A Case of Mystery and Love

by cheerful9

Ch.12-The Truth Comes Out

Ch. 12-The Truth Comes Out

The next morning, Twilight, Spike, and Starlight Glimmer arrived at Sweet Apple Acres. As they walked, the CMC’s friends, Diamond Tiara, Silver Spoon, Snips, Snails, Twist, Featherweight, Rumble, Tender Taps, Dinky Doo, Button Mash, and Pipsqueak, ran by them, playing a game of tag and laughing.

Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle were running right behind their friends until they stopped when they saw the alicorn, unicorn, and baby dragon.

“Hey there, guys.” Apple Bloom said, greeting them with a smile.

Twilight then noticed Applejack, Caramel, Cheerilee, Big Mac, and Granny Smith. Granny Smith was sitting in her rocking chair while the two mares and two stallions were busy taking care of some of the chores.

The five earth ponies lifted up their heads when they saw the alicorn, baby dragon, and unicorn. Cheerilee was the first to greet them. “Morning, Twilight, Spike, and Starlight.” She said, greeting them with a smile.

“What brings you guys here?” Applejack asked.

“Have you seen Fluttershy? I need to talk to her.” Starlight asked. “We were at her cottage earlier, but she wasn’t there.”

“Oh, Fluttershy came by here a little earlier,” Caramel explained. “She brought some blueberries she had in her saddlebag to share later. She also asked if she could help out with some of the chores.”

“But for some reason, she seemed kinda down.” Cheerilee said with a concerned look.

“Eeyup.” Big Mac said, nodding his head before pointing his hoof in a direction.

The others turned their heads to the direction that Big Mac was pointing at. There, right beside a tree was Fluttershy. The pegasus just stood there with a blank look on her face. Then she raised a back hoof and tapped on the tree very softly. All that came out of the tree was a single leaf. It slowly fluttered down until it landed on the ground. Fluttershy didn’t pay any attention to it as she continued to stand in her position with the same expression on her face.

The others just watched in concern before looking at each other.

“Poor Fluttershy. I’ve never seen her this sad before.” Cheerilee said.

“Eeyup.” Big Mac agreed.

Concerned, Caramel looked at Applejack. “Is she okay?” He asked.

Applejack gave out a sigh. “She's been like that ever since the press conference in Canterlot.” She said, explaining Caramel what had happened.

As she looked at the pegasus, Twilight said, “Come on. We should go talk to her.”

They approached the pegasus as she was still brooding.

“Hey Fluttershy,” Spike said with a smile, trying to get into a conversation with Fluttershy. “It was a rough day we had yesterday, huh?” The pegasus didn’t say anything. “So...how are you doing?”

“Oh, I’m fine.” Fluttershy said, her voice sounding rather depressed.

Applejack frowned at what her friend said. “Fluttershy, ya know that honesty is mah element, and I gotta be honest with you, you ain't okay.”

Fluttershy gave a sigh.

“Why did I do it?” she muttered. “Why did I have to go and say all of that stuff?”

Starlight Glimmer approached the pegasus. “Fluttershy,” she said. “I know how you feel. I’ve also made terrible mistakes that I'm not proud of.”

“You mean like taking everypony's cutie mark and replacing them with equal marks and travelling back in time just to get revenge on Twilight and her friends, which almost destroyed the fate of Equestria?” Spike asked.

Starlight blushed sadly while Twilight glared angrily at him. “I'm not really helping am I?” he asked nervously.

Turning her attention to Fluttershy, Twilight said, “What Starlight is saying is that we all make mistakes and we can learn from them.”

Fluttershy just continued feeling depressed. “Oh, I learned from my mistake. I learned that I'm a horrible, unsupportive friend who messed everything up. It caused so much trouble for innocent draconequuses.” Tears began to form as she to sob. “Not only that...but I have caused a rift between ponies and an entire different race!”

Finally, she let out all the tears she had been holding in. Her friends tried to comfort her while she continued sobbing.

Granny Smith, who was still in her rocking chair, lifted up her head and saw something. Seeing what it was, the old pony smiled. “Well, not all different species.” Approaching them was a pioneer wagon. “Speak of th’ devil, right on time.” Granny Smith said.

Pulling the wagon was an earth pony stallion with a light gold coat, his mane gamboge with amber highlights, eyes the color of pistachio, and his cutie mark of a red apple. He wore a light brown vest and wearing a cowboy hat.

Beside him was a young female buffalo with a light bright tangelo coat, her mane a light brilliant gamboge, and her eyes were dark grayish reddish brown. She wore a tribal headband with two feathers on it.

As she took a look at the stallion, Starlight realized something. “Applejack, isn't that your cousin Braeburn you've been telling me about?” She asked, turning her attention to the southern pony.

“It sure is.” Applejack said, bewildered as well.

Spike was looking at the female buffalo with Braeburn. “And is that Little Strongheart with him?” He asked.

