//------------------------------// // Behind the Shelter of Hate (part 2) // Story: The Truth About Girls (Vol. 2) // by TheMareWhoSaysNi //------------------------------// A bit before lunch time, Pinkie Pie, along with the Flower Trio, had been summoned by Vice-Principal Luna to get to the Events Committee’s room. Since the Winter Ball had passed, it could only be about the two other big events to come at CHS. Which one of the two, it didn’t really matter to her. All that mattered was to know there was something fun to plan. All jolly by the end of this short meeting, the young woman went to join her friends at their favorite table of the cafeteria. The coldest days were gone, and her favorite season, spring, would soon arrive. She was still able to live in Canterlot, and although she also still was single, and Big Macintosh acted weirdly around her, sometimes, and Fluttershy was always sullen, she was feeling in great shape. She chose a slice of zucchini and goat cheese pie and two slices of chocolate fondant cake, thanking the lunch ladies in a much too enthusiastic way, what other persons usually never did. A bit further, Sunset Shimmer was waving at her, and the teenage girl went to join her bunch of friends, already settled. Even before thinking about putting down her tray, Pinkie Pie felt the need to tell them what she had been summoned for. The one time someone had a good news… None could say they had been that many since the new school year began. “Guess what! I’ve been chosen to plan the Prom Ball! Isn’t it super-duper amazing?” “Pinkie… You’re Head of the Events Committee. Of course, you’re the chosen person to plan this ball”, Twilight pointed. “That’s pretty much what you do for every single ball since ninth grade…” Rainbow Dash added, before swallowing a mouthful of her favorite energy drink. Because she was fond of parties and really had a gift to plan them like no one else in CHS, it was natural to see her integrate the Events Committee from her very first year in High School. At first, the Head was a girl named Surprise but when she got graduated, Pinkie Pie was the one elected unanimously, or almost, to be her successor. Three persons only had voted against her – probably Daisy, Lily and Rose, had she decided after an investigation. The young woman eventually put down her tray and started to laugh embarrassingly, while sitting next to Rainbow Dash and Applejack. “True it was obvious… Sometimes I’m so silly I even forget how silly I am!” “Well, we don’t!” This killer comment, delivered in a harsh way, and tainted with sourness, had just escaped Fluttershy’s lips, much to everyone surprise. Although she was acting strangely lately, and was very temperamental, no one would have guessed she could display so much verbal hostility towards one member of their gang. Immediately, Pinkie Pie’s sunny mood seemed to melt down like ice. Without another word, eyes lowered towards her dish, she nibbled a piece of her pie so ridiculous it would even have looked tiny to a rodent. If she refused to defend herself from the spitefulness she had been struck with, the others had none of it. It wasn’t a way to talk to a friend, although this friend really said stupid things, sometimes. Alright, they were often bickering about insignificant things, but none of them really were mean towards each other. They simply knew too well each of their flaws and soft spots. “Fluttershy!” Twilight lectured her. “Pinkie Pie hasn’t done you any harm, it’s not really kind of you to talk to her this way. I’d apologize right away if I were you.” “Well, you’re not me, that’s lucky!” Applejack, sitting in front of Twilight, discreetly waved at her, to inform her not to go any further. She didn’t have time to add anything, anyway, since Fluttershy claimed she wasn’t hungry anymore, though she’d barely touched her dishes, and she left the table, saying they would meet in class. Obviously, Applejack had some pieces of information the others lacked. The whole scene let them so puzzled that they didn’t dare saying anything else during a whole minute. The silence was only broken by Rainbow Dash’s three fans, decidedly gifted to arrive at the most awkward moments. The latter couldn’t help an irritated sigh, but tried not to act too aggressively with the three young girls. After all, they had nothing to do with the quirky atmosphere hovering over the group yet known to be unbreakable. “How do you do… since yesterday?” A little clingy, those fans… Just because she had told them they could speak to her whenever they wanted to didn’t mean they had to come her way and say words each time she appeared within their field of vision. “We’re really fine, thank you”, Hip Holly answered. “And even better since we’re in front of you”, Sky Skimmer went on. “Hearing you speak; it almost sounds as if you guys were in love with me… I don’t like girls, you know that, right?” Obviously, they took her reply as a joke since they soundly burst into laugh, which drew the attention of the tables around them. All this