Dear Fluttershy,
I have admired you for way too long to have not said anything to you. I just couldn't work up the guts to say it to you, but I finally decided to tell you the only way I can bring myself to say it.
I guess I'm just too scared of how you'll react to say it to you directly, and I can't even work up the guts to write my name at the end of this, but I have to tell you somehow.
As long as I've known you, I've had a crush on you and I guess it'd be better to be more subtle, but that's just not me. You are really cute, and it only adds on that you don't seem to notice. The way you act so shy only makes me want to protect you, and the intelligence behind those shy eyes only adds to it all. I know you don't deserve the crap those bullies give you.
Please don't be scared by this note, I just had to get this off my chest. And I know this was a cruddy note, but I don't write stuff anyway.
Yours always,
Anonymous lover
I must've read this thing over a dozen times. The hoofwriting was a lot less stylish than it was on the envelope. On that thought I glanced at the envelope again. The writing on it looked like it was actually a little shaky, but the writer had probably gone really slow to make it look good. The rest of the note, though, was barely average, as if the writer wasn't very good at writing.
Who would want to write me? WHO?! I'm not attractive, am I? No, no. I'm just a simple, weak, shy, timid, animal caretaker. Or at least I will be.
As long as I've known you? I barely know anypony....
Okay, deep breath, Fluttershy. Think about this a moment... What clues did they drop?
Hmmm.... not subtle... not a good writer...wants to protect me... knows me.... didn't want to tell me to my face...
Well, aside from not having the guts to do something, this sounds like either Gilda or....Rainbow Dash...
Nonononononononono. It is not her. It can't be. Sh-she's just a friend, right?
Deep breath, Fluttershy, you need to think about this...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Hey, you're not too bad at this!" I said with delight. Me and Silver were flying around, doing stunts and practicing for those Stormball tryouts. He really wasn't half bad. I was way faster than him, but he was pretty fast as it was.
"Thanks *huff* you're pretty good, *huff* too."
"You bet I am!" I replied, putting on a small boost of speed to prove my point. I looked back and saw him laughing as he failed to keep up. I slowed the pace so he could keep up. "What's so funny?" I asked.
"You! You are way too fast! I'm supposed to be one of "the athletes" and I can't keep up! What'd you get on the speed test? Eleven seconds?"
"Yeah..." I said, feeling my cheeks heat up at his praise. I just smiled brashly, trying to ignore the heat.
"I got twenty-two. You are gonna be the best flier on the team for sure."
"Heh... Er- Yeah! Of course I am!"
We landed in front of the dorm building and I started to trot towards the door, but stopped when Gilda opened the door and walked out looking around. She spotted me and walked towards me.
"Hey, dude."
"Hey, G."
"Listen, Flu-" She stopped when she noticed Silver standing nearby. She glared at him, then glanced at me. "What's going on?"
"He- uhm...He's cool... I'll explain later. What did you want?" She eyed him warily for a moment but looked at me again.
"Fluttershy seems a little upset about something. She knocked on the door. I actually woke up to that."
"Wait...Fluttershy was loud enough to wake you? What's wrong?"
"She wouldn't say. She refused to talk about it to anyone but you." She answered, frowning.
"Why?" She rolled her eyes at me.
"I just said she wouldn't say, dude. Oh but she had this piece of paper with her. Tucked it under her wing when I looked at it. Guess it's private."
"Okay..." What the hay is going on? "I'll go talk to her. You two stay and chat." I said, hovering towards the door.
" 'kay. She's in our room."
I opened the door slowly. I found Fluttershy sitting on Gilda's bed, bouncing in an upset, excited way. The moment I set hoof in the room she stopped bouncing and her face changed into a nervous smile.
"Uh... Hey, Shy. What's up?"
"Oh! Well uhm..." She raised her wing and grabbed a piece of paper with her mouth. She set it down on the desk between the beds for me to look at. I sat down on my bed and grabbed the note. I read it.
Then I read it again.
And again.
I looked up at Fluttershy, who was watching me expectantly, and tilted the note so she could see it.
"What?"
"That's what I said."
"Fluttershy...do you have any clue who wrote this?"
"I have an idea...b-but I'm probably wrong...."
"Who?"
"W-well, I d-don-"
"Oh, come on! We're best friends. Tell me!"
