Disclaimer: All MLP:FiM characters belong to Hasbro and DHX Media. I do not own any of them except my OC.

I woke up again and oh crap. I need to go to the bathroom. What? Just because I'm a lion doesn't mean I never need to go to the bathroom. Anyways, I went to get out of my bed to go pee, but purple hooves prevented me from doing that. Now you're probably wondering "What the heck is Twilight doing in your bed?" Well, here's the thing. After the whole double edged sword incident, Twilight's been getting nightmares over them. Unfortunately, they have gotten worse as time goes on, so now whenever I go to bed at night, she's got her hooves wrapped tightly around me so that I never leave her presence or something like that. This thing really hit her hard and it did for me too. I never got any nightmares surprisingly, but I was the one that did it, so I didn't see what happened. Now you're probably asking "How did this affect you?" Simple. The mare sleeping next to me in my bed. It pains me to see her in a state of turmoil like this, and I've told her countless times that I will never do it again, but that doesn't stop the nightmares from coming.

I said to Twilight sighing "Twilight? I need to go to the bathroom. Can you please let me go?" All she did in response was pull me closer to her. You have left me no choice. I took on my shadow form and walked to the bathroom returning to my lion form. However, Twilight picked this up and teleported in front of me. Twilight said "No! Where are you going?" I said "I know you don't want to let go of me, but I really need to use the bathroom. It won't take that long. Once I'm done, I'll return to bed with you, ok?" She nodded her head and went back to bed. I went to the bathroom and did my business, and then returned to bed once I was done. Now of course once again, Twilight got her hooves wrapped around me even closer to her and man was this gonna be a long day. You are probably saying "That's nice what she's doing. Why are you acting so monotone about it?" When you do it for eight months straight, it gets repetitive. How I managed to deal with that is a miracle.

2 hours later….

I woke up again because the sun is fully up in the sky and I need to go out on a walk before having breakfast. Of course, that was going to be a challenge. If you paid attention to the last two paragraphs, you know what I'm talking about. I tried to get up, but Twilight prevented me from doing that. Dang. How long does she plan on sleeping for? It's 8 AM. I rise early. Okay, new idea. I got up out of bed and placed Twilight on my back so I wouldn't be restrained by her. Now, she wrapped her front hooves around my neck. Great. You see the problem here? I appreciate that she wants to be around me, but she's interfering with things I really need to get done. Okay, now on with my morning walk. I have overpowered magic, so most of it is being used right now to hold Twilight up on my back so I don't collapse on the ground. I just hope she wakes up before I go through town. Otherwise, ponies are gonna stare at me weirdly as they see a lion carrying around a pony princess like a camel with a human.

Finally, right before I walked through town, Twilight woke up and realized where she was. She asked tired "How long was I sleeping for?" I said "Longer than you should have. You're lucky that I have overpowered magic so I could hold you up on my back. Otherwise, all of Ponyville would look at me weird." Twilight's face immediately went blood red and looked down in shame. Okay, maybe that was a bit harsh. I said "Sorry. It's just I don't want to embarrass myself in the middle of town and I'm sure you would be embarrassed too if anypony saw you on my back." Twilight looked up and said "I guess you're right." I know I am. Twilight got off my back and I said "It's okay. It doesn't bother me too much. Besides, they don't even know the situation as much as we do." Twilight said "Once again, I guess you're right." Of course I am and everything will be fine. I hope.

After taking a morning walk, I went to have breakfast. Of course Twilight had to join me on that because well, you already know why. I ate my breakfast and Twilight ate hers. However, I noticed she had a sad look on her face. I asked her "Twilight. Is everything alright?" She said sighing "No, not really. I just don't understand why these nightmares keep coming up." I said "I can tell since you practically sleep in my bed every night for the past eight months." Twilight said "It's just I don't want to lose you again. I know you tell me that it will never happen again, but I don't know if I can believe that. I'm sure you can understand right?" I said "I completely understand." I went up to her and lifted her face up to look at mine. I said "Listen Twilight. I do promise that I will NEVER do something like that again. It pains me just as much as it pains you. It might not seem like it, but it's true." Twilight said "How so?" I said "Because I can't bear to see you suffering like this. It makes me sad that you feel this way. But know this. I will never EVER do something like that again. I promise to be right here for you, no matter what. Think you can do that?" Twilight said smiling "I believe I can. Thank you." I said "No problem. Besides, you are welcome in my bed anytime. Just don't try to prevent me from going to the bathroom. Okay?" Twilight immediately turned a shade of red on her face and blushed furiously. I said "It's okay. I understand."

