Despite All Odds

When Celestia got back to her room, she did nothing but pace. She wondered the same thought over and over again. ‘How can Twilight...I just don’t understand. Does she not realize that she is wasting the opportunity of a lifetime by being with her pegasus friend?’ The day alicorn knew that something had to be done and soon before Twilight Sparkle became too attached to her friend.

“When all is said and done...she will thank me. I’m sure of it.” The Princess said aloud to nopony but herself, but even still she expected some response. She nodded and repeated the statement in her mind over and over as sleep drifted over her and lulled her into it’s calming grasp as she finally passed out.

When Fluttershy awoke, her mind immediately went into caretaker mode. ‘I need to get up and start making breakfast for all my friends before...’ She stopped in the middle of her thought when she heard a light snort. She looked down and smiled; Twilight was laying with her back pressed against Fluttershy’s stomach, lightly clutching the pegasus’s wing like it was a blanket with a smile that fit her sleeping form perfectly. ‘Or I could just lay here and relax with my lover until she decides to wake up.’

She suppressed the light chuckle that welled in her throat and slightly shifted so she could offer Twilight more of her wing. The unicorn took the extra warmth eagerly, shuffling closer to Fluttershy and lightly cooing in her sleep. ‘She’s almost like a filly when she sleeps.’ Though she knew Twilight was a grown mare with a prowess in magic that nopony could begin to fathom, Fluttershy couldn’t help but feel the need to protect the pony beneath her wing.

‘ Is this how our friends feel when one of us is in danger? Do they always feel this overwhelming need? I know I’m not exactly guardian material, but I think I do well enough with my animals. . Here is a mare that can be broken just as easily as me, if not easier. I doubt it would take much if the situation was played out just right...I have to make sure that situation never sees the light of day. I will protect her and I will keep her safe, no matter what.’

The yellow pony nodded her head in determination, but froze when Twilight shifted. She rubbed her forehead for a moment, then relaxed once more. A light sigh escaped Fluttershy’s lips as she settled back down, happy with her silent resolution and closed her eyes, waiting for the one she loved to awaken from her own slumber.

She guessed that an hour and a half had passed before Twilight made any sort of movement that showed her slow progress towards waking up. “Ugh...five more minutes...” The unicorn said, burying her face in the crook of Fluttershy’s forelegs.

“But that will make us five minutes late in getting up.” Fluttershy teased, knowing full well the reaction and result of her words.

“Late?!” Twilight’s head shot up as she looked around, but she slowly lowered it back down, groaning. “Head rush...” the unicorn mumbled.

Fluttershy snickered lightly and moved her wing back to her side before rolling over and stretching while Twilight dealt with the rush of blood to her head. “And good morning to you my dearest bookworm. Did you sleep well?”

After a moment, Twilight lifted her head out from under the blanket she had thrown over her head and nodded. “Yup. Thanks for clearing that up with Princess Luna for me.”

“Anything for you.” Fluttershy replied, winking at Twilight. The lavender pony smiled back at the pegasus and quickly made her bed before doing anything else. When it was back in its original position, Twilight moved over to the vanity where she began to brush her mane. “May I use the brush after you?”

Twilight nodded, but blushed as a thought came to her head. “Actually Fluttershy...would you mind if I brushed it for you? I mean...I’ve always wanted to feel how soft your mane actually is. Wow, that sounds kind of creepy now that I think about it.”

Twilight frowned as she went over the wording of her request. Fluttershy giggled and said, “That’s fine. I haven’t had anypony brush my mane in a long time. It’ll be nice to have my marefriend to it for me.” Twilight blushed and began to playfully pout when she saw no redness on Fluttershy’s cheeks.

So, she blinked a few times seductively (or at least how the magazine had said to do it) and got close to Fluttershy and said, “I’ll be gentle, I promise.” This made the pegasus blush darkly, but Twilight didn’t foresee the other outcome; she suddenly lost her grip on the brush as her magic sputtered as her focus was diverted to the lips that took hers.

