Chapters Fluttershy looked up into the highly decorated ceiling of her new bedroom. This had earlier been the bedroom of mayor Mare, but now it was all hers. She had just awaken and was waiting for her breakfast coffee. The yellow pegasus wasn't used to drink her coffee in bed, but since this was the first day as the new mayor of Ponyville she didn't know what was expected of her. Maybe her maid, miss Hooves, would be disappointed if she had already made her own coffee? Fluttershy had decided not to take any chances.
After her breakfast the time had come for Fluttershy to hold her first meeting in the town hall. At the sides of a long table Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity and Pinkie Pie were seated. Fluttershy resided in a big, padded chair at the end. She nervously stacked her papers.
The next day mayor Fluttershy trotted trough the main street of Ponyville. She was happy and carried a basket with fresh dandelions in her mouth.
Twilight was at the Town Hall, waiting for Fluttershy. She wanted to see if there was something she could do to help her with her policy. She expected Fluttershy to arrive any minute, but the pegasus didn't show up. Where cold she be? Twilight knocked at her door twice, but no one opened. She knocked on the windows, and after a while miss Hooves appeared.
And at Rarity's place, still inside the cupboard, Fluttershy tried to open the door and get out... But the door was stuck! Something blocked it from the outside and she couldn't push it aside. She was trapped!
Author's Note
English is not my native language, so the grammar and use of words may be a bit strange at some points... But hopefully it won't be totally insane!
An hour had passed and Twilight was getting worried that something had happened to Fluttershy. The unicorn decided to go and look for her at her old place, thinking it would have been typical for Fluttershy to forget her duties as mayor over the sight of a hurt squirrel or a bird with a broken wing. But this day was too important to miss! There would be a parade I front of the Town Hall and the mayor had to make a speech and present a golden horseshoe to princess Luna. It was tradition! And princess Luna like traditions. Since the unfortunate mishap during the princess's last visit to Ponyville, Twilight was determined to not let anything go wrong this time. No pies would be allowed near the podium.
At the same time Rarity had decided to end her cunning diversion of the crowd. She had led the curious ponies to the outskirts of Ponyville and was about to open the cardboard box in front of them to show that it was empty... But she stopped herself. That would have been an anti-climax... It would be much more dramatic to throw the box into the river and exclaim something about "No one must ever know about my secret mission!", and then leave the ponies wondering about her for days. It was a bit unnecessary, but she couldn't help herself. And she threw the box into the river with a dramatic gesture.
Meanwhile, Fluttershy was desperately trying to push open the door and escape from Rarity's cupboard. What if nopony found her? What if she would be trapped inside the cupboard for all eternity? She had no food and no water. Fluttershy almost started to cry over the thought of somepony finding her skeleton still inside the cupboard twenty years from now. They would say "Oh, that's what happened to the mayor! How dreadful! She starved to death inside her friend's cupboard, scared and alone with nopony there to help her!"
When Twilight reached Fluttershy's cottage, she found the place abandoned except for some animals and large piles of animal feed that the ever thoughtful Fluttershy had left there earlier. Although she was the mayor now, she still cared a lot for her animal friends.
When Rarity entered her boutique she expected to find Fluttershy there waiting for her. But Fluttershy was nowhere to be seen. And also her jar of cookies was gone! Rarity deduced that Fluttershy must have taken the cookies and left the boutique, although it would have been very unlikely for her to take something without asking first. But since the unicorn had locked the front door, nopony else could have done it. She therefore decided to go over to the Town Hall and ask Fluttershy why she took her cookies.
The ponies searched all over Ponyville looking for Fluttershy and at Sweet Apple Acres they found the now empty jar of cookies.
The square in front of the Town Hall was filled with ponies, waiting for the princess to arrive to watch the parade. Fluttershy was gone and instead Twilight and her friends had convinced Rainbow Dash to disguise herself as Fluttershy. They had painted her coat in a yellowish colour and made a pink wig out of material gathered from the hairdresser's trashcan. The wig itched and Rainbow didn't like at all to have her coat drenched in paint. She must resist the urge to scratch herself, but it was nearly impossible! She couldn't do it while all eyes were watching her.
