The cyan-blue, rainbow maned Pegasus stood in the fields next to Ponyville. The note she had gotten from Fluttershy stated that she had something important to tell her. Why she couldn’t come into town to tell her, Rainbow didn’t know, but it was the case. The bonds they had forged through the years had been enough to warrant a special visit to her cottage.
Tank often spent mornings here while she was out performing her weather duties. She was concerned about the little tortoise, and how frequently he smashed into things, but Fluttershy assured her that he was built to take a hit. Just another reason that they were perfect for each other, Rainbow supposed.
She knocked on the door softly so as not to startle her friend. It was easy to do so, as Rainbow knew all to well. One misplaced shadow would send her into hiding for the next two hours, only to be dragged out by a small little butterfly. That was Fluttershy, though, and Rainbow couldn’t ever ask for a better friend. She had always been able to understand her in ways that Gilda never could.
The yellow Pegasus opened the door and let Rainbow in. The table had been set for tea for two, and Angel Bunny was dressed in a little tuxedo that Rainbow had to admit to herself as adorable. Perhaps even more so than the Parasprites. Though, parasprites did lose a lot of points for being destructive monsters.
Rainbow smiled as she sat across from Fluttershy, who looked at her with a bright smile. “I’m so glad you could make it, Rainbow. I was concerned that you were going to be too busy today.”
“Just so long as it’s not another Butterfly Migration. I told you that was a one time deal, one that you didn’t really come through on anyway.” The scowl on Rainbow’s face was short lived. It always was. She had known Fluttershy since they were young, in fact, some of her earliest memories contained the yellow Pegasus in one way or another. “Hey, Flutters,” she addressed, “when did we first meet?”
“Oh, that’s a tough question, Rainbow. I know I’m a little older than you, but even I don’t remember the first time we met. It was so long ago.” She poured the tea, then placed a lump of sugar in hers. “One of my earliest memories had you in it. I remember you were just learning to hover with your wings. You were so cute!”
“Adorable, I know. It’s matured through the years,” Rainbow responded. “It’s turned into my coolness.”
“If that’s what you think,” Fluttershy said with a smile. Fluttershy successfully stifled saying anything farther.
“Too bad Soarin’s too buried in apple pies every time we meet,” Rainbow returned.
“But your question is a good one, I mean, I have some pictures from my parents that show us as babies together.” She walked over to a bookshelf that housed thick tomes that were covered in years of dust. She carried it over to the table and set it on the table, revealing old pictures of a little blue filly and a little yellow one, sitting beside each other, so small they could both occupy the same chair together. Rainbow looked at the picture and smiled.
“We were so young,” she said, taking the last sip of her tea. “I’d love to go down Memory Lane with you, Flutters,” Rainbow said, using a nickname she only used when it was only the two of them, “I heard you needed some help with something?”
“Certainly,” Fluttershy replied, leaving the album on the table and heading over to the window. “There’s a berry out in the Everfree Forest I need for a special remedy I need to make for a squirrel that’s taken rather ill lately. I just didn’t want to go alone.”
“Yeah, the forest is rather freaky.” She looked out the window past the yellow Pegasus to see just the edge of the forest that she had only been in on few occasions. “Why can’t you just get one in town? I’m sure somepony like Berry Punch or Cherry Berry has it.”
“Oh, I checked,” she rebutted. “Trust me, I wouldn’t want to go into that forest if I didn’t have to.” Her nervousness made a show, even with the one pony she had spent most of her life with. She remembered that day in Flight Camp when Dash came to her defense, pulling the bullies off her, and inadvertently showing her the world that she had never seen before, falling in love with everything she saw. She smiled as she realized how good of a friend Rainbow was, coming all the way to Ponyville after a few letters about an open Weather Pony position, when she knew she could have completed straight to Wonderbolt Academy. Now, she was the invaluable friend that Fluttershy never wanted to live her life without.
“Well,” Rainbow wore a smirk, “we’re not getting any berries just standing around here, now are we?”
