Chapter 5
The bell above the door of the Canterlot Animal Shelter jingled cheerfully, a stark contrast to the mood of the sweating, panting girl entering below it. Shoving the handle with her elbow in a strange contortion as she tried to juggle the animal in her arms and work the door, Twilight practically fell into the front desk from the effort.
“Hello?” the bedraggled scientist called out weakly as she still lacked the oxygen necessary to put any more force behind her words. “Is anyone here?” she tried again managing a bit more behind the words, but still with no answer.
Walking past the empty front desk and elaborate hamster enclosure, Twilight entered the first exam room she came to and carefully unburdened herself of her injured cargo. Quickly washing her hands in the available sink, the teen helped herself to some gauze pads and medical tape that were conveniently laid out on the counter. Using what first aid skills she had, Twilight checked to see if the trip had caused any further injury to the pony. Cleaning the wound atop its head, Twilight was relieved to find the injury much smaller than she’d initially suspected considering the amount of blood. Securing the makeshift bandage, and once again washing her hands, the girl took a moment to catch her breath and resituate her glasses as they had slipped during the examination.
It was surprising that no one had come to check on them yet considering her not so graceful entrance to the building. Figuring she should go find some help if it wasn’t going to come to her, Twilight started to head for the door but stopped. Glancing at the still-unconscious animal on the exam table, she thought better of just leaving it unsupervised. Though she was unsure just what kind of trouble a magical creature might be capable of, it could wake up startled and potentially hurt itself further.
The young scientist decided it was better to err on the side of caution. Having spotted a large animal carrier next to the front desk, Twilight brought it into the exam room and delicately placed her charge into the carrier. “Well that should keep you safe for now,” she thought. “Now to find someone who can check you out.”
Relieved of her burden and with the first step of her plan completed, Twilight was finally able to catch her breath. If only she had been able to make an actual checklist, the chance to cross something off always provided Twilight a small sense of calm that she was in desperate need of right now. As it was though, just the thought of having accomplished her goal was enough to at least calm her a bit. With the deafening thudding of her heartbeat faded from her ears, the teen was finally able to take in the sounds around her, or rather the lack of sounds. Twilight knew the racket a single puppy could cause when excited, and Twilight could only imagine the din a whole shelter’s worth of animals should be causing, but instead, there was only the sound of a single soft voice floating down the hall.
Curious, Twilight quietly padded her way down the hallway, grateful that she had opted to wear gym shoes for her field research and not the clunky, heavy-soled shoes she had to wear as part of her uniform for Crystal Prep. Even now the soft squeaks of her sneakers on the linoleum floor seemed an affront to the silence that permeated the building holding the same solemn reverence as a temple, a church, or a library. But this isn’t a library, Twilight’s mind protested, This is an animal shelter, and it shouldn’t be this quiet!
Cautiously, Twilight approached the door to the backroom, concerned what she might find there that could silence an entire room of animals. Peeking through a small window in the door, she found the room itself was much as one would expect in an animal shelter. Though colorful, the large space was utilitarian in its setup with the wall lined with cages of various sizes, a large bathing area in the corner, and a few grooming tables nearby.
Despite the room’s normalcy, the scientist was taken aback at what she was witnessing going on inside, and had it not been for her discovery of a fantasy creature that fell out of a marble statue, she would have classified it as the strangest sight she’d ever beheld. Seated on the floor with her back to the door was a girl probably around Twilight’s own age, if she had to speculate, dressed in a simple white shirt and a green skirt. Gathered around her and gazing in rapt attention was a myriad of animals from cats and dogs, to reptiles and birds, and, strangely, a whole host of impeccably dressed hamsters. All of them seemed to be engaged in what Twilight would imagine, in any other setting, to be storytime.
***
Fluttershy sat in the back room of the Canterlot Animal Shelter as she did most nights since winter break. It wasn’t that she and the other girls had stopped being friends like they did before Princess Twilight came. No, they still met before school and at lunch, but it always seemed to go the same way.
