I miss Lyra so much I painted this doll of her. I still haven't gotten the other dolls perfect. . . Eventually I’ll even paint a lovely doll for Shining and Cadance."

"Twilight, if you ever want to talk about the nightmares, or anything, let me know. Mind if I go for a stroll?"

Twilight laughed. "Sounds good, Spike. Say hi to Rarity for me." Spike always wound up at Rarity's when he 'went for a stroll.'

“Oh, before I forget, you got another letter from Celestia.”

Twilight winced for a moment, before turning to smile at Spike. “Thanks, leave it on my dresser.” She would stick it with the other unopened letters later.

Once Spike was gone, Lyra chuckled and sat down.

"Thanks, Lyra. That was some good acting. Just in time too, I'm not sure my spell works on dragons yet," Twilight explained.

Lyra relaxed and took a sip from her miniature tea cup. "You're going to get Spike too? He's a dragon so won't you two live, like, forever?"

"I guess, I'm still wondering which is better.” Twilight lifted her own tea up and sipped from it. “Once he gets older his scales will become resistant to magic. So I either turn him into a doll while he's young, or eventually I'll have to tell him the truth so we can spend the next several millennia as friends."

"Wow, that's a tough one."

"Yeah, and that's nothing compared to taking out the elements of harmony. If I don't have my methods perfect by then, I won't be ready when more ponies are sent by Celestia to investigate."

"Do you ever think that maybe you won't have to save everypony? Do you want to talk about how you're feeling?" Lyra asked, softening her tone.

Twilight took a sip of tea and just stared at a cloud drifting through the sky for a minute. "I think I'd like that, since I can trust you. I don't want to talk about it all right now, though. Just thinking about the accident, knowing that I was powerless to stop it—I'll never get to see either of them smile or laugh."

Lyra sat and intently listened while she continued. "I tried rebuilding their house, painting figures to look like them, but it's not the same. I'll remember how happy they used to make me. Give it a hundred years and I’ll forget them completely." Twilight rubbed her eyes.

"I'm so sorry, Twilight. I can't imagine losing all my friends one at a time, but won't other ponies feel just as bad when their friends end up in the basement? They'll never know what really happened to them."

Twilight's sorrow was replaced by a fiery determination in her eyes. "That's not my problem. They're my friends. Their families can go grieve until they grow old and die too."

Lyra sat there quietly, playing with the miniature tea set Twilight had set before her. She reflected on how Bon Bon must feel right now, trapped alone downstairs. If Lyra couldn't get her roommate and best friend to be Twilight's friend, what hope was there for the rest of the town? Would Twilight discard all of her dolls if they kept misbehaving?

"Come on," Twilight said. "This was relaxing, but I have some chores to do."

"So soon?" Lyra whined. 

The bell rang downstairs, signaling that a pony had entered the library.

"We have company. I'm putting you in my mane, stay put and keep quiet."

Twilight tucked Lyra into her mane and trotted downstairs. Big Mac was waiting in the atrium.

"Hey, Big Mac, what brings you by?" Twilight inquired.

He smiled and shifted a bit of hay to the other corner of his mouth. "Just turnin' in ah book for 'sis."

"The Farmer's Almanac. I hope she found it useful."

"Eeyup. Don't expect her ta admit it." Mac responded.

"What's in the saddle bags?"

"Groceries."

"They must be heavy, care for some tea?"

"Eeyup." Mac took a look around, and then slid off the yoke and saddlebags. He was always a bit nervous to be alone with mares.

"Ok, wait right here."

Twilight walked into the kitchen and let the door gently close behind her. She used her magic to open a cabinet door and access a secret compartment where she kept some of the herbs she used.

Lyra gasped softly. It was hard to see at this distance, but there were at least a dozen jars and pouches.

"Hmm," Twilight spoke to herself softly. "I haven't tried nightshade yet, its onset is a little longer than I'd like. Still, it shouldn't be affected by his larger body weight or stamina"

"Twilight," Lyra whispered.

"Yes?"

"Isn't Octavia next? You should let him go."

"It's okay, he's integral to me getting to Applejack. If you don't want to watch, I'll leave you in here."

Lyra considered the offer, yes she wanted to know as much as possible. This information could come in useful. "I'm okay."

Twilight continued to prepare the nightshade as the teapot started to whistle. Doing the math in her head, she prepared a dose.

"He may not be a unicorn like Vinyl was, Lyra, but his strength could be a problem if not sedated first. Better safe than sorry."

Twilight walked out to Big Mac and sat down at the table. She levitated the two teacups onto the table, placing the special tea on Big Mac's side.

"So Big Mac, I heard a rumor from Apple Bloom you have my smarty pants doll," Twilight chuckled.

Mac took a long drink from his tea to hide his embarrassment. "Eeyup."

"It's okay, I'd like you to keep it. You're such a sweet stallion."

"Thanks, ah always sorta liked ya to." Mac blushed and couldn't hide it behind the dainty tea cup this time. He instantly regretted admitting his crush on her because he had no clue what to say next as his mouth dried out.

"Mac! I never knew you had an interest in me. That's so sweet, I always knew there was a big teddy bear beneath all those muscles."

He chuckled nervously. "Eeyup." 

"Wait, that's it. It doesn't always have to be dolls. Maybe teddy bears, or porcelain. . . Bon Bon was already latex. I'd hate for things to get boring and repetitive." Twilight rushed over to read a few books as they levitated in mid-air.

Big Mac just watched, refilling his tea and having some more. Twilight hadn’t known about his crush on her, and it was moments like this when she turned into a complete egghead that made her so adorable.

Once she returned to the table, she began speaking softly about improvising a new spell. Mac just smiled and waited for her to reveal what the spell would be. Maybe she could create more smarty pants dolls.

Mac was brought out of his day dreams of a lovely spring wedding when Twilight asked him something.

"Hmm?" Mac replied.

"I said, are you feeling okay?" Twilight asked.

"Eeyu—" Mac reached for his tea again, finding himself drowsy and his muscles heavy. "—Nope."

Mac lifted his hoof and examined it. His vision was slightly blurred, and the hoof felt ten times heavier. His muscles resisted his commands and he realized how badly he just wanted to curl up and take a nap.

Twilight levitated a notebook out and jotted down some notes. She looked up slyly and smiled. "Hmm, and you had a few cups of tea from the same cup. Interesting."

"Ah don't understand."

"Oh it's simple, just a side effect of a . . . gift I have for you. I just have one question first. Do you like me enough to ask me out to hearts and hooves day?"

Mac was blindsided by the question. Sure, he'd thought about it, but he was far too shy. Still, she was here now, and she obviously knew the truth. "Eeyup."

"Definitely such a sweet, handsome stallion. I just have to make you into a plushy now. I get so lonely at night.”

"What?" Mac asked.

"I poisoned your tea, and now I'm turning you into a stuffed animal. Is that clear enough?" Twilight paused for a moment as her words caught up with her. “No, poison has such a negative connotation. . . I’m going to make us both happy for a long time!”

Mac's mouth fell open in surprise and he found himself unable to close it again. Adrenaline pumped into his veins. This wasn't a want-it need-it spell, Twilight poisoned him and was planning to kill him! The apple family needed him, so he put all his strength into his forelegs and flung the table at Twilight.

Twilight gasped at his unexpected outburst. She wasn't quite ready to transform him and tried to paralyze him instead. The spell proved unwieldy. Like the poison, Mac's sheer size made it difficult to properly restrain him.

Mac ran for the door, nearly stumbling, and then tried to unlock it. He couldn't focus enough strength to turn the lock. He found himself panting heavily, his throat dry, and his stomach burning.

Twilight flung a heavy dictionary into the side of his head. It bounced off like a piece of cloth would have. She hit him again, harder, knocking him away from the door. Twilight kept her distance having learned from Vinyl not to get to close during the process.

Mac's heartbeat was racing, pumping the poison throughout him quicker. He was feeling weaker the harder he fought.

"Please, ma family needs me," Mac pleaded.

"They'll join you soon enough," Twilight replied.

“No!” Mac continued to breath heavily and inch his way towards the table for cover. Twilight just waited patiently, checking the time on the clock and jotting down some additional notes.

"Well, looks like the nightshade has taken effect. You can come out now, Lyra." Twilight levitated her out onto the floor. "Keep him company while I finish documenting this."

Lyra walked over to Big Mac frowning. She had gone through a similar paralysis, though Mac at least retained some of his mobility. That probably made it all the more frightening. She petted his hoof right above the keratin so that he could feel her soft gesture of comfort.

"It'll be okay, Big Mac, she did it to me too. She's really hurting from the loss. Twilight probably thinks she'll wind up just like Cadance. She's afraid of letting go of so many friends."

Mac looked over at the tiny talking doll, trying to figure out what was going on. It looked like Lyra, it even sounded like her, but she was dead. They had found remains at the home of Lyra and Bon Bon.

Lyra heard Twilight mumbling about dosage calculations, spell alterations, and cuddling. "Sorry, Mac. I wish I could make her feel better and stop, I really do. She needs her friends more than ever right now, Mac, please don't hate her. And if you do, don't tell her or she'll punish you."

"Okay, Lyra, the spell is ready. Back up please." 

Twilight jotted down one quick last note. Subject still able to resist capture and breathe without assistance. Research later if this is due to the proper dosage or his earth pony genetics.

"Now, as much as I love to try new spells it means I don't know what they'll do. Good luck, Big Mac!"

Twilight charged up her horn. It changed from a shimmering purple to a flickering brown. A stream of magic poured out onto Big Mac, bathing him in a golden brown glow, and then vanishing.

Big Mac opened his eyes, using what little strength he still possessed. His muscles were beginning to feel lighter, and he thought he would have his mobility again soon. Next, he felt as if millions of ants were crawling over his skin. He was being stung repeatedly and forced his painful moans through the paralysis.

Lyra watched as artificial hairs sprouted from Big Mac's coat. They were becoming longer and softer, more like a stuffed animal then a pony.

Big Mac could feel cotton in his throat. It was getting hard to breath, and he had the terrible need to sneeze. He couldn't clear his throat and his slow, forced swallow did nothing to help wet his dry throat. The cotton feeling spread to his lungs, causing a severe itching sensation.

Lyra watched as she saw something fluffy inside Big Mac's mouth. His lips were flopping open and closed slowly. Finally, they touched and did not come apart. Small stitching appeared, sealing them shut. His nose vanished, turning into two dots that looked like they were drawn on.

Mac convulsed as his lips stuck together. He tried to force air past the cotton to his lungs, yet it felt like they weren't there anymore. His entire body felt light as a feather, and had the strangest itching and tickling sensations. His mind was hazy, and he could feel a pressure building inside his eyes. He wondered if this was it, if this was how he would die, or if fate had crueler plans for him.

Lyra watched Mac's eyes shrinking. They had taken a glossy sheen, and adhered themselves open. The eyelids and lashes vanished, leaving only two glossy plates where his eyes should be. They were a near perfect replica of a pony's eyes, yet they had the marble-like quality of a teddy bear's eyes.

Mac felt so warm. He was still aware, and he was still himself. However, there were new thoughts in there. Thoughts that shouldn’t be in there.

Mac wanted Twilight to hug him, more than anything. He wanted to be cuddled.

"What do you think, Lyra?” Twilight asked. She walked over to examine Big Mac more closely. While circling around him, she double checked the new spell and the enchantment she put on him.

"He's. . .a stuffed animal?" Lyra asked.

"Yep! Now I won't have to cry myself to sleep anymore. . . at least not alone. It gets so bad everytime I go to sleep. I hated when I had to say good night to you, Lyra. Now, I can cuddle with Big Mac at night!"

Twilight wrapped her arms around Big Mac and hugged him. Mac felt sheer elation at being held in her warm embrace. He couldn't tell if they were his feelings for Twilight, or the implanted thoughts of life as a plushy.

"Now, I'll just have to keep him out of Spike's sight. I'll shrink and re-grow him as needed so he can live in New Ponyville too!"

"That's neat, so you can just make all sorts of toys then?" Lyra asked.

"Hmm, well I wasn't sure this one would work, but yes. I can probably adjust to make any type of toy, doll, or figurine I want. Oh, maybe a wooden one next! This is so exciting, now I can make my town just as diverse as the real town!"

"Okay. . .Well, maybe we should just hurry up and get him downstairs. Another pony could drop by any minute."

"Good thinking, Lyra." Twilight cast a spell on Big Mac. There was a quick glimmer in his eyes as she activated the enchantment on him, compressing him into a miniature stuffed Big Mac. He was now the same size as Lyra and the others, until Twilight reactivated the enchantment.

"You've been so kind to me, Lyra. If you ever get lonely in New Ponyville, you can come sleep with me too," Twilight offered.

"Aren't you afraid I'd just run away while you're sleeping?" Lyra asked.

"Don't be silly," Twilight laughed. "You're my Little Doll Best Friend Forever! We'll never have to be apart again, and all the joy I've felt the last day is thanks to you!"

Lyra blushed, something she didn't even realize she could do. Part of her was glad to see Twilight happy, and part of her wanted to run away the first time Twilight let her out of the cage.

Twilight levitated Lyra and Big Mac towards her back. Lyra nabbed a sugar cube with her own levitation on the way past the tea set. She made herself comfortable in Twilight's mane and began to lick the sugarcube. She was surprised she could still taste the sweet treat.

Maybe being a doll wasn't so bad after all.












> IV. An Unworthy Brown Stallion
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Twilight lay in bed, reflecting on her busy week. She pulled Big Mac in tightly and curled up around him. The warm stallion she had turned into a plushy was one of her new best friends. Just knowing that Mac was there, close to her and unable to run away, brought her immense relief. He would join her every night, and had helped her stop having nightmares about Cadance.

Her initial trials had gone well, and her cover story for why Big Mac disappeared actually fooled Applejack. Twilight was encouraged that she bought the story of Big Mac being drafted for a war on changelings. Everypony had also bought the cover story for Lyra and Bon Bon’s deaths. It was almost too easy to trick the entire town.

Before she could transform any of the well-known ponies like Dash or Applejack, she had to thin out the town population and lay the proper groundwork. She spent the last week doing just that by capturing the less well-known ponies in Ponyville.

With a few disasters it had become believable ponies would be moving out of town. That new alibi enabled her to snatch up a few families under the pretense they were moving to Manehatten or some other city.

A record twenty ponies had been added to her dollhouse this week. They were the kind of ponies Twilight only saw on the way to visit the marketplace. It had been too easy to put their homes up for sale and say they moved out. This meant she could move forward with the most crucial stages and capture famous ponies, like the elements.

The increased population created a new problem for Twilight. While she had plenty of dolls for playtime now, Bon Bon continued to rally them against her. They wouldn’t be nearly as fun to play with if they had to stay frozen all the time. If Twilight hadn’t promised her best friend Lyra not to harm Bon Bon, she would have just thrown her away. 

She decided to go check on New Ponyville and ensure they weren’t up to no good. Maybe a little time in solitary confinement would fix their attitudes. If she couldn’t make them happy, then it was all for nothing. Twilight needed them to be happy, or else she couldn’t be happy.



***************************************************************



“Bon Bon, please,” Lyra begged. “I worked so hard to get her to agree to this. She is letting us stay animated while she’s gone! When she sees that you’re tearing her replica apart she’ll punish all of us!”

“She should have thought of that before trapping us here! Just look around,” she waved. The two stood in the middle of town square. Dolls were ripping apart anything they could, and tearing down anything not fixed firmly in place. “Berry Punch, Octavia, Carrot Top. . . even Snips and Snails, and they’re colts for Celestia’s sake!”

“I know, but—”

“No,” Bon Bon snapped, spinning around to poke Lyra in the chest. “You don’t get ‘buts’. The whole reason you were getting friendly with Twilight was to help us escape, and now I feel like she’s gotten to you.”

“Bonnie. . . you’re my best friend.” Lyra fought back tears as her closest friend berated her.

“Then quit running off with Twilight all the time! Everypony in town knows you're the only one she takes outside. You either start gathering us some useful intel, or find a new house to live in.”

Lyra swallowed a lump in her throat, unsure if it was real or imagined. “She needs me. . .”

“No, we need you.”

Bon Bon pointed out over the replica city. Last night Bon Bon and Octavia had rallied all the ponies to tear down town hall. It had taken several hours, and was still a work in progress, but they had reduced it to bits of wood and plastic. Everything from the plastic windows to the fake chairs inside were slowly destroyed.

“She can’t keep us here, Lyra. We’ll tear the whole town down, we won’t play with her.”

“Please, stop, she’ll hurt you! She just wants us to be happy,” Lyra pleaded.

“You said she promised not to hurt me. If we start playing with her, if we act happy, we’ll never get free!” Bon Bon picked up the leg of a broken bench and waved it at Lyra. “Get lost!”

Lyra started sobbing loudly, and ran back to her house to hide in her room. All she wanted was to be Bon Bon and Twilight’s friend. If everypony got along, maybe she would let them all outside. She might even get over this depression she was going through, and turn them all back to normal.

She feared for the other dolls. They didn’t get to listen to Twilight over tea. They didn’t realize how badly she was hurt, or how severe her mood swings were getting. It was only a matter of time until something truly horrible happened.

Lyra curled up on her bed. It was nearly as soft as her real bed. In the corner sat her lyre, and a pile of sugar cubes that Twilight had given her. The plastic window, dressers, and closet could all open. This replica room had enough to make her happy, why couldn’t Bon Bon see that it wasn’t so bad?

The door to the basement opened, and Lyra cringed. She pulled the bedsheet over her head and began to tremble.



***************************************************************



Twilight was smiling widely as she swung the basement door open with her Big Mac plushy in tow. About half of her new friends had been co-operating, and she had continued to feel happier every day this week. It was the other half, the ones always hiding from her and refusing to play, that were stressing her out.

Now, she saw almost every citizen of New Ponyville swarming around Town Hall and the nearby buildings. She gasped when she realized they had completely demolished that section of the replica. Twilight had spent a week getting every single detail perfect, down to the knots in the wooden flooring.

“How could you!” Twilight screamed.

The miniature ponies all looked up at their captor. Her horn was glowing, and her wings were spread out in mid flight. She landed directly in front of them in town square.

“You’ll pay for this!” she bellowed down at them.

Bon Bon stared up at the vicious looking alicorn, unafraid of her bluff. “Or what? You’ll throw all your friends away? You need us! You keep trying to make us happy, to make us love you, well it’ll never happen!”

“I. . .no! I’m your princess, I demand you show me more respect, especially you Bon Bon!”

“Ha!” she mocked. “You promised your precious Lyra not to hurt me.”

“Leave her out of this! She’s the nicest pony here. I spent days on each of your houses, you should be grateful!” Twilight glanced around. All the dolls were watching the exchange. Even Lyra was peaking out from her house in the distance.

“No, I’ve been trapped in this hell for a week.” Bon Bon advanced towards Twilight with a feral grin. She could feel the argument turning in her favor in front of everypony. “You can freeze us, lock us up, or capture a hundred more ponies. We’ll never be your friends, and you are too big of a coward to hurt us! You need us more than we need you!”

Twilight slowly took a step back before something clicked in her mind. She knew what she had to do. “I’ll throw you away, Bon Bon! I’ll only keep the happy ponies!”

“Keep backing up, coward. You wouldn’t dare kill any of us, you wouldn’t dare throw us away! Cadance and Shining chose to leave you, they hated you, and you can’t afford to lose us to—”

“Bonnie, stop!” Lyra called. She had left her house and ran to the circle of the crowd watching the argument.

“No, Lyra. We have rights! She won’t even negotiate, she just flies off the handle and runs away when we upset her.”

“That’s a lie!” Twilight’s wings started twitching, and a vein on her forehead began to pulse. “I will punish you! I only want nice ponies as my friends!”

Bon Bon laughed, pushing Lyra out of the way as her roommate tried to stop her before she said something they’d both regret. “What like you ‘punished’ Vinyl and fixed her right back up afterwards? Either let us go or kill us, but you’re too big a coward to do either!”

“That’s not true!” Twilight screamed. Her horn flared to life, bathing the town in a purple glow. All the ponies were knocked over and frozen. Twilight grabbed her friend Lyra and fled the basement. As she fled, she animated Lyra and almost tripped on the plushy of Big Mac.

“Twilight?” Lyra gasped. “Whoa!”

Once at the top of the stairs, Twilight sat down with her back to the wall.

“Twilight, are you okay?” Lyra already knew the answer. She had heard the argument that occurred in town square. If only Bon Bon had listened.

“N-no,” Twilight cried. “I f-feel so e-e-empty. I worked s-so hard to get lots of friends a-as fast as I c-could. I didn’t want to b-be lonely anymore. I didn’t want y-you to be lonely either.”

Lyra climbed up onto her knee as the mare cried. “Twilight, its okay. They’re just having trouble adjusting, I bet they would all love to be your friends but they’re scared.”

“Scared?” Twilight’s teary eyes were replaced by a grimace full of rage. “Why would they be scared! I worked so hard to bring them here, I made every single house perfectly! No, if they want to be scared I’ll give them a reason to be scared.”

“Twilight. . . what do you mean?” Lyra looked up to meet her gaze.

“Pain. My early studies showed it to be the best motivator, I’m just going to have stop being so nice. If they don’t want to be my friends, I’ll release them!” Twilight chuckled as she realized she had no choice but to call Bon Bon’s bluff. “After I’ve killed a few, I bet the others will be extra nice to me.”

“No, Twilight, you don’t want to do that!” Lyra begged, trying her best to hug the mare’s foreleg and comfort her.

“I have to, otherwise everpony will know Bon Bon is right. I just have to pick one of them that isn't my friend, isn’t happy. . . and kill them.” A wide grin spread across Twilight’s face as a twinkle appeared in her eye.

“No, please. Just—lock them up or something! You don’t have to kill one!”

“Yes, I do, Lyra. If I don’t, they won’t be my friends. If I don’t have friends who are there for me, I’ll end up like Cadance.” Twilight’s smile turned to a frown and she seemed to be on the path to another fit of tears.

Lyra hoped she could keep Twilight’s mind off of inflicting revenge by discussing Cadance. “Twilight what do you mean? I know how Shining died, but Celestia wouldn’t say much about exactly how Cadance did. . .” 

“That’s easy,” Twilight cackled. “She couldn’t stand the loss of her husband. I had gone to visit her, you see, and I found her in their bathroom. At first I thought she was sleeping. I walked in and noticed all the wine bottles. She either liked the vintage, or wanted the alcohol to thin her blood.

“I broke into the bathroom, where I found her. She was floating in a pool of her own blood, dead. I was paralyzed. I had to stand there and stare at her. Then I ran. I couldn’t even bring myself to tell Celestia. I ran and hid in my room, and that’s exactly where she found me once a guard reported Cadance’s death.”

Lyra gasped and fell off Twilight’s knee making a soft thud on the wooden stairs. After a week, she was still surprised at the issues that her captor was trying to work through. All Lyra knew for certain, was that she was likely the only thing standing between Twilight and a total breakdown. She struggled to think of someway to de-escalate this situation, but nothing in her life had prepared her for this.

“I’m not going to let the same thoughts get me. I’m not going to ever get that lonely! Once I’m done, they’ll have to be my friends, you’ll see!” Twilight stood up and started to head back towards the basement.

“Twilight, wait!” Lyra screamed.

A loud knock on the door interrupted Twilight. Before she reached the front door, a stallion had walked in. Twilight glanced at the door leading down to the basement. She couldn’t see Lyra, who had already hidden. Twilight turned to address the visitor with only one thing on her mind.

“Filthy, Diamond, what brings you two here? I’m busy and not in the mood for any more propositions, save it for the city council,” Twilight smirked.

“Really, Twilight, must a Princess be so rude? I thought as Celestia’s pupil at least some of her manners would rub off on you,” Filthy Rich replied.

Lyra peeked out from behind the book. She could see the muscles in Twilight’s legs tensing, and her tail flicking around quickly left and right.

“Apologies,” Twilight lied. “You’re right, I should get you two some tea. Excuse me, while I get started. Please, make yourself comfortable.”

Lyra watched as she trotted into the kitchen ever so gracefully, leaving Filthy and Diamond sitting at the coffee table.

This was her chance, Lyra could tell them to run. Would the punishment be worth saving one life? She had seen how upset Twilight had gotten and knew exactly what was going into his tea. She knew exactly what her captor planned for him. ”I just have to pick one of them that isn't my friend. . . and kill them.” A chill ran down Lyra’s spine, surprising her. Before she could decide what to do, Twilight came back out.

“So, Filthy, to what do I owe the honor?” Twilight asked. Lyra could see her wings twitch as she tricked the stallion.

“Well, me and Diamond are moving out of Ponyville. Several of our renters have gone missing and it’s no longer profitable. Fifteen of them, to be exact, this week alone. Don’t you find that odd?” Filthy asked.

“Odd? You were probably overcharging them.”

“Well, if I were prince of this town and I had buildings blowing up left and right, I would be ashamed of myself. It’s your fault they’re leaving, you’ve done a horrible job.”

“Really, Filthy, you wound me.” Even from a distance Lyra could make out a vein popping out on her forehead. Could Filthy really not notice he was playing with fire?

“Yes, I do not hold it against you though. In fact, I had only one simple dealing to conclude with you and I’ll be on my way.”

The kettle began to whistle and Twilight went to fetch it. She returned and poured him a cup of tea.

“Twilight, fetch me tea.” Diamond demanded. “It would only be proper.”

FIlthy nodded. “Grab her a cup now, Twilight.”

“Yes, serve me tea.” Diamond repeated, a wide grin on her face.

Lyra couldn’t see it, but could imagine a smile on Twilight’s face hiding a sea of rage.

“Here you go, Diamond,” Twilight cooed. “Tea for you and your wonderful father.”

“Thank you,” Filthy replied. The ponies began sipping tea from their cups. “Now, to the matter at hand.”

“Yes, please hurry, you don’t have much time.”

“Huh? Oh yes, we have a train to catch. Well, I reviewed city ordinance and according to the city codes, you were supposed to pay rent to live in the library. You owe me three years back rent.”

Twilight chuckled softly as she sipped her tea. “How is the tea? I don’t suppose it could shave any bits off what I assume is a ridiculous bill?”

“The tea is quite bland, actually. And the ‘bill’ is for twenty thousand bits,” Filthy stated.

Twilight looked between him and Diamond who had nearly finished their tea. She smiled, knowing the charade could end now. They had less than a minute of useable oxygen left.

“Twenty thousand! Whatever shall I do?” Twilight burst out in a fit of laughter, rolling around on the floor with her wings outstretched.

Filthy gasped, not believing the delirious fit of laughter he was witnessing. “Dear Celestia, are you alright Ms. Sparkle?”

“Da—Daddy?” Diamond coughed. She dropped the tea cup and it shattered. She sat on the floor choking.

Lyra watched as Filthy examined his daughter. She was laying on her side and kicking her legs wildly, stretching her neck out and forcing as much air into her lungs as she could. A horrible combination of coughing, choking, and sheer confusion muffled her screaming.

“Diamond! What’s wrong?” He continued to look his daughter over.

“What’s wrong? You’re attitude!” Twilight screamed between laughs. “Oh, it’s so easy! If everypony is this stupid I’ll be done in no time! I can even prove Bon Bon wrong!”

Filthy looked from his daughter, who was on her side gasping for air like a fish, to Twilight. “What did you do to her!” He yelled. “Wha—Bon Bon?—What did yo—you. . .evil slu—”

Twilight regained her composure and stood up. “You can come out now, Lyra.” Twilight looked around and didn’t see her. “Fine, don’t come out. Wouldn’t want to spoil the best part anyway.”

Lyra saw Twilight standing over the two ponies. They both lay on their sides clutching their throats and writhing in agony. They were breathing large, rapid breaths, and yet they still appeared to be suffocating.

“You’re probably wondering what was in the tea. It’s only fair I tell you, after all, you won’t be with us much longer. It was cyanide. Quite a lovely poison, fast acting, debilitating. I’ll definitely have to use it more often.

“You see, those fifteen renters of yours were turned into dolls, by me. Ungrateful, spoiled little brats just like your daughter. I built a perfect replica of Ponyville, each one got their own dollhouse, and how do they thank me? They tear it down.

“They are good ponies who are doing evil things, whereas you are just an evil pony. You, and your daughter. I’ve heard all about what she does to the crusaders.I can’t make everypony happy if there are mean ponies, like you two, making them sad.”

Filthy looked at his daughter and reached out, squeezing her hoof. Her eyes had rolled back into her head and her lips were blue. She had stopped breathing. He turned his gaze back to Twilight. His lungs were on fire, yet he could easily breath. It was getting so hard to focus, so hard to move, and his heart protested each painful beat.

“Cyanide,” Twilight explained. She circled around the two asphyxiating ponies. “It blocks the hemoglobin in your blood, which is what allows you to carry oxygen. Just a little dose and instantly, your blood becomes tainted. It spreads, and you suffocate from the inside out. Take as many breaths as you want, it’s too late now.

“You’re not worthy, but you’re in luck. I know just what to do with you.”

Twilight fired up her horn, quickly covering Diamond in her magic. In seconds the unconscious pony had been turned into a miniature porcelain doll.

Just as Filthy’s vision started to fade he felt the icy spell spread over him too. He passed out for a brief moment before recovering, trapped in a plastic shell.

“Well then, I had hoped to avoid this but you are the first two ponies not worthy of my gift of eternal life. You will help me prove a point to all the disobedient ponies downstairs.”

Twilight went into the kitchen and came back out with an appliance. She carried it and the two new ponies in her grip. She walked towards the basement and called out. “Lyra, where are you?”

Lyra quietly walked out from behind her book. “Here,” she whispered. “What are you going to do? You’re not really goin—”

“I should have done this days ago.” Twilight’s rage faded, replaced by sorrow for a brief moment. “I want to tell you in advance, Lyra, I’m sorry.”

“For wha—” Lyra was cut off as she was frozen.

“You mentioned the other ponies pick on you, are jealous of you because you get to leave the basement. I’m going to show them you’re not above the rules. I bet this will make them trust you again, so they won’t be so mean to you anymore.”

Twilight grabbed her and carried her down to the basement. She opened and slammed the basement door behind her.

After plugging in the appliance, she set down Lyra, Filthy, and Diamond. She then collected the scattered ponies. Twilight levitated the dolls, and set them in a circle around the hot plate.

Big Mac was the last to be floated over. Just over twenty ponies surrounded the hot plate as it heated up. Twilight had evenly spaced them in a perfect circle around the plate.

“I’m very disappointed in all of you,” Twilight began. “After all the hard work to find out if you were worthy. After all the planning to ensure a smooth capture. I granted each and every one of you immortality just to be my friend!

“You were my friends before, why won’t you be my friends now? I’ll tell you why. It’s ponies like Bon Bon and Filthy, mean ponies who are poisoning the minds of others!

“I promised Lyra when she got here not to harm Bon Bon. Do all of you even realize how many times Lyra has begged me not to punish you? If it were not for her, I’d never have even let you stay animated overnight!

“This is how you repay Lyra, the one pony who is actually nice to me? You tear down the buildings I spent weeks building! This is how you repaid me who only wants us all to be happy? With insults and temper tantrums! I’m doing this all for you, for us!”

Filthy was surrounded in a purple aura and floated over the hot plate. He was held just inches above it.

“Not every pony is worthy to be here. From now on, if you don’t want to be my friend just say so!” she screamed. “I want friends, fun, bliss, not arrogant snobs!”

Filthy was set down on the hot plate, his plastic hooves melting to it instantly. A sizzling sound filled the air with acrid smoke. Everypony had been positioned around the hot plate so they could look nowhere except directly at him, Diamond included.

“Now, for the demonstration!” Twilight laughed maniacally.

Her horn glowed purple briefly, animating Filthy Rich who immediately screamed in pain. He rambled incoherently, alternating his shouts and his profanities. He tugged at his hooves sharply, trying to free them from being melted to the plate.

Twilight smiled as he had grown an inch shorter, the plastic pooling and sizzling on the hot plate. She started clapping her hooves at the spectacle.

“n-no!!” Filthy screamed. “margh—n-n-not D-diam—ond!”

“Oh, now you want to be nice to me?” Twilight asked. “Where were your manners when you were demanding twenty thousand bits? Or when your daughter ordered me to get tea?”

Twilight levitated the porcelain doll that was Diamond Tiara next to the hot plate, where Filthy could easily see her. Every pony in the town had a perfect view of the ceramic filly.

The melting stallion tried his best to stifle the screams and speak to his daughter. His legs had melted and the hot plate was causing smoke to rise from his abdomen. “Ti—Tiara—sorr—sorry. I lov—lov—”

Filthy was interrupted as Twilight slammed her hoof down on Diamond. She shattered into hundreds of pieces under the weight. Filthy screamed louder than a pony without lungs should be able to, his voice wrought with pain. Twilight brought her hoof down again and again, turning Diamond into dust.

Lyra watched in horror, wishing she could close her eyes. Questions raced through her mind: how could Twilight do this to them, To a filly? How could she make us all watch? Why would she freeze me? Lyra began to cry for the stallion who had only seconds to live. She raged against her prison, wanting to stop Twilight and look away.

Filthy had melted up to his neck now, forming a large circular puddle on the hot plate. Twilight flicked a switch on the side, turning the hot plate off. She used her magic to help it cool quickly.

Filthy lay there in the puddle, looking around with his head. He tried to speak, but only raspy moans escaped his lips. He was nothing but a talking head melted to a hot plate.

Around him sat the frozen residents of New Ponyville, who had nothing to do but to stare at the gasping head all night.

Lyra thought she could hear sobbing. It sounded like Twilight, but she couldn’t see. She was suddenly yanked into the air and watched the room spin around. Big Mac hovered up next to her as they left the basement.

Once Twilight reached her bed, Lyra felt movement return to her as she was set on the night stand. She immediately scrambled away from Twilight, falling off the nightstand.

Lyra was caught in a purple aura. She looked around for a place to hide once set down. Her eyes were wide and her plastic pupils dilated. She could not get the image of the innocent Diamond dying out of her mind. Even Filthy, for his faults, didn’t deserve that.

“L-lyra, I’m s-sorry. I had to prove Bon Bon was wrong! I h-had to!” Twilight stuttered.

Lyra didn’t feel like talking right now. She ignored the crying alicorn and continued to look around. She noticed the drawer of the night stand was cracked open. With a quick leap she dove through to hide in the drawer amongst a couple books and some quills.

“Please, talk to me? You’re still my friend right? You don’t hate me?” Twilight asked, her voice quivering. “Lyra don’t. . . Please. . .”

Twilight could hear a barely audible whimpering coming from inside the drawer. She felt an emptiness overwhelming her as the one doll that liked her hid. Twilight had done what needed to be done. Filthy needed to die. He was rude, and Bon Bon needed to be taught a lesson. Despite other pressing issues, her mind could only think about Lyra’s approval.

She got up and found a small blanket she had crafted and a pillow fit for a doll-sized pony. Twilight dropped the pillow into the open drawer of the nightstand. She hung the blanket half-way in. Once she saw Lyra pull the blanket inside, Twilight smiled weakly and climbed in her own bed.

She levitated Big Mac over to her. She enlarged the plushy of the farm-pony until it was just the right size to cuddle. Twilight squeezed it like a vice, sobbing into his mane. It was happening all over again. First her real friends, and now the dolls were abandoning her. Soon she would be alone, and then she would have no choice but to end it. 

“I had to. . . I had to. . .” Twilight repeated the mantra softly into Big Mac’s ear.

A part of her resolved to try harder tomorrow. The rest of her mind was lost in despair as she wept into the mane of her favorite stallion.













> V. A Chic, Unique, and Magnifique Mare
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	“Applejack,” Twilight inquired. “What are you doing here?”

“Ah came by the library to help ya out, Twilight,” she replied.

“Oh, I wasn’t expecting you. Care for some tea?”

“Sure thing.”

Twilight walked into the kitchen and began to rummage through the secret compartment in her cabinet. It was unorganized and took her awhile to find what she was looking for. She sprinkled some hemlock into one of the cups with her magic. After filling two cups with tea she headed back out to Applejack.

“Here you are. What brings you by? You’ve been so busy I don’t see you anymore,” Twilight said.

“Yep, and y’all are busy bein’ a princess. We can’t just run off on adventure anymore,” Applejack replied.

“So, you miss doing that too?” Twilight drank from her tea.

“Sure do, ah figured you and ah could spend the morning together.” Applejack lifted up her teacup and drank all the tea. “Delish.”

“I’d love to spend the morning with you, maybe even the whole day,” Twilight chuckled. She continued to sip on her tea while she waited.

Applejack frowned and set her cup down on the table. “That’d be great but ah gotta get back to apple buckin.”

Twilight felt something in the pit of her stomach. She looked down at her tea as her throat and tongue quickly went numb.

“No—” Twilight sputtered. She had mixed up the tea! “A—J.” Twilight fell backwards onto the ground. She could already feel her muscles failing. Each breath took twice as much effort as the last.

Applejack stood above her, looking at her. “Twilight, hang in there!” Applejack grabbed her and started to drag her away.

Twilight felt each step in the staircase as AJ dragged her up them. She opened her mouth to ask where they were going, but only made some weak gasping noises.

“It’s alright, Twilight, ah got ya. Ya just need a warm bath.”

Applejack positioned Twilight in the hot bath water and held her head above it.

“Ah know what you did to Big Mac and the ponies in town. Now ah’m here to put ya down like the dog ya are.”

Applejack pulled out a knife and ran it along Twilight’s forelegs. She watched in horror as the bath filled with the crimson fluid. She screamed, eliciting a small wheeze from her paralyzed lungs.

“Pity, poor Spike will find ya just like ya found Cadance. It’s what ya deserve, ah just wish ah’d never been your friend.”







*******************************************************************************************************

Twilight’s eyes flew wide open as she flailed in the bed sheets. She gasped loudly for air and checked her legs. There was nothing there.

Her next thought was to turn on the lamp. Instead, she accidentally knocked it off the nightstand and shattered it

“Spike!” Twilight shouted. She had to make sure it was just a dream. Glancing over to the spot he normally slept revealed an empty patch of floor. Twilight recalled she had asked him to sleep in a separate room after Shining’s funeral.

“Twilight?” a groggy voice asked.

She turned to see a small green head sticking out of the dresser. “Lyra? Lyra!” Twilight yelled before she began sobbing. She levitated Lyra over and hugged her. “I’m so glad you’re not gone!”

“Mmph wrompph?” Lyra mumbled.

Twilight looked down, seeing a tuft of mane sticking out from between her forelegs. She loosened her grip so the two could talk. “Lyra—it was horrible. Big Mac, and—AJ knew all about it. . .”

“Twilight, it’s okay, I’m right here.”

“No—it’s all ruined! I’m either going to be all alone or dead!” Twilight threw her head into her pillow and cried into it.

The confused figurine walked up towards her head so she could be heard. It appeared Twilight was in another one of those moods. She did her best to hug Twilight’s right foreleg. “Listen, Twilight, I said you’re my best friend right?”

“Mmm’hmm” she replied.

“And I still am. I won’t ever leave you unless you ask me to.”

Twilight pulled her face out of the pillow and looked at Lyra. “You really mean it? Even after how mean I’ve been?”

“Now that I know how scared you are to be alone, even if I was still a pony, I would want to be your friend. And right now, I bet Fluttershy, Dash, Applejack, Rarity, and Pinkie want to be your friends too. Wouldn’t you feel better if we went and told one of them how lonely you feel?”

“No—they’re always so busy. Ever since I became an alicorn they treat me different.” Twilight paused to pick up Big Mac, and pull him in tight against her chest. “They think I don’t notice but I do!”

“Twilight, I bet you’d feel better. Why don’t we go talk to Rarity, isn’t she the closest?”

“Yes. But then I’ll just be sad again when I leave because I know she’s gonna die. What if I don’t get to say goodbye? What if we have a fight and then she dies? How will I tell Sweetie that her big sister is dead, and that even an alicorn can’t fix it!”

Lyra climbed up on the pillow and wiped the alicorn’s tears off the best she could. “Every pony dies eventually, and you can’t save all of them. Come on, I’ll go with you. Please, talk to a real pony about how you’re feeling.”

Twilight sniffled. “You’re right. I can talk to them about it, and then turn them into dolls!”

“No, that wasn’t what I meant!” Lyra exclaimed. She was lifted into the air and stuffed into Twilight’s mane via the purple glow of telekinesis. 

“It’s a little early, so I’ll just surprise them with breakfast! It’ll be wonderful!” Twilight grabbed her saddlebags and began combing her mane as she ran downstairs.

Lyra cursed herself under her breath. Maybe Bon Bon was right, and Lyra really couldn’t do anything right.

************************************************************************************************

It had taken a while for Twilight to cook breakfast for Rarity and Sweetie. After she had let herself in, which was easy because most ponies still didn’t lock their doors, she set to work.

Strips of veggie bacon, scrambled eggs, and Apple’s Strong Apple Cider for the adults. Sweetie could have some tea. The aroma of the heavenly meal was filling the air. Any time now, the pair would wake up and smell the lovely breakfast. The sound of hooves on wood started to echo upstairs. Moments later Sweetie Belle entered the kitchen.

“Rarity, did you make—Twilight! I’m so happy to see you. Don’t tell Rarity, but her cooking stinks,” Sweetie stated.

“Heh, thanks. I hope you like mine. I put a lot of effort into it. Say, where is Rarity?” Twilight asked.

“Oh, she’s usually styling her mane at this time in the morning. Can I?”

“Of course, dig in.” Twilight levitated a plate over to her spot on the table and joined her to eat.

“So, how’s school?” Twilight inquired.

“Good. I’m not too happy about the move though,” Sweetie added.

“What move?”

“Oh. . . Rarity didn’t tell you? We’re moving in with our parents in Manehatten. She says too many ponies are going missing or moving out of town around here.”

“Why would she think that?”

“Well, Snips and Snails stopped going to school. Rarity swears she saw their parents later that day searching for them, but then they just moved out of town.”

“You don’t say. So, when is the big move?” Twilight asked. She took a bite of her eggs.

“Today at six.”

Twilight choked on the eggs, nearly spitting them out in shock. “What? You can’t leave!”

“Huh?” Sweetie cocked her head to the side as she munched on a piece of the veggie bacon.

“You’re my friends—”

“Sweetie, dear” Rarity interrupted. “Who are you talking to? Oh, Twilight! I’m so glad you dropped by.”

“Rarity, why are you two moving?” Twilight asked.

Rarity shot a look to Sweetie, then replied. “Twilight, I was going to tell you. . . Fancy Pants has offered me a storefront, and with so many ponies leaving I can’t afford the upkeep anymore. I will be sure to visit you, darling.”

“I. . . made you breakfast,” Twilight smiled.

“That’s very generous. Did you come all this way just to cook for me?” Rarity sat down and began to eat her eggs. She wrinkled her nose when she took a drink of the alcoholic Apple Cider. “Really, at breakfast?”

“Yeah,” she chuckled. “I uh, just stopped by to make breakfast is all! Consider it my last gift before you move.”

Twilight felt something pinch her neck. She remembered that Lyra had been tucked into her mane before she left the library. She was supposed to tell Rarity about her fear of being alone.

“Actually, you promise not to laugh?” Twilight meekly inquired.

“I never laugh at a friend.”

“I. . . I don’t want to be alone. Ever.”

Rarity smiled warmly and put a hoof on her friend’s shoulder. “Twilight, nopony wants to be alone. You will always be so very dear to me.”

“And maybe you can have friends and live a full life, but what about me? I love you Rarity, and I’m going to have to watch you die. Then I’m going to have to go to the funeral and see Sweetie crying. When she becomes my new friend, I’ll have to watch her die and do it all over again!” Twilight could no longer maintain her brave facade and began weeping openly.

“Sweetie, why don’t you head upstairs,” Rarity ordered. She chugged the rest of the hard apple cider and prepared for a day at the spa comforting her friend.

“I think that’s a good idea, thanks for breakfast!” Sweetie turned and quickly hurried out of the room.

“Twilight, why didn’t you tell me sooner? All this time when you said you wanted your space. . .” Rarity pulled Twilight in for a hug, letting her cry onto her freshly conditioned mane. “Everypony dies, it is what makes us all the same. We just have to find the beauty and happiness in each day we’re given, and our loving families. When I die, I’ll be happy to have known such a great mare as you.”

“But you’ll still be gone.” Twilight pulled herself out of the hug, briefly narrowing her eyes and taking a hostile tone. “What’s the point of you being happy when you die but I get to be sad about it forever?”

“I. . . I don’t know, but Celestia did it,” Rarity answered. She smiled just enough to comfort  Twilight. “Her and Luna have lived thousands of years and they’re okay.”

“I don’t want to be okay. I want you to be my friend forever, and not just in my memories.”

“That’s not possible Twilight, I’m sorry.” Rarity tried to hug her again, however she pulled back out.

“No, it is possible. But I messed it up and they all hate me.”

“Who hates you?”

“All the new friends I tried to make. Lyra is the only one that likes me,” Twilight admitted. “It doesn’t have to end in death. Friendship is the most powerful element, it can last forever, perfectly, just like I remember. . . just like I used to dream.”

“Twilight, her and Bon Bon are gone. I’m so sorry you had to lose her after losing your brother and sister-in-law. Friendship, just like love, only ends if you choose for it too.”

“But, Lyra is—” Twilight felt another pinch on her neck. “Yeah. . . I guess she is gone. But what if she didn’t have to be? What if I’d found a way to make her live forever?”

“But you didn’t, and she’s gone now. I don’t know how else to explain it to you.” She tapped a hoof on her chin and chewed on some of the scrambled eggs. “Think of it like a beautiful summer dress. No matter how wonderful it is, you can’t wear it in the winter. The vibrant colors, the wonderful fashion, it all has it’s place and eventually it gets old.”

Twilight sighed. She didn’t want lectures or talks about how she should feel happy. She wanted to feel better now, Twilight wanted to take action and not drown in a sea of comforting white lies. “Thanks, but I’m going to go now. I thought talking about my feelings would make it better, but it didn’t.”

“Wait,” Rarity interjected. She quickly stood up to block Twilight’s escape. “Why don’t we go to the spa, my treat? I just want to see you smile again.”

“No thanks. I’ll stop by later to say goodbye, we can have one last cup of tea.” 

Twilight pushed past her friend and quietly walked out of the boutique, back towards the library. It took all her effort not to let the ponies see her cry as she walked.

“Good morning, princess!” Derpy shouted out from her mail route.

“Howdy Twilight, glad to see you up and about again!” Applejack said warmly.

“Mornin’ Twilight!” an orange blur on a scooter shouted as it zoomed past her.

“Um. . . good morning” Fluttershy whispered.

Twilight finally made it back to the library and closed the door, then slumped down.

“Twilight?” Lyra asked. “Do you feel better? See how nice every pony is to you?”

“Kinda. I want to believe you, I do. Even if they are my friends, as soon as they move to New Ponyville they’ll hate me too. And if I don’t take them by force, they’ll just grow old and we’ll all die alone and sad.”

“You don’t have to force them, why don’t you ask them?”

“They’ll think I’m crazy!” Twilight shouted. She stood up and began pantomiming with her arms wildly. “Oh look, Twilight likes to play with dolls, no wait, they’re action figures! She’s just over-reacting, it’s only one friendship report! She only watched one brother die! Twilight will just make lots of new friends when we die!”

Lyra stood in the middle of hurricane Twilight, watching as she paced around her ranting. “How about a deal then. I’ll tell you how to make the dolls you already captured happy, and you have to go to the spa with Rarity.”

“Hmm.” Twilight tapped a hoof on her chin a couple times. After a moment of breathing deeply, she had returned to a calmer state. “Alright, tell me how to make them happy and I’ll go to the day spa.”

“The biggest complaint is that they’re bored. You didn’t just turn us all into dolls, you took away our special talents. Vinyl doesn’t get to DJ, Octavia can’t play cello, and Bon Bon can’t bake sweets. Snips and Snails can’t go to school, their parents can’t run a tailor shop. You let me keep my lyre, why not give the rest of the ponies a gift?”

“You’re right!” Twilight cheered. “It’s so obvious, everypony loves gifts! They’ll be sure to love me after I give them lots of presents. Then I can start making more dolls! You’re the best Lyra!”

Twilight rushed down into the basement with Lyra hanging onto her mane for dear life. The closet on the far wall contained several of the personal items from her new friends. Originally she had saved them as spare parts for her replica city. Now, she could pull out some of the items for her friends. Octavia’s plastic cello would be replaced by the real wooden one. “This is great, I always meant to make them happy, and it’s so obvious! My replica isn’t real enough!”

