Fluttershy, The Pumpkin Queen

by TheExhaustedBrony

First published

It's almost Nightmare Night, the main six decide to decorate their town with jack-o'-lanterns

Nightmare Night is Fluttershy's least favorite holiday, for obvious reasons. But this year, she learned that she's more attuned with nature than she thought was possible. What will Fluttershy's future be with her new best friend? Will it flourish like a well nurtured seedling? Will it wither and die? Or will it's vines spread and choke out all the others?

Gordon

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Gordon

Ah yes, Nightmare Night, once a year, all the little ponies in equestria go from door to door and collect candy, which they then offer to an effigy representing Nightmare Moon. Right now the main six, and spike, were at Twilight's house going over the preparations for decorating for the festival the following night.

"Alright, Spike, lets take a look at the list." Twilight said.

"You got it! Lets see," Spike let the parchment roll out of his claws. Most ponies would faint at the thought of such a hefty list, but to Twilight and her friends, this was normal. "First on the list is pumpkin carving." Spike pointed at the words scrawled on the paper.

"Where are we going to go to get enough pumpkins for ALL of Ponyville?" Rainbow Dash seemed unconvinced. Usually, ponies would make their own pumpkins, but this year, the theme was Jack-o'-lanterns' and they had to decorate the festival area in town.

"Y'all can just come on down to my farm," Applejack offered, "we've got plenty of pumpkins to use."

"Oh boy! We're gonna have a Nightmare Night party at Applejack's farm!" Pinkie Squealed, "I can't wait, when are we gonna go?"

"Pinkie, y'all can come on down right now if you'd like."

"Count me in!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed.

"Oh, I'm going to make the most beautiful pumpkin anypony has ever seen!" Rarity said proudly.

"Alright, shall we go, ladies?" Spike asked, opening the door for the ponies.

"Fluttershy, are you going to come along?" Twilight asked.

"Oh, um... okay. I guess that'd be alright."

As they walked, the ponies, were talking about all kinds of things. Rainbow Dash bragged about a new trick she learned, Rarity leaked some information about a new holiday themed dress she was designing, Twilight talked about a new book she found that might interest Rainbow Dash. They were all having a very nice conversation when suddenly,

"And that's how Equestria was made!" Pinkie Pie blurted.

"Come again, dear?"

"Oh, I thought we were talking about the creation of Equestria. I guess not, my bad." Pinkie giggled.
They all laughed together, something Pinkie caused frequently.

"Okaaaay, well, it looks like we're at Sweet Apple Acres." Spike pointed to a sea of apple trees.

As they approached Applejack's house, a grey pegasus zig-zagged it's way over in their direction. The grey pony was on a collision course! Everyone dove out of the way, except for Fluttershy, who was at the back and not paying attention.

"Oops, sorry, Fluttershy! I guess I didn't see you there!" The grey pegasus apologised.

"Well, it's no wonder why, I mean, with your eyes it's a miracle hat you can fly at all, Derpy." Rainbow Dash sneered.

"Oh, Derpy, have you come to carve pumpkins with us too?" Fluttershy asked.

"Uhhhhh... sure!" Derpy said excitedly as her line of thought ducked in and out.

With a new member joining their group, the eight of them resumed their journey to Applejack's house, only a few yards away.

"Alright everypony, y'all know what to do? Y'all got yer pumpkins?"
Everyone responded with a cheer. All except for Fluttershy. She was transfixed on the pumpkin that sat in front of her.

"Ummm... girls? Do you hear that?" Fluttershy heard a voice that didn't belong to anyone she knew.

"Hear what, Fluttershy?" Twilight asked.

"Oh, n-nothing."

"Well, all I hear is the sound of a scaredy-pony not carving up her pumpkin." Rainbow Dash joked.

"Now, Rainbow Dash, be nice to her, this might be the first time she's ever hurt anything, even a plant." Rarity Scolded.

"Alright, fine. Well, remember when Discord took away the elements and made us all weird?"

"Yes, what about it?"

"Well, didn't Fluttershy stomp on Twilight's plants?"

"Well, didn't he make you think a single cloud was the entire city of cloudsdale?" Rarity retorted.

"Well, didn't he make you think that a giant rock was a honest-to-goodness bonafide diamond?" Applejack said.
Rarity's facial expression went from arrogant and childish to downright irritated.

"This is the third time I've told you not to speak of that again."
All the ponies except for Fluttershy were laughing. She couldn't get over the fact that she was hearing something.

