When Fluttershy is first introduced in the series, she barely manages to tell Twilight Sparkle her own name on account of her timidity, whispering so quietly that Twilight cannot hear her, and hiding her face behind her mane. However, she immediately becomes enthusiastic when she sees Spike, imploring the baby dragon to hold a conversation with her, which he ends up doing, and follows him and Twilight all the way to the library. Her shy nature contrasts with Rainbow Dash's abrasiveness, most notably in Dragonshy, and to a lesser extent in Sonic Rainboom. In season one, Fluttershy's inability to speak up often annoys Rainbow Dash, and Rainbow expresses her aggravation more than once. One instance is when Fluttershy cheers as loudly as she can for Rainbow Dash at the beginning of Sonic Rainboom, yet much to the latter's exasperation, can't manage more than a whisper. Season two shows them having grown closer to each other as friends despite their differences. She is afraid of dragons (with the stated exception of baby dragons such as Spike), and is hesitant to continue forward when she and the others embark on an expedition to deal with a sleeping dragon in Dragonshy, relying heavily on her friends' encouragement. In the end, Fluttershy finds the courage to speak to the dragon when it begins harassing her friends, going so far as to raise her voice in anger and stand on its nose to look it in the eye as she lectures it. In Stare Master, she tames a wild cockatrice in a similar manner, becoming angry with it when it scares the Cutie Mark Crusaders; however, in this instance, the Stare is employed.
She is reduced to tears by Gilda in Griffon the Brush Off when the griffon roars in her face. Afraid to be in the same room as Gilda during Pinkie Pie's party, Fluttershy attempts to voice her discomfort to Pinkie, who obliviously waves off her distress.