Once Bitten, Twice Shy

Chapters

Chapter 1: The Secret Crush
Chapter 2: When We Were Very Young
Chapter 3: Apple Bloom's Resolution
Chapter 4: First Date Nerves
Chapter 5: Ditched!
Chapter 6: The Picnic
Epilogue

Chapter 1: The Secret Crush

Locomotion glanced all around himself as he wandered through the orchard, casually taking in the sights and sounds of the late autumn weather. Where the leaves on the trees had formerly been a vivid shade of forest green, they had decayed to the same dull orange hue as the rusty old engines he sometimes saw awaiting repairs or disposal at the engine sheds where he worked, and several fallen apples lay with them on the ground near the trees that had been nurturing them since early spring, patiently waiting to be gathered. Though the red-coated unicorn colt was more of a railway enthusiast than a nature lover, he nonetheless found the scene rather picturesque and intriguing as he made his way up to the Apple family homestead.

Just as he was approaching the gate, he noticed a certain yellow Earth filly nearby. “Morning, Apple Bloom,” he called. “How's it going?”

Oh, hi, Loco,” said Apple Bloom cheerfully. “Ah'm okay, thanks. How 'bout you, everything okay with y'all?”

“Pretty much, I guess,” replied Locomotion. “Seems there was a bit of an accident at the depot this morning, though; the Superintendent says the 5118 was derailed coming back onto shed about half an hour before I was due to start my firing turn, and since nothing else can come in or out, they're having to wait for the wrecking crew to get her back on the rails, so I've pretty much got the day off.”

“That's a shame,” mused Apple Bloom.

“Nah, it's okay, Apple Bloom; the Super' says I've been working pretty hard lately anyway. What have you and the others been up to then?”

“Not much,” admitted Apple Bloom sheepishly. “We're pretty short of ideas fo' gettin' our Cutie Marks – again – so Ah ain't got a lot ta do mahself.”

Locomotion cocked his head in confusion. “What about the apple harvest? Don't your brother and sister need your help?”

“Not at the moment,” explained Apple Bloom. “Two cousins of mine have come ta visit from Mustangia; they volunteered ta help with the harvest this mornin'.”

“Oh, okay,” replied Locomotion. “Fancy some lunch at Sugarcube Corner then? Sweetie-Belle said she'd be there too.”

“Sure, why not?” conceded Apple Bloom. “Better than sittin' around an' waitin' fo' the others ta finish up.”

“Okay, then,” smiled Locomotion as he and Apple Bloom trotted cheerfully back towards Ponyville. “How are the rest of the Apple family, by the way?”

“Not bad. The harvest's a bit heavier than last year, but they seem ta be managin' okay.”

But while Apple Bloom was talking, Locomotion happened to notice something out of the corner of his eye. Apple Bloom's eldest sibling, Big Macintosh, was sauntering cheerfully through the orchard with a slightly dreamy expression on his face, carrying what the young unicorn railway enthusiast could only assume was a picnic hamper.

“I sure hope they are, seeing as one in particular seems to be playing truant,” he quipped, cocking his head in the red-coated stallion's direction.

“What...?” began Apple Bloom; but quickly lowered her guard again when she noticed who Locomotion was referring to. “Ah, don't mind Big Mac, he's just off on another date is all.”

Locomotion, caught completely unawares, stopped in his tracks and stared in disbelief. “A date, you say? I didn't know your brother was into that kind of thing.”

“Actually, Loco, he an' Fluttershy 'ave been goin' out with each other for quite a while now,” chuckled Apple Bloom.

“Fluttershy?!” spluttered Locomotion, assuming a somewhat comical expression he was so taken aback. “How......but...y......I......are you serious, Apple Bloom?!”

The yellow farm filly gave him a deadpan look in reply. “Do Ah look la'k Ah'm tryin' ta pull yo' leg?”

“But...a pony as timid as Fluttershy – dating?! How the hay do you get that to work?”

“Not with anypony other than Big Mac, that's fo' sure,” joked Apple Bloom, laughing heartily as she trotted ahead of the red-coated young railway enthusiast. Locomotion followed on, still trying to come to grips with what he had just heard.

Sweetie-Belle was already at Sugarcube Corner when Locomotion and Apple Bloom arrived. Before long, the three foals were sat round a table just outside the bakery enjoying their lunch; but Locomotion was still confused about Fluttershy and Big Macintosh. He nibbled delicately at his iced currant bun, deep in thought, and barely seemed to take much notice of the two fillies sat next to him.

“Something on your mind, Loco?” asked Sweetie-Belle after a while.

“Say what?” mumbled Locomotion, taking another small bite of the confection on his hoof.

“You just seem a bit quiet today is all,” explained the white unicorn filly. “Aren't you usually the one paying more attention to your lectures about trains than your food – or anything else, come to that?”

Being the impulsive young railway enthusiast that Locomotion was, he would often talk everlastingly about the histories of his favourite railway locomotives and how they worked – practically anything, in fact, which involved trains and railways, which sometimes drove his schoolmates well over the edge. Most of his friends, including the Cutie Mark Crusaders, had become so used to this that they simply took it in their stride; indeed, they could always tell whether something was bothering the red unicorn colt, for even when he wasn't talking about railways, he never seemed anything other than chatty for the most part. If he wasn't, that was when they usually needed to worry.

“Well...yeah, I guess so,” mused Locomotion with a wry smile. “I'm just a bit confused about the whole business of Apple Bloom's brother dating Fluttershy. If you think about it, neither of them is exactly the sort of pony you'd think of as outgoing, however well you know them; I never wish to sound presumptuous, but I'd have thought they'd find the idea of dating a bit...I dunno...'forward',” he finished doubtfully.

“That's where yo' wrong, Loco,” Apple Bloom pointed out. “Shy though he may be, he'd actually been thinkin' about a' that fo' ages. Still, if it weren't fo' me an' mah fellow Crusaders, he might still 'ave been tryin ta work up the nerve to ask her out.”

Locomotion was most interested. “How so?” he asked curiously.

“Well, ya know how we tried to bring him an' Miss Cheerilee together one Hearts an' Hooves Day?”

“How could I forget?!” laughed Locomotion. “All that malarkey over what you didn't realise was a love poison until too late – that was just...way too rich!”

Sweetie-Belle cringed slightly as she remembered the fiasco that all five had had to endure in order to break the love curse that had been brought on by their concoction.

“Yeah, well...what we didn't realise was that he had been hidin' a li'l secret all that time,” explained Apple Bloom. “The firs' Ah knew of it was when Ah happened to stumble on a certain set of photos in his room...”

Following the misadventure with the love poison, things quickly settled back to normal. Sweetie-Belle, Scootaloo and Apple Bloom were most relieved, especially after they found out that Cheerilee and Big Macintosh's “date” that evening had merely been a light-hearted prank; but for a long time afterwards, they became extremely wary every time they happened to be in the same place at the same time.

But for some odd reason, Big Macintosh had become even more distant than usual after Hearts and Hooves Day. He barely seemed to acknowledge anypony or anything around him, not even with his trademark “Eeyup” or “Nope”, and he kept himself to himself most of the time. His demeanour appeared to have changed too; instead of his usual placid yet slightly bored expression, he now looked rather downhearted, and hung his head gloomily as he plodded about his work. Only Granny Smith seemed to know what was going on inside her grandson's head, but whenever anypony asked about it, she would pretend not to notice.

A few weeks later, Applejack was in the middle of preparing dinner, and had sent Apple Bloom to let Big Macintosh know that it would soon be ready. Apple Bloom eagerly obliged, and trotted briskly upstairs.

“Big Mac,” she called, knocking at the door to her brother's room, which had seemingly been left ajar, “food's up in twenty minutes.”

Usually, Big Macintosh would reply with a succinct “Eeyup”; but today, the yellow farm filly's call didn't appear to have garnered any kind of response. Apple Bloom cocked her head in confusion.

“Big Mac?” she called again. “Did ya hear what Ah just said?”

Still no reply.

“Equestria callin' Big Mac! Do ya read me?” shouted Apple Bloom, impatiently pushing the door further open. “Ah'm tryin' ta tell...” but she never finished. The moment she looked into Big Macintosh's room, her jaw hung open in disbelief as she noticed what had been distracting her brother so much. On the headboard of his bed were several drawings, newspaper cuttings and other pictures of a canary-yellow Pegasus mare with long, flowing pink mane and tail, and a plush toy pony of the exact same colour scheme sat laxly against his pillow. The red-coated draft pony himself was laid out on the bed, staring longingly at the pictures and occasionally running a fond hoof through the mane of his plushie; but no sooner had his youngest sister broken off than he abruptly swung his head in her direction and protectively held the plushie close to his chest, his face seeming to turn redder than ever with shock and embarrassment.

“Oh...uh, Apple Bloom!” he stuttered. “Er...Ah din' see ya there!”

This confused Apple Bloom even more. She had never known her older brother to become so startled so easily. “What the hay's goin' on in here?” she exclaimed. “What's with all them photos an' such?”

“Well.....what's with y'all intrudin' on mah private life?!” objected Big Macintosh defensively.

“Well, someone had to find out sooner or later,” retorted Apple Bloom. “Y'all 'ave been actin' mighty strange lately, Big Mac; ya don't seem to wanna talk to us, ya keep makin' out la'k yo' real tired, an' now yo' stuck in yo' room starin' at some pictures you've pasted onto yo' bed. What is all this?”

