//------------------------------// // Morning and Melancholia // Story: Sweetie Belle Tastes Like Marshmallow // by Wiimeiser //------------------------------// Sweetie Belle awoke the following morning, feeling exhausted and downtrodden. She simply couldn't understand the concept. Synesthesia. A word that tasted like the foul metal of pesticide. And only she could taste it. Her... Synesthesia... It made her a target. An easy target. She really didn't want to go... Did her need to have questions answered outweigh the possible teasing, and/or retaliation from Silver Spoon? She remembered the stares of yesterday. The mere thought chilled her to the bone. Assuming she had bones. As she got prepared for school, she didn't see her sister. Just where was Rarity? She had obviously left sometime last night, but without a note? Did something happen? Sweetie Belle knew of the Cutie Map, perhaps it had summoned her? But why would she leave on such short notice, even if it was the map? She recalled hearing an explosion... Were they related? Sweetie Belle knew she couldn't worry about it. She had questions she needed the answers to. Levitating her saddlebag on, she closed and locked the door behind her and went off. While she walked she couldn't help but think of things. Her cutie mark. Synesthesia. Her friends acting weird. None of this is making any sense. It sounds like bad fanfiction written by some perverted weirdo. Next thing you know I'll be a rampaging robot destroying an underground lab and getting struck by lightning. Or maybe somepony will die. I hope it's Diamond Tiara. Not Derpy. Anypony but Derpy. Maybe there'll be war. Probably involving a cricket. And Scootaloo will be trapped outside the shelter. Maybe I'll misfire a spell and kill somepony, or send Twilight to another dimension. And I'll have to become a robot nudist blood mage to save her. Maybe the crusaders are golems. I could even get the hiccups!... ...I can only hope something good happens. Maybe Twist will win a contest. Maybe Silver Spoon will stop being such a buckwheat and kiss me. Maybe Applejack will own a bar. I might even get to ride a carousel!... ...I wonder if somepony else in my class is a freak. Maybe somepony has Dyslexia? As if on cue, she turned the corner onto Pelt Lane and bumped into the last two ponies she wanted to see. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. This didn't make any sense. Wasn't Diamond Tiara grounded until... What was the word again? Menarche? That word tasted like fried blood. Sweetie Belle knew what it meant, but she dared not think of it. "Hey, blank flank!" Diamond Tiara's insult snapped Sweetie Belle out of her trance. "All thanks to you I'm grounded for the rest of my life! And I'm no longer in my dad's will!" Sweetie Belle was stunned by the bully's words. "That was your fault! Don't you ever learn? Bullying is wrong!" "So? You're the freak!" Tiara spat out that last word like it was the worst possible thing, "You taste words! Is that normal? No! You're a freak! Poor magic, no cutie mark, and now you're tasting words? Puh-leeze! You're a bigger freak than that dodo!" Sweetie Belle couldn't decide whether to burst into tears or practice pyromancy. She was simply too stunned to think straight. Silver Spoon continued, "Sometimes, revenge can be bittersweet. If you want to know my darkest secret, here you go!" Silver reared up and opened a zipper on her underbelly, revealing a dimensional portal not unlike the one Discord opened at the gala last week. A bony hand emerged from within and grabbed Sweetie Belle by the neck. "Well, blank flank, your time here is over! Let's see your magic bring a great big smile now!" "There's a special place in Tartarus for freaks like you!" Diamond Tiara added. "Poroporoaki, patea taha!" The hand pulled Sweetie Belle through the gap. Sweetie Belle was falling through a strange, trippy void. A strange electro beat resonated in the background. Wait... Was it... The robot music from Mareio Paint? To Sweetie Belle's surprise, another Sweetie Belle passed by and floated next to her. She looked older, about fifteen, and had a cutie mark of a pink heart and yellow bell. "Hey, have you seen that cur Diamond Tiara? She'll pay for what she did to my friend!" Another Sweetie Belle fell down. She looked normal, except she was missing her right foreleg. "Hey, is this the train to Curpleville, Ponesylvania?" Another Sweetie Belle fell down. At least, Sweetie Belle swore it was her. She looked borderline inequine, and sported a fatter horn and a manestyle similar to Twilight Sparkle's cousin Midnight Glisten. "Does my magic give you a great big smile?" Yet another mirror Sweetie Belle appeared. Or, in this case, Sweetie Bot. The sight of a robot freaked the real Sweetie Belle out. They were so scary she just had to do an essay on it. But was she a robot? "Confusion. Multiple specimens of 'Sweetie Belle' detected." Another Sweetie Belle appeared, this one appeared normal. However, she then spoke, "I am a normal pony. Are you an oompa loompa?" 