Some things are just to much for certain ponies to handle.
A story written by Neutralbrony (deviantart link http://neutralbrony.deviantart.com/) in memory of Nathan Maddox. I have his written consent expressing the ability to post this story here on his behalf. Edited by Malicious-Badger.
Fluttershy hasn't been seen in public for a few days, and her friends are beginning to worry...
The sun was just setting over the horizon of Ponyville as Twilight Sparkle and Spike were heading out of town towards Fluttershy's cottage. The air was beginning to cool as the bright orange warmth of Celestia's sun began to descend. Twilight smiled as she made her serene walk along the path with Spike nearly half awake on her back.
"Remind me why I have to tag along," asked Spike, still feeling sore from organizing books non-stop all day in the library.
"Because I'm worried about Fluttershy and I need you here for this. I think she's been feeling really sad lately."
"Yeah, but I don't see how that's uncommon. Doesn't Fluttershy get depressed about something on a weekly basis?" Spike said, still grumpy from his work session.
Shocked by his words Twilight stopped on the creek bridge as she turned her head around and gave Spike a hard stare. Taken by the surprise, Spike snapped out of his grumpy state; realizing what he had just said. He frowned at himself, feeling the guilt for his rude statement.
Spike shrugged a little as he hopped off of Twilight's back in shame. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it the way it sounded. I mean, I know Fluttershy is really sensitive. I just thought that everypony knew that she get really sensitive."
Everypony in Ponyville knew Fluttershy and were aware of her tendencies to be sad every now and then. Most of the time, she would be seen tending to the animals or shopping for Angel Rabbit's favorite foods. Those who lived in Ponyville long enough paid no attention to her whenever she broke down sobbing or ran off crying.
With Spike now besides Twilight, they continued their walk down the trail in silence. They had just noticed a few fireflies that lit up the shadows of the trees, creating a soft set of silhouettes among the bushes. The two companions could now see the outline of the cottage as the sound of the birds began to die down for their evening's rest.
More than a few minutes went by before Twilight spoke up, having now forgiven Spike for his rude comment earlier. "Spike, you and I both know it's true that Fluttershy always has some reason to be sad or frightened every other week, but this is different. I've got this strange feeling that her sadness has been progressing over the past few days."
"What makes you say that?" Spike's eyes widened a lttle.
"I just heard a rumor today. Somepony that Fluttershy was crying by herself at the lake over by the main road today. It was even said that she's been just sitting there ever since this morning."
"You mean Fluttershy's been crying all day?"
"I don't know, but that would explain why Pinkie Pie told me that Fluttershy wasn't at Sugarcube Corner like where she usually goes, and she also didn't come by the library today to pick up that book on bunny care she wanted."
She could still recall the time she spent looking through all of her old animal archives in the basement that had been covered by years of dust and dirt. There was a sense of disappointment knowing that she spent more than an hour looking for that book, feeling that her efforts were in vain.
Spike thought of something else, a recollection, "Come to think of it, Rainbow Dash told me a couple of days ago that Applejack needed her and Fluttershy to help clear the birds out of the apple trees so AJ could do her monthly harvesting, but Fluttershy never showed up,"
It was a weird feeling to Twilight. Usually Fluttershy was the first to jump at helping animals. Whether it was helping migrate frogs to Boggy Bottom Swamp or removing a thorn from a ferocious bear, nopony big or small was a match for Fluttershy's kindness, as her element implied.
Suddenly another memory sparked in Twilight's head. "Rarity also told me that she needed Fluttershy's help trying on new outfits for her customers but never showed up either. That was just yesterday," She also remembered Rarity mentioning that Fluttershy didn't seem too thrilled with the idea to begin with.
The conversation turned into another gloomy silence. Twilight and Spike said nothing for awhile but had their minds thinking in unison, knowing it to be true; Fluttershy might actually be depressed.
"So, has anypony heard from Fluttershy in these past few days?" Spike asked.
"I'm not sure, I don't know." Now Twilight was really worried. If none of her friends had heard from her lately, where could she be? It wasn't unusual for Fluttershy to run off to find a quiet place to calm down, but this just felt strange.
------
Applejack was huffin and puffin as she attempted to kick one of the last remaining apple trees for the day. She was sweaty and began to feel a slight shiver as a gust of cool air blew past her face. The hard working earth pony was beginning to reach her limit, feeling the sensation of her aching muscles. Harvesting this many apples in only two days was sure enough to knock anypony into next week.
Rainbow Dash was just returning with a fresh set of empty baskets for the remaining apples. She carried one in each front hoof with a third in her mouth, flapping her strong Pegasus wings over the hillside of the barren apple trees. Setting the baskets down near the last tree, she then walked up behind the panting earth pony.
"Getting tired yet?" Rainbow grinned.
Applejack tried her best to put on a smile. "Heck no, I'm used ta this kinda exhaustion."
"Really? Because it looks like you're ready to keel over," Rainbow's grin turned into a satisfying smile.
Everything was always a competition between Rainbow Dash and Applejack. Ponyville's two most athletic ponies could be seen competing to just about anything. Each trying to prove which of them was the strongest, fastest, most athletic mare, even though neither of them kept score in the end.
"I'd like ta see you use all four hooves applebuckin' non-stop fer hours at a time."
"Hey, I've been busting my flank clearing the birds from each tree and carrying half of the baskets," Rainbow then set herself down next to Applejack. "My wings are exhausted and my arms are beginning to ache from all that bird clearing."
Applejack was surprised and then smiled at Rainbow. "Oh, so ya'll feelin' tired then as well?"
"Uh… No! I didn't mean exhausted. I meant that I… uh… needed a break, that's all."
There was a slight laugh under Applejack's breath. She knew that Rainbow always tried her best not to show any sign of weakness, whether it be during a contest or just helping out. It was the type of friendship that just seemed natural to them, and they understood this.
"No need ta worry sugarcube. We've both been workin' very hard fer the past few days and I really appreciate all that you've done, but it's almost over now."
Rainbow frowned, feeling a bit annoyed as she flew up and landed on the nearby tree branch. "Yeah, well this could've been a one day job if Fluttershy hadn't totally bailed on us like that. What's with that pony anyway?"
"Please don't sound so upset at her. She's been goin' through a rough patch these past few days."
"What do you mean?" Rainbow raised an eyebrow.
Applejack then paused her tree bucking and sat under the tree Rainbow laid in as she tried to recall her last encounter with Fluttershy. "I'm not sure, but I'm feelin' mighty worried about the pegasus. She was mighty sad the last time we spoke."
"You mean earlier today?"
"No. It was 'bout three days ago when I was tryin' ta help her find Angel Bunny. Somethin' happened between them. An argument of some sort."
"Why? Did Fluttershy do something wrong?"
Applejack thought about it for a sec, unsure that Fluttershy could even be capable of doing something bad, even if it weren't on purpose.
"I ain't certain, but when we were 'bout half way through our searchin' for Angel by the creek bed, Fluttershy started wimperin'. I tried to comfort her as best as I could, but just couldn't get her to stop."
Rainbow didn't like hearing this. Nothing upset her more than the feeling of her fillyhood pegsus friend feeling sad. She always regarded herself as someone personally responsible for Fluttershy, much like a guardian.
"What was she crying about?" Rainbow asked.
"She wouldn't say, so I just decided ta leave it at that and she eventually calmed down, but yah see, when we found Angel, that Bunny had an a'ful angry look on his face."
Rainbow felt bad, but she didn't dwell on it. "She probably just felt bad for losing track of Angel."
Though it wasn't uncommon for Angel Bunny to get grumpy with Fluttershy once in a while, most ponies in Ponyville would think that he and Fluttershy have a good relationship. Aside from his rude remarks against the shy Pegasus, they were happy friends.
Applejack stood up walking over to the last unbucked apple tree, surrounded by empty baskets just waiting to be filled. She stared at the hanging apples, reminiscing in their reflections off of the sun light in a brief pause before continuing her story.
"I think that there's more to it than that. Yah see, after Fluttershy thanked me for helping her find Angel, they both started headin' on back to the cottage, but I'm certain I heard Fluttershy sobbing again under her breath. I asked what was bothering her, but all she said was that she needed ta be alone fer a while.'"
The blue pegasus didn't say anything. Now she was concerned for her friend's response, wondering what was going on in Fluttershy's head. What she must be going through. Was there anything she could do to help?
------
"Finished at last." Rarity said as she put away the last of her fabric with a huge sigh of relief.
All of her customers had to come down for size fitting since she didn't have anyone to model for her. She felt exhausted; her hooves in dire need of a treatment from the beauty parlor. The white unicorn just wanted to throw herself in a bath to unwind her hooves from all the sowing she'd been through. She was just about the flip the 'open' sign on her door to 'close' when Pinkie Pie's face landed right on the window of the door.
"Hi Rarity!" The pink bouncing pony exclaimed.
Rarity threw herself backwards in her surprise from seeing Pinkie's face randomly appear in front of her. "Pinkie, whatever are you doing? You nearly turned my mane grey."
Pinkie opened the door. "Oops, sorry about that. I just stopped by to talk to you about something."
"What is it darling?"
"Twilight told me that Fluttershy's been really sad lately. Like super duper crying sad."
"Sad about what dear? What's been bothering her?" Rarity asked.
"I dunno." Pinkie began to frown a little.
Rarity felt shocked, but confused. "Well then if we don't know what Fluttershy is sad about, then how does Twilight know she's even sad?"
Pinkie just shrugged, not knowing how to answer her. "That's why Twilight asked me to get the gang to meet up together in the library tomorrow morning so we can talk about it and try to cheer her up. Something about Fluttershy crying all day at the lake."
The white unicorn's concerned expression altered into a more worried face. "Crying? All day? Oh the poor thing! Pinkie Pie, you tell Twilight I'll be there tomorrow without delay."
"Okkie Dokkie Lokkie!"
Before Pinkie could walk out the front door to find her other friends, Rarity had to know more. "Um, Pinkie dear, have you seen Fluttershy sad lately?"
"I haven't seen Fluttershy all day. I even made her a super-duper special cupcake just for her, but she wasn't at Sugarcube Corner today. She must be pretty sad."
"Well as her dearest friends, we will be sure to, as you would say; turn that frown upside down."
"You betcha! It's getting dark now, so I gotta go tell the others now. Do you know where I can find Applejack and Rainbow Dash?"
"Why, I believe Rainbow Dash is out helping Applejack with something at Apple Acres. Aren't you going to go invite Fluttershy as well?"
"Nope. Twilight's already taking care of that. See ya later Rarity. You're a good friend." The pink pony bounced excitingly out of the shop, hoping towards the farm.
"Ta-ta darling!" Rarity yelled.
She then closed the front door and flipped her 'open sign' to 'close' before turning off the lights, making her way into the kitchen to make some tea. The smell of the warm natural herbs soothed her lungs as she levitated the tea bag in the boiling pot.
The image of Fluttershy's sad face was fixed in her mind as she stood at the window looking out at Celestia's sun setting off in the distance. She thought of her dear pegasus friend and what she would say when she saw her tomorrow.
------
Applejack gave a final kick at the last tree as the remaining apples in the field fell nicely into the empty baskets, relieved that all their hard work had paid off. They secured the heavy baskets on their backs and headed back to the barn, where rows upon rows of apples were stacked neatly against each other.
It was perfect timing. The sun had just set over the horizon, which cooled the air even more. There was a light glow coming from Ponyville as day time turned into night time. Applejack flipped on a nearby lantern.
Rainbow dropped the baskets on the ground in fatigue. "Now are we done? I'm starving over here."
"Not yet Rainbow. Let's take a ten minute break and then head on over ta Fluttershy's house. I just thought of somethin'. I think Fluttershy may be feelin' really down right about now. "
"Why? I thought Fluttershy would already be used to patching things up with that grouchy bunny."
"Remember when I went to the market today to go and get us some more baskets?"
Rainbow Dash nodded.
"Well, I saw Fluttershy walkin' out of the store across the street and bumped into another mare. Then she got yelled at fer not watching where she was goin'. Next thing I saw, she ran off in a frantic off towards her house."
This began to enrage Rainbow Dash, tensing up in her hooves as her stance changed. The only thing she didn't like hearing about Fluttershy crying was somepony else making Fluttershy cry. "Who? Who made her cry? Tell me where she is, I'll give her a big piece of my mi-"
"Now hold yer hooves there sugarcube. I went on over to that mean pony and set her straight. It's not important now. What's done is done." She neglected however to say who that pony was.
"Not important? She didn't deserve that. There's no way I'm just gonna let some mare make Fluttershy cry for an accident. We need to find this pony and kick her flank!"
Rainbow hind leg kicked over a basket of apples, breaking a few in the process. Applejack could now see how upset she was, remembering how she and Fluttershy were close fillyhood friends. She knew however that anger wasn't the best answer right now.
"Hold yer hooves there Dash. I know you care fer yer friend as much as I do, but what she needs right now is for us to be there fer her."
Rainbow paused her anger and relaxed her body. She then then smiled at the orange pony and knew how right she was. "You got it, let's grab ourselves a snack and then we can head on out."
Just then, she heard somepony singing, coming up along the path. It was Pinkie Pie, doing her usual enthusiastic bouncing and chanting walk towards Sweet Apple Acres. She hoped over the fence and landed just in front of the barn door.
"Hey guys, watcha doin?" Pinkie asked.
"We just finished up the harvesting fer the month." Answered Applejack.
Pinkie smiled with glee and excitement. "Wow, you guys worked hard! Just think of how many pies you could make for all the parties I would throw for you. I bet I'd have so many pies that there wouldn't even be enough parties to fill them with." The pink pony began bouncing passed all the apple filled baskets with excitement.
"Yeah, I bet yer right," She was glad to know somepony appreciated the hard work.
Rainbow had a curious question. "Hey Pinkie Pie, have you seen Fluttershy lately?"
Pinkie stopped bouncing. "Now that you mention it, I haven't seen her come by Sugarcube Corner in a few days," She then paused with a sudden awareness. "Oh, that's why I came over to find you. Twilight told me that Fluttershy has been feeling sad lately and wanted me to invite you guys to the library tomorrow morning so we can have an invention… an interveen… intervon… intervine…?"
"An intervention?" Applejack interjected knowing that Pinkie wasn't always good at pronouncing Twilight's words.
"Yes! That's it." Pinkie Smiled.
Rainbow yawned. "So then we'll meet up with her tomorrow? We can make Fluttershy feel better?"
"Yep, you betcha! Oh, and Twilight also wanted you to bring some of your apple cider." Nopony could resist Sweet Apple Acres apple cider.
Applejack smiled. "Sure, I think I got some extra bottles in the cellar. Much obliged Pinkie. We're willing ta do anythin' fer our little Flutter-"
Suddenly, all three ponies saw a small familiar dragon figure coming up the path, running as fast as he could. He was yelling something, but nopony could hear him.
Applejack squinted her eyes. "Is that Spike?" What's he got his tail in a boot fer now?"
------
Fluttershy's cottage was coming closer into view as the sun continued to tilt more and more over the horizon. After a few more minutes of silence, Spike had a question for Twilight.
"Have you seen Fluttershy today?" He asked.
"No, I haven't," The lilac unicorn looked at the ground, but then seemed to recall something else, "but I think I overheard the clerk at the store talking about Fluttershy running off from his store crying after buying some garden supplies."
Now Spike was feeling kind of down. "I hope she's not in a sad slump. I always feel so empty and hollow whenever Fluttershy gets this way. She's supposed to be the element of kindness, not sadness." Spike and Twilight were both getting the same vibe.
Knowing that this conversation wasn't helping, Twilight changed the subject and broke out of her depressing state. "Well then, it's up to us as her faithful friends to make sure she's happy and healthy."
"What do you think would make her happy?"
They were just crossing the small stone creek bridge at the cottage. It was almost dark outside as the sky turned into a soft purple haze. The temperature dropped again as the trees swayed from the wind blowing towards the north.
"I've asked Pinkie to gather our friends to meet at the library tomorrow morning so we can see what's been bothering Fluttershy. Plus I've asked Pinkie to make sure Applejack brings over some of her apple cider."
"So we're here to invite Fluttershy?"
"Exactly. Hopefully, this will put her in a good mood," She smiled at her plan, convinced that it would work.
"That sounds good. I just want to see the old Fluttershy again, like the one who fell for my cuteness when we first met." He grinned a little at the thought of the yellow pegusus being bashful.
Twilight and Spike were just outside Fluttershy's front door. It was really quiet outside now. Not even the birds or bunnies where out in the yard like they usually were. The lights inside the home were off too.
"Now remember Spike," said Twilight, "we're not here to confront Fluttershy on her depression. We're just here for a visit like we normally do."
"Normal. Got it." He gave the thumbs up, a smile and a wink.
Twilight raised her hoof as she knocked once on the door and was about to follow up with another two knocks when the door slid slightly open. They both peered inside but only saw darkness.
"Um, Fluttershy?" Twilight said softly. "Are you home? It's us, Twilight and Spike."
There was no reply. The lilac unicorn slowly creaked open the door, but there wasn't enough light left in the day to brighten up the inside of Fluttershy's home. They both slowly walked into the unlit room.
"Maybe she's sleeping. We don't want to wake her." Whispered Spike.
"But we need to make sure she's okay, now help me find the light switch." Twilight whispered back. Her horn then began to glow as she casted a luminary spell. There was a small sphere of light around her head as she walked along the wall looking for the light switch.
Spike motioned his hands along the wall opposite of Twilight, trying to feel for a switch since he couldn't see. He was not even five feet away from the door when he tripped over something. "Ow," he groaned.
"You okay?" Twilight suddenly noticed an unlit candle on the window table in front of her. She then proceeded to use her magic to light the candle and hover it over to where she thought Spike was, seeing him on the ground in a silly manner.
"Yeah, I just tripped over some books." He grabbed the floating candle and was about to continue down the side of the wall when he noticed that these weren't just books, they were photo albums. Inside were dozens of pictures of Fluttershy's friends, animals, and even some beautiful scenery taken from her home in Cloudsdale. But he also noticed how the current open page was slightly wet with something.
"Found it," Said Twilight as she flipped on the light switch, which was quickly followed by a scream from Spike as he fell backwards onto the floor, dropping the candle in shock from what laid in front of his eyes.
Twilight turned around about to ask what the problem was, but just stood there with her eyes widened in terror. "Oh sweet Celestia!" She exclaimed.
Before the unicorn and the dragon was the soft yellow pegasus hanging motionless just over the table, and her wings were not moving.
Fluttershy dangled from the ceiling beam with the rope tied in a noose around her neck. Eyes and mouth closed as her body gently swayed back and forth from a light chilling breezing through the open door. There was much shock and awe in the atmosphere as Twilight and Spike had their eyes widened for a mere 10 seconds before one of them snapped into action.
