Candlelight
The rain was always a welcome sight for Fluttershy. While most ponies loathed its coming, scamping inside as to not get wet, the yellow pegasus thought it was very calming. It was a good time to curl up inside with her animals beside the fireplace, as well as a perfect opportunity to get some reading done. A large stack of short novels about animals was always taken out at times like these, and they made the evenings where water fell from the sky all the better.
On this particular evening when the weather pegasi decided to schedule a downpour was different, however. Fluttershy would not be spending her time reading Silver Paw and The Reef Dwellers, nor would she be curled up by the fire, basking in its warmth while Angel Bunny pulled on her wings until she got him some dinner.
No, instead she had spent the afternoon gathering up oats, daisies, making various food items, blankets, and other survival gear. Twilight had looked at her funny when she had checked out two books on camping and one on wilderness survival, but the unicorn reasoned that Fluttershy was probably going out to look for some rare(and most likely harmless) animal. Fluttershy had nervously agreed to this, and left quickly after.
As the night descended upon Equestria, though one could hardly tell with all the rain, Fluttershy had everything she needed. Putting on her rain outfit generously donated to her by Rarity(Fluttershy had done away with the useless feathers and sequins some time ago), the yellow mare trotted out into the rain. Heading down the path from her house into town, the little stream which lay not too far from her home raged violently with the excess of water being channeled into it. Fluttershy worried for a moment about the well-being of the fish who inhabited the stream, but remembered that there were more pressing matters to attend to.
Once in town, the shy pegasus kept to the north side of Ponyville. She went out of her way to avoid anypony who was still out at the time, but was blessed with the fortune not to come across more than a soggy Pipsqueak, who was splashing in a large puddle outside his home, laughing gleefully.
As Fluttershy went on, the winds picked up. She could tell this storm was to be a fierce one. Pushing on forward, a soaked piece of paper was blown into her face. Lifting a hoof up to wipe it away, she was that it was a wanted poster of a criminal who had just arisen recently. Fluttershy gasped her small gasp, and trotted away quickly from the paper once it had been removed from her muzzle.
Heading in a northwest direction, her destination was to be the pinewoods that stretched in between Canterlot Mountain and Smokey Mountain, just south of Unicorn Range.
The rain pressed down even harder, and Fluttershy felt pangs of doubt. It would probably be in her best interest to turn back now... instead, she banished these thoughts, thinking of the pony who needed her right now.
The woods looked dark and foreboding, and Fluttershy once again began to feel that dreaded feeling of uneasiness that assailed her so many times before. She should just turn back, who knows what sort of scary things could be lurking in that deep, dark forest?
Fluttershy closed her eyes, and felt on the verge of tears. She gritted her teeth, opened her eyes once more, and slowly began to press forward.
My friend needs me right now, she thought determinedly, And nothing will stop me from from helping her. I’ve backed down too many times before...
The woods were indeed dark, and had the snippid smell of wet leaves. The overwhelming scent of pine needles filled the dank air as well, and the yellow pegasus wrinkled her nose at this. She found the scent of pine needles relaxing, but too much of a good thing...
The ground sloped upward, and Fluttershy climbed slowly up the muddy side of the wooded hill. Water ran down in small streams, carrying hundreds upon hundreds of pine needles. Small frogs poked their heads out from under rocks, and hopped merrily about. Fluttershy smiled fondly at them, as they took an edge off of the creepiness of the area.
The rain had some trouble forcing itself through the pines, but enough of it still got through to keep Fluttershy in a state of constant dampness. Her hooves occasionally slid in the mud, and she nearly lost her balance several times. However, thanks to her wings, she was able to keep herself upright through the entire ordeal.
After some time, Fluttershy came across her destination. Well, not quite her destination yet, but rather, above it. It was a small ravine, barely big enough for somepony to squeeze into, and the perfect hiding place. Water that streamed from further uphill funneled into the break in the earth, creating small waterfalls which tumbled into the darkness.
Well, almost darkness.
A small light was at the bottom of the cave, very faint, and constantly flickering as though it were on the verge of going out at any second. Fluttershy swallowed hard, feeling dizzy by the almost-total darkness, and the general creepiness of the cave.
Fluttershy knew she had to go down there. So why weren’t her legs working? She hadn’t come all this way to back out now...
Fluttershy closed her eyes, took a few deep breaths, and slowly opened them again. She carefully took her first step onto the rocky ledge which would take her down to her destination. Putting the rest of her hooves down onto the moist rock, she took a few more deep breaths in preparation of the next step.
The next step involved squeezing down into the cave. Fluttershy sucked in her gut, and tried with all her might to get down into the fissure. The rocks ground against her, muddying up her raincoat where they touched it, and even ripping a small tear on the left side. Breathing rapidly, Fluttershy twisted her leg so she could get a better position for going down.
With a heart-stopping crack, one of the rocks keeping Fluttershy from going down broke loose, and sent the yellow mare tumbling down into the earth. Screaming, Fluttershy closed her eyes, prepared to die right then and there, when she recalled being able to fly. Stretching out her wings and flapping hard, she slowed her descent, allowing her to alight the wet cavern floor unharmed.
