“So, that’s the whole story,” Apple Bloom finished describing Fluttershy’s visit, as she and her two friends sat in their clubhouse later in the afternoon. “Nocturne did grow up in this town years ago. He had to steal food just to survive! I’ll bet that’s how he got to be so mean!”
“It does make sense,” Scootaloo replied, nodding. “I mean, if he still looked like that then, I doubt ponies would have welcomed him with open hooves . . . .”
“But does that explain the article?” Sweetie Belle asked. “I mean, it’s obvious that Nocturne was the one who wrecked that show, but when was that? How old was he? Was he already living in the woods? And whose show did he mess up?”
“I figure, we can all get the answers to those questions,” Apple Bloom said in a slowly-building tone, which she ended on an excited note, “. . . when we ask him ourselves!”
Both Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo gaped at Apple Bloom as if she’d lapsed into Neighponese.
“What?!”
“You’re still serious about this?”
“Dead serious!” Apple Bloom answered. “Only Nocturne knows the answers to all those questions! He knows what happened, what he did, and why! And if we’re plannin’ on helpin’ Fluttershy like we said we would, there’s no better way to do it!”
Sweetie Belle gave a slight whimper. “I don't know about this, girls . . . I don’t suppose there’s a way that doesn’t include the Everfree Forest? I mean, we've been in those woods before and . . . well, things didn't . . . didn’t really . . . go very well then . . . .”
“And besides,” added Scootaloo, “we didn’t know before that Nocturne isn’t the type who likes having ponies over. You saw what that jerk did to Rainbow Dash!” There was a slight growl in her tone all throughout her second sentence.
“What choice do we have, girls?” Apple Bloom asked. “Granny Smith knows everythin’ about Ponyville, and even she’s not sure what happened to Nocturne! And if we ask everypony in town, we’ll be too old for cutie marks by the time we’re done! The only pony we know for sure that really knows everythin’ about him is him! So we gotta take some risks! Ya with me?”
“Well, we’ve been in the forest before,” Scootaloo spoke up, “and we came out fine. Yeah, I think we can do this!”
“Well, it is risky,” Sweetie Belle added, “but if we can help Fluttershy, I’m in!”
“Then it’s settled!” Apple Bloom declared. “Okay, y'all, remember what we gotta do—track down Nocturne, get him to talk about what happened, and we take what we know to Fluttershy. It'll help us solve the mystery of why he's been here since he was a foal.”
“But, what if he doesn’t trust us?” Sweetie Belle asked. “What if he hurts us like he hurt Rainbow Dash?” At this, Scootaloo could only scowl.
“Well, we just tell him we're friends of Fluttershy, then once we have what we need, we take off before he can do anythin'. Fluttershy told me he hasn't hurt her yet, and if he won't hurt Fluttershy, then he won't hurt us, neither.”
“Sounds good, I guess,” Sweetie Belle replied, shrugging. Her tone and the look in her eyes fleetingly stated otherwise.
“This is as good a plan as any, isn't it?” Scootaloo asked. “Besides, if he really is a monster, like everypony says he is, then we have a chance to capture him! We could send him to Canterlot, so they can study him. He might just be a new species of pony we've never seen before! We'll be famous, and we'll earn our cutie marks for sure!”
“One problem with that,” Apple Bloom said in a bemused tone. “Nocturne is Fluttershy’s friend. She said so herself. How would you feel if somepony up and had me’n Sweetie Belle deported for the sake o’ science?”
Scootaloo screwed up her mouth sheepishly before replying, “Good point . . . .”
“Yeah, Fluttershy did say that, huh?” Sweetie Belle asked. “So maybe we can talk to him, or even be his friends. That way, Fluttershy won't have to do anything risky anymore, we can prove Nocturne is a good pony, and everypony in town will know they're safe from him. We could earn our cutie marks that way, too, right?”
“Yep, and the mystery of the Phantom Pony will finally be solved!” Apple Bloom spoke eagerly. “And no matter what happens, we'll do it! Together!”
Apple Bloom stuck out a hoof expectantly, and the other two fillies each puts a hoof on top.
“All right! Let’s do this!” Apple Bloom cheered.
