Chapters In the Goblin King's castle, Angel Bunny had armed himself with a wooden spoon and was using it to defend himself against the little goblins that danced gleefully around him. When he turned this way, one over there would grab his tail; when he turned over there, one would pull his ears that way. Eventually, he admitted defeat by dropping the wooden spoon and bursting into tears, crying for his pegasus mother.
The goblins stopped their teasing when the rabbit started to cry.
"Eeik! Why it cry cry?"
"Don't know! Did you pull pull too hard?"
The first goblin puffed out its chest. "No! No, did not pull pull at all! Only tug tug!"
"No, you pull pull! I see you!"
The banter degraded into little fists flying as the goblins got into a brawl. Angel took the opportunity to run past them and climbed to the highest point he could find. Once he was atop it, he realized that he was sitting in the seat of a throne. Before he could wonder if he should be worried, the main doors to the room flung open and the King strolled into his domain.
The goblins cease their fighting and look at their ruler with a mix of fear and awe. He walks past them, straight toward his throne and Angel. Grinning, he leaned down and brushed a paw over the bunny's trembling ears. "You remind me of the mare," he said in a sing-song voice.
Angel cowered against the back of the throne.
"What mare?" a goblin piped up.
Discord turned his head to look at the goblin. "The mare with the power."
"What power?" another cried.
He scooped Angel up with his claw and raised him so that he could stare into the scared but defiant black eyes. "The power of the voodoo."
"Who do?" a third chimed, all three of the goblins closing in around their master.
His talons closed in around the bunny. "You do."
"Do what?" the three said in unison.
With a dramatic wave of his other paw and a turn on his goat leg's heel, he summoned an enchanted crystal ball that floated in the air and reflected Fluttershy's image as she navigated the labyrinth. Angel tried to squeeze through Discord's claws to get a better look, crying out for her.
"Remind me of the mare." He caressed the cold glass.
Angel looked between the ball and the Goblin King's distant, unreadable face. He sprung free and landed on top of the ball, chittering wildly, threatening his evil captor with all sorts of horrible things, though no one understood him.
Discord laughed and dropped down into his throne. He paused when none of the other goblins joined in, then slammed a paw on the arm of his throne. "Well?"
The goblins were quick to laugh after this, and Discord laughed with them. He leaned in and smiled sickeningly sweetly at the rabbit.
"You think you can protect your dear, sweet mama Fluttershy, do you?" He snapped his claw and the ball shattered.
Angel fell, but Discord's mismatched tail slithered under him and caught him before he hit the ground.
"Why, I have no intention of harming the innocent little pegasus. In fact, I believe it is your fault that she is in my labyrinth to begin with, is it not?"
The bunny's ears fell and he looked away with guilt.
"I saw my baby, crying hard as babe could cry... What could I do?" He sighed, though his voice still carried a tune even through the sigh. His tail wrapped around Angel and lifted to bring him closer. "In 9 hours and 23 minutes..." Though he seemed to be speaking directly to the rabbit, his gaze seemed elsewhere, focused on something unseen. "You'll be mine."
Though he tried with all of his little white furry self to hate the creature, Angel couldn't help but feel like there was something more going on. Despite this, he struggled against him and cried out for help.
Discord's tail unfurled and sent the bunny flying a few feet away, landing on a dusty pillow. He waved a hand and the shattered glass on the floor melded back together and rose up to show the room Fluttershy's image once more as she made her way. Softly, he started to sing again as he gazed into the crystal.
"My baby's love had gone, and left my baby blue
Nobody knew what kind of magic spell to use."
The goblins joined in with a cheerful chorus, dancing all about the throne room.
"Slime and snails, or a puppy dog's tail
Thunder or lightning, something frightening
Dance, magic, dance..."
One of the goblins picked up Angel and they tossed him back and forth to each other.
"Put that bunny's spell on me!
Jump, magic, jump
Put that magic jump on me
Slap that bunny, make him free!"
Discord's voice rose up and silenced them. They all turned to look at him, one of the goblins holding Angel upside-down by one foot.
"I saw my baby, trying hard as babe could try
What could I do?
My baby's fun had gone, and left my baby blue
Nobody knew..."
The goblins watched in glee and Angel in horror as Discord's words seemed to move the labyrinth around Fluttershy, unbeknownst to her. Walls slid in and out of place, curving this way and that, leading her in any direction he so desired.
In the labyrinth, Fluttershy continued on, completely unaware of the odds stacked against her. She blinked when she turned a corner and was faced with a dead end. It had seemed that she had run into an awful lot of dead ends. She started to turn around with a heavy sigh.
"Oh, it's hopeless," she muttered sadly.
"That's right! It is hopeless."
She whirled around to see two tall, lanky ponies leaning against two doors, their forelegs crossed and hats covering their eyes. They seemed to be near-twins, though their hairstyles were different and one had a mustache.
"But..." She tilted her head. "This was a dead end just a moment ago!"
One laughed while the other raised his hat to look at her with a grin. "No, that's the dead end behind you."
Fluttershy looked over her shoulder to see there was indeed a wall looming behind her. She looked back at the twins and whimpered, exhausted, "It keeps changing!" She plopped down on the ground and hung her head. "What am I going to do?"
"I'm glad you brought that up my dear!" The ponies dropped forward to stand on all fours and started to circle her.
"Yes, I'm glad you brought that up."
"For, you see, we are the world famous Flim Flam brothers."
"He's Flim."
"And he's Flam."
They wrapped a foreleg around each other's shoulders.
"And we're the guards for these very doors here."
"One of them leads to the castle at the center of the labyrinth, and the other..."
"Certain death!"
Fluttershy cringed back at the words. "Oh, no! Which one is which?"
"We can't tell you," they said in unison.
"Why not?"
"I, uh," stammed Flam. "I don't know. But Flim does."
She started to look to Flim to question him, but he pulled away from Flam and raised his hooves to wave her off.
"I can't just tell you! You can only ask one of us, you see."
"It's the rules, after all."
"You should also know that one of us tells the truth, and the other lies."
"And Flim always lies."
"I do not! I always tell the truth."
"See? He's lying right now!" Flam laughed.
Flim shielded his face with a hoof and whispered loudly to Fluttershy, "He's the liar."
Fluttershy's head spun as the twins circled around her like hungry sharks.
"We see an opportunity, my dear, for us to make your day,"
"Yes, my dear, that's right, for you to find your way,"
"But any pony can plainly see,"
"That it'll do no good to plea,"
"Just make your choice, and make it fast,"
"And choose one pony to ask!"
They posed in front of her, legs splayed in all directions, hats off and in one hoof, mouths open wide as they sang together, "And that's opportunity!"
Fluttershy clapped her hooves. "Oh, that was very good!" She smiled. "But I'm afraid I'm not very good with riddles." She leaned back on her haunches as she tapped her chin. "One always lies, and one tells the truth? But-" She looked up at them. "Do I get only one question?" Quickly, she added, eyes wide, "O-other than that one! Oh, please!"
The twins chuckled and leaned against their doors.
"Why, of course, my dear, just one question indeed."
"It'd be cheating and unfair otherwise, don't you think?"
She nodded in agreement and resumed her careful thinking. Every once and a while, she'd mutter something, her voice slowly falling from a mutter to a whisper to an incoherent squeak. "Ohhh... um..." Finally, she stood up and looked directly at Flim. "All right. Answer yes or no... Would Flam tell me that your door leads to the castle?"
Flim blinked. He looked over at Flam, then back at her. "Yes."
"Then the other door leads to the castle and this leads to death." She nodded with determination.
"How do you know? He could be telling the truth."
She wilted, starting to doubt her own decision. "But... then you wouldn't be. So if you told me that he said yes, then that would mean the answer is no."
"But I could be telling the truth!"
"Then that means he would be lying, and the answer is still no." She regained her confidence and held her head high. "I... I think I figured it out!"
"Is that right?" Flim looked over at Flam.
Flam shrugged. "I don't know. I've never understood it."
"Thank you both very much for all of your help." She pushed the door open and started to walk through. "Oh, that means I'm getting closer! I'm so-- ahh!!" The ground beneath her opened up and she started to fall. Her wings pressed even tighter to her sides in fear, so she couldn't save herself.
Before she fell all the way to the bottom, hundreds of little butterflies caught her and suspended her in the air. Because it was pitch black, however, Fluttershy had no idea what had caught her and squeaked in terror.
"Oh! Please! Please don't hurt me!"
"Hurt you?" the butterflies said in many different little voices that sounded like an off-key choir. "We're the help!"
"The help? I'm terribly sorry, then. Thank you for saving me."
"Well, then, which way?"
"Which way?" She blinked in the darkness.
"Up or down? Come on, we haven't got all day! Which way do you want to go, little pony?"
"I suppose, since I've already fallen this far, and it can't be that much further, that I'd like to go down."
"Down? She chose down!"
Her ears drooped. "Was that wrong?"
"Too late now!" The butterflies parted and let her fall the rest of the way.
She cries out, but the ground was indeed not very far, so she landed without too much injury.
In the castle, Discord jumped out of his throne.
"She's in the Oubliette!" he snarled. The goblins laughed and he jerked his head to glare at them. "Shut up." His gaze returned to the crystal ball. "She never should have made it this far. She should have given up by now! Everyone gives up."
The ball fell and rolled across the floor with a wave of his hand as he stalked over to Angel. "You must mean a lot to her, you wretched little thing! But she'll give up on you. Just you wait and see."
Angel shook his head. He knew Fluttershy better than anyone and no matter the cost, her kindness would never fade.
"Pinkamena is about to lead her back to the beginning. She'll give up when she realizes she has to start all over again." He started to laugh, then glared at the goblins. "Well, laugh!"
Discord and the goblins laughed. Back in the Oubliette, Fluttershy tried to feel her way through the darkness. She froze when she heard hoofsteps coming her way.
"Hello? Wh-who's there?" she called in a tiny, broken voice.
"Me." Pinkamena struck a match and lit a small lamp she carried to illuminate the room.
"Oh, it's you!" Fluttershy didn't know whether to feel happy or not. She hadn't parted on good terms with the pony, but it was nice to see a face that didn't seem to be out to get her.
"Yes, well, I knew you were going to get into trouble the minute I saw you, so I've come to give you a hand. It just so happens that I know a shortcut out of this whole labyrinth."
