Coming Out of Your Shell


                                            >Be Home Sick

                                            >You aren't literally home sick

                                            >That's your name! Home Sick!

                                            >True to your name you never leave home

                                            >Unlike most of the ponies living in Ponyville, you don't go out and socialize, you only stay home and practice magic

                                            >Your hobbies include cuddling with pillows, crying, hissing at ponies who knock on your door, listening to music, and writing fantasies about being with HOT stallions who you absolutely wished would just pound you RAW wi-

                                            >Oh, uhm, seems you've gotten off track

                                            >Currently you were hunched over at your desk as usual, head propped up by a white hoof, your two-toned brown/orange mane spilling over your head as you wrote about being with a bat pony stallion

                                            >You sighed longingly, daydreaming about him, Bleakwing

                                            >Romantic incense burned at one side of your desk, filling your nostrils with a scent that brought your ears hanging limp, sullenly wishing that something interesting could happen to you like Twilight Sparkle and her friends

                                            >There was a knock at the door of your little hovel

                                            >Sometimes one of them would stop by, going on about noticing a "friendship problem" brewing

                                            >You snorted, what friendship problem?

                                            >You had plenty of friends! Like... Bleakwing... In your stories! Yes! Of course he was your friend, if you wrote about him maybe the laden magic in Equestria would guide him to you!

                                            >Another knock at the door, more errant than before

                                            >You drooled on the hoof propping your head up, then suddenly found yourself cast back into reality as it slipped, muzzle smashing rather roughly into the hardwood of the desk

                                            "Ow ow owie!"

                                            >You brought your head back up, both hooves quickly reaching up to cover your poor snout, only for them to roughly collide back into your face, increasing your pain ever more

                                            "Celestia's sunsplotched butt!"

                                            >You fell backwards from your stool, your wings colliding into the carpet below, your forehooves still covering your muzzle

                                            >Another knock at your door, this time accompanied by a rough yet oddly catching voice

                                            >"Home Sick? We heard some noise! Are you okay?!"

                                            >You growled in pain, eyes closed as you laid there on your floor all splayed out how you were, would be rather humiliating if somepony saw you

                                            >Luckily you never socialize, have no real friends, and your family has disowned you because of your unorthodox nature of handling stressful situations

                                            >Mostly by screaming and crying, or hiding

                                            >Thus was the life of the rare introverted pony

                                            >The knock turned into the rattling of your door handle as somepony decided it wouldn't be rude at all to just barge right into your home

                                            >"We're coming in!"

                                            >Yet again you were propelled back into reality, finding the strength to roll over on your belly and to stand up on all four hooves, groaning as your back now ached

                                            "Great..."

                                            >You heard two sets of hooves walking through your little home, and as scared as you were of intruders, you certainly didn't want them to see you, that would be bad news

                                            >What if it was the mailmare and she was worried about the HUGE imprinted pillow you ordered of Bleakwing?!

                                            "By the heavens!"

                                            >You trotted over to your door and quietly shut it before anypony could really notice

                                            >Or so you thought

                                            >You heard a sigh from the other side of the door, and then somepony knocked on it gently

                                            >"Home Sick...? We know you're in there, please don't hide from us, we just want to talk to you."

                                            >She sounded concerned, and you could've sworn you recognized the voice

                                            >You scrunched up, then made a mental decision, cracking the door only slightly to view who was intruding your home

                                            >First you saw the minty colored coat, then looked up to see concerned golden eyes

                                            >Lyra?

                                            >Behind Lyra stood an equally concerned Bon Bon!

                                            >You opened your door just a little more, trying not to cry from the social pressure being exerted on you right now

                                            "C-can I h-help you?"

                                            >Lyra glanced back at Bon Bon, then looked at you

                                            >"We're worried about you."

                                            >If you could see your pupils, you would've noticed they shrunk to pinpricks at those words

                                            "W-worried? Why?"

                                            >Lyra's look of concern morphed into one of provoked sadness

                                            >"Why? Because... Because just look at yourself. Home Sick, you're cooped up in your home and nopony ever sees you outside!"

                                            >Bon Bon chips in

                                            >"And you don't stop by our store anymore either."

                                            >You inch the door closed just a little more, currently freaked out by the situation

                                            "Y-you don't have to be worried about me."

                                            >Your soft plea is unheard by curious and confused ears

                                            >"You don't even fly anymore, Home Sick! Do you see your wings? They aren't even preened! You aren't taking care of yourself, or your home, because it's positively... Eugh."

                                            >Your old school friends came here just to judge you then, that's nice, totally what you wanted to happen, and exactly what you wanted to deal with right now, judgement

                                            "You're just judging me because of how I live! I'm perfectly fine!"

                                            >"No, we aren't judging you, we're just trying to help our friend, we know she's in there somewhere."

                                            >That hurt, that really REALLY hurt.

                                            >On the inside, you felt a crushing pain, they didn't think...?

                                            >You felt tears well up in your eyes as you sniffed

                                            "Y-y-you, b-but..."

                                            >Lyra went into shock as she realized what she had said, but it was too late

                                            >"N-no no no! I didn't mean that!"

                                            "Go away! Just go away! I don't need help!"

                                            >"Home sick..."

