Chapter 1 - Fluttershy

"Oh, oh no, I couldn't," a soft voice insisted as a prismatic-maned pegasus pressed a request.
"Aw c'mon Fluttershy! It'll be good for you! You've got to improve your flying!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed. The two had been on the subject of Fluttershy's weak flying since the cyan mare had met her yellow friend earlier that morning.
"B-b-but Rainbow Dash…" Fluttershy feebly protested, her friend beginning to become annoyed at the pink-maned pony's lack of determination. Ever since Rainbow Dash had won the Young Flier Competition, she had become more aware of her friends. She was perfectly content hanging around with Applejack, Rarity, Twilight Sparkle, and Pinkie Pie, but she became slightly irritable when she was with Fluttershy. The hermit was rarely seen in town, mostly being found at her cottage in the forest, and irregularly appearing in the market square, if only to get food for the multitude of animals that she watched over. Rainbow Dash often held herself high with her 'coolness', 'radicalism', and 'awesome factor', but Fluttershy was, in essence, the complete opposite.

Applejack was known throughout Ponyville for being honest and hard working, never being without her signature hat, her patience and her caring nature. Twilight Sparkle was known as the town's native egghead (at least, according to Dash), the unicorn with strong magical powers, the librarian, the organizer, and the somewhat oblivious. Rarity was known as the fashionista, the refined, the dressmaker, and the spa addict. Pinkie Pie, what was she known for? Summed up in one word, parties. Rainbow Dash had no issues being seen in public with those four ponies, but whenever she was with Fluttershy, she kept hearing voices in her head; other ponies gossiping about her.
Look at her, why is she hanging out with a loser?
No class at all.
What a foolish pony, associating with the helpless!
Thoughts and phrases that Rainbow Dash expected to hear in Canterlot plagued the back of her mind when seen with Fluttershy. She knew that she shouldn't be bothered by it, but being the tomboyish and energetic pony that she was, the cyan pegasus became increasingly annoyed at Fluttershy's weak performance.

"Fluttershy! You've got to keep trying! Do you know how many times I hear people talking about you in town? They're like, like… Well, forget about that. The point is that you've got to try!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, waving her hooves frantically in the air and startling some squirrels in a nearby tree. Acting on impulse, Fluttershy darted over to the squirrels' tree home and cooed them out, assuring them that everything was fine. Rainbow Dash could only sigh knowing that her attempt would be a lost cause.
"You know what, forget it. Just forget it Fluttershy," she huffed, turning around and zooming off before the yellow pegasus had a chance to speak. Rainbow Dash soared through the skies, soon resting on a cloud where nopony could see her, before flopping on her back, sighing in frustration. She was irked by Fluttershy's meek attitude and at herself for being so irritated by something so stupid as what other ponies thought of her. Rainbow Dash groaned in annoyance as she tossed and turned on her soft pillow, trying to calm her mind before finally deciding she'd go and fly to Cloudsdale General to visit her mother.

Fluttershy trotted through town, her conversation with Rainbow Dash still pestering her. With all of her animal duties completed for the day, the pink-maned pony was contemplating what to do with the remainder of the day.
"Maybe I could visit Twilight, she could use a break from her studies… But then she'd be behind. Oh, I couldn't possibly do that," Fluttershy thought, turning to walk away from the library. The yellow mare continued to slowly trot through Ponyville, suddenly coming across the Cutie Mark Crusaders. The three fillies were bouncing up and down with their usual energy and discussing odd ideas as to how they could obtain their Cutie Marks.
"Oh! Hey there Fluttershy!" Sweetie Belle greeted, spotting the yellow pegasus. Fluttershy smiled gently at the three foals.
"Hello, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, Apple Bloom. How are you three today?" Fluttershy asked tentatively.
"We're doing just fine!” Apple Bloom responded.
“We're getting ready to go do sky diving so we can earn our Cutie Marks!" Scootaloo replied thunderously. After taking a moment to make sure she could still hear, Fluttershy smiled confusingly at the girls, then warned them to be careful before sending them on their way.

