Life Lessons

Opening my eyes, I was greeted with another beautiful morning.  I got out of bed and grabbed some clothes, a blue t-shirt and some dark blue jeans.  I poked my head out, checking to see If anyone was outside my room.  I didn't want to to be seen in just my boxers.  The coast was clear and I quickly walked through Twilight's room to get to the bathroom.  I turned the shower on and got in a few seconds later.  After washing, I stepped out and dried myself off.  I got dressed and left the bathroom, heading downstairs to the kitchen.

I looked around and could not seem to find anyone, noticing a note on the table, I picked it up and began reading.

Dear Chris,

I have been called to Canterlot at the request of the princesses.  I will be gone all day but will be home tomorrow morning.  Spike is off doing some errands for me in Ponyville and won’t be back till later.  If you want it, there is cereal for you to eat for breakfast in the cupboard to the left of the sink.  The bowls are in the cupboard right of the sink.  I hope you won’t get too bored while I’m away.

Your friend,

Twilight

“Well it looks like I’ll be eating alone.”  I said out loud, just trying to break the silence.  I walked to the cupboards and grabbed a bowl along with a box of cereal labeled ‘Equestri’os’, not a very appealing name, but the cereal itself looked good.  I poured myself a bowl adding some milk from the fridge and getting a spoon from one of the drawers.  Bite after bite, I slowly finished my breakfast in silence, feeling a bit lonely with no one else around.  It’s not too bad, I’m going to go see more of my friends today.  I thought to myself as I finished the last spoonful.  I rinsed out my bowl in the sink, walking to the front door as I got ready to head to Rarity’s.

Luckily, I had a decent Idea on how to get there since Twilight and I visited her the day I got out of the hospital.  I started walking through Ponyville, watching the local ponies as they went about their day.  I got a few waves from some ponies as I passed by, I didn’t recognize a single one but I returned their waves anyway.

It took about fifteen minutes for me to find the carousel shaped building.  The look of it exactly how I remembered.  I walked up to the door and opened it, the bell ringing as the door hit it.  I entered and stood just inside, closing the door behind me.

“Coming!”  Rarity called from what sounded like upstairs.  Seconds later she appeared as she walked down the steps.  Her face brightened up when she saw it was me.  “Chris!  How are you doing?”  She said as she walked up to me.

“I’m doing great Rarity, how are you today?” I replied.

“Oh just wonderful darling, I finished my latest ensemble for Sapphire Shores and I dare say she loved it!”  She said, a confident smile appearing on her face.  She looked me over for a second before continuing, “You really do look dashing in those clothes.”

I looked down at myself and then back to Rarity, “Well, you are the one who made them after all.”

Her cheeks reddened from my compliment.  “You know just how to flatter a mare, don’t you?”  She said as looked away sheepishly.  Suddenly she perked back up, her posture regaining her former elegance.  “Oh!  Where are my manners, was there something that you needed darling?”

“I was just wondering if you would like to spend some time with me so we could get to know each other better.  I wanted to go around to all my friends since I haven’t gotten to really know any of you.”  I felt a bit awkward asking that, but I know that it’s really not a big deal.

“I would love to!  Did you have anything planned for us to do?”  She asked.  In all honesty I hadn’t planned anything, while I hung out with Pinkie Pie and Applejack yesterday, I just helped them with whatever they were doing.

“Not really, I was kinda hoping you might have some Ideas, I’m still not sure what there is to do around here since I’m new and all.”  I probably should have put more thought into what we would do, but it hadn’t really came up before.

Rarity thought about it for a bit, her hoof touching her chin.  “Why don’t we chat over a bit of tea?”

“That sounds lovely.”  I said as I gave her a tender smile.  I don’t tend to drink tea that often, but overall I think it’s ok.

“Right this way please.”  She said and walked to a door left of the stairs.  I followed her and we entered a small kitchen, the room colors the same as the main room.  There was a small table to the right and counters lining the walls at the back of the room.  A refrigerator was to my left right were the counter ended.  A large window was next to the table, letting the sun light up the room.  Rarity motioned for me to sit at the table while she walked to the counter to start the tea.

I looked at the table,  it was about the same height as the one in Twilight’s kitchen.  Being too tall to sit in a chair, I pushed it aside and sat on the floor.  I watched as Rarity put the tea in a kettle and started to heat it up.  She walked over to me and sat in the chair opposite of me.

Wanting to start some conversation, I spoke up.  “So I met your sister Sweetie Belle yesterday while I was at Applejack’s.  Her and the other Cutie Mark Crusaders were asking to spend the night there.”

She smiled at the thought of her sister.  “She is a rather adorable filly, wouldn’t you agree?”

I nodded my head, “Yeah she sure is.  Twilight was telling me how their talents were very obvious but they couldn't figure it out, what exactly is Sweetie Belle’s talent?”

