Cherry adjusted her glasses as she finished her final piece of work for the day. It had been a long day, and she as glad it was finally over so she could go home.
Rather than hailing a cab, she decided it was a nice enough day to walk.
As she passed a storefront, she noticed her reflection in the glass, her cutie mark in particular. Her thoughts wandered to the time when she had gotten it, and the trouble she had caused.
After she had met Princess Celestia and spent the night in the castle, her parents arrived on the first train of the day. There were hugs, tears, and no small amount of scolding that followed their reunion. She had also been grounded for what (at the time) felts like years, but had probably been at most a month.
Remembering all this caused Cherry to giggle as she continued on her way.
Since that time, a lot had happened. She had grown considerably (thanks, Dad), gotten glasses (thanks, Mom), had gone to college, and got a job at her Mother’s accounting firm. Whether that had relied more and her merit or her mother’s glowing endorsement, she didn’t know. At this point, it didn’t really matter.
As she ambled along, she saw the train station. She wasn’t in any sort of rush, so she decided to pay a visit to an old friend. Ever since the ‘incident’ she had frequently visited the aging stallion, bringing gumdrops to share when she could. He had a few more wrinkles than before, thicker glasses, and what remained of his mane had long turned white, but he was still the same old Stubs.
And he was currently fast asleep at his desk.
Cherry stifled a laugh. She frequently found him like this these days. There was a little bell near his sleeping head, so she gave it a ring. Stubs bolted upright with surprising speed for a stallion of his age.
“Wha- Who!?” his eyes came into focus. “Oh, Cherry! How many times have I told you to not ring that darn bell?”
No longer able to hold back her laughter, Cherry grinned at her friend.
“And how many times have I told you if can’t stay awake, then maybe it’s time retire?”
Stubs waved a hoof.
“And do what? Take up knitting? Nah, I like it here, and I ain’t done yet.”
Cherry rolled her eyes. They’ve had this conversation before many times, and they would likely have it again.
“Yeah, yeah…got some gumdrops for you.” She smirked, placing a small package of the treats on the desk. Stubs’ eye lit up.
“Well…Doc’ says I’m not supposed ta have too much sugar these days…” he droned as casually snatched the package off the desk. “But a few won’t hurt nothin’, not will it?”
The two shared a laugh, and Cherry left with a wave.
As she exited the station, she paused. She reminisced about her fillyhood, and the…rash decision she had made to go all the way to Canterlot to get her cutie mark changed. Her gaze drifted to her flank, and the pen that rested there. Over the years, she had grown to accept her mark, even though it wasn’t exactly what she had wanted.
She began to move on, until something caught her eye. A lone Pegasus colt, staring intently at the schedule board. He was carrying saddle bags near to bursting. He would occasionally cast glare at his flank, which was adorned with a cutie mark Cherry couldn’t quite make out from this distance. She carefully scanned the crowd, hoping to find his parents, or anypony that might be looking for him.
No such luck.
Carefully, Cherry trotted up behind him, and tapped him on the shoulder. He let out a surprised yelp, and whirled around. Cherry flashed a kind smile.
“Hey there, kiddo. I saw you all alone over here, and was just wondering; Where are your parents?”
The colt glanced around nervously.
“U-uh…they’re over there.” He stammered pointed at two ponies a distance away.
“You mean the two that look nothing like you?”
“…I’m adopted…?”
“You really expect me to buy that?” Cherry replied with a raised eyebrow.
The colt looked down in shame.
“I-I…kinda hoped…?” he stammered.
Cherry couldn’t help but smile.
“Ah, don’t look so down. If you’d been a bit more confident with your delivery, I might’ve bought it. So, what’s the real story here, kid?”
The colt looked confused for a moment, but then scowled at his flank.
“This dumb cutie mark is the ‘story!’ It’s ruining my life!”
Looking at his flank, Cherry could see his cutie mark more clearly. It was a hoofball flying through a goalpost. While she couldn’t quite see the problem with it, the situation felt oddly familiar.
“Ever since I won that stupid game at school, I got my cutie mark, and now I can’t even cook right! Everything just burns!”
Okay, seriously, there was something really familiar with this whole situation.
“So I’m gonna go to Ponyville and get Princess Twilight to change it! She’s the most powerful pony ever, so she HAS to be able to! I even have some bits to pay her if she wants to!”
Oh.
OH.
OH.
What were the odds? Here, rifling through his saddlebag to show her his bits, was a foal (likely worrying his parents sick) trying to hop a train to somewhere to get a Princess to do the impossible to change their cutie mark. Though the details were slightly altered, it was essentially the same situation she had put herself through so many years earlier.
“…You serious about this?”
The colt nodded, and wings buzzing confidently.
“Of course! What else can I do? I can’t live without this dumb mark forever!”
Cherry sighed. How should she talk him down? She knew that outright telling to stop wouldn’t work. It wouldn’t have on her when she did it, and she knew it wouldn’t work on this colt. After thinking for a minute, she had an idea.
“Well, the train to Ponyville doesn’t leave for a while, so why don’t I tell you a story to pass the time?”
The colt cocked his head at her.
“A story? What’s it about?”
Cherrywood smiled.
“It’s about a little filly who, just like you, didn’t get the cutie mark she wanted. It all started many years ago……”