Ribbons and Lace

"Signed, your secret admirer?!" Rainbow Dash burst out, only to be shushed by the rest of the group. The meeting was to be kept in the strictest confidence, at Fluttershy's request. Dash rolled her eyes, scanned the page again, then dropped it back on the table. Meanwhile, Fluttershy drifted in circles around the upper part of Twilight's room, rubbing her hooves together and trying to hide behind her bangs at the same time.

"Can you detect any clues as to who might have written it?" Rarity asked, hiding her tension beneath a façade of intrigued delight.

Twilight shook her head. "The writing is textbook-perfect. I think whoever wrote this was deliberately disguising it. This looks like the same paper and ink I use, so they probably live here in Ponyville, but..." She waved her hoof over the page. "The letter implies that much anyway."

"Ooh, how mysterious!" Rarity cooed, stuffing her surge of victorious pride deep down in her chest. She pulled the letter over and glanced over it again, as if she couldn't quote it by heart already. She'd burned the first dozen attempts that very morning, after all.

Dear Fluttershy,

I wish I were brave enough to deliver this missive to you in person, but alas, I am not. For some time I have admired you -- your gentle kindness, your unassuming beauty, your quiet strength -- but I recently came to understand that my feelings may represent something deeper. I hope, perhaps, if no other holds your heart, that I might one day have that honor.

Signed,
Your Secret Admirer

"He -- or she -- seems quite erudite," the white unicorn observed, trying not to compliment herself too strongly as she fished for a reaction. The letter's recipient barely acknowledged the comment.

"They sound very, um, nice," the pink-haired pegasus allowed. "Oh my goodness, what do I do? I've never, I mean I don't..." She trailed off in an embarrassed squeak.

Twilight shrugged, holding the letter up to the light to check for watermarks or secret writing. "They didn't ask you to do anything. Just enjoy it, I guess?"

"Yeah!" Dash added, darting up to give the other pegasus a hug. "You got fan mail! That's awesome, and you should feel awesome!"

"I think it's a mite more serious than fan mail," Applejack countered from across the table, leaning on one elbow. "Dunno if I'd take a shine to somepony who cain't come out an' say it to my face. But Rainbow is right, sugarcube. Take it as a compliment."

Pinkie had yet to add anything; on reading the letter, she had simply stuck a bubble pipe in her mouth and started bubbling with an air of deep concentration. Now the bubbling intensified as a single huge bubble slowly expanded, silencing conversation and attracting all eyes as it expanded beyond the size of a canteloupe.

"Pinkie?" Twilight prompted.

The party pony's eyes narrowed down to slits, the bubble gradually growing bigger and bigger. Pinkie almost had it as big as her head before it popped and the pink mare's eyes snapped open, wide with revelation. "I got it! The pony who wrote this letter..."

The other five leaned closer, eager to hear what insight Pinkie's labyrinthine thought processes had come up with. "Yes?" Rarity prompted.

"...has been watching Fluttershy a lot!" she finished triumphantly. There was a low groan and the rest of the group slumped -- four in dismay, one in relief.

"Well," the purple unicorn asked after a moment, "have you noticed anypony staring at you?"

Fluttershy shook her head, starting another circuit of the room. "There were a lot of ponies staring and taking pictures when I was modeling, but that stopped after I quit." The yellow pegasus gasped suddenly, her orbit accelerating. "Oh dear, what if somepony's been secretly taking pictures of me? What if--?" She squeaked again, covering her face with both hooves.

"Then I hope they did you justice," Rarity replied firmly, then patted the floor. "Come now, darling, stop pacing and relax. There's really not a thing to worry about." She magically lifted a brush from among her accoutrements with a hopeful smile.

The shy pegasus obediently settled to the ground. "It just feels... funny to think somepony's been sp--spying on me."

"There, there," Rarity murmured as she began to stroke the brush down her silky mane. "I'm sure it's nothing so sinister." After all, it's not spying if you know I'm there. I'm just an admirer... admiring. "Why, I see Big Macintosh about town from time to time, but nopony would accuse me of spying on him."

"Hey, yeah! Maybe Big Mac wrote it!" Rainbow Dash chimed in. "He's pretty quiet, and he lives close to you. He probably sees you coming and going all the time!"

Fluttershy flushed nearly to Pinkie's color. "B-b-but Macintosh and I have barely even said a word to each other! ...I think it was 'eeyup'."

