Fluttershy and Me: The Original

by BioBoy619

Chapters

• Act 1: A New Kind of Love
• Act 2: The Power of Love
• Act 3: The Element of Love
• The End

Act 1: A New Kind of Love

It would be unfair of me to say my life was nothing but misery.  I lived a normal lifestyle.  I had family and friends who cared for me, so I wasn’t lonely.  I went to an average school where nothing unusual ever happened, but hell I was pretty much guaranteed to get at least one laugh a day at school on account of my friends and their ridiculous ways.  When school ended, I would usually just go home and play video games or listen to music for the rest of the day, unless I had something like musical rehearsal after school.  If I wasn’t doing any of those things, I might have been watching My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic.  I was a closet brony, so no one knew about my love for the show.  I didn’t have a job to worry about, but I was looking for one.  But this brings me to why my life was as miserable as it was.

You could probably say that I had an epiphany.  I don’t know why I hadn’t realized it sooner in life, but it seemed like life was nothing but work.  You are born into the world and pretty much from that moment forward, you are working.  You work to mature yourself, you work in school, and you work at your job after graduation.  Work.  That’s it.  That’s all it has ever really been.  I don’t care if I’m being bias for saying that.  Coming to that realization had changed me drastically, driving my life into the “same shit, different day” scenario.  I wasn’t depressed, like I said, but my life just felt lacking, and there was really nothing I could do about it.  But that didn’t mean someone else couldn’t do anything about it.

It was a normal Friday, which was great.  Fridays are like a blessing in disguise.  Fridays mean that the weekend has finally arrived.  But this was the Friday that would change my life forever.  Walking home from school took me about ten to fifteen minutes, which I was fine with.  Sometimes if my backpack was light enough, I would even parkour my way home.  If you’re like me and are heavily influenced by the Assassin's Creed franchise, you want to learn, or already know, parkour.  I wasn’t always so physically well built, so I trained myself in both parkour and fighting, and of course got myself more fit to use these skills more effectively.  However, this brings about a bit of irony.  My favorite game series are Assassin's Creed, Halo, and Dead Space, in that order.  I’m not a violent person, but my love for violent games and the fact that I have the physical abilities that I do seems weird for a brony (maybe).  The real irony is that my favorite pony is Fluttershy.  She is so innocent and adorable.  I was like her opposite, but then again so is pretty much every other pony on the show.  But I digress. This Friday wasn’t a parkour day.  I just wanted to walk home.

When I finally reached my block and turned the corner, something big caught my eye.  When I say big, I mean that literally.  A dumpster had been placed outside one of the houses on my block.  The only reason I had been surprised was because it hadn’t been there this morning and that it really just stuck out like a sore thumb.  I walked passed, thinking nothing of it, but it wouldn’t leave my mind.  Stepping into my house, I placed my bag on the bench in the mudroom, took out my headphones (I had been listening to my iPod), and proceeded to the basement where my Xbox was waiting for me.  I tried to drown out the thought of that dumpster with some Dead Space 3.  But this didn’t help, so I shut off the console and proceeded to my laptop to listen to some music.  This proved to be much more effective.  

Fridays meant two other things as well.  Pizza and hanging out with my best friend at night.  These were two Friday practices that I always followed unless something came up that interfered with my normal plans.  When my mother finally arrived home, I knew it was pizza time.  She walked in and I thanked her for the pizza, as usual.

“I’ll be out all night, but if you guys want to come back here, that’s fine,” she said.

I nodded my head and took my two slices into the basement, where I had been listening to some Breaking Benjamin.  

After finishing my pizza, I put my plate in the dish washer, went to the bathroom, and left for my friend’s house.  But it just so happened I would once again have to pass that damn dumpster.  I was going to actually parkour my way to my friend’s house, but only when I got to the long stretch that I would have to walk to get there.  I walked down my block passing the dumpster.  I stopped for a second to scan it over.  Nothing seemed strange about it.  I just shook my head and continued walking.  But just as I started walking, I heard a very distinct whining.  I stopped and turned my head to see if there was someone walking a dog close by.  I couldn’t seem to find anyone.  I stared at the dumpster for a second, shrugged, and continued on.  Then I heard it again.  Now I was getting a little peeved.  What the hell was that noise, and where was it coming from?  My attention was drawn once again to the dumpster.  I decided to have a look inside.

As I looked in on the more open side of the dumpster, all I could see were old, broken pieces of furniture, some crappy knick-knacks, nothing out of the ordinary.  I was so confused.  But then I saw it.  It was colored cream yellow.  It seemed to have pink hair too.  I think I knew what it was, but I wouldn’t allow myself to fully realize it.  That quickly changed after I heard that whining once again.  That could only be the whining of my favorite pony.  Fluttershy.

I couldn’t believe my eyes.  Lying beneath broken down furniture in a dumpster was my favorite pony.  Something was a little off though.  She seemed younger than in the show, maybe about as old as she was in episode 23.  I couldn’t tell if she had her cutie mark, but that wasn’t important at the moment.  I didn’t know what to do.  Let me just say though that she was absolutely adorable.  I usually would give a little squeal when watching her in the show if she did something cute, but in reality, it was so heartwarming.  I couldn’t really make out if she was a cartoon or actually 3D.  But if I wanted to find out, I had to get her out of there.  I needed to start somewhere.

“Hey there.”

As soon as I said that, her head shot up and her eyes beamed open.  As quickly as her head went up, it went back down.  She was shaking, either from the cold or from seeing me.

“P-Please, don’t hurt me,” she said, sounding scared half to death.  I couldn’t help but get teary eyed after hearing her speak.  I was a little surprised as well to actually hear her speak so readily like that.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to hurt you,” I said, trying to be as reassuring as possible.  She looked up at me, and we locked eyes.  We probably stayed that way for about 30 seconds.  I was the one to break the silence.

“Hey, maybe we should get you inside somewhere.  It’s getting late, and it’s supposed to get really cold tonight.  C’mon, let’s get you out of there.”

I held out my hand and she jerked backwards.  I could tell she was afraid.  You would have to be blind to not be able to.

“Please, I just want to help you.  I won’t hurt you, I promise.”  She was shaking a little less now, and she started moving forward.  She lifted her hoof, slowly inching it towards me.  When she finally placed her hoof in my hand, I could feel how cold she was.  I pulled her out from under the furnishings.  She appeared to be 3D as I kind of expected.  I was actually thinking she might look like the model of herself that people can use in Gmod or Source Filmmaker videos.  But that didn’t matter.  She was beautiful.  I cleaned out some of the dirt in her hair.  I think I actually saw her smile, but she hid it so well that I wasn’t completely sure.

As the wind blew on by and rustled her coat, she shivered.  I knew she must have been cold from being out there for so long.  Well, actually, I had no idea how long she was out there.  I would have to wait and ask her when we got home.  I removed my sweatshirt and wrapped her up, praying that no eyes were watching me.  She got comfortable and rested her chin on my arm.  I felt a warmth flow through my body that I don’t think I had ever felt before in my entire life.  I stood there for a moment to smile.  Soon after that, I began to walk back home, wondering what I had just gotten myself into.

As I entered my home with the little Fluttershy, I felt a wave of heat hit my body.  This was probably because of how cold I had been after removing my sweatshirt to cover Fluttershy.  I was relieved to know my mother wasn’t home.  This would be hard to explain to her.  I came to the conclusion to just not tell her at all and to keep this a secret, for now at least.

As I unwrapped Fluttershy and set her on the floor, she took in her new surroundings.  She seemed confused, but I couldn’t blame her.  She had no idea where she was.  I could see she had a look of concern on her face.  I told her to follow me into the basement.  The windows on the main floor of my house were a bit revealing, and I didn’t want her to be seen.  

I started for the basement door, but realized she wasn’t following.  I turned around to see her sitting on the floor, her head down, and her face in tears.  I stared for a moment, but I quickly came to my senses.  She was afraid.  Truly afraid.  She didn’t know where she was, she didn’t know who I was, hell I found her in a dumpster.  How had she gotten here, WHY was she here?  Nothing I could think of made sense.  I knelt down beside her, brushing her hair with my hand.  She looked up at me, her eyes soaked with tears.

“There, there, it’s alright.  You’re safe here.  I promised I wouldn’t hurt you, and I intend to keep that promise.  I won’t let anything or anyone hurt you.  You can trust me.”  My words definitely comforted her.  She stopped crying and leaned her head onto my chest.  I brushed her hair with my hand once again.

She was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.  Her innocence was pure, and she was downright adorable.  She looked at me with her tear filled eyes.  

“Um, if it’s not too much trouble to ask, could you carry me?  I feel too weak to move,” she said.  I had no reason to doubt her.

“It’s no trouble at all.”  I almost said her name at the end of my statement, but I quickly stopped myself.  Why?  Well, if I had said her name, that would seem a little suspicious.  I knew who she was, but I couldn’t let her know that, it wouldn’t make sense to her.  

I brought her into the basement.  On the couch was a blanket I rarely used, mostly because I always wore my sweatshirt in the house.  I always had the hood up too, unless my mom asked me to take it off.  I set Fluttershy on the couch and wrapped her in the blanket.  She got comfortable on the couch, resting her head on one of the pillows.  I once again found myself staring at her.  I think she was getting a little embarrassed by this, so I stopped.  I figured now would be as good a time as any to start asking questions, at least ones that she could answer.

“So, what’s your name?” I asked, even though I of course knew her name.  Like I said before, I couldn’t just say her name like I had it memorized.  

“I-I’m Flutter…” she started, her voice dying down as she was finishing her name.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that.  Just speak a bit louder, there’s no need to be afraid.  You can trust me.  My name’s Matthew, most people call me Matt.”

She stared at the floor for a second before speaking again.

“I’m Fluttershy,” she said.  I swear to you I felt like I could squeal at the top of my lungs at that moment.  My brony emotions were kicking in, but now was not the time.

I smiled.  “Nice to meet you Fluttershy.  I know that all of this may seem sudden to you, but like I said, you can trust me.”  This was one of the greatest moments in my life.  You may think that that sounds a little over dramatic, that this moment is a little too serious or maybe sad for it to be great at all, but trust me when I say this was a moment I would never forget.  She stared around the room, scanning the various objects that surrounded her.  She seemed interested in my Bionicles.  Yes, I have those, and I will never get rid of them.  While she didn’t notice, I took a moment to scan her over (not in a creepy way).  She seemed to be a little younger than me.  I had initially thought that she was as old as she was in episode 23, but I think she was about three years younger than me.  I was 17 at that time, so I figured she was about 14.  I had to ask her some questions.  Maybe she could shed some light on the situation.

“Do you know how you got here Fluttershy?”  She shook her head in response.  I sighed.  “Well, if you don’t mind me asking, how old are you?”  She thought for a moment, I think.  Maybe she was contemplating whether or not to tell me.  

“I’m 14 years old, I think.  I’m sorry, but I can’t seem to remember much.  All I can remember for sure is my friend named Rainbow Dash.”  Rainbow Dash.  My number two pony.  Next to Fluttershy, Dash was my favorite pony.

I found it odd that Fluttershy could only remember Rainbow Dash’s name.  Seeing as though that she thought she was 14 years old, I stuck with that, seeing as though that that was how old I had believed she was.  I continued by asking if she remembered where she was from.  She couldn’t answer that either.  I of course knew.  Equestria, a world I could only dream to live in.  I tried thinking of some other questions.  When I found her, my mind was swimming with questions.  Now that I had the chance to ask her, I couldn’t think of any.  I was so frustrated.

I ran my fingers over my eyes, which meant I was getting tired.  It was only 9:30 at that point, so I had some time to kill.  I was caught off guard when Fluttershy actually asked me a question.

“What are you?” she asked with a hint of concern in her voice.  I looked at her for a moment with a confused look on my face.

I removed my hood and simply told her, “I’m a human male and I’m 17 years old.  I’m guessing you’re a… horse?”  I felt so dumb asking her questions when I knew the answers already.  

“Pony,” she corrected, “a Pegasus to be more precise.  Pegasus ponies have wings, but I’m a terrible flyer,” she responded.  I sort of figured she wasn’t a great flyer, but I was surprised to see that she knew it too.  

“Do all humans look like you?” she asked.  I chuckled a bit when she asked this.

“No not exactly the same.  We have similar features, like hands, feet, a face, and some other stuff.  People just look different from each other.  You would have to search for quite a long time to find someone who looked exactly like me.  Males have unique features that females don’t have, and vice versa.  Does that all make sense?”

She nodded.  “What kind of features?  What is it that you have that a female doesn’t?” she asked.  I wore what you might call a confused mixed with dumbfounded look on my face, letting out another chuckle shortly after.

“Um… well, there’s uh… how about I tell you another time?”  I felt a little uncomfortable discussing this with her.  She seemed to understand though, simply nodding her head in response.

By the time the clock struck 11:00, I had become so attached to Fluttershy, and I think the same could be said of her.  I told her as much about me as I could at the time, but she couldn’t remember much else other than what she had told me.  But I was fine with that.  As I started to yawn, she did the same.  I think yawning is something in my family that is just contagious.  My eyes began to dose off, but before they completely closed, Fluttershy nestled herself next to me, finding comfort from my body heat.  She looked up at me and smiled.  I smiled back.  I had already turned off the light in the room, and I didn’t really need to worry about my mom finding out about Fluttershy, she never really came down into the basement.  I hit the recline button on the side of the couch, which surprised Fluttershy a bit, but I quickly calmed her down.  Shortly after that, we dosed off and began to sleep. It was just the two of us. It was just Fluttershy and me.

I awoke on the basement couch, the light from the sun piercing through the curtains that covered the small windows.  In my head, I was asking myself if it was all a dream.  I looked down to find Fluttershy still with me.  She was wrapped in the blanket, lying under my arm with her head on my lap.  I smiled and took in a deep breath.  I think my exhale was a little loud, because shortly after she woke up.  She looked around, yawned, then looked to me and smiled.

“Good morning,” she said to me, brushing her eyes with her hooves.

“Good morning Fluttershy, sleep well?” I asked her.  She nodded.

“I had the most wonderful dream, and you were in it,” she said.  I was actually a little surprised by this.  We had only met last night, but for some reason I was in her dreams.  

“What was the dream about?” I asked her.  As she was about to speak, a confused look adorned her face.  I responded with a confused look on my face.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I can’t seem to remember.  I know you were there though.  I think I was flying perfectly, and then you appeared, but you had wings too.  We just flew together, I think.  I’m sorry.”

“No need to apologize.  I can barely ever remember my dreams, no matter how hard I try sometimes.”  She perked up after I said that.

I was so happy that it was Saturday.  I wouldn’t have to worry about anything for the whole day, unless of course my mom dropped some sort of work on my lap.  I started to get up from the couch, pushing the recliner inward.  Fluttershy got up and started following me, but I quickly stopped her.

“Hey, can you just wait down here for a bit?  I need to go see if my mother is home.  Hopefully she’ll be out and you can come upstairs.   If she’s here, I’ll come back down to tell you.”  She nodded, which told me she understood.

I proceeded upstairs.  I didn’t hear the TV in the kitchen, so that was a good sign.  I went into the kitchen anyway to get some food.  On the counter I saw a note left from my mom saying that she would be out for a while, probably until one.  It was 10:30 when I read the note, so I had a lot of time.  I yelled downstairs to Fluttershy.

“Hey Fluttershy, you can come up.  My mom’s gonna be out for a while so you’ll be fine.”

“Alright,” she responded.  Even though there was a rug floor in the basement, I could distinctly make out her hoof steps.  They were soft, but pretty damn audible.  She came up to the kitchen where I had been getting out some cereal for breakfast.  She looked at the box of food with a look of confusion.

“What’s that stuff?  Is it food?  If it’s not too much to ask, do you think I could have some?” she asked.  I let out a small chuckle.

“Fluttershy, you gotta stop worrying if something might be too much trouble to ask for.  You can have anything to eat that you want,” I said to her, hoping I said that as politely as I could.  I didn’t want to make it sound like her worrying about asking for stuff was annoying.  I walked over to her with the box of cereal (for those of you wondering, it was Cinnamon Toast Crunch) with a bowl.  I set the bowl down, but before I actually poured the cereal in, I noticed that the box had stated to not feed this stuff to animals.  Thank God I caught that notice.

“Um, well actually, this you can’t eat.  It’s not because I don’t want to give it to you, it’s just that the box says to not feed to animals.  I don’t want you getting sick,” I told her.  

“Oh, that’s ok.  But, um, do you have anything else to eat?”

I thought for a moment.  I figured if this stuff wasn’t good, waffles wouldn’t fair to well either.  Then I remembered we had pancakes as well.  I never saw a warning to not feed pancakes to animals on the packaging of the pancake mix or anything like that, so I figured they would be fine.

“We’ve got some pancakes in the freezer.  Hold on, I’ll get some for you.”  She perked up after I told her that.  I got out the pancakes and a plate to put them on.  I put four pancakes on the plate and put it in the microwave.  When they were done, I gave them to her.  She looked at them for a moment with a quizzical look.  I told her they would be fine.  I guess she had no reason to doubt me, so she took a bite out of one.  She smiled, which I took as a sign of approval.  In turn, I smiled.

When she was done with her pancakes, and I with my cereal, I decided to give her a tour of the house.  I showed her around the main floor, which included the kitchen, a TV room, dining room, and living room.  She liked all the nice furniture and the decorative furnishings that adorned the house.  I took her upstairs, telling her where my mother and sisters rooms were.  My sister was at college, so I didn’t have to worry about her.  I told Fluttershy to stay out of their rooms unless I was with her.

Then, we proceeded to my room.  You could practically call my room a monument to Assassin's Creed, because my room was stocked with at least one thing that represented each game.  I had a figure of each of the assassin’s from each game (yes that means three Ezio figures), posters for both Assassin's Creed 3 and Revelations, the Colonial America Flag with the Assassin’s Crest in the center of the thirteen stars, and to top it all off, a handmade tomahawk replica, just like the one Connor uses in AC3 (I could indeed kill someone with it if I chose to).  Hell, I even had two hidden blade replicas as well. The left one was able to be turned into a knife as well, just like Connor.  Hey, I told you Assassin's Creed was my favorite game franchise.  Along with that stuff, I had an Avengers poster (Marvel’s Avengers), a Master Chief figure, an Isaac Clarke figure from Dead Space 3, and a few of my favorite Bionicle sets.  I only wish I had a TV in my room, but my mom never allowed it.  Ok, now I feel like I’m going into too much detail about my room.  Back to Fluttershy.

She gazed upon all the objects and posters that adorned my room.  She seemed to actually like a lot of the things, especially the Colonial flag.  She told me how she loved the colors and the Assassin’s Crest in the center.  I honestly figured she would be a little bit taken back by all the things I had in my room, but she seemed to like most of it.  She at one point just flat out asked me what Assassin's Creed was.

“It’s a video game franchise, my favorite in fact.  Video games are like, well, how to put it?  Well, I’ll just tell you that video games are awesome, most of the time anyway.  Assassin's Creed is one of the best.  It’s a little violent though, or rather, REALLY violent.  I could show you sometime, if you’d want to see it.”  She nodded and smiled in response.  I smiled back.  Then, she actually fluttered up onto my bed and got comfortable on it.

“Hey, can we sleep here from now on?” she asked me.  I chuckled when she asked me that.

“Sure, whatever you want, we just can’t let my mom see you.”

“Why not?” she asked me.

“Well, she might not be able to understand how a 14 year old pony wound up in my world and is sleeping with me in my bed.  It’d be best if you stayed out of her sight.  If she winds up seeing you though, pretend to be a toy or something, just don’t move.  Play dead if you want, just don’t let her know you’re real and alive.”  She seemed to understand and nodded her head in response.

“Um, do you have someplace where I could maybe take a bath? I feel really dirty,” she told me.  I don’t know why I didn’t think about that earlier.  I found her in a dumpster, so of course she was dirty.  I told her I would give her a bath, or rather a shower.  My bathtub was really shitty at actually being used as a bathtub, so it was just always used as a shower.  I got her cleaned up and everything, no matter how long it took to clean out her hair.  As I was drying her off, she looked into my eyes for a moment, and soon after, she was hugging me.  I was a little surprised at first, but I of course returned the hug.  And that was the moment that we officially started our relationship.

The rest of Saturday passed by really quickly.  Sunday was more or less the same thing, except I had a bit of homework to do.  Fluttershy actually did a great job helping me complete it all.  It was a writing assignment, but my mind was just dead while I was writing it.  She provided me with so many great ideas.  Aside from that, she kept me focused and didn’t allow me to go back to my game, which I had left on the whole time.  I did have to put her to bed a little early though, I wanted to watch the Walking Dead, but there was no way I was going to let her watch it.  Way too graphic for her.

I kept my promise and let Fluttershy sleep with me in my bed both Saturday and Sunday night.  It actually wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be to keep her hidden.  My mom never checked my room anymore, so I was fine.  I awoke from my sleep at the sound of my alarm, which was really just my iPod.  I liked to wake up to the sound of some good music, not the trash that they play on the radio nowadays.  Fluttershy was startled by the sudden sound of music playing.  I told her not to worry and that it was just my alarm.

“Why did that thing go off?  And why is it so early?” she asked me.  My eyes were still shut while I tried to gather my thoughts and how I would explain to her that I was going to be out all day, or at least until three.  

“Oh crap, is it Monday?  I have school today.  Damn it, I have school all week.  How could I forget about school?” I asked myself.  “Look, Fluttershy, I hate to tell you this, but you’re gonna have to stay home alone today, and really for the rest of the week as well.”  I tried to put it as lightly as I could.  I sure as hell didn’t want to leave her home alone.  I had been caring for her for the past two days, and I had no idea if she was going to be able to care for herself while I was gone.

“Why do I have to stay here, can’t I come with you?” she responded.  I sighed, grabbing for the remote to my iHome to pause the music that was playing over our conversation.

“Well, I’m the only one who knows you’re here.  I’m not so sure that letting people see you will be a good idea.  The reason is the same as why I can’t let my mom see you, except there are a few more things that could be troublesome.”  I realized I was speaking pretty loudly, and my mom was awake.  I gestured to Fluttershy as she was about to speak to keep it quiet.

“How long will you be gone?” she asked me.  She sounded so worried for me.  There was obviously nothing for her to fear, but she didn’t know that.  

“I’ll be gone until about three o’clock in the afternoon.  Other days, maybe a little later than that.  Look, I need to get dressed and go to the bathroom, just wait here.  When I’m done I’ll take you downstairs and get you some food,” I told her with a bit of urgency in my tone.  It was actually almost seven, and I was usually downstairs already eating by that time.  She waited in my room while I went to the bathroom, and after I put my clothes on, we went downstairs, trying to not let my mom know of her presence.  

I got Fluttershy some pancakes, made myself a bowl of cereal, and we went down to the basement.  I had to eat a little bit quicker than normally, but I told her to take her time.  I was the one in a hurry, not her.

“So, um, what should I do while you’re gone?  Do you want me to stay down here all day?” she asked.  

“For the most part, yes, you will have to stay down here.  Had I remembered that I had school, I would have made you something for lunch last night.  My mom doesn’t come home from work anymore, so you’ll be fine with that.  But what for you to do?”  I thought to myself for a moment.  Then I remembered I had a laptop with about 500 songs on it, and of course the TV.

“You could watch some TV.  There are a lot of good shows on during the day, so I’m sure you could find something of interest.  If that starts to get boring, you can listen to some of my music.  I’ll leave my laptop on for you with iTunes up so you can just choose what you want to listen to.  Before I leave, I’ll bring down some more food and snacks for you.  How does that all sound?”

“That sounds fine.  But, are there any channels you want me to not watch, or songs I shouldn’t listen to?”  I thought for a moment, and then it hit me.  The Hub channel.  I couldn’t let her see the My Little Pony show, at least not yet.  I decided early on I would wait a while before showing her the show.  She was a little too young to understand that she was just a cartoon character, so I would wait.

“Yea, actually.  Stay away from the Hub channel, which is channel 259.  As for music, well, I really don’t care what you listen to, but if you hear a word that you think is a little, um… mean, then stop listening to the song.  I would recommend you listen to this band.”  I pointed to the band I was referring to .

“Dough… try?” she said.  I laughed at that.

“Daughtry,” I corrected, “all of their music is clean, meaning no bad language,” I told her.

She nodded her head and repeated back to me what I told her.  After we finished eating, I took her plate and my bowl upstairs.  Shortly after, I brought back down as many snacks as I could carry.  She was taken back a bit by what I had provided.  I didn’t have time to worry if this stuff wouldn’t be good for her or not.  I just told her not to worry about what and what not to eat.  She nodded.

I went upstairs to the bathroom to brush my teeth, went back down to pack my lunch and a water bottle in my bag, and finally went down into the basement to say goodbye to Fluttershy.

“Don’t worry, right after school ends, I’ll run straight back here.  It won’t be that bad.  If you get tired of being down here, you can go up to my room, but try to stay lower than the windows so no one outside can peek in and see you. Got it?” I asked.  She nodded.

“What if something bad happens, like if I get hurt?” she asked me.  I thought for a moment.  Then, I grabbed the house phone for the basement, dialed in my cell number, and left it as it was.

“If something bad happens, hit this button here on the phone.  It’ll call my phone.  It shouldn’t ring during the day, so you shouldn’t have to redial the number.  I’ve gotta go.  I’ll see you later, ok?”  As I was about to get up, she hugged me, which kept me on my knees.  I returned the hug.  When she let go, I smiled at her, ran my hand through her hair like the many other times before, and left for school.  All I was able to think about during my walk to school was Fluttershy, nothing else.  During school was no different.

All I could think about during school was Fluttershy.  How was she doing without me there, was she lonely, was she alright, had she actually hurt herself?  So many thoughts raced through my mind.  I couldn’t get her off my mind.  The day went by pretty fast though, and being a senior in high school, I had a huge advantage.  I had gotten lucky with my scheduling and managed to get both periods eight and nine off, which meant I could go home early.  I was so anxious for the bell signifying 7th periods end.  As soon as it rang, I jumped out of my seat, ran to my locker, got my things, and ran home.  I didn’t care who was looking at me, probably thinking, ‘Hey, why the hell is that kid running?’ or something like that.

I entered my house, quickly setting my things down, and yelled her name.

“Fluttershy?!  Fluttershy, are you downstairs?  It’s me Matt.”  I got no response.  I went to check downstairs, but the back room light was off.  I ran back up the stairs, but as soon as I turned to head upstairs, Fluttershy jumped up onto me and held me in a tight embrace.  I was caught off guard, but not enough to make me fall on my back.  I knelt down, allowing her to stand on her hind legs.  I could hear her crying, but I had no idea why.

“Thank goodness you’re home Matthew!  I was so afraid!” she exclaimed.

“Afraid of what?  What happened?” I asked her.

“S-something came on one of the channels.  I didn’t think it was s-so bad, up until the m-monsters appeared,” she told me.  I was wondering what she could have been watching.  

“Do you remember the channel it was on?” I asked her.  She wasn’t crying as much as she was when she first jumped on me, but she hadn’t fully stopped.

“I-I think it was channel 231,” she told me.  Channel 231, AMC.  I think I knew what she was watching.  Just to be sure, I asked her if she remembered the show’s name.

“I think it was the W-Walking Dead, or something l-like that,” she told me.  I knew it.  I knew she wouldn’t be able to handle that show.  I held her, brushing her hair with my hand as I did so very often, trying to comfort her.

“Don’t worry Fluttershy.  It was just a show, those monsters aren’t real,” I told her, trying to calm her down.  I did indeed tell her that the zombies, or walkers as they are referred to as on the show, weren’t real.  But, I did in fact, at the time, believe that someday the zombies would rise.  I would’ve been ready though.  Along with my Assassin's Creed gear, I’ve got two pistols and a bow with about 100 arrows (I have these to complete my assassin cosplay).  They were well hidden, so no one would be finding them anytime soon.

“I guess I have another channel to stay away from huh?” she said.  I chuckled a bit and told her that she was right about that.  She let go of me, took a step back, and I told her to just breathe.  After about a minute, she was fine.

“I got a bit lonely while you were gone.  How often is this going to happen?” she asked me.  I rubbed my eyes and sighed.

“Well, unless I have off from school, every Monday through Friday.  Some days I might have to stay later for rehearsals.  Sorry Fluttershy.”

She looked down and frowned.  I then noticed that she had a little bruise on her left from leg.

“Hey, what happened here?” I asked her.  She looked up, then back down to her leg.

“Oh, well um, when the monster showed up, it frightened me so much that I actually started flying a bit.  But I’m so bad at flying that I flew right into the wall and hurt my leg.  I’m sorry,” she said.

“Fluttershy, you have nothing to apologize for, you just hurt yourself, that’s all.  If anything, I should be apologizing for not being here.  But speaking of flying, how would you like it if I tried to help you learn to fly better?”

“Really, but you don’t have wings.  How would you teach me at all?  I mean, not to say that I don’t want to learn, but it’s just that I’m not so sure that you really could teach me,” she told me.  I started to think.  How would I teach her?  I had no knowledge of flight myself, so teaching her would be pretty difficult.

“Well, I guess we can just think about it for now.  Maybe when we come up with something we can start practicing.  Right now, I’m just hungry.  I need a snack,” I said.  She giggled after I said that, which made me laugh in turn.

“There are still some snacks that you gave me for the day downstairs.  We can have that,” she told me.  I nodded my head and brought her down into the basement, and we started snacking on what was left of the food.

The rest of the week followed the same procedure as Monday, except without the whole crying thing when I arrived home.  Fluttershy was perfectly fine with staying home by herself by that Thursday actually.  She got used to it pretty quick.  I don’t know why, but Fluttershy seemed a bit more, well, outgoing for lack of a better word, than she was in the show.  She seemed more confident in herself.  I don’t know why, but it didn’t matter.  She was of course still very shy and kept worrying about little things, but like I said, she had more confidence.  Maybe it was because I was just, well, who I was.  That may sound weird considering the description of myself I gave earlier, but Fluttershy had changed me, even though we had only known each other for about a week.  

The routine soon became natural.  I would go to school, she would stay home, and when I got home we would spend the rest of the day together.  The first night I stayed later for a rehearsal, she got a little worried.  But even then, she got used to that too.  Musical stuff ended in April, so she didn’t need to worry about that anymore.  The rest of my senior year of high school just rushed on by since I had found Fluttershy.  And before I knew it, summer had arrived.

Summer was finally here.  No more school, no more homework, no more bullshit.  Graduation was great.  I had actually turned 18 beforehand.  I had a spring birthday.  That was a great party.  I of course had a private party, just Fluttershy and me.  The same could be said of my graduation party.  I had a huge party with my family and friends, but I also had one for just the two of us.  I found that the parties that were just Fluttershy and I were much better.  Anyway, the summer went by pretty quickly.  I was a lifeguard during the summer, so that kept me busy and got me some good money.  I would need it for when I went off to college.  Fluttershy would of course be coming with me, but I’ll get to my college life later.

I had been taking care of Fluttershy for six months.  It was August then so I basically found her in February.  In that time, she managed to learn almost everything there was to learn about how humans lived, technology, a lot more about me, and a ton of other stuff.  We were a lot closer now.  I decided to openly confess my feelings for her and told her that I loved her.  She felt the exact same way.  That moment was just amazing.  To know she shared my feelings gained me so much happiness.  A lot of other things happened during this time span though.

To start, I realized that with my sister home from college, keeping Fluttershy hidden would be much more difficult.  So, I started looking around my area for a temporary place for her to stay, at least until I went to college, where I would probably have to find another place for her.  I managed to find a small, old warehouse, not too big, but not too small.  It wasn’t perfect when I found it, but with a few touch ups here and there, and the addition of a few furnishings, it became a good enough place for Fluttershy to live in for about two months.  I visited her every day, some nights I would even stay with her.

One day, I thought that she must get lonely out there by herself.  So, I figured since I knew that she could communicate with animals, I would bring her a little bunny to keep her company, or rather, a rabbit.  My best friend found this rabbit about a year before I found Fluttershy.  His family didn’t plan to keep it, but they wound up doing so anyway.  I told them I would take the rabbit as my pet.  They were fine with that.  Once I arrived with the rabbit at Fluttershy’s place, I introduced them to each other.

“Hey Fluttershy, I want you to meet a new friend.  This is Joey.”  I opened his cage and let him roam free in the warehouse.  Fluttershy proceeded to do the whole baby face stuff with him, like when you say to a puppy “Aw aren’t you cute,” or some crap like that.  I couldn’t help but laugh a little while Fluttershy was doing that.  I actually think she gave me The Stare for a moment.

“Don’t listen to him Joey, he’s just jealous because he isn’t as cute as you are,” she said to him, being all fuzzy wuzzy with him.

“Love you too,” I said sarcastically.  She giggled a bit.  But then, she suddenly had a confused look, like someone was talking to her.  She looked around the room.

“Um, Matthew, did you hear that?” she asked me.

“Hear what?”  I figured that Joey was speaking to her, but I had to act surprised.

“I heard a voice, but I don’t know where it came from.”  She stopped looking around and returned her gaze to Joey.  I think the light bulb finally went off.

“Oh my goodness, it’s Joey.  I can hear him talking to me.  That’s just so, well… amazing!” she said, her voice filled with excitement.  I was actually surprised she wasn’t a little bit more taken back by the fact that she could talk to animals.  Suddenly, a little glow appeared on her flank, and shortly after, three butterflies adorned each side of her flank.  I started tearing a bit, I knew what this meant.

“Um, Matthew, why are there three butterflies on my flank?” she asked me.  She didn’t really sound confused.  She didn’t even seem scared or surprised.  It’s almost like something inside her was telling her what it was, but because she couldn’t remember what a cutie mark was, she didn’t know… what it was?  I don’t know, you get what I mean though.

“Fluttershy, that’s your cutie mark,” I told her.  I didn’t really want to work around all the formalities.  I was just too excited and wanted to let her know what it was.  I explained to her what it meant, and when I was finished, she was so happy.  

“So you mean I can talk to all kinds of animals, not just rabbits?”

“That’s right Fluttershy.  You’ve got one very special talent.”

She must have been really happy, because she jumped into the air and actually started to fly around the room.  But she wasn’t messing up.  She was flying perfectly, no screw ups, just perfect flying.

“Hey, I’m flying!  Matthew, I’m actually flying!” she exclaimed, her voice almost cracking due to her overabundance of happiness.  We had practiced a few times, and she had gotten a lot better, but all we really did was just practice on her hovering and flying at a slow pace.  She was flying at a decent speed, even managing two flips.

“Do you feel like you could keep flying like that?” I asked.  She nodded, not even second guessing her choice.  This was one of her greatest moments.  In one moment, she had discovered her true talent and managed to full on fly (overused joke incoming) LIKE A BOSS!  Sorry I just had to say that!  

We decided to celebrate with a party.  No one was actually at my home, nor would they be for the rest of the weekend.  My mom was stingy about letting me stay home alone, but she finally loosened up enough to let me.  Fluttershy and I decided to make a cake.  We did alright, but I’m not the greatest chef/cook in the world.  She was actually alright, even though we had only cooked together about six times, all of those times ending in big messes.  That night brought me ten more photos for the photo album I had started since I found Fluttershy.  But that day just kept getting better.

Fluttershy stayed with me at my house that night.  We stayed up a little later than usual watching one of her favorite movies, Toy Story.  She loved that movie.  We actually got through half of Toy Story 2 in the same night.  When it was finally time for bed, I took my shower, waited for her to take hers, and finally we went to bed.  But before we fell asleep, she decided to do make this the best day ever with just three words and one action.

“Good night Matthew, I love you.”

“Good night Fluttershy, I love you too.”

Now, Fluttershy and I would tell each other that we loved one another quite often by that time.  But, when it came to kissing, we’d usually just kiss each other on the cheek.  We actually shared the thought that a pony kissing a human on the lips might be a bit weird.  But I think something inside just told her to put that thought in the past.  

She put her hoof on my shoulder, pulled me in a bit, and kissed me right on the lips.  Let me tell you, it didn’t feel weird at all.  It felt as natural as any human couple kissing on the lips.  How would I know?  Just because I was a bit miserable doesn’t mean I didn’t know how to get the girl.  We probably held that kiss for about a good minute.  It was amazing, just amazing, that’s all I can really say.  When we finally stopped, I looked into her eyes, and she into mine.  She put her head on my chest, I put my arm around her, and we fell asleep, just like that.

When summer finally ended, it was time for Fluttershy and me to head to college.  The ride didn’t take too long.  It wasn’t so bad because Fluttershy was with me the whole time.  I drove myself, but I saved enough of the foot space of the second seat up front for Fluttershy.  She stayed down there the whole ride, which kept her well hidden.  She kept me sane for the duration of my drive.  We hit traffic at one point, so having her there with me was a lifesaver.

And so, my freshman year of college began.  I was majoring in acting, and I was doing pretty well for the most part.  Fluttershy was a huge confidence booster for me for that year, and she would be throughout my college career in general.  My freshman year was a bit more eventful than the years following though.  Why?  Well, for my first year, I was forced to room with someone on campus.  My roommate was a cool guy though, we didn’t have any problems.  We became good friends actually, but I couldn’t leave Fluttershy hanging.  So once again, I had to find a place for her.  And, once again, I actually found an old warehouse.  It was smaller than the previous one, but that was fine.  We got it furnished and made it into a fine living space.  Joey even moved in with her.

This wasn’t the eventful part of my year though.  That came about halfway through the year.  It was an ordinary Friday night, and my roommate was going to be out for the weekend visiting his family, so I had nothing to worry about.  That’s what I thought at least, until I arrived at Fluttershy’s.  When I arrived, I found that the main door had been opened, and the couch I had gotten for Fluttershy had been thrown out into the dirt.  My heart stopped for a moment.  I rushed inside.

“FLUTTERSHY!?  WHERE ARE YOU!?  FLUTTERSHY!?” I screamed, trying to find her.  I got no response.  But then, I noticed something moving under a blanket in the corner.  I slowly moved towards it, hoping it was Fluttershy.  I removed the blanket to unveil Fluttershy, crying with her head down.

“Please don’t hurt me!” she said, startled by my presence.  Then she looked up and saw it was me.  “MATTHEW!”  She jumped up and hugged me.  I held her close to me, telling her that she was safe now.

“T-two men came in here and started r-ruining everything.  I don’t know if they were l-looking for something, but I just stopped moving just like you told me a year ago.”  It had been about a year at that point since I found Fluttershy (she was now 15), and that she still remembered what I told her about staying hidden didn’t surprise me.  She had actually almost gotten caught by my mom once, but she was smart enough to get out of her sight quick enough.  But anyway, back to what was going on.

“Did you see what they looked like?  Did they hurt you?” I asked.  Fluttershy took a step back and unfolded her wings, revealing that her left wing had been wrapped in bandages.  She told me she was violently tossed against the wall, and that her wing had been broken.  At first, I was shocked at the sight of it.  I held her close to me, finding myself once again brushing her hair with my hand.  Then, I became filled with rage.  I got up and started walking back to my car.

