Cotton Tail

Cotton was walking through Ponyville while wearing a dark cloth cloak. The ponies around her didn't notice her presence. She was two thirds of their size, giving them less of a reason to pay any attention.

After a while of walking, she spotted Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon laughing at Applebloom and Scootaloo. Cotton smirked to herself. She slowed her walking speed so her color didn't show through her cloak or her hood fell off. It also reduced the pain from her front legs and help prevent her wounds from opening.

She bumped Diamond so she fell over. Her tiara fell off. Cotton grabbed the headwear in her mouth and walked off. She heard Diamond shout. Cotton turned around and saw the prissy pony chasing after her. Cotton's slow walk evolved into a quick trot. She was slightly bigger than Diamond, so that gave her the option to slow her leg speed and still run fast. Yet that also meant that Diamond was more aerodynamic. Cotton made a sharp turn causing splitting pain to rip up her leg. Warm liquid dribbled down. Cotton blinked out a tear. One of her wounds opened, slowing her pace. Cotton glanced behind her once again and saw Diamond gaining. Cotton ran little faster.

She saw her goal on the horizon. A red, rotting barn on the abandoned side of Sweet Apple Acres. Cotton ignored the searing pain in her legs and bursted forward with newfound strength and stamina. She glanced behind her once again and saw Diamond slowing down. Cotton turned her head so the tiara glinted in Celestia's sun. Diamond yelled once again and started running again. Cotton opened the front barn door and got hit with the smell of warmth and rot. There was a ray of sunshine coming through the roof into the middle of barn. Cotton placed the tiara in the center and ran over to a stack of hay. She went around it and crouched down. She took off her cloak and pressed it onto her leg to stop the bleeding.

Diamond walked in the door and saw her tiara. She gasped and ran over to it. She put it back on and started to walk out with her head held high. The door slammed shut in her face. A quiet, deep laugh echoed through the barn.

"Somepony's late," the voice spoke with a chuckle. Diamond started to pound her purple hooves on the door.

"I promise I'll get the bits to you tomorrow! I just need one more day!" Diamond panicked voice shook. Cotton was giggling behind the hay. Bloodletter walked out from behind a stack of crates. Diamond turned and pressed her back on the door. Cotton tied her cloak to her own leg.

"Too late, little one. Although your lateness helped me gain an assistant," Bloodletter laughed and his ear twitched. Cotton walked out from behind the hay. She found it hard to move with the cloak on her leg. Bloodletter didn't seem to notice. Diamond's eyes widened.

"But why her? She's a blank flank," Diamond was trying to be her usual self and feel better. Cotton just laughed at her. Bloodletter's ear twitched.

Bloodletter stepped forward until he was arm's length away. "So says the one with the tiara on her butt," he said with a smile. He turned his head to the side so it was pointing at Cotton. "Get the stuff."

"Stuff?" Diamond was getting a sense of déjà vu. She felt a little like Cotton when she was back against the teacher's desk. She felt horrified at that thought. She didn't want to have empathy for a blank flank.

Cotton returned with a bag that clattered when she set it down. Dust flew up around the bag causing Bloodletter to let out an extremely loud sneeze. He proceeded to shove his head in the bag and he pulled out a spray bottle. He squirted the bottle several times in Diamond's face. She got confused before her vision started to blur. She fell over with a loud PLOOMF! More dust rose into the air leaving Bloodletter in a sneezing fit.

"What was in that bottle," Cotton questioned the still sneezing stallion. He shook his head and sniffed.

"A special chemical that when you touch it you sleep. You really have to be careful," he was smiling like a madpony. He started to pick Diamond up and tossed her on his back like a sack of potatoes. He opened a hidden hatch door in the floor and started down it. Cotton followed while grinning. She was imagining all the things she could do to Diamond once she's awake.