“I suppose not,” Fluttershy said, feeling her worries melt away with Rainbow’s smile, the way it always had before. Just one happy look from the cyan friend had always calmed her nerves. In fact, it was for Rainbow that she had done a lot of things. It seemed abundantly clear to her that Dash was just as much her friend since she went on the Butterfly Migration and thought of her first every Cider Season—even if all she wanted to do was sleep.
She tucked a piece of paper discreetly into her mane while Rainbow made her way to the door. She smiled as she though about what was on the paper. The pair cantered out the door before taking flight, heading toward the foreboding forest that seemed all too willing to tear apart their friendships every time they entered. Fluttershy shuddered to think that she had found in their, from Manticores to Cockatrices. With the Fearless Rainbow Dash by her side, though, she was sure that there would be nothing that could stand in their way.
They took their first half-an-hour into the forest without anything of note. The canopy was still thin enough to let the sunshine through. They passed the time reminiscing about the times they had when they were younger.
“I remember the first time you tried the swoop maneuver,” Fluttershy said, taking a comfortable trot beside Dash.
“I would rather forget that,” she replied. “Sometimes I still feel like I have a headache from it.”
“I didn’t think twelve feet was enough to gain enough speed to bury yourself halfway into the cloud layer.”
“And it hurt. A lot. I never saw you doing anything to train up those wings, Flutters.”
“Perhaps not, but I was always a weak flier. My parents told me from a young age that I might not be able to fly as well as other Pegasi, but I should never let that stop me from being who I was meant to be.” She offered a wide smile to Dash, who returned it.
“I still think you could have been at least half the flier as I am without too much effort. When you talked about those butterflies, though, your eyes lit up like fireworks during the Summer Sun Celebration.”
“Why yes, I’d never seen anything so wonderful or graceful before.”
“I’ll let you slide because you said ‘graceful,’” Rainbow said, with a half-offended, half-cheeky tone.
“Oh, you fly wonderfully, but the butterflies were such beauty…” Fluttershy’s voice trailed off, as if she was about to say something that she hadn’t intended to.
“What were you about to say, Flutters?”
“Oh, nothing. I… I think that we should pay more attention to where we’re heading. It’s starting to get dark.” The sun wasn’t going down yet—it was the thickening canopy that was blocking the light as they bore deeper into the forest. Fluttershy knew the only reason she hadn’t had a panic attack coming this far into the forest was because of the rainbow-maned, fearless Pegasus beside her. She could only admire how nothing seemed to phase her.
Fluttershy never remembered ever seeing Rainbow really nervous. The closest she had come was that time in Cloudsdale for the Young Flier’s Competition. Even then, Dash had overcome her anxieties and performed better than she ever had before. That Rainboom had been so special to her, because she needed it to happen, and she had done it.
It had since become what Dash was famous for. She remembered some correspondence that she had sent to a pen pal she wrote often in Manehatten, and when she mentioned Rainbow, the first thing she had in the return letter was if she had ever seen the Sonic Rainboom for herself. She smiled as she recalled all the times she had seen it: when she got her cutie mark, when Rainbow saved Rarity at the Young Flier’s Competition, and at Princess Cadence’s Wedding. Every time felt as special as the first, only because it was Rainbow.
Fluttershy proposed to herself that if any other pony could ever perform the Sonic Rainboom, it would never compare to Dash’s, even if it was the exact same. Dash was just that much more than any other mare she had ever met.
“Whatcha thinkin’ about, Flutters?” Dash asked after a while, startling her out of her dream.
“Just your Sonic Rainboom,” Shy responded. “I always love seeing it. It’s so beautiful…” Again, Fluttershy stifled herself from saying something.
“Okay, what’s going on here, Flutters? You’re hiding something.”
“No… No I’m not,” Fluttershy said, feeling the blood rush to her cheeks.
“I may not be as smart as Twilight, but I can tell when my best friend from fillyhood is telling me a lie,” Rainbow accused. “Now what is it?” All of their progressing had halted as Dash wanted an answer to her question.
“Dash, I don’t… I’m not hiding… well…”
“You’re not making yourself a great case right now, Flutters.”
