Segment 2: Chapter 7

A week had passed since Spike had departed for Canterlot and Twilight found herself missing the dragon. Twilight sat alone in her room, a book of notes open on the bed in front of her, its pages disregarded by the mare as she gazed out of the bedroom window, full of thoughts, memories, and sorrow. Twilight had fully expected Spike to return; he had been angry with her before and had always come back to her side. He was her best friend and she had always been able to depend on him. If he had just listened to her …

Twi knew that the dragon was afraid; she was, too. They had been nearly killed on their way to Hoofington by the drug-addicted gangbangers of this town once and venturing into Ponyville still brought an uncomfortable cold in the pit of her stomach. Despite the risks, she had a job to do and this town offered the most benefit for success. She could use the lesson of friendship to brighten the whole town all at once, returning it to the way it had once been and how the rest of Equestria was. The unicorn had been studying arduously and could directly connect a magic influence to the happiness of some of the ponies she had met.

While Twilight did not have enough knowledge to attempt a spell proportionally large enough to affect a pony, she did have some root ideas on how to go about dispensing the magical nature of positive emotional connections to others. Most of her ideas were mere theories and, as of yet, unproven, but the mare was confident that with more time she could realistically discern enough magical elements to purge feelings of dislike, distrust, and disdain from the hearts and minds of ponies. It would still require much study and several tests, but the fundamentals were sound and rational. If only Spike could have controlled his fears until she had been able to perfect her spell … Now she was alone and even though she had many friends in Ponyville and Sweet Apple Acres, the mare was lonely and missing her companion.

She rolled onto her back, staring up at the ceiling with troubled eyes. She almost cried as she thought about her dragon friend. Twilight had not been without him for years and she felt as if she had let him down. Twi felt ashamed for losing her temper and angrily telling him to go back to Canterlot alone. A sigh escaped her mouth as she remembered some of the good times they had spent together. Indeed, most of the good times of her life had been spent with the dragon. The lavender mare was a shut-in and the only socialization she enjoyed was that with Princess Celestia, which was more business oriented, and her dragon assistant.

Together the pair had visited sites of historical importance, traversed the vast libraries of Canterlot, and done scholastic battle against those who threatened her place as “favored student.” Spike’s ability to categorize and maintain organization had given the student a defined edge over other unicorns. Yes, Spike had been a very effective assistant. He was a good friend and companion to the mare and her heart sank without his well-meaning advice. The pleasant nature of his voice and his chiding reminders had kept her organized and moving forward. She supposed he couldn’t be blamed for returning home, though. He was a baby dragon and Ponyville was not safe. Twilight had a difficult time in thinking ill of her friend for his decision. She simply wished she had gone out to try to convince him once more to stay by her side.

Twilight Sparkle’s studies had gotten the best of her, however. She had been annoyed after their conversation the day he had left and she had been unable to forgive him at the time. She had whole-heartedly believed he would return to her, but, as the day gave way to night, the dragon had not returned. Anger replaced annoyance and the unicorn had deliberately stuck her head into her books, trying to understand several principles of magic of schools with which she was less familiar. It was her way of getting back at him. She would leave him to walk to Canterlot alone.

For the larger portion of the week, Twilight’s grudge against the dragon had kept her nose buried in books. She had even forgone much of the magical training with Sweetie Belle, which turned out to be of little importance. Apparently, Sweetie Belle had fallen into nest of yellow jackets and their diabolical stings had left the poor filly swollen and bruised. Her appearance had surprised and appalled Twilight. Sweetie had been in no condition for training and so Twilight had simply devoted much of her time to her books. It seemed to twilight that Sweetie had been avoiding her since Spike disappeared, but she simply chocked it up to embarrassment in the condition of her appearance. Sweetie had not been spending time with anypony, as far as Twilight could tell. She had noticed Applebloom and Scootaloo playing together without the white unicorn’s presence. She was healing; she would return to magic training and playing when she felt up to it.

Twilight had gone into Ponyville to find Pinkie and Fluttershy, but the pair had gone to Canterlot on business. If she had caught them beforehoof, she could have asked them to check in on her dragon companion. She would ask them the next time she caught them home. She was happy their business was taking off, but they spent several nights out of town a week and Twilight rarely found them at home.

Rarity had been disheartened by Spike’s return to Canterlot as well, but had told Twilight she could not blame him. Ponyville was a dangerous place and most definitely not a place for a sweet baby dragon. There were ponies who would take advantage of him. Twilight had returned to Sweet Apple Acres after the visit with Rarity and become depressed. The only other pony she had talked to was Applejack.

AJ had seemed much happier lately. Apparently, Rainbow was back in working condition and was working closely with Applejack. The pair had spent much of their time together in the last week. Indeed, it was hard to find a time when the two were not together. Twilight had told AJ that Spike had left for personal reasons, not wanting to offend Applejack with the wild stories Spike had told her. She still was irritated over those lies. If he had just admitted he was afraid and not tried to create such a crazy story about her friend, Twi would not have been so angry with him.

Twilight sighed again, releasing as much of her frustration as possible out with it. She couldn’t just lie around and feel sorry for herself. She had important business to take care of. Ponyville needed her help and throwing herself a pity party would not further that cause. In fact, without Spike, she would need to strengthen her efforts to make up for his absence. She would see him again once the assignment was over and he would apologize and tell her how he wished he could have been there when her friendship spell saved the town. The lavender mare smiled to herself at the thought of Spike admitting his error. She loved the little guy, but he could be so stubborn and fearful. He would regret going back to Canterlot when she perfected her friendship spell. His name wouldn’t be added to this particular chapter of her life’s work.

Twilight brushed her mane back and sat up in bed, magically levitating her notebook before her as she began working on the connections between ponies and the emotional value of private bonds between friends.

***

Applejack and Rainbow Dash lay intertwined with one another in the dimly lit bedroom, blankets kicked away and left in heaps about the floor from the lovemaking the night before. The large comfortable bed semi-stripped of the sheets from trembling or kicking hooves during moments of ecstasy. The two mares pressed their lips together as their eyes opened to meet the new day.

“Applejack, I have wanted to taste your lips since the first time I met you. I have always thought you were gorgeous. I never knew you were a lesbimare like me. I wish I would have made a move earlier,” Rainbow Dash said, grinning happily to her long time friend and newly acquired mate. Her reddish purple eyes met the emerald green of her lover and saw hesitation and discomfort in them. She felt a twinge of nervousness hit her stomach and asked, “What’s wrong, AJ?”

Applejack sighed and removed herself from the blue pegasus, suddenly preferring not to be touched by the mare. She had enjoyed the night before and the loving kisses just moments ago, but that word, lesbimare, made her stomach fill with butterflies and brought back the memory of her cousin’s banishment. The country mare was not comfortable thinking of herself as a lesbimare, a deviant, even if that was her sexual preference. She felt as if she were letting the whole family down and that, if they ever discovered her sick acts, she would have to leave the family out of shame if not from exile by the others. “Ah don’t like that word, Dash. It’s a word for describing nasty degenerates.”

Dash chuckled to herself and put her foreleg around the warm body of her lover, gingerly planting another kiss against the back of her neck. “What word? Lesbimare?”

Applejack pushed Dash’s leg away and sat up in bed dismissively, “Yeah, that word. Ah ain’t a lesbimare. Ah ain’t some kinda freak.”

“Could have fooled me, sweetie. I may not have been with a lot of mares, but you use your tongue far better than …”

“Shut up, Dash,” the blonde-maned earth pony turned a harsh eye to the pegasus. “Ah don’t think we should keep doin’ this. If the family knew about it, Ah’d have ta leave. Ah don’t want ta be this way.” AJ’s expression turned to one of confused sorrow.

