//------------------------------// // Chapter 4: Drastic Measures // Story: High School Musical // by Locomotion //------------------------------// “...why didn't you tell us Sweetie-Belle had gained her Cutie Mark?” asked Locomotion in dismay. Lickety-Split frowned. “I couldn't,” he explained glumly. “She swore me to secrecy as soon as she found out – said she didn't want to launch herself into a music career too quickly.” “So...instead of being reasonable and telling us she wanted to break into it gently, she insisted on spurning her true calling in life and denying that that thing ever existed?!” Locomotion was aghast. “That's just...how can she just ignore her own personality?! Her whole life, even!” “I did try to get her to see reason,” put in Lickety-Split. “I told her the exact same things you did, but she just yelled at me and said I didn't love her.” Locomotion scoffed. “That's a lie! You've been nothing but loyal and kind to her ever since you transferred to her class!” “Yeah, but I've never kissed her or openly expressed my feelings or anything. I just...in retrospect, I guess Shady's right about me being shy; but I kept thinking that she got the idea just by my actions alone, even if they weren't exactly intimate.” The red-furred teen shook his head in disapproval. “Forgive me for saying this, Lickety-Split, but you've been a right fool,” he chastised quietly. “Surely you should know by now that relationships don't work like that.” Lickety-Split nodded sadly in agreement. “What am I gonna do? We've only got two weeks left till the talent show, and I doubt Sweetie-Belle will have even mustered up the courage to write a single verse by then. Loco, what am I gonna do?” “Hmm...well, it's not gonna be easy, I'll tell you that much,” mused Locomotion. “The only two ponies who have any chance of swaying her opinion right now are Scootaloo and Apple Bloom, and even then there's every chance she might still try to worm her way out of this talent show act.” He paused for a few moments, trying to work out a suitable plan of action. “Unless...” “What?” asked Lickety-Split, perking up a little. Locomotion's eyes lit up, and a sly grin spread across his face. “Well, Lickety-Split, we're in a drastic situation, so I reckon it's time for drastic measures,” he decided boldly. “First and foremost, we need to pull a few strings with some of the other talent show acts – hopefully that should boost her confidence a bit.” “Um...yeah, but suppose she doesn't have that song written by then?” “She will,” Locomotion assured him, “because I'm gonna get Scootaloo and Apple Bloom to talk it out with her, see if they can knock a bit of sense into her noggin.” His grin turned into a devious smirk. “And I know just the pony to help us...” By now, Sweetie-Belle was almost at the end of her tether. She had locked herself away as soon as she arrived home, not even bothering to say hello to her parents, and was now sulking in her bedroom. Why was it that everypony seemed to be giving her a hard time over her Cutie Mark, even when they didn't seem to realise that she had one? Even Locomotion and Lickety-Split, who had more than once provided her and her friends with a huge confidence boost as Cutie Mark Crusaders, seemed to have turned against her! And why should she have to write and perform that dratted song anyway? It was her life, so it should have been her decision. To say she didn't feel bad about splitting up with Lickety-Split, however, would be wholly untrue. As much as she wanted to stay mad at him for being such a thoughtless jerk, she missed him dreadfully, and even now, a small part of her was silently pleading for him to come over and offer her company, comfort and a shoulder to cry on. A small tear crept out of her eye, trickled down her face and fell onto the blanket on her bed as she continued to brood over her dilemma. She really did love Lickety-Split, but she wasn't even sure she had the guts to face him again, let alone make up and rekindle their relationship. Curse that stupid Cutie Mark, she thought angrily! Why did it have to show up so suddenly and ruin her whole... “Sweetie-Belle?” The white-furred unicorn gazed at the window. She could have sworn she'd heard a familiar voice calling out her name. “Who is it?” she called out half-heartedly. “It's me; Rarity. I heard you were in some kind of trouble.” Sweetie-Belle suppressed an