Fluttershy in Wonderland

by LCranston

Chapter 2 - Rough Landing

Just as the sun rose, Fluttershy awoke. Something wasn’t quite right. She got out of bed and smoothed out her dress. The blue fabric was sturdy and a single piece. The yellow pegasus adjusted the white apron over the blue dress as she walked down the stairs. After making sure that her wings remained snugly folded against her body and that there were no holes for them to slip through, she looked over towards the bunny hole against the far wall.

She called out sweetly, “Angel! Angel bunny, time for play!”

Rapidly, the white rabbit ran out and blazed up to her hooves. He was wearing a black vest under a red coat. He pulled a large pocket watch and showed it to Fluttershy.

To her point of view, the pocket watch’s face didn’t have any readable numbers on it.

She smiled and said, “Yes, it’s time for play. What game would you like to play today?”

He replaced the watch into his coat pocket and ran out of the doorless entrance. The path in front of her home seemed a little overgrown, but still bright and inviting.

Fluttershy followed after him, humming a song in time to her hoofbeats. After seeing him sprint around a corner, she increased her pace.

She tried to sing, “Cha-sing a raaaaaab-biiiiiiit! Cha-sing a raaaaaaab-biiiiiiit! I’m rac-ing An-gel through the…um, no that doesn’t rhyme. What rhymes with ‘rabbit’?”

She spied her pet standing impatiently in front of a rabbit warren. He was drumming his foot rapidly and staring at her.

Fluttershy giggled and said, “I’m gonna catch you, Angel!”

The bunny dashed into the hole and disappeared.

Suddenly, Fluttershy stopped trotting. She looked at the dark hole in trepidation.

She called out, “Angel?” When no answer was forthcoming, she added, “Angel, we shouldn’t play near the hole. It’s a place that’s not nice. I don’t want to tear my dress.”

The fearful pegasus whimpered a little and then took a step backwards, away from the hole.

A sudden squeak of surprise echoed from the hole.

Suddenly, a different kind of fear flooded Fluttershy’s mind. It was a kind of fear that she was not comfortable with. It was fear for another’s safety.

She squeaked out shrilly, “Angel?!” When no answer came, she dashed right into the hole.

The ground sloped down away from her hooves, giving way to a pit.

Fluttershy fell down through the darkness, tumbling end over end, wishing that she could fly.

Objects passed her as she fell for minutes. Chicken coops, trees, bowls of soup, house doors, broken clocks, phoenix feathers, and stone statues of cockatrices all passed by her, just barely not touching her as she fell down, down, down…

THUMP!

Fluttershy landed upright in a grassy meadow in what looked like the Everfree Forest. It was somewhat dark, but there was plenty of light to see. There were several paths to follow, and all but one seemed overgrown with prickly vines that actually moved. They undulated like snakes, waiting for prey.

She called out, “Angel?! Where are you?”

The forest did not answer. Deciding that not moving would not bring her closer to her pet bunny, she walked along the only safe path.

The forest was bright but overgrown. Trees were all gnarled and twisted in seemingly every direction. It was quiet, too quiet for a healthy forest.

She glanced around, trying to see if there were any animals for her to talk to.

Everywhere was a strange conglomeration of the normal and the impossible.

There were normal small birds like sparrows and finches.

There was a small family of living horns with soft, bulbous bodies that would honk with every step they took. They acted like water birds.

There was a large red bird with a birdcage for a body. There was a pair of small birds inside, trying to get out.

Fluttershy stepped up and said, “Um…excuse me?” All of the birds looked at her expectantly. She asked, “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to disturb you, but I need some help. I need to find…”

All of the birds turned away from her. The yellow pegasus went wide-eyed at the action. No animal ignored her! That goes against her special talent.

She said a little louder, “Excuse me, but I need some help.”

The group of birds all flew and ran away from her, trying to get away from the mare.

Sadness welled up within her like a fountain. She sobbed a couple of times, not understanding what to do.

Suddenly, she heard a familiar voice from above her.

“Fluttershy! There you are!”

She looked around herself, then above her. She saw a thick white cloud hovering a dozen feet above her. The cloud had half a dozen speakers built into it like a powerful stereo. Standing upon the techno-cloud were Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Bell. Apple Bloom was waving to Fluttershy.

The yellow pegasus called up, “Girls?! How did you get here? Are you in trouble?”

The Cutie Mark Crusaders shook their heads with smiles on their faces. Scootaloo stomped on the cloud, causing it to emit a double-beat over and over.