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes and sat up on one hoof, looking over at her friend. “That’s what you said the last time and the time before that. Why would they care who you sleep with and why would you have to leave?”

“Rainbow, it’s wrong! Mares shouldn’t sleep with mares. It’s deviant. It’s sick and disgustin’! What’s wrong with me? Why cain’t Ah quit you?” The cow-mare put her head in her hooves, rubbing her temples and trying to organize the battling thoughts in her head.

“It’s been going on for decades, AJ. We’re not any different than any other couple. Stallion and mare, mare and mare, or stallion and stallion. It’s just about what and who you like. I like you and you like me. There’s nothing wrong with that.” The pegasus moved to her friend and lover again, wrapping her legs and wings around the orange earth pony, laying her head with AJ’s in a loving display.

Applejack made a soft noise of approval and sighed deeply. “Nopony can find out, Dash. Ah cain’t let down my family. If’n ya can keep quiet about this, we can keep seein’ each other.” Applejack wanted to keep seeing Dash. She had not told her yet, but she loved the cyan mare. Her heart locked those words away inside, frightened to let them be heard. AJ had been battling her desires for Dash against the opinion of the family since they had made love that first time a week ago. The battle tipped back and forth constantly and brought more stress to the worried mare. When she was alone, AJ’s mind was a beehive of thoughts. She was stung constantly by those thoughts. Her only comfort came when Dash was near her.

“I’d like to be open about it, AJ, but I’m okay with it for now.”

Applejack found comfort in the multicolored mare, but found that comfort as another worry in itself. She wished she could just stop being attracted to the pegasus, but it had proven to be a pipe dream. She could no better control her desires for Dash than the sun in the sky. She sighed deeply and lay back with the cyan pegasus, enjoying another round of tongue kisses and warm embraces.

After a few minutes, the pair rested together once more and AJ spoke. “Ah sent Mac out to get a new Trotter for interview. My spy told us that Golden Harvest’s hiding her supplier close. She meets whoever it is with only a minimum of security. One stallion, in fact. His name is T-Bone and Mac and JackSlap are gone to meet our spy, who has T-Bone’s trust. She’s luring T-Bone right to Big Macintosh and JackSlap. If she’s tellin’ us the truth we might be able to ‘convince’ T-bone to disclose the identity of their supplier. Things’re finally lookin’ up, Dash.”

Dash still held out hope that she would be able to change Applejack’s course. She had not brought it up yet, but broached the subject gently. “Do you remember what it used to be like, AJ? We were all friends and happy, everypony was.”

AJ was a little confused by the change in subject, given that they might possibly find the identity of the drug supplier responsible for making the Trotters a soon-to-be powerful rival, but played along. “Ah sure do, Sugar Cube.”

“Wouldn’t you like to go back to that time? Give up the drugs and grow apples again?”

AJ remembered the honesty of the farm before the collapse and sighed. “Yeah, Dash. Sometimes Ah wish Ah could turn time back and be a farmer again.”

Dash smiled happily and kissed AJ’s forehead softly. She was glad that her mate still had a soul somewhere deep inside. She had known Applejack long enough to know that the mare would do whatever it took to keep her family safe, but that somewhere under all of the layers of protection she had piled upon herself to shield herself from the horrors she had committed, her friend still breathed. “Couldn’t we just give up on the drugs and use the bits we have to plant new trees? We could even import grown trees and soil as well. We could be harvesting real apples again next year.”

The thought was pleasant to Applejack and she entertained it for a moment before squashing it. “Nope. It would take nearly ever’thing we got and if it didn’t work we’d lose everything.”

Dash wasn’t finished yet; she pushed the issue a little more. “But we could bring in fresh soil from other places, soil not corrupted by the chemicals of those twins. We could do it, sweetie. I want to see you like you used to be. Me and you, growing apples like old times.”

Applejack chuckled and kissed her lover. “Ah wish we could, Sugar Cube. We still don’t know the damage that stuff done. If that stuff is still in the soil and it mixed with the dirt we brought in it would kill all the trees again. It’s a nice dream, Dash, but it’s just a dream.”

“AJ, it might work. Or maybe we could just move the farm?” Dash was still fighting for options other than drug making. She wanted to be with her old friend Applejack. The kind, caring, honest pony, not the violent monster she had become.

Applejack sighed with irritation and spoke with a growl to her voice, signifying this conversation as over. “Ah ain’t about to chance everything on it. And the Apple Family has lived here for generations. Ah cain’t abandon the land left to me from my great-great grandfather. This is home, Dash. Enough now. We got a busy day. If we get T-Bone Ah expect you ta be there, got it, advisor?”

Dash sighed with temporary defeat, looking at Applejack and nodding gently. “Gotcha, AJ.” Secretly, she hoped that they would not catch the stallion. She wanted more time to try to bring AJ around to other options.

Applejack got out of bed and pulled her hat over her head, getting ready for the day. “Seeya later, Sugar Cube, but remember, nopony can know about us.”

Dash rolled her eyes and sat up in bed. “What do you think is going to happen if they found out? I want everypony to know we’re together.” She was frustrated and argumentative now.

Applejack stood still for a moment and turned slowly, her expression all business, the looks of the monster she had become. “You just keep your mouth shut, Rainbow Dash.”

The look in AJ’s eyes sent a cold chill through Dash spine. AJ wasn’t ready to be open about their relationship and it hurt, but that look was not her lover, it was what her lover had become. She had seen that look before when she was still addicted to Sweets. She had seen it before the abuse, before the punches and kicks that had broken her ribs and left her crying on the cellar floor. She had forgiven AJ for the pain she had caused because she loved her so much, but that look still scared her. Somehow, she managed to muster her courage. “Applejack, I’m not on Sweets anymore. If … if you hit me again, ever. If you … if you ever hit me again, I will leave. I won’t say anything about us until you are ready, but you better not hurt me again. I can’t forgive you for it anymore.”

Applejack didn’t like Dash’s tone. She had hurt Dash in the past. She told herself it was to try to bring Rainbow out of her Sweets addiction, which was true. Each time had been a challenge to the sickly mare. Their friendship had been based off challenges from each other and she had hoped Rainbow would snap out of her stupor and fight back. She never had, but somehow had clawed her way back from the depths she had been trapped in. AJ was proud of her for that, but secretly she had enjoyed hitting the mare, causing her to bleed and seeing the bruises she had caused. Some sinister part of her enjoyed inflicting pain, a part of her awakened by the new life she had fashioned for herself. That part of her called to her from somewhere in tones hardly perceivable, but somehow whispering in her mind. Somewhere inside that monster existed. “Just keep yer mouth shut, Dash.”

***

Scootaloo had waited all morning for Rainbow Dash to train her. It had been like this for a week and the orange pegasus filly was feeling shunned. Scoots sat among the sparse grass of the field the pegasi had been using for training feeling alone and annoyed. Her brow was furrowed and she kicked a small stone, listening to the skittering sound it made as it rolled awkwardly away. She had been cast out again. Her parents had abandoned her and now her role model, who she had aided in recovery from addiction, had orphaned her as well. Scoots felt as if she was meant to be trampled on by those she cared about. It was a recurring pattern in her life and she absently wondered how many times it would happen. Is this what her life was meant to be? Having heroes abandon her? The purple-maned filly released a sigh and a tear fell to the dusty ground, quickly gobbled up by the dirt.

