Part 1/2
Rainbow Dash was nervous. She had been nervous before, but never like this. She looked up at the stands and saw the faces of her friends. Fluttershy was beaming, wagging a little flag with her tail. Rainbow fixed her concentration back on the track. She dug her hooves into the soft dirt imported from the world below. She flexed her wings and cracked her neck. She took off just as a loud whistle pierced her ears, and Rainbow fell headfirst into the ground.
“And just what do you think you’re doing, recruit?” Spitfire asked and lifted the shadow of her cap. Rainbow smiled sheepishly up at her. “You know the janitor will have a fit if you use the training grounds outside of training sessions.”
“I’m just showing my friends some sweet moves, that’s all.”
Spitfire adjusted her glasses with a grunt. “Well, I can hardly dismiss the new Princess. But be quick about it.”
“No sweat!” Rainbow finally lifted up into the air. It was what she was born to. A few clouds drifted in over the empty stadium. They never stood a chance. Rainbow looped through them, picking up more and more speed. The clouds were gone and Rainbow zoomed straight up into the sky. She could still hear her friends cheering somewhere far below her. They had seen nothing yet. Once she was high enough, Rainbow clasped her wings firmly down her side. She plummeted like a stone. The cheers turned to frightened gasp. Spitfire shook her head.
Rainbow neared the ground with a death-defying grin. She was inches away when she spread her wings again. The grass tickled her belly as she turned around and wooshed along the ground. A deep sigh went through the spectators. Spitfire appeared right in front of her. Rainbow just managed to stop in front of her, with nose almost touching her shirt.
“Once a showoff, always a showoff. Though your braking could do with a little practise. We’ll have to work on that.” Spitfire took the whistle into her mouth and blew it. “All right, this will do. Say goodbye to your friends, recruit, and let’s be on our way.”
Rainbow met up with the others outside the locker room a few moments later. There was the expected amount of embraces and tearful goodbyes, but one pony in particular needed a proper seeing-off. She dragged Fluttershy off to a side while waving at her other friends. Hesitating somewhat from nerves, Rainbow focused on her hooves at her first.
“I’m going to miss you,” Fluttershy said, oblivious to the heavy burden inside Rainbow. “The weather is never quite as good when you’re not there. Will you really be gone six months?”
“Yeah… so uh, listen…” Rainbow rubbed her arm with the other hoof.
“Is everything all right?” Fluttershy asked, but Rainbow gently pressed a hoof against her mouth.
“This is already hard enough for me to say!” She took a deep breath and focused on Fluttershy. “I would not be here without you. Everything I have done, all that I have accomplished… I did it because of you. You gave me the strength I needed to stand up for myself, because I needed to be strong enough for the both of us. We’ve known each other since the very early days of Flying School. I… I just couldn’t leave you for so long without telling you… I… I love you, Fluttershy.”
Rainbow took her hoof away from Fluttershy. Before she could get a word into the conversation, Rainbow pressed her lips up against hers. It was filled with all of Rainbow’s emotions and feelings. Fluttershy made no attempt to break free. She simply stared wide-eyed at the wet surprise, even after Rainbow parted again to breathe.
“Please don’t say anything.” Fluttershy could only lightly stammer anyway. “If you want to break off our friendship because of this, then please… just let me have my dream until I return.” Rainbow spread her wings, picked up her gym bag and took off down the corridor.
A few moments later, the rest of the mane six including Spike went to check up on them. Fluttershy still stood rooted to the spot, mouth half open and eyes distant.
EQUESTRIAN SHIPPING SHORT STORY 05: ONCE KISSED, TWICE FLUTTERSHY Part 1/2
Fluttershy sat on the hill with a notepad in her lap and a pencil in her mouth. The sun was dwindling fast, its dying light falling on her and Twilight. The air was abuzz with a myriad of insects from the nearby forest. A grey moth with black splotches flew right past her nose, prompting Fluttershy to flip the pages of her pad and ticking it off.
“Ooh!” Twilight exclaimed as a bug slithered over her pad. “This is a purple three-ringed centipede, isn’t it?”
“No,” Fluttershy giggled. “That’s just the same sparkly camouflage worm you’ve spotted twice already. See how it changes colour with the angle of the sun?”
The centipede-looking worm flashed in metallic purple for a moment, before shifting to blue and then stalking off. Twilight sighed deeply and released her pencil from her magic. “I really appreciate you taking me out for insect discovery, but I don’t seem to have much luck.”
“This is not a competition, Twilight. We’re just out here to enjoy nature.” They shared a smile, and Twilight picked up her pencil again.
