My Little Pony: Equestria's Warriors Returns

by Spirit Of Fantasy

After many wars, heavy losses, and violence with enemies. The eldest brother of the royal sisters makes his return, and discovers the student of the sister he blames for their youngest sister's banishment. Now along side this young and talented unicorn, ready to battle evil. He will discover the new world of friendship and love that replaced his world of pain and hateful battles.

43. Chapter 43:Hearts And Hooves Day

Chapter 43:Hearts And Hooves Day

Today was a special day for Ponyville, a day that celebrated love for all ponies. It was a holiday about love that one pony expresses for another, and a way to rekindle love for couples. This holiday was Hearts And Hooves Day, and it had only just begun this very morning. The love was already spreading through out the town of Ponyville, gifts among couples and newly made couples were being exchanged. Even the children were getting into the holiday spirit of love.

There was one pony who was struggling with this day however, and for both obvious and complicated reasons. Shadow Swirl, a warrior of the shadows, a mare that loved children with all her heart. She was in a bit of a struggle on this day, for this holiday reminded her of a tough truth. A truth she herself accepted the day she became an immortal Equestrian Warrior. This type of day, this sort of feeling, all of it was a reminder of her immortality and her inability to ever court a stallion.

She had woke up tired and sad, and a morning walk was not helping her feel better. So she needed something else to help her feel better and bare this did, and then she got just the idea. Perhaps a visit to Apple Bloom would brighten her day up, children have always lifted her heart, even on the darkest of days. And today was a serious meeting at the Cutie Mark Crusader clubhouse. So a visit to see the growth of friendship and the search for purpose among three adorable fillies sounded perfect.

The walk she took was slow, as her greatest dream came to mind after witnessing so much love around town. A dream that would never come true, all thanks to the curse that remained within her. She couldn't even smile or put on a brave face for this day, so her head stayed low. Hoping to ensure no child saw her struggle and remembered Shadow for the smile she gave them. Thankfully the trick worked, and she was able to get out of town and get on the dirt road to Sweet Apple Acres.

A sigh left her as the dream was slowly pushed down and out of thought, due to it's pointlessness. Shadow needed a way to smile quickly, the last thing she needed was her sadness being questioned. This was a holiday of love, and she dared not spoil it with her sorrowful endeavor. Thankfully, she had lifted her left ear up to the sounds of laughter and frantic talking. Those tiny voices were impossible to miss, as she heard them coming from the clubhouse of the hour.

"Good… They're already up for the day. Perhaps the crusaders are what I need."Shadow sighed with relief as she made a sharp left and went through the apple tree fields.

"You sure it's them you need? Not a child of your own, Shadow,"War Fire called out from above the trees, it only took her a second to find his shadow and pin point where he was,"All these children you've helped and watched grow up, and yet… Not as satisfying as it would be to have your own."

She sighed, her look grew stern as she slowly turn to her left to spot War Fire. As he laid on the branch of an apple tree, eating one of the apples as he looked down to the mare of darkness. A chuckle left his lips as she gave him a dark glare, knowing that he was up for some mischief.

"Oh how immortality has been a blessing to us all, no sickness, no aging, no weakness,"War fire continued on as he finished the apple and tossed the apple core,"Sure there's watching love ones young and old die, pointless existence and pointless LOVE… But I suppose such gifts come with a price."

"Is there something I can help you with, War Fire?"She asked blankly, showing that she was not in the mood to mess around with the teasing pony of fire.

"Just wanted to catch up with you, rekindle and such,"War Fire admitted and finally hopped off the tree branch to meet with her,"Nothing is more fun then a good old fashion conversation with my favorite mother of all children and no children…"

"I wish I could say the feeling is mutual, but your off to a good start to making me hate you again,"Shadow huffed and tried simply walking away from the stallion while he followed,"Unless you're going to offer me some real advise, you may as well buck off!"

"So you want advise? Let that dream go then. You can want it and think of it all you want, but it won't happen,"War Fire sighed but kept a smile as he offered his best attempt at advise,"Even if it could happen, it would be pointless. We're immortals, trying to court a mortal would end all the same. Grow old and die, while you're stuck behind to pick up the pieces. Same thing with your dream."

"You think I don't know that…? You think I never thought of those outcomes,"Shadow Swirl stopped and questioned her friend's thoughts on her knowledge,"I know it's meaningless, and not worth it. I remember that every time this holiday comes and goes… And of course… I'd never want to put a child through such a life… Especially one my very own."

"Plus having a demon queen for a mother isn't exactly something a child could ever live with these days…!"War Fire let out a hearty laugh at his rude humor, while it only infuriated Shadow.

That was the last bit of patience spent on War Fire's mockery and infuriating pointless talk. Normally she had more patience when dealing with the insensitive and trouble starting fire pony. But this day had her in a bad mood already, now was not the time to start antagonizing her.

So she did what she always did whenever War Fire went too far with his mischief. A loud crack was heard through the trees, like a metal baseball bat smashing a tree branch to pieces. Before the Apples realized it, they heard crashing, rumbling, and the breaking of many trees. The two young adults could hear the chaos from within the west field where they were collecting apples. Applejack was the first to shoot her head up towards the loud crack of what resembled a solid punch from the warriors.

"What the hay was that?"Mac also realized the noise, and was first to question it.

"Only thing loud enough to sound like that is either a tornado ripping up our fields, or…"Applejack responded before War Fire flailed like a rag doll through dozens of trees in front of them.

Many apple trees were lost, as War Fire's flying body smashed them in two. Before he finally crashed on his back into the baskets of apples that had been collected by the two siblings. Wood flew in every direction while Applejack and Big Mac ducked for cover, avoiding any shrapnel. While War Fire was laying in a cloud of dirt and pieces of wood all over his body. He laid there in a freshly made ditch with quite the smashed cheek sporting a hoof imprint, frozen and blank in the face from the surprisingly strong hay maker he took.

It took him from surprise, but such a fast and strong blow was to be expected from a mare who specialized in close combat. He stayed on his back, thinking about how fast Shadow's hoof had to be, and how precise it needed to be for such force and momentum. As the dirt began to settle and reveal his current situation to the two Apples, a smile formed. To see that Shadow was even sharper and stronger than he remembered, it was thrilling. Clearly he was not the only one who spent the centuries getting stronger, he was not alone in that department.

As the Apples collected themselves from the sudden scare and destruction of their trees. They looked to each other before Mac decided to be the one to step into the ditch to check on War Fire. Only to get another scare once War Fire started to laugh with pride, it only grew louder by the seconds.

"Or one of the warriors got themselves into some sort of trouble…!"Applejack finished what she was saying before the chaos interrupted her.

"Are…you alright there, mister War Fire?""Mac asked of the warrior as he suddenly manage to stand right back up to rub his banged up cheek.

"Everything's fine. Me and Shadow Swirl were just enjoying each other's company,"War Fire laughed and spit to the ground while assessing the damage Shadow did to the trees,"My gosh she still packs quite the punch. I like that in a mare…!"

"Shadow did all that to you?!"Applejack exclaimed while War Fire finally took a breath to stop laughing.

"Yes, and I do apologize for the damage. This holiday must have really gotten her in a foul mood,"War Fire thought while dusting himself off,"Usually that dark mare can handle a bit more of my playful antagonizing before she snaps on me."

"Really? You certainly know how to show the love to your friends…"Applejack was less than enthusiastic about how War Fire treated his comrades.

"Well it is Hearts And Hooves day."War Fire joked and decided to leave in the direction of the Ever Free forest.

"Why would a day like Hearts And Hooves day put Shadow of all ponies in a bad mood?"Applejack wondered, for Shadow was the more friendly and loving pony of the warriors.

"Take your pick! Immortal demon queen carrier, ugly demonic form that scares away any potential suitor,"War Fire decided to slyly let them in on what troubled Shadow Swirl,"Dreams of having her own child, but will only curse her child as the new vessel for the demon queen…!"

He smirked, and vanished the moment he walked to the right behind a tree. Leaving the two siblings with all the information they could handle, along with a huge mess of trees to clean up. Big Mac could relate to this in some way, but his struggle with today was child's play in comparison.

"And I thought I had trouble with relationships on this day…"Mac admitted while Applejack sighed and fixed her hat.

"Well… I'll talk about this with Twilight later. For now, we got a big mess to clean up."Applejack decided to focus on the here and now, hoping some work would help ease the heavy information that now weighed on them.

Meanwhile, Shadow felt a little better from sending War Fire flying through the trees. And now she was on the approach to the crusaders clubhouse, where she could set her heart at ease. The sight of children would always lift her heart, filling it with joy in the darkest of moments. She could already hear those Cutie Mark Crusaders talking and laughing with each other. A smile grew on her face as she started climbing up the ladder, hoping to surprise the fillies.

The moment she got up the ladder, she saw something that almost made her smile fade. As she peered through the window, she witnessed Apple Bloom and her friends making a large heart design. This was more than likely a project for Hearts And Hooves Day, something for their special some pony's perhaps. But she held no anger or sorrow towards them for being in the spirit. She may not love this holiday, but that didn't mean the children should dislike it for her.

"Hmm… I don't feel like it's quite finished."Apple Bloom pointed out some issues with their decorative gift.

"I know what you mean. If it's for Miss Cheerlie, then it needs to be perfect,"Sweetie Belle agreed and wanted the best for their teacher, Miss Cheerlie,"Hearts And Hooves Day only comes once a year, after all."

"I say we add a little more ribbon!"Scootaloo suggested.

"Mmhmm, yeah, yeah. And just a tiny bit more lace!"Sweetie agreed and added something else.

"A few more hoof prints."Apple Bloom added her own piece to the giant heart.

"Glitter! It could definitely use just a little more glitter!"Sweetie suggested one more thing this gift needed.

The crusaders made all those changes to their giant paper heart for Cheerlie. It wasn't too long before their heart was complete, full of laces and glitter that read about how good of a teacher Cheerlie was. There was just one little issue with their gift, and that was it's ridiculous size.

"Now THAT'LL show Miss Cheerlie how much we care about her. Just have to get it to the Hearts And Hooves party at School!"Apple Bloom concluded before they all then realized the the size issue.

"I think we're going to need a bigger envelope though…"Scootaloo decided to be the one to point out the issue.

"I can simply carry the gift to the school if you'd like?"Shadow decided to make herself known to the fillies, they were barely surprised.

"Oh! Hi Shadow! Sorry I missed training earlier. I got kind of side tracked."Apple Bloom immediately greeted with an apology.

"It's no trouble. I'm aware of today's holiday, Apple Bloom,"Shadow reassured the filly and lifted up the giant heart in her shadow's grip,"This was a very sweet Hearts And Hooves gift for your teacher, girls."

"We wanted to show Miss Cheerlie how amazing of a teacher she is!"Sweetie Belle explained their reasons for making such a gift for Cheerlie.

"And Hearts And Hooves day is the best time to show our appreciation for her!"Scootaloo added as the fillies walked outside to meet with the mare of darkness.

"How thoughtful. I'm certain she probably told all of you to find your special some ponies to give a gift to as well?"Shadow presumed, and almost immediately regretted throwing out the question.

"Yeah, but we're not interested in finding special some ponies. At least not this time around."Scootaloo replied as Shadow carried the gift out through the door and onto her back.

"How about you? You gonna look for a special some pony today?"Sweetie Belle asked the question that made Shadow regret her earlier question.

