• Published 16th Jul 2016
  • 1,486 Views, 7 Comments

The Center of Her World - SaintChoc



What would you do if you found out your partner chose someone else in another life?

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Chapter 7: Meeting

Fluttershy and Twilight departed out the back of the school and walked around to the street. Fluttershy let Spike hop out of her arms and walk alongside.

Twilight's fingers were hurriedly tapping on a device. Fluttershy looked at her, curious.

Twilight looked up. "Oh, I'm just texting her to meet us at the park. She already agreed to pick up Spike from the groomer's for me, so I'm just asking her to bring him there." She looked back at the device as her fingers continued to fly across the keypad. She glanced sidelong at Fluttershy. "I should tell her to wear another outfit, too…"

"Texting?" Fluttershy said.

Twilight chuckled. "You know those journals Twilight and Sunset use to message each other?" Fluttershy nodded. "Well, pretty much everyone over here has one of those in their pocket." She waved the device.

"Wow…" Fluttershy said. "This world sounds amazing."

"I guess so. I don't really know any others," Twilight said, laughing. "But I like it well enough!"

The three of them turned down a street and walked down to a peaceful-looking park. Twilight led them down a gravel path flanked by trees, shadows dancing across their faces. "She should be here soon." She pointed to a three-story building just visible through the trees on the other side of the park. "That's where I live."

"You live there all by yourself?" Fluttershy asked.

"Yup! My family mostly pays for it—they were sending me to a much fancier school beforehand, after all." She laughed. "But I put a little towards it with my part-time job."

Spike sniffed along the ground, stopping in front of a tree. "I'm pretty sure other Spike buried something here…" He grinned and began to dig. "It's totally mine now."

Twilight chuckled, then looked at Fluttershy; she was sweeping her eyes over the environment. "I'm… having such a hard time getting it through my head that this is all new to you," Twilight said. "Fluttershy has been here more than once to play with Spike. It's so weird to watch you… lost."

Fluttershy laughed softly. "Lost is right…"

Suddenly a purple blur darted underneath Fluttershy and jumped at Twilight's legs. "Hey Twilight! Hey! Hey Twilight!" came the familiar voice of this world's Spike. After receiving a few pats amidst his leaping, he ran over to his double. "Hey! Hey other Spike!" He leapt on top of his twin and the pair began rolling around, laughing.

"Ahhh, I almost had it!" the dragon Spike said. "I was gonna dig up that bone, and then… probably bury it again." He stopped. "...I think it might be time to start worrying about how much I enjoy dog life."

Fluttershy blinked. "So… your Spike talks too? Do… do all dogs talk in this world?"

"No, that was… that's new. There was… uh... " Twilight giggled. "It's a long story."

"I think Twilight's still getting used to it," came a voice so familiar yet alien. Fluttershy turned around and her breath caught in her throat as a perfect match to her came into her view, though with a pink hoodie and a yellow skirt. "And you must be… me," the new arrival said, smiling brightly and clasping her hands in front of her.

Fluttershy unconsciously mimicked her, also clasping her hands in front of her, a tad more hesitantly. "Yup, that's… me."

They stood silently for a moment. Twilight looked between the pair. "I don't know if this is inappropriate for me to say, but… this is incredibly fascinating. Can I take notes? No, I won't take notes. That's weird." The Fluttershy she knew laughed; the Fluttershy she didn't chuckled softly.

The two Spikes chased each other through the trees. "Hah! Too slow!" one said; it was hard to tell which.

The new arrival watched them with a smile on her face. She sniffled. "Oh… My cold hasn't quite left yet. I'm not contagious anymore, but—" She sniffled again. "I'm still, um, sniffly."

"I have a few water bottles at my place. Do you want me to get you one, Fluttershy? And do you need anything, Flutter—" She paused. "I'm already seeing a problem here."

This world's Fluttershy giggled. "I'm fine! Really. And call me Shy for now. Like Pinkie does."

Twilight nodded. "What about you?" she said, turning to the other Fluttershy. "That would leave you with 'Flutter'..."

"Flutters… works," she said, smiling.

Shy breathed in before stepping forward and wrapped Flutters in a tight hug. "It's so wonderful to meet you!" She pulled back, looking Flutters in the eye. "There's so much to talk about!"

Flutters was caught off-guard, squeaking in surprise at the embrace. "Um… it's good to meet you too!" She smiled shyly.

Twilight laughed. "I had mentioned she was more forward these days."

Shy pulled away and blushed slightly. "Yes, whenever I'm feeling nervous, I just… think about what Pinkie would do." She giggled. "And she usually hugs people."

