A Wish Granted

“Awaken, my daughter.”

Fluttershy heard something at the edge of her consciousness, trying to rouse her from sleep, but she fought it.

“Awaken, Fluttershy!”

Fluttershy cracked an eye open, and a momentary fear went through her. She was in the middle of a forest in the dead of night.

“Calm your heart, my child. It is almost time for your big performance.”

The voice of the Concord Tree was echoing through her mind, and she remembered where she was and why. Following her change she had felt too tired to stay awake and had fell asleep. Even though a few hours had passed it felt like only minutes. She didn’t feel rested at all.

“Stand, my daughter, and embrace the power that is your new birthright. The full moon will reach its peak soon, and then my power will once again be at its pinnacle.”

Straining, she forced herself up. Her legs were wobbly, and a few vines wrapped themselves underneath her stomach to brace her.

She looked up into the sky, seeing the moon was almost at the top of the sky. The shadows were very small, almost nonexistent.

“How much longer?” she asked.

“A few minutes, I think. Do not fear, Fluttershy. Once this is done you will have my eternal gratitude. Let your instincts guide you, and learn how to

use the new powers inside you. Unlike me you have a renewable energy source inside you, so you can use my powers as well to help improve nature.”

As she waited for the critical moment she decided to just talk for a little bit. “I’ve always had an unnaturally strong connection with animals since I was a filly. I can understand them and their language as well as I understand my own. I didn’t think that my connection could get stronger, but it will be interesting to see how these changes will help me to understand them better.”

“That is one of the reasons I chose you as the one who could help me. When you declared that you wanted to become a tree my fellow children kept a watch on you, and they could feel that you were different. Our instincts didn’t steer us wrong. You ARE the chosen one.”

Fluttershy blushed, "I don’t think there’s anything all that special about me.”

“Nonsense, child. Don’t belittle yourself so. You said yourself you’re one of the bearers of the Elements of Harmony. Not just any pony can use them. That just shows you have an exceptional connection to them. I can tell without even asking that you possess the Element of Kindness.”

Fluttershy let out a little gasp. “How did you know that?”

The Concord Tree let out a little laugh, its branches rustling. “My dear, it’s obvious simply in the way you carry yourself. You are humble, and go out of your way to help others. You see all lives as important, not just those of your fellow ponies. You see the squirrels and badgers and bunnies and all other creatures as just as valuable as those of ponies. The truest hallmark of a loving heart is those that value all, not just those closest to them. A heart that bestows generosity upon all, regardless of circumstance.”

“Well, Rarity has the Element of Generosity.”

“Just as all of your friends are different but similar, so too do many of the Elements interconnect. As I said earlier the truest demonstration of nature is harmony with all things, and the Elements of Harmony are simply another example of that. Despite their differences in name and what they represent, only when all of them are united together does true harmony resonate. To be loyal to a friend may require you to be honest about something you’d rather not say. To be kind may require you to be generous. And to be able to laugh together is one of the keys of the magic that is friendship. Where true harmony lies is seeing past the differences between them. Rather, we should look for the ways we are all similar, and thus increase our bonds with each other, everyone becoming stronger together.”

Fluttershy felt a little awed at the tree’s logic. She nodded her head. “ I see it now.”

“There are hundreds upon hundreds of tree’s across Equestria that I watch after, and though they all have their slight differences they are still a part of nature. Bushes, shrubs, young trees, old trees; what we all have in common is we are one with nature, giving homes and food to those who need it. We all grow together as one, and it is the only way we wish to live. Despite being a pony you are the closest I’ve seen to the spirit of nature, the one most worthy of sharing my power with. I know I can trust you with this power, and you will not abuse it.”

“Abuse it? All I can do now is “see” nature more deeply, right?”

“It’s a little more than that, child. All will become clearer once my power is restored. When I’m back to full strength your connection with me will grow exponentially, and our ancestral memories will begin to flow inside of you, giving you knowledge that has never been shared with the sentient races before.”