"Uh… No… I'm not really looking for a special some pony as well."Shadow tried to put it to the crusaders gently without saying too much on the matter while they all got moving towards town..

"Why not? You're a nice mare and you're really pretty for a two thousand year old warrior."Apple Bloom complimented, but Shadow's smile only turned to a frown.

"Plus you're a natural baby sitter and care taker for kids! You'd make a great mom!"Sweetie Belle complimented, while Shadow gritted her teeth to remain friendly in their presence.

"No… I would not… Please, let us enjoy the walk to Ponyville, I'm sorry for bringing the subject up."Shadow suddenly apologized, and only instilled confusion in the fillies for her behavior.

"That's nothing to be sorry for. So maybe some stallions don't know how good of a mare you are,"Apple Bloom persisted while Shadow's shadow began to expand and grow dark,"There's gotta be tons of stallions you could meet up with, even fall in love with!"

"No…"Shadow responded with a small bit of fuming.

"There's gotta be tons of secret admirers wanting to break down your door!"Scootaloo also persisted, much to Shadow's growing irritation.

"No…!"Shadow was slightly more stern while her back show signs of trembling anger.

"Any stallion would be lucky to have you as their special some pony!"Sweetie finally took it too far, and made Shadow stomp a hoof down.

"No! I would not! I have not, could not, and will not ever have a special some pony, end of discussion,"Shadow suddenly snapped at the girls while her shadow suddenly began to quiver and growl,"Now do not ask me these questions again, are we clear?!"

The girls immediately huddled together, they were completely taken back by Shadow's sudden rage. They didn't want to answer at first, fearful of the shadow all around Shadow and them. At least until Shadow quickly realized her fur turning dark and her skin crawling from the moment. She was quick to ease herself with deep breaths, and reeling her shadow back in. Then she simply closed her eyes to relax her body and retain her normal form, before she was able to look at the frighten crusaders.

"I'm sorry girls… Now you know why I can't…"Shadow responded, and hit her face from the fillies before moving on.

"I didn't know some pony so nice could get so scary…"Sweetie Belle confided before they finally broke from their huddle.

"Yeah, with a creature like that coming out. Who could actually love that?"Scootaloo questioned before Apple Bloom walked forward and started to understand.

"Yeah… How could any pony love her with that thing inside her?"Apple Bloom repeated in her own way, realizing the burden Shadow's darkness had on her.

So they followed the warrior at a small distance, not wanting to provoke her any further. Her hostility towards this holiday was now clear, and there was no changing her mind about it. But in Apple Bloom's heart, it made her want to help Shadow even more, if only she knew how.

---

Meanwhile, in the Ever Free forest, a new story was about to unfold from within the lair of the Cinders. The mouth of their cave flared with red and orange light from the fires. As Cinder ponies were being mass produced from an impressive new collection of sacrificial lambs. All of which that were strung up against the wall by Primal Pyro himself, every pony was tested by him. Their blood type, taste, and strength was observed and studied to ensure a healthy strong Cinder pony.

So many screams and groans of sadness and shear torment, it was music to Primal's ears. As he paced right by his chained up victims, taking in the smell of their blood and flesh. As much as he wanted to play with his victims, he had a more pressing experiment himself and other Cinders wanted to try. They had a collection of flesh made ponies to use as blood donors for making new Cinders. But they had a ton of changeling's coming in and out of their cave as well.

Changeling's seemed greatly inferior to even regular ponies, but their blood was fascinating. Green and a lot thicker than regular blood, consistency and tangyness was to be acknowledged. So a simple test wasn't too much to ask for, a test to see what kind of Cinders were expected from the blood of changelings. Moltorious did not like the concept, but Primal was willing to go behind his back. Hopefully whatever happened would get him some leverage to avoid brutal punishment by War Fire.

Thankfully, they already had the perfect "volunteer" for the test, and thankfully he couldn't put up much of a fight. As a familiar changeling was dragged across the cave by his hooves by two Cinders. While four Cinders were holding back Chrysalis captain, Pharynx. For his brother Thorax was made the test subject for the fire pits, and he was not pleased by his brother being targeted. He struggled and fought to wriggle his way free, while Thorax whimpered and begged for mercy.

"RELEASE HIM IMMEDIATELY! HE'S DONE NOTHING WRONG!"Pharynx roared as he nearly squirmed free to try and save his little brother.

"It ain't about what he did, it's about what Primal wants him to do, bug!"A Cinder responded before tackling Pharynx just before he could reach Thorax.

"Pharynx, please! I swear I didn't do anything this time!"Thorax cried and put up a pitiful struggle.

"We know you didn't, you gutless insect! We just need you for an experiment,"Primal decided to leap from a higher level of the cave and land right before Thorax,"I wanna see what kind of Cinders can be made by Changelings. You can at least handle a little blood…Thorax…!"

"You can't do this! The queen will not stand for any abuse to her changelings!"Pharynx yelled, only to get a blank and mused look from Primal.

This was followed up by Pharynx getting a good punch to the stomach when he started squirming again. He almost fell to his stomach, but was held up by the Cinders to watch his brother. As Primal snarled and continued dragging Thorax to the edge of the fire pits.

"No! Pharynx! I don't want to do this!"Thorax begged for release before getting a hard back hoof across his cheek.

"SHUT UP! STOP BEING A BIG COWARD OVER A SIMPLE EXPERIMENT,"Primal roared and bared his black teeth that trickled with blood,"I'M IN CHARGE WHILE THE LEADERS ARE GONE, SO YOU WILL OBEY ME! STOP BEING A PANSY OR I'LL GIVE YOU A REAL REASON TO BE AFRAID!"

Primal followed up with a deep growl as he grasp the throat of the fearful changeling. His talons sprouted long and shiny, as they gripped at the neck like meat hooks against pure flesh. Ready to sever arteries and tear out the jugular, this at least forced Thorax to cooperate with him.

"Now turn around, and hold out your hoof to give offerings to our pit…!"He commanded with a hiss before Thorax slowly turned around, trembling as he faced the roaring fire pits.

With hesitation, Thorax was slow to extend his whole right forearm out and over the pit. Once he was in position, Primal got to his side and quickly sunk his talons into Thorax's forearm. With a violent yank and rip, he tore open a wound on Thorax, forcing him to let out a scream of agony. While his green blood immediately started pouring into the fire pit as an offering. He whimpered and started to even hyperventilate, seeing so much blood pour out of him to feed the fire.

For a solid minute, nothing seemed to be happening, and Primal was losing patience. As he slowly released Thorax, allowing the changeling to grasp his bloody arm, hoping for the blood to stop flowing. At the same time, Pharynx was released and quickly rushed to his little brother.

"Get a medic! He's gonna need stitches!"Pharynx yelled for medical attention from several other changelings.

"Nothing…! Seems changeling blood is not compatible with our birthing pits,"Primal sighed and rattled his throat before looking to the two brothers,"How disappointing…! See? That wasn't so hard. Comply with me and things go a lot easier, wretched changelings."

"Buck you! You're targeting my brother! I told you I was taking care of him!"Pharynx yelled and shoved a Cinder aside to viciously approach Primal.

"Well he certainly doesn't seem taken care of, amigo. He stills acts like a pathetic, gutless, bug!"Primal was more than happy to accept the bold changeling's challenge.

"That doesn't mean he's yours to torment. Only I will do such things to raise him, not torture him,"Pharynx boldly warned before him and Primal were in each others faces, causing the fires to slowly rise,"You stay away from him, or else!"

"You actually threatening me, hermando? You can't do Ursa squat to me! I LIVE forever…!"Primal got angrier, and his accent got heavier as the changelings and Cinders parted ways to give them space.

"You'll die some way, and I can go looking…!"Their muzzles pushed up against each other as the flames of the pits grew higher.

Finally, they were growling at each other, and blows looked ready to be exchanged. Thorax feared the worse, while even his own medics hesitated to continue working on him. But then they saw it, the flames of the pits rising and striking the ceiling as they erupted with scorching roars. It was like a volcano had finally blown it's top before liquid fire spewed from the flames. Slapping down on the ground, taking form as the changeling and Cinder finally parted from each other to watch.

Immediately, the ashes flowed like wind out of the fire and formed as the magma filled in the inside. They all gathered to watch an actual Cinder being born from the blood of a changeling. This one appeared normal as it's heart formed and was quickly buried under his ashen chest. Wings formed, revealing that he would be a Pegasus, and a tall one at that. His size nearly rivaled Iron Black's in height, as his pony body fully formed and the surprisingly deep fissure cracks formed around his body.

"Look at that…! It seems I spoke to soon."Primal admitted as the Cinder finally snapped his eyes open, and his mane and tail sprouted to an average size, along with his wings.

He took a slow look around, taking in the mix of different faces and species before him. He spotted the beastly looking Primal, and the red eyed changeling Pharynx. He could feel the lingering hostility between the two of them, and began to slowly walk towards them. They looked at each other and then back to the new Cinder, as he put on a stern and furrowed face upon approach. Primal lifted an eye brow, while Pharynx took this look as a threat.

But then he surprised both of them by suddenly passing by them from in between. Their defenses lowered as they looked to see the new recruit suddenly making his way towards Thorax. Pharynx gasped and imagined what this Cinder would do to his maker, and tried to rush to his brother's side.

"Don't you even think about it,"Primal snapped and grabbed Pharynx by his hoof to stop him from intervening,"Lets just see what the creation does to it's creator…!"

"No! Thorax!"Pharynx fought for freedom as the Cinder came to a stop right in front of Thorax.

The changeling quivered, wanting to back away while his medics ran off, not wanting any part of the confrontation. The Cinder tilted his head at the changeling's sudden fear, before seeing his medics run off. Finally, Thorax swallowed, and slowly looked towards his own creation.

"Uh… H-hey… Welcome to…E-equestria…!"Thorax greeted, as the Cinder looked back down to him and noticed his wound.

"You're hurt. You need to get that fixed up…! You'll die if you don't,"The Cinder spoke, and his voice only shared the deepness and masculinity with the Cinders,"Weren't you guys treating him? You wanna do your jobs and heal him, or does he not matter?"

His voice was that of a Cinder, but his voice was different in other ways. A Cinder sounded maniacal, chaotic, and insanely aggressive, but his demand to the medics was different. His voice came off as stern, a bit angry, but with surprising restraint and control that froze the medics in place. It was like they were being spoken to by Pharynx himself, so they did not dare to ignore him. They both rushed back to Thorax and finally started treating his forearm, while Thorax finally began to calm down.

"Thank you… This hurts a lot,"Thorax thanked the medics and then looked back to his creation,"And thanks for not killing me… What's your name? I'm Thorax."

"I don't know… I don't have one yet."He responded and looked to his hooves to verify what he was to start.

"Oh… Um… Would you…like one?"Thorax offered to be the one to name the Cinder, after all he was the maker.

"I guess… You made me, didn't you?"He questioned while Pharynx and Primal grew more surprised and agape with aw.

"I guess that's true… Um… How about,"Thorax was frantic to figure out a name suitable for a Cinder,"F…issure…?"

"Fissure,"He questioned and took a moment to think about the name,"Very well… It'll work."

"Excellent! Now that you are acquainted with your changeling maker. You've got orientation to go through."Primal cleared his throat and tried to play leader by trying to get the newly named Cinder into his orientation.

"Isn't that suppose to be done by the leader…? Moltorious?"Fissure suddenly questioned and revealed some knowledge he some how acquired, even only moments after his birth.

