//------------------------------//
// Fluttershy's Story 
// Story: Mission of Mercy 
// by Trick Question 
//------------------------------//

Fluttershy knocked on the hospital room door. Rarity opened the door, looked behind her briefly, and stepped outside into the hallway.

"How is she?" asked Fluttershy, as Rarity shut the door.

"Not well," said Rarity. "They've been keeping her on small doses of narcotics to help with the mental anguish."

Fluttershy cocked her head to the side. "Won't that make her addicted?"

"Eventually, yes. But the doctors don't know what else to do," said Rarity, with a shake of her head. "Fortunately, I managed to at least get them to put one of the special long-bodied gowns on her—you know, the kind that tie at the ankles."

Fluttershy thought for a moment. "Oh right, the... thing," she said, with a blush. "Twilight thinks it isn't related to her depression, but I'm not sure."

"I'm inclined to agree with Twilight," said Rarity, her voice hushing to a whisper. "There are other symptoms, for one. Mercy says things to herself when nopony is in the room with her."

"What kind of things?" asked Fluttershy.

"Horrible things, Fluttershy—things I cannot possibly bear to repeat. Suffice to say, Mercy appears to loathe herself as much as any pony could possibly hate another pony... and possibly more," she said, with a slight frown. "Don't worry, though. She won't say anything when she knows we're out here."

"Rarity, why don't you go home and relax for a while? I'm planning to stay here at least until nightfall," said Fluttershy. "I want some time to talk to her alone."

"Good luck, darling," said Rarity. "It's been difficult for me to get a peep out of her. She doesn't want to talk about her illness, or even think about it. Can't say as I blame the poor thing." Rarity yawned tiredly, and her shoulders slumped a little.

Fluttershy hugged Rarity warmly. "Get some rest," she said. Rarity nodded and began trotting down the hall.

She opened the door and looked at Mercy in her bed. Mercy opened her eyes just long enough to peek back at Fluttershy, then quickly snapped them shut again.

Fluttershy shut the door behind her and walked up to a bedside chair. "Hello, Mercy," she said.

Mercy was lying in a special bed with rails on the sides like a stretcher, which allowed her to be strapped down by her ankles in four-point restraint. This was a precaution designed to protect a pony from self-injury. It had been intended only for short-term use with ponies experiencing a passing psychotic episode. Mercy's case was a unique exception. Her eyes remained closed and she offered no response.

Fluttershy scooted her chair up to the bed and began gently petting Mercy's forelock. Her mane of sienna and silver was slightly curly, and rather pretty now that it had been properly cleaned. Mercy didn't look much like the pony Fluttershy had stumbled upon yesterday, except for the lines of desperation and exhaustion etched on her face.

After a few seconds of petting, Mercy opened her eyes. "Please don't," she whispered.

Fluttershy removed her hoof. "Why not?" she asked.

"I don't deserve your attention," said Mercy.

"No, you do," said Fluttershy, as she frowned. "Rarity told me about the things you say to yourself when you're alone. Why do you hate yourself, Mercy? Please, help me understand."

"It's not under my control. The words just come out of my mouth. I know what I'm saying is wrong, but I can't help it," Mercy explained, and she pulled her four legs helplessly against the cuffs that bound them to the bedrails. "I keep remembering tiny mistakes I've made throughout my life, and they're overwhelming."

"So you really do know that you're not worthless or terrible?" said Fluttershy, wrinkling her brow.

Mercy closed her eyes. "Yes, I do. But knowing and feeling are two completely different things. And I'm still certain Equestria would be better off without me. I don't belong here, Flu—" she said, stopping short. Mercy glanced at her unwelcome friend, then looked away from her as she said the name. "Fluttershy."

"What if I could convince you that you belonged?" asked Fluttershy, reaching out to grasp Mercy's hoof.

"Please don't," said Mercy. "I don't deserve your compassion."

"Oh Mercy. You do, and deep down you know it," said Fluttershy.

Mercy sighed. "It doesn't matter, because that isn't how I feel. I'm going to start crying if you keep touching me," she said.

