Tearing Down the Walls
The Walls Came Tumbling Down
Chapter Nine
Tearing Down the Walls
Fluttershy awoke the next morning tangled in her sheets after hours of dreaming about what might have happened if Rainbow Dash had not chosen to leave the previous night. She smiled as she remembered not only the dreams, but the feelings of what actually did happen. The feeling of Dash’s lips against her own. The silken texture of Rainbow’s coat and mane. A slight blush rose in her cheeks as a now familiar warmth spread through her chest.
Dear Celestia, I thought things were bad before you even realized you were into Dash. Her internal voice reappeared. If every morning is going to start off like this, you and I are going to have to have a serious chat.
Oh, quiet you. Fluttershy made her way to the bathroom to wash up. You’re just mad because for once in my life I have a chance to be happy and I won’t let you mess it up. She washed her face and set about taking care of her animal friends for the morning. Mostly that just meant putting out food since very few animals had been injured recently. After all of the animals had been fed, Fluttershy found herself restlessly pacing around her living room.
“I wonder what Dash is up to?” She wondered aloud. She rolled her eyes as the obvious answer presented itself. “It’s before noon, so she’s probably still asleep.” She resumed pacing around the room, trying to bleed off nervous energy.
“Oh, I know!” Fluttershy perked up as an idea struck her. “I can go see Rarity. I’m sure she’ll be dying to know how last night went.” She trotted to the door and pulled it open. “I’m heading out, Angel.” She called back. “You’re in charge until I get back.” The rabbit in question lay on the floor near his recently emptied food dish. He waved a paw to indicate he understood, but made no other attempt to move.
Fluttershy made her way into Ponyville, humming a tune she could not place the source of. She was just down the street from the Carousel Boutique when a distinct and hauntingly familiar colt’s voice sounded behind her.
“Well, well, well.” The voice sneered. “If it isn’t my favorite little fillyfooler, Fluttercry.”
Run. Her mind commanded. Now.
No, it can’t be him... it can’t be. Fluttershy slowly turned around and came face to face with her most aggressive tormentor from Flight School, Thunderlane. A horrifying tightness grasped her chest, constricting her breath.
“Thunderlane.” She choked out. “W- what are y- you doing here?”
“Now that’s not a very nice way to greet an old friend, is it?” Thunderlane took a step forward and Fluttershy involuntarily cringed back. “It’s been what, ten years?” A familiar cruel smile played across his face.
This is going to get very bad, very quickly. Fluttershy’s internal voice warned. Distract him and make a break for Rarity’s.
“Oh no! Look, a dragon!” Fluttershy cried, thinking of the scariest thing she could. It worked, and Thunderlane turned to look where she had pointed. She immediately turned and galloped full speed for the boutique. She reached the door, pulled it open, ran inside, and slammed it shut. Fluttershy reached up and locked the door before collapsing on the ground.
“Fluttershy, dear! Whatever is the matter?” Rarity’s voice came from behind the frightened pegasus.
“Oh, Rarity.” Fluttershy started. “It’s terrible! I was just outside and-” She turned and stopped in shock at the scene in front of her. Rarity was not alone in the store. Rainbow Dash was also there, tied to a chair by several lengths of ribbon. “Um... what’s going on here?” Fluttershy asked.
“Oh, yes.” Rarity glanced at Dash. “Rainbow and I were just... talking. That’s all.”
“Talking my flank!” Rainbow shot back. She turned to glare at the white unicorn. “I was just comin’ by to thank Rarity here for her suggestion to get you the lilies yesterday, but she wouldn’t let me leave until I told her all about our date.” Dash looked back at Fluttershy. “I tried to tell her I wasn’t gonna say anything until I knew you were okay with it, and that’s when she tied me down.” She pulled futilely at the ribbons holding her in place.
“To be fair, if you had just told us what we wanted to know, we wouldn’t have had to tie you down.” A fourth voice drifted in from the store’s kitchen. Twilight trotted in through the archway, levitating a teapot and four cups. “Although, now that Fluttershy is here we can just ask her if it’s alright for you to tell us.” She gently placed the tea pot and cups on a nearby table.
Excellent timing, as always. The internal dialogue kicked in.
Why do things like this always happen to me? Fluttershy let her head hang for a moment before picking it back up. “Listen girls, now is really not the time for this. Dash and I have a serious problem.” All three of the others stared at her.
“Wait... we do?” A look of panic spread over Dash’s face.
“Oh! No no no no. Not like that.” Fluttershy amended. She glanced over her shoulder to look out the window. “It’s just that... I was on my way over here and I ran into somepony. Somepony I hoped we would never see again. Thunderlane.”
