//------------------------------// // Heartbeat // Story: Blanked // by Salnalus //------------------------------// The scrapbook was shut tight again, each picture inside saying more than a thousand words. After Mitta closed it, Apple Bloom was slack jawed, processing all the events she was given in detail. Even if there were a few she didn’t want to be told to the last letter. “And that’s what that happened to Sunny Town,” Mitta said quietly, suppressing her feelings to get through the tale in one take. “That’s all from those ponies?” Apple Bloom noted. “Ah don’t like them very much, but it’s hard to think that they’re the same ponies that did those things.” “I know it’s hard to believe. I don’t believe it occasionally myself. They were good ponies deep down, and I could trust them with anything. They were a little eccentric, but they were good hearted in the end. And then they did… those things…” The emotions coming back up were too much for Mitta, and she wiped away a tear with her hooves. Anytime she closed her eyes, she could see everything as clearly as the day it happened. She wanted to stay strong for the poor little filly, but she was reaching her limits. Then, she felt a hoof placed on her shoulder. It was from Apple Bloom, doing her best to comfort her with anything she could do. It wouldn’t be enough on its own, but it was something at least. “Thank you, Apple Bloom,” Mitta said faintly. “I needed that.” “No problem. Anypony would have a tough time tellin’ a story like that.” “Right. But I want to stay strong through it. Even though I can’t get out of here, there’s no reason why I should be like this all the time.” “That sounds like something my sister would have said.” Mitta chuckled. “Sounds like she’s a good role model, then.” Meanwhile, Apple Bloom was curious about Ruby, thinking back to the parts of the tale with her at the center. She opened the scrapbook again, flipping over to the pictures of the late filly. It started off with her foalhood pictures, and almost all of them featured Mitta with the smile she used to have long ago. “She’s cute when she’s like that,” Apple Bloom noted. “I know. The first few years were scary, though. I was scared that I would be a bad mother, just like any new mother. She was a hoofful for a while, but every now and then…” Mitta flipped to a picture of herself and Ruby together, with matching flowers in their manes. “...I would be reminded why I wanted to be a mother in the first place.” As she kept flipping through the pictures of Ruby’s fillyhood days, Apple Bloom remembered the times when she met her ghost. A shiver went up her spine just thinking about it, but at the same time, she couldn’t stop thinking about her. What Ruby was like when she was alive. “Um, Ah understand if it’s something you don’t much like talking about, but what was Ruby like?” Mitta blinked, the question taking her out of the memories she wanted to relive. “...sure. I guess I could tell you a few things about her.” Apple Bloom scooted up closer to the mare, making sure she would catch every detail. “Where to begin… oh, I remember. She was really playful, even as a foal.” She found the page in the scrapbook with a picture of Ruby surrounded with toys, and each one was worn out, or they were on their way. “I don’t remember how many toys I bought for her, but it was a lot. And then there’s this.” Another page showed the filly with a shovel, along with the rest of the ponies breaking ground for a new building. “She was a great helper for her age. If there was ever a pony in need and she was big enough for the job, she would help them out. If she grew up to be an adult, she might have been the most helpful pony in all of Sunny Town. Maybe even Ponyville.” Somehow, she managed to keep a straight face saying that. If she was allowed to grow up… “I know I’ve told you before, but that played a big part of her getting the Mar- uh, her cutie mark. She found Roneo’s gemstone that he lost, and returned it to him, since he wanted to present it to Starlet as a gift. And that’s when… when…” She wanted to continue the story, but all the bad memories soon flooded her head. The discovery. The decision by the rest of the town. And then that moment... The emotions were too much for her when she was confronted by those images, and the tears came down slowly. Her heart couldn’t bare the pain of that day. She tried her best not to let it show to the filly in front of her, but it was a fruitless effort. The tears wouldn’t stop. Apple Bloom saw it all, and knew she had to do something to help Mitta out. She got up and looked frantically for anything that would help, and she found a box of tissue on a table nearby. She grabbed it and handed a tissue to Mitta. “T-Thank you, Apple Bloom,” Mitta said, wiping away the tears and blowing her nose. “I appreciate you trying to help.” “It was nothing, really,” Apple Bloom said, smiling and trying to lighten the mood. “Speaking of cutie marks,” noted Mitta, wishing to change the subject ASAP, “I noticed you didn’t have your cutie mark when you came into town.” “Oh yeah. That thing,” Apple Bloom sighed, looking down at her blank flank. “If it makes you feel better, I can already tell that you’re a really smart pony. You would get your cutie mark at any time if you weren’t stuck here.” “Really?” Her eyes brightened at the thought; towards the end, she was