A Friend to All
Fluttershy was walking down her normal route home from another day of school. It was the Friday before Christmas break, and snow had just started to fall on the ground the day before. Snowflakes were cascading down the air all around her until they formed a very light blanket on top of the grass. It was cold enough for Fluttershy to see her breath as she was walking down her normal route, she was wearing a green wool sweater and light cream khakis.
She didn't mind the cold as her house was only a few minutes away from the school , and she greatly admired the scenic route along the way. She enjoyed her walks home from school in this slightly cold kind of weather, with the sky a light shade of grey as the snow descended from the clouds above and how the blanket of snow seemed to sparkle as she walked by. Even the trees losing their leaves seemed very serene in her eyes, like they were taking a break from showing off their beautiful leaves for the rest of the year. The only thing that Fluttershy didn't like about the cold weather was that there were no cute little birdies singing their little birdie songs through the day. They were all going down south so they wouldn't catch colds and be able to find food. One of her favorite parts of winter was the end when spring comes by and the vibrant sounds of the birds singing returned to met everyone's ears with wondrous sound.
Fluttershy's path led her to walk besides Canterlot High's soccer field, which was also blanketed with a thin layer of sparkling snow. She didn't think much of it by taking a glance at it, but she took a double take as she noticed something odd. She looked back to see that someone was sitting on the bleachers by the field all alone. She wondered why anyone would be sitting around in this cold weather and stared in the person's direction for a few seconds. Whether it be by curiosity or concern, Fluttershy started to walk across the field over towards the person. As she walked closer to this person, she was able to see them come into view more clearly. This person appeared to be a girl with red and yellow hair. She was wearing a black leather jacket that appeared to be torn up a bit. Fluttershy felt a sudden feeling of fright as she realized that the girl sitting on the bleachers was none other than the former school bully Sunset Shimmer. Fluttershy was frozen in place as she gazed upon the girl. She wondered if Sunset had heard her walking up to her with the slight crunch of snow under her sneakers as she was laying her head on her knees and covering it with her arms. She wondered if she should do something, or just walk away before she noticed her. after contemplating it for a few seconds, Fluttershy spoke up in a very quiet voice.
"Um..are you ok?"
Sunset had apparently heard her, as she made a slight sniffle sound. She slowly picked her head up to see the pink haired animal lover standing in front of her. It was now that Fluttershy noticed that while Sunset Shimmer had a displeased look on her face, it also appeared that there were dried tears on her cheeks. She took a moment before responding to Fluttershy's question.
"I...sniff...I'm fine.." she said in a rather off-put tone.
Fluttershy was now able to see that the former bully wasn't dressed properly for the weather they were in. She was wearing her zipped up black leather jacket, which had a few holes and cuts in it due to the events of the Fall Formal a few months prior. She also noticed that Sunset Shimmer was wearing her knee length orange skirt and her black and purple knee high boots in addition to it. Another thing that Fluttershy noticed was that Sunset Shimmer was almost hugging herself at this point, and further inspection showed that there were goosebumps on the exposed parts of her legs. She continued to gaze at Shimmer until she sniffed again before speaking.
"What do you want?" asked Sunset in a voice as cold as the winter air,
"Oh! Um...I didn't want anything, It's just that I was walking home and I saw someone was sitting here and I wanted to know who it was." explained Fluttershy.
"Well it's just me, so you can go now." said Sunset Shimmer as she made a shooing motion with her arm.
"B-but are you ok? Y-you seem awfully cold in those clothes."
"I said I'm fine." Sunset replied in an indifferent tone.
"A-Are you sure? Because it looks like you might catch a cold like tha--"
"I SAID I'M FINE, OK!? NOW GO!" Sunset suddenly blurted out with an angry look on her face. Fluttershy responded to this by taking a step back. Sunset took one look at Fluttershy's frightened expression before her own look of brief anger melted into a look of regret before she laid her head back on her knees. Fluttershy stood still and stared at the former bully who didn't so much as move a muscle after she put her head down. After a few moments, Fluttershy started to back away from Sunset a bit more before turning around and returning to her slow paced walk.
"H-Hey wait!......p-please?"
Fluttershy cringed slightly as she slowly turned her head behind her to see Sunset Simmer. She had gotten off of the bleachers and was rubbing her arm while looking down to the snow covered ground. She took a deep breath before looking up to make eye contact with Fluttershy. She remained quiet as Sunset began speaking again.
" L...look, the thing is....well, for what it's worth..." Sunset Shimmer appeared to have great difficulty saying whatever she wanted to say as her gaze shifted back to the ground. "Gah, I'm......I'm sorry. For everything."
Fluttershy turned her whole body around to face Sunset after hearing that. "E-excuse me?" she squeaked out.
"I'm....sorry, I acted like I did ok? It's just that....well, damn this is hard." muttered Sunset as Fluttershy walked closer to her.
"You're sorry?" is all she could ask.
"Yeah, I know it's not much considering how I've been treating you, but for what it's genuinely worth, I am sorry." Sunset sheepishly admitted.
"Oh, umm ok." replied Fluttershy. The two stood in the middle of the soccer field for a few moments in awkward silence with neither one of them making eye contact with the other. It took a few more moments before Sunset Shimmer spoke again.
