I Will Follow You Into The Dark
Celestia’s sun had sunk below the horizon, welcoming one of Luna’s warm nights. Along a dirt path leading out of Ponyville, Twilight Sparkle trotted outward to visit a friend. With her saddlebag hanging from her back, the unicorn walked up to the cottage at the end of the road. Stepping up on to the porch, Twilight moved up to the door and lightly knocked on the door. Hearing nothing from the inside, she knocked again, but yet again to no reply.
“Fluttershy?” the purple unicorn called out, “Are you in?”
The only reply Twilight got was from the woodland critters moving about the front yard of the cottage.
Using her magic, Twilight attempted to turn the knob on the door. The door opened easily and creaked open. Peering in, the mare scanned the living room for her pegasus friend.
“You really shouldn’t be snooping like this, Twilight….” she mumbled to herself as her hooves stepped on the wooden floors. The unicorn continued to call out, “Fluttershy? Where are you?” Looking around the house, Twilight noticed that the once bustling building of creatures great and small was complete empty. There were no animals whatsoever in sight, not even a small rodent or a little bird. “This is very strange….Fluttershy?” she spoke out again.
This time, Twilight got a reply. She heard a very faint noise, muffled and quiet as if it was trying to be concealed. Following the sound, the unicorn trotted up to a closet. Opening the door, she found the yellow pegasus, wrapped up in her long pink mane and tail being comforted by her white rabbit, Angel. The noise was coming from her, a very soft sobbing.
“Fluttershy? What are you doing in your closet? Are you okay?” Twilight asked, looking down at her.
Using her hoof to move away part of her mane, Fluttershy looked up to her unicorn friend. Her eyes showed visible signs of crying, such as fresh tears rolling continuing to roll down her cheek. “O-Oh….he-hello Twilight….” Slowly standing up to her hooves, she forced a smile. Her balance was not completely stable, however, causing her to wobble a bit as she stood up. Angel tried his best to keep her from falling. “T….To wh-what do I owe this w-wonderful visit from you?”
Twilight was hesitant to respond right away. She had never seen Fluttershy in such a disheveled state before. Her mane and tail had the appearance of going through a violent storm. “I came by to return a book to you….but now I’m more worried about you. Did something happen, Fluttershy? I’ve never seen your cottage so vacant before.”
“O-Oh….that. Well….I-I kind of got some….unfortunate news today….” the pegasus answered, sluggishly trotting across the floor of the living room to a chair. Her rabbit followed closely, continuing to comfort her.
“Unfortunate news?” Twilight echoed as she tailed right behind. “Oh dear….would you like to talk about it? If not, I completely understand.”
“N-No….it’s okay,” the yellow mare stated. Her eyes began to become misty again, “I-I received a letter today from h-home….a-and I f-found out that my grandmother passed away just the other day….” As hard as she tried, Fluttershy could not stop a few more tears to roll down her face. Angel was quick to hop over and brush them away.
The unicorn raised a hoof to cover her mouth, “Oh my, I’m so sorry to hear that, Fluttershy.”
The pegasus forced a smile unsuccessfully, “Th-Thank you, Twilight….”
“How are you holding up? Do you need anything?” Twilight sat her flank down on the floor and looked directly at her friend
Fluttershy shook her head, “O-Oh no….I-I don’t want to be a burden or anything….”
“It’s no trouble, really. It’s what anypony would do for their friend.”
“Really….I-I’m fine....” the yellow mare said as she wiped a tear from her face.
Twilight looked directly in to Fluttershy’s eyes. With a voice that was partly stern and partly endearing, she spoke, “Fluttershy, I asking if I can do something for you not because I want to feel better about myself by offering, or just because you’re my dear friend. Instead, I’m asking you because I care about you and I want to help you in anyway I can. I might not understand exactly what turmoil you might be going through, but I want to maybe making things a little brighter for you in anyway that I can. Do you understand?”
A smile appeared on Fluttershy’s face, accompanied with newly formed tears in her eyes, “Yes. I understand that I have a wonderful friend.” Opening her front limbs, the pegasus gave the unicorn a hug, “Thank you, Twilight, thank you.”
“Of course,” Twilight returned the hug, “So, what would you like me to do to make you’re day a little bit brighter?”