“What?” Rainbow strained against her bonds again before Rarity untied them with a flare of magic. “Where is he? He didn’t hurt you did he? I’ll bucking kill him if he tries to touch you again!” She galloped towards the door.
“Hold on a second, Dash.” Twilight grabbed onto Dash’s tail with her magic, stopping the hotheaded pegasus in her tracks. “Thunderlane? The colt from Flight School? What happened to make you so mad at him in particular? I was under the impression that all the other fillies and colts in your class made fun of you.”
Looks like it’s time to lay all your cards on the table, buddy. Fluttershy’s mind prodded.
“Yea, everypony made fun of us.” Dash answered. “Thunderlane was the worst about it though. He was the first one to call us fillyfoolers, and he... he tried to...” Her voice trailed off. Tears pooled in her eyes, which she quickly wiped away with a hoof.
“Shh... It’s okay, Dashie.” Fluttershy placed a comforting hoof on her marefriend’s shoulder. “I’ll tell them about it.”
“Tell us about what, exactly?” Twilight asked warily.
“What Thunderlane did back then. He’s the reason we left Flight School ten years ago.” Fluttershy sat at the table and began pouring the tea.
*
Cloudsdale Flight School: Ten Years Ago
Fluttershy stood at her locker in the fillies-only locker room. This was the first year at Flight School that the fillies and colts in her class had been separated into different locker rooms. The area was deserted except for Fluttershy. She had stayed behind after everypony else left to mourn the latest Flight Score Rankings that had just been posted.
Seventh. She berated herself. I’ve fallen all the way to seventh, and I’m only two points from falling behind Flitter to eighth place. I used to be second. Second! Fluttershy hung her head. Her flying abilities had been slowly regressing ever since she stopped training with Rainbow Dash three years ago. She had quit the intense training routine in an effort to stop the rumors swirling around the school that Dash and her were romantically involved, but it had not helped.
Me and Rainbow? Fluttershy wondered for the millionth time. I’ve never thought about anypony like that, how could I do that with my best friend? She was so busy with her internal speculation that she did not hear the soft hoof falls of three ponies entering the locker room.
“Well, well, well. What do we have here?” A deep voice asked. “It looks like one lonely fillyfooler.”
Fluttershy snapped out of her thoughts and whirled around. Three colts stood at the other end of the room. Thunderlane, with his lackeys Stormchaser and Shadow Dancer. She immediately tried to back away, but ran into the bank of lockers behind her.
“W- what are y- you three doing h- here? T- this is the f- fillies locker room, y- you can’t be in here.” Fluttershy stuttered. She felt a strange tightness forming in her chest that made it difficult to breathe.
“I don’t see anypony here to stop us.” Thunderlane looked around. He turned back to face her, a malicious smile spreading across his face. “Besides, I think it’s high time you and I had a nice... chat.” He took a few steps forward.
A small part of Fluttershy’s mind seemed to whisper to her. Run. She shook her head to dispel the thought. Shadow Dancer and Stormchaser were blocking the exit while Thunderlane slowly advanced. She inhaled as deeply as she could and did the only thing she could think to do.
She screamed.
A bloodcurdling shriek rent the air. Fluttershy yelled as loud and as long as she could, praying to Celestia that somepony would hear it and come to help her. The three colts clamped their hooves over their ears, falling to their knees as the horrific sound assaulted their eardrums.
“That wasn’t very nice, Fluttercry.” Thunderlane growled, his cruel smiled replaced with a vicious scowl. “Besides, it’s not like anypony heard you. Everypony is long gone, we made sure of that before we came in here.” He took another step forward.
“W- what do you want?” Fluttershy whimpered, tears pooling in her eyes as she cringed down.
“You never were the sharpest knife in the drawer.” Thunderlane’s smirk returned. “Isn’t it obvious? We’re here to help you with your little... problem.” Another step forward.
“P- p- problem?” She stammered. “W- what p- problem?”
“What problem?” Thunderlane sneered. “Why, your little fillyfooler problem. We figured that all you needed was for a colt, or three, to show you what you were missing.” He bounced his eyebrows and his friends by the door chuckled to themselves. He took yet another step forward.
“No...” The meaning of his words hit Fluttershy like a kick to the stomach. “Y- you can’t do that...”
“Oh?” Thunderlane looked around in mock confusion. “Exactly who’s going to stop us, your little marefriend Rainbow Crash?” He casually leaned against the locker next to the cowering yellow pegasus.
