Chapter 1: A new beginning
Fluttershy sighed painfully and irrepressibly as she looked out of her window to see Rainbow Dash soaring effortlessly through the air. She struggled to repress a fresh flow of tears that were already beginning to blur her vision as she watched the cyan colored pony perform a variety of stunts that would bring just about any Pegasuses in at least Ponyville if not the world, to tears of devastated shame and envy.
It was truly a wonder to behold as Rainbow Dash swooped through the air, leaving an eye-catching and beautiful Rainbow colored trail behind him as he soared, thanks to the help of his Rainbow colored mane. He moved with grace envied matched only by the most agile of acrobats, and it was if he were dancing through the air rather than flying through it. He zipped through the breeze with ruthless efficiency and the speed at which he managed to reach with his flight, was breathtaking to say the least.
The yellow Pegasus known as Fluttershy could stand to watch no longer as the tears she had held back suddenly rained bitterly down her cheeks.
Envy it seemed, had consumed poor Fluttershy and as she turned away from the window to begin her chores for the day she miserably whispered to herself "I'm a failure. An absolute failure".
As Fluttershy stepped down the stairs slowly, she felt a twisted amalgamation of emotions raging inside her like a horrible storm. She felt admiration for her cyan colored, rainbow maned friend for possessing such athletic ability and top-notch skill at soaring the skies. It was hard to believe any pony Fluttershy could ever hope to meet could perform such breathtaking feats in the air and harder still to believe that such a prodigy lived only yards away from Fluttershy and how she saw him and spoke to him almost daily.
The sheer admiration Fluttershy felt for the prodigy she had just seen soar past her cottage, was only matched by the sheer amount of sorrow and self hatred that was only growing by the minute. Fluttershy closed her eyes and clutched her head as if it would burst as she remembered horrible memories from her sad childhood of being bullied, memories she hoped never to even mention again.
"Fluttershy, Fluttershy, Fluttershy can hardly fly" mocked the bullies in her childhood memory. "No, No. Please stop!!!" begged Fluttershy blatantly unaware that no one was talking to her. "Fluttershy can hardly fly" crowed the bully in her imagination. Though it was but a traumatizing memory of a traumatizing event that had long since happened, Fluttershy's nightmares of late had been choked with the heart-wrenching insults the bullies in her childhood had thrown at her and she swore that this was not the first time she heard their terrible voices in her head even when she was wide awake.
"Fluttershy can fly!!!" protested Fluttershy desperately, knowing full well that she was lying to herself. Though it was true she too had wings just like her hero Rainbow Dash, it was also true that she hardly ever used them, if ever she did. She spent her days bound to the earth, while Rainbow Dash soared the skies like a lark.
She mostly disregarded her wings and she swore that by now they had atrophied from being used so little, indeed they did feel quite stiff from being folded away for so long.
It took several deep breaths for Fluttershy to finally mentally recover from the mental breakdown she had just suffered, and to calm down enough to begin to make herself breakfast. But small indeed was her appetite as she reflected just how poorly she had performed the last time she flew.
It was when she helped to lift that tornado up to cloudsdale, and even with serious training and a serious attempt at improving herself , she managed only a measly wing power of 5.0. And though she was praised for her effort and the determination she exhibited, she simply could not shake the feeling that she was still a failure and was not worthy of the praise she was given.
The other Pegasuses's that took part all had wing powers of at least 8.5, and the one pony who had the wing power that low was 3 years Fluttershy's junior. The stronger Pegasuses had wing powers of 10.0, many had even higher scores than that. The prodigy known as Rainbow Dash had a stupendous score of no less than 16.5, a score no pony in ponyville had ever come near to beating.
When Rainbow Dash flew, the breeze he left behind was powerful enough to strip trees of their leaves in just seconds. When he performed his graceful stunts in the air, it was nigh impossible to keep track. His movements so rapid that seeing them for so long was enough to give just about any spectator a splitting headache. When Rainbow Dash flew, he was like a bullet.
He really was everything the other pegasi in ponyville wished they could be, and deep down Fluttershy shared that dream. People seemed to respect him for what he could do and skills while they seemed to belittle Fluttershy for what she could not do. She sighed once more as she finished eating and left her house with a growing feeling of self hatred
It was not a pleasant day for poor Flutters. Suffice it to say, she had a run in with the bullies who somehow still recognized her and was once again subjected to a torrent of abuse and humiliation. They laughed wickedly as they taunted her once more, and she could do nothing but cover her ears and do her best not to cry.
When the bullies finally got bored of tormenting her and left her be, what little remained of her confidence had been shattered and Fluttershy's doubt in herself had only been amplified tenfold.
She sighed once more as she walked into town to get supplies, only to find a crowd gathered around a group of Wonderbolt ponies who were busy signing autographs and handing out brochures.
The wonderbolts. The greatest fliers in all of Ponyville according to Rainbow Dash. Only the best fliers whose skills surpassed all others, had any hope of joining their ranks.
Wherever they went, they had all the fame and attention anypony could ever desire. They were hailed as prodigies, as great celebrities, as the cream of the crop so as to speak.