                                            >You shut the door right on their faces, then fell back against it, balling up and hugging yourself with your hooves

                                            >You weren't different, this is just how you are, you can't help it

                                            >Arguing and sobbing could be heard beyond your door, and after a few minutes, the voices quieted down as they trotted away

                                            >You heard your front door click shut, but you didn't really care if they left, you just continued to lay there in your pity ball, happy to be sad because you couldn't do anything like a normal pony

                                            >You liked being this way

                                            >You liked being a neet

                                            >You fell asleep in that little pity ball of yours and woke up the next day

                                            >It started like any other day really, you got up stretching your back after a night spent on the floor, then rotating your wings and popping their joints

                                            >Your wings really didn't feel too great, but that's what happens when a pegasus doesn't fly

                                            >Opening your door with minimal effort, you wandered outside of your rather messy room and into the hallway beyond, cantering into your dimly lit bathroom with no lack of enthusiasm

                                            >You liked to keep curtains drawn in your home, it minimalizes the chance that anypony would see you

                                            >Anyhow, you looked at yourself in the mirror above the little sink you had, and groaned at your appearance

                                            >The fur around your eyes was stained with tears from crying yesterday, and the feathers on your wings looked absolutely out of whack

                                            >You should really preen more often, but you are usually FAR to lazy to do much about your everyday bedraggled appeareance

                                            >You mentally sighed, then stepped into your walk in shower, this time choosing not to lay down in it while thinking about what you did wrong in life

                                            >You turned the knobs on your shower to reach the perfect temperature, skin melting hot, and sighed as you let the stream of water hit your mane and back

                                            >Course, a shower wouldn't be complete without shampoo, and shampoo yourself you did, scrubbing all the necessary areas in a lazy fashion

                                            >In your defense you liked to make all your showers quick and easy with not much fuss

                                            >You couldn't help but notice a certain area had stains around it

                                            >Were you really going into heat so soon?

                                            >You whimpered at the thought

                                            >You pushed away those awkward moments and continued to wash yourself, before putting your scrubber back on its rightful shelf

                                            "Good thing I don't go out... That would be a little embarassing."

                                            >You giggled

                                            >The hot water washed away all the remaining suds from your mane and body, feeling refreshed, you turned off the shower and felt yourself shivering as the cold seeped its way into your wet fur

                                            >You pulled a towel from the rack beside your walk in shower and roughly patted yourself down with it, not completely drying yourself but not leaving yourself too wet either

                                            >Stepping out of the shower left you feeling not as cold as you did before, but still a little chilly; so you opted to use the magical blowdryer you had just recently ordered from a catalog

                                            >It was a handy little tool, sucking in air from its intake vent, then magically heating it with an enchantment only to blow it back out of its outake vent

                                            >Fancy piece of technology it was

                                            >You turned it on and yelped as the warm air hit your face, then turned it off quickly

                                            "Wow this thing works really well!"

                                            >You hummed to yourself as you turned it back on, this time prepared and ready for the warm gusts of air to hit your mane, blowing it back and quickly getting rid of any residual water, leaving it nice and soft, ready to brush

                                            >You did the same with the rest of your body, blow drying it until you didn't feel like any dampness was left

                                            >Normally that would be the end of your cleanliness, but the words that Lyra had left you with yesterday made you feel a little guilty for not doing anything with your life after graduation

                                            >Maybe you could go outside for once?

                                            >You pondered this idly as you brushed your mane back, letting some locks fall around your face, before tying it nicely into a ponytail

                                            "Hehe."

                                            >Ponytail

                                            "Funny word, wonder who came up with that?"

                                            >You brushed the rest of your coat, and then brushed your tail, leaving it nice and wavy in your wake up brushing

                                            >Of course, you weren't done yet

                                            >You set about preening your wings for the first time in...

                                            >You can't remember

                                            "How long have I been a hermit...?"

                                            >Nonetheless, you still remembered how to preen, plucking out some of the errant feathers that were out of alignment, then tucking the primaries and secondaries back into their rightful place

                                            >Your alabaster wings looked nice and in place, not out of whack like they had been in the previous months

                                            >Looking down, you realized you had made a nice pile of broken feathers on the floor

                                            >You sighed, scooping them up and gently placed them in a trash can

                                            "Bye bye old feathers."

                                            >You did a once over in the mirror, and found yourself stunned by your appearance

                                            >When you actually groomed yourself you actually...

                                            "I don't look that bad..."

                                            >Huh, why didn't you groom yourself more?

                                            "Am I really the pony in the mirror...?"

                                            >Naturally you were, but you still didn't understand what made you the way you were today, maybe it would come to you in time, or maybe it would be sooner rather than later

                                            >You tried to look back on what made you stay in your humble abode anyway, sifting through years of memories, going all the way back to your elementary days up to graduation in high school

                                            >Now you remembered...

                                            >It was back in high school, shortly before graduation

                                            >"Wow, look at Sickly Hoof over here, being the slutty little needy filly like always."

                                            >Y-you weren't slutty

                                            "You c-can't say that about me, Jade Glitter!"

                                            >The pony in question, who insulted you in homeroom, had a smug look on her face, backed up by the two most popular ponies in your class

                                            >"Oh? Why not?"

                                            >She advanced forward, leaving you to take a few steps backward

                                            >"You did, after all, stay the night at Night's house, what did you two do hmm?"

