It's a long trip to the GTA from Winnipeg, even longer when you're inches tall and trapped in a carton inside of a box, and before they'd started, Fluttershy had been nervous. She'd never been so far from home and even Twilight said it was going to be a long journey. It would take days.

It hadn't been that bad, though. Not scary at all, and they hadn't met any dragons or monsters or any of the things they'd been warned about. Actually, it had been nice in their box, quiet and padded, and she'd had Mr. Butterfly and flowers there to keep her busy when the other two were sleeping.

Not that Rainbow Dash slept much. She'd had her bag and her stickers but she'd wanted to fly. She'd been annoyed that she couldn't. Pinkie Pie hadn't packed anything for their trip, only just herself, but Pinkie's always been a party just on her own. She'd been bouncing since the post office and she hadn't really stopped.

So it's been days of Pinkie Pie chattering and Rainbow Dash grumbling and actually, Fluttershy has enjoyed it. So when their box opens somewhere new, Rainbow Dash can't wait to get out there and explore, but Fluttershy gets nervous all over again. Maybe it's going to be dangerous in their new home. Maybe it's safer in their box.

Then the person opening their box says "OH MY GOD, FLUTTERSHY!" and makes a lot of noise, flailing like Pinkie Pie at a party and smiling just as big.

Rainbow Dash shifts her carton and makes a serious face, the kind she wears at the starting line of a race. "What about the rest of us?" Rainbow Dash asks, and Fluttershy would remind her to be nice except the person's picking Fluttershy's carton up out of the box before Fluttershy can get a word out. "Oh no you don't," she hears Rainbow Dash say, then the sounds of Rainbow Dash's carton shifting again in frustrated flight.

"Whoa," the person says. "And Rainbow Dash? My Reddit Santa is awesome."

Then Fluttershy's carton is being set down and the person is squealing happily about Rainbow Dash, finding Pinkie Pie and squealing again, and Fluttershy finds herself staring up at a really big, curious cat.

"It's all right, Mr. Butterfly," Fluttershy says, not sure who she's trying to convince. The cat puts its nose on her plastic window, headbutts a nuzzle and cocks its head. "Everything's going to be fine."

Mr. Butterfly makes a sound like Angel Bunny might have done. From somewhere far away, she can hear Rainbow Dash still struggling with her carton, Pinkie Pie bouncing enough to shake her packaging as their person lines them up for a picture.

"Oh my God, Fluttershy," their person says. "And she brought friends!"

"Well, Mr. Butterfly, we're not in Equestria anymore."

::

They live in a car. That's what the person calls it -- Claire, the car -- and there's a space just for Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash to play, and when there's no one around, Rainbow Dash goes flying around the inside of the car and tries to figure out how to work the sunroof. At night sometimes, Fluttershy heads up to the dashboard to see the squirrels and raccoons and neighbourhood cats, and she wants to look after them but they're all so much bigger than she is.

Rainbow Dash says it's going to take time to get used to how things are around here, but Fluttershy thinks they already have.

Pinkie Pie's too small to stay with them in their little spot in the car, because she keeps falling over or bouncing out onto the floor, but the person says she's working on a little thread harness so Pinkie Pie can swing from the mirror, and Pinkie turns into a one-pony band again at the thought of it.

Fluttershy misses Angel Bunny sometimes, and she misses their box, but she's pretty happy with how things have turned out, anyway.

~~~

Dear Reddit Pony Santa Anon of Awesomeness:

Thank you. You are awesome. I love my gift so much. I am now annoying the people I know irl about not bothering the ponies and plotting madcap adventures for them and stuff. Er, that thread harness? Totally going to happen. nods Pinkie Pie will be perfect hanging from my rearview.

Thank you so much for my wonderful gifts. I hope your pony santa was as great to you.