Chapter 4
Sweetie Belle
The next day, early in the morning, Sweetie Belle finished packing some things. Zecora had convinced her to wait until the next morning to leave for Central City, for it would be a full day's walk on foot to get there.
Sweetie Belle had spent the night packing some things and ignoring her friends. Zecora had attempted to resolve the issue during dinner, but to no avail. In the middle of the meal, Scootaloo and Apple Bloom started arguing again, and Apple Bloom had stormed out of the hut. Sweetie Belle had sat quietly ignoring both of them.
She slung her backpack on her back, complete with a sleeping bag, some books and plenty of supplies. She waiting in the small living room of Zecora's hut, as Zecora made her one last meal. Scootaloo and Apple Bloom sat in the living room with her, on opposite sides. Nobody said anything.
"Here you are, Sweetie Belle; heat it up with a warming spell," Zecora said, handing Sweetie Belle a container full of soup.
"Thank you Zecora, I will," she said, giving her a hug. Zecora smiled at Sweetie Belle, and pushed a strand of her greying hair behind her ear.
"Go and be safe my dear; we will be waiting here," Zecora said.
Sweetie Belle nodded and hugged Zecora one last time. She then turned to face her friends. Apple Bloom stared at her with her arms crossed, and looked away when Sweetie Belle tried to look her in the eyes. Sweetie Belle rolled her eyes and turned towards Scootaloo. Scootaloo sighed and stood from the couch.
"At least borrow my scooter; you'll get there faster," Scootaloo said.
Sweetie Belle was taken back. Scootaloo never let anyone touch her scooter.
"Really? You'd let me borrow it?" Sweetie Belle asked, shocked. Scootaloo seemed to hesitate for a minute, and then exhaled loudly and nodded.
"Just because I don't want to come, doesn't mean I don't want to help," she mumbled.
Scootaloo led Sweetie Belle around the back of the hut. Chained to a particularly thick root coming out and diving back into the ground, was Scootaloo's scooter. She took her keys out of her pocket and unchained the scooter.
"I won't move as fast as you can on it," Sweetie Belle said.
"That's because you don't have wings to propel you," Scootaloo said.
Sweetie Belle brushed her fingers over the handlebars of the scooter. It was a bit small, since Scootaloo had received it as a gift when she was a child, but Scootaloo had made some modifications to make the handlebars higher, so that she could use it as an adult as well.
"Just... take care of her," Scootaloo said, as she looked at the scooter with a look of longing. Sweetie Belle smiled and pulled her Winged friend into a big hug. Scootaloo resisted for a minute, but then hugged her back.
"Give Apple Bloom time, she'll come around. This is hard for her, harder than I think we realize at times," Scootaloo said quietly. "Just because we've given up, doesn't mean you have to. I'll help you in whatever ways I can, but... I don't want to leave Apple Bloom alone."
"I know," Sweetie Belle said, as she pulled out of the hug. "Thanks Scoots."
"Go out there and find a cure," Scootaloo said, punching Sweetie Belle lightly on the arm.
Sweetie Belle picked up Scootaloo's helmet and strapped it to her head. She pushed a stubborn strand of pink hair out of the way and smiled at Scootaloo one last time. Then she pushed off into the forest, leaving her friend and the hut behind.
The journey to Central City was long, but peaceful. Sweetie Belle stopped midway and had the soup that Zecora had provided for her. She rested in a meadow and stared up at the bright, sunny sky. She practiced a few spells and browsed through some books, before she packed up and continued on her way. The scooter definitely made the trip a bit shorter.
Sweetie Belle slowed as she entered Central City. She jumped off the scooter and walked it, as she gazed in awe at the city. Even in its frozen state, Central City was a marvel to look at. Sweetie Belle had visited it once as a child, a special family trip. She remembered the trip fondly, because she was surprised that Rarity had agreed to come. It was a genuine, full family trip. Her parents, her and her sister.
