> A Collection of my Unfinished Stories > by Fluskie > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > [E] Auntie Flurry (OC, Alternate Universe, Sad, Cute) > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- “I’m back. I got take out again so hope you don’t mind eating hayburgers and fries again.” Flusk set down a bag on the dining table as she heard the thumping of children running upstairs excitedly. A light blue pegasus filly and a light yellow unicorn colt giggled as they chased each other all the way to the dining table. They seemed more excited about having the same dinner again than Flusk was as they peeked into the bag, spotting a big box of fries and three hayburgers wrapped up inside. “Yay, my favorite!” The filly said as she reached into the bag for a hayburger. “Hey!” Flusk gently swatted away the filly’s hoof out of the bag. “Honeysuckle, you can’t just take one. I’ll pass them out once I’m done getting each of you some fries.” Honeysuckle pouted and crossed her arms. “Why not? I’m hungry!” “Auntie Flurry said she’ll give them to us once she’s done. Let’s just wait, okay?” The colt grinned at his older sister, hoping she’d listen. “Fineeee..” Flusk gave Honeysuckle’s younger brother, Sea Biscuit a tired smile as if she was trying to say thank you to him for making her listen. He smiled back as he and his sister seated themselves at the table as Flusk filled little trays equally with fries for Sea and Honeysuckle. She levitated them both to the two of them once she was done as they dug in once they reached the table. She slid both their hayburgers over to them as well as she sighed with both relief and exhaustion. “This is yummy, thank you Auntie Flurry!” Sea said. “Yeah, thank you Auntie Flurry!” Honeysuckle said shortly after. “You both are welcome. It surprises me you two still enjoy fast food after me ordering it all the time. I guess kids will be kids..” She looked over to the almost empty bag and the empty box beside it which use to have fries in it before they were all given away to the children. She frowned, realizing she didn’t get enough fries for all of them as she sighed, digging through the bag for her hayburger. “Well..I guess that’s my own fault.” Flusk mumbled. “What is?” Honeysuckle asked, staring up at Flusk curiously. “O-Oh! Nothing. Just..Talking to myself as always. Don’t worry about it.” Flusk replied, putting on a fake smile for Honeysuckle as the young one shrugged and continued to eat. Once she was sure Honeysuckle had believed her, she unwrapped her hayburger, levitating it to her mouth when suddenly she heard somepony slam their hoof on to the table. She jumped a little as her magic suddenly gave out and her burger splatted right on to the floor, making a big mess of sauces and lettuce on the floor. “Alright...Who did that?” Flusk asked, staring angrily at the two children behind her. Honeysuckle sunk under the table as Sea Biscuit visibly shook on his chair, staring at the wall guiltily. “Sea...Did you slam your hoof on the table?..” “I..Um..Maybe?..” She gave Sea a death stare for a moment before her face softened and she turned away from him. She levitated a roll of paper towels to herself, cleaning up the mess on the floor and teleporting the waste away after. “You kids keep eating, I’m going to go get some fresh air..” Flusk trotted off towards a glass sliding door and opened it with her magic as she trotted outside, shutting the door behind her. She shivered as soon as the cold air touched her, not realizing that it was a rather cold summer night. It didn’t really matter though because she wasn’t going back inside again anyways...Not for awhile. Truthfully she came out here because she wanted to escape Honeysuckle and Sea Biscuit. No, it wasn’t because she hated them or anything. It was because she needed a break. There was only so much she could take with ‘parenting’ two little ponies all by herself and in a tiny little apartment room she could barely leave. They were cute but they weren’t THAT cute to deal with all the time. She rested head on the railing of the apartment balcony she stood on, staring up at the shining moon and the many stars sprinkled amongst the sky. Thinking...Just..Thinking...She didn’t really know what she was thinking about but anything but this..Was she thinking about, thinking about, thinking? Now she was just confused.. “Auntie Flurry?” She jumped, coming out of her mind and swinging her head around to see little Sea Biscuit peeking his head out from the slightly opened sliding door, looking up at her curiously. “Sheesh, you scared me, Sea! Warn me next time you’re going to just pop up out of nowhere.” “I’m sorry..” Sea made a sad face at her. “It’s fine...What are you doing here?” “U-Um..I..I wanted to ask if I could sit out here with you..” “...Sure..If you want to. Although, I’m not really doing anything interesting so you’re most likely better off just going and playing with your sister before bed time.” “I don’t mind..I just wanted to see the stars.” Sea took this moment of silence to sit down beside Flusk, staring up at the flickering stars in the sky in awe. She smiled down at him a little bit as she sat down beside him as well. She tucked her long blue tail behind his back and looked back up at the sky again. “Do you like the night, Auntie Flurry?” “I do. It’s a very beautiful time in Equestria. When it’s day time, you can’t see the stars and the moon because the sun is too bright. But right now..It’s perfect.” “Daddy likes the night too! He told me and Honeysuckle that some stars in the sky are actually big circle things called planets. They just look like stars because they’re too far away.” “O-Oh..Really?” “Mhm! Maybe when daddy comes back we can all try and find the planets together!” Flusk frowned a little as she looked away from Sea. She didn’t exactly like when Sea or Honeysuckle mentioned their father. Whenever he was brought up, it normally came with hurt or sad feelings for Flusk. Especially because the kids didn’t know the real story about where their father was and why he was... “Auntie Flurry?..Are you okay?” Flusk sniffled a little as she wiped away a few tears and plastered a fake smile on her face. “Of course. Just uh..Thought I saw a bug.” “Ew! I hope it’s gone.” Sea wrinkled his muzzle in disgust. “I think so..I don’t see it anymore..” They sat in silence again for a little while before Sea spoke again. “Auntie Flurry...You and daddy are best friends, right?” “Mhm.” “So..Why do me and sis call you ‘Auntie’? I learned in school that an auntie and uncle are your mommy and daddy’s, brother and sister. You and daddy aren’t brother and sister.” “Oh..Well..” Both Drizzle and Flusk were now sitting on a balcony quite like Sea and Flusk were presently under the shining stars. They seemed to have been discussing important matters..Well, maybe not too important. “We decided on the name, Honeysuckle. I think it’s an adorable name for a filly.” Drizzle grinned. “What if it’s a colt?..” Flusk asked. “Well...I haven’t got that far yet.” Flusk giggled and sighed. “So..What are we going to do about me?..” “What do you mean? Do you not want to see the kid?” “No, no. That’s not what I mean...I...I mean, what are they going to see