"Come on Apple Bloom! I can barely hear your hoofsteps!" Yemei joked as she ran past the many trees and plants around her. She then slowed down as she really can't hear the filly's hoofsteps. She went to a complete stop and turned around as she notice that she couldn't see her friend anywhere. "Apple Bloom?" She called out, getting no response. She also realized that she wasn't in the orchard anymore either. All the trees around her looked either wilted or creepy. Her ears went down and her tail went between her legs as she decided to go back. Or, at least she thought she was, but since she was doing so many twist and turns, that she seemed lost.
'Where am I? Where's the apple trees? How did-' Her thoughts were then interrupted as she missed a step on the side of a small hill and she was tumbling down and hit hard on the floor. She let out a shout as she felt sore all over and when she stood up, she couldn't stand on one paw. Even so, she started walking once more, limping as she walked.
~
The main six were now brought back together for an emergency meeting. For the ones that weren't informed about Yemei's disappearance, they were shocked and wanted to immediately go out and search for her. But Twilight stopped everyone before they did anything ridiculous.
"Girls! Please! We can't go out willy nilly calling out for Yemei." She said.
"What!? Why not!?" Rainbow demanded.
"It's already dark out. If we go searching for her right now, it would be hard to spot her and we might catch somepony's attention and they might try to find out on what we're doing in the middle of the night. We have to wait till morning so we won't bring too much attention." Twilight explained.
"But...but Yemei is still out there. What if somepony finds her first?" Fluttershy said, tears starting to form under her eyes. Pinkie hugged her for comfort.
"Ah'm sorry Flutters, but Twi made a good point in not attractin' attention. And ah know Yemei is following your rule of stayin' like a wolf." Applejack said.
Rainbow huffed in anger. "The egg head's right. But at least one of us should search for at least instead of all of us."
"Good idea Rainbow, I think you should search for her since your fast." Twilight said.
"Rodger that." She saluted. She then placed a gentle hoof on Fluttershy. "Don't worry Shy, she'll be in your hooves once more. I promise." At that, the rainbow-manned equine flew out the door and into the town with a rainbow streak left behind.
"Please be safe Yemei." Fluttershy said to herself quietly.
"Anyways, I think the rest of us should go home just in case Yemei is there." Twilight said.
"I'm so sorry darling, I wish we could do more, but Twilight is right. We shall look for sweet Yemei when the sun is back in the sky." After that, the others left with a small goodbye, and Twilight, being the last one to leave, prayed to Faust that Yemei will come home safe and sound.
~
Yemei was still going through the Everfree she thought it wouldn't get any worse, but she slipped on some wet mud and slipped down a much steeper hill, at the bottom being greeted with a patch of blue flowers. Some went in her mouth and she spitted it out, it tasting like a mixture of spinach and onions. "Yuck!" She continues trying to spit the taste off her mouth. 'I've gotta get home to momma.' She thought as she continued walked aimlessly though the forest.
While she was walking around the forest, she tripped on something stuck in the ground. "Ah! Dumb rock." She was about to kick it before seeing that it was not a rock. "Huh?" She used her tail to brush the dirt off it and she still couldn't tell what it was. She did see some small strings tied together. Grabbing the strings with her teeth, she easily pulled it out to see what looked like shoes with four wheels on the bottom. She looked at them with confusion. She decided to take them with her and draped the tied together items on her neck before starting to walk again.
After what felt like forever, she found a cave and decided to at least sleep there until the sun came out. She limped inside as she laid down next to a rock and looked up to see a gaping hole near the top of the entrance and she saw the moon and millions of stars. She sighed as she placed her head on her fore-paws, yawning a little before falling asleep.
~The Next Day~
Rainbow returned the next day, bringing the news of not finding Yemei around town, the others saying that she wasn't around there home either. There was no sight of her by any citizens of Ponyville either. At least, no rumors of a wolf or a strange creature in town. It also seemed that Fluttershy stayed up all night, waiting for either Rainbow to come with Yemei, or for the wolf girl to come home on her own. Bags under her eyes being proof enough. Twilight decided to make Fluttershy sleep while everyone else except Rainbow to search through the town. Rainbow was going to search the Everfree forest, just in case.