The water poured into a small pool, in which Fluttershy was currently standing. It was about four inches deep, immersing her hooves completely. The area of the cave which she was in was small, but branched out on the left side into a medium-sized cavern where the dim light emanated from.
Fluttershy slowly walked towards the light, which was from a now nearly entirely melted candle. It feebly held onto its last flame, which barely illuminated the battered form of another pegasus mare laying down next to it.
Rainbow Dash had seen better days. One of her closed eyes was black, her left wing was bent at a funny angle, and her multi-chromatic hair was messy and muddy. Several cyan feathers lay around her, and by the way she was laying, Fluttershy could tell she had a cracked rib or two. Her breathing was laborious, and painful to listen to.
“Dashie?” Fluttershy’s voice was soft, and the other pegasus’s ears twitched at the sound of it. Fluttershy took a step back, then spoke a bit louder.
“Dashie? You awake?”
Rainbow Dash said nothing for a few moments, and Fluttershy considered leaving when the mare spoke.
“Yeah, I am now.”
Fluttershy smiled in relief. “Oh good! I didn’t want my trip over here to be wasted...”
Rainbow Dash attempted to roll over, cringed in pain, then smirked at Fluttershy. “What, so if I were asleep, you woulda just left me here?”
Fluttershy looked down at the cave floor. “Well, when you put it that way...”
Rainbow Dash’s smile softened, but there was still a strong sense of pain about it. “Well, don’t just stand out in the cold, sit down!”
Fluttershy headed the mare’s words, and sat down close to the dying candle. Putting her pack down, she pulled out a candle she had packed earlier, and lit it. The cave was now more properly illuminated.
It was around the size of Fluttershy’s cottage in width, but the ceiling only hit six feet at it’s highest. The place where Fluttershy currently sat only hit about four feet, and Dashie lay under an overhang that kept the ceiling at three.
“So, I um... brought you some food...” Fluttershy took out the small bag of oats, as well as the sack of hay. Dashie eyed them both hungrily, and once Fluttershy had opened them and put them on a tin plate she had bought, Rainbow Dash dug into the food like she would never eat again. Fluttershy watched sadly as her rainbow-maned companion tore through the food, her magenta eyes wide and hollow.
Rainbow Dash swallowed, and allowed a satisfied smile to grace her lips momentarily before cringing in pain yet again. Fluttershy felt another pang of sadness from watching her friend hurt, and decided to move on to the next phase of her plan.
Pulling a blanket from her pack, Fluttershy threw it over Rainbow Dash, who was shivering a bit. A pleasant expression alighted Rainbow’s face, followed by a surprised one when Fluttershy snuggled up beside her.
“What are you-AH!” Rainbow Dash cringed as Fluttershy bumped into her chest. Fluttershy gasped, and her hooves flew to her mouth.
“I’m so sorry Rainbow Dash! I didn’t mean to-” Rainbow Dash shook her head with a pained smile, and put her hoof up to Fluttershy’s, dragging them from the soft pink-maned mare’s mouth.
“Hey, don’t worry about it, I’m fine.” Dashie leaned in to Fluttershy, and completely surprised the mare by kissing her softly on the mouth.
It wasn’t much of a kiss, just a small soft peck on the mouth that lingered slightly before ending, Fluttershy blushed furiously, and looked down at the cave floor, where a blind cave cricket was traversing its way to parts unknown. Finally looking up again, Fluttershy confronted Rainbow Dash earnestly.
“Look, Dashie... we can’t do this anymore. Not since...” Fluttershy trailed off, and traces of anger lined Rainbow Dash’s face.
“You don’t think I did it, do you?” Years later, Fluttershy would remember answering this question as one of the hardest things she had ever done in her life.
Rainbow Dash continued to look at Fluttershy with a slight air of contempt when she was met with silence. “Well, Fluttershy?”
“...”
“WELL?” Rainbow Dash’s sudden raised voice scared the small cricket, which bounced away off into the dark. Fluttershy wished she could follow it, sink away into the shadows, and return to Ponyville. But she couldn't, and she would have to answer Rainbow eventually.
Taking a deep breath, the yellow pegasus responded to the cyan one, with tears slowly sliding down her face.
“No. Well, I mean, I don’t know. I wasn’t there, Dashie...” Rainbow Dash’s anger had since faded.
“I’m so sorry Fluttershy, I didn’t mean to yell...” The rainbow one moved her hoof through the yellow one’s mane. She didn't do it very gracefully, and Fluttershy cringed when Rainbow Dash accidently caught her hoof on a snag, but was happy with the intention of the gesture.
Rainbow Dash moved her mouth closer for another kiss, but Fluttershy pushed it away before it could make contact.
“No, Rainbow Dash. I’m sorry... we can’t go back to the way things were. I’m not a pushover like I used to be.”
Rainbow Dash’s magenta eyes shone in the candlelight. A tear was forming in the left one. They always started to the left. She whispered softly to Fluttershy, barely breathing the words.
“Can’t we just pretend?”
Fluttershy felt these words sink into her mind, confusing her, taking her, warping her mind. Instead of answering, she snuggled closer to Rainbow Dash, this time watching out for her hurt ribs, and closed her eyes. Rainbow Dash soon felt the mare fall asleep, and her eyes grew heavy too. She had missed the nights when she and Fluttershy had fallen asleep together.