The sun was, after a long day, finally beginning to set. And yet, while there once was a time when such a sight might have brought relief from a long day’s work, or a sense of relaxation, now, all it brought was fear. Fear of the dark of the night, and what it might bring with it. It had been several years now since that day. The day the dreaded Queen, Chrysalis, and her changeling horde, descended upon the peaceful land of Equestria. Since that dark moment in their history, the ponies had been scattered, and those who had not been captured in the initial conquest, now lay hidden, far from the eyes of Equestria’s new masters. But, of all the places those ponies could call safe, there was one above all that served as perhaps the greatest hope for all of them. And, in a bizarre twist of fate, it was the one place that, in the days of peace way back when, would be the one spot no pony would ever seek to go to; the Everfree Forest.

Where once, ponies would avoid that dark woodland like the plague, now, it served as the only real shield between them and the monstrous changelings. Now, as the day ended, several of those ponies began to make their way through that very forest, headed by the leader of their resistance; Zecora. This zebra, while once a feared outsider, was now their brave leader, blazing the path through the undergrowth of the dark forest, until, at last, they came upon their home. A small village, hidden away in the midst of the many gnarled trees of the Everfree, secluded from Chrysalis’ knowledge. And it was upon reaching this place that Zecora’s band began to disperse, making their way to friends and family alike. One such pony was none other than Fluttershy, and while she would have, in the past, been seen as a meek and timid mare, now, she was a fighter, like all the rest of them, and a trusted friend of Zecora’s

Seeing her comrades find themselves in the loving arms of their closest family, Fluttershy afforded herself a rare smile, before turning to her leader. A silent nod passed between them, and when it was done, the young pegasus began to walk off, not to some eagerly-awaited family member, but instead, to her home. While many things may have changed for her, one thing remained true, that she often lived far from the centre of everything else, in a small hut on the edge of their hidden refuge. There, she set her spear aside by the door, letting out a long sigh before reaching up for the door. However, before she got the chance to touch it, it burst open, revealing a smiling pink face on the other side.

“You’re back!”

Pinkie leapt forward, embracing her old friend in a tight hug, and while Fluttershy herself was more than a little taken aback by this, she soon settled into it, smiling and returning the embrace.

“I missed you too, Pinkie.”

After a few minutes of simply enjoying the hug, the two mares parted, with Pinkie maintaining her smile as she took Fluttershy by her hoof.

“I’ve got a surprise for you! But, you’ve gotta keep your eyes closed, okay?”

Needless to say, Fluttershy seemed a little incredulous at this, but, one look at the eager expression on Pinkie’s face, and she knew that there would be little argument here. So, letting out another sigh, she did as she was asked, closing her eyes. It wasn’t long before she felt Pinkie tug at her hoof, causing her to walk along with her friend. Even after everything she’d been through, the pegasus mare had never enjoyed anything too surprising, but she trusted Pinkie, and so knew she was in safe hooves. On and on she walked, knowing she was going deeper into her hut, until at long last, she felt Pinkie stop, causing her too as well. It wasn’t long before her friend spoke up again.

“You ready?”

Fluttershy nodded, and at that, she felt Pinkie let go of her hoof.

“Okay…open your eyes.”

And Fluttershy did exactly that, but, when she did so, her expression soon morphed into outright shock. For there, standing right in the middle of her table, was a small cake. Only big enough for one or two ponies, but nevertheless, it was a real cake. The sight of it caused her to hang her mouth open, as she took a few nervous steps towards it. The smell in the air made it clear that this was no trick. There was an actual cake before her. Her tone of voice reflected her state of surprise.

“Pinkie…how…how did you do this?”

Smiling, Pinkie turned to her creation before giving an answer.

“It wasn’t easy. I had to use pretty much all of my remaining baking supplies. But, it was worth it.”

Looking back to her friend, Pinkie’s expression was a hopeful one.

“So…what do you think?”

Fluttershy shook her head, her mouth hanging open, before finally turning to Pinkie.