Continuing her wandering through town, Fluttershy soon bumped into an alabaster unicorn hurriedly leaving Carousel Boutique.
"Oh, hello Rarity. Are you free today? I mean, it's okay if you're not, but-" Fluttershy began before Rarity quickly turned to face her.
"Oh I'm so sorry, dear Fluttershy! I have just received a huge order from Canterlot and I simply MUST finish it on time!" Rarity apologized, weaving into the mass of bodies behind her. Fluttershy quickly lost Rarity in the sea of ponies, not getting a chance to respond. Sighing sorrowfully, Fluttershy checked Rarity and Twilight off of her mental list of ponies to spend the rest of the day with. Thinking about Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy remembered what happened on her last attempt at spending time with Pinkie Pie. Memories of a party cannon misfiring along with forks and knives being flung towards her flooded her mind. Shuddering in fearful anticipation, Fluttershy decided to check Pinkie Pie off the list as well. She loved Pinkie Pie to pieces, but sometimes she was just a little too much to handle.

"Oh! Applejack! I think she said that she wouldn't be busy today since Applebuck season is over," Fluttershy thought giddily. For some reason, she always felt comfortable around the farm girl; Applejack was, in the pegasus' mind, a more confident version of her. She was always patient with the timid mare, no matter what happened, best seen from the time her and her friends had been asked to force a dragon to leave a mountain. Recalling how Applejack took it upon herself to drag her around the entire structure without complaining a bit made Fluttershy smile and feel sorry for Applejack. She soon began to daydream of how she longed to be like her orange-maned friend, or even any of her friends. Pleased with the fact that she would have a friend to spend time with for the rest of the day, Fluttershy snapped out of her daydreams and cantered down to Sweet Apple Acres.

Meanwhile, in Cloudsdale General Hospital, Rainbow Dash had been catching up with her mother, the two ponies talking about each-other's lives. Since Fluttershy was the only other pony that Rainbow's mother knew well, the topic slowly drifted towards her.
"So, how's Fluttershy doing? Is she still shy as ever?" her mother asked. Dash was startled by the jarring question.
"Well, yeah. It's kind of irritating. I try to get her to do awesome things to build her confidence to more awesome levels, but she's too scared to do anything about it. I'm starting to think that it's a lost cause to even try," she sighed with frustration. However, what surprised the prismatic mare the most was that her mother's expression darkened momentarily.
"I see, so she's still not over that time…" her mother murmured.

"What? What happened?" Dash asked, morbidly curious about what happened to Fluttershy. Ever since she had met the timid pegasus in flight school, the speedy filly often protected her from bullies or anyone who was looking to pick on her. Rainbow Dash would often consider herself as Fluttershy's adopted sister.
"It's not my place to say, seeing as she's still a patient h-," Rainbow Dash's mother replied, quickly covering her mouth with her hooves after she cut herself off.
"Still... a patient? Mom! What happened to Fluttershy?!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, now getting very irritated with her mother and worried about Fluttershy.
"I'm sorry, Dashie, I'm not allowed to reveal anything but basic information about our patients. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to get back to work, I've taken a longer break than I should have," Rainbow Dash's mother mulled distraughtly, excusing herself before going back to work. And just like that, Dash was left fluttering in the air of the white hallways.

Alone.

"Still a patient… Past trauma... Shy and timid… Fluttershy, what happened to you, and why won't you tell me?" Rainbow Dash wondered aloud.

Fluttershy finally reached Sweet Apple Acres, the shy pony spotting Big Macintosh walking around the apple orchard. The red stallion spotted the yellow pegasus and waved at her.
"Oh, um, hello Big Macintosh, is Applejack here?" Fluttershy asked, smiling friendlily at the red stallion. Applejack aside, Big Macintosh was the Apple that she was most comfortable to be with. She had spent a few days with the Apples – more specifically, Big Macintosh. Fluttershy was trying to help out the Apple family by bucking the trees for the apples to fall out. Big Macintosh was assigned to help her seeing how Fluttershy could barely stir a branch with her kick. The two would later laugh about it when the moment arose. Banishing her memories from her mind, Fluttershy continued searching for Applejack.
"Nope," Big Macintosh replied, his usual one word responses.
"Huh? Uh, do you know where she is?" Fluttershy asked, Big Macintosh trying to think about the whereabouts of his sister.
"I think she went into town for ingredients for a pie," Big Macintosh replied, Fluttershy stunned that Big Macintosh spoke in a full sentence for once.

