Getting Shy

On the plus side, Fluttershy had had a good chuckle at Pat's facial expressions as he tried it. Apparently it was absolutely delicious for a pony. She scarfed her own half down almost before Pat had put the plate on the coffee table. Just as planned. Having felt how light and thin 'Shy was, Pat was happy to see her eat. Not to mention that them cooking together had been an extremely fun experience. Fluttershy had to use a chair next to the counter to stand on, but she certainly did her part. It was amazing just how dexterous she was with nothing more than hooves and mouth.

Having finished her hay-dough pizza, 'Shy was sitting back on the couch with the blanket across her lap and with a bottle of strawberry fizz in the depression between her legs. Every now and then she skillfully lifted it up with only her muzzle and took a swig.

"So... movie?"

"Um, as long as it's not too violent," 'Shy pleaded. "I d-don't like people, or animals, getting hurt."

That ruled out most of TV, but Pat had a good idea. "So, I guess cartoons? Here, lemme check on Netflix." He flicked through a couple of pages on the smart TV until he found a good one. He glanced at 'Shy, who seemed to be engrossed in the colorful images.

"How to Train Your Dragon?" Pat prompted.

She observed the poster and read the short description, then nodded. "It does look interesting. Is it, um, nice?"

"It's a cartoon. Means it's make-believe, right? There are no dragons- on Earth at least."

Fluttershy swallowed and lowered her head. "I'm k-kinda afraid of dragons," she said in a voice so gentle Pat had to strain to hear. "Well, except for Spike. He's nice, but most dragons are scary."

"This one is not like that. Let's give it a shot and if you don't like it, we'll stop."

'Shy looked at him, then shifted her gaze to the TV. She licked her lips nervously, then gave a single, determined not. "Okay, okay. Hit me!"

Pat let it play and went back to his ketchup-laden pizza slice. It was at that perfect temperature where he could hold it in his hand, but the cheese was still melted.l "Want a slice of mine? So you can, like, compare?"

He watched Fluttershy's face carefully and saw her eyes dart to the plate on the coffee table. She chewed on her lip in indecision, then asked: "Can you put a bit more ketchup on it? It's s-sweet."

"Sure!" Pat dripped a few small blobs from the bottle on the few places which weren't already covered, then looked at 'Shy who nodded her approval. He even lifted the plate to her so she wouldn't have to stand up to get it.

"Thank you."

"Lemme know how it compares to the hay one."

She bit into the pizza goodness and gave a few thoughtful chews. She leaned her head to one side in thought and swallowed. "It's good."

"Good?"

"Good. I like it both ways."

They went back to watching the movie in silence, each of them slowly munching on pizza. Pat would end up having only about a quarter of it, but it was plenty and he was glad to give the larger portion to his guest.

"That was actually kinda sweet," 'Shy commented as the ending credits rolled.

"Yeah, these animated movies are usually a bit tearjerkers at the end."

He watched as she mouthed the word to herself: 'tear-jerker'. She repeated it again, then shrugged. "What does that mean?"

"Means they try to play with your emotions."

"Ah. Yes, I understand."

She was now fully covered with the blankets, leaving only her head outside. Pat wondered if the place really was that chilly, especially since 'Shy had all that fur and feathers to keep her warm.

He thought about putting on the sequel, but changed his mind. It was a cozy kind of evening, one where he could simply chat with Fluttershy and maybe get a session of petting in. "Want a beer?" he offered.

Her ears folded down in concern and she gave Patrick a worried look.

"It's nowhere near as strong as that stuff yesterday, and you won't be mixing it, so it should be fine. How about half of one?"

"I... do like the smell," 'Shy finally said, slowly as if in careful retreat.