“What are they doing here all the way from Appleloosa?” Twilight asked.

Big Mac looked at her. “Didn't Applejack tell ya?” He said. Twilight looked at him in confusion.

“Tell us what?”

Applejack then realized something. “Oh! With all that's been happenin’ lately, I guess I forgot to tell y’all!”

“Tell us what?” Sweetie Belle inquired.

Looking at her friends with an excited look, Applejack said, “Braeburn and Little Strongheart are gettin’ hitched!”

The others looked at her in surprise. Finally, Fluttershy was the first to speak after she stopped crying.

“You mean they're…engaged?”

“Yep, they sure are!” Applejack said, still smiling.

“When did that happen?” asked Scootaloo.

“Well,” Applejack began. “Ever since the ponies in Appleloosa and the buffalo tribe started workin’ together, Braeburn and Little Strongheart have been startin’ ta fall for each other, runnin’ about like two lovesick jackrabbits on a hot summer day. I even received a letter from them about their engagement.”

Apple Bloom looked at her older sister in amazement. “Golly! How did Braeburn ever get to fall for somepony like Little Strongheart?”

Applejack smiled at her younger sibling. “Well, Little Strongheart did mention in the letter that not only would she have a husband as a member of the buffalo tribe, she’d also become a member of the Apple family.”

Fluttershy looked at Applejack. “That’s...really wonderful, Applejack.” She said, finally giving a smile.

Twilight and the others smiled. It was great to see Fluttershy smile again...At least for now.

As Braeburn unhitched himself from the wagon, he turned to his relatives. “Howdy there, Applejack!” He gave his cousin a hug. “It’s great ta see ya!”

Smiling, Applejack said, “It’s great to see you and Little Strongheart as well!”

The stallion and buffalo turned their heads and noticed Starlight Glimmer.

“And you must be Starlight Glimmer.” Braeburn said. “Applejack has mentioned about you in the letters she sent us.”

Little Strongheart shook hooves with the unicorn with a smile. “It’s so nice to meet you.”

“It’s nice to meet you both too.” Starlight Glimmer said.

Fluttershy approached the couple. “So...Applejack told us that you two are...engaged.”

The two of them looked at her in surprise. Then they both smiled.

“Why, of course.” Braeburn said. “Little Strongheart and I had been hangin’ out together for quite some time and before I knew it, I found myself proposin’ to her. And she said yes.”

Little Strongheart spoke next. “When we told Chief Thunderhooves, he was surprised at first, but he then saw how much we loved each other.”

Braeburn nodded in agreement. “Soon Chief Thunderhooves and the rest of the buffaloes made me an honorary member of the tribe. Even mah parents were all excited about it.”

As the two looked at each other with smiles, Little Strongheart spoke up. “It doesn't matter if we're not the same species. What really matters is that we were made for each other.”

Braeburn looked at the buffalo before they touched hooves and said, “That’s right! And we stick together…”

“...Like pie!” They said together.

Fluttershy looked at them for a moment before she remembered something and sulked again. “Oh, I know a thing about love.”

Her friends looked at her sadly, thinking that maybe it wasn't such a good idea for her to be here after all.

“We brought something to share with everypony to celebrate the occasion.” Little Strongheart said while Braeburn was getting something out of the wagon.

He pulled out a basket of freshly baked pies. “We brought y’all these pies,” Braeburn said. “All the way from Appleloosa!”

The other young colts and fillies rushed up when they heard something about fresh pies. All of a sudden, Granny Smith saw that they were heading towards some blue flowers beside an apple tree. She got up out of her rocking chair and shouted, “Oh, hey, ya whippersnappers! Don't ya go runnin’ through them Midnicampum holicithias!”

The young ponies immediately stopped with Snails holding up his hooves in front of the others while Snips gulped nervously.

“Now that there’s a four dollar word there, Granny Smith.” Braeburn commented with a smile. “Back in Appleloosa, we just call them night howlers.”

Fluttershy snapped out of her depressed state, and gasped when she heard what he just said. Her friends also gasped when Braeburn said that word. Turning her head, the pegasus looked at him and said, “Wait. What did you say?”

Braeburn looked at her for a moment. “Night howlers. The buffalo tribe told us about them.”

“That’s right.” Little Strongheart said, nodding in agreement. “In fact, we were the ones who first gave them that name.”

Scootaloo looked at the two with a raised eyebrow. “Give what that name?” She asked, confused what they were talking about.

“Oh, they’re just talkin’ about them flowers over there.” Big Mac said. He gestured a hoof towards the same blue flowers while the other fillies and colts carefully walked past them. “We use them to keep bugs off the produce, but Granny Smith don’t like the little ones going near them on account of what happened to Uncle Apple Strudel.”

“Why? What happened?” Apple Bloom asked.

Granny Smith looked at her granddaughter. “Well, it all started in my youth a few months after my discovery of zap apples.” She explained as she was about to tell them what happened long ago in her youth.