angry groan. “Yeah, sort of – but I'm not really sure you'd understand.” “Oh, come now,” replied the voice, sounding rather hurt, “you're my little sister. I've every reason to look out for you.” A brief pause followed. “Tell you what – why don't you come and join me for afternoon tea at Carousel Boutique tomorrow? Maybe then you can tell me what's on your mind?” “You...promise not to tell anypony about it?” asked Sweetie-Belle cautiously. “Of course, darling. Your secret's safe with me.” “And you won't judge me for it even if I do tell you?” “Certainly not. So, see you at four o'clock sharp?” “Yeah, sure,” said Sweetie-Belle, breathing a sigh of relief. At last, somepony she could trust with her secret! Or so she thought. If the white-furred filly had actually bothered to look outside, she would have found absolutely no sign of Rarity anywhere. Instead, a certain trio of teenagers were gathered just below her bedroom window, barely able to believe their luck. “It worked! I seriously can't believe it worked!” “I told you my Rarity impression was enough to fool anyone!” “It's certainly done the trick. Right – now for Stage Two! Spread the word, guys – emergency talent show meeting at the canteen tomorrow lunchtime.” The three ponies quickly dispersed, two of them heading towards the town square while the third made a beeline for Sweet Apple Acres, smirking cheekily to himself as he went. “Yeah, that's right, Sweetie-Belle, don't be afraid to own up about hiding your Cutie Mark, dumping your coltfriend and hitting on old muggins here; we won't judge you, except for the fact that we will judge you!” *********** The next day was unusually quiet for Sweetie-Belle. Most of the other students seemed to have moved on from her odd behaviour, and were now behaving as if she had always worn a long dress to school since she had first started here. The white-furred filly was confused at first, but eventually assured herself that all the fuss was over and that she could now carry on as if nothing was wrong. If only Lickety-Split could have the common decency to apologise for what she still saw as his mistake and his alone... But Lickety-Split seemed to have given up on her altogether. Even when she did see him, he just looked the other way with an expression of deep regret and refused to say anything. Sweetie-Belle felt even worse for seeing him so downtrodden, but stubbornly reminded herself that he was the one who should have been sorry, not her. If he was to heal things over, then he had to speak up first, and nothing would persuade her otherwise. Later that afternoon, having spent an hour chilling out at home (and still brooding over the talent show act that she was not going to perform), the white-furred unicorn made her way across town towards the Carousel Boutique. Hopefully a good long chat with Rarity might put her a bit more at ease, she thought – but when at last she arrived, she was surprised to find a sign hanging on the front door that read “CLOSED FOR REHEARSALS.” Sweetie-Belle scratched her head in confusion. “That's odd. Rarity never said anything about rehearsals,” she remarked, reaching for the doorbell. “Who is it?” called the familiar voice of her sister. “Only me, Rarity,” replied Sweetie-Belle, perplexed. “What's going on in there?” “Oh...nothing special. Do please come in.” “Well...if you say so,” said Sweetie-Belle uncertainly as she pushed the door open and walked into the lobby. To her further surprise, the boutique seemed suspiciously quiet and devoid of ponies – even Spike, a hard creature to miss, was mysteriously absent. She looked around, wondering if this might have been a prank. “In here, darling!” Sweetie-Belle looked to her right and noticed that one of the storeroom doors had been left open. Curiosity got the better of her, and she trotted inside for a closer look – but still no sign of Rarity. All that she could see was... “Scootaloo? Apple Bloom? Alula? What are you three doing here? Where's Rarity?” Alula smirked broadly. “She's right here, darling. Not a bad imitation of your older sister, if I do say so myself,” she spoke up in a perfect Rarity voice. “Don't you, Sweetie-Belle?” “WHAT?!?!” squeaked Sweetie-Belle, infuriated. “Well, what choice did we have?” retorted Scootaloo bluntly. “I mean, seriously, which would you rather – that we came waltzing up to your house, dragged you outside and grilled