"Oh… So she's not free today?" Fluttershy asked sadly, Big Macintosh shook his head. Sighing, the mare turned to leave, telling Big Macintosh that, if Applejack came back and was free later, she'd be at Zecora's woodland hut.
"But... That's in the Everfree Forest..." Big Macintosh murmured, as he watched the pink-maned pegasus make her way into the Everfree Forest. Usually Fluttershy was scared witless of the nearby woods, despite living near them. However, she felt much more comfortable during the day. She had decided to go to Zecora's for a cup the zebra's tea to soothe her mind. Despite how uncomfortable she felt in the zebra's hut, she enjoyed her many exotic brews and the aroma of her house.

"Hey Twilight!" Rainbow Dash called out, bursting through the door of the library. The lavender mare looked up from a book she was reading on Star Swirl the Bearded.
"Oh, hello, Rainbow Dash. After the next volume of Daring Do?" Twilight asked, trotting over to the cyan pegasus.
"Nope, do you know any way I could, possibly, maybe, get some, uh, information about somepony?" Rainbow Dash asked nervously, the topic awkward for even somepony of her ego. The bookish unicorn looked at her friend curiously.
"What do you mean?" she asked, thinking deeply of all she knew about famous ponies throughout Equestrian history.
"It's not something you c-can find in a book per se… You see… I need information on... I need information on Fluttershy." Rainbow Dash stuttered, analyzing Twilight's face to see any changes.
"What exactly do you need information on?" Twilight asked, now suspicious about Rainbow Dash's intentions.

Hurriedly describing the conversation that she had had with her mother at the hospital, the lavender mare slowly began to comprehend what it was that Rainbow Dash was looking for.
"I see… I don't have any books on Fluttershy… but why are you asking me? I don't work at Ponyville General, I'm Princess Celestia's prize student, and am most certainly not a doctor, for pony's sake!" Twilight reminded the prismatic-maned pegasus angrily.
"Well, that's just it… I need help getting those files," she whispered. Twilight's eyes widened. She knew that Rainbow Dash could be reckless at times, but what she was suggesting in this case was simply idiotic.
"Are you suggesting we break into Cloudsdale Hospital?" the studious unicorn asked carefully. Rainbow Dash nodded, trying to persuade Twilight that the risk was worth it.
"So what d'ya say? Are you gonna help me, Twilight? Pleeeeeeeeeeease?" Rainbow Dash begged, eying her friend with her best smile. Twilight looked around the room, her eyes slowly gliding from one book to another before turning to face Rainbow Dash. Slowly, her lips curled into a smile before she spoke.

"No."
"What?!"
"No. It's illegal - it's breaking the law."
"But Twilight! What if something horrible happened to our Fluttershy! Shouldn't we find out what it was to make sure it doesn't happen again?"
"Well…"
"What if her family was murdered or something? She never talks about her parents at all! If that was the case, think about how she'd react during Mother's Day if somepony asks her about her mom!"
"Um…"
"Or what if she was abused as a filly? Think about it, could that be the reason why she lives in the forest and not in town?"
"Well… I…"
"Or what if she-"
"OKAY! I GET IT! I'LL HELP YOU!"

Rainbow Dash grinned widely, thanking Twilight profusely before rapidly leaving the library to discover if she could get her other friends to help her.

