Anon/Fluttershy 20

>Fluttershy's parents hadn't come around in 2 days.
>You suspect Fluttershy's father was hiding his bruised face from public.
>Regardless of how mild it was, it was a pretty embarassing mark.
>And since you were forced to take a few days off of work, you just lied down on the couch reading for most of the day.

>You had finished your latest book from the library.
>You wonder how that lost pony would have faired if winter had come around...
>But what an amazing story.
>You would have to ask Fluttershy to go get you some new books from the library.
>But she's outside right now, and you don't want to move, so you just wait.

>When she does finally come back inside, it's almost lunch time.
"Hey Fluttershy, I gotta question."
>She walks over to you and stands by your side.
>"Yes, sweetie?"
>You need a pet name for her.
"I was just wondering, when you get the chance, if you could take this book back to the library and pick up something else for me? Please?"

>She kissed your forehead and takes the book.
>"Of course, Anon. I'm not doing anything now so I can take it right away. Will you be alright by yourself?"
"I'll be fine. I'll just make a sandwich or something for lunch."
>She is very disatisfied knowing that you will probably skip lunch altogether.
>"Oh... alright. Well I'll probably bring something back for you."
"No thanks. I'll be fine."
>She leaves for Ponyville and you have the feeling she was ignoring you anyways.
--
>You were taking a nap on the couch when Fluttershy got back.
>You awoke to her nudging your shoulder.
>"Anon..." she whispered.
"Huh..." you grunted, just barely awake.
>"I got you another book. Twilight recommended it.
"'Kay..."
>"She also wanted me to tell you that she had come up with a plan to get Rainbow Dash to speak to you. She wanted to see you today."

>That got your attention.
>You rolled to face her and stretched yourself out.
>You let out a loud yawn and watched her with half-lidded eyes.
"What?"
>"Twilight wants to see you. It has to do with Rainbow Dash."
"Now?"
>"That would be best."

>You let out a whimper.
>You were having such a good nap too.
>Now you have to go to Ponyville.
>But you don't wanna...
--
>You lazily roll off the couch, careful to not hit your knee or bend it very much.
>You wince as you stand.
"Why couldn't she come to us?"
>"I don't know."
>You sigh and bend back and twist side to side.
>The cracks coming from your back make Fluttershy wince, as if she was imagining the pain that you must be feeling.

>"Did you eat lunch today?" she asks.
"Yup."
>You liar.
>She can see right through you.
>"Okay. Well we should get started to Ponyville before it gets too late."
>You aren't going to enjoy this one bit.

>The walk to Ponyville was slow and annoying.
>Your knee didn't hurt as much as before, but it was enough that you didn't want to walk on it.
>Fluttershy stayed close to you.
>If you tripped up, she caught you and set you straight.
>A 'thank you' each time gave her a smile.

>When you finally reached the library, you had to take a quick break.
>You just had to live so far away, didn't you?
>You need a bike or some kind of transportation.
>As much as you enjoyed your walks, the time it took to get from your house and town was staggering.
--
>Fluttershy held the door to the library open for you.
>You thank her and step through.
>You find a chair in the corner and go to sit down while Fluttershy goes to find Twilight.
>Spike heard you enter and came to meet you.
>"What's up Anon?"
>He held his fist to you and you bumped it instinctively.

"I honestly don't know. I was taking a nap when Fluttershy said Twilight wanted to see me immediately."
>"Heh. You do look rather sleepy. And I'm afraid I don't know what Twilight wants to see you for."
"That's fine."
>You know it has something to do with Rainbow Dash, but other than that, you're clueless.

>Fluttershy returns with Twilight at her side.
>"So Anon, are you ready?"
"To go back to sleep?"
>"No! To finally win over Rainbow Dash."
"And how exactly am I going to do that?"
--
(Fluttershy's PoV)

>Twilight, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, and yourself were out searching for Rainbow Dash.
>It had been decided that if she were to run, the four of you had the best chance to catch her from every angle.
>It was time for her to face justice and resolve her issues with you and Anon.
>But you had to find her first.

