//------------------------------// // Chapter 11: The Point of Cutie Marks // Story: This Unusual Little World // by PathOfTheAwesomePie //------------------------------// It was a little while that I woke up and Fluttershy had greeted me with good morning and offered a few vegetables to eat as a snack. I accepted them and to be honest, the veggies she's been giving me are more delicious than the ones on Earth. "I guess being here kinda forced me to become a healthy eater for their sake..." I decided to walk outside with Fluttershy to enjoy the morning glow of the sun with her, but Angel ruined it by throwing a carrot at my face, making me cause the fur ball to run away. After a while I got tired chasing the mischievous bunny I dropped to the ground. "I'm never gonna get used to that furry demon of a bunny..." I said. I stared at Fluttershy who was finishing talking to a bunch of blue jays and noticed something about her. "Oh, hey Fluttershy?" I called to her. I got her attention and she immediately responded. "Yes, mister Alex?" "I was just wondering what are those on your...um...side." I asked unoffensive as possible. "I know it would've been easier to say butt or flank but... I'll hold off on that later." Fluttershy looked to the side of her. "You mean my wings..?" She questioned. I got from off the ground and dusted myself off, then shook my head. "No, no, I mean those pink things, are they always there?" I asked once more. Fluttershy's ears perked up. "Oh, you meant my little flutterflies." She replied with a smile. "Mhm, they're on me at all times." "Yea, what exactly are they there for besides the fact that they make you look...haha...cute?" I asked, a bit embarrassed. "Well, that's because it's my " Fluttershy was interrupted by a pair of loud voices who shouted out "CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS!" and it made me and Fluttershy jump. "What in the world!?" I shouted back. All of a sudden Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo had popped their heads out of a nearby bush near Fluttershy and they all rushed out in front of me. "That's Fluttershy's cutie mark you were talking about!" Sweetie Belle implied. "A cutie mark? Wait, wait, wait, I said it was a cute mark, not...cutie." I told her, pointing to Fluttershy's mark. "Alex, you don't KNOW what a cutie mark is!?" The three fillies said in unison and then gasping at me. "W-well all I noticed is that a lot of ponies I'm around had a different sign on them and..." I stopped and looked at the three little ponies and thought about it. "Come to think of it... where are your cutie mark?" I asked bold-faced. "We...uh...um..." Scootaloo said stuttering. "That's because w-we're waiting for ours!" Sweetie Belle said with slight hesitation. "Yea, and...we're gonna get them soon!" Apple Bloom said proudly. I looked at them for a moment, then they started to shake with nervousness. "Oh girls, it's fine to tell mister Alex the truth." Fluttershy said with a smile. "I kinda had a feeling they were hiding something." I said, still glaring at them. "Oooooh, alright, we can't find our special talents!" Sweetie Belle admitted, turning her head away. "Special talents...oh, so the marks are a sign of what you do best, is that right!?" I said trying to see Fluttershy's cutie mark again. "So, Fluttershy's cutie mark are flutterflies because of her gentle nature to animals!" I said. "Yup!" The three fillies said altogether. "You're right mister Alex, though..." Fluttershy flew up into the sky. "If it wasn't for Rainbow Dash's Sonic Rainboom I woulnd't have gotten my cutie mark, it was all thanks to her I found my special talent." She said as the wind blew her mane, building a nostalgic atmosphere around her. "Rainbow Dash...oh so... I bet that's how she got that awesome cutie mark." I said to myself. "So Applejack's cutie mark is apples because she works at Apple Acres, Rainbow Dash's cutie mark shows a rainbow bolt because of her special SOnic Rainbom and flight skills!" "Which to me is pretty awesome!" "Pinkie Pie's cutie mark shows balloons because she a real party pony, Rarity's cutie mark are diamonds because of her fashionista personality and she loves designing clothes, and Twilight...hmm." I said, stopping to think. The three fillies looked at me with puzzled expressions. "Somethin' wrong, Alex?" Apple Bloom asked. "Um, Twilight's cutie mark is a star, but... to be honest I have NO idea what she could be into!" I said with a smile. Angel facepalmed himself just from my remark then hopped into the cottage. "Wow, you've never paid attention have you, Al?" said a voice from the skies. Rainbow Dash landed down to where we were discussing cutie marks. "You seriously don't know what Twilight's special talent is!?" "Hey, it's not like I'm the cutie mark commentator in the world, it's just um..." I put my hand on my chin, thinking of Twilight's abilities. "She reads books, knows magic pretty well...not much to go on." I blinked and then gasped at my realization to the mystery. "Oh, I know now!" "It took ya long enough!" Rainbow Dash said, "Twilight has something to with stars no, no, no, she likes reading, so that must mean..." I held my breath in for the moment. "SHE'S A BRIGHT LEARNER, I mean she reads book, Celestia calls her her star pupil and her cutie mark's a star, am I right!?" I said with confidence in my answer. "Uh..." Everypony said, looking at me with disappointed faces. Rainbow Dash started to snicker until she she finally busted out laughing on the ground near Fluttershy. Fluttershy flew over to me and patted me on the head. "She's great with magic, mister Alex." She corrected me contently with a small chuckle. I felt like such an idiots at that moment and hung my head down. "Aw, I thought that made sense too..." I said, embarrassed. So, in short, I've learned that cutie marks are the special marks that show what everypony is good at, even though it may take time to occur or for it to randomly happen at a given point in time and there's nothing else to it! "No, seriously I mean her cutie mark's a star and she likes to read so that makes her a "star" student, meaning she's a "bright" learner come on, it's good!" The other ponies laughed at my folly of learning Twilight's cutie mark and we went on with out activities!