me as? Just..A close friend of yours?..” “I was thinking of telling them to call you their auntie.” “Auntie?! But..Why? I’m not even your real family!” “I see you as a little sister..I’ve told you that before.” “But..That’s just awkward because of my..Feelings..” Flusk blushed in embarrassment, hiding behind her short blue mane. “Besides..Isn’t it wrong to lie to them that I’m your real sister?..” “Nopony said I was going to lie to them..Ugh, forget it. I’m sure we can think of something else before the baby arrives..” Flusk came back to reality again as her vision focused on to the little colt beside her. It was kind of funny to think that Honeysuckle wasn’t the only child Drizzle had..He had a son too. A son that very much looked like him and basically followed in his hoof steps. Hopefully not all of his hoof steps. Drizzle had done some horrible things that the two children didn’t exactly need to know quite yet. “Your father thinks of me as a little sister even though we aren’t related at all. We thought it would be best if you both called me auntie. However, I thought I was going to be called Auntie Flusk not Auntie Flurry.” “Auntie Flurry sounds better.” Sea smiled. “I suppose so..” Sea seemed particularly interested in the past of Drizzle and Flusk and went silent, thinking up more questions to ask Flusk about what they did together before he and his sister were born. “What did you and daddy do for fun?” “For fun?..Lots of things honestly. A lot of it was just casual conversation but we also did many other things..” Flusk and Drizzle were now in a quiet little cafe with very few ponies sitting together at tiny tables. Some seemed to be working as a mare wrote furiously on a notepad with her unicorn magic and a hot cup of coffee beside her. Others were just friends hanging out on a nice morning having a chat with a donut or two. Flusk and Drizzle were hanging out at a little table with their own hot drinks. Drizzle had his usual coffee and Flusk had a cup of hot chocolate with lots of marshmallows floating about in the dark drink. Flusk didn’t like coffee so it seemed she just stuck with the next best thing. “Soooo..Are we just going to sit in silence?” Drizzle asked. “No?..I don’t know. Aren’t you usually the one who initiates conversation?” “It would be nice if somepony helped.” Flusk facehoofed and stared out the window beside her seat. “Well, there’s nothing to do and nothing interesting to talk about so what do you expect from me?” > [T] A Bloody Substitute (OC, Alternate Universe, Vampires) > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Aright..Just as master told me..Quiet and stealthy...Wow, feels weird calling him master in my head as well. I’ll never get use to this vampire thing..” Flusk thought in her head as she crouched behind some tall grass, watching a deer graze in a field, flicking its little tail a little. Even from here, she could hear the loud beat of its heart and the delicious blood flowing through its body. Such a poor innocent deer about to become the vampire’s lunch. ”It seems rather oblivious of its surroundings..Perhaps now is my chance.” Flusk shifted a little so she could prepare herself to run towards the creature. Every moment she waited, her hunger got more intense and made her want to sink her teeth in it even more. She had never felt like this before since the last six months of her vampire life she had been feeding on bags of blood her master had given her and never worried about the pain she would endure from needing blood. However, this was really bad..Even more worse than mortal hunger pains. ”I can’t take this anymore.” With a small whoosh of wind, she was gone. The vampire unicorn began sprinting through the forest, dodging multiple trees with her thirst for blood leading her through. She was way faster now than when she was alive and this greatly benefitted her in so many ways, especially now. ”Where did you go..Darn it! You couldn’t of gone far.” She whipped her head around as she ran, the trees becoming blurs around her as she searched for the deer. And then suddenly she saw the deer bounding through the field, seeming like it was trying to get away from her. She must of scared it in someway. Oh well, so much for being stealthy. Time to play a game of chase which wasn’t going to be very fair. At least on the deer’s side. She quickly changed directions from the way she was running and started to chase the deer. The creature looked behind it to see the incoming vampire. It seemed to pick up the pace, seeming extremely scared about what was coming for it. ”I’ve got you now..Wait...Huh? Where did the deer go?” She looked all around her only to see she zoomed right past it. ”Stupid vampire powers..” She turned around and ran straight for it again only for her to trip on a loose root in the ground and go tumbling down a hill. She screamed as her world spun for a few short moments until she fell right into a big mud puddle. The mud splashed all over her fur coat and her hat as well as her long blue mane. She groaned in anger as she heard the deer galloping away above. “Oh come on!” She yelled, scaring some birds away in a nearby tree. She sighed as she carefully climbed out of the mud puddle, dripping wet with the brown liquid. She levitated her hat off her head and rung it out like a wash cloth, folding her ears in annoyance. “Great, just great. I lost my food and now both my fur coat and hat are ruined. That fur coat wasn’t easy to find either..” After ringing out a bit of mud out of her hat, she placed the dirty thing back on her head, not sure what else to do with it. “Well, I guess I’m going to have to ask master to find another rich pony to steal from for me..” She mumbled, beginning to walk out of the forest. “I mean, I suppose I could do it myself but he knows I don’t know how to control myself as a vampire quite yet.” She suddenly doubled over as she clutched her stomach. The pain hurt so bad that she didn’t know if she’d be able to stand it for much longer. Why didn’t she eat before leaving?.. “M-Master!” She called out as she collapsed to the ground, closing her eyes tightly while clutching her stomach. She felt tears form in the corner of her eyes and fall down the side of her face as she waited for this to be over or for her master to save her. Well, she didn’t get the second option but she did get the first as she felt the pain begin to fade away and turn into nothing again. “Phew...That was...Terrible..” She painted, getting up once again. Her legs shook a little as she felt her body starting to become weak. This was what her master warned her about when vampires didn’t eat. They became weak and lost their powers slowly over time until well..She assumed they died at the end. “Well, thanks for saving me master. I appreciate your concern about me.” She said out loud after composing herself and continuing her way out of the forest. Once the dark maze of trees was left behind her, she found herself in a little town. She could see a few ponies walking around but not many at this time of night. Go figure, mortals slept right now while monsters like her travelled the land and hunted unsuspecting victims. Right..Ponies...Ponies! “I’ve never tried pony blood before but