---

A younger Granny Smith and her family were taking care of their apple farm until they gasped in horror at something.

“Things was goin’ fine until them pesky bugs started ta get into our harvest.” Granny Smith said in the background.

Swarms of insects were all over the farm. The family was doing their best to keep them away from the apples. One of the ponies was being chased by a swarms of bugs in the shape of a piranha.

Granny Smith chuckled a little bit. “Yep. Those varmints nearly ate all th’ apples. So, ta solve th’ problem, we used some seeds that we had to do the job. Midnicampumholicithias. Or as others like to call them, night howlers. We planted 'em ta get rid of the critters.”

The family plants some seeds near all the trees. Once they blossomed into familiar blue flowers, the insects around the tree stopped, paused, and then flew away in terror.

“Worked like a charm. Then, one day, while we was all busy mindin’ our own business, your Uncle Apple Strudel ate one whole."

The family was taking care of the farm, doing chores and stuff. A young Apple Strudel noticed a night howler. He walked towards it and ate it.

“Don't know why he did it. Probably musta been hungry or somethin’.”

Young Apple Strudel was busy eating the flower when his eyes open in surprise. Seconds after eating it, a look of shock comes on Apple Strudel's face.

“But once he did, he went crazier than a Timberwolf with its tail on fire!”

Young Apple Strudel neighed like crazy before he began running about, kicking his hooves in the air. Young Granny Smith and the others watched in complete surprise at the young Apple Strudel’s sudden behavior.

“It took th’ whole family ta hold him down. As we did, he bit th’ livin’ daylights outta me!”

As they held Apple Strudel down, he bit the pony that was closest to him: Young Granny Smith! She yelped in pain as he bit her.

“Luckily, I managed ta survive that.”

Young Granny Smith had her bitten leg bandaged while the now crazy Apple Strudel was now tied down to a table.

“It took a whole week ta make an antidote. After we gave it ta him, he went back to his normal self again. He didn't even remember a doggone thing.”

Young Granny Smith and her family worked on making an antidote to cure the crazed Apple Strudel. When they finally made it, young Granny Smith gave Apple Strudel the antidote. When he opened his eyes, young Granny Smith and the others hug him. As they continue to hug him, Apple Strudel looked in confusion, wondering what was going on.

---

Once she had finished telling them the story, they all looked at her in surprise.

“And that's why I don't want you or your friends goin’ near them night howlers.” Granny Smith said sternly to Apple Bloom and her friends. “Don't want anymore little ponies goin’ crazy all over th’ place.”

After Granny Smith told them her story, Twilight and her friends realized something. Then Fluttershy turned her attention from the old mare as something in her mind came to place. “A pony can go savage…,” She said.

Cheerilee looked at her in surprise. “Savage?” She said. “That’s a strong word.”

“Well, of course it’s savage!” Granny Smith barked angrily. “There’s a sizable bite mark on mah leg here!” She held up one of her front legs. On it were slightly visible bite marks. “Now I call that there savage!”

Putting the pieces together, Twilight said, “Night howlers aren’t Diamond Dogs. They’re flowers. The flowers are the ones making the draconequuses go savage!”

“Eeyup.” Big Mac said with a smile before he looked at the alicorn, confused what she just said. “Wait. What?”

Grabbing Spike and shaking him fast, Starlight said, “That’s it! That’s what we’ve been missing!”

After she was done shaking him and released him, Spike looked at Twilight. “What do we do, Twilight?! What’d we do?!”

“Uh...Right!” Twilight turned to the CMC. “Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle! I want you three to find Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash and Rarity. Tell them that it’s very urgent and meet us back at my castle!”

“Sure thing, Twilight!” Apple Bloom said before turning her attention to her friends. “Come on, girls!”

As the fillies ran to do what Twilight just told them, the alicorn and her friends got ready to head back to the castle. Spike rode on Twilight’s back.

Confused what was happening, Caramel looked at Applejack. “Uh, Applejack, wha-what’s going on?”

“No time, Caramel! But we’ll explain everythin’ later!” Applejack said before turning her attention to Granny Smith. “Thank you, Granny Smith! I love you, bye!” She gave the old mare a kiss on the cheeks, who replied saying “Eh?” Applejack then ran off with her friends while Granny Smith, Big Mac, Cheerilee, Caramel, Braeburn, and Little Strongheart watched them leave until they were out of sight.

Everything was quiet for a moment before Cheerilee looked at Big Mac. “Did you get any of that, Big Mac?”

Big Mac just shook his head.

“Nnope.”

“Well, that makes me feel a whole lot better. I thought they was talking in tongues or somethin’.” Granny Smith said before she sat back in her rocking chair with a smile.

---

At the Sugarcube Corner, Pinkie Pie was busy decorating a cake she was making for the next peace rally. Mr. Cake, Mrs. Cake, and the Cake twins were helping her make it. Mr. and Mrs. Cake also believed that ponies and draconequuses could peacefully coexist. In fact, some of their best-paying customers were draconequuses.