“You’re bucking right I am!” Dash’s voice sounded from the doorway. Before any of them could react, a rainbow-colored streak blazed across the room. It slammed into Thunderlane’s head, smashing it against the bank of lockers and denting the dense cloud. Rainbow Dash pushed off of her position perched on Thunderlane’s face, forcing his head into the lockers a second time and vaulting her into the air. Thunderlane slowly slid to the ground, unconscious.
“Run, Flutters!” Dash commanded. “Get back to the room, lock the door and don’t open it for anypony.” She immediately turned and sped off towards the two colts by the doorway, who were still stunned at the recent turn of events.
Fluttershy’s mind finally reengaged and she sprinted towards the exit as Dash distracted Shadow Dancer and Stormchaser. She rounded the corner and leapt out into the open air, the sound of hooves striking flesh echoing behind her. Fluttershy flew as fast as she could back to her dorm room while tears steamed down her face before being whipped away by the wind. As she reached her room, she hurled the door shut and locked it. In the sudden stillness of the room, Fluttershy’s emotions finally overwhelmed her and she fell to the floor sobbing uncontrollably. Several minutes later, an urgent knock sounded at the door, sending Fluttershy scrambling across the room to hide behind her desk.
“Open up, ‘Shy. It’s me.” Dash’s voice floated through the door. Fluttershy bounded across the room, throwing the door open. She froze in shock at the sight that greeted her. Rainbow leaned heavily against the door frame, her breath ragged and pained. One of her eyes was swollen shut and a trail of blood dripped from her mouth. “Hey...” Rainbow wheezed.
“Sweet Celestia, Dash. We have to get you to the nurse.” Fluttershy grabbed a nearby cloth to wipe the blood away from Dash’s mouth. Rainbow pushed her away as she trudged into the room.
“No time.” Dash panted. “We gotta get outta here, now. Grab whatever you can carry. I figure we’ve got about five minutes before somepony shows up looking for us.” She hobbled around the room, grabbing various items and throwing them in her saddlebag.
“Leave?” Fluttershy asked. “Why do we need to leave? We didn’t do anything wrong. We need to go tell somepony about what Thunderlane tried to do.” Fluttershy tried to argue, but eventually started packing her own saddlebag.
“Tell who, Flutters?” Dash stopped and hung her head. “Did you forget who the Principal of the school is? It’s Thunderlane’s dad. We would never get a fair chance. Our best bet is to lay low for a while, somewhere other than here.”
“Regardless, you need medical help.” Fluttershy tried to sound determined, but the look of worry on her face betrayed her. “If you won’t go to the nurse here, we should head to the Ponyville Hospital.”
Dash looked ready to argue, but jumped at a pain in her side. “Fine, we can hit the hospital. Stormchaser got in a good kick, and I think he cracked a rib.” She prodded at her side experimentally and gasped in pain. “Yep, something definitely broke.” Fluttershy bit her lip to hide her concern. The two pegasi quickly packed up anything they could carry from their room and left the Flight School for Ponyville, never to return.
*
During the story, Rainbow Dash cuddled up next to Fluttershy, laying her head on on the pink-maned pony’s shoulder as silent tears streaked down her face. The couple held hooves for comfort, their tea sitting untouched on the table. Twilight and Rarity sat across the table, their faces showed mixtures of shock, horror and disgust. Silence billowed through the room once Fluttershy finished her story.
“I’m so sorry.” Twilight broke the silence. “We... we had no idea.”
“Of course not.” Dash muttered, she wiped a hoof across her nose. “Once we got to Ponyville we agreed never to talk about it again. We figured we would never see Thunderlane again, so we just tried to forget about it.”
Fluttershy gave a short, humorless laugh. “A lot of good that did. Ten years of blackouts and one failed suicide attempt later, and one day he just shows up out of the blue.” Dash cringed at the mention of the years of torment Fluttershy had endured alone. She nestled deeper into the gentle pegasus’ mane.
“I’m sorry you had to go through that alone, ‘Shy.” Rainbow apologized. “I wish you would have told me about everything that was happening. I would have tried to help you with it.”
“Don’t beat yourself up about it, Dashie.” Fluttershy leaned down and kissed Dash on the forehead. “It was my choice to bear it alone.”
“Be that as it may, dear.” Rarity finally spoke up after she took a sip of her tea. “We need to decide what to do about Thunderlane’s appearance here in Ponyville. Is it possible that after all these years he has let go of what happened back then?” She waved a hoof dismissively. “Ten years seems an excessively long time to hold a grudge about something that happened in school.”