Fluttershy withdrew her hoof. "Crying can be a good thing, but I'll respect your wishes," she said. "As long as you talk with me about yourself just a little longer, okay?"

Mercy rolled her eyes. "If you really cared about me, you'd let me sleep," she mumbled.

"You have plenty of time for sleeping," said Fluttershy, in a gentle tone. "First, I want to understand why you want to..." she added, then made a pained face.

"Kill myself," said Mercy.

Fluttershy pressed her lips tightly together for a few seconds before speaking. "Yes."

"I don't know what more I need to explain," said Mercy. "I feel like I'm a worthless stain making Equestria worse just by being here."

"But you know that feeling is wrong, Mercy."

Mercy stared at the wall as she took a deep breath, and then she looked up into Fluttershy's eyes, just long enough to say it. "It hurts," she whispered.

Fluttershy leaned back and slowly nodded. "That's what I thought. Not being alive is attractive because it would stop the pain."

"If I contributed something by being here, it would be selfish to want to die," said Mercy. "But I don't. That means it's the right thing to do. You'll stop wasting resources on me, and I'll stop experiencing... this."

"That's why you like to sleep, too. It hurts to be awake?" asked Fluttershy, tapping Mercy's barrel with a hoof, over her heart. "In here, I mean."

Mercy nodded, and frowned. Her eyes watered a little. "If I'd only been strong enough to walk away without any clothes on..." she said, as her voice trailed off.

"Mercy, may I tell you a story?" asked Fluttershy. "It's a story I've never told another pony, because it's a sad story about animals. Most ponies know how animals act in society, but they don't know much about how they act in areas of the Wild. It's all very different from what you see in books. Animals behave more like monsters, and some of them even eat each other."

"That's how it works where I come from," said Mercy.

"Oh good, then this story should make sense to you. You see, in areas of Equestria controlled by ponies, animals are all nice to each other and live as vegetarians. Only monsters are carnivorous. The lessons life prepares for you are easy to identify and understand," said Fluttershy. Mercy squinted and her mouth hung open slightly, but she said nothing.

Fluttershy smiled wanly and continued. "I'll always remember the day I first discovered what animals were like in the Wild," she said. "I was very young at the time. I was watching a blue jay, when suddenly a snake attacked him! There was a fight between the snake and the blue jay, and the blue jay lost. The snake gobbled him whole, which killed the blue jay. I had never seen an animal die before. Have you ever seen an animal die, Mercy?"

Mercy shook her head. "Not unless you count insects. I've seen plenty of dead animals, but I've never witnessed one die. I like animals, so seeing a bird die would be... a little unsettling."

"Oh yes, and it was! I felt just awful inside. I had recently earned my cutie mark for working with animals, and I never imagined that animals could act like this! I didn't know they fought, and I certainly didn't know they killed or ate each other," said Fluttershy. "So I sat there and tried with all my might to figure out what the lesson was."

"The... lesson?" asked Mercy.

"Yes, you know. The purpose of the experience. Why did it happen? Why did the blue jay have to die, Mercy?" asked Fluttershy. "It must have happened to teach me something, and to teach the snake something, and to teach the blue jay something. That's why everything happens. But the blue jay couldn't have been taught anything, because now he was dead."

"I don't know," said Mercy, and she shrugged as best she could with her legs strapped to her sides. "Maybe there doesn't need to be a lesson? The snake was hungry, and the blue jay wasn't fast enough to get away. It's sad, but it's how life works. In the Wild, at least."

"At first, I too was worried that there might not be a lesson. But deep down, I knew that was impossible. So I spent a very long time thinking about what had happened, and I finally realized what the friendship lesson was. For the snake, the lesson was nothing more than a meal, but meals are still important. However, for the blue jay and for me, the lesson was about kindness."

"Kindness?"

Fluttershy nodded. "You see, it all happened very quickly. The snake needed to eat something. The blue jay had been injured in the fight, and then the snake swallowed him in a flash," she explained. "The blue jay would have passed out very quickly, which greatly limited his suffering. It was on that day that I learned one of the most valuable lessons of my life: kindness can take many forms."

