My Little Fluttershy ^_^ chapter 3
Home Away From Home
Wind whistles deafeningly in my ears as the air rushes past me. I fall tumbling through the black of night, the force causing my eyes to tear. Struggling to straighten out, I try to flap my wobbly wings as the ground looms ever closer. I close my eyes, scared of the inevitable impact.
A sudden gust catches beneath my flailing wings and I crack open my eyes. For a second, I'm gliding smoothly through the sky. But as the gust dies down, I begin to falter, losing all lift. I squee as I fall back into a spin. With the ground getting bigger by the second, I'm running out of time quickly.
"Ok, Fluttershy" I tell myself "You can do this, you can do this. First, just stop spinning." I spread my wings and try to hold them straight out. They shake under the pressure, but the spinning quickly comes under control. I'm still falling though, and fast.
"Oh no, oh no... what now?" my heart pounds quickly in my chest, the events of a unfamiliar life flashing before my eyes. It all passes in a blur as my mind searches its deepest recesses for a way out. It pauses over a memory, and the sky blue mare speeds beside me in a controlled dive.
"And to pull out, you just do this," she thrusts her powerful downwards, immediately pulling out of the dive. "But who wants to go slow anyway?" she says before she streaks off, everpresent rainbow trailing behind her.
I beat my wings hard downwards, trying to copy what I saw. My small wings are nowhere near as powerful as those of the rainbow maned mare in my memory, but the maneuver still works. I'm brought to a descending glide, a few hundred feet above the city avenues.
I sigh in relief, drifting downward. With my heart still pounding, I steady my wings as the wind slides evenly beneath them. It's not until I'm much lower that I realize I don't know how to land. My heartbeat rises again while I look around for a place to alight. A large building on the right seems like my best bet, so I angle off towards its flat roof. Aligning my flight path with the length of the surface, I approach the building.
"Ok Fluttershy, you got this. Just slow down," I say inside my head. Um... But how DO I slow down? The building draws ever closer as I speed towards it, unable to slow. I close my eyes in panic "Slow slow SLOW!" I repeat, somehow hoping that the words will help.
I pull away from the building just in time, my knee scraping the ledge guard of the roof. I hardly feel the pain as adrenaline courses through me, but I'm sure I'll feel it tomorrow. If I make it to tomorrow... there's still the problem of landing.
The side of another building materializes out of the darkness, and I bank left to avoid it. The turn steers me clear of the building, and I look back at the obstacle, impressed by how well I avoided it. When I face forward again, I turn to get a mouthful of leaves and branches. The collision with the tree sends me spinning and I struggle to regain control. Still spiraling, I fly into a clothes line, taking a shirt with me. Unable to see and spinning hopelessly out of control, I brace for impact... So the sudden softness takes me surprise.
At first I just sit there shaking, too dazed to move. My vision is blocked by a white cloth draped over me. Am I dead? Is this... the afterlife? The ground beneath me feels soft and plushy, like a cloud. I pinch myself and an "Ow" escapes my lips in a soft whimper. "So I'm definitely not dreaming."
I struggle free of the cloth and find myself buried in a large mattress. It must've slipped off the bed frame during impact, because it's on the floor now, several feet from the bed itself.
Past the bed, I notice the open window. On the sill, there's a large gap between cans of body spray, a watch box, and other trinkets. A knocked over book lies on the floor along with shattered sunglasses loose from their case. "Oops... That must've been me," I say, still shaking. I get up on my hooves, still wobbly from all the adrenaline. There's a filly sized divot in the mattress where I landed, the stuffing compressed by the force of the collision. It's a good thing that mattress was there or I might not be living right now. I breathe a sigh of relief, calming myself.
But where was I? The moonlight illuminated the room in blue glow, bright enough to make out some of the details.
The room was big, that was for sure. Or maybe I was just small. The bed itself was many times my size, large enough for about a dozen fillies. Walls painted in wavy cyan blues rose up high to a skylight studded ceiling with a stunning view of the night sky. A darkwood stained overhead fan turns slowly, producing a slight breeze. The room is beautiful, but the more I look at it the more I realize something is amiss. A run down mini fridge on the floor next to the bed seems out of place in all the beauty. There are other strange anomalies too. Chipped paint outlines where a dresser used to be and torn photos line the armoire shelves, ripped in half. The floor is littered with worn clothes, strewn about the room like the wearer didn't care much for aesthetics.
