Four years, one month after meteor…

Fluttershy smiled. She laughed. She sang.

The constant rain was a testament to her never ending friendship with the ones she loved. It became a bringer of games. Splashing in the puddles with Pinkie Pie. Digging waterways with Applejack. Rarity was even designing a new line of raincoats. She called them ‘fashioncoats’.

Her friends brought her joy. The rain brought her purpose. There was never a time she wondered what she would do in a day, or where she would go, or even who she would spend time with. Her friends all shared her time equally.

A vibration in her bed woke her. Stifling a yawn, Fluttershy poked Angel in the tummy to stop his shaking, hearing a soft click. “Ok, ok, I’m up, sillyhead,” she said, smiling. Angel always made the silliest sounds in the morning.

Yawning, she wondered who would be downstairs this time. Every day one of her friends would be there to greet her, halfway into cooking something wonderful. Fluttershy would smile and help finish preparing. Her friends never ate whatever they made but that never stopped her from partaking. They made the food for her and she wouldn’t hurt their feelings by refusing.

She stumbled sleepily into the bathroom to splash some water on her face. Pipes ran down from the ceiling into the tub and sink, harnessing the rainwater when necessary. A rope beside the pipes would open the hatch on top and allow rain in. Eyes half open, she bit the rope beside the sink and pulled gently. Water slowly filled the sink. When it was halfway full, she let go of the rope and used her hooves to splash her face.

“Eep!” she cried and stepped back from the sink hurriedly. The water was freezing cold. “Did it get trapped in the pipe?” Fluttershy wondered out loud. Since she could remember, the rain had always been warm. She stared a question at the pipe jutting from the ceiling. Shaking her head, “Must be clogged…”, she toweled herself off, as awake as she was going to get.

Trotting to the staircase, she opened her wings slightly and glided down silently, hoping to catch her friend by surprise. It had taken a few tries, and bruises, to get the move down right. Smiling as her hooves hit the bottom of the steps, she slowly crept to the kitchen and peeked in.

But it was empty.

Frowning, Fluttershy stood and walked in, head swiveling left and right. No pony was there. No food was being prepared either.

Dark thoughts flittered across her mind: ponies injured, too sick to move, in dire need of help. But Fluttershy snorted, “No pony gets hurt anymore.”

Still, it was odd that after months of morning breakfasts her friends would suddenly not be there. Something must have been going on in Ponyville. With a sigh, Fluttershy began to make a salad, alone.

Fluttershy’s mood brightened as she finished the last few leaves of her salad. She had figured it out. Her friends wanted her to think they’d forgotten all about their daily breakfasts together so she would storm into Ponyville searching for them! They must have a surprise waiting for her there…

The thought of how thoughtful her friends were made her shiver with excitement. Something amazing must be set up in town, most likely in the Town Hall! Yes, that had to be it!

Tossing her bowl in the sink to be cleaned later, Fluttershy skipped across the room to where Angel sat on the couch. His little tummy jutted out slightly under the coat she had wrapped him in. He loved his little coat and refused to take it off. She smiled down at him, “Want to come into town with me today, my little Angel?” He smiled but shook his fuzzy head. The rain, no matter how warm, soaked his little coat too much for him.

Fluttershy understood and kissed his forehead, “I’ll see you later, then!” She resumed her skipping to the door, ignoring the coatrack. The warm rain no longer bothered her. Hoof raised, she threw her front door open.

Icy-cold rain and a chilling breeze immediately assaulted her.

The pegasus stumbled backwards into the house, stunned by the chill. She crept slowly to the doorway, where rain drizzled in at an angle, and stuck out her hoof. The rain that touched it sent shivers up her body. “What…?” she said softly, “Why is…”

The room around her seemed to shake for a moment. Fluttershy shut her eyes quickly and shook her head. “It’s alright, I’ll just wear my raincoat…” she said to Angel. She turned and smiled at him, “The weather’s turning a bit chilly, that’s all.”

He smiled back at her.

The raincoat kept the rain from soaking her hair but did little to fight the cold air. Though the path to Ponyville was not too long, Fluttershy found herself shivering violently halfway there.

It was an odd sensation, one she hadn’t felt in ages, and it frightened her. The thick, dark clouds only enhanced her fear. They made visibility poor, though she could have made the trip blind had she wanted to. Though, she never, ever wanted to.

At least there’s no thunder, she thought. Saying anything aloud shifted the raincoat away from her face and let in the cold. She was stuck in her own head for the time being.

After what seemed an eternity, Ponyville proper came into view. The path turned from dirt to stone. Houses on either side rose up out of the gloom. Ponies, not minding the rain one bit, chatted with one another about their days.

Fluttershy frowned. Normally she would stop and chat with any pony on her path, but the cold weather ruined that. There was no way for her to make…speak with the ponies around her outside, and it would be…inconvenient to ask them all to go inside. Staring longingly at them, it almost seemed as if they stared off into nothing…

But Fluttershy was quick to close her eyes and take a deep breath to calm herself. I don’t need to be near them, she thought, I never did…

When she opened her eyes, a wave of sound washed over her. Fluttershy shut her eyes and cried out softly. It was almost too much for her to handle and she started to reject it, but stopped herself. They were voices she hadn’t heard in so long, lost in the recesses of her mind.

But she didn’t need to hear them all.

Slowly, the far off voices faded out until only the ones nearby remained. It was hard to only focus on those nearby. She had to stare at each pony individually until their voice was picked out. The cold forced her to keep moving while she mentally worked. Some voices were harder to remember than others, some she might not have gotten right at all, but that was alright…

…took the trash out and found a bit on the floor…

…never made anything so delicious…

…that Fluttershy is so helpful…

One by one they spoke. She saw their lips move, their tongues wag, their tails shake. They all truly…

…came to life…

The Town Hall was one of the largest buildings in Ponyville. It speared the sky in the center of a grassy plaza. Fluttershy spotted it long before she was near it, even through the gloom.

