Storms On the Horizon: Ch. 2

Storms On the Horizon, Chapter 2
          As the Phoenix Flies

   Although the burglars had come and gone in quite the hurry without taking anything, there was no way that Fluttershy was going back to bed. In fact, for almost ten minutes, the pegasus sat in the middle of the room, nervously staring at the broken window pane, afraid the intruders might return at any moment. "G-get a hold of yourself, Fluttershy..." she murmured shakily. "Nopony was hurt, and th-they didn't take anything..." After a good deal of further self-urging, she finally stood up and started moving about. Unconsciously, the yellow mare began tidying up her host's possessions. Respectfully, Fluttershy simply set the disorganized items right inside the closet door.

   However, the pony's nerves were still on edge, and completing this task was not as easy as it seemed. Though the storm was finally moving away, each flash of lightning caused her to jump in fright. Every time she did so, she ended up scattering Applejack's things once more, and would resume gathering them up, her heart fluttering. Roughly an hour and a half later, everything was at last back in order. By now, Fluttershy was wide-awake and still too nervous to return to sleeping, so she ended up trotting downstairs.

   Taking care not to wake the Cutie Mark Crusaders, who hadn't moved from their position upon the couch, the butterfly-marked pony slipped into the kitchen. Once in the kitchen, Fluttershy gravitated toward the refrigerator. "I certainly hope that Applejack won't mind if I make everypony some breakfast..." In a relatively short time, the sweet smell of freshly baking pancakes was wreathing its way throughout the small farmhouse. The pegasus had prepared food for many mouths for quite a few years and was a very efficient cook because of it. As the minutes passed, the plate of pancakes next to the stove steadily grew, finally reaching a grand total of seventeen. Just as the pegasus was lifting what would be the eighteenth out of the frying pan, another pony joined her in the kitchen.

   "Geez, Fluttershy, yer up real early. What's the occasion?"

   "Aah!" Startled by the new voice, the pink-maned pony jumped, tossing the final pancake high into the air. "Oops...!" Acting quickly, she grabbed the serving plate and spun around, catching the wayward food just before it hit the floor.

   "Nice catch..." Applejack remarked. "How come yer up so early? Usually Ah'm the first one up an' about. Have trouble sleepin'?" she asked, fetching a small bottle of apple juice from the fridge and taking up a seat at the kitchen table.

   The pegasus placed a short stack of three pancakes upon the table in front of her friend. "Y-you could say that..." she mumbled.

   "Ah'm sorry to hear that, sugarcube. Well, Ah hope ya didn't have it too rough. At any rate, it was real kind of ya to make breakfast fer everyone. Ah'm always the one doin' all the cookin'. Big Macintosh's an absolute mess in the kitchen."

   Fluttershy was only half listening to the orange pony's musings as she ate her breakfast. Inside she was wrestling with exactly how to tell Applejack what had transpired last night. "Actually, Applejack... There's...something that I need to tell you..."

   "If it's about the flapjacks, don't you worry none. It's not a problem at all-"

   "It's...uh...not about that..."

   "Then what's it about, hun'?"

   "Uhm...how can I say this...?" As she went on, the mare's already quiet voice became even more so. Finally, she became silent outright and just stood there, uncomfortably rubbing her foreleg.

   "C'mon, Fluttershy." the green-eyed pony urged. "Y'all can tell me. Ah can handle it."

   "Somepony broke in last night!" the winged pony blurted out nervously.

   If Applejack had been drinking her juice at the time, she would have done a marvelous spit-take. She did, however, cough and splutter on her bite of pancake. "Yer kiddin'! Where!?"

   "It w-was up in your room... At about two-thirty in the morning..." Before Fluttershy was even finished with her first sentence, the blonde earth pony had bolted from the kitchen and was halfway up the stairs. "Applejack, w-wait!" the pegasus called from the kitchen doorway. Too late; the earth pony had already ducked into her room. "There's broken glass on the floor...!" Bypassing the stairs, the timid pony flew up to the upper level and joined the other pony in the bedroom.