Pinkie Pie was almost done writing the icing on the cake while smiling. It said ‘PONIES AND DRAKONECUESEZZ ARE FRIENDS’ (She spelt draconequuses wrong, since she didn't know how to spell it in the first place).

Just then, Apple Bloom burst open the door and said, “Pinkie Pie!!”

The sound of Apple Bloom’s voice surprised Pinkie Pie and she sprayed out a whole bunch of icing. Most of the icing landed everywhere in the room, including the Cake family. Everything was quiet for a moment until the Cake twins began laughing cheerfully and clapping their hooves in delight as they played in the frosting.

---

Meanwhile, Rainbow Dash was sitting on a cloud, moping over what has been happening. Just then, a familiar voice got her attention.

“Rainbow Dash!”

Below the cloud was Scootaloo. “Not now…,” Rainbow Dash muttered, not moving from her spot.

But Scootaloo wasn’t about to give up that easily. “No, you have to listen! It’s very urgent!”

Hearing what Scootaloo just said, Rainbow Dash looked down from her cloud and saw the pegasus filly flapping her wings as hard as she can to get her attention.

---

At the Carousel Boutique, Sweetie Belle had just told Rarity the news. Rarity, however, was busy working on a piece of fabric.

“I’m sorry, Sweetie Belle,” She said. “But I simply must work on this new design.”

“But...but this is urgent!” Sweetie Belle said frantically.

Rarity turned her attention from the fabric and to her little sister. As she did, Opalescence walked towards the fabric and promptly began using it as her own scratching post.

Rarity took no notice of that as she was busy talking to Sweetie Belle. “Sweetie Belle, I am very busy on this design.”

“But...But-!”

“I don't care how important it is. I’ve spent all day making it, and I am not leaving until it is done. So there.”

She turned her attention back to the fabric, pulling it up, and her jaws dropped when she saw that half of it had been ripped to shreds.

Turning back to Sweetie Belle, Rarity said sheepishly. “So…what was that urgent news you wanted to tell me?”

---

A little while later, the outside of Twilight’s castle was seen.

“WHAT?!” The sound of Rainbow Dash’s voice was heard from inside.

---

Inside the throne room, Twilight and the others had just told Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity what they had found out at Sweet Apples Acres.

“So you’re saying that the night howlers really aren’t Diamond Dogs, but are really toxic flowers?!” Rainbow Dash asked, surprised by what she just heard.

“That’s right,” Applejack explained. “The same kind that we use at Sweet Apple Acres.”

“I KNEW IT!!” Pinkie Pie shouted, raising a hoof in the air. Rarity looked at her in astonishment.

“You knew?!”

“No. I just like saying ‘I knew it’.” Pinkie explained. Rarity just gave an annoyed look at the earth pony.

“Ugh! How could have I not realized this!” Twilight said. “Juan Rico was talking about the flowers! Someone must be using the night howlers to dart draconequuses on purpose so that they can go savage!”

“But what about Nelson Otterus? What does he have to do with any of this?” Spike asked.

Rarity then remembered something. “I just remembered something! Before we took the case, Mrs. Otterus mentioned that her husband was a florist.”

“Really? I thought she said that he was a dermatologist.” Pinkie Pie said with a raised eyebrow. A rim shot was heard in the background.

After the others looked at her in confusion, Starlight turned to Twilight and said, “Rarity’s right! He is a florist!” The alicorn nodded in agreement.

“Correct! And a florist is able to identify all kinds of flowers!”

“Now that I think of it,” Fluttershy said. “Mr. Big Daddy did mention something about Otterus wanting to talk to him about something important.”

“But about what exactly?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“I think I know what it was.” Twilight said. “He must have realized what was really happening and wanted to tell Mr. Big Daddy.”

The rest of her friends caught on what she was getting to as the alicorn continued.

“However, the criminal behind this scheme must have realized that Otterus was close to figuring it out.”

“Yeah. And whoever's doing this wanted to keep it a secret!” Apple Bloom stated, her friends agreeing as well.

“That’s right, Apple Bloom.” Twilight said. “If Mr. Otterus told Mr. Big Daddy, then everypony else in Equestria would know about it as well!”

“So, in order to make sure it would stay a secret, the one behind it decided to…” Fluttershy began to say before she stopped as she finally realized what must have happened next.

Twilight solemnly nodded. “Yes. To make sure that Mr. Otterus wouldn't tell his boss, he had to be darted, just like the rest of the draconequuses that went missing and the ones that went savage lately.”

Spike spoke up next. “But he must have been able to tell Juan Rico about the night howlers.”

“That's right, Spike!” Sweetie Belle said.

Finally, Fluttershy spoke up. “So, despite having been darted, he must have decided to warn Juan Rico about it before he went completely savage!”

Getting out of her throne, Rainbow Dash said, “Well, what’re we waiting for? Let's go tell the princesses!”

