Green Is Your Color

Fluttershy hummed a sweet tune as she fed the animals inside her cottage, but stopped when she heard a knock on her door. After staying frozen for several moments, she crept up to the door and opened it a tiny crack. “Ooh! Good morning, Rarity!” she greeted cheerfully, opening the door fully with a wide smile.

“Fluttershy, are you alright? Nopony has seen you for days,” Rarity said.

“Oh… I’m fine,” Fluttershy mumbled, scuffing a hoof against the floor.

“Are you sure? You’re not sick, are you?”

“No…”

“Is there an animal who’s sick? Shall I make them a scarf?”

“No, no creature is terribly sick at the moment.” Fluttershy smiled. “I’m just spending some extra time with the animals. They missed me while I was busy modeling.”

“I see,” Rarity chuckled with a sheepish smile. “I guess I was getting worked up over nothing, then. It’s just that nopony’s seen you at the market for days. Do you have enough to eat?”

“Well… I guess I’m starting to run out of carrots,” Fluttershy whispered.

Rarity’s face lit up. “Is that so? We simply cannot let that happen.” She gestured towards town, raising a hoof dramatically. “To the carrot stand!”

“Um…”

“What’s the matter, darling?”

Fluttershy looked into Rarity’s sapphire eyes and sighed. “I don’t really want to go into town,” she admitted. “I’m afraid of getting mobbed by fans.”

“Oh…” Rarity hummed. She put on a determined look, lifting Fluttershy’s head up with a gentle hoof beneath her chin. “It won’t be so bad, dear, I promise. Photo Finish and all the reporters are long gone from Ponyville. And if there are any lingering ruffians, I’ll handle them!”

“You, um, you don’t have to do that,” Fluttershy whispered.

Rarity looked into Fluttershy’s worried eyes. “Nonsense. I got you into this mess, so I will see it through with you for as long as you need,” she declared.

Fluttershy stared back, then slowly smiled and nodded. “Alright. I’ll go get my saddlebags.”

“And I simply must tell you about my latest spark of inspiration,” Rarity chatted as the two of them trotted towards the market. “In the paper, I saw an article about these four stallions who perform together at a manedressers. The article said they had the most exquisite singing voices, although I haven’t heard them yet. But what I do know is they were absolutely charming,” Rarity said with a sigh, gazing across the sky with a hoof to her forehead and a goofy smile. Fluttershy sported a genuine smile but couldn't help but give a good-natured roll of her eyes.

“The only problem was, their suits were rather… last season. So I came up with the perfect design! It’s going to be mainly teal with some yellow and a bow tie. If it turns out well I might try to reach out to them.”

“That sounds lovely,” said Fluttershy. “I’m sure they’ll love it.”

“It’s Fluttershy!” somepony called.

Fluttershy immediately tensed up and tried to hide behind Rarity. Peeking over Rarity’s back, she saw a light beige mare with a red mane in front of a flower stand grinning at her. “H-Hello Rose,” Fluttershy mumbled.

“Hi! I just wanted to thank you for all the ponies you brought to Ponyville this past month,” Rose said. “You really helped our business flourish.”

“Oh, um… you’re welcome,” said Fluttershy, rubbing her leg with a hoof.

“Want a flower? Free of charge,” Rose offered, gesturing towards the stand with a leg.

“Go on,” Rarity encouraged with a grin, giving Fluttershy a little nudge.

Fluttershy looked at the wide selection of flowers at the stand. She sometimes wore flowers in her mane, but usually the birds would pick for her. “Which one should I get, Rarity?” she asked.

“Hmm,” Rarity thought, looking at her friend. A light pink flower would go well with Fluttershy’s soft demeanor, but her wonderful mane already had it covered. The next best color to go with the pink was a light blue. It would also go perfectly with the green dress she had been brainstorming for Fluttershy. “I have the perfect one,” Rarity announced, picking up a light blue flower with her magic.

Fluttershy turned her head so that her mane faced Rarity and closed her eyes. She smiled as she felt the stem weave through her mane. When she opened them again, Rose held up a mirror for her to look. “It’s perfect,” she giggled. “Thank you.”

They trotted over to the carrot stand, where Carrot Top was also happy to see Fluttershy and thanked her for the carrot juice ad. “See, darling? No more rabid fans screaming to get in your face. It’s just our Ponyville friends who are so happy to see you again,” said Rarity.

“I guess you’re right,” Fluttershy admitted with a sheepish smile.

“Fluttershy! How lovely to see you,” called a gray mare with glasses and a scroll for a cutie mark.

“Hello, Mayor Mare,” Fluttershy greeted.

“I’m so glad you brought so much attention to Ponyville. All our local businesses have been booming! You really put Ponyville on the map! So, when is your next fashion show?”

“Um, n-next fashion show?”

“Next fashion show!” the mayor repeated enthusiastically, with dreamy eyes. “I can’t wait to see all those ponies again coming from all over Equestria to see what our town has to offer. So when is it going to be? Next month? Next week? Tomorrow?”

“I-if you r-really want one…” Fluttershy gulped. “I guess it can be t-tomorrow… if that’s okay with you-”

“Mayor Mare,” Rarity interjected, “Fluttershy is done being a model.”

“What?!” the mayor gasped. “But you were so incredible! So popular! Everypony in town loved what you were doing!”

“Fluttershy never enjoyed being a model,” Rarity stated firmly. “It was nothing but an unpleasant experience for her.”

“But you have to!” the mayor whined. “Ponyville has never had an Equestria-wide celebrity before! We were doing so well with all the tourists you brought in!”

“Oh, if you really want-” Fluttershy barely whispered, but Rarity put her hoof around Fluttershy’s shoulders.