Rainbow Dash witnessed the parade of ponies in front of her podium. Princess Luna stood beside her and waved at the ponies, happily trotting by in rows. It was a beautiful sight but Rainbow had more important things than enjoying the parade. She had to focus on making everyone believe that she really was Fluttershy and not a shoddily disguised Rainbow Dash. The time for her speech was drawing near...
At the same time, Twilight, Applejack, Rarity and Pinkie Pie were at Sweet Apple Acres, desperately searching for Fluttershy. But no trace of the yellow pegasus was found other than the empty cookie jar. Where could she be?
Rainbow Dash shuffled her papers and began to speak.
Meanwhile, Fluttershy was still trapped inside Rarity's cupboard crying. But then she toughened up. This was not the time to give in. She was after all the mayor of Ponyville and she knew that deep down she was as brave as any pony, if not even braver... Fluttershy turned around inside the cupboard and gave the door a strong kick. It didn't move at all, but Fluttershy knew that given time, she could break out from the cupboard. And she was determined not to spend any minute longer than necessary inside that stupid piece of furniture!
Rainbow Dash and princess Luna slowly moved in the direction of the Ponyville Library. The crowd of exited ponies watched them, enjoying the historical significance of this moment. Princess Luna waved. Rainbow Dash knew that Twilight couldn't possibly have gotten back from Sweet Apple Acres already and she decided to buy her some time with a desperate plan.
At the same time, Twilight and her friends were running trough the streets to get back to her library in time. But when they arrived at the library, they saw that nopony were there. Instead a crowd had gathered around Rarity's boutique.
Before Twilight could stop her, princess Luna had pushed her way trough the crowd of ponies and was struggling for the door. Ponyville's citizens tried their best to get out of her way as quickly as possible, fearing the rage of the lunar princess. They shoved and pushed, but the mass of pony was greater than the space of the door. The result was a massive plug of ponies, which Luna just barely managed to push trough. The struggle had cost her one of her shoes, some of her feathers and most of her royal dignity. But a raging Luna was a force not easily stopped.
When princess Celestia travelled in Equestria she always used her golden carriage. On these travels she liked to follow a strict schedule, but sometimes the alicorn princess chose to show up unexpected to see what her empire really was like when nopony had time to prepare themselves for her visit. This day she had inspected a factory in Cloudsdale while her younger sister had been sent by her to Ponyville as a test. It was a simple task that Celestia had assigned her to see if she was ready to regain her duties as a princess of Equestria after her thousand year long exile.
The ponies watched in total bewilderment when she fled trough the door and away across Ponyville like a greyhound released from its cage.
The next day Fluttershy spent most of the morning in her bed, drinking coffee and eating a muffin provided by miss Hooves. After she had finished her coffee, Fluttershy decided to read the newspaper. Her jaw dropped in shock when she saw the front-page:
Soon Fluttershy trotted trough Ponyville's streets carefully avoiding to step in the mud puddles. When she arrived at the library she was greeted by a very tired Twilight Sparkle. The unicorn's eyelids were heavy and her mane was in a state of despair.
Fluttershy found the lunar princess sleeping in Spike's bed. It was too small for her and she looked a bit ridiculous lying there with a sleep mask covering her eyes, earplugs and Miss Smarty-pants as her pillow.
At the same time, but in another part of Ponyville, Rarity was finally done cleaning up the mud in her boutique. She had been scrubbing the floorboards all night and washed the walls with soap and water. But the worst thing had been the clothes. The thought almost made her cry. All of her clothes had been smeared with mud by the fighting ponies. Her whole day was destroyed and she could not open her boutique before she had washed and ironed everything. Sweetie Belle had volunteered to help her, but she had respectfully declined her sister's offer. Now, she could finally rest.
6. A predicament at the spa
Fluttershy was very happy that princess Luna had accepted her invitation, but at the same time she was also a bit worried. What if the princess wouldn't like it at her place? What if Luna, who was used to live at the magnificent Canterlot Castle, would find her humble Town Hall simple and boring? And what if she would find Fluttershy herself simple and boring? The yellow pegasus stopped right in the street, overcome with nervousness. She must not let that happen! She must not make princess Luna disappointed! Surely the Town Hall was way better than Spike's bed, but still...