Big Macintosh gulped. “Nothin',” he stammered. “It's, uh......it's just a collection o' family mementos is all.” He chuckled nervously, like an amateur stand-up comedian who had only just realised that one of his gags didn't seem to work on his audience.

Apple Bloom didn't seem too convinced, though. “Family mementos, huh?” she remarked suspiciously, arching an eyebrow as she scrutinised the pictures. “Well, if they really are 'family mementos', then why are they on the headboard o' yo' bed? An' why are they all of Fluttershy?”

“Um...well...Ah...that is...” Big Macintosh desperately tried to think of an excuse, but nothing came to him. In the end, he was forced to accept defeat; “Alright, Apple Bloom,” he conceded, “Ah'll tell ya – but only if ya promise not ta tell A.J. or Granny Smith or anypony else, ya hear?”

“Why not?”

“Do ya promise, or don't ya?”

Apple Bloom considered this. Whatever Big Macintosh was about to reveal to her was obviously a sensitive topic, but then again, she could probably do far worse than break her promise if it was bugging him so much. Still, she thought to herself, her brother probably had his reasons for being so secretive. “Okay then, Big Mac,” she said at last, tracing a cross on her chest with one hoof.

“Well, Ah din' wanna reveal anything fo' fear of what Applejack might think,” confided Big Macintosh uneasily, “but...well, Ah've actually been harbourin' a crush on Fluttershy for some time.”

Apple Bloom goggled in disbelief. In all the time she had known Big Macintosh, the last thing she or anypony else would have thought of him was that he might have a secret love life, let alone with somepony as close to his own personality as Fluttershy – and yet, here he was, encased in a veritable love shrine, admitting to a crush that he had been hiding for goodness knew how long. She opened her mouth to say something, but all that came out was breathless croaking as she struggled to find the right words. “Y'all an'......Fluttershy?!” she finally spluttered.

Big Macintosh looked down at his front hooves with embarrassment. “Eeyup,” he murmured gloomily. “Ah'd been meanin' to ask her if she wanted to be mah special somepony, but...well, after that mishap with me an' Miss Cheerilee...”

He was too upset to say another word, but the look of shame on his face spoke volumes to little Apple Bloom. A powerful wave of guilt washed over the yellow farm filly as she suddenly realised where she and her fellow Crusaders had gone wrong. They had been doing this more for the sake of their teacher than anything else; they thought it unfortunate that Cheerilee didn't yet have a coltfriend of her own, and Big Macintosh, whom she had only ever seen as a friend, seemed like a perfect choice of stallion. But now that Apple Bloom had seen all the pictures of Fluttershy, the idea of Big Macintosh being with Cheerilee no longer seemed to make sense. If anything, it just made her heart bleed to know that by trying to hook them up, she and Sweetie-Belle and Scootaloo had potentially ruined his chances of being with the one he truly wanted to be with.

“Oh, Big Mac,” she stammered, “Ah'm so sorry...if Ah'd only known that...Ah might've...”

“Not yo' fault,” said Big Macintosh solemnly, pulling himself together. “Ah shouldn't have been so secretive about it all. If Ah hadn't, Ah wouldn't be in this mess.”

“How long has this been goin' on then?”

“Since before you were even born,” said Big Macintosh, and closed his eyes as he remembered how he and Fluttershy had first met, back when his parents were still alive...

Chapter 2: When We Were Very Young

A whole month had elapsed since Applejack had immigrated to Manehattan, and Big Macintosh (he had already earned the “Big” part of his name from being the biggest colt in his class at school) was trudging sadly through Sweet Apple Acres, trying to clear his head for the umpteenth time. The orange-coated little filly had meant a great deal to him for as long as they had known each other, so to say he was missing his little sister would be putting it mildly; every day without her had felt like a whole millennium to the red Earth colt, and not even the presence of his parents or his grandmother could soothe his loneliness.

He drifted aimlessly in and out of the countless apple trees, only stopping once or twice to glance over the horizon in what he thought was the direction of Manehattan. He didn't seem to know where he was going, but neither did he care – all he could think about was how much he yearned for Applejack to come home again. Her decision to leave Ponyville had left him and their parents heartbroken, but he had been trying hard not to show it to anypony; after all, he had just entered his teenage years a few months previously, and teenagers never let themselves act so emotional......did they?

But such was his distraction as he wandered through the orchard that he didn't notice that the trees around him were starting to thin out, or that there weren't any apples on them either. Only when he stopped to stare into space for the twelfth time did he finally realise that he wasn't actually in the orchard any longer – he had strayed far beyond its boundaries and ended up in the middle of a wide open meadow.

“Must have gone a bit too far,” he thought, and turned to head in the opposite direction. But to his dismay, the umpteen groves of apple trees that should have been behind him were nowhere to be seen, and there was nothing else around that had the remotest chance of leading him home.

For one of the few times in his life, Big Macintosh began to grow nervous. He didn't know where he was exactly, but he knew for certain that he had never been in this particular field before. Once again, he anxiously scanned the area for signposts, cottages, huts or anything else that he might be able to recognise. But once again, his search proved in vain – he was well and truly lost.

“Okay, Mac, don't panic,” he muttered to himself in a jittery tone. “Just keep lookin' – yo' sure ta find yo' way outta this place soon enough.” He paused, trembling slightly. “Ah certainly hope so, anyway,” he added uneasily.

But before he could even begin to look for one, there was an almighty bang that seemed to come at him from all directions. In that very instant, he forgot to be as brave and stolid as he felt he should have been at his age; instead, he leaped into a nearby bush with a terrified yelp and flung his forelegs over his head, fearing that the world might be coming to a sudden end. Even when the rumbling sound that followed had died down, he didn't dare move a muscle until he heard a gentle rustling sound.

“It's okay, little ones. You can come out now.”

Big Macintosh blinked. He could have sworn he'd heard a soft, delicate but nonetheless gentle voice from somewhere behind him. He looked curiously over his shoulder to see a lanky-limbed, canary-yellow Pegasus filly of nine years old standing just outside, poking her head in between the branches to reassure some skittish mice that were hiding away from whatever had just made that noise. At that very same moment, the filly noticed him cowering beneath the bush and stared at him in surprise.

“Uh......hi,” said Big Macintosh timidly.

“H-hullo,” said the filly in an equally withdrawn tone.

There was a long silence as the two young ponies nervously looked each other over, unsure of what to say or do next.

“Um...are you okay, mister?” ventured the filly cautiously.

Big Macintosh rested a hoof against the back of his neck, visibly embarrassed. “Sort'a,” he mumbled awkwardly. “Ah guess Ah just let mah fears get the better o' me.”

“Fears?!” The filly suddenly looked rather ashamed of herself. “Oh, I'm so, so, so, so sorry! I didn't mean to frighten...”

“What? Nah, it's okay, miss,” interrupted Big Macintosh promptly. “It was just some explosion, that was all.”

The filly stared again. “It was?” she asked, quickly starting to calm down.

“Eeyup,” affirmed the red-coated teenager ruefully.

“Oh – thank goodness,” sighed the relieved filly. “For a moment I thought I'd scared you.”

Big Macintosh gingerly crawled out from beneath the bush with a wry smile. Now that he was in the open, he could see the filly's features a lot more clearly; her soft, bluish eyes radiated a gentle if somewhat shy aura of compassion, her Cutie Mark of three butterflies stood proud on each flank, and her long, wavy pink mane hung gently over her face in a manner that he could only describe as cute. “Not yo' fault, miss,” he assured her. “Don't normally get this skittish – Ah guess it's 'cause Ah'm so far from home.”

“You...you mean you're not from around here?”

“Well...yes an' no. Ah was out a walk round the orchard where Ah live, an' next thing Ah knew, Ah found mahself in this pasture out in the middle o' nowhere,” explained Big Macintosh. “You wouldn't happen ta know where we are, would ya?”

The filly rubbed one hoof against her opposite foreleg. “Um...no,” she admitted. “I've never even been here before.”

Big Macintosh was taken aback. “Ain't ya?”

“No; I actually come from Cloudsdale,” explained the filly simply.

From Cloudsdale, was she? Well that would explain a lot, thought Big Macintosh. Any further train of thought was cut off, however, as a little squirrel scampered over to the yellow filly and chirped inquisitively.

“What's that?” asked the filly, stooping down to the squirrel's level to listen more closely. The squirrel chirped again and pointed at Big Macintosh, whereupon she straightened up again with a smile. “Oh, I think he just got lost. Is that right, mister?”

“Eeyup,” affirmed the red-coated colt with a nod. “By the way, name's Big Macintosh.”

In response, the squirrel's ears pricked up and he pointed to the left of the two ponies, chirping in an excited tone.

“It's that way, is it?” said the filly uncertainly. “How do you know?”

The only reply they got was another chirp.

“Well......okay then,” conceded the filly. “We'll take your word for it, anyway. I hope you're right.”

The squirrel simply smiled knowingly as the two ponies started walking in the direction in which he had pointed.

As it turned out, the squirrel was indeed right; before long, Big Macintosh and the unnamed filly found themselves among the groves of apple trees with which the former was so familiar. The teenaged Earth colt was most relieved to be back on his home turf, but also amazed at how they had managed to find their way back just by listening to a normally bothersome little critter from beyond the outskirts of Ponyville.

“Wow,” he remarked. “Ah guess that li'l critter was talkin' sense after all. How did ya know what he was sayin'?”

The filly smiled softly. “Just a knack, I guess,” she observed. “I'd never had any real experience with animals other than...well, ponies before; it must have come naturally to me.”

