The entrance to the sewers from the Muddy Place was a huge tunnel leading into a mound of dirt, with water trickling out into the stream from deep within.

As Rainbow Dash stood before it, shining her flashlight down the tunnel, she couldn’t help but imagine this was the gaping maw of a giant dragon of sorts. Either that, or it was the entrance to a dragon’s lair, where gold and jewels awaited her, where in this case, gold and jewels would be any clues she can find about Scootaloo.

It wasn’t a welcoming sight, that was for sure, but she wasn’t called Rainbow “Danger” Dash for nothing.

“Come on, let’s go have a look.” She stepped up into the large pipe.

Pinkie Pie walked in behind her, one hand quickly going for her nose. “Gee, what’s that smell. Smells like something died here. Oh, sorry, no offense, Dashie.”

“It’s okay, Pinkie. I know what you mean.” Rainbow panned her light across the darkness inside. “It’s no buffet, that’s for sure.”

“I wonder just how big our sewers are…” Pinkie kicked a foot out, splashing some water against one of the pipe’s sides.

“Yeah.” Rainbow turned around, spotting Applejack and Fluttershy still by the entrance, with the cowgirl running a finger along the side of the tunnel’s opening. “You girls coming?”

“U-Umm… It-it’s quite d-dark in there…” Fluttershy squeaked, holding her hands up to her chin. “A-Are you sure she’s in th-there? B-Besides… Sewer water. I d-don’t know if it’s a good idea to go in th-there…”

“Come on, it can’t be that bad!” Pinkie bent down and pulled up a broken plank and waved it around. “Where do you think this came from? Odd, huh?” She gave it a sniff, then quickly pushed it away from her face.

“Pinkie, really? You’re gonna pick that up?” Applejack raised an eyebrow. “That’s real nice, ya know?”

“Don’t be pansies, you too.” Rainbow Dash aimed her light at the water beneath her feet, watching the light reflect off it. “It’s not like we don’t have shoes on.”

“Hey, look, a shoe!” Pinkie skipped on in.

“What if we catch some kinda sewer disease?” Applejack tipped her hat higher. “Like too-ber-col-loh-sus or somethin’?”

“I-I don’t think you can get that here…” Fluttershy said.

“Don’t be ridiculous!” Rainbow bent back and laughed. “It’s just sewage. The worst that can happen is probably drinking it. We’ll be fine! Look, Pinkie and I have been in here for, what, five minutes? We’re fine. Come on, we’ve got to find Scootaloo.”

Fluttershy shifted her feet. “Y-You know… What if… What if we d-do find Scootaloo? I-I mean, I don’t know what happened t-to her, but… What if it was a kidnapping and they g-g-get us too…?”

“Really? We stopped Sunset Shimmer from taking control of the school, remember? What kidnapper could be worse than that? We took her down together. So together, we’ll find Scootaloo, and if she was indeed kidnapped, then that kidnapper’s got a thing or two coming to him, right, Pinkie?”

The pink girl returned from deeper inside the pipe, carrying a torn and tattered grey sports shoe with her. “Look what I found!”

“Could that be…?” Applejack tried to peer in from outside.

Rainbow took the shoe in her hand and flashed the light in it. “Too big for Scootaloo. This isn’t…” She spotted a name written inside in faded marker. “This… This is Rumble’s shoe…”

“Rumble?” Pinkie looked back down the dark tunnel. “Rumble! Rumble, are you there?”

No answer came back.

“Psh, Pinkie, he ain’t gonna answer ya. What, ya think he’s gonna be hoppin’ around in there with just one shoe?”

“Hey come on, now’s not the time to horse around. If Rumble’s in here, we need to find him.” Rainbow took three steps forward. “You girls coming?”

Fluttershy raised a finger. “Uh, sh-shouldn’t we have a lookout? Y-You know, in case he comes this way?”

“How big’re these sewers anyhow?” Applejack peered into the entrance. “Don’t wanna get lost in there, y’know.”

“Oh, you’re right,” Pinkie said. “I know! We’ll do it like that myth did. Use a ball of string!”

“A what now?”

“You know, like we learned in history class! Where that hero who had to go through the maze used a ball of string to make sure he didn’t get lost? Well, we can do the same here!”

