//------------------------------// // Fluttershy's Kindness // Story: Striped Scars // by ezio dementay //------------------------------// Fluttershy heard the muffled sound of bubbling water in her ear. She slowly opened her eyes to see that she was surrounded by water from all sides. She felt the pressure on her body, the slight stinging pain in her eyes. She looked up and noticed that she lay several feet below the surface. Suddenly, she noticed that she was beginning to run out of air. She desperately tried to swim, hastily flinging her arms through the water as bubbles of air escaped her muzzle, but it was no use. She could hear the muffled sound of a screaming filly above her. She looked up to see the faded image of a young pony, standing at the waterside looking down at her, screaming. The filly lowered herself, reaching for Fluttershy with her hoof beneath the water. The terrified pegasus extended her reach upwards, nearly touching the filly´s hoof. She raised her shoulder towards the surface, extending her reach even further. She could nearly grasp the filly´s hoof. Suddenly, Fluttershy felt something pull at her legs, dragging her down into the darkness. She could hear the filly´s screaming intensify as she descended into the depths. Her hair flowed upwards as the surface seemed to get farther and farther away. She could feel her last breath escape her muzzle. Her eyes slowly closed as her body went limp. Fluttershy jumped forward into a sitting position as her eyes shot open, screaming at the top of her lungs, several beads of sweat flying through the air. She felt her heart racing in her chest as it rose and fell due to her frantic breathing. Her scream echoed through the darkened wooden cabin, it could still faintly be heard in the forests that surrounded her home. She shivered as a cold wind crept up her spine. It wasn't the first time that Fluttershy had been roughly awakened like this but it used to be a rare occurrence. The nightmares seemed to become more frequent with every passing night. They often involved Fluttershy, drowning in a deep pool of water. Sometimes she saw herself simply walking through the streets of Ponyville as she suddenly lost her ability to breath, gasping for air. She felt her breathing calm down as she sat upright in her bed. She looked outside, rubbing her eyes with her hooves to sharpen her view. She sighed heavily as she noticed that it was once again dark outside. She hadn't experienced a good night's sleep in weeks. This led to her being completely exhausted as she went about her daily business. Her friends had asked her about it, they clearly seemed worried. But Fluttershy didn't feel like telling them about her night-time terrors in fear of being ridiculed. Her eyelids felt heavy, she had to struggle to keep them open. She wanted to sleep, she wanted to sleep so badly. But whenever she did the nightmares returned to her. Eventually her fear for the dreadful visions became bigger than her need for sleep. Suddenly, a soft stamping sound could be heard at her door. She turned her head to examine the source. A young, white bunny stood in the portal of the door, thumping his foot on the wooden floor. He wore a dreary look on his face as she shuffled over to his owner. Her screams had awakened him from his midnight slumber. He was about to complain when Fluttershy suddenly picked him off the floor and hugged him as tightly as possible. Angel noticed that his owner was crying softly causing him to look at her with a look of compassion as he allowed her to hold him tightly. “Why won't it stop Angel?” She sobbed. “What do they even mean!?” She laid the bunny down on the sheets in front of her and looked at him with watery eyes. She refused to let her fatigue get the better of her so she tiredly kicked the sheets off of herself and made her way to the kitchen. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Several moments later she sat on her couch with a cup of coffee, staring into the crackling fireplace. The fire shone a dim light through the cabin's living room, it's glow filling Fluttershy's coat with a warm sensation. She took small sips of the bitter, black brew she held in her hooves, staring down into the swirling foam. She didn't want to live like this, but what was she supposed to do? She was terrified, afraid of her own thoughts. The only way to hide was to stay awake. “I can't go on like this..” she whispered. “I have to talk so somepony, but who? Twilight perhaps?” She thought until she remembered how the purple unicorn handled the whole Pinkie sense dilemma. “No, she'd probably want to study me.. I don't want that..” She got off of the couch, making her way towards her small yet cosy bathroom. She walked over to the sink and splashed some water into her face to clear her thoughts. She looked up into the mirror, water dripping from her mane into the sink. "I have a problem.." She whispered. Everyone she knew was already asleep at this time. She didn't want to bother any of them but she refused to sit through another lonely night in her cabin, staring at the horizon, waiting for the sun to rise. The night could get so lonely for the shy pegasus. Sure, she had friends but her