Butterflies and Bugs
Twilight may not have had amnesia anymore, but it seemed she had forgotten just how much she truly enjoyed the taste of a well-crafted, cheesy, gooey hayburger with just the right amount of hay, lettuce, and tomato. As soon as hers had arrived, she had lost herself in demolishing them, bathing her taste buds in the rich, wonderful flavor that chased away her fears and her doubts.
Then she had noticed the looks Rainbow and Spike were giving her, and suddenly no amount of good taste could smother the red tint that had covered her cheeks. Not for a lack of trying. She had tried to make sure some tomato sauce got on her cheeks to hide her blush, but Spike, being the ever- attentive assistant he was, was quick to pass her napkins and the like so she could clean herself up.
Of course, she knew full well they just wanted to tease her about it later. It would be miserable, but if she were being honest with herself, she really wouldn’t have it any other way.
Once they had wrapped up their meal, they made their way to Carousel Boutique. As they wound their way through the streets of Ponyville, Twilight noticed a few ponies giving her sidelong glances of confusion or concern. No doubt word of her little meltdown up in Canterlot had spread around in the days that followed, and those who knew her even slightly were unable to hide their feelings on the matter as she passed.
She did her best to ignore them, however, focusing instead on the boutique as it came into sight. A few of the windows had been broken down by the vines, but other than that, the shop appeared to be more or less the same as always. Twilight took a series of deep breaths to ease her mind and focus on the task at hoof. She went over the steps in her head as if it were a checklist. “Get Fluttershy, go into the forest, find a useful book to help me deal with the chest.”
Spike pulled ahead of the group and excitedly knocked on the door, an eager smile on his face. Twilight came to a stop a few paces behind him, waiting for an answer. Several seconds passed, and some rustling was audible on the other side before the door was opened by a pale blue magic aura. Rarity was on the other side, appearing disheveled, but nevertheless pleased by the surprise visit. “Oh! Twilight, Rainbow, Spikey-wikey! I wasn’t expecting you. Do you want to come in? I have some tea brewing.”
“Aw, heck yeah!” Spike agreed enthusiastically. He went to enter, but Twilight pulled him back by his tail with a roll of her eyes.
“Heh. Nice try, little guy, but we’re here for a reason, remember?”
Spike crossed his arms and huffed. “Hmph. Killjoy.”
“That’s my line,” Rainbow jabbed before looking to Rarity. “But Twi’s right, we’re not gonna be here for long. Is Fluttershy in right now?”
Rarity deflated somewhat at the news. She shook her head, eliciting a frown from twilight. “I’m afraid not. She went out a short while ago to meet up with a friend of hers, though she neglected to mention who,” she explained, gesturing vaguely. “She’s been very quiet lately. Even more than usual. Oh, the poor dear… she just hasn’t been herself since she lost her cottage...”
“Can you blame her?” Spike asked with a sigh. “A lot of things got messed up by those stupid vines.”
“You can say that again,” Twilight thought, reaching a hoof up to idly rub at her temple.
“Oh, don’t remind me,” Rarity complained, cringing back into her store. “Have you any idea how many of my dresses got torn to shreds by those horrible things? I’m going to have to close down for weeks just to get all the needed supplies to do my job properly again!”
“Well, I’d love to help clean up,” Rainbow said, scuffing the dirt at her hooves. “But I kinda gotta run up to Canterlot here in a bit. I’m just tagging along with these two to make sure they got everything covered, then I’m going.”
Rarity’s eyes shimmered with interest, and she poked her head farther out of her store. “Oh? Canterlot, is it? Do you mind if I ask what business you have up there? Important princess matters, no doubt.”
Rainbow winced, her eyes darting sideways at Twilight for a second. “Er… you could say that, sure,” she said carefully.
Twilight’s ears drooped slightly, her brow furrowing in mild irritation. At least Rainbow was being vague, for her sake.
Rarity seemingly caught on to something. She gave off a quiet, thoughtful hum before pulling back. “Say no more. I can tell a personal matter when I stumble across it. I shan’t pry!” she said in understanding. She offered Twilight a smile. “So, you are looking for Fluttershy, yes?”