"W-well, see ya around I guess." she said as she started to walk in the opposite direction of Fluttershy's path home.
"W-wait!"
Sunset Shimmer turned around to see that Fluttershy had actually called out to her.
"Um..If you don't mind me asking...where are you going?"
Sunset seemed to tense up a bit. "Why do you want to know?"
"Well, when Twilight was here, she said that she came from a world completely different from our own through a portal that was in the statue in front of the school. She also said that you came from that world too a few years ago. If you're not from this world like she said you weren't then...where have you been staying all this time?" Sunset sighed.
"Wherever I can usually. I go to and from some of the shadier parts of Canterlot, like those abandoned apartment complexes a mile or so away. I usually hop from place to place during most of the year, but at winter time I usually go to that old cider mill at Sweet Apple Acres. None of the Apples go down there during the winter, and I'm usually long gone by the time they finally check it out in the spring."
Fluttershy was shocked. "S-So, for the past few years you've just been a hobo?"
"When you put it like that, yeah, I have." replied Sunset Shimmer in a somber tone. She began to walk away at a brisk pace when Fluttershy called out to her once again.
"Sunset wait!"
Sunset Shimmer sighed as she once again turned to face her shy classmate, this time with a raised eyebrow.
"What is it this time?" she asked with mild annoyance.
"W-well, I hear it's supposed to get really cold tonight, they even put a blizzard warning on the news this morning."
Sunset Shimmer groaned as she face palmed. "Uugh, that's just great, another problem for me to deal with. Well, thanks for the heads up, I guess."
"That's just it. This blizzard is supposed to be the worst one we've gotten in years, with record breaking wind chills and everything."
"Record breaking?"
"Oh yes, they're saying you can die if you stay out there or in an unheated place for too long. Which is why I was wondering if...well, If you wanted too.."
"Wanted too what?" asked Sunset Shimmer.
"If you wanted to spend the night at my house."
Sunset Shimmer's jaw nearly dropped down to the ground after hearing Fluttershy's question. She checked both her ears to make sure that she heard her right. "S-Say again!?"
Fluttershy replied in a slightly louder voice. "Do you want to spend the night at my house?"
Sunset Shimmer could still not believe what she was hearing. Here was a girl that was too shy to speak to almost anyone in school, a girl she took every chance she got to insult, berate, belittle, and just plain bully for almost three years inviting her to her home in order to help her avoid a blizzard. She stared at Fluttershy dumbfounded for a few moments before regaining her composure.
"Wait, wait, wait, you're inviting ME into YOUR home to spend the night? You do remember that I was the girl who made you her whipping toy for the last three years, why on earth would you invite me over?"
In a rare showing of bravery, Fluttershy blurted out her answer. "Because....because you need help! You were out there shivering on those bleachers a moment ago, and it's not even really that cold outside! Imagine what's gonna happen to you when you try to go to sleep in colder weather!"
Sunset Shimmer was taken aback by this newly shown assertive side of Fluttershy, in an effort to defend herself she retorted. "I-I'll manage it..." she replied weakly.
"Maybe you'll manage to catch hypothermia! Now listen, I know you're a tough girl and everything, but how about you try swallowing your pride and let me help you!?" Fluttershy almost yelled, but just as quickly as her assertive side came, it went. Leaving her normal self to continue speaking in a softer tone. "P-Please Sunset, take my offer. You have no reason not to."
Fluttershy had a very good point. Sunset Shimmer was unsure of how to act. She thought of coming up with an excuse to quickly leave the conversation and go back to the cider mill, but there was also a part of her telling her to take Fluttershy's offer of help. Her pride wanted her to flee the scene and face the elements on her own, but everything else inside of her screamed for her to go with the shy student. Sunset Shimmer did admit that having a warm roof to sleep under, possibly with some food in her stomach sounded better then perishing in what Fluttershy was describing as a harsh storm. After a few more seconds of careful consideration, Sunset Shimmer found her answer.
"Fine, I guess I'll go with you if you want."
Fluttershy's face seemed to light up after hearing Sunset's answer. "Really? Oh thank goodness! My house is this way, it's not that far away."
"Lead the way then."
Fluttershy led the way as Sunset Shimmer followed close behind. Neither of them said a word as they left the school grounds and entered the suburban area of Canterlot. The whole time, Sunset's eyes were locked on the pink haired girl, but at the same time her mind raced everywhere. Why was she of all people helping her? Why was anyone helping her at all? Did it have something to do with what Twilight Sparkle said before she left? Did someone finally gain a feeling of empathy towards her? Sunset Shimmer asked herself all these questions and more, as the girl in front of her came to a swift halt. Fluttershy turned to her.
"We're here." Fluttershy stated as she pointed to a one story tall house. It was a simple enough house, it looked about medium sized, enough for a small family. The roof was a chocolate brown color, and the front had a tan coat of paint. Fluttershy was right about it not being far; Sunset Shimmer believed they couldn't have been walking any more then seven minutes before arriving at her home.The two girls quickly walked through the front door to have an aura of warm air welcome their arrival into the building.
"Dad! I'm home!" Fluttershy announced as she took her shoes off and entered what appeared to be the living room of the house.
