Wallflower's expression was one of determination right now, as her small hand-trowel carefully pushed into the earth below. As she was on her knees right now, she rested one of her gloved hands upon the ground, while the other gripped her tool tightly. But, being the experienced gardener that she was, she had no issue whatsoever in getting out exactly the amount of soil that she needed, which she carefully placed to the side for the time being. Now, she moved over to the small potted plant beside her, a long white flower with yellow tips. Ever so gently, she lifted it and its soil out of the pot, pacing it with great care into the hole she'd just made. With that done, she returned to the aforementioned pile of removed earth, and began to break it up a bit more with her trowel. Now broken, the soil was quickly gathered in Wallflower's hands, as she sprinkled it gently around the newly-planted flower's base. Before long, it was covered, and after pressing it down a bit to ensure it was nice and compact, she wiped her brow, looking to her work with satisfaction.
"There we go, a nice new home for you."
"It looks good."
Naturally, Wallflower was more than a little startled at the second voice, and so her head snapped in its direction. There, just behind her, was the smiling face of Fluttershy, who offered the green-haired girl a little wave. After calming down a little, Wallflower smiled back, standing upright and slipping off her gloves before finally responding.
"Oh...Fluttershy...it's you."
The animal lover smiled as she watched her companion get up to her feet, and after the latter had brushed off whatever stray soil had clung to her knees, she turned to look at her.
“What are you doing here? I thought you had some big date with Pinkie this afternoon?”
Hearing that, Fluttershy sighed a little.
“That was the plan, but then Pinkie remembered she had some homework to catch up on, so...rain-check.”
Wallflower nodded, understanding, but then returning to her earlier confusion.
“So...what are you doing here then?”
To that, Fluttershy perked up a little.
“Well, since I had a little extra time this afternoon, I thought I'd come on down and see how you were doing.”
A small smile came to Wallflower.
“Oh...well...I’m doing good, thanks for asking. Detention was a hassle, as always, but coming here always helps.”
Fluttershy considered that.
“I see. How long do you still have to serve in detention still?”
Wallflower shrugged her shoulders.
“A while, let’s just say that.”
Fluttershy nodded, but then her gaze soon turned to the garden around her, and she returned to her prior smile.
“Oh my...you've done a wonderful job here, Wallflower!”
The other girl practically beamed at that.
“You think so?”
Fluttershy, giggling a little, placed her hand upon Wallflower’s shoulder.
“I know so!”
Chuckling in response, Wallflower looked around to the rest of her little haven.
“Well...it’s always been fun for me. Planting flowers, making sure all the plants are cared for. I’ve loved it ever since I was little, when I used to help my Mom with her garden.”
Fluttershy’s smile widened a little.
“Would you like me to help?”
Wallflower turned to her, looking a little taken aback by that.
“R...really? You’d like to help?”
Fluttershy nodded in response.
“I know most people think I only care about animals, but the truth is that, well...I enjoy gardening too.”
She turned, gesturing to some of the recently planted flowers.
“Making a place look beautiful and healthy like this...it can be its own reward if you do it right.”
Another giggle escaped her.
“At least, I imagine that’s what Rarity would say anyway.”
The two shared a laugh to that, and when it died down, Wallflower, after just a brief moment of hesitation, scratched the back of her head in a nervous manner before gesturing to the ground below.
“So...shall we?”
Still smiling widely, Fluttershy nodded, and before long, the two girls soon got down to their knees, and Fluttershy watched as her gardening partner handed her a spare trowel.
“I’ve already planted a few, but I think you could probably do the honour of getting the next one ready.”
Happily, Fluttershy accepted the offered tool, and then began to push it into the ground below.
“So...what have you been up to lately? We haven’t had a chance to talk much.”
Wallflower shrugged her shoulders a little.
“Oh, not much. Spending some extra time with Sunset mostly. It’s been good.”
