Fluttervile

by Aiet

Bed, bath, and not so far away

The rain couldn't dampen the joy inside the cottage. An upbeat yet slow waltz flowed from the record player and two bodies held each other. Fluttershy stood on her hind legs, placing her right hoof onto dolorem shoulder and her left rested in his hand. Dolorem's other hand was placed on her back right below her wing. They danced slowly, rarity would have clicked her tongue and shook her head at the two's fumbling but neither cared as they enjoyed holding each other. They danced in a circle in the middle of the room, laughing and smiling. They kept dancing even after the needle played through the entire record, a light scratching in the air. Spinning and twirling, the two gazed into each others eyes. They could have danced forever but angel hopped in demanding to be fed. Fluttershy reluctantly let go of dolorem, his fingers slid from her, and she went to feed her animals. This time he didn't help her but looked outside a window. He watched the gray cloudy sky as fluttershy quickly finished with the animals. They were sleepy and less demanding today with the lazy weather. She quietly walked back into the living room and watched him. he leaned on the window ledge, gazing silently outside. Suddenly she had an idea and grabbed a pillow of the couch and chucked it at him, hitting him in the back of the head. He turned around slowly, squinting at her. She immediately backed away feeling sorry. Dolorem bent over and picked up the pillow, staring at fluttershy still. He smiled and throw the pillow back at her, hitting her in the chest. They both started laughing and continued to toss pillows at one another, closing in on each other. Finally dolorem forgot the pillows and started to tickle her. She couldn't resist, laughing loudly as he crouched over her. She tried pushing him off and he let her, she landed on top of his chest. She began attacking back but using her wings also, the tips of her feathers brushing over him. He squirmed around careful not to toss her off, laughing. Soon she stopped and kept sitting on his chest, smiling. He smiled back and let her rest on him. She laid down on him and placed her head against his neck, her muzzle brushing his ear. They laid there silently listening to each other breath. Dolorem held fluttershy and stood up, cradling her in his arms. He walked over to the couch and gentle placed her down as he keeled above her. She was laying right between his legs and his face near hers. Fluttershy started to breath faster and her heart quickened as dolorem closed the gap. He watched her as she batted her eyes. He stopped an inch away and suddenly cringed away, fluttershy gasped and quickly sat up as he shot of the couch.
“are you ok?” she looked at dolorem with worry as he backed away from her.
“I-it's nothing. I'm sorry I just need to go.” he made his way to the door and fluttershy rushed up behind him.
“was it something I did? I'm sorry, I didn't mean too. Please stay.” she pleaded to him wondering what was wrong. He stopped and turned, a bitter sweet smile on his face.
“you did nothing at all. I just need to go. I'm sorry but please don't be mad it's just something I need to do.” fluttershy simply nodded as he turned and walked out the door into the rain. When the door close she felt so alone and stood there until angel hopped up besides her nudging her leg, he my have been a stubborn hard head but he never liked to see fluttershy unhappy. Outside dolorem stalked away soaked by cool rain. He walked away from the cottage and veered away from the tree house into town. He made to the center and sat down at a bench. He felt the water run down his skin, cool. The rain pattered all around and splashed. He sat there watching droplets of water fall off his fingers as hoof steps quietly came forward. Twilight was looking out her window as she saw dolorem walked out into the rain to town. She levitated an umbrella and walked out the door. Now she stood behind dolorem with the rain running down the slick surface of the umbrella.
“you need to get out of the rain... come hom-back to the library...” dolorem said nothing and stared at his fingers still. After a while the rain stopped falling on dolorem as an umbrella hovered over him, twilight standing besides him. He looked up at her with pain in his eyes but nothing on his face, emotionless.
“Princess Celestia sent me a letter saying that she commissioned a house to be built for you until you returned home.” in actuality twilight paid the contractors to build him a home. It cost a lot of bits but being the student to the princess had large benefits. Dolorem finally spoke.
“thank you...” it was all he said, all he could say.

Back at the library dolorem sat at the table with a towel draped over his broad shoulders. Twilight moved about the room hanging a thin rope from two shelves. Once finished she walked over to him. He was scratching at the table top deep in thought.
“you need to get out of those clothes.” twilight spoke to him with a caring tone. Dolorem turned to her with a small smirk.
“couldn't wait to get me naked again could you?” this time twilight didn't blush and smiled back at him. He stood up and shook his head while twilight turned and went to the back. He decided to search his pockets. From his left he pulled out a wide metal wristband that stretched to fit and shrunk to stay. He placed it on the table and continued his search in his right. He pulled out a damp, air light, yellow feather and held it in his palm. He stared at the feather as twilight walked up to him.
