Fluttershy?” a voice said softly. “Fluttershy, can you hear me?”
Fluttershy’s eyes were closed. She could tell something was going on around her, but she couldn’t tell what. Her head was throbbing. Where was she? How long had she been here? And did she really have to wake up? Wherever she was, this bed was so cozy and warm….
“Fluttershy?” the voice said again.
Fluttershy slowly opened her eyes. She was in a room she’d never seen before. It looked like the Sand Dragon’s burrow, because it had the same gray walls and seaweed curtains that were in the great hall. Electric eels lined the ceiling, snaking this way and that, lighting up everything with their orange glow.
“She’s awake!” Princess Skystar cried. “Fluttershy! Fluttershy! Are you okay?”
Fluttershy looked down, noticing the bed she’d been sleeping in. It was a mixture of moss and sea sponge. They’d covered her with a thick blanket made of kelp. Her head still hurt, and she was sore, but other than that, she felt okay.
“I think so…” Fluttershy said. She looked around at all the worried faces. Gnash was standing beside Skystar. As soon as he saw her eyes open, he smiled a big, toothy grin, revealing a row of yellow and brown fangs. Salt Air and the guards stood on the far side of the room. Cerulean and Coral Rose both hung their heads. They didn’t look at her.
“Thank my lucky starfish!” Skystar said with a giggle. Then she grew serious. “Salt Air and the guards know now they cannot act without my permission. What they did tonight was, like, completely inexcusable, you know?”
“Your Highness,” Salt Air said, still keeping her eyes on the floor, “again, I beg your forgiveness. We thought the Sand Dragon had captured Cerulean and Fluttershy. We thought we needed to do something. To rescue them and prevent Seaquestria from a Sand Dragon attack!”
“You could have really hurt Gnash,” Skystar said. “And for what? Because you were angry? Because you assumed the worst? Because you didn’t listen?”
Salt Air didn’t answer.
Princess Skystar swam toward her, shaking her head. “You could learn something from Fluttershy! We all could.”
Salt Air laughed. “From the same pony who tried to steal the pearl? Didn’t her friend run off with it when you weren’t looking?”
“Um, nooooo. From the same pony who stood up to you when no other pony would!” Skystar corrected. “And will you let that pearl thing go already? I think she proved she’s on our side here tonight!”
Gnash paced beside Fluttershy’s bed. His scaly skin was scratched up in a few places, but otherwise, he seemed okay. He stared at Salt Air, his dark brows pulled together. “I should take you as my prisoner!” he joked. When nopony laughed, he just shrugged. “What? Too soon?”
Skystar stifled a giggle. Salt Air looked particularly salty about the comment.
Gnash plopped down beside Fluttershy’s bed, and a small smile crept over his face. He suddenly seemed calmer and maybe even… happy. Fluttershy was starting to think he was like a lot of creatures she’d met on her adventures—all roar and no bite. It didn’t seem as if Gnash actually wanted to hurt anycreature, even if they were trying to hurt him.
“You are a nice Seapony,” Gnash said, gazing at Fluttershy. “I’ve never seen bravery like that. And I’ve been alive for five hundred moons! You risked your life for a stranger, and for a stranger who accidentally ponynapped your friend. If the Beezlebugs were here, they would present you with a heaping plate of seaweed mash as a thank-you.”
“It was the right thing to do,” Fluttershy said, and she meant every word. Maybe Gnash had made some mistakes, and maybe he did have a fiery temper, but that didn’t mean Salt Air was allowed to hurt him. What kind of pony would Fluttershy be if she had stood frozen, watching the battle? She couldn’t have lived with herself if anypony or anydragon was hurt… or worse.
“Gnash,” Skystar started, “I want you to know that no matter what happened tonight, you can count the Seaponies as friends. We’re sorry for all these misunderstandings and for not finding you sooner. When you’re moving thousands of Hippogriffs under the ocean, you can sometimes forget your manners.”
Gnash’s eyes darted to the back wall where Cerulean and Salt Air were still standing. His expression grew serious again. He kept looking at Skystar, then back to the Seaponies, as if he wasn’t sure whom to trust.
“Skystar never says anything that she doesn’t mean,” Fluttershy assured him. “Please, give the Seaponies another chance.”
“She’s right! Tomorrow night we will be back in the village,” Skystar went on. “And we will hold a ball in your honor. With a feast! Please come as our special guest! Oh, you just have to!”
“You all want me there?” Gnash glanced around the room. The Seaponies’ expressions began to change from solemn to smiles. “You’re sure that’s a good idea?” Gnash asked. “I thought that Seaponies hated me. That they thought I was a”—he paused, as though he couldn’t bring himself to say it—“crab-cruncher.”
“We will explain everything,” Fluttershy said. She turned to the guards. “Right, everypony?”
“Hmmm… what would I even wear?” Gnash asked. “I mean, I haven’t been to a ball in… well, ever.”
“Wear whatever you like!” Skystar said. “You can meet my mom, Queen Novo, and some of the villagers!” The princess leaned in and gave him a little wink. “I think some of your friends might be in attendance as well.”
“Really?!” Gnash smiled a big, goofy smile, as if he’d been trying to hold it back but couldn’t. Then he returned to his seat beside Fluttershy. “You can stay here to recover if you need to,” he said. “There’s a good glitterfish doctor a few miles west. Well, at least there was a hundred moons ago….”
But Fluttershy was already up. She pushed back the kelp blanket and swam into the room. Her head still felt a little heavy, but otherwise, she was okay. “I’m all right, I think. I can go back with them,” she said. “Besides, I’m sure Queen Novo is worried about you, Skystar. I’m sure she’s worried about all of us.”
Fluttershy bowed in front of the giant beast, and he bowed back.
“It was an honor,” he said in that gentler tone that seemed to come and go.
“We will see you tomorrow night at the ball,” Skystar said as her guards formed two lines around her. Fluttershy stayed toward the back with Coral Rose, holding on to her wing in case she needed to steady herself.
“Tomorrow night!” Gnash called after them with another huge smile. As they filed out of the Sand Dragon’s burrow, Fluttershy swore she could hear the beast giggling with excitement.