Fluttershy’s melodic humming filled the little cottage on the outskirts of Ponyville. The evidence of little muddy footprints and collected dust needed to be cleaned, and Fluttershy could think of no better way to do it than through song. Chipmunks, mice, squirrels, and racoons wove in and out of her hooves while little birds hovered overhead, bobbing and weaving to keep time.
Knock knock!
Fluttershy’s tune came to an abrupt stop when she heard a soft knock. It surprised her a little to be interrupted, but she shook her head and smiled as she trotted to answer her door.
“Hello?” she gleefully asked, her face reflecting a rare excitement for the prospect of visitors. However, that joy was stilted and a lump formed in her throat at the sight of the pony swaying on her doorstep. Applejack, one of Fluttershy’s nearest and dearest friends, offered her a weak smile, but it did little to mask the horrors Fluttershy was seeing. The once proud and strong earth pony looked as if a breath of a breeze would topple her over. Her hooves shook in place, as she stood before her pegasus friend, making it difficult for her to stand. Her orange coat, that once held a strong resemblance to the fruit of its namesake, paled to better match the delicate petals of a faded rose. Applejack shuddered with each breath; heavy and labored like Fluttershy would hear after a long day apple bucking in the hot sun of summer. Finally, beads of sweat littered AJ’s brow in numbers that rivaled the freckles on her pale cheeks. Applejack looked horrendously ill.
“F-fluttershy. Ah… Ah’m so sorry Ah didn’t come sooner when Ah heard…” She started, but Fluttershy’s compassionate instincts took over before her friend could finish her thought. Fluttershy fanned out her wings and flew around the mare before hooking her front hooves under Applejack’s. AJ reared up, as Fluttershy involuntarily ushered her inside and straight to the old green couch near the door.
“Applejack! You look just awful, what on earth are you doing out of bed?” Fluttershy scolded.
“N-nonsense. Ah… ah heard about Angel bunny and ah… ah wanted to be here to show mah support,” Applejack wheezed, her breath refusing to catch up with her.
“Does Granny Smith know you’re here? Or Big Mac?” Fluttershy asked. She didn’t make eye contact or slow her pace as she spoke. Fluttershy flitted around the cottage, in a mad dash effort to make her friend more comfortable. Before AJ could protest, stacks of pillows, blankets, and a cold compress were carefully arranged on, and around the mare. Fluttershy was a pony on a mission, and she wouldn’t be satisfied until her efforts to help her friend were completely exhausted.
“Ah don’t need a babysitter,” Applejack grumbled as she fidgeted with the blanket that Fluttershy swaddled too tightly to the mare’s side.
Fluttershy ignored her friend’s protest. She turned next to the help of her animal friends, who worried more at her reaction to Applejack, than for Applejack herself. However, helping Fluttershy was a joy for her animals, and many of them didn’t need to be told what to do. For years, they’d watched Fluttershy care for ailing creatures, and most often, there was a structure to their care. Two little squirrels carried the wet towel to Applejack’s forehead, laying it softly across her temples. Song birds busied themselves retucking the blankets into place, when Applejack would try to wriggle free of their grasp. Harry the Bear gingerly poured some medicine into a wooden spoon and held it out to the mare with an expectant expression on his face. Applejack, unnerved, just chuckled and shook her head.
“Uh… heh heh… no thanks, Ah’m good.”
“Good? You look the furthest thing from good!” Fluttershy called when she re-entered the room. Her hooves were full of even more pillows, and Applejack couldn’t help but wonder where on earth she was going to stick them. AJ already felt wrapped up tighter than a caterpillar in its cocoon.
“Ah didn’t come here just so you could fuss over me, Fluttershy. Ah’m fine, really,” Applejack protested, as Fluttershy managed to find new crevices for these additional pillows, to prop up her friend.
“It’s no bother. If anything, helping you will take my mind off of… of…” Fluttershy’s voice cracked. It was the first time the lingering thought in the back of her head had pushed itself to the forefront of her mind. Applejack’s face melted from annoyance to sympathy. She reasoned that her friend was going a little overboard with her pampering, to try and keep the sorrow at bay. If that was how Applejack could help her, she would endure this treatment… to a point.
