The Heroes of Olympus: The Other End of the Pit

by Surprise Pie

Extra 2: Making friends. -Screwball

Screwball had been busy studying as her mother had asked when she received Jetstream's mental summons. The Ancient Language was a very interesting subject and Screwball absolutely adored learning about it. She was busy reciting an Ancient text treating the founding of Equestria when her mother's voice spoke in her mind.

"Use your Chaos Power to come to my location, there is somepony I'd like you to meet."

Jetstream was a kind and loving mother who believed that her child would do best in the world if she learned all she could on everything she could learn about. Intellect was definitely not a problem for the eight-year old filly, who's knowledge rivaled even the professors of the Canterlot University of Magic, thanks to two years of learning and reading the Ancient Language and searching through ever book in the library of the underground crystal palace she now called home.

Screwball had only known her mother for two years, and despite being a princess, she dared not defy Jetstream. Chaos may not be easy to contain, but Screwball had become accustomed to it during her time in the orphanage. It took no effort for the pink filly to teleport in a comical way, this time by turning into pure crystal, melting into the floor, and sprouting as a marble statue next to her mother, before returning to normal. Jetstream wasn't alone. A deep blue pegasus, a baby-blue unicorn, Princess Twilight, Princess Cadence, and a black Alicorn filly stood there. The filly wasn't paying attention, and the two unknown ponies stood there with puzzled expressions.

"Percy, Annabeth, I present to you my daughter, Screwball, Heir of Chaos." Jetstream said.

Screwball had the foresight to get her enchanted reading glasses on before teleporting to her mother. The chaos filly had been picked on in the orphanage many times because of her different eyes. Jetstream had made her those enchanted reading glasses to give the filly the illusion of having normal eyes, with irises of a delicate lavender. The Alicorn filly had sunglasses on, despite being indoors.

*Maybe she's got different eyes like me.* Screwball thought.

"A pleasure to meet you, Screwball." said the pegasus, "I'm Percy."

The filly nodded. Her mother had told her about the two ponies who came from another world.

"You're from a different world, right?" she asked.

"Yeah, but we're stuck in Equestria for some time so we may as well help out." Percy responded.

Twilight stepped forward, the Alicorn filly close behind.

"I'd like you to meed Nyx, she's my adoptive daughter and I'm sure you two could be very good friends. You both have immense powers that we could use someday, but for now you should enjoy the experience of having friends." she said.

"What we mean to say, Nyx, Screwball, is that we, Princess Twilight and I, would like for you to study the magic of friendship for yourselves." said Jetstream

Screwball looked at her mother for a second, and replied in the Ancient Language:

"But Mom, what about my studies in the Language of Creation? If I'm busy studying friendship, finding the Name of all Names will take even longer."

Responding in kind, Jetstream said:

"It was never your task to discover the Name, Screwball. I believe you've already mastered the Language enough to start studying other things. Besides, you are only eight years old, it's time for you to make friends."

"But Mom...

"You don't have the habit of questioning my authority, Screwball-fanëarel. Do as you are told." her mother scolded in Equish. "I want you to start living the life of a foal a little more, and staying holed up in books all your life is not the way to do so. Do I make myself clear?"

The filly dipped her head.

"I understand, mom."

Nyx trotted over to Screwball and extended a friendly hoof, Screwball bumping said hoof with a smile.

"Mom could you take us to Ponyville? I'd like Screwball to meet my other friends too." the black filly asked.

"Of course, just be careful if you go Crusading, please." And with a flash of purple energy, the three of them found themselves in front of a large tree-turned house. A sign engraved Golden Oaks Library hung above the door, and golden plaque underneath read Dusk Court held every Thursday from 4:30 PM to 8:00 PM

"I must return to Canterlot for the time being, there's still a few things I have to take care of. I should be back by the end of the day. Be careful you two, and stay out of trouble."

"We will, Mom!" replied Nyx.

Having regained her high spirits at the thought of an adventure with somepony as special as her, Screwball added:

"Thank you for this learning opportunity, Twilight-Dröttningu. I must ask, though. Could you keep an eye on my mother? She puts on a brave face but deep down she's very delicate. The chaos left deep scars on her mind, I can sense it. She may be strong in body, but her mind is very prone to Chaos Magic."

"I will. You two have fun now!" and the Princess of Magic was gone in a purple flash.

