Guest - We'll just have to wait and see ;)

KillerWoW - Oh, there's no need to thank me twice ;)

PyraohXBlaze - Hmm... you might... but then again, you might not... And no, no hard feelings

shadows being (Ch 2) - Lol. Indeed

GUESTTEST - We'll just have to find out when we get there, won't we?

Guest - Well fine, I won't mind you :P

Lone The Dark Hearted Wolf - Lol something like that

centaurus2 - Maybe?

DarkwolfLord - Well, now you can read on, to see that and much, much more!

ShadowfireAngel - I know, right? It's been too long since we've seen the little munchkin for more than a short scene

Ponified Bacon Boss - OR... we could find another way to cure him... one that doesn't involve ripping things out of the most awesome little filly ever.

DragonLord RyuKizoku - Aww... guess I'll just have to try harder next time ;)

Zero the Warrior of Chaos - Hmm... you're not too far off there, on both counts

PSYCHOPATH - That's not good. Did you at least kick his ass? You're not alone either, I've been stabbed in a mugging too, so I know how much it sucks.

DragonLovingBrony - Yes, all of the feels will be had!

Kyguy - Lol right? Between her and Scoots, the whole universe would be in trouble

PBJFanFiction - I didn't, actually. While Zecora's cauldron may be huge, it doesn't really matter, because potion-making is a lot like cooking; you mix specific ingredients in specific quantities and in specific ways to get a specific result. Change the quantity one ingredient without changing the quantities of the others, and the end result will be something other than what's intended, and in the case of a potion, it may go so far as to have the opposite effect from what's desired.

Mikalzilla - Eeyup

A/N - Howdy everypony! I hope you're ready for the next installment of A Second Chance! Hopefully poor Blake will finally get a respite after everything that's happened, he deserves it. Also, if you guys are into pony art, especially clop, check out CandyClops on Tumblr, her art is amazing! As always, don't forget to follow/favorite, review, and most importantly; enjoy!

I slowly crept into the master bedroom, crouching down on all fours and keeping a wary watch over the bedsheets as they rose and fell in time with Derpy's snoring. I smirked and looked up at Dinky, who was sprawled over my head like an adorable hat. She stuck a hoof over her mouth as she snickered at all the noise her sister was making.

I moved closer and rounded the bed to the side that she was sleeping on, the side closest to the balcony door and the one I usually slept on. I sidled up to the edge of the bed and placed a hand gently on Derpy's shoulder, rocking her gently. The dead-to-the-world mare simply rolled over and grumbled something in her sleep.

Undaunted, I tried again, this time shaking harder and whispering her name into her ear. Eventually, as the shakes got harder and the whispers louder, she turned over and looked up at me. She stared at me for what was probably five seconds before rolling over and shimming further under the covers. "You sure are persistent, dream-Blake…"

I smirked at her and waited for things to register with her. When it became clear they weren't going to, I decided a change in tactics was in order; I grabbed the dozing mare by the shoulder, flipped her over, and pressed my lips firmly to hers, much to the chagrin of my hat. Derpy's eyes popped open wide, and she started sinking into the kiss, even placing a hoof against my cheek.

I pulled away far sooner than I would've liked, not wanting to traumatize poor Dinky any more than I already had. "So, did that feel like a dream?"

A huge smile spread across her face and she leapt out of bed, much as Dinky had, and tackled me. "I dunno, let me try it again!"

I felt my poor filly of a hat go tumbling off of me as we collapsed to the floor, Derpy's sweet, muffiny lips once again pressing against my own. "Eww! I'm gonna go play with Scootaloo!" I hardly noticed her receding hoofsteps.

We lost ourselves in the tender love of the moment, neither of us wanting to stop, and both content to simply bask in the affection the other was showing. "Heh heh… Looks like somepony's happy ta see ya Blake…" We finally broke the kiss at Applejack's intrusion, though if either of us were embarrassed about being caught like that, neither of us showed it. "Aww… Y'all didn't hafta stop on my account, Ah just wanted ta make sure everythin' was alright after that big ol' bump we heard from up here." Without another word, the country mare turned and left the room, closing the door behind her.