“‘Cept we ain’t got no string,” Applejack pointed out. Then Pinkie pulled a ball of it out of her poofy hair. “Of course ya have some… Why did Ah even think otherwise.”

“Yeah, if we find Rumble, maybe we’ll find Scootaloo too. Rainbow smashed a fist into her palm. Since last year, the athlete hadn’t felt such hope. She was closer than she ever was in finding her friend.

“That don’t mean anythin’.” Applejack pointed down the stream. “He could’a dropped it on his way outta there. We don’t know that he’s still inside.”

“Applejack has a point.” Fluttershy smiled.

Rainbow Dash looked between them and the tunnel. “I still think it’s worth a look.”

Just then, a splash behind them made everyone jump, Fluttershy the highest. In the stream, a harrowed and crazed looking Rarity had fallen on her side, her makeup smeared down her face and her hair in a state of mess that was very unlike her.

“R-Rarity?” Fluttershy called out.

When the fashionista noticed them, she began bawling, almost yelling as she cried out. Rainbow and Pinkie dashed out of the sewer pipe to join Applejack and Fluttershy as they helped Rarity up.

Her right arm was red and looked as though her skin had been burnt off and her shirt also looked like it had torn off just below her navel. She had more cuts and bruises all over her body, with even soil coating her back and front.

“Rarity, what happened?” Applejack tried to coax it out of her, but she wouldn’t stop crying.

“That looks serious.” Fluttershy pointed to her arm.

“Should we get her to a hospital?” Rainbow stowed her flashlight and searched her pack for anything that could help.

Fluttershy shook her head. “I-I think I can take care of this. I’ll just need some supplies. You girls don’t happen to be carrying any wipes or bandages with you… do you?”

“Now why would we have any o’ those?” Applejack patted her pockets. “Ah ain’t got any.”

“If it’s anyone with anything, it’s Pinkie.” Rainbow pushed her hands into her friend’s poofy hair. “Let’s see what do we have here?” She removed a plunger, then a horseshoe, but she couldn’t find any bandages. “I’m… I’m not even gonna ask.”

“I don’t have any, silly.” Pinkie giggled, then pointed in the direction they had come from. “But there’s the nearby pharmacy. I’m sure we can get some there.”

“Oh, right. Yes, that’ll do.” Fluttershy smiled, then patted Rarity on the back. “Everything’s gonna be alright, Rarity. We’ve got you…”

The fashionista sniffled, but nodded. Her friends gave her a group hug, trying to comfort her a little before going off.

Rainbow Dash led the way back, occasionally looking back to see if Rarity was doing alright. She still hadn’t told them as to what had happened, but judging from her injuries and her tattered clothes, it couldn’t have been anything good.

Was it a dog? Or even a puma, perhaps? But that didn’t explain the burns on her arm and legs.

Dashing up the slope next to the bridge, the athlete hopped over the railing, then beckoned for her friends. “Come on, we don’t have all day.”

Applejack glared at her. “You come here and haul her up, then.”

“Maybe I will,” Rainbow Dash put her arms over the railing and tugged at Rarity’s arms, pulling her up to the road level.

“Aa-ca-carefully…!” Rarity grimaced and Rainbow let go of her right arm.

“Sorry.”

Once she was clear over the railing, Rarity wiped at her eyes and looked at it, even running a finger over it. “Th-th-the hole… Wh-where’d it… Where…”

Pinkie put her eye against the railing. “What hole? Was there ever a hole here? Or are you talking about a different hole?”

“There was a-there was a...Cl-cl-cl-”

“She’s delirious. We need to get her some aid. Fast.” Applejack steered them all away from the railing and down the street.

The walk to the pharmacy didn’t take long, but for Rainbow, having to drag Rarity along made it feel like an hour had gone by before they pushed the pharmacy’s front door open, their entry signalled by a little jingle from a bell above the door. They had left Pinkie Pie outside with Rarity in an alleyway, not wanting to make such a big fuss about how she looked.

A staff member dressed in a starched white coat came to greet them.

“Hello, welcome to Canterlot Chemist’s. Can I help you?”

“Uh, yes. We’re looking for some first aid supplies,” Fluttershy requested. “One of our friends hurt herself and we wanted to patch her up.”

“Oh, that’s not good. Her getting hurt, that is. Do you want to bring her inside so we can take a look at her? All the staff here are trained in first aid.”