Fluttershy was wandering through the Everfree Forest with Zecora. The zebra had asked if she could help her search for an ingredient she needed for a potion the zebra was concocting.
"So we're looking for a Blue Leopard Root?" Fluttershy asked, her eyes glancing around the forest. Zecora responded with her usual mystic rhymes and word play whilst she too began looking around.
"And what exactly does this root do?" Fluttershy asked. Zecora smiled, about to explain the purpose of the herb before she suddenly spotted something in front of Fluttershy. Before she could warn Fluttershy, the yellow pegasus stepped on…
"Oh! I'm so sorry! I didn't see it in front of me, oh I am sorry Zecora!" Fluttershy apologized, tears beginning to form in the corners of her eyes. Zecora smiled warmly at the innocence of the pony before her.
"Young one, you should not fret! For there are more roots that I could get!" she laughed. Fluttershy smiled and giggled softly at Zecora's statement.

"Come now, let us return! Back to my home before the tea burns! For you young one love the taste! Quick - hurry now, not much time to waste!" Zecora continued. The zebra often enjoyed Fluttershy's company, the timid pegasus often keeping her company or talking with her over tea. The two slowly turned to return to the Zecora's house before Fluttershy froze in her tracks as a cloaked shadowy figure emerged from the thick bushes.
"N-n-n-n-nooooooooooo!" she screamed, sprinting past the silhouette and retreating into Zecora's house.
"Halt there! How do you fair? Why did you cause Fluttershy, to become upset and cry? Did you hurt her in the past? This shall be your last!" Zecora yelled, assuming an aggressive stance. The shadowy pony remained silent, suddenly vanishing into thin air. Confused and worried, Zecora rushed back to her home where she found a frightened Fluttershy hiding beneath a pile of her masks. Sighing with a soft smile, Zecora began coaxing Fluttershy from her hiding place before the yellow Pegasus eventually came out.
"Hehehe… Sorry."

Time passed rapidly, and night soon fell over Ponyville. Fluttershy realized that she may have slightly overstayed her visit at Zecora's and was about to leave before the zebra offered that the pegasus stay the night. After assuring her that 'it was no problem at all', the yellow mare agreed to spend the night at the zebra's house. An hour passed by and Zecora had fallen asleep, her mind drifting to memories of her homeland.
"Oh… I wasted her time today by stepping on that root… I should find a way to make it up to her. I know! I'll go and find one of those roots!" Fluttershy excitedly whispered. Glancing over at the page describing how to identify the root, she equipped her saddlebag and silently left Zecora's house, leaving nothing but a note explaining her whereabouts.

Rainbow Dash had just left Carousel Boutique after finally obtaining the alabaster unicorn's allegiance. Unbeknownst to most ponies, Rarity had a huge soft spot for her friends. Rainbow Dash recollected her talk with Rarity: 'If anypony harms dear Fluttershy or of course any of you, I'll see to it that they're castrated, then burned, then nailed to a tree whilst said tree sails down a river and over a waterfall, then aligns with a sawmill to split the b**** in half while their entire family watches!' Dash wasn't sure if the unicorn was bluffing, but then again, it was Rarity… the rainbow-maned pegasus was sure that Rarity would do the same if somepony burned down her store. Rarity had offered that the speed demon spend the night at her boutique until morning, but Rainbow had to decline knowing that she had to watch over Tank, her pet tortoise. Soaring through the sky and into her cloud mansion, she spotted a tuft of pink hair bobbing into the Everfree Forest.

"Fluttershy?" Rainbow Dash wondered, the cyan pegasus silently floating above her friend as she entered the forest. It was miraculous that the shy and timid Fluttershy would even think of entering the Everfree Forest, yet alone during the night.
"What's she up to?" she pondered, watching her friend wander through the thick shrubbery and eventually stop at a bog. She saw the yellow pegasus look at a piece of paper before cautiously walking through the mud, her hooves getting stuck now and then.
"She's getting braver… I guess I can leave her on her own for now," Rainbow Dash thought aloud, turning about and racing back to her fluffy cloud home.

Fluttershy was slowly having a more difficult time lifting her hooves as the mud sucked them down. It was as if it had performed the act many times before in an attempt to claim the lives of other innocent ponies.
"Um… according to Zecora's book… the root is supposed to be, uh, somewhere in a swampy area…" she murmured, lifting her front hoof. However, somewhere in Ponyville, Pinkie Pie was shivering uncontrollably. The party pony's eyes went wide, the sudden shivering something she was not used to as a sign. Without hesitation, she ran out of Sugarcube Corner to gather her friends.

