Oh, the Parakeet. How do I love thee?
You don't know how happy you made me.
Precious you are to me, dear fluffy parakeet. Your piercing beady eyes and saccharine smile brings me joy knowing the lengths I’ve gone to have you within my bandaged hands prove fruitful. I rub at your soft green fur, the action so therapeutic it almost seemed to calm the inner insanity I’ve fallen into the past few weeks. Even if the reality of thattime is only a day.
The long cold nights I’ve spent thinking about you. How I longed to have you. Truly, every second I spent thinking about this moment did little justice to the authenticity of having you here, in my arms.
My very best friend.
“Is she going to be alright?” a mock whisper shatters my musings, painfully wrenching me from my nostalgia. I turn to hiss at the one who spoke. How rude! Can no one have a shared moment of understanding with a parakeet anymore?
I turn away, still stroking the green fur as I let out a smile at the feeling of soft texture against my sweaty palms.
“Judging from how she just hissed at you, I’d say nope,” Another voice cut in, this one laden with an accent. Humph, if it were to come down to it, I’d pick that one to visit my little happy place over that annoying cracking voice of a person with questionable sexuality.
“I think she’s talking out loud now.”
There is a sound. Just how many sounds are inside my happy little kingdom? The sound continues to get louder until laughter burst forth from it.
“Stop laughing!”
"But she called you a funny one HAHAHAH!"
"I think it was more of an insult."
"Argh! My sexuality aside, how can we save Sunbutt over here?"
Noise. So noisy. I bury my face into you.
"I don't think there's anything to save. Girl's just happy she finally won that thing."
Yes. This girl is happy. Very happy.
"I know happy. Happy would mean me winning a game, or you on Apple Cider season, or even Pinkie Pie. This, sitting on the ground of an empty parking lot outside Equestria Land and inhaling the stuffed toy like some weird substance, is not happy. It's wacko written all over."
Again with that insufferable voice, can’t that person leave already? The irritating crack does little to sooth my nerves. Mr. Keet agrees with me. Truly my one and only friend in the world.
“I can hear you, you know?!”
You’re the one who truly understands me. The one who truly saved me from the darkness I’ve fallen into and could not climb out of…until you came along. I bring you close, inhaling your scent, breathing in your minty essence. Never have I experienced something so euphoric, so addictive. It was nothing like that time I put on that crown nor the time when I transformed into Daydream.
“Seriously, Twi, it’s not cute! She’s being insane, stop cooing at the insane pony!”
Insane? Hah! I know nothing of such word because I am insane personified. Insane incarnate. Angel of insanity. Spawn of Crazy. Cousin of Loony. Third-sister-twice-removed of irrationality.
“Fluttershy! Back me up-No! This is not adorable behavior! Am I the only one seeing what’s wrong here?!”
You are not wrong. There is nothing wrong with you. You matter to me. My parakeet. My love. My air. My lifeline.
“Stop being poetic! I think that’s the one thing you’re really bad at you Mary Sue!”
“I think she did well!”
“Not helping Pinkie. Seriously, can’t you guys help me get her into Shy’s van? We’ve been here for hours now!”
Hours? I stare into your unblinking eyes, trying to find your soul like how you saw mine. How your eyes exposed me, breaking down all my perfectly placed walls. Penetrating me.
“Ugh, come on! Stop being weird!”
“Rainbow Dash, really. While I do share your concerns, I feel like as Sunset’s friends we should share in her…jubilation on winning that Parakeet.”
“But I already won them one! Why did we have to drive out here after school for another?”
“Because you were bragging about how it was you who won the parakeet?”
“Wha-I-but-Twilight didn’t go crazy horse girl on us when I did!”
“I don’t mind losing. Sunset, on the other hand, well…does. Very much I think.”
“Didn’t help that time when we shot a rainbow laser at her, or when Princess Twilight was voted as the Princess of the Fall Formal, or that time Sci Twi beat her at that math event, or-
I twitch and let out a whimper at that painful reminder that cut through my little happy bubble. I erratically caress you, my dear sweet friend. My one and only friend, who would never beat me. I will never lose to you because I finally won. I finally got you. That thought comforts me as I continue my rocking motion from my comfortable ground throne.
I keep rocking back and forth as I hug you close…so that you’ll be near my heart. My little parakeet. How I used to wonder what friendship could be, until you shared its magic with me.
“Okay, that’s it. I’m calling Celestia.”
Do you know you’re my very best frieeennndd.
"You know it's scary that I'm being the mature one here now, right? I mean, I can take charge from time to time when it counts but here I am really taking responsibility for my actions! It feels awesome!"
"Hmm, not really."
"It's actually not all that frightening, Darling, considering you are the reason we're here in the first place."
"Nope."
"It's a little scary if I'm being honest."
"Everything's a little scary for you Fluttershy."
"Well it is."
"At least she managed to let out all her pent up frustration of losing to us, right?"
"...didn't losing her memories count as a loss though? Or when we got suck inside a magical mirror and white room?"
There was an unspoken agreement of never bringing up loss again as their red and yellow haired friend curled up into a ball and cried into her fuzzy bird friend.
Friendship is truly magic.
Author's Note
Because it's really different when you win a stuffed toy all by yourself than your friend winning it for you. The feeling is kinda like finally getting your diploma...only in stuffed animal form.