   "Lan' sakes... Ya weren't kiddin' about the glass. It's everywhere..."

   "I'm sorry...I didn't get it cleaned up... I meant to, it's just-"

   "Now hold on one applebuckin' minute." Applejack marched up to her friend, lifted up her downturned face and looked her square in the eye. "Don't start talkin' like that. Ah wouldn't have expected ya to clean up anythin' in mah house. If anypony in this room's gonna be apologizin', it's me. Ah was the one that insisted ya stay in mah room. Ah'm just thankful that y'all didn't git hurt. Did ya happen to git a look at who it was?"

   "Y-yes, I did..." Fluttershy replied. "It was a pair of pegasus mares. One of them was quite a bit shorter than the other. They came and went, without taking anything. They did say something about going to Canterlot, though..."

   "Canterlot, huh? That's where the gang is..." the hat-wearing earth pony muttered. "Ahhh, who am Ah kiddin'? They're fine. It'd be dang near impossible fer anypony to git past all of the Princess' guards."

   "Y-you think so?"

   Applejack nodded in affirmation. "Ah'm sure of it. Ah wouldn't worry none. An' neither should you. Ah'll git this here glass taken care of. Y'all can head back downstairs an' have yerself something to eat. Ah'll be down shortly."

   As Fluttershy came to the top of the stairs she ran into Big Macintosh, who was coming from the other end of the hallway. "G'mornin' Flutt'rshy. How'd ya sleep?"

   Fluttershy answered the big red pony's question with a wide yawn. "Not so well..."

   "Sorry to hear that." Habit steered the big earth pony into the kitchen, whereupon he caught scent of the fresh pancakes. "Shoot! Those smell downright tasty. Wonder who made 'em..."

   "Uhm...I did... You can have some. I-if you want, that is..." Just like the day before, the pegasus was noticeably more nervous standing next to Big Macintosh.

   The orange maned stallion trotted up to the large plate of pancakes sitting on the counter. "Don't mind if Ah do. Hey, while Ah'm over here, d'you want me to make you up a plate too?"

   "Y-yes, please..."

   The two ponies had just sat down at the table with their meals when Applejack cantered back into the kitchen carrying a dustpan filled with shards of glass. Big Macintosh looked up from a mouthful of pancakes. "What'cha got there, AJ?"

   "Seems we had ourselves a li'l bit of a break-in last night." she sniffed.

   "Really?" The big earth pony didn't do so much as bat an eyelid at the news. "What happened?"

   "Fluttershy told me that a couple of pegasi broke into mah room real early this morning. They didn't take nothin', and, thank Celestia, nopony was hurt." The orange pony shot an apologetic look at the timid pegasus. "Ah'm real sorry about that, sugarcube..."

   "I-it's fine..."

   "Don't go brushin' this under the rug, Fluttershy." Applejack said very matter-of-factly. "Ah went an put y'all in harm's way. If anythin' had happened to ya, Ah couldn't ever forgive mahself. Ah'll figure out some way to repay ya, darlin'. Promise."

   The rest of breakfast was quite dull and equally as silent. The only words spoken were between Applejack and her brother as they discussed the daily chores. Despite having made the breakfast for her hosts, Fluttershy was largely uninterested in her share of the cakes and spent her time at the table idly poking them with a fork. Those pegasi... They said something about the five other places that they had been to. I wonder...

   The blazing orb of the sun continued its climb into the sky, guided, as always, by Celestia's will. A glance at the clock on the kitchen wall revealed that it was going on eight o' clock. With her hole-riddled, barely half-eaten stack of pancakes still upon her plate, Fluttershy stood up from the table. "I'm sorry to eat and run, but I do need to get home. Angel Bunny needs his food, and I have some patients I need to check on."

