~✩~ Chapter 4 ~✩~
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~✩~ Just One Bite ~✩~
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The sound of raindrops battering the rooves of Ponyville's many homes and the paving stones that make up the main walkways blocked out all sound as Fluttershy galloped through the alleyways. The sound of her hooves against the ground couldn't even reach her own ears despite their heavy impacts. Her entire body was completely soaked through, fur matted against her skin and mane messily sticking to every inch of her face and neck it could touch.
The thick cloud layer put together by the weather pegasi ensured that no moonlight made it to the ground, forcing her to stick to the homes with lights on or the main streets with lit lamps in the late time of night. Even if she now held an uncanny ability to see in the dark, she still needed more than absolutely zero light to see.
She didn't want to be out in such a storm, even if the rain hardly put a chill into her already-cold body, but that insatiable hunger had returned to her and there was only one pony who knew how to take care of it. Visiting the mansion on the hill was the last thing she wanted to do under any circumstance after what happened to her last time the owner paid her a visit, but she was once again growing desperate.
In her mad rush through the streets and over puddles of water, she felt her hooves skid on the slick stones making up the ground of the town's marketplace. Though she tried her best to stay upright, the distraction of her own thoughts gave her just enough pause to allow for a harsh fall against the side of Ponyville's landmark bakery. A sickening crack forced its way through the rain, and though she felt that intense, burning pain of a broken bone pierce her left wing, her body's usual urge to scream never came. It was almost as if the pain didn't matter to her anymore.
As she picked herself up off the ground, her injured wing simply hung awkwardly towards the ground. She attempted to look the injury over, but to her surprise, a different feeling came from the limb which suspiciously bore no bruise. As if an invisible pony had taken hold of her wing, her bones snapped themselves back into place, the wing setting itself.
Her sense of confused awe was cut short when the window just above her opened, catching her ears. She caught sight of Pinkie Pie leaning out just enough to peer outside without getting pelted by the rain in search of what had just impacted the wall. Eventually, those blue eyes turned down to look right at her.
Pinkie Pie blinked, an expression of concern crossing her face. “Fluttershy? What are you doing out there in a super big bad rainstorm like this? I know our sweets are super tasty, but they're not worth getting all wet over! Come inside before you catch a cold!”
Fluttershy folded her wing back up against her body as if it hadn't just been mangled a moment ago. Her eyes lingered on her friend. She wanted to speak, but the more she stared at Pinkie Pie, the louder that pain in the pit of her stomach grew. Any attempt to speak would be cut off by her snapping her mouth shut again.
Pinkie tilted her head. “Everything okay? Kinda hard to see in the dark, but you kind of have something going on with your face there.”
Fluttershy paused. For reasons she didn't fully understand, staring at her concerned friend made her mouth water as if she was staring at a big table of delicious food. A swallow of saliva allowed her tongue to run across something she definitely knew wasn't there just moments ago: a pair of large, sharp fangs. Without a moment's hesitation, she held a hoof over her mouth and dashed away from Sugarcube Corner in an awkward three-legged gallop.
“Hey! Wait! Where are you going?!”
The voice of Pinkie calling after her barely reached her through the cacophony of rain. Only once she was sure she wasn't being followed, she lowered her hoof back down to the ground to return to full speed. She needed to get to Scarlet's mansion as quickly as possible. She needed to understand why she had just been staring at one of her best friends like she was a tasty stew, allured by its aroma as it cooked all day.
Luckily, no other ponies seemed too keen on stopping Fluttershy as she continued her ill-advised trip through the pounding rain. Her eyes tracked the shadow of Carousel Boutique lit up only by the lights coming from inside as she passed by. Rarity's home was the best landmark on the way to Scarlet's home, though that quickly began to concern her.
She just about slipped on the steep path up the hill, but this time actually managed to catch herself. Taking a slower pace to keep safe, she soon reached the front door and raised both of her hooves to pound on it. She no longer cared about being disruptive to the pony living inside. She needed answers and she was going to get them.
