Fluttershy scooted backwards away from the monster, hands clasped to her mouth. "What...what is..."
Spike glared at the monster. "What do you mean, Royal Drone?"
"It means you'll have the honor of mating with our glorious Queen and producing a new royal heir!"
Spike's face turned green. "EW." He shook his head. "Sorry, you'll have to tell your queen I'm not into bugs." He put an arm around Rarity's waist. "I'm into girls like this."
"Not the time for this," Rarity hissed in a warning tone, firmly peeling his hand away. She pointed her fan at the Changeling. "You do not belong in this world! I took care of your princess, and I'll do the same to you!"
Dungabeet hissed. "You're the one who killed Princess Pupa?"
"Well..." Rarity faltered. "I may not have actually performed the coup de grace, as it were, but..." Her face hardened. "Yes. I defeated your princess. I believe I'm more than capable of taking you on."
Dungabeet laughed. "Is that so...interesting." He widened his stance, planting a serrated, segmented leg on the concrete. "DOSUKOI!"
Magic 12: バーニーシャイ
"Fluttershy! Call Rainbow and Pinkie! Tell them what's going on!" Spike yelled.
"Wh-what?!" Fluttershy cried. "B-but...who would believe this?"
"Just trust me! They'll believe you! They're mahoushoujo!"
Fluttershy's eyes widened. "They're...what?"
"Enough TALKING!" Dungabeet roared, slamming a foot on the ground. "BALL OF DUNG!"
The sidewalk exploded, and a huge, perfectly round ball of dung erupted out of the ground. Dungabeet swung one of his four massive, serrated fists forward; the dung ball rocketed toward Spike and Rarity, who quickly leapt out of the way.
"Ugh, GROSS!" Spike said. "Dude, what the fu—"
"Fashion Wave!" A blue arc of force snapped forward from Rarity's extended fan, followed by a second which bisected the first. The two blasts struck Dungabeet in the torso, staggering him. Rarity charged forward, aiming a flying kick at the Changeling's head. The kick connected, but did little visible damage; however, it was enough of a distraction for Spike to slip around behind Dungabeet and wrap a length of chain connected to a sickle around one of his legs. He gave a mighty yank; Dungabeet toppled forward, landing with a crash on the broken pavement.
Seeing Fluttershy was still frozen in shock, Spike snapped, "Fluttershy! Make that call, then get out of here!"
"Spike-kun! Don't yell at the poor dear!" Rarity chided. "She's terrified out of her wits!"
"Sorry," Spike said.
"None of you are leaving!" Dungabeet roared. "WALL OF DUNG!" The ground rumbled, and a massive, circular wall of dung erupted, completely containing the four of them.
Rarity covered her nose. "I think...I'm going to be sick..."
Evidently the smell had shaken Fluttershy back to her senses, because she produced three handkerchiefs from her purse and doused them liberally with perfume. She tied one around her own nose, then handed one each to Rarity and Spike, who stood protectively over her. "Nice, Fluttershy!" Spike said as he tied his on.
"Excellent thinking, darling," Rarity said. "Oh, and what a lovely fragrance!"
"You...wanted me to call Rainbow-san and Pinkie-san, right?"
"That would be lovely, yes," Rarity said. "Tell them where we are and that a Changeling has appeared."
"A...alright..."
* * * * *
Rainbow, Twilight, and Pinkie were playing Uno when Pinkie's cell rang. "Moshi-moshi, Smile desu! Ah! Fluttershy-chan! We've been waiting for...eh?" Pinkie's eyes widened. "A Changeling?"
Rainbow and Twilight looked up sharply. "I see...yes, tell Senpai we'll be there in a few minutes! And you might wanna run—EH?! You can't? You're trapped?! Don't worry...Senpai and Spike-kun won't let anything happen to you...we'll be there as soon as we can!" She disconnected and put her phone away.
"A Changeling? Now?!" Rainbow cried.
"A big, nasty one," Pinkie said. "Senpai and Spike-kun are already fighting it, but it's got them all trapped."
Twilight groaned. "I'd better heal myself so I can..."
"No," Rainbow said. "You can't risk it." She smiled. "We'll manage. Between the four of us, I'm sure we're strong enough to take this thing out."
"Yeah, it just won't be as neat and clean as when you do it," Pinkie said.
Twilight frowned. "I...I don't know..."
"We'll be fine," Rainbow said. "C'mon, Pinkie. Let's hurry!"
As Twilight watched her friends leave, she sighed heavily.