Pink fluff danced in front of Fluttershy. She frantically leafed through her notepad but found no mention of it. Curiosity at its seeming harmlessness drove Fluttershy closer. She was just inches away from it, close enough to almost touch it. The pink fluff wriggled, but Fluttershy remained calm and focused.
Even Twilight became aware of it and took her eyes off the insect watching. “I think I know what it is,” she said. “You better step back a little.”
Fluttershy looked up, just as the pink fluff disappeared and Pinkie Pie jumped up the hill. Bleating, Fluttershy jumped into the air and fell on her back with legs stiff up into the air.
“I didn’t scare you?” Pinkie asked, only halfway concerned, the other half grinning.
“No… just a little surprised,” she said with her heart pounding up in her throat.
“What are you doing out here? Come to join us in the insect watch?” Twilight asked enthusiastically, but Pinkie shook her head. Her mien grew concerned.
“Rainbow Dash wrote in her letter that she would be home today and now it’s tonight and she still isn’t here! I mean, she’s the element of loyalty and if you can’t trust her on her word, who can you trust?”
“Settle down, Pinkie,” Twilight said and followed Pinkie bouncing up and down with her eyes. “She was fine when we visited her last week. I’m sure she’s just caught up in something.”
Pinkie nervously circled the hilltop while Fluttershy righted herself and adjusted her hair. Wasted effort, as Pinkie grabbed her by her cheeks. “What if she got lost in a storm and crashed somewhere? Or was kidnapped by treasure-hungry dogs?”
A swarm of insects stormed out from the forest. The butterflies nearly blotted out the sky while the ground could not be seen for creepy crawlies. Spiders, insects and worms of many colours covered the land as they went on their way. The air was thick with calls and chatters and whistling. Pinkie finally calmed down to observe them.
“I think we can conclude the insect watching,” Fluttershy stated serenely and folded the notepad.
“Yeah, I might as well tick off all my boxes after this. What’s gotten into them anyway?” Twilight asked and rested her head in her lap.
Fluttershy didn’t say anything for a while. Their hill was like an island sanctuary where none of the insects or arachnids or worms bothered to traverse. Birds joined them as well and took to the sky in surprised cawing.
“Something must have spooked them,” she finally commented offhandedly.
The wave lasted only for a few minutes. As the last stragglers scampered past them, Twilight got up her hooves again and stretched.
“Well, we should get back to Ponyville before it’s completely dark. You coming?”
Fluttershy stared dreamily at the spectacle but finally ripped herself free. Her hut was on the way, so before her friends could leave she invited them in for a cup of tea. Neither Pinkie nor Twilight minded some late refreshment and gladly accepted. Inside however was chaos. The animals were in an uproar and scurried around panicky.
“Goodness!” Fluttershy exclaimed and hurried inside. The mice and the ferrets and the rabbits rampaged uncontrollably. Even the large bear roared and trampled around the hut. “Everyone, please… STOP!”
Her sudden outburst got the attention of the animals. As if only noticing her then, they ceased their activities and looked up in surprise. They started squeaking and roaring and yelping all at once. Fluttershy cleared her throat and they fell silent again. The large bear waved its arms and grunted.
“What’s going on?” Twilight asked concernedly and walked up next to her.
“I think… I think something fell in the forest,” Fluttershy replied and scratched her chin. The bear nodded and pointed a claw out of the window towards the Everfree Forest.
“You don’t think Pinkie was right?” Twilight added under her breath. Pinkie was otherwise occupied with a squirrel that raced around her body, tickling her into a fit.
“I hope not.” Fluttershy looked out of the appointed window to the dark forest. The mere look of it was enough to make her shiver. “Whatever it was, we should probably investigate it, right? It’s not like it can wait until morning… right?”
Twilight shook her head and levitated the squirrel off Pinkie. “We’re going,” she said and Pinkie trailed after them.
With darkness falling rapidly on the world, the Everfree Forest was even less inviting than usual. Light shone only from Twilight’s horn and Fluttershy made sure to stay close to her. Pinkie followed on her other side with a more serious expression after being briefed. The bear walked in front of them. After all, they could search the whole forest and not find the source of disturbance for weeks without someone, or something, to guide them.
Everything in the forest seemed to be alive. From the crooked trees bending in the wind to the very ground itself. Small things crawled and slithered just outside their light, making Fluttershy exclaim small frightened noises every time she saw something.