She closed her eyes and allowed the pegasus to take control, letting herself be lead in this intimate dance. Sadly, a knock at the door caused them to jump apart, scared out of their minds. “Um...ladies? The guards are ready to take you home now.”

“Th-thank you.” Twilight stuttered, causing Fluttershy to snicker. Twilight playfully rolled her eyes as they quickly gathered their things and headed towards the courtyard. When they arrived, they saw both Princess Celestia and a a sleepy Princess Luna.

“Good morning girls. Are you ready to return home?” The Princess of the Day asked. Twilight nodded while Fluttershy quickly hid her face behind her mane, avoiding the eyes of the white alicorn.

“I’m sure I’ll have quite a mess to clean up when I get back.” Twilight said, laughing as she finished her sentence. Celestia laughed as well while Luna simply yawned. She had been awoken to help send Twilight and Fluttershy off and had yet to fully wake up. However, she wasn’t so far within the thralls of sleep to notice the canary coloured pegasus’s strange behavior.

‘ It’s as though she’s avoiding something...but what? There is no danger; only myself, my sister, and a few guards...’She yawned again and waved as the two got onto the chariot and watched as it pulled away from the grounds and down towards Ponyville. “I’m going back to bed now sister.” The night pony said, trying to hide her annoyance at being woken up from what lasted only five minutes.

”Of course. I’m sorry to have got you up so soon after you went to bed, but I figured that you’d want to see them off as well.” Luna said nothing, not really listening but thinking rather about how comfortable her bed was.

When she made it back to her room, she lifted a quill with her magic and wrote, “Fluttershy’s strange behavior, sending off” and hid it under another piece of paper before plopping back down in her bed and snuggling against the pillow before drifting back to sleep once more.

When the guards landed in Ponyville, it was at least nine in the morning so there weren’t a whole lot of ponies up and about yet, especially since it was Saturday. “It’s good to be back, isn’t it?” Twilight asked as she turned towards Golden Oaks Library.

“Oh yes. Though, I can’t say I’m too eager to return home.” Twilight turned back around and gave her marefriend a questioning look. “Well...since all the animals are in their hibernation dens...I’m all alone in my cottage. No birds to sing and keep it lively, no squirrels to keep an eye on...nothing.” Twilight saw how upset Fluttershy was as she spoke.

‘Even though she’s been through this for a good number of years, the loneliness still gets to her...I can’t blame her though; out near the Everfree Forest with nopony but yourself to talk to...’

She walked over and put a foreleg around Fluttershy and said, “Well, you won’t have to be alone this winter because you’ll be staying with me. And before you can say no, I insist. I can’t have my marefriend be unhappy as long as I can be there to cheer her up, right?”

Fluttershy smiled and nodded. “Are you sure you don’t mind?”

“Of course not Fluttershy!” I mean, what kind of pony would I be to leave you alone like that? A terrible one, that’s what kind.” She said, grinning as Fluttershy began to perk up.

Twilight turned back around and the first thing she saw as they neared the library was a note attached to the door. She grabbed it with her magic and pulled it towards her to read as she walked in.

“Dear Twilight; fixed your door for ya, and I also kinda borrowed Spike. We needed his help to get the last of the apples down here so I’ll be keepin’ him for awhile. From, Applejack.” Twilight had read the note aloud so her companion could hear as well.

“I hope they didn’t overwork themselves. I mean...I’m sure Spitfire is a great help but they must’ve been behind if they had to have Spike help.” The pegasus said.

“Yea, but...wait...you knew about Applejack and Spitfire?” Fluttershy nodded.

“I was there when they announced their love for each other in front of Applejack’s family. It was really sweet to see them all hug after it was said and done.” She said as the moment replayed in her mind.

“Okay then...so we know that Applejack will approve, and I’m assuming Rainbow Dash will too?” Twilight asked.