“That's quite the talent ya have there,” admired Big Macintosh. “Ah wish Ah was as good with animals as y'all are; if Ah was, them apple harvests would be a heck of a lot easier.” Secretly, he couldn't help marvelling at how talkative he had become since meeting with this filly. Whenever he was with anypony outside of his family normally remained fairly quiet apart from the odd “Eeyup” or “Nope”, but here he was engaging in some hearty conversation – and she wasn't even from his family. He had to admit that it was proving to be an interesting experience talking with... “Oh, er...by the way, Ah never did catch yo' name,” he added, quickly remembering that the filly hadn't even told him.

The filly looked away uneasily, murmuring something so indistinct that Big Macintosh only just managed to decipher what she said.

“Fluttershy, huh?” he mused. “That's interestin'.”

“Um...I guess so,” muttered the filly awkwardly.

“No, really, Ah mean it,” insisted Big Macintosh. “Yo' name actually sounds......kinda cute. Ah quite la'k it.”

The filly blushed mildly. “Why...that's really nice of you to say,” she replied with a flattered smile.

Just then, they heard a voice calling out Big Macintosh's name, and an elderly green mare with an apple pie for a Cutie Mark could be seen in the distance.

“Over here, Granny Smith!” called Big Macintosh, waving a foreleg in a bid to catch the mare's attention.

“Big Mac! Aw, thank Celestia yo' safe!” Granny Smith came trotting over with a look of grateful relief on her face. “Where in Equestria have y'all been? Yo' Ma an' Pa an' me were so worried about y'all,” she said as she nuzzled against her grandson.

Big Macintosh pawed at the ground, embarrassed. “Yeah, sorry, Granny,” he apologised meekly. “Ah was tryin' ta take mah mind off of Applejack, an Ah must've gotten mahself lost.”

“Never mind, child,” soothed his grandmother. “At least yo' back safe an' sound.” She then turned her attention to Fluttershy, who backed nervously away. “An' who's this li'l Pegasus?”

“That there's Fluttershy. She helped me find mah way home,” explained Big Macintosh.

Fluttershy turned her head away in a vain attempt to hide another blush. “Oh...it was nothing really,” she replied shyly.

“Yo' too modest, li'l Fluttershy,” smiled Granny Smith kindly. “If it weren't fo' y'all, Big Mac's parents an' Ah might have been up half the night tryin' ta find him. We sure are lucky y'all were around.”

“Well...if you say so,” murmured Fluttershy.

“Where are you from, anyway? Ah don' remember seein' y'all 'round these parts.”

Fluttershy paused for another few moments. “Um...Cloudsdale. I ended up down here after being knocked off a cloud during a race.”

Granny Smith's eyes widened as she realised that this little Pegasus filly must have been as lost and afraid as her grandson. “Aw, you poor little thing,” she said softly. “No wonder ya look so shaky then.”

The only response she elicited from the canary-yellow filly was a timid whimper. The elderly mare's heart went out to the lost soul standing in front of her, and she wrapped a gentle, reassuring hoof around her shoulders, while Fluttershy gingerly returned the gesture.

“It's okay, sugarcube,” she soothed. “We'll take care o' y'all – at least until yo' parents come fo' ya. Come have a bite to eat; ya must be starvin'.”

Only then did the soft smile return to Fluttershy's face. “Thank you, Mrs Smith,” she whispered. “You're so kind.”

Big Macintosh nodded softly in agreement as Granny Smith led them back to the farmhouse.

Half an hour later, the two younger ponies were sat in the living room together while Granny Smith prepared some supper for them. What with Big Macintosh getting lost, his parents had ended up with a rather worrying backlog they had been searching for him for so long, so they had insisted on working late to make up for it; but they made sure to introduce themselves to Fluttershy and welcome her to their home before they headed out to the orchard again.

As they sat and waited for their food, Fluttershy gazed around the room in wonder. She was used to ponies building their homes out of nothing but cloud, and unless it was closely packed, it tended to disintegrate with ease if subjected to heavy impact of any kind. But this house clearly didn't have so much as one little tuft of cloud in its structure; instead, it was built to an austere yet sturdy half-timbered design, with apples carved into the wooden beams that supported the ceiling and the upstairs floor.

“Y'all okay, Miss Fluttershy?” ventured Big Macintosh after a while.

“Oh...I'm fine, Big Macintosh,” answered Fluttershy, snapping out of her reverie. “This place is just so different from home. I never realised just how good you are at making houses out of wood and...whatever that stuff is.”

Big Macintosh smiled modestly. “Well, it ain't much really – but it's home,” he observed.

Fluttershy was just about to reply when they heard Granny Smith calling out to them; “Food's ready, young 'uns!” Immediately, the two young ponies trotted into the dining room to find a bowl of salad laid out on the table for each of them. Big Macintosh pulled up a chair and sat down to eat without a moment's hesitation; but Fluttershy looked rather uncertain.

“What is that stuff?” she asked, eyeing the contents of her own bowl in confusion.

Granny Smith gave the shy Pegasus filly an odd look. “Ain't ya never had clover an' wild mustard salad before?”

“Oh, is that what it is? Well......no; my mama can never afford anything as......fancy as this,” admitted Fluttershy meekly. “Usually it's just simple stuff like hay or oats.

Big Macintosh was taken aback. He could understand such foods as olives or cranberries being all fancy and expensive, but clover and wild mustard salad was fairly common by comparison. Fluttershy's parents must have been really badly off if they had been unable to afford such a meal.

“Simple?” scoffed Granny Smith in amusement, though with a twinge of sympathy. “That kinda dish couldn't be any fancier if we'd added a dash o' tarragon vinegar! 'Sides, ya won't know if ya la'k it till you've tried it,” she added encouragingly.

“Oh...well, okay then.” So Fluttershy took her own seat next to Big Macintosh and took a cautious experimental bite of the salad. “Oh my goodness!” she gasped. “It tastes so...lovely.”

Granny Smith smiled broadly. “Ah thought you'd la'k it. This one's of mah own special recipe,” she explained proudly.

“You're a really good cook, Mrs Smith.” Fluttershy was most impressed.

“Aw, shucks – don't go on, li'l Fluttershy!” chuckled Granny Smith heartily. “Yo' gonna embarrass me if y'all carry on la'k that.”

Fluttershy smiled sheepishly in reply before returning to her meal.

Chapter 3: Apple Bloom's Resolution

All told, Fluttershy enjoyed the food that Granny Smith had given her. She particularly liked the freshly-baked apple pie that they had for dessert; again, she explained, her family had never had anything of the sort in Cloudsdale, but already she thought the Apple Family's culinary delights some of the best she had ever tasted.

As was not unusual, Big Macintosh hadn't said more than a few words throughout their supper; but on this occasion, he felt as though his silence wasn't as much 'normal' as it was awkward. He couldn't quite explain it, but somehow he felt an urge to try and say something to impress the canary-yellow filly. As he couldn't think of anything clever to say, however, he simply held his tongue and let Granny Smith do the talking.

Just as they had finished, they heard somepony knocking at the front door, whereupon Granny Smith went out to the front room to see who it was. When she opened the door, she noticed another Pegasus standing just outside; this time, it was a young mare in a similar colour scheme to Fluttershy, though in a paler shade and with three flowers of some sort as a Cutie Mark.

“Can Ah help y'all, miss?” asked Granny Smith inquisitively.

“Uh...well, I sure hope you can.” The mare spoke in an equally cautious tone to Fluttershy, though hers was less breathy and more mature. “My name is Posey; I'm looking for my daughter. You...you wouldn't happen to know where she is, would you?”

Granny Smith pondered. “That depends,” she replied. “Could ya tell me what she looks la'k, perchance?”

“Well...she's about four hooves and ten inches high; same colour as me, but richer; and she answers to the name of Fluttershy.”

“Well, what a coincidence!” remarked Granny Smith. “Mah grandson Big Macintosh found a li'l Pegasus filly of the same name wanderin' 'round just north o' the orchard.”

The pale yellow Pegasus mare's eyes widened. “You mean you've seen my little filly?! Where is she?”

“She's right here, matter o' fact,” replied Granny Smith, cocking her head towards the hallway where the two younger ponies were standing and listening in on their conversation.

Posey looked curiously over the elderly mare's shoulder, and let out a small gasp when she saw the canary-yellow Pegasus filly standing next to the red-coated teenager she assumed was Granny Smith's grandson. At the same time, Fluttershy suddenly realised who it was at the front door, and gazed at her with her mouth wide open and her eyes glistening with tears. There was a long silence, until at last neither Pegasus pony could contain herself any longer.

“M...Mama!” whimpered Fluttershy, bolting towards the mare with her tears now streaming out of her eyes like winter torrents.

“Fluttershy!” wailed Posey joyously, holding out her arms and hugging her daughter feverishly while the little filly cried loudly into her mother's shoulder.

Granny Smith and Big Macintosh looked on, thoroughly moved by the euphoric moment between the two Pegasi. Big Macintosh in particular was so full of emotion that he couldn't avoid shedding a tear of his own as he watched them embrace; but neither did he care whether teenagers should have been capable of that sort of thing anymore. All he cared about at this moment was that Fluttershy and her mother had been happily reunited.

“Oh, Fluttershy,” sobbed Posey, who by now was also starting to show tears, “I'm so glad you're safe. When I heard what had happened at flight camp, I thought you might have been......well, killed.”