Fluttershy found herself getting stuck in the mud, her struggling causing her to sink deeper until she couldn't even move her hooves.
"Oh, oh no…" she sighed sadly. Before she even had a chance to attempt to think of a solution, Fluttershy felt scales beneath her hooves. With no warning, the head of a hydra erupted from the mud, it's loud roar awakening Zecora from her slumber. The zebra glanced around her house, searching for the pink-maned pegasus. Her eyes suddenly locked onto the note that Fluttershy had left behind.
"The fool!" she gasped, running out of her house to search for Fluttershy. Said pony was still stuck in place, the hydra's head but three feet away from her own face. Three more heads abruptly appeared from the mud, all of them roaring their terrible roar. By this point, Fluttershy was quivering in fear, and the hydra was looking at her and licking its lips.

"Oh no… oh no, oh no, oh no," Fluttershy stuttered. As the hydra began to open its mouth in order to take a bite out of the timid pony, Zecora's chants began to echo from the gloom. The hydra's heads spun around, searching for the origin of the voice before its eyes widened and it shrunk back into the mud. Fluttershy glanced around for Zecora before spotting the zebra wearing a mask and holding a vial of potion. Waving with her wings, she noticed the zebra and promptly made her way to the bank of the mud lake.
"I found you my child; what luck! But it appears that you are unfortunately stuck!" Zecora exclaimed, attempting to assess Fluttershy's situation.
"Try not to move for they roam in packs! And your motions are sure to cause them to attack!" Zecora called out.
"What? Attacks? Where?" Fluttershy replied, her body starting to violently shake in fear.
"Timberwolves," Zecora whispered, the sudden howling of the creatures scaring Fluttershy senseless. In her panic, she began to flap her wings rapidly, slowly lifting herself out of the mud.

Despite her efforts, she was rising far too slowly. Thinking of Angel Bunny and her other animals waiting for her to return to her cottage, she began to flap her wings even harder, increasing her wingpower tenfold. She soon found herself rising out of the mud, although mud was still attached to her hooves. Due to her panicking, she hadn't noticed Zecora's warning not to panic. Fluttershy rapidly continued to beat her wings, her hooves suddenly breaking free of the swamp and sending the pegasus soaring through the air towards Ponyville. Unfortunately for her, the mud splashed onto her wings, rendering her flightless. As she sailed through the air, she did the only thing she could think of: scream.

"Ok, so you're 100% sure that this violent shivering is something that you haven't experienced before?" Twilight asked a concerned Pinkie Pie. Pinkie Pie had gathered only Twilight and Rarity, as Applejack's farm was too far to go to and she assumed that Rainbow Dash was fast asleep. Twilight had quickly welcomed Pinkie Pie and Rarity into the library, no longer doubting Pinkie Pie's predictions.
"I'm sure! This is completely new to me!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed, her shivering increasing greatly and sending the party pony bouncing across the floor like a jackhammer.
"What does that mean? It's gotten more intense!" Twilight asked, now worried.
"I think it means that whatever's in danger is getting closer!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed. Before anyone could ask another question, Fluttershy's scream penetrated their ears before a loud crash sounded throughout the town. By now, Pinkie Pie had stopped shaking, her eyes widening with realization and fear, and her hair flopping downwards.
"It was Fluttershy!" she gasped.

All the ponies of Ponyville had left their homes, wandering into the central square. Each one of them had been awoken by the scream that streaked through the sky before the loud crash echoed throughout the streets of Ponyville. Mayor Mare, Twilight, Rarity, Pinkie Pie and Applejack pushed their way to the front of the commotion. A circle had formed around an impact crater.
"What is the cause of all this commotion?!" the mayor exclaimed, glaring around, obviously upset about being woken up in the middle of the night.
"Sugarcube!" Applejack exclaimed, leaping into the dusty crater, vanishing into the cloud of thick dust.
"Applejack!?" Rarity called, trying to see through the smoke. A few of the local pegasi began to beat their wings, ripping the dust cloud apart. While there was a thin layer of dust still lingering in the air, the ponies could make out two figures – Applejack, and somepony else.

