Cheerilee trotted down the dirt track that led from Ponyville to Sweet Apple Acres. She'd considered turning around once or twice, but this was it. She had come to a decision. Sure, that whole mess with the love potion had been an incredibly awkward experience that at the time had been something that she'd wanted to repress and never think about again. It wasn't like Big Macintosh wasn't a fine stallion, and he had always been a pony that she'd been happy to have as a part of her life as a friend. He'd just never come across as an exciting prospect as a romantic partner. At least that was what she had thought until she'd heard that incredible voice raised in song. If she’d have known about that incredible talent back on the last Hearts and Hooves day, then she wouldn’t have given those clever little girls chores, instead they’d have been getting straight A’s for the rest of the time that they were in her classes.

She was just dreaming of what her fourth foal with him would look like, a pretty pegasus filly, she’d decided—Cheerilee had always hoped that she’d be able to have not just earth pony foals regardless of the father, thanks to a pegasus grandfather on her mother’s side—when she realised that she’d made it all the way to the farmhouse door while her head was stuck in the clouds.

It was now or never, Cheerilee decided, so she raised a hoof and knocked firmly.

“Hello there, Miss Cheerilee,” Applejack said, as she opened the door. Her face darkened into a scowl. “Don’ tell me that Applebloom’s been gettin’ into scrapes she shouldn’t of again? I swear that filly’s more trouble than a hen house fulla rattlesnakes.”

Cheerilee couldn’t bring herself to disagree with that colloquial assessment, but shook her head. “Not this time thankfully,” she said, a warm smile playing upon her face. “Is your brother about?” she asked, as the butterflies in her stomach did a merry dance.

“‘Fraid not,” Applejack said. “Don’t know where he’s got to neither.”

Cheerilee beat down her inner school teacher that was raging at the bit to correct the double negative, and gave the apple farmer another smile instead. “That’s a shame,” she said. “Guess I’ll go look around the orchard for him, and then if that fails then its off into town,” she added, before turning to go.

“Mind if you let me know what’s up?” Applejack asked helpfully. “Could pass on a message if I see him first and all that?”

“Um...” She swallowed hard, then Applejack would have to find out sooner or later, and it wasn’t like they weren’t going to be sisters soon enough. “I’m going to tell Big Macintosh how I feel about him!” Cheerilee said, her heart singing. She was resisting the urge to skip on the spot like a filly with her first crush she was so happy.

“Uh huh,” Applejack said slowly, while eyeing Cheerilee up and down, and possibly checking for signs of love poison overdose at the same time. “Thought you two were just friends?”

“That’s what I thought too,” she admitted, “but to hear him sing like that.” She still felt weak at the knees just thinking about it, and fanned herself with a hoof. “Everything is different now.”

A strange look came to Applejack’s eyes. “Mind tellin’ me which performance was that? Y’know, just out of interest.”

“The one four days ago,” Cheerilee responded. “I’ve been wrestling with it ever since before finally getting up my courage,” she added, a little bashfully.

“Oh boy howdy,” Applejack breathed. “Not sure how to break this to ya, I gotta admit.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Big Macintosh lost his voice, and that was Fluttershy doin’ all that singing from behind the stage,” Applejack explained, while looking for the signs of an impending freakout.

“Oh...” Cheerilee said flatly. The voice that had captured her heart wasn’t attached to Big Macintosh, it wasn’t even attached to a stallion at all, but to a mare that she really didn't know all that well. Her ears flattened and her head dipped, as the music that had been playing within her was completely extinguished by Applejack's words.

“But that didn’t sound like her?” Cheerilee blurted out, grasping at the one remaining undropped straw.

“Poison joke,” Applejack said, as if that explained everything. “Sorry to break it to ya like that,” she added, and patted the other earth pony on the shoulder gently.

“Oh...”