Three hours later of searching for the five, she wasn't found in the town. Rainbow on her own, was about to leave for their meet up at Sugarcube Corner until she heard a loud roar followed by a familiar scream nearby.
"Yemei!" She called out before dashing to where the roar and scream came from.
~
Yemei was sound asleep before her ears went up at the sound of breathing before her head went up as well. 'What's that sound?' She thought as she felt something was behind her. Yemei's ears went down as she slowly turned her head to see a huge blue bear. It had stars on it like a constellation and she could somewhat see through it.
"U-uhm...hello?" She said. She was responded with a loud earth-quaking roar from the bear. She screamed in fear as she quickly got up and ran as fast as she could under the large bear, going deeper into the cave. 'IwannagohomeIwannagohomeIWANNAGOHOME!' She thought as she didn't see where she was going and bumped into something big and fluffy. She backed away as she saw an even bigger bear that looked like the blue one, only it was purple instead.
"I-I'm s-s-so s-sorry." She squeaked in fright as an even louder roar came from the bigger bear.
Yemei then tried to turn around, but she spotted the other bear and started backing away from the two. She was cornered as she felt the heat of there breath wash over her. With nothing else to do, she shouted : "SOMEPONY HELP ME!!!!" As loud as she could, tears in her eyes. They were shut as she heard something else going in the cave and before she could realize it, she felt the cool afternoon air brushing over her as she couldn't feel the cave floor anymore. She opened one eye as she looked down to see the large forest go past her. She was about to scream again, but she heard a familiar voice.
"Don't worry Yemei, I got ya."
She looked up to see Rainbow Dash carrying her in her hooves. Soon they landed on a clear hillside that was close to the "Welcome to Ponyville" sign. She placed her on the floor before landing in front of the young wolf.
"What the hay were you doing in the Everfree forest!?" She demanded.
"I... I'm so sorry. I... I was just p-playing and I g-got lost." Yemei explained with tears in her eyes. "I d-didn't mean to c-cause so much t-trouble."
Rainbow still had a stern look before she noticed how upset she was over all the trouble she caused. She sighed before draping a wing over the brown wolf and resting her chin on the wolf's head. "It's okay. As long as your safe and unharmed." She then broke the small embrace. "Now, I wanna know, what's that on your neck?" She pointed a hoof at the dirt covered item he found the night before.
"Oh, well, I found these in the forest and took them with me." She said.
"Okay? Anyways, we better get back home. Come on." She stood up before making her way on the trail to the town.
Yemei got up as well, but remembered her injured paw, starting to limp again. Rainbow noticed this when she turned around.
"Are you okay Yemei? Did you get hurt?" She asked.
"What? Oh, I uhm, slipped down a hill and now my paw hurts." Yemei explained.
Rainbow then walked back to her and placed the brown wolf on her back. "Let me carry you."
"B-but I can move on my own. I don't want you to work any more." Yemei said as she tried to get off, but couldn't.
"Just let me carry you home." Rainbow said.
"Okay..." She said, her ears going down as she stayed silent.
~
When the two arrived home, Yemei was asleep once more and Rainbow came in silently as she placed the wolf upstairs on her bed. In her sleep she shifted back to her human self as she was tucked into the bed. Rainbow then took the unknown item off her neck and rinsed them out on the bathroom sink. When all the dirt was off, she saw that they looked like roller skates, only they seemed more for Yemei then any mare or stallion. They were light pink with white laces and pink wheels with a black stopper in the front, the word Roces on the side. She hanged them in Yemei's room to let the water dry off before making her way out the room.
But right after she left, while Yemei was sleeping, a blue spot forming on the back of her neck before being covered by her hair.