After rummaging through the belongings all day, she had gotten something for nearly everypony to do. Twilight walked over and quickly set all the objects down near the ponies. They were all standing in a circle, just like last night, staring at the remains of Filthy Rich. He was clearly dead now, the spell binding him to the melted plastic had faded. So to was his daughter, and Twilight couldn’t help but smirk.

Using her levitation she quickly scraped Filthy into the trash can by the far wall and set the hot plate down. She took a deep breath and blew the porcelain dust out of town square.

Twilight lined all the dolls up in front of her and then sat Lyra down next to them.

“Listen up. I’m going to unfreeze you all and give you gifts. I have most of your stuff: musical instruments, school books, tailoring supplies, even some of your outfits. I’ll shrink down an oven for you later, Bon Bon. I want everypony to be able to use their special talents and be happy,” Twilight explained.

“However, if you destroy them I will not replace them. If you demolish any more buildings, I will. . .” Twilight looked around, realizing she liked all the ponies here. She wanted each one to be happy, yet she had to stay strong. Having already paused enough, she made her threat. “I’ll kill Octavia. So, take a good look at her. If you wreck my town again, then you are committing her murder.”

Twilight lit up her horn and all the ponies began to move again. They quietly filed past her to collect some of their personal belongings and slinked back towards their homes. It wasn’t friendship, but it was a start. Even Bon Bon did not want to make fun of her now.

Every one of them had left, except Lyra and Big Mac. Twilight turned her attention to the stallion. He was sitting on the ground, slumped over, facing away from her. For a moment, she thought he had not been animated. Something akin to sobbing was faintly heard from him.

“Big Mac?” Twilight asked. “What’s wrong?”

Lyra walked over to Big Mac and whispered to him. The two seemed to have a short conversation.

“He’s depressed,” Lyra explained. “He just keeps saying ‘tell Applejack I’m dead, I don’t want her to keep expecting me to come back.’ “

“Mac, is that true?” Twilight asked.

“Eeyup,” he softly replied.

“But I’ll bring them here to live with you, then you’ll be happy!”

Big Mac stood up and spun around. “No. Ya got me ta sleep with an ah’ll stay quiet, but you leave them outta this!”

Twilight took a step back. “But, they’ll die! You’ll never see them again.”

“Ah’m already dead.” Big Mac turned around and sat back down.

Lyra looked between the pair and saw Twilight start to walk away. Watching the giant mare walk through the narrow town was quite a sight. She knew exactly where to step and when to fly. She never knocked over so much as a single tree.

Twilight looked back at Lyra, so the doll ran to catch up. As they passed Lyra’s house, Bon Bon signaled her roommate.

“Psst, Lyra,” Bon Bon called from the front door.

Lyra took a quick detour from following Twilight. “Yeah?”

Bon Bon kept shifting her gaze around the ground at their feet. “Look, I’m sorry. For—for Filthy and Diamond. I shouldn’t have pushed her. She trusts you, Lyra, so I expect you to keep her from doing it again. In the meantime, we’ll keep our heads down and figure a way out of here without anymore protests.”

“I’ll try, but I couldn’t save them either. . .” Lyra lifted her friend’s chin up. “She isn’t the mare we used to know, Bonnie.”

“I know, just try your best.”

Lyra nodded and resumed her chase of the large mare before Bon Bon could protest. Twilight had stopped up ahead to talk to one of the dolls. As she got closer she saw it was Vinyl.

“Hey, Twilight, thanks for my speakers and DJ table. You weren’t kiddin’ about the replica, I found power outlets in my basement,” Vinyl admitted in astonishment. The mare was smiling for the first time in a week.

“Your welcome. . . does this mean we’re friends?” Twilight asked, smiling weakly.

“Yes, but on one condition. If something happens and somepony destroys a building, you have to kill me in Octavia’s place.” Vinyl sat down and crossed her forelegs, wiping all hints of happiness from her voice. “I won’t let you hurt her.”

“Why protect her? Bon Bon and Octavia are the ones causing all the problems. And I can’t very well kill Bon Bon, or I would have,” Twilight admitted.

Lyra frowned, unsure if Twilight knew she was listening.

“Because, I never told Octavia how I feel about her. And if somepony has to die next time you need to set an example, I want it to be me. If she dies before I get the courage to tell her how I feel, I’d never forgive myself. But, if I die. . .then at least she still has a shot at being happy.”

“What? So all the sudden you’re trying to sacrifice yourself to save some stuck up earth pony? If you just want to be my friend because Octavia is your best friend then forget it!” she barked.

“No, Twilight. I want you to be my best friend.” Vinyl jumped up and threw her sunglasses to the side. “I’ll uh, tell Octavia I don’t like her anymore. She’ll be so sad though, I just don’t want her to get killed too!”

“Well, I guess you’ll have to prove it. You can be my best friend after you tell Octavia you’re not friends anymore and kick her out. In exchange, I’ll grant your silly request. Any punishment I would do to Octavia, I will do to you instead.”

“Deal,” Vinyl replied.

Twilight began laughing loudly at the tiny DJ.

“Hey, I’m being serious here!”

“It—it’s not that. I used to put sappy lies like that in my friendship reports! Sure, ponies always say stuff like that, but when you really need them, you find out they were lying.” Twilight stopped smiling and began to re-enact a friendship letter.. “Dear Celestia, today I learned to sacrifice my happiness for a friend, because that’s the magic of friendship. I can’t wait to see the look on Octavia’s face when somepony destroys another building and I punish you instead of her!” Twilight laughed.

Lyra had been backing up subconsciously, and bumped into a fence. She looked around for a place to hide. The tone of voice and behavior of Twilight had gone from ‘I am a broken pony’ to ‘I want to watch the world burn.’ Lyra knew that was always a precursor to bad news.

“I’ll be back for tea with you and Lyra at six. I’ve spent all day getting everyone’s stuff. I have to go pick up Rarity before the next train,” Twilight explained.

Lyra heard that last sentence before closing the door to the nearest house. She walked back out to address Twilight, forgetting about her plan to hide.

“Twilight, what do you mean ‘pick up Rarity’? You promised!” Lyra spat.

Twilight turned around. “Oh, I did promise to go to the spa with her. So I’m going to bring her to this spa, in New Ponyville. So, you coming, Lyra?”
Lyra braced herself, taking a deep breath. “No.”

“Fine,” Twilight spat. She stormed up the stairs out of the basement.

Lyra slumped down on the ground and buried her face in her hooves. She felt a pony touch her shoulder.

“Hey, you tried right? That’s all we can hope for,” Vinyl explained.

“Please, Vinyl. You said you would be her friend. You better not be lying,” Lyra warned.

“Why is that?” Vinyl picked her sunglasses up and placed them back over her eyes. “We still don’t understand why you haven’t run off to get help yet.”

“It’s because she’s broken, Vinyl. She doesn’t want friends, she needs them. Every time a pony makes her feel lonely, or like she’s going to have to lose another friend, she—” Lyra gulped. “She either cries herself to sleep or melts a pony. Do you really understand what you’ve gotten yourself into?”

“Yeah, I’m her new best friend forever, and the second she turns her back I’m bolting out the door and getting help,” Vinyl explained.

“No,” Lyra ordered.

“Excuse me?” Vinyl spat with disdain, she took her sunglasses off and lifted Lyra’s head to stare straight into her eyes. “And how are you going to stop me?”

“I won’t let you hurt her, she deserves better!”

“And how are you going to stop me?” she repeated, coming muzzle to muzzle with Lyra. “We’re trying to break out of this prison, remember?”

“I’ll. . .I’ll tell her you were lying. She’ll be so mad she’ll kill Octavia just to teach you a lesson!” Lyra bluffed.

“You wouldn’t dare!” Vinyl punched Lyra in the face, flipping her onto her back. She then pinned the mare underneath her. “If I want to lie to Twilight or be her friend, that’s my business! And if you breath a word of it, I’ll strap you down to that hot plate myself!”

Vinyl punched her over and over until she grew tired. As ineffective as it was for one plastic doll to punch another, it made the point clearly because it still hurt.

Lyra didn’t even roll over. She laid on her back crying, wishing she had gone with Twilight. Watching Rarity be poisoned and turned into a doll was better than being betrayed by Vinyl. Why don’t Vinyl or Bon Bon understand? I just want Twilight and us to all be happy! I don’t want anypony else hurt!

A familiar voice spoke softly next to her. “I’m sorry, Lyra. I thought if I stopped you then you wouldn’t have a confrontation with Vinyl,” Bon Bon explained.

“Bonnie?” Lyra looked up at her.

“You should have gone with Twilight, Lyra, you don’t belong here anymore.” Bon Bon turned around and walked back towards their home.

With the final dagger thrust into her heart, Lyra turned and ran for the Everfree. None of the ponies had explored it yet, so she would find a nice, quiet spot in the replica bonsai forest to call her new home. Someplace where nopony would be mean to her. Someplace where she had a friend.





****************************************************************************************************




“Sweetie, dear, are you all right?” Rarity asked. 

The filly had complained of a burning in her stomach. Rarity had felt it too, and thought the eggs were not cooked properly. For the past eight hours since breakfast they had grown sicker. Now, the filly was vomiting in the bathroom. Rarity herself had made several trips to the restroom to relieve herself from the other end.

The two ponies clearly had to get some rest. The train would have to wait until tomorrow. They weren’t going anywhere.

Rarity levitated a glass of water over to drink. Her throat had been burning furiously since breakfast. The cramps in her abdomen would have been too much to bear, but all she cared about was Sweetie.

Rarity knocked again on the door. “Sweetie? I can’t hear you. I’m coming in.”

The door swung open and Rarity screamed. Sweetie had passed out next to the toilet. Rarity rushed over to her and held her in her arms. She was breathing weekly and shivering. Her skin was cold and clammy and her white skin was even paler than usual.

“Sweetie! Hang on, I’ll get us to—” Rarity choked for a second, before aiming into the porcelain bowl to vomit. “To—to get a doctor!”

Rarity could feel the stomach acid burning her already sore throat. She tried to levitate the filly but was too weak. She managed to balance her on the back and stumbled towards the front door.

It was then that she heard the singing. The voice sounded familiar, though the song was one she had never heard.


All around the Castor Plant,
The alicorn chased the pony.
The pony stopped to eat a bean,
Pop! goes the pony.
forty milligrams of concentrated ricin,
Half a dozen eggs.
Mix it up and make it nice,
Pop! goes the pony.


“Twilight?” she asked coarsely. She could feel another wave of cramping in her bowels and collapsed to the floor. She didn’t want that to happen in front of Twilight. “Help!” she called out.

“Oh, hello Rarity,” A cheerful voice called out. “I see you’re too sick to leave town now,” Twilight cackled.

“Not—funny—” A gurgling sound from Rarity’s stomach interrupted her. “Get Nurse—Redheart!”

“Heh, I can fix it.”

“Do it!” she begged.

“Tell me, Rarity, do you want to be my friend forever?”

“Huh?” Rarity asked.  It was at that moment she lost control of her bowels.












> VI. A Sterling Silver Filly
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	"Good evening Twilight," Derpy called out. 

"It sure is, Derpy. Hey, I have an extra muffin, want it?" Twilight asked. 

"Of course!" Derpy quickly swooped down from her mail route to scoop up the levitating muffin. The mail mare ate it in one bite. "Delicious. I’m so glad you always give me muffins! How'd you find out boysenberry is my favorite?"

"Lucky guess," Twilight chuckled. She continued to skip down the road towards the library. Applejack watched as she was closing her apple stand for the night. She raised an eyebrow, and looked away when Twilight glanced her way.

"Hey Fluttershy, are we still on for coffee Friday?"

"Of course, Twilight. Anything for a friend," Fluttershy replied.

"Good evening Mayor Mare! Working late? I'll swing by the office tomorrow to drop off the city ordinance revisions."

"Thanks, Twilight, you've been doing a great job as our princess!" Mayor exclaimed.

The rest of the way home saw Twilight with a skip in her step as she whistled a familiar tune. She even stopped to give Scootaloo some candy, a Milky Hay bar. By the time she got home she'd greeted half the town.

As soon as she stepped through the door and closed it, she let out a long sigh. "Whew, that was tiring. Let's go move into your new home Rarity, you'll love what I did with the place."


***************************************************************


"The plan went smoothly. She expects me to kick you out of the house to be her friend," Vinyl explained.

"Good, I've already moved my stuff down here anyway," Octavia replied.

"Once Vinyl makes her move, whether it works or not, you won't be able to go to the surface again Octavia. Twilight will have it in for you," Bon Bon explained.

Octavia glanced around the small basement, estimating how much digging remained before they reached freedom."That's fine, I can keep working on the tunnel out of here.”

"We're just lucky Twilight made the mistake of building the town too well. The houses that have basements penetrate the wooden floorboards. Now that we have an underground base, she won't be able to figure out where you and Bon Bon are coordinating from," Vinyl explained.

"What if she freezes us while we're down here," Bon Bon inquired.

"She still won't be able to find us. Once she unfreezes the other ponies, we'll be unfrozen too," Octavia explained. She walked over towards the tunnel entrance and peered inside. “Besides, I’ve met a pony who may solve that problem. . .”

Bon Bon frowned, recalling the first few days she spent frozen while Lyra frolicked around with Twilight. "You're assuming she won't animate us one at a time and leave you stuck down here."

"Then you'll just have to carry me up to the surface. Make no mistake, Vinyl will escape the library. We'll just need to lay low for a few hours until help comes."

"Just make sure to keep digging that tunnel," Bon Bon ordered. "If Vinyl fails, at least we'll be able to tunnel out from beneath the library given a few weeks.”

"Hey, Bonnie, look on the bright side? I'm too awesome to fail," Vinyl boasted.

"Wait, do you hear that?" Octavia asked. Some small decorative bells hung from the ceiling. As Twilight walked through the town above, they jingled softly.

"Rarity. . ." Vinyl sighed. "She left to get her and said she'd be back for tea. This is it, wish me luck."

"Good luck!" Bon Bon cheered.

Octavia just stepped forward and gave her a hug. "We're all counting on you."

Vinyl ran up the stairs to the entry room of Rose and Blossom's house. When Twilight detonated the gas line to cover up her first two victims, she had killed them both. Their empty house made the perfect entrance to the rapidly expanding system of underground tunnels. With a dozen dolls trusted with its secret, they had connected four houses together and built a central chamber beneath the floorboards.

"And here's Carousel  Boutique. I’ve already moved or recreated personal belongings for both of you. Now, I'm going to unfreeze you and Sweetie Belle. I expect you to be civil," Twilight explained to her miniature friend.

Vinyl watched from a few feet away as Rarity and Sweetie Belle were unfrozen. They had an eerie crystalline sheen to them. The plastic they were composed of was milky white, giving the impression of opal gems. Their mane and tails retained their normal coloring.

Sweetie immediately curled up and began to cry, hiding herself behind Rarity.

“Twilight, what—how did you do this? Why?” Rarity stood still, not bothering to look at her new plastic body. She stared into Twilight’s eyes as if they held the answers.

“I couldn’t lose you too, it’s like I told you at breakfast. It hurts. . . so much, Rarity.” Twilight sat down and smiled weakly. “I never knew it’d hurt so much, and now that Celestia made me an alicorn I’ll never escape that feeling.”

"Twilight, I am truly sorry. Why didn't you just ask Celestia to change you back? Or why don't you ask her how she deals with loss? Why all of this?"

“It’s the only way to make sure it doesn’t happen again. I have the power now, and Celestia kept telling me to be responsible. She. . . would understand.”

Rarity sat down, checking to make sure the quivering filly was still behind her. “Twilight, she would understand, she’ll help you after you let us all go—”

“No! That’s not what I meant! I have to do this on my own. She’d only be mad at me again, she. . .” Twilight began crying and couldn’t finish her sentence.

“Twilight. . . what aren’t you telling me? What did Celestia say?” Rarity sat down and cradled Sweetie against her chest while waiting for a reply.

“Celestia. . . she wouldn’t t-talk to me. She sent L-luna. . .” Twilight was trying, and failing, to compose herself. Despite her anger, Rarity waited patiently to let the alicorn finish. “A-after I found Cadance. . . Luna was trying to comfort me, but I saw Celestia. . . in the doorway, crying. She. . .she turned and left me.”

“Twilight, Cadance was her niece. Celestia was hurt just as badly as you.” Rarity ran a hoof over Sweetie’s back.

“No! She can’t know that, it’s scientifically impossible! Celestia should have asked me, she should have comforted ME! Not Luna, the half-baked princess stuck on the moon for a millenia. I’m her student. . . she has never left me alone before. . .”

Vinyl was smiling in sheer joy. Rarity had just made Twilight vulnerable, now would be the perfect time to remind her that she promised to play tea time with her. Then Vinyl could escape while she was busy with her pity party.

Vinyl walked up to Rarity who was still waiting for a coherent answer. "Rarity," she whispered. "After we leave, go to my living room and wait there. Bon Bon will meet you and keep Sweetie safe."

"What on Equestri—"

"Trust me," Vinyl interrupted. "Hey, Twilight. You promised to take me for tea, wouldn't that make you feel better?"

"Y-yes," Twilight replied. She shook her head, and with it the traces of the painful memories for a moment.

"Let's go, you and me, right now."

"What about Lyra? I promised her too."

"Nopony has seen her, she said something about you not being her friend anymore after you captured Rarity here." Vinyl pointed at the mare who was softly singing Hush Now, Quiet Now to Sweetie Belle.

"No, don't lie to me! Lyra wouldn't say that." Twilight wiped her tears away and stood up. "Lyra!" she shouted.

Vinyl mentally kicked herself for making such a blatant lie. "She's gone, look I'm sorry. I'll tell you about it at tea," Vinyl said. She didn't want to risk Lyra tagging along and ruining her plans.

"First I find Lyra," Twilight said. "Lyra!" she shouted forcefully.

Vinyl sighed as her captor took to the air and started flying around town. When Twilight landed over near the Everfree forest, Vinyl sprinted off towards her.  She reached her just in time to see Lyra walk out of the forest.

"Lyra, are you ok?" Twilight asked. 

"Yes," Lyra replied somberly. She was still hurt by her friends ostracizing her for giving Twilight the friendship she so badly craved.

"We're still friends?" she asked with concern in her voice.

"Of course, I just—" Lyra noticed Vinyl walking up quietly and listening to the conversation. "Had a little fight with Bon Bon. I'm fine now."

Twilight looked back towards Ponyville, emitting something that sounded like a growl. She quickly turned back to her friend. "Did she hurt you? I'll lock her up if she did!"

"No, it's fine, really. . ." Lyra looked over at Vinyl and quickly averted her gaze. She knew full well Vinyl was going to make a run for it. If she told Twilight this,she’d never be welcomed by her old friends again. If she kept quiet, Twilight would never trust her again. "I think I'll just move into another house for a little while."

"Ok, ready to go get some tea? I was thinking that since you can taste sugarcubes, maybe you could taste tea! Long term animation has never been studied before, but I have some interesting hypothesis'. I think the longer you're animated, the more of your senses will return," Twilight explained. She smiled down at Lyra.

Lyra was drawing a circle in the dirt with her hoof, barely paying attention to the conversation."Oh, neat."

"You still want to come for tea, right?

"I uh—" Lyra looked over at Vinyl who was shaking her head no. "Am not really thirsty."

"Please!" Twilight begged. She made her best puppy eyes at Lyra. "I really want both my best friends there."

Lyra glanced back at Vinyl who slid a hoof across her neck. With a gulp, she replied "Sure, let's get some tea." As soon as Twilight turned away, she stuck her tongue out at Vinyl.

Twilight quickly grabbed them both and started to walk upstairs. Vinyl and Lyra hung onto her mane as she carried them to the balcony.

"Not a word, Lyra," Vinyl whispered.

Lyra wasn't sure how to handle this, but she had to try. Twilight was her friend. Ever since Lyra started being nice to Twilight, her captor had returned the favor by being extra nice to her. If the other ponies would only listen to reason, Twilight would be extra nice to them too.

In no time at all they had arrived on Twilight's balcony. She quickly set up tea for herself and a doll-sized tea set for Lyra and Vinyl.

"Oh this is so much fun, isn't it? Maybe you can get some more ponies to be my friends. I really want to play with all of them," Twilight stated.

"Of course! In fact, Snips and Snails were just saying how cool they think you are. Now that I've kicked Octavia out of the house, she ran off crying and hid. Nopony has seen her since," Vinyl lied. Once she escaped, she knew Twilight would go for Octavia. At least now, the other ponies had plausible deniability when they refused to reveal her location.

"That's wonderful news, isn't it Lyra? Vinyl picked me over Octavia!" Twilight cheered.

"Yeah," Lyra whispered. She focused intently on her tiny plastic tea cup. If I rat out Vinyl now, she won't get angry and hurt anypony. However, Bon Bon and Octavia will probably do worse than just punch me a couple times. Twilight left the hotplate down there. . .but Bon Bon wouldn't. She's still my friend. A tea kettle poked Lyra in the side.

"I said, are you alright Lyra?" Twilight asked.

"Yes. I just had a long day. I didn't know dolls could get tired." Lyra glanced at Vinyl who nodded in approval. She had already started to inch away. Lyra hated being stuck here, endlessly debating an unwinnable situation. She just wanted to crawl back into her cave in the Everfree and hide.

"Oh, well I was thinking about that. If my hypothesis is correct, you should be the first pony to notice any changes. So if you'll just report them to me, things like being able to taste or getting tired, it'll give me a baseline. I can experiment with the animation spells further. For instance, I just found a way to animate the apple trees. All the ponies can have as many apples as they want now. I still haven't figured out where the stuff you eat or drink goes. . . I figure I'll just chalk it up to 'magic'," Twilight chuckled.

"Yeah," Lyra mumbled.	

“And you were right,” Twilight added. She saw Lyra glance at her briefly so she smiled. “I’ve been leaving gifts for the dolls, and letting them stay animated 24/7. I even set an automatic enchantment for you, to keep everypony animated at night. They’ve been getting nicer already, I even had Snips and Snails invite me to play soccer with them.” Twilight laughed. “It wasn’t fair, so I took it easy on them.”

“Mmmhmm.”

"Ok, you're worrying me. Tell me what's wrong, now!" Twilight ordered.

Lyra shivered and dropped her tea cup. It bounced and rolled along the table, and she burst into tears. Twilight was so focused on her distraught friend, that she didn't realize Vinyl had already reached the end of the table.

With a small running start, Vinyl flung herself off the table and over the balcony railing. She landed seconds later with a sickening thud. The landing was every bit as painful as she expected, but her plastic body remained unscathed. A few small plastic scrapes were a small price to pay for freedom. 

After taking a moment to compose herself, Vinyl sprinted for the nearest house to hide.

Back on the balcony, Lyra began to mutter her apology.

"I-it's V-vinyl and Bon Bon. They k-kicked me out of town because I w-was gonna tell you about the e-escape attempt. Now they'll n-never let me b-back in!" Lyra wailed.

Twilight looked around for Vinyl and noticed she was missing. "Lyra!" She screamed, slamming a hoof on the table.

Lyra flinched and curled up. "So s-sorry, p-please don't hurt m-me," Lyra begged.

"I won't hurt you, but I'm gonna make Vinyl wish she'd never been born. You're my friend, Vinyl is just a worthless degenerate," Twilight yelled.

"Twilight?" Spike called. "Who are you yelling at?"

"Damn it," Twilight spat. "You stay exactly where I put you and I forgive you." She grabbed Lyra and used her magic to toss her behind a book on the nearest bookshelf.

Spike had made his w ay up the stairs. He paused on the balcony to see his sister having tea alone. "Hey Twilight, is Rarity here?"

Twilight tensed the muscles in her eyelid slightly, fighting the urge for it to twitch. "No, Spike. Why?"

"Well I was going to meet her with Pinkie to throw a surprise party on the train platform before she left. Rarity never showed up," Spike stated.

"Oh, she caught an earlier train. Sorry," Twilight explained.

Spike’s shoulders fell and he exhaled. "What? Why would she leave and not say anything? I wanted to say goodbye. . .”

"It's a grown-up thing Spike.” She walked over and rested a hoof on his shoulder. “When you're older, you'll understand."

"Ugh, not that again. I'm only six years younger than you," Spike grumbled. "Well, I'm going to bed. I've had enough disappointment for one day."

"Good, make sure to get lots of sleep so uh. . . you can reshelve the library tomorrow! Hehe. I've got to run out and get some quills before the shop closes, see you later!" Twilight ran down the stairs and out the front door.

"Sheesh, what's gotten into her?" Spike asked himself. "The sofa and quills guy closed his shop three days ago."

He went to his new bedroom. It was a gift from Twilight now that he was 'old enough for his own room.' However, he was apparently still young enough to be blown off. He plopped down in his bean bag and reached for the nearest comic book. A few posters from his favorite series, Dragon Quest adorned his walls.

"That mare, sometimes I swear she'll be the death of me." Spike laughed, and flipped the comic open to the first page.


***************************************************************


Vinyl was sprinting faster than she ever had before, and she had just barely reached the nearest house. It felt like a marathon just to reach it, and it should have only been about fifty feet away. There was no sign of Twilight yet, so at least Lyra was good for something. Vinyl just needed to find a pony who could be trusted to get word to Celestia.

Rounding a corner, she ran into the last pony she expected to run into. After bumping into her hoof, the mare quickly zeroed in on Vinyl.

"Wow, a miniature pony toy!" Silver Spoon exclaimed. She scooped Vinyl up before the DJ could flee.

"No, wait! I'm not a toy, I'm Vinyl Scratch! Listen, kid, Twilight trapped us all in her basement! You have to tell Celestia!" Vinyl explained as quickly as she could.

"Wow, and you talk! Mommy said she would get me some toys like you from Manehatten. Did you know they enchant dolls there too?" Silver asked.

Vinyl squirmed around, only causing the filly to tighten her grip. "You're not listening kid! Twilight killed Filthy and Diamond! She'll kill you too, if you don't run now and get us to Celestia!"

Silver turned the doll around in her hooves and examined how detailed it was. "Hmph, you're awful impatient for a toy. Is this a game?"

"No, it's not! Ugh. Look, could a toy do this?" Vinyl found a nearby rock and started levitating it.

Silver gasped and dropped Vinyl. The DJ took off running, and Silver easily kept up.

"Hey wait, you said you know where Diamond is? Mom said they moved to Manehatten," Silver shouted.

Vinyl stopped just as the earth pony caught up to her again. "I'm telling you the truth, she's gone, and if you don't turn around right now and go home, you'll be next." 

"Hmm, I think you're broken. Maybe Twilight will know how to fix you." She quickly scooped up Vinyl in her hooves again.

Silver's eyes went wide as Vinyl began using some of the most foul language her filly ears had ever heard. Once the doll had been dropped again, it took off running. Silver followed it around a corner and rammed into Twilight.

"Sorry, Twilight," Silver stated. "I was chasing my new toy."

“Thanks,” Twilight replied. She froze the doll with a quick flash of her horn and picked up Vinyl. “This is actually my toy.”

“No, I found it first. I already have a dollhouse and everything. Mom was going to buy me new dolls  but changed her mind.”

“I guess you can’t get everything you want, goodbye.” Twilight turned to leave.

“Wait!” Silver ran around in front of the mare and reared back to wave her arms in protest. “Please show me how to make one. I don’t have much to do since Diamond moved out of town.”

She looked to the filly, and looked around. A pegasus was flying around clearing clouds and a couple ponies were chatting in their backyard. "Alright, Silver. I have more, want to see them?"

"Sure, that sounds great!" Silver exclaimed. "Diamond always said my dollhouse was stupid."

Twilight began to walk back across the street to the library."Your dollhouse isn’t stupid. Just wait until you see how big mine is. What kind of dolls did you get?"

"Porcelain dolls! They came from Fillydelphia. I've heard of enchanted dolls, where'd you get yours?" Silver inquired.

"It's a royal experiment. I'm making them myself. I even made a porcelain one, but it broke."

"That's really cool. Do you think. . ." Silver glanced away.

"What?" Twilight had to stop walking to watch the filly struggle to find the right words.

"Can. . . we be friends? I know you're an adult but Diamond was sorta my only one ever since daddy died. . ."

Twilight smiled. "Silver, you can be my friend. I'd love to have a new friend, and Spike is always too busy to help me."

"Thanks, Twilight. Mom said you changed when you became a princess but I think you're nice. We can be best friends forever!"

"I'm glad you think that, Silver.” Twilight smiled widely at Silver’s infectious joy. It was a feeling she hadn’t felt since becoming an alicorn. “So, will you keep my experiment a secret? If you do, I'll let you come play with my dolls anytime."

"Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye."


***************************************************************


Applejack put the last sign underneath her apple stand. She closed the drawer and saw something flying overhead.

"Hey, AJ! Guess what?" Dash shouted.

She watched the pegasus descend with a smug grin, and then walk towards her flourishing her tail. "Ah reckon ya got into the Wonderbolts, on account of the uniform," AJ responded. 

The pegasus was barely keeping her hooves on the ground. She was fidgeting and looked like she was going to fly off to do a sonic rainboom at any minute. "Heh, yeah! I've been telling all the girls, Have you seen Rarity or Twilight?"

"Dash, can ya calm down, we need ta talk."

She steadied her hooves on the ground and adjusted her flight goggles. Her giddy smirk quickly fell flat. "Something wrong, AJ?"

"It's Twilight, ah think something is wrong with her."

"Why, did she start having nightmares again?"

Applejack adjusted her hat while thinking of the best way to suggest to Dash that their friend had been kidnapping ponies. "It's not about the suicide or how she blames herself for her brother, it's about all the ponies disappearing."

"They're just moving out of town, that's not Twilight's fault."

"Did ya know Mac left? Twilight says he got drafted, and that he left without even saying goodbye to his family."

Dash raised an eyebrow, Mac was shy but devoted to his family. "Hmm, that does sound strange. Maybe you should ask Twilight about it."

"Ah did, she says it was last minute. Then, Rarity and Sweetie left without sayin' goodbye to anypony. Not me or Applebloom, broke my sis' heart," AJ explained. She glanced off towards the train station. “Apple Bloom and ah waited two hours, she refused ta go home. . .”

"I was wondering why the boutique was empty, it smells awful in there. I think some animals are living in it," Dash laughed.

"This ain't funny, Dash!” Applejack glared at the mare who seemed to be laughing at her sister’s expense and the missing friends. “First Lyra and Bon Bon die, then Snips and Snails families move out of town. Half a dozen other families move, Mac and Rarity vanish. . . Each time ponies are saying Twilight is the last one to talk to 'em."

“Easy,” Dash responded and quickyl gave her an innocent smile. "If I've learned one thing here, AJ, it's that not everypony is a spy. Just Pinkie."

"Look, all ah want you to do is keep your eyes open. Ah sent Mac to return a book, he gets drafted. Ah'm s'posed to meet Rarity at the train station, she never shows. Just tell me if ya notice anything odd about Twilight." Applejack’s mind flashed back to a nightmare she had last night, of Big Mac chained up in a dungeon. It was a ridiculous thought, yet she couldn’t shake that feeling her brother was in trouble.

"Fine, I was headed to tell her about the Wonderbolts anyway. However, practice starts in a few days so I won't be in town for long," Dash declared.

With a beat of her wings, Rainbow took to the air and flew towards Twilight's house. The sun was setting quickly and she still had a lot of packing to do.

The first thing she noticed was Twilight and Silver having a friendly conversation. They walked into the library together. Dash had never seen the two talking before, in fact most ponies in town avoided Diamond and Silver's families. They had a way of being really snooty.

With her curiosity piqued, she glanced through a window. First Twilight went and got a book from a shelf. Then she lead the filly down into the basement. Dash considered following them down there, and started laughing. Twilight would never hurt a filly. This wasn’t some fiction novel about a serial killer with a basement full of pelts.

Dash flew away to see if she could find Scootaloo and give her the good news next.










	

> VII. Star Crossed Lovers
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	"So, Silver, down these stairs are my dollhouses. I've re-created all of Ponyville for the experiment. Keep in mind, Celestia wants me to find a way to make a perfect doll that can be a friend to lonely ponies. All these dolls actually think they are real. Since I based them on ponies I know, they may want to leave and go home. However, they aren't real, and this is their home," Twilight explained.

"Wow, can I make one so I can take it home?" Silver asked. She was approaching a door with Twilight clearly marked ‘Private’.

"Making a doll requires two things.” She paused a moment to ensure a suitable ruse. “First, I need to scan an existing pony, then I can model the doll after them. Since you're not a unicorn, you'll just have to help me find ponies to scan."

"Oh, so if I wanted a Daring Do doll, you couldn't make one because you can't scan her."

"Correct, but if you wanted a Cheerilee doll, I could make one."

"Cheerilee," Silver giggled. "That would be really cool. I could have my own schoolhouse!"

Twilight opened the door and motioned for Silver to head downstairs. "Now just remember, not a word to anypony and I'll let you be my assistant."

Silver walked down the stairs and Twilight followed. From the doorway of his bedroom, Spike had overheard that Twilight was going to let Silver help with her replica town. He frowned as he felt a sense of betrayal. For years he had been her assistant, why should she trust a brand new filly to help with her special project?

As Twilight and Silver reached the bottom of the stairs, the filly gasped in surprise. She ran towards the center of town, drawing the attention of several ponies. There was hushed mumbling as most ponies hid and a couple cried out for Silver to run. She was enjoying it so much she didn't hear them.

"You made all this? It must have cost a fortune. My parents own four factories that purify silver and smelt silverware, and I doubt they could afford this," Silver admitted.

"Yes, well being an alicorn helps. I'd like you to meet Lyra, she is. . . the only doll functioning properly so far," Twilight improvised.

Lyra spoke softly from Twilight's mane. "Why the lies? Aren't you going to capture her?"

"No," she replied in a hushed tone. "Celestia had a pupil. Now that I'm a princess, I want one too. She'll become my best friend, like my own daughter. One day she'll love me more than her parents, more than I loved Celestia."

"You promise not to hurt her?"

"Of course, Lyra! You two are the only nice ponies in this whole town. Now, go play with her so I can deal with Vinyl."

Lyra was set down near Silver Spoon and led her off to see the lake. Meanwhile, Twilight got to work. The lake was across town from the town square, giving her some time alone to deal with Vinyl.

She took an empty corkboard down from the wall with her plans on it. A quarter of the wall was empty or had momentos pinned to it. Everything was going perfectly and soon the whole town would be hers.

Twilight set the corkboard down in town square, where town hall had been razed by the dolls. It rested up against the nearest building. She levitated Vinyl out, keeping her frozen, and spread her legs out. 

Something inside of her began to boil to the surface. She was trying so hard to make them happy, to keep her secret so they could be together forever. Vinyl had betrayed her trust, and had made Lyra cry. 

Twilight finally understood what her parents meant when they punished her and insisted ‘it hurts us more than it hurts you’. The only way for Vinyl to accept her gift and be happy was to correct her bad behavior. She had to learn a lesson, and pain was the best teacher.

"So, Vinyl," she spat. "You thought you could lie to me and get away? You're going to stay pinned to this board until I find Octavia. Then, I'm going to make both of you regret lying to me. It will be slow and painful. Afterwards, you’ll stop ruining everything and be happy, or I’ll do it again!"

Twilight rested Vinyl against the corkboard. Using her levitation she quickly drove pins through her four legs, nailing her spread-eagle to the posterboard. Once she was secure and the pins pushed through the back of the board, she reanimated Vinyl.

Vinyl bit her tongue, which proved rather ineffective. Still, she managed not to scream. Vinyl didn't want to give Twilight the pleasure of hearing her scream in pain.

After becoming accustomed to the pain, she looked up at her captor. "You can't keep me here forever!" Vinyl shouted. She struggled against the pins in an attempt to pull herself free. Firing up her horn only yielded pain and a sense of numbness. Where her horn should be, there was only emptiness. Vinyl struggled to see if she had cut it off somehow, but was pinned too tightly.

"Heh, why not try your magic? Oh, that's right, only the unicorns who are behaving get to use it. Now that I've disabled yours, maybe Lyra will pull you down." Twilight smiled before hearing Silver approach.

"Twilight, what's wrong with that doll?" she asked.

"Silver, this is a doll based on DJ Pon3. Unfortunately I made it too real, and it's convinced some of the others they're real too. It's actually sad, I had even taught the doll to play music. Now it’s gone mad."

"Oh, look what I found!" Silver reached back into her mane and pulled out a Sweetie Belle doll.

"Put me down, Silver!" Sweetie squeaked. She was flailing her legs through the air as Silver gripped her in both hooves.

"Do you think I could get the whole set? The crusaders, I mean."

Twilight smiled warmly. "Sure, I'll even let you invite them over to get scanned. We'll just have to wait for the right time."

"Ok. Can you fix this one? I think this Sweetie doll is broken too. She says you're a monster," Silver giggled.

"Oh really?" Twilight asked. She glanced over at the squirming mare pinned to the corkboard, and saw Sweetie follow her gaze. "Is that true? I may need to examine you further too, Sweetie Belle. I’ll just pin you up here so I can run a full analysis."

"Uh, nope! I'm a doll all right," Sweetie whimpered. "Silver, please, can we go play? She's scary."

"Hehe, the real crusaders never wanted to play with me. They just assumed I was a jerk because Diamond was my first friend in Ponyville," Silver explained.



****************************************************************



“Is it finished, Sprocket?” Bon Bon asked.

“Almost. I’ve stripped the town of all the conductive material I could find. All that’s left is to finish weaving the doorframe. This shelter will work perfectly,” Sprocket assured.

"How do you know it'll work, darling?" Rarity asked. She and the others had gathered in the underground burrow that served as their headquarters. It was here they planned their escape.

"Remember magic kindergarten—no offense, of course. Unicorn magic closely resembles an electrical or magnetic field. It shares many of the same properties, the most important of which is this: if a spell is hit by its inverse, it is nullified," Sprocket explained.

"She's right, how's a bunch of copper wiring supposed to know how to counter spells?" Octavia quipped.

Sprocket sighed. "It's a faraday cage, not a bunch of copper wiring. It took days to weave it together tightly enough down here, all by myself I might add." He glared at the other ponies.

"When the spell hits the faraday cage," he continued. "The spell will cause a buildup of magical energy in the conductive metals. The electromagnetic radiation created by the spell will. . ." Sprocket paused, hoping that somepony might have even the slightest clue as to what he was talking about. He was met with the wide-eyed stares he got every time he tried to explain his work.

"Fine," he said defeated. "It creates a bubble of anti-magic."

"Oh, why didn't ya say so?" Octavia asked.

"Look, as long as it works we're fine. It's not like she can dig the floorboards up easily. Meanwhile, we'll work on building a sleeve and we can use it to break through the spell's barrier," Bon Bon explained.

"And where exactly did all this wiring come from?" Rarity mused.

"I stripped every unoccupied building of its electrical wiring until I had enough. Twilight put way too much effort into this replica. Live plants, replica houses with plumbing. . . we don't even need to eat, yet she put working refrigerators. I think she believes we're still real ponies," Sprocket commented.

"We are still real ponies," Bon Bon asserted. "We just need to break out and get help to go back to normal ponies."

The lookout from the exit to the headquarters ran inside. “Bon Bon, she’s back. She ratted Vinyl out, Twilight pinned her up in town square.”



****************************************************************



Lyra sat alone in her room crying. On her way there, not a single pony had spoken to her. They all looked away, as if they were ashamed to be around her. Now she was packing up her lyre, a few pieces of clothes, and a blanket. She really only needed the lyre, but enjoyed feeling like she was still a real pony. Lyra would move into the Everfree and live in the mirror pool cave. Twilight had recreated it to the last detail, and it was well-hidden. Nopony would be mean to her there.

"Packing up? That is a smart move. Too bad you weren't smart when you went for tea," Bon Bon scolded.

"What? Bo—"

"Shut up!" Bon Bon interrupted. "You just had to choose Twilight over us, didn't you? I should have never let you move in with me all those years ago."

"But I didn't say anything, honest!" Lyra protested.

"Oh, and I suppose Twilight just got lucky and caught Vinyl? Is that why she's pinned up to a corkboard in the center of town? Is that why Silver Spoon was down here?"

"Silver is the one who caught Vi—"

"Damn it, Lyra! I thought when I kicked you out of town you'd get the hint. Now it's you who needs to be taught a lesson."

Octavia and Rarity walked in behind Bon Bon.

"Rarity? You can't believe all this, right? You were the element of generosity, I wouldn't want anypony to get hurt!" Lyra begged.

"I used to be an element bearer. Now, Twilight's gone mad and I'm a foal's plaything. Bon Bon and Octavia explained everything to m—”

“No!” Lyra interrupted. “They haven’t, I’m trying to help! Please, Rarity, believe me!”

“I. . . I’m sorry.” Rarity looked away from the pathetic looking unicorn. “They're going to get Sweetie Belle to safety. I did what I could but  I have to do what they say and assist with the dig—"

"Enough!" Octavia snapped. "Just grab her and let's get this over with." She glared over at Rarity who realized her mistake and looked at the ground. If Lyra found out about the underground tunnels, she would snitch on them again.

"Wait, no! I mmph!" Rarity had levitated an improvised gag made from a plastic apple and strong sewing threads into Lyra's mouth. Lyra turned to Bon Bon with tears in her eyes, "Mph mppphhhh mph!"

The three grabbed her legs and began to carry her out of the house. She continued to struggle. Once outside, Lyra noticed that Twilight and Silver had left without her. They must have gone off to do something upstairs. She struggled more violently realizing that her friend wasn't here to protect her.

A large corkboard appeared in Lyra's vision. She twisted to get a better look. Several ponies had improvised a short ladder and were working together to pull small metal pins out of Vinyl.

"MMphh! MMMPHHH!" Lyra complained. Please, please don't Bon Bon! You're still my friend, I loved you like a sister! Lyra began to hyperventilate, she even felt dizzy. She recalled what Twilight had said about her senses getting more real the longer she was animated. Lyra's eyes spread wide open. This is going to really hurt.

Vinyl fell to the ground when the last pin came out. Lyra could see her broken sunglasses in the dirt, and tears staining her plastic face. She was rubbing the holes in her ankles that weren't going to heal anytime soon.

"This is what you get for ratting me out, bitch," Vinyl spat.

"Mmph mmph!"

"Vinyl, are you alright?" Octavia consoled. She hugged the DJ and didn’t let go until Vinyl pulled her off.

"As much as it did when the pins were still in, but I think I'm about to feel better," Vinyl scowled. She turned towards Lyra and nodded, her and Octavia approached with the other ponies.

“Lucky for you, Lyra, we’re not going to pin you up to this corkboard and torture you,” Bon Bon explained.

Lyra sighed and relaxed her muscles as a tear rolled down her cheek. Any thoughts that her friend was doing her a favor quickly vanished.

“Octavia and I thought of a much more suitable punishment. I told her you’re claustrophobic. Tell me, how would you like to spend the rest of eternity buried alive?”

Lyra’s eyes went wide with horror, her pupils nearly expanding to fill her entire eye. She kicked with the strength of a possessed mare, managing to break free of their grasp. She didn’t make it far before Bon Bon grabbed her by the tail and they quickly dove back on her.

The unicorn could feel a phantom heartbeat and a rapid breathing. Years of having the same nightmare of being buried alive had conditioned her body. The mere thought of it brought her incalculable suffering. Bon Bon had been her shoulder to cry on every time the night terror prevented her from sleeping. Now, her best friend had betrayed her confidence and planned a revenge worse than death. Lyra couldn’t figure out what would drive a pony to betray their friends, to find such darkness inside themselves.

The familiar sight of Sugarcube Corner filled her vision briefly before she was dragged, kicking and moaning, into the basement. With the help of the four ponies, they were starting to cram her into a small trunk. It was the kind of foot locker you could store your winter clothes, or old mementos, in. There was no hole for air, no crack for the light to get through. As an immortal doll, it was the perfect prison.

Lyra’s hooves gripped at the sides of the trunk, she splayed herself out trying to make herself too large to fit in. Vinyl was pushing her stomach, and she managed to punch her before Octavia grabbed the hoof. It was crammed behind her back, quickly joined by her other forelimb. Her hind legs were painfully jammed on top of her stomach, and the lid slammed shut.

She stuck her muzzle in the way of the lid, fighting desperately and gasping in panicked breaths for air she could not breath. Her last sight was of Bon Bon spinning around and bucking her in the face. The lid closed, and she heard a faint clicking sound. She thrashed with all her might, but was pinned in a painfully small locked box in a replica city, surrounded by sadistic ponies.

“I wonder how long it’ll take Twilight to find her,” Rarity asked.

“The longer the better,” Bon Bon said.

“Doesn’t it seem. . . just a tad much?”

The muffled voices were growing fainter. “You got two problems here, Rarity. One, Sweetie is only safe while you listen to us. Two, if you snitch than neither of you're next.”

Lyra slowly ceased her struggling and began to cry from an endless reservoir of tears. She was truly stuck, locked away never to be found again. She wasn’t frozen, yet the ability to move only made the torture worse. How could you Bon Bon? Can’t you see, you’ve become no better than Twilight. . . and she is doing it because she is in pain. She loves me. . . Bon Bon hates me now, but Twilight still loves me. . .



****************************************************************



Spike was moping around upstairs when Silver and Twilight returned. He eavesdropped as they went over to a writing desk.

“Silver, I’d like you to write a friendship report to Celestia for me. Tell her what you learned about it today,” Twilight instructed. “It’s your first assignment as my pupil.”

“Pupil? Does that mean I can be an alicorn too?” Silver asked, with wonder in her sparkling eyes.

“I don’t see why not, if Celestia can do it. . . but let’s not get ahead of ourselves. We haven’t finished our experiment yet!”

Spike wore a scowl on his face and mumbled. Just because he wasn’t a pony he was treated different, but not by Twilight. Now she had found the perfect assistant, a little pony to replace her aging dragon.

Even Rarity had abandoned him, skipping out on her planned lunch before she left. The dagger was still twisting in Spike’s heart that his favorite mare in town left without saying goodbye.


Dear Princess Celestia,

Today I learned that you can find friends in unexpected places. I never thought Twilight wanted to be friends with fillies, but I was wrong. She was nice and let me come over and play with her. Even when your best friend moves out of town, there are plenty more friends waiting to be found.

Twilight’s faithful student,
Silver Spoon.


“Nice, I like the sound of that. My faithful student,” Twilight chuckled.

“Thanks, now we’ll need Spike to send it, right?”

“No need, now that I’m an alicorn I can do it myself.”

Spike watched as Twilight sent the letter herself. He frowned and slumped his shoulders. She didn’t even need him as a fax machine anymore. It was all Silver’s fault, and that stupid replica of Ponyville. He headed to his room as an idea popped into his head. He usually woke up before Twilight, he could wake up even earlier and sneak into the basement.



****************************************************************



"Good night, Silver.” Twilight closed the door behind the filly as she walked home. Her next order of business would be to adjust her plan to account for Silver and her mother. She was a single mom, so when the time was right it’d be easy to get rid of her. That would force Silver to seek shelter with Twilight, and once the filly was dependent on her, she’d never leave.

It had been a long day, so Twilight went to bed. Upon reaching it she found her favorite plushy under the cover. She remembered that Lyra had stayed behind in New Ponyville. For a moment Twilight wondered if she was safe down there, and then remembered about the mirror pool. Lyra would be hiding there again, and would be safe.

Twilight cuddled up to Mac and lit up her horn. He would suffice for some conversation before bed.

"Hey, Mac. How are you feeling?" Twilight asked.

For the past few days he had been getting more and more depressed. There was still a part of his mind that felt wrong. Ever since Twilight had transformed him, he had a voice in his head urging him to be a good teddy bear.

Hug her, it would say. You need to cuddle and be warm, you love her more than anything. Big Mac had been resisting it, refusing to become some mindless plushy.

"What'd ya do to me?" Mac asked. "I feel wrong."

"You mean how I turned you into a stuffed animal?"

"Nope. The voice in ma head, tellin' me ta cuddle."

"Oh," Twilight sighed. "I had hoped you had given in by now. . ."

"What's that s'posed ta mean?"

"Ever since Bon Bon, I knew some ponies wouldn't want to love me and be my friends. I thought I'd try something on you. . ." Twilight sniffled and took a deep breath. "I broke one of the worst laws of magic, I'm testing out a mind control spell on you."

Mac's jaw dropped, or it would have were his lips not sewn nearly-shut in a playful stuffed animal grin. "What's the point of us lovin' ya if ya force us to?"

"It’s not for everypony, but I have to do something with the bad ponies. I'm running out of ideas, and besides, it didn't even work on you."

