Fever Dream
The clouds were everywhere; dark, cold, heavy clouds that shocked her when she bucked them. Clouds that laughed and clung together, making the already crowded sky seem to close in, cutting off the sun and soaking her in icy fingers of rain that she couldn't shake from her feathers.
A young pegasus, fresh out of flight camp, darted around in a panic, desperately looking for a way out of the labyrinthine cluster of cumulonimbus that resisted her every attempt to flee. Above, she could just make out the trailing edge of Cloudsdale, the golden light of Celestia's sun painting its spires in a crown of glimmering golds and amber... far too distant to offer any hope of aid. Below, nothing but the featureless ashen gray of storms which flickered with lightning while growling up at her in malice.
She couldn't make it home and she certainly couldn't keep dodging all day - her wings were already aching from the hours she had spent darting along through the tempest.
With a gasp, her right wing locked up in a agonizing cramp, causing her to flick out her left and begin an inevitable glide into the maelstrom below. She no longer had a choice while her heart leapt into a screaming panic as she drew nearer to the deepening darkness below. Icy veins of frost began to climb her primaries, slowly overtaking her wings as they accumulated more and more moisture from the hazy nightmare, dragging her down with increasing speed as they gained a skin of ice.
She glanced once more up towards Cloudsdale, seeking salvation from the horrors below, only to watch as the final golden spire slipped from view... her world closing in around her in a frigid and claustrophobic vice. For a brief instant, the world was white, and then came the searing pain of liquid fire as the lightning scourged her wings and arced to her flank before lancing off into the billowing towers of gray.
She was suddenly falling, her wingtips on fire as the damaged feathers could no longer slow her fall, tearing at her mind with unending agony as the scent of ozone and burning hair fought for dominance in her mind. Through the pain, she glanced back, desperately trying to assess the damage and compensate when her eyes chanced upon her seared flank: her freshly acquired cutie mark, no longer the prismatic flash of lightning... instead reduced to a smoldering smear of bloody flesh and ash still searing into the muscle as she fell into the darkness. The filly's screams swallowed by the uncaring merciless heart of the storm.
She was on fire. Her body was literally burning as she plummeted through icy rain and tempest winds. She was lost and alone, tumbling through the gray in a gut-wrenching ballet of tremors and convulsions. The sky, which had cradled her for her entire life, now turned into a predatory beast intent of her destruction.
Rainbow Dash struck out, desperately seeking purchase on anything but finding only enough cloud to catch her and spin her faster end over end into the hungering chaos below. Her throat raw from screaming, she finally closed her eyes and grew still as the wind burned what little was left of her skin as she surrendered to the fall followed closely by a tail of smoldering embers.
"RAINBOW DASH. OPEN YOUR EYES." commanded a voice from the endless gray. "OPEN YOUR WINGS AND SOAR."
Through the pain and the nausea of the fall, the voice demanded her attention and the filly found herself suddenly in a featureless sky, laying on her back upon a bank of clouds only distinguishable from the sky by the faint pressure they offered upon her feathers and skin. As she blinked in confusion, the sky began a gradual shift into darker colors as faint sparks took up residence in the deepening blues and blacks of the night. Above, the moon shown with a gleaming silver as two immense white eyes burned away the last remnants of the tempest, ushering in a calm warmth that began to permeate her world.
Rainbow Dash watched in awe as Princess Luna shimmered into being and strode towards her, the faint essence of the cloudy surface peeling away from her silver shod hooves and tinkling like tiny bells.
The dark alicorn, ruler of the night and diarch of Equestria, twice defeated by the Elements of Harmony, loomed over the filly as she quaked in the remnants of her frightful fall. And then she knelt, tears glistening upon midnight cheeks as she wrapped the filly in her great, downy wings, pulling her from her back and cradling her as, together, they wept.
"Rainbow Dash, we are sorry it took so long for us to arrive. Your need was great and yet we could only sense your terror. We could not find you amoungst the stars, and for that we offer our greatest apologies. You, who have helped us, who have saved us when we were all but lost, were left in your time of need. We will not leave you to abandonment. Fear not Rainbow Dash, for we shall bare thee as you have born ourselves. Prepare, for we shall wake thee, and thee must flee. You are imperiled."
And as Rainbow Dash lay, curled in the warmth of the Princess of the Night's wings, the world melted into darkness and her body began to scream in pain.
Just a Spoonful of Arsenic Helps the Medicine Go Down
The room was pleasantly warm, quiet, dark, and with just a hint of evergreen to mask the scent of the dozens of animals that made their homes within its walls. It was a peaceful place, one which was kept dutifully clean despite the tremendous effort which was needed to maintain order. It was crowded in an old fashioned way, clear of distractions yet upon any surface evidence of the care and dedication of the artisans could be found. No cabinet was unpainted. No drawer uncarved. No table without well worn nicks or dings lovingly repaired and polished.
