//------------------------------// // Chapter 6 // Story: Fluttershy's Wynter Sonnet // by Night Rush //------------------------------// Fluttershy’s decision was not easily accepted by the laws of their lands. For the following two weeks, she was bombarded with paperwork and interviews, each demanding proof that Fluttershy was qualified and prepared to be a mother. The circle of signatures and examinations would have driven the timid pegasus up the wall if not for the foal she adored, all because she had to be seen as a fit mother to the abandoned filly. Luckily, she had the assistance of Princess Cadance and Prince Armor in order to speed the usually slow process up by vouching for their friend. Her favorite time during those two weeks had been the rare moments where she was able to be with Wyntre alone in their room because it was during those times that she could simply relax and be with the adorable infant that had stolen her heart and soon would be her very own. The adoption finalized, Fluttershy was finally able to return home with Wyntre and she eagerly awaited her return to show off her little bundle of joy to her friends. On the day of her departure from the Crystal Kingdom she was accompanied to the train station by both Princess Cadence and Delicatessa.         “I am going to miss you. The castle will be quieter without you and Wyntre there.” Cadence said with tears in her eyes and a watery smile on her face. “You take care of her, okay? And don’t forget about us.  You are free to come back any time. We will keep a room ready for you.”         Fluttershy, embarrassed by the Princess’ offer, spoke softly from behind the curtain of her pink mane, “Thank you… But you really shouldn’t. I am sure you can find a better use for it. We will do our best to come back and visit when we have the chance.” The last was said while Fluttershy swept her mane back from her face. At the Princess’ side, Delicatessa looked as if she was fighting a losing battle against her own tears. In the end, the older mare rushed over to Fluttershy and wrapped her in her hooves,  startling the young foal as she cried. The infant cried from the scare, wailing loudly.         Delicatessa wiped the tears from her eyes, after seeing what she had caused, and hugged both mother and daughter. While holding them in a tight embrace, she did her best to say goodbye. She told Fluttershy that if she got the chance, she would come by and visit sometime.         It was after more hugs, tears, and calming the little one down, when Fluttershy also started to cry because of the emotions being displayed and felt by all. Fluttershy gave them both a teary eyed smile as she stepped onto the train with Wyntre tucked securely in her scarf. Once aboard, Fluttershy was quickly relieved of her bags and shown to her seat. The train attendant also informed her that the train would be leaving very shortly, and that if they wanted to wave goodbye it would be best to do so now.         Fluttershy lifted the foal into her hooves and let her look out the window as the train started to move so that she could see what was happening and wave goodbye to the Princess and Delicatessa.         The train ride was scheduled to take a day and a half, and during that time Fluttershy worried to herself a lot.  She wondered,What will my friends think? I hope they like her? I wonder if Rarity can make her an outfit. I mean, what if they don’t like Wyntre or want to be around me now that I have a child?  With these thoughts going through her mind she began to work herself into a frenzy worrying about it. As these thoughts were starting to get the best of her Wyntre began laughing bringing her out of her troubled thoughts. Smiling at the foal she thought to herself   What am I thinking? My friends have never abandoned me before they are not likely to start now, and even if they do as long as I have her it does not matter. Besides, I know that Rarity at least will be head over hooves to help me. With that thought finished she focused her attention on the foal and the scenery passed them by.         When the train arrived in Ponyville, Fluttershy gathered her bags from the attendant and prepared to exit the train. As she stepped down onto the platform, she heard two party cannons go off and was showered in confetti and streamers. The loud noise startled Wyntre and she began to cry. When the air cleared and Fluttershy managed to once again calm her daughter, she looked up to see her friends staring at her in shock. It looked as if each and every one of them had been hit by one of Pinkie’s joy buzzers and were just coming out of it.         