While it was early enough in the morning to precede the sunrise, the breeze on Fluttershy’s face had a distinct autumn nip that exceeded the normal chill before Celestia took over from Luna for the day. It was nothing overwhelming and certainly not enough to dissuade the animal loving pegasus from making her as of late typical morning rounds of the apple premises. She encouraged herself to believe that the underlying purpose was to ensure that the heaviest sleepers who could manage to sleep through the rooster’s crow would not have an excuse to do so. As she strolled through the fields and around the barn, she did gently stir the animals that had indicated that they were tolerant of this method but in reality this exercise was as much for her benefit as it was for theirs. The leaves had completed their morphing of colors and the trees on and around the ranch now bore the familiar flaming appearance associated with Princess Celestia’s favorite season; and while this certainly helped her to get out of bed, in truth it gave Fluttershy something productive to do in the hours of sleep that she would too often lose to insomnia. The latter affliction had abated somewhat with the Flight War’s conclusion but seeing her childhood friend come home as a veteran had brought it back in force.
The butter-colored bearer of the element of Kindness had spent most of the last two days alternating between embracing Rainbow Dash without warning and telling her how glad they all were that she was home and away from the war which had brought both of them close to tears a number of times, although the former much more so than the latter, and asking her to sincerely tell her how she was doing along with everything that had happened. Each time Dash had answered that she was just happy to be home and then changed the subject. Fluttershy had never been one to pressure a pony who was clearly tentative to talk, as it would have made her quintessentially hypocritical, but as she walked along she nonetheless found her thoughts drifting back to her friend. Rainbow Dash was different and the changes seemed to percolate deeper than the weakened wing she now packed. The pink-maned pegasus had noticed over the last 2 days the difference between when she was with her friends and when she was alone. When Rainbow thought she was by herself she wore a vacant stare, as if utterly lost in thought. Simultaneously, she put on her traditional air of confidence whenever her friends were around. Fluttershy’s face brightened at the thought of the scene when Twilight and Rarity had walked across the braided rug into the warm wooded interior of the Apple estate. They were greeted with the first simultaneous hug the six friends had shared in at least four years. Her expression faded as she thought of how hard it was to remember exactly when they had last been together.
What Fluttershy did remember was that she wished they could stay in that blissful and soothing embrace for another four years to make up for lost time. She had told her husband about it that night after dinner had become the equivalent of a joyous romp for the reunited ponies. He had exercised his specialty, namely that of listening with his typical comforting steadfastness while managing to offer largely silent encouragement, and she had actually fallen asleep feeling happy. Now though as she walked along, thinking about her friend again, all she could do was slowly shake her head.
“Rainbow Dash…please be easy on yourself. You’ve been through enough turmoil.” The pegasus quietly lamented as she reached her favorite tree on the ranch and nestled in the embrace of its gnarled roots. “We all have…” she trailed off as a lump rose in her throat.
She had been holding the brunt of her emotions in check for the duration of the war, knowing that her friends and especially her family needed all the strength they could get. Her withers were shaking as 4 years of suppressed concerns that ranged from her friends who were fighting on both fronts, to those who had been left behind only to hear that their loved ones were never coming home, became impossible to ignore. She even tried briefly to convince herself that it was a shiver in response to the cold; but enough had transpired and the Element of Kindness finally let herself weep. She subconsciously attempted to maintain some composure and was succeeding for the moment. When a new presence in the form of her 9 year old daughter Windfall suddenly announced itself with a gentle nuzzle on her left cheek, however, she responded by quickly returning it in addition to wrapping a wing around the sweet filly before giving free reign to her grief.
Fluttershy had spent the next ten minutes after Windfall had joined her evacuating and intermittently explaining why she was upset. The filly did little more than nod as she snuggled next to her mother and let the latter work through her feelings. When she did shed a few of her own tears out of sheer sympathy, Fluttershy only started to cry even harder out of guilt. They held each other for a time before pulling back to look at each other. Windfall grinned as her mother wiped the tears from the former’s eyes. Bursting with pride and feeling considerably better, Fluttershy kissed the kind hearted filly on the forehead as they exchanged affections. As the sun rose Fluttershy finally asked her why she was outside in the first place.
“It’s awfully early Windy. Daddy wasn’t even awake yet.”
Windfall shrugged as she replied. “I like to watch the sun rise in the orchard sometimes. I’m usually awake for it anyway and I need a break from aunt Twilight’s books every now and then.”
