TEK: The Series

by Jet Fly

Date

"Okay, Bulk, you're on dish duty today; Zecora, laundry; Kae'lik, window washing; and Judy, you're the duster for today. I'm up for routine checkup around Ponyville, and Shade and Ditz have the day off."

"YES!"

"Siiiiiggghhhh..."

Ditzy's one "yes" was overpowered by the many sighs from those with assignments. Jet raised his hooves up.

"I know I know, but these are Vinyl's 'house' rules. Plus they rotate so you won't be stuck with the same chore two days in a row. We all stay here all the time, so doing a few things around the base is the least we can do."

They seemed a little more accepting at that. Kae'lik didn't seem to care.

"Back at the hive I had many more responsibilities than window washing. Consider it done."

Jet smiled and pointed at Kae'lik.

"See, why can't you guys be like him?"

Vinyl popped her head in from the kitchen next to the main room TEK was in.

"Hey, I'm making tacos for lunch. The faster your chores are done, the faster you can eat."

Judy seemed especially pleased.

"YAY, TACOS!"

Shade tilted his head a little.

"Where did you get that sombrero?"

Jet stood up and decided to finish the meeting.

"TEK, let's get to work."

As Jet made his way out, TEK slumped off the couches and made their way to the door. Before Jet could walk out, though, he heard Shade call out to him.

"Jet, can we talk for a sec?"

Jet looked back at his friend, and saw his nervous face.

"Yeah, what is it? Is something wrong?"

Shade looked around nervously.

"Uhh… no, not really. I just wanted to show you something..."

He then teleported a small, blue box in front of him, holding it in midair with his telekinesis. When he opened it, Jet could hardly believe his eyes.

"Whoa…"

Inside the box was a dazzling necklace. Its chain was golden, and skinny enough not to put too much weight on a pony's neck. Attached to it was a small silver heart with a pink diamond in its center.
It didn't take Jet too long to figure out what was going on.

"Fluttershy is going to love it, dude. That's amazing, it must have cost you a hoof and a leg."

Shade calmed down a little and grew a proud smirk.

"Thanks... But expenses mean nothing to me when it comes to making her happy."

Jet could only smile to himself.

*He's come a long way since the academy.*

"So what's up? A special occasion?"

Shade thought for a moment before responding.

"You could say I'm making a special occasion."

Jet's eyes grew wide.

"You don't mean…"

Shade nodded.

"Oh I mean. Today I'm going to ask Fluttershy to be my marefriend. I already made special dinner reservations and picked out the perfect location."

Jet was impressed.

"Well, it looks like you have everything worked out. I'm happy for you bro, and I wish you only the best."

Before Shade could thank him, a voice chimed in from the top of the stairs.

"Hey Jet!"

Jet turned around while Shade fumbled to quickly teleport the necklace out of sight.
Jet was greeted by the sight of Ditzy looking almost as nervous as Shade, if not more so.

"Hey umm… I was wondering if you wanted to hang out today…"

Jet quickly looked to Shade, who was only making this face: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°). Jet rubbed the back of his neck.

"...Sorry Ditz, can't today. I have the routine checkup around Ponyville. That's gonna take some time. I'm afraid I'm just too busy today. Next time though."
For a split second Ditzy looked very disappointed, but the next second she was back to her usual cheerful self.

"Okay! Next time!"

Quickly she disappeared out the door.

Shade looked at Jet curiously.

"Bruh, what was that all about? Routine checkup should only take a couple hours, not all day, especially with your speed."

Jet made no attempt to defend himself as he began walking up the stairs himself.

"I better get going. I have a lot to do. Talk to you later bro."

Shade could only chuckle to himself after his friend left.

"He always acts so weird around Ditzy... I totally ship it."

Vinyl walked in from the kitchen.

"Looks like somepony's in denial."

Shade turned around and smiled.

"So you heard that too, huh?"

Vinyl nodded.

"Yup. I could feel her disappointment from over there."
_____________________
A few hours later
_____________________

Jet thought silently to himself as he gently hovered over Ponyville.
Currently he was using his pegasus magic to focus the wind and the sound waves traveling through it into his ears, enabling him to listen in on the conversations around Ponyville to see what was up and if there was a problem somewhere. All seemed peaceful for now; it was only the occasional gossip and bargaining. Shade had once questioned the privacy of others when Jet used this technique.
Jet had to explain that it was for security reasons and he didn't really care about the secret lives of others.

But something was weighing on Jet's mind. Why had he refuse Ditz's offer?

