Fuzzies

by Palm Palette

Freaky Fuzzy Fluttershy

Many things exist in the world that we don't understand. Thank goodness for first impressions, assumptions and predispositions, because otherwise we might actually have to learn something.

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Knock. Knock.

Fluttershy carefully adjusted her crimson and white sweat band. With help from her long, flowing pink mane, her ears were completely buried, hidden from sight. She stretched her eyes wide, peering at herself in a mirror. Her lime green irises were wide and round. They failed to adjust to the light, but more importantly her pupils were round too, just as they should be. Her fur was a soft yellow hue, uniform and unbroken, also normal. Several discarded empty cans of yellow body paint and makeup littered the floor by her vanity. A faint chalky scent clung to her, ground into her hide. She frowned.

The door rapper knocked again.

“Coming,” she said, so softly that she practically squeaked. She reached for a cloak on her nightstand, but hesitated, examined herself, and let it be. Slurking out of her bedroom, she stopped to lock that door. Taking a deep breath, she hesitated long enough for a stranger to get disinterested and leave. Well, that wasn't her intention, but she did take a long time to build up the nerve to approach the door. Peering through her peephole, she relaxed at the sight of a lavender unicorn. She checked herself one last time before removing the latch.

Twilight nearly jumped when the door opened. She'd been turning away, and the creaking caught her off guard. “Oh! Hi, Fluttershy. You were so quiet that I didn't think you were home.”

“Well...” She inched back, tucking down her head. “Actually, Twilight, I'm having second thoughts. Maybe I should just stay home.”

“What!? You can't do that! Pinkie Pie worked so hard for this! It marks my one year anniversary in Ponyville and the return of Princess Luna and the Summer Sun Celebration!” Glancing up at the bright sky, Twilight muttered under her breath, “Well, that last part's already over.” She coughed, clearing her throat. “But everypony's going to be there for the rest, and they're all expecting you to come too.”

“Um. Well—” Fluttershy looked to the side and daintily swiped a forehoof on her carpet. “I can't go because, I, um, have to take care of a sick bunny.” She grinned wide, then abruptly shut her mouth, looking embarrassed.

Twilight raised an eyebrow and peered past the peculiar pegasus into the depths of the cottage. Several critters scurried, slithered, flapped and hopped about. She gasped. “What is that thing?”

“That, um...” Stepping aside, Fluttershy twisted her head, trying to follow Twilight's frantic pointing. There were some rabbits gathered around a bowl of water, one of whom had a miniature rack of antlers and a tail like a deer. “You mean Jackie?”

“Yes! That! Is that some kind of freaky, fuzzy, rabbit?”

“Well... It's rare, but it does happen.” Fluttershy frowned deeply. “Rarely.”

“Well you should get rid of it! How can the others even stand to be near that thing? Just look at those evil beady eyes!” The screaming unicorn startled the critters and they hopped off, running into another room.

“Twilight, I can't just—”

“Don't be silly. Of course you can.” Groaning, Twilight rubbed her forehead. “And I appreciate your wanting to stay and take care of it, but if that's what's wrong with your rabbit, then there's nothing you can do. Nopony has ever found a cure.” She sighed. “Not for ponies, and certainly not for animals, if it's even the same thing, which it looks like. At least it doesn't spread, so it can wait until after the festival.”

“The festival, right.” Fluttershy caught herself rubbing her leg. She did a little jump, then glanced at it. It still didn't look any different from a normal pony leg. She let out a sigh of relief. “I guess I can come for a little while.”

“That's the spirit! Now hurry, we don't want to miss out on the ultimate battle of ultimate harmony reenactment. The schoolfoals worked very hard on their skit.”

Twilight marched off, head held high and grinning. Fluttershy lumbered behind, taking soft steps and continuously glancing around. Her long, pink tail dragged on the ground. The walk to town was a dreary march indeed.

So many ponies were packed into the town square that their collective body heat caused the air to shimmer. A stage had been set up, with red, velvet curtains drawn. On the sides, street vendors hawked their wares. The sticky sweet odor of fresh hayroes and strawcicles left many noses tantalized. Being two of the last ponies to enter meant that all of the good spots had been taken, but it also meant that they were close to the exits. Twilight bought herself a powdered sugar spiral oatcake, while Fluttershy found herself a shadow to lurk in beneath an awning.

The festivities began almost immediately, with the mayor taking the stage and introducing the actors. The little kids seemed to enjoy themselves, though their high-pitched, nasal voices made them difficult to understand. One moment that stood out was that the costume for Nightmare Moon featured fuzz-tipped ears, leathery wings, and large fangs. That wasn't much of an exaggeration, but it did make her look like a vampire bat hybrid fuzzy. When harmony prevailed, she shed those features, becoming a normal pony again to be loved and cherished by all.

The school play wasn't a huge hit, but there were plenty of enthusiastic parents in the crowd whose cheering and stomping made up for any lack of appreciation otherwise. Everypony was really waiting for the sunset performance by Sapphire Shores, and after that was the midnight bash at Sugarcube Corner.

Before the main event could begin, Mayor Mare took the stage. She cleared her throat, amplified over the loudspeakers, and waited for the crowd to settle down. “Ahem. I would like to thank everypony for coming to the annual Festival of the Sun and Moon. For the first time ever, we're extending the normal Summer Sun Celebration into a full day event. For today, we not only celebrate our beloved ruler Princess Celestia, but also the return of her sister, Princess Luna, and the first night of peaceful rest under the new, mareless moon. It all began over a thousand years ago when...”