Primal was offended and dumbfounded, while Pharynx snickered at the Cinder. Not only was he called out for not being in charge of orientation, some others easily realized a bit of Primal's over ambition. He growled at the question, and stormed over to reprimand the Cinder for actually questioning him.

"I don't know how you're already aware of that, but Moltorious isn't here right now,"Primal snarled and gripped at the new Cinder's shoulder to turn him around to face the flesh eater,"So I'm in charge, and you will listen to me when I say, come with me for orientation!"

"I will… Once Thorax is cared for and able to walk again."Fissure held his ground and even sternly looked down upon Primal for his lack of patience.

"Rebellious are we…? Some pony needs a lesson in respect, it seems!"Primal sprouted his claws and aimed for the chest to tear out the new heart.

But before Primal could discipline the Cinder, he suddenly felt a throbbing pain in his chest. He immediately roared and screamed, grasping his chest as he dropped to the floor. His roars of agony froze the Cinders in their place, and they immediately stood at attention with patience and respect. While Fissure witnessed one of the big four being disciplined themselves. Then a chuckle came from his left, and they all looked up to a tall ledge on the left to see the true leaders.

Moltorious and War Fire stood upon a stone perch, looking over the groups of changelings and Cinders. War Fire simply just chuckled and shook his head at the disciple, while Moltorious was less than pleased. He held what appeared to be a heart in his right hoof, and started using magic on it. And each force and pulse of magic to the heart was making Primal scream and drool. It was like the mother of all heart attacks that he simply couldn't die from, no matter how much he wanted to.

"I thought I told you, there would be no experiments with the changelings! And you did it any way,"Moltorious snapped and talked down to the primitive predator of ash,"You have clearly forgotten your place, Primal! Our lord commands all of us, and when he's not present, I am in charge. And whatever we say goes, absent or not!"

One more pulse made Primal's roars turn to almost pig like squeals as he rolled to his back. His head twitching and straining as he clawed at his chest, trying to dull the pain. But it did not end until Moltorious released his magical grasp on the heart, and shoved it back into his head. Primal then let his limbs go limp, as the pain stopped, and he laid on the stone floor panting. His mind nearly driven to insanity by the pain, and with it, respect was reinstilled into the Cinder.

"This better not happen again, Primal. Or there will be consequences…!"War Fire warned as Primal slowly stood up on shaky legs.

"Forgive me, my lord. My ambition was a bit overstepped, it won't…happen again."Primal needed to catch his breath, and vowed never to overstep his bounds again.

"Good… Cinder! Your answer to this will decide your fate,"War Fire turned to Fissure and decided to test him out, seeing if he truly was a success or failure,"Who are you loyal to?"

Fissure did not understand the question, but he knew there had to be an answer to the question. Before him stood the real leaders of his kind, and they seemed more respectable than Primal. Then he turned to Thorax, the one that made him, brought him life and purpose in this world. Finally he looked to Moltorious and War Fire, before bowing his head and closing his eyes to show submission.

"I am loyal to my maker, and will gladly fight to the death to protect him and what he stands for."Fissure admitted, and War Fire smiled, feeling satisfied with the answer.

"Good, your loyalty equals to that of your brothers. Welcome to Equestria,"War Fire greeted and decided on a tactic for this surprisingly more calm and rational minded Cinder,"You and your changeling creator will be partners, seeing as you two are already bonding. But just remember who really made you, Fissure."

"Of course… My lord."Fissure replied before finally lifting his head up and opening his eyes.

"Good… Moltorious, keep an eye on them and see how they work together,"War Fire commanded with a big sigh before walking off towards his private chamber,"I need to rest and unwind for a bit after dealing with this Hearts And Hooves holiday."

"Yes master. Primal! Get to hunting again! The two of you be on your way, scout around the forest edge,"Moltorious demanded to Primal, and then to the new team of Fissure and Thorax,"And if these two disappear, Primal. You'll join them in kind. There better not be any more issues between all of you from here on out!"

Primal growled under his breath, and casually walked passed the Cinder and the changeling. Before making his way towards the exit to go hunting, leaving the two to look at each other. This was Pharynx's chance to quickly rush over and check on Thorax, as Fissure offered a hoof to Thorax.

"When you return, I'll be ready to put you through a proper orientation!"Moltorious finished with one more demand before overseeing the other Cinders and Changeling.

"Yes sir, very good sir,"Fissure quickly looked to Moltorious, then back to Thorax with a slightly less stern look, prompting Thorax to take his hoof,"Well…? You wanna get up so we can leave?"

"Thorax! Are you alright?"Pharynx asked the moment Thorax was standing once again from the assist and nodding to both of their questions.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks for keeping him away."Thorax responded and showed his newly patched up forearm.

"You! Watch him while you're out there. Nothing bad gets near my little brother, got it?!"Pharynx commanded protection for Thorax.

"Yes… He'll be fine."Fissure replied and walked by him, stopping five feet in front of Thorax to wait for him.

"I… I need to go, bro… Please stay safe."Thorax insisted before walking to Fissure's side to leave with him.

"You do the same, wimp… Watch out for Primal."Pharynx replied before turning around and returning to his fellow Changelings.

So they parted ways, leaving Thorax in the care of the Cinder he made who proved to be different. But a Cinder was still a Cinder to Thorax, and there's no telling when or if he'll snap on him. He was nervous at first, but when they exited the cave and entered the outside world at noon. A sense of relief came over the both of them, as Fissure suddenly paused and released a deep breath. As if he was suddenly calm and relaxed, something Cinders were not known for, as he assessed the outside world.

"So… You wanna tell me about yourself and this world before the leader puts me through some sort of speech,"Fissure asked, and never dropped his stern look as he revealed a sense of curiosity,"I'd like to hear some outside information before hearing probably what all the others heard."

"Uh…sure. Well, we're in the world of Equestria. Seems like a nice country, very loving place full of colors and regular ponies,"Thorax suddenly started to talk without fear of the Cinder, explaining what he learned of Equestria,"As for me, I'm told that I'm kind of a softee, and my brother tries to toughen me up… But he really is a nice Changeling when you get to know him."

Thorax continued talking as if he was speaking with a close friend, as they vanished into the forest. Hoping to scout out the forest, and enjoy each others company before Fissure's orientation. There was much for Fissure to learn, but by the end of this scout job, he'd learn something of his own.

---

Back in Ponyville, the school house was buzzing with activity from all it's children. Gifts were being given to the teacher and there even some children giving gifts to each other. Showing that there were already special items and couples that appeared to be destined for love. It was cute to watch, but as Shadow sat in a corner watching the event unfold, she wished she could be enjoying it herself. All this love growing on this holiday, and there was no way to celebrate it with a pony of her own.

All she could do was watch it from afar and wish for the chance to enjoy it as well. But she understood that there was no achieving such a dream, not with such a curse lingering in her. So she would always just watch, at least watching was somewhat entertaining for her. Especially since it was all children and their teacher, and the love was certainly alive today. Most of the children had just finished giving their gifts to Mrs Cheerlie, and it was now the Cutie Mark Crusader's turn.

They presented the giant paper heart they made full of lace, ribbons, glitter and so much more. It seemed a bit much, but Cheerlie was more than cheerful of what they gave her. Especially since the creation looked to have been difficult and time consuming, so clearly some real heart went into it.

"It's lovely! And so…big!"Cheerlie assessed the obvious qualities of the giant heart.

"We just wanted to let you know that we think you're the best teacher in the whole wide world,"Apple Bloom exclaimed and quickly looking around for Orion before continuing,"And we think your super! And we love you so much! And we want you to have the best Hearts And Hooves Day…"

"EVER!"The CMC announced all together.

"Thank you so much, girls! I love it. I really do."Cheerlie emphasized how touched she was by the three fillies kindness.

"I'm sure it's nothing compared to the gifts you've gotten from your… Very special some pony."Sweetie Belle incited their own curiosity about Miss Cheerlie's special some pony.

"Oh, I don't have a special some pony at the moment."Cheerlie suddenly revealed that she was without a special some pony as well.

"Really?"Apple Bloom was shocked by the sudden reveal.

"How could some pony as amazing as you not have a very special some pony on Hearts And Hooves Day?"Sweetie Belle questioned their teacher's solo time during this holiday.

"It's alright, Sweetie Belle. I have lots of good friends and wonderful students who care about me very much. I'm going to have an absolutely terrific Hearts And Hooves Day,"Cheerlie explained her peace with the holiday, mildly gaining some interest by Shadow Swirl, who was eavesdropping on her,"Alright, every pony! Who's ready to play, Pin The Heart On The Pony?!"

The children cheered and volunteered to go with Cheerlie to play the game. This left the Cutie Mark Crusaders to mingle and converse with each other, this was Shadow's chance to speak with Cheerlie. So she casually left the corner at last, and carefully scurried pass the children. She then needed to wait for a minute or so, watching as Cheerlie played the game of choice with the students. As much as she wanted to join the game, Shadow did not have it in her to swallow this struggle.

She could only watch the children have fun with their teacher, but she didn't need to wait much longer. As Cheerlie spotted her leaning against her a wall, and this time there were no children around her legs. This immediately struck the teacher as strange, and wanted to figure out what was going on.

"Ok, it's pipsqueak's turn. Rumble, take charge for just a few minutes. I need to check on something,"Cheerlie quickly instructed before shuffling her way through the children to get to Shadow,"Sorry about that, did you want to join in as well, Shadow?"

"No. They're better off without me ruining their holiday."Shadow decided to come out and say why she preferred to stay away this time.

"Ruining their holiday? Don't be absurd, you've always been the life of these parties ever since you joined the school,"Cheerlie didn't buy such an assumption, and quickly realized something was wrong with the mare,"Why don't you tell me what's really bothering you?"

"Maybe after school over drinks. I'm gonna meet Thunder there to get my mind off Hearts And Hooves Day."Shadow suggested that the two of them discussed such things in private, away from the children.

"Do you not have a Special Some Pony?"Cheerlie decided to ask the question.

Shadow paused, and did not know how to respond to that without scaring the children. She had already snapped at the Crusaders, and deeply regretted it when her demon even dared to show. So all she had left to do was to simply answer.

"No… And I never will."Shadow responded with a very simple answer that stumped Cheerlie.

Suddenly, the door to the school swung open, and Orion made it just in time. He was a bit short on breath, but he was out for a good reason, for this month was almost over. And shortly after it began, tragedy struck the school and horrified two innocent colts to the core. After witnessing the brutal kidnapping and likely murder of a kind filly, this month had finally neared it's end. But before it ended, Orion felt this holiday was perfect for paying one last tribute to the victim.

"Cheerlie! It's ready. I'm just waiting on you and the children."Orion informed the red mare, she gasped and nearly forgot the plan.

"Oh…! Of course, the children will finish up with the game of Pin The Heart On The Pony and be right out,"Orion nodded to Cheerlie and went back outside to wait for the class,"Oh dear this will be uncomfortable to do… He…decided to do something to pay a tribute to Pedals."

"Really? What kind of tribute did he have in mind?"Shadow curiously took the opportunity to get off her own subjects.

"We agreed that the children would also make some craft gifts to place at the edge of the forest,"Cheerlie explained while Shadow felt a bit shocked, not knowing how to take this activity,"Since this was the month she passed, we…thought it be right to share one last bit of Hearts And Hooves love with her before saying good bye."

"And…the children were ok with this?"Shadow asked, still unsure how to feel about such a potentially heart breaking activity.