“I am sorry, Mayor, but I cannot allow you to put my dear friend through such a horrid ordeal again,” Rarity insisted. “Besides, trends come and go; nopony knows that more than me. If you want to bring ponies to Ponyville, you should start a new trend! Think of some other event to bring ponies here.”

“Oh, alright,” the mayor conceded. “I’ll come up with something else.”

“Be bold!” Rarity declared, striking a pose. “Now that Ponyville is on the map, ponies are certain to give it a try if your idea is bold enough.”

“Rarity,” Fluttershy whispered once the mayor was out of earshot. “I shouldn’t be saying no to the mayor. She’s my boss.”

“She’s not your boss, darling. Nopony can boss you around,” Rarity asserted.

“But she’s the one who hired me to take care of the animals so that we don’t get baby bunny stampedes and other animal-related disasters, remember?” Fluttershy said.

“Of course I remember. I suggested it,” Rarity said proudly. “But she is only your boss for matters related to protecting the town from critters. She can’t order you around for other things.”

“But, but what if she gets so upset with me for quitting modeling that she stops paying me for watching over the animals?” Fluttershy asked, curling in on herself.

“I don’t think that’s legal, dear. And even if it is, I don’t think you’ll have any trouble with bits after all the modeling advertisements you did,” Rarity winked. “Don’t you worry. You don’t have to model anymore.”

Fluttershy looked into Rarity’s sincere eyes and relaxed. “Thank you,” she said, giving her friend a nuzzle. Rarity giggled and returned it.

The next day, the mayor approached Fluttershy again. “Don’t worry, I’m not thinking about fashion shows,” she promised. “I came up with a whole slurry of new events to bring ponies to Ponyville. We have the turkey call coming up, and I thought, why not have a pet drive? We can showcase all sorts of animals who are looking for owners and ponies can come from all over to adopt them.”

“That sounds like a wonderful idea!” Fluttershy exclaimed. “I have so many wonderful creatures at my house who would love to be somepony’s special pet.”

Rarity listened to a recording of the four stallions from the manedressers while she finished putting together her first teal suit that she planned to sell to the group. “Oh, but what if they’re not interested?” she muttered to herself, circling the ponyquin. “It would be a terrible waste… wait a moment. IDEA!”

She trotted over to the mayor’s office at the town hall. “Mayor Mare, are you open to event suggestions to bring ponies to Ponyville?”

“Why, of course, Rarity! Tell me, what have you got for us?”

“Only the most fabulous idea! I want to start a music group! It’ll be four ponies with different vocal ranges blended together to make it truly unique. And we’ll be wearing dazzling matching suits! I have one design already made. I’ll call it… the Ponytones Quartet!”

“I love it,” the mayor approved. “When do you want to perform?”

“Oh, ehem, I don’t quite have a whole group together yet,” Rarity chuckled sheepishly. “Do you have a good time and place in mind?”

The mayor lit up. “The turkey call is scheduled next Saturday, and I’m planning Fluttershy’s pet drive the following evening in hopes of ponies staying in town overnight. How about we have a concert before the pet drive to further incentivize the crowd to stay?”

“Wonderful!” Rarity beamed. “Wait. Does that mean I have less than a week to prepare? Oh dear.”

“Is that too soon? We can always plan another time,” the mayor offered.

“No, no, it won’t be an issue at all,” Rarity chuckled. “Success waits for nopony! You can count on me to be ready to go!” she declared.

With no time to spare, Rarity found Fluttershy and talked about her idea for the Ponytones. “I’ll be able to show off my latest creation, and perform in front of all kinds of ponies!” Rarity squealed.

“It’s going to be wonderful,” Fluttershy smiled.

“So, in addition to finishing the outfits and finding ponies to sing with me, I also need a song to perform. You’ve made songs for your birds to sing before. Could you write one for me?”

“Oh my. I’ve never made a song with lyrics or different instruments before,” Fluttershy said. “My bird songs are just melodies and harmonies.”

“Not to worry. The style of music I have in mind is all about melodies and harmonies! And you don’t have to write the song alone. I just know that you can certainly make a wonderful first draft.”

“Alright, I’ll give it a try,” Fluttershy agreed with a smile. “Oh Rarity, you’re going to shine across Equestria for sure this time.”

Rarity worked tirelessly on the other Ponytones outfits and found two other ponies to wear them. The first was Toe Tapper, a blue stallion who owned a music store; he also offered to help write the song. The other was Torch Song, a theater student from Fillydelphia who was on break for the summer. She had travelled to Ponyville to see Fluttershy’s fashion shows and had decided to stick around town until school resumed in the fall. Fluttershy presented to them a first draft of a wonderful song which she called “Music in the Treetops.” The group finalized the lyrics together; since they were expecting a more urban audience from out of town, they put less emphasis on nature and renamed the song to “Find the Music in You.” Tender Taps fleshed out the draft into a full musical arrangement complete with a recorded background beat. Now Rarity just needed to find a pony for the base tone.

“Oooooh!” Pinkie Pie awed as Rarity struck a pose in her brand new Ponytones outfit. Rarity’s record player played an upbeat four-tone acapella from the group she drew inspiration from.

“Isn’t it magnifique?” Rarity proclaimed, batting her eyelashes. “Now, I’ve already found two other wonderful ponies to join me on stage, but I still need somepony for the bass harmony. You know every pony in Ponyville, don’t you, dear? Can you point me to somepony with a deep voice?”

“Hmm,” Pinkie trotted up to the recorder, her ears twitching. After sticking her head in and out of the megaphone, she decided, “The only pony in Ponyville with that kind of voice is Big Mac!”

“Big Mac, you say?” Rarity smiled. “He’ll be perfect!”