“No.” Fluttershy shivered. “He had the same look when I saw him today as he did back then.” She nuzzled the top of Dash’s head. “I don’t know if he could have done anything out in broad daylight, but he still hates Dash and me. I think that it would be best if the two of us hide out at my house for now. It’s far enough away from Ponyville that he shouldn’t look for us there.”
“That sounds like a good idea.” Twilight had her trademark over-analytical look. “I could try writing to the Princess to see if she can do anything.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” Dash jumped up. “I don’t think we need to bring Princess Celestia in on this one. I think if we just lay low for a few days he’ll give up looking for us. Worst case scenario, we can just go to the Ponyville Police instead of the Princess.”
“Yea.” Twilight rubbed a hoof along the back of her neck. “I guess involving Princess Celestia would be overkill.”
“Just a little bit.” Dash trotted over to the boutique’s front windows. “I don’t see him anywhere. Wanna head over to your cottage now, ‘Shy? The coast is clear.”
“Sure, Dashie.” Fluttershy got up and walked towards the door. She called back to Twilight and Rarity. “Sorry for ruining your attempt to find out about our date from Dash. Once this whole Thunderlane thing blows over we’ll come by and let you know all about it.”
“Be careful out there, darling.” Rarity warned. “Please don’t hesitate to come to any of us if you need help dealing with this brute. I’m sure Applejack would be delighted to teach him a lesson or two about trying to harm her friends.” Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash left the boutique and took to the air. They angled towards Fluttershy’s cottage when a voice sounded from above them.
“There you are!” Thunderlane appeared from behind a cloud and dove towards the couple.
“Oh, yea. He can fly.” Dash deadpanned.
Sweet Apple Acres. Fluttershy’s mind interrupted. Big Mac could pound Thunderlane's rump into the dirt.
Really? You choose now to start being helpful? Fluttershy turned to Dash and told her the plan. “Sweet Apple Acres. Big Mac will help us.” Dash nodded and the pair shot off in the direction of the Apple family’s farm.
“Oh no you don’t.” Thunderlane yelled as he changed direction to follow them. “This time nopony will show up to save you two.” He beat his wings, slowly closing the distance. Sweet Apple Acres appeared in the distance, rapidly approaching as the three pegasi raced towards it.
Rainbow spared a glance back and saw that Thunderlane had almost caught up to Fluttershy. She pulled up into a tight loop and dropped to land hard on Thunderlane’s back. He grunted in pain and temporarily lost control of his flying, dropping back and veering off to the side. Dash and Fluttershy landed on the ground just outside the Apple family’s farm house as Applebloom ran out to greet them.
“Hey there Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash. What brings y’all out to the farm?” She asked.
“Quick Applebloom, where’s Big Mac?” Dash looked back over her shoulder for any sign of Thunderlane.
“Mac?” Applebloom cocked her head to the side. “He took the first train this mornin’ out to Appleloosa. Said he needed some time away from the farm.”
“Appleloosa?” Fluttershy gasped. “Oh, no. Then where’s Applejack?”
“AJ’s out in the east field. Do ya need me to go get her?”
“Yes, as fast as you can.” Dash looked out towards the eastern fields of the farm and back in the direction they had come from. Applebloom took off towards the field Applejack was tending to as Thunderlane flew over the trees and landed in front of Rainbow Dash.
“That wasn’t very nice, Rainbow Crash.” He panted. “I’m gonna make you pay for that, then I’m gonna have some fun with little Fluttercry over there.” Thunderlane shot a cruel smile towards Fluttershy, who cowered backwards.
“The hay you are.” Dash growled. “I’ll kill you if you try to touch her.”
“Ooh, getting defensive are we?” Thunderlane chuckled. “I guess we were all right about you two back then. That will make this all the more fun.” He slowly circled around Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash like a predator circling a potential meal.
“I just have one question before I pound your pathetic rump into the dirt.” Dash took up a defensive position between Fluttershy and Thunderlane. “Why? It’s been ten years. Why do you still care about what happened back then?”
“Why?” Thunderlane sneered, his face contorted into an ugly glare. “After your little stunt in the locker room, our lives became hell at school. Stormchaser, Shadow Dancer and I were the three biggest, baddest colts in school, and all three of us were taken down by scrawny little Rainbow Crash? We were laughing stocks.”
“Oh boo hoo.” Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Finally got a taste of your own medicine and couldn’t take it?” Thunderlane huffed angrily and charged at Dash, who leapt out of the way and readied herself to fight.
Meanwhile, Fluttershy hid near a barrel of apples, unable to bring herself to move while she argued with herself.
Dashie needs my help, I have to do something.
Are you insane? Her mind fought back. Thunderlane would tear you apart and barely break a sweat doing it.