"Yes, believe it or not, they were. I'm guessing they miss her and wanted to do something nice to remember her,"Cheerlie explained before spotting the last child finishing her attempt on the pony,"Alright, children! It's time to go outside and…give our gifts to Pedals…!"

The children were silent, murmuring as they remembered the name all too well. They grew quiet, and agreed to Cheerlie's announcement before rushing to their desks to pull out their last bit of gifts. Their murmurs turned to whispers as envelopes and more paper heart gifts. Some even had school pictures of them with the student, showing pass friendships that were shared with Pedals. It touched Cheerlie to see the children immediately being so respectful of this activity.

"Yeah!"Sweetie Belle suddenly interrupted the moment with a bit of secret conversing.

"Lets do it!"Scootaloo agreed, but there was no way to tell what they were speaking about.

"Girls…! Whatever you're talking about can wait. Gather your gifts and go outside with the others."Shadow interrupted the crusaders and made them go silent once again.

"Ok! We'll start the search after school, can't just be any stallion. Miss Cheerlie deserves the best…!"Apple Bloom confided as the girls rushed to their desks to get their gifts.

Finally, the fillies collected their gifts and went outside to join the rest of the class. Shadow and Cheerlie were quick to follow the fillies outside, then Shadow felt herself freeze in place. For the first time in a while, she did not want to be a part of such an activity with children. Her spirit was still unable to raise, even among her favorite ponies, she could barely smile on this day. So she simply remained solemn and decided to lean against the school entrance while Cheerlie joined the children.

"Good, you're all here! And you all have gifts. I'm proud to see this sort of commitment,"Orion admitted as he looked to the group of children that were joined by their teacher,"Now then, remember to stay together, do not stray from the group, and in any emergency. Follow Cheerlie back inside immediately!"

"They understand, Orion. They're just a little nervous about this."Cheerlie responded and gestured to the antsy nature of half the class.

"Very well, lets move out every pony. Follow me."Orion instructed, and took the lead towards the Ever Free forest.

They were slow to follow at first, but a little encouragement from Cheerlie got them moving. Some even feared to go near the forest after hearing of the horrific attack on their fellow student. The very thought of a Cinder biting their limbs of and dragging them away sounded like something from their greatest nightmare. But the presence of Orion and Shadow made them feel safe enough. Though most of them remained shaky as they stared into the darkness of the forest.

Orion grew a little tense ad his sense sharpened as his crystal eyes began to work. Scouting through the edges of the forest, peering as deep as he could to find any sort of danger. He only spotted what looked to be a changeling scurrying back into the darker area of forests. He was the first to make it over the hill and stand before the forest, scoping it out to ensure the class's safety. Once the changeling had fled and the forest fell quiet, he looked back and nodded to the class.

He then looked to the left, gesturing to a few lit candles and a large sign holding a picture of petals. It rested right against a tree, as Orion's little tribute to the fallen child, hoping for forgiveness after his inaction to save her. With the coast clear, Cheerlie walked in front of the children for final instructions.

"Alright, children. Place your gifts against the tree among the small shrine of Pedals,"Cheerlie instructed while Orion only stood tall and to the side,"Take your time if you have anything to say or do, there's no pressure in doing this if you feel that you can't."

The children did so, it took a mere moment before Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were first. They simply placed two cards and a red heart down, they had nothing to say and quickly went back to the group. Several other students did the same, but gave Pedals at least a minute of silent respect. Before they too went back to the group, young Pipsqueak was next to give something to Pedals. He had a sweet little rose his mother got him to offer to other ponies, and placed it down before offering words.

"I'm sorry you couldn't be here on Hearts And Hooves Day. Wherever you are, I hope it's a better place,"Pipsqueak kicked the dirt while staring nervously at the filly's portrait,"Hope you'll like the gifts at least, you deserved that much after what happened… So… I'll miss you Pedals."

He walked back to the group, and allowed others to get a turn to contribute to Pedals. It became a string of no words and the average paper hearts that were placed upon her shrine. Some were nice enough to even leave some candy for her, children who sacrificed their sweets were more than respectable. Then the time came for the Cutie Mark Crusaders to come forth and give up their gifts. A ripe Macintosh apple, an old wool sweater, and a toy car were offered to the filly's memorial.

"Hope you like them. Happy Hearts And Hooves Day, Pedals."Sweetie was first to say something for the crusaders.

"I didn't get to know you that well, but any pony that could make friends with Snips and Snails has to be some pony special,"Scootaloo admitted with a chuckle,"Sorry there wasn't more help, but we'll get that Cinder for you soon enough!"

"Yeah, I'll even use my strength and pound him into dust. I certainly won't let him hurt any pony else,"Apple Bloom explained and even dared to put her powers to use against the Cinder,"I'm getting stronger, and soon I'll be able to put my strength towards good use."

"Goodbye Pedals."The crusaders said together before slowly going back to the group.

The crusaders went back to the group, and that left only two other students. The very colts that witnessed the attack and kidnapping of the filly, and they would never forget it. Orion looked to the group of children, but he could not spot the colts anywhere in the group. So he looked to Shadow Swirl, and she silently gave him the answer he needed with a nod inside the school house. She then shook her head, symbolizing the understandable circumstance that was keeping the colts away.

"Alright! A moment of silence then we can go in and finish the party."Orion announced to the children, before they all did so by lowering their heads in silence.

While they finished off their respects, Shadow merely stood there watching. Wishing her condolences from afar while turning to look at the colts that sat quietly in their seats. They chose not to go, for the fault still felt like their own after being unable to save the filly. Not only that, but the idea that such a monster was out there, watching them keenly like a professional predator. And after what he did to Pedals, it was chilling to think of what that monstrous Cinder could do to them.

"You don't need to feel guilty for not coming, boys. For some ponies, this isn't easy."Shadow decided to finally show some support instead of just loathing herself.

"He's probably out there. Waiting for his chance to get us next…!"Snips admitted his fear after staring the Cinder in his blood filled left eye.

"I don't want him to come for us next…!"Snails feared while Shadow merely sighed in response to the colts.

As much as she wanted to give support, for the first time in a long time, Shadow had nothing to say. Her spirit remained as gray and miserable as the colts currently were on this day. So she simply looked out the window and prayed for this school day to end so she could get a drink. Thankfully it wasn't much longer after the children returned to class to finish the party. Before she knew it, the mare was more than happy to leave the school the moment she heard the bell ringing.

She was the first to make it out of the school house before the children stampeded passed her. She could hear the children speaking and cheering among each other, talking of the things they still had planned for the rest of the holiday. It was like getting one last slap in the face by the holiday itself. Thankfully she could leave now, and meet a comrade in town to get a drink at Sugar Cube Corner. Once she started to depart, she noticed the Crusaders running out and singing a most peculiar tune.

"What are those girls up to…?"She wondered before getting a strong and slightly stinging pat on the back.

"You...! You were not yourself today. Even the children didn't get you smiling,"Orion came from behind and took interest in Shadow's personal endeavor,"Is this holiday really that bad for you?"

"I'm an immortal with a demon inside her that will be passed down to any child I dare to bring into this world,"She responded with the issues that kept her from ever enjoying such love or interest in stallions,"You tell me if this holiday is that bad for me…! A holiday that's all about something I can't completely embrace with a pure evil entity in me."

"It's not that bad. You just need to give a try, say hi to a stallion. Put a friendly face on,"She glared at him with a blackened face with bright red eyes for the prince's persistence,"And by friendly face, I don't mean this face!"

He gave her a punch in the shoulder, forcing the mare to retain her normal form. This only made her more glum and less thrilled about the holiday, she needed to relax and unwind. And there was only one way to do that now, and Orion knew it.

"Mind if we both go get a drink? That's always been the last resort for feeling better,"Orion questioned, and Shadow shrugged in response,"Yeah…lets both go get a drink."

And they certainly did, an hour later and both of them swept through the doors of Sugar Cube Corner. There was nothing scheduled for today, so the place was completely open to them. In fact, Mr and Mrs Cake had taken the day off to enjoy the holiday as a couple, leaving Pinkie Pie in charge. That meant it was an open party case for the warriors to enjoy whatever they pleased. Thunder certainly approved of this, as he already sat at the head table, waiting to be served.

"Come on, Pinkie! Where's the punch?! I've been aching to get the holiday celebration going!"Thunder hollered before Pinkie was quick to rush out with twelve mugs of punch balanced on her front hooves, mane and tail.

"Sorry it took so long! But here they all are!"Pinkie was in a small sweat, but kept a smile going as Thunder slapped down the money for the punch.

"Good! Shadow will be here any minute, us warriors with old love issues gotta drink away our problems,"Thunder rambled while pulling out vials full of the stuff that makes punch into hard punch,"Feel free to have one too, wet your whistle just this once. Join the fun!"

"No thanks…! I prefer to drink clean punch. Oh! Hey Shadow Swirl, hey Orion!"Pinkie Pie passed off the opportunity before greeting her newest guests.

"Ah…! Some extra company to join in this heart scorning holiday, oh how I love my friends!"Thunder greeted in his own way before pouring in the special stuff to get the drinks ready.

"Why the heck is he sour about this holiday…?!"Orion was confused by the sudden hidden hate his comrades were showing for this holiday.

"Cloudlia… She was the only real relationship he hoped to have…"Shadow answered before taking her seat immediately and taking the first drink she saw that was given the stuff.

"That's why me and Shadow are the best of buds on this holiday!"Thunder exclaimed before he finished the drinks and took up his own mug.

"Yeah… To us…! Who will never know true love for the rest of all eternity...!"Shadow responded and offered some depressing cheers between her and the pony of storms.

"The both of you don't know that… There's no knowing what lies ahead in the future,"Orion decided to speak out about their pessimistic stances on Hearts And Hooves day,"You shouldn't assume things… The future is always uncertain."

"You mind sparing us your great wisdom for today and let us drink till we pass out?"Thunder questioned, only for Orion to throw a whole mug of punch in his face.

"And that kind of talk is why you will never find another mare like Cloudlia…!"Orion remarked, nearly tweaking a nerve in Thunder as he went to sit down for a bit.

"Whatever… Thought you wanted a drink too…!"Thunder half yelled, while Orion quickly took his mug and returned to his seat.

And with that, the heavy drinking started and the pain numbing process started to take effect. Before long, Shadow was on her fourth drink, while Thunder already finished his sixth. Orion only drank one, for he was not a fan of getting too loose when relaxing, plus it grew less interesting to watch his comrades drink. Seeing them try to mask the pain they felt for this holiday of love. And after seeing Shadow already starting to get slow and distant from her surroundings, Pinkie was even getting uncomfortable.

Thunder being tipsy was too common, and he was a professional at maintaining somewhat of a grip on everything. Shadow however was known for her emotional behavior and irrational thinking when drunk. The chances were that she would end up being really friendly or really depressing.

"I think one more round is in order…!"Shadow demanded, and Thunder agreed with a snicker of amusement from the slurred commands.

"You heard the mare. She wants more punch…!"Thunder did his best to maintain and enjoy Shadow's spectacle as she finished her fourth drink.

Orion was shaking his head, watching the two within an hour start making donkeys of themselves. Three more were downed once Pinkie brought out the punch, and Shadow did the same. There was laughter and jokes for ten solid minutes as they carried on and swung their mugs and drinks everywhere. Then there was the slight chance that Shadow at least looked to be passing out soon. But a quick knock on the hip woke her up and dashed their hopes, before depression kicked in.

