Fluttershy groaned a little as she walked downstairs.
This isn’t my cabin, where… she thought and shook her head. Looking about, she took note of the large tree’s circumference and the masks up along the walls over shelves full of different colored potions. Turning toward the northern wall, she gazed at a large cauldron set up in the fireplace. Oh right, Zecora’s. Now it’s coming back to me.
Walking over to a window, she opened it and let the cool morning air in, taking note that the chirping from outside caused her head to pound repeatedly. Lifting the tips of her wings up to her temples, Fluttershy circled them ever so slowly. “Oh, my head. Why can’t these birds chirp a little more quietly?”
Sitting down at the base of the window, she looked over toward Zecora’s kitchen. Her tired eyes were so blurry, that she didn’t notice Angel had hopped past her and up the stairs. “That is the last time I'm drinking anything so strong. I really should make something to eat. That does help, at least it always helps Mackie when he drinks too much cider.”
Giggling, Fluttershy thought of the last time her beloved stallion came over after imbibing too much during the last Apple family reunion, stumbling over the steps on her front porch. Once inside, he started to dance with her coat rack, while singing an off key version of ‘Only You’. As his dance came to a close, he finally collapsed on her futon. His head rested on her left shoulder as she draped a wing over him, suppressing a laugh as he asked why she never told him that she had a twin sister before finally passing out.
The thought warmed her heart as she touched her left shoulder with her right hoof. Once the pounding in her head lessened, she trotted off into Zecora’s kitchen. Stopping at the door, Fluttershy found the zebra already awake, standing in front of a stove.
“Oh, um, morning,” Fluttershy said weakly.
“Well, someone sounds quite spry, good morning, dear Fluttershy.” Zecora smiled as she shifted the kettle aside. Pouring a small mug of hot water, the zebra then tipped in a small mix of spices and a few leaves. “Here, this will help from last night's blight. Drinking this will make you feel just right.”
“Oh, thank you,” Fluttershy murmured a little as she took a light sip. Not long after the hot liquid touched her lips, her head began to clear up. “Mmm, that does work. Thank you. My head doesn’t hurt so much now.”
“I’m glad to hear that, that concoction however won’t last. What is needed is a good breakfast.”
“Oh, that’s what I was coming in here to make. To help cure my hangover, and I was hoping to make something special for Kohaku, but I don’t know what he likes.”
“Making something for someone you don't know can be quite tricky. As for Kohaku, however, know he is not that picky.” Zecora chuckled pleasantly to herself. “Whatever you choose to make him will not be in dispute. But for mornings and snacks, he has a deep love of fruit.”
“Ah, a fruit salad, that’s what I’ll make him.” Cheerfully, Fluttershy turned on her hooves to get started. As she trotted over towards the pantry, she stopped. Standing there in the door was Kohaku, his head hanging low and his eyes half closed. A severe case of bed fur showed all over his body, several areas sticking up while the rest was matted down. Fluttershy smiled and looked into those tired amber eyes. “Good morning, Kohaku.”
Zecora turned and smiled at her young charge. “Kohaku, you're up. We were just making breakfast. Anything special you would like?”
“Nothing really,” Kohaku said heavily. He yawned wide, a light meep escaping Fluttershy’s mouth at the sight of his fangs. “And speaking of breakfast...” with a swift motion his tails, he brought around a very limp white rabbit, “...why was mine thumping on my chest this morning?”
Zecora’s eyes went wide as Fluttershy swooned and passed out in front of Kohaku.
***
Rarity trotted down the well-worn path in the Everfree Forest. Looking over to the side, she smiled at Twilight. Rainbow Dash hovered a few feet above the ground in front of them.
“I want to thank you girls for coming with me,” Rarity said pleasantly. “This really does mean a lot.”
“Hey, it’s no problem,” Rainbow said cheerfully while flying around her friends.
“And it’s what friends are for.” Twilight bumped Rarity’s shoulder. “I’m just glad you're being yourself again.”
