Witchcraft is Magic

by wingdingaling

Chapter 12: In the Dark of the Night

Chapter 12

In the Dark of the Night

For once, all was quiet in Rainbow Dash's house. No names were called, no phantoms roamed, and no ponies stirred. Well, technically no ponies.

Through the veil of darkness, the edge of the property reached down to the ground below, enveloping a shadow with glowing blue eyes. The clouds carried their passenger high into the sky to Rainbow Dash's front yard. Once she arrived, the witch was rather taken aback by the abode before her.

"For the love of all things good and sacred in the world, what was this architect thinking," Courtney thought to herself when she saw the ornate, gaudy structure. More importantly, she noted that it was quite large. Large enough that she would have to take some time with her work if she was to do it properly. With a quiet groan, she approached the front door, walking safely on the clouds, thanks to the herb mixture she wore around her neck.

When she reached the front door, she worked her magic to create a great set of working cogs made of the very clouds around her to jimmy the lock open. Once the lock was tripped, she silently opened the door and stepped inside.

Once inside, she looked all around herself, seeing no evidence of ghostly intrusion. A good sign, in her mind. More so was how the inside of this house didn't match the outside. Outside was very decorative, while the inside was much more in line with her minimalist tastes. Not that she ever had a thing against making things look eye-catching, given her full time profession. But, when one made a performance look appealing, it was for the love of the people watching by lifting their spirits with one's talents. When one made their home look appealing, it was for the love of themselves, by making people awe at something they did not have.

The thought of her work as a performer made her mind go to Molly, and how she was doing with those two light-dwellers. She hoped they weren't raising an alarm against her friend, though more than likely, they'd be too stunned by her effective use of movement and appearance to make much of a fuss.

Even Molly making herself look beautiful was for the sake of others, even if it came off as overly proper sometimes. Honestly, a last second change of style before meeting her new hosts? And claiming Courtney was jealous? Courtney knew she could be just as pretty if she tried. That in mind, she realized how dark it was in the room, and decided to better facilitate her search with some light.

She gently stomped her hoof to the floor, making threads of embers come slithering out of the shadows toward her, and snake up her legs and around her body. The embers all took the assembled appearance of her wearing a gown, befitting her austere tastes, yet radiant in its sleek, somewhat racy style. Matching the style were accessories consisting of glowing pumps, fiery shoulder length gloves, and a flickering tiara that matched wonderfully with her beloved necklace. Once her ensemble was finished, it morphed into the small ball of fire she required with a whoosh of shadows.

"Oh, I'm going to need to remember that one," she thought to herself, needing to have new ideas for a show when her seasonal employment expired.

Now able to conduct a proper spell, she began magically drawing glyphs and sigils in hidden areas of the house, so that no curious light-dweller would erase them. But, before she could even begin to draw the first line, she saw something that greatly disturbed her.

Lying on a nearby table, the light revealed the warning note she left for Apple Bloom. Near that, the book of exorcisms was sitting around in plain view. "She didn't," Courtney thought. On the floor nearby, there was a ring of salt. And a small distance from that, a plate with cinnamon and lavender in it. "She did!"

It was the worst thing the witch could fear. But it couldn't be. Scootaloo knew nothing about seances or summoning. She would never get beyond simply laying out the ingredients for the spell. At least, she wouldn't get beyond it without something going seriously wrong.

With a whoosh of shadows that muffled her every step, Courtney silently rushed around the house to confirm her fears. She searched downstairs, and found no filly. She ran upstairs,and searched every room there. She was becoming more and more anxious the longer it took her to find Scootaloo.

Just as she was beginning to think the worst had happened, her search yielded results. In one of the rooms, she saw the sleeping form of a pony whose head was under her own pillow. With a sigh of relief, Courtney dimmed the light by her side so that she wouldn't wake the sleeper. Slowly, she walked into the room to see if everything was truly alright.

The witch stopped by the bedside, examining the sleeping pony. So far, everything was normal, which was a great relief to her. The pony looked like she was sleeping so peacefully, Courtney almost left to resume her work. Until she decided she had better have a talk about tampering with the spirit world. "Scootaloo," she gently said, to no results. "Scootaloo," She repeated, this time lightly shaking the pony.

It was only then that she noticed something in the dim light of her flame: the pony in the bed was much too big to be Scootaloo. The sleeping pony pulled her head out from under her pillow, revealing a blue face with a rainbow striped mane. "Oh, shi--" Courtney said to herself before she extinguished her flame and was swallowed by shadows, just as the pony opened her eyes.

"Scootaloo," Rainbow Dash called, having heard yet another mysterious voice call her daughter's name. With no other thoughts in her mind, she flew out of bed and into a wall. Realizing it was now darker than usual, she groped around for the doorway, until she found her way out into the hall.

