Back to Where We Came From
The moon was rising over the first day of autumn. It had only been a few years since Discord had struck Ponyville for another time. Somepony emerged from the overgrown and devastated Everfree forest. She looked pleadingly down at her animal companion, wishing for an explanation. She had been gone for ages it seemed. Everypony had abandoned the town. The mare stood in the shadows of the soon to be lowered sun, dropping a long since dead flower from her muzzle, breathing in the scent of summer still vivid in its plant form. She let the browning flower float away on the cold breeze as the memories of the past years flooded her mind like a dream, or rather a nightmare. It fluttered to the ground, the wind taking it forward in its loving grasp. A sudden urge struck the young pony, she crossed her hooves and fished out a photograph from her saddle bag. Two little words were scrawled upon its smooth surface: Never Forget.
The pony was still young, that ripe age when a mare has found her calling and is just sliding into her place in the inner workings of Equestria. Her fur was a flowery butter yellow color, with hints of lightness at her hooves. She had a pale pink mane, smooth and curled. It went over her eyes, and just grazed the side of her face, and was draped around her skinny body like a cloak; drifting every other way other than the way she'd like, and just covering her mountain meadow green eyes. Her tail, long and thin, often made her a mockery, but she didn't mind. She was largely ignored by her fellow ponies ever since she had been a filly. The young Pegasus never really cared much about that, because she had other things, and she didn't need any-pony to tell her otherwise; she had her animals.
She turned over the photograph in her hooves. On the back, labeled the names of the five ponies she had loved so much: Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Twilight Sparkle, Rarity, and Applejack. She had not seen any of them in months. She had not seen anypony in months.
She could feel the cold sting of tears drifting down her rosy cheeks. She had done this. She did not recall how or why but she knew she had. She had been away for a few years now, hiding from everypony. The whole town was gone and it was all her fault. She gazed blankly at her seemingly ancient cottage. She wondered if any of her animal friends still lived there. She knew she would need to check. Her animal companion was a white rabbit. He held her hoof closely. His little white paws were shaking.
"Its okay Angel. We're . . ." the butter yellow mare began, but was unable to finish.
Angel waited expectantly for an answer. As though he were questioning her; he cocked his head to the side and watched her. He mouthed the mare's name: 'Fluttershy?'
"No. We are home. We are. This is our home. It always will be. It doesn't matter if everypony is gone now," Fluttershy finished, gently lowering the photograph into her saddle bag.
She lifted her hoof and placed it in front of the other. She trotted forward, and slowed sped up as she walked to her cottage. Fluttershy stifled her sobs as she began to flap her wings slightly on time with her steps. Angel didn't have to try too hard to keep up with her. Her eyes widened as the pebbles rumbled in her wake. She tripped over one of them and nose planted into the dry dirt. The young mare let out a soft cough and flipped over, and her eyes crinkled in a bittersweet smile as dark clouds floated over head. Rainbow Dash used to be in charge of clearing those clouds. Rainbow Dash was gone now. Fluttershy wished she knew exactly what had happened to her friends after she had left. They had sent her away. They didn't care if she worried about them anymore.
"Oh Rainbow, my dear, I cannot express my delight," she hummed; staring into the clouds blankly.
Angel Bunny tapped her cheek. He let out a small squeak and pulled her mane gently. Something had moved in the cottage.
"Angel! Is there something wrong?" she gasped, leaping up and glancing around frantically.
The bird houses that used to hang from her trees were all crushed and broken on the ground, and the birds that once lived there were long since gone. The little bird seed scattered about the dead grass. The wooden bridge was snapped in half down the center. Its wood splintered and crossed over each other. The water beneath was muddied and brown, and there was a ripple moving out from the sides. Something was moving from inside the cottage. Fluttershy stared into the cracked window. The shutters were hanging off and dipping into the shallow mud. There was a golden set of eyes gazing deviously through the shattered glass. She fluttered her wings and lifted herself off the ground; slowly moving toward the cottage window. Angel Bunny grabbed onto her tail and climbed up onto the small of the pegasus' back; between her wings.
"Hello? Is somepony here? I won't hurt you," Fluttershy said in her light sing-song voice.
"Oh I know you won't," a deep familiar voice sounded off from inside the cottage.
"Who is that? Is that-" Fluttershy whispered; landing smoothly onto the ground.
She waited for an answer. The gray skies were now completely darkened and the moon was now up. At least that meant the princesses were still alive and well. Fluttershy took a shaky step toward the door, the top part of the opening was already swung outward. She sniffed the air. It smelled of- was that tea? It couldn't be. Nopony had been here for over a year. The young butter yellow pony peered into the house; leaning into the cottage.
"Hello?"
A strange non-pony form sat cross legged in the lime green couch near the window. Her eyes glided from one reptilian foot and brown hoof to an eagle's chest. Feathers filled the area. They were brown and blue. A wave of realization came over the young mare. She staggered back as her gaze wavered onto a most well known face. She held back her joy. Her hesitance cleared way for more silence. Fluttershy thought for a moment. Discord was in her cottage. How long had he been here? Why would he stay in Ponyville after the fall? He crossed his legs and smiled at her. In his paw was a cup of freshly poured tea. He took a sip and stared intently.
