My Little Pony: Friendship Is Frightening!
by WatchTower1992
First published
An ab-initio re-write of the canon in which the main protagonist is Fluttershy.
This work of fan fiction is a collaborative story by GhostRider1996 and me.
The timid Fluttershy replaces the magical Twilight Sparkle as the star protagonist of this story, which deviates from the canon, ab initio, only in that respect.
MLD & BGI
Note: MLD stands for Mandatory Legal Disclaimer; BGI stands for BackGround Information.
MLD: My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic and all characters, trademarks, etc. pertaining thereto are property of Hasbro. My Little Pony toys ©2010-2021 by Hasbro; My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic ©2010-2021 by Hasbro; all rights reserved; all credit granted wherever due.
BGI: This story begins in a tucked-away cottage on the outskirts of Ponyville—the home of a shy—but kind—yellow pegasus mare named Fluttershy.
1. Meek, Mild, & Musical (Part I)
It was early in the morning—around 7 o’clock, I believe—when I went for a slow, leisurely trot around the gardens behind my cottage.
“Eat up, everyone,” I told my animals, giving them their daily breakfast.
To my birds, I fed birdseed, insects, and worms; to my squirrels, acorns and other nuts; to my otters, plenty of fish; and to my most special animal friend—my bunny, Angel—tons of vegetables and fruits, including lettuce and carrots!
All the while, I hummed a quiet but joyous tune, enjoying every second of my trot.
I felt the soft grass and fertile soil beneath my hooves, listened to the gentle breeze as it whistled through the gardens, and smelled the pleasant aromas of the colorful flowers—many and varied—growing there.
“EEP!” I gasped upon spotting a dark shadow, which intruded on my property like a raccoon foraging in the night!
A towering, white alicorn mare was standing face-to-face with me; she was wearing a tiara on her head and a necklace around her neck, and her Cutie Mark was the Sun, on which my life and my animals’ lives depended every single day.
She whispered, “I’m not here to harm you—I promise.”
I lay down flat on the grass and covered my eyes with my front hooves, praying for dear life that the alicorn would keep her promise to me.
The alicorn also lay down on the grass, hoping to meet me at my level instead of frightening me away.
2. Meek, Mild, & Musical (Part II)
“My name is Princess Celestia,” said the alicorn, extending her right front hoof for a hoofshake.
I trembled silently as I slowly extended my right front hoof; I was too shy even to speak, much less tell her my name.
“What’s your name?” she asked me, shaking hooves with me.
“I’m—erm—Fluttershy,” I answered—too softly for her to hear me—and gulped!
“Could you speak up, please?” she asked me. “I couldn’t hear you the first time,” she explained.
I couldn’t say another word, so instead, I stood up and turned sideways to show her my Cutie Mark.
“Oh—you must have some butterflies in your stomach,” she remarked when she saw it.
“Oh, no!” I gasped in fright. “I’d never eat butterflies!” I cried—and this time, she did hear me!
“Is your name Fluttershy?” asked Princess Celestia.
I nodded my head silently in confirmation.
“I guess that explains it,” she remarked, referring to my shyness.
“By the way,” she added, “butterflies in your stomach is just an expression.”
I began to giggle with relief upon hearing her explanation.
“Furthermore,” she continued, “I just love your animals!”
3. Meek, Mild, & Musical (Part III)
“Trot with me; talk to me,” Princess Celestia told me.
The princess of the day was such a kindly pony that she caressed me with her wing every step of the way.
“I presume that you love the sun,” she told me.
“Oh, yes!” I answered.
“Well,” she continued, “the longest day of the year—the day of the Summer Sun Celebration—is coming soon.”
“I’m going to need your help with the preparations,” she added.
“But what can I do to help?” I asked her.
“You’re good with animals—especially birds,” she explained, “and when birds sing, they can make sweet music!”
Princess Celestia was right!
By the time the day of the Summer Sun Celebration arrived, I had trained a whole choir of songbirds to make some regal music for her!
During a rehearsal, however, I had to give a blue jay some help with his tempo.
I proceeded to count off, but a purple unicorn mare startled me and scared all my songbirds away!
After apologizing for scaring my birds, the unicorn introduced herself to me, saying, “I’m Twilight Sparkle.”