I said "Also, there is one more thing that probably might help." Twilight asked "And what would that be?" I leaned forward and kissed her. Yeah, most of the time it's her that does that. Now it's me that's doing it this time. Of course, it then turned passionate and lasted for probably a good few minutes. Then after we pulled away, Twilight said "You know, I think that did work." I said "It probably did. Now I'll probably go to the library. You can stay here or join me if you want. It's up to you." Twilight said "I believe Spike said he wanted to do something. So I'll stay down here for now. Don't be running off though." I said "Please. I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. So you'll be fine." I left the dining room and headed upstairs to the library. Time to read. As I was reading, I heard the front doors burst open. Oh great. What was it this time? I heard a bunch of call outs and then the door to the library opened and it revealed Fluttershy. She said loudly "Twilight? Oh, um hi Zachary. Do you know where Twilight is?" I said "She's down in the kitchen with Spike I believe." She said "Great. Thanks." and closed the door. Huh, that's odd.

Wait, oh dear. I know what today's chapter is now. Fluttershy asked me where Twilight is. That means that Zecora got the swamp fever and Fluttershy is determined to find a cure. I forgot what it was, but it was somewhere in I believe Hayseed Swamp. Suddenly, the library doors open and in comes Twilight and Fluttershy. They are both looking for books. I said "So, I see you're looking for books eh? Hmm, yeah, let me check to see if I can find where it talks about who the mystical mask is." Fluttershy then asked me 'Wait. How do you know about that?" I said "Uh, history books I guess." I continued looking through books and the ladies did the same. Twilight said, sighing "That's the last book on ancient ponies and still no mention of the mystical mask." Fluttershy said "Hmm, did we check the unabridged versions?" Twilight said "Yes. And the books on rare diseases, the books on rare plants, and the entire section on bog habitation." That's a mouthful. Fluttershy said "Well, we might have to look through every book in the library, but I know we'll figure it out." She is technically right. Twilight just let out a sigh of defeat and continued reading while I continued as well.

12 hours later….

After what seemed like 12 million years, there was still nothing in here. I continued reading and oh great. Twilight fell asleep and has her hooves wrapped around me. It doesn't bother me though. I continued to stay up though. I heard Fluttershy say sighing "Another dead end." Unfortunately, yes. But you could just I don't know, maybe cross reference some books maybe. "Have you found anything yet, Twilight?" Nope. She then stared at me and asked again "Twilight?" She was snoring and then it caused her to jump sending her backward. Oh dear. At least she didn't drag me down there with her. I hope she's alright. I think she'll be fine. Fluttershy said "Goodness. Are you okay?" Twilight said "I'm fine." That's good to hear. "Fluttershy. You know that I want to help Zecora, but I think we'd be a lot better off if we got some sleep." She does raise a good point Fluttershy. "We've been at this for hours." Yeah. 12 hours to be exact. Even though it felt way longer than that.

Fluttershy looked around and saw the mess in the library. She said "Oh, I'm so sorry." I know you are, you don't need to apologize. You had good intentions and were just trying to help out a friend. I completely understand. "I didn't realize how late it had gotten." That generally happens a lot. It's a common thing to do these days. Twilight slid down from the book pile and said "No problem. I'll grab you a pillow and-" before getting cut off by Fluttershy said "Oh no no no. I meant YOU should sleep. I can't rest until Zecora is healed." I said "Are you sure that's wise Fluttershy? Research has shown that you don't think as straight when you're drowsy or exhausted." Twilight said "He's right. I understand how you feel. But I still think we'll have more luck if we tried again in the morning." I believe so as well. Getting a good night's sleep will refresh you and you'll be able to think straight. Also, even a 10 to 20 minute nap will still refresh you a bit. That's what they say to avoid drowsy driving. Look it up in the driver's manual if you don't believe me.

"Just promise me you'll take a break soon." Fluttershy said "mhm." you know in the way that's like uh-huh yeah sure okay whatever. Kind of like that. I headed out to go to sleep and Twilight soon followed. She yawned and said "Good night Fluttershy." closing the doors to the library. I went to bed and once again, Twilight found her way in there. Well, technically, I did say she's welcome anytime, so I guess it's fine. She instantly fell asleep and I just smiled at her. I turned off the lights and fell asleep as well.

The next morning….

The sun was rising and I woke up. I heard Twilight just mumbling things about kitchen pans which was very odd for some reason, but whatever. She mumbled out "9 by 13 inch pan." All of sudden, my doors flew open and instantly came in Fluttershy scaring the crap out of both of us causing Twilight to fall on top of me. Fluttershy exclaimed "TWILIGHT!" Twilight then said loudly "NONSTICK PANS!" Wait what? That woke up Spike and he said "What's all the commotion in here ladies?" Fluttershy asked "Um Twilight, how did you end up in Zachary's bed?" Instantly, Twilight's face turned blood red and she hid below me in shame. I said trying to change the subject "So, what is it you wanted to tell us, Fluttershy?" She said "oh, uh right. Sorry about that. I figured out who the mystical mask is." Mage Meadowbrook? Sounds about right. This instantly got Twilight's attention and gasped at this. She asked Fluttershy "You DID?" Well, duh. If she didn't find out who it was, you think she'd tell us?