Panic struck Dash as she recognized the darkness she was in as the same that swallowed her and Scootaloo only hours earlier. Not about to reenter her room, where the darkness seemed to be confined this time, she rushed to Scootaloo's room. Pulling back the covers on her daughter's bed, she was horrified to find it empty. "No! No! NO! Scootaloo!!!"

Dash rushed back into the hallway, but stopped when she saw the darkness in her own room. For whatever reason, it was staying confined in that space, hiding everything within it. Even ponies that shouldn't have been there.

"I know you're there," Dash called into the darkness. "Scootaloo told me all about you. I saw your eyes when I woke up."

No answer came from the darkness.

"My filly's missing, and I know you have some weird magic that can help find her. If you give even a single horseapple about her, you'll help me."

Still no answer from the darkness.

"Say something! I swear, if you don't come out right now I'll go to your freakish world and kick everypony's flank there to get Scootaloo back!"

In spite of her brave words, Dash felt a twinge of fear when two blue eyes peered out of the darkness and began moving toward her. Then, the darkness faded, and out came a mare very much like any other, though her ghoulish eyes distracted Dash from any other details she may have had.

"You don't have any acorns lying around, do you," the dark mare asked.

---

Apple Bloom trotted through her foggy orchard, feeling a slight unease at the sight of the ragged trees through the mist. Once again, she swore the trees of her orchard had become living creatures that reached out for her. Until she got closer.

Once she was nearer the trees, she could see leaves and flowers growing on the branches. What was once a withered, broken mess was now replenishing to its former self.

Seeing the trees that way abated her fears of them, and let her keep walking past them without any further doubts. Then she noticed something else.

Nearby, she found a sapling growing. A good sized one at that. Slightly taller than herself, she noted. Whatever it was, it wasn't an apple tree. Or any other tree she recognized. In the back of her mind, she hoped it was one of the trees from the asylum in the dark world, but she decided that she had better keep going to see her friends at the tree house.

Sure enough, as she traveled to the far reach of the orchard she saw a the silhouette of the tree house, and a light in the window. Seeing that her friends arrived before her, Apple Bloom quickened her pace until she reached the steps. Once she entered the tree house, she found Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle awaiting her arrival by the glow of a candle. "Sorry I'm late. How long y'all been here," she apologized.

"Not that long. Maybe five or six minutes," Sweetie Belle answered.

"Good. I thought I kept ya waitin' too long," Apple Bloom answered. "So, what'd y'all learn?"

"Where do I even start," Scootaloo said excitedly. Sweetie Belle had already heard the big news, but was excited to hear it once more. "I saw my parents tonight!"

"Ya what," Apple Bloom shouted, only to quickly silence herself. She knew that sound carried in the orchard, and didn't want to risk waking anypony back home.

"I saw my parents! I used a spell in the book you gave me, even though Courtney said I shouldn't, and I called my parents to me! They came back from the dead to see me!"

"Wait a second," Sweetie Belle interjected, "You didn't tell me that Courtney didn't want you calling your parents."

"Well, there was a note in the book that said I shouldn't use any spells like that one."

"So why did ya," Apple Bloom asked.

"Because the note was for you. It said to absolutely not use any of those spells from that section of the book. Below that, it said 'this means you, Apple Bloom.'"

From the information Apple Bloom had just gathered, it sounded like Courtney didn't count on Apple Bloom sharing any of the new information she was allowed to learn. She couldn't think of any logical reason why, other than that the witch simply didn't trust others to learn about her world and her magic. Feeling that Courtney trusted her so made Apple Bloom feel a kind of spark within her, but she had a question she needed answered. "Why didn't Courtney want us casting those spells?"

Scootaloo hesitated at first, partly unsure of how she should answer the question, but mostly because she didn't want to recount the experience she had upon successfully casting the spell. "I kind of...pulled me and Rainbow Dash into the spirit world..."

"What the buck," Sweetie said. "That's the first time I'm hearing about this! What was that like? Were there other ghosts there too?"

"Did ya see what happens when ponies die," Apple Bloom added.

"Was it really scary there!?"

"Whoah! One at a time," Scootaloo said, successfully silencing her friend's barrage of questions. "Yeah, I saw other ghosts there. But they weren't too happy to see me or Dash. Apparently, ghosts don't like being disturbed. And yeah, it was really scary there. I...I don't want to talk about it."

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle both wanted to ask what happened, but decided against it for the sake of their friend. "But my parents took me and Dash back home when they found us. They looked really happy too."

That was where they decided to leave it. Seeing the way Scootaloo was smiling made them decide not to press her further on the topic and let somepony else continue.

"So, Sweetie Belle. What'd ya do before ya came here," Apple Bloom asked.

"I found some dark creatures living in my house," Sweetie answered.

"Really," Apple Bloom asked excitedly.

"That's so cool," Scootaloo added.

"What'd ya find? Was it a werewolf?"

"Or a gargoyle? A gargoyle would be awesome!"

"No. They were brownies."

"Brownies," Apple Bloom and Scootaloo asked together.

