"Alex, come on! We're gonna be late for the flight!"

"I'm coming!"

Man. Crazy couple of weeks. Gray, Dana and I were all setting up to get moving to the coast. We were gonna stay a few days and look around different neighborhoods near the school we wanted to go to, come back to get packin' for real, and go back before the semester starts. It was a nice little community college that offered some pretty good courses, and a University nearby in case we wanted to finish up. Beautiful little town near the beach, beautiful weather.

A beautiful new start.

I was actually happy to get going. I felt sick of myself after wallowing in my own pity after the girls left...

God, I was a wreck. I ignored Gray and Dana, stared at old photos, locked myself in my room, and didn't leave for a few days. Little sleep, little food consumption. Hell, I removed that pendant Celestia gave me because it felt like it was burning a gaping hole through my chest. After running out of things to sob over, I grabbed for the pendant, feeling a small crest on its backside. The crest was almost in the form of Shy's cutie mark, which confused me. From the crevice was a yellow flame, almost like Spike had sent it, except, ya know. Not the same color.

Out popped a scroll, bearing the royal seal. I opened it up, trying to read it through tears.

Alex,

I hope that you bear these gifts with pride, and not guilt. You should be proud; this was not my idea. Twilight and her friends approached me with the idea while you were in critical condition. At first, I denied the idea, thinking it too dangerous for others to hold this power. They reluctantly understood and agreed with what I had said, but seeing you fight for your life changed something in me, it convinced me that you were a very powerful individual, with a very powerful bond of friendship. That is also why I split it from six elements to you, and gave the three of you your own elements. I know that I can trust you and your friends that, through the magic of friendship, you will always remain a triumphant force we can all count on.

Please don't grieve over us, Alex. I'm sorry to say that this will be the last time I can contact you, not only because it's safer this way, but also because the magic needed to send letters interdimensionally requires an extreme amount of magical strength. We all miss the four of you, and wish you the best in your future endeavors. You are a very special individual, Alex. And I have very high hopes for you, as does Fluttershy in particular.

If you're wondering about her, she's coping well. Her friends have been with her to help her to get better, and she seems happy, now. I only hope you have been recovering just as well, but Fluttershy puts my mind at ease, assuring me that you are doing fine, and have learned a lot through her and her friends.

Be well, Alex. And I wish you and your friends nothing but success for your future.

Sincerely,

Princess Celestia, Royal Canterlot Chamber.

PS: Fluttershy sends her love.

"I..." Was all I stammered. Oh, God. It's like a lightbulb clicked over my head, and I sat back, skimming over the letter. I felt like such a fool! Sitting back against my bed, I couldn't help but grin like one. Because that's exactly what I was! I let out a hearty laugh, and jumped to my feet, grabbing the pendant and reaching for my doorknob. "Mom!" I yelled, running into the kitchen, where she and Christine were talking. Both of them looked at me in utter surprise.

"Oh! Christine, when did you get here?" I asked, bouncing on the balls of my feet.

"I've been here for a few hours, Alex." She said cautiously, eyeing me in slight disbelief. "How are you...Holding up? I know it's been a rough few days."

"I'm...Well, I'm good." I replied honestly. Clever as always, my mother had to make sure I wasn't lying to them- or myself, for that matter.

"Alex, it's alright. You can tell us." She said softly.

"No, really! Okay, well, it still sucks, but, look!"

I showed them the letter I'd received, and they were just as stoked as I am. "Mom, call Gray and Dana, get 'em over here!" I called, running back to my room.

"What? Alex, why?!" She shouted from down the hall. I popped my head out of my room to reply.

"Because! I need to get the hell out of here. I wanna take them out, get a plan!"

"Plan?" She inquired, crossing her arms.

"Yes, mother, a plan! I'm not gonna live at home all my life. It's time I moved on, went to school. The three of us all planned on stickin' together, and this could be how! Now get 'em on the phone!" I laughed, rushing for the bathroom.

"Well, why can't you?" My mom replied, with light laughter of her own.