                                            >You were on the verge of tears, you weren't a slutty pony, you two were just friends!

                                            "We didn't do anything together! W-we just slept in the same bed-"

                                            >You brought a hoof to your mouth, you did not just say that

                                            >Jade gasped in mock shock

                                            >"Slept in the same bed! Why, that almost sounds like you SLEPT together now didn't it?"

                                            >She giggled at your embarassment, the entire class stopped what they were doing and curiously stared at the two mares arguing

                                            >Jade flicked her sky blue mane to the side, smirking at you

                                            "W-we... I d-didn't..."

                                            >"You're a little floozy, a slutty little filly who just can't get enough of MY handsome stallion."

                                            >Jade and her friends laughed at you as you tried to hide behind your mane, your white cheeks turning red with embarassment, and eyes watering up on the verge of tears

                                            >And cry you did, as ponies called you names while you burst out of homeroom, running down the hall bawling your eyes out

                                            >You resolved that day to never let yourself succumb to embarassing situations by just not interacting with anypony

                                            >Coming back to the present, you stared at yourself in the mirror, finding the most miniscule amount of confidence inside yourself to actually come out of your hovel

                                            >"I'll show her, I'll show them I can be a normal mare."

                                            >You huff and come out of your bathroom, choosing to actually face your fears rather than avoid them like you had been

                                            >It was a noble venture for you, the path less trotted

                                            >You only hoped that ponies wouldn't make such a big deal about it, as they usually tend to make a massive deal about the most minuscule of topics

                                            >Like that time when a little filly from Manehatten bullied the cutie mark crusaders, they had an entire song about it, it was insane

                                            "They would never sing about me..."

                                            >You shook your head and giggled

                                            >You'd probably die of a heart attack if that happened, though you were pretty sure it would never occur

                                            >Your first objective was to stretch your much underused wings anyways, you lived a fair ways outside town so nopony would really notice you, other than maybe Rainbow Dash, but she didn't like you that much anyway

                                            >You carefully trotted over to your front door and cracked it open as you usually did with doors, peeking to see if anypony was out there

                                            >Sure enough, the coast was clear outside of your little cozy cottage

                                            "Thank Celestia."

                                            >You breathed a sigh of relief as you came outside and shut the door, feeling the wind blow through your wavy mane and tail

                                            >It actually felt good to be outside, you couldn't remember the last time you had actually gone outside willingly

                                            >You tended to get regular grocery deliveries through the mail, not wanting to go to the market to buy your goods for fear of an unpleasant social situation

                                            >Nevertheless, here you were, feeling the warm breeze against your coat, closing your eyes and sniffing the air to take in those wonderful scent of lilacs and daisies swishing through the currents

                                            "Mmm, it's so nice out."

                                            >You smiled to yourself as you walked further away from your home, observing the bustling town of Ponyville in the distance, it wasn't too far away, but far enough so that nopony would really bother you if they couldn't help it

                                            >You unfurled your wings, looking behind you to observe your wingspan

                                            >It was actually kind of impressive for a pegasus of your stature, not quite the size of Rainbow Dash's, but still quite large

                                            >You smiled giddily at the thought of flying for the first time in such a long while

                                            >Then your smile dropped as you realized that you were so out of practice

                                            >Though your cutie mark was a winged cloud, apparently signifying that you could stay in the sky as lazily as the clouds hung up there with minimal effort

                                            >Even though that was your special talent, you were unsure of yourself, choosing to ponder this for a few brief moments

                                            >You were so deep in thought that you hardly noticed a certain butter yellow pegasus softly land nearby

                                            >"Oh, hello Home Sick!"

                                            >Fluttershy's voice was so soft that it hardly startled you, ironically she was one of the few ponies that you didn't mind being around simply because you rivaled eachother in terms of shyness

                                            >You probably beat her out though, because well... you never quite came outside

                                            >Nervously, you turned towards the smiling pegasus, tucking your wings back into your sides

                                            "H-hello Fluttershy."

                                            >She stayed a few hooves away from you, respecting your personal space, you could appreciate that

                                            >"I'm so glad you've come outside, it's nice to see you enjoying the day!"

                                            >You giggled anxiously

                                            "Yeah... I uh... I just wanted to fly, alone, really it's no big deal."

                                            >Fluttershy advanced closer towards with a few short trots

                                            >"Oh, but it is! Um, Lyra told me about what happened yesterday and I-"

                                            >Your eye twitched

                                            >Lyra told ponies about what happened?

                                            "Please leave."

                                            >Fluttershy stopped her talking and stared at you with the same concerned look Lyra had given you the previous day

                                            >"W-what? But I um, just wanted to-"

                                            "Go. J-just please leave me alone."

                                            >Her concerned look morphed into one of sadness as she nodded and turned around

                                            >She glanced back at you for one final worried gesture

                                            >"I-I hope your day gets better, goodbye Home Sick."

                                            >Whatever

                                            >You didn't need her concern

                                            >You don't NEED anypony's concern!

                                            >You scuffed the dirt with an alabaster hoof, then unfurled your wings in a much more aggressive manner

                                            "Nopony has any right to be worried about me, I can manage on my own!"