'Her' voice sounded demonic and masculine. Another Sweetie Belle passed by. She was inequine, though had a familiar face. She appeared more upright, her hind legs were longer, and in place of her forehooves were claws resembling Spike's though more rounded. Hands? She was wearing a rain jacket and long pants. "Are you girls hiding from Babs, too?" A seventh other Sweetie Belle fell down. She resembled the sixth, but looked about twenty years older, and had enormous hips and two large lumps on her chest. She was clad in what appeared to be some kind of hyper-advanced bodysuit. "Note to self, never eat guavas right before using the brain tumbler. If you do, expect to cross dreams with an ogledalo or seven." "Ogledalo? What's that?" Sweetie Belle reluctantly asked. "Us! Other versions!" The group separated and slowly drifted apart. Sweetie Belle looked around as her various versions, or 'ogledalos', scattered and slowly vanished. The sky suddenly turned a bright cyan. Sweetie Belle had to shield her eyes from the glaring sun. After falling for a bit more, she landed in what felt like smooze. Looking around, she was in a strange purple goop. Smooze? Was this smooze? Just the word tasted like gak. She looked above her and saw two rainbows appearing. Before long, they were overlapping. A mysterious light appeared where the rainbows crossed. From it, a familiar figure emerged. "Rainbow Dash always dresses in style!" The rainbow-maned pegasus flew off behind Sweetie Belle and performed a sonic rainboom." Somehow, the rainboom created a massive sinkhole which the smooze started flowing into. Treading smooze and fearing for her life, Sweetie Belle attempted in vain to swim against the current. As she sank into the abyss and her vision faded to darkness, all she could think about was what Cheerilee had told her yesterday. "Ponies don't taste words, Sweetie Belle." Sweetie Belle suddenly awoke in a small pool. Looking around, she appeared to be alone. Or so she thought. Turning around, she saw Jewel, one of the main characters from Call to Summons. Her lavender horn glistened in the moonlight. Her pink mane blew in the wind. Her cutie mark, a ᚦ, made Sweetie Belle think of Twist for some reason. This has to be a nightmare... Sweetie Belle thought, This is too surreal... Jewel raised her left forehoof. "Povratak na vaš poziv!" Her sobarica, Melchoir, a rusty brown pegasus with a white mane, had descended. His cutie mark, a magic bow, shone in the darkness. "Well, well, well," He said, "Looks like we have a kirin to deal with..." With that, he flared his wings, creating a mighty gust of wind. Sweetie Belle felt herself get dizzy. No... NO! Drowning. Tied for her worst fear. The world grew black as Jewel raised a staff and muttered something resembling a spell incantation. Sweetie Belle awoke on the beach, with Apple Bloom looking down at her. "Sweetie Belle Thrackerzod Topaz!" Apple Bloom sounded like she was going to spank her. "Apple Bloom Applesparkle Appletower!" "Ah should've just left ya out there!" "Maybe you should have!" Apple Bloom gestured to her left. Sweetie Belle turned to see Scootaloo had been impaled by a large sword straight through her underbelly and emerging out her back. She was sitting in a pool of her own blood, bleeding profusely from her wound, the pool growing larger every second. "This is so awesome!" Scootaloo squealed, holding her forelegs to the side of her head. She sounded like an obsessed fangirl. Sweetie Belle was aghast. She's enjoying it? Sweetie Belle got up and turned to Apple Bloom. "Apple Bloom, what are you up to? Please, I must know!" Apple Bloom just dissolved into blood, leaving behind a small lump of gore. Sweetie Belle ran along the beach, away from her two friends. She just ran. Her mind was a complete blank, like her flank. Eventually, however, thoughts surfaced. What's going on? What's happening to me? Why has