Thunderspite

“Thank you so much for helping with the animals, Thunderspite,” Fluttershy was saying. “Tiny never like taking his medicine. I don’t know what I would have done without you.”

“Not at all, Miss Fluttershy,” Thunderspite and Fluttershy had actually gotten along quite well since that day he first met her in the market. She was as friendly and welcoming as the rest, but she also seemed to share his appreciation for solitude and quiet every once in a while.

Their conversation was interrupted by the piercing sound of several young ponies screaming.

“What was that?” Fluttershy asked, but Thunderspite was already down the street, using his wings and hooves to accelerate as fast as possible, and she followed. They both came to a stop as they came to the intersection, searching for the source of the sound.

“There!” Fluttershy pointed to the right, where Apple Bloom and two other fillies were all sprinting down the street, expressions of real fear on their faces. A few seconds later, several Timberwolves also rounded the corner, in hot pursuit of the young fillies and gaining fast.

“Get the girls, I’ll handle the wolves!” Thunderspite did not wait for a response from Fluttershy before he dashed into the sky and soared to an altitude of a few hundred feet, then rolled and dove at the timberwolves, tucking his wings as he went. With an impact that shook the ground, he landed square on the head of the one in the lead, who fairly exploded in a shower of branches, pine cones, and leaves.

Standing amidst the bundles of sticks that had formerly been a timberwolf, Thunderspite stared down the remaining five as Fluttershy quickly escorted the three fillies into an open shop door somewhere behind him. The timberwolves stopped and looked at each other for a moment, unsure. Finally, they seemed to decide that they had a numbers advantage on the lone pegasus, and began to advance.

“Hah!” Thunderspite shouted loudly and lunged towards the nearest timberwolf in an attempt to intimidate it, but the beast was unfazed. Retreating, Thunderspite picked up a long, thick branch from the remains of the first timberwolf and wielded it like a sword.

Thunderspite and the Timberwolves circled each other for a moment. The timberwolves attempted several times to surround him, but Thunderspite kept moving, always keeping the heart of the group in front of him.

Finally, one of the timberwolves lunged. Thunderspite deftly stepped to the side and brought the branch down on the beast’s head, knocking it clean off. The bundle of sticks clattered to the cobblestone street, followed by the rest of the body. The other timberwolves howled in rage, and the three nearest him all charged simultaneously. Thunderspite blocked the one in the center by shoving his weapon into the beast’s waiting jaws, then turned and delivered a strong kick to the wolf on the right, sending a lifeless bundle of sticks into the wall of a house. He had nearly dodged the bite of the wolf on the left, but the beast’s jaws clamped down on his ankle, and he cried out in pain. Turning, he plunged his hoof straight through the beast’s side and ripped a pine cone out from somewhere within the beast’s innards, killing it instantly.

The courage of the wolves that remained faltered, and they all turned tail and ran up the street, back towards the Everfree forest.

Thunderspite watched them go, until they were out of sight. Then he turned, wincing as he put his weight on his injured hind leg.

Fluttershy and the three fillies rushed to his aid. “Wow, that was totally awesome!” Said the young pegasus filly, fluttering in the air for a moment in excitement.

Apple Bloom’s face showed only concern. “Thunderspite! Are you okay?”

“I’ll be fine. Everyone, help me pick up these sticks before they reconstitute.”

Together, the five ponies quickly picked up every stick that lay scattered on the street, just as the neighborhood ponies started to peek out from their hiding places.

“Quickly now.” Thunderspite honestly looked more intimidated by the ponies than he had been of the timberwolves. He scooped up the last bundle of sticks from Apple Bloom and added it to his own bundle. “Come on, Fluttershy. We’ll scatter them over the forest.”

“Oh dear. Oh dear!” Fluttershy flinched as the bundle of sticks in her arms began to twitch with a green magic.

“Don’t worry. They won’t be able to reconstitute with you holding them like that. Apple Bloom, I want you and your friends to go straight to the farm and wait there with Applejack until I get back. Understood?”

“Aww, but...” Apple Bloom began to protest.

“Apple Bloom, please do as I say. I have to go with Fluttershy to scatter these sticks so the timberwolves don’t hurt anypony else, but I need to make sure you stay safe. Please?” Thunderspite’s face showed a mixture of sternness and concern. Apple Bloom barely hesitated before she nodded and scampered of down the road, with her two friends following close behind.

