There are ponies who are a little bit off. There are ponies who are very off. Then there's Knife Point, the new student in Scootaloo's class. Still, even a pony who's very twisted needs love too.
There's a new student in class. His name is Knife Point. As you can no doubt tell, he's a little messed up. More than a little, if we're being honest. Even so, one thing leads to another and soon Scootaloo finds herself friends with the mysterious foal. There's a lot she doesn't know, but one thing is certain. There will be stabbing. Lots and lots of stabbing.
The entire class was chattering. Ms. Cheerilee hadn’t come in yet. Either she was late, or they had a new student. Whatever it was, the class was taking advantage of it to gossip with their friends. Scootaloo cut her conversation with Apple Bloom short when Ms. Cheerilee walked into the classroom.
“Hello, my little ponies,” Cheerilee began, “Today, we have a new student. Please give him a warm welcome.” She gestured toward the door and the new student walked in. He was an earth pony, with a dark green coat. It was almost black, now that Scootaloo thought about it, and it was at odds with his blood-red mane. He had a vacant look about him, as if he wasn’t actually here but lost in a fantasy. He also, Scootaloo noted with interest, was lacking a cutie-mark.
“Hello, everypony,” he said, his voice just as vacant as his face, “My name is Knife Point.”
This caused everypony to shift uncomfortably and begin muttering. Even Cheerilee looked a bit disturbed. “Knife Point,” she said, “That’s an…interesting name.”
“Yes,” said Knife, “Supposedly, my mother gave it to me because when I was born, the first thing I reached for was the doctor’s scalpel.”
“Oh,” Cheerilee laughed nervously, “Well, um, what’s your special talent?”
“As you can no doubt see, I don’t have my cutie mark yet,” Knife Point said, “However, when it comes, I presume it will have something to do with stabbing.”
“Oh. And, why is that?” Cheerilee asked.
A ghost of a smile touched his lips. “Intuition, I suppose.”
By now, the entire class was looking on with a mixture of disgust and horror. Some of the students even leaned back in their seats. “I’m sorry if this offends you,” Cheerilee said carefully, “but, did you bring a knife, by any chance?”
“I did, actually,” Reaching into his saddlebags, Knife Point pulled out a dagger. It wasn’t very large, but the blade gleamed and the tip looked very, very sharp. “This is Mr. Knifey. If the childish name didn’t give it away, I’ve had him since I was a foal. I always carry him with me.”
“Well, it’s against the law to have weapons on school grounds,” Cheerilee said, “I’m going to have to confiscate…him.”
“Perfectly alright,” Knife Point said, “So long as I can have him back after school.” Deftly, he reversed his grip and offered the hilt to Cheerilee. She took the dagger hesitantly, putting it away in one of her drawers.
“Alright, Knife Point,” Cheerilee said, “You take the seat behind Scootaloo.” Scootaloo felt a thrill of fear. Out of all the places to have a knife-crazed lunatic, behind her was the last one she wanted!
“Ms. Cheerilee!” Scootaloo cried, “I don’t want-“
“Scootaloo,” Cheerilee said sternly, “That is the only seat available.”
“But-“ Scootaloo began.
“No ‘but’s,” Cheerilee said.
“It was nice knowing you, Apple Bloom.” Scootaloo sighed. Knife Point took his seat and the lesson began. Scootaloo couldn’t concentrate; every second she expected to feel a pencil, or worse, stab into her back. A few times, she whirled around to see what he was doing, only to find him looking at Cheerilee, or hunched over writing something down. Once, she turned around to see him stabbing his desk idly with his pencil. He noticed her looking, and gave a nod and something that could have been a smile. Oddly comforted, Scootaloo turned back to face the front.
The lesson came and went, and then it was time for recess. Everypony streamed out the door. Scootaloo and the other Crusaders went to their corner of the playground. “So, what do y’all make o’ that Knife Point?” Apple Bloom said
“He’s creepy,” Sweetie Belle shivered.
“Ditto,” Scootaloo said.
“What was Cheerilee thinking when she put him behind you?” Sweetie Belle said heatedly.
“I don’t know,” Scootaloo said. She looked over to where Knife Point was. He was walking in a circle, and judging by the rut he’d dug, he’d been at it for a while. “What is he doing?” Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle followed her gaze. At that moment, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon waltzed up to him. They seemed to have a conversation. Abruptly, Knife Point turned and stalked away while Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon laughed.
