//------------------------------// // Gentle Flutter // Story: Feather of Days Past ~ The Old and New // by Dennet //------------------------------// Chapter VI She dug her head deep in her fluffy pillow. The sun was still down, or so she had thought. All of the animals were mostly asleep, and Angel would remain that way longer than any other of her little friends. As usual. Still, she had some time before the feeding hour came, and seeing just how exhausting her previous day had been, she would enjoy every last ounce of it. She snuggled her warm blanket, wrapping it around her slender frame, efficiently turning her into something of a pony-sized cocoon. Sometimes, her mind would wander into unknown territories. She pondered being born something different but a pony - a squirrel, maybe? Those have a simple life, and nuts don't taste too bad. Or maybe a tree? No, that's too... tree-y. Finally, her still drowsy thoughts settled on a butterfly. The most gentle and charming creature. As much as her consciousness was still deeply immersed in her personal dreamlands, her body had slowly started waking up. Soon, her legs started trotting in the air and her front hooves caressed her pillow tenderly. "Ooh... no, no mister Hoofflebump. You don't eat that. That's for the swallows. Hmm... ah..." she began conversing with an imaginary critter. Without proper coordination, her absent-minded mutter stopped in short order, her mouth now full of the fluffy pillow. "Ahumm... Miss Sparkle... a'lil help 'ere?" !! Her eyes wrung themselves open in a frightful gaze. The drastic shock of reality hit her harder than a falling Rainbow Dash. She wasn't in her home, and it wasn't early morning. There were no critters to tend to, and Angel was probably already turning her little kitchen into a battlefield. She was riding Big Macintosh's broad back, her hind legs wrapped in his deep-red coat and her head enfolded, mouth nibbling on the light orange mane. Her startled gaze met with Twilight's most confused look. After a slightly too long awkward silence, she felt the muscles underneath her shift. Finally, the red stallion had turned his head over, looking with worry at the mare. Worry and slight befuddlement. Without saying a word, Fluttershy opened her mouth and let the strands of hair fall down before backing away clumsily from Macintosh's neck. Her tail, however, gently brushed itself off against something fluffy. She whirled her sight over, noticing a large wing extending itself from his shoulder. Only then the pegasus remembered what exactly had happened before. She only managed to let out a faint "meep" before, again, dropping flat on his back. __________________________________________________________ Mac walked slowly, making sure the sleeping figure wouldn't slip from his back. It was easier now, as he was capable of covering his sides entirely with his wings, forming something akin to a living carriage. Nevertheless, the sullenness prompted his mind to think. What he had hoped to keep a secret, revealed only to a selected few, escaped his mouth's grasp faster than a fleeting chicken. He wasn't sure if it was just the mare's innate meekness or... Am I really such a monster? He questioned himself. So far, he would consider two contrasting opinions. On one hoof, he knew earth ponies don't suddenly grow wings. He was an abomination to his own eyes, and quite frankly, to the whole of his species. Fluttershy's reaction had been an iron testament to that. On the other hoof, however, he remembered Applebloom's reactions. She was little, most certainly too naive to tell right from wrong in this situation. Yet Granny Smith, in her venerable wisdom, had once told him that foals, while still being foals, each hold a grain of truth more valuable than an entire orchard in the middle of the Applebucking Season. A second good reason walked right beside him. Twilight had proven herself time and time again more apt at handling the situation than he would give her credit for. Aside from a slight slip when he had forgotten himself in the library, she was most fascinated with the two new growths on his back. In the middle of the conflict stood Applejack. He had always been able to connect with his younger sister on a fundamental level. Hay, the two could well enough converse without words be the need. She would see right through him, and he would return the favour. Only his most treasured secrets held against her unrelenting assault of questions and interrogations. But, since recently, he just couldn't read her any more. She seemed somewhat distant, as if she was unsure of her own actions in this ploy of things. That's just stupid. Forget this, get to the hut and talk with that crazy zebra. Then there was the zebra. He couldn't quite place his fright. All in all, he realized