It was perfect for a restful retreat or a quiet place to recover.
Fluttershy exhaled softly, eyes half-lidded as she gazed out over the room from amidst the flowing river of her pink mane, perched atop a similarly well loved pillow across the room from her good friend Rainbow Dash. She had been watching quietly for the better part of two hours as the ill pegasus had tossed and turned, whimpered, groaned and, occasionally, gasped, in her sleep.
Rainbow was not doing well. Her fever hadn't broken and she was sweating through her third change of sheets. Fluttershy frowned in worry. By now, whatever injury running into that branch had caused should have become less troublesome, certainly with the medicine she had been given, and yet her friend only seemed to continue to suffer.
Fluttershy blinked slowly in the dim light of the sputtering candle across the room, considering the situation as she watched over Rainbow. She knew she needed to fetch their friends, surely Twilight could suggest something that might help Rainbow at the very least. Applejack could probably cook something up while Rarity could help supply fresh gauze or help keep Rainbow's fever down. Pinkie would, of course, be a wonderful distraction and fount of good cheer, helping to lighten the mood... they did say that laughter was the best medicine after all.
Of course medicine was really the best medicine, but Pinkie's antics would certainly be appreciated.
Fluttershy smiled softly as she thought of her friends. They were out there, right now, chasing down that dreadful monster while she tended to Rainbow's injuries. They really were such good friends. She could hardly believe how lonely and isolated she had felt before the day Twilight had shown up in Ponyville. She had always had her little friends but, even with all their tiny hugs and gifts, spending time with her pony friends had become something she cherished more and more, and she just couldn't stand to let anything cause them hurt.
With a nearly silent flutter, she glided across the room to check on Dash again. Carefully pulling back the sweat soaked sheets, she lifted the feverish pony onto her back before pulling the rest of the sheets free and securing a new set. Softly walking to the floor shower, she adjusted the water before rinsing her friend down and helping her to sip a bit of water to keep her hydrated. A few minutes later and a clean and dry, though shivering, Rainbow Dash was softly tucked back into the fresh seats as Fluttershy carefully dropped three small berries into Dash's mouth and nipped a nerve in her neck to get the mare to swallow.
Nodding to herself, Fluttershy went about collecting the sodden sheets and piling them into a basket to be washed later before going to clean herself once more. The poor dear was just so weak with fever that she couldn't even wake to swallow her medicine. Fluttershy could feel her chest clenching as she barely kept from crying at how ill her friend was.
Stifling a whimper, Fluttershy stepped back through the room towards her pack as she gathered a small assortment of herbs and berries, all prepared to heal the sick or injured. Amongst them, juniper berries to help with fever, apple seeds for headache, a twist of nightshade for stiffness, pressed ginger juice and pepper in case of allergic reaction, bloat berries to combat dehydration, and thistle to help with the rash that would likely come from laying in bed too long. Fluttershy blinked for a moment, a brief flicker of apprehension as she looked over her medicines. She felt she was missing something important... something she should know just from glancing at the medicines before her. With a frown, she studied each for a few seconds running them through her memories and trying to figure out why she had a vague sense of unease as she considered them.
Something was missing... something important... something she should know. She wracked her brain as she looked over them all again and again. Something was wrong. She should know something that she just couldn't get to form into a coherent thought. Blinking again in frustration, she glanced up as Rainbow Dash started to moan and thrash again.
The poor dear. If only there was something she could do to help her get a bit more comfortable... to help break the fever.
And then it hit her.
She had almost forgotten the asp-vine and corpse-root.
With a sigh of relief, Fluttershy hovered over to the pack she had dropped at the door, nosed it open, and began to pull out the bitter roots and acidic vines. It was a good thing she had remembered them, after all, if she didn't brew them just right, the syrup could actually make Rainbow even sicker.
Oh! she thought, I'm almost out of bloat berries... I better go fetch some before Dash wakes.
And with that, Fluttershy turned her crimson eyes to the door and flitted out silently into the night, oblivious to the strangled gasp as Dash's eyes crushed tighter as she awoke to the agony in her guts.
Another Word for Discord
"You have for me what I requested?" a crisply suited stallion inquired of the courier as he sat taking measured sips from a crystal flute of hard cider.
The courier, a beige pegasus stallion, barely past the age of employment, wheezed slightly as he labored under the considerable weight of his parcel bag. "Got your stuff right here mister -"
The stallion raised a sharply crafted eyebrow as he watched the courier. It wasn't that he was particularly secretive about his name so much as he was not often in the habit of being present when it was uttered. Quite the opposite really. He was more than happy to share the time-honored weight of his family name to any worthy endeavor, arrangement, transaction, or movement, so long as it was something he could stand behind proudly. The courier had been patient and had apparently followed his requests so far... so with a slight show of weariness, the stallion closed his eyes, gently rubbed the bridge of his nose, carefully placed his cider flute precisely where it should be, and exhaled softly before closing the paper he had lain on the cafe table and looking up to the waiting courier.
