After Dash had a chance to empty the meager contents of her stomach into a bucket provided by Big Macintosh, her head cleared enough for her to realize all she had been smelling before was breakfast. She got groggily out of her makeshift bed and joined the others in the kitchen. They sat around a several crude planks of wood that served as a table. Zecora sat pouring over what looked like a stack of notes as she ate her meal. There was a spot for Fluttershy, now wrapped in two more heavy chains along with the one from before, secured to a post in the kitchen that seemed to be there purely for accommodating her presence. Big Mac, for his part, sat in the big easy chair drug in from the living room. Fluttershy ate her food ravenously. Watching her and listening to her wolf down her food made short work of what little appetite Rainbow Dash had. Instead, Dash related to the others how drinking Zecora's potion before she went to sleep had altered her dreams. Big Mac seemed to be paying attention through bites of hash browns, but it was the zebra herself who seemed the most interested, setting down her notes to listen intently. The blue pegasus left out the details of what happened at the end of her nightmare, not wanting to put anypony else off their breakfast, but she did mention how it seemed towards the end that the Candy Mare had retaken control.
"I'm not surprised by what you say, I'm just glad the star fruit made her go away. Even if not for the whole night, at least you were spared the brunt of her spite," the zebra added a few drops of honey to her bowl of grits. "Valuable it seems is the information you did acquire, we should act on it before we all expire."
"But how? I mean Nightmare Night is tonight! If I understand what you and Twilight have been telling me, that''s when these monsters are going to be at their strongest." worried Rainbow Dash, staring sadly into her corn flakes. "If we were planning on assaulting the Candy Mare directly, we'd need to get word to Canterlot first for reinforcements. She'll be held up in the ruins of the Castle of the Pony Sisters. She might not even have to come out to complete her ritual and I doubt two ponies and a zebra could lay siege to her lair by ourselves. The best we could hope for would be to slow her down and buy time. The bad part is I'm not sure the entire Equestrian Army would be anymore successful than us at that, especially once night falls."
"Now, now, don't lose hope. We'll have my potions to help us cope. Honestly we have all day. We'll stop this Candy Mare, we'll find a way!" said Zecora with more certainty than Rainbow Dash felt was deserved.
"Eeyup," was all Big Mac had to say.
"Um, I might have an idea," said Fluttershy quietly. "I know it'll take some time for you guys to get to the Castle of the Pony Sisters, and the Everfree Forest isn't exactly safe, even in the day." Everypony stared at her, making her fidget and her chains rattle, but she pressed on. "Believe me when I say I know the Candy Mare and her subjects have been restless lately, but they'll be at their weakest right now, while the suns climbing high into the sky. Even I can feel it, the urge to curl up in a dark corner and just drift away." The yellow pegasus rocked a little back and forth on her stool, her eyes drooping a bit with sleep.
"I get that Fluttershy, but somepony still has to get to Canterlot," said Rainbow Dash. "With the Ponyville Express out of commission it's at least a days walk from here. Who ever is going needs to go now, or they won't make it back by night fall."
"It might be a days walk, but it's only an hour or so as the pegasus flies," said Fluttershy, a dreamy expression on her face.
"Wow, Fluttershy, I know you're kind of out of it, but you have to have noticed my wing is busted up pretty bad. I'm not going to be flying anywhere anytime soon," said Rainbow Dash, flinching as she tried to flex the injured wing.
"Oh, um, I wasn't actually talking about you. I was talking about me," Fluttershy said meekly, giving her wings a tiny flap. "I could fly to Canterlot, if that's okay?"
"Nope," said Big Mac through a mouthful of biscuits and gravy.
"I must agree with Big Mac, there's no guarantee you'd make it back. If we let you off your chain, on other ponies you'd bring pain. While the sun blunts your curse, your freedom may only make things worse," said Zecora, a worried expression on her face.
"I know what I am. I know I'm a monster, and that you probably shouldn't trust me. But what were you going to do? Just leave me chained up here while you all go off to fight the Candy Mare? Leave me to worry about you all facing the creature that killed all our friends? I might not be the pony I once was, but I remember my friends, and I remember how they died. I dream about it sometimes, not quite like Rainbow Dash, but enough to know that if it is Luna reaching out to her, she's trying to reach out to me as well." Fluttershy pushed her empty plate away from her and looked directly at Zecora. "I know I'd be a risk if you took me with you. Even though I'm terrified of the candy ponies, I can feel them tugging at my mind sometimes. I can feel the Candy Mare trying to act through me, but only when she's close. Letting me go to Canterlot will put me further away from them and further out of range of her influence. It might actually be safer to let me go."
A look of doubt crept into Zecora's face. The zebra had a long time to study Fluttershy's condition, its severity and what influenced it. The move would still be risky, but it was true that the further away from other candy ponies the yellow pegasus remained, the less likely she was to have a relapse. "Ah said nope," Big Mac stood up from the table, glaring at both Zecroa and Fluttershy. His eye narrowing as he started to lose his usually boundless patience with the situation.
