As was so often the case when Fluttershy’s home was concerned, everything was as calm and peaceful as a dream. Being so far away from the main area of the town of Canterlot, scarcely a single sound could be heard, save for the tweets of birds, the rustling of trees as the wind blew by, or even the splash of the pond out front as some fish jumped from it. Indeed, this place was about as far removed from the hustle and bustle of everyday modern life as one could ever hope to get, and for Fluttershy, that suited her quite well. However, right now, she was not in her beloved cottage, but rather, further into the green and pleasant woodland it sat by. There, she was sitting on a log, which itself was situated by a small stream, looking at everything around her with a smile upon her face. But, she was not alone here today, for there, sitting beside her, was none other than Sonata, the youngest Siren sister.

The blue-haired girl looked to her host with a degree of nervousness upon her face, though remained silent as Fluttershy appeared deep in thought. Then, the latter raised a hand, bringing it to her throat as she let out a small cough, clearing it somewhat. With that done, Sonata watched as the other girl took in a deep breath, after which she began to let out a low hum. Soon enough, however, that hum evolved into a louder outright song, though it was largely just the sound of her voice, rather than any real lyrics. It was a beautiful thing to hear, and from the look on Sonata’s face, it was clear that she was enjoying listening to it. The song went on for some time, with Fluttershy still smiling all the way, until, at last, she brought it to a close. Slowly, she turned to Sonata, who was still beaming at her, and blushed slightly at the attention. As for Sonata herself, she was far more enthusiastic about this.

“Wow, Fluttershy! That was…beautiful!”

Taking a strand of her own hair, Fluttershy twirled it in her fingers while keeping her gaze away from Sonata.

“Thank you, Nata. It wasn’t so long ago that I was actually afraid of singing in front of others. If it wasn’t for my friends, Rainbow and the others, I’d still be keeping my songs to myself.”

Sonata nodded at that, though was clearly taken aback by it.

“Good thing they helped you. A voice like that should be heard, not locked away!”

Turning to her at last, Fluttershy put on a small smile of her own.

“Thank you.”

But, it wasn’t long after that when Fluttershy’s expression became one of concern, as if she was worried about what it was that she was going to say next.

“Um…are…are you okay? With singing, I mean?”

Immediately, Sonata’s smile faded, and instead, she looked away, raising a hand and holding it up to her bare throat. Fluttershy looked at that spot, the place where her magical amulet had once been, and could feel the discomfort going through the girl. One look at her face told her everything she needed to know, that singing had been a big part of her life. It wasn’t just for power, like it might have been for Adagio or Aria back in the day. No, for Sonata, singing was far more than that. It was something she loved, something she considered and important part of her life. And as such, Fluttershy couldn’t help but feel a pang of guilt at having had a hand in taking that away from her. As for Sonata, after a long silence, she let out a sigh.

“I’ve…I’ve been trying to get back to how I used to be. Back to the kind of singing I could do…before.”

Looking down at the ground, she shook her head a little, after which she looked up to Fluttershy.

“But…I just can’t do it. Every time I try…the words and the sounds…they’re all wrong. Like…like I was never meant to sing at all!”

Seeing the despondent look on her face, Fluttershy scooted over on the log, gently placing a hand upon her guest’s shoulder.

“There there. I’m sure everything will be alright.”

Sonata looked at her with an uncharacteristic amount of incredulity.

“How? You never needed the help of magic to make your voice sound beautiful. But me, and my sisters…ever since we came to this world, our amulets were our voices. It wasn’t like back in Equestria where they were a part of us. Sending us to this place…it separated our voices, made it something outside of us. Something…that could be broken.”

Looking away, Sonata’s expression was one of sadness.

“And now…it is broken. And I…I can’t fix it.”

To say that Fluttershy was unhappy seeing the girl like this would have been a great understatement. If Fluttershy had one great strength, it was that she truly felt for others. Be it animal or human, if she saw that someone was hurting, she wanted to help, just like how Pinkie always wanted to put a smile on everyone’s faces. Slowly, Fluttershy thought about something, though was hesitant to bring it up. Burt, in the end, she cleared her throat, getting Sonata’s attention. After a while, the pink-haired girl put on another small smile before speaking sweetly to her.

“You know…I could help you…if you like.”

Sonata seemed taken aback by that offer, prompting Fluttershy to continue.

“It’s just…well…I’ve been doing a lot of singing in my spare time and…er…I’d like to help you…if you’re willing.”

But Sonata just sat there, seeming very unsure about all this.

“I…I don’t know if you can help me.”

But Fluttershy shook her head at that.