"I would have made a good mother, wouldn't I…?"Shadow asked after taking another sip, her tones kept on going up and down.

"Sure, sure… Saved a bunch of them…rescued a bunch of them… Wait… That's the same thing."Thunder was really feeling the inebriation as he slurred over his words and confused himself.

"I would have given ANYTHING to have one of my own… I could have taken good care of him…or her,"Tears began to form as Shadow had no more control over any emotions that were pouring out,"I would have called him Dusting, and I would have called her Light Twist. For the light I could never be…!"

She slapped her head down and went into an uncontrolled sob and groan of misery. Her mug slammed down before tipping over and spilling over the counter, Pinkie was frantic to keep it clean. Thunder patted her back, trying not to laugh at the mess she was quickly turning into.

"I should just do it…! Just…find a stallion, and keep him all night till I know I'm with child,"She got aggressive and demanding, but her wants turned to a sliver of rational thinking for a second,"But this demon is mine to keep…! I'd be a…BAD mom to give this thing to MY kid…!"

"Yeah…! It's probably for the best. Besides…! No way in Hay…! Is any stallion strong enough to handle you,"Thunder joked while Shadow wept on the counter,"You'd probably crush the poor fellas spine before you got to the bedroom."

"What…?! I can be gentle enough with ANY stallion I came across!"Shadow suddenly flipped the switch and shot up with resentment and anger for the joke.

"Orion… Orion please…! Can you maybe get her to leave? The Cakes could be back any minute,"Pinkie Pie had manage to slip away and beg for some sort of help from Orion under a table,"If they see her like this, they'll never trust her with Pound Cake and Pumpkin Cake again…!"

"Alright, alright…! It looks like it's about to go sour anyway."Orion stood up and was quick to walk over after seeing Shadow starting to get riled up by Thunder.

"You saying I'm too much of a pony for a stallion to tolerate?!"Shadow snapped while Thunder continued snickering at her easily triggered self.

"Isn't that suppose to be a compliment?"He questioned, and only snickered more when she grabbed him by the neck.

"I thought you were suppose to make me FEEL better!"She shook him before Orion got between the two of them.

"I am! Better to get it out here rather than take it out on some pony else. Like those fillies you snapped at,"Thunder remarked while Shadow was being held back by Orion pushing against her chest,"Wasn't one of them Apple Bloom? She's suppose to be your student, right…?"

"YOU STAY OUT OF MY RELATIONSHIP WITH MY STUDENTS…!"Shadow yelled and flailed, blindly swinging with a blurry mind.

Thankfully, Orion was able to scoop her up and bear hug the dark mare to carry her away. Thunder was left laughing, only to get a parting drink to the face while Shadow kicked a couple chairs across the room. Pinkie hid under a table, watching the irate mare explode with rage.

"I'll tear your head off! I'll suck out all the blood from your throat! I'll snap off your-"Shadow rambled while trying to hang to the doorway with all four hooves.

"Good thing she can't use her powers for crap while plastered…"Orion admitted before forcibly smashing through the door to get her outside.

Her hooves ripped chunks out of the wall before he was carrying her outside. There was only one thing left to do with her, the course of drowning in the drinks was nearing it's end. The last step was to get her in bed and prepare Shadow for a painful and sluggish hang over. The sun was just setting, and it's approaching cool air started to help cool the slurry mare's head. At the very least, she was not swinging and hitting at Orion's back quite as much, he was more annoyed than anything.

"Come on! Put me down…! I just want…one more moment with that flank hole,"She panted, and tiredly pounded at the prince's shoulder's and back, wanting to get free,"It was just a small…snap…! I'd never actually hold anything against Apple Bloom…!"

"That's not what Apple Bloom probably thought. You should have just told her."Orion suggested, and Shadow groaned, kicking lightly before surrendering herself.

"And you think a filly of her innocence would understand my curse as a carrier of the demon queen…?"Shadow questioned before Orion suddenly stopped, making her swing a bit.

"Orion! Didn't think I'd meet you after school hours!"The voice of Cheerlie greeted the prince as she approached him in a peculiar good mood.

"Going out to meet a special some pony, Miss Cheerlie?"Orion asked of the red mare while she merely noticed Shadow Swirl over his shoulder.

"Buck special some ponies!"Shadow spat before taking a quick jab in the back of the neck, knocking her out cold.

"You're really tired! You need to get back home and get some much needed shut eye,"Orion insisted while nervously chuckling at the shock Cheerlie felt from such sudden behavior,"She's a bit on the miserable side… Just needs to go home and sleep it all off."

"I…see… I was actually asked to come help the crusaders define a new type of tree they found. There was no reason why,"Cheerlie admitted while still taking notice of the sloppily inebriated Shadow,"I was also told that after school would be the best time to talk to Shadow about… Some things…"

"You'll have to wait till tomorrow when she's sober and less of a mess,"Orion responded and was quick to move on to get Shadow Swirl on her couch,"Have fun on your little meeting with the the Cutie Mark Crusaders."

"Wait…! Then perhaps you could answer something for me, about Shadow Swirl,"Cheerlie insisted that she got answers since she was willing to come for drinks with Shadow,"Why does she think she'll never have a special some pony? She's a nice mare, perfect mother material, what's stopping her from finding her special some pony?"

Orion stopped, letting Cheerlie stare at the unconscious Shadow Swirl while he thought about the answer. He did not know if he could tell her the answer, but Shadow did apparently tell Cheerlie she would. So perhaps it was best that he told her, given the new circumstances.

"If she were to be with another and have a child. The demon queen she carries would be passed on to the child,"Orion sighed and began to explain the biggest problem with Shadow on this holiday,"And no parent would ever want their child to suffer an eternity with that demon inside them, especially Shadow Swirl…"

He did not wait for a response or reaction, instead, he moved on while only silence took over. But such an answer was understandable, it sounded like quite a dark stretch, yet it was in fact true. It was best to let her take it in, while Orion took Shadow Swirl home to sober up. And needless to say, she was a mess all the way to the couch, thankfully there was no more damage or hostility. But there was a stink that lasted all through the night and in the morning, it in fact got worse when morning arrived.

---

For she was sluggish and crusty at the first light of a new morning, she groaned. For her awakening was met with the most throbbing of all head aches, and some nausea. Her eyes could barely open to see the light of the approaching day, while her ears barely twitched to the sound of sizzling. She grumbled, tasting a horrible taste in her mouth as Shadow rolled her eyes around. Till they spotted Spike in the kitchen cooking up some pancakes in the pan, a fitting breakfast for this morning.

Shadow struggled to sit up, holding onto her stomach that felt like it was ready spew up everything. The other hoof grasped the forehead, trying to suppress the throbbing in her skull. Shadow resorted to breathing through her nose, until the nausea cooled down a bit. A grunt from the mare of darkness was all it took before Spike turned around to acknowledge the mare. And oddly enough, he seemed less than amused to see Shadow awake, due to a conduct of hers last night.

"What…? What happened…? Where's Twilight?"She grunted and nearly dry heaved as she looked around the living room.

"She's off picking up a new spell book. Leaving me to greet your messed up self."Spike appeared grouchy as he started stacking the pancakes that were done.

"Oh…buck, was I that bad last night? I can't remember a thing…!"Shadow released her stomach and rubbed at her pulsing temples.

"Orion said you started a fight with Thunder cause he teased you a bit. You…made a messy donkey of yourself in front of Pinkie Pie,"Spike listed and was ready to drop the big one before making plates for him, Twilight, and Shadow,"And the best part! I gave you my blanky to help you sleep, and you promptly threw up on me!"

"I did…? When did I do…oh… That's why I smell…!"Shadow answered her own question about the sudden notion.

"I did too! I needed three baths to get the smell and…stuff…! Off my scales,"He waved an empty pan at her while Shadow buried her head into her back legs,"I missed out on sleep, and I needed to wash my blanky afterwards!"

"I am…so…sorry… I just needed to get away from yesterday's holiday."Shadow apologized and rubbed at her eyes next to get them a little bit more open.

"There's plenty of other ways to do that without acting like a messy whack job…"Spike mumbled and placed a plate of pancakes for the mare to eat.

"I need to shower and go find the girls… They deserve an explanation for yesterday,"Shadow decided on her next course of actions while taking a fork full of pancakes,"Ugh… At least the holiday is over… I'm sorry about last night, Spike."

She responded by also wrapping a hoof around the baby dragon to snuggle him. Spike appreciated the friendly gesture but she still smelled horrible and needed to get away from the mare. She even gave him a kiss on his head, and his face turned green with nausea thanks to her breath.

"Oh…Celestia…! Just at least eat something to handle that breath…!Spike pleaded and took her fork full of pancakes to force the food into her pie hole.

After an hour of showering, brushing her teeth and washing out her clothes. Shadow finally manage to exit the library with the plate of pancakes in her hooves to eat as she goes. The sun was a bit rough on her eyes and dared to flare up her head ache from the hangover. She groaned and rubbed her eyes in response, a yawn came with it as she shook her head to wake up a bit more. The objective for today was simple, apologize and explain herself to the crusaders.

She prayed that her chaos only effected Sugar Cube Corner and nowhere else. She lost all memory after her first round of drinks, so there was no knowing what she did while trashed. Thankfully it appeared that the town was spared a good bit of her chaos, nothing else seemed to be destroyed. All the ponies were smiling and waving at her, so it seemed Shadow may have dodged a arrow. But she wasn't going to assume so until she made amends with her pupil and her friends.

"Welp, things are back to normal, no more special some ponies and love gifts,"Shadow sighed with relief before searching around for the girls,"Now where would I find those crusaders? They have off school today."

As she said that, her eyes spotted the girls receiving a book from Twilight herself. She wanted to run to them, but then she saw the book they took up, and she nearly lost her more positive mind set. For she could see that the book contained stories and information about Hearts And Hooves Day. It seemed that the girls weren't done with the holiday, even when it passed. Shadow sighed, and still went to the girls as they tried to run off, leaving Twilight behind, curious to their actions.

"Ugh… Girls! Can I speak to you? Girls?"Shadow tried to flag them down, only for Twilight to appear before her in a flash.

"Shadow! You finally woke up. How are you feeling?"Twilight asked, while Shadow looked around her, watching the crusaders start to vanish in the distance.

"Oh! Uh…other than a head ache I'm doing just fine, I even apologized to Spike last night,"Shadow said and scoffed the moment the girls were gone,"Look uh… I saw you with the girls just moments ago. What did you talk about with them?"

"They got really interested in a book about Hearts and Hooves day, and the origin being a love potion,"Twilight was happy to go a bit in depth about the book she herself was reading before,"They were curious about it too and asked to borrow it."

"Oh… I suppose they wish to find their own special some ponies… Hmm."Shadow assumed while Twilight got more in front of her to try and talk more.

"No…they didn't look like they were interested in something for themselves."Twilight replied while a thought was slowly coming to mind along with worry.

"Oh… Oh! Oh dear…! I need to go find the girls! Thank you for the information,"Shadow feared an idea that came to mind and took off hoping to find the girls,"Sorry about the mess I made of Spike and his blanket!"

Her shadows began to completely scan and search through out the town for the fillies. The book they had contained an ingredient for love potions, that screamed a great warning. Knowing how their minds work at times, they would think she was just lonely and desperate for a lover. Not understanding the curse that Shadow bared, and they would simply try to find her a lover. She needed to stop the fillies before some sorry stallion's life was ruined by manipulated unwanted attention.

