The yellow pegasus stared out of the shuttered windows of her cottage, and gazed up at the grey clouds hanging above in the sky. The weather pegasi had been working overtime lately, and it seemed to her that it had been raining non-stop for the past few days - at least three if not more. Her cottage was currently the home to many woodland creatures trying to get out of the downpour, moreso than usual anyway, but she didn't mind. In fact she was happy to help, and it was always nice to be surrounded by warm, cuddly creatures that saw her as their surrogate mother.
"The rain sure is depressing, though." She thought to herself, sighing softly while resting her chin onto a hoof, "I wonder how Rainbow Dash can stand it all the time?"
Her thoughts were filled with her good friend - her best and oldest friend - the rainbow-maned pegasus that led the weather duties for Ponyville. It seemed like, no matter what the weather, she could always be seen speeding this way and that across the sky, leaving a multi-coloured aura in her wake. Rain or shine, Fluttershy could often look out her window and see the faint impression of the blue pegasus fly across her vision. More often than not, Rainbow would stop in to see her when time allowed it and it was those times, whether they were a brief "Hello" or a longer stay, that the yellow pegasus felt the most joy even on dreary days like this. In fact, besides her weekly visits to the spa with Rarity, seeing Rainbow was the only thing she could count on to happen. Oh, she saw her other friends often enough - it was true - but with Twilight busy studying how to be a princess, Applejack busy on her farm, and Pinkie being...well...Pinkie, she would feel so alone if it weren't for Rarity...and Rainbow Dash.
"Are you still watching the rain, Shy?"
And then there was Blueheart.
Several months ago, a new pony had arrived in Ponyville. He was a stallion of some mystery, coming from a city far across the reaches of anyplace Fluttershy had ever gone, and seemed as awkward and shy as she had been at the attention given to him upon his arrival. They had met several times since that day, and had developed a friendship that gradually built into something more. He had been involved in an animal shelter where he was from, and so he and Fluttershy had bonded over their mutual love for small animals. Before the yellow pegasus had realized it, most ponies in town considered them a couple and...well...she hadn't felt like saying otherwise. So they began dating. And a month ago, he had moved in. Their relationship was...pleasant. He helped her look after the animals under her care, and he seemed quite good with Angel bunny - and Fluttershy knew how difficult the petulant rabbit could be to get along with - so they seemed a natural fit.
They had been intimate with each other, but the pegasus never truly enjoyed herself. She only did anything at all so he felt that she liked him. And she did like him...
At least she thought she did...
The grey Earth Pony slowly walked out of the bedroom and stood beside Fluttershy, putting a hoof on her shoulder. She turned toward him and gave him a smile and a gentle hug, "I suppose...I guess I'm just wondering if it'll end soon."
"I imagine it will. It's been like this for days." the grey stallion mused, before leaving her side and wandering into the kitchen to put the kettle on.
She let out another sigh; it wasn't the rain she was talking about. Not entirely, anyway. She hadn't been dense enough to not realize that she'd been depressed for several days...maybe even weeks. It had started before the recent bout of rain even began, and seemed to only get worse during the wet spell. She felt...lonely, she guessed.
Lonely...
Sad...
Bored...
Like something in her life was missing.
She turned around to gaze into her kitchen, her blue eyes falling upon the grey stallion that had set the tea kettle to boil, and was busying himself feeding the many rabbits, chipmunks, and whatever else she had living in her home at present. She couldn't help but smile at how sweet and kind Blueheart was - how natural he seemed with animals. So much like her, it would seem. Such a nice pony....
So why did she regard him more like a lost animal that she'd found wandering around the Everfree Forest, instead of the stallionfriend that she should?
Why didn't she...love him?
She folded her forelegs across her chest and closed her eyes. When she opened them again, small tears had formed in the corners of her blue-green eyes and threatened to flow down her face. She quickly hid her face behind her rose mane in case Blueheart looked her way - she didn't feel like answering questions about why she was crying again - and went back to looking out the window at the pouring rain. Suddenly, out of the corner of one of her eyes she spotted a blue streak in the sky above her cottage.
She moved her mane from her face, quickly wiped her eyes and then the window, and pressed her snout against the glass. The corners of her lips jumped up into a small smile all on their own when she saw the familiar multi-hued tail of a certain pegasus fly across her vision. Without a second thought, she trotted across the room and swung the door open, the wind outside sending sharp bolts of rain pouring into the entryway and Fluttershy's eyes.
"Where are you going?" she heard a voice behind her ask.
She turned around to see the grey stallion holding a teacup between his hooves and a curious expression on his face. She stopped herself and slowly closed the door behind her sheepishly. "N...nowhere." she said, her cheeks starting to turn red, "I guess...I thought I saw something."
She tried to maintain her smile and took the offered teacup in her forehooves, her eyes occasionally looking up at the window and wishing that she was brave enough to run out into the storm and dance amoungst the clouds like her friend.
****
Rainbow Dash flew nimbly through the obstacle course of the sky filled with large grey rainclouds; her blue fur matted and wet against her body and strands of her multi-coloured mane pasted against her nose.
Another day...
Another storm....
She was never one to question the orders of the weather team in Cloudsdale, but not even a particularly dry summer seemed to justify Dash's orders to keep in raining over Ponyville for three days straight. At least it kept the sporty mare busy at work, and the empty streets and fields allowed her plenty of room to practice her aerial moves.