When the door opened, she just about struck Scarlet in the face with her flailing hooves. Luckily for the both of them, Scarlet had much faster reflexes than for a pony of the age she appeared to be.
Fluttershy lowered herself down onto all fours. In a rare moment for her, she allowed her frustration to show on her face. “You are going to – “ Her words cut off as she ran directly into what felt like a solid brick wall, her entire face hurting for just a moment before any pain swiftly faded away just like her wing. Confusion grew inside of her as she placed her hooves against the barrier that stood between her and Scarlet. Even though everything looked just normal and she couldn't physically see the impediment, she was able to feel it right there with her own hooves. “What's this?”
Scarlet laughed, that darker demeanor sticking to her much like it did during her visit. “Oh you sweet innocent dear, you have so much to learn, still.” Scarlet's words held an air of smugness that only made Fluttershy give another pound to the invisible barrier in front of her. “I haven't invited you into my home since you turned, and vampires cannot enter private homes unless invited in at least once.”
Fluttershy allowed a growl to leave her throat, another strike to the force holding her back sending a visible ripple through it like water. “I thought you said drinking that horrible blood would make me feel better, but I'm feeling hungry again! Why did you lie?”
“Come on in, dear, let us have a talk,” replied Scarlet in a calm tone despite the mild snarl on the face of the pony before her.
The barrier vanished instantly in front of Fluttershy and sent her down to the ground for the second time that night. Luckily for her, she only fell on her belly rather than her wing. She stood once again, only to have a towel tossed over her head.
“Dry yourself off first. I don't want you dripping all over my carpet.”
Fluttershy begrudgingly pulled the towel off her head to carefully pat the water out of her fur and hair. “Why am I hungry again? Why did it feel like I wanted to eat my friend?”
Scarlet laughed into a hoof. “My, feeling pretty direct tonight are we? Where's that shy, meek, couldn't hurt a fly pony?”
“Answer me!” Fluttershy stomped her free hoof on the ground, the sound of a cracking porcelain tile ringing throughout the mansion.
Scarlet didn't bear a single hint of fear despite the anger directed right at her, almost as if she knew for a fact that Fluttershy wasn't the slightest bit of a threat to her. “Come, we'll off to the sitting room and I'll explain everything step by step so even you can understand, dear. Just remember, everything about what I'm going to tell you is a matter of your own survival.”
* * *
Rarity wore a happy, yet tired, smile as she tied the last bow on her latest creation's sleeve. It had taken much longer than expected to get the design down just right, but the final product was more than worth it. She took a couple steps back to admire the classically designed dress inspired by those worn back in the early days of the princesses' reign. In her mind, there was absolutely no doubt that it would absolutely stun her customers up in Canterlot.
A knocking sound echoed down the stairs from the boutique's living quarters and easily caught Rarity's attention. Sweetie Belle was with their parents for the time being, so she knew it couldn't be her playing. Oh goodness sake, is Opal knocking things over again? She thought to herself with a groan. Her magic may have made cleaning up after that finicky cat an easy job, but it was still an irritating one. It didn't help that it was growing close to when she should tuck into bed for the evening.
“Opal! You better not be playing with momma's things again!” she called out while climbing up the stairs.
Rarity cantered straight into her bedroom, but to her surprise, the room was not only clean but Opal was peacefully sleeping right in the middle of her bed. Her expression shifted from annoyed to confused. She was about to turn and inspect Sweetie's room for anything that might have fallen instead, but a sudden chilled wind across her side made her pause. The window facing out away from the majority of Ponyville was pulled open. Even if she had sworn she closed it the moment she heard about the plans for the storm, she simply lit up her horn with her light blue magic corona and closed it tight.
Once she no longer had the sound of rain, wind and a slight bit of thunder filling her ears, she heard a new knocking. This one was coming from the front door of her shop down below and she found herself quickly growing exasperated. “For the love of – I'm still cross with you, Rainbow Dash! If you're trying to scare me during another heavy storm like you did three months ago, I'll just warn you now that I'm not in the mood!”