Fluttershy said "All I had to do was cross reference a book about masks, with another book on ancient Equestrian healers, then use a third book to translate it all from old ponish, and there it WAS! Zecora was right! The mystical mask wasn't just a legend, the mystical mask was MAGE MEADOWBROOK!" I said "Finally. Somepony else besides me figured that out. Took ya long enough." This caused Twilight to fall down in amazement and she said "The ancient sorceress for Hayseed Swamp?" How could she be a sorceress? She practiced medicine, not witchcraft. Also, yep the one and only. "We studied her at Celestia's school." Good for you. No one cares. I figured Celestia would say something like that. "Are you sure?" Do you think she would tell us if she didn't? Fluttershy said "ABSOLUTELY! Mage Meadowbrook wasn't just a sorceress, she was also a healer and back then healers wore masks so they wouldn't get sick themselves." Some of you might think this is a COVID reference, but this is Season 7 so it was back in 2017. I believe this is more of a Bubonic Plague reference instead since it was considered over "1,000" years ago, even though I think it was 10,000. That's my theory, so don't try and say it wasn't. The timeline just raises a lot of questions for all the major events to be over 1,000 years ago. It doesn't make sense realistically.

I know it's a cartoon, but there's got to be some realistic aspect one way or another. I asked Fluttershy "Why would they call Mage Meadowbrook a sorceress? She practiced medicine, not witchcraft." Fluttershy said "I don't know. That's just what everypony says." I said "That's very strange and doesn't make any sense. But whatever." Twilight said "Fluttershy. I am so incredibly proud of you for using your research skills to figure this out." I'm sure you are. "But Meadowbrook lived ages ago, and didn't she disappear?" I said "That's only because she fought the Pony of Shadows along with the rest of the pillars and trapped him in limbo." Twilight said "What are you talking about?" I said "You figure it out later on. I cannot say anymore than that otherwise, the Tree of Harmony will punish me for that. It doesn't want me to give away any secrets. So I have to do my best to keep things as discreet as possible."

Fluttershy said "Uh, ok. Anyway, if we go to Hayseed Swamp, maybe we can find something she left behind. Something that can lead to a cure!" I said "I remember that there was a cure somewhere there, but I can't remember what it was." Twilight said "It seems like a long shot, but I guess it's possible." Fluttershy grabbed Twilight's hoof and started pushing her out the door. She said "We have to try. I got a route all planned out, and on the way, we can check up on Zecora, and then-" before getting cut off by Twilight saying "Whoa, whoa, whoa. We're leaving now?" Seriously, Fluttershy slow down. You're doing this all too quickly. Fluttershy said "OF COURSE! Every second we spend waiting, is a second Zecora is coughing bubbles!" I said "That doesn't seem like a good idea right now." Twilight said "I agree. Fluttershy, you haven't slept and that's a long journey." Fluttershy said undeterred "There's no use of trying to talk me out of this Twilight."

She then proceeded to push Twilight even more to get her out and said "We *makes grunting noises* got no time to waste!" Twilight said "Can we at least grab some breakfast?!" Fluttershy said "I packed Cauliflower bites." Eww. That sounds disgusting. Twilight seemed sad at this and said "Aww. No Sweet Potato Muffins?" Now that sounds a lot better than that other crap. Spike then said "I uh ate them all." Of course you did. And HEY! Why are you on my bed? Fine, whatever. I don't care right now. I made my bed and Spike just rested on top of it. "They were actually really good." I bet they were. I ain't eating no disgusting Cauliflower bites. Nah, I'm having Taco Bell breakfast this morning. Have my bacon crunchwrap, hash browns, cinnabon bites or whatever they're called, the ones with the cream in it, and of course orange juice.

I took out my breakfast and completely devoured it. The girls both stared at me and I just rolled my eyes. I said "I don't have time for this. Come on, we gotta get going." After a bit, we made it to Zecora's and of course Fluttershy said "And that's when I realized that the mystical mask was actually Mage Meadowbrook." Zecora coughed some bubbles and said "That's marvelous Fluttershy. I'm quite impressed. While you're gone on your journey, I'll try not to be worried." This caused Fluttershy to gasp in horror and she said "Oh no. Zecora, you didn't rhyme! You must be getting worse." Remind me again why not rhyming is a bad thing. Zecora said "Oh, no. No. No. Not at all. Something, something ball." Ok, that didn't even make any sense. Ok, maybe it's worse than I thought. She then sneezed out lightning and caused part of Twilight's mane to get burnt to a crisp.

