My Little Walking Dead

Ponyville

“I want to go to Ponyville,” Fluttershy informed them, Twilight nodded in sad acceptance. “I’m sorry, but I really want to home… or at least, what’s left of home.”

“No no, we understand,” Twilight said hurriedly, though Fluttershy could tell a part of Twilight was hoping she would go with them. “I… I wish you all the best of luck, and hope… hope we see each other again someday.”

The last hour of darkness passed by in an uncomfortable silence, a part of Fluttershy wandered if she could change her mind, but as she sat next to Big Mac and the Cakes clutching their foals, she decided she made the right choice.

When at last the sun began to crest the horizon, Rainbow took a quick peek outside and confirmed the coast appeared to be clear. Twilight removed her cloaking spell and one by one they ascended from the crevice and stood awkwardly in the deserted plains.

“I guess this is it,” Twilight said, breaking the silence.

“Ponyville is that way,” Rainbow informed them, pointing away from the rising sun. “I’ll see you Fluttershy… when we find a cure.”

Fluttershy embraced her friend one last time, unable to find any appropriate words.

“You look after her Angel,” Rainbow said letting Fluttershy go.

Angel gave a salute from where he sat perched on Fluttershy’s head. Lastly they waited for Big Mac and Applebloom to say their farewells, which once they were complete, the pair of groups split apart, heading in their own direction. Once some distance had been put between them, Mr Cake addressed the group.

“So, um, Ponyville is how far away again?” he asked, he already knew the answer but was probably just desperate for something to break the silence.

“’Bout a day’s walk,” Big Mac replied, “which is a couple days less than it woulda’ been to Canterlot.”

“Where shall we go when we reach Ponyville?” Fluttershy asked, “Applejack said the farm was overrun, my house was destroyed.”

“Hmm,” Big Mac tapped his chin thoughtfully, “reckon we’ll have ta do some scoutin’ once we’re close.”

Angel tapped Fluttershy’s head urgently and she quick communicated with him.

“Well if you’re sure,” she then addressed Big Mac, “Angel thinks he could scout Ponyville, he says he’s small and fats enough not to be noticed.”

Big Mac nodded in acceptance but remained quiet. The journey along the plains proved uneventful, clearly the infected didn’t wander here as there was no obvious food sources, this was lucky considering Pound and Pumpkin broke out into fresh waves of wails every few moments regardless of how much Fluttershy and Mrs Cake tried desperately to comfort them. a few paces ahead of them Big Mac and Mr Cake were having a whispered argument, while Fluttershy didn’t want to intrude she could guess it had something to do with the foals screaming.

By the time the sun was positioned high in the sky, Mrs Cake was thoroughly exhausted and they decided it would be best to take a breather and get something to eat. Before Fluttershy had arrived, Dash had scavenged some supplies from one of the deserted train carts she searched, when the group went their separate ways, the food was divided amongst them, the majority going to their group as the foals meant they had the greater need for it. Once the pair were fed they quickly settled to sleep, they would be able to carry on with them harnessed to their parents without the fear of them giving away their presence.

“I always used to pride myself on knowing what my little ones needed,” Mrs Cake said to Fluttershy as she nursed Pumpkin, “but what with everything that’s happening, I don’t know if I have what it takes to look after them.”

“Don’t say that,” Fluttershy scolded, “you’re a wonderful mother, and we’ll find a safe place for them, you’ll see.”

“Thank you dearie,” she replied giving Fluttershy a kiss on the forehead, “I’m glad you came with us, heaven knows I need a kind soul like you to keep me going.”

Fluttershy blushed but didn’t reply, simply took a liberal gulp of water from the bottle in her hooves before offering it too the other mare. After another few minutes Mrs Cake informed the group she was ready to move on, and so they harnessed the babies separately to their parents and continued on their journey. The trip remained uneventful, but as it progressed, Big Mac would occasionally signal for them to sink low to the ground whenever an infected would stray into the distance. None of them ever came close, and thanks to Big Mac’s keen senses, they were never caught unawares.

