//------------------------------// // Fluttershy's Kindness // Story: The Hobo: The 'Empathetic' Friend // by Visharo //------------------------------// Principal Celestia hesitantly introduced Fluttershy onto the stage. The past two graduates have clearly indicated that something was wrong with Sunset and her friends. Maybe something magical? Before Vice-Principal Luna could properly hand out the certificate, the usually shy girl ripped it out of her hand. She then proceeded to push Celestia away from the microphone; the entire theater fell silent as they stared at the very angry girl. "I have an announcement. Sunset is a fucking bitch who deserves nothing but our hatred. In fact! I'll pay anybody to beat up Sunset!" Fluttershy glared at an uninterested Sunset, then dropped the mic on the floor. [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] Stallionford University. Sunset stood in front of the campus with a ghost of a smile. She got accepted into this university after Canterlot High, and she planned to study Law. The summer was almost over, and she was heading to her dorm for the first time. She could only hope that her roommate wasn't the sociable type, or worse, the optimistic type. Sunset walked through the many halls, asking for directions a couple of times, and then finally arrived at her room. A plaque on the door said it was Room 314. When she opened the door, she was greeted by a pistachio-green woman, who seemed to be staring out a window. Her two-toned brownish hair, waved in the breeze from the open window. A small ladybug charm looked as if it were braided within her hair. "Uh, hello? I'm Sun..." Sunset tried to start, but got shushed by the women. Sunset stood there in shock, her mind trying to process what had just happened. When she tried to open her mouth, the women shushed her again. Then she picked up a camera and took a picture. After the picture was taken, she whipped around with a creepy grin. "Sunset Shimmer, I presume? You can call me Shutterbug." [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] The plan. Sunset was hiding in a bush, black clothes covering her body, blending her into the background of the night. She just exited a landlord's house, persuading him to raise the rent of those renting his properties. He protested a lot, saying that he had a kind heart and wanted those under him, to live peacefully. It took some force to get him to understand what Sunset was saying. Everyone had their breaking points. She smirked at the memory, recalling at how squeamish he was, how desperately he wanted to make noise, but if he did, Posey would find his body, and nobody wants that. A loud rustle made Sunset look up from her hiding spot and spotted a despondent yellow woman trudging through the fallen leaves. Sunset smiled and cocked back her arm, a small pebble nestled in her palm. She waited just for a second, then threw the stone. It hit the window of one of the neighbors, prompting them to look outside. Moments passed and Sunset was just lounging in the grass, snuggling up in her thermal clothes, trying to keep warm. A door slam announced that Fluttershy was finally done with her landlord. Sunset waited for just a little bit longer, then creeped forwards. She carefully opened a window and crawled inside. Knowing the layout from her previous visit, Sunset made her way through the house. The landlord was right where Fluttershy left him, on the couch with an open box of pop tarts. He was sleeping peacefully, due to the sleep drug inside the sugary sweets. Sunset carefully made her way behind the couch and expertly slit his throat, making no sound what so ever. With her job done, she went back the way she came from, leaving the knife she used in the kitchen. Once her feet touched the grass, Sunset took off with a big cruel smile. [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] Sunset went back to her house after that tearful reunion between Applejack and Pinkie. Many hugs were given and eaten cupcakes. All in all, she thought it went well. Applejack said she was going to stay for a couple of days, then she'd head out, trying to find a job so she could rebuild the farm. Pinkie immediately offered to help, which the farmer reluctantly accepted. Now Sunset was just contemplating on who to visit next. According to Pinkie, Fluttershy should be next, but she offered no hint as to where she could find the timid girl. Sunset thought to herself how she was going to find Fluttershy when a thought stopped her dead in her tracks. Her part-time job as a Judge allows her to sometimes get requests to judge a trial. She got an email two months ago, asking for her possible attendance for a murdered landlord trial. Sunset shook her head and started running, attracting some intrigued looks from locals. Once at home, she quickly opened her computer, failing to login once, and opened the email from two months ago. It confirmed that the trial hasn't started yet and that the Prosecutor is the wife of the dead landlord. But the most important information that Sunset found out, was that the Defendant was none other than Fluttershy herself. Sunset could only grin at how convenient all this is. All the puzzle pieces, though scattered, all seemed to be labeled to her, and it's just a matter of looking in the right place and for the right clues. Sunset contemplated if it was the universe telling her that rekindling their friendship was a good thing, or maybe it was just Pinkie doing Pinkie things. Whatever the case, Sunset found this very exciting. After sending an email, saying that she wanted to accept the position, Sunset started brainstorming things she knew about Fluttershy and how she could get the yellow woman to become kind again. A quick call to Dirty Secret, asking for all the information on Fluttershy. He delivered almost immediately. [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] Everybody went their separate ways, because their friendship felt off and strained. Rainbow was the first one to leave, and something happened deep inside Fluttershy, almost as if she embraced the anger. One by one, they all left, the more hate Fluttershy festered. She got fired from voluntary work at the local animal shelter; she even got kicked out of town, the mayor claiming that she was too dangerous. She refused help from her parents when they heard of the news, and decided to move to the other side of Equestria to avoid them. In the quaint town called Sire's Hollow. There, Fluttershy calmed down, but still wasn't friendly to those who were around her. During her time there, she, and others was invited at the local school, to talk about their time in High School, and how it isn't scary. She might've gone overboard describing her 'friends' and the teacher had to calm her down a bit, her face betraying that she was a bit worried. After Fluttershy cooled down, she continued her story, and when it was her time to go, she saw a lilac teenager looking at her in interest. As the years went by, Fluttershy's anger had subsided to just being annoyed, much to the neighbors' relief. Despite the length of having no one, she never felt alone. Angel Bunny was always there for her, through the thick and thin. Fluttershy had no idea how she could repay the bunny, but tried to as best she could, despite having no Kindness in her soul. Then the rent went up. Life drastically changed for her, as she looked for higher paying jobs, or perhaps another part-time one. Anything to pay the bills, she would take. Fluttershy had only enough to pay for a single month, and if she didn't cough up enough money next month, she'd lose her house! She thought all this while walking down to her landlord's house, a jacket in hand, thinking maybe she could convince him to lower the rent, just until she gets a job. However, when she got there, he was asleep with a box of pop tarts on the couch, next to him. [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] Sunset smirked at how easy it was to win the trial, getting her own lawyer to defend Fluttershy. All Sunset had to do was give him a Lampyrisma suit, because he oh so adores it. The best part was that Sunset owns that company, which in itself wasn't that hard. Trudging back to her hotel, Sunset smiled as she thought about ghosts.