Ponyville proper bustled with all manner of activities, just like it did every day. A marketplace, some random game stalls, and other such attractions littered the main square, which served as the most popular destination in town. Into this area trotted a cloaked and hooded pony, behind whom floated a large box. Displayed prominently on the cloak's back was a large, arcane-looking symbol. The pony glanced back and forth, as if in search of something, before choosing a direction and setting off, box close behind.
A number of the other ponies glanced at the newcomer in interest, but within a short span of time, the stranger was gone, and all thoughts of disguised travelers were forgotten.
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"Are you sure you'll be alright?"
"I have never felt better!"
After leading the shell-shocked Luna away from the movie theater, Fluttershy chose an outdoor café where they could order something to eat. The princess regained cognizance within moments of sitting down and now did her best to pretend like she hadn't been the least bit scared.
"But, you're still shaking..."
"Nonsense, it must be your imagination." When the pegasus's expression remained doubtful, Luna stepped up her game. "Would the pony who defeated the nigh-unstoppable world-eater dragon be frightened by a mere mangler? Would she who has been through countless campaigns, led armies during thousands of battles, and undergone decades of martial training, have fear of a stallion wearing a hockey mask and wielding a kitchen knife?"
"Um... yes."
For a few moments, the alicorn stared straight into her friend's eyes, a hard look on her face. Finally, she threw her head back in resignation and sighed. "Fine, maybe I was just the slightest bit anxious."
"It's alright, I'm scared of things all the time..." Fluttershy said consolingly. "I don't think I could be brave enough to fight a dragon, although I did lecture one, once." She opened a menu and began to peruse its contents. "What do you want to eat? Rarity said that they serve the best bouquets here."
"Is there anything more filling?"
"I think so, let me look...
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"Why aren't we following them anymore? Explain it to me again." Back in Twilight's library, she was subjecting Rarity to a series of grueling questions while Rainbow flipped through some magazines.
"Because I've realized that we can only help so much," the unicorn answered. "It's true that Fluttershy needed a little push to get started, but from this point on, she must make do without us."
"That's the part I don't get. What's stopping us from helping?"
"Just think about it for a bit, dear. If they are truly meant to be together, then things will work out fine with just the two of them, and interference from us would only 'muddle the mixture', as it were."
Rainbow looked up from the issue of Fliers Weekly that she had chosen to read. "She's trying to say she doesn't want to screw it up."
"Exactly!" Rarity said. "In fact, I fear that I may have already done too much."
Twilight stood and went into the kitchen. "I'm sure that's not the case. Everything you've done has been for Fluttershy; your intentions were good, so there's no way your actions will ruin anything for her. Do either of you two want a drink?"
"A glass of iced tea would be lovely."
"Got anything with bubbles?"
The alicorn opened the refrigerator and looked in to see what she could find. "No, but I've got—"
"BOO!" shouted Discord's disembodied head from its place next to the mustard.
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To Luna's relief, the conversation had finally been steered away from her reaction to The Manehattan Mangler. I shall have to train myself, so that I can go to more movies without embarrassing myself.
"Um, Luna, I've been having a really fun time, so far," Fluttershy said bashfully. For some reason, which the princess couldn't discern, her friend's eyes were fixed downwards on the table. "Thank you for going with me, even though you had a bad experience."
"How many times must I tell you, I am perfectly fine!" Luna realized how loudly she was talking and lowered the volume a bit. "And anyway, the only thing that really matters is that we are 'hanging out'. I am enjoying myself as much as you are! See?" She used her hooves to stretch the sides of her mouth up into a goofy-looking smile, earning an appreciative giggle. Why am I acting so silly? she wondered. Only for you, Fluttershy, would I do something like this...
"Was it really okay for you to leave the castle?" the pegasus asked. "I mean, being a princess, you probably have a lot to do."
Luna glanced back and forth conspiratorially before answering. "One perk of being a ruler is that you can put things off if you so desire."
While Fluttershy started a new topic of conversation, the alicorn noticed that, although there were plenty of other ponies at the café, none of them occupied any of the adjacent tables. In fact, the only empty places available were the ones that ringed the table at which Luna sat. They must be avoiding me, she realized. I still have a long way to go, I suppose...
"It's alright," the yellow mare said; her words cut right through Luna's thoughts and brought her attention back to their conversation. "You aren't alone; I know how wonderful you really are, and so do your other friends."
"Fluttershy..." the princess said, looking away so that nopony could see her eyes tear up.
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This is the part where I should take her hoof, right? Fluttershy thought. She eyed the closest of Luna's forelegs, which rested lightly on the ground. But is it alright for me to do that? I still don't know how she'll react. What if she yanks it away and gets mad? Despite these negative thoughts, the pegasus began to stretch her own hoof forward, slowly reaching...
"Look, here come the appetizers!" Luna exclaimed, pulling her hoof out of Fluttershy's range in order to point at the approaching waiter. The yellow mare snatched her leg back before anypony could see what she had been doing. A large plate of fried onion rings was placed in the middle of the table, and Luna's mood brightened immediately.
