Getting Shy

Things soon settled into a new equilibrium and Patrick decided he kinda liked it. It wasn't perfect, especially with Fluttershy's rapidly changing moods, but it was still pretty good to have her at home. Who knew something as simple as her greeting him when he came from work would make such a big difference? It positively brightened his day and no matter how bad the customers had been, Pat forgot about them the moment 'Shy shared one of her soft, warm kisses with him.

Of course, kissing usually led to other things and that was another welcome change in the mare. Maybe it was her hormones running wild, or maybe she had finally liberated herself from Mason's oppression, but she was insatiable!

There were bad days, of course. A few times Patrick came home to no greeting and found 'Shy sprawled on the couch with the TV off as she stared into some unknowable distance. She still had nightmares, though she wouldn't talk about them.

"They're just dreams, it doesn't matter," she'd say, and if he kept digging she'd start to cry. The fear which was still bothering her, he knew, was that somehow people would take her baby away.

All Patrick could do was reassure her that it wouldn't happen, that he'd keep her safe and that no one was coming for her, or her foal. It usually worked, although upon hearing that 'Shy would burst into a fresh bout of tears as often as not, only those ones were gratitude. She clung to him, thanked him and lavished little kisses on any patch of skin she could reach.

He was gratified by her trust in him, but also more than a little afraid. If he couldn't uphold her promise to keep her safe it would break her, and probably him by extension. If Mason decided to act upon his grudge, things could still go pretty sour, pretty quick. He couldn't bear the thought of losing 'Shy again. There was no denying it, he had fallen for that little horse through and through.

Luckily no one in the neighborhood knew about the pony in his house, Patrick was certain of it. He'd left her with strict instructions to stay away from windows during the day and keep the lights either on or off during the night. She told him she was being careful and he believed her. He had a sneaking suspicion Anton knew about 'Shy - after all, sometimes their passion got the best of them and they weren't all that quiet - but his landlord hadn't said anything and neither had Pat. In any case, they'd be out of the place pretty soon.

***

Pat had good news on one particular day and he smiled to himself as he parked the car and climbed the steps up to his place. The paycheck had come and it was even better than he'd hoped thanks to all the overtime. Since he didn't have to pay rent this month and Anton was just going to take it out of the security deposit, it meant he and 'Shy could go apartment hunting the next week. He'd already spoken with Harris and gotten the night shift, which left his days open to visiting potential flats and choosing a nice one. It'd be a very tiring week, but Pat was quietly hoping he'd find a good place quickly.

"Hey honey, I'm home!" he called. It was amazing how good that cliché little saying felt when it was coming from himself. Patrick listened for the telltale clop of hooves, but there was nothing. One of her bad days, then. He suppressed a sigh and went forward into the living room. The sight before him was heart-wrenching.

Fluttershy was lying on her back on the couch and staring at the ceiling. There was a bag of marshmallows open on the coffee table and some of the white, sugary cubes were strewn about. There were a few more on her chest and belly, but most of the bag's contents were gone. A few flecks of powdered sugar stained her muzzle as the proof of where the marshmallow had gone. She didn't react to his presence, so Pat simply went and sat on the couch beside 'Shy. He picked up a marshmallow cube from her belly and tossed it to the coffee table. That action finally made her stir, but only to grab two of the things and quickly stuff them into her mouth before he could take them away. Her eyes remained on the ceiling as she chewed.

"Feeling down?"

Even as 'Shy swallowed the sugary goop she heaved a sigh, but her forehoof went to rest on his hand. Only for a moment, though, before she nudged it to a particular spot on her belly and pressed it down. She wanted his hand there while she slept and Pat guessed it made her feel safer about her foal.

"We're gonna have a colt, Pat."

"Huh? How do you know?"

Finally she lowered her gaze to meet his eyes and even flashed him a brief smile before shrugging. "I just do. It's a mare thing."

"Well, that's nice."

Her gaze sharpened and her ears rose up and focused on Patrick. "Will you love him?"

The question was unexpected and he didn't know what to say. 'Shy waited for long seconds, then asked again: "Pat, will you love my foal?"

"Y-Yes." What else could he say? The child wasn't his, but he'd thrown his lot in with Fluttershy and her problems were now part of his world. What had happened to her in that stable was criminal, but it was done now and there was no undoing it. Not to mention that it was partly his fault, too.

Besides, Pat realized, he'd meant it. He had promised 'Shy undying love and that was exactly what she was going to get. Her foal would be a part of that, because it was a part of her.

"That's good," she said and relaxed her stare. "That's important to me." Her hoof reached for the coffee table, but she couldn't find any of the marshmallow cubes in reach. She flailed around for a bit, then Pat sighed, reached over and picked one up. 'Shy smiled at him and then closed her eyes and opened her mouth wide.