Her trip back down the stairs was accompanied by many irritated mumbles about her prank-loving friend. The knocking didn't cease this time and continued right up until she took hold of the door's handle with her magic. Half expecting to see nothing as she opened it up, she instead gasped in shock at the image of a soaking wet Fluttershy standing drearily on her doorstep.
Fluttershy's mane stuck completely to any and every inch of her body it touched, most of her face hidden entirely from view save for her muzzle and one down turned eye. Her wings hung from her sides as if she had just flown for miles and her matted coat made her look even skinnier than normal. Amid the storm raging around her, Fluttershy opened her mouth slowly to speak. “Can I come in?”
“What? Get in here this instant! Get out of that rain!” Rarity sputtered, just about ready to drag Fluttershy in herself. She could only watch with worry as Fluttershy scooted past her, leaving a trail of water behind that mostly came from her extra long tail.
Rarity didn't wait even a second after the door was closed to race back up to the second floor to gather towels. She swiftly wrapped Fluttershy up and used her magic to pat her down all over to get some semblance of her friend's normal self back. She left one last dry one wrapped around Fluttershy for warmth while setting the rest aside for later.
“Uhm, thanks,” said Fluttershy in an even shakier voice than she usually carried.
Rarity sighed and circled around Fluttershy, putting the top of her head to her friend's rump to forcefully guide her up the stairs to the warmer living space. “Come on, let's get you warmed up. You're absolutely freezing, darling.”
Fluttershy moved at the pace set by Rarity without a fight. “Sorry if I'm being a bother. I just really need somepony to talk to right now, and all the others are asleep.”
Rarity stopped pushing once the two of them were in her bedroom where she swiftly magicked over a spare blanket to wrap around Fluttershy. “It's no bother at all if you genuinely need my support. It must be pretty serious to come all this way through such conditions.”
Fluttershy looked away and down at the floor. “It is something really important.”
The hesitation in Fluttershy's voice caught Rarity's notice, but she decided not to mention it. Instead, she gripped a hair drier in her magic and pulled it over to her. “Well, I'm all ears, darling. You can tell me absolutely anything.”
“Can you look into my eyes?”
The question caught Rarity by surprise. “Well, of course I can. Is there something wrong – “ She cut herself off immediately upon seeing the sight before her. Fluttershy's beautiful seafoam colored eyes had been replaced by darkened spheres, the whites now a dreadfully pitch black with the rings of color almost appearing to glow.
Rarity slowly backed away from Fluttershy in a moment of fear she never knew her friend could give. She could only watch as Fluttershy rose from the blanket, having to pause for a moment when her rump met the wall behind her. “Fluttershy? It's a little early to be practicing for Nightmare Night.”
“Look her in the eyes and she won't be able to tell anypony. It'll be okay. She won't go away forever, she'll just become like me,” Fluttershy muttered to herself while approaching. Despite the shaky tone in which she spoke, she kept her eyes locked right onto Rarity's who felt a strange difficulty in looking away.
Rarity brought a hoof in front of herself out of some protective instinct as her heart began to race. “Tell anypony what? Is there something you've told me you don't want others knowing? You can just tell me that. This is very unnecessary.”
No answer came to Rarity's questions. Instead, Fluttershy lunged directly at her at a speed she would expect from Rainbow Dash in full flight rather than a grounded pony. Due to that moment of surprise, she found herself pinned against the wall with her forelegs held down with a surprising amount of strength.
“You're, you're not Fluttershy are you? You must be a changeling or something!” Rarity's eyes turned from scared to angry at the thought. Her horn once again lit up with her magic and enveloped Fluttershy in its grasp. It took all of her strength in order to peel her attacker off of herself and hurl her against the far wall. She sadly missed the window she was aiming for, but she had opened up her route of escape nevertheless. “Too bad for you, I have experience fighting changelings!”