Fluttershy was in such an emotional state that she couldn't immediately answer, so Granny Smith tactfully interjected; “Actually, from what Big Mac 'ad been tellin' me, she seemed perfectly fine,” she replied. “Dunno how she managed ta survive such a long fall, but there ya go. She din' seem ta know her way round this part of Equestria, though, so Mac an' Ah brought her back here an' took care of her until somepony came to pick 'er up.”

Posey smiled warmly. “Oh, bless you both,” she said softly.

“Yo' very welcome, Miss Posey – least we could do,” replied Granny Smith modestly.

“Eeyup,” agreed Big Macintosh quietly. Secretly, he was glad his fur was the right colour to hide the blush he could feel spreading across his cheeks.

“By the way,” went on Granny Smith curiously, “ya never said anything 'bout yo' gal Fluttershy havin' a Cutie Mark. Din' she have one before she ended up down here?”

“What Cutie Mark?” Posey looked down onto Fluttershy's flank, and was utterly amazed at what she saw. “Oh my gosh, Fluttershy! You've finally got your Cutie Mark? H-h-how did you...?”

“I don't know, mama,” admitted Fluttershy. “It must have been something to do with all those animals who saved me and helped guide me and Big Macintosh home.”

The older Pegasus smiled softly. “Well, I sure would like to hear about it later,” she mused. “I'm so proud of you, though; you must be the first in your class to get your own Cutie Mark.” She then looked up to the elderly Earth pony mare. “Thank you so much for looking after my daughter, Miss...um...”

“Smith's the name – Granny Smith. That's quite alright, Miss Posey; an' thank you, Fluttershy, fo' bringin' Big Macintosh home. Next time y'all are in Ponyville, feel free ta drop by if ya feel la'k it.”

“Oh, we will, Miss Granny Smith. Thanks again.” Then Posey returned her attention to her daughter; “Right, come along, Fluttershy, let's get you home.”

“Just a minute, mama,” said Fluttershy promptly. She trotted shyly up to her new friend and gratefully nuzzled against the side of his head. “Goodbye, Big Macintosh. I hope I'll see you again soon; and thank you both for feeding me.”

“Thanks fo' helpin' me get home, Fluttershy,” answered Big Macintosh softly. “Take care o' yourself, y'all.”

Fluttershy promised that she would, and climbed carefully onto Posey's back ready for the journey home. After thanking Granny Smith and Big Macintosh one more time, the two Pegasi gently took off for Cloudsdale, while the two Earth ponies stood and watched them leave. Big Macintosh kept his eyes on Fluttershy until the last.

“Couple o' days later, of course, Applejack finally came home from Manehattan,” finished Big Macintosh, “but even now that she was back, mah life felt strangely empty without Fluttershy. She did come back ta visit once or twice after that first encounter, but Ah still felt kinda incomplete until Ah heard she'd moved into a cottage nearby, just on the edge o' the Everfree Forest. Ever since then, Ah'd been tryin' ta build up the courage to at least consider datin' with her......except that...well...”

Apple Bloom nodded in solemn understanding. She knew exactly what her big brother was about to say. “Ah'm awful sorry, Mac,” she apologised glumly. “Ah din' realise...”

“Well, of course ya didn't,” replied Big Macintosh sadly. “Y'all may have gone an' ruined everything, but Ah'm the one who's to blame fo' it. If Ah'd been a bit less shy about it, maybe Ah would've still had a chance with her.” He said no more, but hugged his Fluttershy plushie close to his heart. “She must really hate mah gut after that love poison malarkey,” he murmured, shedding a small tear. “Let's face it – Ah'm gonna be alone forever!”

This coming from her big brother, somepony who was normally so laid back and easy-going, made Apple Bloom's heart bleed. She had never known Big Macintosh to be so pessimistic before, and to see him in such a state was so depressing that she only just managed to fight back tears herself. If only there was something that she could do to put things right, she thought to herself as she gazed sorrowfully upon her eldest sibling.

But no sooner had that thought gone through her head than she straightened up and assumed an expression of steadfast resolve. “Not on mah watch, Big Mac!” she stated firmly. “Let me an' mah friends take care of this; we'll soon set y'all an' Fluttershy straight again!”

Big Macintosh hesitated for a moment or two, but eventually replied with a weary shake of his head; “No thanks, Apple Bloom. Y'all 'ave done enough.”

“No, Big Mac!” insisted Apple Bloom resolutely. “We were the ones who got y'all into this mess, so it's only fair we get y'all out of it again – an' Ah won't take 'no' fo' an answer!”

“But...are ya sure y'all can handle this? Ah mean, if Fluttershy...”

“Aw, c'mon, big brother,” interrupted Apple Bloom persistently. “At least give us a chance. Ah wanna help, an' Ah'm sure Sweetie-Belle an' Scootaloo would too.”

Once again, Big Macintosh took a moment to consider. At this point, Apple Bloom played her trump card by directing him a sad, pleading, puppy-eyed expression, which finally caused him to relent. “Oh, alright then,” he sighed reluctantly, “but only if ya let me in on any plans ya have, okay?”

“You bet!” grinned Apple Bloom, secretly raising a triumphant hoof as she spoke.

Locomotion chortled in disbelief. “So Big Macintosh actually enlisted you girls as matchmakers?! Well, there's a first!”

“Tell me about it,” agreed Apple Bloom. “Ah was still tryin' to bring him round to the idea by the followin' mornin'. So anyway,” she went on, “havin' tried to reassure him fo' the zillionth time, Ah set off fo' the clubhouse, an'...”

“Ooh! Ooh! This is where me and Scootaloo come into the story!” squeaked Sweetie-Belle enthusiastically.

“Oh right?” said Locomotion, interested. “How so?”

“Well, we hadn't really made any plans for how we were going to get our Cutie Marks that day,” the white unicorn explained, “so we were hoping to work a few things out that morning. For whatever reason, though, Apple Bloom seemed to be running late, so Scoot and I sat down to a game of checkers while we waited for her...”

Scootaloo stared out of the window again, but she still couldn't see the yellow farm filly anywhere. “I don't get it,” she muttered, absent-mindedly moving one of her horseshoe-shaped pieces diagonally onto the next square. “Apple Bloom's never usually this late.”

“Probably just busy at the farm,” mused Sweetie-Belle. “You know how it is with her and Applejack and Big Mac.” She then returned her attention to the board, and grinned broadly when she realised the mistake Scootaloo had just made. Scootaloo raised an eyebrow at Sweetie-Belle's expression; but before she could ask what had just grabbed her attention, the white unicorn filly moved one of her own pieces to jump across those of her opponent before reaching the other side. “King me!” she announced triumphantly.

“Aw, nuts!” groaned Scootaloo, slapping a hoof to her face in annoyance. “I just had to miss that move, didn't I?”

Sweetie-Belle smirked cheekily. “Bad luck, Scoot,” she teased. “You snooze, you lose.”

“What the hay's that supposed to mean?!” objected Scootaloo huffily. “I wasn't asleep just then, and I'm not a loser! I'll prove it to you!” and she moved another of her pieces in a bid to try and capture one of Sweetie-Belle's. Unfortunately for the orange-coated Pegasus filly, she only succeeded in being jumped again immediately afterwards; but thankfully, any further humiliation was soon nipped in the bud as their yellow-furred friend finally arrived.

“Howdy, gals,” said Apple Bloom as she entered the clubhouse.

“Hey, Apple Bloom,” chirped Sweetie-Belle. “So what are we doing for our Cutie Marks today?”

But for once, much to her friends' surprise, Apple Bloom didn't seem too bothered about finding her Cutie Mark. “Ah ain't really thought about that, ta be honest,” she replied, “but that's not important right now.”

Scootaloo and Sweetie-Belle stared in disbelief. They had never known Apple Bloom to be so complacent about them gaining their Cutie Marks before.

“What do you mean, 'not important right now'?” exclaimed Scootaloo. “Haven't you forgotten, Apple Bloom, that we are the Cutie Mark Crusaders?! Emphasis on the 'Cutie Mark' bit...”

“Ah repeat; it ain't important right now!” insisted Apple Bloom.

“And why not?! I thought gaining your Cutie Mark...”

“Just shut up an' listen!” ordered Apple Bloom sharply. Scootaloo subsided with an annoyed frown. “Ya know how we tried to bring Big Mac an' Miss Cheerilee together on Hearts an' Hooves day?”

Scootaloo grimaced. “Ugh! You had to bring that up, didn't you? And just when I'd managed to get all that mushy talk outta my head!”

“Are you trying to tell us we haven't actually broken the love curse between them?” asked Sweetie-Belle, tensing up with worry.

“No – but it seems that by meddlin' in one relationship, we've kinda tarnished another,” explained Apple Bloom gravely. “When Ah went to tell Big Mac that dinner was nearly ready yesterday, Ah noticed that he had several photos of Fluttershy on his bed. He told me that he'd had a crush on her fo' many years now, an' was tryin' to work up the nerve to ask her ta be his very special somepony.”

Sweetie-Belle was horrified. “You.....you mean we've taken all this trouble to......how much more stupid can any of us get?!?!” she burst out, thoroughly dismayed and visibly angry with herself how badly their matchmaking plan had gone.

“Wow!” remarked Scootaloo, taken thoroughly aback. “I guess that the whole love poison thing was a worse idea than...well, than any of us thought.”

“Worse?!” repeated Sweetie-Belle shrilly. “It was way worse than worse, Scoot! We've cost Big Mac his relationship with Fluttershy! We've ruined everything!”