Pat was only too glad to fetch a bottle from the fridge. He figured they could share the first one and then if 'Shy wanted more, he could get another. He sat back down and twisted the cap open. Then he patted the couch right next to him. She shuffled closer, taking the blankets with her. She ended up leaning against him with one foreleg draped across Patrick's leg. He offered her the bottle and she took a swig, using her hoof to keep it steady. The beer was heavier than the plastic bottle of strawberry fizz. As soon as she passed it back he drank himself. His free hand he placed around where he judged Fluttershy's withers were. After a moment she relaxed and leaned her head against his chest. He distinctly felt where her ear pressed through his thin T-shirt.

"So, I was wondering..."

"Mm?"

"You told me that story about Nightmare Luna-"

"Moon," 'Shy interrupted, ears flicking in annoyance. "She was Nightmare Moon when she was bad and became Princess Luna when the Elements saved her, remember?"

"Yeah, sorry. Well, you said Twilight was a unicorn. But earlier, when you were telling me how you got to Earth you told me she was an alicorn." It had been a minor point, but it was bothering Patrick. He hoped 'Shy wasn't making it all up. It might turn out she was simply... made, or bred in some high-security bio-research cloning facility or something. That wouldn't matter a whole lot, Pat knew, but he really didn't like the idea of 'Shy just lying like that.

"It's kind of a long story," she said. "Yes, Twilight was born a unicorn, but she earned her wings."

"I didn't know you could do that!" This made 'Shy giggle and Pat realized how he sounded. A few weeks ago was the first time he even heard about ponies, so it wasn't much of a surprise that he didn't know a lot about them.

"Actually," Fluttershy said, "most ponies didn't know either. Princess Cadence was born a pegasus and earned her horn and Twilight earned her wings. As far as I know, Flurry Heart was the only natural-born alicorn."

Pat mentally went over the names. "Okay, so what about Celestia and Luna? They also earned- uh, their wings?"

This time Fluttershy shrugged a little. "Uh," she said, looking away and blushing a little in embarrassment. "I don't really know. I guess I didn't pay enough attention in school. Or maybe nopony knows. It was just so long ago!"

Patrick didn't mind. After all, if she asked him about American presidents there'd be significant gaps in his knowledge and that was only a couple of hundred years. "It's okay, don't worry about it."

There was silence for a while, then Fluttershy spoke up. "Pat?"

"Yeah?"

"Mind if we, um, if we talk about you for a bit? It's... hard. It's hard remembering."

Suddenly Pat realized how stiffly the mare was sitting. He gently turned her head around with his fingers on her muzzle and saw that her eyes were glistening. "Oh! I'm sorry, 'Shy. I really didn't mean to-"

She shrugged and partially unwrapped the blankets from her. That allowed her to rest directly against him and cover them both with the fabric. She was incredibly warm, maybe from being bundled up or maybe it was her natural body temperature. Either way, it was very pleasant to cuddle with her. When the maneuver was complete, 'Shy sighed. "Let's just talk about something else. Um, do you have any brothers or sisters?"

"Nope. Only child. Mom said I was such a handful when I was young that she didn't wanna go through all that again."

'Shy managed a small smile. "That sounds cute. Wanna tell me what you got up to?"

"Okay, okay, lemme think. So, this one time we were on our summer vacation at sea with this little RV."

"RV?"

"It stands for 'recreational vehicle'. It's like a small house on wheels which you can drive around, so you don't need to bother with tents or hotels."

"Oh! That sounds nice!" Fluttershy trilled. "I wish I could do that someday. It's been ages since I was at sea!"

"Well, if we succeed and I can buy you off Mason we can totally go! I'll save up some money and we'll take a vacation with an RV!"

Her ears folded down and 'Shy looked away. "Y-Yeah," she said, but her heart suddenly wasn't in it.

It irked a little and Pat put a hand on her side under the blanket. "Shy, I told you. It'd just be a formal piece of paper. You know I don't see you as a slave!"

She sighed, but didn't look back. "I know."

"In fact! In fact!" Pat said, suddenly excited, "I promised you a hoof massage as thanks for cleaning up my place!"