Voices continued to speak around her but her thoughts trailed ahead. Were her friends really there, waiting for her? She couldn’t know. Hearing the townsponies speak again had temporarily lifted her spirits, but a cloud of worry followed her. It had been a long time since her friends had spoken without her…assistance, permanently injured as they had been by the meteor.

The events of that day seemed a lifetime ago. Looking around at ponies shopping, chatting, playing, it was hard to imagine such a tragic event had occurred at all. It was thanks to Twilight Sparkle that any pony had survived that day. Her magic had stopped the meteor from blasting everyone and everything Fluttershy knew to cinders.

The thought of such an event sent more shivers down her already shivering body.

Magic came with a cost, however. Everypony had come away injured and in need of care. Fluttershy had cared for every single one of them until they could walk. They had still needed help speaking, however, and could only do so when Fluttershy was near to help.

Yes, of course, that had been the truth for years. But now it was different. Seemingly overnight, everypony had made a miraculous recovery and regained their ability to speak on their own. The cold weather must have had a hand in it…

She stepped onto muddy grass and realized she had reached the plaza. The Town Hall loomed ahead. Lights were on inside. A little voice inside cried in dismay at the thought of leaving precious lights on overnight, but it was quickly drowned out. Of course the lights weren’t kept on overnight, she thought, no pony is that irresponsible.

The double doors to the building were closed. Running the last few meters to the overhang, Fluttershy reared up and pressed the doors open with her front hooves. Heat rushed out. She scrambled inside and slammed the doors closed before all the heat could escape.

Inside, normal candles along with magic candles that would never melt lit the Hall. The Hall was circular and the candles sparse, so only the first and second floors of were lit. High above, the ceiling was nothing but darkness. It looked like it went on and on forever.

Rain pattered against the windows, but Fluttershy ignored the sound instinctively. Another sound hit her mind, hushed voices…there! All the way across the room stood her friends: Applejack, Rarity, Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie all froze in various stages of unpacking boxes. She had caught them red hoofed!

“Ah ha!” Fluttershy said as she lowered her coat’s hood, “I knew I’d find you all here!”

Her friends, obviously shocked at being found out so quickly, stayed still. “We were going to tell you, Fluttershy,” Twilight said, “But we wanted to get started as soon as possible.”

Fluttershy could feel the darkness above her churn as her friend spoke. At that moment, she would have forgiven her friend for any misdeed. Smiling wide, Fluttershy skipped over to her friends.

The boxes all appeared old and dusty. A few, including the one Rainbow Dash was leaning against, looked like they were about to fall apart. Fluttershy quickly had Rainbow Dash cease her leaning and asked, “What is all this stuff for?”

Rarity laughed softly and said, “For the gala, of course!” The box beside her was open, revealing streamers of all colors, only slightly faded.

“The gala?” Fluttershy asked, confused. “The gala is in Canterlot, isn’t it? And no pony has been allowed there in years…”

Her reminder of the event long ago served to silence the room for a moment as everypony within remembered. While the meteor caused no damage to Ponyville, it did destructive damage to Canterlot, so much so that Celestia and Luna had not been seen for years as they worked their magic to restore the city.

Fluttershy came out of their silent contemplation first, “We can’t have the gala without the princesses,” she said softly.

“Well, we’ll just have to make do,” Applejack replied with a huff, “We haven’t had ourselves a real party in ages! I think it’s high time for one, don’t you?”

Closing her eyes, Fluttershy mulled it over. She usually went along with her friend’s ideas, only occasionally putting a damper on them due to heavy rain. But this event was inside…

With a hop of excitement, “A gala is exactly what we need!”

Pinkie Pie giggled and started hopping with her. All her other friends laughed.

It was the best moment she had had in years.

Fluttershy knew it would take more than a single day of preparation before the Town Hall was fit for a gala. Unfortunately, the first day of work had to be cut short as she had forgotten to bring lunch in her rush to find her friends.

Apologizing, Fluttershy slipped on her coat and walked back out into the rain. It had lessened slightly. Before she could walk out from under the Hall’s overhang, a voice called out to her. She turned and was nose to nose with the Mayor. The glasses wearing pony stood to the side of the double doors leading in.

“Fluttershy, how good to see you!” she said with a smile. Fluttershy smiled back but stayed quiet. The Mayor already knew about the plans to use the Town Hall to house the gala, or so Rarity had said. She had added that the Mayor alluded to something in return as payment.

When it was clear Fluttershy wouldn’t respond, the Mayor continued, “I understand you girls are planning a gala in the Hall. We’ll have to close it down until the gala is prepared and occurs, you see, so I was wondering if you could do me a favor in return?”

Fluttershy tried to keep her smile but it faltered. “I don’t have much money…” she started.

But the Mayor just laughed, “Oh, no, no, dear I don’t mean money. It’s just a simple task, that’s all!” Fluttershy had her doubts but nodded, and the Mayor continued, “You live out by Everfree Forest, close to Zecora? I was wondering if you could fetch a potion she is making for me.”

Time seemed to freeze. Zecora, she thought. Fluttershy remembered everything about the zebra right then, along with the fact that she hadn’t seen heads or tails of her since…Twilight’s spell saved them all. In all her trips through Everfree Forest, she had never stumbled across Zecora’s hut nor the zebra herself. She wasn’t even sure where it was anymore…

Fluttershy opened her mouth to politely decline, but shut it just as quick. The Mayor could shut down the gala in a heartbeat if she didn’t get what she wanted. The pegasus didn’t have a choice…

“I…I’ll do it…” she squeaked out.

Smiling, the Mayor said, “Wonderful! Meet me back here when you’ve got it.”

Nodding, Fluttershy turned and walked out into the rain towards home.

“…no, no, stay still…”

Angle frowned up at her.

“I know you don’t like it, but do it for me, please?”

The rain coat covered every inch of him except for his little bunny face, which continued to frown up at her sadly. Fluttershy had tried to make him as rainproof as possible so he could accompany her into Everfree Forest, but Angel disliked it all. He wanted to stay home where it was warm and dry. And Fluttershy was getting closer and closer to agreeing with him.