“Erm—I’m Fluttershy,” I answered, but because I had butterflies in my stomach, I spoke too softly for Twilight Sparkle to hear me.
4. Meek, Mild, & Musical (Part IV)
Suddenly, I spotted a little purple dragon!
“A baby dragon!” I gasped with joy, having never seen such a cute dragon in my life!
“What’s his name?” I asked Twilight Sparkle.
“I’m Spike!” answered the dragon for her.
“Hi, Spike,” I told Spike, and introduced myself to him.
He relayed my name to Twilight, but first, he told me the whole of his life history up to today!
At last, it was time for the Summer Sun Celebration to begin at the town hall in Ponyville.
I gave the signal to my songbird choir to begin singing.
The mayor of Ponyville, Mayor Mare, began a speech introducing Princess Celestia.
I gave another cue to my songbirds—this time, to welcome the princess of the day.
Alas, instead of Celestia, an evil black alicorn appeared—Nightmare Moon!
Nightmare Moon thrust her face into mine as she mentioned her 1000-year imprisonment, scaring my birds away as well as scaring me!
There was no doubt about it—she was both scary and evil!
Wanting nothing to do with her, I fled all the way back to the safety of my cottage on the outskirts of Ponyville!
5. Saving Princess Luna (Part I)
Twilight Sparkle lived at the Golden Oak Library.
She was very intelligent because she always read books, and libraries have tons of books!
Right now, she and four other ponies were looking for a book about the Elements Of Harmony.
It didn’t take long for them to find such a book!
“There are six Elements Of Harmony,” she read from the book, “of which only five are known: Honesty, Loyalty, Generosity, Laughter, and Kindness.”
“Hang on now!” interrupted Rainbow Dash—a blue pegasus mare. “Where in Equestria are these Elements Of Harmony?” she inquired of Twilight.
“According to this book,” Twilight told her, “the last known resting place of the Elements is the ancient castle of the Two Royal Sisters.”
“A castle?!” gasped Rarity—a white unicorn mare. “How I’d love to visit a castle!” she exclaimed.
“The castle is currently in ruins,” Twilight told her.
Rarity shrieked in horror and fainted.
An orange Earth pony mare named Applejack was skeptical of what Twilight had read aloud.
“I don’t get it, Twilight,” piped up Applejack. “How are we supposed to find these Elements?”
Another Earth pony mare—Pinkie Pie—jumped out and startled the other four ponies.
“SURPRI-I-I-I-ISE!” she shrieked. “It’s going to be FRIGHTENINGLY HARD!”
Meanwhile, Princess Celestia opened the front door of my cottage—with the magic of her horn—and searched every nook and cranny of it for me.
She could not see me anywhere, but she still found me, because she could hear me!
6. Saving Princess Luna (Part II)
“What are you doing here?” asked Princess Celestia, whispering into my ear.
“I’m afraid,” I answered, also whispering.
“Did you see Nightmare Moon?” she asked me.
“Who’s Nightmare Moon?” I asked her in return.
“Nightmare Moon is a wicked mare out to sentence all of Equestria to eternal night!” she explained.
“But—erm—I love the night!” I confessed to her.
“So do I,” she told me, “but eternal nighttime is intolerable!”
“Oh, my!” I gasped, now aware of Nightmare Moon’s evil intention.
“I used to live in the Everfree Forest,” she told me, “and since your house is the closest one to that forest, I want you to go there with me.”
“I will protect you all the way there,” she promised me.
Meanwhile, Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Rarity were in serious danger in the Everfree Forest.
To make matters worse, they could not find Pinkie Pie!
7. Saving Princess Luna (Part III)
Pinkie Pie jumped out of the forest brush imitating a Timberwolf!
Her imitation scared the four ponies who joined her on a trek into the forest—but not for long!
“GOTCHA!” she squealed, having succeeded at pulling a frightening prank.
Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Twilight Sparkle laughed out loud at the prank!
I heard the laughter in a different part of the forest!
“Your Highness, help me—please!” I begged Princess Celestia, clinging to her like a leech!
She did not say a single word in response; she merely put her wing around me to comfort me.
The tender caress of her wing calmed my readily-triggered nerves.
“I’m not goin’ to leave you behind!” Applejack assured her four pony allies.
Then, she galloped off to find the right way through the forest.
Rainbow Dash flew high into the air to serve as a lookout.
