//------------------------------// // 4 - Blank Flank // Story: Graph Theory // by stillinbeta //------------------------------// Twilight was vaguely aware that she was pacing. It wasn’t like she wasn’t already familiar with every single detail of the castle hall that housed the portal. And it’d been too long to pretend she was just “stretching her legs.” Yes, she admitted to herself, I’m a little worried. And why shouldn’t she be? It was her girlfriend’s first trip to Equestria! And she was already half an hour late. Of course, everypony was always a bit late or a bit early passing through to Equestria. Time never seemed to line up quite properly between the two worlds. Twilight wondered if maybe that meant Celestia and Luna were a bit less than precise with their daily change of guard. Such talk was of course treasonous, not to mention very rude. At that exact moment, Fluttershy  emerged through the mirror. She briefly tried to balance on two legs, then shortly crumpled onto the floor on none. “Oh no! Fluttershy, are you okay?” Twilight galloped over to the collapsed mare. Fluttershy gave a meek smile from underneath a waterfall of pink mane. “Wow, Sunset was right about being twisted into knots.” “I’ve always found going to the human world was worse. I guess it makes sense that it’d be reversed for you...” Fluttershy whimpered by way of reply. Twilight shook a budding hypothesis out of her head. “Oh, right, here.” A quick flash of Twilight’s horn and magic briefly enveloped Fluttershy’s head. “Feel any better?” “M-much better, actually. That felt really weird, though. What was that?” “Just a quick headache spell.” “You... cast a spell on me?” Fluttershy’s eyes widened. Probably. There was still a lot of mane in the way. “Um. Yes? It beats a can of ginger ale, doesn’t it?” “Oh... I guess.” A silence fell over the mirror room. Twilight felt certain she had done something wrong, but couldn’t place her hoof on what it was. Was Fluttershy afraid of magic? She was the Element of Magic. So did that mean... Fluttershy was afraid of her? After what felt like a minute, Twilight tried speaking again.“So... was Sunset coming?” “She was right behind me, I think.” Twilight looked to the mirror. Nopony emerged from it. “Do you uh, want to try standing up again?” Fluttershy was still lying in a crumpled heap on the floor. “I’m actually very comfortable here.” “Well, um, it’s just that you’re laying where Sunset will land, any second now...” Fluttershy squeaked and struggled to her hooves. Her knees wobbled and she almost tipped over, but managed to walk a few paces out of the mirror’s landing zone. She looked like a foal taking her first rickety steps. It was almost interminably cute. Twilight did her best not to giggle, worrying it would embarrass the poor mare further. “The trip is, um, especially bad this time of year, for what it’s worth,” Twilight offered. “Oh. That’s... too bad.” “Just bad timing.” “Yeah.” Sensing another awkward silence coming, Twilight decided to take action. She trotted over to the prone pegasus and sat down beside her. After a moment’s hesitation, she lifted a lavender wing and draped it over her companion. Beside her, Fluttershy slid a little closer into her side. “This is... nice, Twilight.” “I’m glad. I’m sorry if I freaked you out earlier.” “It’s okay. I was just... surprised. This is all so new to me.” “I know. How are you, uh, feeling?” Beside Twilight, Fluttershy shifted to face her. She smiled weakly. “I’m... okay, I think. I hope Sunset gets here soon, though.” “Me too.” They lay there together for a few minutes, giving Twilight’s mind ample time to wander. The three of them had been on a couple dates now, but aside from that night in Sunset’s apartment those few weeks ago, she and Fluttershy hadn’t spent much time alone together. They were dating, of course, and they both really liked each other. But without Sunset’s guiding presence Twilight felt a little... driftless. This though, this was nice. Twilight had been a unicorn, an alicorn, and a human. After extensive research she was quite certain wing-based cuddles were the best the universe had to offer. Behind the two of them, the clatter of hooves on crystal heralded Sunset’s arrival. Twilight turned to greet her, not quite ready to let go of Fluttershy. “I am so sorry I’m late!” Sunset quickly shook herself and stood, showing all the confidence of a veteran of mirror travel. “As soon as Fluttershy went through, a bunch of freshmen decided to come by and hang out in front of the school. I had to wait until they left to walk through. How are you two...” Sunset’s eyes fell on the two ponies lying on the crystal floor only a stone’s throw away from her. Sunset quirked an eyebrow, and Twilight shrugged, giving Fluttershy a squeeze with her unfurled wing. “Hey, Sunny,” Fluttershy said. Fluttershy tried, failed, and tried again