The rainbow-hued pegasus took off straight up, smashing right through a small cloud, and spat a stream of water behind her before dropping again in a nosedive and careening toward the ground. Just before she hit the grass, she turned into a barrel roll and straightened herself up again. She was in a field just outside of Ponyville, the dirt road covered with puddles of mud from the rain and the air thick with the smell of hay and wildflowers. She often found herself here...often made an excuse to practice tricks above this field, or just lay on a cloud above it on a sunny day. Down the dirt road and up a slight incline was a small cottage surrounded by a vegetable garden; a chicken coop and other animal housing was nearby. It was the cottage of a good friend of hers - a friend with whom that, while she often had her disagreements, she knew deep down she cared about. A lot.
She would often find an excuse to stop in on her way to or from someplace, even just to give a smile or a wave. She never spared a chance to poke fun at her flaws - but only as that was her way of trying to get her to rise above them. Truth be told, sometimes Rainbow Dash thought that she was her only real friend - her only true friend.
Moreso than Applejack, Fluttershy is always honest with her....
Moreso than Rarity, Fluttershy has given her everything she's ever needed from her....
Moreso than Pinkie, Fluttershy never fails to make her laugh just by being herself...
But more than anything, she was kind...
"...even when I don't deserve it." she thought to herself, finding herself hovering just above the grass while looking up at the small stone cottage.
Rainwater flowed down the blue pegasus's cheeks, and her wings slowly flapped against the wind to propel her slowly up the road. She stopped just short of the perimeter of the gates, careful not to alert the animals, and gazed ahead at the small home. A hoof moved up to her face to clear strands of red and orange from her vision, and she sighted a yellow figure in one of the windows. Squinting, Rainbow Dash could just make out a glint of blue shining beneath pink.
Smiling, she hovered there in the shadow of the chicken coop and just stared.
She was just about to move forward to knock on her door, when she saw another pony in one of the other cottage windows; A grey stallion. The rainbow mare knew about Fluttershy's stallionfriend; everybody in Ponyville did. She was happy for her shy friend to have found somepony to care for her...to look after her.
...to love her.
She clenched her teeth tightly together and, wiping the rain and another kind of water out of her eyes, she shot into the air, weaved underneath a cloud and took off over the trees. Out of the corner of her eye, she thought she saw the door to Fluttershy's cottage open but dismissed it as her imagination.
****
"I'll be home later on tonight, Shy. I promised Applejack I'd help Big Macintosh and her fix their barn."
Later on in the day, Blueheart offered to brave the rain and take a trip to the market to pick up some much needed groceries.
She smiled and gently kissed him on the cheek, wishing him well and told him supper would be on the stove for him when he came back. As soon as he walked out the door, the yellow pegasus flopped onto her couch and flung a foreleg over her face.
Come on, Fluttershy!...Get up and do something!...Stop moping around!
She lay there for what seemed like only a few minutes when she felt a furry foot kicking her repeatedly in the head. With a sigh, she looked up beneath her foreleg and turned her head. Her eyes met the cross face on her Angel bunny, his paw pointing insistenly at his mouth.
"Are you hungry, my Angel?" she asked, smiling sweetly at her beloved pet.
The rabbit gave the pegasus pony a look that such a question should be unneccesary.
"Just give mama a minute, my sweet bunny. I'm not feeling too good today." She expressed softly, pulling herself up off the couch.
The white rabbit's expression softened slightly when he saw the sad look in his owner's eyes, and stepped out of the way as she slowly made her way into the kitchen and prepared a small salad. Setting it down in front of him, he sniffed it a few times, looked at the yellow pegasus sceptically, then slowly began eating. Deciding it was probably a good idea to see if any of her other furry or feathered charges were hungry, she decided that this would be a good way to pass the time and keep herself busy.
When she had checked on every animal inside to ensure that they was fed and watered, she decided to go outside to check on her chickens. When she opened the door, she was pleased to see that the rain had stopped - at least for the moment - and she tentatively navigated around the puddles of mud and water on the ground to make her way down to her coop.
"Hey you!"
She jumped and let out a small "eep!" before turning her head to see a familiar face hovering above the ground behind her. "Oh, Rainbow Dash! You startled me!" she said, a smile and slight blush coming across her face.
The rainbow-maned pegasus spun around in the air before settling down on the dirt path directly in front of Fluttershy. "Sorry about that, Flutters; I guess I'm a little too sneaky!" the rainbow-maned pegasus chuckled.
"So..." Fluttershy said softly after a few moments of silence, "um...what have you been up to?"
Rainbow Dash gazed wistfully up at the sky with a smirk on her face, "You're kinda standing in it...or you were, I guess, until things settled down."
"Oh, so the rain is over?"
The blue pegasus grimaced and looked up, "No, they're just taking a little while to reload, and then it'll be full steam ahead for another day or so."
Fluttershy looked down at a puddle in front of her and frowned, "Oh. I was...sort of hoping the rain would be done now."
The two pegasis stood in silence for a few more uncomfortable moments staring at the ground, the sky, or really anywhere but at each other, before Fluttershy looked up again slightly, a hopeful grin on her face, and asked, "So...so did you want to...um...come in for a bit? I could make us some tea...and I have those hay biscuits you like."
It was now the sporty pegasus's turn to frown, "I wish I could, Flutters; I really do! But...the weather team needs me back ASAP to plan the next storm today."
The yellow pegasus turned back toward her cottage then looked back at the puddle in front of her, shrugged her shoulders and replied softly, "Oh...all right, then."
Rainbow Dash bit her lower lip and went to take a step toward her, but then pulled back. "Um..." she started tentatively, "so...yeah, I should probably get going. I'm already running behind. But...but I can stop in later...or tomorrow...or, like, whenever I have time. I promise, okay?"