“Yeah! It’ll be so amazing! You’ll be there on stage, basking in the hooflights! The center of attention! A shining star!”

“Now Pinkie Pie, I mustn’t get too overconfident,” said Rarity. “What if everypony will be looking at me thinking they could be way better than me? And then, when I choke, they’ll turn on me!” Rarity exclaimed, flopping onto her nearby chaise lounge. “They’ll become a seething, angry mob, and I’ll be horribly humiliated, never able to show my face in Ponyville ever again!” Rarity finished with a hoof to her forehead.

“Pft! Hahaha! That won’t happen at all, silly!” Pinkie Pie giggled.

Rarity grinned. “I suppose that would be a tad unlikely.”

Pinkie woke up to the feeling of her ears flopping against her pillow. Just as she opened her eyes, her whole body shuddered, sending her blanket into the air. Then both her ears flopped again. “Whoa, I’ve never had that combo before!” Pinkie said aloud, bolting up. “Whatever it means must be a doozy!” Her ears flopped, she got another full-body shudder which made her fall off her bed, and her ears flopped again. “At Fluttershy’s cottage!” she exclaimed.

Pinkie rushed out of Sugarcube Corner and straight into the library. “Twilight! Spike!” she hollered.

“Pinkie…?” Twilight groaned, covering an ear with a hoof and refusing to leave her comfy covers. “The library doesn’t open until-”

“I woke up this morning because my ears were flopping, then there was a full-body shudder, followed by my ears flopping again! I’ve never had that combo before! There’s going to be a doozy at Fluttershy’s cottage! Come quick!”

Twilight’s eyes snapped to attention. “A doozy? I’m on my way!”

Spike stirred awake just in time to see the end of Twilight’s tail disappearing out the bedroom door. “Twilight?” He shrugged and pulled his blanket over his face. “It’s too early…”

Pinkie Pie abruptly woke Rarity from her beauty sleep next, then bounced her way over to Sweet Apple Acres. Along the way, she spotted Rainbow Dash doing tricks in the sky, pulled out a megaphone from her mane, and hollered the same speech she gave Twilight and Rarity. With three disheveled friends in tow, Pinkie Pie quickly found Applejack in the field and dragged her along towards Fluttershy’s cottage.

“I’m mighty surprised you’re up bright and early, sugarcube,” Applejack chuckled at Rainbow Dash.

“Hey, it’s not every week that the Best Young Fliers’ Competition is coming up,” said Rainbow Dash. “I’m practicing my moves so I can show the Wonderbolts my stuff. I mean, I know I’m awesome and all, but-”

“Shh,” Twilight hushed, abruptly closing Rainbow’s mouth with her magic. She pointed her head towards Fluttershy’s cottage. “Look!”

“There’s music in the treetops, and there’s music in the vale, and all around the music fills the sky~ There’s music by the river, and there’s music in the grass, and the music makes your heart soar in reply!”

The five ponies watched in awe as Fluttershy belted out the most amazing melody ever while flying around with her animal friends. “Woooooow!” Pinkie Pie cheered at the end.

Fluttershy’s eyes widened, she froze up, then slowly retreated onto her rump, holding her forehooves close to her face. “Oh… you, um, you didn’t hear me, um-”

“Singing in the most beautiful voice ever?!” Pinkie screamed.

Rainbow swooped right up to Fluttershy with a grin. “Yeah we did!”

Fluttershy shuddered, trying to hide behind her mane from her friends’ stares.

“Wow, I’ve never heard you sing a solo like that before!” Twilight said.

“It was like a little slice of heaven,” said Applejack.

“With ice cream on top!” Pinkie Pie added.

Rarity smiled. “Fluttershy, are you sure you don’t want to share that stunning voice of yours at the concert?”

“Yeah! It’ll be so amazing!” Pinkie Pie interjected. “You’ll be there on stage, basking in the hooflights! The center of attention! A shining star! With everypony staring at you, judging you, jealously noting how they could be way better than you! Why wasn’t it them? Why wasn’t it them?! And then, when you choke, they’ll turn on you, becoming a seething, angry mob, and you’ll be horribly humiliated, never able to show your face in Ponyville again!”

“Pinkie Pie!” Rarity scolded. “Don’t be ridiculous!”

“Aw, but it was your joke-” Pinkie started, only to find Rarity’s hoof in her mouth.

“Now Fluttershy,” Rarity said calmly, holding out her other hoof to help the scared pegasus up. “We all thought your singing voice was incredible.” Everypony else voiced their agreement. “So why don’t you join me for the performance?”

“Um, well, I…” Fluttershy stammered, scrambling for an excuse. “Then we would have to rearrange all the music.”

“Hmm, that is a problem… but not to worry! We can share my part!” Rarity suggested. “Yes! Now come, Fluttershy, you will join the group, making the Ponytones Quartet the Ponytones Quintet!”

Fluttershy shuddered, images of flashing lights and judging eyes streaming through her mind’s eye. “No!” Fluttershy asserted. “I do not want to perform.”

“Why not, Fluttershy?” Twilight asked.

“Well, you see…” Fluttershy glanced towards Rarity, hoping she would understand, but Rarity only looked disappointed. “I have…” she turned the other way to hide. “Um, I have-”

“Spit it out!” Rainbow encouraged, putting a hoof on Fluttershy’s shoulder.

“I have stage fright,” Fluttershy whimpered.

Pinkie Pie gasped loudly, hiding behind a bush. “Is it contagious?!”

“Stage fright isn’t a disease, Pinkie,” Twilight assured. “It just means that Fluttershy is scared to perform in front of everypony. And I think I understand. All those fashion shows were really stressful. Is that it, Fluttershy?”