“Oh yes. She’s been going out with Vinyl Scratch for almost a month now.” Twilight rose an eyebrow at the name, so Fluttershy quickly explained, “She was the white unicorn with the electric blue mane and those dark sungla- I mean “shades” that played at your brother’s wedding and at Rarity’s fashion show when we were showing off our...less than perfect Gala dresses.” Twilight nodded, chuckling at Fluttershy’s use of a word that normally wouldn’t exit her lips.

“So then all we need to do is tell Rarity and Pinkie Pie, right?”

Fluttershy nodded, then said, “Oh! Um...if it’s okay...I’d like to tell Bon Bon and Lyra...if you don’t mind of course.” She knew that they weren’t really Twilight’s friends so much as the were hers, so Fluttershy sighed in relief when the unicorn said they could.

“Of course we can. I don’t know them as well as you do, but they’re still your friends.”

“Thank you Twilight. “ Fluttershy watched as Twilight gripped all their things in her magic and carried it upstairs, then followed her.

“Is there anything I can do to help?” Fluttershy asked.

Twilight thought for a moment, then said, “I’m not too sure yet. Let me put this up and we can take a look at what needs to be done.” Twilight had finished quickly and when she turned to talk, she saw Fluttershy staring absently out the window. “Fluttershy? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing...it’s just...I can’t believe that I won’t have to be all alone this winter...” Before Twilight knew what was happening, Fluttershy had spun and buried her face in Twilight’s mane, shaking a little at Twilight could only guess to be happiness or sorrow. Twilight simply hugged her lover tightly, allowing Fluttershy to sob softly into her coat. Twilight didn’t need to say a word because she knew all too well how Fluttershy felt.

Twilight had spent many nights alone when she was growing up and even when she had become a grown mare. Spike had always been a great comfort, but there was only so much the baby dragon could do for her. She loved that he was there for her no matter what, but sometimes Twilight would lay awake for night after night and simply think about her lonliness and about whether or not it would last until she drew her last breath. Those thoughts and so many more crossed her mind during those nights of insomnia that would always seem to come up when she least wanted them. However, when she had discovered her love for Fluttershy, all those thoughts seemed to be washed away, at least for little while.

Twilight’s thoughts were interrupted by a small sniffle. She pulled herself away and tenderly wiped Fluttershy’s tears away.

They looked into each other’s eyes with a warm smile and Twilight softly pecked the soft lips of her lover and said, “Come on. We’ll need to get your things from home.” Fluttershy just nodded and fluttered after the unicorn to whom she was going to give her all to.

As the two walked down the streets of Ponyville towards Fluttershy’s home, they failed to notice the pink pony coming up from behind with a look of pure joy written on her face. She bounced three times before she gave herself that extra oomph with her fourth bounce, landing in front of the two and scaring them half to death. “P-Pinkie Pie?!” Twilight exclaimed as Fluttershy tried not to faint.

“Hiya girls! I see you found Fluttershy and you know what that means.” She was silent for a moment before bursting out, “Party!” She hovered in the air a second longer than should have been possible and asked, “So what’re you gals up to?”

The two lovers glanced at each other for a moment and passed a silent message to keep the relationship under wraps for the moment. “Well, since Fluttershy’s animals have all moved into their hibernation dens, I figured that she could come stay with me this winter instead of being all alone outside Ponyville.” Twilight said, smiling at her pink friend.

“Aww, that sure is nice of you Twilight. Say, I’ll catch up with the two of you later okay?” They both nodded and continued on their way.

However, just before she bounded away, she noticed the two of them were standing awfully close together. A quick thought ran through her mind and couldn’t help the small twitch that accompanied it. She quickly shook it away before smiling again. “It IS getting colder out. I’m sure Fluttershy is just trying to share some of that natural pegasus warmth right? Right?” She looked up, as if she were actually looking at somepony or someone that only she could see before continuing on her merry way.

As the two walked through the town on the way to Fluttershy’s home, they couldn’t help but notice that everything seemed brighter or more vibrant. It was if the world was a dull place until they became a couple. “Hey Twilight?”