                                            >Taking flight patterns and aerodynamics from memory, you launched off the ground and flapped your wings, gaining a little air as muscle memory started to take over

                                            >You managed to get a few hooves off the ground before giving out and falling to the ground on your rear end, eliciting a yelp from you

                                            "Owwww! Celestia whyyyy!"

                                            >You huffed at your wings, who only flapped back at you in annoyance

                                            "Obey me! You are part of my body! Work darn you!"

                                            >They flapped once in response

                                            "Fine! We'll do this the hard way!"

                                            >You launched off again, this time more carefully and coordinated, managing to get farther off the ground

                                            >You let your wings pick up a breeze sailing through the air, blowing you forwards and allowing you to soar upwards

                                            >Involuntarily you did a loop, squeaking as you suddenly leveled again, this time above your cottage

                                            "H-ha! I'm flying! I can still fly!"

                                            >You were a pegasus dummy, all pegasi can fly!

                                            >You smiled at your small victory, feeling some modicum of happiness for the first time in a long time, flying in circles around your house

                                            >Making a mental decision, you landed on the roof of your abode, observing the world around you

                                            >You spotted a few ponies who were taking the scenic route around Ponyville had stopped to watch you fly, one of them slackjawed

                                            >Obviously some ponies didn't expect you to EVER come out of your house

                                            >Neither did you really.

                                            >Alas, here you were, out and abound in the air flapping wildly

                                            >You felt as free as a bird, carelessly soaring through the skies without much of a care in the world

                                            >In fact, you were so free and detached from reality, you hadn't noticed the tree that somehow appeared in front of you

                                            >Boom

                                            "Waah!"

                                            >You yelped, suddenly finding yourself out of control, much less free, and careening towards the knolls below

                                            >Your wings uselessly flapped, only serving to bash you against the very same tree once more

                                            "No no no! Not like this!"

                                            >It was all in vain, mayhaps fate made it so, but it seemed you were destined to hit the ground

                                            >And hit the ground you did, hard, fast, and with unrelenting force did your body slam into the dirty devil below you

                                            "Oooohh..."

                                            >Birds, bees, and other forest creatures whirled around your head as you lifted yourself up from off the ground

                                            >You swatted them away, hiccuping as your aching limbs trembled for the sweet release of rest

                                            >A nap sounded pretty good about then

                                            >But luckily, pegasus bones are rather hollow, and you weren't exempt from this rule of nature that pegasi were not easily deterred from collision

                                            "T-thank goodness nothing is broken!"

                                            >You brushed twigs and leaves out of your messy mane, which was far too messy even for your sake

                                            >While you were busy fixing yourself up, the sound of galloping caught your attention

                                            >Your ears swiveled towards the sound, then the rest of your head as your eyes came to rest upon Fluttershy's startled form rushing towards you

                                            >"Oh! Home Sick! I saw you fall, are you alright?"

                                            >She came to a slow halt close to you, observing you warily

                                            "I-I'm fine, don't worry, pegasus and all..."

                                            >You nervously glanced over at the previous onlookers, who were now staring at you with concern

                                            >You don't like being the center of attention

                                            >Look what you've gotten yourself into!

                                            >"Are you sure? Because that was a nasty-"

                                            "Fine! Fine! Fine! Fine!"

                                            >You squeaked out

                                            >You hopped up on all four legs and quickly dashed away, hoping to not be attended to by curious onlookers again

                                            >Fluttershy seemed to reach a hoof out to you, before sighing and letting the hoof fall

                                            >You couldn't hear her from the sound of your hooves, but she was concerned

                                            >"Oh Home Sick, why do you do this to yourself?"

                                            >You galloped along the stony path that led up to your humble cottage, bursting through the door and quickly slamming it behind you

                                            >Gasping for breath, you dizzily looked around at your messy living room

                                            >Any spot to pass out would be great, really

                                            >You chose a pile of your... Artistic work... To lay down on, sifting and searching through all the various crude sketches of you and your dream stallion

                                            >How could a mare like yourself ever hope to get with such a handsome buck like Bleakwing?

                                            >And so there you lay, sobbing yourself to sleep for the second time in a row, thinking about what happened over the course of the day, thinking about being the center of negative attention once more, thinking about all the ponies who might care about you, only for you to brush-

                                            >No

                                            >None of it is your fault

                                            >You weren't selfish

                                            >You were a good pony!

                                            >So why does nothing good ever happen to you?

                                            >You fell asleep, thinking about other things that could've been.

                                            >But yet again you are awoken, presumably hours later to a knock at the door, more like pounding

                                            >"Home Sick! Come out! We all need to talk to you!"

                                            >You wiped away crusty tears out of your eyes

                                            "Mmno! I don't need anypony!"

                                            >You hear an annoyed sigh

                                            >"That's a lie and you know it, cmon, open up!"

                                            >The tear stained drawings underneath you rustled- some of the watercolor sticking to your eggshell-white coat as you reluctantly stood up on all four hooves

                                            >Whispering

                                            >You could hear whispering coming from behind the front door as the pages beneath rustled yet still

                                            >"Maybe she went back to sleep?"

                                            >"Shhhh! Quiet, Rainbow!"

                                            >"Are we here to help with Home Sick's flower bed...? I must say, the poor mare hasn't much of a green hoof!"

