1. Puddles
Fluttershy liked puddles. There was something about the little reflective pools that made her feel peaceful. Maybe it was how the sunlight peeking through the clouds reflected off of them, or the cool splash when she stepped in one. Perhaps it was just as simple as what the presence of a puddle implied. Even more than the puddles, Fluttershy welcomed the rain; there was a novelty to it. She enjoyed being alone with her thoughts every once in a while, and the weather gave her the perfect opportunity.
Fluttershy felt a lone drop fall onto her snout. The drop stayed there for a moment, and Fluttershy could just see it in the corner of her eye. It slowly started to roll down her cheek and fell to the ground. She could see the spot where it landed – one wet spot in an expanse of dirt that had gone for too long without it.
She looked up at the sky. The pegasi weren’t quite done with the storm yet, but stray drops were known to fall ahead of schedule. She felt another drop land on the top of her head. Another rolled down her back. She could see the spots all over now, the ground slowly but surely having its thirst quenched. Soon a steady sheet fell downward, everything around her turning a shade darker with saturation. A songbird darted across her vision, taking sanctuary in a nearby pine tree. The ponies took cover as well.
Across the park, she could see her friends Applejack and Rarity, who had spent a good part of the afternoon getting the park ready for the storm. Or at least, Applejack was getting it ready. Rarity didn’t seem to be doing much of anything. But on the other hoof, Applejack’s way of doing things was equally futile. There wasn’t anything for them to fall on.
As the rainfall came harder and harder, the tension between the two mares grew. Even from a distance, she could see the strained look on Applejack’s face and the almost pathetic one on Rarity’s. Then the shouting came, the argument getting heated just as the temperature was beginning to drop. What was a little shivering to enjoy the lovely scenery?
So far, those two had been the funniest of her newfound friends to watch. She’d known Rarity before their adventure in the Everfree from the regular conversation at the spa, but had never thought of her as more than an acquaintance. Yet now she found herself thrown into a group of five other ponies who liked to throw around the word “friend” a lot. She didn’t know how she felt about that yet. It was nice to have friends, but she couldn’t handle that kind of situation. It made her feel awkward, exposed, even.
The wind picked up, and Fluttershy shielded her eyes against it. The rain bit into her, dozens of needles sending a numb feeling from her extremities to her core. She needed to move around a bit. The mud squelched under her hooves as she stepped down from her perch on a park bench. As she walked, she looked over at Applejack and Rarity. The latter was hiding under a bench, clearly not having a very good time. She chuckled at her friends’ antics and their ability to get riled up over the smallest thing.
Suddenly, the sky was filled with a bright flash. Fluttershy shrieked, jumping in fright as a loud boom shook the earth. As gravity tends to do, it brought her back down from her leap, on a collision course with the muddy puddle below. But just before she came crashing to the ground, something caught her.
Something pink.
“Fluttershy? What are you doing out here?”
Fluttershy’s eyes widened, her head turning to see none other than the pink terror herself, Pinkie Pie. Her usually poofy mane was plastered down from the rain, but her attitude was just as bouncy as ever, it seemed.
“Well, I was just taking a bit of a walk. I’m sorry if I disturbed you … I can just go the other way if you want.”
Pinkie laughed heartily, a noise almost as booming as the thunder. “You don’t need to say sorry for every little thing you do, silly!”
“I know. I’m sorry.”
“See, there it is again! You really need to work on your confidence, Flutters.” With a heave, she lifted Fluttershy up into the air, turned her around, and placed her back on her own four hooves. She managed to do this all on two hooves, a feat that Fluttershy was thankful she could manage.
“Thanks,” Fluttershy whispered. For the first time, she got a good look at her pink friend. She wasn’t nearly as muddy as she should’ve been. But she was covered in something: bubbles of some kind.
“Pinkie, what are you doing?”
“Taking a shower, what does it look like?”
“A shower?” she scoffed.
“Of course,” said the mare, grabbing a previously unseen bar of soap from her saddlebags. “This is how we always used to do it down on the rock farm when I was a little filly. We didn’t exactly have running water.”
Fluttershy decided not to question Pinkie’s reasoning. That often left one with more questions than they’d started with. Another streak of light flashed across the sky, followed by another roar of thunder. “Pinkie, maybe it would be a good idea for both of us to head home,” she said, wincing as the noise died down.
“Yeah, I suppose you’re right. Besides, I’m all squeaky clean now!”
“Aren’t you just going to get muddy again walking back home?”
Pinkie thought about that for a moment. “Well that’s what the hose is for, isn’t it?”
Fluttershy rolled her eyes. Jovial as she was, Pinkie always seemed to be the one who frustrated her the most. As Pinkie gathered up her soaps and shampoos, Fluttershy turned to look back at Applejack and Rarity, just in time to see the run inside the library. Moments later, she saw Applejack walk back out and make a beeline for the hose. Perhaps that really was what the hose was for.