“Yes, we are,” Twilight said, latching onto the distraction. “You said she went out with a friend?”
“I did indeed. I may be wrong, but I think they were making their way to the ruins of her cottage. Maybe you can begin your search there?”
“Sure thing. Let her know we were looking for her if she comes back, okay?” Twilight requested.
Rarity nodded. “But of course, darling.”
“Right. Thanks, Rarity,” Twilight said before turning and trotting back down the street. She could hear Spike and Rainbow moving to follow her. She glanced back between them at Rarity. “We need to be going. We’ll see you later!”
“Take care, dears!” Rarity called after them, giving a few waves of farewell before retreating back into her home.
Her voice could just be heard through one of the absent windows. “Opal! That is one of the only sheets of silk I have left! Off! And no claws!”
She was answered by an angered hiss.
Rainbow snickered under her breath. “Yeah, that seems about right.”
Twilight winced when Fluttershy’s cottage came into view a short time later. While she had seen plenty of broken down homes so far, she had yet to lay eyes on the quiet, isolated house that had housed one of her oldest friends for the last few years, and none of them had prepared her for the scene of obliteration that now sat before her.
The cottage had been reduced to a pile of rubble and splinters. The walls had all been broken down and shredded, piled haphazardly around in a wild fashion. The chimney had been broken mere feet from the base, sending pieces of brick and stone scattering over the remaining ruins. The earth all around it was torn and shredded, to the point that the little stream that once wound its way through the front yard had actually been partially dammed, creating a muddy waterfall that flowed over a mound of dirt in the heart of the stream while dampening the surrounding soil.
The damage extended beyond the yard or house. Trees had been uprooted and broken in half, lying scattered all over the area, or even jutting up from the torn soil with the roots turned toward the sky, as if they had been thrown like javelins. Boulders and stones had been thrown as well, as could be seen by the trenches many had at their bases. All in all, it looked almost like a detonation of an impossible scale had erupted not far away, and the poor hovel had been caught in the blast zone.
Of course, the truth was nothing quite so flashy, though no less grim. Supernatural vines created by Discord a thousand years ago were the culprits, and they had surely done their job in sowing chaos and destruction.
Twilight stopped at the top of the hill just before the yard, sweeping her eyes slowly across the scene of devastation with a limp jaw. She labored to fully grasp the enormity of the damage, her mind stalling as she took in every little detail. “This is what happened to Fluttershy's house…?” she asked in barely even a whisper.
“Told ya,” Spike said glumly from her back. “Those vines messed up everything.”
“Yeah…” Rainbow agreed, her muzzle scrunching up in disdain. “...Kinda makes me wish I could beat the tar outta the guy who made ‘em.”
“Oh, I’d love to do a little more to him than that,” Twilight’s voice said inside her head. “A simple beating is too good for that worthless creature! Total destruction, like what I had to suffer, would suit him far better-”
Another pang of pain in her skull. Twilight grit her teeth, forcing herself to ignore the bitter voice and countering it with her own. “No! I’m better than that! Discord’s a monster, but that doesn’t mean I should let myself become one because of him!”
Twilight stood still for a few seconds. The pain in her skull faded, and she took a slow, gentle breath to soothe herself. Spike and Rainbow were already pulling ahead. With a quick shake to renew her senses, she cantered after them. The ground squelched and bled water as she went, a by-product of the excess water seeping into the soil from the dammed stream.
The bridge that crossed over the stream was, for a mercy, still intact, although it was far from being in perfect condition. Small chunks of it on the right side had crumbled away, leaving a jagged gap for anypony not paying attention to step in and fall through. There were cracks and marks scattered across it, but it was otherwise fine, by the looks of things.
It was as she crossed that small bridge over the stream that Twilight noticed Fluttershy. The yellow pegasus was sitting in front of the cottage, her face hidden from view by her long pink mane. The vast majority of the animals that had once taken residence in her home were nowhere to be seen - either temporarily relocated to trusted caretakers, or scattered to the wilds. The only one that remained was Angel Bunny, who was sitting by her side with an uncharacteristically sullen appearance.