Sniffling a little, Fluttershy replied, “I really don’t know, to be honest. I haven’t really been thinking of anything too much since I got the letter.”
Thinking for a moment, Twilight had an idea, “Well, how about you tell me about your grandmother? It might help if you share some of your happiest moments with her.”
The pegasus seemed puzzled, “You want to hear about my grandmother?”
“Yes, please do tell me about her. I really do love hearing about other ponies’ families,” Twilight eagerly leaned in to listen.
A few more tears formed in Fluttershy’s eyes again, she began to speak with a smile, “Well, okay then, Twilight….if you don’t mind that is. Her name was Penelope, but I always called her Mama Posey. She was my mother’s mother, and we were always close. Ever since I could remember, she would get me a plush rabbit or some sort of animal as a gift,” she patted Angel lovingly on the head as she began to reminisce.
“That would explain how you got your love of the woodland critters,” Twilight commented.
The pegasus nodded, “Oh yes, she would tell me stories about the many animals she had seen throughout Equestria when she traveled. You see, she used to be an animal caretaker as well. She would travel from Baltimare to Seaddle, and even to where Vanhoover is now to tend to any and all animals that might need care. I always found her stories fascinating.”
Twilight’s ears perked up, “Stories? Like bedtime stories?”
Fluttershy nodded, “Yes. Um….I mean, sort of. They were stories of events she witnessed while traveling. I always remember one that stood out to me. It was when she was in the Unicorn Range during a flash flood. She was tending to some beavers and deer during the storm. It was around that time that Mama Posey saw two rabbits caught in the river. The white one was trapped on a rock in the middle of the stream while the brown one was on an hanging on to a branch overhead, doing what it could to rescue his friend. Unfortunately, a wave of water came up and swept up the white rabbit down stream.”
“Oh dear…..”
“Mama Posey was quick to rescue the brown rabbit from the branch after she saw the incident. The rabbit, however, refused to be carried off to her camp. Instead, the rabbit sat at the water’s edge and appeared to wait there. For a few days, it seemed to my grandmother that the rabbit not only didn’t move, but didn’t eat as well. She tried all she could to help the rabbit in some way, but the brown rabbit was fixated on the river that took his friend. Mama Posey said it was then that she gave up on trying to help the rabbit as there were other critters that needed her help. The next day, to her surprise, she saw the white rabbit return and reunite with the brown rabbit. They both looked overjoyed as they scurried off into the trees. That was the last she saw of the two of them.” Fluttershy paused for a moment with a content expression on her face, “When Mama Posey told this story to the filly me, I asked her why the rabbit waited so long for his friend to return. She smiled as she tucked me in, saying that friendship is a strong bond between individuals. Guess she was right after all, right Twilight?”
“That’s what I’ve learned since my first day in Ponyville,” Twilight smiled back, “How are you feeling now?”
“Better, thank you, Twilight. I guess you were right about sharing about Mama Posey.” the pegasus stated, wiping her eyes free of tears. With a contented sigh, she continued, “After reflecting about her, I think my grandmother wouldn’t want me to be down about her passing. In the letter, my parents told me that she went peacefully, with a smile on her face as she was surrounded by all our family. I’ll miss her, yes, but I guess that’s all I could ask for, her to be happy.”
Twilight nodded, “Thank you for sharing about her, Fluttershy, she sounded like a wonderful pony.”
“She was. And one day, I’m sure we’ll see each other again,” the pegasus gave a small smile that beamed from her.
“Well, until that time comes, how about I treat you to something over at Sugar Cube Corner?” the unicorn asked as she stood herself up and off the floor.
“That sounds lovely, thank you,” the yellow mare turned to her rabbit, “Would you like to come along, Angel?” In an instant, the rabbit hopped on top of Fluttershy’s pink mane. With a small chuckle, Fluttershy spoke, “I think that is a yes.”
The unicorn helped her friend stand up and trot to the front door, “It’s good to see smiling again, Fluttershy.”
“It’s good to be smiling, Twilight.”
The two friends trotted out of the cottage into the night. Wiping the remaining tears from her eyes, Fluttershy took a deep breath of the warm night air. She knew that it wouldn’t be an easy road ahead of her, but the pegasus knew that she’ll be fine with her friends beside her. Trailing behind Twilight, Fluttershy followed her into the dark.
END