//------------------------------// // The Party Invite // Story: Rumble's Cutie Problem // by Evowizard25 //------------------------------// Rumble was usually ecstatic about weekends. He’d always race home the moment school ended. Not that he hated school. He loved Miss Cheerilee and he did like to learn new things. He was on the honor role after all. ‘Maybe that’s not important anymore.’ There wasn’t as many kids around to show off that too, not that he liked to. Most of his friends had left, but now it was just him and Strike. “I think I got an A on that quiz. I can feel it,” his best friend, Strike, spoke up. Strike was a pale, golden colored earth colt. His blue and white striped mane bobbed up and down as he walked beside his friend, “Rumble? Are you okay? You didn’t let them get to you, did you?” Rumble sighed, “Kinda.” Strike snorted, “That’s just silly, Rumble. Scootaloo and Silver Spoon are always trying to make us feel bad.” Rumble didn’t say anything as he moped. Strike walked in front of him, making sure to walk backwards so to speak to his face. “Come on, we can go to the arcade or something.” Rumbles ears perked up at that, before they lowered. “The arcade was destroyed by the dragon, remember?” Strike frowned, “Oh yeah. Stupid dragon.” He scuffed the ground. “The bowling alley is okay, right?” Rumble asked his friend. Strike nodded, “Yeah, but my big sister is doing a tournament so it’s full right now. I’m sure we can find something else though.” Before he could say anything else, the two of them found themselves in a cloud of dust as something whizzed by them. They coughed and tried to wipe it out of their eyes. “Watch where you’re walking,” Scootaloo stopped her scooter not far from them. Gripping her around the waist was Silver Spoon. The filly was shaking slightly from the intense speed. “You could have bruised my scooter.” “Or bruised us,” Strike spoke up. Scootaloo rolled her eyes, “A real pony could take it, but you aren’t real ponies are you?” She smirked. “We are so real ponies,” Rumble glared over at her, trying not to shrink back as she advanced. ‘Royal Guards are brave. They never back down from a challenge.’ “Yeah?” Scootaloo smirked. “Well why don’t you impress me with your special talent? Oh no. I forgot. You don’t have one. So what does that make you?” She poked him in the chest hard enough to make him stumble backwards. Both her and Silver laughed. “You’re just a blank flank and you’ll always be one.” Rumble opened his mouth to speak, but he couldn’t think of what to say to that. ‘What good am I? I don’t have a talent. Maybe Thunderlane knows if they’ll let me in anyways.’ “Maybe we’ll get a cutie mark,” Strike piped up. The two fillies laughed again, “Oh please.” Silver Spoon smirked. “Like, what would a loser cutie mark even look like.” “Anyways,” Scootaloo strutted in front of them. It wasn’t that impressive to Rumble, since her wings were rather small for a pegasus. However, she more than made up for that with her large fangs and muscular body. She looked like she could break bones with ease. “My cute-ceañera is coming up and I thought I’d be nice and invite you there. It’ll be fun. We’ll get to see some real talents and ponies who are going someplace with themselves.” “Yeah, won’t that be fun?” Silver Spoon chuckled. Scootaloo got back on her scooter, with Silver getting up behind her. “See you there, blank flanks.” She took off, leaving them in another coughing fit and covered in dust. “I really don’t like her,” Strike glared off into the distance. “And bring Thunderlane too,” she called back, causing the two colts to look at each other in confusion. __________________________________________________________________ Silver Spoon pouted as she looked at her friend. Rather, she looked at the back of her helmet. “Really? You just had to shout that back?” “What about it?” Scootaloo asked. “Making it pretty obvious, aren’t you?” Silver snorted. “Why are you so hung up on Thunderlane, anyways?” “It’s nothing,” Scootaloo tried to hide her blush, but being this close, Silver could plainly see it. “Look. He’s awesome and my party is awesome. Two awesomes make something… more awesome. Follow?” “I follow,” Silver sighed. Ever since the Nightmare attack, her friend had been obsessing over Thunderlane. Apparently, he had saved her from some nightmare soldiers. That was great. She couldn’t thank him enough, but Scootaloo wouldn’t stop thinking about him. ‘She should be thinking about me instead.’ She just grumbled inwardly as the two kept speeding off. ‘I swear, she intentionally goes so fast as to make me sick.’ __________________________________________________________________ Rumble couldn’t help but pause as he stared up at his big brother’s bedroom door. Thunderlane was always there for him. Always, without fault. He’d help him through this, no problem. ‘Royal Guards don’t let fear control them.’ Letting out a conscious breath, he knocked on the door. ‘Maybe big brother will find something for us to play together. That could get my mind off of this.’ “It’s unlocked,” Thunderlane called out to him. Rumble fluttered upwards and turned the knob, pushing the door open. Once inside, he saw that his brother was fixing his dress uniform in front of a mirror on his desk. “What’s up, little buddy?” He was fretting with his collar. Rumble sighed, “We were talking about cutie marks today.” “Yeah, and?” Thunderlane started to look through an open drawer that held his ties. He picked up a green and red striped one and a purple one with his wings and showed them to his little brother. “Which do you think looks better on me?” His feathers held them before his neck one at a time. Rumble just gave him a pleading look, causing him to sigh. “Yeah, just go with the solid color.” He stuffed the other one back in the drawer and closed it. “This is serious,” Rumble stomped his hoof on the ground. “Of course it is,” Thunderlane half listened as he started to put the collar around his neck. “Look Rumble, is this because you don’t have one?” “Nearly everypony in my class has one,” Rumble whined. “Even Scootaloo.” “Ah, she’s the one that’s been giving you trouble.” Thunderlane grunted as the tie proved to be a challenge loosening up. Rumble nodded, “She just got her mark and now she’s having a party.” “Well good for her,” Thunderlane scowled as he bit down on the tie’s knot and started to pull away with a hoof. Rumble rolled his eyes and tapped his brother’s leg. He laid out a hoof and Thunderlane begrudgingly gave him the tie. The little colt quickly undid it and gave it back. “Thanks,” Thunderlane smiled as he finally got it back around his neck. “So what if she’s got her mark already? I was the fourth to last one in my entire class to get a cutie mark.” “Yeah, but I don’t want to wait until then.” Rumble frowned. “I could be the last in my class to get it or I won’t ever get one at all.” Thunderlane chuckled as he ruffled his brother’s mane, “Now that’s crazy talk. Everypony gets their mark. It just take some longer than others.” He narrowed his eyes as he looked over a few bottles with strange liquid. He opened one and sniffed it, nodding in satisfaction and then dabbing a little around his neck. “But that means she’ll make fun of me for a long time,” Rumble pointed out. “I just want it now. I can’t be a royal guard without a cutie mark.” “No you can’t,” Thunderlane off-handedly commented, not really paying attention at that point. This caused Rumble to look at him in horror. “You’ll get it when you’re ready, Rumble. Not a second before.” He finally turned to his little brother, not really catching the look of horror on his face. “Do I smell bad?” ‘Your smell? What about my cutie mark?’ Rumble glared at him, “You smell weird. Are you going on a date with Miss Rarity again?” Thunderlane’s cheeks turned a tint of pink, “Absolutely not. I told you. We’re just going on patrol and Rarity will not leave me alone unless I’m properly dressed. She is a freak when it comes to style.” “Then why do you always come back so messy?” Rumble tilted his head in question. “...” Thunderlane just stared at his little brother. Luckily for him, the doorbell chimed. “Oh look at that. Flitter’s coming over to look after you. You like her. Ask her all these questions.” He pushed Rumble out of his room with a wing and all the way into the living room. Flitter, a light purple pegasus mare, stared at them in confusion as he hastily pushed his little brother into her. “Rumble has questions. I gotta go. Bye.” The two pegasi jumped slightly when he slammed the door behind them, “So, what got him so riled up?” Flitter asked. Rumble smiled up at her. Flitter was always nice to him, no matter what. ‘She’s like the big sister I never had.’ That and she always got him little sweets when his brother wasn’t looking. He was trying to ween him off of them because they ‘weren’t healthy’. “I asked him about cutie marks.” “Well that’s not-” “And why he’s always so messy after patrolling with Miss Rarity.” Flitter blinked in shock for a few seconds, “Well… let’s talk about those cutie marks then. Though you don’t mind if we go out today. Lightning Dust needs some more help clearing the skies.” Rumble nodded. More than half of the weather team had quit and moved away, so the other pegasi in town were being employed as temporary workers. ‘Maybe I could get my cutie mark in weather making.’ His face lit up. “Let’s go.” He quickly opened the door and zoomed outside. Flitter laughed, “Aren’t we eager today.” Without another word, she took off after her charge.