The pair giggled at the thought of the various birthday presents from the scholarly unicorn. “I love her books but you’re right. My head always feels heavier after I finish one.”
“My eyes sometimes cross a little,” Windfall said with a shaky voice as she tried to hold back her guffaws.
At that Fluttershy’s chuckles subsided into hearty laughter with the filly contributing. They both seemed to realize that it was necessary comfort. Nonetheless, they were genuinely enjoying the mutual confusion at their respective friend and aunt’s preferred method of entertainment. They snuggled closer under the tree as they caught their breath.
“Anyway,” Windfall continued, “I just saw you sit under Old Gnarly and thought I’d ask if you wanted to watch it with me.”
“It is a nice tree isn’t it?” Fluttershy remarked about the ancient plant they were nestled into. “Well we probably still have some time until it rises so why don’t we go to my favorite spot? It’s been awhile since I’ve watched the sun rise and I’d love to be with you Windy.”
The younger pegasus threw her forelegs around her mother’s neck giving her another hug which was gladly returned. Rising to their hooves they began to stroll toward the ranch’s eponymous crop bearers. They walked in a comfortable silence as they came away from the edge of the forest. Fluttershy smiled and put her wing around Windfall again as she inquired as to which of Twilight’s tomes she had actually read.
The filly entwined her own wing’s feathers with her mother’s and, recalling the cloud bound Ancient Equestrian Pegasi History volume that sat her bedside in a crystal casing from the northern empire, began to happily relate the mythology surrounding the founding of Cloudsdale.
***
Mist rose slowly above the orchard as the sky began to burn. The earliest birds’ songs complemented the now ascending diurnal orb as it vaporized the cool dew. Muffled scratches in the hollows of the older apple trees announced the stirrings of the ranch’s resident chipmunks and squirrels that were about to search for the components to their winter stores. The first frost of the year was expected soon but for the time being the exoskeleton bearing inhabitants of Equestria were lingering. Prominent above all the various features of the early Equestrian fall was the permeating tint in the air of the apples as they neared readiness for the Apple family’s most practiced tradition. As Fluttershy and Windfall strolled between the rows, absorbing the simple beauty of the morning, the former was feeling even happier than she had the night before. “Admittedly, there was a legitimate possibility that Rainbow Dash would never heal completely and that was hard to forget.” She mused.
Then she looked at her little filly who was already proving to be as strong as her father and as sensitive as her mother and thought that maybe there was some hope yet. Windfall was arriving at the conclusion of what had been a highly expressive telling of one of the pegasus culture’s most beloved tales.
“So after Count/General Mars was kicked out from the Vapor Fortress and Commander Athena Hurricane had turned him over to the Settlement guys…”
“The Equestrian Dispute Settlement Council right? Sorry for interrupting.” Fluttershy quickly followed up.
“Right and don’t worry.” Windfall respectively answered. “The fortress was expanded into a small town and the pegasi finally had their own home.
“Isn’t that a great story? It’s still one of my favorites.” Fluttershy said as she indicated a turn that they should take to get to secret vantage point that she knew about.
“I remember that grandpa used to tell it to me whenever we’d go visit. That’s why I was so excited to read it when I saw that it was included in the history. I realized that Grandpa used to change the scary parts. Like when General Mars would publicly punish earth ponies and unicorns for trying to sneak into his fortress before he made the first cloud buildings with steam and cumulous.”
“He would always do that for me too. Well, I guess he would tell me that they were punished, but made it sound like they were just being spanked or something rather than being thrown from a mountain top. Did he do the voice whenever he spoke for General Mars?” Fluttershy asked, snorting as her efforts to stifle a chuckle barely succeeded.
Windfall covered her eyes with her hoof as she threatened to descend into hysterics again before thrusting her lower lip out and speaking in a voice and with an inflection that was closer in proximity to that of Don Vito Stalleone, the infamous Manehattan casino coordinator from Veneighce. “I will not have ground pounding filth in my fortress! Especially not on the afternoon of my daughter, Lady Helen’s, wedding! Were I not a more generous leader of the Winged Elites, you ponies would be suffering this day!”
Once again, mother and daughter were reduced to virtual suffocation as they fondly remembered the hilarious fashion in which their respective father and grandfather would reenact the pony who was rapidly becoming their favorite mythological villain. As they regained their composure Fluttershy remembered how the aspects of the story featuring the famed pegasus leader were always the most exciting.