I smiled up at my goofy marefriend and she smiled at me. We kissed for a moment longer before I remembered that I still had a guest downstairs. "As much as I really don't want to stop, Zecora's visiting downstairs, and we would be bad hosts if we ignored her, even if AJ and Twilight are here too."

Derpy's ears perked up at the mention of 'Zecora'. "She's here?! Does that mean she's gonna make the potion for you now?" It broke my heart to have to deliver the bad news to the ecstatic mare, but I knew it had to be done.

I had sat Derpy down on the bed and taken time to explain everything to her, making her promise not to be mad before I said a single word about what had happened. When I was finished recounting the events that had taken place in the Everfree the previous night, we sat there in silence, with Derpy just staring at the floor for a long time. Eventually, she took a deep breath and looked over to me. "I… I understand… if… if it had been me and Dinky, I would've done the same thing for her."

I reached over and wrapped my arm around her, and I saw tears begin sliding down her cheeks as she looked back to the floor. "Don't worry, we'll find another way; that flower can't have been the only magical curative in Equestria after all… And who knows, maybe I'll find an answer in that spellbook I found in the temple."

Derpy sniffled and looked back up to me again. "I didn't know you found a spellbook in the Everfree… what's in it?"

I shook my head. "I don't know yet, I'll have to have Twilight transcribe it in the magical ink so I can read it."

Derpy tilted her head to the side. "Can't she just read it herself? I mean, Twilight's supposed to be really good at that magic stuff, right?"

I shook my head again. "We tried that on the way back, but apparently I'm the only one who can understand what the books says. So Twilight will have to copy it down so I can read it. Maybe once she does that, we can find a way for her to help. There's another catch though; supposedly, only humans are able to cast the spells in that book… I'm not sure why, that's just what I was told by the one that told us how to find it."

She nodded and stood up off of the bed. "You'll have to tell me all about what happened during your trip later. But… isn't Zecora still downstairs?"

I clapped a hand to my forehead. "That's right! I almost forgot about her… again…"

We didn't waste any more time, and I allowed Derpy to lead the way down into the living room where I could still detect Zecora with my aurasight. Twilight started looking around when I cast my spell's gaze into the room, but couldn't seem to find the source of the strange tingle it seemed to cause in a unicorn's horn. We descended the stairs, and I was very glad that I actually didn't have to catch Derpy on her way down.

Once we came into sight of the living room, all attention turned to us. "Ah, friend Blake. I must thank you for this pleasant reprieve, but I'm afraid that it's now time for me to take my leave." Zecora stood up and walked over to me. "I hope that our paths may cross again soon, for your company is always a boon." She gave me a warm smile and turned to leave.

"Zecora, wait." Derpy trotted up to the striped mare. "Don't you know of anything else that can help Blake?"

Zecora shook her head, her neck bangles jingling lightly. "If there is such a cure, I am unaware. But that is not a reason for us to despair. Time will only improve his skill with the touchsight spell, and with that, I'm sure he will fare quite well."

Twilight's head tilted to the side. "Touchsight? I've never heard it called it that before…"

"It is an old name that is no longer used much, but it is more accurate since he sees the world not with sight, but with touch."

Applejack stood up off of her seat. "Yeah, Ah remember him tellin' me a bit about it, it don't sound too pleasant."

Zecora turned to leave again. "I will continue to search for a cure, so do not fret. Our dear friend Blake may see again yet." And with that, she bid us farewell and left, off to her hut nestled in the Everfree.

I shrugged. "Well, what's everyone plan to do now? I think for me the first thing will be a shower and a shave…"

Applejack sauntered up to me. "Ah dunno Sugarcube… Ah kinda like ya lookin' all scruffy-like… it makes ya look… rugged." The word was a half-purr, half-growl that sent a shiver up my spine.

Twilight stood up and headed for the door after Zecora. "Actually, I should probably let Spike know we're back, I bet he's going to have a heart attack." She blinked several times as she realized she'd spoken using Zecora's unusual cadence. "Well, that was weird… anyway, I'm going to need to redo my scheduling for the next couple of months to make up for that trip…"

I rested a hand on her shoulder. "You really think you should be doing all that work in your condition?"

She nodded with a bright smile. "Oh, don't worry about me; I've done more scheduling in worse condition…"

I looked over to AJ, who just shrugged. "That's what worries me…" I said under my breath.