"Okay Rainbow..."
"So...Ima go now, okay pal?"
The yellow pegasus simply gave a small nod.
The multi-coloured mane of the blue pegasus hung down partially in her face as she backed away slowly and took off backwards into the air, still keeping her eye on her friend below. Rainbow Dash wasn't the best with emotional stuff, but she knew that something seemed wrong. If she wasn't already running behind, she'd likely have stayed and taken her friend up on that offer. It wasn't really even that she particularly loved biscuits and tea; it was the company of who she was sharing it with.
She was just about to spin around to prepare to take off over the trees of the Everfree Forest when she noticed ripples forming in the puddle in front of Fluttershy. She looked up at the clouds above her and put a hoof out curiously, not feeling any rain.
They wouldn't have started without me, would they?
She flew down for a closer look, and her azure eyes went wide when she noticed the ripples were formed by tears falling from the eyes of her pink maned friend.
"Fluttershy? What's the matter?" she asked, flying down quickly to hover beside the yellow mare.
The pegasus looked up with a start, as if realizing that her friend hadn't left, and wiped her eyes with a foreleg quickly, "N...nothing! Nothing's the matter." she sniffled, hiding her face behind her pink mane and turning away from Rainbow Dash.
The blue pony slowly - cautiously - landed and walked over to stand beside her friend. Just as cautiously, she reached out a foreleg and moved her friend's rose mane away from her face. Fluttershy pulled away gently and let out a small squeak upon feeling Dash's hoof against her, seeming more embarrased than angry. Rainbow could see the red puffiness around her eyes and the wetness of her face that caused a few stray pink stands to stick to it, mingling with some tears that still slowly made their way down her cheek.
She stared at Fluttershy's face for a few seconds, unsure what to say or how to react. She felt like she should do something, but she wasn't really sure what. Much like how she felt when Fluttershy had cried when she wasn't able to improve her wing speed enough during the reservoir tornado, Rainbow Dash felt impotent and lost by how she should be comforting her.
"Just go..." Fluttershy whispered softly, and started walking slowly back up toward her cottage; the chickens forgotten in her mind as she tried to just get away.
Rainbow Dash was left standing at the base of the small hill, torn between her work duties and her duties as a friend. After watching her walk slowly - sadly - up to her home, she called after her, "Fluttershy, wait!"
The yellow pegasus stopped in front of her door, but didn't turn around.
Flying the short distance up to the door of the cottage, Rainbow Dash stopped in front of it and, running a hoof through her messy mane, said, "So...umm...Fluttershy pal...I was thinking...maybe I could stay for some tea, after all. If you still wanted me to, I mean?"
She saw one red-rimmed blue-green eye look up at her from beneath a curtain of pink, and heard a small, soft, "Okay, Rainbow." before the door was opened and the two pegasi went inside.
Fluttershy made her way over to the kitchen and busied herself putting the tea kettle on the stove and arranging some snacks, while the prismatic-maned pegasus who followed her in flopped down on a plush sofa in the living room and looked around. As usual, she saw that her friend's home was filled with all manner of small critters: mice scurrying around, cat lapping at platters of cream on the floor, and small birds flying from the rafters. The whole house buzzed, squawked and chirped with life, yet Dash saw a sullen, defeated look on the yellow pegasus's face that made her look like the lonliest pony in Equestria.
"So..." Dash tentatively started to say, trying to think of something she could say so that maybe she could get back to work, "How's it been going?"
From the kitchen, she saw Fluttershy shrug her shoulders and, without responding, take the handle of the kettle in her mouth and pour water into two teacups. Dash pulled herself off from her lounging position and walked over to stand beside her friend in the kitchen. "Seems like you've been keeping busy, pal...." she tried again, taking a tea cup in her hoof and giving a small smile to her companion.
"I guess..." Fluttershy responded sadly, taking her own teacup and saucer over to the kitchen table and sitting down, before adding, "The rain has kept me inside most days."
"Yeah..I suppose that makes sense." Dash replied, chewing her lip in contemplation. She took a the plate of cookies that the yellow pony had put out, and brought it over to the table before sitting down on a stool beside her friend.
The two winged mares sat in silence for several minutes, idly sipping from their cups and nibbling at cookies. Finally, Dash tried again, swallowing a mouthful of tea and starting, "So...Fluttershy..."
The yellow pegasus appeared lost in thought, and looked up slowly at the sound of her name, "Mmm?"
Dash took a deep breath, hoping that what she was about to say would sound right, "So...I'm not that good with all this emotional junk, but it looks like you...um...might be a bit...well...less than awesome, I guess. Is something wrong?"
Fluttershy sighed softly and, taking a sip of tea, she turned toward her friend and their eyes met. The blue pegasus could still see the moisture on her face where her tears had been, and the yellow pony's eyes still looked so sad and pleading. "Oh, Rainbow...I'm so sorry! I really don't mean to make you worry about me." She then looked away in shame before continuing in her soft, sad voice, "I'm not being a very good friend to you."
"Horsefeathers!" Dash responded sharply, suddenly feeling very defensive. She moved her chair closer to Fluttershy's and put a foreleg around her friend's shoulder, "Don't give me any of that fluff, okay? We've been friends for a long time, you and me! Longer than anypony else I know, and if somepony is going to look out for you, it's going to be your pal, Rainbow Dash!"
Fluttershy gave a small smile and rubbed her face softly against her friend's hoof. "You're sweet, Rainbow, but...I...I don't really know why I'm feeling this way. I thought it might be the rain, but I've been feeling down for longer than that, I think. I feel like such a stupid pony, though; I have no reason to be sad."
