SCARS

SWEETIE BELL KNOCKED ON RARITY'S BEDROOM DOOR. SHE'D BEEN DOING this ever since the Cutie Mark Crusaders arrived at Carousel Boutique. That was over twenty minutes ago. Rarity's door was locked, and she wasn't answering.

"Come on, Rarity, open the door," Sweetie Bell pleaded. "It's your little sister."

"I don't want to talk to anybody," Rarity's voice came from the other side of the door. "Please, Sweetie Bell, just leave me be."

"Rarity, you're my big sister. You're always telling me to come to you if I have a problem. Well, now you're the one with the problem, and I'm coming to you to try and help you fix it."

"You can't. You don't understand."

Sweetie Bell rested her forehead against the door. "Rarity, I know what the Decepticons did to you; Optimus Prime told us all about it. Please, Rarity, let us in. You're...You're scaring me."

"I'm sorry, Sweetie Bell, but I refuse to talk about it."

Sweetie Bell let out a defeated sigh. "Come on, guys." She turned to walk down the hall, but not before giving one last look at the door. "Some ponies just can't take their own advice and let others help them with their problems." She followed Apple Bloom and Scootaloo down the hallway and back outside, just as Twilight came trotting up, Spike on her back.

"Hey girls. How's Rarity?"

"She ain't talking to nopony," Apple Bloom said. "She kept telling us to go away."

"Wow," Spike said. "She's feeling pretty down, isn't she?"

"Well, to be honest, I don't blame her," Twilight said.

"You don't?" Scootaloo asked. "Why not?"

"Because she survived something horiffic," Twilight replied. "But she can't stay locked inside all the time. I'll go in and see if I can't talk some sense into her."

"And besides, she'll always tell me if something's bothering her," Spike added. Twilight just stared at him over her shoulders. "Okay, maybe not always."

Twilight went inside and made her way upstairs to Rarity's bedroom. The door was still shut. She knocked on it.

"I said, go away!" Rarity yelled.

"Rarity, it's Twilight and Spike. We need to talk," Twilight said. "Please, open the door."

"No! I'm not talking to anypony!"

Twilight sighed. "I didn't want to have to do this, Rarity," she said. She tapped into her unicorn magic, as evidenced by her glowing horn. The door handle also started glowing. There was an audible click as the lock opened. She slowly pushed the door open with her hoof and looked around. Rarity was face-down on her bed, her face buried into her pillow. Twilight could hear Rarity's quiet sobs through the fabric as she approached.

Spike slid off of Twilight's back and put a hand on Rarity. "Rarity, are you okay?"

Rarity looked up at Spike. Her face was red, her eyes were bloodshot, and her cheeks were lined with the streaks of tears.

"No, I'm not okay," Rarity said. She looked from Spike to Twilight. "I can't get those horrible images out of my head."

"It's going to be okay, Rarity," Twilight said. "Everything will be alright."

"You're just saying that," Rarity sobbed. "You don't know what it's like, Twilight Sparkle. You've never had your life flash before your eyes, never thought that those moments would be your last."

"Actually, I have," Twilight corrected her. "Do you remember when Sephiroth used his Thunder magic on me? I almost died. I still have bad dreams about that time. So I know how you feel. You feel scared, powerless, worried that it might happen again." She put a hoof on Rarity's shoulder. "But we're all here for you, Rarity. Me, Spike, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, the Cutie Mark Crusaders; heck, even the Autobots and the humans, and they've only known us for about twenty-four hours."

"I just..." Rarity turned her head away from Twilight. "I just want the images to leave."

"I know you do, and I wish there was some way to make them go away, really I do, but not even my unicorn magic can make that happen." Rarity buried her face in the pillow again. "Rarity, please, you can't stay like this forever."

"Why not?"

"Because...Because of Sweetie Bell. You're her big sister, she needs you. You can't give up on Sweetie Bell. And you can't give up on your friends, either, because we won't give up on you."

"Hey Twilight, do you hear something outside?" Spike asked.

Twilight turned her ears in all directions. She heard what sounded like an engine running.

"It's an Autobot," she breathed. She hurried over to the window and looked down towards the ground. Bumblebee was parked outside. His doors opened, and Raf stepped out. A few seconds later, Bumbebee transformed into his Robot Form. "Hey Bumblebee." Bumblebee gave a short beep in return. "Oh, sorry. I, uh, don't know what you're saying, Bumblebee."

"He says hello," Raf said as he stepped into the room. "I heard Rarity wasn't doing too well."

"Now there's an understatement," Spike said.

Raf knelt down next to Rarity. "How are you feeling, Rarity?"

"Horrible," Rarity said. "Just horrible. Like I just want to lie here and die if that will get rid of the memories."

"Whoa! Rarity, don't talk like that!" Spike cried. "You never talk like that! I mean, sure, you lived through a near-death experience, but that's no reason to just want to give up living! Think of all the things you've been through, Rarity-Nightmare Moon; the dragon whose snoring was covering Equestria in smoke; being kidnapped by the Diamond Dogs; Discord; helping me with those dragon bullies; Queen Chrysalis and her Changeling army; liberating the Crystal Empire from King Sombra; Pinkie Pie cloning herself; the Grand Galloping Gala! All the things you've seen and done, all the events you've lived through, all the battles you've fought; you can't quit now! Your friends need you, Rarity!" He put his hand on her hoof. "I need you."