The bear rose to its feet to sniff the air. From far away, they heard cries as if of a foal in distress. The sound, whatever it was, tore at their hearts. Even the bear, that would have no familiar ties with pony babies, shifted its face to one of worry. It fell back down to the ground again and quickened its tempo. Twilight and the others had to gallop to keep up with it.
Branches grabbed at their coats. Roots reached out for their hoofs. Stones threatened to topple them. Still they kept up the speed, undaunted. The cries got louder and more pitiful before stopping entirely.
“Hey guys, what was that?” Pinkie asked and raised a suspicious eyebrow. “And why did it stop again?”
They had no answers for her. The Everfree Forest coupled with what sounded like a crying foal could only result in disaster. Even their most hopeful thoughts were too grisly to put into words. The bear did not need the cries to locate the source. It had probably been sniffing it out since before entering the forest.
The trees got more widely spaced. A strip of moonlight fell in between the gnarled and twisted crowns. Something had plunged into the forest and made a hole in the canopy, and that something had come to rest inside the foliage just ahead of them. A very large bush obscured their view so they couldn’t see what.
The bear stopped just short of the clearing, not wanting to go any further. The three of them approached carefully. The large bush stirred, making them all jump into the air. Slowly it turned around and a big pair of eyes popped out of the foliage. The howling wind grabbed the trees again and the Moon illuminated the living bush.
Except it wasn’t a bush at all, more like a vaguely pony-like being with dirt and grime covering its shaggy body. It stared back at them as frightfully as they did it.
“Stop… stop right there!” Twilight shouted. The creature yelped in fear and turned tail. Leaves and twigs and burrs stuck to its hairy body giving it more than a passing resemblance to an actual bush. Twilight waited for a moment to make sure the beast would not return, and then relaxed with a deep sigh. “It’s gone.”
Slowly, Fluttershy came into the clearing as well. “That thing could not have made those cries.” She approached the low bushes. They had been squashed by whatever had come down from above and then proceeded to swallow it. Fluttershy stuck her head all the way down the bushes. The moonlight was not cooperating and cast what lay at the bottom in shadows. Fluttershy suddenly yelped out in surprise.
“Fluttershy, are you okay?” Twilight asked, and intensified her horn light. She went to other side of the bush while Pinkie got up next to Fluttershy.
“I’m… fine, but… Rainbow Dash, will you stop that?” Fluttershy tried to raise her head again, but her long lock of hair was caught in Rainbow’s mouth. She chewed on it playfully while wriggling her limbs.
“Rainbow Dash, you’re back!” Pinkie said gleefully, her smile going all the way up to both ears. Rainbow released Fluttershy again and looked confused up at Pinkie. She made the sound of a motor, which was funny enough for her start giggling. Even Pinkie had to retract in confusion. “Uh guys, when did Rainbow Dash become a baby?”
“She’s not a baby, she’s…” Fluttershy tried, but could not explain it either. Rainbow Dash didn’t look any different yet there she was, on her back in a bush in the forest acting like an infant.
“Drat, I bet this has something to do with that thing we saw.” Twilight looked behind her into the forest but the hairy creature was long gone. She fixed her eyes back on Rainbow, taking a moment to think. “We have to get her to a hospital. Something isn’t right here.”
***
Morning the next day and all of Rainbow’s closest friend were gathered around her bed. There was no improvement to her state. Rainbow was sleeping while the others observed her with concern. Explaining it to Applejack, Rarity and Spike had been difficult, but not as much as to the doctor. Rarity had stayed up all night and snoozed slung over Rainbow’s bed, still with her half-knitted scarf in her hooves.
The door slid open and the unicorn doctor entered. His face was grave as he shifted the glasses up his nose. “I’m truly sorry that it took so long. I had to consult with some of the others doctors to make sure, but there can’t be any doubt. Your friend has profound retrograde amnesia,” he said and looked at them each in turn.”
Applejack sprang forth. “Say it in English, Doc!”
“Your friend suffers from serious memory loss,” he said in an understanding tone.
“Spare me your medical mumbo jumbo!” she said and grabbed his coat.
“Your friend conked her noggin and can’t remember a thing.”
“Could ya dumb it down a shade?” Applejack was shaking him back and forth by the time he finally buffered her back with a burst of his magic. He cleared his throat as the others embraced Applejack, patting and rubbing her to calm her down.
“Now, retrograde amnesia usually represses only the memories leading up to the trauma. A case as extensive as your friend’s is, quite frankly, unique.” He couldn’t help but chuckle unbelieving at the result. “In all my time at this hospital I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“Will she be okay?” Fluttershy asked from behind the bed. She was near tears, for a second time judging on her reddened eyes.