"Welcome home sweetie!" shouted a voice that sounded like it came from the other end of the house. Out from a hallway that connected to the room came a man who Sunset assumed was Fluttershy's father. He was lean and tall; he appeared to be quite young, looking to be at least in his mid to late thirties. His skin color was same as Fluttershy's, but he had short, nut brown hair in addition to a goatee. He was wearing a simple red sweater, jeans, and a thick pair of glasses which didn't hide his light blue eyes. Fluttershy walked over to him and gave him a tight hug, which he returned. After the hug broke, he looked behind his daughter to see Sunset standing in the doorway.
'Oh, hello there!" said Fluttershy's dad in a very cheerful tone.
"Hi" Sunset replied simply. Fluttershy quickly spoke up.
"Um dad, this is Sunset Shimmer, she's in the same grade as me. She was walking home from school, but didn't hear the news about the blizzard warning. Her house is really far away, so I offered her to come here and spend the night, umm, is that ok?"
"Sure it is sweetheart! It's probably for the best too, I think the storm is just about picking up." said Fluttershy's dad as he walked over to a window at the front of the house. Both girls followed suit and were amazed at what they saw. The snowfall intensified greatly in the brief time they were inside the house. What was a small snowfall but a moment ago quickly became a blinding curtain of white. It was so bad that the sidewalk that the two girls were just on which was about fifteen feet away was invisible to the naked eye.
"Yeah, It's not a good idea to be walking in weather like that, especially with what you're wearing Miss Shimmer." said Fluttershy's dad as he looked at the girl who looked as if she was at the very least dressed for early fall weather. "You can stay here for the night, do you need a phone to call your parents?"
"N-no, that's fine, I....just gave them a call before we got here." explained Sunset.
" Alright, as long as it's ok with them, it's fine wi...hey, wait a minute."
Fluttershy's dad took off his glasses and squinted his eyes at Sunset Shimmer as he scratched his chin.
"Is it?.....hey yeah, It is! I know who you are!" he exclaimed in a surprised tone.
"Y-you do!?" Sunset nearly choked out. She felt a twinge of fear in her chest rise as she believed Fluttershy may have spoken to him about the countless times Sunset had bullied her in the past, but this fear turned into confusion as she saw a grin come across his face.
"Yeah, I know who you are! You're one of those students who volunteered to fix the main entrance to the school in September, right?"
"H-Huh? Oh, I mean yeah! That was me who helped fix the school!" Sunset replied hastily. She had almost forgotten the events that came after the Fall Formal earlier that year. After she had destroyed the entrance while she was Sunset Satan and was promptly curb stomped by Fluttershy and her friends not even five minutes later, she along with her former lackeys Snips and Snails were tasked with helping to fix the entrance. The school covered it up as a gas leak of some sort, and that Sunset Shimmer and her goons had volunteered their own time to fixing the demolished entrance. Principal Celestia and Vice Principal Luna forced them to stay with the project by cleaning the debris and helping to fill in the large crater that was also formed during the fight, and were allowed a break from it only when professional manpower was required to finish the job. Many outside the school saw the three of them as upstanding students, working to fix their school and nothing more. They had gotten some sympathy from the townspeople as they worked and even got onto the front page of the Canterlot Chronicles; the town's newspaper.This however, didn't change much for Shimmer and pals as every student in Canterlot High already were aware of what kind of person she was; and even if it didn't happen, they'd still not so much as give her the time of day. Sunset Shimmer was surprised someone actually still read the paper!
"That's really great how you kids chose to help our school out."
'Yeah, chose.' Sunset muttered under her breath.
"What was that?"
"I said, Yeah, chose! I felt it was my duty as a member of the student body to help my school!" Sunset Shimmer said, feigning bravado. Fluttershy's dad quickly changed the subject.
"So how do you two know each other? Fluttershy hasn't mentioned you before like her other friends."
Both girls exchanged nervous glances as Sunset Shimmer searched for an answer that didn't involve her messing with Fluttershy. She felt a spark of guilt as she remembered the first time she ever saw the pink haired girl. It was in their freshman year of high school.Sunset remembered it was in gym class, the class was originally going outside to play soccer, but it was downpouring that day, so they stayed inside to play dodgeball. On one side of the court, there was Sunset Shimmer, who was ruthless during the game, taking out students on the other team as quickly and efficiently as possible. Before finishing a game, Sunset Shimmer noticed that a girl with really long pink hair was trying to stay as far away from the game as possible. She wasn't looking in Sunset's direction as she was staring at the other players on the side of the court opposite of S.S. This, was a big mistake. Seeing an opportunity, Sunset Shimmer felt an aura of near wickedness envelope her. She remembered every little detail of what happened next , the feeling of the malicious grin stretching from ear to ear, her grip on the ball of red rubber tightening, winding up the throw, whipping it and watching it go full speed at the venerable girl, until the ball of red rubber death met her face with a loud PANG!!!, which was followed by the sound of the pink haired girl's body hitting the floor due to the ball's momentum. Sunset Shimmer also remembered the chuckle that followed watching the girl run out of the gym in tears. Looking back on it now only reminded Sunset Shimmer on how much of a bitch she was towards her fellow student.
"We...met in gym class." Sunset replied sheepishly. " I'd say we're more acquaintances then friends. We say hi if we pass by each other in the halls, but neither of us do the same things or have the same classes, so we don't really see much of one another during the day."