Rarity looked around, her gaze shifting from Spike to Raf to Twilight to Bumblebee. She blinked rapidly, holding back more tears. Slowly, a smile began to appear on her face.

"You know what, you're right," she said. "I've been beating myself up when I should have been trying to look on the positive side."

"And what is the positive side?" Twilight asked.

"It's that I'm alive," Rarity replied. "And that I have such wonderful friends who care about me. Though I wonder, will I ever get over these memories?" Bumblebee gave out a series of whistles and whirs. "I have no idea what he just said."

"He said that you'll always have them," Raf translated. "There's nothing you can do about that."

"I suppose you're right," Rarity said. "Thank you. All of you."

"HELLOOOOOOOOOOOO RARITY!"

"Well, here comes Pinkie Pie," Twilight said.

Pinkie Pie poked her head through the window; she had climbed up Bumblebee's body. "Hi, Rarity! Feeling better?"

"Much better, Pinkie Pie," Rarity replied.

"Great! This calls for a celebration! I'll head over to Sugar Cube Corner and whip up a whole big batch of cupcakes, just for you!" She leaped down from Bumblebee's shoulder and bounced off down the street.

"Is she always like that?" Raf asked.

"Pretty much, yeah," Twilight replied. "What do you say, Rarity? Cupcakes at Sugar Cube Corner?"

"When I'm looking this dreadful?!" Rarity cried as she looked at herself in the mirror. Her eyes were still puffy and bloodshot, there were still the streaks of tears on her cheeks, her mane was ruffled and messy, and her fur was unkempt. "I can't go out looking like this!"

"Well, at least you're back to normal," Twilight said. "We'll just let you get fixed up. Come on, Spike."

"Right behind ya, Twilight," Spike said. He ran after Twilight, stopping at the door and turning back to Rarity. "I'll, uh, I'll see you later, Rarity." Rarity didn't respond; she was using her unicorn magic to run a brush through her beautiful raven hair.

"Spike!" Twilight called from down the hall. "Come on!"

"Coming!" Spike called down to her. He hurried to catch up to her.

"Yeah, 'Bee and I had better get going too," Raf said. He walked over to the window and climbed into Bumblebee's outstretched hand. "We'll see you in a little while, Rarity."

Bumblebee transformed and strapped Raf down with the seatbelt before turning around and driving down the street.

Everybody was there to greet Rarity at Sugar Cube Corner-her friends, Mr. and Mrs. Cake and their newborns Pound Cake and Pumpkin Cake, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, Granny Smith, Big Macintosh;even the Autobots and the humans were there as well.

"Gosh, Pinkie Pie," Rarity breathed. "Did you invite all of Ponyville?"

"Nope," Pinkie Pie replied. "But I can if you want me to. Be right back!" She skipped towards the door.

Rarity blocked Pinkie Pie's path. "No, no, that's quite alright, dear. This is enough."

"Glad to see you pulled through," Jack said. "You had us worried there for a minute. We were about to send Fowler in to fetch you."

"I've dealt with PTSD in the past," Fowler said. "Comes with the job." He took a bite out of his cupcake. "Well color me red white and blue, this thing is delicious!"

"I told you they would be," Pinkie Pie said with a smile. She handed a tray of cupcakes over to Rarity. "Cupcake?"

"Why not," Rarity said. She took a cupcake from the tray and bit into it. "I just want to thank you all again for getting me out of that funk I was in. I wasn't being myself."

"You had us all so worried," Fluttershy said.

"Not me," Rainbow Dash proudly said. "I knew you'd pull through." She felt Applejack's glaring gaze on her. "Um, okay, maybe I was a little worried."

Rarity pulled Spike closer to her. "I especially have you to thank, little Spikey-Wikey."

"Rarity, stop. You're embarassing me." He pulled away from Rarity, his face bright red.

Optimus got down on his hands and knees to put himself at Rarity's level. "We are all relieved that you survived your ordeal, and that you have returned to being your normal self."

"Thank you, Optimus. Still, I can't help but wonder if those images will ever leave my mind."

"It is the external wounds that heal the quickest," Optimus replied. "The internal wounds take much longer. Those are the scars that you always carry with you."

"I...I see," Rarity said. "But I think I should be okay, as long as I don't have to deal with any more Decepticons."

"The Decepticons will remain a threat to all of you as long as they are in this world," Optimus replied. "But you have nothing to worry about. We will fight them. We will stop them."

Jack heard Spike start to gurgle, like he was going to be sick. He turned to the young dragon. His cheeks were puffed out, like he was trying to hold back his vomit.

"Hey Spike. You okay?"

"We warned him about having too many cupcakes," June said. "Still didn't listen, did you, Spike?"

Spike opened his mouth, but instead of vomit coming out, it was a small burst of green flame, which quickly materialized into a rolled up scroll.

"What in the world is that?" Miko asked.

Spike picked up the scroll and unrolled it. "Let's take a look, shall we?"

"Is it from Princess Celestia?" Twilight asked.

"Yeah," Spike replied. "It's a summons. She wants to see all of you in Canterlot. Right now!"