“Matthew, where are you going?” she asked me.  I think she could tell I was angry, asking with a deep amount of concern and fright in her voice.  

“I’m going back to my place to get my weapons.  I’m staying here tonight,” I told her.  A surprised look came upon her face.

“Couldn’t I just stay with you at your place tonight?  I mean, I know that it would be dangerous and I could be spotted, but, it’s just that this place doesn’t seem safe now.  I’m scared Matthew.”

“I know you’re scared, believe me I do, and I understand that you being seen wouldn’t be as bad as you getting hurt.  But now that I know these jackasses did in fact hurt you, I’m not letting that go.  I’m staying here tonight, and that’s final.”  I was furious right then.  She could tell, even backing up a bit.

“Are you going to… kill them?”

I took a moment to gather my thoughts, until I confidently said yes.  Her head dropped and she sighed.

“Come on, I need to go get my things.  You can stay in your hiding spot in the car.”  I was in a hurry, and now Fluttershy was getting pretty scared, not even by what had happened, but by me.  She had never really seen me this way.  This was my violent side, the side of me that made me Fluttershy’s opposite, the side of me that brought about the irony of our love.

We drove back to my dorm, which was a short drive from the warehouse.  I went to my room to gather my weapons from the hiding spot I had made for them.  I grabbed my tomahawk and my left hidden blade, testing it to see that it still worked.  

“Perfect.  Those assholes are gonna regret what they did.  Too bad they won’t actually live to regret it though.”   The hate in my voice was scaring me now.  I had spoken aloud, but no one was around to hear me.  I left my room, keeping my weapons hidden, and headed back to my car.  We drove back to the warehouse, where we would wait.  I hid up on one of the horizontal beams that held up the roof.  It was almost six o’clock.  

‘Come on you fuckers.  Death awaits your arrival,’ I thought in my head.  I stared at the door intensely.  Fluttershy was watching me.  My peripheral vision caught her gazing at me, but I never looked back to her.  She was frightened.  She was truly afraid of me.  But honestly, if you saw me at that moment, you’d probably be scared too.

Time passed slowly while I waited.  Not once did my vision move from the door.  In my mind, I was planning tactics that I could use for different scenarios.  Would these guys have guns, would there be more this time, how big were they?  It didn’t matter.  They were going to die.  The bloodlust that was eating away at me just grew.  I couldn’t believe that I wanted the death of someone so badly.  This wasn’t even my violent side anymore.  This was a beast that had emerged from inside of me.  

After three hours, they finally arrived.  Two middle aged men, wearing bandanas and biker gang-like shirts.  Both of them were pretty strong looking, and armed well enough to rob a small bank.  One of them had what looked like a Beretta pistol, the other armed with an army knife and a decently sized rifle.  I was a little taken back by their weaponry, but it didn’t matter.

The goon with only the pistol moved further into the warehouse, leaving his partner closer to the door.  I would attack him first, giving him no chance to use that rifle.  No one beat me at hand to hand combat, and with that shitty little knife, he would be cake.

I dropped down from my perch, fully braced for the decently sized fall.  I landed on one knee, and after a second of recovery, I fully stood up.

“Who the hell is this guy?  I thought you said we weren’t bein followed,” one of them said.  I was too focused to care which of them had spoken.

“We weren’t followed, I told you.  This asshat dropped from the roof.  Who the fuck are you?” he questioned me.  I didn’t answer.  I was just breathing.  I was wearing my sweatshirt, unzipped and with my hood up.  I pushed back the right side of my sweatshirt, allowing me to draw my tomahawk.  I slapped out my hidden blade, turning it into a knife.  I assumed a combat ready stance.

“Oh, we ain’t got time for this shit.  Waste that fucker!” the one further away ordered.  The one closer to me gave out a cry and charged at me with his knife.  I smirked.  Too easy.  As he brought his knife down, I blocked with my knife, pulled him past me, and slashed down his back with my tomahawk.  I had cut him really deep, and blood gushed out of his back.  The other guy was caught off guard and pointed his pistol at me.  I quickly turned my head to see him.  He jumped and fired off two rounds.  

I dodged right for the first round and ducked down under the second round, advancing towards him with both movements.   He was pretty damn surprised.  This gave me a great opportunity, because he was clearly slow.  He was close enough that I could tumble in past him, and, with him being so off guard, he was unable to turn around fast enough to stop me from chopping him clean in the lower back.  He cried out in pain.  I pulled my weapon from his back, and blood poured out.  He fell on his back, still screaming in agony.  I had had enough, so to end his suffering, I plunged my bracer mounted hidden blade into his throat.

I removed my blade and went over to the other guy.  He was crying in pain.  He was lying on his stomach.  I turned him over to find he was coughing up blood.  I gave him a sick smile.

“Go to hell you piece of shit!” he yelled at me.  I chuckled a bit at his suffering.

“The sign said no trespassing, asshat.  Illiteracy is a problem I find is truly plaguing our country, wouldn’t you agree?” I said with a hint of evil in my voice.  He stared into my eyes, and I stared into his soul.  I gave him one more smile before I plunged my tomahawk into his skull.

“Justice,” I said aloud.  I stood up, removed my tomahawk from the man’s skull, and wiped off the blood on his shirt.  I stood over his body for a minute, and then it hit me.  I had just murdered two people, in a matter of about one minute no less.  In shock I dropped my tomahawk on the floor, stepped back from the body, and fell to my knees.  I was breathing heavily now.  

“What have I done?  Fluttershy, why did I do this?  Why?” I asked, getting no response.  I stood up and removed my hood.  Afterwards I looked at my hands, my blood covered hands.  I had no words.  

“Fluttershy,” I started, “what have I become?  You shouldn’t have had to see that.  What… what happened to me?”  I was scared.  The fear emanating from my voice brought me to tears.  I tried getting up, but my body wouldn’t let me.  “Fluttershy, I’m sorry.  I’m so sorry.  I don’t deserve you, not after what I’ve just done.  This is something I need to live with now.  God damnit I just murdered two people.  Why the hell should I deserve love?  I’m a fucking monster.”  I was beside myself, truly.  I was breaking down.  Who wouldn’t after killing two people?  My head fell to the floor.

Fluttershy walked over to me, placing her hoof on my back.  That got my attention enough to look at her.  She was sitting on the ground, her head at my level.

“Matthew, I don’t care what you’ve done, or what you may ever do.  I love you, no matter what.  Just because you wanted to protect me doesn’t mean you don’t deserve love, especially my love.  I mean, yes, you did kill them, but it was out of love.”

“But it wasn’t Fluttershy, that’s just it!  I wanted revenge, revenge for them hurting you like this.  This was something personal, even when it shouldn’t have been.”  

“But even still Matthew, you’ve shown that you will do anything for the ones you care about, whether it be me, or maybe someone in your family.  You did this because you care about me.  I don’t think there is anyone else more deserving to love me than you, and I mean that.”  Her voice was so calm and soothing.  I stopped crying and lifted myself up.  I wiped off my hand of the blood before trying to wipe out my eyes.  I took a deep breath.

“You really think I deserve your love?” I asked her.

“Yes, I do, and nothing will change that, I promise you,” she responded, her voice free of any fear or worry.  I smiled at her, and she kissed my cheek.

“Come on.  Let’s go get you cleaned up.  You look awful,” she said, her voice flowing with concern for me.  As she started to get up, I pulled her into an embrace.  She returned the hug.

“I love you Fluttershy, and I’m sorry for how I’ve acted.”

“There, there, it’s ok now.  I love you too Matthew.”  We held our embrace for a minute before getting up to go get me cleaned off.  And truthfully, all the doubts that filled my mind had disappeared, destroyed by the loving words of Fluttershy.  She truly was the Element of Kindness.

Following that Friday night, things started to get back to normal.  I had nightmares for a few nights about it all, but with more of Fluttershy’s care, and a crap ton of visits to my school psychologist, I was back to my good old self.  I told the psychologist that I was dreaming about the killing, instead of actually doing it.  I was actually lucky enough to remain unfound by the police.  I could be pretty sneaky at times, but that they were unable to track my dna or some crap like that was a little surprising.  That night became my most well-kept secret.  No one would ever know.  

The rest of my college career went by like a breeze.  I had become a fantastic actor, not that I wasn’t good to begin with, but now I was amazing.  I think it was fair to say that at least.  Seeing as though I had a spring birthday, my junior year brought about my 21st birthday.  That was some fuckin party.  All I can say is that Vegas is beautiful, especially when you’re drunk of your ass.  My senior year of college blew on by rather quickly.  From my sophomore year and onward, I started to live in my own apartment with Fluttershy near the school campus.  We left that old warehouse in the past.  I never wanted to see or hear the mention of it again.  By the end of my senior year, Fluttershy had grown to about her normal size as she was in the show.  But hell, the last time I had watched the show was the season three finale.  I had no idea if any of the ponies had changed since then.

When my graduation finally rolled on by, I had a huge party with my family.  I of course had a private party for just Fluttershy and me again, but this time, the huge party with my family, and friends, was better.  It was probably because I got really drunk during the party.  I’m a funny drunk though, but not one that you have to worry about getting hurt too badly.  But, my party with Fluttershy was great too.  We tried baking a cake again.  We really needed to improve that skill.

Now that I had graduated college with a kick ass degree for acting, my future actually looked really good.  I had already managed to make a great amount of money to buy an apartment in New York City, which is where I had always wanted to live.  I lived on Long Island, but the city always called to me.  My place was on the outskirts of the city though.  I wanted to get a more open area so that Fluttershy could go outside more often.  She hadn’t stayed inside for all those years while I had her, but she was limited.

But, one day, about four months after graduation, something happened, something that I would never be able to forgive myself for.  This was worse than that Friday night at the warehouse, much worse.  

It was a normal Saturday morning.  I had just arrived home from an early audition for a small play on Broadway, and I could pretty much tell I was going to get the role.  I was so happy.  I couldn’t wait to get home to tell Fluttershy.  I entered my apartment, overwhelmed with joy.  I was going to shout out to Fluttershy to tell her the good news, but I heard the TV was on, so I decided to just go into the TV room and tell her.  But as I got closer to the room, I was starting to make out what she was watching.  When I fully realized it, my heart sank.  

“What is this place, filled with so many wonders?  Casting its spell, that I am now under!” I heard, in a musical tone.  I knew that song, and I knew the voice attached to it.  It was Fluttershy singing her song when she gets to the ground in episode 23.  I entered the room and saw Fluttershy sitting in front of the TV, covered in tears.  Her hair was a mess.  I didn’t know if she knew I was present, but I sniffled a bit because I was starting to cry.  She knew I was there now.

She turned her head to me.  The sadness in her eyes was just too much for me to take, and soon I started to full on cry.

“How long Matthew?” she asked.

“Fluttershy.”

“How long have you known?  HOW LONG?!”  She had never spoken to me like that, and I was caught off guard by her tone, but honestly, I deserved it.  I was ashamed of myself.  Truthfully, I had decided the previous night to tell her in the morning when I got home.  Why did she have to watch it before I could tell her?  WHY?

“Fluttershy, I… I’m sorry.  I was going to tell you, right now in fact.  I had planned everything out last night.  I would tell you about my audition, and I figured you would be in a good mood, enough so that I could tell you,” I tried to explain, but the look in her eyes told me she didn’t care.

“Why not tell me when you found me?  Did you think that telling me I’m just a cartoon character wasn’t important?  Why didn’t you tell me sooner Matthew?”  Her voice was a mixture of sadness and anger.

“You were too young to understand.  I wanted to wait for the right moment.  Fluttershy, I didn’t tell you for your own good.  Please, I didn’t mean for it to happen like this.”

She looked at me with distaste, and shortly after, she ran past me and headed into our room.  She locked me out, but I could hear her crying from inside.  I didn’t try to get her out.  I knew she needed to be alone.  I thought that because I had killed two men that I was a monster.  Fluttershy helped me to realize that what I did was out of love.  But what I had done, what I had been doing for about five years now, keeping a secret like this one away from her, truly made me a monster.  I fell down up against the door and started crying right where I was sitting.  I stayed there for one hour.  

Fluttershy didn’t talk to me for two days.  She wouldn’t leave our room, so I was forced to sleep in the living room.  We had a really nice couch, so it wasn’t a problem at all.  I left her food outside our room for when she got hungry, because she really never left our room for those two days.  Maybe to go to the bathroom or something simple, but if she did, she didn’t say a word to me.  On the second day, I told her I was going to be out for a while running some errands.  I wasn’t really.  I needed to do something I hadn’t done in a while: go for a parkour run.  Since my sophomore year of college, I hadn’t gone for a parkour run.  It was something I did when I was feeling down in the dumps.  By that time, I never got that feeling anymore.  This was the first time I felt like shit in a really long time.  

When I was done with my run, I headed back home.  I entered my apartment, finding Fluttershy in the kitchen.  She turned immediately when she heard me enter.  She rushed back into our room, leaving her food behind.

“Fluttershy, please just listen to me for one minute.  Fluttershy,” but she was gone.  I felt like a broken man.  I walked into the living room, feeling tears start to form in my eyes.  I fell to the floor, leaning up against the couch.

“Fluttershy,” I said in a low voice, “I’m so sorry.  I’m sorry that I hurt you this way.  I really don’t deserve you.  You proved me wrong three years ago, but now you really can’t.  I really am a monster.”  I was speaking aloud, not even in hopes of her hearing me, but just because I had to get it off my chest.  But even then, I still felt like shit, like a monster.  But soon after, I heard the bedroom door start to open.  Even though I could hear it, I didn’t acknowledge it.  I just kept my head on my knees and continued to cry.  I started to hear hoof steps.  Fluttershy entered the room slowly.  I couldn’t bear to face her.  When she was finally next to me, she sat down, and started to rub my head.  I lifted my head, turned to her for a moment, and looked back down.

“Matthew,” she started, “I love you.  You know that.  I told you that I would always love you no matter what.  That’s a promise I intend to keep.”  It felt like she was quoting me for a moment, just like I had told her I would never let anyone or anything hurt her, and how that was a promise I would keep.  I looked back to her.

“Fluttershy, I’ve done so many things wrong in my life.  I’ve tried so hard to make my life worth living, but something always happens that makes it turn into complete shit.  I thought I had finally made my life worth something, but whether it be what I did three years ago or what I did Saturday, I now realize I can never win this battle.  The battle to make life worth something.”  

“Matthew, you have made your life worth something.  Not just that, but you’ve made my life worth something too.  You took it upon yourself to care for me, to protect me, and to love me when no one else could.  You may have made some mistakes along the way, but that doesn’t mean your life isn’t worth anything, and it certainly doesn’t make you a monster.  You are the kindest, most loving person I have ever met.”

Her words, as soothing as ever, kicked the crap out of my doubts.  That’s not to say I didn’t still feel guilty of my mistake.  I wouldn’t be able to let this go for the rest of my life.  But something about the way she spoke told me she was speaking from her heart as well.

“And, Matthew,” she continued.

“Yeah?”

“I forgive you.  You’re a good person, and don’t you let anyone tell you otherwise.”

Tears were starting to fall from my eyes again.

“Thanks Fluttershy.”  She smiled at me, and we embraced each other.  She really did forgive me too, she wasn’t just saying it.  I would never let this go, like I said, but to know that she was able to forgive my huge screw up made it much easier of a thing to forget.  We stopped hugging, only to allow us to kiss each other.  It was then, and really, always would be, Fluttershy and me.

Six years ago, I was living a life that wasn’t anything special.  It was a life of work, and it was a life I felt at times I wanted to end.  But, there are just some things in life that come at you and you don’t expect them.  I never would have expected to find my favorite pony Fluttershy in a dumpster, but I am so grateful that I did.  I could have made the mistake of walking on by and not paying any mind to that whining that night.  My curiosity saved my life, one that I might have ended with a bullet to my head.  

By that point in time, I had been with Fluttershy for six years.  I certainly had changed a lot since I found her that Friday night, and so had she.  She really did forget about that Saturday morning.  She forgot how I kept what she was a secret.  She actually really liked the show now.  It became her new favorite television show in fact.  She loved the characters, the world, the adventures, pretty much everything about the show.  She knew that she was different from the Fluttershy in the show, which she was quite proud of in fact.  Life was really going well for me.  I scored the role in that play I auditioned for, and made about $5,000 each show.  Fluttershy and I lived together in peace, but if someone did come over to hang out, she would hide in our room, which she didn’t mind at all.  I stayed in contact with all my family, friends, and everyone else I knew.  Life was really great, something I never thought I could say before then.  But it’s true what they say, that all great things must come to an end.  At least, I thought it would be the end, but in fact, it was just the beginning of something new.  

Once again, it was just an ordinary day, a Saturday in fact.  It was one week after my 23rd birthday.  Fluttershy and I were just relaxing in our apartment.  I was deep into a rerun of Assassin's Creed 3, and Fluttershy was reading a book, stopping every so often to watch me play.  Suddenly, we heard a knock at the door.

“Matthew, are you expecting someone?” she asked me, with a look of surprise on her face.  She was as surprised as I was.  I hadn’t made any plans for anyone to visit that day.

“No, actually I’m not.  Maybe it’s one of my friends paying a visit, but just to be on the safe side, grab me my hidden blade quickly.”  I didn’t feel like taking a chance.  She brought me my blade from our room, helped me strap it on, and went back to hide.  She knew the drill like clockwork.  I approached my door.  I waited a moment to see if the person would knock again.  He, or she, did, but afterwards called inside from behind the door.

“Hello, may we come in?” the voice asked.  I knew this voice.  It was a regal voice, but where had I heard it before.  Then it hit me.  ‘What the hell?’ I thought to myself.  Finding Fluttershy was one thing, but this couldn’t be happening.

“Eh, just a moment,” I responded, and I proceeded to undo all the locks I had in place.  I opened the door, and standing before me, in all realness, was the royal Princess Celestia.  My mind had been kept intact ever since I had found Fluttershy, I think at least.  But now, my mind had officially been blown.  How, and why, was Princess Celestia at my door step?  Scratch the “why” part actually.  I knew why she was here, but I didn’t want to tell myself that.  After about ten seconds of me staring at her, Twilight Sparkle and the rest of the ponies appeared from behind the Princess.  Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Applejack, and even Rainbow Dash, my number two pony.  They were all standing right there before me.  I stood there with my mouth agape.

“May we enter?” the Princess asked me.

“Uh, sure, I guess, come on in.”  I allowed them to enter, but I was questioning why I had done that in my head at the time.  The ponies past by me one by one, entering my home.  Rainbow Dash actually shot me a look for a second.  I jerked my head back in surprise and chuckled.

“If you’ve done anything to Fluttershy, oh man, we are gonna have some problems buddy!” she said to me.  I could tell how serious she was being.  I tried to play dumb and pretend I had no idea what she was talking about.

“Who the hell is Fluttershy?  Is that even a real name?  What the hell are you, and why are you in my home?”  I don’t think it worked, because Rainbow went right back on the offensive with me.

“Don’t try to play dumb buddy.  We know she’s here.  Now are you gonna tell us or…” she was suddenly cut off by quick chatter coming from one of the other ponies.  Which one?  Take a guess.

“Woooooow, so this is what an alien house looks like.  Oh, what’s all this stuff, and what’s with the giant black rectangle with the black screen in the center?  Man, these aliens sure do have some weird stuff.  Hey, is that some kind of axe over there on the wall?”  She was referring to my tomahawk.  I had mounted it, because I would never use it again.  But, getting back to Pinkie, she was rattling off words faster than the Halo assault rifle rattles off bullets.  

“Alien, I beg your pardon,” I responded to her.

Applejack stepped forward and shoved a hoof in Pinkie’s mouth.

“Eh, sorry bout ar friend here, but Pinkie sorta has a way with speakin that we just don’t get.  Sorry partner,” she apologized for Pinkie’s crazy antics.

“That’s quite alright.  It’s actually kind of amusing.  Now, I’m going to repeat my question that I asked the blue one here, why are you in my house?”  I tried to make it seem like I was low on patience and that I truly had no idea why they were there.  The Princess looked to me with a look that showed no amusement in my tone.  

“I think you know why we are here, sir.  We have come to retrieve Fluttershy from you.  She should be here, isn’t that correct?”  She really didn’t seem to be in a mood to be toyed with.  She was being serious, so I figured I might as well fess up.  I let out a deep sigh.

“She’s in our room.  If you wait here, I’ll go get her.”

“Our room, my my darling you’re really that cozy with our Fluttershy,” Rarity started, “Don’t make me laugh.  Oh too late.”  She started to giggle at the thought of Fluttershy being in a relationship with me.  I wanted so badly to drive my blade into her throat, I so badly did.  But then I remembered what had happened the last time that my blade had been driven into flesh, except, if I had done it just then, I would have just killed an innocent pony.  Rarity wasn’t at all my favorite, but she was still an innocent pony.  I couldn’t kill her.  What would Fluttershy think of me then?

“Cozy?  That doesn’t even fucking begin to describe it, Rarity.  I think it would be best for you to know that we are in fact in a relationship.  Yes, that’s right, I said relationship.  I love her, and she loves me.  Is that a problem, Miss Rarity?” I said, annoyed by her attitude.  She was taken back by both my words and the tone of which I spoke in.  

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, did this guy just say he’s in a relationship with Fluttershy?  No way!  Fluttershy wouldn’t go out with some guy like you,” Rainbow said.  I looked at her in anger.

“Tell that to her, Rainbow Dash,” I responded.

“Hey, how come the alien knows all of our names?  What’s my name Mr. Alien, huh, what is it?” Pinkie Pie asked me, starting to get in my face a bit.

“He knows our names my little ponies because he knows what we are, don’t you Matthew?” Celestia said to me.  Now I was surprised.  I knew their names because of what they were indeed, but how the hell did she know my name.

“Yes, I know what you are.  You’re all the characters of a cartoon show.  But how the hell do you know my name Celestia?”

“I have been watching you ever since Fluttershy had been sent here.  Something we will have to explain to you, but first, if you could please retrieve Fluttershy for us.  We have much to discuss.”  I nodded my head.

“Don’t let Pinkie touch my stuff,” I told them.  Pinkie’s face wore a surprised look, but then she realized I was right, and her face turned into an angry frown.

I went to our room to get Fluttershy.  I opened the door, looking for her.  She was hiding under the bed.  I went down onto my stomach to look at her.

“Is everything alright?  I was just hiding in here, but when I heard you arguing with whoever it is that you were talking to.  I got a little scared.”

“Everything’s fine Fluttershy, but I need you to come with me.  We’ve gotta talk.  They’re still waiting for us in the living room, so we shouldn’t keep them waiting.  Come on,” I told her, trying to hold back tears.  I knew I was gonna cry at some point during this whole thing, but right then wasn’t the time to start.

We walked back into the living room.  Fluttershy was a little taken back by the sight of the five other ponies and the one goddess sitting in our living room.

“FLUTTERSHY!” Pinkie shouted.  She jumped onto Fluttershy, who started to whimper and hide her face.

“Pinkie, get off of her,” I told her, but she didn’t stop.  “PINKIE, I SAID GET OFF OF HER!” then I pushed her off of Fluttershy.  She fell to the floor, while I was trying to comfort Fluttershy.

“F-Fluttershy, it’s me, Pinkie.  Don’t you remember me?”

“N-No, I don’t,” she said, still in fright after being pounced on by Pinkie.  But then she looked over to Rainbow Dash.  “W-Wait, is that Rainbow Dash?” she asked.  

“Yeah, it’s me Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash.  Glad to see you remember me.  Now, try to remember them as well,” Dash told Fluttershy.  I was confused by Rainbow’s words.  It’s like she knew that if Fluttershy saw her, she would remember everything about her life in Equestria.  I looked to Fluttershy.

“Fluttershy, can you remember anything else now?” I asked, but I got no response.  Fluttershy was just staring at Rainbow Dash, not moving a muscle.  “Fluttershy?  Fluttershy!  What’s wrong with her?” I asked the ponies in general, but again, no response.  “WHAT’S HAPPENING TO HER?!”  Celestia was the one to respond.

“She is remembering,” she told me, plain and simple.  I looked back at Fluttershy to see she was moving again.  She shook her head around, as if trying to adjust after becoming dizzy from something.  She rubbed her eyes, then looked around the room with a look of joy on her face.

“GIRLS!” she exclaimed, and before I knew it, all six of the ponies were embracing each other.  They were embracing Fluttershy, my, no, our Fluttershy.  I finally realized after all those years why she could only remember Rainbow.  Rainbow was the… trigger, so to speak.  If Fluttershy saw her, she would remember everything, which was weird because she had seen Rainbow multiple times in the show.  It must’ve had to be the real Rainbow Dash for it to work.  I started to tear up a bit.  Fluttershy had finally been found by her loving friends.

“I remember now, I remember all of you.  I remember my life in Equestria, in Ponyville.  I remember our friendships.  Oh it’s so great to see you all,” she said in excitement.  I was kneeling on the floor, my heart feeling like it was being torn apart.  Did she still remember me now that her memory had been restored?

“Looks like you remembering Rainbow Dash was a good thing after all, huh Fluttershy?” I asked her, trying to get her attention.  She turned around and nodded to me.

“Oh Matthew, isn’t this great!  I can remember everything now.  I even remember how I was sent here,” she said.

“Really, care to share with us, or just me rather?  I’m sure everyone else knows what happened already.”

“Well, Twilight was practicing some new magic that could be used to transport ponies great distances.  I decided to let her test it with my animals.  I was really scared about that, but I let it be anyway.  But, somehow, her magic went out of control, and she blasted me by accident.  I guess something in the magic must have reverted me to age 14, because that’s how old I was when I arrived here.”

The other ponies looked on in confusion.  “Wait a minute.  Did she just say she was 14 years old when she got here?” Applejack asked.  I nodded my head in response.

“I found her in a dumpster on my way to my friend’s house one night.  She was 14 years old when I found her though, I didn’t know why, but I didn’t really care.  But, um, this brings me to my next question.  How long ago was she sent here?”  Celestia looked to Twilight.  Twilight had a concerned look on her face, but the Princess nodded to her.

“About six days ago.  Why do you ask?” she responded.  My mouth flew open.  I shook my head and rubbed my eyes in pure astonishment.  Six days ago she just told me, six days!  That meant one day there meant one YEAR here.

“Well Twilight, it’s been a lot longer than that here on Earth.  It’s actually been about… six years.”  The ponies didn’t seem shocked at all by this though, and the same could be said of even the Princess.  

“We are well aware of the time difference Matthew.  Like I stated earlier, I have been watching the two of you.  You two do indeed love each other very much.  Fluttershy, I have a question to ask you, if you wouldn’t mind?” Celestia said.

“Oh, well, of course not Princess.  What is it?”

“Would you do anything to keep Matthew safe, even if it would cost you your life?”  The question came as a complete shock to Fluttershy, me, and even the other ponies in the room.  That was a really personal question to ask, but something inside of me told me what her answer would be.

“Well, yes I would Princess.  I love Matthew with all of my heart,” she said.

The Princess took a moment to take in what Fluttershy said.  It seemed as though she was a little surprised by her answer.  I knew Fluttershy would stand by me, just like she always said she would.  We all sat in the room for a minute of just silence, except the breathing of the ponies.  Fluttershy broke the silence.

“So, um, what happens now?”  I was looking down at the ground, but my eyes beamed open, and I turned to the Princess.  She seemed rather collected of herself, and I knew what her answer would be.  

“Well, now we will take you home Fluttershy, back to Equestria,” she said, as calm and collective as she looked.  I could feel the tears coming on, but I didn’t want to hold it back.  I started crying like a fountain, which made the other ponies start to cry a bit.  They were going to take her away from me, Fluttershy, the one person that turned my life around.  After about a minute of shedding tears, anger shot through my body.  I was not letting this happen.  I got up and pulled my tomahawk off the plaque it was on and slid out my hidden blade.  I stood in front of Fluttershy, ready to do whatever it took to protect her.

“You are not taking her from me!  She is too important to me, and you’re not taking her just because you think she isn’t where she belongs!”  I was angry, but at the same time I was still shedding tears.  Rainbow Dash jumped in front of me, ready to fight.

“Out of the way buddy!  Fluttershy is coming home with us, and if you don’t like it, too bad!  She’s important to us too you know,” she said to me, trying to keep on the offensive, but I towered over her.  If this went down, I would win.

“Rainbow, you do not want to fight me.  Unless it’s unclear to you, I am more than willing to kill to protect her.  You should know that, right Celestia?  You’ve seen what I’ve done, and believe me I will do it again.”  I spoke the words, but in my head, I just knew I couldn’t, and so did Celestia.

“No, you won’t,” she said back to me.  “You couldn’t handle the fact that Fluttershy witnessed you kill two men in the past, so what makes you think that she will still think good of you for killing her friends?”  She was right, and her words hit me like a wall.  I eased up a bit and turned to look at Fluttershy.  She had started to cry.  I was letting the monster come back again, but this time I wouldn’t be killing scum, but I would be murdering innocent ponies who only wanted to see their friend returned safely home.  I slid my blade back onto the bracer.  In pure rage, I threw my tomahawk at the wall to my left, lodging it deep into the wall.  The ponies could see my anger.  I started to cry again, falling to my knees and slamming the floor with my fists.  I left my head on the floor and continued to cry.  Then, I felt a hoof on my back.  It was Fluttershy.  I looked up into her eyes, those beautiful eyes.  A smile shined through her tears.

“It’s ok Matthew.  This is what has to be done.  I will never forget you, and I will always love you, I promise.  Maybe… maybe someday we will meet again.  I…” she choked up from her crying.  I pulled her in close and we hugged for what felt like an eternity.  I could hear the ponies behind us crying as well.  Pinkie was the most noticeable.  

“I’m not really one for goodbyes Fluttershy, but I just want you to know that I love you too, and I always will.”  I let her go and we shared what we thought would be our last kiss.

She walked over to where Twilight was preparing herself to take them all back to Equestria.  Fluttershy turned to me one last time, but turned away, not able to face me.  I couldn’t blame her.  I let my head hang and closed my eyes, just waiting for them to leave.  But then I thought of something.

“Wait!” I shouted, not a moment too soon.  They all looked at me in shock.  “Take me with you,” I said.  The Princess looked at me with confused eyes.

“I beg your pardon.”

“Let me go with you.  Celestia, you know how important we are to each other.  Don’t split us up like this.”  She looked at me with a serious look.

“I do indeed know how strong the love you share is, but Matthew, you cannot live in our world.  It was not made to house your kind, much like this world isn’t made to house our kind.  I’m sorry but you cannot come with us.”

“This world can’t house your kind?  Celestia, that is bullshit, and you know it.  For six years, this world has housed Fluttershy, and you’ve seen the compassion we share.  You have no valid reason why I can’t live in Equestria, plain and simple.”  I was very stern with her, and I think she knew my words were true.

“Matthew, your presence in our world would cause trouble, you are too…” she started, but I cut her off.

“Too what, Celestia?  Different?  You rule over Equestria, so I think you are well aware that ponies aren’t the only species living there.  There are griffons, moose, zebras, dragons, hell there are spiritual entities in your world.  What’s wrong with me?  Is it because I don’t walk on all fours, I’m too big, I live differently, what is it Celestia?  You’re going to deny me the right to be with the one I love because I’m different?” I gestured for Fluttershy to come to me, and she did.  “Well I’m sorry Celestia, but that shit is not gonna work.”  Fluttershy looked at me with concern.

“Matthew, it’s ok, really.  I don’t mind going back with them,” she said, trying to calm me down.  “Matthew, you live a great life.  You can find some other girl to love.”

“Fluttershy, there is no one else for me, and the only reason I am living this great life of mine is because of you.  Had I not found you in that dumpster that night, I probably would have ended my life by now.  It was a task for me to find happiness in my day to day life.  Not only have I shaped you into who you are now, but you’ve done the same for me.  Fluttershy, I’ve made too many mistakes in my life and done a lot of things I’m not proud of, and I’m not about to make the biggest mistake of them all.”  I stood up in front of Fluttershy, showing that I wasn’t going to let them take her away.

“Celestia, the choice isn’t mine, it’s yours.  You either take both of us back to Equestria, or you can all leave now and just have wasted your time.”  I looked at the Princess, waiting for a response.  She had a big choice to make.

“You could, of course, try to take her by force.  But, in that case, you might as well kill me.  If you don’t I’ll probably do it myself.”  I didn’t say that to make her feel guilty, I just spoke the truth.

“Very well, Matthew.   I will allow you to come with us and live in Equestria,” she responded after about a minute.  Everyone in the room looked at her in shock, including me.

“Princess!” Twilight shouted, “How can you just allow this…” she was hushed by Celestia.

“This man has shown that he would rather die than lose Fluttershy.  I could not live with myself knowing I caused the death of another because I took away something so important to him.  He will come with us, and that is final.”  I was still crying, but I cracked a smile through my tears after she said that.

“Thank you Princess, thank you so…” she raised a hoof, silencing me.

“But let me make myself clear Matthew, should you harm any of my little ponies or cause them any trouble that threatens their lives, I will send you back, and you will never be allowed to return.  Am I understood?”  I could tell she was being serious.  But honestly, I couldn’t blame her.

“You have nothing to worry about Princess.  You have my word, and my everlasting gratitude.”  I bowed to her, accepting her as my new ruler.  I was fine with that.  Anything to be with Fluttershy, who had jumped up onto me to hug and kiss me.  We would be together forever now, in a world I had always dreamed of living in.

“If you wouldn’t mind though, Princess, I would like to take my personal belongings with me.  I have too much to just let go of.”

“Wouldn’t that include your family too?” Twilight asked me.  I hadn’t thought of that.  Her words held a great meaning.  But I knew this was right.

“I know what to do.  But this is too important to me.  They’ll know I’ve moved onto a better place.  Now, if you’ll let Fluttershy and I get out things together, we can be on our way in about half an hour.  Is that a problem?”  Celestia shook her head.

“Take as long as you need,” she told me.

Fluttershy and I gathered anything we couldn’t live without.  I decided that I could at least try to get my laptop and Xbox to work in Equestria, so I packed them, along with every video game I owned at the time.  I packed my iPod, every article of clothing I owned, my Bionicles (told you I wouldn’t let get rid of them), my weapons (no way I was leaving those behind), and pretty much anything else I had in my apartment.  Fluttershy took everything of hers as well, and in about 20 minutes, we were ready to go.  At least, I thought I was ready.  I realized I had forgotten something.

“Hold on, I need to write something down,” I told them.  I was writing a letter goodbye to my family.  My mom was going to be visiting the next day, and she had a key to the place just in case she needed something and I wasn’t home.  She would find the note.  But I needed to leave her something, not just a note.  I then remembered my necklace.  It was a locket from my father who had passed away when I was young.  Inside was a picture of him and me on one side, and a note saying, “I love you Matthew,” on the other.  I had to leave it.  I leaned in and gave it a kiss.

“Love you Dad, watch over Mom for me while I’m gone,” I spoke to the locket.  After double checking everything else, Twilight prepared herself to transport us all to Equestria.  I looked into Fluttershy’s eyes as we were leaving, and she looked back to me.  We smiled at each other, and a blast of light blinded me.

I awoke on a hill, my vision a little misty from the light.  I was lying on my back on the pure green grass.  I looked around, taking in my surroundings.  I got to my feet and turned around to see Fluttershy, her friends, and the Princess.  Behind them, I saw Ponyville.

“Welcome to your new home Matthew,” Fluttershy said to me, smiling all the while.  I smiled back to her.

“Thanks Fluttershy.”  I looked past them all to gaze upon Ponyville.  It was even better in person.  I took in a deep breath and smiled.

I have been living in Equestria for a year now.  As I write in this journal, I am currently sitting on the beach.  Fluttershy is sitting next to me, Twilight is reading a book, Rarity is trying to get a tan (which doesn’t make sense because her fur is always gonna be white), and Rainbow, Pinkie, and Applejack are playing in the water.  The sun is starting to go down.  We’ve been here for almost the whole day, and I had a lot of time to kill and an empty journal that I wanted to start writing in.  Fluttershy is getting tired, and so am I.  Don’t worry, my story isn’t done yet.  My story is far from over, because as long as I am here, my story will continue.  The story of Fluttershy and me.

Act 2: The Power of Love

Man, it’s been a long time since I’ve written in this old journal, seven years in fact.  So much has happened since I first came here to Equestria, which is why I’ve decided to continue my story.  I told you as long as I was here that this story would go on.  Just to let you know before I continue the story, my life here is amazing.  I mean it took the ponies a while to get used to me, but now, I’m Equestria’s newest hero.  How you ask?  Well, it’ll become quite clear later on.  What’s up with my relationship with Fluttershy?  I give you the same answer, you’ll have to wait and see.  Now then, where to start the continuation of my story?  Oh, I know the perfect spot.

It had been one year since I had arrived in Equestria.  I was 24 years old, full of energy, was in a relationship with the girl of my dreams, and lived in a dream world.  I had managed to get a perfect home on the outskirts of Ponyville, close to Fluttershy’s cottage.  She moved in with me, but she didn’t let her place go.  It’s sort of a backup place to stay.  I (somehow) got all my electronics working, set up everything in my house how I wanted, and life was good.  Eating wasn’t a problem, but I did miss hamburgers.

The ponies would get a little cautious when I walked by.  Some were even a little frightened at first, but with the help of Fluttershy and her friends, we got them to calm down.  Even after that though, they were still a little scared of me.  I didn’t mind it though.  I was even a little accepting of it.  I was a human after all, they had never seen one of my kind.  Fluttershy’s friends of course did take a little time to get used to me.  They quickly accepted my presence though.  Rainbow Dash is actually my best friend now.  I told her she was my second favorite, and she loved that.  She loved getting recognition.  I mean she is Rainbow Dash after all.

One of the cooler things that happened now that I was in Equestria was that Fluttershy and I now share dreams together.  Celestia had granted this “power” to us when I arrived.  At least twice every week, Fluttershy and I will share dreams.  It’s always the same thing though.  We just fly together in an endless sky.  Yes, I said fly.  In the dreams, I am still a human, and Fluttershy is still a pony.  But, I have wings the dreams, and I appear to have fully mastered their use.  I love it.  It’s like the equivalent of heaven.  But the dreams started to take a little bit of a toll on me.  They would always increase my envy to the Pegasi.  I wanted so badly to really be able to fly, to have wings, so that I could fly with Fluttershy, or maybe even race Rainbow Dash once I had mastered them.  These thoughts raced through my mind.

So, one day, I decided to take matters into my own hands.  I knew Twilight could use a spell for temporary wings, but those wings were too girly.  They were the wings she gave Rarity at one point.  I was no engineer, so I wasn’t going to design any machines.  I thought of some other ways to get wings.  Then I remembered everypony’s favorite zebra.  Zecora.

I made my way through the Everfree Forest, heading for Zecora’s hut.  I imagined that she would have some sort of potion for me to get wings.  I had always wanted eagle wings, and in my dreams, those were the kind I had.  I had a weird vibe that told me to ask Fluttershy for an eagle feather.  She was fine with that, and got me one of her pet eagle’s feathers.  

