Chapter 50

Between Green and Blue

In the dusty quiet of Fluttershy's cottage, the animals softly slumbered.

Dreams passed through their sweet little minds, visions of play, of being reunited, of being taken into a loving home with an attentive pony friend, and by the many twitches, quiet growls, mewls, yips, chitters, and hoots sung with the background song of gentle breathing: all that and so much more.

Each dream of each species gently guided by various sleep spirits, that despite what the other animals said, all would adamantly insist to the others was real.

Whether that was burrowing owls' Glauca, Foxiekins' Renard, Raccoons' Azeban, Rose spider’s Arachine spinning a web of dreams, or Nigel's Anubis and the unnamed wolf spirits he barked and guarded his Haut Monde from.

Even little Meow-Stop-Leaves of the standing cats who were not bright and very poor hunters was starting to hear the voice of his mother, calling to him with promises of easy and fun prey, sweet moving water, rich cream, lovely sunbeams, all while claiming the name 'Bast'.

All the cottage was at peac-

CLITTER-CLATTER! scraped the tiny claws!

"Wake up! Wake up! Rat- Fluttershy Pony needs your help!" Screamed a tiny voice.

Rat looked around and saw that his sudden entrance loud as he could make out, barely elicited an ear flick of a response.

'A much more drastic bombastic method must be implemented!' Rat thought, quickly walking off somewhere to retrieve a metal measuring cup and silvery spoon.

"Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!" He chambered, not hesitating to bang the two measuring implements together, each cleaning sound being greeted with the yowls, hisses, and terrified chitters of startled, wide-eyed brush tailed creatures.

"What isss!? Where isss!? Jewlie!? Hugh?! Windrunner?!" Tux cat spat, his back arching, tail puffing, claws splaying into Foxiekins' side.

"Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!" Foxiekins yelped. "Sound! Sound loud! What is sound!? Where is Foxiekins!? Miss Red Shetland!? Please! I, Foxiekins, promise to be good!"

"Rrruff yap yap! Who makes the noise that hurts Nigel's delicate ears!? How dare they! Nigel needs his rest! How will Haut Monde recognize him if he looks like a common mongrel of the streets due to lack of beauty sleep!?" He looked to the source of the bangs and clangs. "Rat! Why do you do this?!"

Raccoon chitter hissed from his little sleeping pillow. "Yeah! Why!?" He angrily put his hands over his ears.

Rose Spider raced out from a web funnel, large spider legs pounding. "What vibrationzzz are thezzz? Rozzze Spider feels intruder! Why wake from web rezzzting?!"

"I, Rat, need all of your help!" he chittered, keeping the cups fall where they may. "Angel Bunny! He has gone to H.B. Pony's house!"

"Why would Angel Bunny go to the creature's dwelling? Angel Bunny is terrified of them..." Tux cat curiously inquired, his fur starting to depuff.

Foxiekins started to whimper. "Meow-Stop-Leaves, claws!"

“Oh! Yes... Sorry...” Tux Cat mewled apologetically, retracting his claws. Looking over at Rat, he tilted his head. “What is that on Rat’s back? Is it... a very large tick? Does Rat need it to be removed?”

“Lucas Spider is not tick! Do not insult! We are here to assist Rat! We are here to ask for other animals to assist in defending the H.B. Pony from whatever nefarious scheme Angel Bunny has created with the winged death bringers! The birds! They are a threat to Lucas Spider’s Colony and home!” They squeaked out, their legs frantically waving out.

Raccoon frowned. “There are animals who would call that... place with that thing home?” he said, chittering and pulling away from the two creatures.

“The H.B. Pony accepts the colony, all of the spiders in the house. The H.B. Pony has been to known to say that she... likes us in the house.” Lucas buzzed, turning around on Rat’s back. “The H.B. Pony is... strange... and talks... and talks... and talks... but her presence keeps the colony safe! Rat has come to ask all of you for assistance! Do not Ovid animals protect ponies?”

“Thozzze are for Ponies... Sad faced ssspiddder Lucas knowzzz that thisss H.B. Pony Thing izzz not a true pony... like bug ponieees... or the thingzzz that feed on them...” Rose Spider said, the petal-like ruffles around her neck folding and unfolding, pink coloration mimicking an actual rose.

“Will none of you help Rat? Do none of you care for the sake of the ponies? Or the harm that Angel Bunny is doing?” Rat pleaded, looking around at the other animals. “Not even after he used the sticks to stop wheels or even the moles to make tunnels to the fire ants' nest to nearly cause harm to others!?”