Apple Bloom whistled. “They got guts. Ah’ll give ‘em that.”
“Should we go talk to him?” Scootaloo asked.
“You can,” Sweetie Belle said, “I wasn’t going to go near him when he was calm. No way I’m doing it when he’s angry!” Apple Bloom seemed to be of the same mind, so Scootaloo went to the corner Knife Point had slunk off to alone. He had his back to her, and he seemed to be doing something on the ground. As she drew closer, Scootaloo could hear him muttering to himself.
“Stab. Stab. Stab. Stab.”
Scootaloo swallowed. Before her courage abandoned her, she said, “Hey there, Knife Point.” He turned, and Scootaloo choked back a shout when she saw that he had a dagger in his hoof.
“Hello, Scootaloo,” Knife Point said, “What brings you here? Stab.” The last word was punctuated by him driving the knife into something in front of him.
“I-I saw you get bullied by Diamond Tiara,” Scootaloo stammered.
“Huh. So that was that B-I-T-C-H’s name. Good to know. Stab.”
Despite herself, Scootaloo laughed. “Yeah, she can be a bit of a handful. She’s been bullying me and my friends for years.”
“That sucks. Stab.”
“I meant to ask this earlier, but what are you stabbing and why?”
“I’m stabbing this,” He showed her a pile of leaves gathered in front of him. “I’m doing it to control myself.”
“Control yourself?”
“Yes. When Diamond Tiara insulted me, it made me…angry. So now, I’m pretending these leaves are her. Stab.”
“Are you sure that’s the best way to relieve your anger?”
“I don’t see any problems with it. I get these thoughts out of my head. Diamond Tiara doesn’t get a knife to the face. The police don’t have to investigate a murder. Everyone wins.”
“And, where did you get that knife? I thought Cheerilee took it.”
He laughed. “She got Mr. Knifey. She didn’t get his wife, Elaine.” At this point, Scootaloo was just about done.
“That’s, um, nice,” Scootaloo said, “Well, as long as you’re…coping, then that’s fine. I’ll just go.” She turned to leave, when she heard his voice.
“Wait.” Scootaloo looked back. Knife Point had stood up. She had her eyes glued to the knife held loosely in his hoof. “I know that some ponies find me…frightening. Especially ones who have to sit in front of me. Just, know that I’d never hurt anypony, unless they really deserve it.”
Scootaloo looked away from the knife and at his face. She saw that he was completely sincere in what he was saying. She felt a flush of relief. Still, she had to ask one more question. “What happens when somepony deserves to be hurt?”
Knife Point smiled. A full, genuine smile. That only made his next words even scarier. “Well, in that case, Scootaloo, then the fun begins.”
Scootaloo came back to her friends completely confused. On the one hoof, Knife Point seemed genuinely friendly. On the other, he was Knife Point. He was exceedingly creepy, and he stabbed things for fun. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle were waiting anxiously for her.
“Ya were gone fer so long, we thought he’d done ya in,” Apple Bloom said.
“Yeah,” Sweetie Belle said, “What were you guys doing?”
“We talked,” Scootaloo said, “I asked him about Diamond Tiara. He showed me he was dealing with it. I left.”
“How was he dealing with it?” Sweetie Belle asked.
“He had a pile of leaves. He pretended they were Diamond Tiara and stabbed them until he felt better.”
“With a pencil?” Sweetie Belle asked nervously.
“No, with a knife,” Scootaloo said.
Apple Bloom’s eyes widened. “Ya gonna turn him in?”
Scootaloo looked over at Knife Point. He was just coming out of the corner. There was no sign of Elaine. “No, Apple Bloom. I don’t think I will.”
Scootaloo looked at the line of trees with trepidation. “Are we sure our talent is taming timberwolves?”
“No,” Sweetie Belle said, “but we won’t know until we try.”
“I don’t know,” Scootaloo said, “If it isn’t one of our talents, things could get messy.”
Apple Bloom grinned. “Ya aren’t scared, are ya Scootaloo?”
“N-No, of course not!” Scootaloo insisted, “I’m just saying that maybe we should be careful.”
