//------------------------------// // Memory // Story: Lead Hearts and Feathered Wings // by maddox078 //------------------------------// "Aw 'Shy, you didn't have to do this, I was happy to help." Rainbow chuckled heartily as she pulled her napkin out of its silver holder. "Not to mention, all I did was replace a valve on your water pump. My uncle does that kind of stuff for a living, so it wasn't anything tough for me." "Rainbow, you were out there for three hours, at least. That certainly warrants a free dinner in my book!" Fluttershy's teal eyes looked over at her friend's as she placed her own napkin in her lap. She was buzzing with happiness that she got to share a formal meal with her closest and oldest friend. Rainbow had been entirely preoccupied with another one of her flight projects, lately. Except, this time it wasn't a stunt, she had been told. Fluttershy didn't particularly care much about the project itself, she never really did, she just loved seeing her friend alive with excitement as she pored over every detail of her trick with a passion she couldn't help but admire. "Eh," Dash waved a hoof dismissively, "I'm not about to complain about that. Besides, this place is incredible, how can you afford this?" The question made Fluttershy more than a little uncomfortable, but she knew Rainbow wasn't meaning to pry. Truth is, she could see why it may appear out of her budget; her only source of income being running a non-profit veterinary business out of her small home. But that didn't matter now, she never had anything to spend her bits on beyond necessities, most of which she tried to provide herself, such as food from the garden in her backyard. Spending her money to see her best friend happy was the wisest investment she could imagine; the sight of her smile was a thought she could continually relish as much as she wanted to. "Oh, um, well I'm not exactly what you would call an 'impulse buyer,' so most of my money is always in my savings." She spoke to the floor from behind her mane. "This won't impact my monthly budget, I promise." She lifted her head up to offer a warm reassuring smile to ease her friend's mind. Rainbow visibly relaxed in response, and doubled the warmth of her own grin in reply. Both pegasi took a moment to drink in their lavish surroundings. Le Pâturage was the single most expensive restaurant in all of Ponyville. Chefs had been known to leave Canterlot establishments for the opportunity to work there under the mentoring guidance of Equestria-renowned retired chef, Garden Greens. He had chosen Ponyville many years ago as his place of retirement from the hectic life of a Manehattan master chef. But after a couple years, he felt something missing from his life, so he decided to get back into the culinary arts, but from a different perspective as an establishment owner. Neither mare would expect to find themselves among the velvet booths and marble floors of such a restaurant, but Fluttershy had been insistent on spoiling Rainbow for her help. A waiter soon approached their table, dressed in a manner that would have been too formal for even a Parliamentary session. "Hello madame and madame, have you made your wine selection for this evening?" He spoke with a practiced accent. Both mares looked at each other in confusion, they had only just arrived and were not particularly knowledgeable of any of the fine wines they saw upon hastily glancing at the menu. Fluttershy nervously pawed at the plush seat below her, making no effort to answer. By grace of fortune, her dinner partner took the initiative for them. "Uh, yeah, we'd like a bottle of....'shat-too lee blank.'" The cyan mare nervously locked gaze with the waiter, who was now eyeing her disdainfully. "Ahem, yes, one bottle of 'Chateau LeBlanc' coming right up." He took one last furtive glance at the patrons as he turned to leave, rolling his eyes with little attempt at subtlety. Rainbow glared at the back of his head until he passed through the kitchen door across the room. Before she turned around, she heard a poorly stifled giggle and began to blush furiously. "Hehe, oh! Um, I uh, wasn't laughing at you, I was......." "Hey come on, not everyone speaks Fancy......" Dash turned her head away with a mildly disgruntled look, while Fluttershy continued to elicit muffled snorts of laughter. She finally managed to contain herself and reached a slender foreleg across the table, resting it gently on her friend's shoulder. "Oh Rainbow, I'm not trying to offend you, I'm sorry. It's just, you made that much worse by pouting. You are too cute when you pout." As soon as the words left her mouth, her teal eyes widened slightly in horror. "I um, didn't m-mean it like that. Sorry." She managed to sink impossibly low into the velvet cushion as she wholly encompassed her features with long strands of pink hair. Rainbow lightened up at seeing the mare become even more embarrassed than herself. "You didn't?? But, I thought I was cute..." Dash tried in vain to conceal her growing smirk, while simultaneously sniffling and feigning