“I’ll see you around Fluttershy!” Pinkie called, already halfway across the park. Fluttershy waved back, wanting to ask something but at the same time too nervous to. A few seconds and another strike of lightning later, she reconsidered, chasing her friend down through the mud.
It didn’t take Pinkie too long to notice her pursuer. “Aren’t you going home?” she asked, peering through the sheets of rain.
Fluttershy wanted to say something, but she didn’t know how. She knew that she didn’t want to have to fly all the way to her house in this weather. She knew that it would be rude to force a third guest on Twilight. She knew that she needed to stay with Pinkie for the night. Her mouth, however, didn’t seem to know any of these things.
“Do you want me to guess? Oh, I love guessing games! Are you lost? Is some evil sorcerer taking control of your brain? Did I forget to give you back your toothbrush?”
“Wait, when did I give you my toothbrush?” Fluttershy asked, perplexed.
“Oh … sorry about that. That might have been a bit of an I.O.U.”
“Look, Pinkie, I just don’t feel safe flying home in this weather, and I don’t really know what to do.”
“So … you need somewhere to stay the night. You could come back to Sugarcube Corner with me if you wanted. I mean, you and me could go … yeah.”
“... Okay,” Fluttershy replied, a bit addled by Pinkie’s sudden shift in mood. “Or we could go to Twilight’s. It’s right over there, if that’s alright with you.
Pinkie blinked, seeming to gain back some of her gusto. “I really think we should go to the Corner. I mean, Twilight’s already got two guests and Spike to deal with, I’m sure she’s got enough on her hooves.”
“Actually, I’m sure Twilight would love to have us over if she’s letting Applejack and Rarity stay. And besides, I heard Spike was visiting Canterlot on--”
“Or we could just go over to Sugarcube Corner, right?” Pinkie asked in a way that Fluttershy could only label as intimidating.
“Well, if that’s what you want, I suppose I can come over,” she mumbled, cowering as she had a bad habit of doing.
“Alright, this is going to be so much fun! Just a good ol’ regular slumber party between two regular friends, right?”
Fluttershy answered the question with one of her own. “What else would it be?”
“... Well, we better get going. I don’t know about you, but I do not want to stay out here and catch a cold … or worse!”
Fluttershy’s eyes narrowed. There was something about the way Pinkie was deflecting questions, and her not wanting to go over to Twilight’s also struck her as odd. If she didn’t know better, she’d think Pinkie was nervous, though it was just as likely Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie. The mare had about as much self-control as a drunk griffon, and even more mood swings, that much was evident.
The two mares made their way up the streets, which were quickly becoming less like roads and more like the mud baths at the spa. The spa, however, was warm. At the moment, Fluttershy was having trouble seeing her own breath through the rain, let alone her guide. If they got split up, or Pinkie forgot who was behind her, then she wouldn’t be able to find her way to Sugarcube Corner. Normally, the large cupcake roof would be a distinguishing feature, but the rain made everything grey and dull.
“So Flutters, what do you want to do when we get there?”
“Well, all I really want right now is come hot cocoa … if that’s alright with you, I mean.”
Fluttershy thought she saw Pinkie nod, though she couldn’t really tell. “That sounds good to me. I’m sure there’s some in the storeroom. They don’t usually break it out until winter.”
“They?”
“The Cakes, who else?”
“Pinkie, wouldn’t that be stealing?”
“Nah. I’ll just have them take it off my check if it’s that big of a deal. I pay rent, after all. But is that all you want to do, just sit around drinking cocoa? Boooooring!”
“Well, if Rarity were here, she’d probably give us all makeovers. You want to do that?”
“Nah, I’m just fine the way I look now!”
“You sure? I think you’d look nice with a manecut,” Fluttershy suggested.
“Aw, thanks Fluttershy. But I can’t really imagine myself with a manecut. Seriously, that would just be the silliest thing.”
“I couldn’t hear you Pinkie. What did you say?” The mare didn’t reply. Even her booming voice was being cut out by the rain, so Fluttershy had little hope her voice would carry over the roar. Instead she decided to look around. There wasn’t much to look at, but that was fine with her. Grey was simple, easy to look at. If she hadn’t been so cold at the moment, she’d probably be enjoying herself.
The only thing that wasn’t grey was the mare in front of her, who was anything but simple. She hadn’t really thought about what she was going to do after the rain was done, but she certainly hadn’t planned on spending the night at sugarcube corner, leaving all her animals scared and alone. Of course, she was just as scared at the moment. She didn’t do well in crowds, and to her, two was a crowd.