But the gala meant the world to her friends, and she wouldn’t let them down. Maps of the forest were scattered all over the dining room table. Blades of grass made a trail through the woods to where Fluttershy thought Zecora’s hut was.

Angel wiggled in his thick coat wrapped in the rain coat. Fluttershy patted his head absently while staring at the map. She had spent the previous might fishing through her maps in preparation. Getting lost in Everfree wasn’t on her list of things to do that day.

The pack she wore was as waterproof as Angel. Of course, she would need to find some shelter before opening it so as not to spoil everything inside with rain. And the only reliable shelter she would find was Zecora’s hut.

Fluttershy sighed. In another time she might have been scared, but now she only felt tired. The trip would go off without a hitch, she knew that. Just as she knew the gala would. And any event afterwards.

Peace had always been her goal in life. Having everypony live in harmony was a dream she thought she would never see. But here it was, every day.

And as much as the thought worried her, peace and quiet was beginning to get…boring.

She shook her head and the thoughts within it. “This is what I wanted,” she said allowed, “This is my dream come true…”

Fluttershy slipped on her pack and went to Angel, but he wiggled away when she tried to tie him to her. She frowned, “Come on, Angel, it’s time to go.”

But his frown turned into a pout and she stopped. Sighing, “Fine,” she said, “I’ll be back soon.” She kissed him on the forehead and turned to go.

Her eyes took one quick glance at the map before she headed out the door and back into the rain.

She could imagine the sun already passed its zenith overhead, though there was no sign of it through the clouds. The day would be gone before she’d return from the forest. Her friend’s relied on her to coordinate the gala and would slow with her there.

Fluttershy just sighed. They would push back the gala if she wished it. That’s the kind of friends they were. There was no need to worry about it.

There was never any need to worry about anything.

Her hooves made fresh grooves in the dirt as trees enveloped her on every side. Everfree used to be lush, green as far as the eye could see. The rain had soaked the leaves through and, one by one, they had fallen off. Now the trees looked like dragon talons reaching into the sky.

Fluttershy wished Angel was with her. Though he rarely responded to her on their trips, just having him there was comforting.

Her mind raced ahead to Zecora’s hut. How long had it been now? How long since the meteor? Though she knew years had passed, Fluttershy had never bothered to count them. Would it even still be there?

Had Zecora, so far from Twilight’s protective magic, survived?

Fluttershy snorted and shook her head. Survive? Of course she did. Even without Twilight’s magic, Zecora would have found a way.

A shiver ran through Fluttershy. She looked to the side and saw, in a dark shadow, two red eyes staring at her. Othershy had been content to watch and wait for a long time now. She’d been poking her head out every day for a week, however. It unnerved Fluttershy, like the shadowy pony knew something she didn’t and was waiting for it to happen.

But she wasn’t able to dwell on those thoughts as a structure came into view. It was a tall, simple hut. The meteor’s touch had scorched it black along one side but it looked little worse for wear. Whatever it was made from hadn’t burned.

Letting out a sigh of relief at the sight, Fluttershy opened her mouth to announce herself. The door to the hut opened inward slightly and Fluttershy’s mouth shut tight. But no pony emerged.

Now more frightened than relieved, Fluttershy walked slowly up to the hut. Behind her she could feel Othershy’s gaze. Swallowing her fear, the pegasus ran the last few feet and pushed the door completely open.

The hut was a mess inside. Very little light made it through the thick, dusty windows. Glass bottles had shattered under the heat and spilt their boiling contents onto the shelves and floor, staining them strange colors. The masks and fetishes adorning the walls had a charred look like the outside of the house. Even the cauldron in the center of the room had cracked. Half the hut was shrouded in shadow. From where Fluttershy stood in the entrance, she couldn’t see into the next room at all.

“Hello?” Fluttershy called softly. She was now convinced the wind had opened the door, but Zecora should still be inside. What if she was hurt? “Zecora? It’s me, Fluttershy.”

No response.

How did Zecora speak again? Rhymes? “Ah…um…” Fluttershy said, trying to think up one. But Zecora wouldn’t speak if she wasn’t here…

Gulping, Fluttershy took a few steps into the hut. On the shelf beside her stood a few un-shattered glass bottles with some liquid inside. Was one of these what the Mayor wanted?

Now deeper inside, Fluttershy could make out shapes in the next room. Was that a pony-like one? It could be Zecora…

“Um…Zecora, if you’re here, is this what the Mayor wanted?” she asked the darkness.

Nothing stirred.

“Uh…” coughing once, Fluttershy covered her mouth with a hoof, “The bottles there are what she desired, take but one before they are expired.”

Smiling, “Thanks,” Fluttershy took one of the bottles and put it in her pack. She turned and made for the door.

“Come again with light, and you will not have a fright.”

Fluttershy froze. Zecora was there, in the darkness, speaking. Like her friends had? The pegasus looked to the darkness in the next room but still nothing moved. Certainly Zecora would have moved if she could…it must be too dark and she might stumble. Of course…

“I’ll, um…bring some light next time…” Fluttershy said quickly and practically ran out the door. At that moment, there was a fear in her she did not understand.

She could feel Othershy’s eyes watching her as she ran home.

Fluttershy managed to put Zecora out of her mind after devouring lunch and dinner all at once. The resulting stomach ache had her confined to the couch with Angel as the already weak light outside faded to black.

She had long ago outfitted her own house with a few magic candles so that she would never be in total darkness. What little remained no longer bothered her. Nothing really frightened or bothered her much anymore.

That was why just thinking about the fear she had felt at Zecora’s unnerved her so badly. Zecora was fine, obviously. She had survived the meteor’s arrival and was living well.

In fact, Fluttershy had already known that. It was her that had thought of Zecora first and rushed to her aid, just as she had aided the other ponies of Ponyville.

