Fluttershy didn't think. She didn't hesitate. She dived straight out of the tree, opening her wings magestically just before she hit the ground. The timberwolves turned towards her, snapping their wooden jaws together in anger. She swallowed hard and stepped back in a rush of adrenaline, knowing that this was one beast that could not be tamed. Timberwolves have no hearts, no logic or compassion. Their only drive is destruction.
This was a bit of a relief to Fluttershy as she dived towards the first one, aiming for his legs. To her triumph, the limbs gave way, and the timberwolf crumpled into a pile of scraps. The two remaining wolves growled, drool dripping from their mouths. Fluttershy turned around and bucked the nearest one in the snout, her hooves lashing out with quick effort. The wolf shook his head in a daze but didn't collapse like the one before.
The other timberwolf lunged at Fluttershy, his open mouth revealing sharp wooden fangs. She yelled quietly as he landed on top of her, sharp claws pinning her hooves down so there was no chance of retaliation. The timberwolf leaned closer, his nauseating breath making her gag, his filthy mouth only inches from her neck.
She closed her eyes tightly, readying herself for her final moments. To think, she hadn't even lasted a day in the Games. Fluttershy wondered who would win. Hopefully somepony that deserved it.
"Hey you! Pick on somepony your own size!"
Fluttershy heard a sharp whack, followed by a whimper, and then the pressure on her hooves was lifted. She opened her eyes with surprise, to find that the timberwolf was gone. In its place, a pile of scattered logs, accompanied by a large rock.
"That's right! You want some of this?"
Fluttershy tried to pinpoint the voice, scanning the surrounding forest. Her eyes fell on a young earth pony with a short striped mane... it was Babs. The filly hefted another large rock in her hoof and launched it at the remaining timberwolf. The stone hit its chest dead-center, causing it to crumple into scrap wood.
Fluttershy hastily got to all four hooves and opened her wings. If the filly could throw rocks that accurately, it would be best to take to the air as soon as possible. She launched herself upwards, flapping her wings awkwardly as she avoided branches and trees.
"Hey! Wait!" Bab's called after her. "Please!"
Fluttershy didn't stop. Her wings beat hard, the wind from her ascent blowing her mane backwards. Just as she was about to clear the treetops, her bandaged hoof hit a branch, hard. The stabbing agony that throbbed through her leg was too much. She dropped like a stone, landing hard on a branch about twenty feet above the ground. Leaves shook and the wood bent, but the tree held under Fluttershy's light pegasus weight.
She stayed there for a moment, clinging to the branch. Her hoof hurt too much, so much that she wasn't sure if she could fly again. Hopefully Babs hadn't seen her fall, and would think that she had flown away. The last thing she needed was a tribute on her tail, even if that tribute had saved her life only moments ago.
It was only a few minutes later that the sobs began. Quiet, delicate sobs that only a filly could make. Fluttershy looked down, but could not locate Babs among the foliage.
She was forced to wait, the pain in her hoof fading to a dull throb, while the cries sent pangs of sorrow deep into her heart. Eventually, Fluttershy couldn't take it anymore; she could never endure another creature's sadness if she could do something about it.
She did something either very stupid or very brave; she dropped from her branch, flapping her wings slowly. She landed on the earthen ground lightly, and the weeping ceased.
"Who's there?" Babs' voice called. "I- I got a knife, and I ain't afraid ta use it!"
Fluttershy couldn't tell where the voice was coming from. "It's just me," she said, "Fluttershy. I just- I just want to talk."
"Talk?" The filly's sharp laugh echoed through the trees. "This ain't Granny's house. We're in the Pony Games. If you had any sense, you woulda killed me by now."
"You saved my life." Fluttershy said firmly. "Why would I kill you?"
Babs hesitated for a moment, and then her voice broke the silence "Because I probably woulda killed you."
Fluttershy breathed in sharply. "Where are you?" She asked.
"Down here."
Fluttershy looked down to see the base of her hollow tree, the one she'd been hiding in. The bottom was hollow as well, and nestled in between the roots, a young brown earth pony lay, her short pink mane matted with dirt.
"Hey," Babs said. She rested in a weird position her legs pointed away from Fluttershy with her neck bent at an awkward angle.
"Are you okay?" Fluttershy asked.
"Fine." Babs said, a little too quickly. "This is the way I normally sleep."
Fluttershy pondered this for a moment but was forced to accept it. "Babs, I was thinking..."