offense to Fluttershy's statement. "I-I um....uh...well........eep!" The timid pegasus was now almost entirely below the table at this point. Dash, feeling she got her appropriate revenge, gently patted the top of her head to get her to come back up. "Calm down there, filly. I'm only teasing you back." She rolled her eyes playfully and smiled as she watched the pink mane rise up from the other side of the table. At that moment, their server returned with a tall, thin bottle of blood-red wine. "Here you are madames, one bottle of 'Shat-Too Lee Blank.'" He gave a sly glance in Dash's direction as Fluttershy fell back under the table in laughter. Rainbow grumbled indignantly as she glared at the smirking waiter. "W-wait Rainbow! I-I'm sorry, I'm not laughing at you!" The stone streets were alive tonight; hundreds of ponies flowed throughout Ponyville's lantern-lit walkways like the very blood of the town itself. Amidst the hedonic chaos of mingling voices and hoofsteps, two close friends worked their way through the writhing mass, side by side. Their dinner had come to an end, but neither mare wanted to call it a night just yet. Both had absorbed the lively energy pouring from the streets outside in the form of cheerful shouting and laughter. It had awoken a strange sense of adventure, a spark in the back of their minds that lit them up with the urge to explore something new and different. The weekend crowds had always been present, but tonight was the date of Ponyville's Starlight Market Night. Everyone had taken the morning and afternoon off in anticipation of the evening's festivities. The usual vendors brought out their stalls and decorated them up with candles housed in colorful paper tents, so that any who flew above the town would in essence see a mirror image above and below. Neither mare spoke as they struggled through the endless crowds. Their dinner had coaxed out all they could think to talk about for the time being. Both were perfectly content to stroll under the bright orange moon, which hung motionless above them despite the firm autumn breeze dusting the town below. The pair turned down countless roads and crossed through a few parks before settling in one not far from Fluttershy's cottage. She had taken Rainbow's silent cue to sit down with her on an aging bench that rested along a gently winding creek. The water within was a deep, shining black in the dark of night. It reflected the lights above perfectly, like a living, dynamic mirror. The pegasi sat in peace for a while, continuing their unspoken vow of silence for the time being. After a while, a biting wind began to overtake the pleasant breeze, threatening to strip the trees of what few leaves they held on to. Rainbow wasn't particularly phased by it, being used to fast, high-altitude flights. But after only a few minutes, Fluttershy was shivering in the cold, as she rarely flew higher than the buildings in town and wasn't used to such conditions. She made a half-hearted effort to hide it so her friend wouldn't feel obligated to leave with her and ruin this tranquil moment. Rainbow was quick to pick up on Fluttershy's discomfort. Still without words, she scooted over to the trembling pony beside her and leaned up against her. Her pink mane whipped around in surprise as she smiled gratefully in response to the gesture. Neither thought much of it; they had been each other's best friend since their earliest memories, and physical proximity had not been a social barrier between the two of them for a very long time. With the newfound warmth beside her, Fluttershy's eyes became impossibly heavy. As the song of the wind dancing through the last leaves on the trees met her ears, she lost the fight to keep them open and drifted into sleep. In the brief moments of reprieve between bouts of wind, Rainbow could hear soft snoring. She looked down at her best friend beside her with a look of pure contentment. Bright silver moonlight traced along the sleepy pegasus' eyes as they finally opened back up. The moon was almost directly above her, soon to be obscured by the branches hanging above the bench. The small mare stretched herself out across her resting place, and soon realized that something was missing. Rainbow was gone. She tried not to panic, 'Maybe she just got tired of waiting on me to wake up and went home?' She rationalized to herself. Her home was no more than a ten minute walk from the park she was in, so it shouldn't be a problem to make the quick trip home and hop into the safety of her bed. But that was under normal circumstances, not on cold windy nights alone, she thought. Taking a moment to steel herself, she swallowed a tiny lump of fear in her throat and got to her hooves. After turning around and taking a few steps away from the creek, she heard a voice call out to her. "Uh hey 'Shy, where ya goin'?" The tensed-up mare breathed a sigh of relief as she came to realize it was only her friend. She meekly spun around, feeling slightly guilty at assuming Rainbow had abandoned her in the park. She noticed a crimson scarf