*We've hung out before. Declining her offer one time isn't a big deal. I just want some space, that's all.*

Still, Jet felt odd.

Suddenly he picked up on something strange. He could faintly hear yelling coming from the other side of Ponyville. He glided his way over to the origin of the shouting.

*I swear if it's Berry Punch making a drunken rampage again…*

But it wasn't. Jet found himself hovering above a relatively tall building. It had three floors - tall for Ponyville - and was connected to a warehouse. It was a simple brown in color, and just above the door was the sign "Equestrian Postal Service".

*Ah, that's the place where Ditz and Shade work. I wonder what's going on.*

He flew a little lower and landed on the roof, directly above the source of the yelling. Jet assumed there was an office below him, and somepony was getting yelled at. As he landed on the roof of the building, Jet could clearly hear the argument below him.

"YOU'RE A USELESS BURDEN! YOU NEVER DO ANYTHING RIGHT AND YOU'RE A WORTHLESS KLUTZ!"

Even Jet flinched a little at that. However, although it was harsh, Jet couldn't intervene in private matters like this unless directly ordered to.

The voice belonged to a stallion. It was a deep, gruff voice, so Jet imagined the speaker was a rather large stallion.
But what Jet heard next made him freeze in horror.

"I-I'm sorry sir…"

Jet immediately recognized the small, female voice.

*Ditz!?*

The gruff voice continued in it's uproar.

"I DON'T WANNA HEAR IT! ALL YOU DO HERE IS SLOW US DOWN AND I'M SICK OF IT! YOU'RE FINISHED! YOU'RE FIRED!"

Ditzy gasped, and so did Jet.

"B-but... I love this job! How will I make ends meet!?"

The stallion scoffed coldly.

"That's YOUR problem. YOU'RE DONE! THROUGH! I want your area cleaned out by tomorrow. You are no longer a part of this postal service, effective immediately. Now, GET OUT OF MY OFFICE!"

Jet could hear Ditzy's slow hoofsteps walking away, followed by a door opening, hesitating, then closing. On top of this, Jet was absolutely sure he could hear Ditzy crying.

Up on the roof Jet was trying to control his urge to go down there and beat the living daylights out of that guy.

*HOW DARE HE TALK TO HER LIKE THAT! In reality she doesn't even need this job! The payment from TEK is more than enough to pay her bills... She just honestly loved delivering mail. It was her passion. I can't BELIEVE the nerve of that guy... I'll RIP OFF HIS-*

Jet's crazed thoughts were interrupted when he heard the front door to the building open up. Looking down he saw a depressed Ditzy walking out. Looking even closer, he could see the tears falling from her eyes.

Jet knew she couldn't know he was listening in on her being fired, so he laid low until she was far enough where he could fly away unseen. He quickly caught up with her after he had called himself down.

"Hey, Ditz, you alright?"

Jet's voice startled the sniffling mare, and in surprise she jumped up as she turned around.

"OH! Jet! Oh yeah, me? I'm fine, totally fine. I'm 100% O.K."

*She is a horrible liar.*

"Really? Your eyes are red, and you're sniffling... Tell me the truth, Ditz."

Ditzy stared at the hovering pegasus before her, pain resurfacing in her yellow eyes. Finally she confessed.

"No… I'm not alright... I just got fired from the post office. I messed up another order…"

She looked down at her hooves in shame. Soon after, more tears fell to the ground below her face. Jet landed next to her and wrapped his wing around the depressed mare.

"Hey hey, it's alright... I'm sorry to hear that. Why don't you tell me what happened?"

Ditzy sniffled before explaining her tale.

"Well, I was making two deliveries to the library and the hospital, but I delivered the books to the hospital and the medical prescriptions to the library..."

*Wow.*

"Was anypony hurt?"

Ditzy immediately shook her head.

"No no! No-pony was hurt at all! I caught on after Twilight told me she got antibiotics instead of cook books and I quickly fixed the orders. But the hospital was really mad about the mix-up, and complained to my boss about it... I took responsibility for my actions and now I'm…"

Ditzy trailed off as more tears began to flow, heavier this time. Jet was unsure of what to do in such a situation. So he simply hugged his wing around her tighter. She leaned against his body and continued speaking through sniffles.

"I really messed up Jet… maybe he was right… I am a useless burden..."

Jet immediately intervened.

"NO YOU'RE NOT! Yes, you made a mistake, but you fixed it. That's not a liable basis for insulting you. In fact, you did nothing worthy of being fired!"