"Ah still hear the voice, taunting me. Can ya make it stop? Ah'm bad enough off as it is."

“But. . . I need you, Big Mac.” Twilight curled him up into their familiar embrace, causing warmth to flow through both of them. “I need you more than Lyra or the others, I could barely sleep at night until I got you. Nopony was there for me when I’d cry myself to sleep, and if I lost you too. . . if you changed your mind. . .” Twilight began softly crying and tried to hide it from Big Mac.

“Look, ah told ya ah’d love ya, and now ah’ll promise never ta leave ya.” Big Mac slid his forearms around Twilight and hugged her. Half of it was his conditioning, but he liked to think this was also his ticket to seeing his family again. He just had to comfort the poor mare. “If havin’ a shoulder to cry on at night is what’s gonna make you get better and get us back to normal, ah’ll do it as long as ah have ta.”

"Well I'm a mare that keeps her promises. If you promise to love me and be my plushy forever, I'll remove the spell. I can test it out on some other pony," Twilight offered.

Mac took a moment to contemplate it. "Ya keep your promises? Then ya can't drag the apple family inta this. Ya leave them outta it. If ah ever see ‘em again, it has ta be because ah’m a stallion again, not ‘cuz you went and kidnapped them too."

"And if AJ comes looking for answers?" Twilight inquired.

"Ah already told ya, tell her ah died fightin' changelings or something. As long as she's left out, ah'll love ya."

Twilight thought it over for a second. "Deal, as long as she doesn't learn of the dollhouse's existence, the apple family is safe," she exclaimed. Her horn lit up and the nagging voice vanished from Mac's head. Twilight positioned the pillow so she could curve her neck over Mac’s head and surround him in her embrace. With the faintest of whimpers, she began her nightly routine to fall asleep.

"Good, then ah’d like ta curl up an' go ta sleep." Mac sighed as he was pulled in tighter. She had been true to her word with Lyra, now he had at least accomplished something good with what was left of his life. A tear formed and was absorbed by the fur near his eye. My life. . . all I have left is a life of servitude.



****************************************************************


Spike tiptoed his way down to the basement door while Twilight was sleeping. He let the door close softly behind him, and then he descended the stairs. He pushed open the bottom door and stepped inside, gasping as it clicked shut behind him.

In front of him was a massive replica of Ponyville and all the land surrounding it. If the back wall was any further away, she could have started a Canterlot replica. Spike had no idea how such a massive underground city was even possible.

Several ponies walked around, not aware of his presence. It was a ghost town, with weary dolls stumbling around in a stupor. This was too confusing to deal with now. He decided to leave and try to bring it up again later.

He turned and tried to open the basement door. It was locked. He nearly pounded on it to get help, before remembering that Twilight would be disappointed if she found him down here. Spike slumped against the wall and exhaled. He had to think about how to sneak back out, however he was so tired.



****************************************************************



The ponies in the resistance headquarters were working on a tube of copper wiring. When it was complete, it would create a tunnel through the spell trapping them there. If they were lucky it would allow them to find a way upstairs, or to burrow outside faster.

A banging sound came from the door to the faraday cage surrounding the underground burrow. "Bon Bon! It's Spike, he's in the basement!" Berry punch shouted.

"Spikey Wikey? Did she turn him into a doll?" Rarity gushed.

"No, but it looks like he's stuck up there!"

"This could be a trap," Vinyl stated.

"Not Spike, he's the sweetest soul I know. If he's down here, he'll help us," Rarity implored.

"I'll take Rarity up," Bon Bon declared. "We'll use the tunnel to Mayor Mare's house. If Twilight comes down, we'll head back for shelter."

"Show us the way, Berry, he'll listen to me."

The town drunk led the fashionista and confectioner to where Spike was napping. They began shouting at him and poking him, yet he still slept.

"He was always a heavy sleeper," Rarity explained. She walked up to his nose and held it shut. "Now just push his jaw and try to keep it closed until he wakes up."

The three dolls braced themselves against him, until he started to toss and turn. Rarity hung on for dear life, pinching his nose, until his eyes opened up.

"Rarity?" Spike mumbled. "Hey, why are you so tiny?" Spike sat straight up in fear, eyes wide. "Oh no, I got greedy again!" he shouted.

"Relax, Spike. This may be hard to believe, but Twilight has been foalnapping and turning ponies into dolls," Rarity appealed. "You need to send a letter to Celestia now. You’re our only hope!" she brought a hoof up to her forehead.

”Laying it on a bit thick,” Berry whispered to Bon Bon.

"Huh?" Spike knelt down to look at them. Since he was still smaller than a pony, he easily reached their eye level. "Berry, Bon Bon, and Rarity. . . you left town, you died in an explosion, and you got on an earlier train. . ."

"Yes, Spike. Big Mac got drafted, Snips and Snails families moved. . . all the ponies are here, Spike," Bon Bon commented.

"Oh no, this is bad," Spike croaked. "She must have had a relapse, the suicidal thoughts, the depression. . . oh and now she's turning ponies into dolls!"

"Yes, Spike. Now send a letter, everypony’s life depends on it!" Rarity begged.

Spike took a deep breath and bravely squared his shoulders, ready to be the hero. "But I don't have any parchment or a quill and ink." He sighed and quickly deflated back to his normal size.

"Surely there is some in this town? Even if it is tiny?" Rarity inquired.

"No, nothing useable to write with. Not many pieces of paper or scrolls, either. Maybe we could find them if we search enough houses, but we need the message sent immediately," Bon Bon disclosed.

"I can't send a message without something to write with."

"Send me," Berry asked. She stepped forward from the others and looked at him.

"I can't send living things either," Spike explained.

"I'm made of plastic, I'm not alive. If I make it through still animated, I can tell Celestia what happened."

"Alright, but I really don't know what'll happen. Come here."

"I can't, see this line?" Berry pointed at a chalk line on the wood floor. "It marks the edge of a magical barrier. If we cross it, we go inert and can't move."

Spike scratched his head and walked closer to the magical border. One of the benfits of being a dragon was an innate attunement, and resistance, to magic. Instead of tingling on his scales, the barrier seemed to avoid them like oil meeting water. "Won't that just happen anyway when I mail you to Celestia?"

"I hope not, dragon's breath is magic right?" Berry chuckled. "Besides, I've gone nearly two weeks without a drop of alcohol. Death would be a mercy at this point."

"Uh. . . I'm going to ignore that last comment. Here we go!" Spike was across the line now and inhaled deeply. Rarity and Bon Bon scrambled away.

A small gout of emerald flame shot from his lips. To Berry, it appeared as a wall of fiery death. It closed on her instantly, engulfing her entire universe in glimmering green flame. It burnt her to her core, and yet it did not hurt. She felt herself pulled in a thousand directions, and none, at the same time.

The door to the basement swung open as Berry vanished into a wisp of smoke. Spike and the two dolls turned to see Twilight standing in the door.

"Spike! What did you do! How could you?" Twilight screamed.

"Whoa, easy Twilight! It's just a little misunderstanding!" Spike explained, throwing his hands in the air.

"What did you send her?" Twilight ordered. Her expression changed from the silent librarian to a predator. Small wisps of green and purple magic began appear and vanish from her horn and eyes.

"B-berry P-p-punch," Spike stuttered. "She, they said you turned them into dolls! It's okay, we can fix this. I won't tell anypony if you let us all go!"

"Why does everypony keep saying that!" Twilight charged her horn as Bon Bon and Rarity ran for cover. The town was a fair distance away for their tiny legs.

They never stood a chance. They were targeted and frozen by Twilight immediately.

Spike noticed the sudden drop in air temperature and charge of magic in the air. He bolted for the door. It had started to close when Twilight stopped holding it open with her magic. He nearly reached it before it clicked shut again. Spike turned to see a blackened horn facing him. Unlike her normal magic, chaotic energies were spiraling into a black point at its tip.

His first instinct saved his life. He breathed flame at her so he could run and find a place to hide. The black mass that she shot at him was consumed by the flame, causing a sickening crack before dissipating. 

Spike realized he was the same size as the largest buildings in Ponyville. There would be no hiding. Another blob shot past him, and he took a deep breath.

"I'm your last brother!" Spike shouted. "You can't do this to me, I'm all you have! You'll end up exactly like Cadance!" he spat. It pained him greatly to do so, but it worked.

Twilight's horn powered down at she hesitated. "Wha—what?"

Spike too a deep breath, pausing as long as he could to gain composure. He pictured in his mind the brave young dragon that had saved Rarity from Diamond Dogs. "You heard me! Why are you going to trap me here too? Why can't we talk about this? You can get help!"

"But I don't need help. I’m doing us all a favor.” Twilight paced slowly towards him, who circled her to keep his distance without retreating. “I want my friends to live forever, like you and me Spike. We were going to grow old together, just you and me for thousands of years with all of our friends living down here."

"Did you ever stop to ask if they wanted that? If you hate the thought of living so long, what makes you think they would like it?"

"It's not their choice, it's mine," Twilight countered.

"And me? Were you always just going to trap me when I found out? You were going to lie to your younger brother for thousands of years?" Spike argued. 

His heart was pounding so hard he thought it might burst out of his chest. Adrenaline flowed through him and for the moment, he seemed to be getting through to her. Every iota of his willpower and intelligence was going into breaking Twilight's façade. It was the town's only hope.

"No. . .you were going to be my best friend forever—just like Cadance was going to be. You, me, her, Celestia, Luna. . . a whole family. Then Shining died, and I realized it wasn't just about us alicorns and dragons. All my friends, my mom and dad, every pony dies. . ."

"And we'll die too, Twilight. We're not immortal, we just measure our lives in millennia instead of years. Do you think when you grow old you'll look back on this and say 'I did the right thing'?"

Twilight cackled. "But we don't have to die, Spike. You're still young enough your scales can't resist my magic. If I change you now, you'll truly be immortal.”

“No! I don’t want that.” Spike took a step towards her and exhaled from fire from his nostrils. He was sure it’d make him look tougher than he felt.  “It’s not your choice!”

“And when your precious Rarity died of old age? When Sweetie, and all their joyous descendents die one at a time in front of you? Can you stand that much pain?” Twilight took a step towards the dragon, her eyes already beginning to glow the odd mixture of emerald and lavender energy. “As for me, I'm the element of magic. I can't die, I'm far too powerful now. And if I can’t die, nopony else can either!"

Twilight's horn lit up black as she fired a spell at Spike. He inhaled to breath flame again, but did not do it quick enough.

The slimy spell cascaded over him. He started wiping it off, his scales giving him enough protection to keep his arms from sticking to his sides. His entire body began tingling as he quickly resumed running from Twilight. Most of the magic was rolling over the scales, falling off, however some of it reached the skin beneath.

Another spell hit him in the back, toppling him over. He could feel his fingers and toes go numb and rigid. Crawling along, he saw Rarity in the distance. With one claw he tried to wipe as much of the goo off as he could. With the other he continued to crawl towards her. One breath of emerald flame would send Rarity to Celestia, and safety. 

Just one breath.

Another spell hit Spike, causing him to hit the ground with his face. He gasped as an icy coldness filled his lungs. He coughed out a little bit of the black tar from his mouth. Spike had accidently inhaled some of the plastic goop from the spell.

He was nearly too Rarity when his entire tail went rigid and messed up his balance. Spike felt the joints of his legs going rigid, making it impossible to get back up and inch closer to her. He had to save Rarity, it was the last and most important thing he would ever do. Spike’s final gift to his favorite pony.

He took a deep painful breath and aimed for Rarity. Right as he exhaled, another spell hit him in the face, canceling out the breath. Twilight stood in front of him when he opened his eyes.

"It's okay, Spike. You would have been too big as an adult anyway. Now you can be my number one assistant and little brother forever," Twilight consoled.

"No—you can't, it's wrong! You cou—" Spike coughed. "Could have asked somepony fo—for help!"

"They pushed me away, Spike. You saw it!"

"You pushed them away!" he spat. His tongue was going numb and his ability to speak with it. "Dash sthopped by to fly with shou. Shou told her to go away."

"She could have tried harder! They all could have!" Twilight whined. The tendrils of magic had stopped snaking from her horn and her lip began to quiver.

"Hay did. Shu wuldn't lishten," Spike muttered.

"No, it's not my fault! I needed them to try harder, to prove they loved me!" Twilight cried out.

Spike could no longer feel any of his extremities. He forced in one last breath. "I furgive shu." The plastic sealed around his face, turning him into a doll.

“No. . . it’s not my fault, I’m doing the right thing. Don’t forgive me. . .  It’s. . . I did it for you.”

Twilight slumped down for a minute while her number one assistant lay on the ground. She should have felt happy: now Spike couldn't get sick or injured. She had insured their friendship forever, he had even forgiven her for forcing him into this. Twilight was bothered by that. Why would he forgive her? There was nothing wrong with her; this was the logical conclusion to defeat death. The plan was perfect. Even Celestia and Luna would succumb to her carefully chosen poisons should they ever deem to interfere.

Twilight stood up with renewed confidence. "I can't fail, Spike. Too much is at stake." She fired up her horn and shrunk Spike. She then carried him, Rarity, and Bon Bon into town. She remembered about Lyra, and dropped them off near town square.

From her vantage point she only saw the back of the corkboard. Once she reached the Everfree she called out. "Lyra, I'm here. You can come out now."

Twilight flew over the bonsai forest to where the mirror pool was. She looked down through the narrow cave entrance. Placing her mouth closer, she called in to wake her up. "Lyra! Wake up!"

After a minute with no response, she flew back to ask Bon Bon where she was. The corkboard in town square was empty, and all the ponies were hiding from her.

"Vinyl Scratch!" Twilight screamed. Her horn and eyes glowed white. All the debris and the nearby dolls began to levitate off the ground, before a pulse of magic was sent out to freeze everypony in town.

She then focused her magic on detecting the ponies in the town. Her magic allowed her to get a rough estimate of how many dolls were down there, and the area they might be hiding in. Each was a blurry star on a cloudy night. Most were in their homes or basements, a few seemed to be out near the apple farm or the Everfree. The two she wanted to find most of all—Vinyl for evading punishment, and Lyra to ensure she was safe—were indistinguishable from the others.

There were twenty dolls in the basement, where there should be twenty-four. Berry had hopefully died in transit, and now Spike would take her place. How could four ponies be missing or hiding? Were they so close to another pony that she couldn’t tell them apart?

With an even louder voice she issued her threat. "I know you're in here somewhere. I'm going to torture Bon Bon until she tells me where you are hiding! Then I'll start on Rarity and Spike, their deaths will be on your head Vinyl! Turn yourself in!" She yelled.

She looked around for her friends. Twilight wasn't prepared to hurt Rarity or Spike, but something was very wrong here. They, along with Bon Bon, would have to be her leverage to find out what was going on.

Twilight levitated Bon Bon up to the corkboard. "Where is Vinyl? Why hasn’t Lyra come out of hiding to play with me?."

A magical aura gripped four of the pins, causing them to begin to glow red. Once they were lined up, she thrust them into Bon Bon's limbs, pinning them to the board. As the cork sizzled slightly, she bent the pins with her magic so they couldn't be removed easily.

Bon Bon yelped as Twilight re-animated her.

"Tell me where Vinyl and Lyra are. Why can't I sense them?" Twilight demanded.

She grit her teeth and pulled hard against the pins, pulling them out half an inch before they stopped."Burn in hell, witch. Chrysalis was twice the mare you'll ever be!" she insulted.

Twilight drew a red hot needle across her chest, melting the plastic and leaving a deep gash. Bon Bon muffled her scream to the best of her ability. "Tell me where they are."

"No."

Twilight was about to cut her again when she had a horrible thought. “You. . . did you do something to Lyra? Is that why Vinyl is hiding?”

Bon Bon slowly raised her head from her chest and locked eyes with Twilight. “Hehe, that whore had it comi—”

“No! If you hurt her I’ll kill you!” Her horn and eyes lit up. “She is my best friend, she loves me! I won’t lose her too, not after all this hard work!”

“I saw you pointing your horn all over, your magic can’t find us, can it? If it could, you’d know where your precious rat is. Well, here is news for you, we hid her and you’re gonna have to find a new spy, bitch!”

Twilight's grin spread wide across her face and she closed her eyes. Twilight twisted her neck, popping the vertebrae. She then twisted it the other way, resulting in another eerie set of popping.

"Hehehe," Twilight maniacally laughed. She re-opened her eyes , their white glow illuminating the room. The intensity signified the amount of magic, and pleasure, she would get with the next spell.

Bon Bon could feel, and see, that the alicorn had snapped. For the first time, she began to believe Lyra, she began to believe she could push the alicorn too far. "Wait, Twilight, I'm sorry!" Bon Bon pleaded. "It went too far, it was all Vinyl's idea! She made me! She—"

Twilight sent a pin through her chin and the roof of her mouth, sealing her jaw shut. She continued to mutter and thrash about as the part of her soul still anchored to her body felt searing agony. Green tendrils snaked into the doll’s eyes, wracking her body with agony.

Bon Bon was ripped off the corkboard, straight through the five pins, and hovered over to an empty patch of wooden flooring closer to the door out of the basement. 

"I told you, Bon Bon. I told you that all you had to do was be nice and you could be my friend. Instead, you lead a riot and hurt Lyra, the nicest pony I know. You hid her from me and you thought it was funny!"

Bon Bon struggled to open her eyes. She looked down at her limbs, which felt like they were melting. There was nothing wrong with them. “I’ll. . . tell you. . . please stop!” From the corner of the room a tenpenny nail and a hammer were floated out of a tool box.

She hovered the nail over Bon Bon and laid her on her back. Once the nail was lined up with her stomach, she lifted up the hammer. "I've. Been. Waiting. For. This." With each word Twilight drove the nail further into her.

With a final tap amidst the doll's loud wailing, Twilight caused the nail to bite even deeper into her abdomen, burying the head of the nail in it. She was now pinned directly into a plank of oak by the three inch nail, and no amount of towns ponies were going to be able to pull her out.

"I'd kill you, but this is worse, don't you agree?" Twilight asked her.

“Please,” Bon Bon cried. She watched in horror, hoping it wasn’t too late to get through to her. “I’m sorry. . . I’ll tell you where she is!”

“Oh, but this is what you wanted all along, isn’t it?” Twilight circled around her, grinning and watching her squirm. “You wanted to break me, you wanted to escape. . . well now you get both! I’m sending you straight to Tartarus!”

"Fine! Then just kill me you mare of a whore!" Bon Bon screamed. “Lyra will never be your friend when you break her promise and kill me!”

"No. Only my friends get favors." Twilight paused to ponder her next action for a moment. “I won’t kill you, but I’ll pin you hear and weaken the spell. You’ll die in agony.”

Another nail floated over. Twilight gently shoved it into Bon Bon's mouth and lightly hammered it through. The confectioner now lay pinned to the ground by two nails and unable to speak a single word.

Twilight's work here was complete.

Returning to town square she animated Rarity and held her fast in her magical grip.

Twilight floated Rarity up to eye level and began to address her friend. "So, darling, it'd be ever so wonderful if you told me where they're hiding Lyra," Twilight announced.

"They have Sweetie, they're protecting her from you," Rarity explained. The fire had dimmed, but the anger was still present in Twilight’s eyes. “If. . . they might hurt her if I tell you where Lyra is.”

"Indeed," Twilight laughed. "Sounds like you do know where she is. Tell me, Rarity, and choose wisely. Are you still my friend?"

Rarity stared at the lopsided grin that was showing the crazed mare's teeth. It was a simple trick question. If she said yes then Twilight would demand the answer, then torture her. If she said no, she'd wind up being tortured also.

She was a mare who was proud to stick to her principles. She would not let her hurt Sweetie, nor would she snitch and let Vinyl hurt Sweetie. "No, you're not my friend. My friend died with Cadance," Rarity chided.

Twilight dropped her from her grip, leaving her to stand there in confusion for a moment. It took the insult a few seconds to be fully processed. Once the moment was up, Rarity was thrown against the corkboard and pinned by eight of the unbroken needles. Amidst the bloodcurdling screams, Twilight turned and walked away.

Sugarcube Corner had a well-stocked kitchen. Once Twilight had pulled a plastic knife out, it took a simple spell to turn it into a metal knife. Unaware of the trapped unicorn in the basement, she returned to Rarity who was restrained on the corkboard.

"This has been a miserable day and it isn't even nine AM yet! I'm supposed to capture two more ponies today, and here I am with a bunch of ponies afraid to show their face!" Twilight screamed.

"This is how this is going to work, Rarity. Now that you've admitted you're not my friend, I'm going to torture the information out of you. Where are they hiding her?"

"You're crazy!" Rarity yelled. “If you want to know where she is, you’ll have to show me generosity, let Sweetie go! I know you’re still in there, Twilight!”

Twilight cut a leg off with the knife, eliciting a scream. "Wrong answer. Where are they hiding her?"

"You don't have to do this!" Rarity bantered between cries of agony.

"Wrong answer." Twilight cut her down the middle revealing her plastic abdomen. "Where are they hiding her?"

"I'll see you in Tartarus!" Rarity began to sob and closed her eyes. She felt the knife hit another limb, severing it. She wailed out in agony again.

"Wrong answer. There's still time, you know, I can put you back together," Twilight offered. "How about a new question? I can’t sense a few of them. How are they avoiding detection?”

Rarity cackled maniacally. "Am I making you mad? You must hate all the clichéd begging for our lives. Or, perhaps you love it. Perhaps now that you have no friends torturing innocent ponies is all you have left to live for!"

The tiny doll's laughter echoed throughout the basement, and was silenced by the next blow to a limb.

"Wrong answer." Her former friend had only one leg left holding her up.

"How about this, 'oh please Princess! Let me go and I won't tell anypony! It can be our little secret! We can live happily ever after!' " Rarity continued laughing. She sounded twice as mad as Twilight by this point.

"SHUT UP!" Twilight screamed, plunging the knife at her a final time.












> VIII. An Orange Filly's Idol
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Lyra felt like she had been trapped for weeks. Her mind went through familiar cycles. She would get the urge to move, to know her limbs were still there, yet she couldn't. The distress would grow until her mind shut down. Next, her mind would begin to ponder small nuances when she wasn’t gripped in fear. Should I consider this shivering, vibrating, or trembling? I can’t be cold, so I’d imagine it’s trembling. Yet, it’s too violent. . . I wonder if I can have a seizure?

Another wave of dread washed over her, numbing her mind. She made another attempt to stretch out to no avail, and withdrew further into herself to hide from the pain. She heard the door to the basement open. Twilight? No. . . it’s probably Bon Bon, come to mock me some more. Lyra began to cry again. I’m so sorry, Twilight. Please, come for me, find me. . . I can’t take it anymore.

The chest began to move, and Lyra found herself thrashing against the chest again. They’ve come to bury me! No, Celestia no. . .

The chest stopped moving and Lyra thought she heard something click. A bright light blinded her eyes and she felt something akin to a breeze. She began to feel a soothing aura around her, and realized the trunk she had been locked in was gone.

Instantly she began flailing wildly, her eyes adjusting quickly to the light. A large lavender shape sat in front of her. When her hooves touched the ground, she felt the gag fall out of her mouth. She rushed without hesitation to throw herself into Twilight’s lap.

“Lyra! Thank goodness, I was so worried when I found out they had hidden you.” Twilight brought a hoof down to gently rub her back.

“B-bon Bon. . .” Lyra curled up as tightly as she could. At once she felt like she was back in the locked chest, yet letting herself spread out made her feel so vulnerable. Her skin seemed to itch, her mind overwhelmed with the sensations of being out of that prison.

“Shhh. . . It’s okay now.” Twilight levitated her up into her mane and carried her upstairs. Moments later they stopped at her bed. She climbed in and brought Lyra and Big Mac against the warm coat of hair on her chest.

Lyra found herself climbing between Twilight and Mac. They both felt warm and comforting, and after what she’d been through she never wanted to be alone again. It took her a minute to realize that the crying she heard was not her own.

Lyra opened up her eyes, finding herself face to face with the much larger Big Mac, who nearly matched Twilight in size. His smooth plush fur felt like the hair on a cat’s stomach. She followed Mac’s gaze up to Twilight and saw who was crying.

“Twilight? What’s wrong?”

Twilight kept her eyes closed and a hoof firmly squeezing Big Mac. “I. . . I think I made a mistake. I couldn’t make Bon Bon happy. . . I hurt Rarity. Now they won’t be happy, they won’t be like I remember them. . .”

Lyra felt a twinge of satisfaction and guilt at the mention of Bon Bon. “What. . . what happened to Bon Bon?”

Twilight inhaled in short increments between sobs. “I-i had no c-choice. She knew where you were. . . it got out of h-hand. . .”

Lyra realized in horror she must have killed Bon Bon. She felt horrible that a part of her had wished Bon Bon dead while she was trapped in the improvised coffin. “Did. . . did you mean to?”

Big Mac looked down at Lyra and whispered, “Careful.”

Twilight rubbed her runny nose. “N-no. . . and y-yes. I thought I l-lost you too. I can’t lose anymore friends. . . I’m a failure and you two are t-the only ponies I did r-right.”

“Twilight, look at me.” Lyra smiled and waited for her to open her eyes. “I forgive you. We all make mistakes. Tomorrow you can go back to making ponies happy, you can fix it. Would you like that?”

“Y-yes. So you’re s-still my friends?”

“Yes.”

“Eeyup.”

Twilight smiled and began to chuckle softly. Her breathing slowly evened out as she fell asleep in the comfort of two friends she knew wouldn’t abandon her.


***************************************************************


Vinyl, Octavia, and Sweetie walked through the ghost town. They had passed several frozen dolls of the former ponies. Some were curled up and hiding, others caught in mid-stride. Snip's mother had been frozen while shielding him from Twilight. 

The three  ponies still unfrozen had been sheltered inside a hastily constructed faraday cage made from scavenged copper wiring, and other conductive metals. Sprocket the engineer unicorn had tried, and failed, multiple times to explain how it worked. Regardless, it did, and would prove integral to his escape plans.

"If the cage worked, why do I feel so awful?" Vinyl asked.

"It is the frozen dolls, stuck staring at nothing," Octavia explained. "We may have a safe place to hide now, but we can't fit all of them. Whatever Twilight did, they witnessed it all. . ."

"This is what she did to Rarity?" Sweetie squeaked.

"Yeah, she'll be up here somewhere," Vinyl explained. "Where ever she was when Twilight froze—wait, is that Bon Bon?"

The ponies looked towards the edge of town. A tan clump of plastic was visible frozen on the floor. All three started to walk towards the mare, until Octavia got a good look at her.

"Sweetie, stay here," she commanded.

Once the filly had stopped, Vinyl and Octavia closed the remaining distance. In front of them lay Bon Bon. A nail had been driven deeply through her stomach and head, right through the mouth.

"I. . . I don't think she's frozen," Octavia stated.

"No kiddin', looks like Twilight went to town on her." Vinyl walked around and pointed out the various smaller holes. "She must have brought her here at the end, as a warning."

"She was right, Twilight has lost it. We never should have tortured Lyra, that's probably what got her killed. . . but we had to do something."

"Hey, it's not our fault. We're doing what we have to, and we're in charge now. We need to keep everypony calm and—"

A shrill scream interrupted them. Turning back to face the road they had walked down, they immediately noticed Sweetie was gone. Both of them ran towards the source of the screaming.

In town square they found Sweetie Belle sobbing next to her sister. Her four white legs were still pinned to the cork board. Her head and torso lay intact on the ground. 


***************************************************************


"Please, Ma'am, the Lieutenant already told you to let it go," the cop said.

"I won't let it go!" Colgate shouted. "I've been a dentist nearly twenty years, I'm the best in my field. Bon Bon's teeth were removed and then burnt. They were planted at her house!"

"Heh, before, after, Bon Bon's ashes either way."

"How can you be so cynical? If someone ripped her teeth out, as is indicated by the obvious fractures and markings on the second and third molars, then she may still be alive!"

"Look, Colgate. . .it's nothing personal. Heck, you're my dentist too and we appreciate you identifying the teeth for us. However, the Lieutenant has closed the case. Their neighbors, Rose and Blossom, both died also. They also had to be identified by teeth—"

"That were still attached to their jaws!" Colgate interrupted. Groaning loudly, she turned to storm out. "If you won't listen, I'll march straight up to Celestia with this."

Colgate stormed out of the Ponyville police station. Bon Bon and Lyra were friends in the same way Twilight and the elements were. While they gallivanted around battling villains, the three of them had hung out in town. Colgate wasn't about to let her friends down. If there was a chance, even a tiny one, Bon Bon was still alive she would not stop looking for her.

The train station was just ahead, illuminated by the early morning sun. A distinctive whistle sounded twice at the station as a train rolled to a stop at the platform. Colgate marched up onto the platform to find out if the train was headed back to Canterlot soon.

A blue mare dressed in an extravagant robe and pointy hat got off the train.

"What the. . ." Colgate looked back at the mare. "Trixie? I didn't expect you back in Ponyville. . . well ever. You're not here to take over again, are you?"

"Relax, the Great and Powerful Trixie has more pressing concerns. You are the local dentist, are you not?" Trixie nodded towards her cutie mark.

"Uh, yeah I am."

She flung her cape over her shoulder. "Tell Trixie when the last time you saw my biggest fans, Snips and Snails, was."

"Those two? About a month ago, why? They’ve disappeared, or left, like everypony else." Colgate inquired.

"Trixie stopped receiving fan mail from them and took a train here from Manehatten. There are not many who still enjoy my magic tricks; the only few who still do live here and they no longer write," she explained. “I. . . miss my fans.”

"That's strange, if Snips and Snails really moved to Manehatten with their families, they would have wrote you or visited your show. Princess Twilight said the ten or so families that moved lately went to Manehatten. Everypony is leaving since the murder."

"Yes, Princess Twilight," Trixie scowled. "What is this murder you speak of? Surely nopony was killed?"

"Well that's just it, Bon Bon and Lyra's house exploded. The police believe it was a faulty gas line in their kitchen. I identified the teeth from the scene, they were pulled out before the explosion and fire. Lyra’s teeth weren’t even there. I think someone foalnapped my friends."

"The Great and Powerful Trixie finds this most disturbing. Do you think Snips and Snails were taken? How many of these ponies have left town?" Trixie took a few steps closer so the two could talk softer and not draw attention.

"Well, it's likely she went where the other twenty or so ponies went. Berry Punch, Sprocket, Big Mac, Rarity, and others.” Colgate glanced around to make sure they weren’t being spied on. “They all moved out of town yet not a single pony got a letter or has heard from them since. They're just gone. My only other lead is that Berry visited the library for help with her alcohol problem before she suddenly 'moved out' of Ponyville." Colgate assured.

Trixie raised an eyebrow. "Interesting, Trixie would like to see these teeth and help you find where they went."

"Sure that'd be great. We can work on this together. For now I’m going to show Twilight my evidence. She can send word to Celestia, then I’ll meet you at Daisy’s Daffodils on third street Saturday for lunch. There's just one thing that's been bothering me. . ."

"Tell the Great and Powerful Trixie what it is."

"Yeah. . . can you stop referring to yourself in the third person ?" Colgate asked.

"It is how Trixie was raised. To assume a pony knows my name by speaking in the first person is a sign of great arrogance. Trixie must become a famous magician, then Trixie can refer to herself as ‘I’ and everypony will already know my name," Trixie explained.

"Well I guess that makes sense. I’ll catch up with you later."


***************************************************************


Twilight trotted down into the basement. She had an entire picnic and tea set levitating next to her. Lyra had declined the offer for tea, given how cruel the ponies had been Twilight did not blame her. As she trotted towards town square she kept her spirits lifted. It was a new day, a new chance to make the dolls happy.

Something caught her attention, it was a small blur in the corner of her eye. She quickly tracked it down to Sweetie Belle. I thought I froze everypony? Maybe I missed her, or she was in the Everfree forest at the time? Oh well. She can have tea with me!

“Sweetie!” Twilight trotted after her, grabbing her before she ran inside a nearby house. She levitated them over to the park and set out the tea set and the picnic. It included a small pot of tea, some sugarcubes which Lyra loved to snack on, and some miniature scones.

“P-puh-lease. . . let me go.” Sweetie began to cry.

“I’m glad you could join me for tea, oh we’ll both be so happy now. Do you want some sugar?”

Sweetie knocked over her tea cup and tried to run away. Twilight levitated her back and sat her down on the picnic blanket, holding her hind legs still.

“I. . . I don’t want any tea.” Sweetie wiped her eyes.

“It is a lovely day, isn’t it? You know I’ve worked so hard on those little clouds up there.”

“O-okay.” She looked around at the miniature picnic set. It reminded her of a camping trip she had been on, only now she was a prisoner and her sister was gone.

Twilight smiled at the little filly. “There is no need to cry, we’re happy today, remember?”

“No, I miss my family, let go!” Sweetie started struggling against the telekinesis.

“But you haven’t even tried the scones.”

Sweetie stopped struggling to cry for a moment, pushing away the scone Twilight was trying to levitate into her mouth. “I don’t want scones. . .I want my sister.”

“Of course!” Twilight jumped to her hooves, lifting Sweetie up with her. “Let’s invite Rarity to the picnic!

“But. . . but you killed her!” Sweetie screamed, glaring at Twilight with tiny, narrow eyes.

"She wouldn't tell me where the bad ponies locked up Lyra. They shoved her in a trunk and hid it, and she’s scared of small spaces. Tell me Sweetie, was that very nice of Rarity?”

“But she . . . n-no.”

Twilight had reached town square and set Sweetie down next to the pieces of Rarity. “She's still alive. She did it to protect you, so I went easy on her."

"Save her!" Sweetie gasped.

"Tell me, Sweetie, will you be my friend? Can we go back and finish our tea?" she asked.

"Y-yes. Just. . . please, my sister."

"Thank you, Sweetie."

Twilight levitated Rarity's limbs back next to her and reattached them. The sudden jolt of pain woke her up from whatever part of her mind she had withdrawn into to avoid the agony of dismemberment.

"Now remember what happens to ponies that lie to me. You're my friend now, Sweetie, and if you break that promise, just ask Rarity what will happen to you."

Rarity was moving again and rolled onto her side. Sweetie leapt on her and hugged her. 

"T-thank y-you," Sweetie wept.

Twilight levitated them to the tea set and left them to their reunion.

She returned to town square and gathered up all the ponies she could find. Standing in town square, she made a proclamation to the town. She plugged the hot plate back in and checked to make sure it worked.

Twilight began to address all the assembled ponies. “I want you all to be happy, we can all live just like we used to! No more villains, no more disasters, no more death. You just have to accept my gifts and the serenity I’m offering you. It hurts me to see how mean you all have been, so if you’re sure. . . if you really don’t want to be my friends, kill yourself. Take the easy way out and stop ruining it for the rest of us.”

Twilight sent out a pulse to animate all the dolls, then flew quickly to the door, slamming it behind her. She always felt this way when the topic of suicide came up. The dolls probably wouldn’t want to melt themselves, but maybe the mean ones like Vinyl would. Then she wouldn’t have to work so hard to try and make the cruel ponies happy too.

All of the ponies remained in town square, murmuring to each other. A couple minutes later Vinyl and Octavia appeared, followed closely by Sprocket.

"Listen up!" Octavia shouted. Once the ponies had gathered around them, she continued. "Bon Bon is dead. We will continue her fight and remember what she died for, our freedom! 

"Sprocket here has developed a way to protect us from her magic. Soon, we will have a way through the barrier trapping us here. I know that we have asked much of you, so know this: Twilight will be back. Our operation must remain secret, which is why we have left you out of the loop.

"You can now see why, just look at what she did to Rarity, Bon Bon, and Filthy Rich. If she finds out you know too much, she'll torture you. So I ask you all to stay strong! We will get out of this alive!"

The ponies did not cheer, but they did smile for the first time in days. The fight wasn't over yet.


***************************************************************


Dash rolled over on her cloud, allowing her back to get some sun. She could have napped on that soft, warm, and fluffy condensed water vapor all day long. Dash might even go so far as to write something sappy in her journal like “it was a sunny day in Ponyville.”

Opening up her eyes just a bit, she looked down over the marketplace. Applejack was selling apples, however most of the other vendors had either left town or were afraid to be seen in the open. Dash couldn't figure out why. There was only the one house that blew up. Twilight had personally seen to the repairs of the gas pipelines.

A filly caught Dash's eye. It was Silver Spoon and she was headed towards the library. She flew off the cloud and immediately felt a sense of longing for the cozy mattress in the sky.

"Hey, Silver, how's it going?" Dash asked.

"Rainbow Dash?" Silver inquired. "Uh, it's good. I thought you were a Wonderbolt or something."

"Oh, I am. It was just such a nice day and I was taking a nap. Hey, I was curious how Twilight is doing. I wanted to say hi but she seemed upset the other day." Dash smiled at the filly, hoping to elicit some tidbit of information as to what they did in the basement yesterday. 

Silver chewed on her lip for a moment. "Well, she seems ok to me. I am studying friendship and writing the princess letters."

Dash looked away from her towards the clouds, nonchalantly. "Wow, must be some cool stuff in her basement, huh?" 

"I need to go. I have homework to finish. Oh, and Scootaloo has been looking for you. She wants to see your Wonderbolt costume." Silver has said the first lie that came to mind, though the odds were in her favor Scootaloo would keep Dash busy.

"Crud, how'd I forget? Yeah, I'll go find her and tell her the good news, thanks." Dash flew off towards her cloud home. Aside from being strange, which Dash assumed any rich spoiled filly would be, Silver acted like a regular filly. Whatever Applejack suspected Twilight of doing clearly wasn't true.

Once Silver could no longer see Dash, she resumed her approach to the library. Knocking a few times, she let herself in and waited in the public space of the library home.

Twilight came up from the basement a moment later. "Silver, what a wonderful surprise."

"Hi, Twilight. I was wondering, what do I say if somepony is trying to find out about our experiment?" Silver asked.

"Why, did somepony ask?"

"Not really, Dash just wanted to know why I came over. I told her it was to do friendship reports, then she wanted to know what was in your basement."

"What did you say?" she questioned.

"I told her I have homework to do; I didn't want her to ruin the experiment." Silver smiled.

"Excellent, I'd hate to ruin the surprise. In fact, I was bringing her over today to scan her. Why don't you come back at dinner time tonight to play with the new dolls."

"Ok, thanks—do you think I could take one home to play with?"

"Let's wait and see how dinner goes later," Twilight chuckled.

Silver left the library and headed home while Twilight walked towards the marketplace. The crusaders usually hung out at Applejack's farm. Scootaloo, however, was an orphan and had managed to hide that fact well from the whole town. She was such a friendly filly that Applejack, Rarity, even Fluttershy let her sleep over all the time.

Twilight walked around a building into a hidden alleyway. In the back was Scootaloo's real home. It was a well-constructed area between two houses and a fence, sheltered from the weather. It was where the filly went when she couldn't find somepony to have a sleepover with. It would be a mercy for Twilight to adopt Scootaloo to the dollhouse.

An orange filly was lying on her back, stretching. 

"Hey, Scootaloo, you just wake up?" Twilight asked.

"What!" Scootaloo chirped. "Hey, nopony was supposed to know about my hideout here."

"It's okay," Twilight laughed. "I've known about your 'hideout' for a while. In fact, I've known you're an orphan for a while also. Don't worry, I came to get you with some great news."

"What is that?" Scootaloo brought herself to her hooves and raised an eyebrow skeptically.

"Since you can't keep living in alleyways, Dash has offered to adopt you!" 

Scootaloo's jaw fell wide open. Her eyes slowly expanded until they were the size of dinner plates and started to water. "Re-really? Dash is a-a-adopting me?"

Twilight smiled at how easy it was to trick fillies. "Sure is, you just have to come to the library so she can finalize the paperwork. I'll give you some cookies while you wait."

"Yes! This is so awesome! I need to get all my things, wait, let's go find Dash first! Can we tell Applebloom?" Scootaloo ran around frantically tossing her few belongs into a saddlebag.

"Calm down, you can come back later to pick up your stuff. Just bring your scooter and saddlebags for now. What’s important is that you’ll never be lonely again."

"Okay!"


***************************************************************


"Hey, Applejack, have you or Applebloom seen Scootaloo?" Dash inquired. She was now back in her Wonderbolts uniform with flight goggles.

"Oh, are ya puttin' on a show?" Applebloom inquired.

Dash was hovering with her forelegs crossed, as if hovering was too boring for a stunt pony. "No, I just heard she was looking for me but she isn't at any of your usual hangout spots."

"Why don't ya go look around for her a little, Applebloom, just come straight back," AJ ordered.

"Ok!" she replied.

Applejack adjusted her hat and lowered her voice. "So, Dash, ya find anything odd about Twilight?" 

"No, perfectly normal. Her new pupil Silver Spoon is kinda odd."

"She has a pupil now?"

"Yeah, makes sense.” Dash rolled her eyes, then looked back at her friend. “Aren't all Princesses supposed to have a pupil?"

"Ah guess, so are ya headed back to Cloudsdale now?"

"Nah, I'm going to get lunch with Twilight and say goodbye," Dash stated.

"Do me a favor, don't eat at the library.” Applejack reached up to poke her and make sure she had her attention. “Come let me know when you leave for Cloudsdale.”

"Heh, that's very loyal of you. Sure, I'll swing back by the apple stand. It's not like she's gonna slice me up into little tiny pieces and feed me to Gummy."

Dash saluted Applejack mockingly, and flew off towards the library.


***************************************************************



"So, Scootaloo, how are the cookies?" Twilight asked.

Scootaloo was sitting on a stool eating the chocolate chip cookies three at a time. Twilight had set out a couple dozen, and she hadn’t eaten in nearly a day. "They're awesome! When do I get to be adopted?"

"Oh, really soon. I know you don't like tea so I got some of Pinkie's root beer."

"Hey, thanks. This is totally going to be the best day ever!" The filly was already giggling and enjoying the sugar rush that was hitting her system.

Twilight smiled and felt very joyful to watch the little filly. She didn’t have a care in the world. Her whole life was sunshine and Rainbow Dash. Everypony in town was nice to her, creating an infectious happiness from an orphaned filly. Twilight was glad she’d be her next doll. "It sure is."

"Say, I've been curious since I got here, what's that?" Scootaloo pointed a hoof towards two boxes that looked like they were used to transport furniture.

"Oh, it's a science experiment I brought up from my lab. It's fairly boring, I'm sure you don't want to hear about Schrödinger. "

"Yeah. . . good guess." Scootaloo drank some of the root beer and helped herself to a couple more cookies.

"Are you alright? You look a tad sweaty."

"It is getting hot in here. Whew, I must need some more soda."

"Once you drink it all I can get some more, Dash will be here any moment."

Scootaloo finished the drink and found herself yawning, suddenly feeling exhausted.

"I must have really excited you," Twilight laughed. "Why don't you take a nap, I'll wake you up when Dash gets here." She pointed towards a pillow and blanket next to the wall.

"Thanks. . . I think I will," she yawned.

Scootaloo got up to walk over to it, and fell to the ground. She started snoring softly, curling up and beginning to suck on a hoof.

"D'aww, poor thing. Let me help you," Twilight cooed. She levitated her over and wrapped her in the blanket. She then placed her inside the box and closed it. See Bon Bon? I’m not a monster, that was absolutely friendly of me.

A pony knocked on the door before pushing it open. "Twilight?" Dash called out.

Twilight had returned to the entryway to greet her. "Hi Dash, what brings you by?"

"I'm leaving for Cloudsdale, you want to get lunch before I go?"

"Sure, come on in.” Twilight used her wing to gesture her into the house. “It just so happens I have some fresh salad."

"Thanks," Dash chuckled. "I really want to eat at Daisy's Daffodils one last time before I go."

"I'd love to, but I'm short on bits, and I already made the salad. . ." Twilight put on puppy eyes to get her prey to come inside.

"My treat, come on!" Dash grabbed Twilight and dragged her outside. She managed to grab her saddlebags and close the door behind her with her magic as the pegasus dragged her out to lunch. 

"Dash, is this really necessary?" Twilight barked. At least Scootaloo should be asleep for an hour, and she could worry about Dash for now.

"Yeah, you hardly ever go outdoors anymore. I didn't even get to teach you any flight tricks, a whole year and you were always too busy."

Twilight could have sworn she saw a tear before Dash looked away. A part of her felt sad, however it was replaced by happiness because Rainbow Dash would get to teach her all the stunts in the world once she was a toy doll.

Dash let go of her hoof and turned once she had resumed her cheerful facade. “I always hoped we’d be flight buddies. I’ll try to visit you from time to time. Alright then, we're here."

"Indeed," Twilight observed.

"Hey, Daisy, two of the usual!" Dash shouted to the waitress.

The waitress was balancing a tray of food on her back while taking an order, and she was an earth pony. It was an impressive sight to behold. "Sure thing, Dash!" she shouted back.

Twilight reached into her saddlebags to check on something.

"Don't worry," Dash interrupted, pulling a small sack out of a hidden pocket. "I said it's my treat."

Twilight took her seat on the stool and began counting how many witnesses were around. "Thanks. So you're leaving for the Wonderbolts today?"

"Yeah, I just need to say goodbye to Scootaloo before I go."

"I hope you find her." Twilight smiled as Daisy brought their food. It was the signature daffodil sandwich, a side of mixed greens, a large order of hay fries, and apple cider.

"Wow, this all looks delicious. Thanks, Dash," Twilight stated.

"Heh, yeah—” Dash bit into the sandwich, swallowing half of it. “It’s good food."

The two began eating and their silence quickly became awkward. Neither one seemed to have anything to say. Dash just stared at Twilight, averting her gaze when she noticed. As they neared the end of the meal, Twilight finally had to think of something.

"So, you going to fly up to Manehatten and tell Rarity about the Wonderbolts?" Twilight questioned.

"We have a show coming up there soon, I'll say hi then."

Twilight levitated a small pouch out of her saddlebag. "Oh, isn't that Scootaloo?" She pointed over Dash's shoulder.

Dash turned to look, and Twilight sprinkled some of the crushed powder onto her remaining bit of sandwich and fries.

"I don't see her," Dash responded.

"My bad." Twilight smiled, perhaps a little too joyfully. "Want to finish your food?"

"Nah, I'm full." Dash pushed the plate towards the middle of the table. "I really have to go now, you take care, okay?"

"You're just going to leave? Can't we hang out a little longer, we are friends right?"

"Of course we're friends. I just have to find Scootaloo, and Spitfire's expecting me by one o'clock." Dash hovered up a few feet above the ground, and placed some bits on the table. "See ya later Twilight."

"I know where Scootaloo is," Twilight blurted out.

"Huh? Where is she? I'd like to say goodbye."

Twilight leaned back and smirked. "She's back at the library."

"Why would you leave her at the library the whole time? She could have come to lunch." Dash crossed her forelegs.

"She's an orphan, I was asked to keep her until a carriage was available to take her to the nearest orphanage."

"What? You can't do that!” Dash landed on top of the table, drawing the gaze of a few patrons. “Let her stay with Applejack or something!"

"She was hoping to stay with you, but I guess if you don't want to say goodbye and hurt her feelings. . ."

Dash sighed. Scootaloo was a great filly and she couldn’t leave now, not until she knew Scootaloo would be safe. "Come on, let's go say goodbye and then we'll see if you can work something out with Applejack."

The two walked in silence again back towards the library. Neither Dash nor Twilight were very talkative ponies after the odd lunch.

The door to the library closed behind the pair. Twilight motioned her over to a table which she hovered over indifferently.

"Ok, where is she?" Dash asked.

"She's sleeping, over there." Twilight pointed to the two poorly constructed boxes.

"What, you mean inside?"

"Yes, have you ever heard of Schrödinger's chicken?"

"Who with what now?" Dash flew over to the box and pounded on it. "Did you lock her in here?!"

"You see, Schrödinger was a scientist who came up with this neat experiment. He sealed a chicken inside a box with a vial of poison, a hammer, and a radioa—"

"Wait, you what!" Dash interrupted, jumping up and down on the box. "You locked Scootaloo in there with poison!"

"Calm down, it's just a thought experiment.” Twilight walked over near them and leaned on the wall, waving a hoof in the air. “I want to see if you have a brain in that skull of yours. If you'd just eaten your fries we could have avoided straining your tiny mind."

Dash landed and paced towards Twilight. "You're starting to piss me off, if the next words out of your mouth don't explain what the hell is going on, I'm getting the police!"

