//------------------------------// // Chapter 5 (side B): Night Shift // Story: Prances with Ponies // by Typewrittensoul //------------------------------// As the sun began its slow descent toward the distant horizon, Fluttershy was escorting her guests to the front door of her cottage. Twilight, herself and Spike paused their chat while waiting for Twilight to open the door with her magic. The librarian and her assistant had made it a habit to come to the cottage almost daily for the past couple of weeks, while the other ponies could only visit sporadically whenever they had free time in their schedules. Turning to face her pegasus friend, Twilight was all smiles while adjusting her unsteady footing. The number of books she had started to bring was making her saddlebags on her back bulge out in an unseemly manner and droop down to the floor. The stitching looked like it would burst at any moment, but her excitement kept her from feeling the strain of the weight. The same couldn't be said for Spike, as he plopped down from the size and weight of his hiking bag full of books. “We're making an astounding level of progress, Fluttershy.” Twilight said, ignoring Spike's panicked yelp. “With just a few adjustments, I expect that by the end of next week I can have Kevin speaking and understanding full sentences in Equestrian.” Fluttershy gave a small, unsure smile. “That's very, um...encouraging to hear, Twilight.” “It is, isn't it?” Twilight puffed her chest out in pride. “To be honest, the translation spell I've been working on has only been possible thanks to Spi-oh...s-sorry, Fluttershy...” The unicorn immediately drooped her ears and lowered her head in embarrassment. “...no, it's alright.” Fluttershy said diplomatically, forcing a smile despite the awkwardness that was floating about them now like a puff of smoke. “I'm just happy that you've been such a help. You too, Spike.” “Hey, no big.” Spike said amidst some huffs of breath. He struggled a few times to get to his feet, rocking back and forth while on the floor as though on a rocking chair. “I mean, Kevin's a pretty cool dude. And it's also been great to be able to talk about guy things without worrying about Twilight eavesdropping. You wouldn't believe some of the jokes he knows, haha!” “Spike...” Twilight said in a low voice and frowned. As subtly as she could, the unamused unicorn nudged her head toward Fluttershy's direction, who was too busy looking down at her hooves to notice. “What?” Spike exclaimed defensively. With some effort, he finally managed to rock himself back to his feet. “It's...true!” He wobbled for a bit until he managed a strong standing position to support the weight on his back. “Hmph," she huffed. "We'll talk about your 'guy things' more when we get back to the library.” Twilight shook her head and sighed, turning her attention once more toward Fluttershy with a sheepish smile on her face. “I'm sorry about that, Fluttershy. I'll see you tomorrow.” “Take care.” Fluttershy replied and closed the door behind her friends. Spike and Twilight were the last to head home, leaving Fluttershy alone in the cottage with the rest of the animals resting outside. Her injured patient was still upstairs, bedridden because of his injuries. She walked up the stairs to the second floor and began to tidy up the mess of books, plates and utensils and clothes from the animals playing and Cutie Mark Crusaders' visiting a few hours ago. By the time she had finished, the sun had already fully set. As the sounds of crickets chirping, owls hooting and frogs croaking filled the night, Fluttershy turned on a firefly lamp at the bedside table. She had placed the lamp her guest had brought back from his campsite on the floor nearby, as Fluttershy was unable to get it to work. “Okay, so you've had your dinner, and taken your medicine...the books have all been put away, and you have your journal and pencil nearby if you need to write something.” The pegasus said aloud, noting the items to herself from her mental checklist. Nodding happily that she had cleared today's goals, she approached the bed and adjusted the sheets as she always did every night since his injury. “Now remember, you still require lots of rest, so please don't hesitate to call for me if you need anything. I'll just be downstairs, ok?” Fluttershy said this more or less out of habit. She knew full well that he couldn't understand anything she was saying without Spike to translate. The thought was a bit depressing, to say the least. Considering of course, that she was the one who first greeted him, despite