Fluttershy shook her head. "No, I'm not giving up now! I'm so close, I know it! I have to rescue Angel."
"It gets a whole lot worse from here on in, you know!"
She eyed the pink pony with some suspicion. "Why are you helping me?"
"Uh, what?" Pinkamena rolled her eyes. "Well, I am, that's all!"
Fluttershy stared at her for a moment, then dropped her head. "I have to rescue Angel. It's my fault he's here, and if I leave him here, then that makes me an even more horrible pony. Don't you understand?"
Pinkamena was silent in thought before she mused, "You're really serious, aren't you? But that rabbit was so much trouble."
"Oh, but that's just how he is! When you really care about someone, you're supposed to accept them, even with their little bumps and edges." Tears started to gloss her eyes. "I'm the one at fault, because I forgot that, even though he's my best friend!"
Pinkamena's sour demeanor seemed to lift at her words and she turned away. "Ohh, don't be so mushy! Fine, fine, I'll take you as far as I can, but no further!"
"Really?!" She jumped up. "You will?! Oh, thank you!"
"You don't have to make such a big deal out of it. Come on, then."
Fluttershy followed her as the pony went to a bare wall. She tapped on a few bricks until a door opened up, leading to a narrow pathway that they took. They walked in silence that was broken by the sound of crystal hitting stone. From the shadows ahead of them, a crystal ball rolled into view.
Pinkamena cowered back. "Oh, no!"
A voice called out from the darkness. "Ah, what have we here?"
The pink pony took a few steps back. "Nothing!"
"Nothing?" The voice grew louder, closer. "Nothing?!" Discord stepped out of the darkness. "Oh, nothing, tra la la!"
She tried to smile, but it was crooked and wracked with fear. "Oh, your majesty! What a nice surprise!"
Discord looked down at her with disdain. "Hello, Pinkwart."
"Pinkie," Fluttershy corrected.
"Pinkamena!"
Discord rolled his eyes. "Pinkamena, are you helping this little pony?"
"H-h-helping?" She looked about as if to look for an escape. "Nooo, no, definitely not!"
"That's good, because here I thought you were taking her closer to my castle."
"Of course not, that was just a lie on my part! You know, a good ol' fashioned trickeroo!"
"Really now?" His voice carried a sarcastic note. "Is that so?"
"Why yes, of course, your majesty."
He turned his gaze to the pegasus. "And how about you? How are you enjoying my labyrinth?"
For Angel's sake, and to try to calm the trembling pink pony, Fluttershy stepped forward with her head high and as much confidence in her voice as she could muster, "It's a piece of cake!"
"Really?" He raised his hand, holding up an hourglass. With a snap of his talons, the sand started to pour faster. "Then how about we up the stakes?"
"Ohh, you can't do that! That's not fair!"
"You say my labyrinth is a piece of cake, do you? Then how about this little slice?" He picked up the crystal ball and threw it behind him before disappearing.
In the near distance, a strange sound started up and began to move closer.
Pinkamena jumped into the air. "Not the cleaners! Run!"
"The what?"
"RUN!"
They ran back the way they came, which didn't take them back to the room Fluttershy had fallen into, but was a new path of corridors that Pinkamena furiously navigated. The pony stopped to kick a wall with her back legs, then pulled Fluttershy into the opening.
Something strange, large, and loud whirled past them. Once it was a good way's away, Pinkamena let out a heavy sigh, then glared at the other.
"Ohh, you sure got his attention all right!" She sighed and pulled a ladder out of nowhere, which she leaned against the wall and started to climb. "Come on, let's get out of here."
Fluttershy remained where she was. "You're just going to take me back to the beginning."
The pony rolled her eyes. "Duh, I just said that to throw him off!"
"How can I trust you?" She still didn't move.
"Look, let me put it this way: what choice do you have?"
There was no good answer to counter with, so the pegasus started to climb up after her.
"See, you've got to understand the position I'm in. I'm a coward and Discord scares me."
Fluttershy paused to muse under her breath, "Discord... ? His name is Discord?" She shook her head and continued climbing. "But that's no position at all."
"Exactly! That's my point!"
Once they reached the top, Pinkamena sat down on her haunches. "All right, that's as far as I go."
"What?"
"Yup. I quit!"
Fluttershy lowered her head. "But you said..."
"I said I'd take you as far as I could, and this is as far as I can!"
"But..."
"There's no use in trying to beg!"
"... Please?"
Pinkamena stared at her before she gave an exaggerated sigh. "Okay, fine! I'll take you a little further, all right?"
Fluttershy started to thank her, but was interrupted by the sound of a belch followed by the roar of fire. She looked past the pink pony to see a purple unicorn with a baby dragon on her head.
"Ohhh," moaned the unicorn, focusing on a book in front of her.
Fluttershy stepped over toward the unicorn. "Excuse me, but can you help me?"
The unicorn looked up, startled, and smiled. "Oh! A little pegasus."
The dragon atop her head looked around. "Who? Who? Who?"
The unicorn looked at Pinkamena. "And who is this?"
"My friend," Fluttershy said without a second thought. She didn't notice the weird look that the pony gave her.
"Oh. What can I do for you?" The unicorn closed the book she was reading after marking her page.
"I need to get to the Goblin King's castle. Do you know the way?"
"Ah," the unicorn said, darting her eyes.
"Ah," the dragon repeated.
The unicorn lifted her gaze to peer at the dragon as best she could. "Eh?"
The dragon leaned forward to look her in the eyes. "Eh?"
Blinking, the unicorn looked back at the pegasus. "Oh, yes. So, you want to go to the castle?"
The dragon chuckled. "How's that for brainpower, huh?"
"Be quiet!"
"Ah, nuts." The little dragon crossed his arms.
The unicorn rolled her eyes and continued, "Sometimes the way forward is the way back."
The dragon raised one hand and mimicked her by flapping his fingers. "Will you listen to this crap!"
"Will you please be quiet!" The unicorn stomped a hoof.
"All right."
She raised one eyebrow. "Okay?"
"Okay." The dragon crossed his arms again.
"All right." She looked back at Pinkamena and Fluttershy. "Quite often, little pegasus, it seems like we're not getting anywhere, when in fact-"
"We are," interrupted the dragon.
She scowled up at him.
Fluttershy was dizzy from glancing up and down to keep track of the conversation. She put a hoof to her forehead. "I'm certainly not getting anywhere at the moment..."
"Ha!" The dragon snickered. "Join the club!" He looked down to see the unicorn had opened her book back up and was lost in her studying once more. "I think that's your lot. Please leave a contribution in the box."
Fluttershy had nothing on her, and looked to Pinkamena for help, but the pony shook her head wildly. Looking about, she spotted a small gem on the ground, which she picked up and put in the box.
"Gracias!"
As they walked away, Pinkamena whispered, "You didn't have to give them that. She didn't even tell you anything!"
The dragon watched them go, chuckling to himself, "Well, well, then. There goes a couple of suckers." He sighed and looked down at the distracted unicorn. She said nothing, solely focused on her book. He looked around for anything interesting, then rolled his eyes. "Ah, it's so stimulating being your hat!"
Continuing their way through the strangely calm hedge garden, Pinkamena eyed Fluttershy with wary suspicion. The pegasus was oblivious to her stare as she looked around to take in their surroundings.
"Okay, I give up!" the pink pony groaned. "Why did you call me your friend?! I mean, really, why?"
Fluttershy looked at her with surprise. "Huh? Oh, well, I suppose so far, you've been the closest thing I have to a friend." She smiled softly. "Even though I was rude to you, which I'm so terribly sorry for, you still helped me out, which is what a good friend does... So, thank you."
"Oh." The straight pink hair seemed to lift slightly as a few curls sprung forth. Her eyes lit up as she said, "Friend, huh? I like that."
The pegasus's ear swiveled and she turned her head to follow a sound nearby. "Did you hear that?"
Pinkamena's mind was still on the new discovery. "I've never been anyone's friend before."
A loud sound roared over them, nearly startling Fluttershy off her balance. The other screamed, jumped in the air, turned tail, and started to run.
"See ya!"
Fluttershy looked over her shoulder. "Wait! Aren't you my friend?"
"Nope! No sir-ee! I've never had a friend before, so I don't need one now! Pinkamena is Pinkamena's friend!"
"Ohh!" She shuddered as another roar resounded. Running away seemed like an awfully good idea. "But," she told herself as she took a step forward toward the noise. "few things are what they seem in this place, so perhaps it's not as scary as it sounds..."
Rounding the corner, the sight before her shocked her more than the roaring. A large manticore was backed into a corner while goblins poked and prodded at him. Though to anyone else the creature seemed terrifying, Fluttershy saw him for what he really was: terrified.
Without another thought she ran forehead and put herself between the manticore and the goblins. "You big bullies!" She gave them a stern look and stomped a hoof.
"What? Ah! The pony!"
The goblins tripped over themselves trying to back away.
"Pony's here?! Uh oh! Big big trouble!"
"Must go go! Tell master!"
They clambered off in different directions. Fluttershy turned to look up at the manticore with pity swimming in her turquoise eyes. "Oh, you poor thing..." She reached out with both forelegs to hug one of the beast's paws, but he swiped at her.
"Arrgh!" he roared.
She frowned. "Now stop that!"
"Arrg...mmh?" He looked down at her in confusion.
"That's no way to behave." She turned away from him. "When you're ready to be nice, then I'm ready to talk to you."
The manticore lowered his head and his ears drooped. "Manny ready..."
"Manny?" She twirled around, excitement plastered all over her face as she took her paw in both of her hooves. "Is that your name? Manny?"
"Manny." The manticore nodded.
"It's nice to meet you, Manny. My name is Fluttershy." She giggled and rubbed a small, comforting circle into his fur. "You're such a sweetie, aren't you?"
"Fluttershy? Ah... Friend?"
She beamed at him. Her eyes practically sparkled up at the large but gentle creature. "Oh, of course! I'm always happy to make more friends." She inclined her head to look at the labyrinth around them, her happiness fading. "Manny, do you know the way to the castle?"
"Hmm, ah..." He shook his head. "No."
"You don't know either?" She sighed. "I wonder if anyone knows how to get through this labyrinth..." She closed her eyes, pointed in a random direction, and opened her eyes again. "I guess that way is as good as any."