knit of heavy fabric draped around her neck and under the messy rainbow mane. Another bolt of woven fabric rested under her left wing, this one a faded pink in color. "Sorry to leave you, but I just ran down the street to a guy I remember seeing sell scarves and whatnot. I figured we could both use one, seeing as how we can't really wear those ones Rarity made for us...." She walked over to the canary-colored pegasus and gently draped the scarf from under her wing around her neck. "Hehe, yeah I suppose it wasn't the best idea to make a scarf out of flimsy, ornate fabric. They're kinda itchy, too." Both mares shared a few laughs that rang out in solitude before being muffled by the night air. Fluttershy looked up to Rainbow with an endearing expression in her eyes. "Thank you very much for the scarf, Rainbow. It's very lovely." Her friend's genuine words caused a blush to spread across her face in embarrassment. "Heh, uh no problem. Anything for my best friend." She gave her companion a large, pure smile, which was ultimately reciprocated. "I hope these weren't too much." She eyed the blue mare inquisitively, hoping she was not overstepping any social protocol. Rainbow nervously scratched at the back of her neck. "Well, I mean, ya know....They're kinda made from some rare type of thread that's supposed to be super warm and comfortable. And dying it is apparently a long and tedious process. So, y'know....." Her eyes sought anything but her friend's. "Rainbow...." She spoke in a parentally reprimanding tone. Dash cracked under the adorable pressure. "Cough Twenty bits." "Together?" Fluttershy eyed her suspiciously. ".....Each." Rainbow's hoof was grinding the back of her head in nervous habit. "Rainbow Veronica Dash!" She visibly winced at hearing her middle name being shouted down the surrounding streets. "I invited you out tonight so I could repay your generosity, not so you could do even more favors for me!" She looked faintly pained as she stared eye-to-eye with Rainbow. "I of course appreciate that I have friends that will constantly do such things for me, but I strongly dislike how you girls always think it's ok to continuously give to me but never accept repayment. It makes me feel like everypony is babying me, and no one takes me seriously." She curtailed the end of her statement to a volume barely above a whisper. Her head lowered to the ground in comparable solemnity. She suddenly felt a rough hoof raise gently up under her chin. Rainbow's expression served as a mirror to her own, her eyes sharing the pain of her friend's. "Fluttershy, none of us try to baby you or think you're helpless. You couldn't be more off; AJ's always been impressed with how you take care of such a wide variety of animals, Pinkie and Rarity both think you're the best cook in all of Ponyville, Twilight comes to you for biology questions, and......I think you're the only reason I made it through the darker times in my life." Her vibrant rainbow mane cast her face in shadow as she looked to her hooves. The nipping wind eavesdropped on their solitary conversation, flowing around and between the two of them and whipping their manes like the scarce leaves on the trees. If either had tried to speak, they would have found their whispered voices carried off by the gale. After a long moment, a fleeting break in the wind freed their tongues. "You are the sweetest friend I could ever ask for. You mean the world to me, Dash." The small yellow mare wrapped her thin forelegs around her friend's neck in a crushing hug. Fighting off initial surprise, she returned the embrace. The warmth from each other's body passed through their fur and into their hearts. Neither possessed the willpower to separate from the hooves wrapped around them for quite some time. "Really, it's no big deal, Fluttershy." Dash continued in vain attempt to protest her friend's purchase of a sizeable fresh-ground coffee as repayment for her scarf. "I'm sorry you mind so much, but I'm getting it for you. It will make me feel better, so please?" She turned her head to face the pegasus beside her, a conversation-ending look of plea radiating from her eyes. Her prismatic companion clenched her jaw in minor frustration before ultimately giving in, responding in a grumble that elicited a giggle from her friend as she hoofed over the steaming clay-fired mug to her. She gave her thanks and the two cantered over to a recently vacated nook by the window. As the pair sat down, they each took a moment to casually eye their surroundings. The establishment was floor-to-ceiling log cabin decor. It faintly reminded Fluttershy of her grandmother's home where she had spent most of her fillyhood. Each of them was seated in a small rocking chair, but neither used it for its intended purpose, as there were tall bookcases on either side. The soft lantern light above them danced off the ripples of the black beverages in their open cups. The two mares ignored each other for the first few minutes; devoting their attention to the gradually dwindling festivities outside. 