Fluttershy didn’t appear to have heard their approach yet, her attention fixated solely on the broken remains of her home. Oddly enough, though, Twilight didn’t see anypony else. Her only company was Angel...
“I thought Rarity said she came here with a friend…”
“Hey, Fluttershy,” Rainbow called as they drew closer, causing the other pegasus to jump with a startled squeak.
Fluttershy sprang to her hooves and spun around to face them. The alarm on her face immediately gave way to a warm smile. “Oh! Rainbow, Twilight, Spike!” she greeted. She looked down at the ground, shrinking back shyly. “Um… you startled me.”
Angel glanced back at them with an uninterested frown before focusing back on the ruins.
“Heh, sorry,” Rainbow apologized, ruffling Fluttershy’s mane. “Had to get your attention somehow.”
Fluttershy puffed up her cheeks in mild annoyance before pulling herself together and offering her company a warm smile. “I guess. Um… so, uh, can I help you?”
“We’re heading into the Everfree Forest,” Spike proclaimed before Twilight had the chance to. “Was wondering if you wanted to tag along.”
Fluttershy’s eyes widened. “W-what?! The Everfree Forest?!” she squeaked in fear.
Rainbow gave Spike a flat glare. “Real smooth, buddy.”
“What?” he asked with a shrug. “She asked.”
Twilight rolled her eyes. “Ugh. Fluttershy, we’re specifically going to the Castle of the Two Sisters. Spike and I are going to be doing some research in the library there, and we were hoping you could come along.”
“Um… c-couldn’t you go with somepony braver?” she asked quietly. “Instead of, um, me?”
“We could,” Twilight acknowledge quietly. “But we figured we’d ask you first. Rainbow can’t come; she’s heading for Canterlot as soon as we leave, and Rarity’s, well, Rarity. You’re between things right now, what with… well…” she gestured at the cottage solemnly. “But more than that, you’re really good with animals. If there are any that don’t like us in there, I’d rather deal with them peacefully, and you’re our best option for that.”
“If you don’t wanna go,” Spike added, speaking more gently than before. “That’s fine. But we’d really like your company and your help.”
Fluttershy took those words in, her anxious posture slowly relaxing. She idly reached a hoof up to her throat, wincing. “Um… I guess I can go if you really want me to come… but, uh… can I bring someone with me?”
Angel glanced up at her in mild disapproval.
Rainbow frowned. “Ya know, that reminds me… Rarity said you came out here with a friend, but I don’t see anypony else. You were all alone when we showed up,” she said, glancing around. “Did they go away or something?”
Fluttershy perked up and shook her head. “Oh, no! He’s inside!” she said excitedly. She quickly rose to her hooves and spun around. “Thorax! Can you hear me?!” she called out.
Twilight’s eyes widened. “Thorax?!” she echoed in surprise. Thorax was here?! That was news to her.
In response to Fluttershy’s call, a long, lanky mouselike creature with black fur and blue eyes poked its head up from the rubble, holding what appeared to be a square of paper in its mouth. It was about three feet long and moved with speed and agility fitting for a creature of its stature. It scurried across the rubble, then jumped down to land in front of Fluttershy.
The moment it did, it was consumed in a swirl of green flames. Sure enough, Thorax the changeling emerged from the embers, the square of paper in his mouth turning out to be a photo, now that Twilight could see it.
Thorax pulled the photo out of his mouth with his magic and passed it to Fluttershy. “Here ya go. It’s the only one I could find,” he said.
Fluttershy reached up and took the photo in her hooves, a tender smile on her face. Twilight looked at the photo over her shoulder. It was a shot showing Fluttershy as a young adult surrounded by her family. Zephyr, as a mid-teenager, was off to the left side of the photo, leaning casually against Fluttershy’s side with a big, dorky grin on his face. Their parents were seated behind them, smiling gently at the camera.
It was a pleasant scene, all in all. If Twilight had to crack a guess, it was the last one she had taken before moving for Ponyville.