“Not yet we ain't,” stated Apple Bloom calmly. “In case y'all 'ave forgotten, Fluttershy was outta town that day; even if she's heard about it, at least she won't 'ave seen it for herself, so there's no way she'll think Big Mac's actually hooked up with Miss Cheerilee. It'll be easy for us to make amends fo' the whole thing.” She paused, assuming a thoughtful expression. “We just need ta work out how we're gonna do it is all.”

“Well it'd better not be the love poison thing,” scowled Scootaloo. “I've had to put up with enough mushiness this week.”

“Ah wasn't gonna suggest anything of the sort, Scoot,” said Apple Bloom resolutely. “But what Ah do suggest is that we dig up a bit o' dirt on Fluttershy – give Big Mac an idea o' the sort'a pony he's lookin' at; then from there we can plan out a firs' date fo' them both.”

There was another pause as Scootaloo and Sweetie-Belle exchanged thoughtful glances. Scootaloo still seemed rather unenthusiastic about the whole idea, but Sweetie-Belle, on the other hoof, seemed much better convinced that they had a chance of resolving the dilemma that they had unwittingly dragged Big Macintosh into.

At last, Scootaloo nodded and said, “Alright, Apple Bloom. I just hope we don't end up screwing up even further.”

“That's settled then!” declared Apple Bloom. “Now a' we need ta do is find some time to hang out at Fluttershy's place – an' then we can start ta gain the info Big Mac's after.”

Chapter 4: First Date Nerves

Later that day, the three fillies headed over to Fluttershy's cottage and asked if they could help with all her animal friends, under the excuse that they were hoping to gain their Cutie Marks in animal care. The canary-yellow mare had always maintained a soft spot for the Cutie Mark Crusaders ever since that eventful sleepover shortly after the group had come into being, so she was more than happy to accept their offer.

And so, Scootaloo, Apple Bloom and Sweetie-Belle spent the best part of a fortnight tending to the many creatures that either lived here or were in need of shelter or medical attention. Whenever they thought Fluttershy wasn't looking, each of them would pull a notepad and quill out of the saddlebags they had brought with them and surreptitiously jot down any information they happened to pick up on her. By the end of their two-week stint of animal care (and, predictably, a bout of disappointment at not having gained their Cutie Marks), they had all the information they required, and that evening, they went back to Sweet Apple Acres to report their findings to Big Macintosh.

Once they had entered the house, Apple Bloom cautiously knocked on her brother's door. “Big Mac,” she called, “we've got the info y'all were after.”

There was a brief silence, save for the clomping of hooves from the other side of the door. After just a few seconds, it swung open to reveal an unusually cautious Big Macintosh, who furtively checked left and right before gesturing for them to come in. All three duly obliged; but when Sweetie-Belle and Scootaloo entered the room and saw his love shrine for the first time, they were so startled and bemused that they suddenly stopped dead just a few inches from the threshold of the doorway, and stared in disbelief at the memorabilia of Fluttershy that he had pasted onto his headboard.

“Look outta the way, girls!” urged Apple Bloom, nudging them sharply. Quickly remembering themselves, the two fillies jumped forward abruptly, allowing Big Macintosh to shut the door and prevent anypony else from finding out what they were doing.

“So what did y'all find out then?” asked Big Macintosh, trotting back to his bed and sitting down to listen.

“Well,” began Apple Bloom, “we already know how shy she is, that she loves takin' care of animals...”

“...but we've also learned that she's surprisingly good at sewing...” added Sweetie-Belle.

“...she's an okay flyer most of the time, but tends not to do any cool stunts or fly as much as most other Pegasi...” volunteered Scootaloo.

“...she's a real sensitive kinda pony, an' is easily upset or scared, even by the most 'armless of pranks...” continued Apple Bloom.

“...and she doesn't like fully grown dragons, crowded places or anything that you'd call scary...” put in Scootaloo.

“...but enjoys a good picnic or countryside walk in a nice, peaceful setting,” finished Sweetie-Belle.

Big Macintosh paused for a moment to let their information sink in. “Well, that's a good start,” he mused at last. “Did ya find anything out about her...um......'interests' as such?”

The Crusaders exchanged glances, quietly trying to work out whether Big Macintosh was talking about Fluttershy's interests in general or for whom she might have the eye.

“Well, she does seem to enjoy romantic novels,” Sweetie-Belle spoke up at last. “She's got quite a collection of books at her place – matter of fact, she even told us that she rarely ever needs to get anything out of the library for that reason. Most of them are on animal care and such, but she does have a few...what's the word......fictional books as well as cookery, spa treatment, flowers...”

“She ain't goin' out with anypony at the moment,” interrupted Apple Bloom promptly. “But get this; when Ah went ta feed some o' the mice what lived in her bedroom, Ah noticed a photo of y'all on her bedside table. Dunno where she got it from, but Ah did catch her starin' at it a li'l later la'k there was no tomorrow. Ah think that means she la'ks y'all back.”

Big Macintosh's eyes widened in amazement. “Are ya sure?!”

“Certain!” chimed the three fillies.

An almost deafening silence reigned over all four of them for a few moments, as the stunned draft pony took in what his little sister and her closest friends had told him with a look of disbelief plastered onto his face. Could it really be that Fluttershy had feelings for him too? Even after his misadventure with Cheerilee?

“But...but Ah thought that...”

“Yeah? Well, consider yourself lucky you thought wrong, Mac,” chortled Scootaloo. “Turns out she was out of town that day. Okay, so perhaps Miss Cheerilee told her all about it after she got back, but Fluttershy doesn't seem all that put off by that love poison fiasco.”

“So......she ain't mad at me?” whispered Big Macintosh.

“'Course not, Mac!” laughed Apple Bloom. “This is Fluttershy we're talkin' 'bout here – she'd never get mad at anypony that easy!”

“Well...not always, anyway,” corrected Sweetie-Belle, remembering Rarity's account of how the canary-yellow mare had been driven to the point of insanity during the Grand Galloping Gala – and all because the animals that lived on the Canterlot Castle grounds wouldn't even come near her! “Seriously though, Big Mac, she really cares for you...well, from what we've seen anyway. She'd be more than happy to be your special somepony – in fact, I'd eat my tail if she wasn't.”

All at once, everything around Big Macintosh seemed to blur as he suddenly remembered, albeit very vaguely, how the potion had affected him. While he and Cheerilee had been under its curse, staring lustily into each other's eyes, the image that his vision had created wasn't actually of the cerise-coated mare, but of the canary-yellow Pegasus he had been fawning over for so long. Even the voice that his ears picked up was Fluttershy's soft, shy, breathy voice rather than the cheerful, upbeat tone with which the Cutie Mark Crusaders' teacher usually spoke.

He later discovered, having read the same book that contained the recipe while returning it to the library, that this was a common side-effect of the love poison; any two ponies who had previously been under its spell (of whom there were very few, thankfully) had later described the other pony who had consumed the hex as looking and sounding like what in most cases turned out to be their soul-mate. Now, sitting in his bedroom with the three fillies stood in front of him, Big Macintosh knew for certain how he felt for the shy Pegasus mare who had guided him home all those years ago. But in spite of this revelation, and his relief that Fluttershy didn't hold it against him for what had happened on Hearts and Hooves Day, he still couldn't seem to fight back the underlying self-doubt that was restraining his every action.

“But...but what if y'all are wrong?” he persisted in a pathetic, uncertain tone. “What if Ah ask her out an' she says no?”

Apple Bloom directed an odd look at her brother, narrowing her eyes in deadpan. “Seriously?”

But Scootaloo was on Big Macintosh's side. “He kinda has a point, girls,” she said gravely. “Trying to bring him and Miss Cheerilee together was one thing, but we're looking at an even shyer pony than Big Mac here; if he were to ask Fluttershy out on a date...well, she'd probably just go into shock or something.”

“Well that lands us in a bit of a...what does Rarity call it...an impasse,” mused Sweetie-Belle unhappily.

Apple Bloom nodded in solemn agreement. “Dunno what that means, but it sure ain't makin' this any easier.”

Once again, the room fell silent as the three fillies tried to work out a solution to the problem that Scootaloo had just pointed out. After only a few seconds, however, an idea suddenly flew into Sweetie-Belle's head, causing her to gasp in somewhat overjoyed realisation.

“What is it, Sweetie-Belle?” asked Apple Bloom.

“We don't need to worry about one asking the other out!” the white-furred unicorn filly squeaked with excitement. “We can set them up on that date ourselves – and if we play our cards right, Fluttershy won't even realise it's a date until she gets there!”

Apple Bloom's eyes lit up. “Oh yeah – just la'k we did with Miss Cheerilee on Hearts an' Hooves Day! Sweetie-Belle, that's a great idea!”

“Yeah, good thinking, Sweetie-Belle,” agreed Scootaloo. “How about it, Big Mac? You up for it?”

Big Macintosh pondered for the umpteenth time that day. Needless to say, he wasn't entirely sure about the idea of the Cutie Mark Crusaders arranging his surprise date with Fluttershy, but neither could he think of a sensible alternative. At last, he replied with an uncertain “Eeyup – Ah just hope y'all know what yo' doin'.”

“Trust us on this one, Big Mac,” asserted his sister. “We'll bring you an' Fluttershy together before y'all can say 'Zap-Apple jam'!”

At this point, Locomotion could only chuckle as a long list of ways in which the Crusaders' plans might fail began to unfold in his head. “And I take it you needed to go at it more than once?” he asked with a cheeky smirk.

