//------------------------------// // First Encounters // Story: Hidden in Plain Sight // by Burly Bubble //------------------------------// Fluttershy galloped through Ponyville in a frenzy, searching for a place to hide. The paparazzi and the fans were chasing her relentlessly through the streets, trying to get a look at the model pony. When Fluttershy had tried to escape using her wings, she was swarmed by pegasi with cameras. No matter where she went, she was unable to escape them. She searched high and low for any possible hiding place. The only place even worth attempting to seek refuge in was blatantly obvious. An alleyway. Without any other options, Fluttershy dove into the alley and looked for anything she could hide in or behind. She spotted a dumpster and was headed towards it at full speed before a pony could blink and.... BAM! Fluttershy was stunned. She felt as if she had just run right into somepony, but she could have sworn she hadn't seen anyone in the alley. "Hey! Maybe she went in this alleyway!" screamed somepony just outside the alley. Fluttershy panicked. She was sprawled on the ground in the middle of the alley and there was no way she could possibly make it to the dumpster. She covered her eyes with her hooves. Maybe if she just lay there, they would leave her alone. Several seconds passed. They felt like hours to Fluttershy. "Nope, nothing down the alley! Let's go check by Carousel Boutique again!" the pony shouted. Fluttershy raised her head, her eyes wide. They hadn't seen her. How? She was laying right in the middle of the alley, plainly visible. Maybe they didn't- "Um.. excuse me..." murmured a voice from below. Fluttershy screamed and shot into the air. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. I just..." the voice trailed off, though it had barely been a whisper to begin with. Fluttershy stared at the owner of the voice. A smallish, light grey stallion lay on the ground right where she had fallen. His pale blue mane was disheveled and unruly. She couldn't quite see the color of his eyes, as he wouldn't make eye contact with her. Fluttershy shook her head, realizing she was staring. "How did... how did you get there...?" she asked. "I.. I was... I was just standing here when you bumped into me..." the stallion whispered, standing up but still not making eye contact. Fluttershy turned bright red. She thought she hadn't seen anyone. But apparently she had run right into this stallion. "I'm so sorry!" Fluttershy landed, looking very apologetic, "I wasn't watching were I was going. I-" "It's alright, it's... not your fault. It's mine actually." the stallion said, speaking slightly louder. Fluttershy was shocked. Not only did this pony seem shyer than she was, but he acted as if her running into him was his fault. "No. I mean, it couldn't be. I was running without looking where I was going-" "It isn't your fault you didn't see me. I..." he paused, "I was kind of invisible." Yet again, she was stunned. He was shy, taking the blame, and claiming to be invisible. However, being closer to him than when she had first looked, she noticed a horn on his head. He was a unicorn. Now the invisible part made a bit more sense. "Oh." she said, "Were you practicing a spell or something?" "Ah... No. Well, it- it's complicated." he stammered, "It's not exactly a magic I control that well. It's the reason those ponies who were looking for you didn't see you." Fluttershy blinked, remembering how she had gotten in this situation to begin with. She preferred this to the crowd, but... "So. You made me invisible too? And by accident?" she asked slowly. "Yes and no." he said, taking a breath, "Well, yes I turned you invisible, and yes it was an accident. But no, technically I didn't make you invisible, it's whatever this is." He turned his flank toward her, showing her his cutiemark. It looked almost like a silhouette or an outline, but it was hard to tell. It was almost like a mirage. "Ever since I was little I didn't talk much, so most ponies didn't take notice of me. After a while, it seems I became invisible. And, whether I wanted to or not, I remained invisible until I bumped into an older unicorn who helped turn me visible again. I've turned invisible several times by accident since then, but I'm better at controlling it than I used to be. I can be visible if I wish now, but sitting here in the alley, I was deep in thought, which is why I didn't move out of your way. When you ran into me, it startled me, making me turn you invisible. By accident. And then you-" He stopped, stood silent for a second, then blushed. "Sorry. I haven't talked with anypony in quite a while, so I just started blabbering..." he was back to a whisper. Fluttershy was staring again. She wasn't sure which was stranger, his story or the fact she was sitting there, staring at him (and he at her) while he claimed they were invisible. "How can I see you if you're invisible?" "Well, maybe since we were both made invisible by the same thing, we can see each other. Another question came to her mind. "You... you can make me visible again, right?" "O- Of course! Here, I'll-" "Wait!" she shouted, then blushed and continued a bit softer, "I mean, it's fine for now. I don't really want to be seen right now." They sat in an awkward silence for a while. "Do you... want to talk about it?" Fluttershy began to decline, but then she decided she would talk with him about it. She had confided in Twilight, but she still felt she needed to voice some of her worries. And then, she began to talk with this stranger about all the things that had troubled her recently. The modeling, the fact that she couldn't quit modeling without disappointing her friend, the shows, the crowds. And the strange stallion sat quietly and listened. When Fluttershy was done venting, the sun quite low in the sky. The stallion shifted slightly, making himself more comfortable where he sat. "Well... if you want, I can help you escape all of those problems for a bit each day." he said. "What do you mean?" "Well, like right now, we just sat and talked for several hours without so much as a mouse disturbing us. If you want, we could meet like this again so you can escape from those crowds and rest quietly. As long as we're invisible they wouldn't find us, providing they don't hear us talk or anything." Fluttershy couldn't believe what she was hearing. Not only had she made a new friend (or at least a friendly acquaintance) but she had found a solution to one of her problems. Or at least a temporary solution. "That would be lovely. But where would we meet?" "Well, it's not much, but we could meet back here. Tomorrow at five-ish?" "Sure!" Fluttershy said happily. The stallion's horn flared with magic and suddenly she couldn't see him anymore. "Well, you're visible again and we have a plan. See you here tomorrow!" And with that, he was gone. No hoof prints and no sound. He could have not moved at all, but she didn't care. She happily got up and began to skip home. It occurred to her that she never asked his name, nor had he told her his name, but she didn't mind. She could always ask him tomorrow. She was looking forward to another quiet evening with someone she could talk with so easily. Suddenly, her situation didn't seem so bad.