you?! Truth's gotta come out sooner or later, you know.” Only then did the bit drop for Sweetie-Belle – those two fillies must have found out about her Cutie Mark somehow. “You'll get nothing out of me!” she screamed defiantly, and turned towards the doorway, hoping to get as far away from them as she could; but she was too late. Alula had already taken advantage of her brief distraction to sneak out of the storeroom and lock the door, trapping her inside with Apple Bloom and Scootaloo. The white-furred filly banged hard against the door. “HEY! LET ME OUT! LET – ME – OUT!!!” “It's no use, Sweetie-Belle,” interrupted Apple Bloom sternly. “Rarity's busy helpin' Dinky an' Loco rehearse their act, an' Spike's outta town on royal business. It's just you, me an' Scoot – an' y'all ain't goin' nowhere until we've talked this through, see?!” Sweetie-Belle scowled bitterly. “I've got nothing to say!” she hissed. “Well, we have,” stated Scootaloo. “Look, you can't keep running away from your own Cutie Mark! No matter what you do, it's still gonna be there because it's your special talent! We're not saying you have to start a music career immediately – we're just saying that you need to embrace that talent, or else you'll never be happy with your life!” “Scoot's right,” put in Apple Bloom. “This ain't just some fancy print on yo' flanks we're talkin' about – it's a symbol of who ya are – who we all are. Remember that first talent show we did together? How y'all seemed ta do better at workin' out the lyrics than Scoot? An' what about those really sweet pipes o' yours when y'all were hummin' it to yourself after we got our clubhouse?” “Yeah? And what about that camping trip?” “That was an impending illness! That doesn't count!” insisted Scootaloo. “Point is, Sweetie-Belle,” went on Apple Bloom gravely, “yo' only makin' things worse by tryin' ta put this off. Yo' stressin' yourself out, yo' losin' friends, an' if it keeps up, yo' gonna end up losin' yo' mind 'cause ya ain't bein' true to yourself. This is somethin' ya have ta do, or else it'll come back ta haunt ya.” She gave the white-furred unicorn a soft, sympathetic smile. “Ah can see it might be hard fo' ya, an' Ah appreciate that, but y'all ain't alone. We've all been there at some point – me, Scoot, Pip...even Loco gets stage nerves, an' he's the main character in a Technicolour Tarquin film!” Sweetie-Belle's sullen anger began to fade as soon as she heard this, but she was still visibly confused. “But...that was on camera, not on stage.” “So what? It's still the same thing,” said Apple Bloom. “But yeah, even he ain't lettin' that get to him with his own talent show act. If he an' Dinky can overcome their fears, so can you.” There was a long silence. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo waited patiently for Sweetie-Belle to answer, but the white-furred unicorn was now so lost in her thoughts that she seemed to be taking an interest in the floor. “We're not gonna leave you alone until you've written and entered that song, Sweetie-Belle,” put in Scootaloo. “If you don't beat your demons now, you never will. Besides, we're not called the Cutie Mark Crusaders for nothing.” “But...supposing I mess up?” “Well, you're just going to have to take the risk, or you're never gonna find out – and then you're probably gonna spend the rest of your life like 'Oh, I dunno what to do with myself, 'cause I don't even know who I am!'” “Ugh! Fine!” burst out a flustered Sweetie-Belle at last. “You want your song? You're getting your stupid song – but don't come crying to me if you don't like it!” Apple Bloom chortled. “We won't need to worry about that,” she pointed out. “La'k Ah said, y'all ain't alone on this one – 'cause me an' Scoot are gonna help you get it just right.” Apple Bloom and Scootaloo were as good as their word. From then on, they would meet up at Sweetie-Belle's house every evening to see how she was doing with writing the song – and to make absolutely sure she was putting her all into it as she said she would. Needless to say, Sweetie-Belle was still none too pleased to have them breathing down her neck all the while, but grudgingly refrained from saying so. What neither of them had the heart to tell her was that Locomotion and some of their other friends were already reworking their own acts, so as to boost her courage and help her see the light regarding her Cutie Mark. Even