//------------------------------// // Chapter 1: A Crushed Apple // Story: My Sweet Passion // by Locomotion //------------------------------// “Come on, come on, how much longer are those three gonna be?!” “Dunno,” murmured Sweetie-Belle, perplexed. “Not like Apple Bloom to be late for a Cutie Mark Crusader meeting, I know that much.” Tornado Bolt growled with frustration. She and the rest of the Cutie Mark Crusaders had been told by their group leader, Apple Bloom, to convene at their clubhouse in the middle of Sweet Apple Acres so they could discuss new ideas for gaining their Cutie Marks; but for whatever reason, the yellow farm filly herself, along with Rumble and Scootaloo, had failed to turn up at the appointed hour. “Well I wish they'd hurry up!” she muttered impatiently. “They'll be here soon enough, Tornado,” soothed Tootsie Flute, the eldest and always one of the more sensible and mature of the Crusaders. “They're probably just a bit stressed at the moment, what with our school essays on the Great Griffin War, and Rainbow Dash's new foal...” “Wait, what's Scram Jet gotta do with them being late?” interjected Noi, noticeably perplexed. Before anypony else could reply, they heard an excited call from outside the clubhouse. Sweetie-Belle stared out of the window in confusion, and was amazed by what she saw; Scootaloo and Rumble were soaring and swooping jubilantly overhead, almost as if they were performing an aerial victory dance before their fellow Crusaders' eyes. “O...kay, what's gotten into them?” she wondered out loud. “Is there, like, some sort of Wonderbolts extra...vol......thingummy coming to Ponyville or something?” “Hardly,” mused Pipsqueak. “Scoot would 'ave told us if there was.” “Then...could it be...” As if in response to Dinky's question, Scootaloo gently touched down on the balcony outside the clubhouse, beaming with pride as she turned her right flank towards the doorway for all the others to see. “What do you think, guys?” she announced. Sweetie-Belle goggled in amazement when she saw what Scootaloo was trying to show her. “It is!” she squeaked. “Scoot's got her Cutie Mark at last!” “Yeah, and Rumble too!” added Noi, excitedly pointing up at the grey colt as he landed next to his fillyfriend. Sure enough, each of his flanks now sported a black thundercloud with a bolt of lightning shooting out from underneath, while Scootaloo's Cutie Mark consisted of a black wheel with fuchsia wings. Their fellow Crusaders stared in awe, completely lost for words. It was Dinky who broke the awkward silence first. “That's...wow!” she gasped. “Neat, huh?” boasted Scootaloo proudly. “But...how did you...” stuttered Noi, flabbergasted. “You know that Cutie Mark Crusader Stunt Pony thing we tried a couple of days ago? How I was the only one who seemed to be any good at the whole thing?” “Hey! Me too, don't forget!” chortled Rumble, giving Scootaloo a playful shove. Scootaloo laughed heartily, and continued; “Well, just this morning, I did kinda wonder whether I should have another go at it myself, so I thought, 'hey, might as well give it another shot.' So anyway, I got Rumble to help me build up an obstacle course so that...well, both of us could try again.” “Yeah, and there was I thinking that she only intended it for scooter stunts,” added Rumble. “Turned out she had been planning on a few aerobatics as well, so I had to go borrow some used clouds from the weather team so I could lay out a slalom and a few cloud rings and so on. Anyway, we got the whole thing laid out, did the course, and...yeah, I think you can let your imaginations do the rest.” “Whoa!” remarked Sweetie-Belle, noticeably impressed. “So your special talents really are as stunt ponies after all?” “And weather control in my case,” Rumble pointed out. “But yeah – seems this whole Cutie Mark Crusaders thing really did help after all.” “Well, it's good to know we're doing something right,” chuckled Tootsie Flute. “It sure is,” agreed Scootaloo eagerly. “I can't wait to show this to Rainbow Dash when I get home! And my Dad...he'll be over the moon when he sees my Cutie Mark!” “Yeah, and I wonder what Apple Bloom will...” but Sweetie-Belle never finished, for at that very moment, she