Chapter 8 - Tragedy Revealed, Anger Issues, and PuppyLove

Flame saw himself in a field, a plain empty field with nothing around him. Not a single tree or mountain in the distance, not a cloud in the sky as he looked up and all around. He recognized this field, how calm it looked, as the wind blew through it making the grass sway and his feathers as well. He definitely recognized this field and that’s what terrified him. He began to ran, he knew what was coming and he couldn’t handle seeing it again, not again.

He sprinted now, he tried to take off but couldn’t as he landed hard on his face. He got up and was confused why he couldn’t get up into the air. He looked back to wings and his pupils shrank to tiny little pin holes as he saw his wings, beaten and bent in the most awkward of shapes. Feathers missing, blood and cuts could be seen on his wings as he began to hyperventilate. He didn’t want this again, dream or not he knew the pain of this and didn’t want it again.

He ran again and soon the empty field was filled with giggling, the giggling of a little unicorn filly. It echoed throughout the field, he turned behind him and saw the little filly again, running to him happily, a big smile on her face. He shook his head in terror as he saw her getting closer, the sound of thunder was being heard as he saw the flashes of an alternating scene, until finally, he was there, in the White Tail Woods again. The pouring rain coming down hard on him as he gazed upon the deep and heavy breathing filly.

He was beaten badly himself, he had a deep cut down his left eye as the eye lid and above and below were cut open as it bled heavily with the blood soaking into his feathers. His wings in the state as described before as he began to hyperventilate and become slightly dizzy due to the blood loss from all over his body. Blood dripping from his abdomen and legs as he fought through the pain. His back right hindleg shaking from physical damage done to it as he fought to stand on it. He began to frantically look all around for the slightest bit of help, “Help! Somepony help us please!” he yelled out to nopony around as he deeply begged for somepony to hear them and give them some assistance.

The little filly had deep cuts on her back, her stomach, her legs and around her horn. Each mark looked as if done by an extremely sharp claw. All of which dug deep into her skin as it was easily ripped like paper would be if pulled apart. Blood soaking into her fur as it spilled onto the floor putting her into a small puddle of her own red vital fluid. The blood was coming out quickly as it left untreated and open. She could soon slip away into the next world, she was breathing deeply and looked to the griffon and reached to him. Her hoof trembling weakly as she had very little strength now to hold it up. Flame slowly limped over to her and took her hoof into his claw. He continued to cry he looked down to the dying filly.

But she was smiling back to counter Flame’s horrified look, he shook his head at her smile. His sobs getting louder as he looked around still looking for some kind of hope, some kind of light that would save them but nothing came.

He looked back to the filly in fear and carefully picked her up and held her close to his chest.

“I-It’s going to be okay Night Shine…I-I-I’ll get you to Manehattan.” He said as he petted her head softly. He was scared, he didn’t know how to treat injuries before. Be them minor, severe, or fatal ones like the ones she had. He couldn’t fly, all he could do was run as he started to but was stopped by the sound of the filly’s weak voice as she reached her hoof up to his cheek.

“Flame…stop please…I…I know what comes now…” she said as she kept her smile to the crying griffon.

Flame couldn’t believe she was smiling through all of this, she was dying in his arms and all she could do was smile and accept it. Flame wouldn’t have it, he wanted to move but something kept him there. He watched as she slowly closed her eyes.

Flame knew what she was doing, she was accepting her death. He shook his head frantically, he gently slapped her cheek. “Hey! H-Hey! Don’t do that! Look listen pleas-please just…! Night I’m gonna get you to the Manehattan like I promised an-and I’ll…get you to your mom I promise you and-” was all he could get out before the little filly covered his beak with her hoof gently.

“Flame…thank you for trying at least…I’m glad you did…please though…tell my mommy that I…I’m sorry I ran away…?” she said to him as she kept smiling up at him, as she finished her sentence her hoof slowly fell from the griffon’s beak and dropped as it hung now. Her smile remained on her dead body, the griffon’s tears started to come more and more now. He held the filly’s head close to his chest as he screamed up into the air in pure agony over the death of the little filly in his arms. He closed his eyes tightly as he continued to scream into the air and hold the filly close to his chest and lighting flashed in the sky and the sound of the crackling thunder echoed throughout the night.

Flame in the living world was tossing and turning something fierce. Crying in his sleep as he dreamt about that horrible night again, he hated the next part the most though. The dream had fast forwarded itself to a funeral in Manehattan as a lone unicorn mare stood on one side as a unicorn priest wearing a collar piece against the back of his head imitating an eclipse with Celestia’s sun and Luna’s moon stood on the other side as he used his magic to hold open a black book he read from as the coffin was placed inside the grave for the little filly to rest for the rest of her eternity in the afterlife.