“It’s hard to say. The recovery of memory can only happen spontaneously, so there’s not much I can do. There was something else I wanted to talk with you about.” He moved towards them, and they made way for the bed but he stopped just before them. He levitated her case file out of a coat pocket with his magic and placed it on Rainbow’s bed.
“Is… is something wrong?” Fluttershy could not hold the tears back, but the doctor was neither confirming nor approving. Instead he seemed to be hesitant, biting his lips while formulating his next sentence in the softest way possible.
“It is my opinion as a medical professional that your friend has led a hard life,” he finally said and looked up at them again. “I suspect she retreated back to the last time she ever felt truly secure. Now hear me out,” he added as they began to protest. Rainbow merely snored quietly and turned her head. The doctor took of his glasses to rub them on his coat. “Amnesia can in some cases be a defensive mechanism for coping with an emotional duress or a physical trauma. My theory also seems to be substantiated by her medical file. No next of kin is related. Her emergency contact is simply listed as ‘DOCTOR!!!’ Do you know if she has any family at all?”
Spike snorted a giggle. Twilight held him close to her and shook her head. “No. We’ve never thought to ask, but I think she mentioned a brother in Cloudsdale.”
The doctor took the case file back before Twilight could sneak a peek at it. “We’ll try and get into contact with him. A name would be helpful, if you know it?”
They all shook their heads, but Twilight remembered something after a moment of pondering. “I think he has the same rainbow hair, and a pale blue coat.”
“Well, every little bit help. Getting her out of the hospital would be a big step towards her recovery. Reminding her of who she is will not have any effect but it is paramount that she feels safe in her vulnerable state.”
“I can take care of her.” Fluttershy wiped her sore eyes, with the faintest trace of a smile forming on her lips.
“Rainbow is not an animal. You can’t take care of her yourself,” Twilight protested, but Fluttershy shook her head.
“I know that, but I… I have some experience,” she mumbled shyly, her latter words becoming increasingly hard to hear. “P-please, it’s no bother. I really would like to do this.”
“Are you sure about this?” Spike asked and scratched his chin. “Do you have any idea what it’s like to take care of a baby?”
Fluttershy rolled her eyes happily, as if trailing into a memory, but something she remembered shadowed her expression.
“We’ll put you on probation, then,” the doctor said professionally. “You seem a little young, but it’s also important for Rainbow Dash to be with people she knew. The hospital will check up on you from time to time to make sure everything is in order and a nurse will accompany you home to make sure conditions are in order.”
***
Fluttershy returned home with her schoolbag dangling on her spindly frame. She could hardly even step inside without tripping over own legs. She really wanted to avoid her father. He was as always sitting in his favourite armchair, reading sports magazines. Fluttershy crept down the hallway and tried to make as little noise as possible. Without looking up from the paper, he called out to her and she froze just in front of the stairs.
“Why are you coming home so early? Don’t tell me you were sent home again.” His chair creaked as he lifted his sizable shape down on the floor. He was a tall, strong-looking pegasus with defined muscles. His coat was a darkly purple and his buzzcut mane was the colour of ripe raspberries. Fluttershy tried to shrink into the wall as he reached out a hoof to her bag. “You flunked another test? What am I to do with you?”
“I’m sorry, dad! I really tried hard this time, I swear!” Her tears, as genuine as they were, did not move his rock hard face. He let slip a single breath of wind from his lips when another pegasus appeared on top of the stairs. She was frail, like a gentle breeze could blow her away. A wispy dress covered her magenta coat but could not hide the lump on her behind. Fluttershy’s dad grunted and returned to the living room.
“Change your mother’s diaper and go to your room. I don’t want to see you until dinner.”
Fluttershy’s mom let out a yell and looked nervously down at her daughter, as if trying to call a name to her face. Fluttershy hung her head. She had gotten her mother’s hairstyle, but not the colour. Hers was red like her husband, but more like blood than fruit.
***
“Well, I must admit I had some reservations when you told me your profession.” The burly nurse walked back to the entrance hall where Fluttershy eagerly waited with a large, slightly mischievous, smile. The nurse referred to her clipboard and made a few notes with the pen in her mouth. “Everything here certainly seems to be in order. Somepony will be around every few days but you should be fine.”
The nurse adjusted her cap and left. The door had barely closed before small faces popped through holes and crevices. A pair of squirrels came out to dance around Fluttershy’s hooves. She winked at them. “Thank you so much for running ahead, guys.”