“Well, not exactly,” replied Apple Bloom. “We did run into one li'l setback, now ya come ta mention it – quite a dangerous one too – but other than that...”

“Dangerous?!” The mirthful expression on Locomotion's face was instantly replaced by a look of deep shock. “How so?”

“Ya remember Ah once told y'all 'bout how the ditches in an' around Sweet Apple Acres tend ta get all boggy after heavy rain? Well, around the time we were plannin' this date fo' Big Mac an' Fluttershy, we found ourselves landed with a storm...”

“Oh yeah, I remember,” interrupted Locomotion thoughtfully. “That triggered off a landslide in a cutting just a mile away from Winsome Peak Summit, into which the Manehattan Limited ran on its way back to Canterlot, and I had to go help the wrecking crew recover it the following morning. Considering the speed the engine was doing at the time and how battered those front three coaches were, I'd say it's a mercy nopony had been killed in that crash.”

“I'll say,” remarked Sweetie-Belle. “Matter of fact, Apple Bloom had an equally close call while we were preparing Big Mac and Fluttershy for their date.”

“Okay?” said Locomotion, almost uneasily. “So...what happened?”

“Well,” continued Apple Bloom, “it was la'k this...”

The following morning, the three fillies were up bright and early to set the scene for Big Macintosh's first date with Fluttershy. All had agreed that their best bet would be a nice quiet picnic within the orchard, and having ascertained what Fluttershy's favourite foods were, they packed a hamper containing a selection that they hoped would appeal to both; then they headed over to a small hill within easy view from their clubhouse, and laid everything out on a blanket they had brought along ready for the red draft pony and his crush.

“Okay, girls,” said Apple Bloom as she placed a vase full of daffodils in the middle of the picnic blanket, “so are we clear on what we're doin'?”

“We sure are,” affirmed Scootaloo. “While you go find Big Mac, I'll be standing here and guarding this picnic against any critters...”

“...and I'll be bringing Fluttershy out here thinking that there are some rare birds flying over this place,” chimed in Sweetie-Belle.

“Good!” replied Apple Bloom. “Then y'all go get her, Sweetie-Belle, an' Ah'll see ta Big Mac. Scoot, keep yo' eyes peeled fo' any varmints that are nearby.”

Scootaloo nodded gamely. “You can count on me,” she asserted, and stood tall, firm and straight like a soldier standing to attention as she watched over the picnic. And so, satisfied that their plan was ready to be put into action, Apple Bloom scampered off to find Big Macintosh while Sweetie-Belle made a beeline for Fluttershy's cottage.

It wasn't long before Sweetie-Belle finally came up to Fluttershy's front door, and she banged rapidly against it in a seemingly frantic attempt to grab her attention. At last, the door opened to reveal a puzzled Fluttershy standing on the other side.

“Sweetie-Belle?” she exclaimed. “What's the matter?”

“There's a flock of birds overflying Sweet Apple Acres, Fluttershy!” squeaked Sweetie-Belle at a startling pace, trying her level best to feign excitement. “Apple Bloom was telling me that Miss Cheerilee had told us that Twilight had been saying that they were a really rare sort of bird that didn't come here very often, and we know how much you love animals, so we laid out a picnic so that you could maybe hang out with some of them!”

Fluttershy's face lit up. “A rare species? Oh my!” she gasped. “This I must see!” and she eagerly took off towards the orchard, with Sweetie-Belle following as closely as she could.

Chapter 5: Ditched!

As the two ponies made their way over to the picnic site, Apple Bloom finally found Big Macintosh grafting some of the trees over in another part of the orchard. She quickly galloped towards her brother, picturing the romantic moment that awaited him and Fluttershy as she went – but in her excitement, she had completely forgotten about the ditch that lay between them. Worse still, she had also forgotten that the heavy rain had left the ground rather muddy in itself, and therefore very slippery.

As the yellow-furred filly approached the grove, she noticed the ditch ahead of her and attempted to redirect her course towards a bridge further along.

“Big Mac!” she called eagerly. “We've got the picnic all...WHOA!!!” she shrieked the next minute, as one of her front hooves slipped on a particularly muddy patch and caused her to lose her footing. Unable to keep her balance, Apple Bloom keeled over and bumped head over tail down the embankment, only just managing to grab hold of a small shrub a little way down.

But to her horror, when she finally gathered her awareness, the yellow farm filly found that she was already waist-deep in mud. Frantically, she tried to pull herself out using the shrub, but only succeeded in pulling it a little way out of the ground.

“HELP!!” she yelled at the top of her voice. “BIG MAC, HELP!!!”

Luckily, Big Macintosh had seen everything from where he was working, and was already racing over to the ditch. “APPLE BLOOM!” he shouted, launching himself down the embankment and reaching out to her as far as he could. “GRAB ONTO MAH HOOF!”

Carefully, so as not to lose grip of her shrub altogether, Apple Bloom held out her hoof to try and grab that of her brother. But to add to her alarm, it wasn't far enough. “AH CAN'T REACH!” she wailed, flailing her hoof in vain.

“Hang on then, sis!” instructed Big Macintosh. “Ah'll try an' pull you out from the other side!” He hauled himself back up the embankment and turned towards the bridge, leaving Apple Bloom to hang onto the shrub for dear life.

But even as the red-furred draft pony hurried to try and reach the other side of the ditch, he could barely avoid panicking for one of the few times in his life. The bridge was so far away that there was a risk of Apple Bloom having gone under by the time he reached her, but there was no other way; if he was to save her, he would have to get a move on, or that would be another member of the Apple family lost forever.

As chance would have it, Sweetie-Belle and Fluttershy, who were on their way to where the picnic had been set up, had overheard Apple Bloom's terrified cries for help, and were racing to the rescue. They reached the ditch to find Apple Bloom up to her chest in the mud, still clinging to the shrub which was almost completely uprooted.

Bravely, Fluttershy set her wings into motion and carefully descended towards the bottom of the ditch. At that split second, the shrub finally broke free, but the canary-yellow Pegasus only just managed to grab onto Apple Bloom before she disappeared beneath the surface.

“Don't panic, Apple Bloom!” she grunted, flapping her wings vigorously. “I've got you!” and slowly but surely, she hauled the terrified filly further and further out of the mud.

At last, with a loud squelching noise, Fluttershy managed to lift Apple Bloom clear of the ditch and rested her back onto firm ground, just as Big Macintosh came galloping up to them. Apple Bloom opened her mouth to say something to him, but she was in such a state of shock that all she could manage was a tiny whimper before bolting towards her brother, flinging her forelegs around him and crying loudly into his shoulder.

Big Macintosh, equally shaken by the turn of events, wrapped his own forelegs protectively round his little sister, trying hard not to shed tears himself. But try as he might, even he couldn't help but emit a small sob as he and Apple Bloom embraced; as much as he hated to admit it, he had never been so terrified in all his life, even when his parents had died or he had gotten lost shortly before meeting Fluttershy. So traumatic was the whole ordeal that, even with the trembling yellow-furred filly in his arms, he had to keep reminding himself again and again that it was all over, and that she was very much alive and safe.

After what felt like ages, Big Macintosh and Apple Bloom finally separated, at which point Sweetie-Belle, who up to that point had been watching anxiously from a distance, scurried over to her yellow-coated friend. “You okay, Apple Bloom?”

Even now, Apple Bloom could hardly speak without bringing fresh tears to her eyes. “Ah...Ah nearly went under,” she whimpered, still sobbing feverishly. “Ah could'a drowned!”

“Take it easy, Apple Bloom,” soothed Fluttershy, gently running a hoof along the distraught filly's back. “You're safe now; everything's going to be okay.” To say she had been calm throughout Apple Bloom's deadly predicament wouldn't have been altogether true, but as befitted the Element of Kindness, now that the yellow farm filly was back on firm ground, all she could think to do at this moment was to try and help her over the shock of what might well have been her end.

Still trying to pull himself together, Big Macintosh watched as Apple Bloom nuzzled the canary-yellow Pegasus mare gratefully. Such was his own gratitude for Fluttershy's heroism just a few moments ago that he felt he had to express it to her somehow; but he couldn't think of anything to say, so instead he gently picked up his sister and rested her on his back with little more than a solemn murmur of, “C'mon, li'l sis; let's get ya home.”

Apple Bloom didn't reply. She just snuggled against her brother's mane as the red-coated draft pony plodded back to the farmhouse, with Fluttershy and Sweetie-Belle close behind.

Needless to say, Applejack and Granny Smith were most surprised to see Big Macintosh back so soon; but when they saw a muddy, shaky Apple Bloom perched on his back, they immediately realised that something bad must have happened earlier that day. Fluttershy told them about the fiasco with the ditch, and how she had had to pull her out. Apple Bloom stared guiltily at the floor as she listened to the canary-yellow mare's account of what had happened, too ashamed to even acknowledge her big sister's presence. Only when Fluttershy had finished did she manage to find her voice.

“Ah'm sorry, Applejack,” she murmured unhappily. “Ah din' mean to endanger mahself la'k that...”

“Hey,” interrupted Applejack softly, “don't y'all worry none, Apple Bloom. At least yo' safe; that's the main thing.” She paused and smiled appreciatively to the canary-yellow Pegasus; “Thanks fo' makin' sure o' that, Fluttershy.”

“Oh my...um...it wasn't anything really,” replied Fluttershy, blushing modestly. “I'm just glad Apple Bloom's okay.”