   Applejack jumped up from the table after the yellow pegasus. "Speakin' of Angel, lemme dash out to the barn real quick and grab ya some more carrots before ya take off."

   The pegasi's quiet voice stopped the earth pony at the kitchen door. "Thanks, but no thanks, Applejack." she politely refused. "I need far more carrots than I would be comfortable taking from you, whether I paid for them or not."

   "Well...all right. That's fine. No harm done, sugarcube. But, if yer needin' that many carrots, at least lemme give ya a way to git 'em back ho-"

   Before Applejack could finish her offer, an audible bang, more akin to an explosion than to thunder, sounded outside. The three ponies in the kitchen quickly sprinted out behind the house and stared into the sky. Far off in the distance, a massive shockwave comprised of every color in the rainbow, and a few colors that weren't, was rapidly spreading out from a single point.

   "That's yer rainbow-colored friend, isn't it, AJ?" Big Macintosh asked slowly.

   Applejack gave a slight laugh. "What in Equestria is that silly filly up to now?"

   "Oh my... I hope everything is all right..."

   "C'mon, Fluttershy, this is Rainbow Dash we're talkin' about here; she's probly jus' showin' off for the Wonderbolts again. Now then, as Ah was sayin', lemme give ya a way to git those carrots back home."

-------------------------

   Within the next half hour, Fluttershy was on her way, with her helper following close behind. The wooden cart creaking along after her helper was hardly what one would call small or streamlined, yet Big Macintosh showed no difficulty whatsoever in pulling it. "I-I'm sorry, B-Big Macintosh, I didn't think Applejack was going to have you follow me all the way into town..."

   The big farmer pony shook his head and gave a low laugh. "Ain't a problem, Flutt'rshy. Any friend of AJ's is a friend of mine. 'Sides," Big Macintosh leaned in close, like he was about to tell the winged pony a secret. "B'tween you an' me, she's a bit of a slave driver. Ah'm glad to get away fer a bit." he chuckled.

   "If you say so..." Fluttershy mumbled. "Uhm...I hate to ask this now, but...could we stop by Rarity's on the way into town? I want to check on Opal..."

   "Sumthin' about last night?" the stallion asked.

   "Y-yes... Those two that broke in last night...they mentioned something about having been to five other places... That got me thinking..."

   "Ah get'cha. Y'all wanna make sure that this here Opal's doin' all right." The pegasus nodded, silently continuing to stare at the path in front of her. "Ah git where yer comin' from." Big Macintosh went on. "Winona's given us our fair share of scares. It's fine if we stop by. Ah don't mind."

   "Oh, thank you. I'll be right back..." Fluttershy broke into a quick trot, heading for the front door of Carousel Boutique. A short rummage through her saddlebags provided the key once more. The pegasus opened the door in a hurry, dashed inside and quite literally flew up the stairs. "Opal? Opalescence? Sweetie, where are you?" The pony instinctively dashed into Rarity's bedroom, the last place she knew the feline to be.

   The bedroom that had been in perfect condition less than twenty-four hours prior was now in total disarray. The large window against the far wall had been smashed clean out of its frame, and now lay in countless razor-sharp shards upon the floor. The rest of the room had been torn apart. Dressers had been relieved of their drawers, and the drawers of their contents, both of which had been strewn carelessly about the room. The custom-made curtains hanging near the shattered window were nothing more than tattered shreds. Anything that could be picked up now lay awkwardly somewhere else in the room. "Oh my... Opal? Opal, are you all right?" Fluttershy couldn't help it; upon seeing the damage to her friend's room, the pegasus was becoming frantic with worry, and it started to leak into her voice. "Answer me, Opal! Please!"

   Before the winged pony got an answer, she succeeded in finding the terrified Opalescence. The feline was huddling, wide-eyed, as far under Rarity's bed as she could squeeze herself. "Opal! Sweetie, come here... It's all right..." After much coaxing, the reluctant animal finally crawled her way out from under the bedskirt. "Goodness, Opal, you aren't hurt, are you?" she asked, carefully inspecting the feline for any sign of injury. Thankfully, aside from some mussed fur, Opalescence was completely unharmed.

