Friendship's Just the Start

by Casswolf

Ch8 - Getting to Know You

After the spa the couple had spent an hour or so picking up some shopping. Fluttershy still had a list of food for her animal friends that the market hadn't been able to fill, and Rarity needed to pick up a few more art supplies. The unicorn had picked up the bill for everything, of course, and wouldn't take no for an answer when it came to buying Fluttershy's things.

“I simply won't hear it. Consider this a repayment for giving me some wonderful company whilst I was doing my own shopping,” Rarity snorted, hoofing over bits for several bags of nuts and various seed mixtures before Fluttershy could so much as reach for her own supply of coins. The pegasus wanted to protest, but it all made too much sense to argue with on a certain level. Rarity had truly mastered the art of spoiling others whilst sounding like she was merely repaying a favour, and it was part of why Fluttershy loved her so. She was such a superficial pony on the surface, obsessed with clothing and makeup and accessories, and determined to play the part of a slight snob for the good of her brand. Yet get to know her just slightly and it was easy to tell, there was a strongly passionate pony underneath it all who really just wanted to make others happy.

Fluttershy could understand that need, so she didn't put up a fight. “Well, if you're sure… um, thank you, Rarity.”

It had been somewhat hard to part after all of that, but Fluttershy's marefriend had proven to be the more pragmatic of the two, pointing out that both needed to pack away their shopping, plus they had agreed that Fluttershy should spend some time with her animals before their evening.

“Besides,” Rarity had beamed, “I'd rather like to freshen up before tonight. And you know me, that could take forever.”

Of course Fluttershy knew the unicorn better than that – chances were that 'freshening up' would take about half an hour at most given how recently they had been to the spa – but she did appreciate the leave to tend to her own business. She had quite a few to tend to at her cottage, after all, and as much as Rarity had tried in the past she could be a liability when it came to the messier aspects of animal care.

“Anyway, I still have a little time to get ready for our date tonight,” Fluttershy beamed to herself after some time getting everyone fed and settled. Then her blue eyes widened as the gravity of her words finally sunk in. “Oh my… a date...” Sure, yesterday had been a revelation, and the two ponies had spent most of today together, but both times had respectively seemed like a very special case and an extended time with a very close friend. Now there was an evening meal to look forward to… or worry about, in Fluttershy's case. This… all of a sudden it felt real, and as much as the pegasus wanted to look forward to it (and as much as she suspected Rarity would likely have the entire thing in hoof anyway), this was still the first date she had ever been on, and the one pony she would normally ask for advice on the matter had been the one to suggest it!

There were quite a few reasons for her lack of experience, had Fluttershy been calm enough to reflect on them. She had been a rather awkward foal, clumsy and gangly in looks and nature, and even more timid than she was currently. The only 'interest' she had ever gotten from others back then had always turned out to be mean-spirited jokes, and by the time adolescence had worked its magic it had been too late for her self esteem. Any approaches in adulthood – and there had been quite a few to begin with - were either brushed off as another cruel joke or just ran away from. Her less than typical sense of attraction hadn't helped either; dating relative strangers seemed unfair to them when she never found a spark with even the most typically good looking ponies, and as for friends… there had been the occasional crush here and there but even now it had taken a near mental breakdown on Rarity's part to get through the clouds of doubt on that score.

Yet here she was. A grown pegasus near paralysed with indecision, as well as an intense sense of shame owing to her lack of experience. She would have stayed rooted to the floor entirely had a short sharp kick to the ankle not shocked her out of her state.

“EEEK!!!” The yellow pegasus bolted upwards in fear, somehow forgetting that she was indoors and so managing to smack her head on the ceiling before slamming back to the floor again. Groggily she raised her head, giving it a shake to remove both the stars and her pink mane out of her vision. “A… Angel Bunny?” Fluttershy asked upon seeing a rather annoyed looking white rabbit in front of her. “Was that you? Why? I already fed you, why..?” Her train of thought was interrupted by her pet smacking her rather harshly over the head. “Oh. I'm sorry.” Finally she stood up, rubbing the increasingly sore spot on her head and resolving to take something to fix that as soon as possible. The look in Angel's eyes was a familiar one, it said stop making things so difficult and get on with it! The little fuzzball may have had an abrasive personality, but his heart was usually in the right place. “Right. It's not hard. Just get dressed up like… like… oh goodness, I've no idea! I know, I'd better clean myself up first, a quick shower might help me think right? Thanks Angel. I think I needed that.” Fluttershy bent down to give her pet a kiss on the head before turning to gallop up the stairs, leaving a bemused rabbit in her wake.

