Chapters The sun was creeping its way up over the horizon, spraying light over the quiet town of Ponyville. Some ponies were making their way to the location of their occupation, while some ponies were still asleep where they have laid their heads for slumber. And some, not unlike the one whom this story follows, are waking at the first sign of luminous joy flowing in through their window. Now, the pony in question is very compassionate about what she does, and she gets started with what needs to be done as soon as her eyes flutter open.
The yellow Pegasus with the pink coloured mane rose her head from the cloud-like cushion in which her head was situated. A fragile yawn flowed from her mouth, like a gentle snow fall coating the ground in a blanket of cotton. She stretched her diminutive wings and frail hooves, then wiped the spell of the sandpony out of her eyes. She took a peek out of the porthole shaped window next to her bed and grinned kindly out at the warm sunny morn. The birds were singing a song of delight, as they were happy to have returned home after taking a vacation during the colder months.
It was officially the first day of Spring, and Fluttershy couldn’t be more excited, not only to see and help all her friendly critters again, but she was also overly excited to start planning for a very special occasion. The yellow Pegasus had never planned a big surprise like this before, and she would need all the help she could get. She then floated over to the calendar she had received from “Critters Monthly” that depicted a different baby animal each month. This month was a baby blue jay, signifying the birth of a new season. She selected a purple marker from the mahogany side table that was next to her bed, and marked an “x” over that day’s date. Five more days , thought the gentle pony, until the special day!
Fluttershy knew what she had to do today. She had to go about her normal routine, but also stop by the Library, Carousel Boutique, and Sugarcube Corner to enlist the help of her three closest friends. Firstly, all the day time animals under her care had to be woken from sleep and were to be fed breakfast. Mornings were Fluttershy’s favourite part of any day. She went about her morning, waking all the critters around her home. She always goes about waking them all up with a song she sings every morning. She calls it the “Morning Song”, although many of the animals who live with her simply are not fond of the morning, or the Morning Song; one animal specifically, was Angel, Fluttershy’s first pet ever, and the reason for her excitement.
After all the birds, burrowers, and other critters alike where bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, they were ready to start their first day of Spring. The birds started their day off with a lovely mixture of seeds and tiny insects. The burrowers and ground critters start their day off with fuits, vegetables, and nuts. And the reptiles near the pond get all the bugs they can eat. Now that all the animals have been fed, Fluttershy moves on to the next thing on her list, which is to feed herself. She trots into her house and into her kitchen, opens her cabinets and sifts through the plants she has grown herself, in her charmingly quaint garden.
“Let’s see here, I have carrots, cucumbers, cabbage, and Celery.” she listed, “Hmmm, looks like I definitely have to go pick up some more seeds, seeing as I’m low on the kinds that are only for the Spring season. If I want to grow a lush garden, I’ve got to start early!” she exclaimed as she removed the carrots and cabbage. She then opened another cabinet and took out a large bowl and placed it on the counter next to the veggies. Gracefully, she unsheathed a knife from its position on the counter, and commenced to carefully cut the carrots into thinly short sticks, and separated the cabbage leaves, and sliced them into smaller sections. Afterwards, she gripped the bowl with her teeth, and brought it to the ledge of the counter. With one hoof, she moved the minced veggies into the bowl, and then placed the bowl on her little round dining table. She softly floated over to her refrigerator, and unsecured it with her dainty mouth. She looked inside, and pulled out a bottle of Orange Juice, that the apple family had received from their Orange cousins last week, and Applejack was kind enough to give some to all her friends.
Fluttershy placed all the bottle down on the table, glanced down at her salad, only to see a greedy little bunny face-first in the bowl, eating the carrot and cabbage mixture. “Oh, Angel, this is my breakfast. I already fed you yours, why are you eating mine?” she questioned the white ball of fur. The bunny lifted his head from the bowl with a scowl on his face that read I know that, but I don’t care. Fluttershy lifted him out of the bowl with her teeth, and set him onto the table. “Now, now Angel, don’t be a bad boy. It was rude of you to do that, and you should apologise for taking something that is not yours.” She stated as she looked down on the guilty rabbit with displeasure. It wasn’t something he has seen Fluttershy do in a while, and was instantly afraid that Mean Fluttershy was returning. It has only been a few months since the Iron Will fiasco, but Angel was always still nervous about whether or not Fluttershy would return to that type of behaviour. Angel started quivering, then leaped off the table, and scurried out of the kitchen.
The pony meant to embody kindness chuckled as she watched her pet run away. She was never proud of how she had become a mean pony, but still used a few tactics to assert herself when needed. The solitary Pegasus pony then quietly finished her salad, and sipped her Orange Juice. When she was done, she brought her used dishes to the little sink, and washed them. She placed the wet dishes onto a rack for drying, and softly walked over to the table, moving the left over Orange Juice to the refrigerator. She then smiled, and looked over her to do list for the day.
“Let’s see, what do I need to do today?” she questioned the empty space in front of her. She listed them all off in her head, one by one. After she was done reviewing her list, she raised her saddle-sack onto her back, and gently packed the list into one of its pockets. Fluttershy was soon out the front door of her little cottage, humming a cheerful tune all the while. She followed the path that lead from her house to town, where she would buy what she needed.
As soon as the pink-haired pegasus entered the massive market area, she spryly used her wing to remove her list, and examined it. “Ah yes, first I should buy some medicine for the beavers.” she told herself. The dam-building woodland creatures had somehow acquired a cold while hibernating, and had been ill ever since they awoke. It took almost an hour for Fluttershy to figure out what exactly was wrong with them. She is no Doctor, but she did know a thing or two about common illnesses. She listed to symptoms, and devised the solution that the beavers simply had a cold, and needed medicine from the local herbal expert.
For a while now, Zecora has been definitely a lot more accepted by the ponies of Ponyville, and she has gotten into the habit of setting up a booth in the market area selling herbal medicines. Fluttershy was greatful that she did not have to travel into the Everfree Forest for some super-natural herbal remedies. The pegasus did not like being in the Everfree Forest, it was scary, and dark, and many wild and ferocious beasts lived there. Fluttershy once had the idea to befriend many of the wild beasts in the Everfree Forest, but quickly changed her mind when she was reminded about the legends and stories she heard from other ponies around Ponyville.
“What is this, that catches my eye? Might it be my good friend Fluttershy?” was the words that interrupted Fluttershy’s thoughts about the scary Forest. The zebra behind the counter smiled with joy. Her mane, always stuck up in the air, seems a bit lackluster today. It was up in the air, but slightly tilted to one side. Fluttershy also noticed that Zecors was also wearing smaller hooped earrings, and a few less coils around her neck.
“Why yes, Miss Zecora, it’s really me.” Fluttershy replied. “Uhm, I’ve noticed you have changed your look today, might I ask why you did so? Uhm, if it’s not too much trouble…” she asked, tilting her head to the ground, timidly. Fluttershy has always admired Zecora ever since they’d first met, and she always noticed everything about the zebra. The way Zecora smiled, the way she laughed, the way she looked when she walked, but most notably, Fluttershy was taken away by the Zebra’s eyes.
“And how might I help a friend in need? It is clear you need something indeed!” replied the zebra, neglecting to answer the peasus pony's question. Fluttershy suddenly snapped out of the trance she was in while staring into Zecora’s eyes. The yellow pony blushed slightly, embarrassed about staring. She looked around so see if anypony was watching, and sighed in relief when nopony was. Fluttershy shook her head a bit, to clear her mind, and then looked up at the magnificent zebra.
“Yes Zecora, I am in need of an herbal remedy. You see, the Beavers I look over all had caught a cold during their hibernation, and today is the first day of Spring, so I came here to ask if you had any cold remedies.” she smiled contently. The zebra put a hoof to her chin, and looked up to the sky as if in deep thought. Fluttershy had seen her do this pose and face before, and if was one of the things that Zecora did that made Fluttershy’s heart beat off course.
“I know of how to make a cold remedy, but I require an ingredient from Miss Pinkie.” replied the zebra with a grin upon her face. Right then, a light went off in Flutterhy’s noggin. I’m going there after my errands! she thought excitedly. “Oh Zecora, I can pick up the ingredient for you! I’m stopping by Pinkies today, so I could ask her for the ingredient!” she yelled out with glee. Zecora’s face lit up as she said “Thank you dear friend for the kindness in your heart, while from my shop I cannot depart!”