   After relocating Opal to another room, and attempting to restore some semblance of order to Rarity's room, Fluttershy was once again locking the door of Carousel Boutique. "So? How was she?" Big Macintosh asked as the pegasus slowly walked up to him. "Was the li'l one all right?"

   "Mm-hmm... The window was broken, though. Rarity's room was a mess too..."

   "Jus' like back home, huh?" the earth pony muttered. "Alright then, let's git a move-on." he added, quickly turning and making a beeline towards downtown Ponyville.

   "W-why?"

   "We're already halfway into town. Let's hurry up an' git ya yer carrots. The quicker we do that, the quicker we can git ya back home."

   "O-oh." Fluttershy took off and flew after the red pony who was by now a good distance away and still moving at a quick clip. "W-wait...!" The gift of flight easily let the pegasus catch up to Big Macintosh. Once she had done so, the winged pony got the stallion's attention with a small squeak of a question. "B-Big Macintosh...?"

   "Eeyup?"

   "Thank you for your help."

   The orange-maned earth pony smiled broadly. "Sure thing, Flutt'rshy."

   The pair's lively pace had them in Ponyville's main square in a short five minutes. Coincidentally, they arrived just as Carrot Top was opening her stall. The vegetable-named pony recognized the yellow pegasus as her best customer and waved a hoof in greeting as she approached. "Fluttershy! Right on time, as usual. Here for your monthly supply, I take it?"

   The pegasi's hooves lightly clicked upon the cobblestone as she landed before the storefront. "Yes. The usual fifty pounds, please."

   "Coming right up, hon'." Carrot Top replied, disappearing back into her shop. A moment later, her head popped back into sight. "I see you even brought your own help today." she commented, winking at the butterfly-marked pegasus. A wink that made the timid mare blush hotly and uncomfortably rub her foreleg. Carrot Top had her name for a reason, and in the blink of an eye, the earth pony nearly had all of the requested fifty pounds of orange vegetables loaded in the cart behind Big Macintosh.

   "How much do I owe you, Carrot Top?" Fluttershy asked as the other mare dropped the last of the vegetables into the cart.

   "For any other pony, I would say three bits per pound, but since you're one of my best customers, I'll give them to you for our usual price. Seventy-five bits for the whole cartload." she answered in a very business-like manner, trotting around behind her outdoor stall.

   "Sounds fair." The winged pony pulled out a tied pouch full of the small golden coins. She upended this upon the stall counter and began counting out the required payment. "That was some storm last night, wasn't it?" Her attempt at idle chit-chat was met with an awkward silence that was eventually broken by a confused reply from the orange mare.

   "Beg your pardon?"

   Fluttershy looked up from the currency, now equally confused. "You didn't get a storm last night?"

   Carrot Top shook her head. "No, we didn't. The weather team hasn't scheduled a storm for this week yet. Its been dry as last month's hay lately."

   "R-really? But it was coming down in sheets last night..." The yellow pegasus trailed off under the other pony's awkward stare. Fluttershy quickly glanced at Big Macintosh, who answered with a simple shrug.

   "Ponyville didn't get a drop of rain last night, hon'. Are you sure it wasn't just a bad dream or something?"

   "Th-that must have been it then..." she stammered. "J-just a bad dream... Anyway, thank you for the carrots."

   "Of course, Fluttershy. Any time." the orange mare replied as she waved the two ponies off.

   Fluttershy nervously glanced at the big red earth pony walking alongside her. "D-do you think that what happened last night was just a nightmare, l-like Carrot Top said...?"

   "Ah doubt it. If it was, it musta been one powerful dream to go around breakin' windows an' such. Whatever's goin' on here, it's a whole lot bigger than jus' a simple storm."

