Fluttershy drew the sheets up, tucking in her longtime friend. “Angel, please try to get some rest. I’ll be back to check up on you in a little while.” She quietly slipped through the door and down the hall. This is not good. Angel would never decline food unless something’s terribly wrong.
A shudder ran down her spine and she drew in a few quick breaths, pushing open the door to her small bathroom. “No,” she muttered, willing herself not to begin sobbing. “Applejack and Twilight are going to be over soon. If they see me like this, it’s going to upset them and our night together will be ruined.”
The pegasus slowed her breathing and opened her wings for better circulation. “It’s… all going to be fine. I’m alright,” she whispered, allowing herself to indulge in happier thoughts, smiling in anticipation. “My two amazing marefriends are going to be here any minute... and we’re going to have the best Hearth’s Warming Eve!”
A sharp knocking on her front door caught her attention. “Oh, how wonderful! They’re here right on time!” Fluttershy left her washroom and grabbed the two wrapped gifts from the hallway closet, gently closing the door behind her. Any loud noise could wake her friend upstairs and sleep was the most important thing for him right now. Making her way to the living room, she set the colorful packages on the table carefully. It wouldn’t do to damage the gifts inside after so long preparing them!
“Happy Hearth’s Warming Eve, Fluttershy!” The chorus of good cheer from her two lovers and very best friends in the world brought a sincere smile to her face. Applejack and Twilight Sparkle stood at her threshold with gifts of their own safely carried in Twilight’s aura.
Fluttershy ushered them inside, wrapping them in a group hug before they could even take off their scarves. “I’m so happy you could make it, girls! Hearth’s Warming is my absolute favorite time of the season.”
Applejack chuckled and leaned in for a quick peck on the nose. “Sugar, there’s no way I could pass up your invitation after you wrote it by hoof and made those little drawings. Granny just about giggled her teeth out when she saw how cute it was!”
“Yeah,” Twilight concurred, nuzzling into the pegasus’ neck. “Spike said he’s never seen such neat mouthwriting! I think he might have been a little bit jealous of your drawing skills, too.”
The trio separated with content sighs and Fluttershy moved into her kitchen to fix up some hot chocolate and snacks. Dull thumps signalled the others kicking off their snow boots and shaking off any loose powder from their trek over. She glanced at the ceiling, letting loose a forlorn sigh.
“Wow, Shy!” she heard from the adjoining room, “It looks beautiful in here!”
Carefully balancing all three mugs and a plate of cinnamon-sprinkled apple slices on a tray, she re-entered the living room. It was certainly a sight to see: strings of garland strewn about the ceiling, hoof-stitched holiday blankets adorning the couch, and a set of three stylized stockings bearing each of their cutie marks hung above her fireplace. The pops and crackles of burning wood periodically snapped through the air, warming the entire lower floor of her humble abode.
“Isn’t it splendid?” Fluttershy offered the mugs to her guests before taking her own from the tray and relaxing between the duo on the couch. Two forelegs instantly slipped around her shoulders and she shuffled her wings to get comfortable. “It took a few hours to get everything down from the attic but I just love decorating my house.”
“I don’t understand it; you always make your house look so much nicer than I can dress up the library. I even followed Decorating Delights for December to the letter!“ Twilight leaned over, careful not to spill her drink as she rested her head on the perfectly placed shoulder. “We love it, Fluttershy. And if you’ll pardon my impersonation,” she snickered with a sly grin, “thank ya kindly for the treats, honeybun.”
“Hey, now!” Applejack bopped the unicorn on the nose with her free hoof, laughing as Twilight dissolved into a fit of giggles. “Just cause I love you doesn’t mean y’all can start taking my accent! Maybe I’ll just keep my kisses to myself! You wouldn’t like that now, would ya sugarcube?”
Twilight corralled her laughing spree and nodded blissfully, looking at the earth mare across Fluttershy. “Point taken, AJ. Forgive me?” The sweet taste of cocoa-flavored lips on her own told Twilight that all was forgiven.
“Um, girls?” Fluttershy spoke, garnering attention as she shifted uneasily in her seat. “I’d like to trade our gifts right now, if that’s okay.”
“Of course, hon. You’re looking mighty shaky though; is something wrong?,” AJ asked as she put down her mug and lay her hoof over her love’s.
Fluttershy nodded, her heart crying out as she remembered the situation in her bedroom upstairs. “Angel Bunny has been feeling terrible lately and I wanted to stay with him for a bit if I had a moment.”
“That’s really considerate of you, Fluttershy,” Twilight remarked with a warm smile as she stood, setting her own glass on a table coaster. “Why don’t we all pay Angel a visit before we open presents? I’m sure he’d like the company if he’s under the weather.”