"So this is 'fried food'. What does it taste like?"
"Try it and see, I'm sure you'll like it. Um, not that I'm trying to tell you what to do..." It's probably for the best that she moved her hoof... Sighing quietly, she took a ring for herself and began to eat.
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"AAAAAAHHHHH!!" Twilight shrieked, leaping back to stand on her hind legs against the wall, forelegs splayed out to either side.
"Twilight!" Rarity cried. She and Rainbow rushed over to investigate their friend's outcry.
"What happened?!"
Discord's head rolled out of the refrigerator and fell to the ground. "HAHAHAHA!" he roared, unable to control himself. "HAHA!" His body appeared and picked the head up, plopping it onto his neck upside-down.
"Twilight, are you alright?" The alicorn's chest heaved as she sucked in air, frightened half-to-death; her eyes were as wide as they could possibly be.
"Haa, oh, Sparkle, you're too easy!" He released a few more chortles, plainly not caring that his head was still upside-down. "I laughed my head off at that one! Get it? Laughed my head off?" Once more, the dragonequis fell to the ground and lost himself in laughter.
Rainbow couldn't help but chuckle. "Heh, that was pretty goo—" she began to say, until Rarity cut her off with a glare. "Er, I mean, how dare you do that to Twi?! Jerk!"
Getting to his feet, Discord twisted his head around until it rested at the proper angle and position. "I swear, messing with you ponies never gets..." An aura appeared suddenly behind the dragonequis, one that caused the temperature in the room to plummet. "...old?" He slowly looked behind himself, where Twilight finally managed to peel herself off of the wall.
"Discord..." she growled menacingly. Her eyes took on a red tint, and her horn glowed with an ominous light.
"N-now, Sparkle, let's not over-react," Discord said, backing away. "It was just a prank! What's a practical joke between friends, eh?"
The alicorn wore the most intensely intimidating scowl anypony had ever seen as she ignored his pleading and stalked forward. "You aren't... getting off... so easily," she said, still taking very quick, shallow breaths.
His expression devolved into one of resignation, and he stopped trying to escape. "Well... this is probably going to hurt..."
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The waiter cleared the last of their plates from the table as Luna leaned back and patted her stomach. "That was a worthy meal..." she said in a sleepy voice.
"Y-yeah," Fluttershy agreed, amazed at how much the alicorn had managed to put away. Once more, she glanced at Luna's hoof and contemplated taking it. This is supposed to be a date. Aren't ponies supposed to be intimate on dates? I really should at least try... She slowly reached out, determined to accomplish her goal before the courage fled her. Unfortunately, fate was not on the pegasus's side.
"Why hello, Fluttershy!" Neither she nor Luna (who was almost comatose from the amount of food she had eaten) had noticed the hooded pony approach their table. The stranger dropped an unmarked box on the ground. "It's nice to meet you."
Fluttershy shrank backwards and retracted her leg as shyness replaced bravery. "Wh-wh-who are you?" she asked quietly.
"Ah, right, the hood." She threw the cloth covering back to reveal her face. Her immaculately kept mane curled around her neck, perfectly accentuating her light-purple coat. "Sorry. I'm May Shower, and I just really wanted to meet you. I've heard so many good things..."
"Why did you have to 'meet' her right now?" Luna asked. Her eyes narrowed, and she inspected May closely.
"I'm sorry, I wasn't talking to you," the unicorn answered. Before the slighted princess could reply, May turned back to Fluttershy. "I didn't know that you would be such a pretty mare, though."
"I-I-I-I-" the pegasus stuttered, unused to such a direct compliment from a complete stranger.
"And you certainly are cute when you act all shy like that." May brushed against Fluttershy's side and batted her eyes. "Tell me... would you like to see my pussy?"
All noise stopped as every customer in the café ceased whatever they were doing and looked in shock at the purple mare. Two tables over, a stallion's nose started to bleed; the mare he sat with noticed this and smacked him on the back of the head. A loud crash resounded through the air when a flabbergasted waiter dropped a plate she carried.
As for Fluttershy, her mouth opened and closed repeatedly, but no sounds came forth; she resembled nothing so much as a giant, yellow, winged fish, gasping for air. Even her mind was absolutely blank.
"I do not understand," the ever-oblivious Luna said. "Why is everypony staring at us?"
"Pu-pu-pu-pu—" Fluttershy managed to get out. "—pussy?!"
May nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah, you know, my pu—" Her voice trailed off as she realized her slip. "For hay's sake, I meant my cat! My cat!" She opened the box and levitated a very grumpy, very ragged cat into the air and placed it on the table, where it rolled onto its side and didn't move. "All of you are awful!" Everypony breathed a sigh of relief and went back to their own business.
Immediately upon seeing the animal, Fluttershy's apprehension vanished. "Aw, he's so adorable!" She nuzzled the cat lightly; it didn't react in the slightest.
