//------------------------------//
// Chapter 3 
// Story: Flurry Heart's Story: Fillie Jean 
// by AleximusPrime 
//------------------------------//

A crew of ponies with filming equipment and microphones stood outside of a building with the zebra at Night Shade’s concert.  They were doing a news story on the concert and interviewing him.  The female reporter pony was standing in front of a camera with the zebra off to the side.  Her cameraman gave her the cue to start talking and she and the zebra both smiled and got ready.
“We are here in front of the Ponyville Center for Performing Arts with an exclusive interview with Zeb the Zebra, who is the manager for famed artist Night Shade,” said the reporter. “So Mr. Zeb, how would you describe last night’s concert?”
“Oh, absolutely spectacular.  I haven’t seen Night Shade that energetic for a concert in quite some time,” he replied.
“Now one thing we were really surprised by was the drawing they did where five lucky concert-goers were chosen at random to be in a singing class with Night Shade.  What prompted Night Shade to do this?”
“Well Night Shade really has a close connection to his fans and wants to spread his love of music.  He figured he best thing he could do is invite a few random fans to join in. He’s planning on doing it again for another concert, at least if he goes to a small town.”
“And is it true that Princess Flurry Heart of the Crystal Empire is one of those winners?”
Zeb stuttered and appeared surprised at the question, but he quickly found a way to avoid answering it.
“I…uh…I actually wasn’t there when the winners were brought on stage and I’d rather not speculate.  I apologize. Do you mind if we cut that part of the interview for when this goes into post and just skip to the next question?”
“Yeah, don’t worry, we’ll scrap that part.  Anyways…do you expect Night Shade will be encouraged to perform in other small towns in the future after last night?”
“Oh I have no doubt he will be interested in it.  Some small towns are a bit hard to get into with the cost a bit high for them, but Night Shade will find ways I’m sure.”
“Alright…I think that’s good enough for the interview, boys. Let’s shoot some more B-roll of the PCPA.”
The cameraman turned off this camera and they moved to another location to get some other shots.  The reporter put her microphone down and turned back to Zeb.
“Thank you so much for the interview, sir, and don’t worry about that one question.  We won’t be using all of this in the broadcast.”
“It was my pleasure, ma’am.”
The reporter went back to her crew to help them.  Zeb dropped his smile and turned around to speak with some handlers. 
“Did the papers say anything about the princess?” he asked one with a newspaper in his arm.
“Even worse.  The top photo has a picture of him on stage with all the winners including Flurry Heart,” said the handler, showing him the front page, “The local news really likes to talk about this girl, especially after what she did in the Midnight Kingdom recently.  It was inevitable.”
Zeb put his hoof over his face and grumbled.
“So now everybody knows.  And they’ll probably interview the princess at some point too.  Now I understand why Svengallop warned me about Ponyville. Have they started the lessons yet?”
“Looks like they have.”
“Alright.  I’ll see if I can talk to him about it later.  He was too tired after last night so he crashed and went to sleep back at the inn.  Hopefully I’m not too late to do it after the first lesson.”
“That’s gonna be pretty hard to do at this point, Zeb. You know how close he is to his fans.”
“Yeah, well he’ll find he has no other choice.  I have ways to convince him.  Trust me.”