“You said it!” Scootaloo yelled with a nod.
“Yeah!” Sweetie Belle followed suit, sounding much more confident. All three fillies lifted their hooves and they gave a boisterous group cheer:
“CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS! YEAH!”
They didn't know how unprepared they really were.
“Fluttershy, I’ve been putting up with this for as long as I can stand. This foolishness has gone on long enough. Your friends don’t want you to get hurt! Rainbow Dash already suffered because of him, and Ponyville almost lost a mail mare the other day! This has to stop, Fluttershy. The Phantom Pony is dangerous! If this goes on, you’ll be next!”
If Twilight’s voice had been a hair louder, it would have been considered a rant. But Fluttershy’s calm, yet stoic expression made her seem like she wasn’t concerned in the slightest, even after all of the disconcerting things she’d been up to yesterday. After a few seconds of standing in the Golden Oaks library looking into those steely eyes, Twilight couldn’t help but flinch a little.
“Twilight,” Fluttershy said, quietly yet staunchly, “his name is Nocturne. He is not a monster. He is a pony with feelings, just like you. I know what he did was wrong, and I intend to confront him about it. But you and the others have been judging Nocturne before you get to know him, and I am very disappointed in all of you. You should especially know that’s not how you make friends, Twilight. You’re the Princess of Friendship. What would you do if you were in this situation?”
“Certainly not this! I mean, seeing Zecora for help without telling any of us? And all because of the Phan-uh . . . Noct- . . . ugh! Him! Fluttershy, this has gotten to be an obsession, and I cannot stay silent—”
“LET US IN, TWILIGHT!! LET US IN!! HURRY!!”
The desperate screams and relentless banging at the door shattered the air. Spike, who’d been wordlessly observing until now, spoke up, “I guess you’ll have to stay silent, Twi.” At this, Twilight stared back mirthlessly.
All at once, the door burst open and three ponies came rushing in like three small blasts of wind. They rushed past the two mares to a corner of the room, and Twilight was caught in their wake and left in a daze. She and Spike looked to see Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle huddled together and shaking, eyes wide and frantic and bordering on tears.
Fluttershy saw the commotion, and she had to suppress the ghost of a feeling that Nocturne might have caused the looks of fear she saw on the fillies' faces. She did remember saying a little too much to Apple Bloom yesterday, and hoped she hadn't said anything that would get the gears in her mind working. While the Cutie Mark Crusaders' exploits were well-meaning, they had been known to stir up trouble.
“Hey, what's the matter with you guys?” Spike asked. “You look like you've seen a ghost!”
“No,” replied Scootaloo, her voice trembling. “Worse.”
“Was it some kind of creature?” Twilight asked.
“Worse than that!” Sweetie Belle cried.
“Was it . . .” Fluttershy hesitated, not wanting to think about it herself. “Was it . . . a dragon?”
“Even worse than that!” Apple Bloom shrieked, but backpedaled after a glance at Spike. “Um, no offense, there, Spike.”
“None taken. But what was it? What did you see?”
“It was . . .” Sweetie Belle began, her voice shaky and broken, until she finally squealed, “it was . . . IT WAS HIM! NOCTURNE!!”
Twilight, Fluttershy and Spike gasped, and Twilight glanced toward Fluttershy, looking more than a little displeased. “Nocturne, huh?”
Fluttershy was speechless. In seconds, bafflement threw itself into the mix. Once again, she thought she'd figured Nocturne out, and once again, it seemed she was wrong.
“Don't you see now?” Twilight barked. “You see what he’s done? See what he’s capable of? This is why I didn't want you to try appealing to him! This is why your friends were worried about all the time you've been spending on this pony! We didn't want you to get hurt! We didn't want anypony to get hurt! I know your intentions are good, but please, stop this before it goes too far.”
Fluttershy was almost convinced by Twilight's words. Had she not learned what she had learned yesterday, this would have been the final straw. But that’s all over now. I know Nocturne now. Much better than before. And something about this just doesn’t add up.
“It wasn't him, Twilight,” Fluttershy said simply. “Nocturne didn't do this.”
Everypony in the room, even Spike, stared at Fluttershy as if she’d just used a filthy cuss word.
