It was a beautiful, sunny afternoon in Ponyville. Birds were singing, clouds drifted lazily through the air, and Pinkie Pie was fast asleep in Fluttershy’s cottage, napping with her girlfriend after a busy day of fun and games.
Fluttershy would be asleep, too, but she had just been woken up by a sharp pang, a craving she couldn’t ignore.
Fluttershy gently nudged Pinkie, who had her pinned down to the comfy sofa. “Hey, Pinkie?” She did her best to keep her voice as soft and calm as possible. “Can you let me up for a second?”
“Mmmh,” Pinkie mumbled, still half asleep. “Don’t wanna.”
Fluttershy pursed her lips and nudged a bit more firmly. “Come on, Pinkie, I really need to get up.”
Pinkie blinked her eyes open and looked up at Fluttershy. “What’s up?” she asked, concern creeping into her voice to cover the sleepiness.
Fluttershy gently stroked Pinkie’s mane, trying to reassure her. “It’s nothing to worry about, I just wanted to go get a snack.”
“Mmm…” Pinkie hummed. “Don’t wanna.” She closed her eyes again and nuzzled into Fluttershy’s fur.
Fluttershy’s mouth twisted into a half-frown. “Pinkie…”
Pinkie huffed and looked back up. “Not unless you tell me what’s up.”
“I’m just hungry,” Fluttershy said, starting to get nervous. “Really, it’s nothing.”
“Nuh-uh. If that was it, you wouldn’t keep askin. There’s something else.”
Fluttershy could feel the hunger building in the back of her mind, pushing harder and harder, and she sighed. “Okay, I’ll tell you. Just let me go get a snack first. Please?”
“You promise?”
“I…” Fluttershy hesitated, but gave in when she saw a frown start to make its way onto Pinkie’s face. “Yeah, Pinkie, I promise.”
As soon as she was free, Fluttershy darted into the kitchen and grabbed an apple. She devoured it greedily, not caring about the mess she was making, and let out a sigh of relief when she was done. She stood there a moment, letting her head clear, then cleaned herself up and went back out to Pinkie.
She sat nervously next to Pinkie, unsure of what to say, but as soon as she did Pinkie pulled her into a tight hug. Fluttershy hugged back, and they sat like that for a minute.
Eventually, Pinkie pulled away and gave Fluttershy a peck on the cheek. “Now,” Pinkie said, still holding Fluttershy’s hooves in her own, “tell me what’s wrong.”
Fluttershy gave her a shaky smile, happy but still incredibly nervous. “Well, I’m not really sure how to say it… Um, do you remember that time we helped Applejack with her bat problem?”
Pinkie paused for a moment, then nodded. “When you turned into Flutterbat.”
“Mmhm. Well, uh, that never really… got better.” Fluttershy looked away from Pinkie, rubbing the back of her neck anxiously.
Pinkie frowned. “I thought Twilight undid that, though?”
“So did I, but then… Well, I started getting these… cravings.”
There was a brief moment of quiet before Pinkie went on. “Why not tell us? If we knew, we could try to help, or at least make you feel better about it.”
“I didn’t want you to worry. Plus....” She hesitated for a moment, then caught Pinkie’s gaze and continued. “I didn’t want you to think I was a bad pony because of how I get when it gets bad.”
Pinkie giggled, soft and loving, and reached up to hold Fluttershy’s cheek. “Nothing could ever make you a bad pony.”
Fluttershy smiled, and Pinkie pounced on her, pushing her over and landing on top of her. They both laughed, and laid like that for a while, cuddling in a peaceful silence.
A while later, Pinkie started the conversation back up. “Does it get bad a lot?”
“Not really,” Fluttershy told her. “For a while I only needed an apple every couple of days, so it only got bad if I forgot them when I went on a trip. I have been needing more lately, but it’s been a while since I last had a bad episode, so I think I’m doing alright.”
“What happens when it gets bad? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you turn into Flutterbat again.”
“No, it’s not quite that bad. I just get kind of… desperate. I lose myself.” Fluttershy looked away, a guilty frown on her face. “At first I didn’t even remember them, but I guess I got more used to that part of myself.”
“Hmm...” Pinkie scratched her chin thoughtfully. “We should go see Twilight, I bet she could help.”