“I would do anything to help you, Zecora!” replied Fluttershy, “What is the ingredient that you require?”
“The object you seek has a green tint, for the ingredient I need is a leaf of mint.” said the zebra. Fluttershy pulled out a pencil, and wrote down “Mint leaves” on her list using her mouth to write it out. She replaced the pencil and paper in her saddlebag, and looked up at Zecora once more. “Alright, Zecora, I’ll get you some Mint leaves, but I do have to finish in the market first. I will be back later today with your leaves.” Fluttershy hesitated for a split second, and asked “Uhm, how much will it be for the remedy?” she rummaged through her bag for some bits, but stopped when she heard Zecora chuckling. The yellow pony looked up one last time at Zecora. The sun gleaming off her metallic jewellery, making her look even more radiant then Fluttershy had ever thought before.
“I would normally charge my customer, but for a kind friend the charge I shall defer.”
Fluttershy shook her head “No, no. You must accept payment. I don’t want to be treated differently. Now, what’s your price?” the Pegasus questioned, but when Fluttershy looked up from her bag, she noticed that Zecora was already talking to another customer. “Oh, uhm, I guess I’ll be on my way…” she said aloud, more to herself then to the zebra. Fluttershy replaced the bits she removed, back into her bag, and quietly walked towards another booth.
After buying a few different types of seeds from Carrot Top, and a few other things she needed from other sellers in the market, she set a course towards Sugarcube Corner. Pinkie lived at Sugarcube Corner, along with Mr. and Ms. Cake, and their two children, Pound and Pumpkin. Pinkie loved making sweets, almost as much as she loved creating parties, and a party planner is what Fluttershy needed the most for the special occasion. Although Pinkie’s antics were sometimes out of hand, her parties have always been successful.
A bell rung, signifying the arrival of a new customer in Sugarcube Corner. The pink pony behind the counter had the curliest pink mane and tail, and the biggest smile on her face. Pinkie Pie was always in the best mood, well, not always, but you will rarely see her curls unwound! The earth pony was busy talking to one of her frequent customers. She was a grey Pegasus, with a blonde mane and tail. Fluttershy recognized her instantly, because she went to school with her.
“Hey Fluttershy!” exclaimed the pink pony enthusiastically, “Come on over and join the party!” Fluttershy laughed a little, and hopped in the air, gliding over to the two mares, landing lightly next to Ditzy Doo.
“But Pinkie Pie, this isn’t a party! This is a sweet shop!” said the cross-eyed pegasus. Pinkie and Fluttershy started to giggle a bit, and shook their heads. Pinkie replied “Oh, Derpy, you silly pony. That’s just an expression! Like ‘Taste the Rainbow’, or ‘Don’t drink floor cleaner’.” Ditzy looked at Pinkie with a confused look. You could tell when she was confused, when both her eyes were looking straight at you in a serious manner. Not only was Ditzy Doo confused, but so was Fluttershy.
“Pinkie, I’m not sure…” the yellow pegasus started to whisper, when she was interrupted. “So, Fluttershy, what brings you to Sugarcube Corner?" questioned Pinkie Pie. Fluttershy’s face lit up as she remembered why she was here. “Yes, that’s right. I have a few reasons for being here!” she answered. The grey pegasus then smiled, and said “I come here every day, because Pinkie’s muffins are the best!” Ditzy looked at the clock on the wall, and sighed sadly “I guess it’s time to go back to work.” The grey pegasus mare then ate the rest of her muffin in one bite, then picked up the mail bag sitting next to where she was sitting. “Oh Derpy, would like another muffin for the road? It won’t cost you a thing! I made too much today anyways, and I know you like them, so you can have the extra one!” Ditzy Doo then smiled wide, and then grabbed the muffin from Pinkie’s hoof, and placed it inside her mailbag. “Thanks Pinkie!" she yelled while walking out the door.
Pinkie had slight curve to her mouth, opposed to the half-moon smile she always had on. It was kind of like a soft sentimental smile. Fluttershy has seen that look on Pinkie before. It was the same smile Pinkie used when she talked about her sisters. Fluttershy wondered what Pinkie was thinking when she thought about Ditzy, but now was not the time to ask.
“Uhm, Pinkie, I have to ask you something…” Pinkie’s yellow flying friend started to say. “Do not go any further, Fluttershy, I know why you are here, and I have the answer!” replied Pinkie in a matter-of-fact manner. “Oh, why thank you…” Fluttershy started to say, when Pinkie interrupted again. “I will gladly help you with teaching the new baby birds to fly!” yelled the pink pony with excitement. Fluttershy just stood there quietly, and hesitated to absorb what Pinkie had just said. “Oh, I’m sorry Pinkie, but Rainbow Dash is already helping with that, and plus, you don’t have wings, so that would be hard for you to…” she was cut off again by Pinkie “Oh! I know then! You’re here to ask me to help you count all the new baby bunnies! Aww Bunnies are soooo cuuute!!!” Pinkie said while jumping up and down. Fluttershy was getting a bit impatient with Pinkie, so she went straight to the point. “Uhm, Pinkie, that’s not it. I was going to ask you…”
“If that’s not it, then what is it?” questioned Pinkie, while interrupting her shy friends again. Fluttershy let out a grave sigh of annoyance, and look into Pinkie eyes. “Pinkie Pie, I’m here to ask you if you would like to help me plan a super special birthday p…”
“Party for the walrus that lives in the Everfree Forest!? Yes! I totally will, Fluttershy! I loooove to par-tay!” Pinkie Pie yelled out in happiness. That was the last straw. Fluttershy wouldn’t let Pinkie interrupt her anymore. “No Pinkie! That’s not what I’m asking you. Now, could you please let me finish a sentence?” she said as calmly as she could. “So, you’re NOT planning a super special birthday surprise for Walter? Well, that makes sense, because his birthday isn’t for a few more…” Fluttershy cleared her throat, and Pinkie stopped talking. “Oh, yes Fluttershy. I’m sorry, please go on.”
“Okay, now I would like to ask you if you would like to help me plan a super special, super secret , surprise birthday party for Angel, my pet bunny. You see, it’s been 5 years since I first saw him born. His mother didn’t make it through the birthing, and so I took him in under my wing and he was the first addition to my ever growing family of animals. His birthday is in 5 days, so I was planning on holding it then, and I’m not sure where yet either…” Fluttershy smiled as she was lost in memories. “Well of course I’ll help out with planning Angel’s special party! And we can host it here, at Sugarcube Corner! I didn’t know Angel’s Birthday was at the beginning of spring!” exclaimed the pink earth pony. “Oh, wasn’t there another thing you had to ask me, Fluttershy?”
Fluttershy blushed when she remember the request from Zecora. “Oh, uhm yes, I was wondering if you had any mint leaves. I need some medicine for the poor little beavers that live in the river. I went to ask Zecora if she could help me, and she said she needs some mint leaves for the medicine. She said you might have some, and I agreed to get some for her.” Fluttershy explained while looking away from Pinkie. The earth pony put a hoof to her chin, and thought deeply to herself. “Hmmm, I think there should be some mint leaves in the storage closet, although Colgate ordered a big mint cake for some reason, and I had to use most of them, I’ll have to check if there are some left! I’ll be right back!”
“Okay” said Fluttershy in response. “Yep! Found some!” screamed the pink pony, popping up behind Fluttershy as if out of nowhere. “Pinkie, how did you…” started Fluttershy. “How many does she need? I have five leaves! She can have them all, if she would like. Mint isn’t a popular flavour here in Ponyville, so I think they will be of better use to Zecora.” Pinkie stated, smiling and holding the leaves in her hooves. Fluttershy thanked Pinkie, and left the sweets shop and trotted towards the marketplace to give the leaves to Zecora.
A few minutes later, the bell rang again at Sugarcube Corner, and Pinkie had another customer. In the front entrance of the sweets shop, was none other than the most fabulous unicorn in all of Equestria. Rarity was wearing a big green floppy chappeau, and a saddle bag she designed herself. The unicorn smiled at the sight of Pinkie. “Pinkie, darling, I have a favour to ask of you!” the purple haired unicorn said in a sophisticated tone. “What a coincidence! Fluttershy was just here…” Pinkie started to say, but was cut off by Rarity. “Ah ah ah, Pinkie. I don’t have time for stories. I am here to ask if you would so kindly help me plan out a luxurious and fabulous surprise birthday party for my pet cat, Opal. I want there to be sweets, cakes, ribbons, balloons, streamers…” as Rarity went on listing things she wanted for the party, Pinkie was lost in fantasies about creating a luxurious party for Opal. “Oh, Rarity. I would LOVE to help you plan out a party for Opal!” she replied in a cheery tone. “When and where do you want to host the party?” Pinkie asked.