“Wait, Rainbow Dash!” Twilight said before using her magic.

Rainbow Dash got ready to fly out, but was stopped by Twilight's magic and placed back on her throne.

“Even if we told the princesses, we still don't know who's doing it or where to look.” Twilight told her friend in concern. “And by the time we found out who, more draconequuses will have already gone savage by then.”

“So, what should we do?” Rainbow Dash asked as she slumped down on her throne in defeat.

“I don't know.”

It seemed like no one else had an idea of what to do.

“We need to find Discord.”

They turned their heads and looked at the one who just spoke. Fluttershy.

“Say what now?” Scootaloo asked.

“We have to find Discord.” Fluttershy said once more. “He helped us when we had to find Mr. Otterus, now we need his help for this. Not only do I want to apologize for what I said, I want to tell him that I...I...,” She looked unsure whether or not to tell her friends about her feelings for Discord.

“You're in love with him.” Starlight Glimmer said.

“WHAT?!” The rest of the ponies and baby dragon said in disbelief.

“Wait a second.” Pinkie Pie picked up a cup of water and drank it. Then she sprayed it out of her mouth and it hit Spike, causing the baby dragon to fall off his throne while she shouted, “WHAT?!?!”

“That’s a good one, Starlight!” Rainbow Dash laughed. “Fluttershy in love in Discord?” Turning to Fluttershy, she said, “You’re joking, right?”

The shy pegasus looked at her friend for a moment. “No. I’m not.”

Rainbow Dash and the others looked in shock after she said that. The blue pegasus felt like she was about to throw up.

“But...how did that ever happen?” asked Rarity, still shocked about Fluttershy’s feelings for Discord.

Starlight Glimmer finally decided that she had to tell them. Turning to Fluttershy, she said, “Remember when you saw Discord when he was disguised as a stallion and how we didn’t believe you?” The pegasus nodded before Starlight continued. “Well...I was the only one who believed you.”

Fluttershy and the others gasped in surprise when the unicorn finally revealed the truth. “You knew?” Scootaloo asked.

“Yes. I also saw that Fluttershy was falling in love.” Starlight admitted.

“But...but if you knew she was telling the truth, why didn’t you say anything, Starlight?” Spike asked.

With a deep sigh, Starlight continued. “I wanted to say I believed her, but after seeing how the rest of you didn’t believe her, I was worried that you guys would say that I was only taking pity on her, that I was just trying to cheer her up.” They all watched as she continued explaining. “Even though I kept it to myself, I began to regret my decision.”

Turning to Fluttershy, she said, “I’m sorry, Fluttershy. I should have been supportive, should have been a better friend.”

As she looked at the unicorn, Fluttershy gave a gentle smile and said, “I know.”

Twilight and the others approached the two ponies. “And we’re sorry too.” She said. “For not understanding how you were feeling.”

As she looked at all her friends, the yellow pegasus said, “Oh, I forgive you guys too.”

Pinkie Pie hugged her with a huge grin on her face as she said, “GROUP HUG!!!!”

They all got into a group hug and hugged each other. Finally, Rainbow Dash spoke up.

“Hey, it’s great that how we’ve forgiven one another, but isn’t there something else we have to do?” She asked.

Getting out of the group hug, Twilight looked at her friends. “We’re going to look for Discord.” She said. “Fluttershy’s right. He helped us find Nelson Otterus, now we need his help to find who’s darting the draconequuses.”

Looking at the alicorn, Fluttershy said, “Thank you, Twilight.”

“But how are we going to find him?” Scootaloo asked. “He could be anywhere in Equestria!”

Twilight pondered this. “Well, we may not know where to look, but there has to be someone else who can.”

“Somepony who knows every single spot.” Applejack added.

“But who?” Rarity asked.

Twilight and her friends were stumped. They don't know anyone else who could be able to help them find Discord. As they began to think who might help them, Spike had an idea.

“Hey! I know who can help us!” Spike said. The ponies looked at Spike, wondering what the baby dragon had in mind. “The Thi-!”

Realizing what he was about to say, Rainbow Dash quickly flew to the baby dragon and covered his mouth before he could say it.

“Oh no! Nonononono! Don't say it! Don’t say that name! Do not say that name!” She told Spike.

“Who? You mean the Thief?” Pinkie Pie asked curiously.

“D’oh! You said it!” Rainbow Dash said in frustration as she glared at the pink pony after hearing what she didn’t want to hear.

The ponies looked at the baby dragon, horrified at what he was suggesting to help them find Discord.

“That great stinkpot?!” Rarity said with her eyes wide and her jaws dropped as she looked at Spike. “That...slimy, scabby, stinky, sticky-hoofed reptile?! That THIEF?!”

“Um...Yes.” Spike sheepishly said.

Rainbow Dash just shook her head angrily. “Uh uh! No way!! The last time we ran into that guy, he stole my latest Daring Do book! It took me hours to get it back from him!”

