> Appleblooming > by TheMAM > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Chapter 1 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The tale starts on a bright and hopeful day With everypony smiling in every way Ponyville, a town enriched with friendship With a cutie mark found on every hip Three fillies however, sit around with nothing to do Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo They are the only ones of their class without a talent So they had joined forces to get right at it They’ve tried countless times to find their true calling From washing laundry to playing bowling From breaking mirrors to ripping paper And doing homework, though they chose to do it later From reading stories, to baking cake From butchering, to swimming a lake From swinging ropes, to catching a mouse Heck, they even did unmentionable things in their club house Time went by, yet nothing was gained They sunk into despair, feeling embarrassed and ashamed Pitiful in the eyes of their peers, they hung their heads low They never expected the process to be so slow Now, throwing their hopes away under a shady tree Delusions of grandeur, lost by the three No thoughts of joy, no thoughts of glee They bid farewell to dreams they would never see The thought of the team losing hope fills Scootaloo with rage She suddenly springs up, ready to re-engage Her words shatter the mood, like a hammer to glass “Stop moping about, and get off your ass!” “Hey!” says Yankee Doodle Donkey “Oops,” says Scootaloo, “sorry.” “Scootaloo,” begins Sweetie, “Don’t be so feisty. “You need to choose your words more nicely” “No time for words, we need to take action.” Scootaloo asserts with serious reaction “Let’s get dangerous and do something new. “Do tasks that other ponies would never dare do” “Squishing big bugs? Walking a dark path? “Giving Rarity’s Opal a bath?” Spouts Apple Bloom and Sweetie in a word race Prompting Scootaloo to apply her hoof to her face “No!” shouts Scoots, “Enough hullabaloo. “I mean feats that only tales proclaim true! “From slaying evil dragons to finding hidden treasure. “Feats that only the bravest can endeavor.” “Treasure hunters! That’s what we should be!” Declare Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle, while smiling in glee “Such legends like these, Zecora is sure to know. “She can give us some advice and tell us where to go.” Scootaloo likes the suggestion. She likes it a lot. “With our cute faces, she will be brought. “When we succeed, we’ll be more famous than ever. “With our heads up high, we will never say never.” “A feat like this would leave Ponyville shaking. “What are we waiting for? Our cutie marks are waiting!” And now begins their adventure of discovery A surely most exhilarating journey Our heroes take off with minds full of wonder They cannot contain their excitement any longer Galloping in the meadows, right past the trees And Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy busy with birds and bees They arrive at Zecora’s with their hooves a tad sore They walk up to the residence and knock on the door Mere minutes after, their impatience proves the better They barge into the house without invitation or letter They call out again, yet no sight of the potions master Zecora isn’t home to give them their answer Day turns to night, and nothing is achieved Zecora didn’t come so they decide to leave They are trotting home sadly with mild disappointment But they agreed to come back tomorrow for another appointment Yet on their way home, they hear a strange sound Something in the bushes with the bark of a hound Our heroes grow tense and are stricken with shock They are paralyzed to the point where they can’t even talk With one leap forward, causing the trio to retreat A timberwolf appears, eager for pony meat Eyes glowing, giving piercing stares Claws sharper than a feral bear’s And strength as great as Big Mac’s might Making overall a most frightening sight The three fillies flee while screaming in terror Longer and longer! Louder and louder! It is to no avail! Oh, what dismay! The nearest pony is miles away! Fortunately, lady luck decides to be lenient They find a wagon and scooter, how convenient… To which Scootaloo recognizes the transportation as her own Lost when Twilight accidentally zapped it into the unknown The three fillies clamber on before the wolves attack Not wanting to become their midnight snack Thereafter Scootaloo makes sure to accelerate And they barely miss a dreadful fate At least that’s what they think at the time For when everything seems all well and fine The wooden abomination suddenly catches up This time with brothers, sisters, and even his pup Scootaloo tries to lose them, but is not fast enough The trail they took starts to get rough Losing the sight of the path needed to get home They try to escape elsewhere, and randomly roam The girls race through the forest, but the wolves are quick They zip across a bridge, but it didn’t do the trick They jump a river, only to give the wolves a rinse They rocket up the mountains, then events start to commence Scootaloo is swift despite facing many difficulties And the wolves cannot match her Scooter abilities Sharp rocks and high cliffs are no match for her skills While the wolves fail to climb, and are lost in the hills A large rock dislodges and falls down the hill And the timberwolves lose all their will To carry on their rabid chase Fleeing the boulder at a rapid pace Scootaloo stands at the peak victorious Acknowledging her accomplishment, impressive and glorious “You sure are an amazing scooterist!” Apple Bloom remarks from the side “Yeah… I guess I am!” huffs Scootaloo, chest swelling with pride Then something catches her attention during her cheer A flash of light by the side of her rear What is it? Could it be... A scooter cutie