Flame was standing far away from behind a tree, looking over to the crying mother as she wept for the loss of her little filly. Flame was all patched up now. Both his wings here wrapped in bandages with little patches on the small cuts on his body. Bandage wrapping around both his forearms, abdomen, and lastly around his left eye with a pad on it as well. He wanted to speak, so badly but he knew he couldn’t, not after he let her die. He kept the blame and guilt as he felt his very heart rip every time he had the urge to speak. He just wanted to scream to her. He decided to go for it.

Flame woke up at this part in the same pose as his memory self, his arm out reaching for the mother as if trying to grab her as he yelled, “Wait!” once he realized he was awake he continued to stare at the ceiling as tears continued to roll down his face and onto the bed. He wanted to forget that day but knew he couldn’t, he had the scar to remind him every day of his failure. He put a talon to it and gently felt it up then back down as he wiped away the last of his tears. He looked to the clock and saw it was already 8 am and decided to get up.

He got into the bathroom and brushed his teeth before taking a shower. He stayed in there for a while letting the water wash over him as he just sat there in complete silence letting out only a depressed sigh. Soon after once he dried himself off he ate the second muffin Derpy had left from yesterday along with a glass of Mango Juice, he ate slow, so slow that by the time he finished the damn muffin it was stale as the dickens. He cleaned up of course still keeping the dead look in his eyes. Once he reached the door her grabbed the handle with his claw but stopped.

“Flame you need to calm down and relax man…what happened happened already.”

But it was my fault it did happen.

“You tried now…breathe in…”

He took in a deep breath as he already said.

“breathe out…”

He then exhaled and then finally shot out a genuine but it was half of a forced one and walked out of his house. As he walked into town he took notice of the many happy ponies all around him and how they all didn’t react oddly to seeing him there. Well no there were a few stares, some had concern, others were little winks shot to him by mares. Last time he was in this town not a single one paid any damn attention to him and now they all see him as nice choice piece of meat. He simply looked straight ahead completely ignoring all this town’s apparent whores. At least that’s how he sees females who would only look to a male when they want to get off or just because he’s “hotter” than all the rest.

A mare walked right up to him having a little sway in her hips. She was a unicorn with a maya blue coat, periwinkle mane and tale with a blue streak accompanied by blue eyes as well. She had an hour glass cutie mark as well. She approached him with a confident smirk and with a little flutter in her eyes batting her eye lashes at him.

“Hey there big boy.~” she said with another bat of her eye lashes at him expecting this to work on him.

Flame continued to stare blankly at her not showing any interest, he didn’t even respond to her as he walked around her and continued on his way.

She didn't stop there as she reproached him and stood in his path yet again, this time she looked a bit irritated but tried to keep the seductive expression on her face and in her eyes.

“Oh come on now, at least give me and answer, quit quiet act, that’s Big Mac’s thing.~” she said with another bat.

Flame sighed in defeat and looked to her with a smile, “Okay how about this then? Leave me the FUCK alone dammit! I have three good reasons why I will not even think about taking one little step with you, 1) You’re obviously a whore, coming at me and easily asking sex with your facial features and not any real words, 2) I have a marefriend thank you very much and unlike YOU she’s lovely, and 3) My marefriend is Derpy Hooves.”

The mare just stared at him in shock over the three facts he just threw at her. The last one angered her though hearing that SHE got a coltfriend before HER.

“What?! Y-You rather date that...that retard than me?!” she yelled at him with spite in her voice.

When she said that word he heard a snap in his head as he looked to her. Soon after everything around him went quiet as the word echoed throughout his head. “Retard.” Retard!” “RETARD!” he hated when others called his Golden Eyes names of course. But when THAT was the name they chose, they had little time to even say “I-” before he charged them down and made them regret even uttering one letter of the offensive and derogatory term.

Flame shot out his wings, and stared at the poor mare with a glare that could make the Princesses themselves bow down to. He clutched her neck in his claw and brought her close so they were eye to with one another, he flew her up to the sky, soon they were out a view from everypony in Ponyville and vice versa with them and glared deep into her eyes.

The poor mare swore she saw some kind of fire in his eye, a physical fire when his eyes pierced hers like daggers. He pulled her close and spoke in a harsh venomous whisper as he put his beak to her lowered ear. “Now you listen to me and you BETTER listen good you damn little slut! I don’t ever want to see you around me, Derpy, or ANY stallion that is already taken and in a loving relationship so long as you enjoy EATING THROUGH A STRAW!” he pulled away and kept his glare on her as she continued to shiver in pure terror. “What’s your name?”