beginning to doubt if she was doomed to be a blank flank forever. “Really. It would happen sooner or later.” “Thanks a lot. That was somethin’ Ah tried to do all the time back home. Ah couldn’t get my mark no matter what Ah did, so Ah joined up with two other fillies at mah school, and we’d spend a lot of our free time tryin’ to get our marks. We even had a name for our group: The Cutie Mark Crusaders!” she proclaimed triumphantly. Mitta raised an eyebrow. “So you made a group just for that? What all did you do as Crusaders?” “All sorts of things. We tried a talent show, skydivin’ without parachutes, making plants come alive with fancy potions, seeing if one of us was secretly fireproof, that kind of stuff. Ah lost half my mane for a while with that last one.” That got another chuckle out of Mitta. “That sounded fun.” “It was. We never did get our marks, but we had fun as a group. But... Ah wish Ah had gotten my mark...” She brought her head down and closed her eyes, the reality of her situation suddenly hitting her hard. “And now Ah can’t get my mark because of some stupid curse, and Ah’m stuck in this town forever. Couldn’t get out even if Ah wanted to….” She started to hyperventilate, and a tear rolled down her cheek. Her feelings were so deep, so pained, that the emotional pain was beginning to turn physical. “Ah won’t be able to see my friends again, and Ah won’t be able to ever see my family again… Ah miss them all so much…” The tears wouldn’t stop now. She couldn’t stop feeling miserable over the situation, and it felt like her life was over. She collapsed on the floor and buried her face into the carpet, making the spot wet in seconds from all the crying. Mitta was heartbroken at the sight. As soon as she saw the filly’s state, her heart soared to help her out as much as possible. She went over and picked up the poor Earth pony with her front hooves, giving her a comforting hug. Apple Bloom was so broken that she didn’t know what was going on at first, but once she processed it through, she found herself hugging Mitta back. At least somepony was trying to help her out at her time of need. The mare ran her hoof down the filly’s mane, humming a melody she once sang all the time to her daughter. “It’s alright, my dear, don’t say a word, I’ve got you safe in my hooves. Nothing will come after you anymore, I’m going to make sure you’re safe and sound.” Apple Bloom held onto Mitta’s front limbs as much as she could. The tears were still going, but she managed to calm down a bit She felt Mitta brush her mane a few more times, singing the foal’s song again and again until she knew that the filly was feeling better. And that she was. She shut her eyes and felt a moment of peace for the first time in a long while. It was only for a moment and wouldn’t solve everything, but feeling any relief at all was a blessing. After endless minutes passed by them, Mitta looked down at Apple Bloom, relieved to see that the crying had stopped. “Feeling better?” Mitta asked. “Yeah… Ah think so,” Apple Bloom whispered. “Ah just want to stay here…” “That’s alright. You can stay here for now if that’s what you want to do.” “More than anything.” After a few hours passed, Luna would be raising the moon over Equestria soon. It wouldn’t be long until it was dark, and given it was summertime, it was really, really late in the day. The party would’ve been finished by now, and everypony in Sunny Town would’ve gone back to their homes. “Oh horseapples, it’s almost nighttime. Ah’m not gonna go back out there tonight,” the filly stated, being the most comfortable with Mitta, and not the others. “Hmm, I didn’t realize how late it was. You don’t trust those other ponies either, do you?” “Not one bit,” Apple Bloom said, slamming a hoof on the floor. “I understand. You know what, I’ll let you stay at my house for now. At least, until you figure out what you want to do in the long term.” Apple Bloom smiled again. “That sounds fine…” She tilted her head back and yawned, her eyelids getting heavy on her. “Ah’m pretty tired now. Kinda need the shuteye. Where you wantin’ me to sleep at?” Mitta was going to answer, until she realized she didn’t really have another room for Apple Bloom to sleep on. She did have a couch in the living room, but it was pretty worn, and therefore uncomfortable to sleep on, even for Mitta. She looked across the room at Ruby’s bed, and it gave her thoughts. It used to belong to Ruby, and she probably wouldn’t have minded Apple Bloom sleeping on it, if only because it was now unused and she needed a place to sleep. “I suppose for now, you can sleep in what used to be Ruby’s bed, right there,” she answered as she gestured toward the bed across the room. “Just as long as you keep it nice and tidy, you can sleep in it all you want. She may not be using it anymore, but out of respect, I’d still like it to be as clean as possible.” The filly smiled and stepped off Mitta’s bed, hopping up onto Ruby’s bed and got comfortable. She sighed at feeling the softness of the mattress, almost like a cloud. “That’s mighty nice of you, and sure, I’ll keep it nice. Ah think Ah’m gonna call it a night.” “Here, let me tuck you in.” Mitta grabbed the nearby covers near the foot of the bed, and she draped it over Apple Bloom’s frame. “You sure you’re not weirded out by this? Me sleeping in your daughter’s bed?” “Not at all. Ruby would