“Alright then, we’ll be careful,” Sweetie Belle said, “Now let’s go!” She led the way into the Everfree Forest, with Apple Bloom and Scootaloo following her. Scootaloo tried to remember how many of Sweetie Belle’s ideas had turned out alright. She hoped the fact that she was drawing a blank was due to poor memory.
It soon became dark in the forest. It was exactly the wrong kind of dark, too. There was enough light to see everything, but the shadows loomed large and seemed to pop out at Scootaloo. She shivered. She’d never really gotten over her fear of the dark. For comfort, she looked at her friends. Apple Bloom was walking with her head high. No way she’d be afraid after all the times she’d come here to visit Zecora. Sweetie Belle was focused on her task of finding timberwolves, so Scootaloo guessed she didn’t have time for fear.
A wind picked up, and Scootaloo could swear she heard muttering. She shivered again. The breeze died, and the muttering stopped. Scootaloo frowned; normally her imagination would have made it louder. The breeze picked up again, and now she could faintly hear words.
“Stab. Stab. Stab.”
The voice was, undoubtedly, Knife Point’s. Scootaloo wasn’t exactly sure how to respond to it. Even after a week of sitting in front of him, she still didn’t know what to make of the strange colt. By now, they were close enough that his voice could be heard without the breeze, and the other two noticed it as well.
“What is that?” Sweetie Belle asked.
“It sounds like that Knife Point character,” Apple Bloom said nervously.
“R-Really,” Sweetie Belle said, “Maybe we should go some other way.” Scootloo couldn’t believe her ears. They were making fun of her for being afraid of timberwolves, but now they wanted to run away from Knife Point? That settled it. Scootaloo pushed past her friends, heading toward the sound.
“Scootaloo!” Apple Bloom cried, “What are you doing?!”
Scootaloo turned to grin at Apple Bloom. “You aren’t scared, are you Apple Bloom?”
Apple Bloom grimaced, and Scootaloo continued toward the noise. After a moment’s hesitation, Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom followed her. They came to a small clearing in the forest. Sitting on the ground in the clearing was Knife Point. Scootaloo felt a sense of déjà vu; he was sitting with his back to them and he was stabbing something on the ground in front of him.
Scootaloo stepped into the clearing. “Hello.”
“Ah!” Knife Point yelled. He leaped up, spinning to face her. His forehooves were stained red, and the knife he held ready in them was dripping with blood. Upon seeing Scootaloo, he relaxed, lowering the knife. “Scootaloo. You scared me.”
“I scared you?!” Scootaloo squeaked. Clearing her throat, she said in her normal voice, “You’re the one waving a knife around!”
Knife Point grinned. “Fair enough.”
“I feel like I’m going to regret asking this, but what are you doing?”
“Just having some mindless fun.”
“Fun?” Scootaloo asked. In answer, Knife Point stepped to the side. Scootaloo’s eyes widened. “Knife Point,” she said, with more calm than she felt, “what is that?”
“A bird.”
“Doesn’t look like any bird I’ve ever seen.”
“Specifically, it was a bird. Now it’s a mess.”
Scootaloo took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. “Okay then.”
“What brings you to the Everfree?” Knife Point asked.
“Me and my friends are looking for our talents,” Scootaloo explained, “We were thinking timberwolf tamer might be it.”
Knife Point raised an eyebrow. “Timberwolf tamer? Alright, but I only see you.”
Scootaloo looked around, realizing her friends weren’t there. “Sweetie Belle! Apple Bloom!” she called.”
“We’re here,” Sweetie Belle’s voice came from the trees.
“We jus’ don’t wanna be where he can see us.” Apple Bloom said.
Scootaloo looked to see what effect the words had on Knife Point. His smile was gone. He sighed and pulled out a rag. Quickly, he wiped the blood from his knife and hooves. Finished, he put the knife and rag away. “I’m not armed,” he called, “You can show yourselves.”
Hesitantly, Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom came into the clearing. Sweetie Belle whimpered at the small pile of bloody flesh that had once been a bird. “I-I didn’t think it’d be that bad.”
Forgetting her fear, Apple Bloom glared at Knife Point. “What is wrong with you? Ya killed an innocent bird-“
“Killed?” Knife Point interrupted, “I didn’t kill the bird.”
“Then what did?” Apple Bloom demanded.