Ditzy calmed down at first but quickly started sniffling again.

"But he's right! I always mess stuff up! I'm just a big mistake!"

Jet's heart was burning with hatred for Ditzy's boss. To remain calm, Jet took a deep breath.

"Ditz, you made a mistake. I make mistakes too. You can ask Shade, I screw up allot of stuff. But you know what that means?"

Ditzy looked up to Jet, anxiously awaiting his answer.

"...What?"

"We're the same."

Ditzy looked into Jet's deep blue eyes as he continued.

"We're exactly the same. And it's not just us. Everypony makes mistakes. This is what connects us all, as a giant family. If you didn't make mistakes, you wouldn't be one of us. When you make a mistake, you're just further proving how alike we all are. Your boss is a fool if he would fire somepony who was only trying to fix their mistake. You're not useless, Ditz... and in my eyes, you're already perfect."

Ditzy loosened up at Jet's words and her tears slowly came to a stop. She grew a small smile and her usual derpy disposition returned.

And her stomach growled loudly.

Jet chuckled.

"Since we're the same and all, why don't we both get something to eat? My treat."

Ditzy looked up confused.

"I thought you were busy with patrol duty?"

Jet shrugged and smiled.

"I finished sooner than expected."

Ditzy smiled brightly and nodded.

"YES!"
__________________

Because there was a fair in town, the two ponies decided to go there for the day. Soon enough The memory of Ditzy's decommissioning was lost in the far more delightful memories of her and Jet having fun.

While Jet went and ordered some caramel apples for them, Ditzy sat back and reminisced on their time together. She laughed every time she thought of the owner of the ball game.

The game was simple: knock down each of the stacked bottles and win a prize, but unknown to most ponies, one bottle was glued to the table. Jet figured this out when the second to last ball he had bounced off the bottle.

Unfortunately for the pony, he was messing with Jet Fly. Focusing a small amount of his pegasus magic into his hooves, he hurled the ball through a small but powerful air current, sending it flying straight through the bottle, and through the wall behind it, and finally stopping as it lodged itself within a concrete wall behind the booth.

Ditzy hugged the large pink elephant he'd won for her. Jet treated her unlike anypony ever had.

Jet walked back to the bench where Ditzy was sitting.

"Hey, whatcha thinking about?"

Ditzy quickly looked up and shook her head, slightly blushing.

"N-nothing!"

Jet shrugged and the two ponies began munching on their apples. Halfway through her apple, Ditzy stopped and looked to Jet.

"Jet... I-"

But she was cut off by a high pitched scream. Jet hopped up.

"What was that?"

Ditzy looked to the source of the sound.

"It sounded like it was coming from the Ferris wheel!"

Jet flared out his wings to take off but hesitated. He looked to Ditzy.

"What were you going to say?"

Ditzy looked down.

"...Nothing. Go ahead and help."

Jet nodded and immediately tossed his apple to Ditzy, who fumbled to catch it, before taking off. He took off at such incredible speeds that a small boom could be heard, followed by an intense wind trailing him.

It took no more than three seconds for Jet to arrive on the scene. Before him was a daunting problem: the giant Ferris wheel had stopped moving, and the gears that turned it were shooting sparks everywhere. Soon enough an electrical fire started, quickly overtaking the entire Ferris wheel.

Looking to his side was the controller of the ride, who was panicking and pressing random buttons on the sparking panel. He quickly got next to him.

"How many are on it?!"

Jet shouted to the skinny stallion, who looked over and answered him.

"Only two! Their in the highest seat!"

Behind him, Jet heard a loud siren. Firefighters were on the scene now, preparing to combat the fire with water. Jet quickly stopped them.

"NO NO NO! It's an electrical fire! It will only make it worse!"

The screams for help from the two trapped ponies could clearly be heard. One of the firefighters walked up to him and gave him a look.

"Then what do you suggest, hotshot?"

Jet looked around himself. A few pegasi were trying to get to the top box to grab the trapped ponies but the flames were just too intense for them to get close. Suddenly Jet had an idea.

"EVERYPONY BACK UP NOW!"

Jet's powerful voice echoed throughout the area, and everypony present did as they were told. He turned his attention to the ponies in peril.

"You might wanna hold your breathes!"

The two trapped ponies nodded.

Jet thrust open his wings and took off, even faster this time. He made a constant left turn, sending him in a speeding circle around the Ferris wheel. After about five seconds Jet was no longer visible to the naked eye. A fierce wind broke out around the surrounding area, forcing everypony to back up even further. The fire too retreated from the intense tornado that was forming around it.