"Ya mean like at Sugarcube Corner," Apple Bloom asked.

"No. They were different. They looked like fat little rats with tiny hats and coats. All I did was leave out some cream for them, and they started making a dress for Rarity. Then..." Sweetie Belle paused briefly before she started talking again, recalling her fear of the situation. "Things got kind of scary when the grimalkins came."

"The grim-what," Scootaloo asked.

"When me and Rarity saw it, we thought it was some kind of cat. Then it started calling us to come out of hiding to eat us."

Apple Bloom and Scootaloo both gasped, making Sweetie Belle quickly clarify the situation.

"But it was okay. It turned out that it and its friends were calling to the brownies to eat them. I got rid of them pretty easily too, since all you have to do is tell them their leader is somewhere else. And they were really nice about leaving. They didn't growl, hiss or scratch."

That piece of information sounded like a harrowing experience. But, it showed that the information conveyed to them was effective when it came to dealing with such beasts. But, it sounded like the grimalkins weren't all that dangerous to begin with, since all she had to do was ask them to leave. Had it been something more dangerous, they may have had a tougher time with it.

"What about you, Apple Bloom? Did you learn anything really neat tonight," Sweetie Belle asked.

"I didn't learn any magic, or monster swattin' like you two. I just read a bunch o' the history book Courtney left me," Apple Bloom said.

"That was it," Scootaloo said.

"What good is that going to do us when we meet more scary things out there," Sweetie said next.

Apple Bloom glowered in the flickering light of the candle at her friends' ignorance. For her, learning the history of the dark world was just as important as learning how to defend herself from the creatures of darkness. She knew that if she remained ignorant about that world, she would never have changed her mind about the dark kin or their magic. It wouldn't matter how well she could defend herself from any of them. If she didn't know what she was defending herself from, or why, she knew she would be no better than Ashmead.

"Wen-di-gooooooooo..."

A deep, guttural voice called that sailed on the wind to the ears of the fillies, as if some lost soul had found its way to them.

"What was that," Scootaloo asked as she and Apple Bloom went to the window to investigate.

On the foggy ground below, they saw nothing that could have made any noise.

"Ya see anything, Scootaloo," Apple Bloom asked as her eyes looked high and low for the source of the voice.

"Nothing. Just fog, and trees."

"Wen-di-goooooooooo..."

There was still nothing visible that was making that noise. And, whatever it was, it didn't sound a particular distance away at all. Instead, it sounded like it was coming from all around them, as if it was calling from the very trees themselves.

"This is way too creepy," Apple Bloom said as she backed away from the window, wishing she had taken Courtney's advice, and stayed indoors.

"I wish Rainbow Dash was here. She'd get that thing that keeps saying 'wen--' Before Scootaloo could finish speaking, Sweetie Belle tightly covered her friend's mouth.

"Don't say that name! You might call it faster," Sweetie harshly whispered before she blew out the candle and crouched low to the floor.

"Call what faster," Apple Bloom asked, hoping to at least know what was out there. Instead, Sweetie Belle stayed silent, looking more scared than before. "Sweetie Belle, what do ya know about that thing?"

"Only that it eats everything it finds. But, it only comes when it's called, and...And I accidentally did earlier today..."

"What," Scootaloo said with a muffled shout under Sweetie Belles hoof.

"And," Apple Bloom said frantically, hoping to learn something that might save them.

"Wen-di-goooooooooo..."

"And, it answered..." Sweetie squeaked out as frightened tears leaked out of her eyes.

That was not the answer any of them wanted to hear. There had to be a way to stop whatever was coming, but they had no such knowledge as to how.

Sweetie Belle was the one with the book about the creatures from the dark world, but she never found a way to defend herself against a wendigo. As far as she knew, there was no way. And if there was, she didn't study carefully enough. All they could do was wait for the monster to come, and hope to find a way to escape.

"Wen-di-goooooooooo..."

It sounded closer this time, making the three fillies huddle close to one another. Outside, they could hear heavy footsteps in the distance, like something very large was coming for them. Each of them wanted to scream, but didn't want to lure the monster closer than it already was.

Suddenly, the creature outside began to roar ferociously, making the Cutie Mark Crusaders all retreat into the darkest corner of the tree house. They knew the monster had found them and was going to eat them.

Whatever was happening, they could hear the monster roaring, scratching and flailing, as if it were trying to escape from somewhere. Apple Bloom thought that maybe it really was in the trees, and clawing its way out to them. Maybe it was in their own tree. The very thought made Apple Bloom whimper quietly.

Among the noises outside, a new one sounded. One like a low, beastly howl that was all to familiar to Apple Bloom. Shortly after the howl, the sounds of struggle stopped. Silence permeated the air, paralyzing the fillies where they lay.

"You heard that howl too, right," Scootaloo choked out, finally breaking the silence. "Maybe...M-Maybe a werewolf got it. Maybe it was Bruce."