The blue pegasus used her leg around Fluttershy to rock her gently and, with a giggle, said, "Oh...come on now! Everypony feels down sometimes - even me! And...I know the rain has been a bit difficult to take, but it'll stop soon. Plus, you have lots to be happy about! You have your critters, and you have tons of friends, and...um...well...you have...you have that...stallionfriend of yours, right? What's his name?"
Fluttershy smiled at her friend and, laying her head back, she responded, "Blueheart. Yes, I suppose I do have a lot to be happy about. I guess I'm lucky to have so many ponies and creatures that care about me."
Rainbow Dash smiled too, and slowly got up, "You see how silly you're being? So...are you feeling better?"
She nodded and her smile grew still larger, "Yes, Rainbow Dash, I am."
The blue pegasus had gotten up, but continued to keep her hoof resting on her friend's shoulder. She gently mussed up her friend's mane with it and said, "Not a problem! But, hey...don't go telling nopony that I'm too caring! I have to maintain a cool image, right?"
"." Fluttershy giggled and wiped the wet streaks of her earlier tears from her face, "Whatever you say."
"So...I should really head out, I guess. The weather ponies are probably waiting for me."
Fluttershy's smile quickly disappeared and she looked up at the rainbow-maned pony with another sad look, but she took a deep breath and replied, "I understand. You've spent more time here than you should have. But..um...Rainbow...thank you."
"For what?"
Fluttershy reached up with her forelegs and took Rainbow Dash's hoof between hers. She squeezed it gently and, managing a small smile, she looked into her friend's rose-coloured eyes with her own blue orbs and said simply and softly, "For caring about me." She then stood up and, letting go of Dash's hoof, she wrapped her forelegs around her friend's neck and hugged her tightly.
With Fluttershy's face buried in her shoulder and the pink-maned pony's front legs holding her tightly, Rainbow Dash was filled with a whole bunch of different feelings and thoughts; all of them manifesting in the pit of her stomach as a warm, fuzzy ache. On one hoof, she was anxious to get back into the air and back to work - away from all this gushy emotional stuff that cramped her style. She was, after all, Rainbow Dash...daredevil and all-around coolest pony in Ponyville. But on the other hoof, she wasn't sure why, but somehow it just felt right holding her demure, shy, sad friend against her. It felt right to be with her - to be close to Fluttershy, her closest and oldest companion. It felt good to smell her mane, hear her voice and feel her touch against her fur. All of those times she found herself making excuses to check in on her, spend time with her, and do her aerial acrobatics nearby where she knew her Fluttershy would be seemed to make...
Wait a second...why would I think of Fluttershy as mine?
My friend maybe. But...no...no....
Feeling her cheeks starting to burn and her head start to spin, she quickly detached Fluttershy's yellow hooves from her neck and turned away from her, toward the door.
"Well...*ahem*...of...of course I care, Flutters. About you, I mean. Um...as a friend that...well...um...I'll see ya around, p...pal, okay?"
She had already pulled the door open and was halfway gone when she heard, "See you around, Rainbow." from behind her.
As soon she closed the door behind her, she opened her wings and took off quickly into the air. She hoped the wind rushing against her face would cool her face down and blow away all the...strange thoughts and feelings that she kept having. As she burst through the clouds, a single drop fell from the sky and hit the dirt path below.
But the rain hadn't started again yet.
*****
It was late that evening - several hours after sunset - when the door to the cottage slowly opened and a grey stallion stepped inside and shook off. The heavy rain beating on the dirt outside echoed through the dark home and the pony quickly closed the door, both to stifle the noise and keep the tiny needles of rain from entering. As the pony made his way as quietly as possible through the entranceway, the only light to guide him was the tiny fire of the stove with several open pots of stew sitting on them. His attention turned to the lump lying on the couch in the living room, the material of a white quilt visible in the faint light.
Walking slowly and quietly over, Blueheart sat down on the floor next to the plush seat and watched his beloved Fluttershy sleeping soundly; the blanket moving slowly up and down with her deep breaths. He smiled at her sweetly as he watched her sleep; though he hadn't been living with her long, it always filled him with warmth and joy to see her beautiful face in peaceful slumber. He reached out a hoof and gently brushed her pink mane from her face, then slowly leaned in and gave her a gentle kiss on her forehead.
"I'm home, Flutters." he whispered softly to her.
The yellow pony under the blanket stirred and, a smile coming across her face, she moaned and said in a sleepy voice, "Mmm...Rainbow...you came back...." then turned over and, burying her face into the sofa cushion, she began to snore softly.
The grey stallion bit his bottom lip and, reaching out a hoof, he went to wake her up before thinking better of it and slowly retracted it again. For several minutes, he continued watching the yellow mare sleep with a curious expression. It was shortly after he arrived in Ponyville and was introduced to Fluttershy that he met Rainbow Dash. Fluttershy's friends had been very welcoming to him, and it was that warm reception that convinced him to decide to settle in Ponyville. Every pony in Fluttershy's social circle seemed to have a unique personality, yet they all managed to remain close. Rainbow Dash, in particular, struck him as quite brash and arrogant at times - certainly a direct contrast to Fluttershy's quiet, reserved and...well...shy demeanour. Still, it was quite obvious to the stallion that Fluttershy's relationship with her rainbow-maned friend was far closer than her friendship with her other friends. She had told him that she had known Rainbow Dash longer than her other companions - that they were friends back when they were fillies in school. It was clear, during the times that he had seen them together, that they were especially close. But sometimes there seemed to be more between them than simple friendship. In particular, Fluttershy's face seemed to light up when she saw Rainbow Dash in a way that it never did when he was around. And the blue pegasus seemed to be over a fair bit, sometimes just to say hi to Fluttershy and other times to go on short flights with her. Blueheart couldn't help but feel a bit left out that the two pegasi seemed to spend so much time together..