Like last week, the girls had been having lunch, talking, and having a good time when Rainbow Dash had rushed into the cafeteria, whipped out her notebook, and slammed it on the table proclaiming she had finally written, “the most killer song ever to be shred”. It was sure to break them out of their funk and get them ponying up again. Glancing at it, the song seemed really good. The lyrics were inspirational and the beat was catchy like most of Rainbow’s other pieces. It was Applejack though that spotted the problem.
“Uh, it looks like a good start and all, but maybe we should wait on tryin’ it out until you’ve had a chance to polish it up a mite.”
“Aww come on, AJ, what are you talking about?” Rainbow scoffed in her usual way when trying to play off someone’s concerns, something she had a lot of experience with considering all the stunts she had tried to pull over the years despite Fluttershy's best efforts to talk her friend down. “This song is great as it is. I even ran it by Flash in chem to get another set of eyes on it. He thought it’d totally rock.”
“That it may be, sugarcube, but Ah just don’t think it’s somethin' we should be playin’ anytime soon,” Applejack responded with a tone that everyone could see meant she wanted the brash athlete to drop the subject, well everyone but Rainbow that was.
“Psh,” Rainbow brushed Applejack’s words away with a wave of her hand. “Give me one good reason we can’t all head down to the music room right now and get ready to remind CHS just what it means to be a Wonderbolt?”
At this point, all the Rainbooms as well as several other students had been staring at the country girl, wondering how the verbal tennis match would play out.
Pushing her Stetson back, Applejack fixed the jock girl with an emerald stare that finally got Rainbow’s attention. “Yer score includes a part for a rhythm guitarist.”
The cocky look Rainbow Dash had worn previously slid from her face. Grabbing up her notebook, she quickly scanned her work, her shoulders slumping as she realized Applejack was correct. Collapsing into a chair, the prismatic girl visibly deflated as guilt replaced the bravado she had displayed just moments ago, remembering once again the events that lead to the loss of the Rainbooms’ rhythm guitarist. The mood and memories seemed to spread to not just the five members of the band, but the rest of the cafeteria as well, and lunch became a somber affair for the rest of the period.
It had been like that since the events of winter break. Sometimes it would be a random comment like that. It could be seeing something like the repaired front entrance or the million other things Sunset had done to fix up the school after the Fall Formal. Other times it was something as simple as noticing the empty seat at their lunch table. Inevitably someone would break down, more often than not it was Fluttershy herself, but then the others would follow suit, grieving in their own ways for the friend they had driven away.
That was what caused the animal lover to retreat once again to the safety and unquestioning devotion of the animal shelter. But did she really deserve their affection after what she had done? Maybe if they knew how cruel she had been they would turn their backs on her just as she had to Sunset.
Deciding it was better to be honest and leave the decision up to her animal friends, Fluttershy started to relay the story.
“Once upon a time there was a lonely unicorn who never learned the joys of friendship. With no friends to turn to or make her smile, she became mean and angry and used to take out her frustrations on everyone around her. She ran away from home, split up other people’s friendships, and bullied everyone she could. Not because she was mean, but because she was sad, and seeing others’ happiness made her angry because it reminded her how alone she was.
“Then one day a magical princess came and united five friends granting them magic of their own. Together they fought and saved the unicorn from herself and helped her see how much better life could be with friends. The princess had to return to her kingdom but left the unicorn with the five to continue to learn the magic of friendship. Their kindness helped the unicorn tear down the walls she had built over the years to protect herself from the loneliness, and she let them into her heart, and the first time, she was really and truly happy.”
So caught up in her story, Fluttershy failed to notice the wisps of yellow magic that struggled to spark around her or the flicker of ears and wings that never seemed to be more than a ghostly image. Instead, she continued with her tale oblivious to the magic around her or what was happening to it.