“There becoming more common, aren’t they?” Fluttershy asked, trotting up alongside Big Mac.

“Euyup,” he replied in his usual manner before continuing, “Ah figured they would, closer we got to Ponyville and all. Ah guess ah’d hoped they would’ve vacated the place.”

“What if… what if Ponyville is still as bad as it was when we left? It’s only been a day or so,” Fluttershy asked glancing back nervously at the Cakes dawdling behind.

“We can’t really afford to find somewhere else,” he admitted, “but, if that is the case… we can always make for Appleloosa or Dodge. Except…”

“Except that would defeat the purpose of not heading to Canterlot in the first place,” Fluttershy finished, Big Mac gave a solemn nod. it was only now Fluttershy realised how much of their hopes were resting on the small chance of Ponyville being safe, the Cakes didn’t have a choice, Big Mac probably realised but was never going to let them go on their own, and Fluttershy… would she have been better off going with her friends? Most likely, but it was too late to head back now. If Ponyville did work out, and that was a pretty big if, then everything might work out.

Whitetail Woods emerged in the distance as they walked; the sun was now dipping low in the sky.

“Not far to go now,” Big Mac assured the older couple, “but this close to town we’re likely to run into more those things, so we need to establish some rules.”

The Cakes looked nervously at one another before allowing him to continue.

“Those kids can’t make a lot of noise if we’re to have any hope of getting through,” he explained, “ah no it’s tough, but you gotta do whatever you can to keep ‘em quiet. secondly if things turn south and ah tell you to scram, you do it, no arguin’ no heroics, each of you take responsibility for a foal and get the hay out of harm’s way. Understand?”

The Cakes nodded in acceptance, then Big Mac turned to Fluttershy.

“Same goes for you Miss Shy,” he added, “if ah tell ya to, you flap those wings as fast as you can, just worry about yourself you hear?”

Fluttershy nodded briefly, praying it wouldn’t come to that. With that out of the way, Big Mac led the way into Whitetail Woods. Fluttershy was amazed at how the world could come collapsing all around them and some aspects would remain perpetually unchanged. The forest was still as serene and tranquil as Fluttershy had always remembered it, ever since the day she dropped out of Cloudsdale and earned her cutie mark.

Big Mac on the other hoof didn’t stop to admire the scenery, his eyes were steely, his ears perked, his strides slow and measured. As they walked Fluttershy began to hear some small whining, and turning around she froze seeing that Pound Cake was waking up from his nap, and he was more than a little agitated. Springing forward without making a noise, Fluttershy crept alongside Mr Cake who was visibly sweating, and began whispering a soft lullaby into the foal’s ears. Quickly enough, a contented smile spread over his face and his eyes began to sink. Shortly after that he was snoring lightly from where he hung on his father’s chest.

Mr Cake mouthed a silent thank you to Fluttershy which she responded to with a polite smile before turning her attention back to the path, just as things went south. The infected dove from undergrowth it had been laying in moments before, it’s rasping breath loud in the previously still forest. Throwing itself at Big Mac it tried desperately to sink its teeth into his neck, its jaws snapping like a wild animal, but one infected against Big Mac hadn’t a hope. He kept it at bay with his powerful forehooves, before bucking it into a tree trunk. Before it had time to recover he reared up and came crashing down, shattering it’s skull into oblivion.

Mr Cake shook violently and his wife vomited at her feet, both foals were now awake and screaming. Fluttershy looked at Big Mac who met her eyes, clearly thinking the same thing. One infected was simple to deal with, but all this sound was going to attract more. Without so much as a word, Big Mac jumped forward and picked Mrs Cake up like she was nothing more than a bag of feathers, and draped her over his back, foal and all. Then giving Mr Cake and Fluttershy a shout of urgency he ran off the path, heading into the forest depths. Mr Cake followed after immediately, but Fluttershy stood frozen for a second, looking all around her.