and the others caught sight of the yellow farm filly plodding gloomily up to the gangplank that led into the clubhouse, staring solemnly at her hooves as she approached. Almost immediately, the Crusaders' delight gave way to utter dismay, and even Tornado Bolt forgot to be impatient with her. “Blimey, what's bitten her?” wondered Pipsqueak. “That stuck-up Diamond Tiara again, I'm guessing,” remarked Scootaloo feelingly. “Honestly, can't she just leave us alone for once?!” “Obviously not,” murmured Dinky unhappily. Tornado Bolt groaned and slapped a hoof to her face. “Where's Loco when you need him?” “Uh...engine sheds?” suggested Noi helpfully. “Most likely,” decided Tootsie Flute. “Seriously though, Tornado, we can't keep depending on Locomotion to defend our honour whenever Diamond Tiara tries to mess us around. He's lucky to be able to set any time aside for us, what with his part-time job on the railways and such.” “Yeah, and even then he's focussing on all his silly fanfictions and so on,” retorted Tornado Bolt huffily. Rumble shot her a look of disapproval. “What do you mean silly?” he reproached. “I think they're brilliant; they're very well written, they have a lot of depth to them...I really enjoy the pairings in them, even if I do find the ones between the steam engines a bit hard to believe...” but he broke off as he heard a half-stifled sob. Apple Bloom had only just entered the clubhouse by this point, and was now sitting in the doorway shedding tears, her head hanging in depression. “What's wrong, Apple Bloom?” asked Sweetie-Belle anxiously. Apple Bloom barely seemed to notice her. “He's been taken,” she mumbled, trying to brush her tears away, though to no avail. “He...who?” Scootaloo raised a confused eyebrow. “What are you talking about, Apple Bloom?” “Chip Mint! He's been taken!” burst out Apple Bloom, the volume of her somewhat strained voice nearly shaking the whole clubhouse. “Ah tried gettin' 'im ta go out with me again yesterday, an' Ah saw 'im with this......this whitish filly with light blue mane and tail!” “What, as in Cotton Cloudy?” asked Rumble. Apple Bloom nodded wordlessly in reply. “What's so special about all that?” quizzed Tornado Bolt. “Ah heard them talkin' sweet stuff as Ah came near!” wailed Apple Bloom hysterically. “He was talkin' about how cute she was, an' that he never la'ked me anyway 'cause Ah wouldn't leave 'im alone...” “Why am I not surprised?” muttered Scootaloo sarcastically under her breath. “...but that ain't the worst part – Ah was just about ta go an' ask 'im what was goin' on when...Ah...she...” The distraught filly ground to a halt in mid-sentence, unable to control her sobbing. “Yes?” prompted Rumble after a while. By now, Apple Bloom could contain herself no longer. “THEY KISSED!” she hollered out loud. “THEY ACTUALLY KISSED EACH OTHER RIGHT BEFORE MAH EYES!!!” Overcome with emotion, the yellow farm filly collapsed onto the floor and buried her face in her front legs, bawling loudly for all the time she had wasted trying to win Chip Mint over. The other eight foals could only look on in sorrow, unsure how to try and comfort her. “Oh, Apple Bloom,” sympathised Noi at last. “That must have been really awful.” “You've no idea,” faltered Apple Bloom, barely able to speak she was crying so hard. Tootsie Flute heaved a deep sigh and rested a hoof on Apple Bloom's shoulder. She and many others had seen this bombshell coming for a long time now, and yet, in her stubbornness, even though her fellow Crusaders had tried countless times to explain to her that Chip Mint simply didn't want to be her coltfriend, the farm filly herself had failed to recognise that they were telling the truth, let alone accept it – and now, just as they had all feared, it had ultimately led to heartbreak. “I'm sorry, Apple Bloom,” she said softly. “I guess it's just not meant to be.” “I'm surprised you never saw it coming yourself,” added Tornado Bolt solemnly. “Surely you would have at least got the hint after a few weeks or something.” But this did little to soothe Apple Bloom's hurt feelings. “Why me?” she mumbled sadly. “First Ah fail at gettin' mah Cutie Mark, an' now Ah can't even get mahself a coltfriend. Why