An uncharacteristic defiance crept into Fluttershy's soft cyan eyes. "What choice do you really have? If you want to warn Canterlot it's not exactly like you can just wait for the mail pony or have Spike poof the message to the Princess herself. They're both dead. I'm the only pony other than you who was in Ponyville that night and survived. I owe it to those that died to help make sure these monsters go down." As quickly as it had flickered to life, her spirit seemed to crumbled around the edges, tears welling up at the corners of her eyes. "Please let me do this. If for no other reason than to make up for all the trouble I've caused you two. I hate being a burden and not being able to repay your kindness. Just let me do this one thing."
"Sure," said Rainbow Dash, the others looking at her in surprise. "What? So Fluttershy tried to eat me last night, not like that hasn't been happening in my dreams most nights. The fact is I've known Fluttershy all my life, and while she might be a little timid, she always comes through for her friends when it counts." She draped one forelimb over Fluttershy's shoulders and hugged her tight, despite the chains getting in the way. "And I know exactly how she feels about wanting to get a little payback for our friends from these candied freaks. I trust her to get things done."
"But Rainbow you must understand, in her own will Fluttershy may not have a hand," said Zecora.
"What's a hand?" asked Rainbow Dash, confused.
"Those things Spike had instead of hooves." said Fluttershy.
"Oh, those. I thought they were just, ya know, weird shaped paws. He had claws after all."
Big Macintosh gave a heavy sigh and put one hoof to his forehead. "Fine," he said, leaving his hash browns abandoned in a pool of grease. "Ah'm gonna go make sure the axles are greased on the wagon. Y'all do what y'all like. Ah'm washing my hooves of it."
"I think he's mad," whispered Fluttershy, her wings drooping.
"I'm not so sure he felt wrath, its seemed to me he suppressed a laugh," mused Zecora. "If Big Mac doesn't mind, I guess I will act in kind." With practiced ease the zebra removed Fluttershy's collar, pausing only a moment to smooth down the pegasus mane. The motherly gesture made Fluttershy tear up again, but the look on Zecora's face was deadly serious. "I must warn you not to ramble, this course of action is a gamble. Go as quickly as your wings will carry. Fly fast and true, do not tarry!"
Rainbow Dash smiled and nodded at Fluttershy, and for her part the yellow pegasus wrapped both her old friend and her keeper in a huge hug. "Thank you, both of you, for believing in me. I promise I won't let you down. I'll be back as fast as I can." With that, Fluttershy ran for the nearest window and opened it carefully, hopped out, and closed it gently behind her. Then she was off into the distance before Rainbow Dash could blink.
"I wonder if this was the right choice. It's been sometime since there has been hope in her voice," said the zebra, clearing the breakfast table.
"Hey weren't you the one who said we shouldn't lose hope?" asked Dash, trying a spoon full of mushy cornflakes, before letting the spoon drop back into the bowl and making a sour face. Her stomach might have settled enough to try eating, but the limp cereal wasn't going to cut it. "It's about all we really have right now."
With breakfast out of the way, and daylight burning, the trio quickly set out for the heart of the Everfree Forest where the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters lay. Despite the fact that they were on their way to face almost certain death, Rainbow Dash found herself oddly in high spirits. Maybe it was just seeing Fluttershy again, or having spent the last few days in the company of others instead of painfully alone. Whatever it was, she found herself breathing deeply the cool autumnal air, her mind drifting to other things than candied ghouls and nightmares. The wagon that Big Mac had pulled around wasn't as broken down and bedraggled as Rainbow Dash had expected from how much attention he'd had to give it to prepare for the trip. It even had a new coat of lacquer, though that made her head swim a little given her mostly empty stomach. The wheels were in good shape and took the ruts in the over grown path through the Everfree Forest better than she thought they would too. Dash and Zecora sat on the drivers bench in the front, while a tarp hid what she could only assume were a collection of bottles and jars that clinked and clanked in the back. Big Macintosh himself pulled the wagon, and Dash found herself wondering if this was the same cart he used to pull fillies and colts around for hayrides. She didn't feel comfortable asking, not wanting to open up old wounds. Her own, more recent injuries were complaining enough as the wagon rattled and jutted along the path.
The sun shone brightly in the early morning, dappling the path in bright pools of light as it passed through the trees. The leaves were amazing, even Dash had to admit that. Though the trees of the Everfree Forest grew thick together, there were still marvelous sprays of red and orange, yellows and browns, a riot of fall foliage still decorating every branch. Here the leaves would fall of their own accord in the coming weeks. It made Dash a little sad, remembering that there was no pony to participate in the Running of the Leaves around Ponyville this year. It'd just be her and a few windy clouds. Well, if she lived that is.