Thunderspite turned back to Fluttershy. “Ready? Let’s go.”

“Okay.” With some difficulty, Fluttershy flapped after him, trying not to panic at the sensation of the bundle of sticks twitching in her arms.

* * *

Fluttershy held the door open for Thunderspite as he slowly limped his way into her cottage. “Go have a seat on the couch over there. I’ll get my supplies, and I’ll be right back," Fluttershy said, before trotting off to the medicine cabinet.

Thunderspite did as he was asked. After they had scattered the timberwolf remains over the Everfree forest, Fluttershy had insisted that Thunderspite come with her back to her cottage so that she could attend to his injury.

Fluttershy returned with a first aid kit, a bowl of warm water, and a rag. She lifted Thunderspite’s wounded ankle up onto a small stool, then proceeded to gently cleanse the bite marks with warm water.

“Thank you again, Miss Fluttershy,” Thunderspite said.

“Oh no! It’s we who should be thanking you, Thunderspite. Why, if you hadn’t been there to fight off those timberwolves... ” She let the thought trail off. “That was really something, by the way. Where did you learn to do that?”

“Just something I picked up.” Thunderspite was being evasive as usual, but seemed to be too exhausted to put much effort into hiding it.

“Oh. Um, okay.” Fluttershy put down the bowl and put a small amount of ointment on a bandage. “This may sting a little,” She pressed the bandage against the wound. Thunderspite pursed his lips from the pain, but otherwise remained still.

Fluttershy bit her lip thoughtfully for a moment while she secured the bandage with tape. “Um, Thunderspite?”

“Yes?” Thunderspite could see that whatever it was she wanted to say was taking great effort on her part.

“Well, um... I just wanted to say that I understand that you don’t like talking about your past, and I’m sorry if I offended you by prying. But, if you ever do feel like talking about it, you can talk to me. People say I’m a really, really good listener. That is, I mean, if you want to." Fluttershy flinched almost imperceptibly after she finished talking, as if she expected to be punished for speaking out of turn. Instead, Thunderspite was genuinely touched by her offer, and the effort it must have taken to make it.

“Thank you, Fluttershy. That’s very kind of you. But I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised.” He offered her a smile. “I wish more ponies were like you.”

“Like me? Oh no no no, I wish I could be more like you, Thunderspite. You’re brave and strong, and I’m just...well I’m just me.”

Thunderspite was already shaking his head. “Being unafraid is not the same as being brave, Fluttershy. Real courage is acknowledging your fears and overcoming them. And from what I hear, every time you’ve come face to face with something that frightens you, you’ve always succeeded in doing what had to be done, in spite of your fear. The way I see it, that makes you one of the bravest ponies I know."

Fluttershy blushed. She had finished dressing his wounds and was now wrapping the entire ankle for the sprain. Meanwhile, Angel had hopped onto the couch next to Thunderspite, and was looking up at him with something like hero worship. Thunderspite reached over and scratched the bunny behind the ears. Fluttershy was amazed; Angel did not usually get along with strangers, and rarely let himself be petted by anyone except herself. It seemed he was still very grateful for Thunderspite’s help in procuring the tomatoes.

Still scratching Angel behind the ears, Thunderspite continued. “And your kindness is not weakness, Fluttershy. Kindness and friendship, what you and your friends have together...it makes you stronger together than anypony could be on their own." Thunderspite shook his head. "It's not something I understand very well, frankly."

Fluttershy smiled. She had finished wrapping his ankle and began to put away her implements. “Okay, you’re all set. Try to take it easy for a few days.”

Thunderspite gingerly got to his hooves and slowly put his weight on the injured hoof. It was still a bit tender, but he could walk on it. “That feels much better. Thank you, Fluttershy.” He made his way over to the door. “I’ll see you around, I suppose?”

“Yes. And Thunderspite? Um...” Thunderspite turned back to face her. She was bashfully scratching at the floor with her hoof. “Don't...don't forget my offer, okay?"

For a moment, Thunderspite considered walking back into her cottage and telling her everything. Instead, he just smiled again and shut the door behind him.