if this is the only thing I got right now then I guess I’m going to have to deal with it.” She moved her hat down, shading her bright red eyes as she began to walk around the tiny town. A few businesses were open right now while others were closed for the night. One particularly caught her eye that she knew would have lots of ponies right now..The bar. As she approached the bar, she noticed it looked rather run down and not from this present era. It basically looked like it was about to fall apart on the many ponies inside at any moment even though it didn’t. This town or the owner of this bar probably lacked on bits to fix it or just liked having an old garbage building. Flusk certainly didn’t enjoy it as she opened the paint cracking door, cringing at the loud squeak noise it made. When she got inside, she was surprised at how little ponies there were out drinking tonight. A few were in a little group at a corner table, playing a game of cards and being rather rowdy. Others were just sprinkled amongst the many tables by themselves or with a friend chatting to themselves and drinking their alcohol. At the bar, a attractive looking unicorn was tossing around a few cups and tidying up her space as another unicorn was sitting across from her, staring down at the ground sadly. She had no beverage in front of her which made Flusk even more curious of her as she approached the bar. “Heya stranger, welcome to-“ “Save it, I’m not looking to order anything.” Flusk said, interrupting her as she sat down at the bar, looking down at the ground so her hat would remain hiding her eyes. “Really?..Well, alright then. Feel free to tell me if you change your mind.” The bartender turned her back on Flusk as she continued to wipe down a few surfaces and tidy up, humming a song as she cleaned. Flusk took this as a chance to study the unicorn beside her, still being careful to keep her eyes hidden. The unicorn was light blue with green eyes and a long white mane with cream colored streaks in it. She also wore purple glasses and had a little ghost cutie mark as she seemed to be not exactly there and spaced out in her mind. This pony might be just the right target if she played this out right... “Hey..Are you alright?” Flusk asked the unicorn. It took a few moments but the unicorn suddenly woke up from whatever world she was living in and turned her gaze towards Flusk. She seemed a bit startled that a pony was now sitting beside her and she didn’t realize but she simply adjusted her glasses a little and gave a small smile. “Oh, hello. I didn’t see you there. I, uh, I’m fine. I was just thinking about some stuff, that’s all.” “Like what?” Flusk asked. “Uh..I’m not sure if I should say...” “Oh, is it something personal? I understand. You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. Besides, we just met anyways. Seems a little weird for me to ask that information.” Flusk gently rubbed her hooves together as the unicorn looked at her out of the corner of her eye. > [E] Fluttercord Week Generation Five Prompt [Discord and Fluttershy, Cute] > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- “Are you sure I can’t just come with you?..I could shrink down really small and even hide in your bag!” Discord then shrank down to the size of a mouse as he stared at his now very large friend, Fluttershy. Fluttershy giggled. "I told you this last time, Discord. Only me and the girls can go. It wouldn't be very nice if I sneaked you along and didn't do what Twilight wanted me to do. Besides, I need somepony to watch over my cottage and the animals. I think you'll have a lot of fun." "Fun watching animals? I guess.." Discord pouted as he went back to his normal size, crossing his arms as he watched his friend pack a little bag for herself. "Do you have all the lists I gave you?" Discord snapped and three different lists appeared in his claw and paw. Although, they kind of ran to the floor and each had different things such as what food each animal ate and another list that was how to groom each individual animal. There was so much information Discord knew he wouldn't be able to read all of this. "Yes but..I think this is a little too much." "I know it looks like a lot but each animal needs different food and care." Discord skimmed through a bit on a list. "Even animals of the same species?.." "Yes, of course! A few of them have allergies so they can't eat the same food. They need something else." Fluttershy zipped up her bag as Discord studied the list a little more thoroughly. “Who’s..’Boppet’ and ‘Floppet’..” “Oh! Those are my twin bunnies I’m fostering. Those two are actually a perfect example of allergies. Boppet can’t have carrots because she’s allergic to them but she can have lettuce. And Floppet can’t have lettuce because she’s allergic to it so she has to have carrots!” “Uh..Twins?..You mean like identical twins?..” “Yup. I took them both in to foster for a little while until they can go on their own.” “How am I suppose to tell who’s who then..” “Floppet has more floppy ears, hence the name.” Fluttershy grinned. As Fluttershy trotted towards the door, Discord only simply rolled his eyes. Telling if a bunny’s ears were more floppy than the other was definitely not going to help whatsoever. He didn’t want to be rude towards Fluttershy but her tactics towards telling who was who was not going to work. He followed her to the door as she swung her bag over her back. “Alright, I’m all ready to go now I’m sure. Are you going to be okay with the animals?” “As okay as I’ll ever be..” Discord replied, staring at a few birds that were zipping around a bird house currently behind him. “Alright, I’ll be back soon, I promise!” Discord grinned and opened his arms to Fluttershy. She giggled and jumped right into his arms as they both shared a hug goodbye. They waited a few moments before releasing and he gently put her back down on the ground. She waved goodbye and trotted out the door, leaving Discord to her cottage all alone. “Alright..Time to TRY and do some of the things she wants me to do..” “I’m guessing you’re Floppet and Boppet...Or Boppet and Floppet.” He stood in front of two bunnies that looked exactly the same. They both had a little brown marking on their ear that kind of looked like a splotch of paint and they both were white bunnies. Even their eyes were the same. “I guess I’m going to have study you both more thoroughly.” He snapped up a magnifying glass and enlarged it to almost the size of his head. He crouched beside the two bunnies and looked at both their ears closely. He honestly saw no difference and they both looked equally floppy. He sighed and snapped away the magnifying glass, standing up at his full height again. “I’m not spending hours looking at both of your ears.” He snapped up two bowls. One had some carrots and the other some lettuce. He switched them insanely fast that all his claw and paw and the bowls looked like were colorful blurs. He then abruptly stopped and gave each bunny a bowl. They happily ate each one once they were placed down. “Next!” “Put bird seed in the bird feeders..” He looked up to see a few birds fly in-between his antlers and land on a near by bird house. Right beside it was a hanging bird feeder that