'So I still don't get why you wanted to come here, you were fast asleep on that bench not ten minutes ago." Dash chuckled to herself. "Why didn't you want to just go to bed?" Fluttershy turned from the window to regard her. "Oh, well I couldn't have gone to bed feeling like I owed you another debt; this entire night was originally about trying to pay you back!" She gave Rainbow a playfully reprimanding look. "Plus, I just feel kind of.....adventurous tonight, I suppose. The excitement around us is rather contagious." The blue pegasus smiled and nodded her head in agreement. She too, felt the slight rush coming from being out in the streets so late along with so many others. Not to mention, their conversation immediately prior to coming here was rather sobering. Dash never doubted for a second that her friends loved her, but it was immensely refreshing to be reminded of it in person. She continued to roll the fresh, pleasant memory over in her mind until Fluttershy spoke up again. "So, I know you said you were making your own flight team," recalling their earlier conversation at dinner, "but you never got the chance to explain the details to me." She brought a hoof up to stifle her giggling. Rainbow rolled her eyes as forcefully as they would allow. "I swear, if I ever see that cheeky waiter again, I'm gonna pull out each of his ugly mustache hairs one-by-one." Fluttershy's willpower had begun to fail her. "I bet he knew I accidentally ordered the snails; what sane pony wants to eat those? If the damn menu hadn't been written solely in Fancy....." "Hehe...snicker.....hahahaha SNORT." The quiet mare blushed intensely in red-hot embarrassment at her involuntary reaction. A bemused grin quickly replaced the look of indignation on Rainbow's muzzle as she unfolded her hooves from her chest and began to laugh herself. "I love how you do that, it's so perfect!" She choked out between waves of laughter. "For someone as calm and composed as you to just snort whenever she laughs!" Her companion showed far less amusement, and gently swatted the top of Rainbow's head before bringing her hooves back up to cover her crimson face. "S-stop, it isn't funny!" She reprimanded. "No, you're right, it isn't funny; It's just plain adorable!" The following elated outburst grasped the attention of more than one store patron. Fluttershy was receding further and further into herself, until her eyes began to mist. "Whoah, hey! Don't cry, filly. I was only teasing you. I mean yes, it is adorable when you do that little snorting thing, but I didn't mean to hurt you. I'm sorry, 'Shy." An earnest apologetic look conveyed the true regret for pushing her timid friend to the verge of tears. Rainbow reached a hoof out to Fluttershy's shoulders until it coaxed her head back up. "I-I know you didn't mean anything by it.....I'm sorry I get so sensitive sometimes." Her eyes were darting nervously between her friend's and the dusty wood floor below. "Aw, you know you don't ever have to apologize for something like that, it's just who you are. A real friend loves even the imperfections of their friends, because even the 'flaws' are a piece of who that pony is. If they weren't there, we just wouldn't be.....well, 'us.'" Fluttershy looked up and stared silently into Rainbow's magenta eyes. She seemed to be thinking about something, but Dash couldn't be bothered to guess. She was too busy reciprocating that fascinated, intoxicating stare. After a long moment, the two broke eye contact and cast their restless gazes towards every other angle around them. Wow, what the heck was that about? Rainbow mentally interrogated herself. She was an anarchic mixture of embarrassment and confusion over the unintentionally intimate moment she had just shared with her best friend. I mean yeah, she is pretty. Y'know, speaking as a mare myself and whatnot. But like, that doesn't mean anything at all. True, she is kind, patient, intelligent, and fun in her own way, but......that's uh, that's exactly what I want.......huh. I guess I never really thought about her like that before; it'd be pretty funny if we somehow ended up together in the future. She entertained the idle daydream as she stared blankly at the grimy windowsill, completely entranced by the fictional scenario of her and Fluttershy kissing and cuddling. It didn't take long for her to force her mind off the idea; it felt enticing but wrong at the same time. I dunno, maybe if we had just met, especially on a brilliant night like this one. A faint sense of longing hung off that thought. Fluttershy had been observing her friend for the past few minutes. She couldn't quite decipher what she might be thinking about, but noted only a growing blush at one point. She really is quite adorable when she blushes. Hehe, oh but she'd never accept it. She's a hot-headed one, maybe that's why she blushes so much. Fluttershy swallowed the growing urge to laugh at her mental soliloquy. She had been so engrossed with her thoughts, she hadn't noticed Rainbow now eyeing her suspiciously. "Do I even want to know what you're thinking about?" Dash asked with a smirk and a raised eyebrow, regarding the rising look of giddiness in her friend's features. 