Being Neighborly [Fluttershy]

[Henry Charmant]

Henry had been watching as new people began to move into the neighborhood, both dreading and anticipating what his new housemates would be like. Would they be rude? Good with a sword? Good at cooking? Would they be (gulp) girls? He was excited about having someone new to live with, though he worried what would happen if he ended up not liking them.

But after living here for months and never having a single housemate, he was beginning to think that Fate might have it out for him. Was this supposed to be some sort of privilege for his former status? Yet he had met other people who had also been powerful, and they didn't seem to be given the same sort of privileges. It seemed that he was just destined to live alone for whatever reason.

This led, as one might suspect, to a fair amount of boredom. Henry really did wish that he had someone to talk to, at least. But why should not having a housemate prevent him from making friends in the neighborhood? Of course it shouldn't! Remembering his mother's advice about what to do when visiting or welcoming guests from other kingdoms, he tried to find a suitable gift to take to his neighbors. Since he didn't have a wealth of jewels or gem-encrusted swords, he settled on food. Feasts were always good, right? Unfortunately his cooking skills were still a bit wanting, so he only managed to come up with a basic fruit salad.

Taking his meager gift, he went to the first house on his street (that wasn't full of rotting meat). He knocked on the door and held out his gift with a big smile, ready to meet his neighbors.

[Deleted]

Fluttershy had been just making her way through the living room when the knocking sounded and she jumped back, startled by the sudden noise. “P-Pinkie Pie? Did you invite any guests over?” She whispered nervously as she ducked behind the couch. With no response, the pink-haired girl forced herself to inch her way over to the door. Oh- strangers did scare her. What if it was someone scary or mean? The fear seemed a lot worse now that she was in this strange world, with absolutely no inclination as to who could be at her door… or what, for that matter.

“C-coming…” She whispered very quietly as she trudged ever so slowly up to the entrance. The trip that should’ve realistically taken not even a second just took another minute and a half with her reluctant pace. She reached out a shaking hand to the doorknob and looked away for a moment as she held her breath, before finally building up the nerve and turning it slowly. The door creaked open just a sliver so that she could peer out without fully being seen and could still shut it quickly if needed. “H-hello? Who is it…?” She said in a quiet voice as she tried to get a glimpse at the visitor.

[Henry Charmant]

Henry was beginning to think that nobody was home. He'd awkwardly shifted his feet, even tried knocking again, and was about to leave when the door cracked open and a soft voice spoke. Turning back to the door, he smiled again and held out his fruit salad.

"Hello!" he said in his most pleasant voice, the one he used when he was actually happy and not just pretending for his family's sake. "My name is Henry, and I'm trying to meet the neighbors. Would you like some fruit salad?"

It was hard to see much of anything with the door in the way, but that soft voice and pink hair looked a little familiar. He squinted, leaning forward a little to try to get a closer look. "You look...familiar...Do I know you from somewhere?" Then he had it. "Oh! You were at the mall, weren't you? With all the animals? You were so incredible there. I mean, I saw the way those animals listened to you. That was amazing. I was, uh, the guy who kind of made a fool of himself." He rubbed the back of his neck and gave an awkward smile, almost dropping the fruit salad as he tried to balance it with one hand. He caught it again with both hands and smiled awkwardly up at the girl. "I'm sorry. I hope I didn't bother you?"

[Deleted]

Fluttershy blinked, her eyes rounded. She glimpsed up at the boy and then down at the fruit salad he was holding, before shyly looking back up at him again through her bangs. Yes, it did appear as if what he was saying was the truth, and with his smile he seemed very friendly and not mean at all. Certainly not a monster like she had feared…“I’m Fluttershy,” The girl replied in a soft voice. She fidgeted with the white lacey hem of her daffodil-yellow sundress as she continued, “Oh- um, yes… I like fruit salad. I mean, that is, if you don’t mind. You don’t have to give me any if you don’t want to though, I understand. There are probably a lot of better neighbors than I am,” She said and shifted her gaze uneasily to her feet for a brief second.

“F-familiar? Know me…?” Fluttershy’s eyes widened a bit and her face reddened slightly. She wasn’t used to people having noticing her at all, as she usually preferred to try to blend right into the background and avoid anypony who wasn’t familiar when she could. Why would she look familiar to him? Had she met him before and not remembered? Oh- that would be terribly rude of her to do, but she couldn’t seem to think of when she had met anypony- er, one, named Henry.
“Oh, yes I was, “ she exhaled slightly at the explanation of the mall. “Thanks but, it was nothing really, the critters were just upset, that was all. Sometimes it helps to talk to them instead of trying to scare them,” Fluttershy nodded slightly, not taking any part of her ability into account. She was certain that if others were kinder and tried to listen that the animals would listen to them as well.

The topic of animals seemed to make the nervous girl feel a bit more comfortable; she opened the door enough now that her entire figure was visible and that she could come out onto the porch if she wanted. “Oh no, not at all- I was just straightening up our house- mine and Pinkie Pie’s, that is.” She nodded, and then her expression suddenly changed to that of concern. “You were the one that fell? Oh no! I saw you fall and I wanted to help you, but I couldn’t get through. Were you hurt?” She stared at him up and down and bit her lip, knowing that she would feel very guilty if he had been injured in some way. The nearly dropping of the fruit bowl didn't seem to reassure her of the matter.