Fluttershy turned to her, fully expecting her to be smiling over that fond thought. However, she soon noted, just for the barest of moments, that Wallflower suddenly had a flicker of discomfort in her eyes. It was small, and completely overshadowed by the otherwise upbeat attitude she was experiencing, but it was there all the same, leading to a somewhat more serious tone from Fluttershy when she finally spoke up again.
“Wallflower? Is something wrong?”
At first, the other girl was simply unhappy that she’d let her defence slip in that moment, but, after letting out a sigh, she started to explain things.
“It’s just...the last time Sunset and me were spending time with each other...Flash came by.”
Immediately, understanding came to Fluttershy.
“Oh...I see.”
Wallflower nodded.
“Yeah. He was passing by on his way to his band practice, and he just sort of popped his head in to say hello to her. He never said anything, but I could tell that he wasn’t happy about having to see me again. Not as much as the last time we were in the same room, but...still...”
Fluttershy looked to her with softness in her expression.
“I’m sorry, Wallflower. If...if you like, I could talk to him and...”
But Wallflower shook her head to that unfinished statement.
“No, Fluttershy...it’s good that he’s still angry with me.”
Slowly, she turned to face her.
“I may be grateful at the chance you and Sunset and the other girls have given me...but it’s good that there’s someone like Flash around. Someone who isn’t willing to just be okay with what I did.”
Again, she looked to her as-yet unplanted flowers.
“It’ll be a good reminder of my mistake. It’ll be, in some small way...what I deserve.”
After a time, Fluttershy started to look a little concerned.
“He...he hasn’t been...too angry with you, has he?”
As before, Wallflower shook her head.
“No...it's mostly just been him just generally being uncomfortable around me. But, to his credit, he hasn't made a big deal about it.”
She considered this position.
“He knows Sunset wants me to be accepted into the group, so for her sake, he’s kept the peace between us. He smiles, he laughs, but...I think everyone knows how he’s feeling under the surface when I'm nearby. Sunset already knows how he feels...and she’s never once tried to force us to be together. She’s never told him he needs to forgive, and never told him he needs to...feel differently.”
A pause.
“And I don’t doubt that, if he ever warms to me...that moment is a long way off.”
Another sigh came to her and, to Fluttershy's surprise, she smiled.
“Truth be told...I think I’d honestly feel worse if he had forgiven me like everybody else. Some part of me would always be saying that I don’t deserve it. So having him feel the way he does? It...it feels...right.”
Naturally, Fluttershy wasn’t sure of how to react to all of that, but Wallflower, for her part, soon looked to her, putting on a wider smile and letting out a brief chuckle.
“Come on...this garden won’t tend to itself.”
Shaking herself out of her prior state, Fluttershy too smiled. She got back to the business of shovelling out the soil in the place where they needed to put the flower, and after she’d excavated as much as she felt she needed, she tuned to her companion. Wallflower then picked up a tiny bag of compost, taking a small amount into her palm and placing it carefully at the bottom of the hole Fluttershy had made. Then, naturally, came the matter of the flower itself, a bright pink one. With the same care and gentleness as she’d had with the previous plant, Wallflower placed it into the hole, while Fluttershy watched. As soon as she’d done that, both girls got down to covering the base with additional stray soil, until it was, at last, fully planted. The girls looked to it, clearly pleased.
“It looks nice,” Fluttershy remarked.
Wallflower nodded in agreement.
“Like I said...it always feels good to do this.”
Turning to her, Fluttershy smiled.
“Is there anything else?”
Wallflower shook her head.
“No, I think that’s it for today.”
Accepting that, Fluttershy soon stood up again, followed shortly afterwards by Wallflower, and after once more dusting themselves off, it was the former who spoke next.
“I was planning on going to Sugar Cube Corner for a small milkshake after this. Do you want to come?”
Wallflower, though a little surprised by that, soon tuned to her garden. She surveyed everything she'd done today, looking to all the new plants that were in the ground because of her, and after putting on a smile of satisfaction, she yet again looked to her colleague.
“Yeah...I think I’d like that.”