Not exactly, but that was part of it, so Fluttershy nodded. “I’m very thankful the Ponytones are singing at the pet drive, and I’m really looking forward to the performance, but I’ll be watching safely from the audience.”

Rarity sighed. She was sort of glad Fluttershy was being upfront, but still disappointed in the missed opportunity. “Well… I think it’s a terrible waste of an exquisite talent, but I understand that you’re not comfortable. I promise I won’t make you do anything you don’t want to.”

Fluttershy smiled a big smile of relief. “Thank you.”

Pinkie Pie peered out of the bush, her thoughts working double time. She had to cover her mouth with her hooves to keep them from spilling out. Fluttershy has the best singing voice ever! But she has stage fright! But she loves singing! But she’s afraid of other ponies! Buuuuuut she had the biggest, greatest, most amazing smile while she sang, and smiles don’t lie! I have to get her on stage so she can live her true dreams!

“Oh! Angel’s right,” said Fluttershy, responding to her faithful pet bunny’s hops. “We’d better get going. There’s a lot of work to do before tomorrow’s event.” The others followed Fluttershy to the park, with Pinkie Pie bouncing along with a determined and mischievous smile trained on Fluttershy.

“Hi Torch Song!” Pinkie Pie chirped.

“Hi Pinkie Pie,” Torch Song smiled.

“So you’re performing with the Ponytones tomorrow night, right? Right?” Pinkie asked. Torch Song nodded. “Well… what if I told you a racoon broke into your house and you had to hop on a train to Fillidelphia right away to catch it before it ate all of your food? Would somepony have to take your place in the show?”

“Uh, what? That didn’t happen, did it?” Torch Song asked.

“Nope! But hypothetically…” Pinkie Pie urged, rolling a hoof.

Torch Song laughed lightly; she was still getting used to Pinkie Pie’s antics. “I guess if I had to leave, we would have to find a replacement quickly,” she said.

“And that pony is?” Pinkie prompted.

“Not sure,” Torch Song shrugged. “Rarity didn’t talk about backups.” She grinned at the hyperactive pink party pony. “Are you saying you want to be our backup, Pinkie?”

“Who, me? Nuh uh,” Pinkie said.

“Oh.”

“What about Fluttershy?” Pinkie blurted out. “After all, she has an amazing singing voice.”

“She does, doesn’t she? Not to mention she helped write the song we’ll be singing,” Torch Song added.

“Ooh! Yeah! Exactly!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed, adding this new information to her “Information to get Fluttershy on stage and be a shining star” vault.

“But Fluttershy is pretty shy about singing in front of others,” Torch Song stated. “I couldn’t make her fill in for me. Are you sure you don’t want to be a backup? I know you’ve got the voice for it after that ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ song you sang for me!”

“No thanks!” Pinkie said.

“Aw, okay. Well, I’m sure there are plenty of other mares who could fill in for me,” said Torch Song.

Pinkie went through her mental records and came up with more vocal range matches than she could count. “Yeah, you’re right,” she sighed. “Oh well. Catch you later alligator!” she said, bouncing off.

Pinkie Pie hopped along aimlessly, coming up with dozens of plans to get Fluttershy to sing on stage and crossing them out. Each one she came up with seemed more unlikely than the previous one. She was stopped mid-bounce by a hoof.

“I thought I should give you a poke, for before you lies a bed of poison joke.”

Pinkie opened her eyes and took in her spooky surroundings and the zebra at her side. “Ooh! Thank you for stopping me, Zecora! I definitely don’t want to hop into those silly plants again! Can you imagine not being able to talk anymore? Can you? Can you? And I definitely wouldn’t want to not be able to use my horn if I had one, or become a teensy weensy super duper little pony, or have hair for fur, or crash into everything, or get a super duper duper deep voice that’s almost as deep as the deepest and most unique voice in all of Ponyville-” Pinkie suddenly gasped a very loud gasp that made her float into the air, and she immediately zipped out of the Everfree Forest.

“Pinkie, why do you have a turkey with you?” Twilight asked.

“This is Trevor!” Pinkie introduced. “During our talk yesterday, he said he would love to see somepony singing, so I brought him with me!”

A million questions flooded Twilight’s head, but she decided to let most of them go. Instead, she looked around the crowd of ponies assembled for Rarity’s concert. “Where’s Fluttershy?” Twilight voiced.

“Probably hiding,” Applejack remarked. “You know how much that pony hates the spotlight.”

Pinkie Pie simply grinned at the stage, waiting for the big reveal.

Except it didn’t happen. Big Mac was on stage. “Oh no, did Zecora actually have a remedy for Big Mac’s voice instead of giving Fluttershy the poison joke?” Pinkie gobbled to Trevor. “Or did we not talk for long enough? I can talk forever and ever, but I thought for sure Big Mac couldn’t sing after all that! Now I have to come up with another plan!”

“Cut it out, Pinkie,” Applejack huffed, nudging the pink pony. “Big Mac’s lookin’ at us. You already beat him at the turkey call fair and square. Ya don’t have to go rubbin’ it in during his performance.” She pointed up at the stage. “Look at how nervous he looks up there!”

Rarity played the opening note on her harmonica, and Big Mac took a deep breath and opened his mouth.

“Bum, Bum, bum-ba-da, ba-da! Bum, bum, bum-ba-da, ah!”

Pinkie perked up, a very wide grin spreading across her whole face. The concert was a smashing success with the Ponytones garnering a huge applause. Pinkie spotted Fluttershy walk out from behind the stage and bounced over. “Fluttershy, you were on the wrong side of the curtain! You totally missed the show!” she exclaimed with a wide grin.

Fluttershy stood there frozen, her mouth shut and eyes wide peering up at Pinkie Pie.

