PONYVILLE

It was sundown by the time Fluttershy got back to Ponyville, soothing her accidental injury from the wolf cub. As she approached Sugar Cube Corner, Pinkie Pie opened the top door, her mane covered in frosting and cake mix.

"Hi, Fluttershy!" she said, smiling, "How did your froggy friends like the pie?"

"Oh, uh…" Fluttershy stuttered a little, "I'm sorry, Pinkie, but I never made it to Froggy Bottom Bog. You see, along the way, I…"

"LOOK OUT BELOW!" boomed Rainbow Dash's voice as she screeched to a halt in front of Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy. "So, Pinkie Pie, did you find a way to make my cupcakes twenty percent cooler than the others?"

"Did I ever!" Pinkie opened the door. "Come on in! I believe these are perfect!"

Rainbow Dash flew inside as Fluttershy entered slowly, flinching everytime she stepped on her injured hoof. Rainbow Dash noticed her.

"Uh, Fluttershy. What happened to you?"

"Oh!" Fluttershy moved her hoof back. "Well, you see… I met this-"

"DONE!" Pinkie Pie shouted as she put three cupcakes in rainbow frosting in front of them. "The new Rainbow Dash Cupcakes!"

"I hope these are better," said Rainbow Dash.

"I believe they are," said Fluttershy, sniffing the cupcakes. "They smell heavenly". She takes one and bites into it, then her eyes go wide open.

"Oh boy," said Rainbow Dash.

"Are they bad?" said Pinkie, feeling a bit sad.

"No… They're excellent!" Fluttershy ate the rest of the cupcake.

Rainbow Dash looked a Fluttershy, then to the cupcake. She picks it up and takes a bite. Unbelievable, the cupcakes were great.

"Now these are Rainbow Dash Cupcakes!" Rainbow Dash said as she looked at Pinkie Pie. "How did you do it?"

"Easy!" said Pinkie Pie, happy that her friends enjoy her cupcakes. "I added colored candy to the mix. Thus, Rainbow Dash cupcakes!"

Rainbow Dash looked at the cupcakes and noticed that there were candy-coated chocolates in the cupcake.

"Either way, they're great! Do you have anymore?"

"Plenty!" said Pinkie Pie as she pointed her hoof to a table, but… "Or not. Fluttershy?"

Fluttershy had eaten all the cupcakes, along with the frosting on the lid. She swallowed and looked at them, smiling.

"Wow! Never seen anypony eat that many cupcakes, except for me during that cupcake eating contest!" said Pinkie Pie, pointing to a trophy with a cupcake on top of it.

"Fluttershy?" said Rainbow Dash. "You feeling alright?"

"I'm sorry…" said Fluttershy. "Did you want some?"

"That's not what I meant. I mean, since when do you eat so many cupcakes at once? How many did you eat?"

"I don't know. I wasn't counting".

"Pinkie Pie?"

"I believe I made around 30 or so," said Pinkie, "I just had a lot of batter to make them with".

"Fluttershy," said Rainbow Dash, "You ate 30 cupcakes in about 30 seconds flat!"

"I guess they were really good," smiled Fluttershy as she began to sniff around. "What's that wonderful smell?"

Both Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie sniff around, but nothing.

"I don't smell anything," said Rainbow Dash.

"I smell frosting!" said Pinkie Pie.

"That's because you still have some on your nose, Pinkie".

"Oh, right!"

As Pinkie Pie licks off the batter and frosting from her mane, Mrs. Cakes enters, wheeling in bagged items.

"Good Evening, Mrs. Cakes!" said Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Pinkie.

"Oh, good evening, girls," she replied.

"What's in the bags?" asked Rainbow Dash.

"Oh, well, my secret ingredient for the Ponyville Pastry Night Competition!"

"Its Truffles, isn't it!" said Fluttershy.

Mrs. Cakes and Rainbow Dash go 'Huh?' while Pinkie Pie's eyes widened up.

"Truffles? The most tasty ingredient that can make any pastry irresistable? Wow!"

"Uh… yes…" Mrs. Cakes looked at Fluttershy, "How did you know?"

"Oh, I was able to smell it", said Fluttershy.

"Smell?" Rainbow Dash smelled close to the bag, which gave a faint scent of sweetness. "I can barley smell it, yet you were able to smell it from there while she was in the other room. Fluttershy, you sure you're okay? You don't seem like….you".

"What do you mean?" Fluttershy quickly said.

Rainbow Dash looked even more befuddled. "What I mean is, you never ate so many cupcakes in one setting and you were able to sniff out truffles through a bag. Did something happen to you in the Everfree Forest?"

"I tried to tell you so many times, but not anymore," said Fluttershy, tilting her head away as she headed for the door. "I'm going home. Have a good night".

With that, Fluttershy began to fly off, leaving behind two befuddled ponies and one who was talking to herself over the truffles.