"Relax. As I was saying, there is a radioactive isotope inside. So long as it does not decay, Scootaloo lives. Once it decays, Scootaloo dies. Until one of us opens the box and determines with certainty the state of the isotope, Scootaloo is both alive and dead at the same time!" Twilight levitated a book off the shelf and flipped it open to a picture of the thought experiment.

Dash stood there with her mouth agape. "Wait this isn’t a prank. . . you really locked her in there with poison? Have you gone bat shit insane?!"

"No, if I had I would likely have punched you in the face for your foul language." Twilight closed the book and put it back on the shelf. "You just need to push the button to let her out, then the experiment is over."

Dash walked around to the other side of the box, looking for a window. There was a side open and inside was a small window and a button. "What, you expect me to just crawl in there and push some button?" Dash laughed. “So it is some kind of prank, see if I’m loyal enough to trap myself in a box?”

"Pretty much, each second you wait poor Scootaloo gets closer to being dead. Don't you want to open your present and see if the chicken  is alive or dead?"

Dash mulled it over for a moment. She already knew, without question, she would do anything for a friend. Scootaloo would be free. Dash was more concerned for herself, what would the button do? What kind of experiment was Twilight running on her? Thoughts of Pinkie Pie's pinkie sense and a potion Dash had once stolen from Twilight  came to mind. She likely wanted to run some sort of analysis on Rainbow Dash. Why not just ask?

She muttered a few more obscenities under her breath. Dash knew Applejack was expecting her immediately after lunch. Turns out, she was right to be paranoid of Twilight. If Dash was in true danger, she trusted Applejack to rescue her. If it was just a prank, which she still hoped it was, Dash would just have to put up with some mockery.

Dash crammed herself inside the box. It did not give her room to expand her wings, and she could barely turn around inside it. She looked through the window but the other box was dark. A red button loomed in front of her.

"Tick, tock, Dash.” Twilight began tapping on the box to denote the seconds that were passing. “Her life is in your hooves, don't ruin my experiment!"

"So help me, if you hurt her. . ." Dash slammed her hoof into the button.

As she expected, a door slammed shut sealing Dash inside the box. Light poured through the window as it opened, and she could see Scootaloo sleeping on the other side. Twilight pulled her out of the box and beyond Rainbow's sight.

Dash squirmed around in the box. "Hey, you're letting her go right! I've had enough of this experiment, okay? Haha! Really funny."

Twilight opened a hidden flap on the side of the box. Dash's flank was crammed against it. "Oh, Dash, didn't you hear a word I said?" Twilight opened up a small black case she had acquired. "Scootaloo was both alive, and dead. If I just pulled a living chicken out of one side, then clearly the chicken on this side is dead."

"Dang it, what's gotten into you? Ow!" Dash felt something prick her in the flank and a burning liquid was injected in. She flailed violently but did little more than drive the needle in further. "Ow, stop it, ow, that hurts!"

"I knew you would be one of the harder ones to catch. You always thought everypony was a spy. If you'd just eaten my salad it would have been quick and painless. Even at lunch I used some of my valuable hemlock on you to make it qui—"

"Wait," Dash interrupted. "Wasn't hemlock in 'Daring Do'? That's poison! You were going to kill me?" She began hyperventilating and thrashing violently, muttering just a bad dream under her breath.

"As I was saying, I wanted to disable you quickly. You are the twenty-seventh pony that I am going to make immortal. A few. . . rejected the offer. Any minute now, the strychnine will kick in. Once I can safely cast the spell, I will turn you into my toy, forever. I've even modified the spell to ensure you can still fly! You're my first pegasus.”

Dash swallowed the large lump in her throat. Her neck was starting to stiffen up. "What'd you do to me?"

"I'm just having a little fun, Dash. To be more specific, I'm finding out which poisons and toxins are most effective. It's only a matter of time before Celestia or Luna come snooping around. Imagine their surprise when they're beloved pupil uses the perfect poison on them! Can you imagine, Celestia as my toy doll?" Twilight cackled. "I'll never have to lose her either!" 

Dash was panting now and sweating in the cramped box. Her face had gone stiff and her limbs were following. "Never lose her? You're doing this just because your family died, and you don't want to lose us? That's crazy!"

"No, it's forward thinking! None of you will ever die now. The poison also ensures you know how painful their deaths were to me! Imagine this times a hundred, and then remember that I’m offering you eternal life! Just ask Lyra! She is my best friend." Twilight poked at Dash's flank, feeling the muscle was stiff.

"Can. . . you please let me out? I think I'm cramping, I can't move," Dash whined.

Twilight flung the side of the box open, and Dash fell out onto her face. "I told Scootaloo you'd adopt her. I do hope that once you're both dolls you will, after all, you'll be living together forever."

Random muscles began to spasm and quiver throughout Dash's body. She couldn't control the shaking of her muscles as she convulsed.

"Now, watch this."

Twilight hovered Scootaloo in front of Dash, and engulfed her in magic. The filly took on a familiar glossy finish and her wings grew to the size they should be for a filly her age. The spell didn’t stop until the feathers had resumed their normal shape and texture. Her mane, tail, and feathers still looked real and accented her light, plastic body. Scootaloo then shrank down to the proper size.

"See, Dash? Quick and painless. I think I've gotten much better at it. At first, I could only make simple plastic dolls."

Dash went from spasming to convulsing wildly, it looked like a seizure as she fought her own body for control. “This. . . hurts. . .”

"Such a lovely poison, great to soften you up for the spell. I think I'll reserve it for ponies I don't particularly like in the first place. No hard feelings, you’re just the trial run. I imagine you're getting quite sore and exhausted from flailing around like that." Twilight lit up her horn.

"Why?" Dash managed to spit out.

"Why not?"

Dash felt her legs stop spasming and sighed in relief. They were blissfully numb, just like her cramped abdomen. She went to exhale in relief, yet couldn't. Something enveloped her face as she felt a gentle pressure shrink her down to size. She had become Twilight’s second near-perfect replica pegasus.


***************************************************************


“Lulu, thanks for staying awake to talk to me,” Celestia said. She gestured to the dining table that had slices of cake waiting for each of them. The princess of the sun began to nibble on hers.

“If I can help ease your sorrow, I will, Tia.” Luna sat down and began picking the chocolate pieces of the marble cake off with her fork and eating them.

“I got an odd letter from Spike, containing just this scorched doll. It. . . made me remember how many friendship reports Twilight used to write me.”

Luna sighed and slid closer to Celestia, she adopted the most gentle voice possible. It sounded like a scolding parent, but for Luna anything below the volume of the Royal Canterlot Voice was still an improvement. “Tia, I know you miss writing to her. You know she hasn’t been reading them. Why don’t you visit her?”

“I can’t, you know we haven’t been talking. I failed her.”

Luna used her wing to lift up Celestia’s chin. “No, sister, you have not. You taught her all you knew, when Cadance died you were heartbroken. I don’t blame you for sending me to comfort her.”

Celestia smiled, and levitated another piece of cake to her mouth. “Then will you do me one more favor, visit Ponyville and see how she is doing? I will write her back to return Spike’s toy. . . I just want to know if she is ready to forgive me.”

Luna chuckled softly, picking away the last chocolate piece of the marble cake. “You two are more alike than you know. She is probably waiting for you to forgive her. Show her the same faith she shows you, and she will never let you down. I shall visit her for you, and show you all is well.”


***************************************************************


"Alright, who would like to test my hypothesis?" Sprocket inquired.

"Don't look at me," Vinyl replied. "I already did my bit. You wanna try, Octy?"

"I'd rather not, but I'll make an exception," Octavia stated.

She walked forwards toward the tunnel made of copper wiring. Pushing it a little further forward with Vinyl's help, it hit the force field that kept the third of the basement near the stairs off-limits.

It slid through the magical barrier, causing purple lights to dance through it. Small sparks jumped along the copper wires.

"We already know it works, you just have to walk through it," Vinyl chuckled.

"I guess. . ." Octavia walked slowly through the tunnel, and passed through the barrier. "Hey, it worked!"

She now stood on the other side of the barrier meant to keep them in New Ponyville. From here, she could go to the exit and wait for somepony to come through it. Perhaps she could examine Twilight's plans, or find some useful supplies. Before the thrill of success had faded, Octavia heard the door to the basement open.

The dolls all went wide-eyed and backed up.

"Run, get the faraday cage hidden!" Octavia shouted. She jumped into the tunnel and tried to hang on. As it slid back through the force field, the spell clipped Octavia and froze her.

"Octy!" Vinyl shouted.

"No, hide the experiment first then get her!" Sprocket yelled.

The two managed to get to the nearest house and force the tunnel inside and out of sight. Vinyl was about to run back for her friend, however Twilight was already near the barrier and would surely spot them. From this distance she saw two new dolls. It would have been difficult to tell who they were, but only one pegasus around here had a rainbow mane.

"Crap, she got another of the elements," Vinyl complained.

"Vinyl, we can't get back underground until she's not looking. I recommend we climb inside the tunnel and pray to Celestia if she freezes everypony it offers enough protection," Sprocket concluded.

"Fine, but we get Octy right after and we go back to the tunnel plan," Vinyl stated.


***************************************************************


"Come out, come out, wherever you are!" Twilight chanted. "I have new friends!" Twilight walked towards the center of the basement. Lyra rode in her mane, and her two new pegasi floated, frozen, alongside her.

A slightly acrid smell reached her. Glancing over at the hot plate, she found that some brown pony had opted out of the dollhouse. It saddened Twilight, but she would be better without him. This was paradise for her friends, not cowardly ponies who were mean and killed themselves. Using her magic, the hot plate was cleaned up and then shut back off.

Twilight began walking around the houses, capturing the ponies she had wanted to see. Of course she would find Spike and Rarity hiding out together at Carousel Boutique. Sweetie Belle had the common sense to try and hide under a bed, whereas the dragon and fashionista were right out in the open.

Twilight set them all down near her favorite lake and began to levitate a miniature tea set and some sugar cubes out of her saddle bag. She lined up all six friends around the impromptu picnic.

As the only one not frozen habitually by Twilight, Lyra took her seat closest to the giant purple alicorn. She levitated a sugarcube over and began licking it. 

"Now we can have our first proper picnic and play date!" Twilight cheered. "I'm going to unfreeze you. If you're civil and manage not to start arguing semantics with me, I'll consider leaving you unfrozen tonight."

Twilight's horn lit up, briefly flashing a deep hue of red from the dark spells she had adapted to manipulate the dolls.

Sweetie instantly dove back to Rarity's side. Spike stood in front of her, as ineffective a protector as a lover. Dash flew a short distance to scoop Scootaloo up and hide her in her wings.

"So touching," Twilight chuckled.

"What'd you do to us?" Dash shouted. She still wore her wonderbolts outfit, and would wear it forever unless Twilight invented a spell to remove the painted on latex flightsuit.

Twilight began passing out the tea and sugarcubes she had brought for them. "I turned you into a doll. Seriously, is that not obvious? I'm beginning to think the spell causes brain damage."

"For what? Your sick games? I won't let y—" Dash froze mid-sentence, trapping Scootaloo in her wings.

"What? Help, I'm stuck!" Scootaloo squealed.

"As you can all see, I'm in control here. Now, Rarity, would you care for some tea? I'm told by Lyra you have been regaining your sense of taste," Twilight cited.

"You uncivilized animal! This is a crime against— " Rarity was frozen.

"Here, let me help you Scootaloo." Twilight pulled Dash's wings apart, letting the filly out. "Perhaps you and Sweetie Belle have learned some manners from your elders?"

"Why, Twilight?" Spike  asked calmly. "How did it come to this? They would have all come over if you'd asked."

"Would they have stopped dying if I'd asked?" Twilight retorted.

"I know it hurts, but I lost my parents, I hardly even remember them. It gets easier," Scootaloo offered.

"I don't want easier, I want better. I want you to all have fun and be happy with me forever, right Lyra?" Twilight asked.

Lyra gulped. "She is telling the truth. . . she is very nice to me." She looked over at the frozen Rarity who had no choice but to return her gaze. "Even when the other ponies here tortured me, she kept me safe. I just. . . I miss Bon Bon," she sobbed.

"There, there. Bon Bon got what she deserved for being mean, and I know she was your friend for a long time. I promise I'll make you feel better," Twilight cooed.

"Thank you," Lyra whispered as Twilight's hoof rubbed her back. 

Twilight recognized, but didn’t understand why, Lyra would miss Bon Bon. She had comforted the tiny lyrist and built her a new house next to Big Mac on her night stand.

"So what about Rarity?!" Sweetie screamed.

"No, Sweetie," Scootaloo objected.

"It's okay, what about her, Sweetie?" Twilight asked.

"You cut her to pieces in town square! You're a monster! I spent all day throwing up, and then you make me a doll, drag me here, and try to kill Rarity!" Sweetie yelled in a fit of rage. “You pretend you want us to be happy then you torture us!”

"Sweetie, Rarity refused to tell me where bad ponies hid Lyra. If I hid you from Rarity, would she do any less?. I even put her back together for you, didn't I? I made sure you had nice translucent plastic bodies just like the crystal ponies! I'm sure Rarity will behave and I'll never have to punish you two again, right, Rarity?"

Twilight unfroze Rarity who took up a dignified posture. "If I must, then I shall act civil around you."

"See, that wasn't so hard. I really do want to keep you all in good health, but I’m not afraid to discipline you. Scones?” Twilight levitated the miniature treats to the ponies. They were moer accurately described as small crumbs of baked bread with sugar in them. “How about you, Spike?"

"I just don't know what to say. You were always my big sister. . . I never even thought you were capable of this," Spike admitted. "Sure, maybe now we'll get to be together forever, but have you ever thought how that makes me feel?” He began gesturing to his new doll anatomy. “I'm a few inches tall, I'll never grow into an adult, I can't fly, and I can't even breathe fire. I'm worthless." 

"Don't say that, I'll make the spell better, I promise!" Twilight assured. “I’ll get you anything you want, any of you want!”

Spike picked up a sugar cube to see if he could taste it. "I don't suppose you can shrink some gems," he muttered.

Twilight nodded and moved on. "Dash?" She unfroze her, and found her more cooperative.

"What?" Dash spat.

"Will you be my friend?" Twilight inquired.

Lyra's eyes went wide as she looked at Dash, concerned for her well-being. Dash noticed the look on her face, reaffirming there was truly only one right answer to the question.

"No.”







 

> IX. The Blank Flank Filly
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Twilight stared in shock as Dash refused to be her friend in front of all the ponies gathered before her. If she allowed the defiance to go unchecked, the others would soon be refusing too.

Twilight saw Rarity whispering to Spike and frowned. Her eyelid began to twitch as she heard one of them giggling. She tossed a glare out at the crowd, but they stopped their mockery before she could catch them.

“I’ll give you some time alone to think about that, Dash.” She grabbed the pegasus and Lyra with her magic and trotted off towards the prison. “I’m going to have some really delicious cake with everypony else and you’re not getting any.”

“You can’t force me to be your friend, psycho!” Dash screamed. “You promised not to hurt Scootaloo!” 

“I gave you and Scootaloo a gift, Dash! The two of you can be sisters forever now! You’ve always been too thick-headed to realize when I do something nice for you.”

Once they arrived, she locked Dash into a replica jail cell and whispered to Lyra. “See if you can convince her to see reason. I need to go talk to the others.” She set Lyra down outside the cell.

“You know, Dash, I could threaten you, or perhaps I’ll just kill Scootaloo instead. If you want to see psycho, then I’ll be happy to oblige. I really hope you’ll let me do it the nice way. I don’t like when I’m angry.” Twilight slid the roof of the prison over the jail cells, sealing them back up.

“You know, Dash, she let you off easy,” Lyra said.

“How do you figure? The part where she promised to let Scootaloo go, and broke her promise? Or the part where I’m stuck here forever?” Dash asked.

Lyra approached the replica prison cell, sitting down right in front of the bars. “Surely you’ve seen how sad she has been this last year.”

“I’ve been kinda busy, but I can see how crazy she’s been. Not two days after I make it into the Wonderbolts and I’m sitting in a tiny plastic prison cell.”

“You know what I think? I think you and the elements were supposed to be her friends. I think the five of you failed her, and here we are! She’s turning everyone into dolls because of you.” Lyra poked her hoof through the bars, nearly hitting Dash. “You refused to be her friend when she needed you most.”

“Hey! I’m still her friend, I’m loyalty after a—”

“No! Even now you won’t be her friend. Imagine how much it must have hurt to lose her brother and Cadance! How long did you leave her to brood here, all alone in her library?”

Dash got up and rushed the bars to the cell. She threw a hoof, nearly hitting Lyra. “Hey! At least we were her friends! I never saw you hanging out with her, not until you have something to gain from it! What’d she promise? To turn you back into a pony?”

“She promised not to hurt Bon Bon,” Lyra whispered.

“A lot of good that did, I saw her corpse on the way in.”
“She. . . did Rarity tell you how her, Bon Bon, and Vinyl locked me up in a chest and threatened to bury me alive? How they tore down town square and got Filthy and Diamond murdered? Bon Bon deserved to—no. She was mean, but it hurts to know I’ll never hold her again. She betrayed me, yet her death still hurts. . . Imagine how many times Twilight will have to feel that loss.”

“Lyra, I had no idea about Bon Bon.” Dash hung her forelegs through the bar and tried to calm herself down. “It was Twilight’s fault she died! She can’t punish ponies for not being nice to her.”

“Exactly! Nopony wants to be nice, stop and see how Twilight feels. Nopony but me. They just blame her for all their problems and take it out on her! I hope she leaves you here until you get that through your thick skull.”

Dash shouted to her before she got out of earshot. “That’s not the Twilight that was my friend!”

“You’re wrong, and you’re still the Dash who was her best friend, so I suggest you act like it.” Lyra turned and walked out of the Ponyville prison. She found Twilight in the middle of town square. She had managed to use her magic to repair all the damage the ponies had done when they razed the town. The corkboard had been raised off the ground so the ponies couldn’t use it on each other. 

Twilight had also realized it was not just ponies that could be transformed. She had seen Opalescence eating out of a dumpster and turned her into a tiny toy cat. After that, she went and got Tank, some random critters, and Angel. Fluttershy’s favorite rabbit had been tricky, but now that he was missing it was only a matter of time before Fluttershy came begging Twilight to help.

The final touch to today’s repairs had been adjusting the spell that simulated a day and night cycle. Most of the town ponies were near the town square, watching Twilight work. They were behaving civil, though most were probably off planning further insurrections.

“Hey, Twilight,” Lyra said.

Twilight turned her focus from the extensive renovations to the unicorn. “Oh, Lyra, how was your walk?”

“It was good. Are the animals I’ve seen running around real?”

“Yeah, I thought they’d liven the place up a bit. Rarity didn’t seem too thrilled to have her cat back, but they seemed to calm down after I locked Dash up.”

Lyra followed her to town hall where she was putting the finishing touches on the painted roof. “So are you feeling better? You’ve seemed stress trying to get so many ponies at once, maybe we should take a break.”

“No. I have to stick to the schedule, they’ll come around. You’ll see, they have to love me.”

Lyra looked around and saw Vinyl leaning against a house staring at her. She lifted her sunglasses and smirked. An involuntary chill passed over Lyra, and she could feel the wooden walls of the locked trunk pressing into her shoulder blades. “Can we go now?”

“Sure, the repairs are done. I have a busy schedule today. Want to hear about my plans for the apple family?”








Colgate was headed to the library to tell Twilight her theory about Bon Bon’s murder. Since the police hadn’t believed her, surely the Princess would. She had been on the receiving end of such belief before. If the stories were true, nopony believed her during the changeling invasion or when Nightmare Moon returned. She would have to believe Colgate.

She found Twilight walking away from the library towards the park and ran to catch up. “Hey Twilight!”

The alicorn turned around and after an odd look, smiled widely. “Colgate! I didn’t know you were still in town.”

“It’s strange right? All the ponies moving out of town, but I think I know why.” She looked around and saw nopony was close enough to eavesdrop.

“I’d love to hear it, I don’t want all the ponies to move out of my town.”

Colgate walked alongside her and quickly focused her thoughts. “Okay, so you remember when Bon Bon’s house exploded?”

Twilight twitched briefly, then recovered. “I do, I really hate to talk about it. . . their death hit close to home.”

“I’m sorry, but I think Bon Bon was murdered.”

Twilight stopped and looked around. “That’s a serious accusation, what would make you think there is a murderer living in Ponyville? According to the court archives the last murder was in Fillydelphia twenty-two years ago.”

Colgate smiled nervously at her intensity. She should have known bringing such a serious accusation to a Princess would get her full attention. “Heh, well you see the teeth showed damage inconsistent with a fire, and I’m not sure who in town might have had a grudge against Bon Bon. Couldn’t anypony have created a leak in the gas line, knowing she would bake something and detonate it? Or what if they . . . tortured her, and used the fire to hide the evidence? What if you or I am next?”

Twilight chuckled. “Why didn’t the police believe you then?”

“I don’t know! They said you closed the case, and that I was mistaken because I’ve never studied forensics. . . but I know Bon Bon and Lyra, I don’t think she’d leave the gas on!”

“Look, you can try to move on—like I have—or you can let it eat at you. Ponies die, even alicorns. Unless you have enough proof to take it to a lawyer, I can’t be of much help.”

“I uh. . .” Colgate took a deep breath. “I’m not sure I have enough evidence. You know—nevermind. You’re right. I’m sorry I wasted your time.” Colgate turned and walked away.

“Colgate, I didn’t mean to sound rude. Do you want some tea?”

“No thanks, take care.” Colgate turned back and smiled briefly. “I think Lyra’s conspiracy theories rubbed off on me.” She turned back and walked home, disheartened. The police, and now Twilight didn’t take her seriously. She couldn’t prove who did it, or why, all she knew was the evidence was inconsistent. Colgate knew her friend was murdered, and barely had enough circumstantial evidence to fill half a piece of parchment.

Sighing, she turned down the street towards her house and resigned herself to try and move on.











Twilight answered the door to the library. “Hello, Silver, I’m glad you came by!”

“I was so excited to come over! Do I really get to learn more about the dolls today?” Silver asked.

“Yes, you can play with them too if you’d like.”

“If I study really hard, can we make a doll of Apple Bloom next? It’s fun playing with the fake Scootaloo and Sweetie dolls, but if I had Apple Bloom I could send them on crusades and get them into lots of trouble.”

“Just for you, Silver, we’ll scan Apple Bloom today. After our lessons, you can go and invite her over to the library. Just don’t let Applejack know, she thinks that animating toy dolls is really stupid. I bet Apple Bloom would love to stop by and see them, though,” Twilight explained.

Silver and Twilight walked over towards the basement. Once they went downstairs, they sat at a small table outside the spell keeping the ponies from escaping. Twilight had left Big Mac in her bedroom, it would not do her any good to let him know her plans for Applebloom. Lyra, on the other hoof, seemed to be showing a level of loyalty that would put Dash to shame.

Twilight smiled. “What’s so funny?” Silver asked.

“I was just thinking about Lyra. Of all my new dolls, she’s easily the nicest.”

Silver watched as Lyra smiled up at Twilight, jealous of the perfect doll. “Can’t you just use the spell to make them all nice?”

“It’s not that simple. They keep the personalities and memories of the ponies I make them out of—from,” Twilight added.

“So you said they’re immortal, right?” Silver shifted in her chair.

“Yeah, they’ll last forever as dolls. So long as nopony destroys their head, that’s where the spell is focused.”

Silver smirked. “So I could do whatever I wanted to the dolls and you could fix them?”

“Yes, you could fix them too if you had the right tools and paints. For instance, if you wanted to have Scootaloo get crushed in a rock slide she’d be perfectly fine. She is just a doll, after all.”

“That could be fun! I’ve always wondered what would happen if they tried cutie mark crusader spelunking.” Silver brought a hoof down on the table. “Splat! Then they would have never been around to make Diamond Tiara angry. She wasn’t very nice to me when she was angry.” 

Silver looked away from the table and towards the town. She noticed for the first time the small plastic birds flying around. A small rabbit darted between two bushes.

“You can make dolls from animals? This town is turning out better than the real Ponyville.”

“Yes, pretty soon it will be a perfect replica, minus a few defective dolls,” Twilight explained.

“It’s so lifelike. Even if they were real ponies, it’d still be pretty cool to be a doll. You could live forever with all your friends and never have to get hurt or grow old.”

Twilight grinned with mischief in her eye. “Yes, it really would be cool. Perhaps once I’ve taught you all I know about dolls we can research that. First I need that favor. Go find Apple Bloom and invite her back to play. Remember that I need her to stop by just for a minute so I can make a doll.”

“Okay, then I can play with the dolls again, right?” Silver asked.

Twilight smiled at her sweet young pupil. “Yes, bring Apple Bloom and you can spend a couple hours playing with them however you want.”









“I wonder where it all went wrong. What do you think?” Dash rolled over on the surprisingly accurate replica prison bed. It was just as uncomfortable as the one she had slept in when she was caught drinking underage. Now, she was talking to a brick on the wall that almost resembled a smiley face.

“You think it was when I went back to the Wonderbolts training camp right after the suicide? Should I have demanded Twilight spill out her feelings?” Dash sighed and propped her head up on a foreleg. “I hate talking about feelings.”

Dash looked at the brick for a minute in total silence.

“You’re right, I couldn’t have known. . . Applejack is the element of honesty! She is the one who should have known Twilight was lying when she said she was fine. How am I supposed to be loyal if my friends lie to me?”

Dash lay there under the thin blanket. “How can I be cold and uncomfortable? How did she even make my feathe—wait ugh!” She slammed her hind legs against the wall, sliding the bed an inch away from it.

“This is ridiculous! I’m stuck in Tartarus with a psycho and a bunch of crazy plastic ponies. Maybe Lyra is right, and I need to just lie to Twilight too. If she takes me out of the basement, I could fly out a window easily. I wonder how long it’d take to fly to Canterlot at this size. . .”

Dash was about to roll over and go to sleep when she heard a noise. Somepony was entering the prison. She say up on the bed and looked out the bars. Scootaloo walked up to the prison bars.

She had never been so happy to see the filly in her life. “Aren’t you a little short for a police pony?”

“What? I’m here to rescue you!” Scootaloo explained. She pulled a replica key out from under her wing and opened the jail cell. “Twilight was a little too thorough. She put keys and everything in the police station.”

“Awesome! Maybe we can get out of here, I’ll fly you out.”

“It’s okay, I can fly now too. Whatever Twilight did to me, it fixed my wings.”

“Good. We’ll find Vinyl and find a way outside the barrier. Shen she opens the basement door we can escape!”

Scootaloo sighed. “Will it be that easy?”

“Look at me, Scootaloo.” Dash waited until she was sure Scootaloo was paying attention. “Whether or not Twilight likes it, we’re getting out of here. She will not take the sky away from us. I’m going to teach you to fly, properly, and we’re going to get Celestia to fix this all.”

“What Twilight said to trick me. . .” Scootaloo glanced away and fluttered her wings nervously. “If we get out of this would you adopt me?”

“Of course I’ll adopt you, but you have to promise me something. If you get a chance to escape, you take it no matter what. You leave me here if it means getting out. Celestia is the only one who can help us now.”

Scootaloo looked down at her hooves. “I’m not sure I could leave you behind.”

“If it comes down to it, you have too. Understood?”

Scootaloo chewed on her lip for a moment thinking about it. “If it means I won’t have to be alone anymore, I’ll do it. I want to get out of here and fly with you.”

She pushed the unlocked cell door open. “Now, follow me. Let’s go find Rarity and the others.”

Scootaloo and Dash walked out of the prison. They then tested their replicated feather wings. Whether due to Twilight’s spell or their innate magic, the two pegasi were ecstatic to be able to fly. They flew up towards Dash’s cloud home to survey the town. From here they could see Vinyl and Rarity near the border of town.

“Scootaloo, stay here at the house,” Dash ordered.

“But I—”

“No buts,” Dash interrupted. She smiled over and hugged Scootaloo. “You’re my sister now, and you’ll have to listen to me so I can keep you under my wing. Once I find a way out, we’ll make a run for it.”

Dash flew off towards the border of the town without waiting for Scootaloo to protest. She reached Vinyl and Rarity in seconds. They were sliding the faraday tunnel into position.

“Hey, Vinyl, Rarity, Where’s Octavia?” Dash asked.

“She got frozen last time trying to pass through the barrier. We’ll have to wait for Twilight to either re-animate her or for the moon to rise,” Vinyl explained. “Lyra got her to enchant it so at night we won’t have to be stuck frozen.”

“Why not just ask Twilight to do it for you?”

Vinyl looked away from Dash and shook her head. “Because last time we spoke, she promised to kill Octavia as punishment for my escape attempt. I failed her. . .”

Her ears perked up along with her wings. “You almost escaped?”

“Yeah, until Silver caught me, damn fool.” Vinyl pushed the device into the magical barrier, causing the field to dance with lavender sparks.

Dash glanced at the two ponies. “So you’re going through this barrier again?”

“Yes,” Rarity responded. “Though since you can fly I think you should do it.”

“Sounds good, what should I do?” Dash asked.

Vinyl rubbed a hoof over the tunnel for good luck. “Just go through and scout around, and be sure to check that board over there with her plans on it,” Vinyl explained.

Dash saluted and headed towards the tunnel. “Alright, I’m on it.” 

“Oh, one more thing. Look for any gaps in the floorboards, or holes we could tunnel too. It’ll be easier to hide this contraption underground,” Vinyl added.

“Sure thing.”

Dash crawled through the barrier and looked at it from the otherside. It was glowing around the tunnel, yet it had worked. Dash took to the air and began to look around from near the ceiling.

The basement was vast, no longer the small room that Twilight liked to run experiments in. She could see the far mountain ranges of Canterlot, the Everfree forest, and the entire town. Her eyes finally drifted to a corkboard and a partition placed to block it from view of ponies in town.

Dash found a wall covered in a confusing mess of photos, notes, and strings. Her picture jumped out to her, so she approached it. Next to it was the photo of Scootaloo, and a string connected that to Apple Bloom. That photo was connected to Applejack and Granny Smith. Strings ran from them to Mayor Mare, Fluttershy, and Pinkie. They fractured further, reaching ponies such as Cheerilee, Colgate, Cloud Kicker, Featherweight, Peppermint Twist, and a few ponies Dash had not even heard of.

She flew down to the ground to examine a photo that had fallen to the floor. Turning it over revealed Silver Spoon’s photograph. Dash looked around for more fallen photos and found a floorboard that was badly cracked and rotted. It’s location left much to be desired, yet it seemed discrete enough to serve as a permanent escape point.

Looking back at town, Dash made a mental map of where this broken floorboard was compared to the town. She would relay this to Vinyl for her tunnel project, then she would get Scootaloo. The two of them had a better plan, they would fly out the door and get help. If they were lucky, Twilight wouldn’t even notice it.

Dash heard the sound of the basement door opening. Without thinking, she took off flying as fast as she could for the tunnel. It almost felt like a mach cone was forming around her, and she blasted through the gap in the barrier.

The entire barrier shimmered and fluctuated for several seconds. Vinyl and Rarity watched in shock as it appeared to vanish for a split second. The faraday device was blown back as Dash flew through the barrier. The pegasus quickly turned around and grabbed the tube, and began to drag it towards a nearby house.

Vinyl and Rarity followed her, as the basement door swung open.









Apple Bloom was swinging on a swing at the school playground. There were faint trails on her facial coat hairs where she had been crying. Her fellow crusaders had left, and had not even said goodbye. Neither Sweetie nor Scootaloo had been seen around town. Both had missed school today.

It was almost a relief when she saw Silver Spoon coming. They’d never been friends, but at least she was still here.

“Hey, Apple Bloom, you ok?” Silver asked.

“Ah don’t know why everypony is leavin’. My friends, my brother. . . Ah heard Diamond moved too. . . ah don’t suppose you want to be friends?”

“That’s why I stopped by. I’m sorry about Diamond. I heard the crusaders left and thought maybe we could go play with my dollhouse. I mean, unless it’s too boring.”

“Ah think it’d be better than sittin’ on a swing all alone, sure,” Apple Bloom responded.

“Ok, follow me!” Silver exclaimed.

The two began to walk back into town. “So y’all really came ta find me and be friends? And ah thought ah’d seen everything.”

“You’d be surprised who wants to be friends. Twilight let me write a friendship letter.”

“Sis says ah shouldn’t be goin’ round Twilight,” Apple Bloom replied.

“Why not? She’s been awfully nice to me. I told her I like dolls and Twilight told me that she made a tiny Scootaloo and Sweetie doll—is that weird? I mean, you could play with your friends.”

“Ah reckon it’s a tad strange, but it might be neat ta see toy crusaders.” Apple Bloom glanced at the library. “This ain’t your house.”

“I didn’t say we’re going there, I moved my dolls and stuff to Twilight’s. She has much better toys than me, want to see? I bet she can even make a doll of you.”

“Well, just a quick visit. My sis would be awfully sore if she knew ah was hangin’ out with Twilight. Ah think they’re havin’ another fight.”

Silver opened the door and escorted Apple Bloom inside. Twilight was waiting for them with some milk and cookies.

“Welcome over, girls. Want some cookies?” Twilight asked.

“Sure!” Silver replied. She trotted up and ate a couple of the cookies. Apple Bloom joined her to eat the cookies.

“Wow these are good, can ah have this milk?” Apple Bloom asked.

“Sure.” Twilight smiled as Apple Bloom and Silver began to drink the milk.

“Say, Silver, why don’t you go get the dolls ready to show Apple Bloom. I’ll be right down.”

“Okay, Twilight,” Silver said.

She went down to the basement while Twilight stood there, silently staring at Apple Bloom.

“Twilight, ah don’t feel so good. . .” Apple Bloom began. She was gasping for air.

“Sorry, I’m not in the mood for any theatrics and Silver wasn’t ready to see this. I’m turning you into a doll, deal with it,” Twilight spat. She charged her horn and fired it into the struggling filly’s face. Applebloom fell over and quickly turned into a miniature doll.

Twilight carried Apple Bloom down into the basement where she found Silver searching for the other crusaders.

“Apple Bloom couldn’t stay, but she let me scan her. Here you go! I haven’t tested her yet so she may act weird when I activate her,” Twilight explained.

“What about Scootaloo and Sweetie, where are they?” Silver asks.

“Let me help you.” Twilight lit up her horn. Soon Scootaloo was floated out of the cloud house, and Sweetie floated out of town hall. “Clever hiding places, but you’re toys and Silver wants to play.”

“Put us down you monster!” Scootaloo shouted.

“Hehe, I think they’re still broken,” Silver stated.

“Yes, but they’re just toys so if they misbehave you can do this.” Twilight levitated two pins from the corkboard and jammed them through Scootaloo’s wings, pinning them to the filly’s side.

“Ahh! Stop that!” Scootaloo screamed in pain.

Silver watched as Twilight pulled the pins out. “Cool, it acts so life-like.”

“Put her down!” Dash shouted. In a blur, she flew out of the cloud house and collided with Twilight’s eye. The alicorn recoiled in pain, reflexively sending out a pulse of magic. Dash fell to the ground, unmoving, and was joined by the frozen ponies around town.

“Ugh, every doll in this town is crazy!” Twilight yelled.

Silver laughed at the dolls, believing it all a game. “Yeah, but it’s okay. I can play with them like this.”

“Hmm, I’m actually kind of tired. Why don’t you go home, I don’t feel like playing.”

“Aww, can I at least take the crusaders home to play with?” Silver asks.

“Sure, just bring them back in the morning. Have fun.”

“Thanks!” Silver picked up all the crusaders in her mouth and carried them over to her saddlebag, which she left near the door when playing. Once she loaded them up, she headed home to play.

Twilight was about to follow her upstairs when she recalled the towns ponies. She grinned, deciding to animate them to worry about the crusaders. With a flash of her horn she unfroze the ponies and locked the basement door behind her.

Once upstairs, Twilight curled up next to her two favorite ponies for some conversation. She cuddled up to her Big Mac plushy, which she usually left at the same size as she was. He was so warm and fluffy to cuddle with at night, and now that he’d promised not to run away it was nice to have somepony in bed with her on cold nights.

Twilight had promised to leave the apple family out of it. That didn’t include preventing Silver from inviting Apple Bloom over to accidently get poisoned. It also didn’t cover what would happen when a furious Applejack came over to find her little sister. She animated Big Mac and hugged him tightly.

“Y’all in a good mood,” Mac observed.

“This is my favorite part of the day. Sometimes I Think you and Lyra are the only ponies keeping me from doing something horrible to myself. . .”

“Y’all shouldn’t talk like that. Ah’m sure Celestia would help ya—”

“No,” Twilight interrupted. “We’ve talked about that. She’ll just blame me, I’m constantly trying so hard to gain her approval. When I needed her most, when Cadance died, she could barely look at me. She sent Luna to comfort me. 

“I was laying in my bed with Cadance’s blood all over me, and she sends Luna to comfort me because Celestia was in too much pain to help her favorite pupil! It’s obvious she loved Cadance more than me. She always did.”

Lyra stepped out of the small house Twilight had built for her on the nightstand. It was little more than one room with a roof and a nice bed, but it gave Lyra a place to live safe from the ponies in New Ponyville that hated her.

“Twilight, that’s not true. If we still love you, I’m sure Celestia does,” Lyra said. “Maybe she just doesn’t know how much she hurt you.”

“Well, she’ll know soon enough. I’m sending her a letter to ask for her advice and see if she’ll send more ponies to Ponyville. The town population is getting too low, and I may need to start the dollhouse over.”

“What do you mean start over? Are you going to get rid of all your friends?” Lyra asked.

“No, I’m going to get rid of all my enemies. Maybe I did it wrong, I’ve been going over the spell calculations in my head all day. If I’d been more careful, they wouldn’t all hate me so much. I’m sure that secretly they all hate me because I got to become an alicorn and they didn’t. That’s why they’re all down there right now plotting their escape.”

“But they’re your friends, Twilight,” Mac said.

“I’m not so sure anymore, Mac. If I offered them a choice, either be my friend or reverse the spell, what do you think they’d pick? They’d all want to be normal ponies again so they could turn me in and run far away. They all hate me, and I’m not sure how many more chances I’ll give them.”

“Why don’t you sit down with them and tell them this? They’re just dolls, it’s not like they can do anything worse than say ‘no’. If you give them a chance, be nice to them again, maybe more will like you,” Lyra offered.

“Maybe I coul—” Twilight was interrupted by a scroll materializing in thin air. She was about to shove it in the bottom drawer of the nearby dresser with the rest of them. Celestia had her chance, she left me when I needed her most. . . Twilight shook the bitterness from her mind and noticed the lump in the letter. Curiosity got the better of her.





My Faithful Princess Twilight,

I received a missive recently from Spike. He must have been feeling ill, for the letter was incinerated. All that came through was this charred figurine toy. If you were attempting to send a letter, please re-send it. I have enclosed the doll incase Spike wants it back.

Your Faithful Ruler,
Celestia




“Oh, look! Berry Punch is back!” Twilight paused to cackle before setting Berry down on the night stand. “It’s not an apology, no, she’s probably sent Luna to apologize for her.” Twilight incinerated the letter.

“Hmm, Berry is badly burned but I may be able to salvage her. Maybe returning her alive will make the ponies like me more. Maybe Berry will like me if I save her life, oh Lyra this will be wonderful!”

“I would like that Twilight, and it’d make me real happy too if we talk to everypony tomorrow. How about Mac and I go with you?” Lyra said.

“I. . . don’t know about Mac.” Twilight buried her muzzle in his mane and inhaled. He was such a wonderful stallion. “The towns ponies have been very cruel lately and if anything happened to him, I don’t know what I’d do.” Mac didn’t know that Applebloom had been turned yet. If she could get Applejack, and have Lyra promise silence, she could hide that from him forever. Then, he would be her faithful teddy pony forever.

“Ah don’t much care for the basement anyhow, too depressin’. At least ah’m warm up here and get ta see the sunlight,” Mac replied.

“Oh, thank you Mac.” Twilight yawned and rolled over, pulling him back in close. “Good night, Lyra, Big Mac. And thank you, thank you for being such good friends.”

With a final squeeze, she levitated the blanket over herself and Mac and closed her eyes.









> X. The Iron Pony
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Silver walked into her room and closed the door, locking it behind her. This was a familiar routine to ensure she had privacy from Mother. An exciting night was planned for the crusaders. They were finally going to earn their cutie marks in witchcraft.

After setting down her saddlebags she went over to her victorian dollhouse. It was larger than the filly and sat on the ground. it split in two diagonally, revealing the many rooms inside the intricately detailed house. There were tiny plates, flowers, rugs, and even power outlets. Only the rich ponies, such as Silver’s family, could afford electricity.

Silver spoon pulled the Cutie Mark Crusaders out of her bag and set them next to her other dolls. Silver returned a moment later with a shoe box.

“Crusaders, meet the remaining members of my dollhouse: Krissy, Annie, and Janice.” She gestured a hoof to each one of them. 

Krissy was a porcelain pegasus. Her coat had turned grey and scratched. Both ceramic wings had snapped off, leaving only small stubs. One of her legs was missing, an obvious sign that this doll was old and had seen better days. Annie was a small yellow and black filly. She was plastic and had what looked like scorch marks. Janice was an ordinary earth pony that had been sliced in two and glued back together.

“And this one is me, the princess!” Silver pointed at the snowy white earth pony with brown hair. “Her name was Scarlet, but that didn’t make much sense, since she is all white. I renamed her to Princess Silver, daughter of King Sterling and Queen Ware.”

The filly began to move the dolls around. It was too bad they couldn’t move, for their game tonight it would have been more fun if they struggled. 

“Okay guys, I’m the Princess and these three are my royal knights. Annie is a dwarf, that’s why she is so short, but she’s super good at stealing diamonds and stabbing her best friend in the back. The other two got hurt fighting a troll. You three are the wicked witches, and you’re trying to kidnap me. The beautiful knights of the amazon will defend me, and whisk me away to my Prince. Got it?”

Silver moved the knights to the side and began to play. “Halt, Princess! It is I,” Scootaloo flourished an imaginary cape. “Scootaloo, the witch who was so evil her parents orphaned her at birth. I am so shallow and petty that I blame other ponies and am super mean!”

“And I am Sweetie. My sister is fancy and that makes me think I am as good as rich ponies, when really I’m a talentless egghead who can’t even sing in key!”

“And ah’m Apple Bloom, an inbred mud pony who gets fancy stuff filthy. We’re gonna steal ya and make ya squeal like a piggy!”

“No,” Silver replied. “You’ll never get away with this, my knights will rescue me!”

“This isn’t some fairy tale. Now, get into our evil mansion,” Scootaloo ordered.

“I won’t do it.”

“Then I cast a sleeping spell on you! Poof!” Sweetie walked up to the princess and knocked her over. “It is done, put her in that broom closet.”

Scootaloo and Apple Bloom escorted her into the dollhouse broom closet. No sooner had they done so then the knights had showed up.

“Unhand the princess, vile witches!” Janice and Krissy burst out of the bushes.

“Sure! . . . ah mean no!” Apple Bloom yelled. “Ah gots ta have her teach me sum mannerisms.”

“Manners,” Sweetie said.

“Yeah, them,” Apple Bloom said.

“Attack!”

The ponies closed in on each other. Krissy was hit by a magical lightning bolt, shattering her to pieces. Silver took out a hammer from the shoe box and smashed her least favorite doll in half a few times. The porcelain doll crumbled, and Silver smiled. Her mother would finally have to buy her a new one, and this time it’d be an alicorn.

“You killed her,” Janice stated. “For that, you will pay!”

Annie had snuck up to the broom closet, knocking on the door. She unlocked it and walked in.

“Aren’t you a little short for a witch—hmm I have the strangest feeling of deja vu—why should I trust you?” Princess Silver asked.

“It’s me, Annie Skye, I’m here to rescue you.”

Princess Silver shook her head to get the odd feeling out of it. “I think they’ve cursed me, we’ll have to capture them and find out. Lend me a sword!”

The pair rushed out to find Janice fighting a losing battle. The three witches had cornered her. Luckily, Annie and the Princess snuck up behind them and hit them with their swords, knocking them unconscious.

Silver took the hammer and bashed each of them a few times with it, flattening out their plastic bodies slightly. By the fourth hit on Sweetie she heard a shrill screaming from the doll.

“That’s odd. . .” Silver mused.

“Honey, Are you all right?” Mother asked.

“Yeah mom, I’m fine. Just playing with my dolls.”

“Alright honey, let me know if I need to send the butler to get you any new toys.”

“No thanks, I have plenty, bye!” Silver shouted.

Raising the hammer again, she slammed Sweetie with it. The filly was laying on her side and the hammer didn’t compress her tough plastic body much, yet there was that shriek again. A few tears appeared on her face, but she definitely hadn’t moved.

“Hmm, I’ll just tell Twilight you’re broken. Anyway. . . Aha! We’ve captured the witches. Let’s get them tied up and interrogate them,” Princess commanded.

Silver rummaged around in the box until finding the piece of piano wire. It had two sticks tied on the ends, turning it into a garrote. She fastened the wire around Sweetie’s neck, and had the two knights pull it taught.

“Wake up,” Princess said.

“Ugh, I. . . what happened?” Sweetie asked.

“You’ve been captured, now tell me what you did with my Prince Charming.”

“Never!”

“Not even if I do this?” Princess pulled out a pair of nail clippers. She positioned them over Sweetie’s plastic horn.

“You wouldn’t dare,” Sweetie spat.

Silver pushed the clippers closed, chopping off her horn. There was another mysterious squeal.

“You can’t escape. We have a rope around your neck, tell me where he is!” Princess said.

“No, We’ve put a curse on you. You’ll die alone with nopony to love you, hahaha!”

“My Princess, what is your judgement?” Janice asked.

“Off with her head!” Princess Silver ordered.

The two knights pulled the garrote tight, slowly slicing into the plastic neck of the doll. Silver pulled it tighter and tighter, slowly forcing the thin wire to decapitate Sweetie. The deeper the wire cut, the louder the screaming from the doll became. Finally she had to yank the garrote taught to stop the noise before her mother heard.

Sweetie’s severed hit bounced off the floor and rolled to a stop next to her plastic torso. It was silent but still leaking some kind of magical tears.

“Bring me the pegasus witch,” Princess said.

“At once, your majesty.”

They positioned Scootaloo in front of her and fastened the garrote to keep her from running.

“Now, tell me the location of the hidden witch’s base!”

“It’s on the left nipple of your mother!” Scootaloo retorted.

“Foul blasphemer! Bring the torches so we can burn this witch alive.”

“Wait, it’s on fourth street near Gavon’s shop. Please, have mercy!”

“Hmm. . . that may be true but what about my Prince?” Princess Silver asked.

She positioned the guards closer, readying a large bonfire beneath Scootaloo. The pegasus struggled in vain against her captors.

“No, please don't! I’d tell you but the lead witch, Diamond, would kill me,” Scootaloo begged.

“I plan to kill her first, what say ye, vile creature?”

“I. . . the Prince is in another dollhouse. I’m sorry,” Scootaloo said.

“Very well. Light the bonfire!”

“No! What about my mercy?” Scootaloo asked.

“Celestia has mercy. I do not.”

Silver pulled out a small match book and moved some paper, cardboard, tree bark, and Scootaloo onto a small tea saucer. She built up a small pile and lit it with a match. Using a pair of pliers, she maneuvered the witch into the fire.

“It is written in the Solar texts that ye shall know a witch for the fire will not kill her, nor will water drown her. It is time to send this witch to Tartarus!” the Princess commanded.

The flames were licking at Scootaloo’s legs and tail. Bits of plastic were melting off and an oily residue was building up on the skin. Other bits of the doll’s exterior had turned black and shriveled. Chunks of plastic began to slough off.

A wet, gurgling scream filled the room. This one was much louder than Sweetie’s scream. Silver cocked her head to the side and watched Scootaloo’s mouth. It wasn’t moving, yet the screaming was intensifying. It sounded like a filly in intense pain, yet it was just a doll. She would have to compliment Twilight on the realism of her dolls later.

“Honey?” Knocking sounded on the door.

Silver realized the screaming had stopped and looked at Scootaloo. Everything below her shoulder blades where the pliers were at had already melted off, solidifying on the ashes of the paper on the plate.

“Crap,” Silver said. She blew on the remains of Scootaloo. If the doll was ruined Twilight would never let her play dollhouse again. Hopefully there was enough doll left to make a new one, Silver really didn’t want to have to find new friends.

“Are you okay, honey?” Mother asked.

“Yeah! I just got a paper cut, I’m fine.”

“Alright, I have to go meet Twilight for a quick cup of tea. I’ll be back in an hour.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever!”