It was nothing more than a blind hope, but it was all they had to go on. Slowly, the fillies all stood up and each looked out a different window to see what had happened to the monster outside.

As it was before, nothing could be seen, other than the shadows of the trees through the moonlit fog.

"Anypony see anything out there," Sweetie Belle asked.

"No. And it's freaking me out," Scootaloo responded. "Bruce," she called to the darkness, hoping their friend would answer.

Apple Bloom was not so optimistic. The howl they heard was the same one as the night the orchard was attacked, when she heard that hideous music in the woods, and saw those eerie lights. Now, she was staring at an all too familiar light in the distance. No longer was it dimming and brightening, but stayed the same as it came closer to them all, with slow, heavy footsteps. And she knew precisely what they belonged to.

"Apple Bloom? What are you looking at," Sweetie Belle asked.

"'Should e'er you hear his mournful howl, run, run, run with all haste,'" Apple Bloom answered.

"What? Have you gone crazy," Scootaloo said.

"'Should not you flee, then woe to thee, your cinders he shall taste.'"

The lights outside began moving closer to them all, silently conveying its predatory intent.

"Everypony run," Apple Bloom shouted.

And with a scream, the fillies all ran outside into the darkness of the orchard.

---

"Come on! Keep up," Rainbow Dash yelled as she flew through the sky.

"Oh, to be free of this woeful earth! And yet to fly as a bird aloft the wind! Unlike the rest of us who were unprivileged to have been born without bloody wings," Courtney said, gradually turning into a shout as she ran behind Dash on the ground.

This witch may have been a sarcastic egghead, but Dash knew she was right. She decided to slow down her pace accommodate her slower companion. After all, she wouldn't be able to lead her very effectively if she kept flying too far ahead of her.

"Hurry up! We're almost there," Dash said.

"You said that three times already! Do you mean that we're almost to the next point where you can say 'we're almost there' again!"

"Hey, I don't have to take this horseapple from you! I just need you to get my filly back! So hop on your broom, or something, and we can find her quicker!"

Courtney didn't say anything in response. What the pegasus said made absolutely no sense, and was dismissed as more superstitious nonsense of the light-dwellers. Still, she wished Bruce was there with her so that she could find the filly sooner.

"There it is! It's that tree up ahead. I'll see you inside," Dash said before she sped ahead to announce her presence.

Inside the library, Twilight and Spike were still awake, anxiously awaiting the return of Owloysius.

"Hey, what's that noise," Spike said as he perked up.

He and Twilight both heard a loud flapping sound, like something was flying toward them. Twilight became roused when she thought it may be Owloysius returning with his friend, only to realize that whatever it was was approaching too fast.

It dawned on her too late who was coming. Before she could pull Spike into cover with her, Rainbow Dash came bursting through the door and zipped around the library.

"Twilight! Twilight wake up," Dash yelled at the top of her lungs.

"We're down here, Dash," Twilight called to her.

Seeing her friends awake was a great relief to Dash, even though what she had done would have been sure to wake them. She lowered herself to the ground to explain what had just happened. "Scootaloo! She's gone," Dash sputtered.

"What," Twilight exclaimed.

"Scootaloo's gone! Disappeared! Vanished! Faded! Are there any more egghead ways to say it!? My filly's missing!"

"Rainbow Dash! Calm down," Twilight yelled. She too was unsettled by the news, but was immediately trying to find a way to solve her friend's problem. "Where do you think she went?"

"I don't know! She's just gone! The last I saw, she was--" A dreadful thought occurred to Dash. What if somehow, her filly had gone back to the spirit world, and was once again trapped there. "Oh no! No, no, no, no," Dash quietly shouted to herself.

"What's wrong," Twilight asked, trying to make sense of her friend's predicament.

"Something's coming," Spike said, looking to the door.

True enough, they could see a blue light through the fog, embedded in a rapidly approaching shadow. Soon, a ghoulish mare ran into the library, huffing and puffing from her sprint. "Acorns," the newcomer exhaled, "We need acorns..."

"What's happening," Twilight shouted.

"The mare needs acorns, Twi," Dash said before she flew out the window and into the branches of the oak.

The stranger helped herself to a seat by the fireplace to catch her breath. Spike and Twilight both stared apprehensively at the stranger who just so imposingly let herself inside, requesting acorns of all things. Spike wondered what kind of manners her mother taught her, while Twilight wondered where that light that was with her went. Sure, the necklace the stranger wore was glimmering in the firelight, but it was red, as opposed to the blue glow when she was approaching.

"Um, hi. I'm Twilight. And this is Spike," Twilight introduced herself and her assistant as she stepped closer, having decided she might as well be a good host for the stranger. Spike, however decided to stay behind Twilight for this one.

"Courtney..." The witch huffed. She turned her face away from the light of the fire to better address her hosts, "Nice to meet you...".