“Uh, just like a true professional, Fluttershy was backstage making sure everything ran smoothly!” Rarity interjected.

Pinkie knew that smile that Rarity wore. It was a cover-up smile, the kind you put on when you weren’t telling the full truth. Rarity was good at that smile, better than most ponies, and especially Applejack. But Pinkie knew smiles. And seeing that smile on Rarity made Pinkie Pie smile.

Trevor pecked Pinkie on the leg. “Did you like the show?” Pinkie gobbled. “I really liked it, but it’s not fair how Fluttershy didn’t get any applause for her wonderful singing! I’m glad she enjoyed performing, though! The plan worked half-way, now I just need to come up with some more steps for Fluttershy to shine!”

Applejack stared at Pinkie Pie bemusedly. “Why, if I didn’t know any better, I’d think that turkey could really understand you.”

“There’s music in the treetops, and there’s music in the vale, and all around the music fills the sky!” Fluttershy belted out in her temporarily deep voice as she fed the animals the next morning. The sun was shining, the air was fresh, and she could see Rainbow Dash flying out in the distance. “Rainbow’s up early,” she remarked to herself, her ear twitching; it was still so strange to hear her altered voice. Upon hearing her voice and realizing that Rainbow was flying towards her, she gasped and ducked into the nearest bush.

Fluttershy watched and tried to control her shivering as Rainbow hovered over her cottage and looked around before landing at the cottage door and knocking. After a minute, she knocked again. And again. “Fluttershy? Are you home?” she hollered. Eventually, an angry Angel bunny opened the door.

“Hey pal,” said Rainbow. “I’m looking for Fluttershy.” Angel continued to stare up at the mare. “I have this new routine I’m practicing and I want her help,” Rainbow continued. She groaned at the bunny. “Just let her know to come find me, will ya?” Then she zipped off.

Fluttershy double and triple checked that Rainbow was gone before crawling out of the bush. She wasn't safe here. She needed a place to hide until the cute-ceañera this afternoon.

Rarity heard the jingle of the front door and trotted out of her workroom. “Welcome to Carousel Boutique! Oh, Fluttershy!” Then she gasped. “Whatever happened to your mane?” She immediately fetched a brush with her magic and started removing twigs.

Fluttershy kicked the door closed with her back leg and looked every which way around the shop before speaking up. “Rainbow Dash came by my cottage looking for me but I hid in a bush. Can I hide here until the show?” she said in a deep whisper.

“Hiding from Rainbow Dash? Whatever for?” asked Rarity.

Fluttershy looked at the ground, her mane reaching the floor as Rarity brushed it. “I can’t let anypony hear my voice, otherwise they’ll know I sang at the concert last night.”

Rarity gave a proud look. “And what makes that a problem, darling?”

“I just don’t want anypony to know,” Fluttershy shuddered. “I’ll perform at the party this afternoon, then I’ll take the antidote. If you want, I can help you stitch dresses until then… if that’s okay with you.”

“Got the music in you!”

Fluttershy held a wide grin as the last note rang in her ears, followed by the roaring applause of fillies and colts. She even fluttered in place a little, her heart feeling as light as air. She pulled back the curtain for the others to walk backstage. Rarity flashed her a grin. Then she heard hoofsteps approaching around the side of the stage, and reality came crashing down. With a mad thrust of her wings, she bolted up and hid behind an upper curtain just as the mayor came around.

“Amazing, Ponytones!” said the mayor. “And it would be even more amazing if you could perform at my ribbon cutting ceremony, tomorrow!”

“Oh… mayor, we would love to, but…” Rarity started. She gave her mane a little flick so that she could sneakily glance up at the curtain, spotting Fluttershy giving a little nod. Rarity perked up. “Um, will you excuse us for a second?”

“Certainly,” said the mayor, walking back to the party. Once she was gone, Fluttershy swooped back down.

“Don’t worry, Fluttershy, you don’t have to perform again,” Rarity started.

“But we wouldn’t want to disappoint the mayor,” Fluttershy immediately responded.

Seeing her friend’s eagerness, Rarity gave a knowing look. “Well then, is everypony else on board?” Torch Song and Toe Tapper voiced their agreement and Big Mac nodded. Rarity went to inform the mayor, then the Ponytones headed out.

Before leaving the privacy of backstage, Fluttershy gave Rarity a little nudge. “Um, can I stay at your place, Rarity? I don’t want, um,” she trailed off, rubbing a leg with a hoof.

“Of course, darling,” Rarity beamed. “It’ll be just like old times!”

For the rest of the afternoon, Fluttershy helped Rarity make dresses for a client.
In the cover of night, Fluttershy flew to her cottage to lay out all the food for the animals, then rushed back to Carousel Boutique before being spotted.

Rarity heard the soft tap against her window. She let Fluttershy in, who hastily closed the curtains. Rarity couldn’t help but frown. “Fluttershy, are you sure you want to do this? I can’t imagine what it’s like to have to avoid speaking or seeing anypony except me for two whole days.”

“It's okay,” Fluttershy said, her voice still so jarringly deep. “I can still talk to my animals.”

“You’re not doing this just because the mayor asked, are you?”

“Well, maybe a little,” Fluttershy admitted. “She did ask me to do another fashion show, and I couldn’t do that.”

“I already told you she’s not your boss,” Rarity tutted. “And the mayor wasn’t asking you to perform, she was asking me. It would be me letting her down. She wouldn’t even know it was you.”

“Just seeing her enjoy the performance makes me happy, I promise,” Fluttershy said. “Really, it does,” she assured.

“Well, alright,” Rarity conceded.