to rise. On her third attempt she managed to stand up and hobble over to Sunset. Trying to give Sunset a hug, however, proved too much for her already tenuous balance. She crumpled unceremoniously to the floor. “Oh, honey.” Sunset quickly helped her back to her hooves. “We’ve got something a little easier we do here.” Sunset leaned her neck over and gave Fluttershy a quick nuzzle. The pegasus quickly caught on and returned the gesture. The two walked, one unsteadily, back over to Twilight, who embraced them both with her wings. “I think you’re getting the hang of it, Fluttershy.” Twilight gently squeezed her. “Next thing you know you’ll be flying in no time.” “Flying? What do you mean?” Fluttershy looked at her flank, apparently for the first time, and noticed the small pair of wings folded at her side. “Eeep!” “Don’t worry, Fluttershy, Twilight’s just teasing.” Sunset shot Twilight a look. “You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.” “Oh, It’s okay, Sunset. I was just... surprised.” As if to emphasise her point, Fluttershy fluttered her wings a bit. She looked pretty surprised that she’d managed it, too. And beneath them, Twilight almost thought she saw... “Hey, Fluttershy, can you do that again?” Sunset asked from Twilight’s other side. “Do this?” Fluttershy fluffed her wings again. There was nothing underneath. “Huh.” Twilight looked at Sunset. “Huh.” Sunset looked back at Twilight. “Well that’s certainly something.” “What? What is it? Is something wrong with me? Oh dear...” Fluttershy whimpered, sinking back to the ground. “Nothing’s wrong with you, Fluttershy, it’s just that well... well you don’t have a cutie mark.” “A what?” Twilight walked in front of her and lifted a wing, showing off the starburst adorning her flank. Sunset gestured at hers with a hoof. “Ponies all get a cutie mark when they discover their special talent. I guess I just kind of assumed you’d have the same one as the Fluttershy here did.” “What does that mean?” “I...” Twilight looked to Sunset, who shrugged. “I honestly don’t know. Maybe it means you haven’t found your special talent yet. Or Maybe it just means you weren’t born in Equestria. You might get one later, you might never get one. We still don’t know much about how the mirror works.” “Well,” Fluttershy scrunched her face up, then smiled. “I guess we’ll just have to figure it out together.” “Sounds like a plan.” Sunset grinned. “Anybody else hungry?” “Oh I’m starving,” Twilight said. “Hey Fluttershy, have you ever had a hayburger?” “A what?” “Oh, you are going to love this.” Sunset cantered excitedly towards the door. “Sunset, wait! I haven’t given you your scarf yet!” Twilight called after her. Fluttershy, finding a light blue scarf suddenly on the ground in front of her, struggled to put it on with her teeth. Twilight helped her, completely by hoof, and the two of them chased after Sunset with as much speed as Fluttershy could manage. “And then Twilight stood up and we just walked out of the restaurant.” Sunset levitated a horseshoe fry into her mouth. “I’ve never been back to that place,” Twilight mumbled, a very familiar heat on her face. “Aww, we should totally go back sometime! We can drink a bunch of wine and scandalise all those snooty nobles.” “Those ‘snooty nobles’ are my subjects and for better or for worse we’re stuck with each other.” Twilight sighed. “We’ve got an uneasy peace as it is.” “Darn. Guess we’re just gonna have to keep eating these delicious burgers.” “Indeed!” Twilight happily took a bite of hers. She looked over at Fluttershy, who was eyeing her uneaten burger suspiciously. “Everything okay, Fluttershy?” “Oh! Um, yes?” “Not interested in your burger?” Sunset asked. “No, I’m uh, very interested. It’s just that...” Sunset talked over her. “I know hay seems like a weird thing for a burger to be made of, coming from the other world...” “It’s not that...” “Actually, Twilight, do we even know that she’ll like it? How pony-like is she?” “Actually it smells delicious, but...” “That’s a good point, Sunset! How much taste is changed by the portal? Surely she can digest it, but...” “Twilight, Sunset, I am very hungry and this food looks delicious but I don’t know how to eat it” Fluttershy looked to be on the verge of tears. She was trying to gesticulate with her hooves, but hadn’t quite managed balancing and was resting on the table for support. Twilight looked at her own burger, encased in a pink magical aura. She looked at Sunset’s, bathed in Cyan. She looked at Fluttershy, who had a noticeable lack of horn on her forehead. Twilight facehoofed. “Oh Celestia, I’m so sorry. I completely forgot...” “It’s okay, Twilight, just um...” “Here, Shy, let me give you a hoof.” Sunset  scooted in closer to help the confused mare out. “I’m sorry I’m such a bad host, Fluttershy.” Twilight ducked her head. “I didn’t realise being a pony would be so