Finally, she spotted the girls near the farm, and was quick to run to them. Retracting her darkness back into the shadows of herself and the town, the dark mare got to the dirt road as quickly as possible. Hoping to prevent the creation of the love potion they were daring to make. He running nearly carved a rut in the road before she immediately stopped herself at the farm entrance. She looked around, and decided to go to the tree house first, where she expected the girls to be on a day off.

Once she had rushed up the ladder and to the door, the mare quickly shoved it open. It revealed Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, but there was no Apple Bloom to be found with them. This only meant one thing, and it meant trouble.

"Girls! Where's Apple Bloom?! She can't go through with this love potion plan!"Shadow exclaimed, showing that she was some what aware of what they were up to.

"How did you know about the potion…?"Sweetie wondered as Shadow was quick to approach them.

"I saw the book you all got from, Twilight. And what you are doing is just wrong,"Shadow insisted and started a lecture without the full story on her side,"You can't just go making some stallion drink a love potion just so he'll like me and make things better. I don't need a stallion at this time…!"

"What…?"Both fillies were baffled by the sudden assumption Shadow made of their intentions.

"I understand what you're doing, and it's sweet, but I just can't have a stallion in my life right now,"Shadow kept on going without registering the confusion on the fillies faces,"So I suggest you dispose of the love potion you made and just leave well enough alone for now."

"Uh…we weren't making one for you…"Scootaloo finally spoke of their real intentions, freezing Shadow in her place.

"We can if you want! We just need Apple Bloom to come back from giving it to Mac and Cheerlie."Sweetie Belle added while Shadow's mind required a moment to readjust to what she now knew.

"What?! Why are you trying to get Big Mac and Cheerlie together?!"Shadow exclaimed, the sudden random pairing of two ponies without their knowledge or willingness was against what love actually was.

"Because she's an amazing and super sweet teacher and she deserves a special some pony!"Sweetie Belle announced with joy.

"And Mac is super shy but he'd be perfect for her. He wouldn't be alone this time for Hearts And Hooves Day."Scootaloo added the other reason for doing all this.

"But… That isn't how love works…! Ugh…! Where's Apple Bloom!?"Shadow begged for the answer with stress.

"We were actually about to arrive with flowers and a table cloth at the ready while she prepared the drinks,"Scootaloo and Sweetie showed the stuff they were about to bring to meet up with Apple Bloom,"We can show you where they're going to be if you want?"

"Yes! Immediately!"Shadow demanded, and the fillies flinched a bit from her aggression.

They were slow to move out when going pass the aggressive mare once again. But they finally got moving to find Apple Bloom before she made a grave mistake that could easily be a crime against her own family. So there was no time to waste, as they eventually approached the tree that was used to set up the first date with Mac and Cheerlie. Unfortunately, they were far too late. For Mac and Cheerlie had already consumed the drinks that were spiked with the love potion.

Shadow paused in place, as Apple Bloom waved to them from behind the tree. The girls were quick to rush to Apple Bloom, worried about what had now been sent into Shadow was in dead silence, wondering if perhaps the potion failed due to inaccurate mixtures.

"Mac…? Cheerlie…?"Shadow lightly called out to them, before they both looked to each other.

"Big Mac?"Cheerlie ignored Shadow and offered a question to Mac.

"Eeyup?"He responded in kind.

"Will you be my special some pony?"She asked a sudden question with a more shocking reply.

"Eeyup…!"Mac replied, and Apple Bloom lit up with excitement for the success.

"YES! It worked!"Apple Bloom cheered before her friends tried to shake her from the reality.

"Oh no…"Shadow shook her head as the two adults started falling for each other.

"Apple Bloom! Uh…Shadow is kind of upset with what you did here, we were kind of hoping to stop you."Sweetie slowly tried to explain the situation with Mac and Cheerlie.

"Well…you're kind of late to the party…!"Apple Bloom responded and watched the love bloom.

"He's my special some pony!"Cheerlie verified that by professing her manipulated feelings for Big Mac.

"Eeeeeyup!"Mac agreed with the notion, much to Shadow's distress for the situation.

"Aw…!"The girls couldn't help but adore the spectacle while it was making Shadow's insides sour from the show of more romance.

"He's my shmoopy doopie sweetie weetie pony pie!"Cheerlie suddenly replace the bitterness with sudden shock and cringe in Shadow after hearing such a name.

"You're MY shmoopy doopie sweetie weetie pony pie!"When Mac repeated it, that stumped the fillies to the next degree.

"Did he just say-"Apple Bloom was ready to question what they just heard before more then came.

"You're my cutie patootie lovie dovie honey bun….!"Cheerlie then gave Mac another name as they came closer to one another.

"What…the buck…are you saying…?!"Shadow almost felt her stomach churn from such obnoxious affection between the two.

"You're my heartie smartie smoochie woochie baby wabie."Mac's compliment was just as obnoxious, and then Shadow spotted the glint of deep purple in their eyes.

"Big Mac! Hey! Hello! What's going on?"The fillies rushed in trying to get their attention, but Mac and Cheerlie were deadlocked into a strong affectionate embrace.

"Miss Cheerlie, are you alright?"Sweetie tried to intervene as well, with the same results.

"No… They're not alright…! That was no love potion you gave them."Shadow realized the magic of the potion they consumed in their eyes and grew worried.

"I have a special some pony. A kissy wissy snuggy wuggy sugar bear!"Cheerlie at least responded before her and Mac got very kissy and decided to depart.

"You're my cuddly wuddly boopsie woopsie pumpkin pie!"Mac left them with another disgusting love name that made Shadow's gut want to cave him.

"Eugh!"The fillies finally needed to profess their disgust for the overly affectionate love they portrayed.

"That would be an understatement of disgust. You didn't give them a love potion,"Shadow agreed and slowly turned to the fillies with outrage,"You gave them love poison! A concoction that barely avoided being classified as an illegal witchcraft brew!"

"Uh…plain English…?"Scootaloo questioned while the others grew concerned by Shadow's explanation.

"You gave them a poisonous love brew that's gonna destroy your brother and Cheerlie's lives,"Shadow yelled and struck the fillies with the fear of the potential results of this brew,"They're going to be so obsessed with loving each other, they won't be able to operate or care for themselves! That means no more school and no more Sweet Apple Acres!"

"WHAT?!"The girls exclaimed, the weight of their mistake immediately came crashing down on their minds and hearts.

"And the only way to fix it is for those two to not look each other in the eyes for a whole hour!"Shadow still felt herself burning up inside after all the persistence with this desire to spread love in such a way.

"What have I done…?"Apple Bloom thought to herself, her body slumping and her head lowering in shame for what she had done to her teacher and brother.

"How do we do that? The way they clung to each other was ridiculous, and just after a few minutes!"Scootaloo questioned, and that's where Shadow decided to put the iron hoof down.

"That will be for all of YOU to figure out, I'm not bailing you out of this one,"Shadow swerved around to walk off, huffing from the agitation that built up the more the fillies persist with more of the holiday,"You all just couldn't let things be… Just had to keep rubbing that holiday theme in my face…!"

"Shadow…! Please… We need help…"Sweetie begged for help, but Shadow refused to turn around as she left for the town.

So she remained silent, leaving the fillies to clean up the mess they made of the two adults. But of course, she wanted it to be perhaps an act of revenge for how they tried to keep Hearts Warming going. She could barely stand one day of the holiday, and now they tried to make it last a second day. But such low sorts of vengeance was just scummy, and a means of the demon inside her daring to torment Shadow with. So she buried any feeling of vengeance or satisfaction from their satisfaction.

"Just let it all die…!"Shadow shuddered, feeling the wavering feelings still serving their purpose for the queen.

She could hear the whispers as she entered the town, twitching her lowered head to resist. He face twitched and trembled, trying to ignore the whispers tempting her to give into such corrupting feelings. Thankfully, a nice punch through a house wall reestablished her strength to resist. So she continued on, keeping her head low, only to bump into several houses with a light growl. Until some pony decided to stand before her, crossing his arms as she slammed head first into his solid chest.

She grumbled and shook her head before looking up to see the towering Orion before her. He offered a solid curious look, as he remained in front of her, shaking his head slowly at her aggression from yesterday into today.

"You better be careful… She waited hundreds of years for an opportunity like that. She'll wait hundreds more for another."Orion coached her to remember the demon queen within her.

"I got it…under control…!"Shadow insisted, not liking the idea of her will power being questioned.

"How about the relationship with our student? You got that one under control?"Orion questioned further, stumping her for a second before putting up a defense.

"Everything is fine, she just needs to learn from her mistakes and fix the mistakes she's made."Shadow insisted that this was simply about Apple Bloom learning a lesson.

"She should learn a lesson about spreading love because you're bitter about not being able to indulge in it?"Orion questioned blatantly, not buying her notion of remaining professional as a master.

"No…! It's not like that! I just don't want anything to do with…that…holiday."She sighed, her heart starting to hurt a bit after cooling down to more rational thoughts.

"A holiday that has everything to do with love? Don't you love and care for the children you protect?"Orion decided to poke holes and point out the flaws for her hate towards love.

"Of course! But this holiday is about-"

"It's about love, Shadow…! That's the theme of Hearts And Hooves. Love,"Orion corrected her before she could argue a case he already knew she'd try to make,"Plain and simple, it never truly had to be love for a special some pony. It was simply about spreading love to one another, doesn't have to be a spouse or lover, and it never needed to truly be of a romantic sort."

"But…the special some ponies…the gifts, the dates, the love between stallion and mare…!"Shadow tried to point out the most common show of Hearts And Hooves love.

"A simple and more typical show of love. But we also showed love as we said our good byes to Pedals,"His tone grew softer and solemn as he explained the meaning of Hearts And Hooves,"Then there's the love I share for my sisters, Cadence… Blue Blood… And there's the love you have for children and their good parents…! All of which are part of the love that Hearts And Hooves are meant to bring."

"But… How do I bring myself to show any sort of love when the ultimate means of love are out of reach…?"Shadow asked as she sat down to take the explanation in a bit.

"That's for you to decide…! Don't forget, you made the decision to remain single. You can change your mind at anytime,"He incited, and her eyes widened a bit before he turned around to show his dignified back,"I'll let you think on it… I need to get to a dress shop, Cheerlie asked me to help her pick a dress out for some reason…?"

Orion was baffled by this, but a tiny gasp escaped her lips as Shadow remembered the situation the girls were in. She said nothing and waited for Orion to depart to the boutique to meet Cheerlie. Leaving Shadow to her thoughts that were now on fire with revelations that fought against any sort of irrationality. The idea that she truly had the choice to fall for a stallion regardless of the curse. The desire to have a child who will carry on the curse, was it really that bad? Would she truly doubt the strength of HER child?

"It all…comes down…to my choice… And MY choice alone,"She understood that much with a gulp before standing up,"And no matter what…I shouldn't be scared to love because of the risks…! Maybe…I could love… In any way I see fit…!"

A hoof slowly lifted up, and placed itself against her heart to take the impact of the emotional revelations. She gritted her teeth a bit, and closed her eyes to brace for this painful understanding. A tear that carried numerous centuries of pent up pain and loneliness finally streamed down her left cheek. Before realization and responsibility finally returned to her, along with the love poison situation. She had told the girls what it took to break the potion made spell, so maybe they were in the process of trying to break the potion's bind.

"Apple Bloom!"Shadow spoke before taking off to find Big Macintosh and assist her student with this conflict.