With a migraine setting in from the surprisingly heavy use of magic it took to lift something as heavy as a pony, she took off into a full gallop for the stairs. She caught only a glimpse of what she thought was a false Fluttershy climbing back up onto her hooves while racing out of the room.
Images of that twisted imitation of Fluttershy's face remained in the front of Rarity's mind. Visions of those terrifying eyes accompanied by a snarling mouth with fangs too long to fit inside of it when closed gave her just enough distraction to allow one of her hooves to catch and scrape against a step. With a terrified scream, she came crashing the rest of the way down the stairs and into one of her many work stations.
Be it the adrenaline coursing through her veins or the sheer stubborn will to survive, Rarity managed to pick herself up off the ground despite the pain coming from multiple locations around her body. A pair of fabric scissors knocked free from its resting place caught her eye and she scooped them up with her magic before limping for the door as quickly as she possibly could.
She threw the door open and hurried out into the storm without a care for the risks it posed. Facing a pitch black night and random bolts of lightning held much better odds than she felt she had fighting that thing all on her own. She just needed to get somewhere she could feel safe.
Rarity struggled to find any sense of bearings even with the glow coming off her horn, but she found herself thanking the princesses when streetlights greeted her upon rounding a corner. She may not have known her exact location in town, but all of the main roads led to a place she knew she could find help. It was just a matter of getting there before her pursuer she could just barely hear over the rain caught up with her.
During her sprint through the dark town, she could feel whatever injuries she had sustained during her trip down the stairs grow angrier and angrier. By the time she managed to reach Sugarcube Corner, she could only hobble at just over a normal trotting pace. Despite this, she threw herself at the door a single test of her magic told her was locked.
“Pinkie Pie! Mister and Missus Cake! Anypony! Please wake up!” Rarity pleaded in desperation while pounding at the door with both of her hooves. She turned her head to check for the one chasing after her before resuming her distressed struggle. Even as her hooves grew sore from the repeated impacts, she continued on. If she had the strength in her, she would have broken the barrier down just to get to another pony.
Exhausted, she pressed her cheek against the door and slowly slid down to the stone steps. Even as she caught sight of Fluttershy approaching her again, she couldn't bring enough strength into her muscles to so much as stand back up again. She could only stare into those dark eyes while cowering, too worn to even do so much as swing the scissors still pathetically held in her magic when a flick of a hoof across her horn made her drop them.
As she braced for the worst, Rarity felt a strong tug on her tail and couldn't fight back as she was slowly dragged away. The last thing she could see before Fluttershy dragged her around the nearest corner was Pinkie Pie opening up the door and glancing around with concern before leaning down to inspect the lost pair of fabric scissors. She desperately held out a hoof as if it would somehow let her grab her friend, but she was soon behind cover.
Mercifully, the dragging stopped soon after the two of them were completely out of sight. Despite her inability to run or fight any longer, Rarity still found herself getting held down by Fluttershy above. Even with the rain falling on her face, she could only stare straight up at perplexing mix of anger and regret on Fluttershy.
No words were exchanged, and she instead could only watch Fluttershy lower her head down towards her neck. Without warning, Rarity felt those intimidating fangs stab right through her skin as if it were tissue paper. She wanted to scream, but something made the sound die before it could even make its way to her throat. All she could do was lay there, pinned down by her friend, or a monster that looked very much like her, and stare up at the lamp post. The corners of her vision began to fade into darkness, more and more of her sight draining away from her.
She could hardly even register the fangs pulling back out, only just barely able to see the blurred image of Fluttershy above her shifting back to the visage she was much more accustomed to. Fluttershy held her hooves over her mouth in shock, a few words just barely catching her ringing ears.
“Oh no, what have I done? I'm so sorry, I was just so...” Fluttershy's words grew too hard to hear through the increasing volume of the ringing.
Rarity's vision faded entirely to black, but she could feel herself getting gently picked up. The last thing she could sense before blacking out entirely was the soft bobbing of somepony trotting while carrying her on their back.