“Don’t spose you fancy steppin’ aside a tad out of that doorway, if you don’t mind?” Applejack asked, after watching Cheerilee stare into space for a good long while. “Them apples ain’t going to buck themselves if I’m not there to do it.”

“Oh, yes, sorry,” Cheerilee said, and stepped out the way to let the farmer pass.

~~~

After slowly trudging back into Ponyville, Cheerilee was at a total loss of what to do next. So she did what she usually did when she had a moral crisis, and promptly went to moan about it to her sister.

“Well, I don’t see the problem,” Berry Punch said, lifting a tankard to her lips for a big gulp. “If I wasn’t happily married I’d have tried to have hit up that choice bit of flank ages ago.” She wiped some wine from her lips and grinned. “Then she does tend to squeak and hide when I’m around so that might have been a bit tricky,” she admitted, and looked thoughtful. "I think I might intimidate her."

Cheerilee favoured her sister with her long-practiced death glare that all younger sisters swiftly perfect. Especially for elder siblings that already have partners while you remain depressingly single, and your mother mentions it every single bloody time that you see her.

“It’s not that simple,” Cheerilee protested. “I barely know her, anyway I like stallions!”

“She did used to be a model, y’know,” Berry replied, and leered.

“Stallions, stallions, stallions!” Cheerilee shouted, putting her hooves in her ears, and then swiftly removing them when she realised her chant had attracted the presence of her sister’s daughter Pinchy, who was now giving her a very odd look.

“How long have you been single by the way?” Berry asked helpfully.

Cheerilee muttered something unintelligible from her new position with her head buried in her hooves on the table.

“And you know how much happier I’ve been since I finally tied the knot with Colgate,” Berry said. “This is only my third one of the day,” she added proudly, waving the tankard.

Pinchy nodded in support to back up her much more sober than previously mommy.

“Have I ever mentioned how much I preferred it when I was the successful teacher, and you were the town drunk?” Cheerilee asked, from her position face down on the table.

“C’mon, up and at ‘em, tiger,” Berry said, and tapped her sister on the head until she finally moved.

~~~

Having left her sister’s house, Cheerilee spotted the Carousel Boutique, and decided that it wouldn’t be the worst of ideas to talk to one of Fluttershy’s friends first.

She pushed upon the door setting the little bell above it to jingle.

“Coming!” Rarity called out. She appeared from a doorway sporting a pair of red glasses, and several bits of fabric trailing in her telekinetic aura behind her. “Welcome to Carousel Boutique, where every garment is chic—” Rarity broke off her normal patter as she recognised her old classmate from back when they’d both been blank flank fillies. They'd been close friends once when they'd been younger, even if they'd drifted apart somewhat after leaving school. “Hello, Cheers,” she said, recalling the nickname that'd always annoyed her old friend so much. ”I hope that you're not planning to take out another one of my walls again?" she added teasingly, with her eyes dancing.

“Hey, Rares,” Cheerilee said, wandering in and flopped straight down on Rarity’s fainting couch. “You’re still straight, right?”

Rarity choked, but a mare of her social graces was never nonplussed for long. “Last time I checked,” she replied with a grin full of happy memories. “Why do you ask?”

“You wouldn’t think of changing your mind if you met the right mare?” Cheerilee said, face down once more. “Say the kind of mare that, as it turns out, can make your insides go all gooey with just her voice?”

“That’s a very specific question, Cheers,” Rarity said, raising an eyebrow.

Not hearing any response, she thought about it for a bit. “I’m not sure I ever could myself, but it sounds like you very much could,” Rarity finally said.

Cheerilee rolled off the couch and back on to her hooves, with her jaw set in determination. “Right,” she said. “Thanks, Rares.”

