It was one of those near-perfect days that seem to show up occasionally before the grey, cold days of true winter take hold. The sun was out in a nearly cloudless sky and there was almost no breeze to speak of. True, it was cold, but it was a cold that could be endured with a simple sweater rather than some bulky jacket.
Normally on a day like this Fluttershy would be enjoying the sun and the quiet that seems to settle over the world as all the little critters hid away for the season. Instead, there on the abandoned sidewalk in front of Canterlot High, she stood with head down, face hidden behind her hair, and arms crossed protectively over her chest.
She was nervous.
Not that nervousness was particularly unusual in her case, but on the surface of things there really wasn't anything for her to be nervous about: school was out for the weekend, there were no noisy crowds around, Angel and the few other little critters she cared for over the winter were taken care of for the day, and she was about to spend the rest of the day with her close friend Sunset Shimmer.
None of that was why she was nervous. She was nervous about what she was meeting up with Sunset for.
Usually, time spent with any of her friends would be one of the limited cases when she could feel relaxed when out and around other people. This, however, was a special case. Not only was this going to be her first time visiting Sunset's home, but they were both going to be getting nude once there.
Again, the whole getting naked thing wasn't new either. Not at all...well, okay, it was still a little new...at least together. She had been stripping bare in the private areas of Sweet Apple Acres for a few years now, but it has been less than two months since Sunset had caught her after showing up with the same idea in mind and they'd started sharing the experience.
After the initial startle and nervousness, she'd actually found it rather comfortable spending time with Sunset like that. It was reassuring to her that maybe it wasn't such a freakish feeling after all, striping off like that.
But a home just wasn't the same thing at all. A home belongs to someone. It's not part of nature. So, what do you do? Outside they could sit and watch the scenery, breathe the scents of nature, sunbathe sometimes, or swim at others. Inside...what would they do inside other than just sit there naked? Sunset had already said it wasn't that big of a place.
And there are rules in homes that vary from person to person, and so many of them aren't spoken until one is broken. So many opportunities are then available to see something or do something that the owner didn't like or approve of. So many chances to screw up and make someone angry...
Suddenly an arm draped over Fluttershy’s shoulder and she jerked from her thoughts with a sudden, startled, “Eep!” Heart pounding, she glanced over through her bangs to see Sunset smiling comfortingly at her.
“You okay there Shy? You were looking a little more closed in than usual.”
Fluttershy felt her cheeks warm a little as she dropped her gaze again. “Oh, um… Yeah. I mean, I’m okay… Just…” she said in a voice almost too quiet even to qualify as a whisper that trailed off to silence.
Fortunately (or perhaps unfortunately, depending on point of view), by this point Sunset had a lot of practice at listening for Fluttershy’s near-inaudible statements and prompted, “Just…? Just what? You’re not worried about your critters are you?”
Cheeks warming even further when she realized she’d been heard and that Sunset wasn’t going to let her get off without an explanation, Fluttershy decided just to get it out. Well, part at least. “It’s just… I’ve never been to your place… I was wondering what it will be like.”
True enough, if not quite the way that statement was likely to be interpreted.
Sunset gave a short chuckle and responded in a whisper of her own, “It’s just an apartment. Though I have spruced it up a little with some plants and scenic posters.”
She actually felt Sunset’s chuckle and only then noticed that Sunset had her tucked under one arm with their heads leaning against each other as they whispered to each other. Had it been anyone else, she probably would have pulled away in embarrassment, but in this case it helped calm her down. She felt safe and that she could just be herself.
It was a reminder. Sunset had never (since her reformation) tried to force her out of her comfort zone. This very conversation was one such example: she hadn’t asked Fluttershy to speak up, but had instead put herself in position to hear and respond on Fluttershy’s level.
Fluttershy felt the tension she’d built up rapidly begin to slip away and a true smile finally broke free.
“Well, simple or not, I can’t wait to see it.”
"Away we go then, to my humble abode!"
Sunset kept Fluttershy tucked close as she turned and let her away from the school and conversation turned to the usual chatter between friends about the previous week and upcoming plans. And as they rounded a corner that took them out of line-of-sight of the school, neither was aware of the watcher they were leaving behind.
Rainbow Dash was running behind and making a mad dash for the school to try and avoid being late for practice. Getting chewed out by coach in front of the rest of the team would be the total opposite of awesome. But thoughts of practice fled her mind as she turned onto the block and spotted Sunset walking slowly the opposite direction with Fluttershy tucked intimately against her side.
She mumbled a curse under her breath as she put on a slight burst of speed. She’d been spending almost every free moment since she’d spotted the two naked together on Applejack’s farm trying, with no luck, to catch them up to anything together. And they had to choose today…
"Yo Dash!" she suddenly heard as she was about to pass the front of the school. “Hurry up! Coach will have our asses if we’re late after what happened last week.”
She stumbled to a halt at the reminder of why she had been coming here in the first place and muttered a curse under her breath. It was like they had timed it just to spite her.
She was considering skipping practice to follow anyway when there was a follow-up call of, "Come on, Dash! Daydream later!" and the slam of a door. She grit her teeth and forced herself to turn and head in. Just before entering the building she looked over one last time to see them pass out of sight around a corner, heads together.
I will find out what’s going on between those two! she promised herself as the door closed behind her.
Author's Note
It took a while, but here we go at last.
I have decided to go with the idea of developing a romance between Fluttershy and Sunset in this series. Why? Well, there are a few reasons:
- I still need practice with writing a developing relationship.
- The first part of this series ended up resulting in a setup that could easily remain platonic or develop further which meant the option was there when, in starting this, it kept trying to nudge me in the direction of a true relationship.
- I think that they could make a rather cute couple.
- No one objected when I posted a blog about the possibility.
My original purpose of this story being to show different views held by nudists remains and will continue to be a key aspect as it progresses. However, the progression from friends into partners will likely be very central as we go along as well.
Hopefully I can maintain a balance between the two that doesn't end up making either feel like simple fluff to fill in space around the other.