rough for a human.” “This is delicious!” Fluttershy had managed to get the burger into her hooves and was chomping away happily. She made no indication of having heard Twilight. “I haven’t done this since I was a filly.” Sunset had similarly grasped her burger in her hooves, somehow with less grace than Fluttershy was managing. “Hey, at least you won’t notice if you get condiments in your hair,” Twilight teased. Sunset picked up a fry in her magic and threw it at Twilight. Twilight grabbed it, and after a brief struggle, tore it from Sunset’s grasp and popped it in her mouth. Being an alicorn did have some advantages, it turned out. She stuck her tongue out at Sunset as regally as she could. Fluttershy was clearly in her own little world, chomping away at the sandwich in front of her. “I wish we could make these back home,” she said. “I tried that, actually,” Sunset commented in between bites. “It was awful.” Fluttershy smiled sympathetically. “You poor thing. Couldn’t even have your comfort foods.” “Oh, it wasn’t all bad. Once I figured out what was edible I had whole new cuisines to try! Got to figure out what my new favourite foods were all over again.” Sunset slurped a soda.“Some things just aren’t the same, though.” Fluttershy set down her burger and with a little effort, managed to pick up a fry with her hoof. She popped it in her mouth, chewing thoughtfully. “Ooh, these are good too! Though, I think the ones back home are a little bit better. Sorry, Sunset.” Twilight wanted to mention that Hayburger was her favourite restaurant, not Sunset’s, but thought better of it. Sunset was the one talking about missing her favourite foods, after all. It wasn’t that big of a deal. Across from her, Fluttershy whispered something into Sunset’s ear. Sunset nodded, and whispered something back. Whatever it was clearly alarmed Fluttershy, because the two traded a few more furtive whispers before Fluttershy got up and walked to the the back of the restaurant. Twilight quirked an eyebrow at Sunset, who pointed to the back of the restaurant. Twilight turned and saw Fluttershy heading into the washroom. “...I didn’t think about that either,” Twilight whispered across the table. “Should we go check on her?” “She’ll be okay,” Sunset whispered back. Twilight nodded, though she wasn’t quite as sure. A memory bubbled up of her first time in the human world, running into a “men’s room” by accident shortly after arriving. At the time she was merely confused, but once she figured out how the rooms worked she had been suitably mortified. Twilight shuddered. The two sat quietly for a moment. A few more bites of hayburger disappeared. Sunset swallowed and spoke up. “So what’s next on the agenda, Princess?” “Oh, I didn’t really have much planned for today. It’s mostly for you and Fluttershy, so I figured you’d want to show her around?” “Mostly for... Twilight, why do you think we’re here?” “Umm, I thought Fluttershy wanted to see where you came from?” “Me? Twilight, she came here because she wanted to get to know you.” Twilight’s eyes widened. “She... she did?” “We’ve been dating for six months, Twilight. Why do you think I’ve never brought her here before?” Sunset didn’t sound angry. It was more like she was surprised, and maybe a little confused. “Umm... it never came up?” “This isn’t my home anymore, Twilight. As good as it is to be back, this —” Sunset gestured to her equine form “— isn’t who I am anymore.” “Sunset, I...” “It’s not like I mind being back. I get to eat my favourite foods and using magic again is pretty cool, but I’m a visitor here just as much as Fluttershy is.” “That’s not true, Sunset! You made up with Celestia. You’re not a fugitive anymore, and...” Sunset cut her off. “We can talk about this later, Twilight. The point is, we’re here because Fluttershy wants to know you better. She really cares about you.” Twilight suddenly found herself blushing. “I... but... you two... ignoring me... awkward” “And you’re not?” Sunset laughed. Twilight shot her what she hoped was a playful glare. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but Fluttershy’s a bit of a shrinking violet. Especially around people — or ponies — she fancies.” “Have you been hanging out with Rarity?” Twilight mumbled. “Um, she actually has a bit.” Fluttershy chose that moment to make her presence known. From the blush on her face she had probably been standing there for a bit. “Hey Shy, we were just talking about you,” Sunset teased. Fluttershy made a few attempts at hiding behind her mane, but hadn’t quite mastered the physics of it. Eventually she gave up and settled for sitting next to Sunset and blushing a bit more. Twilight’s face felt pretty warm itself. She managed to look over at Fluttershy and smile. Fluttershy smiled meekly in response. Beside her, Sunset grinned from ear to ear and clapped her hooves together. “Hey, Fluttershy?” Twilight