'Oh! Uh, um well. You see, I was thinking about the um, coffee?" Fluttershy immediately pointed her snout to the ground, not even attempting to defend such an unconvincing reply. "Hmm, and what about the coffee?" Rainbow's smirk expanded as she leaned forward and rested her head on a hoof. The yellow pegasus' eyes were wide in horror as she continued to blankly stare downward. "It's, uh.....hot. Er-warm!. It's warm." Dash blinked slowly a few times. "Yes, yes it is. But yours won't be for long if you keep taking in the scenic floorboards." She laughed as she took a sip from her own mug, regarding her friend questioningly. The other pegasus mimicked her as she took a long chug from her own cup. The two allowed the surrounding noise of extraneous conversations to fill their now-silent corner of the shop; Dash looked once again out the window. The moon was continuing its descent through the dark velvet canvas above, passing by countless pristine stars and blotting out the light of those in its proximity with its own brilliance. Rainbow sat entranced for a good while as she allowed peaceful elation to wash over her. As she finished her drink, she became the first to break the lull. "I'm really glad we got to spend this time together." Her voice was content in tone, but laced with a secret inner wistfulness. "I hope you don't mind me teasing you all the time." She turned to sheepishly face the mare across from her. "Hehe no, not all, but don't get carried away with it. Remember what I said earlier about how I feel like all the other girls baby me? Well, I enjoy you teasing me because it just feels so natural compared to the others; always noticeably watching what they say around me. It's also very nice when I go to you whenever I'm upset and you don't spend the whole time telling me how everything will be ok, or how you're so sorry some terrible thing happened to me. Your playful taunting gives me a sense of normalcy when things are far from it." She smiled warmly as she pierced Dash's soul with her open and honest gaze. Rainbow felt a shot of warmth pass through her body as she returned the earnest grin. "And me too, I'm really glad my original plans became a bit more fleshed out from just dinner." She once again giggled softly. Their reprieve from the earlier silence ended as swiftly as it had begun; the two returning their attention to the world around them to wander in thought once more. Fluttershy remained thoughtful for some time. Something she had recalled from their earlier conversation had become a catalyst for feelings of worry and dread. She didn't want to ruin the happy, sublime mood they had thus far been encased in. But curiosity and concern soon got the better of her. "Rainbow?" She waited for her friend to acknowledge her. "Yeah, what's up?" Dash replied, clearly a bit concerned by her tone. Fluttershy took an unsettling moment to work up her nerves. "W-what exactly did you mean earlier when you said I was the only reason you made it through the dark times in your life? I know I may be over-thinking this, but were you implying something else when you said that?" The nervous mare spoke in a hushed tone as she anxiously rubbed one foreleg with the other. Rainbow remained quiet and pensive amidst an internal debate. She sighed and pointed her face towards her friend but focused her eyes elsewhere. Dash wore an expression that made it look as if she was swallowing sour bile, due to an old, bitter memory resurfacing. "You, you uh, remember how much I got pushed around when I was little, right?" Her voice was calm yet quivering; she audibly swallowed lumps in her throat every couple of words. Fluttershy merely stared at her and nodded gently. "Well, when it came time for highschool, I sure as hell wasn't confident in myself. I had to fake it so everyone else would just leave me alone, cause that's all I ever really wanted. Strangely enough, that worked. Eventually, I actually came to believe in myself; I was totally confident. Then later on, other ponies started flocking to me once I began to really let loose my flying skills and landed on the varsity hoofball team as a starter. I think you remember that year pretty well. It was our junior year at Cloudsdale High." "That was the year before I-" "Went to study abroad, yeah. I was so upset you'd left; I wish I had made more time for you that summer before. You see, I was totally convinced I was the reason you left. I had been getting a pretty big head at this point, and I acted like an idiot, even to the point where I was starting to become like the ponies that drove me to act like this in the first place. After a couple months of you being gone I began to reflect on that, and my mind began to slide." "I remember, your letters started to seem so blank, so empty of the usual color you put into them. I could tell you were upset, but I didn't know how badly, or if you'd even want me to bring it up. So I just.....waited. I