"Well...." She looked out the window. "I really shouldn't say."
"Come on! Please?" She looked at me shyly. Her eyes held meaning in them, and for a moment I was confused by her stare. Then it hit me.
"W-woah! Y-you don't think I-?" She raised her eyebrows at me. "Shy? Seriously?" I barely noticed the heat in my cheeks or the crimson all over hers.
"Well... I mean...."She looked away, pulling her mane in front of her face to hide it. She was quiet for a moment, then looked at me again. "It'd be o-okay... i-if it was you..."
I gawked at her. Well I think I did... My face kinda felt a little stiff.
But... did she really just say-?
"Fluttershy. I-I didn't write that note." Her eyes fell from mine as I said it.
"Oh... O-okay..." She didn't look back up for a moment.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Stupid! Why did you even say that? Now she's gonna think-
"Fluttershy?" I glanced at her for a second then looked away.
"Fluttershy. Come on. What's wrong?" Oh, she definitely knows. She just wants to spare me.
"I-I didn't- I..." I just couldn't figure out how to say it. I couldn't say I didn't mean what I said, because that's not entirely true, but I don't quite know what is true.
We just sat there quietly for a moment, neither of us knowing quite what to say. I could feel her eyes on me, but I didn't dare look up at her. I just couldn't get past what I said, and I'm sure she's still thinking about it.
"Fluttershy. Come on. It's okay." I glanced up at her. Her cheeks were still pink from blushing, but her eyes were calm, if just a little cautious.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Buck it all! Give her a hug or something!
What? NO! That'd be crazy! She'd think I was-
Being nice? Comforting her? Accepting her?
Er- Well maybe, but wouldn't she think I was coming onto her?
Who cares?
I DO! And so would a lot of ponies.
It's just us in here.
Gah! I can't decide what to do.
Her eyes started to water up for a moment and I threw caution to the wind. I got up and sat next to her, placing an arm around her shoulders. She put her head on my shoulder, nuzzling into my neck.
"I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean- I didn't mean to accuse you..." She whispered.
"Shh." I attempted to comfort her the best I could, but I'm just not the 'feelings' type of pony. We stayed that way, though, until she stopped shaking and her eyes had dried. Then we stayed that way a little bit anyways. At first it was really awkward, but I began to enjoy it.
Tell her how you feel!
I don't even know how I feel!
So you admit it's possible?
I- er.... I guess....
Then tell her!
Tell her what? That I COULD like her, but I'M not even sure?
Well.... No.
"Rainbow?" Fluttershy lifted her head to look at me.
"Hmm?"
She looked me right in the eyes, and for a moment we just sat there, eyes locked. Then I couldn't help it...
I leaned.
And so did she.
*bang bang*
"Hey, dude! You in there? You're really quiet." We pulled away at the sound of Gilda's voice.
She scooted away, and I turned to the door.
"Yea-Yeah we're in here." I had to start again when my voice cracked. The door opened up and Gilda walked in.
"So what was wrong with Shy?" I glanced at Fluttershy as she asked this, and Fluttershy got up. She walked over to my bed, where I'd left the note, picked it up and walked towards the door.
"Uhm... It's kinda private..."
"S-sorry, Gilda."
"Meh, whatever. If it's not my business then I don't care."
Fluttershy got to the door and turned and looked at me. "B-bye, Rainbow Dash." She said tenderly.
"See ya, Shy." I said, smiling warmly.
Oh, sweet Celestia!
I know right?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
D-did we just almost... Kiss?
Sweet Celestia!
I walked over to my room and hesitated at the door. Should I have left? Would it have been better if I had stayed? No, don't think about it, Fluttershy. You need to clear your head.
"Hey... you okay?" I nearly jumped out of my coat at the sound of a voice. I looked over and found Quick Silver standing a few feet away. "Oh! I'm so sorry; I didn't mean to scare you. Are you alright?"
"Y-yes. I'm okay." I replied, hiding behind my mane.
"Are you okay? You seem upset." He asked, taking a step towards me.
"If I tell you, a-are you going to tell Flash?"
"Buck no! Like I'd tell your secrets to that prick?" I stared at him.
"I-I thought you two were...friends..."