Rarity watched Cheerilee head out, and sauntered back to contest with the dress that had been resisting her efforts all morning. “I wonder what that was about?” she idly said out loud to her cat Opal, and then got back to work. She'd have plenty of time to look into this mysterious crush, and of course, mine every single inch of juicy gossip that she could find out later.

~~~

Cheerilee had been all set to march straight in the direction of the cottage to sort this whole mess out in her head, but catching the sight of a familiar large red mass moving through the market, prompted an immediate change of plans.

Big Macintosh had just been hoofing over some bits for a new box of nails when Cheerilee caught up with him.

“Big Mac!” she said, gasping slightly after her mad gallop through Ponyville.

His face lit up as he turned to greet his old friend. “Why hello there, Miss Cheerilee,” he said, dipping his head respectfully.

“Big Mac, I need you to sing something for me!” said Cheerilee, looking manic enough that it was beginning to draw attention in the crowded market.

“Ee-what?” he said, giving her a look.

“Please!” Cheerilee asked. “Don’t ask why, but it’s important.”

Big Macintosh looked like he was going to argue, but a life time dealing with his sister and her friends, not to mention that Wonderbolt that kept following him around, meant he was well used to irrational things coming from the mouths of mares. Compared to attempting to buck the entire orchard solo, or pretending to be a farm pony to win over some out-of-towner nutcase, a random song request was pretty low down on the scale.

“Heya, Noteworthy,” he called out, “can you give me some backup here?”

The blue stallion wandered over, and not needing to be asked twice to show off his talents, launched straight into a smooth acapella that had several nearby mares quickly giving him impressed looks.

Big Macintosh started belting out one of the Ponytones songs and soon the whole market had been brought to a complete halt as they turned to listen to the wonderful bass singing tone ringing out across the town.

Cheerilee let herself listen to the music, and waited for the swoon that sure to be coming. Anytime soon... anytime... and nothing. She was enjoying the performance of course, as Big Macintosh had an amazing set of lungs on him, and she had no idea Noteworthy could vocalise so well on top of playing the sax, but compared to that voice that had been so incredibly alive with the sheer joy at the act of creating music that had knocked her flat on her back, it just wasn’t doing anything for her.

She let out a frustrated scream, spun on her hooves and stormed off out of the market towards the woods, her tail lashing behind her.

Noteworthy and Big Macintosh watched her go as they brought their song to an end.

“Mares be crazy,” Noteworthy said, getting several annoyed looks from the same ponies that had just been enjoying his performance.

“Eeeyup.”

~~~

Cheerilee really had been honestly planning to head to Fluttershy’s cottage this time for sure, but stopped when she spotted a rainbow tail dangling off the side of a cloud along the way.

“Rainbow Dash?” she called out.

The cloud exploded and from it shot the mare in question. She did a few loops and rolls on a why not basis, before skidding into the turf in front of Cheerilee.

“What’s up?” Dash asked. “Scoots hasn’t being drawing those pictures of me in class again, has she?”

“No, thank Celestia,” Cheerilee replied, repressing the memory with a shudder. She’d burned all the red crayons and still they haunted her.

“Phew,” Dash said, and grinned. “Not saying that I didn’t think that one with me, but with eight extra dragon heads, wasn’t pretty awesome though. Got that one hung up on my wall at home.”

“So, Rainbow Dash,” Cheerilee said, considering that some moments she really did completely understand her sister’s drinking habits. “You are into mares, right?”

Rainbow Dash spluttered so hard that Cheerilee was worried that the pegasus might have choked on something. “What...” Rainbow Dash took another go at it. “What have you heard? ‘Cause if this is about the professional role model thing wearing that outfit in that club was totally Ms. Harshwhinney’s idea!” she added hurriedly, while glancing around to make sure that there weren’t any impressionable fillies listening.

Cheerilee just stared at the pegasus for a bit while she mentally filed that comment away for researching at a later date. “No, not at all,” she said, in a calming attempt to reassure. “I was just looking for some advice on the subject.”

“And you came to me and not Cloudchaser or Lilac Sky?” Rainbow Dash asked, her face twisting as if she was trying to work out if she could currently be proud of that fact or not.