   The stallion's speech was as it always was; slow and methodical. Even so, Fluttershy didn't doubt his words for a second. Pieces of the puzzle were beginning to come together. The pegasus burglars having been to five other places and the broken window at Carousel Boutique. The pegasus burglars heading to Canterlot and the Sonic Rainboom that had come from the direction of the royal city. That was the thing that worried Fluttershy the most. Applejack had made a lot of sense, though; the royal city was very heavily guarded. Still, the pegasus couldn't shake the haunting feeling that something very serious had happened to one of her friends.

   "Um...Flutt'rshy? Y'all might wanna take a look at this..."

   "Take a look at what?" The sight that met her eyes as she looked up sucked all the breath out of the pegasus. "Oh no..."

-------------------------

   Back at Sweet Apple Acres, Applejack had just finished putting away the breakfast dishes and was out in the barn sorting out the baskets for the day's harvest. "Let's see now... Yesterday Ah got about five dozen baskets in... Today Ah ought to git abou-"

   "Kreeeeeh!"

   The farmer pony had just succeeded in hefting a full basket of apples onto her back when the harsh caw cracked the soft atmosphere of the barn, causing her to jump about a foot and a half into the air in shock, scattering the apples every which way. "What in tarnation!?" The startled equine quickly looked about the barn in search of the offending noise.

   Perched high in the rafters, probably having entered through the open hayloft door, was a magnificently plumed red-orange avian. Applejack gave a shaky sigh of relief. "Philomena, y'all dang near gave me a heart attack... What're ya doin' here anyway?" The phoenix leapt from the rafters and spiraled down to the barn floor, landing in front of the apple-marked pony. At this close range, Applejack saw that the bird was wearing some type of harness. Attached to the back of this harness was a sealed tube. "What'cha got there, girl?" The earth pony popped the lid off the tube and removed the rolled parchment from inside. Her green eyes became worried as she read on. "Oh no..." she breathed. "Thanks for the message, Philomena. Ah'll take this to Fluttershy. You go find the guards and lead them to Fluttershy's place, got it?"

   The phoenix nodded and soared out of the barn door as Applejack dashed back into the house to retrieve her saddlebags and prepare for the adventure she knew was coming. Soon after, she was packed and galloping full-steam for Ponyville. Fluttershy was right... Somethin' has happened to one of the gang... That letter from the princess sounded real hasty... Whatever happened, it sounds serious... Shaking the unsettling thoughts from her mind, the pony willed herself to run faster; time was very much of the essence. C'mon, AJ, pick up the pace...

   Applejack didn't plan to stop in Ponyville, but fate had decided otherwise. She sprinted into downtown and quickly ducked around a building, nearly flattening another pony as she did. "Whoa nelly! Ya nearly ran me over there, Bon-bon! What's the rush?"

   "I could ask you the same thing, Applejack." the cream-colored pony retorted. "Wait a minute, you mean you haven't heard?"

   "Heard of what?" Applejack was now thoroughly curious.

   "There was a fire last night! Twilight's library went up in flames!"

   The orange pony felt like she had been kicked in the stomach. The message to Fluttershy could wait. That break-in last night was no longer just a random act. Some outside forces were at work here. Applejack knew that Twilight's tree-house was protected by a lightning rod. This must have been done from the inside out. The earth pony spun on her hooves and set a new course. It wasn't long before a multi-colored crowd of ponies standing around a smoldering, blackened husk of a tree came into view. "Celestia, no..." The earth pony shouldered her way through the crowd to get a better view, although she really didn't know why she wanted to get a better look at this. Before anypony could say otherwise, she dashed into the burnt shell that used to be her friend's home. The door, now hanging loosely on a single hinge, offered little resistance to the pony as she burst inside.