Shy could only look down and brush her hoof across the ground in her usual manner as she grew more and more nervous. Even around Dash, she wasn’t comfortable talking about this.
“I want to know what you’re hiding, Fluttershy. Come on, we’re friends, I won’t judge you.”
“I—ah!” The moment Fluttershy was about to speak, there was something that had grabbed her back hoof and went running, taking her with it. Dash panicked and started flying as fast as she could, but in the thick underbrush, she could only managed so much speed while keeping up her agility. She was a great flier, all of Equestria knew that, but she wasn’t perfect.
“I’m coming Flutters!” Rainbow shouted, pushing herself to the upper limits of her abilities, dashing through the thick vines and branches, weaving as fast as she could to keep up with the mysterious something that had a hold of Fluttershy’s hind leg.
“Dashie!” Fluttershy returned, using an old nickname that almost felt like it had gathered so much dust since she hadn’t used it in so long. She was being pulled through the rough thorns and dense foliage by something she couldn’t even describe. The feeling that she had around her hoof was like a mix of a vine and a living creature. This couldn’t be good, whatever it was. And she started to panic herself. Her breathing became heavy, and her thoughts labored as her adrenaline kicked in. She flapped her wings with a sudden surge of power, she actually mitigated some of her backward progress, her hooves coming with in mere inches of Dash’s.
“Almost got you!” Rainbow shouted in assurance to the other Pegasus. She wouldn’t let anything happen to her, how could she? This was her best friend from the first days she could ever remember, and she had stuck by her no matter how mean she had become, what friends she had made, or how they had treated her. That was just ever more evidence that she was the Element of Kindness, even if that made Rainbow feel less like the Element of Loyalty. She knew that if she were to ever repay all the kindness and friendship that Flutters had ever given her, it would begin now, with having her from this assailant, and the yellow Pegasus gave everything she had to help her do that. Pushing her wings and testing her limits, Rainbow could feel herself brushing even more roughly against every passing branch and thorn. It wouldn’t matter if she couldn’t grab a hold the of the mare that had entrusted her with her safety ever since they were so young.
Sure, Fluttershy was older than her, but Rainbow was always the protective one. She knew that her friend was the demure kind, the type that wouldn’t stand up for herself, just letting ponies walk all over her, and that wasn’t how she deserved to be treated. In fact, it had been Fluttershy, and how their sister-like bond had driven Dash to protect her that had led her to find her unique talent, and apparently show all her best friends theirs.
It was the times that she spent with Fluttershy that seemed to make her feel special the most. There was just something that this yellow-coated, pink-maned, timid pony could do that made her feel like no other pony in the world. She had searched for something that made her unique all her life—dreaming to be a Wonderbolt, and in the end, she couldn’t think of anything better than a nice cup of tea with Fluttershy.
She needed to save her now for no other reason than she was her friend. Fluttershy had asked her to protect her on this perilous journey into the Everfree, and so help her Celestia, Luna, and Cadence that was what she was going to do. She could feel the thorns dig deeper as she cut the corners too tightly, desperately grasping for every inch to pull closer, to finally be able to reach Fluttershy’s hooves. She could see that Flutters was wearing down; the adrenaline rush that had granted her the power to give Dash the chance to keep up was falling quickly. If there was ever a moment to do anything to save her, now had to be the time.
She folded in her wings and dove for the outstretched hooves, finally making contact. The moment she felt the tight grip of Fluttershy, she spread her wings again, trying to act like an air brake, slowing their progress through the forest. She could feel every thorn and every branch take its toll, but they were just digging into the outer layer. It wasn’t too painful. She had certainly been through worse with less side-effects. It wasn’t until it was too late that Rainbow saw what was coming. She tried frivolously to fold her wings in time, but she couldn’t. The vine wound between two trees too narrow to take her full wingspan, and in fact barely squeezed her body through. She was wedged into the tree, feeling the pressure on her sides.
At this point, she had two choices, neither one of them having great consequences, but only one could be made. Since her wings were now stuck open; there was no way to fold them or unfurl them to pass through the tree, she would have to let go of Fluttershy or risk breaking them.
