> FlutterYou
>  by Capulus
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1 - Ouch. (New)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

You had been flying over the edge of the Everfree forest on a night lit by Luna’s full moon when It happened. You had decided to take a little risk and fly in between the closely bunched trees. You had flown for a few minutes, twisting and turning through the sharp branches, going faster than you ever had. You flew over a large shard of rock jutting up from below the ground, and you ducked under a half fallen log, looping around to fly through the top and out through the bottom, your belly softly grazing the grass, forcing a small laugh out of you from the ticklish feeling. You rose up, and dove back down, pulling out at the last moment. You always relished moments like this. The feeling of wind in your mane, and through the feathers in your wings. But then you turned the wrong way by accident and hit something. Hard. You felt a huge jab of pain and heard a sharp crack from your leg, as you veered left and smashed into something else. Down you went, hitting the ground equally hard, eliciting another crack, and another stabbing pain. You had tried to think through the haze of pain, but unconsciousness had quickly taken you, and your thoughts were lost.

Now you have woken up, in the same spot. You can smell blood. You have smelt it a few times before, when you have hurt yourself badly. It smells like rusty metal. Ponies say metal doesn’t have a smell. It does. It smells like blood. The pain in your leg is a dull throbbing by now, although the rest of your body aches. You feel something in your mouth and spit out one of your teeth. It makes a small clicking sound as it bounces away. Maybe I should try and get back to Ponyville. You try to roll over and stand up, but when you move your leg, you feel another jab, and hear a tearing sound that causes you to indadvertedly scream in pain, as it feels like one gigantic hangnail. You look down and see part of your leg bone sticking through your leg, and your wing is twisted at an odd angle. You feel as if you are about to throw up at the sight. Then you see that you are losing a lot of blood from the puncture. It feels like somepony has gotten a red hot knife and stabbed it right through you leg, into the bone, only worse. As you start to black out again, your last thought is simply;
So, I guess I’m dead now. But just before unconsciousness takes you once more, you hear soft hoofsteps approaching, followed by a small squeal. That’s odd, You think, just before you pass out once more.

You wake up with a start, and don’t feel anything more than a twinge from your leg. There is a soft beeping in the background. You look around and see a lot of white. You can taste a hint of blood, and unfortunately a little bit of bile, but other than that, your mouth is incredibly dry. You are lying at an odd angle, as if to keep you off of one side. You are lying on a soft mattress. The edges of your vision are obscured by the sides of an incredibly soft pillow. Then you remember what happened before you woke up. Oh. So this is heaven? You think. It smells really odd... Like... Soap? That’s unusual. But... Heaven... Wow. You had never really been religious, seeing it as a waste of time, but this kind of proved you wrong. Then you see a yellow pegasus sleeping in a chair next to the bed you are lying in. You can hear the beeping get a little faster as you see her. Wow, angels really are beautiful. Then she opens her eyes and the beeping gets even faster. Even her eyes are beautiful. Woah. She looks at you and smiles softly, surprise showing clearly in her eyes.
“Oh! You’re awake. Good. When Rainbow got you out of the forest, I was afraid it was too late.” Wait... Too late? What does she mean? Can you be late for death? And... Rainbow? A rainbow got me here? O...kay... You still struggle to find your voice. Then you manage to speak.
“Am I really dead?” You say, louder than you intended, your voice raspy from lack of use. The pegasus backs away a bit, surprised.
“N-no, I made sure you were alright before my friend got you out of there.” You suddenly realise what this means, and who you are talking to, and say;
“Wait... Your friend... Rainbow... Oh of course... I guess you mean the pegasus Rainbow Dash? She’s the only pegasus I know of with the word Rainbow in her name. So that means you are Fluttershy, the Element of Kindness. Woah, you are as beautiful as I had heard. No, more so.” You realise that this might be a bit strange to her, but she really is beautiful. She blushes heavily, saying;
“I-I don’t know about that.”
The beeping is getting a little frustrating now. You try and find the source, and see a heart monitor on the wall. It’s going insane. You take a few deep breaths to calm yourself, wondering why it was beeping like that. 
“So, you found me in the Everfree?”
“Y-yes... You were losing a lot of blood. I sent a few birds to find Rainbow Dash and tried to make you more comfortable.”
“Thank you. You saved my life.”
“Oh, I was happy to help. I couldn’t just leave you there, could I?” The heart monitor went crazy again as she smiled. You looked at it, cursing it for interrupting the conversation. You take another breath and it slows once more. Then you look back at Fluttershy, who is still smiling a small smile.
“I can never repay you for this. You saved my life. That is one thing that will take years to repay. Thank you.”
“Like I said, I am only too happy to help.” 

Your throat is really dry, and you only just realise how thirsty you are.
“Could I please have a glass of water?”
“Oh, of course!” Fluttershy walks quietly out of the room and you sit in silence for a little while. You take in more of your surroundings. You are on the ground floor of the hospital, seeing as you can see the ground from your window. There is another bed next to yours, but it is unoccupied. You can hear soft shuffling, beeping, talking, and all kinds of sounds you would expect from a hospital. Then you hear quiet hoofsteps outside the door --Part of you had been listening for them-- and Fluttershy walks in, a glass of water balancing on top of one of her hooves. She gives it to you and you gratefully drink it all, relishing the feeling of the cool liquid rushing down your parched throat. You give the glass back to Fluttershy and she puts it on the small bedside table.

You smile happily and realise that you must be pretty banged up. What you are curious about though, is just how banged up you are. You look at Fluttershy and ask; 
“So, what are my injuries? I can’t really tell from here. Could you please have a look?”
Fluttershy nods slightly and goes to the foot of the bed. She looks at the chart and reads it out in her sweet, quiet voice.
“Okay... you were brought in with a badly broken wing, a badly broken leg, a bone sticking out of your leg, a concussion, a cracked rib, a few cuts and scrapes, and a broken tooth.” You lay in silence for a few moments as you contemplate this.
“What the hay did I hit? Or... What hit me?” You ask, slightly worried that something might have tried to make you into a midnight snack. You know that there quite a few unfriendly critters in Everfree.
“A tree branch and a large boulder. And the ground. You probably shouldn’t have been flying that low.” She didn’t look angry as she said this, she actually looked slightly disappointed, as if she had discovered a filly stealing from the cookie jar. You are about to ask how long you’ve been out when the conversation is cut short as a nurse comes in, with a little table with some food on it in tow. When she sees you awake she smiles and says;
“Ah! You’re up at last. Nice to know you’re still with us. Fluttershy has been sitting there for about a week now. She almost never left!” You blink in surprise for a few seconds and look at Fluttershy again. She is hiding her face in her mane, and the little bit of face you can see is bright red. You only just notice that her mane looks a little messy, and that she has heavy bags under her eyes. She isn’t meeting yours.
“Why?”
“I-I was worried. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. It’s nice to know that somepony cares about me.” You smile and she looks up at you, her mane falling away from her face. Her blush is slowly fading. Then the nurse cuts in again, and you wish she would just leave. It would be nice just to talk to Fluttershy alone.
“Well, I’m Nurse Redheart. Nice to meet you while you’re conscious. Now that you’re up, you can stay here for a few more days, but we need space soon. What with the Running Of The Leaves, there are always quite a few injuries. Do you have somewhere to stay?”
“Well... I was actually going to go and stay in Cloudsdale for a week or two. My building where I live is going through some major renovation, as a building inspector said that the place could fall down any second. So everypony there has been given the boot for a few weeks. But, I doubt I’ll make it to Cloudsdale. I’ll just stay in a motel or something.” You shrug, and wince at the pain this causes. Fluttershy puts a hoof on your shoulder, and the heart monitor speeds up, the beeping pulling you out of the quiet moment with Fluttershy. Nurse Redheart smiles mischievously and leaves. What was that smile for? Never mind, I’m sure it’s nothing important. Then Fluttershy starts speaking and you abandon all thought to listen to her.
“You should probably get some sleep, alright? I’ll be here when you wake up.”
“Hmm... Thanks Fluttershy.” You say gratefully, before closing your eyes and going to sleep, the fatigue that had been preying at the edge of your mind finally taking over, and you happily descend into a proper, natural sleep, the shuffling and beeping slowly fading into grey.

A/N
--Alright, that was my first shot at a second person story. I tried to implement some advice that I received from Kody910, who I think is the best writer when it comes to Second-Person writing, as well as some other advice from the comments section, which is why I edited this. I did quite a bit, edit wise. I even changed that last bit entirely when somepony (Sorry, I forgot your name and my phone is playing up so I can’t check) said that Fluttershy seemed to be a bit quick to allow somepony into her home, so I have moved that to the next chapter. I hope I did well. Like I said, if it’s bad, tear me apart. If it’s good, let me know in the comments. This is actually the first fanfic I have written that didn’t feature my OC Sky Blue in any way, and I am going to keep it that way. I need a break from the Sky Blue universe, and as such I am going to write some new stuff for a little while. Maybe just a few days, a week tops. I’m also not used to having Fluttershy as a central character, as I am not used to writing for such a quiet, shy character. Please let me know if I went wrong. I appreciate all advice. Oh, and I used a Terry Pratchett line, from one of his recent books. If anypony finds it, I’ll give you a free Number 25.--
E/A/N
> Chapter 2 - Finally Out. (New)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

You spend the next few days coming in and out of consciousness, conversing with Fluttershy whenever you do. Every time you wake up, you curse the heart monitor and it’s incessant beeping whenever you see her. It gets in the way of your talks, and Celestia knows it is hard enough to hear Fluttershy’s quiet voice. You swear it is out to get you. But Fluttershy doesn’t seem to notice. You and Fluttershy eventually become very close friends. On your final day in the hospital you wake up and see a rare sight. Fluttershy is asleep on the couch that rests up against the wall. You sit for a few seconds and take her in. You are always afraid to do this when she is awake, as she might find it awkward if you just sat and stared at her. She is definitely the most beautiful mare you have ever seen, and... Well, you have seen quite a few mares in your adult life --nudge nudge wink wink--. But this one was different. She was so beautiful. Her coat was such a light shade of yellow, her mane was beautiful and silky. Well, you imagined it was silky. You hadn’t exactly reached out and touched it. Her eyes were soft, and they were a pretty light blue. She was so quiet, and her voice was so sweet. She was so kind, and you had been amazed when you found out she was able to face down Cockatrices, Manticores, and Dragons with relative ease. You knew she wouldn’t lie. Fluttershy didn’t seem the type. And, when her friends had come to visit you --as they had rationalised, a friend of Fluttershy was a friend of theirs-- they had confirmed that it was all true. The unicorn Twilight Sparkle had also said that Fluttershy found it hard to trust new ponies, and so she must see something special in you. And she was always willing to just sit and listen when you talked about your own life. Then she stirs, and you realise how fast the heart monitor is beeping. Why is it always doing that? You wonder. Fluttershy walks over to the bed and smiles warmly.
“How are you feeling?”
“It hurts a little bit still...”
“The doctors said it might be a little while before you can walk by yourself.”
“Ah, it’s okay. So, what have they stuck me with? Crutches, or a wheelchair?”
“Crutches. But, if it would be easier, you might be able get a wheelchair. I suggested the crutches... Sorry...”
“Fluttershy... Don’t be. I hate wheelchairs. Thank you for getting me something that I can properly control.” Fluttershy smiles, and the beeping speeds up yet again. If Fluttershy hadn’t of been in the room you probably would have throttled the machine and smashed it. But Fluttershy had a strange way of making you feel calm whenever she was in the room. You take a deep breath. The beeping slows, and as it does, the doctor walks in, a warm smile on his face. He trots to the bed, grinning, and you realise what this means.
“Am I finally being checked out?”
“Why, yes!”
“Thank Celestia. This place, no offense, has such a sense of tedium about it. If Fluttershy wasn’t here I would have died of boredom ages ago. Now I just need to find a motel or an inn or something to stay in.” Fluttershy surprises you when she cuts in, her soft, quiet voice making it all the more noticeable.
“Umm, why don’t you stay with me? I wouldn’t mind... I just don’t really want a friend to be staying in a motel... But... You can, if you want to...” She hides her face and the little of it that you can see goes red. You smile and answer;
“Of course I’ll stay with you. Fluttershy I would be only too happy to stay with one of my best friends!”
Fluttershy blushes as you say this, and when the beeping speeds up again, you tear of the thing monitoring your heartbeat off of your hoof and toss it away. The machine shuts off, and you are relieved not to be hearing the stupid sound for the first time in days. You try to get off the bed but when you feel the familiar pain on your leg you quickly move back and lie down again before it gets too bad. The doctor chuckles quietly and says;
“I’ll go and get your crutches. Fluttershy, could you please help him out of bed?”
“Of course...” 