"Not anymore. No, I'd rather befriend somepony like you or Dash, than him now." He said, only a little bitterly. His face softened as he looked at me again. "Anyways, what's up?"
"I-uhm..." I glanced over at Rainbow's door for a moment, and took a deep breath. "I'm a little confused about...something."
"Should I not pry?"
"N-no, it's okay, it's just...private right now."
"'right now'? What does that mean?"
"I'm not sure..."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Seriously, dude. You've been quiet and avoiding the subject since I got back. Not to mention your cheeks have been a magnificent hue of blued red the whole time." Gilda said, eying me with one of her signature 'one bird-eye' stares.
"I-it's nothing."
"I've never heard your voice crack this many times, dude. What is going on?" I didn't say anything for a moment. "Does it have something to do with Fluttershy?" I looked away from her, knowing I was pretty much giving it away.
"Yeah."
"So... What happened? Come on, dude, you gotta give me something here."
"I don't think she wants me to tell you."
"Then I'll just have to figure it out. Let's start with the note. Was it a note from a teacher?"
"No."
"From another student?"
"Yes."
"A love note?" She smiled comically at this. She probably didn't expect my answer.
"Yep." She looked blown back.
"Er-okay. Uhm... did she show you?"
"Duh."
"Was it sappy?"
"Does that matter?" I asked, glaring at her. She was definitely annoying me with these questions.
"Okay fine. Did she know who it was from?"
I stayed quiet for a moment, trying to decide how to answer this. "She thought it was me." I answered without looking at her.
"Oh... And wa-"
"No. It wasn't."
"Jeeze, dude, what happened that I missed? Did you two have a fight?"
"No. We...nothing." She kept watching me for a moment. Then her face lit up so much I could actually see it without even looking at her.
"Holy Celestia, you didn't!"
"No. We didn't. You...sorta... interrupted us."
"Erm...sorry?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Why are you showing me this?" Silver asked, holding the folded note in his hoof.
"I-I guess I trust you." I replied. He eyed me for a moment, but eventually opened the note up and read it over.
"What, did Rainbow write this?"
"No. But I did show it to her and... I thought she had..."
"Did she get mad?"
"No. I got upset with myself... and she comforted me..."
"I'm confused. Why are you telling me this?"
"I just need to talk to somepony, I guess."
"I think you do, but it's not me you should talk to. I think it's Rainbow that you should talk to."
"O-okay."
"How about this. I'll ask her to go to lunch for you, and you just meet her there. It's almost one anyways, and a pony needs to eat."
"Okay."
I was sitting in CloudKisser's waiting for Rainbow to get here. I didn't have to wait long, because she was the fastest flier I'd ever met and was certainly not going to leave me sitting here. She walked in and sat at down at the table. We sat quietly, neither of us even looking at the other.
"So uhm..." I tried and failed to start the conversation. She took a deep breath.
"Fluttershy, look we need to talk about this."
"Yeah..."
"So let's just put this out there. We almost kissed, right?" She said. I looked up at her from my hooves. She was blushing madly at me.
"I guess..."
"So where should we go from here?" Rainbow asked. She was trying really hard to keep her calm. I don't know what's running through her head right now, but I could tell she is as unsure as I am.
"Wh-where do you want to go?"
"Well- I uh... I don't know... I guess I want to..." She looked down at her hooves on the table. She leaned forward and muttered, "I guess I wanna give it a try." She said, looking up at me. I felt my cheeks heating up under her hopeful gaze.
"I do, too." I replied quietly. Her eyes lit up a bit at that.
"Really?" I nodded. She frowned suddenly. "So... what should we do? I mean... Should go out somewhere or-"
"I'd like that." I said politely. Her face broke into a huge grin, and I couldn't hold back mine either.
"Okay! Uhmm... how about tonight? We'll go to dinner?"
"Rainbow. You aren't a dinner pony."
"You're right... Uhm..." She scrunched up her face in concentration. I couldn't help but giggle at her then. She looked at me, confused. "What's so funny?"
"You're trying really hard already... It's kind of cute." Her cheeks flared up again, and she sputtered for a moment.
"Well I-uh- It's our first date and I- I don't know- I want this to go well..."
"Rainbow?"
"Yeah?"
"Do you wanna visit Ponyville? It's really nice there and I can show you my animal friends. I mean... If you want to..." She looked at me oddly for a moment, probably thinking this was a bad idea, but then she just shrugged.