This caused Fluttershy to panic and she said "That's it! We have to go NOW!" I said "By all means, go ahead." Twilight said "Lead the way, Fluttershy." We went to go out the door, but she banged up against it. I think the drowsiness is catching up to her. Twilight opened the door and we both headed out with me closing the door. I then proceeded to fix her mane with a simple spell to remove the burn on there. We all then spread out our wings and took flight southeast towards Hayseed Swamp. After a bit, we made it there, but Fluttershy hit Twilight from behind. How is this allowed on a little girls TV show? Some people would deem that as inappropriate. I'm telling you, that drowsiness is really starting to get to Fluttershy. We flew down and we saw it was completely abandoned. It was pretty much a ghost town. Twilight asked nervously "Sooo, where do you think Meadowbrook lived?"

Fluttershy said after letting out a yawn "I'm not sure. Maybe there's somepony we can ask." I doubt that. Twilight said "I think we might be the only ponies here." I said "Even if there was, most of them would be half of the trees that are around here." Twilight asked me "Why would that be?" I said "Because the ultimate outcome of Swamp Fever is turning into a tree and sprouting the flowers that cause the disease in the first place. Basically, it pretty much repeats the cycle over and over again. That's why it's so contagious." That seemed to freak out both of them and I said "But anyway, if we keep heading straight, I believe that the tree that Meadowbrook lived in should appear." I spread out my wings and headed straight. Fluttershy and Twilight soon followed. Then Fluttershy said "Wait. I recognize that tree." Yes, now we're getting somewhere.

She flew around to make sure it was the right one and she said "Oh, yes! This has to be it." It's the only one that has a door and it's bigger than the rest of them. "It's just like the illustrations of her home." Wait. They made drawings of this place? I guess it was that famous. Oh well. Twilight said "Anypony who lives in a tree is ok by me." I said "Of course it is. You used to live in a tree." Twilight narrowed her eyes at me and said "Your point?" I said "Nothing. Just pointing it out. No pun intended." Fluttershy went to the door to try and open it, but she couldn't for some reason. She tried to push it open, but it was no use. She just sighed and said "Well, if the doorway is sealed up, then we'll just have to dig our way in." I think you missed the door handle. I can see it in plain view. "Back up Twilight and Zachary! I don't want you to get hurt." Please. That's not gonna hurt me. Both me and Twilight looked at each other and knew that Fluttershy was being ridiculous here.

I said "Did you ever try the door handle?" Fluttershy stopped digging and looked around sheepishly. She said nervously "It uh really blends in with the bark." I said "You really should have looked for it first before digging. Such a shame." Twilight said "It's easy to miss." Sure it is. I opened the door with my magic and we peeked inside. UGH! My OCD is triggering like crazy. I think Rarity would have a fit in here. Fluttershy said "Wow. It looks like this place has been abandoned for years." I said "Pretty much like the rest of this town." Twilight closed the door and we continued looking around. Fluttershy saw the flower that causes the disease and said "Twilight! Zachary! Look. It's the same kind of lilypad that gave Zecora Swamp Fever." Yes, Fluttershy. I see the flower. You are clearly stating the obvious here. "Hmm. I wonder if Meadowbrook was looking for a cure for swamp fever too." When it comes to medicine, scientists put the object in question in a bottle or tube of some sort as that's their current project and they try to figure out what causes this to be formed, who does it affect, what are the symptoms, and so on.

Fluttershy gasped in excitement and said "Do you think she found it?" Yes actually, she did. She wrote it down in her journal, but she never said exactly what the cure was. Twilight said "I hope so. But let's not get ahead of ourselves." Suddenly, there was a creaking noise. You know, the kind of noise you would hear in a haunted house on Halloween? Yeah, that one. However, Twilight thought it was something else and said "That's exactly what I'm talking about. You're making your excited squeaky noise." I said "Um Twilight. I don't think that was Fluttershy." Fluttershy said "He's right. I didn't make my excited squeaky noise. I heard it again and I knew what was going to happen. So I put in earplugs and just stood there with a blank stare towards the wall. Both of them turned around to see what it was and they screamed at the top of their lungs hugging against me and I was just like really? Come on. It's not that bad.

I knew the pony that was in the rocking chair was named Cattail, so he came over and I barely heard him say "Y'all can stop screaming now." Yes, please. I can't have them screaming at the top of their lungs begging me to do something, because there is no threat. It's just a pony chilling in this residence, that's all. "I didn't mean to scare ya." You didn't for me, because one, I've seen the episode already, and two, I knew that you were a chill dude. So it's fine. "I do that a lot." Probably, for ponies that don't expect you to be hiding in the corner rocking a chair. I took out my earplugs and looked over at Cattail as he went over to the cauldron. Twilight asked slightly annoyed "Scare ponies or rock creepily in the dark." Probably both. Cattail said "Well, both I suppose." What did I tell you? "Name's Cattail. Pleased to meet ya." Same to you, my good sir.