attention looked cute at the beginning, but now it started to get a little creepy. “No, I’m serious.” “Well, we know that since you’re dating Soarin. You’re so lucky. He’s hot!” “Wow, looks like you’re completely missing the point, here.” Once again, the three teenage girls reacted by laughing to a thing Rainbow Dash had said in all honesty. She knew her friends might think this was a good thing for her ego and her dear reputation and thought she probably was happy to have fans that devoted to her, but they kept on making her feel awkward, with the way they idolized her, always too much while being not enough. “Look”, Moon Shadow told her with pride. “We took the same thing than you: quinoa and figs salad, tofu sauté with broccolis, this sort of greenish smoothie and the energy drink with a black can.” “Are ya sure ya wanna eat this?” Applejack intervened. “Even us found it hard to eat, sometimes.” What she meant was that the kind of diet athletic girls like her and Rainbow Dash constrained themselves with during intense periods of practice could taste rather stern to those not used of eating without sauce nor salt addition. “We want to get the same body than Rainbow Dash, so if that’s what it takes, we’re going to do it”, Sky Skimmer answered. “But Dashie isn’t only dieting, she also does a lot of sports, even on weekends or during her free time.” “And those energy drinks are… how can I say this? They taste really special.” Sunset Shimmer knew a lot about that topic. Right before starting her volleyball club, she wanted to try them, hoping it would bring her more strength since she hadn’t done sports in an intense way since ages… She hadn’t even drunk her first and last can completely. “And it’s meant to give you energy when you’re run-down. Plus, their effects on health had often been disputed.” To the precision brought by Twilight, the three friends shrugged, maintaining that if Rainbow Dash drank them on a regular basis, then it couldn’t harm them neither. It felt as if, whatever was said to them, just as long as their idol and mentor did something, they wanted to do the same. There was a serious lack of personality issue here, according to the general opinion of the girls, who had all changed their minds about these invading fans. Rainbow Dash thought she needed to find a way to send them back. While they were here, they couldn’t eat their lunch peacefully, and most importantly, they couldn’t discuss the one issue that really mattered – Fluttershy’s odious behavior. In fact, for fans concerned about anything their model said or did, they didn’t seem to worry a lot about what consequences this absence could have on the group. A little further in the cafeteria, Rainbow Dash spotted Muffin who had just filled her tray. As always, all the students of any grades she tried to sit down with refused her to do so. This kind of stupid behavior, paying attention to groundless gossips and accepting them as face value without a care about how it felt like for the victim, she had already seen it when Lightning Dust had tried to frame Pinkie Pie for her revenge. It was one of the things that got on her nerves in the way CHS worked, though it also was fantastic on many details. She half-got up from her chair, and waved widely, speaking loud enough for a good part of the cafeteria to hear. Her popularity could be useful and she wasn’t about to bother to use it. If it could help Muffin in any way, then she would be happy. “Hey there, Muffin!! Come and lunch with us!” But the young woman, who she had talked a lot with last night, and who was smiling and kind with her, avoided her eyes and went to take refuge at the other end of the room, to make sure Rainbow Dash wouldn’t come to get her. She had blushed and displayed a frightened look, the same Fluttershy could have sometimes, when she was afraid – which meant almost all the time. As soon as she had called her name, she had noticed the face of her three fans getting tensed, and they didn’t need more to take the decision to leave them alone. There was no doubt: something was happening, and she wasn’t going to like it. Once again. It seemed like lately, she was caught in a spiral of unpleasant events stringing together like pearls on a necklace. The last straw would be if her father would announce her he had found a new woman to replace her mother, and the rusty circle would be complete! -------------------------------------------------------- They knew her habits and how she worked. All they had to do was to stay by the washrooms and make sure no one else would step in. The three girls also knew Rainbow Dash and the gang rather used those outside after lunch, since they had returned to their favorite spot behind the bleachers with the coming of warmer temperatures. Nearly at the exact second they planned, Muffin appeared in front of them. As soon as she saw them, she tried to turn back but Sky Skimmer commanded the others two to catch her back and to bring her inside the washrooms, that they closed behind them by blocking the