“I tried that,” Fluttershy said. “She’s the only one I told, and she tried to fix it, but… That’s when the cravings started getting worse. I haven’t had the courage to tell her.”
“Well, I’m gonna make you do that eventually,” Pinkie said sternly, “but first I gotta help you with this.”
“Really, Pinkie, it’s fine. It’s not that big of a deal to just eat a few apples every day.”
Pinkie shook her head. “Nope, I’m not lettin you just pretend this isn’t important. If it’s gettin worse, how do you know you’ll always be able to stop the cravings? One of these days, you could eat an apple and it might not go away at all. What then?”
Fluttershy sighed. “You’re right. What can we do, though?”
Pinkie thought for a moment, then a clever grin popped onto her face. “Well, you said you stopped blacking out after you got used to it, right? We’ll do that! No apples ‘til you can control your urges.”
“How're ya feelin?”
The sun was just beginning to set as Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie walked up to the Golden Oak Library. A light breeze whisked past them, whistling through the leaves of the grand old treehouse. The air was crisp, red and brown leaves were scattered all around them, and the wind carried with it the faint smells of the coming autumn.
“I’m alright,” Fluttershy replied. “Just a little nervous. Are you sure we should be doing this in town? Wouldn’t staying home be safer?”
“Don’t worry, I’ll keep you safe,” Pinkie assured her with a grin. She knocked on the door and bounced impatiently as she waited for an answer.
Soon enough, the door opened to reveal Twilight Sparkle, looking somewhat frazzled but still cheery. “Oh, hey guys,” she said, grinning wide at seeing her friends. “I wasn’t expecting company today. What’s up?”
“Hi Twilight!” Pinkie exclaimed.
“Hi,” Fluttershy repeated. “We, um, needed some fresh air, and…” Her voice trailed off nervously.
“Fluttershy’s gotta talk to you about somethin,” Pinkie finished.
“Oh?” Twilight said. “Well, sure, come in! Uh, sorry about the mess. Like I said, I wasn’t expecting anypony.”
The library was, indeed, a mess. Huge stacks of books filled the room, and the shelves were largely empty. Spike was running back and forth, carrying armfuls of books to and fro. He waved when he saw that they had guests, then went back to his scurrying around.
“Spike, why don’t you take a break?” Twilight told him. “We might be a while.”
“Nah,” he replied. “I wanna get this done with. Otherwise I’ll just be stuck doing it tomorrow too.” Twilight shrugged and left him to his work.
Twilight shrugged. “If you say so.” With a sigh of relief, she plopped down at a reading table and beckoned the others over.
After they sat down, Pinkie pressed herself up against Fluttershy without any hesitation, and Fluttershy leaned back against her. “So what’s with the books?” Pinkie asked.
“We’re rotating the collections,” Twilight explained. “Putting away things that nopony was interested in this year and bringing out other stuff. Nothing big. You said Fluttershy had something to talk about, though?”
“Oh, yeah!” Pinkie said. She nudged Fluttershy to urge her on.
“Yeah, um…” Fluttershy hesitated, but then swallowed hard and went on. “Um, do you remember when you helped me with that… apple… thing?”
“The bat stuff?” Twilight asked. “Yeah, sure.”
“Well, it didn’t exactly… Really… You know…” Fluttershy’s voice trailed off.
Twilight frowned. “Fluttershy. Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”
Fluttershy shifted uncomfortably in her seat, and Pinkie squeezed her reassuringly.
Twilight sighed, not an exasperated sigh, but a worried one. “Fluttershy, you should have told me. Are you okay? Did something happen? Is that why you’re here now?”
Fluttershy looked over at Pinkie, who took the cue to fill Twilight in. “She’s okay, but it’s been getting worse. I wanted to help her handle it, but I figured we should talk to you first in case you had a better idea.”
Under the table, Fluttershy started tapping a hoof restlessly against the floor.
Twilight looked down at the table, deep in thought. “I don’t know. If it’s getting worse, then what I tried last time probably backfired. Trying again would be too risky.”
“So what does that mean?” Fluttershy asked.
“I’m sorry, Fluttershy, but…” Twilight paused and frowned. It seemed like she couldn’t find the right words, but her drooping ears and averted gaze made it clear that it was bad news. “I think it might just be a part of you now.”