Most of the other animals, especially Rose Spider, once again, pulled away. Little Tux Cat, however, raised a paw to say something, but Foxiekins put a paw on his shoulder and shook his head.

“We... would but-” the fox began.

Rat grabbed his little rattie head with his tiny claws before chitter squeaking in frustration! “Fine! Whatever! We have no time! If none of you will help, then it is up to Rat and Lucas to save the H.B. Pony!” He shouted, diving back into the rathole in the floor from which he had come from.

“Finally...” Nigel growled. Once there were a few quiet moments, he picked up his little pony doll and walked in a circle three times on his sleeping pillow before snuggling back down.

Reluctantly, the other animals went back to their own sleeping areas in an attempt to find some form of sleep after such an... abrupt event happened. Just as the cottage grumbles grew to a murmuring, that's when rapid rapping came at the cottage door, rapping that could only be made by small paws.

The collective animals all groaned at the tragic loss of potential sleep ahead!

"Meow-Stop-Leaves should be speaking with the Bast cat queen! Cats sleep most of the day!" the feline cried out, covering his ears and eyes to block out this further intrusion!

The others were about to chime in, when a small masked head popped through a CrAcK in the door!

"Raccoon? Is that one of yours?" Foxiekins asked, tilting his head and getting up to investigate.

"What?!" Raccoon snarled, offended. "Why is every face with dark patches around the eyes a Raccoon?! We smell completely different and-"

The head started pushing itself through the CrAcK revealing short legs and a long neck...

"And-" Raccoon began only to stop again as the body coming through the CrAcK just seemed to... keep going... "and- still going!? For the love of trash! How is that possible!?" he gasped, before the somewhat plump and long tail of the creature popped out! "What are you!?" he chittered, clutching his face as if madness would consume him!

"Festivities Ferret!” he proclaimed once he tumbled in, performing a somersault and taking a bow.

"See? That is not a raccoon. That is a ferret," Raccoon said, peering and pointing at the newcomer.

"Yes, it is I, Festivities Ferret!" The masked, elongated tube rat took a dramatic pose! "I, Festivities Ferret, have come to this cottage for I, Festivities Ferret, am carrying a burden that weighs too much!" he professed putting an arm over his eyes. "A sin most great! Something I, Festivities Ferret, must confess!"

The animals all went quiet as the dramatic mustelid became the center of this impromptu stage. He nervously looked around.

"Confess to Fluttershy," his head dooked left and then dooked right. "Where is Fluttershy Pony? I, Festivities, must tell her!"

"Fluttershy Pony went to terrifying H.B. Pony thing's house," Tux Cat said, curiously pawing at Festivities. "Why? What is it that long tiny toothed cat wants to tell Fluttershy Pony?" He asked, still baffled by the animal's appearance.

"Festivities is a ferret!" The flamboyant dooker chittered. "And he must confess to Fluttershy Pony about what part of the terrible thing that happened at the park!"

"What thing?" Foxiekins asked.

"The thing at the park!" Festivities answered.

"What park?" Raccoon inquired.

"The park with the tower!" Festivities said.

"What tower?" Tux Cat asked.

"The tower of-"

"Who do?' Burrowing Owl interjected sleepily joining in, though really, they only proceeded to retreat into their burrow even further, as they felt this matter didn’t involve them..

"You-"

"Do?" Rose Spider interrupted, tilting her head.

"Do what?" Tux Cat asked.

"Enough!" Festivities shouted. He then proceeded to take long breaths in order to calm him. "Fluttershy Pony is not here? Where do you say she is?"

"At H.B. Pony thing's house..." Tux Cat repeated mewling annoyed.

"Dook, what is that?" Festivities asked. "What is H.B. Pony thing... Wait... it's H.B. Pony thing? Messy mane? Looks like pony... but is not?" he asked, looking uncomfortable while twirling his paw.

"Yes... yes... and... yes..." Foxiekins replied, shuddering on that last yes.

Nigel whimpered whined from his comforter in the corner of the room. "All of you are all making too much noise!" Rubbing his fluffy ears, he stood up on his velvety satin purple pillow. “Tiny, musky creature! What could be so terrible that you must interrupt Nigel’s sleep?!

Festivities jumped back and chittered involuntarily at the sudden hostility. Tapping his little claws together he looked at all the animals before throwing his head into the air and crying out. "Festivities threw the sticks that caused the H.B. Pony thing to be hurt!"

“Throwing sticks? That seems more like something fun.” Nigel said, his fluffy ears perking up at the thought of play. “Why would it hurt the H.B. Pony thing?”