Babs looked at her, with those wide, youthful eyes. Even if she was a bit of a jerk at times, there was a certain... innocence about her.
"Do you want to form an alliance with me?" Fluttershy asked.
"An alliance?" Babs replied incredulously. "You want an alliance? With me?" She considered the idea for a moment or two. "Yeah, okay. But no funny business. I don't want anypony stabbing me in the back."
Fluttershy smiled, relieved. "We should probably rest for the night." She said. "In the morning we can-"
All of the sudden, the sky lit up. A giant screen shone high above them, displaying the image of Canterlot Castle. The Paneighm national anthem began to play, erupting out of unseen speakers.
Fluttershy bent her head back to see the sky screen, but her view was obscured by tangled branches and foliage. She opened her wings and looked at Babs.
The tribute waved her hoof. "Go ahead. I don't mind."
Fluttershy smiled gratefully and took off, frantically dodging limbs and trees in her effort to ascend. She landed precariously on a thin branch near the top, wobbling for a moment as she struggled to balance herself. The screen overhead was just fading to black, and the face of the first tribute appeared.
It was a mare, from one of the lower districts. The next one was a stallion with a green coat; the one who's corpse she'd seen retrieved by the hovercraft. The third tribute was a mare. Then a stallion, then a mare, then another stallion. Fluttershy didn't recognize any of them, much less know their names.
She took a moment of silence, mourning the six deaths with respect. Then she dropped down to the forest floor, the soft leaves and dirt cushioning her fall. "Babs?" She called, worried about surprising the filly in the dark. She still wasn't sure if Babs actually had a knife, or if it had just been an empty threat.
Babs didn't answer.
Fluttershy stumbled forwards in the darkness, for night had completely fallen. The only light was that of the moon. She recognized the tall tree she'd hidden in, outlined in the dim light. She trotted towards it's base, wondering where Babs was. Had she run off?
Fluttershy was just beginning to panic when a low rumbling sound came from her left. She yelped and stumbled backwards. Had one of the timberwolves survived?
The rumbling stopped. Then it started again. It wasn't quite a growl- more like heavy breathing. What creature made a noise like that?
Then Fluttershy realized what the sound really was; Babs was snoring.
She smiled and walked a few feet away, giving her new ally some space. She laid down on a soft spot of ground.
"Good night, Babs." Fluttershy said quietly. "See you in the morning."
She closed her eyes and fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.
***
"I'll kill him! I'll kill them all!"
Fluttershy sat up quickly, her mane tangled with leaves. The voice had come from the forest, not far from where she lay. It wasn't Babs, either; she was still sound asleep beneath the tree, and the voice was male, anyway.
"Babs" Fluttershy whispered. "Babs, wake up. Somepony's coming."
The filly didn't stir.
"Babs?" Fluttershy walked closer to get a better look. She had rolled over in her sleep, her small chest rising and falling with every breath. She looked so peaceful, and it took Fluttershy a moment to notice the deep cut on her chest, dark with dried blood. It wasn't a very old wound, but it wasn't new, either. For all Fluttershy knew, the filly could be on the brink of life and death.
There was a slightly more important matter to deal with, however.
"You're dead! I'll kill you!" The voice was low and rough, getting louder by the second.
Fluttershy's mind raced as she tried not to panic. She couldn't move Babs; not with a wound like that. She couldn't abandon her either, not after their alliance. The only possible option was to conceal them both.
She spotted a large branch that had fallen nearby, still thick with leaves. Gripping the splintered end with her teeth, she dragged it over Babs. The filly didn't rouse.
"I trusted you!"
Fluttershy froze; the voice was right next to her. Shaking, she turned, expecting some sort of weapon to be pointed in her direction.
"I was going to be the victor!" The stallion's fur dark fur was discolored with a mixture of dirt and blood. He pawed at the ground angrily, staring straight at a nearby tree. His long red mane fell into his eyes, the original color only barely recognizable through his filth.
"I was going to survive!" He growled at the tree. "And then I trusted you!" He yelled the last word, so loud that it echoed through the surrounding forest. Fluttershy flinched, but he either didn't notice her, or didn't care.
"A day..." the stallion spat on the ground. "I only lived a day! And now I'm dead! Maybe..." He swayed on his hooves for a moment. "Maybe I've always been dead." He fell forwards onto his face, and twitched violently for a few seconds before falling limp.
A cannon boomed throughout the forest. The stallion was dead.