//------------------------------// // Chapter 17 (Call of the Cutie) // Story: Spike The Brony Dragon // by red4567 //------------------------------// “Then put your little hoof in mine. There’s no hill or mountain we can’t climb.” I sat up from my bed and rubbed my eyes. Man, what a night… Never had my eyelids been so heavy. When I finally lifted them, I noticed I was in the same room I was in when I came to Equestria. I hopped from my bed and did a couple of stretches. “I’ve got you to trot with me. I’ve got you to talk with me.” “Twilight?” I called out. “I’m over here, Spike,” Twilight’s voice said.  I followed to where the source was. There, I found Twilight reading a book (as usual) and listening to a record player. That must’ve been where the music was coming from. “Good morning, Spike. Did my music wake you?” Twilight asked as she turned a knob on the record player. “Sorry about that.” “No, no. It’s fine,” I said. “I’ve been meaning to get up anyway.” I yawned. “Where are the other girls?” “They left for Ponyville last night. I offered them to stay here with you and me overnight, but they declined. You must’ve fallen asleep before then.” “I guess so. Everything was a blur after we left the donut shop. When are we heading back?” “Right after I visit the Canterlot Library,” Twilight said as she secured her book bag. “But you live in a library,” I said as I followed her. “What do you need from Canterlot’s Library? We have most of the books at home.” “Yes, but the ones here have a special Canterlot Library-y smell!” “Y...You sniff books?” “You don’t?” I rolled my eyes as we entered the library. I saw Dusty Pages at her usual place, but what was out of the ordinary was that she was stacking boxes. Twilight trotted to her. “Good morning, Dusty Pages,” Twilight said with glee. “What’s in the boxes? Did the library get new books?!” “Good morning, Twilight,” Dusty said. “No, this is just some of my old stuff that I’m packing. Actually, I’m glad that you came in today.” “You are?” Twilight’s smile dissipated.  “Yep. Because today is going to be my last day at the library. I’m retiring.” “What?! But...But...You’re the head librarian. I thought you liked working here. You never even take a vacation!” “I know, I know. Yes, it’s true that I’ve worked my whole life here, but I decided to take a week-long vacation a couple months back. At first I couldn’t wait to go back to the library, but as time went on, I realized that being away from the library gave me a sense of freedom. I spent all those years in the library, never knowing how much I’ve missed the outside world. When I got back, I wanted to experience that freedom again. After giving it a lot of thought, I talked to First Folio about retiring. You should’ve seen the look on her face when I said that. She never thought she’d live to see the day I retired. Anyway, both of us agreed that I should retire. So now, I’m packing up and getting ready to leave.” “Oh, Dusty Pages. I still can’t believe this is happening.” “It’s okay, Twilight. Sometimes, even when you love your job, you should take a break from the norm. Do new things. And if you fail, then think of it as a learning experience.” “I’m gonna miss you, though.” Twilight and Dusty shared a hug. “Same with you. Here.” Dusty handed Twilight a book. “Think of it as a parting gift.” “Perfection: The Impossible Pursuit.” Twilight and I widened our eyes. “This was the book that...” “Mm-hmm. The exact same one. It’s yours to keep.” “I thought it was a very popular book,” I said. “Of course it is, but the library received a new copy last week. I asked Folio if I could give it to Twilight in case we meet again.” “Th-Thank you,” Twilight said. “Don’t mention it. If you ever want to visit me, you can find me at Silver Stable Community. It’s not far from Canterlot.” “I hope I will someday. Good luck, Dusty Pages.” “Thank you. Oh, and Spike?” “Yes?” I perked up. “Thank you for having me consider a vacation. Thanks to you, I’ve been able to see that there’s more to life than checking out books.” “You’re welcome.” After Twilight and I went through the library, we hopped on a train back to Ponyville. On the way home, Twilight was reading the book Dusty gave her. “So, you were the one who asked Dusty Pages to take a vacation?” Twilight asked. “You’ve seen how old she is,” I said. “Working for so long without a break doesn’t sound very healthy. I only recommended that she takes a day or two off. I didn’t expect her to retire.” To be honest, part of me did. “Are you mad at me?” “No, I’m not. You were right. Working for so long can’t be good for somepony