//------------------------------//
// Into The Woods 
// Story: In The Late Summer Sun 
// by Papillon Rose 
//------------------------------//

There came a time every year where Applejack found herself with considerably less work than the infamous Applebuckin' Season fall brought, or the pruning and maintenance she and the other members of the Apple family engaged in throughout the chill of winter. Managing such a large orchard required a great deal of work to maintain the health and quality of the fruit, and nopony could make the claim that Applejack or Big Macintosh slacked off in those departments. However, a few months after Winter Wrap-Up when spring was in full swing, the apple trees burst into an endless field of pinkish white blossoms that were beautiful to behold.

During the blooming season there weren't too many tasks to be performed in the orchard,  besides gathering the honeybees used to fertilize the apple blossoms that would eventually become lush red fruit. Aside from regular farm upkeep there was little buckin' to be done in late spring.

While she far too often strayed into workaholic territory, Applejack really did enjoy pausing in her routine to stroll through the orchard. Whenever the wind wove itself among the trees, it would dislodge pale petals to litter the ground below her hooves. The world around her always looked wonderful following the manual cleanup, but the beauty of spring shone more brilliantly as it progressed on its own.

Applejack paused to lean against one of the flowering trees and inhaled, breathing in the sweet scent of the apple blossoms. She couldn't wait until those flowers withered away, leaving the small buds that would grow into the apples her farm was famous for, but they were pretty to look at, at least.

She should've known by then not to expect the peace and quiet to last very long. She and her friends did not live peaceful, quiet lives the way some in Ponyville did. In contrast to the Cake family, who led a relatively calm, sensible life of baking -- or at least they would have, if they didn't have Pinkie to contend with on a daily basis. Still, the baker couple, and most of the other inhabitants of Ponyville only had to deal with domestic troubles. They were never called away to deal with dragons, hydras, and whatever else crept out of the Everfree Forest or fell out of the sky.

Clearly it was a day for the latter. Applejack didn't even bother to look up as "Look out below!" rang out over her head, followed by a rainbow-colored blur barreling straight into the tree she was leaning against with a muted "OOMPH". The impact dislodged a substantial amount of petals and leaves, all of which found a new home in Applejack's mane. Only then did she glance up, glaring at the thrashing, grumbling pegasus struggling to free herself from the branches in which she'd managed to entangle herself.

"A little help here?" Rainbow Dash snapped. She grimaced as a branch sprung back to smack her in the face. Applejack sighed, placing her forelegs against the tree trunk and reaching up to seize her friend's tail with her teeth. With one sharp tug she yanked the pegasus free, letting her slide unceremoniously to the ground.

"You gotta start practicin' your routine somewhere else, Dash, else I won't have any trees left when applebuckin' season comes around." Applejack chided her friend, who looked rather put out about the whole affair. As if she had any right to be irritated.

"Eh." Rainbow Dash dismissed her concerns with a wave of her hoof, brushing herself off as she stood up. "You've got a million of 'em."

Applejack rolled her eyes. "You're gonna knock yer own block off one o' these days."

"Nah. I've got a pretty hard head."

"Ain't gonna argue with you over that one. What kind of trick were you tryin' to pull off, anyhow?"

"I'm glad you asked." Rainbow Dash shot into the air, hovering above Applejack's head and pantomining her brilliant plan that had somehow, although she couldn't imagine why, gone wrong. "Well, I was gonna start off with a-"

Applejack watched in amazement as her friend detailed the series of complicated and seemingly impossible maneuvers, tracing a diagram in the air with her hooves. "Followed by my signature move - a sonic rainboom. Two of them. At the same time."

"Is that even possible?"

Rainbow Dash shrugged. "I don't know. Never hurts to try, though."

Applejack shook her head, although she couldn't hide the smile that crept across her face as Rainbow Dash continued rambling on and on about her aerial prowess. Her bragging sometimes approached Trixie-level, but somehow it remained endearing instead of annoying. "By the way, sugarcube, yer head's not nearly as hard as you think."

"Wha...?"

Applejack gestured at the pegasus' scalp with a hoof, where large bump was rapidly swelling.

"What? What is it- OW!" Dash exclaimed as her wandering hooves came in contact with the lump. "Uh... I mean, it's not so bad. Injuries are a badge of courage... don't do that!"

"Badge o' courage, huh?" Applejack asked dryly, poking at the lump peering through her friend's rainbow-colored mane. "You should probably have yer badge of courage looked at."

