Twilight smiled in her sleep. Fluttershy, who had just woken up, wondered what she was dreaming about. As she watched her marefriend sleep peacefully the chill of the winter morning set in, so she pulled herself closer, placing her head on Twilight's chest. She closed her eyes and focused on the other mare's heartbeat, letting its gentle rhythm bring her peace. She felt a wing drape over her and heard Twilight mumble something unintelligible. She knew Twilight would be awake soon, and really the sooner the better. 'Not right now, though.' Fluttershy hoped. 'Just a few more minutes.'

"Mmm… good morning." Twilight mumbled and stroked Fluttershy's mane.

'Oh well, it's for the best anyway.' "Good morning." Fluttershy replied. She pulled away from the soothing sounds of Twilight's heart long enough to kiss her before going back to cuddling.

"Sleep well?"

"I always do when I'm with you." Fluttershy tried to get up, but Twilight kept holding on to her. "We have a busy day, Twily. We really should get up."

"No." Twilight refused. She kissed Fluttershy's head and kept her held close.

"Oh, you finished everything yesterday? I didn't realize." Fluttershy knew Twilight had done no such thing, of course, because she had blown off all her preparations the day before to spend the day with Fluttershy at her cottage

"It's cold out there." Twilight protested. "I want to stay here where it's warm."

"Cold or not, you're a princess. You can't just go away for a week without making any preparations."

Twilight sighed and Fluttershy thought she'd won until Twilight said "Your princess demands cuddles."

Fluttershy giggled. "A demand? Well I guess I better cuddle you then." She waited moment to let Twilight think she'd get her way before pulling out her secret weapon. "Only, I do hope all the animals are okay. It was so cold last night and some of the poor babies are so fragile. But if Princess Twilight Sparkle demands cuddles…"

With a sigh Twilight let go. "Why are you so mean to me?"

Fluttershy pulled her into a kiss before getting up. "Because I love you."

Twilight sat up and yawned. As she stretched out she was so cute Fluttershy was tempted to take her up on her offer of more cuddles, but she knew if she let Twilight have her way they'd never get out of bed. 'A compromise.' She decided. "How about something nice and hot to start the day? We have tea and cocoa."

"Cocoa sounds great." Twilight said, finally rising from the bed at the promise of the warming beverage.

They made their way downstairs to the kitchen, where Twilight sat at the table and put her head down on her hooves. Apparently she used to rise with the Sun everyday to start her lessons with Princess Celestia, a habit she had long since broke out of. The alicorn was completely useless in the mornings. She blamed it on years studying long into the night, but Fluttershy suspected it had more to do with no longer having anypony to keep her to the Sun's schedule. Fluttershy didn't mind though, she was happy to take over the morning chores.

Fluttershy hummed cheerfully as she filled two mugs with hot cocoa, liberally pouring marshmallows into Twilight's. "Be careful, it's still hot." She said as she sat down next to Twilight, placing a mug in front of each of them. Twilight pulled her head up only to rest it onto Fluttershy's shoulder instead, letting the cold air cool off her drink. Leaning her head on Twilight's, Fluttershy absentmindedly stroked Twilight's mane and smiled to herself. After a minute she gingerly tested her cocoa and found it not too hot. "If you don't hurry up soon it won't be hot at all." She said.

Without getting up Twilight lifted her mug in her magic and took a sip. Perking up at the heat she sat up on her own and took the mug in her hooves. "Thanks Shy, it's perfect."

They sipped their cocoa in silence for a while as Twilight finished waking up. Once she did she smirked. "So, you had to take care of those poor little animals, huh?"

Fluttershy blushed. She had hoped by the time Twilight was awake enough to see the hole in her excuse she wouldn't even remember it. "Well, I had to say something. And I am worried about them, I'm going to check on them as soon as I finish this cocoa. Besides," she nuzzled against Twilight's chest "somepony was being unreasonable."

"Unreasonable?" Twilight said. She sounded annoyed, but her smile betrayed her. "For wanting to spend more time in bed with a beautiful mare? Hardly."

"You were abusing your power as a princess."

"Was not. Princesses get to demand cuddles. I'll have you know cuddling is an important part of being a princess. The most important part, actually."

"Oh? For all the princesses?"