“Sweetie Belle is a gifted singer, her voice is magnificent and her ability to write beautiful lyrics is almost effortless.  But as you said, no matter how many times she displays her skills, she never seems to realize it’s her true talent.”  Rarity let out a sigh at the thought of her sister’s talent going unrecognized.  “I’ve wanted to tell her many times, but I know that the day she finally sees it for herself will be much more pleasing.”

Thinking of how talented the young filly must be now, I can only imagine how good she will get as she gets older and hones her skills.  “You must really love her.”  I said, as you could just hear the adoration Rarity had for her little sister.

“I do, Sweetie Belle looks up to me and I try to guide her the best I can.  We have had our falling outs like most sisters, but as a result, our bond has grown stronger.”  Tears joy were starting to form in her eyes as she thought of all the great memories they have shared.  She quickly tried to change the subject to take her mind off it.  “So how has it been living at Twilight’s?”

I took a second to recall the purple unicorn that had offered for me to live with her, “It’s been great!  Twilight has been a great host and friend to me.  I also got to meet spike and though we haven’t talked much, he still seems pretty cool.  Twilight wasn’t there this morning when I woke up though.  She left a note saying that she was in Canterlot to see the princesses.”  At this, Rarity perked up in excitement.

“Canterlot!  Oh isn’t it just the most wonderful place you’ve ever seen?  The sophistication, the glamor, the regality!”  She seemed to be in her own little world, dramatically posing with each word.

For the short time I walked through Canterlot, it never seemed that amazing to me.  I have been to upscale cities like that before and always found them unappealing, preferring instead the more quiet life of rural areas.  “I’ve never been one for the city life, it just seems to chaotic.”  I said voicing my thoughts.

Rarity talked a bit more about Canterlot, the history, the famous ponies who live there, and her dreams of living there one day.  The tea had finished in the middle of her ranting and she got it, pouring a glass for the both of us.

We continued conversation for quite a while, topics varying from Canterlot, Earth’s clothing styles, Rarities beginnings as a fashionista, and few stories of adventures her and the other five had together.

“...and after almost falling to my death, Rainbow Dash flew down to catch me along with the wonder bolts that were mysteriously knocked unconscious, creating her signature sonic rainboom in the process!  The judges were blown away and when the wonderbolts woke up they thanked Rainbow for saving their lives.”  As she finished telling me her story, I looked out the window and noticed the sun was high in the sky.  The day’s already halfway done.  Have I really been here that long?

I looked back to Rarity, “Thank you so much for spending time with me today Rarity, but I think I should go.  I want to go visit Fluttershy before the day’s over.”

Rarity gave me a nod, “No, thank you Chris.  I’m so glad we were able to spend some quality time together.”

“Me too.  Um..if it’s not to much trouble, do you think you could show me how to get to Fluttershy’s?”  I said, still not familiar with the layout of Ponyville.

She nodded and used her magic to levitate a piece of paper and a quill over to herself.  She wrote on the paper, using her magic to manipulate the quill.  After a few seconds she handed it to me.  Looking at it, she had drawn a map of Ponyville.  A dotted line went from where we were now, all the way to Fluttershy’s.  “Just follow that and you should get there no problem.”  She said as I looked up to her.

“Thanks again Rarity, I guess I’ll see you later.”  I gave her a smile as I got up from the floor.

“It was my pleasure darling, we wouldn't want you getting lost.”  She replied as she too got up and walk in front of me.

I knew exactly what she wanted and kneeled down on one knee.  She reared up on her hind legs and wrapped her forehooves around me.  I returned her embrace by wrapping my arms around her back, her soft coat felt like silk.  We soon broke the hug and I stood up.  Walking to the front door I turned to looked back at Rarity who had followed me.  “Goodbye Chris!”  She said as she waved.  I waved back to her as I opened the door and stepped outside.

The fresh air felt good as I took a deep breath, letting it fill my lungs.  I looked down at the map Rarity had made for me, making sure I knew which way to go.  Turning left, I began to walk back in the direction of Sweet Apple Acres.  It was definitely about midday, the sun almost directly above me.  Was I really at Rarity’s all morning?  I guess the old saying is true, time flies when you’re having fun.

Looking back at my map, I noticed all the detail Rarity put into it.  Not only did she label the Carousel Boutique and Fluttershy’s house, she also labeled all our other friends houses as well as drew a small picture of each one.   There was Twilight’s library in the north west part of Ponyville.  Below that was Sugarcube Corner, closer to the middle of the town.  Below that in the southern part of Ponyville was Rarity’s.  To the west was Sweet Apple Acres, the fields spanning most of western Ponyville.  Above the road that leads to the farm was a cloud labeled 'Rainbow's house' and at the end of a road that branched off from the previous was Fluttershy's.