Yet everything about the design of the room screamed otherwise. The silky white drapes, like foam on the ocean of the wavy blue wall. The curvy mahogany dresser and night table, they all point to an individual of taste. The dichotomy puzzles me, momentarily distracting me from where I am.
It comes to me that I'm kind of trespassing. I've had enough adventure for one night and I'm not supposed to be here, so I should probably find a way out. I look back at the window, the way I got here in the first place. It's definitely too high for me to climb back out.
I nudge open the large door with my snout and step into a hallway, where I spot a few more rooms and a set of stairs. The exit is probably on the ground level, I tell myself. I take the stairs carefully, floating down the last few. The tile floor is cold under my hooves and it's really dark. Streetlight filters through shaded windows, and my eyes slowly adjust. Across the room, I see a door flanked by windows 'that must be it. I walk towards the door and an echoed clip-clopping fills the house as my hooves hit the stone tile. If anypony was here, now they definitely know I am too. I reach the door and try to nudge it open but it won't budge.
Way out of my reach, a handle teases me with the promise of escape. But there's no way I'm getting up there, not unless I suddenly learn to fly. I look at the soft yellow wings on my back, spreading them wide. I flap rhythmically, trying to mimic the bluebird. but my wings feel sore from the fall and the best I can do is hover shakily. Sighing, I fold them back behind me to rest them again.
What am I supposed to do now? The door is closed and the window is too high... I can't get out. I call for help, hoping it will work like the last two times. But there's no mother bird to carry me off, no Siberian husky to clear the way. The thoughts remind me of just how helpless I am. I know nothing of where I came from, where I was, WHAT I was. For the second time that night, I begin to shed tears.
I trod slowly back to bedroom, up the stairs and through the big door. The room is still a mess the way I left it and I look through the open window, up into the night sky. I think of the bluebird, but then stop immediately. I can't bear to think of what might've happened to her. "If you can hear me... I'm so sorry"
I try to tidy up the room but everything is so heavy, I wind up just pushing it all into neat piles. Exhausted, I curl up in the corner of the room, underneath the dresser.
I'll hide here until I get a chance to get out of this place. I yawn and tuck my wings in, slowly drifting off to sleep.
Behind my tired eyelids, strange memories of a faraway world play throughout my dreams. A mare with a perfect pink mane and beautiful purple eyes sings me soothing lullabies. Ponies of different colors trotted through streets filled with vendors while pegasi flew gracefully above. Rolling hill tops covered in flowers of every shade played host to dozens of frolicking squirrels, cute little bunnies and hovering songbirds. It all felt right, like I belonged there, with the mare that must've been my mother, in that place with ponies just like me, amongst the hilltop critters. It all just felt strangely like home. Maybe...
*thump*
A thumping sound fills my dreams and stirs me from my sleep. As I open my eyes, a yawn comes over me and I try to stretch, banging my head on the bottom of the dresser. "Owwww," I whimper, rubbing my head with my hoof. The distinct sound of jangling keys echoes from downstairs and I back further into my hiding place.
I should've hid by the door. This was a bad idea...
**************************
By the time I get home, it's snowing gently. I unlock the door and step inside, hanging my snow-frosted jacket on the rack. I switch on the lights and for a minute I just stand in front of the heating vent, feeling the warmth over my cold skin. My phone has run out of power on the way here, so I plug it in and leave it on the table with my keys... Still now word back from Cynder. I'm tired, a bit tipsy, and kind of depressed, but it's too early for bed. I sigh as I walk to the living room, taking a seat in the lone chair. The screen lights up as I turn it on, and I start flicking through the channels.
There's nothing on, but I don't really have anything better to do with my time, so I watch. There's a boring documentary on the titanic, one of the millions of shows about pawn shops, a rerun of Spiderman, and something on World War 1... none of which interest me, so I wind up just watching the news. Apparently there's been a bunch of reported rabid animal around the area, oh, and a 24 hour store robbery. The lake is getting even more polluted, that's good to know. Why doesn't the news ever report on anything happy?
I'm about reach into my seat-side mini fridge, but remember I had been drinking already. Better not to mix alcohols, but I grab a bottle of hard lemonade either way. What's the worst it can do? It's just lemonade.
As I drink down half the bottle, the news lady rambles on about the demolition of some old power plant. From what I remember, the thing was supposed to be taken down over a year ago. It was a waste of space, derelict, and in disuse. There had been talks of taking it down for years now, but something always came up. I was pulling for them to replace it with a skate park, but I doubt they're going to.
