Angel of Nature: Defender of Equestria
Chapter 11: The Loss of Kindness & Nature

The morning of the next came quicker than Everfree thought it would. Despite not needing rest, the Angel of Nature had decided to sleep through the night. It wasn't often he got to experience such a thing, so he was going to take it while he could.

"Time to repay a favour of kindness." He muttered to himself.

Everfree slid out of the bed he was lying on and dressed in his clothing. After fastening the cloak, he chose to leave the hood down, allowing his face to be seen wholly. He grabbed his quiver of arrows that rest against the bed and slung them over his shoulders, doing the same with his bow.

He silently moved out of the room Fluttershy allowed him to stay in, easing the door shut behind him quietly. Quickly but silently, Everfree moved across the floorboards, his boots making not a sound on them or the steps as he descended them.

"Good morning, little ones."

Many of the little critters that lived inside of Fluttershy's home rushed over to the Angel as he came down the stairs, chattering excitedly. This made Everfree smile and chuckle quietly.

"How about we get you guys something to eat huh?" He asked them.

During the time he watched and helped Fluttershy feed her friends the night before, Everfree made sure to make note of what she did, what she used and how she did everything. He also made sure to ask a few subtle questions.

It all paid off as Everfree first went into the kitchen, grabbing all of what he knew was necessary. He then began allocating the appropriate amounts of food out to those that ate it. He made sure not to give them too much, but also made sure he didn't give them less than enough.

Satisfied with his work, he grabbed a carrot from nearby and moved into the lounge area and saw what he was looking for. Moving quietly over, Everfree knelt down next to a rabbit fast asleep still, placing the carrot next to him.

"Enjoy, Angel."

He quietly walked past the sleeping rabbit and out the front door, knowing there was still more to do.

Fluttershy began to stir as the first rays of the morning sun shone through her bedroom window. They brought great warmth to her face, causing a small smile to appear as she turned away, slowly opening her eyes.

As she sat up and prepared to get out bed, the door to her room opened, revealing Everfree with a tray of food in his hand. This confused the Pegasus mare greatly but it slowly became clear as he moved into the room, eventually coming to rest on the edge of her bed.

"Before you say anything, let me explain." Everfree quickly said, knowing Fluttershy was about to question what this was all about.

"The past day you have done nothing but show me great kindness and trust. I thank you greatly for that as I've never had anyone show me as much kindness as you have. I thought it would only be fair if I returned that kindness with making you some breakfast as well as feeding all your friends for you."

Fluttershy was speechless. Her eyes looked up at Everfree's, seeing nothing genuine gratitude and happiness. Like Everfree, she too was not use to receiving such kindness, even if it was being returned as a result of something she did.

An unknown impulse, one unlike she had ever known, ran through Fluttershy as she unconsciously began leaning towards the Angel, catching him off guard completely. However, he was able to react quickly enough to stop what Fluttershy was doing.

As much as he didn't want to. He wanted to act on his feelings towards her, but it was not something he could do without consequence.

"I'm sorry, Fluttershy, but I can't. It is forbidden."

The yellow mare came to the realisation of what she had almost done. Mortification ran through unchecked alongside sheer terror. She was out of bed in an instant, bolting out of the room and down the hallway before disappearing to the left. The sound of a door slamming shut not soon after followed as Everfree left the food on the bed and left the room.

He headed towards the direction the Pegasus mare had gone but knew not what room she had gone into. He listened carefully as he continued moving through the hallway.

Then he heard it…soft cries…

They were coming from the door to his immediate left and if he remembered correctly, that was the bathroom.

"Fluttershy?" He called softly and hesitantly, resting his hands on the door frame and his head on the door itself.

"P-Please leave me alone…" Came the soft reply.

"But I-"

"Please, Everfree! Please just leave me alone!"

The Angel of Nature simply stood there, hands now at his side and wings drooping. His gaze was locked on the shut door in front of him. The one thing standing between him and Fluttershy who was obviously hurt.

He opened his mouth several times to respond but closed it every time. He knew not how to respond. He stood there for a few more moments, trying to form some kind of response.

But there wasn't one.

Hurt, a very strange feeling, ran through the Angel. He turned from the door and walked back the way he came, stopping briefly at Fluttershy's room to grab the tray of food he made. With the tray in hand, he headed downstairs and left it on a table in the lounge area.

Looking around, he grabbed a small piece of parchment, a quill and a phial of ink.

It was several hours before Fluttershy had any urge to leave the bathroom in which she locked herself in. The only reason she even moved was that her stomach was growling at her for not having eaten all morning. Her eyes were red and puffy from all the tears she had spilt in those few hours.

She headed towards the lounge area, moving very slowly down the stairs. However, she stopped at the bottom of the stairs when she noticed what was sitting on the table.

The food Everfree had made for her and with it, a small note. Hesitantly, Fluttershy picked up the note and read the flowing, cursive writing.

Dear Fluttershy,

I'm sorry. I'm sorry for pushing you away like I had but you have to understand I would have lost my wings and powers as an Angel. I would have been cut off from my home and they would have very quickly sent out Angels in search of me to bring me to justice.

An Angel who loses his/her wings is considered to be a dangerous creature.

You will not need to worry about me being a burden anymore. Whilst I am greatly for your aid in helping my wing heal, I'll be able to manage on my own now. You have everything the way it was before, peaceful and quiet.

I expect we will run into each other from time to time, which is unavoidable. My only hope is that it doesn't become something that is…awkward.