* * * * *
"They're on their way," Fluttershy said.
Dungabeet stood up. His rumbling laugh echoed off the three-meter-high wall of dung. "You really think you'll still be alive by the time your friends come? BALL OF DUNG!" Another ball of dung erupted out of the ground, hurling itself at Fluttershy. Spike lobbed a giant ball of green goo at it, knocking it off course, while Rarity grabbed Fluttershy and dashed away, shielding her.
"There simply isn't enough room to fight here," Rarity said as she stood in front of Fluttershy.
"Where's he even GETTING all this shit from?" Spike grumbled.
"W-well...Pony City's sewers, maybe?" Fluttershy ventured.
"Thanks for that," Rarity said flatly.
"S-sorry..."
Dungabeet flexed his massive fists. "And now...it's time for you to be...BURIED IN DUNG!" With a gesture, two massive wads of dung erupted from the wall behind Spike and Rarity. They cried out in alarm as they were caught full-force in the back and sent flying; before they could recover, they were buried face-first in the dung wall.
Dungabeet laughed raucously. "It's over now!" He leered at Fluttershy. "And as for you..."
Fluttershy stood up suddenly. "How dare you..." she whispered. She took a step forward. "You shouldn't bully people who are smaller than you...weaker than you..." She glared defiantly at Dungabeet. "You're just a BIG DUMB JERK!"
Dungabeet sneered. "Of course I am!" he said. "I'm a Changeling! Humans are nothing but food to us!" He tilted his head. "In fact...if I'm not mistaken..." He grinned. "Yes...I thought so. I smell the touch of Parasprite upon you. One of our kind has already preyed upon you...I'm amazed you're even still alive..."
Fluttershy blinked. "I've been...preyed upon?"
Spike had extricated himself from the wall and was helping Rarity out. "Fluttershy! Remember how the doctors never figured out why you collapsed? They never knew what was wrong with you?"
"H-hai..."
"Well...we know! We've known all along! We didn't tell you because there was no way you'd have believed it!" Rarity came loose from the wall; Spike lost his balance and toppled over, Rarity landing on top of him.
"It's true, darling!" Rarity said. "One of these foul creatures used you!"
"Used...me?"
"Yeah! It latched onto you. It fed on your kindness and love, then it bred a whole army of nuisance drones to annoy Neechan and her friends!" Spike used his aura to burn the dung off himself and Rarity. "All that time you spent in the hospital was because of one of these bug bastards!"
Fluttershy frowned. "It...used...my kindness?"
"Neechan erased your memory so you'd forget all about it," Spike said.
Fluttershy's eyes widened.
"Three girls came to check up on you a couple days after you were admitted. Though it's kind of strange...they haven't been back since..."
"Sparkle-san and the others saved you," Rarity said. "And then you saved Sparkle-san, even though you didn't know her at all, even though you had no idea what she'd done for you. You are one of the kindest people I've ever met."
"Kindness is for weak, simple humans!" Dungabeet roared. He grabbed Spike by the hair and threw him at Fluttershy. Fluttershy caught him, stumbling and falling.
"I tried...to be kind to you too..." Fluttershy said. "I try to be kind...to everyone..."
"And what does that get you?" Dungabeet asked.
"Kindness is its own reward!" Fluttershy said. She stood, hands on her hips, and glared at Dungabeet. "You should try being kind to others instead of hurting them!"
Spike's pendant began to glow a soft, warm pink. He gasped. "You're kidding..."
Rarity smirked. "I knew it."
Dungabeet roared. "I'm TIRED OF ALL OF YOU! I'm going to bury you all in—"
"SMILE BURNING VAGINA!"
The stench of burning dung filled the air. Rarity gagged.
"What?!" Dungabeet growled.
Rainbow flew over the wall, carrying Pinkie. She dropped Pinkie next to Rarity, then flew right at Dungabeet. "ZAP!"
Fluttershy gasped. "R-rainbow-san...has...wings?"
"Keep that thing busy!" Spike said as he pulled out the gilded chest containing the Elements of Harmony. "I've gotta give Fluttershy her Element!"
Rainbow blinked. "Huh? You mean she's...?"
"Wow, awesome!" Pinkie cheered. "I can't wait to see what Fluttershy-chan looks like as a mahoushoujo!"
Fluttershy blinked. "M-me? Mahoushoujo? What? I don't..."
Spike handed Fluttershy a silver locket, then opened the chest. A bright pink gem floated out of it, landing gently in the palm of Fluttershy's hand. "I know you're confused, but...they need your help. We all need your help."