>She shouldn't be too hard to locate, but none of you are able to find her.
>"Where in tarnation could she be?" asked Applejack.
>"I'm not sure. I've looked and asked all around Ponyville and nopony has seen her in a while." said Twilight.
>"I've been looking in all the best party spots and I can't find her either!" said Pinkie Pie.
>"Fluttershy, did you check Cloudsdale?" asked Twilight.
"I did, but nopony has seen her either. I even checked her house. She's just... gone."
>"That seems to be the case. Ah've been lassoin' clouds all day an' Ah haven't found her yet." said Applejack.

>Where could she possibly be?
>If she's not in Ponyville or Cloudsdale, there can't be many other places she could be.
>You can make a bet you know where she is, but getting her to come back is going to be a little tricky.
"Twilight, I need you to send a letter to somepony for me."
>"You got it Fluttershy. May I ask who?"
--
(Anon's PoV)

>You are sitting in the library with Rarity, waiting for the others to get back.
>"Oh my! And you kicked him in the face?"
"Yup. That's how I screwed up my leg. As fast as he was going, it felt like he could've broke my leg."
>"That's just horrible!"
"Yeah well, I started it."
>"Nonsense! He was baiting you to try to hit him. He's lucky he didn't hurt you. Fighting's not my thing, I'm more into fashion.
>She took up a boxing stance.
>"But I will rip him to pieces if he touches one hair on your pretty little head!"

>Holy crap.
>This pony is insane.
>They all are, but that's besides the point.
>You are about to say something, but the door to the library flies open.
>In march the four others who went to search for Rainbow Dash.

"No luck?"
>"Nope. But we gotta plan here that'll sure bring her 'round." said Applejack.
"Oh?
>"That's right!" exclaimed Pinkie Pie. "I know a certain pony who Dashie loves to hang out with. You've met her before."
"Oh yeah? And who is that?"
>"We'll tell you later," said Twilight. "But first, Spike!"

>"Yeah Twilight?"
>Spike came running down the stairs and over to Twilight.
>"Spike, Pinkie, and Fluttershy, follow me upstairs."
>"You got it!" said Spike and Pinkie together.
>Fluttershy nodded and followed.
--
"So what happens now?"
>"Now we wait, darling," said Rarity.
"Wait for what?"
>"I haven't the slightest idea. Wait for what Applejack?"
>"We're waitin' on Twilight and the rest of 'em ta send a letter ta one of Pinkie's friends."
"And how is that relevant?"
>"Her friend is also somepony that RD loves ta hang out with."
"Yeah she just said that. But what are they gonna do? Have them force Rainbow Dash to come back to Ponyville?"
>"That's the plan!"
"Alright, I guess."

>You hear the flare of a flamethrower and see the flash of fire over the railing above you.
"What the hell was that?"
>"Looks like they're finished, darling," said Rarity.
"Wait, what?"
>You see the four of them come back downstairs.
"But... Wha- How?..."
>Magic... Got it...

>"What was that, Anon?" asked Twilight.
"Nothing. So what happens now?"
>"Come back in about two days. We will execute our plan then."
"What's the plan?"
>"Yeah!" cheer the others.
"What's the plan?"
>"I'll let you all know when they get here," said Pinkie Pie.
"What. Is. The. Plan?"
>"Well, I'm off ta git ta bed. Got plenty of work tomorrow."
>"Yes, I as well. There's a big order I need to fill until then."
"What is-"
>Screw it...
--
>Everyone said their goodbyes and you started off back home.
>The sun was gone and the moon has already risen.
>You had been here all day, just waiting for nothing.
>They woke you up for nothing.
>Well, they tried to do something, but whatever.
>Looks like you gotta come back later.

>You almost passed out on the walk home.
>You were so tired.
>You leg was killing you and Rarity refused to let you sleep at the library.
>You throw open your door, and shamble upstairs.
>You don't even get dressed, but collapse into your bed and you are out before your head hits the pillow.