In a few more seconds, the tornado had engulfed the entire ride, making everything within the storm invisible to the outside. The fire began to choke, having it's air supply quickly whipped away from it.

The two ponies inside the ride were terrified. All they knew was that they almost got burned alive, and now there was a tornado. Talk about a bad day.

But soon the tornado began to calm down, and the winds subsided. In only about four seconds the entire vortex was gone, revealing a non-burning wheel, but Jet was nowhere to be seen. One of the pegasi fire fighters flew up and got the two ponies down, who had finally let go of their breaths and were panting heavily. Cheers ran throughout the crowd, along with some murmurs.

"Who was that dude?"

Jet came back to find Ditzy happily munching on her Apple.

"Hey, weren't you worried about what was going on?"

Ditzy looked up and smiled.

"Yeah, but I knew you could handle it."

Jet chuckled to himself.

"Hehe... Hey Ditz, I really gotta investigate why that Ferris wheel caught on fire like that. It's honestly gonna take some time to find out who was responsible for that. Why don't you head on home and get some rest? You've had a long day."

Ditzy looked sad, but she understood that Jet had responsibilities to take care of.

"Okay… I'll see you tomorrow right?"

"Of course."

Ditzy smiled.

"I had fun today. Thanks for cheering me up!"

Jet waved it off.

"No problem. I was glad to spend some time with you."

Ditzy blushed a little at that, and Jet realized how gently he said that sentence.

"Uhhh... Anyway I'll talk to you later!"

Jet said before taking off, back to the scene of the incident.

After half a minute he made his way back to the scene... only to find Judy already on it. She was wearing a large trench coat and a hat like she was some sort of detective. She was also carrying a notebook with her telekinesis, asking witnesses questions about what they had seen.

"Hey, uh, Judy... What are you doing?"

She turned around and laughed.

"I knew it! I knew when I heard that an orange pegasus made a tornado it had to be you!"

Jet smiled and shrugged.

"Yeah, it was me. I had to do something. But it looks like your doing a pretty good job of investigating."

Judy nodded excitedly.

"Yup! In fact I've already found the cause! The Ferris wheel wasn't oiled correctly so the metal gears rubbing against each other caused sparks to fly, which in turn caught fire on live wires that make up the lights on the wheel."

Jet was amazed.

"You found all of that out in five minutes?"

Judy nodded again.

"Yessiree!"

"Well done... I guess I'm not needed then. Just remember to make a record of this incident so that we can make sure this never happens again."

Judy saluted her commanding officer.

"Aye aye, captain! Now you can get back to your date!"

All the color drained from Jet's face, replaced only with a bright crimson. If he were drinking something, he would have spat it out.

"No no no, you misunderstand-"

Judy giggled loudly.

"Haha! Whatever you say, Mr. Smooth!"

Jet never blushed, so the feeling of his entire face turning red was uncomfortable. He took off to avoid further embarrassment.

*S-she's just crazy, is all...*

On his way back home he saw that Sugar Cube Corner was open.

*I guess I can still make it up to Ditz...*
________________

Ditzy was almost home. Night had just fallen. She would have made it home faster had she flew, but she found it easier to think while on the ground. Her thoughts were flooded with those of a certain orange pegasus.

When she made it home, her stuffed pink elephant on her back, she saw a small object in front of her door. When she got a closer look, she saw it was a muffin with a pink wrapper around it. Ditzy didn't even need to think about who it was from as she smiled. She simply grabbed it, took a bite and entered her home.

High above was Jet, smiling just the same.

"Goodnight, Ditz..."

And he flew off into the night.
____________________
Fancy Restaurant
____________________

Shade ran around frantically as he made sure for the 15th time that all preparations for his special night were perfect. Being mentally scarred from a traumatic experience created a tendency to imagine the worse-case scenario of any given situation. This was one of those situations he did not want to mess up. Deep down, he probably realized that there was really nothing to worry about; he had known Fluttershy since fillyhood, and she was his most closest friend other than Jet.

*But what if she just wants to stay friends?*

The fear of the unknown still ravaged at Shade's confidence. After confirming once again that all would go according to plan, Shade left the restaurant and teleported home.
________________

Shade was not prepared for this. He had been trained to fight off the most dangerous threats in Equestria. He had honed his skills at instantaneous travel and transportation. Heck, he even owned some fairly advanced technology back at base. But he didn't have a single tuxedo to wear for the most important day of his life.

