Flight

by AG Phenxore

Now Tealess

The terrified filly hid away in her corner, watching the two pegasi silently exited the building. Their previously cheerful demeanor replaced by expressionless faces and chilling swagger in their step while they pulled open the door to the coffee house. They only waited till the weather had begun to slow. The remaining drips of rain fell down unto the sidewalk from the eaves as the moon starts to poke its way through the motionless clouds.

Peeking around the corner and noting the absence of any patrons, Fluttershy jumps off her seat and crouched behind a set of tables and chairs. Shadows sept across the shop from the low lights. She scanned the room for other ponies as she tip-hooved between the seating arrangement. Stopping behind a particularly grimy booth, she places a butter yellow hoof on the previously white surface, carefully looking around it. Dave was still wiping up the spilled water from the supposed thieves, his back turned to Fluttershy’s quick, panicked eyes.

She ducks behind the counter, walking just under the view of those who looked that way. Her eyes were set on the dark alley just beyond the door that adorned the other side. Stepping with carefully, precisely placed hooves, she makes her way to the exit. She passed next to supplies used for baking while she inched closer to the edge of the counter, her cover. Her wing brushes past a stack of measuring cups as she made her way in the nearly dead silent shop.

Half, quarter, third and full cups scatter across the floor, and Fluttershy nearly hits the ceiling as her heart rockets towards the sky. Dave looks up from his mopping, and looks from one end of his empty shop to the other. He blinks, and resumes his mopping. Fluttershy glances from the end of her cover. Seeing Dave ignore the disrupted silence, she quickened her pace to reach the door before Dave became curious again.

In a final expression that meant, "goodbye", she looks over her shoulder at the shopkeeper. Fluttershy places a hoof the door and gives it a push, almost hitting it with her face as she does. Panicked, she turns around. Her breaths came out in struggling, hastened gasps. Eyes as large they could be shoot around the empty shop. She lets herself ease down from the nearly standing position she was in from backing against the door, still unsure as to why Dave was not there.

Head hanging low, she quickly trots to the main door. Her pace was tenfold what is was when she tried to sneak to the backdoor. As she reaches for the glass entrance, a strong hoof pulls her back, spinning her around so that both of his hooves were placed on her shaking shoulders.

“Fluttershy! Look around, please don’t do this. I don’t have enough money to keep this place up, do you want it shut down?! ‘Cause it’s almost there!”

Dave roughly shook limp Fluttershy, but his words passed through her like a whisper in the wind. She tried to wiggle away from the aggressive shop owner but his muscular legs held her in place as he continues to lecture her.

“Those two gave me enough to keep my Donut shop open for atleast another year!”

Her head was spinning from the constant shaking, and in a flurry of self preservation, her hoof reaches Daves face and he lets go to grasp his bleeding muzzle. She throws the door open, landing another hard blow to the dazed shop keeper. Dashing out, the panicked, panting filly runs from the place as she can.

---

Fluttershy’s legs burned from the long distance run, jumping from decent heights to make to the next cloud platform on her way home. Her wings stayed sewn to her sides, putting a terrible pressure against her lungs, making every painful breath feel as though pepper plagued the air.

Stumbling past curious spectators, she takes step after step to reach her destination. Street Lamps illuminated her path, the cursed orbs letting others see the distressed filly. Panicked glances from red rimmed eyes cause those who stare at her to quickly look away.

Fewer and fewer pegasi walked in the late hour the closer she got to her school home. Soon, each step took every ounce of energy she managed to save from her aimless stumbling. Her house loomed through the dark night. Most of the stars were still hidden away behind soft clouds, afraid to be seen.

Finally, she reached her door. It pushed away from a very tired hoof as a nearly zombified Fluttershy oozes in. In a single, stretched out blink, her bed appears in front of her. Now she lay under her blankets.

---

Cumulative sweat dripped down Fluttershys brow. It ran freely down her face, collecting in a small point. Every deep, unequal breath loosened the gathering point, ending in a drop of water staining her sheets. She wriggled in the blankets that engulfed her, tangling herself in them. Larger than life dreams of ponies that look strikingly like Dave hurt her over and over as she tries to leave her favorite place.

Blood shot eyes open in a starling scream to a dark, familiar bedroom. De-tangling herself from the warm sheets, a spare hoof tries to wipe away the sweat on her muzzle. She makes her way to the kitchen, the dark hallways do little to deter her from reaching it. Turning on the stove, she places a kettle full of water unto the flame. Fluttershy reaches for where she keeps her tea, in a cupboard above where her tea set stood. Standing on her hind legs, she tries to find that little box that contained the tea. Her hoof searches, but only come in contact with five walls.

Her thoughts stray to needing tea, guess she need to go to Daves to pick up some--

The evenings happenings collect in a single memory as she recalls Dave throwing her around as she tried to leave. Tearless sobs start to emerge from the memory. How could she ever go back there? Where will get her tea from? Maybe Ranbow Dash will have some?

Fluttershy tilts her head as the thought, why would Rainbow Dash have tea? Why would she think that Dash had tea? She wouldn't now, not after she was just robbed. Fluttershy gasps at the memory of the two thieves talking about stealing three hundred bits from Rainbow.

She should check on her to make sure was okay!

Fluttershy retracts, taking a step back from the idea. Remember what happened last time she tried to help Rainbow? But what if she really needs help? Let somepony else deal with it!

Fluttershy holds an internal argument with herself, trying to determine the whether she should help or not. She would begin a quick trot to the door, worry holding her expression, then jumps back, panicking from past experiences.

What if she has tea? The thought pushes her kindness to win. Shoving the door open, a brick night air slaps her wet face. Chills course through her, and she almost changes her mind. In a last struggle, she steps into the cold wind.

---

Fluttershy blew into her freezing hooves, she stood before Dash's home. Shivering for a moment, she readies herself to knock on the door. She places her hoof above the door, taking a breath before slowly moving it closer. Right before it makes contact, she retracts it. An annoyed sigh reaches her muzzle. One more try. Closing her eyes and shaking her head, her hoof sounds of the wood door three times.

Comments

[AG Phenxore]

5322428

Touche

[NobleValor]

Poor Fluttershy can't ever catch a break it seems.

[AG Phenxore]

5336360

Never Ever.

[NobleValor]

5336391 At least it wasn't four 'ever's.