home was always empty. The only pony that ever bothered to visit her was her friend Rainbow Dash. But even she was too busy with her flight training to spent time with Fluttershy these days. Of course, Fluttershy understood but it still saddened her. She trotted over to the window, looking into the dark outer reaches of the Everfree Forest. A small source of light could be seen from beyond the trees. She wondered where it came from. She tilted her head in confusion as she looked at the flickering light. Suddenly, she realised that it could only come from the forest's only resident. Zecora.. Everfree's mysterious witch doctor. Fluttershy didn't really know her all that well. She remembered her from the incident with the poison joke that had infected the six friends with strange diseases. Fluttershy had seen her roaming around Ponyville several times after that day but they never really talked much to one another. Fluttershy played with the idea of paying her a visit. She was awake after all, why else would she leave the lights on? She trotted over to her door, throwing her scarf around her neck. She paused for a moment as she opened the door and stared off into the darkness. “She's probably asleep... Maybe I shouldn't bother her...” Fluttershy thought, looking down at the ground. Suddenly she felt Angel push her outside. He had already caught on to Fluttershy's plan and he wasn't going to let her shy her way out of this one. He was sick and tired of seeing his caretaker like this. Fluttershy turned around and gave her little friend a determined nod before she ran off into the forest. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Maybe this wasn't such a good idea..." she thought as she descended deeper into the dark and gloomy forest. She allowed her timid nature to get the better of her. Her mind started to play tricks on her eyes. Often enough, she would see something in the corner of her eye causing her to swiftly turn her head only to be greeted by a silent tree or a rustling bush. She slowly shuffled through the shadowy paths of the thick forest, the tree tops stopped the moonlight from entering, creating an unnatural darkness within the deeper reaches of the forest. The only sounds that accompanied the frightful silence were the occasional owl and a faint crackling sound in the distance. Fluttershy didn't really know why she was doing this. She didn't even know what she would say to her when she reached Zecora's hut. Now that she thought about it, if anyone could help her with her nightmares it was Zecora. She seemed to know a lot about the darker side of magic and the spirit world. She began to reach her destination as the path underneath her hooves gave in for mud and leaves. Suddenly, several distressed animals ran past her, they seemed to be in utter terror of something. Fluttershy had seen scared critters before but they never seemed as distressed as these. She turned her muzzle away from the air as a foul smell filled her nose. She knew that smell, the smell of smoke and burned wood. Her eyes shot open in fear as she realised what was going on. Suddenly, the forest didn't seem so dark any more. The fire that danced around the burning trees created a bright, orange light, illuminating the once dark forest. She turned around and ran away as fast as her legs could take her. Suddenly, she stopped in her tracks, her hooves digging into the mud beneath her. "Zecora!" she thought. Quickly turning around, she stormed off into the sea of flame. She could be as courageous as any other pony when someone's life was at stake. Burning branches fell all around her. Where ever she looked she saw fire, burning brightly, incinerating the trees and animal homes that stood in the forest. A mixture of fear and determination crossed her face as she ran with all her might. Zecora's hut came in sight, engulfed in a blanket of flames. Fluttershy feared the worst. She ran over to the entrance and kicked it open with her hind legs. She quickly entered the room to see Zecora, lying unconscious on the floor of her home. Luckily, the flames hadn't reached her yet but the walls of her home were blazing amidst the chaos. The pegasus ran over to the helpless zebra. She nudged her with her muzzle. "Come on Zecora! You have to wake up! Please wake up!" she yelled. Several flaming planks fell from the ceiling, nearly hitting the two. "No time!" Fluttershy thought as she attempted to lift the zebra up on her back. Sadly, she was simply not strong enough to lift her. Without any other choice, she took the zebra's roughed up mane in her mouth and started dragging her towards the exit. She had to muster all of her power to slowly pull her unconscious friend across the floorboards, avoiding the rising flames. Once outside she collapsed from exhaustion, falling to the floor. Wounds covered her body as she grabbed Zecora with her hooves, violently shaking the zebra in an attempt to wake her up. Realizing that Zecora had probably inhaled a dangerous amount of smoke. She turned her head in all directions, looking for help. They were all one. She put her ear to Zecora's chest. Her eyes filled with fear as she realised that the Zebra was no longer