...Perhaps he was reading too much into it.
*****
Rainbow Dash lay awake in her bed and gazed out the window of her cloud home. She found it particularly hard to sleep that night - moreso than even the night before a Wonderbolts show. Fluttershy's sad face with tears streaming down her cheeks filled Rainbow Dash's head, and she was anxious and confused about why it seemed to distress her so. It wasn't the first time she'd seen her friend upset, and certainly not the first time that she had seen her cry; this time, however, seemed to be different. She seemed so...lonely, and it made her normal aversion to mushy emotions be replaced by a nagging desire to comfort and protect her friend. If she was honest with herself, there was nothing she had wanted to do more when she saw Fluttershy was upset that day, than wrap her wings around her and shield her from whatever was troubling her.
"Get ahold of yourself, Dash!" the blue mare said, squeezing her eyes shut and lightly tapping herself in the head with her hooves, "You're going all soft!"
Not as soft as Fluttershy's warm fur, and sweet hugs...
Rainbow Dash took a deep breath, held it for several seconds and let it out slowly. She felt like her cool and calm spirit was broken - that she wasn't quite herself. There was also a very distressing thought in the back of her mind that, no matter how many times she tried to bury it, it always seemed to rise up again.
Fluttershy is my friend...my best friend...my oldest friend...my closest friend...my friend.
"Dammit, Flutters!" Rainbow Dash groaned, burying her face in a cloud pillow and trying to dispel the image of her best friend's tearful eyes from her mind.
Fluttershy had just come back in from feeding the chickens to find her stallionfriend Blueheart sitting at the kitchen table, staring into his cup of tea. When he asked her to sit down with a serious expression, she had been worried and a bit scared as to what he might want. So, when he asked the question it gave her some comfort and relief, but she was still confused as to his interest.
"Um...well...what about her?" she asked, smiling at the grey stallion with a nervous grin - her eyes trying to read his for some idea as to what direction he was going in.
He sipped his tea and returned her smile, Well, you've been friends with her for quite a while, haven't you?"
Fluttershy felt her nervous grin being replaced by a genuine one as her thoughts turned to the blue pegasus, "Oh yes. We've known each other since we were both little fillies in Cloudsdale. We went to Flight Camp together, school together...I can't ever remember not having Rainbow around."
He nodded, "So, you've been friends for a long time, then?"
She nodded back and, sensing the seriousness of the situation was over - if it had ever even begun, she stood up and went into the kitchen to pour herself a cup of tea. "She is my oldest friend here in Ponyville...or probably even ever. I enjoy the time we spend together."
"Why?"
Fluttershy turned toward him and saw him looking at her with a confused expression. "Why? Why do you enjoy spending time with her, Shy?" he asked, his head tilted to the side slightly, like a confused dog.
His look made her feel a bit nervous, so she turned toward the kitchen counter and, directing her gaze to a speck of dust on the teapot, asked "W...what do you mean? Why wouldn't I be?"
"Well..." she heard him say, "I just mean...you two are so different. Besides both having wings, you and Rainbow Dash have nothing in common. You're sweet, kind, humble, generous and, she is...well...arrogant, abrasive, selfish...I just don't get it."
Fluttershy bit her lower lip and replied softly, still not looking at the stallion, "Rainbow can be...those things, yes. But she's a very loyal friend to everypony in Ponyville."
She felt something touch her shoulder, and when she turned around she saw the grey stallion standing beside her, looking at her with an expression of concern that made Fluttershy's discomfort continue to grow, "Shy...I've heard you talk about her...in your sleep. I've seen the way you look at her, and the way she looks at you. I may not have known you for as long as she has, but I think I deserve the truth, one way or another."
Fluttershy looked at the floor, her face quickly turning red.
I talk about Rainbow...in my sleep? What way do I look at her?
"I...I...don't...um...." she started to say, feeling his eyes upon her but too uncomfortable to meet them. She trailed off and looked out the window.
The stallion walked over to the window and, looking out of it for a second, he turned back toward Fluttershy, his voice sounding soft and unemotional, "Sometimes you spend hours looking out this window, and I see how you smile when Rainbow Dash flies by. How your face lights up when she's near you, and how happy you are when you come back from an outing with her. I'm not a smart pony sometimes, Shy, but...I know....I know love when I see it."
She suddenly turned toward Blueheart, her eyes and mouth open wide. Unsure she heard correctly, she repeated, "I...know love...what...Rainbow...no! No, I...I love...you!"
The grey stallion turned toward the rosy-faced pegasus and, putting his hoof on the side of her face, he brushed back her pink mane and gave her a sad smile, "I wish I could believe that. And I wish that you could believe that."
Fluttershy felt tears filling her eyes, but she wasn't sure which part of what was going on made her the most upset. "No!" she sobbed, "I do love you, Blue! I do believe that I love you!"
"And Rainbow Dash? Look at me and tell me honestly how you feel about her."
Fluttershy opened her mouth to respond...
I don't love Rainbow Dash! I love you!
"I...I...."
I don't love Rainbow Dash! I love you!
"I..."