"Oh yes. Be thankful you're not in Shining Armor's position. Being the Princess of Love means cuddles almost around the clock. And don't tell anypony I told you this, but the real reason Luna went all Nightmare Moon was because she didn't get enough cuddles."

Fluttershy laughed and almost spit out her cocoa. "Oh no, I can't let that happen." She threw her hooves around Twilight. "What about Princess Celestia?"

"Nopony knows, actually. Nopony's willing to risk it."

"Well then, I guess it's a good thing I'm around. We'll never have to find out what happens to you without cuddles."

"Good. Then I guess we should just get back in bed." Pulling away, Fluttershy raised an eyebrow at her. "Joking! Just joking."

Twilight drained the last of her cocoa and stood up. "Well, I do actually have a lot to do. Sorry I can't help you with the animals today."

"It's fine, I understand." Fluttershy kissed her on the cheek. "Don't work too hard. I love you, Twily."

"I love you too, Shy."

Stepping out and taking a good look around to make sure there was nopony in sight Twilight flew off. Low at first until she was far away enough that anypony watching wouldn't realize where she came from, then flying straight up to pass overhead of any watchful eyes. Fluttershy drank the last of her cocoa and rushed out the door to care for her animal friends.


On top of feeding the animals as always Fluttershy had spent several hours making sure their houses were keeping the snow out. She was completely exhausted, not to mention freezing, and she still had to pack and make sure everything would be in order while she was gone. Of course she knew Twilight was just as busy and didn't begrudge her for leaving, but she couldn't help wishing she hadn't. Twilight never seemed to tire. She said it was because she was an alicorn, then said a lot of stuff Fluttershy didn't understand about the difference in their anatomy. Regardless of the reason, Fluttershy missed her energy right now.

As Fluttershy was preparing a list of instructions there was a knock at the door. She answered it to find Rainbow Dash, who ran in as soon as it was open.

"Hello Rainbow." She said as she shut the door against the cold.

"Hey Shy. Sorry to barge in, but man it's cold out." Rainbow said, pulling a thermos from under her wing. As she unscrewed it steam came out and the smell of apples and spices filled the room. "Big snowfall tonight. Gotta get ready for Hearth's Warming." Fluttershy nodded. Ponyville had a perfect snowfall every Hearth's Warming, turning the town into a winter wonderland. She was kind of sad to miss it this year.

"So, all ready to go?" Rainbow asked.

"Oh, no. I haven't even started packing yet. I've been busy making sure all the animals are taken care of." She went back to her list.

"Fluttershy, they'll be fine. AJ knows what she's doing."

"Well, it's just that I know she's busy so I wanted to make sure everything is ready for her."

"She doesn't harvest in the snow, you know. She'll have plenty of time." Seeing the worried look on Fluttershy's face she sighed. "Look, I'll stop by tomorrow and make sure she doesn't need any help."

"Aaw, thank you Dashie. Uhm, it isn't too much trouble, is it?"

"Naw, it's fine. Now go pack." Even after her reassurance Rainbow had to practically drag Fluttershy into the bedroom, where she collapsed on the bed while Fluttershy began packing.

"So, you nervous?" Rainbow asked.

"Oh, I'm sure it'll be fine. Twilight says they'll understand."

She was sure she'd kept her tone perfectly calm, but Rainbow's look made it clear she didn't buy it. "Uh huh. But you're nervous."

"I'm terrified." She never could hide anything from Rainbow.

"Don't worry about it. You're like, literally the pony parents dream of having for a daughter in-law."

"Well, we won't really be in-laws."

"Close enough. Anyway, Twilight says they'll be fine with it, so what's the problem?"

'Then why hasn't she told them yet?' Fluttershy wondered to herself 'If they're fine with it am I the problem then?' She wouldn't bring it up with Rainbow, the last thing she wanted was another fight between the two ponies most important to her. Instead she decided to talk about her other concern. "Oh, but what if they don't approve? What if they're upset their daughter is with another mare? They'll be disappointed with her and it'll be all my fault!" Fluttershy realized she had just packed a dozen sets of socks for a week long trip. She usually didn't even wear socks and honestly couldn't remember where they had come from. She began unpacking them.