“she really likes you. You should be with her...” dolorem looked at twilight as she smiled at him. His heart slowing down to a near stop, thumbing loudly in his ears.
“but what about what you want?” her smiled disappeared and she spoke softly.
“I want you to be happy.” dolorem felt as if he had been whipped and held closely at the same time. He wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly.
“and I want you to be happy... and to remember not to let everything pass you by.” twilight hugged him back and breathed deeply. Like before whatever he said lifted the world from her shoulders.
“you need a bath.” she pulled away crinkling her nose. He lifted up his arm to smell himself while twilight shook her head grinning. He started to peel off the still damp clothes, placing them on the table. Once again he stood bare skin in front of twilight, her heart betraying her. Her heartbeat quickened and her breathing turned shallow. Dolorem wasn't paying any attention, as her eyes took in the details, turning his back to her. The last time he was without clothes she never mange to see his back. Long thin lines where engraved into the flesh, overlapping and weaving into one or another. Dolorem wrapped the towel around his waist and turned to twilight, seeing the trouble in her eyes.
“my back?” she nodded her head for a lost of words and he walked to her bad to lay down. Twilight quickly levitated his clothes onto the rope to dry and made her way to him. He had grabbed a pillow and laid the other way on his stomach, twilight climbed onto the bed facing the other way with him. He sighed and turned his to her.
“He was running in the woods at night all lone. I had went for walk along the edges when I heard the screaming. I rushed into the woods searching everywhere for who ever had screamed, when I heard someone crashing through the undergrowth. It was a small boy, no older then ten, frighten and hurt. When he saw me he ran strait for me yelling about something I couldn't make out. At that moment a large blur burst from the side taking the boy to the ground. He was kicking and screaming with a feral tiger digging his claws into his back. And before I could move it was over, the boy lay still and blood dripped from the tiger's fangs. I was living in a small village that survived off of hunting and we all carried knifes. I drew the knife and rushed the beast but it had became scared when shouting came closer and closer. It ran off forgetting about it's pray, the little boy, leaving me standing over the body. The shouting stumbled through the trees and I found my self being tied and led off. The village blamed me for killing the boy and punished me. My arms where tied to two post, spreading them from my body. They cut off the back off my shirt and poured water on me. Three men lined up ten feet away, each holding leather whips. I was giving fifty lashes from each man, one after the other, less then a second apart. It took everything I had to not black out from the pain. When they finished I was left tied to the post for over a week, given little food and water. The flies smelt the blood that coated my back and laid eggs into the torn flesh. I could feel the maggots eat away at the putrid tissue. The sun was harsh and unforgiving, burning and parching my skin. I would have died soon. The maggots actually help save me, they ate away the infection in the wounds. A man had arrived from a city far away and saw me tied. He asked the village chief why I was being punished and they told him what had happen. He asked for my knife and left with it. He returned the next day with great news for me. He explained to the chief that he had tested the knife for blood and no human blood had ever touched the blade. And further more when he had seen the boys body which had been take to the city to be examined they told him a large animal had killed the boy and not me. That it was claws and teeth that tore into his flesh and not my blade. After some more discussion I was finally cut down. I didn't remember being taken to the city hospital but I woke up there days later. The doctors couldn't believe I was still alive when I arrived and how I had remained alive. I never returned to the village but I would always remember the pain. The heat. The maggots.” twilight looked at dolorem, the memories burned into his eyes. Then she smile and spoke.
“well I'm glade you lived because if you hadn't... I wouldn't have got to meet.. you.” dolorem looked at twilight with a soft smile. Inside it felt as she held a whip and lashed him with her words. His heart picked up but he manage to control his breathing. Twilight sat up and stretched.
“but seriously you need that bath, you smell. Bad.” he chuckled as she jumped off the bed motioning for him to follow her. She led him to a large bath tub by pony standards but he wouldn't be able to lay out all the way. She used he magic to turn the levers and water poured from the spout, within minutes the tub was full. Steam rose from the water, dancing off the surface. Dolorem dropped the towel and slowly lowered himself into the water. He sighed in content as his muscles relaxed. He began to scrub his skin with a brush that hung from the side of the tub. He cleaned nearly all his body and reached to get his back. Twilight, had never left, levitated the brush from his hand.
“here. Let me.” she leaned over the edge of the tub and instead of using her magic she held the brush in her right hoof, gently scrubbing his back. With her other hoof she grazed her hoof tip across the scars. Dolorem closed his eyes and breathed deeply then he reached around grabbing twilight on her side lifting her into the tub as he scooted forward. She help him by climbing in as he pulled her to him, the water slightly under her hips as she stood on her hind legs. The water and the steam dampened her fur quickly as she pressed her self into his back scrubbing his shoulders. As the brush past over his shoulder again he grabbed it from twilight with his right hand and turned to her.