She weighed the options: she could let go of Shy for now, and track her down, retaining her capabilities of flight for the remainder of the trip. The consequence was that she might not find Fluttershy, and moreover, what would she think about her just letting go? That would seem to her like she was being abandoned, and Rainbow could never do that to her.
On the other hoof, she could hold on and hope that the thing pulling Fluttershy lets up, but that seemed unlikely. The only thing holding her in place was her wing muscles in their half-contracted state, and if she were to move them at all, she was certain to go flying, and not in the way she was accustomed. The risk was that she would squeeze through between the trees at such a speed that her wings would certainly break, leaving her flightless, but with Fluttershy.
She only had so much time to think about this, as she was reminded by a little slip of the friction currently holding her in place. She looked into Fluttershy’s eyes. The fear that she would be hurt by this monster was readily apparent, but there was something else: there was trust that Rainbow would make the right choice, that she would be able to save her from the thing trying to harm her. That was when Rainbow became set in her choice. She knew exactly what she had to do.
She held on with all her might. Fluttershy’s wings stopped flapping and fell limply to her side, exhausted as the adrenaline left her system, and the thing pulling her tugged with such force that it nearly tore their grip apart. Rainbow could feel herself slip from the tree as quickly as it happened. She could hear the snap of the bones in her wings as they filled her with such an intense pain of which she was previously unaware. She had only ever broke one at a time, and this sensation of two at once, it was enough to nearly make her black out. In fact, the only thing that had kept her from doing just that was the look of the Pegasus before her. That look of both terror and complete faith was enough to drive Dash to cling to her friend as they were pulled into a clearing, where their capturer was finally revealed.
It was a giant, glowing green plant that held long vines that it seemed to be able to control. In the center was a giant, closed bud. It had what appeared to be two petals that cupped around something in the center.
“Ohmy,” Fluttershy said, “That must be a Pegasus Fly trap!”
“You sound a little too excited about that, Flutters.”
“Well, I’ve only ever seen pictures.”
“It’s just a plant, isn’t it? It can’t really hurt us.”
“Well, I could tell you that, but you can tell when I’m lying.” Fluttershy took a harsh swallow as she watched the giant bud open up to reveal what appeared to be a batch of some kind of vile, light green fluid.
“What exactly is that thing going to do to us?”
“Well, that fluid there,” Fluttershy motioned with her head toward the inside of the bud which was now beneath them as the vine towered them over the ‘mouth’ of the plant, “that’s digestive fluid. It’s going to… eat us.” Fluttershy frowned as she gave the bad news.
“Eat us?” Dash exclaimed. “This is horrible! We’re going to be eaten by a plant and you’re talking about it like it’s Angel eating a carrot!”
“It’s biology, fascinating stuff. It was my favorite subject in school.”
“I’m concerned for you, Flutters,” Rainbow said, dangling from her hooves. Her wings didn’t work now, and her grasp to Fluttershy was the only thing keeping her from plummeting to her doom of being plant food.
“Now’s not the time for that, Rainbow,” Fluttershy said. “You see those hairs on the petals? Those are little sensory organs. If you can brush against one of them, then it will snap shut.”
“So all I have to do is brush against one of those hairs?”
“Well, technically, I think they’re called cilia, but I don’t remember right now.”
“Hair, silly-ah, I don’t care, my question is if I can brush against one of them we’re safe?” The adrenaline coming from the situation was the only thing keeping her mind off the mind of her broken wings. She winced as she swung from beneath Fluttershy.
“Yes!” Fluttershy shouted back, her eyes giving the look of ‘I know you can do this’ to Dash.
Without another word, Dash swung her body back and forth, building resonance until she was in full swing. The hairs came within mere breadths of her back hooves. She could see the liquid beneath her rising in level.
“It seems to know that there’s two of us,” Fluttershy commented. “It’s building digestive juices so that it can eat both of us at once.” She almost seemed fascinated by this news.