“Oh, I’m sure we can do something. In fact…why don’t you try a little singing right now?”

Sonata’s head snapped in her direction, looking, of all things, nervous. But Fluttershy was unconcerned with this.

“There’s no need to worry. I promise you I won’t make fun or judge.”

Sonata considered that, poking her index fingers against each other for a few moments, before finally letting out a sigh, her shoulders slumping as if in defeat. Getting up from the log, she cleared her throat, much like Fluttershy had done before, opened her mouth, and then started to belt out a tune. Immediately, Fluttershy could hear what the other girl had been worried about. From the sound of it, it seemed like she was trying to replicate that same chorus tune that she and the other Dazzlings had used when they were together, the one that started off that big song in the cafeteria. But, much like Sonata had warned her, the notes were all wrong, and the music sounded broken. So bad was the singing, that a pair of birds that had been watching from the nearby tree branches actually flew away in fear of it. Eventually, Sonata stopped, and looked down to Fluttershy, nervously waiting for her verdict. The latter opened her mouth trying to think of something nice to say, only to close it again and look away, leading to a despondent look from Sonata.

“You think it’s bad, don’t you?”

The way Fluttershy avoided her gaze told her everything she needed, and so she sat back down on the log, burying her face in her hands. In time, Fluttershy turned to look at her once more, and, seeing this saddened state she was in, let out a sigh before putting her hand on her back.

“Sonata…I think…I think what you need to realize is that, your voice…it’s the voice of a singer who isn’t bad, just…out of practise.”

The blue girl turned to her, clear confusion upon her face.

“But…we’ve been singing for centuries!”

Fluttershy nodded.

“I know…but when you came to this world, those voices weren’t yours anymore. They were the voices cause by all that mean magic. It was fake…made up. Your real voices, the ones you were left with…they were ignored, left to wither, so now…”

Sonata turned, placing a hand on her throat again.

“…and now they sound terrible.”

Fluttershy, unable to lie to the girl, simply gave a nod, though nevertheless kept smiling.

“Sonata…can I tell you a secret?”

The Siren looked to her and gave a single nod, prompting her to continue.

“I used to be bad at singing myself once.”

Sonata looked at her as if she’d just said the most ridiculous thing in the world.

“But…your singing! It’s so…”

Nodding, Fluttershy spoke up before her friends could finish.

“I know. But I wasn’t born with that voice, Sonata. It took time. Like Rarity with her dress making, or Rainbow with her sports. Nobody ever starts out as brilliant. It takes…practise. And I did practise, a lot. I was alone for a lot of it, never wanting others to see me, but in the end, I worked on my singing so much that…well…it’s what you hear today.”

Sonata looked away from her, still seeming unsure about all of this.

“I know I can practise…but…you remember how good I used to sing. How good we all used to sing. My sisters and me…our voices were so…beautiful. I’ll…I’ll never be that good again.”

Fluttershy considered that for a moment, giving a small nod in response.

“Maybe not. But, given time, I’m sure you can be good in your own right, and this time, with your own voice. Wouldn’t that be better? Wouldn’t you be happier knowing that the beautiful song coming out of you was yours, and not…not from a magic necklace?”

Sonata looked to her, and for a moment, looked as if she was thinking the matter over carefully. In the end, she let out a sigh, nodding in response.

“Yeah…I guess I would.”

Smiling at that, Fluttershy got up from the log, turned to her friend and offered a hand.

“In that case…let me help you. We can start right here…if you want.”

Sonata looked at the offered hand, and remained nervous about all this. But, one look at Fluttershy’s face, at the sincerity of her expression, and the Siren knew, in her heart, that this girl was going to do everything in her power to give the help that she’d promised to give. So, after a while, the blue girl smiled, taking Fluttershy’s hand and standing up alongside her. With both girls smiling at each other, Sonata, to Fluttershy’s surprise, moved closer and took her in a hug. Although taken aback by that, Fluttershy soon returned the embrace, and a few moments later, they parted. In the silence that followed, Sonata looked around before glancing back to her friend and shrugging her shoulders.

“So…what do we do first?”

Smiling at that, Fluttershy answered.

“Try and hum a note. Just…don’t try and make it loud and big like you did before. Start off small.”

Sonata nodded, and after clearing her throat again, did exactly as she was told, humming a low and quiet note. However, despite not being as forced as her earlier attempts at singing, the sound didn’t sound any more in-tune than it was the first time, and after a few moments of it, Sonata stopped, looking disappointed in herself. But, looking to Fluttershy, she saw that she looked to her with an encouraging expression.

“It’s just day one, Sonata. And you have many more to come.”