“I want the party to be at the Boutique, I plan on giving Opal to Fluttershy for the day, so we can work.” replied Rarity. “Oh, that’s a good idea! And when will it take place?” questioned the pink earth pony. The unicorn was halfway out the door, when she yelled out at Pinkie “Five days from now, darling, and thank you so very much for agreeing to help out, I know it will be the best party Opal has ever had!”
When Rarity was gone, Pinkie wrote down on her calendar the two requests from her friends, and then her face lit up in shock. “Uh oh! They’re both on the SAME DAY! What do I do now? If I tell Fluttershy that I can’t help her, she will be so sad! And I can’t refuse the opportunity to put on a fancy and luxurious party for Rarity’s cat. I’ve never planned a fancy party!”
Twilight carefully read over her notes once more. She had to perform the casting ritual perfectly, or the outcome would be catastrophic. Reading aloud, she checked to make sure everything was in place. "Step one: draw a circle on the ground with the Ancient Equestrian glyph for time in the centre, making sure to use crushed sapphires to form the circle." She looked down at her hooves to see the circle made from the fragments of sapphires she had found the weekend before. "Check! Step two: stand in the circle. Check! Step three: draw a similar circle on the floor around the object or pony you are trying to send back. If you are casting the spell on yourself, draw this circle outside the one you are standing in. This circle is to be made with crushed rubies." She lifted her gaze from the note to her dragon assistant Spike, who was standing in a smaller circle. "Check!"
Spike gave her a look that was somewhere between mournful and wary. "Are you sure this is safe, Twilight?"
"Step 4: focus your m - yes of course it's safe. Would Star Swirl the Bearded have included it on this scroll if it wasn't?"
Spike thought back to the week beforehand, where Twilight had messed up while casting one of Star Swirl's spells and nearly burnt down Whitetail Woods with magical fire. "Well-" he began.
"No. No he wouldn't have," interrupted Twilight. "Now will you let me finish?"
Spike crossed his arms. "Fine, but after this, can we stop trying out spells that use gems? I'm hungry, and I hate seeing them get destroyed."
Twilight sighed and gave him a sympathetic smile. "Okay, we'll get something to eat after this. But for now, just be quiet. I need absolute concentration for this to work."
Spike nodded in agreement and mimed zipping his mouth shut. Twilight set the scroll she had been reading onto a shelf and started to cast the spell. As magical energy began to build up in the base of her horn, the sapphires forming the circle she stood in began to give off an intense blue glow. Seconds later, the same thing happened to the circle around Spike, though that circle glowed a bright crimson. The dragon’s eyes went wide, though he remained silent so as not to disturb Twilight.
Twilight recited an incantation under her breath as the magic building up in her horn came closer to the tip. As the magical energy consumed the entirety of her horn, the circles glowed even brighter, and a magical wind sprung up inside of the library, blowing a few manuscripts and loose papers around the room.
As Twilight lowered her horn and pointed it at Spike, the door of the library opened and a soft voice called out, "Um, Twilight, are you home?"
Distracted by this new voice, Twilight lost concentration and jerked her head towards the door. The magic she had been building up in her horn fired straight out from her horn in a beam of brilliant magenta light. It struck the wall just above the door, freezing the area solid.
In the doorframe stood a cowering Fluttershy. As the wind disappeared and the papers it held fell to the ground, Fluttershy muttered an apology, barely loud enough for Twilight to hear. "S-sorry Twilight... I didn’t mean to disturb you…"
Twilight shook her head to rid her mind of the magic's effects, and then let out a sigh. "It's fine, Fluttershy. Solving the mysteries of time travel will have to wait for another day. Now, is there anything I can help you with?"
"Um, no... Well, yes... But I'm sure time travel is much more important."
Twilight walked up to Fluttershy and laid a hoof on her shoulder. "No, friends come first. I always have time for you guys, no matter what I’m doing."
This relaxed Fluttershy, and brought a smile to the demure pony's face, who breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm so glad to hear that... I was worried that you'd be too busy to help me organize the party I'm throwing for Angel's birthday."
Twilight cocked her head and gave her friend a quizzical look. "Organizing a party? Isn't that Pinkie's specialty?"
Fluttershy nodded. "Yes, I asked her for help too. But you've organized parties for the princesses and every Winter Wrap Up since you moved here. You even organized your brother's wedding. With you and Pinkie working together, I just know Angel's party will be great."
"I suppose that makes sense," replied Twilight. "When is the party?"
"In five days. Pinkie said we could have it in her room at Sugarcube Corner."
"Alright, I'll head over there as soon as I get Spike some gems for lunch," said Twilight as she strode over to a locked cabinet. The lock fell to the ground as her magic unlocked it, and she opened it. While grabbing a few assorted jewels, she turned her head towards her friend once more. "So have you invited everypony yet?"
"Not yet. I'm going to Rarity's after this to tell her about the party, and then I'll go find Applejack and Rainbow Dash," replied Fluttershy, shaking her head. "So far, I've only told you and Pinkie." A faint blush appeared on her cheeks. "Well, and Zecora too..."
Twilight grinned. "You invited Zecora?" She had known about Fluttershy's crush on the zebra ever since she had told Rarity and Twilight while they were at the spa.
"Well, not really," said Fluttershy, staring down at her hooves. "I mentioned the party to her when I gave her the mint leaves I got from Pinkie, but I didn't exactly invite her..."
Twilight closed the cabinet and floated the gems she selected over to Spike, who gleefully grasped them in his claws. The sound of him snacking on gems filled the library. "Fluttershy, what did I tell you?" she said with a sigh. "You've got to be more assertive about it. I mean, how are you ever going to tell her how you feel about her if you can't even invite her to a party?"
"Sorry..." Fluttershy muttered. "I guess you're right..."
Twilight sighed again and brought a hoof to her head. "No, I'm being pushy, sorry. I just have a headache from casting all these spells. You don't have to rush things with Zecora if you don't feel confident about it."
"Okay," Fluttershy said, nodding her head. "I will tell her how I feel someday, but I'm just so scared she won't feel the same..."
Twilight smiled in an attempt to put her friend at ease. "You have nothing to be scared of. I'm sure she feels the same way; you just need to be honest with her."
"Just like you with Celestia?" Spike questioned with a smirk, before stuffing the last gem into his mouth.
Twilight's entire face turned a bright red. "Spike!" She used her magic to zip the dragon's mouth closed, using an actual zipper. She began speaking in a rapid whisper, barely above the sound of her breathing. "Oh Celestia that's completely different she's the ruler of Equestria nopony is supposed to know that oh gosh what am I going to do..."
It was Fluttershy's turn to reassure her friend. Resting a soft hoof on her shoulder, she spoke. "You have nothing to worry about, Twilight. I promise I won't tell anypony."
"Really?" asked Twilight, who had momentarily stopped muttering.
"Really," Fluttershy responded, smiling warmly. "I Pinkie Promise not to tell anypony about your crush. Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye."
Twilight returned her friend's smile. "Thanks Fluttershy." She glanced at the clock adorning the wall beside the door. "Speaking of Pinkie, I guess I should go see what she's planning for the party."
Fluttershy nodded her head. "Thank you, Twilight. Just let me know if there's ever anything I can do to repay the favour."
Turning towards Spike, who was still struggling with the zipper over his mouth, Twilight dispelled the magic. "Bleh, thanks a lot Twilight. Now my mouth tastes like metal," he angrily retorted.
"Sorry, but you need to learn to keep secrets better. I told you that secret because I thought I could trust you. I admit, I overreacted, but what if it had been Cadance I was talking to? Or even Celestia herself?"
"Alright, fine. I'm sorry; I won't talk about it anymore."
