"Save the Bluewood Forest! Stop the oil pipeline!" Fluttershy called out, hopefully holding up a clipboard towards a passing stallion. However, the unicorn in the crisp, dark blue suit had no time to think of forest conservation and of protecting little animals from being forced from their homes, for he barely gave Fluttershy a sideways glance as he trotted by.
Fluttershy sighed and looked at the petition. After two hours of work of working beneath the beating, merciless sun and the heavy, salt-flavored San Franciscolt air, she had only managed to get eighteen ponies to pledge their names to stopping a proposed oil pipeline that would carve through the Bluewood Forest, irreversibly damaging the beautiful landscape and displacing many animals that depended upon the trees for shelter and food. For every one that agreed to sign, twenty more had passed by without a word.
"Oh, it's hopeless," she sighed, hanging her head. "Maybe we shouldn't have bothered coming."
A hoof settled on her shoulder, light as a leaf falling onto the surface of a still pond. Fluttershy looked up to find herself facing a serene smile and a pair of peaceful light purple eyes.
"Chill, Fluttershy," Tree Hugger said in her usual calm tone, her voice like water gently flowing over stones. "You can't force ponies to care about something."
"But we need these signatures!" Fluttershy declared.
"We have eighteen of them," Tree Hugger pointed out, tapping the petition on the clipboard. "Eighteen signatures we wouldn't have gotten if we hadn't come here."
Fluttershy sighed and looked back down at the list. A small smile crossed her face. Trust her friend to always look on the positive side of things. "You're right, Tree Hugger, as always. I just wish we could convince more ponies to help out."
"Every pony that we can make aware of this pipeline and get them thinking about it is a victory," Tree Hugger replied calmly. "It's good karma, Fluttershy. It'll all work out in the end, Fluttershy, trust me."
Fluttershy nodded, but whatever optimistic warmth had Tree wrapped in its embrace, it seemed to be passing Fluttershy over, because all she could feel was melancholy pressing on her shoulders like a blanket of lead.
"Your aura's all out of whack, Flutters," Tree Hugger said. "How about this? We try for another, like, half an hour, then we take a little break. Settle our chakras and get our perspectives right."
"That's a nice idea, Tree Hugger," Fluttershy agreed.
"Radical," Tree Hugger smiled serenely, turning back to a passing mare walking her dog. "Excuse me, ma'am, do you have a moment to talk about the Bluewood forest?"
A half hour later, they had managed to collect another two signatures for their petition before retiring. The pair walked down the sidewalk, past the lines of glass-fronted stores that proudly displayed their wares, along with flashy, colorful signs that demanded attention. Ignoring all the shops, Tree Hugger guided Fluttershy out of the inner city towards a park. The park was like an island of green and brown, isolated from the sea of concrete, brick and pavement that the city was sprawled across. The sun, which formerly had hung mercilessly down over them, casting them in its baking heat, now quietly hid behind the tall oak trees. A cool air whispered through the leaves, which were just starting to turn shades of gold and brown in anticipation of the coming fall.
Fluttershy closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, allowing the wind to fill up her core. She breathed out slowly, allowing every tension to leave her body and gently expelling every thought from her mind; just like Tree Hugger had taught her.
"This was a great idea," she sighed, walking alongside Tree Hugger down the main dirt path. "Thank you, Tree Hugger."
"Don't thank me," Tree Hugger replied. "You just needed a little break from the city."
The pair strolled slowly along the pathway, simply soaking in the sights, sounds and smells of the park. Ponies walked by, sat on benches or in the shade of trees. Foals played on the playground, cheering and laughing as they chased one another around the jungle gym, swing set and see-saws, watched lovingly by their parents. Birdsong, rustling leaves, quiet voices and a babbling of a crystal brook all joined in a soft background chorus, and the scent of flowers was carried on the wind.
Tree Hugger began to hum quietly: not the vibrating whinnies that she used to calm distressed animals, a soulful baritone replication of one of her favorite songs, What A Wonderful World. Fluttershy smiled, enjoying the impromptu concert.
However, the concert was shortly interrupted by the growling of two stomachs. Fluttershy flushed with embarrassment. Tree Hugger chuckled softly, which made Fluttershy blush even harder.
"How about we get some lunch?" Fluttershy suggested, letting out a quivering laugh to try to cover up her embarrassment. "I see a carrot dog cart over there." She nodded to a white cart sitting on the other side of a large duck pond.
"Rad," Tree Hugger nodded. She settled herself down on a bench to wait, continuing to hum.
Fluttershy approached the carrot dog cart, which was sitting in the shade of a large oak tree. There was a small line of ponies in front of the cart, which gave Fluttershy some time to think. Their protest today might not have been the great success that she had been hoping for, but the Equestrian Society for the Preservation of Rare Animals would continue the fight for the Bluewood Forest regardless. The important thing, as Tree Hugger had reminded her, was to keep up hope.