the monstrous rumors. She was the one who spent, day after day, visiting him at his makeshift campsite shelter in the nearby Everfree Forest, showing that she was friendly by offering him her cooking. It was her who stopped Rainbow Dash from attack, tore down the “Two-Legged Beast” posters placed all over Ponyville and even fought against her own friend Twilight during the storm a couple of weeks ago. But then Spike talked to Dewey like it was the easiest thing in the world. She sighed. Fluttershy was ashamed for feeling the way she did when it happened. She could admit that at first she felt the happiness of finding a breakthrough, and eagerness to learn what was on Dewey's mind that couldn't be described in gestures and drawings. However, the sting of his words through Spike left Fluttershy a bit numb to further excitement. “...He said that he's just happy at least someone can finally understand him” Was that just Spike talking? Was that just simply how he could translate it? Even Spike himself admitted that he could only guess at what he was saying, since he didn't truly understand the words. But nonetheless, trying to rationalize it only left Fluttershy sadder. Thinking back on Dewey's look of relief and increased friendliness to the others once Spike was able to intermediate...Twilight's ability to begin analyzing Dewey's speech and writing...at the very least, Fluttershy hoped he could at least understand her intentions as she finished adjusting his blanket and lent him a warm smile. “Good night.” She turned to leave when she heard “...welcome lots, Fluttershy.” Fluttershy paused at the top of the stairs and turned around. For a moment, the two of them just stared at one another. “Dewey, did you...say something just now?” She blinked as her heart drummed against her chest. He remained silent, making Fluttershy begin to think she must have heard wrong. She shook her head and smiled sadly at how excited she had felt just now. “No, I'm so silly...Twilight said the spell wouldn't be ready for another week...” But then her injured patient opened his mouth and with slow, unsteady words, said “Um...welcome lots...to you...” Fluttershy blinked again. Their silent staring game restarted until realization dawned on her. “Oh...oh my...you talked...” Fluttershy said as she remembered to breathe again. “You just...” She rushed back towards the bed in a single leap with surprise and shock making her feel flustered. “You finally managed to talk! Well, no, I guess you could always talk in your own language, but I meant that you can talk to me now! I mean to ponies...now...” Her eyes darted around in thought in several directions as she spoke her thoughts aloud at a rapid pace. “But I just don't understand, Twilight said that-” She stopped and looked back to him, and saw that he was giving off a sheepish smile and shook his head. “S-sorry. Was that too fast?” He nodded. “Sorry, um, again...Ok.” Fluttershy took a small breath to calm herself. “Could you please...repeat...what you were trying to say?” He let out a sigh, and with some hesitation, said “W-welcome all the lots...to you?” Fluttershy smiled and couldn't hold back a small chuckle. “I think you meant to say, 'thanks a lot'?” “Yeah, yeah!” His head bobbed and he repeated her phrasing with his mouth turned upwards in an embarrassed smile. “Thanks...a lot.” “You're very welcome.” Fluttershy replied, still a bit lightheaded from disbelief. “You're very welcome, too.” He added. She chuckled again, but did not find the heart to correct him for the mistake. But then a thought came to her. “Um...If you don't mind me asking...why haven't you...told Spike...or talked with Twilight...when they were here earlier?” “Why I...?” He muttered softly to himself, then managed a way to respond. “Oh! Um, I...hmm...I hide to...gift you...my first talk first. Talk no good, badly.” “No, you're doing very well!” Fluttershy tried to reassure him and gulped before further responding. “And, um...please...don't worry too much. You're still learning, after all, so in that case...I'm quite honored, actually. That you'd want to talk with me first, that is.” “On-nerd?” He tilted his head slightly at the unfamiliar term. “Um...” Fluttershy furrowed her brows in thought while trying to think of a similar word. It just so happened that a particular word came to mind and she looked back at him. “Happy. It makes me very...happy...that you would want to...talk to me first.” “Ah. Happy good.” His nervousness had begun to fade away and his lips curled into a more sincere smile. He looked quite good