“You would hope that was happily ever after, but it wasn’t to be. The unicorn was betrayed by the ones that had been her first and only friends. They turned on her the minute they had a chance. Why? Maybe they had never really forgiven the unicorn for what she had done. Maybe they believed that it was only a matter of time before she reverted to her old ways. Maybe they were just never very good friends to begin with.
“Whatever the reason, it was clear that while the unicorn had let them into her heart, the walls and suspicions the five friends had towards the unicorn were still standing. They left her to the mercy of those who tormented and abused her. Heartbroken, at the betrayal, the unicorn was forced to flee back to the land of the princess where at least she still had one friend. As for those that had dared to harm a unicorn, the magic they had used was taken from them, with only the tracest amount remaining to remind them just how much they had lost when they turned on their friend.”
***
Twilight was only able to pick out bits and pieces of the story from behind the door. The animals remained quiet and well behaved, listening intently to the tale. All that is except a lone white rabbit who seemed to be bored with the story, but remained still nevertheless.
Clearly, the storyteller had a way with animals. Maybe it would extend to fictional ones as well. Twilight was just about to interrupt and see if this girl would be able to help her when she heard a low beeping noise. Glancing down to find the source, it was then Twilight realized her spectrometer was still around her neck and was once again starting to glow as new readings began to register. Twilight’s head shot back up to the window, hoping her device hadn’t drawn the attention of the room’s occupants. She had to stifle a yell of shock as she saw, not another mythical creature, but instead something even more unbelievable.
The pink-haired girl was still sitting on the floor before her animal audience, but now she was bathed in a flickering yellow glow. Suppressing the urge to shout that this was not scientifically possible, Twilight watched as the energy around the girl coalesced around her head and transformed into a pair of butter yellow pony ears. Then it traveled to a spot on her back and became feathery wings which were then hidden a bit as her chiffon hair lengthened into a ponytail trailing on the floor.
The energy outpour from the animal lover was enough to trigger the secondary function of Twilight’s spectrometer. Once again the pendant opened and the yellow glow of the room was siphoned off the girl and absorbed into the glowing ball inside the device, mixing with the energy that had already been collected from the plinth. As the energy faded completely from the other side of the door, the device closed and Twilight saw the other girl slump forward, her ears and wings blinking out of existence.
Even as she heard the girl’s assurances to her animal friends that she was alright, Twilight began a quick retreat away from the door. What was going on? How had she spent months researching the mysterious readings she had detected, turning up results that were inconclusive conjecture at best? Now in a single night out in the field, not only had she discovered the potential source of the energy, but witnessed its effects at creating both the mythical and fantastical right before her eyes!
She had to get out of here. She had been willing to risk questions from a vet about the weird creature she found when she thought its injuries were life-threatening, but now… The unicorn seemed stable and there was no telling what this magical girl might do to the scientist if she found out her experiment had injured a unicorn. Twilight had played enough O&O with her brother to know that you don’t anger the druid when they’re surrounded by their animal legion.
She had to regroup and collect her thoughts, maybe analyze some of the data she had collected. Then she could better determine how or if this line of scientific investigation should be pursued. Then again, maybe she’d wake up and find it was just a dream and that she’d fallen asleep in her lab again. This thought served only as her subconscious’s reminder to her that she was better off safe and alone in her lab, a thought she fought back down as there were other priorities at the moment.
As she reached the door, Twilight’s eyes fell on the pet carrier she had placed the injured unicorn in. What was she supposed to do about her? She could leave her here and hope the magical glowing girl knew how to take care of her. But then would she even know to check in the animal carrier? Not to mention a mythological creature being left abandoned in a shelter would lead to some sort of investigation and it wasn’t as if Twilight had been too sneaky lugging the unicorn down the street and into the building.