Fluttershy shook her head. "You don't really have to-" she began, but Pat was already pushing her over. She wasn't heavy and allowed him to lay her down on her back, still wrapped up in the blanket. That was important so she could keep her modesty, especially with the angle from which Pat would look.

"Come on! I'm probably bad at this, but I can learn!"

Fluttershy sighed and closed her eyes, but she wiggled a hind leg free from the cloth. Pat carefully grabbed it with both hands. It was surprisingly wiry, he thought. All sinew and muscle and bone, with practically no fat he could feel. Even the fur there seemed stiffer.

"Okay, tell me how it feels, right?" At first he only ran his fingers up and down the limb, looking for where she had muscles and where there were just tendons. He prodded a few likely places with his thumbs, closely watching Fluttershy's expression. She didn't react to any of it. Next up Pat moved to the hoof, examining it. Strange how even the keratin was almost indistinguishable in color from her fur. That was quite unlike Earth horses.

"Hmm," he murmured to himself.

Fluttershy opened her eyes to see what he was doing. Patrick was feeling around the edge, watching with curiosity how the hard part made an U shape. He traced around it then put his finger in the middle. It was quite soft and surprisingly warm. The hoof jerked out of his grasp and he looked up to see 'Shy fighting a grin.

"That tickles, Pat," she said. "You have to push harder on the frog."

"The frog? Oh, yeah, right. Sorry." He took the hoof in his hands again, grabbing it so he could put his thumbs on the fleshy bit. He tried a slightly harder pressure, but he still kept it quite gentle. A quick glance at the mare's face told him that was the jackpot. Her eyes had closed and her lips parted as she exhaled in comfort. It was relatively simple, even with no skill. Patrick pressed various points on the frog and ran his fingers across it, each touch and movement making Fluttershy sigh or moan. He gradually felt the tension go out of her leg until he was completely supporting its weight in his hands.

"So you like this?" he asked, just to make sure.

At the sound of his voice 'Shy opened her eyes, but it took her a few moments of blinking before she could focus on his face. Then she smiled. "It's nice, actually. You're good at that!"

"Sure thing! Next hoof?"

She almost looked regretful as she lowered the limb and wiggled her other hind leg free. Patrick made sure to cover her up again and keep her warm. He wanted to go straight to the frog again, but since he knew that secret he set about finding some more. He began low and carefully felt along her leg, marvelling at how her knees bent backwards. He prodded along the muscle, then traced the tendons to where they vanished. All this time he watched Fluttershy's face, but she never reacted until he pressed his thumbs in the frog again. This time, as she relaxed, there was a smile on her muzzle.

Before he began Pat had been worried that giving a massage would be boring, but it was actually the opposite. The little shudders and moans were strangely exhilarating and he was glad the blanket was covering the massive tent he was pitching. It was also quite fun to see what sort of sounds he could get 'Shy to make. Besides, foot rubs usually led to... other things in books and movies, right? Maybe it was similar for ponies.

When he judged he'd given this hoof about the same amount of time as the last one, Pat leaned forward and placed a light kiss right in the middle of the frog. This made 'Shy start up with a gasp and jerk her leg away.

"Sorry! Sorry! I-"

He was about to apologize profusely and already felt the blush rising on his face, but she beat him to it: "That tickles, Pat!" She either didn't recognize the feeling, or was fine with it. Either was preferable to 'Shy being grossed out.

"Forelegs too?"

Fluttershy gave this some thought, but Pat could see the comfort win out in her expression. She smiled and nodded. "Yes, p-please. Um, if- if it's not too much trouble."

"Can I be honest with you?" he asked.

'Shy lowered her ears and gave a timid, uncertain nod.

"I really like doing this."

Her muzzle split in a smile and she giggled. "Probably not as much as I'm enjoying it!"