“They’re not friends with the pony that I might be interested in,” Cheerilee admitted.

Rainbow Dash immediately perked up. “I’ve just been waiting for somepony to make an honest mare of Applejack,” she said, grinning widely.

“No, it’s not Applejack,” Cheerilee replied hurriedly. “I just wanted to know how you knew when you were with the one you were meant to be with. I’ve always been into stallions you see.”

Dash shrugged. “Always known who was the one, and then who the other one, the one right after that too, and there was that pair of sisters.” She sighed happily. “Not saying there weren’t a few that caught my eye that I didn’t turn out to regret sooner or later, but yeah,” she said. “If you’re thinking about Pinkie Pie, by the way. Don’t get me wrong, even though I’ve got no idea where all those cakes go, and she is seriously built, but I still don’t think that she is at all ready for that kind of interest,” she added seriously.

“No, it’s really most definitely not Pinkie Pie,” Cheerilee insisted, her voice somber given that this talk hadn’t been helpful whatsoever.

“So, what made you change your mind and come over to the fun side?” Dash said, while flexing in a way that Cheerilee couldn’t help but notice her lithe muscled form.

“I thought it was her singing,” Cheerilee said, her brow furrowed, “but I’ve heard other amazing singers, even tried it again today, and still not felt this way about them.”

“Singing, singing...” Rainbow Dash said, and tilted her head to the side as she considered this conundrum. “Hey, you know who you should talk to?” Dash suddenly said. “Fluttershy might be single, and she’s always been into mares, but she’s always had problems getting over herself to actually admit it when she’s interested in somepony. I bet she’d totally know how you feel.”

Rainbow Dash was right incredibly enough. There was only one option left and that was the mare in question. Maybe it would all make sense when she actually talked to her, Cheerilee reckoned. “Thanks, Rainbow Dash,” she said. “I think I’ll do that.”