I can’t just sit here. Fluttershy felt a dreaded tightness grip her chest. He’s too big and strong for Dash to take on alone.
Okay, and what makes you think that you’ll be able to make a difference in a fight?
I have to at least try. The edges of her vision darkened. Distantly, she could hear the sound of hooves hitting flesh along with both Thunderlane and Rainbow Dash grunting in pain.
I thought we got over this whole wanting to die thing. Her mind argued. That’s what will happen if you try to fight Thunderlane. He will kill you.
Maybe some things are worth dying for. Fluttershy shot back. She fought to press through the symptoms of her impending blackout, knowing that falling unconscious now would be disastrous.
Once again, a single sound cut through the pressing darkness. A sickening crack, followed by a horrific scream.
Fluttershy was immediately aware of her surroundings again. Thunderlane stood triumphantly across the yard. Laying on the ground nearby, Rainbow Dash clutched at her side in obvious pain. Both ponies were beaten and bloody, but Dash had taken a significantly worse thrashing.
“Get the buck away from her, you coltcuddler!” Fluttershy screamed, standing up from behind the barrel. A blazing fury sprang up in her chest, blocking out all other thoughts.
“Finally decided to join in, huh?” Thunderlane turned to face her. “Too bad it won’t make a difference now. I’ve already taken care of your little marefriend here. Now, it’s your turn.” He reached back and kicked Dash, eliciting another terrible scream of pain. Something snapped in Fluttershy’s mind at the sound of Dash’s pained scream. The fury in her chest died instantly, replaced with a cold, calculating hatred. She wracked her brain for any possible advantage she could have over Thunderlane. Her mind flashed back to her conversation with Twilight after her failed suicide attempt.
“It was always simple enough. Over the years, I’ve learned everything there is to know about animal anatomy and physiology. I know where all the major blood vessels are. There’s one located just below the skin right here.” She pointed to a spot just above her hoof on her foreleg. “One little slice, nick the vein, and you’ll bleed out in around five minutes. It could easily be disguised as an accident, something that happened while chopping up vegetables.”
Oh, wonderful. Her internal voice shot back. Now, if we can just convince him to wait patiently while we rummage around the Apple family’s kitchen for a knife.
Those aren’t the only major blood vessels just below the skin. Fluttershy thought as a plan formed in her head.
I still don’t see how... the carotids. Her mind finally picked up on the plan.
Exactly, the carotid arteries run just below the skin on either side of the neck. She confirmed. Apply a little pressure and you can cut off blood flow to the brain, leading to unconsciousness in seconds. Now, I just have to get close enough...
As if on cue, Thunderlane slowly advanced on her. Fluttershy cowered down, a look of terror spreading across her features. When he reached the cringing mare, he raised a hoof to strike, but paused momentarily to savor the moment.
“Idiot.” Fluttershy muttered, a wicked grin replaced her feigned expression of fear. She vaulted into the air, arching her back to swing her hind legs forward. Her hooves struck Thunderlane directly in the muzzle and caused a satisfying crack as his jaw bone shattered under the impact. Still in the air, Fluttershy flared her wings and flapped them once, sending her forward over Thunderlane’s head as he stumbled from the kick. She landed on his shoulders and wrapped her hind legs around his neck, locking her hooves together.
Now, for the pièce de résistance. She thought to herself. Fluttershy flexed her hind legs, pressing them into Thunderlane’s neck and squeezing the carotid arteries shut.
Thunderlane panicked and began trying to shake Fluttershy loose. She wrapped her forelegs around his abdomen to hold on. The seconds dragged on, and Thunderlane’s movements grew increasingly uncoordinated as his brain was starved for oxygen.
Five seconds will put him to sleep. Fluttershy’s mind burst in. Fifteen seconds and he’ll never wake up.
Kill him? Fluttershy was shocked at the suggestion. Beneath her, Thunderlane fell to his knees on the verge of passing out. I... I couldn’t possibly kill him.
Really? The voice shot back. Just look at what he did to Dash. You know full well he would have killed her without hesitation if you hadn’t stepped in.
He... you’re right, he would have. She looked over to Dash, who was doubled over in pain. I can’t kill him though, if I do that makes me no better than him.
One of these days, your kindness is going to cost you something that you’re not willing to pay.
Fluttershy’s concentration broke as Thunderlane fell to the dirt, unconscious. She unhooked her legs from around his neck and ran over to Rainbow. At the same time, Applejack and Applebloom rounded a bend in the road. Both of them froze as they surveyed the scene in front of them.
