//------------------------------//
// From Loyalty... and Kindness. 
// Story: The Fire in Her Eyes 
// by P0nies 
//------------------------------//

	“... It was real?” Rainbow sputtered, pulling her body in tighter under the protection of Fluttershy's outstretched wings. 

“Yes... it was Dashie,” Fluttershy told her, tightening her grip on Rainbow's body, trying to comfort her. 

Rainbow Dash continued to curl under the darkness that Fluttershy was providing her, her eyes still burning, but with less intensity than they had before. The task ahead for Rainbow would be painful, but she knew that she had to do it eventually whether she would have wanted to or not. Dash opened her eyelids slowly, more and more light steadily entering her corneas. It burnt as the light flowed through her magenta eyes, but she pressed on in hopes that what she had dreamt was actually real after all. She stopped her flow of tears in an attempt to look tough for her Fluttershy, but that was an effort in vain as water began to flow forth once again, flooding what vision she had and cooling her eyes. 

It took at least half an hour before Rainbow Dash was able to get her eyes opened, and even most new born foals had their eyes opened in a shorter amount of time. She didn't care about anything in the world around her, except for the mare that stood over her, protecting her from the beating midday sun. Dash had adjusted her eyes the best that she could have, and she prepared herself to endure the consequences of the actions she was about to enact. Clenching her eyes shut as tight as her eyelids would allow, Dash reached up with her hooves and gently pushed the wings that had been held over her head down to their compact position at Fluttershy's side. Forcing her eyelids up, Dash saw the face of an angel right in front of her, muzzles almost touching one another. Fluttershy's eyes shone bright and cyan, reflecting Dash's own coat and the natural color of her eyes. The fire in her eyes let Dash know that she was still in love with her, and she could only hope that Fluttershy saw the same in hers. 

Through the corner of her eyes, Dash could spot a cyan feather laying behind Fluttershy's ear, resting in her flowing pink mane. She brought a hoof up to her face and wiped her eyes to clear her vision, a slight stinging coming from the contact with her sore eyes. Squinting, she noticed that it wasn't just any cyan feather, but it matched the exact hue of her own feathers, and it even looked like it was her own Soul Feather... 

“Is that... Feather...” Dash stuttered, confusion wiping over her face. She spread her own wings, checking the spot where her feather should be, but it was replaced with air. “How...” 

“Well... Uhm, you gave it to me, remember?” Fluttershy asked her with nervousness flowing in her voice. 

“To be honest Fluttershy, I don't remember much of anything right now. Dear Celestia... My head is killing me...” Dash said to Fluttershy with a groan, bringing a hoof to massage her head and closing her eyes. Fluttershy could be heard, along with a small rustling sound as if she had extended her wings. 

With a muffled squeal through her teeth, Fluttershy reached down to her own wing and found the exact feather that Dash had given her, and gave it a swift pull. Ignoring the pain that resided after she pulled the feather from her wing, she made her way to Rainbow, and lifted her head with a hoof. Dash's eyelids slowly came open, the eyes glaring back at her with a fire fiercer than those in Tartarus. With a gentle hoof, Fluttershy parted Rainbow's hair, and stuck her own feather in, giving it a slight weave to ensure it wouldn't fall out. Rainbow Stared at her, awestruck that she had given her feather, even though she could not remember much of anything, besides of what she had dreamt. 

Fluttershy pulled her in closer, bringing their lips together and locking in a soft, warming kiss that sparked their hearts to burst in their chests. The embrace of the two ponies who had found their true love over again lasted ages in their minds, lasting only mere minutes in the reality that they wished to never return. Rainbow was the first to break the embrace, a tear falling from her eye. And before Fluttershy could give her any sympathy or even speak, Rainbow had tackled her to the ground and held her tight, practically breaking ribs.

“I know I love you Fluttershy... But why can't I remember anything?” She asked, looking up at Fluttershy with a worried look pressed on her face. 

“The doctor said you would have a hard time remembering anything...” Fluttershy told her while wrapping her hooves around Rainbow Dash. “But he also said it will just take a bit of time before you are back to normal, if that's okay...”

“Anything with you, Fluttershy, is alright with me,” Dash told her, a small smile across her lips. “But don't you go acting crazy on me now that I have your feather,” she joked.

The sun began to fall below the horizon, the moon slowly coming into view behind them as Celestia lowered the sun and Luna raised the moon and stars. Fluttershy gently nudged Dash off from on top of her, and pulled her to the top of the hill where they had talked many times in the years before. They both sat down, Rainbow Dash leaning over and snuggling up onto Fluttershy, a sheepish grin appearing on her face. They watched the sunset together, and kept warm together. They watched as each star came into the night sky, together. For once, they were together, as each had always wanted to be. 

Dash rolled her eyes up to look at Fluttershy, who stared out into the night sky and enjoyed its eternal beauty. She didn't notice Dash looking up at her, but she could feel her heartbeat slowly getting faster as she came to speak.

“You know, Fluttershy, I've always been too scared to do this on my own...” she told her, standing up and playfully pushing her over on the ground. 

Fluttershy toppled with a small squeal and laugh. “Do wha –” She tried to speak before being interrupted by a pair of soft, loving lips being pressed against hers, locking them in another embrace. But this time, Fluttershy was the first to break it for a mere moment. “I love you, Rainbow Dash.” 

“And I remember loving you, Fluttershy.” 



FIN