Sweetie Belle's Secret
Chapter 4
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Sweetie Belle took a breath to explain the plan to them carefully. "What I mean is that you both have talents, you just need to practice them!" She said with enthusiasm. She took out a blank piece of paper, and a pencil from her saddlebag and began to make a list:
1. Explain plan to Scootaloo and Apple Bloom
2. Tell them their special talents.
3. Practice special talents.
4. Earn cutie marks!
5. Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara don't make fun of the Cutie Mark Crusaders anymore!
"Here." She said pushing the list toward Scootaloo and Apple Bloom. They exchanged looks and then began to read it. Apple Bloom was the first one to speak up. "So you're gonna tell us our special talents?"
Sweetie Belle shuffled her hooves on the ground. "Well, yes. I think Scootaloo already knows her special talent is riding her scooter, and you, Apple Bloom, your special talent is building! Just look at how wonderful the clubhouse looks because you repaired it from its original state."
"Well, of course I know I'm awesome at riding my scooter!" Scootaloo said, "I should work on riding more instead of trying to fly!"
"Buildin?" Apple Bloom started, "But, are ya sure?"
Sweetie Belle wore a look of annoyance on her face now. "Of course! Now, we need to do phase three of my plan-" She said as she looked at the list, her gaze flicking over to step 3, "practicing your special talents!"
"Alright, then! I think Sweetie Belle should stay with Apple Bloom, and I can go get Rainbow Dash to help me!" Scootaloo said. Without waiting for a reply, she dashed out of the door, and they watched as she ran down the ramp and into the thickets, with determination on her face.
"Well, looks like its just you and me, Apple Bloom," Sweetie Belle said, "Now, we'll need some tools."
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"Ya need tools?" Applejack asked the two fillies in front of her, "What for?"
"We think Apple Bloom's special talent is building and repairing!" Sweetie Belle squeaked.
"Buildin' huh?" Applejack put a hoof to her chin in thought, "Hmm, well she did fix up the clubhouse pretty good. Ah guess you can borrow the toolbox in the woodshed. Just be careful."
Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom smiled and trotted off toward the shed which was beside the barn. "Don't say ah didn't warn ya!" Applejack called to the two young fillies, but they didn't seem to notice.
Apple Bloom opened the brown old door of the shed, which creaked even more than the clubhouse door. Inside there were many wheelbarrows that Applejack and Big Macintosh used to haul apples to the house, barn and storage. There were harvesting tools for far up apples that don't come down when Applejack bucks the bark of the apple trees. On a low shelf, there was a red rectangular box, with a black handle for easy carrying.
Apple Bloom spotted it first in the slightly messy shed, and walked over to it and picked it up by the handle. "Lets go!" she said in a muffled voice, trying to hold onto the heavy toolbox. "Okay, then." Sweetie Belle replied, "But are you sure you can carry that for such a long distance?"
"Ah'll be fine!" She came again in a muffled voice, "Where exactly are we goin' anyways after this?"
"We'll be going to get some wood planks, paint, and extra nails at the edge of the farm." Sweetie Belle replied, "You'll need to build something to get your cutie mark. Like a simple table, or a painted box."
Apple Bloom nodded her head in reply as the two walked out of the wood shed happily. They were making their way to the edge of the farm, even though Apple Bloom was breaking a sweat, she still held her head high and kept walking along. "Apple Bloom is strong," Sweetie Belle thought, "Which will help her to become a builder!"
They had reached the edge, where more supplies were kept in a separate, smaller shed. Sweetie Belle pushed open the door with a hoof, which creaked as much as the other sheds door. Inside there were no wheelbarrows, harvesting tools, or big toolboxes. There were a few packets of nails on an organized shelf, big wooden planks on another shelf, smaller planks below it, multiple buckets of paint, and an extra hammer close to the nails.
"Well, lets get the toolbox open, and we can get the supplies." Apple Bloom said, sounding excited.
"Right!" Sweetie Belle replied with a squeak, "I'll help."
Sweetie Belle picked out three long wooden planks, staggering to carry them all out the door. Apple Bloom was muttering something to herself and Sweetie Belle could barely make out, "Now, if we're gonna make a box, we should get small planks, and more big planks. We'll need extra nails so it stays together properly, and some paint, but not a lot.."
Apple Bloom was talking like a professional carpenter, or builder. She flipped open the lid and took out a saw and a tape measure. She began to lay out long plank of wood, measure it, and cut some of it off. Apple Bloom did the same with multiple other ones. Before long, she was carrying planks on her back, out of the shed.
"Alright," She said, "I'm gonna start with making a floor base of the box. then I'll build the front, and walls, and lastly, the top!"
Sweetie Belle didn't understand how she knew all this, but then again, the clubhouse must have been a lot more complicated than a little box. But she nodded her head anyways, deciding to let Apple Bloom build it herself. Sweetie Belle figured she could help paint the box, if Apple Bloom wanted her to. She heard the thudding of nails against wood, and saw Apple Bloom nailing two plants together, and when she was done, it looked like a half of a mini floor. It looked like it needed two more planks of wood for a full bottom base. She was right, because almost right after, she began adding another small plank to the foundation.
"This was not the end of the Cutie Mark Crusaders!" Apple Bloom thought, nailing harder at the plank of wood. "I'll show Silver Spoon, and Diamond Tiara, that nothing will separate us!" The floor of the box was now done, and before long, both walls, and front of the box was done. The only thing left was the top, and she nailed that together quickly, but with quality.
"Alright," Apple Bloom said, "Now we paint it!" She picked up a paintbrush and dipped it in bright red paint. "It looks like she doesn't need help painting, I guess."
Apple Bloom painted quickly, but with even strokes. Before long, the whole box was painted in paint as red as Apple Bloom's mane and tail. "Whew!" Apple Bloom said, raising a yellow hoof to her forehead to wipe sweat off, "It's done!"
Suddenly, there was a flash near Apple Bloom's flanks. She gasped in delight as she raised her leg slightly to look at her new cutie mark. It was a wooden heart, with a paintbrush inside with red paint painting a squiggle, and at the top of the wood heart was a curvy stem and a leaf, like on an apple.
"Wow!" Apple Bloom exclaimed, "Its beautiful! Ah wonder how Scoot is doin."
"Congratulations Apple Bloom!" Sweetie Belle said, "That leaves the last phase of step four. We need to see if Scootaloo got her cutie mark. She should be out with Rainbow Dash in the field they practice flying in. Lets go!"
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