When I woke the next morning, I was laying in a spare bed someone had brought over to Twilight’s. I looked around and saw that Twilight, Spike and Ryan were still asleep. I wobbled to my feet hooves and slip out of Twilight’s house. I sit on the doorstep and watch my surroundings. The sun is rising and the ponies are just starting to get up and about. I shake my head so that my mane falls into my face. A blue pony looks up at me from the puddle in front of me. It’s so much to take a hold of. A single tear drops into the puddle causing the foreign pony face to be distorted. The door behind me opens and closes. Ryan puts his hand gently on my shoulder.
“It’s gonna be okay you know.” He says gently. I sniff. “I was having so much fun I never thought about this part of it; is this permanent? Will we ever go back home? What if we’re not accepted?” My eyes grew wide as I remembered something from the fanfics I had read. “And... and what if Pinkie’s cupcakes are really...” This is where Ryan decided I should shut up I guessed, as he forcefully jammed his hand over my mouth.
“Um... let’s not be the Debby Downer today okay?” I nodded and he removed his hand slowly. I opened my mouth to say something that I felt had to be said when a voice came out of nowhere.
“SMILE SMILE SMILE!!!” My mane stood straight up and I fell over into the puddle from shock. The big freakin eyes of Pinkie appeared from nowhere in particular and stared down at me. “Don’t fall over silly!” Ryan had frozen in surprise and now proceeded to start laughing his human ass off.
“Ohmygosh! That looks like so much fun!” Pinkie pushed me out of the shallow muddy puddle and jumped in it herself. “WHEEEEEE!”
A blur of rainbow flew across the sky. Ryan’s eyes grew big. “I’ve been dying to be able to do this. RAINBOW DASH!” Dash landed behind him. “Yeah?” “Wanna race?” I facehoofed. Ryan knew he was going to lose. Everypony knew he was going to lose. There was something for the history books, Ryan, being the idiot that he is, challenged Rainbow Dash to a race knowing he’d lose.
Mud-covered Pinkie Pie sat straight up. “Oooooh! A race!” She hopped out of the mud and drew a line in front of Dash and Ryan. “Reeeeeeeady! Get seeeeeeeeeeeeeet. GO!” Dash was a blur and Ryan was... well... running. Dash made a complete circle around Ponyville before Ryan had even made it past Twilight’s. The rainbow pony grabbed him after she passed the finish line and lifted him up into the air, dropping him in the now mostly mud puddle. Ryan sat in the puddle, dripping and doing something between a fake scowl and laughing hysterically. “Epic fail.” I giggled.
Rarity and Sweetie Belle came walking up. “I thought you all might want to... good gracious!” I thought Rarity was going to faint at the sight of two mud covered ponies and a mud covered human. Twilight appeared in the doorway. “What’s going on out here?” Dash, Pinkie, Ryan and I looked at each other and started laughing again.
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We were sitting around a table at Sugarcube Corner. And Sweetie Belle was staring at me. Like she had been all day. Nonstop. Actually, it was kind of unnerving. Everypony had kind of been ignoring this fact until finally Rarity became too embarrassed.
“Sweetie Belle! It is rude to stare!” Sweetie Belle broke her stare to look at her big sister with a mixture of excitement and fear. “She’s not a filly anymore. But she doesn’t have a cutie mark!” Rarity rolled her eyes. “She also wasn’t born a filly dear.” Sweetie Belle mimicked her sister’s eye rolling and scampered out of Sugarcube Corner.
Rarity looked hopelessly after her. “I’m so sorry Elise. I’m not quite sure what that was all about.” I smiled encouragingly. “It’s fine.”
Pinkie Pie’s eyes grew wide, “OH MY CUPCAKES!” The pink pony bounced into the kitchen and disappeared. Applejack looked over at Ryan who was wearing her ever famous hat. “Ya wanna come visit lil ol’ Sweet Apple Acres?” I thought Ryan was going to die. “Sure thing!” The two of them walked out together and I felt a slight pang of jealousy. I shook it off though as Twilight began to ramble on about a book she read. Fluttershy and Rarity listened politely while Rainbow Dash made gag faces and ended up fast flying out the door. I giggled and rose. “Where are you going darling?”
I shrugged. “I think I just want to walk around for a little bit.” The two unicorns and the pegasus smiled at me then returned to their conversation. I slipped quietly out and squinted in the sunlight. It was actually really cool just watching ponies walking around, but I WAS standing in a doorway. I forced my hooves to start walking aimlessly.
Somehow I ended up standing on the bridge, looking down in the water at my reflection. My ear flicked at the sound of something behind me.
“Hi.” I turned. Sweetie Belle, Applebloom, and Scootaloo were standing behind me. Grinning. I stammered. “Um... h.. hi.”
“We jus’ wanna know if yah wanna be a Cutie Mark Crusader!” beamed Applebloom. “You’re a little old,” added Scootaloo, earning a punch from Applebloom, “But you don’t have a cutie mark yet so you fit in!”
The whole idea of it was just so bizarre that I just kinda blinked. “Um... well...I..uh....” “YAY SHE SAID YES!” the three fillies squeaked. “Wait, I did?” Before I knew it I was being dragged off by the Cutie Mark Crusaders.
Somewhere along the way Scootaloo had climbed onto my back and covered my eyes with her hooves. Much to my annoyance. I could only hear the three fillies yammering on and on about.... well.... I wasn’t quite sure. “Here we are!” Scootaloo uncovered my eyes and jumped to the ground. I found myself looking at the Cutie Mark Crusader Clubhouse. “Time to give a warm welcome to our newest member!” cheered Sweetie Belle and the three of them raced up into the clubhouse.
“What did I get myself into?” I mumbled to myself as I trudged slowly after them.