"BALL OF DUNG!"
Rainbow was sent flying into the wall of dung as another dung ball burst out of the ground right under her.
"Eww, nasty!" Pinkie cried. "SMILE CONFETTI VAGINA!" With a tremendous BOOM and a cloud of pink smoke, a blast of confetti, streamers, balloons, cupcakes, party hats, and birthday candles erupted out of Pinkie's bazooka, impacting all over Dungabeet's body with small explosions and bursts of pink electricity.
Fluttershy looked at the items she held. "Wh-what do I...?"
"Just believe in yourself," Spike said. "And believe in your friends."
"M-my...friends?" Fluttershy asked. She looked at Spike, then at Rarity, who nodded encouragingly. She looked at Pinkie, who was dodging another flying ball of dung, and at Rainbow, who was leaning heavily against her lance, struggling to shake dung out of her bright blue feathery wings.
"My friends..."
Fluttershy stood up. The gem in her hand changed shape, becoming a pink butterfly. The front of her locket glowed pale yellow, and an emblem of three butterflies engraved itself on the cover. She opened the locket. "Umm...Element of Harmony..."
She hesitantly fit the gem into the recess in the locket.
"KINDNESS!...oh, did I do that right?"
Fluttershy's clothes exploded away from her body, which began to glow a soft yellow. She rose into the air; the yellow glow coalesced around her torso, fading to reveal a yellow vinyl corset which bared ample cleavage and most of her back. Matching pumps appeared on her feet, and cherry blossom pink stockings encased her legs. Yellow cuffs with pink butterfly buttons appeared on her wrists, and a yellow collar with a pink bow tie appeared at her throat. A pair of floppy yellow silk bunny ears grew out of her hair, and a puffy pink cotton bunny tail formed just above her shapely rear. A badge with three pink butterflies appeared at her left hip, and a huge pair of feathery yellow wings burst from her bare shoulderblades.
Spike pulled out his phone and took a picture.
Rarity stared, jaw slack.
Rainbow blinked.
Pinkie cheered. "Love the outfit! Ooh, and you've got wings like Rainbow-chan!"
Fluttershy dropped to the ground, wobbling a bit on her heels. She looked down at herself, eeped, and crossed her arms over her chest. "O-oh my...this is r-really embarrassing..."
"So the weak girl's one of you too?" Dungabeet asked. He chuckled. "If I take you all down now..." He thrust his fists forward. "BALL OF DUNG!"
A huge ball of dung rocketed at Fluttershy. She started to flinch, scream, and run...
...but instead, she unpinned the badge from her corset. It expanded into a large shield. She held it in front of her and braced herself; the dung ball slammed into the shield and disappeared.
"Wh...WHAT?!" Dungabeet roared.
Fluttershy pivoted her body, drawing back her arm and curling it around the edge of the shield. "STOP BEING MEAN TO MY FRIENDS!" she shouted as she threw the shield like a discus. It began to glow pink; it slammed into Dungabeet's torso and tore right through him. The upper half of his body dropped to the ground, gushing black blood.
The shield returned to Fluttershy, who caught it easily.
"Holy crap," Rainbow breathed.
"Well that was...unexpected," Rarity said. She looked at the battered but still mostly intact dung wall. "So...erm...about...this..."
Rainbow grabbed Pinkie and flew over the wall with her. "Hey, Fluttershy! Grab Senpai, willya?"
"Huh? Umm..." Fluttershy looked around in confusion. "Wh-what..."
"You've got wings, 'Shy! Use 'em!"
"I do?" Fluttershy asked, blinking. She then felt the new appendages flex and flutter on her back. "Oh! Umm...I'll try..." She hesitantly spread her wings and took a few experimental flaps. She lifted from the ground. "Oh my..." Timidly, she seized Rarity around the waist and flew shakily up and over the wall. Spike leapt to the top of the wall and landed on the other side as Rainbow set Pinkie down and Fluttershy haltingly descended, setting Rarity on her feet before landing beside her, breathing heavily.
"So what do we do about THIS mess?" Pinkie asked. "Should I just burn it all?"
"NO!" Rainbow, Rarity, and Spike yelled.
"Um...I think that would make the whole town smell really bad..." Fluttershy said.
"I got this," Rainbow said, taking wing and spinning her lance. "Better get back."
As the others retreated to a safe distance, a massive column of wind spun away from Rainbow's lance. "SUPER TORNADO!"