“Thank you for having me over,” said Fluttershy. “I’m sorry to be a bother-”

“Not at all!” Rarity exclaimed. “You are never a bother. In fact…” Rarity smirked. “It is an honor to host one with such a riveting, gallant voice as yours, milord,” she bowed, fluttering her eyelashes.

From her recent modeling stint, Fluttershy put on the best impression of a Canterlot stallion. “You move me, my fair lady,” she drawled, reaching for Rarity’s hoof and giving it a kiss. The two of them burst into a fit of giggles.

Pinkie Pie bounced down the market street, greeting everypony she knew. Which was everypony, of course! “Hi Carrot Top! Hi Lyra! Hi Lily Valley! Hi Big Mac!”

“Evenin’, Pinkie Pie,” Big Mac called back from the apple stall.

Pinkie Pie froze mid-bounce and pivoted in place. “Big Mac! Your voice is all better already?”

“Eeyup!”

“Cool! Gotta bounce!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed, zipping straight to Carousel Boutique. Big Mac stared after her, then shrugged.

Pinkie blew past the front door and stuck her head into Rarity’s workroom before Rarity could even give her signature welcome message. “Hi Fluttershy!” Pinkie exclaimed, spotting the yellow mare frozen at a sewing machine. “Hi Rarity! I need a favor! I’m throwing a super duper amazing big party at Sugarcube Corner in an hour and I want the Ponytones to perform at it!”

“In an hour? You mean an hour from now?” Rarity shrieked.

“Yuh huh!” Pinkie nodded.

Rarity put a hoof to her head and flopped onto her chaise lounge (after levitating it over). “The notices get even shorter and shorter… well, I’ll go see if all the other tones are available and meet you there, but no promises.”

“Okie dokie lokie! I’m gonna go set up the stage now!” Pinkie was gone the next moment. She replaced her usual casual hop in favor of galloping down the streets hollering, “Party at Sugarcube Corner in an hour!” at the top of her lungs. Along the way, she swooped up empty crates and barrels around town, tossing them onto a stack on her back. After zigzagging every major road in town, she made her way back to her home turf.

Pinkie climbed up a ladder carrying the pole of her shower curtain in her mouth. She placed it on a hook on the ceiling; it wobbled back and forth. “Stay still, curtain! I need you to stay still!” Pinkie commanded. “Good!” She climbed down and picked up the ladder to put it away, but the ladder knocked against the curtain, which came crashing down and blanketed her. “Oh come on!” she exclaimed. Then she gasped. “Good curtain!” she said, petting it. “Now come on, you just stay up there until it’s time. You have to fall during the performance so that everypony will see the truth and they’ll cheer and it’ll be the best show ever!”

“Pinkie, did you say something? Who are you talking to?” Mrs. Cake called.

“Nopony!” Pinkie responded. Donning a hard hat and wielding a saw in her teeth, she broke apart all the crates and barrels, then switched to a hammer and started nailing the pieces into a stage. She shoved all the tables in chairs of Sugarcube Corner into a corner.

Mrs. Cake ignored the ruckus for a while until it was too much, even by Pinkie’s usual standards, and came out of the kitchen. “Pinkie! What in Equestria are you up to?!” Mrs. Cake exclaimed.

“I invited everypony in Ponyville to a party at Sugarcube Corner! But it’s not going to be just any party, it’s going to be a concert! And you can’t have a concert without a stage and a curtain! Don’t worry, I made sure to leave the display counter where it is so we can still sell treats!”

“Bum, Bum, bum-ba-da, ba-da! Bum, bum, bum-ba-da, ah!”

Pinkie grinned very widely from the audience. Pinkie knew Fluttershy still wanted to sing even though she didn’t have to! Time for Fluttershy to get the applause she deserved! Pinkie snuck off to the back of the room to the spotlight.

“Hey, find it, oh why, you can find it~”

As the song went further along, Pinkie started feeling nervous. Come on, curtain, hurry it up already! Bad curtain! I should’ve tied you to a leash! Then I would’ve pulled it!

Finally, there was a crash and the curtain fell down and over the Ponytones. Pinkie gasped, grinned, and pointed the spotlight at a moonwalking Fluttershy who looked like she was having the time of her life. Wow! That’s one of Fluttershy’s bestest smiles ever! Pinkie cheered to herself.

“Yeah, yeah, I love the music, ye-”

“Fluttershy?!” the crowd gasped.

Fluttershy stopped in place and sunk to the ground, so Pinkie adjusted the spotlight. Wait for it… Pinkie thought, looking at the crowd. Right on her mind’s cue, the guests started cheering and whooping and stomping their hooves. “Woo hoo!” Pinkie cheered along with them! She knew everypony would love Fluttershy!

“Big Mac, you’ve got some ‘splaining to do!” Applejack hollered, climbing onstage. Rarity quietly inched away.

“Turkey call?”

“Eeyup.”

“Trash your voice?”

“Eeyup.”

“Zecora remedy?”

“Eeyup.”

“Not quick enough?”

“Nope.”

“Needed a deep voice?”

“Eeyup.”

“Flutterguy?”

“Eeyup.”

“Better now?”

“Eeyup.”

Ooh, she’s good! Pinkie thought, holding both forehooves over mouth to control her excitement.

“And that shy filly was livin’ her dream in the shadows because she couldn’t bring herself to come into the spotlight?”

“Eeyup,” Big Mac concluded, looking sad.

“Well, for corn’s sake! Let’s go!” Applejack declared, galloping out the door.

“Where are we going?” Rainbow asked from overhead once the group was all outside.

“To Fluttershy’s cottage, silly!” Pinkie answered. “She must be getting the poison joke antidote to sound like her lovely self again! Not that her voice was any worse as Flutterguy! She really nailed my Evil Enchantress song, remember? She’s an evil enchantress-”

“Not now, Pinkie,” Applejack scolded.