"Thank you Spike," Twilight responded. "I'm going to Sugarcube Corner, so you're in charge of the library while I'm gone. Make sure nopony steals any books." As she walked towards the front door of the library, followed by Fluttershy, she called back to her dragon assistant once more. "Oh, and don't forget to feed Peewee and Owlowiscious."
The sun shone high in the sky as the two ponies left the library. Before they went their separate ways, Twilight glanced at her pegasus friend. "Er, Fluttershy, about repaying that favour..."
"Yes Twilight?"
"Just promise me two things, and we'll call it even." Fluttershy nodded her head in agreement, and Twilight continued. "First, keep my secret. I don’t even want our friends to know about it yet." A sly grin appeared on her face. "Second, invite Zecora to the party."
Fluttershy's face turned a furious red, but she nodded. "Um, I think I can do that... I'm meeting her this evening to collect the medicine I asked her to make."
"Great! I'll be at Sugarcube Corner for the rest of the day, so come see me there if you need me," said Twilight. She began walking towards the sweet shop, leaving Fluttershy on her own.
As Twilight left, Fluttershy mentally checked the list of tasks she had to do today. She had already asked Zecora to make medicine for the beavers she was caring for, and she had asked Pinkie Pie and Twilight to plan Angel's party. Now all that remained was to invite Rarity, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash to the party.
Going to Rarity's boutique first seemed like the logical option to Fluttershy. Rarity was Fluttershy's best friend, and the pegasus was sure that Rarity would love to attend Angel's birthday party. She set out for Carousel Boutique, hoping for the best.
However, when she reached the boutique and knocked on the door, it was Sweetie Belle who answered, not Rarity. "Hey Fluttershy!"
Fluttershy smiled warmly. "Hello Sweetie Belle. Is your sister home?"
"No, Rarity went out to run some errands," replied Sweetie Belle. "Apple Bloom and Scootaloo are here though." She swung the door open more to reveal the two fillies seated on the floor, sheets of paper scattered around them. Upon seeing Fluttershy in the doorway, they waved.
"Hi Fluttershy," called out Apple Bloom, slightly muffled from the pencil she held in her mouth.
"Hey," exclaimed Scootaloo. Her eyes widened as she came to a realisation. "Hey, you read books, right? Do you want to read the fanfiction we're writing?"
"Fanfiction?" Fluttershy questioned.
"Yeah! It's when you write a story about somepony who doesn't really exist. We're writing about Daring Do so we can get our cutie marks!"
Fluttershy shook her head. "Sorry girls, I'm not really a big Daring Do fan."
"Awww," said the three fillies in chorus.
"But it has Rainbow Dash in it as her sidekick!" stated Scootaloo.
Apple Bloom glared at her. "Ah thought we agreed that Applejack was gonna be her sidekick."
"They can both be her sidekicks!" jumped in Sweetie Belle. "Just as long as Rarity is her outfit designer." A small blush adorned her cheeks. "And sometimes lover," she added in a small voice.
"No! Rainbow Dash is her lover!" Scootaloo angrily retorted.
"Rarity!"
"No, Rainbow!"
"How about Ahuitzotl?"
"Don't be stupid, Apple Bloom! They hate each other!"
"Ah'm not stupid, you chicken!"
"Girls!"
The trio of fillies paused their argument and turned to Fluttershy. "Yes, Fluttershy?" They said in unison.
"You need to stop fighting about silly stuff like that. Can't you work together and compromise on the story?"
"You're right," replied Sweetie Belle. "How about if Applejack and Rainbow Dash are both sidekicks to Daring Do, and she's married to both Rarity and Rainbow Dash?"
Scootaloo and Apple Bloom nodded in unison. "That would work."
Fluttershy smiled. "It's nice to see you girls agreeing on something. Now, before I go, do you know where Rainbow Dash and Applejack are?"
"Applejack went to visit Uncle Gala in the McIntosh Hills," replied Apple Bloom. "She won't be back until tomorrow."
"And Rainbow Dash is in Cloudsdale for some stupid weather conference," answered Scootaloo. "I don't know when she'll be back."
Fluttershy thanked them. "I guess I'll have to see them when they get back. Sweetie, can you tell Rarity I'll be in to see her this evening?"
Sweetie Belle smiled proudly. "You can count on me! I’ll tell her as soon as she gets back!"
Fluttershy bid the Crusaders farewell, despite Scootaloo's insistence that she stay and help them write. As she trotted away from the boutique, her stomach rumbled, and she realised it had been a while since she had eaten breakfast. She was unable to complete any of the other tasks she had planned for today due to Applejack and Rainbow Dash being out of town, so she decided getting some lunch would be a good way to kill some time while she waited for Zecora and Rarity to return to their homes.
Not wanting to go to her own home just yet, Fluttershy decided to eat out at a restaurant instead of eating at home. Fine Cuisine, a restaurant owned by Horte Cuisine, was her choice; it was only a short walk away, the food was excellent, and as a bonus, it was near the path to her house.
Having reached Fine Cuisine, Fluttershy walked in the front door. She was greeted by the usual unsmiling face of Horte Cuisine. "Hello Mr. Cuisine. Can I get a table for one?" Horte nodded, and grabbing a menu in his mouth, he led Fluttershy to a corner table. "Um, if it's not too much, could I get a table outside? It's such a beautiful day today," Fluttershy nervously asked. Wordlessly, Horte changed course and led her to an outside table. Setting the menu down on the table, he nodded at Fluttershy as she took a seat, before heading back inside.
A few minutes passed as Fluttershy looked over the menu, figuring out what she wanted to eat. She had already eaten a salad for breakfast, so that was out. Hayfries, though a popular food among equines, was not among Fluttershy’s favourite foods, so that wasn’t an option either. Finally, she decided on a watercress and daisy sandwich.
Having selected her lunch, Fluttershy closed her menu to signal that she was ready to order. Almost instantaneously, Horte Cuisine was there, ready to take her order. “I’ll have the watercress and daisy sandwich please,” Fluttershy requested. “And can I have a glass of water with that?”
Horte nodded, and taking the menu in his mouth, he returned to the restaurant interior. Fluttershy smiled as he left. She enjoyed coming to Fine Cuisine whenever she got the chance; despite Horte’s seemingly cold exterior, he was a kind, if mute, stallion once somepony got to know him. He would always give loyal customers like Fluttershy a small discount, which was a great help, considering the prices he charged.
Fluttershy’s eyes drifted upwards to the sky. She had to admit, it really was a beautiful day out. The sun shone brightly above the town of Ponyville, clearly visible, owing to the sparse amount of clouds in the sky. Around her, couples engaged in polite conversation, and a gentle breeze blew through the outdoor dining area. Her day had been a positive experience as well – despite the fact that she hadn’t had a chance to invite Rarity, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash yet, the day was going very well. Everything about the day seemed positively serene.
Suddenly, that serenity was shattered by an ear-shattering roar. Fluttershy’s ears perked up, and she looked towards the direction it came from. Panic ran through her mind as she realised she was staring in the direction of her own cottage.
Without giving the idea too much thought, she got up from the table and jumped over the low fence separating the dining area from the rest of the town. Galloping down the road towards her house, her face was contorted in a mix of worry, panic, and anger. What in Equestria is making that roar? It can’t be one of my darlings, could it? she thought.
Another roar rung out, followed by a couple of screams. Fluttershy pushed herself to gallop faster, her anger now mostly overtaken by worry. As the bridge in front of her house came into view, she could see what had been roaring. Standing in front of her cottage was a massive beast almost as large as the cottage itself. Fluttershy recognised the beast – she had never seen one in person, but they were one of the creatures she had read about in Twilight’s books. It was a wyvern, vaguely related to the draconic species, but much more feral, being completely unable to speak. This one bore bronze scales and claws almost the length of a typical pony, which had already cut a few holes in the walls of Fluttershy’s cottage.
It roared once more before staring Fluttershy in the eyes as she galloped closer, pushing past the crowd of ponies who had gathered around the bridge, and were now watching in fear. As Fluttershy got closer to the wyvern, she saw a sight that made her stop in her tracks.
Lying on the ground, just meters away from the wyvern, was the limp, blood-soaked body of a tiny white bunny.
Despite the volume of the shouts and screams from the crowd, and the growls from the wyvern, Fluttershy couldn’t hear any of it. Tears streaming from her eyes, she was only aware of her own voice stammering out a single word in a voice that was almost a whisper. “A-Angel?”