I finish the lemonade and pitch the empty bottle towards the trash can. It falls in, shattering and cueing the automatic applause. I mock-cheer along with it, laughing to myself. The cheer dies down and suddenly there's a scratching noise from upstairs.
What could that be? Maybe the tenants? I DID live in a two family split house, so it could've came from their side.
I mute the TV and listen closer. There it is again, a light scuffling, and it's definitely coming from the bedroom.
"Hello?" I call, picking up a knife as I pass the kitchen. The blade is too dull to even cut an apple straight, but for some reason I feel that it helps. "Anyone there?"... there's no reply save for the hum of hot air blowing from the vents.
I creep up the stairs, listening intently for any sound. I can't hear anything anymore, but I'm sure the sound had come from my room. I crack open the door slowly, looking through the opening for any sign of danger. The coast looks clear so I push it open with my foot, hanging back. When I'm satisfied that nothing is going to jump out at me, I go in and flick on the lights.
My grip tightens on the knife when I see the mess. Why is my mattress a good 5 feet from where it should be? I look around the room but nothing seems out of place save for the mattress. I kneel beside the bed, taking a closer look. It appears to have been stricken by something big coming from...
"No!!" I rush over to the carnage under the window, "and These were my favorite shades." I pick up the shattered sunglasses frowning. What came through that window? I search for a rock or baseball which may have caused this, but with no luck. Nothing's going for me today, huh. I return the mattress to its proper place on the bed frame and flop down on it. There's an annoying divot left by whatever came in through that window. I roll onto my side trying to get comfortable. Then I spot it. Under the dresser, a curl of bright pink hair lays still on the floor. I don't remember ever having a girl with pink extensions around the house. Then again, it's been so many, I can hardly remember. Only a select few made it into the house, but that few had grown over the months.
I roll out of bed and grab at the pink hair, surprised when it jerks away with a squee. "What the..."
Muffled whimpering emanates from under the dresser, sending goosebumps up my arm.
I drop on all fours, peering under the furniture. A strange animal shields it's face from me with it's... wings? Ok, what is this thing. "Come out, little guy... or girl," girl would make more sense, with the pink hair and all.
The light yellow being just slinks further back under the dresser.
"Let's go... OUT, I said!" Great... Now I'm talking to it. The thing doesn't understand me, it's an animal. I walk to the closet, eyes still fixed on the dresser, and grab my hockey stick. "Come out, or I'll force you out," I threaten, wondering why I'm warning the thing. When there's (obviously) no response, I reach under the closet with my stick, scooping the animal out. It wails and whimpers as I do, resisting my pull. It's eyes still hidden behind its wings, I drag it into the open. When I stop, it spreads it's feathers just enough to peek through. It sees me, squees and makes a break for it, dashing towards the door. I go after it, abandoning my stick for a pillow case. It reaches the door and tries to paw it open frantically. As I close in on it, it quickly give up and backs into the corner, shaking uncontrollably. I'm just about to throw the pillow sack over the pink maned animal when I see it's puppy dog eyes. They shimmer sadly, devoid of all hope, as if they're begging me to just end it already. My heart instantly melts and I stop, an awww escaping my lips. The animal tilts it's head ever so slightly, eyes still wide with fright but sparkling.
The feels are overpowering as my eyes glass over with an image of Skip in that exact pose. He was such a perfect dog, but he would get himself into trouble sometimes. Whenever he knew he did something wrong he would give me the most adorable puppy eyes and they would always work. You just can't yell at a face like that... And here was this... I don't know what it was... With those same eyes, just as irresistibly adorable. "What are you?..."
The pony-like animal is almost definitely a girl, as evident by its dainty mannerisms and appearance. She appears to be some sort of young filly...'With wings' I remind myself 'and a pink mane'. Well, I'm not sure what she is, except beyond cute. Her tiny hooves shiver as she looks at me with a mix of unease and curiosity.
I sit on the floor in front of her so that my eyes are level with the pony. she tries to back up further, only there's a wall behind her so she winds up just falling down whimpering. "Shhh shhh don't cry little pony," I soothe, trying to sound as unthreatening as possible. "It's ok, I'm not going to hurt you."
I reach out slowly towards her shaking body, wanting to calm the poor thing. But she withdraws from my touch, recoiling in fear as the fingers brush her fur.
