Chapter 64- A Dream? Or a Nightmare?
Me: Well, Vinyl's dead, so some people probably hate me right now, but I'm going to continue anyway. I don't own the rights to Naruto Shippuden or My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic.
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Rarity stood atop the mountain, laughing maniacally as thunder and lightning flashed about her, illuminating her in their brief existence. She had done what she had come to do: kill Vinyl Scratch. She continued to laugh a few moments longer, relishing in her victory. When she finally stopped she couldn't help the wide grin on her face as she peered down to where Vinyl had disappeared into the darkness below. "What a pathetic person she was. Oh well, she got what she deserved for..." She shook her head; she didn't want to think about that incident.
She turned and began her descent down the mountain, carefully watching her footing as she went. She carefully made her way down the mountain, hesitating when a rock would give way to her hoof. The snow would sting her wounds when she slipped or simply got too close to the wall, making her wince. Eventually she set her hoof on the ground, the rest of her body following. She shivered from the cold and looked around, searching for any sign of the ring. "I have to find it; I just have to." She said.
She searched for hours, doing everything she could to find the ring Tid had given her. It meant everything to her, being her last memento of him. By now it was probably buried underneath layers of snow, the chances of finding it dwindling with very passing second as the snow continued to fall heavily. Wait, she could use her magic to find it; it was her Cutie Mark after all! Her magic reserves were low, so she'd have to find it quickly.
She concentrated, closing her eyes and focusing in the same way she had done for years when she was out finding gems for her dresses. She began to see through the layers of snow, finding many gems hidden beneath the white blanket. How was she going to find the ring? She began to walk around, her horn pointed at the ground as she went. She passed over countless blue sapphires, scarlet rubies, brilliant emeralds, but she couldn't seem to locate the one gem she was looking for.
After a while she began to get disheartened. Where was it? Was it even still here? Had it been stolen? Her mind filled with these thoughts, and with very passing minute she began to become more and more distressed. It has to be here... It just has to be! She thought, nearly in a panic. Then, in the corner of her eye, there was a glimmer, one that no gem she had passed over could ever make. She turned to look at it, and her heart filled with joy as she saw it was the ring. She quickly ran over to it and immediately began to dig up the snow. She scooped it up in both arms, throwing it aside and returning to repeat the process.
Finally, she uncovered the ring, its brilliant golden center giving off a slight glow, even with no other light shining on it. She lifted it up before her using her magic, gazing intently at its shining beauty. Remarkably the ring didn't have a scratch nor a bit of dirt on it; almost like it had never even touched the snow. She used a bit of her Chakra to surround her horn in an orange flame, warming the ring before extinguishing the fire and placing it on her horn. She felt its warmth on her horn, embracing the flooding memories that came with its warmth. Everything at that moment was perfect. Unfortunately, perfect moments don't last forever.
The six friends traveled down the long path leading into the Crystal Mountains. Itachi looked up toward the peaks of the mountains and noticed weather similar to that which he had seen in his fight against his own brother. They were trying to find the dark force, and, if everything went well, to eliminate it before it became a major issue. "So, what do you guys think the spooky dark force is, huh?" Pinkie asked as they walked. "I don't know, but whatever it is, it's sure given' me the willies." Applejack said shivering. "Ah come on, don't be such a wimp Applejack." Rainbow Dash said hovering a few feet from the ground, giving Applejack a look of annoyance. This was supposed to be her biggest rival?
"Girls, we can't afford to be fighting each other. Look, we're down one pony, and one... Never mind." Twilight didn't want to bring him up. "Anyway, we have our orders from Princess Celestia, so we'll just have to follow them." "She's right; we can't complete the mission if we keep arguing." Itachi said. "Thank you Itachi." Twilight said. He nodded. Rainbow Dash crossed her arms and mumbled something under her breath.
They continued to walk toward the Crystal Mountains for quite some time. Eventually the path began to take its dramatic change from dry, barren dirt to slick, frozen ice. The air turned chilling within seconds, making the ponies shiver from the dramatic change. Only Itachi seemed not to mind. They walked on for what seemed like hours through the bitter weather. "Don't worry girls, we're almost there." Twilight assured the others. "It's not that I'm worried about. It's that big blizzard over there." Pinkie said pointing her hoof toward a giant blizzard that was about to engulf them. Twilight's eyes widened as she watched the swirling white storm approach them.