“On a bike!” Festivities exasperated, throwing his little paws forward. “Forgive Festivities but sometimes other animals are so slow and his mind is so fast that his mouth cannot keep up! The H.B. Pony thing was on a bike! Angel Bunny said it was a game! A game!” The little ferret clasped his head and kicked his back legs fretfully.

Raccoon loped over to the distressed little mustelid, switching from quadruped to an awkward biped making an inquisitive empathetic curing sound. “Hey, hey, hey... you ok there, Festivities, buddy?” he asked, reaching out a tentative paw.

“I, Festivities didn’t know! Didn’t know! We swear! Angel had us throwing the sticks into the air and one went to the wheel of the H.B. Pony Things’ bike! Went flying! Fast! Fast! Fast! Then tree! Tree! All you must believe Festivities! He didn’t know! He thought it was a game! Angel Bunny told him that his pony Joyful would send him away if she found out! I, Festivities, tried to keep it in! He really did! But it gnawed and chewed at his tail and his mind! He had to confess! He had to because... of the glee... The glee in Angel Bunny’s eyes when he saw the H.B. Pony thing get hurt...”

The ferret stood upright before turning and burying himself into the nearest fluffy raccoon chest he could find. “Eeep!”

“I, Festivities, am willing to wait here for Fluttershy pony to return, that whatever punishment he will be given to him will be given for being a very bad ferret!”

The animals gathered tried to take in the information that had been dumped upon them in such a rapid way. If only the hummingbirds were here! Maybe they could make sense of what had been unloaded on them!

"Rat was telling the truth..." Tux Cat quietly mewed.

"So? What if that monster got hurt? Nigel thinks it is for the best if Angel Bunny's plans go through!" he yapped.

Tux Cat hobbled near the poodle. "So what? So what?! What if Rat gets hurt? What if it H.B. Pony thing gets hurt... more! What if Fluttershy Pony gets hurt!?" he hissed at the canine who was clearly at least four and a half times his size.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa... Meow-Stop-Leaves..." Foxiekins yipped, hopping between the kitten and hackle raising Nigel. "Why so puffy?"

"Why so puffy? Why so puffy!?" Tux Cat spat. "From the moment I, Meow-Stop-Leaves was dropped onto a table, raced out the vanishing door and came to this... this Ponyville. I, Meow-Stop-Leaves, have heard nothing but this... this... ovid claim that they are there to protect ponies!"

"Yeah? And?" Raccoon asked ambivalently.

"Yeah and this whole time, Angel Bunny has been putting ponies in danger! Angel Bunny says he is doing this to protect his pony! But how is stirring an ant nest protecting? How is having more digging protecting, how is deceiving others to do harm to one being, one being whose only crime, Meow-Stop-Leaves thinks, is looking scary? How is causing harm to them protecting when all of those same things would get any of you scolded, protecting!? Is it Because he is Angel Bunny?! Because he knows about us? Things that he says would keep ponies from taking us into their homes?! Rat came to us with Lucas! A spider! A spider with many litter mates! Lucas says H.B. Pony thing wants spiders in its home! If H.B. Pony thing can accept spiders into its home, then there are homes for any of you!"

"What is Tux Cat's point?" Nigel asked, growling.

"Angel Bunny is a liar and I, Meow-Stop-Leaves, will go and help Rat!" he said, forcing himself to wobbly stand on his hind legs, a front paw raised in the air defiantly.

Meow-Stop-Leaves, obviously, almost quickly took a tumble. Had it not been for Foxiekins coming to the kitten's aid, his impassioned speech would have been undercut.

“And how exactly is ‘Mew-Stop-Leaf’ going to do that?” Nigel rose up and walked up to intimidate the small, loud, and in his mind, stupid cat. “You are a weak kitten! A nothing! A fluff would would be a mouth full if Nigel had his-”

Foxiekins quickly jumped over the, until now, very lazy brownish dog, staring in his face. “Back off you pampered prissy pooch! If Nigel is so scared of the H.B. Pony thing, then he and any others who are unwilling to help can stay here! I, Foxiekins, and Meow-Stop-Leaves, will go!”

Nigel huffed, a minor whimpering in his voice. “Fine! Go to your deaths! Nigel will stay here! His Haut Monde is sure to come before the day is done! And-” He saw that Foxiekins had picked up Meow-Stop-Leaves in his teeth by the nape of his neck and had already jumped to the windowsill! “Hey! Nigel wasn’t done speaking!”

“How are we going to get the H.B. Pony thing’s house?” The black and white tux kitten asked.