“Yes Fluttershy?”

“Don’t you think we should tell everypony that I’ve returned? It sounds like my absence caused quite a stir...”

Twilight gave her partner a small hug and said, “It’s alright, we were just worried about you.” Fluttershy nodded and the unicorn continued. “But you are right. We need to tell everypony that you’re back if Pinkie hasn’t already done so with her need to throw a party. However, since we’re on the way to your house, we can tell Applejack at least and then on the way back, we’ll tell Rarity and Rainbow.”

“That sounds like a good idea.” Fluttershy gave Twilight a loving nuzzle after making sure that nopony was around to ruin it.

As they made their way through the countryside towards the pegasus’s home, they talked of various topics; stars, plants, animals, the moon, their friends, anything that crossed their mind.

However, their pleasant conversation halted immediately upon opening the cottage door as a small white blur flew at Twilight, launched itself off of her hard enough to make her stumble away from the yellow flier and into the pink hair of said pony.

“Angel? What are you doing here? I thought you would be hibernating this year?” He shook his head and cast a quick glare at the lavender pony, trying to figure out why she was even there in the first place. She was not important to his caregiver, so why had she bothered to come? “Angel, it isn’t polite to do something like that. Say you’re sorry to Twilight.”

To say that the rabbit was shocked would’ve been an understatement. He was more than shocked; he was outraged, furious, and any other synonym of the word he could think of. He had absolutely NO reason to apologize to this stranger in his home. She was intruding upon his territory and he was merely defending it. He had seen the effects that his caregiver’s “friendships” had had on her ability to take care of the animals (but mostly him); her attention was more focused on her friends than him so he had to break from his act simply to get her attention and risk blowing his cover.

So, he shook his head and tapped his foot on the ground. He heard the flying pony sigh and apologize for him as expected. “I’m really sorry Twilight. I didn’t know that he’d be home.”

“It’s alright Fluttershy. I’m sure he’s just a little homesick is all.” The bunny rolled his eyes as they spoke to each other.

He could care less for this pit called a “home”, much less the pony who owned it. All he really cared about was that his every need was met and all his whims bowed to. The only reason he had ever protected or helped Fluttershy was just to make sure that, by day's end, she was his to command with no interruptions. Otherwise, he was completely apathetic to the yellow pony’s life. However, as he watched the two converse, he noticed something strange.

His caregiver had a case and was putting various bits and bobs in it. He looked up into the faces of the taller creatures and listened. “I don’t know about this Twilight...I mean, if Angel’s back then I’ll have to stay and take care of him. He can’t stay in the house alone...” The rabbit nodded in agreement, smiling smugly as he crossed his arms.

“Fluttershy, I don’t mean to be rude or to offend you, but Angel is a grown rabbit. I’m sure he’ll go back once you explain that you’ll be staying away for the winter.”

Fluttershy nodded and said with a lowered head. “You mean I should stop babying him...”

“Well...yes...” Twilight gave her lover an apologetic look.

Fluttershy nodded and looked up. “You’re right; both you and Rainbow Dash. I mean...he is an adult and as such, doesn’t need to rely on me for EVERYTHING he wants.” Angel’s jaw dropped in shock and Twilight’s nearly did as well if not for her clenching it shut before speaking.

“Wow...I honestly thought you were going to tell me about how it’s your sworn duty to take care of all creatures.”

Fluttershy moved a few more things into her case before replying. “It is, but only to an extent. I mean...at first, I would take care of any and all animals, regardless of their problems or conditions. However...the more I think about it and the more everypony keeps talking to me about it...it feels like I’m doing more than my share of helping. Like the animals are just taking advantage of me for their own comforts. I really hate to say it but...they aren’t my friends at all...” The pegasus stopped after the last word had been uttered and just stood there, staring at the floor.