Not sure what to do with her, being too big for strollers and baskets, Rainbow Dash had received a padded shopping cart. Surprisingly, the hospital was unprepared to deal with her situation. Rainbow Dash did not seem pleased however. Perhaps a trace of her pride was still left, but she had been grumpy all morning. Only Fluttershy’s attention had comforted her, and her sporadic rubs of Rainbow’s soft tummy. Once home however Rainbow started wailing.
“What’s gotten you so grumpy, huh? Hungry? Need a change?” Rainbow turned her head away and flailed her limbs. The animals quickly scattered again. Fluttershy simply smiled serenely. “I’ll get you a nice bottle of milk and then I’ll show you all those nice toys the hospitals lent us. You’d like that, wouldn’t you? Yum-yum!”
Fluttershy hummed as she moved into her kitchen. She heated a small pot of milk while rummaging through the box on her kitchen table. The hospital had sent her home with so many things. Everything from brochures to dolls and a bottle. The sudden absence of Rainbow’s cries made her look up from her stove. She looked over her shoulder and saw Rainbow gurgling happily. She almost shrugged it off until she saw the dark shadow. The scream that burst from her mouth made the bush in her living room move.
A pair of crazed eyes, right pupil larger than the left, stared up at her. A string of garbled sounds came from its mouth. It shook in its effort to communicate and splattered mud and leaves everywhere. A large bear came through the kitchen back entrance. It slung an arm around Fluttershy, growling as it bared its teeth. The shaggy whatever it was continued its unintelligible rant all the way through the unblocked front door. Fluttershy quivered. She pushed Rainbow Dash’s cart through the entrance hall to the living room and sat down on her couch.
A few moments later, with a few bunnies around her hooves and a single bird yanking on her ponytail, Applejack entered as well. “Ya mind tellin’ me wha’ in tarnation these critters are doin’?” The animals left her alone, and she saw Fluttershy crouched over the cart sobbing into her arms. “What happened ta ya?”
“It was awful!” she cried and sniffed. “It was so big and filthy and full of dirt and its eyes were scary and I don’t know what it wanted here.”
“Whoa nelly, simmer down there. What’s gotten into ya?” Applejack sat down next to Fluttershy on the couch, somewhat uncomfortable with the blubbering Rainbow in front of them. She drew the shadow of her hat down over her eyes. Fluttershy told her everything that had happened, even including the weird creature they had omitted in their first recount. Applejack opened her mouth, probably to say something in comfort, when another voice interrupted her.
“Sounds like The Sacred Hairy Pony of Canterlot!” Apple Bloom piped up.
“What are you three doing here?” Applejack looked down at her sister who had appeared on the left side of the cart.
“Ah saw ya leaving the farm suddenly, Ah wanted ta see where ya went.”
“So Rainbow Dash really has become a baby?” Sweetie Belle asked from the other side and tried to lift herself far enough up to see over the edge of the cart. Rainbow peered down and gurgled happily.
“Oh great. If she doesn’t snap out of it, I’m going to have to teach her how to fly,” Scootaloo said annoyed, flittering up and down on her small wings. Rainbow enjoyed the new company and reached out for her new playmates. Sweetie Belle seemed to be the only one enjoying it back. She levitated a toy with her magic just above Rainbow. She reached out for it as Sweetie Belle flew it back and forth.
“What’s The Sacred Hairy Pony of Canterlot?” Fluttershy asked nervously and put her hooves up to her mouth. Applejack sighed derisively.
“It’s no one, just a made up story.”
“Is not!” Scootaloo said and dropped to the ground. She, and the other crusaders, sat down in front of the couch. “They say that he was a court jester and that Princess Celestia liked him so much that she built him a manor. But then a wizard cursed him with madness out of jealousy. He ran into the Everfree Forest and was never heard from again.”
“That’s not even scary,” Sweetie Belle scoffed from her right side.
Scootaloo slowly turned her head to look at her, with big opened eyes. “Every now and then he sneaks into Ponyville – to eat the flesh of pony babies!”
Fluttershy squeaked and covered her whole head. Rainbow looked up at the outburst. She had finally gotten her toy and lay with it in her mouth.
“Knock that off, The Sacred Hairy Pony of Canterlot does not exist.” Applejack rubbed Fluttershy’s shoulder, trying to make her sobs stop.
“But then who was the pony Fluttershy talked about?” Sweetie Belle asked inquisitively and stood up.
“Well, obviously… it was…” Applejack began, but was unable to satisfactorily answer the question. Her hesitation made Sweetie Belle jump up into the air and flail her limbs.