“Aren't we all?” chortled Granny Smith. “Still, if it hadn't been fo' y'all, that'd be yet another member o' this family gone.”

Applejack nodded in agreement; “Darn tootin' it would,” she mused. “Still, it don't do much about the fact that somepony needs a good bath after all that. C'mon, Apple Bloom, let's get y'all cleaned up.”

Still feeling rather ashamed of herself for what had happened, Apple Bloom followed her sister up to the bathroom without another word.

“Ah well,” sighed Big Macintosh, turning to leave, “Ah guess Ah better get back to work.”

But before he even had the chance to open the door, Granny Smith stepped forward and barred his way. “Oh no ya don't, Macintosh,” she objected. “Yo' in no fit state ta be workin' right now, not after what nearly happened with Apple Bloom.”

The red-coated stallion cocked his head in confusion. “What are ya talkin' about?” he protested. “Ah feel fine.”

“Oh, ya do, do ya?” retorted Granny Smith sternly, pointing beneath her grandson. “Then how do you explain that?!”

Big Macintosh looked down at his legs to see his knees quivering, something he had neither seen nor felt until now. It was only a very slight quiver, barely noticeable at that, but now that he had picked it up, he couldn't help but wonder whether Granny Smith might be right.

Granny Smith's face assumed an expression of satisfaction. “Ah rest mah case,” she said bluntly.

“But...who's gonna deal with the farm while Ah'm off work?” asked Big Macintosh uncertainly. “Applejack can't manage the whole orchard by herself...”

“She can with Caramel's help,” interrupted Granny Smith firmly. “Ah know Caramel can be a bit clumsy at times, but what'd really hold us back is if y'all keep uprootin' them 'cause ya can't concentrate properly.”

“But...”

“No buts, Big Mac – an' before ya ask, no ifs either!” ordered Granny Smith. “Yo' takin' the day off, an' that's final, ya hear?”

Big Macintosh lowered his head in dismay. He had been hoping that a few hours of hard graft would take his mind off what had happened earlier, but he knew it was no use arguing over it with Granny Smith. “Okay, Granny,” he mumbled unhappily.

“Thought you'd see it mah way,” his grandmother replied. She then turned and headed into the kitchen. There was a long silence as Fluttershy and Sweetie-Belle tried to think of something to say that would smooth out his crumpled feelings.

It was Sweetie-Belle who spoke first; “I'm sorry, Big Mac,” she apologised meekly. “I didn't mean for any of that to happen. None of us did.”

“It's okay, li'l 'un,” sighed Big Macintosh morosely. “At least y'all tried.” He didn't even bother to mention what Sweetie-Belle and her friends had been trying to do all this time, but somehow Fluttershy seemed to understand what he was implying. “Ah guess Ah should'a known this'd end in tears – somehow.”

“It's not so bad, Big Macintosh,” soothed Fluttershy, directing a shy but nevertheless comforting smile towards the downtrodden draft pony. “So perhaps you nearly lost Apple Bloom, but it all turned out alright in the end, didn't it?”

Big Macintosh paused – and eventually nodded. “Ah guess so,” he agreed with a small, grateful smile. “Thanks fo' savin' mah li'l sis.”

“That's alright,” replied Fluttershy softly. Then she turned her head away slightly, the smile seeming to fade from her expression in the process as if she were about to say something else – something she seemed rather uneasy about. “Um...actually, Big Mac,” she stammered shyly, “I was just wondering...well...seeing as Granny Smith won't let you get back to work...I wondered if......if you're okay, that is...”

“Yes, Fluttershy?” prompted Big Macintosh patiently.

“...well...earlier today, Sweetie-Belle had been saying something about a flock of a rare birds overflying Sweet Apple Acres, so she and Apple Bloom and Scootaloo had set up a picnic for me to share with them. I've probably missed them by now,” Fluttershy went on, pawing at the wooden floorboards in disappointment at the thought, but also in uncertainty regarding what she was about to say, “but...well, even if I hadn't, I...I wanted to know...” She paused, a nervous expression spreading across her reddening face. “...how would you like to join me?”

Big Macintosh's heart skipped a beat, and he stared at the shy yellow Pegasus in awe, unable to believe what he had just heard. Had she seriously just asked him out on a date? No, this couldn't possibly be true, he thought. After all, this was Fluttershy he was thinking of, almost certainly the shyest pony in the whole of Equestria; since when would she have had the courage to ask anypony out on a date?

But that was when he remembered just how affectionately she had behaved towards him when they had first met. So perhaps she may have been shy around him at first – just as she was with any other pony – but when her mother had come to bring her home, it hadn't been a simple exchange of farewells between them; no, she had actually given him a grateful, meaningful nuzzle before her mother took her away. Only a simple and somewhat impulsive action it may have been to some, but it had stayed with Big Macintosh ever since. If she was brave enough to do such a thing back when she was still just a foal, he realised, then she was just about brave enough to ask him out – and mean it too.

“Would Ah?” he replied eagerly. “Aw, Fluttershy, ya din' need to ask; of course Ah'd......” but he quickly remembered himself and ruefully subsided, a barely noticeable blush spreading right across his face at his overreaction.

Seeing the look of awkwardness on Big Macintosh's face, Fluttershy forgot to be nervous and giggled lightly at his sudden shyness. “Okay then,” she conceded, and turned to Sweetie-Belle; “So where did you say this picnic was?”

Chapter 6: The Picnic

While all this was going on, Scootaloo was becoming increasingly impatient; surely it couldn't be taking this long for Fluttershy and Big Macintosh to get here, not with Fluttershy's cottage so close to the orchard. She paced back and forth next to the picnic hamper, seething with frustration.

“How much longer are those two gonna take?!” she growled. “They should be here by now!”

She looked back at the hamper, silently wondering if maybe she could get away with snaffling an egg and cress sandwich or something to make up for missing her own lunch; but at that moment, out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Sweetie-Belle scampering towards her. Mildly disappointed at having to wait even longer before getting a bite to eat, but still annoyed with her for not getting back sooner, she glanced crossly at the white-furred unicorn filly. “About time too!” she said huffily. “What time d'you call this, Sweet...” but she was suddenly cut off as her unicorn friend hastily clamped her mouth shut.

“Keep it down, Scoot!” she hissed. “Big Mac and Fluttershy are just coming; we can't let them know they've got company!”

“Well, yeah,” retorted Scootaloo, forcefully pulling her muzzle away, “but did you seriously need to do that?!”

“Don't argue!” urged Sweetie-Belle. “Just hide behind the nearest tree you can find and keep quiet!”

“Okay, okay, I'm going,” grumbled the frustrated Pegasus, and stomped crossly over to one of the nearby trees.

Not long after, Fluttershy and Big Macintosh came into view.

“Is this it, Sweetie-Belle?” asked Fluttershy as they approached the blanket and hamper that had been left out for them.

“It sure is,” affirmed Sweetie-Belle. She pondered for a moment, trying to remember if there was anything she had missed out – or at least work out something encouraging to say to them. But nothing came to mind, so she simply said, “So, er...I'll just leave you to it then,” and zipped off to where Scootaloo was hiding, leaving the two older ponies to their own devices.

Understandably, Fluttershy and Big Macintosh's date was rather quiet at first, for neither the shy canary-yellow Pegasus mare nor the equally shy red-furred draft pony seemed confident enough to even attempt to strike up any form of conversation between them. They simply sat in silence and enjoyed the peace and tranquillity of the orchard as they ate the food the Crusaders had prepared for them.

For Big Macintosh, the few sounds that filled the groves of apple trees – the soft rustling as a gentle breeze coursed its way through their leaves, the chirping of the birds sat in their branches, the occasional flapping sound of their wings brushing against the air – seemed so new and yet so familiar to him. In all the years he had been tending to Sweet Apple Acres, he had grown accustomed to the sounds of nature; and yet, right at this moment, with Fluttershy next to him, he somehow found them so soothing, so calming, so...romantic......

His train of thought was instantly disturbed at this point as he felt something brush against his left fetlock. Looking down, he was somewhat bewildered to notice that Fluttershy had wrapped one of her front hooves around his own. The yellow-coated mare didn't appear to have noticed this, however; for some worryingly strange reason that he couldn't quite place his hoof on, she was staring up at the clouds with a longing expression in those gentle blue eyes of hers.

“Um...you okay, Fluttershy?” asked Big Macintosh softly, with a twinge of anxiety.

Fluttershy barely seemed to take any notice. “I...I'm fine, thanks,” she stammered quietly. “Why do you ask?”

“Ya just seem a bit...Ah dunno...distant is all,” Big Macintosh replied uncertainly, blushing madly as he looked back at their intertwined hooves. “Er...well......that an' you've got yo' hoof round mine.”

“Have I?!” Fluttershy recoiled hastily, a deep blush of her own spreading across her face as she suddenly realised what she had done. “Oh, I'm so sorry, Big Mac!” she blurted out. “I didn't mean to...I just...uh...that is...” but her voice quickly trailed away as her embarrassment finally got the better of her, and she buried her face in her hooves in an attempt to hide the tears of shame she could feel threatening to spill from her eyes.

Somehow, Big Macintosh couldn't help feeling rather annoyed with himself for what he had just said after seeing how badly it had affected the mare of his affections. “Aw, please don't, Fluttershy,” he pleaded, resting his hoof between her shoulders in an effort to reassure her.