Twilight, apparently having not heard me, wrapped the door in her magic and opened it, nearly jumping out of her fur at the sight of Rarity standing on the other side, hoof raised to knock. "Oh! Darling, you're back! But… what about-" She stopped and stared at me for a second when she caught sight of me. "Oh Blake Darling, you came back to us after all!"

"Rarity, what are you talking about? Why wouldn't Blake come back?"

Rarity started rubbing a leg with her hoof. "Err… well, you see… it's just that Rainbow Dash has been in sort of a 'mood' lately, and she's been going on about how Blake wasn't going to be coming back from the Everfree." Scootaloo had already told me as much, so I didn't say anything.

Applejack scratched her head just under her hatline. "Well that don't sound like Rainbow Dash at all… Ah wonder what's up with that mare, sayin' stuff like that about Blake…" She turned and looked towards the stairs. "Ah really should be getting' Applebloom home though, maybe Ah'll look fer Rainbow Dash and see if Ah c'n find out what's up with that mare." Applejack trotted up the stairs, off to gather her sleeping sister.

Twilight turned to the door. "As much as I'd love to catch up Rarity, I really need to get to the library." She took a step towards the door. "Oh wow is it bright out! Was it this bright when we came back earlier?"

Rarity blinked in confusion and looked out the door. "But Twilight… it's overcast… you can't even see the sun right now."

Applejack came back down the stairs, carrying a drowsy Applebloom. "Ya mean y'all ain't left yet Twi? C'mon, let's go together; we c'n drop off this little varmint at home, then we c'n look fer Dash on tha way to tha library." Twilight nodded and they walked out together, the purple mare shielding her eyes with a hoof.

I merely tacked her odd behavior up to whatever it was that had hit her the previous day. "So, Rarity, what's up?"

The beautiful fashionista shook her head, indigo mane swishing to and fro. "Oh! right! The reason for my visit… I actually stopped by to offer to make costumes for Miss Derpy and the fillies."

I was about to ask what the costumes would be for when it clicked in my mind. "Oh that's right! I almost forgot Nightmare Night was coming up soon."

Rarity nodded. "That's right Darling; in just a week and a half, all the little fillies and colts will be out gathering candy, wearing their adorable little costumes and having the time of their little lives!"

Derpy, who had walked up next to me, pawed at the ground. "Umm… if it's ok with you, I think I just want to wear something like I did last year…"

Rarity shook off the shocked expression on her face and trotted up to the downtrodden Derpy. "But Derpy, Darling… last year your costume consisted of a bunch of paper bags on your head and hooves."

Derpy grinned up at her. "I know, and I had so much fun wearing that costume too!" Rarity opened her mouth, obviously ready to argue her point.

I sensed the need for a mediator and stepped in. "Girls, girls, why don't we come up with a compromise?"

They both looked at me. "What did you have in mind Darling?"

"Well, why not let Derpy do the designing on her own costume, and you can work with her to make it a little nicer, and you can also work on the fillies costumes as well?"

"I-I suppose that would work… though I'm not sure what I could do with paper bags…"

I shrugged. You don't really have to do anything special. Maybe put some splotches of red food dye on them to make them look bloody or something."

"That sounds positively ghastly Darling! Is that something humans would do on your… oh, what did you call it…?"

"It's called 'Halloween', and yes, blood was one of the tamer things that was common in our costumes."

Rarity suddenly looked like she was about to faint. "Oh… dear… how positively dreadful… weren't the little foals traumatized?"

I shook my head. "Who do you think wore gory costumes like that the most?" Rarity pulled up a very fashionable couch that was very obviously not one of mine from literally out of nowhere and threw a hoof to her forehead, swooning onto it. I simply rolled my eyes at the overly dramatic display. "I guess our cultures really are that different…"

I suddenly heard an odd, rhythmic thumping sound, and looked over to see Derpy hopping up and down. "I like that idea! I bet I could scare so many fillies and colts with that!" She stopped in midair and gasped. "I bet I could even scare Pinkie Pie dressed like that!" The three of actually paused, anticipating the pink mare jumping out of thin air in a burst of streamers and defending herself from Derpy's remark.