waited to see if you were going to tell me what was wrong." "And I never did." The lights and sounds around them drained away down some hole in reality below their hooves. Dash continued. "I had eventually convinced myself that you ran away from who I was becoming, and I wasn't ever going to see you again. That was all my fault; my cowardice took over who I really was, and fear became the basis for all of my thoughts. Soon, my grades started to slip, along with me, to a point of no return. My parents would yell at me every day to work harder, then they would yell at each other cause they figured I wouldn't get any scholarships at this rate and had no idea how to pay for my college. It didn't help I quit the hoofball team and lost all of the shaky 'friendships' I had made. Soon people began to see me as I saw myself back then: a loser, an outcast, and an emotional wreck. Nobody wants to be around someone mopey and unstable." Fluttershy was blinking back tears as she kept a hoof over her mouth to mask her horror. She had a feeling she knew where all of this was going. "Well one day......I remember walking along the streets on my way to school. It was one of those mornings where you had just missed the rainfall, and all that was left to show for it were the damp streets and scattered puddles, and that indescribable smell that comes off the pavement after it rains. I love that smell. Anyway, something just......broke in me. I received the usual daily taunting I always did, but today I just couldn't handle it, I have no idea why. I fell asleep in half of my classes and I got in a lot trouble that day for just not giving a shit. Once the last bell rang and I was leaving the school after that impossibly long day, some jerk comes up and hits me as hard as he can on the back of my head with his iron shoe. I actually saw those stars like the cartoon characters do. Once I was on the ground, he began to mock me, making sure he had an audience. I took insult after insult as I looked to each of the crowd's laughing faces. I was suddenly too scared to fight, and my legs shook as I pushed myself up off the ground. At that point, I closed everything out and I ran home. I didn't care about the shame I would have to face when I came back the next day, because I didn't plan on going back." Rainbow paused to compose herself; to draw out all of her resolve in order to finish her excruciating memories. "I went home, I slacked off, mom yelled at me, dad got home, then dad yelled at me. After a disturbingly quiet dinner, I excused myself and went to my room. My entire brain was freezing up, I couldn't feel or think anything. But I remember noticing the moon sitting outside my bedroom window. It was just beginning to start waning, and it was incredibly bright. I knew what I felt at that point, as I looked out the open window into the windy night sky. I climbed out and took to the cool air. I flew up as high as I could go before my wing muscles seized up from the cold. I could see all of Cloudsdale from up there; it was nothing but a bunch of buildings and criss-crossing roads, but at that moment it was the view of my prison from the other side of the bars. I tilted myself back until I saw the moon behind me, watching me as I started to fall. I sank down through the air, letting the lead weight in my empty heart pull me towards the ground at alarming speed. I had let go, and in that moment I had thrown away all fears and concerns. I started smiling at one point, because I knew at the end of that ride was a final escape. It was worth not ever feeling joy again if I never had to face pain, either." Her yellow companion had stopped looking at her some time ago, as she merely buried her face in her own shoulder in a feeble attempt to shield herself from her friend's words. "And then, out of nowhere something hits me, hard. I notice it's carrying me along with it now. It was my dad. He must've seen me somehow, and bolted out after me, knowing I had no intent of opening up my wings. When I looked up at him, his face looked just like mine had before flying out there. Neither of us said anything, and eventually he deposited me on the front porch and opened the door for me. My mom was standing right there, shaking with quiet sobs as she hugged me tight. That night, we all slept together in the living room. Dad set up an appointment with a psychologist the next afternoon. I didn't ever go back to that school. For the next few months I had nothing but time off, and my parents made sure to spend as much of it with me as possible. The whole thing felt so surreal that I didn't even mind them constantly talking to me like I was a filly, with this sickening worry in their voices. That went on for a while until I got a letter a couple months later; it was from you. It was only then that I realized I hadn't read or replied to any of your letters in forever. I opened it up and felt a strange sensation of panic; you were coming home in a week." A server of the establishment came by to take the mares' dirty mugs from them, smiling politely