Walking through the Everfree, I could see why the ponies were so afraid of it.  This place really was nasty lookin.  I, however, was prepared.  I had brought along with me my iconic tomahawk and hidden blades for the trip to Zecora’s.  Thankfully, her hut wasn’t too deep into the Everfree.  I found her hut with relatively no trouble.  I knocked on the door and she answered.

“Well hello there Matthew, I am most pleased to welcome you,” she said, speaking in rhymes of course.

“Hey there Zecora,” I started, tipping my hood off to her, “I was wondering if you could help me with something.  Mind if I come in?”  She showed me inside, and we sat around her table.  She asked if I would like some of… whatever it was she was drinking.  I politely declined.

“I sense something troubles your mind, but what it is, I cannot find,” she said.  She always seemed to know when something was troubling someone.

“Zecora, do you have any potions that can grant people, or ponies, wings?” I asked, wanting so badly to get the question off my chest.  She closed her eyes to think for a moment.  She got up and pulled out a book from one of her shelves, probably a potions book.  She opened it and started to read through.  Shortly after, she brought the book over to her cauldron and started gathering ingredients.  One by one, she started mixing weird things into the cauldron.  When she stepped back, I looked in at the weird mixture she had just created.  It was a red mixture, and it bubbled every so often.  I was surprised that Zecora had just made this potion on the spot and didn’t even argue against what I had asked for.  I then realized I had one other question to ask before I possibly drank this concoction.  

“Zecora, what if I told you I wanted eagle wings?” I simply asked her.  She looked at me and responded.

“Those wings will require a feather, which will require you to be quite clever,” she said.  I assumed she thought I was going to have to get an eagle’s feather with skill, because ordinarily, and eagle wouldn’t want one of its feathers plucked.  But, I simply smiled back and showed Zecora the eagle feather that was already in my possession.  She smiled and pointed to the mixture, which told me to drop it in.  I did, and the mixture started turning a little bit browner, almost like iced tea.  I looked at the newly colored mixture with distaste.  

“So, um… what exactly will this do to me Zecora?” I asked her.  She didn’t respond, except for her looking up and down my upper body.  I looked back in confusion, then looked at my body.  I then realized she wanted me to remove my clothes.  If I was to grow wings, they would either have no room to spread out, or they would ruin my shirt and sweatshirt, and I was wearing both my favorite eagle shirt and sweatshirt (I mean that eagles were pictured on the clothes).  I quickly removed my shirt and sweatshirt and looked back to the cauldron.  Zecora took a bowl, dunked it in, and handed it to me.  It didn’t smell too bad, and in the smaller quantity of the bowl, it didn’t look too bad.  I looked back at Zecora.

“You didn’t answer my question you know?  What is this going to do to me Zecora?  I don’t want to grow wings only to die the moment after I get them.”

“If you wish to obtain wings, then you must drink and suffer the pain, no matter how much it stings,” she responded.  I figured well enough this would hurt, but I would do anything for Fluttershy.  If it meant we could fly together, so be it.

I slowly lifted the bowl up to my face, preparing myself for this liquid to enter my body.  I started to drink, and surprisingly, it didn’t taste too bad.  It was sadly a little chunky, which made it a little difficult to keep down.  When I had finished every last drop of what was in the bowl (and fully managed to down it too), I waited for something to happen.  At first, nothing happened.  Then, a pain shot through my entire body.  I grunted first and fell to my stomach.  I yelled in pain.

“GAAAAH!  WHAT THE FUCK!?!?”  The pain was unbearable.  I started to feel something coming out of my back.  It felt like my spine was at some spots splitting in two.  I started to see blood drip from my back to the floor.  I let out one more yell before I passed out from the immense pain.  Soon after, I started dreaming of Fluttershy.  I could only hope that this would all be worth the pain and suffering I just underwent.

I woke up lying on my stomach, but I wasn’t on the hard floor of Zecora’s hut, I was on some pillows.  I looked around, trying to not move my head.  I groaned in pain.  My back still hurt and was tingling at the same time.  I tried to lift myself up, but when I put my hands on the ground, my elbows hit something soft.  I lifted myself up and turned my head over my shoulder to see I had grown a pair of wings, eagle wings at that.  They were actually white eagle wings, which was surprising considering the feather I had tossed in the mixture was brown.  I didn’t care, I loved white, still do in fact.  It was, after all, a signature color of the Assassin’s.  I was overjoyed and couldn’t stop smiling.

“Zecora, it worked!  I actually grew wings!  Zecora?  Where are you?”  I looked around, but I couldn’t find her.  I looked down to my stomach to see I had been bandaged up.  It made sense to me.  I mean I did just grow wings and bleed profusely out of my back.  Zecora shortly after walked in and smiled at me.

“I see you are pleased with the results.  But before using them, Rainbow Dash is who you may wish to consult,” she said to me, still smiling though.  I understood what she meant.  I shouldn’t just go off and start flying.  I had no idea how to use these wings.  Rainbow Dash would be the perfect person to train me.  But then I remembered that I was in a relationship with Fluttershy, who I had trained of course.  I would ask her before Rainbow.

“Thank you so much Zecora.  I can’t believe this actually worked.  I just have one question.  How long will these wings last?”  Shortly after I asked, Zecora went on to explain, in rhyme of course, that the wings would normally have lasted about one year.  But, because of the addition of the eagle feather, they would last forever.  It had something to do with the fact that eagles are naturally born with wings.  Zecora explained that the potion took note of the genetics behind this in the feather, and because eagles don’t lose their wings, I wouldn’t lose mine.  I hope I explained that well enough.  Simply put, my wings would last forever.  As I am writing at this moment, I have my wings, and they are still beautiful.  They have brought me much joy, and they are also quite useful. But I’ll get to that later on.  Anyway, back to the story.

I asked Zecora for my clothes back.  She had been kind enough to make two holes in the back of both my shirt and sweatshirt so I could wear them.  They weren’t the best holes, so I would have to ask Rarity to fix them up for me later.  I shook Zecora’s hoof, thanked her once again, and left her hut.  Folding my wings was actually pretty easy, and it proved useful for getting out of the hut.  I made my way back to Ponyville.  I couldn’t wait to share with the girls what I had just been through and what I had gained.  Fluttershy was sure to love my new wings, cause I sure as hell loved them.  Oh what a story I had to tell.

I made my way to Ponyville, trying to stay clear of my home.  I even stayed away from Fluttershy’s.  I didn’t know where she was at the time, but I wanted this to be a surprise.  These wings were the coolest thing though.  They did add a bit of wait to me, but I got past that relatively quick.  I was able to fold them up easily enough, which was good.  I didn’t want to have to walk around all the time with my wings full span.  On my way to Ponyville though, I bumped into my number two pony, Rainbow Dash, or rather, she bumped into me.  Really, she didn’t even bump into me, she flew into me.  She had been practicing some moves in the sky and just so happened to get low enough to the ground to ram right into me.

“Oops, sorry Matt, didn’t see you there,” she said, chuckling a bit at my misfortune.  She had hit me in the stomach pretty hard, but I was alright.  She made sure I was alright then looked like she noticed something different about me.  She leaned her head over to the side to see my new wings.

“YOW!  Matt, when did you get wings?  That’s awesome!  I’ve got a new flying buddy!  Or rather, I will, once you learn how to use them.  But seriously dude, when, and how, did you get wings?”  She was so happy about my new wings.  I figured Dash would like the fact that I had wings.  This practically assured me that Fluttershy was going to love them.

“I actually just got them.  Our good friend Zecora managed to brew a little something up for me.  And, with the mixture of an eagle’s feather, the potion has granted me these wings for life.  How’s that sound?” I said, smiling all the while.  Dash got even happier when I said that.  She shot up into the air and did about three flips in excitement.

“We are totally gonna party it up tonight!  Man, I sound like Pinkie,” she said, starting to laugh at that thought.  I followed shortly after, and soon, we were in a hilarious outbreak.  

When our laughter died down, I turned around to look at my wings again.  They were simply amazing.  I couldn’t take my eyes off of them, they were just too cool.  Rainbow couldn’t stop looking either.  They were pure white, as white as snow.  The feathers blew on in the breeze, and it felt pretty good.  I was so tempted to just take off right there and then.  But Dash could see the look in my eyes, the urge I had to fly.  

“Don’t get any ideas yet Matt.  You need to train before you can start flying like me, although, that probably won’t happen anytime soon.  No offense.”

“None taken.  I know I can’t be as good as you, but with your help, I hope to get pretty good.  You are the best flyer in Equestria after all,” I said to her.  She loved the praise and the compliments.  

“Well, I know how and when you got those wings, but why did you get them?  Was it the lust to join your best buddy Rainbow Dash in the skies of Equestria, or were the skies just calling to you in general, or…” she started, but I hushed her with my finger.  I looked at her, trying to send a message.  I thought it was obvious.  She got it after about 10 seconds.

“Oh, I get it, Fluttershy.   You want to fly with her, don’t you?” she asked.  I nodded.

“I don’t think I ever told you guys, but ever since I came here, Celestia has granted Fluttershy and me the ability to share dreams.  The dream is always the same.  We just fly together forever until we wake up.  But, these dreams got me down, because I knew I could never really fly with her.  So, I thought it was time to change that,” I told Dash in all seriousness.  She completely understood my envy of the skies, but the part about wanting to be with Fluttershy up in the sky actually brought a tear to her eye.

“Oh great, you got me crying now.  Thanks a lot,” she said to me, which made me laugh a bit.  I shortly after gestured for a hug, and she accepted.  

“Don’t worry Matt, I’ll make sure you can fly with Fluttershy in no time,” she told me while we were still hugging.  I let her go and smiled at her.

“Thanks Dash.  It’s no wonder you’re the Element of Loyalty,” I said, still smiling.  Shortly after, we started to walk into Ponyville.  We were headed for Sugarcube Corner.  We figured the next pony on our list would be Pinkie.  When Rainbow had said we were gonna party, I totally agreed to that.  I just didn’t want to party that night.  That night, I was going to surprise Fluttershy with my wings.  I wanted to have the party the day after.  I hoped Pinkie could sate her appetite for partying for that long.

Rainbow and I entered Sugarcube Corner and looked around to see if we could find Pinkie.  She was hard to miss.  She was lounging on one of the bean bag chairs.  When she saw us, she shot up and jolted over to say hi to us.

“Hey guys, what’s up?” she asked, excited to see us.

“Well Pinkie, in case you didn’t notice, our buddy Matt here just got himself a brand new pair of,” she started, and gestured for me to spin around, “WINGS!”  As I turned around, I let my wings go full span.

“Whoooooooooaaaa,” Pinkie said with amazement.

“Pretty cool huh Pinkie?” I responded to her amazement.

“Cupcakes yeah!  That’s awesome.  Oh boy, I just realized.  You’re so big and strong that you could probably fly us all around.  Oh man, you could be like our new form of transportation.  Although, I probably won’t need it cause I’ve got Pinkie Speed,” she said in one single breath.  She could really talk fast.  Then she gasped at the realization of her leaving out the part about having a party.

“HEY, WE NEED TO HAVE A PARTY!  MATT’S NEW WINGS PARTY!” she said, quite loud I might add.  I heard hoof steps from the other room, assuming it was the cakes.  To my surprise, it was Applejack and Rarity.

“Oh my darling, where ever did you get such beautiful wings?  I didn’t even know it was possible for you humans to get wings,” she started, but then she took notice of my sweatshirt.  “Oh my darling, you’re sweatshirt has been ruined.  Here, let me take that for you.  I’ll fix up those holes for you so they look more presentable.”

“You might as well take my whole wardrobe, cause every shirt I own is gonna need two holes in it for my wings.  That wouldn’t be a problem, right?”

“Oh of course not dear, anything for a friend,” she responded.  I thanked her for her assistance.  I shortly after removed my sweatshirt and handed it to her.  I couldn’t give her my shirt, so I would give that to her another time.

“Mah mah Matthew, you sure do look good with wings.  Wha din’t we think ta do this?  Did ya get Zecora’s help?” Applejack asked.  It’s like she knew.

“As a matter of fact I did,” I responded.  I told Pinkie, Rarity, and Applejack what I had told Rainbow Dash when she first bumped, or flew, into me.  They were all crying a bit afterwards, just like Dash.  I smiled at the affection the ponies showed for me.  I told them this wasn’t really anything to cry over.

“Oh but darling, that is just the sweetest thing.  You want to make Fluttershy happy, and you most certainly have done just that.  Wait a moment, does Fluttershy even know yet?” Rarity asked me.  The rest of the ponies looked to me for an answer.

“Actually, no, she doesn’t.  I want to surprise her, which is where you guys come in.  But first, we need Twilight here.  Where is she?

“You’re in luck Matty!  Twilight is actually on her way here to pick up this bucket of gems for Spike,” Pinkie said, pulling out a bucket full of those tasty gems that Spike craves so much.  But, where did she get the bucket from?  She just reached over somewhere and poof, there they were.  I narrowed it down to Pinkie Magic.

“That’s good.  I want her to know before we tell Fluttershy.  So after Twilight gets here and she has fully grasped the concept of me having wings, Dash, I’m gonna need you to go get Fluttershy for me.  That’s not too difficult for you, is it?” I asked in a sarcastic voice.  She puffed out her chest and saluted to me.

“No way Matt!  Nothing is too difficult for Rainbow Dash!”

“Calm yourself, you’re not in the army,” I responded, chuckling a bit at her over reaction.  She started laughing to, followed by the others.

After a couple more minutes of the girls admiring my wings, Twilight showed up.  I quickly folded my wings to try to hide them.  Twilight didn’t suspect a thing.

“Uh, hey guys.  What’s with all the mysteriousness?” she asked, then gasped a bit.  “Did Pinkie eat Spike’s gems?  Pinkie, you know how Spike gets when you promise him gems and you go and eat them all!”  

“Oh that’s not it Twilight.  I’ve got something to show you,” I chimed in.  I unfolded my wings, and Twilight’s mouth flew open.

“You have wings?!  But, that’s not possible.  Humans can’t have wings.  It goes against your biology.”

“What the hell do you know about human biology?” I asked.

“I know well enough that humans don’t grow wings.  How did you get them?”

“Zecora,” I said, sweet and simple.  Twilight regained herself, smiled, and nodded.

“Sorry if I overreacted a bit.  I just can’t believe that you have wings!”

“No apology required,” I said, and following that, I told her what I had told everyone else.  

“Now that everyone knows I have wings, it’s time to surprise Fluttershy.  Rainbow, you know what to do,” I said, and Rainbow saluted me again and took off to find Fluttershy.  Now we had to wait.

After about 15 minutes of waiting, we heard Rainbow Dash with Fluttershy from outside Sugarcube Corner.  I went into the other room to wait for the right moment.  The girls stayed to welcome Fluttershy.

“Oh, hello girls.  Rainbow Dash told me you all had something to show me.  I was trying to find Matthew, he hasn’t come home yet, so I apologize if I’m being a bit hasty,” I heard Fluttershy say.

“Heh heh, well, speaking of Matt, Fluttershy, he’s got a big surprise for you,” Rainbow Dash told Fluttershy.  “Hey Matt, come on out.”

I stepped into the room with my wings folded.  Fluttershy didn’t notice.

“Oh there you are Matthew.  I was so worried.  I have been out all day trying to find you.  Where did you go?  What do you want to show me?” she asked, sounding a little concerned.  I did stay a little separated from her that day, but what I was about to show her would make up for all of that.  I unfolded my white eagle wings once again, and she was left speechless.

“Surprise,” I said, smiling the whole time.  I actually started to tear up a bit at the sight of her starting to cry.

“Oh Matthew, they’re beautiful,” she said, starting to full on cry.  She walked over to me, I knelt down, and we embraced.  When we let go, she ran her hoof over my wings.  They were quite sensitive.  Her touch felt so good (I don’t mean that in a sexual way, it’s just that the sensitivity of the wings causes a good feeling to run through my body when they are gently touched).  The rest of the girls started to cheer and cry at our moment.  Fluttershy looked into my eyes, and I back into hers.  We kissed.

“Thank you Matthew.”

“No Fluttershy, thank you.”

After about a whole ten minutes of Fluttershy being amazed at my new wings, I finally decided to address when we would have a party for this.  As soon as I said that, Pinkie shot up into the air and in excitement at me just mentioning the word party.

“OH, OH, OH!  I know!  We can have a party tomorrow night!  We can do it right here in Sugarcube Corner, or even better, how about at your place Matt?!”  She turned to me with a sweet little face that signified she was begging to let the party be at my place.

“I wouldn’t wanna have it anywhere else Pinkie,” I responded, and her smile got so big, her mouth practically fell off of her face.  She was clearly happy.

“YEAH BABY!  This is gonna be the best party EVER!  I don’t think I’ve ever had a party for somepony getting wings before!  I need to get planning,” she said, and zoomed off to start planning for the party, at least I assumed that’s what she was doing.  But, instead, she zoomed back in with a pen in her mouth and a notepad in her hoof.  She wanted to write down some ideas.

“Jeez Pinkie, slow down.  It’s just a party.”  After I said that, she spat the pen out of her mouth.

“Just a party?  JUST A PARTY!  Matt, you’ve just grown wings!  This isn’t just another party that I decided to throw together.  No way, I’m gonna make sure you get the best party ever.”  She was bursting with joy.  She reached over for her pen and started writing stuff down that just seemed to make sense to her.  When I tried to get her attention, she didn’t respond.

“We’ve lost her girls.  She’s deep into the party planning stage,” Twilight said.  “Come on, let’s go outside while Pinkie thinks.”  Pinkie was still rapidly writing down ideas on her notepad.  She was such a crazy pony.  I loved that about her.

We went outside and headed back towards my place.  Fluttershy couldn’t take her eyes off of me, or rather, my wings.  I couldn’t blame her though.  They really were beautiful.

“Did it hurt Matthew?” she asked me out of the blue.  I decided to not beat around the bush and just answered her plainly.

“Yeah, it hurt.  It hurt a lot actually,” I said, and I lifted my shirt to show her the bandages that Zecora had wrapped around me after I had passed out.  Fluttershy gasped at the sight of them.  They had gotten red from my blood.  I didn’t know they had gotten that bad.  I would have to change them when we got home.

“Whoa!  That’s a lot of blood.  You sure you’re alright Matt?” Rainbow asked me.

“Yeah, I’m fine.  This blood is just from earlier when I was still bleeding a bit.  It’s dried up by now.  I really don’t care though.  Look at the results,” I said, and I unfolded my wings once again.  I had pretty much mastered that, and it was pretty fun to do.  I couldn’t wait to start flying.  Oh how happy I would be.

When we arrived at my place, we started looking around at places we could put some decorations up, where we could set up a dance floor, and all that stuff.  My place was pretty big, much bigger than my old apartment.  When I first got the place, it wasn’t much.  Now, it feels like home.  I’ve pretty much managed to set up my place just like my old home on Earth.  Hell even my bedroom was the same, except now it had a much bigger bed and all the belongings of Fluttershy.  Most of my figures and other cool stuff that was originally in my bedroom were moved into the living room, which was pretty big.  If I had company, they weren’t like eyesores, but they were still noticeable.  I loved this house.  I loved it so much, that at that moment, I decided we would have the party outside.  Fluttershy and I have quite a large front yard, big enough for the party even.  I didn’t want my stuff getting messed up.

“Hey guys, how about we have the party outside?  It’s supposed to be nice out tomorrow, right Dash?”

“Heck yeah, and if it isn’t, I can make sure it will be,” she responded, reassuring me.  I nodded and looked to the others.  I shrugged in a manner that meant I was asking if they agreed.

“I think that’s a wonderful idea Matthew.  Oh, I could get some of my animal friends to help set up too.  We would already be outside, so it would make everything easier for them too,” Fluttershy said.  I smiled at her, then looked to the others.  They all nodded in agreement.  It was settled.

The next day, Fluttershy and I woke up, had breakfast, and got ready to start preparing for the party.  I first had to go get Pinkie.  She had quite a good amount of ideas for this party.  When we finally decided on a setup and headed back to my place.

The rest of the morning into the afternoon was spent prepping for the party.  Everypony was coming over at about five o’ clock, which gave Pinkie, Fluttershy, and myself a good amount of time to set everything up.  Fluttershy’s animal friends certainly did help a great deal.  At about three, we were done.

“Well, now that we’re done, what do we do for two hours?” I asked the two.

“Well, I’ve gotta head back to Sugarcube Corner to check all the cakes and goodies that I’ll be bringing.  I’ll be back later.  See you guys then,” Pinkie said, and she hopped off.  Fluttershy and I waved goodbye.  Once again, it was just Fluttershy and me.

“Now what?” she asked me.  I shrugged in response.

“No idea.  I guess we just wait for everyone to come.  This is gonna be a great party.  Everything looks awesome.”

“So do you,” she responded.  I was caught off guard by her response, looked at her, and smiled.

“You are the sweetest thing, you know that?” I said, still smiling.  She blushed a little.  I bent over and kissed her on the head.  She looked into my eyes.

“Hey, Matthew, can I ask you something?”

“Of course you can Fluttershy.  What’s up?”  She turned her head, still blushing.  What was on her mind I could only wonder.

“Well, we’ve been in a relationship for quite a long time now, and I was just wondering if…” she paused, starting to get embarrassed by what she was trying to ask me.

“You know that I’m the one who asks to get married right?” I responded and started to chuckle.

“Oh no, that’s not what I mean at all!  I’m not ready for that actually.  But, what I wanted to ask was, well, um…” she stopped again.  What the hell did she want to ask me?  

“Is everything alright?” I asked, getting a little concerned now.

“Everything is fine, but, Matthew… are we ever going to…” once again, she stopped.  She was really red at this point, blushing so much.  I thought for a moment of what she meant.  Then it hit me, and my eyes beamed fully open.

“Oh!  You mean…” I started, and stupidly, I moved my head to look down to my… lower area (yeah, yeah, go ahead and start laughing now).

“Fluttershy, you know I love you, and I would do anything for you.  It’s just that, well, considering you’re a pony, and I’m a human, I can’t help but feel that that wouldn’t feel right.  I’m sorry, I’m trying to put this delicately.”  She wanted to know if we would ever, you know, do it.  

“I understand,” she said, and she hung her head low.  She seemed disappointed.  But then, her head shot back up.  “Oh, but now that I actually think about it, that probably would feel weird wouldn’t it?” she asked.  I couldn’t help but laugh a bit at how quickly she said that.  She started to laugh too.  When the laughter died down, I spoke.

“I’m sorry Fluttershy.  Maybe someday we can just get over it.”

“No, no, it’s fine, actually,” she responded.

I nodded my head and gave her a smile.  We hugged for a moment, and she kissed me on the cheek.  Once we finally got over that little moment we had just had, we decided to go inside and just relax.  No, we did not suddenly wise up and do it... fuckin sickos.  We just relaxed until everypony finally arrived for the party.

Everypony was arriving on time, all except for Rainbow Dash, who showed up ten minutes late.  I could care less, but I was a little confused as to why she was late.  When she arrived, she was shaking a bit, but had a huge smile on her face.

“Hey Dash, what took you so long?” I asked her.  She couldn’t stop shaking or smiling.  Finally, after about 30 seconds, she finally spoke.

“Well, if you really wanna know, I just saved Spitfire, THE Spitfire, from certain death!  It was amazing.  I’m not joking.  I had been practicing in the sky, and then I noticed her as well.  She was amazing, but something made her cramp up, and she started falling.  My instincts kicked in and I zoomed off to save her.”  Rainbow Dash told us how she saved Spitfire and that Spitfire said she owed Rainbow big time for the save.  Come to think of it, that actually would give Dash a second time she saved Spitfire’s life.  I’m referring to episode 16, Sonic Rainboom, when Rainbow Dash saves Rarity and the Wonderbolts by performing a Sonic Rainboom.  I believed every word of Dash’s story.

Shortly after Dash finished her story, we got down to partying.  Man did these ponies know how to party.  Pinkie was a party animal, and the same could be said of Rainbow Dash and Applejack.  Twilight and Rarity had a ton of laughs with each other as they enjoyed the baked goods brought over by Pinkie.  Fluttershy and I shared a dance at one point even.  In the end, we had one hell of a night.

When everyone started to leave, Fluttershy and I said our goodbyes to everypony.  I thanked Pinkie for the awesome party, and she hopped on home.  Rainbow Dash, however, stayed behind.

“Now that they’re all gone, how about we start your training Matt?” Dash asked me.

“Right now?  You do realize it’s 11 o’ clock at night, right?”

“Yes, I’ve made a good note of that, but since we’re all energetic already and are at no time soon going to go to sleep, I figured we might as well start somewhere.  C’mon Matt, just for a while.”  Rainbow really wanted to train me.  I saw no reason to deny her.  I really wasn’t tired, so I figured why not.

“Sure, why not?  What do you think Fluttershy?”

“You two go off and train,” she started, “I’m getting tired, so I’m going to get ready for bed.”  She yawned after that.  She really was tired.

“Alright, I’ll come back at about 12.  Sound good?” I said, and she nodded.

Rainbow Dash and I walked over to the hill that I had arrived to Equestria on to begin.  Luna had already brought the moon out, and it was beautiful.  But, I had to focus on the training.  

“Alright Matt, let’s start simple.  Try hovering in place like this.  All ya gotta do is flap your wings.  Nothin to it.”  I tried to flap my wings, but I didn’t hover.  I tried a second time.  Still nothing.  On my third attempt, I put every ounce of strength I had into it.  I jumped up into the air, but I didn’t touch back on the ground.  I had successfully managed to hover.

“Sweet,” I said, sweet and simple.  Dash rolled her eyes and smiled at my overreaction to my own success.

“Alright smart guy.  Try to fly over to me.”

“Oh boy, a challenge,” I responded.  She chuckled a bit.  As I first tried to move, I wobbled a bit and fell to the ground.  I remembered how I had trained Fluttershy to become a better flyer.  I remembered all of those lessons we had.  I thought of everything I told her, but now, I had to apply all that training to myself.

As it all came back to me, I jumped back up, started hovering, and thought of what I taught Fluttershy.  I thought it was by a stroke of luck, but I was actually managing to fly over to Rainbow Dash.  When I reached her, she decided to amp up the challenge.  She flew further away from me, but now, she flew upwards as well.  She went up to a decent height.  I didn’t care.  She was far away that I could actually try to fly at a decent speed to her.  Everything just clicked inside my head, and I was flying straight to her with no trouble at all.  She was amazed at how quickly I was learning everything.

“Wow Matt, you’re doin pretty good for a first lesson.  It seems like you know what to do already.”

“Well, I did train Fluttershy to become a better flyer back on Earth.  I’m just remembering all those lessons I gave her,” I responded.  As I looked down, I realized we were pretty high up.  I lost my control and fell a bit, but I regained control that I was able to decently land on the ground.  Dash couldn’t help but laugh at this.

“Yeah, don’t worry about me Dash, I’m fine, thanks for your concern,” I said to her, laughing now at my own mistakes.  After we stopped laughing, we kept practicing until 12 o’ clock.  I decided to fly home.  

When I got home, Fluttershy was actually still up, but she was nestled in our bed reading a book.

“How did it go Matthew?” she asked as I entered our bedroom.

“I’m a natural at this flying stuff Fluttershy.  You should have seen Dash’s face when she realized how good I was,” I responded.  She smiled, put her book down, and yawned.  I went to get myself ready for bed.  After about 15 minutes, Fluttershy and I were sound asleep, hoping we would get to share our dreams once again.

That night, we did indeed dream together.  It was the same dream we would always share, except now, I could make it a reality.  The dream that night felt different though.  It felt… real.  The next morning, Fluttershy couldn’t get over how great the dream was.  She actually asked me if we could try it out that day.  I told her not until I was sure I wouldn’t fall out of the sky.  Fluttershy could catch me, but she wasn’t the strongest pony around, and I was pretty heavy.

So, I continued to train with Rainbow Dash until I was a master of the wings.  I had been pretty good to begin with though, but the added practices made me amazing.  I wouldn’t be flying at Rainbow Dash speeds anytime soon, but I could fly at a good speed for my body weight, and flying with Fluttershy like in our dreams was, literally, a dream come true.  Time went by pretty quick after that, and before I knew it, another year had passed by.

I was 25 years old at this point, and life was great.  But, I couldn’t help but feel something was missing.  Oh yeah, my family.  I really did miss them.  I knew when I left that I would miss them, but I had to let them go.  A part of me misses them, but another part of me is glad that I left them behind for Fluttershy.  I hope they could understand.  Maybe someday I could return to Earth, with Celestia’s permission, to visit them and all my friends.  You know what, I think after I finish writing about these past seven years, I’m gonna ask the Princess about that.  Maybe the time difference crap won’t be so bad.  But I digress.

The best memory I had of them was the portrait of my mother, sister, brother, uncles, aunts, and cousins.  My father had passed away as you know, so he wasn’t there sadly.  We were about 12 all together in that portrait, and I loved that picture more than I could ever love my actual family (weird huh?).

But one day, I decided to take a nap to remember.  Fluttershy had gone out for the day to go to the spa with Rarity, help Pinkie Pie watch the Cake’s children, and get some groceries from the market.  I didn’t have anything to do, so I was going to unwind with some good old fashioned video games.  But, before I could even get to my Xbox, I passed by the portrait.  I looked at it, looking over every person in that picture, including myself.  I really had changed since then.  I ran my hand over the picture.  I smiled shortly after.

I suddenly felt a little tired.  But, I didn’t try to fight it.  I let it take over.  I could use a good nap, even if it wasn’t in my bed.  I turned around, rested on the wall, and slid to the floor.  I fell asleep, and started to remember.

The very first thing that I remembered was the tragic loss of my father.  It was a quiet Sunday morning.  I was watching some Sesame Street (childhood memories), drinking some apple juice, and just being a little kid.  I didn’t have a care in the world.  But from upstairs, I could hear crying.  It sounded like my mother to me.  I decided to have a look for myself.  I went upstairs, and walked into my parent’s room to find my father lying in bed.  I thought he was sleeping, but then again, I probably would think that.  I was only about five years old at that time.  I couldn’t understand what happened.  My mother was at his side, crying.  She told me to go downstairs with my sister.  Just as I watched my younger self turn to go back downstairs, the memory faded away.

Next up was my Elementary School graduation.  Oh that was a fun day.  It was a hot summer day.  Well, actually, I don’t think it was summer yet, but it sure as hell felt like it.  Of course, we had to sing a crappy graduation song, which just happened to be from High School Musical.  I hated that movie so much at the time.  My friends thought it would be a good idea to go to the pool afterwards.  I saw no reason to say no.  So, I went home, celebrated a bit with my family, and went to the pool.  What a graduation day huh?  When I got to the pool, I found not only my friends, but even some other kids from my grade that wanted to just go for a dip.  We all decided to just hang out as a large group.  Boy was that a fun day at the pool.  That was just Elementary School graduation day.  The memory faded once again, and I was sent to the night of my first High School Musical performance.

I first performed in 9th grade.  The Musical that year was Les Miserables.  That would soon become my favorite musical.  I loved the music, the story, the characters, the music… wait I said that already.  Well, that’s how good the music is.  Anyway, I saw myself as one of the boys that act as the soldiers in the whole revolution.  I didn’t have any lines or anything, but the role was so much fun anyway.  I got to hold a prop musket.  Aren’t I cool!?  The last night was so emotional, even though I was only in 9th grade.  I sure do miss the seniors that were in that musical.  They were pretty great.  The memory faded as the whole cast walked off the stage after we bowed together for the final time on the final night of the show.

Next, I was revisiting my sixteenth birthday.  My party was great.  I invited about 12 of my friends over.  Hell, they weren’t even all in the same friend group though.  I had my wacky friends, and then I had my friends that I got attached to from my chorus class and acting stuff.  But, despite this, everyone got along great.  It was a great party.  We all just hung out in my backyard.  We had pizza, cake, played some fun games, listened to music, hell I even got everyone to agree to watching the Transformers Movie from 1986, you know, the Transformers movie that doesn’t suck.  We all had fun.  I even got to invite the girl that I had my eyes set on, but she had been taken for a while, but we were really close friends.  I kept my feelings a secret, but she was the only one for me.  Well, at least until Fluttershy came along.  My memory faded as I watched everyone leave for home, and she was the last to leave.

Next up, High School Graduation Day.  Once again, it was a hot summer day.  Graduation came after the Senior Prom, which was a great night, but not as memorable as I actually thought it would have been.  Graduation Day was a blast though.  We luckily got to sit in an air conditioned stadium-like place.  It wasn’t at my school.  Our auditorium was too small for that, so we went to a local college for the graduation ceremony.  When my name was called, I was so excited.  Receiving my graduation diploma and all that other junk wasn’t the exciting part though, it was just being on a stage once again.  This wasn’t even a performance, but it would be the last time I would stand on a stage as a high school student.  I looked to see my family cheering for me.  I decided to wave back to them, even though we had been told not to do so.  But I wasn’t the only one who did that, so why should I care?  The memory faded as I walked off the stage and headed back to my seat, and what came next was the event that I never wanted to remember again.

I was hoping for the day I found Fluttershy, or maybe even a memory not involving her, like my 21st birthday.  I would get no such memories.  I started to remember the night that I killed the two men that had harmed Fluttershy and ransacked her place.  I saw myself in action, how fluidly I moved, the power that I struck with, the hate that drove me to do what I did.  I saw the monster being unleashed from inside me.  I saw myself unleash my wrath upon those men.  I was in shock.  When I finished them off, I saw myself in shock at what I had done.  I saw Fluttershy comforting me, telling me she would always love me no matter what.  I saw her take me out to clean myself off, and as I watched myself walk out of the warehouse with Fluttershy, the memory faded.

What came next though was not a memory.  It was more like… a vision.  Of what, I had no idea.  All I saw was myself, standing at the lowest level of the hill that I arrived to Equestria on.  I was standing there, alone, fully armed with every weapon that I had brought with me.  I had gone full on assassin, but why the hell was I so well armed.  Suddenly, Applejack and Rainbow Dash appeared at my left and right sides respectively.  After that, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna appeared behind me, along with about 500 Royal Guard, including Shining Armor.  I didn’t even know there were that many, but it made sense.  But still, why were we all there like that, and where were Fluttershy, Pinkie, Twilight, and Rarity?  None of it made sense.  Then, I saw at the top of the hill, a figure.  Not just any figure too.  It appeared to be human, at least, it stood up like one.  It had the body of a human too.  What was all this?  What was my mind trying to tell me?  I seemed to have control over my mind during my state of remembrance, so I decided to just blow off this “vision” as a dream that interrupted my flow of memories.  It all faded, but shortly after, I didn’t continue to remember, but I heard Fluttershy’s voice calling for me.

“Matthew?  Matthew!  Wake up!  Are you there?  Can you hear me?” she was yelling at me.  My eyes shot open and I could feel tears rolling down my face.  All of those memories left behind.  Hell, I didn’t even really get any memories of my family, just memories of my life.  I didn’t really care though.  It was great to see all of those times again.

“Matthew, are you alright?  I just got back and found you sitting on the floor here.  Are you hurt?  Did something bad happen?  Did…” she said, but I stopped her.

“I’m fine Fluttershy, really.  I just had a little trip down memory lane.”

“Where’s that?” she asked me.  I couldn’t help but laugh.

“I mean that I just felt like napping.  I know I’m not in bed, but I didn’t need to be.  I started to remember some of the happier moments of my life.  I also remembered one not so great moment.  Finally, I saw what I think was a vision, but I’m pretty sure it was just a dream that wanted to interrupt my memory flow.  Don’t worry, I’m fine.  How was your day?” I asked her, trying to get her mind off of the fact that she found me napping on the floor.

“Oh, well, everything was nice.  I actually have a little surprise for you,” she said.  

“A surprise?  What is it?” I asked her.  Suddenly, from behind her, two golden tickets flew into the room.  Both floated next to her for a moment, but then one flew over to me.  I held it in my hand while the other one stayed hovering over Fluttershy.  I read over the ticket.  My mouth flew open and my eyes beamed open.

“No way,” I said to Fluttershy, my voice full of excitement.  She nodded in response, confirming what I believed.  I held in my hand a ticket to the Grand Galloping Gala.

“Have I ever told you how much I love you Fluttershy?”

She laughed a bit.  “Oh yes, many times, my love.”

“Well now, I love you even more.”

It was official.  I would be going to the Grand Galloping Gala with Fluttershy.  Her friends would be joining us as well, of course, but that I had actually gotten invited to go was incredible.  It surprised me how quickly the Princess had lightened up to me being in Equestria.  Hell, I was surprised at how quickly she just lightened up to me.  I would have to thank her later.  A few days after Fluttershy brought home with her those two tickets, we got a letter from the Princess.  The Princess had asked for Fluttershy and me to perform a song at the Gala.  Any song I wanted to do, event appropriate of course.  I smiled at the opportunity to shine on the stage once again.  It had been so long.

“What do you think Fluttershy, wanna do a song with me at the Gala?”

“Oh, I don’t know Matthew.  You know I’m not the best at performing in front of large crowds.”

“Yeah, I know, but I’ll be there with you.  You won’t need to worry.  C’mon, I know the perfect song we could do together.  Please,” I said, looking at her with the best puppy dog eyes I could make.  She looked back and laughed a bit.  Apparently I wasn’t very convincing.

“Oh, well, alright, we can do a song together.  What song did you have in mind?”

“I was thinking about performing “If It Means a Lot to You,” by A Day to Remember,” I said, and her face beamed with joy.  I had played that song for her a lot.  She loved it, so I knew she couldn’t pass up a chance to perform it.  It was perfect because there’s a female part in the song, which always held me back from performing it in the past.

“Really?!  Oh how I’ve always wanted to perform that song with you!”

“Wait, you’ve wanted to perform it with me?  Since when?”

“Since the day you first played it for me.  Well, maybe I didn’t want to perform it with you, but to just sing it with you.”

“Why didn’t you tell me that?  We could have done it anytime you wanted,” I told her, but then I remembered that back then, I wasn’t as good on the guitar as I am now.  I liked to play guitar back on Earth, but I wasn’t really good at it.  I decided to re-pursue that endeavor when I came to Equestria.  Apparently the ponies are masters of playing instruments with hooves.  I practiced a lot, getting lessons from Applejack and members of her family.  Rainbow Dash even learned with me.  She liked a lot of the songs I played for her, and wanted to learn how to play the guitar parts for them.  

“Well, now I’m a good guitarist, so I can play for the song.  So, we’re gonna do this?”

“Absolutely,” she answered, and I jumped up in excitement.

So, we started to practice the song, eventually mastered it, and before we knew it, the Gala had arrived.  Walking into Canterlot on the night of the Gala was amazing.  There were fireworks going off, lights all around us, and even the Wonderbolts were out.  Oh yeah, I forgot to mention, Rainbow Dash finally got in.  Those damn flyers finally wised up to Dash’s skills and let her join as their newest member.  Dash has added about five more levels of awesomeness to the Wonderbolts performances.  Dash would actually be performing that night with them all.  She had promised the girls and myself a special Sonic Rainboom just for us.  I couldn’t wait.