Flutters nodded and spoke hesitantly. "Whenever I'm scared, I just think of what Rainbow would do. Or… well, at least, I think of her being out there, and that's enough." She chuckled. "Of course, I'm usually scared for very silly reasons, but…"

Shy giggled. "And I never really have a reason to be nervous, but… it's nice to have someone help you remember that."

Flutters smiled brightly. She began to relax, enjoying speaking to someone who understood her so perfectly.

Shy sat on a nearby park bench. "So you and Rainbow Dash? That sounds nice. I hope you two are happy." Twilight picked up a stick and tossed it towards the two Spikes, glaring when they ignored it and continued running around.

Flutters sat on the other side of the bench. "We are! I hope you and Pinkie are happy. She's an absolutely wonderful pony. Or… um, person?" Shy laughed and nodded.

Shy thought for a moment. "She can be overwhelming sometimes, though… Even when you're alone with her, she's just so loud, isn't she?" Flutters opened her mouth to speak, but Shy continued. "Oh, goodness, I don't mean to… I don't mean to sound like I just want to complain about her."

She looked at the ground. "I just don't like to complain to her face or anyone else about... how they are. I don't want to look like I'm needy or ungrateful, and I really do like being with her. It's just nice to have someone else that, um… that I'll know feels the same way before I say anything."

Flutters pondered on this. "I did feel the same way… Rainbow Dash can be very intense. But I talked to her." Shy looked back up at her. "She doesn't make everything a competition anymore. Even just seeing her slow down to keep at my pace feels wonderful—because she's doing it to make me happy." She smiled, her eyes unfocused.

Shy cocked her head. "...Huh."

The two of them watched the trees shift in the sunlight around them, the wind creating a gentle rustling.

Shy sniffled loudly once more and coughed. "Goodness, I'm worse than I thought. I hope I'm not annoying you two..." She stood up. "I'll go get that water, Twilight, if that's okay. Do you have your key?"

"Are you sure, Fl—Uh, Shy? I can get it." Twilight pulled out her house key from her pocket.

"Yes, you two stay here. I'll just be a minute." Twilight tossed Shy the house key, and Shy smiled brightly at the pair before jogging towards Twilight's apartment. Its backyard was connected to the park.

Twilight took Shy's spot on the bench. "So what do you think of her? Is she… uh, familiar?"

"She is," Flutters said. "A bit different, but I still feel like I'm inside her head… Everything she says, even if I don't feel the same way, I understand perfectly."

Twilight nodded slowly. "She's been one of my best friends as I try to fit in at this new school and with these new friends… She's kind, and gentle, and I trust her more than I would have ever thought I could trust a friend. If you met me a year ago… I mean, I hardly talked to anyone that wasn't family or my dog." She looked towards the two Spikes rolling in the dirt and chuckled softly. "Shy was right. I'm still getting used to him talking back…"

She shook her head and turned back to Flutters. "Anyway, my point is—When I talk to you, I… I feel like I can trust you in the same way. I hope that's not, um, weird…"

"I don't think that's weird at all." Flutters smiled. "I am a little surprised, though. You don't see me as someone else after all?"

"Well… no, I know you're not the exact same person. But..." Twilight took a moment, thinking. "I can tell you're every bit as kind and gentle as she is."

Flutters' heart warmed as Twilight continued. "I-I mean, I know it doesn't make much sense, because you are someone else, but—" she said, growing a touch more flustered.

"It's okay," Flutters said. "The six of us in the other world have a bond we've never been able to explain… maybe it just carries over here. Between all twelve of us." Flutters smiled gently. "And Sunset, I suppose? I still haven't met her."

"Oh, she's great. She's so intellectually curious! We can talk for hours about what we've discovered about Equestrian magic." She grinned.

Shy returned, sipping from a bottle of water. She held two bottles in her hand, one of water and one of apple juice. "I found this in there as well. I thought maybe you might want one," she said, offering the apple juice to Twilight.

"Oh, I forgot I'd gotten those! There's a pack of six in there, right? You could have gotten one for yourself."

Shy shrugged, somewhat sheepishly. "You just offered water, so I didn't want to assume…"

"Shhhyyy." Twilight shook her head at Shy. "You're silly. But thank you," she said, taking the apple juice. Flutters took the other water bottle.

Twilight took a swig of apple juice and checked her phone. "Shoot, I'd better get ready for my class soon." She looked around. "Where have the Spikes gotten off to? They get so wild when they're together."

"You really only have one class a day?" Flutters said. She examined the bottle trying to figure out its workings before Shy reached over and unscrewed the lid.