as she did so. It did not take long for the somber aura around the two pegasi to infect her. After an ashamed look of realization at her intrusion, she hurriedly trotted off with the cups on a tray, glancing over her shoulder once before entering the kitchen. "I couldn't let you see me like that. For the first time since that haunting night, I started to think what any of those who love me must have felt when they thought about my intentions to....go away. Only then did I finally understand just how much pain was in my parents' eyes when my dad brought me home after catching me out of the air. It hit me so hard; it hurt worse than the pain my bullies had caused me over every year of my schooling. I began to cry loudly from my room. Being early afternoon, only my mother was home. She heard me and immediately bolted inside. Before she asked what was wrong, I saw her looking at the letter and I explained the epiphany it had just caused me. She hugged me so tight that I felt safe for the first time in ages. We talked for a long time, almost until Dad got home. I finally agreed to work with my therapists to try and get past all of this and start working on having hope for my future. After that potent release, I went and laid down in my bed at my mother's request. As I lay my head down onto my pillow, I looked at the drifting shadows filtering through the curtains dance across my bedroom floor. The gentle breeze rippling them sung a surreal lullaby that put me into a cleansing rest." Fluttershy only looked back up once she heard her friend finish recounting her tale. She surprised herself with the courage she found to speak. "So when I saw you shortly after that, it looked to me like you hadn't missed a beat. I left when you were feeling fine, and I came back when you were starting over. I.....I never knew." Rainbow looked extensively guilty now that the truth she'd been hiding from her best friend was out in the open. She knew it was wrong to have not told her, but at the time she was only concerned with moving past that dark phase of her life. She did not have it in her to witness the pain in her mother and father's eyes show up in the cheerful gaze of her best friend. "I know, I'm so sorry, but how could I ever tell you something like that?" She was not answered with words, but instead Fluttershy sprung up from her chair and went over to hug her closest friend. Dash chuckled lightly in an attempt to mask her slight embarrassment, but deep down she truly loved the gesture. "Promise me, promise me you won't ever hide your pain from me again." The show of assertion from the gentle mare caught Rainbow off-guard. With her mouth so close to her friend's ear while in their embrace, she quietly whispered. "I won't." The pair had long-since left the coffee house, and were drifting as nomads through the now empty streets. The first faint rays of sunlight would undoubtedly begin to creep over the distant horizon within an hour or two. Still, the girls' hooves clopped in tandem with each other as they trekked through the cobbled streets and towards the hills to the east of town. Stone gave way to dirt as they climbed the switchback path towards a surprisingly unknown hidden spot that was one of Fluttershy's favorites. She had never seen it at this hour though; she loved the thin early-morning fog that shrouded the town below them as they finally made it to the top. At the summit there was a sizable pond surrounded on all sides by naked trees; their spindly branches formed a web of dichotomies that cast shadows across the foggy pond from the faint moonlight above. The pair stepped over bulging roots in the ground as they made their way to a small wooden dock situated almost perfectly in the middle of one side of the body of water. They lowered their bodies carefully onto the damp planks and each dangled a hoof in the chilly water. Both took in the refreshing misty air in long drags and stared dreamily across the vapors rising up off the lake. Each mare stole furtive glances at the other when they looked away, until finally they both caught each other and blushed heavily before staring straight ahead in embarrassment. "I uh, I can't believe I've never seen this place before." Dash remarked. "O-oh, yes it is a rather quiet spot. I suppose nopony wants to hike up the steep path to get here. Their loss." Fluttershy replied only regarding her friend out of the corner of her eye. The sensation of the entire evening up to that point, coupled with being shown a sacred secret of her friend's made a feeling build up inside of Rainbow's chest. She began to feel heated, to the point where she was certain she would've been able to see steam rising off her body if there weren't any fog. She was paranoid that Fluttershy would feel her heart thumping in her chest, going faster and faster every minute. She cursed every inch of empty space between the two of them and smiled a little when she saw the mare next to her shiver slightly. Rainbow knew what she was feeling, she was no stranger to romance, but this was so different. All