After turning a corner, they found themselves in a forest. Trees towered over them and a heavy fog closed in, making it quite difficult to see.
"Oh, my, a forest?" Fluttershy tilted her head. "But I don't recall seeing any forest before... And these trees are so big!"
The manticore shuffled closer to her. "Manny scared."
"There's nothing to be scared of, Manny." She smiled as she let go of his paw and took some steps forward to show him the way. "See? It's not scary at all." She looked over her shoulder and her face fell when she was alone. "Manny?" She ran back to where he had been. "Manny? Where are you? Manny!"
Elsewhere, Pinkamena stomped down a corridor of the labyrinth, not concerned with where she was going, as she knew the labyrinth by heart. "Get through the labyrinth, huh? Well, one thing's for sure! That silly filly will never get through this labyrinth. Never!" She paused. "Never... eh?"
In the distance, she heard Fluttershy call out, "Pinkie! Help!"
Pinkamena's hair stood on end and seemed to inflate like a balloon. "I'm coming, Fluttershy!" Just as she turned around, she found herself face-to-face with Discord, and all the life left her as she cowered back, hair flat and straight again.
Discord smiled, though it was sinister and without affection. "Well, if it isn't you. And where are you going?"
She returned his smile with a nervous grin. "Uh, well, that little mare gave me the slip, but I just heard her now. So I was about to go find her again, and take her back to the beginning, just like you told me to."
"I see." He stroked his beard as he circled the pink pony like a hungry shark. "For a moment, I thought you were about to gallantly run to her aid, but oh, no! That would be stupid of you, wouldn't it?"
She gave a broken, stuttering laugh. "You bet it would! Me? Help her? Oh, no, no way!"
"Oh, dear." He leaned down to look her directly in the eyes. He smiled as she flinched back. "Poor Pinkwart."
"Pinkamena."
Nearby, Fluttershy yelled, "Manny!"
Pinkamena took a step backwards. "Well, that sounds like her, so I better be off to take her back to the beginning."
"Wait!" Discord appeared behind her and she bumped into him. "I've a much better plan. Give her-" he paused to hold out a brightly colored peach. "this." He tossed it to her.
She caught it with both of her front hooves. "Wh-what is it?"
"It's a present."
Her ears drooped. "Will it hurt her?"
Discord raised one eyebrow and crossed his arms. "Now, why the concern?"
For the first time, she looked up at him and said with courage swelling her chest, "I won't do anything to harm her."
"Come now, Pinkwart! I'm surprised at you, losing your head over a girl."
She scowled down at the peach. "I haven't lost my head."
He laughed. He disappeared and reappeared floating above her, looking down at her. "You don't think a sweet, lively young filly could be friends with a depressing little scab like you, do you?"
"Well, she said she was..."
"What? Friends?" He laughed.
"Ohh, it don't matter."
Discord grabbed her face and forced her to look up at him. "You give her that, Pinkamena, or I'll dip you head first into the Bog of Eternal Stench!"
Her courage gone, she started down the corridor. "Yes, right..."
"And, Pinkamena," he said, giving her pause. "if she ever truly calls you her friend, I'll let you go free."
"You... you will?"
"Free in the land of strench." He laughed as he disappeared for good.
In the forest, Fluttershy wandered, lost and alone. Of course, she had been both since she entered the labyrinth, but she was now concerned for where her new friend had gone and it made her loneliness seem all the more apparent.
"Manny?" she called. Her voice was tired and strained. "Manny, oh, where are you?"
Her ear swiveled when she heard noises nearby.
"Yah!" Something jumped around in the limbs above. "Yahoo!"
She looked upward. "Wh-who's there? What do you want?"
A strange dog-like creature popped out of the foliage with bright green eyes. "Aha!"
Another, small and light brown in color with yellow eyes, jumped out of a bush. "We're out to have a good time!"
The first hopped down to land beside Fluttershy. "Yeah, that's right!"
A third, much larger than the others, stepped out of the fog. "Whoo!"
They began to hop from tree to tree and plucking red mushrooms off the branches. The mushrooms were small and glimmered like ruby gemstones.
"We heard you cryin', so we came to show you a good time!"
"We can show you a good time!"
"And we don't charge nothin'!"
"Nothin' at all!"
Fluttershy felt dizzy, watching them gather the ruby mushrooms and talk in sing-song.
"Chilly down with, think small with fire!"
They tossed some of the mushrooms at her feet, which sparked like little firecrackers.
"Hey, listen up!" The smallest dog jumped down in front of her. "When your things get fire, chilly down, chilly down!"
The big one picked her up and started to use her like a puppet, forcing her to move with their song, ignoring her startled cries for help. "Shake your pretty little head, tap your pretty little hooves!"
They broke out into howling laughter and the big one dropped her to grab his sides.
Fluttershy trembled all over. "Th-th-that was, um, a nice song, I think..." She rubbed her head with a hoof to make sure it was still on straight after being shaken around.
"Encore, encore!" the green-eyed one cheered. "But this time, I get to play with the pretty pony!"
"Oh! Um, please, no, I think once was enough!" She backed away as their large clawed paws reached for her.
"No, no, my turn next!"
"No, please--" When one grabbed her leg, and she found herself backed up against a wall, she cried out, "Pinkie!"
A rope fell down in front of her face. She blinked, then looked up to see where it came from and smiled when she saw a serious pink face staring down at her. She tugged her hoof out of the dog's grasp and grabbed onto the rope, which Pinkamena tugged on to pull her up.
"Hey, not fair!" the dogs cried from below. They scrabbled at the wall for a bit, then gave up rather suddenly and wandered off.
At the top, Fluttershy embraced the pony with both forelegs. "Oh, Pinkie! You came! You saved me!"
"Now, wait just a-"
"Pinkie, you really, truly are my-"
Pinkamena's eyes widened. "No! No, don't say it!"
"-friend!"
The ground underneath them gave way to a hole and they fell through, screaming and clinging to one another. They landed on a narrow ledge, Fluttershy moreso than the other.
The pegasus quickly covered her nose with one hoof. "What is that horrible smell! Where are we now?"
"The Bog of Eternal Stench! Ugh!" Pinkamena tried to jerk away from her and knocked the stones beneath her loose. Her attitude changed and she reached out for the pegasus. "Help!"
"Hold on!" Fluttershy caught her hooves and pulled her back up all the way onto the ledge.
Pinkamena paused to catch her breath, then glared over at the other. "Why did you have to go and do a thing like that for?!"
"Huh?" She blinked innocently. "Do what? But you said 'help'..."
"What? No, not that! You called me your friend!"
The pegasus took a moment to try to process this before she giggled and hugged the pony. "Oh, you don't have to act like such a toughy! You came to rescue me, so I know you really do care."
However, the ground beneath them had been just disturbed enough from Pinkamena's near-fall that it crumbled and they fell, landing just inches away from a pit of bubbling ooze, and coincidentally just by where Manny was cowering.
They all took a moment to gather themselves before each noticed one another.
"Fluttershy!" Manny jumped on her.
"Manny!"
"What?!" Pinkamena stared with wide, confused eyes as the behemoth wrapped both paws around Fluttershy and licked her hair.
Fluttershy giggled as the sandpaper tongue made her hair stand straight up. "Pinkie, this is Manny. He's also my friend!"
Manny's excitement over seeing her faded and he put a paw over his snout. "Smell!"
This reminded her that she was also about to gag from the stench. "Oh, it's awful, isn't it?" She looked around and spotted a bridge. "Look, there's a way out... I hope!"
Manny followed after her. Pinkamena was still trying to catch up to how the manticore came into the picture. She shook her head to chase away her confusion.
"Careful! If you so much as step in it, you'll be stuck with the smell... forever!" She dragged out the last word dramatically.
When they crested the hill to reach the bridge, they found an odd sight: a blue pegasus with rainbow hair was sitting, somewhat awkwardly, on the back of a disgruntled orange pony. The pegasus wore somewhat dulled silver armor with a lance attached to one side at her flank. Her helmet tied up her hair in a large plume that ran down the middle like a mohawk.
"Stop!" the blue pegasus said, kicking the orange pony to move closer.
The orange pony rolled her eyes but complied nonetheless.
"Stop, I say!"
Fluttershy took a moment to stare at the pair before she said, "We need to get across this bidge, please."
The blue pegasus puffed out her chest. "Slow down there! Without my permission, no one may cross."
"Oh, here we go again," muttered the orange pony in a southern drawl.
Fluttershy looked at her companions, both struggling just as much as her with the smell of the bog. "We've got to get out of this stench."
"Smell bad!" Manny roared.
"Stench?" The blue pegasus raised one brow. "What stench?"
Fluttershy gave a meek gesture to anything around them. "The, um, smell."
"I smell nothing. I live by my sense of smell, and the air is sweet and fragrant." She glared down at them. "And no one may pass without my permission!"
"Smell bad!"
"Ohhh!" Pinkamena stomped forward. "Get out of my way!"
The blue pegasus hopped off the orange pony's back to stand in Pinkamena's way. "I'm sworn to my duty!"
Free from being ridden, the orange pony leaned against the side of the bridge and yawned. "Why don't y'all just turn back from where ya came?"
"Please let us get across," Fluttershy pleaded.
"Don't make me hurt you!" The blue pegasus lowered a lance and aimed it at them.
This did halt them, but Pinkamena rolled her eyes and darted around and past the blue pegasus.
"Pinkamena! What are you doing?"
However, the pink pony ignored her, continuing on her way to the other side of the bridge.
Manny, having had just about enough of the smell, swiped at the pegasus's lance.
"Hey, you cut that out!" She unfurled her wings and flew up to land on top of the manticore's head. "All right, then, I conquer this mountain." She stood tall and proud of her accomplishment. When the manticore's tail lashed at her, she flew up to dodge. "Whoa! You've got to do better than that." The tail made another attempt, and she dodged again. "Give up! You can't catch me! I'm the fastest in all of the labyrinth!"
Manny lowered his tail in defeat, though he growled under his breath. The blue pegasus lowered herself to the ground and faced the large beast. "Never have I met my match in battle! Well, almost my match. Close enough anyway.
Fluttershy put a hoof on the manticore's shoulder. "Are you okay, Manny?"
"Smell!"