“It-it’s okay. We can take care of it.” Fluttershy put on her best smile. “We’ll just need some things and we’ll get right on to it.”

“Well, by all means…” The attendant stepped aside and gestured to the rows and rows of pharmaceutical items. “We have a lot of items in stock. We should have everything you need. And if you’re up for that examination, feel free to approach one of us.”

“Thank ya, kind sir.” Applejack tipped her hat for him. “We’ll be sure to do just that if we need to.”

As the pharmacy attendant went back to his duties, Fluttershy led Rainbow and Applejack down one of the rows of items. She began grabbing things off the racks, like bandages and various types of wipes.

“We really need this much stuff?” Rainbow picked up a packet of cotton wool and sniffed at it. It smelt musty, like it had been there for years.

“If we don’t want to check Rarity in to a clinic, then yes,” Fluttershy replied. “And we’ll need this, and that, and some of these…”

The basket grew more and more full until Fluttershy stood back and nodded.

“That should be enough.”

“Ah gotta agree with Dash. This seems a bit…” Applejack rubbed her jaw. “Overkill.”

“W-Well, we need all this…” Fluttershy’s cheeks grew red. “I get most of these when I treat pets, but humans need maybe just a little more...”

“Oh. I guess that makes sense,” Rainbow nodded. “But wait. Why didn’t we just bring Rarity to your pet clinic if it has all these supplies?”

“I can’t treat Rarity at a pet clinic.” Fluttershy chuckled. “She’s not a pet.”

“Would save on medical supplies, though…” Applejack said, looking at the price tags on the shelves. “This stuff don’t come cheap.”

“I normally carry around enough… Could you?” Fluttershy handed the basket to Applejack, then produced her wallet. “Oh… I might have used up the money for a wounded cat two days ago…”

Applejack sighed. “Rainbow, how much do ya got?”

The athlete shoved her hands into her skirt pocket and shrugged. “Didn’t bring my wallet. Didn’t think I would need to buy anything today.”

“Sheesh. Flutters, how much do ya have left? Ah think Ah have a buck and a half in her or somethin’...” Applejack searched her pockets and her hat and took out some money. “Make that three bucks.”

“Why do you keep money in your hat?” Rainbow asked.

“You know how some wallets are made of leather? Well, just so happens my hat is also made of leather. So keepin’ money in it’s as natural as keepin’ it in a wallet,” Applejack explained.

Rainbow Dash held up a finger. “That… makes no sense. But whatever. How are we gonna pay for all this stuff?”

“I have twelve dollars…” Fluttershy took out the notes in her wallet. “We still need, umm… sixteen.”

“Do we really need all this stuff?” Rainbow lifted a tube of aloe vera ointment.

“It’ll be good if we do.”

“Well, where are ya goin’ to get the last sixteen bucks? It ain’t gonna magically drop from the sky.”

“If Twilight were here, maybe she could do just that.”

“R-Really…? She can make money appear with magic…?”

“Oh hay no, she couldn’t do that. Ah mean, Ah’m sure she couldn’t.”

Fluttershy rubbed her arm and looked away. “A-Applejack, you shou-shouldn’t say things like that…”

“What, which thing?”

“Okay, girls, the money. What are we going to do?” Rainbow ran a hand through her colourful hair. “We’ve got to have money. Somehow.”

Fluttershy made an adorable pouty face that did nothing to help their situation, though it did make her look very cute. She looked like she was about to suggest something when the sound of footsteps approached.

"Hey, girls," Flash Sentry's voice said. “What’s going on?”

“Oh, Flash! Hi, what are you doing here?” Rainbow spun around to talk to him. “We’re uh, just getting some stuff.”

Flash looked past her and at the basket of supplies. “That’s… a lot of stuff. Did something happen?”

“It’s no biggie, don’t worry about.” Rainbow waved at him. “Rarity just… hurt herself, so we’re getting some stuff to patch her up.”

Applejack narrowed her eyes. “Way to water that down, Rainbow.”

“Uh, well, either way, I heard you girls are short on money?” Flash interrupted and grinned.

“Yeah, we’re sixteen dollars short…” Fluttershy answered softly.

“Sixteen, huh?” Flash took out his wallet and flipped through it. “I’m sure I can do something about that.”