The blizzard engulfed them and each did their best to try and brave the weather, turning away from the wind. "Come on, we need to keep moving!" Twilight shouted over the wind. She led the ponies and Itachi through the storm, continuing on their journey to the mountains. As they were walking, Twilight heard Pinkie Pie ask something. "What? Say that again?" Twilight asked loudly. "I said: 'What's that over there?'" Pinkie replied in a very loud voice and pointing her hoof toward where they were heading. Twilight squinted against the wind, trying to see what it was Pinkie Pie was talking about. A few seconds later she saw it, a silhouette in the storm. They moved closer and Twilight's eyes widened at what she saw.
Rarity stood there, not minding the storm that had engulfed her in its violent winds. She had found the ring, and it gave her all the warmth she needed. As she stood there she heard something. It was soft at first and she couldn't quite make out what it was. As the source got closer, she could make it out as voices. She stood still, straining her ears to hear what they were saying. "What? Say that again?" One voice said. "I said: What's that over there?" Another said. Rarity smiled. It was time.
The others stopped and stared at the silhouette. It turned around and began walking toward them. "No, I don't believe this!" Twilight said in shock. Rarity appeared through the blizzard, grinning wildly. "Rarity?!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed. "That's right. It is I." She replied closing her eyes and and putting her hoof on her chest the way one would if they were making a grand entrance. "I- I don't understand." Twilight said. "No, of course you wouldn't; I could never expect you to understand, Twilight." Rarity replied. "What the hell, Rarity? Why are you the dark force?" Rainbow Dash asked. "Dark force? I assure you I am no such thing. I merely have the power to do what I need to." Rarity replied giving the Pegasus an insulted look. "But, Rarity, I'm confused. Why do you look like this? What happened to you?" Fluttershy asked. Rarity turned her gaze to Fluttershy. "I already told you, I now have the power to do what I need to do. It was just a bonus that it came with a brilliant new look." "Listen here, Rarity. We are gettin' tired of constantly having to run around, facing threats to Equestria. Now your gonna tell me you're going to be one of those varmints? I thought you were better than that." Applejack said angrily. "No, I'm not a threat to Equestria; only to you." Rarity said with a look that often found itself upon her face whenever Rarity and Applejack talked. "What are you saying?" Fluttershy asked with concern. "I'm saying as of now, you are all officially my enemies. Being my enemies, I will stop at nothing to kill you." Rarity replied.
The others, except Itachi, gasped. Itachi walked forward. He stopped and stared at Rarity, looking her straight in the eyes. He had her under a Genjutsu, but he didn't intend to kill her. In this Genjutsu world, Rarity was immobile; pinned to a cross under a scarlet sky. Itachi was there too, standing in front of her, receiving her fierce glare. "Now, tell me, why are you doing this?" He asked. "Why? You think you'd understand why?" She asked him. He closed his eyes. "You might've forgotten, the pain I was forced to endure." He said. Her eyes widened. She had indeed forgotten. She remembered the story he had told them all, about how he had been forced to kill his own clan.
"How is that going to change anything?" She asked bitterly. "Rarity, you're doing this because of him, aren't you?" He asked her. She remained silent. She said nothing, she did nothing. "I see." He said closing his eyes once more. "Itachi, I don't see you as my enemy. You were close to Tid, and I know you were his best friend. In such case, I don't want to kill you, and I know you won't kill me, out of respect for Tid. However, this is something I need to do, my final gift to Tid. If I don't do this, his memory will be gone." She said. He looked at her, not unsympathetically. "Rarity, I know you loved Tid; we all know it. We know just how much you two loved each other, how happy you two were when you were together. However, the light has faded from your eyes. You can no longer see the world as you used to, now that he is gone. You consider your closest friends your enemies, and for what reason?" He asked. "Because Tid showed me the truth behind them. They never truly accepted him, nor did they accept you for that matter. They sacrificed him the first chance they got. If you think about it, it all makes sense now. Discord had been turned good a long time ago, and suddenly he's our enemy again? Perhaps that was the reason Princess Celestia hadn't selected us to get rid of him; she planned to sacrifice him and you to eliminate any threat to Equestria. And then Princess Luna declaring war on Equestria, and Princess Celestia being so quick to appoint Tid as General. She knew he'd join the fray to protect what he loved, to protect me, and then inevitably die to save us all." Rarity said.