A smile slowly crept onto her lips. Yes. Of course. How could she have forgotten? She had visited Zecora’s hut countless times over the years, slowly healing the zebra back to health. Zecora herself had visited Ponyville once she had recovered. Like the others, she no longer had to eat or drink or sleep. Some of Twilight’s magic must have reached her…

And just like that, the fear washed away. Fluttershy knew she should be happy at the moment, but her smile faltered.

Of course Zecora was there and fine. Of course.

The pegasus sighed and laid on her side, holding Angel close.

The next day, Fluttershy worked from dawn to dusk in the Town Hall with her friends. It was amazing what they could accomplish together, changing the inside of the plain Town Hall into a room fit for a gala.

Still, it would take more than just one day to get the Hall ready. Fluttershy realized that more than just decorations needed to be placed: holes needed to be cut, rope and wire strung and threaded, pedals placed. As the day wore on and more ideas popped into her head, the scope of the project continued to increase.

Dusk would have come and gone without anypony’s notice had Twilight not yawned. It was that clue that had Fluttershy’s eyes scanning the windows and noticing the gloom. With a frown, she said her farewells to her friends, who insisted on sleeping in the Hall until it was finished, and headed home.

The Mayor stood watch outside like always, looking for any reason to shut down the project until some payout was met. Fluttershy didn’t blame her though. It was her building, after all.

She smiled at the Mayor, the Mayor smiled back, and the rain engulfed her.

Cold. Still the rain was cold. It had cooled to simple warm before, but never had it been cold two days in a row. What was going on?

No matter the weather, ponies still stood outside and chatted away. She didn’t like eavesdropping so Fluttershy started to shy away from them. But they were everywhere. It became obvious that she wouldn’t be able to not hear at least a few ponies talking at any given time in Ponyville.

She supposed that was fine. It felt good to see all her hard work paying off, all the late nights helping everypony get better. As long as they were happy, she’d be happy.

But as the houses gave way to woods, the voices slowly drifted away. There was a buzzing in the back of her head still, and if she tried she could hear them faintly, but she blocked it out instead. Whatever the magic had done to her, she didn’t plan to abuse it.

Here, like in Everfree, the trees were barren from the rain. Fluttershy hoped the decreasing temperature of the downpour meant it would end soon. She wanted to see the trees lush once again.

Her home came into view as she broke from the trees. The river that rain beside it made a constant gurgle. Her wings came out slightly as she stepped onto the bridge over the river. It was in a constant state of repair and she had gotten a hoof stuck through more than once. With a flap of her wings she could avoid it happening again.

But there was something…normal about walking over the bridge that had her doing so instead of gliding over. Maybe it was a reminder of everything that had been before. Before the rain, of course…

Inside, sleep came quickly, pushing out unnecessary thoughts.

Another day arrived, this time with a surprise. Inside the Hall was a large, square metal box on wheels. One side had dials and buttons, and the opposite side had a vent with a spiral wire inside. Fluttershy inspected it while Rarity explained.

“Isn’t it wonderful?” said her unicorn friend, “The weather’s been so cold lately that the chill is creeping into the Hall, so I asked our good friend Pony Joe to donate one of his portable heaters!” Fluttershy’s eyes traced a cord sticking out the machine and ending in two prongs. Rarity followed her friend’s eyes and sighed, “Unfortunately, the rain makes it impossible to get power from Joe’s to here. I asked Twilight to make something similar to what powered her Elements of Harmony machine.”

Nodding, Fluttershy did another walk around the heater. Her mind, sharpened over the years from reading half the books in Twilight’s library, thought over the dilemma. “What if we used a battery? We could charge it up and then we wouldn’t always need a window open to outside to run the heater.”

“That could work,” Applejack said. She had snuck up on the two pony’s conversation and smiled at her own stealth. Fluttershy figured the earth pony rarely got the drop on others. “The only thing is we don’t have one of those battery things.”

Fluttershy thought a moment before saying, “I’ll ask Pony Joe. He had one of these, I’m sure he has some other things stashed away in his basement.”

“It’s lucky this was there at all,” Rarity said with a huff, “It seems like anything electrical was fried by the meteor. It took me three weeks to find a working sewing machine! Three weeks! Do you know how many dresses I could have made in that time?”

“Here we go,” Applejack said with an exasperated sigh, “Rarity, we were all laid up in bed until Fluttershy helped us, there was nothing you coulda made at all.”

“Says the pony who was walking around before any of us!”

Smiling motherly, Fluttershy patted Rarity’s shoulder and said, “Now, now, you’ve had plenty of time to make anything your heart desired since then. Remember last month we made those wonderful gowns! We should wear those to the gala…” Her voice trailed off as Rarity’s eyes sparkled with images of the two of them dancing together in the immaculate dresses they had made.

Applejack rolled her eyes and went back to cutting a hole in the floor. Many mechanical changes needed to be made to the hall, some simple, some complex. Fluttershy hoped half of them would work once they were all complete.

But she wouldn’t act too surprised if all of them did.

Friends and the work helped take Fluttershy’s mind off the zebra living in the woods, but only while they were near. The walks to and from home had her looking deeper into the woods and wondering. All the way, Othershy kept pace.

On the fifth day of work, Fluttershy stopped halfway home. Trees darkened the path all around her, making the already dark night pitch black. She knew the trail by heart anyways. She could have done it backwards. Fluttershy wanted it dark.

She took a deep breath and exhaled. A shiver ran through her from the cold. Now or never, she thought.

“Come out.”

A chill from the side. Why?

“Why have you been following me? I wanted you to leave me alone. Why come out now?”

An unseen but felt smile. You tell me.

“I’m not playing a game with you,” she said, allowing an edge into her voice. “If you’re going to mess up the gala and hurt my friends-”

Laughter. As if I could. What you see is all I can do now.

“Perhaps I should take it all away? Then, maybe, you’d leave me alone!”

Silence.

Fluttershy let the warning hang in the air a moment before saying softly, “Stay away from my friends.” She started walking down the path.

Is Zecora your friend?

Her hooves came to a stop. “Of course she is. I helped nurse her back to health-”

Did you?