After about ten minutes, I reached the road to the farm.  Looking up, I tried to see if I could spot Rainbow Dash's house.  There was a large cloud that was bigger than the others, though I couldn't tell if it actually her house.  Moving my gaze back to the ground, I found the path that led to Fluttershy's.

It took another few minutes of walking before I finally found what I looking for.  She lived a pretty good distance from Ponyville, but given her timid nature, it only made sense she lived in a more secluded area.

In front of me was a very small bridge that spanned a creek.  Beyond that was a quaint little cottage that had a very natural feel to it.  The roof was made of brush, the leaves a bright green color, the whole thing looking like a tree top.  A few windows were scattered around the sides of the building.  There were animals everywhere, birds, squirrels, rabbits, and many other small animals just running around.  A large tree was in front of the cottage and had numerous bird houses hanging from its branches.  I don't think I have ever seen so many wild animals in one place before, but as I looked around, I noticed the thick forest that surrounded her cottage.  Most of the animals probably came from there and just like to hang around Fluttershy's.

I walked over the bridge and made my way to her front door.  Most of the animals ran as I got close, probably scared of me since I'm a new creature they've never seen before.  Reaching the door, I decided to knock instead of just barging in and scaring the shy mare.  I knocked a few times waiting for her to come to the door.  No one answered and I knocked again a bit louder, listening to see if I could hear anything.  After waiting a minute with no answer, I came to the conclusion that she wasn't home.  Feeling a bit disappointed, I turned around a to head back to Ponyville.

Right as I was about start walking, a terrified scream came from the forest to my left, causing my heart to skip a beat.  I quickly turned my head to look in the direction of the scream, but as I looked at the tree line I didn't see anything that looked off.  I rushed into the forest, heading straight for where I thought it came from.  I ran a fast as I could, whoever it was that screamed sounded like they were in major trouble.  A few seconds later I came to a small clearing, Immediately noticing the yellow pegasus cowering on the ground.  Not ten feet from her was some sort of wolf, though as odd as it sounds, it appeared to be made entirely out of logs and sticks.  Its eyes glowing a bright green color as It stared at its prey.  Knowing all too well that it was planning to attack Fluttershy, I quickly sprang into action.

My adrenaline started to flow as the wolf pounced at my friend.  Running at it at high speeds, I bashed it out of the air, hitting its side with my right shoulder.  The creature collided with the ground pretty hard, but was quick to get up and form an attacking stance directed towards me.  I felt some pain in my shoulder from the impact with its wooden body, but shrugged it off and gave my full attention to the fight.  It charged me, snarling with its large, sharp teeth showing.  Coming at me faster than I expected, I didn’t have much time to react as I swung my right arm at its head with as much power as I could muster.  I managed to make contact, the creature's head recoiling as he flew to the ground, but not before swiping at me with its large claws.  The claws scratched across my chest, the shirt I was wearing ripping and leaving behind the claw marks.  As the wolf tried to regain its composure from my last hit.  I kicked it in the underbelly, it’s entire body suddenly fell apart into pile of inanimate logs and sticks.

Breathing heavily, I looked over to the still cowering mare.  I walked to her side and gently placed my left hand on her back.  “It’s ok now Fluttershy, that 'thing' is gone.”  My tone as gentle and tender as I could make it.

She looked up, her eyes checking the area to see for herself.  Once she saw the pile of wood laying of the ground, she turned to look at me.  A small smile appeared on her face as we made eye contact.  As she looked at me however her expression changed to one of horror.  I looked down at my body and noticed the rips in my shirt, blood flowing from the cuts across my chest.  This sudden realization caused my senses to kick back in as the immense pain shot through my body.  As I went to move my right hand to my chest, I felt the pain in my right shoulder.  I must have dislocated something when I ran into the wooden creature.

Fluttershy’s attitude seemed to change as she hovered in the air, her usual quiet voice being replaced with a stern, almost motherly one.  “We need to get you to my house so I can bandage you up.  Do you think you can make it?”  I gave her a nod, feeling like I had enough strength to make it back.  “Good”, she said, ”Let’s get going, hurry!”

I got up, the pain almost too much to handle.  After a few steps I felt myself start to lose my balance as I almost fell over, Fluttershy quickly flew to my side to keep me standing.  Making our way back to cottage, I could feel my energy leaving my body.  After about two minutes we came to the edge of the forest, the small cottage coming into view as we emerged from the trees.  I was starting to get light headed as we made it to her front door.

We went inside and she instructed me to lay down on a couch that was in the back left of what looked to be her living room.  Once I was fully situated on the couch, she left the room for a few seconds, quickly returning with a first-aid kit in her mouth.  Opening it up she pulled out some disinfecting spray, gauze, and tape.   She helped me remove my shirt, the full extent of the damage being exposed.  The scratch on my chest was thin, but looked to be pretty deep.  Looking at my right hand, it was starting to bruise from the punch that I had dealt.

