Creature of the night

The sun raised slowly over the horizon and spread it's bright light on the world of Equus, waking it from the night of slumber. The creatures used to the light awoke from their night of sleep, and likewise for others were heading for bed.

Ponys, griffins and many other beings of Equestria starting yet another beautiful day under the rays of Celestia's sun, and with like any other morning the streets of every city, town and village were soon full of pony's going to work. Bakers opening their doors to lure anypony inside with the refreshing smell of baked goods, and shop owners readying their business's for the day. So too were the quiet little town of Ponyville, with every little pony getting ready for school leaning new things about the wonderful world they live in. Except for one filly fast approaching a familiar cottage at the edge of the Everfree forest, her mane tugged away under the helmet while she drove her scooter.

She forgot the assignment she got yesterday from Miss Cheerilee, and now she is on her way towards Fluttershy hoping she could help her making the homework regarding animals. This little filly would have asked her two friends to help her, but with both of them helping their sisters, so she was left to her own… forgetting the assignment, watching Rainbow Dash practice her stunts. Even though she kinda regretted not doing her homework, it was so worth it. But getting up this early, not cool.

Placing her scooter by the side of the small house she runs up to the door, knocking it hard with little patience. After a minute or so of hearing nothing from inside, she knocked again harder.

“Fluttershy, are you home? I need your help,” she loudly asked, hoping Fluttershy heard her though the door.

Tipping her hooves impatient waiting for the door to open, she looks around noticing that there is not as many animals as normal. Wondering about the fact for a small while.

“H-hello, anypony there?” a small timid voice came from the other side.

“Hi Fluttershy, it's me Scooterloo.” Scooterloo said with relief. “Can you help me?”

“Oh…” She heard from the other side with hoofs coming closer. “Of course. How can I help you?” Fluttershy said as she open the door.

Scooterloo looked up at the smiling mare in front of her for about half a minute with a confused expression, almost forgetting what she needed to ask her. But now there is this little thing called curiosity that was hammering it's little tiny hooves in her mind, and debating that asking would be a good idea. She really wanted to know why the normally yellow pony was sporting a different colour, but on the other hoof it weren't really her place to ask.

“… Uh, Fluttershy…” She said trying to form the words for her question before giving up and just ask the mare. “Are you… painting?”

Fluttershy blinked a few times at the odd question before shaking her head at the filly, “No Scooterloo, I have just woken up when you knocked at the door,” She said with a slight tilt with head.

“Okay… but what's up with the paint?” She asked with a puzzled frown.

“Paint? I really have no idea what you are...” She started to explain while she looked down her coat, were she saw large red splotches of faded paint. “… talking, about?” It was everywhere on her, it went from her sides to her chest and belly.

“Oh my,” Her voice became very quiet while she looked herself over, her hooves were too covered in this as well and have left hoofprints on her wooden floor. “I, I need to get this off me,” She said mostly to herself as she backed away from the door heading for the bathroom.

With a soft click from the bathroom door signaling the door was closed, a little filly was left unattended. “Fluttershy, can I come in?” But with no answer from the mare that left her at the door, she walked inside the cottage. Noticing a trail of hoofprints from the floor to the couch in the red paint. Half of the couch was smeared red, probably where Fluttershy laid the filly thought. Still strange though, she don't know the older pegasus all that well, but she was pretty sure that it's wasn't normal for her. Who does that anyway… but paint on themselves and walk around in houses, not normal.

'All of this is weird,' She thought while looking around the wooden home, it was so normal looking beside the paint. But something else caught her eye, she didn't see it when she entered but there was some odd prints on the floor. They weren't red like Fluttershy's, but looked more like dried dirt and way different than anything she have ever seen. It were three times bigger than her own hoofs in length, and not that much wider than her own. She leaned down and saw five small prints infront of the bigger one. 'Weirdest paw I have ever seen.'