Itachi was silent for a while, not saying anything, just staring at Rarity. "When you think about it like that, it does make sense. I don't know much of this world before Tid and I came here, but I do know what has happened can't be coincidence. Someone had to plan all of this very carefully, someone who saw Tid as a threat." Itachi said. Rarity smiled. "I'm glad you agree." "I think something much bigger is at play here, something that has yet to be revealed." He said. "Then will you join me? If you do, we can find out what it is, and end it, once and for all." Rarity said. Itachi was silent for a short time, again staring at Rarity. "No." He said finally. "No?" She asked. He nodded. "Why not? You and I both realize something is happening, something terrible, so why don't you join me? With our combined powers, we could-" "I know exactly how much we would be capable of, Rarity. After all, you do have Tid's power within you." He said. She flinched. "How did you know?" She asked. "I can see his Chakra within your body." He replied. "I see." She said.
"I also know you didn't get it from where you think. Yes, you got it from Tid, but not from what you thought was Tid." He said. "What is that supposed to mean?" She asked. "I can see your thoughts, Rarity. You think you got this power from what looked like Tid after his death, but what you don't know is that you actually had his power inside of you shortly before his death." Itachi replied. "No, you're lying. How could he give me his powers just before he died? He had no more Chakra left, you and I both know that. He couldn't have possibly been able to transfer his power to me." She said shaking her head. Itachi stared at her. "Tid used a special technique called the Transcription Seal. Instead of sealing an Amaterasu inside of you, he sealed his own powers instead. Now you have full access to everything he could do, even his Kekkei Genkai. I have used this technique on my brother before I died, but I sealed an Amaterasu within him. This technique doesn't require much Chakra at all." He said. "I don't believe you. How did Tid know such a technique? And from what you told me, it sounds like this Transcription Seal is used to seal Amaterasu inside of people, not someone's power." Rarity said. "True, but there are many things nobody knows about Tid." He replied. "I don't care. It's obvious you won't join me, but you're not going to convince me to stop. I'll keep doing what I have to, for Tid's sake." She said. He sighed. "Then talking longer would be pointless. Fine, I'll let you go, but leave me out of this. If I'm ordered to stop you, I'll have no choice but to obey, understand that." He said. "I'll look forward to our next encounter. Goodbye, Itachi Uchiha." She said.
Itachi deactivated the Genjutsu, returning to the cold stormy world. Rarity shook her head, not used to being put under a Genjutsu. "What happened? You two were just standing there for the longest time." Twilight said. Itachi remained silent. "Well I'd love to stay and chat, but I'm afraid I must be taking my leave. You see, killing someone is quite exhausting. We will meet again." Rarity said. "Wait!" Twilight said, but it was too late. Rarity disappeared in a bright flash of light. The others just stood there for a while, not saying anything. The only sounds that could be heard were the wind and the flapping of their cloaks as they whipped in the wind. "What do we do now?" Fluttershy asked. "I guess we report back to Princess Celestia." Twilight replied unenthusiastically. "Okay, let's go." Pinkie said in a sad tone.
Rarity reappeared at the Carousel Boutique, her wonderful shop and home. She inhaled deeply and took in the scent of her abode. The scent of crisp fabrics and flowers filled her nose, as well as a hint of the wonderful cinnamon scent of a rare jewel she had been lucky to come across. She felt something brush against her leg, feeling the familiar warm fur of Opalescence. She looked down at her and smiled warmly. "Hello Opal." She said. Opal said nothing but continued to our and rub her body against Rarity's cloak. "Come darling, let's go." She said.
Twilight and the others arrived at the castle in Canterlot where they would report back to Princess Celestia. They entered the throne room, all of them confused and worried. "Ah, there you are Twilight. I trust everything went well?" The Princess asked. Twilight remained silent, her head hung low. "I see." The Princess said. "I'm sorry Princess, we did find out the identity of the dark force." Twilight said after a while. "Excellent, though I imagine it wasn't a pleasant discovery." Princess Celestia said. Twilight shook her head. "You see, the dark force is-" "It's Rarity!" Pinkie Pie interrupted. Everyone looked at her. "Sorry, I just couldn't hold it in any longer." Pinkie said. Her hair was already starting to turn straight. "You are forgiven." Celestia said.