“Thank you, Thorax,” Fluttershy said quietly. She reached down and tucked the photo into a small sack that was at her side.
Thorax beamed at her turning to face Twilight and the rest of the new arrivals. “Hey, guys! I wasn’t expecting to see any of you here,” he said in greeting, his wings buzzing briefly on his back.
“Heh, ditto,” Rainbow remarked with a friendly smile. She gave Thorax a clap on the shoulder. “What are ya doing here, man? I thought you’d be up in Canterlot with Wind and Squall.”
“Well, I would be, and I was up until earlier today,” Thorax said. “But once I heard about Fluttershy’s house and everything that happened, I had to come down and make sure she was alright.”
“That right?” Rainbow asked with a raised eyebrow, her friendly smile morphing into a knowing smirk.
Thorax’s eyes widened as a tiny bit of red came onto his cheeks. His eyes turned up somewhat, and Twilight got the impression that he was seeing something the rest of them couldn’t. “...Uh… y-yes?”
Angel covered his face with his paws in a failed attempt to stifle some very high-pitched giggles, an evil look in his eyes.
“Rainbow, Angel, don’t give him a hard time,” Fluttershy scolded lightly. “He’s come a long way to spend some time with me, so be nice!”
“Hey, I didn’t say anything,” Rainbow said innocently.
Angel made a squeak that could only have meant “You should!”
Twilight looked between them all for a few moments, working through the interaction in her head. Thorax was suddenly very bashful looking, Fluttershy was standing up to the tiniest hint of a perceived threat, and Rainbow had the most malevolent of teasing smirks Twilight had ever seen on her.
“She only ever gets that look when she’s poking fun at me,” Twilight thought, frowning. “And she only gets away with that because she’s known me for so long. That and we’re in a… oh… OH.”
It clicked in her mind with the resonance of a cannon blast. Twilight’s eyes darted back and forth between Fluttershy and Thorax in surprise, her mind reeling. It was hard to imagine, but now that she thought about it, it was actually kind of obvious, in retrospect. She probably would have figured it out a lot sooner if she hadn’t been an amnesiac for the last two years.
Thorax, no doubt sensing her realization, was quick to change the subject. “S-so! You three! You’re here! You weren’t a minute ago! Eheh, uh, explain?”
“They want to go into the Everfree Forest,” Fluttershy explained. “To the big castle there. You remember?”
Thorax blinked and nodded. “I think so… why?”
“We have some research to do,” Spike explained. “Twi and I are going for sure, but Rainbow’s gotta go up to the city. We figured Fluttershy’d be a good pony to have along.”
“Mhmm,” Fluttershy acknowledged. “And I’m going with them. But, uhm, if it’s alright with you, I was wondering, Thorax, if you’d like to come with us?”
Thorax stared at her for a second, then at Twilight and Spike. She could practically see the gears turning in his head before he nodded along. “Ah… okay, sure. Yeah, I can come along. When are we leaving?”
“We can go at pretty much any time,” Twilight said, glancing up at the sky. “If we head out now we should be able to reach the castle before the sun starts going down.”
“Oh,” Thorax said, blinking. He turned to Fluttershy. “Uh, is there anything else we wanted to do, or…?”
Fluttershy shook her head. “No, I don’t think so…”
Thorax nodded. “Then… I guess we’re ready when you are.”
Angel reached up and tugged in irritation on Fluttershy’s man, drawing her attention. He glared up at her expectantly, his forelegs folding over his chest. Fluttershy giggled and lightly picked him up. “Oh, and of course you can come too, Angel.”
Angel nodded as if there was literally no other answer Fluttershy could have given him.
“If that’s the case,’ Rainbow piped up, spreading out her wings and giving them a few slow flaps to stretch them out. “I should probably be getting a move on. Canterlot’s right there, and I don’t wanna keep mom waiting for too long.”
Twilight turned to face her, feeling some disappointment at having to watch her friend go. “Right… fly safe, Rainbow,” she said softly, glancing down at the pegasus’ wing. It had been injured during the Plundervines incident, and while it had recovered, she had the feeling it was still kind of tender. “And be careful with your wing.”