"If she makes that, I won't have a chance to win!" said Pinkie Pie, "But on the other hoof, her Truffle Surprise Cake is the best there is! But then I won't win! But then again, winning isn't everything…!"

FLUTTERSHY'S COTTAGE

Fluttershy entered her home as the night came in. She went up to bed and prepared herself to go to sleep.

"Maybe I was a little hard on Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie," she said to her reflection in the mirror. "They were only looking out for me. I know, tomorrow morning, I'll go apologize to Rainbow Dash! But for now, I better get some sleep".

She slid into her bed as she turned off her lamp. She sighed as she closed her eyes as the moon shone its light inside.

LATER THAT NIGHT…

Mr. and Mrs. Cakes were in bed, Mrs. Cakes's hair in curlers and a sleeping mask over her eyes and Mr. Cakes in a nightcap. They were having a good night's sleep when suddenly…

BANG! CLANG! KERPINK!

Both woke up, startled by the noise that came from downstairs.

"What's that?" said Mrs. Cakes, taking her blindfold off.

"Sounds like its coming from downstairs," said Mr. Cakes.

"Ugh… I'm guessing its Pinkie Pie, baking late again".

"Nope!"

Pinkie Pie poked her head from the side of the Cakes's bed, startling them both.

"Pinkie Pie?" said Mrs. Cakes, "What are you doing in our room?"

"Couldn't sleep! So I came in to see if I could borrow a story book when I felt sleepy and quickly went to sleep on your comfy carpet!"

"Okay…" began Mr. Cakes, "But if you're here, then whose…"

CLANG! BANG!

"Sounds like Pinkie Pie's baking late again!" said Pinkie.

"You're Pinkie Pie," said Mrs. Cakes as she got out of bed.

"Oh, right!" chuckled Pinkie.

"Sounds like a burglar," whispered Mr. Cakes as they headed downstairs.

"A burglar?" Mrs. Cakes shrieked, scared.

"Maybe it's a cat burglar, looking for a cat," said Pinkie. "Luckily we don't have one, but then again, Rarity has a cat… Oh! I better go warn her to be on the lookout!"

"Pinkie, please, keep your voice down!" said Mr. Cakes as they entered the main floor. They looked around the shop, but it was quiet. "Looks like everything's okay here".

CLANG!

"Sounds like its coming from the kitchen!" said Mrs. Cakes. "Oh no! My Truffles!"

The three Ponies get to the door, where they heard low growling noises, followed by what sounded like something eating. They opened the door , the moonlight casting shadows everywhere, along with a big silhouette of what looked like a pony, but… furrier and bigger. It was eating the cupcakes and pastries left over from the night before, spreading crumbs everywhere. The Cakes both were shaking with fear from the unknown pony creature, but…

"Hey!" said Pinkie Pie, opening the door more. "I was saving those for later today!"

The pony creature turned around, the moonlight showing it had a long mane, glowing yellow eyes, and frosting all over its mouth. It snarled at Pinkie Pie, then ran out the door. Pinkie Pie followed, but the creature was gone.

"Where'd it go?"

"Far away from here, I hope!" said Mrs. Cakes. "Just look what it did!"

"What in Equestria was that… thing?" asked Mr. Cakes.

"I don't know," said Pinkie Pie, "But it didn't leave me any pastry for breakfast!"

Both the Cakes rolled their eyes a little as the moon shone over the night sky.

MORNING

Fluttershy opened her eyes, feeling as though she didn't get enough sleep, along with remembering what seemed like a strange dream, a dream of pastry sweets. Then, she noticed that she was outside her cottage home and lying in a field nearby. She gets up and wondered how she got outside.

"Oh, Fluttershy," she said to herself, "You must've been sleepwalking…"

She goes to the lake nearby and notices that she had frosting all over her mouth. Fluttershy touched the frosting, wondering if it was a dream.

As Fluttershy entered her home, wiping the frosting off her mouth, a knock came. Opening the door, it was Twilight Sparkle, looking worried.

"Twilight?" asked Fluttershy.

"Thank Celestia you're awake, Fluttershy!" said Twilight, "We've got a situation!"

"Situation? What situation?"

SUGAR CUBE CORNER

"Somepony broke into Sugar Cube Corner and devoured all the pastries last night".

The other ponies were already there as they were looking at the damage from last night.

"What in tarnation happened here, Pinkie?" asked Applejack.

"I don't know, but whoever it was, it ate all our pastries!" said Pinkie Pie, looking mad. "I never got a chance to eat breakfast!"

"Focus, Pinkie Pie!" said Rainbow Dash, "Just 'what' did this?"

"We never got to see it clearly," said Mrs. Cakes, "But it looked like a pony, but twice as big".

"A big Pony?" asked Twilight. "How big?"

"Holey Moley, look at this holey!" said Pinkie Pie, interrupting them.