“Rainbow…” Twilight said with an annoyed look, although she was also surprised about Spike’s suggestion.

“Forget it!” Rainbow Dash said as she crossed her hooves. “There is no way that we’re asking that walking garbage bag for help!”

Fluttershy flew up to her friend saying, “But, Rainbow Dash, we don’t know anypony else who could help. Please? For me?”

As she looked at Rainbow Dash, the blue pegasus realized that Fluttershy was about to do what Rainbow was unable to resist: giving her the puppy dog eyes! As she tried to ignore it, Rainbow Dash squinted angrily with one eye open as she said, “Oh! With the face, and the eyes and the...”

Fluttershy continued to give her the puppy dog eyes as she smiled until Rainbow Dash finally gave in. As she groaned in defeat, she said, “All right...All right. We’ll ask him for help.”

Fluttershy smiled before Rainbow Dash spoke again. “But if my new books go missing, I’m taking action!”

“Oh, thank you, Rainbow Dash! Thank you!” And with that, Fluttershy happily hugged Rainbow Dash, who just had an annoyed look on her face.

“You’re welcome.” She muttered to herself.

---

Later on in Ponyville, the ponies and baby dragon approached a dumpster before Applejack tapped on it. They heard some mumbling and rustling coming from inside the dumpster as they waited.

The dumpster lid opened and the Thief lifted his head up. One of his eyes was closed while the other was half open. On his head was a banana peel. As he looked around, he thought to himself, “What? Is the pizza here?”

He then noticed the group looking at him. Both of his eyes opened all the way as he stared at them. Rainbow Dash was glaring at him sternly while Rarity just stood there, disgusted that the Thief was taking his afternoon nap inside a dumpster.

Pinkie Pie, however, just gave a friendly smile and said, “Hi there!”

The Thief gasped and quickly took action by getting ready to make a run for it as he jumped out of the dumpster.

“No! Wait!” Twilight quickly used her magic to stop the Thief and placed him on the ground. He was about to take off again when she said, “Wait! We just want to talk to you!”

Hearing what she just said, the Thief looked at them. Fluttershy approached him.

“We need to find Discord.” She said. “Please. Innocent lives are at risk.”

Then she did the same thing with the puppy dog eyes that she did with Rainbow Dash earlier. The Thief, realizing what was happening, placed a hoof under his chin and mentally sighed. “Well, so much for that pizza.” He thought to himself in annoyance.

---

Guided by the Thief, they found themselves at the Castle of the Two Sisters. Once inside the castle, they immediately started to search for Discord.

As they searched for the draconequus, Fluttershy called out for him. “Discord? Discord!”

Just then, Sweetie Belle turned a corner and saw something. Smiling, she turned to the others and said, “There he is!”

As they looked where she was pointing, they saw him. He was sitting on a lawn chair, wearing sunglasses while drinking chocolate milk through a straw.

Once she saw him, Fluttershy smiled, glad to see him again. “Oh, Discord. I’m so glad we found you!” She approached him as he just sat in his chair, his expression still the same as she continued. “Night howlers aren’t Diamond Dogs. They’re toxic flowers.”

“We think somepony’s darting draconequuses on purpose and making them go savage.” Twilight explained.

“Well,” Discord said sarcastically as he put down his drink. “Isn’t that interesting?” He got up and put down his sunglasses before walking off.

“Hey, we just told you what we found out!” Rainbow Dash said, shocked how Discord didn’t seemed interested. “Where do you think you're going?” The draconequus stopped walking for a moment, but didn’t turned around.

“Apparently, we draconequuses can’t be trusted because we’re too ‘savage,’ and 'unpredictable’.” He said, finishing both words with quotes. He began walking again as they just watched.

Realizing what she had to do, Fluttershy followed after him while her friends followed behind.

“Wait, listen! I know you’ll never forgive me and I don’t blame you.” She said to him. Discord stopped walking as she continued. “I wouldn’t forgive me, either. I was ignorant and irresponsible and small-minded. But draconequuses shouldn’t suffer because of my mistakes. My friends and I have to fix this, but we can’t do it without you.”

Discord just stood there, still not looking at her.

“And after we’re done, you can hate me as much as you want,” Fluttershy said as tears began running down her cheeks. “And...and that’ll be fine, because I was a horrible friend and I hurt you...And you can walk away not believing what I’m about to say, but it’s the truth. I...I...I truly love you.”

Once she finished saying that, she began to sob while Discord was silent. Her friends just watched.

It was quiet for a moment until a rewinding noise was heard.

“I truly love you.” Fluttershy’s voice was heard.
Hearing that just now, the pegasus and her friends looked at Discord. The draconequus held up a familiar flower pen and pressed a button as it made a rewinding noise before he played it again.

“I truly love you.” Fluttershy’s voice said from the pen.

Discord turned around and smiled as he looked at Fluttershy. “Don’t worry. I’ll let you erase it if you want...in forty-eight hours.”