“I don’t know,” Knife Point said, “When I find a dead bird, the first thing that comes into my mind isn’t ‘why is this dead?’”
“Three guesses as to what is the first thing that comes to his mind,” Sweetie Belle said in an undertone.
This was met by a tense silence. After a moment, Scootaloo cleared her throat. “Well, it was nice seeing you, Knife Point, but we’d better go. Timberwolves aren’t gonna find themselves.
“Why go looking when they can come to you?” Knife Point said, a faint smile back on his face.
“What?” Scootaloo asked.
“Timberwolves are meat eaters,” Knife Point said, “Sooner or later, this bird will attract them.”
“That sounds easier than wandering through the forest,” Scootaloo said. The other Crusaders hesitated. Scootaloo looked at them. “Well, doesn’t that sound easier?”
“I don’t know,” Sweetie Belle said, “I’m kinda weighing my options.”
Scootaloo finally snapped. “What is your problem?! Why are you two being-“
“It’s alright, Scootaloo,” Knife Point said. He smiled bitterly. “I know when I’m not wanted.” He walked to the edge of the clearing. “Good luck with the timberwolf taming.” He vanished into the shadows.
Scootaloo rounded on her friends. “I can’t believe you guys!”
“What?” Sweetie Belle said, “He’s really creepy, Scootaloo.”
“Yeah,” Apple Bloom said, “Ah honestly can’t see why you’re defending him.”
“Because no matter how scary he is, he hasn’t done anything wrong!” Scootaloo said.
“Hasn’t done anything wrong?” Apple Bloom laughed, “I’d bet the farm he’s killed at least once!”
“Really? All he’s been is friendly!” Scootaloo said.
“All he’s been is terrifying!” Sweetie Belle argued.
Scootaloo opened her mouth to reply, and Knife Points words came back to her. It’s alright, Scootaloo. She blew air out of her nose. “Let’s just agree to disagree.” The other two looked surprised at her sudden calm. They muttered agreement, and the three of them settled in to watch for timberwolves.
They didn’t have long to wait. After maybe five minutes, Scootaloo heard growling from the tree line. She scrambled onto all fours, motioning to the others to do the same. Across the clearing, they could see a pair of glowing eyes peering from the darkness. “Guess I’ll go first,” Scootaloo said. She slowly made her way into the clearing.
She stopped a good distance from the wolf. “Hey, Sweetie Belle,” she called softly, “how do you tame a timberwolf?”
“Um,” Scootaloo’s heart sank, “that’s a really good question.” The timberwolf began advancing. Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom came forward to help Scootaloo, and it all fell apart.
Two more timberwolves appeared from the trees, encircling the Crusaders. “Okay,” Scootaloo said, fighting for calm, “What’s the plan?”
“I got nothing,” Apple Bloom said.
“Same here,” Sweetie Belle said.
Scootaloo looked around desperately. She saw a place where it looked like the timberwolves had left a small opening. “I think we can break through there.”
“And then?” Sweetie Belle asked.
“RUN!” Scootaloo screamed. She dashed for the opening, with the other two close on her tail. Scootaloo made it through. Running to the trees, she turned to see her friends’ progress. The timberwolves were caught off guard, so Apple Bloom made it through fine. Sweetie Belle was getting close. Closer. Almost there.
A timberwolf leaped into Sweetie’s path. She yelped and scrambled backwards. By now, the other two wolves had closed the gap. Sweetie Belle was trapped. Scootaloo dashed back toward the wolves, not entirely sure of what she was going to do.
Suddenly, one of the timberwolves jerked back. Scootaloo stared; she couldn’t believe her eyes. Knife Point had gotten onto the wolf’s back and was repeatedly ramming his dagger into its eye. Scootaloo could see the savage grin on his face, and hear what he was saying. “Stabstabstabstabstabstabstabstab”
Soon the timberwolf collapsed into a pile of wood chips, and Knife Point faced the other two. He was still baring his teeth in that grin, and his knife was stained green. The timberwolves hesitated, completely caught off guard by this new development. Knife Point began advancing slowly. Timberwolves were fierce fighters, but they were also very practical. They’d seen this grinning demon kill one of them like it was nothing, and they decided it wasn’t worth facing him for the sake of prey. They slunk back into the shadows, with their fellow wolf reforming to join them. No way was he going back for a second round with Knife Point.
