“Geez, Fluttershy, I told you,” Rainbow chuckled as Fluttershy fussed over Rainbow, looking her over again and again for any injuries the assassin might’ve left on her, “she didn’t even scratch me. She might’ve been pretty experienced, but I got a lot of years on her. I’m just better.”
“I know, I know,” Fluttershy sighed. “I just don’t want you to get hurt on my account.”
Fluttershy fell onto one of the beds of the small room in the Neighagra Falls Inn; it was Twilight’s room, and while Twilight was up on the roof getting Pinkie up to speed, Fluttershy and Rainbow kept an eye out for any other would-be assassins. And Spike, of course, was snoozing away on one of the beds.
“It’s not like it’d be your fault,” Rainbow rolled her eyes, sitting down in a comfy plush chair. “I tend to get a little carried away when I’m fighting. I can be pretty, uh, reckless. It’s something I’ve been trying to cut back on, but you know how habits can be sometimes.”
“I guess,” Fluttershy hummed, looking up at her hand for a moment.
Fluttershy sat up and stared right at Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy’s glittering eyes seeming to look right through Rainbow, and yet she didn’t feel intimidated; Fluttershy’s eyes may have been those of a dragon, but they were nothing like the assassin’s.
Though, as Fluttershy stared for several seconds in dead silence, Rainbow started to get a little bit intimidated.
“Thank you, though,” Fluttershy said softly, and Rainbow gave a sigh of relief under her breath. “I’m not sure what would’ve happened to me, or to Spike, if you hadn’t stepped in.”
“No biggie,” Rainbow shrugged. “Like I toldja on the train, I wanna be friends. And friends help each other out. Not like I could just leave a bloodthirsty assassin on the loose either.”
“I know,” Fluttershy giggled. “But I still really appreciate it. I guess I just— I didn’t expect you to—I guess I just didn’t think that you really meant it. When you said you wanted to be friends.”
“Hmm, yeah I guess that’s fair,” Rainbow flicked her fingers to stim. “I wouldn’t have totally believed it if you said it to me either. Thing is though, Twilight—” Rainbow bit her lip and ruffled her mane. She really didn’t wanna say what she had to say. “Twilight’s one of my best friends. And I want to trust her.
“And at the same time, I wanna trust you too. Maybe that’s super dangerous. Maybe I’m just the biggest credulous dipshit in Equestria. But it’s what my gut’s saying, and I like to listen to my gut.”
“Well I’m glad you feel that way,” Fluttershy twiddled her fingers and gave Rainbow a shaky smile even though she couldn’t quite meet Rainbow’s eyes, “cuz I think you’re pretty cool. And I’d really like to be your friend too.”
“Of course you do,” Rainbow beamed, “I’m awesome.
“And besides that,” Rainbow said a bit more seriously, “it’s starting to be pretty unignorable that I’ve been fed a big fat lie my wholeass life. And if that’s the case— and that’s a really tiny ‘if’ at this point— I wanna just take that L and move on with my life.
“I don’t wanna stick my head in the sand my whole life, I wanna accept what’s true and move forward with that,” Rainbow looked over to Spike snoozing on the bed. “And that kid’s pretty much living proof that the lie I’ve been told about dragons is nothing more than that—a lie.”
“That’s very noble of you, Rainbow Dash,” Fluttershy said, a catlike grin on her face that made Rainbow feel the need to shift uncomfortably in her chair. “To be honest, most ponies— most people in your position, when they get met with something that shatters what they believe, they don’t take it so well. It takes a lot of courage to walk the path you’re walking right now. Not everyone can do it.”
“Yeah, well,” Rainbow groaned and leaned her cheek against her hand, elbow resting on the chair’s arm. “Frankly, I’m not even sure I can do it. But I wanna try, y’know?”
“I do,” Fluttershy nodded, hands placed delicately on her lap. “I know exactly what you mean.”