Fluttershy asked with curiosity "Likewise. But um, may I ask, why are you in Mage Meadowbrook's home?" Because he's a descendant of Meadowbrook and he's not much of a cleaner? That sounds about right. Cattail replied "Oh. I take care of the place." What I'd tell you? "I ain't much of a cleaner, but from what I hear, my kin wasn't either." That's a shame. Rarity would basically condemn his family for not doing proper home care. "So, I doubt they mind a few cobwebs in our ancestral home." This got Fluttershy excited and she asked with excitement "You're related to Mage Meadowbrook?" Yes, he is. Cattail just nodded and Fluttershy said even more excited "Oh my Goodness Twilight and Zachary! We did it!" She got up in Twilight's face and said "Not only did we find Mage Meadowbrook's old house, we found one of her descendants!" Twilight said "Honestly, I would not have guessed it." I can see why. Cattail said "So, you're looking for some kind of cure, huh?" That's why we're here, good sir. "Well now, I know Meadowbrook was known to always be writing in the journals." That sounds about right.

"If she had the cure you want, I reckon that where it be." Probably. "Come on, I'll show you the library." It makes sense to have books in a home like this. Sometimes, scientists need to look back to previous references for testing out experiments. This of course got Twilight excited and she said "Library? Now we're talking." Of course it was very small, but it wasn't that bad. It meant we would have less stuff to go through. Twilight said disappointed, but not showing it "Oh. Well. *chuckles nervously* Libraries come in all shapes and sizes." That is true. Some libraries are bigger than others, and vice versa. Fluttershy said "This is good. It'll take us less time to go through everything." Exactly. That's the benefit of this library. Cattail removed the crap from the table and we began reading the books. Fluttershy read aloud "Today, Mom made me eat peas. Peas are yucky."

Hold the phone. WHAT! PEAS ARE DELICIOUS! MEADOWBROOK! HOW COULD YOU SAY SOMETHING LIKE THAT?! THEY ARE ONE OF THE BEST VEGETABLES ON THE PLANET! THAT'S A DISGRACE! YOU AIN'T GETTING MY BLESSING FROM THE TREE OF HARMONY! YOU SHALL BE CURSED FOR THE NEXT THOUSAND YEARS! Anyways, carry on. "And we can probably skip this one. Unless she found a cure when she was a foal." I doubt that. Twilight read aloud "I met a colt today. He pulled my mane, so I put a frog on his head." Now that's funny. That's justice served right there. "Also not helpful." Pretty much. "But I do kinda want to see where it goes." Fluttershy however wasn't having it and gave Twilight a different book. Twilight groaned in frustration and read the other one. Meanwhile, I picked up the one that Twilight was interested in. Fluttershy couldn't stop me from doing that. I need entertainment so I will get it no matter what.

Fluttershy looked in another book and said "Wait. Listen to this. Today, I tried again to brew an unsniffle elixir." The voice of Fluttershy got replaced by Mage Meadowbrook's as she told the story. Meadowbrook said "And I finally got it right." There was a squirrel in the corner who had a swelling nose and eyes and both of them were blood red. Meadowbrook gave the elixir to the squirrel and the squirrel drank it. Suddenly, it went away and the squirrel could breathe properly again. Then, Meadowbrrok's mother said "Meadowbrook. I think it's time you had this." Meadowbrook looked at the box curiously and opened it. What was in it shocked her. She said "My very own healer's mask. You think I'm ready, mother?" If she gave it to you, she believes so.

Meadowbrook's mother nodded and there was suddenly a knock on the door. She opened the door and there was a pony that had the orange spots of the fever that came from the flower. She gasped and said "What caused this?" The pony took out the flower from her cloak and showed it to her. Meadowbrook said in the narrating voice "Mother calls it Swamp Fever." It makes sense why they would call it that. "We've been trying to find a cure, but it hasn't been easy." Meadowbrook's mother used some of the potion with this flower and caused the orange dust to come out, causing her to cough. The door knocked again and there were a line of ponies that were sick from this and it was really bad. "The fever spread like wildfire." Generally, with most contagious diseases, that's what happens. Even worse, Meadowbrook's mother began to cough bubbles as well.