finally managed. “Yes Twilight?” “Did you um, want to maybe do something here? You know, just the two of us?” Fluttershy looked at Sunset, who gave them both an encouraging nod. “That sounds... nice.” “Okay, so I know you’ve only been here for  a few hours and you’re just finding your hooves but... how do you feel about learning how to fly?” Fluttershy’s face went through several emotions. As best Twilight could tell it was surprise, fear, curiosity, and finally determination. She looked over her shoulder and gave her canary yellow wings an experimental flutter. “I’d love to.” Sunset was dropped  off at the castle library. She repeatedly assured them both that yes, she’d be fine and yes, she didn’t feel abandoned. Eventually, the two winged ponies made their way to a field on the outskirts of town. As they walked, Twilight gave an animated tour of her hometown to an enraptured Fluttershy. “That’s Sugarcube Corner. Our Pinkie is a baker there! She lives in a little apartment right above. We have to go get cupcakes there sometime. They’re amazing. “See that round building? That’s Carousel Boutique. Our Rarity runs the place. She and her sister Sweetie live on the second floor. “See that giant cloud up there? That’s actually our Rainbow’s house! She and her dad built it themselves when she first moved here. Though between you and me, I don’t think it gets much use these days...” If anyone noticed a mare who looked an awful lot like Fluttershy without a cutie mark, nobody said anything. Twilight supposed Ponyville was probably used to a certain amount of cutie mark weirdness at this point. Her theory was if she pretended like everything was under control, everypony would simply believe her. Nonetheless, Twilight specifically picked out a field where she knew Rainbow didn’t practise.  There were some conversations nobody was ready for quite yet. “You have a beautiful home, Twilight.” Fluttershy was looking quite the tourist, trying to take in every inch of the scenery around her. “I do love it here.” Twilight looked over at Fluttershy, smiling at the excitement on the mare’s face. “It’s really nice to have someone new to share it with. Just makes everything seem a little bit more special.” Fluttershy smiled wider, her cheeks colouring in a blush. “I’m glad. I can’t imagine ever getting used to this, though.” “You should see it when it’s not covered in a blanket of snow.” Twilight smiled.  “I think your world has a lot to offer too, Fluttershy.” “Oh, yes. It’s just... the colours seem... brighter, somehow. Maybe that’s silly.” “I bet I could come up with a dozen plausible explanations for that, Fluttershy. There’s nothing silly about it. Your eyes are different here, and of course our sun is pretty different from yours. But I think —” Twilight grabbed a clump of snow and, with a quick flash of her magic, fashioned an improvised bouquet, presenting it to Fluttershy “— it’s all the magic.” Fluttershy gave a small gasp. Whether it was at the display of magic or the sudden presentation of flowers, Twilight couldn’t tell. “They’re gorgeous, Twilight. But —” Fluttershy looked at the flowers, then back at Twilight. “— I don’t think I can walk while holding them.” If Twilight could’ve face-hoofed without breaking her stride she would’ve. “Sorry, Fluttershy. I keep doing this to you, don’t I?” “It’s okay, Twilight, I promise. I’m just happy to be here” “I’m glad.” Twilight extended a wing over the pegasus. She discarded the bouquet behind them, watching the flowers collapsed into snow once more. The two mares turned the corner and arrived at their destination: a large, empty meadow. Fluttershy gestured quietly, but excitedly, at a pair of small birds nibbling nervously in the middle of the snowy expanse. Twilight smiled even wider. She half expected a cutie mark to flash into existence then and there, but apparently it took a little more than that. “So, do you still want to try this? We can just stay down here, too.” Twilight was a little worried she’d pressured the timid mare a bit, and was careful to give her an out. Fluttershy was, however, unswayed. “No. I want to do this.” Twilight couldn’t help but smile at her conviction. “Now I can’t make any promises, okay? I have no idea how developed your flight muscles are, or what your wing control is like, or anything.” Fluttershy nodded. “I still want to try.” “Well, let’s start with the basics. Can you unfurl your wings?” Fluttershy could, it turned out. Canary yellow wings flared out and took a few experimental flaps. In spite of herself, Twilight felt a familiar flush across her face. Fluttershy followed Twilight’s eyes over her shoulder, and giving a quiet “eep!” Her wings quickly folded themselves against her side. “Looks like you’re a natural, Fluttershy.” Twilight grinned at the wide-eyed mare. “Oh goodness. That felt really weird.” “I think you