“Then it’s up to us to find out!” she exclaimed. “Cutie Mark Crusader Monster Hunters!”
“Yeah!” the others concurred and slapped their hooves together. Applejack shook her head.
“Well at any rate, it ain’t safe for ya ta stay here. Ya oughtta come with me back ta the farm.”
Fluttershy nodded and made to leave when she noticed the toy Rainbow was playing with. It was a green stone smooth like having spent an eternity in a river. A butterfly was etched meticulously into its round surface.
“Where did you get this?” Fluttershy asked curiously and stuck her head into the impromptu stroller. Rainbow Dash pushed the stone up towards her, almost like giving it as a gift. Fluttershy accepted it and sat back down. The carving felt hot in her hooves but the stone was cold.
“It was just next to one of the boxes from the hospital,” Sweetie Belle said innocently and stared up at her Fluttershy with her big eyes. “Isn’t it just a piece from a memory game or something?”
“Maybe.” Fluttershy held the stone close to her chest, a blissful smile spreading across her lips.
“Then we should get packing; ya got a lot of stuff from the hospital. Good thing it’s all still in their boxes,” Applejack said as she got down from the couch.
Rainbow Dash started fidgeting, so Fluttershy gently dragged the cart back and forth. “Thank you for the offer, but I don’t think it will be necessary after all.”
“Huh? What do ya mean it won’t be necessary? It ain’t safe here with that thing lurking around!” Applejack protested, but Fluttershy shook her head.
“You can always stay if it would make you feel better?” Fluttershy suggested. Applejack hesitated a moment. She looked at Rainbow Dash and then drew her hat further down over her eyes.
“Ah’d love to, but Ah could hardly leave the farm. Ya sure yer’ll be alright, girl?”
Fluttershy nodded. She had completely changed her attitude, not even shivering in the slightest anymore. Calmly she returned her attention to Rainbow Dash and made baby noises to her. Rainbow responded by blubbering happily.
“Listen, Twalight is trying ta find a spell ta help RD. It’ll probably take a while, so wha dontcha try and get some sleep?”
Fluttershy just then yawned. “Goodness, I have been up all night, haven’t I? Just like a certain other pony I know,” she said and rubbed a hoof across Dash’s tummy. “Haven’t you? Haven’t you? Yes, you have! Yes, you have!”
“Then make sure ya lock all the doors and windows at least.” With those words, Applejack shooed the Crusaders in front of her and out of the door.
***
“You can open your eyes now, Fluttershy.”
Her dad didn’t usually give her surprises, but she had flown blindfolded on his back for most of the trip. The ground beneath them was hard as only the surface dirt could be. A sensation she had unknowingly missed ever since she had gone back to Cloudsdale after falling down. The strip of cloth was removed with a might yank.
Fluttershy gasped in surprise, not sure what she was looking at. It was a large hut with the forest close by behind it and a large town in front of it. She thought it to be the very image of idyllic and her mouth opened in shock quickly became a big smile. A small brook ran past the hut, the grass was lush and green and she could hear so many different animal noises all around.
“Dad… what is this?” she asked, unsure what else to say. She ran up to the doors and looked inside, as the top half was swung open.
“It’s our new home. I know it doesn’t look like much yet, no one has lived in it for years, but it was the best I could do.” She had never seen the old coach abashed before, like the door to a gentleness he had stored away had been opened. He came up behind her, scratching his neck with a hoof. “Do you… do you like it?”
“Oh dad, I love it!” She fell about his thick neck and cried into his red mane. He coughed and carefully unwrapped her again.
“Now, you’re a big pony already but the surface is a completely different place than Cloudsdale. I figured you’d feel safer if I stayed with you for a bit.”
She nodded feverishly, completely lost for words.
“Go on, go inside. The real surprise is in there,” he said.
The prospect of yet another surprise baffled everything she thought she knew about her father. Uncertain at what she would encounter, she opened the bottom half of the door as well. The entrance hall was littered with moving boxes containing their few belongings. When he had told her they were moving to something smaller, he had been completely fooling her. The hut was much larger than their squeezed little townhouse.
On the floor, in a little basket padded with a blue blanket, sat a rabbit. Fluttershy squealed and flew inside to pick it up. The coach came behind her and drew a tired smile for her.
“Oh he’s so cute! What’s his name?” she asked, hovering a little above the floor. The rabbit struggled to get out of her grip but was unable to inflict any noticeable pain upon her with his little feet.
