Fluttershy and the Isilithians

'I was born many many years ago in what is now the crystal empire. It surprises me how little the city has changed from all those years ago. It's been almost four thousand years and yet the city has barely changed.'

Isilith stopped when he saw Fluttershy looking in awe at the mention of his age. She would of thought Isilith to be about middle-aged. Not four thousand years! Isilith chuckled as he saw the gobsmacked pegasus looking to his comrade.

'Age is almost un-noticeable for me now. Well of course it is when I look at some noticeable features of this land. Why I remember when the mountain Canterlot was built apon instead bore an ugly black tower in which changelings poured out of like ants.'

Apon seeing Fluttershy's face contort due to confusion he stopped again chuckling. He pointed to the staff carefully to the third level in which there was a carving of the crystal palace, outside it there were carefully carved humans outside, however the most striking feature were the ponies. They were not smiling, nor where they involved, in fact from the carving they were shoved in the background and one of the houses in which two ponies stood outside of looked like a slum.

'The crystal city was the first settlement in Equestria. Though ponies and humans lived there ponies were second rate citizens condemned with no education, skills or way of escaping the caste they were set in.'

To that he pointed to a house near the palace.

'Until I was born. Originally inter species marriage was banned and ponies were not allowed to take positions of power in the city. However I was born into an educated and strong family. I wanted to give the ponies and chance. So I helped them.'

He then pointed to the next level of the staff in which a carving of a fair haired man was wielding a hammer in front of a group of ponies next to an anvil. Fluttershy still looked confused as she looked back at Isilith in sheer desperation to understand what was going on. Isilith smiled at the beautiful mare and stroked her cheek.

'This is where the magic starts. Touch the level with your hoof.'

Fluttershy was unsure of whether she should listen to Isilith but his soft voice and convincing eyes persuaded her to do as she was told. She gingerly placed her hoof on the level and suddenly her eyes rolled to the back of her head and she felt her limbs turn to jelly. The world around her melted like ice cream in the sun and was soon a swirling puddle. Suddenly it began to come back together and reformed what looked like a forge and soon ponies and the fair haired man from the staff were in front of her.

******

'This is a hammer everypony. Now you can use this with the anvil to shape the metal. Now! You get the metal used for the shaping from the furnace.'

Isilith instructed as he pointed to everything in the forge to the ponies. Fluttershy raised a hoof as if to reach out to them but she saw and felt nothing.

Was she a ghost?

Isilith was in front of the scorching furnace as it drbbled liquid metal into a shaped mold making him sweat considerably. Though Fluttershy would normally find the work of a smith boring or at most scary, she could see the pure excitment of the ponies around him just from their faces. As Isilith showed the amazed ponies the filled mold some of them even burst into tears hugging each other with joy. Fluttershy as she wandered through the crowd could slowly see why. They were finally useful now. By knowing how to cast metal they could finally be respected in this town. One pony was exempt from this shared joy however

As Fluttershy wandered through the crowd she saw one pony who looked almost angry. Fluttershy examined her closely and saw a white mare, almost like Rarity with deep blue eyes, but instead of the over the top fake eyelashes that decorated Rarity's face there were small almost majestic laces without a dot of makeup. Her mane was in the fasion of almost a stallion reminding the Pegasus of Applejack;s cousin Braeburn. Her green mane harbored a tall horn, a horn that Fluttershy had only seen the like of on the princesses and Fancy pants.

While Isilith was teaching the ponies how to fuel the furnace the mare spoke directly to him loudly above the excited chatter.

'Why are you only teaching us metal work? Do you plan to use us to make weapons for our own oppressors? Do you intend to make us surrender our culture and intellectuals for steel and hammers?'

Everypony turned toward her backing away slighty, their faces displaying sheer shock, FLuttershy was shocked too. How could anypony question Isilith's generosity?

Isilith turned slowly to face her, however he did not look angry, only surprised. The surprise only grew however when he gazed apon the mare. Even Fluttershy could tell that he was slowly being lost in her gaze, was he falling for her?

'I asked a question Isilith.' She said tapping a hoof.

Isilith shook his head slowly trying to regain his bearings.

'I taught you metal working first so that you can all get easy to get jobs. I do not expect that my fellow colleagues will except pony intellectuals straight after they have learnt how to write.'

He then gazed straight into her eyes again and Fluttershy could tell the mare's stubborn stance shake.

'What is your name my lady?' He asked kindly ignoring the hushed conversations going on among the other ponies.

'Dido....Dido Heart Song.'

Isilith observed her cutie mark as he slowly approached her causing the previously aggressive mare to blush. It was a heart, one side being pure black the other a light red. When the man approached he bowed slowly to her.

'It is a pleasure to meet you Dido.'

She continued to blush and murmured.

'Indeed it is.....'

Isilith smiled as he moved back to the furnace.

'Now! On the subject of intellectuals tomorrow we will be doing reading and writing! Could all of you bring feathers to that session please? Thank you.'

All the ponies began to leave the forge, all except Dido. Isilith turned to leave but was soon licked on the hand by the mare. Fluttershy watched in awe as Isilith turned towards the mare and stroked her neck slowly, going on one knee for her.

Fluttershy couldn't understand it, how could this all be happening so quickly? Before she could think another thought Dido pushed over Isilith playfully and began giggling as she then sat on his chest.

'I thought you humans were supposed to be tough?'

She said teasingly as she poked his nose with a hoof. He chuckled lightly as he stroked her mane.

'You're just really heavy.'

She blushed and giggled again before doing the unthinkable. She closed her eyes tight as if to pretend she was in paradise and kissed Isilith. His eyes widened but he did not resist leaning into her, embracing her.

Before the embrace could continue Fluttershy's world dissolved again and before she knew it she was staring back at the staff that she held in her hoof. Isilith smiled back at her encourgignly

'How was that?'

Fluttershy reached a hoof to touch him in case he was part of the staff's magic. Obviously he was not causing him to chuckle.

'What....What was that? Why did you show me that?'

Isilith smiled back at her before stroking her cheek with his hand causing her to redden.

'I need you to understand. The history of the Isilithians. Or else you will fail in your task ahead.'

Fluttershy squeaked worried. She did not like the idea of a task.

'Task!? What task!? I don't like tasks!? Unless it's getting Angel carrots or gromming my wings or buying vegetables or getting fertilizer for Appleja-'

Before she could continue her ramble Isilith placed a finger on her lips chuckling.

'It will become clear. What you saw was the time I met my future wife Dido. It would be controversial you see. Men could not marry ponies. Yet I would carve the way for pony kind to be excepted. I had six children with Dido. Six beautiful foals.....Until that day....'

Isilith's eyes watered slightly but he soon closed them shaking his hand vigorously.

'Touch the staff again....I do not want to repeat what happened.'

Fluttershy was worried. What would worry Isilith so badly? But she did as she was told. She placed her other hoof on the staff again and her eyes rolled back, and the world melted.