"What in tarnation are ya'll doin' up there?! Help me! Fluttershy's got a broken wing an' she's bleeding real bad!" Applejack's voice pierced the dust as Twilight and Pinkie rushed in to help. The three ponies soon exited the dust cloud, the citizens of Ponyville gasping at the local caretaker's condition. Fluttershy's right wing was crushed while her left legs were obviously broken. Cuts and bruises were scattered all over her body whilst her bag was ripped and almost completely covered in mud stains. More mud discolored her mane and tail.
"Hold on sugarcube, we're outta he- Wait a darn second, what's that?" Applejack asked, motioning towards something sticking out of Fluttershy's barely existing bag. Twilight pulled out what appeared to be some kind of root, the movement of the item stirring Fluttershy slightly. When the yellow pegasus spotted the floating object, she could only whimper softly and weakly lift her hoof.
"Give it… Zecora…" she gasped before passing out.
"Th-there, there, sugarcube. We're gonna g-get ya f-fixed up lickety split," Applejack assured, worry laced in her voice as Fluttershy was lain across her back like a towel.
"Twi, go give this here herb to Zecora, an' Rarity, you come with me," Applejack ordered. Twilight was surprised that Applejack was assuming authority for once, then remembered that she works on a farm and has to be in charge there too. Leaving a gentle kiss on Fluttershy's forehead, Twilight took the root and dashed off towards the Everfree Forest.
"The rest of ya'll, git outta my way!" Applejack yelled as she and Rarity charged through the crowd, making their way towards Ponyville General Hospital.

Twilight cantered through the Everfree Forest, hunting for the mysterious zebra. She quickly found her home and rushed in, finding the zebra pacing back and forth with a worried expression plastered on her face.
“Uh... Zecora! Fluttershy wanted me to give this to you," Twilight said, holding out the strange root she had retrieved from Fluttershy's saddlebag. Zecora's eyes widened and soon began to water up.
"Blue Leopard Root…" she whimpered softly, suddenly hugging Twilight.
"Whoa! Calm down, tell me what happened," Twilight exclaimed, gently prying the zebra's strong grip from her. Taking a deep breath, she told Twilight about her encounter with Fluttershy earlier that day. Twilight listened carefully and attempted to figure out a way to gently break the news of Fluttershy's fate to Zecora. As everypony knew, the pegasus was practically her sister - she'd help her out around the house, go on herb hunts with her and even learn some of Zecora's potion recipes.

"Okay… well… Fluttershy is being... checked into a hospital," Twilight carefully said, watching for Zecora's reaction. The zebra remained calm, her eyes fixated on the lavender unicorn's mouth as she spoke.
"Aaaand… she's badly injured. With two broken legs," Twilight continued, noticing Zecora's eye twitch.
"A broken wing, and possible internal damage," Twilight finished, seeing Zecora begin to sweat and shake.
"Oh no! This deep tragedy is so sad! She did it for me, and now I feel bad!" Zecora cried softly. Twilight did her best to comfort the zebra, asking if she wanted to accompany her to the Ponyville General Hospital. She nodded vigorously and the two took off, dashing down the dirt track towards the brightly lit hospital.

Rainbow Dash had heard all the commotion occurring below her cloud home, though couldn't be bothered to get up and see what was happening. She did hear screaming and yelling but simply dismissed it as some minor dispute between two ponies over something ridiculous.
"Just… Rragh! I'm tired and I wanna sleep," she moaned, blocking her ears with bits of cloud before drifting off to sleep on her bed.

"Is she gon' be okay, doc?" Applejack asked, worried about Fluttershy's status. The doctor continued to stare at his clipboard, his brow beginning to drip with sweat.
"Well, doctor? What in Equestria is the matter? Is she going to be alright or not?" Rarity exclaimed, not even bothering to cover up her worry for her friend.
"Well girls, I have the results right here…" the doctor announced, Twilight and Zecora barging into the room just as he explained Fluttershy's situation.
"She's in a coma."