Fluttershy made a disappointed noise, and Pinkie held her tight. “Hey,” Pinkie said softly, “it’s okay. It’s been a part of you for a while now. I’ve got way worse stuff in me, but I’m still Pinkie.”
Fluttershy sighed, and the three sat in silence for a moment, none of them knowing quite what to say. Fluttershy started rubbing her hooves together anxiously.
Eventually, Twilight broke the quiet. “So, Pinkie, you said you had some kind of plan?”
Pinkie nodded. “Uh-huh. See, Fluttershy said that she used to black out when it got bad, but doesn’t anymore, so I figure we can try to take that further. If she can learn to stay in control when she gets batty, then it won’t be so bad. It’ll still stink, sure, but she won’t hafta worry about hurting anypony.”
“Hmm,” Twilight hummed. “That could work. It won’t be easy, though. It probably won’t be quick, either.”
“She can do it,” Pinkie said. “Fluttershy’s the strongest pony I know.”
Fluttershy smiled, but then a pang of craving shot through her and the smile faltered. Her eyes shot briefly towards the kitchen, but she pulled them away before too long. “U-um,” she stammered, “Pinkie, I think maybe we should leave…”
Pinkie gave her a kiss on the cheek, and started to rub her back. “Yeah, sure. Uhh, where do you wanna go? Both of our houses have apples in ‘em…”
“You’re welcome to stay here,” Twilight offered. “I have a couple apples, but I can run those over to Rarity’s before things get too rough.”
Fluttershy looked conflicted. “I don’t know… What if I hurt you? Oh, I would never forgive myself…”
“You won’t,” Pinkie told her. She put a hoof gently under Fluttershy’s chin and turned her head to look into her eyes. “Hey. You’re still Fluttershy.” Fluttershy smiled a little at that, and Pinkie stroked her cheek softly.
Twilight smiled as she watched the two. “You’re in good hooves, Fluttershy,” she said. “Pinkie will make sure you get through this.”
“Sure will!” Pinkie agreed. Fluttershy gave them tiny nod.
“Hey Spike?” Twilight called out. “Can you—”
“Already on it!” Spike replied from the kitchen.
Twilight leaned forward and grabbed one of Fluttershy’s hooves, holding it reassuringly. “Is there anything else you need?”
“I don’t think so,” Fluttershy replied. “Thank you, though, Twilight.”
“Of course,” Twilight told her with a grin. She got up and gave Fluttershy a quick hug before going to meet Spike at the door. She leaned over to check the basket he was carrying, and he gave her a funny look.
“C’mon, Twilight,” he said. “I know how many a—”
“I’ll see you girls later!” Twilight called out, interrupting Spike. “Feel free to make use of anything at all in the house if you need to.” She pushed Spike outside and followed, whispering “I was trying not to talk about them” to him as the door clicked shut.
“You okay?” Pinkie asked after a minute.
“I think so,” Fluttershy said, leaning hard into Pinkie. “For now.”
“Just let me know if you need anything.”
They sat together for a while, relaxing in silence. Eventually they started to get uncomfortable, but luckily Twilight kept the library well furnished, so it wasn’t hard to find a comfy chair that was big enough for both of them. After a while, Fluttershy’s nerves and fidgeting had worn her out completely, and she fell asleep in Pinkie’s lap. Pinkie joined in her slumber soon after.
A few hours later, Pinkie was woken up by Fluttershy shifting around restlessly. The library was dim, lit only by a few reading lights Twilight kept on to see where she was walking at night, and the chirping of insects drifted in through the windows. Pinkie stroked Fluttershy’s mane, trying to calm her without disturbing her, but she woke with a start at the touch.
Fluttershy instinctively tried to bolt into the air, her heart pounding at a frantic pace, but Pinkie held her close. “Shhh,” Pinkie whispered as gently as possible. “You’re okay, Fluttershy. It’s alright.”
Slowly, Fluttershy’s wits started to come to her, and she settled down against Pinkie. “I’m sorr—,” she started, but Pinkie shushed her and held her close.
“No sorries,” Pinkie told her. “You’re doing great.” She brushed her hoof through Fluttershy’s mane, and in doing so felt that at some point her ears had sharpened into a point, which made Pinkie bite her lip nervously.