Scoots had been ditched by her mentor for nearly a week, only seeing Rainbow occasionally and for brief periods of time. They had not trained once and had barely spoken more than a pleasant greeting to one another. Rainbow had explained that AJ had given her old job back to her and that she was trying to impress the country mare. She had apologized and promised to make time for Scootaloo, but promises were cheap when they were never realized. Rainbow hadn’t even been sleeping in the cellar that they were sharing and Scootaloo curled up, alone, in the burlap sacks that was Dash’s bed. She would breathe in Rainbow’s scent and worry for her friend. She had cried herself to sleep the last two nights.

She wasn’t coming again. Once again, Scootaloo would walk away from their training ground with her head down. The dreams that had so nearly come true smeared and dashed by the very pony she worshipped. Scootaloo’s hooves made light sounds against the dirt as she dejectedly walked from the field, not really caring which direction she went, because they all led to misery.

“Scoots! Hey! I made it!”

Scootaloo’s ears perked up and her head shot up, turning to see Rainbow Dash running to meet her. Her heart fluttered and a smile grew on her face. She turned and ran to meet her idol halfway, kicking up puffs of dust as she hurriedly scampered. Tears fell down her cheeks as she wrapped her hooves around Dash’s neck, sobs breaking her voice as she spoke, “Dash … I ... I knew you … you wouldn’t abandon me. I love you so … so much, Dash. I was so scared you didn’t like me anymore.”

Rainbow felt like a heel for ignoring the little filly for the past week. She wanted to make Applejack proud of her but she had completely written Scootaloo off to do it. It was selfish and rude to do such a thing to the young filly and Rainbow chided herself for it. Scootaloo had been the only pony who helped her in her time of need and now Dash was causing the filly to hurt. She sighed and hugged her friend, kissing her head softly. “Sorry, Squirt. I won’t leave you hanging again. I promise, even if I’m busy I’ll have time for you. It was wrong of me to forget you. I’ve just been so busy trying to impress Applejack. I’ll always love you, Scootaloo. You are the most important pony in my life. If it wasn’t for you I would still be sick.”

“You promise, Rainbow?” Scootaloo asked, her voice quivering and muffled into Dash’s breast

“I promise, Squirt.” Rainbow pressed the filly tightly to her and kissed her forehead gently for several minutes, waiting for the filly to calm down and look up with bright eyes and a happy smile. She didn’t have to wait long and returned the filly’s sunny grin.

“I’ve kept training even though you were too busy to help. I did two hundred wing ups yesterday! I think I am almost ready,” the filly excitedly announced, her eyes shimmering in hope and her voice rising with the moment.

“Oh yeah? I’m glad to hear that. My wings are almost grown back completely and I’d love to try them out again.” Dash looked to the cloudless morning sky and nodded with satisfaction. “Yep, today is a good day to fly. Let’s do it, kiddo.”

Scootaloo hopped in eager anticipation. She had been waiting for their first real attempt at flying for months and she laughed happily. “We can do it, Dash! I know we can do it!”

“I think you are right, Scoots. Now, let’s get at the far side of the field so we can get a good run and go.” Dash led the eager filly to one side of the field and began explaining how they would attempt to fly today.

“Okay, run as fast as I can, open my wings and leap into the sky while turning my wings so the wind gets underneath and pushes me up. I think I can do it. I think we can do this, Rainbow!” Scootaloo had forgotten all the sadness from earlier and grinned with joy at her mentor and friend—the mare she thought of as a mother figure.

“Right, but make sure when you feel the wind start to push you up that you keep flapping your wings. Once you’re up you’ll have to flap them constantly to maintain your height.” Dash gave her pointers and felt the excitement taking her heart as well. It had been years since she had been able to fly and she hoped to soar the skies again today, but she hoped beyond hope that Scootaloo would get off the ground. Seeing the young pegasus take to the sky would make her the happiest mare in the world. “Get ready.”

The pegasi set their hooves to the ground and lowered their heads in the ready position.

“Three …”

The desire to fly swept Rainbow Dash and her still healing wings opened behind her, their state better than they had been in years, but still missing many primary feathers. If she got into the sky, it would be a hard won victory.

“Two …”

Scootaloo’s heart beat rapidly in her chest. She wanted to make Rainbow proud of her. She wanted to fly with her idol into the boundless sky where the two of them could truly be together. The skies would be their home and nopony could take away the bond they shared.

“One …”

The pegasi trembled in anticipation and they sucked in a deep breath, preparing to make the attempt. Their hearts open, their friendship strong, and months of preparations eagerly waiting to be put to the test.

“GO!”

Dust flew from behind the hooves of the galloping pegasi as they broke for the other side of the field, gaining speed with each powerful step. The world pulled at them as they dashed forward, trying to keep them on the ground, trying to break them down and control them. Their manes stretched out behind them in the wind, the freedom of flight calling their names and beckoning them to the unbridled joy that was the liberation from the oppressive earth. Their wings were outstretched, catching the air as they picked up speed, nearing the midpoint of the field. Each of the mares gave a quick glance to the other, running neck and neck with one another, and all at once they leaped with all their might, feeling the wind take hold underneath their wings and propel them upward.

Scootaloo’s breath caught in her chest as the ground suddenly pulled away from her hooves and she began flapping her wings quickly. She could feel the wind rushing by her face and through her mane, the world below growing small as she achieved that which she had dreamed for so long.

Flight. The filly was flying and she quickly made a turn as she climbed above the naked trunks of the trees of the dead forest. She laughed happily, filling the sky with an ecstasy it had not known for a long time. The young pegasus was an orange dart in the sky, her earthly bonds broken and the thrill of life filling her heart and soul. She reveled in the moment and looked around for her hero. Where was Rainbow? She must have flown straight up, probably preparing to execute a series of glorious feats of aerial aptitude in celebration of their big day. Scootaloo turned her head up to the open skies, but didn’t see her idol. She looked around again and, upon not finding the multicolored mare, brought her eyes back towards the ground. Rainbow was looking up from the earth cheering and stomping her hooves. She had not been able to take to the heavens.

Rainbow Dash had leapt into the air and turned her wings to gain the lift required for take-off, but had met the ground roughly, flipping forward and rolling several yards before coming to a scuffed-up halt. At first, she sighed and the feelings of failure had began to creep into her emotions, but then she saw Scoots rising.

Dash’s hearts nearly exploded with pride and joy as she witnessed the orange filly make a turn above the tree line. She quickly got to her hooves, her failure forgotten, and cheered loudly for her friend. She could see the filly’s wings pounding rapidly at the air and the exhilaration spread from one to the other. Scootaloo’s victory was Dash’s victory and nothing else in the world mattered to her. She began stamping her hooves and calling out encouraging praises to the soaring orange pegasus. Rainbow was proud of her. She wanted to be with her up there in the sky, but that gave her something to work toward. Something to experience that would be unique to them. Dash nearly wept in joy for her student and friend as Scoots suddenly turned and began losing altitude. She was coming in for a landing, wanting to be with Dash. Dash wanted her to fly to her heart’s content and not land because of her and began motioning to the filly to fly higher.

Scootaloo ignored the signs Rainbow was giving her, wanting to be close to her mentor. She was ecstatic that she had flown but she wanted to share the experience with Rainbow Dash. She realized a little too late that she wasn’t exactly sure how to properly land and came down too hard. Her little legs kicked wildly to match the speed of her landing but she stumbled and fell on her face, the velocity causing her to flip end over end twice before crashing into Rainbow Dash, who had purposely leapt in front of the crashing filly, wrapping her in her forelegs and falling back to protect her.

They lay in a heap, a cloud of dust kicked up from the rough landing. They each began laughing and hugging on one another. They chuckled and embraced for a moment before getting to their hooves.