>You awake with your clothes missing and you are wrapped in the blanket.
>Well not all your clothes.
>You still had your boxers at least.
>You were really out if Fluttershy had managed to take off all your clothes without waking you.
>Especially your pants, which she still hasn't gotten the hang of yet.
>After you shower, shave, and get dressed, you go downstairs to a surprising sight.
--
>"Your awake!" yelled Fluttershy as she flew over and hugged you.
>You look around the kitchen to her parents sitting at the table.
"What's going on here?"
>"What? We can't have breakfast with our daughter and her fiance?" asked her father.
>Okay, you are very uneasy about this.
>Why were they here and why was he acting like this?

"You can and we appreciate it."
>You take your seat at the table as Fluttershy goes back to preparing the food.
>"So Anon," starts her father. "I would like to speak to you today."
"Concerning what?"
>Fluttershy places your plate in front of you.
>"Many things. I want us to have a real conversation for once."
>Fluttershy placed their food in front of them as well.
"Can it wait until after breakfast?"
>Fluttershy finally takes her place at the table.
>"If you insist."

>Breakfast ends without another word.
>Fluttershy helps you with the dishes as her parents take a seat in the living room.
>"So what do you think he wants to talk to you about?" asks Fluttershy.
"I have a pretty good idea."
>"Could you share it with me?"
"Sorry, guy stuff."
>She huffs at you as you finish and leave the kitchen.

>Fluttershy's father looks up at you as you enter the living room.
"Would you care to take this conversation elsewhere?"
>"After you."
>You nod, give Fluttershy a hug goodbye, and leave the house with her father in tow.
--
>"So where are we going?" asks Fluttershy's father.
"Just going on a little walk."
>"I thought you didn't want to be on your leg?"
"It should be fine. It's not like it's broken or anything."
>You look at him and smile.
>He returns it.

"So, first things first. "What is it you want to talk to me about?"
>"Everything."
"Mine and Fluttershy's relationship and you everything, or the meaning of life everything?"
>"Don't get smart with me."
"Heheh. Sorry."
>"I just want to talk about Fluttershy."
"Very well. Let me hear it."

>"Where would you like to start?"
"I don't care."
>"Mind if I start from the beginning?"
"Take it away."
--
>"Well, when I was young, I was a very talented flier."
"I remember."
>"Morning Dew was my sweetheart from flight school. Do you know what I had to do to win her over?"
"Something extreme, I'm sure."
>"Haha, not quite. Morning Dew was always sort of... out of it. But she saw me practicing one day and she fell for me."
"So you did nothing?"
>"Not quite."

>He turned his gaze towards the sky.
>"Fluttershy is like her mother. Happy, shy, and carefree. Well, maybe not shy anymore, but Morning Dew sure was as a filly. I didn't know of her feelings for me. I only focused on improving my skills. It wasn't until much later that I actually recognized her as a pony."
>So this guy was a selfish jock, even as a filly. You got the impression from your scuffle the other day, but you guess it's true.
>"I finally worked up the courage one day to ask her to be my special somepony. But that was after an impressive display I put on for her to get her attention."

"So this story isn't really about what you did to get her, it's about what you DIDN'T do. Correct?"
>He averted his eyes back to the road ahead of him.
>"Yes. We had the best relationship for a long time. It wasn't until after we got married and Fluttershy was born that I finally got my chance to audition for he Wonderbolts."
>He then looked toward the ground and there was a low shift in his voice.
--
>"I tried out for the Wonderbolt's team, the aerial acrobats I told you about."
"Yup."
>"I tripped up my routine and they rejected me outright. It was so unfair, but I couldn't keep my mouth shut. I was the best out there, and they probably would've offered me a spot had I not flipped out on the judges."
"So your impulsive rage is what robbed you of your dream?"
>He cleared his throat.
>"Yes. I was so filled with rage. My lifelong dream, shattered due to my own insolence. It hurt so much, I took my rage out on my only child."

"Is that why Fluttershy is so afraid? What did you do? Beat her or something?"
>"Yes it is, and no I didn't. I pushed her. I pushed her like my flight coach pushed me."
"But her timid nature fought back."
>"Correct. I refused to allow her to quit on herself. I wanted her to keep pushing until she was strong enough to accomplish her every desire."
"I think I am starting to understand."
>He looked at you, but you kept staring at the road in front of you.