Faintly, she heard Pinkie’s voice, but couldn’t hear what she was saying. “What was that?” she asked.
“I said we’re here!” Pinkie shouted, though over the rain it wasn’t much more than a whisper.
Fluttershy looked up, putting a hoof up to block out the raindrops. She could just see the outline of the unmistakable pastry-shaped roof above her, with candles glowing faintly in the gloom. She also saw an overhang in the roof, which she quickly stepped under. Never had Fluttershy been so happy to be under cover. The change was night and day: she could see and hear a bit better, and most importantly, she could start drying off and warming up.
“Thank you so much for letting me come over ... Pinkie?” There was no sign of the mare anywhere under the roof. She extended her search out into the rain and saw something moving around in a mud puddle across the street.
“Pinkie, is that you?” she asked, using her best outside voice but still not able to cut through the rain. Thankfully, the answer presented itself, as a mud-covered pony emerged from the puddle, carrying something in her mouth.
“Pinkie, what are you doing?”
“Mm mnf mum mumf muh mumm,” she mumbled. Remembering there was something in her mouth, she dropped what she was carrying. Upon hitting the ground, it moved a bit. Though it was still caked in mud, Fluttershy knew an alligator when she saw one.
“As I was saying, you meant to say ‘what was I doing’. I’m already done, so it’s past tense.”
“Pinkie, you know what I mean. Why was Gummy out in the rain?”
“I was just letting him out to play, silly! Little alligators need their exercise, and Gummy loves going out in the rain.”
Fluttershy shook her head. The reptile was wearing the same neutral expression it always did. She’d often wondered about Pinkie’s innate ability to understand what Gummy was thinking. That kind of understanding was something she could relate to, after all. She followed her friend inside Sugarcube Corner, the light and warmth beckoning her like a moth to a lantern.
Pinkie opened the door, and after wiping her hooves, Fluttershy walked in. Pinkie didn’t follow her in. She turned around, intent on asking why, but got a face full of mud instead. She wiped her eyes just in time to see the mare shake the last of the mud off. Then she looked up.
“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry about that Fluttershy.” Pinkie’s tone was apologetic, though Fluttershy could tell she was holding back a laugh, and doing a bad job at that. It was hard to get mad at a pony like Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy couldn’t help but laugh as well.
“It’s fine, Pinkie … it’s kind of like the spa, actually.”
“Only without the cucumbers,” Pinkie replied, walking past her friend and into the house. “I’m going to go get some towels so we can dry off. Make yourself comfortable.”
“Well, a towel does sound nice.” Fluttershy closed the door behind her, at last leaving the sound of rain behind her, the heavy cacophony replaced with the light pattering of drops hitting the windows. The one thing that hadn’t changed was the dark. She would have to wait until they lit up some candles to see anything properly.
Despite the darkness, she could see some of the windowside booths, and the only thing she wanted more than a warm fire at the moment was to sit down.
“WAIT!!” A loud cry echoed through the house, followed by a series of bumps and thuds. When all was said and done, Pinkie lay at the bottom of the stairs in a bit of a compromising position, with a dozen towels and one alligator strewn in all directions.
“You didn’t sit down, did you?” Pinkie shouted.
“Uh … no, but you said I could, right? I’m really sorry if I misheard.”
“No! Well, yeah ... but you can’t! The Cakes would get really mad if I got everything all wet.”
“You want some help up?” Fluttershy asked, deciding not to point out that Pinkie could’ve used one of her dozen towels to dry up any mess she made. Pinkie nodded, and soon twelve towels, and one pony were back where they ought to be. Fluttershy had restored order to Pinkie, or whatever order was for a mare who could literally bounce off walls.
“You wanna head upstairs? I got a fire going in the fireplace.”
“Yes, I’d love that, thank you very much.”
After drying off, the pair headed up. Fluttershy couldn’t put a hoof on what it was, but there was something about being inside tonight that felt right. Whether it was the feeling of finally being dry or something else she wasn’t thinking of, she had no idea. As they reached the top of the stairs, Pinkie opened up the door on the right. Fluttershy could feel the warmth of the room from out in the hall. It was splendid.
“Well, are you going to come in or not?” Pinkie asked, grabbing a poker off the wall to push another log into the fire.
Fluttershy nodded, joining her friend next to the fire. The two sat there for a spell, letting the warmth dry out their coats and manes. She closed her eyes, enjoying the bliss as the warmth seeped into her. It got into her skin, her flesh and bones, and in time she felt like she’d never been in the rain in the first place.
“Hey Fluttershy?”
The pegasus jumped. She’d almost forgotten there was somepony else in the room. ‘Yes, what is it?”
“I told you why I was out there, but you never really told me why you were. I mean, yeah, you said you were on a walk, but nopony goes out and takes walks during thunderstorms unless they’ve got a good reason.”