“A-angel?” a wretched voice stammered. No more than a whisper, the wyvern creature heeded it not as it continued its rampage. The body of the speaker shook with the same fervour.
Upon seeing the weakness of the yellow pony, the creature screeched and turned its attention back to the cottage and its inhabitants. The mangled body of the white rabbit lay beneath its hovering figure as its claws gripped the cottage by the corners. The wood creaked sickeningly and snapped under its weight. Under its shadow blood crept out from under the rabbit, turning to a dark red as it soaked into the dirt road. Fluttershy let out an anguishing cry, deafening those nearby.
Although none could see, Angel’s face showed only a seething anger, covering a deep fear.
The faint sound of hooves could be heard in the distance, barely noticeable under the chaos.
The creature let go and began circling around the house, pausing around the windows, and back over Angel’s motionless body. The creature seemed to be looking for something, and it seemed that Angel had tried to stop it—or had at least gotten in the way. It screeched again, this time at the bunny. Angel did not so much as twitch, the blood continuing to run.
“Everybody!” A voice rang out, unafraid and concerned. “You need to stand back!”
“I just need to fix this—“ The creature shrieked. This dispersed the crowd, eager to flee and let the braver pony deal with it.
“Spike! Get my spellbook out while I charge my failsafe spell! I doubt it will work, but we need to stop it from hurting anyone.” An odd choice of words, seeing as how she hadn’t seen Angel yet. Fluttershy flinched.
A purple resonating light began to be drawn out of the horn, layering itself in different hues as Twilight strained to hold back the spell before releasing it. Sweat beaded and ran down her face in front of her ear, softly hitting the ground. Her lavender coat engaged itself in a constant billow, her main and tail frightfully drawing themselves back from the source of the magic.
Upon reaching a third hue, the darkest and most luminescent, the horn itself glowed white and a bright white flash completely shocked the retinas of every pony at the scene. Some the damage to the cottage had been repaired, but Angel’s body remained bloody and broken. The wyvern huffed at the spell, and turning to leave, whipped its tail harshly throwing Angel against what remained of the front of the cottage. He hit the front with a crack. Spike put the unneeded spellbook away.
Fluttershy, overwhelmed, felt her legs give way beneath her. Her body shook violently, and efforts to cease it only caused painful strain. Looking across the ground, she wanted to stand up, to take care of the wounded, to stand as the caretaker she was supposed to be. But her wet sobs, and the cold churns of her stomach overcame the passion in her heart.
She watched as Twilight and other ponies collected themselves. Fluttershy felt her fright reach its height, and soon a deep fatigue crept into her. As she closed her eyes, she felt a shadowy presence reaching down for her.
***
Gurgle.
“This is…”
Bloop.
“…wrong…this is…”
Gurgle. Gurgle.
Coming back to consciousness wasn’t like how Fluttershy always thought it would be. It wasn’t like swimming to a surface, or a face slowly becoming clear as a voice called her name. It was like groggily preparing herself in the morning.
Like breathing in scents of morning. Sense of smell.
Or the kettle. Sense of touch.
And her breakfast. Sense of taste.
And finally peering out at the sun before heading out. Sight.
She knows they’re there because she sees a strange figure moving about across the cauldron from where she lay. She jerks her head around to see darkness, horrified to hear a small cry from somewhere else in the room. Her hoof is free, but all she can taste is the blood in her mouth. Green tendrils crawled up from the pot, each carrying a scent. Some of the flavours were from familiar healing herbs, but the rest was a staunch mystery to her. She could feel a soft cushiony bed form against the curvatures of her body. Lying on her right side, she went to move her left arm only to get no answer. At this moment, she realized she had been given control not only over the forest’s creatures, but over her own person, the inspiration of the latter of which she had never come to truly understand. It was something she took for granted, the obedience of limbs.
As her sight came, the yellow pegasus could cut out the stripes of the figure moving about. For the most part, the shimmering entity moved about the same spot, covering whatever it was they laboured over. They turned to find something urgent, and went around the pot to get it. Their work was revealed to the pony across the room.
Seeing it knocked what little wind she had out of her. And just like that, her hearing switched on in both ears, but slowly, as if the room’s volume was slowly being turned on. Her breathing, the bubbling of the cauldron, dancing hoofsteps tangled with bangles, the ragged breathing of a broken creature—she whimpered. The clanging stopped, and the figure turned for a moment, and then walked towards her.
“Fluttershy, you are awake! At the scene you were quite the quake.
But she already had, and so sleep would not come to her. She lay awake with her eyes closed.
Unbeknownst, Zecora looked back at Fluttershy as she attempted to sleep. She looked downcast as she thought of Fluttershy’s emotions, knowing an empty night would make for a worrisome head, and Fluttershy would need all of her to keep from bubbling over. Turning back to Angel, she could see the bleeding had stopped but he would fair little better until the numbness of ointment, or of sleep or of pain would hide him from his suffering. She began to hum, not only for her work, but for her own troubled thoughts. And then…
“Hush, hush, do not peep. The night will not weep
***
Smoke bloomed out of the hut’s peak, bright against the night. The whole hut bristled with a strange energy, each thistle of its matted walls shaking.
“This is…wrong, this is…”
A gently seething aura engulfed the place before her, subtle but to the most acute in their senses. It felt hot with anger and pain, and somehow red, so red. A beautiful but dangerous crimson.
“…my fault.”
Fluttershy was lost in a swirling whirlpool of all of the regret, guilt, and self-hate that had been piling up over the years. The yellow pegasus had many reasons and situations where she had regretted doing things, like when she had inadvertently caused a parasprite to multiply and attack the city, or when she had stolen the Princesses pet bird! The latter ended better than expected, but she still felt terrible about stealing. Even minor infractions crossed her mind, like the time she was throwing a candy wrapper into a garbage bin, and completely missed! She always hated herself for not picking it up afterwards, and had always felt extremely guilty about littering in a public area.
And then the flashbacks began. Flashbacks of mean Fluttershy, of cruel Fluttershy, of what happened at the Gala, of Angel. She couldn’t protect Angel. She wasn’t there for him. She let him die! A billion reasons came into her mind. I was mean to him! I shouldn’t have yelled at him! I should have brought him along shopping! This is all my fault…
Those thoughts commenced, and the guilt and regret just built up inside the tiny little pony. It was consuming her. The ashen tendrils crawled up her hooves, constricting her movements. It washed over her eyeballs, blotting out her vision and seeping into the back of her skull. It crept into her brain, filling it to the brim with memories of the times she regretted treating her little bunny the wrong way. It became harder for her to breathe, as it felt like black ink filling her mouth, and dripping down her throat, muffling her sobs. The ashen ink started to make its way through her nostrils, and she started choking as her lungs expanded bigger and bigger.
Fluttershy’s body shot upwards in the bed, sweat and tears mixing together, sunbeams reflecting off her drenched face. She felt awful, and she was afraid of what would happen. Afraid her bunny would die…was dead! Her body shivered as she sat there, just as the morning sun slowly crept through the window beside her bed. No, it wasn’t her bed. She examined the bed closer and noticed little pictures embroidered on it. The pictures were very primal, seemingly telling a story. She felt she knew what the pictures were about, but could not think clear enough that nothing came to mind.
A trembling hoof slid off the side of the bed, and onto the floor. The wood underneath her hoof felt cool and familiar. There were no planks, but solid wood. She looked down, and saw that there were more rings than she could count. She gently and slowly inhaled. The faint scent of the recently brewed herbs filled her nose. She listed them off, letting her eyes adjust and scan her surroundings. A cauldron, a spice rack, a scary mask, a sleeping zebra…Wait! A zebra?
Confusion spread across the pink-haired pony’s face. Her brain couldn’t process what was happening, or where she was. The last thing she remembered was seeing her little bunny in a bloodied state. Angel…the memory flowing back into her mind. She heard a shallow inhale followed by an equally shallow exhale. The breathing was coming from the left of her. She was paralyzed with fear and confusion. Her instincts told her not to turn her head towards the deathly sound. With her brain still trying to make sense of the situation, her common sense took a back seat to curiosity, and she slowly but surely rotated her head to her left.