“Foxiekins is very clever,” He said, chuckling. He was about to ask Raccoon, but saw that he was still consoling, or rather being forced to console Festivities “But Meow-Stop-Leaves is a cat... and he has a secret that Foxiekins will show him... Do not worry your little fuzzy head.”

“Uhm... ok...” he mewled back, limply dangling like a ragdoll from the fox’s teeth.

=========

Hobbling out into my own yard, I have to wonder if staying a night in the hospital would have been all that bad.

Sure, there was the poking and prodding, the needle, and having to deal with Robyn Goodfi- okay, right. That one thought is enough to make me stop questioning that.

Fluttershy is at the end of this rock laden path, she seems to be about ready to meet me halfway...

"Hold up! Wait there!" called out Heartbreak. I want to do this. I... I need to do this. Everything, I've put her through, it's just been so unfair to her!

All because I didn't want... our time to be over. How... how selfish of me.

I'm winded, sweaty, and my leg is sore by the time I've gotten to the end of this path, but I did it.

"Are you alright? You really shouldn't be up and moving! It hasn't even been a day and-"

"I'm fine, I-" she starts fluttering her wings anxiously. "Yes?"

"We really should be inside. After all, without the ice wood splinter in your skin, you could easily overheat-" she closes her mouth, looks even more anxious, and then starts again, this time waving her hooves in a fretful, stimming way. "Not that I'm saying that the splinter was a good thing! Just that-"

"Fluttershy..." Part of me wants to just shout for her to stop. That it's nice of her to worry about me and care, but she doesn't need to do what she's doing. "I just wanted to say-" I feel like I'm choking up! No! No becoming an emotional puddle! "It's-it's just that-" Ugh! Why are the words not forming right? Why is this so hard!? "It's just that-... what I mean to say before we begin is-"

"I'm sorry!" she squeaks out and I feel myself deflate. Crud, she beat me to it. Now what? Do I just try to say it too? Do I-

Keep it moving. Gods, you gonna go into internal monologing again?! Just get on with it already! The sooner you get this done, the sooner you can write that fucking letter inside the COOLER HOUSE.

Deep breath, calm down... Let it out and- "Yeah... me too..."

She looks at me confused. "Why are you sorry?"

"Because.... if it wasn't for me, you wouldn't be in this stressed situation to begin with. The last thing I've ever wanted to see..." Fet I can feel my words getting choked up again! If I don't do something-

"-Is to see me cry?" Fluttershy asks finishing my sentence. "I had a talk with Spike... he reminded me of the first night you were here." She looks away. "Or that's what he said you said..."

“Y-yeah.. I did say that, but you were gone by the time I had finished talking,” Fetting crimmany. So many things just flow back to that one cold and dark March night... “I just wanted to say...” Come on! Hold it together! No turning into an emotional puddle! No-

Hurk!

Suddenly, I feel something... hugging me. I don’t know why I can’t believe my eyes, that it’s Fluttershy’s forehooves gently around my shoulder and neck...

It’s not fixing that broken feeling, the feeling that something is about to go wrong! The feeling that I’m going to just break down and cry and-

“F-Flutter-s-shy, I’m h-having t-trouble holding it together!” is what squeaks out from my mouth.

She feels like she’s about to let go, about to run away, for fuck’s sake! I don’t want that either! I wish these stupid feelings would just make up their min- “I-I just wanted to a-apolo-”

“Shhh...” She starts to rub my back with a hoof.

Another spike of panic hits me over what should be a kind gesture and that’s because of-

“My mark! Fluttershy! Watch my brandings!” My voice feels even higher with panic. Her squeeze only gets a morsel tighter. “Fetting horrible thing...” I mutter under my breath.

“I... I know...I-” There’s a thoughtful gasp in her voice. Like she’s wanting to say something but is hesitating to say something.

“Something wrong?” I really hope I’m not stepping into a landmine here. This hug is already going on longer than I’ve ever wanted something like this to go.

“It’s just... a thought... about how...” She glances over my shoulder and I can feel the brandings... squirming on my flesh. Reacting as if for once they don’t want to be looked at... “Well, you said at one point that they were alive and well, uhm, evil, didn’t you?”

“Uhm... yeah?” Hesitation is dripping in my voice.

“I just had an intrusive thought of ‘what if they weren’t evil but a poor, misunderstood, cornered animal’?” She asks, her voice trailing off in that ever so overly empathic Fluttershy™ way. “I just had a passing question of what a creature like that would want...”

All of that feels like it’s coming out of nowhere. Then again, this is Fluttershy. She’s more sensitive to these things. It’s her thing to think like that.