The doctor walks out and Fluttershy offers you a hoof, which you gratefully take. It is the first time you have actually touched her, other than the first day you woke up. But that doesn’t count, as you were too out of it to really notice. Her coat is as soft as you thought. She slowly helps you get up. You wince at the pain in your chest as you straighten up. When you are up, she lets you lean on her to get to the couch. The close quarters with Fluttershy makes you feel so comfortable. She smells so nice, and her mane is as silky as you thought. You eventually get to the couch, where you slowly sit down. Luckily, the puncture and break was in one of your forehooves, so you can sit down with relative ease. But you are reminded of your other injuries when you go to lean back. All of your weight is pushed against your injured wing, and you yelp in surprise. Fluttershy squeals and jumps back.
“Sorry, Fluttershy. I forgot my wing is hurt too. Sorry...” She shakes her mane away from her face and smiles apologetically. 
“It’s okay...” She says quietly. The doctor walks in carrying the crutches and gives them to you. They are awkward looking things, but you don’t want to hurt Fluttershy’s feelings. You would have preferred a wheelchair, in all honesty, but Fluttershy had looked so down, you had taken the crutches to cheer her up. You loved seeing her smile. Which was strange, as normally you wouldn’t really care. But, then again, she was your friend now. You never really had time for friends. Just your co-workers in the weather patrol. Luckily Rainbow Dash had a lot of pull with the weather patrol, and was able to get you some paid sick leave. You struggle for a few embarrassing moments but then you manage to slide the crutches on. The doctor grins and says;
“Now, Fluttershy, you need to replace the bandages once every day, if he is going to be living with you. Do it after he bathes, alright?”
Fluttershy nods and says;
“Of course doctor.” You feel a bit left out and say;
“Anything I should do, Doc?”
“Just try to stay off it, and try some excersises once you feel well enough. And nothing too strenuous. We can’t have you taking place in the Running Of The Leaves, can we? Just try walking a few steps, and once the bone has healed, just take it slowly, and try some stretches. Your muscles will be a bit stiff, I’m guessing. But Fluttershy will be able to help with that. But not right away, of course. Just make sure to give it a bit more time to heal.”
“Alright, Doc. What about my fees? When do I pay those?”
“Well, Fluttershy has already dealt with that.”
“What? Why?” You look at Fluttershy incredulously.
“Well... I didn’t know how many bits you had in the bank, and I wanted to help you out...”
“More than you already have? Fluttershy, I have to pay you back for this. I know I’ll figure something out. You’re right, I don’t have enough bits, but you should have let me pay some of the fees!”
“Oh... S-sorry...” Fluttershy looks on the verge of tears, and you realise you were being a bit forceful. You tone it down a bit, and keep talking;
“Don’t be sorry, please Fluttershy. You came into the Everfree Forest when you heard me yelling, not caring for your fears. You let me stay in your home while I heal. You have almost never left my side. And now, you have payed my hospital fees. If anything, I should be sorry for inconveniencing you so much.”
“Oh, I’m happy to help.” Fluttershy smiles again, and you are relieved that she no longer looks about to cry. You awkwardly walk out the door, with Fluttershy in tow. You take a deep breath of the unfiltered air, relishing the feeling of the cool morning breeze on your face. You can smell something cooking, which is probably coming from Sugarcube Corner, which is just down the street. There is the familiar smell of... Apple Fritters? I guess Applejack had some extra apples this month, and Pinkie is making something special. I’ll have to go and get some later. Your mouth waters as you think of biting through the crispy batter and tasting the cooked apple inside, and you realise how much your mouth is watering, and you wipe it away quickly, lest Fluttershy notice. You might ask Fluttershy to go with you later on so you can try them. Pinkie is definitely one of the best cooks around. And Applejack’s apples always taste beautiful. You can hear the sounds of Ponyville’s residents slowly waking up and getting ready for work. 

Only once you walk out the door do you realise that you have no idea where Fluttershy’s cottage is. You turn to her, a bit embarrassed.
“Um... Here.” She smiles and walks towards you, softly taking you by the hoof and leading you to the edge of town. You are slowly getting the hang of the crutches. They itch a little bit, but you are sure that Fluttershy will be able to help with that, perhaps with a cloth, or an ointment, or something. As you slowly leave town, you realise that you are extremely calm, just walking slowly with Fluttershy along the path. Then she surprises you when she speaks, as you are usually the one to initiate conversation. You guess that she is probably more comfortable out here, with nopony else around. She still speaks quietly, though.
“I can’t wait to introduce you to all my animal friends. Angel Bunny will be so happy to meet somepony new. That is... If you want to meet them... No pressure...”
“I’d be more than happy too, Fluttershy. I have never really spent time around animals. It would be nice to get back to nature a bit. My building is just made of concrete, wood and cats.” You chuckle quietly, remembering the mare that lived down the hall from you. “Not enough cats to make me used to animals, of course. But I’m pretty good at adapting.” Fluttershy smiles and you continue on, until you see Fluttershy’s cottage. It is probably one of the coolest houses you have ever seen. It is simple, but beautiful as well. Fitting for it’s owner then. You frown as you think this, not sure where it came from. But then Fluttershy starts speaking again, and you abandon all thought once more to listen.
“While you were asleep, I took some time to come back here and set up a bed in my room. It’s just a little cot, but I’ll be fine in it.”
“Fluttershy, what do you mean by You will be fine in it?”
“Well, you need the big bed.”
“No I don’t. I may be disabled at the moment, but I will beat you to that cot. I am not going to take your bed as well. That’s the reason I want to help you around the house. I may as well earn my keep. I don’t want to just take your food and other supplies as well. I do work around your house, and as soon as I can, I’ll pay you for your troubles.”
“B-but... I can’t ask you to do that...”
“You aren’t, right?”
“No... But...”
“I’m offering-- No, I’m demanding you take some form of payment for this.” You made sure to correct yourself, as you had a feeling Fluttershy would try to refuse to take payment, if you were just ‘Offering’.
“Okay... If you’re sure...”
“Fluttershy... Of course I’m sure.” You continue in silence, and as you slowly walk over the bridge leading to Fluttershy’s Cottage, you take a few seconds to marvel at the beauty of all the nature around you. The sounds of Ponyville slowly waking up are gone, and you can hear birds singing, you can see rabbits and suchlike hopping through the undergrowth. You can smell flowers somewhere. The air is slightly fresher out here, and you notice that it also feels slightly chillier. But that’s fine. You have always felt more comfortable in the cold. You aren’t really accustomed to nature, as you have lived in the city all of your life. You moved to Ponyville earlier in the year. You remember the trouble you went through, as they hadn’t heard about the Changeling attack in Manehattan at that time, and the guards that Celestia had stationed in Ponyville had thought you were a Changeling on the run. It took a while to convince them, but they believed you in the end. But even living in Ponyville, you still aren’t used to nature. In a way, you distrust it. It’s always changing. And not always on time, either. But you realise that you have to get used to nature, if you are going to be living with Fluttershy for a few weeks. You approach her cottage and she smiles reassuringly at you. She must sense that you are worried about meeting her animal friends. Which is odd, as while you aren’t used to animals, you still feel comfortable around them. What if they don’t like me and Fluttershy decides not to like me either? You then realise the insanity of this thought. Oh Celestia. What am I thinking? You chuckle quietly and push the door open, walking into your new home.

A/N
--Okay. Sorry abut having another one of these. I’ll try not to make it a regular occurrence. But this chapter took me ages to get right. I hope I am hinting at ‘Your’ latent feelings towards Fluttershy properly. I just liked the idea of the heart monitor going crazy every time you saw Fluttershy (As in, your heart was beating faster). I just want to know if it was a good idea. Not sure. And I imagine the crutches as a pole slightly longer than a ponies’ leg, with a loop on one end to put your hoof in, and a sort of U shape at the top, that fits under the shoulder. I haven’t seen may crutches in my life, so it is just a guess. I have also tried to elaborate more on ‘your’ senses with this edit, based on the feedback I have received. I was afraid to do too much in the way of senses in the first version, in case it seemed like I was laying it on a bit thick. But, I guess a writer has to work harder with immersing the reader with Second Person fics, as the reader is more directly involved. I guess we’ll see how it is now.--
E/A/N
> Chapter 3 - New Homecoming
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

As you walk into Fluttershy’s cottage, you are met with a scene you thought you may never see. There are animals everywhere. There are birds in various birdhouses on the ceiling. There are little creatures running around the floor. The sheer amount of animals in the place surprises you, although Fluttershy just happily walks in and starts talking to the animals. You hear her apologising for being away for so long --Twilight had been looking after them, Fluttershy had told you-- and introducing you. A few animals come up to you and look at you for a few seconds before Hopping/Flying/Running away. Then you are blinded as something drops on top of your head and slaps something on to your face. You stumble around blindly for a moment, trip, and cry out in pain when you not only land awkwardly and hurt your leg, but you fall on top of your injured wing. You hear Fluttershy run over and then you can see again when a blindfold is taken away from your eyes. She is looking at you with concern in her eyes. You lay there for a few seconds, staring into each others’ eyes. Then she shakes her head and looks up, a blush on her face.
“Angel, that wasn’t very nice. He’s our guest. There’s no reason to do that. He could have been seriously hurt.” She offers you a hoof and pulls you up. She lets you put your weight on her as you try and get the crutch back on. After a few seconds, you step away and see a small white rabbit sitting with it’s arms crossed, a contemptuous look on it’s little white face. You guess that this is Angel. You limp over to him and look at him, with what you hope is a friendly smile on your face.
“Hey there, Angel. Nice to meet you.” Feeling slightly stupid, you offer your good hoof. He looks at it like it’s made of toxic waste and after a few seconds slaps it away.
“Well... That was kind of sad. Rejected by a bunny.” You say, trying to hide your embarrassment. Fluttershy walks up next to you and puts a hoof on your shoulder.
“He isn’t used to strangers. He’ll warm up to you.”
“I don’t think so...” You hobble over to Fluttershy’s couch and sit down awkwardly, leaning forward so as not to put pressure on your wing. You take a few minutes to properly take in your surroundings while you are alone, as Fluttershy had gone to check on her other animals. One of the things that confuses you is the smell. In a house full of animals, you had expected it to smell disgusting. But this one had the soft smell of flowers, and something else, something subtle... Vanilla? Lavender? Sandalwood? All three, by the smell of it. And you had expected it to be messy. This one was perfectly maintained. You notice that it isn’t as loud as you expected, either. But then again, this is Fluttershy’s home. 

