//------------------------------// // Chapter 4: First Date Nerves // Story: Once Bitten, Twice Shy // by Locomotion //------------------------------// Later that day, the three fillies headed over to Fluttershy's cottage and asked if they could help with all her animal friends, under the excuse that they were hoping to gain their Cutie Marks in animal care. The canary-yellow mare had always maintained a soft spot for the Cutie Mark Crusaders ever since that eventful sleepover shortly after the group had come into being, so she was more than happy to accept their offer. And so, Scootaloo, Apple Bloom and Sweetie-Belle spent the best part of a fortnight tending to the many creatures that either lived here or were in need of shelter or medical attention. Whenever they thought Fluttershy wasn't looking, each of them would pull a notepad and quill out of the saddlebags they had brought with them and surreptitiously jot down any information they happened to pick up on her. By the end of their two-week stint of animal care (and, predictably, a bout of disappointment at not having gained their Cutie Marks), they had all the information they required, and that evening, they went back to Sweet Apple Acres to report their findings to Big Macintosh. Once they had entered the house, Apple Bloom cautiously knocked on her brother's door. “Big Mac,” she called, “we've got the info y'all were after.” There was a brief silence, save for the clomping of hooves from the other side of the door. After just a few seconds, it swung open to reveal an unusually cautious Big Macintosh, who furtively checked left and right before gesturing for them to come in. All three duly obliged; but when Sweetie-Belle and Scootaloo entered the room and saw his love shrine for the first time, they were so startled and bemused that they suddenly stopped dead just a few inches from the threshold of the doorway, and stared in disbelief at the memorabilia of Fluttershy that he had pasted onto his headboard. “Look outta the way, girls!” urged Apple Bloom, nudging them sharply. Quickly remembering themselves, the two fillies jumped forward abruptly, allowing Big Macintosh to shut the door and prevent anypony else from finding out what they were doing. “So what did y'all find out then?” asked Big Macintosh, trotting back to his bed and sitting down to listen. “Well,” began Apple Bloom, “we already know how shy she is, that she loves takin' care of animals...” “...but we've also learned that she's surprisingly good at sewing...” added Sweetie-Belle. “...she's an okay flyer most of the time, but tends not to do any cool stunts or fly as much as most other Pegasi...” volunteered Scootaloo. “...she's a real sensitive kinda pony, an' is easily upset or scared, even by the most 'armless of pranks...” continued Apple Bloom. “...and she doesn't like fully grown dragons, crowded places or anything that you'd call scary...” put in Scootaloo. “...but enjoys a good picnic or countryside walk in a nice, peaceful setting,” finished Sweetie-Belle. Big Macintosh paused for a moment to let their information sink in. “Well, that's a good start,” he mused at last. “Did ya find anything out about her...um......'interests' as such?” The Crusaders exchanged glances, quietly trying to work out whether Big Macintosh was talking about Fluttershy's interests in general or for whom she might have the eye. “Well, she does seem to enjoy romantic novels,” Sweetie-Belle spoke up at last. “She's got quite a collection of books at her place – matter of fact, she even told us that she rarely ever needs to get anything out of the library for that reason. Most of them are on animal care and such, but she does have a few...what's the word......fictional books as well as cookery, spa treatment, flowers...” “She ain't goin' out with anypony at the moment,” interrupted Apple Bloom promptly. “But get this; when Ah went ta feed some o' the mice what lived in her bedroom, Ah noticed a photo of y'all on her bedside table. Dunno where she got it from, but Ah did catch her starin' at it a li'l later la'k there was no tomorrow. Ah think that means she la'ks y'all back.” Big Macintosh's eyes widened in amazement. “Are ya sure?!” “Certain!” chimed the three fillies. An almost deafening silence reigned over all four of them for a few moments, as the stunned draft pony took in what his little sister and her closest friends had told him with a look of disbelief plastered onto his face. Could it really be that Fluttershy had feelings for him too? Even after his misadventure with Cheerilee? “But...but Ah thought that...” “Yeah? Well, consider yourself lucky you thought wrong, Mac,” chortled Scootaloo. “Turns out she was out of town that day. Okay, so perhaps Miss Cheerilee told her all about it after she got back, but Fluttershy doesn't seem all that put off by that love poison fiasco.” “So......she ain't mad at me?” whispered Big Macintosh. “'Course not, Mac!” laughed Apple Bloom. “This is Fluttershy we're talkin' 'bout here – she'd never get mad at anypony that easy!” “Well...not always, anyway,” corrected Sweetie-Belle, remembering Rarity's account of how the canary-yellow mare had been driven to the point of insanity during the Grand Galloping Gala – and all because the animals that lived on the Canterlot Castle grounds wouldn't even come near her! “Seriously though, Big Mac, she really cares for you...well, from what we've seen anyway. She'd be more than happy to be your special somepony – in fact, I'd eat my tail if she wasn't.” All at once, everything around Big Macintosh seemed to blur as he suddenly remembered, albeit very vaguely, how the potion had affected him. While he and Cheerilee had been under its curse, staring lustily into each other's eyes, the image that his vision had created wasn't actually of the cerise-coated mare, but of the canary-yellow Pegasus he had been fawning over for so long. Even the voice that his ears picked up was Fluttershy's soft, shy, breathy voice rather than the cheerful, upbeat tone with which the Cutie Mark Crusaders' teacher usually spoke. He later discovered, having read the same book that contained the recipe while returning it to the library, that this was a common side-effect of the love poison; any two ponies who had previously been under its spell (of whom there were very few, thankfully) had later described the other pony who