Applejack added her own flat stare at the local speedster. "Seriously? Can you imagine Big Macintosh usin' fancy words like 'missive' or 'alas'? That's like... Rarity-talk."

The unicorn froze, but her pause went without comment. Pinkie tapped a hoof against her lips. "So we're looking for somepony who knows lots of fancy-pantsy words, huh?" Four sets of eyes swiveled to Twilight Sparkle.

"What?" she said, then her eyes widened. "What, me?! No no no no no! I'd never-- I mean, I didn't-- I, er..." She hesitated, offering the yellow pegasus a nervous grin. "No offense, Fluttershy."

The pegasus giggled faintly and waved it away with a hoof. "None taken. That would be a little awkward, wouldn't it?"

You have no idea. Rarity stroked a hoof down Fluttershy's back as she brushed. The gesture could easily be interpreted as friendly support, but the touch sent a tingle of secret excitement through the unicorn. So close... she sighed silently, and yet so far. The conversation flowed on without the unicorn as she tried to memorize every tactile detail of the coat and feathers under her hoof. Rarity would sometimes examine an unusual fabric in this way, but nothing felt quite like the touch of another pony. And -- as Rarity had had reason to lay hooves on each of her friends in the course of Gala preparations -- nopony felt quite like Fluttershy. She wanted to wrap that feeling around herself... or herself around it... or... Mmm! Perhaps this is neither the time nor the place for that train of thought.

The group bandied about a hoof-full of other possible writers, but each possibility was discarded in turn. Eventually, they fell back into their own thoughts, interrupted only by the soft chime of magic and the rhythmic susurrus of the brush through Fluttershy's mane.

"Well," Rarity said nonchalantly into the silence, "Does anypony 'hold your heart', as our mysterious author puts it?"

Fluttershy straightened up a little in surprise and her wings half unfolded, but she settled down again a moment later, putting her hair between herself and her friends again. Rarity was beginning to think she wouldn't answer when the pegasus finally murmured, "Not really..."

"Not... really?" Twilight repeated. Cautiously, she asked, "Does that mean a little bit yes?"

"Oh, um... not really," Fluttershy said again. "I mean, there are a couple of stallions I've thought might be, um... nice... but..."

"But you're just checking 'em out, not making any plans," Rainbow Dash finished. The other pegasus bobbed her head once.

A trickle of ice ran down Rarity's back at the word 'stallions'. But then, I'd have said the same only a few days past, she reminded herself. One mustn't jump to conclusions.

And now she knew the topic of the next letter.

Wrapped in a close-fitting crimson-and-gold cheongsam with a pink cherry blossom tucked behind her ear, Rarity by far outshone any other diner in Ponyville's little café... save one. The mane of the pegasus sitting across from her was done up in an ornate chignon secured by a pair of laquered sticks, holding it up out of pale blue eyes made positively luminous by her lovely vermilion kimono. Her pink hair picked up the brightness of the vivid orange, completing the frame for those enchanting eyes. Rarity barely tasted her mushroom kabobs.

Fluttershy picked at a strawberry and spinach salad between nervous glances at the other patrons of the cafe. The stares had died down, but she was still clearly uncomfortable. Which was a pity, because she looked radiant. The dinner was ostensibly Rarity's combined "thank you" for helping with the lingere design and "I'm sorry" for her faux pas during their mud baths. The unicorn, however, preferred to imagine it was a date. That was bad of her, she knew, but the notion refused to release her imagination. Her hoof itched with the desire to touch the other pony's beneath the table. Never before had words like "seemly" and "respectable" seemed so restrictive. Or "friend". She found her wine glass draining faster than she would have liked.

And then it was over. Just like that. The waiter offered dessert, and Rarity invited her da-- friend to order whatever she wished, but the yellow pegasus declined and seemed eager enough to leave that Rarity couldn't bring herself to even linger over her last glass of wine.

Fluttershy relaxed visibly once the café was left behind. The pair still turned a few heads on the evening streets of Ponyville, but she seemed less bothered by a few lingering glances.

The unicorn sighed. "I'm sorry that made you so uncomfortable," she said, giving her friend an apologetic smile. "I suppose we were rather overdressed for the venue."

"No... it's all right," the other mare replied. "It's not your fault. It's just that... after that letter... I keep imagining that somepony is watching me."

