Rainbow Dash stood before the cottage door. It has been two weeks since she had returned to her own home, but it felt empty, lonely. In the past months she had learned to stop and think, and by applying this new found skill, she had determined that what she really missed was Fluttershy. She hopped from one hoof to the other, took a deep breath, and finally knocked.

A muffled voice came from inside “One moment…” After a few seconds the door opened, and Fluttershy peered outside. “Oh, hello Rainbow Dash. I’m glad to see you. How is your wing?”

Rainbow extended her wings a few times. “Fine, a bit stiff now and then, but almost back to normal.” She smiled coyly. “I wanted to thank you again for everything you have done for me. I know that sometimes I wasn't easy to handle.”

Fluttershy cocked her head. “That was nothing, I am glad you are feeling better. But…” she looked at her blushing friend. “... is there something else?”

Rainbow drew a circle on the ground with her hoof. “It’s… You see… I…” She huffed frustrated. “Ah, ponyfeathers, it sounded better in my head.”

Fluttershy took a step outside and put a hoof on Rainbow’s shoulder. “Take your time.” A warm smile on her face. “Do you want to come inside for a tea while you think about it?”

Rainbow was about to protest, but deflated. “Yeah, maybe it will help.”

As they sat in the living room, Rainbow Dash stared at her tea, the beverage and cookies untouched. She rearranged her speech for the umpteenth time, stealing now and then a brief look at Fluttershy, the yellow pegasus calmly drinking her chamomile and smiling.

She sighed, words weren't her strength, and there was really no way around the issue. “Fluttershy, in this past few months you have kept me here in your home, you have helped me and you practically nursed me back on my hooves, even if for most of the time I have been a jerk.”

Fluttershy put her cup down, and shook her head. “I already told you, it was no problem at all. And the times you were grumpy, well, I understand you were in a lot of pain, so it wasn't really you talking.”

Rainbow Dash looked down at her hooves. “I was horrible, and I shouldn't have been.” She poked her cup, turning it around. “The thing is, I have understood something in this time together. I like you Fluttershy.”

Fluttershy raised her cup. “Well, I like you too, you are my friend.”

“No, not in that sense, I mean, I like you, like, I really LIKE you, like, in a special somepony way…” She heard the sound of clattering ceramic and raised her head. Fluttershy sat there, stiff, her cup on the table, the content spilled. She felt panic gripping her, she had messed up, she had ruined everything she had…

Fluttershy relaxed a bit, sighed, and straightened the fallen cup. She looked up, winced, and then spoke with an unusual steel in her voice. “No Rainbow Dash, you don’t really like me in that way.”

Rainbow blinked. “I don’t?”

“No, you don’t. You have suffered for months, and we have been very close during this time, but this doesn't mean what you think.”

Rainbow felt her heart shatter. “Do… Are… Does that mean that… You don’t like me in that way?”

Fluttershy looked away. “No, I mean that what you think you are feeling is not what you really feel.”

“I don’t understand.”

Fluttershy stood up and walked to a window. “What I mean is what you are feeling now is not something on which you can build. And you are too loyal to end it when you will see the truth. It would make us both…” She whispered “Please, leave.”

Rainbow stood up, now she was getting angry. “No, I know what I feel, I have thought about it! And what has loyalty to do with that?”

Fluttershy flinched, then, without turning, said. “It is better if you go now. Please don’t come back here for a while, and think again about what you believe you are feeling.”

“But…”

Fluttershy pointed at the door.

Rainbow Dash lowered her head, and slouching, got out. As she walked down the small path, away from the cottage she thought she heard somepony sobbing.