“Here you go, Muriel,” Fluttershy cooed as she crushed up a few apples for her baby elephant friend. The elephant trumpeted gratefully and began to eat. She hummed cheerfully as she went through her usual routine at Sweet Feather Sanctuary, feeding and washing her little and sometimes not-so-little friends. The giraffes were brushed from neck to toe and shown to their trees, the snakes were satiated, the ducks were given their breadcrumbs and the sloth was led to its favorite branch to sleep on (Fluttershy patiently followed it for a long while).
After many hours of tiring labor, Fluttershy finally approached her final patient: a giant grizzly bear with its arm in a cast. It was staring at a tree, unmoving, until Fluttershy spoke up, “Umm, excuse me?” It jumped slightly as if shaken out of a stupor, then gained a hopeful expression as it saw its loving caretaker. Fluttershy giggled, “You’re really excited to get that cast off, aren’t you, Harry?” Harry the bear nodded vigorously as Fluttershy continued, “And you’re sure your arm doesn’t hurt anymore when you wiggle it around a little?”. An even more excited nod followed at that. “Well, I think it’s been long enough by now, it should be okay if I take it off. Just as long as you promise to be careful and not use it too much for the next week or two!”
If a bear could squeal, Harry would have done it. Instead, he grunted and jumped up and down with a childlike glee. Fluttershy got to work undoing the wrapping, then carefully cut away the cast. As she worked, Harry seemed unable to contain his excitement. When the cast fell off, Fluttershy barely had time to put her scissors back into her saddlebags before she was suddenly lifted into the air!
“Eep!” Seemingly unfazed by Fluttershy’s suggestion to be careful with his arm, Harry had scooped her up with his big scruffy arms and pressed her into his chest, squeezing her gently. Fluttershy couldn’t help but giggle, wrapping her hooves around Harry and nuzzling into his chest fluff. “Awww… I’ve missed our hugs too.”
Harry may have been one of the largest predators in the sanctuary, but what he enjoyed most in life was a good hug from a nice pony. The two just stayed in their embrace for a while, breathing slowly. It seemed like a good few minutes before Harry set his caretaker down on the ground again, as gently as ever.
Fluttershy sighed as she opened her eyes again. Then, she and Harry just smiled at each other for a moment. The secret to talking to animals, perhaps, is that words aren’t so important. It’s all so nice and simple… You just give them care and attention, and they love you.
After finishing the rest of her chores, Fluttershy strolled back to her cottage, watching some of her little friends nestling into their favorite spots to sleep. It was already late and she hadn’t even had her own dinner yet. Though she felt as busy as Applejack sometimes, taking care of animals never felt any less rewarding.
Having finished the daisy sandwiches and salad she had quickly prepared for herself, Fluttershy couldn’t help but yawn. By now, it was already dark outside, and she couldn’t stay up too late; she had her spa day with Rarity to look forward to tomorrow. If she and Rarity had one thing in common, it’s that they both worked hard and needed to unwind every so often.
Upstairs, Angel was already tapping his foot next to the bed. He spoke, without any words, the most clear language of all her animal friends. Now, he was saying You’re late, I’m tired, and I need to be tucked in! Fluttershy apologized, “Oh, I’m sorry I’m so late again! I always underestimate how much work it is to maintain a whole sanctuary...”
And so she did, letting Angel climb into his little basket next to the bed, tenderly placing a blanket over him and kissing his forehead. “Sleep tight, my favorite little bunny…” Her last animal friend for the day well and truly taken care of now, Fluttershy climbed into bed, thought of how nice and relaxing her day was going to be tomorrow, and soon fell asleep.
The chirping of birds at Fluttershy’s window made her stir under the covers. Her eyes fluttered open to see the sun just coming up. Every morning, her tweeting little darlings would wake her up at the same time.
In a bit of a sleepy haze, Fluttershy left her bed and started on her usual morning chores, humming along cheerfully. After making sure all the animals in and around her house were well fed, and then the ones at the sanctuary, she finally allowed herself to have breakfast of her own.
She’d arranged her schedule so that she wouldn’t have to do anything more than the usual daily chores today. Even if it meant working harder on the other days, she wouldn’t miss her spa day with Rarity for the world. She’d given Angel specific instructions on how to keep the other animals in line when she was off on an adventure or had other plans, and by now she trusted that he would be able to handle it. There was nothing to worry about, she could allow herself this one day.
By the time Fluttershy arrived at the spa, it was still somewhat early in the morning. A blue earth pony with a pink mane greeted her at the reception desk, “Good morning, Miss Fluttershy. I assume you’re here for your usual treatment with Miss Rarity?”
