“Fluttershy! It's time to come out of the closet.”
“No,” a soft and meek voice drifted from the firmly shut closet door.
“It's okay to be nervous. But you have to come out.” Twilight trotted back and forth across the bedroom floor, her new dress shifting pleasantly with each bounce.
“No, I don't.”
“Our reservations are in half an hour and it'll take us twenty minutes to get there.” Twilight looked at a golden pocket watch with annoyance. There was a picture of a butter yellow pegasus in the cover.
“I don't like Italian food.”
“I know that. Mareachi isn't an Italian restaurant. They don't even serve spaghetti. That's why I chose it.”
“I don't like whatever it is that they serve.”
“Now you're just being ridiculous.” Twilight's eyebrow twitched in aggravation. “Please, just come out of the closet.”
“I can't.”
Twilight looked around and picked up a squirrel at random from Fluttershy's floor.
“I have a squirrel. It appears to be injured in someway...”
In a blur the door opened, a yellow hoof snatched away the offered squirrel and the door slammed shut once more.
A moment latter the door opened a crack and the squirrel in question made it's escape.
“That squirrel was fine,” said an indignant Fluttershy.
“Please Fluttershy. Come out of the closet.”
“I can't.”
“I got you roses.” Twilight picked up the bouquet of a half dozen roses. She gave it a rustle to make sure that Fluttershy could hear the leaves.
“I know. They smell lovely.”
“They sure do look great.” Twilight trotted back to the bed. “But you wouldn't know. You haven't seen them.”
“Twilight?”
“Nice and fresh. They feel so soft on my nose.”
There was a curiously textured silence.
“Oh, my they are delicious! So soft and smooth. And the flavor, it's just out of this world.”
“They do sound nice.”
“I'm afraid if you don't come out I'll wind up eating all of them.”
“You could save me one...”
“Sorry, can't. Just too delicious.” Twilight commenced munching loudly.
“That's lettuce.”
Twilight returned the leaf to an aggravated looking rabbit. Fluttershy had called her bluff. There really was no way she could eat the roses she had gotten for the pegasus.
“Please Fluttershy. Come out of the closet.”
“Can't we just stay in?”
“We've made reservations. Rarity has made the dresses. We have to go.”
Twilight's expression of frustration shifted into an expression of evil.
“You know something, Fluttershy...”
“Yes?”
“You're really very brave.”
“No, I'm not. Sweet Celestia, I'm not.” Flutters sounded as tired of this as Twilight was.
“But then how can you stand it?”
“Stand what?”
“Being in a tiny little box like that.”
“It's not that small. It's a very nice closet actually.”
“Please, you don't even have enough room to stretch your wings in that little coffin.”
“I'm actually doing pretty okay.”
“There is no sun, no sky and no wind.”
“Doing less okay now.”
“It's time, come on out. Escape the closet, come with me to Mareachi and lets have a nice pleasant candle lit dinner.”
“I can't,” the voice behind the door sobbed.
“Why not?!” Twilight practically screamed.
“They'll all see.”
“What will they see?” Twilight trotted to the closet door. Her anger rising.
“Us.”
“Is that it? You're ashamed? Of me?”
“It's not like that.”
“You said you loved me.”
“I do.”
“No, you don't.”
“But, I do.”
“No, you're ashamed of me and ashamed of yourself for being attracted to somepony like me.”
“No, I'm not,” Flutters practically sobbed.
“Then what?”
“They'll see you! I can't stand the thought of it. They'll all think...”
“That I like mares? I do. I am that way. It is fine. I've made peace with ponies looking at me like that. It's in the tabloids already.”
“Really?”
“I got a front page with that one. 'Celestia's faithful student goes to all filly bar'. It was terrible. That's how my parents found out. They made a big scene about it at Heart's Warming Eve dinner. And Celestia. She just gave a kiss on the head and said she was sorry.”
“About... being in the paper?”
“I think so. I hope so anyway. But she never treated me any different after that. She never even treated me any different after...”
“After what?”
“She said I should date somepony closer to my own age.”
“Oh.”
“And I am. Or I'm trying to. You aren't making this easy you know.”
“I'm sorry.”
“It's a Royal Decree you know.”
“Huh?”
“'Twilight Sparkle, thank you, but I'm afraid that I must insist that you date somepony closer to your own age.' Right there. Royal Decree. The Princess said it. I must do it. It would be treason to refuse. Twilight Sparkle must go on a date with a mare her own age. By her command, I have searched the town of Ponyville for the most suitable mare I could find. I made graphs and charts.”
“Really?”
“Would you like to see my graphs and charts? They're in five different colors.”
“I... I wouldn't mind... but you really think I'm the most suitable? Out of all of Ponyville?”
“I wrote down all the traits Celestia had that I admired. And then I ranked all one hundred and sixty four mares in Ponyville, including all the Bon Bons, and I made a graph! You, Fluttershy, came out on top. By a fairly wide margin, too.”
“You really think I'm special?”
“Yes.”
The closet door creaked open. Fluttershy straightened the new dress that Rarity had made her just for tonight and wiped her red teary eyes on the hem of her old Gala dress.
With a deep breath to rally her courage Fluttershy, finally and at last, stepped out of the closet.