The trail ended to her big disappointment and bewilderment infront of a large potted plant in the corner of the living room, she looked behind it, to the sides and on the stairs leading up to Fluttershy's bedroom. But nowhere she looked the filly found no paw prints, it's like they just ended infront of that plant… 'unless it can fly,' She thought it over, and it was possible. Who knows, it could be some rare animal that nopony have ever know about. Her eyes widen and smiled as realized if was a rare creature she and her friends could find it. The little pegasus practically fluttered her wings and made a jump in excitement, and fantasized a little of what it might looked like and if they could get their cutie marks this time.

After a little while were is was imaging about the animal and her friends going on adventure, she looked around the room and how long have she been in Fluttershy's house by now. Looking up at the grandfather clock on the far wall she saw it have been about fifteen minutes, she got a little worried for the larger pony. So she trotted over to the door to the bathroom, knocking on it a little softer than before.

“Fluttershy, are you done soon?” She asked through the door, she waited for a reply. But when none came the knocked again a little harder. “Are you alright in there?” She heard something in there, but it was very quiet. So she put her ear to the door to hear better, she heard something crying, mumbling and fettling.

“Fluttershy?” The filly almost yelled, hearing a small sound of surprise on the other side. “Are you okay?” Scooterloo got the doorknob and pushed the door open. She saw the pegasus sit in her bathtub silently mumbling to herself with a faraway look on her face, tears running down her face slowly dripping from her chin.

“Please… don't, please,” Fluttershy said almost in a whisper to herself as she simply sat in the tub, oblivious of the worried filly coming closer to her. “I beg, please don't eat me.”

“Fluttershy?” Scooterloo asked softly, worry written all over her. “W-what's wrong? Why are you crying?”

The crying pony in the tub froze as Scooterloo got close to her, her crying stopped and she brought a forehoof and wiped her tears away. She sniffled as she looked at her, frightful eyes red from crying and her body shaking slightly as she sat in the water.

“S-Scooterloo?” She started, “You should go to school,” Her frightful voice cracked as she tried to hold back the sheer amount of panic in her mind, only barely doing that. That beast in the forest last night that was her nightmare, was very much real… and that scared her more than anything.

She could still see it killing the manticore when she closed her eyes, and with it she can still hear the sounds coming from it as it was dying. Now knowing that a animal out there able to kill beasts that normally took many guardspony to even drive of, and she have meet it and survived somehow… even escaped it is a curious thought, nothing less than a miracle.

“Fluttershy, please tell me what's wrong. Can I help?” Scooterloo's voice snapped her out of her panicked thoughts, and look at the young pegasus. Not only she believed what she said, but it was written in her movement. Being with animals for so long, caring, feeding and nursing for them one tends to learn to read body language very well. Just looking at this little filly like this is heartbreaking, worried and confused about her, so she did was she used to.

”Scooterloo,” She said as softly as she could, and tried not to cry out in a panic. Her voice strained and raw, she took a few deep breaths. ”I'm not feeling okay this morning, but it's okay. I just need some time for myself, and i will be… alright.”

Reassure others.

Scooterloo just stared at her with huge eyes, ”That's right you're not okay. You covered in… whatever that is, and now you are freaking out mumbling stuff. What's going on?”

Set back by the fillies outburst she faced away from her, while trying not to collapse infront of her. ”y-You must go to school now, I need you to go. Please, listen and do what I say,” Her tears is slowly running down her cheek and dripping into the red water.

Fluttershy stepped out of the tub, droplets fallen from her coat as she walks over to the filly with shaky steps. Tears still running down her face, eyes red and puffy. She tried so hard not to cry, but she couldn't stop herself anymore. ”I, need,” She started voice breaking up as she no longer could keep it in, she just sat down sobbing. ”...I,” She tried but stopped and laid down completely on her side curled up in a fetal position, crying to herself.

Scooterloo looked at the scene don't know what to do or say. Thinking quickly she turned around and headed for the door, knowing Twilight knows what to do in a situation like this. Only to be stopped by a broking scream for help, she looked back from the door. Fluttershy lying on the bathroom floor watching her with eyes begging her for not to leave, Scooterloo could practically see the fear coming from her.

“I, I gonna get Twilight,” She said quickly. “She'll know what to do.”