of her previous romantic interests had been what were initially strangers, but here she was now: nervously brushing strands of hair out of her face and behind her ear as she lowered her wing over her closest friend's back. Everything fell away for her in that moment, though she couldn't tell. Dash became solely focused on forcing her wing to make contact, and what Fluttershy's reaction might be when it did. A mere moment multiplied tenfold until her azure feathers finally mingled with the yellow fur. The startled pegasus turned her head from the lake's reflections and looked to her companion, who was staring with her mouth slightly agape. The physical contact spread the nervous, exhilarating sensation from one to the other. Fluttershy barely had time to process it before it drove her to instinctual action. The smaller, yellow mare closed the gap between her and her friend and nuzzled firmly against the warm body pulling her in. The soft wings around her pulled tighter in a vain attempt to bring them closer together than they could possibly be. The frenetic rush they were both experiencing was only temporarily delayed as they cuddled together and wordlessly accepted what was happening. They laid on the dock, inside the culling morning mist, until sunlight began reveal them. At some point in the last hour, Rainbow had fallen asleep and rested her head on the mossy wooden planks below them. Fluttershy smiled coyly at her sleeping form for a moment, before nudging her gingerly with her snout. "Rainbow, it's time to get up. Wake up, sleepyhead." She whispered. The blue mare fidgeted and grumbled sleepily. After being prodded a second time by a cold snout, she finally opened her eyes. She first looked up to the transitioning sky, which streamed above her in dark bands of purple and pink. Once her eyes became acclimated to the growing light, she felt the rustling pegasus beneath her wing. "Oh," she blushed, "hey 'Shy." "Hey Rainbow." Her companion giggled softly. The two stared at each other and marveled at the morning light reflecting in their eyes. They refused to move until a biting wind too cold for even their conjoined heat forced them to reconsider. The shivering pair silently agreed to get up, but maintain their proximity. "I guess we should head back now." Fluttershy lamented, and Dash nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I'll walk you home." The trip to Fluttershy's cottage wasn't long to begin with, but it passed far too quickly for either of their liking. In moments, the pair was outside her door; the long shadows of the surrounding trees and hills shrouded them. A near mountain's worth of dust and dirt was kicked around in hesitant procrastination. "U-um, uh, maybe you sh-maybe you should just stay with here me and. I-I mean, maybe you should just sleep here instead of walking all the way home in the cold." Fluttershy nervously stammered, her voice carried on the streaming winds with the delicate tones of her wind chime in the background. "Er, yeah, I wouldn't want to like, catch a cold or nothin'." Rainbow smiled sheepishly. The mares locked eyes and smiled, then silently filed in through the door. A few smaller animals lay about the living room, from floor to sofa. Their care-taker motioned to her friend to be careful in not waking them. They stepped over and around the snoozing animals and made their way up the stairs to the bedrooms, where they parted ways at the end of the hall. "Everything should be set in the guest room, but let me know if you need an extra blanket or pillow." "Ok, thanks 'Shy. Good night-morning er, thing." Her host laughed softly before disappearing behind her door. Dash retreated to her own room as well. As she burrowed under the hoof-quilted blankets, Rainbow couldn't help but bite back a little disappointment. She certainly could not have imposed herself on her friend by suggesting they share a bed, but wanted nothing more than to do just that. Her fate accepted, she began fruitlessly trying to fall asleep. Little did she know, her actions and sentiments were being mirrored just across the hall. After nearly an hour, she heard very faint knocking at her door. It was so quiet, she waited for a second set of it before finally getting up to answer. She pulled open the door to find a pink mane standing before her. Eventually, a blushing face emerged from the cascade of carnation. "Would you, um, would you mind if I j-joined you?" Her face was beginning to blend into her hair. Rainbow stared back at her with the same look from earlier, when she first wrapped her wing around her. Once again acting on impulse, Rainbow barely parted her lips and took a tentative step forward. Fluttershy stood rooted in place, but began to do the same despite her immense shock. The closer they got, the lower their eyelids fell. The pair of warm lips and cold noses connected, pressed firmly together. As each of them pulled away, a drunken smile adorned their sleepy faces. Without a word, the budding hearts retreated to the sunlit room for some much-needed sleep.