                                            >"Rarity!"

                                            >"Ah'll say! Dang mare can at least take care'a these- what the hay are these?"

                                            >"Flowers?"

                                            >"More like weeds!"

                                            >"GIRLS!"

                                            >You couldn't take any more of this!

                                            >What would Bleakwing think if he saw you now?

                                            "Home Sick... What a WEAK mare. I would NEVER cuddle with her..."

                                            >You could just see him scoffing and flicking back that luscious mane of his with that scalding remark

                                            >"Did you hear that? Home Sick! Are you awake?!"

                                            >Ponyfeathers, did you say that out loud?

                                            >Think, mare, think!

                                            "Y-yeah! I'm awake! Coming!"

                                            >You didn't think!

                                            >Stupid mare!

                                            >Why were you walking to the door?

                                            >”Oh thank goodness! I was so worried she wouldn’t come!”

                                            >”Ah’m pretty sure the mare can hear us.”

                                            >You sigh, preparing yourself- stretch out that smile and-

                                            >Lights!

                                            >Camera!

                                            >You reach a trembling hoof towards the door handle

                                            >Action!

                                            >And peel the door inwards- revealing six mares who at first seemed awfully happy to see you!

                                            >Then they looked down, and all six of the mares in front of you looked down with puzzled expressions

                                            >Oh no

                                            >You looked down, and stuck to your foreleg- the one you had mindlessly used to walk to the door- was a crude caricature of you and Bleakwing smooching

                                            >Your smile slowly sank

                                            >Why did you have to scribble so many X’s and O’s?

                                            >”snrkk… BAHAHAHAHA!”

                                            >Your head shoots up in time to catch Twilight Sparkle whacking Rainbow Dash over the head with the back of her hoof

                                            >”Ow! He-”

                                            >Pinkie Pie interrupts her with a stern look, shoving her own hoof into the weathermare’s mouth

                                            "H-Hi girls."

                                            >You barely manage to get that out as you slowly peel the drawing off your leg, kicking it behind you while staring straight at the mares who are also pretending to not notice Bleakwing's captured visage

                                            >Apart from Rainbow Dash, she was staring with wide eyes, and still trying to talk with Pinkie's hoof locked in her jaws

                                            >"Home Sick, we're very concerned about you!"

                                            "W-well I-"

                                            >"Ya'll had ta go n' fall from tha sky n' ya wouldn't let poor Fluttershy even check ya out! What's goin' through that head of yours girlie?"

                                            "B-but I'm a Pega- Pegasus..."

                                            >You felt your face getting red- you never liked attention

                                            >"No need to be so brash Applejack!"

                                            >Rarity's etched gaze softens as she turns to you

                                            >"Dearie, we only wish to understand. Fluttershy is a friend of yours, no?"

                                            "Well... Y-yeah, but-"

                                            >"Ah! No buts! You must let your friend inside your heart!"

                                            >The redness deepens

                                            >"Them's the rules, Homie."

                                            >Collectively, Pinkie's comment is noted and ignored

                                            >You glance towards Fluttershy, who smiles at you warmly...

                                            >You gulp

                                            "I'm... Sorry. I'm sorry, Fluttershy."

                                            >Your eyes dart around

                                            >You can't help it, eye contact isn't your thing!

                                            >Unless it was with a drawing of-

                                            >Focus!

                                            "I'm sorry! I- Um... I'm not... Good... At... Uh... D-did you want to look at m-my wing?"

                                            >Fluttershy's smile deepens, and the other mares seem to warm up a little bit- Rainbow even being freed from the sweet taste of Pinkie's hoof

                                            >Then, Fluttershy slowly shakes her head from side to side

                                            >"No no. I can tell it's fine from here, but that's not the point Home Sick. I'm your friend, and friends talk to each other. Friends let each other know how they're doing."

                                            >You hardly notice as Fluttershy creeps closer

                                            >"And friends support their friends."

                                            >Suddenly, she wraps her hooves and wings around you in a hug

                                            >You're taken aback, nopony has touched you for a VERY long time

                                            >But... It's nice. It feels nice.

                                            >"Especially when they need it. Apology accepted, Home Sick."

                                            >It feels nice to be hugged

                                            >You can't remember the last time you had an actual honest to Celestia hug

                                            >Apart from morning, afternoon, and evening "sessions" with your body pillow of Bleakwing

                                            >You imagined him hugging you back, but that would make you sad most of the time

                                            >You sniffed

                                            >"It's okay Home Sick. I'm here for you."

                                            >"And we're here too!"

                                            >You didn't even realize you were crying- so lost in your own thoughts, you had to wipe away the tears in your bleary eyes as you looked up and saw Lyra pushing her way through the group of ponies with Bon Bon in tow

                                            >"Sorry we're late! Bon Bon's caramel glaze just exploooooded and it went everywhere! Gosh, we've never gotten THAT sticky before- right Bon Bon?"

                                            >Bon Bon blushed and rubbed her fetlock

                                            >"Yeah, right... Anyways... It's nice to see you opening the door instead of... Slamming it."

                                            >You sniffed again, Fluttershy relinquishing her grip from you and backing off as Lyra sidled up to you

                                            "I-I didn't mean it. I'm sorry, sorry..."