main door with buckets and brooms they had borrowed beforehand. This way, they made sure they wouldn’t be bothered or caught in the act. The game was over. Because she also knew them well, Muffin tried to escape by locking herself inside one of the toilets. Maybe if she could stay here long enough, they would eventually give up and call it a day. Her attempt wasn’t quite fruitful since Moon Shadow and Hip Holly caught her back once again, and pinned her against the wall so she wouldn’t flee. It wasn’t easy, since she was struggling as hard as she could, but all the same, they were able to make sure she would look into Sky Skimmer’s eyes. Muffin felt delicate fingers buried inside her flesh when she grabbed her chin. They buried so deeply that her jaw hurt. How could such a graceful and subtle hand be the source of such a destructive strength? The surrounding half-darkness of the washroom turned out to be less and less thick, and yet the room seemed filled with an oppressive aura that made everything on the brink of the bearable. “We warned you last night… Don’t ever speak again to Rainbow Dash!” “But I haven’t spoken to her again, just like you said…” “Shut it! Don’t interrupt me! Even if you don’t talk to her, you’re still polluting her atmosphere with your distasteful presence. You don’t deserve to breath the same air than her. By the way, if I were you, I wouldn’t even bother going in athletics at all. No one wants to be seen with a retarded of your kind!” Muffin heard her two companions chuckling after their friend’s comment. They probably were expected to do what was expected from them without complaining, in order to humiliate her even more. She addressed her classmate her coldest and toughest look, but all she got was a violent slap from her interlocutor. The searing pain on her cheek made her feel as if her heart was thumping like crazy inside her face. “Why the f*ck do you think you’re entitled to look at me this way?” The young woman’s voice was as sharp as sandpaper. “It’s no use pretending you got nerves now. We all know who you really are… Derpy. Behind your cross-eyed innocent face, there’s a little slut f*cking with older teachers in the science room. You’re the sh*t on which the world wipes its feet and that’s all you deserve. That’s why I’m here. To take care of your case.” Muffin hadn’t immediately noticed the item Sky Skimmer was holding in her hand. She heard the sound of the blade getting out, saw the metal’s reflection and understood even before she had a glimpse of the knife what was about to happen. She could no longer conceal her emotions behind a desperate attempt at having temper. It was as if even her eyes had started to shake. The dread wringing her innards resounded so much it almost turned into something solid. Her chest was tensed; her pulse had sped up like after an electric shock. A devious smile distorted Sky Skimmer’s face, to the extent that her gracious features were now all twisted, and the weak light from the room even accentuated the expressions on her face. “You do know what I’m going to do, if you ever speak to Rainbow Dash again or even dare being within her field of vision? I know you know… I’m going to cut your f*cking ugly face. This way, anywhere you’d go, you’ll get nothing but kicks in the butt. If I were you, I’d take the decision not to get out of my room forever. It would spare you additional pain and trouble…” Muffin’s eyes opened wide. There was something about the young girl, like an insane excitation such that she couldn’t escape the obvious – she was serious and would go for anything if it meant she would never see her again interfering with her plans to become her idol’s best friend. So, she tried to struggle again, despite the embrace, shaking both arms and legs in the hope it would save her from her assailants. In vain. The two students were holding her too strong and she was too weak to be able to get rid of them. She still had a chance if she could push Sky Skimmer… Undoubtedly, she had guessed her intention… She got a new slap, on the same cheek than earlier, which slightly knocked her. A thin trickle of blood suddenly appeared along Muffin’s lower lip, her eyes filled with tears, tears of suffering, dread and anger directed at every of the persons present in the room, herself included. Once again, her classmate grabbed her face and her cheek felt so numb she could hardly find enough strength to keep on struggling. The tip of the blade was dangerously getting nearer. Although her rival had said she would do what she wanted to do only if she never approached Rainbow Dash again, she was taken over by doubts. She seemed on the verge of doing it. And then, something emerged. Something even Muffin hadn’t seen coming, but which clasped around her throat so swiftly she could hardly recognize her own actions. With her feet, she hit one of Sky Skimmer’s legs, who was obliged to yield under the shock of the violence. Moon Shadow and Hip Holly were so surprised they weren’t able to react immediately, and Muffin