"No, normally I'd have another, but there was a field trip today," Twilight replied. "I didn't go because I already work at the aquarium. It's a fascinating place, but I've kind of seen enough fish to last a lifetime." She stood up and wandered off. "Let's see if I can find those Spikes…"

Flutters stood up and began walking down the path with her twin. The shadows of the leaves danced across their forms.

"When were you planning to go back, Flutters?" Shy asked.

Flutters thought for a moment, frowning. "I…" She paused. "...I'm not sure yet. But I don't think I'm done here."

Shy nodded. "I couldn't imagine leaving this world to go to another. Who convinced you to do it? I know they'd have to drag me through…"

"Well, Spike suggested it… but I think he might have been kidding. It was certainly my decision. He just came along."

Shy stopped and turned to Flutters. "It was your decision?" Her mouth hung open. "That's incredible to me. Did you have any idea what was going to be on the other side?"

Flutters shook her head. "Not much. I knew that Twilight had gone through multiple times, and she obviously made it out fine, but other than that…"

"Even then!" Shy said, resuming her walk. "You're braver than I am… but you did mention that earlier, didn't you? That Rainbow helps you to be brave."

Flutters nodded slowly. "But you didn't need that…" she said quietly.

"Hmm?" Shy cocked her head.

Flutters took a moment to get her thoughts in order. The rustling leaves and their boots against the gravel were the only sounds in the air.

"My world," Flutters began, "has… gigantic beasts and monsters. Humongous, towering dragons that could eat you in a single bite. Evil creatures that can't be reasoned with—who want to take over the world and make everyone their slaves, or kidnap your friends and take their forms. As a filly, I spent some nights afraid the sun might never come up again, just because of a legend I heard—A legend that eventually came true."

Shy stared wide-eyed. "Well, if I wasn't afraid of crossing over before…" she said under her breath.

"There's so much danger in my world, but Rainbow makes me feel like she can protect me from anything. She's kicked dragons in the face. She's broken the speed of sound to save her friends. I've never seen her back down from… from anything.

"But.... this world isn't like that, is it?" Flutters said, looking at Shy.

Shy looked at the floor, thinking. "I didn't grow up with fear like that," she said. "Well, school liked to talk about tornadoes and quicksand a lot, but you can't, um, kick those in the face…

"There was only one real fear I had that affected me as I grew up—the only thing that really made me freeze up, time and time again, unable to speak, until I was just so frustrated with myself I wanted to scream."

"Other people," Flutters said suddenly, realization spreading across her face.

Shy nodded. "Pinkie showed me that people aren't that scary… If you smile at them, they usually smile back. Like I said—Whenever I get nervous talking to someone, I just think about what Pinkie would do, and how many friends she has doing what she does." She smiled.

"That makes perfect sense," Flutters said. "We grew up in different worlds, so we need different things. There's nothing wrong with that."

Shy frowned. "Of course there's nothing wrong with that. Why would there be?"

Flutters stammered softly for a moment. She opened her mouth to speak, then closed herself off subtly, looking away. Twilight appeared once more, Spikes in tow, but stayed quiet, sensing the mood.

"...Do you ever wonder," Flutters said, "for all Rainbow and Pinkie offer us… do you ever wonder what we offer them?"

Shy gave a resigned chuckle. "All the time," she said. "I just try to think that as long as she's smiling, maybe I'm doing okay."

Flutters nodded, but stayed silent.

Twilight spoke hesitantly. "Um, I did talk to Rainbow a bit today, in school. Before she ran down the stairs. I know it's not much, but…" She rubbed the back of her head awkwardly. "She was quieter than the Rainbow I know. Just enough that I could tell there was something different about her. Like I said, it's not much, but… I dunno. I think she is getting something from you."

Twilight looked at the two Spikes behind her, focusing on one that Flutters could only assume was hers, however she was able to tell. "Alright, I definitely need to get ready for class now. You can stay here with Other Spike and the girls, but you guys can't run off like that, okay? Shy will put you away when Flutters has to go." She turned to Flutters. "Don't feel like you need to leave, though. You're more than welcome to stay in my apartment until I get back!"

Flutters smiled. "Thank you. But I think I'll be leaving soon after all."

"Alright!" Twilight said. "If this is the last I'll see you for a while, then… it was nice to meet you. Even if I felt like I already have." She smiled brightly.

"Same here," Flutters said, giggling softly. Twilight turned around and headed for her apartment.

"So you feel like you're done here now?" Shy asked.

"Yes, I think I have something to go back with," Flutters said. "Although… there's something else I'd like to take with me. Or, someone else."

Shy looked at her questioningly.

"...When does school end?" Flutters asked.