Fluttershy smiled as her eyes welled up in tears and she sobbed happily. As she walked towards him, Discord smiled and said, “All right, get in here.”

She swung her hooves around Discord and hugged him tightly. Discord smiled as he stroked her mane. “Aw, you ponies are always so emotional.” He said as he hugged her back.

The others smiled as Discord, a draconequus, and Fluttershy, a pegasus, continued hugging. The two of them had finally confessed their feelings for each other and were back together again.

As she watched this scene while smiling, Pinkie Pie’s eyes began to water while her lips were trembling. Finally, she couldn’t hold it in anymore and let it all out.

“WAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!”

Huge tears came out of her eyes as she was crying tears of joy as they fell on Rainbow Dash and Rarity. “I...I...I can’t help it! I’m...I'm...I’m so...happpppppppyyyyyyy!” She said through her tears.

Nearby, the Thief peeked his head behind a pillar and watched. Then he turned his head away, pointed a hoof at his mouth, and made a gagging sound. Finally, he quietly slinked away, knowing that his work here was done.

Back with the others, Fluttershy nuzzled in Discord’s fur as she let out all the tears while the draconequus patted her gently as he said, “That's it, deep breaths now.”

Still smiling, Fluttershy continued hugging him as she tried to take the pen. Discord noticed this and smiled. “Are you just trying to steal the pen? Is that what it is?” He said as he playfully held the flower pen while Fluttershy was giggling.

Then he winced in pain because of Fluttershy hugging him tightly. “You are hugging me too tight, though. Off, off, off, off.”

Realizing her mistake, Fluttershy broke out of the hug. “Oh, sorry.”

A few seconds later, they had already left the castle and Discord was with them.

As they headed out, Discord noticed Fluttershy’s saddlebag full of blueberries and said, “Ooh! I thought you only grew flowers at your place.”

He snapped his fingers and some of the blueberries appeared in his hand. As he and Pinkie Pie popped a few of them into their mouths, the draconequus looked at Twilight. “So what's the plan?” He asked.

As Spike rode on her back, the alicorn smiled and said, “We’re gonna follow the night howlers.”

As he conjured a handkerchief and put some of the blueberries in it to save for later and poofing it away, Discord asked, “Okay, how?”

“You know this pony?” Spike asked as he held up a newspaper article with a picture on it. It showed a familiar face: Bootleg!

Looking at the picture, Discord smiled and said, “Uh-huh. I told you, I know everyone.”

---

Elsewhere in Manehattan, Bootleg, who had been released from prison, was at a street corner, selling movies.

“Ah, ha! Well, hello, step right up!” A female earth pony approached the stand as he continued. “Anything you need...I got it!” The pony looked at the movies. “All your favorite movies! I even have movies that haven't been released yet!”

The pony just shook her head, not the least interested in what he was selling and just continued walking. “Hey, 15% off! 20! Make me an offer!” Bootleg said, trying to get the pony to buy something. “Come on!”

“Well, well.” A familiar voice got his attention. Turning his head, he saw the ponies, Spike, and Discord, who had just spoken, approach his stand. “Look who it is. The duke of scams. Business not going too well, I see.” Discord added as he looked at the pony.

“What's it to you, Discord? Shouldn't you be making it rain chocolate milk or something?” Turning his head, Bootleg recognized Twilight and her friends. “Hey, if it ain't Princess Freakshow and her band of Merry Stooges.”

Twilight and her friends ignored the earth pony’s rude words; he wasn't the target of their anger, although they were already glaring at him for his insult.

Looking at Rainbow Dash, who was glaring at him, he smirked and said, “How's the headache coming, Rainbow Crash?”

Rainbow Dash growled furiously. She had not forgotten how he had tricked her into flying recklessly and crash into a billboard. “Rrrrrrr! Why I oughta-!”

Before she could get ready to beat him up, Applejack stopped her. “Easy, Rainbow,” she said before turning to Bootleg. “We're not here ta cause any trouble. We just came to ask you some questions.”

“Yeah.” Pinkie Pie added, her face looking rather serious. However, her serious look disappeared when she picked up two movies from the stand. “So how much for these two movies?” She asked with a smile.

“20 bits,” Bootleg said.

“Sold!”

“PINKIE!” Her friends shouted.

“Sorry.” Pinkie Pie said with a sheepish smile as she put the two movies back. She had almost fallen for Bootleg's scam.

“That's right. We know those weren't moldy onions we caught you stealing,” said Rarity as she walked up to Bootleg. “Just what were you planning to do with those night howlers, Bootlip?”

“It's Bootleg! Bootleg.” Bootleg corrected her. “And I ain't talking, sister. And ain't nothing you can do to make me.”

He then flicked a toothpick at Rainbow Dash’s face. After it bounced off harmlessly, Rainbow Dash's left eye twitched a bit. Then the ponies, baby dragon, and draconequus all looked at each other, getting the same idea.