The infected were coming; they were looming out of the darkness. Their retching breaths and stiff walking gave Fluttershy chills, but what disturbed her most was she was sure she recognised some of them. She knew she should run, gallop as fast as she could in the direction Big Mac had run, but instead fear gave way to previously unknown purpose, and a plan began to unfold in her mind. The infected had their eyes set on her; there were roughly a dozen of them, all hobbling towards her. Picking a trembling angel off her head, she whispered a quick instruction in his ear before setting him down.

She watched him dart away after Big Mac for a second before returning her attention to the creatures surrounding her. They now seemed to be in a frenzy, sniffing the air they seemed to have figured she wasn’t one of hem and were now picking up the pace, that’s when Fluttershy acted.

“Hey zombies!” she shouted as loud as she could, the slight tremble gave away her fear but she carried on. “Come and get me!”

With that she began to trot away, into the forest the opposite direction of where the others had gone. Sure enough, the horde began stumbling after her, furious at the prospect of their prey escaping them.

Fluttershy ran slowly, never getting too far ahead, always stopping occasionally to allow them to catch up, all the while shouting as loud as she could into the night air. There were even more of the now, coming from all sides. She couldn’t keep baiting them forever; she would have to escape soon. Turning on her heels she continued to run, hearing the evidence that they were still close at hoof. a quick glance over her shoulder told her she must have a few dozen chasing her, that was good, it was a lot the others would have potentially run into, she hoped they had found safety and this wasn’t all for nothing.

She kept running until she broke the tree line and charged out into a wide meadow. The direction she had chosen ended up taking her in the opposite direction of Ponyville, that gave her a lot of ground to cover if she wanted to get back to the group, but she had a plan for that. Slowing down she came to a stop several metres beyond the forest and watched as the infected poured out of the trees, even more than she had previously estimated. She gulped realising that Ponyville was definitely not a safe place if there were this many infected just sitting in its outskirts. The infected were close now, moving as fast as they could on half rotting legs.

Just before they reached her however, Fluttershy gave a spiteful grin, spread her wings and took off into the air, flying right over their heads as she flew back into the forest. She couldn’t help but give a little whoop of victory as she flew back over the canopy, but it was cut short by a screeching noise an uncomfortably short distance away. Looking back over her shoulder her jaw dropped open, three infected were flying after her. Going into panic mode she dived into the trees, hoping to lose them in them in the dense forest. She heard the snapping of branches behind her as they attempted to follow her.

She could no longer risk looking back if she wanted to avoid crashing and subsequently dying, so instead she began weaving awkwardly in and out of trees, hoping to shake them loose. After several minutes of anxious flying she heard the sound of their breathing and flapping fade into the distance and finally relaxed in the belief that she was safe. it had been a dangerous plan from the start, she knew that, but she had been so confident it would work, and her friends would benefit because of it. however as she reflected she realised she did do pretty well, even taking into account the few infected Pegasus who were able to take flight after her, she still came out in one piece.

Amidst her thoughts she began to hear the rusting of grass and the snapping of twigs a short distance away. Peering down through the trees she was delighted to recognise a heavy set crimson stallion marching through the forest floor. Descending down, Fluttershy dropped out of the sky in front of him, causing him to leap back in surprise.

“Hey, sorry I worried you,” she began but was quickly cut off when a pair of bone crushingly strong hooves were wrapped around.

“Don’t go scaring me like that again,” Big Mac said, his voice shaking slightly, nothing like his usual calm demeanour, “ah thought ah’d… we’d lost you.”

Fluttershy then noticed Angel sitting atop Big Mac’s head who gave her a little wink before jumping down and cosying up in her mane.

“I’m sorry, I won’t do it again,” Fluttershy assured him. He pulled back giving a sigh of relief.

“alright, come on this way, we found a pretty secluded spot, should be safe.” with that he led the way back through the forest, Fluttershy matching his pace, although it wasn’t hard, he seemed to be walking slower than he normally did.

