Fluttershy looked around at the beautiful plants and wildlife and she strolled through the gardens. It was a lovely time of year, she thought, as she held out a finger to a butterfly, which carefully landed on it. It was a monarch butterfly, majestic orange wings webbed in black and spotted with hints of white near the end. She held the butterfly close to her face and looked it cross-eyed. With a few flaps it shifted to her nose, resting over it like a mask. The tiny legs shook on her as it landed and the feelers tickled the bridge of her nose, causing her to let out a small giggle. Calming down from the sensation, she continued walking through the garden.
This walk wasn’t without purpose however, for as she reached the edge of the garden she saw a vast field set out before her, and a rainbow-haired girl flying about over it in an attempt to pull off various tricks and stunts; the girl Fluttershy was here to see.
Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy had been friends since Flight Camp. The day they met was marked down and imprinted in her mind. Well, after all it was the day she got her cutie mark, and everyone remembers that special day in their life! But still, that didn’t seem like the reason she remembered it so well… Rainbow Dash was the first person to ever stand up for her. To see someone defending her honor, standing up to others for her, and then becoming her friend? It was all too much! No one had ever done that for her before.
“Hey, Fluttershy! …What’s wrong?” Fluttershy squealed and fell back as she cut off from her thoughts, looking up to see Rainbow Dash looking concernedly down at her.
“O-oh, um… N-nothing, Rainbow Dash.” Dash tilted her head quizzically as she extended a hand to help Fluttershy up.
“Are you sure? You seem pretty shy? Oh, wait a second.” She smiled and let out a small chuckle at her own joke, but stopped when she saw no change in Fluttershy’s expression. “Okay, fine, it wasn’t that good a joke.” Impatient of waiting for Fluttershy’s hand to reach out to hers, she bent down and gripped her arm, heaving and pulling her up.
As she regained her balance, Fluttershy pulled her arm from Dash’s grip and rubbed her hand against it, looking away nervously. Rainbow Dash put her hands to her hips and looked at Fluttershy as if she were waiting. Her cheeks turning a light shade of red, Fluttershy looked up at her friend, making a small squeak before speaking in her usual, shy and quiet tone. “W-what did you bring me out here for?”
As she absorbed the words, Rainbow Dash frowned and her lips made the tiniest quiver, but were determined to stay still to live up to her ego. “Oh, um… D-did I say something wrong?”
Dash’s head instinctively started shaking at the worry she had upset the poor innocent girl. “Oh no, nothing wrong! It’s just… I need your help with something.”
Helping? Fluttershy thought. What could I possibly do to help her? She suddenly felt the cold leather of Dash’s glove on her shoulder and tensed up, looking into her worried magenta eyes. “You know about the Best Young Flyer competition, right?”
Fluttershy’s eyes opened wide and she backed away. “Rainbow Dash, you know I hate flight performances!”
She let out a small yelp as Dash’s hand extended to pull her back towards her.
“No, no, I didn’t mean it like that!”
She groaned in frustration and rubbed her thumb and finger against the bridge of her nose as she formulated the words in her head. “I’ve been…” She sighed at the thought of admitting her secret to her friend. “I’ve been having troubles flying, and I need your help.”
“Troubles…?” Fluttershy tilted her head quizzically. But you’re Rainbow Dash! The best flyer in Equestria! If only she had the courage to say those words. But instead she just stood there, her lips pursed as she looked over at Dash’s worried face.
Rainbow Dash let out a heavy sigh. “Yeah…” She turned and looked out at the field, finding herself unable to face her after admitting to such an ego-crushing secret. “I’ve been practicing the sonic rainboom all day! You know how many times I actually did it? None! Zero!” She sighed and sat down, resting her arms on her knees.
Fluttershy hesitated, but walked up behind her friend and comfortingly placed a hand on her shoulder. “It’s okay… I’m sure you can do it.” She tried to put on a smile, but inside she felt Dash’s uneasiness sink into her.
Closing her eyes to take the words in, Dash took another deep sigh and turned her face to her friend. “Thanks Flutter-” Her words were cut abrupt as she opened her eyes, to find herself looking directly at Fluttershy’s legs. They were light and showed no signs of tanning. Rainbow Dash had always meant to take Fluttershy out to the beach, but never got around to it. They were curvy, shapely and simply beautiful. For some reason, she felt herself on the brink of reaching out and touching them… Licking them… Tasting them…
She snapped out of her entranced state as Fluttershy nervously pointed her feet inwards. “Uh… R-Rainbow Dash?”
Her head jolted up in fear of being caught, and her mouth hung agape as she stuttered to speak. “Oh… Oh right! Well, yeah, I’ve been having a lot of trouble with it, and I could really use your help.” She put her hands together and shook them in a jokingly pleading fashion.
“But… How could I help? You’re a way better flyer than I am…”
Rainbow Dash grunted as she heaved herself up, and scratched the back of her head as she turned to face Fluttershy once again. “Well, I thought you could cheer for me or something. Moral support and stuff like that, y’know?”
Fluttershy found her feet shuffling her around, refusing to stay in one place. “But I can’t cheer. Why didn’t you pick one of the other girls?” Thinking about it at the time, she was right. Pinkie Pie or Applejack could’ve been the best cheering section Dash could ever hope for, so why her?
Rainbow Dash felt herself scratching faster, now at the side of her neck, as the anxiety started building up in her. “Yeah, well… You’re my only friend with wings, so… I’m kinda stuck with you in this one.”
Fluttershy’s heart dropped inside her. She’s stuck with me? Is that what I am to everyone? A last resort? Her lips quivered and she felt as if she would burst into tears at any moment.
Rainbow Dash managed to remain oblivious to Fluttershy’s situation, being overwhelmed by her own. She started biting on her fingernails and looking off to the distance. Why was she getting so worked up about this? It was just a competition… But the prize was a chance to hang out with the Wonderbolts! If she screwed up, in front of them… Oh Celestia, it was all too much for her to bear!
She glanced back over at Fluttershy as her mind frantically set to work on ordering things out for her. She could see that she was nervous and upset too, but why? She found herself looking back at those smooth white legs again, and an idea started burning its way into her head. Maybe there was a way they could relieve their stress… Together…
