The Quest for Fluff

View Online

Pinkie hummed to herself as she bounced around Rarity’s workspace, looking in assorted drawers and cabinets. As much as she admired the shiny knickknacks and the feel of the various fabrics, she always kept her hooves to herself.

After all, this was Rarity’s workspace, and she knew the value of keeping it organized. Why, if the flour wasn’t near the sprinkles or the fondant next to the frosting in her own workspace, what would she do?

But there was little else to do when Rarity was working on her important orders. She could’ve been home planning parties or baking something, but then she’d miss precious seconds with her marefriend in the time she had away from her sewing machines. And that just wouldn’t do.

As Pinkie finally plopped down next to the window to plan her next cake, Rarity strolled in, looking quite razzled. It wasn’t a full on frazzled – Rarity’s mane was as flawless as ever, so she hadn’t fretted much in the last couple of seconds. It certainly wasn’t a kerfrazzled; there was no hoof-nibbling or manic look in her eyes to be had.

“Hey, Rarity,” Pinkie chimed in a singsong voice. “Need any help?”

“Actually, I could use some help, my darling,” Rarity said as she began looking through her assorted drawers and cabinets.

Pinkie smiled proudly, knowing she wouldn’t find a rhinestone or thread out of place. “Whatcha looking for?” she asked as she sprung to her feet and bounded over.

“Well, I was working on this last dress, and I seem to have run out of fluff. And it just simply won’t do without some more for the finishing touches,” Rarity explained, opening up the storage closet.

Pinkie nodded in understanding, which quickly soured into a wrinkled snout of confusion. “Fluff?” she repeated.

“Yes, fluff. It’s quite a delightful material, I assure you.” Rarity rustled through her rolls of fabrics and peered into the storage bins.

Pinkie rubbed her chin in thought. Now that Rarity was looking for something, all bets were off. This workspace was getting the Pinkie Pie seal of good searchedness – no drawer would remain closed, no closet unchecked, no curtain unfurled until she got what her marefriend was looking for.

She bounded over to the nearest cabinet and rifled through its drawers like a filly unwrapping a Hearth’s Warming present. The pink pony buried her muzzle into the drawers just to make extra sure there was no fluff hiding in some corner.

When her muzzle reappeared, a neat pile of cotton rested upon it. “Is this it?” she asked Rarity.

Rarity peeked out of the storage closet briefly to check. “Close, my darling, but not quite.”

Pinkie hummed before replacing the neat pile of cotton and moving onto a workbench resting in one corner of the room. She checked one of the bins resting on it and produced two hooffuls of tiny pom-poms.

“Ooh! Ooh! Are these it?” she asked with an ecstatic grin. They felt like fluff, and they sure seemed the right color to be fluff.

Rarity peeked out again, a small smile across her muzzle. She shook her head. “Close, my darling, but not quite.”

As her marefriend ducked back in the closet, Pinkie huffed a sigh and replaced the tiny pom-poms. She rubbed her chin in thought, before a lightbulb went off over her head. Only it wasn’t a lightbulb of an idea. It was one of those curly lightbulbs of realization.

“Hey, Rarity? What does fluff look like?” she asked, walking over to the closet where she was at.

“Well, my darling,” came the perfect, dignified voice from within. “It’s sort of two-tone pink, white, and indigo in color.”

“Two-tone pink, white, and indigo?” Pinkie asked in awe. “That does sound like something delightful. Also, sorta familiar…”

Her ears perked up when she heard a tiny giggle from inside the closet. It was one of those unlady-like ones Rarity often tried to silence when Pinkie did something silly and endearing – in Rarity’s words, anyway.

“Did you find it?” Pinkie asked, peeking into the closet.

Suddenly, the unicorn pounced upon her, enveloping her in a very unlady-like—and consequently very Pinkie Pie-like—embrace. Of course, there was that nice perfume Rarity always wore that certainly made it smell lady-like.

“I was only playing, my darling – I was talking about us,” Rarity said with a sly wink after her giggling had subsided.

“Oh,” Pinkie sounded out. “So, does this mean you’re done?” Her face lit up like a sunrise.

“In a word, yes,” Rarity said simply, planting a kiss on the end of her snout.

“Hooray!” Pinkie cheered.

And so, the quest for fluff ended, almost as quickly as it had begun.

The Book of Fluff

View Online

Fluttershy trotted through the meadow towards her goal, a little extra pep in her step. She was beaming, even though she carried a picnic basket in her mouth. It wasn’t everyday she and Twilight got time off from their respective duties, much less for such a nice, peaceful date.

Sure, Twilight’s library was a very peaceful place to lounge around for hours, reading and cuddling, but there was something special about the outdoors. At least to Fluttershy, which was why Twilight had chosen such a remote field outside of Ponyville.

When they finally arrived at their destination—a lone tree at the crest of a small hill—Fluttershy set the picnic basket down. Before she could open it, a purple aura opened it for her, levitating out their picnic blanket and spreading it out under the tree’s shade.

Fluttershy smiled warmly at Twilight before starting to set up their lunch, consisting of a few sandwiches and some apple juice. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Twilight set down her saddlebags, which contained a familiar, rectangular outline.

By the time she was done, she noticed Twilight had not only produced an unmarked book, but a quill and ink pot as well. The Pegasus sighed as Twilight set them up.

“Twilight, I thought we were going to have lunch together,” Fluttershy said as she sat down next to her. The alicorn levitated two sandwiches over and plopped one into Fluttershy’s front hooves. “Don’t tell me you brought schoolwork with you.”

