The Ponyville market was, at its height, a hub of activity for the town. Earth ponies, pegasi and unicorns alike all gathered here to buy whatever they needed, be it food, clothing, or perhaps a nice-looking trinket to decorate their homes. The stalls were full of fine wares for sale, and their vendors were calling out anypony who would listen. Amongst all of the prospective customers and simple passers-by was Fluttershy, bearing a pair of saddle-bags upon her back. She walked from stall to stall, looking at all the foods and other items on display, thinking over what to buy for herself. Eventually, she caught sight of a particular display of fruits, including many fine cherries, both red and yellow. Smiling at seeing this, she trotted over, looking the fruit over before looking up to the vendor. It was a burly stallion who, quite frankly, looked as if he hadn't even noticed her. She opened her mouth, attempting to speak up, but her words were hushed and barely audible, which was certainly not enough to get the guy's attention. In the end, she simply squeaked a little after fearing she wasn't going to get noticed, which, ironically, is what ended up causing the stallion to finally turn towards her. When he caught sight of her, his eyes snapped open and he put on a massive smile before speaking up in a cheerful manner.

"Well howdy, little lady! This ere is the best bumper crop of cherries you'll ever see! Brought in all the way from the great Cherry Jubilee orchards of Dodge Junction! Can ah interest y'all in a maybe two sacks to take with ya?"

Fluttershy's eyes widened with the prospect of taking that many cherries home with her, and tried talking the guy into offering less. However, yet again, her words were quiet, and as the stallion started filling up one massive sack full of his cherries, she grew increasingly worried.

"Um...I...er...I don't..."

Only when he turned to offer the sack to her did he finally notice her unhappy look, at which point she simply looked away, almost ashamed at having him look at her. Raising an eyebrow at that, the stallion scratched his head briefly before speaking up to her.

"Er...Miss? Are ya okay?"

Fluttershy looked to him again, opening her mouth to speak. But, even more hushed words were her response, and the stallion struggled to understand even the smallest of the words he was hearing. With a blush of embarrassment crossing her face, Fluttershy simply squeaked again before, to the stallion's surprise, swiftly charging away from his stall, leaving him quite confused. As for the mare herself, she continued running through the crowds, with many of them showing confusion as to what she was running from, while others simply ignored her. Eventually, she happened upon a currently-unused stall, darting behind it and crouching down to the ground, hidden from everypony else. The young pegasus was, in all honesty, right on the verge of hyperventilating from her experience. However, as she tried to steady her breathing, it was here that a familiar voice called to her.

"Fluttershy?"

Her eyes snapped open as she looked to her left, and there, standing with worried look on their faces, were three of her friends; Rarity, Pinkie Pie and Trixie. They all gave each other concerned looks before rushing forward, moving to meet her. When they arrived, Rarity buckled down to Fluttershy's level before placing a hoof upon her shoulder.

"Good heavens, Darling! What in Equestria happened to you?"

Fluttershy's response was little more than a whimper on her part, and yet, her friends stood by her, patiently waiting for her to let them know what was wrong. Eventually, while looking to the ground in shame, Fluttershy nervously raised a hoof and pointed around the corner, to the vendor she'd spoken to, who, at this point, had got himself another customer. Looking to the stallion, understanding crossed Rarity's face as she gave a slight nod, turning back to Fluttershy.

"Darling, there's no need to feel ashamed at this. If you feel uncomfortable talking to him, then you feel uncomfortable."

Hearing those words, Trixie raised an eyebrow before adding her own voice to the mix.

"Um...is talking to the guy really that hard?"

Rarity's head snapped in her direction and, almost immediately, she rose up and moved Trixie aside, whispering to her so Fluttershy couldn't hear, all while the latter was now being comforted by Pinkie Pie.

"Look, I know you're new to Ponyville and all, Trixie, but you have to understand something important. Fluttershy is...well...not that good as speaking to ponies. Unless you're a close friend, like she is with us, she can barely get a word out."

Trixie looked to the timid mare before turning back to Rarity.

"I...guess I've noticed that, but...I never realised it was this bad."

Rarity gave a solemn nod at that.

"She's always been like this, for about as long as I've known her. It's something she's always struggled with. Rainbow and Applejack have tried helping her on occasion, but..."

The fashionista didn't finish that sentence, but then, she didn't need to, for her meaning was as plain as day; Fluttershy had never managed to overcome her fears. Looking to the yellow mare, Trixie appeared deep in thought over the matter, before eventually sighing. Her expression softened and she walked right past Rarity, with the latter watching her carefully. Trixie moved right up to Fluttershy, gaining her attention, before dropping down to her own knees and speaking softly to her.

"Look...I can't claim to know just how bad this is for you, but...I remember when I was afraid to go in front of others too."

Fluttershy looked to her, curiosity all over her face, prompting Trixie to explain herself.

"You see...before I became the show-mare that you all saw in my first visit to Ponyville, I was actually not all that good on the stage. I'd choke, forget my lines, sometimes I'd even mis-cast a spell because I was so nervous. But, I kept at it, and do you know why?"

