• Published 16th Apr 2016
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A Rabbit Hearted Mare - MissytheAngle



Daisy and Lily go missing, and Roseluck goes to Derpy and her strange stallion friend for assistance in finding them.

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Chapter Two: Everything was So Simple

Chapter Two

Everything was So Simple

The majority of her day went the same, with only one pony knocking on her door.

“Roseluck, please?”

She stayed on her couch, her cheek pressed against the arm as she continued to ignore Carrot Top’s pleas. Even if she wanted to open the door, her body would have refused to move anyway. She just wanted to lay there with nothing but her thoughts to occupy her, despite the lingering loneliness.

“It’s been a day! Please, don’t do this to us. We’re really worried about you, all of us. But you can’t stay locked up like this.”

Roseluck’s eyebrows knit down. “Please go away,” she said, her voice cracking.

There was a pause, and she was sure she heard a sigh before Carrot’s hoofsteps left her house. She buried herself back into her pillow and scrunched her face.

After many hours of nothing but silence, minus sobs and heavy breathing, she could feel the warmth from her crying on it and the wet spots from her tears. She tossed it aside.

Peering outside, the sun shined bright on the grass and the flower beds. One or two ponies who passed by sometimes gave the houses beside her concerning looks before continuing their walk, muttering to themselves.

For a second, she imagined her friends coming over to comfort her. Blankets, ice cream, magazines to giggle at, and maybe a hint of gossip that lasted hours and hours. They’d all make room on her small couch until one of them fell off.

Could really use that right now.

Her eyes grew in horror as she looked back at the empty house, then back outside, only to realize she had spent the whole day on her couch. Carrot Top had tried to drag her out, only to fail. What time was it anyway?

She rubbed her eyes and turned about to lay on her back, staring at the ceiling. Squeezing her eyes shut, the mare groaned into her hooves. A tiny part of her begged to stay inside, but the majority screamed for some fresh air.

Pull yourself together, Roseluck! What’s the matter with you?

Does this need to be explained?

Staying on the couch and crying over it won’t fix anything!

Sure feels better than getting up…

She shook her head. Fighting with herself would only make things worse, if it continued on like this. She needed out, fast. Even if it was just for work.

Tossing her back hooves off the couch, she at last got on all fours and stretched. While the comfort of the couch called for her again, she managed to drag herself away and toward the door.

As soon as she opened the door, light blinded her. She rubbed her hooves over her face, and with a sigh, took a few steps outside.

The bright day proved to be lively with busy streets as ponies strolled through the markets, with bits in little coin sacks and wandering eyes. Roseluck walked through the street with her head down.

And once she arrived at her stand, no sooner did ponies arrive looking for flowers.

Every once in a while, ponies would spark up small bits of conversation. They were quick, usually lasting ten, maybe fifteen seconds. Ponyville citizens tended to show some form of kindness to everypony. But they were also nosy. Because word spread in Ponyville like heavy rainfall, many of them had the same things to say to her, even some asking if she knew anything about the situation.

“I sure hope they’re okay!”

“Where did they go?”

“Does it have to do with Amethyst going missing?”

“You’ll be okay, right?”

And she would say the same things, feeling like a looping record. “I’m sure they’re okay.” “I honestly don’t know.” “I didn’t know Amethyst Star went missing! I’m sorry.” “I’ll be fine.” And after taking their roses, they would leave her to deal with the next customer. Without Lily or Daisy, more ponies would go to her for flowers, so her work lasted longer than usual, much to her grief.

Once the heavy crowd dispersed, and the streets quieted a touch, her eyes locked onto the ground. It was afternoon already, and exhaustion was quick to overwhelm her. She wanted to sit back in her house, rest, and hide away for the rest of the day. Maybe sob to herself some more. That sounded good right about now.

But no. She had to do something to occupy herself. Anything. She couldn’t let her loneliness beat her down and isolate her.

She still couldn’t help but miss them. It hurt, being without them. She sighed.

As she stared around her and thought about how she’d go about her day, however, she

thought about something one pony had said earlier.

If my friends and Amethyst Star have gone missing, then something happened. Are there others?

If more were missing, they sure didn’t act like it. Most ponies continued the day as if it were nothing. She also wondered if they were as desperately and pathetically lonely as her, crying for hours into a pillow and taking too long to even leave the house. It was times like this that she wished she and her friends were not so emotional.

“Roseluck? Hey, Roseluuuuuck,” a voice said above her, ending in a sing-song tune.

Roseluck glanced up and saw a pair of mismatched eyes blinking at her over the counter. Big, gentle eyes with eyebrows curved in concern.

“Are you okay?”

She forced a smile again, and it didn’t feel any better in comparison to the other times she showed it to customers. “Y-yeah, I’m fine. You looking to buy roses, Muffins?” she asked, turning away to flick at a piece of hair in her vision.

“No. I just wanted to say I’m so sorry about Daisy and Lily,” Muffins apologized with a frown, still half-staring at her with little blinking. “It must be hard.”

Rose sighed. “Not something you need to apologize for. Not your fault.”

“I hope they’re okay.”

Roseluck nodded in agreement.

Muffins paused for a moment before she walked around the counter and smiled warmly. “Do you want to get something to drink? You look a little lonely.”

“I’m… no thanks.” She hesitated, blinking and looking away. “I’m not sure it’ll make me feel better. Plus, I don’t wanna be a bother.”

Muffins giggled in a low tone. “You’re not a bother, Roseluck! You’re my friend, even if we don’t talk all that much!” When Roseluck didn’t respond immediately, the pegasus tilted her head at her, planting a hoof on her shoulder. “You don’t look so good, actually. Hey, have you had anything to drink today? Maybe we can get some coffee? Oh! Or tea!” Her face lit up, wings fluttering at a faster pace now. “I bought some green tea bags today, so there’s plenty to spare.”

