Captain Equestria: The First Avenger

by Plumage

One: Double Date

Equestria, 1947

"Today we commemorate our fallen soldiers. Everypony is playing their part. Even little Pip is helping find scrap metal! Do your part today-"
"Shut up already! Just play the movie!"
The voice rang out a second time in the theatre. Applebloom was getting sick of that rude colt.
"Why don't y'all jes' shut up yerselves?" she called back.

*

"You wanna apologize yet?" snarled the colt.
"No," said Applebloom.
The colt hit her in the face again. WHAM.
"How about now?"
"Nope,"
WHAM.
"You're nothing special, you know that?"
"Yep. Ah'm just a filly from Ponyville."
WHAM.
This time he knocked her into the rubbish bin behind her. It was tin, and she hit her head on it almost as hard as she'd been hit by the colt. She got back up again.
"You just don't know when to give up, do you?"
"Ah could do this all day," she replied breathlessly.
The colt drew back his hoof to hit her again, but before he could a voice yelled, "HEY!"
Applebloom smiled! Scootaloo!
The orange pegasus trotted down the alley, her undersized wings whirring hummingbird style. "Pick on someone your own size," she growled.
"Sure," said the colt, and prepared to punch her, but Scootaloo got there first.
Wham! The colt stumbled. Wham! The colt fell. Scootaloo kicked him once, hard, and the colt groaned. "Try not to be such a bully, snotbag." she said.
She helped Applebloom up. "Don't you remember? We have a double date tonight."
Applebloom had forgotten. "Oh. Right."
"I can't believe you had to pick today to get yourself beaten up." Again, she added silently.
"It don't matter. Ah'll go like this." she said dismissively.
Scootaloo clicked her tongue but didn't argue. They left for the fair to meet the boys.

*

"Ladies and gentlecolts, I am proud to present, the Great and Powerful Trixie!"
Applause.
Wow, Applebloom thought. This was so boring. She looked around and spotted an army museum. She slipped away from Scootaloo and the two colts- Snips and Snails she thought it was- and trotted off to the war museum.
Inside it wasn't too crowded. There were posters and depictions of the war, old guns and flags, plaques commemorating 'the great ponies who laid down their lives to serve this horrible war.' Applebloom thought it was all very well commemorating the ponies, but who will do something about the Second Pony War? Nopony, it seemed. She turned a corner and right away; there was the Princess, staring her in the face and pointing a hoof at her.

WE NEED YOU!
Join The Army Today!

Applebloom looked at it. The army... Applebloom would like to be in the army. Fighting for her country against those evil changelings. Hooftler was the one to blame. Exterminating Mustangs like there was no tomorrow! What a lie.
"Applebloom!"
She turned. Scootaloo. Damn.
"Where did you go? We're supposed to be dancing with Snips and Snails! And you ran away! The point of a double date is having FOUR PONIES, Applebloom. Not three. Four. And if you aren't there, then it's not four."
"Okay, y'all go ahead. Ah'll join y'all later."
"Applebloom-"
"Just go! Ah'm coming!"
"You can't sign up for the army," said Scootaloo, seeing the poster. "You're too small."
"So what?" countered Applebloom hotly. "Ah can do what ever I want!"
"Right." Scootaloo snorted.
"Look, if Ah want to lay down mah life for mah country Ah should be allowed to," Applebloom snapped.
"Fine," replied Scootaloo, "but don't expect me to come to your funeral. I warned you."
Applebloom trotted down the hallway to registration while the lavender unicorn who had been watching the argument thought over what she had seen.