A Cloudsdalian Hengstwolf in Ponyvilleby Il1k4m4m4sChaptersNocturnal creatures are not so prudentKeep it cagedHelp me believe it’s not the real meNever said that I want thisCreatures lie hereNocturnal creatures are not so prudentIt was the witching hour of Nightmare Night in Ponyville. The clap of thunder briefly drowned out the pretend screams of ponies from all ages alike in the streets outside. The group of six was split: Twilight lied close to a handful of forest creatures and Fluttershy inside the latter's cozy blanket fort, she'd convinced her timid friend to read some ghost stories together; Rarity was occupied convincing Sweetie Belle to sleep despite her lil’ sis's insistence of her two friends still going trick or treating out there; Pinkie Pie was busy being... well, being Pinkie Pie, going from event to event to get as much candy as she could. As for a certain farmer, she hadn't seen her friendly rival all evening. Certainly odd. That pegasus had never missed being part of that festivity with them. Perhaps she got sic- “WAAAAGH!” A pony's best imitation of a monster's screech suddenly hit Applejack. By instinctively turning her head immediately towards the origin of the sound, her fight or flight reaction subsided as her gaze laid upon the crappiest timberwolf cosplay she'd ever seen, and a half-contained chuckle that quickly became full-blown laughter soon followed. The prank's perpetrator was not amused. “Alright, drop it off, it's not that funny!” Rainbow Dash affirmed, trying to get a mask she was proud of just seconds ago off her face. “Oh, hun, sorry,” Applejack regained most of her composure, “but it's clear ya can't capture the menace those brutes yer playin' as give off.” As if to prove her point, she lightly pinched one of Dash's cheeks, making her blush. The pegasus slapped the earth pony's hoof off her, hopping off the bush she ambushed her from. “This is bullcrap! I can't believe Fluttershy of all ponies did a better job at scaring you last year!” “Actin' like ya weren't runnin' for yer life that time, huh?” “Yeah, well, I-I was like, at least 20% less scared than you anyways!” She averted her gaze. Applejack sighed with a resigned smile, everything really was a competition to her. “Look sugahcube,” she began walking out, “if ya really want to frighten me proper, maybe try an’ get the real thing next time 'round,” she suggested half-jokingly. With a stumped Dash alone, she proceeded to pace in circles, thinking out loud, “It's not even fair, Flutters had the help of all those dumb animals. There's no place in this town where I could find some real freaky beast prop except for-” Her two brain cells rubbed together for an idea. “Zecora's house!” Without missing a beat, the winged menace took flight and went down a familiar zone. The tepid climate of the town abandoned the azure pony in favor of a colder one as she quickly reached civilization's outskirts, her view then only capturing the wild scenery of the acres of greenery ahead. As she traversed above the damp meadows' shrubbery and below the canopy above her that obscured the pale lunar light, she had to admit the whole fully natural area was plenty nice to fly by, the classes she never paid any attention to mentioned something about evapotranspiration, high amounts of water in the air causing pressure differences which lead to breezes that pegasi particularly favored. Thinking about it, she was surprised that any of that stuck to her mind. Being around Twilight for too long must've affected her. The ambience and passing thoughts made the trip feel shorter than it was, and in a tick she could already spot the fancy hut the occultist zebra called home. Her flight muscles took some rest as she landed in the clearing, cantering close to the door to knock on it. No response. She knocked again. Still nothing. She wasn’t home. Dash muttered curses under her breath as she stepped back. No matter. She’d opened that door with mere brute force before… of course, that was back when she was 100% sure the zebra was a malignant foal-eating sorceress. She didn’t have a just excuse to break into somepony’s house this time, but did she need one? She was just going to borrow something of little to no importance for one night, and the only damaged property would be a loose door hinge. Trotting backwards a little, she then galloped a short distance and thrusted into the air with all the speed she could muster. Next thing she felt was a sturdy impact against her forehead and her entire body meeting the unmatched force that is friction as it crashed unceremoniously against a wooden wall. “Owww…” She instinctively raised a hoof towards her head to massage it, only after opening her eyes did she feel some true relief by seeing she'd successfully made it in. There were some bottles and flasks that had fallen off their shelves, spilling liquid on the floor, and the door seemed to be more screwed than she'd expected, but she'd made it. Only that mattered. Now, what even was there to "borrow"? All that could be seen was candles and potions, and by Celestia she had a worrying lot of those. The only other mildly interesting things were tiki masks of sorts, but they probably wouldn't even scare a foal. There were not many other rooms to explore, if any, so the plan was shaping out to be a lost cause. Dash kicked a conveniently placed wolf skull in frustration and made her way out of the hut. ... Dash backtracked and picked the skull up in a rush. “Holy hay, this is perfect!” She squealed with joy, hugging the cadaveric remains but rapidly regretting it after a certain smell of putrefaction hit her nostrils. “Eugh, when was the last time Zecora washed this thing?” By then she should've known it was the real decomposed relic of a canine instead of the most authentic looking Nightmare Night decoration in Equestria but, as per her unofficial philosophy, common sense could sometimes be thrown out of the window in favor of reaching a goal. Besides, Zecora had no reason to keep part of an animal's corpse in her house—she was no hunter or anything! Even then, she admittedly thought those fangs looked mighty dangerous, though maybe it was but a deceptive appearance; she lightly brushed one of her hooves through the lower mandible's molars- KRA-KOW! Thunder struck in the forest, sending Rainbow Dash to a jolt and accidentally making the sharp teeth cause a small cut on her coronary band. “Ow ow ow!” Holding the "prop" with her other front leg, she quickly checked the damage: just above her hoof there was a small red gash. It hurt like a paper cut, but it was no big deal at all. At least, as far as she knew right then. Whatever, she thought, a small price to pay for her little odyssey finally coming to an end. She flew back to Ponyville and, to her dismay, most ponies were already in their houses or heading to them; she correctly assumed Applejack was no exception. Needless to say, it was already past midnight when she took off to those woods... in her defense, she never did check the time the entire evening. Well, she'd just try her prank tomorrow, a late Nightmare Night surprise. Right at that moment hitting the hay sounded like a pretty damn swell idea to her too. She felt more tired than usual. Keep it cagedShe experienced a new kind of nightmare. Usually she only dreamed of silly stuff like losing a competition, or being completely alone, or her precious pet tortoise passing to a better life, but her subconscious mind had just then decided to amp things up unexpectedly. She could see somepony in the distance, laying still and stiff on the grass... What was that about? A thin trail of crimson tinted the ground, it seemed to be coming from the deceased far-away mare, but after looking at herself... why was she soaked in it too? That was definitely not her own body's blood, she simply had a feeling it wasn't; she wouldn't feel so disgusted if that was the case. Oddly enough, she couldn't take her sight off it, the bright color was oddly alluring, even had a little irresistible charm to it she couldn't explain. Perhaps it was all natural, perhaps she should get closer to that carcass and- “Rainbow Dash!” The pegasus was being violently shaken by the element of honesty, it took her a few seconds to process that was even happening as she woke up. “Unghh... calm down, I'm here! It's like, early in the morning, why... how are you even-” She looked around. She wasn't in the sky. She wasn't in her house, nor in one of her comfortable napping clouds. Quite the total opposite in fact. And what the hell was that smell? “Twilight and the rest need us urgently, now! Y'hear?!” Her friend's expression was a bit inscrutable, there was fear mixed with anger towards no one in particular, all highlighted by teary eyes. Dash had never seen something like it, and it was alarming. “Follow me!” shouted the earth pony before taking off. Getting up, shaking the remaining sleepiness out of her, she tried piecing everything together: she'd gotten the skull, gone back to the town and then to sleep in her high-up bed—well, apparently not. It's a miracle Applejack had managed to find her, she hadn't the faintest clue what she was doing near a pond in the middle of... She looked around. She'd been here before, to relax once in a while. So her new somnambulist self definitely knew where she was going. Was it sleepwalking, even? Certainly she'd done more than just walk, there was this extreme tiredness still clinging onto her as if she'd run a marathon, and a weird taste of iron on her tongue, maybe she just got hurt like yesterday when she- Right, the skull. She for sure had lost it forever. She'd add it to her long list of things to worry for later, right then her friends needed her. ❈❈❈ There they all were, everypony except Fluttershy. They seemed shocked by something... actually, shocked would be an understatement. Rarity was at a considerable distance away from the group, muttering under her breath while looking like she was trying not to gag, Pinkie was trembling and covering her eyes, Applejack was staring solemnly at whatever was causing this agitation most likely, and Twilight stopped talking to the former mentioned when she noticed Dash, flying towards her with a concerned expression. “I'm glad you came, Rainbow Dash. I- we don't know how, or why, but this morning some of Fluttershy's pets were found…” She looked down. It was the first time she had to explain something like this. “Promise you'll handle what I'll show you, alright?” “Twilight, I don't like this, stop acting weird... just tell me what's going on!” She demanded with a hint of annoyance that very poorly masked her worry. The princess merely nodded, asking Dash to come with her, crossing the territory's little bridge and heading to a part of the cottage's blooming yard westward. The rest didn't particularly care for her presence, unlike the small animals surrounding the current point of interest. They felt strangely frightened by the pegasus's presence and hopped away. She wasted no chance in peeking, and it took her a considerable bit to process the scene. It was something else. There was no concept of anything even remotely resembling vivisection in Equestria, nor murder as far as the average pony knew, so this was comparable to their ilk seeing a new color. Exposed bloated innards, cartilage poorly covering skeletal structures, red liquid freely flowing out of a small, freshly rotten creature that lay nigh unrecognizable. “We buried the others, but Fluttershy insisted she'd do the honors for this little guy…” Dash wasn't listening. “It was her who first saw this, early in the morning, her scream woke me up and-” From one moment to another the alicorn heard the by then familiar sound of heaving followed by retching, she quickly turned to hold Rainbow Dash whose legs were seconds away from fully faltering. She was alone in this, the others had surely never touched an anatomy or physiology book in their lives, she cursed herself for having let them see something like that with no preparation whatsoever. She just called them to comfort Fluttershy but their insistence on wanting to witness the crime scene was troublesome. Maybe she should've been less vague with what had happened? It was too late anyway. Applejack strode to Twilight, “Ah’ve got this, you go to the cottage.” Rather unsurely, she did as such, gently getting Dash off her when she was certain she wouldn't