"'cos I gotta shower, duh! Sleep and food wasn't the only thing I was short on." I chuckled.

"You've got quite the boy, June." I heard Christine tell mom.

"That I do, Chris. And I'm proud of him." She replied. Their voices trailed off to the kitchen, and I backed away from the door. After I started the water, I observed myself in the mirror. My hair was grungey and dirty, heavy bags were under my eyes, but I was still smiling. Smiling like a damn idiot, and tightly grasping the grey Venetian chain tightly. Looking down at it, I ran a thumb across the crest on the back, and got ready to plan my future.

"Well aren't you a sight for sore eyes!" Dana beamed when I got out of the bathroom, using the balls of my fingers to rub against my damp hair and get the rest of the water out.

"I could say the same about you." I replied with a wink.

"Christ, you sure know how to keep a girl waitin'." Gray snarked, giving me a quick jab to the arm. "You keep worryin' us like that, I'm gonna have to beat some sense into you!" He joked. I laughed with him, and ushered them into my dirty, dark room.

"Oh, god. Dana, open the window, let some fresh air in." Gray said, using his shirt to cover his nose.

"Oh, piss off, it's only been a few days." I sighed, throwing a shirt on.

"So, what's the plan?" Dana asked after she had opened the window and the blinds.

"This," I told them, opening my laptop. A few clicks into my saved pages, and I showed them the website for a community college near the coast, a few hours out from here.

"Whoa. Is that the school we were lookin' at when James interrupted us that night?" Dana asked, playfully pushing me out of the way to get a better look.

"Yep. Sure is." I said, pointing at a saved bookmark at the top of the screen. She looked at me for a second, and clicked it. It opened up to a very nice, very cheap area of detached condominiums. "They have two rooms, two baths and a little loft.." I began, explaining the specs of the area, and it's short distance from campus. We were there for a few more minutes, discussing some other things and how they were so surprised that I took the time to think of all of this. Eventually, I showed them the letter.

"Huh. Shoulda figured Twi had something to do with this." Dana said with a small smile, sighing and grabbing at her pale blue byzantine chain.

"Yeah. I had a hunch, but didn't really feel the need to talk about it." Gray said, lacing his fingers behind his head and leaning back, until he was laying all the way down on my couch.

"So?" I asked aloud. A few moments of confused silence, and some funny looks passed, until Dana replied.

"So...What?" She inquired, confused as Gray.

"So? How does this sound? I mean, it's a basic plan, yeah, and I still need to do more research, look at other neighborhoods, and-"

"Whoa, calm down there, Pinkie mark 2." Gray interjected, eliciting a chuckle from Dana and I.

"Alex, it sounds great. And we appreciate the thought of you doing this all on your own, but how about we all check it out together." Dana commented, smirking at me.

"Right, right," I sighed, standing up. "C'mon, let's go before it gets too late." I said, grabbing my keys and one of my flannel shirts.

"Where're we goin'?" Gray asked, sitting upright.

"Out, man. Somewhere. Do somethin'. I'm tired of staying in this room, let's get somethin' to eat?" I suggested. Dana and Gray shrugged, not able to find any alternative, and we headed out the door, after saying goodbye to my mother, of course.

So, the plans we made that night landed us here. About ready to take off, start the rest of our lives. And I couldn't think of any other way I'd rather do it, than to be at the sides of two of the most amazing friends I could ever even hope for.

"Alex, you're gonna be late." Mom said, walking into my room.

"One sec, mom," I replied, rubbing some more healing ointment on my wrists and hands.

"Alex, you've had those for nearly a week." She said with a chuckle.

"Yeah, yeah. Can't be too careful, though." I retorted, looking at my new tattoos.

I know it was a really dumb decision, and I'd probably get a lotta hell for it, but I thought of a nice, permanent way to dedicate my feelings for Fluttershy. On my left wrist, was an almost tribal looking butterfly design- I know, my tool-ometer went off the charts, too. But, hey. They were still colored pale lavender and blue, so bite me. And thankfully, it almost looked like a couple of wings smashed together, so it wasn't too girly. The top of the butterfly broke off into a wavey, flowing branch-like design that led to my left ring finger. Ya know, the whole reason we get rings there, because they lead to the heart, yadda yadda. Under the butterfly was written, "Fluttershy" in rather beautiful, flowing lettering.