“You flew, Scoot! That was probably the most impressive first flight I have ever seen, even better than mine when I was a filly. Congratulations! I knew you could do it!” Rainbow was nothing but constructive with her praise. She didn’t care about her own failure. This was Scootaloo’s moment and the multihued mare was as proud as a pony could be.

“Yeah, but … you didn’t make it, Dash.” Scootaloo’s voice tinged with sadness for her mentor, her joy at her own success marginalized by Dash’s inability to lift from the ground.

“Don’t worry about that. My wings still have to get back in order. I’ll be fine in a month or two. This is about you, Squirt. You made me proud. You are a true pegasus now.”

“But you …”

“Today is about you, Scootaloo. Don’t worry about me. You have made me the happiest mare in the world and you should feel good about yourself. You made this happen.”

Scootaloo smiled and hugged Dash again, kissing her cheek and nuzzling into her. “I love you, Rainbow Dash. Thank you for being with me … for caring about me. I … I needed somepony to be proud of me, to care about me.” Her adolescent muzzle was warm and soft against Dash’s neck as she pressed close to her hero, basking in the emotions that flooded her.

Dash cried quietly and held the filly to her. Scootaloo was the sweetest thing she had ever met. She never deserved to be an orphan. She didn’t deserve to feel alone in this hateful world. What had happened to her parents was harsh and violent. Scoot didn’t need to know the truth, not yet. Dash softly kissed the filly’s head again. She felt motherly at that moment, as if Scootaloo was her daughter. It was a certainty that no parent could have felt happier for their offspring as Dash felt for Scootaloo at that moment. She held the filly for a long time, kissing her and telling her how wonderful she was. How proud she was to be her friend and that they would be together forever, until the sunset of their lives.

***

Sweetie was losing her mind. She could feel the guilt riding inside of her and screaming at her rationalizations of what she had been a part of. She had not slept for more than a couple of hours a night since she witnessed Spike’s death and the deprivation was playing tricks on her. Her inner struggles to come to terms with her role in Spike’s murder were becoming voices in her head. She had been privy to the tortures and deaths of ponies before, but this was different. She knew Spike and thought of him as a friend. If nothing else, he was Twilight’s closest friend and Sweetie would never do anything to harm Twilight. And yet, she had lured Twi’s best friend away with magic and gotten him brutally murdered at the hooves of JackSlap. The deaths of ponies she had not known kept her awake at night for days, but this was worse. Spike’s death was a direct result of her actions. If Twilight ever found out, she would hate Sweetie. She would never forgive her and hate her forever.

In the sleep-deprived state in which Sweetie found herself, she could almost see the blood on her hooves. The filly looked at her forelegs and shivered, her mind’s eye covering them in a thick crimson fluid. Horror ran through the cotton candy-maned filly and she shivered and shrank back in the chair of Applejack’s office. She had been called in to discuss her actions to prevent Spike’s departure and Applejack had been telling her of the good job she had done.

“Uh … Sweetie? Are y’all all right?” AJ asked the filly, thinking she was acting strange and distant, as if she were not in the same room, or planet, for that matter.

Sweetie suddenly looked up from her hooves, reality drawing her back to face the Apple mare who caused the problem to begin with. Sweetie felt a sudden wave of anger pass through her body and she bit back the words she wanted to say. Instead, she went with a more diplomatic approach. “You said I was going to use magic to convince him to come back to the farmhouse, Applejack. Why was JackSlap there? Why did we kill him?”

Applejack sighed with frustration and rocked back in her chair. “Sweetie. Do ya know what would happen if Princess Celestia found out what went on here?” She waited for a moment, but the question was rhetorical. “We’d all be thrown in prison or possibly executed. Spike knew too much and was gonna talk to the Princess. We have ta protect ourselves. We couldn’t have let him go free. He knew too much. He would have brought the whole farm down. Ya would have been taken from Rarity and put in an orphanage somewhere, or worse. Ya might have ended up in a prison for fillies. They’d have given you black eyes every day. Yer a right smart filly, Sweetie Belle, but yer not very tough. Y’all don’t wanna know what they would have done with ya there.”

Sweetie listened to the orange mare, but found it hard to believe her. She had found a way to drive a wedge between Sweetie and her teacher, Twilight. How could Sweetie face Twilight now? How could she smile at her and learn her spells while knowing she had caused the death of her friend? “Twilight will never forgive me for this, Applejack. How can I still be her friend?”

Applejack stood from her chair and glared over the desk at the filly. “She ain’t gonna find out, Sweetie. Ah’m workin’ on a way to make Twilight part of the Family, but she never needs to know what happened ta Spike. As far as she knows, Spike is back in Canterlot, happy as a pig in slop.”

“But … I killed him, AJ. He’s dead because of me.”

Applejack came around the desk and sat in the floor, coming eye to eye with Sweetie Belle. “Y’ain’t been sleepin’ much. Yer pretty messed up over this, ain’t ya?”

Sweetie nodded slowly and looked into AJ’s eyes. They were cold and hard. They had seen far more deaths than Sweetie’s and had hardened to the dirty business of the farm. A thought ran through Sweetie’s mind. Was she going to be that way? She nodded gingerly to Applejack’s question.

Applejack stood up. “Ya did good, Sweetie. As Ah promised, yer part of the family now. We’ll make sure yer safe for the rest of yer life. There’s likely ta be more blood ta be shed in the future. Y’all have seen what we do ta ponies who cross us. Ya need ta get used to it. What you did was fer the good of all of us.”

“I’m not a good pony anymore, Applejack. My parents would hate me for what I did …” Sweetie almost sobbed as she spoke, her eyes brimming with tears at the realization that she had let her parents down. She no longer needed to wonder if she was good or bad; she knew the answer. She felt the urge to see her flowers. Her flowers would calm her down and help her think. She would go to that hidden patch of land beside the twisting stream and look at her flowers. There she would be able to calm down and think clearly.

“Stop it, yer a very good pony. Ya’ll protected us, Sweetie. Ya saved us all from prison and death at the hooves of a ruler who doesn’t give a buck about our lives,” Applejack rubbed a hoof through Sweetie’s tangled mane. “Come on, Sweetie. Ah want to show you something.”

Sweetie watched Applejack walk to the locked door behind her desk and she obediently followed, interest perking her attention. She had long wondered what was hidden behind that door. She knew it was something Applejack treasured, something she didn’t let just anypony see. The unicorn filly’s mind cleared a little. Maybe AJ was right. She had saved the farm and ensured Rarity’s protection as well. She had also guaranteed her position within the family. She knew the work that would be required. She was being stupid about this. Spike was a serious threat and killing him was probably the best option. Sweetie’s rational mind spoke soothing thoughts to her frazzled brain. She had to get over what had happened to Spike. She had aided in his demise, but also in the salvation of Sweet Apple Acres. Twilight didn’t know what she had done and never needed to know. She could live with it. It needed to happen.

Applejack took out a key from her desk and unlocked the door with a sudden clacking noise. Pausing a moment to smirk down at the unicorn filly she pushed the door open revealing a room shrouded in darkness. Suddenly the lights came on in a blinding flash and Sweetie shut her good eye, waiting for a moment for it to adjust to the light.

“Open yer eye, Sweetie Belle. See what happens ta those who cross the Apple Family.”

Sweetie opened her eye and gasped in terror from what she saw. The room was midsized and had once probably been a closet, but now it was used to store the trophies Applejack had won. She had always heard rumors of this room, but had doubted its existence, chocking it up to stories designed to inspire fear in those who might challenge the Apple Family. Sweetie was surrounded by several rows of shelves that held Applejack’s trophies, reminders of those who had fought against the Apple Family, those who crossed them or made the look weak.