fall and giving the cowmare one last look of trust before cantering off. “Rainbow?” Her gaze was lacking aim, her eyes had the mangled body in their field of view but refused to fathom it any further, just like her brain. It was derealization occurring in real time, and to top it all off the scent of such unspoiled red tenderness just felt... scarily right. “Rainbow…” The mare in charge was her then, she had to think and quickly. No real useful solutions manifested into her pressured thoughts, all she could concentrate on was her stricken intimate who needed help, and mere pleading and talk was not enough. Something more physical, more personal, to show she was there. An embrace. Blights of agitation and turmoil clinging onto the winged pony washed hence for just midges to remain of them as her shaking body stabilized after it felt the soft clinch of another. That was enough to bring her back to life. Their hug loosened. “Y'alright now, buttercup?” “You smell good.” “What?” “N-Nothing, er- what? I said nothing.” Seconds of mutual blushing and parted glances later, Applejack supplicated, “Just... help me with those two will ya?” As if to accidentally exacerbate the belief she needed assistance, Rarity's coughing finally gave in to barfing, causing her to cry inconsolably in disgust and trot away. “Wait!” She sighed, frustrated. “Take care of Pinkie, ah’ll be right back.” Before Dash could protest, the earth pony had already taken off. But she wasn’t any expert in comforting others, especially if the others in question was- wait where was she? Dash turned her head to incidentally meet Pinkie Pie’s which was just inches away; with a wobbly mouth, tearful puppy eyes and extended arms she pathetically begged, “Can I get a hug too?” ❈❈❈ ‘Twas close to midnight. Applejack’s bedroom was pretty ornamented, much to the guest pegasus's surprise. She couldn't recall the last time she stepped hoof on that place, probably ever since she first moved in to Ponyville, where she'd insisted on checking out the farmhouse fully. It was the first time she'd seen something so… rustic. Cloudsdale's architecture style was nothing like it. “AJ? You awake?” she mused hoping for no answer, staring emptily at the ceiling. “Mhmm.” She'd knocked on the Apple family residence's door that evening after she found that she just couldn't sleep at all on her own, to her shame. Tank was brought along too, of course. Despite all, she couldn't bear to share the same bed as her, so she slept on a cushion parallel to it. “You think Twi is alright?” The alicorn had gone to Canterlot. The working theory was some sleek beast had somehow managed to escape from Tartarus, she was off to confirm. Frankly, a better question would've been if any of them were alright. “Ah’m sure.” … “Are you alright?” No answer to that one. “I-I mean, ‘cus I'm the bravest pony I know, y'know? And even I don't feel all that good, so…” “Ah’m not.” “Right, silly question, sorry for-” “No,” She turned back, looked at her, “don't be, ah’m… ah'm glad ya care. Really.” A tinge of pink took over Dash's cheeks, despite her against it. That tone of voice was just… it was new. “Y-Yeah, it's nothing,” an unconvincing yawn followed, “well I'm tired goodnight,’’ then an even more forced-sounding snore. Applejack chuckled heartily. “G’night, sugahcube.” Did she just act like a schoolfilly in love?! She told herself she hadn't reached that point yet but her rapid beating heart and unfocused mind certainly didn't help the matter. Hell, she was sweating too. She surely hadn't felt this way damn ever. No, it couldn't be love, she was far too cool for that, and she didn't love mares that way! So what if she liked her competitive attitude, her resilience and bravery, the cute little nicknames she gave her that made her feel special, her sweat dripping off her gorgeous light orange coat and- “Ngh!” A sudden warm twinge afflicted her all over, her stomach searing as well and rumbling also, as if she hadn't eaten a single thing in ages. She made her way to the hallway's nearby bathroom and locked herself there. “C-Crap…” Breathing exercises would probably help, she thought, those same ones she'd tried just before almost all of her Wonderbolt practices to keep calm. Crunching, popping noises coming from her changing and bulking tendons ringed through her sensitive ears and made her cover her mouth with her hooves to stop a piercing shriek of agony from waking everypony in the house. She was past the point of wondering what was going on and instead focused on getting out of Applejack’s home as quickly as she could; heading to a hospital sounded like a solid plan. Another crack, this time from her spine jutting upwards, immediately caused her to weakly drop to the floor and her eyes to water. She wasn't the kind of mare that'd pray to Celestia but maybe there was a first time for everything. It was her limbs' unfortunate time to indescribably suffer as blood-soaked dew claws popped up on her front legs and each of her hooves split into three claw-like parts, as if her body was trying its best to create paws, cruelly regrouping and splitting hundreds of tightly woven nerves in the process. At that point, she couldn't scream even if she wanted, the only thing her throat was capable of letting out were hurried gasps and whinnies. Was it divine punishment? Karma? She was aware she wasn't the most perfectly moral pony out there, but surely there were others that deserved this far more. Couldn't have been because of that stupid skull... right? Musing time was up, interrupted by another set of delicate nerves, her teeth's, accommodating unnaturally to new forms; gums bled and pearly whites designed purely to munch greens lengthened and sharpened into predatory fangs that could easily kill any member of her own species with nary but one chomp. She was only half aware of how much she was salivating and growling from this. Forsooth, she was overall only half aware at that moment. More than grueling it was to stay conscious during the whole ordeal, but she abided. She had to. For herself, for her friends, for... For her. Unsurprisingly, easier said than done. In came the metamorphosis's final steps, taking place in her skull: whiskers jotted out of her snout, her nose moistened and blackened, and excruciatingly her muzzle elongated. Her cranium's new shape took with it her previous rational brain, swiftly replacing it by a wolf's. Such concepts as intelligence or fond memories were foreign for this simple, ill-begotten being. Finally opening her eyes, they saw the world anew, inky pinprick pupils surrounded by shining yellow. Like a dog drying out, the wolf shook itself, making what remained of its old coat's hairs all fall so that it was replaced by darker fur, and not long after it raised its head to let out its call, a hideous howl, a dirge of death. A new kind of nightmare. Help me believe it’s not the real meThe skies were cloudy, fittingly enough. The town’s designated weather pony was out of commission. Tombstones adorned the place, some were as basic as they came and others were more fanciful, but even the most old, degraded ones still had clear traces of love in them. They were tokens of the deep admiration all ponies had for the beings buried below them, beings that had accompanied their owners through the good and the bad, in peaceful and rough times. Fluttershy sat beside one of these graves, as a variety of mournful animals chaperoned her. They formed a line to place their offerings, one by one. Most left beautiful flowers of all sorts, the remaining few left trinkets of sentimental value. It was Fluttershy’s turn. She hadn’t had enough time to assimilate the situation, but the funeral being organized as fast as it could be is also what she wanted. She just wanted to sleep peacefully knowing that, at the very least, her child was calmly resting below the soil that all living creatures had to forever lie in one day. All she had to offer was a photograph of him on a sunny afternoon; he looked young in it, no more than a year old for sure. It showed him at a meadow, sleeping. No tears rolled down, her soulless swollen eyes were tired from secreting them. A toll for her alone and no one else, of all ponies. It’s as if the universe were mocking her, as if it had spat on her face for the crime of daring to be kind. “I'm the only one to blame, right?’’ But that wasn’t true. She knew so. Not one soul would have ever foreseen the arrival of that bloodlusted vermin. Such was nature. In the end, none of her rationalizations about the tragedy mattered. She still wanted that thing dead. ❈❈❈ Bang! Bang! Bang! Noises of violent thumping against a wooden door went unnoticed by a snoring Applejack, deep into sleep. By contrast, a little tortoise was more than aware of them, and climbed up to the resting mare's bed to get her up. Not much he could do besides weakly shaking her and nuzzling her, but that sufficed after a bit. “Huhn…” She rubbed her eyes, “Tank...? What's the matter, lil' chap?” Poor ol' Tank, turned into a quivering mess, pointed towards the hallway with his head; Applejack didn't get it, till she heard the banging herself. “What in the—” Her vision was limited, but she could tell Rainbow Dash wasn't in the bedroom. Now then, it didn't take a genius to know something was worryingly wrong. After getting on her hooves, she walked close to the source of the disturbance. There was only one suspect, right? “Rainbow...? S'all alright there?” Then came the growling. 'Disturbed deeply' seemed to barely describe what she felt inside at that instant, but she wasn't one to let dread take hold. Perhaps the beast sensed that bravery and interpreted it as a challenge, which gave it the strength to shatter the door open. Before she knew it, a wolf had landed on top of her, and it sure as hell wanted to dine her. As expected though, that mare wasn't going down without fighting! Panicky kicks made contact with her attacker's jaw, almost having disoriented it enough to let her escape. Almost. That was no timberwolf, and it wouldn't go out as easily as one, but that also meant there was the chance it wasn't as simple-mindedly rabid as one. After all, she was still alive, not mangled. She was sniffed, a wet nose invading her neck. Applejack didn't know whether to shiver from cringe or be glad she was still breathing. Well, she could do both. Such a unique scent, the carnivore recognized it almost at once. Smelled like bark, dirt, cider... and pegasus. The curious wolf licked her. Its long tongue was disgustingly, sensually warm. So wet, so rough. She made an effort to not let the feeling get to the wrong parts of her body. “W-Whadda hay yer waitin' for?! Just finish the job already!” Her mind was starting to go to some dark places. She found dying to be a better fate than whatever that monster of primal impulses was probably thinking of. To her rescue came Apple Bloom, who ran away screaming the names of her granny and big brother after she’d peeked out of her room to see but a glimpse of the vile brute threatening her older sister. This wasn't worth the effort, the wolf concluded, there were easier kills out there. Morsels that wouldn’t make its cold beast heart strangely ache unlike this one. So it ran—almost imperceptibly fast, and completely ruined the bedroom's window by gliding through it. Putting the thoughts of how much it'd cost to have that fixed aside, she focused instead on the fact that thing looked like her good friend Rainbow Dash to an uncanny degree. It looked way too close like her... “Ah’ll be buckin' darned.” ❈❈❈ Dry fall leaves crunched under Applejack's hurried steps. She needed to find her, needed to find out what the hell she'd done this time to end up like... that. The only place she was sure she'd encounter her at was a certain shy pony's residence. The moon above granted her the necessary light to carefully check out her surroundings. She was still a few meters away from her destiny, but surely she should've been hearing at least one or two growls by then. Maybe she was approaching this from the wrong angle. Paw prints, Dash should've left some of those. There weren't any that went past where she was, she had to look back around and- there they were!... All following the exact same route she took... ...Ah. Seems she still was its dinner. The marks on the dirt deviated towards a nearby large set of shrubs. She gulped and took a deep breath. “R-Rainbow? S’just me. You can come outta there,’’ she cried out. At last, the wolf proved it was present. Rustling of small branches preceded the reveal of a glare from menacing eyes that gleamed sinisterly with a golden hue, and it wasn’t long before a recognizable shape came out of the vegetation it hid amongst. Applejack instinctively took some steps back as her friend shortened the distance between them. Her body shivered as she unexpectedly felt rough bark against her back, stopping her from further distancing. “Ya won’t…’’ she took a breath, "Ya won’t hurt me. Ah know you—’’ “Ah know it’s still you, love.’’ The wolf halted. It produced a guttural sound that was like a nervous snicker. It was trembling, she could see it. There it was once more, that warm feeling in its chest. It loathed it so much, it brought up memories from another life she couldn’t comprehend, boiling an internal conflict up. She couldn’t help but chuckle; she was right, Rainbow Dash was still alive and kicking. That adorable bold pony that always put on a brave facade which crumbled so sweetly when Applejack wanted it to. A saccharine voice whispered, “C’mere, hun.’’ The wolf shut its eyes, and Rainbow Dash blinked. She’d returned from her nap. Gone were the bloodthirsty needs of a predator, overridden on a whim by something far more powerful. The beastly pegasus trotted towards her heart’s owner, landing roughly on her lap and fondling her tight, licking her face up just like Winona would, as her wagging tail brushed dirt off the ground. Overwhelming for the earth pony, no doubt, but it beat being torn to gutty shreds. “Simmer down, lassie!’’ Applejack asked in-between awkward giggles. The canine obeyed, content with just nuzzling. So she’d domesticated her friend, but the issue remained that her friend in question was still a shapeshifting monster that had killed a good bunch of animals. Either way, she was hopeful a certain somepony would fix the curse away somehow. Did the rest really need to know about this? How would that affect the way they viewed Rainbow? Rarity and Pinkie could possibly take it, but Fluttershy… The element of honesty could afford keeping a white lie just this once. At the moment, though, she just felt like petting her big winged dog. Never said that I want thisBirds’ chirping disrupted a quiet dawn somewhere in Ponyville. A gentle wind made some trees’ leaves flow alongside the weak air current, one of these falling on a resting equine couple; Applejack felt the light weight of it on her nose, her own sneeze awakening her, and consequently Rainbow Dash. The groggy pegasus—barely aware—felt the sun’s rays hitting her sensitive eyes, then she closed them almost as soon as she half-opened them, and continued to snuggle on her… …Pillow? She stood up out of Applejack’s abdomen in a flash and landed unceremoniously on the grass, her blood rushing to her cheeks and heartbeat quickening. The earth pony was startled by it. Looking around in a panic Dash blabbered, “Wh- Where am I?! Why are you here where’s your house why were we-’’ “Rainbow!’’ A small eep concluded her rambling as she looked embarrassed at the mare in front of her. Applejack took a deep breath and tried analyzing the situation. Dash was confused… why was she confused? She really didn’t remember anything? How the hell was she going to explain everything to her? Where to start? “A’ight now… what’s the last thing you remember from last night?’’ “Uh-’’ What DID she remember? It’s like somepony had crushed her recollection of recent events and put it in a blender. “Um… my stomach hurt, so I went to the bathroom and… uhm…’’ That checked out so far, Applejack thought. "Nuthin’ else?’’ “...N—No. But YOU know, right? Why don’t you tell me?!’’ There was suspicion mixed with frustration in her voice. Shit. Telling Rainbow Dash with a straight face that she had turned into a mad wolf thing wasn’t a very good idea, Applejack herself wouldn’t believe that story if she hadn’t seen it. She rubbed the back of her head in vexation as she looked down. “Ya done turned into a mad wolf thing an’ ran away here.’’ Honesty. She cursed her element. Rainbow Dash looked at her blankly for a few solid seconds. Her mind reeled way back to her accident. Repressed memories of her second transformation sprung back to her brain like a kick to the groin and suddenly it made sense, but of course she wasn’t going to let Applejack think she thought it made sense, hell she was going to convince herself it didn’t make sense and live her entire life denying it if necessary. She shook her head and tried to not nervously affirm: "Pfftch, hah, you’ve completely lost it now AJ! Anyway it’s getting late I better go,’’ she hurtled the words as she prepared to immediately take wing. “Wha- Hey!’’ She sprinted to jump towards the pegasus who’d just left the ground and managed to bite her tail, forcing her to flap her wings faster; Applejack tried to stay firm on earth by pulling her tail harder. “Get off me!’’ Her voice was starting to break. Thanks to a more-than-aggressive yank her flight faltered, thus she landed headfirst on the harsh earth with a thud. Short-lived awkward quietness was then accentuated by sobbing from Dash. Applejack was a little too ashamed to get closer to her and look her face to face. “...Hun? Ah… ah’m awful sorry, ah didn’t mean t—’’ “Just get lost.’’ Hearing that broke her. Even through the pain she had to swallow, she wouldn’t succumb to indignation; she was going to help her no matter if Dash bit and scratched her for it. So she creeped closer to her front and, before she could even touch her, Dash jumped to hug her and fully cried her heart out on her friend's chest. She hadn't seen such a display from her since the day Tank first went through hibernation. “I ate them!” she managed to forcefully spit out between messy disrupted whimpers “I ate them…” Applejack was left immobilized. The pegasus’s embrace and an aching yet warm sensation in her chest she was sure she’d never felt before nulled any thoughts she could’ve formed at that instant. Her only response after the initial shock was caressing and patting her friend’s back. She considered telling her that she wouldn’t leave her, that she’d never, but her throat was in a knot, although deep inside she had a feeling words weren’t necessary. The one thing she was sure of is that she wasn’t facing a hunter any longer, but a wounded animal. ❈❈❈ “So, whaddya reckon?’’ Twilight’s mouth was agape. She looked at Rainbow Dash, huddled in a corner of the library. She closed her eyes and regained her composure, trying to bring up anything that’d help. “I- I think I’ve read of something similar.’’ Using her magic to levitate a row of books towards her, she quickly scanned each superficially till she spotted the cover she was looking for. “It's ancient folklore, from around the first century of Celestia’s reign. The legend goes that when the royal sisters settled at the Everfree Forest, a pack of hexed wolves followed the trail they had left and reached the nearest civilization, bringing mass hysteria and several casualties.” Dash flinched at the last word. “What ‘bout’ta curse then?” “Getting there,” she flipped thru a few pages, “The few ponies who were harmed by the wolves but survived began shifting into unnatural hybrids of both species every time the moon rose, these were referred to as hengstwolves.’’ “Whatwolves now?’’ “Uh… old ponish for stallion.’’ A snarky remark about the term being importunately not unisex brewed in the earth pony’s mind but she decided to not vocalize it. “But, how did she get infected in the first place?’’ inquired Twilight, “Those wolves were all hunted down after the massacre!’’ Applejack looked at Rainbow Dash, who was in turn looking away in shame. “As she told me… she broke into Zecora’s to find sumthin’ to scare me with… got ‘er hoof pricked by the skull of one o’those varmints by accident.’’ “What?! Is that why you came to me and not Zecora for help?!’’ “Just figured ya wouldn’t judge.” Twilight considered retorting, but there was no point in escalating things; she was the only one in the room that knew how bad their state of affairs truly was. She sighed. “There’s… there is only one recorded cure. A pony that's pure of heart must poison the afflicted subject with wolfsbane during their transformed state so that they can finally…” “...Be cured, yeah?” Her throat couldn't let the words out, but Applejack's pleading stare forced them out. “So that they can rest in peace.” The couple’s uneasy ignorance was shattered in the worst way. Motionless in full-bore anguish were the three, in the first grade of unconformity was Twilight who was bearing the looks of pain and shock that the pair were giving her. Before the overwhelmed alicorn was capable of giving them some hope about the seemingly bleak situation, Dash stormed off the castle in seconds with tears in her eyes. “Rainbow!’’ Applejack galloped to the exit as she ignored Twilight’s pleas of staying and listening for just a moment. She was left alone, weak with gloom-ridden emotions and chaotic thoughts, but she knew what she had to do. If a pure pony is what she needed, she was already familiar with one. ❈❈❈ Shades of orange and blue colored the overcast sky above. Applejack’s heart and mind calmed a considerable bit the moment she was finally able to spot Rainbow Dash in the distance. She trotted faster to the pond the pegasus was close by, slowing down and to a halt when she was close enough. “Sugahcube?’’ Dash was sitting, staring at nothing in particular, silently praying Luna didn’t rise the moon anytime soon. Applejack sat beside her. “Glad mah hunch that you were here turned out right.’’ “Yeah, well, didn’t feel like being locked in my home in my last moments.’’ Applejack winced. “...Y’know, we don’t hafta go through with that nonsense.’’ “Don’t say that.’’ “What?’’ “It’s either me kicking the bucket or me continuing to mow down more animals, right? And… what if the next time it’s not just animals, AJ?’’ Her words weighed down on the earth pony greatly. She was right, it hurt to admit. Even if she somehow contained herself every night for the rest of her life, every night it’d still be her uncontrollably transforming into a monster with poor reasoning skills and primal needs; a monster that was her, but just quite not her. And she’d never asked her, was afraid to, but she’d bet all her bits that the process of turning into that thing was a bitch. Even understanding all this, she still didn’t care. Her rival, her bezzie, her confidant, her intimate, her soulmate; she wasn’t gonna let the world take her away that soon. Rainbow’s face was held suddenly by two hooves and her lips met the warmth of Applejack’s. The shook pegasus’ wings unfurled wide and became stiff; there was something that was instinctively demanding her to push her and fly away, but that new sensation she was experiencing lulled her mind and, in an instant, she was ok with the idea of it never ending. Maybe she wanted it all along. After what felt like an eternity, the kiss was broken by Applejack, leaving Dash panting lightly. “Rainbow Dash… ah love ya.’’ “M-Me too,’’ she muttered absent-mindedly. “An’ I kno’ it’s selfish, but… I want ya to stay with me for at least one more night.’’ There was an inscrutable look on her face that seemed to be guilt. She held herself from answering with a yes. It would be dangerous, it would hurt, it would only painfully delay the inevitable, but that all sounded worth it. Dash smiled, masking the worry in her eyes. “Well, I never back away from a dare.’’ ❈❈❈ Starlight walked past Twilight's room but stopped in her tracks after hearing something about ending somepony’s life. She pushed a side of her face closer to the door. Spike replied by saying whoever did it would probably be seen as a hero by some. Holy shit. This was her chance, wasn't it? The unicorn busted the robust door open with her magic. “Hey, maybe you need a little help with your trouble?" Creatures lie hereThe grass was plenty nice to rest in, if Applejack said so herself. Debatably though, Applejack herself made for a comfier cushion; Dash had made herself cozy by laying her head on the other mare’s belly. They had so much to say; anecdotes of all kinds to tell, events to relive with laughs, confessions to make. So far they’d done a bit of each three. One of their conversations had eventually led to Rainbow asking about the cowmare’s progenitors. Applejack gazed at the star-studded blue sky. “They’ve been very far away for a good while now.’’ Dash understood. “But… well, ‘far away’ ain’t the same as ‘gone’, right?’’ “Heh, when did you become so philosophical?’’ “Ya reckon that’s deep? Oh sweetheart, just you wait till ya see me when ah’m full-blown sloshed off of cider.’’ The pegasus let out a cute giggle, but that wasn’t really a joke. “...I’m lucky to still have my mom and pops, I guess.’’ Her smile faltered. “Um… I probably should’ve gone and visited them more often.’’ “Rainbow, they kno’ ya love ‘em. I’m sure they couldn’t have ever asked for a better daughter.’’ She fought off the tears building up in her eyes. "Scoots is gonna miss me badly.’’ “I wi—’’ … “We all will.’’ It was too late to earnestly think about foolish fantasies of growing old with her marefriend, but perhaps she was focusing too much on the hard cold truth of the future and not enough on the tender relief of the present. “Tell ya what, though,” She held Dash's hoof. “We can start to go off an’ do whatever ya gotta do by tomorrow mornin’.” “...Y-Yeah. Yeah, sounds good.” A drop of sweat hit Applejack’s hoof. She turned her view down to Dash, whose eyes were tightly closed and coat was practically drenched. “Rainbow?!” Applejack rocked Rainbow as the pegasus groaned in clear discomfort and pain, her whole frame burning to the touch. “D-Dashie! C'mon, say sumthin' t-’’ She heard a gruesome popping noise that made her cut off her speech. “Horse apples.” Applejack took one step back, ears pinned to her head. Rainbow’s bones and muscles violently and painfully shifted under her skin and coat, bones cracked into unnatural shapes, body hair fell away, and her coat rippled as her new fur darkened. She growled in pain as her front legs’ hooves split in three clawed toes and her hind ones joined their fate, the bloody sprouting of her dew claws adding to the gut-churning display. A long, fleshy snout with sharp teeth burst from Dash's mouth and her eyes turned golden with slitted pupils. Applejack was shaking in place, in the end she wasn’t ever truly prepared for a first-seat demonstration of her friend’s curse in action. “D-Dash, calm down. Yer still Dash! Y’hear me?" The wolf growled loudly and started advancing on AJ. The mare swallowed loudly, but stood her ground. “Ain't runnin'! Yer still Dash, and ah'm still AJ, so ya bet ah ain't gonna leave ya!'' Rainbow lunged towards the earth pony, going for a tackle, but the mare held on, trying not to let the sudden hurtful impact deter her trust. She wrapped her forelegs around the wolf and pulled her close. “It's ok. It's okay.’’ Rainbow tried to struggle, tried to growl, but the softness was too soothing. Her fighting spirit ebbed with each thrash. She let go of AJ with a shudder, huffing softly. She leaned in closer to the mare, nuzzling her gently. “That's it, just like that,’’ Applejack muttered. Dash whimpered softly against AJ, but it wasn't because she was sad. She felt safe, warm, and loved. She didn't want to let this go. Applejack was admittedly still wary of the beast that used to be Rainbow Dash, but she didn’t want her to go, not yet, so she hugged the wolf that was also her dear friend close. “We'll get through this.’’ A soft squeak drew both their attention to Fluttershy trying to regain her hidden position from broad foliage. “What are ya doin' here?!’’ Applejack, getting up, hissed at the other pony, but Fluttershy shied away from her gaze. “I... I…’’ She stuttered, unsure of any excuses to bring up. Twilight stepped out. “Alright, the subtle approach has failed.’’ Floating up in her magic, a satchel with herbs that she gave to the pony beside her. “Fluttershy, administer, now!’’ Starlight was at her side, horn glowing with irregular potent magic. “We'll keep her busy!’’ The timid pony rushed over just to get tackled by Applejack. “Leave ‘er be! Ah just got through to ‘er!’’ Twilight scowled at Applejack. “She's a monster now, Applejack. We have to take action or countless other ponies could be hurt, and others inflicted with this curse! I know it's hard, I understand, but this isn't Dash anymore.’’ Rainbow Dash growled and let out a whine. She couldn't focus, her brain was so scattered, and the current predicament didn’t help with that. Her heart pounded violently from knowing these equines meant danger. She lunged for Twilight. They stopped, held in the bubble of force that led back to Starlight. With an extremely forceful slash of her claws, she popped the sphere and shook herself out, recovering swiftly to change her target; the wolf violently pounced on Starlight, leaving marks on the dirt as she gripped her alarmed prey’s forelegs down tightly. “No, Dash, down!’’ shouted AJ, pounding the magic field she was still enclosed in. Rainbow snarled as the earth pony tugged on what was left of her rationality. Fluttershy scrambled over to snatch the dropped bag. “Now,’’ shouted Twilight, pointing at Rainbow, eyes on Fluttershy. The pegasus shut her eyes and looked away as she threw a hoof-ful of the milled plant at Rainbow, striking her side. Rainbow growled and then let out the loudest screech that rattled all the ponies nearby. The beast fell to the ground in a heap, kicking up a cloud of dirt and dust as it twitched. As Starlight finally freed her from the bubble, Applejack dove towards the fallen form. “No! Celestia darn it, she's our friend!’’ She looked around, glaring at the two unicorns. She couldn't see how Fluttershy was crying, she was too focused on being as close to Rainbow as she could be. Starlight got back to her hooves after some considerable effort and grunting, taking her place at Twilight's side, one of her legs slightly but noticeably limping. “Applejack… there wasn't a lot of choice in this,’’ she firmly said. It fell on deaf ears. Rainbow whimpered softly as Applejack held her head. “D-Dashie... where did it hit ya?’’ Suddenly, in awe, she saw Dash molting her rough fur, her hooves shifting into their natural shape, her muzzle shortening and softening… She was a pony once more. And at what cost? Looking closer, Applejack brushed back some of Dash’s feathers to find the herbs had landed on one of her wings, lightly twitching still. Her words failed her, and she clutched to her love even tighter. Desperately trying to hear a heartbeat, she found there was none. Sorrow, anger, helplessness; she was deeply feeling all, and yet she felt so numb. She didn’t have the debility necessary to scream, but she had the strength to cry her heart out for the first time in several moons. Not one of the other mares present wanted to keep pretending this was what had to happen. “She's gone,” Applejack announced weakly. The world Twilight came to be part of was crumbling before her senses, and all she could do was watch with blurry vision how her plan successfully concluded. Starlight thought of giving empty platitudes of reassurance to her mentor, but there was a sobbing pegasus nearby who surely needed that more than her, she concluded. Fluttershy shivered at the touch of the unicorn, but quickly turned around and hugged her, engulfing her weeping face on Glimmer’s shoulder. “I’m sorry,’’ she repeated over and over. Applejack felt like a little powerless filly again. Memories of the night where she lost two of her loved ones flashed in her mind, as if taunting her, asking her ‘do you have to lose her too?’ No. Quickly, she put one of her hooves over the other and placed them in the middle of her marefriend's chest. Putting the force of her body weight behind it, just like she’d practiced since that fateful evening, she pushed her hooves straight down hard in the middle of the pegasus's thorax. The pressings kept on, one, two, three; a dozen, a hundred times per minute, laboriously each time. Rainbow Dash spat out blood. Her chest was heaving. The rest of the ponies turned their heads to look at the miraculous scene. Applejack choked on her own incredulity, an involuntary chuckle of pure relief dying on her throat. “A-AJ…’’ a half-conscious Dash managed to meekly whisper. “Yeah?’’ She formed a weak smile. “Did I scare you now?’’ The chuckle resurfaced, along with sincere giggling. “Ya darned idiot.’’ ❈❈❈ Dash looked so weak and pale on her bed, even though she had been given the best possible care. Opening her eyes with some effort, she discerned she was in a hospital room. On one of her sides she felt the presence of her beloved Tank, whose sleepiness overtook him after staying up all night and morn waiting for his owner to wake up. “Heavens to Betsy!’’ Applejack springed out of the chair she was standing in and galloped towards her lover, hugging her. “H-Hey, calm down!’’ Aside from the awkward feeling of butterflies in her stomach, any kind of touch did hurt a little. “Ah, mah bad, s’just…’’ she wiped a tear and backed away to give her some space. “Wasn’t expectin’ ya to get up this soon.’’ The pegasus looked around. “Shouldn’t the others be here too?’’ “They’re waitin’ right outside, ‘em all… we reckoned- well, ah insisted on…’’ she blushed, looked away, “being left alone with ya, to tell you sumthin’.’’ “What, that you love me and think I’m awesome? You already told me!’’ “...N-No, it ain’t that,’’ she muttered in a somber tone. “Y’see, the doctors had to do sum drastic stuff to save ya, and…’’ She couldn’t say it straight up. “Can ya feel yer wings?’’ “I can’t really feel much of anything.’’ “Rainbow…’’ she sighed. “Yer left wing’s gone.’’ … “That sucks, I guess.’’ “Ah know it’s a lot to take in but just kno’ we’ll be here fer- what?’’ “What?’’ “Wh-... whaddya mean ‘what’? Why ain’t ya bawling yer soul out?! Yer ne’er gonna fly again! Ne’er gunna get into the Wonderbolts, and what ‘bout-’’ Dash leaned in for a kiss to shut her up. It worked. “Look, I was already suffering over all that way back when Twilight told me what’d have to happen to me.’’ “But…’’ “I still feel awful for what I did to Fluttershy, and if this is my punishment for doing that… so be it. It beats dying from being poisoned by a stupid plant anyways, don’t you think?’’ Applejack’s worried frown softened; she sighed. It wasn’t Dash’s fault, she wished she knew that. “Right on.’’ “Besides,’’ the earth pony’s hoof was held by the pegasus, “now I can spend more time with you at the farm.’’ A blush crept on her face. “I-If you want.’’ Before Applejack could enthusiastically respond with a yes, a scream outside of the room was heard. “I CAN’T TAKE IT ANYMORE, I’M GOING IN!’’ The door was slammed open by a tearful Pinkie Pie who rammed into Rainbow Dash to hug her, to the latter’s dismay. The pink pony started rambling about several things at once with a sobbing voice, but she mostly just wanted to communicate she was glad one of her best pals was alright. “Pinkie, darling, we talked about this!’’ Rarity chimed in, entering the room to get her off of Dash, with Fluttershy and Twilight following her. Rainbow froze when she saw the two. “I heard what you said, and, um…’’ Fluttershy forced herself to look at her hurt friend. “I won’t deny I really, really hated that beast before I knew it was you. But, Rainbow Dash, I know better than anybody else how it’s like to turn into something you aren’t.’’ Rainbow began tearing up. “I forgive you.’’ “And I’m sorry for… well, trying to- you know,’’ Twilight added. “Don’t sweat it, Twi,’’ she wiped her tears quickly to not seem sentimental, “just be thankful that nerdy book of yours was wrong.’’ “Yeah,’’ Applejack continued, “ah’m not complainin’ but, how come she’s still kickin’?’’ “I suppose the ponies that were originally infected with this curse would’ve also survived the purification if they had gotten the right medical care, we’re lucky Applejack knew CPR and helped with carrying you here.’’ “Wait why did it take Applejack to get her proper care?’’ questioned Pinkie. “I-’’ “That’s a valid doubt… you really were convinced getting her to a hospital wouldn’t have saved her?’’ Rarity asked. “I-I didn’t-’’ Her voice lowered. “Yeah. Kind of.’’ “You know wolfsbane isn’t that-’’ “I thought it was a magical lethal herb alright?!’’ “A’right, sweetheart, maybe let somepony give ya sum gardenin’ knowledge next time yeah?’’ Applejack joked. Rainbow snickered, starting a chain reaction. Twilight herself joined in after the silliness of her unusual ignorance dawned on her. Just outside of the room, Starlight Glimmer was still sitting, observing, dripping sweat over something on her hoof. A scratch.
