Branching Out
"Oh what a beautiful day it is, wow." Fluttershy looked up to the sky in awe to see nothing but an endless sky of pure blue. She lowered her head and began to continue down to check on the chicken coop. She was about half-way to the chicken fence when something stopped her, something that she hadn't thought about in quite some time. Perhaps she had forgotten about it all together, but fate wanted her to remember it, as if it was her destiny. The object of her attention was a large oak tree that housed a flying squirrel. Suddenly, everything flashed and she found herself in a new place. However, it wasn't new, in fact, the scene she was seeing took place no more than two or three years ago.
"Where am I? This... is this the?" Fluttershy's thought was interrupted by a high pitched voice that belonged to only one pony. Suddenly fading into view sat a pink pony. One by one, several others began to appear. She wasn't just reliving a past experience, but she was watching it.
"Rainbow Dash thinks Fluttershy's a tree!"
"I do not think she's a tree! I was just--"
"Did you say she was a tree?
"No! Well, yes, but not exactly!"
"Y'know she's not a tree right?"
"She's not a tree Dashie!"
"I'd like to be a tree."
"I remember now, this is where I told my friends my true desires. Everypony laughed at me, they didn't take it seriously enough! Oh, if only I weren't so shy, then I'd tell them how I truly feel." Fluttershy began to cry. "If only there was a way... would it... would it even be possible to turn into a tree?" Fluttershy wiped her tears and closed her eyes to rid herself of distractions while she contemplated what her options were. She concluded that there was only one way for this to work. Fluttershy gulped as she realized that it meant that she had to enter the Everfree Forest.
Fluttershy was hesitant and was unsure of the steps she needed to take in order to make her dreams a reality. Whenever she felt her fears creeping up on her, she held her head high and told herself, "Fluttershy, this is your chance to make your dreams come true! You can't give up! Tell those mean old nasty fears to just go away... please."
Since Fluttershy's cottage was right on the edge of the Everfree forest, she didn't have enough time to think of an excuse to return home. She looked into the depths of the forest and started hyperventilating. "You can't be afraid Fluttershy!" She scolded herself, "you're the only one who can do this, your friends are no use here."
Once her breathing slowed down, she took one last deep breath and headed into the forest.
About ten minutes into her journey, walked into a small clearing with a fairly large tree in the center. "Oh, I'm here. I hope Zecora is home." As she walked to the giant tree, she raised her hoof and lightly tapped on the door. From inside a voice called out to her.
"Ah my dear Fluttershy, so pleasant it is for you to drop by!" Zecora's rhyming calmed her nerves knowing that she had a friend that could help her.
"Hello Zecora, how are you today? I hope I'm not bothering you."
"Each day is a blessing it is true, when I am visited by ponies such as you." Zecora gave Fluttershy a sincere smile and turned back to her cauldron. The silence that followed lasted for almost a full minute when, "Is there something troubling you? Perhaps you are in need of a special brew?" Zecora said, breaking the silence.
"Oh, how did you know?" Fluttershy inquired.
"Haha, even though I enjoy your company, what reason would you wander into the Everfree?" Zecora reminded Fluttershy that because of her timid nature, she wouldn't enter the Everfree Forest without a good reason.
"Tell me, what is it you need for I will fix it up for you with great speed."
"Well... ummm... I... I..."
"Fluttershy, it's quite alright, you know that I do not bite."
"I... I... I would like to become a tree!" Fluttershy's words brought about silence in the room once again. The suprised zebra raised an eyebrow and said, "A tree? For whatever reason could that be?"
"Well, I've always wanted to be a tree since I was just a filly. No matter how close to nature I got, it just wasn't close enough!"
"I have just the thing you see, the seed of the dreaming soul tree!" Zecora walked over to one of the many shelves lining the walls of her house and returned with a small brown jar. She removed the lid and tilted the jar on its side and gently shook the contents out into her hoof. It was a small teal colored seed that had a faint, but noticeable glow.
"Wow, it's so pretty." Fluttershy said, still focusing on the seed, "Is this the dreaming soul tree seed?"
"Yes it is true, the dreaming soul tree seed I am giving to you." Zecora dropped the seed into Fluttershy's hooves.
"So, what am I supposed to do with it?"
"Tell the seed your desire and wait for the seed to glow like fire. Consume the seed while it is still red and then go to bed."
"Wow, thank you so much Zecora! You don't know how much this means to me." Fluttershy tried to conjure up a way to express her excitement, but couldn't because her inner demons still held her back.
"You are welcome Fluttershy my friend, but you should return home for the day is at it's end."
"Oh yes of course! Angel will probably scold me If I'm late, he always looks after for me."
Fluttershy said goodbye and thanked Zecora a second time before heading back to her cottage. It was quite dark, but the glowing seed took away all of her fears. She arrived at the front step of her cottage and just as she opened the door, a streak of white came out of the darkness and struck her cheek. Being caught off guard, she lost her balance and fell onto the ground. She couldn't see anything, it was almost as if the inside of her home had been replaced with darkness. With a click, the room lit up to reveal a small white rabbit standing on her head with a unamused expression on it's face.
"Oh, hello Angel, sorry I was out so late, I must have made you worried." Fluttershy spoke gently to the rabbit on her head. Angel nodded his head and pointed to a clock and made some snoring-like noises and pointed up the stairs. "Oh, you're absolutely right, it is pretty late, I should definitely get some rest." Fluttershy picked up on the hint and flew upstairs to her room. She looked down at the seed, which Angel hadn't noticed, and smiled as she began to recall the instructions Zecora had given her.
"Okay, first, tell it my desire. Ummm, mister soul tree seed, umm, if it isn't too much to ask, could you ummm... please turn me into a tree?" Fluttershy questioned her choice of words but quickly moved on. "Okay, second, wait for it to glow like fire. Hmmm, it sure is taking awhi---" she was cut off by the violent change the seed made from teal to bright red. It caught completely by suprised and she screamed, "EEEEEEEEEEEEEEK!" Once she calmed herself down, Fluttershy recalled the final step. "Alright, I have to eat this thing, ummm..." Fluttershy looked at the seed in bewilderment. She wondered how she was supposed to eat the seed. She wasn't sure if she had to chew it or not or if she wasn't allowed to swallow it either. "Oh well, here goes nothing." Fluttershy tilted her head back, put a hoof against her muzzle, and popped the seed into her mouth and swallowed it. It tickled her throat as it went down into her stomach. With that done, Fluttershy climbed into her bed and quickly drifted off into sleep, hoping that her dreams would come true.