On my other wrist were two tattered, torn, and pale yellow feathers crossed in an X, right on the biggest scar. The feathers also broke off into a waving formation, wrapping around the top of my forearm, to my wrist just under the palm, and back up to the top of my hand, before intertwining and forming a treble clef. Under the feathers, "Faith" was written.

This one was more than just a way to remember Shy. The feathers, the cross, was a promise to myself. A promise that I wouldn't hurt myself anymore. The clef, because of my music- I've been playing Nick's guitar a lot, lately. And Faith because, well. That was her name here, but also the literal meaning. I have faith in myself, and I'm glad I do.

Turning around to look at my mom, I sighed, hefting my backpack up on my shoulder. "All set?" She asked, smiling brightly at me. I nodded, using a finger to move my shades from the top of my head, to my nose and over my eyes.

"All set." I confirmed with a smile of my own. She laughed lightly, and led me outside to the car, where Gray was struggling to get all of our luggage into the trunk of my mom's car. I rolled my eyes, and helped him fit everything in.

The drive to the airport was pretty quiet, with my mom just asking questions every few minutes as to how excited we were, if we were gonna be alright on our own, and a bunch of other motherly concerns. She made inquiries if Dana and Gray's folks were as torn up about us growin' up, and a bunch of other emotional crap that I didn't necessarily respond to.

We arrived at the airport with a few minutes to spare, but we still rushed to get inside. Just as I was about to go up to the security checkpoints, my mom stopped us.

"Hold on! Get together for a picture!" She said, struggling to find the proper way to get her camera on her phone to work. I helped her right quick, and allowed her to take a quick snapshot of the three of us. Or, rather, a quick four pictures. She finally pulled all of us into a hug. "I'm so proud of you three." She told us.

"Thanks, mom!" We all replied in unison, getting quick kisses on the cheek, before rushing up to the checkpoint and rushing through. We nearly missed our seats on the flight, as it had landed earlier than anticipated. Finally able to take our seats, I looked out the window of the plane, out onto the tarmac.

"You gonna be okay?" Gray asked me with a chuckle.

"Fine. Why?" I asked with a quirked brow.

"I just know you've never flown before." He commented, crossing his arms and relaxing in his seat.

"Okay, it's a little weird, I'll admit," I began, taking a deep breath. "I've never flown, but I'm sure I'll be comfortable-" I barely got to finish my sentence, before the plane began to back out, and I jumped in my seat. Grayson let out a quick chortle, and I glared in his direction.

"Yeah, Alex. You're the poster child of comfort." Dana quipped from her seat.

"Shush, you." I scoffed, sighing again. I looked back out the window, but with a smile this time. "This is it, guys." I said quietly. "This is the start of the rest of our lives."

"Isn't it great?" Dana sighed in content.

"A bit freaky, more like." Gray muttered with a smirk.

"Both, really," I said with a slight laugh. I heard the stewardess talk over the intercom, and glanced over as the other ones did their little routine, but my mind was elsewhere. It was racing. I closed my eyes, and took a moment to think of the past few months.

Meeting the girls.

Taking them into my home.

Trusting them with my burdens.

My first kiss.

My first love.

And my first heartbreak.

I opened my eyes again, and was so lost in my own mind, I didn't even notice we were seconds away from taking to the skies. I watched as the ground soon began to become further from us, and I smiled again. Fluttershy would be proud. I just know she would. And, as I sat there, looking out the window and out into the horizon, I grasped my pendant, feeling the engraving of Shy's cutie mark. And I began to think that maybe, just maybe, I could see her one more time, and show her the new person I am, and feel her warm skin, her soft hair, and her words as she told me how much she loved me.

I began to feel at peace, and I just knew everything would be alright. And it put me at ease knowing that somewhere, somehow, she was thinking of me as much as I thought of her.