The girls and I spent a lot of time together that night.  We enjoyed some food, danced a bit, and just had a good time.  Fluttershy actually pulled me away from the party to go into the garden.  It really was a beautiful garden.  I had never seen it before.  Fluttershy had a lot better luck this time around meeting the animals that populated the garden.  I was surprised to see some of the unique animals that were there.

“Aren’t they beautiful?” Fluttershy asked me.

“Yeah, but not as beautiful as you,” I responded, even though I knew how corny it was to say that.

“Aw, aren’t you sweet,” she said, and kissed me on the cheek.

After about 20 minutes of taking in all the beautiful scenery, we headed back inside to prepare for our performance.  I was actually getting a little nervous.  I was so excited to perform that song, but now that the moment was almost here, I couldn’t help but feel nervous.  Fluttershy helped me to relax.

“Don’t worry Matthew, you’ll do fine.  I’ll be with you the whole time.”

“I know, it’s just been so long since I’ve performed.  And here I thought you would be the one getting nervous.  But, I won’t let that hold me down.  I promised a performance to these people and that’s what they’re gonna get,” I said.  The confidence was coming back to me.

“That’s the spirit,” Fluttershy said to me.  Shortly after, an announcement came on that we were going to perform in about 5 minutes.  After that was said, Fluttershy let out a little shriek and hid behind me.  I was confused at first, then I laughed.

“What happened to all the confidence?  Just a second ago you were all supportive of me and showed no fear,” I said in a humorous voice.

“Sorry, I just thought we would have more time before we performed,” she said.  I looked at her with a smile on my face, trying to calm her down.

“Don’t worry.  You’ll be there for me, and I’ll be there for you.  Let’s give these ponies the best performance they’ve ever seen,” I said, and she looked up to me, smiled back, and nodded her head.

We prepared ourselves, did a little warm up singing, and finally went on the stage to perform.  I got my guitar ready, and Fluttershy sat next to me.  I looked to the first row to see the rest of our friends sitting there to support us.  Looking at all the other ponies, they looked at me with concern, probably because most of them had never seen me before.  I knew they would be a little frightened by me, but I decided to ignore it.  I wanted to fill in what Fluttershy and I would be performing.

“Hey everypony, how’s your Grand Galloping Gala going so far?” I asked the crowd.  I got some responses from the crowd who still didn’t exactly trust me.  “Good to hear.  Well, a few days after getting my ticket, Princess Celestia asked if Fluttershy and I would perform a song for the party.  We, of course, said yes.  Tonight, we will be performing a song from my world, and it’s called “If It Means a Lot to You.”  We hope you ponies enjoy.  Here we go,” I said finally, and counted to four.

I started to play on the guitar, and I could see our friends starting to sway to the rhythm.  They encouraged other ponies to join in.  I started to sing the first few lines, and that immediately got some ponies into the song.  As I got into the chorus, everypony had finally started to enjoy the tune.

After a minute of me singing, Fluttershy started.   She sounded beautiful.  I loved the female singer in the original song from A Day to Remember, but Fluttershy just made the song sound so much more beautiful.  The crowd enjoyed her voice so much.  She looked to me a few times, and I looked back with a smile every time.  

We were coming up to a part of the song that would require some help from the crowd, but I had completely forgotten to have someone make that announcement.  I quickly realized that Twilight, Rainbow, and Applejack were going around the crowd telling them to sing along when they cued.  They hopped up on the stage, and got everyone ready.  As soon as we came to it, everyone started to sing.  Hey, what a coincidence.  The song’s line is, “Now everybody’s singing la, la la la, la la la,” and wouldn’t you know it, everypony was singing.  It felt amazing to be performing that song with so much enthusiasm from the crowd.

As we neared the end, Fluttershy and I looked at each other as we came closer to the final line.  As we sang the last note and I strummed the guitar one last time, we paused for a moment.  And then, the uproar of cheers and screams from the crowd overflowed us.  I waved to the crowd, thanking them for the applause.  Fluttershy waved a bit, hiding behind her hair.  She was so shy.

“Hey, c’mon, they loved you,” I said over the cheers from the crowd.  “Let’s give them a bow.”  I bowed my whole upper body.  Fluttershy bowed her head.  She looked to me and gestured for me to lean in.  We shared a kiss right on that stage in front of everypony at the Gala.  That got them even louder.  Fluttershy and I gave one more wave to the crowd as we exited out to the garden to get some fresh air.

After we were outside, we heard hoof steps running towards us.  Pinkie jumped onto Fluttershy to give her a huge hug.  Rainbow flew up to me and we shared a fist/hoof bump.

“That was great guys.  You two are so awesome together.  You gotta do that again sometime for Ponyville,” Rainbow said, flying around in excitement.

“Ponyville, why not all of Equestria?!” Pinkie chimed in.  “They were amazing.  Just think if they did some of those other songs Matt knows.  That would be INSANE!!!”  Pinkie was overjoyed with how well we had performed.

“Thanks guys.  You saved the whole thing by getting everyone to join in on the last part of the song.  And Pinkie, we will definitely do something like that eventually.  I don’t know when, but we will, right Fluttershy?” I said, and knelt down to her.

“Oh, well, maybe we could just perform for Ponyville, or how about just not at all,” she said, breathing heavily.  I couldn’t help but burst into laughter.  Soon after that, everyone was laughing, even Fluttershy.

“You’ll get over the fear.  Once you’ve done this a couple more times, it’ll be easy, I promise,” I said to her.  I went over and kissed her on the head.  She smiled at me.

“Well, that was really fun.  I guess we could do it again.  But why don’t the girls join us next time?” she said.  I looked to the others who quickly agreed.  I checked the time to see that it was almost time for the Wonderbolts to perform.

“So, now that we’ve shown off for tonight, I think its Rainbow Dash’s turn.  You ready?” I asked her.

“More than ever.  Like I said, a special Sonic Rainboom just for you guys.”  As she said that, she flew off to her team.  The rest of us headed for our seats to watch them perform.  In a matter of minutes, the Wonderbolts flew out into the sky.  Seeing as though I have no idea what they name their tricks, I’ll just tell you they did some sick stuff.  The crowd was ecstatic, and the girls and I were probably screaming out the loudest for Rainbow Dash.  We actually heard some other ponies cheering for her.

When everypony thought the act was over with a huge burst of lighting and light rain on the audience, Dash made her move.  She shot up into the sky, twirled around to make a cool rainbow swirl, and sped on down to the ground.  We watched as the Mach cone formed around.  She was doing it, and apparently none of the other Wonderbolts knew this was planned.  

With one final burst, Rainbow Dash delivered and Sonic Rainboom straight through the rain clouds, which let out a mist of water.  This only amplified the rainbow that formed, making it shimmer and glow in amazing ways.  We watched in awe at what Rainbow had just done.  That Sonic Rainboom was just for us, and it was perfect.  And a perfect moment calls for a perfect kiss.

I turned to Fluttershy and kissed her on the lips, only with much more passion (again, don’t be fucking sick, it was just a good moment for a kiss).  She returned the favor.  As we finally let go of the one minute long kiss, Fluttershy spoke.

“I love you Matthew, you know that right?”

“Indeed I do, and I love you too Fluttershy, more than anything in the world.”  We smiled at each other.  We sat back in our seats, she rested her head on my chest, and I put my arm around her.  Nothing could ruin that moment.  And so as not to leave you guessing, I’ll just tell you that nothing did.  Nothing could ever ruin moments like those.  The moments when it was just Fluttershy and me.

So as you can clearly tell those two years were pretty fun.  But, the third year of my life in Equestria probably changed everything the most.  I was 26 when it happened.  Once again, it was an ordinary day, but this time, it was a Wednesday (HOLY CRAP A WEEKDAY).  I had just gotten back from helping Twilight move some books around in the library.  She could be such a slob sometimes when she let those books get out of hand.  But, that is what she has Spike for, although he’s kind of lazy too.  Getting off track again, so I digress.  

I entered my home and was welcomed by Fluttershy with a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

“You seem rather happy to see me.  What’s up?  Was being without me for those two hours that bad?” I asked her sarcastically.  She giggled and shook her head.

“No, actually, I need to talk to you.  Let’s go in the living room.”

“Sure, but what do you want to talk about?” I asked, but she just kept walking and didn’t answer me.  I was now very curious, and also a little concerned.

“So seriously, what are we talking about?  You know I don’t like having my questions not answered.”  I really did hate that.  People would always never tell me stuff when I was in school.  It drove me nuts.

“Well, I’ve been thinking about some things Matthew.  I’ve been thinking about this for a while now, maybe about a month.  I’ve gone over in my head all the positives and the negatives to this decision, but the positives ultimately outweigh the few negatives I could come up with.”

“What are you talking about Fluttershy?  You aren’t suggesting we take a break, because that would just make my existence in Equestria pointless."

“Oh no, nothing like that.  I would never leave you, and you know that.  In fact, I’ve been thinking about the opposite of that.  I’ve been thinking about something that can further our relationship.”

“I thought we both agreed that us having intercourse in this state was weird, unless we both agreed on doing it.  And you know I don’t like babies that much.  We are not adopting.”

“Matthew, just listen to me, this is important,” she said.  I immediately shut up.

“Matthew, I’ve been thinking that maybe we could ask the Princess a favor.  Oh, why jump around it?  I’ve already asked her if she could do this at all, and she said yes.  I asked her if she could make me… human.”  The moment she said that my eyes grew and my mouth flew open.

“Wait… what?”

“I want to become a human Matthew.  Not just for me, or just for you, but for us.  Matthew you know we can’t get serious about our relationship like this.  You don’t want to become a pony, even though the Princess offered you the chance.  I’ve tried to get you to, but you won’t do it.  Therefore, I’ve decided to become a human.”

“Fluttershy, I can’t let you do that,” I responded, still in total shock of what she had just told me.  It hurt me a little bit to know she wanted to throw away her existence as a pony just for me.  No, she said for us.  But still, it didn’t seem right.  She had already asked the Princess though if she could be changed.  Did she ask if the Princess would do it?  I had to know.  But before I could ask, Fluttershy continued.

“It’s too late for that Matthew.  I’ve already asked the Princess to do this for me.  We are going to Canterlot tomorrow.  There is no changing my mind about this,” she said, answering my question before I could even ask it.

“But Fluttershy, you becoming a human, it’s like taking away a part of you.  I love you as a pony.  We don’t need to be able to have sex for our relationship to keep going.  I thought you knew that,” I said, starting to get a little emotional about the whole situation.

“Matthew, it’s not about having sex or anything like that, it’s about us.  Something about being human tells me that you will love me even more, and that I will therefore love you even more as well.  I want us to be happy.”

“I’m happy with things the way they are.  Hell, I might not love you as much if you become human.  I fell in love with a pony, not a human,” I said, but then realized that it was a little wrong of me to say that.  I didn’t fall in love with her because she was a pony, I fell in love with her because of who she is.  I fell in love with her shyness, her cuteness, her personality, her kindness, I fell in love with her.  That’s what she understood, and I just told her I only loved her because of her being a pony.  She started to cry.

“No, Fluttershy, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that.  I didn’t fall in love with you just because you’re a pony.  I fell in love with YOU.  That won’t change, no matter what,” I said.  I took a moment to collect myself.  “Are you sure you want this?  Being a human is much different from being a pony, but I’m sure you’ve taken that into account.”  She was crying less now, and she looked at me.

“Yes, I understand Matthew.  Like I told you, I’ve given this a lot of thought.  If you don’t want me to do this, I can tell Princess Celestia, but please.  I want this, and I think you do too.”  She was right, to a degree.  Her being a human may not be so bad, but I would have to get used to it.  I finally spoke out.

“Alright.  We’ll go to Canterlot and have the Princess turn you into a human.  If it’s really what you want, then I won’t stop you.  I love you no matter what,” I said to her, and she immediately smiled, jumped onto me, and started kissing me.

“Oh thank you Matthew.  I know you won’t regret this.”

“Yeah, I think I know that too.  But hey, don’t you think we should tell the girls.  I mean, they are your best friends.  I think they should know at least.”

“Oh, of course.  I was planning to go talk to them after we were done here.  Do you want to go now?” she asked.  I saw no reason to stay home when we had a big announcement for the others.

“Sure, let’s get them together at the library.  I know Twilight’s home, and I think Rainbow is at Sugarcube Corner with Pinkie.  Hopefully Applejack and Rarity are home as well.”  After I said that, we headed out to gather our friends.

Fluttershy and I gathered the girls in the library.  We told them what Fluttershy was going to do.  Twilight and Rainbow Dash protested, but Fluttershy told them about how this would be a good thing.  She had actually asked the Princess if this would affect her usage of the Element of Kindness.  It wouldn’t.  She would be able to keep her wings and everything.  The girls couldn’t think of anything to argue against her decision.  They all agreed to join us in Canterlot when the next day.  And so we waited for the next day to come.

The train ride to Canterlot was a quiet one.  We all sat on the train quietly, not wanting to talk.  Even Pinkie was silent.  She knew what was going to happen.  Hell, all of the girls knew what was going to happen.  They were going to lose the pony they had come to call their friend.  They would lose her, at least, in physical form.  There was always the option for Fluttershy to be changed back, but not at least for one year.  This was something Celestia had told Fluttershy, that if she was to go through with the change but want to be changed back, Fluttershy would have to wait for one year.  But, Fluttershy seemed pretty sure she wouldn’t want to change back.

We arrived in Canterlot.  It was a sunny day out, which was nice.  We were greeted by a Shining Armor.

“Twily, glad to see you again sis.  Glad to see the rest of you too,” he greeted us.  “The Princess is waiting for you in the castle, we shouldn’t keep her waiting.”  I honestly didn’t mind at the moment.  I wanted to be with the pony Fluttershy for just a while longer, but I wasn’t going to get that.

We arrived at the castle, and Princess Celestia was there waiting for us.

“Hello once again everypony.  Hello to you as well Matthew,” she said.

“Good to see you again Princess,” I said, bowing my head to her.  “So, you’re really going to do this for Fluttershy?  Like, you’re not even going to try to go against her decision?” I asked.  I wasn’t trying to persuade her to not do it, I was just surprised that she actually was willing to do this.  I wanted to know why.

“Matthew, you have shown that you are willing to do anything for Fluttershy, and that is because of the love you share.  Fluttershy has proven to me with this choice that she is also willing to do anything for you, or as she has said, for the both of you.  I see no reason to deny her this change.  But Fluttershy, I will ask one more time.  Are you sure you want to do this?” Celestia asked.

“I’m sure Princess, and nothing will change my mind.”  Fluttershy was so confident about this decision.  I don’t think I had ever seen her be more confident about anything in the time that we had been in our relationship.  She really wanted this.  I couldn’t help but start to tear up a bit.

The Princess nodded to us, and told us to follow her to the main chamber of the castle.  The Princess stood at one end of the room, and Fluttershy stood opposite her.  Our friends stood to the side.  I remained next to Fluttershy.  At least, I would remain there until Celestia did what she was going to do.

I looked at Fluttershy one more time and gave her a smile.  She returned the smile.

“Hey, if something goes wrong, you know I love you, right?” I told her.

“Of course I do, and everything will be fine.  I promise,” she said.  We shared one last kiss before Celestia was ready.  I stood back from Fluttershy.  Celestia charged up her magic.  Her horn started to glow, and after a few more seconds, she released the energy at Fluttershy.  

Fluttershy started to float up into the air, and Celestia stopped blasting her with her magic.  I could see Fluttershy, up until the point that the light got so bright we all had to cover our eyes.  After the light stopped shining and we could all see, the pony Fluttershy was gone.  In her place was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen.

Fluttershy was just simply beautiful.  Her hair was still pink, she still had her yellow Pegasus wings, and although I probably shouldn’t write it, she did have a nice rack (hey, I’m sure some of you freaks would want to know, or at least try to imagine it, so why don’t I just tell you?).  Looking past all of that, she was pretty tall, but not as tall as me.  I was about six feet tall.  She looked to be about five feet and maybe nine inches tall.  She had a slim body that was just perfect.  When she finally looked up, I saw her face, her beautiful face.  Her eyes were still that beautiful shade of blue.  Her hair wasn’t as long as when she was a pony, but it was still pretty long.  When she smiled at me, my heart melted.  She wasn’t just beautiful, she was adorable.  She gave me one of those smiles that cute anime girls often give.  She started to blush a bit, which just made her even cuter.  I couldn’t stop the tears.  

I looked down to her legs when I spotted something.  Rather, I looked to her thighs.  She hadn’t been wearing clothes as a pony, but now, she was wearing some sort of a toga.  Maybe toga isn’t the right word, but it wasn’t full on clothing.  Maybe you could call it a sheet, I don’t know.  I just know that her right thigh was exposed enough that I noticed her Cutie Mark was still there.  Thank God she didn’t lose it.  I smiled back to her after I was done looking at her Cutie Mark.

“Well, what do you think?” she asked us.  I couldn’t speak, but when I finally managed myself to be able to, I spoke.

“You look… amazing.  I can’t believe I thought this would be a bad idea,” I said, chuckling a bit.  Fluttershy joined in on my laughter.  “Remember all those doubts I had about this?” I asked her.

“Well, yes.  What about them?”

“I think they all just died,” I said, which brought about more laughter, not just from the two of us, but also from the other ponies in the room.  But, foolishly, Fluttershy tried to walk over to me.  She lost her balance and fell to the floor.  I quickly rushed over to her.

“Hey, are you alright?  Don’t try to walk yet, you need to learn, as dumb as that sounds.  You won’t be walking on all fours anymore.”

“I’m fine, and I guess I should have thought about that before trying to walk huh?”

“Yeah, probably.  Don’t worry though, I’ll help you learn.  Actually, I’m kind of the only person who can teach you to walk like a human,” I said.  I was the only human in Equestria, so obviously I had to teach her.

I helped her get up and guided her out of the room, catching her when she stumbled along the way.  A question formed in my mind.

“Hey, can you still fly?” I asked.  She looked at me, then looked to her wings.  She unfolded them and tried to fly, and to my relief, she could indeed fly.  She seemed to have to put more effort due to her added weight from being a human.  She fell to the ground again, but I caught her.

We decided it was time to go.  We thanked the Princess for everything.  She explained that if Fluttershy needed help with something, we only needed to ask.  After that, Fluttershy, the girls, and I, all left for Ponyville.  When we arrived, it was pretty late, so everyone decided that we would all get to learn about the new Fluttershy the next day.  The ponies left to their respective homes, and Fluttershy and I headed to our home.

As we got into bed, Fluttershy started to move her limbs around, trying to get acquainted with all the new movements she could do.  She loved moving her fingers around.  She never had them before.  I smiled at her enthusiasm for her new body.  I really did love this new Fluttershy.  No, it wasn’t a new Fluttershy.  Fluttershy had just changed her look.  The Fluttershy I had fallen in love with was still right there in front of me.

As we started to fall asleep, Fluttershy rested her head on my chest, and I held her close.

“You were right Fluttershy.  I do love you even more now.  Thank you,” I said to her.

“I love you too Matthew, even more so now,” she responded.

She was so innocent right then and there.  She looked at me, and I looked back at her.  We shared our first kiss with the both of us as humans.  It was the greatest kiss of my entire life.  I truly did love Fluttershy, and she loved me just the same.  Everything was finally perfect.

It took about one week for me to explain everything there was to explain about being human to Fluttershy, and for her to understand it.  I had to explain how her body worked and all that nonsense.  Helping her get used to her new body was pretty simple.  Learning to walk was easy, and teaching her to use her arms and legs properly wasn’t too difficult.  After that one week, plus about two days, Fluttershy knew everything about being human.

Which brings me to the Saturday night after that one week had finished (she changed on a Thursday, hence the plus two days).  That Saturday, I had arrived home from a little competition with Rainbow Dash.  She wanted to see if she could beat me in a race through the Everfree Forest if I used my wings and parkour skills against her amazing speed.  I almost actually beat her, but she obviously won.  

When I got home, I was greeted by Fluttershy.  She gave me a kiss.  It wasn’t too late, but I was ready to go to bed.  That race tired me out a bit.  But Fluttershy had an important question to ask.

“So, um, Matthew, now that I know everything I need to know about being human, could we…” she stopped herself, her face completely red from her blushing so much.  I took a moment to think and then it hit me.  I gave her a little smirk.

“Yes, yes we can,” I answered.  She didn’t need to finish the question.  She smiled back to me, grabbed my arm, and took me into the bedroom.  You can imagine what followed.  No, I’m not writing about the sex I had with Fluttershy.  I’ll just tell you we had sex.  If you really want to know, I’ll just say that Fluttershy is amazing and leave it at that.  For it being both her first time in general and her first time as a human, she was incredible.  Now stop being perverted.

So yeah, after that, life was just amazing.  Fluttershy and I were both happy with how our relationship was going, our friends were doing great, and nothing bad was happening.  I had actually started to plan when I would ask Fluttershy to marry me, I just needed a bit of time to figure everything out.  But, as always, nothing in this world is really perfect.  It all comes to an end eventually.  You’re probably thinking the relationship ended.  Far from it, but it almost did, because I almost died.

It was one year after Fluttershy had become a human.  Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and I were out for a run in the Everfree Forest.  Rainbow wanted to see how well Fluttershy could fly in the Everfree as a human.  Fluttershy never really did fly through it as a pony, but Rainbow just wanted to see.  Fluttershy flew great as a human, but this was a challenge, one that she actually kind of accepted.  I was quite surprised.  I, however, wanted to try to do a parkour run without the use of my wings.  I often used them to my advantage when I went out for parkour runs, but not this time.

We were pretty deep into the forest, but not so deep that we would get lost.  I was on a role, not using my wings once.  Fluttershy was keeping up pretty well, and Rainbow led us through the forest.  Rainbow took a moment to let us catch up a bit.  I was going at a good pace, but not as fast as I could.  I wanted to stay near Fluttershy.

“Come on slow pokes.  Fluttershy, I know you can go faster, stop slowing down Matt,” Rainbow said.

“Calm yourself Dash, let her go at her own pace.  I’m fine with it, so just chill.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, it’s just that the extra weight of my human body sometimes slows me down.  You can go ahead, I won’t mind.”

“No, Fluttershy, we’re staying together.  Right Rainbow Dash?” I asked her, looking at her and raising an eyebrow.

Rainbow moaned a bit.  “Fine, we can slow down.  Sorry Fluttershy.”

“No need to apologize Rainbow.”  We continued on at a slower pace, but not incredibly slow.  I took a moment to look at a particularly tall tree.  Rainbow turned around and looked up.  Shortly after, Fluttershy did the same.  We all looked at each other and agreed to ascend the tree.  I climbed while Rainbow and Fluttershy flew up.  Once at the top, I felt like I was at having an Assassin’s Creed moment.  I looked below for a pile of leaves or something that I could do a Leap of Faith into, but there weren’t any to be found.  

I looked over the horizon to see what appeared to be a large storm cloud.  It didn’t seem to be moving too fast, but I knew we should probably get out of the forest soon.

“Hey, I think we should head back now.  That storm doesn’t look too good.  I thought you said clear skies all day Dash?”

“I thought so.  I guess the weather team decided otherwise.  No biggie though, it’s moving too slow to affect us,” Rainbow said, not really phased by the obviously huge storm approaching.

“Matthew’s right Rainbow.  If we get caught in that while in the forest, we could get hurt,” Fluttershy said, backing up what I believed.  We both looked at Rainbow, who once again let out a moan.

“Fine, fine, we can head back.  But you still can’t use those wings Matt,” she said, assuring that I was still challenging myself.

“Hey, I said I wouldn’t use them, and I’m not gonna.  Let’s go,” I said, starting to descend the tree.  I had to get down the old fashioned way but climbing down to a better level.  At that point, I started to parkour my way back home with Fluttershy and Rainbow following behind me.  But, about two minutes after we descended the tree, we heard a loud boom from the clouds, which had somehow moved directly over us.

“How the hell did they move that fast?  They were nowhere near us a few minutes ago,” I said, taken back by how quickly the huge clouds had moved.  Rainbow shrugged and gestured for us to move a bit quicker.  I couldn’t disagree now.  

As we started off again though, the rain started to pour down on us.  It was pretty heavy actually, affecting how I well I was able to parkour through the forest.

“This really sucks!  We need to get out of the forest now!” I shouted under the rain.  Rainbow and Fluttershy nodded to me, and we started moving at a much faster pace.  Fluttershy managed to keep up with Rainbow and me.  I was running through the trees like they were nothing, and Rainbow swerved through like butter.  Fluttershy was fine, able to keep up with us both with no trouble, like I said.

But, then the lightning started to come down.  The first bolt struck a tree a few yards away from us.  We were all shocked, looking from one another back to the spot where the lightning had just struck.  With one last look, we bolted off as fast as we could to get out of there.  I heard one more crack of lightning hit a tree behind us.  Now I was worried.  Fluttershy and Rainbow had a good bit of ground on me, seeing as though they were flying and I was running through the trees.  I knew well enough that it wasn’t smart, but I didn’t care.  Although, now, after what happened moments later, I don’t think I’ll ever parkour in a storm again.

I landed on a pretty thick branch, obviously thick enough to hold me up, but not too thick that it would hold forever.  Well, it was just my luck that a bolt of lightning struck the branch at the spot where it connected to the tree.  I was taken by surprise by it, losing my balance.  Fluttershy and Rainbow looked back, and I could see that they were scared now.  I tried to keep going, to get off of the tree.  But before I knew it, the branch snapped, and I fell.

I fell a good few feet, maybe about the height of an average sized house.  The branch was falling close to me.  I was too scared to either push it, or open my wings.  Well, by some stroke of bad luck, the branch landed vertically, pointing up into the air.  It stayed that way long enough for me to land on it.  You can imagine what comes next.

I landed straight on the branch.  I landed with enough force to lodge the branch straight through the right side of my chest.  That branch passed straight through, with enough force that it even hurt my right wing.  The pain was unbearable.  I wanted to scream, but couldn’t.  There was a branch lodged straight in the right side of my chest.  I could feel the blood seeping out of the hole, and the branch was too thick for me to pull out.  I gasped for air, coughing up blood all the while.  I managed to speak.

“Fluttershy, wait,” I said, my voice barely audible.  I didn’t need to say it loud though, they had both seen what had just happened.  They flew straight to me.

“MATTHEW!  OH SWEET CELESTIA, PLEASE DON’T DIE!  PLEASE!” Fluttershy screamed out, her voice filled with fear, and her eyes full of tears.  Rainbow wasn’t doing so well either.  She was in total shock, but she knew what had to be done.

“Fluttershy, we’ve gotta pull this branch out!  We can’t leave it in him, it’ll make things worse!” I could hear Rainbow saying.  Their voices were a little muffled by the rain.  I saw Fluttershy give a nod, knowing that it had to be done.

They gripped the branch, which sent a tingle through my body.  I felt so much pain.  They started pulling, which made it worse.  They decided not to sugar coat anything and just pulled the damn thing straight out with one great force.  I screamed out in immense pain, and turned onto my back.  Blood was gushing out of the hole in my chest.  Everything started to go dark as I gasped for air.  Rain was pouring on my face.  I looked into Fluttershy’s eyes for what I thought would be the last time.  This was how I was going to go out.  Done in by a fucking tree branch.  I gathered enough strength to lift my hand to Fluttershy’s face, which was filled with tears at this point.  With my last breath, I uttered one phrase.

“I love you,” was all I could say.  My eyes started to close, and I could still hear Fluttershy screaming.

“NO!  MATTHEW, PLEASE NO!” she screamed.  My hand fell to the ground, and my eyes closed completely.  Although it was a lot earlier than I wanted, I was able to accept it, to accept death.  I fell into the endless slumber of death, thinking about Fluttershy until my last moment.

‘Goodbye, Fluttershy… my love.’

I awoke in a black, well, abyss, for lack of a better word.  It was more like a black nothing.  Everything around me was black.  All I could see was black.  I could see myself, but aside from that, blackness was all around me.  I was confused beyond belief.  Was this what dying was like?  I had assumed I would arrive to a white sky full of sunshine, and be greeted by my fallen family members, like my father.  But, life is full of disappointments.  Well, I was dead, so I guess that means death is full of surprises too.

I tried so hard not to, but a sudden urge told me to look down.  I was standing on nothing.  Believe it or not, I was walking on air (see what I did there?).  I took a step forward, and I didn’t fall.  I continued to walk on for a while, until the point where walking on nothing freaked me out too much that I took flight.  I still had my wings in death, which was awesome.

I flew around for what felt like forever.  I had nowhere to go in this abyss, but what else could I do.  I tried looking for Fluttershy.  I don’t know why I did, but it just felt right to me.  I thought maybe I wasn’t dead, and that if I found her in this nothingness that I would wake up and be saved.  I looked for what also felt like forever, but to no avail.  I couldn’t find her.  I couldn’t find anyone, anypony, or anything.  I was completely alone.  Or so I thought.

After a while, I heard a voice.

“Welcome Matthew,” the voice said, in a very deep, sadistic, and menacing tone, but it was almost like an echoing whisper.  The first thing I felt was surprise, then a bit fear.

“Who said that?” I asked back to the voice.

“I have been waiting for your arrival Matthew.  It is time for you to die,” the voice said again, a little louder now.

“Death, is that you?  I kind of know what you’re probably going to look like, so why hide?” I asked.  I thought it actually was Death himself.  What I got was much worse.

“Oh no, Matthew, I am not Death.  There is no such person or thing as Death.  There is only, the Darkness!” the voice said, starting to creep up on my position.  My instincts kicked in, and I reached for my tomahawk.  But, I then realized that I was dead, and even beforehand I didn’t have my tomahawk on me.  So, I put up my fists.

“Show yourself!  Stop hiding!” I said, hovering in the air, ready to defend myself.  Whatever was out there got the point, and what I saw paralyzed me.

“Here I am Matthew.  Behold!  I am the Darkness!” the figure said.  He looked just like a human, except he was misty.  When I say that, I mean he looked like a shadowy mist.  His body was made of shadows, but he was quite visible to me.  But, just looking at him sent a chill down my spine.

“No words of courage, Matthew?  A pity, I expected a little bit more of a fight, especially from you.  You are, after all, quite a powerful warrior.”

“I’m no warrior.  Having skills such as mine doesn’t make me a warrior.”

“You’re right Matthew, it makes you a monster!  The monster that killed those two men all those years ago.  The monster that selfishly left behind his family for personal gain.  The monster that has been inside of you all along, but you were too stubborn to let it out completely.  It looks like, very soon, you are going to have to, at least, if you want to survive.  Your father tried to, but it didn’t work out very well,” the Darkness said.  The mentioning of everything else hurt, but when he mentioned my father, anger shot through my body.  

“Don’t you dare talk of my father you monster!  He was no monster, and neither am I.  YOU ARE!” I shouted out in pure rage.  I was ready to fight this thing, even if I was already dead.  But what he did scared me half to death.  And hell, I was already dead.

The Darkness disappeared for a moment, and suddenly reappeared right in front of me.  He stared into my soul with cold, dark eyes.  He sent a pain through my body, and I was paralyzed, literally.  I couldn’t move, and I so badly wanted to pull away from those eyes.  They burned my very soul.  I had never felt fear such as that.  For Christ’s sake I was dead.  How was all of this happening?

“I will drag you down into the Abyss of the Darkness!  Your father may have been able to escape me, regardless of his abilities, but you will not escape me Matthew!  I will claim your soul for myself, and you will never see the lights of your precious Heaven!”  His words made me feel weak.  My body was growing numb.  I was losing the feeling in my body, and I had already been paralyzed.  

As the Darkness was about to grab my neck, a shot of light beamed through the black abyss.  It blinded the Darkness, making him lose his grip on my soul.  I fell to the floor, or at least whatever it was that I was able to walk on, gasping for air.  I was gasping for whatever dead people breathed in.  The Darkness was starting to turn to nothing.  I looked at him, amused at his suffering.  But this didn't stop him from speaking a few final words before completely disappearing.

“You have not seen the last of me Matthew!  I will have your soul, and the souls of all your precious friends and family!  When I’ve finished with you, Fluttershy will be next.  Oh how she will suffer.”

“Burn in hell you piece of shit,” was all I said before he disappeared into the nothingness.  The light grew so great that all of the darkness around me became whiteness.  I turned to see the origin of the light.  Standing before me was my very own father.

“Dad?” I said, completely in shock.  He looked as young as when he had died, and he wasn't really old at point.  I guess in death you don’t age.  I hadn’t seen him in so long.  Well, that’s obvious, but that I was actually seeing him again was incredible.

“Yes, Matthew, it is me.  It is good to see you again son.  My how you’ve grown up.  Your mother may not always show it, but she certainly is proud of you.  So am I,” he said, his words forcing me to start crying.  To hear his voice again was just too much.  

“What just happened Dad?  What was that thing, or rather, who was it?  Why did it act like it knew you?” I asked my father, hoping to get some answers.

“All will be explained in time, my son.  For now, you must return to the world of the living.  Your time has not yet come.”

“Well, I figured that much.  But, Dad… will I ever get to see you again, I mean, before I die?  I miss you so much.  I may not show it all the time, but I do,” I said to my father.  I really did miss him.  Even though I barely knew him (because he died when I was so young), he still meant so much to me.

“Perhaps, my son.  Only time will tell.  Now, return to her.  Return to Fluttershy.  She needs you, and you need her,” he said, starting to turn to leave.  But, before he left, he had one more thing to say.

“And, Matthew, the Darkness will not leave you alone.  It is up to you now to finish what I couldn’t.  You will know that to do when the time is right.  I have faith in you Matthew.  I love you son.  Goodbye,” he said, leaving me so confused.

“Wait, Dad, DAD!  COME BACK!” I shouted out.  I ran to him, but he was gone.  I was left in a pure white sky.  I looked around.  Suddenly, a door appeared in front of me.  I decided I might as well open it.  Light flushed out, and I was blinded.  I was going home.

I awoke to the beeping of a heart monitor.  It was beeping due to my heart once again being active.  Had I just died and come back to life?  Was everything that just happened real?  Was that really my father?  I was so confused.

I tried to move my right arm, but pain shot through my body.  I let out a moan of pain and started to cough.  I began to breathe heavily.  Where was everyone, or everypony I should say.

“Hello?  Is anyone there?  Fluttershy?” I called out, my voice barely audible.  I thought I had heard voices from outside, but my speaking made it all stop, if there even was any speaking to begin with.  I heard the door knob being twisted.  After a moment, Fluttershy was standing in the doorway, still human.  She put her hand to her mouth, in total shock that I was alive.  I guess I really had died, but for how long?  Fluttershy was crying hysterically now.  She ran over to me and hugged me, being careful not to hurt me.

“Oh thank Celestia you’re alive Matthew!  We thought we lost you!  I was so scared, I didn’t know what I would do without you!” she said, crying the whole time.

She stopped hugging me and gave me a strong kiss on the lips.  When she broke it, I felt weak, but not weak enough that I couldn’t speak.

“I love you Fluttershy, I love you so much.  I promise, I’ll never leave you, not until the day I die, but for real,” I said to her, making sure every word was as crystal clear as could be.  She hugged me again, and with all my strength, I returned the hug.

Shortly after, Twilight, Rainbow, Applejack, Pinkie, Rarity, and even Princess Celestia entered the room.  They were all crying at the fact that I had survived and was alive.

“Princess, did you do this?” Twilight asked her teacher.

“No Twilight, I did not.  Which makes me curious as to how you are here right now Matthew.  That is not to say that I am not thrilled that you have survived, it just makes me wonder as to how you did,” the Princess said.  I couldn’t blame her for being confused.  They all really thought I was dead, and I was.

“To be honest with you Princess, I shouldn’t be here right now.  Wait, how long was I dead?” I asked.  They all looked one another, but it was Fluttershy who spoke.

“Matthew, you were dead for about one hour,” she said.  My mouth fell open.  I was in complete shock.  I had been dead for one hour.  My dad saved me.  I really shouldn’t have been alive.  But, quite frankly, I didn’t care.

“It was my dad.  He saved me.  I should still be dead.  I shouldn’t be here.  But, hell if I care,” I said.  I couldn’t help but say “Thanks Dad,” which confused everyone in the room.  Celestia understood that I was trying to communicate to my father for saving me.  I really wanted to see him again though.  He had just saved me from the hands of the Darkness, an enemy that said it knew my father.  I had to figure out how it knew him, but I didn’t know how.  My dad just told me that all would be explained in time.  I decided to just put up with it and enjoy the moment.  I had, after all, just come back to life.

Fluttershy continued to kiss me, and I returned every kiss.  There was a doctor trying to get in, but he figured he would give us a moment.  The same could be said of every other pony in the room.  They all exited, and left Fluttershy and me alone.

“I love you Matthew!  I don’t want you to leave me, ever!”

“I will never leave you Fluttershy, I promise!” I said, and we kissed again.

‘I love you Dad,’ I thought to myself, while hugging Fluttershy.  I owed him my very life.  I looked into Fluttershy’s eyes, and she looked back into mine.  Her eyes were still filled with tears, which made me cry in return.  I was going to do whatever it took to protect her.  I wouldn’t let anything come between us ever again.  Nothing would come between Fluttershy and me.

After a few more minutes, the doctor and everypony else decided to enter the room.  Fluttershy let go of me so I could see all of my friends.  That they were all there for me was no surprise, but it just felt great to know that they really cared about me.  I proceeded to ask the doc what was up with me.

“So doc, how bad am I?” I asked him plainly.  

“Matthew, you are quite lucky to have friends such as Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash.  They pulled that branch out of you and got you here on the double.  But, even with that, you still died.  How you are even alive right now amazes me.  As for your injury, well, the branch went straight through the right side of your chest, as you can tell.  This, in turn, managed to cut off vital blood vessels and arteries needed to supply your heart with blood.  When you got here, we managed to stitch everything up as best, and as fast, as we could, but even with that, like I said, you still died, for one hour and three minutes.”  I had already been told how long I was dead for.  I didn’t try to explain to the doctor how I had survived.  I doubted he would believe it, so I just let him draw his own conclusions.

“Am I at all paralyzed in any parts of my body?” I asked.  I was afraid he would say yes.  Thankfully, his answer was no, but I sure as hell did come close to being paralyzed on the right side of my whole body.  

“The branch managed to bang up your right wing pretty badly as well.  It will heal much quicker than your much more obvious injury.”  This brought about my next question.

“So, how long am I gonna have to stay in the hospital?  I mean, I can barely move right now, so don’t sugarcoat it.”  I honestly wanted him to sugarcoat it, but I figured there was no way around it.

“I’m sorry to say Matthew, but you will have to stay here to recover for one year.  And, even after you have healed, your heart may not act the same.  You must keep your blood pressure at a low rate, lest you want your heart to clog with blood.  You may also suffer from small spasms during the recovery time, but it will go away.  Once again, I apologize Matthew.”  One year, he said to me.  I was going to spend one year of my life in a hospital.  Just my rotten luck.