Unfortunately cleaning up didn't really help Fluttershy to come to any conclusions about how to go about getting ready. Of course she had dressed up before, but this time was different somehow, and it wasn't just because she was having to do this without help for once. Nor was it about her being afraid of the unknown any longer, not really. No, this was the sort of paralysis that the pegasus knew would grip Twilight Sparkle on occasion, the desire to make sure everything was just perfect, yet not having an obvious choice in front of her. A simple dress seemed appropriate, but did she go with the one with the trim or not? And accessories… she didn't have all that many, but it still added more combinations than she knew how to deal with. Plus, it seemed something of a shame to wear something that Rarity had already seen her in, but that couldn't be helped – Fluttershy's entire formal wardrobe had been hoof-made by the unicorn.

In the end Fluttershy had only managed to get as far as deciding that yes, she would wear the simple green dress with the pink trim and had been getting her wings and tail in order when she was interrupted by a knock at her cottage door. Her blood ran cold. Surely she hadn't taken that long??? “C...coming!” the pegasus managed to squeak, but her voice hadn't been nearly loud enough to stop a second round of knocking. Followed by the sound of a door opening, then a familiar voice.

“Oh? Angel? Where is… hm?” A long pause. “Oh? I thought as much. Thank you, Angel, you've been most helpful… yes, yes, that I owe you some carrot cake for this goes without saying. May I go see Fluttershy now?” Now the sound of a door closing, followed by the clop of hooves on wooden stairs and finally a soft rapping on the door of Fluttershy's room. “Fluttershy dearest? Can I come in?”

“Y...yes...” Fluttershy stammered finally, watching as the door to her room opened and Rarity cautiously entered. The unicorn had gone for understated elegance as expected, wearing a sleek black dress secured with a soft blue belt, sapphire studs in her ears and a jewelled replica of her cutie mark dangling from a slight silver pendant around her neck. Already that eliminated a few of Fluttershy's own options, so at least there was that. But… “Rarity, I'm so sorry for not being ready, I was trying so hard but...”

“But nothing, dearest,” Rarity grinned almost smugly. “Actually I'm somewhat early – it turns out I only spent half the time I anticipated deciding whether to wear my mane up or not. So I thought I'd go see if you might like a little help getting ready yourself.” Fluttershy felt herself blush as her marefriend trotted over to place a small kiss on her usually yellow cheek. “Come now, let me do your mane for you and you can tell me why you look so stressed! Were the animals giving you a hard time?”

“Oh not at all!” Fluttershy protested as Rarity scooped up a brush and blow-dryer in her magic and set to work on her lengthy pink mane. It was actually quite nice to have somepony else do the work for once – the pegasus liked to keep her mane longer than most, but it did make it a chore to brush through at times. “Truthfully I think I was the one causing problems… um…”

“Yes?” Rarity pressed.

Fluttershy sighed deeply. “I think I um… started thinking too much about tonight. It's like a real, proper date and I wanted to do what I could to make it perfect. Only… well, then it all got a bit overwhelming and -”

“Darling, are you alright?” Rarity asked with concern as Fluttershy cut herself off with a sharp intake of breath and a wince.

The pegasus nodded in the affirmative. “Sorry, Rarity, I had a bit of an accident earlier and banged my head… I guess it's still a bit sore.”

“So I was informed,” came the concerned reply as the brush strokes softened considerably around the top of Fluttershy's head. “Really, sweetheart, you of all ponies should know that most of my airs and graces are either for show or my own amusement these days, that you put any effort in at all would have been enough.”