“Aw, come on!” Knife Point exclaimed after seeing his fallen opponent get back up, “I was really looking forward to stabbing that guy some more.”
Scootaloo chuckled slowly. “All of us almost died there, and you’re disappointed that the timberwolf didn’t leave a body?”
“Yes!” Knife Point said, “It would have given me hours more of fun than a bird.”
Scootaloo sighed. “You know, the more you talk, the more tempted I am to run away screaming.” The effect was ruined by the smile that was breaking out across her face.
Sweetie Belle stared at Knife Point. “You…you saved me.”
“Yes.” Knife Point said.
“Why?” Sweetie Belle asked.
“Because you were about to be mauled by timberwolves,” Knife Point said, “I thought that was obvious.”
“No, I mean,” Sweetie Belle sighed, “I treated you like a monster. Why did you help me?”
“Sweetie Belle,” Knife Point said, grinning, “If I thought that somepony treating me like a monster was reason enough for that pony to die, I’d have become a serial killer a long time ago.”
Silence fell, before Apple Bloom said, “Ah don’t know whether to be comforted or terrified by that.”
“Why not both?” Knife Point laughed.
The CMC chuckled along with him, slowly growing into full laughter as they realized they were alive and well after their encounter. And it was all thanks to the knife-crazed lunatic that had every reason to hate them. In hindsight, the whole situation was pretty funny. Or maybe it was the hysteria. One of the two.
After a while, they all subsided. Scootaloo made eye contact with her friends, asking a silent question. They agreed, and Scootaloo said, “You know, we’re all part of a club.”
“Club?” Knife Point asked.
“Yeah,” Scootaloo said, “It’s called the Cutie Mark Crusaders.”
“It’s for ponies who are looking for their cutie marks,” Sweetie Belle said.
“Would ya like to join?” Apple Bloom asked.
Knife Point considered the request. Eventually, he shrugged. “Why not.”
“Great,” Scootaloo said, “We’ll show you our clubhouse and…” A thought occurred to her. “Wait. You need to promise not to stab dead things in the clubhouse.”
Knife Point raised a hoof. “May I dissect dead things in the clubhouse?”
“No,” all three of them said.
“Darn it,” Knife Point muttered. A gleam suddenly came into his eyes. “Dissection…that’s it!” He jumped up. “Really hate to run on all of you, but I’ve got a lot to do and not much time to do it in.” He made for the forest.
“What is it you need to do?” Sweetie Belle asked.
“Oh,” Knife Point said with a sly smile, “You’ll find out tomorrow.” He disappeared into the wood.
The CMC were left staring after him. Apple Bloom said, “Is it okay to not understand him, even if he is our friend?”
“Sure,” Scootaloo said. They retraced their steps to the beginning of the forest. The shadows had deepened by this time, but for some reason they didn’t scare Scootaloo anymore. Maybe now that she’d known real fear the dark had lost its power to frighten her. She hoped so, she was tired of being the only one bothered by it.
“Alright, settle down everypony,” Cheerilee said. The class fell silent. “Okay class, today is Student Teach Day,” The class began muttering in interest, stopping as Cheerilee continued. “Now, I know it’s been a while since you all had your time to educate us, but with a new student it’s only fair to give him the same chance.”
Scootaloo had almost forgotten about Student Teach Day. Cheerilee started it at the beginning of the year, to let everypony show their interests and make new friends. She wondered what Knife Point would teach the class. She also wondered how it would help him make friends. Considering his interests, it seemed like more of a hindrance.
There were a few cries of disgust behind Scootaloo. Looking, she saw Knife Point passing something out of a box to the students. Her turn quickly came, and Knife Point placed a dead frog on her desk, along with a scalpel and a few other tools. Scootaloo remembered his words from yesterday. Dissection, that’s it!
He finished passing out the frogs and went to the front of the class. “Okay,” he said in a monotone, “As most of you have already guessed, we’re dissecting frogs today.”
“Why?” Diamond Tiara asked.
“Ms. Cheerilee told me to do something related to my interests,” Knife Point said, “This was the only thing I could teach.”
“And just what are your other interests?” Diamond Tiara persisted.