Fluttershy stared up in wonder at the Concord Tree, then sat down and lifted her hooves, looking them over, wondering what this new power was that she was going to obtain.

She became distracted by a shift in the light. The area she was standing on appeared to be glowing brighter, while the forest at the edge of her vision was growing darker. She looked up at the moon, but there were no clouds around to disrupt the light.

“I see you’ve noticed,” said the Concord Tree.

“W-what’s going on?” asked Fluttershy.

“The moon is starting to contract its light to this specific area of the forest. The concentrated moonlight will spark the spell that restores my power every month.”

It was an odd thing. Despite the ever increasing brightness of the hill and the Concord Tree the rest of the forest only grew darker and darker, until all she could see was indistinct shapes in the distance.

" So....when does this -AAHH!”

Fluttershy let out a yelp as she felt an odd sensation going through her. Her entire body was glowing, and she could no longer see. She had to shut her eyes, but it didn’t stop her from being able to feel.

Her sluggishness and lethargy vanished as her whole being from head to hoof pulsated with energy. Her power and energy rose higher and higher with every passing second. It blazed so strongly within her she thought her body was going to explode from the sheer amount.

Just as she began to feel afraid more vines wrapped themselves around her body, leeching the energy off of her like a parasite, at an even greater rate than the energy entering her body. Now she felt a different kind of fear. She felt scared it was going to drain her dry just like it did that other tree it talked about.

As usual, just as the thought occurred to her the consumption lessened. The voice of the Concord Tree rang through her mind. “I told you before not to be afraid, my daughter. I would never let harm come to you for my own selfish benefit. I just wanted to take the extra energy inside of you before your own body broke down from the strain of trying to contain it all.”

The Concord Tree adjusted its energy absorption until it was more or less equivalent to the energy entering her body. Her body felt tingly and strange from the twofold energy manipulation going on through her body. Going in and coming out. Going in and coming out. Over and over and over.

“H-how long is this going to last?” asked Fluttershy, hoping it wasn’t going to last too much longer.

“Only about thirty minutes.”

Fluttershy groaned. She felt like she was going to crawl out of her skin. It was just like when the Concord Tree first put the magic seed in her, but even worse. If it wasn’t holding her she would be running around and scratching like crazy, hoping to make it stop.

“W-why am I feeling this way?” she asked in her mind.

“The nature energy inside you is resonating with the nature energy flowing into this spot from the light of the full moon. The stream is a natural part of nature, and feels nothing. However, because your nature energy is still new it still hasn’t properly adapted to it, hence why you’re having trouble taking it in. I had to turn you into part-tree to make your body compatible with nature energy, but like in our conversation before we established that you’re still part pony, and thus you’re not a true part of nature. The magic is trying to “fix” that by completing your transformation into a tree. I’m holding it back so you still maintain your pony body, but that is the source of the constant jittery feeling inside you.”

She groaned again. She was going to have to this every month? She just hoped that it would be easier the next time when she was more used to her new body and abilities, whatever they were going to be.

Her body spasmed. She just wanted it to end. The give and take was driving her crazy.

Each second felt like an eternity. With the constant energy fluctuations going through her she couldn’t even concentrate on trying to communicate with the other trees, but she could feel the Concord Tree’s pity for her distress.

She was the one who had chosen this. She would just have to deal with it.

She took deep breaths, hating the feeling of her body being covered all over with ants, crawling all over her.

Time passed by, and she wondered how long it had been since she started.

“Please, let it end!” she begged in her mind. “Let it end. Let it end.” She chanted endlessly, feeling trapped within her own body.

The vines wrapped around her body suddenly left her, blocking out the moonlight above her.

The sudden ceasing of the energy streaming in and out of her took her by surprise, and she stumbled for a second, nearly falling on her face. Her body felt almost normal again. Without the distraction of her own discomfort a great sadness entered into her from the Concord Tree.

“Is… is it over?” she asked. It didn’t seem like the case. The light was still almost blinding, only concentrated around the area where she was.