"Oh no, oh no! Fluttershy please no," Twilight's horn lit up as she casted a levitation spell to gently lift the lifeless pony and remove the noose from around her neck. She was careful enough to be sure that her head was as immobile as possible.
"Spike, hand me that couch pillow over there." She said urgently, gently setting the pegasus down on the floor with her friend's head on her hooves. Spike just stood there, unable to move. He was too scared to move.
"Spike!" Twilight yelled.
The purple dragon then began to tear up. Snapping out of his trance, he ran over to the couch and handed the pillow to Twilight, who then placed it underneath Fluttershy's head. She looked closely at her friend's emotionless face, placing a hoof on her cheek.
Spike was sniffling. "Flutt-ttershy. Is she….d-d-de"
"Calm down Spike. Her tear drops are still wet and moist, so I don't think this didn't happen too long ago." She then placed an ear down on Fluttershy's chest. "She's not breathing but I can still hear her heartbeat. We need to get her to the hospital."
Twilight's horn lit up again as worked her magic to pull on the rope still attached to the ceiling bean until it snapped. Moving the pillow under her friend's neck, she levied the rope under the pillow and then tied it around Fluttershy's neck, making sure that it wasn't too tight.
"I-is sh-she gonna be o-o-okay?" Spike's tears were becoming stronger, more worried, more sad, more depressed. So many thoughts were running through his head.
"I don't know, but right now she needs medical attention. Help me get her on my back."
She laid down next to Fluttershy as Spike daringly kneeled down and gently pulled her over Twilight's back, frightened in fear as he felt the nearly dead pony's hooves, trying not to glare at her emotionless face.
"I'll bring her to the hospital. I need you go to Sweet Apple Acres and get everypony over there." She was about to run out the front door when Spike fell and broke down in tears.
"But I…. I don't know i-i-if I c-c-can tell th-them…" Spike couldn't take it. He was afraid for his friend, feeling such a big gap in his chest. He was gasping, trying to talk normally, think normally, breath normally.
Twilight wasn't angry at Spike, but was feeling just as frustrated in the situation. The only thing she could do was to try and reassure her assistant what was important now. "Look Spike, I know you're scared, but I need you to be brave for Fluttershy right now. She needs you right now more than ever."
The purple dragon then stood up, wiped his eyes and took a deep breath. "Okay" he replied.
They both went out the door with Spike running slightly faster than Twilight. She had to gallop slowly to ensure that her friend would not fall off her back and that she wouldn't cause further injury to her neck.
It was now dark outside. Luna's moonlight glowed over on Equestria, which made it easy to see the path ahead of them as they ran towards the lights of Ponyville. There was a four- way intersection coming up ahead. Spike had made a left turn heading towards Sweet Apple Acres while Twilight kept running straight, going their separate ways.
Twilight had so many questions run through her head. When did this happen? What made Fluttershy so depressed? Would she be okay? She shook her head a little and put away such useless thoughts. She focused only on her pace and making sure that she would still be able to see her pegasus friend again.
------
"Whoa there sugar cube. Take a deep breath so ya can tell us what yer try'n ta say."
All three ponies just stared at Spike as he was trying to catch his breath, panting hard with his hands on his knees, feeling more emotionally tired than he was physically tired. He tried slowing his breaths, but his heart was still racing from what he had just witnessed minutes ago. Trying to mutter even a word proved to be a challenge.
After a whole minute of panting silence, Pinkie spoke up. "What going on silly? Did something happen?"
"Something bad?" Rainbow asked.
The purple dragon just stared at the ground, still panting as more tears started to form. The three ponies could now see that something was definitely wrong. Applejack then stepped forward and placed a hoof on Spike's face.
"Spike, take a deep breath, slow down and try ta think of what yer gonna say."
He finally calmed down and took a few deep breaths. "It's Fluttershy! Sh-she's just… uh-uh…uh."
"Fluttershy? What about Fluttershy? Is she okay?" Rainbow asked.
Spike hated himself for what he was about say. "No! She's in trouble! She just tried to kill herself!"
"What!?" All three ponies had said simultaneously with their jaws dropped in shock, thinking that this had to be some kind of sick joke.
"W-where? Is she okay?" Rainbow began to panic.
"Twilight and I were just at Fluttershy's house and then she was….she was-"
"Don't worry about the details there sugar cube. Now can ya tell us where she is right now?"
"Twilight is on her way taking her to the hospital, so she needs you guys to meet up there and-"
"We're on it Spike! Let's get goin' girls!" Applejack's reflexes kicked in and began running towards Ponyville with Pinkie Pie following behind and Rainbow Dash scooping up Spike in her hooves; carrying him for only a few seconds before setting him down on Pinkie's back.
Rainbow hovered over Applejack. "Where's Ponyville Hospital?"She asked
"It's about 5 blocks down west from the post office."
"I'll go on ahead and make double sure that she's okay!" She yelled.
"Hop to it then. We'll catch up ta you later. Go!" Applejack yelled back.
The blue pegasus took off and climbed high into the sky, disappearing in a matter of seconds. The two remaining ponies ran faster as Spike tried to hold on to Pinkie's mane, which he thought would've bothered her, but her thoughts were elsewhere.
They both felt such confusion in the situation, knowing that the only thing that mattered right now was getting to that hospital. Applejack slowed down her pace a little and pulled alongside Pinkie while looking at the terrified dragon.
"Spike, you sure this is true? It's not some kinda mistake?" She yelled.
He clenched his wet eyes closed while squeezing harder on Pinkie's mane for a few seconds before speaking. "I saw it with my own eyes!" He cried.
Pinkie turned her head back at Spike while continuing to gallop. "Don't you worry Spike! Twilight's with her. She'll be just fine and everything will work out." She hoped.
"Come on Pinkie! We can't be wastin' any time!"
"Hold on tight Spike!"
Both ponies leaned their neck forward and kicked it into high gear, running faster than they had ever hoped to achieve. Nothing could stop them now.
------
Twilight didn't want to run directly through town with an unconscious Fluttershy on her back in public, but she had no choice. The quickest route was up the main street, where dozens of other ponies were enjoying the nightlife. She sped past many staring ponies, curiously watching her run by. The last thing Twilight wanted to do was make this incident public, but her life was more important at this point. Up ahead she saw a crowd of ponies just leaving the restaurant from a night's dinner.
"Move! This is an emergency!" She yelled, swerving towards the right around the group of ponies, forcing two of them to step aside. She whizzed past them without looking back, rounding the next corner to the left past the post office.
The lilac unicorn began to sweat heavily, panting hard with each step of the weight that her friend pressed down on her back. She was getting tired, overwhelmed, exhausted, yet she refused to slow down. She wouldn't allow herself to slow down. Fluttershy's life was fading away.
The hospital was just coming into view when Twilight heard a familiar voice behind her.
"Twilight!" She yelled. It was Rainbow Dash, descending next to the running pony as she began to stare at her lifeless friend, frightened by the unbelievable truth. "Is she okay? What happened to her?"
"No time! I need your help. Get me a clear and safe passage to the emergency room on the right."
"You got it!" she replied, racing towards the brightly lit sign which spelled 'Emergency Care.' In only a few seconds, her hooves landed at the side door where two EMPs stood flipping through some paperwork. She ran up to them and threw her hooves on one of the standing ponies.
"Please! You doctor guys have got to help my friend!" She cried.
"Whoa there miss, calm down. What's the matter?" The EMP asked.
"Fluttershy! She needs help! She needs help!"
"Okay, okay. We understand. Now where is your friend? What's her condition?" He gently took Rainbow's hooves off his shoulders.
"My-my friend is bringing her over right now." She began to snivel as her hoof pointed towards the pony running towards the entrance. "Please, save her! She means everything to me!"
The two EMPs looked towards the west and saw the limp pegasus pony on Twilight's back. They immediately snatched up their medical equipment. Instinct took over and they were now in full gear, rehearsing what they go through on a weekly basis.
"Get the stretcher out, I've got fresh oxygen in the back." Said one of the EMPs
The other quickly ran inside and just as quickly returned with his hooves on a flat bed cart that had a heart monitor attached to the front. His hoof then hit a small alarm button next to the door, yelling into the hospital towards the front desk as the alarm rang though the hallway.
"I need an IPC unit over here stat!" He cried, before turning Rainbow Dash. "Miss, I need you to hold the door for us."
Rainbow Dash immediately stepped in and held the glass door with all her might.
The other EMP returned and placed an oxygen tank next to the stretcher just as Twilight stopped in front of the side entrance, gently lying down as the EMPs lifted Fluttershy off her back and placing her on the stretcher. Although still panting, Twilight managed to speak up. "She just tried… to hang herself. There's a minor… neck injury and she wasn't… breathing when we found her. This happened… about ten minutes ago."
"Thank you miss Twilight, we'll take it from here. Alright, let's get her to the IPC operating room. Get that CPR kit out."
As the two EMPs then ran off down the hallway, Rainbow and Twilight following right behind them. They stayed behind them for about 50 feet before making a right turn and then being stopped by a security guard who stood in front of the two swinging doors leading to the IPC room.
"Sorry, misses. Can't let you pass through here."
"But my friend is in there!" Rainbow yelled, "You have to let us in!"
"I'm sorry, but I need you mares to step back and let the doctors do their job. That's the best I can recommend for your friend. She's going to be fine."
"But you can't… I need to be in there… How can you be so sure?"
Twilight placed her hoof on Rainbow shoulder. "Rainbow, listen to me. We've done all we can for Fluttershy, so now we should just wait while the doctors treat her."
The guard spoke up. "I'll make sure the doctor notifies you when I hear anything about your friend Fluttershy. You can wait in the lobby until then."
Twilight smiled a bit, regaining her confidence in the security guard's words. "Thank you sir. Come on Rainbow, let's go wait in the lobby."
The two ponies walked down the wide hallway side by side, not saying anything. Rainbow just continued to stare down at the ground with so many questions for Twilight. She was confused and could only recall Spike's words; Fluttershy tried to kill herself. Was this true? Are they sure that it wasn't just an accident? She had to know, but her heart didn't want to find out.
"Twilight? Is it true? Did Fluttershy just try to…" Rainbow said softly, unable to finish her sentence.
"Yes, Spike and I were just down at her cottage when we found her…" Her voice trailed off, trying to not to upset her friend. She then stopped and put a hoof on Rainbow's shoulder, "Come one. I'll tell you about it in the waiting room."
It was at that moment that Rainbow Dash was beginning to realize that this really was happening. She felt so useless, like she had let her fillyhood friend down. How could she even call herself a friend anymore?
------
The two pony friends went inside the empty waiting room, surrounded by glass windows and colorful art pictures where a number of clean chairs were sided along the wall and stacked in rows of the middle. The air smelled of disinfectant and fresh bead sheets with brightly lit lights over an even section of the room.
They both grabbed the nearest seats with Twilight looking up at Rainbow Dash, who was still frowning. She then began to explain what had happened not too long ago, as she tried her best not to say anything to explicate. A whole minute of silence passed by after hearing Twilight's story until she asked Rainbow a question.
"Dash, where's Spike and the others?" Twilight asked softly.
"They're on their way right now; I wanted to get here fast so I could make sure she was okay."
"Are you okay?"
Rainbow said nothing. She was anything but okay.
"Please Rainbow, talk to me. Tell me what's on your mind."
"I should've been there for her. Fluttershy was depressed and I didn't even know about it. I'm such a terrible friend." She crossed her hooves, beginning to feel guilt sink in.
"No Rainbow. It's because of you that we were able to get Fluttershy in here as fast as possible. You told the Emergency Medical Ponies that I was coming and they had their equipment ready by the time I got there. You might have just saved her."
Rainbow dash just sat there with a tear hitting her hind leg, not feeling any better. "You're the one who carried her all the way from the cottage. I wasn't there when she needed me the most. I abandoned her. I… I did something bad."
Now Twilight was concerned more by what she meant rather than by what she said. She was about to ask what she was talking about when she was interrupted by two earth ponies bursting through the front entrance. They were panting hard and looking in all directions of the lobby, hearing one of them cry out.
"Twilight? Rainbow? Where are ya?"
"Applejack, Pinkie. Over here." Twilight waved.
Realizing that Twilight and Rainbow Dash were in the lobby, Applejack sighed in relief that Fluttershy made it in okay. The two tired earth ponies then walked over to where their pegusus friend sat in a hunch with a broken expression on her face next to Twilight.
"I'm so glad you guys made it here." She said hoping off her chair.
"What in tarnation happened Twilight? What's Spike mean Fluttershy just tried ta… kill herself?" Applejack asked softly.
Twilight sighed. "Yes, I know it's hard to believe, but it's true. Spike and I were just at her cottage when we found her… hanging from the ceiling beam, so I got her here as quick as possible. The doctors just put Fluttershy in the IPC room. She should be in good hands now."
"Did you really carry her all the way from the cottage?" Pinkie asked.
"Yes, I did with Rainbow's help."
"Yer not hurt from carry'n her all the way over her are ya?"
"Don't worry about me, I feel just fine. Did you guys manage to find Rarity?"
Applejack and Pinkie Pie made a quick glance at each other with sudden realization. They had forgotten to tell Rarity. Ashamed, Applejack then turned around and started walking out of the waiting room.
"Sorry Twilight, we were running so fast that we forgot to even stop by her place being caught up in the confusion and all. I'll go get her right now."
"No wait. It's really late and I think it may be best if we just wait. We're still waiting on any news of Fluttershy's condition. I'll ask Spike to go get her tomorrow and…. wait, where is Spike?" She asked.
Pinkie Pie then frowned and turned her body sideways. "He's… right here," She replied.
There was a small spiked tail sticking out of Pinkie's Mane, which was now half wet with tears and sobs. Twilight then lifted up Pinkie's mane with her hoof. She could see Spike now curled up into a small ball as he held on to the pink pony's shoulders, his eyes only half open. He whimpered as he looked up and saw the four ponies looking worriedly at him.
"Spike, it's all right. We were-"
"No!" He yelled. "It's not all right Twilight. Fluttershy, one our most beloved and happiest ponies in Ponyville just tried to take her own life. How can anything be all right?"
Twilight then gently lifted Spike out of Pinkie's mane with her hooves, instead of using magic, and sat down on the closest chair with the upset dragon on her lap. She frowned but kept a cheerful thought in her head as she kindly rubbed her hoof on Spike's back.
"Listen Spike. You may have just helped save Fluttershy's life."
"How? There's no way I could've helped her. I wish you had just left me at the library." He turned his head away, not wanting anypony to see him like this, but Twilight turned his head back at her eyes with her hoof.
"Spike, it was because of you that you stood up and went to Apple Acres to get our friends. Because of you, Rainbow Dash got here quickly and passed on information to the EMPs in advance. She was ready to be taken to the IPC by the time I got here. You did a brave thing today." She smiled
Spike felt slightly better. He then began to yawn; feeling so tired from all his crying that all he wanted to do was just rest. Letting his head fall on Twilight's chest, he made a few whimpers as he closed his eyes and buried his face.
"P-please tell me Fluttershy's g-going to be ok-ay." He muffled softly.
Twilight looked down at her assistant and smiled. "She's going to be alright Spike, because we're going to be there for her."
Spike's tears then seized to flow and his breaths were shortened as he peacefully fell closed his eyes, resting on Twilight's lap. Everyone smiled at the exhausted dragon finally calmed down, except for Rainbow who was still just staring at the floor.
"I'll go get ya a blanket and a pillow fer Spike." Said Applejack.
"Thanks AJ."
With Spike asleep in Twilight lap, she gently him rocked back and forth, humming a soft tune to him. Pinkie Pie then noticed Rainbow who had been sitting in silence the entire time. Walking up slowly beside the silent pegusus, she could now see the tears the flowed down her face.
"Dashie, don't be sad. Fluttershy will get better, I just know she will. You gotta turn that frown upside-down." She said forcing a smile.
Rainbow's silence was her reply.
Pinkie Pie then sat down next to her, thinking for a moment of what to say next, thinking of anything to make Rainbow feel better knowing that Rainbow and Fluttershy had been the closest of friends since they were just fillies.
"They got some of the best doctors in all of Equestria here. It's just like that time you injured your wing, and you got better. When our little Flutter-butter-shy gets out, we can all have a nice-"
"You just don't understand Pinkie." Rainbow was becoming irritated with Pinkie's voice. "You think that things will just go back to normal? You think it'll be easy for Fluttershy to go out in public again?"
Applejack returned with a pillow and blanket on her back, handing it to Twilight as she placed the now sleeping Spike on the nearby bench. They both began to listen to Rainbow Dash.
"But, we're her friends. We should be able to make her feel happy again, right?" Pinkie asked.
"You didn't see her when she was on Twilight's back. She wasn't moving. She has a neck injury because she tried to kill herself! How do you think she'll feel when she sees us?" Rainbow stood up, pointing her hoof towards the direction of the IPC. Her friends were now able to see the tears that covered her cheeks.
"Rainbow! Please calm down. We all feel terrible for what happened to Fluttershy, but arguing doesn't make the situation any better."
The blue pegusus then broke down unable to control herself with her hooves raised up to her face as she sat on the cold, hard floor. Pinkie Pie leaned in next to her and held on tight as Rainbow let herself go into Pinkie's already half wet mane, crying soft enough not wake up Spike.
"How are we going to make her feel happy again?" Rainbow sobbed.
Applejack and Twilight walked forward and joined in with the hug around their sad little Dashie. Nopony said anything for what seemed like a minute but could have just as easily been an hour.
The group hug silence was broken when the guard from IPC sector came in. "Um… excuse miss Twilight, but there is something urgent that Dr. Hooves wants to speak with you about."
Just then, Dr. Whooves came running into the waiting room with a worried look on his face, panting slightly. "Twilight, are you the one who found her and brought her in?" He asked.
"Yes, I was." She replied. "Why?"
"We seem to be having trouble getting her blood pressure to drop. She seems to suffering from a toxin in her body that we can't identify. We need to know what happened when you found Fluttershy. Was there any indication of drugs or poisons used? Pills? Needles? Liquids? Anything?"
The other ponies then snapped out of their depressive state and were worried once again. They all their eyes focused on Twilight, waiting for her to respond. She stood there seconds on end; trying to remember everything she saw inside the living room. An epiphany struck her mind.
"There was an empty glass on the table, but I didn't think she… oh no. I just remembered it. Fluttershy was at the store earlier today. She must've bought a plant toxin."
"We will need to know the chemical contents of that toxin as well as the amount taken so that we can administer the right medication treatment."
Rainbow pushed Applejack aside and stepped forward. "How much time does she have?" She asked.
"We're suppressing the effects with antibodies, but if we don't get her the proper treatment within the hour, she could go into shock."
