//------------------------------// // 12. Cutie Mark Crusaders Honorary Member - Part 1 // Story: My Little Pony - The Legend of Friendship // by Danieru //------------------------------// Star Twinkle was asked by Applejack to do some kind of favor. He was asked to repair some old Treehouse that was in the middle of the woods of Sweet Apple Acre. While not looking forward to doing some work, it was at least not that hard to repair for Star Twinkle so he was not bothered much. Applejack was also helping a little and overlooked his work. “This looks like some kind of Clubhouse,” he mentioned to Applejack. “It sure does! That's because it is one,” she replied. “Aren't you a little too old to play in a Clubhouse,” he amusingly asked. “Don't be silly. This was my Clubhouse years ago. Now I want to give it to my little sister and her Cutie Mark Crusader friends,” she amusingly replied. “Cutie Mark Crusader?” He asked in confusion. “Yes. She and her little friends don't have their Cutie Marks yet. So they formed this group to find their special talent,” Applejack replied. "A club to find out what your special talent is and to get your Cutie Mark? Are they really that eager to get their Cutie Mark? Is it really that important?" While asking himself all those questions, he looked down to his bare flank. “I always told her to not rush those things. I mean a Cutie Mark appears, when the time is right and trying to force it won't help,” Applejack said as if she was scolding Apple Bloom right now. But those words didn't mean much to Star Twinkle. He was very patient when it came to his Cutie Mark. He always thought that nothing would change even if he got his one. But seeing how other ponies are influenced by their Cutie Marks or rather not existing Cutie Marks, he began to think about it a little different. “No offense,” Applejack apologized, noticing how in deep thoughts Star Twinkle was in. “Offense?” He confusingly replied. “It's probably not nice from me to talk about those things while you still have to find your special talent yourself,” she explained. "I didn't even say anything. And I didn't felt offended at all..." Star Twinkle thought while making a rather neutral face. “I'm not worried about my Cutie Mark,” he replied. "Right?" Applejack didn't know if she fully believed him or not so she didn't mention this matter anymore as necessary. After a little while, the Clubhouse looked almost as good as new. At least from the outside. It was still empty inside. But compared to before the Clubhouse looked a lot better. Applejack and Star Twinkle were pretty impressed by how good it looked now. A few hours ago it was totally demolished and had spiderwebs everywhere. But it was nothing that Star Twinkle and Applejack couldn't handle. “Thank you a lot Sugar Cube, I know that I could count on you,” she said while winking at him. “Now if your could wait here for a few minutes, I'm going to bring my sister and her friends here,” she added while walking off to get them. Star Twinkle did as Applejack said and waited in front of the Clubhouse. He looked up to the Clubhouse while thinking about those Cutie Mark Crusaders and their goal. “A group that dedicates itself to find their special talent, huh. Well as long as they have fun,” he said while trying to understand the concept of their club. A few minutes later Applejack returned accompanied by three fillies. Star Twinkle only knew Apple Bloom from the bunch so he looked at the other two to see if he recognized one of them. One of them was a Pegasus with an orange coat and a purple mane. The other one was a unicorn with a white coat and light purple and pink mane. The second one looked familiar in some way but he was sure that he never saw her before. Applejack proudly presented the clubhouse to the three fillies, who seemed really surprised and excited. They quickly ran up the wooden stairs that led to the Clubhouse to get a better look. “Looks like they like it,” Star Twinkle whispered to Applejack. “Yes, good to know that our work was not for nothing,” she replied. Star Twinkle couldn't agree more. It did take some time to repair it and see how happy they were made Star Twinkle a little happy. The three fillies walked outside of the Clubhouse to share their excitement. “It is great Applejack thank you!” Said Apple Bloom while hugging her big sister. “Now now, sweetie save some thanks for Star Twinkle too. He actually did most of the work,” said Applejack pointing to Star Twinkle who looked away in modesty. Apple Bloom then approached Star Twinkle and thanked him as well. Star Twinkle accepted her thanks while continuing to look away in modesty. “It's still a little empty, though,” said the Pegasus filly. The unicorn filly then poked her in the side implying that this was not polite to say that after they just got a brand new Clubhouse. But Star Twinkle and Applejack didn't take any offense. They knew that there was nothing inside but they planned to get some furniture or anything else what the three ponies wanted. Applejack just wanted to give them the Clubhouse as a start and add some things later. “Hey mister Star Twinkle, can you built us some things for our Clubhouse?” said Apple Bloom. Mister? I'm not that old Why was nopony poking her right now? After all, THAT was something that offended him. He thought offended but he tried to focus on the answer. “Yes! You can do that right?” sSaid