The blue pegasus nodded at hearing her foe's name. "Sir Manny! I, Rainbow Dash, yield to you. Come, let us fight as one!"
The orange pony sighed. "Oh, brother."
Fluttershy stepped forward to cross the bridge, thinking the matter settled, but she was stopped yet again.
"You forget my sacred vow! I can't just let you pass."
"But..."
"I must defend my oath to the death."
Fluttershy sat back on her haunches. "What exactly have you sworn?"
Rainbow Dash put a hoof over her chest, which swelled with pride. "I have sworn on my life that no one shall pass without my permission, and I never break an oath!"
"Well..." Fluttershy stood back up. "May we have your permission?"
This stunned the other pegasus into momentary silence. "Uh, sure, I guess?" She looked to her orange companion, who just shrugged, then looked back at the others. "Yes?"
"Thank you." She smiled, bowed her head, and started to cross the bridge.
Manny followed behind her.
"Hey, wait for me!" Rainbow Dash looked over at the orange pony again. "Come on, Applejack. Let's go."
"Ya sure we gotta keep doing this?"
She narrowed her eyes. "A knight always has a steed. And you're a steed. So stop complaining and get over here!"
"But ya can just fly!"
The pegasus hopped onto Applejack's back without giving her a chance for more complaining. "Let's just go before they leave us behind!"
"Oh, applefritters." The pony groaned. "An' what about yer oath? Who's gonna defend the bridge now?"
Rainbow Dash kicked her sides to urge her forward. "I have a new oath to fight alongside that totally awesome manticore now!"
"Right..." She sighed and trudged forward. Though she was a strong pony, the weight of the other's armor made it a little difficult to carry her.
Once everyone had crossed, Pinkamena pulled out the peach. She glanced around to make sure they weren't watching and held it out to drop it into the stench.
Discord's voice rung sharply in her ears. "I wouldn't do that if I were you."
Her hoof pulled it back to her and her ears drooped. "But I just can't give it to her..." She sighed and put it away, then ran to catch up with the others.
They found their way back to the forest with Rainbow Dash and Applejack's help.
"We should reach the castle well before daybreak," the blue pegasus commented.
In the castle, Discord tossed Angel up and down in his hand like a toy. He paused to hold him up to the crystal ball he was using to watch the group's progress. "Look, Fluttershy. Is this what you're trying to find?" He pulled the rabbit back to him. "So much trouble over such a little thing, but not for long." He grinned wickedly at the trembling ball of fur. "She'll soon forget all about you, won't she? Just as soon as Pinkamena gives her my present."
Back in the forest, a grumbling stomach gave them all pause.
Rainbow Dash leaned forward to peer down at her mount. "Is that my stomach or yours, Applejack?"
"Hungry," the manticore whined.
"But we can't stop now, not when we're so close." Fluttershy looked around. "Maybe we can find some berries."
The group started looking at the nearby flora, save for Pinkamena, who dragged her hooves with every step. Finally, she tapped Fluttershy on the shoulder. "Uh, Fluttershy."
She looked over her shoulder with a gentle smile. "Yes?"
"Here." She thrust the peach into the other's hoof, not looking her in the eyes.
"Pinkie! Oh, thank you! You're a lifesaver. Where did you find it?" She took a small bite. "If everyone can get one, then... Oh, this tastes strange..." Her vision started to swirl and she dropped the peach.
Pinkamena flinched back. Fluttershy looked at her, or at least at the pink blur, sadly.
"Pinkie, what have you done?" she squeaked just before she fell to the ground.
"Oh, curse you, Discord!" Her eyes started to gloss over with tears and she turned to run away. "And curse me, too!"
"Everything..." Fluttershy said with her last conscious breath. "... is dancing..."
Fluttershy's eyes opened slowly and she found herself in the middle of a party that reminded her of the Grand Galloping Gala. She was surrounded by ponies in beautiful attire, all wearing masks and dancing to the soft music. She looked around in awe of the gorgeous dresses only to see her reflection in the mirror and find she was wearing the loveliest dress of all.
She blushed and tried to find an exit, but her gaze passed over somepony who, though masked, was instantly recognizable: the Goblin King. She tried to make her way through the dancing crowd as his voice, like velvet, sung in her ears as though he were beside her.
"There's such a sad love deep in your eyes,
A kind of pale jewel, opened and closed within your eyes.
I'll place the sky within your eyes."
The song caused her to hesitate and he disappeared into the crowd. Her head turned this way and that. The silver jewelry woven into her pink mane jingled softly from the movement. When she turned around, she spied him walking away.
His voice continued to echo in her head.
"There's such a fooled heart beating so fast,
In search of new dreams, a love that will last
Within your heart.
I'll place the moon
Within your heart."
She walked out onto a balcony and gasped. The castle she was in was surrounded by an endless sea that reflected the starry night sky above. The moon hung low so that its reflection seemed to be a second moon. She tore her gaze away and saw that the balcony was otherwise unoccupied, stole one more glance at the glittering sea, and returned inside.
"As the pain sweeps through, makes no sense for you
Every thrill has gone, wasn't too much fun at all
But I'll be there for you
As the world falls down."
It became harder to push her way through the crowd. The ponies reached out for her and laughed, the same laughter she heard as a child when she struggled to fly, and she felt herself starting to cry. Questions swirled through her mind. How did she get there? Why was there a voice in her head, singing such a sad but beautiful song? What did it mean?
"It's falling, it's falling down
Falling in love
I'll paint you mornings of gold
I'll spin you Valentine evenings
Though we're strangers till now
We're choosing a path between the stars
I'll lay my love between the stars."
She turned and found Discord standing there. He reached out a gloved claw to ask for a dance, his paw still holding the mask over his face. She couldn't think of anything else to do but to accept and put her hoof in his claw. He pulled her close and gently guided her to the ballroom floor and sung into her ear.
"As the pain sweeps through, makes no sense for you
Every thrill has gone, wasn't too much fun at all
But I'll be there for you
As the world falls down."
Fluttershy pulled back some to look up at him with confusion swimming in her gaze. "Your name is Discord," she said in a soft voice that sounded as though it might shatter from uncertainty. "You're the Goblin King..."
He said nothing, simply returning her gaze.
"Why?" She put her forehead against his chest. "What is going on? What is happening?"
"My dear Fluttershy," he finally said. He dropped the mask to stroke her mane with his lion's paw. "Aren't you happy? You can have anything you want in this place. I can give that to you, if you stay with me... Give up on your quest and stay with me..."
"My quest?" She pulled back. "My... quest..." Her eyes widened as she remembered everything. "Angel!" She pulled away from him completely. "How could I forget about Angel!"
Her eyes darted around for a way out of the ballroom, but all the walls had no doors, only floor-to-ceiling mirrors. With no other choice, she picked up a chair and flung it at the mirror. As it shattered, the room seemed to lose all sense of gravity as ponies flew in all directions before they all turned into bubbles that floated away. Discord hovered for a moment in front of her, gaze locked with hers. She saw a twisted smirk on his lips just before her vision went completely black.
In a junkyard, Pinkamena sat in front of a fire, all alone, tears rolling down her cheeks. "Oh, she'll never forgive me. What have I done?" She sniffed. "I've lost my one and only friend, that's what I've done."
Elsewhere in the very same junkyard, Fluttershy awoke. "Huh?" She looked around. "What was I doing...?" She saw the peach in her hoof and dropped it when a worm crawled out. "Oh!"
"Ow!" a dainty voice cried from beneath her. "Get off my back!" The owner of the voice bucked her off and Fluttershy turned to see a white unicorn standing there, brushing her purple mane with a hoof. Beside the mare was a giant boulder. When she saw Fluttershy looking at it, she glared. "Why don't you keep your eyes to yourself, missy!"
"Oh, I'm sorry, I was just going..."
"Huh?" She blinked. "Where were you going?"
"I..." Fluttershy dropped down. "I don't remember."
"Well, you can't go anywhere if you don't know where you're going."
After a moment, the pegasus looked back up. "I was searching for something."
"Look here, darling." The unicorn held up a pair of worn, brown saddlebags with pink butterflies on the clasps.
"My saddlebags?" She took them and held them close. "Oh, thank you."
"That's what you were looking for, wasn't it, darling?"
"Yes..." The color began to drain from the pegasus. Her eyes grew dull. "I forgot."
"Now, why don't you come in here and see if there's anything else you'd like."
The unicorn pulls back a curtain and Fluttershy gasps as she sees her cozy little cottage. It is run down with boards over the windows and void of the little critters running through it, but she smiled and walked inside. She set the saddlebags down and laid on the couch.
"Oh, it was all a dream... I dreamed it all. But it was so real..." She closed her eyes. "But it was just a dream."
The unicorn walked in and started to rummage through the junk that was piled up around the living room. "Let's see, here. Oh, yes! Darling, look, a little bird house. You love bird houses, don't you?" She began to place things around the couch Fluttershy was resting on. "Don't forget this little parasprite. You never wanted them thrown away, did you? Now then, what else?"
Fluttershy opened her eyes. She looked at the growing pile around her and her brow started to furrow. "Wait, something's not right. There was something I was looking for."
"Oh, don't talk nonsense! Everything in the world you've ever cared about is all right here. Look, here are your little pink slippers."
The pegasus reached out and picked up a round bowl with a carrot drawn on the side. She stared at it in confusion.
"What's the matter, darling? Don't you like your things?"
Slowly, the color returned to her. Her eyes lifted and she frowned. "It's all junk." She dropped the bowl. "I have to save Angel!" She pushed the piles aside and ran for the door, which was boarded over. She pulled the boards back and emerged from a pile of junk.
She heard Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Manny calling for her nearby.
"Hey, Flutters!"
"Sugarcube!"
"Fluttershy!"
She climbed to the top of the pile and smiled when she spotted them. "I'm here! I'm all right!" She slid down the pile and landed by them.
Manny hugged her. "Fluttershy back!"
Fluttershy giggled and nuzzled the manticore. She looked at Rainbow Dash and Applejack. "Where are we?"
"We're almost there, that's where we are! We'd be there if you hadn't wandered off." The pegasus pointed at the gates. "Those are the gates to the Goblin City."
"Let's go quickly." She hopped out of Manny's hug. "We don't have much time!"
"Applejack, forward!" Rainbow Dash kicked the orange pony's side.
