Fronthology

“Hello, Rainbow Dash!” Fluttershy greeted with a wave.  She was outside of her cottage, feeding a stout little tortoise.

“Hey!” Rainbow responded as she landed next to her pet.  “Thanks for looking after Tank for me!”

The yellow pegasus nodded.  “Oh, anytime.  He’s made such good friends with the frogs.”

“Oh, cool!  They’re all reptiles, I guess.”

“Um, frogs are amphibians.”

“Right, right…”  The rainbow-maned pegasus shifted slightly.  “Say, Fluttershy…  There’s something I feel I should tell you…”

Fluttershy fell silent, as Rainbow scratched the back of her own neck.  “I don’t really know the best way to tell you this.  I mean, there are probably many ways to say this, but I can’t come up with a good way, you know?  I’m not good at that sort of thing.  That’s more of an egghead thing.”

Unsure of what was going on, Fluttershy allowed her to continue.  “Okay…”

The blue pegasus traced her hoof on the ground.  “Can… can we be honest with each other, for a second?  We’ve been through a lot.  We’ve been friends for a while, now, and I think it’s only fair.”

“Sure, sure.”

“You see…  You’ve been a good friend, Fluttershy.  You’re so sweet and kind, taking care of these animals and stuff.  I’d never want to hurt your feelings, and so… that’s what’s making this so difficult, I think.”

Her friend blushed.  She had a hunch as to where this might be going…

“I… I can’t keep going like this.  All this…  All this time we’ve been friends, I’ve always kind of… felt this way.  I’ve always wanted to say something, but I’ve been afraid to.”  She stomped a hoof on the ground.  “And I’ve never been afraid of anything!  But, I’m scared to say this, and I don’t know why…”

Fluttershy sat down.  She didn’t feel ready; she wasn’t prepared for what her best friend since childhood was about to say.  Would she be able to handle it?  She mustered up as much confidence as she could and said, “Don’t be afraid, Rainbow Dash…  You can tell me anything.”

“Thank you, so much.  I care about you, you know?  I hope you understand.”

“It’s okay, Rainbow…”  She put a hoof on her friend’s shoulder.  “Don’t be afraid.  I promise that I won’t take it the wrong way.  I can handle it.”

“Well, here goes…”

Fluttershy held in a breath and felt herself shaking.  She had to be ready.  She knew that she could be there for her, no matter what-

“Your lemur creeps me out.”

“Oh…”  She looked down at the small creature clinging to her arm.  Surprised, she said, “Um… thanks for… letting me know.”

Rainbow smiled.  “Well, I’m off to nab something to eat with Tank.  See ya later, Fluttershy!”

With that, she took to the air and flew away to Ponyville.  Fluttershy sighed and looked down at the curious little animal, giving him a reassuring smile.  With her free hoof, she scratched his back.

“One day, Mr. Lemur.  One day…”