Nocturnal creatures are not so prudentIt was the witching hour of Nightmare Night in Ponyville. The clap of thunder briefly drowned out the pretend screams of ponies from all ages alike in the streets outside. The group of six was split: Twilight lied close to a handful of forest creatures and Fluttershy inside the latter's cozy blanket fort, she'd convinced her timid friend to read some ghost stories together; Rarity was occupied convincing Sweetie Belle to sleep despite her lil’ sis's insistence of her two friends still going trick or treating out there; Pinkie Pie was busy being... well, being Pinkie Pie, going from event to event to get as much candy as she could. As for a certain farmer, she hadn't seen her friendly rival all evening. Certainly odd. That pegasus had never missed being part of that festivity with them. Perhaps she got sic- “WAAAAGH!” A pony's best imitation of a monster's screech suddenly hit Applejack. By instinctively turning her head immediately towards the origin of the sound, her fight or flight reaction subsided as her gaze laid upon the crappiest timberwolf cosplay she'd ever seen, and a half-contained chuckle that quickly became full-blown laughter soon followed. The prank's perpetrator was not amused. “Alright, drop it off, it's not that funny!” Rainbow Dash affirmed, trying to get a mask she was proud of just seconds ago off her face. “Oh, hun, sorry,” Applejack regained most of her composure, “but it's clear ya can't capture the menace those brutes yer playin' as give off.” As if to prove her point, she lightly pinched one of Dash's cheeks, making her blush. The pegasus slapped the earth pony's hoof off her, hopping off the bush she ambushed her from. “This is bullcrap! I can't believe Fluttershy of all ponies did a better job at scaring you last year!” “Actin' like ya weren't runnin' for yer life that time, huh?” “Yeah, well, I-I was like, at least 20% less scared than you anyways!” She averted her gaze. Applejack sighed with a resigned smile, everything really was a competition to her. “Look sugahcube,” she began walking out, “if ya really want to frighten me proper, maybe try an’ get the real thing next time 'round,” she suggested half-jokingly. With a stumped Dash alone, she proceeded to pace in circles, thinking out loud, “It's not even fair, Flutters had the help of all those dumb animals. There's no place in this town where I could find some real freaky beast prop except for-” Her two brain cells rubbed together for an idea. “Zecora's house!” Without missing a beat, the winged menace took flight and went down a familiar zone. The tepid climate of the town abandoned the azure pony in favor of a colder one as she quickly reached civilization's outskirts, her view then only capturing the wild scenery of the acres of greenery ahead. As she traversed above the damp meadows' shrubbery and below the canopy above her that obscured the pale lunar light, she had to admit the whole fully natural area was plenty nice to fly by, the classes she never paid any attention to mentioned something about evapotranspiration, high amounts of water in the air causing pressure differences which lead to breezes that pegasi particularly favored. Thinking about it, she was surprised that any of that stuck to her mind. Being around Twilight for too long must've affected her. The ambience and passing thoughts made the trip feel shorter than it was, and in a tick she could already spot the fancy hut the occultist zebra called home. Her flight muscles took some rest as she landed in the clearing, cantering close to the door to knock on it. No response. She knocked again. Still nothing. She wasn’t home. Dash muttered curses under her breath as she stepped back. No matter. She’d opened that door with mere brute force before… of course, that was back when she was 100% sure the zebra was a malignant foal-eating sorceress. She didn’t have a just excuse to break into somepony’s house this time, but did she need one? She was just going to borrow something of little to no importance for one night, and the only damaged property would be a loose door hinge. Trotting backwards a little, she then galloped a short distance and thrusted into the air with all the speed she could muster. Next thing she felt was a sturdy impact against her forehead and her entire body meeting the unmatched force that is friction as it crashed unceremoniously against a wooden wall. “Owww…” She instinctively raised a hoof towards her head to massage it, only after opening her eyes did she feel some true relief by seeing she'd successfully made it in. There were some bottles and flasks that had fallen off their shelves, spilling liquid on the floor, and the door seemed to be more screwed than she'd expected, but she'd made it. Only that mattered. Now, what even was there to "borrow"? All that could be seen was candles and potions, and by Celestia she had a worrying lot of those. The only other mildly interesting things were tiki masks of sorts, but they probably wouldn't even scare a foal. There were not many other rooms to explore, if any, so the plan was shaping out to be a lost cause. Dash kicked a conveniently placed wolf skull in frustration and made her way out of the hut. ... Dash backtracked and picked the skull up in a rush. “Holy hay, this is perfect!” She squealed with joy, hugging the cadaveric remains but rapidly regretting it after a certain smell of putrefaction hit her nostrils. “Eugh, when was the last time Zecora washed this thing?” By then she should've known it was the real decomposed relic of a canine instead of the most authentic looking Nightmare Night decoration in Equestria but, as per her unofficial philosophy, common sense could sometimes be thrown out of the window in favor of reaching a goal. Besides, Zecora had no reason to keep part of an animal's corpse in her house—she was no hunter or anything! Even then, she admittedly thought those fangs looked mighty dangerous, though maybe it was but a deceptive appearance; she lightly brushed one of her hooves through the lower mandible's molars- KRA-KOW! Thunder struck in the forest, sending Rainbow Dash to a jolt and accidentally making the sharp teeth cause a small cut on her coronary band. “Ow ow ow!” Holding the "prop" with her other front leg, she quickly checked the damage: just above her hoof there was a small red gash. It hurt like a paper cut, but it was no big deal at all. At least, as far as she knew right then. Whatever, she thought, a small price to pay for her little odyssey finally coming to an end. She flew back to Ponyville and, to her dismay, most ponies were already in their houses or heading to them; she correctly assumed Applejack was no exception. Needless to say, it was already past midnight when she took off to those woods... in her defense, she never did check the time the entire evening. Well, she'd just try her prank tomorrow, a late Nightmare Night surprise. Right at that moment hitting the hay sounded like a pretty damn swell idea to her too. She felt more tired than usual.
Keep it cagedShe experienced a new kind of nightmare. Usually she only dreamed of silly stuff like losing a competition, or being completely alone, or her precious pet tortoise passing to a better life, but her subconscious mind had just then decided to amp things up unexpectedly. She could see somepony in the distance, laying still and stiff on the grass... What was that about? A thin trail of crimson tinted the ground, it seemed to be coming from the deceased far-away mare, but after looking at herself... why was she soaked in it too? That was definitely not her own body's blood, she simply had a feeling it wasn't; she wouldn't feel so disgusted if that was the case. Oddly enough, she couldn't take her sight off it, the bright color was oddly alluring, even had a little irresistible charm to it she couldn't explain. Perhaps it was all natural, perhaps she should get closer to that carcass and- “Rainbow Dash!” The pegasus was being violently shaken by the element of honesty, it took her a few seconds to process that was even happening as she woke up. “Unghh... calm down, I'm here! It's like, early in the morning, why... how are you even-” She looked around. She wasn't in the sky. She wasn't in her house, nor in one of her comfortable napping clouds. Quite the total opposite in fact. And what the hell was that smell? “Twilight and the rest need us urgently, now! Y'hear?!” Her friend's expression was a bit inscrutable, there was fear mixed with anger towards no one in particular, all highlighted by teary eyes. Dash had never seen something like it, and it was alarming. “Follow me!” shouted the earth pony before taking off. Getting up, shaking the remaining sleepiness out of her, she tried piecing everything together: she'd gotten the skull, gone back to the town and then to sleep in her high-up bed—well, apparently not. It's a miracle Applejack had managed to find her, she hadn't the faintest clue what she was doing near a pond in the middle of... She looked around. She'd been here before, to relax once in a while. So her new somnambulist self definitely knew where she was going. Was it sleepwalking, even? Certainly she'd done more than just walk, there was this extreme tiredness still clinging onto her as if she'd run a marathon, and a weird taste of iron on her tongue, maybe she just got hurt like yesterday when she- Right, the skull. She for sure had lost it forever. She'd add it to her long list of things to worry for later, right then her friends needed her. ❈❈❈ There they all were, everypony except Fluttershy. They seemed shocked by something... actually, shocked would be an understatement. Rarity was at a considerable distance away from the group, muttering under her breath while looking like she was trying not to gag, Pinkie was trembling and covering her eyes, Applejack was staring solemnly at whatever was causing this agitation most likely, and Twilight stopped talking to the former mentioned when she noticed Dash, flying towards her with a concerned expression. “I'm glad you came, Rainbow Dash. I- we don't know how, or why, but this morning some of Fluttershy's pets were found…” She looked down. It was the first time she had to explain something like this. “Promise you'll handle what I'll show you, alright?” “Twilight, I don't like this, stop acting weird... just tell me what's going on!” She demanded with a hint of annoyance that very poorly masked her worry. The princess merely nodded, asking Dash to come with her, crossing the territory's little bridge and heading to a part of the cottage's blooming yard westward. The rest didn't particularly care for her presence, unlike the small animals surrounding the current point of interest. They felt strangely frightened by the pegasus's presence and hopped away. She wasted no chance in peeking, and it took her a considerable bit to process the scene. It was something else. There was no concept of anything even remotely resembling vivisection in Equestria, nor murder as far as the average pony knew, so this was comparable to their ilk seeing a new color. Exposed bloated innards, cartilage poorly covering skeletal structures, red liquid freely flowing out of a small, freshly rotten creature that lay nigh unrecognizable. “We buried the others, but Fluttershy insisted she'd do the honors for this little guy…” Dash wasn't listening. “It was her who first saw this, early in the morning, her scream woke me up and-” From one moment to another the alicorn heard the by then familiar sound of heaving followed by retching, she quickly turned to hold Rainbow Dash whose legs were seconds away from fully faltering. She was alone in this, the others had surely never touched an anatomy or physiology book in their lives, she cursed herself for having let them see something like that with no preparation whatsoever. She just called them to comfort Fluttershy but their insistence on wanting to witness the crime scene was troublesome. Maybe she should've been less vague with what had happened? It was too late anyway. Applejack strode to Twilight, “Ah’ve got this, you go to the cottage.” Rather unsurely, she did as such, gently getting Dash off her when she was certain she wouldn't fall and giving the cowmare one last look of trust before cantering off. “Rainbow?” Her gaze