“-and just because we don’t see each other often doesn’t mean we aren’t friends,” Fluttershy continued without missing a beat. “In fact, I’m going to go invite Zecora to the gala. I can have a dress made for her in time and-” she stopped talking suddenly.

Othershy was gone. Fluttershy looked all around but couldn’t see or feel her near. Frowning, she started walking home again, continuing the plans for Zecora’s invitation.

Knowing the trip wouldn’t take as long as previously believed, Fluttershy packed light as she headed for Zecora’s the next day. A carrot wobbled in her mouth while she walked, mostly there to distract her from the task at hand.

There was no denying it: Zecora had been out of touch for a long, long time. She could have been hurt, injured badly to the point that she couldn’t move. Fluttershy resisted the urge to pack all her medical supplies. There was no way to know if she was even hurt or not until the pegasus could inspect her.

The zebra might have been putting up a brave front their last meeting. Maybe even-

“Ow!” Fluttershy cried out and stopped. Something small and hard had bonked her right on the top of her head. She heard it hit the ground and looked down. It looked like a small piece of glass. She raised a hoof and nudged it. It rolled and got smaller. “…ice?”

A few clatters here and there around her told her more ice was coming down. She kicked up her legs and ran from there. There were books at home on weather that she wanted to look into immediately, but Zecora came first.

Running only made it so she was hit from an angle instead of from the sky. Fluttershy bit the edge of her coat and pulled it forward to protect her face. The move blocked her vision, however. She hoped she could remember the path correctly.

Twenty hooves west, then the path turns-

Her shoulder glanced a tree and she compensated to stay on the path. She knew these paths, had taken them all her life. Left…now. Fluttershy smiled despite the welts she was getting all over. She flowed along like a river-

WAM!

Darkness.

Fluttershy saw it and knew it, but no longer feared it. It was there, as it always would be. But she didn’t have to acknowledge it. And, in time, perhaps she would find a way to never have to feel it again.

“But that day isn’t today.”

The voice made Fluttershy “turn”. It was difficult to tell direction in the darkness around her. A simple motion could have been more complex then she knew. Everything was so strange here…

“Is it?” Othershy said. Only her glowing red eyes were visible in the blackness.

“Where am I?” Fluttershy asked calmly. No matter the answer, she knew it was nowhere she would be afraid of. Just another place, like any other.

Othershy frowned at her, though Fluttershy had no idea how she knew that as she couldn’t see the other pony’s face. “Bored of your little illusions already?” before the other pony could answer, Othershy said, “You’re the one that’s been calling to me, lately, not the other way around.”

Blinking, confused, “Why would I call to you? Everything-”

“Yes, yes, ‘everything is fine’, right?” the shadow pony said with a sigh. “I’m as lost as you are, and even if you knew you wouldn’t know. That’s how you live, right? By not knowing what you already know?”

“This is a waste of time,” Fluttershy huffed, tired of the other pony already. “Go back to wherever you were hiding and leave me alone.”

“Gladly!” Othershy snarled. Her eyes winked out and…

Light.

Rain drizzled down onto her hoodless face. The hood must have slipped off when she hit…what? Looking up, Fluttershy saw Zecora’s hut before her eyes.

She croaked out, “I haven’t been on this path before…”

With a groan, she hauled herself up. Ice had stopped coming down and the rain had lightened slightly. “Weird weather…” she said out loud and cringed. Her throat was dry.

The door to the hut was just as she had left it: fully open. Peeking in, Fluttershy looked upon the picture perfect image of the room as she had left it. The late afternoon light forced the darkness inside to deepen further.

“Just another place…ow!” Fluttershy’s knees buckled and she brought a hoof to her head. It came away sticky, red. Blood. She let out a groan: she never carried medical supplies on her anymore.

She walked fully inside but left the door open so light could come in. Her pack slid down her back to the ground. Stomach growling, Fluttershy rummaged inside for something to eat. She must have been out longer then she thought…

“I don’t mean to be rude, but did you bring me any food?”

A shiver ran down Fluttershy’s spine. She expected everypony to speak now, but to hear Zecora so perfectly done made her uneasy…still, she was just another pony, er, zebra.

“I only brought enough for myself,” she replied politely, “No pony else can eat anymore because of Twilight’s spell, you know that…”

A silence hung in the room.

“…but you weren’t within Twilight’s spell…so…um…” the ache in her head from her wound got worse as her mind worked. Where was the reason? She knew it, she knew she knew it, but why couldn’t she remember it…

“Ah, it is fine, Fluttershy, I have found a way to get by.”

“Oh,” Fluttershy said, relived. She would remember how Zecora gets by…later. Right now she had to…remember why she had come there in the first place...

A trail of blood ran down her forehead to her nose.

“Your crash made quite a bump; there is a salve beside you for the lump.”

Fluttershy looked to her side and there, on the dusty shelf, was a bowl of white cream. She could have sworn it wasn’t…no, it was there before. In her haste she must have overlooked it the first time she had…no that wasn’t the first time she had visited Zecora’s, it was the…

“Ah…” she brought her head down to her hooves and rubbed her temples. It was so hard to think right then, so hard to remember everything she needed to remember.

“Relax my pony friend; the salve will put you on the mend. Just rub some on your open wound and soon you will be in a better mood.”

Zecora’s rhyming was starting to grate her already frayed nerves. Without a thought, Fluttershy reached up and dipped a hoof into the bowl. She rubbed the cream over where she thought the wound was. Instantly the pain was gone and replaced with a cool sensation. The pegasus smiled and dabbed some more on.

“A lot is not required,” Zecora said but was unheeded, “Though it is better to use it before it expired…”

“Thank you so much!” Fluttershy said, beaming, “What is this made from?”

Though she couldn’t see her, Fluttershy thought Zecora was smirking slightly, “This and that. In Everfree, herbs can be as sly as a cat. You must know what and what not to use, but I’m sure none of them would fool you with their ruse.”