It is nice and cool in the living room. Fluttershy walks into the room and smiles again.
“What would you like for breakfast? I was going to make some pancakes, but if you would like something else, I’ll go and get the things I need to make it.”
“Of course not. Pancakes sound great. I almost never have homemade meals, so it would be nice to have one for once, ‘Shy.” She smiles softly at your use of her nickname. You both stay there for a few moments, then Fluttershy widens her eyes and says;
“Oh! I need to go and feed my chickens. Please, make yourself at home. I’ll be back in a few minutes.” She trots slowly out the door and as she does you wriggle off of the couch, and stand up awkwardly. Your leg is starting to throb, and your wing is hurting a bit. But other than that, you feel fine. It hurts a little to breath, but you get past that by just taking shallow breaths. You decide to have a look around the house, and go to the stairs, and after about thirty seconds of just staring a them, you figure out how to get up them. You slowly make your way up them, the crutches actually being of some help as opposed to a wheelchair. You eventually get to the top of the stairs and look around. You are on a landing, with two rooms on either side. In front of you is the door to what you guess is a linen closet. You open it to make sure and see nothing but sheets and blankets. You can smell them, and they smell cleaner than any of the blankets you have at your apartment. Then again, most things smell better than the linens at your apartment. You close the door and go to the far door. When you eventually reach it, you can smell soap, and fresh flowers. You inch the door open, wincing at the lack of squeak. All doors should squeak a little bit. It’s like a universal law. You peek inside and see an immaculate bathroom. There are some flowers in a vase on the counter, and you can smell their perfume from where you are standing in the doorway. You limp in and go to the basin. You look in the mirror with some apprehension, as you didn’t get to see yourself at the hospital, being confined to a bed and all. You take in the familiar face, with it’s few alterations. The same eyes, although with some bruising and cuts around them. The same nose, although with a large scrape on it. The same mouth, although with quite a scar running through the middle. The same cheeks, although with other cuts and bruises, and a few little pieces of skin missing. All in all, you look like you have been in a few bar brawls in the past. You smile at your beat up reflection and it smiles happily back. You put your head close to the sink and turn the water on, splashing water over you face with you good hoof. You shiver as the cold water runs down your neck and down your legs. 

You turn around and leave the bathroom, happy that you are becoming familiar with the layout of Fluttershy’s home. You shut the door quietly, testing it a few times to make sure it definitely doesn’t squeak, and then turn around and start walking to the other door. The carpet is soft under your rear hooves --Your forehooves being raised by the crutches-- and there is still a cool breeze coming from the open windows, even though the sun is slowly inching it’s way up the sky. You keep walking and eventually get to the other door. You push it open slowly and find yourself in what you guess is Fluttershy’s bedroom. You look around, taking the small room and it’s details in. There is a large double bed up against one wall, with a small window behind it, to the right. There is a chest at the foot of the bed, with a circular red rug under it. There is a desk next to the bed, with various books on animals on it’s shelves. There is a lantern sitting on it as well. There is a fireplace on the right wall, with a small shelf over it. Sitting on the shelf is a candle, a clock, and a picture of Fluttershy and her other friends, who you recognise from their visiting you in the hospital. There is a painting behind the shelf, a simple painting of flowers sitting in a blue frame. The smell of vanilla/lavender/sandalwood is stronger in here. It isn’t unpleasant, in fact it is quite calming. You look at the wall next to where you are standing, and see a small cot sitting up against it. It looks big enough for one pony to sleep uncomfortably. And Fluttershy wanted to sleep in that? Never. She can sleep in her bed, and I will sleep in this, you think. 

You turn around and leave, slowly going down the stairs. You can smell pancakes cooking, and try to hurry down the stairs. You are about halfway down when something darts in front of you and you trip, falling down the stairs and landing in a heap. You have to resist the urge to scream as you land heavily on your wing. You suffice with biting down on your tongue. To bad your leg also decided to ask for some payment for the fall. The sudden burst of pain makes you bite down harder and you suddenly taste blood as you bite through your tongue. You look up and see Angel darting around the corner of the landing. Damn rabbit. I won’t tell Fluttershy it was him. I doubt she wouldn’t believe me anyway. You hear Fluttershy trot up to you, and suddenly she is kneeling over you. She puts her hoof behind your neck, worry showing clearly in her eyes.
“Are you alright? I heard a thump. What happened?” You try to swallow the blood in your mouth, but naturally, some slips through a gap in your lips, as you try to speak. Fluttershy’s eyes widen and she helps you up, taking you into the kitchen, where you can still smell pancakes cooking. She takes you to the sink, and props you up over it. She rubs your back.
“Spit it out, I’ve seen worse. Go ahead... I don’t want you to choke.” You gratefully spit out the blood in your mouth, glad there isn’t too much, glad that Fluttershy was able to help. You weren’t really looking forward to swallowing your own blood. Fluttershy guides you over to the table and sits you down, then goes over to the sink and turns the hot water on, cleaning away your mess. Then she walks back over to you.
“What happened? Are you okay?” You answer her, your tongue hurting with each word;
“I-I was going down the stairs too fast and I tripped. I didn’t want to scare you, so I bit my tongue. But when my leg started hurting, I bit through it.”
“Well, you’ll have to be more careful, won’t you? Next time call me, and I’ll help you down... If you want me too.”
“I would gladly accept your help Fluttershy.” She smiles and walks over to the preparation area of the kitchen, turning the heat down on the pancakes, lest they burn. She then gets a piece of ice out of the freezer.
“Here, put this in your mouth. It will help.” You take it gratefully and suck on the ice cube, the coldness of it soothing your stinging tongue. You both are silent for a little while, before Fluttershy puts a plate stacked with pancakes in front of you.
“Here, I hope they are good... I made the syrup myself... I hope it’s good enough.” She smiles softly and sits across from you. You chuckle and say;
“Fluttershy, if the syrup is even half as sweet as it’s maker, it’ll be fantastic.” Fluttershy laughs quietly, a blush quickly appearing on her face. You blush a little bit too, wondering why you said that. Well, it is true. You just shake your head and dig in to the pancakes, which are just as tasty as you thought. The syrup is extremely good. You have never had such a homemade meal. Everything you eat is prepackaged in some way. They are definitely the best thing you have eaten since you left home. Better get used to it. You think, a smile on your face.

As you and ‘Shy eat your breakfast --which isn’t really very easy, as your tongue still really hurts, even after sucking on the ice cube--, you look across the table at her and realise you don’t know anything about her, aside from her skill with animals, and that she is the Element Of Kindness, as well as a few other miscellaneous things you learned in the hospital.
“Hey Fluttershy, care to tell me more about yourself?” She smiles and looks away.
“Oh, you don’t want to know...”
“Yes, I do, Fluttershy.” You realise you might have to try harder than just asking about her, and you come up with an idea. 
“I have an idea. I’ll tell you something about me, and you tell me something about you, alright? That way it’ll be even.” You smile as she looks up, although she isn’t meeting your eyes.
“Umm... Alright...”
“Okay... Let’s see... When I was a little colt, I was terrified of Slendermane.” You chuckle and scratch the back of your head with your good hoof, remembering when you would barricade your bedroom whenever you heard a noise outside. You had always been ashamed of such a childish fear. Fluttershy however looks scared.
“What’s that?” She asks, her eyes wide. You curse yourself for talking about Slendermane; Fluttershy would probably be scared out of her mind of she knew what he was, even though he wasn’t real --Allegedly--. You rack your brain and come up with:
“Oh, it was just a thing that happens to your mane, making the hairs thin and dead.” You hope this will be enough. Fluttershy calms and looks away.
“Your turn, ‘Shy.”
“Umm... Alright. When I was a teenager I went to Junior Speedster’s fly camp in Cloudsdale. But when I got my cutie mark after falling to the ground, I never went back. Not just to Flight Camp, but Cloudsdale. I visited it every now and then, but I hated living there. I just stayed on the ground. My parents came to find me, but I said I was happier on the ground. They were really supportive, and helped me buy this cottage when I was old enough to have my own place.” 

You realise that you are going to have to work hard to top that. You didn’t realise until later that Fluttershy was opening up to you more than she normally would. You were just excited to be learning more about her, and having her learn more about you. You didn’t think anything about why she was doing it.
“Hmm... Let’s see... When I was a teenager, I ran away from home. I hated life at home. So one night I just left. I hated the way my parents were always fighting. I doubt they even noticed me leave.” You sigh heavily, and Fluttershy looks at you with concern.
“Did you ever go back?”
“No. And I will probably never go back to Cloudsdale as long as I live. Not even to visit.”
“Where did you live?”
“Well, when I got to Manehattan, I lived wherever was convenient. A cardboard box, an abandoned carriage, a large suitcase --Boy, that was fun to explain-- whatever was easiest. Eventually I got a job as a paper-colt, and after three years I was one of the bosses’ secretaries. Another two years of hard work later, I was one of the ones running the place. But then some idiot decided to bet the company in a game of horseshoes. We tried to get it back, but the other guy had won it fair and square, apparently. All of our money was gone. All I had was my pitiful savings --I realise now I should have been putting more money away-- and the stuff I had taken from home before I left. That stuff is all so important to me. But I’ll have to wait until the renovation is finished to see it again.” Fluttershy is looking at you in awe. You just smile and say;
“Your turn, Fluttershy.”
“Oh, sorry... Um... When I was a teenager, I had a bit of a crush on Soarin’, in the Wonderbolts.”
“Woah, you? He is a bit...” You wave your free hoof around wildly to indicate ‘out there’ “For you, isn’t he?”
“That was why I liked him. He wasn’t afraid to just be himself. But that went away after I found out he was dating Spitfire...”
“What? Those two?”
“Yes. But I guess, it isn’t much of a surprise. They are mostly seen together.”
“You have a point. Alright, about me... Okay, while we are talking about crushes, I used to have one on Celestia.” Fluttershy practically falls off of her chair as you say this. She squeaks;
“C-Celestia? Wh-what? Why?”
“She was just so beautiful, so powerful, so intelligent. She is wise, and I love her ability to solve any problem. Well... Except for Nightmare Moon, Discord, and Chrysalis. But, I was just a colt who saw her as a beautiful mare, not the goddess-princess of Equestria. I tend to do that. But then I got older, and realised how absurd it was that I could ever be with her. Your turn. We’ll tell each other one more thing, and then we’ll figure out what to do today, alright?”
“Alright... Um... Once, I used The Stare on a colt in the marketplace, who was trying to get away with more change than he was supposed to have. I don’t know where it came from... I just approached him and... Well... Ponies call it Flutterrage, so... I did that, and ended up using The Stare on him.” You remember Fluttershy telling you about The Stare in the hospital, and grin as you think of a colt being on the receiving end of it.

“Alright, my last one... I have never been in love. Like, love love, not just a crush.” You don’t know where this one came from. Maybe you meant to say it all along... But why? Fluttershy lowers her voice and looks away. You have to lean in to hear her as she says;
“Oh... Um... Me neither. I have n-never really connected with anypony enough to f-fall in l-love before...” You both sit in awkward silence for a while, until you both finish your breakfast and Fluttershy takes the plates. You stand up and stretch your three good hooves, before moving your good wing about, to make sure it doesn’t end up stiff as a board, when you are ready to start flying again. It’s bad enough that you’ll have one that stiff. You shake your head a bit, to clear it of some residual fuzziness from the fall down the stairs. 