I was in disbelief, but I accepted it.  I let out a deep breath, which caused me to cough from the pain in my chest.  I moaned at the pain that I was still undergoing.  I didn’t want to tell Fluttershy when she was hugging and kissing me, but she was hurting me a bit.  But for her, I would suffer any pain.

“Will I be able to still parkour around the town and stuff like that?  I don’t think I can live without my physical skills,” I told the doctor.  I think I would rather be stuck in a wheelchair all my life than have my physical skills taken away from me.

“Yes Matthew, you will still be able to move as well as you do normally, but like I said, your blood pressure must be kept in check,” he told me.  My blood pressure was normally fine, so I wasn’t really worried about that.

“Don’t worry Matthew.  In one year’s time we will have you back on your feet as fleet as you were before this whole mess, you have my word,” the doctor promised me.

“Thanks doc.  Would you mind if I spent some time with my friends here?”

“Of course not, they can stay as long as they wish,” he said, and he left the room.  Fluttershy, our pony friends, and Celestia all looked at me, unable to move a hair, as I lay in my bed.

“Man, Matt, one year.  I thought one week was bad when I broke my wing a while back.  I don’t think I could sit through one year,” Rainbow said, trying to cheer me up.  It helped, but not much.  

“Yeah, well what are you gonna do?  At least I’m not dead.  I still can’t believe I’m here right now.  And what I saw, was just…” I stopped myself.  I didn’t think it necessary to tell them what I had seen, not yet at least.  They had enough to worry about with me in my current state.

“Princess, can’t you just heal Matthew?  You’ve healed me when I’ve injured myself in the past,” Twilight asked her teacher.

“Twilight, those injuries were minor, and Matthew’s injuries are much more severe.  Also, I have no knowledge of what my healing magic can do for him.  I know very little of how the human body works, and I may heal him incorrectly if I try.  I apologize Matthew,” the Princess responded.

“It’s quite alright Princess.  I don’t really want to cheat my way out of this.  Although the circumstances aren’t what I want them to be, this may actually grant me a nice change of pace.”  I had been living a life that was in the fast lane at that time.  I needed a little time to relax and chill out, even though at that time I was severely injured and on the brink of death.

We all spent about the next hour together, just talking about things that just came to mind.  Soon, everypony decided to leave, all except for Fluttershy.  She stayed behind.

“Matthew, I don’t want to leave you alone here,” she said, looking me in the eyes.  “I want to stay with you, to make sure you get better.  I know how to take care of people, I could really help,” she continued.

“Fluttershy, you’ve yet to experience an injury as a human, or even get the slightest cold.  You’ll come to find that soups and, well, whatever you normally use to bring your animal friends back to health won’t really work for me.  I’m gonna need things like… well, I’ll just say I’ll need stuff that you can’t necessarily provide.  I’m sorry if I’m being harsh, but this is just how things are.”  She looked at me and nodded her head.  She gave me a hug and a kiss on the head.

“Does that mean I can’t stay here?” she asked.

“Well, I’m not sure.  If it were up to me, I wouldn’t want you to leave my side.  But, it’s the doctor's decision whether or not you can stay with me.  But, for tonight, I’ll tell him you’re staying, regardless of what he wants.  How’s that sound?” I asked her.  She smiled at me and we kissed.

Shortly after that, the doctor came in, and asked if Fluttershy could leave.  It was pretty late, and he wanted me to get some sleep.  I told him that she was staying with me for the night.  He didn’t try to argue with it, and left us as we were.  I, however, didn’t go against his choice to get some sleep.  Fluttershy fell asleep with me on the side of my bed.  And once again, we shared our dreams.

And so, time passed on by.  I healed at a good rate, and by the end of the first two months, my wings were back to full health.  I still could barely move at that point, and when I could move, I felt pain.  Not as severe as in the beginning, but I still felt pain.  Fluttershy would visit me every day, and would stay with me on most nights.  The rest of our friends would normally come visit at least three times a week.  Rainbow visited the most out of them all.  She couldn’t bare to see me flightless, but I told her it was alright.

Well, about six months into my stay, the girls decided to get me some gifts.  And these gifts, let me tell you, were pretty damn amazing.  I was resting in bed, reading some of The Walking Dead, when the girls came in.  They were all smiling.  Fluttershy wasn’t there though.  I asked why.  

“Well Matt, Fluttershy’s gift is a little too hard for us to hide, so she’s just gonna wait outside until you’re done being excited over what the five of us got you,” Rainbow said.  So, Rainbow, Twilight, Pinkie, Rarity, and Applejack all pitched in to get me one gift, and Fluttershy got me one from herself.  Awesome.

“So, what did you girls get me?” I asked, my curiosity at its peak.  They all looked to each other, smiling.  Twilight used her magic to float one of my hidden blades onto my bed.  It was my right blade, and it looked the same.  Now, I was confused.

“My hidden blade?  I don’t get it,” I said.

“Take a gander at it, carefully Matt,” Applejack told me.  So I looked it over, and I was immediately dumbfounded, for both not noticing it in the first place, and for what it actually was.  My right hidden blade had been changed into a hookblade.  How the hell did they know that I had wanted one?  How the hell did they even know how to make one?

“How did you,” I started, but was cut off by Rainbow.

“I see you play Assassin’s Creed all the time Matt, and the one with that kind of a blade stuck out to me.  You sort of talked sometimes of how you wanted one, so I figured out a way to make one.  It’ll still stab if you need it too, but now you’ve got the hook,” she told me.  I tried to see how it would work.  The hook part would actually close back into the bracer of the blade, but it would still leave the blade out so I could stab.  If I let go of the hook, it would snap back out.  This meant it would only go back in if I needed to stab with it.  Sweetness.

“Wow, girls, I can’t say thank you enough.  This is awesome.  Lets see if I can make it work,” I said, strapping on the blade.  At this point, I was able to move pretty well.  My recovery was going smoothly, but I was still injured to a good degree.  I managed to get the blade working, sliding it out and in of its bracer.  It fit like a glove and worked like a charm.

“Now then, what did Fluttershy get me?  Where is she anyway?” I asked the girls.

“She’s outside.  Hey Fluttershy, you can come in now,” Rainbow called to Fluttershy.  Fluttershy walked in with an eagle, a beautiful bald eagle.  In fact, I think it was the same one that I took a feather from for my wings.  I looked at it, and then to Fluttershy, and smiled.

“You’re giving me an eagle as a gift?  That’s even cooler than the blade, no offence to you girls though, this thing is still awesome, but an eagle!  Come on, you gotta admit that’s cool,” I said, overflowing with joy at the eagle that was perched on Fluttershy’s arm.

“I told him how you got hurt, he wanted to come see you.  After all, you do share some similar qualities.  Well, actually, you both just have wings, and yours are white Matthew, but nonetheless, he still wanted to come see you.  He actually wants to be your pet now.  He told me that he wants you to name him,” Fluttershy said, and she handed him off to me.  It was a good thing I had on my bracer, because that eagle had some sharp talons.  I looked him over.  He had dark brown feathers, easily dark enough to conceal him in the dark.  So, I went to the most original name ever.

“Nightwing,” I said (original, right?).  “His name will be Nightwing.  What do you think about that?  You like that name?” I asked the eagle.

“As a matter of fact, I do,” said a voice.  I was caught off guard, and my face wore a surprised look.  Fluttershy giggled at this.  She knew what just happened.

“Who said that?” I openly asked.  The ponies in the room just looked confused, but Fluttershy knew.  Nightwing had just spoken to me.  I looked back to him.

“Did you just talk to me?  How is that possible?”

“Matthew, you had taken one of my own feathers to gain your wings.  That feather held a part of me.  Not only did the potion you drink grant you wings, it allowed you the ability to communicate with me.  I might say that that is a pretty cool ability for one such as yourself,” Nightwing said to me.  His voice was bold, and very noble, if that makes sense.  He had a young voice, almost like Gresh from that fourth Bionicle movie, except a bit older.

I didn’t care what he sounded like, I could talk to my pet eagle.  How cool is that?

“Fluttershy, are you hearing this?” I asked her.

“Indeed I am.  He was actually the one to explain it to me.  He told me he felt a connection to you.  I guess we know what he meant now,” she responded, her voice filled with joy.  

“Well Nightwing, I’m glad to call you my new pet.  Hell, you’re not even a pet, you’re like a brother practically.  I don’t suppose I could call you into battle if I wanted to could I?” I asked him.

“Well, provided I won’t get my feathers fried off, I think that’d be fine.  After all, spending most of my life with Fluttershy had gotten old.  I need some adventure, no offence to you Fluttershy,” he said.  I laughed, and so did Fluttershy.

“None taken, Nightwing.  I’m actually glad you’ll be getting out more now that you’ll have an owner, or brother, who you can go out and fly with.  But, while Matthew is here in the hospital, you wouldn’t mind staying with me would you?” she asked him.

“Of course not.  Although, I would like to come visit him with you, if that’s alright?”

“I see no problem with that.  Matthew?” she turned to me.

“Well of course my brother can come visit me, why wouldn’t he be allowed to?” I said, and I used my fingers to rub under his chin.  He seemed to like that.

We all spent another hour together.  The girls were amazed that I could actually talk to Nightwing.  They started asking him questions, in which I would translate his answers to them.  Sometimes, for fun, I would say that he said something other than what he had answered.  He would shoot me funny looks when I did that, which made me laugh.  But, after a while, everypony started to leave.  Of course, Fluttershy was the last to leave.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, okay Matthew?  And don’t worry, Nightwing will be with me, won’t you Nightwing?” Fluttershy said.

“Of course I will, anything for my new master,” he said.

“Brothers, Nightwing, we’re brothers.  Don’t call me master, it’s too weird,” I told him, and we all started to laugh a bit.  After that, Fluttershy and I kissed goodbye, and I gave Nightwing another chin rub with my fingers, and then they left.  Fluttershy took my blade home with her.  I saw no reason to keep it in the hospital.  

That had been one great day.  I had actually gotten really worn out, so I decided to hit the hay (no pun intended).  But that night, even though Fluttershy and I weren’t in the same place, we shared a dream.  

‘Fluttershy,’ I thought to myself, before I fell asleep, and we shared our usual dream.  That dream always reminded me of how I loved Fluttershy, and how I would always love her.  She really was the only person for me.

‘Fluttershy.’

And so, the next six months in the hospital past like a breeze.  Everypony kept visiting, Fluttershy kept staying with me on certain nights, and I healed at a good rate.  Rarity at one point actually was kind enough to bring me a very nice shirt.  It was a white shirt with the Assassin’s crest in the center, but in the center of the crest there was an eagle.  It’s a really nice shirt, I actually am wearing it as I’m writing these words.  Rainbow Dash also continued her Wonderbolts stuff too.  She managed to get me service on the hospital TV’s to watch her shows.  Man was she awesome.

But, out of all of this, Fluttershy’s visits were the best.  She visited every day, and it never got old.  She was the love of my life after all, so how could it get old?  She got more and more beautiful every time she visited.  Seeing her face was the most amazing sight at that hospital.  One of the best visits from the ponies was my 28th birthday.  That was quite a fun night, but honestly, I don’t feel like going into it that much.  It was a normal Pinkie Party, but I couldn’t do much.  It was fun, for sure, but describing it would be boring, so I’ll just continue on.

Finally, the last day came, and I was fully healed.  I would forever have the scar from the hole left by the branch on my chest, but I wasn’t going to be suffering any spasms anymore.  I did still have to watch my blood pressure and stuff, but that didn’t worry me much.  Like I said, blood pressure was never a problem for me in the past, so I didn’t think too much of it.  My wing was healed and I could fly like a pro again.  The doctor warned me to take it easy for a while, which I did.  I didn’t want to push it too much too soon.

Fluttershy escorted me home to be safe, but I didn’t care.  There was no other person I would rather be with.  We entered our home and I took a deep breath.

“Feels good to be home,” I said, taking in my surroundings.  I really did miss my house.  Being in a hospital for one year can get old, but I’m sure you realize that.

“I’m sure it does Matthew.  I actually prepared a big lunch for you before I went to pick you up,” Fluttershy said.  She led me to the kitchen, where I saw so many of my favorite foods that I hadn’t been able to eat in so long.  Fluttershy did bring me some foods on occasion, but not nearly all of the foods I missed the most.

“You know I love you right?” I asked her playfully.  She giggled.

“Yes, I’m very well aware that you love me Matthew,” she responded just as playfully as my first comment.  We shared a laugh and started to eat.  By the end of my 4th dish, I was stuffed, and there was a good amount of food not even touched.

“No, can’t get full now, must eat deliciousness,” I said, wanting so badly to eat the foods that were laid out for me.  Fluttershy laughed at how desparate I wanted the food, but she wouldn’t let me.

“I understand that you missed all this food, but you need to watch your blood pressure, remember?”  I raised an eyebrow at her.

“Calm yourself.  I have no worry about that nonsense.  But, fair enough.  I’m pretty full.  What time is it?” I asked her.

“Um, I think it’s about four o’ clock, why?”

“Damn, I have nothing to do, but it’s too early to go to bed.  I guess I could play some video games.  Yeah, I’m just gonna do that.  I’ll be inside if you need me,” I told her, but she followed me anyway.  She didn’t leave my side for the rest of the day.  I mean that quite literally.  That night, we showered together.  I’m dead serious.  Very, very nice, as I’m sure you can imagine.

After the day passed by, and we had our awesome shower (make up your own scenarios, but no sex), we went to bed.  We would of course share our dreams again.  But tonight, an old friend decided to finally come back to haunt the living hell out of me.

I was ready to dream with Fluttershy.  But, upon entering my dream, the black abyss surrounded me.  I was scared.  I knew what this was.

“Fluttershy!  Where are you?!” I screamed out.  I didn’t want her to be here for this.  She wouldn’t be able to handle it.

“Did you really think you could escape me Matthew?” a voice said out of the nothingness.  My heart stopped.  I didn’t even want to say show yourself to the Darkness.  The last time that happened, my dead self nearly shit it’s pants.

I kept spinning around, staying on my toes.  I didn’t want to be caught off guard again by him.

“I know that you thought I was gone, but didn’t your father say that I wasn’t going to leave you alone.  I’m sure he said I would go when the time was right, but I’ll have you know I have no intentions of leaving until your soul is mine,” the Darkness spoke.  I was shivering, not nearly as ready for him as I could have been.

“Why are you doing this to me?  Just leave me alone!” I shouted back at him.

“You fool, I do this to all who suffer such as you have.  I’m sure you think it’s because you almost died.  That is partially correct, but what has happened in your life prior to your near death experience also helped.  Lets say you didn’t find Fluttershy that day, for example, and you killed yourself.  Taking your soul would have been much easier, but now, you have a reason to fight me.  But rest assured, I will win,” he said, his voice tearing away at me.  He must have meant because I was half depressed before I found Fluttershy.  I probably would have killed myself if I hadn’t found her, but then, my soul would have belonged to this… thing.

“Where is she?  WHERE IS FLUTTERSHY!?  LEAVE HER OUT OF THIS!” I demanded, but he laughed at me.

“I have not done one thing to your precious Fluttershy, but I will let you know that she will be your downfall,” he mocked.

“Fuck you,” I shouted back, unable to think of anything better to say.  This brought about more laughter.  A few moments later, he appeared.  I was ready for him, and I charged at him with my fists.  He laughed and disappeared.  I swung, missed, and fell to the ground, whatever the ground was at the moment (I was floating, remember, walking on air).

He reappeared and grabbed me by the throat.  I couldn’t breathe under his bear like grip.  Once again, he paralyzed me with his eyes, but now I could make out his face better.  It was really just like a mask, but I could make out his skeleton like mouth.  He had no hair either.  He was practically like Voldermort, except with a nose.

“Your precious father won’t save you this time, boy.  He will never come back, do you hear me?  HIS SOUL HAS LONG PAST AWAY!  IT MAY HAVE ESCAPED ME, BUT YOURS SHALL NOT!  NOW DIE!” he shouted, and I felt my soul leaving my body.

Suddenly, from a few feet away, a light pierced through the blackness.  This made the Darkness cringe, and he let his grip on me go.  He backed away, the light clearly phasing him again.

“So much for my father not saving me, huh asshole?” I mocked.  The Darkness couldn’t respond, but what I heard from the light surprised me.

“Matthew, where are you?” a voice spoke.  It was Fluttershy’s voice.  I looked at the light for a moment.  I knew it was coming from there.  I looked back to the Darkness, but not for long.  I quickly ran for the light.  The hole it made in the blackness grew larger.  From behind me, I heard the Darkness cry out to me.

“One way or another Matthew, your soul shall be mine!  All I need do is wait,” he shouted.

“Only in your dreams, you monster.  My soul is staying with me,” I shouted back, still running for the light.  I finally reached it, and the Darkness was gone.  The normal sky that filled the dreams that Fluttershy and I shared had come back.  I saw Fluttershy frantically flying around, looking for me.  She turned to me and started to cry.  We flew to each other and hugged.  A few moments after that, we awoke from the dream.

Fluttershy was clutching onto me, shivering.  I was no better.  We were both covered in sweat.  Fluttershy was crying into my chest, and I was on the virge of tears.  I really did think he had left me, that he had gone away from my mind.  I ignored my father’s warning, and now I would suffer for it.  Fluttershy would suffer for it, for my mistake.

“M-Matthew,” she said, holding me tight,” what w-was that thing?  All I saw was a cloud of d-darkness in the sky, and I couldn’t f-find you?  What happened?” she said, her voice cracking at times.  Her face was filled with tears.  I looked at her, ready to cry as well.

“I’m sorry Fluttershy.  I should have told you.  I’m so sorry,” was all I could say.  Fluttershy continued to cry into my chest, and I continued to hold her.  We stayed like that for one hour, until we finally went back to sleep.  We didn’t share our dreams again, hell I don’t think we even dreamed at all.  We just slept, holding each other tight, never wanting to let go.  The whole time though, his voice rang through my mind.

“Your soul shall be mine!  Your soul shall be mine!  Your soul shall be mine!”

That was all I heard for the rest of the night.

After that night, the Darkness didn’t leave me.  Every night was the same.  My dreams were haunted by his presence.  He wouldn’t always talk to me, and I would just escape from the blackness of his abyss, but when he spoke to me, his words wouldn’t leave my mind.  The nights when Fluttershy and I shared dreams were the worst.  He always spoke to me then, and when we awoke, Fluttershy was always in tears, and we were both always covered in sweat.  He became a part of me, as much as that makes sense.

His torment was relentless, and he would always become harsher and more cruel with his words, sometimes opting to insult my father or myself, or even my friends or Fluttershy.  This got me angry.  Well, one night, he pushed me too far, and I let go, of both myself, and him.

It was thankfully a night that Fluttershy and I weren’t sharing our dreams.  If we did, I don’t know what would have happened.  I fell asleep, and entered my dream.  I was greeted by the same abyss that had been haunting my dreams for the past three months.  I decided tonight we were going to chat.

“Get out here Darkness, I wanna talk!” I demanded, and sure enough, he appeared to me.

“Eager to finally hand over your soul, or do you still want to rattle off the question as to why I torment you so relentlessly?” he questioned me.  His voice was mocking, and it angered me so much.

“For three months now, I’ve had to put up with your shit!  THREE FUCKING MONTHS!  WHY?!”

“I’ve told you already you pathetic excuse of matter, I want your soul, and it shall be mine.  All I need do is wait for you to lose yourself completely, and I will have what I want.  Perhaps I shall move on to Fluttershy when I’m done,” he said mockingly.

“My soul is staying with me, and if you so much as even try to invade her mind, I will tear you apart, no matter how long it takes,” I responded, my voice filled with anger.

“Hahahaha, such fury!  You are losing yourself quicker than I thought you would, Matthew.  Your father opted to keep it inside, to not let go.  He ultimately escaped me, by means I still cannot comprehend, but I tormented him so much worse than I have you,” he said.  His deep, menacing voice ate away at me, but not as much as his insults towards my father.

“LEAVE HIM OUT OF THIS!  THIS IS BETWEEN YOU AND ME YOU WORTHLESS PIECE OF SHIT!” I shouted back at him.  I was giving in so easily, and that’s just what he wanted, but I didn’t care.  I started to feel power growing inside of me.  It was either that, or he was taking hold of me.

“Yes, give in, let the anger fill your body, and let me consume your very soul.  Your father was weak.  He did indeed hold it in, but he came so very close to letting go of everything.  He managed to rid himself of me before you were born, lucky for you.  But did that stop me from coming back, no it did not!  I haunted his dreams, but he held it inside, keeping it away from you and your family.  He ultimately broke free in the end, but he was weak.  He didn’t have the strength to face me, to let go.  YOUR FATHER WAS A PATHETIC FOOL, JUST LIKE YOU!  WHEN I AM FINISHED WITH YOU, YOUR PRECIOUS FLUTTERSHY SHALL SUFFER JUST THE SAME!  DO YOU HEAR ME BOY?!” he shouted at me, his words sinking in like nails in my skin.  

I was going into a full on rage mode.  I shouted and charged at him, but he disappeared before I could get to him.  I swung anyway, but kept my balance after I missed.  When he reappeared, he whipped me across the floor with a tendril of pure shadow.  Just the mere touch of it stung my body.  He hit me across the chest, and it burned so much.

“FIGHT ME LIKE A MAN!” I demanded of him.

“As you wish,” he said, and he drew a sword of shadow.  Suddenly, my tomahawk appeared in my right hand.  He charged me, but I quickly caught his sword.  I flung it away from him and chopped him right in the head.  I smiled at my accomplishment, but it was a pointless effort.  His eyes stared me down, and he laughed in my face.

“You are just as weak as your father,” he said, and he blasted me away with a burst of shadow energy.  He pulled my tomahawk out of his head, and snapped it in two.  

“You will die a slow and painful death, and when you have left the world of the living I shall drag your soul into the Abyss of the Darkness, where you shall never see the light again.  When I’m through with you, everyone you have ever known shall follow, not just Fluttershy, but everyone you know.  They shall suffer, and you will watch it all unfold.  Your mother, your sister, your brother, your friends, EVERYONE!  YOU SHALL ALL SUFFER!” he shouted at me.  I was ready to burst with rage, and so I let go.

“Get out of my head!  GET OUT!” I shouted at the top of my lungs.  With those words, a burst of energy overflowed the abyss, even causing the Darkness to fall backwards.  Light overcame the darkness of the nothingness, and the Darkness himself started floating upwards.

“IMPOSSIBLE!  NOOOO!” he shouted, being sucked upwards into the sky.  I watched from the floor, but suddenly, I found myself on my back, arching upwards.  I felt like I was being possessed.   And suddenly, I awoke from my dream.

I awoke in the same position as I had been moments ago in my dream.  I was arched on my bed, but something was different.  Flowing out of my body was a black mist.  It was the Darkness.  I was ridding myself of him.  But, out of the corner of my eyes, which felt like they could have been pulled out at any moment, I saw Fluttershy.  She was standing up against the wall in fear of what was happening before her.

“MATTHEW!” she shouted to me, her voice filled with fear.  I could only expel the Darkness from my body, nothing else.  I couldn’t move.  It felt like he was trying to stay in, but I wouldn’t let him.  With one final effort, I eliminated him from my body.

I fell onto my bed, breathing heavily.  Fluttershy didn’t come close to me, she only stayed against the wall in terror.  I lifted my head to see a cloud of black mist hovering above the front of my bed.  It soon moved to the door, pushing it open.  I opted to follow it.  It went downstairs, and soon after, out the door to the world of Equestria.  Before the Darkness left, he formed his body on my front lawn.  He stood there, menacingly.  He laughed at what had just occurred.

“You are a fool Matthew.  You may have expeled me from your body, but now, I shall make this world suffer.  And guess what, it’s all your fault.  Remember that promise you made to Celestia before you came here, well you just broke that very promise.  I hope you are ready Matthew, because a war is coming, and Equestria shall fall,” he said.  He turned into a cloud of mist again, and floated away into the Everfree Forest.

“What have I done?” I asked myself.  I had walked outside, but I turned around to see Fluttershy standing in the doorway.  Her face was full of tears.  I couldn’t help but start to cry as well.  She ran to me, and I ran to her.

“Matthew, what just happened?” she asked.

“I’ve just unleashed a powerful evil upon Equestria.  I can’t believe it.  How could I be so stupid?” I said.  I didn’t even try to down play anything.  I was straightforward about everything.  I told Fluttershy what occurred in my dream, and how I couldn’t take it and unleashed the Darkness from my body.

“Matthew, we need to tell Celestia,” she said to me.  I honestly couldn’t agree more.

“Damn right we need to tell Celestia, but… Damnit.  He was right, I did just break my promise.  I promised never to hurt any of the ponies or do anything that could cause them harm.  I just unleashed a powerful evil upon the land.  She won’t be happy.”  Fluttershy just stared into my eyes.  She gave me a kiss, which I gladly returned.

“She’ll listen to us Matthew, she has to.  Don’t worry, we’ll go in the morning.  Let’s go back to bed,” Fluttershy said, trying to calm me down.

“I’m not so sure that that’s a good idea right now Fluttershy.  I don’t want that thing getting back into my mind.  Let’s think about what we’ll tell Celestia, huh?” I said.  Fluttershy nodded.  We were really going to need a good excuse for the Princess if I was going to have any chance of staying with Fluttershy.  So, we went back inside and thought of what we would tell the Princess.  Ultimately, we decided to just tell her the truth.

We waited for the morning.  As soon as the sun rose, we ate breakfast, got ready, and left for Canterlot.  It was a quiet train ride, but Fluttershy held me close.  Some ponies were looking at her.  I guess they hadn’t seen the human Fluttershy yet, but that wasn’t really important at the moment.  We arrived at Canterlot, and headed straight for the castle.  The guards didn’t give us too much trouble, and before we knew it, we were standing before the Princess.

“Hello once again Matthew, and hello to you as well Fluttershy,” she said, her voice calming and soothing to hear.

“Hello Princess.  You’ll have to excuse us interrupting your day, but I have some news that you may want to hear.  Oh, and it’s bad news,” I said, trying to say it delicately.

“What do you mean?  What has happened?” Celestia asked.

“Princess, after that day when I died from the tree branch, something got into my mind.  He calls himself the Darkness.  He haunts those who have faced death, but I was saved by my father from his grasp.  He tried to take my soul, to drag it down into his Abyss.  He has been haunting my dreams for three months.  Last night, he went too far, and he broke me.  I unleashed a power in my dreams that allowed me to expel him from my body, but now, he is out in Equestria, in the Everfree Forest.  He swore he would make Equestria suffer, that he would see it fall.  I promised to not harm your ponies or do anything to cause them harm, and last night, I broke that promise.  I’m sorry Princess,” I said.  Celestia took a moment to take in everything I had just told her.  She seemed quite surprised by everything, but also quite calm at the same time.  After a moment, she spoke.

“Well Matthew, it seems as though you have indeed brought upon a great danger to Equestria.  For that, I am disappointed.  But, I will not send you home.  I know that I made you promise to bring no harm to my little ponies, but after everything you have been through in the past years here, I cannot bring myself to send you home.  I forgive you for what you have done, but I ask for you to help us fight off the Darkness.  Please, if not for Equestria, then for Fluttershy.”  When she said that, my eyes beamed open.  I took in everything she had said, thought for a moment, and nodded my head.

“Celestia, I cannot thank you enough, and of course I shall help you fight off the Darkness.  I don’t know when he will attack, so I suppose we will have to wait and see what he plans to do.  But rest assured, I will not abandon you.  I am at your service.  No, I am at the service of Equestria,” I said, and she smiled.

“And for that, you have my thanks Matthew.”  We discussed what I knew of the Darkness after that.  Celestia was amazed by what he could do, but she didn’t seem too phased.  She had, after all, faced far worse than this (so I hope).  When we were finished, Fluttershy and I said our goodbyes to the Princess, sure that we would be keeping in touch in the coming weeks.

When Fluttershy and I got home, Fluttershy took me into the living room of our home.  We sat down and had a little talk.

“Matthew, are you sure you can do this.  From what you told the Princess, the Darkness seems really scary and dangerous,” she said, her voice a little fearful.

“Fluttershy, you know firsthand what the Darkness is.  You’ve seen him in the dreams that we have shared.  You know I can do this.  We will have an army at our side too, but still, I can fight him.  I know I can.  I would fight anyone or anything if it means keeping you safe.  I love you, and you know it,” I said reassuringly.

“I love you too Matthew, and I’ll be with you the whole way through this,” she responded.  We shared a kiss and a hug, and before we knew it, the night came.  For the first time in three months, Fluttershy and I shared a dream that was not corrupted by the evil of the Darkness.  It was just like going to heaven.

After that day, I waited.  I waited for the Darkness to return.  I waited for the day he would call for war on the land of Equestria.  The guilt ate away at me.  I released him, I unleashed him, I set him free upon Equestria.  It really was my fault.  I had to stop him, no matter what.  I planned for days how I would combat him, coming up with different strategies and battle plans.  But, that was in the first few days.  It took three months for the Darkness to return.  During that time, I managed to get some relaxation, but not much.  I was always on edge, waiting for his return.

One day, the citizens of Ponyville got an unpleasant wakeup call from none other than the Darkness himself.  His voice overflowed the town, and everyone heard it.  I was in the town square with Fluttershy and my friends.  We were just relaxing and taking in the sunny day, when suddenly, he spoke.

“Citizens of Ponyville, your time has come.  I am the Darkness, and I bring for you a message,” he started.  His voice tore away at the innocent ponies of Ponyville.  Even my friends couldn’t handle it.  Hell, even I couldn’t handle it.  You’d think after hearing his voice for three months straight in my dreams that I would be used to it.  Well you’d be wrong.  After three months of not hearing it, hearing it again was an unwelcome surprise.  He continued to speak to the town.

“Your world shall soon burn to the ground, and darkness shall envelope your world.  No one can save you, not even your precious Princess Celestia.  Your world is doomed at the hands of the Darkness.  You cannot hide, you cannot fight, and you cannot run.  You can only surrender your souls to me,” he said.  I could see the ponies around me shivering in fear.  Some were even trying to cover their ears from the sound.  Then, the Darkness spoke to me directly.  

“Matthew, you are truly to blame for what shall soon befall this land.  You released me.  You unleashed my wrath.  You will watch your world crumble around you,” he said.  His voice burned inside my head.  I clutched my head in pain and fell to the ground.  I was screaming out in agony.  Fluttershy ran over to my side.

“Matthew, what’s wrong?!” she screamed.  The others ran to my side.  Even Rainbow Dash was scared of what was going on, and she was the most fearless pony I knew.  I couldn’t respond to Fluttershy, though.  I could only lay on the ground and grasp my head in pain.  With an effort, I shouted out.

“Get out of my head!”

“Oh, Matthew, how I enjoy watching you suffer.  But I will wait for you to watch your world be consumed by the shadows, then you will know true suffering.  And when this world is destroyed, your precious Earth will be next.  Then, and only then, will I consume your soul.  You have two days to prepare yourselves for death.  Although, nothing can prepare you for what I bring.  It shall all begin at the same place where you first arrived to Equestria.  Until then Matthew, farewell,” he finished, and he left my mind.  His voice retreated from my mind and from Ponyville.  I was left shivering on the ground, holding my head, which was still in pain.  Fluttershy and my friends were looking at me with concern.  Fluttershy was in tears.

“Matthew, are you okay?” she asked me.

“He’s coming.  We need to warn the Princess,” I said, getting up from the ground.  “We need to tell her right now.  Come on, I’m not waiting for a train,” I said, unfolding my wings.

“I’m with you Matt, let’s go warn the Princess,” Rainbow Dash said, jumping into the air.  “Fluttershy, come on, we gotta go,” she said, but Fluttershy didn’t move.

“I can’t.  Matthew, I don’t want to lose you.  I don’t want to lose any of you.  Didn’t you hear him?  He said nothing could stop him.”

“And you believe that?  Fluttershy, get real here.  Matt is an amazing fighter, and we’ve got Celestia and Luna on our side.  There’s no way this guy can beat us,” Dash said, her voice filled with confidence.  I, however, felt like she was wrong.

“Dash, I hate to tell you, but Fluttershy may be right.  In my dream, I chopped the Darkness in the head with my tomahawk, and he just laughed it off like it was nothing.  We may not be able to stop him after all, but that sure as hell doesn’t mean we won’t try.”  Rainbow was actually surprised by my words.  She thought I wouldn’t give up, but all she heard was me practically ready to do so.

“But Matthew, you need to remember, we have the Elements of Harmony,” Twilight chimed in before Rainbow could respond to me.  When Twilight said that, my head shot up, and my heart was filled with hope.  

“Holy shit your right!” I said.  “Maybe we can beat him.  No, we will beat him.  The Elements have beaten many foes in the past.  This will be no different,” I said with a newfound confidence.  Fluttershy looked at me and smiled.  I smiled back.  

“What do you say, think you’re ready to do this Fluttershy?” I asked her.

“I am Matthew.  Let’s get to the Princess,” she said, standing up and unfolding her wings.  I gave her a kiss.

“Matt, save the kissing for later, we’ve gotta go warn Celestia,” Rainbow Dash interrupted.  I broke the kiss.

“Could you have any worse timing?” I said.  Everyone laughed.  I then realized something.  I knew that waiting for a train might take a while, but straight up flying wouldn’t be any different.  So I go a really crazy idea.

“Hey Pinkie, how many ponies have ever fit into that party cannon of yours?” I asked her.

“I’ve never tried, but that sounds like a great idea.  We can use my mega party cannon for this though, my normal one is definitely too small,” she said.  Suddenly, reaching over to… somewhere, she pulled up to us all a giant party cannon.  I looked in amazement.

“Cool,” I simply said.  I then flew into the cannon, along with Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy.  “We’ll be back soon,” I shouted out.  “Pinkie, LIGHT THE FUSE!” I shouted crazily.  I was suddenly in a good mood.  Twilight’s mentioning of the Elements really got my hopes up.  I hoped they weren’t too much though, I didn’t need to be getting cocky.

Pinkie lit the fuse, and in a few seconds, Fluttershy, Dash, and I were flying at super high speeds to Canterlot.

We were soon in the castle, and we had just gotten to Celestia.  I didn’t even let her say hello.

“Celestia, it’s time.  He will attack in two days,” I said to her.  “He spoke openly to everyone in Ponyville, and then to me directly.  I had actually lost hope, but Twilight mentioned the Elements of Harmony.  I assume they will be able to defeat him.  You have witnessed their power firsthand, so I hope you can vouch for this.”

“I most certainly can, and I can say without a doubt that they will be able to help us in defeating the Darkness.  You must prepare yourself Matthew, a great battle shall soon befall the land.  I will prepare all of my Royal Guards for this fight.  I’ll see to it that Shining Armor gets them ready.  I will also notify my sister.  I will see you in two days in Ponyville Square, Matthew.  Good luck to us all,” she said.  I simply nodded.

We headed back home, and we were greeted by the rest of our friends.

“What did Princess Celestia say?” Twilight asked.

“She says that she is going to prepare every force at her disposal to help defend Equestria.  She has no doubt that the Elements will be of great use during the fight.  I say fight because, well, if we can’t hold him when he first attacks, Equestria is probably doomed.  It won’t be a war, it’ll just be a massacre.  But, rest assured, that will not happen.  We will win.” I said.  Twilight smiled.  She knew her mentor would do anything to keep Equestria safe.

“Well Ah don’t know ‘bout yall, but Ah’ll be fightin along side ya Matt, the whole way through,” Applejack chimed in.

“Yeah, same here,” Rainbow said.

“We shall all fight alongside you Matthew,” Rarity added.  I smiled at them all, but I lowered my head and sighed.

“No, you won’t.  I can’t let you risk your lives.  If we lose any of you, the Elements will be useless.  So I’m sorry to say, but you’re not fighting with me,” I said.  I really did want them to fight with me, I really did.  But, it was too great of a risk.

“Most of all, you Fluttershy.  I couldn’t live with myself if I lost you.  So, I won’t lose you.  You guys are more than welcome to be there, but you’re not fighting until I say so.”  I felt so empowered right then and there.  I felt like I was in command, but that wasn’t right of me.  The ponies, though, simply nodded at what I said.  They realized the risk too.  We all decided, though, to stay together at my house for the night.  It was big enough to fit us all.  We stayed together the next day as well.  I knew we would win, but just in case, I wanted to spend as much time as I could with the girls.  Especially Fluttershy.

When the next day came though, Ponyville was bustling with business.  Ponies were buying supplies like food, water, and a ton of other essentials.  Market stalls lost all merchandise within ten minutes of opening.  It was actually a little frightening.  The girls all watched in amazement at what was happening.

What was really warming though was that ponies would wish the seven of us good luck when they passed by us.  They knew we would be present at the battlefield, and just to hear them all say good luck and what not was really heartwarming.  But, by nightfall, everything changed.

Ponyville became a ghost town.  Everypony had locked their doors, shut their windows, and all that other stuff you do when something big is gonna happen.  That hurt a little.  To know that the ponies wanted us to fight well but now gave up a little was just the opposite of heartwarming… heart cooling?  I dunno.

“Man, so much for the standing ovation,” Rainbow said.  She was clearly disappointed with the citizens of Ponyville.  I couldn’t blame her.  They had all really given up.  I wouldn’t stand for it.

“Hey Pinkie, how good have you gotten on the drums?” I asked her.

“Oh, I’m pretty good now, why?” she responded.  I didn’t answer and moved on to Applejack.

“Applejack, how’ve you gotten with the bass guitar?” I asked.  Yes, Applejack plays bass guitar.  She is beast at the banjo, and when I learned that, I figured I could help her learn bass guitar.

“Ah’ve gotten pretty good, but Ah’m with Pinkie on this, why?” she asked.  Both her and Pinkie were confused.  But, I simply moved on to Rainbow.

“And you with guitar?” I simply asked.

“You know I’m the best Matt.  Why do you need to know all of this?” she asked.  Finally I answered their shared question.

“I’ve got a song in mind.  Let’s go get out instruments and meet back in the Square.  I’ve got a plan,” I said.  They didn’t argue.  Everyone got their instruments, and we met back in the Ponyville Square.

“So, Matthew, what song are you playing, and why are you playing it?” Fluttershy asked.  She didn’t want to really perform in a time like this, but what I was going to perform fit the conditions at the time.

“We’re gonna do “We’re Not Gonna Fall” by Daughtry.  I think it fits pretty well here, don’t you agree?” I asked looking back at the three ponies I would be performing with.  They all smiled and nodded.  I told them to prepare themselves, and before I knew it, we were performing my favorite Daughtry song.

It didn’t take long for ponies to realize what was going on in the Square.  They opened their windows to hear us performing.  Some started coming out to watch from the stage.  My voice rang out through the night to every house in Ponyville, and our instruments did just the same.  Getting to the big chorus part, I started to tingle a bit.  I knew there was a kick ass guitar part that I just loved coming up, and Dash knew how much I loved it too.  She played it like a boss (I said it again.  Oops).