“It was so nice how Commander Hurricane went from being so intolerant and eventually stood up to her own race to make sure everypony was treated equally. She stood up to arguably the most prejudice pegasus who ever lived even though she probably would have rewarded him at another point in her life. That’s the real reason I liked that story so much. Well…that and your grandpa’s rendition of her was so cool.” Fluttershy grinned as she glared and her voice took on an intense tone not unlike that of Gallopen Ripley from the “Changelings” movie. “Get away from them you wretch!”
“Nice one!” Windfall exclaimed as their chuckles finally wore down. “Yeah that is a great story. I even liked learning about how much of it was true and how much was dramatized.”
“I don’t know exactly how much of it was real one way or the other. Although I don’t think General Mars could shoot fire from his eyes.” Fluttershy was grinning again.
Windfall agreed with one last chuckle. “Anyway enough about my books and it’s ok if you don’t want to talk about it, but why were you so upset mom? I haven’t seen you cry like that since Angel died.”
Fluttershy flinched briefly at the memory of her favorite pet. Angel had lived to an advanced age and he was always to proud to show that it was catching up to him. Fluttershy managed to notice that he was more fatigued at the end of each day, even toward the end when all he could do was act out stories for his grand kids and much on lettuce while he watched them play. His caretaker had done her best to accept it. Still, on the morning that it happened she still found herself to be unprepared. For two years she had mourned and ruminated on the life of Angel almost as much as she worried about her friends. He had been her first acquaintance when she moved to Ponyville and had always been nearby. Cupid had been inconsolable for the first year and was unable to do much more than cry on Fluttershy’s shoulder; which ironically had served as a distraction for the pegasus. Nevertheless, the morning after he never woke up was the first that she went for a walk through the ranch.
Shrugging off that particular set of months with a shudder, the kindly mare adopted a comforting tone. “I’ve been thinking about your Auntie Dash a lot lately peach fuzz.” Fluttershy responded, using Windfall’s second oldest nickname. “I may just be imagining it but she has seemed sad sometimes these last couple of days.”
“Are you talking about when she would suddenly start staring off into space?” Windfall questioned.
“You’ve seen it too huh? Yes that’s when I first noticed it.” Fluttershy was now thoroughly impressed, and proud, at how cognizant her daughter had become.
“But maybe she was just daydreaming. I remember Aunt Dash always used to like watching the clouds.”
“Or sleeping on them,” Fluttershy commented, eliciting a snicker from Windfall. “But didn’t it look like she was thinking rather than just letting her mind wander? I’m worried that she’s struggling with something Windfall. I don’t really know what fighting in a war can do to a pony but it can’t be good.”
“Well even though she said her wing was getting better, she’s still retiring from the Wonderbolts. Maybe she’s just wondering what to do next?”
Fluttershy inwardly thanked her childhood friend for her careful explanation of the injury the latter now sported. “Maybe Windy, I know I’d like to think that. But there’s something you have to understand about your aunt.”
At this point in their chat they reached lichen coated boulder that was partially interred on the western edge of the east orchard. A small carving, clearly executed by Unicorn magic, on the side facing the farmhouse bore the words, To my favorite apple purveyors with love. I hope HE (this word was engraved in such a manner as to buttress the belief that the caster had inexplicably started to angrily twitch) serves as a purposeful addition to the ranch’s decor for years to come. Fluttershy gestured to the top and with a few light flaps the pair reached it and perched themselves on the pinnacle facing the trees.
As they snuggled together again and observed the dull pink brightening to a lively crimson, causing long shadows to begin to appear near the virtually glowing trees, Windfall excitedly praised the view. “I usually just watch from the roof. I never knew the rows could look like that. The light looks like rivers.”
“Despite what most of them say about it, there are advantages to being a pegasus that spends most of his or her life on the ground. This view is definitely less obvious from the air. Anyway, your aunt has always been one of the hardest ponies to read that I’ve ever known. She’s always been competitive but she only started to act as proud as she does when we were in advanced flight school. She’d always been a tomboy and ponies had given her a hard time for it. Because she was so talented though, she could always shrug it off. You remember the story about the first time she managed to make a sonic rainboom right?”
Windfall nodded.
“For a long time after that whenever somepony made fun of her she would laugh and bring it up. Then whoever had been bothering her would usually just go away. I remember that it was usually colts that she had beaten in races that would do it. In retrospect, I think it was because a lot of them had crushes on her.”