The removed faces of what must have been thirty ponies surrounded Sweetie Belle. Their colors had faded and many were stretched and reeked of chemicals to prevent rotting, stretched around the severed heads of ponnequins. The unicorn’s heart caught in her chest and she looked back and forth at the room of visionless visages as they blindly stared accusingly into the filly.

For a moment, Sweetie could not breathe, her lungs refusing to cooperate with her body while her mind dealt with the psychotic scene. Then suddenly, the fear fell apart and a strange acceptance crept within the unicorn. These ponies weren’t nice ponies. She could easily identify more than one. These were the street scum of Ponyville. Many of these ponies were exactly like the ones who murdered her parents for the bits in their pockets. This was why Sweetie had come to Sweet Apple Acres. She had come to fight back against the evil ponies who robbed and killed, the ones who raped and tortured others for the fun of it. They deserved this fate.

The unicorn filly slowly began to grin, the corners of her mouth widening as she looked from trophy to gruesome trophy. “They hurt others. They tried to hurt us, didn’t they, Applejack?” Sweetie’s voice was small and cold.

“Yes, Sweetie, they did. Some of the ponies in here killed mah family or tried to buck us and make us look helpless. We ain’t helpless. Nopony bucks with us or they become another ornament on the wall.”

The confusion and guilt inside of Sweetie’s mind began to melt away. She didn’t like Applejack for using her the way she had, but she respected the power the mare had, the ability to save herself and her family from the streets of Ponyville. If it meant giving up being a good pony to insure safety for her family and herself, Sweetie could do it. She felt a twinge of guilt still for taking Twilight’s friend from her, but it was a necessity. She loved Twilight and would do whatever she could to protect her, but killing Spike had secured all of their futures. Now Twilight would remain with her and they could all live safely at Sweet Apple Acres.

A pair of ornaments caught Sweetie’s eye. They were side by side on the highest shelf of the medium-sized room, looming down with familiar features. Features Sweetie had only seen a few times long ago, but every day since coming to live on the farm. “Is that …?”

“Yeah, it is. That’s them. They double-crossed me, Sweetie Belle, and nopony double crosses the Apples and get away. Ironic, isn’t it?” Applejack sounded as if she was happy with the irony of the situation, but suddenly changed the subject. “Ah got something for you to do, Sweetie. We’ll call it yer acceptance into the Apple Family. Ah want you to place this one on the shelf.”

Sweetie Belle turned to where Applejack pointed with her hoof. A towel with many stains that could only be dried blood covered what Sweetie knew to be another ponnequin head. She knew what was beneath it even before she pulled the towel away with her teeth. Underneath the cloth was indeed a ponnequin head, but with a familiar purple-scaled face, freshly cut, stretched across it. Sweetie Belle’s stomach churned, but she fought the urge to vomit. She could do this. This was how she would save herself from the horrors of the streets. This was how she would ensure the safety of her family and Twilight.

Sweetie Belle lifted the ponnequin head in her hooves and placed it on the bottom shelf between the remains of a red mare and teal mare. She stepped back and nodded with satisfaction at her placement, a small smirk appearing across her lips. Yes, she was a bad pony now. She was an Apple. She had achieved her goal and from somewhere deep inside, she felt good about it. She grinned with vile satisfaction into the removed flesh that had once been worn on the front of Spike’s head.

***

Big Macintosh and JackSlap had been successful on their attempt to kidnap the stallion their spy had told Applejack had been on location when Golden Harvest bought the little pink cakes called Pink Dreamz from their supplier. If the spymare was telling the truth, this big earth pony could lead the Apples to the identity of the pony who had developed the rival drug that had helped the Trotters threaten the Apple Family’s dominant position in Ponyville.

Big Mac knew that this was their best chance and, even though it had been risky, had pulled off the snatch. The Spymare had lured T-Bone to her home on the outskirts of Trotter territory under the guise of sexual activity. When he arrived, however, he had found Big Macintosh and JackSlap waiting for him in the bedroom. The pair had quickly subdued and knocked the strong stallion out with chloroform. Mac had taken a pair of brutal strikes to the face would require a few stitches … if the big pony lived that long. Jackslap suffered a blow that had caused him to spit out a tooth. That was all right; they would get their turns on the stallion once Applejack arrived.

The two Apple enforcers waited impatiently in a building near the outskirts of Sweet Apple Acres. It was nearly identical in design to the old disciplinary shed—a concrete structure with windowless walls and a steel door usually kept shut by a thick chain and lock. The pair took turns delivering painful kicks to the stomach of the Trotter bodyguard that hung from his forelegs from the ceiling, his back legs just a few inches from the floor of the building. He let out groans as he began to awaken from the chemical that had rendered him unconscious and transportable.

“What da buck? Your dumb-asses is gonna be sorry. I’ll break your teeth out of your heads for dis! Golden is gonna floss wit’ your guts, motherbuckers.” The powerful earth pony, T-Bone, struggled to be free of his chains. He was of limited intelligence, but was very strong and able. He had been Golden Harvest’s personal bodyguard for years.

Knowing that Mac was a stallion of few words, JackSlap moved toward the big pony and brought his trademark crowbar across and into the joint of T-Bone’s knee, enjoying the thick grunt that came from the stallion. “Shut up. Your gang ain’t shit compared to us and we’re going to put an end to it shortly. Just keep your mouth shut long enough for Applejack to get here and then you’ll be doing all the talking you can stomach.”

“Buck you, worm. Untie me and let’s find out if you can back up dem words.”

JackSlap looked to Mac, who shook his head negatively, and scowled. The fun would starts soon, but not soon enough. The big stallion had a few more minutes before the pain began. “Hold still. You’ll get what you deserve soon enough.”

Before long, there was a sudden rap on the door and Big Mac opened it, evening light spilling into the dimly lit building as two mares stepped inside, surprising both of the enforcers. They had expected AJ, but not Rainbow Dash.

“Boss … do you think having her here is necessary? She ain’t been functional in the business for years,” JackSlap motioned to Dash and cocked his eyebrow questioningly.

“Eeyup.” Big Mac evidently agreed with JackSlap’s statement.

Applejack looked at Dash, smirking, and then at her two enforcers with a scowl. “Ah don’t like bein’ questioned about mah decisions. Rainbow Dash has been gettin’ over her addiction and is ready ta take up her old place as mah advisor. Ah want her here because Ah think she’ll be a strong asset to the Family and Ah don’t want ta hear anymore about it. Got it?”

“Sorry, boss.”

“Eeyup.”

Applejack grinned to Rainbow Dash, who smirked back, and looked T-Bone over. “Good job getting’ him here, fellas. Was there much trouble?”

“Nope,” Big Mac answered easily and watched Rainbow Dash with a less than happy expression. He didn’t trust the mare and never had, honestly. He would have preferred the rainbow bitch to overdose.

“Good. Now let’s see what we got here.” AJ moved up to T-Bone’s hanging form, inspecting him closely. She smirked and felt a thrill run through her loins at the thought of adding another trophy to her collection, but this one had to divulge information first. That was okay, it just meant they could play with him longer.

“Buck you, bitch. Golden will eat your heart for breakfast soon. Y’aint shit no more. Best get ready to die,” T-Bone glowered at the country mare. He knew what was going to happen. He wasn’t dumb enough to think he would escape, but he wouldn’t give these Apple punks the satisfaction of his fear. He would face his death like a stallion. He wouldn’t betray Golden Harvest.