“Not related to the lesson,” Knife Point said. Diamond Tiara blinked. Scootaloo was impressed; he actually got Diamond Tiara to shut up. Knife Point continued, “Now, I know you’re all eager to get to the cutting-“
“We’re not,” Diamond Tiara interrupted.
“Correction,” Knife Point said, “I’m eager to get the cutting.”
“And just so you know,” Scootaloo said loudly, “he isn’t picky about what he cuts.” Cheerilee glared daggers at her, but it was worth it to see Diamond Tiara go pale.
“As I was saying,” Knife Point continued in the same flat voice, “Before we get to the cutting, there’s a few things I need to go over.” He walked to the board and drew a frog. He began drawing different body parts, labeling them and explaining what they were. Scootaloo was a bit confused; Knife Point was acting different than he had yesterday.
“And that about does it,” Knife Point said, “You all know what you’re looking for,” For the first time he smiled, a mischievous little grin. “Now we get to the fun part,” He grabbed a frog he had lying on the desk and a scalpel. With the ease of long practice, he drew a line down the stomach of the frog. Blood immediately began to flow, and the class drew back in disgust.
“Yuck!” Diamond Tiara exclaimed, “We have to do this while they’re bleeding!?”
“Yup,” Knife Point said happily, reaching for his other tools.
“Knife Point,” Cheerilee said, “You do know most dissections go without the blood?”
“Oh, I know,” Knife Point said, digging around inside the frog. He pulled out a small bit of tissue and set it on the desk. “I tried to drain all of them, but finding a class set of dead frogs and dissection kits took a while. I managed to drain some of them, but I realized class was starting in an hour and had to give it up.”
“Wait a minute,” Sweetie Belle said, “This is what you were doing all night?”
“Yeah,” Knife Point yawned, “Don’t worry, though. I’m used to late nights.”
“And just what do you do on those late nights?” Silver Spoon asked mockingly.
“Now, Silver Spoon,” Knife Point said in the same tone, “Do you really want me to answer that question?”
The other ponies looked uncomfortable, but Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Apple Bloom laughed.
Knife Point bowed. “Thank you, thank you, I’ll be here all week.” Scootaloo shook her head. Knife Point seemed back to normal. She wondered about his change of attitude, but her thoughts were cut off by Diamond Tiara.
“So,” Diamond Tiara said, “How do we know if our frog has been drained?”
“You cut it open and see if it bleeds,” Knife Point said.
“But what if my coat gets messy?” Diamond Tiara whined.
“Don’t be such a baby,” Knife Point admonished, “Besides, what’s the fun in cutting something open if you can’t feel the blood running through your hooves?” He pulled out the frog’s heart, placing it on top of the small mountain of organs he’d piled beside the frog. “There, see? While you were complaining, I’ve already gotten all the important bits of my frog out.”
Sensing their cue, the class sighed and grabbed their blades. There were cries of disgust and sighs of relief, as each foal made their first cut and discovered whether or not they had a dry frog. Scootaloo looked at her frog, and felt a thrill of something. She thought it was fear, but to her surprise she felt excited. It was similar to the feeling right before a stunt. The next moment would decide how the rest of the day went. It was down to luck of the draw. She made her first cut. Nothing came out.
Scootaloo released a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. She smiled, relieved her frog was empty. She might have been Knife Point’s friend, but that didn’t mean she wanted to experience his brand of fun. She glanced around at her friends and saw that both Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom had been lucky as well.
“Enjoying the surprise?” said a voice behind her. She started and turned to see Knife Point sitting in his seat.
“I can’t say I’m enjoying it,” Scootaloo said, “but it could be worse.” She glanced toward Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, who were both up to their fetlocks in gore.
“Yes, well,” Knife Point lowered his voice, “There are advantages to being friendly.”
Scootaloo stared at him. She too lowered her voice and said, “Wait, you’re saying you rigged the draw?”
He grinned conspiratorially. “I may have arranged the frogs so that you, Sweetie Belle, and Apple Bloom got dry ones.” He chuckled, “I was tempted to give Sweetie a bleeder, but I decided to cut her some slack.”
Scootaloo laughed as well. Sweetie had been pretty mean yesterday. “So, did you do any other arranging?”
Knife Point’s grin grew wider. “Maybe.” He glanced at Diamond Tiara, who by now was looking pretty miserable.
“And what are you two talking about?” Cheerilee said as she appeared from nowhere.