A few minutes of awkward silence hung heavily between the two fillies, before Nyx broke the silence.

"So, uh. I'm Nyx, daughter of Princess Twilight. And you are?"

"Screwball, daughter of Princess Jetstream and Lord Discord. So about these other friends of yours?"

"Right. There's these other three fillies who, just like us, have no cutie marks, and the four of us spend lots of our time trying to earn them. As it happens, the four of us represent each pony race in Equestria. We call ourselves the "Cutie Mark Crusaders"."

"That sounds fun. Think I could join?" asked Screwball.

"Probably. Come with me, I'll take you to our clubhouse."

After about an hour of walking, the fillies arrived at the base of Cutie Mark Crusader operations. Nyx stepped in front of Screwball and said:

"Before we go in and I introduce you to the other Crusaders, there's something you need to know. You can already see I'm an Alicorn, but there's more." Reaching up to her face, Nyx pulled off her sunglasses and stowed them in her saddlebags, faced Screwball and opened her eyes. They were of the same teal color as Luna's, except for her vertical pupils.

"My eyes are the testament to my past identity. In case you didn't know, I'm the reincarnated form of Nightmare Moon. Shortly after my mom and he friends freed Princess Luna from my evil, a cultist named Spell Nexus tried and managed to revive me as a separate entity. It took a while but I snapped out of it and broke free from his control. Mom and her friends helped me out and I saw the light of the life I could live, so I cast a spell to turn myself into a filly, and sacrificed my own power to grow up like a normal foal. That's also why Twilight Sparkle adopted me as her own foal."

Screwball pondered Nyx's confession, and said:

"You told me a secret of yours, it's only fair I tell one of my own. I wasn't born like most other ponies, I was created by magic. According to my mother, I was created from a spark that ignited when she reached out and touched Discord's mind. Not only had that contact, which she did out of love for the person Dad had been before the first attack, but out of concern for what was left of his mind. That means Discord is my dad, just as much as Jetstream Shimmersky is my mom."

"You don't look like your dad..." said Nyx, a little surprised by how open Screwball was being.

"You're not the only one who wears glasses to hide their differences." Screwball replied as she removed her enchanted reading glasses, opening her eyes to let Nyx see the pink swirls that were her wall-eyed pupils. Screwball blinked and smiled as she readjusted to her distorted vision. Seeing the world like this added an air of chaos to her surroundings, something that always comforted the filly when she was worried.

"Your eyes kind of remind me of Derpy." Nyx said flatly.

"Who's Derpy?"

"She's Ponyville's mailmare. Her real name is Ditzy Doo, but everypony calls her Derpy Hooves, a name that she apparently came up with herself. She's wall-eyed just like you, though her pupils don't look like that." Nyx explained.

"The glasses I use are enchanted to set my eyes right when I wear them, which helps a lot for reading. With eyes like these it's impossible to focus on something so close or so small as letters on a page. Plus on the esthetic side the glasses are pretty and make my eyes look normal. I was picked on a lot at the orphanage because of my eyes and my powers." Screwball said.

"You have powers? What kind?"

"I can manipulate Chaos Magic with natural ease, or so my mom says. I can do almost anything Unicorns can with my magic, and more. The best part is that no two spells ever work the same way. I could teleport to a spot, and it would look different from the last time I teleported. For example: When Mom asked me to come to Canterlot to meet you, I turned into a statue made of crystal, which was what the floor was made of, melted into that floor, and sprouted at my destination as a marble statue, because the floors were made of marble in Canterlot Castle, but the time I teleported before that, I fell apart into tiny cubes and reassembled at the place I was going to."

"That sound really cool! I bet the girls will be glad to have you as part of the team!" Nyx exclaimed.

As they walked closer to the clubhouse, voices could be heard, apparently arguing. Screwball couldn’t make out what they were saying, because the Chaos in her head prevented her from focusing, but it looked like Nyx could hear them loud and clear.

“Sounds like they’re debating on something. I think it’s on what to do next to earn our cutie marks. This comes up pretty often, so don’t worry.” the Alicorn filly explained.

The two fillies approached the door and Nyx pushed it open before yelling:

“I hate to interrupt such an important debate, but we’ve got a guest, and a potential recruit! Put the brainstorming on hold and meet the new pony!”

Everything fell silent for a moment, before one of the three fillies, a pegasus with an orange coat and purple mane, said:

“Well whataya waiting for, Nyx? Let them in!”