“Fluttershy…” Applejack whispered, she wrestled a front hoof free and reached out to rub her friend’s back. “Ah’m so sorry. What… what happened? How did he… well, ya know?”
Fluttershy wiped the tears from her eyes, and sucked in the next sob to answer. She braved a small smile.
“It’s called Snuffles. It’s a disease that is contracted primarily by rabbits and bunnies. It’s an infection and… well, it’s really difficult to cure. I’m just grateful the other bunnies aren’t showing any symptoms, I’m not sure my heart could take it.”
Applejack was surprised at the monotony in her friend’s response, but chalked it up to grief.
“Snuffles, huh? Sounds… way too cute to be a deadly disease.” Applejack tried to break the tension with a half laugh, and Fluttershy smiled slightly in response.
“Yes, I suppose it does.” Fluttershy answered simply. She stood up and continued her previous task of straightening up the room. As she did so, she purposefully kept her gaze from meeting Applejack’s.
“Well, thank Celestia not all diseases are created equal. This here Potomac Fever is really whoopin’ mah flank. Ah’ll show it what-for soon enough,” Applejack chuckled.
“Potomac fever?” Fluttershy whirled around to face AJ, concern written across her face. “How do you know it’s--”
“Just saw the doc yesterday; said it was still in the early stages, so Ah’ll have to keep an eye on it. Ah only remember the name cuz it’s got ‘Mac’ in it. Ah told ‘im he must have been the one to give it to me in the first place.”
Fluttershy could tell her friend was greatly exaggerating her condition with a joke, but she also knew that Applejack was as stubborn as they come. AJ wouldn’t have gone to see the doctor, unless home remedies had failed her, and it was beyond the point of rest and liquids. No, Fluttershy knew it must be serious.
“You walked all the way to my cottage with Potomac Fever?” Fluttershy gaped.
“I-it’s alright! Ain't contagious or nothin’, not since the doc gave me a shot. Ah’d never get my friends sick.” Applejack said, panicked that Fluttershy believed she was being careless. “Ah know Ah should be restin’ but… Rainbow told me Angel passed and… well, the rest of ‘em got to comfort ya, and it was my turn, consarnit!”
Fluttershy didn’t wince at the mention of her beloved pet’s name, or his passing. Her thoughts were focused now on Applejack, and though it wasn’t a favorable distraction, it was a distraction nonetheless. Fluttershy looked in the direction of her bedroom, and recalled a book she’d borrowed from Twilight years past, and never returned. It was a book on diseases, ailments, and most importantly: cures. If there was even a chance she could help her friend, she would take it.
“Will you excuse me for a moment, Applejack?”
“Sure thing, Sugarcube. Ah’ll just…. rest up here, Ah guess.” Applejack said, unable to do anything but succumb to her cushy prison on the couch.
Fluttershy briskly trotted to the bedroom, and her animal friends all followed suit. They’d done their part, and awaited her orders with bright, hopeful eyes. Fluttershy closed the door softly, before she scanned her small bookshelf, and pulled out the book she’d been seeking.
“Let’s see here, Potomac… potomac…”
She spied the name in the table of contents, and let out a sigh in relief. She feverishly flipped to the corresponding page number, and her animal friends crowded in to see, despite being unable to read. Fluttershy’s hope dimmed like a candle seeking oxygen, until it felt as though it would be snuffed out. The last two words on the page read ‘potentially deadly’ but other key words like ‘long term suffering’ and ‘difficult to cure’ echoed in her head with rising volume. She read the passage again, biting back the rising terror, then read it a third time. She knew she was unconsciously doing so, to keep the reality at bay, because each piercing word left less hope in its wake. Eventually, the flame kept alive by denial, was extinguished.
Fluttershy’s facial expression changed to that of a stern mother about to reprimand her children. She closed the book, narrowly missing the tail of a curious chipmunk who had fallen on the page while trying to get a better view.