“Thank you for worrying about me,” Fluttershy said after a long stretch of silence. Big Mac gave an awkward smile, keeping his eyes focused ahead

Day 4

It didn’t take long for Fluttershy and Big Mac to arrive at the pond where the Cakes sat huddled beneath a rocky overhang, safely out of sight of any passing infected. From where they now sat Fluttershy had a clear line of sight of Carousel Boutique, this was probably as close as they should go before Angel scouted the place out. Setting the rabbit down she asked him if he was sure he wanted to do this, he didn’t reply, merely hopped away with Ponyville in his sights. Fluttershy sat back down between Big Mac and Mrs Cake, saying a silent prayer for her faithful companion’s safe return.

“He’ll be okay,” Big Mac assured her, sensing her discomfort. Fluttershy smiled up at him appreciatively. “Ah never did say, it was mighty brave of you to lure those things away.”

“That’s what you were doing,” Mr Cake exclaimed, “Fluttershy we thought you had gotten lost, but that… was an incredibly selfless thing to do.”

Fluttershy scratched the back of her head in embarrassment.

“It was nothing,” she replied modestly, “I knew if weaved about they’d never catch me in amongst the trees. It would have been perfect if they couldn’t fly.”

Mrs Cake spluttered her mouth full of water she had just drunk, and both stallions’ heads snapped around to Fluttershy, their eyes wide with shock.

“Th-they can fly?” Mr Cake stammered.

“I’m afraid so,” Fluttershy confirmed, “but I don’t think they fly unless the pony they’re chasing does.”

“Well that’s comforting,” Mrs Cake said, Fluttershy could tell if she was being sarcastic or not. “It wouldn’t do much good to have them swooping down on us.”

“Nope,” Big Mac agreed, and the group once again fell into silence, except for the gurgling of the infants who had at last settled down after a feeding and quick bath in the lake. Big Mac went for a walk occasionally, making sure there was nothing straying too close. At one point he returned covered in blood and assured them he had dealt with it without actually going into any detail. The foals quickly became impatient again and started squirming as minutes began to turn to hours. The sun was well on its way into the sky when at last Fluttershy heard the near silent scampering indicating Angel’s return.

Running up to meet him she was relieved to see he was perfectly healthy.

“I’m so glad you’re alright Angel,” she said holding him close, “did you find anything?”

He then made his report, it was surprisingly extensive, and Fluttershy made a mental note to reward him as soon as food was no longer an issue.

“So what’s he say?” Big Mac asked. Fluttershy returned to the group carrying Angel to relay his findings.

“There are quite a few infected in Ponyville,” she began, “but they seem focused around areas like the train station and hospital, everywhere else is relatively deserted.”

“How ‘bout the farm?” Big Mac asked.

“He never made it that far, I’m sorry,” Big Mac nodded and Fluttershy continued, “Rarity’s is empty, but it’s picked clean.”

“That’s good,” Mr Cake said, “that’s really close.”

“The main shopping district is also pretty safe looking at a glance,” she continued, “Angel thinks there might be survivors hiding out around there, but he couldn’t be sure.”

“That’s hopeful,” Big Mac said nodding, “ah think the next move is to head for the dress shop. Even if there’s nothin’ to claim we can still fortify it and use it as a base. We can plan our next move from there.”

satisfied with that plan, the group gathered what few things they still had and left their campsite behind, making their way through the last of the forest to the Carousel Boutique. Fluttershy was glad Angel’s reports appeared to be trustworthy, they encountered no infected during the short trip, and thus were able to trot without fear of sound drawing any unwanted attention.

Arriving at the store, Big Mac ventured in first, to verify it was indeed empty, after a few agonisingly long minutes of glancing around in panic he returned to assure them all was well. Once inside, Fluttershy could see what Angel had meant by stripped clean. The shop looked as if it had been ransacked; anything of the slightest value removed leaving only hangers and discarded material. Once they were all inside, Big Mac went about securing the door; they would be able to use the back door for any travelling in and out as it was less conspicuous. While he set about barricading any point of entry and the Cakes began properly tending to their foals, Fluttershy journeyed upstairs, to see if anything had been left.