had only a few specks of bird seed left inside it. He looked at a bag of bird seed he was currently holding and then back up at the empty bird feeder. “Should be easy enough.” He flew up to it and levitated the bird seed. He made a grabbing motion with his claw as a handful of bird seed levitated out of the bag. He then flicked his claw towards the bird feeder and the bird seed began to fly towards it. Suddenly a bunch of birds swooped in and gobbled up all the bird seed before it could reach the bird feeder. Only one little piece made its way in. “Alright, well, I guess we’re playing this kind of game huh?” Discord snapped and he was now in a basketball player outfit. He grinned as he twirled a basketball on his finger and threw it behind his back. When he grabbed it again and brought it out, it was now a ball of bird feed. It was in a ball shape as he bounced it against the ground, weaving it between his legs as he stared up at the bird feeder. He grinned as he bounced it between his paw and claw and at the right moment threw it at the bird feeder. It soared through the air and past some birds before it then hit the floor and exploded everywhere into a mess. The birds came over and gobbled it off the floor. “Oh..Oops..” He smiled sheepishly. After sweeping the floor a little and cleaning up the mess of birdseed he moved on to another task. Although, he was getting rather tired of it at this point. The animals were more difficult than he thought. Perhaps it was because he was not their owner and was only taking care of them for today. Even with his chaotic powers though he still struggled with them. "Brush Harry's teeth? Hm, sounds like quite the hairy creature." He walked outside with a rather large toothbrush and some animal tooth paste searching around for the specific animal. "Harry?" He suddenly heard the pounding of ground as a rather large..Bear? A bear was running straight towards Discord on all fours. He frantically snapped a wall of sticks in front of him. Wait..A wall of sticks? Darn it, not sticks, a brick wall! That bear would surely be able to break through that. He cowered behind the wall, backing up and waiting for the incoming bear. There was loud snapping and crunching as the bear burst through the wall and roared in Discord's direction. It walked up to him as Discord stared up at it in utter fear. It then went back on it's hind legs and did a small roar happily. "Wha-huh?" Discord was suddenly swooped up in a furry hug by the bear and swung around in circles. “AAAHH!” Discord snapped himself out of the bear’s hug, stumbling around in circles dizzy. He shook his head as he took deep breaths to try and get rid of his sudden nauseous feelings from being dizzy. He sighed, rubbing his face with his paw. The bear stared at him confused. > [E] A Promise Kept [OC, Alternate Universe, Backstory] > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "You told me that it was safe..You told me that the ponies are no longer like that anymore!" "No, I told you that majority of Equestria has forgotten about what happened and doesn't remember. It might not be safe but we shouldn't be hiding ourselves away forever. We can't help who we are." Flusk panted as she lied on the ground, hearing that very same conversation repeating in her head as pain spiked all across her body. Her wings ached, her head was pounding, and her back felt like it was about to split in half. She had just fallen from the sky from a very tall height and slammed right into the ground. Despite all the pain, she continued to recall her conversation with the Spirit of Chaos, Discord. The one who had convinced everything would be alright and that she should accept who she was. Why did she fall for it?..What a fool..Why did she even try?.. "Don't remember?..Are you kidding me?! Someone I trusted found out about me recently and they tried to strap me to one of those machine things! They still remember. You can risk your life all you want but don't expect me to follow you in your plans. This is who I am." "You will continue to live in fear and beneath the ponies just because you don't want confrontation? That's what they want from you. Stop being a coward and stand up for yourself!" Flusk winced as a invisible force grabbed at her neck, gliding her limp, tall body towards the pony she hated most. She didn't know her name but she knew who she was and what she stood for. A pony from millennia ago who shouldn't even be alive anymore. Ponies live very short life spans yet she still was here. Obviously, her existence is being fueled by draconequus magic. How disgusting..She should have stayed in the past where she belonged. Her hiding underneath a dark hood didn't make her appear any better either. "All alone with no one to save you..Just how I like it." The pony spoke coldly, a smirk spreading across her face. Even underneath the shadow of her own hood, Flusk could see her sickening smile spreading. "Y-You should have died a long t-time ago..You old hag." Flusk replied weakly. "I suppose the same should go for you. The higher power of this world gave your species such a long life span while the rest of us are left to die. How despicable..You all have such disgusting forms and displays of magic. It makes me sick." "W-We didn't ask for it..We were given it generously..P-Perhaps that's something ponies should learn..To be given rather than take.." "You naive little child.." Flusk felt her magic constricting around her throat, making her want to cough so badly to somehow clear her airways of her magic yet there was no air to help her do so. Her limbs fought at the air uselessly as she gripped her neck with her paws. Broken promises and useless words..She never should have listened to that stupid draconequus. "That's enough!" Flusk's purple eyes could barely keep up with a large multicolored grey blur zooming in front of her and ramming into the mare attempting to choke her. She instantly felt relief as the mare's spell was instantly knocked out, landing to the ground. Flusk held her neck, coughing and gasping for air. Her eyes widened at the draconequus in front of her who currently had the mare pinned to the ground with his paw and claw. "Discord?.." Flusk said absently. She watched his head turn around, both his eyes meeting hers. Every time she saw his face, she always saw that scar over his eyelid and the slightly cloudy yellow and red within his left eye. She didn't exactly see it at as a bad thing though. His scar defined him in a way. It showed that he had been through much worse than this. Not to mention his rather attractive black mane and goatee. For a creature who was considered an elder in draconequus years, he sure kept himself in good shape. "You shouldn't doubt me as much as you do. Doubt only gets you so far. Besides, you really thought I was just going to leave you here with her?" > [E] Too Late [Vent Story, OC, Sad] > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- She slammed herself against the door and pushed with all her might. She used all the strength she had left in her body to open the heavy door and for the first time, it slowly began creaking open. A large gap between the door and the outside of it started to form as she kept