Rainbow Dash had never enjoyed these sessions and wished she could be excused, but wanted to prove to AJ that she was capable and ready to resume her old job. She steeled herself against the violence that was coming and leaned against a wall, ready to listen to any pertinent information that might come from the doomed stallion.

“Really?” Applejack asked and stood on her hind legs, getting face to face with the hanging stallion. “You are goin’ ta tell me everything Ah want. If ya do Ah will kill ya, if not Ah will kill ya, but yer end will come after hours of torture. Ya might as well tell me now what Ah want to know. Who supplies Golden Harvest with the drugs?”

“Funny little elves. They come from space once a week …” T-Bone began, but was silenced by a hard blow from AJ’s right foreleg. “Bitch. That all ya got?”

Applejack chuckled and dropped back to all fours and motioned to Mac. “Do it, Mac. Ah know ya want to.”

Big Macintosh grinned and lifted a short, sharp blade into his mouth. He moved close to the defenseless stallion and looked up at him while running the blade from knee to inner thigh. The blade did not go deep, but painfully lacerated the flesh the entire length. The red stallion did not stop there, pushing the knife into T-Bone’s abdomen just above his male organ and sharply yanking the razor edged tool down the middle of said organ. The most feared Apple enforcer split the organ T-Bone had expected to use on the pretty mare. His screams were music to the Apples’ ears, except Dash.

Dash watched as Macintosh systematically removed the brown stallion’s reproductive organs, letting them flop to the floor amidst the growing pool of blood, leaving a nasty hole where his junk used to hang. Dash knew this was part of the job, but she didn’t like it. She maintained hope that she would be able to eventually talk AJ out of the drug business. Maybe she could leverage Applebloom against her. Did AJ really want her younger sister doing these things?

“So, now who makes the drugs, T-Bone?” Applejack asked, her voice soothing and soft. “Things are only gonna get worse, tell us now.”

The stalwart stallion couldn’t help but to scream when they dug into him, but he could still keep his pride and honor. “Buck you, Applejack. You cunt.”

“JackSlap, pull his back hooves off with your crowbar.” Applejack loved watching her enforcers work. Soon she would join them, it brought a burning desire inside of her, which was usually unquenchable … but now she had Dash with her and she would definitely require some “advising” after this.

JackSlap’s sick laughter could be heard over the cries of the stallion as he worked the sharp end of his crowbar between the bones of his leg and yanked, twisted, and ripped until one hoof and then the other fell to the floor. JackSlap loved his work, a true sadist, he loved tearing ponies apart more than anything else in his life. He kicked the hoof that used to rest at the end of T-Bone’s right leg across the room like it were some sort of sport, raising his forelegs and shouting, “It’s good!”

The Apples all laughed at the corny joke and AJ moved before the bleeding pony. “What’s the supplier’s name, T-Bone? Save yourself any more pain. Just tell me.”

T-Bone was adrift a sea of unbearable misery. His ship had sunk and he treaded water in torment unlike anything he had ever known. He was tempted but shook his head. “Eat … shit.”

AJ turned to her brother and grinned happily. “Skinner, please. And get the salt ready, Mac.”

After another quarter of an hour of throat-destroying agony, several long flaps of hide lay scattered about the cement floor. The pool of blood had grown, but not large enough to indicate death by blood loss. T-Bone still had several hours to go before that happened.

AJ looked with the satisfaction of an artist at what used to be the chest and stomach of the Trotter bodyguard. The hide-less muscles twitched and reflected the light off their pink under-tissue. Nearly all of his torso now was flayed open to the muscle. “Salt, Mac.”

Big Mac stepped beside his sister with a block of salt. The block was cut in lines so that it would break apart easier when rubbed against something. Mac took great joy in roughly ripping the salt block back and forth over the stallion’s exposed musculature, reveling in the screams and pleas for death.

Dash looked to her lover, reviled at the moment, and said, “He’s ready, AJ. Just ask him.”

“He had his chance, Dashie. Now he’s going to beg to tell me. Do whatever you like, fellas. Just make sure he is alive enough to answer questions.” Applejack came to stand with Rainbow Dash as her enforcers went to work with various tools on the pathetic stallion. AJ grinned into RD’s face and moved close and whispered, “I’m going to buck you so hard when we get home.”

Dash smiled at her lover, but had no urge to make love to the mare tonight. She was showing the side of her that Dash not only hated, but also feared. This was the part of AJ born from this type of business. This was not her AJ. This was the monster rejoicing in its blood feast.

Dash forced herself to watch, disgusted and wanting to leave, for hours as the Apples brought the stallion misery and anguish. He deserved better than that. He was strong and willful. They should have respected him more. He had been willing to talk long ago, but the three Apple Family members had not gorged themselves on enough torment to let the poor stallion break his honor and finally die. She wished she could just end it for him, but she was unable to help him.

Applejack stood back and gazed up at the remains of the bodyguard. He was missing many pieces and several techniques and tools had been used on his scarred and mangled body. Her fun had nearly ended and she wanted to go home and release the burning of her loins. She, once again, stood on her hind legs and placed her forelegs around the neck of the stallion, getting close to his face. “Who makes the drugs, T-Bone? Who does Harvest buy ‘em from?”

“I don’t know.”

AJ slapped him hard with her hoof, but he had suffered so much at that point that being slapped meant little to him.

“Don’t know … her name,” the pathetic stallion weakly admitted.

“What does tha bitch look like?” Applejack was tired and wanted to go home. She would deal with the supplier tomorrow or the day after; she just wanted her name.

“Pink … had flat mane the first time … now she has it … all poofy. Like candy...” T-Bone struggled to speak. He craved the peace of death, but his mind was barely intact after all the torture he had endured.

“Pink? She’s pink with poofy hair?” Applejack was not liking the sound of this. Somewhere inside she knew whom T-Bone was indicating, but a part of her did not want to believe it. She hoped there was some sort of mistake.

“Boss, it’s Twilight’s friend. You know the one. Used to bake cakes. Now she runs that party business with the yellow pegasus.” JackSlap was not intelligent, but made the connection quickly. He saw those two far too often because of Twilight. He would enjoy carving those two up. Maybe he would even get to have some fun with the pink one. She had a nice rump.

“Shut up, JackSlap!” Applejack ordered and turned back to face T-Bone, a lump in her throat and disbelief thick in her mind. “What does her cutie mark look like?” It had to be some mistake; it had to be.

Dash was horrified. Could Pinkie really by the supplier? Their old friend making drugs and selling them to Golden Harvest? With Fluttershy’s help, no less? This situation just got bad. What was going to happen? Surely, AJ wouldn’t kill their friends. The thought of it was taboo; harming any of their old group seemed like an unimaginable thing. She held hope that T-Bone would say something else, something that would indicate some other pink pony. It just couldn’t be Pinkie Pie!

“Balloons. Three of them. Please kill me. Please …” The last of his honor was gone and the shredded stallion begged for death.

Applejack’s mouth hung open in disbelief. She had not expected Pinkie Pie to be the one making these drugs. She had catered Applebloom’s party recently and they had all had a wonderful time. She had come, knowing full well what she was doing. It was like spitting into Applejack’s face. On top of that, Fluttershy was in on it. Those two backstabbers lived together at Sugar Cube Corner. Party planning, her rump! They were making drugs and selling them to Golden Harvest. And Twilight visited them constantly! Was Twilight in on this as well? Her gut told her no, but it was hard to tell. Twi would have to do something to prove her loyalty now for sure. She would be bound to the Apples or she would have to die. AJ couldn’t let this one slide. Troubled and deep in thought, AJ walked from the body of the begging stallion. “Kill him, Mac.”