At that moment, Rainbow wiped her eye lids which revealed a determined look on her face knowing what she had to do. "I'll fly on back to Fluttershy's house and get that plant toxin for you. Wait here doc."
Before anypony could say anything, the blue pegusus ran out of the waiting room to the outside of the front entrance. She stopped and looked towards the moonlit sky, remembering the direction of Fluttershy's house towards the north. Without another moment's hesitation, she jumped off into the night sky, leaving a small dust cloud behind her.
"Hold on Fluttershy. Just please hold on." She said.
She immediately kicked it into overdrive, reaching high speeds as she flew over Ponyville. A blue blur could be seen for only a fraction of a second before a delayed sonic pitched sound followed behind her.
The IPC room was brightly lit with clean white walls surrounding Fluttershy as she opened her eyes, squinting at operating lights that shined upon her mane. Sounds of alarms going off on the heart monitors could be heard coming from the stand next to her. Disorientation clouded her mind as three nurses and a familiar doctor were scrambling around the room.
"Her heart rate is rising. What's happening?"
"Is that oxygen valve turned on? Get me a physical pulse check."
Fluttershy tried to look around but felt the restraint of the brace that had been attached to her injured neck. She felt so confused, hearing all these voices gave her the impression that she was in a dream. How could she be dreaming? Wasn't she supposed to be dead? Dead people don't dream.
Her eyes looked down towards her tummy where she felt a hoof pressing down near on her artery, just barely visible from the non-rebreather mask that covered her mouth. She tried to speak, but fell short of breath.
"What is she doing awake? She's supposed to be passive." A nurse said.
"Miss Fluttershy can you hear us? Everything's going to be okay. Just stay with us."
Suddenly, an apprehension rushed through Fluttershy's head. She knew that she was still alive and was now in the hospital under Intensive Pony Care. Thoughts of being seen by her friends like this became unbearable. Knowing that she must've tried to kill herself, the idea of giving reason for her actions was unthinkable.
"Fluttershy, can you tell us if you've ingested anything?" The doctor asked.
"I've got a blood pressure reading of 170 over 120. She's going into hypertensive urgency."
Her breathing patterns changed and became more rapid as her eyes widened, gasping for air, realizing that her suicide attempt failed. The emotion of shame poured into the heart, feeling such pain and stress in her head that all she wanted to do was not exist, not able to bear the thought of ever being seen again.
"Doctor, her blood pressure is still rising."
"Oh no, she's going into shock. Get me that surgical kit and 50 milligrams of beta-blockers. Miss Fluttershy, I need to try and relax. Stay with me now, ya hear?"
The yellow pegasus's eyes rolled as her chest suddenly stuck up into the air with a long gasp of breath following through; vision becoming blurry again. Purple veins could be seen popping up on her forehead, a grave sign that confirmed the doctor's theory.
"She's got a toxin inside of her. Hold her down and someone get me a standard set of antibodies, low grade."
"But what about the beta-blockers?" A voice responded.
"It won't come to that, but we'll need it just in case. Hurry!"
In what seemed like her final moments awake, Fluttershy could see all her friends in her vision. Their cheerful smiles as they all ran off towards the sun in the bright light that hung over her head. Her vision swiftly turning dark, she felt all alone. There was a sort of comfort to it, imagining the thoughts that she could now pass on without anyone seeing her in this state.
------
There was absolute silence in the bedroom as Rarity slept in her usual lady-like fashion with the soft plush pillows on the side of her head as to not damage her beautiful mane. The lights of Ponyville made a nice backdrop light to counterbalance the darkness in her room, giving a sense of peace and harmony.
Without warning, a loud high pitched boom exploded outside Rarity's window, slamming it wide open against the wall. Instantly woken up, her eyes opened with her hooves running off and over to the side of the bed. Hiding under her bed was an initial reaction for Rarity to such a loud noise, though after a moment of silence passed, she peered her head over the sheets.
"Of all the nerve, and at this hour too." She said to herself, realizing that only one pony in Ponyville was capable of making such a loud bang.
Looking over the window, Rarity glared out to the left and to the right of the street but saw nopony, nor anything out of the ordinary. Her hooves gently closed the glass screen before turning around to clean up and make her bed once again when a blinding light filled the room, making Rarity's heart explode twice.
"Gah! Monster!" She yelled, fearing the worst but was quickly relieved to see only a friend appear.
Before her was Twilight Sparkle, who was already looking towards the bed as she expected Rarity to be sleeping. The room dimmed down for a few seconds before Twilight looked to her right and saw her white unicorn friend standing in the street light that shined through the window.
"Rarity, I'm glad to see that you're awake."
"Twilight Darling, whatever are you doing teleporting into my room at this hour? I was trying to sleep."
Twilight felt confused. "This hour? It's not even eight o'clock."
"Proper beauty sleep is an important key to a beautiful and healthy well being. A girl's got to have some standards."
"That's great, but I need you to follow me. Something urgent has just happened and need you to-"
"Oh can't this wait until tomorrow? I'm positively tired and have had enough heart attacks for one day." Rarity sighed.
"Yes, but this is-"
"Pinkie Pie already stopped by and told me about Fluttershy, which I'm happy to help. I just need some sleep first. You can't imagine how hard it was to work without a modeler." Rarity said this unaware that she had forgotten how she asked Fluttershy to model for her dresses.
The bed sheets lit up as Rarity's horn glowed, rearranging them to a nice and neat fold under the mattress. Before she could finish the bed, in what would take only a few seconds, Twilight spoke up again.
"Yes I understand, but this is very important. It's really bad. I need to tell you that... um… something bad..." She paused not knowing any easy way to make her statement to someone completely oblivious. How in the world did Spike manage to tell their friends?
Rarity paused her bed making. "Bad? How bad? Horrible nightgown bad or sinister bad?"
"It's just that… um… there's..." Twilight had the words, she just couldn't find the courage to bring them out. Now she began to understand what Spike went through, at a loss for words.
Twilight fell silent and climbed onto the bed, gently laying herself on her tummy and hooves in her typical book reading position. A worried expression appeared on her face as she turned on the nearby lamp and motioned with her hoof for Rarity to sit next to her.
"That bad huh? Does this have something to do with Fluttershy?" Rarity asked.
The lilac unicorn remained quiet for a few seconds before taking in a deep breath as she spoke the following sentence straight forward with complete neutrality while at the same time, hating herself for making Spike do the exact same. A cold block of ice froze around her heart as she began to explain her story.
"Fluttershy just tried to kill herself."
------
Rainbow Dash left Fluttershy's door open as she accelerated back towards the hospital, the plant toxin bottle held tightly close to her chest. Her wings were in full gear, making her heart pump blood in every vessel of her body. As badly as she wanted to pull off a sonic rainboom to conserve time, she resisted the temptation. Her special technique required both front hooves to be facing forward, realizing the potential danger of dropping the bottle.
The geography of the location between Fluttershy;s cottage and the hospital had been mapped out in her head, clear as the night sky. While she concentrated on her flying, she couldn't help but think more and more of what pushed Fluttershy go to extreme measures; for her to ensure that she really did die from the poison that Rainbow now held between under her hooves.
"Why?" Rainbow thought. "Why couldn't she have come and talked to me instead of this damn bottle? Why didn't she think of her friends before doing something like this?"
Becoming so frustrated, Rainbow abruptly decided to change her vector displacement, shortening the travel distance between her and the hospital in her flight path. In doing so however, she disregarded the altitude and was flying too close towards Ponyville for her current velocity. Some might even consider this major felony in flight safety. It didn't matter to her though. More thoughts flew passed her head faster than the buildings around her.
"Don't you give up Fluttershy. I won't let you leave me like this. Not on me or anyone else. You have so many happy things to live for."
The hospital came closer and closer into view, flying on the home stretch. There was the anticipation that she would be able to decelerating fast enough in front of the hospital while making a perfect landing. As skillful as the blue pegasus was, previous accidents would show that she could also be the most careless when under high stress.
She flew down low towards the ground, about the make her touchdown when something happened. The dirt around her from the ground was being kicked up due to the intense flapping of her wings, making her vision impaired and was unable to see clearly. Realizing this, Rainbow immediately started flapping in reverse, digging her hind legs on the ground in an attempt to stop herself from hitting a wall.
The last thing she remembered at that moment was a great pain hitting her leg and the sounds of her body skidding over the dirt covered surface. Rainbow just hoped that she made it back in time as her vision blacked out.
------
"So that loud sound outside my window was Rainbow Dash?"
"Yes. I imagine she's already back at the hospital with the plant toxin. With that, they should be able to identify the chemical compound and use proper treatment."
"Are you sure? What if it's the wrong bottle? What if they give Fluttershy the wrong medicine?" Rarity panicked.
"Rarity, you of all ponies should have faith in Rainbow Dash. She wouldn't make a mistake in a situation like this."
There were times when Rarity had her doubts about Rainbow's ability to react properly in an emergency situation, jumping the gun at times. The impression was given that, though she was quick on her wings with good intentions in the acts of bravery and valor, she lacked the ability to take one step back before two steps forward.
"Yes, I suppose you are right. I apologize. I should know better." Rarity frowned
"It's fine. Don't sweat it."
"Of all the things somepony as timid as Fluttershy could do, I never imagined her even thinking of committing such a selfish act. How could she not even consider talking to us?"
Twilight was now troubled by her friend's choice of words. Selfish implied anger. Was Rarity angry with Fluttershy? Why would she feel angry? This didn't make much sense to her at the time. For now, she decided to ignore it.
"I am just as shocked as you are, but there will be time to talk this over with her. I think for now, it might be best if we get to the hospital and make sure things are fine."
"Yes, but before that, I must ask. Why didn't you come get me earlier?"
"I'm sorry that I didn't come get you sooner, but I knew that you had been working hard all day and I didn't want to cause you any stress. I was going to tell you tomorrow morning when things had settled down."
That last remark upset and disturbed Rarity. Why would Twilight think that her work would be more important than another friend's life? Knowing that she may be one of the hardest working ponies in town, Rarity felt that it didn't excuse her from putting her friends first.
Inquisitively, Rarity raised an eyebrow before crossing both of them, staring down at Twilight. "Whatever is that suppose to mean? Are you saying that I care more about my work than I do about our friends?"
"No, I just felt it would've been best if I told you in the morning, but that was before-"
"Before what? Her funeral? You thought Fluttershy's life wasn't already in enough danger until after the doctor told you about her poisoning herself?"
Twilight turned her head away, knowing her friend's statement to be absolute. "Well, yes but I thought that-"
"Did it take you that much of information for you to finally come here and-" Rarity paused, becoming conscious of the fact that Twilight was the one who carried Fluttershy all the way to the hospital. Sadness filled her entire heart; it was only moments ago how she was the one telling Twilight how beauty sleep meant more to her than a friend's near death experience.
"Rarity?"
"I'm so sorry Twilight. I don't want to fight right now. I just want to see our Fluttershy again."
"So do I." Twilight hopped off the bed. "Come on, let's go hear the good news."
------
Applejack stepped up to the nurses who were now carrying away Rainbow Dash on a stretcher. "Let me see that there bottle." She demanded, grabbing it by the mouth and running towards Dr. Whooves in the waiting room.
"Is that the bottle Fluttershy used?" the doctor asked.
Applejack set the bottle down in front. "I ain't a hundred percent on it but this is what was found on her when she crashed out front."
"Crashed? Is she okay?!" Pinkie exclaimed.
"Don't you worry. She's being taken in by the nurses now. I've seen worse happen ta that crazy pegasus. How's it look doc?"
Dr Hooves pondered, looking over the warning contents on the back. It took only a moment of critical thinking before he sighed with relief. "Glyphosphate; a common chemical used to kill weeds among other plants. We should be able to properly treat Fluttershy now. Give my thanks to Rainbow Dash when she feels better."
Applejack smiled. "Much obliged doc."
With the bottle handle in his mouth, Dr Whooves ran off without any time to waste. The information of the chemical poison was exactly what he needed. Having the bottle's remaining contents measured gave the exact amount of poison ingested, which provided a measurement of the dosage needed in the antidote.
Seeing the doctor run back inside the IPC to save Fluttershy made bothe earth ponies release a huge sigh of relief. Their stresses were finally gone, as they knew their friend would be okay. All they or anyone else could do now was wait, knowing that there would be time for rest and reconciliation. However, Fluttershy's safety wasn't the only concern, as Pinkie began to wonder about Rainbow's rough landing.
"So what happened to Dashie? Are you sure she's okay?" Pinkie asked.
Applejack wanted to smile, but would feel silly talking about a friend's injury while seeming happy. "She was unconscious outside the front doors but had only a minor bruise on her hind leg along with a few scraps along her side. Believe me thought, she's had it worse."
"Pheew. That's good to hear. Twilight and Rarity will be relieved to hear the good news once they get back." Pinkie looked up at the clock. "How long you think they've been gone?"
"Knowing Twilight, she probably wanted ta make sure that she eased in ta tellin' Rarity about Fluttershy's… um, incident."
The two earth ponies took their seats again in the waiting room. Pinkie looked over at Spike who was still asleep on the soft bench; his back slowly rising from his breathing falling silent under the blanket. She was excited to tell Spike the good news and that things would be okay now, but just smiled instead, knowing that it could wait.
Applejack yawned, feeling her anxiety about to catch up to her. Dark rings were beginning to form around her eyelids, giving the implementation of a lack of sleep.
"Why don't you get some sleep AJ? You've been working all day. I can wake you up when the doctor comes back."
A stubborn yet caring voice replied. "No way no how. I'm stayin' awake till I hear she's goin' to be okay."
Pinkie then nestled her head upon Applejack's shoulder, comforting her friend as a sign of reassurance. They both smiled as Pinkie Pie let herself fall asleep, slumping down onto the work pony's lap. Applejack could feel Pinkie breathing soundly up against her leg. Looking down at what seemed to be her content; she noticed a single tear sliding down from Pinkie's eye.
Ten minutes of silence went by without anypony else stepping into the waiting room. Applejack began to search through her own thoughts about Fluttershy. This definitely had something to do with Angel Bunny, though the main question that hung over her head was the trigger. What was it that finally pushed Fluttershy to such lengths?
A still fresh memory of the mare outside the shop today ran through her head. Was it something the pony said? She and everypony in Ponyville knew her all too well to forget such a name and felt the need to investigate more, but neither anger nor jumping to conclusions was the best answer for now. There would be much to discuss with Twilight and her friends later.
The orange earth pony closed her eyes; about to rest her head on top of Pinkie's when a whisper spoke behind her in the doorway. "Applejack. Are you asleep?"
Applejack yawned again, looking over her shoulder to see Twilight and Rarity. "Naw, I was just restin'."
"Where's Rainbow Dash? Did she make it in time?"
"Don't ya fret now sugarcube. She made it here in time and Fluttershy is gonna be okay."
------
Rainbow Dash stared down at the brace that was secured to her left hind leg, eager to leave. "Thanks for patching me up nurse. Can I get out of this bed now? I need to see my friends."
"Have patience Miss Rainbow. I need to clear you first." She said, opening a folder with x-rays as she propped them up against the back light. Rainbow was all about anything but patience.
Rainbow sat on the bed with anticipation. "Well?"
The nurse smiled. "You don't seem to have any fractures, just a nasty bruise. I advise that you keep that brace on for at least a week to help you walk. Just make sure you wash it regularly. Are you sure that you don't feel light headed?"
"I'm fine nurse. That bump on the head was nothing. I've been injured much worse before."
The nurse paused, judging Rainbow's expression before making a final decision. "I'll go get the discharge papers so you can see your friends."
"Finally. Thank you nurse."
More than a hour had passed since her nerve racking crash outside the hospital. Knowing that she only walked about 20% of the time, she couldn't care less about an injured leg. She was just relieved to hear from Twilight that she did make it back in time and the Fluttershy was stablized.
The nurse returned with a clipboard and pen in her mouth, placing it on the table. "Sign here and you may leave."
Grabbing the pen in such a rush, she made a crude signature and immediately rose up from the bed, about to make a dash down the hall towards the lobby but was stopped.
"Miss Rainbow Dash, please. We don't allow flying in the hospital."
------
Celestia's morning sun rose from the east, slowly making its light up towards Twilight's bed. Though Spike had no problem sleeping on the trip back to the library, Twilight had achieved very little sleep the entire night. Dr Whooves had already reassured her friends that Fluttershy's condition was stable; recommending that they all get some sleep and return tomorrow once Fluttershy regained some strength.
Still, the very thought of losing Fluttershy crept in her mind. Thinking about it over and over again, as if trying to comprehend how she or anypony else in Ponyville would handle such terrible news. It would be a day of such lose and remorse; the day that the element of kindness would be killed by her own sorrow. Thus the rest of her friends, the elements, and the rest of the town would be drenched in a severe spiral of endless sorrow.
Exhausted, the lilac unicorn somehow found the strength to climb out of bed and make her way downstairs. To her surprise, she found Spike busy reorganizing a pile of encyclopedia books to their proper shelves.
Spike turned around. "Oh good, you're awake. How'd you sleep?"
Twilight rubbed an eye. "I don't think I slept too well, but I'm glad to see that you got a full night's rest. How are you feeling?"
"I feel just fine. I took the liberty of getting a head start on putting back those books you we're researching yesterday."
Spike's enthusiasm gave Twilight a worried expression, sensing that he was suppressing his emotions. Despite this, she felt happy knowing how loyal and hard working her assistant was, even in the direst of situations.
"Hey Spike."
"Yeah Twilight?"
"Why don't you take the rest of the day off?"
About to shelf another book, the baby dragon paused "Huh? What do you mean?"
"You did enough yesterday for Fluttershy, so you can just sit and relax. I'll be going to the hospital with our friends to check on Fluttershy."
Spike jumped off the ladder, and walked towards the front door as he met Twilight face to face. She feared that Spike would start crying again at the reminder of last night's situation. To anyone's surprise though, the baby dragon stood firmly, looking up at Twilight with a demeanor look on his face. He took in a small breath before speaking.
"I want to go with you."
Twilight said nothing, unsure of what to say. Letting her young assistant go back to the hospital was the last thing she wanted to do.
"Please Twilight. I need to be there. If you are giving me the day off, then this is how I want to spend it."
Twilight smiled, happy as ever to hear such noble words from her assistant. "Sure thing Spike, let's not waste any time."
------
Fluttershy was finally awake. Her friends all sat in the lobby, eager to hear whether she would be allowed visitors or not. The suspense was building up in the room, as everypony desperately wanted to see Fluttershy's again. They had to see for themselves that she was alright and wanted the benefit of a doubt that her suicidal tendencies weren't still floating in her head.
Dr. Whooves returned to the waiting room, bringing in the latest news. "Fluttershy has requested that before she sees any of you, she would like to see Rainbow Dash first."