Inside the performing arts center, Night Shade was starting his lessons in a classroom that was reserved for him with each of the five winners of last night’s drawing.  Before getting started with the singing, he decided to have each of them give their names and tell everyone about themselves.
“Alright, everypony,” he said as he stood in front of the classroom. “First of all, I’m really happy to have you all in here. I’ve been looking forward to meeting more of my fans and getting to spread my love of music to them.  Maybe not all of you will go on to become singers like me, but I hope I can pass on some good knowledge and get to know you. First of all, let’s go down from my left to right and say your name, tell us a bit about ourselves, and tell if you have any previous experience with singing.  We’ll go with you first, sir.”
Night Shade pointed to the blue unicorn stallion with brown hair and a cutie mark of a camera.
“Hey guys.  My name is Shutter Lens.  I’m a photographer from just outside of Ponyville and I’m not the greatest singer, but my parents always said I did pretty well for a pony with no lessons, so hopefully this is my time to shine.”
“Thank you, Shutter Lens.  You next, Miss.”
Next was a filly pegasus who was pink with dark brown hair and an eighth note for a cutie mark.
“Hey, everypony.  My name is Allegra.  I’m ten years old and I’ve been singing since I was just three years old.  I’m a huge fan of Night Shade’s, and my dream is to become an artist like him someday.”
“Awesome!  Thank you Allegra!  And you next?”
Besides Allegra was a plump yellow earth pony mare with orange hair and a cutie mark of three peaches.
“Hey, everypony.  I’m Peachy Pie.  I work at a fruit stand and I’ve done a bit of singing in my life.  I’m not the greatest, but I’m also a big fan of Night Shade and I hope I can learn more about singing and maybe join a choir or something.”
“Thank you, Peachy Pie.  And now for you, sweetie.”
Pumpkin cleared her throat and started to speak.
“Hey everypony.  My name is Pumpkin Cake and my family owns a confectionary down the street called Sugarcube Corner.  I’ll be honest and say I’m not the best singer either; I could definitely use some lessons, but I’ve been following Night Shade for quite some time and his music really inspires me.”
“Pumpkin Cake!  Lovely name!  And I already know your name of course, but would you care to introduce yourself anyway, Princess?”
Night Shade finally turned to Flurry and she spoke up.
“Greetings, everypony.  You know me of course.  I’m Flurry Heart, the princess of the Crystal Empire.  Not meaning to brag, but I actually do get a lot of praise for my singing. It comes from my mom’s side of the family.  I’ve been listening to Night Shade for a few years now and he really inspires me.  If it weren’t for my friend Pumpkin Cake, I wouldn’t be here today.”
Flurry and Pumpkin put their arms around each other and smiled.
“Thank you, Princess!  Yeah, that was such a nice thing of your friend to do for you last night. Well now that we’ve gotten introductions out of the way, let’s all go over some basic fundamentals.”
The five of them all sat down in a circle as Night Shade stood at the front to start his lessons.
“First of all: you know the one question I get a lot is how do I sing so loudly yet so effectively.  Well the thing is, you don’t want to force yourself to sing really loud or really hard.  That can be taxing on your vocal cords.  The key is to go easy on yourself and try to sing a little softer than you intend.  If you can hit the notes right, you’re already at a good start.  Now I believe it was Allegra and Flurry Heart that said they’ve had experience with singing and started at a young age.  For the rest of you, don’t worry; it’s not too late.  And don’t feel like you sound bad compared the experienced singers in this group.  A lot of great singers start out sounding bad, but through practice, you can improve. Now I want to have Flurry and Allegra come up to show me how they sing and then we’ll try the rest of you.  If you aren’t comfortable with your voice, we’ll work on getting them in shape.  So you girls wanna give it a try?  Let’s have Allegra go first.”
Flurry and Allegra both walked up to the front of the room to show off their singing.  Flurry waited on the side as Allegra cleared her throat and got ready.
“Okay, what should I sing?” she asked Night Shade.
“Anything you want, honey.”
“Alright.  If you guys don’t mind, I think I’m gonna try Wicked, my favorite of Night Shade’s songs.  I’ll just do the first verse and chorus.”
Allegra cleared her throat and opened her mouth.  She sang while tapping her hooves to the beat of the song.




