Fluttershy stared out the back window of her cottage, sighing miserably.
She just couldn't understand how it could be this way; she was so certain that Nocturne's wicked behavior was just a façade for his pain and sadness. But he had made it all too clear yesterday that he fully intended to continue convincing the world that he was truly irredeemable. Because of him, Rainbow Dash had been badly injured, and he even threatened to do the same—maybe worse—to Fluttershy herself should she ever return. Fluttershy, who had treated Nocturne with nothing but compassion and understanding, had been threatened with harm by the very pony she'd shown such kindness to. Since that fateful day that she had helped a limping Rainbow Dash out of the woods, she’d sensed that foreboding feeling that all of her efforts were wasted. In a deep, distressed part of her mind, she was convinced that Nocturne really was a monster, just like all of Ponyville said he was.
But even so, Fluttershy refused to give up.
She had spent the last hour writing out her own letter to the “Phantom Pony”, offering another chance at a truce. Yes, she had foolishly thought that Nocturne was just another pony. Yes, she was wrong in assuming he'd never hurt anypony else. And yes, his true nature appeared to be revealed. But Fluttershy knew that, despite how convincing the act appeared to be, that it was still just an act. There was still a small, yet inexorable light deep inside Nocturne’s heart, and she was determined to dig deep and find that kind light in the darkness. Nopony was beyond redemption, and Fluttershy wanted to make absolutely certain that Nocturne knew that. If he really was a monster, then now was time to soothe the heart of the savage beast with Fluttershy's best quality—kindness. It had worked before (Fluttershy couldn’t imagine what else he could have done with the gift basket she had given him), and she was sure it would work again. At the very least, it would get him to leave Ponyville's citizens alone; at most, it would give Nocturne a better path to follow. A path to decency, warmth, and gentility.
Fluttershy finished writing her letter on her own (since Spike had inadvertently revealed Fluttershy's intentions last time, she had opted not to have him write it this time), and read through it a few times to make sure it looked okay, and that all that needed to be said had been said:
Dear Nocturne,
I know you're probably angry with me about bothering you so often. I understand if you are, but please, don't be. The day we met, when you scared me away, I didn’t know what I was about to see. But now that I've seen it, I'm sure that there is so much more to you that what you show everypony. I don't know why you hide from ponies and scare them away if they get too close to you, and I'll probably never know why you hurt my friend Rainbow Dash, but whatever your reasons, I wish you would find some way to let it all go. I want you to be happy and at peace, but I can't keep trying if you keep acting so cruelly.
Yes, I said “acting”. As silly as it sounds, I know there's still good in you. I don't know how I know, but I know there is. I'm not sure if you hide your heart away on purpose, or if you just can't help it, but I believe that all ponies are good deep down. You're no different. What you did to Rainbow Dash was mean and cruel (I'm awfully sorry, but it was), but I'm sure you only did it because, deep down, you believe it too, and you don't want anypony to see that.
I hope you can show me the good in you someday, Nocturne.
Please, take care of yourself.
Love,
Fluttershy
She folded up the letter and tucked it safely in a fold under her wing. One more time, she thought to herself, I'll only go back one more time. She wasn't sure how she would get this letter to Nocturne without incensing him again, and she was even less sure, if she found a way, that Nocturne would ever see this letter. But she couldn't give up on another pony in pain. Even if Nocturne really was a vicious, irrepressible beast, she couldn't give up on him now. It would be cruel to turn away now, and while Fluttershy was not perfect, she could never be deliberately heartless.
As long as she could keep trying, she wouldn’t rest until Nocturne knew he had a friend.
Fluttershy snuck past a still-sleeping Angel; it was early enough in the morning that he didn't have to wake up just yet. “You just stay right there, sweetie,” Fluttershy whispered. “I'll be right back.”
Sweetie Belle replaced another book on Ponyville history on the shelf. “Nothing here,” she despaired.
Apple Bloom had returned another book at about the same time. “Nothin’ here, either,” she lamented.
“This is getting to be pointless,” Scootaloo added, only halfway through another book. “We’ve searched this library from top to bottom for two days. There’s nothing here about Noc—”
“Shhh!” Apple Bloom hurriedly put a hoof over Scootaloo’s mouth. Twilight and Spike were within earshot, and the trio had agreed to keep this research a secret. “This is s’posed to be a surprise for Fluttershy, remember?” Scootaloo nodded, wide-eyed, before the young Earth pony pulled back her hoof. Scootaloo spent the next few seconds moving her tongue around in her mouth in disgust.
“Well, maybe we’re just not looking hard enough?” Sweetie Belle suggested. “Maybe there’s a whole lot more books that we just haven’t looked at yet?”
“Are you kidding?” Scootaloo asked, irritated. “We must have turned the ‘History’ section upside-down! If we actually found the book we’re looking for, I’d be surprised if we didn’t get our cutie marks just for finding it!”
“Hmm . . . .” Apple Bloom glanced pensively around the library, as if hoping the answer would jump out at her within minutes. “I think we’re workin’ too hard, girls,” she assessed. “We ain’t been workin’ smart. We’ve been lookin’ in history books an’ all that, but Noc—uh . . . he ain’t been around very long, I don’t think. Maybe we need to look at somethin’ a bit more . . . ummm . . . .”
“Contemporary?” Sweetie Belle supplanted, grinning.
“Yeah, that,” Apple Bloom agreed. “Ya know, recent stuff.”
“We looked at every history book here,” Scootaloo rebutted, “even the recent ones. We didn’t find anything on him.”