The first to regain her senses was Twilight. “I knew something was up when wrote your letter to me and asked if Rarity could make baby clothes, but I had no idea that you were talking about a child of your own….Wait… Is this your child!? Who is the father? When were you pregnant? How? When? -” Twilight drifted off as she tried to rationalize the appearance of a foal with the limited information she had..         The next to come out their daze was Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Applejack. Pinky Pie came up to her, bouncing on her tail. When she neared Fluttershy, she stuck her face next to the filly’s and squealed, “She is SO CUTE!...Where did you get her? Wait! Let me guess… You were in the mountains studying bears when you noticed something weird and went to investigate only to find the foal! You then convinced the bears to let you take care of her and then nursed her back to health! Once she was well enough to travel you went to the Crystal Kingdom and with the help of the Princess adopted her and became her mom!” As Pinkie Pie took a deep breath, Fluttershy stared at her in awe. How could Pinkie Pie have known such a delicate situation without--oh yeah!--Fluttershy smiled. This was Pinkie Pie, after all. . In the time it took Pinkie to come to her conclusion and explain it, Rainbow Dash had come out of her daze and joined them. “Oh my, she is so adorable. Fluttershy dear, would you mind if I held her? Pretty please? I promise I will be careful.” Rarity asked, practically gushing all over both Fluttershy and Wynter. “She is just too adorable!  I will start making clothes for her right away! She will be the most fashionable baby around. What’s her name? Ohhh, I bet it is something wonderful.” Fluttershy smiled and nodded, holding the babbling filly out to Rarity. The permission granted, Rarity trotted over and gently took the filly from Fluttershy. Unable to contain herself, Rarity cuddled the foal with a giggle as her question was answered.  “Her name is Wyntre Sonnet.”   “Well, I’ll be a monkey’s uncle, I never would’ve guessed you’d of come home with a little one of yer own Fluttershy.Honestly, I just don’t know what to think...” It was at that moment, that Rainbow Dash inserted herself into the conversation, “What are you thinking? I mean, this is a baby we are talking about, here! Are you really ready for this, Fluttershy? This is not like one of your animals. You can’t just feed it and expect it to take care of itself the rest of the time! This is serious. This is the life of another pony placed squarely in your hooves!” Fluttershy frowned. “So, what if it is a big responsibility? I know what I’m doing, Rainbow Dash. I know that you’re worried, Rainbow, but I’ve been taking care of her for about a month. I think I can handle it.” Rainbow Dash glanced from her friend to the foal. “I...I guess if you’re sure.I’m sorry Fluttershy. I know I’m overreacting. I just never expected you to come home with a foal in your hooves.” “Well as much as I would love to continue standing on the platform talking, how about we take this conversation to Fluttershy’s cottage so she can relax?” Twilight said, looking to her friends when she noticed something strange. “Uhhh...Has anyone seen Pinkie Pie? I swear she was just here.” Everyone looked around and noticed that Pinkie Pie was gone. After a moment of confusion, Rarity finally spoke up, “Darling, you know how Pinkie is. She probably ran off thinking about making a party for itsy, bitsy, cutesie, Wyntre here.” Twilight rolled her eyes. “Of course.” Together, with Rainbow Dash and Applejack taking a hold of some of the luggage to help Fluttershy, the group began to make their way towards Fluttershy’s cottage. About half way there, Twilight paused as she remembered something and she bopped herself on the forehead with her hoof.. “You guys go ahead and I will meet you there. I just remembered something.” Twilight said with a smile as she disappeared in a flash of magenta magic. The others looked at one another, unsure of what she could have forgotten that was so important that she would teleport herself away. With a shake of her head and a shrug of her shoulders Applejack sighed, “Let’s get going y’all. I’m sure she has a good reason, and ya know how she can be when she gets an idea.” The group continued on without any further delays or interruptions. When they arrived at Fluttershy’s home, it was a strange sight that greeted them. The lights in the house were on and the animals that normally visited her were lined up blocking any direct view into it. Fluttershy walked forward, slowly and