“I need you to leave now, little friends.” Fluttershy said, her tone was not light and airy, but firm, fringing on cross.
The animals looked at one another in confusion, and then back at her.
“That wasn’t a request. I don’t want to have to use my stare.”
The change in her overall demeanor and tone, was enough to convince them that she meant business. The very mention of the dreaded ‘stare’ sent them scattering around the room, towards the known exits. Harry the Bear got himself stuck in her window sill, when trying to make his hasty exit. Fluttershy’s sternness melted at that sight, and she helped pull him free. The animals too big for the window, would need to go out the back door.
Fluttershy opened her bedroom door at last, and Applejack was greeted with a miniature stampede of animals for the exit.
“Don’t come back until I call for you, is that understood?”
The animals didn’t seem to acknowledge Fluttershy as they scampered out the door, and into the nearby trees. When Fluttershy turned back to Applejack, she saw the confused expression on her friend’s face.
“Uh… what was that about?” Applejack asked.
“I don’t want them here for this discussion, Applejack.” Fluttershy answered simply. She locked the back door before she moved to the windows. Applejack could only watch in sheer bewilderment as Fluttershy worked to lock down her house, presumably from her animals.
“What discussion? What’s goin’ on?”
“I may not be a doctor but I do know a thing or two about diseases, especially ones that affect my animal friends,” Fluttershy answered flatly.
“Ah told ya Ah ain’t contagious! ‘specially to critters! Ah don’t think they can catch this sorta thing, the doc said it was a pony disease!” Applejack hoarsely shouted with a string of coughs that followed.
“Yes, I did see that. I found an entry about Potomac Disease in a book. Don’t worry, I know they aren’t in any danger.”
“Then… what’s this about?”
Fluttershy finished the lock down with the last window bolted, and for the first time since meeting the pegasus, Applejack felt uneasy.
Fluttershy left the room momentarily without answering. When she returned, Applejack noted the peculiar outfit she now wore. Fluttershy was in a long, blue dress that draped loosely over her frame. It was devoid of frills or accentuating accessories, and she could already imagine Rarity's dismay. Applejack, however, appreciated its simplicity. She had seen similar gowns in style with this one in more rural areas of Equestria; including hometowns of distant Apple family members. The tight collar around the neck, and the cuffed sleeves, reminded her of the older generation of Apples. The dress was uninspired alone, but Fluttershy had paired it with a simple white apron that tied around her waist, completing the look. AJ also noted the small white case she carried under her wing. It took her a moment to understand why Fluttershy would wear such an ensemble, but the thought eventually dawned on her: She looked like a nurse. The case especially was the giveaway. Fluttershy approached, and set it carefully on the ground. She opened the latch to reveal the red cross on the side, confirming Aj's suspicions.
“Ah don’t think this is somethin’ first aid can fix, Fluttershy. But Ah'm grateful ya wanna help me.” Applejack inserted a laugh at the end of her words, trying to puncture the uncomfortable atmosphere, that had fallen like a shroud on the room.
Fluttershy pulled up a stool, and sat beside her friend. She smiled down at her with a loving, but worried gleam in her eye.
“I’m afraid I’m the only one who can help you now, Applejack. Maybe it was fate that you came today after all.” Fluttershy finished her sentence by turning the case to show Applejack the contents: a series of large syringes, ending in sharp needle points, that were filled with an unknown liquid. Applejack was instantly on edge, a quiver of fear shot up her spine. She wrestled with the pillows and blankets in a frenzy and tried to climb over the back of the couch to get away from them.
“Wha-what in the hay are those for?! And where in Equestria did ya get ‘em!?” she squeaked in horror.
“Relax, Applejack. You act like I’m going to hurt you!” Fluttershy giggled for the first time since her friend’s arrival. Although AJ was still tense, Fluttershy’s giggle did calm her enough to stop her attempt to flee.
“Heh… yeah… that’s uh… a funny joke, Fluttershy. So uh… what are those anyway?”