Whoever had gone through the downstairs, hadn’t spared Rarity’s bedroom, everything from the curtains to the bed sheets were gone. Really the only things that remained were fixtures like the desk and bedframe, although the latter was missing its mattress. It was only now Fluttershy began to wonder what had happened to Rarity, had she made it out in time? Where was she now? Walking over to the window Fluttershy peered out over the rest of Ponyville, it was a ghost town, she wasn’t sure whether she should look on that as a good thing or a bad thing.

Returning back downstairs she found Big Mac had made short work of securing the front room and was now in the kitchen doing the same. Following after him she offered a hoof which he accepted gratefully. Together they boarded up the windows and erected a makeshift barricade at the back door that could easily be dismantled to allow them to leave. Satisfied they had the shop as well secured as it was going to be without more materials and better tools, they returned to where the Cakes were seated to discuss their next move.

“So what do y’all think?” Big Mac asked as they walked over.

“I think we made the right choice coming back here,” Mr Cake replied steadily, “but I also know we never would have made it this far if it weren’t for you both.”

“We gotta look out for one another, ‘specially now a days,” Big Mac replied before moving on to the point at hoof. “We gotta bit of food, but it ain’t wise to wait until we’re out before looking for more. I’m gonna head out here, see if I can find anywhere that’s still got some stuff inside while you…”

“Um, actually,” Fluttershy interrupted quietly, “I think I should go look for food, if you don’t mind, it’s just, well, you’re not exactly built for sneaking.”

Big Mac looked at her surprises and Fluttershy suddenly became very worried she had offended him, she was about to apologise but then he spoke.

“No, you’re right, ah’m not,” he admitted, “if you’re up for it, then ah won’t stop you.”

Fluttershy nodded confidently, and walked to the back door followed by Big Mac and Angel.

“Angel you should stay here,” Fluttershy told the rabbit as Big Mac began opening the back door, Angel looked like he wanted to argue but Fluttershy stopped him in his tracks. “I’ll be fine, but those foals need everyone they can looking out for them, that includes you.”

Angel sighed before nodding and hoping back to the main room. Once the door was open Fluttershy stepped out into Rarity’s backyard, there were still some clothes hanging on the line, clearly who ever had searched this place had missed those.

“You be careful now,” Big Mac said, Fluttershy nodded, but she couldn’t help but notice Big Mac sounded a little off. Before she could think about it however he closed the door gently, his displeasure at the situation clear on his face.

Taking a breath Fluttershy turned back to Ponyville, it was still early afternoon, as long as she got back before it got dark the others wouldn’t worry. With that she set off, darting out from the Boutique and rushing across the street until she could find cover at one of the nearby houses. Somepony had looted Rarity’s house, Angel believed there were survivors in the business district, then that’s where she would go. With an objective in mind, Fluttershy began scampering along the walls of the houses, her eyes constantly peeled for any signs of movement. This was really turning out to be her lucky day as she encountered no trouble on her path.

However as she rounded one corner in particular she was forced to dart back before she was seen by three infected ambling around. Fluttershy glanced around the corner again; they were between her and Sugarcube Corner, that seemed to Fluttershy like a good a place as any to start. Darting forward, using her wings to give her a little more kick, she ran from corner to corner, alley to alley, anywhere she could be obscure from the sight of the infected. As she did, she began to realise they were quite easy to out manoeuvre, whatever it was ailing them, it must have stripped them of most of their mental faculties.

Reaching the bakery without so much a eliciting a sniff from the creatures still hovering around the street, she tested the front door. Locked, no surprise there, but she found there was no view through the windows either. Running around the building before she was seen, she made for the back door and was disheartened to find it locked as well. Stepping back she surveyed the building looking for an opening, the chink in the armour was obvious, almost stupidly so, the window to what was once Pinkie Pie’s room lying a mere inch open.