Rainbow gave her a deadpan stare. "Yeah, I'm sure they'll be so disappointed in their screw up daughter. I mean she's only the Princess of Friendship, so you know no big deal. Plus she's dating the Element of Kindness, who only saved Equestria, like, fifty times. Besides, even if they are somehow disappointed how is that your fault? I mean, it's not like you made her gay."

Fluttershy knew she was right, but it didn't help. "Twilight won't say it but I can tell she's worried too. What if there's some reason that she's not telling me? Maybe they're not as supportive as she wants me to think they are."

Rainbow rolled her eyes. "Of course she's worried. She worries about everything. She'll never stop worrying until everything's done with. That's why you guys should just tell everypony."

Fluttershy had her head in a drawer looking for a brush. She found one, pretended she didn't, and kept looking.

"I know, I know, your decision." Rainbow mumbled something but Fluttershy couldn't make it out.

Once she couldn't realistically expect Rainbow to believe she was still looking for something in the drawer she pulled her head out and put the brush in her saddlebag. She tried to think of anything else she might need but couldn't. Packing really didn't take too long once she stopped grabbing the wrong things. She sat on the bed next to Rainbow. "Twilight has a lot to think about. It's not just about us. As a princess everypony from every walk of life needs to be able to respect her, even the ones who wouldn't approve of us."

Rainbow threw her hooves up in frustration. "And you're okay with that!?"

"Oh, I understand completely." Fluttershy didn't meet her eyes.

Rainbow's eyes narrowed, reading between the lines of Fluttershy's answer. "But are you okay with it?"

Fluttershy suddenly regretted being done packing. "Dash, I've really never been happier." She finally made eye contact. "I love Twilight. And we're getting there. Telling her parents is a big step."

Fluttershy was satisfied that would be the end of it. Rainbow wasn't. "Have you told her you want to go public?"
Fluttershy hesitated before answering. "We've talked about it." Fluttershy broke eye contact again.

"And you actually said 'I want to tell everypony.'" Rainbow sounded doubtful.

Fluttershy gave up. "I don't know what I want." She fell onto her side and curled around a pillow. "Some days I'm just so tired of secrets. I've kept so many secrets for so long, and I'm sick of it. About everything back in Cloudsdale, about liking mares, about Rarity, now about Twilight. Sometimes I wish I just didn't have anymore secrets, and whenever I finally tell somepony it always works out. Well, except Rarity, but now that I have Twilight I wouldn't want to change that anyway. I just don't understand why I keep everything secret."

She looked up to see Rainbow giving her a comforting smile. Fluttershy knew that was exactly what she wanted to hear. "You don't have to! You never did, Shy."

"But other days, I just feel so scared. I just want to hide away from everything, just me and Twilight. And I feel like the rest of the world doesn't need to know, that they'll only try and pull us apart." Tears began rolling down her cheek so she buried her face into the pillow.

She felt Rainbow's hoof on her shoulder. "It's okay Shy. Nopony's gonna tear you two apart, trust me." She wiped away her tears and tried to believe what Rainbow said. "Have you told her about, uhm… Cloudsdale?"

Fluttershy shook her head. "I can't tell her about… that. She might not love me anymore."

"Are you kidding me? That mare's crazy about you, we all know it. Did you know Rarity's already designing wedding dresses?"

Fluttershy blushed. "Oh my, isn't it a little early for that?"

Rainbow chuckled. "Yeah, Rarity's getting ahead of herself, not surprising. But to be honest we kinda all see it coming. Even AJ realizes you two are perfect for each other."

"Really?" Fluttershy smiled. Applejack was friendly with both her and Twilight, and aside from being less affectionate than she was before more or less acted the same as always whenever she was around them individually. When they were all together, however, she was clearly uncomfortable with the couple. She never said a word against them, but she would find excuses to not stick around.

"Yeah! My point is that Twilight will not stop loving you." Rainbow hesitated, clearly not wanting to make Fluttershy cry anymore. After a moment she said "You should at least tell her he's still alive, and what he was like when your mom was around."

Fluttershy thought about it. She could do that much at least. "You're right. I should." Looking at Rainbow she amended her statement. "I will."

"There ya go!" Rainbow patted her on the back, almost knocking Fluttershy off the bed. "And you know, if you ever need any support I'll be there. I could even tell her for you if you don't feel up to it."