Fluttershy knew the mare well by now. It was Lotus, and she’d always take care of the both of them along with her twin sister, Aloe. “Of course,” Fluttershy replied.
“Please, make yourself comfortable. We’ll be ready for the both of you as soon as Miss Rarity arrives,” Lotus pointed towards the waiting couch, where Fluttershy sat down and flipped open a fashion magazine from a nearby table. Though Fluttershy wasn’t very interested in the latest fashion trends herself, she liked to be able to follow along in Rarity’s monologues at least a little bit.
Some time had passed, and by now she’d finished reading the whole magazine. Checking the wall clock, it was already fifteen minutes past when Rarity should have arrived. She seems to be fashionably late, she thought. Maybe she’s too busy? She just stared at the door for a few minutes. Just as she was about to get up and see if Rarity was coming, the door swung open.
“Oh, hello Rarity,” she greeted her friend, “I’m so glad you could come.” As Fluttershy got up and walked over the reception desk with Rarity, she noticed the bags under her eyes and something strange in her expression.
“So am I,” Rarity simply replied. Maybe she’s just tired, Fluttershy thought. By now she’d usually have launched into a monologue about her latest new client or project, which probably wouldn’t end until halfway through the spa day. She didn’t think much more of it, except that her friend had been busy and must really need the de-stressing this time.
They first stepped into the sauna, as they did every time. They both just enjoyed themselves quietly for a while. Though she didn’t mind the unusually quiet relaxation, Fluttershy did wonder how her friend had been doing since the last time they had had the chance to talk. She finally asked, “How has business been lately, Rarity?”
Her normally excitable friend took a while to reply, “It’s been great, of course. Just the usual business. Orders are always coming in, this and that…” Rarity seemed to notice Fluttershy looking at her expectantly for more details, and quickly changed the subject, “And how has work at the sanctuary been, Fluttershy? As busy as ever, I presume?”
“Oh, I never get a moment’s rest! But I always love how I can make my little friends feel happy and safe with all the little things I do, so I don’t mind. Why, just yesterday, I finally got to take Harry’s cast off!” She smiled with the recollection. While Fluttershy normally wasn’t very talkative, she could talk a pony’s ear off for hours when it came to animals. “You should have seen how happy he was! He couldn’t wait even one more second to give me the biggest bear hug ever! Oh, and did I mention the new exotic animals that were delivered to me last week? They’re from Saddle Arabia and…”
And Fluttershy had launched off into her own excited monologue about her work at the sanctuary. They were well into their massage when Fluttershy noticed that Rarity wasn’t asking any probing questions, and still hadn’t cut her off yet with her own loosely related story either. She stopped for a moment, glanced over to Rarity and saw her simply staring into space. “Um… are you okay, Rarity?”
Rarity seemed suddenly shaken out of a daydream and put on a smile, “Hm? Oh, of course, of course darling!”
“Are you sure? You know you can tell me if something’s wrong…”
“I assure you, nothing’s wrong. I’m just a little tired today.”
“Okay…” Fluttershy couldn’t see what to do except to leave it at that for the time being. Maybe Rarity just needed some quiet time, she’s shown up to their spa days stressed before. That’s why they both needed this relaxation, after all…
As the two dried off from their mud bath and prepared to leave without having said another word to each other, Rarity sighed. She still seemed stressed and lost in thought, and Fluttershy still didn’t know what to say… So she just smiled, and said, “It’s been very nice today. I hope you’re feeling better now.”
“Oh, don’t worry about me, darling, our time together always helps.”
Fluttershy and Rarity paid for the treatment, said their thank yous, and left the spa together. As they prepared to part ways, Rarity sighed again and said, “Well, it’s time to go back to business…”
Fluttershy smiled at her friend, “Thanks again for coming. It’s always nice to relax together like this.”
Rarity smiled weakly in response, “No, thank you. I needed this more than ever today, and I know I just wouldn’t give myself the time to unwind if we didn’t do this together. But I really have to get back to it, I’ll see you later.”
With that, Rarity walked off, back towards her boutique. It seemed to Fluttershy that she didn’t look any better than at the beginning of the day. Almost like she was still stressed, or perhaps worried about something…
Fluttershy finally walked back home herself, unable to stop worrying about her friend. It’s never been this bad before… As she approached her front door, having been lost in her own thoughts the whole way, she finally resolved, “I’ll have to go visit her at the boutique later. I hope she’s doing okay…”
Author's Note
Thank you for reading! Please tell me what you think and if there's anything I can improve upon. Your comment will inspire me to continue writing more than you could ever believe!
I won't say "This is my first story, please be kind", I know I'm not an experienced writer. Tell me what you liked, but don't be afraid to leave any constructive feedback!
Look forward to the next chapter, hopefully sooner rather than later! hugs