“Flutters, I hate to say it, but I think you’ve lost your mind to delirium when I’m the one who should have.” Swinging again, Rainbow found herself so close to being within reach that it seemed almost ridiculous. If only she were a couple of inches taller. With all her might she swung once more, but she only garnered one of the few she needed.
“It’s almost ready,” Fluttershy said, commenting on the gurgling beneath her. She still seemed intrigued by the plant that was trying to make her its dinner.
“Here goes nothing!” Dash swung with all her might, trying to make one last-ditch effort. She came within mere centimeters of the hair before she could feel gravity starting to act on both of them. She was so close she couldn’t bear to think that she had failed. With one severely painful flap of her wings, she pushed to touch the hair before it was too late, and sure enough, the moment she brushed it ever so lightly, the petals snapped shut, causing the pair to land roughly on them and slide all the way down to the ground without much fuss.
With the adrenaline wearing off herself, and with the extra use and pain, Rainbow could feel her consciousness slip, but the look from those teal eyes kept her awake, ever so barely. She struggled to form coherent thoughts through the sudden haze of the pain. She could only watch as Fluttershy took the vines and wrapped her wings. Sleep sounded so good right now.
Fluttershy was saying something, but the sounds came across as muffled and useless to her brain. The sharp pains that filled her wings dulled her mind so much that she couldn’t think. She just wanted to sleep away the pain, slumber until it no longer hurt. Her eyes closed, and for the time being, they didn’t open again.
Fluttershy had found a few birds in the area to help her carry Rainbow away from the Pegasus Fly Trap. It would take some time to reset, and she remembered that the toxin that it had would paralyze her wings here shortly. It would only be short lived, since it didn’t have to last if she were being digested. Rainbow simply looked so peaceful, sleeping off the pain. Shy knew that there must be something she could do for her most loyal friend, anything at all she could do to begin to repay everything that Dash had done for her over the years.
She had been there when she was going through the awkward years growing up, through her first crush, her first heartbreak, every time that she ever remembered asking for time from Rainbow, she could get it, no matter how busy she seemed trying to achieve the dream of being a Wonderbolt.
They were too far into the Everfree to turn back now. Shy was actually lost. She didn’t remember exactly the route the vine had dragged her, or how long, so she didn’t know where to start looking, and she didn’t want to just leave Rainbow here alone if she were to fly up above the canopy.
She would at least wait for Dash to wake up before making her next move. The vine splints that she had put on her wings would do for now, but they needed professional attention. Sure, she could set bones in woodland creatures, but she was more of a veterinarian, not a doctor. In fact, she still often deferred to the local veterinarian anyway.
Perhaps one day she would go back to school and obtain a degree in veterinary medicine. That would be great, because then she could help animals even more. As for now, she needed to get the berry for the remedy for the squirrel.
She smiled as she thought of all the times Rainbow had went out of her way to spend time with her, even if it didn’t exactly pan out for her best interests. There was, for instance, the Butterfly Migration. It had been the most wondrous sight, seeing all of the delicate little insects flutter about so gracefully and so masterfully. She had even set off Monarch on his way to be with them as they flew south.
There was a rustle behind her, which startled her. With Rainbow in this condition, all the calming effects that she left her with were gone. She was back on her guard, and every sound became suspicious. What would Rainbow Dash do? Fluttershy thought to herself. Surely she wouldn’t be such a chicken.
There, across the clearing was the head of a chicken, and the body of a snake. She immediately diverted her gaze as she recognized the cockatrice. “Hey there, Mr. Cockatrice, it’s been a while since I’ve seen you.”
The rustling of the branches as the Cockatrice grew closer caused Fluttershy to subconsciously back up from the source, tripping over Rainbow. Her eyes could do nothing but open as she fell to the ground, and she was met with the gaze of the beast eye to eye.
“Now, I don’t want any trouble with you. You remember what happened the last time we met, don’t you?” She tried to close her eyes, but the subtle mind-control of the Cockatrice forced her eyes open. “Now, I’m asking nicely, for you to stop trying to turn me to stone.” She could feel her back hooves stiffen as the petrification began spreading from back to front. She tried to swish her tail only to realize that it had already become completely stone. “I’m giving you one last warning, Mr. Cockatrice.” Her forelegs were growing heavier, and her body compressed on the parts that hadn’t turned yet. “Don’t make me use the stare.”