Silver looked at the cooled puddle of Scootaloo that had mixed in with the ashes. She sighed and set the doll head next to it and placed them in her saddlebag. She tossed the pieces of Sweetie in there next to her.

“Please, Silver, have mercy!” Apple Bloom begged.

“That’s Princess to you, vile witch. I already have the location of the witches and my Prince, why would I spare you now?” Silver asked.

“Uh. . . ah know how ta break the curse! Y’all gonna turn inta a pig if’n ah don’t fix it!”

“Fix it, and I’ll set you free.”

“But ah . . . wait, what?”

“Fix it, and you can be free.”

“Oh, okay, all better,” Apple Bloom said. She began to walk away when the knights stepped in front of her.

“I’m afraid I said I’d set you free. You’ll be free from your life of wickedness, foul witch! To the witch killer 4000!”

“No, ya liar—”

Janice hit Apple Bloom over the back of the head, silencing her. She placed the passed out witch onto the torture device. It was a design based off an egg slicer. Dozens of thin, razor sharp threads would turn a hard boiled egg into dozens of thinly sliced pieces for salad. Silver had snuck this particular one out of the kitchen two weeks ago. Before that, she had over twenty dolls. Ever since the jerk Diamond up and left her, that population decreased rapidly.

Apple Bloom looked up in horror at the razor wire, tears streaming from her face. A faint sound of whimpering was heard, which was so soft Silver thought she was imagining it.

“Now, burn the heretic! Kill the witch! Purge the unclean!”

Silver pushed down on the egg slicer. The wires made contact with the doll but didn’t have enough force to slice through. She pulled it back up and repositioned Apple Bloom. With her head now to the side and out of the way, it would prove easier.

With both hooves she pushed down hard, making steady progress through the doll. The familiar, but still haunting screams of agony began to fill the room. It came from everywhere and nowhere, as if a filly were being eaten alive by ravenous rats from the inside outward.

With a loud pop, the wires passed through the last bit of plastic. The sliced Apple Bloom fell over, and Silver began to toss all her pieces into her saddlebag.

“That was most satisfying, good knights. There is just one problem,” Princess Silver said.

“What’s that?” the knights asked.

“One of you has been sleeping with my Prince. Don’t deny it, you. . . what was the word mommy used? Oh yeah—you whores!”

“I’d never slee—”

“Silence knight! Now, for your punishment, Janice!”

Silver pulled out a small serrated knife from the shoebox, and sawed through the stomach of Janice. Then she chopped off her head, and superglued it to the inside wall of the dollhouse next to seventeen similarly preserved heads.

“That just leaves you, Annie.”

“Please, I didn’t do anything wrong!” Annie shouted.

“You’re right, however you’re a loose end now.”

Silver pulled an empty can out of the shoebox and set it down. Next out was a jar of dirt, which she emptied into the can.

“No, please. . .” The Princess tossed Annie into the jar, and began to pour the dirt back in, burying her alive.

Seconds later the last doll was dealt with. Silver Spoon cleaned up her mess, made sure the crusaders were safe, and got in bed. Her last waking thoughts were about Twilight. What did a real princess dream about?







Twilight woke up and was about to get out of bed when she found herself standing in the library. Sunlight poured through an open window as a swirl of bluish-white smoke snaked through the window.

The smoke resolved itself into a letter in front of Twilight. She knew instantly who had sent it and what it said. She focused a spell to incinerate the letter. Instead, it unrolled itself and stubbornly floated in front of her eyes.



Dear sis,

I’m headed off to the Allied Species of Equestria conference. It’s being held in Gryphonia this year. Since Cadance is pregnant and can’t go, we thought you’d make a great replacement. I’d love to have ya with me, Twily.

I’ll be running security for the ambassadors, and the representative for Celestia needs an assistant. This is your chance to represent our whole country as a princess, and I know you can do it.

BBBFF,
Shiny



“Not again, please it'll be different this time! Spike! I’m leaving, now!” Twilight shouted. She focused all of the alicorn magic the new princess could muster and teleported to Canterlot.

The blinding flash of purple energies enveloped her. She felt one hoof on the ground in Canterlot and her other hooves back in the library. She slowly stretched out along the leylines, rubber-banding herself through the ether to accomplish long distance teleportation.

She opened her eyes to see Spike writing down her dictation. “. . . am too busy with my duties in Ponyville, I can’t handle this right now. I would just mess up negotiations and Celestia would take my wings away. Yours truly, Princess Twilight.”

“No, Spike! Don’t send it!” Twilight yelled. She had to stop this while she still could. It had happened this way, but maybe this time would be different.

Spike exhaled emerald flame over the missive, sending it on it’s way to Canterlot. Twilight wasted no time. She sprinted to the door and flung it open, and stepped through.

On the other side of the door was the atrium of the Royal Hall in Canterlot. She turned to run away from the ebony box in the middle of the room. As she made a complete u-turn and ran, she collided with something heavy.

Looking down in front of her, she had knocked the ebony casket over. Shining rolled out, the mortician had only been able to do so much for his appearance. It was a closed casket funeral for a reason.

Shining’s neck rotated until his head landed horizontal over his spine, forming a sickening shape. “Why did you abandon me, Twily? I thought you loved me.”

“No! I couldn’t have known, I would have gone if I did!”

“Ya abandoned him, Sugarcube. Ya coulda saved him, but ya were too busy worryin’ ya could only think about yourself!” Applejack taunted.

“No! It’s not possible, to have known it would have happened! I would have had to know the exact position and speed of every atom in the universe. That’s the only way to predict the future!”

“Sounds like a bunch of egghead bullshit. You sold him out. You aren’t loyal, you’re a coward,” Dash added.

Twilight sat on the floor, averting her gaze from one friend to the next. No matter which way she looked, her friends and Shining’s corpse were always there.

“You killed him,” Pinkie said with a flat humorless tone. “You killed him, then you killed his wife, and you watched his baby die. You did nothing.”

“You didn’t show honesty, loyalty, or laughter. If you had a shred of kindness you would have killed yourself to spare Equestria your miserable existence,” Fluttershy said.

“But. . . I. . .” Twilight looked up at Rarity, who was opening her mouth to pour more salt on the wounds. With as much courage and strength as she could muster, she screamed and fired up her magic. She wanted out of this dream, now.

The blinding flash of purple light resolved itself. Twilight curled up in a ball on the bed and began to weep. It was hard to keep her body and mind in check. Every time a dream such as this happened, it took her to the darkest places. She went places where death would have been a mercy.

After calming down, she began to uncurl.

“Thou could not have known.”

“It’s not my fau—Luna?” Twilight asked. She looked around and found herself in Cadance’s room.

“No! Not here, not now!” Twilight began charging her horn, but fear had immobilized her body and dulled her mind.  A few sparks fell from it and nothing else. “Please, it didn’t happen like this! I ran and hid!”

Time slowed down as she stared at the bathroom door. She was powerless to stop as the dead alicorn appeared. Two pegasi carried out a litter with Cadance on it. A unicorn was listening to her stomach for the heartbeat Twilight knew wasn’t there. When they reached the door and opened it Twilight saw the worst thing possible. Her mentor Celestia was in crying, and turned her back on Twilight.

For a brief moment, she was back in her fillyhood bedroom covered in blood. Luna was trying, and failing, to comfort her.

Twilight awoke in tears, the bed sheets tangled up around her. She clutched Big Mac against her side in a death grip. Her weeping into his mane left a damp spot. Normally the farm pony felt warm and full of life. Tonight he brought Twilight little comfort.

“It’s all my fault, Mac,” she said.

“How’d ya figure that?” he asked.

“I. . . I told him no. I made him go alone.”

“Shinin’? With what ah heard, ah doubt ya’d have made a difference, what do ya expect me to do anyway?”

“I want yo—tell me you love me. Tell me I’m not a bad pony. I. . . I didn’t kill my family. . .” Twilight began sobbing and repeating the word please over and over.

Big Mac said nothing and Twilight wondered if he had decided to ignore her. He thought about the current situation. It was true Twilight was insane, both with grief and some form of mental illness he couldn’t begin to understand. If he told her the truth, how he hated her and she should kill herself, one of two things would happen. Twilight would either rip him to shreds and he’d never see Applejack again, or she’d kill herself and he’d be stuck as a stuffed animal for eternity.

The stallion finally shifted and hugged her, causing her to start sobbing again. He would comfort her, it was the only thing he could do. Mac was as much a slave to her as she was to her crippling fears of abandonment.

“It’s not your fault. Ah’ll love ya as long as ya stick to our agreement, and maybe some day you can end my life for me. Promise ah won’t have to stay this way forever,” Mac said.

“I . . . promise.”

“Ya wanna talk about the dream?”

“No. Can you just talk for awhile?” Twilight asked.

“What would ah talk about? Ah’m a toy that’s dead on the inside. Only thing that keeps me goin’ is the thought of seein’ my sisters again someday. Whether that’s after ah die, or if ya turn me back to a pony. . . Ah ain’t got nothin’ to live for ‘cept for my sisters, and keepin’ ya happy so ya don’t hurt ‘em.”

“I miss my big brother,” Twilight admitted.

“Ah bet AJ misses hers too.”

Twilight tightened her grip and tried to hide her sobbing in Mac’s fake mane. Mac mentally kicked himself for taking such a cheap shot at her. She hadn’t vaporized him though, so that was always a plus.

“It’s . . .” Mac searched his mind for something to convince her that he actually cared about her. “Ever since ah saw ya, ah thought ya were such a cute egghead, always studyin’ and makin’ my sis happy. Y’all are a good mare, the best mare, ok? Y’all feel better?”

“Mmhmm.”

 The two snuggled under the blanket. Mac was able to rub her side with one hoof which seemed to calm her. She lay there clutching the plushy and softly whimpering until she fell back asleep.

Mac lay there that night thinking about his sisters. He’d give anything to know they were safe, and preferably far away from Twilight.





	

“Good evening Applejack,” Officer Locke said.

“Evenin’ officer. Ah’d like to file a missin’ pony report and get word to Celestia. We have a foalnapper in our midst,” Applejack explained.

“Oh no, did something happen to your sister?”

“Yes, she didn’t come home last night.”

“Hmm.” The officer shuffled through some paperwork on his desk. “Normally we have to wait at least twenty-four hours, sometimes forty-eight. On account of all the families moving, if you're right she could be long gone by then. Where’d you last see her?”

“At lunch yesterday. She was playin’ on the farm and ah told her not to wander far. Ah know where she’s at though, ah think Twilight took her.”

Locke looked up from the desk. “Wait, Twilight? Why would she take Apple Bloom?”

“Because she is up to some experiment or something. Before that, ah told Dash ah was suspicious and she vanished, ah told her to make sure and tell me if she was leavin’!”

“Dash, that mare is almost as impulsive as Pinkie Pie.”

“And Big Mac? Ain’t no war, how’d he get drafted? How’d all these ponies up and decide to move all at once? She’s involved, so ah’d like to get Celestia and the police to investigate her.”

“Look, the best I can do is go talk to her with you.” Locke smiled widely.

“Ain’t good enough, if ah’m right, and ah hope ah’m not, she’d just lie or capture us both.”

Locke took his hat off and rubbed his temples. “AJ. . . I’m sorry about Apple Bloom. We’ll do all we can to find her. However, I can’t just circle the wagons around Twilight’s house and barge in. We have laws, protocols to follow. . . “

“Ah’m only gonna say this once. Ah’m the element of honesty, and Twilight’s kidnapped my sister. Either you knock her door down,” Applejack reared up and slammed her hooves on his desk, sending several pens and and a coffee cup flying. “Or I will.”

“And I’m only going to say this once. Another outburst like that and I’ll throw you in a jail cell. Understood?”

The two ponies stared at each other for a second, before Applejack gingerly stepped down.

“Thank you. Now, why don’t you just go straight to Celestia if you’re so sure? She could at least bend the laws a little.”

“There ain’t time, whole town could be gone by then. . . Ya just promise me, if ah go missin’ after my little talk with Twilight tonight, y’all come lookin’ for me.”

Locke laughed loudly. “Yeah, like that’ll happen. Ponies don’t get killed and rarely get kidnapped. They call this the Golden era of Equestria for a reason. I like you though, so if you go missing for more than twenty-four hours, I promise to come look for you.” He chuckled a couple more times.

Applejack was barely containing her rage. She turned and stormed out of the police station, the veins on her neck distended from her rage. Each beat of her heart caused her head to ache. The door to the station shut behind her. “Ah ain’t never seen such fuckin’ incompetence. Ah’m taken matters into my own hands.”

At a quick pace with her hooves stomping deeply into the ground, she made her way to Sugarcube corner. Each step she imagined her rage flowing out of her, yet it wasn’t helping her calm down. Had the earth pony looked behind her, she’d have realized her earth pony magic was strengthening her angry steps, forming small fissures in the ground.

When she arrived at Pinkie’s home she didn’t bother to knock. She nearly knocked the door clear off it’s hinges. Luckily, the Cake’s had paid to have it reinforced given Pinkie’s propensity for blasting doors open with a high-powered confetti cannon.

Applejack found the cakes at breakfast and smiled weakly. “Ah uh... Pinkie can ah have a word? Sorry ‘bout that, Mr. Cake.”

“Okay!” Pinkie vanished from her chair in the kitchen and jumped out next to Applejack. “What’s up?”

“Ah need a favor. Somethin’ is wrong with Twilight. Ah think she’s been behind all the ponies disappearing.”

“That’s silly, if she was making them disappear she’d know where they are, and if she knows where they are, then they didn’t disappear. That’s circular logic!”

Applejack’s mouth hung wide open. “Ah’m gonna ignore that and ask ya just one favor, and ya got ta Pinkie Promise. If ah’m not back in an hour, y’all go straight ta Celestia and tell her Twilight abducted me.”

“I don’t understand. . .”

“Pinkie,” Applejack said, raising chin so she could stare into her eyes. “If ah’m right, I may not come back, if that happens then ah’ll need ya to save me, can ya handle that?”

“I. . .” Pinkie’s mouth opened and closed a few times as she lost herself in thought. “Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye. . .”

“Thanks.” Applejack turned to leave.

“Wait. . . is Twilight gonna be okay?”

Applejack turned back to look at her. She suddenly looked sad and frightened, like a filly who knows their parents are lying to protect them from something bad.

“Yes, she is going to be okay. Just remember what ya promised, just in case.”

“Okay.” Pinkie turned and went back to breakfast, leaving Applejack alone to confront Twilight.







	

All of the ponies had gathered in the central square of New Ponyville. Word had been passed about their plans for rebellion. Twilight had decided to experiment with an energy source in the artificial sun in the basement. It sent a periodic pulse to animate frozen ponies, and strengthen the barrier around the town. That was the perfect opportunity to take the next step in their plans.

“Alright is everyone here?” Vinyl asked.

“Looks like it,” Dash said. She hovered above town square keeping lookout.

“Okay, with Dash’s help we’ve tunneled beneath the magical barrier. In a day we should be beyond the outer wall of the basement, then we just have to burrow past the foundation and straight up to the surface,” Vinyl explained.

“What good will that do?” Snips asked.

“It’ll let us escape while Twilight sleeps. In the meantime, Dash has another plan in mind,” Vinyl said.

“Yeah, so basically this magic field thingy of Twilight is like a thunderstorm. You know how you can smell them coming? Well that goes double for a Pegasus. I can sense the field and Sprocket says we can use that to our advantage,” Dash said.

The assorted ponies mumbled amongst themselves. Sprocket spoke up to explain. “When Dash went scouting the other day, she nearly broke the sound barrier. It shouldn’t be physically possible, but I’ve given up on understanding physics when a ponies innate magic gets involved. Based on my observations, I think she can bring the barrier down.”

A strawberry blonde earth pony stepped forward. “What good does that do us?”

“I have a plan, I’m going to break the barrier and escape. In order to make it out the basement door when Twilight walks in, I’ll need a distraction. That’s where you come in.” Dash smiled and flew into town hall. She flew back out with some crude torches that Sprocket had made from adhesives and other scrounged chemicals. 

“We’re going to burn the town down.” Dash had just begun to smile when everypony heard the door to the basement open. She quickly flew back into town hall and hid the torches.

All of the ponies scattered into the nearest houses. Vinyl, Octavia, and Rarity made it into a house with a tunnel to their underground network. Dash had been flying and could tell Twilight had spotted the distinctive pegasus. It was her turn to talk to their captor.

After a brief moment, Twilight landed next to Dash, who hovered at her eye level. “I can see why you like flying, isn’t it wonderful?”

“I wouldn’t know, I’ve been stuck in your damn basement ever since I joined the Wonderbolts. You know it’s just a matter of time until Spitfire and Soarin come looking for me, right?” Dash asked.

“Oh, I expect them too. First, I expect them to have a cup of tea.” Twilight grinned.

“Pfft, good luck. They’re twice the pony you’ll ever be. How can you just keep us all locked up in this prison?”

Twilight frowned and waved her arm out over the town. “Dash, I spent a lot of time trying to make it just perfect for you. I even found a way to enchant your house to float.”

Dash crossed her forehooves and snorted at her. “Yeah? How about some windows to see the real sun? Or maybe turn us back to normal? A gilded cage is still a cage.”

Twilight sighed. “What do I have to do to make you happy? I gave everypony toys and supplies to practice their special talents.”

“My special talent is in racing and weather control. I can’t do that here. Then you come in and I don’t know if you want to have tea or torture ponies. Next thing I know, you send off Scootaloo and her friends with that psycho Silver. If the Twilight I knew was still in there, she’d be acting with a least a shred of loyalty to her friends,” Dash spat.

“Oh! Speaking of that, I brought you back Berry Punch. I can fix her and show everypony I’m not so mean.”

Twilight levitated the burnt doll out of her saddlebag. Berry had been mailed to Celestia by Spike to warn her of the Dollhouse. Unfortunately, the dragon’s breath froze her solid and scorched her. All Celestia received was one of Spike’s toys. He had a habit of of drinking the bubble bath water and sending her all manner of rubber ducks and “action figures.”

After a purple aura encased Berry, her skin began to return to it’s normal sheen and she slowly began to move.

“The hell did I drink last night?” Berry muttered.

“Welcome back, Berry!” Twilight exclaimed.

“I, wait. . . it wasn’t a dream?”

“Nope. Now, my calculations suggest you were frozen on arrival to Canterlot. That, and the fact Celestia didn’t burst the door down with a beam of solar energy. Is this true?”

“Last thing I remember was looking Spike in the eye and white hot agony, so let’s say yes. Now, put me down and I’ll consider being a little nicer to you. Deal?” Berry asked.

“Okay.”

Twilight sat her down, and she immediately bolted into the nearest house. Twilight watched her run in, and caught a glimpse of Spike in the window.

“Spike?” Twilight asked.

She kneeled down and peered through the window, seeing him, Berry, Snips, and Snails in the living room of Mayor Mare’s house.

“Hey, Spike, you still mad at me?”

“Yes,” he said. His voice was muffled by the dollhouse he was hiding inside.

“Can I make it better?”

“I doubt it, I can’t eat gems, can’t breath fire. . . you’re not even my sister anymore.”

Twilight gasped. “Don’t say that! You’ll always be my little brother!”

“Then turn me back! Until you do, my sister died with Cadance.”

Twilight took a step back and turned away so Spike couldn’t see the tears rolling down her cheeks. Dash got a perfect view of the vulnerable alicorn.

“Not so fun now, is it? You’ve got an immortal dollhouse full of ponies that resent you. Let us go, Twilight, we can still work this out,” Dash said.

“I could burn this place to the ground,” Twilight replied.

Dash cocked her head to the side. “Huh?”

“Nothing. . . I don’t want to start over, I don’t want new friends. I want you. . .”

“You’ve got nothing we want except our lives back. I’ll be your friend when I’m alive again, until then, get the hell out of my sight. You disgust me.”

“I. . . but. . .” Twilight looked around and couldn’t see any of the other ponies. She wanted to throw Dash in jail or drive a few pins through her. A voice at the back of her head nagged her. Perhaps a smidgen of mercy might win some good faith. 

Twilight decided instead of torturing every pony that was mean, she would stick to her plans. Already she had set up a way for them to stay animated constantly, and safely. She had been providing their basic needs. Just a little longer of being nice, and certainly they’d all love her. They wouldn’t betray her if she was a good pony.

Without another word, she turned and left a surprised Dash hovering in town square. She looked around before flying down to town hall. Her eyes were still wide in disbelief that she might have actually gotten through to Twilight.

The door to the basement clicked closed as the alicorn left. She had a very busy day to get started.







	

Colgate walked into work and headed towards her office. There were only a couple appointments today. She hadn’t had her dental clinic open in about a week, ever since she took time off to mourn Bon Bon and Lyra. Her only other confident, Berry Punch, had moved out of town suddenly. It left her with nopony but her receptionist Crest to talk to.

“Crest?” Colgate looked around the reception room. Crest was rarely late, though she might have forgotten that the office was opening back up today for patient visits.

“Oh well, not like we have patients anyway.” Colgate chuckled and walked back towards her office.

“Colgate! I was worried you were still closed.” Twilight got up from a chair in the waiting room and smiled.

“Twilight?!” Colgate tilted her head and then remember to smile. “Well look at that, my first patient today is a princess.”

She grinned, revealing teeth in no apparent need of any dental work. “Yeah, I realized I haven’t had my teeth checked since I was coronated. Do alicorn teeth still decay?”

The light blue dentist chuckled. “Yeah, they’re still normal teeth. Now that you mention it, I don’t recall examining your teeth in a long time. Why don’t we start there, see if they need any cleaning or dental work?”

“That’d be wonderful! I have a busy day at Town Hall today, so I won’t take much of your time.”

“Well, follow me.” Colgate went to the wall and turned the rest of the lights in the room on. She lead Twilight back towards her exam room. A small doll of Crest was laying on the floor behind the reception desk.

“So, take a seat and rinse your mouth with some of the mouthwash, please.” Colgate opened up the sterile packaging of an exam kit and began setting up her tools.

“I’ve always been so grateful you take walk-ins, the elements of harmony don’t work normal hours.” Twilight laughed and made herself comfortable, sporting a smug grin.

Colgate smiled back and took her seat to the upper right side of the mare. She handed her the suction catheter to spit out the mouth wash. Crest is late and Twilight pops up for a cleaning? No. . . she was right, I need to stop finding the conspiracy in everything. She must have just remembered she needed her teeth examined when I ran into her.

Twilight noticed the dentist staring down at her tray. “I know you must have a lot on your mind. Would you like to tell me more about Bon Bon? I figure, the least I can do is help you find some closure, maybe put your mind at ease?”

Colgate took the periodontal probe and began to check the pockets along Twilight’s gumline. “Sure, I think that’d make me feel better. I got so worked up over the thought somepony would kill my friend. . . I think the Lieutenant was right, I’ve never seen a pony die in a fire before, so how would I know why the teeth were cracked.”

The dentist hovered the probe around while taking a couple notes. “Remember to get behind those third molars when you brush. Anyway, it was the strangest thing. I’ve extracted plenty of teeth, there’s a trick to it. You have to gently rock it, break the ligaments—they’re not as strong as you’d think. If you don’t loosen it up first, and you just rip it out, it leaves visible signs.”

Twilight waited until the probe was withdrawn. “I can see why that could bother you. Why would any of that matter if a pony did die in a fire? Wouldn’t all that stuff just get burned up?”

Colgate picked out a periodontal scaler, sharp and angled to help her scrape some plaque out from between Twilight’s molars. “Now, of course the fire would turn the root and dangling vessels to ash. . . but the type three fractures are indicative of a hasty extraction. If done wrong, it’ll easily split the tooth in half into a type four fracture. That’s exactly what happened to Bon Bon’s teeth, like someone took pliers to them. Each tooth had a Type III or IV fracture.”

Twilight winced as she felt bits of plaque being scraped out from between her teeth. She hoped this would be over before Colgate helped her flossed. She always hated when the dentist helped her flossed, then reminded her to do it daily. Who has time to floss daily anyway?

“I think I get it now. The teeth were cracked when they were pulled out, and left at the house before the fire?”

Colgate sighed. “That’s what I figured, but I don’t know who would even want to go that far. I saved a few of the teeth—wait, I’m sorry don’t tell the police! I was supposed to turn them into evidence.”

Twilight chuckled. “Don’t worry, we’re on the same side here.”

Colgate levitated the mirror in and continued to hunt down plaque, occasionally using a jet of water to rinse some of it out. “Anyway, I can prove they were extracted before the fire, but that doesn’t prove much else. The cops wouldn’t even acknowledge that had Bon Bon died in the fire, bits of her mandible would have remained. The fire wasn’t hot enough to incinerate all of the bone, if it was it probably would have caused the dentin in the teeth to crack further and pop. . .”

Twilight gestured at the dentist until she pulled the tools out. “So, who else have you told your theory too?”

Colgate smiled and swapped out instruments. She sure is curious, yesterday she barely wanted to hear about it. Something is fishy. “Just you and the police. You recall the third molars, the police said you saw my report.”

"They were fractured into small pieces and charred to bits."

Colgate slid another tool into Twilight’s mouth while she wasn’t looking. “Yeah. The third molars were omitted from my report. Only the killer and I would have known that.”

Twilight began laughing until she felt a metal blade against the back of her throat.

“I don’t know how you're involved, but I could puncture your carotid artery before you could levitate a feather. I may not be a powerful unicorn, but I could disrupt your magic long enough for you to bleed out. Carefully, now, tell me what the hell is going on.” Colgate stared at Twilight who was grinning around the metal tool. She tapped Colgate’s leg to get her to look towards the ground.

The dentist looked down, seeing a familiar cantrip glowing on the ground. It was a spell used by the solar guard to trap dangerous unicorns. Once a unicorn entered the trap, they could not leave the circle or use advanced magic until they were released.

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding, you really did do it!” Colgate kept the scalpel in place but eased up enough to let Twilight talk.

“No doubt you recognize the base spell, but let me explain. If this trap triggers, it will collapse your chest and shatter your ribs. Brutal, but effective. Once you’re dead, I could easily stop the bleeding from a severed carotid. You lose, Colgate.”

“You’re bluffing, you’d bleed out in under ten seconds.” Colgate reached a foreleg up to wipe the sweat from her forehead, keeping a steady gaze on the hovering scalpel.

“How long will you last with no chest cavity?” Twilight smiled and chuckled softly. “Now that I know you haven’t told anypony else, I’ll give you a choice. Do you want to be my friend?”

There was a glint in Twilight’s eye as the scalpel was slowly removed from her mouth. Colgate slumped down, feeling the invisible walls of the trap closing around her.





	

Silver had hurried over to the library in the morning to get her new dolls repaired. She hadn’t thought Twilight would mind, yet she seemed disturbed this morning. “This is what’s left, Twilight,” Silver said. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay, Silver. I didn’t expect you to be so rough on them, we have to keep them in good condition! They have to be happy, they’re our friends, not our toys! Let’s go fix them real quick.”

“I guess you’re right, just like Mom. I need to treat my toys with more respect.”

Twilight led the filly downstairs and to a small workbench near the notes on her wall. She quickly levitated the contents of Silver’s bag out onto the table. Her horn glowed briefly and she closed her eyes. Pulsing green and purple magic flower out from her eyes and horn, onto the crusaders.

The dolls slowly reassembled themselves, retaking their plastic shape. Once in the correct shape, a surge of magic restored them to mint condition.

“Just like I told you, it’s easy. You just have to make sure not to ruin their head. Now, I’m going to put the crusaders over in their clubhouse and reset their spell. You might want to uh. . . give them a break so they can recharge, ok?”

“Sure, can I play with the other dolls then?” Silver asked.

“Yeah, just remember if you get in trouble walk through the barrier and they can’t follow you. I’m expecting a guest, so have fun until I come back to get you, ok?”

“Ok!”

Twilight sent out a pulse of magic, animating all the ponies in the room. She checked the barrier, put the crusaders away. Twilight then pulled Colgate out of her mane and put her in the replica dentist office. She had turned her into a porcelain doll, it was only fitting for a dentist. She had turned out to be one of the most beautiful dolls yet, and Twilight had nearly needed to kill her.

Twilight hurried upstairs to make sure things were ready for her next guest.

Upon reaching the table she applied a powdery substance to the stool near the table. She went to check on the tea and her poisonous herbs. Apple Bloom had been missing overnight, which meant Applejack would be here any minute. Worst case scenario, she suckered some other ponies into helping her come accuse Twilight. In that case, she had extra tea prepared. Best case, she had convinced herself it was something she had to do herself. She always had too much integrity to risk falsely accusing somepony in front of witnesses.

A knock on the door brought her to her senses. She hadn’t spiked the tea yet, though she couldn’t keep Applejack waiting and arouse suspicion. Twilight would do it when she came back to get the tea.

She glanced to the basement door to make sure Silver was still down their playing, or torturing, the dolls. As long as Silver loved her, Twilight would cut the confused filly some slack. 

Rushing to the door she quickly opened it. “Applejack, what are you doing here?”

“Ah came by the library to find out where Apple Bloom is,” she replied.

“Oh, I wasn’t expecting you,” she lied. “Luckily I have my morning tea brewing, want some? Twilight asked.

“Sure.”

As soon as she returned to the kitchen she threw open the secret drawer and sprinkled the first one she could find into Applejack’s cup. Rushing back out she set down the tea in front of both of them.

“Here you go. So, Apple Bloom is missing, are you sure?”

“Yep, ah know how busy you are Princess, but ah know ponies have been dissappearin’ and now Apple Bloom is gone. Isn’t that fishy?”

“Whatever do you mean? We haven’t had much excitement since we stopped adventuring, do you miss that? Spending time with me?”

“Sure, we’ll spend the whole day together if ya tell me where Apple Bloom is.”

“Won’t you try your tea? It’s really good.”

“No, ah’m gonna sit here until you answer the damn question.”

Twilight gasped. She took her tea with her magic and sipped at it cautiously. “I. . . I just thought you’d want some tea. . .” Twilight made her lip quiver slightly.

“Ugh, no thank you, Twilight, ah do not like tea.” Applejack forced a smile. “Now, where’s Apple Bloom?”

Twilight began to sweat slightly as her heart raced. The backup plan should have kicked in by now. Had she not put enough on her stool? It was a contact poison, it should work. She found herself struggling to keep her fast heartbeat and breathing hidden from Applejack. That stare. . . it was as if she could read Twilight like an open book.

“I . . . haven’t seen her. I think maybe Silver did, I mean they’re some of the only fillies left. I bet Cheerilee knows. . .”

Twilight felt a pit forming in her stomach. Her mouth had gone dry and she nearly drank some more tea to calm her frazzled nerves. After bringing the cup to her mouth, she paused. Applejack still hadn’t drank her tea. . . Twilight eyes her cup suspiciously.

Oh Celestia no. . . Please tell me this isn’t happening.

Twilight set the tea cup down slowly, feeling her sweating increased further. So fucking stupid. She began to panic, breathing faster and faster.

“Ah knew you were lyin’, look at ya! Sweatin’ like a bull at a rodeo. Where’s Apple Bloom?”

“No. . . AJ it’s not what you think. . .” Twilight gulped, her dry throat scratching against the one bead of saliva trailing down it.

Applejack was convinced. She stood up and slammed her hooves on the table, knocking her tea over.

“Big Mac, Apple Bloom, the towns ponies, where’d ya send them? Did ya make them leave? Where’s the real Twilight you changeling!”

“It’s not that. . . It’s. . .” Twilight’s pupils had dilated, her arms were going numb as her body prepared all of it’s energy for one last fight. If only I could focus my magic. . . that’s it! She took one deep breath, using all her willpower to focus on making it count. She closed her eyes and held the breath for four seconds, calling up the doll spell. It’ll work. It has to work.

“Twilight?” Applejack asked.

She opened her eyes, wisps of black magic danced through green and purple flames as her body radiated malice. Just as all her magic poured out of her horn, Applejack threw the table into the air with all her force.

The spell hit the table with a loud shockwave, deafening both ponies temporarily. The table was quickly turning into rubber in mid-air, before it’s trajectory nearly caused it to land on Twilight. She dove to the side to avoid being crushed and dolled by a table.

Her mind was clear and her body returning to normal. Whether she had seconds or centuries to live, she would not let Applejack ruin all her hard work. The replica, and Silver, had to be protected.

Rising to her hooves, the purple and green aura began to surround her again. Twilight could feel the magic in the air, coursing out of her. Time felt as if it were going a hundredfold slower. The broken teacups began to levitate off the floor. Twilight could feel the windows vibrating and the wooden floorboards ripple with energy. Books through the library began to hover in mid air.

During that split second that felt like minutes to Twilight, Applejack had closed the distance between them. She spun in place, bringing her apple-bucking legs to bear. Both hooves flew into the magical aura surrounding Twilight.

Twilight released the focus of her magic, sensing the incoming threat. Something hit her in the shoulder, followed by her throat. The magic spiked and spewed out wildly as her head was whipped back from the blow. By the time her eyes opened to assess the situation, she felt something hit her spine like an anvil.

Applejack watched Twilight crumple to the floor. She knew something was up, but the second the alicorn attacked her, Applejack had begun to run off instinct. She’d been in bar fights with a unicorn before and knew what to do. Applejack had not expected to hit her so hard.

Twilight could feel her trachea swelling shut and her shoulder shattered into pieces. She focused as much magic as she could to passively heal the wounds. The fatigue of the healing magic was instantly noticeable to her.

Rushing to her side she stood over her friend. “Twilight? Are you okay?” Applejack reached down to check her shoulder. It crunched slightly where she had kicked it. Her hoof brushed past her bruised trachea and felt the rapid pulse.

Both eyes on the alicorn flew open and a red energy seeped from her eyes, blinding Applejack. She fell to her knees, being sure to slide her hoof across her neck and keep the horn pointed away from her. Not a second later Twilight released a shockwave intended to knock Applejack off her. The farm pony had already braced herself and deflected most of the energy by keeping the horn pointed away. 

In all her life she never imagined having to do this to a friend. Using an old trick she learned at a self-defense class, she slammed a hoof into the base of Twilight’s horn.

“I trusted you Twilight, why?!” She brought her hoof down again.

Twilight could feel Applejack’s body pinning her down. Waves of pain were washing straight through her brain, as if each blow was impacting it directly. She knew exactly what Applejack was doing. The pain would prevent her focus, and the swelling that would follow within minutes would compress the nerves, disabling her magic.

Twilight only had a minute or two to end this, or it was all over. . . her dream of happiness, ruined by one stubborn farm pony.

She desperately wanted to lie, to get her to lower her guard for just one second. Her body was fragile and she lacked stamina. She couldn’t force AJ off. If she teleported, then Applejack would be pulled along with her. So long as they were physically touching, she had very limited options.

She took mental stock of her options. Her throat ached horribly rendering her unable to speak. She was lucky her trachea hadn’t collapsed and asphyxiated her. The shockwave hadn’t worked and teleportation was out. Every other spell that came to mind required the horn be aimed in Applejack’s general direction.

Twilight opened her mouth, gasping. She pretended to choke to try and make Applejack loosen her grip. WIth no other choice, she continued to poor healing magic into herself, draining her reserves to stave off the sharp pains of ribs that were likely broken by now.

“Ain’t fallin’ for that, ah feel ya breathin. Now tell me what ya did to my sister!”

Twilight struggled and finished double-checking her mental list of over seventy-two spells that could be adapted for close quarter combat. Just as she was about to give in to despair, she remembered her wings.

She thrust off the ground with her wings, trying to get Applejack off balance. The farm pony barely budged, thought Twilight had already charged another shockwave in case it had work. Applejack held her ground as the shockwave sent out a wall of air harmlessly. Twilight began to sob.

Applejack landed on top of Twilight again, harder than she intended. A few more ribs snapped, and Applejack began to cry. “Ah’m sorry, Twilight, ah got ta knock ya out and get the cops. Ah. . . didn’t mean ta hurt ya so bad.”

Applejack raised her hoof in the air, preparing to hit her best friend hard enough to ensure she was knocked out cold. Twilight went limp and did her best to raise her magical defenses in the hope of weathering the blow. Already her horn felt warm and numb, the blunt trauma and exhaustion limiting her magic.

There was a sickening sound and warm fluid splashed over Twilight’s chest. Applejack must have stabbed her. She opened her eyes in confusion, looking for the blow that hadn’t come.

Applejack collapsed on top of her. Twilight tilted her head in confusion, fighting off a terrible migraine. Each breath was more painful, until she managed to roll Applejack off of her.

Stuck into her side was the handle of a large knife. Twilight glanced to the right and saw Silver Spoon slumped on the ground, blood covering her forelegs.

“No!” Twilight cried weakly. “It’s okay Applejack, I can still use the spell and save you!”

Twilight charged up her horn. An immense searing pain shot through her mind like an electric current. Her energy had been steadily drained, and the throbbing, swollen nerves around the horn had ceased their proper functioning. She cried out in agony, and tried again.

A few sparks fell from her horn, hitting Applejack and turning small patches to plastic.

“Twilight. . .” Silver whimpered.

“It’s okay Silver, we’ll save—”

“Why?” Applejack interrupted. She gurgled slightly from the collapsed lung.

“No, it’s the only way Applejack! I can’t make you all alicorns, but I can make you all immortal! Flesh is weak, but if I transform you in time you won’t die!”

Twilight began casting the spell again, channeling too much power to her horn. She heard a loud cracking sound and felt a splitting pain in her horn. She was literally tearing the keratin apart, frying the nerves in her desperate attempts to save her friends life. If she continued to try, she could fry her horn for good.

“I’m. . .so sorry, Applejack. I don’t think. . .I can save you.” Twilight immediately hugged the farm pony and began weeping into her mane.

“My. . . family?”

“They’re. . . okay, AJ. I promise, they’re happy, they’re dolls and they have a whole farm with apples and everything.” Twilight inhaled and wiped the tears from her face. “You can go to sleep now, Applejack. I. . . it’s my fault, just like Cadance. . . I understand if you hate me.”

Applejack managed to get a hoof up to her chin and get Twilight’s attention. She smiled. “Twilight, everypony dies. . . Everypony. . . What ya are doing here, it’s wrong, and that’s the truth. Ya take care. . . of my family.

The tears were blurring Twilight’s vision as she tried to commit Applejack’s face to memory. “I’m . . . not ready to say goodbye.”

Applejack chuckled, nearly choking on the friendly gesture. “We never are. . . get better, Twi. . I . . . forgive ya.”

There was a hollow gasp as the pony took her last breath. Twilight clutched her as hard as she could, firing up her horn again and again in a futile effort to save her friend. “It wasn’t supposed to be this way. . .”

Twilight stayed there until all of her tears had been used up and the blood had begun to dry, seeping into the floorboards. She had forgotten Silver was even there.

“Twilight?” Silver asked.

She remembered her pupil. Twilight was grateful she saved her life, angry she took Applejacks, and proud she had figured out the truth and chosen to save her mentor.

“It’s. . .going to be alright. Close the shutters. . . lock the door.”

Twilight picked herself up and slowly followed the earth filly around, making sure the library was secure. Once that was done, Twilight slumped down next to Silver. The filly began comforting her by cuddling against her side. After a few moments she had regained enough focus to begin channeling healing magic on herself and ponder what to do with Silver. The healing magic stung, and in under a minute the futile gesture had ended. She would need old fashioned sleep to fix these injuries.

“How. . .how long?” Twilight asked.

Silver gripped her side a little tighter in her hug. “I. . . I saw my mother downstairs. That’s when I knew for sure. . .”

Twilight berated herself for missing something so obvious. She had gone asleep last night, forgetting that she asked Silver’s mother to stop by late in the evening. Twilight planned it that way to ensure Silver would never know. Then, she had fallen asleep and nearly botched the plan. Worse yet, Twilight had left Silver and her mother in the basement unsupervised. . . 

Twilight decided she would have to be more diligent to stop from getting caught. Her best friend had nearly killed her in a blind rage over one stupid younger sister. Next thing she knew, her apprentice had killed Twilight’s best friend to protect her mentor. She felt so helpless every time things escalated out of her control.

“Applejack?” Twilight looked at the filly who clutched her sore side harder.

“Sorry, I couldn’t let her hurt you! You’re my only friend. . .”

Twilight wrapped a wing around Silver. It was her only limb that wasn’t aching in pain. “I. . . understand. I just. . . wasn’t ready to sacrifice so much, but we’ll save the rest, Silver. We’ll all be immortal and happy together. Why did you hurt the crusaders? did you know they’re real?”

“I don’t feel bad, if that’s what you mean. They. . . screamed while we were playing. At first I felt bad, then I remember how Diamond and they treated me and. . . well it felt kind of good. I never got to be in control, I was always being told what to do by everypony.”

Silver let go and looked up into Twilight’s eyes. “I. . . I want to keep helping you. I like being in control with nopony bossing me around. Can I still be your student and. . . your friend?”

Twilight smiled warmly. “Of course you can, you’ve proven your loyalty tonight and I couldn’t be prouder than to have you as a student. You can move in with me now that your mother is gone. I’ll be stopping by her mansion later to pick up your butler, maid, and any other servants I find there.”

Silver stood up and looked around. “Can I stay here?”

“Yes, let’s get cleaned up and go to bed. I need to curl up with Big Mac. . . take Spike’s bed, we’ll deal with this catastrophe in the morning.”

The two ponies headed to clean up and go to sleep in silence. The shock had only just begun to set in and all Twilight cared about was her warm bed, and hiding the truth from Big Mac. She never wanted it to end like this, and yet she had just lost one of the five most important ponies in her life to achieve her goals.









> XI. Sparkling Princess
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Take the carriage down at the farm,” Luna ordered. Her bat-winged royal guards lowered the chariot to the farm. Her personal escort of two guards made themselves comfortable as she went to the house.

Luna knocked, and waited. She knocked and waited longer. There were no ponies stirring in the farm house. Clearing her throat, she cast the small enchantment on her throat to generate the Royal Canterlot Voice. “Applejack! Thine Princess demands you answer thy door!”

After another minute of silence, she sighed. She was about to talk away and head to find Twilight when the door opened.

“Eh? You found a Jack doing incest with Azure mule thirty-four?” Granny Smith said.

Luna turned and nearly blew her eardrums out, before remembering to deactivate the Royal Canterlot Voice enchantment. “Granny, I am looking for Applejack. I had wished to send her to gather the others, while I speak to Twilight. Where is she?”

“Oh, Applejack! She said she’d be back in a day, had business with Twilight. I think it’s about Big Mac getting drafted. She said Apple Bloom is staying with Rarity and Sweetie until she sorts things out.”

Luna raised an eyebrow. “Did you say drafted? I have co-signed no royal decree for such a thing, tis not even a war in over a century!”

Granny smith frowned and tilted her head. “But Applejack wouldn’t lie to me. She’s the most honest pony I had the honor of raisin’. Twice as true as her old man, never thought such a thing possible.”

Luna sighed and rested a hoof on her shoulder. “I understand. She truly would have done anything to be true to herself and her friends. Even if it meant putting herself in a bad position to protect their reputation. I promise you: I will find her.”

Luna ushered Granny back indoors, watching her close the door. She walked over to her personal escort. “Store the chariot in their barn. Nightwing, you are to fly to Canterlot with all due haste. I expect a contingent of two dozen lunar guard here well before nightfall of this first day.”

“Lunar guard, not the royal guard?” Nightwing asked.

“Do not question my order, and do not fail me. You will speak of my order to nopony except my lunar guard. Do not even be seen arriving or leaving Canterlot. Am I perfectly clear?”

Nightwing saluted. “Yes, princess.” He turned and flung himself into the air like a missile, his powerful legs and wings carrying him at a speed to rival the Shadowbolts.

“Echo,” Luna addressed, causing him to snap to attention.

“Princess, permission to speak freely?” Echo asked.

Luna smiled at her most loyal bodyguard, charmed by his unfailing devotion to his military bearing. She trusted him with secrets not even Celestia was privy too. “Proceed.”

“If you’re sending for two dozen of your personal guard so secretly, what treason do you suspect that you do not trust your own sister?”

She smiled at his cunning. “I have felt a change in the elements, a remnant of when I once wielded them. One by one, the faint link began to feel wrong, until my link to honesty severed completely.”

Luna used her magic to create an invisible field around them, so nopony could eavesdrop. “Something is very wrong with the elements. Celestia feels it too, but she has been. . . broken since Cadance’s death. I must handle this alone, for I feel Applejack or one of the other elements is at the heart of something truly horrific.

“The second word reaches Celestia, or anypony in this town, our quarry will run to ground and hide. We must discover who is weakening the elements, and why, without tipping our hoof.

“Therefore, you shall guard me and will not leave my side for any reason while we are here. And you shall never broach this subject unless we are alone.

“I will not let the Nightmare rise again in another innocent pony.”







Morning came too early for Twilight, who wished to stay asleep and pretend yesterday was just a nightmare. Even when she drifted off to sleep, her limbs managed to stay firmly locked to her Big Mac plushy. Lyra had even leapt down from the nightstand to sleep next to her, stroking her chin to sooth her to sleep.

Twilight did not speak a word to either of them all night. She crawled into bed, barely clean of the blood. Neither doll asked whose it was, for neither truly wanted to admit it was, in fact, the blood of a dead pony.

Throughout the night Twilight replayed the events in her head over and over. She had calculated fourteen different scenarios in which she could have captured Applejack. There were an additional eight where she could have seen Silver coming, and directed her to the emergency syringe of barbiturates in Twilight’s saddlebag.

Silver had killed to protect her mentor. It had forged an unbreakable bound of trust between the two, of master and apprentice. Despite the fact Twilight would be in prison, or executed, had Silver not acted, she still blamed the filly.

It was Silver’s fault Applejack had to die. It was Twilight’s fault Silver was put in that situation. If she had just been more careful, planned the game a few more steps ahead, her plan would have worked flawlessly.

“I set out to save everypony,” she whimpered. At first, Lyra and Mac did not even turn to face her. They were sure that they were just hearing things.

“All I wanted, all I needed was the elements. They. . . were my best friends. I did all this for them, for every nice pony. Nopony in Ponyville would ever suffer the loss of a loved one again. Nopony. . .”

Both Lyra and Big Mac were giving Twilight their undivided attention at this point. Neither one spoke to risk interrupting her confession.

“I failed. I’ve ruined everything. I wasn’t smart enough, I formulated a plan based on a logical fallacy. Now she is dead. . . she is dead like Cadance and Shining. I can never bring her back.”

Twilight had not moved a muscle save her mouth this whole time. Her tone was as flat as sheet metal, unwavering, emotionless. She had gone emotionally numb, filling neither the comfort of Big Mac pressing against her chest nor the sorrow of his sister lying in a puddle of congealed blood downstairs.

“Now I can never save everypony. I’ve failed. The worst part is, I’m stuck with that decision now. Maybe in a few hundred years I’d have found true immortality, mastered the alicorn spell and re-assembled it to grant eternal youth. I could have reversed the doll spell, given enough time, and made you truly immune to death.”

The two dolls exchanged a curious glance at her admission that true immortality might in fact be achievable for a non-alicorn. Not only that, she might be able to undo what she had wrought.

“But now, if Celestia finds out the punishment will unquestionably be death by lethal injection. I can’t even reverse the doll spell yet, so law dictates she consider my transformation and binding spell on the dolls to be twenty-eight counts of first degree murder.”

Twilight finally moved, using one limb to cradle Big Mac against her bosom.

“I thought, in the worst case she’ll understand. They’re not really dead. The laws of alchemy prove I haven’t really killed you, just changed your state of existence. However, now that Applejack is dead, she’ll have me put down like a rabid dog.”

Big Mac opened his mouth in shock, unable to verbalize the horror of his realization. Applejack is dead.

“Please, I’m so sorry. . . I lied to you Big Mac. I had to save Apple Bloom and Applejack from death but. . . I failed her. I failed you. Please, forgive me. . . I’m so scared, Big Mac. I don’t want to die. Please. . . I don’t want anypony to die.”

Lyra looked at Big Mac, who was still moving his lips like a fish out of water.

Everything clicked together for the stallion in that one moment. She took him first to spin the web. Apple Bloom, the sweet honey to lure in the prey. Applejack, the fly in her web.

The bruises around her face, ribs, and horn were the only sign left of the violent struggle. The faint signs of blood as she climbed into bed, not quite washed off completely. Her uncontrollable trembling and crying throughout the entire night, clinging to Mac like a life preserver in the middle of the Pacificolt Ocean.

“Ah trusted you, loved you. . .” was all Big Mac could manage.

