//------------------------------// // Branching Time // Story: My Little Titan // by Tatsurou //------------------------------// 11. Branching Time Apple Bloom walked home from school sadly. Today at school had gone...as usual for recent days. She and Twist were the only ponies who still lacked a Cutie Mark in her class, and Diamond Tiara was teasing her about it constantly. And now she'd been invited to Diamond Tiara's cutsin-whatever-it-was. Sure, it was a party hosted by Pinkie Pie, which meant there'd be lots of good food and fun games...at least until Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon made a game of her. She lifted her head. She wouldn't mope. The Apple's didn't raise mopers. She'd just talk to Applejack about it. While she'd talked with Applejack about Cutie Marks before - pretty much every time any of the kids in class got their Cutie Mark - maybe this time she'd have an answer that would be helpful. As she came onto the farm, she saw Applejack bucking apples, as usual. She approached her sister. "Hey Applejack!" she called, trying to keep her voice happy. Applejack turned towards her. "Howdy, sis!" she said. "What's buggin you?" Apple Bloom winced. Recently Applejack had gotten VERY perceptive about her emotional state. While that was good when she needed comfort, it made a few other things more difficult, like approaching a sensitive subject at her own rate. "Applejack, how come I ain't got my Cutie Mark yet?" Applejack tilted her head. "I feel like we've had this conversation before." Apple Bloom nodded. "We have." "Refresh my memory. How does it usually go?" Apple Bloom lowered her head. "I tell you one of my classmates got their Cutie Mark, I ask why I don't have mine yet, you give me a speech about how it will come in its own time. I get upset, you give a platitude, and we spend the rest of the afternoon together." "Which helps you feel better, but doesn't do anything to address the issue?" she asked. Apple Bloom nodded. "And as a result, we have the same conversation again." Applejack sat down on the ground. "Sit." Blinking, Apple Bloom complied. "What are we doing?" "Tryin to address the issue," Applejack replied. "After all, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results, so let's try a different approach." Apple Bloom stared at her sister. "Huh?" Applejack facehoofed. "Twilight was readin about psychology the other day. I listened a bit too much." She shook her head. "Basically, since our past conversations haven't addressed the issue, we're going to try something else to do that. That way, we won't have to go through this again." "But...don't you like spending time with me?" "Course I do, sugarcube. I don't need an excuse for that." Applejack smiled. "But I'd also like to try and fix your problems if I can, not just put them out of mind till they crop up again." Apple Bloom tilted her head. "I...guess that makes sense." "Alright. Why do you want your Cutie Mark?" Apple Bloom looked at her sister like she was crazy. "Duh. I don't want to be the only filly in class without one." "Pony feathers." Apple Boom gasped. "Applejack!" Applejack looked at her. "If everypony in your class decided to jump off a cliff, would you want to?" "No, that'd be stupid." "If everypony in your class decided to dye themselves green with red and blue plaid stripes, would you want to?" "No, I'd look stupid." "See my point?" Apple Bloom shook her head. "But those things are just silly. Getting my Cutie Mark shows I'm growing up!" "Like a rite of passage?" "Exactly." Applejack looked right at her. "So if everypony in class was having sex, would you?" Apple Bloom gasped. "No way! I'd never let anypony pressure me into something like that! Just like you taught me, that sort of thing can change you forever and should only happen when it's right." Applejack smiled. "Now see my point?" "But...I still want my Cutie Mark-" "But it obviously isn't because nearly everypony else in class has one." Applejack smiled. "So let me ask you again: Why do you want your Cutie Mark?" Apple Bloom thought for a time. "Well...I want to know what my special talent is...what I'm going to be doing for the rest of my life." "Why?" "Umm...so I'll be seen as a big pony?" Applejack shook her head. "That's how you act, not whether or not