her age. Retiring may have been a good idea for her.” She then resumed her reading. We arrived back in Ponyville. As we headed back to our library, we saw Applejack and Applebloom walking down the street. Applejack was holding a list that was longer than her entire body. “Hey, Applejack. Applebloom,” Twilight called out. “What do you have there?” “Howdy, Twilight and Spike,” Applejack said. “Applebloom’s gonna start school soon. This here’s a list of all the supplies she needs for the first day of school.” Stupid EEA. “I’ve decided to use some of the bits I’ve earned at the gala to purchase some of them.” “What about the roof, plow, or Granny Smith’s hip?” I asked. “Well, Big Mac found this plow on sale that was in a decent condition. Granny Smith’s hip replacement ain’t gonna be cheap, but it wasn’t as expensive as we thought. Oh, and after viewing the damages on the roof, all it needs are a few patches and it’ll be right as rain.” “Well, that’s reassuring.” “Anywho, we’ve gotta collect these supplies before school starts. I’ll see ya both around.” We waved goodbye to Applejack and Applebloom as we headed back home.  “Say, Twilight, how come you never put me in a school?” I asked when we got home. “You were practically homeschooled, Spike,” Twilight replied. “You were by my side during most of my classes, and my parents taught you some things when you were staying at home. You didn’t need to go to school.” “What about making friends?” “Well...” Twilight looked out the window. “Mom said that she was worried about what might happen if you did go to school. Not everypony’s comfortable around a dragon, baby or not. I mean, you’ve seen what an adult dragon can do when he’s sleeping. My family was afraid you might get bullied or left out because you’re a dragon.” “I guess that makes sense. But now in Ponyville, almost everyone accepts me. Even Fluttershy called me cute, and she’s afraid of dragons.” “Are you saying you want to go to school?” “No, I’m just wondering why I didn’t at Canterlot.” “Well, now you do.” I would've gone to school to see what the future crusaders would be up to, but I don't think it would be worth the trouble of repeating grade school again. I’ll just have to let nature run its course and try to help the CMC outside of school. It’s been about a week since the Gala was over. Applebloom was already at school. All I had to do was wait until she started worrying about getting a cutie mark. That event couldn’t come soon enough. Twilight and I were organizing books when we heard a knock on the door. Twilight answered it.  I could hardly hear the conversation, except for the last part when Twilight said, “Okay, we’ll be there.” “Who was that?” I asked. “It was Diamond Tiara.” Twilight entered the room with a jewel-shaped invitation in her hoof. “She invited us to her cute-ceañera this weekend.” “What’s a cute-ceañera? Do they sell quesadillas there?” I joked. “Oh, Celestia, no!” Twilight almost shivered. “A cute-ceañera is a celebration of somepony getting their cutie mark here in Ponyville. It’s like an extra birthday for them.” “Did you have a celebration when you got your cutie mark, Twilight?” “Well, yeah. But not like a cute-ceañera. After I got my cutie mark, my family took me to the donut shop to celebrate. It’s almost like a family tradition, because Shining Armor said that Mom and Dad did the same when he got his cutie mark.” Twilight looked at her flank. “My cutie mark was the result of your birth, you know.” “I know, I know. You got accepted to Celestia’s school, you were trying to hatch my egg, then the explosion happened, and you were able to—” “Wait. Explosion?” “Shining Armor told me that an explosion happened that caused you to go crazy with magic. That’s how I was born, right?” “I wouldn’t call it an explosion, Spike. It’s more like a sudden burst followed by a rainbow of colors.” Twilight blushed. “But yeah, I guess I did go a little overboard with my magic.” “Hold on. A sudden burst followed by a rainbow? That sounds like a sonic rainboom to me.” “But the only pony who could pull that off is Rainbow Dash. Are you saying that...” Twilight’s eyes widened. “...that she was the one who helped me hatch you?” “It’s a possibility. Rainbow did say she pulled it off when she was a filly. That could’ve been when you hatched me and got your cutie mark.” Twilight looked away. “Huh. I guess I should thank Rainbow Dash sometime for that.” I wondered what cutie mark I would get if I was a pony. It would have to be something I’m good at. I do have a knack for convincing others and being keeping secrets, so maybe my