Simple Things

by Arbiter Balemead

Satisfaction Guaranteed

*sob sniff sob* No! No! I can't give up! Not like this! I looked up at the concerned birds and little critters around me. Angel hopped up to me and offered me a cherry. I smiled at him through the stinging tears.

"Oh! You are the nicest little things." I said weakly to them all. "I-I'm fine, really." I said shakily as I got up. I wiped the tears from my face, and went to the bathroom to wash up. I took a quick shower, checking the clock on the way in. How long was I laying there? It was almost three in the evening... *sigh*

I showered as fast as possible. I should go see Twilight, right? Maybe she had to get back to the library before Applejack could finish her... plan...thing. Maybe Applejack just forgot to send her here. There were lots of reasonable excuses for not showing up, right?

I got out of the shower and flew towards the library, but stopped in the air. I could just confront her. Confess myself, live happily with her... but what was stopping me? What was I afraid of?

I'm not sure how long I was floating here before-

"Hey, Fluttershy! What are you doing up here?" Dash asked.

"Uhm... Hi Rainbow...Cou-could I ask you something?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Uhg! Leave me alone, Spike!" I yelled from my bed.

"But, Twilight! What's wrong?" He called through the closed door.

"You wouldn't understand!"

"Try me."

I didn't say anything back. I know he'd heard me crying. I know he knows me too well. But I doubt if he could help me. He's no romantic. Look at the whole Rarity thing. But he is a shoulder to cry on, though...

"Come on, Twilight. I REALLY want to help you." *grrr* Why did he have to be so tempting. I gave up all resolve.

I swung the door open with my magic. "Fine. I'll tell you."

"So, you like Fluttershy, but you didn't have the guts to tell her... And why was that?" He's taking this pretty well... I guess he's just rolling with the punches. But that is one heck of a poker face.

"Think about it! I was so stupid about it! Even if she did like me back... I mean, how could I be so stupid? I must've been crushing on her for months and it took me this long to even realize what it was that was going on? I'm an idiot!"

"Your not an idiot."

"Of course I am! I just sat there, wondering what in the hay I was feeling, while she sat there, patiently waiting on the most naive pony in the world to finally catch a clue! Fluttershy deserves somepony WAAAY better tha-" *slap!*

I sat there rubbing a hoof against my sore cheek. "Sp-Spike did you just-"

"Yes. You needed a good one and I've been waiting to do that for months." I just gawked at him quietly. "You should just go tell her how you feel. Does it ever occur to you that the simplest plan has the least room for failure?" I feel like I've heard that somewhere.

"Spike, have you been reading?"

"Does it matter? Go talk to Fluttershy!" He started shoving me towards the door, but stopped. *tink tink* We looked over at my window, and I opened it with my magic. Rainbow Dash flew in through in through the ajar window, and landed next to me.

"Come with me." She said simply. Before I could even react she grabbed me and flew out the window, me in tow.

"Rainbow! Are you crazy? You could drop me!"

"Then stop squirming." She said shortly. I complied upon realizing she had a point. "You still remember that spell for walking on clouds?"

"Yeah."

"Good. Do it now." She commanded. So I did. She took me up to a big cloud and set me down. She turned me to face her before I could go anywhere. "Okay, I got fed up with sitting this one out. You and Fluttershy need to talk NOW. So I'm leaving you on this cloud. Fluttershy's up here somewhere, go talk to her. I'm done letting you two play around this. She doesn't know I was bringing you, 'cause all I told here was I'd be back. I'm leaving." And with that she flew off.

Wait... crud. If she doesn't take me down that means I have to get Fluttershy to take me down, and I have to do that before the spell wares off. Clever, Rainbow, very clever. I peeked over the edge of the cloud, to see how high up I was. Let's just say I needed a moment to calm down.

I looked around. This cloud was huge. It was a big floating landscape. I looked up at mountains of cloud and around at hills and rolling plains of the stuff. This is the kind of cloud you would use to make a town like Cloudsdale. Well, I'd better get going. Don't want to fall and die...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Oh, that's lovely. And he's in a choir now?" I listened to the array of chirps and peeps from the bluejay in front of me. When she stopped, I smiled politely.

"That's wonderful. Uhm... I was waiting for a friend so- not to be rude but..." I hinted. She nodded and flew off. I looked around for Rainbow, but saw no sign of her. She'd told me to just wait on this big cloud. She said it'd only take a few moments... I wonder what she had to-

I ducked behind a small bump of cloud at the sight of a purple pony wandering around not far from me. What was Twilight doing up here? Had Rainbow... That clever mare... I'd have to take Twilight down myself if Rainbow didn't. Which meant we'd have to... very sneaky....

"Fluttershy? Is that you?" How did she see me?

"I can see your tail, Fluttershy." Darn it! I hadn't noticed that my rear was sticking up when I'd hidden behind this tuft of cloud. I stood up, and shyly watched her approach.

She walked up to me and stood in front of me silently. We stared at each other for a moment. I started to look away when she spoke.