Maybe she was snapping out of it? She had been weeping less and less over the past few days as the memories of Mason and the place he sent her receded from her mind. She was smiling more. There was hope for the future.

"Aaah!" 'Shy intoned as she waited for her morsel.

Patrick stopped turning it around and around in his fingers and a wicked grin spread across his face as well. So she wanted to play? He put the cube in his own mouth and leaned down. He brushed it against her lips and 'Shy tried to wrap them around the marshmallow to take it in. Their tongues met and she snapped her eyes open in surprise. A moment later her ears splayed out and her face tinted pink.

She didn't relinquish the morsel, but rather held it firmly between her lips even as she worked her tongue around to try and steal as much of it as she could. She flicked around it, prying into his mouth and trying to distract him enough to let go. Eventually the cube began to melt and Pat lost his grip, which allowed Fluttershy to wrap her dexterous tongue all the way around it and yank it away with a small squeak of triumph. She broke the kiss off while she chewed, but her muzzle was decidedly red by now and her nostrils flared as she breathed more quickly.

"We were supposed to make s'mores today, remember?"

That bag of high-calorie sugar was supposed to be their entire dinner. Patrick guessed they could still have the waffles, but he'd have to fill them with jam or something and he probably couldn't toast them without making a big mess.

'Shy shrugged and swallowed. "I had a craving," she explained. "I'm sorry." At those last words she lowered her gaze down to her belly and let her ears fall all the way in a perfect picture of contrite pony.

Patrick put his palm against her muzzle and guided her back up into a quick kiss on her nose. "It's okay. I'm glad you enjoyed them."

She glanced at the coffee table. "There's still some left," she pointed out. "We could still make a few s'mores."

"I guess you're right."

"You can have them," she offered magnanimously in deference to the fact that it was her fault they were running low. It would be only fair for her to have to go without and she was willing to make this heroic sacrifice. Her tongue darted out to lick at the few traces of sugar around her mouth, though, and her eyes remained fixed on the marshmallow cubes.

"Hey, hey," Patrick said to break her fixation.

She looked back and raised her eyebrows in question.

"What kind of a boy- um, coltfriend would I be if I didn't share? I think we can make, let's see, three s'mores. One and a half for each of us, right?"

This statement made a new, beautiful smile blossom across her lips and 'Shy nodded happily. Her ears flicked forward, but went back almost immediately and her eyes slid aside. "Um, w-will you- Uh, will we share it like- like we did the marshmallow, j-just now?"

It sounded like an interlude into something a lot hotter and more pleasant and Pat was only too happy to accept. "Sure! I mean, it's the only fair way to share it, isn't it?"

"Mhm!" 'Shy turned to her side and smoothly slid from the couch to her hooves. "Come on, let's go make s'mores!" she trilled as she hurried to the kitchen.

Patrick remembered just in time about his big news. "Oh, by the way, I got my pay today!"

She stopped in the middle of grabbing a chair and turned back with her ears attentively focused on him and a faint, uncertain smile on her face.

"It's good. Better than I thought, actually. I was thinking- we could go look for apartments on Monday."

This was extremely good news and Fluttershy rushed back, jumped on the couch again, and threw her hooves around him. "That's great! I can't wait! Um- how will we sneak out without anypony seeing me?"

"We'll figure something out. Hopefully we can find a nice place soon and then we can move before the end of the week. No more hiding."

She seemed thoughtful and her ears lowered slightly. "I'll have to wear a collar when I go out. I m-mean if I go out alone. Mr. Mason explained it to me. A collar with a tag- and, um... you'll need to get me a piece of paper saying I'm allowed to go out by myself."

"We'll figure it out. I'll get you whatever you need, okay? Of course I will."

"One of those collars is expensive," she went on. "It has to be the- um..." 'Shy began, but scrunched her face up at the unfamiliar word. "Electronic one? It's supposed to be able to track me."

"Okay, so maybe the collar next month, but at least I'll be able to take you out to the park. It's okay if you're with me, right?"

She gave it some thought then nodded and the smile returned. "I guess so!"

"Okay, let's get you those s'mores and then we can go on the Internet and look for a nice place."

"Okay!"

"And here is the balcony, sir. It opens from the kitchen and the bedroom," the estate agent was saying as he demonstrated that the doors did indeed open. The balcony itself was small, wedged as it was in a fold in the building's facade, but it would allow Patrick and Fluttershy to get some fresh air and sun without having to leave the building. So far the place seemed nice and it was within their price range too. Although by this point Pat was ready to sign anything just to get it over with. The search had been long and, so far, fruitless. He and 'Shy had seen some almost usable apartments, though none nearly as large as Anton's. They ended up being too expensive, too far from Pat's work, or in such a poor condition that 'Shy didn't even want to consider living there.