There was a moment of silence in the throne room; only the sounds of the rain could be heard. Finally, the Princess spoke. "I know it must be hard to have to fight one of your closest friends. I have seen many of my dear friends turn to evil, far too many than I care to recall." She said. "But Princess, what do we do? We can't fight our friend, we just can't." Twilight said. "I can't force you, but I urge you to consider what is best for the future of Equestria. These things are never easy, but some sacrifices must be made." "Wasn't Tid's sacrifice enough?!" Rainbow Dash blurted out. The Princess looked astonished at Rainbow Dash. The others turned to face the Pegasus as well. She had tears streaming down her face. "Tid died for Equestria, for all of us! Was it not enough?! Why must we continue to lose our friends?!" She said, almost screaming. She covered her eyes and began sobbing. Applejack walked over to her and placed her arm around the now grounded Pegasus. "It's okay, Rainbow, we all miss Tid, but there ain't nothin' we can do about it." She said. "None of us miss Tid as much as a Rarity does. That's why she's doing this. That's why she killed two people, not because she's evil, but because she misses him! She loved him for Celestia's sake!" Rainbow Dash was screaming now. She continued to sob and Applejack continued to comfort her. "It's alright, Sugarcube." She said. Rainbow Dash removed her hooves from her face and stared fiercely at Applejack. "It is not alright! Don't you see? This could've been prevented! When Tid died, Rarity was heartbroken! We should've supported her, comforted her, but instead we pushed her away! We pushed her to the point of hating us, of hating everyone! It's not Rarity's fault this is happening, it's ours!" She said. No one else said anything for a while and Rainbow Dash began to sob again. She had a point, they realized. Could it have really been prevented? Could they have avoided this painful choice?
Twilight spoke up after a while, breaking the uncomfortable silence. "Rainbow Dash, I think I speak for all of us when I say we understand what you're saying. It was wrong of us to push Rarity away like that. Unfortunately, we can't go back and change it. I'm sure none of us could understand just how much Rarity misses Tid, but we do miss him. And now, we've got a job to do, and that is to protect what Tid left behind, what Tid had given his life for." She said. Rainbow Dash sniffled. "What about Rarity? Tid fought to protect her too, and she's our friend. What about her?" Rainbow Dash asked. "I... I don't know. I guess we have no choice but to..." Twilight didn't finish her sentence, and she didn't need to. Everyone understood what needed to happen, and they all dreaded it.
It was a dark night that night. The ponies and Itachi walked out of the castle and back to Ponyville. None of them said a word, each one focused on their own thoughts. They walked straight through the town and into the Everfree forest, where the old castle sat. They entered, flipping a switch to turn on the lights that had been implanted into the building. A giant black banner that read "Akatsuki" stretched from one wall to the other above where the thrones once stood. The building had been restored to its former luster, and then some. The marble floors were polished and reflected the ponies as they walked. Ribbons royal purple in color stretched from pillar to pillar. A red carpet had been rolled out in front of the door, stretching down the room to a point just short of the round table that sat where the thrones used to.
The friends walked up the few stairs to the table and took their respective seats. Applejack sat across from Rainbow Dash, who sat next to Twilight. Twilight sat between Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, who sat at the end of the table closest to the door. She sat next to Fluttershy, who sat next to Applejack. Applejack sat next to Itachi. On Rainbow Dash's other side there was an empty seat that sat across from Fluttershy and next to the seat that was closest to the wall. The one who normally sat in the chair across from Fluttershy was Rarity, and Tid's seat was the one closest to the wall, directly across from Pinkie Pie. Tid had never gotten the chance to sit at the table, as he died before they revealed the castle to him.
"So, what are going to do?" Applejack asked. "First, we need to make sure that everyone's okay with this plan. I mean, we're talking about killing Rarity here." Twilight said. "I don't know, Rarity was one of my closest friends. I'm not sure I'd be able to kill her." Fluttershy said. "I understand, Fluttershy. This is hard for all of us." Twilight said. "Well I for one don't think we should. I mean, Rarity's always been sensible, so I'm sure she'd be willing to listen to reason." Rainbow Dash said somewhat uncharacteristically. "I'm not so sure about that. I would love to take that approach, but how can we be certain she'll listen to us? She might try to kill us the second she lays eyes on us." Twilight said. "So? We still have our Path powers, we could beat her and force her to listen." Rainbow Dash said with crossed arms. Twilight put her hoof on Rainbow Dash's shoulder. "I appreciate the effort, but I just don't think it'll be possible." Twilight said. "How could you know without even giving it a try?" Rainbow Dash asked. Twilight didn't answer that. Itachi also knew it wouldn't work, but he didn't share this information with the others.
"Let's do it." Applejack said, her eyes staring fixedly at the table with a saddened expression. Everyone looked at her. "What?" Twilight asked. "I don't see any other options. We've got to protect Equestria, after all. I know Rarity's our friend and all, but we can't do nothin' for her. It's like trying to make an apple pie and apple cider with one apple: you can have one or the other, but ya can't have both." She said never taking her eyes off of the same spot. "Are you sure about this Applejack?" Twilight asked. She nodded. "Well it seems we all have different opinions as to what we should do, so why don't we take a vote?" Twilight asked. No one said anything. "Alright. All those who think we should move forward with the plan, say 'I'." She said. Applejack said 'I', but no one else did.