"I'd take that bet. Turn around..." He motioned with a finger and 'Shy shuffled in a circle so her head was in Pat's lap. He guided her down so she missed the problem spot. Maybe she wouldn't recognize a boner, but he wasn't yet prepared to take that risk.

'Shy thought nothing of it and settled down in the place Patrick laid her. She was facing away, which gave him easy access and a good angle to deal with her forehooves. Already she had one leg extended, waiting for him to grab it and begin his finger magic. Once again, to his surprise, her foreleg felt completely different from her hind. Sure, there was still some muscle and sinew, but the joints were a lot more free. Pat didn't know a whole lot about equines, but he knew Earth horses and ponies couldn't lift their forelegs above their head.

Maybe it was down to evolution and the fact that Fluttershy used her forehooves to pick up and manipulate items, Pat figured. Her back legs would still be used primarily for walking, but there was more dexterity developing in her front. He reminded himself that this wasn't comparative anatomy; it was supposed to be a massage. He felt the limb from where it joined her shoulder up to the knee. He kept going past the second joint and felt around what he remembered from his research as the fetlock. The fluff there was a bit thicker, but still the same pale yellow. Once again Pat inspected the almost seamless transition from fur to hoof. It was the same shape as the hind one, except perhaps a touch smaller.

For some reason he found it incredibly cute and spent a fun little minute just tracing his finger around the inside edge. Only when he noticed that 'Shy had her ears completely flat, her eyes closed, and was breathing hard did he stop. "Um, does it tickle?"

She opened her muzzle but no word came out. She had to work her tongue a bit before she could say, almost in a whimper: "No. P-Please keep doing that!"

This time he took the hoof in both hands, held it in place with his palms and placed all his fingers except for thumbs on the inner edge. With 'Shy's head in his lap, her leg naturally pointed away from him, so Pat figured it would be a more comfortable position. With everything in place, he just felt around the inner edge again, moving his digits in tiny circling motions. Fluttershy relaxed and let out a breath he hadn't noticed she was holding. Her wings unfurled a little as seemingly all her muscles loosened.

In the spur of the moment, Pat leaned forward and placed a small kiss on Fluttershy's hoof between his thumbs. He looked down, blushing a bit, to see what she'd say to this. Perhaps 'Shy hadn't even noticed, but there was a goofy smile on her muzzle and she was taking deep,luxurious breaths. "So I guess you like this?"

This time she opened her eyes and the smile was replaced with a small blush. "Um. Yes?" she ventured, uncertain even now. "It feels- uh. I l-like it." The red in her face and the way her gaze darted around, never really settling on his face was strangely familiar. Was the edge of her hoof an erogenous zone for 'Shy? Luckily for Pat she was still lying as he'd laid her down and she hadn't moved, otherwise the mare would certainly have felt the next-level tent which threatened to burst right through the fabric of his pants.

Despite that, Pat kept his ministrations up for a while longer, before extending his fingers and rubbing the inner softness of Fluttershy's frog. She suddenly slumped down, making him realize she'd been arching her back. She began to smile again and the blush faded, confirming Patrick's suspicions. He filed away this little fact for another day and went on. The important thing was to make sure and keep the pressure up, so as not to tickle. He spent very intense five minutes getting closely acquainted with the slight contours of Fluttershy's frog. There was a surprising amount of texture and features, something he felt he could spend ages just exploring.

With his tongue. The sudden, unexpected thought made him blush and let go, letting her hoof fall down to her side. Fluttershy sighed with infinite sadness and tensed to get up. Before she could, Pat put a hand on her chest. "You got one more leg, remember? Uh, if you like to, I mean."

Almost before he finished speaking the mare had relaxed, started to smile again, and jutted her foreleg up for him to grab. Pat was only too happy to oblige, except this time he didn't tease her by prodding that sensitive edge. A part of him wanted to, curious what would happen if 'Shy got more aroused, but something told him it might be a mistake. They needed to get to know one another better and 'Shy needed to trust him a lot more.

