(* Note: This is not part of my ongoing Flutterdash story, "Wings of My Heart". It is simply a one-shot I whipped up as an apology for taking so long to update.*)

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Knock knock knock.

The quiet knocking on the window broke the near-silence in the cottage. Fluttershy blinked her eyes open, sitting up and stretching before looking to her window to identify the source of the noise. She wasn't all that surprised to see her best friend Rainbow Dash hovering just outside, the light of the moon lighting up her multicolored mane. Her expression was also what she expected; she looked troubled, tired, even a little embarrassed. Fluttershy held back a smile and quickly made her way over to the window to unlock it and swing it wide open.

"Hey," Rainbow greeted her, brushing her mane out of her eyes briefly.

"Again?" Fluttershy asked, stepping back to allow the other pegasus to fly in through the window.

"Yep," Rainbow replied, landing softly on the hardwood floor. "You sure you don't mind?"

"I never mind." Fluttershy closed the window, being sure to leave it unlocked just in case. As per usual, she climbed back into her bed, sitting up and leaving the covers half off. Rainbow slid in next to her, lying down until her head was resting gently on Fluttershy's lap and pulling the covers up a little. Rainbow stared at the roof, her expression unreadable, and Fluttershy began absently stroking her friends' mane.

"What is it this time?" she asked after a short moment of silence.

"My house is too cold right now," came the mumbled reply. Fluttershy gave a small smile, seeing Rainbow glance up to meet her gaze.

This type of meeting had become normal for them over the last month. It had started one night during a particularly nasty rainstorm. Rainbow's cloud house had sprung a leak, so she had flown through the storm to Fluttershy's cottage. When she arrived, Fluttershy immediately offered to let her stay the night. She was originally sleeping on the couch downstairs, but it wasn't long before she made her way up to her friends' room. She had eventually given in to her own selfishness and woken Fluttershy up, confessing that she had another reason for coming over than just a leaky roof.

"Why does everypony have to see me that way?" Rainbow had said, basically pouring her heart out in complete trust. "I may act tough on the outside, but everyone seems to think I always have to be like that. Can't I get scared too? Can't I get sad and be sensitive without getting made fun of for it?"

"Of course you can," Fluttershy had comforted her. "You can be anything you want."

They had ended up in almost the same position they were in that night, Rainbow lying with her head in Fluttershy's lap while her friend stroked her mane and gently wiped tears from her eyes. They had stayed like that for hours until Rainbow finally began to feel guilty about troubling her friend. When she tried to leave, Fluttershy had insisted that she at least wait out the storm, and even offered to let her stay in bed with her if it would make her feel better. Rainbow had simply thanked her, and then... Fluttershy kissed her.

It was a quick, soft kiss, right on the lips. It surprised Rainbow greatly, even more so when she realized that she didn't mind at all. Neither of them said anything after that; they both went to sleep and stayed that way for the rest of the night. When Rainbow awoke first, she found that she was still in Fluttershy's arms and felt extremely reluctant to leave. Ever since that night, whenever Rainbow needed a friend to talk to she went over to the cottage and was always greeted with open arms. Sometimes she left before Fluttershy woke up, which was why she left the window unlocked, but sometimes she would stay until Celestia's sun shone warm and vibrant in the sky.  

"Is that really all you wanted to come here for?" Fluttershy inquired innocently, bringing Rainbow back to the present. The cyan pegasus realized that she had closed her eyes, and they snapped open at the question, her cheeks turning a light pink.

"I guess I just wanted to see you," she admitted in a near-whisper, snuggling in closer to her friend. Fluttershy looked a little shocked, but she figured it wasn't all that strange to say. After all, anyone in Rainbow's position who had been coming to their friend for comfort for the past month would feel closer to them.

"Well you know you're always welcome to stay over here as often as you'd like," Fluttershy promised, causing a smile to light up the other ponies face. Before she lost her nerve the shy pegasus leaned down and planted a soft kiss on Rainbow's forehead, darting back up before she had time to react. The blush only deepened on Rainbow's face, and her smile only grew wider. She closed her eyes, taking comfort in the warm body underneath her and soothing sound of a steady heartbeat. Tomorrow may bring new problems, but in that moment they could share it as friends. Or, maybe something more...