"You pushed her out of love. To better herself, as you had yourself."
>"Yes."
"It is a very noble cause. The only problem was you were trying to force your own ideals onto someone who did not want them."
>You let in a deep breath, and exhaled slowly.
>Time for your chance to speak.
--
"Fluttershy is precious. Like a flower."
>You look down and meet his eyes.
"She is innocent. But you want something like a wild child. Correct?"
>"Something like that."
"I want to say that she is unlike every other pegasus."
>"Yes."
"You tried to push her outside of her comfort zone. With Fluttershy, that's like trying to force an earth pony to fly on its own."
>He looked away from you and down to the ground.
>You also looked away, to the road in front of you.

>There's a fallen log on the side of the road.
>You have been walking for a while and your leg was starting to hurt again.
"Let's take a break."
>"Yeah."
>You sat down, and he joined you.
>You continue your speech.

"She must have had her own dreams and plans. Perhaps her mother as well. But trying to force her like that must have crushed those dreams. Especially for her mother."
>He was looking at you, but he turned away again.
>His eyes closed in thought.
>You lean forwards and rest your elbows on your legs, careful to keep pressure of your bad knee.
--
"What happened after she went to school?"
>"She outcast herself."
>He still didn't look at you.
>"She refused to talk to any other fillies, and refused to make friends. That, mixed with her weak wing power, made her a prime target for bullies."
"And you didn't do anything about it?"
>"I told her to toughen up."
"That isn't enough."
>"I see that now. One day at school, she fell through the cloud layer, and down to earth. We never heard from her for a long time after that. The fillies at school never reported it. We thought she ran away."

"When did you find out?"
>"Not for a long time after she disappeared. She came to visit us once. She said her wings weren't strong enough to carry her back up to Cloudsdale, but I feel like she didn't want to be around me."
"If you felt so bad, why did you trash talk her the past couple of days?"
>"I was angry. Angry at myself. Angry at the world. Angry because my dreams of what I could have been would never be fulfilled. Not even by my only child."
--
"I don't know which of her reasons are true, but I have to say something. Given how rough you were, she probably felt that she never had a choice in what she wanted to do. Or was too scared to tell you otherwise."
>You are feeling a heavy weight in your chest from this conversation.
>You never knew about Fluttershy's past, but she knows about you.
>You are certain her father is feeling the same.

"If it truly was because she didn't want to go back, I can understand why. That's what happens when the only voice she hears is telling her she can't."
>"Can't what?"
"Just... can't. Can't do what she wants, feel what she wants, or be who she really is."
>Another sigh from you signals a change of tone in your voice.
"So I need to ask you another question."
>"I'm starting to get the feeling you are attacking me in a very subtle manner."
"I am, but not to humiliate you. To help you with Fluttershy, and all of us as a whole."
>"Fine. What is it?"

>You looked at him and with a stern voice asked,
"So what made you think that you could take a life and just... push it... push it around?"
>He didn't respond immediately, but gathered his thoughts for a minute or two.
>He sniffed and you can swear you saw a tear fall.
>"I guess my reason was that I built myself so high, I had to take her and break her down to make myself feel better about destroying my own dreams."
>More tears were forming in his eyes.
>This conversation was hitting very close to home.
>One or two also hit your own eyes, but you blinked them away.
--
>"She laid her heart and soul right in your... hands."
>He sniffed again and shuttered.
>"I heard she was marrying some horrible creature who was not a pony. I would have been happy for her, but my old ways picked right back up. I didn't want my only chance of having grand children ruined because she fell in love with a monster."
>His tears clear up some, but they are still present.

"I see."
>"Do you?
"Again, if what you think her reason for not coming back is true, it took a while for her to figure out that she could run. But when she did, she was long, long gone."
>You turned this conversation back around to try to hit that emotional spot in his heart again.
>It was working.
"She finally found peace and her own destiny down on the ground. You say she is different, but is that such a bad thing?"