me? Why, why, why?” Scootaloo cringed, almost ashamed of having been so jubilant about her and Rumble's new Cutie Marks; but Rumble remained philosophical about the whole affair. “Never mind, Apple Bloom,” he soothed, “there are plenty of other birds in the sky – and one bird in particular who might just be the one for you.” “What's the use?” mourned Apple Bloom, staring glumly at the floorboards. “No colt would ever wanna go out with me.” “And you'd been calling me a chicken every so often?!” retorted Scootaloo. “C'mon, girl, where's the Apple Bloom we know best? Where's all that strength and determination of yours?” “Gone to Tartarus where it belongs. Face it, guys, Ah'm gonna be alone forever.” “Not necessarily,” replied Rumble knowingly. “Chip Mint might not care very much for you, but we all know a certain editor-in-chief of the Foal Free Press who almost certainly does – specifically, one whose name ends with 'eight' and begins with 'Feather'.” Apple Bloom rolled her eyes with exasperation. “Why in the hay does everypony keep thinkin' Ah'm gonna start datin' Featherweight?!” “Well, the way you keep starin' at 'im durin' recess is a pretty big give-away,” observed Pipsqueak. “Ah keep tellin' y'all, that's only 'cause Ah'm worried about 'is figure!!” snapped Apple Bloom, visibly flustered. “Just his figure?” Sweetie-Belle smirked broadly. “I find that hard to believe.” “Well, it shows how much you care for him anyway,” remarked Noi. “So what?!” argued Apple Bloom. “There ain't nothin' goin' on between me an' Featherweight...” “...but you want there to be, don't you?” interrupted Dinky. “It's no use trying to deny it, Apple Bloom – we all know how you feel about him, and it all runs a lot deeper than you make it out to be. Even Noi told me how you'd been mumbling to yourself about him a few weeks back. Now look, we all want to help you, but we can't if you won't let us, so please, tell us what's on your mind.” “Yeah, Apple Bloom, we know you're yellow, but that doesn't mean you have to act like a coward,” added Scootaloo; but she was firmly hushed by the others. Apple Bloom sighed and looked up at the roof, her frustration melting away as she became lost in her emotions once again. “Ah dunno,” she mumbled uneasily. “Featherweight's a real cute colt, Ah know that much...but...well......Ah just don't see us workin' out together.” “Why not?” “Well...we're worlds apart,” explained Apple Bloom. “He's a journalist in the makin', a colt who could easily make a livin' from travellin' all over the world an' seein' so many sights that most ponies can only wish ta see. An' then there's me – just a simple farm filly who's probably gonna be stuck in the one place fo' most o' mah life.” She paused pathetically. “If Ah start gettin' close ta him, Ah'm only gonna get in the way of his career. Ah couldn't possibly do that ta him.” “You won't,” objected Tornado Bolt. “Sure, you might get into a few arguments, but chances are they'll only improve your relationship further. I should know – my Mom and Dad sometimes get into arguments, but they've never once considered getting divorced because they love each other too much.” But Apple Bloom wasn't so sure. “Yeah, but what if yo' all wrong? What if he an' Ah just don't get on as well as y'all think we might? Ah don't wanna go through a' that which Ah just did earlier – it'll just be agony!” Tootsie Flute frowned. She could clearly see what Apple Bloom was going through. “Yeah, I can see how you might feel about the whole thing,” she mused. “Matter of fact, my Mother went through the exact same thing when she first came to Ponyville.” “Which mother?” asked Apple Bloom. Unlike most ponies, Tootsie Flute actually had two mothers rather than just the one, so this wasn't the first time she had had to explain which one she was referring to in conversation. “Haven't you forgotten?” she reminded Apple Bloom, stifling a giggle. “By 'Mother' I mean Bonbon, and by 'Mom' I mean Lyra.” “Oh yeah – Ah 'member now!” “But they did get together in the end, didn't they?” put in Dinky. “Oh, they got together alright – but it took a fair bit of time for Mother to get used to the very idea alone,” commented Tootsie Flute; and here is the story she told...