Everything on the street shuddered, dust and loose objects blowing every which way, as the tornado slammed into the dung wall, collapsing it into a giant pile. Rainbow landed, wiping sweat from her brow. "Phew," she said. "That takes care of that."
"Exactly how does that take care of anything?" Rarity asked. "You didn't get rid of a single gram of that...stuff!"
"Yeah but at least it's not a big stinkin' wall anymore!" Rainbow retorted.
"Oh yes, because a big stinking pile is SO much better."
"Umm...everyone? There's...a lot of people staring at us..."
The girls and Spike looked around. A huge crowd had gathered, and were pointing at them, staring, and taking pictures. A drone of excited conversation filled the air.
"Crap," Spike muttered. The air around their little group began to shimmer.
Suddenly, the murmuring became a collective gasp. "Where'd they go?" they heard someone scream.
"I think...I can keep this Indifference spell up until we get...to the hospital," Spike grunted. "But...we'd better...hurry..."
* * * * *
Twilight and her mother stared at the television. "Well, so much for secrecy," Velvet said.
Twilight groaned. "If I'd just healed myself and gone with them..."
Velvet shook her head. "I don't think it would've mattered. This one made too big a mess to cover up, even with your magic." She blinked. "Ne, Twiley-chan...only one of your friends had wings, right?"
Twilight blinked and stared as the video replayed. There were clearly two mahoushoujo flying out of the dung wall, carrying two others. "That one..." Her eyes widened. "Fluttershy-san?!"
"Well, now we know you don't have to be there for an Element to awaken," Velvet said.
"Yeah, but I feel like I missed out on something important," Twilight whined.
A short while later, Spike, Rainbow, Pinkie, Rarity, and Fluttershy filed into Twilight's room. "Twilight-chan, guess what!" Pinkie yelled. "Fluttershy-chan's a mahoushoujo!"
"Yeah, and she kicked that Changeling's ass!" Rainbow said.
"Oh...um...it was...beginner's luck, really..." Fluttershy said, cheeks flaming.
"And I really love her outfit," Spike said. "Who knew she had a body like that?"
"Eep!" Fluttershy squeaked, tugging on her baggy sweater and ducking her head.
Rainbow rolled her eyes. "Don't mind him, he's a total perv."
"We thought that looked like you," Velvet said. She pointed at the television, which was still replaying the scene of the mahoushoujo flying out of the dung wall, and Rainbow collapsing it.
The girls' eyes widened. "Oh dear..." Rarity said.
Pinkie sighed. "Eh...that was bound to happen. I mean, that dumb dung beetle made a BIG stinky mess right in the middle of town!"
"Yeah, that was pretty much the most destructive Changeling we've ever run into," Spike said. "Even if he wasn't all that strong."
"Wasn't all that strong?" Rarity cried, staring at Spike. "Were we fighting the same monster?"
Spike shrugged. "Well, he didn't do much other than throw a lot of shit at us."
"Spike!" Twilight chided. "Don't be so crude!"
"Umm...actually...he's being literal," Fluttershy said. "Pretty much everything that monster did involved...umm...poo." She ducked her head.
Twilight blinked. "You mean...all that...is...?"
"Genuine number twosies," Pinkie said.
"Wow, and on the television, it just looks like dirt," Velvet said, eyes wide.
"Okay, I guess I'm glad I missed this one," Twilight said. "Still...maybe I should kind of...help my healing along a bit, so I can get out of here..."
The door opened, and Twilight's doctor walked in. He seemed taken aback by the crowd in the room, but squared his shoulders. "Well, your transfer paperwork is completed," he said. "A nurse from the private hospital you've requested will be in momentarily to prepare Sparkle-san."
A ripple of confusion went around the room. "Private hospital?" Rarity asked. "What—?"
"Good afternoon, everyone!" a cheerful voice called. A nurse wearing a pink uniform walked into the room. Long tresses of purple, rose pink, and cream hair spilled down her shoulders, ending in stylish curls. Her warm violet eyes twinkled as she smiled at Twilight. "I'll have to ask you all to leave for a few minutes while I take the patient's vitals. We have to be sure she's ready to be moved!"
Twilight's eyes widened.
Velvet smiled. "You heard the nurse. Let's all go get something to eat at the cafeteria..."
Everyone filed out, leaving Twilight alone with the nurse. Twilight stared up at her. "What...what are you doing here...?" she asked.
"Getting you out of this silly hospital so you can heal up and get back on your feet," the nurse said. "You do want to get out of here, don't you?"
Twilight grinned. "You bet I do," she said. "Thanks, Oneesama."