“The endocrine gland,” Knife Point said, “Scootaloo was having trouble finding it. Do you think you've got it?”
“Um,” Scootaloo said.
Knife Point sighed. “Alright, from the top.” He began explaining where the gland was located, with Cheerilee watching suspiciously. Eventually, she moved on. Once she was out of earshot, Scootaloo turned to Knife Point.
“That was really smooth,” she said.
“I try,” Knife Point said.
“Honestly, I hadn’t pegged you as the lying type,” Scootaloo said.
“I’m not, really,” Knife Point said, “Still, lying is undeniably a useful skill to have.”
“That’s true,” Scootaloo said. A thought occurred to her. “Do you ever practice?”
“Oh, yeah,” Knife Point said, “Use it or lose it, right? I practice with Elaine.”
“Elaine?” Scootaloo asked, “As in your knife Elaine?”
“Do you know any other Elaines?” Knife Point replied, “It isn’t exactly a pony name.”
“But,” Scootaloo said, “she’s a knife.”
“Exactly,” Knife Point said, “Knives aren’t easily fooled by the likes of ponies, and Elaine is a master lie detector. You need to be really convincing to pull the wool over her blade.”
Scootaloo opened her mouth to comment on how creepy Knife Point was, but she paused, then said, “It’s just not worth it anymore.”
“What’s not worth it?” Knife Point asked.
Scootaloo sighed. “Nothing.”
Knife Point stood up. "Well, if that's all, I've got to go help the other students," He glanced at Featherweight, who was looking a bit green. "I'm already going to have a hard time cleaning up all this blood. I really don't want to add vomit to the mess."
"Don't forget that we've got a Cutie Mark Crusaders meeting after school," Scootaloo said.
"I'll be there," There was a sound of somepony puking. "Ah, darn it all!" Knife Point muttered vehemently. He moved away, and Scootaloo stifled a laugh. Today has been a good day. Scootaloo thought. She faced the front and found her frog staring up at her. Well...mostly
“Ah would like to call this meeting of the Cutie Mark Crusaders ta order!” Apple Bloom said, banging her gavel on the podium. Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Knife Point were arrayed in front of said podium. Knife Point watched Apple Bloom with interest. This was his initiation after all. He wondered what sort things he’d need to do. “Alright, y’all,” Apple Bloom continued, “The reason for this meeting is to welcome into our ranks a new member. Let us stand and acknowledge Knife Point.” The group stood. “Now, ta read the induction speech.” Apple Bloom unfurled a scroll of paper, which promptly rolled out of the clubhouse door.
Aaand bored. Knife Point thought. Scootaloo sighed.
“Could we just skip the speech?” she asked.
Apple Bloom looked affronted. “No we can-“
“I second that,” Sweetie Belle interrupted, “The speech is a little ridiculous.”
“But it’s supposed ta be ridiculous!” Apple Bloom cried, “It’s supposed ta prove the new member’s dedication!”
Knife Point stepped in. “A long, boring speech wouldn’t prove my dedication. It would just prove that I can go to my happy place, and I spend enough time there in school.”
“So that’s why you act so weird in school,” Scootaloo said.
Knife Point nodded. “Exactly.”
“Dare I ask,” Sweetie Belle said, “what is your ‘happy place’?”
“Oh, it’s great.” Knife Point said, “I’m in a large open field. The sky is blue, the sun is shining and I’m all alone.”
“Wow, that’s…surprisingly normal.” Sweetie Belle said.
“It gets better,” Knife Point said. His eyes had acquired a glazed look. “As far as the eye can see, the ground is littered with the bodies of woodland creatures. Birds, squirrels, rabbits, all kinds.” He sighed contentedly, “Just me, my knife, and all the time in the world.”
Silence prevailed after that last statement. Knife Point had a small smile on his face, his eyes far away in that field dismembering small animals. Apple Bloom cleared her throat, causing Knife Point to snap back to reality. He grinned sheepishly and made a motion to carry on.
“Alright,” Apple Bloom said, “Ah’ve decided ta skip the speech. Don’t serve no purpose if the new member’s just gonna go off ta,” she paused, considering, “Ah was gonna say LaLa Land, but I reckon that name’s too cheery for what’s actually goin’ on.” She gestured to Sweetie Belle. “We present ta you this cape, proving your status as a Cutie Mark Crusader.” Sweetie Belle just stood there, still stunned by Knife Point’s behavior. “Ah said,” Apple Bloom repeated with some force, “We present ta you this cape, proving your status as a Cutie Mark Crusader.”