could take possession of the switchblade knife her attacker had in her hands. Tears were flooding her face, and a rage like never before scalded her from inside, such rage that she wasn’t even really aware of what she was doing, blinded as she was by hate. Always, she was kind to others, and had done her best to fit in and be accepted. Here was the way she was thanked for that… Being belittled, threatened, beaten, hurt with words as much as with hits, if not more. What was happening now was too bad for them, for them all. They had it coming. “I hate you! I hate you all! I’m going to cut you in pieces if you come close to me again! I’m going to kill you all! And I’ll start with your f*cking Rainbow Dash!” She kept on yelling those words while shaking the blade in front of her, without the least care about where she struck or whether or not she would hurt one of her classmates. Meanwhile, the three girls lacked assertiveness and had entrenched in the last toilets of the back of the room, curled up against one another. Their faces no longer display this jubilation of absolute power. Conversely, everything about them was trembling, and even when they called Muffin crazy, their voices was shaken by quavers. They owed their salvation only to the teenage girl’s own fatigue, when she eventually crumbled against the tiled floor, her face streaming with tears. Her shoulders were taken over by jolts, and though she still held on to the knife firmly, she had stopped to scream and gesticulate. That was how they could escape her fury, now it was empty. Moon Shadow had the idea to steal Muffin’s backpack on the way, while Hip Holly and Sky Skimmer, though still shocked inside, spilled on her head one of the buckets, full of dirty water, before inflicting her kicks in her hips so she would be too knocked down by pain and shame not to try to pursue them, since she still had the knife. They had launched the mechanics of a very dangerous game when they started to bully Muffin, first with mockeries between them, then little by little, with violence and humiliations. Now they could see the limits. Maybe it had gone too far… And maybe it was too late as well. Who could say what their prey's next reaction would be if she had to be the victim of their bullying one more time? ---------------------------------------------- Rainbow Dash looked at her wrist watch. The athletics field was desert, except for the cheerleaders practicing at a long distance. And to think that the girls were waiting for her at Sugarcube Corner… She was supposed to stay only fifteen minutes. It had been, of course, providing that Muffin wouldn’t have been so late. On the day before, she had offered to help her after school so she could work on her breathing and on how not to hurt herself when falling. Though embarrassed, the other girl had accepted and they had decided of when and where to meet. Tonight the Wondercolts were playing against the Fillydelphia’s Cavalier, one of the best university basketball team, and for nothing in the world did she want to miss this game, essential for Soarin, who put a lot of pressure on himself since he knew they would have to beat them. This mishap would completely reschedule what she had planned. Rainbow Dash wanted to wait more but also had to face the truth that Muffin wouldn’t come now. She was ten minutes late, which was huge when know how much time she could grant her, and although the stadium was large, there was no one coming. Something had probably happened, she thought while grabbing her back and turning back to school. Seeing what had been her mate’s reaction earlier today when she’d invited her to have lunch with the gang, she might have suspected it. It couldn’t be because of a word or an action from her, since they hadn’t seen each other at all in-between. She didn’t know why this story got her so stressed up. In reality, she barely knew Muffin. They could scarcely say they had befriended. Yet, each time she thought about it, she frowned and her stomach was shaken unpleasantly. All along her way back, Rainbow Dash hoped to meet with this straw-like hair and these crossed eyes with a small embarrassed smile. But the only person she met along the way was Vice-Principal Luna, surprised to see her at school as she had no club activities tonight. Right before leaving the place in order to meet her friends, she received a message from Pinkie Pie, telling her they were at their table and asking whether they could order without her. She answered them to go ahead without her, then went by the washrooms near the cafeteria. Her determined walk slowed down when she got closer. In one of the garbage cans was a grey backpack with bubbles on it that she immediately recognized, as clear as if she saw it every day. Just to be sure, Rainbow Dash took one of the straps with between her fingertips, and lifted it in order to examine it closer. No doubt, this was Muffin’s bag and it was empty. Her nose crooked, she looked inside the garbage can and found an empty wallet and an organizer