The new mayor of Ponyville soon enjoyed the warm, comforting atmosphere of the Ponyville spa. She felt safe, happy and not nearly as nervous as before. This was a great idea, she believed. Just to relax and come up with a another great idea that would surely save the day. Fluttershy had her pink mane wrapped in a towel and she was dressed in a white bathrobe. The spa ponies, Aloe and Lotus, had filed her hooves and put slices of cucumber on her eyelids. It felt so good. Nothing could take away the peaceful, comforting atmosphere in the place...
Meanwhile Spike was at home, cooking some gemstones while thinking about Rarity. He was a bit tired since he had found it difficult to sleep in Twilight's bed. The bed itself was great, but the restless unicorn had kept him awake with her constant rolling and turning, pacing around in circles and moving. Princess Luna had offered to give him pleasant dreams about gemstones and having a moustache, but he had declined the offer out of fear that she would find his dreams already inhabited by Rarity. That would have been too embarrassing for the young dragon.
Back at the spa, Fluttershy had almost forgot about princess Luna's impending arrival. Rainbow Dash, who for various reasos didn't like being at the spa, had went home long ago. But Fluttershy could not resist staying a little longer... and then a little longer after that. Suddenly she saw a another familiar face appearing... Mare, the former mayor! Fluttershy leapt from the massage table and hid behind a potted plant. She must not be seen! It would be too embarrassing! What if the former mayor was angry at her for taking her job, her home and her title? Mayor Mare had been the mayor of Ponyville for so long that "Mayor" had become a part of her name. What if she thought that Fluttershy had done it on purpose?
When she arrived at the Town Hall, Fluttershy realized that she was still dressed in bathrobe and towel. Now the other ponies must think that she was some kind of spa thief! Oh, she must go back and return the stuff... Or maybe send miss Hooves? She decided to go and get her maid.
Mare, formerly known as "Mayor Mare" sipped on her tea to make a pause mid sentence. The ponies at her table watched her in silent antecipation.
Meanwhile, a nervous Fluttershy and a tired Rarity were cleaning the Town Hall. It was already late in the afternoon and miss Hooves had not yet returned from the spa. What took her so long? When everything was absolutely spotless Fluttershy sat down in a sofa and let Rarity brush her mane. She could almost fall asleep.
The lights didn't come from a swarm of fireflies, but from a swarm of ponies. The citizens of Ponyville had lit torches and were searching the riverbanks for evidence against Fluttershy and her friends. Mare carefully climbed on the river stones while looking into the water, her torch flickering in the chilly breeze. Suddenly she heard a voice.
The same time, over at the Town Hall, Twilight had fallen asleep and was now snoring on the sofa. Princess Luna had used her magic powers to quietly remove the sleeping unicorn from the table and to put her in a place where she was less in the way of things. Spike, Rarity and Fluttershy had just finished their meal while Luna took a bite from her apple. (She did in fact enjoy apples very much)
8. Torches and pitchforks
A crowd of ponies had assembled outside the house of Ponyville's prosecutor, a little blue pony with magenta eyes and a purple palm tree as her cutie mark. Inside the building was also the former mayor and some of her posse. They had just placed their "evidence" on the prosecutor's desk and she studied the badger's skull with a disgusted frown. She prodded it with her pencil.
Spike watched the stars from the balcony of the Town Hall together with Luna and Fluttershy . He started to feel a little cold and a little tired. The young dragon excused himself and went down the stairs, preparing to go home and get some much needed sleep. Twilight was still snoring on the sofa and he didn't feel the need to wake her up. Fluttershy wouldn't mind letting the tired unicorn sleep over at her place, he thought.
Meanwhile Rarity had just brushed her teeth and was preparing herself to go to sleep. She had filled her mane with hair rollers and put on a red dressing gown. The unicorn made sure that Opalescence had plenty of food and water for the night and then she crawled into her bed. Rarity decided to read for a while in her book before turning off the light and falling asleep. The book was about a happy, friendly pony that lived in a house with no ghosts at all. Fluttershy had recommended it, but Rarity had found it a bit disappointing. There was no tension, no drama and no danger.