“Please… don't leave me. I am so scared,” She shrieked with panic, looking up at her with tear filled eyes. “Please don't, leave me.”

The filly looked down at the broken mare infront of her, knowing full well that she couldn't do much to help her as one of her other friends like Twilight or Rainbow Dash. She really need their help not hers, but she couldn't just leave either. Fluttershy have always been kind and patient towards her and everypony else, never imposing her own problems on others. But now that Fluttershy really need somepony else to be there for her, so she is not alone with whatever frightens her. And Scooterloo were ready to just run off to lay that problem on somepony else.

“Sure… I can stay her for a while,” She said, walking over to her and laid beside her. The butter colored pegasus was cold and wet from the bath, but Scooterloo didn't mind being a bit cold for a her. “But you need to talk your friends about this… not that I can't handle whatever you need, Scooter to the rescue,” She quickly added, all the while the pegasus sniffled and cried into the early day.

”Now Fluttershy, Can you tell me what happened to you?” Twilight asked as she sat infront of Fluttershy while she checked her small stack of parchment, quill and ink. She magically poured two cups of tea, and levitated one of the cup over to her.

”Ahm, Twilight,” She began as she looked back and forth between her friend and the stack of paper on the coffee table, as she once have been with said unicorn helping her while studying two days a while back. To say at least there's a reason Twilight study alone, with the sole exception of Spike as he keeps her alive and well in those periods of intense studying. “It's okay, I am all better now. I was just worried about silly things,” She lied.

Twilight cocked her head to the side while giving her a face that just screamed 'are you kidding me?' Before she composed herself, and gave the ever caring pegasus a emphatic look.

“Fluttershy, I don't believe that after Scooterloo comes here with you behind her, and tells me that you broke down in tears infront of her in your bathroom covered in Celestia knows what. And to top it of, she tells me you cried for one and half hours before you past out and fell asleep,” Twilight said with a stern but soft voice.

Twilight knew that Fluttershy haven't done anything wrong, but like anypony else that know Fluttershy. She have a tendency to think lower of herself and not telling others of her troubles, and her friends love her and will her only the best for her, but truly wishes that she share with her friends some if not all of her problems when she run into them.

“And the fact that Scooterloo stayed for five hours with you after in order that you were alright,” She continued while looking at Fluttershy, who was hiding herself behind her mane with burning red cheeks. “I don't know what happened, but please tell me,” She pleaded at her friend.

The pegasus looked away from Twilight as she spoke, after a short while taking a deep breath and sighing out loud.

“Okay, I will tell… but only because I really need to talk to somepony about this,” Fluttershy said as she looked down her cup of tea. “Twilight… I am so scared of what I saw, I thought I was going to die.”

The next two hours she sat and told Twilight what happened the night before, and the reason she were out in the forest late at night was because of a fox that had hurt itself and needed help. She fixed it quickly and without a need for her to bring it back to her cottage, with in hindsight she was really glad that wasn't necessary. But even with her still being in the outskirts of the forest, and it was really, really dark and couldn't see very well. She got lost and ended up further in the Everfree. With her being jumped by the manticore, and thinking she was gonna die. But this creature attacked the manticore, and killed it. She shuddered visibly and had to calm herself for a few minutes while she told this part, and that was when everything got blurry and she past out.

Twilight who have been listening to her story took a long sip from her cup, as she tried to remember any kind of beast that could win over a manticore, and except for dragons there few to none that could do such a feat in a fair fight. But not only of that, she looked at the distressed pegasus.

'She have been through a night of terror, and could very much have died. I'm so happy that nothing happened to her… but why isn't she dead. If the creature have killed the manticore with ease as she said, so why not her?' Twilight thought as she collected her thoughts.

Twilight sat the cup on the table and got over to her friend as she sat with her eyes closed and hid herself behind her mane was beginning to cry, and hugged her slowly. Fluttershy gasped and snapped her eyes open, she looked at Twilight who saw the fright in her eyes. Twilight nuzzled her as she hugged her until she felt her calm down.