Then, you try moving your bad leg a bit. Just side to side at first, and you feel a small twinge of protest from the muscles. Then forward and back, still that little twinge. You look over your shoulder; Fluttershy is washing the plates still, humming a small melody under her breath. She would probably stop you if she saw what you were about to do. Against every doctor in Equestria’s advice, you try to bend it upwards, as if you were flexing. You immediately stop as you feel a stinging, burning feeling from the entire leg, even though you have barely moved it an inch. It feels as if the bones in it were suddenly dipped in acid. You bite your lip --Not your tongue again-- and slowly put it down. 

Now, just because I feel like being an idiot today... You try to unfold your injured wing. But you get the same feeling and have to stick your good hoof in your mouth to stop from crying out. You put the wing down and slowly get your breath back. You take a deep breath and look back towards Fluttershy. She is finished with the dishes, and is cleaning the inside of the sink. She finishes her job, still humming, and then turns around, looking at you with a small smile. You limp over to her --having put the crutches back on-- and ask;
“So, what are we doing today?”
“Well... I haven’t got much in the way of chores... Actually, I was thinking about seeing my friends today. I need to talk to them all. Would you like to come with me and meet them properly?”
“Yeah, sure. Let’s go.” You are excited to be meeting some new ponies. And, maybe, some new friends.


A/N
--As always, if you feel like it, I will accept all advice. I have said this in the past, I think, but here it is again: In all honesty, my biggest worry is the storyline. Is it easy to follow? Is it too fast? Too slow? Is it cliche? --If I ever become too cliche I will consider myself a failure in a way. I hate cliche stuff, although I accept that some of my stuff will be.-- Can I do anything to make it better? Are burritos better than tacos? These are all things I worry about when I am writing. Spelling and grammar come next. If I make any mistakes, let me know. Please. I can pick up on the obviously misspelt ones with spellcheck, but I’m thinking about ones that would be considered spelt properly by the bloody thing. Like, when I am writing, instead of saying ‘you’ I accidentally hit ‘R’ and it becomes ‘your’, or if I go to type ‘like’ and miss the ‘K’, it end up being ‘lie’. --In fact, I made that mistake while writing that example. I only just picked it up now.--  I don’t notice it until I read through it. And I only do that when I feel I need to. And even then, I think I miss quite a few. Another important thing, how is Fluttershy’s character? I tried to give a bit of an explanation --however vague-- as to why she was willing to open up to ‘you’. But I’m not sure. Sorry this note is so long. I tend to have a lot to say. :D--
E/A/N

> Chapter 4 - Meeting Some New Ponies
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

As you and Fluttershy walk into Ponyville, you can smell something else from Sugarcube Corner. It smells like... Apple Pie? Pinkie is having an Apple day today, I guess. The sun is well and truly up now. It is about 9:00. Although it is early, the sun’s rays give you a warm feeling. You can hear more sounds now, as more ponies have woken up and gone to work/school. Shops have opened, and there are ponies happily walking through the streets. You look up and see a few Pegasi rocket past, building up a small whirlwind behind them. You look at Fluttershy questioningly, and she says;
“Oh, there is a storm set for later today. They are getting the air currents just right.” Fluttershy is speaking quietly now, and you realise that she was definitely more open back at her house, where she was more comfortable. 

A few ponies give you a varying range of looks. It's common knowledge by now that you were seriously injured flying through the everfree at high speeds. A few ponies look displeased, one or two had pity showing clearly on their faces, and quite a few even look angry. You just make sure you and Fluttershy give them a wide berth. You both eventually reach the place Fluttershy wants to visit first, Twilight Sparkle’s library. You are not used to libraries, having never really had the time for reading in your busy life. Fluttershy knocks quietly and stands back from the door. You have to hold back a laugh at Fluttershy’s knock. It is the kind of knock a pony uses when they want to announce their arrival, without actually having anypony hear it.
“Um, I think we can just go in, ‘Shy. It is a public library, right?”
“Yes, but it’s polite to knock... Sorry... Let’s just go in...” You smile and open the door for her, and she nods gratefully as she walks in past you. You put your good hoof down, holding back a sigh as you take the weight off of your bad hoof, as the pain in your leg had increased slightly when you put your weight on it. You limp into Twilight’s library, hearing the door swing shut behind you. You continue into the large tree, marveling at the fact that it's still intact, being a hollowed out tree and all. You can smell the odd smell you get when heaps of books are put together in one place. The overwhelming smell of paper, and ink. It's brightly lit inside, as there are windows all around the upper floors. 
Then you see Twilight approach, a large smile on her face.
“Hi, you two! Glad to see you both. How are you?” Fluttershy just mumbles that she’s fine, and you nod in acknowledgement, and to indicate you're also fine.
“And how are you, Twilight?” You ask, when you realise Fluttershy seems a little more subdued than normal. Twilight gives you a mischievous smile, and answers;
“Just fine, just fine. Is your leg feeling okay?”
“Yeah, it’s fine.” You lie. It's still burning quite a bit from your impromptu excersise. “Healing up just fine.” You smile encouragingly. “I just hope my face gets better soon. The world is definitely a darker place without it at it’s best.” You laugh, and Twilight joins in, with Fluttershy obviously trying to laugh without being heard, making it all the more noticeable. As you calm down, you could of sworn that Twilight glances at Fluttershy, that mischievous smile showing again. But then it passes, and you shake your head, trying to regain your footing.
“So, what have you got planned for today, Twilight?”
“Oh, nothing much. I was just going to do some studying. I’m ahead on my homework, so I’ve decided to start studying for next week’s homework!” This confuses you greatly, for a number of reasons.
“Wait, why do you have homework? And, how do you know what next week’s homework will be about? And why are you excited to be doing it?” You ask, incredulously.
“Oh, I set it myself! I have to keep my mind sharp, after all. And I love doing homework. It keeps me on the edges of my hooves.” She smiles, and Fluttershy looks at Twilight, with an odd look on her face. But then she says, while rubbing her leg with her hoof nervously;
“Umm, Twilight? Could I please talk to you in the kitchen? You know... If it’s alright...” Twilight smiles again, and glances at you. What is that about? You wonder.
“Of course ‘Shy, let’s go. We’ll be back in a minute. Just... Read a book, or something.” She says to you.

Twilight takes Fluttershy by the shoulder and leads her away, out of the room. Read a book, yeah right. You sneak up to the door Twilight and Fluttershy have just gone through, praying that the slight creaking of your crutches don’t give you away. You put your ear against the door and have to strain to hear, as the door is very thick. You can only hear a few words at a time. Mostly Twilight, as Fluttershy’s voice is very quiet, and barely penetrates.
“I’ve been reading...”
“You should tell...”
“It’s hard...”
“Just... It...”
“But what if... Doesn’t... Said...never...been in...”
“...Will...The way... Looks...” You pull away from the door, so you don’t go through the classic of hearing them walking towards the door too late and getting caught listening. You limp to the other side of the room, and grab a book randomly off of the shelf. You read the blurb and frown at what the book is about. Romance? I didn’t realise Twilight would have these at her library. Wait... You walk around the edge of the library, and see that all of the books --Or at least, the ones within your reach-- are romantic in one way or another. Since when was Twilight romantic? Even I know she isn’t, and I barely know her. She doesn’t really seem the type... It’s just hard for you to imagine ‘Twilight’ and ‘Romantic’ in the same sentence. But, then again, you don’t know all about her yet, it could just be a guilty pleasure. You skim through one, reading little snatches of it. It seems like a tedious thing, what the characters are going through. One of them loves the other, but doesn’t realise it. The other is in love with the one who loves them and doesn’t know it, and they know it, but they don’t know how the other feels. It just seems needlessly complicated. I would know if I was in love with a mare. Not like this bloody fool. He just doesn’t see how obvious it is that he loves the other one. The way he acts when he’s around her. You chuckle and close the book, putting it back on the shelf. 

Then the door on the other side of the room opens, and Fluttershy walks out, looking nervous. You inadvertedly shoot up, wincing as your leg twinges again. Twilight whispers something in her ear, and ‘Shy walks over to you putting her hoof on your shoulder and walking with you out of the library.
“See you later, Twi’!” You say over your shoulder, as the door swings shut behind you both. 

You and Fluttershy walk happily for a little while, until you come to Carousel Boutique, where the mare Rarity lives and works. You walk in, the little bell above the door ringing your arrival.
“Welcome to Carousel Boutique, where everything is chic, unique, and magnifique. What can I do for you tod-- Oh, hello Fluttershy. What do you need?”
“Um, hi, Rarity. I’m not bothering you, am I?”
“Of course not, darling! Anything for my best friend. Oh, and who is this... Um... Gentle...colt?”
“Remember, you met me in the hospital? Don’t worry, I doubt my face will stay like this.” You smile, and Rarity nods in recognition.
“Oh, of course. So sorry. Well, hello there.” She smiles weakly.
“Umm, Rarity? Could I please speak to you in the back room?” Fluttershy looks at you and bites her lip. “Sorry, but this is important.”
“Girl stuff?”
“Kind of.” Fluttershy takes Rarity gently by the shoulder and takes her into the back room. You wait until the door has properly closed and then go over to it. ‘Shy wouldn’t approve, but I’m curious. You think. This door is thick too, and you can just hear a conversation going on, only hearing a few words again.
“You...tell...soon...”
“But...doesn’t...same...”
“Just...it...”
“Not...sure...it...”
“You...be assertive...”
“...don’t...can... You...better...Twilight...almost... me away...” 

You pull away from the door and walk awkwardly away. You sit down on the other side of the room, and wait, taking in the boutique. You can smell lots of fabric, and you can hear the sounds of dresses and other assorted fashion items settling. You look around again, and see a white cat walking up to you. It stops in front of you, and you swear it has an evil smile on it's fluffy face. It looks at the crutches resting up against the seat --which you took off to get a break from them-- and then swipes it's paw, knocking them away, further than you would have expected from such a small cat. You curse not anticipating this, and decide just to wait for Fluttershy to help. No, I have to do this myself, you think, not realising the foolishness of this thought. You slowly get onto the floor, wincing at even the slightest weight on your bad leg. You limp towards the crutches, gasping with the pain in your leg. But it’s too late to go back and sit down. Then you feel a sharp pain in you good foreleg, and lift it to get it away. Unfortunately this causes you to put your weight on your bad leg, and you can’t help but scream as you fall over, and you can practically feel the bone threatening to break. You lie on the ground, trying to catch your breath. Then you hear a quiet scraping, and you see the Celestia-damned cat pushing the crutches towards you. You hear the back door open, and somepony rushes over to you, and you see a familiar yellow hoof put in front of you, and you gratefully take it. You look around as Fluttershy helps you up. You look at your good leg when you are up, and see a large scratch going along the length. What the hay is with all of the vindictive animals around here? You ask yourself. But then you see Rarity stroking the cat, which is smiling evilly at you. You never knew a cat could look evil, but this one managed it quite well.
“Oh, did you try to help him get his crutches, Opal? You’re a good kitty, aren’t you?” Rarity coos to the sadistic little ball of fur. It looks as if it's about to scratch Rarity, but then seems to decide against it. Fluttershy stands up your crutches, and you slip them back on.
“Yeah, very good kitty.” You say, through clenched teeth. 