She was sure they would find her, and no doubt questions would be asked like where in the world the scientist found a unicorn and what kind of horrible person would harm such an innocent creature? If the shelter worker were to find out about her device and the energy-draining, would she put the pieces together and realize Twilight had just done the same to her. What might this mysterious girl do to her if she found out? Could she banish her to wherever the unicorn had come from? Would she be locked in a secret dungeon under the animal shelter or worse banished and locked in a dungeon in the place she was banished to?
Twilight shook her head, trying to clear it of the building panic. No, the creature couldn’t stay here both for its safety as well as her own. Twilight had found the creature and thus it was her responsibility. She just had to get the creature home and then she was sure she would be able to pull up whatever relevant veterinary textbooks she needed from the internet. Plus, having the unicorn with her would serve to assure herself that what she had witnessed today had, in fact, actually happened.
Steeling her resolve, Twilight threw up the hood of her sweatshirt and bent to lift the animal carrier when a soft voice sounded behind her.
“Um…Hello? I-is there something I can help you with?”
Glancing over her shoulder, Twilight was able to get a good look at the mystical storyteller. The girl was surprisingly tall, though she hid it with the way she sank in on herself. This, in turn, caused her butterfly hair clip to work overtime to hold back her hair as she tried to allow it to curtain in front of her face so she would have something to hide behind. This also allowed the scientist to spot the tear streaks on the girl’s pale yellow cheeks.
Twilight realized the fear and sadness in the girl as it was something she felt every day and might have tried to take her parents’ advice and talk to the girl had the terror of being caught by a being with mystical powers not been clutching at her throat.
“N-no,” Twilight choked out, her voice coming out a hoarse croak. “Just need to get her home. Thanks anyway.” Fear must have provided her with coordination she knew she otherwise would have lacked as she managed to get the door open while lifting the crate.
“Oh, um…okay. Bye,” the shy girl responded. Shaking her head, Fluttershy headed back to her animal friends, though something in her seemed to urge her to go after the person, sure that they needed help right now. Hurrying back to check out the front door, she found the person had already fled through the door into the growing darkness of the evening. Sighing sadly, Fluttershy worried that she may have just failed another person in need of some kindness.
Oh, so close. So Sunset in a cage, close calls with suspicious Rainbooms, and a magic stealing device that's getting pretty full, what could possibly go wrong?
Thanks again for all the likes. I love seeing all the comments and theories, and I'm interested to see what you have to say about this one. 
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Ah, the joys of Twilight "I'll fix it myself" Sparkle.
Princess or Scientist, that mentality rarely ends well.
However, it's probably better for Sunset's emotional well-being that she not wake up to Fluttershy's face right off the bat. Least emotional damage or not, she probably would want a buffer and time to get ready for such a meeting.
10345360 I think I have to agree with you on the latter point.
This is really interesting so far! I hope you write more!
Same.
I’m interested to see how Sunset wil react to Sci-twi. And how Sci-twi is going to react to the fact that the unicorn can speak.
This will get interesting soon.
Twilight is not stealing magic is she? Because I know one way how this will end.
10345548
I don’t know if it counts as stealing magic, but she sure as heck stole a pet carrier.
legit made this account just to comment on this fic because i am EXCITED for the wild ride this is gona take us. It's so funny thinking about twilight just..carrying around a colorful injured pony like trying to haul sunset shimmer everywhere just sdjvsd. i love it. but nooo sunset's in a cage i can't imagine that going well if she wakes up or something ): !!!
anyways this is really interesting so far !! take your time with writing it too. i can't wait for more!
10345664
Well, I'm truly honored and I hope you enjoy what's coming.
Eehhhh
MORE MORE PLEASE POR FAVOR
Aw, come on! Fluttershy was right there! if it weren't for the cage, Flutters might've spotted and recognized Sunset... maybe...
though to be fair, given Sunset still thinks the Rainbooms betrayed her, she might want to stay away from them once she wakes up.
Fluttershy NOOOOOO that's so poetic that's sad.