was lacking aim, her eyes had the mangled body in their field of view but refused to fathom it any further, just like her brain. It was derealization occurring in real time, and to top it all off the scent of such unspoiled red tenderness just felt... scarily right. “Rainbow…” The mare in charge was her then, she had to think and quickly. No real useful solutions manifested into her pressured thoughts, all she could concentrate on was her stricken intimate who needed help, and mere pleading and talk was not enough. Something more physical, more personal, to show she was there. An embrace. Blights of agitation and turmoil clinging onto the winged pony washed hence for just midges to remain of them as her shaking body stabilized after it felt the soft clinch of another. That was enough to bring her back to life. Their hug loosened. “Y'alright now, buttercup?” “You smell good.” “What?” “N-Nothing, er- what? I said nothing.” Seconds of mutual blushing and parted glances later, Applejack supplicated, “Just... help me with those two will ya?” As if to accidentally exacerbate the belief she needed assistance, Rarity's coughing finally gave in to barfing, causing her to cry inconsolably in disgust and trot away. “Wait!” She sighed, frustrated. “Take care of Pinkie, ah’ll be right back.” Before Dash could protest, the earth pony had already taken off. But she wasn’t any expert in comforting others, especially if the others in question was- wait where was she? Dash turned her head to incidentally meet Pinkie Pie’s which was just inches away; with a wobbly mouth, tearful puppy eyes and extended arms she pathetically begged, “Can I get a hug too?” ❈❈❈ ‘Twas close to midnight. Applejack’s bedroom was pretty ornamented, much to the guest pegasus's surprise. She couldn't recall the last time she stepped hoof on that place, probably ever since she first moved in to Ponyville, where she'd insisted on checking out the farmhouse fully. It was the first time she'd seen something so… rustic. Cloudsdale's architecture style was nothing like it. “AJ? You awake?” she mused hoping for no answer, staring emptily at the ceiling. “Mhmm.” She'd knocked on the Apple family residence's door that evening after she found that she just couldn't sleep at all on her own, to her shame. Tank was brought along too, of course. Despite all, she couldn't bear to share the same bed as her, so she slept on a cushion parallel to it. “You think Twi is alright?” The alicorn had gone to Canterlot. The working theory was some sleek beast had somehow managed to escape from Tartarus, she was off to confirm. Frankly, a better question would've been if any of them were alright. “Ah’m sure.” … “Are you alright?” No answer to that one. “I-I mean, ‘cus I'm the bravest pony I know, y'know? And even I don't feel all that good, so…” “Ah’m not.” “Right, silly question, sorry for-” “No,” She turned back, looked at her, “don't be, ah’m… ah'm glad ya care. Really.” A tinge of pink took over Dash's cheeks, despite her against it. That tone of voice was just… it was new. “Y-Yeah, it's nothing,” an unconvincing yawn followed, “well I'm tired goodnight,’’ then an even more forced-sounding snore. Applejack chuckled heartily. “G’night, sugahcube.” Did she just act like a schoolfilly in love?! She told herself she hadn't reached that point yet but her rapid beating heart and unfocused mind certainly didn't help the matter. Hell, she was sweating too. She surely hadn't felt this way damn ever. No, it couldn't be love, she was far too cool for that, and she didn't love mares that way! So what if she liked her competitive attitude, her resilience and bravery, the cute little nicknames she gave her that made her feel special, her sweat dripping off her gorgeous light orange coat and- “Ngh!” A sudden warm twinge afflicted her all over, her stomach searing as well and rumbling also, as if she hadn't eaten a single thing in ages. She made her way to the hallway's nearby bathroom and locked herself there. “C-Crap…” Breathing exercises would probably help, she thought, those same ones she'd tried just before almost all of her Wonderbolt practices to keep calm. Crunching, popping noises coming from her changing and bulking tendons ringed through her sensitive ears and made her cover her mouth with her hooves to stop a piercing shriek of agony from waking everypony in the house. She was past the point of wondering what was going on and instead focused on getting out of Applejack’s home as quickly as she could; heading to a hospital sounded like a solid plan. Another crack, this time from her spine jutting upwards, immediately caused her to weakly drop to the floor and her eyes to water. She wasn't the kind of mare that'd pray to Celestia but maybe there was a first time for everything. It was her limbs' unfortunate time to indescribably suffer as blood-soaked dew claws popped up on her front legs and each of her hooves split into three claw-like parts, as if her body was trying its best to create paws, cruelly regrouping and splitting hundreds of tightly woven nerves in the process. At that point, she couldn't scream even if she wanted, the only thing her throat was capable of letting out were hurried gasps and whinnies. Was it divine punishment? Karma? She was aware she wasn't the most perfectly moral pony out there, but surely there were others that deserved this far more. Couldn't have been because of that stupid skull... right? Musing time was up, interrupted by another set of delicate nerves, her teeth's, accommodating unnaturally to new forms; gums bled and pearly whites designed purely to munch greens lengthened and sharpened into predatory fangs that could easily kill any member of her own species with nary but one chomp. She was only half aware of how much she was salivating and growling from this. Forsooth, she was overall only half aware at that moment. More than grueling it was to stay conscious during the whole ordeal, but she abided. She had to. For herself, for her friends, for... For her. Unsurprisingly, easier said than done. In came the metamorphosis's final steps, taking place in her skull: whiskers jotted out of her snout, her nose moistened and blackened, and excruciatingly her muzzle elongated. Her cranium's new shape took with it her previous rational brain, swiftly replacing it by a wolf's. Such concepts as intelligence or fond memories were foreign for this simple, ill-begotten being. Finally opening her eyes, they saw the world anew, inky pinprick pupils surrounded by shining yellow. Like a dog drying out, the wolf shook itself, making what remained of its old coat's hairs all fall so that it was replaced by darker fur, and not long after it raised its head to let out its call, a hideous howl, a dirge of death. A new kind of nightmare.
Help me believe it’s not the real meThe skies were cloudy, fittingly enough. The town’s designated weather pony was out of commission. Tombstones adorned the place, some were as basic as they came and others were more fanciful, but even the most old, degraded ones still had clear traces of love in them. They were tokens of the deep admiration all ponies had for the beings buried below them, beings that had accompanied their owners through the good and the bad, in peaceful and rough times. Fluttershy sat beside one of these graves, as a variety of mournful animals chaperoned her. They formed a line to place their offerings, one by one. Most left beautiful flowers of all sorts, the remaining few left trinkets of sentimental value. It was Fluttershy’s turn. She hadn’t had enough time to assimilate the situation, but the funeral being organized as fast as it could be is also what she wanted. She just wanted to sleep peacefully knowing that, at the very least, her child was calmly resting below the soil that all living creatures had to forever lie in one day. All she had to offer was a photograph of him on a sunny afternoon; he looked young in it, no more than a year old for sure. It showed him at a meadow, sleeping. No tears rolled down, her soulless swollen eyes were tired from secreting them. A toll for her alone and no one else, of all ponies. It’s as if the universe were mocking her, as if it had spat on her face for the crime of daring to be kind. “I'm the only one to blame, right?’’ But that wasn’t true. She knew so. Not one soul would have ever foreseen the arrival of that bloodlusted vermin. Such was nature. In the end, none of her rationalizations about the tragedy mattered. She still wanted that thing dead. ❈❈❈ Bang! Bang! Bang! Noises of violent thumping against a wooden door went unnoticed by a snoring Applejack, deep into sleep. By contrast, a little tortoise was more than aware of them, and climbed up to the resting mare's bed to get her up. Not much he could do besides weakly shaking her and nuzzling her, but that sufficed after a bit. “Huhn…” She rubbed her eyes, “Tank...? What's the matter, lil' chap?” Poor ol' Tank, turned into a quivering mess, pointed towards the hallway with his head; Applejack didn't get it, till she heard the banging herself. “What in the—” Her vision was limited, but she could tell Rainbow Dash wasn't in the bedroom. Now then, it didn't take a genius to know something was worryingly wrong. After getting on her hooves, she walked close to the source of the disturbance. There was only one suspect, right? “Rainbow...? S'all alright there?” Then came the growling. 'Disturbed deeply' seemed to barely describe what she felt inside at that instant, but she wasn't one to let dread take hold. Perhaps the beast sensed that bravery and interpreted it as a challenge, which gave it the strength to shatter the door open. Before she knew it, a wolf had landed on top of her, and it sure as hell wanted to dine her. As expected though, that mare wasn't going down without fighting! Panicky kicks made contact with her attacker's jaw, almost having disoriented it enough to let her escape. Almost. That was no timberwolf, and it wouldn't go out as easily as one, but that also meant there was the chance it wasn't as simple-mindedly rabid as one. After all, she was still alive, not mangled. She was sniffed, a wet nose invading her neck. Applejack didn't know whether to shiver from cringe or be glad she was still breathing. Well, she could do both. Such a unique scent, the carnivore recognized it almost at once. Smelled like bark, dirt, cider... and pegasus. The curious wolf licked her. Its long tongue was disgustingly, sensually warm. So wet, so rough. She made an effort to not let the feeling get to the wrong parts of her body. “W-Whadda hay yer waitin' for?! Just finish the job already!” Her mind was starting to go to some dark places. She found dying to be a better fate than whatever that monster of primal impulses was probably thinking of. To her rescue came Apple Bloom, who ran away screaming the names of her granny and big brother after she’d peeked out of her room to see but a glimpse of the vile brute threatening her older sister. This wasn't worth the effort, the wolf concluded, there were easier kills out there. Morsels that wouldn’t make its cold beast heart strangely ache unlike this one. So it ran—almost imperceptibly fast, and completely ruined the bedroom's window by gliding through it. Putting the thoughts of how much it'd cost to have that fixed aside, she focused instead on the fact that thing looked like her good friend Rainbow Dash to an uncanny degree. It looked way too close like her... “Ah’ll be buckin' darned.” ❈❈❈ Dry fall leaves crunched under Applejack's hurried steps. She needed to find her, needed to find out what the hell she'd done this time to end up like... that. The only place she was sure she'd encounter her at was a certain shy pony's residence. The moon above granted her the necessary light to carefully check out her surroundings. She was still a few meters away from her destiny, but surely she should've been hearing at least one or two growls by then. Maybe she was approaching this from the wrong angle. Paw prints, Dash should've left some of those. There weren't any that went past where she was, she had to look back around and- there they were!... All following the exact same route she took... ...Ah. Seems she still was its dinner. The marks on the dirt deviated towards a nearby large set of shrubs. She gulped and took a deep breath. “R-Rainbow? S’just me. You can come outta there,’’ she cried out. At last, the wolf proved it was present. Rustling of small branches preceded the reveal of a glare from menacing eyes that gleamed sinisterly with a golden hue, and it wasn’t long before a recognizable shape came out of the vegetation it hid amongst. Applejack instinctively took some steps back as her friend shortened the distance between them. Her body shivered as she unexpectedly felt rough bark against her back, stopping her from further distancing. “Ya won’t…’’ she took a breath, "Ya won’t hurt me. Ah know you—’’ “Ah know it’s still you, love.’’ The wolf halted. It produced a guttural sound that was like a nervous snicker. It was trembling, she could see it. There it was once more, that warm feeling in its chest. It loathed it so much, it brought up memories from another life she couldn’t comprehend, boiling an internal conflict up. She couldn’t help but chuckle; she was right, Rainbow Dash was still alive and kicking. That adorable bold pony that always put on a brave facade which crumbled so sweetly when Applejack wanted it to. A saccharine voice whispered, “C’mere, hun.’’ The wolf shut its eyes, and Rainbow Dash blinked. She’d returned from her nap. Gone were the bloodthirsty needs of a predator, overridden on a whim by something far more powerful. The beastly pegasus trotted towards her heart’s owner, landing roughly on her lap and fondling her tight, licking her face up just like Winona would, as her wagging tail brushed dirt off the ground. Overwhelming for the earth pony, no doubt, but it beat being torn to gutty shreds. “Simmer down, lassie!’’ Applejack asked in-between awkward giggles. The canine obeyed, content with just nuzzling. So she’d domesticated her friend, but the issue remained that her friend in question was still a shapeshifting monster that had killed a good bunch of animals. Either way, she was hopeful a certain somepony would fix the curse away somehow. Did the rest really need to know about this? How would that affect the way they viewed Rainbow? Rarity and Pinkie could possibly take it, but Fluttershy… The element of honesty could afford keeping a white lie just this once. At the moment, though, she just felt like petting her big winged dog.
Never said that I want thisBirds’ chirping disrupted a quiet dawn somewhere in Ponyville. A gentle wind made some trees’ leaves flow alongside the weak air current, one of these falling on a resting equine couple; Applejack felt the light weight of it on her nose, her own sneeze awakening her, and consequently Rainbow Dash. The groggy pegasus—barely aware—felt the sun’s rays hitting her sensitive eyes, then she closed them almost as soon as she half-opened them, and continued to snuggle on her… …Pillow? She stood up out of Applejack’s abdomen in a flash and landed unceremoniously on the grass, her blood rushing to her cheeks and heartbeat quickening. The earth pony was startled by it. Looking around in a panic Dash blabbered, “Wh- Where am I?! Why are you here where’s your house why were we-’’ “Rainbow!’’ A small eep concluded her rambling as she looked embarrassed at the mare in front of her. Applejack took a deep breath and tried analyzing the situation. Dash was confused… why was she confused? She really didn’t remember anything? How the hell was she going to explain everything to her? Where to start? “A’ight now… what’s the last thing you remember from last night?’’ “Uh-’’ What DID she remember? It’s like somepony had crushed her recollection of recent events and put it in a blender. “Um… my stomach hurt, so I went to the bathroom and… uhm…’’ That checked out so far, Applejack thought. "Nuthin’ else?’’ “...N—No. But YOU know, right? Why don’t you tell me?!’’ There was suspicion mixed with frustration in her voice. Shit. Telling Rainbow Dash with a straight face that she had turned into a mad wolf thing wasn’t a very good idea, Applejack herself wouldn’t believe that story if she hadn’t seen it. She rubbed the back of her head in vexation as she looked down. “Ya done turned into a mad wolf thing an’ ran away here.’’ Honesty. She cursed her element. Rainbow Dash looked at her blankly for a few solid seconds. Her mind reeled way back to her accident. Repressed memories of her second transformation sprung back to her brain like a kick to the groin and suddenly it made sense, but of course she wasn’t going to let Applejack think she thought it made sense, hell she was going to convince herself it didn’t make sense and live her entire life denying it if necessary. She shook her head and tried to not nervously affirm: "Pfftch, hah, you’ve completely lost it now AJ! Anyway it’s getting late I better go,’’ she hurtled the words as she prepared to immediately take wing. “Wha- Hey!’’ She sprinted to jump towards the pegasus who’d just left the ground and managed to bite her tail, forcing her to flap her wings faster; Applejack tried to stay firm on earth by pulling her tail harder. “Get off me!’’ Her voice was starting to break. Thanks to a more-than-aggressive yank her flight faltered, thus she landed headfirst on the harsh earth with a thud. Short-lived awkward quietness was then accentuated by sobbing from Dash. Applejack was a little too ashamed to get closer to her and look her face to face. “...Hun? Ah… ah’m awful sorry, ah didn’t mean t—’’ “Just get lost.’’ Hearing that broke her. Even through the pain she had to swallow, she wouldn’t succumb to indignation; she was going to help her no matter if Dash bit and scratched her for it. So she creeped closer to her front and, before she could even touch her, Dash jumped to hug her and fully cried her heart out on her friend's chest. She hadn't seen such a display from her since the day Tank first went through hibernation. “I ate them!” she managed to forcefully spit out between messy disrupted whimpers “I ate them…” Applejack was left immobilized. The pegasus’s embrace and an aching yet warm sensation in her chest she was sure she’d never felt before nulled any thoughts she could’ve formed at that instant. Her only response after the initial shock was caressing and patting her friend’s back. She considered telling her that she wouldn’t leave her, that she’d never, but her throat was in a knot, although deep inside she had a feeling words weren’t necessary. The one thing she was sure of is that she wasn’t facing a hunter any longer, but a wounded animal. ❈❈❈ “So, whaddya reckon?’’ Twilight’s mouth was agape. She looked at Rainbow Dash, huddled in a corner of the library. She closed her eyes and regained her composure, trying to bring up anything that’d help. “I- I think I’ve read of something similar.’’ Using her magic to levitate a row of books towards her, she quickly scanned each superficially till she spotted the cover she was looking for. “It's ancient folklore, from around the first century of Celestia’s reign. The legend goes that when the royal sisters settled at the Everfree Forest, a pack of hexed wolves followed the trail they had left and reached the nearest civilization, bringing mass hysteria and several casualties.” Dash flinched at the last word. “What ‘bout’ta curse then?” “Getting there,” she flipped thru a few pages, “The few ponies who were harmed by the wolves but survived began shifting into unnatural hybrids of both species every time the moon rose, these were referred to as hengstwolves.’’ “Whatwolves now?’’ “Uh… old ponish for stallion.’’ A snarky remark about the term being importunately not unisex brewed in the earth pony’s mind but she decided to not vocalize it. “But, how did she get infected in the first place?’’ inquired Twilight, “Those wolves were all hunted down after the massacre!’’ Applejack looked at Rainbow Dash, who was in turn looking away in shame. “As she told me… she broke into Zecora’s to find sumthin’ to scare me with… got ‘er hoof pricked by the skull of one o’those varmints by accident.’’ “What?! Is that why you came to me and not Zecora for help?!’’ “Just figured ya wouldn’t judge.” Twilight considered retorting, but there was no point in escalating things; she was the only one in the room that knew how bad their state of affairs truly was. She sighed. “There’s… there is only one recorded cure. A pony that's pure of heart must poison the afflicted subject with wolfsbane during their transformed state so that they can finally…” “...Be cured, yeah?” Her throat couldn't let the words out, but Applejack's pleading stare forced them out. “So that they can rest in peace.” The couple’s uneasy ignorance was shattered in the worst way. Motionless in full-bore anguish were the three, in the first grade of unconformity was Twilight who was bearing the looks of pain and shock that the pair were giving her. Before the overwhelmed alicorn was capable of giving them some hope about the seemingly bleak situation, Dash stormed off the castle in seconds with tears in her eyes. “Rainbow!’’ Applejack galloped to the exit as she ignored Twilight’s pleas of staying and listening for just a moment. She was left alone, weak with gloom-ridden emotions and chaotic thoughts, but she knew what she had to do. If a pure pony is what she needed, she was already familiar with one. ❈❈❈ Shades of orange and blue colored the overcast sky above. Applejack’s heart and mind calmed a considerable bit the moment she was finally able to spot Rainbow Dash in the distance. She trotted faster to the pond the pegasus was close by, slowing down and to a halt when she was close enough. “Sugahcube?’’ Dash was sitting, staring at nothing in particular, silently praying Luna didn’t rise the moon anytime soon. Applejack sat beside her. “Glad mah hunch that you were here turned out right.’’ “Yeah, well, didn’t feel like being locked in my home in my last moments.’’ Applejack winced. “...Y’know, we don’t hafta go through with that nonsense.’’ “Don’t say that.’’ “What?’’ “It’s either me kicking the bucket or me continuing to mow down more animals, right? And… what if the next time it’s not just animals, AJ?’’ Her words weighed down on the earth pony greatly. She was right, it hurt to admit. Even if she somehow contained herself every night for the rest of her life, every night it’d still be her uncontrollably transforming into a monster with poor reasoning skills and primal needs; a monster that was her, but just quite not her. And she’d never asked her, was afraid to, but she’d bet all her bits that the process of turning into that thing was a bitch. Even understanding all this, she still didn’t care. Her rival, her bezzie, her confidant, her intimate, her soulmate; she wasn’t gonna let the world take her away that soon. Rainbow’s face was held suddenly by two hooves and her lips met the warmth of Applejack’s. The shook pegasus’ wings unfurled wide and became stiff; there was something that was instinctively demanding her to push her and fly away, but that new sensation she was experiencing lulled her mind and, in an instant, she was ok with the idea of it never ending. Maybe she wanted it all along. After what felt like an eternity, the kiss was broken by Applejack, leaving Dash panting lightly. “Rainbow Dash… ah love ya.’’ “M-Me too,’’ she muttered absent-mindedly. “An’ I kno’ it’s selfish, but… I want ya to stay with me for at least one more night.’’ There was an inscrutable look on her face that seemed to be guilt. She held herself from answering with a yes. It would be dangerous, it would hurt, it would only painfully delay the inevitable, but that all sounded worth it. Dash smiled, masking the worry in her eyes. “Well, I never back away from a dare.’’ ❈❈❈ Starlight walked past Twilight's room but stopped in her tracks after hearing something about ending somepony’s life. She pushed a side of her face closer to the door. Spike replied by saying whoever did it would probably be seen as a hero by some. Holy shit. This was her chance, wasn't it? The unicorn busted the robust door open with her magic. “Hey, maybe you need a little help with your trouble?"