"Me? Just me alone?" Rainbow squeaked.
"Yes, as those were her exact words."
"Thank you Dr. Whooves. We'll just need a few minutes first." Said Twilight.
"Of course. She's right down the left hallway in room B7 whenever you are ready."
The four ponies started to stare at Rainbow Dash as she just stood there, still bandaged up from yesterday's injury. "I don't know what to do you guys. What should I say to her? Where do I even begin to talk to her?"
Rarity spoke up. "There is no need to worry yourself dearie. I think that just being there for her is enough."
The picture of seeing Fluttershy's lifeless body still lingered in Rainbow's head. A still image was fixed in her mind, and it scared her. "But why me? Of all ponies, why would she want to see me?"
"Because you're her longtime fillyhood friend silly!" Pinkie bounced.
Seeing all her friends smile, Rainbow raised her head up high, forcing herself to be brave. "Alright, I can do this. This is Fluttershy we're talking about. She needs somepony to talk to and I'm the one for the job."
"That's the spirit Dashie!"
When walking out of the waiting room, Rainbow stopped to look back at her friends. Unsure of what to say, her mouth had opened but remained mute. Without intention, she had been looking over at Applejack, wanting her to say something since she was her best bet for moral support, being close competitors and all.
"Don't ya worry there Rainbow! If you or Fluttershy need us, we'll be right here." Applejack smiled.
Taking another deep breath, Rainbow began to walk down to room B7. Time seemed to slow down as her hooves took each step, trying not to rush herself into seeing Fluttershy so quickly. Something felt wrong inside her heart. One side was filled with such eagerness to be reunited with her friend after such a terrifying stunt, while the other held her back in the fear of seeing such a sad sight of her friend.
The hallway was still quiet as some hospitalized ponies were still sleeping thought the morning. Room B7 was a single pony room, specially fitted for those who were on suicide watch. Rainbow stood in front of the door, closing her eyes in a final attempt to blacken out the dark image of her dead friend; an image of the dead Flutttershy that laid on Twilight's back which took the very breath right out of her. She succeeded.
Slowly opening the door, she looked over to the bed, seeing an all too familiar yellow pegasus turn her head to look directly at Rainbow's eyes. A mere smile from Rainbow was followed by her casual walk into the room, not saying anything at first. After a few seconds glance to see who had entered the room, Fluttershy turned her head back, looking down at the bed sheets once more.
"Um… hey Fluttershy. How're you feeling?"
It took more than a few seconds to respond. "I'm… doing fine."
The heart monitor continued to make its soft beeps in rhythm with Fluttershy's heartbeat. It remained in a calm state even as the tension began to build up inside both ponies. Instead of waiting for Fluttershy to say something, Rainbow took the initiative to speak first, but was cut off.
"Fluttershy… I want to say… that I-"
"Rainbow…"
"Yes, Fluttershy?"
She continued to look away. "Before you say anything, I need to ask you something."
Rainbow then stepped in closer to the bed, making a gentle response. "Of course. What's on your mind?"
Fluttershy then turned her head and looked directly into her friend's eyes, staring into such an oblivion of sadness and despair that it almost pained Rainbow to even look at her.
"How am I still alive?" She asked
"Huh?"
"Why didn't I die? I wanted to die so badly and to not… have you see me like this." She clenched her eyes as a strong set of tears streamed down her cheek. "Why did I live? Why couldn't I have just died?"
Rainbow just glared at her friend, shocked in disbelief by her very words. "Fluttershy? What are you saying?"
"I was so miserable yesterday that I… I just felt like ending it all."
There were more tears flowing down Fluttershy's cheek, unable to control her persona which left Rainbow speechless. Nothing like this had ever been seen in Fluttershy since Rainbow became friends with her. The heart monitor continued to beep as many moments of sobbing silence passed between the two ponies.
Though Rainbow was lost towards knowing what to do in her position, she still managed to murmur a reply. "Fluttershy, please. You're scaring me."
Fluttershy whimpered. "I felt like there was nothing I could do to make myself better. I was all alone with nopony to reach out to….Tell me Rainbow Dash, how can anypony feel this way?"
The blue pegasus started to tear up as well, unable to answer. She just sat there, not wanting to listen to every word that was poured into her soul. Her face went from worried to a frightened expression as the terrifying image from yesterday crept its way back into her head.
"Why is life so cruel to me?" Fluttershy clenched her eyes shut tight, "I just… I just want myself to-"
At that instant, Rainbow lunged herself onto the bed; eyes clenched with both hooves wrapping tightly around Fluttershy's shoulders, making her heart skip a beat. Putting both of them in a state of harmony, silence filled the room once again as Fluttershy returned the hug and nestled on Rainbow's mane.
"It's okay Fluttershy. You don't have to be alone. I'm here now. I'm here now and… and we can just talk things out, because I care for you."
"…Rainbow?"
"Oh Fluttershy, We've been good friends since our fillyhood. I don't know what I'd do with without you."
Those very words opened Fluttershy's eyes; overflowed with such compassion from her fillyhood friend that it made her gasp. She stared blankly towards the flowers across the counter of the opposite wall as her tears seized to flow. For just a minute, all they both wanted to do was hold each other; as if to never let go.
"I'm sorry." Said Fluttershy. "I didn't mean to just blurt it all out on you, it's just that… I wanted you to be the first one I talked to since I feel so close to you."
For the first time since yesterday, Rainbow Dash smiled. "Thanks Fluttershy. That really means a lot to hear you say that."
"Oh, no Rainbow Dash. It's your words that really mean a lot to me." The feeling was mutual.
Rainbow parted away from the hug and looked into Fluttershy's eyes, now unafraid of seeing the dark image once again. With tears in their eyes, the two pegasi both made a small smile at each other, feeling a sort of awkwardness with neither of them not knowing what else to say. Now that things were calm once again, Rainbow decided to break the ice.
"Yeah, so… um… are you really feeling better?"
"Yes… well not entirely, but I'm glad to have you here right now." A small smile was returned before Rainbow walked over to the other side of the room to pull up a chair. Fluttershy noticed how Rainbow was limping and, from behind, could see the brace secured to her blue friend's leg.
"Rainbow! Your leg! Are you hurt?"
Rainbow quickly glanced at the black tether brace. "Oh, this? I uh… hurt myself while I was helping Applejack with her apple trees and all."
The forcing of a smile with her eyebrows raised easily gave away Rainbow's dishonesty. "You hurt yourself when you were trying to save me, didn't you?"
Rainbow could only respond with a frown, not wanting to admit the truth. She couldn't think of how to answer her.
"I'm so sorry Rainbow." Fluttershy continued. "You got yourself hurt because of me."
"It's okay… I-it doesn't hurt at all because… I've had much worse injuries before. This little scrape will heal up in no time."
Fluttershy looked directly at Rainbow. "Please answer me honestly. How did I… get to the hospital? The doctors wouldn't tell me much."
Before Rainbow responded, she heard a small noise coming from behind and shot a glance at the crack of the door, perceiving a set of familiar eyes looking directly into the room. "That doesn't matter now. What does matter is that your friends are here to see you now. It's okay guys, you can come in."
------
The morning seemed rather chilly as Fluttershy blinked her eyes open, easing her way into waking up. Expecting to see the warmth of the sun, she noticed how odd it felt to hear the absence of the typical bird chirping she'd grown accustomed to waking up to; replaced by the sounds of droplets hitting the roof. Opening her eyes fully, Fluttershy was taken by surprise to see that it was raining heavily outside.
The weather ponies must've had to set an unexpected drizzle to compensate for the lack of condensation needed to cycle the water. Only half awake now, Fluttershy crawled out of bed and walked towards the nearby window. Looking out, mud puddles could be seen in the open field with the Everfree forest trees blowing at edge of the tall grass.
"Oh no. Angel Bunny!" She exclaimed.
Realizing how cold and wet it was outside, she ran down the steps and out the front door towards Angel Bunny's outside house, instantly feeling the tingling sensation of the rain drops hitting her body. Glaring inside the small house, all that could be seen were a few left over pieces of the salad from last night, but no white bunny.
"Oh my, oh dear. Angel? Where are you?"
Her concern was that she'd always let Angel Bunny inside the house to stay warm and dry whenever it rained. The unexpected downpour caught Fluttershy off guard and could not help but feel upset, not being awake to let Angel come inside.
Leaping over the fence in such a rush, her mane swayed back and forth in the wind; looking in every direction. "Angel! Angel! Where'd you go? Come back!"
A sharp bolt of lightning struck in the air with such a thunderous sound so loud, that it sent chills down Fluttershy's hooves. For the split second that the accumulated light flashed in the sky, she could see two animal figures standing in the middle of the field. Though visibility in the rain was rather low, she could make out that one of them was rather small, while the other was clearly larger and appeared to be covered in thick fur.
Instinct took over and she took flight. "Angel Bunny!"
A moment later, Fluttershy descended and landed just feet away from the two animal figurines, but almost immediately took two steps back by the sudden fear. Before her was a wet and vicious looking wolf, eyeing directly at a small white bunny who had his back pressed up against a small log.
"Angel!" She cried, her voice just barely loud enough to be heard over the wind.
The terrified Angel Bunny instinctively ran over to Fluttershy; hiding behind her hind legs, all the while the wolf never took his hungry eyes of his prey. With Fluttershy now making her presence clear, the wolf was looking directly at her, as if appeasing to a new item on the menu.
"Please mister wolf. Leave Angel Bunny alone."
Unable to comprehend the thought of compassion, the wolf took a step closer with a snarky growl. Fluttershy was as terrified as ever by the sight of the wolf's sharp teeth. When an animal feels frightened however, they can be cornered, and when they are cornered in fear, there is no telling what they're capable of.
"I said. Leave him alone." Her tone changed with her eyes, which were now crossed.
Crouching down, the wolf prepared to leap forward at Fluttershy before another flash of thunder and lightning went off in the clouds.
"Leave him alone!" She yelled, lunging forward.
Hitting each other in mid air, they both fell to the ground. A paw swiped Fluttershy in the face and knocked her over against the log. Not letting up, the angry wolf lunged himself on top of the yellow pegasus, forcing Fluttershy to press her hind legs against the wolf's heavy chest, with her front hooves trying to control the jaw. She screamed as the beast growled louder and louder, getting closer to the edge of her pink mane.
With a slight adjustment to her legs, she kicked the beast squarely in the throat as hard as possible before reaching for a rock that laid over the other side of the log; hiding it behind her head with both hooves; cocked and ready. It would only take a few seconds before the wolf regained his footing in the mud, which gave such little time for Fluttershy to even attempt to flee.
"Get away!" She screamed
The final lung came in and with such perfect timing as the yellow pegasus brought the rock down onto the wolf's head, which was followed by a whimper after he hit the ground, bleeding. It wouldn't stop there however. Out of shear fright and anger, she flew up into the air and brought down yet another blow to the twitching body.
In a distinctive rhythm, she repeatedly smashed the rock into its face with trickles of blood spraying into her mane. She kept this up until the wolf's face was nothing more than a mangled mess of mud, blood and fur, which left the rock painted in a dark shade of red.
By the time it was all over, Fluttershy's chest was breathing heavily while kneeled over in the tall grass. The rain spontaneously ceased to fall and a clearing opened in the sky, slowly releasing the sunlight over the field. Fluttershy dropped the rock and fell backwards; staring in shock at the mangled body that was surrounded by the red stained grass.
She gasped. "Wha-what did I… do?"
She killed an animal. The one pony who devoted her life to caring for all creatures large and small had just taken a life; something that she could never let down. It was very quiet all around. Looking behind where she once stood, Angel was gone. He had vanished during the fight and wasn't anywhere to be seen.
Before leaving the dead wolf in the field to search for her friend, she looked towards the trees near her cottage. Animals of all kinds had been watching her the entire time, and were now filled with such fear of the soft yellow pegasus.
------
"Fluttershy!" Spike yelled, running in excitement across the room before throwing himself at the bed. He clenched onto Fluttershy's hoof, as happy as ever to see the kind pony he'd grown to know and love since he and Twilight first moved into Ponyville.
"Oh… hi Spike." Fluttershy was taken by surprise.
With the rest of her friends calmly making their way into the room, Fluttershy's emotions quickly changed into a falling strut, feeling terrified. What appeared to be as her usual shy self was actually anguish and distress. The very sight of her friends reminded her of the regret and heartache that was experienced during her panic attack in the IPC room. This was exactly the situation she feared as an outcome of her suicide attempt. Unable to face her friends, she couldn't help but just shrug and hide under the covers in fear.
"Fluttershy? Are you okay?" Rainbow asked.
Spike then released Fluttershy's hoof as he noticed her withdrawal under the covers. Fluttershy made a small whimper and Spike asked, "What's wrong?"
Everyone was about to step in closer before Rainbow raised a hoof. "Wait a sec you guys."
Knowing what to do, Rainbow Dash made a gentle walk to the other side of the bed, while remaining as silent as possible with her injured leg. She slipped in her head under the corner of the bed sheets while sliding a hoof over Fluttershy's warm body; which brought her some comfort. Bringing their foreheads together, Rainbow whispered closely with a soft smile.
"It's alright Fluttershy. Your friends want to see you. There's nothing to be afraid of."
Her eyes remained closed. "But… I'm so scared. I don't want them to see me like this."
"They came here to see you because they care about you. Don't be scared. I'll be right beside you the entire time."
"Um… okay. I'll try."
Fluttershy's pink mane slowly rose from under the covers with Rainbow Dash simultaneously; her eyes were still shut. By the time she opened them, all of her friends were surrounding the bed with smiles on their faces. Keeping their distances encouraged the frail pegasus to sit upright and feel confident enough to look at her friends without shying away.
Applejack was the first to speak. "Hey there sugar cube. Glad to see ya."
Before saying a word, Fluttershy looked at her rainbow maned friend, who just simply nodded and smiled, as if to give consent that it was okay for her to talk. Although Fluttershy frowned when she spoke, it was a good first step for someone as sensitive as her.
"Hi everyone. It's um… nice to see you all he-."
"Hi Fluttershy! I've never been so excited to see you again. Did you get some good rest? Did ya? Did ya?" Pinkie hopped.
Rarity instantly covered the party pony's mouth. "Pinkie Pie, please do keep your voice down, especially in front of Fluttershy. This is still a hospital after all."
"Oopsies. Sorry Fluttershy."
"Oh my… it's okay Pinkie Pie. I did get some rest and my body feels much better. It's just my insides that… that still hurt."
The small talk seemed to be doing some good and filled the room with a very mellow aura, putting the tension at ease. Everyone seemed happy and content. The truth however was that nopony wanted to rush answers out of Fluttershy about her attempted suicide; afraid of what they may learn. More importantly though, they were more afraid to not knowing the truth, which was the key to Fluttershy's recovery.
"The doctor told us that you would be able to check out in a few days." Said Twilight.
"Oh. That's good to hear. I was wondering how long I'd have to stay in bed."
Though everyone was afraid to ask, they all remembered what Twilight told them while they waited in the lobby. It was arranged so that Twilight would be the one to ask the questions while everyone else would offer moral support. This would ensure that it didn't turn into an interview of questions and would ease their way into finding out what went on last night.
"Fluttershy, what happened yesterday? Can you tell us what's been going on?" Twilight asked.
Fluttershy blinked once and brought a hoof to her neck before looking at her fillyhood friend again. Rainbow, who stood by her side, took a hold of her hoof and beamed. "It's alright. It's just us. You can tell us anything you want or don't want."
Taking in a deep breath, she finally spoke out loud. "There's just so much on my mind right now that it still makes me feel so… so…"
"I was so alone in the world that it felt like I could just scream… but my voice felt isolated with no one to talk to."
The tension shot up, and everyone was silenced by the shock to hear those very words come out of Fluttershy's mouth. Since nopony had anything to say, Twilight brought up another question to keep the conversation moving. "Why didn't you come and talk to us?"
"I was afraid to… because-" Fluttershy's tears reopened as she looked out the window. "I didn't want to be such a burden to anypony."
Rainbow shook her head in doubt. "A burden? How could you be such a burden when you do so many wonderful and kind things for all the creatures of Ponyville."
That last comment stuck Fluttershy right into the heart, feeling such a strong memory of the atrocity she committed days ago. She resisted bursting into tears, as she did not want her friends to discover the unspeakable act the occurred in the tall grass outside her cottage. The very thought of confrontation was unbearable.
"You guys were busy and needed my help with a so many things that I just couldn't bring myself to being seen so weak and… weighing you all down. I remembered how much of a burden I was to you guys when we had to confront that dragon or like my outburst at the Grand Galloping Galla."
"Yes, but that was different sweetie." Said Rarity.
With no other response, Applejack stepped forward. "Look Fluttershy, there's a big difference between feelin' sad and feelin' scared, but ya gotta remember that everyone needs a friend whenever they're feelin' either one of the two."
"And that's what we're all here for, because we care for you." Spike added.
"So… you guys still wanted to see me, even after I…" Her voice trailed off.
"Of course silly willy! We love you!" Pinkie exclaimed.
"We're here for you and always will be." Rainbow finished.
A warm feeling flickered on inside of Fluttershy's heart that was small in stature but just big enough to put another smile on her face. Through all the doubts and dark thoughts that clouded her mind, she revived the faith that she had in her friends; knowing that they were there for her. Right when Fluttershy opened her mouth to speak, a voice interrupted at the doorway. It was Dr. Whooves.
"I apologize for interrupting you folks, but it's time to give miss Fluttershy her medication and pain cream."
Twilight answered before anyone could protest. "Right, we understand. We'll give you the room and privacy needed."
"I appreciate it. We should only be a few minutes and then you can come back in."
"Thank you Dr. Whooves. Come on everypony."
The nurse strolled in with a small cart as everyone began to exit single filed. Fluttershy's eyebrows raised with a hoof extended. "You guys aren't leaving yet are you?"
"Don't worry, we're not going anywhere. We'll just be right outside."
"Um… okay."
With everyone outside, Twilight made sure the door was shut far enough to not be heard or seen by from the inside. No one knew exactly what to say to each other, nor did they know how to feel from such an awkward confrontation, feeling absorbed in a depth of despair and hardship.
"She's really in a lot pain. I've never seen her like this before. What could possibly be making her act this way?" Rainbow asked.
Rarity answered. "Well I for one think that we shouldn't rush ourselves into finding out. She's seems very unstable right now, so I think it would be best if we just stick to the small talk."
Twilight paused. "I guess you're right. I wouldn't want to have Fluttershy worry about us judging her. That would be wrong, but we need to find out soon. Does anyone here have any other ideas about what caused her to feel so depressed in the first place?"
"Well, we already know about her crying at the lake yesterday, something bad that happened with Angel Bunny and how none of us except Twilight has seen her in the last three days." Rainbow explained.