“No, dear. It’s only been about ten minutes. I just… I just couldn’t bear to see you suffering anymore. You were pleading for it to end, and with another twenty minutes to go I didn’t want to just watch anymore. I didn’t think you would be able to endure another twenty minutes. All this has been too much for you. I only brought you here to fulfill your wish and get some help from myself. Instead, I’ve only scared you and brought you pain and distress.”

The depth of its sadness weighed heavily upon her, and she was certain it would be crying if it had the capacity to.

“I’m so sorry, Fluttershy. I never wished to trouble you so. I’m grateful for all that you’ve done. You did your best, but it’s clear you’re at your limit. Please go now. You’ve done enough.” The tree's voice rang with emotion that touched Fluttershy deeply

“B-but what about you?”

“Never you mind. I told you before that I seek harmony between all things. Sitting back and doing nothing while you’re suffering because of my request doesn’t sit well with me. I don’t wish to see you this way.

The other trees began to talk as well. “Thank you, Fluttershy, but our mother is right. You’ve done enough.”

“It’s too much for you, so you should go home.”

“Thank you for trying.”

“None of us want to see you suffering anymore. We love our mother dearly, but to keep her at the cost of making you go through so much pain…”

“Go on, our sister.”

“Go.”

“Go!”

“GO!”

Fluttershy looked around, feeling all the trees around her. All of them were so concerned and worried for her well-being. Like before it brought her to tears.

She took a deep breath. Because of the unexpected sensations she had all but forgotten what she was really doing all this for. She was a weak pony. She knew that very well. There were plenty of times she held her friends back, but still they always supported her, hoping for her to improve. But even though she felt pathetic, feeble, and frail, she felt invincible when her friends were in danger.

The Concord Tree considered her like a daughter, even though it had only met her today. Similarly, the other trees considered her a sister. All of them considered her like family, even though she only had tree characteristics because of their own magic.And now… those same beings were in trouble. They needed her now. Only she could help them now. No one else could come to their rescue. There was no one else with the power to help. For her friends… for her family… there was nothing she wouldn’t go through to keep them safe.

Fluttershy shook her head. “No. I won’t leave. You need me. Please. Let’s continue.”

“Fluttershy, you’ve done enough,” the Concord Tree repeated.

She shook her head. “No, I haven’t. I want to help you, so let’s keep going. Please. Let me do this. All of you consider me like family now, so I have to respond in kind. I don’t want to see all of you suffering and dying when I could have prevented it. Just like when my friends were hurt by a dragon I don’t feel afraid anymore. Just like I managed to tame it by being firm your plight has awakened the little bit of courage inside of me.

“I want to do this, no matter the cost. It’s my own choice, so you can’t blame yourself.”

The Concord Tree considered her for a short while, clearly reluctant. After about thirty seconds it finally said, “Very well.”

Wrapping her up in vines once more it let the moonlight shine upon her again. Immediately Fluttershy felt energy flowing into her at a rapid rate.

She gritted her teeth, determined to bear it until the end, no matter what it cost her.

“It’s for my friends!” she said loudly in her mind. “For my friends! And for my family!”

Billions of pinpricks went through her body, like tiny bees constantly stinging her. Her body began shaking again. “I… can… take… this!”

She thought of her friends, her animals, and all the trees around her who considered her like family. A lot was at stake here, and she didn’t want to let anyone down, but after just a few minutes the feeling started to become overwhelming again, no matter how much she told herself she could do it and all her drive to help out those she loved.

A thought came to Fluttershy through her discomfort. “The Concord Tree said the truest facet of nature is a connection and harmony with all things. This feeling is because I’m still part pony and my nature magic is still new. Maybe, instead of fighting this feeling, I need to work on being one with nature more.” It was her only hope. She could feel the Concord Tree on the brink of halting the process again.