mark! Finally! “My cutie mark! My cutie mark!” Scoots exclaims to the girls Her excitement keeps her running in whirls The girls cheering without a trace of bereavement Dance in the ecstasy of Scootaloo’s stellar achievement Our heroes hug while ever so happy But Scootaloo finds the moment to be a bit sappy “Alright, break it up.” says Scootaloo with a modest tone “Let’s celebrate when we get home.” So down the hill, the three fillies quickly descend Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle are happy for their friend They feel as though they could kill Just to tell everypony in Ponyville With their high altitude they spot home at last So Scootaloo gets excited and rides extra fast She speeds like Rainbow Dash down the steep hill The three fillies are overjoyed… until… As she grew more fervent, Scootaloo forgot What Miss Cheerilee told her class to do not: “Remember class, always be witty. “Never travel down a steep hill too quickly.” To everypony’s surprise, Scootaloo’s scooter trips And they are catapulted into the air, in which they do flips They fly to a cliff, right off the edge Sweetie Belle is barely able to grab a ledge Apple Bloom grabs Sweetie Belle, and is grabbed by Scootaloo And now the trio is hanging on for dear life without a clue How to get back up, so they scream and they fuss: “Help! Help! Somepony help us!” With tears in their eyes and hearts full of dread They know that soon they will be dead At that moment, Scootaloo suddenly has a resolution “Wait, guys! I have the solution.” “Sweets, can you climb up with two ponies instead of three?” “Um… I guess so” Sweetie Belle utters with uncertainty Scootaloo responds “Then I’ll let go and fly away. “I’ll then get help, and I won’t delay.” “No Scootaloo! You can’t fly!” Cries Apple Bloom, knowing Scootaloo would die Ignoring her friend, Scoots lets go of Apple Bloom’s tail She flaps her wings. Now does she fail? Yes, she does. Scootaloo begins her plummet She isn’t capable of flight just yet Young Scootaloo falls to the ground far below And for miles is heard “SCOOTALOO! NOOOOOO!” The night turns to day, but instead of sun there is rain Cutie Mark Crusader Scootaloo did not die in vain She obtained her cutie mark, but at the ultimate cost. Was it worth her own life being lost? Hours of weeping, tons of regret “It’s all our fault.” Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle bet In desperation and confusion, they think of what to say To everypony in town about what had transpired that day They put aside thoughts of the future, and gather their might They know Scootaloo would want them to do what is right They decide to end their disastrous quest that day And bring Scootaloo back to Ponyville to stay They descend the mountain to find Scootaloo quite dead She lay squished in a pool of muddy red They take her to the wagon and set her down And the trio makes their way back to town > Chapter 2 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The next day comes, albeit one quite unusual For the ponies of the town gather for a funeral Every pony of earth, horn, and wing Wearing mostly modest clothing To honor the passing of a young Pegasus One whom everypony will surely miss Scootaloo, an angel who couldn’t fly Whose passing causes the entire town to cry Mr. Waddle, the funeral pony, says “If you may, “Does anypony have any kind words to say?” Nopony had anything to say, nopony It was to be the quietest funeral in pony history Out of the blue, everypony is struck with awe while Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle solemnly march down the aisle Sporting dresses of silk crafted by Rarity Both radiating auras of intense beauty Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle reach the podium And prepare to sing a requiem One Sweetie Belle composed just for this purpose The two sang with elegance gratuitous No One Like Scootaloo (Your endeavor and Thrill of adventure Granted us the time of our lives Your dreams really Did come true And we’ll keep on searching With the thought of you Dear filly Dry your eyes Sweetie She’s happy Let her go We hate to keep the Cutie Mark Crusaders ununited but we Can’t stay away, we can’t fight it so we’ll Never not remember that you don’t have to spread your wings to fly You could still soar high Always mind we’ll find no one like Scootaloo We wish nothing but the best for our cutie marks too We won’t forget you, we’ll say The Cutie Mark Crusaders prevail Sometimes the search gets fun And sometimes the search turns grey Sometimes the search gets fun And sometimes the search turns grey) The two fillies sing their little hearts out And everypony is touched by what they sing about After it ends, there are neither stomps nor cheers The audience merely breaks out in tears Most are crying, few felt strong Derpy is asking what went wrong Even the Mane 6 hold no tears back Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Applejack Twilight and Rarity, have the desire To hide their tears behind their funeral attire However, the veils that hide their eyes Do not block out their audible cries And Rainbow Dash, let’s not forget She seems to be the one most upset After all, Scootaloo was her number one fan She makes no effort to hide the tears as they ran The two fillies witness all these sensations The song exceeded even their expectations Most eyes are on Sweetie Belle It isn’t really that hard to tell Such delicacy, such chemistry Backed up by a beautiful melody Apple Bloom says faintly, “You have the voice of an angel.” “Well… I guess it was ok.” Sweetie replies faintly as well But right after that thought comes to mind A small glow erupts from her behind The two fillies cannot believe what they see A microphone on a star is what the cutie mark be Sweetie Belle is shocked, mixed emotions are felt Her heart suddenly