Then, Fluttershy smiled as she unfastened Mercy's restraints.

Mercy stiffened, her eyes wide.

"Would you like me to help you remove your IV and the catheter?" asked Fluttershy.

"You... you actually want me to kill myself," whispered Mercy, as her eyes darted back and forth. "Okay. Yeah, that's... that's how it should be."

"Goodness no! That is the last thing I want, Mercy," Fluttershy said, slowly petting her cheek. "But keeping you strapped down in this room is not kindness, and I want you to have a choice."

The patient stretched her legs awkwardly, exercising stiff joints, and she closed her eyes. "O-okay. Unhook me then," she whispered in a quavering voice. Mercy's eyes were shut tightly and flecks of wetness rested at the corners. Fluttershy maintained hoof contact with Mercy's face. She could see and feel the tension within her muzzle.

"No. Not yet," said Fluttershy.

Mercy opened her eyes and stared down at the bedcovers. She took a deep breath and exhaled deeply before speaking. "Ah, right, the catch," she said. Her voice rang with sarcasm, but Fluttershy could feel the tension fading from her cheek and jaw.

"It's not really a catch. If you ask me to, I'll leave you as you are. I won't tell hospital staff that you're no longer restrained," she said. "If I do, you'll have to remove the tubes on your own. It won't be very comfortable, but considering what you're already going through, I have no doubt you can do it."

"Well, I'll get blood on the sheets and floor, but it would clot quickly. I'm too clumsy to kill myself, so once I'm free I'll still need to get to the forest. It would be easier if you helped me. What do you want?" she asked, still averting her gaze. "I mean, if you want to see me beg, that's fine..."

Fluttershy reached down and cupped her hoof beneath Mercy's jaw, gently tugging it upward for a moment to make eye contact. "Don't be silly—I don't want to see you suffer. All you have to do is convince me you're certain this is the right choice. If you can do that, I'll help remove the tubes, walk you out of the hospital, and right up to the edge of the Everfree."

Mercy sat up in the bed and snorted. "That's impossible. I can't convince you killing myself is the right thing."

"Um, well, that's not quite what I said. You only need to convince me that you're sure this is the right decision."

"Oh. Well, my problem is making things worse for everybody—er, everypony, I mean," said Mercy.

"You're not making things worse for anypony. You're the one suffering, Mercy, not us."

"But I am suffering. Isn't that worth something?"

"If you give us a little time, we'll probably find a solution. It's true your condition may be something we've never seen before, but Twilight Sparkle is very resourceful with magic," said Fluttershy, gently placing a hoof on Mercy's shoulder. "And if necessary, she could turn you to stone until we have a cure. That way you won't have to suffer."

"It doesn't matter. What happens if you do find some way to 'fix' me? I'm a stranger. I don't belong here," she said, looking down at her hooves.

"Well, do you want to go back to where you came from?"

Mercy stared into space for a moment. "I wouldn't be much better off there, and I love this place. So, no."

"You think you don't deserve to be here, don't you?"

Mercy nodded. "Yes. That's exactly right."

"If we can fix you, you won't think that anymore," countered Fluttershy.

She lay back down in the bed. "Then I..." Mercy started, then paused, just thinking.

Fluttershy waited patiently, while stroking Mercy's forelock. This time Mercy didn't move to stop her.

"Okay. I'm okay with being... fixed," Mercy said, lying back onto the bed. Her muzzle scrunched up tightly and she took short, shallow breaths.

"I'm so happy to hear that," Fluttershy said in a soothing tone, with a bright smile. "May I ask why?"

Mercy closed her eyes and stretched her legs back into the restraining position. "Well, 'fixing' me is almost making me a new person."

Fluttershy nodded. "I see. It's close enough to dying, isn't it?"

"Yeah."

Fluttershy sat in thought for a moment, gently stroking Mercy's barrel. Mercy didn't try to stop her, but her ears lay flat and she stared up at the ceiling.

After a quiet space of time, Fluttershy smiled again. "Mercy, I may have a solution you're going to like."