"Is anyone there? Okay, I'm going to start carving now, I guess."

The voice called out again,

"Please! You don't have to do this! I... I don't want to die!"

"I don't understand. Where are you?" Fluttershy asked.

"Down here!" The voice responded.
Fluttershy looked down to see a bright orange gourd, the source of the voice.

"Y-y-y-your a p-p-pumpkin?" Fluttershy began to hyperventilate.

"Yes, I know you're confused, but please, don't hurt me. Many of my friends are being killed by those other ponies right now as they speak! I don't want to become like them!" The pumpkin pleaded.

"Oh, alright, I wont hurt you," Fluttershy assured, "Applejack, can I have another pumpkin?"

"Sure thing sugar-cube, just grab one from the field."

Fluttershy grabbed the pumpkin and went out the door to the field.

"Do you have a name mister pumpkin?" Fluttershy asked.

"My name is Gordon. What's your name?"

"I'm Fluttershy, I'm your new friend." Fluttershy responded, not fearing the pumpkin. Figuring that after all, it's just a pumpkin.

"That's... that's nice, thank you."

"You're quite welcome, you just seemed so nice. I have a special way of telling if someone's hurt."

The two continued searching for about another minute when Gordon said,

"Hold on, Fluttershy! That one with the bright green stem!"

"This one?" Fluttershy walked over to a very healthy looking pumpkin. Comparing it with all the others, it seems like this one was the healthiest.

"Hey, Donny, I found you."

"Donny? W-who's Donny?" Fluttershy asked.

"This pumpkin right here is Donny, he drinks up all the water and is responsible for the deaths of many of my friends!"

"That's not very nice at all. So, what are we going to do?"

"Pick him up and take him back to the house."

Fluttershy did what she was told and picked up the pumpkin and carried it back to the house. Everypony was busy focusing on their own pumpkins, they didn't notice Fluttershy return.

"Put him on the table." Gordon directed.

"Okay," she said, putting Donny on the table, "now what do I do? Is he sleeping?"

"Yes, us plants go into dormant states after consuming enough liquid, obviously he's had enough in the past few hours. Fluttershy, this is very important.

"What?"

"I want you to kill him."

"What?!" Fluttershy gasped.

"You alright sugar-cube?" Applejack asked, "AGH! Derpy! Don't fly with the knife! AH!" Applejack was distracted by something Derpy was doing. Whatever it was, it wasn't enough to distract Fluttershy from what was going on in front of her.

"Kill him! He's a menace to plant society and must pay for it! Now pick up the knife."

"O-o-ok," Fluttershy felt as if she was not in control of her body as she slowly raised the large kitchen knife.

"Now, plunge the knife into him."
She raised the knife high above the pumpkin and began to sweat as her hooves trembled in fear.

"DO IT!" Gordon barked.

Fluttershy shook her head,

"I... I can't do it!" She said on the verge of tears.

"C'mon Fluttershy, it's simple, just do it like this." Rainbow Dash put her hoofs on top of Fluttershy's and pushed them down, lowering the knife into the pumpkin.

The pumpkin let out a blood curdling scream that was unheard by the other ponies,

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH! WHY?! WHY IN EQUESTRIA WOULD YOU DO THAT?!"

"Donny boy, you're finally awake! It's been too long... I told you I'd find you." Gordon said in a condescending tone.

"Gordon? Is that you?! I thought we killed you!"

"Oh no, I am very much alive my dear friend. Now it's time for you to die!"

"Yellow pony! If you can hear me, don't listen to a word he says, he's insane! He is not to be trusted!"

"Don't listen to him Fluttershy, he's just trying to manipulate you! We're friends, remember? Would a friend lie to you?" Gordon said in a calm, gentle voice.

"You're sick! We trusted you! Sarah trusted you, Gordon!"

"Everyone, please stop!" Fluttershy pleaded.

"I loved you and you lied to me. Both of you! You betrayed me!" Gordon began losing his temper.

"Stop, please, stop stop stop stop stop stop stop stop STOP!"

Fluttershy's eyes rolled back as the atmosphere became too intense for the little pony's heart to handle. In her confusion, she pulled the knife out of Donny and began stabbing him, over and over again. His screams were quickly silenced as she stabbed him until a hole was minced away. At that point she tossed the knife aside and reached in, pulled out Danny's insides and strew them across the table. She grinned wickedly as she began to enjoy the display of pumpkin guts she had just created.

"See, now don't you feel better knowing that he wont ever hurt us again?" Gordon asked.