“I hope she knows what she’s doing as well as where she’s going,” thought Twilight.
8. Saving Princess Luna (Part IV)
“I told you I’d come right back!” Applejack told her allies, now that they were all back together and on the correct path.
“We’d be lost without you, Applejack!” cried Rarity, whose eyes started to produce tears!
“Aw, shucks,” answered Applejack with a sheepish grin.
“I have no more use for this,” thought Rarity, referring to a conductor’s baton that she was grasping with her horn, which she tossed away quickly!
I gasped as I saw something spinning through the air right in front of me!
After the spinning thing hit the forest floor, Princess Celestia lifted it with her horn and showed it to me.
“It’s a baton,” I remarked upon seeing what had come flying toward me.
“Whose could it be?” wondered Celestia aloud.
Meanwhile, the Shadowbolts had Rainbow Dash’s allies tied up!
“It’s them or us!” hissed the leader of the Shadowbolts.
“You!” answered Rainbow Dash.
She turned away from the Shadowbolts to rescue her four allies.
9. Saving Princess Luna (Part V)
“You can never make me turn my back on my friends!” ranted Rainbow Dash.
After Rainbow untied Twilight Sparkle and her allies, Twilight told her, “You’re a true, blue friend, Rainbow Dash!”
Meanwhile, I saw some purple arrows on the floor of the Everfree Forest.
The arrows led the princess and me straight to her old castle!
“Your Highness!” cried Twilight Sparkle and her allies as the princess and I finally met up with them.
“Everypony,” announced the princess, “this is Fluttershy.”
All of Twilight’s allies told me their names.
“HALT!” shouted Nightmare Moon, into whose chamber we had just intruded!
“There can only be one princess in Equestria,” she ranted, “and that princess will be me!”
I flapped my wings, flew up, and looked her square in the eyes!
10. Saving Princess Luna (Part VI)
Now that I had plucked up the courage to face Nightmare Moon, I gave her a stern lecture!
In the angriest voice that I could muster, this is what I told her:
You have no right to make the night last forever!
By stopping the Sun in its tracks, you will force billions of innocent creatures to suffer!
Is that really what you want for your subjects?!
I love the night—as well as the creatures who are awake only at night—but I—HATE—YOU!
“You—appreciate the night?!” she cried in utter disbelief.
“I certainly do!” I answered—this time, with a joyful voice!
“Nopony ever appreciated the night until you came along!” she cried in shock.
“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!” she screamed as she lost all her evil power!
Nightmare Moon had transformed into her true form—Princess Luna!
Princess Celestia lay down to attend to her wounded younger sister and make amends with her.
“You succeeded!” Princess Celestia told me.
“You melted Princess Luna’s ice-cold heart,” she explained.
“For that,” she continued, “I hereby reward you with the Element Of Kindness!”
“Oh! My! Goodness!” I cried with both pride and joy, now wearing a necklace with a pink jewel in the shape of a butterfly in its center.
“But you didn’t do it alone,” she went on, detailing the accomplishments of the five ponies who had joined me at the end of their trek through the Everfree Forest:
To Pinkie Pie—who banished fear from her allies by boosting their morale—I reward the Element Of Laughter!
To Applejack—who proved herself to be a mare of her word—I reward the Element Of Honesty!
To Rarity—who made an all-important sacrifice—I reward the Element Of Generosity!
To Rainbow Dash—who refused to abandon her allies for anything else in the world—I reward the Element of Loyalty!
To Twilight Sparkle—who used her horn to light up the correct path and unite you with her allies—I reward the Element Of Magic!
You and your allies helped one another in your quest to reunite me with my long-lost younger sister, and for that, I will always be grateful.
“I did it!” I cried—in the loudest voice that I could muster!
Epilogue
The four ponies I met in the Castle Of The Two Sisters—as well as Twilight Sparkle—became my new friends.
Rarity let me keep the conductor’s baton that she had tossed away in the Everfree Forest.
The Summer Sun Celebration resumed without a hitch!
Afterwards, I put my new baton away in my cottage—in case I needed to make music with my birds again.
Later, Princess Celestia personally took me under her wing for some intensive courage training.
Throughout my training, I gained more and more courage by committing all sorts of acts of kindness for everypony—and everycreature—in Equestria!