well enough just how utterly ridiculous his reaction was. She was, as far as he would assume, a normal earth pony, just like him. That is, like him if he had been born in far away lands, was black and white and spoke in a strange dialect, living in the middle of a Celestia-forsaken backwood practising enchantments and other vile arts all day and night long. He knew that she was, at least for majority of her time, harmless. The citizenry of Ponyville grew to accept the odd sheep into their flock. Indeed, he had almost encountered the creature on Nightmare Night. The three fillies in his cart were most unpleasantly surprised when he had turned around almost instantly, sending the trio flying face-first into a basin of apple-hunting game. But the simple fact she preferred to inhabit Everfree to a town would fuel his mind with just enough theories and frights to keep even a stallion such as himself afraid. For all he knew, she could still be dangerous. Harm doesn't come in just physical flavours. Were he to have his say in the household, he would absolutely forbid little Applebloom from visiting the witch. She was a bad influence. "Mac, do you think we could... wake her up? I think you owe her some explanation. In fact, we both do," Twilight interrupted his inner monologue. "Oh... Ah... Ah guess. Think ye can do it?" he looked at the unicorn with concern. If anything, him waking up the pegasus would most probably only lapse her back into a coma. "I have an idea. Settle her down under that tree and hide somewhere. I'll try to talk her into what happened and... well, let's just don't reveal your new additions too fast to her," she smiled at the last word, filling Mac with hauteur. The stallion went to great lengths to slide the little pegasus off his back. The two ponies had picked a rather solitary grove, shaped in a semi-circle of lush bushes hiding away a small glade of flowers underneath a large tree. Strangely enough, this was the only area he had seen in a long while that had a clear view of the sky. Glancing up, only a dull scarlet glow graced his eyes. Celestia was in the process of hiding the sun. Soon, Luna would take her charge and rule the world for the rest of the natural day. He felt something on his flank. Turning around, he noticed a large purple mist of energy prodding him. Twilight's horn was sharing the same glow, her face twisted in irritation. Go on, get out already, he could practically hear her think. Mac bucked the apparition, dispelling it swiftly - he only felt a slight opposing force before the spell broke down into sparkles. He flapped his half-tucked wings once, breathing out audibly through his nose. Twilight was tapping her hoof by this point. It proved far too easy to hide himself in the thick briar. Remaining stealthed, however, turned out to be quite a challenge. He never had trouble remaining calm and quiet. All in all, some ponies in town passed jokes that being silent was the real meaning of his cutie mark, or so had Applejack claimed. The feathered appendages, however, he was unused to - slowly, he began to realize how it felt to be a pegasus himself. They were always too active and expressive. Even such shy ones as little Fluttershy. He could read them with exceptional ease, unless they would actively try to mask their intentions before him. He would pick out the subterfuge no bother. He tried his best to keep them stationary, but as soon as the unicorn began waking the yellow mare up, they would bob up and down, spread themselves to the sides or cover on his back. He was gesticulating with them, to say the least. He would sometimes let his ears do the talking, especially when he was thinking deeply about something, alone. Needless to say, a pair of wings is slightly more unwieldy to hide than pony ears. The purple unicorn prodded Fluttershy with her horn, a quick spark jumping from its tip straight between the sleepy pony's eyes. She wriggled in spot, slowly ascending from the depths of her sleep. "Hey... Fluttershy, wake up. Can you hear me, Fluttershy?" the unicorn spoke softly. The pegasus murmured something, alas it was much too difficult to discern its meaning. "Five more minutes" is not a good excuse at the farm, you filly! "Come on, Fluttershy. Hey, wake up," Twilight had finally used her hoof, gently touching her friend on her shoulder. The other mare's immediate response was a slight push of her wing, and another murmur. "...Angel is hungry..." the unicorn deadpanned. Fluttershy's eyes stood ajar in a flash. "Wha-wh?! I overslept again? Oh dear..." she yelped as she took in the surroundings. "Sorry I lied. You wouldn't wake up," the unicorn traced her hoof against the ground. "Oh... oh it's nothing Twi! Thank you, I spent too much time asleep anyway umm... where's Henry? Last thing I