smiling in that way, she thought. “Smile good. Frown...no good.” “Yes, that's...true, but...frown? What frown?” “Er...Good Spike that...” he began, but paused for a minute to recompose his thoughts. “...but make frown when room...bad face? You're, uh...Fluttershy.” Fluttershy opened her mouth to disregard his claim, but hesitated. She sighed and gave a sad smile. “Has it been that noticeable?” She found it odd how nopony else had brought it up. That she would feel that same burst of sadness whenever she saw and heard Spike converse with Dewey. Which was why over the last few days, Fluttershy always needed to excuse herself whenever Twilight and Spike were over at the cottage. His face had grown somber as he continued. “For you, bad frown. No smile...very cookie.” “Cookie?” Fluttershy was surprised by the sentence. She had already noticed that Dewey would need a lot more practice, but, “Why would I need...?” “Not cookie?” He asked in obvious dismay at her reaction. “Uh...wild? Darling?” “Darling?” She blushed for a moment. “...cookie...cookie...cookie...no, uh, like 'antic'?” Seeing his uninjured arm flail the whole time and his embarrassed smile, for one reason or another, made it hard for Fluttershy not to laugh. “'Cookie like antic...'? Oh!” She shook her head when she finally realized what he was trying to say. “No, no...” she said while bringing her hoof to her mouth to stifle her laughter, “...it's...it's not 'cookie' but 'kooky'...” “Yes. Cookie.” “No, the word...oh, never mind. You should just say 'strange'” “Cookie is strange?” Forgetting herself, Fluttershy continued to laugh. He started to laugh as well, but was not so sure as to what exactly was funny and shortly stopped. Fluttershy's laugh however, only grew louder. She laughed away the stress that had been building up, she laughed away the tension that made her muscles sore, and she laughed away the last moments' sadness that weighed her spirit down. She only managed to stop when her sides began to hurt. The pegasus let out a long, satisfied sigh as she wiped a tear from her eye. “I'm...I'm sorry, I-I don't know what came over me.” She took deep, calming breaths when she realized, finally realized, that beyond just being curious, he had been trying to understand her this whole time, as well. “See? Smile good. Good laugh, yes?” “Yeah...” Fluttershy said and nodded. “Yes, smiling and laughing are both good. Oh, but I wasn't...I wasn't laughing at you, by the way. It's just...oh my gosh...just so many things have happened recently. Nothing really bad...just, a lot of it. But still, thanks for your concern.” She thought over the past week; the days that have passed since he first came to the cottage...had it been more than a month since she first came upon Dewey in the forest? Fluttershy tried to figure out the answer and brushed back a stray bang of her mane behind her ear. “No. Thank you, Fluttershy. For all of it.” She looked up at him again when she heard Dewey's serious tone. He grunted for a bit, perhaps in his own language to rehearse what he wanted to say. “I...uh...not live without...your finding...” She found herself gulping at hearing those words and nodded her head appreciatively. Very quickly, Fluttershy preemptively rubbed her eyes to wipe away the sudden moisture that threatened to run down her cheeks. “You're very welcome.” She sniffled despite her efforts. “You're very welcome, too.” He said with a bit more confidence. Fluttershy cracked a smile. Despite his initial confusion, it seemed he understood that while he was saying something incorrectly, it wasn't too much of a concern that needed to be addressed at the moment. After a period of silence between the two of them, Fluttershy moved her hooves to adjust the bedsheets as she always did every night since his injury. “Goodnight, Fluttershy.” He said. She nodded. “Goodnight, Dew...” But Fluttershy stopped herself. “...I mean, Kevin.” --- Author's Note: I've had this particular part written up for a while. Maybe since around chapter 3~ish? I've had the concept in mind after posting the first chapter but didn't start typing it up until 3. Been pretty excited to finally reach this part of this story, which I have started typing up the rest of since about saturday. It's all just a matter of typing them up and reviewing them so they have the minimum number of errors possible. Also, I have unfortunate news. Apparently no one's deemed it important to properly read and follow the rules, so I have to announce that... No one wins the prediction contest for this chapter. Better luck next chapter!