“Mm.” By this point the sheer act of having her mane expertly brushed by somepony else was relaxing Fluttershy considerably. Why had she been so worried? It was a date, officially a Big Thing for sure, but it wasn't like the two mares were relative strangers. In fact after all they had been through together they were closer already than most other ponies.

A few blissful moments passed before Rarity cheerfully announced “Finished! Would it be too bold of me to admit that I'd been desperate to brush your mane like this for a while now?”

Fluttershy had to giggle at that. “Um, no, not really. I get a bit annoyed with doing it myself, but that felt lovely.”

“Splendid! Well then, what else do we need? I see you decided on a dress – wonderful choice, by the way – was there anything else?”

“Um, I couldn't decide what might look nice with it,” Fluttershy admitted as she began the process of sliding into her outfit. “I know it's silly, I don't own all that much jewellery anyway.”

“May I?” Rarity asked, nodding her head to the small oaken jewellery box where she knew Fluttershy kept what few accesories she owned. Upon a nod from her marefriend she gingerly opened it with magic and cast an expert eye over the contents. “You, my dear, don't need much at all to look amazing. Here.” The unicorn captured a rose-coloured crystal in the shape of a heart within her magic and threaded it through a thin golden chain that Fluttershy was almost certain she never owned in the first place. Once the baffled pegasus was finally done with the awkward process of dressing Rarity carefully fastened it around her neck, then took a step back critically. Well, almost critically. There was a rather crafty gleam in her deep blue eyes that Fluttershy couldn't help but notice.

“I… is something wrong?” she asked hesitantly. Had she done something wrong with the dress, or messed up her wing feathers putting it on?

“Wellll… it just needs a certain something. Fortunately I think I may have just the solution.” Rarity opened the small purple satchel she carried, usually home to her bits and the most essential of her emergency makeup, and produced a small but elegant hairclip, an artificial flower of lilac with yellow edges attached to a gold fastener. “I know it's customary to give your loved one a bunch of flowers, but I do hope just the one will be sufficient here?”

Fluttershy could just feel her mouth hanging open as the unicorn affixed the item in her mane. “Rarity, when did you..?”

“Whilst I was on one of my jewellery making sessions,” Rarity smirked. “I may have had you in my mind for quite some time, dearest. Anyway, you know me, you're going to have to get used to being spoiled somewhat I'm afraid!”

The idea sounded wonderful, if only because it involved time with Rarity. “I… I think I can manage that.” Now both were ready Fluttershy couldn't help but hug her marefriend. Truly, things were going to work out just fine.

---

In the end Rarity had chosen a small Itailian restaurant, quite warm and homely, and far from the lavish high dining she was known for enjoying with her usual clientèle. Fluttershy had been rather surprised when their host had recognised her companion on sight and took them over to a wonderfully discreet booth at the very back of the room, absolutely perfect for a little privacy.

“Can I take your drink orders, ladies?” the stallion had asked after making sure both ponies were seated comfortably.

“I think perhaps a bottle of Castello del Sole '85, and also a jug of mineral water, if you'd be so kind,” Rarity replied confidently, before looking over to her date. “Would that be okay with you?”

“Of course,” Fluttershy nodded, having no real idea about the wine but assuming her partner knew what she was talking about. When it came to meals out the yellow pegasus only knew how to handle picnics; situations like these were very much Rarity's forté. “Oh I don't know about all of this!” she finally confessed after their waiter had left them with menus.

“What do you mean, dear?”

“I… I...” There was no use. She had to be honest, for the sake of the one pony she now cared more about than any other. “Um, Rarity, please don't think bad about me...”

“Darling, whatever is the matter?” Rarity asked, obviously concerned.

In the end Fluttershy swallowed her tears and decided she had to be direct no matter the cost. “Rarity… um, I… I don't know what I'm doing I've never been on a date before please don't hate me!”

There was a long pause, in which Fluttershy became convinced that every pony in the building was staring at her in spite of their only being them, the staff and two more couples who were obviously not paying attention. In the end Rarity spoke as gently as she could. “Sweetheart, how could I possibly hate you for that? I mean, I'll admit to being surprised, but hate you? No, in fact I love you more for being honest. Would it surprise you to know that I'm rather worried myself? I've done dates, dearest, but am in uncharted territory myself here, nothing meant as much to me as this does and… oh now I'm the one being silly!”