“I … I don’t really know,” Fluttershy answered honestly. She was sure she’d had a reason at the time, but at the moment, it was escaping her.
“How can you not know why you’re doing something? Either you had a reason or you were out there by accident.”
Fluttershy wished Pinkie would go back to making no sense. That was easier to swallow.
“Look, if you don’t want to tell me, just say something,” Pinkie prodded. “Don’t be such a party-pooper.”
“Is it getting warmer in here, or is it just me?”
“Fluttershy, I can’t help you if you change the subject.”
“And who says I need helping from you? I’ve only known you for a few weeks.”
“You didn’t need to say anything,” Pinkie replied, “I can see it in your eyes. You feel alone. You probably don’t even realize it, and you might even think you like it. But believe me, you can’t stay like that. It … just doesn’t work.”
Fluttershy turned towards the fire. It was starting to get too hot in here, and she knew Pinkie could feel it too.
“What would you even know about being lonely?” Fluttershy asked, her voice painted with a few coats of accusation. “You’ve got a bunch of friends and everyone you meet likes you.”
“Well, you don’t seem to like me right now, so that makes one, right?”
The joke deflected off of Fluttershy like rain off of a window. Sighing, the pink mare got onto her four hooves, moved over a few steps, and plopped down next to her friend. “You know, I think you were right about the fire being a little hot. You want to go somewhere else?”
Despite Pinkie’s best efforts, the room and Fluttershy alike were silent, other than the crackling sound of the fire and the storm outside. For once, comedy was not the answer. “Look, I’m sorry I got carried away there. But do you think I was always like this?”
“What do you mean?” Fluttershy asked, her curiosity getting the better of her.
“I mean all bouncing-off-the-walls hyper and stuff. Do you think I always had a bunch of friends, that I was always brave enough to talk to random ponies on the street?”
“Well, I don’t really know. I always kind of assumed you just did.”
“Never assume things like that. It’s just like my father always said: when you assume, you make an ass out of you and me.”
Fluttershy smiled, not a lot, but enough. “Yeah, I suppose your dad was right.”
“Sort of. But the problem was that he decided a long time ago that the best way to not make an ass out of himself was to avoid talking to anypony else. So he moved to a house in the middle of nowhere and start a rock farm.”
“I suppose that sounds familiar,” Fluttershy admitted. “Well, other than the rock farm part.”
“Yeah, he was kind of like you; too shy to admit that he was shy. We never really had that many visitors when I was growing up, and when you grow up with a stallion like my father, you start to feel the same way. I didn’t even like to talk to my sisters, let alone strangers.”
“I can’t imagine you like that. But how did you find out your special talent was making other ponies happy?”
Pinkie smiled knowingly. “That’s a long story, but I’m sure it’ll come up some other time. The point is, I wasted a lot of time being too shy to talk to anypony. That’s why I’m so frantic about it nowadays, so willing to try new things. I’m trying to make up for lost time.”
Fluttershy sat up, for the first time in a while getting a good look at Pinkie. There was a look of sincerity in her eyes she wouldn’t have pictured her having an hour ago. But now, it seemed just as natural as her laugh, just as endearing as her smile.
“So you’re saying I should try new things, get out of my comfort zone a bit?”
“Uh … yeah.”
“What kinds of things do you think I should do? Should I throw parties like you? I don’t think I’d be all that good at that.”
“No, that’s not quite what I meant. You should probably … try for something similar. You can’t keep going in fear of doing something … no matter how much it … scares you.”
Fluttershy looked back up into Pinkie’s eyes. The look of sincerity was gone, replaced with something that she could only describe as fear. It was just like what had happened earlier when she’d asked if she could come over. Fluttershy wasn’t the best as gauging ponies, but she could tell there was something eating at Pinkie.
“Pinkie, are you alright?”
“Yeah … Just fine … why do you ask?”
“You look like you’ve seen a ghost. Is something wrong? You can tell me if you want. It’s the least I can do, considering how nice you’ve been to me tonight.”
Fluttershy wasn’t sure exactly what happened next. She closed her eyes, and when she opened them, all she could see was pink. All she could feel was something on her lips. Time slowed down as a shock ran through her body, as if she’d been struck by lightning. Her eyes shot open with the sudden realization of what was happening. It shouldn’t have been happening, but it was.
Thoughts ran through her head in a chaotic maelstrom, crashing into each other, gumming up the works. Amid the chaos, one thought broke off from the others, shouting at her from the deepest part of her head.
No.
This is wrong.
Stop.
Run.
Do something.
And suddenly, the feeling was gone. Time was no longer slow, if anything, it was going by too fast. Images and colors flashed by, running together into an unrecognizable mess. Nothing meant anything other than her compulsion to run. She thought she could hear a voice behind her, above her, a voice calling her back. The voice was desperate. The voice was wrong.