“You know what’s strange?” said Rainbow. “I haven’t seen Fluttershy at her cottage for days.”

“She was… staying with me, dear…” Rarity huffed as she galloped after the others.

“So you were in on this, Rares?”

“Of course she was in on it, silly!” Pinkie giggled, bouncing along.

“Fluttershy? You in here?” Twilight asked as they let themselves into the cottage.

“Yes. I’m here,” they heard Fluttershy whisper, voice restored.

“That was totally unbelievable!” Pinkie exclaimed, foregoing the stairs and climbing up the wall. “I mean, the curtain came up, and there you were, singing in front of everypony! And you know, I don’t think anypony was jealous, ‘cause there certainly wasn’t an angry mob!” she said, waving her hooves in the air. Feeling gravity start to take hold, she bounced over the railing. “And it must’ve been horrible on stage, all eyes glued directly on you! It’s like you were living your own personal worst nightmare!” She paused for a dramatic breath and cracked a smile. “But that would be sill-”

“It was!” Fluttershy sobbed. Before Pinkie knew it, a yellow and pink contrail had zipped out of the cottage. Pinkie was left with the glares of the rest of her friends.

“What? Too much?”

“What Pinkie meant to say was that you were really great!” Twilight called out the door, running after Fluttershy.

Pinkie’s eyes widened. “Wait! Didn’t I say that?”

Fluttershy galloped and galloped and galloped, tears streaming out of both eyes. Her throat felt raw from all her sobbing - at this rate, she'd lose her ability to sing at all. But that was what everypony wanted. The thought made the tears flow twice as hard.

“You totally blew my mind!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed, zooming right up to Fluttershy. Fluttershy gasped and turned around. She just wanted to cry without her friends having to deal with her crying.

“Incredible!” Applejack hollered into Fluttershy’s face. Fluttershy squeaked and leaped up into air, landing on somepony’s roof.

There was a pop as Twilight teleported next to her. “You covered for Big Mac so well! I don’t think anypony could tell the difference!”

It just made Fluttershy want to cry harder. She flew off the roof and back towards the path. Hearing the others pursuing relentlessly, she stopped in her tracks and slumped. After a frozen moment, she wiped her tears and took a shaky breath, still not facing her friends. “Well, thank you all. I’m glad you enjoyed it… because I’m never going to sing in front of anypony ever again.”

She resumed her galloping. There. I said it. Now please, just let me cry…

“Can we please stop running!” Rarity called.

Fluttershy didn’t stop. She wouldn’t stop. She ran into the park, where she came face to face with the stage from that first performance. The sight made her pause, and once she paused, she couldn’t start again. She pressed her head against the side of the stage as she took ragged, tearful breaths that surely would destroy her voice.

“I just don’t understand why, Fluttershy,” Rarity spoke up. She too was out of breath, but pushed through before her friend could take off again. “After all, you’re the one that wanted the Ponytones to sing for every silly thing that was requested of us.”

“You mean, you knew I really wanted to perform?”

“Of course I knew!”

“Oh…” Fluttershy sighed. Great. I’ve been wasting my best friend’s valuable time too.

“And for all her babbling, Pinkie Pie was right about one thing.” Rarity climbed onto the stage and posed like a shining star would. “When that curtain fell, and everypony saw you singing, you lived your worst nightmare!” She looked Fluttershy softly in the eyes. “Was it really that bad?”

“Yes!” Fluttershy whimpered, covering her eyes with her hooves.

“Well, what was so bad about it?” Twilight asked.

“The thunderous applause?” asked Rainbow.

“The praise for your fantastic singing?” Applejack added.

Fluttershy peeked past her hooves and realized that she was surrounded. Rainbow was on her right, Applejack on her left, Twilight in front and Rarity over her shoulder. Oh, this is hopeless. I can’t outfly Rainbow Dash or escape Twilight’s magic, and Applejack will probably lasso me.

“They only liked Flutterguy,” Fluttershy mewled.

Rarity glanced at the other three, whose faces all shared her confusion. “Ehm, darling, could you speak up just a tad louder?”

“They only liked Flutterguy’s voice and Big Mac on stage, and everypony just wants to laugh at my misery!” Fluttershy snapped, making her friends recoil. The next moment, she was crying uncontrollably again.

“Now sugarcube, that don’t make a lick of sense,” Applejack said. “What makes you think we want to laugh at you?”

“Not you girls,” Fluttershy sobbed. “You’re my best friends. It’s everypony else in all of Equestria…”

“That is so not true!” Rainbow insisted.

Fluttershy peeked out from under her hooves. “When Photo Finish was there for that first photo shoot in Rarity’s boutique, she hated all the poses with attitude and pizzazz. The only ones she liked were of me looking like a failure.”

“Well that witch has no say on who you are,” Rarity snarled.

“During every fashion show, the guests would cheer whenever I looked scared of all the lights and the cameras and their eyes,” Fluttershy continued, staring at the grass between her hooves. “Whenever I would trip or mewl their eyes would shine.”

“That’s just Canterlot ponies-” Twilight started.

“Everypony in fashion loves me when I look shy and scared. But I hate being shy and scared!” she growled. “I can’t help it. In flight school, I could barely take off the ground, and everypony laughed at me then. Who would want to be friends with a pegasus who can’t talk and can’t fly?”

“Me!” Rainbow Dash declared. “All of us!”