Fluttershy says goodbye to Rarity, and you just nod stiffly, and you both leave. The pain in your leg still causing you to wince as you move. You both walk through Ponyville again, when Fluttershy suggests you go to Sugarcube Corner for lunch. You happily agree and both go to the large cupcake shaped building, your mouth watering in anticipation. Fluttershy seems oddly quiet, even for her, and you wonder why. Ah, I'll find out in good time.

A/N
--Yes, I know I said I would try not to have too many of these, but I lied. And this isn’t too long anyway. Sorry about the gap between updates, but my internet isn’t really very accessible at the moment. Sorry to everypony who has been waiting so long. --If you actually have been waiting. I understand if you haven’t-- I also just wanted to say why this only has the two mares so far. I just knew that something is going to happen at Sugarcube Corner --being where Pinkie Pie lives and works, hint hint-- And I don’t think the Rainbow Dash one will be very long, I might not even put it in explicitly. Maybe just a mention of seeing her at Sugarcube Corner. That will probably be barely one chapter as I am really quite bad at writing those types of scenes. I have something special planned for when ‘you’ go to Sweet Apple Acres. I am finally going to advance the story a bit, and from one of the unlikeliest of places. :D Well, keep reading! --that is, when I put the next chapter up-- Let me know how it is so far! Enjoy!--

> Chapter 5 - PART-AY!
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

As you and Fluttershy approach Sugarcube Corner, you can’t help but notice it seems unnaturally quiet for a public eating place. --let alone a building with Pinkie Pie inside-- You tell Fluttershy this, but she doesn’t look you in the eye as she mumbles something under her breath. Confused, you walk up to the door, and see it slightly open. You push it open slowly, and apprehensively. It creaks open quietly. Ah! Now, that is a creak! You think, smiling. You walk in, slightly more comfortable for some weird reason, and are blinded for a moment when the lights all flick on, and then you are deafened when you hear a large crowd shouting ‘SURPRISE!’ at the top of their lungs. You stay where you are standing, lest you stumble about blindly and end up on the ground like an idiot. You blink to clear the spots from your eyes, and when your vision is back, you can see Pinkie Pie bouncing up and down in front of you. It is slightly hypnotic, the way her mane bounces the opposite way her body is. You shake your head as you realise she is talking to you.
“--cided to have this party during the day because if we have it later everypony will get caught in the storm and that wouldn’t be very fun!” You try to answer, and finally find your tongue.
“Th-thanks Pinkie. Nice to know you were able to set this up so quickly.”
“Well, I used my party cannon of course! Duh!” You frown, wondering what in Equestria a party cannon is. Then you realise that Pinkie is staring at you, a hopeful look on her face. Most of the crowd has already started the party. You can smell cookies and cakes, freshly baked, by the smell, too.
“Oh, yeah. This all looks great Pinkie, thanks. I’ll go and talk to some ponies.”
“Okie dokie loki! See you around! Make sure to thank Fluttershy for helping with the idea!” With this, Pinkie bounces into the crowd and disappears.

You turn around to see Fluttershy looking at you, a small smile on her face. You walk over to her, and hug her.
“Thanks Fluttershy. It’s nice to know you are willing to throw me a party.”
“O-oh. I just came up with the idea... Pinkie set it up...” There is something odd in her tone, and you lean back and look into her eyes. What is that? You wonder. You can see something in her eyes, but you can’t see what it is.
“You okay, ‘Shy?”
“Wh-what? Oh, yes, I’m fine.” You doubt this, but decide to let her tell you in her own time. As she wanders away to Twilight and Rarity --both of whom somehow beat you both to Sugarcube Corner-- who are at the punch bowl, talking happily. You see Twilight mouth something, and Fluttershy shakes her head. Twilight looks over at you, and Rarity kicks her in the leg. You can just make out what she mouths. Subtlety. You are confused at this, and hope to see more, but Rarity steps in front of both of them, obscuring all three from your view. You think about what you just saw. Subtlety? What for? The party secret is kind of out, after all. You decide to think about it more later, and turn to the room at large, taking it all in. There are colourful streamers hanging from the ceiling, and balloons tied to the backs of the chairs. You can smell more food now, and see hay fries and other assorted hot party foods being brought out and served. You decide not to go near them, as everypony is swarming the servers, and you don’t want to risk hurting your leg... Again.

The party goes for about two hours, and you spend most of it chatting with the Pegasus, Rainbow Dash, and the main topic of your talking is the Wonderbolts. She seems to want to say something, and you subtly try to find out. But when you get impatient and start asking what is wrong, a worried look crosses her face and she disappears into the crowd, leaving you even more confused. Rainbow Dash doesn’t seem the type to get scared and bolt like that. You are starting to wonder if there is some big joke going on, or something like that. What the hay is happening? You ask yourself. You seem to be the only one you can count on to tell the truth lately.

As the party progresses, you find yourself more or less shoved to the dance floor. You are trying to stay away from the stomping hooves of the ponies around you, and see Rarity standing at the edge, watching the ponies dancing, and listening to the music with distaste. You push through the sea of dancing ponies, wincing as you move your leg out of the way of them, to avoid hurting it even more. You eventually get to her, and try to make yourself heard over the loud music, courtesy of DJ P0N3, a DJ that Pinkie is on good terms with.
“Would you like to go and sit down!?” You cry, over the loud dubtrot music. She nods, and you push the way through the crowd, leaving a trail of disgruntled ponies in your wake. You find the table the group usually occupy, and sit down across from each other. The music is slightly quieter here, so you can both talk normally. You decide to start with normal conversation before getting to your main point.
“So, not a fan of Dubtrot I’m guessing?”
“Oh, it just seems so... crude. Almost like somepony has just recorded a dishwasher, and a washing machine, and then just distorted them like mad.”
“I think DJ Ponee does pretty well.” You wonder if you have pronounced it properly, and shrug. Then you think that there has been enough small talk, and you are getting impatient. So you just get to the point.
“So, have you noticed Fluttershy acting weird lately?” You ask. Rarity looks at the dance floor again as she says;
“What? Oh, not really. She has been slightly... off. Maybe something in her... lifestyle has changed?”
“What, you mean like... diet?”
“Maybe... I’m not sure.” You look her in the eyes.
“What has changed?” She breaks eye contact, and looks away, past the dancing ponies.
“I really don’t know, dear. Oh, there’s Pinkie! I’ll have to talk to you later, dear. It doesn’t do to keep her waiting.” Quicker than you can think, the white unicorn gets up and walks over to the pink pony, who is still bouncing, although it is much faster now, to the beat of the music.

You get up and resume your wandering about the party. Then you see Twilight, and go over to her, asking her if she would like to sit down and chat as well. She agrees, although she looks like she wants to say something. You both find your way back to the table, and sit down. You decide to do a light interrogation, and just get to the point, not caring about small talk this time.
“Have you noticed anything different about Fluttershy?” You ask.
“Well, she is being a bit quieter than normal. And, for Fluttershy, that’s really saying something.”
“Do you know why?” She hesitates, then says;
“Umm... No.”
“You sure?” Once again, she hesitates.
“Y-yes, of course.” You look her straight in the eyes, and you can see a small bead of sweat running down her forehead. You have gotten pretty good at interrogations over the years, having interrogated quite a few employees when there was a bit of corporate espionage a few years back. And a few other problems have helped hone your skills.
“Twilight, what is wrong with Fluttershy? Tell me, please.” You let a little bit of pleading slip into your tone, to show that you do have feelings as well, you aren’t just some faceless colt drilling her with questions. This works every time. And this time is no different. Twilight sighs in frustration, and says desperately, as if saying something she has wanted to for ages;
“Alright... Fluttershy is in lo--” But then Pinkie appears next to her and says firmly;
“FOREVER!” And she slowly slips under the table, looking at Twilight with an ‘I’m watching you’ look. You are startled by the pink pony’s quick entrance and exit, and when you look towards Twilight again, she is running away, into the crowd.
“Damn!” You say under your breath. “So close. I just want to know why Fluttershy is so down, so I can make her feel better. Is that so bad?”

You wonder how long the party has to go, and you notice Sugarcube Corner is slowly emptying, as ponies leave to get home early for the storm. The place is soon empty, except for Fluttershy, her friends --with the exception of Applejack, who had to finish bucking her apple trees before the storm hit-- and you. You look around, and see Fluttershy walking towards you, her face redder than an apple. She is looking straight at the ground, and you see Rarity, Twilight, Pinkie, and Rainbow Dash standing by the punch, watching with an odd expression. You look back at Fluttershy. She opens her mouth, and you can swear she is about to burst into flames. You can see the same thing in her eyes from before. You want to say something, but you are afraid you will spoil whatever it is she wants to say. But then she closes her mouth and looks away again. She says quietly;
“Would you like to go now? We don’t have to... if you don’t want to yet... I just wanted to speak to Applejack before we headed home...” You can see the four mares by the punch visibly sag, and Rarity facehoofs. You feel like approaching them and asking what the hay is going on, but you can’t trust yourself not to yell. You just look at Fluttershy, who is still blushing and staring at the ground intently.
“Of course, ‘Shy. Let’s go. We’ll see you guys later then, alright?” You wave to them, and Fluttershy waves her hoof weakly in their direction. Rarity still has her hoof over her face, Twilight looks visibly disappointed, Pinkie is still smiling like a loon, --for some weird reason. But then again, she is Pinkie Pie-- and Rainbow Dash is frowning. But you can see Twilight and Rarity holding her shoulders, effectively stopping her from moving. You limp out beside Fluttershy, glad to be back out in the fresh air. But you can’t really enjoy it, as you are worried about Fluttershy, and why she is so worried. Which you think as odd, because like earlier, you normally wouldn’t really care. Not even for friends. You just wait for them to come to you and tell you --although, they weren’t really friends, they were more business partners and acquaintances--. But with Fluttershy, you feel actively worried. You try and figure out why, but continue pulling up blanks. GAH. Maybe something will miraculously happen at Sweet Apple Acres to help me out.