talent is in persuasion or acting. I used to work in an office building in the human world. My strengths there were hosting meetings for my team. I wasn’t a CEO, but I could’ve been one if I were to push paper a bit harder. My job was similar to that of an account manager, so maybe my cutie mark might be related to that. Of course, I’m only hypothesizing. I can’t get a cutie mark because I’m a dragon, but that’s okay. I didn't need to turn into a pony again. If I wanted to, then I would’ve rolled around in poison joke. I decided to see what Applebloom was up to. It didn’t take long to find the downhearted filly staring at her flank. “Uh, oh. Worried about getting a cutie mark?” I asked. “Yeah, how did ya know?” Applebloom asked as I approached her. “Well, there are two reasons why a depressed mare would look at her own flank, and yours looks pretty normal-size for a filly.” “I don’t care ‘bout the size of my flank. All I care ‘bout is what’s on it!” “Applebloom, I know that you want to get a cutie mark before Tiara’s cute-ceañera, but it’s not gonna happen unless you figure out your special talent.” “But I’ve tried sellin’ apples with my big sis, and all I’ve done is gotten her angry. She keeps tellin’ me I shouldn’t ‘force’ my cutie mark to appear, but I can’t find any other way.” “Maybe your talent isn’t selling apples. Have you tried other talents, like working with tools for example?” “I’m already good with tools. Applejack taught me. If my special talent was workin’ with tools, I would’ve gotten my cutie mark before I was even born!” I guess that would explain why the CMC never considered singing, stunting, or construction as their special talent.  “You can’t be the only pony in class without a cutie mark. Aren’t there other fillies or colts that you could bring to the cute-ceañera?” “There was Twist, but she already got her cutie mark.” “Oh dear. Don’t worry, though. I’m sure you won’t be the only pony at the cute-ceañera without a cutie mark.” “I won’t. Because I will get my cutie mark before that cute-ceañera one way or another!” “Wait, that’s not what I...” But it was too late. Applebloom marched away before I could get another word in. And to think I would struggle with the adult ponies. Diamond Tiara’s cute-ceañera arrived in a flash. The party was in full swing by the time Twilight and I showed up. “I’m gonna see if Pinkie needs help,” Twilight said. “You can go ahead and have fun. Just remember it’s Diamond Tiara’s party. Make her feel special.” She already feels like she’s special. In the wrong kind of way. I decided to interact with some of the party guests while I looked for Applebloom. I heard interesting stories about how some ponies got their cutie mark. I looked around to see if there were any other ponies without their cutie mark, but to no avail. I didn’t even see Sweetie Belle or Scootaloo. Where are those two? I then saw Applebloom hurrying to the door. The scene played out like in the show. Applejack appeared and pushed Applebloom back in, but not on purpose. Then Applebloom pulled a tablecloth off and tied it around her flank. Then she lied to Tiara and Silver about her cutie mark, and then she tripped on her cloth and revealed her bare flank. “Wow, that is an amazing cutie mark,” Tiara said. “Nice try...” Silver said. “Blank Flank!” The two said in unison. I couldn’t take it anymore. “Shut up, you entitled brats!” I shouted. “Just because someone is missing a cutie mark, it does not give you the right to bully them! Even on your cute-ceañera!” It was clear that Tiara was frightened by my scolding. She did her best to regain her composure. “But...” Tiara cleared her throat. “But not having a cutie mark means she isn’t special.” “That’s not true!” A familiar voice called out.  We all turned to see Scootalo and Sweetie Belle popping out from under the table. “It means she’s full of potential,” Sweetie Belle said. “It means she could be great at anything,” Scootaloo added. “The possibilities are, like, endless.” The other party go-ers agreed with the other two fillies. Their attention to the group made Tiara and Silver feel left out. Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle later decided to join together and start a club called the “Cutie Mark Crusaders.” After writing the friendship letter, I decided to join the rest of the party again. I know that I should’ve tried to comfort Tiara and Silver, but doing so would’ve prevented the CMC from getting their cutie marks. I didn’t want that to happen. Plus, seeing how they bullied Applebloom, I'd say they deserved being called out on Tiara's cute-ceañera.