A moment later, the stallion was nothing but a corpse and the Apples stood together outside of the building to discuss their next move.

“Boss, what do you want us to do? We can head over there tonight and pay them two mares a visit. Buck them up real good. We can bring back their heads for you.” JackSlap wanted to deal with them. He had been forced to go to that bucking shop so many times that he would take immense pleasure in creating corpses from those mares. Especially the over-talkative bouncy one. She was bucking annoying.

“No, Jack. Ah want ta be there fer this. Ah should be there fer this one, personally. Those traitors need ta be dealt with.” Applejack wasn’t sure if she wanted to kill them or not. She was extremely angry about this. Pinkie and Fluttershy had caused all of the stress she had been under for the last few months. They had given birth to the Trotters’ newfound power. They deserved to die for what they had done. They were supposed to be her friends. How could they betray her like that?

Rainbow suddenly stepped in front of Applejack, her voice tinged with despair and disbelief. “AJ, you can’t kill them. Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy are our friends! Don’t you remember how we used to be?”

“Of course Ah do! Ah don’t know what ta do, Dash. They … Ah think they gotta die fer this. Ah cain’t be made a fool of. It looks bad. We cain’t let them get away with this.” Applejack didn’t really want to kill her old friends, but it needed to happen. If they were left alive, it would look bad for the Apples.

“Please don’t kill them. Please. They are our friends. We can’t do that to our friends,” Rainbow pleaded with her lover. She could see the confusion and hurt in AJ’s green eyes. She was hurt by this and so was Dash. There had to be a way out of this bad situation. “Come on, remember when I asked you if you thought we could go back to growing apples? This is the perfect opportunity for that. Let Golden Harvest have the bucking drugs. Let’s get some new trees and soil brought in and start over! Please, Applejack.”

Applejack looked irritated and scoffed at Dash’s suggestion. Didn’t she get it? They couldn’t go back to farming apples. They had all changed too much. They were so different inside now that returning to the honest work of farming was unattainable. They had gone too far and couldn’t back out now. “Dash, that shit ain’t ever gonna happen. We have ta deal with this, now throw away that ridiculous idea and help me!”

Rainbow shook her head and brought her hooves up to her temples. “Why not, baby? Why can’t we just go back to normal? We have the money now. We could do it. Please!” She let her pet name for her lover escape accidentally.

Big Mac and JackSlap looked at each other suddenly and then to Rainbow Dash. They had heard her call AJ “baby” and Big Mac eyed Applejack questioningly. JackSlap grinned knowingly and accusingly at his boss, having caught the pair kissing once before.

Applejack couldn’t believe what Rainbow had called her. She hoped her brother hadn’t caught it, but she didn’t have time to deal with that right then. She had to explain to Dash that she couldn’t farm apples again because she didn’t deserve the honest life of her forefathers. She was different now and she knew it. She wouldn’t be able to live such a simple life with all the things she had done. She could only deal with the horrors she had committed in this lifestyle. Besides, the chances of a full farm transplant taking root were slim. They would be in a bad condition if it should fail. “Rainbow, Ah cain’t! It’s too risky and Ah can’t live that life again no matter how much Ah want to. It’s dead. This is our lives now. Deal with it! We can NEVER go back!” Her voice cracked once as she almost begged Rainbow to drop the issue.

Rainbow started to cry. Applejack was admitting she was a monster. She was giving in to the darkness that had taken her. Dash hoped to kindle what was left of her friend and bring it out. She felt desperation taking hold. She had to make Applejack understand the seriousness of the situation. Dash couldn’t be with AJ if she couldn’t try to change. Seeing her this way was soul killing. Dash could only see suicide at the end of their current path and she had to try to save her lover from that fate. Lost in the moment and fearing for her lover’s soul, she made a mistake. “Applejack, I LOVE YOU! I love you, baby, but I can’t be with you like this. I can’t watch you become this … this … beast that you …”

When AJ heard those words, she had to make a decision. Her heart had fluttered at the words “I love you, Applejack.” It was the first time Dash had spoken them and it was something AJ had secretly wanted to hear for years. She was standing at a crossroads. If she accepted Rainbow Dash’s offer, she might find herself on the road to redemption, a path hard and lonely. She would have to submit her ego and pride to attain Rainbow Dash, returning to a simpler life; but could she handle such a normal life now? AJ doubted herself and looked to the other trail before her. She could continue on this troubled road, the head of the Family, unchallenged and strong. She could continue to make and sell the drugs that infected Ponyville. AJ had to make a decision and she had to do it now.

Applejack’s right hoof connected solidly with Dash’s jaw, and a sickening crack could be heard as the jawbone broke. Had she really said that right in front of Big Macintosh and JackSlap? Had she really called her baby and admitted that she was in love with her? Was she insane? She had just told Dash to keep quiet about their relationship. She couldn’t risk being exiled or bringing about the perception of weakness to the family, not right now. AJ had to pretend what Dash had said was foreign to her and that Dash was the weak pony, not her. She couldn’t leave the Family; she just couldn’t.

“What the buck is wrong with you, Dash?” Applejack brought her other hoof around quickly, connecting solidly with Rainbow’s mouth. AJ saw her lover’s tender lips split and begin to pour blood. Deep inside, underneath all the layers of protection, AJ’s heart trembled. She could see the betrayal in Dash’s beautiful eyes. Part of her wanted to embrace the mare and kiss her, to say, “The hell with it, Ah love you too, Dashie,” but that was only a small part deep inside and the walls her father had constructed easily quieted it—the walls that imprisoned her true feelings. “Stupid dyke. If Ah’d known this about ya, Ah’d never have even said hello ta ya.”

Big Mac watched happily as his little sister dealt with the rainbow mare. He smirked as AJ brought many sharp blows against the lesbimare. Mac had always suspected Rainbow Dash of being a closeted deviant. He chuckled happily as his sibling put the disgusting freak in her place. Applejack made him proud. She always was a capable pony and a natural leader. The enjoyment of watching her deal with the nasty blue pegasus was astounding.

“Ah don’t want ta see ya around here anymore, Dash. Get yer things and leave. If yer still in my home tomorrow, Ah’ll make this look like foreplay.” Applejack kicked the ribs of the crumpled pegasus as she cried and rolled in the dirt. She had to keep appearances up; she wanted to keep their relationship secret and if Dash would have kept her mouth shut, probably could have. She wanted to run away, to be away from Dash. Somehow, she was able to maintain her vicious façade, but inside, she was shattering. She couldn’t admit to the world her love for Rainbow Dash and so, when faced with the decision, she had maintained what the world expected of her. Beating Dash may have been excessive, but it was for the Family. Exile wasn’t an option.

Applejack turned to her enforcers, both smirking and chuckling at what their boss had done to the lesbimare, and nodded, beginning the walk back to the farmhouse. AJ wanted to be alone, to think about how to handle Pinkie Pie, but also to try to find a way to keep Rainbow as a secret. She didn’t want to be without her. She regretted what she had just done, but could think of no other way to deflect the accusations the multicolored mare had thrown at her. Staying strong was essential and Applejack had kept her status in the eyes of her Family, if losing much of her status with herself. She walked towards the homestead outwardly calm and stable, but inside a broken wreck of confusion and sorrow.

