It was a beautiful day. The birds were singing, the winds blew to the east, and yes, even Fluttershy was fluttering by. Low enough to the ground to avoid stark winds that picks up with high altitudes, she glided along, not a care in the world. Everything about this day, in fact, had been perfect. It was almost like that of an omen for the day to be this grand was simply unbelievable.

She suspected that, as with any day containing these amazing factors, something always went wrong. It had happened enough times for her to have learned a lesson by now: When the day is this gorgeous, it meant imminent doom. However, had she kept flying straight for home, nothing bad would have happened, but no. She simply had to land, if only to observe the general area with a worried expression on her face.

She settled her hooves on the grassy ground, distanced from the trees behind her, for only Celestia would know who, or what could be lurking behind the bark. She checked side to side, feeling as though she’d been being watched this whole time, and jumped at the next instance.

“Ah!” she yipped, cowering to the ground with her wings hiding her face, and even the entirety of her mane, too.

“Eep?” The squirrel asked forwardly. In animal talk, that usually meant, “Sorry for startling you.” What he really said, though, was, “I’m going to rip your bloody face off!”

Naturally, hearing the small, innocent and seemingly harmless noises the squirrel was making brought Fluttershy to take a peek, only to observe the little guy. He stood there, almost shaking a bit, and perhaps… too calm. In his dainty claws, he held a miniature acorn, barely worthy of storage, honestly. He smiled her way. If only Fluttershy could tell; that’s no smile. That was a devilish smirk, if anything at all.

“Oh, it’s just a cute, harmless squirrel,” the mare said. Unbenounced to her, she’d just set herself up for a thrashing. However, that wasn’t enough. She simply had to keep going. “Look at your poofy tail! It’s so adorable, and your fur is so silky smooth, too. How ever do you keep it so lush-looking?”

He blinked. Anger coursed through his petite body. “Hhee…”

“Why, yes, of course I’ll accept your acorn!”

He presented it to her, his fangs showing. How she hadn’t noticed his furrowed eyebrows is a mystery. No, she kept complimenting, and going on, and on, and on about how wonderfully sweet this squirrel seemed to be. Yet, she still wouldn’t take the damn acorn. Fluttershy still had a few more compliments to give. So, while her attention was diverted momentarily to compare his color with the Fall leaves that fell in the distance, he chucked his item at her noggin.

It made a rather hard thumping sound, almost louder than her going, “Ouch! What was that for?”

She looked down, only to see his beady eyes staring her down, like she’d just committed some sort of heinous crime. “Ekk, kaa!” he said, leaping forth, claws fully extended. What he really said was, “Never should’ve come here!”

Just like that, Fluttershy was knocked clean off her now trembling hooves. One scratch here, and another to her shoulder would already bring forth red blotched of blood. “Ah! What the- help! Help!”

She tried to get back up, but was held down thoroughly by her mane. He had a good grip; right from the roots, too. To make matters worse, he ever began dragging her along, towards what must’ve been his home. What would that be, exactly? Well, just a cramped hole in a tree, and if he meant to stuff her inside, then that meant she needed to escape, and fast. “Kee,” which meant, “Now you’ll pay!”

“Youch! P-please, Mr. Squirrel! I didn’t mean it!”

“Cha!” In other words, “I’m a girl!”

Predictably, Fluttershy mistaking her for a buck only made matters that much worse. Though, it wasn’t Fluttershy’s fault she fought so deceptively well. As much as she hated to be nasty, Fluttershy knew by now that in order for her to even have a future, she’d need to resort to drastic measures. With just enough moving room, her tail whipped straight up, and landed directly on top of the vermin.

She let go, luckily, because had Fluttershy been less assertive, she might not have survived this ordeal. However, the pony wasn’t without morals. The farther she limped away, the more tempted Fluttershy became. She considered glancing back, and actually did so, too, only to check and make sure her ‘little friend’ was still breathing.

She was, but barely. It lied there for a good minute, allowing Fluttershy to develop a false sense of insecureness pointed towards what she’d just done. With a tear, more so caused by physical pain rather than mental stress, she whispered to her, “S-sorry.”

“Hia!” Fluttershy knew exactly what she said this time around. She said, “I'm gonna wear that tail as a belt!”

“No more! I submit!”

Yet again, the two were at it, mane against possibly rabies infected claws, all twenty of them digging through her sensitive, yellow coat. Even more droplets of blood tainted the grass, forcing poor Fluttershy to ascent. Her last hope now was to reach the sanctity of her cottage. Even as it came into view, that sight was almost ripped away from her. One, single claw tore through her left eye, making it nearly impossible for her to see, but still, she kept going. Despite the bruises, and all the blood running through her ruined coat, she flew on.

By the time she reached the pond, she’d had enough. The tiny tyrant was right on top of her head now, a perfect place to be. Using both hooves, she reluctantly grabbed the squirrel with exact precision, and then threw her off, both of them yelling furiously the whole time. Her eyes widened, and her teeth gritted together, and in that single instance, she used her stare tactics to stop the raging thing.

It seemed to work. She halted her assault, and instantly became mesmerized, but Fluttershy knew that this was no ordinary being. Eventually, and all too soon, the effects would wear off no matter how much the pony gazed on. So, hastening to a trot, Fluttershy crossed her wooden bridge, and took one last look behind her before opening the door. The creature was rubbing her eyes now, but quickly stopped what she was doing, turned towards the cottage, and roared, “KAY!” That could only mean, “I’ll gut you like a horker!”

She opened the door, her whole body trembling with fear, and slammed it in the squirrel’s face. It was just in time, too. A second more of waiting, and that fury of a fiend would’ve finished the job. Fluttershy pressed her body up against the locked door, listened to the clicking of its claws against sheer wood, and sighed thankfully once the sounds ended. She’d gone away.

“... What in the world is a horker?!”