Twilight let out a sigh. “Well, we tried to do this the easy way. Guess we're gonna have to do this the hard way.” Turning to Applejack and Pinkie Pie, she said, “Applejack, Pinkie Pie! Grab him!”

Bootleg just scoffed. “Oh! What's Little Miss Hick and Sugar Rush gonna do? Hold me down against my will and tie me up?” He asked with an obnoxious sneer.

“I'll get some rope!” Applejack said. Bootleg’s smug smile disappeared and was replaced with a worried look when he heard her say that.

“I’ll hold him down!” Pinkie Pie shouted. Bootleg’s eyes turned to the pony who just said that. Just then, Pinkie Pie tackled him as he screamed in complete shock.

“WAAAGGHH!!!!”

After she tackled him, there was a crashing noise and some of the movies went flying from the stand.

---

Later, the scene changes to Mr. Big Daddy's office. The small unicorn was sitting at his desk, stroking his cat while he held a glass of wine. His two identical bodyguards stood right beside him.

“Ice 'im.” Mr. Big Daddy said calmly.

A pegasus bodyguard with a goatee opened the trapdoor to the icy pit while a unicorn bodyguard was using his magic to lift Bootleg over it.

As he was dangling over the icy water, Bootleg shouted in terror as he looked down into the frozen pit. “Aaagh! Agh! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!!”

As he struggled to break free, the ponies, Spike, and Discord were beside Mr. Big Daddy, watching the whole scene. Rainbow Dash had a smug look on her face. Rarity was drinking from some tea being served by a thug who was holding a plate with cups of tea. Pinkie Pie was happily eating cupcakes that were also being served by another thug.

Glaring at the small unicorn mob boss, Bootleg said, “You dirty rat!” He said before angrily pointing a hoof at Fluttershy. “Why are ya helping her? She ain't nothing but a goody two-hooves!!”

“And zee godmother of my future petite fille.” Mr. Big Daddy answered.

As he spoke, a servant wheeled in a pregnant Fifi into the room.

“I'm gonna name her Flutter Bloom.” Fifi said happily as she rubbed her pregnant belly.

“Awwwww.” Fluttershy said happily. Not only was she going to be the godmother, the baby filly would be named after her.

Mr. Big Daddy chuckled a bit before waving a hoof with a smile. “Ice zis pony.”

The unicorn thug got ready to drop Bootleg into the icy water.

“AHHHHH!! All right!! All right!! Please! I’LL TALK!!! I’LL TALK!!!” He shouted. The thug lifted him up while another one closed the trapdoor. “I stole them night howlers so I could sell ‘em. They offered me what I couldn't refuse.”

Licking the frosting off of her face, Pinkie Pie looked at him. “A lifetime supply of doughnuts?!” She asked with a surprised look.

“No!” He said with annoyance before he answered with a guilty look. “Money.”

Pinkie Pie just silently looked at him for a moment before she asked, “To buy a lifetime supply of doughnuts?”

Ignoring what Pinkie Pie said, Starlight looked at the earth pony. “And to whom did you sell them?” She asked.

“A unicorn named Sniper. He never told me why he wanted them.” Bootleg said as he continued. “We got a drop spot underground in Downtown Manehattan.”

Twilight turned to her friends with a determined look and said, “Then that's where we have to go.”

“Just watch it.” Bootleg said, giving them a warning. “Sniper ain't exactly friendly. He’s the opposite of friendly. He’s unfriendly.”

Author's Note:

Not only have they found the real night howlers, Fluttershy confessed her feelings to Discord and the two of them back together again.

The night howlers, which are flowers, are from ‘Zootopia’. The part where Fluttershy apologizes to Discord and where they have Bootleg talk was from the same movie also.

The part where Applejack said she would get some rope to tie Bootleg up and Pinkie Pie saying she would hold him down was from the Jimmy Neutron episode, ‘Raise the Oozy Scab’.

The word ‘petite fille’ is a French word for granddaughter.

The part where Fluttershy gave Rainbow Dash the puppy dog eyes was from the movie ‘Tarzan’.

Bet you weren’t expecting them to ask the Thief for help, were you?

My brother’s favorite parts in this chapter are Granny Smith’s flashback, whether Twilight and her friends were talking in tongues, Pinkie Pie splattering icing all over the Cake family and spelling draconequuses wrong, Opal clawing at Rarity’s new design and her reaction, Pinkie Pie spraying water all over Spike, her pretending saying she knew it only that she likes saying it, Fluttershy giving Rainbow Dash the puppy dog eyes as well as the Thief, Pinkie Pie crying tears of joy, Applejack and Pinkie Pie taking down Bootleg, Pinkie Pie asking Bootleg if the criminal offered him a lifetime supply of doughnuts and asking if the money was to buy a lifetime of doughnuts, and the Thief making a gagging noise.

In the next chapter, the gang finds the hideout of the pony called ‘Sniper’. What will they find?

Find out in the next chapter!

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