It was certainly true: Fluttershy had read almost a dozen books on the plants and animals that grew…grow…no, grew around and in Equestria. Everfree had always housed the most exotic plants and creatures of the land, so it was no surprise to her that Zecora could find anything she wanted. And anything she couldn’t find here…

“Oh! We’re having a gala in Ponyville next week!” Fluttershy remembered, “I came by to invite you. I can have a dress made for you if you don’t have one on hand.”

“A gala in Ponyville? Shouldn’t Canterlot be where the high class mill?” the darkness seemed to move slightly as Zecora spoke, as if she were shifting her weight back and forth. Shuffling her hooves? Nervous?

Fluttershy smiled, “There won’t be too many, um, ‘high class’ ponies there. Just the ponies of Ponyville.” She took a step towards the darkness in the next room. “We’d love it if you could attend, if that’s alright with you?”

The dark shape that could…was Zecora shrank slightly. “I…will try to attend. If I can’t I do not mean to offend.”

The pegasus just laughed, “No pony would be offended. Just let me know before next week, alright?” She turned to go. “”Oh, one more thing: I’ll be back in a couple of days with some bandages-”

“NO!”

Fluttershy slipped on the step up to the door but caught herself before she fell. The outburst had startled her. She stared into the darkness of the next room in shock.

“Ah…” Zecora said shakily, “I am perfectly healthy, fine and dandy.”

Her eyes stayed wide but Fluttershy nodded. “Alright…well, see you, then.” She started up the steps again. Her ears were up and open, but she didn’t hear Zecora say another word.

Days passed.

Fluttershy found herself working intimately with Twilight and Applejack as they assembled the machinery under the gala floor. She was careful to not get her mane stuck in any of the gears as they test ran the work. There were pulleys and peddles for everything: from curtains to doors to tables. The gala could change in a heartbeat with just a few pulls of rope.

The scope of it was massive, but, as if knowing the event was coming beforehand, many of Ponyville’s residents had items needed to put the event together. Gears and levers were dug out of basements and attics. Rope was borrowed from stores. Beautiful floral arraignments were even put together unknowingly. It always made Fluttershy smile when she stumbled on something right when she needed it.

But the things that made her smile also made her frown. Everything was going…perfectly. None of her friends had argued for days. Anything she ever needed was always on hand or within reach. The heaters, hooked up to large, rechargeable battery generators, were almost complete. Rarity even had the foresight to place them strategically around the Town Hall Square so the entire area could be warmed. She even hinted that with enough heat pointed upwards they could evaporate the rainclouds, temporarily.

Such an amazing discovery was lost on Fluttershy. She went at the work because it got her mind off the thoughts she shouldn’t have been having at all. Why hate a good thing, a great thing? There was no more anger or fear or hate anymore, just love.

Everything was fine… wasn’t it?

“If the ceiling had eyes it would ask why I was staring at it,” Fluttershy said softly to Angel. She held him closer. He stayed awake as long as she did; only sleeping because she liked it when he did. The magic took many things but it would never take feelings away.

The pegasus rolled on her side and adjusted the blanket over herself. Angel stayed neatly tucked close against her. She stared now at the dresser, once cluttered with odds and ends for her animal friends. Then, cluttered with bandages and triage for her pony friends. Now, barren. Anything she needed was already strategically placed around Ponyville.

Her mind flickered to the gala, now only two days away. Rarity and Rainbow Dash were waking early to test the “evaporating raincloud” idea. They had invited her to spend the night, almost begged, but she had refused. She just…wanted to lie in bed and hold Angel and know everything was alright.

Othershy was there, always, but the sensation was ignorable. The shadow pony must have been outside or in the woods. How Fluttershy could always tell, she did not know. There was a connection between her and that pony that she didn’t understand. And the times she had tried to understand she had felt her mind push back and get angry. She didn’t want to feel like that. She wanted to be happy and have her friends be happy…

Angel wiggled in her embrace. Smiling, Fluttershy moved slightly so he was more comfortable. Feelings remained. Though her friends were close to her, Angel was closer. Never speaking and never judging. Simply living.

She kissed his forehead softly, “I love you, my Angel.” He smiled up at her his toothy smile. Fluttershy smiled back and closed her eyes, ready for sleep.

The window. Othershy was at the window, staring in at her.

Let her.

Feelings remained.

“Sorry I’m late!” Fluttershy said, out of breath, “How did it go?”

“Wonderfully, though Rainbow Dash almost got cooked flying around up there!”

“I’m faster than those machines can turn on, Rarity! And I was just checking the thickness of the clouds, like you wanted me to!”

Smiling, “So it went well?” Fluttershy sat under the Town Hall’s overhang and stared up at the clouds There didn’t appear to be any change in them.

“Mhm,” Applejack replied, “There was a nice big hole over the entire square, big enough for the whole town, I reckon.”

“Perfect…” Fluttershy leaned slightly and rested her head on Pinkie Pie’s shoulder. Pinkie Pie tilted her head to rest on hers and her fluffy hair presses against her back. The party pony had mellowed out slightly over the years, becoming more empathetic as time soothed out her energetic personality. She was still Pinkie Pie, however, and after a moment something caught her attention and she leaned away from Fluttershy. The pegasus was ready for the motion and took the weight off her friend before she fell over.

“The gala’s in two days,” she said, coming back to the moment, “What else do we need to test?”

Twilight looked down at a list lying at her hooves, “Just a few more things…” She looked up suddenly at a strange sound. Ice had begun to fall from the sky again.

“Hail,” Fluttershy said confidently, “It shouldn’t be a problem. It means the rain will be snow soon.” Her friends all looked relived. She smiled. They relied on her, so she had made sure to know what this strange new weather meant.

“Will it snow during the gala?” asked Rarity. “If it does, we could turn off the heaters and let it come down. That would make for a night no pony would forget.”

“For all the work we’ve put in, I’m sure no pony will ever forget it,” smiled Fluttershy. “Let’s go finish up.”

Her friends all followed her inside for the long day of testing ahead.