Rainbow grinned confidently. “Don’t worry, Twi. I’m not that dumb.”
“We wanna put that to a vote?” Spike asked with a cheeky grin.
“Nah. We all know you’d totally rig it against me,” Rainbow snorted. She stepped forward, focusing her attention on Twilight. “If anypony needs to be careful here, it’s you, Twi. Don’t stress yourself out too much, okay?”
Twilight winced at the reminder of Celestia’s advice. She offered up a small nod before reaching out and pulling Rainbow into a gentle embrace. “I’ll try not to…” she whispered.
Rainbow nodding into her shoulder. “Good… if it all starts getting to ya, just have Spike whack ya or something,” she said, a small edge of mirth creeping in at the end there.
Twilight snorted. “Heh. Sure. I’ll get right on that.”
Rainbow leaned back with a smirk.
Twilight capitalized on the moment to lean in and press her lips against Rainbow’s. It was short-lived, as the pegasus immediately yanked her head back with a furious blush the moment she regained her faculties. “T-twilight! Not in front of others!” she protested weakly.
Twilight lidded her eyes at Rainbow and spoke in a low purr. “Aw, but why not? You’re cute when you squirm.”
Rainbow’s blush grew several times more intense. “B-but, y-you, I… GUH!” she groaned before backing out of the hug and flapping her wings, launching herself heavensward. “I’ll get you for that!” she shouted back at Twilight as she disappeared into the sky.
Twilight laughed heartily. “I look forward to seeing you try!” she called after Rainbow, though she had the feeling the pegasus did not hear her as she disappeared into the sky.
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Great chapter!
Here’s hoping that Pinkie will still be there playing the organ.
I'm quite excited indeed to see more.
Wasn't expecting Thorax to be here. But hey, more company's never a bad thing when going into the Everfree.
Glad Angel's not being a little hellion to Thorax. Him and Flutters are cute together.
Why couldn't do us all.a favor and have angel DIE from the plundervines
10226204
Because this isn't that kind of story? We may hate him, but Fluttershy loves him, and killing him would traumatize her in ways that I do not feel comfy with in this story.
Not bad, I am liking the story so far!
THEY’RE SO ADORABLE!! I CAN’T STAND IT!!! SHIP IT!!!
Am I the only one that thought of this?
https://m.10226163
Agreed whole-heartedly. Whether as just friends or as a potential romance, I could DEFINITELY really enjoy the Thorax/Fluttershy pairing.
Hey there. Thanks very much for getting the next chapter up. I really love the work that went into the exchanges, characterizations and future chapter set-up in all the right places. I especially liked Rainbow making an attempt to be diplomatic in her phrasing considering the reason she can't go with Twilight and Spike, Rainbow and Twilight cutting Spike off from accepting Rarity's invitation for tea as they were heading for the Everfree, as well as Twilight and Spike asking Fluttershy to go into the Everfree with them as they head for the Castle. And, yeah, Fluttershy stopping Angel from harassing Thorax when Angel was basically behaving like a jealous toddler "trying to keep Mom's attention" was downright beautiful (I definitely think Thorax/Fluttershy could go FAR better than Discord/Fluttershy).
VERY certainly looking forward to more of this.
Just finished the little changes story and then found this im so happy to continue the story
10239434
You'll wanna read through all of Little Memories first if you haven't already.
And all of Little Glimpses, Little Choices, and Little Consequences while you're at it. There's a lot going on in this series, and one non-canon spinoff is insufficient to give you all of the needed context.
10239438
Oh i read them all o.o I've just been waiting on this one and with how works been well working me i got a little behind o3o i absaloutly love the stories and just finished all thats out now and cant wait for more o.=.o
10243798
But she would still come back.
Fluttorax... Thorshy?... hmmm... honestly, I've seen fluttershy and changeling pairings before, but never thorax himself. Honestly, this was the next logical step for that.
Lol, that mistake is rather funny. So basically, Angel tugged on Thorax.