“I know. I don’t expect you to ever forgive me. I will never forgive Silver for killing Applejack, but she made the right choice. Applejack had to die so the rest of us could live. Only I could ever hope to bring us all immortality and happiness. Without me. . . you’d all become lifeless husks, children’s toys in the truest sense of the word.

“You need me as much as I need you. . . You two are the only two I can relate to anymore. I broke all my other friends. They hated me before, and now every single one of them wants me dead. Even Celestia, my mentor, would smile in glee to murder me.”

“Twilight,” Lyra cooed, stroking her chin. “I love you.”

Twilight smiled, and her eyes drifted to Big Mac who looked lost in thought.

“Ah. . . ah want you to end it. Ah can never love you again, Twilight,” Mac said.

For the first time the emotionally numb alicorn’s voice wavered as she spoke.

“I. . . please, I always had a c-crush on y-you. Getting to c-cuddle with my very own s-special s-some p-pony. . . being loved. . . I can’t go back to b-being alone. It’s like we’re a happy couple. I think. . . I need you the most of all.”

“And ya can have your silly plushy. Ah just want ya to scrap my mind outta this gilded cage ya put it in. Let me die, Twilight. Let me see my Sis again. Or, are ya breakin’ that promise too? Did ya lie when you promised to grant me this request when the time came?”

Twilight curled up in a tight ball until Lyra and Mac rested in the nook between her neck, legs, and belly. Even her tail and mane were pulled into the tight sobbing mass. From a reservoir she didn’t know remained, fresh tears began to flow.

The sun had not yet risen in those early morning hours. The last two words she uttered before finally crying herself into blissful sleep were “I can’t.”









Twilight was awoken as the first rays of Celestia’s sun fell upon her. She had only gotten a few short hours of sleep, yet she felt oddly refreshed. Her admission to her friends had eased her mood.

Big Mac, however, had not been as forgiving. Twilight felt the emptiness inside herself, and the emptiness beside her bosom. Her favorite plushy had removed himself from her grip while she slept.

The stallion now sat perfectly motionless on the windowsill. He stared out over the horizon, bathed in the warmth of the beautiful gift Celestia nurtured and protected each day. The gift of life, warmth, and safety; the promise from their ruler to watch over them, to protect them from the shadows, and those that would harm her little ponies.



She cursed herself for admitting to killing his sister and then leaving herself vulnerable. The fact he had not tried something in anger only deepened her trust for him. It was the proof she desperately wanted that someway, somehow, Big Mac still loved her

Lyra brushed along her flank and walked over to look at Big Mac. Twilight felt the emptiness inside her shrink ever so slightly. While no doll yet had removed the void, at least they had begun to heal it.

“May I?” Lyra asked, never taking her gaze from the sun.

Twilight levitated her onto the windowsill, and she sat down beside Big Mac, mimicking his posture, and staring out the window at what was the most majestic sunrise they had witnessed since joining the Dollhouse.

A part of Twilight filled with joy, masking the pain. To see the two dolls on the windowsill happy, and not just ‘okay’ or ‘all right’ let her know that today was going to be a perfect, joyous day. Perhaps the first morning she could count as a gift from Celestia in a long time.

Her mind turned to the body downstairs. She left her friends to watch the sun rise high into the sky. She closed the door to her room behind her, and went downstairs.

Twilight began cleaning up after Applejack’s murder. The shutters and doors on the first floor were all still tightly shut. She used her magic as sparingly as possible, not wanting to aggrevate the swelling and damage Twilight received in the fight.

Before long the crime scene had been scrubbed clean. The body had been shrunken into a lifeless mannequin, a part of her dollhouse only in spirit. She would bury it in the replica cemetery in New Ponyville. Applejack would rest in the replica coffin under six inches of loose dirt. To her left would rest Bon Bon; to their right already sat tombstones and empty caskets in honor of Shining and Cadance.

Twilight went to her room to put the Applejack toy in her dresser. Lyra and Mac still hadn’t moved so she let them be.

Returning to Spike’s old room, she checked on Silver. The filly was just being roused from sleep. When she cracked an eye open and saw Twilight, she began to wake up much quicker.

“Twi?” she said.

Twilight smiled, remembering how Spike used to call her that. “I’m here.”

“Are. . . we going to be okay?” Silver asked.

“Yes, Silver. Everything is going to be fine.”

A knock sounded from the door downstairs.

“Wait here, Silver, I need to see to our guest.”

Twilight walked down to the front door, already sensing the powerful aura of the alicorn on the other side. She opened the door in an inviting sweep with her foreleg. “Luna! So great to see you, I’ve been most worried lately. Would you care for some tea?”

“I would be delighted.” Luna let herself in, as did the guard behind her. Twilight took a quick peek outside behind them, before closing the door. “You say you are worried?”

Twilight smiled and headed for the kitchen, talking loudly so she could hear her. “Oh yes, ponies have been disappearing and I can’t figure out why. I’m. . . scared Luna, that I’ll fail as a princess.”

“We shall solve it, for you are no longer alone. A most strange thing has happened and we need your help to find who is responsible,” Luna stated.

A grin, not visible to her guests, crossed Twilight’s face. Luna had only come with one guard. It took two to pull a chariot, not to mention a royal princess was required to have a pair of body guards.

The second guard was not outside, guarding the Library. That meant Luna had sent him with word back to Canterlot. The chariot was not parked outside. Twilight deduced that the princess had already caught on.

The fact she sent her bodyguards and not a letter via the magic the alicorns, and Spike, used to communicate meant she didn’t even trust Celestia.

Twilight almost started laughing audibly as she reached for a bag of hemlock.

“I visited the Apple family. Has Applejack been acting strange? She lied to Granny Smith about Big Mac being drafted, she sent Apple Bloom off to stay with Rarity. We found it odd, so we visited Carousel Boutique. Neither Apple Bloom, nor Rarity, nor Sweetie Belle were there.”

She retracted her hoof from the bag of hemlock and smirked. Was Luna really that stupid? Applejack living a life of crime and deceit?

“Luna, she did seem a bit odd the last we met. I’ve been trying to figure out why,” Twilight explained.

“I think I can show you why. Please, bring me your chest with the elements of harmony.”

After setting the tea down, Luna began to sip daintily from her cup. There was one thing bothering Twilight, grating on her nerves: her bodyguard.

Ever since the bodyguard had entered the house, his eyes had not left Twilight for a second. If half the rumors were true, the bat pegasi could hear a pin drop a mile away, and use their echo location to know the exact position of every solid object within fifty meters.

If the other half of the rumors were true, they were omnivores like the Griffins, and could disable a unicorn’s magic by emitting a special frequency.

Twilight hoped the other half of the rumors were not true.

The chest with the elements landed on the table with a dull thud. Luna lifted the lid, revealing to Twilight the elements of harmony.

The red lightning bolt and dark purple diamond were glowing weakly, occasionally pulsing to their normal brightness, before trying to hide within themselves. The blue balloon glowed more vibrantly than any other there, almost with an urgency or concern. The purple star had taken a milky black hue, with the faintest of green flickering through it. The pink butterfly had a steady, timid glow.

The orange apple, the element of honesty, was blacker than the darkest night. The inert element sat in the box, without a single trace of magic left in it.

“It is exactly as I feared,” Luna explained. “The elements are being corrupted, and it began with Applejack.”

Twilight caught a laugh in her throat, barely keeping Luna from noticing. The bodyguard raised an eyebrow, as if he heard her muffle that laugh before it risked passing her lips.

“The elements are interconnected. These trinkets are as much the source of their power as the actual quality of friendship within you. Were you to forget about the magic of friendship, your element would become inert. Were Dash to lose her loyalty, it’d be reflected here,” Luna explained.

“If Applejack were to forget honesty, to live a dishonest life, her element would leave her and this trinket would become inert.” Luna frowned. “Either, Applejack is involved in what is happening in Ponyville, or she is already dead.”












> XII. Pink Haired Pony
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight’s mind raced as Luna’s accusation towards Applejack hit home. Her first thought had been to accuse the element of honesty when it had been Twilight the whole time. Applejack’s only fault had been acting rashly out of care for her family, even apologizing for having to use brute force to disable her magic. Now, not only was Twilight’s friend gone forever, she was posed to take the fall for everything Twilight had done. Despite her desire to protect her friend’s reputation, it provided her the perfect opportunity to deflect suspicion from herself.

“Luna, you don’t think Applejack could be behind the disappearances, do you?” Twilight asked. She feigned as much shock as she could by widening her eyes.

“I have seen many good ponies do horrible things, given the wrong set of principles.” Luna looked out the window. "Sometimes the wrong emotions can get the better of you, even if you know deep down it's not right." She turned back and stared down at her tea. “If I could, Applejack could. . . anypony could. Tell me,” Luna turned to Twilight, “Has she been acting odd?”

“Hmm,” Twilight said. She put a hoof to her chin and began to re-word recent events in her mind. “Well let’s see, Dash visited and we had a lovely lunch, she went to see Applejack before heading back to the Wonderbolts. Is Dash okay?”

“Spitfire sent us a letter asking the same thing, and judging by her element she would be lucky to have suffered nothing more than a fillynapping.”

“I know Rarity and Sweetie were headed to Manehatten. Applejack, Apple Bloom, and Pinkie Pie were going to throw them a going away party. Pinkie Pie hasn’t gone missing, but the others at that party did.”

“So you have seen Applejack around recently? You are certain she is not dead—that she isn’t behind this?”

Twilight choked back a sob, glancing away from Luna. She could still smell the copper, see the stains in the wood. They had barely been cleaned from the floor for an hour. “She. . .” Twilight swallowed the lump in her throat. I killed her, right there. We got in a fight because I screwed up, and Silver murdered her to protect me. It’s all my fault.

Luna brushed a tear away with her hoof. “Twilight, I know how hard it has been for you to accept loss. It has been doubly so on your poor mentor. Please, have you seen Applejack recently? If she is behind this I must know now.”

        “N-not since y-yesterday,” Twilight replied.

        “And what did she say.”

        Twilight’s mind went into overdrive, her tears of loss concealing the deception she was spinning. I could pin it all on Applejack, but that’ll only delay her a day at most. I would need a more capable culprit, someone to draw suspicion just long enough for me to finish my work and defeat Luna. But who?

        Try as she might, Twilight wasn’t quite sure how to respond. If she admitted Applejack had been to the library, would Luna want to investigate it? She’d clearly already been to the farm. “She. . . said she would pay me a visit again soon. V-vinyl and her were going to get a drink.”

        “Applejack, hanging out with Vinyl? This is most odd. We will go at once to check on this mare.” Luna stood up, her guard shadowing her as she headed for the door. She stopped looking back at Twilight. “I assume you are coming?”

        Twilight was in shock, it seemed too easy however she had to continue to improvise. “Of course.”

        The trio walked out of the library, and Twilight made sure to lock the door behind them. Echo continued his unrelenting gaze, watching Twilight’s every move. He seemed to be judging her more than he was guarding Luna.

        The streets were desolate this morning, as they were on most. The ponies that remained weren’t quite as trusting as they used to be. Nopony would accuse somepony else of the disappearances, but they wouldn’t leave their house either. It made for an eerie silence in the street that morning.

They arrived quickly at Vinyl’s house just across from the Library. Luna opened the door, sending up a thin layer of dust from the floor. She began to survey the room.

“There does not appear to be anypony home,” Luna observed.

“B-but, Applejack said she was going to see Vinyl, where is she?” Twilight swallowed, noticing the layer of dust around the room. Perhaps she should have suggested Colgate instead, but if Luna detected any trace magic. . .

“Your majesty, the door.” Echo hadn’t appeared to move, yet Luna knew exactly which door he meant. She looked over at the door to the cellar. The door handle and lock had been ripped clean off when it was thrown open.

Twilight remembered storming down into the basement and capturing Vinyl. She had counted on the signs of a physical struggle pointing to Applejack. She only need a day, two at tops, to get the other elements.

“The door was forced open. It looks like something hit it hard,” Twilight said.

“Indeed, but there are no hoof marks. It is more likely a unicorn broke the door,” Luna said.

Twilight huffed, before following them down the stairs. Half of Vinyl’s speakers and other equipment had vanished, and the rest were in various states of disrepair. A few had been split in half during the week-old struggle.

Once Luna finished surveying, she noticed the marks on the wall. “It looks like a pony was thrown against this wall.” Luna knelt down, levitating a fragment of a unicorn horn up to her. “I think they were thrown horn-first into the wall, causing it to splinter a little.”

Twilight looked around, pointing out the split speakers. “Looks like someone smashed up her stuff and knocked her out cold.”

“Perhaps.” She turned to survey the young alicorn. “You seem to have recovered from your earlier shock. I need you to continue investigating while I retrieve Pinkie and Fluttershy.”

“No!” Twilight said.

Echo and Luna turned to regard her with confused expressions.

“I mean, please Luna. . . They’re my friends and I have to protect them. I have to know for sure they’re okay. I’ll go at once and bring them back to the library. You and Echo seem to be much better finding evidence, anyway.” Twilight grinned sheepishly.

“Very well, go and bring them back to the library. I will meet you there in one hour.”

Twilight vanished in a flash, teleporting out of the basement.

“Does she always act so odd? She seems almost guilty,” Echo observed.

“Yes and no. She has always suffered from the need to win the approval of everypony, and prove she can do everything on her own. Still, there is definitely something she has not told us. Whether it relates to Cadance’s death or the disappearances, I am not sure.”

“Then I’ll follow her as she finds her friends,” Echo suggested.

“No. You are right to keep an eye on her, but until the Lunar Guard arrives, you must stay with me. Anyone with the power to influence the Elements of Harmony is not to be underestimated. For all we know, the Nightmare has returned.”

        Echo shuddered, glancing away. No amount of time could wash away the devastation of the Nightmare Wars. His entire race of bat-winged ponies had almost gone extinct after the war. If this Applejack had indeed been corrupted, Echo would snap her neck without hesitation.



*************************************************************************************



        Lyra had been sitting in silence with Big Mac most of the morning. To be truthful, she was quite bored of staring out at the sun. Still, she knew Big Mac was obviously contemplating his emotions, wondering what to do now that he knew Applejack was dead. So, Lyra waited patiently.

        “Beautiful day?” Lyra asked.

“Eeyup.”

“Are you ready to talk about AJ?”

“Ah ‘spose it can’t be avoided forever,” Mac said. He let out a long sigh. “She always was too stubborn. Ah reckon whether Twilight planned it, or ‘Sis stumbled into it, once she found out she’d have fought Twilight to save us all.”

“I would be proud to have had somepony fight that hard for me,” Lyra stated.

“Lot o’ good it did. Now AJ is dead, and Apple Bloom is a doll like you, isn’t she?” Mac turned to look at Lyra, who shrunk back.

“Y-yes. . .”

“How long?”

“A day or t-two before now. I saw her with Silver Spoon.”

Mac frowned and shook his head. “Why didn’t ya tell me? Is bein’ a doll more important than hanging onto things like honesty that made us ponies in the first place?”

Lyra hung her head in shame. “I’m sorry, but the only time I get to talk to you is when she brings you out at night. I don’t want her to hurt you. . . I knew you’d do something rash if she captured them. Now that she got in a fight that ended in Applejack’s death, what will you do? Who will she take that anger out on? You, me, all of us?”

Mac looked back up at the sun hanging low in the sky. “No, the judgement’s not mine ta pass. Celestia will find out, sooner or later, and Twilight will pay. If ah up and killed her myself, and the thoughts crossed my mind, we’d just end up stuck like this. Besides, who knows, with all that fancy magic, what would happen to us.”

Lyra scooted a little closer to Big Mac. “We’ll be fine, Mac. She trusts us—shares her emotions. I’m sure we can get her to see reason soon and send a letter off to Celestia.”

Mac looked at Lyra. Since Twilight had left him as a full size plushy, Lyra was about the size of his hoof—if he still had one. “Ah ain’t gonna lie, if she gives me half a chance ah’m grabbin’ Apple Bloom and gettin’ on the first train for Canterlot. Whether ah’m the only thing helpin’ her sleep at night or not, Applejack would expect nothin’ less than for me to die tryin’ to save her family too.”

Lyra climbed over Mac’s leg and curled up in his lap. “Please. . . let’s just wait a little longer. Maybe she’ll get better. I don’t want her to hurt anymore ponies.” Lyra began to cry as she hid her face under a hoof, resting against the warm plushy. 

“Bon Bon?” Mac asked.

“Yeah. . .” Lyra sniffled. “I m-miss her. She was like the s-sister I never had and I l-lost her too. I. . . think I understand Twilight now. It hurts so much to lose a pony you love.”

Mac put a hoof on Lyra’s back and began to rub it. “Ah know it does, Lyra. It’s part of life. First my Grandfather, than my parents, now Applejack. Everypony dies, that’s why we need our friends to be there for us.”

Mac sat there stroking Lyra’s plastic mane until she stopped crying. “Thank you, Lyra.”

Lyra looked up at him. “For what?”

“For being my friend.”



*************************************************************************************



Twilight rushed over to Fluttershy’s cottage, stopping only to grab some supplies from her house. She had less than an hour to bring Fluttershy and Pinkie back to the library. That meant, she only had one hour to capture both and blame it on Applejack. Already, Twilight knew that line of deception wouldn’t last much longer.

The outside of the cottage was quiet, with no animals in sight. Quick glimpses showed that a few were still hiding in their burrows, but it was obvious animals had learned to stay away from the Cottage.

Twilight walked up to the door slowly, aware that she had scared off most of the animals. Turning them into dolls had been fun, therapeutic even. She never would have guessed a bear could be turned into a doll, and once she tried it out she kept on going. Now, New Ponyville had birds, lizards, rabbits, gophers, and more. Perfect pets for a perfect Ponyville.

Knocking on the front door, Twilight decided she didn’t have time to wait. She pushed the door open. “Fluttershy?”

There was no answer, and she soon saw why. Furniture had been overturned, fresh claw marks were in the floors, and spilled food was mixed in with animal feces. The inside of the house looked like a tornado had hit it. A few stray animals ran around as if they’d gone feral.

Twilight hurried towards the kitchen and found it empty. She quickly went upstairs, slowing down when she heard the pegasus crying in her room.

“Fluttershy?” Twilight asked.

“Go away!” she shouted, and began sobbing again.

Twilight walked in the room quietly, suddenly feeling pity for her. “Why are you so sad? I came to make you happy.”

“I. . . I can’t.” Fluttershy pulled her long mane over her face to hide it. “I-it’s all my f-fault. I lost t-them all.”

“Who?" Twilight asked.

“The animals. A-angel told me they were disappearing but I didn’t l-listen. Then Angel disappeared. I looked everywhere, all across the Everfree. . . the rest of the animals were gone when I got back. They tore my h-home up and w-went feral!” Fluttershy began wailing as the fresh memories had their pain renewed.

“Shh. . .” Twilight rubbed Fluttershy’s back. She looked up at the nearby clock to gauge her time. “It’s okay.”

“Why Twilight? Why do I have to be alone? Even D-dash l-left without saying goodbye!”

Twilight noticed the cold apple cider on her nightstand and heated it up with her magic. She sprinkled a little curare in it too easy her passing. “You don’t have to be alone Fluttershy. Your friends are all waiting for you.”

“B-but I don’t w-wanna die. I tried but I c-couldn’t,” Fluttershy whimpered. She extended her forehoof from beneath her hair, and Twilight saw some half-healed cuts on it.

For a moment, Twilight felt guilty. She should have made time for Fluttershy sooner, and decided to be honest with her. “They’re not dead. I’ve granted them immortality, Dash, Rarity, Angel. . . they’re all living back at the library with me.”

“No. . . nopony lives forever,” Fluttershy said.

“Yes, they can.” Twilight brushed her friend’s mane. “I fixed them, made them better. I took half the town. . .”

“What, where did you tell them to go?”

“They’re happy and I made them all live with me now.”

Fluttershy uncovered the hair from her face to look at Twilight. “What? You mean they’re not gone, you just. . . foalnapped them? But you wouldn’t just force a pony to live with you. Did they all come and ask for your help?”

Twilight paused her hoof between her shoulderblades. “Yes. They wanted my help, but they didn’t know how to ask. I had to help them learn the truth, that they never had to die. I’ve never told anypony before we had tea.” Twilight glanced at the clock, deciding to speed things along by playing off her kindness. “I’ve turned all my friends into dolls. I had too—everything is perfect—the whole town is rebuilt!”

“So you actually foalnapped them? You made them all into dolls?”

“You make it sound like a bad thing,” Twilight said. “They’re happy and they’ll live forever. They don’t have to cry anymore. Here, drink this.” Twilight levitated the cider to her. “When you wake up you’ll feel all better and be with your friends.”

Fluttershy looked at Twilight and at the cup. “So you made Angel and Dash and everypony else disappear? All because you don’t want to lose anypony too?”

Twilight smiled. “Yes. Don’t you want to join them? Do you want to see all your friends again?”

Fluttershy gulped and thought about it for a moment. Silently, tears had begun to roll down her cheeks again. “Will. . . it make you happy? If I do will—can you ever. . .” She began to sob out loud. “Please, forgive me. I wasn’t kind at all, I was an awful pony not to—I should have visited more. I shou—”

“Yes, I forgive you.” Twilight cooed. “Here, it’ll all be over soon.” She lowered the cup to Fluttershy’s mouth.

“Ok, we can be happy again. . . I can see my little Angel bunny again.” Fluttershy was crying as she drank the hot cider. She laid her head back down on the pillow, and was rewarded by Twilight rubbing her back right below the wings. Fluttershy’s sobs began to grow weaker and even the flow of tears seemed to slow down. She quickly cried herself into her final slumber in the embrace of her most trusted friend.

“Good mare, such a kind pony.” Twilight hummed a song gently to her as the poison paralyzed every muscle except her heart. Once her breathing stopped, Twilight began to cast the spell. It was slow and still painful, but she had healed enough to cast it cautiously.


        *************************************************************************************


“Alright, Scootaloo, are you ready?” Dash asked. She had brought the filly outside the shield that trapped them in the basement. Vinyl and Octavia’s tunnel had finally reached a loose floorboard. The faraday shelter and tunnel were still in place underground, giving them a secret safe-haven and a way through the shield Twilight couldn’t detect.

“Please, you’re sure there is no other way? Do I have to do this, Dash?” Scootaloo begged.

Dash smiled and put a wing over Scootaloo. “Yes. You and I are the only ones who can make it up the stairs. If I go, Twilight will catch on instantly. Remember our deal, Squirt. You’re my sister now and you have to make it to Celestia so we can get turned back to normal.”

“I know,” Scootaloo said. “It’s just. . . I finally got you to notice me, to l-love me. . . and now you’re making me go. . . and Twilight will probably kill you like Bon Bon when she finds out. .  .”

“Scootaloo.” Dash lifted her head up before the filly could start crying. “Twilight won’t kill me. That’s the whole point of this. She wants to force us to be her friends! You just worry about reaching Celestia. Make it onto the next train and you’ll be fine.”

“Pinkie Promise?” Scootaloo asked.

“Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye. And remember, Scootaloo, if you don’t do this Silver will come back to play with the crusaders again. Everypony here needs you—I need you. You’re the bravest filly I know” Dash smiled and was rewarded when Scootaloo smiled back, eyes beaming pride.

“You really mean it?” Scootaloo asked, her wings fluttering in excitement.

“Yeah, now you need to get in position above the door. We don’t know when she’ll visit again, but everypony will be ready when she does. Now, I need to go see if I can knock out that shield with a rainboom.” Dash winked, and the two pegasi parted ways.


*************************************************************************************


“Mr. and Mrs. Cake?” Pinkie asked. The pair had put their babies to sleep and were headed back to their room.

“What is it, Pinkie?” Mr. Cake replied.

Pinkie’s knee got pinchy, followed by several convulsions down her spine.

“Oh dear, Pinkie Sense again? Mrs. Cake inquired.

“Yeah, it’s been getting worse. I think I’ve figured it out though, but you’re not gonna like it,” Pinkie explained.

“You can tell us anything. We consider you family,” Mr. Cake said.

“It gets worse right before a pony disappears. I’ve been taking notes and right after Applejack visited, it happened again only. . . worse. And. . . I think it’s coming for me next. I haven’t had my spleen itch since I cloned myself and Twilight almost sent me back to the mirror pool.”

Mr. Cake put a hoof on Pinkie’s shoulder. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, Mr. Cake. Please. . . I need you to take your family and tell my father what I told you. My family will take you in to live on the rock farm. If you don’t get a letter from me in one week—” Pinkie stopped to close her eyes and take a deep breath. For the first time, her Pinkie Sense scared her, and she could not laugh the fear away. “Never come back.” 

“Honey, are you sure this is the best idea?” Mrs. Cake asked.

“Yes,” he replied. “Pinkie has always been there for us. If she says we need to visit her family, I trust her.” Mr. Cake turned his gaze back to Pinkie. “Whatever it is, Pinkie, know we love you like our own daughter. You take care, and don’t forget to write us, okay?”

Pinkie had tears glistening in her eyes as her mane couldn’t quite hold it’s normal curls. “Thanks, Auntie and Uncle Cake. I don’t know what I’d do if you or the babies got hurt. Just—” Pinkie began bouncing up and down on her hooves, indicating a doozy was coming. “Please go quickly. Whatever it is, its been causing all the strange stuff lately.”

Pinkie went downstairs and started putting up streamers. She had some cupcakes stored away and brought them out. By the time the Cakes had grabbed their children for an impromptu vacation, the living room was ready for a party.

“Really, Pinkie, a party?” Mrs. Cake asked.

“Yeah, it’s for her. She should be here soon,” Pinkie explained.

“Who?”

“The mare responsible for all this. I’m the last one who can help her.”



*************************************************************************************



Twilight was flying across town when she stopped to catch her breath. At the same time, she saw Trixie come around the corner. Almost out of reflex she wanted to just blast her dead on the spot. That unicorn had been nothing but trouble for her. In her current state, however, such a brash attack was unlikely to work.

Twilight quickly figured out a better plan. The unicorn was ignorant to what was going on, a skilled magician. . . and a perfect scapegoat. She landed and walked towards her.

“Hi, Trixie, what brings you to town?” Twilight asked.

“Hello. Is it usually this quiet in the afternoon? I recall there being more ponies in town, and Trixie was supposed to meet Colgate for lunch today. Have you seen her?” Trixie asked.

“It’s usually this quiet; a lot of ponies left. As for Colgate, she’s at her Dentist’s office. You can probably still go to lunch with her.”

“Thanks, Twilight. You uh. . . take care. You look like you could use some sleep.” Trixie turned and trotted off down the street, looking for the large white molar sign that indicated the Dentist office.

Twilight shook her head. She only had thirty minutes left before Luna expect her back, and now she had even less time. She had to make sure Luna caught Trixie at the Dentist office. Hopefully Pinkie Pie is as easy as Fluttershy.

She trotted up to Sugarcube Corner and let herself in. The bell jingled, and she noticed neither of the cakes were there to greet her. Good, that’ll save me time. “Pinkie?” she called out.

“In here, Twilight! Surprise!” Pinkie called out. She was sitting in the living room at a table with a dozen chocolate cupcakes. The room was set up for a party, but nopony was there.

“This is odd, even for you, Pinkie. Who is this party for?” Twilight asked.

“It’s for you! It’s my ‘sorry it took me so long to make you feel better’ party.”

“Pinkie,” Twilight chuckled, “I feel fine.”

“No you don’t. It’s my fault, isn’t it? I was the one who was supposed to make you happy after Cadance died. I should have known when you said you hated parties it was only because you were sad.”

Twilight’s eye began twitching and she blinked a few times to stop it. Her teeth were grinding as she recalled the first three months after Cadance died. “Don’t be ridiculous. You tried to throw like three parties a day! Yeah it was annoying, but at least you tried! Where was Dash? Off with the Wonderbolts. Applejack? On her farm. Fluttershy? Crying herself asleep. . .”

“Is that why you did it?” Pinkie asked.

“Did what?” Twilight sat down at the table, across from Pinkie and the cupcakes. She saw one of Pinkie’s legs twitch. Pinkie Sense, how did I forget? This might not be as easy as I think.

“You’ve been making everypony disappear. I don’t know where you sent them, but I could sense it each time it happened. At first, I thought they were all just leaving, but then Applejack—She came here worried about you, and not an hour later I got a horrible Pinkie Sense.” A tear rolled down her cheek as she remembered the sensation that accompanied Cadance’s suicide. “A sense I haven’t had since I was in Canterlot when Cadance died.”

Twilight grinned. “Impressive, you could sense her dying? How did you figure out it was me?” The blinds around the room pulled themselves shut in a faint purple aura.

“I didn’t know it was you at first, I could tell you were coming for me though. Then it all clicked—you feeling sad, not wanting to lose anypony. What did you do? Turn them all to stone so they couldn’t die?” Pinkie asked.

“No, better,” Twilight explained. “I anchored them to dolls, allowing them to live forever in my dollhouse. It’s quite nice, actually, and since you were so clever to figure it out perhaps you can come peacefully.”

“No, I can’t.” Pinkie gestured to the cupcakes. “Would you care for a cupcake?”

Twilight eyed them suspiciously, loosening her saddlebags with her magic. “No, I don’t want a cupcake. And if you know what’s good for you, then you won’t fight me. That’s why Applejack died.”

“You. . . you killed her?” Pinkie asked. She gasped and her eyes widened in horror as she walked backwards. “Why?”

“She attacked me, nearly killed me, Pinkie. . . it got out of hand and then Silver came in. . .” Twilight had remained in her seat, beginning to cry.

“Twilight, it’s okay.” Pinkie came in closer against her better judgement to comfort her friend. She felt an itch on the back of her neck just in time to duck.

A plank of wood had been ripped off the floor and Twilight nearly knocked her out with it. Pinkie had sensed it and gotten out of the way.

“Don’t make me do this, Pinkie! You’re coming with me whether you want to or not!” Twilight screamed. Her voice was cracking, her mane becoming disheveled as she fought to choose between whether she was sad or angry.

The plank continued to weave through the air, never coming close to Pinkie. The pony ran for the nearest door before Twilight slammed it shut. 

“Twilight, we can talk, it doesn’t have to be like this! I threw this party just for you!”

“It’s a trick! You spiked the cupcakes, didn’t you? Benzodiazepine? Hemlock? Maybe just some ambien? YOU NEVER LOVED ME!!” Twilight screamed. She was becoming more desperate, throwing glass cups and swinging the wood plank wildly.

Pinkie continued to dodge the blows as Twilight tore the room apart plank by plank.

Twilight filled the air with laughter, and Pinkie dove for a window before the shutters closed. She crashed through the glass and would have escaped, if not for Twilight’s hold on the wooden shutters on the outside of the building.

Pinkie collapsed to the floor, bloodied and whimpering. “Giggle at the ghosties. . . .guffaw at the grizzly. . .”

“You’ll see Pinkie. It’s better this way.” Twilight brought the plank of wood down, splitting it over Pinkie’s skull. She blacked out.



*************************************************************************************



Twilight ran back to the Library with only five minutes to spare. She had never been late, if she was late Luna would find out. It was bad enough she didn’t have time to clean up at Sugarcube Corner. She ran up to the door of the library, stopping to compose herself. Twilight ran her magic through her mane to straighten it out a little. There were no scrapes or cuts to betray her. She checked the straps on her saddlebags, which contained Pinkie and Fluttershy.

The best way to play this would be to get Luna to draw the conclusion. She opened the door and found Luna enjoying some tea with Echo. He stood up and resumed his vigil beside his princess.

“Twilight, did you find them?” Luna asked.

“No, they were gone. The only pony I ran into was Trixie. . . I’m so sorry, Luna, I’ve failed you.” Twilight looked at the ground. She began to think of Applejack and cried, adding to her elaborate ruse.

“Trixie? What would a traveling magician who lives in Manehatten be doing here?” Luna asked.

“I don’t know,” Twilight said. “B-but she said she was going to see Colgate about s-something.”

Luna walked around the table and lifted Twilight’s chin up. “Twilight, you have not failed me. I will need your help to solve this matter. We should question Trixie at once. Until we can find out what happened to Applejack she is our only other suspect.”

“Okay,” Twilight said. “I’ll show you where she is.”



*************************************************************************************



Trixie walked into the Dentist’s office. The aura of mana hung thickly in the air, signifying powerful spells had been cast here recently. Depending on the type and strength of spell, the aura could last seconds or weeks.

Though she may lack the raw talent of Twilight, her special talent was still magic, and she had studied just as hard to learn all she could. She began to recall half-forgotten texts and classes from her fillyhood.

Trixie closed her eyes, searching out the magical leylines that supplied the essence of magic to each unicorn. They were tainted a sickly redish-black. She followed them to the point of highest concentration, keeping her mental wards up. She only hoped they would be enough if her fears were true.

She passed the reception desk where she felt something tingling in the air. Focusing her horn, she could make out faint tidbits of conversation, and a scream.There was a blurry image of two ponies, however it was not enough to be useful. Trixie’s eyes sprung open and she lost her connection to the ether. The magic she was sensing was black magic; Trixie feared that a pony had been killed here.

“Colgate?” Trixie called out. She walked past the reception desk, not noticing the small doll laying on the floor that had once been a receptionist.

The dental exam room had the highest concentration of magic. Trixie opened the door slowly, noticing some signs of a struggle. Dental tools had not been put away, a couple trays still lay on their side. Trixie closed her eyes and brought up her mental image of the arcane magics in the room.

In the center of the floor was a vile trap, designed to crush the life out of a unicorn while inhibiting their magic. The harder the unicorn fought and channeled magic to escape, the quicker it would constrict them. Trixie had nightmares about such evil magic as a child. Her cousin had once told her a horror story on a camping trip. She claimed the traps were strong enough to crush a pony into a literal pulp of blood and bone fragments.

She circled around the dentist’s chair, eying it suspiciously. A trap designed to kill a pony would be detectable for a month if it was triggered. This ward had not been triggered, instead Trixie deduced it must have been de-activated. It lay dormant and would only be detectable for two days at most. Who ever had come and cast it, must have done so recently. The fact that Colgate was nowhere to be found meant they had come for her.

Trixie continued to look around the room. She noticed a couple hairs sitting on the dentist’s chair. She levitated them up, noticing they were a familiar shade of lavender. Leaning in closer to get a better look, her hoof crossed the trap, reactivating it.

She froze as she stepped on the proverbial landmine. Her mental wards were burning against her mind, threatening to shatter and allow the trap to activate and kill her. Trixie slid her hoof back out of the circle as slowly as possible, focusing all the magic she dared in an attempt to disable the trap before it’s full power crushed down on her.



************************************************************************************



“This is Colgate’s office, can you sense that?” Twilight said.

“Yes, a unicorn is in there channeling magic, a powerful one too. Echo, prepare yourself,” Luna ordered.

“Yes, Princess.”

“Luna, be careful,” Twilight said. She followed her inside. The three of them walked around the reception desk towards the source of the magic.

Twilight glanced to the side, recalling her recent trip here. She gasped as she saw the receptionist laying on the ground as a doll. Fuck. How could I be so stupid?!

Echo picked up on her dismay instantly, and followed her gaze. Before he could speak, Twilight interjected. “Look, Luna!”

Luna turned to see what Twilight had found. She levitated the doll over to her and probed it with her magic. “Good work, Twilight. It appears to be some sort of black magic. Perhaps later I can figure out if the pony inside is alive or dead. Now, quietly, we have a suspect to apprehend.”

The trio headed slowly towards the dental exam room. Twilight heard Echo growling softly. She fought the urge to look at him, he was suspicious enough as is.

The door was wide open and Twilight smiled in glee. Trixie had in fact come looking for Colgate. The de-activated trap that Twilight knew would fade away within a day or two had been re-activated by her. She was now standing on the edge, channeling all her energy to escape it.

Twilight knew once inside the trap escape was impossible, yet Trixie had not gone all the way inside. She had stumbled right into the spider’s web in time for the spider to arrive.

“Trixie Lulamoon you will explain yourself at once!” Luna commanded in her thunderous royal accent.

Trixie stumbled backwards, narrowly avoiding being eviscerated as the spell triggered. The dentist’s chair was crushed into dust by the spell, which dissipated and tainted the air with the smell of sulfur.

Trixie looked up, dazed. “Luna? I. . . something happened to Colgate!”

“Silence! What are you doing here?” she asked.

“I was just—” Trixie’s gaze fell upon Twilight. The hairs on the chair came back to the front of her mind. Trixie scrambled backwards, firing up her horn. She had never successfully teleported before, but the wicked smirk on Twilight’s face told Trixie all she needed to know.

“Princess it’s her! It’s T—”

Trixe was interrupted as Echo emitted a high pitched screech. Twilight covered her ears, her horn blazing in agony. She stepped backwards trying to get away from the noise. Trixie’s horn faded instantly, her magic interrupted.

Luna smiled, having not been effected even slightly. “Trixie Lulamoon, you would do well not to use your magic again. We are not amused.”

“No! She’ll kill us all! I didn’t do it. It wa—”

“What’d you do to Applejack!” Twilight yelled. She had to make sure Trixie didn’t go planting ideas in Luna’s head.

“Twilight, please calm down,” Luna said, quieting her tone.

“No, she did it, didn’t she? Stealing all my friends, hurting Colgate! That was a devil’s trap! What kind of horrible mare uses such foul magic?” Twilight advanced on Trixie, causing the cowering unicorn to fire her horn up again.

Twilight was prepared this time, suffering less from the high pitched noise Echo emitted. Trixie’s horn powered down, and Twilight saw something silver flash out of Echo’s saddlebag.

A ring slammed down on Trixie’s horn, blocking her magic. Twilight shuddered at how easily Luna and Echo had worked together to completely silence her magic. If Luna caught onto Twilight, their battle would be over before it started. Out of the two of them, Echo would have to be first to go.

“No, please, Princess.” Trixie fell to the ground groveling. “I didn’t do anything wrong!”

“We are done here, my little pony. You will be questioned back at the library. You will remain silent o—”

“No! Please not the Libra—”

Luna levitated a muzzle over from Echo’s saddlebag. She fastened it around Trixie’s head, clamping her jaw shut. Trixie began crying, curling up into a pathetic heap of her azure hair.

Luna leaned over her, softening her tone from the commanding royal voice. “Forgive me, my little pony. I have not had to act as such in a thousand years. You are charged with foalnapping, treason, and murder. You will be questioned before we decide whether you will stand trial before Celestia and me, or released. Nod if you understand.”

Trixie managed something akin to a nod of understanding.

“Good, now get up and walk,” Luna ordered.

She lay on the ground quivering still. Twilight was enjoying every minute of it. This was well worth the humiliation of the magic show and alicorn amulet.

“Walk!” Luna commanded.

Trixie cried harder to the point even Luna started to feel bad. Twilight was holding back her laughter, when finally the guard spoke up.

“Princess, allow me to carry her,” Echo said. “She is clearly traumatized.”

Luna glanced back at her guard, then Trixie. “Very well. You shall be carried back to the library for interrogation, Trixie Lulamoon. Twilight and I shall finish searching the premises.”

 





> XIII. The Braggart, The Fox, and The Princess
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Silver sighed, tearing another page out of the comic book. She wadded it up and threw it at the waste basket. It hit the rim, bounced into the wall, and fell down into the pile of missed shots. The waste basket was only half-full and she’d nearly torn all of Spike’s comics apart.

“Why did Twilight have to tell me to stay in here? This sucks. It’s not like I would tell Luna about our little secret.” She tossed the entire comic into the trash, grunting as it landed flat on top without going in. “I’m outta here, I’m going to play with the dolls.”

Silver walked to the door and opened it slowly. The house looked empty, so she quickly headed down to the basement. The door was locked.

“Darn, maybe I can read a book?” Silver looked at the bookshelf and saw books on everything from Quantum Mechanics to String Theory. “Or not. Maybe Lyra and Big Mac are in Twilight’s room!”

She ran up the stairs to Twilight’s room, her small hoofsteps echoing around the empty library. She opened the door and saw Mac and Lyra sitting on the window sill. 

“Finally, I’ve been so bored I spent half the day talking to myself.”

Lyra turned around and saw Silver standing in the doorway. She frowned, knowing well how the filly liked to play dolls. “Mac, we’ve got company.”

He turned around and saw Silver in the doorway. “Hey, what are ya doin’ here? You really helpin’ Twilight out?”

“I sure am! She’s going to make me a princess.” Silver trotted over to the toys and propped her front legs up on the ledge. “She’ll teach me everything, and we’ll capture all the nice ponies and get to play together.”

“This ain’t a game,” Mac stated.

“Sure it is. As long as nopony finds out we can have all the fun we want. She can fix the broken dolls. Even Applejack got turned into a doll after dying. . .”

Mac stood up and looked down at Silver. “She’s got my sis’?”

“Yeah,” Silver said. She put her forelegs back on the ground and walked over to the bed, sitting down. “It was really hard to clean up, even with magic. I didn’t know there would be so much blood, it was never like that with my dollhouse.”

“Did. . . did Twilight make it quick?” Mac asked.

“Please, Mac, let it go. Nothing good can come from this. Don’t agitate her,” Lyra begged.

“Oh, I guess it was quick. I mean, I’ve never killed anypony before. . . the way she looked at me, it’s like I saw all the light in her eyes vanish. Then she collapsed. It was,” Silver took a deep breath and smiled, “exhilarating.” 

The plush Macintosh leapt from the window sill. He was still Twilight’s size, so he was slightly larger than Silver. He ran over to the bed and tried to tackle her, bouncing harmlessly off her. He landed on the floor with a soft thud. “It was you? Ya killed my Sis!”

Silver jumped down and pinned Big Mac. For all his strength in life, he was nothing but cotton and polyester now. “Of course I did, she tried to kill Twilight! She’s a princess, and everypony knows that only bad guys attack princesses!” Silver laughed and put a hoof on Mac’s muzzle, silencing him. “I think we’ll go to the kitchen and play. I wonder if you can learn to walk on two legs if I cut two of them off.”

Silver bit Mac’s muzzle to keep him silenced and began to trot out of the room.

“Silver Spoon!” Lyra shouted. “You drop him this instant!”

She dropped the doll and put a hoof on him to keep him from wriggling away. “Or what? You want to find out what it’s like to be frozen in a block of ice? I’m going to be a princess too, you know! You have to do what I say.”

“And you have to do what Twilight says. If you hurt Mac, she’ll never forgive you. We’re her favorites, remember?” Lyra walked to the edge of the window sill, never breaking eye contact with Silver.

“She’d just fix you anyway, sheesh, you’re all so boring. I miss playing with the crusaders. In hindsight,” she glanced down at Mac, “I know why Apple Bloom was screaming so much.”

He began struggling again, his fluffy arms doing little more than ruffling a few of Silver’s hairs. “What’d ya do, ya monster?”

Silver spotted a trunk in the corner of the room. “I played with them, just like I want to play with you. I’ll just have to ask Twilight first, but I’ll be back, Mac. If I cut you up too, then I’ll have killed the whole Apple family! Maybe you can be an evil train robber, or you can be King Sombra and I’ll be Princess Cadance!”

Silver dragged Mac over to the trunk. She opened it up and tossed him in. The heavy lid slammed shut, trapping him in with some of Twilight’s winter clothes. “As for you,” Silver said, “Why don’t we pay a visit to the ice box?”

Lyra jumped from the ledge, bouncing off the floor. She quickly scrambled towards the bed to hide. She was nearly there when a hoof came down on her, pinning her to the ground. Silver bit down on Lyra, holding her firmly in her teeth as she trotted out of the room.

“You used to be such a sweet girl! What’s wrong with you?” Lyra asked. “Why do you have to torture us?”

“Ish fun,” Silver explained. “Ever shince Diamond leff I haven’t got to torshure any fillish. Shure, Diamond got in mosht of the trouble, but I really enjoyed sheeing her put poor poniesh in their plashe.”

“She’s going to capture you to, you know! Especially when she finds out how you’re treating us. If they didn’t like me for being Twilight’s friend, imagine what they’ll do to you when you’re a doll!”

“Eh, ish no problem. Your just dumb toysh now anyway, and she’ll never hurt me. I’m her pupil.”

Silver opened one of the lower cabinets got a glass out. She dropped Lyra into it. The tall glass made it impossible for her to get out. Silver watched in amusement as she tried to use her magic to topple the glass. Grabbing a nearby chair, she dragged it to the sink. She then lifted Lyra’s glass up and filled it halfway with water.

Lyra began swimming around the glass, though her plastic form made it unnatural. She soon found herself sinking to the bottom, and gasped for breath. Once she realized she didn’t need to breath, she calmed down and managed to rear on her back legs and poke her head over the water. “I won’t forget this! Twilight’s gon—”

Silver poured a little more water in, so Lyra could no longer get her head above it. She resumed her attempts to swim, but it proved more comical than effective. Silver dragged a chair over to the refrigerator, jumped on top, and placed the glass into the freezer.

“Sweet dreams,” Silver cooed. Lyra pounded against the glass one last time as she realized how cold the water was. Silver seemed to be enjoying the show as Lyra struggled, finally realizing that being frozen while unable to die would be very uncomfortable. She mouthed sorry from underwater, but Silver had already closed the door.

Silver began to walk back to play with Big Mac when the front door opened. She hid in the kitchen doorway and peaked her head out to an unusual site. A bat winged pony had carried in a hogtied unicorn. She appeared to be a traveling magician Silver had once seen perform in town.

Echo set Trixie down near the wall. The magician’s cheeks were stained from tears and she was still trembling. Echo set about loosening her ropes for her comfort. “Trixie, it’s going to be all right,” he said. “You can call me Echo. You’re not in as much trouble as it seems.” He took the muzzle off, allowing her to speak.

“N-not in as m-much trouble? I didn’t hurt anypony! I was just w-worried for Colgate,” Trixie explained. She swallowed a lump in her throat and shifted around in the ropes.

“I need you to tell me what happened, from the start.” Echo rummaged through a nearby closet, returning with a blanket and tossing it over the shivering mare. He sat down in front of her to listen.

Silver had never seen a bat-winged pony. She had only heard about them in school. Their race became known as the Sarosian’s and they went into hiding after the failed rebellion of Nightmare Moon.

“B-but Twilight w-will be back any minute! She’s c-crazy!” Trixie said.

Silver found herself biting her lip. She knew the nearby drawer had a couple knives in it but she couldn’t take on an adult pony. If Trixie really did know about Twilight, Silver would have no choice but to try.

“Trixie, I will not let her hurt you. Now, why did you come to Ponyville?” he asked.

Trixie took a couple deep breaths, “Promise?”

“Yes. You are under Luna’s protection now.”

Having calmed down considerably, she rolled over and rested on her haunches under the blanket. The ropes had loosened enough that the posture was almost normal, yet her legs were still fixed to each other.

“The Great and Powa—” Trixie stopped when she saw Echo roll his eyes. “—I have never been a popular magician. I worked hard, visited many towns, and had begun to build a reputation. After visiting Ponyville, that reputation was ruined. The only fans who still liked my show were in Cheerilee’s class. They would write me every week, asking when I would come back to Ponyville. Snips and Snails had their own little fan club, and they stopped writing. I had been planning another trip back here at the time, and decided to come see why they had stopped writing. I found out they and everypony else had left town.”

“So why stay in town if all your fans had left?” Echo asked.

“I ran into Colgate. She told me how everypony, including her friends, were leaving without saying goodbye. Colgate said Bon Bon’s teeth had been removed before the house exploded. She saved some of them at her house, and we were going to talk about it and see if we could figure out what was really happening around here. It—” Trixie sniffled. “I was finally going to be the hero, solve a great mystery and become famous.”

“I see. And when Colgate didn’t meet you?” Echo pulled out his quill and a piece of parchment, and tossed his saddlebags near the kitchen door.

“That’s when I went to the Dentist office! I found it just like that, I swear!” Trixie shouted.

“Calm down, I believe you.”

“So, I went in to her exam room and I could sense the magic. I knew it was powerful, dangerous even, but I got too close. I nearly triggered it and died. That’s when you walked in with her. I always knew Twilight was up to no good.”

“Twilight isn’t being questioned, you are. You will leave her to me, and you will focus on my questions. So, you believe Colgate had evidence proving foul play, and planned to find the culprit?”

Trixie tugged against the ropes which had started to bite into her legs. “Yes. With the teeth, and the fact Twilight kept telling ponies everypony was moving to Manehatten!”

“Did Twilight tell you that?”

“No, but Colgate said—” 

Echo interrupted her, “but Colgate isn’t here, is she?”