Passing by some of the shops, memories of the trip continued to flow through her mind. The people here in Central City knew of the danger that was happening. Many of them were frozen with looks of horror or concern. There were several people gathered at the train station, bags in hands or beside them, as they waited to board the train. The train was actually at the station, people frozen inside, some half-stepping off onto the platform. An attendant had a whistle stuck in his mouth.
Sweetie Belle took her time as she walked up to the palace. The sun was setting in the sky, and the summer night air was sweet on her skin. She parked the scooter outside of the palace, and carefully locked it up. She would feel terrible if something were to happen to it.
Taking a deep breath, Sweetie Belle opened the door and stepped inside the palace. It was eerie and odd. She had been here before with Scootaloo and Apple Bloom, but being here on her own was different. The main odd thing about the palace, was that it was completely empty.
There were no frozen people in the palace. No guards standing around, no cooks sleeping in the kitchen. It was like, as the princesses disappeared, their helpers and servants did too. It was possible that the guards were all called away to help fight the evil force, but then they'd be seen on the streets below, outside of the palace. The CMC had searched high and low, but found no frozen person inside of the palace.
Sweetie Belle wandered the corridors, not sure where she should start. She had been so sure on coming here, but now that she was here, it seemed almost too daunting and impossible a task.
Doesn't matter. I'll search this whole palace, bottom to top, 100%, and not leave until I've done so. Maybe I'll start from the top and work my way down.
Nodding to herself, Sweetie Belle began to climb the stairs. She stopped when she reached the third floor. She glanced up the stairs—she still had at least three more floors to go—but then looked down the hall. It was dark, and silent at the moment... but she thought she had heard something as she climbed the stairs. She hesitated.
She slowly turned her head away and went up another step, when she heard it again. A rustling noise, like someone was moving something across one of the floors of the rooms.
But that couldn't be possible. Only the CMC and Zecora were conscious, nobody else; or was someone? Wasn't this what Sweetie Belle had been hoping for? Some sort of answer?
What if it's just a bird...
Even if it was a bird, she'd be excited. It seemed that all of the animals had fallen asleep as well, or simply disappeared, since the incident.
Sweetie Belle turned away from the stairs and started down the hall. She stopped and closed her eyes. A sensing spell would easily determine from which room the noise was coming from. The crystal on her forehead glowed a soft pink as she performed the spell. The third room on the right.
Sweetie Belle cautiously approached the room. Part of her was excited, while the other part was terrified at what she could possibly find. What if it was the creature who had performed the sleeping spell? What if it put her to sleep as well? How long would it take before Scootaloo and Apple Bloom came to find her?
She held her breath as she slowly turned the doorknob. She poked her head around the door. It was hard to see inside, but the moon shone through the window, providing some light. The window was open, the curtains blowing in the slight breeze. A table had been pushed across the room, a number of chairs in a circle on the other side. A wardrobe was also flipped over and up against a wall.
Sweetie Belle cautiously entered the room. She glanced towards the window. Maybe whatever or whoever had been in here, had gone out through the window. She walked over to the window and looked out. There was no way a person could have scaled the wall and climbed up here. There were no vines alongside the wall or any sort of grips.
"Maybe it was just a bird," Sweetie Belle sighed. She slumped against the window sill and looked up at the moon.
Suddenly something stirred behind her. Sweetie Belle felt a chill run up her spine.
"R-Rarity?" a male voice behind her asked.
Sweetie Belle slowly turned around. Climbing out of the flipped over wardrobe was a young man, maybe around Sweetie Belle's age or a year or two older. His face seemed to shimmer in the moonlight as he came closer, and he had messy, and sort of spiky green hair. He looked almost familiar.
"N-no," Sweetie Belle said, subconsciously playing with a strand of her pink-purple hair, "It's Sweetie Belle."
"Sweetie Belle... you're alive? You're not frozen?" he asked.
Sweetie Belle shook her head, the answer to his question obvious. He stood in front of her, and cocked his head to the side, as though waiting for her to answer. When she didn't, he spoke again.
"Don't you recognize me?" he asked. Sweetie Belle shook her head again.
"Sweetie Belle, it's me; it's Spike."