She put her trust in the tree that it would care for her body and simply surrendered to her predicament. Thinking of how the tree took her spirit out of her body before she extended her mind outward, touching upon all the trees she could. She worked on feeling all the animals and plants and other living things around her, leaving herself behind, melding her consciousness with anything else but herself.

She became a distant memory from herself, simply joining in on the chorus of the voices of the forest. The sensations from her body felt muted, sounds melted away, and she stopped being Fluttershy for the time being. She was the forest, and the forest was her. All of them were one and the same. She could feel herself now as if from a great distance, her own bodily sensations just a tiny part of everything. Her discomfort, overpowering to her when she was alone, was miniscule in the grand scheme of the whole forest. She was just a single ant trying to get the attention of a giant, as her feelings were just one tiny little spot in the whole of the forest.  She felt a complete lack of fear, even though she had no idea if she’d be able to return to her body when it was all over.

The power of nature was truly a magnificent thing. That she got to touch just a tiny part of its greatness was a marvel and a wonder. So lost was she in her musings that she barely noticed when the moonlight began to dissipate and dispersed back over the land.

She heard the voice of the Concord Tree, like the gentlest touch of a mother. “Fluttershy, it’s time to return.”

She didn’t want to go. She liked the feeling of connecting with everything on such an intimate level. There were no barriers. Nothing to stop them from being one with one another. One together, for all eternity. One together, forever. Being a part of it all. Who was she? Was she the Concord Tree? A bush? A shrub? A tree? A pony? She was all of them and none of them at once, and she was fine with that.

“Fluttershy!” it said again, but much shaper this time. “If you don’t return to your body soon your essence may be lost into the heart of the forest.

Didn’t you say the reason you were reluctant to go through the transformation and wished to have freedom was so you didn’t have to leave your friends and animals you loved? You need to return to your body NOW before it’s too late!!”

Fluttershy ignored the voice, so enamored with the experience that she didn’t want to listen. Slowly, the words wormed their way into her consciousness, and she realized how distant she felt from her own body. It almost looked like a stranger’s body from where she was. The idea of a single, unique mind with its own thoughts and ideas seemed abnormal. The realization that it was happening to her scared her. As her friends flashed through her mind she gathered up her strength, trying to hold onto herself but finding it difficult. “Help me!” Fluttershy cried out to the Concord Tree.

The tree summoned up its considerable power, grabbing the pieces of her spirit scattered throughout the heart of the forest, directing them back towards her body.

As the last bit of her essence returned to her body she began gasping, panting for breath, tremors going through her body. She put a hoof to her head, terror going through her as she realized how close she had come to losing herself completely.

“You’ve been through a lot tonight, daughter of nature,” said the Concord Tree. “I thank you deeply for preserving my life. You are my child for life, and I shall always look out for you. You have a piece of me inside you now, so just direct a root into the earth if you need my assistance.”

Fluttershy’s body felt weak. She sat down and hugged herself, glad to still be Fluttershy and not just another part of the forest.

The tree spoke softly, “Nature magic can be quite powerful, alluring to the unprepared mind. You attempted to use your powers without adequate adaptation. While it allowed you to endure the process of the energy transference it almost cost you everything. And, yet, even had you known that you would have done it regardless. As I was willing to sacrifice myself for you so too were you willing to sacrifice all for us. Do not think I shall forget your noble deed. For now, though, it is time for you to rest. You’ve been through a terrible ordeal, both mentally and physically. I hope when the morning comes you can look upon this night with favor.”

A vine wrapped itself upon her, and Fluttershy felt her energy draining. She was to weak to fight and so gave in, a tired, weak smile on her face.

“Rest now, my daughter.” Flowers blew their intoxicating scent into the air, pollen surrounding the hill.

Fluttershy couldn’t keep her eyes open. Her thought slowed, and she collapsed onto her side. A soft "Goodnight" escaped her lips as the vine let her down gently on the ground. The others acted as a makeshift blanket for the sleeping pony.

“Good night, Fluttershy. Goodnight, my daughter, my little forest princess.”