It wasn’t working, and Fluttershy was at a loss of words as to why. She could feel her body turn, and the sensation creeped to the nape of her neck. She gave a quick look to Rainbow, who stirred in her dreams, muttering ‘You’re awesome, Fluttershy.” This was enough for something to spark in Fluttershy. She quickly turned back to the cockatrice.
“You’re a big meanie, you know that? I told you already I don’t want to see you turning any more ponies to stone and what are you doing? You’re turning me to stone. I happen to have something worth fighting for, I don’t see what you’re doing this for. Turning ponies to stone won’t help you live at all!” The sensation of being petrified receded a little before stalling again. “This pony… I couldn’t live with myself if anything ever happened to her. If something were to happen to me, I don’t think she could live with herself. I will not let anything happen to Rainbow Dash… because… because…” Fluttershy could feel the petrification slide up her neck as her words paused in her throat. “Because I…” Her mouth turned to stone before she could finish her sentence.
Rainbow could only wonder what this severe pressure on her leg was. When she opened her rose eyes to see what was lying on her, she expected to see Fluttershy asleep, but she instead found Fluttershy turned to stone. She gasped as she pushed her off and got to her hooves.
She had heard of the time that Fluttershy had stared down a cockatrice from Scootaloo, it was one of her favorite stories that didn’t involve the Cutie Mark Crusaders, or the cyan Pegasus herself. This was the only thing she could think of that could have done something like this to her, but how could it have actually turned her to stone?
She got to her hooves. Every move she made was magnified by the pain in her jostling wings, but she needed to forge ahead. If for nothing else then to keep the promise to Fluttershy. The dream she had cast Flutters as a Wonderbolt alongside her. She was performing tricks that she had only ever seen Wonderbolts perform before.
It was just that, a dream, though. Fluttershy wasn’t a strong flier, and Rainbow still appreciated her anyway. She was a great, understanding friend. There had to be some way that she could save Flutters. Dash looked around, trying to find the trail of the offending beast, and there it was, the patted down grass in the clearing and the broken twigs ahead.
Rainbow chuckled to herself. Reading Daring Do had taught her a thing or two. This may have only proven her point about eggheads, but at this point, she was glad that she had. Following the lead of her favorite heroine, she followed the trial through the forest, finding clues all along the way: a broken twig here, a footprint there. Soon, she heard the sound of the cockatrice ahead. She ducked behind the bush and peered over only for a second.
There, standing in the clearing was Zecora, and the Cockatrice was behind her. Dash knew that Zecora, who lived in the Everfree herself, would probably know something about de-petrifying ponies. She wouldn’t be any help petrified herself, though.
Rainbow launched herself though the clearing at the Cockatrice and landed roughly atop of it, creating such a clamor that she alerted Zecora, who spun around to assess the situation.
“Be careful, Dash, of the tricks this creature tries, and be sure to never look it straight in the eyes,” she offered.
“How do I tame it or something?” Dash was hoping for some kind of advice like what Flutters was giving her against the Pegasus Fly trap, even if she had been a little too enthusiastic about it.
“To stop the reign of Cockatrice forever, all it takes is one Pegasus Feather.” Zecora dared not approach with all the thrashing and crashing about the pair were doing. The cockatrice was strong, Rainbow had to give it that. It was able to slam her to the ground, moving her wings and sending a new wave of pain that nearly caused her to black out again as her body tried to defend against the overload of sensory information.
She knew that there was only one way, she needed to pull a feather from her own wing. This would be painful, to say the least. Her wings broken would only become sore in addition if she pulled a feather, but she needed to do it. For Flutters. It would always be for Flutters.