remember... umm... that is..." she opened her mouth slightly, putting a hoof to her chin in thought. "Henry is fine." "Wh... where's Big Macintosh? That is... if it's not anything..." she stammered, clearly worried about the stallion. He picked up the lace of anxiety in her voice immediately. ...why is she so concerned about me? Twilight began to look at the pegasus, trying force a focus on herself to explain the situation. "Ah yes, about him, you see... there's this tiny little problem and I'm sure you'll understand, but it's better if you try to tak—" "He doesn't even know how to fly! And they're so delicate! I mean... he's big and strong and... all... but he can easily break his wings in half if he doesn't take care of them right!" Fluttershy interrupted her horned friend mid-sentence. Twilight's jaw dropped. A pair of red wings jutted from the nearby bush, sending old leaves into the air. ... Mac's mind was absolutely blank "My! Get out of this bush, you'll scratch yourself!" she flared her own pair, gracefully gliding over to his hiding place. She didn't touch down, instead opting to float slightly above the soil. Unable to gather his thoughts into anything resembling form or matter, he simply moved out of the greenery. Sounds of twigs and wrapped vines snapping accompanied his emergence. "Oh, no no nonono..." Fluttershy began shaking her head, floating over to his side. Using her hoof, she carefully untangled the few trails still in his coat. "You're not only hurting yourself but the flowers too! They could have bloomed later this season." ... "Oh my oh my... look at those. Where did you get this mess into them?" he felt a soft touch over his right wing. "Is that... ointment? You don't apply that like that, silly. Your feathers are stuck together now." ...what is she doing? "You're missing a few... oh, so typical. I remember the time when I was molting excessively... hehe..." she let out a chuckle. ...miss Twilight? His sights wondered through the grove, spotting the unicorn mare sitting on her flank. In place of her bedazzlement now stood a sly grin. Without a doubt she had seen the pegasus in a similar state before. And she wouldn't spoil Fluttershy the fun. “There, all done now. Please, could you flap it?” the pegasus' timid voice forced him to focus on the matter at hand. He gave his right wing a gentle push, spreading and retracting it from the air. It felt amazing. He never had a chance to examine his new “legs” with a calm mind. Either he was afraid of them or somepony else was pestering him with an uprooted house. He couldn't stop himself, instinctively giving it yet another thrust. If he could compare the sensation to another, it would be close to a cold gulp of apple juice after a hard and tiresome day with the plough. His eyes opened as Mac realized what had just crossed his mind. He started trashing his head left and right, trying to banish the incorrect thoughts. “Oh... oh, please don't... did I do something wrong? Ummm...” the pegasus mare dropped down on the ground, cowering as if she drove a train over Big Mac's leg or something entirely more horrendous. The crimson leviathan stopped as soon as, somehow, her voice reached his ears. Settling down, he slightly lowered his head. I'm so miserable. “I... I'm sorry if I... umm.. that is...” “'s fine, Miss Fluttershy.” “Aumm... tha... if you say so...” she finished. Twilight only watched as the two ponies stood side by side, avoiding each other's gaze. Mac's wings were still half-spread, though they were angled closer towards the ground. Fluttershy, meanwhile, was scraping against the soft grass with her hoof, barely even bending a stem. “Emm... Miss Fluttershy,” Macintosh was first to break the silence. “...ymm... yes?” “Would ya... ummm...” “Of course, that is... if you...” “Eeenope.” “...sure.” The unicorn couldn't even begin to comprehend – just a minute ago it seemed the two were ready to gallop away from each other to the other side of the globe. Now, Fluttershy was, although reluctantly, tending to his other wing with almost as much glee as she did before. They didn't even speak so much as they turned their heads and blinked at each other a few times. “Just a little bit more away... if you don't mind... ah, just like that.” Soon enough, she could hear another flap from the general direction of the two ponies. “Miss Fluttershy, Ah'm mighty thankful for ye... ehm...” he tried to express his gratitude, somehow. “...it's nothing, really. Sometimes the birdies fall into mud and I simply have to remove all the dirt like that,” she beamed at him. Fluttershy beamed at Macintosh. She never even smiled at other ponies during their first meeting. When Twilight had first met the pegasus, she was on verge of breaking down emotionally just after she had asked her for her