“Don’t be afraid, little friends; I’m right here.”

If you ever hear me saying that, then you’ll know that I take care of animals. I’m the kindest pony in the whole of Equestria; kindness is a must for an animal caretaker like me. It’s very easy to frighten the animals of Equestria; that’s one reason they come to me.

My coat is the color of the sun; my mane and tail are the color of a flamingo’s feathers. Speaking of feathers, I have wings; however, I don’t like to fly very high. I usually use my wings to cuddle and caress, not to flap and fly.

Just like most animals, I have one very serious problem: I’m shy. I’m afraid of heights, too, so instead of flying smoothly and gracefully, I usually just flutter. Therefore, my name is Fluttershy.

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“EEP!”

The sight of a towering white alicorn wearing splendid regalia struck me like lightning.

“Hello, my dear.”

The alicorn smiled politely.

I lay down and covered my eyes, quivering in utter fright.

“Oh, dear—you poor, petrified pegasus!”

As soon as I heard those words, I uncovered my eyes and looked up at the alicorn.

“My name is Celestia; I am the Princess of Equestria.”

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The princess heard sweet chirping all around her.

“You know, I love animals—especially birds!”

She turned sideways to show me her Cutie Mark—the picture on each of her flanks—which was the sun.

“The Summer Sun Celebration is coming soon.”

My eyes opened wide, and my ears stood up straight.

“I love the summer sun!”

“So do I. I also love to listen to the birds as they make their sweet music. Therefore, I choose you to make some music for me on the day of the Celebration.”

I hung my head and thought long and hard.

“I would love to help you with the music!”

“Thank you very much.”

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