Fuzzy Blue Lights

"So, what do you normally do when you're out here?"

The two girls walked slowly through the grassfield just beyond Fluttershy's house. Fluttershy often came out here, so much so that it honestly felt like a second home. The cool air, the soft grass, the perfect amount of sunshine, and a small river to play in. What was not to love about it?

Rainbow Dash was obviously bored. Fluttershy knew that this was a long shot, but it couldn't have hurt to try. After all, Rainbow was the one who wanted a hangout spot. Why not have it in such a special place?

"I listen."

Rainbow Dash's face scrunched up. "But there's nothing to listen to."

"There is," Fluttershy smiled as she closed her eyes. "If you want to hear it."

"Okay, I'll bite," Rainbow Dash folded her hands behind her head as she walked. "Like what?"

"All the singing of the birds. The wind in the grass. The insects, the animals." Fluttershy sighed, as if hearing the rising symphony of a grand orchestra. The tunes of the world amplified in her ears. The light brushing of grass blades on her sandals, the flapping of dragonfly wings, the soft trickling of water, the sway of branches on nearby trees. Beautiful.

Rainbow Dash only frowned in confusion. "Ohhh-kay then."

Fluttershy opened her eyes, the reverie already fading. Poor Rainbow; if only she knew what she was missing out on. She smiled again when her destination finally came into sight.

"There. That apple tree. Wouldn't that be perfect for our spot?"

Rainbow Dash raised a hand to block the sunlight as she gazed out. "Yeah," She grinned. "I think it would."

Fluttershy was snapped from her vision by a loud thudding.

"Oops," one of the boys sneered, having pushed her books off of the table and onto the linoleum floor.

Fluttershy said nothing, leaning down to retrieve her textbooks. Before she could grab them, she yelped as someone seized her ankles. Her wrists were grabbed, too, and before she knew it, Fluttershy was being dragged out of the classroom. Someone else clamped a hand over her mouth so she couldn't call for help. Mr. D was still escorting Caramel Coffee to the nurse's office; there was no one to save her.

Fluttershy squirmed as she was hauled out the classroom door. The boys giggled in sadistic glee, lugging her down the hall as quickly as they could. They stopped by the janitor's closet, and one of them whipped it open. With a yelp, she was tossed inside the dark, cramped quarters. She was cast into stark blackness when the door shut behind her.

Fluttershy groaned, her knees and elbows aching from the landing. She sat up slowly, trying to let her eyes adjust. Before that could happen, the single light bulb overhead flickered on, lighting up her surrounding. Fluttershy looked around. Those bullies had to have had a specific reason to throw her in here. And she found it.

Fluttershy froze when she saw the giant, hairy tarantula on the wall. It made no movement, but Fluttershy couldn’t help but feel like it was watching her. And oddly, despite the terror seemingly shared by everyone she knew, Fluttershy didn't feel all too afraid of it. After a minute of silence, Fluttershy decided to parley.

"They are probably hoping that I'll get scared of you and start crying, but you're not so bad, are you?" Fluttershy asked the arachnid. "Well, we're probably equally scared of each other right now, but how about we make a deal? I won't hurt you, and you won't hurt me. Sound good?"

She received no answer, as she expected, but Fluttershy sensed a degree of understanding. Feeling rejuvenated by the terms, Fluttershy stood up and held her open palm out to the wall.

"Come on, you can trust me."

"Dude, something's wrong. We shoulda' heard her by now."

The boys huddled together, inching closer to the door, though none of them dared to flip the lock.

"Excuse me gentlemen, perhaps you could do me a favor," The boys all jumped at the sound of their cranky old teacher's voice. "I seem to be missing a certain number of students from my classroom. You all match the profiles of those MIA, but there still seems to be one that I can't locate."

The boys exchanged nervous looks. One of the younger ones shot a glance over his shoulder at the closet. The tall, lanky teacher raised a bushy eyebrow.

"You seem distressed, Mister Skies. Have you displaced anything recently?" The teacher bared his teeth in a wide, threatening smile. "It wouldn't happen to be in the janitor's closet, now would it?"

Fluttershy looked up as the door swung back open. Mr. D was standing in the doorway, and the boys that had trapped her cowered behind him. Without looking at them, he ordered in a low, serious voice, "Office. Now." They didn't need to be told twice.

Mr. D offered Fluttershy a hand to stand up, which she accepted.

"My my, it seems you've made a new friend in my absence."

Fluttershy looked down at the fuzzy spider cradled in her palm, and smiled sheepishly. "He's actually very nice."

"Oh, I don't doubt it," Mr. D said without a hint of sarcasm. "Come along, now. We should find your friend a Tupperware dish, before he starts a stampede."

Fluttershy smiled as she held the Tupperware container close. Mr. D had used a letter opener to punch holes in the lid for her eight-legged companion.

"Now then, you'll come see me if you ever have any troubles, won't you?" Fluttershy nodded timidly in response. "Very good. Off you trot, now. Wouldn't want you to miss the bus."

Fluttershy nodded again, then turned to leave. Before she retreated past the door, she stopped. "Mr. D?" The elderly teacher looked up from the papers he was reading. "Um, I just want you to know that I don't think you're mean and scary, like the other students."

Mr. D took off his glasses and smiled. "Why my dear, I'm so very flattered to hear that."

Fluttershy felt happy. Actually, genuinely happy. It had been a while.

"I guess it's a good thing those bullies locked me up in there, otherwise I wouldn't have met you." Fluttershy thought aloud as she admired the tarantula. She should give him a name.

"Talking to bugs now, freak?"

Fluttershy wilted upon hearing the voice of the tormentor. This wasn't even his street; couldn't she just catch one break?

"He's had a rough day, I'm trying to help him calm down." Fluttershy turned around to face Grey Skies. She stiffened when she saw the baseball bat in his hand.

What does he plan to do with that?

"Jesus, you make it sound like he's your pet cat, or something."

"He's smart like a cat, and he can be my pet." Fluttershy said defensively.

"No, that thing's a pest," Grey Skies took a step towards her. "And it can't even do its job right."

"What are you doing?" Fluttershy screeched as he knocked the plastic container from her hands. It fell open on the sidewalk with a clatter. "You'll hurt him!"

"I'm doing the world a favor." Grey Skies muttered as he raised the bat. It then occurred to Fluttershy that he was still just trying to get at her. And if he couldn't scare her into crying, he'd do something a lot worse. Fluttershy tried fending him off, but he shoved her to the ground with one arm. Fluttershy could only watch in horror as he brought the bat down with a single forceful swing.

Fluttershy sniffled, the foul taste of bile still lingering on her tongue. Her stinging palms were still red with blood, now mixed with dirt. She gave a small sob as she stood over the unmarked grave of her innocent little friend in her mom's garden. Of all the horrible, unjust things that had happened today, one stood higher than the rest.

"I didn't give him a name."