This scared Meadowbrook and caused her to panic. "I fear if we don't find a cure soon, everypony will be in grave danger!" Yeah, back then, you were lucky if you survived. Because they were far more deadly since there was no modern medicine back then. Also, it wasn't uncommon to die from the disease. So it was pretty bad. Meadowbrook's mother continued to cough, and Meadowbrook rushed over to check on her. "With mother sick, I didn't think I'd ever find a cure." Don't give up hope yet. "But staring at those cursed flowers today, I saw something." Meadowbrook was out in the swamps looking at that flower when flash bees came down onto the flower to collect it's nectar. The cloud of orange dust sprung out, but it did not affect the bees. Instead, they continued on downwards to collect the nectar. She said proudly "FLASH BEES!" She continued narring saying "I realized that the flower's poison didn't affect the flash bees, and if they were immune to swamp fever, their honey could be the cure!"

Some human diseases don't usually infect insects or other animals. If it comes from a flower, then it can sometimes affect the human, but not insects because of how the poison was designed. Poisons have certain triggers in the ingredients that when it reacts to other chemicals, it goes off. But if it finds nothing, it won't do anything. I ain't no scientist, but it's pretty easy to figure out that stuff. Meadowbrook chased after the flash bees and hopped up to where their hive was. She looked inside and all the bees were just sitting there peacefully minding their own business. Meadowbrook tried to look closer, but a branch broke. Of course, this caught the attention of the flash bees and started to attack her. Anything they consider a threat all the male workers go to protect the queen bee. They came out and stung her. Ouch. I know how that feels. Except my case was only one Yellowjacket, while Meadowbrook got stung by a bunch of them. I'm sure the flash bee's sting hurts more than like a cicada killer.

She fell down and gave the bees an angry stare. "But they were so aggressive defending their hive, I didn't know how I was going to get it." That's what a bee does. Anything that gets close to it, it begins to attack the intruder and basically does everything it can to get you to retreat. Meadowbrook stood further away from the hive and said "Here goes nothing." She put on her mask and the flash bees came at her. Then it goes black, and then she reappears with apparently what looks to be the honey and gives it to her mother. She then says narring "Today, I cured mother and the rest of the bayou." Then everything reappeared to present time and Fluttershy's voice took over once more. She said "It was the greatest feeling I ever experienced and I promised to dedicate my life to curing ponies all over Equestria." Cattail said "And she did just that. Right up til she disappeared without a trace." Only I know what happened, but nopony else does.

Did nopony read Starswirl's journal? I guess not. Fluttershy said "All we have to do is find those aggressive flash bees and get them to give us their honey!" It's a lot harder than you think. "Of course, it doesn't say how she did that." I know how, but umm we got a bigger problem. No! Fluttershy now has Swamp Fever. I immediately put on one of those war suits from like WWI where it had all the armor and of course the gas mask with the oxygen tank. Of course, Twilight got a little freaked out by this, but she understood why. Both her and Cattail exchanged worried looks and Fluttershy was confused at this. She asked "What? Is my mane messy?" Not really. "I know I haven't slept in a while and why is Zachary wearing that weird suit thing?" I said as loud as I could "Maybe try looking at a mirror." It was still kinda hard to hear, because of the suit I was wearing. Cattail grabbed a mirror and put it up in front of Fluttershy.

She looked in the mirror and gasped in horror. She said "Oh no! I've caught SWAMP FEVER!" Yeah, it's that bad. Suddenly, orange spots appeared everywhere and it got worse. She grabbed her bag, took some potions, grabbed the masks, and put it on Twilight and Cattail's heads. Twilight asked "Are you sure these are necessary?" Fluttershy said "What?" Twilight said again lifting up the mask "I said, are you sure these are necessary?" Fluttershy said "YES!" and put the mask back down. She continued saying "I won't risk infecting you, Zachary, or Cattail." I'm fine as it is. But this suit is very heavy and uncomfortably hot in here. Twilight said "What you can't risk is getting any sicker. If you don't rest, your symptoms will get worse." I said "Exactly. With any sickness, one of the most important things is rest. If you don't rest, then it will get worse and that can leave serious consequences such as serious injury or death."

"Cattail said "Mhm. You should really rest up before going up against those flash bees. They are nasty critters." Fluttershy said with pride "Umm. You don't know this about me, but I'm pretty good with animals." I said "That has no relevance to the situation. It doesn't matter if you are good with animals or not, you need your rest." Fluttershy ignored me and said "And besides, Dogtail-" before getting corrected by Cattail saying "Cattail." Fluttershy said "Um, Zecora is counting on me! I have to help her, just like Meadowbrook helped her mother and all those bayou ponies long ago." I said "That may be true, but it doesn't change the fact that you need rest. If you don't take care of yourself when you're sick, the disease will just spread to others." Twilight said "He's right Fluttershy. As much as Meadowbrook took care of other ponies, I'm sure she also took care of herself."

