Unbranded

by Semicolon Dash

Shadows of the Past

Sunlight bombarded my eyes as I strategically faced myself away from the sun. Shadows danced across the ground in a chaotic waltz as everypony went about their business. Here I sat, watching them all go by as a light wind picked up my violet and blue streaked mane and flipped it about. It's a strange mix of colors for a stallion, though I'm not a typical stallion by any means.

“Well, well, well, if it isn’t the resident blank flank,” a sneering voice called out as my heart sank. Not this little brat again

“Charming as always, Diamond Tiara,” I cooly responded, trying my hardest not to backhoof her. She let out a harsh giggle, sending a chill down my spine.

“Why are you sitting around doing nothing? Don’t you have a job to…” she paused with a malicious smile on her face, “Oh, that’s right. You don’t have a special talent. Why would anypony hire a useless pony like you to do anything?” Her words stung me to the core, and I started to become flushed with anger. “How old are you anyways?” her incessant deluge continued.

“Old enough to know that I can crush you with one hoof, you little whelp.” I glared at her menacingly. “Speaking of special talents, shouldn’t you be out exercising yours by draining daddy’s bank dry?” I started to get to my hooves, trying in vain to prevent myself from trembling with anger.

She quickly masked her disappointment with a false giggle and a strained smile. “Comon Silver Spoon, let’s get out of here. Let’s leave this useless pony to be useless by himself,” she jeered, turning to her gray-colored partner. I snorted angrily and glared at the two.

“Stupid little bitch,” I muttered as the two trotted away. I dropped myself back onto the bench and let out a deep sigh. “Maybe she is right… maybe I am useless.” I lightly kicked a rock with my hoof and watched it as it bounced across the street.

I stared around aimlessly for a few minutes. I focused on the grass, on the figures walking by, on my orange fur, but no amount of focusing could remove the doubt from my head. I had no close friends, no job, and no cutie mark. Sure, life isn’t that terrible, but when you don’t have a purpose, how can you even begin to find happiness?

“You would think that I could get a cutie mark for my exceptional skill of not getting a cutie mark,” I joked quietly to myself. I pulled myself off the bench and joined the hustle and bustle of ponies. I figured if anything could throw me out of this slump, a nice trip to Sugarcube Corners would do the trick, and with any luck I’d see a friendly face or two.

As my hooves clopped against the cobblestone, it struck me how small of a town Ponyville really is. I knew so many faces, but I didn’t really know anything about their lives. I saw Lyra and Bon-bon being disgustingly cute, as usual, and just down the road were Doctor Whooves and Derpy fiddling with some odd device that gave me a strong sense that I was in danger. I stopped ponywatching and focused on heading to my destination; I had only walked a few paces farther before somepony stumbled into me, nearly knocking me over. I glanced back, “Dammit Berry Punch. Mare, you need to lay off the hard cider.” She only gave me a giggle and a coy smile before stumbling off to do Celestia knows what.

“Well, even though I don’t have a cutie mark, there never is a dull day,” I mumbled as I turned the corner. A sign that read “Sugarcube Corners” dangled in my face. I pushed open the door and trotted inside. I was barely inside the premises before a pink pony was in my face, yelling and being generally too enthusiastic.

“Hey there Violet, how are you on this fantastic day!” Not liking the invasion of my personal space, I backed up slightly.

“Fine, I suppose. It’s nice to know that somepony around here still knows my name,” I said, still bothered by the incident with Diamond Tiara.

“Knows your name? That’s silly! How could anypony forget somepony's name!” As she spoke I started to get a headache from her incessant bouncing.

“Tell that to everypony who thinks my name is ‘blankie’ or ‘blank flank’,” I said, frustration tinging my voice. I glanced away from Pinkie, trying not to make eye contact.

“Don’t be such a silly filly! Your name is Violet Flash, and anypony who forgets that is just being silly!” It seems nothing can dampen her spirits. However, despite how I felt, I couldn’t help but smile at her kindness. I suppose her spirit is contagious.

“Hey Pinkie… do you think it is ever too late for somepony to get their cutie mark?” I inquired from her, with the slightest hope that perhaps I wasn’t hopeless.