cautiously closing the distance to her front door and her home. When she opened the door the sight that greeted her took her breath away. Inside her house waiting for her were Pinkie Pie and Twilight and all around them were pink ribbons, baby toys and gifts covered in brightly colored wrapping paper. Sitting on top of the biggest box was Angel Bunny who was tapping his foot impatiently and looking at her. After a moment, Angel Bunny hopped over to her and gave her hug. It was at that moment when Wyntre let out a cheerful sound and a giggle reaching from where she rested on Rarity’s back having been held there on the way over by the gentle glow of her pale blue magic. The noise startled Angel and he jumped back onto his previous perch atop the box and gave the little foal a better look. Fluttershy walked over to Wyntre and scooped her up in her hooves and gestured for Angel Bunny to come to her. He crept closer, cautious of the squirming foal in Fluttershy’s grasp. “This is our new family member, Angel. Think of her as little sister.” Fluttershy said to the little white rabbit whose ears had shot back at hearing what his owner had said. The look on his small white face was one shock and indignation. Once he recovered himself, he began squeaking away at her and stamping his foot. From there he marched off in apparent disatisfaction.  Everyone gathered, minus Fluttershy, gave a little laugh at the bunny’s antics. It was at that moment that Spike came out from the kitchen with a chef hat on his head, holding a platter of cupcakes. “Hope everyone’s hungry! Pinkie Pie worked real hard getting all of this ready.” Spike said as he laid the platter down on the table that had been left empty and uncluttered by gifts or ribbons.   “Umm...Thank you….I mean...how did you do this?” Fluttershy stammered as she came back to her surroundings. Twilight smiled as she said, “Well you see, Princess Cadence sent me a letter a couple of days ago about your surprise and everything that had been happening recently, and while I was shocked at first, I quickly came to realize that it could not have happened to a better pony. After that, I got a hold of Pinkie and set the whole operation in motion, but since I wanted to keep it a surprise I told no one else and swore Pinkie Pie to secrecy.” Rarity looked at Twilight quizzically as she asked, “But dear, you asked where she went as if you didn’t know where she was, and if you had this planned you would have known wouldn’t you?” Twilight looked at Rarity and nodded. “You are absolutely right! You see, it wasn’t like I forgot what we had planned, I just didn’t get to remind Pinkie to grab Spike from the library and find Angel. Of course, I had to make sure she got them and I couldn’t spoil the surprise. I had to act confused.” Having heard Twilight's explanation and seeing her reasoning behind it, Rarity nodded in understanding. Rarity then turned to Pinkie, “Pinkie, darling, what is next in this soiree you have thrown for our dear Fluttershy?”                                                                                   “The next thing on the agenda, on any party I throw, is present opening and cupcake eating!” Pinkie Pie said as she tossed a hoof full of confetti into the air. Fluttershy stepped up to the pile of gifts and began unwrapping them. The first gift she opened was a small rectangular package wrapped in purple wrapping paper and adorned with a bright pink bow in the center. She carefully unwrapped the gift so as not to destroy the wrapping paper in the process. The gift was a book titled “A Thousand and More Tips and Tricks to Help You Raise a Foal”. Fluttershy smiled at Twilight. “ Thank you Twilight! This will most definitely be helpful.” Twilight blushed, “You’re welcome. I just hope it is helpful.” The next gift was a large affair wrapped in pink paper with streamers and bows and ribbons all over it. It had so many balloons tied to its corners that Fluttershy shook her head in the amazement that it wasn’t floating off of the ground. Pinkie Pie could be seen in the back of the room jumping up and down all the while asking everyone, “Has she opened it yet? Well has she? Oh I can not wait until she opens it.”         Fluttershy laughed at the antics of her friend and figured she would put her out of her misery and proceeded to open the gift. Underneath all the wrapping paper, ribbons, bows, streamers, and balloon was a baby bed filled with stuffed animals, baby blankets, diapers, and other necessities for raising a child. Having seen what her friends had done for her and Wyntre she began to cry. It was good to be home.