She talked and talked like she enjoyed hearing the sound of her own voice. Ponies, for the most part, remained attentive, though many took the opportunity to freshen up and refill their drinks. Fluttershy seemed to get comfortable under the awning, though she had a habit of fidgeting and looking at her shoulder and legs. With the sun waning, the shadows grew longer and deeper though the afternoon's heat had yet to relent. The crowd was developing a musky, sweaty scent.

Mayor Mare invited Twilight to the stage, who took the opportunity to point out her friends in the crowd. Fluttershy nearly bolted when the crowd's collective mass of eyeballs turned to look at her, though Pinkie quickly took their attention with a confetti cannon. Twilight said other stuff too, talking nearly as much as the mayor, but Fluttershy remained focused on the others, shying away from those who looked in her direction.

“Is something wrong, dear?” Rarity asked, whispering once she got close.

Fluttershy nearly jumped, but relaxed when she saw her pale white friend. “I, um, n-no. I just don't like crowds. That's all. Nothing to worry about. Nope.”

“Hmm. If you say so.” Rarity hesitated, sniffing the air and peering closer. “Your eyes. They're green.”

“Huh? They've always been green.”

“I mean lime green, not the usual cyan, blue-green.”

“Oh. That.” The demure pegasus frowned. “They, um, they get that way when I wear contacts.” Fluttershy's voice trailed off, and she looked away as if she were trying to bury her head in her mane.

“Why are you wearing contacts?” Rarity asked. She peered and raised an eyebrow. This conversation was getting awkward fast.

“Um... b-because...” Fluttersy muttered, hardly audible. She shrank down as if attempting to meld into the background.

Rarity shrugged and excused herself to get a glass of water. As she walked off, she stopped and glanced back a few times before vanishing into the crowd. Twilight was making her exit, and the mass of ponies hooted and hollered when the spectacular splash sensation Sapphire Shores stole the stage. Lights flashed and strobes cut through the air. She snagged the microphone like an addict, and her breathing poured over the loudspeakers. Ponies instantly settled down. A hush rolled in the air. A grin laced with blue glitter sparkled in the last few rays of the sun's light.

When the music started, Fluttershy lost herself, humming and swaying along with the beat. All thoughts of scrutiny, other ponies, and prying friends took a back seat to the melody. This was the life. All worries were washed away in the torrent of music flooding the air. She let herself rise and twirled to the beat, swaying her hips and hopping along. Other ponies were also swaying and cheering. Unicorns lit their horns at the tips to form a sea of glittering stars.

A sudden ripping brought her back to reality. Her fake pink pony tail had gotten snagged on a bush, and was torn off by her dancing. She squeaked, and dove for it, trying desperately to pull it free and reattach the false appendage before anypony noticed. Someone gasped, and her heart sank like a rock.

Her real tail was long and fuzzy, striped with triangular black wedges over top of her butter yellow hue. It was much like a tiger's, and whipped about. She quickly pulled it down and tucked it between her hind legs, but the damage had been done. Ponies had seen. They whispered, poking their neighbors, pointing and staring. All of them were disgusted. Parents shielded their children's eyes.

With the music going on, only the ones closest to her were reacting. She finally ripped her fake tail free. Frantic, she glanced around, looking for a place to hide.

“Oh my gosh! What is that!?” Pinkie Pie zipped over and grabbed Fluttershy's tail, pulling it out and holding it under a street lamp.

“P-Pinkie,” the buttercup pegasus mumbled, “p-please, let go.” She tugged, trying to free herself, while also shrinking down and whimpering.

“It's so soft and silky.” Pinkie's eyes shimmered. She was so completely mesmerized by the furry appendage that she ignored the tugging. Then, in a heartbreaking instant, she whipped out megaphone, held the black and yellow striped tail high in the air, and yelled, “EVERYPONY LOOK! YOU HAVE TO SEE THIS! FLUTTERSHY HAS A CUTE KITTY TAIL!”

“A Fuzzy!” The shout sliced through the air. The music screeched to a halt. Voices shouted and tomatoes started to fly.

“Get her!”

“Freak! Get out of our town!”

The shouts rose to a roar, and hooves stomped, scraping the dirt as ponies huffed, glared, and scowled. Pinkie was still stroking the fur, seemingly oblivious to everything else.

Fluttershy finally found her strength and tore free, galloping away with wild abandon. Somepony tried to stop her, but got knocked over as she plowed straight through them. Her headband ripped, and her ears popped out. They too were striped, and also shorter, wider, and a lot fuzzier than normal pony ears.

A high-pitched screech suddenly brought the crowd to its knees. Sapphire Shores pulled her mic away from a loudspeaker, mercifully ending the earsplitting feedback. “Folks, it's always a tragedy when somepony turns out to be a fuzzy. You think you know someone, and they turn out to be a horrible freak. This reminds me of an old song I wrote.” She took a deep breath and waited for the music to start. It was a haunting melody, full of high notes from a flute while drums marched to a steady beat and a piano roiled the low chords. Her own voice was watery, quavering, as she sung about an empty beach and long, lonely nights.

The pervasive sadness subdued the crowd allowing Fluttershy to escape unscathed.

Pinkie stood there frozen, eye twitching. She seemed broken, as if unable to comprehend what had just transpired.

Rarity sat there sputtering. “I-I should have realized it sooner. If I'd known, if she'd told me, I could have done something.”

A blue streak overhead marked the departure of Rainbow Dash. Applejack held her hat and shook her head.

Twilight was also shaken. “Fluttershy is a fuzzy? She's a-a fuzzy!? I—I... I feel so betrayed.”

The show went on in the darkness.

Comments

[JazzyWaffles]

I've tried to express my thoughts on this fic six times now to no avail.
I will instead sum up how I feel about this first chapter in emojis.

[Shadowshame]

Just so much oocness arrrgghh