had consumed the hex as looking and sounding like what in most cases turned out to be their soul-mate. Now, sitting in his bedroom with the three fillies stood in front of him, Big Macintosh knew for certain how he felt for the shy Pegasus mare who had guided him home all those years ago. But in spite of this revelation, and his relief that Fluttershy didn't hold it against him for what had happened on Hearts and Hooves Day, he still couldn't seem to fight back the underlying self-doubt that was restraining his every action. “But...but what if y'all are wrong?” he persisted in a pathetic, uncertain tone. “What if Ah ask her out an' she says no?” Apple Bloom directed an odd look at her brother, narrowing her eyes in deadpan. “Seriously?” But Scootaloo was on Big Macintosh's side. “He kinda has a point, girls,” she said gravely. “Trying to bring him and Miss Cheerilee together was one thing, but we're looking at an even shyer pony than Big Mac here; if he were to ask Fluttershy out on a date...well, she'd probably just go into shock or something.” “Well that lands us in a bit of a...what does Rarity call it...an impasse,” mused Sweetie-Belle unhappily. Apple Bloom nodded in solemn agreement. “Dunno what that means, but it sure ain't makin' this any easier.” Once again, the room fell silent as the three fillies tried to work out a solution to the problem that Scootaloo had just pointed out. After only a few seconds, however, an idea suddenly flew into Sweetie-Belle's head, causing her to gasp in somewhat overjoyed realisation. “What is it, Sweetie-Belle?” asked Apple Bloom. “We don't need to worry about one asking the other out!” the white-furred unicorn filly squeaked with excitement. “We can set them up on that date ourselves – and if we play our cards right, Fluttershy won't even realise it's a date until she gets there!” Apple Bloom's eyes lit up. “Oh yeah – just la'k we did with Miss Cheerilee on Hearts an' Hooves Day! Sweetie-Belle, that's a great idea!” “Yeah, good thinking, Sweetie-Belle,” agreed Scootaloo. “How about it, Big Mac? You up for it?” Big Macintosh pondered for the umpteenth time that day. Needless to say, he wasn't entirely sure about the idea of the Cutie Mark Crusaders arranging his surprise date with Fluttershy, but neither could he think of a sensible alternative. At last, he replied with an uncertain “Eeyup – Ah just hope y'all know what yo' doin'.” “Trust us on this one, Big Mac,” asserted his sister. “We'll bring you an' Fluttershy together before y'all can say 'Zap-Apple jam'!” At this point, Locomotion could only chuckle as a long list of ways in which the Crusaders' plans might fail began to unfold in his head. “And I take it you needed to go at it more than once?” he asked with a cheeky smirk. “Well, not exactly,” replied Apple Bloom. “We did run into one li'l setback, now ya come ta mention it – quite a dangerous one too – but other than that...” “Dangerous?!” The mirthful expression on Locomotion's face was instantly replaced by a look of deep shock. “How so?” “Ya remember Ah once told y'all 'bout how the ditches in an' around Sweet Apple Acres tend ta get all boggy after heavy rain? Well, around the time we were plannin' this date fo' Big Mac an' Fluttershy, we found ourselves landed with a storm...” “Oh yeah, I remember,” interrupted Locomotion thoughtfully. “That triggered off a landslide in a cutting just a mile away from Winsome Peak Summit, into which the Manehattan Limited ran on its way back to Canterlot, and I had to go help the wrecking crew recover it the following morning. Considering the speed the engine was doing at the time and how battered those front three coaches were, I'd say it's a mercy nopony had been killed in that crash.” “I'll say,” remarked Sweetie-Belle. “Matter of fact, Apple Bloom had an equally close call while we were preparing Big Mac and Fluttershy for their date.” “Okay?” said Locomotion, almost uneasily. “So...what happened?” “Well,” continued Apple Bloom, “it was la'k this...” The following morning, the three fillies were up bright and early to set the scene for Big Macintosh's first date with Fluttershy. All had agreed that their best bet would be a nice quiet picnic within the orchard, and having ascertained what Fluttershy's favourite foods were, they packed a hamper containing a selection that they hoped would appeal to both; then they headed over to a small hill within easy view from their clubhouse, and laid everything out on a blanket they had brought along ready for the red draft pony and his crush. “Okay, girls,” said Apple Bloom as she placed a vase full of daffodils in the middle of the picnic blanket, “so are we clear on what we're doin'?” “We sure are,” affirmed Scootaloo. “While you go find Big Mac, I'll be standing here and guarding this picnic against any critters...” “...and I'll be bringing Fluttershy out here thinking that there are some rare birds flying over this place,” chimed in Sweetie-Belle. “Good!” replied Apple Bloom. “Then y'all go get her, Sweetie-Belle, an' Ah'll see ta Big Mac. Scoot, keep yo' eyes peeled fo' any varmints that are nearby.” Scootaloo nodded gamely. “You can count on me,” she asserted, and stood tall, firm and straight like a soldier standing to attention as she watched over the picnic. And so, satisfied that their plan was ready to be put into action, Apple Bloom scampered off to find Big Macintosh while Sweetie-Belle made a beeline for Fluttershy's cottage. It wasn't long before Sweetie-Belle finally came up to Fluttershy's front door, and she banged rapidly against it in a seemingly frantic attempt to grab her attention. At last, the door opened to reveal a puzzled Fluttershy standing on the other side. “Sweetie-Belle?” she exclaimed. “What's the matter?” “There's a flock of birds overflying Sweet Apple Acres, Fluttershy!” squeaked Sweetie-Belle at a startling pace, trying her level best to feign excitement. “Apple Bloom was telling me that Miss Cheerilee had told us that Twilight had been saying that they were a really rare sort of bird that didn't come here very often, and we know how much you love animals, so we laid out a picnic so that you could maybe hang out with some of them!” Fluttershy's face lit up. “A rare species? Oh my!” she gasped. “This I must see!” and she eagerly took off towards the orchard, with Sweetie-Belle following as closely as she could.