Fluttershy stood in front of the door. She checked the address for the third time. This was the right house. She took a deep breath and rapped on the door. A pale blue unicorn with a floaty mane in light blues and purples answered it. Her cutie mark was a purple peace symbol, and her eyes were kind. A clipboard floated beside her, enveloped in purple magic.
"Hello, my name is Ocean Waves, and you must be Fluttershy. Pinkie Pie told me about you."
"Yes, she recommended that I come see you." Fluttershy stepped inside. There were two comfortable-looking chairs with a small table in between them. Ocean Waves sat down in one of them, and Fluttershy took the other.
"Now, I understand that you've been very depressed as of late since your mother recently passed?" Ocean's voice was kind, but it still ripped open a gash in Fluttershy's heart, and tears began to form. She nodded. Ocean took the invitation to shut up about the topic. "So, how have you been dealing with this on your own?"
In a small voice, Fluttershy responded. "Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie both work hard to take care of me, make sure I don't harm myself, or do something equally stupid because I'm so sad. We have a kind of little family together, and it's nice. And there's also my music." She closed her eyes and allowed a fleeting smile to cross her face. "Along with my 'family', my music keeps me sane."
"Interesting." Ocean scribbled a little note on her clipboard.
"What kind of music?"
"Calm, wordless easy-listening music is nice, some country, and punk music. Punk, metal, grunge. I don't know why I like it, I just do." Fluttershy blushed at Ocean's pleasantly surprised expression.
"I didn't take you for a metal fan, Fluttershy." Ocean Waves smiled. "Can you tell me more about your relationship with Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie?"
"Rainbow Dash was my friend since flight camp, and Pinkie Pie I met around the time I first moved to Ponyville." Fluttershy answered, starting to open up a little more.
"Okay. So, on a scale of one to ten, how would you describe your life, ten being going along perfectly, and one being the worst it's ever been?"
"I think....four or five, six on a really good day."
Ocean nodded and made another little scribble. "What tends to make you feel better, other than your music?"
Fluttershy attempted to hide behind her mane. In a quiet, shuddering voice, she said "My evening talks with Rainbow Dash."
Ocean raised one eyebrow. "Evening talks?"
Flutters nodded. "She comes over to my house in the evenings, and we'll spend hours talking, sometimes we'll even have impromptu sleepovers." She blushed and smiled.
"So, I take it Rainbow Dash makes you very happy."
Fluttershy nodded again.
"How about, starting tonight, you maybe talk about your depression with Rainbow Dash a little more, and see if she can help you. I think you'd be more willing to talk with her than with me." More nodding.
"So...I guess I'll be leaving now, then?"
Ocean Waves nodded. "See you next week, Fluttershy." She waved.
Fluttershy waved back, then headed out the door with subtle haste. As she closed the door and leaned up against it, Fluttershy was overwhelmed with a sense of victory.
"I did it. I went to a therapist. And I survived. Yay!"
She headed up to Rainbow Dash's house to tell her the news. She loved Rainbow's house. It looked like a sculpture, rainbow waterfalls spurting into the air and collecting in pools around her front door. Rainbow opened the door before Fluttershy even knocked. "Hi, Shy." They hugged. "Did you survive the therapist?"
Fluttershy nodded. "That's what I came here to tell you. The only thing is...." She pressed her face against Rainbow's chest, tears starting to form.
"Ripped open painful memories, am I right?" Rainbow soothed the yellow pegasus, slowly bringing her inside, then easing her onto a cloud sofa, letting Fluttershy cry into her cyan coat.
Flutters was full-on sobbing by now, Rainbow slowly stroking her wings and the area between them. "Shhh, shhh, it's okay, it'll be okay now, I've got you. You're safe."
Fluttershy sniffed and sat up. "S-she said t-that she understood I was d-depressed because of my mommy.....I know she didn't mean for that to hurt, but..."
"It still hurts." Rainbow sat next to Fluttershy and let her lean against her, gently stroking her side now. Fluttershy closed her eyes and briefly let her mind revisit that terrible night.....
"I'm sorry, Miss Fluttershy, but Dewdrop didn't make it."
Fluttershy could still remember that feeling of hollow emptiness. She had been visiting Cloudsdale with Rainbow Dash when the accident had happened. Her mother was at work, and they were supposed to go see her later.....No, she wanted to say, this can't be happening....But nopony would hear her over the clamor of bells and the yells of the workers trying to get other injured ponies to safety. But it didn't matter. She was so angry. They could save all the others, but they couldn't save the only pony who mattered!? Then she felt sad.
Now that mommy was gone....She had no parents. She slumped against the wall, her legs tucked underneath her. She buried her face in her wings and sobbed, barely listening to the platitudes Rainbow Dash was spewing in order to try and make her feel better.
Fluttershy coughed and choked out the last of her tears (For now, she thought.) and looked up at Rainbow Dash.
"What if I can never get over this? What if I'm doomed to being depressed forever?" She sniffled.
"Never say never, Shy." Rainbow gently whispered. "Me and Pinkie will be here for you. So will the rest of the girls. We won't let you hurt yourself, Flutters. I love you. In an entirely platonic way."
Fluttershy let out a half-sob, half-laugh kind of noise. "Same here."
They platonically cuddled on the sofa for a little bit, before Rainbow broke the silence. "You want a little something to drink, or eat?"
Fluttershy gave one last little sniff before nodding. "Sure. I'd really like a little cider or something right about now."
Rainbow gently eased off the sofa and headed to her kitchen, getting a small bottle of cider and pouring two measures of it, holding one out for Flutters. Fluttershy took it and sipped some, savoring the feel of the cool liquid tumbling down her throat. "Mmm."
They went back to the sofa after having their drinks, and resumed talking. Pinkie Pie had been working on a new flavor of Golden Delicious frosting that she wanted to use on dark chocolate cupcakes, Rainbow herself was trying to pull of a new trick she called the Aurora Starburst, and Fluttershy told Rainbow about the new litter of bouncing baby bunnies, her tales of their antics made Rainbow Dash laugh.
As they cuddled some more, saying nothing, just enjoying the feel of each other, Fluttershy whispered softly, "Are you certain that you'll never, ever leave me?"
"I'm certain, Fluttershy." Rainbow was half-asleep.
"Good. Because whatever you do, please, oh please, oh please, don't leave me. I need you, Rainbow Dash."
The last expression on both their faces before falling asleep was a contented smile.