Tell Her Tail

Allura fell, a fiery plight,
The magma below, a dreadful sight
Twitch, brave and bold, did follow suit,
A daring leap, a desperate route

A mushroom clutched, a hope restored,
A chance to live, a precious reward
The mushroom grasped, a bitter taste,
It's restorative power, soon embraced

Her wings, reborn, with newfound might,
She soared upward, a glorious sight.
Twitch, safe and sound, in her embrace,
They fled the danger, left the place.

As the island shrank into a tiny speck behind them, Allura felt the wind rushing through her fur, the air cool and sharp against her face. For a moment, she let herself revel in the simple thrill of flying—wings beating in a strong, steady rhythm as they cut through the sky. But then, the events of the past few minutes played back in her mind, and she glanced down at Twitch, who was still nestled snugly in her grasp.

He had jumped after her. Risked everything to save her. She could still see the determination in his bright little eyes, the way he’d stretched his paw as far as he could to get that mushroom into her mouth. A life-saving gamble without a moment's hesitation.

She felt a lump forming in her throat, a weight pressing against her chest that had nothing to do with the little rabbit curled up there. Twitch had leaped after her without a second thought, without hesitation, into a volcano. He’d risked everything to save her.

She glanced down at Twitch, his purple fur catching the sunlight, making him look like a small, amethyst gem against her. “You… you really risked your life back there,” she murmured, trying to sound casual, but the words came out softer than she intended.

Twitch looked up at her, his expressive eyes glimmering with something that made her heart tighten. He nodded once, solemnly, and then nuzzled deeper into her chest, his nose twitching against her fur.

Allura swallowed harder, fighting against an even larger lump in her throat, feeling her emotions threatening to spill over. She focused her gaze straight ahead, over the endless ocean, her wings gliding effortlessly on the warm currents of air. “You could have been a king, you know,” she said, “Servants, a throne, all the carrots you could eat… It’s a pretty sweet deal, Twitch. That's basically the kind of setup I've been trying to achieve this whole time back with those stupid ponies. If I've wanted that life, then you must have wanted it too. I mean, who wouldn’t want that?”

Twitch just shrugged against her, his expression utterly disinterested in the idea. Allura let out a shaky breath, trying to play it cool. She just wasn’t used to these feelings—this warmth in her chest that wasn't from the sun or the heated rush of battle. She cleared her throat, trying to sound nonchalant.

“Are you sure?” she pressed, her tone light but her eyes searching his face. “I mean, I could just turn around, drop you back on that island, and you could be a king. You know, just say the word and—”

Before she could finish, Twitch reached up with a tiny paw and tore off the crown that was still perched between his ears. He flung it into the wind without a moment’s hesitation. It tumbled and twisted before disappearing into the blue waves below. The necklace followed in kind, falling apart as it fell before vanishing beneath the water.

Allura blinked in surprise, her heart giving a strange, unfamiliar flutter in her chest. Before she could say anything, Twitch climbed up her leg with surprising speed, his tiny claws gripping onto her fur until he reached her back. He scrambled up, settling himself against the back of her neck. His small arms wrapped around her tightly, hugging her with all his strength. He pressed his face against her cheek, his soft fur brushing against hers in a tender nuzzle.

“You’re… you’re a fool, you know that?” she huffed, hoping her tone still carried some bite. “You could’ve had it all. Why would you give that up just to—just to save me?”

Allura felt a prickling at the corners of her eyes, an unwelcome moisture that she quickly blinked away. She sniffled once, just a tiny bit, before reminding herself fiercely that she was an evil, villainous winged snow leopard who always gets what she wants. Emotions were weaknesses, cracks in her armor. She had no place for them in her heart, especially not now, not after everything she’d been through.

But still…

She glanced back at Twitch, who seemed perfectly content, his eyes half-closed in the comfort of their shared warmth, and something inside her softened—just a little. “You’re ridiculous, you know that?” she muttered, her tone softer than she intended. “But… thanks. Really. For what you did back there.”

Twitch responded by pressing his head against her cheek again, his fur brushing hers with a tenderness that sent another unexpected warmth through her.

“Alright, alright, that’s enough,” she said quickly, trying to shake off the strange fluttering sensation in her stomach. “Let’s just… focus on getting out of here. I don’t want any more surprises today.”

With a steady flap of her wings, she propelled them higher, into a patch of fluffy white clouds that rolled across the sky like soft waves. The wind whistled around them, cool and refreshing. She felt Twitch’s little paws tighten slightly around her neck, and she let herself smile, just a tiny bit, her lips quirking upwards.

“Yeah,” she muttered to herself under her breath, “thanks, Twitch.”

"I think. . . I would do the same for him," Allura thought to herself, amazed that there was anything she cared about more than her own ambition.

She dwelled on this during what felt like hours of flying, until the mainland finally loomed ahead—a swath of green and brown, dotted with the distant shapes of buildings and roads. Allura felt a rush of relief at the sight of civilization. Her wings were tired from the long flight over the open ocean, and her muscles ached from the strain of endurance flying. But she pressed on, determined to reach solid ground.

She grinned to herself, already imagining the havoc she could wreak—the villagers bowing and scraping, terrified of the mighty winged snow leopard come to claim their town as her own.

Allura landed with a thud on a patch of soft grass, her paws sinking slightly into the dirt. She stretched her wings, feeling the satisfying pull of muscles. Twitch hopped off her back, shaking his little body to get rid of the stiffness from riding for so long. Allura watched him for a moment, considering her options.

“What do you think, Twitch?” she mused aloud. “Should we go terrorize whatever creatures live here? Make them our loyal subjects? Conscript them in our quest for revenge on Sunny Starscout and her friends? I bet they’ve never seen anything like me before.”

Twitch paused, sniffing the air. Then, suddenly, he squeaked in pain, his body jerking sideways. Allura’s eyes widened in horror as she saw him wobble dizzily and fall flat on his face. A dart protruded from his back, its feathered end quivering slightly.

“Twitch!” Allura screamed, her voice raw with panic. “No! No, no, no! Please don't be poisoned! Don't be dea—”

Before she could finish, she felt a sharp sting in her haunch. She twisted around, seeing a dart embedded in her rear. A low growl rose in her throat, and she yanked the dart out with her teeth, spitting it aside with disdain.

“A single dart?” she scoffed, her wings flaring out aggressively “That’s not gonna stop a mighty winged snow leopard like—”

More darts flew through the air, landing with pinpoint accuracy on her rear. One, two, three, four—Allura stopped counting as they peppered her haunches. Her eyes widened in surprise, and she swayed slightly on her paws.

“Oh... okay,” she grumbled, her words slurring, “That should… be enough…”

And then the world tilted, and everything went black.