everything changed so suddenly? Where am I? What is this place? She ran for what felt like a whole day, not stopping even to catch her breath. Maybe she was a robot. There was no way anypony could have this much stamina. Suddenly she tripped over something. Getting up and turning around, she saw a small blue box. Levitating it in front of her, she saw it was the box Apple Bloom had yesterday. The words "for heavy magic" stood there in bold letters, but the rest was too blurry to make out. Suddenly voices spoke out. "「Mcüezŕôx」!" A gruff male voice... "Yai?" This one sounded like Mare Corlett, AKA Sweetheart, an awful character on that awful show Rarity watches. "Eka ogledalo!" "Hi eç noa?" Sweetie Belle turned around. The other Sweetie Belle she saw before with the jumpsuit and large chest lumps was talking to what appeared to be a fat robot or suit of armor. She pressed a button on her front... Fetlock? Hands? Those appendages looked strange. Were they hands? Lyra and Spike had used the word before. And it tasted like salty lettuce. But she was a pony, right? She had the face. Why hands? It didn't make any sense. All of a sudden, things started to go dark. "Futo ċi kazrn, Ðuul." "Oki." A voice with a Braelic accent spoke, "Caputþto Śafnsatorinoatxcçäþ Ein-Zun-Fumi-Koŋ-Art-... Everything suddenly went black and silent. Sweetie Belle awoke to find herself surrounded by stars. She had been here before. She knew this place. The Dream Dimension. Was all that just a dream? It was just a dream. Thank the stars... Looking around, she saw Princess Luna descending to her platform. "Princess Luna!" Sweetie Belle cried, leaping into the alicorn's forelegs as she burst into tears. "It's okay, Sweetie Belle. I'm here." Luna's voice was calm but still regal. After what felt like an hour of sobbing and mumbling, Sweetie Belle finally gained the courage to truly speak up. "Princess Luna..." "What is it, Sweetie Belle?" "Luna... Do you know what Synesthesia is?" The taste irked her, but she was getting used to it. Luna put a forehoof to her chin. "Is that what it is called?... "...I see..." Luna placed her hoof back on the ground. "Sweetie Belle, in one thousand and seven hundred years, you are the first pony I have ever seen with this... Condition of yours, where words feature distinctive taste. While I believe you are not the only one with this... Ability, you are the only one I know." Luna levitated a clipboard and quill in front of her. "Might I ask, what does 'Luna' taste like, just out of curiosity?" Sweetie Belle thought for a second. "A really sweet cheese. Like, too sweet." "I see." Luna teleported the clipboard away. "Sweetie Belle, what you have is unusual, but not unique. Your variant I was unaware of, but there are others." "But what do I do? I'm a freak!" "Be that as it may, you are still you and yourself. You are not the only pony I've met with... Synesthesia... Nor are you the only one in fear of the stigma that comes with it." Luna turned around. "My suggestion, since we're short on time now, is to just talk with your friends about it. Hopefully they can understand." Sweetie Belle smiled for the first time since recess yesterday. "Thank you, Luna. I will." With that, Luna stomped the ground, and everything faded to black. Mysterious voices echoed from the distant corners of the realm. "But Dad..." "Shut up, Chica!" "Ceci n'est pas une pipe." "Немам жељу да посете овај ... 'Косово'" "მოდი აქ!" "もこたんインしたお！" "「Mcüezŕôx」, 「Cáèqþ M!ârwa」..." Sweetie Belle awoke to the sounds of a familiar Gensokyan punk rock group. Ugh, why now? It had been a rough day yesterday, and a rough night last night. She wasn't looking forward to going back to school, but she had to. The Princess said she had to face her fears. And more. She needed acceptance. She needed answers. She needed to find out what was going on with her friends and Silver Spoon. The three had been acting strangely yesterday. Sweetie Belle could understand Silver Spoon's aggression considering her only friend was suspended, but that didn't explain why she appeared to be so protective of her underside after the fight. Apple Bloom wasn't any better, taking frequent bathroom breaks, holding a mysterious blue box all the time, getting horseshoes installed, and being even more worried about her cutie mark than ever. Not to mention her sudden growth spurt, especially toward the back. Then there was Scootaloo... Did she really enjoy being sliced up by those brambles? What a