"Ah, I see." replied Mr. Shy. He appeared to start asking more questions, but Fluttershy quickly changed the subject.
"S-So dad, how was work? You worked really late last night, you were fast asleep by the time I went to school."
"Work was great sweetie! You wouldn't believe what happened last night!" Mr. Shy said with a growing excitement in his voice.
"What happened?" asked Fluttershy.
"Mrs. Cake finally had her babies!" he excitedly exclaimed. Fluttershy's eyes seemed to grow to the size of dinner plates as she gasped.
"Oh my goodness! She did!? That's wonderful! What were they?"
"A boy and a girl! She named them Pound and Pumpkin! Isn't that adorable?"
"Oh yes! I'm so happy for them!" Fluttershy as she gave her father another hug. Both then looked over at their guest who bore a confused look on her face.
"My dad is a doctor at Canterlot General Hospital. He's probably the best one there!" Fluttershy explained.
"Well I wouldn't say I'm the best." said Fluttershy's dad with a grin. "But yes, for the past eleven years, Dr. Passiveshy has been hard at work helping whomever he can in our fair city!" he said in a near heroic tone. This prompted a slight chuckle from Sunset Shimmer.
"I'm sure Canterlot is happy to have you Dr. Shy." Sunset Shimmer said with a chuckle. The tension that she felt the whole time she was there seemed to lessen as she spoke to Dr. Shy. He seemed like an alright guy, and introducing herself to him went better than she originally thought would. Just then, a loud gurgling sound appeared to fill the living room which emanated from Sunset Shimmer's stomach. She put her hand on her stomach as she blushed slightly. With all that was going on, she had forgotten that she hasn't eaten since earlier this morning before school. Sunset Shimmer didn't go to the cafeteria for lunch much anymore, and preferred to spend that time in the school's library where there were far less students giving her dirty looks.
"S-sorry, I guess I haven't eaten in a while." Sunset explained.
Doctor Shy looked at a wall clock that hung on a nearby wall that read 4:47. "Well it's a bit early, but I guess we can start making dinner, is vegetarian food ok with you Ms. Shimmer?"
"Just call me Sunset. And yeah, vegetarian food is fine." Sunset replied. She didn't really care what she ate at this point as long as it was edible. The last thing she had to eat was a bagel she had purchased at Sugarcube Corner earlier that day. She never really ate meat herself due to her early life as a unicorn in Equestria, She offered to help with the cooking, but the Shys wouldn't have it. They insisted that she was their guest and shouldn't have to help with the cooking, instead telling her to take it easy while they got the food ready. Sunset stayed in the living room while the Shys got hard to work preparing the food. While waiting, Sunset spent her time looking around the room to see what was in it. It was a very normal living room, there was a large green couch complimented by a green recliner on the opposite side of the room both facing a large flat screen tv in the front of the room like the ones Sunset Shimmer only ever saw in the windows of stores across town. There was a small bookcase by the back of the room next to a small oaken desk with a computer that looked so old that it would better fit a museum on top of it. With the large amount of medical books and binders and the like stuffed into the shelves and stacked on the desk, Sunset deduced that this was a makeshift home office for Dr. Shy. She looked down at a picture that was standing by old computer and picked it up. The picture showed three people, two young adults and a little girl who were standing within the Canterlot Zoo and all had joyful smiles on their faces. Sunset immediately recognized the man in the picture as Dr. Shy as he barley looked different in the picture than he did now. same lanky physique, and the same hairstyle with the goatee. He was wearing a Hawaiian shirt and cargo shorts, but no glasses. There was a young girl standing in front of the two young adults who Sunset knew was Fluttershy. Even back then, the girl had ridiculously long hair which draped over her right eye. She was wearing what looked like something Daring Do would wear. She was holding a stuffed toy lion that was almost as big as her. Sunset's attention was then drawn to the one person in the picture she didn't recognize, a young woman with the same pink hair as Fluttershy. She was wearing cargo shorts with a chocolate brown tank top. Sunset continued to inspect the picture when Fluttershy walked into the doorway leading from the kitchen.
"Um, excuse me Sunset, dinner is ready."
Sunset was so focused on the picture that hearing Fluttershy's voice startled her and almost made her drop the picture. She quickly put the picture back and turned to face her host.
"Huh? Oh, ok." Sunset replied as she followed her acquaintance. The aroma of grilled vegetables met Sunset's nose as she entered the kitchen. Dr. Shy was by the stove, apparently putting the finishing touches on whatever he was making, and whatever it was, it smelled delicious! Fluttershy and Sunset quickly sat down at the table while Dr. Shy brought a couple of plates of the amazing smelling dish to them.
"Here we go! Sorry it isn't much, I haven't gone shopping in a bit and I wasn't expecting company." explained Dr, Shy as he set a plate down in front of Sunset. The meal that was being served was some kind of pasta with spinach and some other vegetables. Not realizing how much she was starving until now, Sunset briefly threw manners to the wind as she grabbed a fork that was next to the plate and dug in. The food was nothing short of heavenly! And it easily blew anything that Canterlot High had out of the water. The noodles were cooked al dente, and the vegetables were filled with flavor. After devouring a few forkfuls of the dish, Sunset looked up to see that her hosts were staring at her with looks of mild amusement. She felt a bit of blood rush to her cheeks as she whipped her face with a nearby napkin.