"Discord!? Is that you?" she squeaked. "You stayed here?"
"Well of course it is, Fluttershy. Where else would I have gone?"
Fluttershy crossed her hooves and collapsed onto the floor in tears. She had not expcted this. She never had expected anything like this. She had thought they all had left her.
"Discord I . . . what happened? After I left I mean? You don't need to answer if you don't want to," Fluttershy choked out.
"There, there Fluttershy. I'll show you," Discord held out his clawed hand and snapped his claws together with a light laugh.
Fluttershy felt a tug on her very being as her eyes cycled out of focus. She mouthed out a silent scream and struggled to breath for a moment.
Fluttershy opened her eyes. She was surrounded by warmth. In front of her was a tree cottage surrounded vby bird feeders. It was devoid of life side from the ponies standing in front of it. Her five friends stood together facing the smashed window. Their expressions were filled with grief and anger.
"She left us. Fluttershy left Ponyville," Rainbow Dash whispered, pushing her hoof against the door. "She left with everypony else. She wont even help us with Discord!"
"No I didn't Rainbow, I'm right here!" Fluttershy called out, but nopony seemed to hear her.
Pinkie pulled Rainbow closer with a long sigh. She mouthed a few comforting words though Fluttershy couldn't make them out. She took a few steps forward and towards her friends, hearing Pinkie Pie cry along with Rainbow Dash as the two broke down. The butter yellow pegasus put her own hoof on Rainbow Dash's. She didn't notice.
"Just forget about 'er. She left us. Fluttershy is probably happier now!" Applejack sniffled, covered her mouth with a hoof and turning away from the others. "We need to deal with this alone!"
"Applejack. It's okay. We are going to pull through this. We'll find her and bring her home," Twilight choked out. "And we will defeat Discord again. It will be okay."
The wilted flowers on either side of the cottage seemed to deepen their frowns, dipping into the mud. Rarity stared blankly at the cottage door and place a hoof on the frame, pushing the door open. Her pale white hooves beat against the floor as she went inside, unnoticed by her friends. Fluttershy followed after Rarity, wondering exactly what she would find.
"Rarity! Wait! Please!" Fluttershy shouted to her friend, no answer came.
"Fluttershy, why did you have to go? It wasn't your fault. I swear it wasn't," Rarity whispered as she shuffled through the cottage.
"It was my fault," Fluttershy answered though she knew she wouldn't be heard.
Rarity's eyes met a scrap of paper taped to the nearby couch. The snow white unicorn released herself from the apprehension that held her away from the note. She then trotted over to the note with a slow nervous walk. She stopped a few inches from the paper and slowly knelt down to read, levitating the paper up to her nose. Fluttershy gasped as she remembered the note she had left. She thought over the possibilities of Rarity's reaction to this note.
"Rarity, don't read that, please."
Her words fell on deaf ears as Rarity's eyes welled up with tears. "Please tell me this is a joke? Oh sweet Celestia, Fluttershy, please come home."
"Rarity! I'm right here!" Fluttershy screamed. "Rarity wait!"
Rarity continued to star blankly at the note. She crumpled it up and closed her eyes. Crinkles appeared on her normally youthful face. She let out a deep sigh and turned to face the door and subsequently Fluttershy. Rarity walked right past the pink maned pegasus and out the door. Fluttershy put a hoof to her own tear stained face and followed Rarity outside.
"Girls, look," Rarity thrusted the note into Twilight's hooves. "Just look."
Twilight's eyes darted left and right, reading the words scrawled carelessly onto the paper. It was torn in places. Fluttershy leapt forward, fluttering her wings slightly as the four ponies gathered around Twilight, their faces growing red as the spun through the final paragraph.
"-And that is why I am never coming back. Signed, your friend, Fluttershy," Twilight's voice cracked on the last word. "She thinks we hate her."
"We need to find her! Lets go!" Rainbow Dash screamed. "Come on!"
"Okay, meet me at Sugar Cube Corner, we will start the search tonight," Twilight choked out.
The five little ponies stood up and began walking in the opposite direction and toward town, presumably to get their things ready. Their hooves were dusty and covered in dirt, and even Rarity was too preoccupied to notice or care.
"Girls! Wait!" Fluttershy called desperatly as she felt a rush of energy pulling her back.
Twilight had dropped the note and was staring blankly ahead of her. Fluttershy wanted desperately to address her friends, but as she blinked once more she found nothing but darkness there.
Discord stood over the little pegasus with a smirk. "Well?"
"What have I done? My sweet Celestia, what have I done?"
Fluttershy then went from sadness to rage in a split second. "What did YOU do?!"
Discord pulled back with a gasp. "Why Fluttershy, I would never do anything to hurt anypony."
"I didn't say you hurt anypony. I asked what you did. Tell me what you did."