>"I just wanted her to-"
"No," you cut him off.
>You voice grew ever more stern.
"I know what you're gonna say, and no you didn't. You only wanted to force your dreams onto her. And then on her children."
>You voice shifts to a softer tone again.
>You look up at the sky.
"You may be her father, but you don't know her like I do. I'm not saying you never will, but you just don't understand."
--
>You caught his attention.
>His sniffles cleared up and he listened.
"She is not all what you think. She has a great amount of emotional and physical strength. Although she doesn't show it all the time, it is, without a doubt, very much there. She may get her looks and personality from her mother, but her colors and inner strength come from her father."

>He steered the conversation away.
>"But what about you? What could she possibly see in you?"
"Because we understand each other."
>"What does that even mean?"
"We are the same."
>You got off the log and lied down, your head resting on the log and staring into the sky.
"I, myself, was an outcast. Back where I came from, and here in Ponyville. I refused to talk to most people, prefering them to talk to me instead. But when I came to Equestria, there was something about the ponies here that... just cause me to... open up."

>"And Fluttershy?"
"I wasn't lying when I told you how we met. She even stood up for me against the whole town just to defend my honor and argue about why I deserve to stay."
>"Really?"
>You nod.
"But it came with a price. Her friends split over me. I have managed to fix what I could, but some ponies just refuse to change."
>He looked down at his own hooves.
>"I know that feeling."
--
"Well," you say, slowly rising to your feet. "I think it's time to start heading back."
>You reach out to help him to his feet.
>"Yeah."
>When you are both up, you start heading back home.
"So what about Morning Dew?"
>"What about her?"
"You started talking about your relationship with your daughter. What about your wife's relationship with her?"
>"I honestly don't know. But given her 'aloofness', I would guess that she generally cared for Fluttershy, but was too distracted by something else to really take notice. Otherwise, I'm sure she would have said something."
"Perhaps. She seems like a nice mare. She always happy."
>"Heheh. Yes she is. Yes she is..."

"But what are you going to do with Fluttershy? Surely a childhood full of abuse is not going to be easily overcome."
>"I was hoping you could have a word with her."
"No. This isn't something that I can fix. I may be able to help, but ultimately, it's all on you."
>"I was afraid you would say that..."
"Sorry."
>"No no. You have a point. But it might take a while."
"Well, you got 2 months. Would you think it possible?"
--
>Your house started coming into view.
>As you neared it, something popped into your head.
"Hey, I got one more question. Don't worry, it's not about Fluttershy."
>"What would it be?"
"What is your name?"
>"Pardon?"
"Your name. I've known you for about a week now. I still do not know your name."

>His face grew as red as his mane.
>"I really didn't tell you my name?"
"Nope. You just slapped away my hand when I asked. And I didn't ask Fluttershy because I would rather meet you in person, not by proxy."
>"I'm terribly sorry."
"Don't worry about it. Now then."

>You crouch down and hold out your hand.
"My name is Anonymous. And you are?"
>He extends his hoof to meet your hand and you give him a firm shake.
>"Steelwing. It's a pleasure to meet you, Anonymous."
"And a pleasure to finally meet you, Mr. Steelwing."
--
>You take those last couple of steps toward your house and go inside.
>Fluttershy and Morning Dew were making a racket in the kitchen.
>You and Steelwing ran to peer inside, to see the two dancing and singing while they prepare lunch.
"The things ponies do when they are alone," you whisper to Steelwing.
>He nodded and gave a quiet laugh.
>The two of you slowly backed out of the house and went around back.

"Well, that was interesting."
>"Indeed. Heheh."
>You walk around the house and just decide to lean against the animal pens, watching them roam.
"So... almost lunch time."
>"Yup..."
>You stand there for several minutes, keeping in silence.
>After that deep discussion, there isn't much left to talk about.
>Oh wait.
>Actually, there is one thing.

"You say you heard about our wedding in Cloudsdale. Was it gossip or did somepony tell you?"
>"Somepony came to our house and told us. We came down as soon as we found out."
"May I ask wh-"
>"Lunch is ready!"
>That was Fluttershy calling out to the two of you.
"Were out back Fluttershy!" you call back.
>"Okay! Come inside whenever you're ready!"
"Alright!"
>You look back to Steelwing.
"I'll ask you later. I'm starving."
>"Yup."
>You join your loved ones inside for a nice lunch for once.