Troubled Minds, Chapter I

When an alarmed Fluttershy accidentally recovers a dying Sombra, the pegasus, acting on nature, immediately acts to heal him and, hopefully, rehabilitate the weakened villain, all while keeping his existence a secret from her friends.

A Sombra x Fluttershy fic that would not leave my mind after the tumblr/comic

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"Oh, but I insist mister Rabbit." With a weak nudge of her hoof, the carrot between herself and one of the forest's many denizens slowly rolled towards its intended consumer, mister Rabbit. For a second time, the rabbit refused to listen to the timid pegasus' suggestion and turned to hop. Fluttershy hardly had the chance to object before he'd hopped behind a large shrubbery and continued to rustle leaves and bushes farther and farther away.

"M-Mister Rabbit, wait!" Without hesitation, Fluttershy collected the carrot in her mouth and slowly hovered over the largest bush to smaller foliage just over and, beyond, mister Rabbit.

Eyes darting left and right, Fluttershy tried her hardest to find the missing rabbit to the best of her capabilities while also reminding herself to scold Angel on informing his friends on the finer things in life. Seconds into her search, Fluttershy let out a worried moan. "Ohhhhh. Mifter Wabbit..."

Slowly she began to step through the smaller bushes, eyes peering left and right for any sign of disturbance in the leaves. Eventually she came upon a more open range of bushes and immediately stopped as she found an object completely out of place just a meter away.

Embedded into the ground and as dark as the night, save a brightening red coloration further along, was a jagged shard of rock. Immediately Fluttershy began to wonder how such a thing came to be in the middle of the forest by her cottage and meekly felt like blaming it on wandering ponies with littering habits before assuring herself it was a mistake. Otherwise, she would speak with Mayor Mare on the matter if it were the case.

Taking it upon herself to remove the otherwise dangerous shard from the ground, Fluttershy set the carrot to the side and stepped forward to retrieve it. It was not until she'd opened her mouth, hardly a foot away, that her eyes immediately shot open wide as the true origin of the shard, or horn, revealed itself.

The jagged fragment of a horn, resting in the confines of her woodland friend's forest of all places, had belonged to King Sombra, tyrant of the Crystal Empire and fallen villain as of a few weeks ago. Immediately her head jerked back and fears she once held for the fallen king began to resurface and tighten a renewed grip on her heart. Not a second after, the shard began to glow. Fearing the worst, Fluttershy shut her eyes and sharply turned away. fearing few and all of the horn's possible actions against her interference. A fear that, for several seconds, did not come to be instead.

It was nearly a full minute before the yellow pegasus opened her left-most eye by a centimeter before mustering the courage to look back at the jagged horn completely once more. Nothing had happened besides a sudden glow. Fluttershy grew embarrassed. Embarrassed, but relieved.

"O-Oh, I was afraid something would happen!" She went about how her friends would react to her fear and quietly giggled it off before eventually coming to terms with just what it was that was presented by her hooves. A remnant of the fallen king had managed to survive the purge that had stripped the Crystal Empire from King Sombra's dark influence. More than likely, any fragment at all would have to be turned in to princess Celestia at Canterlot to ensure that the shards were both nothing more than shards, and rid of the evil magic that had been imbued in them.

It was yet another minute, or number of them, before Fluttershy finally assured herself that the horn, though belonging to Sombra himself, was nothing more than just that, and would not be able to harm her at all. More importantly, it would be better to get the object far away from her animal friends as to save them any grief that could have been caused by the shard if she were to wait for Celestias' guards to arrive. Clearing her throat, Fluttershy readied herself to retrieve the horn of the fallen King Sombra... but not before slowly tapping the tip of the horn to assure herself it was safe.

Immediately, a spark of dark magic flared from the tip and Fluttershy, not knowing of the possible consequences, proceeded to dart back. Not long after, the horn was engulfed in a menacing aura of purple and soon after that, a brilliant ray of light shot from every direction. Fluttershy shrieked in fear and covered her eyes.

It was several seconds before the light faded from every corner of her tightly sealed eyes and once she mustered enough courage to open them once again, they immediately darted wide open. Before her, not a yard away, staggered a coughing, wheezing form. Even if the light had blinded her, she could not mistaken the familiar silhouette of a pony she had feared immensely only a few weeks ago.