She gulped nervously though it had to through his talons till it finally went down her throat, she couldn’t look away as she answered with her voice full of terror. “M-…Minutte…”

"Lourder dammit!"

"Minutte..!" she shouted in pure terror now, her body shaking as if doused in the coldest of ice waters.

“Minutte eh?”

He dropped her, she screamed as she fell and was caught after falling down about then caught her leg and hoisted her up so now she was upside down and still eye to eye with him. “If I catch you saying that word, even if it’s not about her and trying to take a stallion from another mare, I’ll take you up here and I WON’T catch you. Do I make myself clear?”

All she could do was nod in complete fear over the thought of her falling to the hard floor below to her death. Flame tightened his grip on her leg digging his talons slowly inside of her. She cringed and spoke up finally.

“O-Okay Okay! I won’t do this again!”

“You promise?”

“Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye!” she did the motions for each part of the swear and nodded again as he looked to her confused by the movements but just accepted them as he flew a few feet to the right and dropped her.

She screamed at the top of her lungs, she screamed bloody murder really as she fell and slowly saw the griffon escape from her view. She thought this was the end for her so she closed her eyes tightly and accepted what was happening, until when she hit she went through the ground. She opened her eyes and noticed she landed in water somehow, she swam to the surface where she gasped for breath as soon as she surfaced. She looked all around as she breathed heavily and deeply and saw she was in the town’s swimming hole. She looked up and saw the griffon fly by overhead as he flew back to town. She slowly sank back into the water only leaving her eyes above the surface as she kicked herself backwards to the edge to climb out as she kept her eyes on the griffon hoping he wouldn’t come back.

Flame sighed as he flew away, he couldn’t hurt her, he swore never to harm a female of another species no matter what they were doing. He knew where he was dropping her and knew from that height the worst she’d get was possibly a red mark underneath her fur on her skin. He’d done this before, he didn’t need any reminders on this, it’s like riding a scooter, you never forget. He sighed again as he landed in the park and sat on a bench he looked around and didn’t see much, the park was pretty empty really. He at least thought it was until a Frisbee flew in and smacked him right in the head.

He fell onto the floor with a thud as he stood up rubbing his head in pain as he noticed the Frisbee in front of him. He picked it up and heard the sound of barking and saw a brown and white furred dog with a red collar and a gold nametag approached and stopped in front of him. He recognized this dog anywhere, it was the apple family dog-

“Winona!” he said with excitement as he scratched behind her ears and she instantly gave in as she got onto her back. Flame knew what that meant and instantly gave her a lovingly belly rub just the way she liked it.

As Flame continued to pet her he noticed Applejack coming over at first looking worried but then smiled when she saw Flame with Winona.

“There she is! For a sec there ah thought she had gon runnin’ into a tree or somethin’?” she said as she looked to her older brother.

Flame smiled happily as he continued to rub her belly lovingly. “Oh you know this little lady won’t go and get herself hurt.”

Winona continued to wag her tail happily as she kept getting a great belly rub.

“No she wouldn’t! No she wouldn’t, no she wouldn’t!” he said with a little change in his voice most pet owners do as he continued to give her a tummy rub and a nuzzle. He laughed a bit as he stopped and started petting her head once she got up.

“I’m glad she remembers me, for a second when I looked at her with her frisbee I thought she’d bite me or something.”

“Naaaaaaah, Winona knows when there’s an apple nearby, plus remember you brought the little gal home with Big Mac when ah felt all alone while you two went out and had fun.”

Flame smiled at the memory of when he and Mac brought her home, that was the first time they saw the little filly so girly in all her life. She squeed then and ran around chasing the happy puppy till they both fell asleep. He looked to the dog and threw the frisbee as she ran after it.

“So what brings ya here AJ?”

“Oh well me an' the girls are here for our weekly Pony Pet Playdate!” she said with a smile as the other 5 started to come over with their pets as well.

Princess Twilight Sparkle had an owl on her back staying completely still as she walked over with the others.

Pinkie Pie had a toothless alligator with the weirdest eyes he had ever seen on one of these cold blooded reptiles and noticed he was hanging on her cotton candy tail by clamping his gums down on it.

Rainbow Dash had a flying turtle that was using a magical propeller device on its back to keep him in the air and also up with her.