"That little incident with Angel is probably why Fluttershy wanted that book on bunny care that I was saving." Twilight turned to her assistant. "Spike, did you notice anything unusual in Fluttershy's behavior the last time you saw her?"
"No. She seemed just like her normal happy self. Nothing out of the ordinary." He replied.
A few of the ponies took a seat on the floor, reminiscing over the last few days of any events that involved Fluttershy. Two minutes of silence passed by, trying to think of anything else that could give them a hint or a clue to show what caused this incident to occur. They repeated the facts over and over again without any other leads to go on.
Applejack on the other hand was withholding information. She grew more and more upset at herself for not speaking up since she was the element of honesty after all. Though she knew that telling the truth was the right thing to do, she also learned that sometimes telling the truth could make others upset or even do more harm than good. She had to tell them.
"Um… T-Twilight."
"Yes Applejack?"
"I-I think…" Everyone looked at the orange earth pony. She didn't want to tell the others, but didn't want to keep anything from them either. "I think there's somethin' else ya outta know."
"What is it?"
Applejack sighed. "It's about Trixie."
------
Night time came as the hours went by very quickly for Rainbow Dash who had been sitting next to Fluttershy the entire day. Everything was quiet and content as the yellow pegasus slept peacefully in her bed, all the while the loyal blue Pegasus remained at her side. Everyone else had already left in the afternoon, but Rainbow insisted on staying no matter what.
Dr. Whooves walked into the room only a few seconds after the clock on the wall struck nine, speaking softly, "Rainbow Dash, I'm afraid that visiting hours have ended for the day."
Rainbow walked over to protest quietly enough to not wake Fluttershy. "But it hasn't even been that long. Can't you just give me five more minutes with her?"
"I'm sorry Rainbow Dash, but it is hospital policy. Fluttershy needs the rest for now."
Rainbow dropped her head, staring at the ground.
"There's no need to worry." He assured. "We have nurses watching her twenty-four-seven and you can come back tomorrow morning when visiting hours reopen at ten."
"You promise me?" Rainbow inquired.
Dr. Whooves knew that he himself could not promise 24/7 care and that other staff members would take the night shifts. However, it was to the best interest of everyone that he suggested otherwise, knowing that Rainbow Dash wouldn't want to leave. It was obvious to him that Rainbow felt a great sense of responsibility to guard and look after her, being the element of loyalty and all.
"You have my word and that she will be kept safe. Now you run along home. You look like you could use some rest."
"I guess we could both use some sleep. I appreciate your loyalty to my friend." Rainbow glanced at Fluttershy one more time with grin on her face, convinced that she'd get to see her tomorrow morning. Upon walking past the doctor, she stopped and added "…And Dr. Whooves…"
"Yes?"
"…Thank you for saving Fluttershy. There's no telling what I or anyone else in Ponyville would do without her."
"Yes I agree, but I think you're the one who should be thanked. From what I heard, you flew quite the distance to Fluttershy's house and back with that bottle in such a short amount of time." Whooves smiled.
"Whatever you say doc." Rainbow walked away without saying anything else.
The room darkened as the brown earth pony lowered the dimmer on the light switch; set just bright enough for Fluttershy to feel comfortable sleeping in the dark. When the door finally closed, Fluttershy rustled over to her side and smiled, looking out the window in the night sky. She had heard everything.
Rainbow's leg had been feeling much better and could now walk on it without limping. The first thing she wanted to do was to take a bath, considering that she hadn't washed her leg wound all day as instructed to do so by the nurse.
Walking down the hallway, she was met by Applejack who had a saddlebag on her back; waiting patiently for Rainbow by herself. Her face held a sense of seriousness, like she had important news to bring.
"Hey AJ. What are you doing back here? Visiting hours just ended."
"I know and I was intendin' on seein' ya both, but… I though it be best ta give ya some more time alone with her before we talked." Applejack looked concerned.
Rainbow blinked a few times. "Y-yeah… some alone time. Well, she's sleeping now so… what did you want to talk about?"
"There's something that ya need ta see."
"What is it? Is… it having something to do with Fluttershy?"
Applejack looked away, giving an indefinite 'yes' to Rainbow's question. "I found out something but I wanted you to be the first to know about it since I think you're Fluttershy's closest friend."
The orange earth pony dropped her saddlebag back to the floor, but also made the effort to take her hat off as a sign of respect. Reaching inside with one hoof, she pulled out a medium sized rock with a dark red stain covering the bottom.
The white unicorn ran outside and towards the Hay And Stay hotel with Twilight teleporting just in front of her. "Out of my way Twilight!" She exclaimed
Twilight stood her ground. "Rarity, please clam down!"
"That filthy little ruffian is probably the main reason why Fluttershy is in that hospital."
"But this isn't what Fluttershy would want. You need to think straight!"
"I think I know what that worthless slim of a unicorn needs is a good kicking. Now move I say!"
Twilight didn't want to resort to this spell being used on her friends, but felt left with no other option. Her horn began to glow as the ground below her started to light up. Chunks of dirt and rock shot up and clasped around Rarity's hooves, stopping her in place.
"Wha- gah! How did… I can't move!" Rarity struggled.
"Good, that means the protective barrier I placed is working."
Rarity pulled her hooves, but to no avail. "Twilight Sparkle, remove this enchantment this instant!"
"Not until you've calmed down. Now you're going to stand there and listen to what I have to say."
The white unicorn thrashed about intensively to try and free herself and even attempted to use her own magic to break the barrier, but to no avail. She was more than furious after hearing about Trixie from Applejack and wanted nothing more than to face her right now.
After pouting more than a minute, Rarity finally submitted to her friend's demand. "Fine, Twilight. I'll listen to you."
They were both lucky that there weren't many ponies outside at this time in the morning. With Rarity stuck to the ground, their awkward situation would certainly raise some eyebrows and possibly gather a crowd towards the commotion.
------
The cashier rang up the total. "That'll be 6 bits ma'am."
Without saying anything, Fluttershy reached into her butterfly decorated saddlebag and presented the amount of pay. Her dull expression was fitted with a frown that seemed to show as little emotion as possible. The only thing she did was stare at the merchandise on the counter for a few seconds, as if hesitant to take the weed killer and rope she just purchased.
"Is there anything else I can get you?" He asked.
"Um… n-no. I'm fine. This is all I need."
The cashier pony didn't want to say anything to the silent pegasus at first. It might've been due to the lack of customers in line, or how he felt exceptionally considerate when he noticed a small tear falling down Fluttershy's eye. He wouldn't want to upset her, much less make her rush.
Half a minute went by. "Um, miss? Are you okay?"
"Yes… I'm fine." She muttered.
The cashier dropped the bits into the box and shut it closed. He wasn't convinced in the slightest; seeing her slowly raise her hoof in hesitation to take the items off the counter. When she carefully placed them into her bag, there was a slight murmur under her breath. The cashier leaned in closer with concern.
"Are you sure that there's nothing else I can do for you?"
There wasn't anything she wanted, only to be alone. "No…I-I was just remembering something." The bell above the door rang as Fluttershy stopped just outside the store.
The bright sunlight made her eyes squint and face down at her own shadow. Sighing at the thought of being afraid of her own shadow, she was reminded of how weak and frail other ponies saw her. Even her friends might think that anypony else would seem just as brave and vigilant. But would it be worse than having them find out how much of monster she could become behind their closed eyes?
"Maybe nopony would miss me…" She cried inside.
Closing her eyes, Fluttershy turned the corner and started walking home in a dawdling fashion with her head hanging. She didn't want to stand out or have anypony notice her, especially her friends. Unfortunately, she'd bump into the last pony anyone would want to see.
"Ouch! Why don't you watch where you're walking?" Said a blue unicorn, falling on her flank.
"Oh-um… I-I'm sorry, I didn't see-"
"You probably messed up my cape. Is this any way to treat the great and powerful-" The unicorn paused, staring at the recognizable. "… Wait, do I know you?" She hissed.
The blue unicorn raised her voice. "How could a resident of Ponyville not know about the great and powerful Trixie? Just who the hay are you are missy?"
Fluttershy didn't realize it was a rhetorical question. "Um… I'm Fluttershy…"
The mentioning of that name sparked a headline she recalled reading about in the Equestrian daily. Suddenly she looked in her memory and saw the link between the article and the soft yellow pegasus that stood before her. It had to be her.
"Wait- I've heard about you. You must be one of Twilight's friends, am I correct?"
"Well…I-"
"I've heard a lot about you ever since that foolish friend of yours Twilight boasted me out of town. Oh, the nerve of her!"
"But I thought she was trying to save Ponyville from that Ursa-"
"Be quiet! I thought I'd never have to walk by this town again. Frankly though, I'm surprised to see you still here, little miss timid."
Fluttershy crouched down. "What? But… why would you-"
"Don't play innocent with me! I've heard all about your little episodes."
The scared pegasus brought her entire body down on the hard ground, trying to hide part of her face behind her mane. She was frightened, being talked down to by somepony else made her too scared to even mutter a reply. This was payback at Twilight for all the humiliation Trixie had endured; she could care less about Fluttershy's sensitivity.
"News can spread pretty quickly from Canterlot, as I had heard about your little demeanor with the animals at the Grand Galloping Gala. You're the one that caused so much damage at the Gala that it had to be cancelled mid way through. All the animals were so frightened by you that I hear they all still won't leave their homes because of you." Trixie grinned.
"Bu-but I didn't mean to… I just want-"
"It finally makes sense to me. I wouldn't have been surprised if everyone in Ponyville had already kicked you out. After all, you killed that vicious wolf, am I right?"
Fluttershy's eyes widened, shocked to hear that somepony had seen her. "But… how were you-"
"I wasn't sure it was you until I've now just got a close look at that pitiful pink mane of yours. I saw the whole thing on my way into town that morning. I'm actually not surprised that you turned into such a cold blooded animal killer."
"I-It w-w-was an accident…" Fluttershy pleaded.
"I swear, you may look innocent on the outside, but on the inside you're just a… monster!"
Fluttershy was starting to cry, terrified beyond comprehension as she relived those unforgettable moments. No matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't stop shaking. The beast inside of her was growing, expanding as if she could feel it becoming darker than Nightmare Moon and far fiercer than any Ursa Major.
"I'm so sorry." She wimpered. "I didn't mean to hurt anyone."
"Shut up! You're just a parasprite in this town and nopony would miss you. Maybe Equestria would be better off if someone like you didn't exist at all."
A spark of tears ignited and Fluttershy was set off and running away with her eyes clenched tight. She couldn't take it anymore, hearing voices inside that screamed louder than the biggest of sonic rainbooms. Everypony was staring at her as she ran down the path and out of town, trying not to cry as loud. Nothing else mattered to her at this point, except one thing.
Trixie sighed. "Well, that was refreshing."
Not even a few seconds went by when another pony came running towards the blue unicorn. She appeared a very bright orange wearing a brown hat on top. This pony was all too familiar for Trixie to forget.
"Oh… what is it now?" She asked herself.
------
"At Fluttershy's cottage? When?" Rainbow asked.
"That's where I found the mangled mess, just after I left the hospital today. I'm sure that the poor thing must've been dead fer at least more than a few days. I'd never seen so much blood in all my life."
"Um… we should probably talk about this outside."
Applejack replaced her hat. "Good idea sugarcube."
Half of the hospital lights were dimmed as the night shift had just begun. Things were much quieter with only a few staff members walking around the hallways. The two ponies didn't want to say anything else until they were outside, which was now filled with chirping crickets and a white lunar light that covered Equestria.
Upon exiting the front doors, the blue pegasus started to fly as she felt her wings stretch for the first time all day. "So… you're telling me that… Fluttershy ki-"
"Yeah, that's what it looks like." Applejack cut her off. "The rock is a pretty good size fer somepony ta hold, and I did find some hoof marks around the mud."
"Oh sweet Celestia. I had no idea that… she…" Rainbow's voice softened.
"Yeah, me neither. I'm sorry that this here news don't make the situation any better."
Rainbow Dash just hovered in place and shook her head in disbelief; frowning with her hoof scratching the back of her mane. She was so scared for Fluttershy but just couldn't bring herself to admit the guilt she felt in her heart for not knowing the truth.
"Rainbow? You okay there?"
The blue pegasus felt her head weigh herself down. "Applejack… do you think there's anything we could've done for her if we had known?"
"Don't dwell on it sugar cube. There's no way neither of us could have known about this."
"Yeah… Okay. So, what are you going to do now?"
Applejack started walking down the road again. "I gotta go tell the others."
"Wait!" Rainbow flew in front of the earth pony. "We can't do that!"
"And why the hay not? They all need ta know the truth."
"Now look Applejack, I don't like the idea of keeping more information from the others, but think about it."
"What's there to think about?" The earth pony dropped her eyebrows.
"You heard what Rarity said; we shouldn't rush ourselves into making Fluttershy tell us. How do you think she would feel if we told her about the truth? That we knew why she probably tried to kill herself?
Applejack raised both eyebrows while becoming conscious of the situation. Fluttershy was, of course, the most sensitive pony any of them knew. Discussing it out in the open like that would traumatize Fluttershy and could permanently scar her for life.
"I suppose you're right about that. If they all learned the cause of Fluttershy's depression from us and not her, they all might pressure her too much into talkin' about it."
"So, can we please keep this our little secret for now?"
"Well ya know I can't do that Rainbow. I am the element of honesty after all. "
Rainbow brought herself in closer. "Applejack, it's not like you have to lie. All I'm asking is that you avoid the truth."
The earth pony took a step back. "But… I can't be holding information from them either. It's just not the right thing ta do."
Rainbow stopped flying and just sat down on the cold ground. She desperately wanted to do everything to make Fluttershy happy and cheerful again. It was going to take more than any hug or speech could do to make that happen. If she failed to be there for her before, what could she possibly do to make up for it?
Applejack sighed. "Tell ya what sugar cube. I'll give ya till noon tomorrow ta talk with Fluttershy. Make her feel comfortable and then we'll tell the others about what we found."
Rainbow stood up and felt pleased by her friend's offer. "Thanks AJ, you're a really awesome friend. Say um… what are you going to do for the rest of the night? I don't think I can sleep."
Applejack started walking down the path. "Well you go on home and maybe take a shower. It'll do ya some good. I'm gonna get me some apple cider and then some bed rest."
"How can you think of drinking at a time like this?" Rainbow questioned.
The orange earth pony stopped and turned around. "I didn't say it was for me." She replied.
------
"Hello Ms. Cake, I was just wondering if Pinkie Pie was here." Twilight smiled.
Ms. Cake had to set down her platter before she could answer. "Oh, I thought she left about ten minutes ago. She said she had just finished putting on the final touches."
"Touches on what?"
"On some present I heard she made for Fluttershy, so she might still be upstairs. How is our dear little pegasus friend doing anyhow?"
Twilight was instantaneously filled with fear; as hearing anyone mention Fluttershy's name gave her a bad sense of judgment, but was this really the thing to be worried about right now? She knew by heart that nopony she knew would think that way of her friend.
"She's opening up to us a bit, but I doubt the worst is over yet."
"Oh, well I just want to let you know that I sympathize for her and that you have my total support sweetie. You just let me or Mister Cake know if there is anything we can do for her."
The lilac unicorn was warmed by the generous offer. "Thank you Misses Cake, I think I'll go get Pinkie Pie now."
The blue pastry chef pony went back to her humming in the kitchen as Twilight went up the stairs. There was an unusual sound that could be heard down the hallway as she reached the top step. She couldn't make it out until she was inches away from peering into Pinkie's room. It sounded like crying.
Being cautious and walking softly, Twilight took two steps inside of the room while staring at the pink party pony with her cotton candy scented mane completely deflated. She was sobbing on the floor with her back turned to Twilight, who was unaware of the damaged cupcake lying on the floor.
"Pinkie Pie, what's going on?"
She continued to cry, staring at her destroyed pastry. "It's broken Twilight. I can't do anything right. I honestly did think it would be this simple."
"It's alright Pinkie. W-we can just make another one. I'm sure you could even make a cupcake that'll be better than the last."
There was a pause. "It's not about the cupcake Twilight, it's much worse than that…"
The long maned earth pony turned around and was about to say something else, but fell short and could only let out another stream of sad tears. She had suppressed her emotions for too long ever since that long run to the hospital. It was, after all, in her best nature to be as happy and cheerful during the darkest of times.
"Fluttershy is going to be just fine Pinkie Pie, and it's all because she has a good friend like you for wanting to bring a gift that would make her happy."
"I-I'm sorry. I was about to go out and meet you guys when I dropped it on the floor. It's just… that I didn't think it was a big deal, but then I thought about how easily it fell apart…" Pinkie clenched her eyes. "…and then I thought about how easily Fluttershy fell apart. I-I just want to make her feel happy and special inside but-" Pinkie sniffled.
Twilight was on the brink of breaking into tears as well. The feeling was mutual among Twilight and all of her friends; she just hadn't realized it until now. An empty feeling of helplessness was being drawn inside her chest and was at a loss of words of what to say to make Pinkie stop crying.
"Pinkie Pie- w-we should…"
"Rainbow Dash was right Twilight. It's not like things will suddenly get better, but does that mean that… they get worse?"
A tear fell down the lilac unicorn's cheek as she wanted to cry more than anything in the world, but still had the willpower to resist. The sense of responsibility to her friends was of the most importance. However, the only thing she could think of doing right now was reaching in for a gentle hug around her friend. They rested on each other's shoulder to give comfort to one another as Twilight silently cried alongside with Pinkie.
"Pinkie pie."
"Y-y-yeah?" She replied; eyes still clenched.
"There is a saying that 'things will get worse before they get better.' I know how hard this is for… all of us, but I think you may be giving yourself less credit than you deserve."
Pinkie Pie then parted hooves length away before wiping a tear and noticing the one near Twilight's snout. "W-wha-?"
"Your attitude and enthusiasm has helped keep everyone's hope of that Fluttershy can have a happy and laughable life again. It's in your element."
"But how can that be true? What's so wonderful about laughing at a time like this?"
Another tear fell down Twilight's eye, smiling with just a hint of forced laughter under her breath. "There is also a saying that goes: 'laughter is the best medicine.'"
That joke made Pinkie Pie giggle a bit with her tears still soaking around her eyes as miniature puddles of rain. A smile rose in and the pink earth pony rose up to wipe face, as she now felt slightly relieved with her mane slowly starting to regain some of its composure.
"Come on Pinkie. Let's make an even better cupcake and then head on down to the hospital. I'm sure Fluttershy would love to eat some delicious baked goods."
------
Applejack's eyes were angered, making her intimidating stance right in front of the blue unicorn; feeling so tempted to leap at her, but stood fast. The last thing she wanted to do was make a big scene in public.
"What did you just say to Fluttershy?" She ordered.