She reached back with her mouth as she held the cockatrice to the mud with all her strength. She winced before she even touched the feather, but she knew it had to be done, for Fluttershy, for her. She pulled out the feather, and a wave of pain swept through her that caused her vision to dim and her eyes to cross. Her legs nearly fell out from underneath her; she was barely able to recover. She looked at Zecora, who took the feather and brushed it against the belly of the cockatrice, which began to writhe again, only in less of pain and struggle, and almost… was that… laughter? Was Zecora tickling it?
“Can you see what makes a cockatrice daft? The way to stop it is to make it laugh!” She smiled as the Cockatrice laid on the ground for a while. It wasn’t dead, it was just sleeping, Dash supposed.
“Now, do you know how to cure a pony from being turned to stone?”
“You’re asking me if I can de-petrify? That is a simple task for someone such as I!” She offered a reassuring grin. “Give me a moment, but have no fear, I shall meet you with your cure right here.”
She disappeared behind the bushes, and Dash began to attend to her scrapes. While Fluttershy had bound her wings, they were still free to move inside the vines, which still caused her pain, granted it was less pain than she would feel otherwise. Chalk another one up to the Element of Kindness. She had always been there for her when she really needed it, even if Dash thought she needed it more than she really did.
She was cheering the loudest of anypony at the Young Flier’s Competition, she was the one who had helped her choose the best pet for her, when she needed a friend back in school, it was always Fluttershy. Even when she went to Junior Speedsters—taking Gilda as her best friend—Fluttershy always wrote her letters of encouragement from her new home in Ponyville. In fact, when Gilda began to get on her nerves, it was Fluttershy who would always be there for her. She couldn’t think of a better friend than the yellow Pegasus, even if she never really returned the favor.
Zecora came back into the clearing, carrying a small vial of liquid. She nodded, cueing Rainbow to lead her back to Fluttershy. With a few drops from the container, Fluttershy’s stone body began to flesh out to it’s yellow-and-pink form again. When the teal eyes of Rainbow’s fillyhood friend blinked, she breathed a sigh of relief.
“It is good to see you, Fluttershy, tell me, what brings you by?”
“Oh, I’m looking for a special berry for a remedy I’m trying to make,” she said, stretching out her every muscle. Her wings were no longer affected by the Pegasus Fly Trap venom, and she could move them now. She gave Rainbow a backward glance as they trotted off into the depths, behind Zecora.
Fluttershy described what she had read about the berry: “It’s supposed to be red with blue leaves. It’s supposed to taste sweet, and a little salty. I’m looking for it because it can cure a certain type of sickness this Squirrel has.”
“The berry you seek is hard to find, but I have just the place in mind. To fetch the item to fill your stock, you must first get past the fearsome Roc,” Zecora explained, leading them to a cliff face. There was a large bush along the side of it that was covered in blue leaves. Little red specks could be seen from here, undoubtedly the berries that Fluttershy had been looking for.
“What’s so fearsome about a rock?” Dash asked, severely confused. “It doesn’t even move.”
“She’s talking about that,” Fluttershy mentioned, pointing at a giant bird that flew out from over the cliff face.
“Perhaps the Cockatrice did more to you than turn you to stone, Flutters, because that’s obviously a bird.”
“Not a rock as in stone or pebble. That’s R-o-c-k. We’re talking about the bird of legend, the Roc, R-o-c.”
The expression on Rainbow’s face changed from confusion to… was that fear? “Roc? The legendary bird that feeds on ponies?” Fluttershy had never seen this emotion on Dash’s face. This new emotion almost seemed as foreign to the cyan Pegasus as it was to look at on her face.
“I need those berries, Rainbow, this is why we came into the Everfree in the first place.”
“But nopony said anything about fighting a bird whose wingspan can cover an entire hoofball field!” She looked toward the sky, anticipating a fight. In the sky, there was a bird who appeared as white as a cloud, and Fluttershy had almost mistaken it for one, but when it flapped its wings, it was most unmistakably a giant bird.
“I… I thought you were fearless,” Fluttershy said, seeing the softer side of Dash that she missed from the time they were young.
“I’m fearless, but not stupid. I knew there’s no way that two Pegasi, one with broken wings, can take on a Roc!”