After a few minutes she broke the hug and looked at Fluttershy, who had fresh tears rolling down her cheeks. “I can't even begin to imagine what you have been through, it's must have been horrifying. I'm so sorry for you, but I want you to know that I'm here for you and I want to help you as best I can.”

That got a small smile out of the shy pegasus, as she looked at her still crying. She brought up a hoof and wiped her tears away, and sniffled a little. “Thank you… I needed that.”

Twilight saw kindly to her, and a little smile came on her muzzle as she sat infront of her. But still she have questions that she hope Fluttershy can answer, as she thought how best to ask her.

“Fluttershy, I know that it is hard for you remembering what happened,” Twilight said, “ but can you remember the creature? Could you describe it for me?” She asked her as she got hold of her quill and parchment in her magic. “I can't remember reading about a beast like that in my books of wildlife and exotic animals of Equus, and I would like to help more...”

Fluttershy blinked once and nodded as she understood that Twilight would like to know if a new creature had entered the Everfree forest, or if it have always been there.

“When I first saw it, it was on top on the manticore laying down on it,” She gulped, “and drinking I think… I am not really sure what exactly though, but suddenly it sat up on it's hind legs and was panting heavily…” Her voice were shacking slightly, but she continue as well as Twilight's quill.

“…and then it saw me. It had glowing red eyes, crimson in color and stood out in the night staring right at me… it felt if those eyes saw right through me and saw every little thing I have ever done… I have never felt terror like that ever before.”

Fluttershy remember perfectly as she sat on the wooden floor in Twilight's library, a blank look in her eyes as her vision saw the night before.

“I couldn't do anything, Twilight… just sit and wait,” She said still looking straight past Twilight while holding her cup in her hooves. “It was tall, walked on it's hind legs… almost as tall as Princess Celestia. It had a long mane on it's head, black as night. But it's face…” She gulped and continued. “It was like nothing I have ever seen.”

Twilight looked up at her from behind the paper as the quill effortless wrote on, she cocked her head in confusion. “The face? What do you mean?”

“It had no fur, Twilight… and it had no muzzle. It's like nothing I have ever seen,” She whispered, the unicorn stopped writing a moment and widen her eyes in wonder of just how close she must have been to have seen it in the middle of the night. “It was smeared in blood all over, with fangs dripping and I was sure it was going to kill me.”

“It stopped before me, and kneeled no more than an hoof from me… and I begged it not to eat me,” She said quietly, her body trembling slightly as she recalled the memory.

“And then what?” Twilight asked as she no longer were writing, but was staring at the pegasus.

“…It spoke to me…”

A needle hitting the floor could have been heard as Twilight just stared at her with wide eyes, hearing words that her brain could not find possible to accept.

“Are you sure, that it spoke to you?” Twilight asked softly, her voice skeptic as she eyed her friend. Fluttershy nodded as she drank some tea from her cup, trying to calm down. “Maybe it was an minotaur...” Fluttershy shook her head as Twilight tried to think of what her friend might have seen.

“No Twilight… I know what I saw, and that was no minotaur,” She took a sip from her cup, already calming down. She loved tea, it always calmed her when she needed it the most and it made her relax, not only from the taste but also the smell of it were pure enjoyment. It is one of the few things beside reading and enjoying a nice breeze, that could help her calm down and collect her thoughts.

“I don't know what it is, but I have never seen or heard of a animal like that, and I know of all the critters that lives in the Everfree forest,” Fluttershy said, looking in Twilight's eyes . “…and I know of most the more predatory animals as well… but this one talked to me.”

Twilight had no doubt in her mind that that Fluttershy have been saying were nothing else but the truth, but did she really see what she said she had? Not that it mattered, but what if she saw something else due to her close death experience? Nevertheless she have already decided that she would do everything to help her friend.

“Okay Fluttershy, I believe you. I will help you find out more about this creature. So we can maybe find out if it is dangerous or not,” She looked her notes over again, frowning a little. “But one thing you didn't mention… you were out in the forest but awoke in your home, what happened in between?”