smeared with red on which cover the word ‘slut’ was written. Her heart skipped a beat from the moment she understood. Panic-stricken, she looked all around her but an empty and silent corridor was all she found. It explained why Muffin hadn’t come. Something ugly had happened and it happened here, between Canterlot High School’s walls. Was she still here or had she gone home? She didn’t know. And she couldn’t leave and ring at her door since she didn’t even know which house was hers. Even if she would have had her number, there was a possibility she wouldn’t have answered anyway with the stuff inside her bag disapparead. All that remained was in the trash by her side, and as she wanted to go there anyway in the first place, Rainbow Dash made a few steps to the washroom’s door. In appearance, the place seemed to be as empty as the corridors, however, she quickly spotted an abandoned shoe near a toilet. Getting closer, she discovered Muffin, lying on the floor, seemingly unconscious. Unable to control herself, she leaped backward, a hand over her mouth. Her legs were shaking and her heart was thumping. She couldn’t help it, each time she saw someone in such a state, her past was catching her up. There was a kind of violence which had no impact whatsoever on her, that she could even try to satisfy, undoubtedly this part of aggressiveness and anger inside of her which had never vanished away. And there was a kind of violence she was unable to put up with, sending electric shocks all over her body, if not completely paralyzing her. The temptation to turn back and to run away was huge, but Rainbow Dash got a hold of herself, focusing on her breathing, just like she had learned at both yoga and Pilates. She couldn’t leave Muffin on her way, especially if she had been the victim of an assault. After all, she already had to face this kind of violence when she had helped Octavia, a couple of weeks ago. Although her hands kept on trembling, she shook the girl’s shoulders softly, calling her. She was reassured when she noticed her eyes were actually opened… though in reality, it didn’t mean anything. “Leave me alone”, Muffin said toughly while pushing away her hand in an imprecise yet firm gesture. “To leave you alone? In your state? No way! You have to see the school nurse and…” “I’ve told you to leave me alone”, Muffin repeated, this time more vehemently. “I only want to help you, OK? I don’t mean you any harm, I swear.” When she saw her sitting back up, Rainbow Dash thought she had been able to convince her to go to the school’s nursery. But from the moment their eyes met and she took into account the level of hatred against her on her face, she understood things weren’t going to be that easy, this time. “You don’t understand English? I don’t want any help from you! That’s because of you that my life’s a hell. I hate you! I hate you! I hate you!” And she shoved her, then with all the strength left inside her body, she got up before leaving the washroom at full throttle. Her statement had Rainbow Dash so bewildered she stayed dumfounded on the tiled floor, wondering what on earth had she done to deserve such a strong dislike from the young girl. -------------------------------------------- And to think that she couldn’t wait to be with the girls… She had even sped up to get to Sugarcube Corner after her strange face to face with Muffin, and she had thought chatting with her friends will make her focus on other topics. Rainbow Dash had seen jollier atmospheres at wakes. Their usual conversations didn’t sound natural in the least, and Fluttershy wasn’t taking any part in it, looking through the window as if she dreamed to be anywhere else but here. Because of this, her green tea latte felt heavy in her stomach and she had to force herself to swallow each additional mouthful. Whatever she did, Muffin’s issue couldn’t get out of her mind. So, since the mood wasn’t really good anyway, she decided to tell her friends what was worrying her. Maybe a bit of chivalrous injustice would help things to get back in place. At least, her story had the advantage to concern each of the girls, even the dreaming one, who had eventually turned around. Rainbow Dash forgot no detail, to make sure they understood the situation such as it was. Maybe her friends would be able to soothe her foreboding, the one telling her things would not stop here. She had just forgotten none of them was the kind to bury their head in the sand. “I’d like to tell you I’m surprised”, Sunset Shimmer sighed. “Unfortunately, I know a thing or two about bullying and I can tell you it’s awfully common.” Before she became a victim herself, she also been a bully. She used to choose those she wanted to attack among the most fragile and vulnerable ones, and from the moment she had what could make them stumble, she used it against them. Back then, it was all she had found in order to get the admiration and respect she was seeking for so hard. It was only later she had realized that hurting the others would never make her