Her brain screamed at her to say it, but every time she tried to get the words out, she just began to cry harder until finally she put her hooves over her face and collapsed into sobs on the kitchen counter. The grey stallion looked at her, his eyes tinged with pity, but his jaw and facial muscles tensing in frustration.
"I think it's best if I go. I'll be at the Hoofburg Inn in town for the night. We'll talk in the morning."
Fluttershy looked up as the grey pony walked into the bedroom and started going through drawers. Her eyes red-rimmed and bloodshot, she moaned between sobs, "Please...please don't go! Let's...let's talk!"
He shot her a tight smile as he went to the door, several small bags of clothes and toiletries on his back. "Maybe you should talk to Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy. Really talk to her, I mean." and he closed the door hard behind him.
Fluttershy ran to the window and watched him go, hoping and praying to the goddesses that he would turn around when he got to the end of the path....to the bottom of the hill...at any time before he went out of sight. But he didn't. With new tears in her eyes, she galloped into the bedroom, flung herself on her bed and cried into her pillow.
*****
"I wonder what's going on..." Rainbow Dash thought, looking down curiously from a cloud above Fluttershy's cottage.
She'd been lying there all morning and some of the previous night, trying to come up with a reason to see the yellow pegasus again. Part of her was concerned with these new and un-Rainbow Dash-like feelings that Fluttershy seemed to bring out in her lately, but on the other hoof it had gotten her thinking about why these feelings had started in the first place. While it was true that the two were very close friends and had always shared a part of themselves with each other that nopony else knew about, the brash blue speedster always managed to maintain her independence, emotional distance and freedom. She would make fun of Fluttershy's foibles in front of other ponies, at the same time as she tried to help her overcome them. And she had done so without feeling bad, or guilty, or upset. That was just their special relationship...just who she was.
But maybe not who I am now...
It was quite clear to Rainbow Dash that things were changing within her, and a different side of her was starting to come out. Rather than playfully tease her for her shyness and self-doubt, Dash spent more time trying to talk to her about it...and counsel her.
Like some kind of egghead...
And not only had she become okay with Fluttershy hugging her lately, but there were many times that she had wanted to take the shy yellow pony in her own forelegs and hold her tightly against her body; to bury her face in that long pink mane and inhale deeply the sweet perfume that was her closest, dearest and bestest friend. The very thought of these things confused and worried her a bit and it occurred to her that perhaps Rarity might be helpful in figuring out what was going on, especially since the fashionista pony was Fluttershy's close friend...after herself, and also that Rainbow Dash felt that Rarity was no stranger to dramatic existential crises. However, she refrained from doing so as Rarity was also a huge gossip-monger, and it would be all over Ponyville if Dash told her about the things she was thinking.
When she really thought about it, all of this seemed to start when that stallion had moved in with her friend....
And so, when it became clear that the blue pegasus wasn't going to get much sleep the previous night, she'd gotten up and flown over to her favourite napping cloud overlooking Fluttershy's cottage. It was high enough up that nopony could see her unless they looked really closely, but low enough that the rainbow-maned pony could look over the fluffy edge and watch Fluttershy tending to her garden, feeding her chickens, or just sitting outside on a sunny day and enjoying the weather; perhaps singing a sweet song.
It's not spying! It's like...I'm her guardian angelpony...or something.
Ever since their encounter the previous day. Rainbow Dash felt like she needed to talk to her, although she was not quite sure what she wanted to say. Perhaps, she thought, she could pretend she was simply looking in on her after the previous day's events and then see where the conversation went. In the end, she had finally fallen asleep sometime before sunrise and it was on this perch that Rainbow Dash had seen the grey stallion stomp out of the cottage and slam the door behind him a few moments earlier. She was too high up to hear much of their conversation, but she had definitely heard the unmistakable sounds of Fluttershy crying right before the grey pony had left and certainly afterwards; and she may have been crazy, but she could have sworn she heard her name spoken a few times. She watched as the stallion trotted stiffly away in the direction of Ponyville, and then she turned back toward the cottage. Hesitating for a moment, she slowly took off into the air and glided downward, stopping just short of the front door. It sounded uncharacteristically quiet inside the home, the usual sounds of animal chattering and movement from within missing. The only thing she could hear was the sound of somepony crying. As it had the previous day, the sounds of her good friend upset made her heart ache with a need to protect her and make her feel better; something that she used to simply attribute to being the Element of Loyalty, but she began to feel that perhaps there was more to it than that.
She slowly knocked on the door, feeling her stomach tying itself up in knots and her mouth becoming dry. The crying sounds from within stopped at the sound, and Dash heard movement coming closer.
"H...hello?" came a soft, sniffly voice from the other side of the door.
"Um...it's...it's me...it's Dash." she replied, face-hoofing at how stupid and un-cool she sounded.
There was silence for what seemed like nearly a minute. The blue pegasus soon gave up, once more chastising herself for her foolishness and had already turned around to take off again when the door opened slightly. Listening for a verbal welcome or some indication of her being allowed entry, she stood by the door for several more seconds before pushing it open further and slowly making her way inside.
The cottage was dim, no candles lit and no light within except the sun shining through the cracks in closed shutters. Sitting in front of one of the shuttered windows, Dash could see the impression of a yellow pony staring off across the room. As she moved closer, she saw the pink mane of her friend moving slightly as she shook her head slowly and her shoulders shuddering as she quietly cried. Rainbow Dash felt her chest tighten as she was struck with a flood of thoughts and feelings that seemed to pull her in different directions. She felt like leaving rather than getting dragged into another emotional whirlwind; she felt like playfully punching her in the shoulder with her hoof and making a joke to try to 'snap her out' of it; she felt like taking her in her arms, licking her tears away and hugging her for as long as Fluttershy would allow it. She felt like doing so many different things, but mostly she felt like closing her eyes so she didn't need to see the yellow pegasus crying. So she did. Protected behind the darkness of her own eyelids, she attempted to gather her thoughts a bit better. However, her inner dialogue was interrupted by a familiar soft voice:
"It's all my fault..."