Twilight moved close and wrapped a foreleg around Fluttershy’s neck and pulled her into a tight hug. “I know, but kindness is something that unfortunately is easily taken advantage of for the benefit of others. I know that being kind is basically the core of who you are, as well as your Element, but there are limits to how kind a pony should be.” Twilight stopped and frowned. “Now it just sounds like I’m trying to change who you are. I don’t mean to...love, but...what I’m trying to say is that I know you don’t want to hurt anything or anypony, but even you have to draw boundary lines about how kind you. Otherwise you’ll always be-”

“A doormat for the rest of my life...Pinkie and Rarity told me the same thing awhile back.” She explained for the studious unicorn. “I have been improving ever since Iron Will came to Ponyville.” Twilight gently rubbed Fluttershy’s neck as the pegasus spoke. She knew that this wasn’t an easy conversation for Fluttershy to have. “But, the fear that if I DO actually take charge and limit my kindness...that I won’t take proper care of the animals that actually need me and I can’t afford that happening...”

“Fluttershy, I can’t really say that I completely know how you feel, but I can say that I understand. I can only imagine the sort of thing you would go through if you lost a friend because you didn’t do something right, but...” Twilight couldn’t help but glance at the scar on Fluttershy’s leg before removing her leg from around Fluttershy’s neck and gently pushing Fluttershy’s chin up so their eyes met. “I know that won’t happen. You love these animals like you would love your own child and it’s because of that fact that I know you’ll never, ever hurt your friends.”

Fluttershy smiled gently, feeling a few tears slide from her eyes and onto the floor. “Thank you Twilight...” The pegasus leaned forward and tenderly kissed Twilight.

This was the point where Angel could stand no more. He growled, hopped off his perch, stomped to the door and slammed it behind him hard enough to cause a few birdhouses to fall and crash to the floor. The two mares were taken aback, but recovered quickly. “Is he...okay?”

“I...I think so. He’s probably just upset that I won’t be here this winter.” Twilight nodded and watched Fluttershy as she continued to pack. When she had finished, Fluttershy had ended up needing a second suitcase (which she apologized for at least three times) to gather the last of what she needed. “Ready, lover?”

Twilight couldn’t help the small grin that came to her lips after the term of endearment left her mouth. The pegasus didn’t disappoint in her smiling reaction. “I think so.”

Fluttershy felt one of the suitcases leave her back as it was enveloped in Twilight’s magical grasp and lifted above her. “Then let’s get going shall we?” Fluttershy laughed as she rose a few inches off the ground and flew beside Twilight.

As they were approaching the turn that would take the two towards Sweet Apple Acre’s, they bumped into the farm pony pulling her usual cart of apples.

“Well howdy you two. Glad ta see ya back Fluttershy.” Applejack nuzzled Fluttershy happily and the pegasus smiled. “So she was in Canterlot then?”

Twilight nodded. “Yea. Come on, we’ll tell you on the way.” Applejack nodded and followed while Twilight and Fluttershy told Applejack what had happened since the two met up.

They had both left out Fluttershy’s use of the knife on herself and Fluttershy even flew on the right of Applejack since the wound was on her right foreleg, it would be easier to just cover it with her left leg. When the trio made it back into Ponyville, they had finished their tale.

“Shoot...well, I’m glad it all worked out for the best. That’s the important thing. Listen, ah’ll catch ya’ll later alright?” They nodded and waved good bye as they continued on their way.

“Now we just need to tell Rainbow, Rarity, and Pinkie.” Twilight said with a faint smile and a nod of her head as if checking something off of a checklist.

“Right. I just hope Pinkie and Rarity take it as well as Applejack...”

“Me too Fluttershy...me too.”

(Author's Note: Alright, here's your next dose of ponies my friends. Um...everypony needs to thank Incognito for becoming my proofreader/editor (if you don't mind please?) And comment you ponies, comment! I want to know if you like the direction the story is going in, if you like how I'm portraying the characters, plot development, etc. So please, share your opinions and whatnot, mkay?)