The mare looked torn briefly before giving a single nod. “Alright, but just for a minute. He can’t really get out of his bed and I do want him to try and get some rest.” The trio stood and Fluttershy led the way up the staircase. Twilight and Applejack shared a look of worry; it wasn’t a good sign if the bunny couldn’t find the energy to even get up to eat and drink.
The door creaked as it was nudged open and Fluttershy trotted to the bedside of her closest animal friend. “Angel Bunny? You… you have some visitors. My friends Applejack and Twilight, you know them right? We always go on pet playdates with them. They wanted to come say h-hello…”
The two glanced around Fluttershy for a better look and immediately wished they hadn’t. Angel Bunny lay beneath his sheets, but his condition was far worse than a simple cold. His face was gaunt and thin as if he’d only eaten sparingly for a while. He shivered violently even under the multiple blankets and patches of his fur were completely bare. His breaths came in wheezes and caused him to cough every now and again.
“He’s been.. g-getting gradually worse over the last c-couple days,” Fluttershy explained, barely able to keep from sobbing. “I’ve had to feed him food and water but... sometimes he still doesn’t take it.”
Her voice broke altogether and tears cascaded down her cheeks as her lovers surrounded her in hugs from both sides. “I just… I don’t know what… !” A moment of silence was spared for Angel’s sake before they stood, returning to the warm comfort of the living room. Applejack massaged her back with a hoof consolingly as she hiccupped and sniffled. A few minutes passed before she could get her voice to work once more.
“I’m sorry… This was supposed to be such a happy time and I-”
“Fluttershy,” Twilight covered her mouth with a hoof, speaking in a gentle but firm tone. “This is not your fault. You have nothing to be sorry about, even less so because you’ve already proven that you love Angel so much. I can’t even imagine how difficult these past few days must have been for you.”
“Twilight’s right, you know,” Applejack continued, allowing Fluttershy to lean into her repeated hoofstrokes. “You’ve loved that bunny no matter what, even through the tough times. He knows that too, and he could never ask for a better friend.” She planted a soothing smooch on the pegasus’ forehead. “But ya know everything and everybody has a time they have to go.”
A sincere smile spread along Fluttershy’s muzzle. “I know. I’ve always known. Have I ever told you two why I named him Angel Bunny?” The two shook their heads. Her eyes glossed over as she wistfully recalled the day they met.
“It was not too long after I moved into this house from Cloudsdale when I was younger. At first, this house seemed so big… and so frightening. It was late one night and I was in my bed, but I couldn’t fall asleep because I was afraid of the darkness. Then, this little bunny hopped up onto my bed and looked me right in the eye. He sat down on my chest as I lay there and he curled up into a ball, almost as if he were protecting me during the night.”
Applejack pulled Fluttershy closer in an embrace, staying silent with rapt attention. “It was so cute! I knew it was a sign because I had just been so worried before that. And…” she sniffled, wiping her nose on a tissue, “...and the next morning when I woke up, he was still there. I felt like he had protected me when I was afraid to be alone. My own little guardian angel. So that’s what I named him. Angel.
“He became the first of my animal friends to stay with me in my cottage. He’s been here ever since. It’s true that I always knew at some point he’d have to leave me... but now, seeing it happen right before my eyes,” she finished as tears threatened to stain her face once more, “It’s so difficult.”
“Hey.” Twilight wrapped her hoof in Fluttershy’s, snuggling in to join the embrace wholeheartedly. “You’re not alone in this. You’ve got so many friends by your side. There’s Rarity, and Pinkie, and Rainbow Dash; you have your animal friends, and of course you have Applejack and me. And… even if you don’t realize it, you’ll always have Angel Bunny with you,” she moved their conjoined hooves over the pegasus’ chest, “in your heart. True friends even past the end.”
“Twilight… that may have been the most cliché sentiment I’ve ever heard.” Fluttershy broke into a mirthful grin, squeezing tightly as if to never let go of her true loves. “And it was absolutely what I needed to hear.” The three relaxed into the plush couch, basking in the warmth their shared affection brought to the room. The pegasus hummed, spreading her wings contentedly. “You know, I think I’d like to open some presents.”
In the wake of visiting Angel, the presents atop the table lay forgotten. Applejack leaned across and picked one off the top of the pile, setting it down on Fluttershy’s lap. “Here, darlin’. This one’s from me and the family because Celestia knows I couldn’t talk Apple Bloom and her friends out of making something for you girls.” She passed a similarly wrapped gift to Twilight.
The unicorn was the first to unwrap her gift, carefully unfolding the corners to keep the paper in pristine condition. “‘The Many Properties and Uses of Zap Apples’! AJ, this looks like a personal journal!”
