//------------------------------//
// No more anything 
// Story: The plague 
// by TwiwnB 
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Lula slowly woke up. Her belly was hurting and so was her lower jaw. Still, the surprise of still being alive raised at the same time the memories of the last events were coming back to her.

She looked around and noticed she was laying on the ground, into some grass. There was the cottage so very close from her, and just behind her the silhouette of a mare, a Pegasus with a yellow fur and a pink mane.

At first, Lula thought of taking the opportunity to run away, leaving all the craziness behind, but another feeling took over her. It wasn’t curiosity for the fact Fluttershy was just standing there without paying any more attention to her. It wasn’t the pity she was feeling for the Pegasus, even if she had no idea what she was pitying.
It was the feeling of peace, the soft warmth of the sun and the faint whisper of the wind.

Lula stood up, but Fluttershy didn’t even react. Hating that decision as soon as she took it, Lula came near her former friend and tried to find out what was going on, and then saw the stone.

“Here lies Fluttershy”

Lula felt the whole world crumbling around her, shook her head, and everything went back to normal. But the stone, with its inscription, was still there.
And so was Fluttershy.

“Is it…?” began to ask Lula.

She didn’t know how to phrase that. She wasn’t sure there was a way to phrase such a thing to begin with.

“Yes.” Replied Fluttershy nonetheless with a tear. “It’s mine. I remember it now. I made it myself.”

“How are you feeling?” asked Lula almost mechanically, incapable of thinking of anything better to say.

“It hurt.”

“I understand.” Lied Lula.

“No.” explained Fluttershy. “I mean I remember the pain of the plague, the agony. It hurt a lot. But even more, I remember what happened before that. I lost them all to the sickness.”

The Pegasus stopped because of a deep violent knot in her stomach, and Lula thought she would pass out right there, but she suddenly kept on talking, even faster, with even more sadness in her voice:

“At first, I didn’t understand why some of my animals weren’t feeling well. And then, the news came from everywhere that ponies were getting sick. It was the plague. I tried my best, but so many were dying each day, I just couldn’t take it anymore and I shut myself in my home. And then Rainbow Dash came. She was sick too. She implored me to help her and I tried. I swear I tried!”

She stopped there. The rest of the story was obvious anyway.

“She infected me too and I couldn’t care for the animals anymore. They tried to heal me the best they could, but there was nothing to be done, so I told them to leave me.”

But then, Fluttershy’s tone changed.

“I died, I remember that very clearly, because the pain ceased. But I was still there. And so was my corpse. So I decided to bury myself, and then to bury Rainbow Dash. But when I came back for her, I guess I just couldn’t do it. I just couldn’t accept I was still there and she wasn’t.”

Lula looked down. She had some difficulties to imagine what the Pegasus could have felt at that moment.

“I’m sorry.” Fluttershy said. “I treated you so badly. I guess I’m a very mean and bad pony too, just like the others.”

It was true. And at the same time, it sounded off somehow.

“You know…” began Lula, not sure what she was about to say. “I can’t blame you more than I could blame them. Ponies do stupid things when they are frightened. And even more, there is one thing that makes you very different from them in my eyes.”

“What is it?” asked Fluttershy with a bit of surprise, trying to dry her tears with her hoof.

“I don’t hate you.” Replied Lula with a little smile.

Both mares looked at each other for a few seconds, then away from each other for a good minute.

“What are you going to do?” asked Lula.

“I don’t know." Fluttershy replied. Then she hesitated, looked down, sighed and suddenly looked back up with a new energy: "I should probably go bury Rainbow Dash. She deserves it."

A little silence ensued, then Fluttershy continued:

"It's a pity you two couldn't meet, she was such an awesome pony. I'm sure you would have been great friends. But it's time for her to rest."

Lula nodded silently. Still, something felt off in Fluttershy's tone.

"I wish she would get better. I miss her you know..." the pegasus added. "I should go see how she is doing. She is very sick: she needs me by her side. And my little friends too. I should go back see how they are doing, some have been feeling kind of ill lately and it worries me."

Those words scared Lula, but she slowly understood what was happening in the poor pegasus's mind. She had made her choice, Lula would have probably made the exact same.

“Yes, you should probably do that.” She just said.

“What are you going to do yourself?” asked Fluttershy with her kind and gentle voice.

“I’ll keep on living. Apple Loosa is still pretty far away, but that’s my best bet. Who knows, I might come back to visit you in a few years when there will be no plague anymore.”

“That would be great!” rejoiced herself Fluttershy. “I’m so glad I met you.”

“I’m glad I met you too. You’re a bit weird, but you saved my life. I’ll never forget that.”

They said goodbye to each other and were about to go their separate ways, when Lula suddenly turned back and added:

“Also, if somepony else were to come by…” she began.

“Don’t worry.” Fluttershy replied instantly. “I won’t forget what you told me. Never jump to conclusion, never let fear take over, never judge without proofs. I’ll keep your wisdom with me.”

Having said that, Fluttershy disappeared inside her cottage, and Lula only heard some last remnant of her voice saying hello to all her critters.
The unicorn sighed.

"What I told you... of course." she whispered.

She then smiled and, her strength renewed and with the warmth of having met a new friend, no matter how weird, in her heart, she resumed her journey to a better future that certainly lay ahead of her.


THE END