Hey! It looks like you're new here. You might want to check out the introduction.
Organised by
RogerDodger
Word limit
400–750
The Gift
Fluttershy snuggled her wings in tight as she slipped under the blankets of her bed, ready for a refreshing night’s sleep. The sun had gone to sleep an hour prior, along with the majority of her animal friends. She drew a hoof across her mane, laying out the long, pink locks across her fluffy pillow and closed her eyes. The stress of the day settled into the growing warmth around her as her blankets wrapped her in a loving embrace.
The rhythm of chirping crickets and the rustle of myriad smaller creatures settling in around the room suddenly fell away.
Fluttershy’s ears pricked to attention. An alarm sounded in her head. She threw off the sheets and bolted to her bedroom window. Almost before she could open it, her wings pushed her through the small opening and into the sky above her backyard. Her heart sank as her eyes confirmed the sight of what her ears had already established.
“Oh no!” she squeaked, gasping for breath in the terrifying rush of the moment.
Like a rock, she dropped to the ground. Straight ahead, a shadow dissolved into the trees on the edge of the Everfree Forest. The frantic clucking of half a dozen chickens rang in her ears with what amounted to cries of help! Working the knot from her chest, she lifted a hoof and approached the nightmare scene.
Slashing claw marks ran the length of the chicken coop door. The broken wood hung from a single hinge, barely attached to the frame at all. Scattered feathers in white and brown dotted the ground with the occasional splotch of red adding an unwelcome shade. Moonlight bathed tracks from something larger than a pony leading off into the forest with an eerie glow.
Steeling herself against the truth, Fluttershy stuck her head through the door, expecting the worst. Huddled against the back wall, all of her fowl friends, minus one, beat their wings, clucking at the top of their lungs. Her greatest fear laid out in the middle of the floor, a mess of mottled white feathers streaked with red.
“Elizabeak!” Fluttershy gasped, squeezing herself through the opening and wrapping her forelegs around the lifeless body.
With only the moon to guide her steps, Fluttershy approached the edge of the clearing. Nestled into the outcropping of rock and gnarled roots on the far side, she could plainly see the beast she had tracked all the way from her cottage. Judging from the size and shape of the prints, she knew that she would find the timberwolf responsible for the death of her friend at the end of the trail. Taking a deep breath, she reached back into her pack and removed her load.
Without taking her stare off the target, she warily ventured out into the open. A pair of bright yellow eyes met her gaze and warned against her unwelcome presence. The beast’s low growl rumbled in her head as she pulled back the carefully wrapped sheet cradling her gift. Depositing it as close as she dared to the glowing slits crouched beneath the bush, she cautiously backed away.
With each step she took widening the chasm between her and her departed friend, Fluttershy clamped down on the hoofful of pristine, white feathers she had plucked only a few minutes earlier that remained tucked beneath her own trembling wing. Shrinking back into the forest, she watched as the imposing timberwolf took to investigating the meal.
Even from across the clearing, the sharp mewling cries of two more sets of yellow eyes brought Fluttershy’s attention back to the sheltered cleft.
With a heavy tear running down the side of her muzzle, Fluttershy fought to call up her voice. “I… forgive you, mother wolf. Take care of your little ones.” Her head fell, and she turned to escape toward the uncertain safety her house.
Mother wolf dropped her forepaws across the nearly forsaken kill and rose up toward the moon overhead. Her howl echoed against Fluttershy’s hooffalls galloping away from the clearing.
With slightly pink hooves still damp from washing off what she could of the blood, Fluttershy fell into bed for the second time that night. She drew up her pillow and gently opened the slit on the back side. One by one, she placed the collection of precious chicken feathers inside and sealed up the hole.
Clutching the pillow to her chest, she closed her eyes. “Thank you for your gift, Elizabeak. I will never forget you.”
The rhythm of chirping crickets and the rustle of myriad smaller creatures settling in around the room suddenly fell away.
Fluttershy’s ears pricked to attention. An alarm sounded in her head. She threw off the sheets and bolted to her bedroom window. Almost before she could open it, her wings pushed her through the small opening and into the sky above her backyard. Her heart sank as her eyes confirmed the sight of what her ears had already established.
“Oh no!” she squeaked, gasping for breath in the terrifying rush of the moment.
Like a rock, she dropped to the ground. Straight ahead, a shadow dissolved into the trees on the edge of the Everfree Forest. The frantic clucking of half a dozen chickens rang in her ears with what amounted to cries of help! Working the knot from her chest, she lifted a hoof and approached the nightmare scene.
Slashing claw marks ran the length of the chicken coop door. The broken wood hung from a single hinge, barely attached to the frame at all. Scattered feathers in white and brown dotted the ground with the occasional splotch of red adding an unwelcome shade. Moonlight bathed tracks from something larger than a pony leading off into the forest with an eerie glow.
Steeling herself against the truth, Fluttershy stuck her head through the door, expecting the worst. Huddled against the back wall, all of her fowl friends, minus one, beat their wings, clucking at the top of their lungs. Her greatest fear laid out in the middle of the floor, a mess of mottled white feathers streaked with red.
“Elizabeak!” Fluttershy gasped, squeezing herself through the opening and wrapping her forelegs around the lifeless body.
With only the moon to guide her steps, Fluttershy approached the edge of the clearing. Nestled into the outcropping of rock and gnarled roots on the far side, she could plainly see the beast she had tracked all the way from her cottage. Judging from the size and shape of the prints, she knew that she would find the timberwolf responsible for the death of her friend at the end of the trail. Taking a deep breath, she reached back into her pack and removed her load.
Without taking her stare off the target, she warily ventured out into the open. A pair of bright yellow eyes met her gaze and warned against her unwelcome presence. The beast’s low growl rumbled in her head as she pulled back the carefully wrapped sheet cradling her gift. Depositing it as close as she dared to the glowing slits crouched beneath the bush, she cautiously backed away.
With each step she took widening the chasm between her and her departed friend, Fluttershy clamped down on the hoofful of pristine, white feathers she had plucked only a few minutes earlier that remained tucked beneath her own trembling wing. Shrinking back into the forest, she watched as the imposing timberwolf took to investigating the meal.
Even from across the clearing, the sharp mewling cries of two more sets of yellow eyes brought Fluttershy’s attention back to the sheltered cleft.
With a heavy tear running down the side of her muzzle, Fluttershy fought to call up her voice. “I… forgive you, mother wolf. Take care of your little ones.” Her head fell, and she turned to escape toward the uncertain safety her house.
Mother wolf dropped her forepaws across the nearly forsaken kill and rose up toward the moon overhead. Her howl echoed against Fluttershy’s hooffalls galloping away from the clearing.
With slightly pink hooves still damp from washing off what she could of the blood, Fluttershy fell into bed for the second time that night. She drew up her pillow and gently opened the slit on the back side. One by one, she placed the collection of precious chicken feathers inside and sealed up the hole.
Clutching the pillow to her chest, she closed her eyes. “Thank you for your gift, Elizabeak. I will never forget you.”