It took twenty long minutes of searching the town, she had spotted Cheerlie in the boutique. Seeing as Orion was there with her and Sweetie Belle, they clearly had hear contained. So she continued searching for Big Mac, for it was dangerous for Apple Bloom and Scootaloo to hold back a stallion of Mac's strength. So she needed to get to the big red stallion before the fillies were overpowered. Or worse, Apple Bloom's stress may cause her to severely harm her brother if she's forced to use her powers

"If she's at the boutique looking for a dress… This means… A date perhaps? Then…where would Mac go,"Shadow started thinking and figuring out what she could about the two's behavior,"Maybe…gifts! He'll want to get her a gift! But what kind of gift do you give to a mare you're insanely in love with?"

The answer came immediately when she looked up and saw the sign of a building. One that was generally named, The Ponyville Jewelry store, and it struck her immediately. The one thing that all mares went crazy for this very simple gift from a stallion, even Shadow once dreamed of having such a thing from a kind stallion.

"Of course…"She sighed from such an obvious answer and rushed into the store.

She looked around the store, and the dark mare had to admit, there was a lot of jewelry. The lady in her was almost able to come out a bit, making her eyes gleam seeing all the gold rings and necklaces. Most of which sported quite the large rocks, from diamonds to rare opals. But now was not the time for exploring and dreaming of a lovely ring to be given, she needed to find Big Mac. Then she suddenly got blind sighted, as the big red stallion himself hopped like Pinkie Pie, smashing her under his hooves on his way out the door.

Shadow needed a minute before lifting herself up and shaking her head to cure the daze. She looked behind herself to watch the stallion hoppity hopping his way through the town. Before looking forward to meet the worried faces of Apple Bloom and Scootaloo.

"Sorry about that…! We fooled them into wanting to get married so they'd separate."Scootaloo explained their current situation, and the plan that was currently underway.

"We manage to stave them off a solid fifty minutes. But Mac finally got sick of picking out jewelry,"Apple Bloom looked around Shadow to see her brother hopping in the distance,"We're…trying to make up for our mistake… But I understand if you're still mad."

"Apple Bloom… I'm not mad… At least I shouldn't have been. Not with you,"Shadow finally admitted with a deep breath before standing up to admit her own mistake,"I got mad and scared you before because I hate Hearts And Hooves day, it's always been a reminder that I could not fall in love with a special some pony like every pony else because of what I am inside. So I took it out on you and made you even more obsessed with love on the holiday."

"What…?"Scootaloo questioned, and Apple Bloom bumped her shoulder, for she began to understand.

"But I failed to realize that no matter the troubles that come with it, I still have the choice to love and have a family in many different ways,"Shadow admitted what she learned this day after so many years of pain on the holiday,"I have the choice to do it, just like it should have been your brother's or your teacher's choice to have a special some pony. You shouldn't have had to do it for them…! They're grown ups, they can do what they think will make them happy."

"Well… I'm sorry you never got a chance to find a special some pony yourself,"Apple Bloom apologized and hugged her legs while Shadow wrapped a hoof around her,"I didn't mean to rub it all in your face."

"And I'm sorry for snapping at you,"Shadow responded, their hug only lasting a minute before the current issue came back to her hard,"Holy Cosmos! We forgot about Mac! We gotta stop him, he's going back to Cheerlie!"

The fillies shot up with panic, the reminder immediately putting a pep in all of their steps. As they all rushed out the door, hoping to hunt down Big Mac and bring him under control. Luckily he was not far enough to avoid the shadows that were searching for him, before locking onto his own shadow. With that his location was made out, and it was only a minute later that the mare and fillies spotted him. But he was nearing the boutique as well, they needed to think fast.

So with a firm plant of her back hooves, Shadow stood tall and grasp a hold of Mac's Shadow. He stopped like a stone at fires, slamming flat into the dirt as Shadow locked her shadow in with his. But suddenly, more strength arose from the stallion, and suddenly he was hopping again. While the warrior was in chock, and being dragged into the dirt by the surprisingly strong Apple. Apple Bloom was quick to think of something else to weigh down, Mac and spotted two bulls carting a pile of anvils down the road.

All she needed was a rope and some good aim, before she had connected the rope to Mac. But even that proved to not be enough, as two scared bulls and their cargo were being dragged along with Shadow. Clearly the power of this poisonous love was stronger than they thought.

"That does it! Apple Bloom, we need your muscle if we're gonna stop him,"Shadow finally yelled as she spotted the boutique in the distance,"Scootaloo, there's not much you can do here. Go to Sweetie Belle and try to make some sort of obstacles for him!"

"Ok!"Scootaloo agreed and sprinted pass them to get to the boutique.

"But… Shadow…! What if I hurt him?! There has to be another way!"Apple Bloom insisted, using her powers on enemies or objects were one thing, but against family?

She desperately looked for one, and spotted something heavier than the two bulls and their load. So she took the rope off them, allowing the two to run off with their cargo in a panic. While Apple Bloom then took the rope and tied it to a house of all things, this baffled her mentor. It seemed to have worked however, and Mac was slowing down and struggling against the weight he carried. But then he summoned his full strength, and surprised Shadow again by continuing to drag her and the house.

"What the buck is this stallion made of…?! He doesn't know when to quit,"Shadow thought before turning back to Apple Bloom with a more stern look,"Apple Bloom, I need you! Your brother needs you! We need your strength to finally hold him down! Cast all doubt and fear aside!"

"But what if I hurt him?! He's strong, but Orion is stronger, and you saw what I-"Apple Bloom was cut off for her doubt in self control.

"Purge fear from your heart, and see what must be done to save your brother from this affliction,"Shadow shouted as they made their approach, just in time for Scootaloo to point out the danger for Sweetie Belle,"You care for him, don't you? Then trust that your heart will not harm him, and trust that you will be able to save him however you must!"

Apple Bloom swallowed a bit, trying to force away the fear of harming her big brother. Watching her mentor struggle to hold him back was getting more apparent, and after the mistake she made. This conflict became more important than her fears, and she wanted her brother back more than anything. So if her mentor was willing to help, then there was no reason that Apple Bloom should do nothing out of fear. So with one more swallow of fear and the sake of her brother's freedom from love poison, she ran.

The rope snapped, freeing Mac from house's grip, and Shadow was losing her grip. Thankfully, Apple Bloom jumped right in, focusing, letting her power surge like the rush of adrenaline. She locked her hooves around his neck, and let the power enhance her with and muscle. Turning her into the mother of all weights that finally brought the big red stallion to the ground. He landed on his chin, and Apple Bloom locked his head in, keeping him still as a rock, allowing Shadow to release him.

Shadow needed only a small breath to recollect herself and watch her student work. Holding her desperate brother in place, he struggled and tried to squeeze his way out, scaring Apple Bloom a bit. For too much panic could cause her to squeeze too tight, and possibly end his life.

"Focus! You just have two more minutes before the spell is broken!"Shadow encouraged her student, before Mac suddenly decided to do the only thing he could do.

"Shmoopy doo!"He suddenly called out to the mare that shared his affliction, alarming every pony else.

"Sweetums?!"Cheerlie called from within the boutique before smashing down a barricaded closet she was trapped in.

"What the hay?!"Orion was baffled, before he was mowed down by the red mare.

"Oh no! She's gonna come out and see him!"Apple Bloom yelled to her friends as they suddenly appeared dirty and holding shovels.

Shadow spotted the details, and then saw what they were doing while they were holding back Mac. An idea came to mind, and it needed to be executed instantly before Cheerlie came through the door in a veil.

"Apple Bloom! Suplex into the ditch behind you! Trust me, you won't hurt him!"Shadow yelled to Apple Bloom, and she didn't bother doubting, there was no time to doubt.

So she manage to stand up on her back legs, and lift her brother over her head. Before letting both of them dive down into the big deep hole that Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo dug. Thankfully upon landing, a nice cozy bed mattress was waiting for them at the bottom, and the bounced quite a bit. Just in time for Cheerlie to burst out of the boutique in a mere wedding veil. She looked around frantically, but there was no sign of Mac anywhere, she seemed to be fooled by the quick move.

"Sweetums?!"She called to Mac, and Shadow tried to put on an innocent and oblivious act.

"We haven't seen any pony by the name of sweetums. How about you two?"Shadow replied and looked to the other fillies, who quickly shook their heads.

"Shmoopy doo!"Mac called to Cheerlie after bouncing so high on the bed with Apple Bloom still on his neck.

"Uh oh!"The three panicked as Cheerlie spotted him, and made a desperate lunge to meet his eyes.

"No!"Apple Bloom panicked, and desperately moved her body in front of Mac to shield his eyes.

Her body felt the impact of Cheerlie smashing right into her back while her front got squeezed by her brother's head. As they all tumbled back into the ditch with quite the thud and burst of dirt. As the bed smashed apart underneath the weight and impact, just in time for the clock to ring. Shadow and the remaining fillies looked up to listen to the clock ringing, signifying the end of a whole hour. This prompted them to immediately looked to the hole, hoping for the best.

"Apple Bloom! Is everything alright down there?!"Shadow asked after rushing to the hole to look in, and spot Mac and Cheerlie looking at each other.

Apple Bloom was right under them in a daze and a bit sore in the back and chest. Her friends looked into the hole as well, silence took over seeing as the two adults were looking at each other. Then the miracle they were all hoping for in the form of a few very confused questions.

"Am I wearing a wedding veil?"Cheerlie asked after a quick and confusing look at herself.

"Eeyup."Mac was slightly less confused and kind enough to answer.

"Are you sitting on a feather bed in a hole in the ground?"She asked again, and Mac needed only a second to look and answer.

"Eeyup."He answered again before they finally looked up to see Shadow and the two fillies.

"Yeah, don't panic! You two are definitely not just seeing things!"Shadow reassured them as the two finally stood up.

"Can any pony explain why I look like I'm about to be married in a pit?"Cheerlie asked of them, and Shadow scratched her head to think.

"Of course, but first. Mind getting off Apple Bloom so we can pull you all up?"Shadow pointed out that they were on top of a dazed Apple Bloom and were quick to get off.

It took only mere moments to pull the three ponies out of the hole and patch some nice bandages on Apple Bloom's gut and back. After the patching up was done however, they now needed an explanation for Cheerlie and Big Mac. They were completely oblivious to what had happened to cause these events. And they finally got it, from the girl's wanting Mac and Cheerlie to have special some ponies. To making a love potion that turned out to be love poison. And finally the efforts that were required simply to keep them apart until the potion's spell was broken.

By the end, there was great disappointment on their faces for the girls after they pulled such a stunt. Sure their intentions were good, but they learned a bit late about letting ponies themselves make their own choices. This would stick to them after final judgments were given.

"We appreciate that you cared about us and wanted us to be happy girls, we really do… But-"Cheerlie got cut off, for the fillies truly understood the lesson, and recited it.

"But no matter how good our intentions might have been, we Shoulda never meddled in your relationship."

"No pony can force two ponies to be together."

"It's up to every pony to choose that very special some pony for themselves."

"We're sorry…"They apologized sincerely, but they were not getting off scott free.

"And you can all think about how sorry you are while doing ALL of Big Mac's chores at Sweet Apple Acres,"Cheerlie decided to dish out the punishment, and Shadow agreed with it as they looked to Mac,"Does that seem like a fair puishment to you?"

"Eeyup."He agreed, and the fillies lowered their heads.