A few places had outright refused them once they saw he had a pony. After a few of those he'd started mentioning 'Shy before anything else, to save them these needless trips and spare her the insult of being called a 'pet'. For the most part landlords, or their real estate agents, didn't seem to care that he would be living with a pony, as long as he paid rent on time.

"Thanks. So, what do you-" He was about to ask 'Shy her opinion, but she had gone and Pat looked around in sudden fear. "'Shy?"

"In here!" came a slightly muffled reply and he hurried toward the sound of her voice. She was standing in the bathroom and staring at the sink with a speculative look on her face.

"Everything okay?"

She blinked at his concern in confusion, then realized where she was. "Oh! No, I'm okay, don't worry."

One of their tours had been early in the morning and it turned out that ponies, at least Equestrian ones, also suffered from morning sickness. Luckily they were already in the apartment and 'Shy made it to the toilet in time, but the landlord hadn't been enthused about housing a 'sick pet' in the place so nothing had come of it.

"I'm thinking about how high the sink is. I'll need some sort of a stool or something," 'Shy explained.

"Okay, that shouldn't be a problem."

She shook her head. "Except it will be. There's no room here to put a stool and move it out of the way for you."

Now that Patrick looked again, he saw that she was right. The bathroom was tiny, as if the architect had wanted to squeeze out every bit of space on the floor. If Pat and 'Shy brought any kind of stool or stepping-thing for her to reach the utilities they'd have nowhere to stow it.

"Huh..."

"I d-do like the kitchen, though," 'Shy murmured and bit her lip in indecision. "You said we can afford this one?"

"Yeah, and it's closer to work so I won't spend as much time on the road. hell, once we get that GPS collar, you could probably come meet me at the office from here."

A moment later Pat regretted offering, because then he'd have to explain 'Shy to his coworkers, which meant he'd have to lie in front of her, or admit to them that she was actually the 'Felicity' they'd been hearing so much about.

Cross that bridge...

He was trying to imagine that conversation with Paul and Alex and completely forgot about the apartment for a few moments, while Fluttershy looked around some more. She walked into the shower and called out: "Oh, Pat, come look!"

She was pointing at the faucet which had a spout as well as the shower head. For some reason it was mounted lower in the wall than customary and 'Shy had her hoof on the handle. "I can use this just fine," she said with a big smile, having found the solution to her sink problem. "Just get me one of those hoof-held mirrors and I guess this will do."

Pat was doubtful and more than a little weirded out at the suggestion. "You'd brush your teeth in the shower?!" he asked.

Fluttershy opened the faucet and let a bit of water splash on the shower floor. "Why not?"

"Well, it feels... wrong. Not to mention you'll get wet each time."

This put a damper in her enthusiasm and Fluttershy's ears drooped as she considered this new problem. He was right and she had to step away from the small puddle she'd created. "Hmm. Okay, how about if we put the stool over there?" She pointed a hoof through the bathroom door to a closet on the opposite wall.

Pat guessed it was meant for winter coats and such, since it was in the hallway near the front door. He walked over and opened it. There was the metal bar for coat hangers and no drawers. He supposed he could put a small stool in the bottom and still leave enough room for clothes. "I... guess?"

"Besides, you'll help me with it if I need it, won't you?"

That was something they had briefly talked about before. Fluttershy had told him she would get pretty big as her pregnancy progressed and she might have problems standing on her hind legs for the sink. She'd need some support, like a big, strong human to keep her steady while she washed.

"Of course!"

She walked out of the bathroom and reared up with a hoof on the wall to support herself as she flicked the light switch. "Then I think it can work. What's the bedroom like?"

Patrick held out a hand in invitation and then followed 'Shy as she went to look. She gave a friendly nod to the agent, who blinked in surprise and couldn't keep from staring at the mare, despite having met her a few minutes before.

"We would like to see the bedroom now, please," 'Shy asked with as friendly a smile as she could make.

It worked and the man walked over to the last unopened door in the hallway. "Right this way. Um, there's room for- like a doggy bed or something..."

Fluttershy leaned her head to one side in thought and her smile turned glassy as she tried to decipher what he meant.

"It's okay, we'll figure something out," Pat explained.

Fluttershy stiffened once she understood. Patrick could spot a bit of red in her cheeks, but she hid her annoyance pretty well. "Yes, we like to cuddle," she said in a quiet tone of voice and with a slightly suggestive smirk.