Live free and live well, Fluttershy

~Everfree

The note fell from Fluttershy's hoof as fresh, new tears welled up in her eyes. The pain in her heart was overbearing as she fell onto the couch, burying her head in her hooves. Many of her little friends crowded around her, all concerned for her. They, however, would not get a response out of the hurting Pegasus as she cried her heart out.

Dear Princess Celestia,

I write this letter to you to inform you of what occurred while I was away at Griffonstone.

I encountered the King of the Griffons, who I did not like terribly I might add, and he quickly began explaining what it is he wished. Apparently, there has been a Griffon from the town who left a long while ago and has yet to return.

The King believes we are holding the Griffon against their will which is a ludicrous notion. I'm starting to do a search with that search beginning in Ponyville. I have heard rumours that this may be a location that the Griffon travels to.

Sincerely,
~Everfree

Everfree rolled up the parchment with which his letter was contained on, binding it tightly with a bit of ribbon. Then, gripping it in his magic, he willed to become nought but smoke, directing it towards the location of Princess Celestia.

With a sigh, Everfree leant back in the chair. After having written a note for Fluttershy, he used his magic to appear in his home. He immediately got to work on the letter he had just sent to Princess Celestia not long after.

That had been three hours ago. Three hours of trying to write another note. It confused Everfree how such a simple thing was so difficult.

What do I do now? I have a Griffon to find with no way of finding them, let alone I can't really confront them like this.

The Angel shivered as a sense of unease and fear ran through him. He knew that such thing only happened if a creature near to his location was feeling such things.

What could be possibly happening had him confused but also terribly concerned.

Standing quickly, he grabbed his cloak resting on the back of the chair, quickly putting it on and throwing up the hood, obscuring his face completely. He moved over to the door where his bow and quiver rested, putting the quiver across his back but keeping his bow in his hand so that he could quickly use it if need be.

Opening the door slightly, he glanced at the street in front of his house and noticed it was clear. He quickly slipped out, closing and locking the door behind him before slipping into the shadows of his house.

Everfree stood very still for a moment as he focused on the feelings that he had felt.

Town square, he concluded as he felt it pull in that direction.

He dashed silently through the shadows, moving quickly when he came upon a gap in the shadows. He stuck to the alleyways as much as he could and soon, he came to one that led straight into the town square.

Here goes…

Edging his way closer to the end of the building to his right, Everfree had a look around. His hand instantly went to his quiver, drew and nocked an arrow as he saw what caused the feelings.

A Griffon had Fluttershy cowering and pinned.

Making sure there were no other ponies that could see him or that would walk into his shot, the Angel of Nature brought his bow to bear, aiming just to the left of the Griffon's front left clawed hand. The shot was true as it whizzed through the air, hitting the ground with a thunk!

The Griffon squawked in surprise as it moved its clawed hand away from the arrow and glanced back in Everfree's direction. However, it could see nothing and Everfree knew this so he did but one thing.

With another arrow nocked and drawn back, he stepped into the sunlight.

He fired again, this time aiming to the left of the Griffon's back left paw. Again, the Griffon squawked and moved its foot away. Now, that it knew where the arrows had come from, it immediately began charging Everfree, who was already moving back the way he had come.

Everfree's two white, feathered wings were the last thing the Griffon saw as he turned a corner. Without hesitation, the Griffon went around the same corner.

Only to come face to face with an arrow aimed directly at it.

"Want to explain to be why you were threatening her?" Everfree asked in a low, icy tone.

"She was in my way. I was walking through and she walked into my path! MY PATH!" The Griffon replied in a feminine voice.

"Your path? Last I checked, the path belonged to the town."

"I don't care and who the hell do you think you are to tell me what belongs to who? Who are you who has the audacity to fire two arrows at me?!"

The Griffon started advancing towards Everfree but he quickly sighted and released, his arrow embedding itself in the ground between the Griffon's claws. The Griffon froze in place instantly, staring at the arrow and how close it had been to going through her hand.

"I am Everfree, Angel of Nature, and I'm here to take you back to Griffonstone, one way or another." Everfree declared as he threw back his hood.

He didn't know for certain if this was the Griffon he was searching for. Although, given her reaction to his words, he was fairly certain it was.

"So, King Guto is looking beyond his own ass now is he?"

Again, the Griffon took a few steps forward but stopped when she saw how quickly Everfree grabbed and nocked an arrow.

"Well, here's my answer. No. I have business here with an old friend and I'm not leaving till I'm done."

"There's another Griffon here?"

The Griffon gave a bark of laughter. "As if. No, I'm talking about Rainbow Dash. She and I go way back."

Everfree watched the Griffon closely, trying to discern her true intentions. However, this Griffon was good, she was able to stop it from shining through.

"Fine, but just know that I'll have my eyes on you. Treat anypony else poorly and you'll answer to me. Understood?"

The Griffon rolled her eyes and turned her back on Everfree. "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

Everfree snapped. He brought his bow to full draw again and fired. The arrow this time grazed the Griffons wing, pulling a few feathers from it. The Griffon shrieked as the arrow grazed her wing and pulled a few feather from it. She whipped back around to face Everfree, snarling as she did so.

"Understood?" He all but yelled at the Griffon.

"Under…stood…" The Griffon growled out.

With that, she turned again and strode away. Everfree watched as she went and when she was gone, immediately started cursing himself.

What the hell was that? Since when did I aim to injure others?

Everfree looked up at the sky and sighed.

What the hell is happening to me?