//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 - New Assignment // Story: CMC EGGCELLENT EGGSITTERS // by wolfdreamer //------------------------------// On a warm spring day the colts and fillies were busy taking notes from their teacher Ms. Cherilee. All but one that is. “I’m sooooo bored.” Sighed Scootaloo as she dropped her pencil from her mouth and foomphed her hooves and head upon her desk. “Scootaloo, shh, pay attention. Applejack says that school is fundamentally important for all little fillies and colts.” Whispered Appleboom, as she tried to talk and write at the same time. “What does that mean?” asked Scootaloo “Well, I don’t really know what it means, but it has the word important in it, so it must be important.” Applebloom nodded at her sister’s sage advice. “Plus it has the word fun in it, so it must be fun!” Put in Sweetie Bell. “Whaaat?!” Cried Applebloom and Scootaloo, as they turned to the third member of the CMC, blinking at her, trying to figure out what she was talking about. However, before they could understand what she meant, they were interrupted. “Girls, can I have you attention please?” Asked Miss Cheerilee, in a way that left no question that they better pay attention, or else. “Sorry, Ms. Cheerilee!” All three apologized. The other foals laughed, as the CMC blushed in embarrassment. “That’s alright girls, but please pay attention from now on. Now as I was saying, the grading term is ending, but we have enough time for one last project. Now as you know while reading, writing, and arithmetic are important, the most critical grade is the elements of harmony grade. Now who…..” Miss Cheerilee was interrupted by one of her students. “Ooooh, ooooh, oooooooh,” called Sweetie Bell as she waved her hoof. “Yes, Sweetie Bell?” “My sister Rarity is the element of generosity,” squealed Sweetie Bell. “That’s nice, but…” “My sister is the element of honesty,” Called Applebloom. “Once again, that’s….” “My sis…uh, I mean, Rainbow Dash is the element of loyalty.” “Thank you girls. I suppose. Well, does anyone else know the other three elements?” Looking around, Cheerilie picked one foal with her hoof in the air. “Alright Twist.” “The other elements are; laughter, kindness and magic.” Answered the red maned filly. “Thank you Twist. Now what I was trying to say, before some little fillies interrupted..” She glanced over at Sweetie Belle whose white fur had reddened. “Was while we know what the Elements are, what do they mean? What does kindness mean? Magic, and the others? Anyone?” A few foals put their hoofs up partially, but when Ms. Cherille turned toward them, they put them back down. Finally Cherellie just smiled and said “That’s all right if you don’t know, that’s what the project is going to be about. Learning what the Elements of Harmony truly mean. And thanks to one of my dear friends, who I believe is just outside the door, I’ll explain what the project is all about.” Cheerilee walked to the school door and opened it to reveal a grey furred and yellow manned mare. “Hello Derpy, glad you could make it here today. Do you have them?” Whispered Cheerilee as she hugged Derpy hello. “Yup! Got it right here! Just like you asked.” Giggled Derpy as she patted her saddle bag. “Great! Class this is Mrs. Whooves. Many of you know her as Ponyville’s mailmare, but you might not know is she is one of my dearest friends. As I love parental involvement in the class I asked her to get something for our next project.” She paused as a pale purple filly waved her hoof in the air. “Yes Dinky?” “That’s my mommy! Hello mommy.” Giggled the yellow maned filly, who waved one of her forehooves at her mother. “Hello little muffin,” Smiled Derpy as her eyes, for a moment, focused exclusively on her youngest daughter. Most assumed that she was a relatively young mare, but due to her bubbly personality and no small assistance from her husband’s unique devices she had barely aged from her late teens. Recently, her eldest daughter Sparkler, a young teenage unicorn was admitted into a private high school in Canterlot. This was fortunate for the Whoove’s family as Ponyville, being a predominantly Earth Pony town did not have a unicorn academy for magic users. So while the family was grateful for Sparkler’s opportunity, Dinky had lately been feeling a bit lonely and abandoned. So recently, Derpy and Doctor had been volunteering at her school as their schedules allowed. “Thank you Dinky. Now class, as I said, we are going to have a final project for the class. The elements of Harmony are the most important aspects of Equestria. Without them there would be disharmony and even chaos. None of us wants that do we?” She waited as all the foals shook their heads back and forth. “Wonderful, so in order to show that each of you are going to watch something over the weekend. Because taking care of something on your own shows each of the elements. As you watch each of them, I want you to discover how you use the elements in different situations. Now Mrs. Whooves is going to give each and every one of you something. Mrs. Whooves?” “Absolutely,” reaching into her saddlebag she pulled out a.. “tada!” “A muffin?” shouted Snips. Derpy looked at the cinnamon muffin in her hoof and reddened. “Oops, that’s my afternoon snack.” Putting the muffin back she rummaged further in her bag. Diamond Tiara leaned toward Dinky “No wonder your mom’s called Derpy, She’s such a derp.” She leaned back in her seat, where she and Silver Spoon giggled at her remark. Dinky was about the yell at her when her mother found what she was looking for. “Tada, Again” In