2. But Pansy was determined to befriend him. Not only were their awkward interactions getting to her, but the idea that somepony disliked her or worse, feared her, ate at her sweet little heart until she couldn’t take anymore. So mustering all of her courage, she put the first hoof forward in reaching out to the colt. Being shy herself, she only got as far as prodding small talk here and there, and for a while, nothing she did or said seemed to make an impact. Despite being one to never give up, she couldn’t shake the sinking feeling that all her efforts were for nothing. Then in the blink of an eye, one simple, yet genuine compliment flipped everything 180 degrees, and before Pansy knew it, Lokie was teaching her knitting every Tuesday afternoon. Yes, that Lokie. The Lokie who countless times before would shrink at the sight of her, was now physically and verbally showing her how to knit a slip knot! Although Pansy remained quiet and calm during their sessions, she could hardly smother the urge squeal excitedly at her success. At last, Lokie no longer cowered and scurry away when she approached, and he even maintained direct eye contact for longer than ten seconds. And really, that’s all she hoped for. Little did Pansy know, their friendship was only just beginning.
 

 
3. Now that Pansy passed the hard part of coaxing Lokie to come out of his shell a bit, she found the colt easy and surprisingly enjoyable company. Same for Lokie, who would actually pester Fluttershy as to what time the next sleepover was and even greet her at the front door along with Harmony when she arrived. Aside from their knitting sessions, anytime said sister was off distractedly chasing some cockatrice up a tree or busy terrorizing some dimension during her weekly visits with Discord, Pansy would instead play with Lokie. Of course, their ‘playing’ was mostly them chatting quietly-sometimes saying nothing at all as each did their own thing. However, in fair weather, the two would wander outside to explore the woods or meadows, peeking into every crook and cranny, before settling into some oak roots for shade, while Lokie recited his latest poem or Pansy read from her newest book series. And as much as Pansy loved sleepovers with Harmony, in a way she treasured the rare occasions with her calm, gentle, and less hyperactive brother even more. Similarly, to Lokie, who lived night and day with his energetic sibling, Pansy was a breath of fresh air. So quietly and gently, their friendship sprouted to life like a seed in spring- so slowly you barely notice. But by the time school rolled around, one could mistake them for brother and sister.
 

 
4. Speaking of school, just when Pansy thought she wouldn’t see Lokie for weeks at a time, now that he wasn’t coming to school, a miracle happened. Since Twilight took on tutoring Lokie, she not only saw him every day before and after school, but he was at her own home! In fact, barely did a day go by that he wasn’t there, that she started to feel as though he lived with them. The trio spent nearly every afternoon slaving in the library over Equestrian History together, although more often than not, only Lokie and Pansy studied while Harmony entertained the twins with her mostly harmless magic tricks. If they finished before Fluttershy came to pick them up, Lokie would assist Pansy in watering the fauna in her greenhouse as she described her day in detail without catching her breath- not that he minded, of course. Whereas Pansy cherished spending time with all of her friends, as time went on, something about the afterschool get-together with Lokie felt particularly special to her. And although Pansy wouldn’t admit it aloud, to her, Lokie himself was a special kind of friend.