	Verse 1:
They say beware
Approach her with caution
She may look friendly
Don’t be fooled
She’s always watchin’
_________________
Her eyes alluring
Her mane it glistens
It’s just a ploy
You’ll be her toy
If you don’t listen
_________________
Better watch out
Don’t lock eyes
She’s no angel
It’s a disguise
Better watch out
Don’t lock eyes
She’s no angel
It’s a disguise
_________________
Chorus:
That’s right, she’s wicked!
You’re under her hex
Just left her last man
Now you’re next
She’s wicked!
She’s smacking her lips
She’ll seal your fate
If she gives you a kiss
_________________
Don’t fall for bad girls
I tried to warn you
Boy, you’ll be sorry
Guess this is your doom
_________________
That girl is wicked!




Allegra took a bow and everypony in the room cheered and stomped their hooves on the ground.
“Wow!  That was amazing!” said Night Shade. “I can definitely tell this little one’s had a lot of practice!  Allegra, your style seems to be high energy-based.  You can really belt out those notes without stumbling.  Now Flurry, let’s see how you do.”
“Thank you, Night Shade.  I think I’m gonna go with My Heart Can’t Stop Beating For You.”
“Ah, yes.  One I’m really proud of.”
Flurry took a second to prepare.  Once she was ready, she took a quick breath and then began.




Verse 1:
Wish I could say how I feel about you
I’m holding back, I just don’t know what to do
Don’t wanna disappoint, don’t wanna be rude
It’s true…yes, it’s true
_________________
I think about you when I can’t fall asleep
When I’m awake, can’t even stand on my feet
Can’t take it anymore, can’t let this be my defeat
It’s true…
_________________
Chorus:
Oooooh, I got you on my mind
Oooooh, I want you to be mine
I’ll build up the courage, just give me some time
It’s true…my heart can’t stop beating for you!
_________________
Oooooh, I think I know what to say
Oooooh, I’m gonna do it today
I’ll open my heart, it’s no time to play
It’s true…my heart can’t stop beating for you!
 





The ponies in the room all stomped and cheered for Flurry as Pumpkin whooped unashamedly.
“YEAH, FLURRY!”
“Alright!  Flurry, that sounded awesome!  You tend to go for a softer style and I like how you do it.  Now, for the rest of you, let’s do the same thing.  I know you’re going to be a bit nervous so I won’t make you come to the front, but I’d like you guys to each sing each line from the first verse of that same song.  I’ll point to you as I go.  We’ll do Shutter Lens, Peachy Pie, and then Pumpkin Cake right in that order and then I’ll go last.  Alright, Shutter, you start off.  One, two, three and go!”
As Night Shade pointed to the other three, they took turns with each line.  Shutter Lens and Peachy Pie’s voices sounded average and passable, but Pumpkin’s voice was a bit scratchy and off-key.  She had to clear her throat at least once and continue.  She knew she would botch her line and not be able to sing nearly as good as Flurry or Allegra.
“Sorry.  That could’ve been better,” Pumpkin said, blushing while smiling.
“Oh no, it’s alright, Pumpkin,” said Night Shade. “That’s part of the process.  I remember when I used to sound like that.”
“You used to sound like that?”
“Yup.  When I started back when I was a little younger than you, my voice cracked at times and I couldn’t get the high notes right.  I think your problem is that you’re pushing yourself a bit too hard. Remember what I said about that. You gotta just let it flow.  You wanna try again but a little softer like Flurry did?”
“Uh…yeah.  Yeah, I’ll give it a try.  AHEM!”
Pumpkin cleared her throat, waited a second and then sang again, this time singing the entire first verse by herself.  She sang at a slower rate and was quieter and softer like Night Shade had recommended.  While it wasn’t perfect, she received applause from the others as soon as she finished.
“There you go!  That’s an improvement, Pumpkin!” exclaimed Night Shade.
“Great job, Pumpkin!” Flurry said.
“That’s what I’m talking about!  Never try out singing too much like the pony you want to sound like. Try practicing with your own vocal range first, and then maybe someday you can really belt out those notes but you’ll be better at it.”
“I’m feeling a lot more confident already!” Pumpkin chimed. “Can’t wait to do it some more!”
As they were speaking, Zeb walked in quietly to speak with Night Shade real quick.
“Hey, Night Shade.  Sorry, just letting you know, they were wondering if you could get backstage tonight at 6:30 instead of 7:30,” he said quietly.
“Yeah, that works out fine,” Night Shade said before turning back to the others. “Everyone, just so you know, this is my manager, Zeb. It’s thanks to him that I get all my paperwork and scheduling done behind the scenes.”
“Hi, Zeb!” said everyone as they waved.
“Good to see you all.  Hope the lessons are going well,” Zeb said as he smiled.
As his eyes moved over the five ponies, his smile dropped and he scowled a bit once he made eye contact with Pumpkin and Flurry.  He then turned to leave.
“He doesn’t seem so happy,” Flurry whispered.
“He’s probably a little stressed out,” Pumpkin suggested. “Being a manager for someone like Night Shade must be exhausting.”
“That’s true,”