Fluttershy blushed and shook her head. “Oh, no no no, we couldn’t ask you t-to do s-something like that…”

“No, it’s fine.” Flash held out two ten dollar bills to them. “After what you girls and Twilight did to save us, this isn’t even enough of a gesture for you. Go on. Rarity needs it, right?”

“R-Really? You’ll do that?”

“Don’t sweat it. You girls deserve more.”

“Well then, thank ya kindly, Flash,” Applejack said, accepting the money. “Let’s go pay and then see to Rarity.”

The four of them went to the counter to pay for the supplies, then hurried back outside to where Pinkie and Rarity were waiting. Rarity seemed to have stabilized a little in the time they had been gone. She was still rocking back and forth and staring out into the distance, but at least she wasn’t babbling about holes anymore.

“Rarity, I’ve got the medical supplies.” Fluttershy knelt down in front of her and removed the wipes from her shopping bag. “This might sting a little, so… hold still, okay?”

The fashionista was squeamish and resistant as Fluttershy gave her wounds a wipe, but once she got to applying the aloe vera lotion, Rarity seemed to calm down more.

“That looks really painful.” Flash stood behind Rainbow and Applejack, looking at the disheveled Rarity. “What happened to her?”

“We haven’t got a word out of her yet, besides something about a hole.” Rainbow shrugged. “She’s been in shock or something.”

“I… I don’t even think I know what I saw…” Rarity rubbed at her shoulder, then wiped at her face with one of the wet wipes Fluttershy handed her, cleaning up her smeared makeup. “It was this sludge… at my boutique… So… dreadful. So dirty. My clothes… What am I going to do?”

She continued mumbling to herself, all the while rocking back and forth.

“She doesn’t look too good. Maybe she should go to a hospital,” Flash suggested. The girls all turned to look at him. “What? Oh, I mean, not a mental hospital. I meant like, a hospital hospital.”

“Ohhhh,” they all said at once.

“Rarity just needs some time to let it wash over.” Fluttershy began bandaging up the girl’s arm.

“Look, even her shirt is torn.” Flash pointed. “I don’t think Rarity would let that slide in a normal situation.”

“Well, best we can do now is wait.” Applejack stood up and adjusted her hat. “Man, with summer rollin’ around, it’s gettin’ mighty hot. Might be time for a change o’ attire.”

“Or a swim.” Rainbow pulled off her jacket. “Hey, anyone want to hit the pool with me?”

“How about that abandoned quarry at the edge of the city.” Pinkie’s eyes widened, as did her smile. “You know? That really big one that no one will ever find you if you drown at? That’s perfect for a swimming hangout.”

“Yeahhhhh, no thanks, Pinkie.” Rainbow didn’t know whether she was joking or being serious. “I might be called Rainbow ‘Danger’ Dash, but that’s just nuts.”

“Yeah, imagine if you hit your head at the bottom...” Fluttershy gulped as she finished applying the bandages. “I don’t think that’s a g-good idea at all…”

“Oh well!” Pinkie hopped about happily. “I’ll come with, Dashie!”

“I suppose I should get going.” Flash pointed a thumb behind him. “Hey, do you girls need a ride back? I could drop Rarity back at her place too.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Rainbow nodded. “I don’t think it’s a good idea to leave Rarity alone, at least for a few hours.”

“I’ll come along then.” Fluttershy packed the rest of her supplies back into her bag and grinned. “I’ll have to make sure Rarity’s well cared for.”

“Then it’s off for a swim for me and Pinkie.” Rainbow fished out her phone and dangled it between two fingers. “If you need anything, you know who to call.”

“The Poltergeist Crackers?” Pinkie snickered.

“No.”

As Rainbow watched Flash Sentry lead Fluttershy and Rarity away from the alley, she couldn’t help but wonder just what had spooked and injured Rarity so bad that she couldn’t even tell them what happened. She mentioned ooze and a hole. She still didn’t know what that hole meant, but maybe it had something to do with the railing on the bridge at Maple Road. That’s when she had first mentioned it.

Then again, sleuthing wasn’t her speciality. It was Rarity’s, so she couldn’t really come to any solid conclusions except for one thing. Something bad had happened to Rarity, and Rainbow had a feeling that it wasn’t over yet.

Author's Note

Seeing as the movie was more recent than the book, it's a little fresher in my mind, so here's a scene from the movie! Sorta.

I hope you still enjoyed it! Cheers!