Unfortunately, Fluttershy was still undeterred and said with anger "You're not gonna change my mind TWILIGHT!" She then proceeded to push Cattail and Twilight out the door while I just went inside the shadow form and I'm taking off this suit. Hang on. WHEW! Finally. I then cast a magic health bubble spell that would prevent me from getting sick with Swamp fever kinda like how Cadence did it back in Season 4. If any part of the disease tries to hit me, the bubble will appear and block it from reaching me. Cattail said "Whew. Being sick, she sure is strong." Yeah, most people are very weak when they are sick, but apparently not Fluttershy. Twilight asked me "Why the heck did you take off that suit? You could be exposed." I said "Twilight. I cast a magic health bubble spell to prevent me from getting sick." Twilight asked "Like the one Cadence did back when Discord was sick?" I said "Exactly. Now we shall get going."

We finally arrived and Cattail said "The flash bee hive is just up yonder." Thanks for the 411, Cattail. Twilight asked Fluttershy "Are you sure you don't want me or Zach to come with you?" Fluttershy said "No! It's too dangerous Twilight." Even for a creature that's King of The Jungle, even I would have a difficult time trying to fight them. "Besides, I've already gotten one friend hurt, I WON'T LET it happen to another!" Okay, whatever you say, Fluttershy. She sighed and continued on. "Okay, Fluttershy, you can do THIS!" She coughed out more bubbles and gave an angry stare. She then ran over to the tree and flew upwards. I could tell she was struggling, but Twilight told me not to interfere. I heard her say "Mind over matter." I personally disagree with that statement and would say it the other way around.

She got to the hive and stared inside. Once again, the bees were just sitting there peacefully minding their own business. Fluttershy said with an echo "Hello Flash Bees. I was hoping I could get some of your honey." This caused the bees to become angry and came out of the hive furious. She said "Oh, I see. You don't let others have any. Well, I'm sorry, but I really need it." The bees didn't care and stung her on the muzzle anyways. She sighed and said "I didn't want to have it come to this, but I'll just have to use THE STARE!" She began using the stare on them, but their expression did not change. I don't think it works on them, or it's malfunctioning or something. It's one of the two. Fluttershy stared harder and that's when the flash bees had enough and began attacking her. They stung her just like Meadowbrook and began flying around like crazy.

She hit the tree branch and coughed some more bubbles. She said "You really are aggressive." That's what they do. It's not just them. Every kind of bee hive does that. Then she coughed even more bubbles. She then became dizzy and fell to the ground. I immediately flew over as quickly as I could to catch her and she landed right on my bubble. Twilight picked her up with her magic and we took her back to the tree or whatever it was called.

3 days later….

I had been searching for answers for three days and I found nothing. I literally read every book three times over just to pay attention to every detail. But it still didn't give any clues. Twilight was worried sick about Fluttershy and me. The only reason is because I did something similar to this eight months ago and it got me to physically harm myself. And for Fluttershy, it was that she was her best friend and she didn't know what was going to happen. Suddenly, Fluttershy woke up and said "Uh, what happened? Where am I?" Twilight said "I'm so glad you're okay. You're still in Meadowbrook's tree." Cattail said "You fainted. But Zachary flew over super fast and caught you, and Twilight used some magic to put you in bed. It was crazy." It most definitely was. Fluttershy said "Goodness Gracious! *coughs bubbles* Have you heard from Zecora? Is she okay?" Twilight looked at her with worry and I said "From what I hear, she's not holding up too well."

Cattail said "He's right. We got word that your zebra friend started sprouting leaves." This shocked Fluttershy and she said "She's already turning into a tree?" Pretty much. "I thought we had more time." Not really. Twilight said "Actually, you've been asleep for three days." This caused Fluttershy to freak out and she said "Three days?!" I said "You heard her right." Twilight said "You were asleep so long, we were afraid you wouldn't be able to move when you woke up. But thankfully, you just wore yourself down." It didn't really help calm down Fluttershy and she said getting out of bed "Oh dear. We have to get back to the hive. I have wasted so much time and-" before getting cut off by Cattail who said "Now hang on there, Fluttershy. Those Flash bee critters are tricky. Cattail's right. I can't even use magic to calm them down." I said "Even the Tree of Harmony's magic won't work on them."

Twilight said "We'll have to find another way to get the honey." Cattail said "We've tried everything from disguises, to things I won't even speak of. Even Zachary over there read every book three times over and couldn't find anything." I said "It's true. I looked over everything. I even triple checked like five times. But I found nothing." Twilight said "He's been through a lot these past three days." She pulled me in and said "Even him as well. He might have suffered the worst." You are correct on that. Fluttershy said "Wait. Disguises." Hmm. THAT'S IT! I FINALLY KNOW THE CURE! IT WAS THE HONEY ALL ALONG! MEADOWBROOK PUT ON THE HEALERS MASK TO GET THE HONEY! YES FINALLY! A flash bee flew around and landed on the mask. It seemed to like it for some reason. It gave Fluttershy a new idea.

