//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 The Truth Comes Out // Story: The Pony and the Hurt Changeling // by Ugly-Duckling123 //------------------------------// Back in the prison cell in the Hive, Nurse 516 had just finished dealing with Fluttershy's head and wing, and was turning to leave. "Thank you," a voice said stopping the nurse in her tracks and turning around surprised. "Excuse me?" she asked. "Er... Thank you," Fluttershy said again getting up. "You know for fixing me up..." "You're welcome," the nurse said leaving, shutting the door behind her and going back down the 'corridor.' * In the nursery of the Hive, Chrysalis was waiting for Nurse 516 to come back to her with news. "Anything to report then Nurse 516?" the Queen asked once the Changeling in question dropped her disguise. "Other than the fact that she let out fear all the way through when I tending her, no my Queen." Nurse 516 said bowing a sorry look on her face. Hearing this, Chrysalis started thinking. "Then you are to tend to her until she does say something," she said stamping her hoof making it clear. "Yes my Queen." the nurse said, waiting for Chrysalis to go away before getting up again. In truth she lied to the Queen, about what she felt. Near the end of her tending to Fluttershy, the nurse could feel calmness and a slight hint of love coming from the pony. Shaking off the news, Nurse 516 went around doing her work tending to the new larvae that were in the nursery. In Appleloosa Fluttershy's friends were arguing on what to do. "We need to go and rescue her," Rainbow Dash said her wings spread out in anger. "If we don't go in there without a plan, we'll be captured too," Twilight said glaring at her multicolored freind. "Twi, how do we know she's been caught?" Applejack asked. "Why darling One would think that would be obvious," Rarity said stand next to Twilight. "Every pony knows Changelings are scavengers. They probably saw Fluttershy falling out of the sky and took her straight to Chrysalis." Pinkie, her hair now lost even more color and even more flat was staying out of the argument her eyes full of tears. "If only my Pinkie Sense was working," she brawled out waterfalls of tears coming out of her eyes, stopping the two parties in their tracks as they turned and looked at her. "Pinkie, this is not your fault," Twilight said coming over to hug her distraught friend. "None of us were listening to Fluttershy when she was trying to tell us about the storm." Then a new pony came into the office. "Hey Sheriff I was just out scouting for trouble when I saw a airship crash site... Oh hey AJ glad you can make it." "Hey Braeburn," Applejack said to her cousin. "Congrats by the way, but we got a bit of a situation here." Braeburn looked around not really listening. "Hey cuz aren't you missing some-pony?" he asked seeing there were only five there. "That's what the situation is you half wit," Rainbow Dash said flying up nose to nose with him, anger burning in her eyes. "That cash site you 'say' you found was our ride over here. It got struck with lightning, Fluttershy fell out of the window, and now it seems she's in Changeling territory!" Rainbow Dash told the story pushing Braeburn down with every word. "Err... Dash?" Twilight said stepping forward from the stunned group. "You.... You ok?" "Does it look like it Twilight?" Rainbow said spinning around, then flying out the door. "Shouldn't someone go with her Twi?" Applejack asked a little surprised at the way things had just gone. "No," Twilight said. "Hopefully she knows not to go after the Changelings on her own. Lets just give her some time to cool off. Then we'll try talking to her again." * Rainbow Dash wasn't one to show her feelings that much. So when she did show them, they came out in waves like the ones she had just had with her friends. "It's not my fault though," Rainbow said to herself flying over Appleloosa to get to the Buffalo Village to see her friends there. "They don't know how close me and Fluttershy are." she said wiping tears away from her eyes so she could see. "We're like sisters." Finally seeing the village, Rainbow Dash decided to land just outside of it and walk in so not to surprise the Buffalo's too much. She was giving lots of hello's and smiles from the Buffalo's themselves, but it was Thunder Hooves and Strong Heart who she felt like she needed to see. "We welcome you back Rainbow Dash," Thunder Hooves said when seeing Rainbow was in front of him. Then seeing that it looked like she had been crying, he asked. "Is there something wrong?" Not knowing where to begin Rainbow Dash asked the first question that came into her head. "Chief Thunder Hooves.... Do you know what Changelings are?" she asked hearing lots of gasps and silence behind her, but not really caring. "They are parasitic beings that feed off of the love and emotions of others," Thunder Hooves said his eyes closed as though he was remembering something. "Why do you ask Rainbow Dash?" "My friends and I think Fluttershy is in their land," Rainbow explained tears forming again. "But we can't agree on what to do to help her." "But that doesn't tell us if you're ok or not," Little Strong Heart, a small Buffalo wearing a headband with two feathers in it said getting Rainbow's attention. Sighing Rainbow explained. "Fluttershy's my oldest friend. Before I met her and stood up for her against those bullies at Flight Camp, I had nopony." she said. "Then a few years later we both lost our parents when they were dealing with some out of controlled storm clouds, and even though she's the older one, I promised I would always protect her. She... " Rainbow said shivering "She's like a sister to me. And when ever she's in danger, I just what her back next to me, and I'm not happy until she's safe." "We never knew you were that close to her Dash," a voice said causing Rainbow to spin around and see her friends, their eyes glistering with tears. "Yeah, well none of you ever asked," Rainbow said rubbing her nose with her leg sniffing. "So made up a plan Twilight?" she asked.