Sweetie Belle jolted. “Oh, sorry!” She draped the gold trimmed cape over Knife Point’s back.
Together, the three original Crusaders said, “Congratualations!”
Knife Point looked at himself critically. “Do I need to wear this all day? Because I really don’t like it.”
“What!” Sweetie Belle shrieked, “I worked hard on that cape!”
“And I appreciate the effort,” Knife Point said, “That doesn’t mean I like it.” Sweetie Belle started stammering, while Scootaloo and Apple Bloom stifled their laughter.
“W-Well,” Sweetie Belle said, “What about it don’t you like?”
Knife Point considered the question. “I don’t know. I just don’t think it suits me.”
“Ya don’t need ta wear it if ya don’t want to,” Apple Bloom said.
“Thank you,” Knife Point said, removing the cape. He gave it back to Sweetie Belle, who was looking sullen. She muttered something under her breath. Knife Point paused. “Sorry, I didn’t catch that.”
“It’s nothing,” Sweetie Belle mumbled.
“Really?” Knife Point said, “Because it sounded like you called me a tactless jerk who wouldn’t know taste if it bit me.”
Sweetie Belle started sweating. “Um…no.”
“You know,” Knife Point said, stepping right in front of Sweetie Belle, “you are a terrible liar.”
Sweetie Belle tried to back away, only to hit the wall. She looked around wildly, but there was no escape. “Alright, that’s what I said,” she squeezed her eyes shut, “Please don’t stab me.”
Knife Point regarded Sweetie for a moment, and then he laughed. “And you have terrible short-term memory,” Sweetie slowly opened her eyes and Knife Point stepped back. “I told you just yesterday; I would only kill you if you really deserved it. That doesn’t mean that one rude comment gets you stabbed,” Knife Point gave a sideways grin. “Besides, I can hardly fault you if you’re absolutely right.”
That got everypony laughing. “Alright,” Apple Bloom said, “Let’s get out there and find our cutie marks!”
“Ah can’t believe we didn’t get our cutie marks!” Apple Bloom said moodily. The four Crusaders were in the Hayburger, nursing milkshakes and broken dreams.
“Are you really surprised?” Scootaloo asked.
Apple Bloom sighed, taking a sip of her milkshake. “No…It’s just, ah thought we’d have something by now. Ya know, at least one of us would make some progress.” The CMC stared morosely at the table. All except Knife Point.
“Don’t tell me you guys are always this mopey.” The girls looked up at Knife Point, and he continued, “I didn’t join this club so that we could all sit around feeling sorry for ourselves.”
“Then why did you join?” Scootaloo asked angrily.
Knife Point raised an eyebrow. “To spend time with my new friends?”
Scootaloo sighed, her anger draining away. “I know. It’s just, it really sucks that we can never seem to win. It feels like we’ll never get our cutie marks.”
“The way I see it,” Knife Point said, “getting your cutie mark is a bit like dying. It’s gonna happen, no ifs, ands, or buts about it. Knowing that, it isn’t so much about the end result, it’s about how you get there. You have to make the most of it, and, personally, I had a lot of fun crusading with you guys.”
Silence fell as the girls processed Knife Point’s words. Sweetie Belle was the first to break it. “That’s a really scary thought, but strangely, it’s also kind of comforting.”
“You just need to keep things in perspective,” Knife Point said, “There’s no way you won’t get your cutie marks; what’s important is to have fun while you're hunting.”
All around the table, there was a renewed determination. Apple Bloom finished her milkshake. “Ah have ta ask, did you say all that just ta cheer us up?”
“Yeah,” Knife Point said, “Why? Can’t I feel bad that my friends feel bad?”
“O’course,” Apple Bloom said, “It’s just that, bringing up the inevitability of death ain’t the smartest way ta cheer ponies up.”
“Say what you will, it worked,” Knife Point said.
Scootaloo thought for a moment, and then a wicked grin spread on her face. “Well, if you really want us to cheer up, you can buy the next round of milkshakes.” There was a chorus of agreement from the other girls.