The others go and see what looked like a hoofprint, but with clawmarks.

"That's no hole, Pinkie Pie," said Applejack, "That there's a hoofprint…" she puts her hoof next to it. "Left by a very big pony! Shoot, I reckon the varmits even bigger than Big Macintosh himself!"

"Uh, you better take a closer look at that hoofprint, Applejack," said Rainbow Dash, in which there were four slash-like marks, "Since when do Ponies have claws?"

"Well," said Rarity, "Obviously it doesn't know proper grooming".

"Focuse, ladies," said Rainbow Dash, "What we've got is probably a creature from the Everfree Forest".

All the ponies except Twilight gasped.

"A creature from the Everfree forest?" she said.

"Yep," replied Rainbow Dash.

"That happened to come all the way to Sugarcube Corner…"

"Ahuh!"

"And devour all their pastries…"

"Yeah"

"And then just leave?"

"That's about right"

"Ugh. Rainbow Dash, really? Sugarcube corner is in the middle of Ponyville. Some pony could have heard or seen it enter and leave the area, couldn't they?"

"Not unless they knew how to disappear," said Applejack from a distance off. "Looks like the hoofprints end here! Then, they just vanish, like the varmit's gone ghostly…"

"Or it could jump very far," said Pinkie Pie.

"Or it could have just disappeared, like a ghost," said Rarity.

"Or maybe it can fly!" said Rainbow Dash.

"Or maybe it took its costume off from here and walked away from the scene like nothing's happened," said Twilight.

"Oh, come on, Twilight! What gives you that idea?"

"Well, I, for one, am not about to let my imagination get the better of me in this situation".

"What about those other times when you thought about what punishments awaited you when you thought you failed Princess Celestia?" asked Fluttershy.

"That's not having my imagination getting the best of me, that's… overthinking possibilities, that's all".

"Right," said Rainbow Dash, "Well, if whatever did this to Sugarcube Corner ever comes back, I got something for it to snack on". She thrusted her hind legs, kicking the air.

"Well, if Pinkie Pie and the Cakes are okay, then maybe I can go tend to my animal friends?" asked Fluttershy.

"Of course," said Pinkie Pie, "We're okie-dokie loki!"

"Oh, thank you, Pinkie Pie".

As Fluttershy left, Twilight was still looking at the hoofprint.

"I'd better make a cast of this to look up whatever made this. Too bad I don't have any plaster or mix…"

"Oh! I got something you could use!" said Pinkie Pie as she went inside. In a flash, she came out with…

"Gelatin mix?"

"Well, duh! Cake and pudding mix can't be taken out of molds".

"Okay… well, at least it'll give a mold".

"And the best part is you can eat it after you're done!"

"Uh…thanks, Pinkie".

Fields

Fluttershy was happily humming as she approached the field where the animals roamed freely. She saw the bunnies play in the sun as the birds sang in the trees and the squirrels chasing one another on the limbs.

"Good morning, my animal friends!" sang Fluttershy as she approached them. Suddenly, as if there was danger, all the animals ran away from her. "Huh?"

Fluttershy was confused. Not one animal ever fled from her, at least not her own animal friends. As she approached the bunnies, they squealed with fear as they hopped away from her.

"What is the matter with you all?" she said, "Its me, Fluttershy. You're pony friend, not a dangerous creature!"

Nothing happened. The animals all fled, getting away from her as if she was dangerous. This struck a hard blow to Fluttershy, who began to weep. She decided to head to her cottage to clear her mind.

"At least Angel Bunny is still my friend," Fluttershy said to herself. As she approached her cottage, Angel was there, sweeping the floormat with his little broom. "Oh, Angel!"

Angel looked up and waved, but then, as though he sensed danger, he fled into the cottage and shut the door.

"Angel?" Fluttershy approached her home and knocked on the door. "Angel, its me, Fluttershy! Please let me in".

She continues to bang on the door, pleading with her bunny friend to let her in, but Angel, still scared, refused.

"Let me in!" Fluttershy felt herself getting mad. "I'm giving you to three to let me in, Angel! One…. Two… THREE!"

BAAMM!

With a great thrust, Fluttershy kicked the door open… and sent it flying clear across the house to the back, where it smashed right through the wall and out the other side. Fluttershy shook off her anger and gasped, not knowing what she just did.

"Oh…my…" She stuttered as she looked at Angel Bunny, who seemed to have cowered into a corner, scared of Fluttershy.

"Angel…"

"Howdy, Fluttershy!"

Fluttershy turned around to see Applejack trotting up to her. She smiled, then looked at the missing door, along with the hole in the back.

"Um… need a hoof in remodeling?"

"Oh, no thank you… I mean, this isn't… what I-I mean is…"

"Never mind. Listen, think you can come to Sweet Apple Acres? Still have a few of your bunnies stealing my apples".