“I…I don’t know what to say.”

Smiling even wider than before, Pinkie gently placed a hoof upon her friend’s shoulder.

“You don’t need to say anything. It’s a gift…to a very special mare.”

A blush crept onto Fluttershy’s cheeks, to which Pinkie couldn’t help but giggle. However, as the two stood in silence, Fluttershy staring into the other’s eyes, she paused. She noticed something, a brief glint of something in Pinkie’s expression, though she could not place it. Even so, it caused a pang of wariness in the mare’s heart, and as she looked from her friend, to the cake and back, she gained a nervous expression.

“Pinkie…what’s going on?”

Pinkie’s smile faded, and while she was the kind of mare who would have wanted nothing more than to make her friends smile all the time, she knew those days had long since passed for all of them. So, letting out a sigh, she took a seat beside the table, to which Fluttershy responded in kind. With the two mares staring at each other from opposite sides of that table, the silence was becoming uncomfortable. But, before it became too much, Pinkie finally started explaining herself.

“Zecora came to me yesterday. We heard rumours of some pony prisoners in a place not far from the Everfree. Zecora, she…she asked for volunteers to go and help free them.”

Hearing that, Fluttershy began to look aghast, shaking her head.

“A changeling prison camp?! Pinkie…you didn’t?”

But Pinkie looked to her friend, her smile long gone, and simply nodded.

“I did. I…I volunteered.”

Fluttershy continued to shake her head, getting up from her chair and moving around it, falling to her knees beside Pinkie.

“Please! Don’t go! It’s too dangerous!”

But Pinkie, in a move that would have been unthinkable for her some years back, actually frowned at the mare before her.

“Fluttershy…I have to. Those ponies…they need help. We have too few here enough as it is. Everypony needs to help.”

But at this point, Fluttershy was on the brink of tears, continuing to shake her head.

“I know that! But…we’ve already lost so much! I…I couldn’t bear the thought of losing you too!”

Pinkie looked down to the crying mare before her, and her expression softened considerably. After a long while of staring at her, counting each and every tear she shed, Pinkie, of all things, actually started to smile again.

“You know…Chrysalis winning was pretty awful. But…there is one good thing that it made happen.”

Looking up to her, Fluttershy frowned slightly at those words, all while her cheeks remained drenched in her tears.

“Good? Wha…what?”

Chuckling slightly, Pinkie placed a hoof upon the side of Fluttershy’s face, gently wiping away a tear.

“Well…if nothing else…it brought us together, didn’t it?”

At that, Fluttershy was rendered speechless. She stayed on her knees, looking up into the eyes of the mare that meant so much to her. Then, to Pinkie’s slight surprise, Fluttershy lunged forward, planting her lips upon her own, and while the pink mare may have been taken aback by this, she, like Fluttershy before her, got beyond the shock of it, closing her eyes and tenderly returning that kiss. They stayed together this way, revelling in this brief moment of bliss they’d been afforded, losing track of just how much time was passing as they did so. When they finally parted, Fluttershy, having wiped away the last of her tears from earlier, got back to her hooves in earnest, letting out a long sigh before speaking up.

“When…when do you need to go?”

Looking down at the ground, Pinkie gave her the answer she sought.

“Tomorrow morning. Maybe earlier.”

Looking back to her beloved mare, Fluttershy’s expression became one of determination, as she reached forward, placing her hoof upon Pinkie’s, looking into her eyes.

“Then please…for tonight…stay with me.”

Pinkie looked back to the once-shy mare, and soon enough, broke out into a sweet and loving smile, before placing her hoof once more upon the side of Fluttershy’s face.

“I will. And when I get back…”

Like Fluttershy, Pinkie’s face also became a determined one.

“…and I will get back…we’ll stay together the next night. And the next. And every night we’re both breathing.”

To that, all Fluttershy could so was say exactly what was on her mind at that moment.

“Then I hope…that’s for a very long time.”