Cheerilee agreed to help by rearranging their slots to suit their plans. The big day arrived less than two weeks later, on the final day of school before the beginning of the summer holidays. That evening, a huge crowd of ponies were gathered at the Ponyville Theatre as the Cutie Mark Crusaders and their fellow students prepared for the talent show. By this time, Sweetie-Belle's stage nerves were coming back with a vengeance, and even as the stage-hooves began moving the props into place for the first act, she couldn't stop fretting over what she thought would be her impending doom. “I'm gonna fail at this so bad!” she mumbled nervously. “Why did I even bother to agree to this musical act?!” “Suck it up, Sweetie-Belle!” scolded Scootaloo. “You've sung in front of audiences before – why should this be any different?!” “Because it's bigger!” protested Sweetie-Belle. “Just look at it – there's hundreds of them out there! Thousands, even!” Apple Bloom rolled her eyes. “Mo' la'k...two-hundred an' seventy,” she corrected. “Take mah advice; imagine they're all Lavender Rhapsody clones or...or somethin'.” “Yeah, speaking of whom, she's on the judging panel herself tonight,” added Scootaloo pointedly. Sweetie-Belle's eyes widened with shock. “She...Lavender Rhapsody? Here?! Tonight?!” “Darn tootin'! Ya wouldn't wanna let her down now, would ya?” The white-furred filly gulped and looked away. It was bad enough that she was being forced to sing in front of a huge crowd, but now she was at risk of making a fool of herself in front of her idol?! But Lavender Rhapsody wasn't the only visitor on the panel. Ironically, given his own anxieties, Locomotion was excited when he found out who the other one was. “Why, if it isn't Technicolour Tarquin himself!” he remarked, trotting up to the panel with a starstruck look in his eyes. Tarquin chuckled heartily as he gazed upon the red-furred railway enthusiast. “Ah, Loco! Wonderful to see you again, my dear boy!” he announced jovially. “Been keeping well, I trust?” “You bet, Tarquin! Been spending most of the last few months on long-distance express firing turns, and just three weeks ago, Max went ahead and promoted me to Passed Firepony, so now I'm taking driving turns on the yard pilot,” replied Locomotion eagerly. “How about you and Lavender? Everything been cool with you?” “Well...yes and no,” admitted Tarquin with a wry smile. “We did give the whole 'being an item' thing a whirl after we finished on 'Battle of the Griffins', but neither of us really felt that much of a connection with each other, so we decided to just go back to being friends and associates. “Oh...fair enough," murmured Locomotion, mildly disappointed. “Anyway, I'd better get my skates on – show's gonna start in less than a minute.” “Very well, Loco, my boy; I'll see you again when it's all over. Break a leg.” “Thanks, Tarquin.” Locomotion gave a polite nod and made his way backstage, where he found Lickety-Split still waiting impatiently for the curtain call. “Hey, calm down, Lickety. It's not as if we're performing 'Hinny of the Hills', you know.” “Yeah, I know that!” grunted Lickety-Split, staring out towards the curtain for the umpteenth time. “I'm just...how do I know Sweetie-Belle isn't getting cold hooves? What if she sneaks out and runs for the hills the moment the first act gets going?!” “She's not goin' anywhere, Lickety,” Pipsqueak assured him. “Loco and Alula have made sure all the other performers know about 'er act, an' Scoot an' Apple Bloom are keepin' an eye on 'er. Even if she does try to make a run for it, she won't get far.” “I hope not,” muttered Lickety-Split anxiously. “I mean, I get that Sweetie-Belle doesn't feel ready for all this, but trying to outrun her own destiny? That's...I probably needn't reiterate that that's taking things way too far!” Locomotion patted his shoulder soothingly. He was still a little worried himself, but he didn't have the heart to say so in front of Lickety-Split. “Chin up, mate,” he comforted. “The way we've planned things, that'll be the last thing on her mind by the time her act comes up.” Lickety-Split nodded hopefully in response as the opening music began to play. On the other side of the stage, Sweetie-Belle sat and listened unhappily as Cheerilee stepped up and made a brief introductory speech before introducing the first act. Not long now before her darkest hour, she thought...