"Oh, it's you. I remember you… farm pony."
A small memory sparked inside of both pony's minds, recalling their first encounter with each other atop of Trixie's staged performance, which resulted in Applejack having to hop away with a rope around her hooves. It was rather unpleasant for either of them to recall.
"I'll ask you again real nice like. What… did ya'll say to Fluttershy that has her running off like that?"
Trixie rolled her eyes and sighed. "She nearly ruined my cape and I got a little upset, that's all."
"If you'd be livin' in Ponyville, you'd know that Fluttershy is a sensitive pony."
Trixie started become annoyed, socializing with her past rivals was not the way she wanted to spend her day in Ponyville, if not anywhere else in Equestria. She still hated Twilight more than anyone else, but felt rather evoked to take her revenge out among her friends.
"Sensitive? Oh don't make me laugh." She snorted
"You should be feelin' real sorry for her missy. That there pegasus is the only one around here that cares deeply for everyone, unlike you."
Trixie held her head high. "It's not my fault that she's weak and frail. If anything, she should be sorry for all the horrible things she's done."
Applejack took two steps forward. "What did ya'll just say?"
Trixie smirked. "Oh you don't know? Why don't you go by the open field near the Everfree forest and see for yourself? Now if you'll excuse me, Trixie has a hotel to be in."
Trixie began walking away without so much as eyeing the earth pony. Applejack was about to step in front and ask what she meant by that, but felt rather confused by what the blue unicorn meant by her proclamation. What horrible things could she be talking about?
------
"Remember when I pulled off that sonic rainboom at the Cloudsdale's Young Flyers Competition?"
"Oh, yes I remember. You were so brave too."
"Well I remember how you screamed so loud for me when it happened.
Fluttershy fell silent again in her bed. Knowing that Rainbow was only trying to make her smile, she just couldn't find it in her to show one with so much sadness still suppressed in her heart. Sometimes getting her to say more than one sentence at a time proved to be difficult, but Rainbow would be patient.
"Well… don't you remember?" Rainbow smiled.
"Um… yes, I remember."
"Yeah, I never heard you sound so happy and out loud like that before."
Fluttershy grinned. "Yeah, it was such a wonderful feeling to see my friend do some so incredible that- I just didn't know what to say… So I screamed for you."
"Yeah and I thought only Pinkie Pie jumped that high."
Rainbow giggled a little with Fluttershy showing off a cute blushing smile while shrugging her shoulders. Though it seemed like her attitude was improving, Rainbow could still sense her surreptitious feelings and knew it was going to be hard to get Fluttershy to talk about her traumatic occurrence.
"You know… I never told anyone this but- it really made me feel so happy to finally hear you scream like that. I don't think anyone at that competition could yell over your awesome cheering."
"Oh yeah, I guess I was a little loud."
Yet another few moments of silence passed with Rainbow falling short of another subject to talk about and Fluttershy still too timid to be open about anything. Rainbow searched and searched through her head, trying to think of anything that would help Fluttershy. Her ears twitched, and a brilliant idea ensued.
"H-hey Fluttershy?"
"Yes Rainbow?"
Rainbow looked at the ground and closed her eyes. "I want to tell you something else I've only told to one other pony. Something I thought I'd never have the guts to tell anyone."
"Oh- you don't have to tell me Rainbow. I wouldn't want to make you sad."
Rainbow brought a hoof onto the bed. "No… you need to hear this."
Fluttershy leaned in slightly. "O-okay."
Inhaling a deep breath and then exhaling, as she had to prepare herself for a few seconds. It would take all of her courage to tell Fluttershy this deep secret she had never shared with anypony, but knew it would do her some good.
"I was just a little filly when this happened." She started.
------
"Now look. I know how much this ordeal has upset you and nopony else feels any different, but we don't have any proof that Trixie is the cause of this." Twilight explained.
"Applejack was the one that said Trixie made Fluttershy run off crying, so she must've said something that would push her to end up in the hospital. There can't be any lie in that if she's the element of honesty."
"Rairty I know that… but there's knowing the truth and then there's thinking that you know the truth. Applejack could've misunderstood her and we don't even know what Trixie meant by Fluttershy's horrible things."
"Is it a coincidence that our Fluttershy ran home and tried to kill herself an hour after Trixie had lectured her?"
"No, it's not, but this can't be the main reason why Fluttershy tried to commit suicide and you know that."
"I don't care Twilight. Anyone who makes Fluttershy miserable like that out to be beaten with stones and banished from Ponyville."
Twilight could see Rarity's anger was becoming tangible. Quickly, she changed tactics and turned the tables around on her friend. "How can you not care for the main reason why Fluttershy was sad to begin with? You know that she was feeling sad more than a few days ago, so how can Trixie be the cause?"
The tension in Rarity's legs eased up as she relaxed her body and raised both eyebrows with comprehension. For the second time now, she had let her anger get the best of her ever since she first heard about Fluttershy's traumatic evening. At the bottom of her heart, she knew that jumping out and pointing hooves wasn't what the element of kindness would do.
"Fluttershy is still in a lot of pain right now and needs us to be there for her, just like you said to Rainbow Dash. So that also means she needs you Rarity, can't you see that?"
Rarity's emotions were starting to catch up with a frown appearing in her expression. "You're absolutely right Twilight. I feel so like such a foolish little filly for wanting to be so reckless like that."
Twilight grinned and then casted her spell again to release the encrusted dirt around Rarity's hooves. The white unicorn collapsed to the ground on her chest, groveling in the grief of her own selfishness.
"I'm so sorry. Taking it out on Trixie was the only thing I could think of to ease Fluttershy's pain, but it turned out to be my pain."
"I know, but trust me when I say that everything can and will turn out just fine. We just need to remember the importance of friendship and stick together."
Rarity wanted to smile, but still had another thought lingering in her head. "You don't think I'm a foolish friend, do you Twilight?" She asked.
Twilight brought herself closer to her friend's face. "No Rarity. Your actions may have been uncalled for, but they also show me how much you really care for her."
With that, the fashion pony brought herself up, stood beside her companion as they began to walk back towards the hospital. Rarity started to recollect her happy thoughts of Fluttershy, as she would soon know what to say to her yellow pegasus friend.
Unbeknownst to either of the two friends, a purple eyed unicorn stood on the second floor of the hotel across the street; staring out her window where she had silently eased dropped. With her standing there in shock, a small gust of wind forced a hanging tear to fall off her eye and land on her cape.
"I'll be heading out now!" Applejack yelled, not expecting any sort of response from anypony.
The sun was out with a very comfortable morning temperature with the sound of birds chirping happily outside. A certain orange earth pony was simply trying her best to enjoy her trot into town, yet she grew more worried with nearly every step of the way. The day seemed utterly normal and ordinary as any other pony would describe it, but not to Applejack. Today's visit to the hospital was not only important to her, but to Fluttershy above all.
It pained her that she'd have to tell her friends what she discovered in the field, but felt just as bad for not telling the whole truth yesterday. Though it felt like the right thing to do at the time since Rarity's sudden outburst at blaming Trixie. How could she even begin to image what the others might think if they misunderstood her? The last thing anypony would want in this situation is to jump to conclusions so rashly.
As Applejack enjoyed her trot, she started to hear the sounds of small wheels racing across the cobbled road. Squinting her eyes, Applejack started to notice a moving figure heading her way, which was non-other than the cutie mark crusaders; riding on their scooter and red wagon train.
"Good morning Applejack." They all chanted.
"Good mornin' Cutie crusaders." She replied as they all stopped in front of her.
"Where ya off ta Applejack?" Applebloom asked.
Scootaloo glanced at the bottle neck sticking out of Applejack's saddlebag. "Ooooh, is that apple cider?"
The orange earth pony smiled. "Sure is, I'm bringin' it over ta the hospital fer Fluttershy as a get well present."
The fillies all beamed. "Oh cool! Tell her that we hope she gets better AJ. How did she hurt herself anyway?" Sweetie Bell asked. "Rarity wouldn't tell me much."
"Was it an accident?" Applebloom followed up.
With that, Applejack found herself in another pinch, trying to keep information from others when she just didn't have it in her to tell a lie. Instead, she just decided to answer her question with a promise which was, of course, an honest truth knowing that she would keep her promise.
"How about I tell y'all about it later, okay girls? I really need ta get on over to the hospital with my friends so we can see her together."
With an understanding, Scootaloo starting to speed up the scooter wagon train once again. "Okay! Bye Applejack!" They yelled in unison.
Applejack stood there for a few seconds as she watched the Cutie Mark Crusaders roll down the path behind her, in the opposite direction. It was a sort of comfort to know that life's daily activities around her hadn't changed since Fluttershy's incident. Nobody seemed to be gossiping about it around town; which was probably a good thing to know. Her body turned around and started to trot down the path again when a small white figure appeared in front on the middle of the dirt road. It was Angel Bunny.
"What in tarnation? Angel, where did you come from? Where've you been?"
The small furry animal began jumping up and down with an alarming expression on his face. He was pointing at Applejack's saddlebag. He made small squeaking sounds with his mouth which were far from anything that Applejack could comprehend in one of Fluttershy's animal friends.
"No Angel, this cider ain't fer you it's for..." Her eyes widened. "Wait, you mean Fluttershy?"
Angel stopped jumping and nodded his head speedily. He must've over heard her mentioning Fluttershy's name.
"Yeah, she is in the hospital for a… certain reason." A frown ensued on her face. "You uh… hadn't heard yet had you?"
The white bunny had such a stunned look on his face, as Applejack could tell that he already knew the reason for Fluttershy being in the hospital. She could see it in his expression and was drawing to the conclusion that he must have seen something happen at Fluttershy's cottage, hadn't he? She needed to know for sure.
"Do you know the reason why she's in the hospital?"
A single tear appearing on the side of Angel's face with his ears flopped down gave a clear indication that he probably knew the cause. Recalling that he had been upset with Fluttershy about three days prior to her suicide attempt, he probably hadn't known that Fluttershy would be driven to such lengths for her outburst. Something about that just didn't quite fit thought, but it would all make sense soon enough when Angel jumped on to the earth pony's back.
"You uh… want me ta take you ta see her at the hospital?" She asked.
Instead of a nod, the white bunny started tapping his foot rapidly near Applejack's rump and was pointing towards the north towards the bushes; the almost exact opposite direction of the hospital. Even with the near inaudible squeaks and nose twitching, Applejack could understand this very well.
"Go that way?" She pointed with her hoof.
After a quick nod from Angel, Applejack began to trot up the path towards the west as previously intended but then made a right turn at the intersection leading northbound. She looked back at the bunny to confirm where she was going, which was replied with another nod.
"Hang on tight little bunny." She kicked it into high gear, knowing that something awaited her at Fluttershy's place.
After a minute or so of galloping, she stopped in front of the fence with Angel jumping off her back and running off in the field towards the dead body. She followed behind, but felt just as confused because of the fact that she already knew about the remains. Did he not know of Applejack's awareness of the situation, or was there something else she didn't quite understand?
When they were both at the distilled carcass, Angel started to act out some sort of scene around the area. Applejack was baffled at first, but soon started to see exactly what this bunny was trying to tell her. What happened here wasn't just a tragedy, it was a gosh darn miracle.
------
"Do you think something happened with Pinkie Pie?"
"Spike, she's not the only one who is running late and Twilight did say she would be right back."
The purple dragon took a seat across from Rarity. "I know, but I'm really eager to see Fluttershy right now."
Sitting in the waiting room again like this wasn't exactly what either of them had in mind, especially when Fluttershy was right there with only Rainbow Dash to speak with. The agreement still stood that Rainbow should be Fluttershy's prime source of comfort because of the long relationship which bonded them closer than any of the others.
"I know sweetie, but we really should wait for everyone else. We'll all go in together and then you can show her that photo album you found in her living room."
"I just hope she won't mind that any of us went into her house." Spike emitted a small frown.
"Is there something else bothering you Spike?"
There was a moment of silence in the room as Spike stared down at the floor while twiddling his thumbs around a circular motion. "It's just that I can't help but think how there weren't any animals inside her home like usual."
"That still ponders me, but I can't think of an answer either."
Spike continued. "Plus we still don't know why she's been acting this way. Did we neglect her or something?"
Nothing pained Rarity more than a reminder of how much she actually considered valuing her fashion business over friendship, which made gloomy thoughts appear inside her head. The one thing that served as a catalyst to be happy again was the reminder of what she could do right now to make things right.
"Fret not dearie, because today we're going to help remind her of all the wonderful things she represents to us. There's not a doubt in my mind as to why we shouldn't consider ourselves lucky to have a friend like her."
They both smiled and were on good terms once again when Spike noticed a lilac and pink pony walking in through the front doors. He smiled and turned away from his conversation with Rarity. "Twilight, Pinkie, there you guys are."
Rarity stood up. "You had us ever so worried about you two. Is everything alright?"
"You betcha. Twilight and I just made the super-duper bestest cupcake ever just for Fluttershy. She'll just love it!" The pink pony exclaimed.
"Pinkie… it's a hospital, remember?" Twilight had to remind her but was more than glad hear Pinkie's enthusiastic voice at this time.
"Oops, sorry. I forget." Pinkie then turned her attention to the book in the dragon's arms. "Whatcha got there Spike?"
"Oh it's one of Fluttershy's photo albums. I thought it would make her happy to see some old pictures of herself because of how happy she is in them."
"I even took the liberty to add in a few… surprises in the pages that weren't filled yet." Rairty added.
Seeing all her friends like this with gifts on end to give to Fluttershy served as another reminder of what their friendship was capable of. It was more than just being there for her to make one feel better, but rather a type of unseen force that was capable of forces greater than any magic spell could produce.
Pinkie Pie walked inside the waiting room and looked all around, as if expecting to see someone hiding in the corner. "Where's Dashie and AJ?" She asked.
"I do believe that Rainbow Dash is still in there with Fluttershy and Applejack has yet to show up."
"I hope she's not having any weepy moments alone like I did."
Spike and Rairty both raised an eyebrow, now becoming apparent to Pinkie's true emotions as Applejack had the day before. Spike probably guessed that he wasn't the only one who felt so sad that night and imagined seeing Pinkie's deflated hair once again.
"Are… you okay Pinkie?" Spike asked.
"Oh don't worry silly. Twilight made me feel better."
She smiled with true sincerity, reminding everyone of her keenness; being so optimistic since the day they first rushed into the hospital. It had probably been a deception to contain their own sorrow for Fluttershy.
"Oh, well that's good to hear. She's been making everyone feel better since this whole thing started."
Twilight blushed slightly as everypony stared at her. "Oh, well besides that, I should probably go find Applejack. She might still be at Sweet Apple Acers."
"No need ta do so sugar cube." Said a voice behind.
Twilight turned around. "Applejack, you had us worried. Where've you been?"
Yet another provided question had to given an honest answer. She looked at the clock on the wall inside the room. It read five minutes till noon. She answered Twilight's question with another question. "Is Rainbow Dash with Fluttershy?"
"Yes, we were about to go in and see her after you got here." Twilight responded.
If there ever was a time to explain everything, now was as close as ever before they all would go in to see her. Applejack only hoped that Rainbow was able to make her feel as content as possible for the storm she was about to unveil that her friends needed to hear; the truth.
"Before we go in, ya'll need to hear about this. I think Rainbow and I know the reason for Fluttershy's uncanny actions since we hadn't seen her."
Everyone in the room instinctively took a few steps forward, eagerness between them all to hear what Applejack had to say. "What is it AJ?" Pinkie asked.
The orange earth pony made a sad look. "I just hope ya'll don't hate me for this, but I did promise Rainbow Dash I'd give her some time before I told anyone."
------
Fluttershy could only stand there in the field, staring out towards the trees with numerous critters staring back at her in a mirror's reflection. Both sides of the field were in the shock of despair, but only one side was truly frightened of the other. The blood that was still smeared on the yellow pegasus's body dripped off her wing. The sound of a drop hitting the water puddle made her glance at it, and was she was stunned.
She turned her head and sat down as she looked all over her mud covered body; trickles of red slashed stripes criss-crossed each other in small patterns. Her hoof touched her cheek, which revealed an even more amount of blood that was stained on her face. Her pupils sharpened and eyes widened with her mind still slowly comprehending the atrocity she committed moments ago.
"I-I-I… What d-d-did I…oh sweet Celestia…" Her head turned back at the wolf's remains.
She approached the dead body and gave a light poke with her hoof, as if imagining that the wolf was only sleeping. There wasn't any response. She poked it again, this time a little harder, and then harder, then harder until she broke down into tears. Her battered body fell on top of the silent grey beast with eyes clenched tightly as she continued to sob in irregular breaths.
"I'm sorry. I'm s-s-so sor-r-r-y" Her whimpering intensified.
Fluttershy could smell the blood all over the ground and tried her best to not look at it with the sun causing a reflection of the red color around the mud puddles. She was too scared to move away, wishing with all her heart that she was hadn't gone outside and that she was still asleep in bed. There was no way any of this could be real, could it? Just minutes ago, the soft pegasus was feeling so peaceful and content in her soft bed. As of this moment right now though, it felt as if she was going to throw up.
"I'm so sorry m-m-mister wolf. I didn't m-m-mean it….. I was-" Her lungs gasped.
Her eyes widened with anticipation and suddenly remembered all about Angel bunny. He was nowhere to be seen when the skies cleared up, even in the bright sun. Had he run away? Was he hiding? Where was he hiding? She had to find him and be sure of he was safe. Her hooves kicked off running towards the trees with the mud n' blood still camouflaged on her yellow fur.
"Oh… Angel? Angel? Where are you?" She was getting closer to the animals hiding in the trees. "Did anyone her see where Angel went? Was he-"
It wasn't until she was directly below the shade of leaves when all the critters scampered away with such speed, causing dozens of leaves to fall on the ground. At first Fluttershy was confused by their unusual behavior and was left a blank expression on her face.
"Wait… where are you all going?"
In her surrounding vision, there were more furry creatures hiding away in the bushes just towards her right, which is where she ran to next. The result was the same, again and again. No matter where she turned to, no creature would get anywhere near her. It didn't take long for Fluttershy to pick up on the reason, which brought pains inside her stomach.
"Please don't leave me… I didn't want- I didn't know what to-" The tears were starting to flow again.
Without further anticipation, she ran back to her cottage with the slimmest hope that maybe Angel ran off back to his small bunny house. She had no idea where he was or any idea how to find him without any of the creatures there to help. Was Angel terrified of her too? She was only trying to protect him.
The run back home took longer than expected. If it were not for the mud covering her wings, flying back would have been simpler. It took more than a few minutes to reach the fencing area. The white animal house with leftovers inside remained empty. She started to look everywhere in the yard. All the while the animals, which resided in such various places around the cottage, started to flee from her presence.