Trixie fought back tears, her mind filled with images from prison cells to guillotines. She shook such ridiculous imagery from her head, but the thoughts that something horrible was about to happen wouldn’t leave her mind. “No. Twilight was grinning at me when the trap nearly killed me! It’s got to be her, she’s the only unicorn who could have cast that trap!”

Echo smiled. “Yes, our suspect is most assuredly a unicorn. However, with no physical evidence so far we can not throw a princess in jail. All we found today was a toy doll,” Echo motioned towards his saddlebags, “and the trap you nearly set off. It’s not much of a case.”

Silver looked at the saddlebags. They were only a few feet from the kitchen door. When Echo turned his attention back to Trixie, Silver crept out and opened the flap. There inside was a small green unicorn with blue hair and white highlights. She had dental floss as a cutie mark. Silver grabbed her and quietly shuffled back into the kitchen.

“Please, you have to convince Luna I’m innocent! I’d never hurt anypony, and Twilight’s going to try and blame it on me, I just know it! I was so mean to her, and then there was the alicorn amulet... She’ll never forgive me!” Trixie began to cry. “I don’t want to go to jail!”

Echo could see how shaken and scared Trixie was. He looked around to make sure they were alone and the windows were still closed. “You mistake our intentions, Trixie. We were sent here to investigate, and Twilight is a prime suspect. Only you or Twilight could have cast the spell in the dentist office. Without hard evidence, we can’t convince a court, let alone Celestia, that her pupil is up to something.”

“Wait, you mean you’re not going to lock me up? You do believe me?” Trixie smiled weakly and breathed a small sigh of relief.

“I promise you will not come to harm. We must continue the investigation, until I have more than circumstantial evidence I can’t bring Twilight in as a suspect. If it is her, and we move too hastily, we’ll never figure out what really happened to the citizens of this town.”

In the kitchen, Silver had begun to hyperventilate. Echo and Luna were really here to catch Twilight! She had to get rid of the doll before Luna could discover how it had been made.

Trixie gestured at her legs, which were beginning to cramp from the ropes. “So. . . you are going to leave me tied up until we can find evidence against Twilight?”

“I shall take you back to the hotel when Luna arrives, until then continue this ruse. Say nothing of this conversation to Twilight. I will complete my investigation into Colgate’s fate, and continue to build my cas—”

Movement caught the corner of Echo’s eye “Who is there?”

Silver dropped the doll in her mouth and kicked it under the fridge. She opened the door and pulled out a juice box, taking a deep breath before turning to the door she knew Echo would be standing in.

“Oh!” Silver gasped, dropping the juice box. “Sorry, I just came to get a drink.”

“What are you doing here?” Echo walked towards her, glancing around the room.

“Twilight took me in—my mom left! I mean, she didn’t leave she uh—a stallion. He visited the house and I never saw her again. I was so scared I came here.” Silver was shaking now. She knew all about the Lunar Guard, mostly from campfire stories. One of them had just caught her with a hoof in the cookie jar. Silver felt as if Echo could smell the deceit wafting off of her. It was going to be her fault Twilight got caught.

Echo tilted his head, unsure if the filly had heard their conversation of the investigation.  “I’m Echo, Luna’s guard, and I won’t hurt you little filly.”

“P-please, I just live h-here now,” Silver said. “I don’t want to disappear! Twilight’s protecting me from the monster”

Echo chuckled. “It’s okay, we didn’t mean to startle you. We’re having an adult conversation, and we need you to go back to the guest room, okay?”

“Uh, okay!” Silver grabbed her juicebox and glanced at the refridgerator. Suddenly freezing Lyra and hiding the other doll there didn’t seem like such a good idea. She trotted up to Spike’s room under the gaze of both ponies.

“She seem weird to you too?” Trixie asked.

“Yes, she does,” Echo stated. He followed Silver up, locking the door behind her to make sure she stayed in her room.

“Couldn’t you just read Twilight’s mind? Why waste time looking for evidence? Just prove it’s her once and for all!”

“Trixie, you know it is against the law to probe another’s mind. In this case, her being an alicorn she would be able to match Luna’s power and shield her mind. Even then, violating the law to catch a criminal is defiling the very laws I’m here to uphold. If we can find the evidence to support your claim against Twilight, then she’ll be imprisoned. Until we find the missing ponies, evidence, or a confession, you’re going to have to play your role.”

Trixie gasped as the muzzle flew back towards her, silencing her protest. She stared daggers, before wriggling around to hide herself under the blanket and relieve the tension on the ropes.




	


“Well, this has been a waste of time, Twilight,” Luna said. All the houses Twilight had led her to had proved fruitless.

“The most logical course is to examine the houses in the order the ponies disappeared,” Twilight explained. “Maybe we’ll have better luck tomorrow when we get around to examining the latest disappearances.”

“I get the feeling there won’t be any evidence when we visit them tomorrow.” She glared at Twilight.

“What? All we know so far is ponies are vanishing, and a unicorn was at the dentist. We’ll need some evidence to convict Trixie. When we get back, I’ll interrogate her,” Twilight said.

“That won’t be necessary, Echo will take care of it.”

Twilight stopped in her tracks. “Really? You’re trusting him to get the truth out of her? Luna, he can’t even use magic. I’ll just read Trixie’s mind to prove it’s her.”

Luna stopped, and faced Twilight. “You know that’s a violation of the law. Any tampering with the mind is forbidden.”

So is turning ponies into dolls. “I know you don’t like it, but these are my citizens vanishing. Leave me alone with Trixie for five minutes and I’ll get your confession.”

“No.” Luna turned and began walking back towards the library.

Twilight was furious. It was hard enough continuing her work with every pony running and hiding in fear for their lives. Now, she had to finish her work with Luna and that damnable Echo breathing down her neck. If either of them found physical evidence, it’d link back to Twilight. If they were to interrogate Trixie alone, further suspicion might fall on her.

There was nothing she could do directly to Luna, yet. A dozen plans ran through her mind, from poisoning to an outright attempt to murder her to protect her secrets. None of them seemed satisfactory and had large margins for error.

Until Twilight had a better grasp on the players in this game, she would have to play defensively. As soon as she had an opening, she would go on the offense. She would capture Luna and move the dollhouse to her backup location in the Everfree. Celestia would doubtless come looking for her, but the hidden alcove had already been warded by Twilight in the event she was forced to retreat.

“Twilight?” Luna asked. They had walked from the dentist to the library, and Twilight had barely lifted her eyes off the ground.

“Hmm?” She responded.

“You looked lost in thought. We’re here.” Luna gestured with her head towards the library.

“Thanks.” Twilight pushed the door open and entered. She found Echo drinking some water and sitting at the table. Trixie was curled up against the wall under a blanket. The door closed as Luna entered.

“Shall we start questioning her?” Twilight asked.

She looked at Luna, who was looking at Echo. Before Twilight could turn to face Echo, he had nodded his approval to Luna.

“Yes, we can question her,” Luna said.

“Wake up, Trixie,” Twilight ordered. She levitated the blanket off from around her and removed the muzzle. 

Trixie looked back and forth between Luna and Echo. Twilight didn’t understand why. “You’ll look at me when I’m addressing you. What did you do to Colgate?”

“Me? I didn’t d-do anything!” Trixie said.

“Lies, what were you doing casting black magic in her office?”

Trixie pushed herself up, stretching the ropes taught. “I wasn’t casting it, I tripped the spell that was already there!”

“Hah!”

“Twilight, you should relax. She is not on trial—unless you’ve found some evidence you didn’t share with the rest of us,” Luna said.

“Evidence?” Twilight looked at Luna while pointing back at Trixie. “She was at the crime scene. Nopony else knew Colgate was gone!”

“You did,” Trixie stated.

“Huh?” Twilight spun to face her rival.

“How did you know Colgate was missing? I knew because she missed lunch with me. How did you know to look for her?”

Twilight was flustered, doing her best to hide a look of shock from the others. She ended up biting her cheek and focused on the pain. “She missed our dentist appointment yesterday, it’s in her receptionist’s log. I’m not the one caught red-hoofed, though. Last I heard you live in Manehatten, what are you even doing here?”

Trixie shrank back as Twilight advanced on her. She glanced towards Echo for support, before diverting her gaze. “I—my fans stopped writing. Please, I didn’t do anything wrong, Twilight.”

“I’ll be the judge of tha—” A knock at the door interrupted them.

“Twilight, I think that’s enough,” Luna said. She turned and opened the door.

“Noctis, reporting as ordered.” A Sarosian guard and two dozen other members of the Lunar Guard stood in formation outside.

“Good. Echo will come outside and dispatch you to the remaining crime scenes. You and him will report back to me when done,” Luna ordered. Echo stepped outside, flashing Luna a glance of concern. Luna smiled, “Don’t worry, Echo, I’ll be fine alone for a few minutes.”

Luna closed the door, leaving her and Trixie alone in the room.

“So, Trixie, what really happened? Are you running ponies out of town for revenge? Fillynapping the children for ransom?” Twilight walked over, flaring her wings and staring down in hatred at Trixie. “Are you murdering innocent ponies?”

“Enough,” Luna said. “There’s no need to badger her; she isn’t going anywhere. We’ll resume the investigation tomorrow.”

“I guess you’re right,” Twilight admitted. She hovered the muzzle towards Trixie.

“Wait! Please, can I have something to drink?” Trixie asked.

“Oh, of course, where are my manners?” Twilight dropped the muzzle and trotted into the kitchen. “I’ll be out with some fresh tea in a few minutes.”

She smiled as she realized exactly what she could put in the tea. Even an alicorn wasn’t immune to radiation. They had a higher resistance to it, yet it would be a week or two before a dose of polonium would kill Luna. By then, Twilight would have escaped suspicion. Luna would probably be back in Canterlot. She could get sick and die of radiation poisoning far from her killer.

It would take Trixie too, likely in a day or two. Having them both here with her, alone, gave her the perfect chance to end them. Twilight began boiling the water and opened the cabinet with her toxins in it. Behind the measuring cup and tea saucers was the false panel. Inside was a lead vial of polonium containing enough to kill a pony if ingested, yet not so much as to harm her from being in the same room as it.

The polonium powder was placed into two of the tea cups. If all other plans failed, Luna would still die. Twilight chuckled softly. She had feared it would be harder to protect her dream of a pefect Ponyville from the princesses. If they were half as smart as they claimed to be, they would already have arrested Twilight. They’re so gullible.

Twilight carried the empty tea cups out, pouring the hot tea into all three glasses. She passed one to Luna and one to Trixie. She couldn’t resist smiling widely at Trixie.

“Oh, you can’t levitate your cup? Allow me to help,” Twilight said in a mocking tone.

Trixie’s throat was parched, yet the sudden change in Twilight’s attitude was enough to scare her. “No thanks—I changed my mind,” Trixie said.

Twilight levitated her own cup over and sipped it. She then gestured back to Luna, who had lifted it with her hooves to sip the tea. “Don’t be rude, Luna and I are enjoying the tea. What are you trying to prove by not drinking it?”

Trixie wriggled back a little further, her mouth flopping open as she looked for an excuse. “I—uh it—”

Twilight shoved the cup into Trixie’s mouth, sending tea flying everywhere. Most of it spilled, and Trixie choked, spitting out the remainder.

“Fine, you want to be rude then that’s all you’ll get to drink from me.” Twilight grabbed the muzzle and slammed it onto Trixie’s face, cinching it down as tightly as it could go. Trixie began to cry again as the leather of the device cut into her flesh.

“Twilight Sparkle!” Luna shouted. “You will cease your uncivil behavior at once!”

Twilight sighed and rolled her eyes. “Fine, I’ll put the tea up. At least you had the courtesy to drink your tea.”

She grabbed all the cups and the teapot in her levitation and took them to the sink, setting them down inside. Twilight was pleased to see Luna had finished her tea. Regardless of the outcome of this investigation, she had gotten one princess out of her way. Trotting back into the entryway, she saw Echo and Noctis step in from outside.

“It’s time, Princess, let us retire for the night,” Echo said. He headed over to Trixie, hoisting her onto his back with Noctis’ help. He grabbed his saddle bags, giving them to Noctis.

“Very well, we shall leave you until the morning, Twilight. Sleep well,” Luna added.

“Wait, you should leave Trixie here. She’ll be more comfortable in my guest room,” Twilight said.

“After you offered to read her mind?” Luna said. Echo turned and looked at Twilight in shock. Even Noctis looked uncomfortable. “No, she stays with us. We will not have confessions forced or laws broken to find your missing citizens.”

Twilight frowned and shook her head. “I’ll do whatever it takes to find them,” she said.

“As will I,” Luna replied. She turned and walked out the door, followed by Echo and Noctis.

Waiting a moment to be sure they were gone, she slumped against the nearby wall and exhaled. It had been a long day. Now, she would have to go check on Silver and the dolls to make sure everything was okay. Then she could cuddle up with Big Mac and Lyra to get some well deserved sleep.

How on Equestria am I going to get the rest of the town with two dozen Lunar Guard patrolling it? Perhaps it’s time to cash in and flee. . . but I’d never admit defeat. I’m smarter than them, better than them. I can achieve immortality, and so can my friends.





	

> XIV. Scootaloo the Fugitive
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“This is ridiculous, how much longer are we supposed to wait?” Dash asked.

Vinyl lifted her head up from the park bench she was resting on. “It’s your plan. We have ponies all over town ready to help create a distraction. Octavia and Sprocket are expanding the escape tunnel, so unless you want to wait even longer this is our best bet.”

Dash paced back towards the unicorn. “We’ve been standing around all day! Scootaloo’s sitting on top of the door jam waiting for Twilight to visit. I even had time to tear down all the pictures from that corkboard master plan of hers.”

“Well you can try a sonic rainboom again.” Vinyl chuckled as she stretched out. “Because it totally makes sense how a little plastic toy can break the sound barrier.”

“Come on, I was really close last time! If I had a little more speed I could have broke it, and I’m fairly certain it could lower the force field.”

“Well there you go. Go fly in circles while we wait if you’re bored. What’s the worst that could happen?” Vinyl asked.

“Fine,” Dash spat. She took off and began to circle the town. Stupid unicorns, think they know everything because they can use magic. That force field feels just like a storm system, I’m sure the rainboom could overcharge it and short it out.

After a few lazy circles around town, Dash began to pick up speed. She didn’t know how it was possible, yet her lightweight body still seemed to have most of the strength and speed as her pegasus body did. Twilight had made her too well, giving her realistic wings complete with some form of polyester feathers. Her hair even mimicked her real mane, though her body still carried it’s plastic sheen. At least she’s gotten better at making dolls. Vinyl looks like a chew toy.

Another lap had just been completed around the town when the air pressure changed. Dash assumed her familiar posture, using both hoofs to form a cone and lowering her head behind them. She flattened her hind legs and began tightening muscles, making herself as aerodynamic as possible. Dash had become a missile with wings, and began to beat faster.

The mach cone came on quicker than normal, catching her off-guard. Before she had braced herself, she had burst through the sound barrier. A rainbow of explosions went off behind her, catching the attention of everypony in town. Had Dash not been busy trying to maintain control of her trajectory, she would have witnessed an amazing sight.

The force field that circled the town was transmitting the rainbow outward over it’s entire surface. It was rippling harder with each passing second, until entire sections blinked out of existence. In a brief moment, there was a loud pop and the force field vanished. The dolls began to explore outside the barrier of the town, no longer limited to sneaking through the tunnel beneath it.

Dash came to a stop near the door and landed on the floor, staring back at her handiwork. Already the citizens were celebrating, scattering around the room and wreaking havoc.

“Great work, Dash!” Vinyl yelled. She lifted her sunglasses, “Heads up!” She turned and ran for cover.

Dash turned around, looking out of fear at Scootaloo. The filly was still perched over the door in her familiar spot, but had come to attention, her flank high in the air and her wings spread. She was ready to bolt.

The door slid open and Twilight passed through quickly, her timing impeccable. The door had shut mere seconds later, yet the orange blur had rocketed through the closing door to freedom.

Scootaloo had made it. 

Now it was Dash’s turn to distract Twilight. If she became suspicious a pony was missing, or decided to head back upstairs, Scootaloo didn’t stand a chance. She took as many feathers in her mouth as she could and ripped them out, biting back a scream of pain.

Twilight looked down to see her best friend Dash spitting feathers out. “Dash? What are you doing?” She rushed over and knelt down before her.

The pegasus grabbed another mouthful, leaving the right wing nearly barren. Dash had begun to cry from the pain. “It’s over, I’m not going to let you imprison me! If you won’t let us go, we’ll do the only thing left and rebel!”

“No, stop it!” Twilight used her magic to try and hold Dash still as she continued ripping feathers out. “Please, I don’t want to hurt you. I never wanted that! I want you to be happy. I want to be friends!”

“We can’t be friends, not like this. Now put me down!” Dash shouted. She managed to catch a few more primaries in her teeth, ripping the feathers out. “Look around, nopony wants to be here! We beat your dumb spell and we’ll beat you!”

Twilight glanced around, realizing the shield was down. Ponies all over town were tearing up shrubbery and raising a ruckus. She glanced to her master plan for Ponyville on the wall, detailing the capture order of every pony she knew. The photos were scattered around the floor in pieces.

“Please, Dash, have them stop. This town—I did everything I could to make you all happy! It’s the only way we can live forever!” Twilight sat down and began to cry.

“You need help, you’re crazy—” Dash bit her lip for a second and took a deep breath. The last part of her plan to buy Scootaloo the time needed to find an unlocked window hurt her as much as it would hurt Twilight. “You’re just as crazy as that bitch Cadance!”

“NO!” Twilight screamed, her eyes glowing a sickening shade of green that illuminated the entire basement. “You can’t hurt yourselves, you have to stay perfect! Just like you used to be!” She lit up her horn and filled the basement with energy. Green tendrils sought out and froze all the dolls. In seconds they had all been immobilized, no longer able to hurt themselves or rebel.

Twilight collapsed sobbing on the floor, curling up into a pathetic heap of fur. “Not h-how I r-remember. . .”

 Dash lay on the ground, her wings burning and a tear rolling down her cheek. She’d done it: Scootaloo would have all the time she needed to get help.



	

Scootaloo flew into the window as hard as she could, doing little more than disorienting herself. All the windows on the first floor, including the restroom, had been closed. She wasn’t strong enough to unlock any of them, let alone try to push them open.

She rocketed out of the kitchen and up the stairs. There were two rooms, one which must be Spike’s was locked. She flew into the other which appeared to be Twilight’s room. Her very presence in the room was unnerving. Scootaloo quickly flew to the window and bucked it, before turning to fly back out of the room.

“Hello?” Scootaloo called out. She thought she had heard somepony speaking. The faint noises came from a heavy trunk near the wall. Against her better judgement she landed next to the lock. “Hello?”

“It’s Big Mac. Who’s out there?” he asked.

“It’s Scootaloo.”

“Ya gotta get out before Twilight finds ya! Get to Celestia or Luna and get help!” he pleaded.

“Twilight already found me, but I still escaped. I need a way out of the house but all the windows are locked. I don’t know what to do!”

“You're a doll? Is Apple Bloom okay?” Mac asked.

“Yeah, she’s downstairs.” Scootaloo hovered in front of the keyhole, seeing a little light reflect off Mac’s eye. “If I don’t get help none of us will be okay. Silver took us home and tortured us a couple nights ago. Please you have to help me get out of here.”

“Did ya try the fireplace and stove vents? There’s probably a window in the washroom too. Good luck.” Mac leaned back inside the chest. “The lids too heavy so don’t you dare stick around on my account. You’re our best shot, Scootaloo. Ah always knew you were a good filly.”

Scootaloo wings straightened out and her chest filled with some pride. “Yes sir! I won’t let anypony down.” She flew out of the room and into the loft, where a small wood burning stove sat. It functioned as a fire place, being a small round steel contraption designed to safely heat the treehouse Twilight lived in. 

She squeezed through the grill of the stove, getting covered in a layer of black soot. Just as she finished squeezing through, she fell into even more of the soot, painting herself black. It took her a moment to get her bearings and fly up the exhaust. She followed the pipe until the vent went outside.

Scootaloo hovered in the chilly air, covered in ash during the new moon. On the bright side, there’s no way anypony could spot me now. She flew over towards the train station to wait for the next train.

When she got to the train station, it was packed. There were two dozen ponies—some of the only families still lingering in the town—lined up and loading their luggage onto the train. The whistle sounded twice, and Scootaloo wasted no time flying over above the conductor.

“All aboard! Last train out of Ponyville, heading to Manehatten, Fillydelphia, and Canterlot!” the Conductor shouted.

The train sounded a single long whistle, and two of the ponies working at the train station turned out the lights and flipped the signs over to read “Closed.”

Scootaloo flew into the train and found a nook to hide in. She’d have several hours now to preen herself clean for her meeting with Celestia. I sure hope Canterlot is the first stop. It’d take me months to fly there being this tiny.




	


“I’m sorry, Trixie, but I can’t let you go.” Luna sat down next to the unicorn and tried something Celestia had taught her. She herded the unicorn against her side for a hug. Though Luna did it emotionlessly, the unicorn still seemed to find comfort in it.

“Look, I have two dozen guards loyal to me and capable of disabling an alicorn. Who ever has been kidnapping ponies, we will find them. And if Twilight is involved or responsible, we can’t reveal our hoof too soon. We are monitoring her. If she leaves the library we’ll know. If any ponies vanish while we’re watching her, we’ll have proof she did it. And if no ponies vanish, then we’ll bring her and any evidence we find to trial.”

“How can you risk it? How can you let her run around when she killed Colgate?” Trixie whimpered.

“The trap was not triggered, and I have walked her dreams. I do not believe she has it in herself to kill another pony. She seems to fear loss too greatly. If she is involved it’s more likely she is orchestrating a forced relocation to another town where she believes they are safe, but I still need proof.”

Trixie pulled herself in closer to Luna. She had never been particularly brave or heroic, preferring showmanship and illusion. It seemed if Luna would not set her free to run for her life, her next best choice was to help her solve the case. 

“Luna, what if I volunteer to be bait? Leave me alone with her, but watch and if she does anything you’ll have your proof.”

Luna pushed Trixie away to look her in the eyes. “I cannot ask you to do that.”

“I trust you. You don’t have to ask—”

“She’s right, you know.” Echo sat in a chair near the door, listening to the conversation with his heightened hearing. “It’d be a lot faster and within the law. Everypony knows you two are scared to break even the smallest law.”

“Watch your tongue, Echo,” Luna commanded.

“Yes, your majesty. You know I’m right. Would you perform such a ruse were the suspect Spitfire or Photo Finish? This whole charade to spare Celestia’s pupil will not be received well by your citizens.”

“And pray tell, what would you do in my position, Echo?” Luna asked.

“Easy, I’d throw her in the dungeon and shackle her to a wall with her magic dampened. If the disappearances stop, you’ve caught the fillynapper,” Echo explained.

“And how would you convince Celestia to leave her shackled to a wall? Without proof, she’d free Twilight. If she were responsible, we have revealed our hoof and gained nothing. Twilight would vanish and continue in doubled secrecy. Or worse, were Twilight not behind it, we would have destroyed the most powerful ally we have.”

“The Discord theory again?” Echo sighed and shook his head. “Just because you two haven’t seen him in months doesn’t mean he’s behind it. Hell, if you trapped me in stone for a thousand years I’d get as far away from you as possible too. He’s probably on a beach in Zebrica.”

“You would tempt me down the same path I trot a thousand years ago? To let emotion and fear influence my judgement? To assume guilt before innocence?” Luna asked.

“No.” Echo leaned forward in his chair. “I. . . don’t know, but I hate sitting here doing nothing. Even your illusion spells have gained us nothing.”

“I also hate doing nothing, but you will continue to do as I command.”

Echo chuckled. “Of course, that was never in question. You know I love to play Nightmare’s advocate.”

Luna blushed and slapped her hoof to her forehead. “Damn it, Echo, what would I do without you?”

“Probably wind up trapped in a basement somewhere.”

“Uh. . . sorry to interrupt, but can I go to bed and get this limiter off then?” Trixie asked.

Luna glanced over to the unicorn that she had forgotten about. “Oh, of course, but the limiter stays on. It’s for your own protection, and if I recall correctly you just volunteered as bait.”

Trixie swallowed a lump in her throat. “Heh, I guess I did.” She walked over to a pile of blankets on top of a mattress on the floor. The guards had brought it in for her to sleep on, mere feet from the bed Luna would sleep on. “I don’t suppose you could give me something to help me sleep? I get a feeling I’m gonna need it for tomorrow.”

Luna smiled. “I thought you’d never ask.” Her horn glowed, and Trixie began to glow a matching hue of blue. She got comfortable on the bed before passing out into a deep sleep.

“Now, Echo, let us discuss your insubordination.”




	


A sharp pain woke Twilight from her sleep. A pinching in her shoulder gave way to a numb leg. She rolled over onto her back, crushing one of her wings. Her hazy mind screamed in protest, leading her to find a comfortable position on her stomach.

Her right forehoof felt like pins and needles were going through it, tingling all over from sleeping on it wrong. She waited for feeling to return, rubbing the crust out of her eyes with her other forehoof. Twilight’s legs were all sore, leading her to wonder how long she had been sleeping on the floor.

Why am I on the floor? Twilight’s eyes forced themselves open, revealing a tattered Dash doll and a scattering of dolls across the town. Why would I go to bed in the dollhouse?

Memories came back to her of hearing a noise on her way down to the basement to check on the dolls. She opened the door and found ponies everywhere, including outside the magical barrier. The barrier went down, and Dash was tearing her feathers out. They must have been trying to escape.

She stood up, shaking the last of the numbness out of her right foreleg. Her eyes fell on Dash. With a flash of her horn, the Pegasus began to glow. Loose feathers began to reattach to her wings, until she had fixed her friend. Twilight then restored her movement to her.

“Dash, what hap—did you really mean what you said?” Twilight asked.

“That we’ll keep rebelling and don’t want to be here? Yeah, and sooner or later Celestia will come and stop you,” Dash said.

“Luna is here now, and she hasn’t stopped me. I meant, what you said about me and Cadance.”

Dash sighed, “No. But I had to. You cried yourself asleep and were down here all night. Luna’s probably kicking down the door upstairs to find out what happened to you. It’s over.” Dash flew away towards where the barrier used to be. “We can go anywhere in the basement we want now. You made it clear you don’t want me damaging my wings, so you can’t stop us.”

Twilight looked around, seeing the scattered dolls. “Well, you still can’t get through the basement door. Even if you did, the steps are eight inches tall each. Only you or Scootaloo could escape, so I just have to bind your wings. Then, you can’t destroy them or escape.” Twilight laughed and headed over towards her workbench.

Dash followed her over, maintaining what she felt was a safe distance. “That won’t do you any good.”

“Sure it will.” She grabbed Dash, freezing her to slip a thick rubber band around her torso. She pinned her wings down to her side with a few such rubber bands, trapping them in place. Twilight then set her down on the ground to unfreeze her.

“Hey! You know Pegasi hate having their wings pinned,” Dash complained.

“Tell me where Scootaloo is now, so I can pin her wings.”

Smiling weakly, Dash started to back up from her captor. “No.”

Twilight advanced on Dash, looming over her. “Dash, where did she go? You know I can find her anywhere down here, and if I don’t you better have a good explanation.”

She began to walk around the room, using her magic to open houses and gather ponies in the town square. Dash followed her around, trying to discourage her. “Look, she’s just hiding in town from you. I’ll tell her not to try anything.”

“No, Dash, she’s not here. Neither is Octavia, Vinyl, Sprocket, Rarity, Sweetie, or Apple Bloom. Is Scootaloo hiding underground in their little cave too?” Twilight turned and glared at Dash, who looked comical with the red rubber bands circling her Wonderbolt’s flightsuit.

“Uh, yeah, she’s down there. Better luck next time?” Dash giggled sheepishly, trying to diffuse some of the building tension. She bumped her back into Sugarcube Corner, and stared up at Twilight. Her shadow was now covering the entire building and all hints of humor had long since fled the alicorn.

“Then bring her up here, or I’ll tear the floor apart and dig her up.”

Dash met her gaze. “No.”

“I knew it,” Twilight spat. She jabbed her hoof down on Dash, pinning her against the wall of the bakery. “That whole ruse last night—Scootaloo flew out the door. You planned this all along, didn’t you?”

Looks like it’s time to face her wrath. 

“UGH!” Twilight screamed in frustration, veins bulging on her neck. She froze Dash and stomped loudly over towards the prison. “Fuck you, Dash! Do you have any idea how much your words hurt? And all for some stupid escape attempt. Damn it! I’ve done everything for you. I didn’t have to bring that damn orphan down here for you! I didn’t have to make you immortal!”

Twilight levitated the lid of the prison off, and opened the steel lockbox she had used on the first night to punish Bon Bon. It was pitch black when closed and large enough to hold most of the town populace in cramped quarters.

“All I wanted was to be happy, but no! Just like when Cadance died, I only get to be happy doing what you want to do. I can’t be happy reading Daring Do with you; I have to be happy doing stunts! I can’t be happy studying; I have to go to Pinkie’s Parties! No one ever gave a shit how I feel. I wish I’d never met you!”

Twilight levitated the pile of dolls from town square over and slammed them into the punishment box. She closed the steel lid and had to force it closed to accommodate the nearly thirty ponies crammed inside. Once it had strained and bent a bit into position, she latched it shut and locked it. Twilight then sent a magical pulse through the box, animating all the dolls trapped inside, before storming out of the basement.

She stormed up the stairs and began searching the house for Scootaloo. Twilight had made sure to lock every window, even the vent in the bathrooms, in case the unthinkable happened and a pony escaped. Now, there was a fugitive hiding somewhere in the house and she had to catch them before they reached help.

After scouring the bottom floor, she stomped up the stairs, steam fuming from her nose and ears. Her eyelid was twitching and she was nearing another breakdown. Already she could barely control the rage that had overtaken her so many times in the past. She slowed down and stopped in front of her room.

Breathe in, breathe out. Twilight held her foreleg to her chest as she inhaled, then straightened it out as she exhaled. It was an old trick Cadance had taught her. Since Luna was in town, she could not afford to be angry or hasty and risk being discovered.

It’s okay. Even if Scootaloo got out, Luna’s guards wouldn’t know what to make of it. If they did, well I had better keep the spells ready for the contingency plan. I just need to buy time, I poisoned Luna and Trixie. I’m going to save everypony from themselves. I’m doing the right thing.

It’s going to be okay.

Twilight had managed to bring her rage under control and walked into her bedroom. She had passed the loft, and the bedroom window was the last one to check. It was locked. “Good, now I just need to relax with Lyra and Mac for a minute to calm down. . .”

She glanced at the window sill where they had been sitting, and over at the bed. She trotted over and checked Lyra’s dollhouse and her dresser. They were nowhere to be found. Six feet away an unaware Mac was pinned in her trunk with her winter clothes, oblivious to the unstable mare until he heard the door to the room slam shut.

Lyra wouldn’t run away. Maybe Mac did and he had to dispose of Lyra, but the doors and windows are still locked. . . Maybe Silver has seen them. Twilight marched over to Silver’s room and banged on the door. She tried to open it and found it was locked from the outside.

“What the hay?” Twilight said.

The sound of hoofsteps inside grew louder until she heard Silver at the door. “Twilight, Luna was Ec—”

Twilight unlocked the door and flung it open, sending the helpless filly sprawling into the middle of the floor. “Where are Lyra and Mac? Did they escape too?” She glared at the filly, struggling to control herself. She hated losing control, yet craved a release for her frustration at Dash and Scootaloo.

“Wha. . .” Silver’s mouth fell open and her eyes went wide in fear. Twilight’s mane was in disarray, each hair reaching out in a different direction. Her fur was matted from sweat, and large knots had formed in her tail. Wisps of green energy were radiating from her, a malice the likes of which she’d never seen in the alicorn. Silver’s heart seemed to freeze and she realized she was wetting herself.

“Where. Are. They?”

“It. . . I wanted to pla—I stuck Mac in the trunk because he tackled me! I was just gonna play with him but Lyr—”

Twilight advanced on the terrified filly. “If you hurt Lyra there won’t be a circle of Tatarus deep enough for you!”

Silver burst into tears and wondered where the sweet princess had gone, the one she had looked up to. “I di—L-lyra in—freezer. . .”

“I told you they were off limits!”

Silver threw herself prostrate at Twilight’s hooves, clenching her eyes shut tightly. “S-sorry b-but Luna k-know—”

In a sharp flash the rage overtook Twilight. She didn’t know what kind of “games” Silver had played with her two best friends, but it didn’t matter. In that moment Twilight knew it was a mistake to think she could have an apprentice.

It was a mistake to ever think she could be happy.

With a whimper, the small earth filly felt a chill run down her back and daggers of plastic pierce through her. Her lungs and ribs became stiff in the embrace of the plastic spreading over her. She opened her mouth to scream and no sound came out. Silver looked up at Twilight in horror, trying to beg forgiveness. I’m so sorry, Twilight, but Luna knows! She knows about you!

Twilight watched as the pathetic wretch writhed in agony, no doubt begging for forgiveness even in death. She had promised Silver immortality and friendship, and the filly would have it, but not as an equal. She was just another doll now. A filly to join the others until they came to their senses and paid Twilight the respect and love she deserved.

Silver felt a weight pushing down on her and bones snapping. The magic was being cast far too strongly and quickly, turning her into a doll violently. It ended nearly as soon as it started, and everything below her neck went numb. Still, Silver wanted to prove her loyalty. She continued to mouth her warnings to Twilight until at the last second the plastic covered her lips.

Twilight lifted the small filly doll up off the ground. No doubt Luna would stop by to resume the investigation soon, and she had to get ready. So far she had convinced the fool that Trixie was behind everything, and would have to continue until she could either capture Luna, kill her, or relocate her base of operations.

She left the room with Silver floating behind her and heard a knock at the door. “Twilight, it’s Luna. You can open up.”

Twilight quickly ran down the basement steps and checked the illusions and wards around the basement. She couldn’t raise the barrier or cast any new spells for fear of Luna sensing it, yet the door and steps should prevent any more foolish escape attempts.

She animated Silver and flung her into the basement, slamming the door shut and locking it. 

Silver stood up and screamed “LUNA KNOWS!” It was too late, and she looked around. There was not a single pony in sight. The entire town was empty. Somewhere in town was her mother, and she sprinted straight to her home in the hopes of finding her there.

She climbed the steps into her home but her mother was not there. She checked every room, winding up in her bedroom. It was perfect down to the last detail, it even had a replica of her own dollhouse on the floor and several tiny replica dolls.

Silver left the house to continue her search. “Stupid Twilight, I was only trying to help. It’s not my fault Lyra and Mac can’t take a joke. And now I bet Luna is gonna get you for being so stupid. Why doesn’t anypony ever listen to me?”

“Ah’ll listen to ya,” a voice offered.

“Huh?” Silver spun around to see Apple Bloom approaching her. “What? Where’d you come from?”

“Underground. Y’all have a lot ta learn ‘bout bein’ a doll.”

“I think the first lesson should be about pain,” Sweetie spat.

Silver turned and saw Sweetie Bloom approaching. “What? Dolls don’t really feel pain.”

Apple Bloom threw a lasso towards her, narrowly missing. “Yes, we do. And now it’s our turn to play. This time, ah think the witches are gonna hang the princess in a tree.”

“You can’t! It’s wrong to torture ponies!” Silver screamed.

“You’re right, but there’s no law against torturing stuck up dolls,” Sweetie stated.

“No!” Silver turned and ran around the corner. She collided with Vinyl, who was flanked by the other resistance leaders. They had all taken shelter in the faraday cage and not been frozen and locked up with the others.

“I heard everything, Darling. We all did,” Rarity stated. “Looks like Luna is here, and she’s onto Twilight. How long do you think she’ll last?”

Silver backed against a nearby wall as they circled around her. “But she’s more powerful! I’ll warn her and she’ll win and set me free! It’s just a misunderstanding, she’ll still make me a princess!”

“That’s where you’re wrong,” Vinyl said. She walked up with the rope Apple Bloom had brought, cornering the filly. “You won’t be warning anypony about anything for a long time.”












> XV. A Lavender Alicorn
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Are my legs still there? I need to move them, I have to move them. No, they can’t move, they’re not there. It’s so cold, did they fall off? I need to twitch, kick, something!

Lyra felt the familiar cycle of despair, until it finally peaked. She let the numbness claim her and her mind drifted into oblivion. No fear nor hope, no conscious thought at all. The nothingness consumed her and offered a respite until Twilight found her.

The door opened up and Lyra didn’t want to risk getting her hopes up. She had only barely fallen into a trance and surely would panic if she started to think. Is that—no, don’t think. . .

A purple face came down and said something, but Lyra hadn’t been listening. It’s Twilight! I’m saved! Her hoof reached in, pushing Lyra’s cup back into the far corner of the freezer, before the door shut.

What? No! NO! Twilight, please! Lyra thrashed with all her might, not moving an inch. All she accomplished was causing her fears to increase tenfold. I’m not moving, why aren’t I moving? I can’t see my legs—oh Celestia, they’re gone! I can’t move them, I’m as good as dead!






“Here you are, Luna. Some ice for your orange juice,” Twilight said.

Luna watched as Twilight levitated the ice into her drink. “Thank you, but you need not serve me. I could have gotten it myself.”

“Heh, it’s no problem. I better go clean the refrigerator now, it looked horrible in there.”

Luna looked up from the orange juice in her hooves. Twilight had offered them breakfast, but they had declined in favor of the oats they had brought with their rations. “Very well. You’re ready to investigate the remaining houses then? A few household chores can surely wait.”

Twilight headed back towards the sink where her offering of breakfast lay, waiting to be cleaned. “Oh I insist; I can’t just leave my house a mess.”

“She’s seemed distracted all morning,” Echo whispered.

“Stick to the plan.” Luna glared at him.

“And I really must take a shower. I don’t see why I can’t just meet you at Pinkie’s in an hour.” Twilight trotted back out of the kitchen levitating her own glass of orange juice. “All this rush—it’s not like the evidence is going anywhere.”

“Sorry, Twilight, but you had all night. The investigation begins now, with or without you.”

Damn it. “Alright.” Twilight drank her orange juice and levitated her saddlebags on. “Let’s get started, I’ll lock up after you two.” She gestured them outside. Once they had walked out, Twilight glanced back at the freezer and wiped a tear from her cheek. “Let’s hurry up and get this over with.” She closed the door behind her and stepped out into the morning sun.

“I couldn’t agree with you more.” Luna met Echo’s curious gaze. “I’m feeling a bit queasy,” she whispered.

Echo was about to reply when Twilight trotted up. “Alright, let’s go to Sugarcube Corner first and spread out from there,” she said. Without waiting, Twilight headed for Pinkie’s house.

“Very well,” Luna stated. She nodded to Noctis who was waiting across the street before her and Echo left.

Twilight walked briskly down the road. Of all the crime scenes, Pinkie’s was likely to have the most evidence. Fortunately, with the absence of the cakes and the amount of overturned furniture it would be easy to pass off as a robbery. If that worked, it’d be downhill for the rest of the day. If it didn’t, then Twilight would know it was time to implement the final solution for Luna: a recursive spell she had discovered in a forbidden tome, that would shift to overcome any attempt at a counter spell. If she was able to cast it properly, as she had to re-write several illegible pages.

“She sure is in a hurry,” Luna said.

“Yes, we’ll have some evidence soon enough, either from Noctis or the crime scenes,” Echo replied.

Two Lunar Guard snapped to attention in front of Sugarcube corner. “No pony has been near the house in the night, princess.” The guard offered a salute to Luna.

“At ease. Twilight, you may proceed inside,” Luna said.

Twilight walked through the door and waited for them to come inside. The house was quiet and the normally busy kitchen was empty. To their right was the room the fight had occurred in. “It looks like they’ve been robbed.” She pointed to the room.

Echo went in first, surveying the damage. There were some cupcakes in the trash, frosting spread on the floor, and a table on it’s side. A plank of wood had been torn from a chair in the room, and several decorations had been knocked to the ground. The window shutters were closed, and broken glass was scattered on the floor. It looked like the glass had been hastily swept under the nearby dresser.

“Where are the Cakes?” Luna asked.

“They moved out. It was just Pinkie. Somepony must have robbed the house, or worse, once she was all alone,” Twilight explained.

“It wasn’t a robbery,” Echo said. Twilight glared at him, and he continued. “A robber wouldn’t have thrown the cupcakes away. From the frosting on the floor, it looks like they were on the table during the struggle. Now, they’re in that trash can. Also, the glass over here seems to have been swept away. It is possible some blood remains on the glass or wood..”

Twilight fought the twitching in her eyelid, managing to maintain her composure. “Interesting, well let’s go check the rest of the house.”

Luna headed upstairs and Twilight waited for Echo. “You go ahead,” he said. “I’m not finished here.”

Twilight shot him another look of contempt before leaving him. She got the feeling he was much smarter than the so called “Princess of the Night.” She caught up with Luna and lead her into the master bedroom. Before leaving, Twilight had hastily visited each room in the house. She had flung their clothes and blankets all over the floor, and overturned furniture.

“It does look like they were robbed, if all the rooms are overturned like this,” Luna said.

“Yeah. Say, has Echo seemed a little odd to you?” Twilight asked.

“How so?”

Twilight walked down to the next room and looked inside at the crib laying on it’s side. “He seems a little—well, tribalist. He’s always giving me odd looks and I could swear I’ve heard him mutter a few things.”

Luna smiled. “Not everything is as it appears. The Sarosians have long hated unicorns. They were the primary ones to hunt them down and exterminate them after Nightmare Moon was banished. It was brutal, their magic helping eliminate 95% of the race. It was a near genocide, one that not even Celestia would admit. She had it purged from records and now the few Sarosian’s left serve Luna.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow in interest. That was certainly passionate of her, and it did answer her question. Echo was very likely going to try and prove it was her out of tribalism, and Luna would not be an impartial judge. She clearly had feelings for Echo, if not their entire race.

The odds were beginning to stack against her. With her primary co-investigator and guard acting so odd, and the Lunar Guard with a millennia-old score to settle against unicorns, it wasn’t looking good. Twilight considered her options. Luna had an expiration date, and if she tried to arrest her with so many guards around she would succeed. She would have to use her trust against her, and take her and Echo out at the same time. Or, she could abandon ship and flee at full strength, and risk having two princesses hunting her down. Maybe I’m over-reacting, they still have no proof. Nothing but the doll. Damn, why couldn’t Silver have done something useful instead of tortuing my friends? As soon as Luna scans that doll I’m finished.

Twilight made up her mind. By the end of the day they’d have a saddlebag full of evidence including a receptionist doll. She would have to make her move tonight at dinner.








Noctis eventually gave up on subtlety. Twilight had the library locked down tight, so he flew up to the attic and used his voice to shatter the glass. The shriek was at the exact frequency needed to create resonance and shatter the glass. To any passerby, it would sound like someone had been singing a particularly high note.

Noctis made his way through the dusty attic and downstairs. His first stop was the bedroom that belonged to Twilight. Judging by it’s size and the small dollhouse on the stand, it must be her room. There was even a small Smarty Pants doll in a corner, covered in cobwebs.

He went over to the nearby trunk and tried to open it, but it was locked. He quickly peeked into the closet and a few of the dresser drawers. There were the standard clothes one would expect to find, as well as some questionable items such as bit gags.

Exiting the room brought him to the next bedroom. It was filled with torn up comic books and a few posters with Dragons and Wonderbolts on them. This was likely her assistant’s room. Noctis had heard she lived with a dragon, which begged one question: Where is he? Surely Luna and Echo have asked Twilight about it already. I’ll make sure to remind them, just in case. Now, back to the search for evidence.

He found a filly’s saddlebags in the corner as well as a porcelain doll, hairbrush, and silver mirror. The bed looked like it had been used recently, but there was nothing else of interest in the room. He checked the closet, finding an old, beat up wooden dollhouse. Judging by all the toys, this wasn’t the dragon’s room but belonged to a little filly.

Heading downstairs he got a strange feeling when he looked towards a certain bookshelf. Each time he glanced at it, his eyes ended up resting elsewhere. It was as if he could not look particularly at a certain bookshelf. Noctis wasn’t even sure if it was there, since he couldn’t look directly at it. 

Recalling his training from basic, he looked away towards the window and turned his head. Out of the corner of one eye, he slowly peeked towards the illusion. He was rewarded with the sight of an ordinary looking bookshelf.

Noctis sighed, another interesting footnote in his investigation. Locating a hidden door would have been just the kind of break he needed to get promoted. He headed into the kitchen, upset at his utter failure. If there was some evil lair in this library, he had failed to find it.

He looked around, wondering where the glasses were so he could get a drink. He reached up to where he thought they’d be, revealing a mostly empty cabinet with a measuring glass. Noctis tried the next cabinet over, which had plenty of glasses, and almost shut the door.

He opened the cabinet on his right. It was about one foot deep. He looked in the cabinet on his left. It was two feet deep.

Noctis brought a nearby chair over and climbed up, putting the measuring cup on the counter. The wooden cabinet was smaller on the inside than it should have been. He tapped lightly on it, and was rewarded with a faint hollow sound. It appeared to be a false backing.

The cabinet had a lip, and it looked like he needed to just push in the false backing a little to turn it and pull it out. He pushed in the bottom with both hooves until he heard a click. A cloud of yellow dust shot out into his face.

Noctis flinched, falling back onto the ground and trying to brush the substance off. After a moment in shock, he began to laugh. Probably just a little dust, but I better get some water to wash this off.

He started to head for the sink and noticed it was burning his eyes and face. He decided to grab some baking soda, just incase he needed to neutralize some sort of acid on his face. Wait, acid? Powder?

Noctis froze. Several conflicting thoughts ran through his head. If that was a booby trap I could have seconds to live. What to do first? Induce vomiting? Neutralize the acid? Water? He ran to the sink and started flushing his eyes out. His throat and lungs were also burning now, and the contact with the water intensified the burning on his skin.

He rubbed at his face again, trying to get rid of the powder. The entire room seemed to be smelling like garlic, and now his forelegs were burning. All manner of training he had received to be in the Lunar guard was failing him. No race on Equestria would dare use a chemical attack. How am I supposed to fix this?

His watery eyes were obscuring his vision and he soon felt the urge to cough. Blood splattered into the sink and poured down into the drain. He could feel large blisters forming all over his face and forelegs, and his breathing was becoming labored.

Noctis knew then what the powder was, and knew he would be lucky to last more than another minute. He turned around from the sink, and stood up proud.

This is the proof Luna needs. When she gets back and finds me, she can arrest that bitch. He saluted the empty kitchen. “Even in death, I still serve.”

He collapsed on the ground, blood dripping out of his eyes, nose, and ears.







“I don’t know what you hope to find at Colgate’s house. Given the evidence at the dental office, she likely was abducted or killed there,” Twilight said.

The three ponies walked up to an eggshell white house near the edge of town. Colgate lived alone there and for some reason Echo had been determined to visit it. “Not all clues are found at the scenes of a crime.”

“Still, we’ve been running all over town all day and found nothing. Meanwhile, your main suspect is sitting in a hotel room having a staring contest with your guards. Let’s just send Trixie to trial. The fact no one has vanished while she’s been captured seems proof enough for me.”

Luna flashed a glare at Twilight, shaking her head and grunting in disbelief. “I’m sure you’d like that. First mind reading, now skirting Equestrian law—”

Luna was interrupted by Echo. “Don’t be too harsh, princess, she hasn’t done anything wrong,” he explained.

Twilight glanced between the two. “You two have seemed a little off all day. Are you alright?”

They shot each other a glance. “I’m fine—simply exhausted. I am not used to being awake in the day,” Luna said. “Probably why I’m feeling a tad queasy.”

Twilight smiled at that last remark. “Well, then why don’t we hurry up and head back for some rest? It’s been a long day.”

Echo pushed open the door and walked inside. The house was immaculately clean and they split up to begin searching in. 

Twilight walked circles around the bottom floor, impatiently huffing and muttering under her breath. Luna spent most of her time closely examining things with her hooves. Twilight still suspected she was up to something. Luna almost seemed to be taking orders from her guard.

Echo had headed upstairs. He had been discretely collecting evidence all day. Given what Trixie said, there should be some teeth here somewhere. They would prove Bon Bon was killed before the explosion, or at least her teeth were removed first.

He began looking through all the drawers and the closet in the bedroom. There were no teeth anywhere in sight. Walking over to the bed an odd thought occurred to him. If I were a dentist, would I believe in the tooth fairy? Surely she didn’t. . . Echo lifted up the pillow and saw a small box resting between the mattress and the headboard of the bed. He opened it up and saw several teeth showing some scorch marks. Jackpot.