Presently, she saw something in front of her. A door; a way out. She opened it, running through it into a prison of three walls. She could hear the voice behind her, pleading. There was no other option. She pulled the door shut. A crack of thunder rang in her head, a short instant of noise that seemed to last forever.
It echoed.
It was the only noise.
She was alone.
2. Precipitation
Fluttershy didn’t remember closing her eyes, yet now she had to open them. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and stretched her sore legs and back. She didn’t feel like she’d just woken up from a night’s sleep. It felt more like waking up after taking an accidental nap on the couch for a couple of hours. As she became more alert, Fluttershy began to wonder if she’d even slept that long . Memories flooded back. She’d run away from Pinkie like she was some bloodthirsty manticore, all because of one little kiss.
“That’s all it takes. One peck to set me off the edge.”
The only thing she couldn’t remember was where she’d ended up. She looked around and saw a sink and a bathtub in front of her. A few towels hung on hooks on the opposite wall, and a mirror was mounted on the right. She was in the bathroom. Half-heartedly, she pushed into the door behind her. It was locked.
“Oh, how original,” Fluttershy said with uncharacteristic sardonicism. She got up and, after locating the lock in the dim light, opened the door. What little light had been in the house before was gone. Most of the candles had burned out, but she could still see well enough to make her way around. The rain pattered lightly on the windows, a fraction of the torrential downpour remaining as the storm moved on.
The room was dark and cold, and Fluttershy found herself missing the fireplace. It was better than being outside, but not by much. She took a few steps forward. The faint silhouettes of tables and chairs could be just be made out in the dim moonlight. Everything was motionless and silent, like the word had disappeared, apart from some pieces of furniture.
At that moment a sound broke the silence, one so faint that Fluttershy thought she had imagined it. A moment later, she heard it again, a faint scratching that wouldn’t have been too out of place in her own home. The noise came a third time, now from her left. She looked over, and in a faint beam of moonlight saw something green. As quickly as it had appeared, whatever it was vanished into the dark as a dark cloud passed in front of the moon. Even with just a short glimpse, Fluttershy had a good idea of what she’d seen.
“Is that you, Gummy?” Fluttershy waited for an answer, realizing few moments later that Gummy couldn’t respond. She wasn’t even sure if he understood what she was saying. Most animals did, but when all she got was that kind of wall-eyed look in return, she couldn’t really be sure..
“I really hope Pinkie’s okay, Gummy. I don’t know if you saw what happened, but I did something really dumb.” Fluttershy took a deep breath, collecting herself.
“I guess I just can’t bond with other ponies like that. Ever since I was little, I’ve barely had any friends, certainly not a marefriend. And how could that work anyway? Me and Pinkie are completely different ponies. And I know they say opposites attract and all that, but everypony knows that’s not true. Sure, you might like somepony the for a few weeks, maybe even a month, but when it comes down to it and it stops being new, you really don’t love them.”
“Is that a reason not to try, though? Maybe if I don’t try this now, I’ll grow old and lonely without kids or anypony who cares about me. I’ve been trying to work up the courage to ask somepony out for years, but I never thought anypony else would be interested in me. And what does Pinkie see in me anyway?”
Fluttershy glanced down at the baby alligator. Gummy stared up at her blankly. “And I’m really wondering about what she said before about being shy as a filly. It makes perfect sense and all, but she couldn’t really be that shy, considering how she is now.”
“I wish I could just ask her all of this, but I can’t.”
Even as she said those words, she knew they were wrong, knew perfectly well that there was something she could do, and all she had to do was walk upstairs. She looked down at Gummy. The eyes she’d so recently seen nothing in now seemed to be urging her on, telling her what she was feeling was right.
“But I can’t just go up there, Gummy. I wouldn’t know what to say. I’d just make it worse.”
Gummy opened his mouth a little, and Fluttershy responded in kind.
“Well, what do you think I should say then? ‘Pinkie, you’re a great mare, but you came on too strong?’ I ran out of the room like she was a pack of hungry timberwolves! There’s nothing I can say to make up for that.”
Gummy blinked.
“Pinkie’s probably just asleep anyways. The worst of the storm is over, so I should probably just go home, right? I could let this whole thing blow over and talk to her when we’ve both had some time to calm down and think about it. What do you think?”
Gummy sat there.
“I’m not a coward! I could go up there right now and tell her what I think if I wanted to. It’s just not the best thing to do right now, that’s all.”
“You know, sometimes I wonder if you make up all your conversations with your animals.”
In a whirl, Fluttershy turned to see that somepony else was standing across the room. It was too dark to see who it was, but she recognized the voice.