Looking around her to make sure she wouldn’t be seen, she spread her wings and fluttered up to the open window. Hovering outside it she eased it open, just enough that she could squeeze through. Satisfied she climbed through, angling one limb in at a time. The room was eerily silent, absent of the joyful atmosphere its old inhabitant once brought to it. The door to the hall was open, so creeping forward lest there was an infected lurking about; she made her way through the upstairs of the building, navigating the familiar house until she descended the stairs to the main shop.

The room was deserted, but unlike the boutique nothing had been taken, apart from the food in the glass counter, everything was as Fluttershy remembered it. walking across to the kitchen door, not bothering to keep quiet anymore, sure she was alone, Fluttershy pushed the saloon style door apart, striding in. her eyes stretched to the size of dinner plates at what she saw in the kitchen. Leaning against the counters at the opposite end of the room, sat a bubble gum pink pony, with a long, straight mane and tail, and three balloons emblazoned on her flanks.

But what shocked Fluttershy most wasn’t the sight of her friend, but the fact that Pinkie Pie… was looking back at her, alive.

“Pinkie!” she exclaimed. Pinkie’s eyes were equally wide seeing her, it was only then Fluttershy noticed what she had missed before, the large kitchen knife being held out by Pinkie in her direction. Recognising Fluttershy, Pinkie let the knife clatter to the floor, a wide grin appearing over her face.

“Fluttershy, you came ba…” she began to say but was cut off by a sudden fit of wracking coughs. Fluttershy unfroze from where she stood at the door and rushed over to her friend.

As she held Pinkie in her hooves she began to notice everything wasn’t as well as she had previously thought. Pinkie was covered in a cold sweat, her forehead was burning up, and her breathing was nothing more than a mere rasping.

“Pinkie, are you…” Fluttershy began afraid she was infected, but Pinkie cut her off quickly.

“No I swear!” she insisted, before coughing again. “They never touched me; I escaped the hospital and came straight here. They haven’t been able to get in, I’m not infected, you have to believe me!”

“But you’re sick, what’s happening to you?” Fluttershy asked still clutching the trembling body of Pinkie Pie to her chest.

“Whatever treatment I was receiving,” Pinkie began giving a weak laugh, “shouldn’t have ended so abruptly.”

“We need to get you out of here,” Fluttershy said trying to pick her up, “we’re hiding at Rarity’s shop, we’ll get you help.”

“No wait,” Pinkie said, “all this foods here.”

Fluttershy looked around her, the kitchen was indeed fully stocked, there might even be more in the basement.

“Alright, I’ll bring the others here,” Fluttershy proposed. Pinkie mulled this over, she didn’t object but nor did she look happy.

Heaving Pinkie to her hooves, Fluttershy dragged her across the kitchen, and made her slow journey upstairs. After what seemed like forever they made it to Pinkie’s bedroom where Fluttershy laid her on the bed, making sure to wrap her up. Once she was made comfortable, Fluttershy ran downstairs and gathered a few things. Re-entering the bedroom she approached the bed.

“Drink plenty of water,” she said setting two bottles filled from the still running tap on the bedside table. “And here’s some food, I promise we won’t be long but just in case…”

Setting the snacks alongside the water she held out the last item, the kitchen knife.

“Stay safe Pinkie,” she said placing it down, “I’ll be back as quickly as I can.”

“Be careful out there Fluttershy,” Pinkie whispered in a weak voice. Fluttershy nodded and hurried down the stairs. Once in the kitchen she found the backdoor key, releasing herself she stepped out into Ponyville once more, locking the door behind her. it was getting late, she hadn’t realised how long she had already been away. No doubt the other would be beginning to panic; she had to get back as fast as possible.