pushing and throwing herself against it. Finally..It opened. She galloped out from behind the door and turned her head side to side, looking for the pony she had been looking for all this time. She saw two figures standing in the darkness up ahead as she galloped to reach them. She felt her heart beating fast with both excitement and tiredness. This was it..She finally found them and no longer had to be alone anymore. She could finally be with them. It was such an amazing feeling she couldn't even describe with words. But then..It all ended so suddenly.. She came to a screeching stop as she kicked up dirt with her hooves. Her heart sank when she noticed the pony she was looking for in the embrace of another pony. The two looked inseparable and like they'd never let go of each other. Her heart hurt looking at them..Everything hurt. Her eyes filled with tears as she couldn't help but feel so suddenly lost and alone. The one pony she was looking for was already gone and there was nothing she could do about it. Like a boat that left to sea already...He was gone...Forever. > [E] My Dear, Fluttershy [Alternate Storyline, Fluttercord Angst] > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- As soon as Izzy pushed open the gates, a thick green smog rushed through the space bordering Canterlot and toward where she stood. It swirled around her hooves, making her jump a little out of surprise and stagger backwards. The mist began to rise and reach up to her ears as Izzy’s eyes darted back and forth, unsure what sort of thing she might have released from the ancient unicorn city. “Sunny?...” She muttered, unable to speak loud enough for the others to hear. Whatever it was seemed to have a mind of its own and its unknown intentions seemed to change into aggression after she called out for her friend. It rapidly circled Izzy’s body, enveloping her lower half and inching up her neck. She raised her head to try and see just above the mysterious smog to a small snippet of the old abandoned kingdom that once belonged to Princess Twilight Sparkle. Buildings and memories long left behind and shattered to pieces…It made the moment seem a lot more depressing than it should have been for Izzy.  “Your sparkle is so faint…I can barely see it.” With a soft thud, Sunny landed to the ground, followed by Zipp and Pipp. It seemed Hitch hadn’t returned yet from asking the critters around this area if they had seen anything out of the ordinary and Sunny and the others had come back to land empty-hoofed. There was nothing but rows and rows of trees for miles that were too thick to see through without potentially getting lost. It was too great a risk to lose any of their friends in uncharted territory like this, especially with the random glitches in their power every so often. Pipp groaned. “This is why you should have let me pack, Zipp! Now I can’t even use my phone to find out where we are because you didn’t let me bring my charger!” “Yeah well, we can’t wait around and let magic fully disappear while you pack your bag with a million pillows. Somepony could get seriously hurt if we don’t find out what’s causing those glitches.” “I wasn’t going to take that long. At least twenty minutes.” “We don’t have twenty minutes to waste!” “Zipp, Pipp!” Sunny called out over their arguing. The two pegasi turned to look at Sunny, surprised expressions on their faces. Sunny took a deep breath, reeling in her irritation before addressing them once again. “Look, arguing isn’t going to make our mission to save the magic any easier. We’re all supposed to be on the same page but we can’t work together if we’re fighting.” Sunny paused and sighed before continuing. “I don’t want Equestria to go back to the way it was. Unicorns not able to use their magic and fearing it instead, pegasi not able to fly, us earth ponies never getting to use our new powers again…I don’t want that.” Pipp frowned and gazed at the ground guiltly while Zipp nodded solemnly, agreeing with Sunny silently. “If it wasn’t for magic, I would have never met all of you. So please, help me fix this so that we can help all our friends back in Maretime Bay.” Zipp and Pipp looked at each other once more before a small smile formed on Zipp’s face as she glanced at Sunny again.  “I’ll try to keep my comments to a bare minimum.” “I guess I can try to tolerate Zipp for the fate of Equestria’s magic.” Pipp replied sarcastically, a small giggle eliciting from her. “That’s the spirit!” Sunny grinned. Sunny’s transparent horn and wings vanished with a small twinkle whilst she climbed over a few bushes, investigating their surrounding area. It was then that something that happened earlier caught her from her thoughts. Before she took off into the air with Pipp and Zipp to scout the area, she recalled Izzy yelling something at her before she flew too high to hear her speak. She tried to remember what she said as her eyes moved across the area, looking for her peppy self hiding in the grass somewhere.  Wait, Izzy wasn’t here…She wasn’t here when they returned from the sky either. Panic struck Sunny’s face as she galloped towards her friends in a hurry. “Sunny, you alright?” Zipp asked, noticing Sunny’s distress. “Izzy, did you two see her? A-Anywhere?” She asked anxiously. “No? I thought she went with Hitch to go talk to the animals around here.” Pipp replied. Just as she said that, Hitch came trotting over from behind a low hanging tree, a small animal parade consisting of tiny mice, bunnies, birds, and even a bear followed right behind him as he made his way over to the group. Pipp yelped at the sight of the towering bear and hid behind her big sister, hugging her tail tightly as she shuddered in place. Both Sunny and Zipp reacted a little hesitant as well as they backed up unsurely. “Hitch, there’s a giant bear right behind you!” Pipp cried. “I know, it won’t leave me alone.” Hitch answered irritatedly. “All I wanted to do was ask a few questions and now they’re all following me around. This is even worse than the amount of animals I attract in Maretime Bay.” “Wait…So the bear is friendly?” Pipp peeked out of Zipp’s tail curiously. “I mean he hasn’t tried to eat me so I guess he is.” Hitch glanced up at the bear. The bear stood at his backside on its four legs, to his dismay, gently patting Hitch on the head, ruffling his mane up. Even if the other ponies couldn’t understand a word it said, it was obvious that it had no intentions of harming anypony here and appeared to be more intent on being overly affectionate with Hitch. This reassured Pipp as she ducked out from behind Zipp and stared up at the bear in amazement. “I wish my phone wasn’t dead. I’m sure the pippsqueaks would love to see this!” Pipp fought back her laughter, “Hitch, was Izzy with you?” Sunny asked. “No, I thought she went with you gals?” “Uhh, Hitch, Izzy is a unicorn. She wouldn’t have been able to follow us up there.” Zipp replied. “Oh, that’s strange. I didn’t see her at all, I was too preoccupied with these little ones.”  Hitch gestured to the little critters gathered at his hooves as he bent his arm down to a few mice. They quickly scurried up his forearm and onto his head, nestling themselves into his mane comfortably. A few of the other small animals on the ground gave dirty looks up at the mice, jealous of them for being chosen to ride on Hitch’s head.  “Oh no, this is not good! Where could she have gone?” Sunny panicked. “Maybe she was looking for clues on the ground? She did seem a little disappointed earlier that she couldn’t help us search in the sky.” Zipp suggested. “But this forest is gigantic! If she went investigating then she might have got herself lost, or worse! She was right, we should have stayed together.” “Maybe the animals saw her walking past, I’ll ask them.” Everypony waited with bated breath as Hitch leaned down and asked the animals surrounding him if they saw Izzy nearby. The others saw the critters communicate with him in their own little squeaks and growls but nothing they were able to comprehend in english. Hitch nodded, listening to them intently for a moment before turning back to his friends. “I think if I’m understanding correctly, a few of them said they saw her approaching…’The Gate of the Ancients?’...I have no idea if that’s a mistranslation on my end or if that’s actually what they’re saying. Either way, I have no idea what that-” “The Gate of the Ancients!” Sunny repeated spontaneously.  The other ponies glanced at her confusedly but Sunny knew exactly what the animals were talking about. It was the same gate Princess Twilight had created hundreds of moons ago to welcome those who believed in the power of friendship and unity within the castle walls of Canterlot. Although it was an old bedtime story her father used to tell her before she went to sleep, her father, Argyle was also a researcher for ancient Equestria. He was incredibly knowledgeable on the events that occurred back then and was the reason Sunny was so passionate about friendship and the Mane Six now. If he knew about it, there had to be some sort of remnants left of it. Izzy might have just found a piece of history that ponies had long forgotten about. Maybe even a key to saving the magic? “Yeah?...That’s what I said.” Hitch titled his head. “Hitch, you heard exactly right! I know what The Gate of the Ancients is. But first, we need to see if we can find Izzy’s hoof tracks in the dirt anywhere.” “Could you tell us what it is? I like knowing what I’m in for before attempting anything.” Zipp asked. “I’ll explain on our way there, help me find any clues that could lead us to the gates!” Zipp sighed exhaustively and joined Sunny in searching the ground for any clues of Izzy. Pipp and Hitch helped out as well and eventually, all ponies had their muzzles to the dirt, including Hitch’s animal friends, inspecting the earth thoroughly for anything out of place. Pipp had to take a few short breaks out of disgust of a bug flying right into her face and mane which slowed the process but it wasn’t before long the four ponies found reasonably sized hoof tracks in the mud.  As they pursued the trail, Sunny explained the history of the gate bordering Canterlot to her friends and its intentions for all creatures visiting the kingdom. Their reactions were a mix of astonishment that they might be discovering an old area once belonging to an influential princess that was long lost to time, it also seemed a little too good to be true. How could they possibly be so lucky to stumble upon a castle so old and mysterious as a couple of ordinary ponies? And even so, it must have been heavily affected by the natural elements since all that time. They might just come across a pile of rubble, now useless to ponykind. The tracks ended at a large rotted gate half open and covered in overgrown leaves. Symbols like a six pointed star, a small butterfly, and even a lightning bolt were encrusted into the wood permanently as if they were intentionally chipped into its surface. Sunny traced her hoof over the six pointed star, her eyes lighting up. “This is Princess Twilight Sparkle’s cutie mark, I’m sure of it! This has to be the right gate.” “Look, the gate is open a crack. I think Izzy tried to go inside.” Zipp pointed out. Sunny pushed her entire weight against the gate, groaning and shutting her eyes tightly. The gate gave away and scraped against the dirt noisily, opening just enough for everyone to see the other side. They saw the other side just long enough for their expressions to fade into shock and sadness at the city in front of them. The same green mist that surrounded Izzy now circled around Sunny and all her friends, aggressively wrapping around them at a terrifying rate. Pipp let out a scream and Zipp frantically tried to dust it away with her wings to no avail. The mice hiding in Hitch’s mane let out high pitched squeaks and the other animals rushed to run away from the strange smog. Sunny attempted to back away from it but it only enclosed the space around them, preventing them from escaping.  “Somepony, help!” Sunny yelled, knowing her cries for help would be useless, especially with nopony around but the small group. Suddenly, their whole surroundings disappeared into nothing but the swirling green fog and all of Sunny’s friends collapsed to the ground, all except for her. “Hitch, Zipp, Pipp, what’s wrong?!” “I…Can’t move…I feel so weak.” Hitch murmured tiredly. “S-Sunny?...”  Sunny glanced downwards to Pipp sprawled out across the floor, her legs shaking and her eyes filled with utter fear as she could barely move. All she could really do was shiver a little and plead with her eyes for Sunny to save them, somehow set them free from this invisible imprisonment. She didn’t really know how or what to do. The only possible solution was to confront whatever was hurting her friends. Sunny turned around, stomping her hooves to the ground firmly and dragging her right hoof through the dirt. She stood up straight with confidence as she stared out through the swarming mist. It felt as though her hooves would be glued to the ground, standing strong against the force that was against them. Sunny wouldn’t allow this to go on any further. “Whoever you are, you need to let my friends go right now! I won’t tolerate you hurting innocent ponies.”  Her voice echoed throughout the space as she held her ground, awaiting a response or surrender from her enemy. When she found her demand ignored, she continued. “I will be forced to fight you if you don’t free my friends. Please don’t make me have to resort to violence when we could settle this peacefully.” A low voice sounded from the darkness in a mocking tone. “And what could you possibly do to harm me, little earth pony?” While she was startled by the sudden response from the mysterious figure, she felt a little offended that they decided to insult her for being an earth pony. She could hurt somepony just as much as a pegasus or a unicorn could. Although, she felt a little guilty for thinking about it like that. She didn’t want to hurt other ponies, she just wanted others to understand that all races were equal in their own way and there was no reason to compare. In a moment of irrational thinking, Sunny decided on her next move. It wouldn’t be very smart to reveal herself like this but if it was for her friends, she’d do anything to save them. “I am not just an earth pony. I am the one who brought magic back to Equestria and united the three