Apart from her pitch black countenance, Twilight and Spike saw nothing remarkable about the newcomer. But, as soon as she turned her face away from the light and toward the shadows, her eyes lit up with a ghoulish blue glow.

"Sweet Celestia and Luna," Spike shouted as he stumbled backwards.

"Spike! Don't be so rude to our guest," Twilight said, though she herself was afraid their new guest may do something unnatural if she was made to feel unwelcome. She was about to offer tea, before she was interrupted.

"I got them," Dash said as she returned from outside through the window.

"Good. Good. Give them here," Courtney said as she extended her hoof.

Dash shouted as the acorns she carried were enveloped in shadows, taken out of her hooves and levitated into the witch's.

Twilight and Spike both watched in awe at the unusual magic, which was nothing known to either of them. Twilight would have recognized the regular kind of magic that unicorns like her and Rarity normally used, but this looked like the very darkness itself was being manipulated. Before she even had the chance to ask, another magical anomaly happened.

A swirl of shadows appeared before Courtney, which deposited some flowers into her empty hoof. Then, she pressed her hooves together, which somehow created a burst of flame between them.

Dash wondered what she was doing, but more importantly, how the hay it was supposed to help.

Before Dash could fly over and tell off the witch for dilly-dallying, she saw Courtney spread her hooves, and the resulting smoke started taking a familiar image.

Quickly, Dash recognized the smokey image of Scootaloo, and saw how it was running somewhere. Sensing danger, Dash flew right in front of the witch. "That's Scootaloo! Where is she!?"

"If you'll stop flapping, I can find out," Courtney said, having difficulty maintaining the image with the wind from Dash's wings.

"I can't stop flapping! I fly when I'm freaking out," Dash rebutted.

"Get down, you fluttering ninny," Courtney said as she pulled Dash to the ground, the impact making the smoke disperse through the room.

"Listen, bright eyes: I haven't been a mom very long, but I know another parent when i see one. You don't have any foals, so you don't know how it feels when you lose one," Dash growled.

"Don't talk to me about losing a loved one! I know full well how much it hurts when a family member dies! And if I have anything to do with it, I'm going to spare you that horrible feeling," the witch answered.

From where Twilight stood, she could tell that both mares cared greatly for Scootaloo's safety, but their tempers kept one another from understanding that. But, before she could diffuse the situation, the dispersed smoke started taking on a more defined shape as well. "Everypony. You might want to see this," she said.

In only a few seconds, the smoke spread through the room and took on the shape of several trees where the smokey image of Scootaloo, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle could be seen running.

"Where is that," Courtney asked as she watched the expanded image.

"Sweet Apple Acres. It's not far from here," Twilight said, immediately recognizing the apple trees.

"That's what this one said about this place."

"You know something--"

"Dash! You can argue later! Right now, you need to find your filly," Twilight said.

Neither one of them argued that point. Dash immediately flew out ahead of the others to her next destination.

"No! Wait!" Courtney growled in frustration at being left behind. Without her, she knew the situation could very well go bad. "Do you know the way," she asked Twilight.

"Yes. Let's go. Spike, stay here and wait for Owloysius," Twilight said before she left with Courtney.

The two mares ran to their destination, Twilight all the while planning what questions she would ask the witch about her magic.

---

The scent of the pie on the porch wafted through the night air, catching the nose of many creatures of the night. Mice came to take crumbs off the edge, and owls came to peck at it. Soon, they were all driven away by something much larger that came from the darkest part of the orchard.

It stopped on the porch and sniffed the pie, taking in all of the ingredients that were used. All of them smelled so inviting, even if it couldn't place one or two, mostly due to the fact that it had an overpowering smell of cinnamon. Still, how bad could it be? The ponies living here obviously left it out for creatures like it. All inhibitions aside, it opened its mouth, and took a big bite of pie.

It was so good at first, until the overload of cinnamon finally hit it. Its nose started to twitch, then its eyes watered, then it started heaving and hacking as if its very innards had dried up and withered. Finally, it managed to swallow the bite of pie and licked its chops. "Stuff's the bee's knees," it gagged before it opened its mouth for another bite.

"Are ye th' one called Bruce?"

The werewolf looked up from the tin of pie to see a creature much like himself peering through the open top of a half door. Only much smaller, and with paws where its hands should have been. "'Oo's askin'?"

The dog stood tall and proud as she introduced herself. "Ah'm called Winona. Hoose pet ay th' Apple folk. An' when a lady asks yer name, it's proper tae present it."

The werewolf huffed at the other creature's old-fashioned sensibilities, but obliged her anyway. "Ya sound loike me granny. Yeh, I'm Bruce. 'Ow'd ya kna?"

"Ah was told aboot ye by the wee Apple that lives heer. She speaks highly fond ay ye an' yer kin."

"Too right. Wot's not ta loike abaht us?"

"Neerly naethin' from what Ah've bin told. Noo, what brings ye heer tae th' home ay th' Apples?"