Laying in a small circular bed, bundled up in tiny blankets, was Angel the bunny. Fluttershy trotted softly over to the bed, listening quietly to the harsh breathing of the white rabbit. Tears welled up in her eyes, a whimper escaping her throat. She moved her head closer to lift the blankets to see underneath them, but hesitated to do so, because she didn’t feel strong enough to handle seeing the gashes left by the horrific beast.
As if her brain had finished waking up, her mind came back to the present, and she looked around the room slowly. She knew where she was. She had been here countless of times. Once she came through the scary forest all on her own, because Angel had caught a bad flu, and Fluttershy sought out the help of Zecora for a natural home remedy. Not only was it one of the few times she’s been through the forest alone, but it was also the first time she realized how she felt about the zebra. Since then, every time she went to visit Zecora alone, she would always think about the reward of seeing Zecora, to trump over the fear that the forest seeded inside her.
Her mind rewound back to the first day of spring that year, and to the day her bunny was critically injured. The memory played back in her mind like a movie playing through a fuzzy projector. She remembered pushing a few ponies out of her way to get to the front of the crowd. She remembered seeing him there, lying motionless in his own blood. She remembered Twilight showing up and yelling things, but at that point, Fluttershy was gone from the world.
Only she and Angel remained in a never ending white. The bunny laying on a white floor, with the accented red soaking his cotton fur. She stood there traumatized, not knowing what to do. She took a few steps closer to the bunny, but with every motion forward, the red puddle grew in circumference. It expanded and expanded, flooding the white space, the level slowly creeping up the yellow pegasus’ legs. She screamed in terror as she watched her bunny become engulfed in red hot blood. The red sea filled the space more and more at an alarming rate. Soon enough, the pony was close to drowning; screaming out “This is wrong! This is wrong! This is…” escaped her mouth before the red encompassed her head.
The present time punched her in the face with a 2 tonne weight. Questions suddenly flooded her mind. What day was it? Where is the wyvern now? Will Angel get better? Will Angel be the same after? Will Angel die? She shook her head clear of all these questions, and started thinking logically. Okay Fluttershy, your bunny is dying, and you need to help him! Where can you go to find out more about wyverns? She thought long and hard, and it took her a few minutes to go through a list of people she knew that might be able to help.
“Of course! Twilight should have a book about wyverns!” she said aloud to herself. Forgetting that it was early in the morning, she looked over at the slumbering zebra to make sure she hadn’t woken her. It seemed like Zecora had done a lot to help out Fluttershy and her bunny, but she did deserve a rest from it all. Fluttershy appreciated everything Zecora had already done, and planned to repay her somehow, but right now, Fluttershy had to take a book out of the library, and fast!
She trotted into her room. She smiled faintly seeing that it was fairly untouched, and had the least amount of damage out of the whole place. Opening her closet door with her mouth, she poked her head in, and pulled out her traveller’s bags. She set them upon her back, and walked over to the window. She looked out at the area surrounding her house. Her garden, the chicken coop, the pond in the middle… The list went on, and it became apparent that the monster had wrecked more than just her house. She shook her head, opening the window to let in a slight breeze.
Leaning over the windowsill, her hair being tugged by the invisible fingers of the wind, she looked up in the sky. By the position of the sun, she figured it was now getting close to eight in the morning, and had plenty of time, but she didn’t want to waste any time. She backed away towards the door to her room, about to leave from that exit. She hesitated with her mouth holding the doorknob, and then closed the door, with her still inside. She jumped up and spun right around, facing the opposite side of the door. She readied herself, hooving at the wooden floor, building up her wits. Hot air was jetting from her nostrils before she jolted forward. A flash of pink and yellow streaked across the room, and out of the opened window.
Not only was flying a stress reliever, but it was also much faster than walking. Fluttershy arrived at her friend’s front door in under no more than 5 minutes, a personal best. The shy pony knocked on the front door gingerly with her right hoof. She heard a rustling inside the library which sounded like books being thrown around. Fluttershy knocked a second time, and she heard a familiar little voice ring out from the tree.
“Yeah, yeah one second please! I’ll be there soon enough!” it was Spike, Twilight’s baby dragon assistant. Fluttershy had remembered the first time she had met him. The pink haired pony was certainly a lot more shy back then, and had toughened up a boatload since that day.
After a bit more shuffling noises from inside the library, the doorknob to the front door slowly turned, and the door swayed open. What was to be found opening said door was a short purple baby dragon with green spikes crawling down his spine. Not only was it Spike at the door, but an impossibly tall stack of books lead from his right hand to three or four times the height of the reptile. He silently set the stack aside, to get a look at who was at the door, and a shocked look replaced the lazy and tired one that he often wore.
“F-Fluttershy…” he started, but he couldn’t form a sentence because he was sincerely baffled. “W-what are you doing here?” he then questioned. “H-how is Angel?”
Fluttershy shook her head at the mention of her Angel bunny. She did not want to think about the condition of her baby right now. She had more pressing matters to attend to. “I’m sorry Spike; I don’t want to talk about it. Is Twilight home?” she replied, answering the prior question. Fluttershy walked inside the disaster area of a library, and gasped. She hadn’t seen the library in this much of a mess since the day they all defeated Nightmare Moon.
In the middle of the clutter, was a lavender unicorn; a book opened to a page, and her face planted in those pages, not reading them, but snoring gently and drooling slightly on them. Fluttershy paused at the sight, then glided over to the sleeping purple pony. She nudged the lavender pony lightly with her nuzzle, sweetly singing the Morning song. A look of disgust stretched over Twilight’s face, as she recognized the song. Twilight hated the song, ever since the time she and Rarity had slept over at Fluttershy’s house once.
“N-No… not that song…please…” she stated as she slowly opened her eyes. The lifted her head from the book, and groggily looked over at her yellow friend. She yawned wide, and rubbed her eyes. “F-Fluttershy!…W-what!?” she exclaimed in a surprised tone of voice. “Why are you h-here?” she questioned.
“Twilight, I need your help! I want to save my bunny, and I think the only way is to go back in time, and make sure that mean old wyvern doesn’t even come close to my little bunny! I want to learn about how to kill a wyvern first, though. I don’t want something like that rampaging around Ponyville! Do you?” the pink-maned pony asked her friend, with tears welling up in her eyes.
Fluttershy waited in anticipation for Twilight’s response to her question. The lavender mare bit her lip and looked away from her friend, unsure of how to phrase her answer. “Fluttershy… I don’t know how to tell you this, but… you can’t go back in time.”
The words Twilight spoke made Fluttershy’s hope sink like a stone. “W-what?” she stammered, any semblance of positivity leaving her body.
Twilight rested a hoof on Fluttershy’s shoulder in a gesture of comfort. “I can’t send you back in time. It’s just too-”
“No! ” came the furious interruption from Fluttershy. She had been through a lot lately, and anger was beginning to boil up inside of her. It was atypical of the pegasus, but with all that had happened in the last twenty four hours, she wasn’t entirely in control of her emotions. “Don’t tell me you can’t do it!” she angrily shouted at Twilight, shoving the lavender hoof away. “You were working sending Spike back in time yesterday; are you really going to refuse to do the same thing to me?”
Twilight took a few steps back from the indignant pegasus. “Look, Fluttershy, even if I could get the spell to actually work right, there might be complications. It’s just not safe.”
“I don’t give a flying feather whether it’s safe or not! Just send me back so I can save Angel!” replied Fluttershy. Switching to a harsher, more demeaning tone, she continued. “If you were really my friend, you’d help me save him…”
Twilight groaned and brought a hoof to her forehead in exasperation. “I am your friend, but I can’t do this for you. I’ll help you and Zecora take care of Angel, but I am not sending you back. Just calm down.”
Fluttershy’s eyes narrowed. “I guess we aren’t friends then. I should have known it would be a waste of time asking you for help.” She continued ranting at Twilight, oblivious to the magic building up in the unicorn’s horn. “Maybe I should have gone to somepony who isn’t a fuc-”
Fluttershy’s curse was cut short as a brilliant blue light emanated from Twilight’s horn and filled the room, sending Fluttershy into a deep slumber.
Fluttershy awoke lying on the dirty cobblestone floor of a building she didn’t recognise. Getting to her hooves, she felt a brief wave of dizziness pass over her. Bringing a hoof to her head, she tried to remember why she was in this unfamiliar place. Her memory failed her; the last thing she remembered was entering Twilight’s library and finding the unicorn passed out, her muzzle buried in a book.