and I are the only two ponies in Equestria with wings we weren’t born with. So believe me when I say I know what you mean” Fluttershy gave her new wings another exploratory flutter.. “They um, really don’t look like they’re big enough to support my weight. Do I have hollow bones?” “Nope, you have the same bones as everypony else. I guess it’s lucky for Rainbow that pegasi do or she’d spend way more time in the hospital.” “I thought Rainbow was a really good flier? Didn’t she teach you?” “She is, but she... sometimes gets a little carried away. She used to crash into my old library once a week. And I definitely took a couple tumbles while I was learning.” “Oh dear.” Twilight laughed. “Don’t worry, I’m a far more cautious teacher than she is. Neither of us are gonna set any speed records today.” Fluttershy listened carefully to Twilight, then squared her jaw. “Okay, what’s next?” “Why don’t we try hovering?” “A-Already?” “If you were a foal we’d be doing wing exercises to strengthen your flight muscles, but I’m pretty sure we can skip that.” Twilight took a step back from Fluttershy and extended both her wings carefully. She took a deep breath before launching into Teacher mode. “You were right, your wings aren’t big enough to support your weight. Flying is actually a kind of magic for pegasi.” With a few careful wing beats, Twilight felt her hooves leave the ground. “You have to feel the magic and channel it around yourself. To me it always felt a bit like a breeze, but I think it’s different for every pony. Rainbow described it as the feeling right before a thunderstorm. Fluttershy, the other one, said it was like a bird song you could barely hear. I am honestly kinda hoping it’s obvious to you because apparently I have no idea how to describe it to you.” As she spoke, Twilight flew a lazy circle around an enraptured Fluttershy. “You make it look so easy,” Fluttershy said. “It was very frustrating for me to learn that most pegasi fly purely by instinct. It was even more frustrating for me to learn that I do, too. I spent days studying fluid dynamics and aeronautics in the library, and it turns out that the way you fly is to just... fly. I can give you some basic pointers, but a lot of it’s —” Twilight shuddered “— more art than science.” Fluttershy giggled. “You poor thing.” Twilight landed in front of her and stuck out her tongue. “Ready to give it a go, then?” Fluttershy nodded, scrunching up her face in concentration. “Don’t force it,” Twilight advised. “Just relax and try to feel the magic.” Fluttershy closed her eyes, her face relaxing. Slowly her wings opened, feathers extended, ruffling slightly in the breeze. Her wings gave one shy flap, then a more confident one. Two flaps. Three. Before Twilight’s eyes, Fluttershy slowly rose up off the ground, eyes still squeezed shut. Measured beats carried her lazily upwards. At a foot off the ground, loathe to break the mare’s concentration, Twilight finally broke the silence. “Congratulations, Fluttershy! Your very first flight” “Huh?” Fluttershy’s eyes snapped open, grew wide, and followed the rest of her body in a very quick descent to the ground. She collapsed unceremoniously in a heap, making a dent in the snow. “Are you okay?” Twilight rushed to her side. From the big grin on Fluttershy’s face it was clear she was just fine. “I... I did it!” “You sure did! First time, too! Took me an entire afternoon to get that right.” “Oh... It wasn’t much, just a few centimetres.” “I was almost eye-level with your hooves, Fluttershy. Don’t sell yourself short.” At this Fluttershy hid behind her mane in what Twilight thought was an uncanny facsimile of her Equestrian counterpart. “Um... thank you.” “Now we just have to teach you how to do it with your eyes open.” “What do you say we try a flight somewhere?” Fluttershy swallowed. “Like, up in the air?” “We don’t have to go that high. Let me guess, you’re afraid of heights too?” “Yes...” Fluttershy mumbled. “Wait, ‘too?’ ” Come on Twilight, remember the rules. No comparing her to your Fluttershy. “Uhh, I’ll explain later. Anyway, I was thinking just to that cloud up there.” Twilight pointed with a hoof at a low-lying cloud, exactly the kind Rainbow liked napping on. “Oh, gosh... it looks pretty high, what if I fall? I know ponies aren’t as fragile as people, but it’s still a long way down.” Twilight knew from experience how much a fall from that height hurt and decided it was best not to mention right now. “Here, let me do something that Rainbow did for me when I was learning to fly. It really helped with my confidence.” “Um, okay. What do I do?” “I want you to fly as high as you’re comfortable.” Fluttershy’s wings fluttered open and she hovered a few centimetres above the ground. Twilight did a halfway decent job of not laughing. “Come on, Shy, you made it higher than that on your first go. It’ll be okay, I