Between the apple pie and talking to his host, Bruce had nearly forgotten what he was there for in the first place. Now, it came rushing back to him. "I'm 'ere ta see if li'l Apple Bloom's doin' alrigh', luv."

"Ah see," Winona said with a curious tilt of her head, "An' dae ye go aroon' peepin' at fillies in their beds all th' time?"

"Nah, nah. Yer got me all wrong. Me mistress wanted me ta check on 'er," Bruce explained.

"Yer mistress?"

"Yeh. The witch I serve."

"An' what sort ay lady is she?"

"Ya ask a lot a' questions, ya kna? She's the kinda lady 'oo's worried 'bout Apple Bloom's safety. Wants ta make sure she stays out 'a trubble."

"Is that so," Winona said contemplatively. She had already heard about Bruce's protective nature from Apple Bloom, how he saved them all from a disgusting rat monster. Now, she was hearing how the witch that Bruce was serving sent him to see if she was alright for her. "It soonds tae me like yer witch may have a soft spot for Apple Bloom."

"That she does. Knowin' 'er, though, she won't say a bloomin' word abaht it," Bruce chuckled.

"An' why woodnae she," Winona asked suspiciously.

"She just ain't the bleedin' type ta get all emotional. 'Cept when she reads them romance books. She cries like a pup then," Bruce said, earning a small smile from Winona. "Still, she means well, an' she really wants Apple Bloom ta be safe, much as meself."

Winona's smile grew at the sincerity of the werewolf's words. "That scruffy hide ay yoors belies yer gentlemanly manner. Yer gonnae make a lot ay friends aroond heer like that."

"Bluest blood there is, luv. Always 'ides where ya least expect it."

Bruce couldn't see it, but behind bottom half of the door, Winona's tail was wagging wildly. In the most unexpected way, at the most unexpected time, she made a new friend. One who she hoped would come by to help her with the chores and play fetch and tug-o-war with her. Then she realized that she never actually answered Bruce's question. "Before Ah fergit, Ah should tell ye that Apple Bloom's just fine. Ah saw her off tae th' orchard nae five minutes before ye arrived."

"Apple Bloom's outside," Bruce exclaimed through a mouthful of pie as he sprang to an upright posture. "Oh, Courtney ain't gonna be 'appy abaht this!"

It was bad enough that Apple Bloom was outside, but that wasn't the worst that could have happened. That occurred when Bruce caught a faint scent on the air. One that smelled like a mix of sulfur and burning twigs. Before he could even think about going for Courtney, he had to jump backwards to avoid another nasty surprise.

"Get the buck away from my dog," Applejack shouted as she burst out the door and swung a kitchen knife she held in her teeth at Bruce.

Applejack had awoken earlier before to see if Apple Bloom was awake, and apologize for the way she was behaving that day, only to find that Apple Bloom was missing from her room again. She stormed downstairs, and searched for her. But, by the time she reached the kitchen, and had a clear view of the front door, she saw her dog confronting a two-legged wolf monster. No time was wasted grabbing the kitchen knife to aid the rescue of her pet.

Now, she was on the front porch, slashing at the monster who growled ferociously as it backed away.

Winona barked loudly at Applejack, trying to stop her pony from attacking her new friend, even going so far as to run out the now open door and circle around her in an attempt to herd Applejack back to safety.

Applejack completely ignored her dog's attempt to dissuade her, and kept advancing on the werewolf. The only thought on her mind was to keep her family safe from this oversized monster.

Bruce knew that he couldn't attack Applejack, knowing Courtney would punish him if he did. Instead, he chose to drop to all fours and run into the fog.

Applejack gave chase, hoping she might be able to send the monster as far away as she could before she returned home. Instead, she stopped mid pursuit when she heard the sound of screaming in the distance. The werewolf ahead of her ran away and disappeared into the fog. Assuming the monster was retreating, Applejack ran in the direction of the screams, praying to Celestia that her sister was okay by the time she reached her.

---

The Cutie Mark Crusaders ran through the foggy orchard, barely ahead of the monster behind them. Whenever they looked back, they saw the amorphous shape of the light following them, and the vague outline of the thing in the fog.

They ran with all their might, slowly becoming disoriented in the mist. Even Apple Bloom began to lose her way, the orchard seeming to twist and distort itself to the whim of the monster behind her.

She could hear the heavy steps behind her, relentlessly charging until it caught her. Apple Bloom burst into a quick sprint, knowing that no matter what, she wouldn't be fast enough. But, to her relief, she heard the monster's steps becoming fainter and fainter. She quickly took cover behind a tree, and waited tensely.

Apple Bloom dreaded hearing the noise coming closer to her, but thankfully, the noise sounded like it was going away from her. "We made it. I think we're safe for now," Apple Bloom said to her friends, only to get no response. When she looked to her sides, she saw that both of her friends were gone, somehow separated from her during the chase.