Fluttershy blinked a few times and tried to remember what happened after she met it, but she couldn't remember anything.

I don't know. I remember seeing it, then nothing… I could have fainted,” Then she realized, “but how did I wake up at home?”

Many things ran through her mind about how she got home, and who got her there. Maybe somepony saw her and rescued her while she was unconscious or maybe… it were one very vivid dream that she haven't woke from yet.

Fluttershy sat silently next to the table and simply drank her tea as she drifted in her thoughts, and tried to remember more of the night, of what happened and of the creature. But the harder she tried, the more it eluded her. It frustrated her and Twilight were counting on her to tell more.

After a few minutes of sipping to her tea and being in silence with her thoughts, she shock her head.

“I'm sorry Twilight, I can't remember what else happened. All I know beside that is I woke on my couch when Scooterloo knocked on the door.”

Twilight let out a small sigh and put down the paper flat on the table as the ink were drying, and gave a small smile.

“It's okay, Fluttershy. I'm sure that if you remember more, you would tell me,” She said and looked at the setting sun through the windows. “Fluttershy, it's night soon. Do you want to spend the night here?” She asked while watching the sight of colours in the horizon.

“I can prepare the extra bed, and Spike can make dinner,” Twilight added before Fluttershy could think about her answer.

It sounded really nice to not be alone right now, and feel scared of whatever creature that lurked in the Everfree that she have encountered might come back for her. She knew that she was lucky. No matter what happened she should not have survived last night, she knew this that it was nothing short of a miracle that neither the manticore or what killed it didn't end her. So company would be nice, and she didn't even have to worry about making dinner as she normally did… for, her little… critter friends.

Fluttershy gasped out loud, eyes widen in realizing that because of all what happened today. She have forgotten to feed the animals. She quickly got up, and trotted over to the door.

“I'm sorry Twilight, but I have to get home. All of my animal friends are counting on me to feed them, and I didn't feed them this morning,” Twilight nodded as she was walking up to her. “but I would like to eat dinner with you and Spike.”

Twilight gave a little smile and hugged her friend, “It's okay, but promise me if anything happens that tell me and the others. We want to help you.”

“I will Twilight, I promise,” Fluttershy said as she broke the hug and swiftly trotted her way home.

“I'm home,” Fluttershy softly called out as she closed the door behind her, turned on the lightswitch and looked around in her home. It was less lively as she was used to with most of her little friends out and about, it was only when they were injured they stayed with her.

As she prepared the food and laid it out in the different bowls that was all over in her house, she smiled softly as her small friends came over and ate their food. As she stood and looked at them she felt a tuck at her tail, seeing behind her, was Angle Bunny. Her little adorable helper tapped his tiny paw at the floor and pointed to the bathroom, and she kneeled down and petted his head. Which the bunny slapped her hoof away and started to make frantic noises and gestures at her and the bathroom.

“What is wrong Angle? Is there something in the bathroom you want to show me?” She asked as she followed the white bunny. She was about to reach the doorknob when she heard it, splashing water and a humming coming from her bathroom. She instantly coward and tried to hide behind Angle by making her as small as possible, which did little to the fact that the humming continued.

'oh no, there somepony in my house, what if it is a burglar? Or somepony mean,' she thought as she looked at the door, that seemed all of the sudden more dangerous.

As Fluttershy thought about what to do about this, with more of her options is to run away and get help. The tiny bunny just sighed as loud as he could which sounded like a small squeaky floorboard, hopped over to the door and kicked it.

Fluttershy hold her breath and waited for anything. “Yes?” She heard from the other side, “I will be done in just a few minutes, so please be patient,” Said at muffled female voice, it was a bit deeper than a normal voice. But to the pegasus that voice was unmistakable the same voice the creature had. Her leg began to shake and she slowly stepped back from the door, never taking her eyes of it.

She heard a bit of splashing and hoofsteps on the floor on the other side of the door. The humming began again, closer and closing in on her Fluttershy moved further away until she hit the wall a let out a surprised squeak. Only looking away for a blink second she heard the doorknob turn, and she was faced with the one true terror from last night.