Ponies started to cheer on for us.  They got what I was singing for.  I wasn’t going to fall, bleed out, or anything.  I wasn’t going to be defeated.  Bullets, bombs, whatever the Darkness threw at me, I wouldn’t lose.  And with the cheers of the ponies at my back, I knew we would win.

When we finally finished the song, Ponyville was in an uproar of cheering and screaming.  Everypony loved the song, and we loved hearing the support from everypony.  I decided to speak out.

“Thank you everypony, thank you.  I guess you understand why we just performed that song out of the blue.  It’s because we saw that you gave up.  Now you may think you didn’t, but you did.  You all wished us luck for tomorrow, but then you went to hide.  That won’t help us.  Tomorrow, before the battle, we need to hear that support again, and so will the soldiers that will be here to fight for Equestria.  Before the fight starts, you will hear my voice once again, singing the same words as tonight, and when that happens, I need you all to join in.  I need you to join in with me to show the Darkness that we WILL NOT FALL!” I said, and this brought about another uproar from the crowd.

“That’s what I like to hear.  Now go, get some sleep, and be ready for tomorrow.  We will all need to be.”  And with that, everypony left for their homes.

Fluttershy, myself, and all the girls went back to my home.  We spent one more night together.  We were all cuddled together (don’t get perverted), embracing each other (seriously, no pervy thoughts).  If this was going to be our last night together, than we would dream together.

We dreamed of walking on a grassy field, one that seemed to never end.  We all just walked together, side by side.  It was even more heavenly than my dreams with Fluttershy.  We stopped walking at one point to just take in the environment.  If this was to be my last dream, I wouldn’t have had it any other way.

The night past, and soon enough, the sun rose upon Ponyville.  I awoke, very still, cuddled with the ponies and Fluttershy.  I moved a bit, which caused them all to wake up.  They all looked at each other, and then to me.  I looked to the floor.  I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

“I guess I should get ready,” was all I could say.  And so, I left for my room to prepare myself for the fight that was ahead.

I walked into my room and shut the door.  I took off my pajama pants and t-shirt.  I first put on a pair of black pants, perfect for agile movements.  Next, I threw on my Assassin Crest t-shirt with the eagle in the center, the very shirt gifted to me by Rarity.  I put on some good socks and my best pair of sneakers.  No boots for me.  After that, I threw on my iconic eagle sweatshirt.

I had gotten slits sewn on the inside of my sweatshirt to hold throwing knives, five on each side.  I also had a belt that could hold ten throwing knives, also five on both sides.  I put on the belt, which also had a hole on it for my tomahawk, and two pistol holsters.  I had upgraded to revolvers recently (don’t ask how, it involves a trip back home).  Two six shot revolvers, perfect for taking out any adversary.  I grabbed my guns and placed them in the holsters.  After that, I strapped on my large supply of arrows, and threw my bow over my head, just like Connor.  After that, I grabbed my tomahawk and placed it on my belt.

Next, my hidden blades.  I strapped on my hookblade first, tested it a few times, and moved on to my other blade.  I strapped it on, made sure I could change it from bracer mounted to knife easily enough, and finally put on my fingerless gloves.  I gave my wings a good check to see that they were in top condition.  I took a deep breath once again, and finally pulled up my hood.

I walked out of my room, and the girls looked at me in amazement.

“That’s not overkill at all,” Rainbow said sarcastically.  I gave her a small smirk.  I walked up to them, and they gave me another once over.  They were shocked at how well armed I was.  I looked back at all of them.

“Let’s go,” I said, and we were off.  I asked Twilight on the way to the hill if she had the Elements with her.  They were at the library, so she rushed off to get them.  We would meet her before we got to the hill.  As we past Sugarcube Corner, Pinkie stopped for a moment and gave it a quick glance.  We all waited for her to finish.  The same could be said as we passed by Rarity’s Carousel Boutique.  She couldn’t help by cry a little.  In that time, Twilight managed to get back to us, with the Elements with her.  She gave each one to the respective owner.  We were ready.

We finally arrived at the hill, to find Celestia, Luna, Shining Armor, and about 500 Royal Guards were waiting for us.  They all looked at us.  Some of the guards bowed their heads to us.  Shining Armor ran up to Twilight and gave her a big hug.  No words were spoken, they just embraced.  I walked up to Celestia.

“Are you ready Matthew?” she asked me.

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” I responded.  With that, Fluttershy walked up to me.

“I love you Matthew.  Good luck,” she said, and we shared a kiss.  As we let go, Twilight, Rarity, Pinkie, and Fluttershy retreated to a safer spot near the battlefield.  Applejack and Rainbow Dash, however, had other plans.

“What are you two doing?” I asked them.

“We said we would stand by you, and we intend to.  You don’t have a say Matt, we are fighting with you.  We told the others to stay out.  Applejack and I can handle this, and you know it,” Rainbow said, in all seriousness.  I didn’t want to argue, I just looked at the two of them.  I sighed.

“Fine, but stay close to me, that’s an order,” I said, and they both nodded.  Applejack stood at my left, and Rainbow stood at my right.  I moved to the front of the army that stood before me.  Shining Armor went off to the right side of the battalion, and Celestia and Luna took places behind me.  But then, I had a grand sense of déjà vu.

I remembered this.  That day a few years back when I was remembering, and the final memory, the vision.  It wasn’t some dream, it was a vision of the future.  Had I not dismissed it as just some dream, I would have been prepared for this, no, this wouldn’t even be happening.  The vision I had those few years ago had come true.  There was one thing missing, which quickly changed.  On the top of the hill stood the figure from my vision.  Now I knew who that figure was.  The Darkness.

I stared at him.  He was a good few yards away, easily enough that both sides could just start shooting at each other and avoid hand to hand combat all together.  I say both sides, because shortly after he showed up, an army of equal numbers to ours showed up on the hill.  I was taken back by the grand force he had.  But, these were not normal soldiers.  They were also human in form, but they were much like the Darkness, made of misty shadows.  It sent a chill down my spine, but that quickly disappeared.  I took a moment to breathe once again, and words formed in my mind.

“We’re not gonna fall now.  We’re not gonna bleed out.  Never gonna break down, no,” I said, loudly enough that only Applejack, Rainbow Dash, the Princesses, and the soldiers in the first few rows could hear.  And then, I started to sing the same words.  My voice rang out across the field.  I turned around to face Ponyville, and soon, I heard the words returned by the ponies of Ponyville.  A smile was brought to my face, and I turned to face the Darkness once more.  It was time to fight.

Something clicked in my head, because suddenly, I started to hear the main theme to Assassin’s Creed 3 play in my head.  Why?  Probably because that theme was perfect for a battle.  It started off slow, but over the song I heard Celestia’s voice.

“Wait for my signal,” she said loudly.  But shortly after, the Darkness made his move.

“ATTACK!” he shouted out, and his forces rushed down the hill.  Rocks were scattered across the field, which made what I was about to do a whole lot easier.  The song playing in my head picked up to a good pace, and I rushed out onto the field.

“Matthew!” I heard Celestia shout out to me, but there was no turning back.  I was in a full on rush mode.  A few enemies had made their way to me quicker, but they were foolish and terrible at fighting, at least, they were to me.  One with a spear tried to jab me, but I caught it with my tomahawk, pushed it aside, spun around him, stabbed him in the back with my knife, and grabbed him by the neck with my arm.  I pulled down and snapped his neck, and what was once a soldier turned into a pile of dust.

Another guy tried to bring his spear down on me from behind, but I caught it with my tomahawk, pulled him forward, and stomped his ankle inwards.  From there, I slit his throat with my tomahawk.  He fell just the same as the last.  I didn’t give the next one a chance to attack.  I gave him an uppercut in the chin with my tomahawk, flipped him over my back, and chopped him in the head to finish him off.  I then rushed over to a rock to take cover from the beams of shadow that were being fired off from the spears of other soldiers.  I looked back to Celestia.

“Now would be a good time to give the signal!” I shouted.  She didn’t hesitate.

“ATTACK!” she ordered, and her soldiers rushed on.  Now, the song playing in my head had gotten to the exciting part, with all the trumpets and drums and stuff.  Like I said, perfect battle music.  The explosions of magic and shadow around me didn’t make a sound to me.  All I heard was the music in my head.  I decided to break out the bow, in one of the coolest ways I have ever done.

I pulled out my bow, jumped into the air, and started to fly.  I shot arrows left and right at my opponents, making each shot count.  One, two, three, four, all falling consecutively to my incredible accuracy.  But what I did next surprised even me.  Time seemed to slow down as I pulled three arrows out at the same time.  I pulled them back on my bow, and let go.  All three arrows had landed right in between the eyes of three soldiers.  They all fell into piles of dust.  I flew up into the air, folded my wings to place my bow back over my head, and flew back down.

I flew at an angle that I could run up a rock and kick a soldier right in the face.  I tumbled on the ground and got up quick enough to dodge another guy charging at me with his spear.  I decided to change things up.  I whipped out my hookblade and grabbed the soldier who just rushed past me in the back.  I pulled him to the ground, and brought down my other hidden blade to his face.

As another rushed to me, I turned my bracer mounted blade into a knife.  I blocked his spear, pushed it to my side, brought down my hookblade to his shoulder, pulled him down, and slammed my knife into his back.  Next came some consecutive stabs.  I stabbed left, right, left, right, and then brought my hookblade to one’s shoulder, which stopped him dead.  I crossed my left blade to a guy on my right, stabbed him in the head, then pulled down the one I had with my hookblade, and stabbed him in the head.  I was truly on fire.  I had already killed a good 30 soldiers.  I only wrote about a good ten, and I killed many more in the time before what I’ve written here.

My onslaught, as well as the song playing in my head, were halted when a blast of shadow sent me flying behind a rock.  Rainbow Dash and Applejack noticed this and rushed to my side.

“Matt, you okay?” Rainbow asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine, just getting a little tired is all.  These guys won’t stop coming.  We need to get to the Darkness, now,” I said.  Overhead, beams of shadow flew over our heads.

“We gotcha covered partner, jus tell us what ya need us to do, an we’ll get it done,” Applejack said.  I smiled and nodded to her.

“Stay close to me.  I’ve got some teamwork moves that may come in handy.  Get ready,” I said, and my hands went to the insides of my sweatshirt.  I grabbed three throwing knives on each side, stood up, and threw all six, each one hitting its target.  I smiled in triumph.

“GO!” I shouted, and the three of us rushed out.  Rainbow flew straight through four soldiers before landing and bucking the living hell out of another.  Applejack bucked left and right, until I screamed out to her.

“Give me your hooves,” I shouted, and I grabbed her two front hooves.  I spun her around, and she effectively kicked in the faces of about five soldiers, causing them to obviously die.  She then told me to toss her, which I did.  She landed straight onto a sixth enemy, and continued to charge.  Dash kept flying through enemies, and Applejack kept bucking.  We were unstoppable.  Until something just had to ruin it all.

“GAH!” I heard a voice cry out in pain.  It was Rainbow Dash.  She had been shot in both of her left legs, and she was bleeding pretty bad.  She fell over in agony.

“DASH!” I shouted out, and I felt my anger growing.  I had been holding off a more powerful soldier who was wielding a sword with my tomahawk.  I pushed his sword upwards and out of my way, brought out my knife, stabbed him a bit in his chin, but then brought it up so forcefully that I managed to lift him into the air.  I quickly sheathed my weapons and flew straight over to Rainbow.  She was in a lot of pain.

“Applejack, get over to that rock!” I shouted out, and Applejack quickly ran over, looking right at me the whole time.  I flew Dash behind the rock for cover.

“Dash, are you alright?” I asked.

“I’ve been through worse, but I’m done.  I know when I’m done fighting, and I am done,” she said.  I nodded and looked at Applejack.

“Don’t worry, I’ll get her to the others.  Go on, you’ve got some fightin to do partner,” she said.  I smiled and gave her a fist/hoof bump.  I looked at Rainbow and smiled.  Finally, I looked back to see the others looking at us from their safe spot.  Pinkie, Twilight, and Rarity were in amazement.  But Fluttershy, she was in tears.  She had never seen such violence from me before.  Sure, there were those two guys all those years ago, but that was nothing compared to the carnage I was wreaking.  But, I heard her shout out something.

“Keep fighting Matthew!” she said, her voice clear and crisp.  It filled my heart with hope, and a fire burned inside my heart.  Time to bust out the guns.  I pulled out my revolvers, cocked them back, and gave a battle cry before rushing out, guns ablazing.

I shot one guy on my left with my right pistol, then vice versa.  I ducked under a beam of shadows and shot the shooter with my left pistol, then quickly shot another on my right with my right pistol.  I flipped my left pistol and smashed the handle into the head of another guy, which spun him around.  I delivered a bullet to his back with my right pistol.  I flipped my left pistol back and shot it at another guy on my left.  Three bullets left in each.  I just fired off the remaining rounds into six enemies, quickly placed the guns back into their holsters, and charged with my tomahawk and left hidden blade.

I brought my tomahawk to the side of one guys head and dragged him aside.  I spun around and chopped one guy in the head.  I blocked one guy's sword with my knife, sliced him in the gut, then chopped him in the gut with my tomahawk, causing him to bend over.  I brought my tomahawk down on him with all my might.  I flipped my knife to block the sword of another guy, pushed it aside, grabbed him by the shoulder, and delivered three chops to his chest, each one making him fall further to the ground.

The weird thing was, this was me.  I hadn’t unleashed that monster that killed those two men all those years ago.  This was me.  I was fighting to save the ones I cared about, the ones I loved.  I was fighting for Equestria.  If these creatures could bleed, my white clothing would be fully red now, and what was once a green field would now be a sea of blood.  Although, it partially was.  I finally took the time to realize that hundreds of Royal Guards had been killed.  They clearly weren’t having as much luck as me.  This only made me angrier.

I just kept rushing forward, until a large wave of soldiers forced me back.  I kept up my assault, but I couldn’t move closer to the Darkness, I could only move back.  I soon started to take a few hits.  Beams clipped my chest, and a few soldiers managed to get some slices on my arms.  Were it not for my bracers, I could have lost my hands, but I still had some bad cuts.  I was starting to lose my edge.

Just when I thought I was going to lose everything and be taken down, something made them all stop.

“Enough!” a voice shouted out.  It was the Darkness.  “Return to me my minions,” he said, and suddenly, all of the soldiers, and even the piles of dust, began to flow back into the Darkness himself.  All of these soldiers were part of him.  He had created them from his own life force.  Incredible, odd as it may seem of me to say.

When he finished taking back in his power, he let of a gust of energy.  What came next, I wasn’t prepared for in the slightest.  A wave of shadow emerged over the hill.  I was frozen.

“Matthew, get down!” a voice called from behind.  It was Celestia.  Her and Luna ran up to my sides and created a barrier to catch the wave just as it was about to slam down.  It struck with a force that actually caused me to fall down.  The Princesses flinched, but held up pretty good.  But, if the wave continued any longer than it did, they may have lost control.  When it stopped, the Darkness was standing before us.

“Away with you fools,” he said, and he blasted both Celestia and Luna back down to the base of the hill.  I jumped back so he couldn’t strike me down.  We stared each other down.

“So, here we are Matthew, the very place that you first arrived to Equestria.  How does it feel to know it shall also be the very last place you see in Equestria?” he asked me mockingly.  I just stared at him, not responding.

“Are you gonna keep talking, or are we gonna finish this, once and for all,” I said.  He laughed loudly at my response.

“Very well Matthew.  Let’s finish this,” he said.  He formed his sword from the shadows at his command.  I drew my tomahawk and slid out my hidden blade.  It was time to finish this, once and for all.

We stared each other down for another moment, and then the Darkness made the first move.  He shot out a blast of shadow energy at me.  I quickly ducked and sidestepped under and away from the blast, and I lunged towards him.  I tried to slash down on him with my tomahawk, but he caught it with his sword.

“You are fast, but not fast enough for me,” he mocked.  He spun my tomahawk around so that it was moved out of his way, and he managed to land a good slice on my gut.  I backed up and cried out a bit in pain.  It wasn’t too deep of a cut, but it was enough to hurt me a decent amount.  I held my stomach, but I quickly got back in the game.

He tried to do the same thing, but swinging from the opposite direction (which was the right, just to clarify).  I caught his sword with my knife, pushed it away, and stabbed him in the side of his hip.  I pushed him away and drew out my knife.  He moaned a bit initially, but just laughed it off after.

“Your pathetic attempts to hurt me will do nothing.  Give me a real fight!” he said, and he lunged back at me.  His speed caught me off guard, as he brought his sword down on me.  I was quick enough to catch it with my tomahawk.  I pulled him to my right and stabbed him in the back with my blade mounted on its bracer.  I pushed him to the ground and jumped into the air, hoping to land on him with my tomahawk to his head.  Just as I was about to land, he rolled over, got up, and blasted me with a burst of shadows.  I was sent flying a good five feet.

I was in a bit of pain.  I had been cut in the stomach, and had just received a blast of shadows at point blank range.  I needed to amp up my game.  Once again, out came the guns.  I quickly loaded them up and started to unload the bullets on him.  He was pushed back by each consecutive shot.  One, two, three, four, and so on and so on.  When I had unloaded both guns, I tossed them aside, brought out my tomahawk, and chopped him on the side of the head.  I pulled him over to my right, and he fell to the floor.

“Come on!  Get up!  I’m not done with you yet!” I shouted down to him.

“Oh, I am far from done myself, fool!” he responded, and he let off a wave of energy which sent me, once again, flying backwards.  I groaned as I hit the ground.  I gave my neck a good crack, and was right back up.  But, just as I got up, I was quick enough to catch the Darkness’ sword coming down on me once again.

“You know, you’re not that bad of a fighter Matthew, but I expected more.  After all, you are truly a monster,” he mocked me.  I cried out and drove my blade into his gut.  He wasn’t fazed in the slightest.  He just laughed, and then, did something that terrified me.  His face, which was once just mask-like, turned into a full on open skull with short tendrils coming out of it.  He cried out in my face, and I couldn’t help but lose my strength.  He once again blasted me with a shadow burst.  After hitting the floor, I was shivering, but I got up.

“You will never defeat me Matthew.  Even with all your skills, you are nothing but a fool.  You have no hope to defeat me.  You think even your precious Elements of Harmony can defeat me.  Oh how very wrong you are,” he said.  I was a little surprised.  How did he know we intended to use them?  I mean, it was a little obvious, but still.  Even though his words rang out, I didn’t believe them.  But, we weren’t to use the Elements until we were sure I couldn’t get this done myself.

“Although, I don’t think I will allow your friends to use them.  After I finish you off, I shall strike them all down, and they won’t even know it,” he said.  I was filled with rage, and I charged at him, not thinking about my attack.  He caught my attack easily.  He laughed in my face.

“Yes, let out the anger, let it corrupt your senses, and let it make it all the easier for me to kill you,” he said.  But, I decided to shut him up.  My tomahawk was in a lock with his sword, so I decided to drive my blade right into his face.  He was completely caught off guard, and he fell back in pain.  I actually managed to hurt him.  I kept going.  I slashed him with my tomahawk in the side of his skull, grabbed his head with my left hand, and brought my knee to his head.  He fell to the floor.  But, as I was about to bring my tomahawk down on him again, he disappeared.

I looked around, keeping my guard up.  He appeared right in front of me, and slashed me across the face with the tip of his sword.  I had tried to duck away.  Had I not, I would have lost my head.  He didn’t stop though.  He delivered a strong left hook to the same spot where he had sliced me in the face.  I fell to the ground and started to cough up a bit of blood.

“You will fall, Matthew, whether it be by my blade or my shadows.  But before you die, I’m going to share with you a secret,” he started, and he grabbed me by the head and looked into my eyes.  “Fluttershy does not love you,” he said.  I tried to attack, but he had paralyzed me.  All I could do was feel the intensity of my anger building up.

“She does not love you Matthew, she only stays with you out of good conscious.  She knows that if she leaves you, you will die.  She cannot leave you, because without her, you are nothing.  Your father was much the same.  He was not loved.  Everyone around him only stayed to keep him sane.  Your family is nothing but filth, and it shall always be filth.  Fluttershy is filth that you have clung to so tightly.  You are nothing but a worthless soul, one that I shall gladly claim, soon enough.”  His words hit me like bullets.  I felt an intense anger building inside of me.  I was going to unleash the monster.  But, something told me not to, so I didn’t.  The same thing told me to be calm, to think, and to speak out.

“You’re wrong,” I said, my voice free of any signs of anger.  “You’re wrong about everything.  Fluttershy loves me more than anything.  She loves me, and I love her.  And my father was loved all the same, by everyone around him.  In my case, it’s not just Fluttershy.  It’s all of my friends.  They aren’t just friends anymore.  They are my family, and my family is anything but filth.  You are the filth Darkness.  The only worthless soul present on this battlefield is yours, and I intend to destroy that very soul.  Your words mean nothing to me anymore, monster,” I said, and with that, some burst of energy that I somehow let off sent him flying back, releasing his grip on me.

He was quick to respond though.  He quickly got back on his feet, and shouted back at me.

“YOU WILL DIE MATTHEW, AND YOUR SOUL SHALL SUFFER FOR AN ETERNITY!” he shouted out in rage, and he rushed towards me.  He was easy to dodge now.  His actions had become foolish and predictable.  I caught his sword again with my knife, pulled it aside, and chopped him clean in the neck.  I didn't stop there though.  With my tomahawk still lodged in his neck, I stabbed him right in the face with my bracer mounted blade.  I brought him to his knees, and from there, I drew my blade out, only to deliver another quick stab to his face.  He fell to the floor, but he wasn't fazed.  He got right back up and kept assaulting me, even if he wasn’t hitting me.  I caught his sword and shouted back to the girls.  

“Now would be a really good time to use the Elements!” I shouted back.  The five ponies and Fluttershy all stepped out into plain sight, and they prepared their Elements.

“Ready girls?” I heard Twilight say.  They all nodded, and the Elements started to glow.  And right before my eyes, the Elements of Harmony were unleashed.  I pushed the Darkness back and jumped out of the way of the rainbow colored beam.  It struck the Darkness with a great force.  He was shocked that it was actually working.

“NO, THIS CANNOT BE!  NOOOOO!” he shouted out, and in a matter of moments, he was gone.  The Darkness had been defeated.  I turned to the girls, and I smiled at them.  They all returned the smile, especially Fluttershy.  She was crying, and was about to run out to me.  Except, something stopped her from doing so.  I saw their expressions turn from excited to terrified in the blink of an eye.

“MATTHEW, BEHIND YOU!” Fluttershy cried out.  I quickly turned around to see the Darkness standing right before me.  I was terrified, both by the fact that he had actually survived the power of the Elements, and that he was staring me down with his terrifying eyes.  But, I wasn’t fast enough to stop him.  He back handed me with his left hand, and I spun around, facing the girls.  He grabbed me by the shoulder, and after a short moment, he spoke.

“Die,” he whispered in my ear.  As he spoke the word, he drove his sword straight through my heart.

“GAAAAH!” I cried out.  My head flew backwards, and I could feel myself fading.  I gasped for air, and he pulled his sword from my heart.  I fell to my knees.

“MATTHEW!” Fluttershy cried out.  I stared at her for a moment before falling to the ground completely.  I failed, and now Equestria was doomed.

“Not yet son, you still have a job to do,” I heard a voice call out.  It was my father.

“But Dad, I failed.  He killed me, and now Equestria will fall.”

“No, it will not, because Equestria cannot fall unless you have also fallen.  And you, my son, have not fallen just yet,” he said.  Within moments, I was awake.

---------------

I opened my eyes to find myself lying up against a rock.  I had been dragged off of the top of the hill, and was safe behind cover.  I could barely breathe, and the hole in my heart was still there, but it had been healed to a small degree.  Fluttershy was hugging me tightly and crying hysterically.  I looked around to see the other ponies, amazed at the sight that I had actually awoken.  

“Fluttershy, look!” Twilight said.  Fluttershy couldn’t let go of me, so I decided to make her notice.

“It’s ok, Fluttershy, I’m here.”  She immediately let go of me, looked into my eyes, and kissed me.  Man, I loved it when she did that.

“How?” was all she could ask.

“Let’s just say I owe my dad two lives now,” I said sarcastically.  They all realized that I had once again been saved by my father.  I looked around to see where the Princesses were, but they weren’t present.

“Where are Celestia and Luna?” I asked.  Twilight pointed out to the battlefield.  With the little strength I had, I turned my head around the corner of the rock I had been behind to see both Celestia and Luna fighting off the Darkness, but just barely.  His power was too great for them, but they kept going.

“You are even more pathetic than Matthew!  Give up now!” he shouted at them, but they didn’t stop fighting.

“I need to go help them,” I said to Fluttershy.

“No!  Matthew, I won’t lose you again.  Twice I have already lost you, and I won’t let there be a third time.  I won’t let you fight!” she said, her voice filled with fear.  She was still crying, but I quickly gave her another kiss.  When we let go, we stared into each other’s eyes.

“Fluttershy, I have to.  This is what I have to do.  I brought him into this world, and now, I’m going to take him out of it.  I’ll be fine,” I said, and I began to stand up.  Fluttershy tried to stop me, but I pushed her aside (not forcefully of course).  I stood fully up, but I was weak.  I wouldn’t last long.  I would need a stroke of luck to defeat the Darkness in this state.  I moved out from behind my cover to reveal myself.  The Darkness pushed the Princesses aside, but as he spotted me, he was actually surprised.

“Impossible!” he shouted out.  I smirked at him.

“Nothing is impossible, Darkness, you should know that very well,” I responded.  His face flowed with anger.

“No matter, I can kill you again, no problem,” he said.  But as he was about to blast me again, both Celestia and Luna used their combined magic to blast him over the top of the hill to the other side.  We had no idea how long he would be there, so I needed to think of something.  The Princesses looked at me with amazement.

“Matthew, but how?” Celestia asked.

“Not important now, Celestia, but I’ve got an idea,” I said, and I looked back to the ponies and Fluttershy who were behind me.  “The Elements, use them on me,” I said.  All of their mouths opened in surprise.  I looked to Fluttershy.

“I know this will work, please, just do it,” I said, but she shook her head.  She lowered her head and started to cry once again.  I walked up to her and lifted her head by her chin.

“Fluttershy, I promise, I will be alright, just trust me on this.  This is the only way, I know it.  Please,” I said.  She looked me dead in the eyes, and once again, we kissed.  As we let go, she nodded.  I stepped away from the girls, and told them to get ready.

The girls charged their Elements, but shortly after, the Darkness emerged at the top of the hill.  He looked down in confusion as to what we were doing.  Then, he understood.

“You think that will help you Matthew.  It will give you nothing but a method of stalling my victory.  Go on then!” he shouted down.  I had already been facing his direction, and I lifted my head to give him a smile.  I cued the girls to use the Elements.  Within seconds, they fired at me.

I felt the great power of the Elements strike me in the back, but instead of feeling like I was being killed or destroyed, the power healed me, and it fueled my own strength.  I was lifted into the air.  Within seconds, every cut, bruise, and injury I had suffered had disappeared.  My arsenal had been fully restocked, and I was filled with a kind of energy that was completely new to me.  I used the power to create the perfect weapon to destroy the Darkness.

On the left side of my belt, a sword sheath formed.  With my newfound power, a handle formed.  I grabbed the handle, and pulled it out of the sheath.  The blade had already begun to form.  Before me, I held a great memory from my favorite game series.  I held in my hand the Sword of Altaïr.

The ponies looked on in amazement, while the Darkness was not amused.  He merely laughed.

“You think some petty sword can save your life.  You truly are doomed Matthew.  You may have some new powers, but you will never defeat me, for there is nothing that can defeat me!”  His words didn’t faze me in the slightest, I just started walking forward.  But, suddenly, the lower half of the handle of the sword was gripped, by Fluttershy.  I looked into her eyes, and she looked back at mine.  I gave her a smile, which she returned.  We looked back to the Darkness, and continued walking forward.  We stopped until we were no more than a yard away from him.

“You’re wrong Darkness.  There is something that can defeat you, something that you fear.  It is love.  Love is the only thing that can defeat you, because you do not feel it.  You are weak, Darkness, nothing but meaningless shadows,” I mocked.  I know that may have sounded corny, but it was the truth.  He became filled with rage.

“You actually think I fear love!?  I fear nothing!  I am feared!  You have nothing Matthew!  You are a sad pathetic excuse for a warrior!  Your life is mine, and you cannot stop me!” he shouted and he drew his sword.  I looked to Fluttershy once more, and she looked to me.  We looked back at the Darkness, and I spoke.

“I told you, I’m not a warrior.  I’m an assassin, who knows the true meaning of love,” I said.  Fluttershy and I lifted the sword up, pointed it straight at the Darkness, and blasted him with a beam of pure energy, a beam powered by love.  Now, I get that this all really sounds corny, but honestly, I don’t think it really matters.

The beam struck the Darkness with immense power.  He was surprised, and he was being hurt.  He began to cry out in pain, and he started to disappear.

“NO!  THIS IS NOT POSSIBLE!  I CANNOT BE DEFEATED!  NO ONE CAN DEFEAT ME!  I AM THE DARKNESS, THE INCARNATION OF THE SHADOWS!  NOOOOOOO!” he cried out, and within seconds, he was gone, but this time, it stayed that way.  He would not return, ever again.  The world, no, the universe (basically), was free of his torment.  The Darkness was gone.

We lowered the sword, and Fluttershy fell to her knees, probably from the shear force of the blast we had sent out.  I gave the sword a quick look over.  It was a gleaming piece of steel, the finest weapon I had ever wielded, aside of course from my tomahawk.  I sheathed the sword and took a deep breath.  But, I then realized, I still had a bit of energy left in me.  When I say that, I mean that the power given to me by the Elements was still there, but just a bit.  I knew exactly what to do with it.

In my right hand, I started to form a ring.  When it was completed, it was in the shape of a butterfly.  It was made of a pink diamond, and it was absolutely beautiful.  I gave Fluttershy my left hand, lifted her up, went on my right knee, and finally popped the question.

“Fluttershy, will you marry me?”  She put her hand over her mouth and started to cry.  But through her tears came her answer.

“Yes, Matthew, I will!” she said, and she knelt back down and kissed me.  

Now, I can’t remember how many times I may have said that I kissed Fluttershy and that that kiss was the best one ever.  But, when I say that this was the greatest kiss we ever shared, I mean it.  We held that kiss for a solid minute.  After finally letting go, we looked to our friends, who were all in tears.  Even the Princesses were crying for us.  Even in the middle of a blood stained battlefield, love triumphed.  I guess it’s true what they say, that love will always conquer death.  I mean, I think that’s what they say.  I don’t know, but quite frankly I don’t care.

I looked into Fluttershy’s eyes, and she looked back at me.  We smiled at each other.  We stood up, and climbed to the top of the hill.  The sun was going down, but this moment was too perfect.  I’m going to revise my previous statement of that last kiss being the best one.  As we looked away from the setting sun, we looked into each other’s eyes, and shared another kiss.  This was our greatest kiss, period.  We let go of the kiss, and we spoke those beautiful words that always rang true.

“I love you Matthew.”

“And I love you Fluttershy.”

It was settled.  Fluttershy and I were to be married.  You’re probably wondering why I decided to pop the question on what had just been a battlefield.  Well, considering I had almost lost my life twice in the recent time frame, I figured I needed to get the question out.  I knew she would say yes.  We had been together for about 13 years now.  Well, as I’m writing this, it’s been about one year after our wedding, so that makes it 14 I guess.  But I’ll get to where I’m at now in a bit.

While Fluttershy and I were still standing on top of the hill, she looked at the beautiful ring I had created.  She admired the butterfly I had formed and smiled at me.

“It’s just like my cutie mark,” she said.

“Of course it is.  I had actually been trying to find you a ring like that, but none came in pink diamond.  So, I figured, why not make one myself, even if I used some super powers to do it,” I said jokingly.  She smiled.

“We’ll be together, forever, right?” she asked.  I answered with another kiss.  When I let go, she smiled and answered her own question.  “Of course we will.”  We turned to see our friends once again, and they were all still crying.  We started to walk down the hill to everypony.  Rainbow Dash flew right up to the both of us and gave us a huge hug.

“Man, I didn’t know you had a soft spot Dash,” I said jokingly.

“Get real, Matt.  You guys are like, my best friends.  Of course I’m going to get sad.  I can’t believe you two are finally getting married!” she said, and she let out a little squeal, much like the ones she makes when something cool happens.

When Dash let go, we were greeted by a giant group hug from all of the other ponies.  We all embraced in the joy of the moment.  But, when we all let go, we took a look at what had been left behind from the battle.  Craters, blood, and the bodies of at least 100 Royal Guards were scattered across the base of the hill, as well as the hill in general.  If the bodies of those Shadow Soldiers had remained, there would be probably twice as many of them.  The girls all looked to me.

“What?” I simply asked.

“I just can’t believe all of this.  So much loss, and for what?” Twilight asked.  I looked at her.  I tried to think of something, but nothing came to mind.  

“I don’t know Twilight, but at least we won, right?”

“Yeah, I guess so.  I just can’t believe how amazing you were, albeit a little excessive at times,” she said.  She had been referring to my combat skills.  I realized that the ponies had never witnessed such violence, and the fact that I was, at times, overly brutal, didn’t help their sanity.  Fluttershy witnessed me kill two people once, but now, all of the ponies, as well as Fluttershy, witnessed me massacre at least 100 Shadow Soldiers.  I didn’t let it get to me though.  I knew why I did everything I had just done, to save Equestria, to save Fluttershy.  

“Yeah, I guess I got carried away.  But, I don’t think we should be complaining.  I can’t be bothered if I’m too much of a badass,” I said.  The girls all started to laugh.  Then, Celestia and Luna walked up behind me.  I turned to face them.

“Matthew, you have done Equestria a great service, one that will be remembered throughout history.  For that, you have all of our thanks,” she said, and she bowed her head to me.  Luna, Fluttershy, and the rest of the ponies did the same, as well as all of the other Royal Guards.  Shining Armor even showed up.  I don’t know where he went in the whole battle, but at least he was alive.  He did the same as everypony else.

“Look, I’m really grateful and all, but you don’t need to thank me.  I brought him here.  Had I not even gotten myself killed that one day, none of this would have happened.”

“Yes, that may be true, but it is too late to change the past Matthew.  You should be looking to the future, if I may say so myself,” Celestia said.  “We’ve got a wedding to plan for.”  I smiled at her, and we all left the battlefield.

One month passed.  It was one month before the wedding day that we had defeated probably the greatest threat to ever come to Equestria.  But, that was truly in the past.  I had a few nightmares about it at first, but Fluttershy was always there to comfort me.  Soon enough, the Darkness, the battle, everything that had happened, was in the past.  I had to focus, for today, I had my wedding to attend.  

I awoke from another night of sharing dreams with Fluttershy.  She was cuddling with me in bed.  She was the most adorable thing you could ever see when she was asleep like that.  I gave her a kiss on the head, and she woke up.

“Good morning Matthew.”

“Good morning Fluttershy.  You ready for today?” I asked her.

“Of course I am.  I’ve been waiting for this day for so long.  I can’t wait!” she said, her voice filled with joy.  I was just as excited as she was.  We got out of bed, individually showered, had breakfast, and got dressed.  Once we were ready, we went to get our friends and headed to Canterlot.

Now, I had no knowledge of how Equestria weddings worked.  I figured it was just like a wedding back on Earth.  For the most part it was.  But, seeing as though Fluttershy’s parents were, well, nowhere to be found (seriously, where are her parents?), her father couldn’t walk with her down the aisle.  So, her best friend took that position.  Rainbow Dash was going to walk with Fluttershy.  Who was my best man?  Well, that was a tough choice to make.  Ultimately, I actually asked Twilight to be my best mare.  She said yes.

Getting ready for this whole thing was a bitch and a half.  Rarity made my whole outfit, as well as Fluttershy’s, but I wouldn’t see Fluttershy until we were standing together at the altar, or wherever we would be standing together.  I say that because an altar would pertain to a church, and we weren’t in a church, necessarily.  I got myself all snazzy looking pretty easily, with the assistance of Twilight of course.  Her magic was a huge help, especially with my wings getting in the way of the tuxedo.

“Good thing Rarity always puts holes in her outfits for me, or this would be atrocious,” I said.  Twilight giggled at that, but kept helping me get dressed.

“I can’t believe this is happening.  You and Fluttershy are finally getting married.  This is just so exciting,” she said.

“Yeah, it is,” I responded, and I started to feel light headed.  I fell on my knees, and Twilight rushed to my side.

“Matthew, are you alright?” she asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine, it’s just that… I’m getting married.  I figured I would get like this, you know, like all light headed and uneasy.  I guess I’m just a little nervous is all.”

“You have every right to be nervous, but everything will be fine Matthew.  All of your friends will be up there with you, along with Rainbow Dash and me.  And you and Fluttershy will be the center of attention.  Don’t worry,” she said.  Her words helped me to calm down, and her voice was pretty soothing.  I smiled at her and thanked her.  I started to revel in the past, the really long ago past.

“Can you believe all this?  Just 13 years ago, I was an average guy who had given up on life.  And now, here I am, in Equestria, a world I could only dream to live in, getting married.  Not only that, but I’m considered a hero now.  Man, I really should be thanking you for fucking up that spell Twilight.”

“What spell?” she asked.  “Oh, you mean the spell that sent Fluttershy to your world.  Yeah, well, I guess if that hadn’t happened, we wouldn’t be here today, huh?”

“Yeah, you’re right,” I said.  I took a moment to just think.  I took a deep breath.  I got up, gave myself a good look in the mirror, and looked to Twilight one more time.  “I’m ready.”

As per the normal custom, I took my place at the altar.  I’m just going to call wherever it was that we would be standing the altar just to make things easier for me to write.  Celestia was there to preside over the wedding, along with Luna, and even Cadence.  I had met with her twice, and she was a really fun pony to be around.  Being able to make love is a kick ass power, let me tell you.  The rest of my friends were there as well.  Pinkie, Applejack, and even Spike, stood on my side, along with Twilight.  Rarity was on the other side where Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash would be.  Now, we waited.

Soon enough, wedding music started to play.  I was surprised to find that it was the same music used for Earth weddings.  Although, I guess I shouldn’t have expected any different.  Fluttershy walked in with Rainbow Dash at her side.  Rainbow looked pretty amazing in her dress, but she was like a shadow when compared to Fluttershy.  She was the most beautiful thing in the room.  I started to cry a bit at the sight of her.  She was absolutely beautiful.  She took her time getting to the altar, but I was fine with that.  Not once did she take her eyes off of me, and I did the same.

She stepped up to the altar, and we faced each other.  I took her hands, and we didn’t take our eyes off of each other.  Celestia started to speak.