Nyx stepped aside and Screwball walked into the clubhouse. It looked much bigger on the inside than it did on the outside. The three fillies stared at her for a second, before another one of them, a white unicorn, stepped forward and extended a friendly hoof to Screwball.

“Hi! My name’s Sweetie Belle, and you are?”

Screwball pressed her hoof against Sweetie's.

“I’m Screwball. I’m not from Ponyville, but I travel fast and with my mom back in her job, I’ll be having a lot of free time. Actually she wanted me to study the magic of Friendship and to make friends, so here I am.” shebravely replied.

The third filly, a yellow earth pony with a red mane and a bow, stepped closer to Nyx and, pointing to the orange filly, said:

“That there’s Scootaloo, and Ahm Applebloom. Pleased to meet ya, Screwball. Hope ya’ll can become a Crusader like us, ‘cause it’s really fun!”

Screwball nodded, and Nyx explained:

“Screwball’s mom is a friend of my mom’s. She’s Jetstream Shimmersky, the Princess of Lightning, who had been hiding for the past two thousand years. According to Mom, Princess Jetstream is even stronger than Princess Celestia. Also, Princess Jetstream and Mom actually gave both of us the task of studying friendship, so I thought the best way to do that is to make Screwball a Crusader, considering she doesn’t have a cutie mark either.”

To prove Nyx’s point, Screwball raised her bare flank for the other three to see the cutie mark that clearly wasn’t there.

"That decides it!" said Scootaloo, "All we need to do is get you to swear the Crusader's Oath and and get you your cape!"

A few minutes later, the five of them were gathered and Screwball was taught the Oath, and she began to recite it:

"I hereby swear to work my hardest to find my destiny. My cutie mark is my goal, and when I achieve it, I will help my fellow Crusaders in finding theirs. From now on, I am a Cutie Mark Crusader, and I vow to earn my cutie mark!"

The four other fillies cheered and Nyx stepped forward, a red cloak like the one she was wearing in her magical grip.

"Welcome to the team, Screwball. This is your official Cutie Mark Crusaders cape. We wear these during official gatherings and when we go crusading. Treat it well."

"Now that we have a new member, let's keep up on the debate." said Sweetie Belle.

"I have a better idea." said Screwball. "We'll have a better chance at earning a cutie mark if we have more members. We should recruit one or two more ponies before we start on big crusades."

"That's an excellent idea!" said Applebloom. "But the problem is, who's gonna join us? Most 'o the foals who live in Ponyville either already got their cutie marks or don't wanna join us."

"What about that little colt Sweetie Belle likes? What's his name? Button Mash?" suggested Scootaloo.

"For the love of Celestia, it was just milkshakes, and it was just one time!" exclaimed the unicorn filly, who's face was growing redder by the second.

"Okay, so Sweetie's coltfriend. Anypony else?" asked Nyx.

"Well I DO have this one friend in the town near home that I spend time with a lot. Her name is Wildrose Dreams." said Screwball. "She doesn't have her cutie mark either, and her parents are really nice, so I'm sure they'll let her join."

"Then that settles it! The three of us will go get Button Mash and you and Nyx can go find Wildrose Dreams. Meet back at the clubhouse as soon as you can." said Scootaloo before hurrying off with Sweetie Belle and Applebloom.

Nyx approached Screwball and asked:

"So how do you think you'll get to Whitetail Meadows? That's the town you live by, right?"

"Yep, and as for how we'll go there, we'll teleport. How it'll look though, I have no idea." Screwball replied.

The chaos filly concentrated on her power and willed for herself and Nyx to be in front of Wildrose's home. The result was instantaneous. Screwball placed a hoof on Nyx and another on her own forehead, and the two of them instantly found themselves at their destination. Immediately, a red filly with a yellow mane ran up to them, a big smile on her face.

"Hey Screwy! What brings you here today?"

"Nothing much, Rose. This is Nyx, and she's a new friend I made. She lives in Ponyville and us two and three other foals form this club called the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Like the name says, we crusade for our cutie marks. It's supposed to be really fun, and we're looking for new members, so I thought you'd want to join."

Wildrose bumped hooves with the black Alicorn filly and said:

"Nice to meet you, Nyx. I'd be happy to join! But it's probably a better idea if I asked my mom first. Ponyville is kinda far, Screwy, and even with your powers it could be dangerous."