“And I’m very happy to have all of you girls,” Fluttershy continued. “Especially you, Rarity. Why, you even gave me the confidence to sing to a crowd of ponies, even if it was from behind a curtain. I love singing, and I’ve always wanted to sing with my birds instead of just being the conductor. I was so, so happy after that first concert. I was behind this curtain, but I could hear everypony cheering. For me! It was so liberating that I wanted to do it again. And again. And again!”

“But when that curtain fell, everypony stopped smiling and cheering,” Fluttershy sighed. “When everypony realized it was me, the whole room went silent. A-and then,” she choked, “w-when I looked frozen on stage, and scared, and shy… everypony cheered!” Fluttershy wailed. “They were happy with my singing when they knew it wasn’t me, but once they knew it was me, they only liked me when I was scared! I thought singing would be different, but it was just flight school and modeling all over again!” Fluttershy collapsed to the ground, covering her eyes with her hooves once more. “Everypony thinks I’m just a weird pegasus who’s stuck on the ground and can only talk to animals and they only like me when I look miserable,” Fluttershy sobbed. “That is my own personal worst nightmare… and now I know it’s still true.”

Fluttershy’s tears gushed forward anew after that last admission. She felt warmth press against her as Rarity delicately climbed off the stage and settled at Fluttershy’s side. “Let it all out, dear,” Rarity soothed, stroking Fluttershy’s mane. “We’ll be here for you.” Fluttershy gave a peek and saw Twilight, Applejack and Rainbow Dash sitting patiently on the grass while Rarity took care of her mane. Her tears dried up pretty fast.

“Now, are you ready to listen?” Rarity spoke up. “If not, take some more time. We'll be here all night.”

“I'm ready,” Fluttershy whispered.

“Thank you for offering your voice for the Ponytones. Without you, all those events we performed at wouldn’t be as special as they were,” said Rarity.

“Oh. You’re welcome.”

“We were all surprised when we saw you behind the curtain,” said Twilight. “None of us knew you were filling in for Big Mac. Everypony except us didn’t know about the poison joke’s effect on you either. That’s why the room went silent. Ponies were confused.”

“But once everypony understood that it was you singing, they cheered their hooves off,” said Applejack. “Not because they liked seeing you scared, but because they liked your singing. I swear, that’s the honest truth.”

“Sure those other foals in Flight School were big jerks who kept laughing at you, and the teachers were total jerks too,” Rainbow said. “But that was Flight School. This is Ponyville.”

“And I cannot possibly imagine what was going on in Photo Finish’s head, but she’s in the past,” Rarity promised. “This is the present, where ponies enjoy your music. You also have everypony in the market who are happy that you brought them business. And all the ponies who you take care of their pets when they’re on vacation or their pets are sick. You are not a weird pegasus stuck on the ground.” Rarity booped Fluttershy softly on the nose. “You are Fluttershy, and everypony in Ponyville likes you for who you are.”

Fluttershy softened within Rarity’s embrace. “You really think if I sing on stage, ponies will like it?”

“Mhm!”

“Yeah!”

“Absolutely!”

Fluttershy looked down, tapping her front hooves. “I-I don’t know…”

“Sometimes you can't make others smile no matter how hard you try, but that shouldn't stop you from being yourself.”

Five heads turned to the stage, where Pinkie Pie crept out of her hiding place behind the curtain. She hopped off the stage and sat in front of Fluttershy and Rarity with her head bowed. “I’m sorry, Fluttershy. I shouldn’t’ve made a joke about your worst nightmares.”

“It’s okay, Pinkie,” Fluttershy sighed. “I know you didn’t mean it.”

“I really wanted you to perform,” Pinkie continued. “After hearing you sing in the most beautiful voice ever, I knew everypony would love it! But I should’ve talked to you about stage fright instead of ruining Big Mac’s voice to make you perform.”

“Say what now?” Applejack spoke up, stepping towards Pinkie Pie.

“I thought about tricking Torch Song into going home, but there are too many ponies who could cover her tone. I knew Flutterguy was the only voice in Ponyville that could match Big Mac’s tone, so I beat Big Mac at the turkey call to ruin his voice. I thought that if I could get you to perform just once, then you’d fall in love with performing and kick your fears around the corner.”

“I did enjoy performing,” Fluttershy agreed. “Just maybe not in front of everypony…”

“But you didn’t get any credit for singing and it was so unfair!” Pinkie exclaimed. “So when I found out Big Mac’s voice was better, I thought there was only one last chance. That’s why I had the concert at Sugarcube Corner and told the curtain to fall! So everypony could cheer for you! But… I should’ve asked you first instead of doing that without your permission. I’m sorry…”

“At least I know now that everypony liked my singing,” Fluttershy smiled. “Just, um, no more surprises that might embarrass me in front of everypony, please?”

“Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye!” Pinkie declared with the accompanying motions.

“For all her scheming, Pinkie Pie was certainly right about another thing,” Rarity spoke up. “Curtain or no curtain, you sang with the most beautiful voice ever!” She draped a leg across Fluttershy’s shoulders and pointed her other leg up at the stage. “Fluttershy, you know Torch Song is only here in Ponyville for the summer, while she’s not in theater school. When she has to go back home, will you take her place up there with me?”

“Um…”

“We can start with baby steps,” Rarity added. “How about a little concert just for us and your animal friends?”

“That sounds… nice,” Fluttershy said softly. She smiled at her friends. “Thank you for listening. I’m sorry you had to hear me cry so much.” All her friends moved in for a group hug, giving her reassurances.

“Now Pinkie Pie,” Applejack said, facing the rogue party pony. “I reckon you oughta make it up to Big Mac for ruining his voice on purpose. And I reckon he’ll want somethin’ a mite more than an apology.”

“What should I do?” Pinkie asked.

Applejack smirked. “Nothing right now, but you should cover his chores on the farm when the Ponytones go on tour.”