“You have your son to thank for that, Twilight.” Rarity stopped dead in her tracks and sat down. “Again, thank you for sending that letter to Spike. I know you wanted him there for the duration of the summit.”
“Yeah, but I thought if anypony could pound some sense into you, it would be him.” Twilight smirked at her friend. “And after your apology this morning, it’s clear that he did.”
“Several times…” Rarity whispered to herself when she thought Twilight couldn’t hear.
“I know I asked earlier, but if this boy hasn’t seen your Sweetie Belle...”
“Then I’ll just accept the reality and move on. As difficult as that will be.”
Placing a wing on Rarity's shoulder, Twilight moved in closer. “Well, you won’t be alone, we’ll all be with you.”
Flying backwards toward her friends, Rainbow landed and smiled. “What’s keeping you two slowpokes? I thought you wanted to get there before the kid leaves Zecora’s.”
Giggling, Rarity shook her head and reached out and hugged the two. “Thank you, girls. Now, let's get moving. Rainbow’s right, I need to get to that kid before I lose him in the forest.”
Rarity smiled confidently. She’d get the answer she wanted, she was sure of it. Reaching Zecora’s home around mid-morning, she stood there at the door. “Well, here we go, girls. Cross your hooves.”
With Twilight and Rainbow nodding, Rarity reached out to the door when a loud thump echoed from inside.
“Wha?” Rarity turned and looked at her friends.
Looking at each other, the mares silently conversed together for a few moments. With a swift nod all three burst into the tree and froze in place at the scene before them.
“Oh my Celestia…” Twilight murmured at the sight in front of her. Fluttershy was passed out on the ground as Zecora stood in the archway to her kitchen. There, in front of the pair, was Kohaku. Hanging by the ears, in one of the fox’s tails, was a very limp white rabbit. “Please tell me this isn’t what I think it is.”
***
Kohaku looked around, quirking his eyebrow at the sudden appearance of the three mares he met last night. One of his tails swung around back and forth, still clutching the rabbit.
“What happened here?” Twilight asked, stepping forward.
Kohaku watched her eyes look into his own. With a yawn he turned away and moved over toward Fluttershy.
Why me? he thought as he strolled over to her. Sitting down, Kohaku reached out and shook her shoulder as gently as he could. “Wake up, I want someone to answer me.”
“Mmmm, huh?” Fluttershy looked about as she came to. “Oh my, I had this horrible dream something bad happened to my bunny.”
“Yeah, about the bunny... why didn’t anyone answer my question?” Holding the bunny up, Kohaku groaned irritably. “Why was my breakfast thumping on my chest?”
“Um, that’s not your breakfast.”
“Hey, what did you do to my sister’s pet bunny?” Rainbow shouted as she pushed ahead of her friends and made a beeline toward the fox.
Kohaku watched her walk toward him and stood his ground. He locked his amber eyes on her cerise ones. He opened his mouth to answer, only to look to his side at Fluttershy. Her soft voice reached his ears.
“Oh, Angel...” Fluttershy whispered. “Is he?”
“Hey you, wake up!” With a swift slap with one of Kohaku’s tails, the bunny started to squirm. Lifting his tail to their eye level, Kohaku let them all see that the bunny was alive and well. Turning his attention back to Fluttershy, he sighed. “You call this thing Angel?”
“Um, yes,” Fluttershy said weakly. “I always thought it was a good name for a bunny.”
Kohaku looked at the bunny, who was chittering up a storm now. Angel squirmed about, but Kohaku’s tail had a tight grip around the bunny’s ears. Kohaku quirked his eyebrows again. “With a mouth like that?”
Angel chittered and hung limp, crossing his forelimbs. With a huff he gave a swift kick that spun him around, twisting his ears in Kohaku’s tails.
“Hey, watch it. Or I'm going to show you which one of us is at the top of the food chain.”