“Pinkie, what are you doing down here?”
“What do you mean, ‘what am I doing’? I can hear you from upstairs.”
Flutershy blinked. “What?”
“You’ve been shouting at Gummy for a while now. I didn’t know you could get so loud.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry Pinkie. I mean, I didn’t know that you… that I would…”
Pinkie stepped forward into a beam of moonlight, illuminating her face in ghostly white. Her mane was as straight as a ruler. “It’s fine, really. It’s not like I had anything better to do.”
Fluttershy nodded nervously, taking a few steps forward. She ran headlong into a table, knocking it and it’s contents onto the floor.
“Maybe I should light some candles,” Pinkie suggested, her smirk visible in the dim illumination.
“That might be a good idea.”
Pinkie Pie went off behind the counter to get the matches, and while she did, Fluttershy was alone with her thoughts. She couldn’t tell if Pinkie mad at her, or was she going to try the same act she’d used upstairs. A bead of cold sweat run down the back of her neck. Now she wished Pinkie really was a pack of Timberwolves. It would be an improvement.
A few moments later, Pinkie came back with the matches and a candle. She set the candle up on a table and struck the match, lighting the wick. The two mares sat down across from each other. The faint light from the candle flickered across their faces, giving them enough light to see each other’s faced. Fluttershy tried to read Pinkie’s face, but it was uncharacteristically devoid of emotion.
Pinkie opened the conversation. “I’m surprised you’re still here.”
“Really? why would I leave?” Fluttershy asked, hoping Pinkie hadn’t heard what she’d said a few minutes earlier.
“I’ll bet there are less reasons to stay than there are to go.”
Fluttershy looked down at the table, trying to avoid eye contact. “Well, it’s still cold and wet out, so I figured it would be better to stay the night.”
Fluttershy sneaked a look through her mane, which hug in front of her face. Pinkie remained silent, glaring at Fluttershy through narrowed eyes.
“Also, it’s dark out, and I don’t know what could be out there.”
“Don’t lie to me, Fluttershy. We both know you’re not afraid of any of the animals out there.”
Fluttershy gulped. She had to say something, and she had to say it now.
“Well, the other reason I wanted to stay is because I wanted to say… something.”
Pinkie’s stare was blank. “Mm-hm.”
“Are you mad at me?” Fluttershy blurted.
Pinkie seemed taken aback. “No, not really.”
“Then why are you staring at me like that?” You look like you’re trying to bore holes in my head.” Now it was Fluttershy’s turn to do the glaring. Was this Pinkie’s idea of a joke, coming down and making her feel bad for no good reason? She didn’t want any part of it.
“Yeah, I’m just not sure what to think right now. Or what to say. I was hoping you would… I don’t know, say stuff.” Pinkie’s frown stood out in the light of the candle, though most of her face was in shadow.
“Stuff?”
“Yeah, stuff. You’re sitting here talking after what I did. That’s really mature. And here I am, acting like I’m angry just to try and blame you for it. I wish I could be more like you.” Now Pinkie was the one trying to avoid eye contact. Fluttershy leaned across the table and put a hoof under her chin. Tenderly, she pulled Pinkie’s head up to face her own.
“After what you did? I’m the one who locked myself in the bathroom.”
Pinkie sighed. “Yeah, but that was the right thing to do. It was really bad of me to just kiss you like that instead of asking. I just thought that with what I was saying and what you were saying… I don’t really know what I was thinking.”
Fluttershy felt a bit of confidence well up in her. “How long have you known?”
“Known what?”
“That you liked me?”
Pinkie smiled nervously. “Oh, that. I think it was sometime after we got out of the Everfree. I’m not really sure. I mean, that wasn’t even a month ago, but you’re just really nice. More than nice. I just never stopped to think that you probably didn’t feel the same way.”
Fluttershy’s words caught in her throat. How, after all that had happened, had she not asked herself that same question? Her mind went back to the kiss, the part before she’d panicked. She remembered a rush in her chest, a feeling of warmth as Pinkie’s lips touched hers. She remembered Pinkie’s hoof on her side and a sensation that ran through her like electricity. Was it right? Was it wrong? She couldn’t decide.
“Fluttershy?”
And then she stopped thinking. She leaned over the table and put her lips on Pinkie’s. For once, she wasn’t worrying. She wasn’t thinking about what Pinkie would think when the kiss was over, wasn’t concerned with what she was going to say. For once, none of it seemed to matter.
When she opened her eyes again and pulled away, Fluttershy was greeted with a pony that didn’t seem to know how to feel. There was surprise, joy, calm, and just a hint of terror on a face that normally sported a simple, carefree grin.
“Well, I guess we’re even now,” Fluttershy said, breaking the silence.