"I'll… I'll tell her." Fluttershy said. She loved Rainbow and knew she always meant well, but if she started talking about him there was no telling what she would say. "I think she should really hear it from me."

"Yeah, you're right." Rainbow said. "Just don't worry so much. She'll understand. She's a good pony."

"Yeah." Fluttershy nodded, but she was still full of doubt.


Fluttershy had planned on getting to bed early. They were leaving on the first train in the morning, after all. But once Rainbow left she immediately went back to preparing for her week away, making detailed notes and proportioning out food. The sun had set by the time she was done, and she had expected to drift easily to sleep as soon as she was bundled up in bed, but instead she was just staring at the ceiling.

'Nothing's wrong with me.' She reminded herself. She didn't believe herself. 'What's wrong with me?' Like she didn't know. She was a freak. And Rainbow Dash was wrong, she was ruining Twilight's life now too.

'Did you hear about Fluttershy?'

'No dear, don't talk to that pony.'

'You've always been sorry.'

'No way, she's too nice to be gay.'

'She's not coming back! And it's all your fault.'

'Hey, faggot.'

'Let's go, I don't want to be around her.'

'Nopony will believe you.'

Fluttershy couldn't stop crying. She had a death grip on one of the pillows, which still smelled like Twilight. 'I should just leave her alone. I shouldn't drag her down with me. And if she loves me then that's my fault too.' It had been Fluttershy, after all, who had insisted they spend the night together. On their second date Fluttershy had asked Twilight to stay with her. She was willing to do whatever it took to keep Twilight with her at night. But Twilight was always perfect, respecting Fluttershy's boundaries and sleeping on the couch. But she was selfish, and it wasn't good enough for her to have Twilight asleep in the next room, so in the middle of the night she had snuck down to the living room and climbed on the couch next to Twilight. 'Why am I so needy?' They spent most nights together now. She let Twilight fall further every night just so somepony would hold her. She was weak. Weak and needy. She knew that she shouldn't go, shouldn't make Twilight tell her parents she had a marefriend. But she knew she would. She would, because she was weak.

She curled into a ball around the pillow and threw her blanket over her head. She tried to think about anything else. She listened to the sound of the wind outside, blowing through the tree branches. She loved all the sounds of nature, and was calmed by rustling leaves. Until she heard a thunk. 'Was that a hoofstep?' She was being ridiculous, of course it wasn't. She heard it again, and again. She was a little filly, crying into her pillow, just hoping the sound would stop, that nothing would come get her. She was sure she was hearing hoofsteps now, it was the only thing she could hear. They stopped by the bed and she could smell the alcohol already, hear his breathing. 'Momma, save me.'

Fluttershy screamed. She threw the blankets off her and looked around wildly. She was alone. She was soaked with sweat and her heart felt like it was going to break through her chest, and every shadow reminded her of him. She got out of bed. Without thinking she grabbed her saddlebag and descended the stairs. She stopped only to kiss Angel while he slept, then stepped out into the cold. Locking the door behind her she began walking.

At first she didn't think of anything. She hadn't even made the decision to actually leave the house, it was an automatic response. But as she walked through the town in the dead of night she knew she was being foalish. She should be home in bed. Glancing at the clock tower on the way by she saw it was almost midnight. Their train left in six hours, and the smart thing to do would be to turn around and go back to bed. She kept walking. She didn't didn't stop once all the way to Twilight's castle.

She quietly made her way to Twilight's room. She had expected her to be asleep but she wasn't even in her bedroom. Poking her head into the adjoining room she found Twilight in her study facing away from her, working her way through a big stack of papers.

"Uhm, hi-"

"Aah!" Twilight jumped. Whipping around she sighed in relief. "Oh, hi Shy. You startled me." She got up and walked over to Fluttershy, giving her a smile and a kiss. "I didn't think I'd see you until the morning."

The tightness in her chest that Fluttershy had felt all night finally went away. "Sorry, I know it's late, but I guess I'm a little nervous. Uhm, do you mind if I stay with you tonight?"

"Of course not! And there's nothing to be nervous about Shy, really. I do have a lot of paperwork that I need to finish first though. You should head to bed and I'll join you in a bit."

"Oh, okay. Try not to be too long. Big day tomorrow."

"Yeah, I'll try. Love you Shy, goodnight."

"Good night. Love you, Twily."