Hours later, Night Shade was preparing for his next concert inside his trailer. He hummed some of his music as he applied stage makeup and tried on his new outfit for tonight’s concert.  The door opened and Zeb walked in.
“Zeb, how is everything out there?” he asked his manager.
“They’re doing fine,” Zeb answered. “Are you ready for the performance tonight?”
“Ready as always.  I gotta say, that class went pretty well.  I had five students and two of them were already into singing. They’ve definitely got some skill, especially Princess Flurry Heart!”
“Yeah, actually that’s what I wanted to talk abou-”
“And the other three aren’t too bad either.  I was especially impressed with Pumpkin Cake. I think my lessons really helped her out.”
“Night Shade.”
“Yeah?”
“We need to talk.”
Night Shade put his comb down and turned in his chair to face Zeb.  He looked more grim than usual.  Night Shade could tell this would not be a positive conversation.
“Is something wrong?” he asked.
“It’s the princess.  First of all, why did you let her in this class?  She didn’t even win the fifth drawing.”
“Pumpkin Cake’s her friend and wanted her to join so she asked us if she could call her up.  I didn’t wanna stop Pumpkin and look bad in front of everypony.  No one else spoke up when we called out the last number.”
“So the unicorn girl is friends with her?”
“Yeah.  Why are you asking me this?”
“Night Shade, I know you don’t want to hear this right now, but you’ve got to stay away from Princess Flurry Heart.  You know how the industry feels about the royals. Svengallop lost Countess Coloratura years ago because of Princess Twilight Sparkle, and none of them were fond of Celestia when she was leading either.  I don’t think you understand how much this can hurt you.”
Night Shade rolled his eyes and turned back around in his chair to get back to his makeup.
“Zeb, I’ve already told you: I don’t care about politics. My music is meant for everyone. I’m not going to just snub Flurry because she’s royalty.  That’s not the pony I am.  I love my fans and I refuse to do something like that.”
“Tonight is your last performance, maybe we should just leave after that so you don’t have to risk being around her anymore if you feel that way.”
“I already promised the winners I’d give them a one-hour class for three days.  I gotta be there tomorrow and the day after.”
“Well you’re going to have to think of something clever. Look, I’m sorry, Night Shade.  I don’t want to be the bearer of bad news, but this is just how things are.  There’s already a picture of you and the princess in the local paper.  The executives are going to find out about this one way or another.”
Zeb placed a newspaper on top of Night Shade’s desk. Night Shade looked at the front page and saw he was right.
“You’re asking me to do something I can’t do, Zeb.”
“I’m your manager.  I’m just looking out for you.  You need to make the right decision for the good of your career, even if it means staying away from that princess, and that includes her friends.”
Zeb walked out of the trailer and closed the door quietly. Night Shade thought about what Zeb had said, but he quickly got over it.
“It’s gonna be fine,” he told himself. “These busybodies in the music industry don’t know what they’re talking about.  Flurry and Pumpkin haven’t done anything wrong.  I’m still gonna call all five of them up to sing with me on stage, and there’s nothing that zebra can do about it.”