"S-Sorry, I haven't eaten in a while."
"That's alright, I'm glad you liked it!" said Dr. Shy with a chuckle.
"This tastes amazing! What is it?" inquired Sunset.
"It's rigatoni with grilled peppers and onions!" Fluttershy piqued in. "And thank you Sunset, we worked really hard on it."
"Well thanks for making it you two, I'm really grateful for it." replied Sunset with a thankful tone in her voice.
"It's no problem Sunset, now we better hurry up before it gets cold!" realized Fluttershy as she and her father sat on opposite sides of the table. They all dug in after that, not so much as a voice was heard from the table, save for the sounds of forks hitting the plates as they ate their meal. The whole time, Sunset Shimmer felt an odd combination of easiness as well as a tense curiosity building up inside her. Both Shys seemed to be greatly enjoying their meal, and Sunset felt at peace sitting with them in the silence and serenity of this warm house while the freezing elements raged outside. At the same time however, Sunset felt curious about the woman that was in the picture with these two who she assumed to be Fluttershy's mother. She didn't appear to be in the house, perhaps she was out on work or something? After internally debating for a few moments, Sunset decided to try asking about it in the most nonchalant way that she could.
"S-So, are we the only ones here today?" she asked in in a near side-remark. Fluttershy swallowed her bite of pasta as she turned to Sunset with a smile.
"Um yes, why do you ask?"
"Oh, it's nothing, It's just that I saw a few pictures in the living room earlier of you guys and a woman, I just assumed she was your mother or somthin'." Sunset replied. As soon as she finished her sentence, she looked over at Dr. Shy, who was staring down at his half eaten plate of food; his kind, warm smile was gone and a poker face took its place. Sunset shifted her gaze back at Fluttershy, who's smile had shifted into a frown as she too stared down at her plate. It was apparent that Sunset had unknowingly struck a nerve with the two as neither spoke for a few moments, leaving Sunset Shimmer with her former feelings of easiness being brushed aside as the tension in her chest quickly took its place. No one spoke for a few minutes, and not one person met glances with another. Eventually, the tension in Sunset's chest seemed almost unbearable as she silently prayed someone would speak up. This feeling was relieved as Fluttershy appeared to begin speaking again.
"Y-yeah, that woman in the picture is my mother." she quietly replied. "But....well, she....she isn't exactly.....with us anymore."
Sunset felt as though a rock had dropped into her stomach at Fluttershy's answer. She couldn't comment on that! How could one comment on that? Would it be better to just sit in silence, or comment on the answer she desired? After but she spoke up in a voice a bit louder that a harsh whisper.
"O-Oh....I'm.......I'm so sorry." she choked out as her face gained a look of regret and sorrow. Fluttershy noticed this look and spoke once more.
"She's not dead if that's what you're thinking. It's just that.....well, it's kind of hard to explain really." Fluttershy stated as appeared to lose her sorrowful look for a look of nervousness as she looked down to the floor.
"That's ok, don't talk about it if you don't want to, I'm sorry I brought it up." said Sunset Shimmer hastily. Fluttershy choked out a quiet thank you before returning to her food. Awkward silence continued as all three of them finished their dinners. This time, Sunset rather assertively volunteered to help clean the table, which the Shys appreciated. She and Fluttershy cleaned the table, dumped the garbage, and gave the plates and silverware to Dr.Shy, who put them into the nearby dishwasher. It only took about five minutes to get the table clean.
After finishing up, Fluttershy asked Sunset Shimmer to follow her, to which she reluctantly agreed. The two girls left the kitchen and walked into a long hallway. The two reached a door on the left side of the hallway. Fluttershy opened the door and flipped the switch on the inside. The room lit up to reveal a large bathroom with a white floor and blue tiled walls. There was a large sink/counter on the right side of the room with various bathroom sundries on it under a large rectangular mirror. On the left side of the room was the shower with a glass sliding door and a shelf stuffed with towels of varying degrees of blue and white colors.
"It's....a nice bathroom?" Sunset said to Fluttershy.
"Um, thank you. Would you like to.....um, try it out?"
"Wha?" Sunset asked as she gave her acquaintance a puzzled look.
"Well, it seems to me like you had a really busy day, and if I could be bluntly honest for a moment, you look like you could get out of those clothes." Fluttershy sheepishly answered.
"What's wrong with my clothes!?" Sunset asked in a defensive tone.
"Eep! Um, nothing is wrong with them, I just thought maybe you'd like to to have them washed or something?" Fluttershy replied in a very timid tone. Sunset looked down at herself. Her entire ensemble still has a few rips and tears from the events of the Fall Formal, her leather jacket had a few cuts in the sleeves, but nothing unwearable. Sunset thought to herself for a moment, thinking that it would be nice to get her clothes to be washed after who knows how long it's been since the last time. And a warm shower sounded nice to her at the moment.
"Fine, I guess." Sunset Shimmer replied as she took off her jacket and gave it to Fluttershy. "But not that, it's dry clean only."