The blue pegasus opened her eyes again by reflex and saw that Fluttershy had turned to face her. Her pink mane hung limply in her face, blue eyes red-rimmed from crying and face streaked with old and new tears.
"It's all my fault, Rainbow..." she repeated quietly, stepping closer to the blue pegasus.
"What? What's your fault?" she replied, eyes looking away nervously.
Fluttershy sniffled, a fresh stream of tears released from her eyes, cascading down her face and onto the wooden floor. "I had everything. I had...I had a beautiful cottage...lots of animals to care for...friends who like me for who I am...and...I had a pony who...who...l...." she trailed off into new sobs and, to Dash's surprise, threw her forelegs around her neck and buried her face into Dash's shoulder.
The sporty pegasus would normally never allow anypony to mess with her unique manestyle, let alone soak it with their tears, but somehow this didn't seem to matter to Dash at the moment.. Unsure what else to do, Rainbow Dash put one foreleg slowly around Fluttershy's head and stroked it with a hoof. Taking a deep breath, she opened her mouth to say something - anything - that might sooth the yellow pony currently creating a small puddle on her shoulder, but wasn't sure what to do. Finally, she stammered, "Wha...what happened? I mean...I saw...Blueheart, is it? Well, I saw him leave a little while ago. He seemed...angry, I guess." then repeated again, "What happened?"
Fluttershy looked up at the sound of Dash's voice and sniffled, "I...well...we...um...we had a fight."
"Oh...that...that's uncool."
Fluttershy detached herself from Dash's arms and slowly walked over to sit at the kitchen table. She stared across the room, before burying her face in her forelegs and softly crying again, moaning "It's all my fault..."
Once again, not sure what else to do and also to try and have a few moments to think, the blue pegasus went into the kitchen, lit a fire and set the tea kettle to boil. It seemed like a...Fluttershy thing to do. Turning back toward the pitiful-looking pony weeping into her table, Rainbow Dash nervously rubbed the back of her mane with a hoof - pulling it back suddenly as she felt the moisture of where her friend had soaked it.
"So...what did you two fight about?"
Fluttershy stopped crying and looked up slowly. With a sniffle, she wiped her nose with the back of her hoof and sighed, "Oh...it's not important. I was just being a stupid pony again."
"Oh, would you buck off!?" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, before she could catch herself. She quickly smacked a hoof in front of her mouth, as the yellow pegasus at the table spun her head around quickly at the loud outburst. Fluttershy's eyes were wide in surprise, and her mouth hung open.
The blue pegasus quickly flew across the room and put a foreleg around her friend's shoulder. "Ohmigosh, ohmigosh...I'm SO sorry, Flutters! I just...I just hate when you are so hard on yourself! I got upset, but it was wrong and I'm sorry! I didn't mean to yell!"
Fluttershy closed her mouth and, after taking a deep breath, she looked at her friend with her big blue eyes filled with sadness and hurt and said, "It's fine, Rainbow Dash. I deserve to be yelled at. You and everypony else are always trying to help me be more assertive...less shy...happier. But...I don't realize how much I truly have, and now I may have lost the one pony who...truly loves me."
Rainbow Dash didn't know what to say, except to shake her head and stroke her friend's shoulder, holding her close. Suddenly, a loud whistle sound from the kitchen caused both ponies to jump. Rainbow Dash trotted across the room and took the kettle off the fire.
"I'm...sorry, Flutters. I wish I could say something to make you feel better."
Fluttershy looked over toward the kitchen and smiled sadly, "I know, Rainbow. You always...well...you always try to care. More than I deserve."
The blue pegasus opened her mouth to rebut that statement again, but caught herself this time. Instead, she focused on pouring the tea into two cups from the cupboard.
"So...will you tell me what you fought about? I'm pretty smart sometimes...maybe I can help?"
Damn it, Dash! Stop getting involved in this egghead nonsense!
The yellow pegasus brushed her pink mane back and sniffled away some tears, "He...was mad at me because...of love."
Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow and, gagging internally at the romantic drama, brought the teacups over and set one in front of Fluttershy and one at the place next to her.
"Oh? I thought you were crazy about him. I mean, you two totally live together and stuff, right?"
"I do love him! I mean...I think I do."
The blue pegasus took a sip of tea and smiled, "So, what's the problem, then? Sounds like everything should be totally awesome, right?"
Fluttershy looked at the sporty pegasus and sighed. Dash was somewhat confused by the look in her eyes and the fact that a blush was filling her cheeks with a pink glow, visible even in the candlelight. "Rainbow Dash...do you remember the first time you met me?"
Dash began to get uncomfortable by Fluttershy's look, and by the weird feelings that it and her question created within her. "Uh...yeah...I think so. It was the first day of school - we couldn't have been more than a few seasons old - and we were sitting next to each other in class. I remember I said hi to you and you hid behind your mane, like you wished you didn't exist."
Fluttershy smiled, "I remember. I also remember that anytime we were together and somebody made fun of me, or tried to hurt me, you stopped them. I was just some dopey, shy pony that could barely even fly, but you...protected me. You always looked out for me."