Fluttershy’s movements were so fast and fluid, that there was no chance for AJ to defend herself. In one swift motion, Fluttershy had pried one of the syringes from its place, held it aloft in her wing, then plunged it into Applejack’s side. AJ yelped in confused terror. She leapt off the couch, causing an avalanche of pillows and blankets to fall on Fluttershy, it temporarily suffocated her while AJ headed for the door. AJ's breath was ragged and panicked as her shaking hooves wrestled with the lock. Fluttershy flew free of the fluffy masses in the interim, and landed near the door, but did nothing to stop the earth pony.
“Dr. Fauna gave them to me. They’re sedatives, to help me bring ailing animals to her clinic if they’re being too rowdy.” She reached out a hoof to Applejack warily. “Don’t resist it, Applejack, you’ll only hurt yourself! Please relax, I don’t want to hurt you!”
“Fluttershy why… Why did ya DO that? Why… why…” Applejack’s speech slurred and her vision blurred. Her thoughts were desperate; they begged her limbs not to succumb to the numbness, before she could get out the door. The glorious sound of the lock click gave her a temporary rush of adrenaline, but Applejack was pulled too quickly into darkness. She slumped to the ground at Fluttershy’s hooves as the pegasus clicked the lock back into place.
*~*~*~*~*
Applejack awoke with a jolt and a scream, when she felt something soft pressed firmly to her muzzle. Her impulses reacted faster than her thoughts. She thrashed wildly on the soft bed, and flung her hooves at the assailant, while her brain caught up with itself. Fluttershy let out an ‘eep’ of pain as she was thrown backwards onto the floor. She skidded to a stop and lost grip of the pillow in her hooves. It flew overhead and landed in the far corner of the room.
“Fluttershy?! What in the hell are ya DOIN’?! Ya coulda killed me!”
“Well…” Fluttershy whispered meekly; she rubbed her wing with a wince. “That’s sort of the idea, Applejack.”
“What… what do ya mean, Fluttershy? What’s goin’ on? Are… are ya Chrysalis in disguise?!” Applejack’s thoughts were far more frantic now that she got her bearings. She grasped at explanations that, though far-fetched, made more sense than the obvious one that painted her best friend as an attempted murderer.
“Oh! You must be terribly confused! This wasn’t supposed to happen, you weren’t supposed to feel anything!” Sadness infused Fluttershy’s voice. As before, the pegasus’s movements were fast and fluid. She sprang from the floor, a syringe Applejack hadn’t seen, now grasped in her wing, and haphazardly plunged it into AJ’s flank. Applejack roared in pain and confusion. She smacked Fluttershy’s hoof away from the syringe, before she could finish emptying the liquid into her side. It now hung awkwardly to the side of her flank, pulling on the skin and muscle. AJ ignored the pain for a moment; her priority was keeping Fluttershy away. She threw the blankets within reach from the bed and overtop the mare. While Fluttershy struggled to free herself, AJ squeezed her eyes shut and sucked in a pained gasp through clenched teeth. She attempted to pull the partially full syringe free from her flesh, but the movement snapped the needle in the process. The remaining liquid spilled onto the bed; a thin metal stub sticking out of her side, like a half-erected cross on a new grave.
“Oh dear! Here, let me get that for you.” Fluttershy leapt from the floor and wrestled Applejack down to pry the broken piece from her flank. AJ wasn’t used to seeing such strength and agility from somepony she’d only ever seen acting frail and delicate. AJ tried to put up a fight, but her hooves were already starting to feel heavy. Whatever sedative Fluttershy managed to plunge into her bloodstream was apparently taking hold already; and Applejack's heart raced at the thought. To her horror, she realized sheer brute force wouldn’t save her; she would have to convince her instead.
“F-Fluttershy? Just lemme go and we’ll forget this ever happened, all right? Ah’m the element of Honesty so… so Ah can’t lie about that kind of thing, can ah? Ah won’t breathe a word.”