Well... I may have been staring, indeed. Rarity realized she couldn't have repeated a single word of their conversation after the fact. She'd been too caught up to do more that put her mouth on autopilot and make meaningless chit-chat. Was that unkind? Her friend deserved better than that, didn't she? A sudden desire to confess welled up in her chest. I've made her unhappy. I can fix that here and now.

"Fluttersh--" The words nearly spilled from her lips unbidden before she halted them. The other mare's words echoed in her ears. That would be a little awkward, wouldn't it? She firmly reminded herself that she'd drunk slightly more alcohol than she had intended to, and she should make no rash decisions without a clear head. She nodded to herself. She could put it off and consider more carefully in the morning. And... I'd like to be able to dream for at least one more night.

The light yellow mare had paused, waiting for her words. Oh, and think fast!

"Do you wish you hadn't received that letter at all?" she asked instead, the wine preventing her from entirely concealing a tremor in her voice. It went unremarked, if Fluttershy noticed at all.

There was a pause, then a soft sigh as the pair resumed their walk. "No, I guess not. I just don't know how to react. It's not like being a model," she said, strutting a few step like she was back on the runway. "Back then, everypony just wanted pictures of that p-pretty mare from the magazines." The pegasus gestured as though indicating some other pony, then hesitated, dropping her hoof to scuff at the cobbles. "Do you think that... somepony really wants me for..." Her voice dropped to a tiny squeak. "...me?"

Rarity again restrained the impulse to wrap the pegasus in her arms and gush forth the whys and wherefores of everything she had done. "'Your gentle kindness, your quiet strength,'" she quoted. "Does that sound like a pony who's only interested in your looks?"

Fluttershy shook her head, then peeked up at the unicorn, offered a faint smile. "Thanks, Rarity. I guess... like Rainbow said... I should feel awesome."

They were nearly to the bridge that leapt the stream beside the Carousel Boutique. Rarity touched her friend lightly on the shoulder. "Darling, it's normal to get jittery about romance. Just... don't let it stop you from doing what your heart tells you to." Saying that much was easy as breathing. It was the advice she'd give to anypony.

Easier said...

A nod, and they finished the all-too-short trip in companionable silence.

"Well..." Rarity said as she unlocked her door.

"Thank you for dinner," Fluttershy said. "It was... tasty..."

Rarity's imagination wrenched against reality. This wasn't a date. It was just dinner with a friend. If it were a date, the scene would play out so differently...

Rarity cocked her head, gazing at the pegasus coquettishly from the corner of her eye. "It seems too early to go home just yet... Would you like to come inside? I'll make us some coffee."

"You're welcome, of course. And thank you."

Fluttershy bit her lip but smiled, her eyes taking on a playful, knowing expression. "I'd like that."

They traded a friendly smile. "Good night, Rarity."

"Good night, Fluttershy."

Rarity opened the door for the other mare and trailed her inside, her heart already pounding with anticipation.

Rarity paused with the door open, glancing after the pegasus. She heaved a soft sigh, then stepped inside and closed the door on a night cut all too short.

With unexpected vigor, Fluttershy shoved the unicorn down on the bed, her wings nearly upsetting the coffee cups on the nightstand as she propelled herself on top of Rarity. Freed from the constraints of modesty, decency, or inhibition, the normally shy pegasus was... ravenous! The flavor of strawberries still clung to her kisses as she thrust them on Rarity, the shocked unicorn unable to do more than slip surprised -- and pleased -- moans past her lover's tongue.

They were both still fully dressed, but Fluttershy's unexpected ardor had pulled her kimono askew. The robe hung open below her waist and gapped across her chest, one shoulder slipping free as she writhed against the unicorn. They broke apart a moment later, both gasping, giving Rarity a moment to pull herself fully onto the bed. "Fluttershy!" she panted. "What in Eques--"

Then the other mare was on her again. She cut off the question with more lusty kisses, hooves roaming Rarity's neck and belly. The unicorn offered no resistance, practically purring when the other mare's lips met hers and wordlessly replying with caresses to Fluttershy's ear and hip. Whatever had gotten into the mare, she liked it!

Then Fluttershy planted her forehooves on the unicorn's chest, crouching down and pressing herself lewdly against Rarity's body as she started to grind. The tight-fitting cheongsam had held up better than Fluttershy's outfit; the wild mare lifted her head and let out a hungry, near-feral moan as her crotch slid against the smooth silk.