"Angel? Where are you? Please come back Angel! I'm sorry!"
Her last light of hope was searching inside the cottage, which quickly faded away within the first few steps she took through the still open door. It was abnormally quiet inside, without so much as a squeak or a scurry from any of the home built in critter houses that inhabited the living room. It was right there at that moment when the pain inside became the strongest.
Her essence felt so alone and empty without having a single being to reach out and talk to her. In all her years as an animal loving caretaker had she never felt so isolated that it ached everywhere inside. It hurt even more to know that she was actually better at talking with animals than she was with other ponies, especially with Angel.
She slowly limped her body to the ground and curled herself up into a ball; hooves brought close to her still bloodied body and bringing forth a fresh set of tears, which started to unveil in her silent cries.
"Please… somepony… anypony just please… help me… I didn't mean it…" She sobbed to herself.
There wasn't any place she could go to or anyone else that could help her. Without Angel there to comfort her like he normally would in similar situations, who else would she turn to?
"I… didn't…"
------
It was hard to listen as much as it was to even swallow, but it was the truth and everyone in the waiting room knew it since it came from Applejack's words. The very nature of the unlikelihood that Fluttershy would be able to take another life made it all the more reason to be her own conviction.
"So… does this mean that she also... saved Angel?" Spike asked.
Applejack looked at her hat. "I'd imagine so based on his pretty elaborate scene act out."
"I had… no idea…" Twilight sighed.
"Please don't be mad at me Twilight. I didn't even find out until I left the hospital yesterday and I promised Rainbow she'd be able to make Fluttershy feel real comfy before we even talk ta her and-"
The orange earth pony's voice had trailed off until Twilight placed a hoof on her shoulder, with a smile and said, "It's alright Applejack, we understand completely. Now that we know what's been bothering her, we need to help put her mind at ease and show her that we care."
"Yeah. We know that she was just trying to protect Angel." Said Spike.
Rarity stepped forward. "Fluttershy must've been so frightened that she couldn't have done anything else. If anything, we should be the ones scared for the poor dear because of how delicate she is. So let's go see how she and Rainbow Dash are doing and show her that we'll be there for her."
With smiles on their faces, everyone began to make their way down the hall towards room B7. The short walk felt different this time though with the assurance that Rainbow's comfort would be able to help Fluttershy open to them. Fluttershy's friends would all do whatever it took to see a smile on her soft face again, no matter what.
Nopony knew what to expect though and didn't want to be noticed. For all hey knew, there could be an important conversation that might not needed to be disturbed. When asked to do so, Twilight quietly peeked through the crack in the door, sighting at the right angle to see her two friends. At first she couldn't hear anything, but then noticed Rainbow Dash's upper body was buried into the covers, with Fluttershy's hoof brushing the top of Dash's rainbow mane.
"What do you see Twilight? Are they alright?" Applejack whispered.
The lilac unicorn took her time to study exactly what it was in front of her. She could see Rainbow's shoulder's dipping up and down as if she was coughing, motioning that she might be crying. Alarmed at first, Twilight made a slight gasp under her breath but concealed it quiet enough for everyone to not hear. Upon looking at Fluttershy however, she noticed something that would come as a huge and utter surprise beyond comprehension; Fluttershy was… smiling.
Out of sheer luck, Fluttershy looked at the door with perfect timing and saw Twilight looking back. With a smile still latched on her face, she said in a soft voice, "Its okay girls, you can come in."
Upon hearing those words, Twilight looked back at everyone still standing in the hallway. "I think she wants to see us." She grinned.
The door opened with ease as Fluttershy's friends gradually made their way inside the room with gifts abound. They all now noticed Rainbow's tears that were making small stains on the bed before she took in a deep breath, wiping her face to regain her composure and face everyone.
"Hey there Fluttershy, we didn't mean to interrupt you two or anything." Twilight pleased.
"Are you two feeling alright?" Spiked asked, hiding behind the photo album as if embarrassed to ask that sort of question.
Fluttershy just kept that smile on her face. "Yes, Rainbow Dash was just telling me a story and I think I know why."
All the mares in the room were taken by surprise and began to ponder. What sort of story was it and why did it put Rainbow Dash in tears while leaving a comforting smile on Fluttershy? For whatever the reason, it seemed as though everything in Equestria was right again and that the tension in the flames had finally died out.
Rainbow sat up straight in her chair without saying anything, shying at her friends, who'd now seen her cry enough as it is since day one. None of them wanted to inquire about Rainbow's story and pry, but became more invoked to discover the calamity that Fluttershy found herself in.
"You do? What... do you mean?" Twilight asked.
"I know that you girls just want to make me happy again… I mean you all have come to see and talk to me which has made me really happy, but you all have to know something I did that happened."
"Something that happened?"
"It was… a few days before I… wanted to end my life." The yellow pegasus took in a deep breath, "Early in the morning and I was-"
Applejack cut her off. "Hold on there for a sec girl. I'm thinkin' you might wanna see someone else first before ya tell us yer story."
With the flick of her hoof, Applejack whipped off her brown leather hat, which revealed a small pair of ears sticking out from within her blonde hair. After a few seconds of everyone staring at the top of her mane, a small bunny head popped upwards before his whole body hopped onto the bed; leaping into Fluttershy's chest with the softest hug imaginable.
------
"Please Twilight, it's not your fault. There's no way we could've known... but it's okay now because Fluttershy is feeling so much happier now."
Twilight could only lay there with her face concealed in the pillow as the moonlight shaded a light blue on her darker blue bed covers. It didn't matter how much or how loud Spike spoke to her, she just couldn't stop crying. It was like intimidation to the purple dragon who had now switched places and now was the one trying to help Twilight keep it together, but it finally happened.
Even with so many good things happening today, it wasn't as simple to say that Twilight's emotions were in one piece. She finally knew the reason for her suicide attempt and could only blame herself for being so useless and neglecting her in her most crucial time of need and comfort. Why hadn't she gone to see her earlier?
"Spike… I know that Fluttershy is…" She gasped in between breaths, "…smiling again but… she was in so much pain before…"
"But you helped her relieve that pain by keeping us all together, just like in your studies. You know that a friendship is the strongest when we're all together Twilight, right?"
"Y-y-yeah, but all I did for her was find some stupid book on bunny care. How would that've made things better?... I didn't see any of the signs."
The volume of her sobs were still relatively at the same with the same amount of tears soaking into the pillow.
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door; such a big surprise considering the hour it was and the near dead silence of the night from everypony sleeping. Twilight's cries softened as she calmed down a bit and asked Spike, "Could you please see who it is?"
Spike kept his eye on Twilight until he was right in front of the door, making sure that she wouldn't be to noticeable too seem embarrassed by her weeping situation. The door opened and an all too familiar blue unicorn stood there, with a sort of apathetic, yet concerned, look on her face. None other than the great and powerful Trixie had come to Twilight's library.
Spike's eye immediately transpired into an unwelcoming glare, looking right into the unicorn's face. "You… you've got a lot of nerves to come down here after what you did."
Trixie frowned. "Please, I must speak to Twilight. The great and- I mean… Trixie must tell her something."
"Tell her what? That you've got more insults to throw at Fluttershy?"
"No… please just please give Trixie five minutes with her… so I can say that I-"
This sudden appearance was not appealing to Spike in the least. "There's nothing you could say that'll undo all the pain you put Fluttershy through. Get lost!"
A few seconds of tension passed with Spike making a fist in one hand. Before Trixie was about to turn away, a voice came from upstairs. "Who is it Spike?"
Trixie face was now pleading in the moments of silence outside the door. This utter decision to either let her in or send her away rest entirely upon his shoulders. Spike was filled with such rage for the unicorn, but could detect the faintest hint of concern and felt somewhat sympathetic. He was willing to give her the benefit of a doubt.
"Someone is here to see you" He yelled back up.
"Trixie thanks you."
With a gesture, Trixie took two steps inside before Spike stepped directly in front of her, and lowered his voice, speaking with such anger and resentment. "Just remember one thing… I know how to breath fire."
Twilight had just finished wiping the last tear off her eyelashes. If it was one of her friends, she'd hate to be seen in this sad condition, especially considering how late it was at night. After, quickly glancing at the mirror on her desk to make sure there were no rings under her eyes, she took in a deep breath and trotted down the steps; still unaware of whom it was that would be waiting for her at the bottom.
"Who's here to see me at this-" Twilight had cut herself off, stunned and baffled by who stood before her.
"Um… it is I, Trixie who has come to see you."
An open mouth was fixated on the lilac unicorn's face, the same one that had come across Spike at first, but with a slighter hint confusion. She wasn't quite sure how to react to this sudden appearance of the pony involved in Fluttershy's suicide attempt. There was an absence of anger in her mind set, as if she wasn't happy to see such a familiar face in her sights, filling the gaps with neutrality.
"Um, Trixie… What the hay are you- er I mean… What brings you to my place at this hour?"
"Trixie… needs to talk to you about something. I'm not sure I know how to explain this, so I only hope that you will allow Trixie to speak with you."
Twilight knew exactly where this was going. "Go on, I'm all ears." She requested.
"Well, you see I-" She paused for a brief moment as she got a nasty glance from Spike; an intimidating reminder that she was being watched closely, "I came here because I know what I did was wrong."
"Come again? You what?"
"I'm more than sure that most, if not all, of your friends know of the awful things I've said to Fluttershy the other day. I'm also most certain that none of your friend would want to speak with me because of that."
"You got that right." Spike interrupted.
Trixie's face grew sadder. "… Which is why Trixie has come to you. You see, after I learned about Miss Fluttershy's occupation in the hospital yesterday, I just felt… I-I feel so…"
Twilight raised a hoof. "Stop right there."
The lilac unicorn's expression had changed dramatically. Just those very few sentences uttered by Trixie brought fourth much concern and was on the verge of shedding some new light. In another moment, Twilight's horn lit up as she levitated a pair of stools and table out into the open library area from the other side of the room.
"Have a seat. Spike, bring us some of that daisy juice I was saving."
Spike was perplexed. "Are you serious Twilight? Why?" The only response given was an apathetic look in her eyes as she shot daggers at her dragon assistant, urging him to do as he was told. It sure as hay didn't look like she wasn't being serious. After taking the hint, Spike walked off to go get them their drinks before Trixie and Twilight sat down.
"When did you say these… things to Fluttershy?"
"It-it was three days ago when I was checking into town for a-"
"What time?" Twilight asked quickly.
"Uh? I… umm…"
"What time did you speak with her?" she raised her voice slightly.
Trixie was becoming tense, feeling this as turn into more of an interrogation than a conversation. At this point, she still hadn't even fully explained herself for her actions and was feeling as though she bore more guilt than she could handle.
"Um… it was around four o'clock, I think."
"I'm not even going to ask what things you may have said to Fluttershy, but I will ask you this." Twilight leaned forward and spoke in such a discontented tone. "Were you aware of Fluttershy's self defensive incident before you spoke to her three days ago?"
That question alone sent chills down Trixie's spine. She was now fully aware that Twilight's friend, Applejack, must've already told her about Trixie hinting to go see Fluttershy's atrocity in the fields, outside the Everfree Forest. Even without anger occupying Twilight', the blue unicorn could only sit there, already feeling so shameful that she had used that knowledge against the frail pegasus in such a cruel.
"Yes, Trixie did know, which is why I'm… I'm so sorry for what I did."
A moment of silence filled the room following Trixie's words as she had said them out loud. It lasted a bit longer when Spike stepped back into the room, placing a set of glasses and a bottle of daisy juice on the table. The three objects illuminated with Twilight's magic as she poured the liquid into each cup.
"Is there anything else I can do for this sack of a pony?" Spike said angrily.
"Go outside and take a walk to cool down. Trixie and I need some alone time."
Spike was hesitant to do as he was told; feeling more concerned about Twilight's ability to keep her emotions stable if she were left alone. If he didn't know any better, the determination in her eyes was probably all the conviction he needed to see that Twilight knew what she was doing. Regardless, he walked towards the door anyways.
The door slammed shut and the two mares were alone once again. Twilight resumed the conversation. "Did you also know that she tried to kill herself not even an hour after you had last seen her?"
That was something Trixie was completely unaware of, throwing her completely off guard. If there was ever a sinking point in her guilty conscious, she was damn well close to hitting the bottom. In Trixie's eye, the story adding up like this was as if she herself was solely responsible for hammering the final nail into Fluttershy's coffin.
Trixie's eyes swelled with moisture. "Trixie…I did not know of this…"
"Then answer me this. Why did you say those terrible things to her?
"There…. Was…" The blue unicorn took in a deep breath and yelled out in such frustration. "Trixie was having a terrible day and didn't mean to lash out like that. I feel so horrible right now that all I want to do is make amends with you and everypony for my actions."
"I'm not the one you should be making amends with."
The blue unicorn cringed at her remark, knowing it to be true, as Twilight's voice grew deeper and more soft. "If you hadn't gone and said those things to our Fluttershy, there might've been a chance to talk with her and not find her… hanging from the ceiling beam."
Trixie finally broke out into tears. "Which is why I want… no, I need to make things right. I feel so terrible inside that it's been eating me up. Please Twilight, let me do something."
"I'm not even sure if I can trust you, after what you did to make Fluttershy so desperate enough as to try and take her own life." A single tear streamed down Twilight's cheek. "But… if you want to help make things right… then there is one thing you can do."
------
"A-Angel?"
It was an impeccable moment. Fluttershy's emotions were in suspense, hanging over her head with such a rush of liberation having now known that her companion Angel was more than safe. In her hooves, she gently clenched the small bunny tightly to her own chest with his eyes closed, soft squeaks abound while Applejack spoke up.
"I found the little critter just this mornin' on ma way here. He was probably worried sick about you fer the past few days not knowing you were in the hospital and all."
Fluttershy drew her face in closer to the white bunny's body with their noses touching one another. "Oh Angel, I'm so sorry to make you worried like that. I thought you'd still be scared of me after what happened that day… I wish I could take it all back and I'm just so sorry for putting you through this."
Everypony in the room was smiling, soaking in the sensation of seeing Fluttershy flourish to such good healing. In this small peak of happiness Fluttershy began to open her eyes and calmly look at all her friends in the room, having now realized what she had said out loud.
"Does this mean you girls all know what I… did?" She squeaked.
Twlight took the initiative to make a response first. "There's no need to get distressed Fluttershy, we-"
A frown ensued, momentarily stealing away the contentment from the yellow pegasus as her pupils quickly dialated. "Does this mean you've all seen it out in the field by my house? Oh my, please believe me…. I'm so sorry, I didn't mean it, honest. I was just-" She was stopped by a soft hoof pressing on her leg alongside the bed.
"Relax there sugar cube. I was the only one that saw it, don't you fret now. Everything is okay."
Fluttershy relaxed her body once again, "I'm sorry, I just don't want you all to think I'm crazy."
"Crazy? Darling, you don't look crazy at all. It looks like all you need it you to just talk to us." Said Rarity.
The lilac unicorn continued. "Listen Fluttershy, we all know what happened and we're here for you no matter what the outcome was. It's alright, because we still love you."
Shock and awe was laid before Fluttershy, turing towards everyone. "W-w-w-what? You still… love me?"
Rainbow stood up from her seat, giving a light nudge on Fluttershy's shoulder. "Yeah, there's nothing in all of Equestria that could stop us from caring about you, Just look at how much Angel love you."
Fluttershy looked down again with her soft light blue eyes, seeing small droplets of tears run down Angel's face and onto her yellow coat. They both smiled at each other; feeling the most blissful moment they could ever share together. Such kind acts brought upon by her friends deserved another, and that was when Pinkie Pie took a small box out of her saddlebag.
"Oh, and lookie here Flutter-butter. Twilight helped me make this super duper most awesome treat just for you!" No one seemed to mind her voice raising high this time.
A pink hoof extended the box with a smile, awaiting Fluttershy's response, putting more joyous feelings in her heart. "You and Twilight made this for me?"
"Yah, open it, open it!"
As carefully as she could with Angel still in her lap, she lifted the ribbon covered lid to see such a simple cupcake inside. Her heart flooded with love when she read the small, yet legible, pastry text that was written on the top, reading it out loud.
"We… Love… You…Lots?" She gasped as another tear droplet formed. "You girls made this… for me?"
"Well duh! We love you a whole bunch! That's why we made it for you silly!"
Rainbow sure as hay was shocked. "Wow Twilight, I didn't know you were into making this kinda stuff."
Twilight scratched hooves with her head tilted. "Oh, it's nothing, really. I didn't do much except pick out the colors and help get the ingredients like Pinkie asked."
The soft pegasus took a few seconds to study the cupcake's texture; perfectly made with a yellow batter that was coated in a layer of sprinkle covered pink frosting. Butterfly chocolates stuck out in perfect increments around the outer edge. It left an anticipation mixed in with the tension as Pinkie Pie just stood there, waiting for Fluttershy to take a bite.
"Oh, I wouldn't want to ruin all the hard work you did to make this for me." She squeaked.
Everyone just smiled, "I'm sure it's alright sugar cube, seeing as how cupcakes are meant ta be eatin' and all."
"Especially if it was made from a dear friend." Rarity added.
The silence behind the curtain lasted for a few seconds before Fluttershy took a soft bite into the cupcake, savoring in the taste of the love that had been put inside the pastry treat. Pinkie Pie was now left with an even bigger smile on her face, feeling enthusiastic as ever to see Fluttershy smile again; with her eyes closed cheerfully.
At this point, everypony else wanted to jump right in and present their gifts to make Fluttershy even more happy. It turned into a bit of a staring contest for the moment, nopony knowing who should go next. With a gesturing tilt of her head, Applejack motioned Spike to step up, seeing as how he'd had the roughest time controlling his sentiments in this whole ordeal.
The medium sized photo album raised high to the bed level as Spike walked forward. "Um… I wanted to- I mean Rarity and I wanted you to have this." He smiled
Putting the cupcake box gently aside, Fluttershy took the album from Spike's hands. The book was all too familiar to her, already aware of it being taken by her cottage. However, she noticed the few artistic modifications to it, with a leather engraving on the front, which spelled out: Kindness. It might have been her guess that this was all a part of her friends making the loving effort to put her mind at ease, which delighted the bottom of her heart.
"Oh, my… This is… so incredible… You really did this for me?"
Rarity just smiled, "Now, I know that you've already seen all of the pictures inside, but Spike suggested that we add a little… something extra to it. You simply must look at the last few pages and tell me what you think."
"Oh, something else? I hope it wasn't a lot of trouble for you to do-" With a flip to the back of the album, an immediate smile shone ear to ear, indulging to the delightful set of photos before her. Unlike most of the shy self portrait pictures of herself that filled half the pages, the last few pages were filled with such memorable images of her being surrounded by her friends.