The filly sat in worry, fearful of what may have happened to her friends. She would have shouted for them, if not for another noise of something approaching.

"Winona," she said when she saw it was her dog who arrived.

"Apple Bloom," said a voice the filly recognized. Through the fog came Applejack, with a knife clenched in her teeth. "Son of a biscuit, Apple Bloom," Applejack growled at her sister. "Don't ya realize the danger yer in!? There's a werewolf in the orchard!"

Apple Bloom wasn't worried about any werewolf, but it would be no use explaining that to Applejack. But, there would be no time to. Behind her sister, the filly could see a shapeless light in a giant shadow coming toward them.

Winona barked ferociously at the thing behind Applejack, prompting the farmpony to turn around just in time to see the creature as it was upon them. The thing assaulted the ponies' noses with its foul stink, and brought with it a dull heat that grew hotter as it came closer.

They saw some kind of appendage reaching for them, likely the arm of the thing, to take them and devour them. But, Applejack would not go so easily.

She swung her knife, nicking only the tip of the appendage, but it was enough to make the thing recoil. But, it was not enough to stop it.

The monster was too hungry to pass up such an available meal, even if one of them was quite small. And it would sate its hunger, no matter the cost. First, its middle began to light up, but quickly dimmed when something else caught its attention.

From out of the fog, a shadow, like some great flying creature, flapped about the head of the monster. Whatever it was, it had caught the attention of the thing, and began swinging at it. Its arm went right through the shadow, and from what Apple Bloom could see, it absorbed a small amount of the shadow, as the flying thing diminished slightly in size.

Soon, the shadow flew away toward the Everfree Forest, with the monster trailing behind it. The thing let out another howl that echoed throughout the orchard. Soon, the sound of its footsteps disappeared completely, but its horrible stench lingered behind.

"I told ya yer new friends were no good," Applejack finally said after the long silence of listening for the creature.

Apple Bloom knew her sister was wrong. She recognized the shadowy magic that was used to save them, but before she could say anything in Courtney's defense, they both heard approaching hooves.

Through the fog came the silhouetted forms of a pegasus and a unicorn, who both turned out to be Rainbow Dash and Twilight arriving at the orchard.

"Where's Scootaloo," was all Dash said when she stopped in front of the Apple sisters. "Where is she," she shouted impatiently before anypony could answer.

"Rainbow Dash! Give her time to answer," Twilight chided her friend.

"Rainbow Dash!"

Through the fog came three more shadows. Two were recognizable as Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle. But the third was much larger, almost seven hooves tall, and much bulkier, which Winona barked excitedly at. It stopped and stayed back while Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash flew toward one another and tightly embraced.

"How--? What did--? What happened," Dash asked, picking a question to ask.

"We were chased through the orchard by some big monster. We got lost, but Bruce found us and brought us to safety," Scootaloo explained.

Rainbow Dash remembered being told about Bruce. How he was a giant wolf monster with the personality of a lovable pup. She looked up to where she saw the giant shadow, only to see it was now gone. "You are in so much trouble right now," Dash said as she tightly held Scootaloo.

"How did you find us," Sweetie Belle asked, hoping she could at least spare Scootaloo a little bit of verbal punishment.

"A witch helped us here," Twilight explained. "She used some kind of magic that showed you here at Sweet Apple Acres and-- Hey! Where'd she go?"

The witch was with them the whole time, but now that the ordeal was over she disappeared.

Applejack didn't like the idea one bit of fillies associating with werewolves and her friends associating with witches. To her, the whole world was going crazy, and she wasn't going to stand for it. Without another word, she harshly nudged Apple Bloom forward, who started walking quickly ahead of her sister with Winona by her side.

"Come on. We should all get home now. Sweetie Belle, come with me. I'll take you home," Twilight said, taking Applejack's cue to leave.

---

Once they had gone inside the house, Applejack shoved her sister into her bedroom before giving her final word for the night. "Yer gonna stay in this room all weekend, Apple Bloom. An' I'm gonna sit outside yer door the whole time, if that's what it takes. Now, get to bed, before I come in there an' knock ya out!" And with that, shut her sister's door and returned to her room. Or she would have, if Winona hadn't trotted to Apple Bloom's bedside.

Applejack decided to leave Winona there, in case her sister tried anything funny again. Then, she left without a word.

Apple Bloom had never seen Applejack so mad. Sure, she had seen her mad before, but she never threatened violence, especially to a member of her own family.

The filly sulked in her bed, now doubting she would ever get through to Applejack. She never thought that such a thing as making a new friend would distance her so from her sister, who she loved over all other ponies.

Winona nudged her side, hoping to cheer her filly up, but it would not be so. The weight on Apple Bloom's mind was greater than any she ever felt before. But, as anguished as she was feeling, her troubles were not over for the night.

The dog jerked alert, and in the space before Apple Bloom, she saw the shadows in her room come alive and start melding together. As she watched, Apple Bloom pulled her covers over her face, leaving only her eyes peeking out to see what was happening while Winona cringed and whimpered at the foot of the bed.