races of pony again!” “I’ve heard that same narrative more times than I can count. In fact, there’s been multiple ancestors of yours that have reunited ponies time and time again because your kind never stays together. It gets quite exhausting watching small creatures futile efforts be reversed over and over. What’s the point?” The voice sounded bored of Sunny, daresay even tired of her. The way they spoke sounded almost as if they were familiar with a past Sunny never had the chance to see. A present that was led by different ponies with dreams and passions that strived for a bright future. They had seen this all before and Sunny’s words meant nothing to them. She had to do something to make them see… Canterlot…Princess Twilight Sparkle. There has not been a single pony who’s walked this area in many moons. And if they have, they wouldn’t be from this era, from this time of Equestria. The only way somepony would know about Canterlot other than her father and her is if they lived the Twilight era and were able to tell the tale. Was it possible for another creature to still be alive from then? Sunny wasn’t sure if she was onto something but if this figure knew about this old city, they would know about its old ruler. “I am a disciple of Princess Twilight Sparkle. I never had the chance to meet her but I carry on her message and legacy of friendship in hope that I can make a difference too. In the name of her highness, please stop this madness!” A gold glowing light began at Sunny’s back and the top of her head as her transparent horn and alicorn wings spawned out of thin air. Her wings held out straight at her sides defensively and her horn flickered with her magical aura, ready to be used if they disagreed with her.  To Sunny’s relief, it didn’t seem like it would have to come to that as the rapid mist faded almost immediately as her alicorn magic was revealed. Her friends stopped straining in place and carefully got up to their hooves, surprised to find themselves intact after that whole ordeal as their whole surroundings changed once again. They had been teleported right into the old throne room of Canterlot Castle without even taking a step through the gate. The ceiling above them appeared as if it was caving in, several cracks lining its surface and making Sunny a tiny bit uneasy about being here. To their left, the old hall which depicted all the major events of Equestria and its saviors within stained glass was completely closed off by fallen debris and overgrowth of planets. Oddly enough, all the stained glass murals were all in great condition and almost as if they were untouched. Sunny’s eyes fell on the one depicting Twilight’s first ascension into an alicorn princess, feeling a sense of pride to be there to see it.  “Thanks, Sunny, for helping us.” Hitch said, trotting up from behind Sunny. “Yeah, that was really weird. I couldn’t even move my own legs, I felt so tired and could have sworn I almost passed out.” Zipp recalled her experience, still a little shaky. “Of course, I’d always try to save you all,” Sunny smiled at her friends before scanning the area with her eyes. “Although, I don’t know what happened to that pony who was talking to me. They just up and vanished.” “Are those the old heroes of ancient Equestria?” Pipp asked, interrupting their conversation as she gestured to the mural of Twilight and her friends defeating Nightmare Moon. “They are. Back when Princess Twilight still ruled Equestria, they often recorded influential events that took place in the form of stained glass,” Sunny joined Pipp’s side. “Everything you see is something that happened way back in the past.” Pipp fetched her phone from under her wing and held it up in an attempt to get a picture of the stained glass windows but was thoroughly disappointed again to be reminded by a flashing low battery screen on her phone.  “If they’re all from the past, then why aren’t they all damaged?” Zipp asked. “It’s been thousands of years and this whole place seems to be falling apart. But these windows are still here.” “Maybe it’s some kind of magic spell?” The debris in the stained glass hall started to shift as small rocks rolled into Sunny’s hooves. She arched her back defensively just as a large lanky shadow started to inch out from beneath a chunk of concrete, pulling itself up onto its legs and glaring Sunny dead in the eyes. All she saw was a pair of red irises before the figure launched itself at her and sent both of them tumbling across the floor, forcing the other ponies to leap out of the way before they were knocked over. “Sunny!” Hitch shouted, almost losing his balance as he dodged out of the way. Sunny felt sick to her stomach as the world spun around and around from the force of the other creature on top of her. Their weight and immense size felt like it was crushing her alive as they remained in motion until Sunny’s back slammed into a wall. She grunted as a sharp pain pierced through her back and she screwed her eyes open to look up at who was crouched over her.  A curtain of white and grey hair passed over her face while a tall creature exhaled furiously overtop of her. Its sharp teeth were bared angrily at her while a low growl emitted from its throat. A lion paw and an eagle claw were planted into the ground at either side of her and a red dragon tail whipped behind it, the creature showing its immeasurable distaste for Sunny.  Sunny stared up at it, not with a look of fear but wonderment. She wasn’t really sure what to say or what to do. This creature was clearly upset with her but she didn’t really know why or how. She didn’t even know them and yet they were acting so irrationally towards her.  “Get off her you monster!” Pipp shouted from the other side of the throne room. In response, the creature snarled loudly at her and Pipp immediately backed down. “O-Okay, okay, never mind! You can eat Sunny if you want.”  Zipp glowered at her. “Pipp!” It turned its attention back onto Sunny and resumed growling at her and moving dangerously close to her face. Sunny closed her eyes and inhaled a big breath of air before letting it go. This thing behaved like a wild animal and if she had learned anything about having a friend who could communicate with animals, it was best to not act out of aggression and not fight fire with fire. It was better to approach the situation calmly and reassure the other creature you did not mean any harm.  Despite her fear screaming at her to do otherwise, Sunny slowly but surely raised her hoof towards the angered creature’s face, allowing it to see her hoof before proceeding. The growling only increased and rumbled loudly from its throat the more her hoof drew closer. But she wouldn’t allow herself to be frightened by its temper.  > [T] Bad Ending [OC, Tragedy, Old Story] > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- A terrible pain circulated across Flusk’s body as a few tears fell from eyes, clenching them shut. She could feel herself falling through the air and the piercing pain of Solar Dot’s blast course through her body. She felt the small pieces of broken glass impact her back and slice through her skin like tiny knives. The pain was unbearable and she felt like screaming but for some reason something held her back. She didn’t want to see what was happening to her..She just knew that she was about to die..Die to the one who once carried her and made her feel appreciated as a pony..It was all over now. She slammed into the ground hard and let out a small scream in both pain and surprise. His blast seemed to have sent her flying through a window and right into the grass below which barely cushioned her fall. She had to have broken something but..She couldn’t feel it..Was she supposed to feel it?..She didn’t want to feel it..She didn’t want to feel anymore pain..Both mentally and physically. “Aww..Poor Fluskie doesn’t look so good.”  She heard his voice suddenly as the fire maned unicorn teleported in front of her. She felt his hoof place itself under her chin and raise her head to look up at him. He still wore that evil smirk on his face even though he most likely was just about to kill his best friend. Drizzle was far gone by now.. “Poor thing..If only you had just listened to me when I said you couldn’t have your little friend back..And was I really wrong? No..I wasn’t. You really thought if you fought me he’d come back and heal all your pretty little wounds and say everything was fine..Didn’t you?..” Solar spoke in a bit of a mocking tone. A few tears fell down Flusk’s face yet she remained silent. The only thing that seemed to be depicted on her face at the moment was anger and sadness.  “Still nothing to say, hm? That’s quite alright. I’m sure you wouldn’t have anything intelligent to say anyways. You already know that I have won and there’s nothing you can do about it. And well, if you did, you’d get yourself killed. You’re in quite the rough shape right now and I’m sure that’s not what you want..” Solar now let go of her chin and merely laughed, trotting away from her as he stopped to look at the sky which was full of dark clouds of smoke and orangey colors of fire. The air stunk of burned trees as ashes slowly fell like snow through the air. It was like being in literal hell. “I have already done what I’ve wanted and claimed what was rightfully mine. Regalia and Aphrodite have already kneeled down to me. The only pony who hasn’t done so is you..” Solar said, turning around to face Flusk now. “You have such a fighting spirit that it's allowed you to endure so much pain and suffering..And for what outcome?..Nothing..It was all..For nothing..” “I-It was..Not for..Nothing!” Flusk struggled to speak. “Oh? And what exactly did you accomplish by being a stubborn little foal?..You rebelling has got so many ponies killed and for what..Your pride? Ridiculous..” “N-Not pride...F-For Drizzle and S-Spirit...I will always d-do it..For Drizzle and my son..”  “Drizzle is gone you insufferable child! And you know what he would say to you for pulling such a stunt?..” Solar trotted over to her, lowering his head and looking down at her with utter disgust. “That you were nothing..But a failure..” Flusk’s eyes widened as tears filled them. Her mouth hung open as he simply smiled and laughed at her. The mare hung her head low as her mane covered half her face. Tears fell into the grass below as not even a sob came out from her throat..Just..Silence.. “Aww..You just finally realized didn’t you? That he always thought you were a failure? You were that one unicorn who was never able to truly harness her magic..Isn’t that pathetic? He thought so too. He tried and tried so many times with you but you just didn’t get it. He felt so sorry for you that he was only friends because you were alone. You even fell in love with him..Poor little Fluskie Wuskie will never be loved by anypony.” A sudden burst of bright light blinded Solar as he covered his eyes, only squinting to try and see its source. He uncovered his eyes when he noticed where that bright light was coming from as his jaw dropped. Flusk was now standing on her hooves as a brilliant purple light swarmed around her horn and her eyes glowed white. All her wounds seemed to heal within seconds as her white feather on her flank seemed to shine as well like a spotlight. Her cutie mark seemed to have taken on a whole new meaning now. A small feather once all alone now a feather that gained its strength and true power that it had within it all along..Flusk always was a strong unicorn. “W-What is this..This isn’t right. You can’t do anything!” Solar shouted. “You’re wrong, Solar! Drizzle would have never said anything like that and neither would anypony else. There are ponies who love me and Drizzle was always proud of me when I tried. The only pathetic pony here is you!” Flusk shouted, her voice echoing sounding like a bunch of copies of her were speaking at once. “This is impossible!” “The only thing impossible here is your control on me and everypony else!” Solar growled, sending a wave of fire at Flusk. It circled around her, trapping her in a fire circle. A simple blast of her magic though and it was already put out. Solar began blasting even more powerful spells at her but Flusk either shielded herself or destroyed them with her own magic. Solar blasted a powerful spell at her when she suddenly blasted back as their two magic began to fight against each other, pushing at each other and moving back and forth. Solar laughed as he noticed his fire magic began to win against Flusk but she narrowed her eyes. Her purple magic began to push back and inch rather close to Solar’s horn. His smirk turned into a look of worry as his eyes darted toward Flusk and the battling magic. “One more thing..I..Am not..A FAILURE!”  Flusk shouted at the top of lungs as her magic won against him. Solar shouted in agony as her magic began encasing him in a coating of stone. It started from the tip of his horn, moving down his neck, to his torso, his legs, and stopping his fiery mane from being in motion. All that was left was his face as the stone began to creep over his cheeks, getting closer to his eyes and mouth. He looked generally scared as something seemed to flit through his eyes. “Thank you..Flusk..” “D-Drizzle?!”  “Don’t blame yourself..You tried..Keep Honeysuckle and Sea Biscuit safe for me..Okay?..” He closed his eyes as a small smile appeared on his face as the stone creeped over his face and fully encased him in stone… Flusk dropped to the ground as her magic see to wear off. She quickly galloped up to his statue and dropped to the ground, sobbing hard… It was softly raining in a small little forest as Drizzle’s statue stood there, little droplets of water falling down his muzzle and horn. A little bouquet of red roses was placed at his statue as Flusk stood in front of it with her family. Her son Spirit who was fully an adult now, her daughter Shimmer Hope who was a filly, her husband Swift, and the two children who were also grown up now that she took care of for Drizzle, Honeysuckle and Sea Biscuit. Flusk dabbed at a few tears coming from her eyes with a tissue as Swift wrapped his wing around her back, comforting her. Honeysuckle and Sea Biscuit got a bit closer to their father who was encased in stone and dropped their own little roses at his statue. Although their land was at peace now..They still were missing somepony who was very close and important to them..Drizzle Dots.