Angel sighed and grumbled
“Um, not to ruin the day, but what did that bunny just say?” Zecora asked, eyeing the bunny.
Kohaku looked over at Zecora and shook his head, his body giving a light shiver. “I don't use that kind of language. If I said half of what he just did, my otousan would have skinned my tails and tanned my hide. And to top it all off, he would ground me for two hundred years. Maybe three hundred.”
“Oh my. I am so so sorry, Kohaku. He’s usually very well-behaved,” Fluttershy murmured. “He keeps saying that he’s really ornery, and begs me to get him a girl.” Fluttershy’s wing tips rubbed back and forth against each other. “I just don’t want him scaring them away.”
Angel mumbled and squirmed a little, gesturing to his owner.
“Really?” Kohaku asked as he looked at the bunny, who just sighed and shook his head. “How long now?”
Angel looked up at Kohaku and started to count on his paws till he held up three digits.
“Wow. I’m twelve, and even I think that’s a long time. Especially for a bunny.” Turning his gaze over to Fluttershy, the boy leaned in and smiled. “Um, Miss Fluttershy, I hate to break it to you, but he hasn’t been telling you he’s ornery.”
“R-really?”
“Yeah, Angel’s telling you he’s… well, horny.” Kohaku meeped himself as he heard a near collective gasp. “What?”
“Uh, not to doubt your abilities, kid,” Rainbow said looking at the boy. “But we all know how good Fluttershy is at communicating with animals. Are you sure that’s what he said?”
“Without a doubt, you see, bunnies use the same word for both meanings.”
“So, how do you tell the difference?” Twilight’s curiosity peaked as she shifted her gaze back and forth between Kohaku and the bunny.
“Um… yeah, how? I really would like to know.” Fluttershy kept her head down as she sat up.
“Oh, that’s easy,” Kohaku said, groaning a little as he lowered the bunny down and away from himself. “I can smell it on him. For the last ten minutes, I’ve been tempted to eat him just to get rid of it.” Looking over at Fluttershy, he sighed and swung the bunny over to her.
Fluttershy reached out to grab Angel, only to be interrupted by the barking of the marten by the stairs. Both her and Kohaku turned their heads to Marigold.
“Really? You think they’d take him?” Kohaku asked, moving from Fluttershy who reached for Angel and missed, falling flat on her forelegs. Marigold nodded while continuing to bark and gesture. “Oh yeah, they would be good. Okay, I’ll do it. Thanks.”
Turning around, Kohaku smiled over at Fluttershy as he watched Rainbow help her back up. “You don’t mind if I fix your bunny’s problem for you, do ya?”
“Oh no, if you can please do. It’s rather interesting watching you work.” Fluttershy smiled back. Her gaze turned to the marten, who just smirked. Quirking her eyebrows, the pegasus began to wonder what was going on behind those eyes. “I’ve never met anyone else who’s so good with animals.”
“Well, okay then. Excuse me, ladies.” Kohaku moved his way past the mares who all parted for him. Opening the door, he held the bunny still at the threshold. “Okay, bunny boy. About a twenty minute hop that way.” Kohaku pointed north. “You’ll find a small babbling brook, near it is a hundred-year-old oak tree. In the burrow under it you’ll find four female snowshoe hares.” Leaning in closer, he whispered, “Not one of them has a male in their lives. And they just love little bunnies like you.”
Angel’s eyes widened, and he started to run as hard as he could, only to find he wasn’t going anywhere.
“Careful now, Romeo. A few things before I let you go. When you get there, tell them that Marigold sent you. Be very clear on that. They will know just how to treat you.”
Nodding, Angel looked at Kohaku, smiling.
“Now. Be here tomorrow at noon for your owner to pick you up. Promise?”
Angel nodded again and saluted with respect.
“Good luck, soldier.” Dropping the bunny onto his feet, Kohaku watched as Angel dashed into the woods. Sighing peacefully, he closed the door.