“Mares and gentlecolts, we are gathered here today to witness the unity of the two souls that stand before us, Fluttershy and Matthew.  The love between these two has shown me a great many things, and for that, I am proud to preside over this occasion.”  Celestia took a moment to smile at each of us.  Then, she started the vows.  But, Fluttershy and I were thinking the exact same thing.  As if on cue, we both put our index fingers to Celestia’s mouth to silence her.  We joined hands once again, and simultaneously said…

“I do.”  Celestia simply smiled.  She understood that we knew the vows and all that garbage.  We just wanted to be married already.

“Then, by the power invested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife.”  And with that, Fluttershy and I shared the kiss that would seal our marriage.  Everyone in attendance cheered for us.  It was such a great moment, but that kiss wasn’t the best.  The best kisses with Fluttershy were the ones when we were alone, and right then, we had a pretty big crowd cheering for us.  But, even still, it was a great moment, one that I will never forget.

When we let go of the kiss, Fluttershy and I smiled at each other.  She started to walk down from the altar, and she made me follow.  We ran outside, and before I knew it, we were both flying through the air.  Everyone followed us out.  Then, Fluttershy remembered something important (at least, important for you women that are reading this.  I could give two shits).

“I have to throw the bouquet,” she said to me.  I gave her a smile and raised an eyebrow, but simply laughed.  We were in the air, so throwing it up wasn’t necessary.  She threw the bouquet a bit higher anyway, and of course, Rarity made sure she caught it.

“MINE!” we heard her shout out from below.  We both laughed at her.  She waved back at us, and she was joined by the rest of our friends, who smiled up and waved.  We waved back to them and flew off into the sky.

It felt just like our dreams, flying in the sky.  Sharing moments like this with Fluttershy was the greatest thing ever.  I loved her with all of my heart, and she loved me all the same.  I honestly don’t think there could be any more of a perfect couple.  And if there is, I don’t wanna hear about them.

Fluttershy and I spiraled in and out of each other, gracefully flying through the air.  We joined together, and we shared our three favorite words at the same time.

“I love you.”

We flew back down to the Canterlot party area (poor naming for the win), where a huge party had been set up for us.  We walked through the crowd to the center of the dance floor and waved to everypony.  The rest of our friends greeted us with a huge group hug.

“Congratulations you two!  Ah don’t think ah ever seen a more perfect couple,” Applejack said.

“YEAH!  BEST WEDDING EVER!” Pinkie shouted out, which sent us all into laughter.  Rainbow greeted me with her hoof.  I pounded it with my fist, and gave a little jazz to make it a little more special.  We both laughed.  Rainbow then went to give Fluttershy a huge hug.

“Good job ‘Shy,” she said, and I felt myself starting to get teary eyed.

“Aw, Matthew, are you crying?” Rarity asked.

“Well, yes, I am.  I’m an emotional person, and just hearing Rainbow Dash say that is really heartwarming,” I said, and Rarity giggled a bit.  Then, I heard some music start to play.  A pony started to speak on the microphone.

“Alright, everypony, it’s time for the bride and groom to share their dance on the dance floor,” the pony spoke.  I just got curious and looked over to see who the pony was.  It was, as everyone on Earth knows her, Vinyl Scratch (just felt like sharing).  I took Fluttershy’s hand and our friends vacated the center of the dance floor.  Slow music started to play, but I wasn’t dancing.  I looked to Vinyl.

“Hold on, if I’m dancing, I’m dancing to a good song.  Hey, Twilight, grab the mic, you’ve got a song to sing,” I said.  At first, Twilight looked confused, but then, she knew what I was talking about.  A familiar tune from Season 2 of the show started to play.  It was “Love is in Bloom,” the perfect song for Fluttershy and me.  Now I could dance.

After about 2 minutes of just Fluttershy and me dancing, our friends joined us.  Twilight was still singing, but she was joined by some backup singers, which made the whole song even better.  This really was the best wedding ever, but hey, it was my wedding after all, so of course it would be awesome.

The song finally ended, and everyone cheered.  We all sat down, had some cake, shared a ton of laughs, and overall just enjoyed ourselves.  Then, Rainbow decided to make a toast.

“Hey, everypony, I’d like to make a toast!  To Matthew and Fluttershy!  They are truly my best friends, and I don’t think I would be the same pony as I am today without them!  We all love you two, and we all wish you the best of luck for the future!  To Matthew and Fluttershy!”  Everyone repeated her last line, and then, they started chanting something else.  They wanted one of us to make a speech.  Why?  I don’t know, these ponies are very sentimental.  I decided I might as well make a speech.

“Alright, alright, I’ll make a speech, even though I’m not one for this kind of thing.  Well, I guess I really owe everything I have today to Fluttershy.  She’s the most important thing in my world, and I would do anything for her.  Many years ago, I didn’t really care about love.  I did love someone, but she was out of my reach.  I didn’t think too much of it, and I really gave up on trying to find love.  Soon enough, I gave up on life entirely.  Were it not for the day that I found Fluttershy, I would not be here today, in fact, none of us would be here today.  And for that, I thank you Fluttershy, and I want you to know that I will always love you.  Thank you,” I finished, and everypony cheered for me.  Fluttershy stood up and gave me another kiss.

The rest of the night went on, and before I knew it, the party was over.  Everypony went home.  The girls and I took a train back to Ponyville.  Once we got there, we all said goodnight and went to our respective homes.  That night, Fluttershy and I decided to have another celebration (it had been a while since we last did it, so I think it’s fair to say we were allowed to do so).  After about an hour (yes, I’m serious), we fell asleep, cuddled together.  We shared what would be the greatest dream ever.  The funny thing is that it was the same dream we always shared.  But tonight, it just felt a lot more special.  We just flew together, and everything was perfect.  Now, my life was truly perfect.

And there you have it, the last seven years of my life.  Well, technically eight, because it’s been one year since the wedding.  I decided on waiting one year to start writing in this old journal again.  The way I wrote everything may not make it seem like it was eight years, but just trust me when I say that it was.  Your brains will be thankful.  But, now you know everything that I hinted when I started writing about this, well, act of my life.  I guess you could call it that.  Now you know why I’m a hero in Equestria, and now you know where my relationship with Fluttershy has gone.  I’m living the greatest life anyone or anypony could hope to live.  Oh, and just so you’re on the right track with ages, I am now 32 years old, and therefore Fluttershy is 29 years old.

I am currently in bed with Fluttershy.  She is already asleep, cuddling against me.  Like I wrote at some point, she is adorable when she is like this.  I’m getting pretty tired myself, so I’m gonna put the journal away for a while.  Now, don’t worry, my story isn’t done yet.  I once told you that as long as I’m here, this story will continue.  I have a long life ahead of me, with the girl of my dreams living in the world of my dreams.  My story will last until the very end.  The story of Fluttershy and me.

Act 3: The Element of Love

Damn, I haven’t written in this journal for ten years now.  And the worst part is, not much has happened.  I mean, I did discover that I created a new… you know what, I think I’ll just tell you about it.  But, of course, I can’t just write just about that.  I’ll lead into it.  The events that I’ll be writing about now all occurred over a time span of about two years.  Everything happened about two years after I last wrote in this journal, which means that basically I’ve had some stuff to write about for the past eight years.  Sorry, I just got lazy.  Anyway, I guess I’ll start with the day that my mind hatched an idea for the best concert in the history of concerts.

It was a normal Thursday evening.  I was out parkouring through Ponyville, catching the eyes of many of the ponies.  I would wave back to those that waved to me.  Fluttershy was at the market, so I had some time to kill.  I came to a point where flying just felt right.  I jumped off of a rooftop and took to the skies.  It was just my luck that I ran into Rainbow Dash up in the clouds.

“Hey Matt, up for a little race?” she asked.  We were still flying at a pretty fast speed, so we had to speak a little loudly.

“Sure, where to?” I responded.

“Hmm, how about Sweet Apple Acres?”  I gave her a little smirk and a nod.

“You’re on!” I said, and we stopped on a cloud for a starting position.  I stared into Rainbow’s eyes and started the countdown.  Of course, she felt it necessary to cheat a bit and went off as I counted two.  But, I was quick to respond.

I quickly caught up with Rainbow, even managing to pass her momentarily.  Sweet Apple Acres was now visible, and I picked up my pace.  But, Rainbow, determined to win, jolted past me, and ultimately won the race by a mile.  I caught up with her, and we landed on top of the barn.  Applejack had been out bucking some apple trees and caught sight of us.

“And what da ya’ll think yer doin up there?” she asked.  We just casually waved down to her.

“We had a little race, and I won,” Rainbow said, wearing a smug little grin on her face.  I jokingly pushed her off of the roof, but she regained her balance and started to hover in the air.  I was too busy laughing to see her charging right at me.  I quickly jumped into the air and just kept laughing.  She soon joined in with me.  We decided to go join Applejack on the ground.

“Yeah, Dash won, but only because she cheated,” I said.  She raised an eyebrow at me.  She was about to try to make an excuse, but opted against it.

“That may be true, but you don’t win by following the rules now do you?”  I gave her a little bop on the head, which made Applejack and I start to laugh.  “Yeah, yeah, laugh it up you two.  I won, and that’s that,” Rainbow finished.  I just shook my head while still smiling.  But, then, in the distance, I saw my beloved wife walking towards the barn.

I waved to her, and she waved back.  She picked up her pace to come and join us.  She greeted me with a hug and a kiss.

“Hello dear.  I didn’t know you were coming to Sweet Apple Acres,” she said.

“Neither did I, until Rainbow over here challenged me to a race,” I told her.  She looked to Rainbow and raised an eyebrow to her.

“You won right?” she asked Rainbow.

“You bet.”

“Good,” Fluttershy finished.  They both started to laugh.

“Oh, why thank you for the support my love,” I said sarcastically, which made everyone laugh.  I wrapped my arm around Fluttershy and she held up her basket to Applejack.

“I got all of those ingredients you wanted Applejack.  Your pies are sure to be twice as delicious with these.”  Applejack thanked Fluttershy and grabbed the basket in her mouth.  She invited us to stay for a while, but Rainbow had a nap to take.  We all rolled our eyes at her.  She took off, which left Fluttershy and myself.  We couldn’t stay either though.  We had made a reservation for dinner, and we needed to get home to prepare.

“What’s the occasion, if ya don’t mind mah asking ya?”

“It’s our three year anniversary.  We’ve got a big night planned,” I answered.  Applejack nodded her head.  We said our goodbyes, and Fluttershy and I headed home to prepare.

We got home at around 4:30 p.m., and our reservation was for 6 o’clock, which gave us plenty of time to get ready.  We each took a shower, got dressed up, and headed for the restaurant.  Our table was ready for us when we got there.  It was a nice, private table outside of the restaurant.  It was a perfect day to eat outside too.  We took our seats, placed our orders, and were left alone for a while to just chat.

“This is just perfect Matthew.  Happy Anniversary, my love,” she said, and she raised her glass.  I raised mine in a similar fashion.

“Happy Anniversary Fluttershy.”  We clanked our glasses and took a drink.  We just smiled at each other after.  This night was just perfect.  Time for some lovely conversation.

“These three years have been the greatest years of my life, and it’s all because of you.  But, then again, the past… man, I can’t even remember how many years it’s been since I found you on Earth.  I’ll just say that ever since that day, my life has been nothing but perfect.”

“But, what about those few months involving… well, you know,” she said.  She was referring to the Darkness.

“Well, yeah, those were a few crappy months, but even still, my life has been perfect.  And it’s all because of you.  I love you Fluttershy, and that will never change,” I said.  I had probably spoken those words, or something like that, at least 100 times at that point, and the same could be said of Fluttershy.  We would never be separated, never be torn apart.  Our love would never end.  But then, Fluttershy popped a question that kind of caught me off guard.

“Matthew, is there anything you wish you could have done in your life differently?”  I really was caught off guard a little by this question.  Would I have done anything different in my life?

“Well, honestly, yes.  I wish I could have lived life a bit more openly.  I wish I didn’t act so, well, depressed, for lack of a better word.  I wish I hadn’t given up so easily.  I also wish I could have formed a band and performed a ton of songs I never got to, but that’s different,” I said.  Fluttershy understood the meaning of what I had said.

“Well, you’re here now, and that’s what matters the most my beloved.  I don’t want you to ever change.  I love you just the way you are.”  Her words were so soothing and heartwarming.  We kissed each other across the table.  It wasn’t a long kiss, and we didn’t care who saw us.  Hey, love makes you think that way.  But, that’s when I realized how I had finished off telling her what I wish I could have done differently.

“Wait, I said I wish I could have performed all of the songs I never got to perform.  We can do that!” I said happily.  Fluttershy just looked at me with a confused look.  “Remember that night at the Gala a couple of years back?  Remember that song we performed, “If It Means a Lot to You,” we can do something like that again.  Remember how Pinkie said that we should hold like a huge concert, well why don’t we?”

“Well, Matthew, for one, it would take a lot of time to plan.  And, you don’t have a band.”

“I’ve got friends who play instruments,” I responded.  She smiled and nodded.  “Not only that, but I’ve shared my music from Earth with pretty much every pony in Ponyville.  You, Rarity, and Twilight could sing back up to me, Rainbow could play her guitar and sing a bit of back up as well, Applejack could play bass guitar, Pinkie could play the drums, and I could play electric and acoustic guitar, depending on the song.  Hell, we could even get Vinyl Scratch and Octavia to play for certain songs.  I can’t believe I didn’t think of this sooner,” I said.  Fluttershy was really into the idea now.  She smiled at my enthusiasm to perform once again.

“Well, Matthew, it sounds like we’ve got some planning to do.”

“Indeed it does.  We can tell the girls of our idea tomorrow.  I just completely sidetracked our romantic evening.  Sorry about that.”  She giggled and said that it wasn’t anything to worry about.  She reminded me that we still had our dinner to eat.

“Oh yeah, and of course, there is tonight,” I said.  She blushed a bit.

“How could I forget?” she responded.  I started to chuckle a bit.  I think I was blushing too, because Fluttershy started to giggle.

Finally, our dinner arrived.  I honestly can’t even remember what we ordered.  We ordered the same dish, but I really can’t remember it.  I do know, however, that it was so good that I took a bit of Fluttershy’s.  It’s weird how I remember some small details but not others.  We finished our dinner, payed the bill, and left for home.  And, like we said, we had a night of fun ahead of us (hey, at least I’m telling you guys when we had sex, so stop complaining that I’m not going into detail about it).

When we finished, we were just exhausted.  The fourth time truly is the charm… or is it that the third time is the charm?  I don’t know, you tell me.  Anyway, we just cuddled together after we finished.  Fluttershy rested her head on my chest.  She looked up to me and spoke.

“I love you Matthew.”

“I love you too Fluttershy, and I always will.”  We shared one more kiss before we fell asleep to share our dreams once again.

Fluttershy and I were ecstatic to tell the girls our plan for a concert.  The next morning, we got up pretty quickly, despite our eventful night.  We got ready to go out and gather the girls at the library.  Thankfully, everyone was free to chat.  We got them all together and unveiled our grand idea.  They all loved the idea.

The big question that they all brought up was where it would be held.  I couldn’t think of a better place than the hill where I had not only arrived to Equestria, but where I saved Equestria as well.  They all agreed that it was an ideal spot.  We planned that all of the ponies that came could set up little seating areas of their own.  We basically planned to cover the entirety of that hill, as well as the surrounding landscape, with, well, everything you need to hold a five hour concert.  Yes, the concert would be five hours.

I had a lot of music to play for the ponies of Equestria, so much that it would indeed take at least five hours.  We all figured how long it would take to prepare all of this.  We calculated about six months, which was fine by me.  We would not only need to set up the whole area that we would be using for the night, but we would also need to rehearse our songs.  I planned to perform every song by my top favorite bands, which everypony was fine with.  So, we settled on the idea, and started to spread the word.

Everypony in Ponyville was elated to hear about the concert.  We actually managed to get Vinyl Scratch and Octavia to agree to perform with us, which was perfect.  I saw the eyes of ponies fill with joy when we told them of our concert.  It filled my heart with so much joy.  I was going to live out one of my lifelong dreams.  To finally be able to perform in a concert of this scale was just so uplifting.

With our plan set into action, the next few days were spent planning.  We planned how the night would run, who we would get to sell refreshments, and all of that stuff.  The whole thing was going to work out that ponies could set up their own little picnic areas you could say.  They could lie out on blankets and watch us perform.  It was a perfect plan.  We also would need money to buy all of the things we would need to perform, like a stage, lighting, mics, and all of that stuff.  Everything was coming together.

Those few days turned into three months.  We were halfway there.  We were halfway to the night of our performance.  We were, of course, ready to extend the time needed to prepare, but at the rate we were going, it wasn’t a problem.  Well, of course, my plans always find a way to get some sort of obstacle thrown at them.

I woke up from bed to find that Fluttershy was missing.  I looked around my room, but my faithful eagle Nightwing was all I could see.

“Hey, Nightwing, where’s Fluttershy?” I asked him.  He was still asleep, so I reached to the floor to pick up a sock that had been lying on the floor.  I tossed it at him, which woke him up with a startle.

“What did you do that for?”

“I had to wake you up somehow, where’s Fluttershy?” I asked again.

“Oh yeah, she woke me up before to tell me… to tell you… that she was going to the spa with Rarity.”  I then remembered that it was one of those days that Fluttershy had planned a visit to the spa with Rarity.  This was something she regularly did, but I had no problem with it.

“Well, thanks for the info,” I said to Nightwing.  He nodded, stretched his wings out, and started to fly downstairs.  I figured I might as well get up too.  I got dressed and went downstairs for some breakfast.  Fluttershy had prepared me some apple pancakes already.  She always knew what I liked.  I quickly ate them and decided to go out for a while to stretch my wings.  Nightwing decided to follow.

We just flew over Ponyville for a while, going at ridiculous speeds just for the fun of it.  Well, of course, we caught the eye of none other than Rainbow Dash.  She flew right in between Nightwing and myself.

“Hey slow pokes.  Up for a race?” she asked.  I looked over her to Nightwing.  We both nodded.

“You’re on Rainbow Dash,” Nightwing said, but of course, all Rainbow would hear was an eagle cry.  I of course translated for him.  “Where shall we be racing to today?” he asked.  I translated for him again.  We stopped on a cloud to pick a spot.

“I don’t know, where do you guys wanna go?  I always pick, it’s your turn Matt,” Dash said, pointing to me.  I thought for a moment.

“Well, we were heading home actually, so I guess we could race to there.”  Both Dash and Nightwing nodded.  We got ready, and this time, I made sure Dash wouldn’t cheat.  I counted down.

“3, 2, 1, GO!”  And we were off.  Dash took an early lead, but Nightwing kept a good pace on her.  I stayed back, but I had a nice little plan in mind.  The two of them worked their hardest to stay ahead of each other.  They kept looking back to see me not too far behind.

“Pick up the pace Matt!” Dash yelled back to me.  We were nearing my home.  It was time to strike.  I blasted past the both of them with a burst of energy.  Both of them were surprised by my sudden increase in speed.  They had no chance to catch up with me, and before I knew it, I had won the race.

“HAHA!  IN YOUR FACE DASH!” I shouted to her, and started to do a silly victory dance.  She landed along with Nightwing.  She simply blew her hair out of her face.

“Yeah, well, you just got lucky,” she said, trying to make an excuse.  Nightwing simply laughed.

“Well done Matthew, good race,” he said.  He always was a good sport about things like this.  “But, if you don’t mind, I think I’m going to stay out for a while longer.  See you later,” he said, and he took off.  I simply gave him a mini-salute goodbye.  Now I was alone with Dash.

“Now what?” she asked.

“Well, Fluttershy won’t be home for a while, so I guess we could hang for a while.”  She nodded and we went inside.

I decided to unwind to some Assassin’s Creed 3.  Dash decided to take some of my food to snack on.  I simply chuckled at her.  She just watched me play.  I struck up a conversation about how things with the Wonderbolts were going.

“Awesome, what do you think?  Spitfire is considering making me a captain.  I know she’ll say yes though, I’m just too awesome,” Dash said, relishing in her own awesomeness.

“I sometimes wonder who you would be without your over-the-top ego,” I said sarcastically.  She simply laughed at my remark.  After that, she just kept shouting at me, trying to get me to kill people in the game when I really shouldn’t.  She actually took the controller for a short while to play.  Before I knew it, I found myself starting a whole new playthrough of the game.

Something was off today about Dash though.  Twice while I was playing, with my peripheral vision, I caught her staring at me.  Both times, she was just smiling.  On the third time I looked to her and just asked her what she was doing.

“What, oh, um, I wasn’t doing anything,” she said, trying to cover herself up.

“Yeah right, you were staring at me.  What gives?” I asked.  She started to fiddle with her hooves.  Before I knew it, she was blushing.  I raised an eyebrow.

“What do you think about me Matt?” she asked.  Now, I raised both of my eyebrows.  What the hell was she talking about?

“Um, well, you’re like the coolest pony I know.  You’re also very loyal to your friends, which is a very noble quality to have.  Honestly, I consider myself lucky to have a best friend like you.  Why do you ask?”  She stared into my eyes and inched towards me.

“Well… I, uh,” she started, but she didn’t finish.  She turned her head away for a moment.  Moments later, she turned back to me, pulled me in, and kissed me.  I was caught completely off guard.  Now, I knew that it was wrong, but I just couldn’t push her off of me.  The kiss was too nice.  Oh how I wish I had found the strength to get her off of me.

Not even one minute after Rainbow locked lips with me, the front door opened.

“Matthew, I’m home,” I heard Fluttershy call.  Even though I heard her, I couldn’t let go of the kiss.  “I got you your favorite…” she started to say, walking into the room.  She dropped what she was carrying at the sight of Rainbow Dash and me kissing.  I immediately pushed Rainbow off and looked at Fluttershy.  She was frozen.  She soon started to cry, and before I knew it she ran out the door.

“Fluttershy, wait!” I shouted, running after her.  I left Rainbow Dash in the living room, but as I left the house, I could hear her crying as well.

Fluttershy ran down the road, but when she realized I was chasing after her, she started to fly.  Some part of me told me to just leave her alone, but I just couldn’t.  I had to explain to her what had just happened.  I flew after her.  I found her lying on a cloud, crying profusely.  I landed on the cloud and slowly walked to her.  I placed my hand on her shoulder.

“Fluttershy,” I said.  But, before I could continue, she turned around and smacked me across the cheek with all of her strength.  I fell to one knee and placed my hand where she had delivered her smack on my left cheek.  I looked into her eyes.  They were filled with both sadness and anger, something that rarely ever came over Fluttershy.

“How could you Matthew?  Why would you do such a thing?  Am I not that important to you anymore?” she asked.  Her words felt like knives being driven through my heart.  I could feel the tears starting to flow.

“Fluttershy, you are the most important thing in my life.  I’m sorry, really I am.  I didn’t know Rainbow was going to kiss me, I swear.”

“Is that supposed to make it alright?  Matthew, I’m your wife.  We’ve been married for three years.  What makes you think that it would be alright to find you and my best friend making out in our home?” she asked, her face still flowing with tears.

“It’s not alright, I know that.  Fluttershy, I love you.  That kiss meant nothing.”

“Then why do it?”

“She kissed me!  I had no idea that she was going to do that.  I didn’t know she felt that way about me.  I would never betray you Fluttershy, not even if my life depended on it.  I love you.  You are the greatest thing that has ever happened to me, and nothing will change that.  I’m sorry.  I…”  I couldn’t finish.  I choked up as the tears started to flow.  I couldn’t believe what had just happened.  My wife, Fluttershy, had just witnessed her best friend and me kissing.  I felt absolutely terrible.

But, the next thing I knew, Fluttershy lifted my head and kissed me.  She let go, but I was still crying.  I turned my head away from her.  I couldn’t look at her, not after what I had just done.  She turned my head back to her so that our eyes met perfectly.

“Matthew, I forgive you.  I just… seeing you like that, it just hurt me.  You once promised to never hurt me, and I thought you had forgotten about me.”  Her words made me feel so guilty, but at the same time, they soothed me.

“Fluttershy, I know what I promised you.  I promised to never hurt you.  I also told you I would keep that promise, but it looks like I just broke it, and for that, I’m sorry.  But, looking back, I’ve broken that promise one too many times.  I think it’s time I remake that promise,” I said, and I stared straight into her eyes.

“I promise, Fluttershy, I will never hurt you again, in any way, shape, or form.  And, I promise, I will never leave or forget you.  You are the most important thing to me.  I promise that I will love you forever.  These are all promises I don’t just intend to keep.  I will keep these promises.  I love you,” I finished.  She stared back with tear filled eyes.

“I love you too Matthew, and I’m sorry that I smacked you.”

“You don’t need to apologize for that, I deserved it.  Come on, I think we need to chat with Rainbow Dash.  Are you still mad at her?”

“A little, but I forgive her.  I’m sure she didn’t mean anything by it.  She is our best friend after all.”

“That’s right, and she’s the most loyal pony we know.  Come on, let’s go back home.”  We stood up and flew back home, where Rainbow Dash was hopefully still waiting for us.

Fluttershy and I entered our home to find that Rainbow Dash was still there.  She had buried her head into one of the pillows from our couch and was still crying.  We walked up to her and sat beside her on the couch.

“Hey, c’mon now Rainbow, its ok,” Fluttershy said while she was rubbing her mane.  “I forgive you.”  As Fluttershy said that, Rainbow lifted her head and looked at the both of us.

“No, Fluttershy, it’s not ok.  I made out with Matt, your husband.  What kind of a friend am I?  I’m supposed to be the Element of Loyalty.  Yeah, I’m pretty loyal aren’t I?”  Rainbow couldn’t stop bashing herself, but there was no need.

“Rainbow, you made a mistake.  Now, I don’t know how long you’ve had feelings for me, but you don’t have to beat yourself up about it,” I said, trying to get her to relax a little.

“Oh yeah, what if I told you I’ve thought about you this way for the past year?  What would you think then?”  Truth be told, I was really surprised.  Rainbow had a crush on me for one year, even though she knew I was married to Fluttershy.

“Well… ok, maybe that is a bit weird.  But Rainbow, you don’t have anything to be ashamed of.  I am pretty awesome after all,” I said, much like the way that Rainbow would call herself awesome.  Fluttershy raised an eyebrow at me.

“We’re trying to make her feel better, not guilty, Matthew,” she said to me.  I got the message pretty quickly.  “Rainbow, look at me,” she continued.  Rainbow turned to look at Fluttershy.  They stared at each other for about 30 seconds, and then Fluttershy gave Rainbow a hug.

“I forgive you Dashie, you have my word,” she said.  Rainbow returned the hug, but kept crying.

“I’m so sorry Fluttershy.  I’m sorry that I did this to you,” she said, and she let go of the hug and turned to me.  “And, I’m sorry to you too Matt.  I know you don’t feel the same way about me, but just having you… no, the both you, as my best friends makes me feel better.  I hope you can truly forgive me.”

“Dashie, we’ve already forgiven you,” Fluttershy chimed in before I could say anything.  Rainbow turned to Fluttershy again and they hugged.  I simply smiled at the two of them and joined in the hug.  Rainbow finally stopped crying, and we released from our embrace.

“I owe you guys something special.  How about two free tickets to the next Wonderbolts show?  It’ll be my treat.”  I looked to Fluttershy and we nodded.

“Sounds good Dash.  We’ll be expecting a special Sonic Rainboom from you though, just for us,” I said.  Dash nodded her head and laughed.  She gestured for a hoof bump. I gladly gave her one.  The three of us shared another hug.  When we let go, we all fell into an awkward silence.

“So, now what?” Rainbow asked.  I thought for a moment.  I came up with an idea that could solve everything.

“How about a race?” I asked.  Rainbow immediately beamed up.

“You’re on!” she said, and before I knew it, we were outside racing.  Where to?  Anywhere.

Just as Rainbow promised, Fluttershy and I were treated to a special Wonderbolts show.  It was actually a private show for the really famous ponies, but of course, Dash could get us into any show that she wanted to.  The show was one month after the whole event, and in that time, we had gotten over the whole ordeal completely.  Along with that, our plans for the concert were coming along great.  But, Rainbow made sure at the show that the Wonderbolts delivered.

The show started off with some Wonderbolts tricks and routines.  Fluttershy and I had seen most of these, but they were always fun to watch, no matter how many times we had seen them.  Just as Rainbow promised, she delivered a special Sonic Rainboom just for us.  But, she added a little something special to it this time.

Not only did she do the normal Sonic Rainboom, but, by some stroke of awesomeness, Rainbow managed to pull off a Double Sonic Rainboom.  I’m not joking, or even trying to refer to that really old meme Double Rainbow.  Dash just made her Sonic Rainboom split somehow to form two rainbows.  It was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen, aside from Fluttershy of course.  Nothing tops my Fluttershy.

After the Double Rainboom, the Wonderbolts shot into the sky through the center of the stadium and spelt out the word “Wonderbolts” in the sky.  It was honestly the greatest Wonderbolts show I had ever attended, and it was all thanks to Rainbow Dash.  She really was the best friend I could ever ask for.  Fluttershy could say the same thing.

After the show, Fluttershy and I greeted Rainbow outside the stadium.  We greeted her with a huge hug.

“See, I told you guys I had something special planned.  What’d you think?” she asked us.

“Dash, that was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.  You really outdid yourself this time.  For that, we thank you,” I said.  She smiled and we hugged again.  When we let go, she asked if we had really forgiven her again.

“Dash, we forgave you the day that it happened.  Don’t you worry your rainbow filled head about it, at all, got that?” I asked her.  She nodded and we left the stadium.  We decided to go celebrate with some dinner.  On our way to one of the Cloudsdale restaurants, Rainbow was bombarded by fans that must have seen her Double Rainboom.  Dash satisfied all of their requests for autographs and what not.  We finally made it to the restaurant, where we chowed down on some of the best Equestrian pizza I had ever had.  Yeah, they actually have pizza here in Equestria.  I probably should have mentioned that a lot earlier.  Oh well, now you know.

Fluttershy and Rainbow got more fancy dinners, but I was satisfied with my pizza.  We paid the bill and left the restaurant.  We gave Dash one more hug before we said goodbye to her for the night.  Fluttershy and I went home back in Ponyville.

“She really is the best friend anypony could ever ask for, isn’t she?” Fluttershy asked me rhetorically.

“Yeah, she really is.  But, I don’t think she’ll ever be as great as you,” I said.

“Aw, aren’t you adorable,” she said, and she pinched my cheek.  I made her stop and I started chasing her around the house until I caught her in the bedroom.  I held her down on our bed and we just kept laughing.

“I love you Matthew, you know that right?”

“You know it.  Oh, and that’s like the millionth time you’ve asked me that,” I said sarcastically.  She giggled, and I kissed her.  Would you like to take a guess at what followed?  If you guessed the most obvious answer (sex), than you’d be correct.

A fun night, however, is always followed by a fun dream.  But tonight, our dream sharing was made a bit more special.  We were greeted by Rainbow Dash in our dream.  She flew along with us in our never-ending sky.  This really must have been what heaven was like.  Just a man, his wife, and their best friend, flying forever.  God I love living in Equestria.

Well, soon enough, the night of the concert arrived.  Man was it a great night.  I had planned to write all about it, but I soon realized that writing about a concert and actually seeing it are two very different things.  Aside from that, we performed at least 150 different songs, all of which everypony knew.  We even had some audience members sing their own songs.  It was such a great night.

The crowd was huge.  Everypony from Ponyville attended, as well as Canterlot.  A good number of ponies from Manehattan even came.  I think like ten percent of the crowd was made up of the Apple Family (crazy right).  Hell, even Celestia and Luna showed up.  The night was an all-around success.  It was just like I envisioned it.

The night was closed with my top four favorite songs, “Without You” by Breaking Benjamin, “We’re Not Gonna Fall” by Daughtry, “Another Song About the Weekend” by A Day to Remember, and “Never Be the Same” by Red.  We ended with “Never Be the Same,” and I think I managed to get half of the crowd crying with that song.  It really was just a great night.  I wish I had a huge recording of it, but sadly, I don’t.  You’ll just have to believe me when I say it was the best night of my life.

But, that night, as corny as this may sound, I felt the love of not just Fluttershy, but everypony in attendance.  Most of all, I felt the love of the ponies I performed with.  Fluttershy, Twilight, Rainbow, Pinkie, Applejack, and Rarity, hell, even Octavia and Vinyl.  I felt so much love for those ponies (the Mane 6 more than Octavia and Vinyl of course, but they were still amazing).  I finally realized, although I think I realized this long ago, that these ponies weren’t just my friends, but in fact, they were family.  The love I felt for these ponies was now equal to that of the love I had for Fluttershy (well, maybe not equal, but almost).

Well, that love must have sparked something, and Celestia realized it.  Why, however, it took her about one more year to tell me, still confuses me.  From what I gather, I think she had to figure out everything about how a seventh Element of Harmony was created.

It was a great Saturday afternoon.  The girls and I were spending a wonderful day together.  We were relaxing outside of Sugarcube Corner.  It was exactly one year after the day of the concert, and we were reveling in the memories of that day.

“What was your favorite song from the night Matthew?” Twilight asked me.

“Although it’s not my favorite song of all time, “Never Be the Same” was easily the best song for me.  It’s like a clean definition of what my life has become… sort of.”  The girls chuckled as I finished my statement with uncertainty.  Dash made herself obvious, so I picked her out.

“What about you Dash, what was your favorite of the night?”

“What I Want” by Daughtry baby.  That guitar solo is the bomb.”  She had a good point.  “What I Want” has one of the coolest guitar solos ever.  Dash played it like a beast.

We just kept talking about that night.  It was, after all, one of the greatest nights in the history of Equestria.  But, suddenly, we were greeted by Princess Celestia.  Her arrival came as a surprise to all of us.  We all got up and bowed to her.

“Greetings my little ponies, and greetings to you as well Matthew,” she said.  I gave her a smile and a nod hello.

“Hello Princess Celestia.  What brings you to Ponyville on such a sudden notice?  Has something happened in Canterlot?” Twilight asked.

“No Twilight, I am here because of Matthew,” she said, looking at me.  I was caught by surprise.

“Did I do something wrong?”  I was really worried, and apparently, so was Fluttershy.  She clung onto my arm and held me close.

“Quite the opposite Matthew.  There is no need to worry.  I bring with me a gift.  Or perhaps it should not be called a gift, seeing as though you created it Matthew.”  I was utterly confused.  What the hell did I do?

“Let us move to your home, Matthew, where we may have more privacy,” Celestia said.  We all did what she said and went to my house.  Fluttershy, the ponies, and I stood around the Princess as we entered the living room.

“So, what’s up Celestia?  What’s this thing that I created that’s brought you here?”  She stared at me and smiled.  She levitated a chest in front of herself.

“You are, of course, familiar with the Elements of Harmony?  Well Matthew, one year ago, something inside of you caused a spark in the Elements, something I thought impossible.  The Elements have realized your true worthiness to Harmony and Friendship.  And, because of this, you managed to create a seventh Element of Harmony.”  Everyone in the room dropped their mouths, except Celestia of course.  We were all shocked at what she had just told us.

“What?  How the hell could I have created a seventh Element of Harmony?  And for that matter, what the hell would I even represent?  I don’t think power or strength are really parts of harmony.  Courage does come to mind though.”  I would have kept going, but Celestia hushed me.

“Why don’t you tell us,” she said, and she opened the chest and levitated the Element to me.  It wasn’t a necklace like the others, but in fact, was a bracelet.  It had a golden metal strap to go on my wrist perfectly.  I looked at the symbol in the center.  It was a tomahawk.  The handle was brown and there was a blade on it.  The blade was red though, which seemed weird to me.

“I don’t get it.  What’s my Element Celestia?”  She merely gestured for me to look again.  I looked back at the Element to see that the blade portion was not in the shape of the Assassin’s Crest, but in fact, it was in the shape of a heart.  I thought for a moment, and then it hit me.  My eyes beamed open and I stared at Celestia.

“Love,” I simply said.  “Love is my Element.  But, that doesn’t make sense.  Wait… why the hell does that actually make sense?”  I was completely taken back by the fact that I actually did represent love.

“Matthew, from the day you found Fluttershy, you have done nothing but show what it truly means to love.  Your dedication to loving and caring for Fluttershy has always been an inspiration.  But, the night of the concert, you realized that you shared that love with not just Fluttershy, but every other pony in this room.  You realized that you love all of my little ponies in Equestria.  You are a true representation of love, and for that, you are the Element of Love.”  I couldn’t help but smile and start to tear up a bit.  Fluttershy came up to me and gave me a hug.  We let go and stared at the Element in my hand.

The girls all gathered around us and looked at the Element.  Twilight’s stare moved to Celestia.

“But, Princess, why give this to Matthew now?  There are no dangers that require the Elements, so why would we need a seventh?”  She was right.  There was no reason to have this.

“It is to symbolize what Matthew truly represents my pupil.  But, I have also imbued it with a special gift.  Matthew, you are aware that I have the ability to send you back to Earth.  I’m sure you also know that ever since your arrival here that the time difference has leveled off and that our worlds share the same time.  Well, sending you home has become something dangerous.  I learned that when I sent you home so you could fetch those two guns of yours.  Well, imbedded in your Element is the power to visit your home.”  I looked at her in surprise.

“Wait, but wouldn’t that be the same as you just teleporting me back home?”

“The difference, Matthew, is that you will not actually be home.  You will be there in spirit, therefore the risk of you being found is eliminated.  You cannot interact with anyone or anything while you are there, but you can see everything and everyone in your world once again.  This also eliminates the threat of our worlds colliding with each other, so to speak.  In short, Matthew, this power will allow you to safely visit your home again.  The Element, of course, has its natural power, and can be used in tandem with the other Elements of Harmony.  I am proud to present this gift to you Matthew, and I thank you for loving my little ponies with all of your heart.”  Celestia had just given me the greatest gift of my life.

“I cannot thank you enough Celestia.”  I thought for a moment.  “How do I use it, to go home, I mean?”

“First, you may want to lie down.”  I did as she said and lied down on the couch.

“Put the Element on your wrist.  Then, grip it with your opposite hand.  All you must do is think about home.”  I did what she said and put the Element on my right wrist and held it with my left hand.  But before I tried it, I asked her one more thing.

“How do I get back?”

“You will still have the Element as a spirit on Earth.  All you must do is hold the Element in your left hand while it is on your right wrist and think of Fluttershy,” she said, and I smiled.  I looked at everypony in the room, and then to Fluttershy.  She knelt beside me and kissed me.

“Don’t stay too long, alright,” she said when we finished kissing.

“Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.  But, just in case,” I said, and I kissed her again.  “I love you,” I finished.  She stood back as I closed my eyes and started to think about home.  In a moment, I felt myself slip away from my physical body.  I was going home.

I awoke from what felt like a good night’s sleep.  I stared into the sky.  It was a beautiful day.  I felt around on the ground to find on was lying on grass.  I sat up and saw my body was see through.  I was completely transparent, so I assumed I was invisible to everyone around me.  I looked around to see that I was lying on the front lawn of my childhood home.  I hadn’t seen home in so many years.  It felt good to be back.  I looked down the drive way to see no one was home.  I assumed everyone was out, so I decided to just go inside.