“Fluttershy! What the hay is goin’- What happened to Dash?” Applejack galloped over to the injured pegasus. She called back to her sister. “AB, ya get in the house right now and stay there until Ah come and get ya.” For once Applebloom obeyed her sister without question.
“Applejack, we don’t have a lot of time.” Fluttershy explained as she surveyed Dash’s injuries. “I need to get Dash to the hospital right now. I need you to grab some rope and tie him up.” Her voice filled with venom as she pointed to Thunderlane’s comatose form. “If you can, I need you to get him to the Ponyville Police Department. They can hold on to him until Dash is taken care of.”
“The police?” Applejack glanced doubtfully towards Thunderlane. “No offense ‘Shy, but Ah’m gonna need a bit more information before I start hogtyin’ random ponies and draggin’ ‘em to the police.”
“He tried to kill Rainbow Dash just now.” Fluttershy spat. She gently picked Dash up, trying her best not to aggravate any of her wounds. At some point, Rainbow had fallen unconscious.
“Did he now?” Applejack’s voice suddenly had a menacing tone. “Ya sure ya want me to take him to the police? Ah got some nice, isolated spots out in the forest where we could dump a body if’n we need to.”
Fluttershy shook her head. “No, take him to the police, they’ll deal with him for now.” She took off and hovered a few feet above the ground. “I need to get to the hospital. Once you drop him off go tell everypony what happened.” Without waiting for a response, she accelerated towards the Ponyville Hospital, flying as fast as she could.
*
Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity and Twilight arrived at the hospital while Dash was in the Operating Room, undergoing treatment for her injuries. They joined Fluttershy in the waiting room. With nothing to do but wait, the adrenaline from earlier in the day finally bled away from Fluttershy. The reality of the situation crashed over her and she broke down crying while her friends tried to reassure her. After two excruciating hours, a unicorn doctor entered the waiting room.
“Miss Fluttershy, is it?” He glanced at the assembled friends. “You’re here with Miss Dash, correct?” Fluttershy nodded, unable to speak. The doctor continued. “My name is Doctor Stable. I’m happy to inform you that Miss Dash is stable and should make a full recovery. Her injuries were rather severe, but thanks to your quick decision to get her here, she’ll be fine.”
“Thank the goddesses.” Rarity offered. A collective sigh of relief passed among the group.
“C- can we see her?” Fluttershy asked as fresh tears welled in her eyes.
“Well, let me see.” Doctor Stable levitated Dash’s chart and flipped through it. “She’s still in fairly bad shape. I wouldn’t want to overwhelm her, you can go back one at a time. She’s in Room 213.” The doctor turned to leave. “I’m sorry, but I need to see to another patient.”
“Thank ya kindly, doc.” Applejack responded. “Well, Ah think the answer here is obvious. ‘Shy, you can go in and stay with Dash. It’s gettin’ late and Ah think the rest o’ us need to be gettin’ home anyway.” The other three ponies nodded in agreement and made their way towards the exit. Applejack called back. “Tell Dash we’ll be by tomorrow to see her.”
“I will girls, thank you.” Fluttershy made her way down to Room 213. She entered the room and pushed a chair next to the bed where Rainbow appeared to be sleeping. She pulled herself up into the chair and examined Dash’s injuries. The swelling around her eye had reduced and bandages covered most of her body. “Oh Dashie. I’m so sorry this happened to you. If only I hadn’t been so scared, if I had acted sooner... I could have helped you.” She dropped her head as a new wave of self-loathing threatened to overwhelm her.
“D- don’t beat yourself up about it, Flutters.” Dash’s eyes slowly opened. “This isn’t anywhere near the worst beating I’ve taken. One time in school-” She stopped as her body was wracked by a fit of coughing, leaving a pained expression on her face and flecks of blood dotting her lips. “It’s just a shame the old doctor I used to see back then isn’t here anymore. He could have patched me up in a jiffy and had me walkin’ outta here tomorrow.”
Their conversation was interrupted as the door opened and a nurse entered the room. “Good evening Miss Dash, I’m Nurse Redheart and I’ll be taking care of you this evening.” She stopped as she saw Fluttershy sitting by the bed. “I’m sorry miss, but visiting hours are over. I’m going to have to ask you to leave, family only.”
“Oh, she is family.” Dash replied, grabbing Fluttershy’s hoof.
“Is she now?” Nurse Redheart raised an eyebrow. She shrugged. “Whatever you say, Miss Dash.” She picked up Rainbow’s chart. “How are you doing in terms of pain? You suffered three broken ribs and a torn ligament in your left rear leg. On a scale of one to ten how bad would you say your pain is?”