"It'll go away on its own," Rainbow Dash said dismissively, although the grimace of pain that crossed her face briefly said otherwise. "I don't feel like going all the way over to Ponyville General because I hit my head."

"I swear to Celestia, yer the stubbornest mare I ever laid eyes on. At least let Fluttershy look at it." Applejack offered, realizing she wasn't getting anywhere with the weather pony.

"Fluttershy?" Rainbow Dash scoffed. "Why Fluttershy?"

"She spends all her time carin' for critters. I don't see why she'd have any trouble dealing with a stubborn stuntpony."

"Alright already!" Dash groaned. "I'll go! Just stop nagging me about it! I'd hate to see how bad you guys would flip out if I broke a wing or something."

"That's only a matter o' time."

A full-fledged argument broke out as usual between the two ponies, their voices ringing out among the flowering trees. As always, neither mare sounded truly angry.


-----------------


Fluttershy's cottage was only a few minutes away by air travel, especially at the speeds Rainbow Dash was known for, but she decided to take it slow for once. Contrary to what she'd told Applejack, the lump on her head was pretty sore and flying at top speed did nothing but aggravate it. She let out a sigh of relief as Fluttershy's cottage and garden came into view, teeming with the animals she devoted most of her time to caring for.

Even after knowing Fluttershy since they were fillies, and having witnessed her reluctance when it came to making the most of her wings in typical pegasus fashion, Rainbow Dash still couldn't understand how Fluttershy seemed so at ease spending most of her life on the ground. She would've felt boxed in without her breezy, spacious cloud home above Ponyville. Ponyville had its share of pegasi, although they weren't nearly as common as Earth ponies and unicorns. Yet Fluttershy was the only one, save for the younger pegasus ponies that had yet to fully master the art of flight, that didn't spend the majority of her time in the air.

Multiple birdhouses hung haphazardly from every tree; their inhabitants perched within their branches, conversing with each other melodically. Dozens of small animals grazed and scampered over and around the bridge, the stream running beneath it bubbling cheerfully. Clustered around the chicken coop a smattering of hens pecked at a pile of corn, oblivious to all save the delicious meal spread before them. Their caretaker stood a few feet away with her back turned, humming gaily to herself as she watered a patch of brightly colored flowers at her hooves.

"Hey, Fluttershy!" Rainbow Dash called out, throwing herself into a dive and landing in a cloud of dust that sent the chickens and the pale yellow pegasus in question flying. The latter let out a startled "Eep!" and darted behind the chicken coop. Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "It's just me. You can come out now."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Fluttershy said apolegtically, peeking out from her hiding place.

"It's okay, I'm used to it."

Fluttershy crept out from behind the chicken coop, retrieving the watering can she'd upended in her rush. "Did you need something, Rainbow Dash?"

"Yeah, you got a moment?" Dash gestured towards the lump on her head. "I made a minor miscalculation when trying out a new stunt earlier."

Fluttershy trotted over to inspect the lump poking through Dash's vibrant mane. "Oh dear! Don't worry, I have just the thing."

"Thanks!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, catching herself almost immediately and coughing, tossing her head proudly. "I mean, not that it actually hurts or anything..."

Fluttershy smiled; years of friendship had taught her how protective her friend was of her pride. "I know." 

Leaving the watering can hanging from a hook on the side of the chicken coop, she led Rainbow Dash up the path to her front door and into her cottage. The inside of Fluttershy's house was just as charming as the outside, if not more; it was certainly inviting and friendly. From various nooks and crannies glittering eyes peered out at the newcomer, and hummingbirds occasionally darted in and out of the open window, the humming of their rapidly beating wings announcing their arrival.

"Wait here for a moment. I'll be right back," Fluttershy instructed, leading Rainbow Dash to a thick, comfortable looking rug. "If you don't mind."

"No prob," Dash sat down on the rug, which felt incredibly soft against her haunches, and tucked in her wings. She took stock of the room while she waited, fighting her urge to get up and explore; she briefly wished she'd brought Tank with her to visit. Fortunately Fluttershy returned before she could get up to any mischief, carrying what appeared to be a damp rag in her mouth. She motioned for Rainbow Dash to lie down, and she complied, lying flat on the rug with her back legs stretched out behind her. She felt her friend carefully drape the rag over her lump, and shuddered slightly. Whatever medicine Fluttershy had slathered over it felt cool, almost instantly causing the soreness to fade to a faint ache.