All of a sudden Pinkie’s face lit up, the corners of her mouth turning up in her signature smile, and her mane returning to it’s regular cotton candy state.
“Yeah, I guess we are.”
The two ponies sat there for a while longer, just talking. The conversation had a sense of ease to it, as if something had drained all the tension out of the room, like a vacuum sucking up dust. As for the topic, whether it was the finer points of baking or debating what the cutest animal in Equestria was, it skirted the current situation for as long as possible. Eventually, despite the best efforts of the pair, it came full circle.
“Hey Pinkie?”
“Yeah, Flutters?”
“I suppose I should apologize for waking you up. I mean, it’s good we had this conversation and all, but I’m sure we could’ve had it in the morning just as well.”
Pinkie stared at Fluttershy blankly, but only for a moment. “Oh, you didn’t wake me up, Fluttershy. When I said you were being loud, I meant you were being loud compared to how you normally are. That’s still not very loud.”
“But I thought you said—”
“I said I could hear you from upstairs.”
Fluttershy’s face lit up with a realization. “So you were still awake. Why?”
Pinkie took a moment formulating her response. “There were a couple of reasons.”
“Care to explain?” Fluttershy asked.
“Well, I suppose it couldn’t hurt,” Pinkie replied, her words stretched like a rubber band. “But no saying sorry every time I say something. And no blubbering!”
“Blubbering?”
Pinkie voice held both a serious and humorous air at once, and her face struggled to keep pace. “Yeah, it’s a funner way to say crying.”
Fluttershy shook her head. “Okay, fine, no blubbering.”
“Okay then. Now, where do I start?”
Fluttershy spoke without thinking. “Right after I left, I suppose.” She regretted saying it even before she finished. Pinkie frowned.
“Yeah, right… after you left. You know, I’m not really that sure how much of that I remember. I mean, you were there, then you weren’t, then I was running after you.”
“You ran after me? I don’t remember that at all.”
“Well, I didn’t really shout after you or anything. You got to the bathroom and closed the door before I could get there. I sat there for a while, not knowing what to do. I wanted to try and talk to you, but I couldn’t bring myself to do anything. I even thought of breaking down the door to see if you were alright. You looked so scared running away from me, like a wild animal.”
Gulping, Fluttershy tried to move the conversation into calmer seas. “What happened after that?”
“I chickened out. I should’ve done something, Fluttershy.”
“I’m not so sure. If I was really that scared, it was probably best to just leave me alone.”
Pinkie nodded. “That’s true, I guess. Anyway, I walked around a bit after that, you know, around the house. I didn’t know what to do or anything, and I felt like an idiot. It was the first time I’d ever tried to do something like ask somepony out, and at that point I thought you’d never want to talk to me again or anything. Eventually, I got tired of walking around the same rooms over and over, and I was thinking about what you said out in the rain.”
“What did I say?”
“Well, you said you were walking out there to clear your head and be alone, or something like that.”
Fluttershy was incredulous. “I didn’t say anything like that. And why do you care about why I was out there so much? This is the third time you’ve asked me now.”
“You wanted to say it, though. The second time I asked, by the fire, you almost said it. But you didn’t trust me. That’s both of our problems, really. We’re insecure. I cover it up with weekly parties and you cover it up with animals. Neither of us ever open up to other ponies like this, like we are right now.”
“But it feels nice,” Fluttershy said, picking up where Pinkie had left of. “I mean, it’s scary and all, but for once that’s not enough to deter me. That’s exactly why I was out in the rain. Being around other ponies is really hard for me most of the time.”
Pinkie smiled empathetically. “That’s what I thought. So, I was thinking about that and how I really needed to clear my head. So I went outside and I walked. I can’t remember how far I went. I can’t even remember what I was thinking about. The only thing I remember was how cold and dark it was.”
“Why did you stay out if it was like that?” Fluttershy asked.
“Well, it wasn’t much different than it was inside. It was dark in there, and I was just as cold as the rain, really. In a different sort of way, sure, but… I’m no good with this philosophical stuff.”
“It sounded pretty deep to me,” Fluttershy replied, chuckling. Her eyes met Pinkie’s. “You know, the first time I saw you was also my first day in town. I’d actually moved in a week ago, but I hadn’t worked up the courage to leave my cottage. When I finally did, the first thing I did was go shopping at the market. On the way back, I accidentally stumbled into one of your parties, or I should say the crowd carried me into one.”
Pinkie just nodded at this, remaining uncharacteristically reserved.
“I never actually ran into you at that party, but I did see you. How could I not? You were running around, being a part of at least a dozen conversations and games at once, like you always seem to do. I should’ve been impressed, but the only thought that went through my head was that you weren’t really thinking about anything. I kept thinking that for all this time, at least until tonight. What we’re doing right now… I mean, you’re just sitting there listening to me. Nopony ever does that, and I guess I was selling you short by thinking you’d never be the one to.”
