Sanguine Joy

Chapter 1: Prologue

Large, twisted shadows created an eerie avenue as the failing light of day barely penetrated the thick foliage of the tree line. This and a complete lack of any sound, unusual for any other forest, created the atmosphere of decay, stillness and death, so typical for the forest of Everfree.

The silence, usually only disturbed by either the howling of timberwolves or by the agonized screams of their prey, was now broken by an energetic clopping sound. The pink pony creating the insulting sound was smiling and even hopping a little.

I can’t wait to get there! I will make new friends, throw some parties and be able to bake my own sweets! True, I need to learn how to bake first, but granny Pie told me I have a natural talent. Besides, she made it look really easy; how did she say it? All you have to do is take a cup of flour–

She didn’t carry much with her: a pouch with a few bits, saddlebags with some food and a few balloons. It wasn’t necessary to take more; Ponyville wasn’t that far and the Cakes, who were childhood friends with her father, have already offered her a job at their bakery.

There was another sound, however, when loud rustling emanated from a nearby bush. This rustling, had not gone unnoticed.

“Hello? Is anyone there?” Pinkie said, moving closer while trying to see what the source of the sound was. She saw nothing but a few bugs fleeing from under her gaze.

“Must have been a birdie... I’d like to see one; this forest is so boring, I can’t even hear one singing!”

Retreating from the bush, she continued to hum the happy tune in her head.

...cup of flour, add it to the–

There it was again. Another bush, only a few feet away from the previous one, rustled.

Pinkie galloped towards it, straining her eyes to see what animal caused this entire ruckus. However, nothing left the plant, even though the ground seemed to shake under her hooves.

It’s either some animal, or somepony is hiding from me. Time to find him!

“Hey! I know there is somepony in there!” she said, peering into the bush. “I have to be in Ponyville soon and don’t have time to play hide and seek. You’re pretty good at it, though. I can’t see you even when I know you are in that bush.”

Pinkie stuck her head inside, breaking some of the tiny branches. She hoped she might have caught the culprit who made those sounds, but had no such luck – there was absolutely nothing worth mentioning there.

“Ohhhh! A mystery! I love solving mysteries. Seems like work for detective Pinkie Pie!”

She lowered her head close to the ground, imitating her favourite book character, Shertrot Hayless, in search of hoofprints. While she was focused on searching, trying to remember every last detail about tracking she ever read, she didn’t notice the dark, mysterious figure standing right behind her.

Pinkie didn’t even have time to scream. She couldn’t move as she felt two sharp stabs in her neck. Soon, after having her energy being literally sucked out of her, the whole world turned into a blur as she passed out.

———

Pinkie woke to a distant howling. It was already dark and the forest seemed to have livened up – she could hear hooting, snarling, screeching and many more sounds. Her whole body was trembling with cold, the cold autumn night seeping into her coat and skin, while her head harboured the mother of all headaches. It took a considerable effort to even sit up.

“My head...”

What happened? All I remember is looking into a bush, pain and... And that’s all.

She searched for her bearings, because her saddlebags have opened during the assault, scattering their insides. While the things were strewn all around, they were all there, even her bag of bits remained untouched. The only thing that took any damage was her food, probably because some of the less violent animals decided it was a nice midnight snack. It didn’t really matter, Ponyville wasn’t that far anyway.

Must have been some animal that tried to make me it’s meal– wait, my neck doesn’t hurt...

Pinkie examined the area in question carefully with her hoof. She expected to find just another injury, she only found undamaged skin, covered with fur that bore no trace of any disturbance.

How strange, this doesn’t seem like an animal. Maybe somepony attacked me?! Why do I feel so hungry?

Pinkie picked up her lunch from the ground, but the sight of her packed food didn’t seem alluring at all, and not because of the various bite marks all over it. How strange: her stomach rumbled with hunger and she could feel her mouth watering just at the idea of eating, but when she looked at the grass sandwiches, which she usually ate with great delight, all she could feel was indifference.

She stared at her food for a few seconds, but then realised she wasn’t the only one eyeing it. There was a small white bunny, quite skinny, looking at the sandwiches with an obvious desire.

A rabbie! Come here, I’ll snuggle with you!

She closed the gap between them with a gigantic leap. She then grabbed the rabbit, who only looked in awe at her speed.

“Don’t worry, I won’t hurt you.” she said as she brought him closer, squeezing him.
The rabbit began to kick and squirm, trying to get out of her crushing embrace.

“Wait– don’t– stop it!”

The rabbit continued to fight and Pinkie scowled: she only wanted to cuddle with him, but he scratched her, kicked her and even bit her!

"Stop it, you meanie!”

The rabbit started to thrash around even harder and kicked her into her muzzle.

Alright, that’s it! Off you go!

Pinkie started to loosen her grip, but then stopped.

It looks yummy, doesn’t it?

What? N–no! Why would I ever think that?

Pinkie squeezed her eyes shut, trying to clear her head. She had never harmed anything, much less thought about eating that. Ponies are herbivores, after all; she couldn’t even digest it. So why was she thinking these things?

But it does! Just look how it moves, feel its pulse, see how... alive it is.

It was true – the rabbit looked tasty, its fierce movements only making it even more appetizing. Pinkie could feel its pulse, how its heart pumped blood across its body. That sweet crimson blood. Her mind, however, still held strong.

I don’t eat things that are alive! It would hurt them!

This one is a meanie. You said so yourself. And remember how hungry you are...

Her stomach rumbled in agreement. Pinkie was unsure of what to do: one part of her wanted to let the rabbit go, while the other wanted to eat it. With each passing moment, the hunger grew, creating various excuses why it was acceptable to eat it.

It’s just a stupid rabbit! It even bit you, why don't you bite it in return?