"Just let that soak in for awhile, and the swelling should go down." Fluttershy's voice was warm and comforting, as always.

"That feels great. You're really good at this." Dash closed her eyes, inhaling the poultice's sweet, minty aroma appreciatively. "Forget Ponyville General -- I'm coming to you the next time I cr...have a miscalculation." Not that there would be any more such errors in judgment, she chided herself. 

"T-thank you," Fluttershy stammered; Dash could tell she was blushing without even bothering to look up. "Um, you can rest here for awhile, while I go give everyone their afternoon snack. Just let me know if you need anything."

Dash's only response was a flick of her tail. Between the rug, the relaxing atmosphere and the cessation of her headache her body had apparently decided it was time for a nap. The warm, clear skies outside called to her, and the weather was perfect for revising her failed routine from earlier that day. But even awesome ponies had to take a break sometime.

She lay there dozing lightly as the poultice worked its magic, listening to the faint sounds of Fluttershy tending to her animals outside and within the various corners of the room. She dimly registered a note of concern in the other pegasus' voice as she chatted with her birds and squirrels and everything else that looked up to her as a sort of den mother, but she paid it no mind until-

"ANGEL!" A terrified shriek rang out from above, jolting Rainbow Dash fully awake. It was Fluttershy's voice, alright, but it sounded far different from her usual squeals and other exclamations of surprise. Instead of dismissing it as one of her usual quirks Rainbow Dash leapt to her hooves and shot upstairs, knocking quite a few knickknacks off the wall and shelves placed along the stairwell. The scream had come from Fluttershy's bedroom. It was a good thing the door was already ajar, as Rainbow Dash would've knocked it off the hinges in her haste to reach her friend's side. Fluttershy stood beside the bed, looking at something on the floor with an expression of horror plastered across her face. Dash groaned; she didn't see any immediate sources of danger. "What is it? Did one of your animals leave you a surprise?"

Fluttershy turned from where she stood, barreling into Rainbow Dash and sending her head over hooves as she galloped down the stairs, ignoring the cyan pegasus entirely. 

"Ow! What gives?" Dash picked herself up, rubbing her head. She'd lost her rag somewhere in her ascent, and she could feel the faint stirrings of discomfort where the lump persisted, although it had gone down considerably. It was then that she noticed the small heap of white fur Fluttershy had been standing over. It wasn't moving, at least not noticeably. Upon further inspection Rainbow Dash could see the white rabbit's chest rising in an unnervingly slow manner. She'd never seen the disagreeable little bunny Fluttershy loved so dearly so quiet and still, and she felt a foreign sense of anxiety stirring within her at the sight.

Downstairs the normally tidy Fluttershy had forgotten all in her panic; containers of herbs, kitchen utensils, and cookware were strewn all over the kitchen floor. A pink tail stuck out from behind a cabinet door, its owner seemingly arguing with herself. "Think, Fluttershy! Where is it? I know I had some left..."

"Uh, Fluttershy?" Dash ventured.

Fluttershy continued rummaging around in the cabinet, either unaware of or unconcerned with Dash's presence. "I can't have used it all up last year."

'Maybe I should go.' The thought vanished just as quickly as it had come; Rainbow Dash recalled the expression on the gentle pegasus' face, and knew she couldn't just leave her there to deal with whatever was happening on her own. Besides, she could recall going into a similar panic several weeks ago when she'd forgotten to carry Tank over to Twilight's library for a cloud-walking spell renewal. Of course she'd managed to catch him only a few seconds after he sank like a stone through her kitchen floor, but those seconds, and the overwhelming feeling of guilt at having forgotten him were permanently burned into her memories.

Leaving Fluttershy to her devices in the kitchen, she ran back upstairs to the bedroom, slowing to a halt beside the rabbit. "Alright, bunny. Wake up before your owner has a heart attack. Or explodes."

The white rabbit didn't respond, although Dash wasn't used to conversing with woodland creatures so that wasn't necessarily indicative of anything. She had a good idea of how inconsolable Fluttershy would be if anything terrible did happen to Angel, and with a growing sense of dread she leaned forward, lowering her head and nudging the rabbit with a hoof. "You're not really...dead, are you?"

A moment of perfect silence passed. Rainbow Dash's spirits began to falter.