the unicorn who jumped excitingly in front of him. “Yes! Pretty please,” said the Pegasus who also joined in. Suddenly Star Twinkle was surrounded by three puppy-eyed fillies. There was no way that he could say no to that image even if it meant more work for him. He eventually gave in and agreed to help. The three fillies cheered in happiness while Star Twinkle put up a fake smile to not ruin the mood. But from the inside, he knew that he just got himself into more work. On the next day Star Twinkle was inside of the Clubhouse, ready to do some work. The Cutie Mark Crusaders were nowhere to be found but they did mention some things that they would like to have inside. Tables, stools, some better-looking windows, the usual stuff. They also wanted a podium for some future meetings. He wanted to finish his work as fast as he could so Star Twinkle wasted no time. He was working peacefully inside of the Clubhouse until he heard a somepony outside entering the Clubhouse, probably one of the Cutie Mark Crusaders, he thought. But he turned around to make sure. It was the white unicorn one. Her name was Sweetie Belle if he recalled, Applejack told him the names of the other two the day before. She was apparently Rarity's little sister. That's why she looked familiar to him. And the Pegasus one was called Scootaloo if he remembered right. After she noticed Star Twinkle, she began waving and smiling at him but Star Twinkle got back to his work, not showing much response to her. She then approached him and sat beside him, watching him work. While he was not bothered by that, it still felt a little weird. He was working at a table at the moment, that was not the most interesting thing to watch. But she watched as if it was the most interesting thing ever. “What are you doing,” she asked curiously. “Building,” he responded. “Oh,” she replied. There was a short silence after that but Sweetie Belle once again broke it. “What are you building?” She asked. “A table,” he answered. “Oh,” she replied. She clearly had no idea what she should talk about with him. That is exactly why Star Twinkle favors silence before forcing a conversation that goes nowhere. But Sweetie Belle wasn't aware of that and continued this “conversation”. “Is it fun to build things?” She asked. That was actually a good question, thought Star Twinkle. He was working for years as a carpenter pony and never really thought about it being fun. He was doing it because he was good at it, he thought. “I guess,” he answered confused. She didn't show much response and just continued to watch him. Meanwhile, the other two fillies arrived at the Clubhouse. They happily greeted each other and talked about what they should do today to get their Cutie Marks. Star Twinkle was focused on his work and didn't pay much attention to their discussion but somehow it felt like he was being watched. When he turned around he saw how the three fillies were watching him work. “What are you doing?” asked Scootaloo. This situation felt familiar to him but he still answered. “Building,” he answered. “Oh,” she replied. He was taking a guess what the next question would be and his guess was actually right. “What are you building?” Asked Apple Bloom. But instead of Star Twinkle, it was Sweetie Bell who answered. “A table,” “Oh,” the two other fillies replied. While still working without getting bothered by those questions, this situation felt more and more awkward for Star Twinkle. But he didn't say anything. After all, this was their Clubhouse. It would feel bad to tell them what they should in their own Clubhouse. “Is it fun to build things?” Asked Scootaloo. But there is only so much patience that Star Twinkle has. “Don't you have to find your special talent or something?” He said while trying to not sound too annoyed. This sentence seemed to make them realize not to waste any more time. After a quick discussion that didn't seem to make much sense in Star Twinkles ears, the Cutie Mark Crusaders rushed outside. They shouted from outside that Star Twinkle should take care of their Clubhouse in the meantime. That confused him because he was only there to build some stuff and not to take care of their Clubhouse. As soon as he finished his work there he is gone, he thought. But at the moment he was just glad that he was alone again so that he could peacefully continue his work. Some time has passed since the Cutie Mark Crusaders left and Star Twinkle managed to almost finish his work. He built a table, some stools, some picture frames, some wooden boxes where they could store some stuff and even the podium they requested. He also removed the splinters and painted it in a new yellow tone. It looked almost as good as new. Just when he finished his work, the Cutie Mark Crusaders returned with a disappointing look on their faces. Looks like their Cutie Mark Hunt didn't go too well, Star Twinkle thought. “I can't believe bug catching wasn't our special talent,” said Apple Bloom. “Or cooking,” said Sweetie Belle. “Or hoof wrestling,” said Scootaloo. It was the complete opposite from how they acted before. Hopefully seeing the inside of the Clubhouse would cheer them up, thought Star Twinkle. “No luck getting your Cutie Mark?” He asked already knowing the answer. “No,” they all sadly replied. But they quickly forgot their disappointment after seeing how their Clubhouse looked. “Hey now that's more like it,” said