“Perhaps we don’t have to defeat it,” Fluttershy said. “Come on, let’s go to the top of the cliff.”
The Pegasi made their way up the back side of the mountain, which was much more manageable than the front. Once at the top, the sheer size of the Roc could be reveled in as it perched before them. Fluttershy put on her bravest smile, she had to be strong, to show Rainbow that anything could be accomplished with a little courage and kindness. She needed to do it to heal the little Squirrel back home. She did it because she had to prove to herself that she was able to handle herself.
“Um… excuse me Mr. Roc, but I was wondering, if it wasn’t too much to ask, if I could use some of those berries you have on your cliff there to cure a squirrel friend of mine.” The roc didn’t take to Fluttershy’s signature kindness, letting out an earsplitting screech before thrusting a talon forward. Shy was certain that it was going to capture her and take her off too some parts unknown, but instead of feeling the grip of the bird’s feet, she felt one lunge into her side. Rainbow had pushed her out of the way, so that the Roc captured her in her talon instead.
The Roc took to the sky, carrying Rainbow ever higher. Rainbow shouting in the pain of the talon grasping and squeezing her broken wings, sending a flood of pain through her body. Fluttershy took off after the bird, to hopefully catch up and find a way to save her friend. She found Rainbow’s gaze, and there was a look of both fear, but also something much more comforting in her eyes: trust. Rainbow trusted her. She felt the energy inside her rise as she found that there was something in Rainbow’s look that gave her power.
She flew faster than she ever remembered flying before, even when she was catching Rainbow to save her from Discord’s evil magic. She flapped her wings with all her might, powered by the trust that Rainbow had in her. It was something that she had hoped all her life that she would have, and now that she had it, she was certain that she would never lose it.
“You big meanie! You better let my friend go!”
The bird looked over its shoulder and did exactly what Fluttershy had asked. It opened its talons to release the flightless Rainbow, causing her to plummet rapidly toward the ground. This was Fluttershy’s big moment to once and for all capture Rainbow’s ever elusive trust and respect. Sure, she was her friend, but it seemed like Rainbow found herself in lesser company sometimes. She would have to prove herself in this moment, to catch Rainbow and save her from certain doom.
She saw Rainbow’s lips move, saying something that she could barely make out. She knew that she had to do this for her friend, moreover, because she… she… loved Rainbow. She rocketed toward the ground, determined to grab Rainbow and save her from certain doom, but it would take everything she had.
Fluttershy was freefalling, but also pushing herself to go faster than gravity would let her go. She felt the cone of air around her as she hit mach one, then two. She knew that if she could go fast enough, she could make it to her damsel in distress, not that Rainbow was really a damsel of any sort. Perhaps that was one of the qualities that Fluttershy loved the most about Rainbow. She wasn’t content with being so girly, and she stuck with that.
It seemed a perfect compliment to herself, the masculine and the feminine. She pushed forward, reaching mach three, then mach four. The cone of air felt like a sieve of sand, trying to sap her energy, trying to tire her out, but she needed to save her love. Rainbow was the mare she loved with all her heart, and she couldn’t bear to think what would happen if she didn’t catch her.
She had to do it. She had brought Rainbow into this mess, she had indirectly been the cause of her broken wings. If she didn’t make up for the raw friendship that Rainbow had shown her now, then she would never get to again. Twice, Dash had saved her life today. If that wasn’t enough to call her friendship the best in all of the world, then there was nothing that would.
Mach six.
The ground was drawing closer. If the Roc hadn’t flown up so high, they would have surely hit the ground long ago. Fluttershy would never have the chance to save her love. She pushed herself farther and faster than she ever thought she could go. Her wings were burning as she exerted herself harder and stronger than she had ever before.
Mach Ten.
This was the moment of truth. There was only one way to go any faster, and only Rainbow had ever been able to do it. She was catching up to Dash, but it wasn’t enough on its own. She could shout to the blue Pegasus, but at her speed, it would not reach her until the ground met them.
Come on, Fluttershy, Fluttershy thought to herself, you have to do this for Rainbow.
With one more flap of her wings, her fate was set.