"Yes, I don't have a reason to be afraid anymore." She felt free. She felt as if she just flew higher than the sky and faster than Rainbow Dash, she would be a scaredy-pony no longer. The whole time she spent admiring her work and talking to Gordon, she didn't notice her friends' worried expressions, as they saw the whole event.

"F-F-Fluttershy?" Twilight stuttered.

"You okay sugar-cube?" Applejack asked fearfully.

"Oh, I'm more than okay! Gordon's going to make me his queen! Together we'll cast down our judgment on all that wish to harm us!"

Sarah

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Author's Note: This chapter was rushed. I had most of it done in early november, but I dropped it for a while. The whole idea was that I had something to write for Nightmare Night. I tried my best to have proper grammar but I know that there are mistakes, so please don't rush to the comment box to tell me what I already know. Feedback is always appreciated but nobody likes a jerk.

Sarah

"Fluttershy, what the hay are you talking about? Who in Equestria is Gordon?" Asked a concerned Rainbow Dash.

"He's the pumpkin right here, he's my new best friend." Fluttershy held up Gordon to show to her friends.
Nopony laughed. Despite how outrageous that was, all hilarity vanished when they saw the evil look in Fluttershy's eyes mere moments ago.

"Fluttershy, perhaps you should go home and get some rest, we'll see you later tonight."
Fluttershy grunted and flew out the door holding Gordon with her front hooves.

"Fluttershy, it's going to be fine, who needs them when you have me?" Gordon said.

"I don't know what to think. Those ponies are my friends! Yet, as they saw justice being delivered, they only stared with disdained looks."

"You're right, they don't understand. Although, you can't blame them. After all, there's no denying the fact that our ways are not within the boundaries of their definition of normal."

"I suppose you're right, I'm so glad that I have a friend like you who understands me, Gordon." Fluttershy patted the pumpkin and smiled.

"You're quite welcome, now, I am quite interested in seeing this house of yours. For as long as I can remember, my only home was that field. I haven't been able to go much farther than the white fence."

"Oh, well, that's a good thing to hear, because we're here."
Fluttershy held Gordon out in front of her to give him the best view of her house.

"Wow, it's very beautiful," Complimented Gordon, "I would like to see the inside."

"Well, that's our next destination."
After entering the house, Fluttershy placed Gordon in the center of the room. Angel, who was waiting for Fluttershy, approached Gordon. He sniffed it and became frightened and ran away.

"Oh my, I'm sorry about that. Animals, err... don't really like me very much." Said Gordon.

"It's alright, that means they won't eat you either." Fluttershy smiled.

"I guess so, haha."

"So what shall we do? Shall we go play a game? Or how about I show you the market place?" Fluttershy asked.

"The market?"

"Yes, they sell all kinds of things there, fruits, vegitables, you name it and there's probably a stall selling it." Fluttershy explained.

"Hmm... I would like to see this market you speak of, perhaps I can find some of my friends among the stalls you mentioned."

"Okay, lets go to then." Fluttershy picked up Gordon and put him on her back and walked out the door and headed to town. The two arrived at the market to see it filled with dozens of busy ponies frantically making last minute purchases for tomorrow night. Gordon wanted only one thing, a potato. However, not just any potato, this particular potato was named Sarah, and he had a little bit of a score to settle with her.

"How will we find your friends, Gordon?" Fluttershy asked.

"All plant life shares a special link with one another. We can sense the presence of another plant with self-awareness."

"Okay, umm, I think I get it and at the same time, kind of don't."

"Look, all you have to do is continue walking, I'll do the searching, alright?"

"O-okay."
Fluttershy continued to fly through the market, having a gentle, but firm grip on Gordon. They were just about to pass a produce stand when Fluttershy felt a strange sensation throughout her whole body. It was cold, but not uncomfortable, it was like being cooled off by a summer breeze.

"Aah, I see you felt it too, that's a rare gift, you can use that to further our cause." Gordon sounded pleasantly surprised.

"Does this mean I can sense the presence of other sentient plant life?"

"Yes it does, in fact lets see if you can find Sarah among the potatoes at that stall over there. She's a potato by the way."

"Sarah?" Fluttershy became puzzled.

"Sarah is one of my friends, and I can feel her presence. I know where she is, but I wont tell you. You'll have to find her."

Fluttershy approached the stall, she rummaged through the potatoes, examining them carefully.

"If you pick up Sarah, you should get a shocking sensation upon contact."

"What?! Does it hurt?"