Try as she might, Fluttershy couldn’t figure out how she had gotten to this place from the library. “Twilight?” she called out, her voice echoing off the walls. “Spike?” There was no response – even if there was anypony around, they weren’t speaking.
Fluttershy gulped, but set off down the long hallway she was in. Confusion or not, she had to keep moving. She was never going to figure out where she was or how to escape by just standing still.
The hallway seemed to stretch on forever, and soon Fluttershy felt as if she had been walking for an eternity. She was unsure if she had even made any progress; the walls were completely devoid of decoration, and the hallway showed no sign of ever ending. Sighing in exhaustion, Fluttershy leaned against the wall, only to feel it slowly fade away, becoming ever softer. She stood straight up, lest she fall.
An alcove had opened up where she had been leaning, just the right dimensions for a pony to fit through. Unwilling to continue walking down the hallway, unable to tell if she was making it any further towards her final destination, Fluttershy chose to enter the alcove. As she left the hallway, unbeknownst to her, black tendrils of smoke began to spring up from the ground she had just left.
As Fluttershy walked through the passage, she became more and more hopeful that she had made the right decision. For one thing, the path she was now travelling actually had an end in sight – a bright light marked the end of it, resting just a hundred meters or so in front of her. A smile graced her muzzle as she broke into a trot.
As Fluttershy passed into the light, she was forced to suddenly skid to a stop, for the path gave out just ahead of her. After ensuring that she was in no danger of falling over the edge, she looked up to take in her surroundings, and gasped in amazement. She was standing on a thin and narrow bridge jutting out from the exit of a massive stone tower. Ordinarily, this would be extraordinary enough, but what made this situation truly odd was that the tower was floating in space – far off stars and planets being the only things Fluttershy could make out.
Actually, that wasn’t true. Just ahead of her lay a substantially smaller stone structure, this one only about a meter or two larger than the destroyed bridge she stood on. Laying on that platform was an unfortunately familiar sight – her precious bunny in a puddle of blood.
With a cry of “Angel!” that seemed to echo off the stars themselves, Fluttershy took a running leap off the bridge towards the white rabbit, spreading her wings. With a few mighty flaps, she reached the platform, only to have Angel fade away, leaving a bloody mess where he had laid. With a scream of rage, she stomped her hoof against the stone, causing cracks to emanate from where her hoof had landed.
A familiar roar sounded in her ears, and Fluttershy was treated to the reappearance of her pet. To her dismay, he was impaled on the impossibly long claws of the wyvern. Tears streamed from her eyes as the rest of the wyvern appeared from nothingness. Though she knew it made no sense, the wyvern seemed to be much larger than when they had first met, with a single one of its fangs the same length as her legs. Stranger still, it appeared to be growing even larger as the seconds ticked by.
Angel was removed from Fluttershy’s concerns for the time being; she was in danger herself, and she needed to escape or she would meet the same fate as her bunny. She flexed her wings, or at least attempted to, only to discover that crimson tendrils formed from the blood where Angel once lay had wrapped themselves around her, constricting her and stopping her from taking flight, or even moving. She struggled, but the tendrils only increased their grip, sending waves of pain through the pegasus.
Rendered completely immobile by the tendrils, Fluttershy could do nothing but scream as the wyvern’s mouth grew ever closer, now being large enough to swallow the moon itself. Her screams were cut short as the tendrils began forcing themselves inside any holes they could find – her mouth, her ear canals, and even her nostrils.
As the wyvern’s mouth engulfed the platform, swallowing Fluttershy and the tendrils whole, a faint whisper became known to her; a whisper repeating nothing but her name, over and over. As the darkness of the mouth became all that she knew, the whisper continued, getting ever louder. “Fluttershy… Fluttershy…”
“Fluttershy!” came the familiar voice of Twilight Sparkle, forcing Fluttershy’s eyes open. She was lying on a dirt floor in a room filled with scientific equipment and roots running through the wall, a far cry from the wooden floor of the library she last remembered standing on. She stood up, letting out a groan as she did so. Her friend’s voice rang out again, and she realised it was coming from the other side of the door. “Fluttershy, are you okay? Have you calmed down a bit?”
Red filled Fluttershy’s cheeks as she remembered how she had behaved – she had treated one of her best friends like dirt. Memories of the monster she had once been, New Fluttershy, drifted into her mind, making her wince. “Omigosh, I’m so sorry Twilight… I lost control and I didn’t realise what I was doing and I’ve had a really bad couple of days and I’m really sorry and if you don’t want to be friends anymore I understand… I’ll just leave now…”
“Fluttershy, it’s alright! You’re overreacting,” replied Twilight. “I still want to be friends, and I forgive you; I understand what you’re going through. Besides, you’re not the only one that screwed up. I wanted to get you to calm down, but I didn’t know how, so I just used my magic to put you to sleep. I hope you can forgive me for that.”
“Don’t worry, Twilight; I would have done the same,” said Fluttershy. “Well, if I had magic that is. I forgive you.”
The basement door opened to reveal Twilight, who strode up to Fluttershy and wrapped her forelegs around the pegasus’ neck in a hug. Fluttershy embraced back before they both let go and gave each other warm smiles. However, Twilight’s smile soon gave way to a look of apprehension. “Is there anything wrong?” asked Fluttershy, having noticed the change.
Twilight looked down at her hooves. “I have to tell you a few things. You aren’t going to like them; and after I tell you, I won’t blame you if you want to hate me.”
“I could never hate you,” replied Fluttershy.
“Just wait until you hear what I have to say before saying never,” said Twilight, returning her gaze to Fluttershy. The pegasus sat down on her haunches, waiting for Twilight to say what was so vitally important and volatile.
“Alright, so after driving off the wyvern yesterday, I carried Angel to Zecora’s hut while you rode on her back. We agreed that your cottage was too dangerous – the wyvern might return and attack again. Plus, Zecora has medical experience, so I felt safe leaving you and Angel in her hooves. After that, I returned to the library to look up more information on wyverns. I remembered reading about them before, but I wanted to refresh my memory.”
“Wait,” interrupted Fluttershy, “Zecora carried me on her back?” A faint blush adorned her cheeks at the thought of being so close to the object of her affection.
Twilight nodded and grinned. “Yep. She practically insisted on it, actually – something about not wanting me to use up too much magic carrying you.” The grin faded as she returned to the previous subject. “Anyway, by the time I got back to the library, Spike had most of my bestiaries and encyclopedias in a pile for me to read. I started looking through them, and there were a lot of entries about wyverns, but there were… inconsistencies.”
“What kind of inconsistencies?” questioned Fluttershy.
“By all accounts, wyverns are only two meters high at the most. I found two entries about ones who had grown larger to about three meters in height, but they were exposed to magical experiments. There was no record of any wyverns ever growing to be as big as the one at your cottage yesterday. Plus, all of the books I checked said that wyverns always travel in packs and never leave the forests or mountains they call home. Considering the biological aspects of wyverns, the one that attacked yesterday didn’t make any sense!”
Fluttershy frowned in disappointment. “So you didn’t find anything about it?”
“Actually, I did. After I realised the bestiaries were useless, I started going through other books for anything relevant.” Twilight held up a dusty, tattered book. “I eventually found something in one of Star Swirl’s private journals.” Opening the journal to a section in the middle and floating it over to Fluttershy so she could read it, Twilight continued. “It turns out there has been a prior appearance of a wyvern the size of the one that attacked yesterday – maybe even the same one! Star Swirl’s description of the one he saw almost two thousand years ago matches up to the one who hurt Angel yesterday. The scale colors, the size, the scar on its left eye – it’s all the same!”
“What?” asked Fluttershy with a gasp, “That would mean it’s been alive since the founding of Equestria. How is that possible?”
Twilight frowned. “Normally, it isn’t possible. Ordinary wyverns don’t live more than seventy years, and I can’t imagine the Everfree having enough resources for the large one to survive for 20 years, let alone two thousand.” Her frown deepened. “I have a theory about it, but… this is the part you aren’t going to like.”
“Please tell me. If it can help us get rid of the wyvern, I need to know!” insisted Fluttershy.
Twilight took a deep breath. “Alright, since the pages following mention of the wyvern in the journal were ripped out, I don’t know anything about how he got rid of it, or if he actually figured out where it came from. What I do know is that he was working on a spell to send himself back in time when it appeared. The same spell that I was trying to cast yesterday.”