“Angel… just like your mother is now.” And then, for the first and only time, she saw a glistening bead on her father’s face. “I’m sorry for being such a lousy father to you, Fluttershy. I just didn’t want you to end up without a cutie mark so I pressed you to get better a flying. Who could have known that your destiny would be down here?”
“Dad…” She slacked her grip, and the bunny seized its chance to get away.
“You’re all I have left now,” the grown pegasus said and wiped his eyes. He accepted Fluttershy’s embrace for a lot longer, tenderly rubbing his head against hers. Then he looked down at her and held her at an arm’s length. “I’ll stay with you until you’ve learnt how to take care of the animals, all right? Can’t be worse than scraped knees and concussions.”
***
Fluttershy woke up and raised her head with eyes half closed. Rainbow Dash was still sleeping, so that couldn’t be it. She then noticed she had a single tear on her cheek and she remembered her dream.
“Dad…” she whispered and looked up into the ceiling, as if her gaze could penetrate the many layers of obstruction to Cloudsdale. The doorbell chimed again. With her thoughts still in dreamland, she rushed down on the floor and to the door at the other end of the house. She flung the door back and nearly fell on her back in surprise.
“GIMMAHYAMUNNNAAAAAAAAAAYYYYY,” the pony on the other side screamed. It was the first time Fluttershy had had a proper opportunity to look at it. One eye really was larger than the other, and its body was covered in coarse fur matted with mud gluing sticks and leaves and pebbles to it.
Fluttershy swallowed a big lump in her throat and held out the stone with the butterfly carving. “You came back with this, didn’t you?”
The shaggy pony nodded his head and exclaimed several delighted sounds. He went on to tell a lengthy tale with various incomprehensible sounds and waves of his arms. Fluttershy understood nothing, but pretended she did with a smile forming on her lips. At the end, she was giggling and the pony giggled with her.
“You’re not a bad pony after all, you’re just… a little different?” Fluttershy asked. The shaggy whatever shook its head, then, as if remembering something, its eyes flared up. It stood aside to reveal a weathered blue sports bag. It had endured a harsh trip and was scratched and dirty. With its front hoof, the living bush pushed the bag forward. “This looks like Rainbow’s equipment bag. Were you looking for it for me? … Hey, where are you going?”
The Sacred Hairy Pony of Canterlot had finished its errand and was quickly skulking away to the forest. Fluttershy followed it as far as the brook when Rainbow cried up from inside the hut. She couldn’t very well do two things at once, so she bit into the bag’s straps and carried it inside. She took the bottle from inside her kitchen that she had been filling before her first visit by the thing and consequently forgotten about.
“You must be a little grumpy because Fluttershy forgot all about feeding you, isn’t that right?” She put the bottle to Rainbow’s mouth, and Rainbow grabbed around it herself and held it in place. “Such a hungry little filly you are. Yum, yum!”
Again Fluttershy relaxed on the couch. It had been a long night and she couldn’t have gotten more than a few hours of sleep. Still, she couldn’t leave Rainbow unsupervised. Just as she was nodding off again a series of excited knocks followed on her door.
“I wonder if it came back,” she thought aloud and went back through her hut, but it was Twilight who stood outside with Spike by her side, holding a large book under arm. She had bags under her eyes and her hair stood up in several places. Spike merely yawned and smacked his lips. “Goodness, Twilight, shouldn’t you get some sleep?”
“Who can sleep when her best friend is in danger and I just found this really great spell and I can’t wait to try it off it should help all kinds of head traumas!” Twilight blurted out.
“W-what?” Fluttershy asked confused, having trouble following her, but Twilight ran inside.
“I haven’t got a wink all morning,” Spike muttered and scratched his back as he went inside as well. “Twilight’s been keeping me up trying to find a spell to cure Rainbow Dash.”
“Oh, you didn’t have to exert yourself like that. Rainbow is fine.” Fluttershy followed after them to her living room where Twilight nervously jumped from hoof to hoof while throwing her head around.
“Where are you Spike come on Spike I want to try this spell quick come quick I can’t wait to see what will happen where are you?”
“Right here,” he replied and put the book down on the floor. She frantically leafed through it with her magic until her giddy grin announced she had found the right page.
“Maybe you should wait until you’ve gotten some rest?” Fluttershy suggested. Twilight looked at her with a big smile, her left ear flapping.
“I’m fine!” she announced happily. Her horn lit up, and so did Rainbow soon after. Twilight screwed up her face in concentration. The magic sparkled and hissed as it tried to comply with her thought demand. Rainbow released her bottle, looking up with big eyes and drool escaping her opened mouth. The spell crackled and popped. Fluttershy retreated back into the corner of her living room.