"You were my friend back then, Rainbow...my only friend for a long time. You always acted like you didn't care when you were around other ponies; like the only thing that mattered to you was flying. But when we were together...when it was just you and I...I always knew you cared about me. I always knew...you liked me no matter what a stupid pony I was. You wanted to be around me, no matter how pathetic I was...or am." the yellow pegasus said, looking down and hiding her face shyly behind her mane.
Dash took a deep breath at her self-depreciation, but instead of anger and frustration, she found herself filled with an unfamiliar emotion she had felt since Fluttershy had first moved in with the grey stallion and they stopped spending as much time together. She slowly reached out a foreleg and moved Fluttershy's mane away from her face. The yellow pony looked up at her and gave her a small, sad smile.
"I wish you'd stop saying such mean things about yourself, Flutters. You're not a stupid pony...and you're not pathetic."
Fluttershy shrugged and bit her lower lip, her eyes telling her blue friend that she didn't believe her words before she looked away from her again.
Rainbow Dash swallowed hard and lifted up Fluttershy's chin with a hoof until they were looking into each others eyes, "Fluttershy...I have known you for...like...ever and we've been through so much stuff. I've seen you face down a dragon, and fly faster than you ever have in your life; I know what you are capable of, and I've watched you be so much more than you give yourself credit for. Sometimes...I watch you even when you don't know it."
"You...watch me? Why?"
Now it was Dash's turn to blush, "I...I don't know. Well...I know it's not really cool to watch ponies, like, all sneaky and stuff. But...I just think you're so...so...awesome. The things you do...for your friends...for me. I just...wow! Gosh, Flutters, I'm not good with this mushy stuff! I'm sorry for how dopey I sound."
Fluttershy sniffled and giggled softly, "You're not dopey, Rainbow Dash. You're...sweet...and loyal...and I know you mean well. But it still doesn't change what I did today. I drove away the only pony that loved me."
Rainbow Dash opened felt her cheeks burn and she opened her mouth to respond, but her mind couldn't find the words. So many different thoughts and feelings were overtaking her and she felt something rising up in her that she'd never felt before.
Oh, buck it!
Without much thought about anything else, Rainbow Dash acted on instinct, took the yellow pony's face between her two hooves, moved her face forward and met Fluttershy's lips with her own. Her eyes remained open, so she could see Fluttershy's own blue orbs opening as wide as saucers as she gently took the yellow pegasus's lower lip between her teeth for a second before pulling back again.
Sitting back in her own seat, she took a deep breath and, turning toward the table, she took a sip of her now-cold tea.
When she turned back toward the yellow pegasus, her eyes had returned to a normal size and she had a smirk on her face, "Wha...what was that for, Rainbow?"
The sporty pegasus's face turned a deeper shade of red and she shrugged, "I dunno. I guess...I wanted to say that...um...you're wrong."
"Wrong?"
"Yeah...um...about...like...what you said."
Fluttershy clearly was not a stupid pony, as she slowly moved her own foreleg across the table and moved Dash's face with a hoof to face hers, "Dash?"
"Yeah?"
"Remember that fight...that Blueheart and I had?"
"Mmm?"
"He accused me of being in love with you."
Now it was Rainbow Dash's turn to have saucer-sized eyes, with a mouth hanging open. "H...he did? Um...what...did you say?"
She smiled, but Rainbow Dash could see tears starting to form in the corners of her eyes again, "You first. First, you tell me what you meant when you said that I was wrong."
Rainbow Dash bit her lower lip and shrugged, "Flutters...I'm not good with..."
"Please!" the yellow pegasus interrupted, moving her face closer to Dash's so their snouts were nearly touching. New tears slowly flowed down her cheeks, "Please, Rainbow Dash! Please try."
The blue pegasus, unused to emotional displays, suddenly found her own eyes beginning to tear up, turning the vision of Fluttershy in front of her into a blurry haze. She closed them to try and clear her vision, and found the tears now streaming down her face and began to babble her feelings in one steady stream. "Fluttershy, I want you to know that you are my best friend, the coolest pony that I know and I know that you're a mare and I'm a mare and I know that I'm not always ultra cool with talking about my feelings and junk with you like other mares do, but I want you to know...well...that you make me feel things about you that I don't really understand sometimes. I really like you a whole lot and...no, wait...hold on..." Rainbow Dash took a deep breath.
Why does this have to be so bucking hard?
"I...want you to know that...I...I've heard other ponies talk about finding their special somepony and...I guess I've always hoped, even though I never thought it made sense until now, that...well...that you could be mine. And...darn it all Fluttershy, I want you to know that I love you, okay.
Fluttershy sniffled, let out a tearful laugh, and, wrapping her forelegs around Rainbow Dash for the second time that day, hugged her tightly. Before Rainbow Dash could even ask, Fluttershy sobbed, "Oh, Rainbow, you silly, goofy, amazing pony...I love you too! I've always loved you!"
Rainbow Dash felt her heart soar higher than any distance she'd ever flown. To hear Fluttershy echo the feelings she'd always - deep down - knew that she'd felt filled her with joy. She took Fluttershy's face between her hooves and kissed her, first her forehead, then her nose, then all over her cheeks, and then finally she pressed her lips against her newfound lover's own and kissed her with all the passion and adoration that her words couldn't ever seem to express.
The two pegasi had been kissing and hugging each other for several minutes, when Fluttershy saw something move out of the corner of her eye. When she turned her head to see what it was, she immediately sprung apart from the prismatic-maned pony and her eyes went wide. Standing in the doorway, bags at his side and a sad look in his eyes, was Blueheart.