Rarity let out a sigh of relief when that didn't happen. "Whew… I suppose we got lucky on that… Still, I wonder where that mare is right now."

Derpy pranced off into the kitchen and started rummaging around for something, probably paper bags. "I bet she's trying to cheer up Rainbow Dash. She's been really down since Blake left after all."

Rarity put a hoof to her chin in thought. "Hmm… Yes, I suppose you're right. I wonder when that mare is going to work up the courage to confess her feelings for Blake though…"

Derpy stuck her head out through the kitchen's large entryway. "What?! I didn't know Rainbow Dash had feelings for Blake!"

"Oh, come now Darling. It's practically written across her face whenever she's around him."

Derpy blinked, then shrugged. "H-uh… guess I never noticed it…" Then promptly went back to her rummaging.

Rarity mumbled something about 'flighty' under her breath, but I didn't catch it. "So Darling, since you're back in time, would you like for me to craft you something for Nightmare Night?"

I stopped and stroked my chin for a moment, feeling the long stubble beneath my fingers. "Hmm… Well, we'll have to come up with something that I like, but won't scare ponies out of their wits at the same time."

Rarity gulped. "Yes… if blood is the most tame of your race's costume decorations… I believe we shall have our work cut out for us in that regard…" I couldn't argue with her; most of the designs that came to mind initially were pretty horrific, though they'd be pretty standard fare on Earth.

I thought for a long moment, going through the long list of costumes I'd either worn or seen in past years. I had just thought of an idea that sounded like fun to me when I heard a quiet yipping at my leg. I looked down to see Aurora looking up at me, and I could tell almost instantly that the poor pup was hungry; she had gotten a pancake for her heroism in helping Scootaloo, but she hadn't gotten a proper breakfast.

"Darling! Whatever happened to your leg?!" Rarity rushed over to the hobbled pup and started looking her over. "Blake, dear, what happened?"

I sighed and knelt down to scratch the wooden dog under her chin. "Long story short; Scootaloo got hurt by a trio of timberwolves, and Aurora here fought them off before they could… well, do worse…"

Rarity looked at me with a puzzled expression. "But… I just saw Scootaloo and Dinky playing outside on my way here, and she seemed perfectly fine to me…"

I sighed and stood up, turning towards the kitchen to grab some food for Aurora. Telling everyone about this is going to get old fast… "That's because I gave her the potion that Zecora made from the flower."

Rarity gasped. "You poor dear! You mean you'll be stuck like this for your entire life?!"

I shrugged. "With any luck, no. But even if I am, it's a small price to pay for Scootaloo to be safe."

I felt the mood in the room somber up instantly. "I see… You truly are a noble stallion Blake. The longer I know you, the more I understand why Princess Celestia and Princess Luna chose you out of all the others to represent your race here. I'm only sorry that there aren't more like you…"

"I wouldn't paint me as a saint just yet Rarity; don't forget, I've done some pretty terrible things too."

"Yes… that's most certainly true, but you also died Blake, to protect someone else. Nopony with an evil heart would ever make a sacrifice like that."

I finished filling Aurora's bowl and set it down on the floor for her, and she wasted no time in merrily gobbling up the apparently tasty kibble. "Maybe… but nopony with a good heart would ever… do what I did." I paused and shook my head. "Now, can we get back to the subject of my costume please?"

Rarity looked like she wanted to say something, but apparently decided against it. "Alright Darling. What did you have in mind?"

I felt a smirk cross my face. "Have you ever heard of a centaur?"

"I, um… no, I don't believe I have Darling."

"Well, it's pretty easy." I walked over to her. "It's basically a creature that's equine from here down," I circled her neck with a finger and motioned towards the rest of her body below the imaginary line. "And at that point, it becomes a human from here up." I gestured to my waist and motioned to my torso.

She looked from me to her own body several times. "That seems a bit… odd, Darling. Are you sure that's a real thing?"

I shrugged. "Well… technically, it's a myth; but then, so are unicorns and Pegasi back on Earth."

She nodded slowly. "I see… Hmm. I suppose we could work something out. I believe the hardest part would be to get the legs of the costume to move properly, but that can be sorted out with magic easily enough."

Rarity and I spent the next twenty minutes or so sorting out the details of my new costume, with the ever-professional fashionista taking down notes on a small notepad she'd pulled from out of nowhere.

