A clinking sound echoed across the floorboards louder than the ticking clock, causing everypony to freeze. "Alright everypony, keep your eyes peeled, she could be anywhere," Twilight whispered.
"Look," Rainbow Dash whisper yelled back. "This is Fluttershy we're talking about. Can't I just fly up and force her back down?"
Princess Luna frowned and slammed her hoof to the floor with a commanding air. "Nay Rainbow Dash, the shy one is not herself any more, she may attack without prompt!"
Rarity, and Applejack nodded in agreement before Pinkie spoke. "Besides that, she's our friend. We shouldn't hurt her."
The six mares stepped forward into the moonlight let in by the opaque clock face. "You said that you hath removed most of the vampire fruit bat's essence from Fluttershy, correct?"
Twilight nodded to Princess Luna as she dimly lit her horn. "I did, and everything seemed fine until a few hours ago..."
"Hmm, do you think the weather team changed it's mind about rain?"
Applejack smiled as she set up a few more bottles on the display rack of her cart. "Not sure Ditzy, from the schedule I got it's only supposed to be a bit overcast." She paused as she slid a barrel full of apples out from the storage space under the cart. "So, you need anything before your flight to Canterlot today?"
Ditzy smiled before lowering her special goggles over her eyes and looking over everything. "Well, maybe a bottle of juice. I usually get thirsty at the halfway point."
Applejack nodded and placed a bottle in the bags, Ditzy paid the two bits and took off for Canterlot. She looked around to see if anypony else needed her help before ducking into her cart's storage to pull more apples out.
There was suddenly the sound of clinking, like somepony was grabbing a bottle of her juice. "Alright, don't get yer tail in a twist, I'll help ya in a jiffy." She looked up, and what Applejack saw made her jaw drop.
Fluttershy was grabbing as many bottles of juice as she could get her hooves on, as if her life depended on it. "Oh, hi Applejack. I hope you don't mind, but I just had a craving for some fresh juice and I saw your cart was here and, is this a new variety?"
"Well actually, it's the same as I ever had before," she commented while Fluttershy kept grabbing more bottles. "No offence but that's a lotta juice. How are you gonna pay for all that?"
Fluttershy froze and looked at the bottles. "Pay?" Applejack looked at her friend and nodded in reply. "Oh, uh right. Just put it on my tab!" She then smiled innocently.
"Uh-huh. Yeah, I don't run a tab, not since Dash and Pinkie got together to throw a wild cider party." She reached a hoof forward to grab one of the bottles. "Sorry Flutters, but I'm gonna have to limit you to what you can pay."
That's when it happened. In one swift motion, Fluttershy opened her wings, showed off her small fangs and hissed before taking off with crates of juice.
"After that, Applejack came to me. I remembered that you're private guard are bat ponies so I decided to ask for your advice."
"And the remainder of your friends tracked her down to this time tower?" Luna queried.
"Yes we did," Rarity commented. "But now we need to do something, before we lose our friend for good!"
Another bottle clinked to the ground, it rolled close to the six ponies and showed two clean holes in the side of the bottle, causing everypony to shudder. "Remain calm," Luna called out. "Twilight, I will need you to talk to Fluttershy. Pinkamina, I need a fruit pie. Name brand! May our sister show mercy if it's a generic pie! Rarity, I'm going to need you to wear this," she quickly cast a spell, making an apple costume appear before her. "Applejack, use thine rope well for we shall need to tie her up for this."
As everypony scattered to do as the Princess demanded, Rainbow Dash hovered over the floor impatiently. "What about me?"
"Ah, you will do the most important task I can think of." She then summoned a notepad and tossed it to her. "Can thou take a look at this story we found in Discord's room? We think it's about you."
She turned away to face Pinkie Pie, who was passing her the snack sized fruit pie. "So tell me, are we going to lure Fluttershy down here with Rarity dressed as an apple while holding a pie so Applejack can tie her up while you cast the spell that will undo this terrible curse?"
Luna raised an eyebrow at the pink pony. "Eh.. No." She then ate the pie and looked at Rarity. "Well, you'll do well enough to entertain me while I work. Now, where's Twilight Sparkle and Fluttershy?"
A screaming hiss echoed through the tower as Twilight flew toward the group. "She's coming! Everypony get ready!"
Fluttershy wasn't far behind, unlike last time when she had bat like appearances, the only difference seemed to be the fangs and eyes. "Give me back my juice! It's mine!" She suddenly stopped and saw Rarity in the apple costume. It didn't take a second before changing her flight pattern to attack Rrity instead. "I WANT TO SUCK YOUR JUICE!"
Rarity screamed and tried to make a run for it, only to slam herself into a nearby beam. "Hold your positions everypony!" Luna shouted. "Applejack, when I give the word, use your rope!"
Fluttershy continued to close in on the stunned mare as Applejack twirled her lasso above her. Twilight and Pinkie stood by Luna, ready for action as Rainbow Dash continued to read.
She was closing in as Rarity shook the stars away from her vision. Luna watched as she got closer, she was only three feet away when Luna threw her hoof forward to give the command. "NOW!"
Quick as a flash, Fluttershy bit into the soft foam of the apple costume, and Applejack threw the loop true to it's mark. Before she could understand what had happened, Fluttershy was tied up while Twilight and Pinkie grabbed her and stood her upright. "Let me go! I just want a drink!"
Luna looked down at the yellow pony, with a clear fury in her eyes. Everypony waited to see what would happen next as Luna spread her wings wide. "NO! Bad pony!" She then smacked Fluttershy softly on the end of her nose with a rolled up newspaper. "You have to be firm with bat-ponies, or they will get out of hoof. Trust us when we say that our night guard can be a problem at times."
Everypony stood with their mouths hanging open from what they just saw. Except for Rainbow Dash, who had her jaw hanging open for a different reason. "How does that even... A tug boat?!"
Fluttershy gave out a whimper before opening her mouth to protest. "But I just-" she was cut short by another light tap with the paper.
"NO!" Luna shouted before waving the paper again. "You keep this attitude up and I'll send you to Night Guard Training myself until you learn to control thy hunger!" She then smiled and gave Fluttershy a banana. "Now be a good girl and give Applejack back her juice of apples, and pay for what you drank."
Fluttershy gave a whine as Luna untied her before patting her on the head. "Now you five keep an eye on her, if she misbehaves again, I'll send a squadron to pick her up." With her job done, Luna nodded her head, and teleported away.
The six remaining ponies all looked at each other for a few moments, nopony sure of what to say or do next. At long last, it was Rarity who finally broke the silence. "Let us never speak of this again."
Everypony else nodded in agreement as they all filed out of the tower. "So, listen," Rainbow Dash said as they left the building. "I just read this story, and I think I need somepony to back me up that this is wrong."