Misty considered resisting the pull of the three fillies (being pulled around by Opaline's magic had never meant anything good), but she ultimately let it go. They were just foals, after all, and from what she knew of Applejack, the mare was honest. She wouldn't have led Misty somewhere she'd be uncomfortable, not like Opaline. Misty simply let the three girls take her to their clubhouse, whatever that was.
Within a few minutes, they'd arrived. The clubhouse was a small dwelling, formed out of wood, sitting on the top of a large tree. It was painted a nice shade of brown, and had a short walkway leading up to the door. Misty had never seen anything like this. Then again, from what she'd learned, her foalhood hadn't been exactly normal. Apple Bloom led the others to the door.
"Welcome to the official Cutie Mark Crusader Headquarters, Misty!" she announced. "Here to help with all your Cutie Mark questions and needs!"
Misty smiled a little. The nerves that had built up inside her since she'd met with these foals were still there, but they weren't as loud. Curious, she looked at their flanks as they walked ahead of her, and discovered they all had extremely similar Cutie Marks. They all had a tri-colored shield of red, white, and purple, but each one had a different symbol in the middle. Apple Bloom's was an apple (of course), Sweetie Belle's a star with a music note inside it, and Scootaloo's a pegasus wing with a lightning bolt inside it. Misty wondered what they meant.
The inside of the clubhouse was modest, containing a small podium, a blackboard, and a big stack of paper with some writing supplies. Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Bell all walked up to the back, leaving Misty to plop herself down in front of the podium.
"Alright," began Scootaloo, "so, to begin, we have to ask you some questions about your Cutie Mark trouble. So what kind of problems are you having?"
"Well..." Misty fiddled with her forehooves in embarrassment. Twilight's comments from when she was in the hospital hadn't left her. "See, the thing is, I just got my Cutie Mark, and I'm not even sure what it's supposed to mean." She gestured to her flanks, where the bright pink and yellow butterfly sat, still unmoving. "I know it's kind of...weird to get a Cutie Mark at my age, but—"
"Meh. Honestly, we've seen weirder things," said Sweetie Bell. "Living in what has to be the weirdness capital of Equestria will do that to you."
Misty blinked. This hadn't been the reaction she was expecting. She'd spent her whole life terrified of anypony finding out that she was a blank flank. That fear stemmed from Opaline telling her over and over again that nopony would want her without a Cutie Mark. Sure, now she knew Opaline had lied about pretty much everything, but she couldn't deprogram a lifetime of lies from her brain in an instant. Still, these fillies didn't seem to be treating her like it was something to be ashamed of.
"It took us a long time to earn our Cutie Marks, too," said Apple Bloom. She pulled out a long sheet of paper, upon which were written various activities that had been crossed out in red marker. Misty's eyes widened at the sight. "Yeah, we tried all of these things. It was only when we stopped really trying that we actually got them."
"What do your Cutie Marks represent, anyway?" asked Misty. "I've never seen ponies with matching marks before."
"Well, as the Cutie Mark Crusaders, our special talent is helping others find their special talents," said Sweetie Bell. "In other words, we help ponies find their Cutie Marks, figure out what their Cutie Marks mean, or what to do with their Cutie Marks."
"And sometimes we take on special cases," added Scootaloo. "Like that time we helped Gabby, a griffon who wanted a Cutie Mark. Admittedly, she didn't get one, but we did help her find a purpose in life."
"Wow," Misty breathed. Opaline had told her a little about the griffons. Of course, she'd claimed they were greedy monsters who would've conquered Equestria if given the chance, but Misty had a healthy doubt of the veracity of anything Opaline had said now. "So you girls really think you can help me?"
"Sure!" all three Crusaders responded, their voices dripping with enthusiasm.
Misty smiled. Maybe this wasn't so hopeless after all. "Okay. So I basically got my Cutie Mark when I helped Princess Twilight and her friends defeat an evil alicorn who wanted to steal all of the magic in Equestria."
"Really? Interesting," said Sweetie. "In all of Twilight's adventures, we've never seen anypony get a Cutie Mark from one of them."
"Yeah. I was gonna guess your mark was like Fluttershy's. Maybe having something to do with animals," said Apple Bloom. "Can you tell us any more?"
"Well..." Misty bit her lip. She'd been hoping she could do this without revealing the truth of her past to them. She knew Twilight, Sunny, and the others had forgiven her for what she'd done, but confessing to total strangers was on another level. Even if they were just foals, she was sure they'd see her for the monster she was if they knew everything.
"Hey." Scootaloo's voice pushed Misty out of her thoughts. She looked down to see the three Crusaders gathering around her hooves. "You don't have to worry about being judged here. Twilight and her friends had brought loads of creatures who did bad things to the side of good. Look at Starlight. Look at Discord. Look at Princess Luna. You're no different than any of them."
Applejack had told Misty a little about Starlight, how the pink unicorn had been an enemy to Twilight's group, but was now considered their friend. Also, Opaline had told Misty a bit about how Discord had tried to conquer Equestria, only to be forced into friendship by Twilight. Going by the Crusaders' words, it sounded more like he had been reformed, rather than enslaved, like Opaline had claimed. It seemed Misty wasn't the first enemy Twilight's group had welcomed into their fold.