"I- I need to tell you something..." This is it... "I-I ha-..." She stopped herself...why? "I don't deserve this..." She muttered. What? I'm confused...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I don't deserve this..." I thought aloud. I don't deserve a second chance. I don't deserve her. I just don't... All the waiting I put her through. All the stupid things I did and said...

"Twilight?" I hadn't even realized I wasn't looking at her anymore. I looked up at her. She was smiling comfortingly at me. I just couldn't do this. I just can't keep her waiting. She's been too patient.

"Fluttershy, I- I like you." Her smile widened.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Finally! It was worth the wait! It was SOOO worth the wait! I wanted to hug her. I wanted to kiss her... but she looked... sad.

"Wh-what's wrong?"

"I don't deserve you." She said quietly. "You certainly don't deserve somepony as slow as me." I quirked an eyebrow. "I took so long, and you were so patient. I don't de-" I shoved a hoof in her mouth.

"Twilight, I waited for a reason, and it was not so you could say that this wouldn't work." I said quietly. Squee! That was so cool of me! Er- not to brag but...

Again, who am I rationalizing to?

Hours later we were still on that cloud. I don't even remember what we'd spent the time doing; just that we did it together. We were sitting on the edge, watching Celestia's Sun set. We were sitting in complete silence until Twilight broke it suddenly.

"Fluttershy."

"Yes?"

"Today has been... amazing." She leaned her head on my shoulder. "I see why you've been doing this to me. It's comfy." I blushed as she said it. She looked back up at me and our eyes locked and my mind went------------............

I snapped back as she started leaning towards me. I began to tilt my head towards her...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We're about to kiss! This is so exciting...wait.... why am I moving down? I was eye level with her chest then her stomach then her *ahem*...

The spell! It was waring off! Oh cru-ahhhhhh!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Twilight!" She'd sunken through the clouds and was now falling. Without thinking I flew through the hole she'd sunk through and dove straight towards her. I tucked my wings in and went as fast as I could. She would hit the ground in a matter of seconds, and if I didn't catch her... I didn't want to think about that.

I squinted my eyes at the speed. I'd only felt wind like this when we were making that tornado for Cloudsdale. I could barely see, but when my hooves touched something soft I latched onto it and pulled up. Next thing I knew I was gliding along with Twilight in my arms, holding on for dear life.

"Fluttershy?" I looked down at her. I was met with her lips on mine and my mind wen---------------------------...........

Wow.....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We landed back at the library, on the balcony. I finally started to breath normally. I will never enjoy heights for the rest of my life, that's for dang sure. We stood there awkwardly. How does one end a dare when their brand new marefriend just saved their life?

"Uhm... you don't owe me your life, or anything..." She started. I giggled.

"Thank Celestia...I still want to repay you though. I can't think of anything to do that with..." I said.

"I'll think of something." She said, smiling. She gave me a peck on the cheek, and turned to go inside. I was about to follow her in when a shadow passed over me.

"I take it that means it went well?" I turned around and found Rainbow Dash hovering with her arms crossed near the balcony.

"You devious dare devil!" I started, but I was grinning to hard to pull off being angry.

"Yep that is what I am." She half-laughed. I tried to glare but she made a shooing gesture at me. "Your babe is waiting." She said before flying off. I'm going to get her back for this. Pinkie is going to have a hay day tomorrow.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"What took so long? Uhm... not that I'm upset or anything, I was just wondering." I asked.

"Oh, Rainbow stopped by. No worries. So uhm... I uh, I guess... it's time for... bed and... stuff...." She mumbled.

"O-oh... yeah." We had spent some time flying. I kinda got lost while we were kissing. The Sun had set a while ago, and Luna's Moon had risen. "I guess I should be going..."

"Y-you don't have to leave..." She said quickly. I looked at her curiously. "You could stay...here...with me..." She mumbled.

"Uhmm..."

"Nothing 'funny' I promise." She gave me a puppy dog look. That's just too cute.

"O-okay."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mmmm... That was a pleasant night. I tried to roll over but couldn't. Something warm was draped over me and it tightened its grip when I tried to move. I looked down and found a buttery arm around me. I traced it to it's shoulder then up the neck to...

Oh...right. Fluttershy and I shared the bed. I just lay there, watching her sleep. She breathed softly, hugging me like a teddy bear. It was adorable. Every once in a while her wing would flap and she smile peacefully in her sleep. Eventually, like all good things, it came to an end and her eyes slowly fluttered open, immediately followed by a smile.

"Good morning." She said.

"Pleasant dreams?"

"Oh, yes! You were in them." I smiled and kissed her on the forehead.

"Breakfast?" I asked, getting up.

"Oh, thank you, but I should get back to the cottage. My animal friends will be getting hungry." I sat back on the bed and just watched her walk towards the balcony.

"Oh...okay." I said, a little disappointed. I perked up at a thought. "When are you free today?"

"A-around noon, why?"

"I'll meet you at the cafe on the corner for lunch!"

"That sounds nice. I'll be there." She said then she stepped onto the balcony and flew off towards her cottage. I flopped back on the bed and just stayed that way for a while.