“I…” Biting her lip, she swallowed and felt just how dry her throat was. Returning her attention to Muffins, she saw the kindness in her eyes and noticed how she was posed to leave. Yet she waited. “That would be pretty nice, thanks.”

***

Sitting outside Roseluck’s house, Muffins was close to pouring Rose’s tea, but then she flinched, and the tea spilt on the table. She picked up the pot before more could fall. Blushing, she murmured, “Ehh, sorry.”

“It’s alright.” Roseluck nodded. She picked up the pot and poured their drinks. Green tea with honey, and she added two sugarcubes in before picking her cup up. Muffins took hers but didn’t drink it quite yet. Her eyes were on Rose—partly.

Rose took a long gulp, realizing how thirsty she was after a day trapped in her house. It burned as it passed through her throat. Muffins heard her moan from the filling drink and smiled lightly.

“Do you wanna talk ‘bout it?” Muffins began.

The flower pony cringed. “I… I dunno.”

Muffins’s disappointment was apparent and painful to look at. Like Roseluck had punched a puppy. “Oh, sorry. I just think talking about it’s better than keeping it all in. But you’re still feeling down, so I get it.” She offered her a smile.

Roseluck noticed the pain in her eyes and wondered if there was more to this statement. She opened her mouth to ask, but decided otherwise. She cleared her throat to bring Muffins back. “I don’t mean to keep it in. I just… don’t know why I’m feeling this horrible.”

“What? Your friends are missing!” Muffins exclaimed, the hurt replaced with bemusement. “It’s totally normal to feel upset over it. But that’s why I asked you out for tea; you needed someone, a friend.”

There was a long pause, and Roseluck’s lip quivered. “I’m just so, so worried! I keep thinking they’ll never come back! What if… what if something bad happened to them?” she asked in a whisper, the edges of her voice cracking. “Like kidnapping or… ugh, something worse.”

“Like what? Oh, wait, no, don’t think of that!” Muffins corrected herself, pushing her hooves forward as if it’d stop Rose’s train of thought. She flashed a nervous smile. “There’s gotta be some way to figure out what happened to them. What about the Elements?”

She shook her head. “They had an emergency out of town, apparently. Some friendship mission, somepony said. I already asked Carrot Top,” she answered. The long talk she had with Carrot Top only brought disappointment and even more stress. They had no idea what happened. She squinted at the table. “But they can’t be the only ones who can help find them. Right?”

Muffins nodded rapidly. “Totally! With all the ponies in this town, someone’s gotta know how to do these things. Like Doc.”

“What about him?” Roseluck lunged from her seat but flinched back; her voice rose higher than anticipated. She covered her face from the staring eyes around them, face burning. “What about ‘Doc’? You mean Doctor Hooves, right?”

“Yeah! He’s great with this stuff! Mysteries and supernatural stuff. He deals with it all the time!” Muffins started smiling with a joyous sparkle in her eyes.

“I know, he’s helped me and my friends before,” she said.

Muffins gasped. “Oh, that’s right!”

Roseluck waited.

And waited.

And Muffins just stared at her.

Roseluck stared back, eyebrows narrowing. “Muffins, can Doctor Hooves help us find my friends and everyone else in town?”

Muffins blinked a couple times, and each time, her eyes were found in different directions. But no matter where they looked, she nonetheless looked happy as can be. “Oh, right! Of course, why didn’t I think to say that? He can find out where they are, I’m sure of it!” She lifted herself from her chair, even her wings fluttering with delight. “I’ll go find him now!”

“Wa-wait.” Roseluck stepped in her path before Muffins could fly off. “Umm, what—what is it that he does, anyway? Is he, like, a detective? I don’t think he ever said.”

Muffins tapped her muzzle. “Hmmm,” she mused. “Yeah, I guess he is! I never really asked. But—oh.” Her face fell for a moment before shooting right back up. “He’s out of town for the afternoon, but he should be back soon! I can bring us all together, and everything will be okay, I promise!” Her excitement returned.

Muffins grabbed Roseluck in a tough vice grip meant to be a hug. It lasted a second before the pegasus zoomed off, but Rose still had to rub her shoulders. She chuckled.

Then she began giggling with delight aloud. All by herself. Even if ponies were staring again, she forgot where she was for this one moment. It was all setting in.

Because all that mattered was finding Lily and Daisy. Wherever they were. And this Doctor was going to help.

***

Miss Luck!

Sorry for not being able to speak with you yet, but I had just returned from a little visit out of town. Muffins informed me that you’d like some help with what’s been happening, and every bit of help from anyone counts. She and I will meet you at the Gale Cafe at two tomorrow to discuss this situation. We’re all hoping to understand where these ponies had vanished off to.

Until then,

the Doctor

P.S. Hey, Roseluck! It’s Muffins!!! I sent this here, but if you are lonely, don’t be afraid to see me! Company’s always welcome at my house.

Roseluck was smiling at the end, but rereading it, her shoulders sagged, lip pouting out. Another night waiting. She looked outside, seeing how late it had gotten. She returned home once Muffins failed to return after half an hour and she had refilled her drink--twice. And within the hour back home, she had a knock at the door, but all that was there was the letter tacked on the door.

Better than nothing, she thought with a gradually returning smile. She placed the letter back on her table and began her routine for bed. As she finished brushing her teeth, she thought over the letter. How serious it sounded. How ‘the Doctor’ had incredibly messy writing that required her to repeat words multiple times. And…

Miss Luck?

Wonder if he remembers me… Meh, probably not.

She sighed as she fell into bed, and even though the day had been exhausting, her mind still ran too many miles an hour to gain any sort of rest.

Author's Note:

Our favorite british pony shall be appearing next chapter, I promise!