Fluttershy sat on her familiar bench in Ponyville's central park. It was littered with ponies and pets, boasting a wide array of species far as the eye could see. Tortoise. Dog. Domesticated wolf. Somepony even brought a giant, defanged black widow. They were asking for it, she noted in her troubled mind. The sun shined brightly to mock her. And beneath the smiles of the owners and families gathered about, she saw very little hope for all of them. She went for deep, winded breath and recoiled breathlessly. Her ribs ached and stabbed hotly at her fatigued flesh. Fluttershy stumbled to her hooves and darted her eyes about for somepony familiar. Anypony. Especially... her; that pink-haired something.

Was her attraction shallow, she thought silently, spotting Twilight and Spike discussing passionate subjects. Every step closer made her wonder. What if Lilith were popular with someone else. What if they left her because she was too scared to rush in. Or what if... someone else had the girl and needed her love more. A cluster of bitter scenarios swarmed her wandering mind.

Spike waved his arms about in dejected passion, answering something from Twilight.

"So what if Sombra is gone forever...? He enslaved an entire city. And he broke their minds. How honorable or good is that? And how does it help us in our investigation. You don't really think They're followers of his, do you?"

Before she could answer, the alicorn princess shut her mouth and greeted their friend. It came on somewhat hushed tones, clearly a sign of great duress. Because all the commandeering she'd done with the mane six made shouting habitual. They met each other with silent glances and air blowing every which way, deciding to take it elsewhere. Somewhere more inconspicuous. Fluttershy had her guilty dip in those brows. Pacing around the stones only took so long to take them to a local hayburger joint. There, idle chatter was disregarded by the obnoxious chewing in one's cheek. Or the swallowing that struck a pony with soft, gutteral noise.

"Fluttershy," Twilight started, opening her burger to make it half-wrapped.

"You've been quiet today. What's wrong...?"

Her observations were always so effective. Not only did Twilight know she was troubled, but she calculated the utter lack of exchange between them. At least normal Fluttershy... tried to talk. Or whimper. Even scream. This Fluttershy was no such mare. Without hesitation, she crammed a hoof's worth of fries and chewed slowly, the molten mush bulging her chipmunk cheeks.

What could she say. How would Twilight feel. How would anypony feel. They needed someone like Miss Li. Not somepony else. Not anyone from that town or Equestria by origin. They needed her, she convinced herself deep inside. It took root and consumed her. Fluttershy finally spoke, staring fondly toward the exit.

"I... I don't wanna talk about it."

Twilight's mouth hung open.

"You... you don't want to talk about it?"

"NopebyeIhavetogotendmybrusselsproutfarmnowhaha-"

Fluttershy scrambled out with no trouble whatsoever. And, in her panic, the poor, poor pegasus practically plunged into a panicked prance, pulverizing her pretty pony parts on some photorealistic ponyvile parlor trick. Instead, her cheeks, pelvis, stomach and ribs were... crushed against a magical construct. Twilight cursed, kicking the grass with her right forehoof. Implementing a memory of Olde Ponyville like that...

It was quite sometime after that the mare found nothing but medical wraps and triage. In her room. Over her fluffy coat of plush, immature fur. She took a deep, silent breath as they slipped back into reality. The windows were all shut. Yet, every drop of cool condensation bled through the glass. It filled her with wonder at the marvelous scope of life's cycle. That which was lost could come back in some way. In some format or shape of existence, whether the sum was greater or lesser than before it went to hell. A few, gathered flowers sat in a vase beside her bed, atop a purple and crystalline nightstand. Twilight had peculiar tastes in...

roses.

It all came rushing back to her as she remembered the day before. Lilith. The name brought soft tears edging along their tired ducts. How many times had she heard their name. Peaking through the windows revealed it was far too dark to be anywhere near afternoon. And yet, even with time's passage, she remembered the trivial pondering from her morning prior. Was it right for her to be with someone she knew could do better. To truly take their affection from somepony else. It hung her head in silence, drawing their hoof upon the chilled glass. Roaring thunder struck the air outside while she felt her heart rip in two.

"I wish she was here..." Fluttershy whispered, starting into a throaty whimper.

"Wish who was here?" Lilith asked, sitting at the foot of her bed, reading a dusty old tome.

She yelped. And then she sprung off the bed. Only to gingerly walk back to her bed, then spring a trap of 1987 years of frustrated happiness all over Lilith. Tears streamed down her face in jubilant, blaring gratitude. Fluttershy made her eyes go wide with a kiss that pressed their lips firmly together. Then her tongue circled about their slimy maw, lathering about the incubus' teeth and mouth muscle. Wishes were pushed out of her ear-to-ear-grin as she hushed the words

'You, Miss Li... I want you to stay here till I get better. With your help, if you want that is...."

Author's Note

It hurts so much when we lose our innocence for the first time.