Fluttershy looked into my eyes with a sincere but caring gaze, “I’m going to spray the disinfectant on your wound.  It’s going to sting for a little bit, but I need to do it so you don’t get an infection.”  I gave her a small nod, though I didn’t quite register what she said because the room was starting to spin.  Having given my consent, she grabbed the bottle with her hoof I don't know how but she did and sprayed it on my wound.  The instant the mist hit the open gashes, I gritted my teeth as I felt an intense stinging tingle through my body.  After a few seconds the stinging faded, leaving only the original pain from before.  Fluttershy took the gauze and began to dress my wound.  She had to help me sit up so she could wrap it around me since I was to weak and in pain to do it on my own.

After wrapping the gauze around my upper body a few times, she taped it down so it would not come off. The whole thing was wrapped tight enough to my body to apply pressure to the wound, but not restrict too much movement.

Now that the worst part had been taken care of, she then started to attend to my other injuries.  She wrapped my hand in some gauze and then moved to my shoulder, as she tried to move it I winced at the pain.  Knowing full well that it was dislocated, she spoke up, “It looks like you dislocated your shoulder, I can put it back in place but it’s going to hurt a lot.”  I nodded once more, not having the energy at the moment to talk.  I knew that this was going to hurt, but wanting to just get this all over, with I agreed.

She took my wrist in her mouth and put a hind leg in my armpit, pulling as hard as she could while pushing back on me with her leg.  The pain was unbearable for a split second before I felt my shoulder pop back into position.  Fluttershy released her grip and let out a sigh of relief, all the injuries had been treated and we could both relax.  Though I had lost most of my energy, I started to become conscious again and the room stopped spinning as bad.  I looked to the window and noticed that the sun was starting to set, I guess Fluttershy noticed it too because she let out a yawn and then looked to me, “It’s getting late and I’m sure you’re tired, I’ll help you up to my room so you can get some sleep.”

The idea of going to sleep sounded wonderful, especially after all that happened, but I then thought of something, “Where are you going to sleep?”  I asked in a weak voice.

She looked at me with those adorable cyan eyes, “I thought I would sleep down here on the couch, that is...if that’s ok with you.”  She said, her more timid nature starting to return now that the emergency was over.

“Sleep in your bed Fluttershy, I’m perfectly fine sleeping here.”  I replied.  I was touched that she would give up her bed for me and sleep on the couch, but I didn’t feel right kicking her out of her own bed.  She became visibly disappointed as I would not let her sleep on the couch and began to pout a bit.  I gave a small laugh as I though of a compromise.  “Well, since you want me to sleep in you bed and I don’t want you to have to sleep on the couch, do you think we could both just fit in the bed?”

She seemed a little shocked at the idea, “S-sleep...t-together?”

A grin spread across my face as I thought of my response.  “It’s perfectly fine if you don't want to, I’m more than happy to sleep on the couch.”

The idea of me sleeping on the couch played through her head as she made up her mind, “No! I mean um.. there’s plenty of room in the bed for both of us.”  She blushed a bit as she spoke.  Helping me up, she led me to a flight of stairs that was on the left side of the living room.  The stairs were quite the challenge for me due to my current state.  Finally reaching the top of the stairs, we made our way to Fluttershy’s room.

The room was decent sized,  large bed in the middle of the room with the headboard against the back wall.  A checkered butterfly quilt was laying on the bed and a small chest was sitting on the floor at the base.  There was a small nightstand/bookshelf to the left of her bed and on the right wall was a stone fireplace.  A few bird houses hung from the rafters, but didn’t seem to be occupied by any birds at the moment.

Fluttershy helped me into bed, pulling back the quilt as I stepped in.  After I was tucked in, she flew over to the other side and slid under the covers to my left.  I was still in my jeans but not wanting to take them off in front of the shy pegasus, I decide to just leave them on.  To my surprise, she began to cuddle with me a bit, nuzzling her face against me as she laid her head on my left shoulder.  Because I didn’t have a shirt on, I could feel her coat against my side.  Her softness and warmth very comforting as I wrapped my left arm around her back.

“Thank you for saving me Chris.”  She said in a tired voice, as we both began to drift off to sleep.  Before I knew it, darkness filled my sight as sleep had taken over.  Even though I got hurt, I’m just glad I could protect Fluttershy from that wolf-like creature.  I’ve only been here in Equestria for a short time, having my friends for an even shorter time, but I know that I could not imagine my life if something terrible happened to any of them.  Already in the short time I have known them, they have been the most loyal and caring friends I have ever had.  Thank you girls, I don’t think you’ll ever truly know how much you mean to me.