"Well, I'm not entirely sure. I may be more than just an ordinary pumpkin, but in the end, I'm still a pumpkin. I can't pick things up because well, I'm sure the reason is obvious."
This worried the fragile pony as she reached for another potato. Would this be her? Will it hurt?" Her hooves began to tremble in fear of what will happen when she touches the potato.

"Fluttershy, I know it's your first time and you're worried, but we haven't got all day!" Gordon groaned.
With a sudden burst of adrenaline, she quickly snatched the potato and held it close to her face.

"Hmm, this isn't so bad, I was expec--" Her moment of relief was short lived as she received a shock that scared Fluttershy more than even Nightmare Moon. As she shrieked in pure terror, she tossed the potato into the air, not very high, but high enough to clear the top of the canvas of the produce stall, which it tore a hole through. Gordon had been thrown off of Fluttershy's back and landed upside down with a thud.

"Wow, that bad, huh? I hope your brain in it's current state, didn't blow a fuse with that shocking turn of events! Ahahaha! Oh those were bad, I'm sorry, I just couldn't resist!" Gordon couldn't help but laugh at the series of bad puns he just made. Fluttershy remained speechless as she was too busy slowing down her breathing. When she finally calmed down, she heard the angry shouts of Sarah, the potato, who was not pleased with her rude awakening.

"Ow! What the heck is wrong with you?! You think it's okay to wake up someone by throwing them?" Sarah roared.

"Hello there, you must be Sarah, I'm sorry for throwing you, but when I touched you, I was shocked by something and accidentally let go of you."

"Oh, wow, you were actually able to find me?"

"I know, I'm surprised too. I have my friend, Gordon, to thank for teaching me how to use my power."

"Gordon? Y-you s-s-spoke with G-G-Gordon?"

"Yes, Sarah, we're here to take you home. I've got a few things to say to you." Gordon added, still upside down, "Uhh, Fluttershy, this is really awkward, could you help me out a little bit?"

"Oh, sorry." Fluttershy flipped the overturned pumpkin so that he was right side up.

"Now, where were we... Oh yea! Let's go, we've got a few things to talk about."

"You're not supposed to be alive! We made sure that you would harvested to be carved up for Nightmare Night!"

"Oh, that, you thought you could cut my corner of the triangle off, did you? You thought that Donny would protect you?! Well, It's just you and me now."

"What did you do to Donny?!"

"Me? Hah! Strike two my dear! I didn't do anything to Donny, Fluttershy, my best friend, squashed Donny."
Sarah went silent, probably in disbelief, her little potato head couldn't handle the fact that her plans had gone completely wrong.

"So what are you going to do?" Sarah asked frantically.

"Fluttershy, lets take her home." Gordon suggested.

Fluttershy picked up Sarah and flew away. The stall owner was probably too freaked out to ask for money. From his point of view, he saw a yellow pegasus throw a potato through his awning and talked to a pumpkin. He was just glad that she left. The trip home was surprisingly quiet. Sarah was staying quiet, Gordon was sleeping, and Fluttershy didn't want to break the silence. Fluttershy looked to her left to see a field of pumpkins and other gourds. She wondered how many of them could talk also. Before she could go deeper into that thought, she arrived at her cottage.

"Hey, guys, we're here."

"It's about time." Gordon yawned.

"Sarah has been quiet this whole time."

"I know, that's also a good thing. Less noise makes me happier."

Fluttershy brought Gordon and Sarah into her kitchen and placed them on the counter.

"Alright, Fluttershy, you're going to need a bowl, a peeler, a knife, and a potato masher." Gordon directed.

"Okay, a bowl, a peeler, a k-knife, and a potato masher." Fluttershy began rummaging through drawers and cabinets until she found the four items. She carefully placed them on the counter in a row and looked to Gordon for more instructions.

"Hmmm... we're going to need some more ingredients for this stew."

"Stew?" Fluttershy asked.

"Oh, yea, we're going to be making a stew."

"That sounds fun. What else do we need?"

"We need some carrots, an onion, some mushrooms, an apple, and a cucumber." Gordon said.

"Oh my, the stores are closing soon. I wont be able to get all of it in time."

"Don't worry, I know just where to find them." Gordon chuckled.

"Okay, shall we go now?"

"Yea, why not?"

"What about Sarah?"

"Just leave her in the bowl." Gordon replied. Fluttershy picked up Sarah and gently placed her in the bowl. She then picked up Gordon with her hooves and flew out the front door to find the rest of the ingredients for their stew.