"You didn't do as I said," the shadow said malevolently.

Apple Bloom recognized the voice that was talking to her, just as two glowing blue eyes appeared in its form, though nothing else but a vague outline could be seen.

"You've no idea the danger you just put yourselves in! No matter how I tried to look after you three, you show me that you cannot be trusted. I told you not to leave your homes at night because of the danger that comes with the darkness!" Courtney's voice said from the shadow.

"But I...I just wanted to learn stuff, like ya wanted," Apple Bloom meekly answered.

"I intended for you to learn about my world and my magic! Not to summon spirits or practice witchcraft! And now, because of your meddling, you've nearly gotten killed! And not just yourself! You put this entire town at risk, luring that demon here!"

Hearing the witch's harsh tone made Apple Bloom shrink into her covers, but more was the idea of what she had encountered in the orchard. But, it couldn't have been what she thought. Nopony had seen it in centuries, but she had a nagging curiosity to know. "It was The Wicker Man, wasn't it?"

The way Courtney paused made Apple Bloom think that she was going to dodge the question altogether, as she always did when she was forced to lie, but the answer shocked her. "Yes."

The idea that she had come face to face with the most horrible thing from the history of the dark world made the filly tremble in her sheets. She would have gasped, if not for being silenced by sheer terror.

"Had I not arrived to lure it away, it would have sucked the very magical essence out of you, and left your charred remains behind. As such, I must once again insist you stay indoors every night until the end of The Hallow."

"But then I won't get to see ya again," Apple Bloom pleaded.

Once again, the filly's words broke the witch's heart. But, she had to remain sensible about the situation. The shadow slowly approached Apple Bloom's bedside, lending itself to a slightly better visibility. Besides the eyes, Apple Bloom could see no other features on its face, and its body appeared to be nothing more than a shapeless mass of shadow.

"I'm sorry, Apple Bloom, but this is how things are. I can only stay as long as our worlds are connected, and it won't last forever. If not being able to see you means that you're safe from any danger, then it's exactly the way I'd prefer to keep it."

However much she wanted to protest, Apple Bloom knew the witch was right. She sulked as she laid down in her bed. "It's not fair," Apple Bloom mumbled. "I wanted to see more o' what's out there, an' learn more about yer kind. An' I really wanted to learn what it's really like to be a witch like you."

Though she didn't outright say it, Courtney understood the filly's message completely. "I'm sorry, but it can't be that way. As it was back then, I don't think this world is ready for a witch like me. Especially with The Wicker Man on the loose," she answered, emphasizing the last sentence.

Apple Bloom let out a disappointed moan as she buried her face in her pillow. Then, she felt something cold on the back of her head that made her mane stand on end. When she turned, she saw it was some extension of the shadow gently resting on the back of her head. Though unnerving, it was also somehow comforting to her.

"Don't despair. I'm sure there are plenty of flowers and acorns around here to last year round."

Hearing that lifted Apple Bloom's spirits slightly, knowing that she wouldn't be completely separated from her new friend, but was still saddened at not being able to visit her home again.

"I have to leave now. Remember: no more going out at night. And stay close to those who will protect you."

Winona's tail thumped up and down, readily taking the responsibility to look after her filly.

With those final words, the shadow spread out and dispersed through the room, each piece hiding in a different nook or cranny away from any light. All that remained were a pair of glowing eyes, which blinked out lastly, now leaving Apple Bloom and Winona alone.

Apple Bloom's heart sank. She was told to stay by those who would protect her, but after all the things that had happened, she felt safer with Courtney than she did with her own sister. She realized that the two were very alike, but also very different from one another. Both wanted to keep her safe from the dangers of the darkness, but while Applejack wanted to keep her away from it completely, Courtney welcomed her to learn more about it.

She thought back to the book she read, wondering if this is how ponies felt between the teachings of Goodchild and Ashmead, and what they may have chosen to do back then.

Her mind became a mix of doubt and confusion, which was noticed by Winona, who tried to alleviate the filly's mind by cuddling up next to her. The dog felt a twinge of success when she felt Apple Bloom's hooves wrap around her side, but knew she was coming up short. Nothing she could do would make the filly feel better, and soon, the two drifted into a restless sleep.

Author's Note:

Of course Winona has a Scottish accent. She's a border collie! Look up the breed's origin if you doubt me.
Courtney has made a few new friends (so to speak), and the fillies all had a frightening encounter of their own. Now, that they've encountered the ancient terror, will they heed the witch's words and stay indoors at night? Only future chapters will tell.
The idea for the wendigo calling it's own name was something that was taken from X-Men. I'm not too knowledgeable of Native American folklore, but I did manage to scrounge up a little info on such a beast, such as how they travel from tree to tree, and send their voices on the wind.
In closing, I wish you to rock on \m/