Rarity felt herself blush bright red at the other mare's uncharacteristically shameless display. "Flutt--" she started, but rough lips and an unyielding tongue silenced her again. She found herself staring into eyes she had rarely seen on Fluttershy, not gently drooped, but wide open with her pupils contracted almost to points and a sort of madness dancing in them. It should have been frightening, but she felt herself relaxing instead, giving the pegasus free rein with her body. Clearly, there were to be no rules tonight... no propriety... just two mares alone with their wanton desires. With a smile, the unicorn threw decorum to the wind and willingly gave herself to her lover.

Fluttershy slid back and forth against the smooth fabric, letting out primal noises of excitement. They would certainly stain both dresses beyond recovery if they kept this up, but the fashionista just pressed her thighs together, a hot, creamy sensation trapped between them. This fierce, savage side of Fluttershy was one she had seen perhaps twice in all the time she had known the pegasus, and being the focus of its lust was as exhilirating as it was terrifying. She would gladly tear both of the beautiful outfits to shreds and set fire to them herself, and consider it cheap at twice the price if only the pegasus would continue ravishing her.

She tried to wrap her arms around Fluttershy's neck, but the beast on top of her shoved her hooves back onto the bed and pinned them in place. The pegasus shifted, her robe draping across Rarity's legs as hooves and knees scrambled, fumbling the narrow skirt of Rarity's dress out of place until one pale thigh stuck through the hip-high slit. Knees clutched the unicorn's leg, then she felt wet heat soaking through her coat as the pegasus began to rub against her. The wild, needy motions ground the pink-haired maniac's hind hoof against Rarity's own crotch, drawing cries from the unicorn with each press and slide.

Rarity's gasps and whimpers were all but drowned by the other mare's throaty moans. Fluttershy's eyes fell closed in bliss, her hips slicking a trail up and down the unicorn's thigh. Rarity helpfully pressed her leg up against the other mare, discovering almost as much excitement in surrendering herself to the pegasus as she had in her fantasies of domination. Fluttershy leaned down, her rump bobbing with almost animal urgency, her chest a hair's breadth touching Rarity's. The purple-maned mare stretched up, her lips searching for Fluttershy's.

When they met, the pegasus reacted instantly. She sucked greedily at Rarity's tongue, coaxing a fresh round of moans from the unicorn. Then teeth closed around it, not hard, but holding it firmly as the pegasus slowly started to lift her head. Rarity gave a muffled yelp, but she could feel a warm, sticky stain spreading where the silk dress was trapped between herself and Fluttershy's hoof.

Eyes wide, the pale mare struggled as she was pulled along. Her neck craned as far as it could go, but Fluttershy still tugged insistently, practically sitting back on the unicorn's leg. Rarity levered herself up, hiking herself up on her elbows and thrusting out her chest as far as her pinned arms would allow. The pegasus pony gave a further tug, but Rarity could only strain to hold the awkward position. Fluttershy held her there for several seconds, the yellow pony's grunts and moans mounting higher and higher as she rubbed herself against Rarity's unresisting body.

Then Fluttershy released her tongue, tense and quivering as she pressed against Rarity's thigh. The pegasus threw her head back, her hips making bucking motions, and loosed an almost inequine scream of pleasure as Rarity flopped back to the coverlet. The unicorn's moans grew ever louder as hot pegasus juice ran down her thigh, the other mare's folds clutching and squeezing in vain.

The madmare's very vocal orgasm fanned the flames of Rarity's own desire. She squirmed, fighting the pegasus with renewed vigor, struggling to free just one hoof to attend to her own needs. Then, suddenly, she was free! The pegasus lifted off of her, hovering in the confines beneath her bed canopy. Rarity thrust a hoof between her legs with an ecstatic squeal, careless of the soaked silk now, but Fluttershy pirouetted in air and dropped on her again, orange silk and a pink tail eclipsing the unicorn's vision. The monster was nowhere near finished with her.

Rough hooves pinioned Rarity's arms on either side, and the normally gentle mare's dripping mound was forcefully thrust in her face. "Fluttershy, please--!" she whimpered, but the only reply was a squirm that left a musky smear across her cheek. Deprived though she was, the unicorn still couldn't deny the surge of scandalous delight she felt in being so thoroughly used by the object of her affections. She lifted her head, pressed her lips against Fluttershy's slit, and meekly went to work. She had barely finished cleaning the liquid sheen from the other mare, though, when Fluttershy's head gave a savage jerk. The pegasus had gripped one edge of the cheongsam's leg slit in her teeth, and with the other panel pinned by her hoof, a loud rrrip filled the air as the seam parted. Rarity started to protest, but she was quickly silenced by another thrust of her lover's hips. Wincing with each tearing noise, Rarity began to pleasure the pegasus again as Fluttershy brutally split the dress from hip to shoulder.