“Pinkie, I don’t think I can do this,” Fluttershy said.
“Are you sure?” Pinkie asked.
“I—,” she started, but then she shook her head hard. “No. No, I have to do it. Pinkie, I… Please don’t let me back out.”
“Huh?” Pinkie said. “I-I can’t make you do this, Fluttershy.”
“Please, Pinkie,” Fluttershy begged. “Last time I got this bad, I lost a whole day, but now I’m not even trying to get apples. It’s working, I just… I don’t know if I’ll get worse.”
Pinkie pursed her lips and made a conflicted noise. “I can try. But I can’t promise. The second I think it’s you talking and not the bat, I’m getting out of your way.”
Fluttershy let out a sigh of relief, and fell into Pinkie’s grasp. “Thank you. For all of this, thank you so much. Thank you for…” Her voice trailed off.
“Of course,” Pinkie said, kissing the top of Fluttershy’s head and squeezing her lovingly. “Of course, you silly pony. You don’t have to thank me for anything.”
They stayed like that for a while, Fluttershy too restless to sleep, and Pinkie too worried, yet neither of them wanted to get up. Eventually, though, Fluttershy’s nerves started to get the better of her, and she couldn’t sit still any longer. She pushed herself up and, hoping to work off some of her anxious energy, started pacing around the library.
Pinkie watched her pensively. “Is there anything I can get you?” she asked.
“An apple,” Fluttershy replied curtly. Then she stopped and shook her head. “No, sorry, I… I’m okay, thank you.”
Still, Pinkie couldn’t help but feel the need to do something, so she got up and made for the kitchen. “I’m gonna make some tea,” she told Fluttershy as she passed by her.
“Mhm.”
So, Pinkie started heating some water, and then decided to look in Twilight’s fridge to see if anything else caught her eye. There wasn’t much, but there were at least enough fruits and veggies for a snack, so she took some out and set to cutting them up in the dark kitchen.
“You doin okay?” she asked after a minute. When she got no reply, she continued. “Fluttershy?”
“Huh?” Fluttershy’s head snapped up. When she saw Pinkie in the kitchen, she trotted over to join her. “Did you ask something?”
Pinkie gave Fluttershy a quick hug when she walked up. “I just wanted to know how you’re doing,” she said.
“Oh, yeah,” Fluttershy said. “I, uh… Hey, why can’t I eat apples, again? I mean, they’re not bad for me.”
“It’s not about the apples,” Pinkie told her. “You were afraid you might lose control and hurt somepony.”
“Oh,” Fluttershy said dryly. “I mean… I wouldn’t do that, right? You know me, I could never hurt anypony.”
Pinkie stopped what she was doing and turned to look at Fluttershy. The yellow pony’s eyes were glowing slightly in the darkness, looking sharply ahead. “It’s not me you have to convince,” Pinkie said.
“I’m not worried about it now, though,” Fluttershy argued. “Maybe it would be good if it got worse. If I was like this all the time, I might not worry so much about things.”
Pinkie frowned and looked away. “Fluttershy, I… I don’t know what to say to that.”
By this point Fluttershy could see perfectly well despite the dark, so she saw every bit of the pain that was on Pinkie’s face. “I-I,” she stammered, “I’m sorry, Pinkie, I… Forget I said anything. I’m sorry.”
Fluttershy tried to walk away, but Pinkie stopped her by pulling her into a tight hug. “No more sorries,” she whispered. She squeezed Fluttershy hard. “You’re doing great.”
After the hug, Pinkie stroked Fluttershy’s cheek for a moment before going back to chopping up the snacks. “This’ll be a good distraction,” she told Fluttershy. “Some tea and treats, and you won’t think twice about—Ow!” Pinkie flinched, and the knife she was using clattered loudly onto the counter.
Fluttershy gasped and rushed over to her. “Are you okay? What happened? Do you need help, what should I—”
Pinkie shushed her, calmly clutching her hoof. “I’m okay, everything’s fine. Really, I don’t know what I expected, chopping stuff in a dark kitchen.” She smiled sweetly at Fluttershy, which helped her calm back down. “I gotta go clean myself up,” Pinkie continued. “You gonna be alright while I’m gone?”