Scootaloo after noticing the differences in their Clubhouse. “Yes, now it looks like a real Clubhouse!” said Sweetie Belle. Star Twinkle was glad to hear that after putting all this work into this, so he prepared to leave. But the Cutie Mark Crusader were eager to thank him, making his leave a bit complicated. Not only that but they were asking some weird questions. “Do you think that we can earn our Cutie Mark by building something too?” Asked Scootaloo. “I don't know,” he replied confused. “Do you think that we can help you in your workshop someday,” asked Apple Bloom. “That's not up to me,” he replied but he was sure Steel Hammer would let them help if they asked. “Yes, I wish I had a special talent in building things,” said Sweetie Belle. After that sentence Apple Bloom coughed to get Sweetie Belles attention and pointed at Star Twinkles blank flank, making Sweetie Belle realize that he doesn't have a Cutie Mark as well. This made Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle gasp in surprise. After a short silence, Sweetie Belle apologized. Star Twinkle was not sure what this was all about but he tried to calm them down. “Hey, It's okay I'm fine. I don't really care about my Cutie Mark,” he said trying to calm them down. This time, all three of them were gasping in surprise. So much for calming them down, he thought. “You're fine with that?” Asked Scootaloo. “You don't care?” Asked Apple Bloom. “That is not okay,” said Sweetie Belle. Star Twinkle realized that this conversation would go in a bad direction but he didn't know what to say at this moment. He could explain in detail why he was not so eager to get a Cutie Mark but he figured that that would lead to nowhere. So he tried to find some excuse to get out of this situation somehow until Sweetie Belle asked something that made him stop thinking. “You want to join the Cutie Mark Crusaders?” She excitingly asked. “Huh?” Star Twinkle replied confused. Join the Cutie Mark Crusader? Why did she ask something crazy like that? He thought in confusion. But not only he was confused. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo also gave her some confused looks. “Cutie Mark Crusader secret meeting!” Scootaloo shouted. “Secret meeting?” Asked Sweetie Belle in confusion. “Just come over here for a minute,” Scootaloo replied while the other two fillies followed her to a corner of the Clubhouse. “What are you doing?” Asked Scootaloo. “What do you mean?” Said Sweetie Belle who didn't realize what the problem was. “You can't just invite him to join our club!” Scootaloo replied. “Why not?” Sweetie Belle replied. Scootaloo then struggled to come up with an answer for a moment. “Well I mean he is old. I mean real old,” she explained. “Well we don't really set a rule for that,” said Apple Bloom. “Besides, he is just like us. He doesn't know his special talent yet. Can you imagine how hard it must be to live for so long and not knowing your special talent,” she explained. Just listening to that made Scootaloo feel bad, making her frown. “Yeah, I guess your right. No wonder why he is always so grumpy,” said Scootaloo. “Must be really hard for him,” said Sweetie Belle in a sad voice. They then stopped their discussion for a moment and turned around to Star Twinkle and looked at him with sad puppy eyes. He, on the other hoof, was looking a little offended. “You do realize that I can hear every word you're saying right?” He said in an annoying voice, probably because he felt offended by all those things they said about him. “And besides I am not THAT old,” he protested. After a little while of more discussing, they finally approached Star Twinkle again with some happy smiles on their faces. “What?” He asked. On the next day... After he finished his work at the Iron Hammer, Star Twinkle walked around in Ponyville and was heading in the direction of Sweet Apple Acres. Twilight, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash were approaching him on his way. They asked him if he would accompany them but he had to refuse because he was busy. “Busy?” Asked Rainbow Dash. “I promised to be somewhere,” he explained. “Where?” Twilight asked. At first, he was hesitating to give an answer right away but then he mumbled something. “The Cutie Mark Crusader Clubhouse...” he mumbled. “Oh, you mean this group where Sweetie Belle is part of? Where they try to find their special talent?” Rarity asked. “Yes,” he mumbled. They were a little confused. Star Twinkle was behaving a little strange. They didn't try to be too pushy but they were also little curious. “Do you still need to repair some things there?” Twilight asked. “No,” he replied. “Do they need help for some school project?” Rarity asked. “No,” he replied again. “Or maybe you need to go there because you're their newest member? You know because you don't have a Cutie Mark as well,” Rainbow Dash amusingly said. Star Twinkle didn't reply to this and prayed to Celestia that they would not put two and two together. But sadly his luck wasn't that good. They then started to giggle except Rainbow Dash who was bursting out in laughter. Not that he would have expected any other reaction but he was still annoyed by this. “Yes, I know. Really funny,” he said in an annoyed voice. They then calmed down a bit trying not to laugh anymore which was harder than expected. The sad thing was that he couldn't even blame them. A grown up pony hanging