A/N
--Seriously, just a short one this time. Sorry for the quality of this chapter. It’s just, I suck at writing parties. But I hope I have furthered the story a bit more with this, and hopefully more than hinted at what is going on. Any advice to make this better would be greatly appreciated. This isn’t what I am going to stick with, I am going to edit it in future, of course. I just wanted to at least get something down so I could get to the next chapter, which is definitely one of the most important.--
E/A/N
> Chapter 6 - Eeyup.
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

You and ‘Shy walk in awkward silence. You wonder if you should try to start a conversation, but Fluttershy looks particularly down at the moment. You just walk under the arch that proclaims Sweet Apple Acres in bright red letters, and you can soon see the red farmhouse, and the barn, which Applejack is walking out of, a satisfied look on her face. You can see the colt Big Macintosh standing on the front porch. You recognise him from the one time he was with AJ when she visited you and ‘Shy in the hospital. When Applejack notices you and Fluttershy as you get closer to the farmhouse, she gallops towards you both, a smile on her face.
“Howdy! How’re y’all doin’-- Fluttershy? What’s wrong?” She looks at you questioningly, and realisation dawns on her face. She looks away from you immediately and takes Fluttershy softly by the shoulder, leading her to the farmhouse. As she walks in, she says to Big Mac;
“Keep ‘im busy fer a little while. Ah need t’ talk wit’ ‘Shy inside.” Big Mac nods his head slowly, once.
“Eeyup.” AJ goes inside and you limp up to Big Mac, who has come down off the porch. He positively looms over you. You would feel intimidated, but you know that he would only ever hurt another if he felt it was necessary. And he would make sure whoever made it necessary wouldn’t be able to again, not for a long time. You are frightened of him, in a way. It would be idiotic not to, with his legs like tree trunks, his body like a shaped block of stone. With that impassive face, you can never really tell what he is truly feeling. But he turns away and walks towards the orchard and you release a breath you didn’t realise you had been holding. He turns when he reaches the edge of the trees and gestures for you to follow. You turn around, finding it harder on the dirt to arrange your crutches. But you eventually turn and limp after him. He waits for you to catch up. When you do, he continues further into the forest. You follow, and notice that he is barely walking at his full stride, so you can keep up. As such, you push yourself a little bit, ignoring the pain your leg is giving you, wanting to show that he doesn’t have to go slow for you. You push ahead of him and keep moving. Eventually you stop and look around. You have no idea where you are now. You are in a small clearing. All sounds from Ponyville have been lost. There is the overwhelming scent of apples in the air. You look around, turning in a circle. But then you realise that you have forgotten which direction you came from.
“Oh, come on!” You yell at the sky, louder than you expected you would. Then you hear heavy footfalls and Big Mac steps out from behind a tree.
“And that is why it would be better for you to take it slow for now.” The way that Big Mac speaks surprises you. His accent is nowhere near as heavy as his sisters’ but, if you were to listen closely, you could still hear that edge to it.
“Wh-what do you mean?”
“If you had of taken it slowly, you wouldn’t have gotten lost. But you went faster, and when I accidentally stepped out of your view, you thought you were lost. You should keep it slow, especially while your leg is healing.”
“Okay, fine. Why did you bring me out here anyway? I doubt it was to teach me that little lesson.”
“Nnope. It wasn’t. I’ve seen you ‘round town today, and I think your eyesight was damaged in that crash as well.”
“What?”
“Even I can see what you feel. And I think everypony can see how she feels.”
“What in the hay do you mean?”
“I don’t think AJ would be very happy if I told you.”
“Then don’t tell her!”
“She has a thing for telling when you lie t’ her. And I don’t lie t’ family anyway.”
“Then don’t say anything!”
“Hmm... Well... I could tell you, and not tell AJ. But I won’t.”
“I’ll ask yet again. Why the hay not?”
“Because it would be unfair t’ her.”
“To who?”
“You’ll figure it out. Just think. Think about how you both have been acting for the last week. Once you figure it out, then I can help you.”
“Me and who?”
“Just think. Do it now.”
“Now?”
“Eeyup. AJ and Fluttershy will be a while.”
“Fine.” You sit down on a log, putting your crutches down next to you. Big Mac walks over and sits down next to you, making the log creak ominously. But it holds the weight of both of you.
“Go ahead.”
“I can’t if you keep talking, can I?”, you say irritably. You close you eyes and think. At first your thoughts are scattered, as you wonder about what Big Mac is talking about. No! Think properly. Go in order.

...

Alright. He said ‘the last week’. So I’ll start there. A week ago, I woke up in the hospital. I thought I was in heaven. Oh, Celestia this is stupid... No! Focus! Okay, I thought Fluttershy was an angel. She is, in a way, for saving me. That stupid monitor was going crazy whenever I even saw her. I left, this morning. We went to her house. I had a look around, met a demon-bunny, and fell down her stairs. When she came to help me up, the look in her eyes... She gave me breakfast. We talked about our lives. Then I told her I had never been in love. She became awkward all of a sudden, and the conversation pretty much died there. We left. We went to Twilight’s Library and she went to talk to Twilight there. What were they saying? THINK! I heard more than that... Maybe part of me didn’t want to hear it until now... I don’t know. But I have to rememb-- Oh, Celestia no... How could I be so blind? You just remember what they said and can hear it clearly in your head, as if they were standing in front of you saying it right now.

“I’ve been reading some books recently. You should tell him how you feel as soon as possible.”
“It’s hard, Twilight. You know I’m not good at this.”
“Just do it, ‘Shy!”
“But what if he doesn’t feel the same way?”
“He will, it’s the way he looks at you, trust me.”

And with Rarity...

“You should tell him soon, darling.”
“But what if he doesn’t feel the same?”
“Just do it, Fluttershy. Handsome colts like him don’t come around very often.”
“I’m not sure about it though...”
“You have to be assertive for once, dear.”
“I don’t think I can... At least you are doing better at hiding this than Twilight. She was really very obvious, she almost gave me away...”

Oh, how could I be so stupid? And the way I’ve been feeling about her... I hate myself for this, I really do. ‘Shy has been tearing herself up about this, and I was too damn stupid to realise. I guess I am like the bloody fool in that book. Wait! Maybe Twilight can help me with this? Actually, she seemed like the one who wanted to tell the most, so... no. Rarity might be able to help, but I don’t want to go near that vindictive little hairball again any time soon. Pinkie Pie would throw a party probably, and Rainbow Dash... well... She’s Rainbow Dash. She isn’t really one for this stuff, as far as I know. AJ is with Fluttershy, and I think she would be better of not knowing for now. The Element Of Honesty isn’t the best at keeping secrets... That just leaves the colt sitting next to me.

You open your eyes and look at Big Mac. He is wearing a small smile, and is chewing a piece of hay. For some reason the smile annoys you.
“Alright, fine. I love Fluttershy. You got me. But why are you helping me out? Last I heard, you two had a thing.”
“Ah, that was just a rumour.”
“Alright. Fine. But what do I do?” Big Mac actually looks surprised for a moment before saying;
“Tell her. What else is there to do?”
“I’m not really very good at that stuff...”
“Have you ever tried?”
“No, but--”
“Then how do you know?”
“I... I... I... Well played. But what about when to tell her?”
“Whenever it feels right. You know how she feels now, and it might be easier to cheer her up. Don’t tell her until you think it is the right time.”
“Alright. Thank you, Big Mac.” You get up and realise you don’t know how to get back. Big Mac waves his hoof to indicate which way to go. You nod gratefully and set off. Before long you see the large red farmhouse from between the trees. You emerge and see Fluttershy walking down off the porch, looking only slightly happier. At least she’s looking up now... You think, as you rush --as much as you can-- to meet her. When she sees you, though, she just looks at the ground again and stops where she is. You slow down and approach her slowly. You can see the fuzzy outline of Applejack in the screen door of the farmhouse, watching you and ‘Shy. You look back at her and see that the Pegasus is putting one foot in front of the other, grudgingly pushing herself forward. Then she is in front of you. You are both standing quite close. You open your mouth to speak but immediately shut it again when she throws her head up and kisses you. The suddenness of it throws you off so much you don’t even remember your own name for a few seconds. Only that you have been waiting for this for longer than you thought. But then she pulls away and you realise you have to speak. But you can’t seem to find your tongue. She was a better kisser than you expected. She is looking at you hopefully, but her face drops after a few seconds, and her blush returns.
“I-I’m sorry... I-I shouldn’t h-have done th-that. I-I guess they w-were wrong... You d-don’t l-l-love me after all...” She spreads her wings and flies away, sobbing. Then you finally find your ability to speak.
“FLUTTERSHY WAIT! DON’T GO! AH, DAMN IT!” You yell this last part at the sky, as Fluttershy is gone. You just missed your chance. No! She has to land eventually. I have to find her. Even if she goes all the way to Celestia-damn Cloudsdale I’ll walk there to find her. How could I do that to her? She finally showed how she felt... And I screwed it up... You are thrown off this train of thought as you are thrown backward, a weight on your chest. You find yourself on your back, looking into the furious eyes of Applejack.
“What in th’ hay are ya playin’ at? Why would ya do that? Are you pretendin’ ya’ love her?”
You struggle to get away, but quickly realise how hopeless this is. You have the unnerving feeling that she could kill you right here and nopony would ever know.
“Of course I’m not! I bloody do love her! I was actually about to tell her, dammit! But that kiss surprised me so much I couldn’t figure out what to say! Damn!” She look into your eyes, as if inspecting your very soul. You try to get away again, but Applejack shifts one of her hooves to softly press against your bad leg, and you remember that she bucks apples most of the time, so her legs could crush bone --especially damaged bone-- quite easily. She puts enough pressure on it to make you start feeling uncomfortable, but not enough to hurt. Then she stands up, and offers a hoof.
“Okay, then. You’re tellin’ th’ truth. But ya’ have t’ find her.”
“I got that. Where would she be?”
“Well, Ah don’ think she’ll go t’ any of th’ others. Ah’ve got a feelin’ she has gone t’ see somepony else... But who?”
“Well, I don’t know. I only just came here a few months ago! I don't know anypony!”
“Would you just shut up! Ah’m tryin’ t’ think.”
“Well, think faster! Where is she?” Applejack looks scared for a moment. Then she looks at you, barely concealed worry on her face.
“Ah-Ah’m sorry Sugarcube... Ah don’t know where she is... Usually Ah can tell... She’s gone.”
> Chapter 7 - Not Now, Not Ever.
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hearing those two words from Applejack’s mouth makes you feel as if you have just died inside. Your mouth is dry all of a sudden as your mind kicks into overdrive. She... She’s gone? No! No matter where she goes, she will never be alone! Even if I have to go into the void and back I will find her! I won’t give up looking! Not now, not ever!  These thoughts give you a burst of energy and adrenaline, and you quickly turn, somehow not noticing how much your leg is screaming at you to stop. You drop the crutches, and although every nerve in your body screeches for you not to, you bolt off, not noticing how much your leg hurts. You dimly realise that your body is going to present it’s bill later, but right now you don’t give a buck. You just want to find Fluttershy, and tell her how you feel, and love her, and be with her. You run wildly, not hearing Applejack’s cries for you to stop, to come back. You don’t hear the thudding hoofsteps of Big Macintosh behind you, or his call for you to stop, not to hurt yourself. You just push yourself harder, filtering all other sounds other than your own ragged breathing into white noise. You don’t hear the rumbling of thunder in the clouds, nor do you feel the steady rainfall that showers down around you. You don’t notice when it starts bucketing down, drenching you from head to hoof. You just keep running, trusting your legs to take you to Fluttershy. You don’t notice as the library door opens as you run past, nor do you hear Twilight’s cries of shock. You keep running, through the torrent raining down around you, in front of you, never ending. You know that you will regret this later, but for now you just finally start using your ears, listening for any trace of the mare you love. Then you trip, and hear something that you vaguely recognise, almost like a tearing sound. You just stumble back to your feet, one of your forehooves strangely not responding to your mind’s commands. You take a few steps forward, and start to feel weak. You look down at the ground and can see red mixing with the puddles forming around you. Then you realise why, and fall to the ground, still not feeling pain from your injured leg.