   If the external fire damage was to be used as an indicator of the interior condition of the tree-house, the comparison would have been sorely inaccurate. Ash and soot blackened every visible square inch of the walls and floors. Countless piles of ash lined what was left of the shelves as a cruel reminder of the many tomes that used to reside upon them. Still more ash covered the floor in a layer almost two inches thick. This wasn't a library anymore; it was a scorched wasteland. "How in Equestria am Ah gonna explain this to Twi'?" The very thought of the prospect, along with the sickening stench of burnt parchment and ink that still pervaded the air nearly made the orange mare vomit. "There's nothin' left... Every last book...gone..."

   After seeing this wanton destruction before her, Applejack now fully understood the gravity of the situation at hand. Those two burglars were lookin' fer me and the gang... And, judgin' from that letter from the Princess, it sounds like they got one of us too... The sooner Fluttershy and Ah git to Canterlot, the better. she thought, eyes glinting with determination. The farmer pony galloped out of the library, leaving the gruesome scene, and one lone book sitting unseen behind the unhinged door, behind her. However, the scenes that were awaiting her at Fluttershy's cottage would prove to be no better.

   Yes, the pegasi's cottage had been heavily vandalized as well, but that wasn't the first thing that the orange mare noticed. Instead, she saw a pair of ponies off to the side of the tree-house. One of them, the smaller of the two, was sitting upon the ground and seemed to be sobbing uncontrollably. "Fluttershy! What's the matter? Please tell me ya ain't hurt!"

   The pegasus slowly shook her head. "I-I-I'm f-fine..."

   "Then what's the matter, sugarcube?"

   "L-look..." Fluttershy pointed a shaky hoof toward a sizeable pile of splintered wood and bent nails lying haphazardly before her. "I-it's An-Angel Bunny... Applejack, I can't find him anywhere!" The usually gentle pony slammed her hooves into the dirt in frustration. "I-I should have c-come home last night!"

   "C'mon Flutt'rshy..." Big Macintosh started quietly. "Ah'm sure the little guy's all right. Ah'll bet he's jus' holed up somewhere..."

   "Then where is he!?" she shouted very uncharacteristically. "We-we've looked everywhere!" The mare's tear-filled turquoise eyes burned with an angry flame.

   The large red earth pony sighed. "There's nothin' that Ah haven't tried to tell her, AJ... None of it has worked... What are y'all doin' here anyway? An' why are ya covered in soot?"

   Unsure if the yellow pegasus was listening or not, Applejack began explaining all that she had seen lately; the message from Philomena, the burned library, and the very vague details of what had happened in Canterlot.

   As it turned out, Fluttershy had indeed been listening to her friend's recollections. Upon hearing the news about the incident in Canterlot, she stood up and spun around. "Wh-what happened? Is everypony all right?"

   The orange, apple-marked pony shrugged. "Ah don't know, sugarcube... Ah didn't git a whole lotta info in that there letter. No names, no nothin'. Princess Celestia just wants us in Canterlot on the double. There's a ride fer us on its way. Mah guess is it'll be here in about ten minutes."

   "Oh no... I c-can't go..." Fluttershy sniffed. "N-not...now... Angel's still...m-missing..."

   "Ah don't mean to sound rude here, Fluttershy, but we ain't got the time for this. Something downright nasty is goin' on. One of the girls is in real serious trouble. This ain't like anythin' we've had to deal with before. Y'all need to go an' git ready fer the trip." The orange pony began nudging her reluctant friend toward the front door.

   "No." she answered adamantly, digging her hooves into the ground and leaning back against Applejack's shoving. "I'm n-n-not leaving until I know that Angel Bunny is a-all right..."

   "Dang it, Fluttershy, stop bein' so stubborn! Our friends are in trouble! They...need our...help! We gotta-oof!"