This made the poor estate agent look from the mare to Pat and half-open his mouth to ask the obvious question. Luckily he thought better of it and just shook his head to himself.

Pat couldn't help flushing a little at the implication himself, but 'Shy seemed completely unperturbed as she walked into the thickly carpeted room. She put a hoof on the bed and tested how stiff it was, then walked over to the nightstand to inspect the drawer.

Trying to avoid further scrutiny Patrick went to the window and pulled aside the full-wall curtain. "Oh, you mentioned the door to the balcony, I guess this is it?"

The agent was grateful of the distraction and almost rushed to join him. "Yes, here, let me open it for you."

"The curtains come with the place?"

"Yes, and there is another set in that closet over there. That way you can change them and wash at your leisure."

"Oh, that's right. I saw a washing machine in the bathroom."

The man nodded and jerked as if to go show Pat right away, but thought better of it. "Indeed, indeed. The previous tenant bought one of those collapsible stands to dry their laundry on the balcony."

Fluttershy had joined them and Patrick reached down to put his hand on her head. "That's a good idea," she agreed. "Um, Pat?"

He crouched down so he could focus on what she was going to say, but he kept his fingers in her mane.

"I kinda like it. I guess we'll need dishes and bedclothes and some other stuff, but I think it could work."

"Yeah?"

She just gave him a nod and shook his hand free, but only so she could push her nose against his palm and close her eyes. "Let's take it," she whispered.

The estate agent heard and was starting to tentatively smile at having nearly closed the deal. "Any other questions?" he asked in an effort to move them along.

"I guess not. You told us about the utilities, the rent is okay. I guess we'll take it."

The guy inclined his head. "Very good. I'll let the landlord know and send you a contract in your email, that okay?"

"Sure."

Fluttershy butted Patrick's leg out of the way and walked out on the balcony while he exchanged the address with the estate agent. She peered through the bars with a frown, then reared up and put her forehooves on the railing. It was just low enough for her to look over it and she took in the view. Pat was watching and saw her wings twitch as a gust of wind ruffled the fur on her face. Her nose wiggled at a scent she caught and she lifted up her ears to focus on the street below.

Seeing her like that nearly brought tears to Pat's eyes. She looked like she belonged on that balcony, like she was about to leap up and go for a flight to stretch her wings. She'd come back once she tired herself out, of course.

Her tail swished and brought Patrick's mind back to the present. "Oh. Sorry. Yeah, I'll check the contract and send the money over tomorrow. When can we get the keys?"

The agent followed his gaze and watched 'Shy for a few seconds before shrugging to himself and focusing on the task at hand. "Once the transaction has cleared I'll call you and we can set a time. I'll meet you here with the keys and two copies of the lease to sign, and that should be it." He held out a hand to shake on the tentative deal they'd just made. "Congratulations, Mr. Patrick. I'm sure you and- uh-"

"Fluttershy."

"Yes, you and Miss Fluttershy will be quite happy here."

So it was done. No more phoning around and driving all over the place to look at apartments. They could start packing the next day and move over the weekend.

Pat went out to the balcony to stand beside 'Shy. "What are you looking at?" he asked her.

She glanced briefly at him, then shrugged. "Just- the view. It's nice to be up high."

The flat was on something like the fourteenth floor, so it was above most of the city, at least if you didn't look at all the skyscrapers in the center, which was just visible off to the right.

Fluttershy went on: "I guess it's a pegasus thing, but we like to be up high. I lived on the ground in Ponyville, but I liked to visit my parents..." She fell silent and heaved a sigh for the world which was probably lost to her forever. Her hoof moved over to rest on his hand and she reached out with a wing to hug him. It only lasted a few seconds before she let go and fell back to all four hooves. "I guess we should go back now? You need sleep and I'm hungry. I'll make us dinner."

"Yeah. Thanks, 'Shy."

They left the apartment and waited in the hallway while the agent closed all the doors and locked it behind them.

"Thanks again, Mr. Blaker," Pat told the guy.

"Absolutely no problem. Have a good day and we'll talk soon."

They didn't wait while he made some notes on his clipboard. Patrick headed for the lifts but 'Shy put a hoof on his calf and pointed at the stairs. "Let's walk," she proposed. "I'd like the exercise and I don't like how cramped the elevator is."

She splayed out her ears with that admission and Pat couldn't help chuckling. "Well, you should have thought about that five minutes ago. We're committed now, so you'll just have to get used to it."

He smiled as he said it and 'Shy grinned right back. "Nuh-uh, I can fly. I can go straight from the parking lot to the balcony, no problem. You'll have to get used to it!"

"I don't mind the elevator."

She stuck her tongue out at him. "Well, that's good then!"

"Good!"

"Good."