The bone has broken again, and has taken the chance to tear back through the skin. No... I can’t let this happen... You think, dimly. Fl-Fluttershy... You drag yourself forward with your good hoof, but stop as you hear hoofsteps splashing towards you.
“Fl-Fluttershy? I-is that you?” But you almost cry in anguish when you hear the voice of Twilight say;
“Oh, good. I hoped this would happen. It’s why I followed you.” You summon up as much strength as you can, and splutter;
“Y-you hoped I-I would do th-this to myself a-again? Thanks, T-Twilight...”
“No, this way, it is a fresh wound! I can heal you! Good as new!”
“Wh-what?”
“I was actually just doing some reading, as I knew that you were bound to break it again eventually. I can’t heal it like it was, but a fresh wound... You haven’t exactly been carefu--”
“L-look, Twilight. N-no offense, bu-but, just HURRY THE BUCK UP!” You scream the last few words as the adrenaline finally wears of and your leg finally presents it’s bill for the past few minutes of running.
“O-oh, sorry.” Through the haze of rain, Twilight’s horn starts to glow. She leans in, and you can see her face scrunched in concentration, and something else... Fear? You think, vaguely. Why is she afraid? But then the spell hits you and you cry out as the bone starts to pull itself back into the leg, and the leg reseals itself. It’s an odd feeling, having your bone heal itself inside you so fast. But then Twilight screams in agony and falls on to her side. You roll up, relishing the fact that your leg doesn’t hurt for the first time in a week. But then you remember Twilight. You kneel by the unicorn’s side, and say, worriedly;
“Twilight! What’s wrong?” But the unicorn gets up, a grimace on her face.
“The spell has to put the pain somewhere. I chose me. I might have been able to find something else with more time, but it is kind of desperate at the moment. It was only for a second, but it still hurt.”
“Oh sorry... So, before I go, that spell heals new wounds, right?”
“Or recently reopened ones, yes.”
“Alright.” You say. Then you reach your hoof over your shoulder, grab your broken wing, and twist it as hard as you can. You hear a sickening crunch and cry out as you feel it re-break.
“Alright... Put the pain... In a... Plant... Or something... This... Time.” You pant, through your pain. Twilight’s eyes are wide with shock.
“Y-you... You just broke your own... Never mind.” Her horn lights up again, and you feel the wing healing, and you see a small plant by your hoof wither and die. You feel a second of remorse for it, before testing your wing to make sure it all healed. It works just like it used to.
“Thank you Twilight. Now I have to--”
“No! Wait! Why are you out here anyway?” You think about just taking off and leaving her there, but Twilight has just done you a huge favour in healing your leg and wing. Your various other injuries still hurt, such as your rib, but you barely notice that.
“Alright. When me and ‘Shy went to Sweet Apple Acres, I spoke to Big Mac and finally realised how I feel about her--”
“That’s great!”
“Please don’t interrupt! I may not have much time! When I got back to the farmhouse, Fluttershy came out, and kissed me. I was so surprised... I couldn’t speak. She thought it was rejection, and she flew away. Now I have to catch her!” Twilight stares for a moment, her eyes wide.
“Then GO! Sorry! Just go!” 

You nod and take off, hoping to see more from the sky. Still you can see nothing. You start to lose hope, when a shape comes flying out of the rain and slams into you, and from there slams you into the ground. You count yourself lucky that your wing doesn’t break again from the sheer force of hitting the muddy ground. You can barely see through the haze of rain around you, but after a few seconds you can see the enraged face of Rainbow Dash, holding you on the ground. She looks angry enough to actually kill you. She pulls back her hoof, and punches you in the face. You can’t stop her, your hooves are all being held down.
“How--” Punch.
“Dare--” Punch.
“You--” Punch.
“Do--” Punch.
“That--” Punch.
“To--” Punch.
“SHY!” With this last word, she hits you so hard you feel like you might pass out. You spit another one of your teeth out into the mud next to you. But you manage to stay awake, especially when you think of what Rainbow Dash might do if you do pass out. She hits you again, and you finally manage to get a word in when she pulls it back again.
“WAIT!” She stops mid punch, but you can tell how hard it is for her to hold herself back.
“Ten seconds. Go.”
“I DO love Fluttershy! Her kiss surprised me so much I couldn’t speak. It was just so amazing, I couldn’t think straight for--” She punches you. “AH! I was trying to explain!”
“And until you finish, every ten seconds I’m going to hit you again.” She says it and you can tell she has gone through the maelstrom that is blind rage and into the calm waters of utter, visceral fury. You try to think of where you left off.
“And then she flew off! I came after her! To--” Rainbow Dash hits you in the face again. But you can see that she is beginning to calm down.
“To tell her how I feel. To tell her I love her, and that I want to spend the rest of my life with her! Please, Rainbow Dash! You have believe me! If you know what happened, you have to know where she is! Please! I’m begging you! Tell me!”
You are afraid she is going to hit you once more, but she stands up and holds out her hoof. You take it, and as you are halfway up, her other hoof comes up and hits you in the stomach. Later you realise that this was marvelous restraint, as she could have hit you in the chest, and broken your rib if she wanted to. But right now you are winded, and fall to the ground, trying to breathe.
“That is for making her feel like this in the first place.”
“What? Why... Do you... Even care... So much?” You say, through gulps of air as you slowly get your breath back. Even the Element Of Loyalty wouldn’t be this... aggressive, right? Rainbow Dash looks almost mournful for a moment, but then says quietly, so quietly you have to strain to hear over the rain;
“Did you ever consider maybe you weren’t the only one who loves her?” You fall backwards, into the mud, having been halfway up again. Oh no... Rainbow Dash.
“‘Dash... I-I’m sorr-”
“NO! I don’t want your damn sympathy. She couldn’t love me anyway. We’re just friends. It could n-never happen. She's into c-colts, not m-mares anyway.” You can swear through the rain that you can see tears running down Rainbow’s cheeks. But you know if you were to say anything about it, or try to comfort her, she would probably hit you again. You just decide to stay quiet.
“N-now--” She sniffs and wipes her face, then looks at you, as if daring you to say anything about her moment of weakness. She takes a deep breath, and says: “--You want to find her that badly? Then... She’s in the Everfree. She has gone to visit Zecora. You know--”
“Yes, I know who she is. Thank you Rainbow Dash. Thank you. You are probably the best Element Of Loyalty there has ever been.” You know you might regret this, but you have to say it.
“Wh-what? How do you figure?”
“I just think, you could just as easily told me you didn’t know where she was, or sent me to Appleoosa, or Cloudsdale. In fact, you didn’t have to stop hitting me. But you know how Fluttershy feels, and you decided to give me a chance.” You just stand there and prepare for the inevitable hit, when something flies through the rain. You throw your hoof up, in the half hearted hope you could block it. But Rainbow Dash’s flight goggles land on the top of it. You look at them in shock, and then at the hazy outline of Rainbow Dash --The rain is getting progressively worse-- and start to ask why. She interrupts with;
“Take them. They’ll help you see. Twilight put a spell on them last year.”
“Alright, thank you.”
“And... Promise me one thing?”
“Of course.”
“Don’t screw this up. She really loves... y-you.” She has stepped closer now, and she is obviously holding back tears as she says this. But she has a determined look in eyes swimming with tears, and her mouth is a grim slash of determination.
“Of course, Rainbow.” You fly off, knowing that she needs some time to be alone in the darkness, where she can be truly alone. As you fly away, you regret hearing her scream at the sky. You wish you hadn’t had to hear it.
“I’m sorry Rainbow Dash...” You say, as you set a course for the dark bulk that is the Everfree Forest.

A/N
--Just so you know, I wasn’t originally going to have that last part. But I needed something to get ‘you’ to the Everfree, and with what ‘you’ know about ‘Shy, it wouldn’t make much sense to go wandering into Everfree in the vague hope of finding her. So, I decided to include something sad, as well. Well, I saw it as sad. I just felt as if the story was getting too... too happy, too... textbook. So I threw in the Rainbow Dash encounter, with the intention of having something else happen. Originally, she told you something vaguely sad about Fluttershy’s past, with Rainbow Dash had helped her through, which was why they were so close. But then I thought about it, and realised how I could make it sadder by taking the strong, determined Rainbow Dash, and give her a moment of... I guess you could call it weakness. I just wanted to give her a bit of an important part, seeing as she was the only one who didn’t really interact with ‘you’ explicitly. Don’t hate me for it. I know that there is some gigantic debate on the internet about Rainbow Dash’s sexuality. --Although, I think the only one with a confirmed gender preference is Rarity, who had a crush on Blueblood-- Like I said, I just wanted something sad, and I doubt Pinkie would have been so violent without going all Pinkamena on ‘you’, and based on her fanon, people probably would have said it wasn’t enough, and I doubt Rarity would have been out in the mud like that, not unless she was severely angry. Just wanted to say that, and give some explanation. Don’t hate me.--
E/A/N

> Chapter 8 - Forever, For Always.
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

As you fly over the dark treetops, you search for the small clearing that shows where Zecora’s hut stands. You look and look, and realise with despair that you have to walk through it, along the paths of you hope to find it as soon as possible. You turn around and shoot for the entrance, touching down and looking at the dark forest with apprehension. Some idiot at work had thought it was funny, after finding out about your colthood fear, to convince you Slendermane lived in Everfree. You know what? I don’t CARE! I’ll destroy Slendermane himself if it means I can get to Fluttershy. With this, you gallop into the forest, not caring for the creatures inside, up to and including, Manticores, Cockatrices, and possibly Slendermane.

As you gallop through Everfree, you notice a definite lack of all three types of creature you were expecting to meet. Maybe they know what I’ll do to them if they try to stop me. You think. You pt your head down and kick it into high gear. After a few long minutes of galloping, you finally see the odd shape of Zecora’s hut. You had met her on a few separate occasions, and she had always said to come to her if you needed help with any ailments. You reach the door, and take a few seconds to catch your breath. Finally... Fluttershy... Please don’t hate me... You knock loudly, and the door opens a crack. You see Zecora, and you don’t like the look on her face.
“And what is it that this colt is looking for,
Perhaps you wish to hurt Fluttershy more?”
“No! How many times do I have to say this. Her kiss surprised me. I couldn’t speak! I love her more than anything in the world, dammit! Let me in! I have to talk to her!”
“I am sorry but she left not long ago,
Where she is now, I do not know.”
“WHAT? NO!” You can’t help yourself, and you kick a tree next to you in your frustration. You hear a large crack and can see you put a sizable dent in it. You turn back to Zecora.
“Can you find out?”
“Sorry, but although I wish I could do it for you,
Fluttershy made me promise not to.”
“Please! This is important!”
“You think I do not know that?
You think she was just here for a friendly chat?
She is extremely distressed,
For too long her feelings were repressed.”
“Look, I know I was an idiot not to notice, but you have to help me!”
“I cannot tell you, for that I am sorry,
But, you really should not worry.
If it truly meant to be,
You will find her, definitely.”
“Alright... How do you know?”
“Just follow your heart, it will know what to do,
Towards Fluttershy, it will lead you.”
“Thank you Zecora.”
“You are welcome, Gentlecolt,
But to find her quickly, you really should bolt.” You nod, turn and run as fast as you can, out of the forest. The trip doesn’t seem to take as long this time, and you can see Ponyville again. Maybe... Her cottage? You change your course and run towards her cottage, which luckily is close by. You bolt up the path and burst through the door. The animals all rush towards you, but stop when they see you aren’t Fluttershy. They all look at you pleadingly, and you realise that without Fluttershy, there is nopony to feed them. You contemplate leaving to find Flutters, but decide against it, knowing that she would want you to. You run over to the cupboards you saw the food in earlier when Fluttershy was making breakfast. You pull the bags out, and quickly read the descriptions, and give each the right food. You rush it and spill quite a bit, but you are in a hurry, and decide to clean it up later. You are about to go out the back door when that stupid little bunny jumps down and lands in front of you, his arms crossed, and unimpressed look in his face. You wonder if you should just give him a swift kick in the face, but decide against it and go to leave through the front door. He shoots in front of you and stands in your way again.
“Angel! This is important! Move!” The stupid bunny just stands there, refusing to move. You know that you would never have a chance at having Fluttershy forgive you if you hurt him, so you attempt to walk past him. He jumps up to head height and smacks you in the mouth. You stumble backwards, your mouth stinging from the hit.
“What was that for?” You ask, barely holding back your frustration. He gestures wildly and you realise it is like some kind of wild charades. First he points at you.
“Umm... Okay, so... Me? Yes! Me, Myself, I? Yes! Okay, I...” He then walks up to you and kicks your leg.
“I’ll assume that was part of your little game. Pain? Kicked? Leg? Hurt? Yes! Okay... I hurt... Wait, NO! I didn’t hurt her on purpose, you little hairball! With Celestia as my witness, I love Fluttershy!” Angel blinks a few times in shock.
“Now, please, Angel. Tell me where she is. Please. I beg of you, tell me!” You are on the edge of actually begging now. He nods slowly, all traces of contempt gone. He starts gesturing again, this time not stopping. You try to figure it out as he goes along.
“Okay... Fluttershy... has... run away... to... to... Everfree forest? I was just there! It’ll take me hours to find her! Wait, what? More? She’s in... in... Royal... Pony... Sisters? What does that have to do with... the castle of the royal pony sisters? Yes? Gotta go!” You spread your wings and fly past Angel, pushing the door open and hearing it slam shut behind you as you fly towards the bulk on the horizon that is the castle ruins. Finally... Fluttershy... I hope you still love me.