The nurse smiled. "You're welcome. By the way, your brother says hi." Her hands begin to glow a soft, rosy pink...
* * * * *
Five girls, Spike, and Twilight Velvet sat in the living room of Twilight's apartment. Twilight Sparkle was completely healed and looked as happy and healthy as ever. The pretty nurse was also present.
"Celestia-sama's been keeping me and Shining Armor up to date on your situation," the nurse said. "So you've only got one more Element to awaken, huh?"
"Yep," Spike said.
The nurse smiled at the girls. "Oh, I haven't introduced myself yet, have I? I'm Twilight's sister-in-law Cadance."
"She's married to my big brother Shining Armor," Twilight said.
"I love your hair!" Pinkie said.
"Oh, I do too," Rarity said. "Does it take very long to dye it?"
"It's natural," Cadance said with a laugh. "Anyway...I'm going to be sticking around for a bit. I've taken over as the school nurse at Umadakara. I'll help you girls out as much as I can."
"We appreciate it, Cadance dear," Velvet said. "I regret I haven't been much help to Twiley-chan and the girls, but my magic isn't really suited for this sort of thing..."
"From now on, if any of you get hurt, call me directly," Cadance said. "My healing magic is a lot stronger than Twilight's."
"Oh my...I really hope we won't be getting hurt..." Fluttershy said, toying with her hair.
Pinkie smiled sadly at her. "Gomen, Fluttershy-chan...what we do kinda comes with some pain."
"But it's an important mission," Twilight said. "That monster you fought today is one of many that have appeared in this city. They've been hurting, even killing people. We're the only ones who can stop it." She bowed her head. "And...in order to stop all this once and for all...we have to put an end to the one responsible."
"Sunset Shimmer," Spike said with a growl.
Cadance's violet eyes filled with sadness. "Yes...I'm sorry you girls have to..." She took a deep breath. "If there was any other way...when I heard what Celestia-sama asked of you, I argued with her for hours."
"It's okay, Oneesama," Twilight said. "We...we have the Elements of Harmony. They're the only thing that can put a stop to her now. Not even Celestia-sama herself would be able to do...what we have to do..."
Fluttershy looked around the room, picking up on the tense mood. "Anou...what is it we have to do?"
The others looked at one another grimly. Twilight walked over to Fluttershy and took her hands. "There's one more girl out there who can awaken an Element of Harmony. Whoever she is, wherever she is...we have to find her. When all six Elements are awakened..." She took a deep breath. "We have to find Sunset Shimmer, wherever she's hiding...and kill her."
Fluttershy gasped, hands flying to her mouth, eyes wide. "K-kill?" she squeaked.
"Because of her, a lot of people are dead," Rainbow said. "Including my boyfriend."
"It was one of her goons that shot Neechan," Spike said.
"She's responsible for all the Changeling attacks," Velvet said. "Including the monster you all fought today."
"And the one that was sucking on you," Pinkie pointed out. "The one that put you in the hospital."
"She also killed her own mother," Rainbow said. "Seriously, she's really twisted."
As she heard all of this, Fluttershy's expression settled into a hard frown. "And...there's...no other way?"
"There isn't," Twilight said. "She's become immortal. Our only choice is to use the Elements of Harmony to strip her of her immortality, then finish her before she can escape."
Fluttershy sighed. "I...I'll...I'll help you," she said. "I don't like fighting, but I'll help..."
"Alright!" Cadance said suddenly, clapping her hands. "Why don't Obachan and I get some dinner for everyone? You can all talk and have fun as friends." She smiled, closing her eyes. "Oh, and Twilight? Don't forget, you can't go back to school for another week."
Twilight paled. "I'm...stuck here at home? For a week?"
"Sorry, but that's how it has to be," Velvet said.
Twilight sighed. "Oh well. It's better than the hospital."
* * * * *
Two girls stood on the platform, suitcases in hand. "This sucks," the younger girl whined. "Do we really gotta?"
"Yeah, we do," the older girl sighed. "It's what they wanted."
"But...we'll be away from Baachan an' Anichama for so long..."
The tall girl rubbed the top of the shorter girl's head, mussing her red hair and messing up her big pink bow. "C'mon now," she said. "Maybe it won't be so bad. Meetin' new people, makin' new friends...don't that sound like fun?"
"Maybe..."
"Welp, here comes our train." As the train glided to a stop on the platform, the taller girl adjusted her battered old brown Stetson and smoothed out her long golden hair. "Next stop, Pony City."