Creatures lie hereThe grass was plenty nice to rest in, if Applejack said so herself. Debatably though, Applejack herself made for a comfier cushion; Dash had made herself cozy by laying her head on the other mare’s belly. They had so much to say; anecdotes of all kinds to tell, events to relive with laughs, confessions to make. So far they’d done a bit of each three. One of their conversations had eventually led to Rainbow asking about the cowmare’s progenitors. Applejack gazed at the star-studded blue sky. “They’ve been very far away for a good while now.’’ Dash understood. “But… well, ‘far away’ ain’t the same as ‘gone’, right?’’ “Heh, when did you become so philosophical?’’ “Ya reckon that’s deep? Oh sweetheart, just you wait till ya see me when ah’m full-blown sloshed off of cider.’’ The pegasus let out a cute giggle, but that wasn’t really a joke. “...I’m lucky to still have my mom and pops, I guess.’’ Her smile faltered. “Um… I probably should’ve gone and visited them more often.’’ “Rainbow, they kno’ ya love ‘em. I’m sure they couldn’t have ever asked for a better daughter.’’ She fought off the tears building up in her eyes. "Scoots is gonna miss me badly.’’ “I wi—’’ … “We all will.’’ It was too late to earnestly think about foolish fantasies of growing old with her marefriend, but perhaps she was focusing too much on the hard cold truth of the future and not enough on the tender relief of the present. “Tell ya what, though,” She held Dash's hoof. “We can start to go off an’ do whatever ya gotta do by tomorrow mornin’.” “...Y-Yeah. Yeah, sounds good.” A drop of sweat hit Applejack’s hoof. She turned her view down to Dash, whose eyes were tightly closed and coat was practically drenched. “Rainbow?!” Applejack rocked Rainbow as the pegasus groaned in clear discomfort and pain, her whole frame burning to the touch. “D-Dashie! C'mon, say sumthin' t-’’ She heard a gruesome popping noise that made her cut off her speech. “Horse apples.” Applejack took one step back, ears pinned to her head. Rainbow’s bones and muscles violently and painfully shifted under her skin and coat, bones cracked into unnatural shapes, body hair fell away, and her coat rippled as her new fur darkened. She growled in pain as her front legs’ hooves split in three clawed toes and her hind ones joined their fate, the bloody sprouting of her dew claws adding to the gut-churning display. A long, fleshy snout with sharp teeth burst from Dash's mouth and her eyes turned golden with slitted pupils. Applejack was shaking in place, in the end she wasn’t ever truly prepared for a first-seat demonstration of her friend’s curse in action. “D-Dash, calm down. Yer still Dash! Y’hear me?" The wolf growled loudly and started advancing on AJ. The mare swallowed loudly, but stood her ground. “Ain't runnin'! Yer still Dash, and ah'm still AJ, so ya bet ah ain't gonna leave ya!'' Rainbow lunged towards the earth pony, going for a tackle, but the mare held on, trying not to let the sudden hurtful impact deter her trust. She wrapped her forelegs around the wolf and pulled her close. “It's ok. It's okay.’’ Rainbow tried to struggle, tried to growl, but the softness was too soothing. Her fighting spirit ebbed with each thrash. She let go of AJ with a shudder, huffing softly. She leaned in closer to the mare, nuzzling her gently. “That's it, just like that,’’ Applejack muttered. Dash whimpered softly against AJ, but it wasn't because she was sad. She felt safe, warm, and loved. She didn't want to let this go. Applejack was admittedly still wary of the beast that used to be Rainbow Dash, but she didn’t want her to go, not yet, so she hugged the wolf that was also her dear friend close. “We'll get through this.’’ A soft squeak drew both their attention to Fluttershy trying to regain her hidden position from broad foliage. “What are ya doin' here?!’’ Applejack, getting up, hissed at the other pony, but Fluttershy shied away from her gaze. “I... I…’’ She stuttered, unsure of any excuses to bring up. Twilight stepped out. “Alright, the subtle approach has failed.’’ Floating up in her magic, a satchel with herbs that she gave to the pony beside her. “Fluttershy, administer, now!’’ Starlight was at her side, horn glowing with irregular potent magic. “We'll keep her busy!’’ The timid pony rushed over just to get tackled by Applejack. “Leave ‘er be! Ah just got through to ‘er!’’ Twilight scowled at Applejack. “She's a monster now, Applejack. We have to take action or countless other ponies could be hurt, and others inflicted with this curse! I know it's hard, I understand, but this isn't Dash anymore.’’ Rainbow Dash growled and let out a whine. She couldn't focus, her brain was so scattered, and the current predicament didn’t help with that. Her heart pounded violently from knowing these equines meant danger. She lunged for Twilight. They stopped, held in the bubble of force that led back to Starlight. With an extremely forceful slash of her claws, she popped the sphere and shook herself out, recovering swiftly to change her target; the wolf violently pounced on Starlight, leaving marks on the dirt as she gripped her alarmed prey’s forelegs down tightly. “No, Dash, down!’’ shouted AJ, pounding the magic field she was still enclosed in. Rainbow snarled as the earth pony tugged on what was left of her rationality. Fluttershy scrambled over to snatch the dropped bag. “Now,’’ shouted Twilight, pointing at Rainbow, eyes on Fluttershy. The pegasus shut her eyes and looked away as she threw a hoof-ful of the milled plant at Rainbow, striking her side. Rainbow growled and then let out the loudest screech that rattled all the ponies nearby. The beast fell to the ground in a heap, kicking up a cloud of dirt and dust as it twitched. As Starlight finally freed her from the bubble, Applejack dove towards the fallen form. “No! Celestia darn it, she's our friend!’’ She looked around, glaring at the two unicorns. She couldn't see how Fluttershy was crying, she was too focused on being as close to Rainbow as she could be. Starlight got back to her hooves after some considerable effort and grunting, taking her place at Twilight's side, one of her legs slightly but noticeably limping. “Applejack… there wasn't a lot of choice in this,’’ she firmly said. It fell on deaf ears. Rainbow whimpered softly as Applejack held her head. “D-Dashie... where did it hit ya?’’ Suddenly, in awe, she saw Dash molting her rough fur, her hooves shifting into their natural shape, her muzzle shortening and softening… She was a pony once more. And at what cost? Looking closer, Applejack brushed back some of Dash’s feathers to find the herbs had landed on one of her wings, lightly twitching still. Her words failed her, and she clutched to her love even tighter. Desperately trying to hear a heartbeat, she found there was none. Sorrow, anger, helplessness; she was deeply feeling all, and yet she felt so numb. She didn’t have the debility necessary to scream, but she had the strength to cry her heart out for the first time in several moons. Not one of the other mares present wanted to keep pretending this was what had to happen. “She's gone,” Applejack announced weakly. The world Twilight came to be part of was crumbling before her senses, and all she could do was watch with blurry vision how her plan successfully concluded. Starlight thought of giving empty platitudes of reassurance to her mentor, but there was a sobbing pegasus nearby who surely needed that more than her, she concluded. Fluttershy shivered at the touch of the unicorn, but quickly turned around and hugged her, engulfing her weeping face on Glimmer’s shoulder. “I’m sorry,’’ she repeated over and over. Applejack felt like a little powerless filly again. Memories of the night where she lost two of her loved ones flashed in her mind, as if taunting her, asking her ‘do you have to lose her too?’ No. Quickly, she put one of her hooves over the other and placed them in the middle of her marefriend's chest. Putting the force of her body weight behind it, just like she’d practiced since that fateful evening, she pushed her hooves straight down hard in the middle of the pegasus's thorax. The pressings kept on, one, two, three; a dozen, a hundred times per minute, laboriously each time. Rainbow Dash spat out blood. Her chest was heaving. The rest of the ponies turned their heads to look at the miraculous scene. Applejack choked on her own incredulity, an involuntary chuckle of pure relief dying on her throat. “A-AJ…’’ a half-conscious Dash managed to meekly whisper. “Yeah?’’ She formed a weak smile. “Did I scare you now?’’ The chuckle resurfaced, along with sincere giggling. “Ya darned idiot.’’ ❈❈❈ Dash looked so weak and pale on her bed, even though she had been given the best possible care. Opening her eyes with some effort, she discerned she was in a hospital room. On one of her sides she felt the presence of her beloved Tank, whose sleepiness overtook him after staying up all night and morn waiting for his owner to wake up. “Heavens to Betsy!’’ Applejack springed out of the chair she was standing in and galloped towards her lover, hugging her. “H-Hey, calm down!’’ Aside from the awkward feeling of butterflies in her stomach, any kind of touch did hurt a little. “Ah, mah bad, s’just…’’ she wiped a tear and backed away to give her some space. “Wasn’t expectin’ ya to get up this soon.’’ The pegasus looked around. “Shouldn’t the others be here too?’’ “They’re waitin’ right outside, ‘em all… we reckoned- well, ah insisted on…’’ she blushed, looked away, “being left alone with ya, to tell you sumthin’.’’ “What, that you love me and think I’m awesome? You already told me!’’ “...N-No, it ain’t that,’’ she muttered in a somber tone. “Y’see, the doctors had to do sum drastic stuff to save ya, and…’’ She couldn’t say it straight up. “Can ya feel yer wings?’’ “I can’t really feel much of anything.’’ “Rainbow…’’ she sighed. “Yer left wing’s gone.’’ … “That sucks, I guess.’’ “Ah know it’s a lot to take in but just kno’ we’ll be here fer- what?’’ “What?’’ “Wh-... whaddya mean ‘what’? Why ain’t ya bawling yer soul out?! Yer ne’er gonna fly again! Ne’er gunna get into the Wonderbolts, and what ‘bout-’’ Dash leaned in for a kiss to shut her up. It worked. “Look, I was already suffering over all that way back when Twilight told me what’d have to happen to me.’’ “But…’’ “I still feel awful for what I did to Fluttershy, and if this is my punishment for doing that… so be it. It beats dying from being poisoned by a stupid plant anyways, don’t you think?’’ Applejack’s worried frown softened; she sighed. It wasn’t Dash’s fault, she wished she knew that. “Right on.’’ “Besides,’’ the earth pony’s hoof was held by the pegasus, “now I can spend more time with you at the farm.’’ A blush crept on her face. “I-If you want.’’ Before Applejack could enthusiastically respond with a yes, a scream outside of the room was heard. “I CAN’T TAKE IT ANYMORE, I’M GOING IN!’’ The door was slammed open by a tearful Pinkie Pie who rammed into Rainbow Dash to hug her, to the latter’s dismay. The pink pony started rambling about several things at once with a sobbing voice, but she mostly just wanted to communicate she was glad one of her best pals was alright. “Pinkie, darling, we talked about this!’’ Rarity chimed in, entering the room to get her off of Dash, with Fluttershy and Twilight following her. Rainbow froze when she saw the two. “I heard what you said, and, um…’’ Fluttershy forced herself to look at her hurt friend. “I won’t deny I really, really hated that beast before I knew it was you. But, Rainbow Dash, I know better than anybody else how it’s like to turn into something you aren’t.’’ Rainbow began tearing up. “I forgive you.’’ “And I’m sorry for… well, trying to- you know,’’ Twilight added. “Don’t sweat it, Twi,’’ she wiped her tears quickly to not seem sentimental, “just be thankful that nerdy book of yours was wrong.’’ “Yeah,’’ Applejack continued, “ah’m not complainin’ but, how come she’s still kickin’?’’ “I suppose the ponies that were originally infected with this curse would’ve also survived the purification if they had gotten the right medical care, we’re lucky Applejack knew CPR and helped with carrying you here.’’ “Wait why did it take Applejack to get her proper care?’’ questioned Pinkie. “I-’’ “That’s a valid doubt… you really were convinced getting her to a hospital wouldn’t have saved her?’’ Rarity asked. “I-I didn’t-’’ Her voice lowered. “Yeah. Kind of.’’ “You know wolfsbane isn’t that-’’ “I thought it was a magical lethal herb alright?!’’ “A’right, sweetheart, maybe let somepony give ya sum gardenin’ knowledge next time yeah?’’ Applejack joked. Rainbow snickered, starting a chain reaction. Twilight herself joined in after the silliness of her unusual ignorance dawned on her. Just outside of the room, Starlight Glimmer was still sitting, observing, dripping sweat over something on her hoof. A scratch.