“Of course not! Everypony has their special talent that they are super special at! You just need to keep trying things until you find it.” Pinkie stopped bouncing and paused for a second, “Oh I know! You can help me bake a cake! Maybe you’re secretly a really good cake maker.” She paused again and licked her chops. “I really love cake. I think I'll go make some! Want to come?”

I laughed, “Sorry Pinkie, I’ll have to pass, I don’t think I have the energy to keep up with you today.”

“Okie dokey lokie. Suit yourself!” She bounced away in the typical Pinkie Pie fashion. With Pinkie gone, Sugarcube was quiet and peaceful, but something about the quietness unsettled me. I walked up to the counter, dug my face in my saddleback and pulled out a few bits. I tossed them onto the counter and gently grabbed a dark brown cupcake with a vibrant pink frosting; it was my favorite flavor, chocolate and strawberry. I gave it a quick lick, but as my taste buds processed the flavor, I found myself put off by the sweetness. I can’t believe how much that little brat’s words affected me. I’m better than this, she’s just a filly. But… she is right. I am useless, that's why I'm in this position to begin with. I tossed the cupcake into my saddlebag and headed off again. If I had one friend that I could trust in Ponyville, it was Twilight Sparkle. It was very curious how we met, and I don’t quite understand how it all happened. All I knew was that when you have nothing to do and nopony to see, you spend a lot of time in the library, and I suppose our friendship was built from there.

Within a few minutes of walking, I found myself at the base of Twilight’s treehouse. I always found it strange that she lived in a tree, but I never thought to question it; you see stranger things in Ponyville every day anyways. I raised my hoof and rapped the door a few times. The door glew a faint violet color and slowly swung open, and I could see a violet pony in the center of the room, horn aflame with light and surrounded by stacks of books and papers, with a look on intense focus on her face
“Hey there Flash, what brings you here?” she said, stopping her magic and cocking her head slightly.

“I was wondering if you had a minute to indulge a stallion in his misanthropy?” I said, slightly embarrassed that I had to bare my soul to her. However, Twilight already knew most of my story, so I wasn't too concerned. Twilight gave me a slightly concerned look before she replied, “Sure, what’s on your mind?” I simply glanced at my flank and gave a teasing response.

“Guess.”

“Flash…” she slowly said, her face resembling that of a worried mother. A sinking feeling hit my heart and I felt a pit in my stomach. I felt guilty and averted her gaze. I didn’t want her to worry about me because I knew that it bothered her. She ignored my aversion and started to lecture me, “You can’t dwell on this forever, you know. In all of the books I’ve read, I’ve need read anything about a pony that doesn’t have a special talent! Just because you’ve given up doesn’t mean it still isn’t out there. A few years ago, people thought you were one of the smartest ponies alive. You know this just as well as I do. They looked up to you!”

“I know… but knowing and believing are two different things. “ Our eyes met for a second before I looked down again. “It’s difficult. I was so close, there was so much pressure on me. But when it mattered, I couldn’t perform. All those years, I just got lucky; now fate has finally caught up with me.”

“Violet Flash! Stop lying to yourself. You know better than anypony that you were no fluke, and I don’t want to hear anything suggesting otherwise,” Twilight said, giving me a stern look. I felt my face getting hot so I looked away. I forgot how attractive Twilight can be when she’s annoyed.

“Maybe…” I muttered, still too embarrassed to look Twilight in the eye, though she didn't appear to notice my blush.

“Twilight! You’ve got a letter from the Princess.” I heard a voice yell from upstairs. Thank Celestia, a distraction. Twilight’s horn started glowing again as a letter suddenly apparated . For a moment, Twilight was intensely focused on the letter before she turned to me with an apologetic face.

“Flash… I’m really sorry, but I have to go. Duty calls. Just remember what I said. I think it’s time you got back to your roots. You have some unfinished business to take care of.” Twilight gave me a genuine smile before she was replaced with a flash of violet light.

“I… I guess.” I said softly to myself. I had been dreading this for a while. Part of me didn’t want to face the past, and strong anxiety gripped my soul; I was scared to go back. Failing once was too much, I couldn't bear failing again.