around with a bunch of fillies, playing Cutie Mark hunt. He would probably laugh too. “I'm sorry darling it's just-,” but Rarity couldn't stop herself from laughing and stopped in the middle of the sentence. “How did it come to that,” said Twilight who almost calmed down completely. “I am not sure myself. It just happened,” he explained. Maybe it was because he can't say no. Or because he didn't have anything better to do? He honestly didn't know how exactly it came to this. They asked him if he would join because they think that he is sad for not having a Cutie Mark, even though he said he was okay directly into their faces. “Now if you excuse me. I don't want to be late to the meeting,” he said realizing how stupid it sounded. He was pretty sure that he could hear them laughing after he was walking a few steps. But he couldn't worry about that right now. After a while, he found himself inside of the Clubhouse sitting on a little stool that was way too small for him, making him loose balance every now and then. Kind of ironic that he would sit on a stool that he build himself, which was actually intended for fillies. He sat in the middle next to Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, while Apple Bloom was climbing the podium to start the meeting. “I proudly announce our first Cutie Mark Crusader meeting inside of our new Clubhouse,” “CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS! YEAH!” Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle shouted. “Of course, this meeting couldn't be possible without our newest member who repaired this Clubhouse in the first place,” Apple Bloom proudly announced. “That is you,” whispered Scootaloo while poking Star Twinkle. But he didn't show any reaction to that. He felt so out of place and was thinking about many, many things at the moment. Like how it came to this or why he can't just leave. It's not like they were forcing him or anything. But it's moments like this that made him wonder, why he couldn't open his mouth at the right time. “We should really work on some sort of ceremony in case we get some new members,” suggested Sweetie Belle. “I'm on it!” said Scootaloo. “How about we show you around in the Clubhouse?” Apple Bloom said rushing to on corner to another. Of course, Star Twinkle knew the Clubhouse inside out because he worked on it for two days now. Actually, he should know it even better than the Cutie Mark Crusaders. But Apple Bloom continued to show him around. “...And on this is the podium where we announce stuff,” she said. “Yes, I know. I built it. And that's what podiums are for,” he said in an emotionless tone. “Wow! He is good!” whispered Sweetie Belle to Scootaloo. The meeting then continued. There was some talking about some trivial stuff, like their day on school or other stuff where Star Twinkle was not really part of. Eventually, Scootaloo pulled out some piece of paper. There were drawings of some buildings. It was probably some kind of map from Ponyville. Sweet Apple Acres, the Golden Oak Library, Sugar Cube Corner, and some more places were on it. “This map will help us to get our Cutie Mark for sure!” said Scootaloo in confidence. “Yes. If we visit all these places, at least one of them will get us a Cutie Mark!” said Apple Bloom. They then marched outside and Star Twinkle followed them at a slow pace. Everypony was excited except Star Twinkle who still felt out of place. Maybe now was the right time to tell them how he felt. After all, he was clearly not as excited as them and they didn't have to feel bad for him if he didn't have a Cutie Mark. So he decided to tell them. “Hey listen I-” but before he could say anything Apple Bloom interrupted him. “Are you ready Crusaders?” She asked. “Yes!” Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle replied with a shout. But they were just standing there as if they were waiting for something. Star Twinkle was wondering what this was about and got confused until they turned around and looked at him. “Ehm, are you ready too?” Asked Scootaloo. And once again they looked at him full of expectations, just like they did when they asked him to join. He was about to say that he wouldn't come with them but now he was hesitating for some reason. They were so eager to get their Cutie Mark and he wasn't. The answer of the question should be obvious. He didn't know the reason. Whatever it was he decided to give a different answer. “Yes, I'm ready!” He confidently replied. They were happy to hear that answer and turned around again to start their Quest for a Cutie Mark. “CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS, LET'S GO!” The three fillies shouted in excitement. They then rushed off to their first destination, followed by Star Twinkle. He didn't know why he tagged along and he didn't think about it too much. Or maybe he did know the answer. Maybe he wanted to tag along because he also wanted a Cutie Mark. He thought that trying to get your Cutie Mark is impossible and that your destiny or your special talent will show up some day on its own. But what if that is not true? Maybe you have to find your destiny and maybe you have to archive it on your own. He wasn't trying to ask himself those questions but he was also not ignoring them. Right now there was only one question that he was asking himself before he went after the Cutie Mark Crusaders. “What have I done?” To be continued...