gain what she wanted. Instead of it, she had received only dread and dislike, and no one who she could turn to. It was easy to lash out at someone as fragile as Muffin. Because of the rumors about her which, when coupled with her physical disability, made her a perfect victim, she probably wanted to be accepted again in any way. “Yet I’d like to know who did this to her… And what it has to do with me. I’ve always been nice with her.” “Maybe that’s the problem”, Twilight highlighted. “You’re pretty popular, and it can cause jealousy.” “If Ah were ya, maybe Ah’d stay away as much as Ah could. For her own sake.” “You want me to stay with my arms crossed while she’s insulted, beaten and stolen and although there seem to be a connection with me? Like, seriously?” “Don’t take it personally. We just sayin’ ya better not meddle with it too much. So things won’t get worse, ya know.” “AJ is right, Dashie”, Pinkie Pie added, nodding. “This is a very delicate issue.” “Not you, Pinkie! You know better than anyone else here what these kind of rumors can do…” Indeed, she knew it. And it was the point. The way Rainbow Dash had treated those who were mean with her hadn’t helped to improve her situation. How they did their mockeries had even been more insidious after her intervention. Muffin was part of the Event Committee, and she had talked to her on several occasions. She was a likeable person and she didn’t want her to suffer even more from the others’ persecution because her connection with the basketball player bothered some of them. Somehow, Rainbow Dash knew her friends were probably right, but she couldn’t help it. Injustices were likely to waken her the weak and the defenseless protector part of her. And the fact Muffin had said she hated her, she didn’t like it at all. She knew a lot of people were irritated by her boasting side and she couldn’t care less, as long as those she loved and liked knew who she really was inside. Maybe there was the rub: she liked this teenage girl who was of a pleasant company, and it made her words towards her even harder to swallow. “Why do we even care about this girl, anyway? Everybody has problems, can’t she just put up with it on her own?” Fluttershy hurled with a shrug. Like most of her interventions since almost one month, it shocked the bunch of friends. Usually, she was kindness incarnated, always having a word to comfort the others, always hoping things would go for the best, always paying attention to the sufferings of others… Enough was enough. All this time, none of them had said anything and had let her be unpleasant or mute all day long without any questions. Now they had to know what had changed for her to behave the way she behaved. This wasn’t a good way to treat those who worried about yourself. Her chance was that Pinkie Pie was the first one to root out the evil. Since she understood very well her friend’s sensitive true nature, she always tried her best not to hurt her too much. “Flutty, what’s the matter lately? We can’t recognize you. If something’s weighing on your shoulders, you know you can always unburden it to us.” “And what is it you’re going to do to help me, Pinkamena Diane Pie? You’re not even able to find a place to live on your own, so you know what I’m doing with your advice?” “Hey, Fluttershy, don’t lash out on Pinkie! She’s trying to comfort you; you could at least show a bit of gratitude.” “The way you show gratitude by abandoning your dearest friends because of a little half-point less?” For Twilight, this reply felt like a heavy knock on the back of her head. None of the other girls around had tried to remind of her this very short period about which she held terrible grudges against herself. They all wanted to avoid her to be taken over by guilt… And today, Fluttershy, the least likely to put bad memories back on track, was throwing her past lack of scruples straight at her face. It really was a topsy-turvy world. Feeling the others wouldn’t be long before taking Twilight’s defense, and it would probably make her say other things Fluttershy wasn’t meaning for real, Pinkie Pie tried to defuse the situation again, suggesting everyone to stop the debate here. Big mistake. “You have no right to tell me what to do. By the way, I would shut it if I were you, just to avoid to say another one of the stupid things you have a knock for uttering.” “But I…” “Don’t ‘but I’ me! I’m fed up of hearing you hollering all the time with your insufferable voice. Go back to your cakes and stop annoying me!” “Fluttershy, stop this NOW!” Rainbow Dash suddenly yelled, slamming her fist against the table. If there was something she couldn’t tolerate at all, it was when someone hurt Pinkie. It was the same thing with any other of her friends, of course, but from the very beginning of their relationship, she and Pinkie had always been protective toward each other. It wasn’t even something they could explain. Things were this way. And everybody knew it. She loved Fluttershy and absolutely didn’t want to show her hostility, know