The white rabbit stirred, slowly, and a furry head inclined towards her. The rabbit's fur was slick with perspiration, and his ears hung limply against his head, but she could've sworn the little creep was glaring at her with his glassy black eyes.

Rainbow Dash sighed, although she felt much better knowing the rabbit was still alive and kicking. "I don't know why Fluttershy likes you so much," she groussed, poking her nose beneath the prone rabbit and deftly flipping him onto her back. "You're kind of a jerk."

By the time Fluttershy returned, carrying a cup of some kind of potion she'd worked up from her medicinal supplies Dash had managed to make Angel comfortable on her bed, sans the good bit of effort it usually took to make Angel do anything. He was now draped awkwardly in a light blanket she'd found in a drawer, with Fluttershy's pillow propped up behind him. Despite her initial assessment of the rabbit's attitude she actually felt sorry for him, huddling beneath the blanket shivering and drawing shallow, shaky breaths. It was a good indicator of how sick the little creature was that he gave her no real trouble, despite glaring daggers at her the entire time.

Fluttershy's eyes shone with gratitude, although she held off on expressing it and immediately rushed to Angel's side. The rabbit poked his head out from beneath the blanket, his nose twitching. Fluttershy sat the cup on the nightstand, leaning forward to nuzzle her pet affectionately. "Oh Angel Bunny, I was so worried," she said, her voice heavy with emotion. Angel's small face was still fixed in its characteristic glare, but it was softer and considerably less abrasive. He shuddered, withdrawing to huddle beneath the blanket once more.

"Now now, you have to take your medicine, or you won't get better." Fluttershy admonished, pushing the blanket away to reveal her sickly looking companion. Angel initially shied away from the cup Fluttershy held to his lips but he lacked the strength to push it away, grudgingly opening his mouth to swallow the vile smelling liquid.

"Oh, thank you, Angel." Fluttershy said gratefully, placing the empty cup on the nightstand. "Now you get some rest, and you'll feel a little better when you wake up."

Rainbow Dash made note of the quiver in her friend's voice. While she tended to be oblivious when it came to social cues, or even outright ignored them at times, even she could tell that Fluttershy was lying.

Angel complied with his owner's orders rather quickly; by the time Fluttershy finished rearranging the blanket around his tiny body he was already asleep. Fluttershy glanced over at Rainbow Dash, then at the door; it took a second for Dash to understand the implication. 

The two mares descended the staircase in awkward silence; Fluttershy clearly distressed and Dash completely unaware of how to handle the situation. Upon reaching the living room, Fluttershy broke away from Dash's side and ran over to her bookshelf, reaching out to grab a very familiar book. Dash caught sight of the cover, realizing that it was the very same book they'd encountered such a long time ago, when they'd befriended Zecora. Supernaturals. Fluttershy flipped through the book, brow furrowed in concentration, while Dash approached her, feeling somewhat out of place. "Uh, Fluttershy? Should I go, or," She trailed off.

Fluttershy looked up at her, her large blue eyes full of unshed tears. "If you want to," she said quietly, although those eyes said the exact opposite. It was the kind of expression one would have to be completely heartless to say no to.

Dash shrugged, settling down beside her friend to stare at the open book as well. "Eh. I don't have anything to do today. Nothing but sunny skies scheduled for the next couple of days, anyway."

"That's good to hear," Fluttershy smiled weakly. "The flowers could use some sunshine."

She continued poring over the book. Dash stared blankly at the pages full of remedies and pictures of strange plants. Finally Fluttershy stopped, the page turned to a full color picture of a beautiful blue flower. Its petals curled gracefully back to reveal golden tendrils of pollen. Unlike mundane daisies and the like, it seemed more a flower made for admiring, not eating. "Lunawort." Rainbow Dash read aloud; the plant's name was printed in black letters beneath the picture.

"This is it." Fluttershy fell absolutely silent, inspecting the remedy detailed on the opposite page intently.

"What do you need it for? Is that what that medicine was made of? Why's it called Lunawort, anyway?" Rainbow's barrage of questions went unanswered as Fluttershy suddenly went pale, closing the book and pushing it away.

"Okay, what's going on?" Dash huffed. "You've got to tell me something here. What did the book say?"