Wow......

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I arrived at the coffee shop Twilight had mentioned around the right time...I think. I looked around and didn't see her anywhere.

"Psst!" Whosat!? I looked around for the source of the sound. "Psst! Fluttershy!" I looked over and saw Pinkie Pie standing in the door of the cafe. I walked over to her gingerly, not knowing what to expect.

"Pinkie? What are you doing here?" I asked.

"I'm here to keep an eye on you two, duh!" She said excitedly.

"Wh-what are you talking about?"

"Still not open yet? That's okay! I'll be right here to make this 'lunch' go well."

"Pinkie, you don't work here."

"But the manager doesn't know that." She winked then bounced inside the shop.

"Fluttershy? There you are." Twilight said from somewhere behind me. I smiled politely at her and we went inside together. We sat at a table near the door and waited for a waitress to ask for our orders.

I should've expected Pinkie to show up with a waitress uniform on, but then again you can't really expect anything from her. She's just too random and... Pinkie... I don't think there's a better way to describe her.

"What can I get you two?"

"Pinkie!?" Twilight jerked away in surprise. She quieted down and hissed. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to take care of two little lovebirds, of course." I felt my cheeks flame up and Twilight's turned a delightful shade of purplish pink. "Oh, sorry, I'm not supposed to know that yet. But then again, I think we all know already so I don't think you really need to worry about telling us."

I stayed quiet while Twilight just stared at her. I had to suppress a giggle at her gaping mouth. She looked at me suddenly. "Was I that obvious?"

"Well... Yes." She hit the table with her head while I finally let out my giggles.

"Just get me a latte..." She muttered into her napkin.

We spent the next twenty minutes eating donuts and drinking coffee. It wasn't that bad until the manager caught Pinkie and kicked her out. We laughed nervously at that. Once we were done eating we left and walked around town for a bit. I lost track of time after a while, but I didn't care.

"Hey..." Twilight started. We were somewhere in the park, walking along with nopony around.

"Yes?"

"I just thought something. Way back, before I came to town, I was up watching the stars..."

"Yes?" I thought back to those days. I don't quite remember, but I'm sure I had done some stargazing the night before Twilight came to town.

"There was a shooting star, and..." She started blushing. "Well I wished for somepony like me, the next day I came to town and met you..." She trailed off. My heart skipped a beat. She wished on a star?

"That's crazy... I wished on a shooting star that same night!"

"No way! That's insane." She pondered over this for a moment. She looked back at me and smiled. "It's like the rainbow." I kissed her on the cheek.

"Only, this is so much more special."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dear Princess Celestia,

Every friend is special to you, no matter what is that makes them special, but sometimes a friend can stand out to you more than the other friends, no matter how close you are with all your friends. That friend could be your best friend or something so much more... Fluttershy stop I'm writing a letter to the Princess! Spike don't write that!

That friend could end up as your closest companion, with whom you'll happily spend the rest of your days. It's easily possible for an endless, boundless happiness to be reached with this pony.

Love is a wonderful thi-... Fluttershy I'm almost done!

Fine. I'll be upstairs.

Spike! I told you not to write that! Uhg.

Sincerely,

Twilight Sparkle

P.S. Don't tell her I left those parts in.~ Spike

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"So what's it like, dear?"

"It's absolutely, amazingly, wonderful! I love it! We go for walks, and we have dinner together, and I've even worked up the nerve to kiss her in public. Oh, it's so great! I love her so much. I still pinch myself every day to make sure it's real!" I answered with gusto. Rarity smiled at me.

So did Aloe and Lotus, whom I finally realized were still in the room... I don't care any more, though. They can know if they want to.

"Love's a wonderful thing isn't it?" Rarity sighed contentedly. She rested her head on the built-in cushion of the hot tub.

"Yes."

The End

Comments

[Arbiter Balemead]

alright last chance to vote ill wait hour before I tally it up starting at 6:10 (where i live)
heres a link to the blog
also, yay i finished the story and still no downvotes. thats a personnal acheivement right there
in any case im gonna miss working on this one too but it certainly was fun while it lasted hope you guys enjoyed
cant wait to start my personnal choice and the one you guys vote for
oh yeah i decided that ill start two stories at once so we'll see what we end up with

[Frizzy]

I started reading this yesterday, and it's already over! I LOVED IT!

[Arbiter Balemead]

972647 im sorry
im starting a new story REALLY soon though
go read the dishonest truth in the menatime (i-if you want. if thats okay or if you havent already

[For The Plot]

You deserve a brohoof for this amazing story /)

[Arbiter Balemead]

975553 (\

[PatRoison]

This is such a cute story that I'm a little sad that it's over. I look forward to reading more of your stories.

[Arbiter Balemead]

976785 holy crap ive read one of your stories before i even knew this website existed
YOU got me started on the romance genre!

[coppercore]

976947 That's kind of crazy, because I had the exact same thing happen to me... well, more like PatRoison actually got me started on fanfics in the first place! Hah!

I think I ran across his stuff on Deviantart somehow, I really don't remember how though. Was a while ago.