name. Big Mac, on the other side of the little scene, shared similar questions. I don't even know her. She does know well enough I'm an earth pony. Why is she helping me? “Umm... not that I mean offence... but uhhh... I noticed you were... flapping your wings... well... wrong,” Fluttershy said as she rested her hoof against his still half-spread appendages. “Ah... Ah wouldn't know. Ah never, umm... y'know,” he tried to reply, though he faced tremendous problems with stringing together words not to offend the mare. “It's... not hard, really. I mean, we have flights schools at Cloudsdale... amm... I could, you know...” “That'd 'e mighty fine, Miss Fluttershy, but Ah thi—” Finally, the unicorn picked herself up from the grass, shaking herself slightly to clear all the dirt from her belly – the little pegasus' cleaning ritual took long enough for her to lie down comfortably for a while. “I think that's... well, I'm sure you could teach Big Macintosh sometime else, Fluttershy. It's getting dark, and we are in the middle of Everfree. We should hurry to Zecora's place.” Twilight's words bore logic and meaning. The two ponies looked each other in the eye before, in synch, looking up at the night sky. Stars were slowly becoming visible as a faint aura of golden-red retreated itself from the west. ...we wasted so much time. Another glance at each other confirmed just how similar their mind had worked. To Twilight's amusement, the two looked quickly away from each other, again, in perfect harmony. She chuckled. __________________________________________________________ The rest of the way turned out much less eventful. Twilight was leading the one-and-a-half pegasi down the familiar road. To the unaided and unfamiliar eye, it was a path like any other. The unicorn, however, trotted down it many a time. Subtle signs such as little carvings, a small idol or a tiny mask near the bush, on the branch or right on the bark marked the correct way to Zecora's dwelling. Normally, the red stallion's mind would be running wild, him being so close to the object of his prejudice and fear. As luck would have it, he had managed to find himself a work of sorts. In fact, one could say work had found him. Not soon after the trio embarked on their continued journey, Fluttershy suggested a little activity for Big Macintosh. All the way, she had been most focused on his wings. It was a different sort of fascination - Twilight gazed at them with an analytical mind. She would wish to discern what had happened to the stallion, to learn the arcane and alchemical formulas and replicate or alter the effect. The yellow pony instead eyed them with warmth. She studied the way Mac moved around, his feathers swaying half-spread. She took in every single twitch, every gesture. He could feel her eyes upon himself, but was unable to grab their intent. Still, she unnerved him. Much less than before, so much was granted, but the strain had remained. She showed him such kindness and such care, even though he was a stranger and a freak of nature. This reminded him of a similar pony in his life. Somepony who would not turn him down even after he outgrew her almost twice over. Mother, I miss you and dad. Slowly, pieces fell into place and gears started turning. He was sure, more than certain his whole life, that all the ponies are, in fact, much different. One could not compare unicorns to earth ponies, and the latter certainly are unlike the pegasi. Each of the species had their own customs, their beliefs and their history. It began as stories from his father, and only grew after the earth stallion's passing with Mac taking interest in pre-Equestrian history. But... this creature next to him defied everything he had learned, everything his father passed down. What if there were more ponies like her? Was his father... "Umm... Big Macintosh?" ...wrong? Possibly. No pony is perfect. "Eeeyup, sugarcube?" he drawled to the filly. ...did I just call her "sugarcube"? "Ummm... I noticed your wings are... well, you don't work them correctly... maybe.. maybe I could help... if you don't mind, that is..." He had wounded her once already, and he wouldn't do it again. "Ah'll be glad, sugarcube," he smiled. At first, he had been sure it would take much effort to mimic such face. It came out naturally, to his great surprise. On that moment, Fluttershy had floated unto his back and spread her wings. Since then, the two had been practicing flaps and strokes. He didn't plan on flying - he was awful at it. That single instance a night ago proved his point. That, and a large dent in the wall of their house. Still, that had given his mind the rest it needed so much. He would focus on each swing, perfect it almost to an art form. He could feel his muscles tense and relax, and he would analyse each motion. Every