your flank is marked. I ask again: why?" "Because...because..." Apple Bloom sighed. "Because I wanna know who I am, and who I'm gonna be..." Applejack stared at her for a while. "What is your name?" Apple Bloom looked up, confused. "Apple Bloom. But you knew-" "Where do you live?" "Right here at Sweet Apple Acres, where I was born-" "What's your favorite color?" "Red, like Maw's ribbon-" "Who is your hero?" "Huh?" Applejack shook her head. "Who is the pony you look up to, the one you want to be like?" "That's easy! You, big sis!" Applejack smiled. "Who are your friends?" "Well, there's Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, Dinky Doo, Zecora, Pinkie Pie-" "Just your own age group, please." "Umm...just Sweetie, Scoot, and Dinky then." "Who are you?" "I told you, I'm Apple Bloom!" "Who are you?" "I'm Apple Bloom! Why do you keep asking me that?" Applejack smiled. Apple Bloom blinked for a bit. "I'm...I'm Apple Bloom..." Applejack stood up. "So how do you feel about it now?" "I still want my Cutie Mark..." Apple Bloom got to her hooves. "I didn't expect otherwise." Applejack looked down at her. "Apple Bloom, it takes more than a Cutie Mark to define a pony. It can tell you their special talent, but that's just the barest tip of who they are. Their friends, their family, their ambitions, their dreams...a Cutie Mark will tell you nothing about these things. And these are what truely define a pony." Apple Bloom blinked for a time. "I...I never thought about it that way." She looked down. "But I'm still gonna get teased about having a blank flank." Applejack glanced back and forth. "Apple Bloom, I'm gonna give you some advice, but you didn't hear it from me, okay?" Apple Bloom tilted her head. "What's that?" "Is it a lot of ponies making fun of you, or just one?" "Diamond Tiara starts it, Silver Spoon backs her up, and everypony else laughs." "Well..." Applejack grinned. "Next time she starts teasing you about your flank being blank, ask her why she's so interested in your flank." Apple Bloom tilted her head. "What will that do?" "Follow up by asking her if she likes it." Apple Bloom giggled. "Applejack! That's evil!" Applejack chuckled. "Bullies like easy targets. If ignoring them doesn't make them go away, try making her eat her words. Don't tell anypony I suggested this." Apple Bloom giggled. "I won't!" Applejack tilted her head. "By the way, when'd you meet Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo?" Apple Bloom grinned. "We met at the Summer Sun Celebration. We were cowering together when Nightmare Moon showed up." She chuckled at the memory. "At first we were really scared, but then Twilight wasn't scared at all. Since she worked for Celestia, I knew she must have a plan. I told Sweetie and Scoot, and they believed me. We saw you, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash going with Twilight to the Everfree Forest after talking a long time in the library, so we knew you'd handle it. Since we knew everything would be taken care of, we decided to play until the sun came back up." Apple Bloom smiled happily. "We had a lot of fun, and then the sun came back and so did you and everypony else. We've been friends since." Applejack smiled. "That's good to hear." She grew thoughtful. "Ya know, I don't think either of them have their Cutie Marks yet either." Apple Bloom gasped. "You're right! I'd forgotten!" She bounced excitedly. "Maybe we can go to Diamond Tiara's cutesinera together!" "That sounds like a plan." Applejack loaded up a cart. "Well, I'm gonna go sell some apples. Wanna come?" "Maybe another time, Applejack," Apple Bloom said happily. "I'm gonna go find Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo to talk about going to the party together!" She raced happily off towards town. Applejack chuckled as she left. "Fillies." Apple Bloom passed by Carousel Boutique, and noticed Sweetie Belle hiding behind a crate. "Hey Sweetie!" she said happily. Sweetie Belle looked up. "Hey Apple Bloom!" she said happily. "Why are ya hidin back here?" Sweetie made a face. "Diamond Tiara's father commissioned a dress from Rarity for her cutsinera. I'm staying back here so she won't make fun of me being a Blank Flank." Apple Bloom nodded. "I see. Say, did she invite you to the party, too?" "Yeah," Sweetie