“Then maybe we oughta go from books to somethin’ else? Like, maybe, newspapers?”
“Great idea!” Sweetie Belle squeaked. “If we can find something in the newspapers about him, it’ll be bound to tell us more about where he lives in town!”
All three of the Cutie Mark Crusaders nodded in agreement, and Apple Bloom walked up to the desk Twilight sat at. She was currently scribbling away at a piece of parchment with a quill, possibly hard at work on some important princess matters. “Hey, Twilight?” asked Apple Bloom. “You wouldn’t happen to know where the newspaper section is, would ya?”
Twilight looked up from her work, released her quill pen from her magic, and smiled back at the filly. “Of course I do!” she replied. “Second floor on the far wall. Spike,” she then turned to address her assistant,” could you show them, please?”
Spike approached Apple Bloom and bade her follow. “Right this way,” he said with a helpful smile. Apple Bloom followed, and when they passed by the other two fillies, they followed, as well.
“I’m so glad you girls are learning more about Ponyville’s roots!” Twilight called out to them as they left. “Researching the past is one of the great joys in life, don’t you think?”
As the threesome followed Spike up the stairs, they grinned and chuckled sheepishly at one another, vaguely agreeing. All of them kept silent on their true goal in studying Ponyville’s history.
Each step she made toward the forest, even right from her own front door, reminded Fluttershy of that first day she’d faced the “Phantom Pony of Everfree”. So much had changed since then; despite the good he’d shown, that Fluttershy had tried to appeal to, Nocturne had upped the ante in keeping ponies away and making it clear that he wanted to be left alone. Any opinions of his decency (apart from her own) had soured instantly after he had assaulted Rainbow Dash. Things were looking bleak in Fluttershy's quest, and in any other situation, she would have been somewhat discouraged. But she was too far in to give up now—she had to press on. She knew that, somehow or other, Nocturne needed her.
Fluttershy flinched quite suddenly when a bunch of small white objects dropped down on top of her, and she stopped in her tracks, right beside her mailbox. She let out a small, startled squeal before realizing that the white things piling up around her were harmless.
“Oops!” went a call from above. “Sorry, Fluttershy! I guess I slipped with the bag a bit.”
Fluttershy looked up to see a gray Pegasus mare with a blonde mane and crossed eyes drop down to the ground. She carried a bag full of mail on her side, which looked as though it were only half full.
“Oh, that's okay,” Fluttershy replied to the clumsy mail mare, calm now. “You didn't do anything wrong. Here, let me help you.” And Fluttershy began picking up letter after letter, envelopes and folded papers all around, and stuffing them back into the bag.
“Gosh, thanks, Fluttershy!” the mail pony smiled with her mouth full of paper. She stuffed it all into the sack before continuing, “You're really nice, you know that?”
Fluttershy blushed a bit and replied, “Oh, I'm just helping out another pony, that's all. My, that looks extra heavy. Would you like some help?”
“Aww, that’s really sweet of you,” she said, beaming. “But I’ll be fine. It’s my last shift of the day.”
“Oh, okay, then. I’ll be delivering a letter myself. I wanted to go out to the Forest and surprise him with it personally.”
“That sounds nice!” the mail pony replied, nodding and not missing a beat despite the mention of the Everfree Forest. “I hope your friend likes his letter. Sure you don’t need me to give it to him?”
“No!” Fluttershy blurted, a bit too loudly. The mail mare looked back at Fluttershy in concern. Keeping nervousness to a minimum, Fluttershy rephrased her answer, “I mean, no thank you. I’d just . . . like to do this on my own. But thank you for offering.” Her face squeaked with a grin as she held in her anxiety.
“Oooookaaaaay . . . .” The mail pony stepped back a bit before going on her way. “I'd better get back to it. Thanks again for your help, Fluttershy!”
“You're very welcome. Have a good day!” Fluttershy waved to her as she took off, and Fluttershy started back on her own path. Now that that minor scare was over, Fluttershy found the time to let the good feeling of accomplishment permeate her. It always felt good to spread a little kindness, whether it was the local mail pony, or the Phantom of Everfree himself.
Nopony was above kindness.
Almost dropping the package (which certainly must've contained something glass), the mail mare placed it on the steps of the house, tapped on the door, and trotted away. Another successful delivery. Sure, she made a mistake here and there, and sometimes, things even broke or got worse when she was around, but that didn't bother her too much. Most everypony in Ponyville was really nice about her ditzy tendencies, and she always remembered after making a mistake to try harder next time. After all, making mistakes was the best way to learn.
Stopping on the side of the road, she pulled out another letter to see where she was headed next. This one looked pretty scant; there was nothing on it but a name. Derpy squinted a little, struggling to focus her wayward gaze, and read it out loud, “Hmmm . . . ‘Knock . . . turnee’?” she asked herself. Never having seen the name before, she tried her best with its pronunciation. “Knock-turnee? Who's that? I know just about everypony in town.” She sat and thought about it for a while, trying to remember every pony in town she’d ever delivered to. She didn’t remember anypony by the name of “Knock-turnee”. She didn’t even know whether “Knock-turnee” was a mare’s name or a stallion’s name.
After a few seconds, she just shrugged. “Oh, well,” she decided, “I'll figure it out soon, I guess. I gotta come to this Knock-turnee's house eventually right?” She stuffed the letter back into her bag and took off for the next house. Maybe somepony in town knew who this “Knock-turnee” was and where they lived. She’d get the letter to them, no matter what.
There couldn’t possibly be any mistakes to be made there.