“Probably about a five or six.” Dash shifted uncomfortably. “It’s not that bad if I don’t move, but anytime I change positions it gets worse.”
“All right.” Nurse Redheart walked over to the IV machine hooked up to Rainbow’s left foreleg and hit a couple buttons. “That should help. Give it a minute to kick in and you’ll feel better. I’ll be back in a few hours to check on you.” She left and closed the door.
“So what happened back at the farm, ‘Shy?” Dash asked. “I remember seeing Thunderlane headed towards you... but then nothing until I woke up here.”
“Oh, well you see...” Fluttershy looked around nervously. “I kind of kicked him in the face, broke his jaw and then choked him out until he was unconscious. Then Applejack tied him up and took him down to the Ponyville Police station.”
“Oh, that's-” Dash froze. “Wait, you what?” Her curiosity faded as she yawned and nestled deeper into the bed. “Man, these painkillers are good. I think I might need to take another nap soon.”
“That’s fine.” Fluttershy giggled. “You had a rough day, get all the rest you need.”
Dash reached out and grabbed Fluttershy’s hoof again as her eyes slid shut. “Prom... promise you won’t leave me?” Fluttershy leaned over and kissed Rainbow on the forehead.
“I promise.”
*
One month later
The door to Sugarcube Corner opened, causing the bell above the door to ring. Fluttershy walked backwards into the store, leading a blindfolded Rainbow Dash by the hoof. Dash warily put each hoof in front of the last one as she made her way into the bakery.
“What’s this all about, ‘Shy?” Rainbow asked. “This had better not end like the last time I let you put a blindfold on me. I had to wear that stupid scarf from Rarity’s for a week to hide the-”
“Dash!” Fluttershy interrupted. “If you haven’t noticed, we’re in public.”
“So?” Dash shrugged nonchalantly. “It’s not like that’s ever stopped you before... I would wink at this point but my eyes are covered.”
“Rainbow Dash!” Fluttershy cried as traces of color flooded her cheeks. “You really need to learn to stop running your mouth sometimes.”
“Really?” Dash grinned. “That’s not what you were saying last night.”
“Rainbow Elizabeth Dash!” Fluttershy yelled as her cheeks turned crimson.
“Ugh.” Dash cringed. “You know I hate it when you use my middle name.”
“Wait, Dash has a middle name?” Twilight’s voice floated over from across the bakery.
“And it’s Elizabeth?” Applejack added with a barely suppressed laugh.
“What the bu-” Dash reached up and ripped off the blindfold. Her curse died in her throat as she came face to face with the Cutie Mark Crusaders. She looked around Sugarcube Corner and saw the rest of her friends standing on the far side of the room. Everypony was staring at her with beaming grins.
“Fluttershy, what in the name of Celestia’s almighty flank is going on here?” Dash stared around the room in horror.
“Hmm... I’ve never heard that one before.” A heavenly voice sounded from Dash’s left. She whirled around and found herself staring up at Princess Celestia herself with Princess Luna giggling into a crystal-shod hoof next to her.
Rainbow slammed her hoof into her face. “You have got to be kidding me.” She moaned. “I did not just say that in front of the Princess.”
“It’s quite alright.” Celestia waved a hoof dismissively. “I often wish that everypony would be more frank with me. Besides, I believe that a certain somepony wants your attention.” She pointed a hoof over Dash’s shoulder. Rainbow turned to see Fluttershy standing in the middle of the room, beckoning her over. She trotted over the middle of the room and stood across from her marefriend.
“Um... y- you see.” Fluttershy stammered as she shifted nervously from hoof to hoof. She paused and took a deep breath. “I asked everypony to come here today, because I have something I need to ask you, Dashie.” She reached out and took one of Rainbow’s hooves in her own. “Something important, and I wanted all of our friends to be here for it.”
“You...” Dash began. Her eyes shot open as she started to put the pieces together. “Oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosh!”
Fluttershy snickered at Dash’s reaction. She quickly composed herself and continued her preplanned speech. “Rainbow, we’ve been best friends for fifteen years now. Recently, we’ve been able to become more than friends, and this past month has been the best time of my life. I just have one thing to ask you.” She somewhat awkwardly maneuvered herself down to one knee.
“Oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosh!” Dash’s chant rose in pitch.
“Rainbow Elizabeth Dash...” Fluttershy looked up into Rainbow’s eyes as tears formed in her own. “Will you marry me?”