The final walkthrough of the Town Hall turned gala went so smoothly Fluttershy wondered why she did it at all. At the center of the round Hall was the dance floor surrounded by tables decorated beautifully with flowers. The stage at the far end of the Hall would only be used once, and so curtains had been put up to block it from use. The balconies lining the Hall from the second story onwards also had tables and chairs for the pegasus ponies who would attend. Fluttershy wished they had more time to make a magical space for the unicorns to feel more comfortable, but Twilight had been far too busy to do so.

Still, Fluttershy hadn’t seen anything so amazing in quite a long time. Years, in fact. The whole town had pitched in in one way or another. This was no longer a replacement for the Canterlot gala, but their own, Ponyville gala.

After the walkthrough and a short conversation with all of them, Fluttershy walked each of her friends home from the Hall. They wanted to stay and keep working, but it was as good as it was going to get. Convincing them one at a time didn’t bother her at all.

Pinkie Pie was the last to leave. Darkness was descending by then. They walked in silence to Sugar Cube Corner, listening to the rain fall. Fluttershy stood under the overhang as Pinkie fished out her key from her hair. The Cakes always locked up before nightfall. Memories from a long lost time that would never go away but would never happen again. Some things never change.

As the door squeaked open and Pinkie Pie started to step in, Fluttershy stopped her. “Um… I was wondering… since everypony is going to the gala with somepony… would you like to go with me?”

Pinkie Pie blinked at her, “Well of course I’m going with you, silly! I’m going with everypony!” She smiled her big smile.

Fluttershy laughed nervously, “Oh… right… well, um… I’ll see you tomorrow then… ”

Before Pinkie Pie could say goodnight, Fluttershy ran off towards home.

Her coat was dripping as she hung it up with her teeth. The wood underneath had a groove in it where the rain hit and ran out under the door. Years of rain slowly gnawing away.

Fluttershy sighed and fell sideways onto her couch. The cushions had been repaired and then replaced over the years. No rain had ever touched them, just her weight.

She rolled onto her back and raised her front legs. Muscles on her legs stood out, but nothing she hadn’t seen before. Years of work had made her stronger then she had ever thought she’d be.

But where was her strength when it came to Pinkie Pie? And why did she even feel these strange things for the pink pony? Fluttershy sighed and covered her eyes. So many strange feelings lately. Without wanting to, she started to examine them all.

Zecora: the zebra in the forest who scared Fluttershy for reasons she didn’t understand. Nothing scared her anymore, so why did she? Was it because Fluttershy couldn’t say for sure that Zecora was alright? Was the zebra living in pain that she would tell no one about?

Othershy: the shadowy pony who said Fluttershy herself was calling out to her. Fluttershy had done no such thing, yet seemed to have total control over when the other pony appeared and disappeared. The thought of being in control of somepony else frightened her. No pony should be under anypony else’s control.

Pinkie Pie: her best friend and…and what? Just her friend. That much should have been enough for Fluttershy, but for some reason it wasn’t. She had read stories about friends who became more. Special someponies. Was that what she wanted?

She let out a sigh and rolled onto her side. The living room was once crowded with medical supplies, much as her room had been, but was now sparse. Cushioned chairs were set up all around in case her friends stopped by. The table adorning the center of the room had lovely flowers in vases. Flowers that would never wither or die. Real, though looking fake.

“How old am I?” Fluttershy asked the empty room. The question had occurred to her many times over the years. How old was she? Did it matter? Did anypony care? Did Pinkie Pie care?

The more she thought about it the more tired she got. She was twenty two when the meteor fell. At least a year had passed… right? No… two…

Fluttershy closed her eyes and shut out the thoughts. “It doesn’t matter,” she thought out loud. “As long as I have my friends, it doesn’t matter.”

Angel dropped a pan with a squeak. Smiling, Fluttershy got up and went to go help him.

Fluttershy took a deep breath to steady herself, then another. She could hear the ponies gathered outside talking. Her eyes shot to the large, decorated clock on the wall. “Five more minutes…”

Rarity put a reassuring hoof on her shoulder and said, “We can open the doors early, you know. I’m sure no pony would mind.”

The pegasus thought it over before looking to the rest of her friends. They all nodded. After another breath to steel herself, Fluttershy walked to the double doors to the Town Hall. With a flourish that seemed to flow through her, she threw the doors open wide and proclaimed, “Welcome to the Grand Galloping Gala!”

Everypony outside gasped at her sudden appearance. Though they formed a sizable crowd none of them were wet. A series of tarps had been set up to shield them from the rain. Fluttershy noticed that the rain had turned into a constant hail. Steam expanded from her mouth. Something felt strange…

But Fluttershy pushed the thoughts aside and walked to the first couple, offering her leg, “If you’ll follow me, I will show you inside.” They smiled and the pony took her leg.

As they were unicorns, Fluttershy escorted them to the more magically inclined side of the room: tables that floated through magic she did not know along with unicorn hostesses, Twilight and Rarity. Rarity was liable to start socializing, but there was nothing for it. She would be who she was and nothing more or less.

The next couple were pegasi. Smiling, Fluttershy flew them up to a balcony adorned with cloudy decorations. They looked around at the setting and smiled. Rainbow Dash would serve the pegasus ponies by herself and have enough energy to spare.

The third couple were earth ponies, something Fluttershy was thankful for. She walked them easily to their section on the ground floor, opposite the unicorns. Earthy tones with harvest ornaments adorned their tables. Applejack was already there, ready and waiting. Pinkie Pie was eyeing the food. Though no pony but Fluttershy ate anymore, the food was symbolic of a time when they did. Pinkie Pie, though also never needing food, never got over her habit of eating everything in a five mile radius.

Fluttershy gave the pink pony a stern look that had her eyes looking elsewhere before heading to the door to bring in more guests. The process took almost an hour but was worth it to her. Everypony was socializing and laughing together. The seating arrangement was quickly forgotten as they gravitated around the Hall towards ponies they knew.