"I've had just 'bout 'nough of this..." Despite her complaining, the orange pony started walking.
When they reached the gate, they found it open, but guarded by a sleeping goblin.
Rainbow Dash hopped off Applejack's back and flew right up to the goblin. "Hey, ugly! Wake up and fight me!"
The guard continued to sleep.
Fluttershy squeaked, "Please, Rainbow Dash, for my sake, hush!"
The pegasus looked between the guard and her, then flew over. "Am I a coward?"
"Certainly not!"
"Then I will fight anyone, anywhere, anyplace, anytime!" She started to fly back to the goblin, but Fluttershy caught her by the tail, yanked her back, and placed a hoof over her mouth.
"We know!" Fluttershy smiled. "We all know. Now, hush."
The blue pegasus scowled, but nodded in compliance. They started toward the gates, Fluttershy at the lead, Manny right behind her, and Rainbow Dash and Applejack side-by-side. The former hovered above the ground with her lance ready for action while the latter trotted, happy to be free of the heavy burden on her back.
"Now you keep quiet, Applejack," the pegasus scolded.
"Really? Ya don't gotta worry 'bout me. Just keep yer own mouth shut."
"Is that a challenge?"
"Why I do believe it is." The orange pony grinned. "If you can keep quiet, then I won't complain fer a week."
"You're on!" The pegasus ran her hoof over her mouth and went silent.
The outer circle of the city was completely quiet. Everything seemed abandoned and the whole group had the same feeling: that they were walking into a trap. They all kept on their guard but continued forward as they had no other option.
They approached the gates that separated the outer and inner circles. Fluttershy screamed when the metal doors slammed shut, then morphed from solid metal to shifting shadows. In the middle of the looming shadow were a pair of glowing green eyes, purple mist radiating from the corners. Red, slitted pupils glared down at them.
"Who goesss?" the shadow hissed.
Manny growled, but Fluttershy tugged on his paw.
"Come on, Manny!"
They turned to flee, but black crystals jutted forth from the ground to block them in. Many faced the shadow again and roared at it.
"Oh, no!" the yellow pegasus cried.
"Who goesss?" the shadow hissed again. An equine head and a neck began to form out of the darkness.
Rainbow Dash steadied her lance and tried to charge at the shadows, but she was pushed away. She nearly landed on the sharp crystals, but thankfully for her, Applejack sprung into action and caught her on her back.
"Now, ya see here, that was darn foolish of ya," the orange pony scolded.
"Well it's better than doing nothing!"
"Hey, you! Rot-for-brains!" a familiar voice yelled.
They all looked up to see Pinkamena running along the wall. The pink pony pulled out a large, blue crystal in the shape of a heart.
The shadow's head turned to look at her. "Crystal? My crystal..." Its eyes widened.
She grabbed a cannon that was sitting on the ramparts, shoved the crystal inside, lit the fuse, and covered her ears.
"No! My crystal!"
The crystal shot out of the cannon and slammed into the hissing face. It shattered, a light pouring forth that banished the darkness.
"Oh, Pinkie!" Fluttershy looked up at her, beaming. "You saved us again!"
Pinkamena slid down the wall. On the ground, she kept her gaze lowered to her hooves, not meeting the pegasus's gaze. "I'm not asking to be forgiven. Discord made me give you that peach and I don't care what you think. I told you I was a coward, and I'm not interesting in being friends."
Fluttershy embraced her and hugged her close. "Oh, but of course I forgive you!"
The pink pony looked at the others over Fluttershy's shoulder. Her mouth hung wide open in shock. "You... you do?!"
"Of course." The pegasus pulled away to smile at her. "That's what friends do."
"And besides," interrupted Rainbow Dash, who zoomed over to push herself between them. "that was totally... awesome!" She threw her hooves in the air. "The way you took down that big shadow thing? That was the bravest and coolest thing I've ever seen! You're no coward at all!"
Pinkamena's hair started to swell up like a balloon. "Huh? I'm not?"
Manny put a big paw on top of Pinkamena's head. "Manny and Pinkie... friends."
The pink pony seemed to glow a few shades brighter. "We are?!"
Fluttershy beamed at the other. "It's all true, Pinkie."
She trembled all over before she jumped straight into the air as if literally exploding with happiness. Her mane and tail puffed out and her eyes sparkled like none of them had seen before. "Well, then, what are we waiting for?!" She started to bounce through where the gates had been. "Let's go get that meanie who calls himself Discord!"
In the castle, the doors to the throne room burst open and a goblin ran in, panting.
"Your highness! You highness, the mare- the mare!" He nearly stumbled over his own feet. "The mare- who ate the peach- and forgot everything!"
Discord arched one eyebrow. "What of her?"
"She and the others... They made it through the gate! The pink one saved them! They're on their way to the castle!"
"What?!" he roared, standing up from his throne. All of the goblins cowered from him. "Stop her! Call out the guards!" He turned his head to look at the nearest goblin. "Take the bunny and hide it."
The goblins scrambled to obey his orders as he paced furiously like a wild animal on the hunt.
"How could she remember?" He growled. He clawed at the air with his paw, then disappeared and reappeared outside of the castle, looking down at the city below. He spotted the group heading straight for the castle. "She destroyed her own memory of the rabbit. Of this place. How could she remember?" Slowly, his rage subsided and he lowered his head to rub his aching temple. "I have done everything, and yet she..." He trailed off, closing his eyes.
Below, Fluttershy looked over at her friends with a hopeful smile. "I think we're going to make it!"
Pinkie giggled. "Of course! This place is a piece of cake! Or maybe just a slice? Ooh, how about a big helping of cake? Yeah, this place is-"
From all directions, goblins jumped out to surround them.
"Company, halt!" the leader of the goblin brigade barked. "Lancers, ready! Cannons, fire! Charge! Charge! Charge!"
"Oh, no!" Fluttershy wilted. Every time she was beginning to feel like they were making progress, something like this happened.
"Quick, this way!" Pinkie ran for an alley.
Fluttershy and Manny ran to follow her while Rainbow Dash mounted Applejack and kicked her into gear.
"Charge!" Rainbow Dash readied her lance. She was startled when Applejack ran the other way. "Huh? No, not that way! You're going the wrong way!"
"Oh, no I ain't! Yer no smarter'n a foal if ya think I'm chargin' at cannons!"
"Can we at least talk about it?!"
"Nope!"
The pegasus rolled her eyes. She knocked out a few goblins they passed, but it was hardly a gallant fight. When the pony stopped beneath her, she grinned. "Yeah, that's better! Now let's go!" She looked up to see they were surrounded on all sides. Her grin grew wider as she raised her hooves in a combat-ready pose. "Don't worry, we've totally got them surrounded."
Applejack slapped her hoof to her face. "Why do I even put up with you?"
Elsewhere, Fluttershy looked over her shoulder. "Rainbow Dash?" She skidded to a halt. "Rainbow? Applejack? Oh, no, where are they?"
"Fire!" yelled a nearby goblin.
A cannonball flew just over her head.
The goblin hopped up and down to try to peer over the large cannon. "I hit something, yes?" He hopped again. "No?"
"We've got to find Rainbow Dash and Applejack." She looked at her two companions. "Come on!"
They didn't get very far, though, before they found themselves surrounded by barely-armored goblins.
"We got you now, pretty ponies! You're surrounded! Give up!"
Pinkie's eye twitched and she stood up on her hind legs. "Try saying that again to my..." She reached just out of their vision and wheeled out a large cannon. She grabbed the nearest goblin and before the creature could react, she stuffed him inside and lit the fuse. "Goblin cannon!"
"What? Uh oh!" The goblin inside the cannon squirmed but before he could get out, he was propelled into the group, bowling down most of them with his flailing.
Pinkie giggled and leaned against the cannon, patting it. She winked at the stunned silent Fluttershy. "Never enter battle without a handy goblin cannon nearby!"
"O-oh, yes, um... Thank you?" The pegasus blinked slowly.
Back at the other end of the town, Applejack bucked Rainbow Dash off and ran into a little goblin shack, kicking the door shut behind her.
"Now look here, enough's enough! I've been dealin' with you for too long, ya hear? You got yerself into this mess and you're gonna get yerself out of it!"
Rainbow Dash banged on the door with a hoof. "Get out here and fight like a stallion!"
"I ain't a stallion so I don't gotta fight like one!"
The pegasus felt something against her back. She turned to see a group of goblins pointing crude little spears at her. "Oh, so that's how it's gonna be, eh?" She raised her hooves. "Well, fine, let's do this the hard way!"
As the other ponies and manticore crested the hill, they spotted Rainbow Dash facing off with too many goblins. By that point Applejack's loyalty to her friend won out over her stubbornness and she had joined the fray, bucking goblins in their faces.
"Oh, we have to do something!" Fluttershy cried and looked at the others. She froze when she saw Pinkie halfway inside a cannon. "Um... Pinkie?"
"Don't worry." She smiled cheerfully. "I've got this!" When the cannon fired her, she outstretched her arms to clothesline as many goblins as she could as she sailed past their companions, appearing as nothing more than a pink blur screaming, "Wheee!"
Rainbow Dash had no idea what happened, but at seeing her foes sprawled on the floor, she put her hooves on her hips. "Yeah! Next time, you might as well just surrender before you even think of starting a fight with me!"
"Yer welcome," Applejack muttered under her breath.
The pink blur continued on and the others chased after her as she made a pathway straight to the castle gates. Ahead, a goblin set up a large cannon and was in the process of aiming and firing at them.
"Now I've got you!" the goblin yelled. "Fire!"
Before the cannon could fire, Pinkie landed head-first into it, causing it to backfire. She slid out and fell to the ground, her hair and face black from the encounter, but she seemed otherwise unharmed. The goblin, however, was bowled over by his own cannon as it flew backwards.
"And now you don't!" Pinkie giggled and shook her head to clear off the ashes.
They all regrouped in front of the castle. The others started to head for the castle doors, but Fluttershy didn't move, causing them all to stop and look back at her.
"Times a-wastin', sugarcube," Applejack said, nodding toward the doors. "What's the matter?"
Fluttershy looked at her newfound friends with a sad but gentle smile. "It feels like I've known all of you for so long... Like you've been my friends for years. But even still, this is my problem. I have to go alone."
"But why?"
"Yes, why?"