Fluttershy lied down on the bed. She grabbed one of Twilight's stuffed animals and tried to sleep. She didn't feel as bad with Twilight in the next room, but she still lied awake.

A vibration came from the table. "Twily, Sunset wrote you."

"At this hour? Well, it is winter break there so I guess I'm not surprised she's up. Could you read me what it says?" Twilight called from the other room.

Opening the book Fluttershy read the passage out loud. "She said 'Just got back from Pinkie's party kicking off winter break. Don't know how that girl has time to plan a party and still study for her mid terms.'"

"No matter which world, Pinkie's still Pinkie." Twilight said. Fluttershy could tell she was laughing even though she was a room away. "I really want to get to sleep before we leave though, so since it's not urgent I'll just write to her later."

Fluttershy and Sunset had never 'talked'. They had occasionally exchanged greetings and general well wishes, but always through Twilight. The idea of talking to somepony a whole world away seemed a little intimidating to the shy pegasus. But she also desperately wanted to avoid going to bed alone, and couldn't bother Twilight while she worked. "Uhm, do you think it'd be okay if I wrote back? I… I'm still too excited to sleep."

"I think the two of you talking would be a great idea! Twilight's happiness at bringing her friends together was obvious in her voice. "Just try not to stay up too late."

Fluttershy stared at the page wondering what to say. 'If I wait too long she'll just go to sleep. I should start with introducing myself, at least.'

'Hello, Sunset. This is Fluttershy, Twilight's busy right now. But I'd like to talk, if you wanted.'

Fluttershy stared at the words. She had expected something magic to happen, like the letters to flash while it sent the message. She wondered if it only worked for unicorns. Or alicorns, or former unicorns. Then as she stared letters started appearing, as if somepony invisible were writing them.

'Hi Fluttershy. Nice to finally get a chance to talk with you. Twilight told me all about you of course.'

Fluttershy instinctively started to hide in her hair. She always panicked when talking to somepony new and liked to let her friends handle most of the conversation. When she had to talk to other ponies by herself she always thought of what to say when it was too late to say it, and she could always feel the other ponies watching her, wondering why she wasn't talking. Except now she couldn't. She realized how perfect this situation was for her. Sunset couldn't see her, she couldn't hear her mumble, or trip over words. She could take her time thinking of how to reply without the fear of being judged.

'You know, on our first date, Twilight told me you were the one who convinced her to come out to everypony, including me. If it wasn't for you I don't think we ever would have gotten together. I've never had a chance to thank you, I could probably never thank you enough. Twilight is the best thing that ever happened to me.'

As Fluttershy watched the page she wondered if Sunset did the same thing, think of her reply before sending it. Fluttershy smiled, thinking of how wonderful this journal was. This time as words came she felt excitement. She couldn't believe she actually felt excited to continue a conversation with somepony she didn't know.

'Hey, you're making me blush over here. Really though, it wasn't a big deal. You two would have figured it out eventually. Besides, I wanted to help her. She's actually the best thing that ever happened to me too, you know.'

'What do you mean?'

'Well, what did she tell you about me the first time she went through the mirror?'

'She told me you were just alone, and only needed a helping hand to show you how to be friends.'

'That definitely sounds like what she'd say. But I bet she didn't tell you that the 'helping hand' was her lifting me out of a crater and forgiving me after I tried to kill her and her friends, not mention take over Equestria.'

Fluttershy was glad Sunset couldn't see her reaction. She had to take a moment to remind herself that Twilight had forgiven her and that they were friends now. 'No, she didn't tell me all that.'

'She probably just didn't want to worry all of you. Well, anyway, here's what really happened...'

Sunset explained everything that happened on Twilight's first trip through the mirror. Fluttershy was reminded of exactly why she loved Twilight so much, and while she was worried she wouldn't be able to forgive Sunset for trying to kill Twilight, she found she actually had a lot more respect for her for managing to turn her life around. Once the story was finished they talked about other things. About Twilight, and telling her parents tomorrow. About Sunset's holiday plans with her friends, and the differences between Hearth's Warming and all the different holidays the humans celebrated. They even talked a little about the other Fluttershy, which still was really weird to her. They talked for hours, and by the time Twilight came into the bedroom Fluttershy was gently snoring into the book.