Even Rainbow Dash whose skills were uncontested in all of Ponyville, could not even begin to hope for a chance to join their ranks despite the fact he had spent his whole life honing his already impressive abilities too.
Though Fluttershy never said it to anyone's face in fear of being insulted and laughed at, she had craved a position in the wonderbolts for at least as long as her friend Rainbow Dash, and perhaps even longer. She wanted it badly, very badly but had long since given up her dream knowing that if Rainbow Dash the greatest flier in her eyes could not be admitted as a member of the prestigious and renowned organization, she had even less hope.
She was an insult to the pegasi of Ponyville on account of the sub par flying skills she could never hope to improve.
"Would you like a magazine, ma'm " came a voice which brought Fluttershy back to her senses. She looked up to see a Wonderbolt holding a magazine out to her.
"Er, Er... no thanks" she quickly replied nervously. "Well if you change your mind" he sighed as he dropped it on the ground "you're welcome to it". He quickly rushed back to the eager crowd of fans who were eager for his attention.
Fluttershy glanced cautiously to check that she was not being watched, before grabbing the magazine eagerly and dashing home with it as quickly as her legs would carry her. She took care that the path home she took was, despite the busy hour, a desolate no pony's land. She did not want in the slightest to draw attention to herself.
After rushing home she almost tore the magazine apart as she hurried to open it and spent the next hour eagerly perusing it after making sure the curtains were drawn.
Tears of euphoria and joy welled in her eyes as she flipped from page to page, memorizing each word, sentence and paragraph word by word.
But the one article that caught her eye was the one that changed her perspective completely and one that she would never forget as long as she lived.
"There are many fliers" it said "most fliers are terrible". Fluttershy felt a pang of shame as she read that sentence but her frown soon became a look of astonishment as she read the next sentence. "Some are good, yet some are great.". "Those who are great" read Fluttershy "join the Wonderbolts."
Fluttershy turned the page over to find an advert detailing job offers for the Wonderbolts. She almost shed tears of joy as she read about how they had been having a shortage of members and how they were desperate for members. Her grin almost faded however as she read that despite the shortage of staff, they were still willing only to accept the best fliers. "We must unfortunately ensure that our team receives only the best fliers possible. The difficult missions we are expected to participate in on a day to day basis are incredibly excruciating and will require the most out of any pony. This is no job for any inexperienced second-rate wannabe. Do know however, that should you qualify as a member by demonstrating great ability worthy of becoming one of us experts, that you will be well compensated. Very well compensated".
Fluttershy took it all in, and as she sat there reflecting over what she had just read, a desire she had long abandoned began to burn in her heart fiercer than ever. A passion that Fluttershy pretended that she had long moved on from, returned.
A thought came into her head, and it was not one Fluttershy could hope to banish. She knew what she had to do, and she knew she could not spare a second.
"If I turn pro and became a wonderbolt" she muttered to herself as she clenched her hooves together tightly in eager hope, "maybe, just maybe. I can turn my life around."
She walked in front of her mirror and for the first time in a long time, she took a good long and hard look at herself. "Maybe those awful bullies will finally leave me alone. Maybe the other ponies will stop calling me "Failureshy" all the time. Maybe they'll finally take me seriously and start treating me better".
Fluttershy thought of fame, of glory, of soaring the skies as a star. But most of all she thought of how nice it would be to fly alongside Rainbow Dash as fellow fliers, rather than being stuck to the ground while she too had wings just like Rainbow Dash. Fluttershy was meant for the sky, and now was her time to prove it.
Now was time to show those bullies that Fluttershy could fly. Now was time to prove not just to everyone else but to herself also, that she too had potential.
Fluttershy had spent long enough doubting herself too much to even make an effort. She didn't know if she could even begin to improve in the slightest, but she knew that she only had herself to blame if she never tried. Every accomplishment started with the decision to try and if she didn't try, she had no chance.
With that thought in mind, she gave a tearful farewell to her animal friends and promised she would be back soon, before sprinting towards the fitness center had just opened in town. She had to start training right away if she was ever going to make her life-long dream a reality.
As Fluttershy walked through the doors of the newly established edifice and facility, she had no idea how long she would spend there.
She regretted all the time she would miss with her friends, she knew she had but taken the first step on a long and hard journey.
The days ahead for Fluttershy would be tough, and there would be many of them too. Rome wasn't built in a day and neither was a professional athlete whose skills inspired the world. But Fluttershy was determined, more than determined in fact.
As Fluttershy stood in the queue of ponies waiting to be seen, she remembered the last sentence in the magazine she had read that day. It was but a sentence like any other, but something about the way it was written made Fluttershy see it as an important message and a vital life lesson. Something about those words contained great wisdom and inspiration, and they were words Fluttershy would likely never forget.
"But though some are good, and some are great... Only one can be the world's best flier" muttered Fluttershy silently to herself as she took several deep breaths and tried to steady her nerves in preparation of the sheer fatigue and agonizing pain she would experience in the days ahead.