The light from the magic grew erratic and threw sparks everywhere. With one last bang, Twilight was thrown off her hooves and sent clean through the room. She landed on her back shortly and gently slid into the wall with a bump. She sighed deeply and relaxed her limbs.
“Are you all right?” Fluttershy asked with a hoof on her muzzle.
“Yes, but Rainbow Dash isn’t.” Twilight got up on her shaking legs again. Her voice was much calmer and the tiredness was more pronounced. “Something in her mind blocked my spell, almost like Rainbow has been hexed. I have to go back and study up on this.”
“Twilight Sparkle, you should be thinking more of yourself here.” Fluttershy flew back in from the adjacent laundry room with a blanket in her mouth. “It’s a fine day outside so Rainbow Dash and I will go for a walk. You and Spike can rest up here meanwhile.”
“That’s really sweet of you, but I can’t just leave Rainbow Dash like that.” Rainbow started babbling happily at the mention of her name. Spike grabbed Twilight’s horn and dragged her up on the couch. They were both snoring by the time Fluttershy got out, he resting on top of her belly.
She used her flying to push the cart. It was too tall for her otherwise. It also shielded Rainbow Dash from any humiliation as they got into town. Most ponies they passed would merely assume Fluttershy was out shopping or at the very worst think she was merely walking a litter of kittens. It grew more and more uncomfortable in town however. Even if they couldn’t see, it still felt like they knew despite Rainbow’s malady not being common knowledge yet. Eventually Fluttershy pushed away to a small pond at the edge of Ponyville. Under the shadow of a tree she rested and sat down on a bench.
“You know, I almost wish you would stay like that forever,” she said and rocked the cart back and forth. She hung her head so that her face was covered in shadow. “I still remember that kiss and I know you do too, but I don’t know what to do. I’ve been asking myself if I feel that way about you too. How do I know? How did you know? I don’t want to tell you I don’t love you because I do, but I don’t know if I love you like that. If I told you that, would you still be my friend? Would it be too awkward? Even now I feel like beating myself up for being so indecisive. Why can’t I have your courage and resolve? I’m a horrible friend to you, Dash. I always rely on you for everything. Why would you ever love a doormat like me?”
Rainbow Dash didn’t understand a word and looked intently up into the blue heavens. Fluttershy wiped her eyes. “I’m sorry for being so selfish. I want you back no matter what so that you can fly around the sky again and… and tell me how everything is going to be all right.”
***
“You idiot! Why did you leave her alive?” the pale blue pegasus bellowed.
The old unicorn nonchalantly drew his white robe tightly over his face. “Many pardons, sir, but that is simply not possible. I did as you told me to and blasted her from the balloon with my most powerful eraser spell. If this is just an attempt to get out of the payment, then it is a pathetic one indeed.”
“Then explain this to me,” the pegasus said calmly and violently slammed a letter to the ground. “A hospital in Ponyville just wrote me that my sister has been hospitalised.”
“Hmm.” The old unicorn fell into deep thought and closed the eyes which were all that was visible of him. “She is a wielder of the elements. It is possible that they could have protected her. For an extra price, I’d be more than happy to finish the job.”
“Forget it, old stallion.” The pegasus grabbed the letter with his mouth and placed it back on top of the hallway drawers. “You had your chance. I’ll just have to finish this myself.”
The pegasus made to leave but the old steed stepped in front of him. “There’s still the matter of my payment.”
“You were paid to kill her. She’s still alive, so I owe you nothing.”
The old unicorn refused to move, rather, he hardened his eyes. “If you don’t pay me then I’ll let everypony know you hired me.”
“Hmph!” the pegasus scoffed. “When it comes down to it, it will be your word against mine. And who will ever believe Darkheart the assassin over Bifröst the nice neighbour?”
“You’ll regret underestimating the power of the elements. The day will come when you will rue this decision, mark my words!” The veiled unicorn hobbled down the hallway, leaving the Bifröst to his own thoughts.
“What do you know? You’re the one who couldn’t carry out your mission.”
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This is weird
How did people dislike this? It is fantastic! Sure, it's a little off the beaten path of shipping, and sure, it's a little weird to read Rainbow as a baby, but those things make it all the more amazing! I'm really looking forward to the next chapter! You good sir, have a fan!
Applejack is southern, not stupid.
Great story, keep up the good work!
MAn you really made applejack look downright stupid....>_>