The odd little idea from this whole discombobulated intrusive thought runs through my head. The idea that I’m not the only one who’s trapped here, and that the night that Kylie... brand...branded me... she created some...thing whose only purpose was to make me suffer... and that something also had an intelligence of sort... What... What would something like that want?

I mean, other than to make me suffer?

Ffffreedom... I swear I heard whispers in the rustling of the leaves on the wind above us both.

Suddenly, and without warning, I feel this unbridled, raw, and... visceral sadness CrAcKiNg through my very being! What the flying flipping fet?! Where is this all coming from? Just the idea of imagining a little imaginary being back there trapped and wanting out?

No... I bet it’s just because this whole thing has been utterly exhausting and my emotions are all over the place. Yeah. That feels right. Just like it feels right that Fluttershy ‘eeps’ and makes her pony-hug all that much tighter.

“Oh! I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to-”

“I-it’s fine! It’s alright... Thank you, Fluttershy...” I sniff hard and rub my eyes with my ankle to remove any tears. “Whew, I apologize for nearly breaking down there.”

She softly smiles. “It’s okay. We all have moments like that.”

I chuckle and think back to moments in the show where the pony before me had many panic attacks. It’s no surprise that she would know how to cope with them.

I pushed away and she pulled out of our embrace.

“So! I guess we should head in and get this letter started! I’m not quite sure how to congeal my thoughts together, but...”

“Working together, we can do it!” Fluttershy says with such... confidence that it took me off-guard.

“Heh, you really think so?” Yeah, I’m fishing...

“I hope so,” she replies.

“Y-you only hope so?” What she said should be enough, what she said should be enough-

“I believe that you-”

Just then, there’s a loud thumping on a tree and out of the corner of my eye I spy something white...

Fluttershy’s head quickly turns with recognition. “Angel? Is that you?” she asks, her body turning from the rock path to my house. “It is! What are you doing here?” she looks back at me. “Oh, you wouldn’t mind if I go and-”

“Go tend to your pet, Flutters. I’ll still be here when you get back.”

“Are you sure?” she asks this in her... very demure way, hooves just barely off the ground.

“Yeah, I’m sure, and I’m sure that I’m sure. Go see what’s up with Angel.” She nods and cautiously trots in the direction that her beloved pet was last seen. “The worst is behind us. Now for the hard part.”

=========

From the nest top, Angel glowered at his Fluttershy embracing this monstrosity! Wile black tendrils wrapping around his precious pony! The faces that twistedly decorated its sides and front jeered and mocked him with wide endless needle sharp toothed grins! Alien eyes narrowed and tainted the ground as they dripped with black ichor!

He shook his head! No more watching, the time to get involved and act was nigh!

“Mrs. Falcon! There! Take me, Angel Bunny there!” he said pointing at a nearby bush.

“But the thing! Will it not-”

“No time!” he growled, disregarding all his prey preservation instincts, grabbing the avian by the breast feathers and tugging her down to his eye level to glare at her intimidatingly! “To the skies!” A paw with a single paw shot into the air taking Mr. Falcon by surprise, causing him to back away despite the prey animal threatening his mate. “Handle Angel Bunny with care! Will explain the rest of the plan in the air!”

The two falcons were confused for a moment. After all, their birdy brains repeated, this was a prey animal yelling and commanding them. They had never been commanded by prey before...

“For the future of our nest, eggs, and even... prey, we’ll do this,” Mr. Falcon conceded, flapping his wings and squawking as the rabbit hopped on his back! All of this was so strange! He felt that his talons should be wet with blood!

“I, Angel Bunny, will lure Fluttershy Pony away from the creature,” he began, being held aloft, tightly gripping onto Mr. Falcon’s back feathers. “Then, I, Angel Bunny, will give a thumping signal on that tree. When that happens, Mr. and Mrs. Falcon attacks from above and where El-Ahrairah shines!” he said, pointing at the sun.

“Angel Bunny Prey means from where Ra watches with his flaming eye. Obviously...” Mr. Falcon crooned, his wings flapping.

Angel rolled his eyes. “Yes, yes, from that direction so that IT doesn’t see you both. Drop me here and wait...”

Once on the ground, Angel hopped into his pony’s line of sight. Or at least, he thought he had. Pangs of jealousy, anger, and a fear, oh Great El-Ahrairah, the fear, gripped him as Fluttershy was holding on to that ... that... that Thing.

He cowered momentarily, as it spotted him, he tenuously started thumping on the nearby tree. Thumping it harder and faster than he had ever thumped any tree!