Fluttershy asked, “Well, what are you doing…here? Where is here? Have you seen Angel?”

Sweetie Bell smiled widely and answered back, “Well, isn’t it obvious what we’re doing here? We’re…”

All three fillies bellowed, “CUTIE MARK CRUSADER RAPPERS!!!”

Fluttershy’s jaw hung wide open in surprise, her brain having locked up from all of the illogical things she’s experienced so far. As she closed her mouth, the fillies began to rap in time to the cloud’s beat.

Apple Bloom chanted, “Poor ‘Shy walk-in’ through the woods,

She can’t find her friends…” Sweetie Bell and Scootaloo shouted, “That’s not good!”

Sweetie Bell stepped forward and rapped, “Her courage has fled and she can’t fly,

“No matter how hard that…” Apple Bloom and Scootaloo shouted, “She will try!”

Scootaloo rhymed, “No one can see her cu-tie mark.

“No tal-ent left; she’s…” Sweetie Bell and Apple Bloom shouted, “In the dark!”

The cloud then began to float away, carrying the fillies beyond Fluttershy’s vision.

She called up, “Girls, that’s not nice! How would you like it if I taunted you when you fail to find a cutie mark? You shouldn’t tease others about their talents that way.”

Realizing that the fillies could no longer hear her, she sighed and kept walking along the path.

Fluttershy erupted into a clearing with two elegantly dressed mares. The one on the left was a tall, heavy-set mare with a brown coat, white mane, and yellow eyes. She was wearing a poofy yellow dress with a brown wide-brimmed hat upon her head. The other mare was a short, stocky mare with a gray coat, yellow mane, and green eyes. She was wearing a long, trailing, green ball gown and a gray, narrow hat.

Both mares sat upon the grassy ground, listening to their rumbling stomachs. Between them was a wooden pole stuck into the ground vertically, ten feet tall. Balanced on top of the pole was a wide silver tray with a teapot, plate of cookies, napkins, cups, sugar bin, and spoons.

The mares looked wistfully at the tea tray and then at the newcomer.

The brown mare shouted, “You there! Can’t you do something about this?”

Fluttershy asked politely, “Um, what do you want me to do?”

The gray mare snidely retorted, “What do you think we want? We’re starving! We want our tea!”

The yellow pegasus walked up to the pole and placed her hooves upon it. She tried to pull herself up, but there was simply no grip to the pole.

She let go and morosely stated, “I can’t do it. I’m not strong enough to climb up.”

On reflex, she tried to flap her wings, but her dress prevented any movement.

The brown mare whined, “But I want my tea! Can’t you do anything?!”

The yellow pegasus suddenly got a bright idea. She offered, “Well, what if we all take turns bumping the pole? The others could catch the tea tray.”

The gray mare chastised her, “That’s ridiculous! No lady bumps into poles! Ladies get served! Do you want to ruin your pretty dress?”

Fluttershy just looked up at the tea tray. She wanted to make the mares happy, but she didn’t want to ruin her dress. It was such a nice dress made by…somepony. It would disappoint that pony if she ruined it.

The gray mare demanded, “Well, aren’t you going to do something to help?”

The shy pegasus hung her head and walked off to the opposite end of the clearing and mumbled, “Sorry. I’ll…try to find somepony better to help.”

She left the huffing mares behind, following the path deeper into the forest. The thickening cover of the tree canopy decreased the ambient light available.

The sound of drumbeats came from above her again.

Looking up, she saw the Cutie Mark Crusaders on the cloud, ready to start rapping. She dreaded what they would say this time.

Sweetie Bell chanted, “Shy, so shy, just can’t ev-en see,

How po-wer-less to…” Apple Bloom and Scootaloo shouted, “Help the hun-gry!”

Apple Bloom stepped forward and rapped, “Without even trying she just chose to fail,

“She should stick her head…” Sweetie Bell and Scootaloo shouted, “In a pail!”

Scootaloo rhymed, “Wear-ing that dress she just can’t fly.

“We can’t un-der-stand…” Sweetie Bell and Apple Bloom shouted, “Don’t even try!”

Fluttershy sniffled and said back, “That’s not fair! It makes no sense to rip my nice dress that was made by…somepony. How would they feel if I tore it all up just to fly? They’d feel just awful.”

The fillies glared back at her disapprovingly. The cloud floated away out of sight.

Fluttershy kept walking along the path until she thought she heard a yowling like an animal in pain.

Comments

[Petaru]

"It was duck, but there was plenty of light to see."
Well then.