Lost in a Maze (open)

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"Oh my, there really is a lot of snow here." 

Fluttershy pulled the scarf she was wearing closer to her face and then pulled down her yellow knit hat. She was bundled up head-to-toe in thick layers of clothing to protect her against the winter cold, but the chill of the wind still managed to get through occasionally. "I wonder how the garden looks in the spring. I hope there will be many, many flowers and cute little critters and butterflies…" She trailed off as a shadow pass over her and she found herself staring up at a giant wall of hedges. Looking side to side, she saw that it spanned a pretty long distance. Right beside her was a tall opening to a pathway between the hedges, fashioned to resemble an arch. Boy, did this bring back unwanted memories for the pegasi… memories of facing Discord and of getting separated from her friends and having to wander the scary hedge maze alone.

She took a few staggering steps back, hands shaking. That was one experience she had wanted to forget entirely. Yes, she would just turn around now and go back to her nice cozy little house that she and Fumio shared-
Wait, what was that?

Fluttershy narrowed her eyes as she tried to focus against the bitter wind. There inside the maze was a rabbit, and a baby one at that. She couldn't see any other rabbits nearby. A baby rabbit, all alone and out in the cold? Oh no, it would surely freeze, or get sick, or run into some sort of terrible trouble! 
"Baby rabbit, come here," Fluttershy leaned down and spoke softly. The rabbit froze and perked it's ears up as it stared at her, then took off deeper into the maze.

"No wait! It's not safe in there!" Fluttershy hurried after it, trying to swallow back the anxiety she felt crashing into her as she passed through the arches. The rabbit darted this direction and that, taking turns in the maze and running off in different directions. She followed it devotedly until it finally reached a dead end. "There we go," she sighed as she bent down in the snow. She scooped the tiny rabbit up and held him in her arms. "Now you shouldn't run off like that into places you don't know! You could end up…" She turned to go back from where she came from, but realized there were three different passages out, and various turns behind them. "…lost. Oh no… I think I'm lost!" The girl shrank down in panic and buried her face in her scarf. How could she have been so stupid?! She knew she shouldn't have gone inside in the first place!

[Alfred Jones]

Alfred was surprised when he discovered, during a walk through Tenebrae Park, that there was a maze of all things located in the gardens. However, he saw the maze as both an adventure and a challenge, and decided to head inside - If only to see what was within the maze.

He was doing a fairly good job of keeping track of where he was going, too. As Alfred was prone to claustrophobia, getting lost in a maze was not his idea of a party. Everything likely would have gone to plan and Alfred would have exited the maze without a problem - Were he not distracted by a sudden murmur.

"Oh no...I think I'm lost!"

Alfred threw caution to the wind (as he often did when he was acting on impulse) and ran toward the source of the voice. It took a bit of searching, but he finally found a pink haired girl with her face buried into her scarf. She looked distressed...he could only figure that she was the one he was looking for.

"Hey there, did I hear you say that you were lost? Well you're in luck, because..."

Alfred paused at once, remembering that he'd stopped tracking where he was going when he heard her distress. "...I'm lost too. Huh, that wasn't supposed to happen. Anyway, let's get a move on. The more ground we cover, the sooner we'll find the exit, right?" He stated with a smile, hoping to cheer her up.

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Fluttershy’s head flew up and she stiffened as she heard someone speak. She looked up to see that it was a boy she didn’t recognize. At least, she didn’t think she had seen him before… most of the time she just tried to avoid eye contact with strangers. Still, she was starting to feel very relieved when he began speaking and straightened up immediately. Did he know the way out? Oh good, that meant she could escape this scary place after all!

Of course, she looked down and sank to her original growing anxiety when he continued; her hope having vanished. It looked like now she wasn’t the only one who was hopelessly lost here. “I-I hope so,” she replied to him as she stood up off of the snow and lightly dusted it off of her outfit. Though she tended to avoid people she didn’t know well, she would definitely follow this boy if it meant not being alone in here and possibly being able to find the exit. She was surprised that he didn’t seem the least bit of worried or scared despite their predicament. Sometimes she wished she herself could feel that way, but it just didn't seem possible for her.

She stared down at the baby rabbit that she was holding, initially trying to avoid looking at Alfred as she walked. It was rude to stare, after all. "So, um, where do you think we should go first? There are three ways…" She pointed out very quietly. Fluttershy really hoped that this boy would know how to get them out quickly.

[Alfred Jones]

Apparently telling the pink-haired girl that he was lost as well was not the best plan of action. At first she looked hopeful, and now she just looked put down once again. Alfred did feel a little uncomfortable. The walls of the maze were a tad too tall for his liking.

"We'll find it. Unless there's some sort of never-ending portal inside of this maze, it definitely looked like there was an entrance and an exit from the outside!" Alfred had the opposite issue as Fluttershy - Whereas Fluttershy had trouble speaking to those she didn't know, Alfred had a problem with rambling.

The nation looked at the three options that they had. "Huh, they don't make it easy do they? Hmm...let's go with the middle one first." Too bad he hadn't thought to peak back at the path he ran down when he was running to meet this girl. And speaking of which... "Alfred, by the way. Nice to meet ya."

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“A- a portal? Never-ending?” Fluttershy bit her lip with a tiny, muffled squeak. Even though it was only a joke or expression, she still felt increasingly uncomfortable at that thought. It didn’t help that the last maze she had been in had been overrun by Discord’s chaotic magic; magic that could have very well involved portals. She really hoped that there was nothing like that in this maze! It was hard enough to calm down knowing that she was lost, without imagining that there could be terrible magic in it as well.

She stopped in her tracks as he looked at the three different ways, then nodded as he announced which one they should take. “Oh, ok, if you think that’s the right way,” Fluttershy trudged along behind him, glancing behind her nervously and then peering to glance ahead of them. There was no telling what they could run into or which direction it led out without walking through it. It would be like that with every turn they made, she was sure.

“My name’s Fluttershy,” The girl replied quietly. "Fluttershy Woods…" 

[Alfred Jones]

Alfred's joke didn't go the way that he'd hoped, and instead of lightening the atmosphere it only caused Fluttershy to panic that much more. "Hey, don't worry about it, I'm kidding. We'll get out of here in no time!" He tried to reassure her. He really didn't know how long it would take, but he was sure they'd get out.

“Oh, ok, if you think that’s the right way." Alfred physically bit down on his lip to keep from commenting that he had absolutely no idea that they were going the right way. He didn't want to end up panicking Fluttershy even worse, but it was hard when he rarely thought before saying what was on his mind.

The girl proceeded to introduce herself in return. He had a name to go with the face now, which was always a plus. "Well Fluttershy, what are your plans for the day after we get out of here?" Might as well make conversation while they were walking. Maybe it would get her mind off of her worries. Worth a shot at least!