“Actually, I’m doing some research,” Twilight said, a dull blush on her cheeks as she took a bite of her sandwich. “And you’re the perfect pony to help me.”

Fluttershy giggled and flushed brightly when Twilight pecked her on the cheek. “Alright, alright. If it’ll help with your research.” She took a nibble out of her sandwich as Twilight levitated over their boxes of apple juice. “So, what do you need my help with? Flowers? Butterflies? Little honeybees?”

“Actually, just you.” Twilight opened the book with her magic and readied her quill. Fluttershy noticed the lined pages were blank before Twilight moved it out of her line of sight. “I’d like to keep the data private for now. I’ll show you at the end, ok?”

Fluttershy frowned and tilted her head, but nodded. “Alright,” she said slowly. “So… what do I do?”

Twilight hummed. “Just… eat your sandwich for now.”

Fluttershy nodded again, taking another bite out of her sandwich. Other than the slight sound of scratching against paper, the meadow was peacefully quiet. Soon, the Pegasus grew comfortable and instinctively scooted against Twilight’s side.

The scratching seemed to pick up the pace, but Fluttershy paid it no mind. She extended one wing and draped it over Twilight, like Twilight usually did with her in the library. The warm body next to her was all the more relaxing. She hummed contently as she ate.

After a few more minutes, and halfway through her sandwich, Twilight cleared her throat. Fluttershy looked up and noticed her cheeks were red. “Alright,” Twilight said, taking a moment to steady her voice. “Now… uh… act natural.”

“Natural?” Fluttershy tilted her head, taking a moment to sip some of her apple juice.

“Well, we’re in a meadow, surrounded by wildflowers and nature. I need data on how you’d act here, like your natural environment. That sort of thing.” Twilight grinned nervously.

“Very well.” Fluttershy said with a soft smile, rising to her hooves and stretching her wing. She took a moment to peck Twilight on the tip of her snout before surveying the area around her.

Spotting a patch of particularly brilliant violet wildflowers, she trotted over and quickly made contact with a green and black butterfly. She watched it dance about in the air before offering it her front hoof.

She watched in awe as it landed, beating its wings slowly as it took a moment to rest. She was so enraptured she didn’t see the floating quill busily at work. Ever so carefully, Fluttershy guided her hoof over to one of the flowers, and the butterfly crawled onto it.

“There you go, little guy,” she said in a low, soothing voice. “Drink up now.”

Fluttershy beamed and turned back to Twilight, who flashed her an encouraging grin and nodded. She stepped carefully around the violet wildflowers only for a honeybee to land on her snout.

“Hmm?” Her eyes gazed down her muzzle at it. “Well hello there, little friend. You seem tired.”

The bee buzzed and wiggled in response. Fluttershy ever so carefully nodded, then crouched low in the tall grass. Twilight had to stand up on her hooves and then take to the air to keep an eye on her.

Fluttershy booped the end of her snout, allowing the little bee to crawl onto it, then guided it down to a patch of wild clover growing low to the ground. The bee flew off with a happy buzz and landed on the nearest flower.

She flashed the little bug a happy smile before standing back up. When she looked over to Twilight, she was surprised to see her in the air, watching intently. The second they made eye contact, Twilight instantly landed back on the blanket, taking a bite of her sandwich.

Fluttershy giggled and walked back to her, nestling close against her side once more. “Twilight, I don’t mean to pry, but what exactly is this data that you’re collecting?” she asked.

“Um, well… it’s actually more of a… writing exercise,” Twilight replied with a gulp. “Also, I wanted to work on my blind hornwriting.”

Fluttershy tilted her head. “I see. Is it too early to see the data yet?” she asked.

Twilight gently shook her head and floated the book over to Fluttershy. The first few pages were lined with Twilight’s elegant hornwriting, albeit askew in a few places. The Pegasus’s face lit up as her eyes skimmed over the words, and she read them out loud:

“’Things I love about Fluttershy. She’s very warm to be against, like a soothing presence at all times. Her feathers are very soft and comfortable, and don’t really tickle at all. When she’s happy and content, she makes the most adorable sounds, akin to a purring cat. Her status as the Element of Kindness is on display on all times, as she displays a friendliness and gentleness with all living creatures she meets…’”

Fluttershy glanced up at Twilight, who was looking fully away. However, even her ears were turning red violet as her face burned with shyness. The Pegasus smiled softly at it.

“So… what do you think…?” Twilight asked, assuming Fluttershy had read enough already.

“Twilight, you know what I think?” Fluttershy asked softly.

“Yes, what?”

The alicorn turned her head around only to be met with a kiss. The pleasant shock wore off rather quickly as Twilight sank into it. Fluttershy’s face matched her own when they pulled away, and the Pegasus had to avert her eyes before she replied.

“That’s what I think.”

“I just thought it’d be something… romantic, you know?” Twilight replied.

Fluttershy nodded, smiling brightly. “I thought it was very romantic, if a little silly.” She giggled, causing Twilight to look down. “May I see your quill?”

The alicorn blinked, but obliged, floating the quill over to Fluttershy so she could take it in her mouth. The Pegasus flipped over a few pages.

“What are you going to write?” Twilight asked.

“Oh, just some data of my own,” Fluttershy replied scooting the book around next to her so Twilight couldn’t see. The Pegasus winked at her before starting to scribble.

Twilight giggled and settled in close. “Just let me know if you need me to ‘act natural,’” she replied, taking a bite of her sandwich. After a moment, she draped her wing over Fluttershy and got comfortable.

This research was going to take a while.

The Fluff of Legends

by TheLegendaryBillCipher

The Quest for Fluff

The Book of Fluff