Keeping the tremor from her voice took more effort than her attempt to move. Even so, AJ’s hooves dragged sluggishly over the bed like they’d been filled with molasses. She was unaware that she’d lost all sensation in them, so when they connected awkwardly to the floor, they would be unable to bear her weight. Fluttershy’s eyes widened in concern as she raced around the bed to catch Applejack before the inevitable fall. Their bodies connected as Fluttershy struggled to hold them both upright.
“Be careful! I don’t want you to hurt yourself.”
The audacity of Fluttershy’s statement erased AJ’s facade.
“Ya just tried to KILL ME, FLUTTERSHY! How can you TALK LIKE THAT?”
Fluttershy’s ears dropped and she lowered her head, though Applejack would be unable to see. It took some finagling, but Fluttershy was able to dump her friend awkwardly back onto the bed, her hooves laid out useless at her sides. Fluttershy, soon after, left AJ’s line of sight, and that sent a shiver of fear down the earth pony's spine. She grunted and rolled herself on the bed to face the mare who was rummaging around in that cursed white case.
“Oh! This is all going so wrong! I knew I should have used more sedatives… you’re a pony, after all, not a rabbit.”
“Wh-what?” Applejack stammered, the realization finally hitting her. “You’ve… you’ve sedated a… was it Angel? Yer own PET?”
Fluttershy looked shamefaced. “I guess I’d better explain myself…”
“YA THINK?”
By Celestia’s grace, Applejack watched in relief as the pegasus moved away from the case without a new syringe in hoof. It was a momentary victory for the farm pony, one she would not let pass her by. She strained to bring life back into her hooves while Fluttershy explained.
“Snuffles is a deadly disease, Applejack. Like yours, it’s difficult to cure and the rabbit would be suffering for months, even if they did eventually recover. The likelihood of that happening was… well, not guaranteed. I couldn’t see some creature I loved suffer like that! I had to be strong. I had to be his “angel”… his little angel of mercy.”
“M-mercy? As in… mercy killin’?!” Applejack gaped, the urgency rising. She could hear the pounding of her heart in her head as she willed her front right hoof to move.
“Mm hmm. It was so hard to do, I cried for hours beforehand, but after his little body stopped squirming under the pillow... all was quiet and peaceful. After all, I had spared him so much pain and hardship. He’s in bunny heaven now, munching on all the carrots and radishes his little heart desires. It was the right decision, Applejack. It gives me peace.”
“So yer gonna kill me ‘cuz ya think Ah’m gonna DIE? Fluttershy, the doctor said Ah was in early stages! That Ah could sleep it off, if Ah take it easy! The most strenuous thing Ah did was come to see you!” Applejack shouted.
A twinge of feeling ran through AJ’s back flank like a symphony of pins and needles. It was painful, but welcomed.
“We both know you’re too stubborn to stay in bed! You’d rather let things get worse before they get better - and by then it’d be too late! Applejack, you were sent here by fate because I’m supposed to help you! As your friend, I refuse to let you suffer. ”
AJ’s short-lived relief was nearing its end. Fluttershy was turned back towards the medical case and running her feathers over the different syringes, presumably looking for the right dosage. Applejack’s ear drums pounded to the beat of her heart rate. Shock wave after shock wave of pain radiated from the hooves she desperately tried to revive.
“I’m doing this because I love you, Applejack. You’re one of my closest, dearest friends in the whole world. I’m going to miss you very much.”
“Don’t Ah get a say in it?! Don’t Ah get to decide whether or not Ah wanna suffer through it?!” Applejack screamed to try and buy more precious time. Tears of effort, pain, and horror slid down her cheeks, but she knew better than to make a sound.
“By the time you realize you would rather not suffer anymore, you’ll be too sick to say it! All your loved ones will have to watch you waste away... Do you really want to put them through that? This has to happen, Applejack. It’s the only way.”
Fluttershy turned, the apologetic expression on her face, a stark contrast to the syringe held aloft in her wing. AJ barely had time to react to its terrifying size. She knew this was her moment, and she had no choice but to give it all she had.
“No Fluttershy, it AIN’T!”