His neighbor Rarity had a white furred Persian cat with the top of her head fur in a little tail with a diamond encrusted along what appear to be sapphires in the collar as she stayed on her back with her eyes closed.

And Fluttershy of course from last night or really this very early morning had Angel on her back as she followed her friends over to Applejack.

“Hello again girls!” Flame said with a friendly wave and smile. Before any of the 4 mares could respond to him, he was tackled down into a hug by Pinkie Pie down to the floor as she began to sob loudly into his chest.

“I’m so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo sorry! You don’t know how sorry I am for what happened at you ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ that turned it into a disaster!” she said as she continued to sob into his chest feathers.

Flame was the one feeling even worse than she was, he had made a mare cry because of his own stupid heart problem. He hated making others depressed, angry or even cry because of his “fuck ups” as he has come to call them. He got up on all fours and made her look to him lifting her chin up with one of his claws. He gave her a gentle smile like he had done before with Rainbow and then instead of his pleasant words from before he simply patted her head.

“Hey now no crying you, I’m alright see? Alive and a-okay!” he said with a big smile as he looked at her.

“Yea b-but…you almost died!”

“And therein lies the keyword, ALMOST, I’m still here, silly little heart attack won’t take me down so easily!” he said as he pumped out his chest and hit it a few times with his fist.

Pinkie smiled widely at him and had almost a pleading look in her eyes really hoping for the right answer to this question, “S-So…friends?”

“Yes Pinkie Pie, we’re friends.”

“Yippiiiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeeeeee!” she said as she jumped high into the air as she soon continued with the long “-ie” of her cheer as she soon vanished from her friend’s eyesight. Then as they all continued to stare up into the sky she popped out of the ground and landed where she once stood a bit away from the hole as she ended it finally.

“-iiiiiiieeeee!” she said with a giggle at the end as a familiar alligator jumped out of her mane and clamped back onto her tail.

“So you said something about a pony pet playdate right AJ?”

“Eeeyup.”

“Oh great, now she’s starting to say that as well.” He thought to himself as he saw her little impression of Big Mac’s little phrase.

“Yea, ponies with pets only! Or do you have a pet hmmmmmm?” Rainbow said as she stayed in the air with her hooves crossed and a little smirk.

Flame scratched the back of his head, “Well I don’t like to call him a pet buuuuuuuuut yea I guess technically I do, though I see him as more of a son.” he said with a small blush but kept up a proud smile as he answered her question.

Applejack looked at him in surprise, “When did ya get a critter of yer own?”

“Last year actually, found the little guy all around in the lands of Zebrica before I came home. If you want I can bring him over.”

“Of course dear, we can wait for you right girls?”

The girls nodded with Rarity but Rainbow groaned a bit, “Awww what?! But I was gonna show you guys a new routine I’ve been working on with Tank and I can’t wait!”

“Not to worry Dash, I don't have to go anywhere, he'll come here."

The girls looked to him on confusion as he put two talons to his beak and whistled. The girls couldn't hear a thing but Winona and Angel sure did having sensitive ears as he kept blowing till finally stopping.

They all looked around and didn't see anything happen, everything was calm and quiet on all sides.

"Give it a minute." Flame said as the mares continues to look around for anything out of the ordinary. Soon they heard an adorable little barking sound as they saw a tiny grey dot in the distance, it was growing but not so much as soon they could see it.

Fluttershy instantly recognized the creature and squeed in joy as she saw the little critter. "A wolf pup!" she and the others stared at the adorable little pup as he ran through the group and started jumping around the griffon happily wanting to lick his face but was way too short to do so.

Flame chuckles and picked up cub now standing on his hindlegs. "Heeeeeeey, there you are little buddy! Ya miss daddy huh? Yes you did! Oh yes you did you cute little puppy!" he started to nuzzle the little wolf with his beak as the wolf nuzzled back with his tail wagging happily as he got to nuzzle his "daddy" again.

Fluttershy got up close to see the wolf. "Oh, I've never seen a live wolf, I thought they were only a legend!" she said with her shouts sounding like a normal tone of voice.

"They are Fluttershy, Kai here is the last of his kind."

"Kai..? Oh that's such a cute name for him." she said with a smile but it quickly faded when she reprocessed the words.

"Last of his kind? Oh no no no, poor little guy..." she said as she gently petted his head with her hoof.

Kai nuzzled her hoof and as soon as Flame let him down he nuzzles against her hoof, already showing great affection towards the yellow mare. Fluttershy lowered her head to him and nuzzled his head happily already starting to love the little guy.