promise” Fluttershy blushed, rising a few more feet. “How’s this?” “Perfect, Fluttershy, you’re doing great!” Twilight flew up to her and flashed what she hoped was an encouraging smile. “Now... close your eyes.” “But, you just finished convincing me to fly with them open.” “I know, and usually it’s a great way to run into a tree. But this time I want you to trust me. Do you trust me, Fluttershy?” Twilight had expected some hesitation, a pause, maybe even a flinch. How well did she and Fluttershy really know each other? But Fluttershy immediately responded. “Of course I trust you, Twilight.” She closed her eyes. “Now... I want you to to fall.” There was hesitation. “W...what?” “Just close your wings and I’ll catch you.” Fluttershy squeaked again. If there were words hiding in there, Twilight couldn’t hear them “When Rainbow was teaching me to fly, she made me fall once, to prove that she could catch me. Before that, I was terrified I’d lose control and fall and that would be be the end of me. But after she caught me, I stopped worrying about falling and I could focus on just... flying. It turned out she never needed to catch me in the end, but I was glad she could.” “That’s... really sweet.” Twilight smiled. “Rainbow actually has really strong maternal instincts. You should see her around Scootaloo.” “So she was treating you like a kid? Or, um, foal?” Fluttershy let out a sort of cross between a giggle and whinny. Twilight thought it was the cutest thing she’d ever heard. Even if it was at her expense. “She’s just a really good teacher!” “I think you’re a pretty good teacher too, Twilight. I trust you,” Fluttershy said. Her grin was replaced by a look of determination. She took a deep breath, folded her wings, and sank like a stone. Twilight wasted no time tucking in her wings for a steep dive, hooves outstretched. She caught Fluttershy at the bottom of her arc, flaring her wings wide to arrest their momentum. The two glided to a gentle stop on the snow below and Twilight lightly set Fluttershy down in front of her. For a moment the two mares just lay there, catching their respective breaths. Eventually, Twilight got to her hooves. “What do you think? Ready for a proper flight?” Fluttershy rose as well. “That cloud up there?” she asked, gesturing upwards. “Only if you want to. I know I’ve been putting you through a lot today.” Twilight felt a little guilty, and honest pretty tired too. As if reading her mind — or perhaps just her face — Fluttershy admitted “I’m getting pretty tired.” An idea formed in Twilight’s head. Ideas were always forming and unforming in Twilight’s head, of course, but this was a particularly good one. “Ever slept on a cloud?” Twilight asked. “Can you, um, do that? Aren’t clouds just little puffs of water vapour?” “Pegasi magic lets us stand on them. And trust me, they’re very comfortable. Think you have enough energy to make it there if we don’t head back?” Twilight took a couple quick steps and took off towards it. A quick glance over her shoulder showed a very determined yellow pegasus following closely behind her. “How’s it feel?” she called back at Fluttershy. “Amazing,” came the reply. It was scarcely audible over the wind and the beating of their wings. In no time at all they reached the cloud they’d picked out, but even as Twilight slowed to land on it, Fluttershy blew past her. At first Twilight was worried she’d overshot, but the pegasus made a form-perfect banking turn and came back around. With a grace she’d been missing since she’d left the human world, Fluttershy landed gingerly on the cloud. After giving it a few prods, she furled her wings and hunkered down next to Twilight. The little cloud was just big enough for the two of them to lay side by side, but even if it had been the size of Cloudsdale, Twilight suspected they’d still be cozied up to one another. She was about to stretch a wing over Fluttershy to pull her close when she felt one cover her instead. “Thank you, Twilight.” The wing gave her a gentle squeeze. “I hardly did a thing, Fluttershy. You’re literally a natural.” “No, um... thank you. For everything. I think it’s safe to say this is the nicest date I’ve ever been on.” Twilight sputtered a little bit. It was a date, wasn’t it? And was certainly a nice one. “I guess I’m gonna have to really go all out to top it, then!” “I’m looking forward to it.” Fluttershy gave Twilight a tentative nuzzle. “I’m really glad you like it here, Fluttershy. Not everypony would be up for turning into a pony just to come on a date.” Fluttershy just nodded, then let out a quiet yawn. She reached over and laid a gentle kiss on Twilight’s very flushed muzzle. Twilight managed to nestle herself even closer to the pegasus and felt her own eyelids start to droop. The wind was picking up, especially this high off the ground, but she’d never felt warmer. She could get used to this.