//------------------------------// // Side Chapter 5 - Fluffy's day out // Story: Headless, not Heartless // by Thadius0 //------------------------------// Fluffy was running through the woods, panting heavily as he ran out of breath. Behind him, two Manticores chased him - his mother and his father. Why being the runt of the litter meant that he was about to be mauled and killed by his own parents, he would never know. He was only a year old at the time, but there should be more time to allow a Manticore to grow up before calling it a loss and murdering it! Fluffy pondered manticore society as he ran, and how he could change it. He didn't notice himself running straight into a Pony town and his parents breaking away their chase, thinking that he would be taken care of for them by the ponies. Within seconds, the place was pure chaos, ponies running around everywhere, screaming about the fleeing manticore. It was at this moment that Fluffy realized where he was, and that he was probably in worse trouble then before. Then again, he knew he could understand them- he had spent the better part of his year alive trying to learn about these ponies that had interested him so. He knew they needed calming down. He opened his mouth and tried to ask them, to plead with them, to calm down. His vocal cords only allowed for him to roar at them, promptly spooking them worse then before, if such a thing were possible. He pondered how he could clear up this misunderstanding and maybe have a nice chat with them when he got kicked in the face by a Sky Blue Pegasus with a Rainbow mane. He took this as a cue to leave, that pony could kick pretty hard and he did NOT want to be kicked again. He started to run, almost making it back to the Forest, when the Pegasus kicked him again, this time sending him spiraling into the base of a tree. He tried to stand, to get to safety, but his legs would not let him. He could hear the jeering of different ponies, feel the blood dripping down his face, sense the danger of his parents still nearby... Fluffy woke up. He uncurled himself and tried to shake the nightmare out of his head. That was the third time this week... Why wouldn't it go away? He had once accepted that ponies and manticores couldn't get along in the same society as fact, but had been proven wrong by Newvale. Oh, what a day THAT was... He had followed this orange thing after it had accidentally knocked him out of a tree that he was napping in, out of curiosity. He didn't expect to be led to a place that was soon filled up with ponies, a dragon, a griffin, a zebra, a diamond dog, and a talking suit of armor that stood on its hind legs, as well as a multitude of the small creatures. What did the armor call them again... Ah, right, Djinns. He still thought that was an odd name. He had been as uneasy of the others as they had been of him, at first, but once they got past the fact that he wasn't going to maul them, they were able to get used to him being around. Fluffy, on the other paw, still couldn't let go of some of his old scars. He had needed help that day, and had been ridiculed and tormented for an accident that had saved his life from his parents. It was still a delightful little irony that the ponies had named him the same thing that his parents had. At first, he thought the ponies were able to understand him, but his hopes were quickly dashed. He still needed a good way to communicate with them... Stretching, he found the Venus Djinn that had knocked him out of the tree nearby. He didn't know why it kept following him when he would sleep on random rooftops in the town, but it wasn't a bother, at least. Spreading his wings, he glided from the rooftop to the ground after making sure nopony would be in the way. He plodded along, trying to figure out what he was going to do that day, when the armor called the town together. The meeting excited Fluffy at first, he might have a chance to meet with the Princesses. Maybe he could have tea with them. It was a hobby that few knew about, but he loved his tea. Unfortunately, talk quickly turned to raiding a town, so Fluffy opted out of going. He wanted to prove a Manticore could work in a Pony society, to show that the ponies who had hurt and scorned him were wrong. Unfortunately, he had no good way of doing so, at least not yet. Ah well, it was a long term goal for a reason. With boredom starting to set in, Fluffy decided today was a good day to wander off into the Everfree. After all, he would sometimes patrol the town when he was bored, so why not? Nothing could go wrong with a bit of exploration. Fluffy could get some lunch while he was out, as well. He had been roaming for an hour before he found a meal in a couple of rabbits that had strayed away from the beaten path. Afterwards, he set off to find something new. With high hopes, he rounded a tree, and bumped into something bigger then him... Something orange... Fluffy immediately hoped that wasn't what he thought it was. He looked up to see the shocked look of his father. A shocked look that quickly dissolved into a growl. Oh, chicken scales... Fluffy bolted away from the direction of Newvale- no need to lead dear old dad back to the few ponies that would accept him and cause them harm. Especially now that the rest of his old 'family' had joined in the chase. Heart pounding, he half wondered if he was in another nightmare. After all, this was usually how they started, with his old family trying to kill him. He could almost feel like he had been on this route before... And that could only mean one thing. His fears were confirmed as he saw Ponyville come into view. He could hear his family still behind him... Thinking fast, he made a fast right turn and started to zig-zag through the trees, hoping to either lose them or at least put some distance between them. Hours of chasing had passed since then, Fluffy trying everything he could think of to get away, only to have it fail. He didn't stop when he saw a shocked Zebra narrowly avoid getting trampled. He didn't stop when his steps started to falter. If he was getting tired, then his family would be just as bad off as him... A quick glance over his shoulder showed that his mother and siblings had dropped out of the race to catch him, and only his father remained. At that moment, Fluffy realized two things. One, he was getting too close to Newvale for comfort. Two, his father didn't look tired at all, in fact, he was doing a flying leap towards him. Before Fluffy could react, he was tackled and pinned. He tried to struggle, but with the size disadvantage, he couldn't make any headway. Smirking, his father lunged for his throat, fangs bared, when a plant erupted from the ground and slapped him in the face. Confused, he looked at the plant for a moment, before getting slapped in the face again. Thinking the forest was possessed, he jumped away and circled Fluffy warily. Fluffy, on the other paw, knew this was psynergy, but didn't know where it was coming from. Then he saw the Djinn that kept following him around, and figured out what had happened quickly. The tides turned, he roared at his father, whose survival instinct was setting in as more plants were popping up. After a few seconds, he turned and ran. Fluffy couldn't believe that the little Djinn could do this sort of thing. He had seen a demonstration from the armor about the potential of the Djinn, but he didn't know they could also do this! It looked pleased with itself, and then quickly jumped on Fluffy's back. Fluffy was slightly dumfounded by this point. He realized how he had been selfish, always ignoring the little guy when the Djinn may have the same sort of goals as him- to be able to live with others. Or maybe this Djinn wanted to pick a fight and following the manticore was just a good way to find one- he didn't know for sure. At that point, he silently vowed to himself to not forget his Djinn friend that had just saved his life. ... Okay, it was more of a roar of victory that sent any bird within a few hundred feet flying away, but the Djinn didn't seem to mind. That was enough excitement for one day- Having a near death experience was never fun for those involved, so Fluffy stumbled his way back to camp, Djinn in tow. By the time he arrived, it was evening, and the half empty camp was winding down for the night. Wanting nothing more then to sleep, Fluffy climbed one of the trees at the edge of the town and used it to glide to a nearby roof. Maybe someday he would feel comfortable sleeping in one of those houses, and furthering his goals, but tonight he felt happy sleeping under the stars in a place he could call home. With a little friend tucked away in his mane.