"HOW HAVE I NOT BOUGHT A TUXEDO BY NOW?"

He searched his entire room. He even checked his father's old room's closet out of desperate hopes that he somehow left a tux behind. Nothing was all he found. Sure, he could easily buy a new tux now; he made more than enough working for TEK. But he wasn't sure if he'd be able to find the right one for the occasion. He only had one hope.

"...I need to find Rarity..."

Immediately Shade teleported to Rarity's boutique. It was a little after 6:00 pm and already getting dark, so she had most likely closed for the night by now, but this was an emergency. Hastily he ran up to the door and knocked as hard as he could.

"We're CLOSED."

Shade heard Rarity yell from inside. He expected as much, but didn't really care.

"Rarity I need your help!"

There was a still silence, and Shade anxiously awaited a response. His ears perked when he heard the click of the door unlocking. Rarity opened with a slightly tired and confused look on her face.

"...Shade? What brings you by so late?"

Shade took a deep breath, preparing himself to explain what was going on.

"Okay, here's the thing. I'm taking Fluttershy out somewhere nice tonight. I've made reservations and got everything set up how I want. The only problem is I don't own a single tuxedo to wear. I need your help..."

Rarity raised an inquiring eyebrow at Shade's answer.

"Somewhere nice, hmm?"

Shade chuckled nervously.

"Yeah... It's sort of a special occasion..."

"...You're going to ask her to be your marefriend aren't you..."

Shade hesitated, then nodded. Rarity's eyes grew larger than Shade thought physically possible before she burst out with excited giggling and squealing. Shade quickly grabbed the now bouncing mare to calm her down.

"Hey hey keep it down... I don't want the whole town to find out now."

"Alright, alright... So, you want me to make you a suit?"

Shade nodded.

"Yeah or at least help me pick one out. I haven't worn a suit since my graduation. I have no idea how to pick out anything that fits with the occasion."

"I see... How much time do you have?"

"I'm picking her up at 7:00 pm. Will that be enough time?"

Rarity smirked.

"Plenty."
_________________

Shade was now fully ready to carry out his plans for the night. After constantly reminding Rarity not to go overboard with his request, Shade's suit was finished with time to spare.

It was a dark blue jacket over a white button-up shirt, touched off with a black tie and a blue lapel flower pinned to his right collar. It was a simple outfit, yet at the same time it bore elegance and class. The jacket also had thin silver lining on the inside, as well as along the outer edges of the collar. For Shade, it was perfect, just like he needed everything to be tonight.

Having the extra time, he chose to casually stroll towards Fluttershy cottage rather than teleport straight over. It gave him time to think of what he wanted to say to the mare he loved, and in all honesty, he didn't mind showing off his fresh new look a little bit. Ponyville was actually fairly active at the time. There was a bit of chatter going on, from what Shade could hear with his heightened senses. Something about a fast pegasus stopping a burning Ferris wheel at a carnival.

*Jet or Dash must've pulled some heroic stunt or something. Probably Jet while he was on patrol.*

Before he knew it, Shade arrived at his destination. He stood at Fluttershy's door for a good minute and a half before he worked up the nerve to knock. When he did, he anxiously waited.

"Coming..."

Shade heard Fluttershy's soft voice from the other side of the door. Soon it was opened and the two of them were face to face.

"Hello, Shade!"

Fluttershy managed to exclaim while at the same time maintaining her soft, whisper-like speech. She was wearing a mild dress, teal in color, with a small white butterfly in her mane. Her outfit was nowhere near as fancy as the one she wore to the gala, but it was enough to almost turn Shade's normal gray face to a bright red.

"Y-you look nice..."

Shade tried not to stammer.

*Keep it together you fool. You got this. Just play it cool.*

"Shall we get going?"

Fluttershy nodded, and the two of them headed off.
__________________

Shade and Fluttershy arrived at the restaurant on schedule. So far everything had gone according to Shade's plans, and he and Fluttershy had been having a very nice time. The food was the best cooking he'd had in his life, second only to his mother's. And the view was amazing. Shade had chosen their seats in an area outside and behind the restaurant, where a beautiful garden surrounded them and Luna's starry night sky draped over them, washing everything in the glow of the moonlight.