‘I, Angel Bunny, hope the bird brains don’t attack early!’ He thought, holding onto his chest fluff. Thankfully, they held back. Even more thankfully, Fluttershy had seen him!

Better still... She seemed so happy to do so.

She paused only for a moment to ask a question that, surprisingly enough, Angel could not hear, of that thing.

There was a small back and forth and then, she gave him chase!

“Angel?” she asked, as she filled her white rabbit. “Angel, where did you go?” She stopped and looked around at where she had been led.

A large oak tree quite a ways down the path after H.B. Pony thing’s house, at the base of which was a dark, vaguely heart shaped hollow.

Heart shaped, if one had tilted their head forty-five degrees.

“He must be hiding in there...” Fluttershy concluded, smiling softly. “Angel, are you in there?” she asked, carefully sticking her head in the hole.

Angel, much to her dismay, was not in the hole.

At that moment, she heard a loud ‘thump-tha-thump!’ that echoed inside the tree hollow and the twin cries of... falcons?

Fluttershy, in a panic, attempted to pull herself out of this situation, only to find her head stuck!

=========

I can only smile as Fluttershy goes after her pet.

‘Amazing that he’s this close to my house. Maybe he’s getting used to Fluttershy coming here. Maybe things are looking up! Maybe they’re on the rise! Maybe, he’s gotten used to me and the whole ‘animals hate you and see you as a bringer of death’ was just something in your head the whole time!’ I think, struggling to turn. ‘Pffft, just like you trying to get back in your home, yeah right. It’s just a matter of time befor-’

“Above you!” a voice hisses!

Wait, that wasn’t Goth Bunny-

Just then, I hear a stereo of screeches of... eagles? Hawks? Some sort of stock scary bird sound!

Looking up, I see nothing... That is until I notice two black dots in the sun...

“SCCCCCREEEEEEEEEEEEECH!”

‘DUCK!’ Goth Bunny shouts.

I squink. “No, those are... falcons?”

“With razzzor sssharp clawsss!” hisses the voice.

My body seems to move on its own accord, ducking and dodging backwards just in time! The feel of wings beats buffet past my ears, the yelp of a high pitched scream mingles with the sound of my assailants...

I become acutely aware of every little thing as my heart starts pounding in my chest, my breath becomes the wind and fear holds me frozen hostage!

=========

‘My Queen! My Queen! Our Protector! We think she is under attack!’ The colony screamed. ‘The webs! The webs! The Death wind shakes and blows through them!’

“All hold! What information do we have, how long will it take for defense!?” the Queen asked, trembling in fear at so many unknowns.

‘Too many of us are in the backyard! In the grass! Too many in the walls! Was not made for confronting flying death! Webs strong enough not ready!’ shuddered the millions of spiders, trembling in the walls too terrified to do anything! If they fled to rescue their protector, they risked so much!

‘Grab her with webs?! No! The CrAcK will swallow us!’

‘Alert them?! How?! No time! Not fast enough?!’

‘Warn her?! Risk ponies seeing the colony!! Apple Honest pony would alert the others and spread misinformation or information about us!’

=========

The Maze. Every rat hole leads to somewhere other than just the inside of your walls.

Long ago, the rats of Equestria were shown that little realm. Shown its multicolor rainbow ribbon twisting turning chaotic paths that allowed them to pop from say... Fluttershy’s cottage to Sugar Cube Corner and then on to Ponyville hospital. Shown by who? That’s long forgotten. What is known is that it can be used to get from here to there to everywhere, as long as there is a rat hole nearby.

It has its limitations, what can be brought through has to usually be smaller than a rat, many of the paths close or change depending on season, and unless you have the mental memory of a rat who has traveled these paths before... You could get lost ever so easily...

That is where our Rat is now. Frantically, he runs the maze so that another tragedy can be avoided!

‘To the sewers with Angel Bunny! So what if he had messed up in another life! He would not in this one!’

He stopped, his mind boggled by all the paths! Which to take?! Ugh! Ratty paws clutching ratty ears at the fact that the twitching whiskers made them all look the same! He needed a sign! Something! Anything! He stopped in the middle of a convergence of eight different paths.

Meanwhile, the spider who had clung to his back now had a chance to look upon this strange realm, little red eyes glowing wide, with swirling hues reflecting in their unblinking gaze.

“By Ananazi’s Cosmic Threads... It’s webs... It’s all webs made out of colors... It’s all made of colors...” Was the only thing the awestruck arachnid could vibrate from the little silken strands of their makeshift voice.