Descending to the ground, Fluttershy trotted the last several feet to the back door of the boutique whish was swung open by a concerned looking Big Mac; he had probably been looking out one of the upstairs windows for her approaching. He hurried her inside and began to close the door again.

“Don’t barricade that, we’re heading out soon,” Fluttershy said, dashing into the main room ignoring the stallion’s look of surprise.

“Oh dearie your back,” Mrs Cake said from where she hadn’t moved since Fluttershy left. “How did it go?”

“Good and bad,” Fluttershy said as Big Mac entered the room behind her. “I got inside Sugarcube Corner, and it is full of food.”

The Cakes exchanged ecstatic glances at this news.

“and to make matters better, Pinkie Pie is hiding there.” that did it, the Cakes were now jumping for joy, even the foals were squealing with delight, only Big Mac hadn’t forgotten that Fluttershy had mentioned bad news.

“And the other news?” he asked causing the Cakes to cease their celebrations.

“Pinkie is sick,” Fluttershy said bowing her head, “she needs our help right away, I don’t… I don’t know if she’ll make it without us.”

“Well of course we’ll head over there right away,” Mr Cake said scooping up the foals.

“Hold on now,” Big Mac said, “ah’m all for hunkerin’ down somewhere better stocked than here and helpin’ a friend in one go, but how in the hay are we all going to get across town without bein’ seen.”

“There were some infected along the way,” Fluttershy admitted, “we’d never be able to get us all snuck past them.”

“So you’ll come up with a plan,” Mrs Cake said hopefully, “you kids are good at that.”

Fluttershy and Big Mac exchanged a look before assuming thoughtful poses. She could always lure them away again, like in the forest. No that wouldn’t do, she would only end up bringing more onto the streets.

“Ah could always take them out one at a time,” Big Mac suggested, Fluttershy shook her head.

“They’re too close together; you’d never be able to take one out without alerting the others.”

Fluttershy was stumped, they had no way of getting past the infected, but Pinkie was depending on them. Then it hit her.

“Um, I think I have a plan,” she announced, still somewhat unsure, “but it might not work.”

“This is not going to work,” Big Mac reminded her as they peered around the corner at the bakery, the street they needed to cross now occupied by five infected.

“I’ll go first,” Fluttershy assured him, “if it doesn’t work I’ll settle for luring them away then you can all run for it, in fact, you’d better take the key.”

Big mac still looked unconvinced as the key was shoved into his hoof.

“This is suicide,” he insisted.

“We don’t have a choice,” Fluttershy stated flatly, then looking past him to where the Cakes were pressed up against the wall. “Be ready to act however this should turn out.”

When they nodded, Fluttershy turned her attention back to the street, took one deep breath, and stepped out onto it.

She made no attempt to hide herself, the closest infected noticed her instantly, cocking its head curiously at her. Fluttershy didn’t stop however, slowly, ever so slowly she began making her way forward, giving the occasional limp or shuffle. More of the infected were taking an interest in her now, wondering if she was prey. It was time to see if her plan worked.

“Ugggghhhhh…” Fluttershy droned in a low voice, twitching her head slightly and let her jaw hang slack. The infected stared at her as she continued to stumble forward.

She could fail trickles of sweat running down her brow, but fought the urge to wipe them away, too intent on keeping up her act. She was now standing in the midst of the infected, all of which were now staring at her. She didn’t make eye contact, didn’t quicken her pace, just continued to shuffle forward, giving low moans. Eventually, one by one, the infected lost interest in her and continued their own mindless ambling around. Fluttershy had to suppress the desire to punch the air in victory, but instead kept moving, now changing her trajectory so she was moving around the edge of Sugarcube Corner, out of sight of the infected that were now ignoring her.