how sensitive her soul was, but this time she had gone too far. She could feel bad, she could be angry and say things she would regret, it happened to anyone, but it was different from being mean on purpose, with the desire to deeply hurt the one receiving all the hate. When she behaved this way, she couldn’t see the difference between her dear friend and those who were beating Muffin. Her fit of anger had been able to cut short the jolt of animosity which had been launched. Fluttershy, as if understanding now the weight of everything she had said before, lowered her head to stare at her half-empty latte cup, and didn’t add a word. As far as Pinkie Pie was concerned, her hair slightly deflated, she got up from her chair under the sad glances of the rest of the gang. “I… I think Mrs. Cake said she needed me tonight to keep an eye on Pumpkin and Pound. I’m going to do my homework now or I would never be able to do it after”, she simply said, before gathering her stuff and leaving their table. Without a hint of enthusiasm, she said goodbye to the girls and quickly disappeared behind the backdoor which led to her room upstairs. Following her departure, for a few seconds, a deadly silent hovered over the reduced bunch, before Rainbow Dash started to speak again, this time calmer yet firm. “What are you always lashing out on Pinkie? She was on the verge of crying.” It was the words which broke Fluttershy’s barrier and immediately, she burst out in tears. Noisy tears which made her body jolt completely. All the pain she was keeping inside and disguised into aggressiveness finally escaped the cage into which it had been a prisoner for way too long. It was too heavy a burden. She had to confess, so that her friend could understand her situation. So she could stop being this horrible person she deeply hated. “It’s… Big Mac…” she finally confided between two hiccups. “He doesn’t want to be with me anymore! We’re having a break… and ever since… ever since I have no new from him… I even avoid my own brother… because… because I’m scared he… told him about us…” To be honest, they all had suspected something of this kind. Not to see they hadn’t dated even once since their argument, one had to be blind. On the other hand, most of them didn’t know what role Pinkie Pie had in the whole story. In theory, her only connection with the events Fluttershy had described was that this break took place around the moment she had been thrown out of her former apartment. No one dared asking this question, but they didn’t need to. The person in question went on without anyone to add anything. “He’d told me I wasn’t his type… But since we… we were together, I thought… I could make him change his mind. I was wrong… Last time, when I saw them chatting, it struck me suddenly. So I’ve asked him… And he confirmed. He will never love me, because… he loves another girl. He loves Pinkie Pie.” “Big Mac?!” Rainbow Dash claimed, incredulous. Back when they had their one-night stand, Applejack’s brother had confessed her he always thought she was cute and liked girls of her kind, dynamic and self-confident, because they were everything he was not. For all that, she would never have suspected even for a minute he could eventually have feelings for her curly-haired friend. For her, as well as for the others, it seemed clear that, whatever might be his type of girls, he had chosen to date Fluttershy thanks to what made her so charming: her benevolence and delicacy. He was good when he was with her. Especially as Fluttershy was very considerate with him, and had made sure she wouldn’t be a suffocating type of girlfriend. “Did you know that, AJ?” This question from Twilight was reasonable. She had a very close relationship with her older brother and also was his confidante. Plus, Applejack had actively contributed into gathering the two, whom she had always thought to be the perfect match for each other. “Ah did”, she sighed. “He told me a few days ago… That’s why Ah didn’t want to take part in this. He made me promise not to tell ya.” Everything was clear now. And at the same time, everything got trickier with the explanations. Those love matters had complicated the relationships between various members of the group, yet renown as one of the solidest of all CHS. As often when love matters interfered into friendship matters. What could they do to improve this situation? Feelings weren’t things controllable, and talking with everyone concerned wouldn’t change a thing. It was understandable that Fluttershy felt awkward when in presence of Pinkie Pie, although the young woman had no blame in the story and didn’t deserve such a treatment. This all made the days to come particularly difficult. For everyone. And even the most optimistic among them started to wonder if their gang would resist the trials. They never had to go through such a crisis. It would be a decisive ordeal for the future. Either they went through it with their heads up, either everything they had built would come tumbling down like a house of cards.