I didn’t have to open the door.  I just walked right through it, which was awesome.  I stepped into the mudroom which had been changed quite a bit since I last saw this house.  Stepping into the kitchen and seeing the dining room made me realize I had been gone a lot longer than it seemed.  The kitchen had been completely redone, and the same could be said of the dining room.  The living room was the same however, which I liked.  I decided to give my room a visit.  It had been cleared out of all of my stuff, and to my great surprise, replaced by a ton of girl items.

‘Who the hell moved into my room?’  I knew that the house was still owned by my family, so I just figured my sister moved in from her room to mine.  Although, to my knowledge, she wasn’t living home anymore.  I would have to figure it out when she got home.  Watching her would tell me enough.

I visited my good old man cave of a basement to find it generally unchanged.  Although, the TV we had down there was replaced by a much cooler one, and the old table was replaced with a nice wooden table.  I hadn’t realized how much I really missed being home until I actually got there.  I decided to go out for a while and see how my friends were doing, provided they were all still in the area.

Sure enough, walking a few blocks led me to my best friend’s house.  I found he was still there with his mother, father, and brother.  I looked in through the windows to see he had grown up quite a bit.  I really missed him.  We had a lot of great times together, and to see him fully grown up like this was really cool.  But, what seemed odd was that they were all dressed up.  They were wearing clothes that you would wear if you were in mourning or something.  I didn’t think too much about it and decided to go see if the former girl of my dreams was still in the area.

Sure to my assumption, she was, and she had married a fine man.  She was actually living in the same area, but not the same house.  I saw her leaving her home by chance with her husband.  They gave each other a kiss as they exited their home.  He seemed to really make her happy, and therefore, I was happy.  She meant the whole world to me back then.  We were great friends, but I never had the guts to tell her how I felt.  Knowing that she had found the perfect guy though just made me happy.  Besides, I’ve got Fluttershy now, and she’s much better.

‘Make her happy dude.  You don’t know how lucky you are,’ I thought to myself as I watched them walk to their car.  Again, I was surprised to see that they were actually wearing attire that you would wear if you were in mourning.  That’s twice in a row.  Something was going on.  I decided to follow their car, and by chance, they managed to be followed by my best friend and his family.  

They led me to the local funeral home.  Now I was worried.  Who had died while I was away?  A sudden thought crossed my mind, and I was struck with fear.

‘Please God no,’ I thought, as I entered the funeral home.  I followed the sound of voices to the room where the service was being held.  The rooms were labeled with the name of the one who had passed away.  I read the label, and I literally felt my heart break apart.  It was my mother.  My fear had come true.  She had passed away, and I wasn’t there for her.  I wanted to cry, but I couldn’t just yet.  

I stared at the label for two hours, not entering the room until everyone except my family had left.  I saw all of my family members that were still alive, which was actually a good amount.  I noticed that my two uncles and one aunt were absent.  Listening in on some conversation, I found out they had passed away as well.

I saw my sister with who I assumed was her husband.  They had a child with them.  A daughter, no older than 15.  I saw my brother, married to the women he had met when I was 19.  They didn’t have children.  My brother was really against having kids, and I honestly can’t blame him.  Babies are annoying.

I saw my other cousins, two of them married, the other four not.  I saw my other aunt and a few uncles standing around in a semi-circle.  I decided to pass through and finally see her.

I saw my mother.  Her dormant body was lying in the casket.  She had gotten so much older since I had left all those years ago.  I started to bawl my eyes out crying.  I hadn’t been there for my mother when she passed.  The same could be said of my other family members who had passed.  Just knowing that tore me apart.

“I’m sorry Mom.  I’m so sorry,” I said out loud.  No one could hear me.  I fell to my knees and cried to the floor.  But, shortly after, my brother and sister walked forward and knelt in front of the casket to pray for her.  I decided to join them.  There was actually a spot for me to kneel alongside them.  They joined hands and prayed together.  My sister couldn’t hold back tears, and the same could be said of my brother.  Seeing my brother like that just broke me.  I let out all of the tears I had to shed.  I said my own prayer for my mother.  I’m not going to write what I said, you’ll have to excuse me.  It’s just too personal for me.

I stood up and turned to see all of my family staring at my mother’s body.  I looked one more time at her.  I couldn’t leave without giving her one last kiss.  I kissed her body on the forehead and spoke.

“I love you Mom.”  With that, I had seen enough.  I looked back to my family one more time.  Seeing them all together just made me smile a bit through all of the sadness.  I gripped the Element of Love which was still on my wrist, and thought of Fluttershy.  I closed my eyes, and I felt my spiritual being head back to my body.

I opened my eyes, which were filled with tears.  Fluttershy was sitting beside me, and the rest of the ponies in the room looked at me.

“Matthew, what happened?  What did you see?” Fluttershy asked.  I sat up on the couch, but I couldn’t stop crying.

“She’s gone.  She’s gone, and I wasn’t there.”  The ponies and Fluttershy looked at me in confusion.

“Who?” Fluttershy asked.

“My mother.  She passed away, apparently just yesterday in fact.  She’s gone, and I wasn’t there for her in her final moments.  I wasn’t there for the many other family members of mine that passed while I was gone.  I just…”  I couldn’t finish.  I choked up from crying.  Fluttershy gave me a hug to comfort me.  I started to hear the other ponies crying for my loss.

“I’m sorry Matthew, truly I am.  I’m here for you,” Fluttershy said, trying to soothe me.  I couldn’t stop crying.

“Twilight, you said it yourself all those years ago, that if I came here, I would be leaving my family behind.  I didn’t think anything of it then, but now I realize how selfish I’ve been.”  Twilight looked at me with tear filled eyes.  She couldn’t speak to me though.  Fluttershy tried to calm me.

“Matthew, you did what you thought was right.  You are not a selfish person.  Don’t you think your family is happy knowing that you are happy?  Don’t you think your mother probably died happy knowing that you were happy?”  Her words actually helped.  In the note I left for my family all those years ago, I wrote that I was in a better place living a fantastic life, or something like that.  It’s been a long time, so I can’t remember the specifics.  But, what Fluttershy said made me realize that my mother probably was happy for me.  It may not have been expressed in the best way on paper, but I’m sure my mother knew.  But, still, the lingering fact that my mother had passed and I wasn’t there was just crippling.

“I guess you’re right Fluttershy… but still.  I just can’t get over it.  She passed away and I wasn’t there for her.  I just can’t live with that.  But… I still love her.  She’s my mother, so I have to.  She did so much for me, and that’s something I can never forget.  She was happy for me before I even came here.  Just think of how she felt knowing I was with who I wanted to be with, in the world of my dreams.  Knowing that, how bad could I really be, I guess.”  Fluttershy smiled at me and kissed me on the cheek.

“That’s the spirit.  We all love you Matthew.  We are all family, and I’m sure your mother is looking down on you and smiling for you.  She will always love you, and you will always love her.”  I turned to Fluttershy and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

“Yeah, you’re right.  And the same goes for all of you.  I love you all.  I guess that’s why I’m the Element of Love,” I said, and everyone in the room smiled.  I then realized Celestia was absent.  “Hey, where’s Celestia?”

“She left a while after you went to visit Earth.  You were gone for quite a while after all Matthew,” Twilight answered.  She was right.  I was gone for about three or four hours.  I simply looked at the Element on my wrist and smiled.

“Well, now what?” Rainbow asked, always eager to be doing something other than sitting around.  I chuckled and looked to her.

“Well, I don’t know about you guys, but I’m hungry.  Who’s up for some dinner, my treat?”  All of the girls smiled at me and agreed to the idea.  I took off my Element and placed it on the mantle above my fireplace.  I smiled at it one more time, and spoke softly to it.

“I love you Mom.  Say hi to Dad for me.”  I turned to the ponies and Fluttershy, who were all ready to go.  “Let’s go get some food.”

And there you go, the most recent events in my life.  Yeah, I realize I could have written about all of this a couple years earlier, but I just couldn’t get myself to do it.  All of that happened about six years ago.  Like I said, it’s been ten years since I wrote in this journal.  Now, I’m 42 years old, and Fluttershy is 39.  We are living quite happily, as you can imagine, together.  Our friends… no, our family, is doing great.  We all pretty much meet for get-togethers regularly.  I don’t argue though.  I want to spend as much time with the girls as possible.

Now, I know I said that this story would continue as long as I’m here in Equestria.  But, honestly, I’ve pretty much done everything I’ve wanted to do with Fluttershy.  I mean, of course, I don’t love her any less than I ever did, but nothing big comes to mind for stuff to do.  I just want to live the rest of my life with her, and the rest of the family.  We all love each other, and that’s good enough for me.

So, just in case this is the last time you’ll be hearing from me, I’ll leave you with this.  I never thought I would be living the life I live today.  The life I’m living is every bronies fantasy.  My life was saved because I happened to find my favorite pony in a dumpster.  I never thought love was something I would need, but I was so wrong.  It was the love of Fluttershy that saved my life.  Love is a powerful thing.  I’d say it’s the most powerful thing in the universe, as corny as that may sound.  Without her love, I wouldn’t be here today.  Her love is the most important thing in my life.

And that is why it was, still is, and always will be… Fluttershy and me.

The End

And with that, Matthew closed the cover of his journal.  He sighed and smiled at it.  His life from age 17 to 42 in this one journal.  He shed a manly tear from all the memories he had stored in writing in the journal.  He heard a voice from his living room.

“Matthew, honey, are you alright?  It's almost time to go,” Fluttershy called to him.  They would be once again attending the Grand Galloping Gala.  Matthew had gone about three times, and this would be his fourth.  Every time it would just get better.

“Yes, dear, I’m fine.  Just finishing up my journal,” he answered to Fluttershy.  She walked into their bedroom and smiled at him.

“I can’t believe you still have that journal.”

“Of course I’ve still got it.  This is practically my life story, and there is no way I’m gonna forget all of this.  I need this stuff on record.”  Fluttershy laughed at her husband.  He smiled back to her and started to get dressed for the occasion.  After about 20 minutes, they left for Canterlot for what would be a truly fantastic night.

Matthew and Fluttershy, as well as the rest of their friends, had lived their lives to the fullest.  They all considered each other family.  Matthew was 73 years old, and Fluttershy was 70 years old.  They had everything they could want.  They had each other, a loving family (meaning their friends), and a beautiful world to live in together.

But, Matthew and Fluttershy knew their time was coming to an end.  They both foresaw this, so they asked Princess Celestia for a great favor when Matthew was 64 (therefore Fluttershy was 61).  They asked if Celestia could see to it that they would die together.  Neither Matthew nor Fluttershy wanted to leave the other alone in the world.  Matthew didn’t want to leave Fluttershy, and Fluttershy didn’t want to leave Matthew.  Celestia understood, so she granted their wish.  At ages 73 and 70, Matthew and Fluttershy started to die.

Matthew collapsed onto the floor one day.  Fluttershy rushed to his side, but felt herself getting weak.  Within moments, they were both unconscious on the living room floor.  After about one hour, they both awoke.  Matthew had bruised his head, but Fluttershy was fine.  They knew that their time was coming.  They stared into each other’s eyes and cried.  Matthew held Fluttershy close as she cried into his chest.  They didn’t need any hospital to tell them that their time was coming to an end.

They decided to tell their friends, but first, they had to tell the one closest to them both.  Matthew and Fluttershy invited Rainbow Dash over for a visit.  They broke the news to her, and the pony they knew was gone.  Rainbow Dash was a mess, covered in tears and unable to accept the truth.  Matthew and Fluttershy held their dearest friend close to them, not wanting to let go.  When Rainbow finally calmed down, they decided to invite the rest of the girls over.  They even invited the Princess to hear the news.

Twilight, Applejack, Pinkie, Rarity, and Celestia entered Matthew and Fluttershy’s home.  The only one who knew what was going on was Celestia.  Matthew and Fluttershy told them all, and within moments, the room was filled with the tears of the ponies.  Even Celestia was in tears, and she knew what was happening.  She felt the change in the Elements of Love and Kindness.  She felt them growing weak.  But even still, she couldn’t help but cry.

The ponies said that Matthew and Fluttershy should stay at a hospital, but they couldn’t be happier anywhere else than home.  All Fluttershy and Matthew did for the one month that they had left was lay in bed together, never leaving each other’s side.  The ponies would visit every day, especially Rainbow Dash.  They all would help get the two of them food and water, and of course, provide them company.  Although, they didn’t need much more company than each other.

One night, after Rainbow Dash had left her two friends, Matthew and Fluttershy went on a journey.  They went on a journey through the many years they had spent together.  It was time to remember.

It was no different than the two of them just dreaming together.  Matthew and Fluttershy were together in their memories, and they watched, together, as the many years of their lives together passed by, starting with that very first day.

Matthew walked down the street, stopping by the dumpster on his block to inspect the strange whining coming from it.  He looked in to find Fluttershy.  She was covered in old furniture and knick-knacks.  Matthew held out his hand to her, telling her that he would not harm her.  She gave Matthew her hoof, and he held Fluttershy close to his body, keeping her warm on the cold winter night.

Upon entering his home with the 14 year old Fluttershy, Matthew set her down and felt the warmth of his home overtake him.  Fluttershy stared around her new surroundings.  Matthew went to go down into the basement, only to be stopped by the crying of the little pony.  He told her that he would keep her safe, and never harm her.  Matthew carried the young Fluttershy into the basement, where they would talk until they fell asleep.

The morning arrived, and Matthew awoke, hoping that Fluttershy was still at his side.  She was, and he let out a sigh that would wake up the young Fluttershy.  Matthew was relieved to know his mother was out for the morning.  Matthew tried to figure out what Fluttershy could eat, ultimately giving her a plate of pancakes.  After that, Matthew gave Fluttershy a tour of the house, his room being the most fun for her.  Matthew soon after bathed Fluttershy, and as he was drying her off, she gave him a hug.  This was the beginning of their relationship.

The following Monday morning was terrible for Matthew.  He forgot about school.  Fluttershy had kept his mind off of it, and waking up at 6:45 a.m. was quite bothersome for him.  He explained to Fluttershy that he would be out for the day at school, and that she should stay in the basement.  She could listen to music, watch TV, and have the snacks that Matthew provided for her.  Matthew finally left Fluttershy to go to school.

All Matthew thought about that day was Fluttershy.  He ran home, only to find Fluttershy in tears.  She had been frightened by The Walking Dead on TV.  Matthew assured her that she was alright, and that it was just a show.  Matthew examined the bruise that Fluttershy had on her leg from flying into the wall in the basement.  Matthew offered to help Fluttershy become better at flying, of course, after they figured out how Matthew could teach her.  The days following were the same routine, a routine that Fluttershy became quickly accustomed to.

Next, Matthew and Fluttershy observed the summer day that Fluttershy was introduced to the rabbit Joey.  Fluttershy spoke to the rabbit, surprised to find that she could understand him.  Matthew noticed Fluttershy’s flank glowing.  A few moments later, three butterflies adorned Fluttershy’s flank.  Matthew explained that it was her cutie mark.  Fluttershy flew into the air with joy.  They were both ecstatic to see that she was flying without any troubles.  Soon, the day became night, and Fluttershy and Matthew were sleeping together at Matthew’s home.  They shared their very first kiss on that night.

The memories shifted to the day of Matthew’s very first kill, a day that Matthew truly dreaded.  Matthew arrived at the new warehouse Fluttershy had been staying at near his college campus.  Matthew found Fluttershy covered by a blanket.  She jumped onto him, holding him tight.  She showed Matthew her broken wing.  Matthew became enraged.  He returned to his dorm to get his weapons, and soon went back to the warehouse.  The two men that harmed Fluttershy entered, and Matthew watched his younger self kill the both of them within seconds.  Matthew couldn’t believe what he had done, but Fluttershy comforted him, and she assured him that she would stay with him forever.

Once again, the memories faded.  Matthew and Fluttershy watched the day of Fluttershy’s discovery of what she truly was.  Matthew entered his home, coming back from an audition.  He heard the TV on, playing a very familiar song from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic.  Matthew found Fluttershy in tears, her hair a mess.  She yelled at him, her voice filled with anger and sadness.  She ran into their room and locked herself in.  Two days passed, and Matthew found himself on the floor, crying and apologizing to Fluttershy.  She, once again, comforted Matthew, soothing him with her gentle words of forgiveness.  They hugged, and the memory faded once again.

It was now the day that the rest of Fluttershy’s friends, and Princess Celestia, arrived at Matthew and Fluttershy’s home.  Matthew let in the whole gang, starting a small argument with Rainbow Dash.  He tried to play dumb, but ultimately gave in to them all.  He became angry once Rarity mocked him about Fluttershy and himself being an item.  He spoke their names, which surprised Pinkie Pie.  He went to get Fluttershy, who would shortly after, regain her memories of her friends after seeing Rainbow Dash.  Then, Celestia asked if Fluttershy would do anything for Matthew.  One minute later, Celestia said she would take her home.  Matthew jumped up in her defense with his tomahawk and hidden blade.  But, he ultimately just gave up, until he got the idea of going to Equestria.  His argument rang true to Celestia, and he was granted passage into Equestria.  Matthew saw himself finishing the first part of his journal on the beach.  The memories faded once again.

The first set of memories had passed, and now, Matthew and Fluttershy were greeted by a new set.  They were greeted by the days of the Darkness, starting with the day Matthew gained his wings.

Matthew and Fluttershy watched as Matthew walked through the Everfree Forest, heading for Zecora’s hut.  Matthew greeted her, and she responded with a rhyme, of course.  Matthew asked if he could obtain wings, and more specifically, eagle wings.  Zecora said he would need a feather, which he had already gotten.  Zecora created a potion, which Matthew drank.  As pain shot through his body, wings formed out of his back.  He passed out, only to wake up to find he now had white eagle wings.  They were amazing for him, and he couldn’t wait to show Fluttershy.

Matthew headed back to Ponyville.  He was greeted by Rainbow Dash, who had flown right into Matthew.  Rainbow was in shock to see Matthew now had wings.  They both headed for Sugarcube Corner, where they would tell the rest of their friends of Matthew’s new wings.  Pinkie was full of joy at the sight of Matthew, and shortly after, Rarity and Applejack entered the room, equally as surprised as Pinkie.  Twilight entered, unable to comprehend that Matthew now had wings.  Matthew had to tell her it was Zecora before she fully accepted it.  Soon after, Rainbow Dash brought Fluttershy to Sugarcube Corner, where Matthew surprised Fluttershy with his new wings.  Matthew held Fluttershy close as she ran her hoof over his new wings.

The ponies all started to plan for the huge party that would happen the next day for Matthew.  They all just planned, and soon, went to Matthew and Fluttershy’s home to plan where they would set everything up.  It was decided that the party would be outside.  Fluttershy asked Matthew if they would ever get to have intercourse, but Matthew replied saying it might be weird, which Fluttershy understood completely.  Soon after, the ponies arrived for the party.  Rainbow was late because she had saved Spitfire for a second time.  The party went pretty late, but Matthew stayed up with Rainbow to practice flying.  When Matthew returned home, he got ready for bed, and shortly after, was sound asleep with Fluttershy.

Matthew and Fluttershy watched the day that Matthew had gone into a state of remembrance.  The whole scenario literally turned into a moment of inception.  Matthew and Fluttershy watched as Matthew remembered his days from childhood.  Matthew remembered the day of his father’s death, his Elementary School Graduation, his sixteenth birthday party, and High School Graduation.  Next, they saw as Matthew remembered the day he killed those two men, which just hurt Matthew to watch.  At age 73, he had gotten over it, but it was still there, in his mind.  Next, Matthew received a vision, but of what, he did not know.  At that time, he didn’t know.  At age 73, Matthew knew that it was a vision of the day of the battle with the Darkness.  Matthew woke up to see Fluttershy, who had brought back home with her two tickets to the Grand Galloping Gala.

The night of the Gala had arrived.  Matthew and Fluttershy were as excited as their friends were.  Matthew and Fluttershy agreed to perform “If It Means a Lot to You” for the night of the Gala.  The Gala was just amazing.  Fluttershy showed Matthew the Canterlot garden, which was just beautiful.  Matthew and Fluttershy performed their song, which was an amazing moment for the both of them.  After that, it was time for the Wonderbolts to perform.  Rainbow Dash performed a Sonic Rainboom, and as she did, Matthew and Fluttershy kissed each other.

Now came the day that Fluttershy told Matthew that she had decided to become a human.  She had been thinking about it for a long time, and she had made up her mind.  Matthew tried talking her out of it, but to no avail.  The following day, Matthew, Fluttershy, and the rest of the ponies went to Canterlot to meet with Celestia.  Shining Armor greeted them all and brought them to the Princess.  Shortly after, Celestia performed her spell on Fluttershy.  Before them all stood Fluttershy, but she was now a human.  She was absolutely beautiful to Matthew, as well as everyone else in the room.  Matthew helped her walk outside, and they all left for Ponyville.  In bed, Fluttershy was moving her new human limbs around, getting acquainted with her new body.  Matthew told her how he did in fact love her even more now, and they fell asleep.

One year passed, and Matthew and Fluttershy watched the day that everything with the Darkness started.  Matthew, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash were out in the Everfree Forest.  Matthew was parkouring without his wings, Rainbow was flying through, and Fluttershy followed.  As Matthew ascended a large tree to get a grand view of things, he noticed a huge storm cloud as he reached the top.  He advised the two others with him that they shouldn’t stay out too much longer.  But, soon enough, the clouds were right over them.  They rushed to get out of the forest.  But, Matthew was unfortunate to find himself with a tree branch lodged into his chest.  He faded out as Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash rushed to his side, and ultimately, he died.

What came next, Matthew knew too well, but for Fluttershy, what she was about to see was new to her.  Matthew was dead.  He was in the dark abyss of nothingness that belonged to the Darkness.  Matthew started to walk around, eventually starting to fly.  Soon, the voice of the Darkness was heard.  Matthew demanded the owner of the voice to step forward.  So, the Darkness revealed himself.  He paralyzed Matthew, only to be blinded moments later by the arrival of Matthew’s father.  Matthew shouted for his father to stay, but soon, he woke up.  Matthew was greeted by his friends and Fluttershy, who had been crying like a fountain after losing him.  Matthew was informed he had been dead for one hour, and was shortly after left alone for a while with Fluttershy.

Matthew was soon after informed he would have to stay in the hospital for one year.  He spent another hour with his friends.  He loved having the company, and they would be the ones to keep him sane for that one long year of recovery.  Soon, time passed to the day Matthew received two very amazing gifts, his hookblade, and his eagle Nightwing.  Matthew considered these the greatest gifts he had ever gotten.  Matthew and Fluttershy that night, even though they weren’t together, shared their dreams once again.

Time passed, and soon enough, Matthew was out of the hospital.  He spent his first day home with Fluttershy, who never left his side.  But, that was the night they would share their dreams, and the Darkness returned.  Matthew looked around for Fluttershy in his dream, only to be greeted by the Darkness.  Matthew argued with him for a few moments, and then, the Darkness had him in his grip.  The light shining from Fluttershy’s presence saved Matthew’s life.  They both awoke, Fluttershy crying into Matthew’s chest.  They were both shivering in fear.  

The following three months went by with the same outcomes.  Matthew and Fluttershy’s dreams were haunted by the Darkness.  The night finally came when Matthew expelled the Darkness from his mind, therefore releasing him into Equestria.  The following day, Matthew and Fluttershy informed Princess Celestia of what had occurred the previous night, and that a new threat was present in Equestria.  Matthew swore to help fight off the Darkness.  And that night, they shared their dreams unhindered by the Darkness.

The day finally arrived that the Darkness returned.  Three months had passed, and now he was back, ready to destroy Equestria.  Matthew, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash rushed to Canterlot to warn the Princess of his return.  They had two days to prepare, and they would be ready.  But, the ponies of Ponyville were in panic mode.  So, on the night before the battle, Matthew, Fluttershy, and their friends performed a song that would lift the spirits of the ponies.  Sure enough, it worked.  Matthew now knew that they would be ready for the battle.

The morning arrived.  Matthew prepared himself, and he and his friends went to the hill that would soon become a battlefield.  Matthew started to sing the lyrics to the song he had performed the previous night.  His words were bounced back by the ponies of Ponyville.  Soon enough, the Darkness’ soldiers rushed down the hill.  Matthew charged forward, taking out a couple before going behind cover and waiting for Celestia’s call.  They all charged, and Matthew rushed back out.  He eliminated dozens of Shadow Soldiers within minutes, but soon, Rainbow was injured.  This got Matthew angry.  He rushed back out, heading straight for the Darkness.  But, the force of the opposing army was too great.  But, soon enough, the Darkness called his soldiers back, and Matthew and the Darkness were ready for their finally confrontation.

Matthew and the Darkness stared each other down.  Their weapons clanged against each other, but Matthew clearly was more skilled.  He landed powerful blows on the Darkness, who would return with equally powerful blows.  The two were almost evenly matched, but Matthew persevered.  The Elements of Harmony were called to action, but sadly, they were ineffective.  Matthew was killed by the Darkness, only to be saved once again by his father.  Matthew had himself blasted by the Elements moments later, allowing him to create the Sword of Altair.  He and Fluttershy blasted the Darkness with the power of love, and within moments, the Darkness was gone.  Matthew used the remaining power he had to create a ring.  He asked Fluttershy for her hand in marriage.

The day of Matthew and Fluttershy’s wedding appeared before the two, as they watched what was the happiest day in their lives.  Matthew and Fluttershy awoke from their slumber, and they were ready for the long day ahead of them.  Twilight helped Matthew to prepare himself, and Rainbow and Rarity helped Fluttershy prepare herself.  The moment arrived, and the two were finally wed.  The night held in store a great party, but the party wasn’t the only thing Matthew and Fluttershy did that night.  Along with making love, the two shared another dream together, one that just felt more special to the two of them.  They flew together, in a dream they never wanted to end.  Once again, the string of memories faded.

The third set of memories started to flash before Matthew and Fluttershy.  These were the last events Matthew decided to write about in his journal.

First was the day of Matthew and Fluttershy’s three year anniversary.  They had been married for three years, and Matthew had a very special night planned.  Matthew and Fluttershy sat together for a romantic dinner, where Matthew came up with the idea for a huge concert.  The idea was perfect, and Matthew and Fluttershy agreed to tell their friends about it the next day.  When they got home, the two headed straight for the bedroom.  

The following day, the two shared their plan with their friends, and soon enough, all of Ponyville.  Word of the concert started to spread like wildfire.  Three months passed, to a day that Matthew couldn’t forget.  He woke up Nightwing to find Fluttershy was out.  They decided to go out for some flying, only to meet Rainbow Dash for a race.  In the end, Matthew and Rainbow stayed home while Nightwing went out for a while longer.  After a while, Rainbow kissed Matthew on the lips.  The kiss was held just long enough for Fluttershy to walk in on it.  Matthew rushed after her, finding her on a cloud.  They had a long talk, and ultimately, Fluttershy was able to forgive.  She just couldn’t stay mad at her husband or best friend.

Matthew and Fluttershy went to talk to Rainbow, who openly confessed her feelings for Matthew.  She understood what she did was wrong, and promised to make it up to the two of them, which she did.  She performed a Double Sonic Rainboom just for Matthew and Fluttershy.  Rainbow had done more than enough to earn the forgiveness of her two friends.  And, soon enough, the night of the concert arrived.

The night flashed by Matthew and Fluttershy quickly, moving on to one year after, the day that Matthew was given the Element of Love.  The day was spent reminiscing of the night from one year earlier, but Matthew, Fluttershy, and their pony friends were greeted by Princess Celestia.  At Matthew’s home, she explained how Matthew truly held the meaning of Love within himself, and he was gifted the Element of Love.  Matthew would shortly after use the Element to visit Earth to make a heartbreaking discovery.

Matthew and Fluttershy watched as the younger Matthew appeared on Earth, outside his childhood home.  What Fluttershy was about to see would most certainly break her heart.  Matthew walked around his house, and soon, his childhood neighborhood.  He found that his best friend and former crush were both heading to the same place, the funeral home, where a wake was being held for his mother.  This discovery crushed Matthew.  As Matthew and Fluttershy watched the memory go by, Fluttershy held Matthew close as the two started to shed tears.  The spiritual Matthew that was visiting his home returned to Equestria, still crying after what he had seen.  He discussed how he felt completely ashamed of himself, but was comforted by his loving wife.  As Matthew spoke out to his mother, the memories started to completely fade away.

Matthew and Fluttershy stood together.  They turned to each other, and hugged.  Shortly after, they woke up.

Matthew and Fluttershy lay in bed, crying with one another.  Their lives together had just flashed by within mere hours.  They had slept the night through, revisiting the past.  As they cried, they spoke to each other.

“I love you Matthew.”

“I love you too Fluttershy.”  They shared a passionate kiss, and a few hours later, their friends arrived.  After that night, Matthew and Fluttershy knew that this was it.

Rainbow, Twilight, Pinkie, Applejack, Rarity, and even Princess Celestia entered Matthew and Fluttershy’s home for what would be their last moments together.  The ponies gathered around the bed that Matthew and Fluttershy were lying in together.  The sight of their friends… no, their family, brought smiles to their faces.

“I take it you two had a good night’s sleep,” Celestia inquired.  Matthew looked to her and smiled.

“How’d you know about that?” Matthew asked.

“My sister Luna told me.  She watches over the dreams of those who are weary the most.  Your dream caught her attention, and she informed me about it.  It must have been a magnificent dream for the both of you.”  Matthew looked back to Fluttershy, who smiled at him.

“Yes, yes it was Princess,” Fluttershy responded.  The ponies just couldn’t take their eyes off of their two friends, who were just waiting to die.

“I just… I can’t believe this is really happening,” Twilight said.  “You two don’t deserve to die yet, it isn’t fair.”  Matthew simply sighed in response before speaking.

“Twilight, I learned a long time ago, that life really isn’t always fair.  But, to be honest, for my life, I’d say it’s been pretty fair.  I mean, after all, look at where I am today.”  Twilight smiled in response.

“We really will miss the both of you,” Rarity chimed in.  “Things just won’t be the same without you.”

“It’s ok Rarity.  In time, we’ll all see each other again,” Fluttershy responded.  Rarity started to cry, followed by Twilight and Pinkie.

“Man, even in old age, I still love to party.  The parties definitely won’t be the same without you two.  I mean, aside from not having any humans present, but you know what I mean.”  Pinkie’s words brought smiles to the faces of everyone in the room.  Fluttershy started to speak.

“I… I just wanted to say that, well, when I was young, I never had friends like you.  Dashie was the first friend I ever really had, and she kept by my side through all of these years.  When I finally met all of you, you all changed my life in the best ways.  You are all more than my friends, you truly are my family.  I love you all.”  Her words were just too sweet.  Everyone in the room was now crying, especially Rainbow Dash.  Dash walked up to Fluttershy and held her best friend in a loving embrace.

“I’m really gonna miss you ‘Shy.  Nothing will be the same without you.  You’re the kindest pony I’ve ever met.  I love you with all of my heart, and I’m proud to call you my best friend.  Heck, I think we’re practically sisters.”  Matthew was a mess right now, but not as much as Fluttershy and Rainbow.

“I love you Rainbow.  You really are the best friend anypony could ask for, and of course we are sisters.”  Matthew couldn’t look away from the two.  They shared that moment like it would never end.  Matthew ran his hand through Fluttershy’s hair to comfort her.  Rainbow looked to Matthew.

“Oh man, now he’s crying.  I can’t handle this,” Dash said, which made Matthew laugh a bit.

“It’s alright Dash, no one is going to judge you for it.  We all love you, no matter what.  You’re the greatest pony I know, and I want you to keep on fighting until the very end.  You’re just a bundle of awesomeness.  Never forget that.”  Rainbow flew up onto the bed and held both Matthew and Fluttershy in a loving embrace.  The three of them never wanted to let go.  But, both Matthew and Fluttershy had some last words to speak.  Fluttershy spoke first as the three released from their embrace.

“Rainbow isn’t the only pony in this room I consider a sister.  All of you girls are my family.  We are all sisters, and I love you all so much.  I will always remember our friendships.  We’ve accomplished so much together.  I just love you all so much, I can’t express that enough.  I…” Fluttershy was about to continue, but couldn’t.  The moment was too saddening.  Matthew held her close to comfort her.  Now, Matthew had to speak.

“Everything Fluttershy said goes for me as well.  You truly are family.  Each of you, in your own special way, are important to me.”  Matthew started to go around the room.

“Rarity.  You are the most generous pony I have ever met.  You’re generosity has always shone through.  Sure, at times, you may not always show it, but you really are a great pony at heart.  Never let that generosity leave you.  And, of course, how could I forget all the clothes you made for me.  You’re the greatest fashion designer in Equestria, and you know it.  Always shine on Rarity.”  Rarity was a true mess right then, covered in tears and unable to stop.  Matthew turned to Applejack, who removed her hat as he turned to her.

“Applejack.  Never have I met someone, or somepony, more honest than you.  Every word you speak is true and just, and that is something you don’t just find in everypony or person you meet.  Not only are you honest, but you are a true fighter.  You may get a little hot-headed at times, but you always mean well for others.  The honesty in your heart is something that will never leave you.  Next time you have an apple pie, do me a favor and put my name on it.”  Applejack chuckled a bit through her tears as she was now crying as well.  Matthew turned to Pinkie Pie.

“Pinkie, oh Pinkie.  Where to even start with you my energetic friend?  I don’t think I’ve ever met a bigger party animal in my life.  With you, every day is a party, and I love that about you.  You’re an energetic bundle of pink, and the laughter you spread across Equestria will never end.  Keep the party going for me while I’m gone, alright?”  Pinkie simply nodded.  She was crying like a fountain, but her tears were anything but fake.  Matthew turned to Twilight.

“Twilight.  You truly have come a long way from being the new pony in Ponyville.  You understand friendship like no other pony in Equestria, and that’s a true accomplishment.  You’ve created friendships that will never die.  You have taught so many the meanings of friendship that friendship will truly never die.  You’re the most magical unicorn I know, and you’re skills are unmatched.  Well, except of course for the Princesses, but that’s beside the point.  I don’t even need to really tell you, but I will anyway.  Keep friendship alive in Equestria, my sister.”  Twilight was in tears as well as every other pony in the room.  She nodded at what Matthew had said, acknowledging what he had told her.  Matthew finally turned to Rainbow Dash.

“Well Dash, I kind of already spoke about you, but I feel I might as well go a bit further.  You’re loyalty to all of your friends, as well as Fluttershy and me, is incredible.  You are the most loyal pony I’ve ever met, and that is something that has clearly taken you far.  You can get arrogant and hot-headed at times, but you’re always up for a challenge.  Nothing can slow you down, and you literally spread rainbows wherever you go.  I am not only proud to call you my best friend, but also my sister.  I love you Rainbow Dash.”  Rainbow was crying just as much as everypony else in the room.  She couldn’t hold back her emotions, but she really didn’t care anymore.  Matthew’s words had touched her heart.  Matthew turned to Princess Celestia.

“Princess, I cannot thank you enough.  On that day all those years ago, you could have easily torn Fluttershy away from me and left me on Earth.  But, you saw that this was the right thing to do, to allow me to stay in Equestria.  I will always be grateful for that, and you have my undying gratitude.  I can’t really consider you a sister, but you are truly my friend.  I love you all the same as I love these ponies and Fluttershy.”  Now, even the great Princess Celestia could not hold in her tears.  She was just as sad as the rest of the ponies in the room.  She nodded to Matthew, and continued to cry.  Matthew finally turned to Fluttershy.

“Fluttershy, my dear, dear Fluttershy.  I love you, and you know that.  I love you more than anything else in this world.  You are the most important thing to me.  I may not have always been the best to you, but you never left me, not after that fateful day that I found you on Earth.  We have spent countless years together, years that I will never forget, even in death.  I cannot express the love I feel for you enough.  You truly changed me to become a better person, and for that, you will always have my love.  I love you, so much.”  Fluttershy was covered in tears now.  She held Matthew close to her, and she actually responded.

“Had you not found me all those years ago Matthew, I wouldn’t be the person I am today.  You loved me when no one else would, and you still love me to this very moment.  I love you just the same, and that love will truly never die.  The years we've spent together have been the greatest years of my life, and I owe it all to you.  I love you with all my heart, and I always will.  You are more important to me than anything in this world.  I… I love you so much too.”  Both Matthew and Fluttershy just continued to cry onto each other, never wanting to let go of each other.  Matthew had one last thing to say.

“Fluttershy and I request that we be buried at the top of the hill.  Which hill should be self-explanatory.  Also, we hope that, when all of your times come, you will join us at the top of the hill, so we may all rest together.”  Matthew looked to the ponies in the room, who all nodded in response.  Matthew and Fluttershy lay back in their bed, ready for the eternal rest to take them.

But, before they left the world, they shared one final kiss, a kiss that would be remembered by everyone in that room forever.  Finally, together, Matthew and Fluttershy spoke.

“I love you.”  Their eyes closed, and they passed on from the world.  Everyone in the room started to shed tears, unable to accept that their two friends were gone.  They just cried, but noticed something about Matthew and Fluttershy.  On their faces, they wore smiles, and they were looking right at each other, eyes closed of course.  Everypony in the room couldn’t help but smile as well, as they knew that their friends had finally moved on.

Matthew awoke in a clear sky.  It was a never-ending sky, and there were very few clouds.  Any that were present only made the atmosphere seem much more peaceful.  Matthew picked himself up to find he was young once again.  His wrinkled skin was gone, and he no longer felt aches and pains.  He was just young.  He stood up and looked around.  He simply smiled.  He had earned his rest.

Matthew was soon greeted by two familiar people.  A light shined through the sky, as two bodies stepped out.  One of them spoke.

“Hello again, my son.”  Matthew smiled at the two figures standing before him.

“Hey Dad, hey Mom.”  The light faded, and standing before Matthew were his parents.

“Oh Matthew, we couldn’t be more proud of you.  When I found that note all those years ago, everyone back home was worried, especially your brother, sister, and myself.  But now, I know that you truly had moved on to someplace better.  We love you Matthew,” his mother spoke.  Matthew smiled back to them.  

“Looks like you are needed son,” his father spoke.  He pointed behind Matthew.  He turned around to see Fluttershy.  She was still human, but like Matthew, she was young again.  She had always been beautiful, but her beauty was just so pure now.  Matthew smiled at his wife.  He turned to his parents.

“I guess I’ll see you two later then.”  His parents nodded, and they left.  Matthew turned back to Fluttershy.  They walked towards each other.  Matthew took Fluttershy’s hands, and they both spread their wings.  They began to fly together in the endless sky.  This truly was heaven.  They were together, forever.  They momentarily stopped flying to share a heavenly kiss.  Releasing, Fluttershy spoke.

“I love you Matthew.”

“I love you too Fluttershy.”

And in that moment, Matthew knew what he had always known.  That it was, is, and always would be…

“Fluttershy and Me”