Eventually, she excused herself, claiming that she had everything she needed and heading outside, presumably to ask Dinky and Scootaloo what they wanted their costumes to be.

The thought struck me that I had no idea where Luna had gone, and I started searching the house for her. I gave Derpy, who was sitting in the living room, happily decorating a set of paper bags, a peck on the cheek as I passed her, which earned me a huge grin from the klutzy mare.

I headed upstairs and towards my bedroom, looking for my fiancé, and it didn't take me long to find her; she was resting comfortably on the large master bed, hooves tucked cutely beneath her, with an open book in front of her. I didn't even bother trying to hide and sneak up on the mare, since I knew her heightened senses probably told her I was coming before I ever set foot on the second floor landing.

As if confirming my thoughts, she looked up at me with a radiant smile the instant I set foot in the room, though I hadn't made any noise that I had heard. "Hello my beloved! I was just trying to decipher the text in this book of spells you retrieved from your journey. I must admit that though I am familiar with the language you call 'English', I cannot make heads nor tails of this particular text." Her words had confirmed my earlier suspicions that the language we were speaking was in fact not the one I had spoken my entire life.

I walked over and sat on the bed next to her. "That's Alright Luna, I'm sure it was enchanted so that only humans can read it."

"Bearer, if I may?" We both looked up to Falathiel as she floated across the room towards us. "I believe I may have a solution, at least in part." I noticed she was using the trick where she vibrated her blade to emulate her own voice.

I quirked an eyebrow at her. "You told me you could only communicate directly with me Falathiel, but it seems like you can communicate with others just fine."

"This form of communication requires a lot of energy, and I can't sustain it for long. I believe that if you maintain physical contact with me, I can read the text within the spellbook, and if a spell lies therein, I believe I can tap into your own magical reserve to cast that spell."

Luna stepped off the bed and circled the floating form of Falathiel. "I see. I vaguely remember my father speaking of enchanted blades that were crafted before the rise of pony-kind; blades that he claimed had souls of their own, but I never believed they were real… until now." She stopped circling Falathiel and stood next to me. "Tell me Lady Falathiel, what dangers might this plan of yours pose? And I do not mean solely to your Bearer."

Falathiel was quiet for a moment, though I couldn't tell if she was thinking, or gathering the strength to answer. "I do not know, Lady of the Night, I am not even entirely certain that I will be able to read the spell in the first place. If I can, I may be able to learn more at that time and give you at least an educated guess."

I shrugged and plucked Falathiel out of the air just as she started to wobble. "I don't see why it's not worth a shot to at least have her try to read the book. And if we can determine that it's safe, we can try having her cast the spell too."

Luna shifted nervously. "I am not sure I am comfortable with this plan, there seem to too many uncertainties for my liking. But, after the dangers you have already faced… I will trust you to make the decision you feel is right regarding this matter."

I nodded to her and unsheathed Falathiel, holding her low over the still-open book and allowing her time to study it. After some time, I felt a tingling in my mind. "Yes… It took me some time to sort through what I'm seeing, but I can definitely understand the writings of the book, though they wouldn't make any sense were you not in contact with me; it seems there is a spell placed on these pages preventing any but a human from reading the text within."

"She says she can read it. All I have to say is; what are we waiting for?! Let's start searching!" With Luna in tow, watching us like a hawk, I carried Falathiel and the book over to the corner desk, setting the book down on the dark wood and flipping through the pages and allowing Falathiel to read parts of each spell to determine if they would be useful.

Nearly an hour later, we were nearing the ending to the surprisingly long list of spells contained within the book, and I was starting to lose hope that a useful spell even existed, when I felt the sentient blade vibrating excitedly in my hand. "I've found it! The spell reads 'Panacea: relieves all ailments, both magical and mundane, that are not the result of physical injury'! From what I know of your condition Bearer, your blindness is by no means the result of physical injury."

Luna stood up and stared at the page. "But… what would the risks entail?"

I felt Falathiel's enthusiasm waver for just a moment. "For my Bearer? None. However, given the complexity of the spell, as well as the amount of my Bearer's magic that would flow through me, I would be forced into a state of dormancy; though I can't say for how long."