It was weird. Even though she had seen the candy ponies, had seen how deadly and frightening they were, in the light of day it was impossible to really come to grips with all of that. It was even harder to believe that sundown would mark the start of Nightmare Night. She remembered how excited Pinkie Pie had been about getting to decorate the entire town herself last year. All the fake spiderwebs, streamers, fake skeletons, and Nightmare Moon decorations she'd bought and strewn around town had probably been way more than Mayor Mare had wanted. Even so, Pinkie had a blast, constantly surrounded by a gaggle of smiling children. Applejack, she remembered had been busy making candy apples and other treats for the town festival. Rarity had of course been hard at work making costumes for townsfolk and high society alike. Twilight, for her part, seemed to be buried under her books at the library like usual. Remembering them like this made her heart ache.
Fluttershy though, good old Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash wondered what she had been doing this time last year. Had she been getting ready for Nightmare Night in her own way? Locking all the doors and windows and hanging a sign letting trick-or-treaters know they weren't welcome? That actually made Rainbow Dash smile. Of all her friends, Fluttershy had been the most anxious about Nightmare Night, ever since she'd been little. Now she was probably a more frightening monster than she had ever imagined lurked under her bed or behind the closet door. It would've been funny if it weren't so sad. The most gentle and kind pony she had ever known was now a ravenous, pony eating monster. Dash hoped that putting down the Candy Mare would somehow help her friends affliction. Even if it didn't, maybe it would at least make it more manageable.
They were getting deeper into the forest now. They'd take time to stop for lunch before they reached the castle ruins. Dash wondered, not for the first time, how Fluttershy was doing.
Fluttershy was doing terribly.
The bright sunlight beat down on her like a blow torch, the autumn breeze doing nothing to keep her from feeling like she was burning alive. She tried to tell herself it was just because she was out of practice flying. She'd been caged up for the better part of a year, unable to really stretch her wings. She should've felt exhilarated, instead all she wanted to do was slink into the nearest shadow and sleep for a hundred years. As it was, she was afraid to fly too high for fear of passing out and falling from a great enough height to hurt herself. She wasn't completely sure such a fall could kill her anymore, but neither did she want to find out what it was like to have to drag herself to Canterlot with broken, twisted limbs. She would if she had to, such was her devotion to her friends, but she certainly didn't want to.
She darted from tree to tree, staying in the shade as much as possible. As she drew near to the edge of the Everfree Forest, her time in the sunlight grew longer and longer. She wasn't sure how she was going to cope once she hit the open plains between Canterlot and Ponyville, but she'd have to figure something out soon. Something whispered in her ear. She could hear them, the other candy ponies, murmuring in the brush and buried under the dirt. Sentries, left here so that the Candy Mare would know if anypony entered the forest. She'd need to remember that when she warned the Princess. It would be wise for them to come back with mainly flying troops. Maybe call in the Wonderbolt's from Cloudsdale. They were the fastest and most skilled pegasi in all of Equestria. If any ponies could help, it would be them.
All too soon Fluttershy burst out from under the cover of the trees and into the open meadows that surrounded Ponyville. The town itself crouched low in the distance, a black smudge on the brittle yellow landscape. This was the first time that Fluttershy had seen the town in the light of day since the night of the fire. Just the sight of it in the distance made her heart drop into the pit of her stomach. Without realizing it, her wing beats slowed as she remembered that night that had turned her into a prisoner inside her own body. Even though it was the last place she wanted to go, the shadows swarming among the ruins promised relief from the glare of the sun. Conflicted though she was, her body ached for those cool pools of darkness. She closed her eyes and darted into Ponyville, kicking up a shower of muddy ashes as she flew.
This was a mistake. There were other things like her hiding in the shadows and beneath the ruined town. She could hear them in droves, mumbling in their sleep. She slowed now not out of any maudlin sense of sorrow, but out of necessity. If she wasn't careful, she'd end up waking the whole town. As it was, she could already feel candy eyes blindly staring out into the daylight, searching for what had stirred the soot that covered the muddy roads that lead into Ponyville. Fluttershy had to hope they'd dismiss it as a gust of autumn wind. She mentally kicked herself for coming this way now. It might've been faster to cut through Ponyville when the town was still safe, but now it was like cutting through a minefield. This would certainly slow her down, and worse, stop her entirely if she wasn't careful. The very shadows she flitted between also offered safe haven for the dreaming dead. Even so, she was doing better than she feared she would. If she had been a normal pony, she wouldn't have known what spots were too dangerous to tread upon, what areas needed to be avoided. For once she was thankful she wasn't entirely normal anymore. She was already almost halfway through. She was just coming to the town square now.
Too late, she realized she wasn't alone, as a thick bolt of dark red magic arched towards her. With only a moment to spare she darted out of the shadows and into the light. Instantly she regretted her decision as the sunlight sapped what little strength she had and made her involuntarily fall towards the ground. The same ground that the magical attack had come from. "What? It doesn't burn? Why doesn't it burn! How dare you defy the Great and Powerful Trixie! By her order all you vermin are commanded to BURN!" a pony in a tattered cloak and hat roared as she fired another bolt at the ailing Fluttershy.