"Oh, alright. Enjoy your shower Sunset." she replied as she flashed Sunset a friendly smile and closed the door on her way out. Sunset walked over to the shower and lightly turned the handle for warm water which started to come out of the showerhead. She felt the water with her hand, which was still a bit cold. She quickly stripped down to her birthday suit and threw her clothes and underwear in a pile on the floor before walking into the shower. The water was nice and warm by this point. Sunset let out a slight moan as the water hit her supple skin. She took a moment to relish the warm water sprinkling down on her. It hadn't been forever since she last had a shower, in fact she made a point to use the showers in the school locker rooms quite frequently after school, although the water there was always as cold as a Wendigo's breath whenever she used it. Sunset remembered back to when she last had a warm shower, and that was.....back when she was Celestia's apprentice in Canterlot Castle all those years ago. Sunset looked down to her thigh and put her hand on the sun shaped mark that was on it. Sunset sighed, she remembered back to when she was younger and under Celestia's tutelage as a unicorn. She was one of the most gifted unicorns in all of Equestria. She had power, she had potential, and she had her whole future ahead of her. And what did she do? She went and blew it on a mirror, a freaking MIRROR of all things! Sure her pride had gotten the better of her on previous occasions, but this time, her pride led to her being trapped in a world that wasn't her own. And even then, her pride led her to walk over everyone she came into contact with all the way to the top of the Canterlot High food chain. Once again she was at the top, she had power, influence, and potential, and what did she do with it? She tried to take over Equestria with a group of zombie teenagers. ZOMBIE TEENAGERS! Sunset could only say one thing in response to that thought.
"What the hell was I thinking!?" she asked herself as she facepalmed.
But that was the thing, she wasn't thinking. She was running on anger and teenage girl hormones while she constructed an admittedly half-baked plan to return to Equestria, a land filled with magical creatures and deities that controlled the sun, moon, and chaos itself with a gymnasium filled with high schoolers. It was only with the curb stomping that Princess Celestia's newest student Twilight Sparkle and her friends delivered to her that she realized something she was trying desperately to ignore ever since she first wound up here.
I'm all alone.
Sunset Shimmer's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the door to the bathroom suddenly opening.
"Um, Sunset?" The voice belonged to Fluttershy
"Huh? Y-Yeah?"
"I um....I'm leaving some clothes here for you, they're on the counter."
"Okay thanks.....H-hey,Fluttershy?"
"Yes Sunset?"
"I'm...I'm sorry about what happened at dinner." Sunset Shimmer said rather harshly.
"Oh, that's alright. You couldn't have known, and she left a while ago." replied Fluttershy in a very somber tone.
"Yeah, but still, you guys seemed pretty upset about it. I shouldn't have brought it up."
"It's alright Sunset. It's not your fault, things just...happen you know?"
"Yeah, shit happens." replied Sunset Shimmer. And with that, Fluttershy left the bathroom; leaving Sunset alone with her thoughts once more.
Her thoughts shifted from her own misery to the girl who chose to help her; Fluttershy. The fact that Sunset's favorite whipping toy was showing her such gracious hospitality still bothered her greatly. Why is she helping me? Sunset thought to herself as she took a bottle of shampoo and started to make suds in her hair. Why the hell is she doing this? Does she feel pity? Guilt? Why would she? I've been scaring the crap out of her for three years! If anything, she should want nothing to do with me ever again! Why? she thought as she let the shower of water wash the soap in her hair away. Sunset searched through her mind for any reason why Fluttershy was helping her, any small little memory that would give her any indication of why she'd help her. Nothing in recent memory seemed that would be an adequate reason, nothing for he past few months at least. And then it hit her, the Fall Formal. Sunset gritted her teeth as she came upon her answer. After she was defeated by Twilight Sparkle, she overheard her speaking to her friends about "watching out for her." Was that all it was? Did she really want to help her? Or was Fluttershy showing her kindness just because Twilight had asked her to? Is that all it was? Fluttershy seemed so sincere when she offered to help her, and if it was about the promise she made to Twilight, why hadn't she done anything sooner? Sunset was unsure of why the girl would wait so long if it was about that. The best course of action was confronting Fluttershy on why she'd help her.
Sunset turned the shower off as she stepped onto the shower rug in front of it and grabbed a towel from the shelf to her right. After drying off, Sunset put on the clothes that Fluttershy had given her; a pair of white panties, a magenta shirt that was a bit tight around the bust, and white pajama pants with pink bunnies on them. Sunset stepped out of the bathroom and into the now dark hallway. Sunset looked to her left, where she and Fluttershy came from, only to see a void of blackness in that direction. She then turned to the left and saw light protruding out from under a door further down the hall. Sunset walked slowly to the door, with the wood flooring creaking underneath her feet. When she got to it, she gently pushed the door open and walked into what could only be described as a girl's room; pink walls with multiple posters of baby tigers, puppies, and kittens and other animals on them, There was a bed that looked bigger than a twin, but smaller than a queen with a multitude of stuffed animals on them, all varying in size, shape, and pastel colors. The room was so cutesy that Sunset had to fight her gag reflex while looking at it. While staring at the array of cuteness, she felt a warm hand come down on her shoulder. Sunset made an eep sound as she spun around to see that the hand belonged to Fluttershy, who was wearing a white tank top with light green sweatpants. In her other arm was a rolled up sleeping bag and a pillow.