"He looks dead," Luna noted. She reached forward and poked the cat in the side, getting absolutely no response.
The pegasus turned her attention back May. "Um, I appreciate you coming here, and saying nice things, and showing me your cat, but—"
"Fluttershy and I do not have many opportunities to hang out," Luna said, "so we would appreciate having this time to ourselves."
Fluttershy threw her friend a surprised glance. Why is she trying to chase May away?
"I can join you though, right?" May asked, moving to an empty place without waiting for an answer. Unfortunately for her, she found her way blocked by an alicorn.
"We ask that thou leaveth Us be," the princess said. Her eyes took on a dangerous glint.
Is... is Luna jealous?!
"Fine!" the unicorn snapped. "I didn't want to spend time with either you anyway! Fluttershy, I believe you'll be interested to know that Princess Luna has no interest in you as a friend. She just wants to get you into her bed!"
"What?!" Luna bellowed. "What basis dost thou have for—"
"We got a look into the specter's mind," May said; a wicked grin appeared on her face. "We know everything that it knows; we know that you have the stupidest crush on this pegasus here." She dropped the cat back into the box and turned to leave. "Well, enjoy the rest of your meal, you two!" The unicorn laughed to herself as she walked off.
Once more, everypony in the area had stopped talking and cast their eyes right at Luna and Fluttershy. Even the café staff poked their heads out of the building in order to see what was happening.
The princess's expression became panicked as the situation sank in. "Flutershy, I just—" She quickly stood and began to back away. "I didn't—it's not true, We wouldn't think that! Please believe Us! We're friends, I—" Her wings spread and she propelled herself into the air. "Forgive me," was the last thing she said before she was gone.
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"Ow!" Discord yelped when Twilight rubbed anti-burn cream on an extra-badly burnt spot. "Go easy, please!"
"Stop whining, you big foal," she told him. "You only have yourself to blame."
"Right, because I was the one who thought it would be a good idea to light Discord on fire," he shot back.
"You should both be ashamed of yourselves," Rarity said. "Discord, you nearly gave the poor mare a heart-attack! And Twilight, if I hadn't been able to find your fire extinguisher, you could have burnt the library down!"
"Oh, but immolating the dragonequis is fine, is that it?"
"I'm giving you first aid, aren't I?" Twilight snapped. "I wouldn't be helping you if I wasn't just a little bit sorry."
"You have a funny way of showing it!" The alicorn scowled and squirted more ointment onto the wound. "Ow!" He opened his mouth to say more but was cut off when the door quietly opened and Fluttershy walked in.
"Fluttershy!" Rarity said. "How did the rest of your date go?" The pegasus didn't answer, but when she looked up, her eyes shimmered with unshed tears. Before the unicorn knew it, she was bowled over by the now-wailing mare.
"That well, huh?" Discord said sarcastically, causing Twilight to jab the burn with her hoof. "OW! You weren't even pretending to be treating me that time!"
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Because she no longer concealed her features under a hood, nopony paid very much attention to the departing May as she made her way back out of town. A look of doubt was plastered on her face while she thought about what she had just done.
"We know everything that it knows; we know that you have the stupidest crush on this pegasus here." The mare remembered the expression that Luna had adopted when May said those words, and despite the fact that her plan was a success, she couldn't find it in her heart to rejoice.
Is this really okay? she wondered. Is it—
"Very nicely done." May's head shot up to find that one of her stallion unicorn cohorts had joined her. "I saw the whole thing. There's no way the princess walks away from that with a peaceful mind."
"Yeah..."
The stallion looked at her curiously. "You aren't having second thoughts about this, are you?"
"N-no way!" she said, shaking her head. "The past five years have all been in preparation for our master! It'll take more than one depressed pony to shake my resolve!"
"Resolve to do what, We wonder?" The ground shook as Luna came crashing down in front of them. "Perhaps thou shouldst inform Us the nature of thy scheme."
"We're not scheming anything," the stallion said immediately.
May added her own protests. "Yeah, just because you're mad that you won't be getting lucky tonight doesn't mean you can take it out on us."
"That is where thou art mistaken," the princess said. "We knew that We recognized that seal upon thy back." Her hoof rose to point at the arcane marking on May's cloak. "It took some time, but We finally remembered. Thou art of the Cult of Dromus."
"What makes you say—"
"Fine, you caught us." The stallion looked at his mare companion in surprise at her admission.
"Thy cult should have dissolved soon after We sealed Dromus away; its continued existence gives Us reason to suspect that thou art planning something dire."
"Get ready," May whispered.
"What art thou—"
"Go!" She threw a red pellet at Luna's feet, where it exploded in a burst of opaque smoke. "You've gotten slow, princess!"
"We shall show thee slow!" However, despite Luna's bravado, the smoke made its way into her lungs and she couldn't help but cough. After a few minutes, she managed to get to her feet and escape the cloud, but by then, her quarries were long gone. With a final depressed glance towards both Ponyville and the pegasus she would likely never be able to spend time with again, the princess departed for Canterlot.