A Fallen Star

                                             CHAPTER FOUR: SOME DAY

Before I go further, I want you to know right now that even good ponies crack sometimes, and Rainbow Dash had apparently reached her limit.

“You’ve known me for years!” She was enraged and I could do nothing but stare futilely up into her mad eyes. “Every time you see me I do nothing but show that I’m as good as, if not better than you, and here you, both of you are hiding from me!”

“I-“ I was speechless.

“You act like you don’t even remember me!” She turned sharply, “And you.” Her voice grew lower. Almost threatening. “You’ve been hiding him. Barely even letting me see him.”

“H- he’s sick. He couldn’t move.” It sounded more like Fluttershy said it to the ground than the crazed fan above her.

“Hey!” I spluttered a bit; making me seem much less threatening then I wanted to be.

“Hm?” Her eyes turned to me, but she hadn’t moved her head.

“Yes, you won the Best Young Fliers Competition. Yes, you were very impressive at the gala, but we still can’t accept you.”

“Why not?” She hadn’t moved. A silent tear rolled down her cheek as the two mares stared at each other.

“You never….” I didn’t want to say it. Dreams are important. Without dreams, life has no meaning. Ponies have no soul. No drive.

“I never what!” Another tear fell and she turned ninety degrees to face me.

“You never passed flight school.”  I tried to inch away. Just in case, but I soon found something surprising happened.

She laughed.

“Is that all? All I have to do is go back and ace an ol’ test? Well why didn’t you tell me from the beginning?”

“I’m so sorry. Rainbow Dash I’m so sorry, but you’re too old. They won’t accept you.” I was crying now. I was becoming everything I hated.  I had just crushed someone else’s dreams. Willingly.

“No.” She looked at the floor. “No why won’t they! What do I have to prove to them?” The devastated pegasus bolted for the front door, not bothering to open it, she burst through leaving it swinging to and fro on it’s hinges.

I crawled over to Fluttershy. “Are you okay?” I looked at her hooves. “Did she hurt you?”

“No. It’s just a bit of glass.”

“C’mon let’s get something for those hooves. Where’re the bandages?”

“Upstairs.”

I let out a small chuckle. “Well that’s problematic isn’t it?” She flapped her wings and smirked at me. “He he. Right.” I still wish I could’ve been of some help in the situation, but I just made my way to the couch, weaving around the glass as I did so, and waited there until she returned with a few small bandages on her hooves.

“I can clean up the glass.” It was just an offer, but when I attempted to get up I was almost immediately pushed back, a stern hoof resting on my chest.

“No,” Looking up, it was clear she was holding back tears, or at the very least trying to hide the ones already there. “Please. Let me do it.” She gave an attempt at a smile ad trotted away and for the briefest of times I was left to my own thoughts once again.

I wondered if she had been crying because of the cuts on her hooves, or if it had something to do with Rainbow Dash. I wondered why she wouldn’t let me help her with the glass, but before I could wonder anymore she was back by my side with a dustpan and a small broom in each hoof. She hovered above the floor, sweeping it up without looking at me.

“Hey um…” But she had flown off once again to deposit what glass she had collected in the bin.

Again she returned. “Hey, what’s wrong?” A tear fell from her eye, which was shut tight as she tried to hold it back.

“I just-“ She stuttered “I just hate to see ponies in such pain. Fist it’s you and then…” Again she trailed off.

“Don’t worry about it. Rainbow Dash’ll get over it. And well, you’ve helped me more than I can express.”

“I just want to help my friends.” She looked almost flattered, but the look of solemnity remained.

It almost seemed that the more pain her friends were in, the more pain she was in. Just like I said, she cares for everypony else more than herself.

“Cheer up. C’mon let’s start a fire. Or at least close some of the windows?” It was getting awfully cold as winter was just starting and through the window’s I could clearly see pegasi moving clouds into place, getting ready for a storm.

“Okay.” She let out the one word along with a small sigh and started to close the few windows around the cottage. A fire was lit under the mantle and the rest of the day was spent in peaceful warmth.

                                          ***

That night was the first night I had a real meal since I had been back. Not just mush or an apple on the floor but I sat at the table and ate. Good food too. Apple cobbler, lily sandwiches, and wheat fries. At the time, that meant a lot to me, especially since Fluttershy had gone out to hoof pick the apples only earlier that day. Sometimes she killed me. She really did. Just too nice. I honestly don’t see what I had done to deserve such a great meal, but hey I’m not one to complain about good food.

“So…” I wasn’t very good at breaking the ice, and Fluttershy just looked up from her meal and stared at me, waiting for me to say something. “Erhm,” I cleared my throat, “Um… Thanks for making this. It looks it took a lot to make.”

“It was nothing really.” She wasn’t a very good liar.

“So snow tonight huh?”

“Uh huh.” She picked mercilessly at her food, hardly looking up at me. Her shy demeanor remaining ever-present in all she did.

“Is something wrong?” Now she looked up at me.

“Oh no. Nothing really.”

“Really?”

Her head cocked slightly to the right before she looked me right in the eye and said, “Don’t worry about my problems,” However I could barely hear her.

“Okay.” A few minutes passed. Silent minutes. Cold ,dead ,silent minutes.

“Welp. I’m done.” Immediately Fluttershy was out of her seat as she began collecting my dishes. I pushed her back, maybe slightly too rough. “I’ll do it.”

“No. Please. I need to help.”

“I need to work. Please let me just do this.” It still seems like such a stupid argument, but then again both of us we’re having problems then.

“Okay.” And so I cleared the dishes, and she washed them.

When we had finished, both of us went to settle down on the couch.

“So…” Fluttershy said it this time, and I was surprised to hear an actual attempt at conversing come from her.

“So…”

“Some day huh?”

“Normal, except for well, the snow, the fancy dinner, and the enraged pegasus. Yeah I guess it has been some day hasn’t it?” I chuckled a bit to myself.

“I still wish Rainbow Dash could’ve-“ But I cut her short, put my hoof on her cheek and turned her towards me.

“You forget about Rainbow Dash for now. There’s nothing you can do from here.”

“But-“ Again she was cut short as I pulled her towards me and, well, kissed her.