"God Fluttershy, you scared the crap outta me!"
"S-sorry Sunset, I didn't mean to. I just got a sleeping bag and pillow. Do you mind sleeping in here with me? Our guest room is so full of my dad's old junk that you can barely set foot in there."
"Yeah, that's fine. You can't even walk in there?" Sunset questioned.
"Mhmm, There's at least fifteen years of junk in that room. I love my dad very much, but he can be a real packrat."
Sunset decided to leave it at that as Fluttershy started to roll out the sleeping bag on the floor and put the pillow on it. Both girls were silent until Sunset decided to try and make small talk with the girl.
"So......you like animals, huh? I knew you volunteered at the animal shelter, but....wow." she said as she took another look around the room. Fluttershy blushed slightly.
"Oh yes, I suppose that's a bit obvious with the décor, isn't it?"
"Yeah, a bit." Sunset said as she picked up a small plush bunny that was sitting on Fluttershy's bed. Oddly enough, the stuffed toy was surprisingly warm. Sunset took a closer look at the face of it and noticed that the toy blinked at her. It was a real bunny!
"AH!" Sunset yelped as she dropped the bunny which landed on the bed. The bunny stood up on its hind legs and shot daggers towards her as it stomped its foot. "What the hell!?" Fluttershy quickly stood up and looked over Sunset's shoulder.
"Sorry Sunset, I didn't realize that Angel was in here. He usually stays in the living room at night."
"You let an animal just run around your house? Why not just put him in a cage?" Sunset asked without taking her eyes off of the bunny named Angel that was staring back at her in a very displeased way.
"Oh, Angel doesn't like his cage, he makes a bunch of noise whenever we lock him in there so we just keep the door to it open at all times. Angel is a very sweet bunny when you get to know him. He doesn't chew any furniture up, and he only uses the bathroom in his cage like he's supposed to. Isn't that right Angel?"
Angel glanced over at Fluttershy before looking back at Sunset once more before he looked away and crossed his arms. Sunset looked back at Fluttershy who gave her an awkward smile and a shrug.
"Like I said, he'll warm up to you.......eventually."
Sunset looked back at Angel Bunny, who was still looking away from her.
"Well...nice to meet you Angel, I guess." Angel glanced back at Sunset and gave her a slight nod before jumping off the bed and hopping out the door, leaving the two girls alone in the room. Sunset now felt that it was a good a time as ever to confront Fluttershy. She took a deep breath before turning to her. "Hey Fluttershy, can I ask you something? It's been bothering me for a while now."
"Of course Sunset, what is it?"
Sunset looked very uncomfortable as she asked her question. " Back at the soccer field, why did you offer to let me stay at your place?"
Fluttershy put it plainly. "Because you needed a place to stay during this blizzard. I wouldn't let anyone stay out in that."
"Ok let me rephrase the question, back at the soccer field when you saw me on the bleachers, why did you talk to me?
"What do you mean?"
Sunset started to look angry as she raised her voice at Fluttershy. "What I mean is, why would you of all people bother with me after the way I've been treating you!?"
Fluttershy began to look uncomfortable as she looked down to the floor. "Well...I thought...I thought that you looked really sad out there and that maybe that you...needed someone to talk to." she said with great difficulty.
"But that's what I don't get! I bullied you for three freaking years! Taking every possible shot at you I could at you weather it be physically, mentally or socially! I went as far as destroying your friendship with your closest friends! Hell, I even tried destroying you period! Why after all that, would you try to help me!?" she asked with great irritation.
Fluttershy kept her eyes away from Sunset as she twittled her fingers together. "W-well, I...the thing is....you see I....gosh, I don't know." she said; her voice quivering in fear the whole time. Sunset noticed the sense of Fluttershy's all too familiar 'scared voice'. She took a heavy sigh as she spoke in a much gentler tone.
"Would it have anything to do with the promise you made to Twilight Sparkle back at the Fall Formal?"
Fluttershy looked at Sunset with shock, only to see that it was now her who was looking down at the floor. "Y-you heard that!?"
"I have a pretty good sense of hearing."
Fluttershy took a few moments before speaking to gather her thoughts. "Well....I'd be lying if I said that wasn't part of it."
Sunset let out another sigh. I knew it, It's just because of Twilight that I'm here. she thought to herself before Fluttershy spoke again.
"B-but, that's only part of the reason I helped you! I still really wanted to help!" she quickly exclaimed.
Sunset looked back at Fluttershy with a questioning look. "Which brings me back to my original question, why?"
Fluttershy took a deep breath before speaking. "Well.....after the Fall Formal, I noticed how everyone in school gave you the cold shoulder because of all the stuff you did. For the past few months in class, in the halls, and during lunch and study hall; I couldn't help but notice how lonely you always looked. You never had anyone else around with you, and even when they paired you up in class with partners you never really said much, You always had this really sad look in your eye. The way you looked with your sad eyes and kinda ripped up clothes, you kind of reminded me of a stray dog." she explained, Sunset' questioning look turned to a look of surprise and slight hurt.
"A stray dog? That's what you saw me as!?" she asked in a way that sounded as if her words were daggers to her ego. Fluttershy gasped as she quickly elaborated.