That was the great thing about Tree Hugger; nothing upset her. Like a rock in the midst of a river, she remained steadfast in the worst storms that life could throw at her. She also shared Fluttershy's passion for nature and animals; it had been a joy for her to find somepony that she could truly discuss her love for nature with at the Society's meeting.
Fluttershy took a breath and drifted back to the first trip she had gone on with the Society: an overnight stay at the Quartzsong Falls, a waterfall in the midst of a grand forest. The waters sparkled beneath the starlight like glittering jewels falling from the heavens, letting out an unearthly, almost hypnotic song as they hit the rocks beneath. She and Tree Hugger had climbed all the way to the top of the falls and stayed out there long after the sun had fallen, talking quietly and watching the rainbow fireflies dancing through the night sky...
"Hey, miss."
Fluttershy crash-landed back into reality to find herself staring at the bemused cook. "Are you going to order something or what?" the cook asked.
"Oh! Oh, sorry," Fluttershy apologized, realizing that she had fallen too far into her memory. "Two large carrot dogs and two hay shakes, please."
A couple minutes later, Fluttershy had collected her order and was walking back around the pond with the bag in her mouth. The delectable smells of the cooked lunch filled her nostrils, making her mouth water and her stomach grumble louder.
But as she approached the bench where she had left Tree Hugger, she was distracted by the sound of loud voices. Two large ponies in short sleeved jackets had surrounded Tree Hugger, both of them laughing and jeering loudly.
"So where do you keep your weed, hippy?" one of them, a jet black pegasus greasy blonde hair was sneering.
"I don't do that stuff, man," Tree Hugger replied calmly. "I find it messes me up. But if that's what you like to do, then I encourage you to do what makes you happy."
Fluttershy observed Tree Hugger's behavior. While her face was an image of serene stoicism, her body told a different story: she was bearing her sides to her aggressors, her head was lowered slightly, and her tail was tucked close to her body. Fluttershy instantly recognized the posture of a frightened animal, displaying submission to a larger threat in hopes of avoiding being hurt.
Both of the bullies laughed heartily. "What's with your mane, freak?" the broad-shouldered mud brown earth pony asked. "You use it as a nest for birds?" He reached out and tugged cruelly at one of Tree Hugger's red-brown braids.
"Ouch!" Tree Hugger cried, yanked off balance by the pull.
"Oh, what's the matter, hippie?" the earth pony grinned at her, continuing to pull on her mane, ignoring her pained yelps. "You thought we were just gonna dance around with flowers in our manes and sing Kumbaya?" He laughed, giving her mane another hard tug. "Stupid hippy, living in a dream world!"
A flash of red fury burned through Fluttershy's body, her heart rate skyrocketing and her eyes narrowing. "Hey!" she bellowed in a voice so powerful that everypony around them immediately stopped in their tracks. Fluttershy stomped over to the bullies, the bag of food forgotten on the ground behind her. "Leave her alone!"
"Oh, look another one," the pegasus smirked. "Don't you have some rare three-headed bug to go save?"
"I said, leave her alone!" Fluttershy shouted again, her own voice almost unrecognizable to herself. She placed herself between Tree Hugger and her aggressors, spreading her wings out to make herself appear larger. "Don't you two have anything better to do than pick on other ponies? Do you have any shame?"
Her eyes were burning, not with tears, but with rage; the hidden power of her Stare stirred within her, begging to be unchained, released upon these two cowardly ruffians, to make them whimper and crawl for daring to hurt her friend.
The two bullies looked at her for a long moment, then the pegasus snorted. "Eh, you're not worth it. C'mon," he grunted to his friend, leading him away. "Let's leave the two hippies to go hug a tree."
"I don't think they just hug 'em!" the earth pony guffawed, glancing over his shoulder at the two mares. The two bullies laughed as they wandered off in search of another victim. Fluttershy stared after them angrily, panting as she slowly climbed down from her adrenaline high.
"Dude, you shouldn't get yourself all worked up like that," Tree Hugger commented, placing her hoof on Fluttershy's shoulder.
Her gentle touch instantly calmed Fluttershy down. "Are you okay?" she asked her friend.
"I'm fine," Tree Hugger replied. Her usual smile had vanished, replaced by a dull look of shame. Fluttershy retrieved the bag of food from the ground and returned to the bench, climbing up onto it next to Tree Hugger.
"You didn't need to get all upset over that, Fluttershy," Tree Hugger admonished her gently as she took a carrot dog out of the bag. "They were just two misguided ponies who thought they could make themselves feel better by dragging others down."
"Maybe so," Fluttershy said, putting some mustard on her own carrot dog. "But you can't let ponies like that push you around either. You have to stand up for yourself sometimes!"
