Light(n)ing Her Heart Aflutter

"Hey, wait up!" Rainbow Dash said, racing out the door after Fluttershy. Lightning Bolt shared a confused look with Applejack and Rarity before following his sister outside. There, he saw Fluttershy, hiding behind a tree a short distance from the door. Rainbow Dash stood beside her, conversing with her quietly. Lightning Bolt was too far away to hear the words, but clearly his sister was helping Fluttershy regain her composure. After a few seconds, Fluttershy seemed to calm down. Rainbow Dash looked up at Lightning Bolt, motioning for him to come closer.

As he approached, Fluttershy trotted out from behind the tree, accompanied by Rainbow Dash. They met up right in front of Sugarcube Corner. Lightning Bolt looked down at Fluttershy. Although he was only slightly taller than her, she seemed to shrink in his presence. She stared down at her hooves, muttering something quietly. Rainbow Dash gently nudged her with her wing.

"Come on Fluttershy, just talk to him, he won't bite." Bolstered by her words, Fluttershy stood up straight and looked up at Lightning.

"H-hello, Lighting Bolt. It's good to see you again."

"It's nice to see you too, Fluttershy." Lightning Bolt replied, smiling warmly. Fluttershy smiled back, then looked away, pawing nervously at the dirt with a forehoof. Rainbow Dash spoke next, filling in for her.

"Lightning, I was going to show you around town for a few hours before taking you to my favorite restaurant. Fluttershy would like to come with us. Is that alright with you?" Rainbow Dash asked, then waited for his response. Fluttershy looked back up at him, a hopeful look on her face.

"Sure, I don't mind at all," said Lightning Bolt. "It's been so long since I saw either of you; it'll be nice to reconnect." Rainbow Dash gave a small nod of approval, and Fluttershy let out a small sigh of relief.

After a few short goodbyes to the ponies inside Sugarcube Corner, they were off into the air. Rainbow Dash led the tour, with Lightning Bolt following close behind. Slightly farther back trailed Fluttershy. They flew at a slow pace, a few yards above the hustle and bustle in Ponyville's streets. In a few hours, they had covered the whole town, from Rarity's boutique to Twilight's castle, all the way to Sweet Apple Acres, Fluttershy's cottage, and finally back to the center of town for lunch.

The sun rose high in the sky, signalling that it was slightly past noon. The three ponies sat outside together around a table at the restaurant Rainbow Dash had mentioned, each with a plate containing something called a "vegan chili dog".

"Phew, I'm famished!" said Rainbow Dash, devouring hers in only a few bites. Lightning and Fluttershy ate theirs more daintily, but each nodded in agreement. It had been a long time since the waffles, and Fluttershy had eaten breakfast before coming to Sugarcube Corner. When they had finished, Rainbow Dash ordered another round for each of them. The worst of their hunger gone, they consumed this next set of dogs at a slower pace, taking the time for conversation.

"So, how do you like Ponyville so far?" asked Rainbow, taking a small bite of her chili dog.

"It's great," Lightning responded. "Certainly different from the zebra lands. It's good to be back in Equestria."

"Omigosh!" Rainbow dash exclaimed. "I totally forgot to ask you, how was it in the zebra lands? Was it just like the Daring Do novels described it? Tell me everything!". She leaned forward, as did Fluttershy, who appeared intrigued as well. Lightning thought for a second, then spoke.

"It was... hot. And dry. That's why I was there, as part of the weather detail. We brought rains for the zebra crops when they were in drought. That was the boring part of the job, though. Occasionally, a fire would start. It could be from a lightning strike, a campfire, a dragon... regardless, with how dry the land was, fire spread quickly. Within minutes a spark could become a roaring blaze. When that happened, we brought the whole brigade out. We'd whip up giant rainstorms to put out the inferno.It could take weeks to get a single fire under control. It was hard work. Dangerous work..." Lightning trailed off, staring down at his half-eaten chili dog. Rainbow Dash had an expression of rapt interest, while Fluttershy's was of horror.

"Oh, that sounds terrible!" Fluttershy said, in a worried tone. "All of those animals losing their homes, I can't imagine. And the zebras, too... what happened to them? Were they okay?"

"Usually, yeah. We had special teams to evacuate any villages that were in the path of the wildfire. They did their jobs well... but they weren't always there in time..." Lightning shook his head, irritated with himself. "Gah, sorry to bring the mood down. I came here to forget about all that stuff! Let's talk about something else. What have you two been up to, besides saving Equestria?"

Rainbow Dash brightened up, launching enthusiastically into a story about the recent Daring Do convention she had been to. When she finished, Fluttershy described her work with animals, and how she helped Rainbow Dash choose a pet. From there, the conversation moved to their time together back in Cloudsdale as colts and fillies. By the time they had finished reminiscing, Fluttershy had come almost completely out of her shell.

The sun moved farther along the sky. It would actually be dinner soon. They paid for the meal, then stood up to part ways. Rainbow Dash turned to Lightning Bolt.

"Come on, Bro. We should get going. You're staying at my place, I assume?" Lightning nodded in agreement, spreading his wings in preparation for the flight.

"Wait!" said Fluttershy loudly, catching their attention. "Um, would it be alright if I... came over later?"

"Yeah Fluttershy, that's alright with me. Come over after dinner. Pinkie's throwing another sleepover tonight, though, since I missed the last one yesterday. I tried to get her to understand, but you know how she is. She'll probably turn me into cupcakes if I miss two of her parties in a row, so I kind of have to attend. Are you fine with it just being you and Lightning Bolt?" Fluttershy blushed, but nodded. Before Lightning could say a word, she turned and flew off in the direction of her cottage.

Rainbow Dash took off as well, but towards her own home. Lightning flew after her, catching up after a few seconds.

"Wait, what's the hurry, Sis? Why are we going so fast?"

"Because," Rainbow Dash said. "We've got to eat dinner, and you've got to get ready for your date with Fluttershy!"

Lightning Bolt's eyes widened. My what‽