said, "but I don't see the point if I'm just going to be the butt of her flank jokes." "Why don't we go together?" Apple Bloom suggested happily. "You, me, and Scootaloo. Then even if she pokes fun at us, we can hang together." Sweetie Belle perked up. "That sounds nice." "Sounds pretty cool, actually," Scootaloo said from behind them. Sweetie Belle jumped into the air with a sound like a squeezed squeak toy. "Where did you come from?" Scootaloo smiled. "Rainbow's been giving me flying lessons. Still can't fly too far, mostly just glide, but she says I'm getting better!" "That's cool!" Apple Bloom said happily. "So we go to the cutsinera together?" "Yeah!" Sweetie said happily. She blinked. "Do we want to invite Dinky too?" "She can't go," Scootaloo said. "I talked to her earlier while I was hanging with Rainbow. She has a doctor's appointment tomorrow." "Aww," Apple Bloom said sadly. She then thought for a moment. "You know, we always have fun when we hang out together. We should do that more often." "Yeah!" Sweetie said happily. "That would be a lot of fun!" "Maybe we could try and get our Cutie Marks together?" Scootaloo suggested. "That's a great idea!" Apple Bloom said happily. "We could have our own club about getting our Cutie Marks!" "This is a great idea!" Sweetie said happily. "All we need is a name." They all got lost in thought for a time as they brainstormed. "The Cutie Patooties?" Apple Bloom suggested. "Too cutsie," Scootaloo replied. "How about the Rainbow Riders?" "Too fanponyish," Sweetie answered. "How about Cutie Mark Aquisition Program?" "Too robotic," Apple Bloom replied. "Power Puff Fillies?" "I think it's copyrighted," Scootaloo replied. "Super Pony Squad?" "We aren't really super yet," Sweetie replied. "The Cutest Marks?" "...something about that don't sound right," Apple Bloom replied. "How about...the Cutie Mark Crusaders?" They all thought about that name for a time. "Yeah!" they all said simultaneously. "CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS!" Elsewhere in Ponyville, six mares and one baby dragon shuddered as they felt a powerful source of chaos come into being. In Canterlot, Discord's statue shook in suppressed mirth, and Celestia was left wondering why her bubble bath was suddenly full of chocolate milk...and how she was going to get the stain out of her coat. As the newly christened Cutie Mark Crusaders were enjoying their newfound club status, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon came up. "What's got you three so bouncy?" she asked snarkily. "We're the Cutie Mark Crusaders!" Scootaloo proclaimed happily. "Crusading for our Cutie Marks!" Sweetie Belle added. "Oh look Silver Spoon," Diamond Tiara replied. "A little gathering of..." "Blank flanks!" the two said together before giggling wickedly. Remembering Applejack's advice, Apple Bloom smiled. "Say Diamond Tiara, how come you spend so much time focusing on my flank?" She turned to show her flank more clearly. "Do you like it?" Diamond Tiara's face went pale. "What? Don't...don't be ridiculous! I don't...ugh!" Silver Spoon looked at Diamond Tiara, her eyes a little wet. "But...but I thought we..." She turned to run off. "Silver Spoon! Wait!" Diamond Tiara chased after her. Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo stared after them, totally confused. Finally, Apple Bloom spoke up. "Didn't see that coming." ------------- Diamond Tiara eventually caught up to Silver Spoon in a secluded part of Ponyville. "Silver..." Silver Spoon looked at her. "You...you like her?" "No, Spoon, not at all!" Diamond Tiara asserted. "She just caught me off guard there, that's all." She raised her hoof to Silver Spoon's cheeck. "You know you're the only one for me." Silver Spoon blushed. "Diamond..." "Silver..." Closing her eyes, Diamond Tiara leaned in and- ---------------- Starfire pulled a black sheet down over the fourth wall. "Hey!" she yelled. "Let's try and keep this PG, okay? Otherwise we won't be rated 'Everyone' anymore!" Starfire, a voice said from nowhere, don't you think this is getting too into Pinkie Pie's character? You're acknowledging that this is a fanfic. "When I get back on the other side of the wall I won't remember, just like Pinkie Pie!" Starfire responded happily. "Now roll the credits already!"