Tree Hugger sighed, looking down at her meal for a moment. "I guess you're right," she admitted, taking a bite of the dog.
The two sat and ate quietly. Tree Hugger eventually calmed down and began to hum again as she ate, closing her eyes to savor each bite. Fluttershy relaxed into the bench, watching the ponies walking by and the ducks frolicking in the pond. Her eyes settled on a small family of ducks wading through the pond, the drake and hen leading a trio of ducklings through the shallow water.
"Hey, thanks," Tree Hugger said.
"For what?" Fluttershy asked.
"For sticking up for me," Tree Hugger replied.
"That's what friends do," Fluttershy smiled at Tree.
"Yeah," Tree Hugger nodded, nestling against Fluttershy. "That's what friends do."
Fluttershy shifted a little to adjust to Tree Hugger's gentle weight against her. She could feel the rise and fall of her friend's gentle breathing. Her braided mane that languidly waved in the wind smelled of fresh dew and fall foliage.
"I really like you, Fluttershy," Tree Hugger said in a voice that was almost a whisper.
"I...I like you too, Tree Hugger," Fluttershy replied. For some reason, she could feel heat rushing up to her face.
"You're so, like...brave," Tree Hugger continued.
"Brave?" Fluttershy blinked in surprise. "I'm not that brave."
"You totally are, dude," Tree Hugger protested, rising up to look her in the eyes. "Standing up for me, organizing these protests on behalf of the forest...you even stood up to Discord. Like, you and your friends have saved Equestria a dozen times now!"
Fluttershy blushed even harder. "Oh, but I..." She swallowed. "Tree, I'm not that brave. When you say that I saved Equestria, half the time, I was scared out of my mind. And I was scared today, standing out in front of all those ponies, trying to get them to sign that petition."
"But you still did it," Tree Hugger pointed out, a calm smile on her face. "You were scared, and you still stood up and did what's right." Tree Hugger reached out slowly, and took Fluttershy's hoof in hers. "And that's what I love about you, Flutters."
Fluttershy blinked, her heart suddenly leaping into her throat and her blood rushing to her face. She turned to face Tree Hugger, who was smiling at her, her green cheeks tinted with red.
"Fluttershy," Tree Hugger asked, her voice quiet, but not husky, a simple query. "Would you be cool with me kissing you?"
Fluttershy forgot how to breathe for a few seconds, her mouth dropping open of its own accord. "Um...um...um..." she stammered, her wings spreading open and the primary feathers twitching in agitation. Her face couldn't have turned any redder if somepony had painted her face.
Tree Hugger's smile faltered, a flicker of nervousness passing across those light purple orbs. "Oh. It's cool if you don't want to, I—"
"W-wait!" Fluttershy cried out. She gripped Tree Hugger's hoof in her own, then quickly lessened the grip, fearing that she was holding too tightly. Her heart was beating in her ears, her breath catching in her chest. She closed her eyes and slowly took in a breath, letting it out slowly. She took in another breath, slowly, counting to seven. She held the breath in her chest for a count of four, then slowly breathed it out, letting go of all the tension in her body and in her mind. She allowed her mind to flow free, observing the colorful wash of images presented before her. Just like Tree Hugger had taught her.
A single image stood before her: the waters of the Quartzong Falls sparkling beneath the starlight. The rainbow fireflies dancing in the indigo sky. A voice like water flowing over rocks, and the scent of fresh dew and fall foliage. And the music of the falls: What A Wonderful World.
She let that image flowed over her, like warm water, and she felt her heartbeat slowly settle. She nodded and opened her eyes. "All right," she said quietly.
Tree Hugger smiled wider. She began to lean in closer, her eyes slowly closing. Fluttershy remained stock still, her chest slowly heaving. What should she do? Should she lean in as well? Should she put her foreleg around Tree Hugger?
But then Tree Hugger's lips were upon hers, and all other thought ceased. She closed her eyes and lost herself in the taste and touch of the kiss, gently squeezing Tree's hoof in her own. She let go of everything else and began to kiss her back, caught up in the flow of her emotions, of her love.
Eventually, Tree Hugger broke off the kiss, and they separated with a sigh. Fluttershy smiled and giggled softly. Tree Hugger chuckled throatily, a tinge of pink still hanging about her cheeks. Fluttershy pressed forward and nestled against Tree Hugger, wrapping a wing around her body and pulling her close. Tree Hugger tucked her head beneath Fluttershy's, letting a long, contented sigh like the wind through the trees.
Fluttershy went back to watching the ducks in the pond, observing how the family of ducklings was content with one another. She looked around at the ponies walking by: families with children, friends out to enjoy a warm afternoon.
Tree Hugger began to hum again, her vibrating baritone just like the music of the Quartzsong Falls. Fluttershy recognized the tune and smiled, lowering her chin into her braided mane. It really was a wonderful world.