"S-S-S-Sombra!" She cried, unable to hide her terror. Immediately she dove into the nearby bushes, cowering with her hooves over her head, hoping against reason that it would save her from whatever onslaught the dark lord would unleash upon her. Instead, for several seconds, she continued to shake where she lay while nothing but a feeble wheeze and gasp continued to come from behind her, never approaching but never farther.

Finally, the pegasus meekly peered over her shoulder and found the fallen king not only struggling to catch his breath, but also struggling to stay awake. It was as though the former villain had lost any ounce of power he'd once held, and after a second of further observation, Fluttershy covered her mouth as she let out a silent gasp.

It was not only his magic, but also his health that had deteriorated with his defeat. With every gasp for air the onyx pony gave, the ridged cage of his ribs scraped against the thin layer of skin he'd still managed to maintain. His eyes, once burning with hatred, now waned and hardly managed to even maintain their state of rapid motions of opening and closing alone. His mane, once flowing, with a crown and kept, lay flat against his coat, large heaps masking what little of the fallen king's face she could make out.

The sight was far worse than anything the young pegasus had ever seen in her experience as a caretaker, the most intense being Angel's broken leg. Now, faced with not a creature but a stallion, a being far overstepping her natural field of care, suffering to the greatest of extent, nay, dying before her very eyes, the fear the pegasus originally held for the defeated Sombra immediately turned to worry and a fear for his wellbeing.

Only now noticing her startled, now sympathetic form, Sombra, through near-blinded sight, warily barred his teeth. The faintest glow came and left his eyes as he attempted pathetically to call on his nonexistent reserves of magic and when it failed, he tried for intimidation. His first step forward proved to be his only step as the dark lord felt his body already begin to shut down, collapsing on itself.

With a gasp, Fluttershy immediately dashed to his side and caught him amidst his fall. Whereas Fluttershy expected him to be heavy, she was met by dreaded shock to find herself capable of carrying him with ease: three of him, even. Her eyes further creased with worry for the dark lord's wellbeing. After having the thought cross her mind however, another wormed its way in, one that she knew she could not think of considering at the moment. Her friend's reactions.

This was no mere stray creature or rampaging monster whose actions have an amendable reason behind them, this was King Sombra, tyrant king of the Crystal Empire. Legends describe his misdeeds and crimes against ponykind, and even the faintest rumor of his actions were a vast trove of accusations.

Fluttershy glanced to her side, taking the briefest moment to look into the flickering eyes of the fallen king. Everything she'd been told could be seen: the spark of hatred, an aura of madness, and even a masked drive for the enslavement of every living creature he could possibly get his hooves around. But no one could see what Fluttershy could see. And with a few seconds to herself, looking into the eyes of the villain she had defeated weeks ago and had only just saved from collapse, she could see something more.

She could see... pain. Not a pain brought on by one or two acts of cruelty, but a pain that had been brought from regret, fear, sadness and... betrayal.

The body above her gave a subtle move of its muscles. A move of his jaws and Sombra's mouth opened, quaking as he managed to utter half of a word. "Ge-"

"Hush." The corners of his eye twitched briefly, failing to open in surprise. "You'll... um... y-you need to save your strength." Her eyes darted to the ground, opposite him.

An uncomfortable silence followed Fluttershy's suggestion and seconds after, Sombra's body began to relax and proceeded to fall limp over her own. The pegasus briefly began to grow alarmed before sighing at feeling him still breathing on her back. Sombra's actions, no matter how brief, proved too much for his body to cope with. The idea only saddened the pegasus more, considering it sheer luck she'd found him as he were. Any longer...

Swallowing hard, Fluttershy shifted Sombra's weight appropriately to balance over her before finally taking her first steps home. Left again with her own company, she briefly began to wonder how her friends would react to the news of her discovery before immediately deciding against it. Not only would they be angry, they would actively go against helping him. Unlike her, they would only reflect on the bad he had committed in his known life. But she wouldn't allow it. Everyone, no matter how evil, had some good in them. Gilda excluded.

Sombra would then, decidedly on the spot, face rehabilitation through her own means, and while she lacked the resources she may require, she would more than make up for it herself.

Her mind set and determination high, Fluttershy gave the unconscious Sombra one last brief glance before looking ahead and hurrying her pace.

There. Her cottage would be over that hill.