Taking the last couple steps at a frantic run, she pressed herself up against the wall and breathed a huge sigh of relief. a large portion of her brain was sure that wouldn’t work, but it hadn’t escaped her notice that they must have some method of recognising one another, much like animals adapt certain features to advertise their gender like a peacock’s plumage. Glancing back around the corner she saw the others were now repeating her attempt. She mentally facehooved seeing they were all walking over at the same time.

however as she continued to watch the infected yet again lost interest in the newcomers accepting them as being more infected. Once all four were safely around the corner, Big Mac hurriedly unlocked the door and they dog piled through into the kitchen. The Cakes were the first up, opening their packs and pulling out their foals, removing the gags they had placed. Fluttershy and Big Mac lay heaped together on the ground for a few seconds, almost as if neither wanted to tell the other to get off, until finally the stallion stumbled up, turning away to hide his blush.

It was only then Fluttershy remembered why they had come and rushed up the stairs, praying Pinkie would be okay. Angel darted ahead of her, already aware of the situation, when she entered the bedroom she found him perched on her chest, and was relieved to see her smiling down at him.

“Oh Angel,” she cooed weakly, “have I missed you?”

“Thank goodness you’re okay,” Fluttershy said taking a quick glance out the window as she approached the bed, it was late evening. “How are you feeling?”

Pinkie winced at the question but did her best to smile none the less.

“Not great,” she admitted, “but I’m already feeling better knowing you’re here.”

At that moment the door swung open and the Cakes rushed in, foals in arms, collapsing at Pinkie’s bedside. Fluttershy decided to give them some peace and left the room, Angle following in her wake. Entering the kitchen once more she found Big Mac examining the contents of the cupboard.

“You’re really something Fluttershy,” he said as she entered, she noticed he didn’t call her Miss that time. “You put yourself in harm’s way to get those things away from us, you volunteer to search the town, and you get us here safely, perhaps saving us and Pinkie in the long run.”

“You make me sound a lot better than I am,” Fluttershy said hiding behind her mane.

“Ah’m serious, you’re an amazing mare.” Fluttershy stared at him, their eyes were locked and the world seemed to fall silent around them, she didn’t even notice Angel making gaging gestures next to her. Then the moment was broken by Mr Cake running into the kitchen.

“You two might want to get up here.”

Charging up the stair they all entered the room where Mrs Cake was pacing anxiously while Pinkie played with the foals.

“Has something happened?” Fluttershy asked, panic stricken.

“Not exactly,” Mrs Cake replied, “it’s just… well Pinkie’s not in a good state, and well…”

“Don’t sugar coat it Mrs Cake,” Pinkie said, her smile faltering, “I’m not going to make it.”

“What? No!” Fluttershy exclaimed, rushing to Pinkie’s side and grasping her hoof between her own. “There has to be something we can do, I won’t lose you too.”

Pinkie stared back at her, clearly confused by her use of the word ‘too’. Of course she didn’t know about Applejack yet, and Fluttershy didn’t have the heart to tell her.

“We might be able to help her,” Mr Cake interrupted, “but we’d need medicine…”

“And the only place where we could find what we need,” Mrs Cake continued, “is the hospital.”

Angel looked up at Fluttershy; she hadn’t forgotten what he said about the hospital being overrun. Pinkie seemed to guess what the problem was from their faces.

“It’s okay Flutters,” she said, although she could only hide her fear so much. “I don’t mind going, I could never let you do anything dangerous for my sake.”

“I won’t stand here and let you die,” Fluttershy said with shaking determination. She then looked to the others, but it was Big Mac who spoke.

“It’s your decision,” he told her, “if you want to, ah’ll break down those hospital doors and anything else that gets between us and what she needs.”

“Fluttershy,” Pinkie said her voice trembling, “don’t, just let me go, I couldn’t live with myself if you got hurt there.”

“But…” Fluttershy began.

“Please, I’m begging you, leave me and look after yourself.”

“What’s it gonna be Fluttershy?” Big Mac asked after a drawn out silence. Fluttershy looked Pinkie in the eyes, the pleading stare, then back at Big Mac, who stared back with steadfast loyalty.

“We’ll…”

Do you:

a) Get the medicine-

b) Let you go-