Echo slid the box into his saddlebag. Now he had the proof he needed to convince Celestia. He just needed to consult with Luna and Noctis before closing the net.

“You done in here?” Twilight asked.

Echo spun around and then marched out of the room. “Yeah, nothing here.” After passing her he formed a small grin.

“Let’s get back home and get some sleep. I have a feeling we could all use it,” Luna offered.

The trio headed downstairs and out the door. Throughout town, the Lunar Guard had been patrolling and guarding the scenes of the disappearances. Many of the remaining towns ponies finally had the courage to walk around again.

Derpy had resumed her mail route, swooping down to chat. “Hey, Twilight. Isn’t it great to have the guard in town?”

“Yeah, it sure is,” Twilight said. She fought the urge to roll her eyes, lest Derpy think she was mocking her.

“I’ve got lots of mail for you. I was feelin’ kinda sick and then with all the stuff going on, I just didn’t want to start the mail route again.”

“As long as you’ve started it now. I can’t cover for you with Mayor Mare anymore.”

Derpy frowned and looked away. “Sorry, I just don’t know what went wrong. I started vomiting out of nowhere. Can I make it up to you?”

“Just stop by my house and drop off my mail later. I’m sure one of Zecora’s books will help me brew a good remedy for your nausea,” Twilight said. She turned left to head down towards the library, leaving Derpy hovering behind her and Luna.

“Okay, thanks!” Derpy flew off to deliver the rest of the mail.

Echo noticed a mare walking several fillies down the street. “Why are so many fillies out in the evening? I told the guards to spread word of the curfew.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” she said. “My name is Cheerilee. The parents who haven’t moved out want their kids to continue going to school. I escort every single one home in the evening, and keep a written log.”

“Be that as it may, Miss Cheerilee, school is hereby canceled,” Luna said. “Until you hear otherwise, the children should stay with their parents.”

“B-but princess—”

“No buts,” Twilight interrupted. “Why don’t you and Mayor Mare stop by tomorrow morning and we can discuss this over breakfast.”

Cheerilee looked between the two princesses, then down at the ground. “All right.”

The party continued their walk towards the library. Excellent, keeping up the facade. Luna doesn’t suspect a thing. It’s too bad I can’t capture them, I need to be seen having normal dealings with them. Twilight took to the air, flying gently towards the library. Her hooves were aching from the long day marching around town. And I hope this comes to an end soon, with all these guards around I won’t get any work done. I’ll get them all eventually.

“Well,” Twilight said, “want to come in for tea?”

“A generous offer, I have much to discuss with Luna, so we decline,” Echo said. Luna glanced down at the guard who had spoken for her.

“Yes, we do,” Luna added.

“Very well, I’ll see you two in the morn—” Twilight stopped when she rounded the last corner to the library. “Why do I have guards posted at my front door?”

Luna frowned and shot a glance at Echo. They had posted them to cover for Noctis during his investigation of Twilight’s home. Why are they still here? “You’re a high priority target. The guards shall remain posted at your door until the investigation is over,” Luna said. “It is royal law that a princess must be accompanied by two guards at all times.”

“And yet you’ve had one this whole time,” Twilight spat. “I don’t want your guards or your laws.”

“You don’t have a choice, Twilight Sparkle. You will obey the law,” Echo said.

The two princesses looked at him with fire in their eyes, yet he stood his ground. “Fine,” Twilight said. “As long as they don’t burst in while I'm trying to take a bath.” She stomped up the steps and through the door into the library, unlocking and relocking the door in a blur.

“Guards, let nopony in or out without logging it,” Echo ordered. They saluted and returned to attention.

“Come, Luna,” Echo said. 







eight thousand nine hundred and ninety seven. . . eight thousand nine hundred ninety eight. . . eight thousand nine hund—hundred—eight thousand. . . Lyra could feel her insides churning against the cold. She’d been here too long, Twilight must be dead. She was going to spend the rest of her unnatural life in an ice cube. 

It was too much to bear. She struggled to the point of pain, cursing her body that seemed content to feel only the negative emotions. She still couldn’t move a hair’s width in any direction. I quit. It was a simple command in her brain. Lyra didn’t want to suffer anymore, surrendering herself back into oblivion.







Once they had trotted away from the library, Luna spoke up. “For a moment there, I thought you were going to blow our cover.”

“She’s not stupid, she already knows we suspect her,” Echo said. “Besides, while she is busy with that, I have gathered the evidence I will need to convince Celestia.”

“What did you find?” Luna asked.

Echo walked ahead, nearing the hotel. “Once we’re inside.” They proceeded upstairs and entered their room. What they saw was a shock.

Trixie and the guard they had left were frozen still, staring at each other.

“What the hay?” Luna said. She walked over and saw them barely moving, and neither would break eye contact. “I demand to know what’s going on!”

The guard began to tremble, not wanting to disobey an order. The hints of a smile crept onto Trixie’s face as she fought to stay at attention.

Echo burst out laughing, drawing a confused look from Luna. “What is this madness,” she said.

The guard blinked, before deflating in defeat.

“Hah! Trixie wins again! Now you owe me 50 bits. Trixie never loses a staring contest!,” she said.

“Damn,” Dusk said. “Sorry, Princess, we uh—I placed a friendly wager or three.”

Luna chuckled gently realizing her guard had been playing a foal’s game to pass the time.. “Very well. Now, Echo, what evidence did we get today?’

“Let’s see,” Echo said. He took a seat at the table and began pulling evidence out of the saddlebags. He was soon joined by Trixie, Luna, and Dusk. “The teeth you mentioned, Trixie, from Colgate.”

“You found them?” Trixie asked.

“Yes, and they do show signs of fire damage. I’m not a dentist, but I believe if Bon Bon were at the explosion, more of her would have survived including her mandible. It is highly likely these teeth were planted. Otherwise, why were no teeth from Lyra found either?”

Trixie smiled and bounced in her chair. “Oh this is great news—now you know I’m telling the truth!”

“Calm down, Trixie,” Luna said sternly.

Echo continued on. “We also have some pink and lavender hairs from Sugarcube Corner, a bloody glass fragment, and the circumstantial evidence that it did not look like a robbery. Fluttershy’s cottage was abandoned with no attempt to feed or let the animals out of the house. Vinyl’s house showed signs of struggle—” Echo slammed a hoof on the table, causing the other ponies to flinch.

“What is it?” Luna asked.

“Damn it! There was the doll from the dentist in here. I didn’t have a chance to examine it. All the dental tools had been sterilized—it was our only hope of linking Twilight to that crime scene.”

“Relax, you’ve still got your trump card,” Dusk said. He motioned over to Trixie.

“Um yes. . . about that. I’m not so sure I want to be the bait anymore,” Trixie said.

“You’ll be perfectly fine,” Echo consoled. He rubbed a hoof on her shoulder in a friendly gesture. “I’ll protect you.”

“Wait,” Luna asked. “Noctis was to break into Twilight’s house and he’s not back. We may need to take more direct action to force Twilight’s hoof at this point. If Noctis didn’t report, it means he’s captured or dead, and our hand is reveal—” Luna stopped to cough, and nearly vomited. Her mane seemed to flicker for a moment.

“What’s going on?” Trixie asked, a hint of panic in her voice.

Echo smiled warmly. “It’s okay, Trixie, the disguise has been taxing. I’ll explain the next step to you while my loyal guard gets some rest,” he said.






Twilight knew as soon as she stepped in the house something was wrong. The guards had been posted at her door not to protect her library, but to control her. Clearly Luna was onto her. She headed directly into the kitchen to free Lyra, and her fears were confirmed.

In a pile of his own fluids lay a dead Lunar Guard. She looked at the cabinet where her poisons were stored. The dumb pony had triggered the booby trap. The false backing in the cabinet had to be lifted with magic, not pushed in. Now she knew Luna was onto her and the disappearance of a guard pony would not go unnoticed. 

Twilight twitched involuntarily before firing up her horn. She leaned over and focused her energy on him. Slowly she triggered a chain reaction: the water molecules throughout his body vibrated in response to her black magic, separating into hydrogen and oxygen. A magical spark caused the body to spontaneously combust. She then controlled the reaction until he had incinerated himself completely. It had become second nature to her ever since mastering black magic. Offensive spells now seemed simple in comparison.

The blood was expunged from the wood floor, and broken into it’s base components—iron, sulfur, carbon—and Twilight turned to the freezer. She flung the door open, and levitated Lyra out. She took the cup to the sink and began running hot water over it, using her magic to evenly and quickly disperse the ice.

“Come on, Lyra, hang in there,” Twilight said. Tears began to roll down her cheek as her mind turned to her loss, her failures, of the past. “I can’t lose you too, not now. Anypony but you. . .”

The ice continued to thaw and slipped out of the glass. Twilight felt her heartbeat speed up, just as it had when she found Cadance. This was a pony she loved and that loved her, and all she could picture was having to bury her.

“Hurry up!” she spat at the thawing ice. Finally it was thin enough she used a flash of magic to evaporate the last inch of ice. She levitated Lyra onto the counter and began to surround her in her magic. “Please, Lyra.”

Lyra finally felt at peace. All her pain had left and she was floating through a vast nothingness. It was serene, a place where not even the cold could reach her. She began to hear voices in the darkness, calling out to her. A warmth began to radiate from her, and Lyra struggled to get away from it. She didn’t want to wake up back in the ice. She was finally at peace. “Lyra, please,” the voice cried. “I can’t lose you.”

Lyra looked around the darkness for the voice. It was fading from black to brown, and the familiar sensation of cool air across her skin reached her. For a moment, she remembered what it was like to be alive.

“Lyra?” Twilight asked. She saw the doll begin to twitch as the brittle plastic returned to room temperature. “Lyra!”

Twilight ran up to her room, flinging open the trunk she recalled Silver locking Mac in, and hovered them both to her bed. She got in the covers and pulled Mac against her chest, sandwiching the cold Lyra between them.

“What’s goin’ on?” Mac asked.

“It’s Lyra—We have to warm her up. She’ll be okay.” Twilight smiled and rocked back and forth gently in the bed. “I saved her. Luna be damned, at least I saved one pony.”

Lyra could feel warmth returning to her, and as her limbs warmed up she regained the strength and flexibility to move them. She still felt as though she could not speak but a familiar scent of lilacs reached her nose. She managed a weak smile and knew she was safe, that her friend Twilight hadn’t forgotten about her. Just as Lyra would never forget about her.

“Y’all sure it’ll be okay? Silver seemed upset and ah heard other ponies in the house,” Mac said. “Look, Twilight, if it’s time to give up ah’ll put in a good word for ya!”

“No, Mac, it’s not time. Luna thinks she is two steps ahead, but she isn’t. I know she knows. no, everything will go my way this time! I poisoned her, and I’m moving the dollhouse tonight. The next time I meet her,” Twilight grinned, watching her best friend recover, “will be the last.”

Twilight felt Lyra begin to shiver, a sign that the pony’s conscious mind was recovering and trying to assert it’s old habits from life into the plastic shell. “It’s okay, Lyra, I’m here for you.”







“Hang on Echo,” Luna said. The bat winged pony was on the floor writhing in agony.

“Heh, l-looks like y-you were r-right to use me as a d-decoy,” Echo sputtered.

“No! You didn’t eat or drink anything, did you?” Luna asked. She stood over the dying pony in her hotel room. Dusk was off to the side, Trixie watching in horror from her bed.

“J-just the t-tea, but T-trixie had s-some too.”

“Trixie?” Luna asked.

“Well I do feel nauseous,” Trixie said.

“I h-hate to say I told y-you so but l-looks like I w-won’t have another chance,” Echo muttered. “I t-told you s-she had it in h-her to kill.”

“Yes, my love, you did. . .” Luna said. “Hold still, I can save you.”

“No!” Echo cried out. “S-save your energy to c-capture T-twilight. H-healing magic is t-too d-draining.”

“I’m your princess! I cast the illusion and let you take my place to fool Twilight! I—” Luna slumped down on the floor. “I killed you. My cowardice killed you.”

“Majesty,” Dusk said. “You are the ruler of this nation. Now more than ever you have to do what is necessary to protect the crown. Any of us would gladly die for you.”

“No. . . I have the power of eternal life. I can save the ponies I love,” Luna said. She began to charge her horn and aimed at Echo.

“Dusk,” Echo whispered. The nearby guard emitted a screech to interfere with Luna’s magic. “L-luna, as a m-mortal you knew I’d die. W-what we had, I e-enjoyed it. Remember—I was always loyal to you—princess of the n-night.”

Echo’s eyes rolled back into his head. Dusk lay himself prostrate before her. “Your majesty, forgive me.”

Luna sat still, letting two tears fall to the ground. They glistened as they landed on Echo and slowly absorbed into his dark fur. “He was as faithful a guard as I could have hoped for. No, he was right, I could not save him. But, I can save Trixie.”

Luna turned to face her and lit up her horn, channeling her magic to neutralize the damage that was being done on a cellular level by the poison. The source seemed to come from multiple points, mostly in her stomach. It was a faint, but lethal, radiation. Her magic slowly searched out and contained the toxin. She quickly identified and began to neutralize the polonium. It was a fairly harmless substance, releasing alpha radiation that could barely penetrate skin. Yet, inside a pony’s stomach, it could cause lethal damage as it was absorbed throughout the body.

Luna found herself wiping sweat from her brow and feeling a slight ache in her horn. Bits of the polonium had spread into Trixie’s blood, though luckily, it seemed she had gotten a smaller dose. Had she tried it on Echo to purge his entire body of it, she would have needed rest. Trixie was placed in a deep sleep by Luna.

“Come, Dusk, assemble the guard.” Luna’s mane stopped sparkling as every star trapped in it blinked out of existence. A black shadow fell over her, plunging the room into darkness. The only colors left visible on her body were midnight blue and black. With her magical reserves partially spent on Trixie, she steeled her resolve to tap the only other source available to her. A sickening malice began to radiate as she tapped an ancient store of magic that had nearly cost Luna her life a millenia ago. She was no longer the fallen princess; this time her fury would be used to uphold Celestia’s law.

“We have a murderer to apprehend.”
> XVI. Blackest Night
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lyra shifted to get comfortable, wishing for the first time since she became a doll that she hadn’t regained her sense of touch. For what felt like weeks she had been trapped in ice, unable to move, in the dark.

Twilight looked down as she shifted position. “Are you okay Lyra? I thought I might have lost you.” She managed a weak smile.

Lyra looked up and smiled back at her. “Yes, I’m just glad you came back for me.” Her attempt to cheer Twilight up with a smile had failed.

She did little but look down at Lyra and began to frown. There was clearly something on her mind.

“Twilight, what’s wrong?” Lyra asked. She had been resting in bed with Twilight and Mac when the alicorn bolted out of bed.

“She’s coming,” Twilight said.

“Who is coming?”

Twilight growled, sensing the build up of power from across town. “Luna.” She got out of bed, leaving Mac and Lyra behind.

She flew down from her room to the front door of the library. Twilight paused to retrieve her element from the nearby display. She stepped outside and looked around. It was dark under the new moon, and across the street from her stood Luna and Guard. Twilight grinned. She had prepared a spell that might help with the sarosians.

“Twilight Sparkle, we command you surrender into our custody at once!” Luna shouted in the Royal Canterlot voice. There was a hint of malice in it that Twilight had not heard since she cleansed her of Nightmare Moon.

Twilight grinned and looked around, noting the positions of each pony. “No. You had your chance to be there for me, they all did! Now I’ve found a way they’ll never have to die. They may have failed me, but I will never fail my friends!”

“You have failed, Sparkle. All this—the deception, the lies, the investigation—Celestia begged that you be given the chance to confess and be redeemed. I should have brought you to her in chains and beat the confession out of you. You are a monster, now come quietly or else.”

“Or else what? You’ll have your guards arrest me? We both know I’m too powerful for that. If you want me, you’ll have to try harder than tapping the Nightmare for extra power.” Twilight levitated the element of magic where they could all see it. It was radiating an infected purple aura, with streaks of green tainting its purity. She placed it on her head.

What little patience Luna had was gone, and she lowered herself towards the ground, ready to attack. “You are charged with the murder of two Lunar Guards, Colgate, Bon Bon, and the disappearance of at least twenty-eight others.”

“Cut the crap with the voice, and what do you mean two guards?” Twilight thought about it a minute and began laughing. “You mean Echo was in on it the whole time? You’re such a coward you had to use a decoy? Then he got what he deserved! It’s not your place to deny my friends immortality!”

Luna closed the distance between them until Twilight could feel the temperature dropping. “I am not a coward. Were it not Celestia’s wish to investigate and arrest you peacefully, I would not hesitate to strike you down. By the old laws, I can execute you without trial for the confirmed murder of members of the Lunar Guard.”

Twilight laughed again. “Citing laws from your failed regime? What’s your end-game here? I haven’t hurt anypony that didn’t deserve it. My friends are immortal and safe, I could have even granted you true immortality. Instead, you’ll just end up back on the moon. Only this time I won’t send you there alive.”

The aura of magic around Twilight thickened until it repulsed the cold night air from around her. Luna braced herself as Twilight opened herself up to the same dark side of her equinity that once turned Luna into Nightmare Moon.

“So, we’re doing this the hard way?” Luna stated. She flexed her neck, cracking several joints, and slowly backed up to give her guard a clear shot. “Unlike Celestia, I’m not afraid of a fight.” Luna nodded at her guards.

The twenty-two guards aimed at Twilight. They emitted their supersonic screech at her to disable her magic, as Luna charged her horn. Twilight responded by charging her own horn, bringing out a tainted glow from the element of magic.

Twilight braced herself as she cast a spell to amplify the sound waves. Within seconds it had started a feedback loop, growing hundreds of times louder than should be possible. It took all Twilight’s might to weather the storm, and within seconds it had ended.

She opened her eyes and grinned in triumph. Around them lie a platoon of Lunar Guards, bleeding from the eyes and ears, twitching in agony. Their brains had been scrambled by their own secret weapon, amplified and returned to their sensitive ears a thousand times stronger.

Luna stood there with her mouth agape. “I did not realize you’d come to possess such power.”

Twilight smiled widely, showing off her teeth. “Well, Luna, having second thoughts?”

Luna bowed her head. “Part of me still didn’t want to believe you had fallen so far.” Luna lowered her head and began to channel magic. For all the evil Nightmare Moon had wrought, Twilight had once gone out of her way to save her. Now, Luna had failed to save the one pony who had redeemed her from exile. Tears began to fall from her face as she realized there really was only one way this could end.

 “What you have done here is inexcusable. There will be no trial.” Luna raised her head and opened her eyes. They had turned jet black and began to radiate energy along with her horn.

Twilight barely had time to wipe the grin off her face before a bolt of black magic closed the distance between them. She raised the first counterspell she could think of, forming a blunt shield in front of her. She was flung backward by the force of it colliding with poorly focused shield. Twilight recovered and cast another spell to slow down her inertia as she sailed through the air. A large branch snapped in two as it stopped her in mid-air and she fell to the ground.

She looked back up at the alicorn advancing on her. Twilight charged her horn and fired the doll spell at her. Luna batted it aside effortlessly, and turned back just in time to see a branch hurdling through the air at her. It caught her in the side, sending her sprawling across the dirt.

Twilight flew up and dove down at Luna, firing as many bolts of energy at her as she could muster. Each one swirled into a black void around Luna’s horn, being absorbed by her. Soon she was on the defensive as Luna redirected her own magic back at her.

She was more prepared this time, but her shield still barely held. Twilight landed on her hooves and looked around for Luna. A solid beam of energy shot out at her from her left side. She joined it with her own beam of purple energy. The two pulsed against each other as they lowered their guards and poured all their magic into a focused beam of energy. They stood locked in place as the deadly torrents of energy battled between them.

“This—is how you use—what Celestia taught you? To destroy?” Luna asked.

Twilight gritted her teeth and pushed the beam of energy further towards Luna. “No, I’ve—used it to give—eternal life!”

“You do not grasp the true meaning—of immortality!” Luna launched a surge of arcane energy into her horn, blasting Twilight back against the library. “To live forever trapped in a cage of stone, or banished to the moon. Do not ever presume to tell me you are giving eternal life!”

Twilight tapped the energy of her element, reversing the gravity around Luna. Before she could recover, Twilight reversed it again and amplified it, pinning Luna to the ground. She walked over, straining under the effort of mimicking the gravity on the surface of the sun.

“I’ve—preserved their minds in dolls—that will never rot! Never wither!” Twilight screamed. “We—will all live forever—happy! young!” She increased the gravity more, causing the ground to depress under Luna. Her entire body was glowing a dark blue as her magic kept her from being crushed instantly.

Twilight almost stopped the spell when she noticed the darkness fall over them both. All the stars were vanishing, and the new moon had grown into a full moon. It continued to grow brighter and brighter as Luna tapped it for energy. “Wha—”

Twilight was cut off as Luna opened a conduit of arcane energy between herself and the moon. Like lightning, pure energy shot forth from her horn and the celestial body, passing through Twilight. She struggled to shield herself but it had already burned its way past most of her mental defenses.

She tried a last ditch attempt to teleport and disrupt the energy flow. Every nerve in her body was on fire and her muscles tensed, overloaded by the energy. Retreating into her mind, Twilight was able to find a small bastion of power she could still control. It was the element of magic, giving her just enough focus to teleport out of the conduit of pure arcane mana.

 Twilight succeeded, but the backlash threw her into the wall inside her kitchen. Twilight rolled over and fought to regain her footing. She could see in the reflection on the refrigerator most of her mane and tail had been scorched away.

Twilight wondered why Luna hadn’t followed her in. She tapped into her element of magic again, finding it nearly depleted. She tossed it aside and grabbed the largest knife she could out of the nearby cabinet.

Walking outside, she found Luna still struggling forward from the exertion. Twilight began laughing as she walked towards her. “So, that’s all you’ve got? The mighty princess of the night and her moon?” Twilight walked towards her and waved the knife towards the moon, which was still outshining every star in the sky.

“You sho—” Luna coughed up a little blood. “Should not be alive, nopony can survive that—much energy.”

“Oh Luna, my cause is righteous. Surely you did not expect to beat me?” Twilight closed in on her prey steadily. “Now that I know I’m more powerful than you, I have nothing to fear.” Twilight jammed the knife into Luna’s shoulder.

Luna screamed in pain and collapsed on the ground. As her blood stained the dirt beneath her, Twilight noticed the moon also turning blood red. Soon, everything as far as the eye could see turned a deep crimson.

“It’s over, Twilight. Celestia is coming,” Luna said. 

Twilight turned towards Canterlot, looking again at the moon. In ancient times, a red moon signified that war had been declared on Equestria. Twilight wouldn’t have long now to prepare before she had to face Celestia herself.

“Good, no more hiding from what you’ve done Celestia. Do you hear me?!” Twilight screamed. “You let my family die and wouldn’t even comfort me, you are the true monster! The immortal sun goddess! Raising me like your own foal and discarding me like worthless trash!”

There was a loud popping sound behind Twilight. She turned around and Luna was gone. The princess had teleported away, no doubt to Canterlot.

Twilight ran back towards the library giggling. “Yes, plenty of time now. I’ll send everypony to the Everfree. It’ll all be okay!”







Rarity flinched as they heard another loud explosion from outside, shaking dust loose from the rafters. 

“Is—do you think that’s Celestia? Come to save us?” Sweetie asked.

“I don’t know, Darling, but I hope so,” Rarity said.

They had gathered the remaining unfrozen ponies near the prison and were trying to free the dolls trapped inside of it. Sprocket as the most mechanically inclined of the lot was trying to pick the lock with a few bent pins.

“We have to get out of here!” Vinyl yelled. “Whatever is going on, it’s our best chance to escape!”

“The tunnel isn’t finished,” Octavia said. “We were close, but there are least four feet to go.”

Another loud noise from outside shook dirt loose from the ceiling. “Got it!” Sprocket yelled. He had picked the lock to the prison and managed to get the trapped ponies out.

“About time,” Dash whined. She crawled out of the lockbox and began biting at the rubber bands around her wings. “Sounds like Scootaloo made it!”

All the ponies gathered began to cheer. The door to the basement swung open, and a brilliant wave of lavender magic washed over the room. Large runes etched into the wall began to activate.

“I have a bad feeling about this,” Vinyl said.







Scootaloo had finally made it to the castle. Unfortunately, it was gargantuan for a pegasus as small as she was. She didn’t want to waste time trying to convince the guards, but had little choice. 

She flew down to the guard at the front doors of the castle. “Hey, you! I need to talk to Celestia immediately!”

The guard rubbed his eyes and blinked a couple times. “What the, hey Steel, you seeing this?”

“Yeah, Flint, but I don’t believe it. Is that a toy?” Steel said.

“No, my name is Scootaloo, I’m an orphan living in Ponyville and a friend of Rainbow Dash, the element of loyalty! Twilight has been imprisoning us in dolls and I have to talk to Celestia immediately or more ponies will die!” Scootaloo shouted.

“I—what on Equestria is the regulation for this?” Flint asked.

“I don’t know, but it’s above our paygrade. Better just take her to Celestia. She might still be in the main hall holding the night court for her sister,” Steel said.

“Awesome! Come on guys, we don’t have much time,” Scootaloo said. She landed on top of Steel’s helmet as they galloped inside to find Celestia.

It was a short ride to reach her, reminding Scootaloo how much she missed being able to walk and fly like a normal sized pony. It had taken two hours when it should have taken twenty minutes to cross Canterlot to the castle due to her size.

The trio burst into the throne room, causing Celestia to tilt her head and put the bite of cake on her fork down. “Guards, what is the matter?” Celestia asked.

“Princess!” Scootaloo took off and flew towards her.

A thousand years of grace under pressure and regal composure began to slip, her eyes going wide in shock. There appeared to be a talking, flying doll, rapidly approaching her. Celestia dropped the cake from her levitation and her mouth fell agape.

“Celestia! Twilight’s gone crazy and she’s trapping everypony!” Scootaloo said.

“Wha—guards! Send for word from Luna immediately,” Celestia ordered. “Ready the Solar Guard, and bring the Knight-Captain here at once.”

“Celestia, please promise you can rescue everypony, please,” Scootaloo whined.

“It’s okay, my little pony. Now, tell me what has happened a bit more calmly.”

Scootaloo landed on the armrest of the chair. “Well, Twilight tricked me to come to the library and poisoned me. Then she captured me as a doll, and Dash too. She has a whole town in her basement of dolls. Rarity, the crusaders, Vinyl, Lyra, Big Mac. . . She plans to get everypony and make them be her friend forever!”

Celestia was still processing this shocking news. Part of her refused to believe her pupil had this in her. After years of trials and tests, after raising her to the status of princess, how could she have this evil inside her?

“You are sure?” Celestia asked. She immediately felt it was a pretty stupid question. Tiny replica dolls of ponies that disappeared without a trace isn’t the kind of thing you could make up.

“Yeah, an—” The room took on a red tint. Scootaloo looked up through the skylight to see a blood red moon hanging low in the sky. “What does that mean?”

Celestia stood up and levitated a dusty trunk out of an alcove in the corner. “It means, Scootaloo, that we’re at war. It means Luna needs my aid. May the creator have mercy on Twilight if what you say is true.”

Though the chest was dusty, the contents inside still gleamed as brilliantly as the last time Celestia had worn them into battle. The golden raiments of the sun goddess hadn’t been used since banishing Nightmare Moon a millenia ago.

Now, Celestia slipped into the golden breastplate with sterling silver designed engraved on it. Her cutie mark adorned it, protecting her chest from all weapons magical and non-magical. She put on large boots, a larger regalia that protected everything below her knee. Celestia’s mane was tucked under the helmet, and her horn slid through a hole in the top of it.

Scootaloo watched in awe at the transformation. Celestia had once been white with a flowing pink, blue, and green mane. Now all that was visible was a golden deity, barely a hint of white fur showing. Her flowing mane had vanished, replaced by a golden ethereal mane and tail. The entire room seemed brighter from her mere presence.

There was a loud popping sound in the room. Scootaloo turned to see a bloodied and bruised Luna in the center of the chamber. A large wound in her shoulder was spewing bright red blood onto the tiles. Scootaloo and Celestia flew over to aid her.

“Lulu! What happened? Are you okay?” Celestia cried out. She stopped in front of her sister and began to charge her horn.

“No, Tia, stop! Leave it for the doctors.” She held a hoof up to wave her away. “you’ll need your strength for Twilight, she is not the filly we once knew.”

Celestia dropped her royal visage for the first time in millennia. Her facade cracked as her eyes narrowed and she grimaced. In one moment she was crying, the next her body was tensed up, her ears flat against her head. She was quick to regain her composure. For that brief moment, the pensive leader had shown her subjects the emotional turmoil within.

Scootaloo backed up as waves of heat began to radiate off Celestia, threatening to melt her. “Twilight tried to kill you? Was she behind the disappearances also?” Celestia asked.

Luna nodded weakly. “Yes to both, dear sister. She has fallen even—” Luna choked back a sob. “Even further than I did.”

Scootaloo was blinded and realized it was the noon-day sun shining through the windows overhead. Celestia had raised the sun, despite it being nearly midnight.

Celestia motioned for the guards. “Take Luna to the infirmary at once. Dispatch all guards to Ponyville.” Celestia grabbed the nearest guard, Steel, by the scruff of his neck. “And do not misunderstand me. When I say all guards, I mean every. Single. One.” She released him and he ran off to carry out her order.

Celestia motioned to Scootaloo “Take her to the infirmary too. Do not let harm come to either of them.” Celestia was so carried away in her disappointment, pity, and anger at Twilight’s betrayal she did not realize the fear she was invoking in her subjects. Ponies who had never seen her raise her voice at the rudest solicitor were now backed against the walls as she channeled the pure essence of the sun.

She walked towards the door to the main hall, tears dripping from her cheeks to the floor. The nearest ponies raised their eyes and saw a look of determination and sorrow. Clad in her battle armor and with the sun high in the sky, her true meaning had been revealed.

Twilight, I’m coming for you.









> XVII. Brightest Day
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Twilight was packing her research notes up in her saddlebags. She stood over the elements in their display case. With honesty inert and the others weakened, they were not of much use. Even her element had been completely drained protecting her from Luna’s wrath. She decided not to bother packing them, they were worthless now.

Twilight began to remember her friends as she stared at the broken set. They had been disabled once before, back when her friendship had been put to the ultimate test. She smiled, recalling how the letters she had written to Celestia had in turn reminded her of the joy of friendship. She had been so naive and innocent back then; every day was an adventure with her five friends. Twilight wiped a tear from her cheek. Every memory she had used to restore her friends memories and fix the elements surfaced.

Her memories of Dash, constantly joking around and laughing. They had the least in common, and yet had discovered a love of reading together.

Rarity, who had always been willing to give Twilight fashion advice. She often acted as though it was an inconvenience, but truth be told, it was nice to know Rarity cared enough to make sure Twilight always looked her best.

Some of her happiest memories were of Fluttershy. Whether it was a few comforting words, or a shoulder to cry on, she had always soothed Twilight when things went wrong. Fluttershy could see the good in any pony, even Twilight in the end.

Recalling the surprise parties that seemed to happen weekly brought a smile to her face. Somehow Pinkie always knew when Twilight could use some cheering up. Even near the end, when her parties over Cadance’s death had caused her to lose her temper with Pinkie, her friend told her to just drop by if Twilight ever changed her mind and wanted another party.

She stopped at the Apple family. Twilight shook the flashbacks from her head as soon as the memory of the first day sampling apple treats appeared. Applejack was dead now, just like all her friendships, and nothing could bring her back. All she could do now was hold on to the ponies she had left, rebuild the friendships, and maybe one day be happy again.

She continued to pack research notes on immortality into her saddlebags. Her journal fell off the shelf as she reached for a nearby book. It landed open and Twilight found herself lifting it up to read the entry.





Subject: Lyra

Day 1:

Told Lyra I was having trouble sleeping. She offered to play me a lullaby on her lyre. Gullible, but very sweet—a true friend.

Lyra arrived. Tea spiked with hemlock. Dosing adequate. Subject paralyzed quickly, transformation proceeded without incident.

Day 4:

Lyra has befriended me and often lets me discuss my. . . feelings with her. The other ponies have made her a pariah; they hate her. She is such a kind, gentle soul. Why don’t they like her too?

Day 6:

Lyra and Mac have been there for me every step of the way. They remind me of. . . of what the elements used to be. True friends, always there, always understanding. Not afraid to comfort me, not trying to force me into their mold of how they think I should act. I almost wish I could let them go, as a reward. But I need them. They are all I have now. I’ve ruined every other friendship.

Day 11:
It’s only a matter of time now. Luna coming, investigations. I’ve been getting sloppy. Not sure how much longer I can keep it up. Silver as an apprentice? Bad idea. Got to get rid of her. Falling apart. It’s all falling apart.

Day 12:
Investigation over. Found body in kitchen. Luna knows. Luna knows.

Luna knows.





Twilight wiped a tear from her cheek. Lyra was sitting patiently on the dresser, waiting for her turn to be packed. Mac had been sent with the others.

“Lyra,” Twilight said. She looked up with sorrow in her eyes.

“Yes, Twilight?” Lyra said.

“You were the only one who. . .” Twilight sniffled and wiped her nose. “You truly cared about me. You were my friend before, and after what I did and—well the only gift I can offer you is your freedom.”

Lyra stood up and smiled. “What?”

“I don’t know how I’ll go on without you, at least I still have Mac but—I mean, someone has to stay behind to tell my story. I don’t think Celestia will be in the mood for mercy when Luna reaches her. And—well nopony wants to die but you’d be happier as a pony again?”

Lyra bit her lip. She had originally set out as a spy, to find out how to turn everypony back to normal. She’d then gotten to know Twilight, to help carry her burden of grief. A part of her wanted to stay as Twilight’s doll—to keep trying to help her best friend. “Twilight I—”

“Twilight Veil Sparkle! Show yourself this instant!” The commanding voice of Celestia rang off every wall in the library.

She smiled, knowing it was time to face judgement for her actions. Twilight did not know if she could convince her teacher she was doing the right thing, but part of her felt compelled to try. They had not spoken directly since Cadance died, and if nothing else, Twilight wanted closure. She wanted to know why Celestia had abandoned her.

“Lyra, I—goodbye Lyra. Whatever happens, you are my best friend. Please, be happy and live the normal life I never could.”

Lyra felt something tingling in her mind, as if a switch had been flicked. “What did you do?” she asked.

“Celestia will know. I’m leaving you the journal; the other ponies don’t deserve it. I’ll still have to earn their friendship but you—Lyra you deserve better than a broken friend.” Twilight spun and walked out of the room, closing the door behind her before Lyra could see how hard she was crying.







Celestia was about to shout again when a battered alicorn stepped out of the library. Her mane and tail had been seared off to half their length. The burnt, frayed ends jutted out in every direction. The smooth furs of her coat had been singed and the larger coat hairs blackened.

Twilight looked like she’d been through hell, and for a brief moment Celestia felt pity. “Twilight Sparkle! What have you done?”

She could tell her teacher wanted a confession of guilt. Twilight was not guilty, it was Celestia who needed to answer for her actions. “Wouldn’t you like to know? Maybe if you’d asked me sooner instead of hiding in your throne room, judging and condemning others, I’d tell you. I did exactly what I had to do because you wouldn’t! I saved my friends!”

Twilight watched for the small signs she had come to know. Celestia blinked twice when she was holding back tears or made a subtle pull of a lip when she felt guilty. She saw none of it as her teacher spoke. “And you think you have a right to judge, after hiding away in your library? I have suffered the loss of friends—of family—and it doesn’t get any easier” Celestia explained. “Coping with your grief is an important lesson to learn when you live a thousand years, and you had friends here to help you!”

“Like you had friends to help you in Canterlot? What good did your grieving do you, that it took sending Luna back in pieces for you to leave the fucking castle for once?” Twilight took a few steps closer and felt anger boiling inside her. Even now Celestia had to keep that damnable facade up, to pretend she was above emotion. “I couldn’t stand the thought of being alone—of losing my friends. After I lost Shining and Cadance, even you abandoned me! One by one my friends left me too. Applejack only cared about her farm, Rarity her dresses. . .”

“Twilight, do you think me immune to sorrow and grief? I assure you what you felt for your foal sitter I felt ten times over for my niece. Her death shook me.” Celestia took a deep breath, doing her best to stay strong for her pupil, hoping she could still be talked down.

“Really? So shaken you had to send Luna to comfort me? You were a mother to me. I worshipped you! To make it worse, you wanted me to spend thousands of years ruling alongside you!” Twilight continued to stare at Celestia who held her ground now twenty yards away. She shifted between her hooves eagerly, waiting for her to show a single equine emotion for once in her life. Celestia had ignored her pleas for help just like her friends, and now she was pretending it was all Twilight’s fault. “Watching every single pony die. Every. Single. One. You call that a gift? You did this to me, ruined everything!”

“And you could not just tell me this? Send a letter? I cannot count the number of ponies I have watched die.” Celestia lowered her voice to express her sympathy. “It is part of being immortal. I feel sorrow for each loss, but I do not let it control me!”

Twilight continued to walk towards her mentor. “Then why suffer the loss? We have the power to grant immortality. You have the power to create alicorns. Why do my friends have to die? Why do I have to live forever?” Twilight asked. “I just want to be happy with the time I’m given, not happy for a little while and crying for eternity!”

Celestia softened her features and stepped closer to Twilight. “Come back with me to Canterlot. Luna will want me to punish you harshly, but I will not. I want to help you get through this, but you’ll have to talk to me. You can tell me where the other dolls are and we can fix them, together.”

Twilight chuckled. “Really? You expect me to believe you’ll pardon thirty foalnappings and twenty-two counts of first degree murder? Aggravated assault, involuntary manslaughter, poisoning ponies?” Twilight fought to stay on her hooves as she laughed.

“Please, we can fix it. You were not well when you made those choices, but I’m here, now. Talk to me.”

“No,” Twilight spat. “You can’t fix death. It is a constant. I can bend the rules, avoid it, cheat a bit, but we’ll all die. That’s why I can’t let you arrest me. I have to continue my research, continue building the dollhouse. We can live forever! Every single Equestrian: immortal, happy.”

Twilight walked up and jabbed a hoof against Celestia’s breastplate. “You don’t understand what it’s like to have your closest friends turn on you, and I hate you for that!”

A tear rolled down Celestia’s cheek as she stared down at her pupil. The mare standing here was no longer the sweet filly she had personally taught the ways of magic. “You’re wrong. You were my closest friend, the daughter I never had. You turned on me, and now—” Celestia took a step backwards and began to radiate heat. “I’m taking you in by force.”

“I’d rather die than spend eternity locked up! After I defeat you, I’ll be free to save everyone!” Twilight charged up her horn, firing as much energy as she could muster at Celestia.

Celestia was a blur as she conjured a flaming sword and intercepted the bolt of energy. Twilight stood stunned at the magical construct. “But. . . that is a lost magic. Unicorns haven’t fought with conjuration since the Nightmare wars!”

Celestia swung the sword towards Twilight’s horn. She ducked, then leapt into the air and rained green tendrils of energy down on Celestia. Twilight searched through her mind, finding every forbidden spell she could think of and casting it.

Celestia took to the air, batting aside some of the magical bolts and letting the rest bounce harmlessly off her armor.

Twilight felt her feathers begin to burn as her hair singed further and she furrowed her brow. The heat radiating from Celestia was uncomfortable, but had not been that hot. Looking upward toward the sun, she curled up and shielded herself as a column of fire descended on her from the sky. Twilight hit the ground hard, making a small impact crater.

“It’s over, Twilight, you can’t defeat me,” Celestia said. 

Twilight uncurled, her horn already glowing. She shot Celestia right in the face, blinding her. “You’re wrong!” While she had the momentary advantage, she levitated a park bench off the ground. The bench came up, cement and all, leaving a crater. Twilight swung it, shattering the wood and cement over Celestia’s head.

Celestia took a step back as her vision recovered. She felt another blast catch her under the chin, and immediately recognized the magic. Twilight was casting black magics that had been banned—and assumed forgotten—after Nightmare Moon was banished.

Fury began to fuel Celestia again. If anypony could find a tome of banned spells, it was Twilight. Had she researched better, she’d know that such lethal spells did not work well on alicorns. The intent was the same, however, and her pupil had just tried to kill her.

“This is not how you should handle your grief. Give up,” Celestia said. She walked over with her blade raised.

Twilight stood, her legs shaking from exertion. “And this is? Killing the pony who needs you most, who is trying to save her friends? I just wanted to be happy, but you never wanted that!” She narrowed her eyes and flattened her ears, letting her anger dull the pain. “You just wanted a puppet to save your sister! A pawn to defeat Discord! An ace in your hoof in case the changelings got through your shield! I’m not a tool, I’m a pony!”

Celestia lowered her sword. “I never meant to put so much stress on you, but I needed to know you could handle ruling. I risked everything to send you to Ponyville in the hopes you’d discover true friends and be happy.”

Twilight recalled her friends, one of which was dead. She reached out and found a boulder down the street, and began to refocus her energy on it. Twilight prepared to reverse gravity around the rock and make an improvised cannon. “Did you ever truly love me?”

Celestia lowered her guard and her sword, and a tear rolled down her cheek. “Of cour—”

The boulder slammed into Celestia’s side, crumbling and flinging her into the library. Her armor remained unscratched, yet the momentum had still transferred into her body and broken a few ribs.

“Enough!” Celestia screamed. She took to the air and thrust the fiery sword down, stabbing through Twilight’s shoulder and pinning her to the ground.

Twilight’s mind felt as if it were on fire. She could tell the elements were calling out to her weakly, sensing she was in need of protection. Twilight could feel energy radiating from them inside the library, somehow sustaining her—if only barely—as the sword pinned her to the ground.

She continued to struggle, firing bolt after bolt at Celestia. When Celestia raised her sword to strike again, Twilight let her magic explode from her horn, blanketing Celestia in a torrent of arcane energy. 

Celestia withdrew the sword and stepped backwards, shielding herself as Twilight’s desperate wave of energy poured over her. The magic rebounded off Celestia’s barrier and pulsed back towards Twilight. The resulting wave of energy caused Twilight to fly backward into some nearby rose bushes. 

Twilight stood up, battered and bleeding. She could feel most of her feathers had been burnt off and her shoulder throbbed in pain, blood rapidly pooling beneath her. She coughed, watching the congealed black blood hit the ground.

“It’s over, Twilight!” Celestia shouted at her, not bothering to close the distance between them. “I’m taking you to Canterlot.”

Twilight stood up, looking like she had just lost a fight with several timberwolves. She began to cackle maniacally as the realization hit her. “You—you expect me to come with you? Then I’ll never see my friends again! They’re waiting for me!”

She heard Celestia take to the air, no doubt planning to land on her and finish the job. Twilight was certain Celestia aimed to kill her, it was the only logical explanation. Her connection to the elements severed as she pulled the last of their energy out. She spoke her last words to Celestia. “It is over.”

She didn’t even bother to take her eyes off the ground. She fired up her horn and teleported to the one place Celestia would never find her. With a loud pop, Twilight arrived in the Everfree and collapsed on the floor. The sword had done a decent job of cauterizing her shoulder, but she could still feel the cold fingers of death twisting around her.

The forest was a blur as she crawled to the nearest tree. It hurt to breath, to move, and her limbs were going numb from the cold. She didn’t know how much longer she had left to live.

A few sparks erupted from her cracked horn as she tried to heal herself. Twilight’s mind raced to her friends, her brother and sister-and-law, and to the dolls waiting for her. She looked up into the sky as the sun set to be replaced by the moon. Equestria’s natural order had been restored. Without the sun, the cold crept up on Twilight even faster. She was so tired. She couldn’t resist any longer.

Twilight smiled at the pleasant memories before passing out.








Celestia stood over a small scorched patch of dirt where Twilight had been seconds earlier. She had sensed her pupil teleport and had not reacted quickly enough to stop it. Her attempt to trace it and follow Twilight failed. Celestia did not think Twilight had the strength left in her to teleport. She walked away from the scorched soil and into the library, seeing the open door to a basement.

Proceeding down the stairs, she gasped at what she saw. A large room, at least fifty by fifty feet across, had turned into an empty cavern. The walls, floor, ceiling, and most of the nearby dirt looked like it had been carved out and teleported elsewhere.

The entire dollhouse was gone, and so was its maker.

> XVIII. Epilogue
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


1,000 Years Later


Several school fillies sat around their teacher in front of the memorial to the victims of the Dollmaker. A menacing bronze mare, cloaked in shadows, loomed over a small building and several silver ponies. Several trees were planted around, creating a small grove that rustled in the gentle breeze.

“. . . and that is the story of the Dollmaker. Each year on Nightmare Night we honor the ponies captured by the Dollmaker. Our tradition here in the town of Harmony is to leave one doll per filly and colt as an offering to her, so that the Dollmaker is never alone. That way, she will not return to Equestria and begin stealing ponies again,” The teacher explained.

“Hey, my mother said one of our ancestors was there,” a mint green filly said. “Why are there no Heartstrings on the memorial?”

“Bonnie, it was a millenia ago. Our town was founded by some of the survivors, and I’m sure if you had an ancestor who was involved, her name would be on the memorial.” 

The teacher gestured back to the memorial. The Dollmaker’s wings cast a shadow over her face in the moonlight. She stared down at several tiny ponies that shimmered silver. They stood their ground against the evil of the Dollmaker. 

Beneath that, etched into obsidian, were the names of every pony that went missing so long ago. Every single one of them was accompanied by the symbol of their cutie mark, and for a thousand years they had been honored. The Dollmaker was now as much a part of Equestrian history as Nightmare Moon, yet nopony knew who the Dollmaker was. Only the fallen had their names preserved.

“Well, Miss Cherry, I bet my ancestor would have kicked her flank.” She giggled and trotted up to leave a small doll on the memorial.

“If you’re so sure, why don’t you take your doll back? Maybe the Dollmaker will come for you tonight,” an earth pony mocked.

“Nuh-uh, everypony knows she’s dead,” Bonnie said.

“Then why are we leaving offerings?” the earth pony asked. “I bet she’s still out there, watching us all right now. That’s why I brought her two dolls to play with! I don’t want her stealing my little brother either.”







“Tia, must you get this way every year? It has been a millenia,” Luna said.

Celestia picked at her cake, not eating it. A millenia had passed, and she still withdrew into her shell at this time of year. Old wounds ached and forgotten sins resurfaced. “Do you remember her name?” Celestia asked.

Luna was caught off guard by the question. She searched her memories, reaching back into the past, but came up empty. “I—no. I do not recall her name. Only that she was a student of yours. Surely whatever happened between you two is not your fault. I trusted your decision to expunge her name from the history books.”

Celestia set down her fork, still staring at the cake. “It is my fault. Nightmare Moon, the Dollmaker. . .” Celestia recounted each pony she had lost, and how many she could have saved. How many friends had she failed? How many must have died wondering where Celestia was? She looked up, and her sister could see the tears in her eyes. “Lulu, why do I always hurt the ponies closest to me?”

Luna had gotten used to her sister being more vulnerable. Ever since the Dollmaker, the walls she built around herself to keep the pain of loss out had crumbled. Comforting her and increasing her responsibilities in ruling the nation was the least she could do.

Luna got up and went around the table, hugging her sister with her wings. “Tia, you are my better half, the pure and unstained pony who has ruled for a millennium in my absence. I have always looked up to you, sister. If I have to help you cope with the grief for another thousand years, I would not hesitate. Your honesty and purity are worth protecting. It was not your fault. I chose to become Nightmare Moon, just as the Dollmaker made her choice.”

“You’re right, I think I’ll get some sleep.” Celestia stood up and walked towards the door.

“What was it?” Luna asked.

Celestia paused. “Hmm?”

“The Dollmaker’s name, what was it?”

Celestia bit her lip for a second, not turning to face her sister. “. . .I forgot.”

She left the dining hall and hurried to her room. She locked the doors and closed the windows. Already Celestia was on the verge of tears. She cast a spell revealing a false wall in her wardrobe. She levitated a dusty chest out and blew it off. Celestia set it on the floor and opened it as she had once every year.

A single scroll levitated up as she began to read through them again, hoping that someday she’d learn where she went wrong.




Dear Princess Celestia,

I’ve learned that one of the joys of friendship is sharing the blessings, but when there are not enough blessings to go around, having more than your friends can make you feel pretty awful. So, although I appreciate your invitation, I will be returning both tickets to the Grand Galloping Gala. If my friends can’t all go, I don’t want to go either.

Your faithful student,
Twilight Sparkle.