The air was frigid against her soaked crotch, but Rarity spread her thighs wide, silently begging as she thrust her tongue into the grasp of Fluttershy's fever-hot walls. She had never dreamed that her friend could be so insatiable, but she struggled her hooves free and wrapped them around Fluttershy's rump as her tongue flicked up and down, teasing and stroking. The yellow mare settled down against her again, bare fur pressed to bare fur with only the kimono's sash between them.

The sensation of Fluttershy's soft, smooth coat against her own was simply too much. She broke away gasping, feeling droplets of arousal running down already-soaked fur. She couldn't stand it much longer, feeling submerged up to her chin in a lake of sensual pleasures, but not allowed to taste even a tiny sip! She whimpered and waggled her hips, panting against the other mare's sex. "I only--"

She cut off in a howl of delight as Fluttershy swiped her tongue along the unicorn's swollen lips. Just a single lick, but the anticipation made that lone caress heavenly. She thrust her face back against the other mare's rump, redoubling her efforts. Soon, however, the need returned stronger and even more maddening than before. Fluttershy licked her again, Rarity's cry stifled by soft flesh this time. The unicorn ate out her lover desperately, ignoring the hot juices dribbling down her cheeks, her efforts rewarded with only the bare minimum of stimulation to keep her from complaining.

The occasional licks and nuzzles were worse than nothing. She could hardly think past the next touch, her whole world reduced to one wet patch in front of her face and another nestled between her thighs. She lapped and stroked and teased, her ears full of Fluttershy's emphatic moans and squeals.

Then, seemingly without warning, a gush of fluid splattered Rarity's face and jolted her out of her trance. The pegasus was nearly sitting on her, wings fanning the air as she screamed another violent orgasm.

Rarity shook off her surprise and dove back in, stroking the other mare's nub with her tongue as she came, stroking it until Fluttershy wiggled away from the ticklish overstimulation. Then she turned back to Rarity, a broad, satisfied smile on her face. Please just let me finish myself, the unicorn begged silently, but Fluttershy apparently had other plans. She slid up against Rarity, wrapping arms around the unicorn and kissing her neck. Then a soft, warm hoof slid down to her aching sex, firmly stroking the soaked labia. Now Rarity was the one who couldn't restrain her long, sensual moans. Fluttershy pressed kiss after kiss to the side of her neck, but the unicorn hardly noticed. The yellow mare's hoof was firm and gentle at the same time, as if she knew exactly what to touch and how hard to touch it. Rarity could tell she wouldn't last more than a minute or two, and that was... just perfect.

A sharp pain jerked her out of the haze of pleasure. Fluttershy giggled, a fresh ring of tooth marks aching just beneath Rarity's coat. The unicorn gasped belatedly and slapped a hoof to the love bite, but she barely had time to respond. As soon as she turned her head, Fluttershy's lips blocked any words. Her tongue tasted like sex and strawberries.

The kiss left Rarity panting, her hips making eager thrusting motions as the pegasus drew her hoof away. "So... close..." she whimpered, but Fluttershy wasn't done yet. She slid her hoof up, teasing the pale mare as the tip of her hoof brushed the unicorn's stiff little nub.

"Please... please..." Rarity managed before the other mare's lips captured hers again. The taste of Fluttershy's tongue invaded her mouth just as the pegasus's hoof pressed down, sending a jolt of pure lightning through her body.

Rarity jerked awake, gasping in reaction. Her sheets were clammy with what was mostly sweat, and very real tremors of ecstacy still rippled up through her belly. One hoof lightly touched her lips, the memory of strawberries still lingering in her senses.

She hugged her stomach and curled up on her side, trembling on the verge of tears from a volatile mix of intense satisfaction and profound loneliness. After a minute, she uncurled just enough to squeeze a pillow against her chest, clutching it tight and imagining the soft, silky texture of Fluttershy's coat as hard as she possibly could. That seemed to ease the ache in her heart... a little bit.

The urge to bawl subsided after a time, but sleep was a thousand miles away by then. She glanced at the clock. Four a.m. A good time to get to writing, she supposed, so she could slip the letter in Fluttershy's mailbox before the early-rising pegasus woke.