"Because that's just the way it has to be. I can't rely on all of you."
"Well, if that's the way it has to be, then that's the way it will be. But," Rainbow Dash put a hoof on her shoulder. "should you need us..."
"Yeah, if ya need anythin' at all..." The orange pony put a hoof on her other shoulder.
"You just yell and we'll be right there!" Pinkie was already crying. She hugged Fluttershy tightly, almost squeezing the life out of her. "Pinkie promise!" She pulled back and crossed her hoof over her chest, then covered her eye.
"Manny promise, too," the manticore added.
"Yes." Fluttershy looked at them all, doing her best not to cry as well, but her watery eyes betrayed her. "Thank you, all of you. I'll never forget any of you."
She embraced each one before she walked up to the castle doors. They opened as soon as she approached them and once inside, she looked over her shoulder to give her friends one last smile just as the doors slammed shut.
Fluttershy walked up a grand staircase. The sound of her hooves against the marble floor echoed throughout the halls and resounded back at her louder than they left. She cringed with each sound, but didn't let it slow her any.
Reaching the second floor, she found it just as deserted as the first.
"Hello?" she finally called. There was no response but her own voice.
She pushed open a few doors, finding only rooms that looked as though no one had occupied them in many, many moons. The last door she opened revealed a vast room filled with staircases leading in all directions. There seemed to be no floor, ceiling, or walls: only staircases. Even the doors she had walked through were gone and replaced by another staircase.
A good way's away, she spotted Angel running up - or down, it was hard to tell in this place - a staircase.
"Angel!" she cried and ran forward. "Angel, I'm here!"
The bunny lifted his head to meet her gaze and reached out his little arms. Their sight of one another was cut off by Discord appearing in front of her. He looked down at her with a cold, unfeeling expression.
All fear of him gone, she returned his look with a serious stare. "I've come for Angel, Discord. You can't stop me."
Discord sighed heavily. He reached out to run his talons through her hair, frowning when she didn't flinch or pull away. "How you've turned my world, you precious thing." He clenched her hair tight and pulled her closer. "You starve and near exhaust me." Leaning down to move his head closer to hers, he continued, "Everything I've done, I've done for you." His voice lowered to a whisper, just as faint as he became as he faded away. "I move the stars for no mare."
She looked around to try to figure out where he went, but Angel's pleas for help pulled her focus to the bunny and she ran down the stairs in front of her.
A hopeless chase ensued, as it seemed that no matter which path either of them took, they seemed to end up further and further until they could no longer see one another.
"Angel!" she called, stopping halfway up a staircase. "Oh, Angel, where are you?"
Discord slithered out of the air beside her and coiled around her neck and shoulders like a boa. "You've run so long, my dear; you've run so far..." He met her gaze. "Your eyes can be so cruel." He tightened around her neck. "Just as I can be so cruel." He slithered off and vanished again, but she felt him watching her as she started to run again.
Finally, Discord perched on a ledge and watched as the bunny and the mare saw each other again and made their way to one another. He sighed, wistfully, sadly. "Though I do believe in you." His voice echoed throughout the timeless chamber. "Yes, I do."
"Angel!"
"Live without your sunlight, love without your heartbeat. I can't..."
"Oh, Angel!"
"... live..." His voice faded as he lowered his head.
Fluttershy and Angel found themselves very close to one another. He was directly above her, or she was directly above him, but no staircases attached the platforms they stood on.
"... within..." Slowly, his eyes closed.
"I'm coming!" She huddled down, then jumped with all of her might. Her wings, though she tried to stretch and flap them, remained plastered to her sides.
"... you."
As the last word fell past his lips, she fell back to her own platform. Everything around her changed when her hooves hit the marble floor. She somewhere and yet nowhere at all. It was almost as though she were floating in the air, but there was clearly ground beneath her.
Discord stepped forward from the nothing. The darkness clung to him like tendrils before she could see him entirely. He looked almost... sad.
"Where is my bunny?" Fluttershy stepped toward him, her voice wavering with uncertainty.
"Fluttershy, beware. I have been generous up til now, but I can be cruel."
"Generous?" She furrowed her brow. "What have you done that's generous?"
"Everything!" The fur on the back of his neck stood on end as he roared. "Everything that you wanted, I have done." He threw his hands in the air. "You called for the Goblin King; I became one. You asked the bunny be taken; I took him." He stepped closer. "You cowered before me; I was frightening. I have reordered time and space! I have turned the world upside down and I have done it all for you!" He looked at her with anger and disappointment on his face, then turned away from her. "I'm exhausted from living up to your expectations of me. Isn't that generous?"
"I... I'm sorry." She looked at him with pity, though she was more confused than anything else. "I never meant to ask all that of you. I just want my baby bunny back."
He closed his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest. "I ask for so little." He vanished and reappeared behind her, putting his hands on her shoulders. "Just let me rule you, and you can have everything that you want. Forget about your bunny, about your friends and stay here with me."
"Why?" She looked up at him. "Why me? Why are you doing this to me?"
He pulled away from her. "I have watched you, seen you for so long. Your heart is filled with love and kindness for all things. For things that don't deserve it, like your wretched little bunny. I..." He stepped backwards into the darkness. "Fluttershy, just fear me, love me, do as I say, and I will be your slave."
"Why me?!"
He burst forth from the darkness again, the rage returning. "It has to be you, don't you see? If I could have just made room in your heart, you could love me. But you refused to let go of that bunny! Of your friends! You said goodbye to them, yet you hold fast to them. Why do you persist in having those things, when I can give you anything?"
Fluttershy stood up on her hind legs and put both her hooves on his face, cupping his cheeks. "You're... lonely, aren't you?"
He flinched back from her touch. "Lonely? I? I can conjure forth anything I wish from nothing. I can become anything with a mere snap of my talons!"
"But you don't have any friends."
He flinched again, this time solely from her words. "... No."
She smiled sadly. "I wish I could help you, Discord, but I have to return home. I have to take Angel back with me. I can't stay here with you. Please... give me back my bunny and take me home."
His expression flashed with rage, then hurt, then nothing. "As you wish," he whispered. A crystal ball fell from his paw and as it shattered, so did the world around her, including Discord.
"Discord!" Fluttershy cried out, wracked with guilt for rejecting him, but it was too late. The world around her was falling like shards of glass that fractured into smaller and smaller pieces until there was nothing left.
"Who?" came a familiar but distant voice.
She looked around the darkness to try to see the owner of the voice. Unable to see anything at all, she closed her eyes and reopened them. A blinding light filled her vision and she had to wince and squint to adjust to the unexpected brightness.
When her vision cleared and she could see again, she gasped at what she saw. It was her ceiling. She felt her bed beneath her. The smell of flora and fauna was in the air.
She was home.
Above her was the face of a concerned but happy and unmistakable purple unicorn, Twilight Sparkle.
"What... happened?" Fluttershy asked, her voice weak and strained.
Twilight cleared her throat. "Well, nopony had heard from you this morning, and when your woodland friends came looking for you in Ponyville, we realized something was wrong. We found you on the floor, soaking wet and passed out, so..." She frowned. "What were you thinking? If we hadn't found you in time, this could have been much more serious! Luckily, you just had a fever, which is-" She paused to test the other's temperature by putting a hoof to her forehead. "- just about gone now."
Fluttershy started to sit up, but the unicorn stopped her by putting a hoof on her shoulder.
"You're still weak and need your rest. We've been taking turns watching over you, and it's almost noon, so Applejack will be by with some lunch in-"
"Hey, she's awake!" The southern pony walked through the door with a big smile. "Ain't that the best news I've heard all day." She set down her saddlebags, which Twilight opened, and went to the bed. "I still think we should'a taken ya to the hospital, but Rarity said ya were 'fraid of it."
The pegasus flinched back into her pillow. "Oh, no, I very much prefer to stay home..." The idea of waking up in a strange, unfamiliar place like a hospital room terrified her. Thankfully, Rarity was one of her closest friends and knew her well enough to protest. She made a mental note to especially thank her when she saw her.
"Well, I brought some extra apple pies just in case ya woke up. Ya hungry?"
A rumbling stomach was all the reply she needed. Fluttershy blushed while the other two laughed and put a pie on the bedside table.
Twilight carried one of the pies along with her using her magic as she headed to the door. She broke off a slice, which floated over to her. "Thanks for lunch, Applejack," she said just before she took a bite.
"Oh, ain't nothin' 't'all! Thanks fer watchin' our sweet li'l sugarcube." She beamed and looked back at the pegasus after the unicorn was gone. "Now, is there anythin' ya need?"
Fluttershy took a dainty bite of pie and shook her head. "Oh, no, I think I've caused enough trouble as it is..." She sighed. "Was it just a dream? Really?" She looked up at the confused pony. "It felt so real..."
"Well, I reckon it did, considerin' the fever ya had goin' on."
"So... the Goblin King... he really is just an old mare's tale?"
"Who?" Applejack tilted her head. "Ain't heard of him. What sort of dream did that cute little noggin of yours conjure up?"
The Goblin King wasn't real. Discord wasn't real. This should have relieved her guilt, but somehow she felt even sadder than before. How could she dream up such a lonely creature? She pulled the blankets closer, seeking comfort from them, but her chest ached with pity for him. He felt real to her, as silly as it seemed. The expression on his face as she spurned him was burned in her mind's eye. His voice still echoed in her ears.
"Well, since ya're up, I'll give ya some privacy. I'll be downstairs if ya need anythin'. Just holler."
"Thank you, Applejack." She took another bite of the apple pie. "Oh, and, um, thank you for the pie. It's delicious as always."
The orange pony winked. "'Course it is! Our secret recipe never fails. You just eat up and rest, pumpkin." She shut the door behind her as she left the room.
Fluttershy's smile dropped once the door closed. She set the pie on the table and curled up under the covers. No, she couldn't feel guilty. She had made the right choice. Her friends would always come first... wouldn't they?
She felt something jump onto the bed and poked her head out from the covers to see what it was.
"Angel!" Her eyes lit up and she scooped the bunny up into her hooves. "Oh, Angel, I'm so happy to see you!"
The bunny cried into her mane, apologizing in a way only she understood. On the edge of the bed was a plush carrot toy, his favorite of all his toys. He pointed at it, then up at her.
"You're giving it to me?"