Rainbow Dash’s body hurt, the burning of her wounds a reminder of the beast her lover had become over the years. The pegasus lifted her screaming head from the cold earth to see Applejack and her family walking away. Her jaw screamed from the abuse it had taken along with half a dozen other aching body parts. Tears dripped from her eyes to be dashed onto the ground beneath; her heart felt as if it had been ripped from her chest. This was who Applejack had become—a monster, a beast, and not the pony Dash had fallen in love with all those years ago. She would never change back now. She would be this creature forever. Dash’s plan had failed and she could clearly see that remaining in this mockery of what her life had been would only make her miserable. It took all of the courage and strength Rainbow Dash had left to answer her dream gone to dirt, “I won’t, AJ … You won’t see me ever again.”

Dash’s body was mostly intact—it was nothing she hadn’t survived before—and she compelled it to rise and limp slowly towards the farmhouse. She needed to rest and inform Scootaloo of her failure and their imminent departure. Her body ached, but her heart ached more. Sometimes life wasn’t worth living. This black blight of her life would end tomorrow and something new would be born. If she were lucky someday, she would find the ability to smile again, the ability to laugh, but, for now, the world mocked her and threatened to crush what little Applejack had not.

***

Rainbow Dash had come home in a sorry state, once again physically abused by that bitch, Applejack. Scootaloo pressed herself up against her idol and cried for her, her wet tears mixing with Rainbow’s blue coat. Scootaloo’s big day was ruined by the appearance of her only friend. “I thought you two were friends again, Dash. Why would she hurt you like this? Why didn’t you hit her back?”

Dash sighed, lying in her bed of burlap sacks and trying to be as still as possible to deter the singing pain of her body. She didn’t know how to explain her reasons to the young filly. She didn’t want to tell the whole story. “Applejack is hurting, Scootaloo. She’s hurting because she knows she can never be like she used to be again. She beat me up, but she beats herself up every day. She’s hurting far worse than me. I feel sorry for her, Squirt. She’ll never get better.” Rainbow moved slowly and nuzzled the orange filly gently, tears rolling down her cheeks. “I just wanted to make her feel better, Squirt. I thought I could, but I failed. I can’t help her anymore.”

Scootaloo took Dash’s head in her hooves and kissed her forehead. Dash was too nice of a pony to be harmed like this. She was everything to Scootaloo and her pain was Scoots’ pain. “I want to kill her for doing this to you. You just tried to help her.”

“Shhh. Calm down. It’s all right, Squirt. Tomorrow we are going to leave this place behind. It will be just you and me. We’ll make a new life for ourselves somewhere else—somewhere nice, somewhere safe, and somewhere we won’t have to see the ones we love die or become monsters,” Rainbow cried again, her voice slow and soft. Tomorrow was another day, a new beginning for the pegasus pair. Tomorrow would be the start of a new life, a life free of the memories of Ponyville. “Go get your things ready, Scootaloo. I want to leave first thing in the morning. I … I need to be alone tonight. I have a lot to think about and I need to do it alone.”

Scoot gave her mentor a worried look, but obediently began to untangle herself from the multicolored mare. She stopped momentarily, hugging Dash once more. “We’ll take care of each other, Rainbow. You’re the only one I need.” Scootaloo stepped away, making her way to the door. She would only need a small bag for her few possessions. Tomorrow would be the best day of her life, the day she and Dash set out to find a life of their own away from the hell that Ponyville had become. She was closing the door behind her when she heard Dash call to her, sticking her head back into the cold cellar questioningly.

“I love you, Scootaloo. Get some rest and don’t worry about me.”

Scoots smiled softly and shut the door, slowly carrying herself upstairs and into the bedroom she shared with Applebloom and Sweetie Belle. She closed the door behind her and climbed into bed, trying to not disturb the sleeping Applebloom and thankful that Sweetie wasn’t present. She was probably off kissing Twilight’s butt or nursing that nasty black eye Scoots had given her. She smiled at both scenarios.

She’d never have to see that little snot again. The thought of being with Rainbow Dash in another town, just the two of them, made her smile. Her life could begin anew tomorrow. Just one more night in this house and she could breathe easy and free with the only pony that cared about her. The pillow felt so cool against her cheek and she laid her head into it. She would miss Applebloom and regretted that she would, most likely, never see her again. She wasn’t like her sister. She was a good Apple.

Sleep began to take the pegasus and she drifted off into the night with dreams of what lay before herself and Rainbow Dash. A future.

***

Rainbow had tossed and turned for hours after Scootaloo departed. Her eyes couldn’t produce any more tears and she sobbed into the sacks upon which she lay. Her world had crumbled. She had achieved some degree of happiness for a moment, but once again, Ponyville had stolen it from her. She didn’t want to appear this upset in front of Scootaloo and so she tried to get all of the emotions out tonight before they made their way to a new home tomorrow. She would make a stop in Ponyville before they left. Her last act in this Celestia forsaken town would be to warn Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy about what Applejack knew. Maybe she could convince them to flee and save their lives. Dash wasn’t sure what AJ planned to do with them, but she couldn’t leave without trying to save them.

The pain flared across her jaw line and she groaned. AJ had probably broken her jaw this time. That was okay; it would be the last time she let anypony abuse her like that. Applejack was a lost cause and she had no intention of ever letting herself be hit again. If only the pain would go away, she could sleep. She just wanted this night to be over, to let her new life begin. She sighed and closed her eyes to no avail.

After many restless minutes a knocking came to her door and she weakly called out. “Just leave me alone, please.”

The sound of hoof on wood came again and Dash sighed in annoyance. “Come in.” She waited for a moment, but the door remained shut and she let out a breath of agitation as she pushed herself to her hooves and limped to the door. She pulled the door open quickly. “What?”

The hallway was empty except for the sound of hooves clacking on the stairs that led back to the main floor of Sweet Apple Acres. Dash was confused and began to shut the door, but something caught her eye.

Lying on the floor was a baggie of powder. She knew the look of Sweets well and picked it up. She knew from experience that this amount would put her into another world and make her pain disappear. She quickly shut the door and took the bag back to her bedding.

She looked at the white powder and felt those old urges creeping into her mind. It wasn’t a lot. It was enough to make her forget, enough to let her sleep. She hadn’t done any Sweets in months, but the urges still lurked in the recesses of her mind. She had an idea that they would always be there, calling from the darkness to her. She pushed the baggie away with her hoof. She didn’t need them.

No, she didn’t need them, but they sure would make getting to sleep easier. It wasn’t a large amount and she was certain she could do it and be done with the stuff again forever. Heck, they were leaving tomorrow anyway. She wouldn’t be able to find them anywhere else. They could help her sleep tonight, bring her to tomorrow faster. They could help her forget Applejack and the pain she had endured for so long. One more time wouldn’t make much of a difference. It would be all right.

Rainbow Dash slowly reached out and pulled the baggie back to her. She opened it and dumped the contents onto the floor. She formed several small lines with her hooves and brought her muzzle down, snorting quickly and feeling the burn rush through her sinus cavity. She coughed at first and then let the sensation take her over. This batch felt different somehow; the normal burn was more intense and, as it dripped down the back of her throat, there was a flavor she couldn’t quite put her hoof on. It was as if it had been cut with something different than usual. Whatever it was, the pain seemed to fade almost immediately and her body drifted away.

Dash chided herself for a moment for snorting the powder after such a long time being sober, but this would be the last time she ever did drugs. There was no reason Scoot would ever need to know. She grinned to herself and leaned down to snort another line. She was impressed by the power of this stuff. It must have been a really long time, because she felt herself slipping away to unconsciousness even before she snorted the second line of Sweets. Dash lay her head down gently and closed her eyes, letting the drugs take her away from this place of pain. Everything would be better tomorrow. Her new life would begin and she might be able to find happiness with Scootaloo.

With these last thoughts for the future, Rainbow Dash’s broken heart slowed and fell silent.