                                            >You felt terrible now

                                            >You knew it wasn't REALLY your fault, you can't help it, but you could've-

                                            >"Don't apologize, we understand."

                                            >Fluttershy whispered to the other girls, and out of the corner of your eye you could spot Rainbow Dash making an "O" face as the rest of the mares moved away- leaving you, Lyra, and Bon Bon some space

                                            >"Yeah! Progress is progress! Can I have a hug now?"

                                            >Lyra was as prescient as ever

                                            >For the first time in years, you voluntarily wrapped your forelegs around another pony, and pulled her in tightly

                                            >Although you may be using her own seafoam coat as a glorified tissue box, she didn't seem to mind, and Bon Bon wordlessly joined the two of you in a hug trifecta

                                            >"Please don't shut us out anymore."

                                            >"I think Fluttershy is using the hose outside."

                                            >You didn't quite get that last comment from Lyra

                                            "I'll... I'll try not to. I made a p-promise to myself that I'd try. I'll try to come out of my shell."

                                            >"Good! In that case... Let's go try that caramel glaze! It should be unexploded by now!"

                                            >Bon Bon shifts away

                                            >"What Lyra probably MEANS to say is that we'd love to have you come over."

                                            >"Yeah!"

                                            >Lyra then pulls away, still beaming- over Luna's moon like a schoolfilly

                                            >You wipe away the remaining tears that weren't soaked up by Lyra, and look down at yourself

                                            >The remnants of Bleakwing's color palette were still smeared on your foreleg

                                            >Then you trail your gaze upward towards Lyra and Bon Bon

                                            >Bleakwing has also left his mark on them using your leg as a mode of transport

                                            "I-I think maybe possibly I should... Shower first."

                                            >"Okay! That better not be an excuse though, Home Sick!"

                                            >You shake your head vigorously

                                            "NO! Uhm- s-sorry I didn't mean to shout- no, no. Not an excuse, I promise."

                                            >"PINKIE promise?"

                                            >You sigh and smile weakly, doing the motions

                                            "Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye."

                                            >"We can wait outside for you."

                                            "T-that would be nice."

                                            >"OKAY! Go shower! Go go go go!"

                                            >You think Lyra was vibrating, but you acquiesced and then let them step outside- the other mares seemed to be gone- save for Fluttershy

                                            >She smiled and waved at you with her wing

                                            >Timidly, you raised your own, and waved back

                                            >Closing her eyes and broadly satisfied- you thought you could hear her humming a tune as she walked back in the direction of Ponyville proper

                                            >"Oh myyyy Celestiaaaa, mare, SHOWER!"

                                            "O-okay!"

                                            >Lyra was persistent, and this time you GENTLY closed the door as the mares talked to each other outside.

                                            >No arguing

                                            >No crying

                                            >And now you would shower

                                            >You went back into your bathroom and repeated the same ritual you had the previous day

                                            >Cleaning up every day would probably help things along, not that you'd stop your fanciful artistry, no

                                            >You'd just actually sleep on something that wasn't bound to get you all messy next time

                                            >And others messy as well

                                            >That magical manedryer came in hoofy once more

                                            >Just as well- you tied the old mane back into a ponytail, and looked at yourself in the mirror

                                            >You smiled

                                            >You trotted back into your decrepit living room and scooted all the disturbed drawings of Bleakwing into a dimly lit corner for now

                                            >No need for anypony to see your shame

                                            >Not that you're necessarily ashamed of having a crush on the stallion!

                                            >Who wouldn't, it's BLEAKWING!

                                            >You shook your head- Ponytail trailing along as it whapped against your neck

                                            "G-get your head in the game, mare."

                                            >You were ready

                                            >Time to go outside and touch that grass

                                            >Somewhat apprehensively, you opened the front door again and stepped outside, dragging your keys along with you as you awkwardly locked the door in front of a bouncing Lyra and patient Bon Bon

                                            >"Why're you locking your door, Home Sick? There's like... NO crime in Ponyville!"

                                            >You had your reasons

                                            "N-no reason! J-just want to, uh, play it safe."

                                            >You smiled awkwardly after shoving the keys into a pair of saddlebags you brought along for the ride

                                            >Bon Bon wasn't buying it, you could tell that as much, but Lyra didn't really seem to care

                                            >"It's okay! Now c'mon! Let's go already!"

                                            >"Lyra, it's only eight in the morning."

                                            >"Time's a wastin'!"

                                            >"Ugh, you're silly."

                                            >They began to trot towards Ponyville, and you found yourself as their third walking next to Bon Bon as your hooves clopped down the cobblestone street

                                            >You could really use a spa day

                                            >Or any kind of self care day, for that matter

                                            >You weren't very consistent about that

                                            >But you also couldn't help but be embarrassed about what had happened the other day

                                            >Your fall, you running off with everypony staring in your direction

                                            >You could just feel their stares burning into your backside as salty streaks of tears flew through the air as you had rushed home

                                            >And you could feel them now

                                            >Nopony was staring at you, you couldn't see them, but you were sure that they would-

                                            "Eep!"

                                            >You nearly jumped as Lyra used her own magic to lift up your bangs

                                            >"We can tell when you're overthinking! Stop that! Think about the caramel! Sweet, sticky... Caramel..."