have given you the bed and slept on the sofa if she was here, anyway. Besides, it felt sort of nice being able to tuck in a filly after so, so long…” She paused slightly, a small smile first showing, then fading slightly. She felt a bit heartwarmed from tucking her in, but at the same time, it wasn’t Ruby. But it still felt like a close reminder of what it was like, and for now, it was good enough for her. “N-Nevermind that, you should get some sleep. I’ll try to help you as much as I can when you wake up.” “Thanks. Oh, and good night, Mitta.” “Good night, Apple Bloom.” The filly rolled over to her side and closed her eyes, trying to get a good night’s sleep. Once that business was finished, Mitta went back into the living room and tried to enjoy one last moment under the sun. She dwelled her thoughts the poor filly she took under her metaphorical wing, and she felt so horrible about her fate. Nothing about it felt fair, but then again, nothing about this situation was fair. It was something she grew to accept over time, but that didn’t mean she had to like it. Or, for that matter, like it when the town’s residents made other ponies share their curse. Still, she wanted to do the best she could with what she had, and when she could hear the filly snoring in her sleep already, she knew she did just that. In the last minute before the sun set and her true form came out again, she took another look at the scrapbook, back to the pages featuring her beloved daughter. She put a hoof over Ruby’s face in the picture, trying her best to call back to the good times. “Oh, my dear Ruby, what are we going to do with her?” That was the last thing she said before she became a monster once more. ------ Half an hour before nightfall, Grey Hoof and Three Leaf were busy trying to clean up the mess left behind by all the partying. Well, it wasn’t that big of a mess. Grey Hoof just wanted it out of his mane as soon as possible. That was the way he liked it. He grabbed a broom and swept some of the confetti away to the sides, where they wouldn’t be in anypony’s way. But there were a few pieces of cake stomped on the ground, and that would probably take more work to clean off. He wondered how that got there. Eh, this looked like something he’d have to finish tomorrow. “Another great party, Three Leaf,” he said to the green mare, who was drinking some of the leftover punch. “You really think so?” Three Leaf gleamed, coming over to chat with him. “Thank you so much! I wanted to make sure that the newest Blank felt welcome in our lovely Sunny Town. Do you think she liked it? Do you?” He smiled with a warm feeling in his heart, as he always did with each successful conversion of a pony. “She warmed up to us a little more today, I would say. I’m sure she’ll fit in soon enough.” Three Leaf’s ears parted to the side out of nowhere. “Umm... actually, can we talk about that?” Grey Hoof sensed something was wrong with Three Leaf when he heard that, and set down his broom next to the table. “Hmm? Sounds like you got something on your mind. Go ahead, talk it out.” “Here’s the thing. Have you seen the way she’s been acting around us? I’m trying really hard to be the friendliest, most inviting pony ever, but she doesn’t like me very much. She doesn’t seem to like any of us, actually. The only pony she kinda likes in this whole town is Mitta, and she’s the saddest pony ever.” “Three Leaf, please. Calm down--” “I’m just worried that she’s never going to warm up to us! And that’s awful, because I really want her to be our friend. She’s adorable with that lovely yellow coat and red hair, and those cute little cheeks, she seems really smart, and I think she’s a farm pony with her accent and all that dust on her hooves. We could use somepony like her, she would be a big help around town! But that won’t matter if she’s not our friend…” She kicked the dirt with her hooves, very upset at the idea that they wouldn’t be friends. However, Grey Hoof wasn’t shaken up at all. He was as calm as ever, as if filled with much confidence. “I know what you’re saying, but you don’t have to worry about that little thing. She’s staying here forever, right?” The usually happy mare was still kicking dirt around. “Maybe…” “So you have all the time in the world to make a good impression on her. She’ll fit in soon enough, and before you know it, she’ll want to be your friend. You just have to keep at it. Don’t be afraid to throw her another party. And don’t give up on her.” She lifted her head to his eye level. “You think so?” “I know so. She’s not going to be like Mitta. She’s far too cheerful to be like her.” Suddenly, Three Leaf went from being a depressed pony to a happy-go-lucky pony. “Thanks, Grey Hoof! That’s just what I needed to hear. I don’t know what I’d do without you!” “Now now, you’re smarter than you think,” Grey Hoof responded, just before he stepped into a piece of cake on the road, and frowned a bit. “Even if you can be messy at times…” “Heh, thanks again!” With their nice little talk over with, Three Leaf finished her punch before going to another table, cleaning stuff off of there. Grey Hoof himself went back to work, cleaning up as much of the debris as he could before the night arrived. He paused every now and then to wipe the sweat from his brow. “Just keep at it, Grey Hoof,” he said to himself. “Apple Bloom will come around soon enough.”