The conversation had been surprisingly lively. Fluttershy was only this sociable around her most closest of friends, and knowing he was included in that group warmed his heart and made him feel happy. The whole night he made sure to keep the focus of their conversation on Fluttershy, for two main reasons. For one thing, there wasn't much he could say about himself, as most of his life revolved around the secret taskforce he was a part of, and there were other details he simply didn't want to bring up. The second reason was that Shade was genuinely interested in hearing what Fluttershy had to say. He liked listening to her speak her mind. He could feel himself growing even closer to her. Of course, he would still answer any questions she asked about him as truthfully as he could. He hated lying, especially to Fluttershy, but TEK had to be kept secret. All in all, the two of them were really enjoying themselves.

"Oh, Shade this was wonderful! I'm having lots of fun right now! Thank you so much!"

Fluttershy softly exclaimed as she and Shade continued talking. Shade smiled warmly.

"No need to thank me. I'm just glad you're enjoying yourself."

"No, really Shade! Frankly I'm surprised you were even able to afford this place."

"I got a bonus at work. I don't get to see you as often anymore, so I figured I do something nice for you."

She thought he wouldn't notice, but Fluttershy slightly blushed at Shade's words.

*Aww yeah. Game too strong.*

Shade's thoughts were interrupted when their waiter arrived from inside the restaurant. He spoke to Shade holding a black checkbook in his hoof.

"Your bill, sir."

He left shortly after setting the bill down on the table in between Shade and Fluttershy. Fluttershy got to see the bill first, and her expression quickly changed.

"Oh... Shade, I didn't expect it to be so high..."

Shade quickly came to her rescue.

"Don't worry about it, I've got it covered."

Fluttershy perked up at Shade's offer.

"A-are you sure? I don't want to be a burden..."

"No, it's fine. I'll take care of it."

Fluttershy couldn't help feeling a bit confused. Shade was going through so much trouble for her, and she wasn't sure why he was showing such generosity that rivaled that of Rarity's. And Shade could tell from her expression that this was what was going through her mind, and he prepared himself to answer the question he knew would eventually come.

"...Why are you doing so much for me?"

Shade could feel his stomach drop. The moment he prepared for for so long was now here, and he was absolutely terrified.

*This is it, Shade... The point of no return...*

He briefly held onto the gift he'd been keeping in his suit's interior pocket, then he took a deep breath, and gave his answer.

"Because... there's nothing I wouldn't do for you. We've been friends for a long time, and I enjoy every moment we spend together. Seeing you happy makes me happy, and I've always wanted to repay how kind you've been to me."

Fluttershy's expression slowly grew more surprised the more Shade spoke. Taking another deep breath, he pulled out Fluttershy's gift and revealed the golden necklace, the pink diamond within the silver heart shimmering in the moonlight.

"I had gotten this for you..."

Fluttershy had no words. Her widening eyes and gaping mouth said enough. It was truly beautiful, and completely unexpected of Shade.

"...I love you, Fluttershy. I have since before I left town... And when I was stuck in the Everfree Forest, when I felt like giving up... the hope of seeing you again was what kept me going."

Tears were starting to form in Shade's eyes now, a moment of weakness he only allowed this one time. He was pouring his heart out, and Fluttershy almost couldn't bear it.

"...Shade..."

"Fluttershy... Will you... will you be my marefriend?"

A single tear had the audacity to streamline down Shade's cheek. Ponies around them were starting to stare at him now.

*...Curse you, emotional weakness...*

Fluttershy wasn't sure what to say. All of this was a bit sudden, though for a time, especially since Shade's return, she did have her suspicions.

"...I don't know what to say... I... I didn't think you'd ever ask..."

Her voice grew ever softer, and her face increasingly red by the millisecond. Shade paid attention to Fluttershy's words and confirmed one of his greatest fears.

"So... you knew, then..."

Fluttershy waited for what felt like an agonizingly long time before deciding to nod "yes."

"...I see..."

Shade wasn't sure how to read Fluttershy's current expression. No smile or frown to indicate yes or no. Just that same blank, shocked stare. He could hardly look at her anymore, turning his head away and covering his eyes, which were stinging from holding back tears.

"If that's not what you want, I won't be mad... I'll understand... Just... just know I'll always be your friend..."

Shade was almost about to lose it before he felt a warm hoof over his still free one. He risked looking back up, and was welcomed by Fluttershy's signature reassuring smile.

"Stop crying, silly. I can't be happy for you if you're not happy for me..."

Shade's demeanor quickly began to change. A sliver of hope was revived in him.

"So... you'll be my marefriend?"

Fluttershy gave him the same warm smile.

"...I think I'd like that."