“Oh, thank you ever so much. This means a lot.” Fluttershy smiled and hugged Kohaku.
“No problem. You can come back tomorrow to pick up what’s left of him.”
“What's… left of him?” Fluttershy trembled as she took a few steps backward.
“Yeah, I conveniently forgot to tell him why they don’t have a male in their lives.”
“Uh, why is that? Are they... just into females?” Dash asked, moving over to Fluttershy, leaning in with a grin.
“No, but they aren't called the love cougars of the forest for nothing.” A sly, toothy grin crossed Kohaku’s face. He watched as Fluttershy and Dash slowly backed away as the other two mares joined them, their eyes watching him intently. “They’re the girls Marigold sends the troublemakers to.”
“W-will he be okay?” Fluttershy voice shook as she looked toward the door.
“Oh, don’t worry,” he said with a slight wave of his paw. “With his energy and enthusiasm, I have no doubt he’ll be fine. He’ll just come back a very broken, but very happy bunny. Who knows, his attitude might improve.” Kohaku chuckled, looking at all four mares.
“I have to ask, darling, why did you do that?” Rarity moved up and quirked an eyebrow.
“Yeah, it seems to be kinda harsh.” Twilight’s eyes shifted over to Kohaku.
“Hey, he woke me up from a very lovely dream.” Looking up, he rocked back and forth with a dreamy look in his eyes. “Three beautiful, marshmallow-colored vixens were paw-feeding me fresh berries, all while they cradled my head and shoulders with their laps. Their free paws played with my chest tuft as their tails brushed up and down ever so slowly across my...”
“Yeah? Where?” Rainbow asked, moving in closer, her eyes hungry for the story the boy was telling.
Upon hearing Rainbow’s voice, he blinked several times. Brought out of his daydreaming, he rubbed his paw along the collar of his travel vest and let out a nervous chuckle. “Ummm... haha. Is it getting a little warm in here?”
“No, but that dream certainly sounds hot, you have to tell me the rest of it sometime.” Rainbow lightly bumped her shoulder up against his, leaning in closer.
His eyes locked on Rainbow Dash, he smiled. “Um, you're not going to tackle and straddle my face again, are you?”
“Naw, I’m cutting down to only one kid a year.” Rainbow smiled back. “Something I promised my wife.”
Kohaku and Rainbow looked at each other for a moment before both bursting into laughter.
“I am sorry about that, I wasn’t watching carefully enough last night.” Rainbow wrapped a foreleg around Kohaku’s shoulder as they both continued to chuckle. “But it was probably the highlight of your life. Being flashed somepony as awesome as I am.”
“Eh, not really. I’ve seen stuff like that before.”
“Really?” Rainbow smirked, looking at him. “You have to be one lucky kid.”
“Well, not really, but I did bathe with my four big sisters until I was ten.” Kohaku stretched and flipped his tails back and forth. “Every night they would take turns with me. Washing my hair, tails and back, basically fussing over me as only they could. I would probably still be bathing with them, if they were…” Kohaku sighed as his voice died.
“It sounds like you had a very close family.” Rainbow chuckled, ruffling his hair with her hoof. “So, what happened to them?”
Kohaku bit down on his lip, wincing a bit as he bit harder then he meant too. His paws shifted back and forth nervously as he turned his face away from Rainbow. “Uhhh... I really should get going. I’ve been away from home too long now.”
Kohaku stood up and backed away. Picking up his rucksack off the floor, he slung it over his shoulder, then turned to the door. He quickly stopped dead upon hearing Rarity’s voice.
“Wait!” P-please don’t leave just yet.” Moving closer, Rarity sat down and looked at him. “I have to ask you something.”
Turning around, Kohaku looked into her azure eyes. “Um, yeah?”
“Yesterday, after you saved me from those timberwolves, I noticed you got this odd look when I mentioned my sister Sweetie Belle’s name.”