her hoof, was a pale blue egg. “I have enough here for everypony. Fluttershy’s chickens have laid too many for her to use, so rather them going to waste, she agreed to allow you to use them. I had to collect them myself, as Fluttershy was showing RainbowDash around her yard. Apparently, she’s going to be getting a new pet for herself, and asked Fluttershy to help find it.” Ms. Cheerile began to explain what was going to happen, but for one filly, she stopped listening. “Rainbow Dash is getting a pet! I should totally go over there. Maybe I could be her pet. That would be so cool!” Squealed Scootaloo. Diamond Tiara smiled at Scootloo’s reaction. Thinking a moment, she leaned over and whispered to the filly, “I think you would make a great pet for Rainbow Dash.” “Really? Wow! Thanks!” Chirped the filly, as her wings buzzed so quickly her hooves were no longer touching the ground. Sweetie Belle and AppleBloom frowned at Scootaloo’s reaction. “Ah, don’t think that wuz a compliment Scoot’s.” “Really! You think so?” The three filly’s glanced at Diamand and Silver Spoon, who were silently laughing. “Yup, a’hm purty sure she’s makin fun of yah.” The three fillies frowned at the two spoiled ponies. “I’ll get them for that later. But I don’t care, I still want to be Rainbow’s pet. I’m going to go to Fluttershy’s cottage right after school and show her I’ll make a great pet.” “But Scootaloo,” Exclaimed Sweetie, “We have to do the school project. Remember what happened with the chemistry project.” The girls looked at the walls of the classroom, which still had splotches of rainbow colors, when they tried to get their chemistry cutie marks and it hadn’t worked out so well. “If we get another F, we might have to go to….SUMMER SCHOOL!” “Ugh, fine! I’ll do the dumb project.” As the girls were talking they almost missed that Cheerilie had called the class up to the front to get their eggs. They got in line just as Mrs. Whooves gave Dinky her egg. “Here you go baby, I got this one special just for you,” She smiled as she handed Dinky the pale blue one. Diamond and Silver frowned as they looked at their own brown eggs. The CMC giggled silently at the anger of their nemeses. The girls received their own eggs and returned to their chairs. “All right class, now once again, your project over the weekend is to care for the eggs as if they were your very own foals. Not only that but you must explain to the class what element or elements you used when watching the eggs. Finally the egg must be whole when you return on Monday.” Explained Cheerilie patiently to her class. “Geez, this is going to be easy. How hard is it to look after an e...oops.” As Snips was talking to his friend Snails, he swung his hoof around and knocked the egg from his desk and watched as it smashed on the classroom floor. “Oh, Snips. I’m afraid you failed the project. Stay after class today please,” Sighed their teacher as she got a paper towel to clean up the mess. As she was cleaning up the broken egg, Diamond Tiara spoke out. “I’ll give 6 bits to watch my egg over the weekend.” Cheerilie frowned at that. “Diamond, your supposed to treat the egg like your own filly.” “I know Ms. Cheerilie, I’m doing what my mommy and daddy did.” “That explains a lot,” she mumbled under her breath. “Fine, but I don’t think you’ll be able to explain an element over watching your egg.” “Sure I will. Laughter. I’ll have so much fun not working, that I’ll spend the whole weekend laughing.” Diamond smiled smugly at her own cleverness. “Okay.” Taking all of her willpower to not roll her eyes at the spoiled filly, she finished cleaning up the mess and turned to the class, “and with that, class dismissed. See you on Monday with your eggs intact.” The foals not needed to be told twice quickly scurried out the door, except for Snips who walked dejectedly to the front, and Snails who stayed by the door for moral support. As the CMC walked from the class, they looked at their brown eggs. Suddenly without warning, AppleBloom paused mid-step. “Hey, girls. Ah just thought ah somethin. If these here eggs ah supposed tah be out foals, shouldn’t they have names?” Applebloom looked at her friends to see if they agreed. “That’s a great idea.” “Majorlly cool! But what would be awesome?” “Hmmmm,” all the girls looked at their eggs lost in thought. “I know. The best and most original name ever. Eggy!” Smiled, Sweetie Belle as she softly hugged her newly named egg. “That’s ah great name Sweetie.” “That is a pretty cool name, but I’ve got the best name ever! My egg’s name is Rainbow Dash II! Pretty Awesome huh?” Scootaloo held her egg aloft as if it were a trophy she had just won. “Wow both of those are great. But this egg is going to be an Apple egg. So it needs a special name.” All three CMC’s looked at the egg in Applebloom’s egg trying to figure out the perfect name. Just as they were about to give up, Applebloom smiled. “Ah, know what to call it. Cinnamon Muffin.” “Wow, that is a good name. How did you think of it?” Asked Sweetie as she patted her friend for coming up with such a great name. “Ah don’t know, it just came to me.” None of the CMC noticed Dinky and her mother walking in front of them. Dinky was holding her pale blue egg. While Derpy munched on her muffin. “Hey, ah just thought of somthin. Maybe we can get our cutie marks on egg sitting.” “That would be so great.” “Awesome. What a super idea.” “OK girls, you know what this means.” The girls nodded at each other. “CMC EGGCELLENT EGGSITTERS” All three screamed at the top of their lungs, clapped hooves and ran to their respective homes.