weirdo. Nopony likes being in pain. Just like nopony can taste words. Except me. Her... Synesthesia... It made her a target. An easy target. She really didn't want to go... Did her need to have questions answered outweigh the possible teasing, and/or retaliation from Silver Spoon? She remembered the stares of yesterday. The mere thought chilled her to the bone. Assuming she had bones. But Luna's words echoed in her mind. She had to go. She had to face her fears. As she got prepared for school, she didn't see her sister. Just where was Rarity? She had obviously left sometime last night, but without a note? Did something happen? Sweetie Belle knew of the Cutie Map, perhaps it had summoned her? But why would she leave on such short notice, even if it was the map? She recalled hearing an explosion... Were they related? Sweetie Belle knew she couldn't worry about it. She had questions she needed the answers to. Brushing off the strange deja vu, she stepped outside. Levitating her saddlebag on, she closed and locked the door behind her and went off. When Sweetie Belle arrived, she noticed that the large field next to the school had been fenced off for construction. She then saw her friends sitting on one end of the metal see-saw just outside the schoolhouse. She decided to walk over and greet them. Here goes nothing... "Hey, Apple Bloom, Scootaloo!" "Sweetie Belle?" "Girls, look, I... I'm sorry about yesterday." Sweetie Belle sat down next to the two. "It's just... I..." "Sweetie Belle," Scootaloo interrupted, "Don't blame yourself. Actually, I think it's awesome you can taste words. You're kinda like a robot dictionary! I'm kinda jealous! Really! I wanna know what it's like to taste words!" "Well," Sweetie Belle began, "It's an involuntary thing. I can't control it. Whenever I see or hear a word, I just feel its taste. For example, 'Sweetie Belle' tastes like marshmallow. Whenever I hear my name, I taste marshmallow, like I'm actually eating one. It's not all nice things either. Remember that disgusting stuff the adults drink? That's what 'Applejack' tastes like. 'Synesthesia' tastes like bug spray." "Sinners-what?" "Synesthesia." At this point the taste, though disgusting, was no longer an issue. "What are you, a dictionary?" "Actually," Apple Bloom interrupted, "What do 'Apple Bloom' and 'Scootaloo' taste like?" Sweetie Belle put a hoof under her chin, "Well, 'Apple Bloom' is like licking an apple found in the snow. Remember when we did that to try and get our cutie marks?" The other two nodded. "And 'Scootaloo' tastes like chicken salt." The pegasus looked like she was going into shock. "Ch... Chicken...." All of a sudden the three fillies were lifted into the air. Looking to the other end of the see-saw, Sweetie Belle saw a familiar teal filly. "Oh, hey, Cardio." Apple Bloom and Scootaloo looked over, and nearly fell off. Just one musclebound filly was keeping the three Crusaders perfectly balanced. She, too, was in complete shock. "Whoa..." Scootaloo couldn't help but stare at Cardio's bulky frame. All four fillies were in awe of how the see-saw hadn't snapped in two yet. "Hey, that's super freakshow, girls!" a mysterious voice called out. The quartet turned towards the schoolhouse. Standing in front of it was a dark blue pegasus filly with a light blue mane styled in a rock star mohawk and deep teal eyes. Her flank was blank, no cutie mark in sight. "The name's Wipeout." The pegasus chirped, "Wanna see something really cool?" With that, Wipeout vanished in a blue blur. "Over here, girls!" The Crusaders and Cardio hopped off the see-saw and looked down the street, where Wipeout was standing upright against a street light half a block down. She ran towards the schoolhouse and in just four seconds had skidded to a stop face-to-face in front of another new filly who had just entered the school grounds from around the corner. Said filly was a beige earth pony blank flank with pale brown eyes, quite fat especially in her rear, and had her light brown mane tied into four spiraling drills. The new filly spoke up, "Holy mother of Celestia, that was fast! You need to watch where you're going! You'll get hurt!" Wipeout scoffed, "Heck yeah, I need to be more careful!" Her voice sounded slightly sarcastic. The two fillies walked over to the Crusaders as Tabula Rasa appeared around the corner. The beige filly spoke up, "My name's Plot Coupon. Nice to meet you." Sweetie Belle extended a hoof out. "Sweetie Belle. It's a pleasure."