“Colts are weird.” Windfall commented, sticking out her tongue.
“You might not think so someday Windy…” her mother said cryptically.
“Oh I will. I promise I will.” The younger pegasus confirmed.
Fluttershy grinned inwardly “Like I was saying though, when we got to advanced flight school, the colts who had given her a hard time when she was younger instead started flirting with her instead; and she would always turn them down.”
“Good for her!” Windfall interjected.
Fluttershy guffawed before continuing. “Anyway even though she wasn’t interested in dating, or maybe because of it, some of the fillies in our class were very jealous. Eventually they got so frustrated that they started harassing her like the colts had when she was younger. Rainbow hadn’t had many female friends growing up so they didn’t feel bad about picking on her. Now despite what your aunt may say about how she doesn’t care what ponies think of her, she does. So when these fillies started making her feel bad about who she was, rather than change who she was she instead started to act really proud so they would think they hadn’t gotten to her. She did the same thing to the colts so that they would stop trying to ask her out. By the time we were two years into school, everypony thought she was just arrogant and lazy, neither of which were true. Whenever I came by to spend time with her I would always find her practicing. She had just gotten sick of flight school because of how she was being treated. And that whole arrogant face that she put on was just to hide how hurt her feelings were. Unfortunately it hurt how she performed in school too and eventually, when we graduated, her grades were so low that the Wonderbolts flat out rejected her when she first applied.”
“Didn’t she eventually get in because she won the best young flier’s competition and they gave her another chance to tryout?”
“Exactly but that was years later. And hey you understand that this conversation doesn’t leave Tom right?” Fluttershy queried, tapping the boulder they sat on with a hoof.
“Pinkie promise mom.” Windfall said, looking hesitant to start the associated chant.
“You don’t have to go through the motions pretty-filly.” Fluttershy said as she remembered the severity of the oath her daughter had just invoked. “Just remember how important it is to aunt Pinkie.”
The two pegasi’ ears perked up as they heard a harsh whisper of “foreverrr!!” coming from the direction of Ponyville; sounding as if it had been mumbled by somepony in their sleep. They looked at each other and then shrugged before Fluttershy resumed her gentle advice.
“What I’m trying to say with all of this is that your aunt, no matter what she says, is actually a very sensitive pony and if she doesn’t appear that way, that means she’s trying to protect her feelings. She hates being perceived as weak.” Fluttershy paused, clearly troubled by what she was about to say.
“Except around her friends. As she grew up she was able to open up to me and the rest of your aunts whenever she was hurt by something or somepony. She was comfortable with being honest around us. So the reason I’m worried is that I think aunt Dash has been holding back about how she’s feeling with her friends. That’s what I think she’s doing whenever she looks lost in thought; and the real reason I’m bothered by that is because it’s very unusual. I think the last 4 years have had a big effect on her. One that isn’t good either.” Fluttershy finished with a renewed frown. The two sat and watched the sky silently roar from a pure red glare to a conglomeration of reds, oranges, and even yellow as Celestia’s faithful orb began to peek over the horizon. Windfall was making a mighty effort to contemplate all that her mother had explained.
Finally she said, nuzzling her mother, “I’m really sorry mom.”
Fluttershy wrapped her wing around Windfall again. “It’s not your fault Windy.”
“I just don’t like it when something makes you sad.”
Pulling her daughter closer with her wing and then wrapping a foreleg around her, Fluttershy hugged Windfall tightly. “I love you so much Windfall. I don’t know what I did I to ever deserve such a perfect filly, but I’m sure happy that I got you.”
“I love you too mommy.” Windfall whispered, wrapping her little forelegs around Fluttershy’s neck. By now the sun had cleared the horizon and the sky was building to its brilliant blue. Fluttershy felt more hopeful and at ease than she had in four years and Windfall was feeling relieved to see her mother looking far happier than she had under Old Gnarly.
“C’mon.” Fluttershy said as they released their hugs with two gentle kisses on the respective cheeks. “Let’s go have some breakfast before the run.”
They slid off the boulder on their sides and landed facing the trees. As they trotted around the boulder and back toward the farmhouse, Windfall couldn’t help but smile at the thought of how ecstatic her aunt Rarity had been to see the boulder settled in at the farm. The family had indeed been using it as a surveillance point for the orchard but her biological aunt Applejack, in what Windfall had come to understand to be lighthearted teasing in addition to genuine gratitude, had not been above calling it the most thoughtful gift they had ever received and complimented Rarity on her trademark generosity. This certainly made sense when Windfall asked Rarity about it only to be quickly reassured that it was her aunt’s pleasure to see it go and that if she promised to pretend that she had no idea where it came from, if and when she was asked about it, Rarity would tell her the story someday when she was older.
