So You Find a Pony in a Box

"Hello?"

"Hey, Lee." Bert spoke through his smartphone, rubbing the back of his neck. "It's me."

"Am I supposed to know who you are?" said a voice after a moment of silence. The speaker sounded annoyed.

"It's Bert." said Bert pointedly. "Have you already forgotten who I am?"

Another moment of silence. "No. Though I'm wishing I did." said the voice named Lee. "You better have a good reason for calling me. I'm currently in a party and my companions are not the type who enjoys being interrupted. Especially before a raid."

Bert rolled his eyes. "Still playing your games I see." he said, glancing behind to where the occupied box was. The pony, who has called herself 'Fluttershy' was staring at him with questioning eyes. "Listen --- I need a fav---"

"We haven't spoken for nearly half a year, and the first thing you ask of is not of my well-being but a favour?" Bert could hear the faint sound of fingers tapping away on a keyboard on the other end of the line. The sound of clicks coming off from Lee's keyboard were fast and brief. "Oh, and how could I forget the part where you interrupted me moments before The Battle for the Dark Crown! Do you know how long I've been planning this raid with my guild?"

"Look, Lee, I'm sorry to have catch you at a bad time but---"

"Months! I've been planning this raid for months!" shouted Lee. Bert pulled his phone away from his ear to avoid a possible ruptured eardrum. "Do you know how hard it was to convince SmiteMeHard1124 to join my party? That guy is one of the best paladins in our guild! And BunnyLover007 has finally agreed to aid me with his warrior who, I might add, possesses one of the best gear available in game?" Lee stopped, and Bert heard another barrage of clicking being fired upon the keyboard.

"Look, I'm sorry alright!" Bert said quickly before Lee could continue. "And I know it's been a while since we last talked, but right now, I really need your help with something!"

"And toss aside months of planning, begging, and humiliation as if it were trash?" Lee shot back angrily. "Never!"

"But it's really, really important, Lee!" begged Bert, pacing about his living room. Fluttershy's eyes followed his every move with vigilance. "I'm kinda in a situation right now."

"And that automatically makes your matter more important than mine?" said Lee, accompanied by the sounds of furious typing. "Your arrogance precedes you."

Bert knew he has to come up with something better. It was plainly obvious that Lee wasn't interested in any of his problems and wanted nothing to do with it. Bert needed something to bait Lee with. Something Lee couldn't possibly refuse. Even if there was a battle for some stupid crown with a bunch of stupidly named usernames.

"I will get you a pint of that new flavour from Jen & Berry's if you come help me."

A sudden gasp and the muffled sound of a phone hitting the ground told Bert that he was successful. A moment later Lee's voice came back on. "A-a-are you for real?" Lee stammered, clearly trying hard not to sound excited. "We're talking about the Jen & Berry's Ice Cream?"

Bert smirked, he's got Lee in the palm of his hand now. Luckily he still remembered Lee was a fanatical ice-cream lover. And a huge fan of the Jen & Berry's brand of ice-cream. The company's various mixture and combination of flavours never really stood out to Bert in anyway, however.

"The very same." he said to Lee smugly. "All you gotta do is come by my house and I'll explain the rest to you."

Bert waited patiently as more typing was heard over the phone. "You drive a hard bargain, you know that?" Lee finally said, defeated. "No doubt this will serve as a catalyst for deeming whether or not I'm still worthy of being the second-in-command in my guild. JonnyBeGud4432 will be clutching his sides, laughing away with the rest of his goons, I'm sure. He's been aiming for my spot for sometime now."

Bert did not know if he should apologize. He felt somewhat responsible for dragging Lee away. Even guilty. But only a little. He'll get over it.

"You still know where I live?"

"So...are you... are you hungry?" Bert asked Fluttershy, unsure with the question. The winged-pony shook her head timidly. As if afraid that she might get mauled if she chose to say yes.

"Ah...okay then." Bert flapped his hand to his sides. Lee was not due for another fifteen minutes. He has to come up with someway to kill the time. Fluttershy the yellow pony was still in her box. Eyes ever staring fearfully at him. Perhaps a getting-to-know-you session was in order, Bert thought, clearing his throat loudly.

"So, er... Fluttershy." he began, taking a small step towards the box. He was worried he might make her faint again. "It's Fluttershy, right?"

She nodded her head. Strands of her long, wavy pink-coloured mane covered her face.

