A firm, yet gentle knock of hoof on wood echoed though the hollow tree. The sound was slightly dampened by the lightly pounding rain outside, but was still loud enough to be heard from any given point within the tree. The inhabitant, known around this part of Equestria as Fluttershy, opened the door of her treehouse, revealing a cloaked unicorn. Fluttershy beckoned the hooded figure inside, gently removing the cloak from her guest. Twilight Sparkle dried herself and the brown wool cloak off with magic, leaving only a small trail of hoof-shaped puddles in her wake. Inside, the front room was sultry, a fire roaring in the hearth a few meters directly forwards from the door heating up the wet air inside. There was a small love seat slightly to the right and a pair of armchairs to the left with a coffee table made of dark wood in between them all. The glow of the fire and a few candles were lit so as to cast a warm glow around the room instead of letting the cold gray light filtering through the clouds illuminate the space.

"Good morning, Twilight," Fluttershy whispered happily, a satisfied smile forming on her face. "I'm so glad you could make it."

"Of course I could make it," Twilight replied, the contagious smile spreading across her face as well. "I had a blank schedule today. And as fun as re-reading my favorite book sounded, tea with a friend on a rainy day just sounds a bit more appealing."

A high pitched whistle crescendoed into presence. Fluttershy looked into the kitchen from where she stood, and saw that her kettle was indeed the source of the mildly annoying sound. She excused herself quietly, stepping into the small kitchen. She turned her stove off, the small blue flames withering quickly out of existence. The yellow pegasus carefully picked the kettle up by its insulated rubber handle, pouring the scalding water into an ornate teapot. She smiled, setting the kettle back on the stove. She set the teapot on a fine silver tray, where two teacups, a small bowl of sugarcubes, a small jar of honey, a pair of ornate silver spoons, and an equally ornate box of teabags lay. She picked up the tray carefully, placing it on her back, supporting it on either side by spreading her wings.

She walked back into the spacious front room to see that Twilight had already seated herself on the love seat. Her already wide smile grew a little more. She set the tray down on the table, nudging it to the center of the table. She set a cup down in front of her unicorn guest, pouring a little water into it.

"Thank you, Fluttershy," Twilight sighed contentedly. "What kind of tea would you recommend? I've only had camomile before, and it wasn't that great."

"Given your personality, I'd suggest the Lavender Blend. I usually have that on days like this while reading a good book," she returned. She opened the small box, selecting two particular packets from it. She set one before Twilight, before setting her own down on the wooden table. Twilight picked up the small pouch with magic, setting it in the steaming water. Color slowly seeped into the water, adding a brown tint to it. Both mares picked up a spoon, dipped it into their respective cups of steeping tea, and stirred gently. The color of each liquid dispersed evenly, tinting to a dark brown, similar to coffee but still more transparent. Fluttershy plucked the teabag from her cup, setting it down on the table. She picked up her cup between her hooves and leaned back in her chair.

"So. Um... How's everything at the library?" Fluttershy asked, trying to start a conversation of some sort.

"Not bad. It's gotten busier now that the local history teachers are assigning research papers on major historic figures," Twilight replied, aiding Fluttershy's attempt at casual conversation.

"That sounds nice," Fluttershy sighed contentedly, taking a wispy sip of her tea.

"Not quite," the unicorn replied. "They're the adolescent types. They tend to make a mess of my perfectly organized library just after I finish cleaning."

"Oh," her pegasus friend replied.

"At least it keeps me and Spike busy," Twilight sighed, taking a small sip of her tea. Warmth seeped through her like the color did the water just moments earlier. She smiled, taking another sip of the hot tea. "Where did you get this tea?"

Fluttershy grinned and took a sip of her own tea before gesturing towards a wall. A row of flowerpots sat upon a shelf, each with a different herb growing from them. A green pot stood out from the others, with a rather tall lavender plant just beginning to bloom. She answered with quiet pride, "I make each packet by hoof."

Twilight gasped in disbelief, staring with wide eyes at the tea.

"If you d-don't like it," Fluttershy stuttered nervously.

"I'm afraid I don't like it," Twilight replied, a slight frown curling up on her lips. Fluttershy's face drooped sadly, tears forming at the corners of her eyes. Her lower lip quivered like a leaf in a breeze.

"I love it!" Twilight burst, her smile returning with full vigor. Fluttershy's smile slowly crept back upon her face, settling down for a long and pleasant nap on her lips.

Twilight turned to look at the different herbs that grew upon the shelf in the ground-bound pegasus' home. She saw camomile on the far left in a sky blue pot, next to it was a soft purple pot with a small rose plant growing in it. Next to that was a red pot which appeared to house a ginger plant. To its immediate right was the lavender plant, which sat below a seemingly out of place mask, and beside an orange pot of ginseng.

Twilight's eyes rested upon the mask, which she thought belonged in Zecora's hut more than it did in Fluttershy's cottage. It had no eye holes, but where they should have been were the outlines of a pair ovals that were only halfway on the mask. The dark carved lines contrasted the lighter gray tones of the mask. A thick carved groove ran down the center like a riverbed, notched horizontally every quarter inch or so. Four light yellow feathers stuck out from behind the mask, making it appear almost like a butterfly, save for the antennae or lack thereof. There was something curious about the mask that Twilight couldn't put her hoof on. It almost felt like the mask was radiating magic, and not the ambient magic like the kind in the Everfree. Nay, where that magic was dull and subtle, the magic Twilight felt was sharpened, as though it belonged to a creature that could actively and consciously harness it.

"Hey Fluttershy," Twilight began. "What's the story behind that mask?"

Author's Note

Rewritten to be just a little higher quality. Most of the edits will be in CH2, but CH3 will get some new stuff too.