//------------------------------// // 98. Safe Inside the Forest // Story: Azure Edge // by Leaf Blade //------------------------------// In a sheltered, snowy cave, hidden deep within the Everfree Forest, there rested… a noodle. That’s what Fluttershy liked to think of herself as; the term ‘dragon’ didn’t feel right to her, since none of her kind liked her any more than the ponies did. Well, at least until the queer little visitors to her wood came along, and now she almost felt like she could consider herself ‘friends’ with both a pony and a dragon. It was a surreal feeling to her, and one she wasn’t quite ready to accept. The serpentine yellow dragon slithered out of her cave, her four paws digging into the snow and melting it with their touch. Once she was out of her cave and into the sun, she arched her back and spread her wings to their full glory, giving a contented sigh as she said ‘good morning’ to another beautiful day in her forest. And yet, something didn’t feel quite right. While there were a litany of small creatures around—birds, squirrels, spiders, raccoons, all sorts of things—none of them were basking in her morning reverence as they so often did. Fluttershy didn’t mind this, she always felt rather embarrassed when all the animals gave her their undivided attention, but she noticed them all looking in the same direction. She felt it too, of course. There was someone in her forest, someone uninvited; or at least, that was her first assumption, but she chastised herself once she recognized the presence, for hadn’t she learned yet not to assume? No, this presence had been invited, just not specifically. But Fluttershy did promise that Twilight Sparkle was welcome to return to her forest anytime. Fluttershy just hadn’t expected her so soon. Though, while Fluttershy was not averse to having Twilight Sparkle return to her forest, she also saw no reason to greet the dragon either. She didn’t want to impose herself onto Twilight Sparkle, and while Fluttershy could admit—in her very deepest heart of hearts—that she wanted to be friends with Twilight Sparkle, she also didn’t entirely trust a dragon who hid amongst ponies like she was one of them. So, Fluttershy elected to ignore Twilight Sparkle’s presence, and not concern herself either with the unknown presence who had come with her. If Twilight Sparkle wanted to talk to Fluttershy, she was certain that Twilight could find her. That is, until she noticed something was off. First by the chattering of her animals friends, who spoke amongst each other, and even to Fluttershy, of a great bloodied beast falling into the forest. And then she smelled it, the putrid odor of fresh blood. Fluttershy’s first instinct was to become angry, gritting her teeth and snarling at the rancid stench. If Twilight Sparkle had brought a battle to Fluttershy’s forest, then Twilight would wish whoever wounded her had finished the job. But no, that wasn’t quite it, was it? Fluttershy sniffed at the air, and she felt the leaves, the snow, and the air inside her forest. The blood was only Twilight’s, and Fluttershy could tell that she was badly injured, and in great pain. It didn’t matter then who Twilight Sparkle was or what relationship Fluttershy did or didn’t have with her; Fluttershy would never abandon an injured person in her forest. She slunk through the trees, her elongated form making traversal through them— both on the ground and in their branches— a simple matter. It took no time at all to find the bloodied dragon lying in the red snow on a hill overlooking the forest. What was curious however, was a tiny purple pegasus, no bigger than one of Fluttershy’s toes, pushing his little hands into the bloody gashes on the dragon’s face, as if he were prompting her to get up. The little pegasus was screaming, but no creature was around to hear except for Fluttershy and her animals, and she wondered how he would react once he saw her approach. It didn’t matter; Twilight Sparkle needed her help, and Fluttershy wasn’t about to turn her back. Fluttershy jumped from a tree, and though her wings made for a gentle descent to the ground, as soon as she touched it the pegasus felt her presence, turning around with a shocked gasp and covering as much of his protectorate’s body as his tiny form was able to. “Don’t come any closer!” the little creature shouted. “I’m warning you! I-I’ve got super powerful magic! I won’t hesit-t-tate to, t-to—” “Don’t be afraid, little one,” Fluttershy said softly, kneeling to look the pony in the eye, forgoing the formality of transforming into one of his kind; he was not an enemy of Twilight Sparkle’s, Fluttershy knew that for certain, and he did not seem bothered by Twilight’s dragon form, so why should he be by Fluttershy’s? “I’m here to help. I’m a friend, of Twilight Sparkle.” “Y-you are?” the little boy’s eyes, still shining with tears, held a glimmer of hope in them now. What had this poor child been through to look at Fluttershy with such a gaze? Fluttershy nodded, and the boy fell to his hands and knees, bowing his head into the cold snow. “Please help her! I don’t want her to die! Please!” Fluttershy took another look at the bloodied dragon before her, lavender scales torn from her face, which was covered in a sea of blood, noxious rainbow fluid dripping from the poor girl’s mouth. But what struck Fluttershy the most was her size. Fluttershy had an idea of what Twilight’s dragon form might be like, but seeing it for herself was another matter. While Fluttershy might have been taller if the two were standing on two legs next to each other, her tiny frame was dwarfed by Twilight Sparkle’s, and the magic aura, faint as it was due to what Fluttershy presumed to be exhaustion, made Fluttershy tremble. She hadn’t seen it behind Twilight’s disguise, but Fluttershy got the distinct impression that Twilight could easily kill her if she wanted to, and Fluttershy wasn’t sure she wanted to know or deal with whatever could have hurt her like this. But Twilight Sparkle came to the forest for help, and the forest would not deny her. Fluttershy put her paw on Twilight’s brow, and instantly grimaced. Twilight was cold, and that was not good for a dragon. Fluttershy took a deep breath, and allowed the breath of the forest to flow through her, into her nose, and out through her paw as a pale green light that bathed the injuries of Twilight Sparkle. “Is she gonna be okay?” the boy said hopefully, gently placing his hands onto Twilight Sparkle’s newly regenerated scales. “I think so,” Fluttershy took another look at Twilight and frowned. Her injuries were still very bad, and while Fluttershy’s healing could probably patch her up, it couldn’t fix her. “But I need to take her back to my den,” before the boy could protest, Fluttershy smiled at him, “do you want to come?” “Y-yes, please,” he said, bowing his head. “M-my name’s S-S-Spike, what’s y-yours?” Fluttershy put her gentle wing around Spike, bathing him in her warmth that, judging from his trembling, he sorely needed. “My name is Fluttershy,” she said calmly, “and I want you to know, that you are safe in my forest.”