“What?!” Twilight was the first to retort. “Fluttershy, what's gotten into you? How can you possibly go on thinking that this monster is any—”
“Hang on, Twi,” Spike stopped her. “Just listen for a bit, would ya? She might be onto something. I mean, after all, you have been known to freak out unnecessarily in the past.”
“Spike, I resent that insensitive insinuation, and I—” Twilight stopped and stared at Spike’s skeptical gaze. After a long pause, Twilight took a deep breath, brought her hoof to her chest, and extended that leg outward upon exhale. “I apologize, Spike,” she said, her voice resuming balance and diplomacy. “You’re right. This isn’t the time to panic.” She then turned to Fluttershy and the three fillies. “I’m sorry, girls. I’ll do my best to stay objective from now . . . wait a minute. How did you girls know about Nocturne?”
There was a short silence before Sweetie Belle answered, “That’s easy. Fluttershy told us.”
“I think she meant how you knew Nocturne was the Phantom Pony,” Fluttershy added (not slowly, due to Twilight’s suspicious glance). “I never told you that.”
“Well . . .” Apple Bloom began, “. . . we . . . kinda figured it out for ourselves . . . .”
At this, Twilight planted her hoof firmly against her face. “That’s why you’ve been researching Ponyville’s past. You were digging up dirt on the Phantom! Oh, how could I have been so . . . ooh, never mind. Once this is all explained, we’ll do everything we can, girls.” Her gaze narrowed on Fluttershy as she continued, “Of course, if it turns out that that Phantom really is behind this, we have to take action. You know that, don’t you?”
Fluttershy hesitated, but nodded. “Yes. I know. But I really believe Nocturne is innocent. Remember, he may have scared me, but he never attacked me once, and he only hurt Rainbow Dash because he thought she was threatening him. He’d never do something like that otherwise, so . . . .”
Twilight nodded, and elucidation began to grow in her features. “So he wouldn’t attack three little fillies who can’t fight back.”
“Exactly,” Fluttershy replied, with a smile.
“But it was him!” Sweetie Belle shrieked. “We saw him! He was big and scary with bat wings and spooky eyes and—”
“Sweetie, calm down,” Fluttershy soothed. “Whatever’s out there, it can’t hurt you anymore. But you have to tell us what happened before we can help you.”
“Yes, just what were you doing, girls?” Twilight asked, her tone lilting a bit. “Why would you assume it was the Phan-uh, Nocturne, anyway?”
Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo and Apple Bloom all glanced at each other, their eyes shifty and their mouths trembling into guilty grins. “Well . . . uh . . .” Apple Bloom began unsteadily, “we, uh . . . well, we . . . .”
Fluttershy and Twilight waited for the girls to explain, with Twilight’s glare looking more and more rigid. Fluttershy almost felt a certain dread at hearing their side of the story. If they said it was the bat-winged pony with piercing red eyes, then Twilight would have every reason to be worried. But it would also mean that everything I’ve done was wasted, she thought to herself, holding back a sigh. But I can’t believe that. Not now. Whatever they say attacked them, they won't say it was Nocturne.
“Well?” Twilight said with a warning lilt in her tone. “If we’re going to figure this out, you have to talk to us. What exactly were you doing in those woods?”
Fluttershy approached the frightened fillies. “Girls,” she soothed, “don't worry. You're safe now. We just want to know what happened. Just tell us how this all started, and we'll help you however we can.”
It took the girls a few more seconds, but Apple Bloom was the first to speak up after a while. “We're awful sorry, Fluttershy,” she said, her voice almost indistinct. “We . . . we just wanted to help . . . .”
“I understand, Apple Bloom. You're not in trouble.”
“I think that's sort of up in the air, Fluttershy,” Twilight muttered.
Fluttershy glanced back with a slight glisten in her eyes before resuming with the Crusaders. “Just tell us what scared you, and once we know what it is, we can make everything better, okay?”
There was another brief pause in which nopony spoke or moved. The Crusaders continued to glance back and forth at one another, as if debating whether the truth really was the best policy. Finally, Sweetie Belle bravely stepped forward and began, “Okay. We’ll tell you everything.”