starts to melt She is glad she got her cutie mark that moment But why did it have to be at this very event? To think that she gains her cutie mark next to The coffin of her best friend Scootaloo She feels as though it is all some cruel jest That her happiest day is her saddest Goodbyes are exchanged, it is time to go Everypony leaves in utmost woe But the two fillies stay to say one more farewell Though they didn’t have much else to tell So they just sat there by the tombstone Where all they do is sob and moan And their final goodbye is somber but true “Goodbye Scootaloo, we’ll sure miss you.” They trot back home, feeling sour During this most unhappy hour And take note, during their all-time low That the Cutie Mark Crusaders are now a duo Sweetie Belle meets Apple Bloom the very next day At the family barn, right next to the hay Having no interest in their club house anymore To have fun is what they went there for No. No more fun, those days are over For now, they cry on each others’ shoulder They simply lie around weeping and sniffling And aside from that, decide not to do anything Why have fun when something is missing A Pegasus to bring thrill into everything A spirited gal to make you giggle Every time you’re down or in a pickle As time passes, they start to see No more purpose to the CMC To say that it was all just to get cutie marks isn’t the truth The whole point of it was so that they could enjoy their youth It was about having a good time, having fun Joyfully frolicking with your friends in the sun Playing games, seeing who would have won Being together till the day was done The two never realized that until now Getting over it, they don’t know how They then deem there no meaning in their meeting And so bid farewell until their next greeting Apple Bloom takes a walk through the market past stands Selling many products of various brands Foods and sweets as plenty as can be Nevertheless, Apple Bloom isn’t hungry She then notices a passing neighbor Of which, to her, is no stranger With no more rings around her neck Zecora passes by, looking like heck Her mane in ruins, as if trimmed by a barber With a lawnmower and a flamethrower Cuts on her body, leaking blood Contaminated and caked with mud So weak, she can barely walk Grateful she can even talk But with the view of Apple Bloom below her chin For the little filly, she cracks a small grin Suddenly, Zecora feels a small chill As she sees Apple Bloom standing perfectly still The filly is beaming an uncomfortable stare Immediately recognized as an angry glare Apple Bloom, with rage in her eyes Takes Zecora by surprise When she lets out a yell as sharp as a pin, “WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?!! WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?!!” She charges at Zecora and begins an assault, “IT’S ALL YOUR FAULT!!! IT’S ALL YOUR FAULT!!!” Zecora stands shocked with her mouth wide open As Apple Bloom throws hooves at her shin “Apple Bloom! Stop! Enough! Please! “You seem not at all at ease. “Desist young one, is there anything-“ “SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP!” Apple Bloom screams, interrupting “We were at your house, but ya’ll weren’t there! “Where were you? Where? Where?! “We tried looking! We tried finding our way! “We were in danger with no safe place to stay! “We were alone! We were in danger! “Ya’ll could have been a game changer! “We just buried Scootaloo, “And she’s now dead! BECAUSE OF YOU! “Scootaloo’s dead!” wails Apple Bloom Her judgment is cloudy due to her gloom Nothing else is there to be said Zecora stands still with a very light head Zecora does not know how to react Having trouble comprehending the fact That the young filly Scootaloo had died Under normal circumstances she would have cried But she knows not to cry so willy-nilly Particularly when dealing with an enraged filly Especially after having gone through some hard stuff She is quickly fed up and yells, “Apple Bloom, ENOUGH!” She restrains Apple Bloom’s hooves with her own She then calms down and changes her tone “Apple Bloom, you must comprehend, “Please hear my tale to the very end” “I was in quite a pinch, and now I’m very tired “I do not have knowledge of what has transpired. “Please, let us go somewhere private. “Back at my domain, where it is quiet." Apple Bloom lets her hooves fall to the dirt To Zecora’s leg, she hadn’t caused much hurt Yet she refuses to communicate, stubborn in this case Until she takes a look around the marketplace Everypony is staring from every store Appalled at Apple Bloom’s behavior Everypony watching from around the bends Some are even of her classmate friends Including Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon She knew for sure they would laugh at her soon But they appear sad, mostly understanding They know better not to mock someone’s passing Apple Bloom had later confessed To having felt scared, humiliated, and embarrassed Without hesitation, she follows her Not wanting to linger a second longer They safely make it to Zecora’s den Whereupon Zecora immediately says then “Please my child, don’t hesitate “Tell me what happened up to this date” Apple Bloom sits as still as a statue Still blaming Zecora for what happened to Scootaloo Her mannerism is far from grand But Zecora does not reprimand Apple Bloom then catches sight of a collection of mirrors And upon seeing her reflection, her stubbornness withers Her expression turns to horror after what she sees The expression prior giving her the heebie-jeebies Seeing Zecora looking sorry for everything Apple Bloom apologizes for the way she is acting She approaches Zecora and gives her a hug And both let their tears cascade on the rug Apple Bloom finally calms down Having put aside her indecorous frown And over a bowl of oats and barley To Zecora she recounts her story