breathing. Desperately, Fluttershy held both of her hooves to Zecora's heart and started to make quick, heavy pushes. The chaos started to press down on her fragile mind. There was simply too much going on. Her eyes filled with tears as she tilted the zebra's neck, pushing her head down to connect their muzzles together. Zecora's chest started to rise and fall as Fluttershy breathed into her. Her tears dripped down her face, running through Zecora's coat. She wasn't going to let her die. Not as long as she could help it. Fluttershy knew that Zecora wasn't going to make it without medical attention. She had to bring her to the hospital, she simply had to. She would have to go beyond her personal strength. Bracing herself for the weight, she positioned herself underneath the unconscious zebra and started to push up. Once she stumbled up on her hooves she started to slowly shuffle trough the burning forest. She could barely stand, let alone run but she knew that there was no other way. If only she had been a bit stronger. Suddenly, a flaming tree toppled down in front of her, nearly crushing the both of them. She screamed in fear as the ground shook violently. She regained her composure, there was no backing down. She could not afford to break down, not now. She climbed over the ash-covered tree with all her might. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Zecora opened her eyes but she quickly forced them shut as a burning light flashed through them, inflicting stinging pains. After squinting into the light for a while she slowly opened her eyes. She noticed that she lay in a soft, white bed. Her sight was still blurry, she could feel a burning pain in her skin as she shifted underneath the white, linen covers. She opened her mouth but as soon as she tried to speak a pain, worse than she had ever felt before, burned in her throat. After closely listening to the sounds surrounding her with her ears perked she deduced that she was most likely lying in a hospital bed. “What happened to me..” she thought. Suddenly, she heard a voice at her bedside. “Ah you're awake and your senses are still intact, good.” an older stallion said. “I'm afraid the same can't be said for your lungs..” The doctor sighed. “Look, you have inhaled a deadly amount of smoke in that house fire, nearly burned down half of the Everfree. Your throat and lungs have been damaged severely. There is no saying if your speech will ever return..” Zecora's heart sank at the words. She wanted to ask the doctor what he was talking about but the burning pain returned to her airways. “That's going to take some getting used to..” she thought, trying to keep her mind from thinking about the main problem. “You're lucky that your friend arrived when she did.” the stallion said as he trotted out of the room. “My friend?” Zecora thought. Suddenly, her sight sharpened, she could see clearly now. She noticed a yellow blur in the corner of her eyes. She turned her head to see a pegasus with a long, pink mane. The pegasus smiled softly at her with her big, cyan eyes. Zecora felt her heart skip a beat at the sight. “It's the shy mare from Ponyville..” “How are you feeling?” Fluttershy asked softly, moving closer to the bed. Zecora looked at her with watered eyes. “Oh! Of course, I'm sorry..” she whispered. An uncomfortable silence filled the air. After a while Zecora just sat back in her bed, looking up at the ceiling, trying to make sense of what was going on. Suddenly Zecora's eyes shot open in realization. She turned to Fluttershy, who was still standing next to her bed. It was clear to Fluttershy that Zecora wanted to ask her something. She reached in her pouch and pulled a piece of paper and a pencil out of it. She handed them to Zecora. Zecora took the pencil in her mouth and scribbled something unto the piece of paper. She handed it to Fluttershy. She flinched as she felt a burning pain in the skin of arm while she extended it, the burn wounds were worse than she expected them to be. Fluttershy took the paper from her and read it. She sighed softly as she turned to the zebra. “I'm afraid your house has burned down..” she said sadly. Zecora broke down in tears. Her home, her refuge, was destroyed. She had nowhere to go. “Where will I stay!?” she thought. Fluttershy couldn't stand to see Zecora cry. She wanted to do something about it, she just had to do something about it. The yellow pegasus walked over to Zecora and threw her arms around her, embracing her in a warm hug. Zecora flinched. The touch burned at her skin at first but after a while the feeling of the mare brushing up against her calmed her down. She felt safe. Fluttershy stared into her eyes with a look that said “It's going to be ok..” “You can stay at my cottage Zecora.. At least for now.” she whispered. The zebra tightened her hold over Fluttershy as she buried her face into the pegasus' shoulder, crying heavily as she did. Fluttershy smiled at her. That was the only answer she needed. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Author's note: Thanks for reading the first two chapters of Striped Scars. We hope you enjoyed it. Please leave a comment below telling us what you think. Any advice is always welcome!