The earth mare smiled. “It sure is! We’ve been gathering this info for a dog’s age, always trying to make the best and tastiest treats. I copied most of our notes from recipe cards, loose sheets of paper and the like, and Apple Bloom wanted to draw diagrams for some of the products. I thought it would come in handy for some research.”
Twilight embraced her friend as Fluttershy began tearing into her own gift. “It’s wonderful! Thank you so much! I’m gonna have Spike catalogue this first thing tomorrow morning!”
“Oh, my…” No other words could be said as Fluttershy gazed upon her present. In her hooves lay a stitched embroidery of herself and several of her close animal friends. There was Mr. Bear, Philomena, and immediately next to the stitching of herself was a caricature of Angel Bunny. “Applejack…”
“I did all of the stitching myself. I wanted it to be special, but it might be a bit rough, I-”
Fluttershy cut off the thought with a crushing hug. “It’s not rough. It’s beautiful and perfect. I can’t believe you went to so much trouble just for my gift!”
The farmer chuckled, returning the embrace gratefully. “T’was nothing like bucking trees or making jam, I’ll tell ya that much. But I love you sugar,” she punctuated the words with a peck on the lips. “Nothing is too much trouble.”
Buoyed by the affection emanating from the two, Twilight offered her own set of presents. “I guess you and I had similar gift ideas, AJ. Go on, check ‘em out!”
Inside the identically wrapped packages were scrapbooks, meticulously bound and adorned with each of their cutie marks. The first few pages each held pictures of various occasions in their lives. A photo of their group of friends stood proud next to the snapshot of the last Apple Family Reunion; the next page held scattered photos of their pet playdates.
“Wow, Twilight,” Fluttershy murmured as a scarlet blush rose to her cheeks. “You even found a picture of the night you asked us to go steady.” That night was surely one of the dearest and most romantic memories of her entire life. Though… something seemed a little off about the picture, something the pegasus couldn’t quite put her hoof on.
“Shoot, how’d ya even get the shot from this angle? What, did ya have someone stalk us with a camera just to capture the moment?” Applejack guffawed at the notion, turning the book this way and that, trying to decipher the puzzle.
“... No! That would just be silly; surely one of you would have noticed if a pegasus was following us?”
A pause. One could almost hear the mirth in Applejack’s voice before she spoke, “I didn’t say anything about a pegasus.”
“...Oh.” The sound of Twilight’s hoof making contact with her face spoke volumes.
The farmer lost it at that, rapturous giggles tearing through her body as she writhed in glee upon the couch. “Hoo-boy, Twi! You even got RD in on it, didn’t ya? That’s just too rich!”
“I thought it would be great to get it on film!” Twilight rambled wildly, eyes wide in panic and embarrassment. “I just thought - !”
Her words were muffled in the ensuing hug. “Shh-shh. It’s fantastic, love,” Fluttershy spoke sweetly, tightening her grip on the mare with a smile and a quick nuzzle. “And the later pages are empty so we can fill it with even more wonderful memories when we make them.”
Applejack wiped a hoof across her eyes to clear the tears and joined the embrace. “I’m only teasin’, hon. You put so much care into making this and ya didn’t even leave out one of our best memories! How could I not love it?”
Twilight sighed in relief and chuckled a bit. “In retrospect, I guess it was kind of silly to worry whether you both would like it. I’m still glad I could impress you girls with something other than a book!”
“Ya know, technically your present was still a book.” A pillow hit the earth mare square on the nose.
“You know what I meant! A book you could enjoy without reading!” She laughed, looking once more at the contents of the living room table. “That only leaves your gifts, Fluttershy. May I?”
Fluttershy nodded, tracing the small boxes with her eyes as they floated to their recipients in a lavender aura. “Just be gentle. They’re somewhat… fragile.”
Applejack took great care in removing the item from her box. “Well, I’ll be. This is right beautiful, Flutters.” In her hooves sat a colorfully tinted sheet of glass depicting two blooming tulips, their stems curled intricately around the border.
“They’re called stained glass,” Fluttershy explained with a smile as Twilight removed her own artwork: a cerulean dragonfly perched upon a lily. “I’ve been practicing for a month or so; I had to get the colors just right before I could give them to you girls.”
“I know the perfect place to hang it up, too: right over my bed where I can see it everyday!” Twilight gingerly set it back in the box and settled next to her marefriends once more. “And now it’s time for my favorite part of the holidays… cuddling up with loved ones by a warm fire.”
A weight pressed into Fluttershy’s side as Applejack wholeheartedly agreed with the notion. The pegasus sighed giddily, wrapped snugly in the embrace of her two very best friends in the world. “I’m so glad you girls could come over tonight. Just us, right here… alone… it means the world to me.”
Angel, I love you so, so much. But I know that if you leave, you’re going to a better place. And whatever happens, I know the girls and I can make it through and honor your memory. Together.