“Yes, yes, yes, colors, colors everywhere and none of them seem to lead to the H.B.!” Rat retorted, hoping, wishing,.. Even praying to the Mad Rat god for some sort of guidance to his destination!

Just then.. There was an odd... chuckle in the shadows. He spotted a negative scaled something quickly slithering by and before he could react and found himself at two mouseholes: one was green and looked as if it exited to the Everfree Free Forest near the H.B.’s house.

The other was blue like a pond and looked as if it poured out into a pool that was also close to the house...

But there was no H.B. pony in sight!

He could take either one, but unless the H.B. pony was there, Angel Bunny could still have enacted his vile plan! He bashed his little fists against his skull! He was running out of time!

That's when a large clawed lion’s paw passed between Rat and the doors. He squeaked out of fear, terrified that those options would be close off to him!

However, when the appendage had passed, the two doors had not gone, but instead parts of their essences had... merged.

"Blue and green... hope and will... What lies between? In-cyan-ity! Why? Because it might just be something crazy enough to work! Now go!" A voice ripe with whimsy intoned.

Indeed, the new door was the light blue of a hopeful sky... and through it, what did Rat spy with his woggling little eye? What did this little Rodentia see? A tan Heartbreak mare who liked to be called H.B.!

He didn't even blink, he didn't even think, he just steeled his little ratty resolve and acted by dashing through that little ratty door.

=========

"Heh... Why do I do what I do? What's to know? What's to understand? Even a miracle needs a hand..."

=========

“SCREEEEEEEEEECH!!”

The ear bleeding sounds rend my eardrums and my head involuntarily twists to its source, only to be blinded by the not-yet-setting sun!

Squinting and trying to shield my eyes only to stupidly remember that my foreleg is in a fucking cast, I smack myself in the face causing me to stumble, whatever is producing the harpy like scream zipping past my head, a buffeting of air and razer sharp tallons is the only thing I could make out!

I hear my glasses clatter to the ground.

Fluttershy is crying out. “No! Not again! Mrs. Falcon! What are you doing?!”

Looking up, even with fuzzy vision, I see an abstract shape that could easily be identified as a bird of prey... and I freeze... I can’t move... It’s only going to happen, over and over and over and I can’t ever stop it...

As I start to cry, I stupidly look up. I can’t help but wonder if those outstretched claws will be the last thing I see before Fluttershy is forced to, once again, take me to the hospital...

I try moving, but I can't as my body seems to refuse to overcome the fear holding me in place, waiting for what is to come...

=========

Rat flew out of the knothole, something that was sure to once have been home to one of those evil squirrels at one time. It was a far stretch from a rathole, but a hole was a hole!

What’s more, there was the H.B. Pony! But why was she cowering in fear?! What was-

SCREEEEECH!!

A sound that dove deep into the primal parts of Rat’s little brain and summoned his ancestors whose chitters screeched danger! A predator! Rending claws, ripping beaks, stunning speed!

‘All of which is pointed at H.B. Pony! Rat willignore it! Rat willnot be afraid! Rat willdefend!’

With that declaration of pure willpower, the rodent bolted down the crooked branch and with perfect timing, flung his little body into the air, colliding with a very angry ball of feathers, talons, and a falcon’s screeching beak!

Oh, so may feathers, feathers that he promptly plucked and bit at, sending the raptor into a tailspin...

With the damage done, he leapt off the screaming bird.

‘A falcon threw a rat into the air, and where he lands, I, Rat do not care...’

=========

Lucas boggled over the strange place whose very dimensions refused to be defined and now found themselves flying through the air attached to a Rat with a clear death wish as they sped towards a screeching doom!

Quickly, they shot a line to the nearest tree, detaching from his furry friend. Upon landing in the branches, they felt the twang of the home webs...

“Lucas! You have returned? How?! We NEED INFORMATION!” The Queen’s voice vibrated through the webs.

“My Queen! I, Lucas Spider, must-” At that moment, a sharp hard breeze zipped by, causing the spider to turn and look towards where they were headed. Rat had taken down one of the birds, but now another was diving in that one’s place!

“LUCAS! I REQUIRE MORE INFORMATION!”

“My Queen! The second death bringer bird is attacking the H.B. Pony! I, Lucas must do something!”

“Return to the colony and give information, Lucas!” she exclaimed.

“But my Queen!”

“RETURN!” she commanded. “You must-”

“NO.”

Lucas sent out a line and hit a lucky shot at the attacking bird, before being suddenly pulled right off the branch and jarringly into the fray of things!