I spend what feels like hours talking soothingly to the pony, wondering if I'm crazy as I attempt to calm
it. Eventually though, she stops shivering and lets me run my hand through her flowing pink mane and over her soft fur. Her down feels so fluffy and smooth, like the coat of a bunny. Now she actually seems to feel comforted by the touch, closing her eyes as I brush her neck. The transformation from terrified animal to serene almost pet is simply magical. I must be going insane, but I swear it looks at me and smiles, then blushes bright red, turning at the ground. But suddenly she falls, whimpering in pain
On her front left knee, she reveals a patch of red fur, caked in what can only be blood. It looks pretty painful, and by the way she's whimpering again, it sounds pretty painful too. "I'm just going to look," I whisper softly, just loud enough for her to hear. I don't know if she can understand me, but I hope my tone will convey what I'm trying to say. After a closer look I find that the knee is badly scraped, the wound still fresh.
"I'm trying to help," I tell the winged filly, "now don't move, I'll be right back." I crack open the door and shut it behind me, careful not to let her run out. I return with a box of tissues, a cup of water, and a bandage.
"Now this might hurt a little, but I have to clean-" I trail off. I think I've officially gone crazy... It won't understand me, so why am I talking to it like a person>
She looks at me with those round blue eyes and nods her head, as of in understanding.
...Ok... this just keep getting weirder. Maybe I'm just drunk, but whatever, I'll roll with it.
I wet a tissue and dab it on the injured knee. Each time I brush her injured skin, the pony cringes and whimpers, but she stays still. the blood and dirt slowly come off, revealing the true wound. It's a pretty big scrape, and as she sees it, the pony closes her eyes, refusing to look at it.
"Shhh shhh I know it hurts little guy," I scratch behind her ears as I dress the knee in an ace bandage. I know she's no dog, but she seems to like it. "Ok," I clip the bandage on, "all done."
The pony nuzzles my hand in an adorable thank you. I close my eyes and all she's missing is that little wet tongue and it could easily have been Skip. He loved when I would scratch behind his floppy puppy ears and rub his warm tummy. Oh, how I miss the little rascal.
I'm going to have to punch a wall and lift some weights to feel manly again.
The world almost seems right, with Skip back. But he isn't back. This was just some stray... pony thing, or whatever it was, but it wasn't Skip. He was with Crystal... and she isn't coming back... she's never coming back.
I sigh and realize that I'm ignoring the pony, who is now testing out her new bandage. She trots around the room with a small limp, occasionally wincing. It's funny how she holds her injured leg as she walks. When she notices I'm watching, she looks down blushing and paws the ground with her hoof. Strange, I never knew animals could act shy like that.
It had been a while since I last eaten so I decided it's time for a snack. I scoop her up, surprised how light she feels. I guess if she has wings, it makes sense that she'd have a light build. I put her on the kitchen counter and open the fridge. She look like a horse to me... What do horses eat? I don't exactly keep a fresh stock of hay in my house, so I pull out a few fruits and vegetables for her, grabbing a hot pocket for myself. I throw the hot pocket in the microwave then spread the produce in front of the pony. There's a carrot, a bunch of grapes, some celery, and an apple. She sniffs each of them then takes a bite of the apple. Her tiny teeth marks make me smile as she takes another bite. "Let me cut that for you," I say when I see she's having trouble. The apple is about half her size, so I slice it into a couple of small wedges. I give her one and she nibbles on it to make sure it's still an apple, then goes on eating.
We eat together in silence, the pony occasionally looking up to make sure I'm still there. I go to pour myself some water and get her a bowl too. When I get back, she's finishing the last piece of apple. "Wow," I say surprised, "you really must've been hungry. That thing was almost as big as you".
She drinks all the water I give her too, but when I try to offer more food and drink, she doesn't want. She just yawns the cutest little yawn and stretches on the counter.
"Time to go sleep, little filly," I say stifling my own yawn. She crawls into my arms and I carry her upstairs, again surprised by how light she feels. I set her down on the bed, and curls up into a ball, smiling at me in thanks before burying her head in the pillow "Goodnight Ski..." I stutter, almost saying my dog's name. I sigh, just an hour ago I was thought it was a pest, now it's apparently sleeping my bed... I'm definitely drunk, and this will all be over in the morning. But as I lie down next to her and close my eyes, I'm hoping it won't.