Book two of "Who We Become".
Being a princess means always worrying what everypony thinks about you. So when Twilight overhears a private conversation, she has to come to terms with how she feels about herself, love, and a certain somepony, all whil...
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Although the sun had been filtering in through her bedroom window for the past hour, Fluttershy was still in bed. 'Why did I have to talk about all that yesterday, anyway? If I just kept everything with Rarity to myself, then none of this would be happening.' She rolled over and tried to get back to sleep despite not being tired. It was well into the morning and she should be up taking care of her animal friends, but she was too daunted by the day ahead of her.
Rainbow had told her about her talk with Twilight the night before, and she felt better knowing that Twilight probably didn't hate her. Probably. There was always the chance that Twilight only said she didn't hate her. And the more she thought about it, the more likely that chance seemed. Twilight would be coming by to talk to her about what she had heard, and then Fluttershy would find out exactly how much Twilight really hated her. The thought made her want to curl up into her bed and become one with it, something she was trying her very best to do.
There was a knock at the door. Fluttershy threw her head under her pillow. It had to be Twilight. Maybe she'd go away if she thought Fluttershy wasn't home? Another knock, so probably not. The idea of getting up to answer the door was horrifying. Almost as horrifying as the idea of Twilight thinking Fluttershy hated her because she wouldn't answer the door. With a whimper, she pulled her head out from under the pillow only to see a pair of magenta eyes staring at her. She screamed.
Rainbow sighed. "Come on Shy, it's time to get up. You can't keep hiding forever."
"I know. I shouldn't put myself through this. I need to be stronger." Fluttershy sighed.
"No. Well, yeah, but I meant that I almost got eaten by a hungry bear."
Fluttershy giggled. Of course, Harry wouldn't really hurt anypony, but Rainbow did have a point. It was time to face the day! Or feed her animal friends, at least. She could face that part of her day.
Everything felt more manageable with Rainbow helping her. Well, Rainbow didn't so much help as she took the chance to practice some aerial stunts, but Fluttershy appreciated her presence nonetheless.
As always, the animals did a lot to put her mind at rest, and between them and Rainbow she was able to forget about Twilight and the idea that somepony knew about her. That is until she realized how nice it was to not dwell on things, which was the cue to begin dwelling again. So she moved slowly, weighed down by her thoughts, and the sun was high in the sky by the time she finished.
"I don't know about you, but I'm beat," Rainbow said, despite having taken the chance for a midmorning nap while she thought Fluttershy wouldn't notice.
"Would you like some tea? Or coffee?" Fluttershy offered.
"Coffee sounds good."
Fluttershy didn't actually drink coffee herself, but she always kept it around for Rainbow. Napping aside, she wasn't normally up in the morning. Fluttershy felt guilty for not thinking to offer it sooner, especially since Rainbow had been over late into the night making sure she was okay. She got the water boiling and added the coffee grounds.