But– but–

But what? In front of you, there is food. That food attacked you, because you didn't eat it fast enough.

I don't think that–

Think of it as a mercy – you saw how skinny and frail it is. If you don't eat it, then something else will, or it will die with a slow, gruesome death by starvation. Is that what you want? To have it suffer?

Pinkie saw the rabbit under new light now. It was no longer a soft white ball of fur, which she wanted to comfort and please, now it was prey. An enemy and at the same time a meal. The furious kicking of the animal no longer annoyed her – it pleased her, for she liked her food alive.

A smile appeared on her lips, as she lifted the critter towards them. The closer it was, the more she could feel it – the scent filling her nostrils, it's pulse reverberating in her ears – until, finally, she bit down.

A wave of pleasure washed over her body as her teeth sank into the tender flesh; however, it was nothing compared to what she felt when the first drops of blood touched her tongue. It was like the pure energy of life got into her system, warming her and alleviating the headache. It tasted better than the best cupcake she ever had, better than the cake her grandmother made; it was the essence of taste itself.

She savoured every moment, making sure none of the precious sanguine joy was wasted. She didn't even notice at what point the rabbit stopped moving.

After sucking the critter dry, she discarded it's corpse like a piece of garbage and let out a satisfied sigh. She didn't feel guilty, she felt strong. She felt like there was nothing she couldn't do and no one who could oppose her, yet she still carved for more.

That was yummy! I still feel a bit hungry, though. Maybe I should find another– no! What I did was terrible! How could I do something like that? Why did I do something like that?

Her satisfied smile vanished, as she looked at the now lifeless corpse lying next to her. The pointy teeth she found so handy just seconds before were now just reminders of how different she is. The fact that she could see in the dark like in broad daylight was making her close and open them repeatedly, because she wasn’t used to them.

Tears started to stream down Pinkie’s face, as the full realisation of what she had just done hit her.

What happened to me?! Am I still a pony? What if somepony finds out? What will my parents think of me?

She rolled into a tiny ball and sobbed. Pinkie wasn't sure how long she laid there, wailing and crying, but it could have been anything between several hours and just a few minutes.

I should go to the Cakes, they are probably worrying about me now, I should have arrived before sundown after all...

Pinkie slowly collected up her belongings, shedding tears as she spotted the lifeless body in the corner of her eyes. While she was insulting the forest with her happiness when she came in, her shaky legs and face filled with grief only stressed the grim atmosphere of it now.

———

The streets of Ponyville were dark, but it wasn't the kind of darkness Pinkie had seen in the forest. It was the kind of darkness that told her that there were ponies sleeping, but willing to help if she screamed. Pinkie recalled what her father told her about the bakery in the morning, which now seemed to be a distant past.

Dad said it looked like a large gingerbread house.

With her new vision, it was quite easy to find the giant house, which really seemed to be made out of various sweets. While some of the local citizens found the design childish and silly, Pinkie loved it. She approached the door, attempting to create a smile on her face, before knocking. It was a while before the owner of the house woke and opened the door.

Pinkie knew this face well. Mr. Cake visited their farm occasionally, always bringing her a cupcake or even pie to cheer her up.

“What the hay do you want at this time of the ni– Pinkie Pie? What are you doing here? When you didn’t arrive, we thought you stayed at home for one more day. Have you been crying? What happened to you? Come inside.”

As Pinkie sat at the wooden table, Mr. Cake went to wake his wife. Her new teeth were a constant reminder of what happened to her and the more she thought about it, the more frightened she was.

I can’t tell them the truth! They would be horrified! Also, what will they do? Will they let me stay here after hearing what I did, or will they chase me away like the monster I am?

Soon, the bulky figure of Mrs. Cake descended down the stairs. Her magenta eyes watered when she saw the state in which the little filly was in and rushed to hug her. Pinkie was now staring at her exposed neck, reminding her of her deed even more.

“Pinkie Pie, my goodness, what happened to you?”

“I was walking through the forest, when suddenly...” Pinkie said, as tears filled her eyes. “...When suddenly somepony attacked me from behind and I lost consciousness. I awoke at night and went here.”

While Mrs. Cake stared at her in shock, her husband seemed to get redder and redder, snorting.

“I will find that bucker who did it! Attacking a defenceless filly! What kind of monster could have done that?!”

“Pinkie, dear, where did he hit you? Does it still hurt?”

Not really...

“He... He hit me in the head. It hurt at first, but it is alright now.”

“What did that wretch want?” Mr. Cake asked. “Did he steal anything from you? Did he... touch you?”

Pinkie stared at him. While she was still just a filly, she wasn't too small to have had “the talk” already and had been warned about those kind of ponies. She now focused on a whole different part of her body, but, thankfully, felt nothing.

He just wanted a meal, right? He didn’t... touch me, did he? No. He didn’t. I’m sure about that.

“No, he just hit my head and left. I don’t know why.”

“So he just likes beating up foals, does he?! He won’t get away with this. I’m going to round up a few people and go get him.” Mr. Cake said as he left, slamming the door behind him.

“But going into the forest at night is dangerous! He might get hurt! Stop him Mrs. Cake!” Pinkie said, when she realized that Mr. Cake could find her meal, or worse, be attacked himself.

“Don’t worry; he’ll cool down in a few moments. I know him and his anger drops just as quickly as it rises.”

The door opened again, showing now calmer and slightly embarrassed bakery owner.

“I think I’ll just wait till morning. But then we’ll find him!”

“Sure you will. Come now, Pinkie, I’ll show you to your room.”

Mrs. Cake led her upstairs and showed Pinkie her new room. As soon as Mrs. Cake left, Pinkie collapsed on her new bed. She didn't have time to appreciate the decorations made for her previously that day by the Cakes. She just wanted to sleep, hoping that in the morning she'll discover it was all just a bad dream.