time the mare called a mistake, he would try again and correct it. Was it too rapid? He lengthened it. Was the flap too short? He would spread them further. Was it too weak? His next beat would contain all of his strength. He had startled Fluttershy immensely as he had almost managed to take off. It didn't them too long for the pair to synchronize once more. Soon enough, they would flap their wings in unison, with Mac adjusting his own strength and speed to match her motions. All in all, he was enjoying those little spare lessons. There was something hidden deep within him, a strange notion he had been quelling since the two limbs sprung from his back. He knew how to move them, but the fact his flight was missing left him puzzled. He was an earth pony, a darn good one at that. He had silenced his thoughts on the subject. But now, they resurfaced. There was no hiding it - he felt embarrassed of himself, of all ponies, for not knowing how to properly propel himself in the air. Maybe it was his slight need to strive for perfection or just the long tradition of evening out everything one does at the farm. Still, it shamed him to a degree. Why was he angry at himself? He was never meant for flight... ...but it's a waste to let anything, well... go to waste like that. Should he ask the mare for more lessons? That would essentially mean betraying his nature. But, were he to deny them, he would betray himself more so. His choice was similar to many ancient Pterrippi tragedies he had read as yet another hobby. Either way, he was on the losing ground, and the battle would end in mental bloodshed. "We're here!" Twilight signaled. Fluttershy left his back immediately, hovering before his head. "Oh my, she surely redecorated. Pinkie would be in heaven!" Before the trio of ponies expanded a glade. Many exotic trees lined the border between the relatively empty grass and the lush of Everfree itself. A single large tree stood in the centre, it's crown towering over the other flora. Many branches of were filled with holes, covered in foreign glass. Still, majority of the housing seemed to be focused on the ground, with the higher windows probably connected to the ground floor with stairs if anything. Outside the majestic tree was a small garden, arranged in a semi-circle twisting behind the main dwelling. Plants and herbs of most exotic origins rested underneath the subtle moonlight. A few luminous examples shed their own glow, tiny specks of pollen dancing on the gentle wind. All in all, the most defining trait of the whole area was it's aesthetic. The grass was turning into slight yellow, definitely shorter and rougher than that of the rest of the forest. The zebra had put a frightening display of masks and bottles, all of them scattered in apparent chaos on the ground or hanged with linens from branches big and small. Some of the concoctions beamed faint light, while others remain inept. Some glasses were even empty, though Mac could not fathom why. The wood-carved masks menaced with grimaces and grins of all sorts. They were adorned with feathers and sigils he could not recognize. Applejack had told him they all meant for greetings and hopes of good fortune. He found that hard to believe. Upon closer inspection, an eerie green glow emanated from the lowest windows, and a thick mist spewed forth from the unhinged, circular door. These themselves were adorned with a thick black symbol, swirling into a spiral with small triangles placed around it at regular intervals. His mind jumped back to the rear end of his skull. Were it not for the two mares before him, he would gladly turn around and gallop straight back to the farm. His wings had no qualms in revealing those intentions, as they began flapping angrily up and down much to Fluttershy's surprise. "Everything will be all right," she nodded, slowly turning her neck to face the stallion. She gave him a reassuring smile. "Well, I'll go see if Zecora isin't practising her pole tricks or meditation. It'd be rude to have her interrupted as the last time...",Twilight barely managed to finish before, after a slight glow of her horn, she blinked away from them, appearing right underneath the door. From the distance, Mac saw he gently sneaking her head inside, followed by the rest of her body. "...you really don't need to be afraid. Zecora is a good zebra. I'm sure she'll help you," Fluttershy once again spoke, though his trembling wings gave away the poor integrity of the stallion. "Ah... Ah know, 's just..." Their roles have been swapped. He was the stammering little colt, whereas the pegasus had retained her cold, or rather, warmth. She spread her wings, floating over to his face, gently prodding the tip of his muzzle with her hoof, smiling. "Hush now, quiet now..." she began in a melodious voice...