Twilight heard someone crying, and saw it was Pinkie Pie. Her hair was perfectly straight, lacking its usual puffy-ness. "What's wrong?" Twilight asked. "I can't believe we're actually doing this. We're actually voting on whether or not to end Rarity's life. How could we do this to her? She's our friend! No wonder Rarity's mad at us; we're actually considering killing her! What kind of friends do that? She's sad, and we're blaming her for it. Honestly, do you really think that's fair?" Pinkie Pie replied. "Fair? No, it's not fair, but it's not fair to Equestria if we let her destroy it." Twilight replied. "But, but, Tid loved her! He loved her so much he died for her! Now we're going to kill her, and make the one thing that had brought him happiness disappear forever?" She asked. Twilight didn't say anything. "It's not fair... It's just not fair. We can't!" Pinkie said. "What do you want, Pinkie? Do you want Rarity, or Equestria?" Twilight asked. "I just want to smile again." Pinkie replied after a short pause. She looked at Twilight with teary eyes, and Twilight could see the sadness in them. It was true, Pinkie Pie hadn't smiled once since Tid died. Her hair had slowly been turning straight since that night. She truly cared about Tid and Rarity, and was devastated when he had died. It was horrible to see Pinkie in such a state, the exact opposite of how she normally was. "I'm sorry Pinkie, but I don't think I can make that happen." Twilight said sadly.
They sat in silence for a while, Fluttershy comforting Pinkie Pie. Then something unexpected happened. "I." Twilight was almost startled when Rainbow Dash said that. Pinkie Pie began crying even harder. "I." Said Twilight. One more vote was needed, and three hadn't voted yet. "No, I'm against it." Pinkie Pie said. One vote no, three votes yes. Twilight looked at Itachi, but he closed his eyes and said nothing. They needed four votes for a majority, even if one person decided not to vote. That meant the attention fell upon Fluttershy. She was sitting in her chair, still comforting Pinkie Pie with her arm wrapped around her. Everyone except Itachi and Pinkie Pie looked at her, awaiting her decision. She looked around, fear in her eyes. What was she to choose? Her closest friend? Or Equestria? She closed her eyes and sighed unhappily. She gently lifted her head and looked with tear-filled eyes at Pinkie Pie. "I'm so sorry, Pinkie. I." She said. Pinkie Pie began to cry harder than ever. It was decided, they would kill Rarity.
Rarity danced around her boutique to the music that Tid had loved listening to. She listened to the music so often she could even sing along with the singer, perfectly matching every lyric. She danced and sang about her boutique while Opal watched her, contently lying on a single stair and purring. She felt wonderful, as if nothing in the world could possibly ruin her fun. It was the first time in what seemed like ages since she had found the courage to laugh and smile without taking her revenge first. She felt happy, felt a warmth inside of her that had disappeared until now. Then it came. Rarity came to a sudden halt, nearly falling to the floor from her momentum but managed to catch herself. She had heard a special song come from the device she was using to play it, a song that nearly brought her to tears. It was their song. She didn't move, she didn't sing, she didn't do anything but listen to the beautiful words that the man whom had recorded it sang. The lyrics had meaning to both her and Tid, and the melody was light and happy. It hadn't been the first song they had listened to together, but it was the song that held the most meaning. Tid...
Rarity stood still and listened to the song until it faded and the next one played. A single tear fell from her eye to the floor. The song brought back so many memories of the times they had shared together. She wasn't sad, but rather, happy. She smiled, and then laughed. She could feel her happiness rising within her. She immediately burst into song and resumed dancing, now more care-free than ever.
Hours passed before Rarity could no longer find the energy to continue her fun. She sighed and stopped the music using her magic before walking up the stairs to her bedroom. She plopped down on her cushiony bed and lay there staring up at the ceiling. She was tired, and the hour was late. She glanced over at her alarm clock and read 2:17 on its face. She chuckled. She hadn't stayed up this late dancing and singing since one of Pinkie's famous all-night parties. "Well, I suppose it's time I get some rest. I have a feeling it's going to be an eventful day." She said to no one in particular. She closed her eyes and drifted off to a well-deserved sleep.
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Me: Well, that was emotional.
Twilight: Why? Why is this happening?
Me: Everything happens for a reason, that much you'll learn soon.
Twilight: When?
Me: At the end of the Wrath of Rarity arc. Anyway, favorite, follow, and leave a review! See ya next time as this exciting arc continues!