=========

I am waiting for the claws to rake across my face, for the screams of the ponies around me to go off like a mid-western Wednesday tornado siren warning wailing across the land of ten thousand lakes.

Like that dog who refused to move despite the plate that its on being electrified, I too refuse to move, the fear freezing response taking a hold of my body, because, it would seem that despite the bright colors, the happy songs, the wonderful tea, the magical boba bobble travel bubbles, and funtimes to be had; Equestria knows only one thing for a pony named Heartbreak, one tea for someone... somepony like me...

A big fetting cup of Cruel-tea... Cruelty... whatever... That’s what I’m in for and tha-

Hey, idiot mud mare...

‘What? And why aren’t you still in your hutch?!’

Shut up! Where’s Pain Hurtzalot!? She should be here already!

I hate to agree with the bright pink anthro lagomorph that calls my skull home, but she’s right; that falcon has stopped screeching and is past due for another pass at my orbs of seeing!

Like stubborn velcro that I’m trying my hardest to pull apart, yet not distress my partner with the sound, I cautiously open one eye and then the other comes out of hiding.

My body is trembling, just waiting for the next fucking horseshoe to drop, looking in a fishbowl view, as it would seem that my eyes have adjusted to my glasses, I see a view that’s fuzzy and distorted with everything clear enough to be made out, but with a-

Screeeeech!

My ears swivel in on the pained on high cries and my neck follows to see... something...

A flurry of feathers and something... brown, round... and fuzzy falls and is-

There’s something on your face!

THWAP!!

HA! It was Pain!

An involuntary equine-esk sharp girly scream jumps from my mouth as my back legs, like organic trebuchets, fling me backward in an attempt to get me away from the... thing? With tiny point bits all in the space between my eyes!

A space, that due to my position of pony eyes is making whatever is there fall into my blind spot, rendering most of it invisible!

“Mrs. Falcon! Are you alright?!” Fluttershy’s distressed voice cries out. She turns in my direction as best that I can make out an angry, conflicting, expression on her face and wings splayed out. “Mr. Rat! What are you doing here? Why did you attack Mrs. Falcon!? What’s going on?!”

Poor Fluttershy, she must not be used to animals under her care suddenly just attacking or- wait a second...

“Was it a rat I saw?!” My voice is how you would expect it to be... raspy, breathless, stressed, and in my ‘lack of volume control’ mode.

“What?” comes her confused reply.

I hear my front door slam open behind me...

“What in tarnation is all the racket goin’ on out here now?!” Applejack shouts. “Ah, fer lands sake, ya got yerself a varmint callin’ yer face home! Dun’t ya worry none! Ah’ll get i, ya’all hold real still-like now!”

She’s trotting out from my door frame towards me with what I think looks like a broomhandle clenched between her teeth!

Before she can even get to me, Fluttershy dives down between us.

“Waaaait!” she cries out desperately.

Applejack halts her attack and spits out what is definitely a broom. “What is it?!”

“Please don’t hurt him!” she pleads.

“Fluttershy, ah know yer all about-”

“P-please!” she stammer shouts.

Applejack hesitantly backs away. “Alright... but if any of these critters hurt hide or hair...”

Suddenly, that’s when Mr. Falcon fell to the ground wrapped up in a mass of spider silk with a little blue Lucas staring the bird down...

“It’ll be alright...” She turns back to me, or to be more exact, the brown furball, who now that I’m no longer under siege, I can tell due to the hairless worm-like tail, is indeed most likely a rat. “Please, Mr. Rat, what are you doing here? How did you know that H.B. was in danger? And do you know why Mrs. and... uhm...-” She looks over at the little spider. “-Please don’t hurt him...” she says pleadingly before turning back to the little rodent. “Mr. Falcon, were you attacking her?”

The little ratty claws unlatch from my face and that rat tail almost delicately slips over my muzzle, moving in a way that avoids stinging me across the eyes.

I hear him take a deep breath and then let out what I can only describe as the angriest rat sounds that I have ever heard...

Author's Note

That escalated quickly! Everything seems to have reached a pitch fever! HOW WILL THIS ALL RESOLVE IN ONE CHAPTER!? COME BACK TOMORROW TO FIND OUT!!!! TOMORROW IS THE FINAL CHAPTER OF THIS BEHEMETH OF A STORY!

Then there's a little epilog.

UNTIL THEN!!

Here's the chapter art

And thank you to my editors Scared Ghost and ThePychopath, who I will just kinda sorta remind you has a book that he's published! Go check it out!

THE END IS NEIGH!!!!!