                                            >Lyra was drooling

                                            >Was it that obvious that you were overthinking?

                                            "O-okay. I'll think about caramel."

                                            >Lyra shook out of her daze

                                            >"Attagirl!"

                                            >The pack of mares you belonged to walked into the downtown area of Ponyville, close to the sweets shop where Lyra and Bon Bon worked, lived, played, among other things

                                            >You kept thinking about caramel, and not the stallion!

                                            >Your headspace was reserved for one stallion and one stallion only!

                                            >You sighed longingly as Lyra and Bon Bon chattered away, nearing their shop

                                            "Oh... Bleakwing my beloved."

                                            >True to their words, nopony was actually staring at you

                                            >Well, apart from Lyra and Bon Bon now- who looked at you incredulously

                                            >"Are you STILL obsessed with Bleakwing, Home Sick?"

                                            >"You know that stallion doesn't even know you exist."

                                            >"Yeah! I bet he doesn't even know that Ponyville exists!"

                                            >You hung your head, sighing again, trotting up to the door of the sweets shop

                                            "I-I know. I know. B-but he's just so... So..."

                                            >"Bleak?"

                                            >"The ponification of a murder of crows?"

                                            >"More like the ponification of emotional baggage."

                                            >"Isn't scene supposed to be DEAD?!"

                                            >Not to you it wasn't

                                            >One of these days, Bleakwing would visit Ponyville

                                            >And you would meet him

                                            >"Oh... Home Sick... I didn't notice you there."

                                            >He would say in that low pitched whispy tone of his

                                            >"We should... Go get coffee... Sometime."

                                            >Punctuated with that gorgeous flick of the oily black mane that sent your heart fluttering and your thighs-

                                            >No more!

                                            >"She's obsessed."

                                            >"Helloooo!? Equus to Home Sick!"

                                            >You blinked rapidly as things came into focus

                                            >There were Lyra and Bon Bon staring at you amusedly from the open doorway- with Lyra waving a hoof in front of your eyes

                                            “Y-yeah. Sorry. Hehehe…”

                                            >You chuckled nervously, but they already knew your secret

                                            >They’d known for some time

                                            >”Stop apologizing! The caramel is-”

                                            >Lyra turned around

                                            >”BON BON! Where’s the caramel!?”

                                            >”It exploded, remember?”

                                            >”YOU DIDN’T MAKE MORE?!”

                                            >”We have to go shopping if we want to make more, Lyra.”

                                            >Lyra whips her head around to you

                                            >Oh no

                                            >”Home Sick.”

                                            >Here it comes

                                            >”We’re going shopping.”

                                            >Shopping?!

                                            >SHOPPING?!

                                            "Shopping?!"

                                            >"Shopping!"

                                            >Lyra beams, while Bon Bon slams a hoof into her own face

                                            >You felt yourself getting smaller, or maybe you just felt smaller, but you could swear you were shrinking

                                            >Shopping? No no no! You just barely got out of your house!

                                            >"Oh, come on Home Sick! Don't sink to the floor like that!"

                                            >Oh

                                            >You had literally flattened yourself against their floor, looking up at the two ponies who stared down at you bemusedly

                                            >You slowly crawled back up to all four hooves and blushed

                                            >No hiding behind your hair this time, it's in a ponytail!

                                            "I-I'm not great with... Being around... Other ponies..."

                                            >You cough

                                            >Lyra scoffs and waves a hoof, closing her eyes

                                            >"Pfft. You'll be fiiiiine! Besides, it's not like you're going alone!"

                                            >Bon Bon wraps her fetlock around the back of Lyra's neck, pulling her in a little bit

                                            >"You'll blend in with us, Home Sick. Don't worry too much about it."

                                            >Oh yeah SURE!

                                            >Just don't have anxiety!

                                            >Easy breezie, piece of pie!

                                            >Yet, you had no other choice, you can't break a Pinkie Promise!

                                            >"In fact, I think we can find what we need at Sugarcube Corner."

                                            >"Yeah! Oh-oh-oh and you know Pinkie too! Soooo no stranger danger!"

                                            >'Fine!' You thought to yourself as your legs quaked with unease

                                            "F-F-Fine, y-yeah. L-let's go!"

                                            >You swear that Lyra’s smile got even wider, somehow, as she inhaled like a balloon

                                            >And then let it all out

                                            >”BON BON!!! GET THE CART!!!”

                                            >”I’M RIGHT NEXT TO YOU, YOU DOLT!”

                                            >Bon Bon suddenly looked like she just had a trip through an industrial sized blow dryer, with her mane now shooting straight back

                                            >”Oop. Sorry Bonny. Love you.”

                                            >Lyra pecks Bon Bon on the cheek as Bon Bon glares and gets her mane back into place

                                            >”... Love you too, Lyra.”

                                            >Oh, you hope you can have that with Bleakwing someday

                                            >The three of you walk out the front door, though you trailed behind somewhat

                                            >A brief pause let Bon Bon begrudgingly walk around the side of the cottage/shop to retrieve the aforementioned cart while Lyra eagerly waited

                                            >She REALLY likes shopping, you should’ve known this was coming

                                            >"Alright mares, let's go."