Gulping, Kohaku took a slow step backwards, unaware that Zecora and Fluttershy looked at each other.
“A-and?” His voice quivered a little under that penetrating stare. Shrinking back slightly, he watched her eyes start to flutter rapidly. Oh wow, I’ve only Sweetie-chan do that. I wonder if it’s a family trait. I guess she wants something, just like when Sweetie-chan does that.
“Well, I just had to ask. Have you seen my sister?”
Of course she would ask that. Why wouldn’t she, Kohaku thought as he pushed his back up against the door. Oh, sweet Amaterasu, what am I going to say to her? If I say yes, I’ll have to admit that I have Sweetie Belle with me back at my place. And then there’s Sweetie Belle herself and everything she told me. Taking a long deep breath, he closed his eyes and lifted his head. When he opened them again, he just sighed.
Oh, what is he going to say? Oh, please say you’ve seen her. Please do the right thing, Fluttershy thought as she shifted back and forth.
“Hey, sis? You okay there?” Rainbow asked, putting a wing on Fluttershy’s shoulder. “You're looking more anxious than usual.”
“Um, yes... I’m fine, sis. Just... kinda nervous for Rarity. I don’t want her to be disappointed.”
“None of us do, Fluttershy,” Twilight said, placing her wing on top of Rainbow’s. “That’s why we’re all here with her when she asks this. So if she gets the answer she doesn’t want, we’ll be here for her.”
Biting down on her lower lip, Fluttershy nodded and sighed. Oh, why did I make that stupid promise.
Kohaku shook his head and looked deeply into Rarity’s eyes. “No, I haven't.”
“I see, well, thank you anyway.” Rarity sighed and hung her head low. Turning around, she walked over to her friends.
Kohaku turned around quickly and placed his paw on the door handle. He was about to turn it when voices behind him reached his ears.
“We’re so sorry, Rarity,” Twilight said, rushing in and hugging her friend close. “But you knew this was inevitable.”
“Yeah. I’m sorry too, Rares.” Rainbow Dash wrapped her legs around Rarity’s shoulders as well. “Even I hoped you would have gotten the answer you wanted.”
“I know, girls. You were right, Twilight, I just have to face facts now. My sister is dead.” Rarity stood up straight and tried to hold her head up high.
My sister is dead. The words echoed in his ears as Kohaku’s breathing became heavier. Gritting his teeth, he pushed his paw against the door. Leaning forward, he pressed his forehead into the dark wood and closed his eyes. “I’ll look for her!” he cried out, keeping his back to the mares behind him.
Fluttershy and Zecora looked at each other, their eyes wide and mouths slightly agape. Turning their heads back, the pair watched as Rarity hesitantly moved toward the shaking fox.
“W... what was that, darling?”
He looked over his shoulder and into her eyes, his own amber spheres tearing up. “I said I’ll look for her.”
“You would do that for me?” Rarity placed her hoof on the boy’s shoulder. Why is he crying?
“Well, yeah. I know this forest. And for the areas that I don’t know, my animal friends do.” Wiping his eyes and turning around completely, he looked at Rarity. “There are also a few villages hidden away. I could, well, ask around. Maybe she stumbled into one of them.”
“Well, that’s...”
“Wonderful!” Fluttershy blurted out, and every mare turned to look at her in shock. She quickly moved in closer to Kohaku, nearly knocking Rarity over in the process. “You’ll really look for her? You promise?”
“Well, I...” Kohaku swallowed loudly as he looked into those sparkling cerulean eyes. He watched as they bore deeply into his own. These weren’t the eyes of a simple friendly pegasus, no, they were something more. A deep, all-knowing, penetrating gaze that he only got from one individual in his life. The one individual from whom he could never hide anything. Oh boy. Only Kazumi Neechan ever looked at me like that. There’s only one thing I can say to those eyes.
With a sigh, Kohaku nodded slowly. “Yes, I promise.”