   The pink-maned pegasus finally took a step forward and ended up setting Applejack face-down in the dirt. Fluttershy quickly turned to face the prone pony. "I. Said. NO!" she yelled, her wings flaring out angrily. "Angel B-Bunny is my friend, t-too! I'm staying h-here!" The kind pony wasn't used to raising her voice so much and she had given herself the hiccups as a result. She also wasn't accustomed to being angry, and her bright spark of fury rapidly fizzled out, leaving a wide-eyed look of shock upon her face. "Oh m-my... I-I'm so sorry, Applejack... I-I'll...I'll go g-get my things..."

   The orange earth pony sat up, wide-eyed, as the pegasus disappeared inside her house. "Golly..." she mumbled. "Ah ain't never seen Fluttershy that upset before..."

   Big Macintosh sniffed. "Can ya really blame her, AJ? How would you feel if something happened to Apple Bloom? That poor pony nearly fergot to breathe when she saw what was left of that there hutch."

   "There they are! Bring us around for a landing!"

   The two pony siblings squinted into the sky, looking for the source of the heavily militaristic voice. They didn't have to wait long before a chariot, pulled by two members of Celestia's royal guard came spiraling down out of the blue sky. A third pegasus, clad with the same style of armor also dropped out of the sky, to land before the two members of the Apple family.

   Before the two ponies could pick their mouths off the ground after the guards' impressive appearance, the lone pegasus marched up to them and immediately began reciting his mission. "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is General Headwind, of Princess Celestia's Royal Air Guard. I have been sent, under direct instruction from the Princess herself, to find a Miss Applejack and a Miss Fluttershy and escort them back to the royal city of Canterlot."

   "Pleased to meet'cha." Applejack replied, stepping forward and extending a friendly hoof in greeting.

   "Miss Applejack, I presume?"

   "Yup."

   Headwind took the orange pony's hoof in his own and lightly touched it to the tip of his snout in a very respectful manner. "The pleasure is all mine. I assume this is your brother, Miss Applejack?"

   The large red farmer pony nodded. "Eeyup. Name's Big Macintosh. Good to know ya."

   "Likewise. Well, Big Macintosh, I must say, in all my years of service, I've never seen a pony of your stature before. Even the tallest member of our Earth Pony Division is a full head shorter than you are."

   "Thank ya kindly." the big pony chuckled.

   "I wish we could continue with the pleasantries, but time is not with us. As my guards and I approached, we observed a particularly large storm building upon the outskirts of the Everfree Forest. We must be on our way quickly. Are you ready to depart, Miss Applejack?"

   "You bet'cha."

   "Very good." Headwind sniffed. "What about Miss Fluttershy? Is she ready?"

   "Ummmm... I dunno about that." Applejack answered hesitantly. "She went inside to start packing just before y'all got here."

   "Mah guess is that she's probly still upset about her li'l rabbit friend. Ah'll go an' see if Ah can't help her out." Big Macintosh offered.

   "Hold on a minute... Why you, Big Mac? What're you gonna do? Let me go. Fluttershy's mah frie-"

   "Trust me, AJ. Ah'll be right back." As he walked into the disheveled cottage, Big Macintosh could make out a soft crying emanating from somewhere upstairs. With each step up the staircase, its origin became clearer, until the red stallion was standing just outside what he assumed was Fluttershy's room. "Flutt'rshy? Are ya in there?"

   "Wh-what is it...?"

   "Celestia's guards are here fer ya. Ah guess there's another storm comin' in fast. They want to git a move-on before it hits."

   "I-I can't do this..." The mare's voice was barely audible, just above a whisper.

   "What was that?"

   "I can't do this..." she repeated."I c-can't leave... Not now..."

   "Look, Ah know y'all wanna stay an' look fer Angel, but Ah really think ya need to go with AJ."

   "N-no... I can't..."

   "Listen, if it'd help any, Ah'll stay here fer a while and keep lookin' fer the little guy."

   Fluttershy shook her head. "N-no... I couldn't ask you to do that."

   "Ah know Ah'm just a simple farmer pony," Big Macintosh sighed, "and Ah know Ah don't know much about all of this 'Elements of Harmony' business that AJ and yerself a part of, but Ah do know one thing. The both of ya were picked to be a part of it. That right there's gotta mean somethin'."