“What is it, Rarity? You can tell me.” Fluttershy was rather glad for the distraction, as much as the sudden twist in conversation was worrying her.

There was a pause as drinks were brought to the table, and Rarity tasted the wine in a manner that suggested she had been doing such things her entire life. “Perfect as expected, darling,” the unicorn commented to their serving stallion, who dutifully filled two glasses. “Could you give us a moment before we order, please?”

“But of course,” came the reply, and the two were left for now.

“Rarity?” Fluttershy pressed. “What's worrying you?”

Her unicorn friend sighed dramatically and took a large drink of water. “It's less a worry and more a… I'm not quite sure what it is. I must admit I'm new to being the one to take charge in these matters, previously I was always the one being wooed.” Seeing the look of concern on her friend's face, she pressed on with more confidence. “No, no, don't feel like you should be taking control, dear, I know that isn't you at all. Plus I'm rather enjoying taking the different role. I just wanted to reassure you that I do understand how you must be feeling, at least to an extent.”

“Oh!” Thinking about it, whenever Rarity spoke of romance she had always done so in terms of being the one to be swept off her hooves, to be wined and dined. Yet here she was, having more or less taken charge. “I'm sorry, I suppose this hasn't been what you were expecting...”

“It's different with you, yes, but it's been a long time since I cared about leaving my comfort zone… well, as long as I don't get too dirty in the process, at any rate.” Rarity giggled, then raised a glass. “A toast, dearest. To a future of new and wonderful experiences.”

Fluttershy raised her glass in response. “That sounds lovely, Rarity,” she smiled, her initial fears subsiding. “I'm looking forward to it.”

---

Eventually the two ponies placed their order – Rarity ordering a light cherry tomato and mozzarella salad followed by a vegetable lasagne, and Fluttershy opting for breaded mushrooms then a traditionally thin based pizza topped with peppers and rocket. Truthfully the pegasus had almost expected a more extravagant affair, but the food was of very high quality, the ambience classy without being overly so, and the staff attentive when needed and absent otherwise. It was very… Rarity, or at least very 'Rarity now she had no need for social climbing and constant networking'.

Altogether it was a strange thing, having your first date with one of your closest friends. With most couples this ought to have been a period of getting to know each other, but when you were already as close as Fluttershy and Rarity a lot of the more trivial subjects had been covered many times over. So naturally talk turned to their situation, their experiences, and the future.

“Are you sure you're okay with how today has gone?” Fluttershy had asked for the millionth time. “Um, I could try and take charge if you want?”

Rarity had simply shaken her head at the suggestion as she finished a mouthful of spaghetti. “Nonsense, my dear. I know that would be stressful for you. As I've said, I'm enjoying taking the lead here. Really, do you think I wouldn't get bored of being passive after a week or two? Anything I may have said in the past was my head being filled with ideas from trashy romance novels, is all. Being courted sounded wonderful at the time, but...no. I would have grown to hate what I thought I wanted back then. Honestly, can you imagine me being able to hold in the desire to create my own grand gestures of love for very long?”

The words had placated Fluttershy, not to mention filled her with warmth. Her friend had grown so much. The unicorn's ambition was always going to be a little at odds with her desire to please, but Fluttershy much preferred this current balance to the almost desperate measures she had gone to in order to build her social network back in the day.

In the end Rarity had snapped the pegasus out of her reverie by firing her own question right back at her. “But how about you, dearest? I hear a lot of you worrying about my feelings, but what of yours?” The unicorn had taken a sip of wine then promptly topped both of their glasses up. “You've dodged the concept of romance for so long, and I now at least understand this a little, but how could a wonderful mare like you… you know what, no matter.” Rarity shook her head all of a sudden. “You're here with me, right now, and that's all that matters.”