"Oh! Of course!"

"Thank ye kindly, Fluttershy".

Sweet Apple Acres

Fluttershy and Applejack arrived at Sweet Apple Acres when they see a little yellow filly run towards them.

"Apple Bloom?" said Applejack.

"Applejack, come quick!" she said. "Big Brother Macintosh's wagon got stuck in a mudhole and can't get it out!"

"Oh horse feathers! Where is he?"

"Near the end of the orchard!"

"Let's go then!"

Apple Bloom jumped onto her sister's back as she galloped towards the situation. Applejack was very fast that she didn't know that she left Fluttershy back. Knowing she'd be okay, Applejack continued towards her brother. In moments, she sees Big Macintosh.

"Big Mac!" Applejack screeched towards a halt. "Where's the… wagon…?" Her expression went from worry to surprise when she saw Fluttershy near the wagon, looking at it. "Fluttershy?" Applejack does a double-take. "How'd… how'd you get here before us?"

"She flew, of course," said Apple Bloom.

"Nnope," said Macintosh. "She got here runnin'".

"Running?" Both sisters dropped their mouths.

"But we didn't see her pass us?" said Apple Bloom.

"So she had to fly!" said Applejack, "Right Fluttershy?"

"Oh, no," said Fluttershy, "I actually ran here".

"But…but…" Applejack was at a loss for words.

"Uh, AJ," said Macintosh, "What about the wagon?"

"Oh right!"

Being back on track, they look and see the wagon full of apples, a wheel stuck inside thick mud.

"Okay, here's what we do. Big Macintosh will pull, I'll push…"

"What about me?" asked Apple Bloom.

"You can, uh… watch us".

"Applejack! I wanna help!"

"And I appreciate it, little sis, but yer not strong enough. Let your big brother and sister handle this, okay?" Applejack bucks Apple Bloom off her back and onto the wagon. "You can take it easy here for now".

"Oh all right…" sighed Apple Bloom.

Fluttershy watched as the two ponies tried their best to get the wagon out of the mud, but it was too tough. After many failed attempts, they decided to rest.

"Oh, Applejack," said Fluttershy, "Can I help?"

"Help?" said Applejack, fanning herself with her hat, "No offense, sugar cube, but yer not exactly a work pony".

"But I can help you out any way I can". Fluttershy flew to where Big Macintosh was and grabbed the harness in her mouth. Applejack just leaned on the wagon, shaking her head as Fluttershy began to pull.

"I'm telling you, Fluttershy, that this wagon's too… WHOA!"

Applejack fell into the mud as the wagon moved out of the way. As she wiped the mud off, she was awestruck to see Fluttershy pull an entire wagon full of apples and one filly out of the mud that Macintosh and herself couldn't budge.

"How's that?" asked Fluttershy.

"F-f-fluttershy…?" Applejack still couldn't believe it.

"Oh, well, maybe I should help you out with those bunnies of yours. Bye, Applejack, Apple Bloom, and Big Macintosh!"

As Fluttershy flew off, the three siblings looked at one another, lost for words.

Apple Family Home: Later that Night

"I still can't believe it!" said Applejack, finally able to speak clearly as she lied on her bed. "Fluttershy pulling a big wagon out of the mud? How's that possible?"

She lied on her bed as she looked out the window, the moon almost being full shone through her room. As Applejack sighed, she closed her eyes to fall asleep…

CLANG! BANG! BAM!

"Whoa Nelly!" said Applejack, jumping out of bed. "What in tarnation was that?"

Applejack looked out her bedroom door to see Apple Bloom do the same thing.

"Applejack," she said, "Did you hear that too?"

"I sure did, little sis…" They hear more noises coming from down the stairs. "And it seems to be coming from the kitchen!"

The two sisters went down the stairs quietly as they approached the kitchen area. The peeked inside to see a big silhouette eating from their refrigerator.

"What is it, sis?" whispered Apple Bloom, pulling her head back.

"Probably Big Macintosh eating a midnight snack!" whispered Applejack.

"Nnope!"

Both sisters jumped a little to see Big Macintosh next to them.

"Big Macintosh?" said Applejack, confused, "If you're here, then whose..?"

The three looked in as the intruder gobbled down all the apple sweets and pastries. Then, it turned around to look at them, its eyes glowing yellow at then as it licked the frosting off its muzzle.

"Whoa Nelly!" shouted Applejack.

The creature roared, shaking the entire house as it sprayed the three with frosting, pastrie bits, and saliva. As Applejack shook it off, the creature was gone.

"No you don't!" Applejack gave chase to it. "Nopony eats-and-runs in the Apple Family Home! Get back here, ya brute!"

As Applejack ran outside the farm, the creature was long gone. She looked around, but no sign of it. In the distance, she heard a wolfish howl.

"Just what in Equestria was that…thing?"