He nodded.
She smiled and patted him on the head with one hoof. "Oh, Angel, thank you, but I don't need it... I'm just happy that you're okay."
The bunny looked up at her, confused, since as far as he was concerned, he was the one happy that she was okay. He shrugged it off and cuddled close to her as they both snuggled into the covers and fell asleep. This time, she had pleasant dreams, much more mundane and simple than the previous.
Outside the window, a mismatched owl watched with unblinking eyes. It cooed softly, then took flight and flew away. Over hilltops and countryside it soared, never pausing for a rest until it reached Canterlot. There it circled above the royal garden, lowering with every few flaps, then landed atop a lone statue. The owl finally closed its eyes and vanished in a flash of light, the same light radiating from the statue of a draconequus, forgotten by all outside the entrance to the hedge maze.
Fluttershy hummed softly to herself as she trotted through the meadow just outside of Ponyville. On her back were her saddlebags, filled to the brim with special treats for the wild animals she called friends. It was a beautiful day, the sun shining bright without being too hot, while a gentle breeze drifted lazily by to keep things cool.
A butterfly flitted up from a flower to hover near her face and she giggled at the ticklish touch of the tips of its wings kissing her cheek. This put her in such a good mood that she broke out into song, singing the words she had been humming.
"But down in the underground, you'll find someone true
Down in the underground
A land serene, a crystal moon
It's only forever, it's not long at all
Lost and lonely... that's underground."
At this point, she had a whole chorus of birds chirping and rabbits dancing around her, all reaching out for the treats in her saddlebags. She blushed and put a hoof over her mouth.
"Oh, I'm so very sorry, here I am singing while you are all hungry! Here you go little ones..." She picked up the saddlebags off her back and set them on the ground. "Now, now, each of you just take one, please, so there's enough to go around." She pulled back the flaps to expose the variety of carrots, apples, and nuts inside.
She watched happily as the animals gathered in an orderly fashion, taking one treat from the bags and bowing thankfully before scampering or flying off. She resumed her humming as she waited for the animals to all be served.
A little red bird landed on her head and chirped quizzically.
"Hello Mrs. Tanager! What song is that? Oh, it's just a song that's been stuck in my head." She smiled, looking off into the distance. "I don't really know where it came from. Actually, I don't know why I like it at all! It's such a sad little song, don't you think?"
While she talked with the bird, a rather strange owl watched from above. It was mostly different shades of brown, but while one of its feet was a normal claw, the other looked almost like a lion's paw. Its yellow eyes with unusual red pupils peered at the oblivious pegasus below, quietly observing. The other animals took notice of the outsider and avoided the tree it was in, but made no other fuss about its presence. After all, they were near the border on the Everfree Forest, and it wasn't uncommon for strange creatures to wander out from time to time.
A bell sounded in the distance, marking the time, and Fluttershy jumped up.
"Oh dear! Oh, I'm going to be late! I'm terribly sorry I can't stay any longer, but I have to go." She put the now empty saddlebags back on her back and turned around to run back to Ponyville. "Goodbye! Goodbye, little ones!"
The animals waved her off, then resumed their normal daily activities. A couple of the smaller ones scurried under bushes when the strange owl flew from its branch, circled overhead, then returned to the Everfree Forest from where they could only assume it came.
As she was hurrying through Ponyville, rain began to fall. She skidded to a halt and looked up with the same confusion that the other ponies around her had.
"Rain? But it's not scheduled to rain today... Is it?" She looked to the nearest pony, who shook his head.
Overhead, a group of pegasi zipped by, yelling something mostly incoherent about the weather.
Fluttershy tucked her wings over her saddlebags to try to protect them from the rain and resumed her running. "Oh, dear, that can't be good..."
The day's errands were made almost twice as difficult with the rain, but she worked through it, as they had to be done. All over town she ran from morning to afternoon, buying the things she needed and stopping to check in on her friends. She looked up at the town's clock tower to check on the time and gasped.
"There's no time for lunch! I still have to go by Rarity's to bring her the spider's silk she wanted, and, oh my... I guess Angel Bunny won't mind if I miss our lunch together just this once."
By the time evening rolled around, she was exhausted, thoroughly soaked, and ready to step into a hot bath.
Unfortunately, the moment she opened the cottage door, she was greeted by an irate little bunny. He hopped up and down, chittering and rambling about the neglect he had suffered.
"Oh, I'm so sorry, Angel Bunny, but I got stuck in the rain..." She shivered, as the bunny was standing in the middle of the doorway, and she thought it would be awfully rude to step over him to get inside. "May I please come inside?"
The bunny stomped a foot and crossed his arms.
"Please, Angel Bunny?" The weight of the rain in her mane made it hard to keep her head up. "I'll make you your favorite snack..."
This intrigued the bunny enough that he stepped aside and she hurried in. She set down her wet saddlebags, which fell over and landed right on Angel.
"Oh! Angel Bunny, I'm sorry!" She grabbed the nearest cloth and tried to dry him off. "I didn't know that would happen... Please hold still, just one second..."
The bunny pushed the cloth away and hopped away. Every time he landed from a hop, a bit of water got onto the floor, leaving a trail of wet spots behind him.
Fluttershy's eye twitched. "Angel, please, just-"
He hopped onto the couch and in a fit of rebellion, rolled around on it to dry off. He stood back up and stuck out his tongue at her.
The cloth dropped from her mouth and she took a deep breath. She closed her eyes, then opened them slowly, giving him a strained smile. "Okay, I know I deserved that... Now, let me make you a snack..."
She went into the kitchen and prepared a gourmet salad, making sure to remember the cherry on top. As she worked, her hooves trembled, as the cool air of her cottage brushed over her wet coat and made her feel chilled to the bone. However, he had a good point. She said she would come home to make him lunch and she didn't keep her promise, as she just hadn't had the time.
"Okay, Angel, here you go!" She set the bowl on the floor and nudged it toward him.
The bunny hopped forward. He sniffed at the salad, tilted his head this way and that to examine it, then kicked it right into her face.
She went completely still as the bowl slid down her muzzle before hitting the floor. She then tried to very calmly wipe the salad off her face, but her cold shivering started to turn into irritated shaking.
"Angel..." She slowly stood. It suddenly became very clear to Angel that he had gone too far when her eyes opened and he could almost literally see fire in them. "I... I'm so angry right now... I've been in that rain all day and I just wanted to come home and relax... Oh... Oh sometimes you make me so mad!" She stomped a hoof, though it only lightly thumped against the ground. She turned away, unable to look at him. "When I was a filly, I heard a story about a wicked Goblin King, who took away nasty little troublemakers... I know it's just an old mare's tale, but... but Angel, sometimes you make me wish the Goblin King was real and that he'd take you away!"
She breathed heavily. Her shakes turned back to cold shivers as her anger deflated and she turned her head to look over her shoulder. "I'm sorry, Angel Bunny, I just need a hot ba-"
Where the bunny had been sitting, there was nothing.
"Angel?" She looked around and started to search the room. "Angel, please come out now, I really didn't mean it..."
"Who?"
Fluttershy squeaked, jumping straight into the air and whirling around in the direction of the deep, almost sinister voice. On the windowsill of a window she could have sworn was closed was perched an unusual owl, staring directly at her.
"Oh, hello Mr. Owl." She smiled. "I haven't seen you around before. I'm looking for Angel..."
"Who?"
"Of course, you wouldn't know his name! Angel is a little white bunny."
"Ah, then you must mean him." The owl lifted off the windowsill and entered the room. In a bright flash of light, a being even stranger than the mismatched owl stood before her.
She cowered back, pressing her wings tight to her sides as she trembled, now in fear. He was a tall creature unlike any she'd ever seen, made up of different animals. A calm but wicked grin spread across his lips as he held out a crystal ball for her to see.
She hesitated to lower her gaze from his but relented and looked into the ball. She gasped when she saw Angel pressed up against a wall, terrified, strange creatures closing in around him until they blocked her view.
"Angel!" she cried, stepping forward. Tears started to well up in her eyes. "Wh-what did you do to him? Where is he?" She looked back up at him, into those narrowed eyes. Realization struck her and she cowered back further away from him. "You... You're him, aren't you? You're the Goblin King." The tears started to grow so big that they fell down her cheeks. "Please, give me back my Angel!"
The Goblin King twirled the crystal ball in his hand, weaving it deftly between his claw's talons. "What's said is said."
She bit her lip. "Oh, but I didn't mean it, honest!"
He looked down at her and raised one of his white brows. "You didn't? It certainly sounded as though you did."
"Please, where is he? He's just a little bunny, please bring him back!"
He clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth. "My dear Fluttershy, go upstairs to your room... Take your warm bath and enjoy the peace and quiet." His tail flicked from side to side behind him as he extended the ball once more. "I've brought you a gift."
She didn't dare look at it again. "Wh-what is it?"
"It's a crystal, nothing more. But if you turn it this way," He tossed it into his lion's paw and rolled it around. "and look into it, it will show you your dreams. But this isn't a gift for an ordinary mare who takes care of a spoiled rabbit. Do you want it? Then forget the rabbit."
She shook her head, just slightly, her courage still weak. "I-I can't." She swallowed. "I ap-appreciate the gift, but I want my Angel Bunny back. He must be so frightened. He's just a little bunny..."
"Oh, Fluttershy..." He sighed and tossed the crystal at her. "Don't defy me."
As the crystal flew through the air, it turned into a snake that opened its mouth wide, fangs gleaming.
She cried out in terror and shielded her face with her hooves. The snake bounced off, hit the floor, and turned into a little goblin that laughed and ran away. She spun around, hearing the laughter of little goblins in every direction, but wherever she looked she saw only her little critters cowering in the nooks and crannies of her walls and furniture. She turned back to the Goblin King.
"You're no match for me, Fluttershy," he cooed in a soft, velvety voice, as though he were trying to seduce her.
"Please, Goblin King, I need my bunny back."
He snapped his talons together and in a flash of light, they were overlooking a great and vast labyrinth. In the center was a tall, menacing castle, surrounded by a city.
As Fluttershy looked out in awe at the foreboding sight below, she hardly noticed that she was suddenly perfectly dry. The Goblin King put a paw on her shoulder and lowered his head to hers, pointing out with his claw.
"Your bunny is there, in my castle. Do you still want to look for him?"