"Why not? I dragged you to the Wonderbolts show. Besides, this might not be that bad. When should we leave?"
"Uhm... now might be good."
"Okay, let's go."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I had no idea dogs were so adorable. Seriously, why can't we have these things in Cloudsdale? We'd landed at the animal shelter and walked straight to the dog room. They opened the door and before I knew it I was on my back, being lovingly assaulted by a bunch of puppies.
It was awesome. Once they were off of me, we went and checked on the bunnies. Er- Rabbits...yeah that's what I meant.
"I named that one Angel." Fluttershy said, giving a baby one a carrot.
"Well, don't spoil him. He'll end up as a mean brat or something."
"Oh, I know, but he's just so adorable."
"Well...yeah." I consented. "So what next? You seem to know your way around town."
"Well, I visit every once in a while." She answered shyly.
"You know anypony in town?"
"Uhm... a few."
"Cool, let's go meet some." I requested, smiling warmly.
"Rainbow, this is Applejack. Applejack this is Rainbow Dash." Fluttershy said, indicating the blonde maned, orange earth pony. She had a hat on and a cutie mark of a set of apples.
"Well howdy, Miss Rainbow! Pleasure ta meet ya!" She said grabbing my hoof in hers and shaking it violently.
"Nice to meet you, too." I said through gritted teeth, as my entire body shook with each pump of her arm. She finally stopped and I set my hoof down gently, trying to adjust to having a non-vibrating skeleton again. "That's quite the hoofshake you got there."
"Thanka kindly." She replied, with a grin.
"Applejack graduated from high school last year."
"Eeyup. Ah'm takin' over the farm too. Well, me an' Big Mac', that is."
"Who?" I asked.
"Oh, right. Ya don' know him. Big Macintosh. He's mah big brother. Me an' him and Granny Smith run the farm together."
"Oh...That makes sense." I commented. We stood there quietly for a moment. The awkwardness would've been unbearable if not for the interference of a smiling Fluttershy.
"Applejack here does rodeos. She won ten gold medals last time I was in town." Applejack tilted her head so her hat would hide her face.
"T'were only nine."
"And she only competed in nine events." Fluttershy added.
"Well, Ah'm not that good, though." I gawked at her. Was she serious? If I'd won nine in nine events, I'd be bragging for weeks, but here she is saying she's not even that good. Makes me think about my own attitude...
"I've never been to a rodeo. What are they like?"
"Them Canterlot ponies would call it 'uncouth', but most us simple folk call it 'a good time'." She said with a wink.
"Heh, sounds like my kind of fun."
"Ya should come some time."
"I think I'll do that."
"Uhm... Rainbow?" I looked over at Fluttershy.
"Yeah?"
"We should probably go. It's going to get dark soon." I looked up. Sure enough Celestia's sun was getting ready to set.
"Yeah, guess we should go. Nice meeting you AJ. Er- can I call you that?"
"Only if Ah can call you RD."
"Deal." And with that we took off and started towards Cloudsdale.
"This was great, Shy. I've never been to any town that wasn't Cloudsdale before."
"You had fun? We weren't there very long..."
"Yeah, I had fun. Come on, did you think I wouldn't have fun?"
"Well... I didn't think you would really."
"Hey. Come here." I said, changing course towards a cloud nearby. She followed suit and landed beside me. We sat quietly beside each other on the cloud as the wind gently pushed it away from Ponyville. The sun was getting lower in the sky, the lowest part of the big orange circle beginning to touch the horizon.
"Wh-what are we doing on here?" Fluttershy asked quietly.
"Just sitting. Sunsets are pretty and stuff, right?"
"I think so..." She said in a confused voice. I used a wing to gently pull her closer, then wrapped an arm around her. She rested her head on my shoulder, and I rested my cheek on her head. We sat there and watched the sun set, quietly snuggling for warmth in the cooling air. "Rainbow?"
"Yeah?"
"Do you think this will last?"
"It's a sunset. They happen ever-"
"No, I mean... this." She gestured to the two of us sitting on the cloud. "Us." I had to think about it a moment.
After a moment I angled my head and kissed her on the forehead. The action sent warm thrills all through my body, but I managed to calmly say, "Yeah. I do."