She turned to leave, which promptly turned into a full blown gallop as she heard, “You do know that Rarity is straight, right?” echoing behind her.

~~~

Cheerilee had been standing in front of Fluttershy’s cottage to the point that the bear in the garden was beginning to take an interest. Eventually she decided there was nothing for it and knocked. Anyway, any longer and the many birds around would have come in to a new roost.

“Mind if I come in?” she said, inwardly hoping that Fluttershy might be out.

The top part of the door swung in and Fluttershy’s face appeared. “Oh, Cheerilee!” she said, and opened the other part of the door. “Of course, I’ve just finished feeding all the animals. Would you like some tea?”

“Not now, Fluttershy...” Cheerilee said, slowly walking into the yellow lion’s den. “Do you mind if we both sit down?”

“Okay,” Fluttershy said, a little uncertainly, and beckoned for Cheerilee to join her on her sofa.

Cheerilee breathed in and out a few times. “Applejack told me that you were singing for Big Macintosh as part of the Ponytones?”

Seeing Fluttershy nod in confirmation, Cheerilee continued. “Your performance was like something I’ve never heard before,” Cheerilee said excitedly, giving into the urge to gush a little. "I had no idea that you could be so passionate."

Fluttershy's eyes glowed at the praise. “Thank you. I guess, if it’s just you, and nopony else,” she said, and visibly steeled her nerves. “I think I’d be okay to give you a repeat performance—of course only if you want me to—on the stage my friends set up out back. I’ve still got some of the poison joke mixture that Zecora mixed up. It wouldn’t sound anywhere near as good if it is just me and without Rarity, Torch Song, and Toe Tapper singing along though,” she admitted.

Cheerilee’s head screamed ‘yes!’ and started to do the most enthusiastic and/or embarrassing dance that she could remember from her youth, luckily her lips and the rest of her body were a lot more sensible. “Not right now,” she said, raising a hoof reluctantly. “You see I found myself quite... moved by your performance in a way I’ve never thought of before. Please, I have to ask, are you seeing anypony?”

Fluttershy leaned back on the sofa and flushed pink. “No, why..." The pink swiftly burned into crimson, and the mare shook herself a few times. When Cheerilee was beginning to think that she'd broken the other mare entirely by asking such a forward question, she said, "Why do you ask?” Her voice was timid, but Cheerilee had just enough wits left to notice that the other mare’s eyes were currently tracing the contours of her cutie mark.

“Err...” Cheerilee failed to say anything. She’d never been any good at this.

“Are you sure you don’t want that tea?” Fluttershy asked, her wings had flared and she was clearly looking for an opportunity to bolt, as far as Cheerilee understood pegasus body language.

Cheerilee pulled her eyes away from the white bunny that was doing gestures behind Fluttershy’s head that she was sure that no civilised rabbit should know. “I was wondering... I was thinking..." She paused. "Maybe you’d like to go dancing sometime?" she blurted out quickly in one unbroken sentence.

“Really?” Fluttershy replied after all of about two seconds. “Oh yes, very much so, if you really wouldn't mind,” Fluttershy said, putting her hooves around Cheerilee’s neck and pulling her into a hug. Fluttershy's forehead creased. "Um... not that I want to intrude or anything, and it's totally alright if you don't want to say anything about it... but, aren't you getting married to Big Macintosh?"

Cheerilee stared at Fluttershy with her mouth hanging open.

"I mean I really, really think that I could like you," Fluttershy said quietly, with her eyes hooded. "But I'd hate to upset Big Macintosh, he's such a nice, gentle stallion. Applejack would be mad too, and ponies would say such nasty things behind our backs." She sighed. "Oh Fluttershy, you naughty home-wrecker you," she added softly to herself.

"Fluttershy," Cheerilee said seriously, still holding the other mare in her hooves. "I'm not with Big Macintosh. He really is just a friend."

Fluttershy's lips pursed, and the light of hope came back into her eyes. "And you do like mares..." she flushed scarlet again. "Y'know, that way?"

"I don't," Cheerilee said, and then quickly added, as she saw Fluttershy's face start to fall, "But for the mare that can sing like that... That disguised voice may have got my notice, but it turns out that it was the joy of performing that I fell for, and for a mare who can do that, now her I'm certainly willing to give a chance."

"Oh, that's wonderful," Fluttershy said excitedly. “Twilight’s always saying how clever you are, and you seem so nice to the foals at the school, so I’m sure that you’ll get along well with all my nature friends.”

Cheerilee reluctantly pulled away as she felt her heart twist inside her. “Maybe this won’t work after all.”

“But why?”

“I’ve always wanted foals of my own,” Cheerilee said, her eyes distant. “My sister has Pinchy and now she’s got her life together I barely get to dote on her at all like I used to. I know we could adopt, but...”

“Oh,” Fluttershy said, and shook her head, “that’s not a problem at all!”

“What?”