At the same time princess Celestia was in her dining room at Canterlot Castle, having a midnight snack. She couldn't sleep and she still was a bit upset over her younger sister's ridiculous antics. Throwing mud and threatening to run way! That Luna sure had some nerve... But at the same time she cared deeply for her sister. Maybe she was to hard on her? Celestia decided to write her a letter next night, when Luna had cooled off a little. Now she would have a slice of cake from the delicious strawberry cake that her servants had placed on the table in front of her. It was Celestia's favourite dish and she had promised herself to save it for brekfeast, but this cake was too good not to taste... just a little slice couldn't hurt she thought.
Princess Luna and Fluttershy were now alone at the balcony of the Town Hall. The yellow pegasus was very happy that the princess seemed to enjoy her company and that she had managed to stay awake this long. Luna wasn't interested in animals at all, but she couldn't stop talking about the stars. Fluttershy had a talent for getting along with most ponies and most of them liked her because of her niceness. Sometimes ponies could be a bit annoyed by her, but that did not occur as frequent as one might think.
The next day a jury of ponies were assembled at the Ponyville Courthouse. Spike and Rarity were the defendants in the trial. The unicorn and the dragon looked very sad, constantly peering down into the carpet with shame.
After a while the real prosecutor arrived. Turf looked indeed a lot like Rainbow Dash, except for her mane and tail that had an orange colour. The two of them had an eerily resemblance.
And that night three cells were occupied at the Ponyville Lockup. Spike, Rarity and Rainbow Dash were all held in custody until the next trial. They each and one had their own cell but they could look at each other trough the prison bars. Spike was the saddest of them all, he nearly ever looked up. It was evident that the dragon felt guilty, although what had happened wasn't his fault.
Rainbow Dash was lying on the iron bench that was suspended from the wall of the Ponyville Lockup. She hadn't said a single word more than four hours. The pegasus was thinking, and her thoughts were wandering far and wide. Was it a god idea to ambush the prosecutor and try to derail the trial against Spike and Rarity? She did not know. Was it right to do so? She did not know the answer to that question either. But she knew one thing. She did it out of loyalty. Spike and Rarity were her friends and she desperately wanted them to save them from the incompetent judicial system of Ponyville and that was what mattered most to her.
After the guard ponies had investigated the collapsed wall and put up a sign, a pair of shadows emerged from the dark. It was Mare, Turf and Bon Bon that had conspired to plot their revenge. The three ponies had made a pact to overthrow mayor Fluttershy, punish Rainbow Dash and maybe assassinate Spike (Bon Bon didn't really want to assassinate him, she was just a bit upset and although she said that she wanted to assassinate him she knew that she could never do such a thing. She just said it to get to be part of the pact)
Lyra Heartstrings woke up. She had slept trough most of her train ride from Canterlot. The aquamarine unicorn had been forced to spend a whole day cleaning the royal kitchens as a punishment for destroying princess Celestia's cake. Now she could finally get back to Ponyville and the first thing she would do was to tell Bon Bon all about her strange adventure.
The next morning Fluttershy woke up in her bed. She rubbed her eyes and reached tor the newspaper that miss Hooves had provide for her. She red:
"EXTRA! LYRA HERATSTRINGS IS ALIVE! All charges dropped against Spike the Dragon. Spike, who together with two ponies escaped from the Ponyville Lockup, is no longer a suspect of criminal activity. The dragon is believed to be in Manehattan along with Rarity the littering Unicorn and the nefarious Rainbow Dash. If encountered they are my no means dangerous, but please tell them to return to Ponyville as soon as possible. The unicorn has been pardoned by the High Court of Canterlot, provided that she never throws litter into the river again. The pegasus Rainbow Dash is still wanted for her actions at the Ponyville Courthouse, but all charges are to be dropped if she agrees to give a public apology to Turf the Prosecutor for her actions against her."
A little further down the front page she could also read:
"Mare, former mayor of Ponyville, was arrested earlier by the local police. She is being questioned about her involvement in the construction of the Ponyville Lockup two years ago. The wall, which last night collapsed due to shoddy engineering, was discovered to contain serious weaknesses. Its bricks were held in place only by paint. The former mayor, who had ordered the construction of the Lockup is believed to have known about the questionable building practices but failed to take any action to prevent them from being made."
Fluttershy smiled.
THE END