Silently, Fluttershy shook her head, which led to Trixie smiling slightly.

"Because I knew that, if I didn't, then nothing was going to go well for me. And when I realised that, I knew that standing my ground was the only way I was ever going to get anywhere."

Fluttershy looked to her, thinking over those words a great deal. However, before Trixie had a chance to say anything else, she was interrupted when Pinkie Pie spoke up in her usual bubbly manner.

"But this is really difficult for her! I mean, she goes up to some stallion and tries talking to him, but her words just get all stuck in her mouth as his eyes are on her, staring into her soul and making her feel..."

"PINKIE!!!" Trixie and Rarity called out at once.

The pink mare stopped, looking confused briefly before slowly turning, wherein she found that Fluttershy had become borderline catatonic over her friend's vivid description of her anxiety. Giggling nervously, Pinkie took on a genuinely apologetic look before silently slinking off to the side. Shaking her head at this, Rarity stepped forward, gently placing her hoof upon Fluttershy's shoulder in an attempt to calm her.

"As hesitant as I am to make you feel uncomfortable, dear...perhaps Trixie is right about this."

The way the young pegasus looked to her unicorn friend made it clear that she felt she had a point, but, as always, was loathe to actually SAY anything about it. Seeing this reaction, Trixie sighed slightly before looking as if she'd just gained an idea. She cleared her throat, gaining the other three mares' attention, before quietly pointing to another nearby vendor, a mare this time. They looked to her with confusion, while she returned that look with a knowing smile, after which she began to walk off towards the vendor. Eventually, she arrived there and began to look at her wares, a selection of vegetables, most notably some potatoes and carrots. The blue unicorn used her magic to pick one up, carefully inspecting it, at which point the sales-mare finally noticed her. Much the like the previous vendor, she put on a smile that was common amongst those trying to sell something, but remained silent as her prospective customer continued to examine her carrot. After a long moment of silence between the two, with the other three mares still watching carefully, Trixie gave a single nod before placing the carrot upon the front desk, at which point, she finally spoke.

"Yes...this is a suitable carrot. I will give you three bits for it."

Upon hearing that, the mare's smile faded somewhat.

"Um...I'm sorry, Miss, but the standard price for one of our carrots is five bits."

Trixie frowned slightly.

"Yes, I know. However, I noticed that this one has a few bruises on it, and is, in fact, quite old, yes?"

Looking nervously, the mare began to look at the carrot carefully, at which point she realised that the vegetable was indeed in the state that Trixie described it.

"Well...so it is. I...er...I suppose I could always sell it to you for four bits."

Trixie raised an eyebrow at that.

"Indeed? You expect this condition to warrant a reduction of only one?"

At this point, the other mare was looking somewhat indignant.

"Look, Miss, I'm sure there are plenty of other ponies who'd be happy to buy this carrot at the stated price.

Those words prompted a chuckle from Trixie.

"Oh? You intend to push a sub-standard carrot on other ponies for full price, then?"

"Yes!" the other mare replied, proudly.

However, that look of pride soon vanished when she realised what she'd just admitted to. Immediately, and rather predictably, she began to speak in a flustered manner, all in a vain attempt to justify or explain away what she was doing, all while Trixie just stood there with a stoic look on her face. In the end, the vendor let out a sigh of defeat and slumped her shoulders, reaching out with her hoof while giving Trixie a somewhat irritated look. Looking more than a little triumphant, Trixie used her magic to levitate three bit coins out of her saddle-bags and into the hooves of the vendor, after which the latter gave her the carrot. After accepting it, Trixie gave a smile and a nod before turning around, heading back to the other mares. When she finally reached them, Fluttershy was staring at her with her mouth agape.

"How...how did you do that?"

Smiling, Trixie put her carrot into her bag before giving the young pegasus her answer.

"Practise, my friend. Practise."

However, Fluttershy immediately gained her usual nervous look, turning away from her.

"Oh! But...I don't think I could do that!"

Smiling softly, Rarity stepped forward and placed her hoof upon her friend's shoulder.

"Maybe not now. But we'll help you. all of us."

Fluttershy looked to her, and then to Pinkie Pie, and then finally to Trixie, seeing the nods and smiles of agreement they all wore. It took some time, but eventually, she put on an appreciative smile, returning their nod. As one might expect after a situation like this, Pinkie immediately began an unannounced group hug, embracing Fluttershy with the other two not far behind. It was, needless to say, a sweet and tender moment between the four mares, but, like all good things, it eventually came to an end. However, when it did, Fluttershy turned as she heard Trixie clear her throat. Without saying a word, the former show-mare pointed to yet another vendor, this one a stallion who appeared to be selling some second-hoof books on his stall. She said nothing, but the message was still clear; that this guy should be somepony that Fluttershy attempted her assertiveness on. Looking at the guy, Fluttershy took a deep breath and, with her friends close behind her, stepped forward to begin her practise.