Fluttershy swallowed hard and nodded, so Pinkie gave her a reassuring kiss on the cheek and went into the bathroom to clean the cut. Luckily, it wasn’t a bad one, and Twilight kept a well-stocked first aid kit, so she wasn't away from Fluttershy for too long.
Soon Pinkie walked back out and looked around. “Fluttershy?” she called out into the darkness, but got no response. She made her way quickly back to the kitchen, but slowed down with a sigh of relief when she found Fluttershy, standing silently by the counter.
Pinkie reached out and gently nudged Fluttershy. “You okay?”
Fluttershy jumped, startled by Pinkie suddenly breaking her focus. She wheeled around defensively, a nervous look on her face. “Huh? Oh, Pinkie, right. I, um…” She was trying with all her might to keep her focus on Pinkie, but her eyes kept darting back over to the countertop.
Pinkie tried to follow her gaze, but just saw what she had been working on before. “You that hungry?” she asked. “It’s about ready, just let me clean up my mess, alright?”
Pinkie trotted over and picked up the knife, but as she started walking towards the sink Fluttershy stuck out a hoof and whispered, “Wait!”
“What’s wrong?” Pinkie asked.
“I, um, it’s, well.” Fluttershy couldn’t find the words. “N-nothing, don’t worry,” she eventually said, but her darting eyes said differently.
Pinkie followed her gaze again, and this time understood. “Are you…” she muttered, but something made her stop. Pinkie grabbed a cucumber slice from the tray of snacks and swiped it across the knife, staining it red.
Pinkie put the knife down and walked over to Fluttershy, whose eyes were glued to the cucumber. She took a step forward, but Pinkie put a hoof out to stop her.
“Fluttershy?” Pinkie said. “I need you to listen to me. Okay?”
“Um,” Fluttershy muttered, trying to force her eyes to meet Pinkie’s, “yeah, okay. I can do that.”
“Good.” She raised the snack up close to her face and looked into Fluttershy’s eyes. “You prob’ly wouldn’t want me to do this normally, so I’m sorry about that, but somethin in my body’s tellin me that I should give you this. If I’m wrong, though, I’m gonna work doubly hard to fix it, 'kay? I promise.”
Fluttershy nodded, and Pinkie held the cucumber out for her. Without hesitation, Fluttershy snatched it up and devoured it, hardly even chewing. The next few seconds felt like an eternity, but then something changed. Fluttershy’s eyes stopped glowing, and the darkness rushed into her vision. Her ears relaxed and rounded back out. Most of all, all the stress that had been in her all night immediately melted away, and Fluttershy finally felt normal again.
“Bleh!” Fluttershy started coughing and ran to the sink to gulp down some water. After downing several cups worth, she turned back around and caught her breath. “Pinkie!” she scolded. “That was disgusting! Why would you do that?”
Pinkie giggled and jumped at Fluttershy, immediately wrapping her in a bone-crushing hug. “You did so well,” Pinkie told her. “How ya feelin?”
“I-” Fluttershy took a moment to consider that herself. The cravings had completely vanished. In their place, though, she felt something new. Something strange. Her eyes went wide as she took in this new sensation. “Huh.”
“Huh?” Pinkie asked her.
“I don’t think I want an apple,” Fluttershy quietly told her.
“Hooray!”
“I don’t get it, though,” Fluttershy continued. “I always want an apple. It never really goes away completely.”
“Huh,” Pinkie repeated. “Well, do you want… um…”
Fluttershy shook her head. “No, I don’t want anything at all.”
“Do you think it’s gone?”
“No,” Fluttershy told her, “it’s definitely still there. It just feels… different. Before, it felt like I needed apples, but now…” Her mouth twitched up into a smile. “Now it feels good.”
“So, does that mean…” Pinkie asked hesitantly.
Fluttershy grinned wide and kissed Pinkie. “It worked!” she cheered. “Oh, thank you Pinkie. I mean, you’re still in trouble because that was really gross, but thank you.”
Just then the kettle on the stove started to whistle, and a moment later all the lights in the library switched on at once. Shocked, the ponies looked all around and found Twilight, half-asleep, standing at the edge of her loft.
“Mmm,” Twilight mumbled. “What’s going on?”
“Fluttershy’s a vampire!” Pinkie announced.
“Oh… That’s nice.” Then she turned the lights back off and went to bed.