She flinched when she realized he was touching her, but didn't pull away so as not to anger him. "Is... Is that the castle beyond the Goblin City?"
He pulled away from her. "Turn back, my dear. Turn back before it's too late."
By this point, she had gained some courage, mostly out of necessity. Angel was locked up in the castle, scared and alone, and it was her fault. She had to be strong for him! "I can't." She looked up at him with determination. "Don't you understand that I can't?"
He sighed and stroked his beard, shaking his head slowly. "What a pity..."
She looked back out over the labyrinth. "Besides, it-it doesn't look that far..."
"It's further than you think, and time is short." He waved his paw. A clock appeared in front of her, ticking away happily though its arms didn't move, seeming to be frozen with the minute hand on 12 and the hour hand on 13. "You have 13 hours in which to solve the Labyrinth before your baby bunny becomes mine... Forever." He looked at her with a sadness she didn't see, as her attention was focused on the journey ahead. "... Such a pity," he said just before disappearing.
"What is-" She looked over her shoulder where he had been and blinked a few times before sighing heavily. "The labyrinth..." Her gaze traced its twists and turns. "It doesn't look all that hard... Well." She took a step forward. "Come on, hooves."
Fluttershy gulped as she cautiously stepped toward the labyrinth. It loomed above her, seeming so much more intimidating up close than it did from the hill where she could look down on it. She held fast to her determination to rescue Angel and continued forward.
Outside the front wall, she spotted a pink pony with hair that fell down in straight locks, as though it were eternally drenched in an unknown weight. The pony trudged forward on her hind legs, her front ones raised in an offensive posture. In one hoof, she held a spray can.
"Um, excuse me?" Fluttershy squeaked. She was almost surprised at the weakness of her own voice... almost.
"Huh?" The pony turned her head to peer at her with suspicion all over her face. "Oh, it's you." She looked back away and stepped forward.
Fluttershy followed her gaze and lit up at the sight of little breezies fluttering about in the air. "Oh, how sweet!"
As she tried to reach out to touch the delicate little equine fairy moving toward her, the pink pony released a gas from the spray can that knocked it to the ground.
"Hah!" She cackled. "57!"
Fluttershy's eyes were wide with horror. She leaned down to look at the breezie as it squirmed in agony on the ground. "How... how could you!" She looked up at the pony in dismay. "It was just a poor, innocent little creature! You poor thing..." She had hardly scooped the breezie into her hoof before she had to drop it in surprise when it bit her. "Ow! It-it bit me!"
The other pony looked at her. "Well, duh!" She turned away, waving her hoof in a small circle near her head. "Are you crazy? What did you expect it to do?"
She sniffed and looked at the breezie, which stuck out its little tongue, gave a rude gesture, and zipped away. "I thought they would do nice things."
"Shows what you know, doesn't it?" Just as another breezie flew past her, the pony whirled on one hoof and sprayed it. "58!"
Despite having been bit, Fluttershy still respected and cherished all creatures. "You're horrible!"
"Who? Of course I'm not!" She looked at her with a somewhat deranged, lopsided grin. "I'm Pinkamena. Who are you?"
The pegasus paused. She felt a pang of recognition, but it was distant and in the back of her mind. She looked at the pony with confusion on her face that she had to shake away. Her mind felt cloudy and heavy as she tried to remember where she had heard the name before. "Fluttershy," she finally said.
The grin turned into a solemn line and she nodded seriously. "That's what I thought. Ah! Haha! 59!"
Not wanting to witness more mean-but-innocent breezies crumple to the ground, Fluttershy took a step backwards and inclined her head to the menacing labyrinth walls. "Do you know where the door to the labyrinth is?"
"Maybe."
After a moment of staring at one another silently, Fluttershy started, "Well...?" More silence. "Where is it?"
A breezie slammed into Pinkamena's rump and tugged on her tail. She chased after it, spraying indiscriminately. "Oh, you little-! Get back here! Gotchya, number 60!"
Fluttershy cleared her throat. "Um, excuse me, but where is it?"
Pinakmena looked over her shoulder, one eyebrow raised. "Where is what?"
At this point, the pegasus was starting to grow weary of having not even started on her journey and a little nauseated by the smell of whatever the other pony was spraying in the air. "The door!"
"What door?"
She sighed heavily, her head dropping down. "Oh, it's hopeless to ask you anything..."
"Not if you ask the right questions," Pinkamena said slowly, as if she were talking to a young foal. She started at the other expectantly.
The pegasus thought for a moment, drawing a small circle in the ground with her hoof, before she looked up at her. "Um... how do I get into the labyrinth?"
Suddenly, Pinkamena's face was right in hers, that startlingly crooked grin back on her lips. "Now that's more like it! You get in..." She pushed her out of the way to trot over to a door set against the wall, as plain as day, though Fluttershy was sure it wasn't there before. "Here!" The door swung open on its own. She turned, the grin gone, replaced by a suspicious frown. "You're not really going in there, are you?"
"I'm afraid I have to, yes." She started walking toward the entrance. Reaching it, she froze, intimidated by the towering walls, creeping shadows, and overall appearance of doom and gloom.
"Cozy, isn't it?" The pink pony leaned against the doorway, laughing. Her laughter stopped and she snapped back to seriousness. "Now, would you go left or right?"
After looking in both directions, she looked back at her. "Um, they both look the same to me..."
"Well, you're not going to get very far." She rolled her eyes and slapped a hoof to her forehead.
"Oh, then, which way would you go?"
"Me?" She lowered her hoof to place it on her chest. "Me?! I wouldn't go either way!"
Her patience wearing thin again, Fluttershy started forward. "If that's all the help you're going to be, then... Then you can just go back to whatever horrible activities you have to do."
She was startled to see Pinkamena in front of her again out of nowhere. She glanced back just to make sure that it wasn't a twin and the other pony was still at the doorway, but there was no one else.
"You know your problem?" She leaned in close, pressing her forehead to Fluttershy's as she stared at her, hard and serious. "You take too much for granted! Take this labyrinth!" She pulled back and gestured wildly with her hooves. "Even if you reach the center, you'll never get out again!"
"That's your opinion." She tried to walk past the rambling pony.
"Well, it's a lot better than yours!"
Fluttershy gritted her teeth. "Thanks for nothing, Pinkie."
"Ohhh!" She bunched up her shoulders and stomped back out of the labyrinth. "It's Pinkamena, and don't say I didn't warn you!" With a frustrated kick of her back legs, she slammed the doors shut.
When Fluttershy looked behind her to apologize, she was faced with a blank wall. "Oh, my..." She looked back ahead of her.
The path seemed to be endless, going in a straight line with none of the twists or turns she had spied from the hilltop. It felt like a dream, where she was trapped running in place with the light at the end never growing nearer, but she trudged forward with determination.
In the distance, she heard the tick of a clock weighing down on her, so she hurried her pace. The corridor continued on, perfectly straight and perfectly endless.
"How can he call this a labyrinth?" She sighed. "It just goes on and on..." She paused, scrunching up her nose. "Or maybe I'm just taking for granted that it does?" The pink pony's voice resounded in her ears, so she shook her head to try to chase it away, then broke out into a full run.
After a while, as she was growing tired of running, she skidded to a halt and knocked her hoof against her forehead. "Oh, silly me!" She spread her delicate wings. "It's not cheating if I just take a peek, right?" She looked around for anyone to question on the matter, but, of course, she was alone. "I mean, he let me see it from the hill, so it's not that much different from what he let me do..."
She gave her wings a few flaps, but found that her hooves were planted firmly on the ground, as if stuck. She flapped harder but still couldn't lift off even an inch. "Oh..." Her wings tucked back against her sides. "I suppose he thinks it is cheating..." With a heavy sigh, she continued her run down the corridor.
Her legs gave out and she had to stop and lean against a wall, panting to try to catch her breath. "It... It's hopeless..." Her eyes grew glossy with fresh tears and she stomped a hoof. "It's hopeless!"
"'Ello."
Fluttershy jerked her head up and to the side. Leaning against the wall opposite of her was a zebra sitting with her legs crossed and sipping a cup of tea.
"Oh, my, did you just say hello?"
The zebra smiled. "No, I said 'ello, but I'll let it go."
"You're a zebra, aren't you?" She blushed, not having intended to be so blunt, but it was so rare to see a zebra in Ponyville. Of course, they weren't in Ponyville, so perhaps it wasn't so rare here in the labyrinth.
"What you've said is right, but to point it out like that isn't polite."
"Oh, I'm terribly sorry..." She smiled shyly. "Do you know the way through this Labyrinth?"
The zebra choked and set down her tea. "Me? That is something I wouldn't know. It's a place ponies like you don't want to go."
"Oh..." Her smile faded.
"Why don't you come inside and let this silly journey subside?"
"No, thank you, I have to solve this labyrinth." She looked up and down the corridor they were in. "There aren't any turns or openings, it just goes on and on..."
"Openings there are a ton, it is just that you haven't looked for one."
"What? Where are they?"
"Why, I'll give you a clue." The zebra pointed at the wall beside her. "There's one right in front of you."
"Huh?" Fluttershy stared hard at the wall, but saw only a wall. "No, there isn't. It's just a wall."
"Come with me and have a nice cup of tea."
Determined, she stepped toward the wall, not taking her eyes off it. "But there isn't an opening here!"
"Of course there is, no need to make a scene. Try walking through it and you'll see what I mean."
"What? But... you can't get through a wall."
"Things aren't always what they seem when enchanted, so you can't take anything for granted."
Her eyes lit up at the phrase, understanding now. "Oh!" She held her breath and closed her eyes as she walked toward, into, and through the wall. When she opened her eyes, she was excited to see new corridors going in all directions. "Oh, my!" She turned and called through the wall, "Thank you, that was incredibly helpful!"
The zebra nearly dropped her tea as she got up to her feet. "Now hold on little pony, if I may... You don't want to go that way!"
Fluttershy leaned through the wall to look at her. "What was that?"
"Don't go that way or you'll go astray!"
"Oh!" She stepped back through the wall, tested a different wall, and walked through it instead. "Thanks!"
After Fluttershy was gone and the zebra settled back down to resume drinking her tea, she muttered to herself, "Giving advice can be such a hassle. If she had kept going, she'd have gone straight to that castle..."