Turning back to her mother as the mist over the orchard began to clear, Windfall asked her if there was anything they could do to help her troubled friend.
“I think it’s just something that she’s going to have to figure out for herself. All we can do is keep letting her know that we care about her.” Fluttershy replied with a sigh.
“Dad always says that’s what family does best even if somepony doesn’t think they need it.”
“Eeyup.” Fluttershy agreed with a hint of adopted Apple family accent. “He is one wise stallion. Red hot too.”
“MOM!!” Windfall exclaimed with a disgusted expression.
“What? I’ve always thought your father’s the most handsome pony Equestria has ever seen. I could look at him all day.” The soft spoken mare said with a mischievous gleam in her eyes and smile.
“Ewww!” Windfall interjected again. “I feel like I need to dunk my head in the rain barrel!”
“How about a race back to the house instead?” A familiar voice asked.
The pair turned and looked up in surprise to see an orange pegasus mare with a magenta mane that was cut short up to the base of her head. She bore a pannier with a smaller version of the Harmony Innovations logo, indicating its status as a Fly-in-the-trap bag or F.I.T.T. This simple, but once again, highly beneficial creation appeared to be a normal piece of cloth before the addition of magic which would course through channels in the material and morph it into a normal saddlebag. The company would proudly boast that “It’ll always fit in a F.I.T.T.” While this was not strictly true, in that the internal volume of the F.I.T.T. was the same as a pannier of a similar size, it was certainly easier to pack. Twilight Sparkle, it’s creator, utilized one herself. The larger decal, however, was a simple emblem of a pegasus in furious pirouette with her head craned forward. It was that of Cloudsdale Airborne Ballet.
“Aunt Scootaloo!” Windfall cried happily.
“Heya kiddo!” Scootaloo laughed as she tousled the filly’s hair before pulling both pegasi into a hug.
“It is so nice to see you again honey.” Fluttershy said in earnest. “We’re really glad you could make it.”
“Are you kidding? I wouldn’t miss this for the world. Now in all honesty, who’s up for a race back to the house? I’m hankering for a warmup before the race!”
“I’m in!” Windfall exclaimed.
Fluttershy’s mischievous grin had returned. “That actually sounds like a lot of fun.” She said as she folded her wings tightly against her body.
“In that case…to the line!” Scootaloo declared as she drew a starting point in the dirt with a hoof. The three pegasi hunkered down. “Lil’ Breeze,” she said to Windfall, “you wanna do the honors?”
“Three…two…onego!!” Windfall shouted, blurring the last two segments and dashing off at the same time.
With mock vexation in their shouts, the two older pegasi were quickly in pursuit. Scootaloo’s bags flailed dangerously; an issue she quickly addressed by flaring her wings and folding them to her sides over her errant luggage. Fluttershy’s mane whipped about her face with a seemingly mischievous intent to trip her. Nonetheless, all three ponies wore huge smiles. The nip in the air that had accompanied the early morning was gone leaving a comfortably cool autumn day in its wake. As they bounded across the clearing that separated the orchard and the barn from the house, they could see its inhabitants who had arisen with the sun, standing on the porch having come out to investigate the commotion and now whooping and cheering on the impromptu race’s contenders. Applejack waved her hat and hollered while Big Macintosh let out a shrieking whistle with Bud and Blossom bouncing on his back. Soarin’ was pumping both hooves and yelling like he was at a show at the Cloudiseum. Applebloom and Pip, who had arrived the evening before, had wrapped their hooves together and were chanting encouragement. As the three approached within 25 feet of the porch, Scootaloo and Fluttershy had closed the gap and were alongside Windfall, Rainbow Dash stepped out onto the porch with the heavy steps that were typical of her curmudgeonly morning routine. Her face, however, lit up as she saw the joyful competition and she cheered just as loud as the other spectators when Scootaloo touched the steps before the others by a slight margin. Scootaloo received and returned two sporting hoof bumps to the place and show before bounding up the steps to hug her mentor. Windfall hugged her mother one last time before running over to greet her father and siblings. Fluttershy gazed at the scene as it played out and realized that the gloomy feelings she had started out with in the morning had faded to the point at which she could blissfully forget them.