Fluttershy had to appreciate the effort, but knew that her marefriend was still curious. Rarity was… well, sometimes she was to the heart as Twilight Sparkle could be to the brain, only she had a better grasp of when to let things be than the alicorn did. And… well, if Fluttershy couldn't be open enough at this point then she clearly would never be ready, right? “You know me, Rarity,” she eventually murmured, staring into her wine glass before taking all too long a drink from it. “I guess I did get asked out sometimes but I always thought it was as part of a prank. I was even more awkward as a filly than I am now… I suppose if you see something in me there must be something there, right? Your taste is amazing. But you know that story about the ugly duckling that turns into a swan? It… it doesn't work out like that in real life, you know?” The pegasus tried to fight back the tears. This wasn't the entire story behind her lack of romantic history, but it was certainly the part that hurt the most. “Really the swan would see its reflection and still see an ugly duckling. No matter how many ponies tell me, I… I just can't...”

“Darling!” Rarity moved round the table to give her partner a reassuring hug, one that she badly needed. “I'm so sorry, I never meant to upset you!”

“You haven't,” Fluttershy smiled weakly, sniffling back the urge to start sobbing. “I guess I upset myself? I mean… I really want to share everything, that bit, um, just hurt a teensy bit.” Once Rarity was sure she was okay the unicorn returned to her seat and Fluttershy continued between bites of food. “And then I guess I'm a little weird about attraction, really. I'm still trying to wrap my head around it, but I never was interested in anypony who tried anyway, I just can't be attracted to relative strangers no matter how much I feel I ought to be able to. And I'm not sure how any of that works, but I don't think it even matters now!” The reality of the situation finally struck home, and it made the yellow pegasus smile broadly in spite of herself. “You're right, we're here now, that's all that matters, right?"

“Finally, a breakthrough!” Rarity laughed good-naturedly. “I wish I could share something in return, really I do, but you've been there to see me at my worst.” The unicorn paused as the two finished their meals then raised her glass again. “So then. Not so much a toast this time, but a pact. Let's do our best to stop the Fluttershy who hurts herself needlessly and the Rarity who hurts everypony selfishly from ever showing again. Deal?”

It took a moment for Fluttershy to recover from that one. Of course she knew Rarity had made some major errors when trying to impress others in the past. She had been so obsessed with clawing her way to the top to begin with that she often lost sight of the broader picture. It had resulted in a lot of self-destructive behaviour at the time; friends and relatives had been pushed aside for shallow networking, and at one point she very nearly lost her life as part of what was likely a badly thought out piece of advertising herself. But this was Rarity! She, more than any other pony, owned her shortcomings then found new and exciting ways to weaponise them. The way her tone was right now… Fluttershy could pick up on all the unspoken words. Could see how much she was still beating herself up over every wrong choice. Could see how desperate she was to make things right, and how little she thought she had managed this. It was an oddly familiar sensation, but there was only one way to respond.

Fluttershy raised her own glass and acknowledged both of their demons. “Deal,” she replied.

Author's Note:

I am so sorry for the delay in getting this chapter out, life hit me hard. For those of you wondering how I'm gonna address Spike... don't you worry, we'll get to that sooner rather than later.

Comments

[Nicknine]

Ah, good to see it's still going, I was starting to get worried.

“It's less a worry and more a… I'm not quite sure what it is. I must admit I'm new to being the one to take charge in these matters, previously I was always the one being wooed.”

Ha, I was just thinking about this recently, this is an interesting point about Flarity that I haven't seen anyone address yet. Good thinking, perhaps you should further develop on this aspect later.

I'm rather upset that this story has so little views since I've enjoyed it more than most works I've read here. Don't let that bother you too much, though, there are still people who appreciate your work. 😉

[Casswolf]

8612664
Ah, don't worry about me ever getting disheartened, I know I just don't have the time to promote myself as much as I'd like, that there's a handful of folk willing to come along for the ride is more than enough for me!

As for the Rarity thing... I am going to go more into that eventually, don't you worry!

[mlpsc26]

“But of course,” came the reply, and the two were felt for now.

Should this be left instead of felt?

Also, lovely update. I especially like the bit where Fluttershy starts to see how much criticism Rarity directs inward.

[Casswolf]

8626342
Ack, thank you, you'd think I'd have caught that. Fixing now. :)