Fluttershy reluctantly removed her front hooves from her face, but still hung her head in shame. “I'm sorry, Big Macintosh,” she faltered pathetically. “It's just that...I...well, there's...a certain somepony I've had a crush on ever since I was just a filly, and...well...I wasn't sure whether he would return my feelings.” She paused morosely. “I guess he doesn't – not after what I've just done.”

All of a sudden, Big Macintosh began to feel nervous again. Had Fluttershy really been seeing somepony else all this time? If so, then for how long had she been seeing him? And more importantly, why did she seem to prefer this other stallion over him? These questions played so loudly in his mind that he almost expected somepony else to call out for him to turn the volume down, and he was almost afraid to ask who she was talking about – but whoever it was, she was plainly having a hard time dealing with what he assumed to have been either rejection or a messy breakup, so he could do far worse, he decided, than to try and help her through it.

“What was he la'k?” he asked gently, trying hard to hide the fear in his voice.

“Well...he's an Earth pony, about seven hooves tall, who works on an apple orchard,” explained Fluttershy. “He has a red coat, an orange mane and tail, and gentle green eyes. He's not a very...um...talkative sort of pony, but he's very strong, very good at harvesting apples...I actually met him many years ago, after I fell all the way to the ground from my home in Cloudsdale. He had gotten himself lost, so I helped him find his way back home, and when we got there, his grandmother treated me to the best meal I'd ever had. I was so sorry to have to say goodbye to him when my mama came to take me home; he's the kindest, gentlest, most handsome pony I've ever met, and I'd give anything to be with him.”

Big Macintosh blinked, and his mouth hung wide open in bewilderment. Fluttershy's description of the pony she had been fawning over was exactly the same as his own, and the tale she had just told him sounded exactly like the time when he and the canary-yellow mare had first met. That was when it struck him – the pony whom Fluttershy had been referring to had been him all along!

“Y-y-you would?” he stuttered.

Fluttershy nodded sadly in reply. Yet another tear trickled down her cheek, which she attempted to hide by shifting her mane to obscure her face in that shy manner he had always found so cute. Gladdened by her indirect admission of her feelings towards him, but nonetheless dismayed at how ashamed she was at doing so, Big Macintosh smiled kindly upon the shy Pegasus mare.

“Well...Ah'm kinda glad ya told me, Fluttershy,” he said coyly, “'cause there's somepony out there that Ah've got mah eye on, but can't work up the nerve to tell – an' it certainly ain't Cheerilee either.”

Fluttershy cringed. Could this be a sign of rejection? “Who is it then?” she asked, not even daring to look at him.

“Well...she's not very...outgoin', but she's so good with animals it's untrue, an' she's real cute, 'specially when she has her mane hangin' over her face la'k that,” explained Big Macintosh. “Firs' time Ah met her was back in mah childhood, when Ah got mahself lost in the woods north o' Sweet Apple Acres – matter o' fact, if it weren't fo' her understandin' of animals, Ah'd never 'ave found mah way home. Ah was real sorry to have ta say goodbye when her ma came to take her back,” he went on with a wistful smile, “but Ah never forgot her, an' Ah was real glad when she moved down 'ere ta Ponyville to look after a' the local critters.”

Fluttershy was confused. “But I thought I was the animal caretaker here,” she began. “I don't remember...wait, what does this other pony look like?”

“What else? There's only enough room in Ponyville fo' one such pony, an' none of 'em 'ave ever represented an Element o' Harmony la'k Applejack or any o' her best friends.”

Only then did Fluttershy realise just what Big Macintosh was trying to say. She placed a hoof against her mouth, stifling a gasp. “Y...you mean...”

“Eeyup – that Ah do, Fluttershy,” affirmed Big Macintosh. He then leaned towards the canary-yellow mare and nuzzled fondly against the side of her head.

Fluttershy's heart skipped a beat as Big Macintosh's cheek came into contact with hers. She was no real stranger to the odd nuzzle from her friends, but this one felt a lot different somehow. It sent an ominous shiver down her spine, and she could feel her face begin to heat up – but what really surprised her was that it all felt strangely pleasant. Blissfully unaware that they were being watched, she draped a gentle arm over the red-coated stallion's muscular shoulders and nuzzled him back affectionately. At this point, words were no longer needed, for the soft touch of one's fur against the other told them all they needed to know; he was in love with her, and despite his previous – and wholly unintentional – dalliance with a certain other mare, Fluttershy loved him back.

From behind their tree, Sweetie-Belle and Scootaloo watched the heart-warming scene play out at the top of the hill. Scootaloo could only roll her eyes at how sappy the two older ponies were acting; but Sweetie-Belle sighed deeply as she took in the sight of them showing their affections to each other, her head resting between her front hooves.

“Fluttershy,” whispered Big Macintosh, still nuzzling his beloved, “Ah wanna thank y'all fo' takin' me out on this, er...date – an' fo' savin' Apple Bloom earlier.”

In response, Fluttershy pulled back and smiled softly. “That's okay, Big Mac,” she replied. “You're very welcome.” She paused for a few moments as if she was mulling something over – and then, in her usual shy tone, she added, “Um......can I call you Mackie?”

“Mackie?” repeated Big Macintosh, a look of mirth on his face. “Usin' pet names now, are we?”

“Well...if you're okay with it, that is.”

Big Macintosh chuckled. “'Course Ah'm okay with it – but only if Ah'm allowed to call ya Sugarcube ever' so often.” Then his face took on a hopeful expression; “So...you wanna be mah marefriend?”

In response, Fluttershy leaned forward and planted a soft kiss on the side of her lover's nose, causing a light shiver to course its way down his spine. As she pulled back, Big Macintosh noticed that a light blush had crept into her cheeks, and she was smiling warmly as she stared into his eyes. “Does that answer your question?” she asked fondly.

Big Macintosh returned the smile in kind. It was rather goofy by comparison, but she could still sense the warmth in his voice as he uttered the one word she needed to know – “Eeyup.”

Epilogue

As Sweetie-Belle finished their story, Locomotion could only smile warmly at the mental image of Fluttershy and Big Macintosh basking lovingly in each other's company. “Aww, how sweet,” he cooed. “I never realised Fluttershy could be so romantic – or Big Mac, for that matter.”

“Yeah, yo' tellin' me,” agreed Apple Bloom heartily. “He an' Fluttershy spent the rest o' the day with each other after that, an' when he came home that evenin', firs' thing he did was to thank me an' Sweetie-Belle an' Scoot fo' how we'd helped him build up the courage he needed to ask her to be his very special somepony.”

“And those two have been seeing each other ever since,” added Sweetie-Belle. “They've both been taking it pretty slowly, but they've really grown on each other since that first date, and they've even considered getting married someday.”

“Well, having had feelings for each other for as long as those two, who wouldn't?” quipped Locomotion. “I tell you what though, girls,” he added, “that was some story you just told me – and there was I thinking that I had unwittingly played Cupid once with an old friend of mine!”

“Oh yeah!” giggled Sweetie-Belle. “I remember that too!” and the three friends laughed heartily at the memory.

At this point, Locomotion's face took on a somewhat mischievous expression. “Actually, girls,” he remarked suggestively, “now you come to mention dating and such, there's something that's just occurred to me...”

“What's that?” asked Sweetie-Belle curiously.

“...how Apple Bloom and Featherweight are doing at the moment.”

Apple Bloom stared dubiously at the red-furred railway enthusiast, cocking her head in confusion. “What do ya mean, 'how me an' Featherweight are doin' at the moment?'” she quizzed.

“Oh...you know – same reason I'd ask how your brother's getting on with a certain canary-yellow Pegasus,” replied Locomotion innocently.

This didn't seem to sit well with the yellow-coated farm filly though. “What the hay are ya talkin' about?!” she burst out. “Ah ain't been goin' out with nopony, least of a' Featherweight!”

“Oh really?” chortled Locomotion, a cheeky grin spreading across his face. “Then how come you keep glancing in his direction whenever he happens to be nearby, particularly at recess?”

“Because...because Ah'm just worried about how skinny he is, that's all!” protested Apple Bloom.

But from the mad blush on the flustered young farm filly's face, Locomotion could tell there was far more to those “worrisome” glances than she was letting on. “So you definitely don't like him then?” he asked with a disbelieving smirk.

“Well...Ah do la'k him, yes, but as a friend!” insisted Apple Bloom. “'Sides, it's Chip Mint Ah've got mah eye on, not Featherweight!”

Locomotion shook his head in amusement. “You've got your eye on a colt who's too afraid to even look you in the eye the way you keep stalking him? Honestly, I dunno how you Apples do it, but in a real-life scenario, that's the perfect means of losing a coltfriend...”

“FOREVER!!!” The three foals looked towards the window, startled, only to find Pinkie Pie glaring intimidatingly at nothing in particular from within a nearby flowerpot.

“Seriously though,” went on Locomotion, “if Chip Mint doesn't want to be with you, then he doesn't want to be with you – simple as that. You can stalk him all you want, but it won't help you win him over.”

“Ah can't help it!” whined Apple Bloom pathetically. “He's so cute!”

“Featherweight's pretty cute,” pointed out Sweetie-Belle earnestly.

“And unlike Chip Mint, he's probably more than happy to return your affections for him,” added Locomotion. “I mean, if you think about it, he may be pretty, er...scrawny, but he's still a kind and considerate little fella, pretty sympathetic towards those who still don't have their Cutie Marks, not unlike me...”

Sweetie-Belle smiled broadly. “That's our Loco!” she chirped.

Apple Bloom didn't reply; she just groaned and buried her face in her hooves as they listened to yet another of Locomotion's monologues!