   "What...what are you saying?"

   "Ah'm sayin' that yer friends need ya, Flutt'rshy. AJ knows it, and Ah know it too. What would yer friends do if it was yerself that was in trouble?"

   The winged mare bit her lip and looked away. They'd drop everything to help me... An image of each of her friend's faces flashed through her mind's eye. What kind of friend would I be if I didn't do the same...? "A-all right, you win. I'll go. Just...promise me one thing before I do."

   "Sure thing."

   "As soon as you find Angel Bunny, let me know. I don't care how, I...don't care if it's good news or bad news, just find a way. Please?"

   "Ya have mah word." the male pony promised. In a hugely unexpected gesture, Big Macintosh very lightly touched his muzzle to the surprised mare's cheek. "Just make sure ya bring AJ back safely..." he added quietly.

   Fluttershy's muzzle couldn't have been a deeper shade of red. Slowly, almost unsure if that had just happened, she brought a hoof up to her cheek. "O-of c-course..."

   "Thank ya. Now, let's git the two of ya on the road before that storm hits."

   Too late. The encroaching storm broke directly over the humble cottage, announcing its arrival with a blinding flash of lightning and an equally deafening peal of thunder. Applejack's astonished voice could barely be heard over the building wind. "Whoa, nelly! That was a close one! Fluttershy! If y'all can hear me in there, we gotta go, now!"

   Big Macintosh started nudging the startled Fluttershy toward the stairs. "C'mon, we gotta git the two of ya on yer way before this gits any worse." Rain was already beginning to fall as the two ponies reached the front door. This storm was growing quickly; if the chariot wasn't in the air soon, there would be no chance of a successful take-off.

   "Quickly, Miss Fluttershy!" General Headwind shouted. "Into the chariot! Let us make haste while we can!"

   The yellow pony shot a fleeting look at Big Macintosh, who simply smiled and nodded, before galloping into the rain. The chariot was not far from the door, but the storm seemed to become more active with each step Fluttershy took. With the lightning now almost coming down on top of her, the pegasus took a flying leap into the chariot, landing in a heap next to Applejack.

   "Miss Fluttershy is in! Double time!" Headwind barked. At the general's command, the two pegasus guards leapt against the leads and the chariot lurched forward and into the air.

   "General Headwind, sir! What is our flight path?" the larger of the two pulling ponies asked. "Are we avoiding the part of the Everfree Forest we passed earlier?"

   The general shook his head. "Negative, Cirrus. Skirting the Everfree Forest would take time that we do not have. Run the gauntlet at full speed."

   "Sir, yes, sir!"

   Unlike the chariot that Princess Celestia often traveled in, this particular one was smaller, built solely for speed, and lacked comfort. The ride through the storm's turbulence and crosswinds was quite literally nerve rattling. The compact vehicle shuddered and jostled about like a leaf caught in a gale. "Ow..." Fluttershy rubbed her sore shoulder after being slammed against the chariot's side for the umpteenth time.

   "How ya holdin' up, sugarcube?" Applejack asked, a hoof clamped over her hat.

   "I suppose I've been worse..." The pegasi's voice was nearly drowned out by the wind rushing by.

   "So, what did Big Mac say to ya that got ya back outside so fast?"

   The thought of what had happened between her and the big red earth pony brought the blood rushing back to Fluttershy's face. "O-oh...uhm... He asked me about what you and the girls would do if I was in trouble."

   "Gotcha." Applejack was silent for a bit before she looked suspiciously back at her friend. "Hang on a minute... Yer blushin' as red as an apple, Fluttershy! What else happened?"

   An answer would have to wait. A rogue bolt of lightning came blazing out of the angry-looking storm clouds and swiftly severed the chariot's link to the two pegasus guards. With no more forward propulsion, the chariot only had one way to go. Down.