Fluttershy’s face was blank. “What does that have to do with anything?”
“My theory is that he did something wrong when casting the spell, just like when I messed up yesterday,” replied Twilight in a shaky tone. “I think the wyvern appeared because of that spell; because we were trying to mess with the natural order of things.” Tears welled up in the corners of her eyes as she continued to speak. “Fluttershy, it was my spell that brought that thing here. It was my fault that Angel nearly got killed!”
Fluttershy’s face remained blank for a few moments, before shifting into a faint smile, borne of amusement and an urge to comfort her friend. “Twilight, that can’t be right,” she said, placing a hoof on the unicorn’s shoulder. “Your spell just froze a part of your wall, how could it end up summoning a wyvern?”
“Time magic is chaotic in nature,” replied Twilight, still visibly upset. “The spell could have done anything when the casting messed up!”
“Relax Twilight, I’m sure it’s just a coincidence,” Fluttershy said, reassuring her friend. “No sense worrying about its origin now. We need to find a way to make sure that wyvern never hurts anypony, or bunny, ever again. Do you have any ideas?”
Twilight wiped the tears from her eyes. “W-well, I’m not sure yet. I bet the missing pages in Star Swirl’s journal detailed how he got rid of it, but I have no idea where those could be.” After a moment of thought, she smiled, having arrived at an idea. “I’ve got it! We could capture it!”
“How?” asked Fluttershy. “It’s too big for a cage or anything, and I doubt I could lull it to sleep.”
“I have a few spells that will either immobilize it or put it to sleep,” said Twilight. “After it can’t move, I can carry it to an area where we can keep it away from anypony for a few days.” Noticing the doubt on Fluttershy’s face, she gave her a comforting smile. “Don’t worry, the wyvern isn’t much bigger than that Ursa Minor I got rid of a couple of years ago. I can handle it. After we have it captured, I’ll send a letter about it to Princess Celestia, and she’ll send it to the sun or turn it to stone, or something like that.”
“That sounds like a good plan. When are we going to capture it?”
“Right now, unless you have anything else you need to do first,” replied Twilight.
Fluttershy gave Twilight’s words some thought. “Angel,” she said after a few moments. “I need to see Angel. I want to make sure he’s getting better.”
Twilight nodded. “Alright, we can do that first. Zecora’s hut is in the Everfree anyway, so it won’t be out of our way at all.”
After yelling to Spike that he was looking after the library until she returned, Twilight left, followed closely by Fluttershy. The two of them were intent on reaching Zecora’s house as soon as they could, and as such, travelled at a brisk trot.
As they journeyed to the Everfree Forest, Fluttershy’s thoughts turned towards what Twilight had said in the library. Despite telling the unicorn that there was no way her magic was responsible for the wyvern’s appearance, she had yet to convince herself of that fact. She was not well versed in magical knowledge, but if Twilight – one of the most powerful unicorns in Equestria – thought her spells may be at fault, there was a chance that it was true.
But then it would be my fault , thought Fluttershy. She had been the one who caused her friend to miscast, and if that miscasting had summoned the wyvern, it was entirely her fault that Angel had been hurt. Despair filled her mind, as she realised that she would still be planning a birthday party for an unhurt Angel had she showed up to Twilight’s library a minute later – assuming of course, that the unicorn’s theory was valid. All of this is because of me…
“You’re being quiet, even for you,” commented Twilight, startling Fluttershy. The pegasus realised that she had been so focused on her thoughts that she hadn’t even spoken a word to her companion, or noticed that they were already in the Everfree Forest, well on their way to Zecora’s home. Twilight gave her a concerned look. “Is there something on your mind?”
“No, nothing,” lied Fluttershy. In truth, her despair was proving to be quite a burden on her mind, but that wasn’t something that Twilight needed to know. Looking ahead of her, she saw something that was strangely unsettling, though she didn’t know why. Tendrils of smoke drifted up from something unseen, just a short distance ahead of the two. She raised a hoof and pointed towards the smoke. “What is that?”
Twilight gave her a puzzled look. “Uh, that’s just Zecora’s hut. She’s probably brewing a potion or something that’s causing the smoke. It wouldn’t be the first time; I remember her brewing a mane growth potion for Rarity that made me think that her hut was on fire.”
“Oh,” was all that Fluttershy could manage, feeling dumb for her mistake. The two continued to Zecora’s hut in silence.
Having reached Zecora’s house, Twilight knocked on the door. A rhyming voice answered her. “Who is that there? Are you not aware, I am quite occupied, with this bunny who nearly died. ”
Twilight called out to the zebra through the door. “Zecora, it’s Fluttershy and I. We’ve come by to check up on Angel.”
“Time for you two I can certainly spare,” came Zecora’s response, mere moments before the door opened and the zebra beckoned for her visitors to enter. “If only to see the one in my care.”
Fluttershy followed Twilight into the hut, the acrid smell of smoke assaulting her nose, causing her to cringe. Noticing this, Zecora offered her a few words of apology. “Although the air may smell funny, it is needed to help your bunny.”
“It’s alright Zecora, I understand,” said Fluttershy, walking up to the bed where Angel lay, wrapped in blankets. Still unwilling to lift the blankets to reveal his wounds, she turned to the zebra mare. “How is he doing? Will he be okay?”
“Angel’s wounds were truly grave, but not beyond what I can save,” replied Zecora. “His health is not in its prime, but he will recover with time.” As the pegasus gently stroked the rabbit’s forehead, the zebra spoke again. “Why else have you come to this place? Worry is displayed across your face.”
“Well, we decided that the wyvern that attacked Angel needed to be captured, so we’re here to hunt it down,” answered Twilight.
Zecora gasped. “Ponies, you really should not welcome such danger. The forest holds the wyvern, and things much stranger.” She turned her head towards Fluttershy. “Is this true, my dear Fluttershy? You do not know ahead what may lie.”
Fluttershy nodded, albeit with a barely noticeable blush on her cheeks from being called ‘dear’. “Yes. We can’t let that nasty wyvern hurt anyone else.”
“Is there any way for me to change your mind? The Everfree is no place for one so kind,” insisted Zecora.
“We can’t risk letting the wyvern leaving the forest again,” replied Twilight. “It only made it to Fluttershy’s cottage last time. I’d hate to imagine it showing up in the center of town, where it could cause much more damage. No, this will end today.”
Zecora sighed. “I see that you will not be dissuaded; that beast is one that is truly hated. Before you go into a place so bleak, to Fluttershy alone I must speak.”
Twilight nodded. “I’ll be waiting for you outside, Fluttershy.” With that, she left the hut, a trace of a smile on her muzzle.
The pegasus’ blush increased in intensity as Zecora approached her. “I can’t thank you enough for aiding me and Angel… I don’t know what I’d do without your help.”
“Think nothing of it, my dear friend. To my aid there will be no end,” replied Zecora, smiling gently. “I am certain that painless his recovery shall be, that is, as long as I have you helping me.”
Fluttershy returned the smile. “Oh, of course! I’ll come by every day to help you take care of him. It would be rude of me not to!”
The zebra nervously pawed at the wooden floor with a hoof. “Forgive my forwardness, my aim is not to offend, but an invitation to my home I will extend. I think you will be less annoyed, since your home is still destroyed.”
Fluttershy froze. Had she heard right? Was Zecora really offering to share her home with her? Regardless of whether it was a platonic gesture or not, it was still an opportunity for Fluttershy to spend time with her crush, and take care of Angel at all hours of the day. Her grin grew wide. “Oh yes, that would be lovely. If you don’t mind…”
“Of course not; I did not make that claim in jest,” replied Zecora. “You staying here would truly be for the best.”
“Thank you, Zecora! I’ll come back here after we capture the wyvern, and then help you take care of Angel,” replied Fluttershy, unable to hide her glee.
“Just be careful, dear Fluttershy. It would be a shame for you to die,” said Zecora. With this, she leaned in close and nuzzled the Pegasus, who let out a squeak of delight. As the two parted, they each wore warm grins, and equally warm blushes.
“Don’t worry, I’ll be safe,” replied Fluttershy, as she left the hut, various thoughts running through her head. What did that mean? Was she nuzzling me as a friend? A caretaker? Or, could it be… No, she can’t like me that way… Can she?