“I guess we both need to work on our self-confidence, don’t we?”
“Yeah, I guess we do.”
“So, should I go back to the part with me in the rain or what?”
Fluttershy’s eyes widened. “Oh, Pinkie, I’m so sorry for interrupting. Of course you can finish.”
“Flutters, didn’t I say no blubbering?”
“Yeah, right, I’m… I’m okay.”
“You were about to say sorry again,” Pinkie said, accusingly but playfully all the same.
“Okay, fine, I was. It’s not that easy breaking a habit like that in one day, you know.”
“I suppose,” Pinkie replied. She turned her head to look out the window at the slow drizzle. It was as if the storm was making one last laudable effort to last a little longer. She gave a small empathetic smile before continuing.
“So, there I was, walking around in the rain, feeling more rotten than, well, rotten stuff. I was muddy, shivering, but I didn’t really want to go back. It was like I had to figure out what I was going to do before I came back inside, but I’m not really sure. I was kind of out of it.”
A small part of Fluttershy wanted to point out how obvious that was, but the rest of her knew that it wouldn’t help, even if she had the nerve to say it. “Well, since you’re here, I’d assume you figured something out, right?”
In the reflection of the moon, Pinkie could see a set of hoofprints in the mud. Her hoofprints. “Well, not exactly. After I walked around for an hour or so, the only plan I could think of was to do nothing and see what you did.”
Fluttershy’s, who had been somewhat emotionless up until this point, frowned. “I feel like that should be offensive, but that kind of makes sense.”
“It does? I thought it was a bit crazy, even for me,” Pinkie said honestly.
“It really isn’t. I didn’t really know what I wanted. You gave me a chance to sort things out without interfering. If you’d tried anything at first, you probably would’ve just scared me more.” Fluttershy followed Pinkie’s gaze out the window. There was a pool of murky water in the middle of the road outside, and in it, two sets of hoofprints.
“Fluttershy, if you know all of this now, then why do you get so scared by things?”
Fluttershy smiled. “Well, have you ever had the feeling that you’re going just a bit overboard on the craziness at one of your parties?”
“Sometimes.”
“It’s the same with me. I can be braver when it really matters, but most of the time I’d rather crawl back into my shell, just like you’d rather bounce around than tie yourself down.” Fluttershy pushed out her chair and walked around to Pinkie’s side of the table. “Maybe the key to making us work as friends, and maybe… Well, let’s just go with friends.”
“Yeah, that works.”
“What I’m saying is we can make this work without changing outselves. I mean, look at how well being ourselves it worked out. In the end, all I needed was a little push from you.”
“I guess that’s true, but I still think you could stop saying sorry so much.”
Fluttershy chuckled. “I suppose I could say that a little bit less.”
“You think?”
“Okay, a lot less,” she clarified. “But one thing I do need to say sorry for is ruining this sleepover. We were supposed to be having fun tonight, or” —Fluttershy looked up at the clock— “Last night, I suppose. Either way, I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. I’m pretty sure it was both our faults, but at least it all worked out in the end. Also, is it really after midnight?”
“Half past,” Fluttershy replied. “You think it’s time we got to bed?”
“Bed? But we still haven’t had a super-fun slumber party yet!”
Fluttershy narrowed her eyes, “Pinkie, it’s almost one in the morning and you’re thinking about having a party? You might need sleep even more than I do right now.”
Pinkie pushed out her chair and stood up. “Sheesh, Fluttershy, I’m always thinking about having a party. I mean, how long have we known each other?”
“A few weeks.”
“Exactly! And you’ve been living here in Ponyville for long enough to know that when Pinkie says there’s going to be a party, it’s going to happen.”
Fluttershy felt like sighing, but grinned in spite of herself. “You know, Pinkie, for you, I think I can manage it.”
“Really?” Pinkie’s face lit up like a lantern.
“Yeah. You seem like the kind of pony who could show a mare a good time.”
Pinkie blushed. “Or we could just have a pillow fight or something.”
“Yeah, I was kidding anyways.”
The two laughed, sending an echo through the empty rooms of Sugarcube Corner. It may have been dark and wet, but they certainly weren’t alone. As they made their way upstairs, Pinkie Pie looked back out into the rain.
“I wonder how Applejack and Rarity are doing over at Twilight’s.”
“I’ll bet they’re not having as good a time as we are,” Fluttershy said, nuzzling Pinkie to emphasize her point.
“Yeah, I guess you’re right.”
The friends made their way up the stairs and back into the warm light of the fire. There they played games, romped and laughed for as long as they managed to stay awake. Outside, the storm’s hold on the night sky slipped and the rain, at long last, stopped.