He worked in silence, watching her face for clues to know when he was doing a good job, then repeating the things she apparently liked. Her question came out of nowhere. "Pat? Tell me about the sea."

"Uh. Okay. Lemme think."

She'd said she hadn't been to the seaside in a long while. Pat thought back and realized he hadn't either. Not since elementary school, back when his parents still seemed to enjoy such things. "I hope I can remember. Anyway, we had this old, beaten up RV. There was a bed in the back, which my parents took, and a couch around the table in the middle." He smiled as he remembered staring at that thing from underneath. Supposedly there was some way to fold the table away and turn the couch into another bed, but he'd been small enough to just sleep on the seat. "Heh. I fell off that thing too many times to count! I didn't mind, though, I used to love the sea."

He wondered why they'd stopped going so suddenly. From one year to the next, the family vacation was simply gone. "Okay, so I remember this one time, I think it was the first morning in the camp. I woke up at first light, of course. Way before my parents. They said I shouldn't go out until they got up."

Fluttershy giggled a little and lifted up her other foreleg. Pat didn't even think, lost in memories like he was, before switching from the hoof he was holding to the offered one. "What did you do?"

"I tried to wake them up. There was this curtain across the place and I was super scared of seeing my parents naked, so I didn't dare go look. I just sat at the table, clearing my throat as loudly as I could." They both chuckled at the image. "God, I was so sore by the time they finally woke up!"

This time he mimed his voice being all raspy and croaky. "Like this!"

Fluttershy giggled almost maniacally at the image in her head. "Oh, goodness! What happened?"

Pat shrugged a little, focusing once more on the massage he was giving. "Mom yelled and told me to drink something. Dad just laughed and said I can go outside, as long as I stay near the RV."

'Shy smiled at that, eyes sparkling. From this close Pat saw something of that light blue seaside in her cyan eyes. "Maybe we can have a vacation like that someday, huh?"

For some reason this made Fluttershy sad and her ears splayed, coming to rest against Pat's thigh. He imagined he felt one of those tufted points brush his belly. "Yeah, m-maybe," Fluttershy said, but her heart wasn't in it. She was looking away and jerked her hoof out of Pat's grasp.

Having his hands free let him put his fingers around her muzzle, stroking. He gently turned her to face him again. "We'll manage it somehow, 'Shy. I promise!"

Instead of smiling, she just pressed her lips together before blinking slowly and re-focusing her ears. "Tell me about the sea some more, please?"

Pat was all too happy to leave the awkward moment behind them. He mentally put himself back to that camp he knew so well and dug out another anecdote. "Okay, so this was a couple of years before that, I think. Dad was teaching me to swim without water wings-"

This word made 'Shy open her eyes wider and interrupt: "Wings?"

Pat chuckled at the misunderstanding. "Not like actual wings. It's like two inflatable, plastic sleeves. You put them around your arms and they help you float. It's mostly meant for kids."

"Oh," 'Shy said. "We usually just call them 'floaties'," she explained.

Pat just nodded. He'd kept his fingers on Fluttershy's cheeks and now rubbed in small little circles. She wasn't complaining and the fur was so soft he couldn't bring himself to stop. "Anyway, Dad was teaching me to swim without those. The water was shallow enough for me to stand if I wanted, but I got so panicked I nearly drowned. In two feet of water!"

He chuckled, but this time 'Shy didn't share it. She seemed concerned. "I'm sorry."

"Nah, I laughed about it after I realized, don't worry. Anyway, I splashed so much I got our towels all the way on the beach all wet. Mom nearly died laughing."

The smile was crawling back onto Fluttershy's muzzle and she gave his hand a quick nuzzle. She didn't seem inclined to move out of his lap and Pat was perfectly fine with that. They could stay like that until night, for all he cared.

"Okay, so let me tell you about the second attempt..."