"I agree. Let's go ask her." Screwball replied.

Wildrose's mom was waiting by the door as the three fillies walked back to the house.

"Screwball, dear, how nice to see you! I thought you were in Canterlot with your mother?" she asked.

"She sent me to Ponyville to make new friends, and I met this group of foals who call themselves the Cutie Mark Crusaders. They let me join them and now we're on a recruitment drive. I was wondering if Rose could join us, Mrs. Dreams."

"Ponyville, huh? Well sure, why not? I remember fussing about my cutie mark when I was your age, and it sounds like a fun idea. Just take good care of Wildrose for me, okay Screwball?"

"Mooooom, you're embarrassing me!" cried Wildrose.

"Of course I am, honey, that's my job. So who's your friend here?" Mrs. Dreams asked.

"My name is Nyx. I'm the daughter of Princess Twilight Sparkle, ma'am."

"Princess Twilight? Oh my sister told me a lot about how she helped her and her husband out a year ago. Lavender was so grateful for what the Princess was doing for her and Cogs. She even tells me it's thanks to Princess Twilight that they have a foal. Dandelion is such an adorable child. Your mother is a kindhearted mare, Nyx. You must be very proud to be her daughter."

"I am, ma'am. Though she adopted me, I know I couldn't ask for better. Anyway, we'd better get going, the others are probably waiting for us."

"All right then. Rose, get your toothbrush and pajamas, I'll pack you a sleeping bag so you can stay over in Ponyville with Screwball."

"Oh wow, thanks mom!" said the filly, before rushing off to get what she needed.

Screwball and Nyx thanked Tigerlily Dreams and walked out to the front yard to wait for Wildrose.

"Your friend will make a fine crusader, Screwball. Wildrose really seems like the kind of pony who'd like crusading. She's a lot like Applebloom."

"Really? How can you tell?"

"It's this power of mine. I can see the hearts of ponies and other thinking creatures. Wildrose is a lot like Applebloom. I'm not exactly sure why, but I see this huge resemblance between them."

"Maybe we'll find out if we get them to meet." pondered Screwball.

Wildrose ran out the front door with saddlebags and a rolled sleeping bag strapped to them, and caught up with Nyx and Screwball.

"I'm ready to go!" she said.

"Excellent. Screwball, would you do the honors?" Nyx asked.

"Certainly." Screwball replied. She closed her eyes as she willed for a means of getting herself and her two friends back to the clubhouse as quickly as possible. Inspiration came over her and a large zipper appeared in the air in front of her. Grabbing hold of the zipper, she pulled down on it with all her strength, opening a gap in space. on the other side, the clubhouse could be seen, and four ponies staring at the strange sight.

"In here! Nyx, you first."

Nyx calmly walked up to the gap, and hopped through, followed quickly by Wildrose. Screwball closed the small procession and the gap mended itself as she walked away from it. By the time the trio met up with the others, the gap and the zipper was gone.

Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Applebloom had managed to recruit a little brown colt who wore a beanie identical to Screwball's.

The seven of them spent the next hour going over the "formalities" of recruiting the two new Crusaders, after everypony had been introduced, and Button Mash and Wildrose Dreams had joined the ranks of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Sweetie Belle proposed the idea of a sleepover at the clubhouse to celebrate the three newest recruits, much to the enthusiasm of the group.

*Perhaps having friends could prove to be interesting after all.* Screwball thought.

Author's Note:

This took way to long to write.

Anyway, credits:

Lavender Dreams. Dandelion Dreams and Whirring Cogs all belong to Goldfur.

Whitetail Meadows is a idea i got from Goldfur.

On a side note: Goldfur never mentioned Lavender having an older sister who lived on her own, so I diverted his headcannon to make room for Tigerlily Dreams and her daughter Wildrose Dreams. I also plan on having the Dreams and Apple families connect at some point.

Comments

[duckboy416]

"I hereby swear to work my hardest to find my destiny. My cutie mark is my goal, and when I achieve it, I will help my fellow Crusaders in finding theirs. From now on, I am a Cutie Mark Crusader, and I vow to earn my cutie mark!"

Or, the short, short version:

I solemnly swear that I am up to no good.

[Mewaponny]

The three fillies stared at her for a second, before another one of them, a white pegasus, stepped forward and extended a friendly hoof to Screwball.

sweetie can change species!

[Titan Commander Sebaste]

Interesting back story for Screwball!