And Fluttershy let them. Truthfully she had only wanted to see every pony in town again, that’s why she insisted on seating them two by two. Once inside, it was a party.

It went on like that for an hour or so before Fluttershy took to the stage. Public speaking had never been one of her strong points before, but here, in front of all her friends in the town, in fact the entire town of friends, there was no fear in her at all.

“Ponies of Ponyville,” she began, the room growing quiet, “I cannot begin to tell you how happy I am to see you all here, together. It wasn’t that long ago that a tragedy struck Equestria and struck us ill.” Here, everypony quieted completely, remembering the day of the meteor. “The fire from the sky took our two princesses and Canterlot away from us. It took your ability to eat and even talk for a time. It took so much.” Fluttershy paused. “But it did not take us away from one another. In fact, it took no pony away! No pony need be afraid of injury or pain or sickness because they no longer exist here in Equestria! The meteor…was a gift. With this gift, we are able to truly appreciate each other. And to me, it was worth the crumbling of one city. It was worth it…because where one city fell, another grew with our hearts, big enough to dwarf Canterlot ten times. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

The room burst into applause. Smiling, Fluttershy scanned the Hall in wonder. Every pony there was there because she helped them, because she was their friend. The meteor was a gift.

Pinkie Pie came up and yelled into the microphone, “This is a party, so let’s dance!”

The entire Hall showed their agreement by rushing the dance floor. Fluttershy quickly hit a lever on the stage and the tables ringing the center of the Hall slowly moved to the edges. While they moved, she helped everypony to the floor in an orderly fashion. It took some time, but no pony minded. They were eager to see what she had planned.

As the last ponies were put into place, Fluttershy made her way to the center of the floor. Several paddles and push switches were scattered about the middle of the dance floor. Fluttershy positioned herself like she had practiced. She pressed a switch directly below her and music began to play.

“Alright, everypony,” she said with a smile, “Let the dance begin!”

Though the sight before her was horrific, Othershy, from her place in the shadow of a table on the ground floor, couldn’t look away.

Thin ropes connected every single pony together on the dance floor. Fluttershy took a step forward, her hoof pressing down on a peddle. A wheel below her spun and the ropes pulled. As one, the ponies of Ponyville stepped together with Fluttershy. The pegasus stepped to the side and turned her head with the music, and the others followed, pulled by the rope.

The skeletons of Ponyville danced.

Othershy tried to shut her eyes but couldn’t. Fluttershy was in total control of her own mind right then, and the shadow pony couldn’t get away.

She was forced to watch as Fluttershy danced and her puppets followed.

Everypony smiled. Everypony danced. Everypony was happy.

It had been so long since Fluttershy felt so…alive. She flowed with the music and the ponies of Ponyville followed her lead. Right then, she was their everything, their savior, their protector.

The music went on for what seemed like hours. Lost in it all, Fluttershy stepped onto the switch that had previously turned the music on. This time, the gears spun and the record was lifted from the player. She stopped and Ponyville stopped with her.

Panting, she smiled at them and said, “Well, time for a break, I think.” Everypony laughed at her joke and began to socialize with one another on the dance floor.

Fluttershy walked around them to the stage and sat. Her friends continued to serve the town, but mostly they chatted with everypony they met. That was fine. They deserved to have as much fun as everypony else there that day.

A presence at her side made her turn. Othershy sat beside her looking out over the crowd. “Zecora didn’t make it, hm?”

Fluttershy turned back to the Hall at large and shook her head, “No, she was too busy. Maybe next year…”

Othershy nodded slowly, “Next year…every winter you’ll hold one?”

“Winter?” Fluttershy asked, shocked. She looked up out one of the windows of the Hall and noticed it for the first time. “It’s snowing…” A light snow fell outside.

“Summer, fall, then winter,” Othershy replied, “The natural course of things.”

“…no.”

The shadow pony turned to stare at Fluttershy.

“No, this wasn’t natural, it was planned, of course…” the pegasus smiled, “I had spoken to Rainbow Dash about bringing in the snow clouds…I didn’t think she’d make it, but now we don’t need the heaters at all.”

“…I guess not,” Othershy said. She stood and started to walk away. Fluttershy reached out and put a hoof on the other pony’s shoulder.

“Stay,” she said, “It’s a party for everypony of Ponyville, after all.”

Othershy’s red eyes pierced Fluttershy’s own. “There is nothing here for me. This is your illusion-”

“Oh don’t be so melodramatic, dear,” Rarity said as she walked up to the two ponies on stage. Othershy looked at her with wide eyes. Fluttershy smiled.

“How…I hear you…” Othershy said softly.

With a crack of thunder, the windows of the Town Hall shattered inwards and snow rushed inside. Rarity screamed as the snow pushed her away from the stage and into the crowd behind her. Fluttershy was swept up and slammed into the wall at the back of the stage. Snow held her pressed against the wall gasping for breath. As soon as the snow hit her, Othershy dispersed into shadows.

The ponies of Ponyville quieted instantly. The magical candles by the windows were put out by the snow until only a few remained lit far from them. Snow flowed freely inside the Hall but moved as if alive. Slowly, it condensed onto the stage and a figure rose from it.

Fluttershy watched as bones rose out of the snow and were slowly covered in icy “flesh”. A large alicorn slowly came to life before her eyes. She had long, white hair that flowed without a breeze. Her eyes opened to reveal irises like faceted diamonds, cold and reflecting. A necklace made of ice formed around her slender neck with a white gemstone adorning it. Her skin was the palest blue Fluttershy had ever seen.

As she formed, the snow stopped invading the Hall. She turned and locked eyes with Fluttershy, who gasped.

“Ce…ce…”

Smiling, the alicorn raised her head high and said softly, “Hello again, Fluttershy.”

“Celestia?!” Fluttershy screamed and squirmed but could not get free of the snow holding her.

The alicorn laughed, “That name no longer applies to me!” She leaned in until she was nose to nose with the pegasus. “My name is Skadi…

“…and Ponyville, and Equestria, belong to me!”