That's good, Bert thought, taking another step closer. She seems to be responding normally and not screaming in terror. Exactly the response he was looking for. "Right, that's good. And I'm Bert." he slowly raised his hand towards her, offering a handshake. "Nice to...nice to meet you."

Fluttershy only stared at him. Her eyes darted back and forth from his outstretched hand to his face. "E-erm..." she stuttered, her voice high-pitched and soft, raising her head slowly from the box. "N-nice to meet you t-t-too." She cautiously raised a hoof and softly bumped it against his hand, swiftly pulling it back into the relative safety of her box once her fur met his skin.

Bert coughed and lowered his hand too. It was obvious Fluttershy was ignorant to basic human customs. As he was hers.

"I'm sorry about before." he apologized, rubbing the back of his neck. "About the... you know... staring and...and the..."

Fluttershy nodded her head, embarrassed. "I-I know what you m-mean." she whispered, face turning red. "Please don't worry about it. I know you didn't mean it."

"I just wanted to tell you that I didn't mean to do it!" Bert said. "I was just... I was just curious and... and I don't know what took over me and---"

"Please!" Fluttershy whispered loudly under her breath, face red like a beet, as if worried someone from outside might hear them. "Please stop talking about it!"

"R-right. Sorry."

They sat in silence. Both avoiding each other's eyes.

"So..." Bert spoke after a while. "Are you a pony?" There was no reason to beat around the bush.

Fluttershy nodded her head.

"And those wings on your back." Bert continued. "Are they really real?"

Fluttershy stared at him quizzically. "They are." she said, not sounding too sure herself. "Well, since the last time I preened them." She stood up and spread her wings open. A few feathers fell to the floor around her as she gently flapped them. She shyly glanced at Bert, who had his mouth wide open, mesmerized by the sight, and quickly folded them back to her sides.

"Yup. They're real."

"Erm... how about... how about you?" Fluttershy asked, her voice almost as quiet as a mouse. "I do not mean to sound rude but... what are you?"

"Me? I'm a human."

"A hu...human?" Fluttershy repeated, head tilted to one side, puzzled. "I have never heard of such a creature before."

"Well, I never heard of a talking, winged pony either, but here we are." Bert crossed his arms. "Where do you come from?"

Before Fluttershy could answer, the sound of a doorbell ringing was heard. Then another. Then another. Then another. The doorbell kept on ringing over and over again, filling the house with echoing noise. Fluttershy yelped and ducked back inside the box. Terrified by the loud, unrelenting ringing.

"For the love of..." Bert hurried over to his front door. "All you gotta do is just ring it once, Lee! I'm not deaf!"

A short, young, slender girl stood in his doorway. She was dressed in a dark-green t-shirt with another white long sleeved one worn underneath it, ending with black and white striped sleeves covering her arms. A pair of black shorts covered the lower part of her body, ending just before her thighs. Her hair, which reached down to her waist, was dark orange. The glasses she was wearing was large, its frame thick and black. She carried with her a laptop bag.

Lee stared at Bert with a haughty expression.

"About time." she said, flicking her hair behind her shoulder and adjusting her glasses. "Let's just get this over with so I could go back to my session." And without waiting for an invitation, she walked right past Bert and straight into his house.

"Nice to see you too." Bert mumbled, closing the door behind him and following Lee. "Sorry for calling you over."

"You better be." said Lee, looking around. "My guild leader wasn't so keen on me leaving on such short notice. Luckily my skills in diplomacy proved useful and I manged to persuade him to wait a little longer." she turned around and glared at Bert. "You better not be lying 'bout Jen & Berry's."

"Wouldn't dare to." Bert grimaced. "I promise once you help me you get your hands on that pint of ice-cream."

Lee smiled. "Excellent!" Satisfied with the promise of ice-cream, she made her way towards the living room. "So, what seems to be the...to be..."

Whatever Lee was about to say, Bert never found out. As they both entered the living room Lee's laptop bag slipped from her fingers and fell to the floor. Her eyes widened as she stared at the yellow winged pony who, with its head poking out the box, was staring back with equally large eyes of its own.

"Ah..." Bert said. "I see you've met Fluttershy." he rubbed the back of his neck. "Fluttershy, this is Lee. Lee, Fluttershy."

Lee slowly turned her face around to face Bert. She did not bother to pick up her laptop bag.

"What. The. Fuck."