"Measures. Mister Measures," he stated primly as a small wooden case was pulled from his briefcase and placed before the pegasus. Without waiting for him to ask questions, he gently tapped it open to reveal its contents of several dozen bits, carefully packed so as to exactly fit the 144 slots within.
The courier, eyes gleaming at such a generous tip for a simple (though heavy) delivery, smiled brightly before depositing the wrapped contents of his parcel bag, hefting the small case, and flitting off with a jovial salute through the skies of Canterlot.
Mister Measures watched him go with only the slightest curiosity. For as long as he could remember, despite all his accomplishments, he had still never really gotten over the dream of flight, grounded as he was being an Earth Pony. Shaking his head again slightly and exhaling perhaps a bit more forcefully than was strictly required, he brushed aside his idle thoughts and collected the parcel.
It wouldn't do to keep his employer waiting on such an important delivery.
Leaving the requisite 22% tip, plus a cross-referenced bonus for impeccable service, he rose and levered the parcel into his own, considerably larger, briefcase and departed the cafe. The sun was shining and the local populace was engaged in some kind of musical street performance for which he patently did not see the point but, all things considered, it was a lovely day.
Stepping around the postbox at the end of Baleville and Winniepeg, Mister Weights and Measures ducked under a small awning where a couple of painters were busy prettying up the facade of a local storehouse. He was so intent on avoiding the occasional drop of paint that he never saw the punch that would ultimately be responsible for a delay of several hours, his employer not receiving the stack of legal documents he was carrying, or the shame-faced painters who blinked numbly at the scene before walking away with vacant expressions.
Light Red, Very Light Red Ratio
It was just over the lawn, up a little walk and two or three bounces to the door, a distance that she had traveled countless times to a destination she had visited even more, and yet just a few steps from the cottage door, Pinkie Pie found herself inexplicably enjoying the view of a little blue bug taking a nap in a tulip blossom... from inside a rose bush.
Not that she really minded, after all even little blue bugs could be great friends if given the chance! He was probably just coming home from working at the little blue bug company, waiting for the little blue bug carriage, and anxiously waiting to see his little blue bug wife and little blue bug kids and enjoy a nice dinner of little blue bug food....things. She didn't really know what little blue bugs ate so maybe he already had some or was picking some up for his wife and kids? That would be so sweet! To think that after working all day long, with no breaks, just so he could help to take care of his little buggy babies and adorable buggy wife, selflessly toiling in the harshest conditions at the little blue bug company, that Mr. Thadeus Twigorian Flashlapel (known to his little buggy friends as Bluey) was taking even more of his free time to pick up dinner and flowers for his wife. Such a good little buggy.
Pinkie Blinked... unless Mrs. Little Blue Bug wasn't pink at all! Oh! There would be so much scandal! Rarity would love it!
Unless that's how buggies rolled.... she didn't really know and .... Pinkie suddenly gasped while looking around. He'd gotten off somewhere while she was thinking! Oh, he was a clever one, that little blue bug. Pinkie chuckled quietly and was about to bounce out of the rose bush when her teeth suddenly felt fuzzy.
That was the sign that hide and seek was the game of the minute, so she took a deep breath and slid back into the rose bush with a wide grin.
Moments later, the cottage door swung open only to have Fluttershy slip out on silent wings into the night sky.
Pinkie blinked, counting to 461 by prime numbers... after all "prime" was just "pie" with "rm" added to the mix... which was just like raspberry mascarpone which sounded really REALLY tasty now that she thought about it and... hmm.... Fluttershy left her door open.
Pinkie smiled as she bounced out of the rose bush and trotted over to Fluttershy's cottage to shut the door for her quiet friend but, just as she reached the door, the sounds of whimpers and groaning from inside caught her attention. Specifically the whimpers and groaning of a particularly multi-colored pegasus that she knew quite well.
After taking a quick peek inside to see if she could help, Pinkie's mane fell as if she had been drenched in ice water (which Twilight had tried last week but forgotten about her Pinkie Sense).
Suddenly, counting to 461 by primes didn't seem nearly as fun, even if "90th" kinda looked like "goth"... because seeing Rainbow Dash struggling to move while writhing in pain and gasping just wasn't fun at all.
Pinkie suddenly knew why her Pinkie Sense wanted her to play hide and seek.... this was Fluttershy's house, but that wasn't Fluttershy.
Looking around quickly, Pinkie flipped a blanket from one of Not-Fluttershy's couches over, almost rolling Rainbow Dash up in it before turning to leave, the blanket acting as a little sled.
Pinkie's brow fell as she dug deep to find her inner-Big-Mac, and started pulling. It might not be a nice ride, but she couldn't leave her bestest friend Rainbow behind when a not-Fluttershy was flying about.