“Thank you, darling,” Rarity said, after finding her voice again. Reaching out, she pulled Kohaku close and hugged him tight. “You don’t know what this means to me.”
“Actually, I do,” he whispered quietly, gritting his teeth and putting his front paws on her chest. Slowly pushing himself away, he turned to the door. “I do have a condition or two.”
“Darling, anything you want, you’ll have it.” Rarity kept her hold on Kohaku, looking him in the eyes.
“First, no matter what I find, you’ll accept?”
Rarity nodded slowly. “Yes, of course. And the second thing?”
Nervously chuckling, Kohaku slowly rubbed his head with a paw, his claws tangling up in his hair. “Well, could you start up your mail order again? I know a bunch of mares and fillies who only order from you that way. All of which have been extremely vocal about not getting their orders.”
“I’ll get right on that the very moment I’m back in Ponyville,” Rarity said with a smile.
“Right, well, I have to get going.” Turning back to the door, he took only one step before stopping. “Oh right, Miss Zecora. I wanted to ask you if your seamstress friend could fix up my Oniisan’s old cloak for me.”
Laughing aloud, Zecora just waved her hoof. “Oh, that is mere simplicity. You see, that friend is Miss Rarity.”
“Yes, and I already have your cloak back at my shop. I will be more than pleased to fix it up.”
“Thanks, just one thing. No bells. I can’t understand for the life of me why he wanted bells lining that cloak.” Shivering, Kohaku recalled that day. “My sister Riko cringed when he asked for it. And the first thing I did when he gave me the cloak was rip off every single bell. I love my Oniisan, but he has a lousy sense of fashion.”
“No problem, darling, no bells.”
“Right, well, I’ll see you in a week or two. I should know something then.” Swiftly turning on his paws, he made a beeline toward the door.
“I’ll see you out.” Fluttershy eagerly moved to his side and opened the door. Leaning in, she whispered ever so gently, “You're doing the right thing. Thank you.”
As the entrance shut, Rainbow and Twilight looked at each other with similar expressions. Both mares had noticed everything Kohaku had said and the way he said it. They saw just how nervous he was when Rainbow had asked about where his family was. Together they felt their hearts drop as he only talked about them in the past tense. They both had seen behavior like this before, and that was with their adopted daughter Scootaloo. With a slow nod, Rainbow turned to Zecora.
“Hey, Zecora, since you know him so well, could you confirm something for us?”
“For my dear friends I rarely say no, so what would you and Twilight like to know?”
Rarity stepped in closer, having seen the look Twilight and Rainbow gave each other. “Am I missing something here?”
Shaking her head, Twilight placed a wing on Rarity’s shoulder. “No more than the rest of us, Rarity.” Looking back to Zecora, she sighed. “That boy is an orphan, isn’t he?”
Zecora sighed deeply as she nodded to her three friends.
***
Fluttershy sat comfortably by the window away from her friends. She barely heard what they had been talking about, although Rarity’s gasp did catch her attention for a moment. Her eyes watched the young fox like a hawk. Keeping her forelegs crossed on the windowsill, she rested her head down on them. She observed Kohaku sitting down next to a large, gnarled oak tree and staring up at the sky. Looking up herself, she noted how beautiful the moving clouds were here in the Everfree.
“Smooth move, fish for brains. Now what am I going to do about Sweetie Belle?” the fox groaned.
Fluttershy’s ears perked at that. She watched with concern as he repeatedly hit himself in the back of the head with one of his tails. Then he gripped his worn rucksack and tightened it on his back some more. He looked left and right, Fluttershy ducking her head a bit as he turned his head back around to Zecora’s before dashing off into the thicket.
With Kohaku finally out of sight, she stood up and stared in the direction he traveled in. Southeast, huh? I know a few animals from that area. One in particular comes to mind. And I’m sure I can get him to tell me what I want to know. Especially if I bring him his favorite honey treats.