"Oh gosh did I really just say that!? I'm so sorry, I didn't mean it like that!"
But it was too late, Sunset's hurt look changed to one of sorrow. "That...that's ok, I understand what you meant. I'm a stay animal who doesn't belong." she said as her voice started to crack.
"No! That's not what I meant at all! What I meant is that you looked like....like....a lost puppy!"
Sunset gave her a dumbfounded look. "Isn't that the same thing?"
" Not really, you don't look like you don't belong, It's just like you had nowhere to go and noone to turn to."
"Oh, Alright, I see what you mean." There was another awkward bout of silence before Fluttershy spoke again.
"I-I'm sorry Sunset." Fluttershy said as she looked mournfully into Sunset's eyes.
"W-Wha? You're apologizing? Wh-."
"I'm sorry I wasn't there for you when you needed someone. After the Fall Formal, even though I made that promise to Twilight, I was still really scared of you because I thought that you'd go back to bullying me. But as the weeks went by, I saw that wasn't the case, and after a while I thought to myself 'If she just had one friend, maybe she wouldn't be like that.'. I wanted to try to talk to you after I thought of that, but I wasn't sure when to do it. It was only after seeing you alone on the bleachers today that I felt was the right time. I'm so sorry I didn't come to help you sooner I feel horrible about it."
Sunset felt touched as she heard Fluttershy's apology. After a few seconds of silence, she quickly pulled the pink haired girl into a tight embrace and held it. Flutttershy stood motionless in the red and yellow haired girl's arms as she felt what she thought were tears coming from Sunset.
"T-.....sniff...t-thank you Fluttershy for feeling that way...you don't realize what that means to me." Sunset said as her voice cracked even more.
"Oh I'm sure it's nothing much." Fluttershy assured her.
"N-no, this means even more coming from you. Out of all the student at Canterlot that probably hate me right now, I....I expected you to hate me the most."
Sunset felt Fluttershy push her away as she looked at her with a serious expression on her face.
"Sunset I can't speak for everyone at Canterlot High, but I can at least say for certain that not one of my friends hate you, not even the little fuzzy ones! I'll admit that some of them are still a bit sore due to your past actions, but none of them hate you. Applejack and Rainbow Dash are still a bit unsure of how to talk to you about what you did, Rarity is still a teeny bit angry about the incident at the Spring Fling last year, and Pinkie.....well, Pinkie is incapable of hate." she said with a chuckle. "And as for me, sure I was scared of you for a really long time, but I want you to know right now that I never; not once hated you. Get the message?" She asked as she returned Sunset's embrace. With that, Fluttershy felt a stream of tears running down her shoulder as she patted Sunset on the back.
"Loud and clear." she said with a sniff.
"Good, but there's one more thing I need to tell you."
"W-What is it?" asked Sunset.
"Sunset, I told my dad the truth. Well, not about the thing with the pony world, but about your 'living arrangements'."
"O-Oh....." was all Sunset Shimmer could say, she didn't know how to respond.
"And well, he wanted to know If you...maybe....wanted to extend your stay for a while longer?"
"S-stay? Here?"
"Yes, my dad wouldn't feel right leaving someone on the street for who knows how much longer, and he thinks you're a really nice person." Fluttershy added.
Sunset took a moment before speaking again. "What do you think?"
Fluttershy didn't even hesitate. "I want you to stay Sunset, I want to help you because...because that's what friends do for each other. They help each other out."
Sunset gave Fluttershy a warm smile before giving her answer. "Alright, I...Iguess I'll stay."
Fluttershy's eyes lit up at Sunset's answer. "Oh really? YAY! This is gonna be so much fun, it'll be kinda like a long sleepover! We're gonna have lots of fun, I just know it!"
Sunset used her thumb to wipe away a stray tear from her cheek. "Yeah, me too Fluttershy."
"I think it sounds good too Sunset, but for now, how about we get some sleep? My dad is gonna make us pancakes in the morning! Doesn't that sound nice?" she asked excitedly.
"Yeah, sounds awesome." replied Sunset. As she let go of her new friend, Fluttershy quickly jumped into the sleeping bag she laid out on the floor; much to Sunset's confusion.
"That bed is a bit lumpy for my tastes, and I like sleeping closer to my pets down here. You can use my bed." she explained. Seeing little reason to fight her about it, Sunset climbed into Fluttershy's bed after pushing some of the stuffed animals aside and pulled the large pink comforter on top of her before turning her head towards Fluttershy.
"You're awesome, you know that? I still don't know how I'll begin to repay you." Sunset stated.
"Well....tomorrow after breakfast, I was going to go see if they needed help at the animal shelter. Would you like to come with me?"
"Yeah, I'd love to help." answered Sunset.
"Good night Sunset."
"Goodnight Fluttershy."
And with that, both girls drifted off into the realms of sleep, Sunset in particular felt warmer than she had in a long, long time, and it was all due to her unexpected new friend Fluttershy.
Author's Note
This is my first attempt at a friendshipping fic, a redeemed Sunset fic, a one shot, and trying to write Fluttershy, WHEW that's a lot! Please feel free to tell me what you thought of this fic, any comments on how you thought it was would be very helpful!