                                            >Bon Bon comes around the corner with the little cart- this is what they must use for shopping

                                            >And so you triumvirate of different personalities trotted down the main street of Ponyville towards the vibrant bakery that was Sugarcube Corner

                                            >Not even YOU could miss that, even if all the colorfulness of it wasn't really your style

                                            >You liked... Gray, light gray, dark gray, silver gray... And black!

                                            >Ironically, you were born with a rather white coat yourself, and no darker mane to speak of!

                                            >You tried dying your mane one time...

                                            >You shuddered

                                            >No good, it was no good

                                            >You spent hours crying as you scrubbed out the dribbling cheap dye out of your coat, only to smear it around everywhere, and get yourself even more looking like a goth clown of some kind

                                            >And not the kind foals would laugh at.

                                            >Before you knew it, you were following Lyra and Bon Bon into Sugarcube Corner- the bell dinging as the three of you entered

                                            >"Hello dearies- Oh, Home Sick, why I haven't seen you since you were just a foal!"

                                            >The jolly mare moved quick despite her rotundness, and Mrs. Cake wrapped her hooves around you in a hug before you could react

                                            "H-Hi Missus Cake."

                                            >You returned the hug, carefully

                                            >This was the second time in one day that you'd been hugged by somepony

                                            >And it actually felt really good!

                                            >Maybe you could get used to this hugging thing

                                            >"How are you~? My, how you've grown!"

                                            >She had pulled away, and was now looking you up and down with a smile

                                            "I-I've been okay-"

                                            >"We need ingredients for caramel! No time to lose!"

                                            >Lyra yanked you by your own neck with a hoof, and was dragging you along as she threw all sorts of ingredients and things that you could hardly pronounce into Bon Bon's cart

                                            >"Oh! Let us know if you need anything! Hubby is taking care of the foals and Pinkie is in the baaaaa- and they're gone."

                                            >True to her word, Lyra had essentially catapulted the three of you into the kitchen area and already located Pinkie

                                            >"PINKIE! We need- Oh! You have it already!"

                                            >The pink mare didn't look surprised in the least, and nodded her head

                                            >"Itchy hoof, tail twitch, AND an eye bulge?!"

                                            >She leans forward, holding a bag of "Premium Hoofington Sugar"

                                            >"I KNOW when somepony needs the good stuff!"


                                            ---- BLEAKWING INTERLUDE ----

                                            >You are Home Sick, a mare with many different interests!

                                            >Okay, maybe not MANY different interests, but you had interests!

                                            >Or… Maybe one primary interest

                                            >That interest, others may ask you if they must know, is Bleakwing

                                            >Bleakwing, oh Bleakwing

                                            >The bat pony that stole your heart right about the time your mom kicked you out of the house

                                            >You’d developed a keen interest in the bat pony, what with his dark coat coloration, the sharpened edge of his wingtips, the… Edge of his personality, as it were

                                            >The way he would blow the bangs out of his one visible eye always sent you swooning!

                                            >He was part of the music group-- Blank-182

                                            >Back when it had formed, they were all late-blooming blankflanks that were always bullied in school!

                                            >Just like you!

                                            >You had earned your Cutie Mark, a winged cloud, by flying away from your bullies high into the sky– Staying up there considerably longer than most other pegasi could ever hope to, though you weren’t a speedster, you’d like to think you had endurance!

                                            >In any case, those rambunctious emotional teenagers had grown up– Earning their cutie marks one by one

                                            >Bleakwing’s cutie mark had been… An image of himself.

                                            >His special talent, as many speculated on Hoofchan, was loving himself

                                            >Most say he’s a narcissist, but not you!

                                            >Even though you were hopelessly in love with the stallion, and you know he would never ever notice your presence at all, and that he would probably hate you for all the poorly drawn art you make of him, and now you REALLY hoped he didn’t see any of the fanfiction you would often posted on Tailpad

                                            >You’re getting ahead of yourself, of course he doesn’t know you exist!

                                            >Stupid, stupid mare.

                                            >You’re such a dumb mare, Bleakwing would never love you.

                                            >You sniffled as you lay in bed, hugging your dakimakura of Bleakwing

                                            >He was covered in… You. At all times.

                                            >You hardly ever washed it

                                            >Sometimes you did, if you spilled something on him, but he cost a lot of money

                                            >And you think they didn’t do a good job of making him, a little bit more faded after each wash, which is why you were so reluctant to wash him

                                            >The area where his stallionhood is the most faded of all though

                                            >For… Reasons… Reasons that only you and you knew alone

                                            >Rolling around in the hay, as the expression goes

                                            >You’ve never been with a REAL stallion

                                            >What stallion would even want you, Home Sick?

                                            >No, you were-

                                            >’Sniffle’

                                            >You were saving yourself for Bleakwing

                                            >You supposed there was that one time a stallion hit on you, but you weren’t really sure if that counted or not

                                            >Well, he bumped into you, and you immediately started swooning because a stallion finally touched you

                                            >And then he did run away after you got all excited and-

                                            >Nevermind, no stallion has ever hit on you

                                            >You know that someday though, Bleakwing, with his cute poofy ears- they’d twitch as you called his name

                                            >”Home Sick… My beautiful mare… Come to me…”

                                            “I love you, Bleakwing.”

                                            >You sobbed as you coddled the daki


                                            ----BLEAKWING INTERLUDE END----