Fluttershy stared the book as if it were a full-grown dragon. "Everfree." She whispered the word, as if speaking it aloud would bring whatever horrors the forest held into her home. The word still unsettled Dash as well, albeit to a lesser degree. They might've have survived their first journey into the forest, and Twilight occasionally braved its mysterious foliage and rogue weather conditions to visit Zecora, but they'd only scratched the surface of the Everfree Forest. The outskirts were far less dangerous and held much less of a threat than the dense, ancient forest that lay beyond Zecora's tree. Even the zebra herself seemed distrustful of it; she seemed to live in the relatively tame part of Everfree.

"You mean like actual Everfree? Not the part we've been in, but Everfree?" Dash asked.

Fluttershy nodded. "It's the only place Lunawort grows. There used to be a clump at the edge of the forest, but it withered away a long time ago. I only managed to save a little of it. I haven't seen any around here since, and the book says it grows plentifully in the forest." She shuddered fearfully. "Deep in the forest."

The two mares fell silent, staring at each other. Dash claimed to not be afraid of anything, but the depths of the forest weren't just anything. A few minutes passed, and then Fluttershy shook her head, a look of determination taking the place of her anxious expression. "It doesn't matter," she said shakily, stamping her hoof on the ground. "I...I have to go. Angel needs me."

Fluttershy rose from the floor, darting upstairs with Dash close behind. "Are you crazy? You can't go in there alone!"

"I have to." Fluttershy's voice was muffled, her head buried in a closet as she dug through its contents. "If I don't, Angel could..." She paused, unable to even voice the possibility. "I've seen that illness before. It's really bad."

She fell silent, and Rainbow Dash heard the distinct sound of sniffling. "I don't know how long the dose I gave him will last. I've got to go now before he gets any worse."

Fluttershy emerged from the closet, her saddlebags bearing the image of her cutie mark slung across her back. She ran back downstairs, and as Dash followed at her heels it occurred to her that she'd never seen Fluttershy as worked up as she was at that moment. In the living room the pegasus flew from corner to corner, stuffing various items in her saddlebags, including the Supernaturals book. As she packed, Dash continued trying to reason with her. "Okay. Let's say you're crazy enough to go into Everfree. Shouldn't we get the others? "

"I don't have any time." Fluttershy snapped one bag closed, holding the strap in her teeth and pulling it tighter, then doing the same for the other. "I have to find the blossoms and get back here as soon as I can."

She took a final look around her living room, sadly, then shook her head once more and resolutely pushed her way out the door. As if unaware of the situation taking place, her animals approached their caretaker but went unacknowledged, scattering as she broke into a gallop towards the forest that loomed in the distance. Dash gave chase by hoof for a minute then stopped short, remembering that she was much faster in the air than on the ground. "Fluttershy!" 

She reached Fluttershy's side as the pale yellow pegasus halted before the great stand of trees, gazing into the depths of the forest apprehensively. The pegasus' legs trembled, and despite her resolution Rainbow Dash could tell how terrified she was. Everything was happening so quickly, and while it wasn't how she'd planned on spending the rest of her day Rainbow Dash knew there was no way she could leave her friend to her own devices. The idea had been forming in her head, ever since Fluttershy had begun her mad dash throughout her house, and now it solidified. 

"Well, if we're gonna do this, we probably need to get going before it gets dark," she said nonchalantly. Fluttershy's legs ceased trembling; she gasped in surprise, turning to face Rainbow Dash and ducking her head behind her pink mane in her usual hesitant manner.

"You're going with me?" Fluttershy said, trying to disguise her hopefulness and failing miserably at it. "I mean...you don't really have to. I don't want to inconvenience you."

"Of course!" Dash reared up on her hind legs, shaking her colorful mane out fiercely. "If you're gonna make it out alive you're gonna need the bravest, fastest pony in all of Ponyville by your side. If anything comes at us, WHAM!" She bucked at an imaginary foe, fluttering her wings. "I'll take 'em down. In ten. Seconds. Flat." 

'And I know how much he means to you.'

Fluttershy rushed forward, wrapping her forelegs around her in a tight hug. "Thank you," she whispered.

Dash grinned, patting her head affectionately. "Yeah, yeah. Anyway, I've got a pet too now, remember? You'd help me with Tank, if I needed it. So let's go."

With a backwards glance at the safe, peril-free town of Ponyville now far behind them, the two mares turned and entered the Everfree Forest, unsure of what the future held but ready to take it on. Dash felt her heart pounding against her will and ignored it. Fluttershy was depending on her to help her save Angel from whatever illness had taken hold of him, and there was no way she'd ever let one of her friends down.