Applejack rolled to her stomach and pressed her hooves to the bed. That pressure on her front hooves hurt more than the life-saving buck that they propelled behind her. Her grunt of effort turned into a scream of triumph when she felt her hooves make contact with the pegasus. The force of the blow knocked the wind from Fluttershy and sent her reeling.
Applejack knew there would be pain to follow, but she refused to cave into it. With grim determination, she rolled herself off the bed and landed hard on the other side. She focused on nothing but her front hooves as they shakily dragged her forward. The force of the buck left her back hooves temporarily useless, but she refused to let that slow her down. As her freedom inched closer, she could hear soft sounds of whimpers and cries coming from the pegasus regaining her composure.
Thinking fast, Applejack took note of Fluttershy’s desk nearby. Perched atop was a lantern, presumably used as a nightlight. The farm pony beat her front hooves against the desk to rock it back and forth violently.
“A-Applejack?” Fluttershy asked in a daze. She gingerly ran her hoof over her heaving chest as she searched for the tell-tale signs of serious injury. Her ears swiveled in Applejack’s direction at the sound of the desk beating against the wall. She was confused at first, but when the realization took hold, she shouted out in concern: “Applejack!”
Applejack’s brow was as moist as her cheeks. She screamed through gritted teeth as she continued to slam against the desk, throwing more of her weight into every thrust. Finally, the frame bowed to the pressure and splintered; its resting contents scattered about the floor in a crash that reverberated around the cottage.
“Look out!” Fluttershy launched herself into the air to keep the bulk of the debri from colliding into Applejack. AJ’s eyes were fixed on the lantern, which Fluttershy thankfully forgot to snag before it could shatter. Her hoof snapped out to the shard remains and clutched the biggest, sharpest piece she could reach. She rolled onto her back so she could hold the shard up in Fluttershy’s direction, and her chest heaved.
“Oh, so ya DON’T want me to die THAT way, huh? Ya’d rather do the dirty work yerself!” Applejack’s reply was haggard and accompanied by more fearful coughs.
“Oh Applejack, I told you, I don’t want you to suffer. A fallen desk would only bring you pain, not death!” Fluttershy pleaded, a twisted way to justify her own logic. She slowly moved towards Applejack, hooves outstretched, like she was going to carry her to the bed, the way a loving mother does to her foal after a nightmare.
“Don’t come any closer!” Applejack held the shard in shaking hooves. The pins and needles sensation in her hind hooves had been slowly receding, but she needed more time. To play it up for Fluttershy, AJ emphasized the tremor in her front hooves. She wanted her to believe there was enough sedative in Applejack’s system to make even simple tasks difficult. To really sell it home, Applejack flopped onto the ground and sent the shard skittering across the floor; she even managed to choke out a sob.
“Oh Applejack! Come here!” Fluttershy exclaimed. She swaddled her close with her hooves and wings, pressing her snout into Applejack’s mane and rocking her back and forth. Applejack felt a tear fall from Fluttershy, and the bitter irony boiled her blood. “It’ll all be over soon. No more suffering, I promise.”
Applejack didn’t respond, her eyes were fixated away from the pegasus as her limp limbs were awkwardly tossed over Fluttershy’s back. She felt an innate sense of pleasure hearing the pegasus struggle under the weight. Slow, careful hoofsteps took Applejack further from the door and back to the prison that was Fluttershy’s bed. Fluttershy attempted to be gentle, but found the awkwardness of Applejack’s body too cumbersome. For the third time, Applejack landed on the mattress springs to await her demise.
Fluttershy let out a sigh of relief after having unloaded her friend, and that was the point the tables officially turned. Applejack wasn’t sure how much of her body she had control of, so she let out a panicked outcry in anticipation of pain when she leapt from the bed. To her relief, her legs connected to the ground with minimal discomfort. AJ spun on her front hooves to buck in Fluttershy’s direction, but the pegasus dodged, leaping into the air in horror and surprise. Learning from her first attempt, AJ’s next move was to destroy the sedatives. She raced for the medical case before Fluttershy could follow her train of thought, and react. Handle clenched in the earth pony’s teeth, she rocketed out of the room while the case flopped open. One by one the accursed needles were pried from their pouches and slammed onto the wooden floor in front of AJ. She trampled them for good measure as she ran; the shards biting into her hooves until the numbness started to take hold.