Dash tackled Fluttershy to the ground, squeezing her in a vice-like hug. “Yes! Yes! Yes!” She cried as tears of joy sprang from her eyes. “A million times yes!” The room erupted in a thunderous explosion of cheers. Several minutes passed with celebratory hugs and tears of happiness. Eventually Dash composed herself enough to ask a question.
“Hey, ‘Shy.” Rainbow nuzzled her head into Fluttershy’s neck. “I can’t help but notice a certain lack of hardware.” She pointed to her left forehoof.
“Rainbow Dash.” Fluttershy rolled her eyes. “I just proposed to you, and you’re worried about the bling.” She heaved an exasperated sigh. “If you must know, I’m getting us... special rings. They won’t be ready until the wedding, so they’ll be a surprise.”
“What a shame.” Dash waved her empty hoof and intimidated Rarity’s voice. “However will all the single stallions in town know that I’m taken? This is the worst. Possible. Thing.” She fell to the floor in faked distress. Everypony in the room laughed at the imitation, except Rarity who could be heard grumbling about how she simply did not sound like that.
“If that’s what you’re worried about.” Fluttershy slowly sauntered over to Dash, a predatory smile spreading across her face. “I’m sure I could find some other way to let everypony know you’re taken.”
Rainbow immediately sat up and stared at the floor, her cheeks flushing a light pink. “That’s okay.” She muttered. Pinkie Pie took advantage of the momentary break in the action to wheel out her Party Cannon.
“All right, everypony.” She proclaimed. “Let’s get this party started!”
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Long chapter is long... I was sorely tempted to split this one up into two chapters, but I couldn't find a good breaking point that didn't leave one chapter significantly larger than the other. Anyway... enjoy!
So much awesome here. First Flutters chokes out Thunderlane, and then Rainbow's mouth gets her in deeper embarrassment.
Still too scared to read because I don't know who has the romance innthis fic.
I'm usually avoiding sad stuff but this is a real pro piece of fiction, have a moustache.
Well, FlutterDash is not my thing, so I'm not going to read this, but if you don't mind me saying:
"All and all, it's just another brick in the wall."
There, now I got my Pink Floyd reference out of my system I can go on with my day.
And thats how you make Fluttershy explode.
Well done. From a massive a massive Flutterdash fan, you have my appreciation. Bit of a pity these two don't get more following... the couple as they fit perfectly together. It will be interesting to see where you take it form here. I'm guessing a wedding with a cruel twist. 
1010453 It's a FlutterDash. That's the only romance.
1010535 If it makes a difference, the romance aspect ended up playing a lot smaller part in the story than I initially intended. It really ends up being more of a side story. I hope you'll give it a chance, but if no that's okay.
1011638 Therefore I shall gladly read it :3
1011638 Since they have hooves how will they get rings i mean unless they get giant oversized rings that could fit there hooves i don't know how that would work
939393 Flutterragecrushkilldestroyswag
1014765
thats oh so wrong on so many levels. but god damit i dont care.
Does fluttershy need to choke a bitch?
1014881 Oh. Right. Shes still the fastest in all of equestria, so the wonderbolts are missing out.
I have now learned to commit suicide and choke a bitch. Good skills to have if you ask me
1016428 I just wrote the story. I am not responsible for anything you do with information you may have taken from it.
1016705 I'm not gonna do anything...
1016736 I know. That was designed to be sarcastic, but once again sarcasm does not translate well over the internet.
Started and finished reading all the chapters this story has so far today,and from them I have a few points of praise and a random comment.
Praise:
- This story is really well written and engaging, to the point that I keep imagining my own alternate ideas as to how different events could turn out before reading them (I only find myself doing that on very good stories)
- I can only recall registering maybe a couple of typos, meaning the flow of this story hasn't broken for me at all
- Ties into the last point slightly, but I believe you are the second person (not including myself) I have seen actually use the word 'breathe' when they mean it, instead of writing 'breath'. That shouldn't be a point to praise I know, but I have seen so many people write 'breath' when they mean 'breathe' (and a few doing vice versa) that it's become infuriating. I have to take a deep calming breath when I see it before continuing reading, so thank you for getting it right.
Random comment:
- When Dash said "What a shame," near the end of this chapter, I could not read it in any voice other than JC Denton's.
1025525 Thanks, I'm really glad you liked it.
I'm a fairly large grammar/spelling nazi, so I poured over each chapter five or six times with a fine-tooth comb looking for mistakes before posting them.
i like Flutters proposing. nice touch.
My only thought in this chapter was the son ' the best day of my life ' by American authors
~Wywint
Well, this is different. When it comes to FlutterDash marriage stories, I'm familiar with Rainbow doing the proposing. Interesting, I'll have to remember that.