“your turn.” he softly pushed her on to her back, laying her on the slight incline of the tub. He slowly ran the brush in circles on her chest going down bit but bit. When he reached the bottom of her rib cage he began to scrub her front legs from the outside in. twilight had her eyes closed and greatly enjoyed his touch, wishing he hadn't switch to her front legs. He then brought the brush upward to her neck in slow, smooth motions causing her to tilt her head up higher. He grabbed her with his left hand and turned her around, standing her up. He then began brushing the outsides of her hind legs, never moving to the inside but teetering close at the edges. He worked his way up to the stars on her right flank and brushed in circular motions. He spent a few minutes on that side before moving to the other. Doing the same on her left flank he moved up to top of her tail, inching to the middle of her back. Twilight gasped, closing her eyes tightly, and arching her back as he scrubbed back and forth. Back and forth. Back and forth. neither of them paid any attention to anything else, occupied in each others touch, certainly not when the door opened and a crimson dragon walked in with a towel.
~everywhere I go the mares always know that spike has a...~ spike stopped singing his song as he watched huge eyed. Twilight was mid moan as dolorem had himself raised on one knee right behind her but not touching. Twilight's tail had snaked it's way around dolorem's waist trying to pull him closer. Spike turned, rolling his eyes.
“you could at least lock the door!” he stomped out slamming the door behind him. They continued as if nothing happened. Dolorem poured water over twilight's mane, with a small pitcher from outside the tub, running his fingers through her hair. Twilight couldn't stand it any more and her legs buckled under her, dolorem quickly grabbed her and held her to his chest. They sat there together until the water became cold. Finally getting out twilight barely had the strength to stand and dolorem just grabbed her after wrapping himself with the towel again. He walked with her in his arms back to her bed and laid her down under the covers. She immediately fell asleep, as she had been drifting away in his arms. Dolorem walk into the living room where spike was busy poking at a dust bunny. He walked over to him and spoke.
“what's wrong spike?” he looked up with resentment in his eyes.
“every since you came here twilight has been obsessed with you.” dolorem was slightly taken aback, he hadn't thought about how this was affecting the young dragon. He smiled at him.
“I know and I’m sorry spike. You'll have twilight back to the way she was soon and don't worry you'll be having the same affect on girls soon.” spike looked at dolorem with a raised eye brow and started to laugh. They both laughed with each other, spike's feelings no longer ill towards dolorem. Both were tired and went to bed, dolorem grabbed his boxers, now dry, and slipped them on. Spike crawled into his bed as dolorem laid on the couch. Nightmares wracked dolorem's mind. The sight of blood splashing across his face vanished as he shot up wide awake. Outside the sun had not awakened it's self and was covered in it's own blanket of silk night. he sat there breathing slowly to get himself under control when twilight stepped from the shadows.
“you didn't have to sleep on the couch.” she moved near him just to feel his warmth she missed through the night.
“I could have but you were so tired I didn't want to move you and wake you up. And a kick to the head would have been better to take up to.” twilight didn't understand the last part but she smiled and sat on the couch next to him. They sat together and waited for the sun to peak into the window bringing warmth and light back to the land.
It had only been three days, three chaotic, emotional, and tiring days. Everything was happening so fast for dolorem, speeding along with him in tow. Already two hearts weighed onto his and he knew one had to be let go if not both. He didn't have the chance to stop it from starting but how long had it been since he felt... dolorem spent that day with twilight and the night with fluttershy, heartache tore through him threatening to rip him to pieces. On the sixth day as he walked the town with spike a letter was delivered to him by a gray crossed eye Pegasus. It was a notice that the house was finished and the last payment was made in full from twilight. That had made him slightly upset that she lied to him and spent so much of her money for him. Spike was eager to see the new house and both of them walked at a brisk pace to it. The house was built a stone's throw from the road to Canterlot. It was a plain wooden house with a slate red roof, a window left of the door and a window on the side of the house towards Canterlot. They both walked inside to examine it more. It was fairly large inside, to the left the living room, a big couch with a small, low table in front of it, the right the dinning room and an open kitchen. In the far left was the door to the bedroom, a very large bed on sturdy wooden beams, the far right a complete bathroom with an even larger tub then twilight's that he could lay down with room to spare. He may have not had much but now he had something of his own again, a place to call home. That night he had his first full night's rest free from nightmares and flying hooves. He awoke on the seventh day fully rested but his mind in chaos. He was ripped between two, yellow or purple. Feather or horn. And if he could ever admit to it, love or love.