"It won't be that bad. It's better than what Orion had in store for you after he got trampled over your antics."Shadow incited and pointed to get them moving towards Sweet Apple Acres.

Once they had started marching their way to the farm, Shadow finally let out a breath of relief. Before turning to Mac and Cheerlie, inspecting their shadows one more time. Ensuring that they were free of the spell, and seeing as their sudden smiles were directed at her, that appeared to be good news.

"Will you two be alright?"Shadow asked, composing herself to appear more professional after resolving the issue.

"We'll be fine. So long as we're cured and no pony got too injured in the issue."Cheerlie reassured the warrior.

"Eeyup!"Mac supported the claim, and it was all Shadow needed to be put at ease.

"Good, guess I'll go scrape Orion off the floor and take him back to Twilight."Shadow decided to find a way to leave the two on a good note.

However, with her mind now freed from the poison, a thought came to mind for Cheerlie. After what she learned about Shadow, it had began to bother her about the loneliness Shadow endured on the holiday. It felt wrong that a mare like her actually working through her troubles with love and helping Cheerlie and Mac with their troubles. And after all this talk of special some ponies. Cheerlie felt that it was simply too wrong to simply leave it there, and let Shadow just continue her job as usual.

"Wait! Shadow Swirl! Can I ask something of you?"Cheerlie suddenly asked a favor of Shadow to keep her from simply leaving.

She stopped for a moment and looked back, surprised to hear a request of sorts from Cheerlie.

"Yes?"Shadow simply responded to Cheerlie, Mac's curiosity was piqued.

"You remember that tree the girls kept leading me and Mac to?"Cheerlie followed up with another curious question.

"Yes?"Shadow replied with the same answer as before.

"Would you…care to meet me and Big Mac there after you're done with Orion?"Cheerlie asked once more, and this time it took Shadow a minute to answer.

"Uh…of course."She did not know how else to respond, and agreed, though there was confusion in her answer.

With that finished, she left Big Macintosh and Cheerlie to secretly converse over something. While Shadow herself could assist a grumpy Orion who merely had some back pain from the trampling. Other than a couple rants about Apple Bloom getting a less than proper punishment in his own opinion. There was nothing much to talk about all the way to the library. Where he could lay down and get some treatment, luckily Spike had some potato soup cooking for a cozy dinner.

But before Shadow would be able to enjoy some soup herself, she needed to go see Mac and Cheerlie. Cheerlie seemed sincere when she asked that Shadow meet her and Big Macintosh. So there was no time to waste after every pony was sorted away with, and Shadow was out the door again. Where she made her way through town and towards Sweet Apple Acres. It took her a bit, but the reward was going to be more than she expected, as she searched around the dirt road for the tree.

Once she had found the tree, there was a sort of familiar scene by the tree. A blanket was laid out right before the tree nice and flat, she was confused, and slow to approach the blanket by the tree. She looked up, down, side to side and behind the tree, seeing if there was some sort of trick here. But there was nothing, no traps, no nothing, just the average white and red blanket over the grass.

"What's this suppose to be?"Shadow wondered, before her answer came sooner than she expected.

"It's a picnic!"Big Macintosh suddenly answered as him and Cheerlie suddenly arrived with a picnic basket.

"You two decided to have a picnic? After the awkward moments between the tricks and loving poison?"Shadow asked as Mac kindly laid the basket down and started to unload the punch and sandwiches.

"It's not actually a picnic just for us. We decided that, after hearing about your troubles with Hearts And Hooves day,"Cheerlie decided to explain, and reveal a little treat they wished to give to Shadow,"We thought we'd make a nice little picnic just for you. And spend the rest of this day as YOUR special some ponies."

Shadow's eyes heighten, growing wide, her mind fizzled a bit with confusion as her heart skipped a beat. The kindness that was being portrayed here was unheard of, this gesture from two completely different ponies. They were offering her love and a date, something she knew nothing about. She swallowed, looking down to the food Mac was setting up for the three of them. She did not know what to say, she did not know what to do, and her heart began to go fast, pulsing with a rush of warm feelings.

"I…don't understand…! What is…?"Shadow asked and was given her the answer, as Mac took up her hoof once he was down with the food.

He lifted her hoof up, and offered a small kiss to it before gently putting it down. An unknown warmth then went from her chest to her cheeks, as they began to flourish with red. Cheerlie and Mac then sat down on the blankets, and started pouring some punch.

"Come. Join us."Cheerlie encouraged Shadow and these new feelings were beckoning her to comply.

She cleared her throat, trying to remain composed and in control, as she politely kicked her boots off. Before laying upon the blanket on her belly, where she was then offered punch to get the date started. Mac was finally able to indulge in the treats himself, as he dug into a sandwich. This allowed Cheerlie to be the first one to ask a question and break the ice with Shadow Swirl.

"So…what was it like in your time? Probably as bad as Orion says?"Cheerlie asked, and got Shadow's heart beating heavily, but it remained warm.

"I…yes… But there were good ones out there that…knew how to inspire hope,"Shadow nodded and answered, thinking of the very old friends she knew before,"And the children… A lot were in pain, but never forgot to smile and be children. Even if it was just for an hour at the very most."

"Dear…as a teacher who cares for children immensely. I couldn't imagine such a life for children."Cheerlie admitted, feeling a bit taken by the response to her question.

"If it means anything, your ambition, your hopes for children, your devotion to teaching them,"Shadow decided to not go down the depressing route, in hopes of maintaining this feeling of love and kindness,"You remind me of myself, back when I actually was your age."

"That's very kind of you…"Cheerlie admitted her heart felt feelings about the compliment as Mac finished his sandwich.

"If I may say something? If you were ever to finally find some pony you could have a kid with. I reckon you'd make a good ma,"Big Mac admitted, making it known that he was now aware of Shadow's greatest desire,"So far you've been quite the mother for Apple Bloom. And our ma would be happy to know you were there for her."

"Thank you Mac… And..thank you both. For helping me learn what it's like to know this sort of love,"Shadow bowed her head, before looking to the view of the hillsides and apple tree fields,"This means so much more to me than the two of you could ever imagine."

"No pony deserves to be alone on Hearts and Hooves day…"Cheerlie admitted her honest opinion about the holiday while sitting right next to Shadow.

"Especially some pony who's been fighting for our freedom for about two thousand years."Mac added, and did the same as they sat side by side with Shadow.

"I know… Happy Hearts And Hooves Day, Mac and Cheerlie."Shadow finally wished a happy Hearts and Hooves for the two, and with confidence, embraced the holiday with love.

---

Back in the cave where the great enemy laid, War Fire simply sat back against a wall, overlooking his soldiers. The numbers were rising, they had hit their first thousand of Cinder ponies just last night and a celebration was held. Living ponies were used for the entertainment, and it ended in blood shed for the final act of entertainment. Now the cave was cleaned, and Moltorious was hard at work marching the Cinder recruits into their orientation. The preparations were underway, and they were finally nearing the strength they needed for the long awaited assault on Equestria.

Once he was satisfied with what his Cinders were doing, he looked towards Chrysalis, as she watched over her changelings training. They were currently learning the ways of the Cinder's fighting style, hoping to improve their skill to be avid fighters against Canterlot guards. So far most of them were showing improvements, and the ones who didn't were forced into scouting operations. Only the strongest and most skilled were permitted to fight in this war. And the weak were meant to make themselves useful till death or improvement.

"Soon... Very soon... My beloved Equestria...! You will be free of the leeches that steal your life without returning any to you,"War Fire quietly professed a promise to the world itself with a smile, as if Equestria itself was his true special some pony,"Only the ones worthy will be a part of you, and the parasites will burn away from your bosom so you can be clean and perfect...!"

Suddenly his moment of love was interrupted by the clopping of hooves reentering the cave after another scouting mission. Thorax returned with his new Cinder quietly at his side, they barely got any looks, aside from the few dirty and curious ones. But Fissure only continued looking forward, while Thorax lost his nerves the moment looks were on him. So he stuck to Fissure, as he boldly walked in quietly with Thorax at his side. Spotting the first of the big four he could see to give his report, while War Fire watched from afar.

"Flaira, nothing to report on the east, other than a pack of Timber wolves migrating here to avoid Ursa Majors,"Flaira sighed, and looked to the Cinder that chose her of the four pupils to give a report to,"What would you suggest we do?"

"We're fire, they're wood! It's very simple you fool. We don't need to do anything!"Flaira argued, ignoring one issue that could be exploited by the problem.

"But the changelings here are not. We couldn't afford to lose them before our big assault on Canterlot,"He argued the case, and Flaira could easily have showed off veins in her head from the anger his questioning caused,"Would it not be wise to ensure that they're safe so they can infiltrate and actually allow us to invade the city?"

"Listen you! You came to me for a report and I gave it to you! I don't give good BUCK about th-"Flaira was ready to go on a rant, but War Fire was quick to defuse the argument.

"Flaira! That is enough. Fissure has brought up a valid point, and it be wise to go with his suggestion,"War Fire suggested of his pupil, just as she fell silent to his words,"The Changelings are the only way we'll be able to step hoof into Canterlot, so it be wise to ensure that Timber wolves don't kill them."

"I...yes... Master... What would you suggest, young Cinder?"She submitted to War Fire's words and asked for suggestions to resolve the issue.

"A few bonfire's around the outskirts of the territory would be enough to scare them away. All you need is sticks and logs, and we can make the fires."Fissure replied, showing quite the impressive intellect and rational mind he seem to be gifted with.

"Very well...! I'll get Iron Black working on the issue right away...!"She sneered and shoved Fissure and Thorax apart to go find Iron Black.

Fissure simply cleared his throat, remaining calm and composed as he and Thorax looked to War Fire. He simply smirked at them and chuckled, before laying back and closing his eyes to listen to every pony work. This allowed Fissure to sigh and move forward, while Thorax was quick to catch up with him.

"I can't believe you just stood up to one of the big four...again! Aren't you afraid of what they might do?"Thorax asked of him, getting a bit excited to be partners with an impressive Cinder like Fissure.

"What's there to be afraid of? So long as I'm doing what I need to do and then some, there's no need to fear."That was Fissures simple answer and looked back to Thorax.

"Well... They make themselves seem a lot more scarier and blood thirsty to us. Especially me..."Thorax admitted, and Fissure narrowed his eyes with interest.

"They want to single out the weak and dispose of them, leaving behind the strong to inherit Equestria. According to Moltorious,"Fissure admitted a bit of what Moltorious told him in orientation,"In a technical stance, it's a great idea. But...I feel like there could be a better option for the world."

"A better option than killing off weak and pitiful guys like me?"Thorax asked, and Fissure stopped for a moment to look towards the spawning pits.

"Well... You may be weak and pitiful, but honestly... I think I like your company a lot more than these hot heads..."He admitted, and Thorax froze a bit, hearing such kind words from a Cinder of all ponies.

"I...thank you..."This was all Thorax could say, not noticing the blush on his face as he looked towards the pits alongside Fissure.

Happy Hearts And Hooves day every one, yeah I know it's not February yet but you might as well get into the spirit early on. And besides, I finally got this chapter made! Sorry for the delay every one, same old issues different time and age. But I'm still writing, and now I've fund a way to make things better. I have discord now! And I made a server as well, pls contact me in pms for a way to the server. So if you want to help support me, simply join and have fun in the server. You can discuss your own stories, discuss rps, show off art, memes, role play, and help me with making these stories better. Stay awesome every pony