You swoop down and land in front of the crumbling archway that provides entry into the ruins. You walk in, trying to see through the gloom. Still the rain pounds down around you. You are more than drenched by now. In fact, to you, it feels as if you have gone so far past drenched that you are actually quite dry. You try to hear through the din, and can hear something faint. It sounds almost like... Crying? But then it fades, and you look around desperately, trying to figure out where it has gone. You blindly stumble forward, and can hear it again, slightly stronger. Yes! I’m coming Fluttershy! You rush forward, but have to stop when you realise that there is no floor on front of you. You look down, and see large stone stairs leading down into the depths of the ruins. You leap down them, not caring for any danger of falling. You reach the bottom quickly, where the rain is nothing but a dull roar, high above. You look around, and see an old, dusty, ruined hall. You then see a sight that makes your heart leap into your throat. Fluttershy is lying down in the middle of the hall, her head on the ground, a large gash on it, from which blood is flowing freely. She is crying, louder than you would have expected. Holy hell... What have I done to her? You walk forward, not wanting to startle her by running. But as you get close, she hears your hoofsteps and looks up, her eyes swollen, her face red from crying, and some of the blood from her forehead. Then she speaks, and you almost turn away and run at the amount of anger in her tone. You never would have expected it from her, nor what she says;
“A-and, what the h-hay do y-you want? C-come here to m-make fun of m-me? I g-get it. Y-you don’t l-love me. At l-least leave m-me alone about i-it.” It breaks your heart to hear the way she is speaking, but you simply open your mouth and interrupt her, inciting a look of hatred from the normally sweet yellow face.
“Fluttershy... You don’t get it. I do love you. More than anything else in the world, I love you. But when you kissed me, it was like all of my dreams were coming true, and I wasn’t able to speak. I love you Fluttershy, and you have no idea how sorry I am that I was too damn thick to notice earlier. I wish you hadn’t of had to hold such a secret inside for so long. And I’m sorry that you don’t love me anymore. I guess it is just karma. I made you feel this way with my blindness, and now I, too, know how it feels. I’m sorry.” You look at her, and go to turn around. But in an instant, you feel something reaching around your neck, and Fluttershy’s lips plant against your own. The kiss almost throws you off again, but you remain in control of your thoughts and put your own hooves behind her head, and kiss her back. It is the most amazing thing you have ever felt. Just to be here, in this perfect moment, in this perfect place, with this perfect mare. She pulls away and you both take a breath. Then she locks eyes with you and says, in her normal, sweet voice;
“I love you too.”

But the moment is ruined when you see how much her forehead is still bleeding.
“Flutters, how did that happen?” You ask, fearing her answer.
“Umm... I was just so sad, and so angry, but I didn’t want to break anything... So I hit my head against the floor as hard as I could.”
“Fluttershy, why did you do that? If you wanted to hurt something, you should have found me! I deserved whatever you had.” 
You both turn and start to walk out as you talk.
“Wh-what? No! I couldn’t hurt somepony else...”
“Alright, but we have to get you to Twilight. She should be able to heal that up.” 
Then Fluttershy look at your face and gasps.
“What happened to you?” You look to the side of the hall, and look in the mirrored glass lining it. You have two black eyes, there is a large bruise on your cheek, and you have some dried blood on your lip from where it split. You realise that Rainbow Dash is the one who inflicted all of the injuries on you and wince as you think about how hard she must have been hitting you.
“Oh... nothing. I just had a bit of a crash coming into Everfree. Not as bad as my first one, don’t worry.” You smile reassuringly and she smiles back, a relieved look on her face, but then she looks confused, and says;
“Wait, you’re walking! How?”
“Twilight healed me. She found me in the rain and healed my leg and my wing.”
“Wow, I’l have to thank her...”
You both spread your wings and fly away, out of Everfree, and towards Ponyville. You fly close to Flutters and put your wing around her, and then speed up, not wanting it to be too late to heal her head wound. You are in Ponyville in a few minutes. You both land in front of Twilight’s library and you open the door for her. She goes in and you hear Twilight cry out in shock;
“Fluttershy! What happened?”
“Oh... Um... I was... um... I was very angry... and.... and I didn’t want to... hurt anything....”
You walk in and stand next to her.
“It was my fault. If I hadn’t of been so blind, she wouldn’t have done it. Could you heal her please Twilight?” She looks shocked for a second, but then nods;
“Of course!” Her horn glows brightly and the gash seals itself, and you wipe Fluttershy’s face and kiss her. Properly. Twilight squeals in excitement and jumps up and down. You guess mainly because she doesn’t have to keep secrets anymore. She then grimaces for a moment as Fluttershy’s gash is healed properly, but then continues her bouncing. “Yesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyes! You’re both happy! Yes!” You smile at Twilight’s outburst, and feel Fluttershy nudge you. You look at her, a smile on your face.
“Umm... Would you like to go home? It’s pretty late... And I need to feed my animal friends! I can’t believe I forgot! I just stopped by to tell Angel where I was going and I left! Oh no!”
“Fluttershy! Calm down. I did it when I went. Then Angel told me where you were. It’s okay.”
“Oh... Thank you...” She smiles and you both leave the library, with Twilight still bouncing in happy circles around the room. 

You leave Ponyville, your wing over her head to shield her from the rain, and finally reach her cottage, and you go in happily. Fluttershy immediately goes to get dinner ready, and Angel hops up to you. You expect him to hit you, but he just looks over his shoulder, to make sure nothing is watching, and then sticks out a little white paw. Realising what this means right away, you touch it with your hoof and shake it softly. Then, he smacks you in the head.
“Ow! Alright, I deserved that for Fluttershy, but could you try to at least tone down the hits?” He looks as though he is thinking for a few moments, then shrugs tiredly, as if to say, ‘I’ll think about it’. You nod, understanding that that is the best you are going to get from the bunny. You walk into the kitchen, and hug Fluttershy from behind. She jumps in surprise, almost dropping the ingredients she is holding.
“I’m not really hungry. In fact, Iim exhausted. Want to just go and sleep? For a long time?” She nods slightly and turns around to look at you, a small smile on her beautiful face.
“Let’s go and rest. We both need it.” You leave the kitchen, and after assuring Fluttershy you can walk up them fine on your own, ascend the stairs as well. You go into her bedroom, and both get into the bed. You hug her tightly, and she hugs back.
“Love you, Flutters.”
“Love you too.” You both fall asleep in each others’ arms, and you dream of spending the rest of your life with the mare you love more than anything.





A/N
--Working on the epilogue now. Don’t want to disappoint by ending it here. That’s why this is here, so you don’t think I have finished it.--

> Epilogue - A Perfect Moment
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

You wake up and smile when you see Fluttershy wrapped in your hooves. You lean down and kiss her gently on the cheek. She stirs, and opens her eyes groggily. Then she looks up at you and smiles as well.
“Good morning...” She says.
“Good morning, love.” You kiss her again, this time on the mouth. You both lie there for what feels like years. But then she pulls away and slides off the bed. You decide to follow suit, but, having never been a morning person, you slide too far and end up in a heap on the floor. You untangle your legs and stand up, stretching every part of your body as you do so. Your rib still hurts, but not as much as when you first woke up a week ago in the hospital. Has it only been a week? You wonder. You walk out of Fluttershy’s bedroom, as she left after she got off the bed, and walk down the stairs. You keep an eye out, in case that hairball trips you up again. But when you reach the foot of the stairs, he is just lying on the couch, a piece of celery in his mouth. You hold back a giggle at the way it reminds you of Big Macintosh. You can hear Flutters humming sweetly in the kitchen, and walk in. She is cooking pancakes again today. You take your seat at the table and stuff as many pancakes down you throat as you can --Yesterday’s little run/fly in the rain left you starving-- and when you have both finished, you take Fluttershy by tho hoof and ask her to go into town with you, to tell her friends. She happily agrees, saying that she was about to suggest the same thing. You leave the cottage --but not before you both make sure all of the animals are properly fed-- and walk, hoof in hoof, in to town. Before long, you come to Twilight’s Library, as Fluttershy said she had a feeling that they would be there. You don’t question, as she knows her friends better than you. As you walk in, you can hear Applejack’s familiar voice asking;
“Now Twi’, ya dragged us away from our chores--” You hear somepony clear their throat “-- and out of our beds, and ya aren’t even gonna tell us why?”
“If they don’t show up soon, I’ll send Spike to get them.”
“Who?” You and Fluttershy walk up to them, seated at the table in the middle of the room, and say;
“Us.” There is a moment of silence, then Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Twilight and Rarity jump up, and you jump out of the way as Fluttershy disappears in the middle of a group hug. You walk slowly over to Rainbow Dash, and she looks at you with sadness in her eyes. Not caring for her reaction, you step forward and pull her into a tight hug. She steps back in surprise, and you whisper in her ear;
“I’m sorry, ‘Dash.” Then she hugs you back, and after a few seconds, you pull back, a second after the others. The five mares look at you questioningly, and, having planned for this, you say;
“If it wasn’t for ‘Dash, I never would have found Fluttershy. Just a thank you.” As they smile and start talking excitedly, Rainbow looks at you, a grateful look on her cyan face.
“Thank you.” She says.
“No problem. You’ll find somepony someday. I know it. I’m sorry that I took Flutters from you.”
“You didn’t take her from me. She was never mine.” She shakes her head, and looks at you with her normal determined smile, even if it does look a little forced.
“But, I have to see if you are good enough for Fluttershy.”
“How?”
“A race, of course!” The other five mares, who had been listening to the last part, laugh and then your vision is obscured as they realise they haven’t given you a hug yet.
They pull away, and Pinkie starts talking madly about parties, and you hear the term ‘biggest ever!’ and have to suppress a shudder at the clean up for that one, Twilight is talking with Rarity about... What? Wedding dresses? Oh dear... Applejack is talking to Pinkie Pie about catering for the party --at least, you hope it’s for the party--. Rainbow Dash is looking at you, a small smile on her face. Fluttershy walks over next to you, and you look over to Rainbow. She nods slightly, and you nudge Flutters, and you both sneak out the door, and walk out of town. You find a small hill to sit on, and knell down next to each other. You watch the sun rise, and relish a proper perfect moment, in the perfect place, with the perfect mare.

The end.



Hope you enjoyed this little tale,

Sincerely, Pyro1101




A/N
--How was that? My first Second-Person fic. The ending took me ages, but I like the simplicity of it. Let me know how it is.--
E/A/N