On the left page, she saw an image of her in the Grand Galloping Gala dress Rarity had designed, see herself so beautifully clad. There were so many smiles for her to gaze at inside the album, it served as an excellent reminder to Fluttershy what she meant to her friends; an unbreakable chain of bonds that could never be released. Angel smiled when he saw himself in one of the pictures.
"Where did you get these pictures of us?" She was ecstatic now, flipping over to the next page.
"Fret not dearie, these were just a few photos I took when I wanted to try out my new camera. You were the first one I wanted to see through the lens because of how... graceful and kind you are to me." Rarity giggled, "I think I can see now why Photo Finish wanted you as her model."
Fluttershy blushed with a blank expression that followed suit with another smile. "Oh… my. T-t-thank you Rarity. Thank you Spike. I really love it."
------
"Are you sure that this will help… make things right?"
"I'm more than certain that this can help make her feel happy again knowing you'll do the right thing for her."
Trixie paused to take moment of reflection for her task, "I understand. If this is what'll make Fluttershy better, then… Trixie shall do it!"
Twilight wiped the last tear that hung on her face, now able to speak clearly again. "I'm very glad to hear that you still want to help her. Do you think you can get it done before noon tomorrow?"
"The great and powerful Trixie shall make double sure that this task you've asked of me will be done in time." She paused again, now realizing that she was standing high on her hind legs with her front hooves on the table. "Sorry, Trixie did not mean to get ahead of myself. I shall leave now to go get started right away."
"Huh? But it's almost midnight, you're going out right now?" Twilight queried.
"Well staying here with you isn't going to help put Fluttershy's mind to rest." She frowned again, realizing she did it again. "Trixie apologizes again…. I only meant that I should not wait a minute longer." She trotted towards the door.
This was all very shocking to Twilight in so many ways. Not only did Trixie come in to ask for help, she wasn't in the slightest hesitant when told what she needed to do, especially at this time of night. She really was being true to her word when she said she wanted to help, but this went beyond what anypony would expect from somepony like her.
"Wait… Before you go… I have a question."
Trixie turned around, now seeing Twilight out of her seat. "Yes?"
"Um… why… why did you come to me for help? Not that I'm not grateful for it but…"
As Twilight's voice trailed off, Trixie began to finish her sentence. "Well, you see… Trixe knows how good of a friend you are with Fluttershy, which is why I said those… awful things to Fluttershy." She cringed when she spoke those words. "But I felt so heartbroken and beaten inside when I overheard you talking with your other friend outside my hotel."
"You mean Rarity?"
"Yes, that furious white unicorn you entrapped with your spell. I am most grateful that you stood up for me and felt that I had to do something when I heard Fluttershy was in the hospital because of… me."
Twilight's mind set had turned back into an apathetic state and was, once again, speaking in such a neutral tone that was neither upsetting nor remorseful, "I wasn't standing up for you, I just didn't want Rarity to get out of control."
In some sort of way, she understood Twilight's reasoning. "Regardless, I must return the favor to somepony who needs it most. Trixie has let you know when it is done tomorrow."
And with that, she walked out the front door without speaking another word; body disappearing into the darkness as Spike walked up besides her. He had a sad look on his face, but kept eyes contact with the blue unicorn while carrying something in his hand.
"Here, if you're going out there right now, you'll probably need this." The dragon outstretched his hand with a long and sturdy shovel, as Trixie gladly accepted it.
------
It was Applejack's turn, turning her head to grab the large bottle of apple cider sticking out her saddlebag. Feeling the weight of it in her mouth, it clanked on the ground, before reaching for a mug in her other pocket. "Would yeah mind helpin' me out Twi?" She gestured.
"Oh, no problem AJ."
The lilac unicorn's horn lit up as Applejack popped the cork with her teeth, levitating the bottle and pouring the stream of golden crystal like liquid out into her mug; foaming at the very top with a small bit of it streaking down the side. Being careful as not to spill anything on the bed, Twilight held the floating mug in front of Fluttershy for her to take hold of.
Rainbow stared at the sparkling goodness that was suspended in midair before her. "Applejack, you brought some of your cellar stored cider out?"
"I told yeah it wasn't fer me." The orange pony turned to Fluttershy. "Seeing as how you're able to check out of here tomorrow, I felt that now was as good as ever of a time ta give ya some of my good cider, the kind that ferments and tastes better with aging."
Angel bunny had to hop up onto Fluttershy's shoulder to be within sniffing distance of the cider, wiggling his tiny nose at the faint scent of apple liquid fragrance. A few small twitched and squeaks were made near Fluttershy's ear before she grasped the floating mug.
"Applejack, you wouldn't mind if Angel had some of your cider, would you?"
"Of course not sugar cube. You and whiskers there can have as much as ya'll like."
Taking another pause to observe the carbonated bubbles floating atop the drink, the soft pegasus drew in her cup close enough for Angel to lean forward and lap in more than a few satisfying drops. She closed her eyes again and slowly raised the mug to her muzzle, delicately letting the fizzing liquid cascade down her throat. After a few sips she dropped her head into a slouch.
Something seemed wrong for a moment when Fluttershy's mane dropped in front of her eyes, leaving her friends unable to distinguish her expression. Rainbow Dash asked in a soft voice. "Fluttershy? What's that matter?"
"Its… good…" She wimpered.
Rarity couldn't hear her quiet voice. "What was that sweetie?"
"It tastes so good… I've never tasted anything so wonderful in my life…" Another set of tears, which were lighter than the last, were unveiling in her eyes. "…I can't even believe you all still love me even after I...I…" She couldn't finish her own sentence.
It wasn't as if she was crying to be sad, but more as in the brink of revelation that she now realized the impact of her suicide and how it affected her friends. These kind gifts and acts of compassion were all well taken in good faith, that all anyone wanted to do was just love her more than ever with open hooves. Everyone in the room wanted to respond, but Twilight beat them to it.
"Look Fluttershy. I know you feel bad about what you did, but I'm most certain that there wasn't anything else you could've done. It wasn't your fault. Angel showed Applejack what happened and also explained how you saved him."
Spike leaned in on the opposite side of the bed to give a small hug. "You don't need to put so much guilt on your shoulders because we're here for you…. no matter what happened."
Fluttershy continued to sob, "I actually thought you'd all hate me and never ever want to see me again after what I did. That's why I tried to… kill myself." Her words brought silence to the room's atmosphere. "I never wanted to go back to being such a monster like that, but it… it just happened because I was so scared for Angel and-"
Rainbow didn't even hesitate to interrupt her sentence. "Fluttershy! You're not a monster! You're the kindest and happiest pony a friend could ask for!"
Another gentle hug was thrown onto the bedside, careful enough to not spill the half full mug still in Fluttershy's hooves. Taking the initiative, Angel took the cider cup away and placed it onto the hospital bed stand, where it would be out of the way of such a precious moment. It was a great surprise to Fluttershy that all her friends then began to gather around the white sheets and join Rainbow Dash.
Everywhere her eyes looked, she saw smiles in their faces as they each join together as one massive hug. The cheerfulness that embraced her aura began to merge into one big message, now able to see clearly, which was then spoken first by Pinkie Pie, "We're your friends no matter what Fluttershy."
Rarity adjoined with Rainbow, "There's not a thing in all of Equestria that could change that darling."
"We don't want you to leave us, we want to see you smile and just be your kind self again."
Everyone closed their eyes after Angel hopped back onto the bed and into Fluttershy's pink mane, hugging the side of her face. Her body was now covered in hugs, feeling the love that now literally surrounded every side of her. It felt so incredibly wonderful that she just didn't even know what to say.
------
"He called you a what?" Fluttershy asked.
"Yeah, but don't worry about it, because I still haven't finished yet. You see, later on that day I-"
Rainbow Dash paused to double check behind herself to make sure no one else was listening in on their conversation before continuing her story. It wasn't something she really wanted anyone else to hear, but knew it would help her friend. She took in a deep breath before speaking.
"I was angry at him. Really angry, like I don't even know what Twilight would call it."
"Angry?" Fluttershy squeeked.
Rainbow scratched the back of her head. "Yeah…. I really wanted to sock him good after what he called me, but I didn't want to make a scene like that out in flight school."
Fluttershy was becoming more curious of Rainbow's story, despite how frightened she was of its outcome. "What did… you do?" She asked.
"Well, even after things had settled down after school, I was still pumped with fury. I followed closely behind him until there wasn't anyone else around, and that's when I…I…" Rainbow looked down at Fluttershy's hoof, "I lunged at him and just started beating him senselessly."
With both hooves raised at her muzzle, Fluttershy made a small gasp under her breath. Rainbow had to pause for a second as to not upset her friend, who was looking her directly in the eye with much concern. It was still unclear why she was being told such a story and it was already frightening her. Despite this, the timid pegasus still managed to ask Rainbow to continue.
"Well, it got kinda dark early in the afternoon so I could only see the outline of him. I had him underneath me when I landed a few good solid hit on his face, only… it wasn't him."
Fluttershy jerked her head back slightly in shock. "What? It wasn't him?"
A tear ran down Rainbow's cheek, "No… it was some other filly from our class. I had hit her so hard that all she could do was lay there and cry. I still remember her whimpering to me 'what did I do?'" Rainbow glared down at her own hooves. "And then I thought to myself, 'what did I just do?' I just beat up an innocent pony who was just trying to get home."
Leaning in closely, Fluttershy nervously came closer to Rainbow, bringing the hospital bed sheets up to her neck. Although afraid to ask anything or even say anything, she couldn't just sit there and watch Rainbow cry like this. She mustered up the courage to speak, as she knew the story wasn't over yet.
"What happened then Rainbow?"
With a tear still in her eye, Rainbow looked up and asked, "Do you remember that one day when you found me sitting by myself at Cloudsdale park?"
"Um… yes, I remember. You were crying an awful lot. I don't think I had ever seen you cry before."
"Well, when I saw who I had beat up… I-I-I panicked. I didn't know what to do. What scared me even more was that I saw what I would've done to any other pony, like there was this monster inside of me I didn't even know about, so… I ran."
"You were scared?" That sure as hay sounded familiar to her.
"All I wanted to do was be alone. I couldn't believe what I had done. I knew that pony hadn't seen my face and there never was an explanation for it to her parents." The blue pegasus was shrugging her shoulders. "I felt so bad that I just wanted to… I just needed to… and then you came by the park." She relaxed her shoulders.
They both remained silent for a few seconds. "So… that's the reason why you were so sad?"
Rainbow Dash hopped off her chair and brought her front hooves onto the bed, she was feeling frantic and overly distressed enough to say exactly what was on her mind. "Fluttershy, I still remember to this day how warm your body felt when you hugged me and said "it's okay.' It was all I needed to hear to make me stop crying."
A heavy weight of worry slowly lifted off of Fluttershy's shoulders. Reminiscing whilst listening to those words proved beyond a doubt that she meant something to Rainbow and her friends. It almost made her want to cry out of sheer joy.
"I-It was?" Fluttershy squeaked.
Rainbow continued to cry, "Your kind heart gave me such comfort even though I didn't say anything to you. You were like a warm glowing light of happiness that made me forget all about me being sad. I don't know what I would do if you were gone." She dropped her head onto Fluttershy's lap.
"Rainbow… I had no idea. I'm so sorry that I… I tried to leave you all."
With the bed sheets soaking in the tears, Rainbow jerked her shoulders up and down as she muffled her cries into the bed besides her friend's leg. "Please don't leave us Fluttershy. I couldn't be anywhere without you. I know you were sad but p-p-please try to remember that we love you."
Fluttershy brought her down to gently stroke Rainbow's mane, and smiled. "Don't worry Rainbow Dash, I'm not going anywhere."
------
"Um… Are you girls sure about this?" Fluttershy had to be guided down the path by sound since she couldn't see anything.
Rainbow Dash walked closer beside the yellow pegasus, "Trust us Fluttershy, you'll be happy when you see this."
"Yah, you won't wanna miss this." Spike added.
For the past minute and a half, all Fluttershy could guess where she was going. She knew that they had already been walking in the general direction of her cottage before they had put the blindfold over her eyes. The anticipation made her shiver with fright, not knowing where she was being lead.
Pinkie Pie began to notice Fluttershy's pace slowing down. "Come on Flutter-butter! It's alright, I promise nothing's gonna explode or scare you."
She turned her head. "Oh… okay then."
"We're almost there, so just relax and keep following the sound of our hoofs." Said Twilight.
At the last hundred feet of the walk, Fluttershy could feel the tall grass brushing up against her wings and legs; more certain now that her friends had taken her to the fields outside the Everfree Forest, where her cottage was located. Although scared at first, the company of her surrounding friends was more than enough to keep a calm nerve.
When everypony had stopped walking, Fluttershy froze. She was expecting something big, but became puzzled when no one spoke up the first few seconds. "Um… so, can I take off this blindfold?"
Rarity nodded at Twilight, who received a wink back, "Before we do sweetie, I want you to close your eyes for us first."
"Oh, okay." She squeaked.
The white cloth sheet lifted off of gentle and yellow face by the blue glow from Rarity's horn, with Fluttershy's eyes remaining shut. There was a light breeze in her mane, bring her tension to a standstill. Calm and with a clear conscious, she waited patiently for one of her friends to tell her when to open them. After all the wonderfully kind things said to her yesterday, Fluttershy felt like she could stand up to the world again.
"Alright sweetie, you can look now."
Blinking a few time to adjust to the sudden rush light in her eyes, Fluttershy started at an object that laid in front. It was hard to make out at first with half of a blurry vision, before focusing in on the grayish object. Stepping closer, she was now able to see it was a stone; flat, grey and with writing on it, by which Fluttershy read it out loud.
"'May this wonderful creature find everlasting peace.'" She paused, looking all around her, she saw it.
This was the spot. This was where she had been attacked during that day and, most likely, was also where the wolf's body was, or rather is. Noticing the soft pile of dirt in front of the stone, Fluttershy could tell that this was indeed a burial site for the creature she killed. She didn't say anything, standing there in stillness without any indication of her reaction.
Twilight broke the silence. "We… uh… thought it would be a proper thing to do instead of leaving him out here like this, so I had someone give him a proper burial."
Fluttershy's eyes widened. "Y-y-you did?"
"Um… yeah." Twilight continued. "She heard about your story and just um… wanted to help. She said that she wanted to give her respect to you as well."
Fluttershy dropped into her sitting stance, throwing concern at her friends as to think she was upset again, but didn't realize they were all far from the truth. Unable to see until the quiet pegasus turned around, she had the most joyous smile on her face with but a single, yet small, tear in her eye.
"Who did this?" She asked.
Twilight hesitated, not wanting to say who. "She um… ask me not to tell her name because she… just wanted to give an anonymous and kind gesture."
Fluttershy looked down. "Was it somepony I knew?"
No one said anything, even though they all knew exactly who it was that buried the wolf for Fluttershy. Despite this, it would be wise to say that she took the hint and already knew from the beginning.
"Well… that's okay with me. I just… I just don't know what to say. I'm so glad to see that we could at least do something for the wolf. At least he won't be just sitting here alone," She turned back at tombstone. "…like I was." Her smile dropped slightly.
All her friends came in close behind, gathering around her vision for another collective and comforting group hug that seemed to last a generation. They merged together as one combined force of affection that emitted such massive waves of love into Fluttershy's heart. She knew that there were friends she could count on, who would try their best to make her feel better in any way.
"You're never alone sugar cube." Applejack spoke softly, with Rainbow Dash following up.
"We don't ever want you to leave us. You're one of our best friends and it could never be the same without your kind heart."
Rarity needed to say something as well. "I know that terrible things may happen to use and that sometime it may seem like nopony can possibly understand our pains…"
"… but everypony should have a friend to go see when we are feeling this way. So you can just talk to us all you want and we'll listen." Pinkie Pie finished.
A smile resurfaced on Fluttershy's face which adjoined with all the other smiling faces around her. The darkness that once occupied these fields on that rainy morning were far behind her and could see a bright and cheerful sun beaming down on her. Life could move on for Fluttershy, knowing that nopony in Equestria is a failure who has friends.
The void of emptiness she once had was filled with so much hope. Hope for herself and her future. No matter how dire things may have seemed, she now saw that there would always be a light of comfort and joy ready to find her among the darkness. The friendship she still had truly was something that could bring her unlimited happiness, and it certainly was amazing.
"Thank you girls." She replied.
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Editor's note: Wow, it's finally done. The finale's finally done and all my hard work has paid off. For those who don't read the description, I am Malicious Badger, editor of this story from start to finish. It all started when I wrote a 1000 word critique on chapter 1 of WAMM, including "if you want more help, just contact me" and hey presto, I became editor. People reading this story are probably completely unaware of how many edits and changes are made to each chapter, which is why I always have a laugh at the comment whenever someone say "you're a brilliant writer" or something like that. No offence to my writer, he does write pretty decently (and I was actually impress with the last 1800 words or so of this chapter), but this story would be completely different without me.
I don't think people realize how much of an impact I've had on the story; one chapter takes 8-12 hours to edit, which entails about 200+ edits per chapter. Anyways, time to stop bitching about the job and advertising myself like a shameless whore, and say; it's definitely been a lot of work to get to where we are now, was it worth the effort? Maybe, who knows? We were able to reach out and touch many people with our words but does the work fit the reward? Probably not, but oh well. I'm not going to say it was a lot of fun to work on this ect… because it really wasn't, for the most part it was the mundane editing, and a few arguments. But I will say that I enjoyed reading the comments, even though none were ever about me ;_; I liked that I was there through it all, I like our end results (though there still I few changes I'd make), and I like what we now all have done for each other. - M. Badger
Author's note: I would like to thank everyone for sticking with my long and complicated story till the very end. With over 32,000 words written in total, I am quite shocked that anyone had taken an interest in my little MLP Fanfic. I originally started writing this in dedication of a classmate friend named Nathan Maddox, who had taken his own life in his college dorm on February 12th, 2012. For more information, you can simply google his name where you will find him in the Oregonian obituaries.
I would like to give a big shout out to my editor, Malicious Badger, who stuck with me for this entire project, working tirelessly to help correct many mistake's I've made and make my writing sound more authentic. Up until I started writing this, I hadn't written a single fictional story for over two years. I only hope that my writing style was at least commendable, for you see, none of this great writing could be done without some sort of help, and Malicious Badger provided just that. So please, go check out his material if you have 5 minutes of your life to spare, because this person gave such dedication to my story that he deserves some recognition, if anything, at the very least. His icon is in the description.
This story truly was a pleasure to make and I hope you all have a wonderful life with plenty of smiles ahead. With that, I leave you my final message from this moral:
When the world gives you a hundred reasons to cry, show life that you have a thousand reasons to smile. Friendship truly is magic and has an affect beyond our imagination, it is something we all need and it is senseless to live without.
