Tight Squeeze

It was a wonderful day.

I'm not the kind of pony that takes "wonderful" lightly, though. When I say wonderful, I mean that what I've seen is...well, full of wonder. So I won't wake up every day and tell you that's a wonderful day out here by my cottage. "Lovely", maybe. "Gorgeous" works too, most of the time.  Maybe "splendid", "beautiful", or "marvelous" would be fitting. But as for today...wonderful seemed to be the only word for it.

A smile formed on my lips almost unconsciously as the sunlight cascaded through the windowsill, illuminating even the tiniest of dust specks. I could hear the birds singing their morning song as always, and saw the frolicking of the many creatures under my care as they, too, relished in the beauty of this wonderful day. Bunnies, squirrels, deer, butterflies, and even a few foxes were out playing with each other, seemingly laughing as their play took them throughout my spacious yard. My smile grew even bigger once I'd made my way outside. Today was going to be great, I just knew it.

Suddenly, I felt a gentle tapping on my left forehoof. I nearly jumped out of my skin, before my eyes flitted to the ground to see Angel standing there, smiling quite happily for his usual self. I let out a nervous chuckle, before gently petting him between his ears.

"Oh, Angel...you almost scared me!" I chided, relieved, ruffling his fur much as a father would do to his son. To this, Angel rolled his eyes, a gesture that was almost characteristic of him. I almost asked him how he was doing today, but I knew that his answer was most likely the same as mine would be: "wonderful."

His little eyes darted around briefly, before he reached into a nearby patch of grass and pulled something out and pointed at it. I almost had to squint, but as my eyes rested on it, I realized it was a watch. Everything seemed normal about it, and I was about to ask why he had decided to show me it, when I noticed the time read 8:45. With another emphasizing gesture, I realized immediately the time's significance; I'd made plans to meet Rarity at the spa for our weekly meet at 9:00, and I was 30 minutes away...by wing.

"Oh dear oh dear oh dear! I'm so late!" I managed to squeak. "Angel, why didn't you wake me? Rarity's going to be so upset!"

Angel said nothing, instead choosing to look at the ground and kick at it sheepishly. I had half a mind to collapse into a pile of anxiety and frustration, but my legs managed to hold me away from that. No, the best thing to do was to go to the spa anyway and apologize. After all, everypony's late sometimes...just not this late.

"Okay, Angel! I have to go now, but you know what to do! Keep the animals fed, make sure everyone's okay, and - "

Angel made a zipper gesture with his paw, before saluting me. I knew then that he had it handled. After all, I usually left him in charge when I was gone and nothing bad ever seemed to happen. I was especially proud of him because the animals always looked up to him, and to my knowledge, never disobeyed him at all. He seemed to project an aura of authority that even I was sometimes envious of, and that assured me of everything's well-being whenever I had to leave. I had to make a mental note someday of taking some lessons from him on that sort of thing.

With all that in mind, I pushed off the ground, and flapped as fast as my wings would take me towards the spa, grimacing against the slightly chilly air of the beautiful day.

As it turned out, my haste paid off. I flitted to a stop before the spa and, following a moment to catch my breath and wipe the sweat from my forehead, pushed into the waiting room. Luckily for me, Rarity was still there, staring down at a magazine about mane-styling. I gathered my courage, and wandered over to where she was before nervously muttering something along the lines of "Sorry I'm late".

"Hm?" Rarity glanced at me, and back to her magazine, before she suddenly swung her gaze back to me. "Oh! Fluttershy! I'm so glad you could make it!" she cooed, grasping me in a hug that I eagerly accepted. "No worries, you're not late at all! Even if you were, I simply couldn't be mad at you for something so insignificant!"

I smiled abashedly, becoming uncomfortably aware of my reddening cheeks and the sleek tiled floor. "Yes, I know...it's just... - "

Our greetings were interrupted by a polite clearing of somepony's throat, and we turned to find Aloe, the pink-coated, blue-maned manager standing before us. "Excuse me, Miss Rarity," she began in her usual accented way. "Your mudbath is ready. Shall we begin!"

"But of course!" Rarity grinned, and beckoned me as the two started trotting towards the allotted spa area. "Fluttershy, darling, you would not believe the week I've had! It's been fabulous!"

"Oh?"

"Oh, indeed!" Rarity absolutely beamed as she tossed her curls to the side. "I met the most interesting stallion, and if gorgeous were a pony, he is that pony!" She sighed longingly. "So gentlemanly, too..."

        "Oh, that's nice," I said, being drawn in by Rarity's absolute enthusiasm. And even by itself, her finding somepony really was a great thing for her. Ever since her run-in with Blueblood, she'd been a bit hesitant in the world of romance that she so often spun yarns about. I suspected from the dreamland that her gaze stared into that she was elated to be back in that world. I think I would be too, if I ever found the right pony.

        Aloe stopped in front of a large cluster of mud pools, pausing slightly before gesturing to one eagerly. "Here we are!" she chirped, taking a slight bow. "If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask! Cucumbers are over on that table should you wish to use them. Enjoy!"

        And just as quickly as she'd come, Aloe was gone, hurrying back to the lobby where she had many more ponies to assist. Her sister, Lotus, would likely be overworked as well. It was sort of funny in a way that the ponies who probably needed the spa the most were the ones who ran it.

        "Come in, Fluttershy, come in!" Rarity cooed, sinking into the squelching mass of matter. "The mud is, dare I say, divine!"

        I shook my head briefly to clear myself of the mental tangent I'd wandered off on, and without further hesitation, sank into the pit with every bit of slowness I could muster. As the cool earth slid up first my hooves, then my thighs, and finally my neck, I couldn't help but to let out a relaxed moan. The cool, squeezing grip of the mud did a lot to relieve stress and muscle pains. Exactly how, I didn't know, but one thing was for sure: it worked.

(Sit in mudbath for a while, almost drift off, move on to massages (talk about other friends))