“I was just talking to Twilight about this last week actually,” Fluttershy said, growing more and more excited. “Trixie wants to wait, as she’s on the road with her shows so much as it is, and Twilight does have her new responsibilities as a princess that she’s still getting used to, but they’ve already picked out a spell to allow them to have a foal of their own for when they’re ready. I think Twilight said that they’d already decided on the name of Midnight, so they’ve clearly put some thought on it.”

“Back up a second or so there, please,” Cheerilee said, as her brain attempted to translate that combination of words into something that related to reality as she knew it. “You did say Trixie, right? That itinerant magician, fond of talking in the third pony, almost destroyed the town twice? That Trixie?”

“She really is very nice when you get to know her,” Fluttershy said, smiling softly. “And she makes the most amazing cocktails that you wouldn’t believe,” she added, a little dreamily.

“And Twilight is convinced that’ll work?” Cheerilee said, completely stunned inwardly that such a thing was possible. Even with freaky unicorn magic involved, that sounded right at the top of the scale for out there freakiness. A thought crossed her mind that maybe the spell involved gifted parts, and then a certain combination of that particular thought, plus Fluttershy, and along with that voice appeared in her mind’s eye and the room suddenly got a whole lot warmer.

“Very much so, yes,” Fluttershy replied certainly.

Maybe it really could work out, Cheerilee thought, as she leaned in and stole a kiss from Fluttershy’s lips. There was an utterly adorable noise somewhere between a squeak and a gasp, and then Fluttershy lunged forward so fast for a kiss of her own that they both fell off the sofa and onto the floor giggling.

“Are you two wrestling? That looks like fun, can I have a go?”

Cheerilee and Fluttershy shot back off the floor and onto opposite ends of the sofa with matching bright red blushes. It was Fluttershy that got her voice back first. “Um... hello, Pinkie Pie,” she said, to her friend that had unexpectedly turned up in her very open doorway. “What are you doing here?” she asked, her voice a little high strung.

Twilight Sparkle appeared in the doorway beside Pinkie looking somewhat out of breath. “Pinkie,” she said, attempting to not sound annoyed. “You said we were going to do this together.”

Pinkie hung her head. “Sorry, Twilight,” she said, looking thoroughly put out. “It’s just after what you said, I was so eager to apologise to Fluttershy that I didn’t want to wait at all.”

“That’s okay, Pinkie.” Twilight turned to face the room. “Now, Fluttershy,” she said, “Pinkie would like to apologise for...” she trailed off as her eyes caught up with there being another entirely unexpected pony present. “Cheerilee, what are you doing here anyway? Do you need some help on animal care for a class, because I have got textbooks back at the library, y’know?” she added, a little accusingly.

“Um, no,” Cheerilee said, wishing she had the long mane to hide behind like Fluttershy.

“We were just going to get back to what we were doing before we were interrupted, if you don’t mind,” Fluttershy said kindly, but firmly. “Have a nice day you two,”

“Oh, oh!” Twilight said, her eyes widening as she caught on to what had clearly been so recently interrupted. “C’mon, Pinkie.”

“But we just got here?” Pinkie said, her tongue sticking out in her complete lack of comprehension. “And I haven’t even sung the apology song I’d written yet either.”

“Apparently It can wait, and I promise I’ll explain on the way back to town,” Twilight said, and shepherded Pinkie out of the room with the skill born of long practice. “Lets just say I think you’ll have the opportunity to throw a party very soon.”

“Woo! I love surprise parties. Okay, normally I love throwing surprise parties, but I’m sure that throwing a party for a surprise reason would be just as good...”

Fluttershy and Cheerilee listened for a while as the sounds of Pinkie’s stream of consciousness faded away into the distance.

“Are the rest of your friends going to be that easy?” Cheerilee asked, not able to help but being amused.

“Oh, I’m sure about it,” Fluttershy said confidently. “Um... then again...” she said, as second thoughts crossed her face.

“What is it?” Cheerilee said, a little concerned while she tried to work out who Fluttershy could possibly mean.

Fluttershy looked down at the floor. “I am friends with Discord,” she said, then seeing the other mare’s alarmed expression, quickly added, “I’m really sure he’ll be happy that I’m seeing somepony, um... probably.”

Cheerilee fought down the urge to hyperventilate at the idea of the immortal embodiment of chaos vetting her candidacy to being Fluttershy’s potential partner. Really, how bad could it be? she thought to herself.

“So, you really want to just pick straight up where we left off then?” Cheerilee asked, as she attempted to fend off her imagination that was coming up with far too many answers to her previous mental question.

Fluttershy took Cheerilee’s face between her hooves and kissed her hard.

When Fluttershy finally pulled away, leaving them both breathing heavily, she asked “What do you think?”

Cheerilee smiled back, as she figured that maybe this just might work out nicely after all. To be with a pony like this, apparently not gender and not even Discord himself, wasn’t an obstacle as far as she was now concerned, and willingly leaned in for another.