She said "That's it! I know how she did it! I know how Meadowbrook got the honey!" Geez. Calm down woman. I know you're excited, but tone it down a little will you? We returned to the beehive and Fluttershy said "This is how Meadowbrook got the honey from the flash bees." Cattail got confused by this and asked "She threw a mask at them? I wouldn't recommend that." I said "That's not what she means, Cattail. I think you misunderstand what she's saying." Fluttershy said "He's right. The male bees aren't aggressive around the queen bee." Of course, because she's the one the workers protect. "And this mask has the same stripes as she does." That's actually quite clever. Twilight said "Fluttershy, that's brilliant!" Fluttershy smiled for a second, but then sneezed out some lightning which caused Cattail to be thrown into the bushes. Ouch.

Fluttershy said "There's no time to waste." Twilight said "Hooves crossed." I said "Good luck." Hopefully, this works. Oh wait. Yes it does because I know how it works out. Twilight lifted up Fluttershy with her magic up to the tree and Cattail said "Oh golly! I can't watch!" I said "Then don't look." Fluttershy made it to the top and coughed some more bubbles. She said "Mind over matter." I would still say it the other way around, but that's not important right now. She flew over to the hive and stood there waiting. A flash bee landed on it and got curious. Then Fluttershy started making buzzing noises and they all backed up to allow entry. The bees inside looked angry, but then they saw the mask and immediately flew by so that Fluttershy could take the honey. She looked down and said "Twilight. It's working."

After that whole thing, we were able to cure Fluttershy, thank Cattail for helping us, rushing back to the Everfree Forest, and get the honey to Zecora just before she turned into a full blown tree. Fluttershy gave some of the honey to Zecora and she ate it. Suddenly, the branches fell off and the spots went away. Twilight said "I think she's cured now, Fluttershy." Yeah, finally. Now we don't have to worry about her being completely stubborn. Zecora said "Oh, I do feel fine and this honey is divine." Now that makes sense and is a proper rhyme. Fluttershy said "Oh, you're rhyming again. Welcome back, my friend." Zecora said "Thank you, Fluttershy for all you've endured. If not for you, I would not be cured." Fluttershy said, saddened "Oh, if it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have been sick in the first place."

I said "Don't put the blame on yourself. It uh never works out too well. Trust me, I know from experience." Zecora said "Your friend is right. Regret is not what you should feel. Because on this journey, you have learned a great deal." She does have a point. Fluttershy said "That's true. I certainly learned that if you don't take care of yourself, you won't be able to take care of anypony else. In fact, if I had rested, like Twilight and Zachary suggested all along, maybe I would have thought to use Meadowbrook's mask sooner." Suddenly, the window opened and it was the doctor. Oh dear. He said begging "Please tell me you found the cure." He coughed some more bubbles and then I realized something. I remember a duplication spell that can multiply the amount of flash bee honey easily. I cast the spell and suddenly there were more bottles of it and gave it to the doctor. The disease went away and he went back to Ponyville.

This completely shocked Twilight and she asked "How did you do that?" I said "Eh, it's just a spell I remember. I guess I could teach you how to do that." This got Twilight excited and she said "Of course!" After we left Zecora and made it back to Ponyville, Fluttershy headed back home and me and Twilight went back inside the castle. It was late and the moon was up fully in the sky. After a bit, I headed towards bed. I saw Twilight had already fallen asleep, so I picked her up and headed towards the chambers. However, Twilight wrapped her hooves around me and I just sighed. I headed towards my bedroom and put her down. I went to bed and turned off the lights. Once I was in bed, Twilight wrapped her hooves around me. Oh, Twilight. You just don't want to sleep in your own bed, do you? That's fine. I didn't care anyway. So I closed the curtains and fell asleep. Even though this may get repetitive, it will always make me happy to see Twilight have a smile on her face.

AN: Another chapter done! I know it sounds kinda weird for Twilight to be the lion's bed, but she has a good reason. I'm telling you with 100% honesty that there is nothing inappropriate happening under the covers and it's PG-clean. Anyways, this was a fun chapter to write, but it will only get more interesting over time. I'm not gonna say since I don't want spoilers in here, but I know it will get more awesome. Just take my word for it.

Next Chapter: Rainbow Dash declares war against Zachary after he says that her pranks are petty. They both prank each other to see who is the best pranker. When it looks like Rainbow will win, Zachary pulls something that no other creature has ever pulled in history. Will Rainbow still be considered the Queen of all Pranks, or will Zachary be able to steal the crown?

Until then, my fellow readers