Twilight stared at the little creature in amazement, "This is so fascinating! I've read about them but I never thought they were still around!" she spoke with immense interest as she continued to look at the adorable little pup currently nuzzling Fluttershy.

Flame looked to Fluttershy as Twilight took a turn with Kai as she started doing a sketch of him since in her own words, “No other pony or any species for that matter has gotten THIS close to one, I must make a sketch for the princess to see!” she said as she quickly teleported a quill and a scroll to her.

Flame whispered to Fluttershy, “So, have you told them?” he asked her, knowing it was about her liking mares.

She slowly shook her head indicating that she hadn’t told them yet while her hoof dug around in the dirt. She looked away hiding behind her mane a bit feeling ashamed for not doing as she had said she would’ve.

Flame simply petted her head and continued smiling at her, “Look, why don’t we tell them together? That help?”

She simply nodded at him smiling shyly as they walked back over to the others.

“Listen girls, Fluttershy here has something she wants to say.” he waited till they all looked over to them and he gently nudged her forward telling her to go say it.

“Um..um o-okay well…girls I…oh I can’t-”

“Yes you can Fluttershy! Just say it and they’ll understand.”

“What will we understand?” Rainbow said as she approached her shy friend.

Fluttershy looked to Rainbow Dash and blushed immensely, she dug her hoof into the ground a bit more before she cleared her throat. “I-I’m a……….” she mumbled the key words she needed to say.

“Didn’t quite catch that sugarcube.”

“I-I said I’m….a……fillyfooler…”

“Darling please do speak up, I can barely make out what you’re saying.”

“Yea! You’re quieter than usual Fluttershy and it is weeeeeird!”

“Fluttershy what is it?”

“I-…I said I’m a fillyfooler!” she shouted at the top of her lungs which is rarely seen of her as she then covered her mouth with her hooves as her face turned an even darker shade of red from her blush as she hid behind Flame now shivering out of fear of her friend’s reactions.

Rainbow was the first to speak up as she walked up to the shaking pegasus but was kept back by Flame as he stood between them unintentionally.

“You’re a fillyfooler?”

Fluttershy nodded and continued to shake thinking Rainbow would yell at her or call her a freak or maybe even-

“So?”

-Yell at her? Fluttershy looked over to her friend and approached her slowly still her head lowered a bit as she hid behind her mane partially. She looked to the cyan mare and moved her mane a bit out of her face to see a confused look on her face.

“Yo-…you’re not mad..?”

“Why would I be mad?” she said keeping her confused expression aimed at her yellow coated friend.

“Well…I-I…I mean…I assumed…I thought…oh my…”

Flame spoke up for her since she knew she was too shy to say it, “Fluttershy here thought if she told you all that if she was into mares that you would all resent her.”

Her friends gasped at this and they all came up to her slowly.

“Fluttershy how could you ever think we abandon you dearie?” Rarity said with worry in her voice.

“Yea sugarcube, ain’t no way no how we evur leave ya high an’ dry just cause you like the mares.” AJ said with a warm smile.

“Yea! We’re friends Flutters! We stick together till the end.” said Rainbow with a confident smirk as she wrapped her hoof around her.

“Yea! We’re super dooper bestie best friends forever Flutters! We don’t care how you are as long as you just stay our friend!” Pinkie said as she hugged the shy mare close with a gentle nuzzle.

“Fluttershy, there’s no way we’d ever leave you over something like that, it’s just who you are, and like Pinkie said, we’re friends forever-”

“-and ever!” Pinkie finished for Twilight as the 6 of them got into a big group hug with each other having a smiling and crying Fluttershy in the middle of them all as they hugged each other close.

Flame smiled happily at the little group of friends with all the pets by his side, well almost all of them. Winona and Kai weren’t anywhere to be seen, but they were heard behind a bush. Flame looked back there and smirked at what he saw, little Kai on top of Winona taking her to be his. He gave cute little whimpers as he thrusted forward and she gave heated pants having a satisfied look in her eyes.

The others saw this and looked over to see what Flame was looking at. Applejack blushed but got steamed about it and was held back by Flame as he gave a snicker to her anger. Rainbow smirked as well and yelled an “Aw yeah!” to Kai as they continued. Rarity blushed and fainted on the spot as a fainting couch appeared before her as she collapsed upon it in a dramatic pose. Pinkie continued to smile at the sight not really caring that they were making puppies in front of them. Twilight just simply blushed and looked away in pure embarrassment but continued to watch out of “scientific curiosity” as she so put it. Fluttershy blushed as well and easily fainted from the sight and laid there on her back as Flame laughed heartily about the whole situation.