"Okay, I'll try." Misty took a deep breath, then began to tell her story for real. She explained to them how she was from Equestria's distant future, how Opaline had found her as a filly, and raised her, feeding her lies about Equestria and Princess Twilight. She confessed how she had eventually taken Sparky for Opaline after the time portal had opened, how Opaline tried to...dispose of her the second she was no longer useful, and how she'd eventually come to help Twilight, Sunny, and the others defeat Opaline.
"When the battle was over, that was when I had my Cutie Mark," Misty finished, quietly leaving out how Opaline had blown herself up. It didn't seem appropriate for foals.
The Crusaders had all sat patiently, paying close attention while Misty had recounted her history. Once she was done, they all nodded.
"Well, this is certainly one for the books!" said Scootaloo. "I knew that portal would lead to something cool when it first appeared. Imagine, Rainbow Dash fighting to save Equestria in two times at once!" Her eyes glimmered with joy.
"Uh, Scoots?" said Sweetie. "I hate to interrupt your fangirling, but we still need to help Misty."
"Oh, right. Thank you."
"You girls...you really think...what I did is forgivable?" Misty asked, shaking.
"Honestly, it's pretty standard stuff," replied Apple Bloom. "Starlight went back in time to prevent Twilight and the others from getting their Cutie Marks in the first place, and she saw the error of her ways with time. From what you told us, you had no choice but to obey this Opaline."
Misty had to fight back tears of happiness. Maybe these fillies were right. After all, she'd been basically raised by Opaline. What else could she have done? Plus, if it hadn't been for her, Sunny and the others might've lost the battle. The Crusaders were certainly intelligent, for foals.
"So what do you think my Cutie Mark actually means?" she asked. "Fluttershy thinks it represents how I grew and changed, going from being Opaline's servant to fighting her, but I don't know if that's everything."
"That is a good start, but like you said, it ain't the whole story," replied Apple Bloom. "After all, everypony grows and matures throughout their entire life." She put a yellow hoof against her chin, thinking.
"Maybe...it's about taking control of her destiny," chimed in Scootaloo. "After all, Misty took the initiative to get out of the hospital and fight Opaline with the others. Sure, it doesn't exactly match up. It's not like caterpillars choose to become butterflies. But they are responsible for kickstarting the process, like how Misty decided to fight Opaline."
"So I'm...good at taking control of my destiny?" asked Misty, confused.
"I'd say that's your special talent," said Sweetie. "Of course, that's not the only thing you can do. Your Cutie Mark doesn't have to be the sole defining thing about you. Heck, your name doesn't even have anything to do with butterflies. You can have other qualities. We once dealt with a colt who was afraid of getting a Cutie Mark, because he didn't want something to box him in, especially if he didn't like it."
"Huh." Misty felt a little bewildered. For most of her life, getting a Cutie Mark had been her only goal. Now that she had one, it seemed it wouldn't be the end of her journey. She'd spent the entirety of her life under Opaline's hoof, and as a result, didn't have the chance to grow the way normal ponies did. Misty didn't even know who she was.
"So what should I do?" she asked the Crusaders. "In what way can I apply the meaning of my Cutie Mark in my life?"
"I think that's up to you," responded Apple Bloom. "Like we said, your special talent is growing as you learn new things and apply them to your life, becoming a new pony in the process. Plus, it sounds like you didn't really get the chance to live an ordinary life while this Opaline had you on a leash. Now you're free to do anything you want. If you need ideas, I'm sure your friends would be happy to help you out."
Misty considered the words. She did certainly have far more options than she had while Opaline was around. Sunny and the others had already told her they'd forgiven her. With their help, perhaps she could find a way to be happy, to be like everypony else. She had years worth of Opaline lies to get out of her head, for one thing.
"I guess I'll ask them," she replied. "Thanks for the help, girls. It means a lot to me."
"No worries!" said Sweetie. "If any of your friends have Cutie Mark troubles, send 'em our way! The Cutie Mark Crusaders will always be here to help!"
Misty smiled as the three fillies burst into song, feeling at peace with herself for perhaps the first time.
It was close to sunset as Misty finally made her way out of the Crusaders' clubhouse. Applejack sat outside waiting for her, as promised.
"So how do you feel, sugar cube?" asked the earth pony. "I hope they didn't overwhelm you."
"No, they were really nice to me!" insisted Misty. "Now I have a clearer idea of what my Cutie Mark represents. I just have to find out what my purpose in life is."
"I'm glad you've got something to aim for, now. Try not to get discouraged if you hit a few bumps in the road along the way. I'll let you in on a little secret: everypony's trying to find their purpose in life, even those with their Cutie Marks. Some find it faster than others, but there's no shame in taking longer."
Misty smiled again as the two made their way back to the portal. She felt a warm feeling rise up from inside her chest, something that made her believe it would be alright in the end. She'd later ask Sunny what that feeling was, and got an answer.
Hope.