“Applejack! Applejack stop! You’re only going to make it worse!” Fluttershy called after her, pausing in her pursuit to try and salvage the destroyed remnants of her sedatives.
Applejack’s hooves and head were on fire as the strange cocktail of pains roared to the forefront of her mind. At the worst possible moment, her illness reared its ugly head through a fit of coughs. The last syringe was destroyed amidst the coughing and a scream of agony. But to Applejack’s delight, the blurred outline of her salvation, the back door, was finally within reach. In her haze, she stopped her sprint too late and her body slammed harshly into the door. Applejack hollered one final plea as she tried to right herself.
“Ah won’t say a word, Ah promise!”
AJ braced for the other mare’s touch, knowing the collision would have given Fluttershy the chance to catch up. However, moments turned into seconds and Applejack realized she couldn’t hear the pegasus's pursuit. She spun her head around in confusion, but didn’t waste what precious seconds she had to find out where she’d gone. Through unimaginable pain and shaking, she fumbled with the lock until the glorious click was heard. She was finally free.
A soft grunt from behind Applejack stole the moments of joy from the farm pony when they were followed by a sudden sharp pain that seared in the center of her back.
The pounding of her heart in her ears masked Fluttershy’s approach in those final moments, but it did not encumber the pain. Astonished, Applejack turned to see what had happened, but was only able to make out a knife’s outline protruding from her shadow.
AJ’s mind went blank. She opened her mouth to speak, but the words never came. Her only reality was the slowing beats of her heart echoing ever dimly in the encroaching darkness. AJ collapsed at Fluttershy’s hooves, while the murderer sobbed bitterly over her victim.
“I’m so sorry! You weren’t supposed to suffer… I’m so sorry… so so sorry. It’ll be over soon. I promise, the pain will stop,” Fluttershy wept, smoothing hair from her friend’s face.
All Applejack could do was look up at her with a heartbreaking expression of confusion, agony, and betrayal. Fluttershy pulled AJ into a hug, her tears mixing with the thin line of blood escaping Applejack’s lips. She cradled her there and mourned the loss of her friend until she could no longer hear her friend’s ragged breaths or feel her hooves tremor.
There was a silence that lingered in the little cottage on the hilltop, but only for a moment. It was broken when Fluttershy gingerly laid the body on the floor, then hastily and methodically grabbed a mop.
*~*~*~*~*~*
The next day’s sun bore down unmercifully over Sweet Apple Acres. As the soft-spoken pegasus lightly trotted up the pathway towards the farmhouse, she noted the absence of the apple family in the orchard. Clutched firmly under her wing was a rather banged-up white medical case with newly placed contents. She reached the door and gently knocked against the aging wood. After a moment of no response, she knocked again a little more firmly.
“Come in.”
Fluttershy recognized Granny Smith’s voice and she smiled. She pushed open the door to find Applejack’s granny resting in her rocking chair. Fluttershy’s attention went immediately to Granny’s brow where speckles of sweat had formed, then to the obvious tremor in her hooves.
“Oh Fluttershy, you haven’t seen Applejack, have you? She’s terribly sick and she’s run off. Big Mac and Apple Bloom are out lookin’ fer her, you don’t mind helping, do ya?”
“Actually, I came to check on you. I heard about her condition and I know it can be contagious before getting a proper shot. It looks like you’re sweating already.” Fluttershy gingerly wiped Granny’s brow.
“No no, it’s just heat ‘n worry,” Granny retorted. “I don’t know what I’ll do if she doesn’t get home soon. I can’t manage much more pain.”
“I know. That’s why I’m here. I’m going to make the pain stop, Granny Smith, I promise.”
Author's Note
I've always wanted to write a convincing grimdark for Fluttershy! She's such a sweet and compassionate mare; so what if THAT was what made her so terrifying??
Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed it!
