The air was still and the sky was grey. While the roads and sidewalks were kept relatively clear of precipitation, the area surrounding sweet apple acres had white up to Applebloom's knees.
“Why are we headed to the tree house today? My socks are getting wet,” Scootaloo asked.
“Why shouldn't we be in the tree house? It's our secret base!” Applebloom replied.
“I guess that makes sense, but I can't stay too long. I gotta go home and do my homework soon.” Scootaloo said.
“Hey… girls?” Sweetie Belle yawned and rubbed her eyes.
“Yeah? What's up Sweetie Belle?”
“Have Applejack and Rainbow Dash been doing okay recently? Because it seems like Rarity was arguing with them for the whole break.” Sweetie Belle stared down at the snow.
“It's just a disagreement. I'm sure they'll get over it eventually,” Scootaloo said.
“Ah agree, it should all blow over soon,” Applebloom said, climbing up the ramp into the tree house.
“I'm not so sure about tha— whoa!” Sweetie Belle wobbled on some ice frozen to the planks, but regained her balance. “I mean, they're all still arguing about Sunset. Did you know that Fluttershy hasn't spoken to any of them in like, weeks?” She took a seat on one of the wooden clubhouse chairs.
“That's just Fluttershy, she normally doesn't talk much,” Scootaloo said, taking a seat opposite of Sweetie Belle.
“Yeah, I mean Sunset is gone now so what do they have left to argue about?” Applebloom sat down completing the triangle.
“Girls, I-I think we should come clean.” Sweetie Belle confessed.
“WHAT!?” the other two shouted in unison.
“N-no way are we doing that. We're taking this one to the grave, you hear?” Applebloom said.
“Yeah! We already got away with it, and since Sunset is gone we don't have to post anything else on the Anon-a-miss page. Just let it go.” Scootaloo added.
Sweetie Belle shifted in her seat. “I-I can't. The guilt is killing me, every time Rarity screams or cries about her friends I feel like I wanna puke. Guys, it's our fault that the people we care about are suffering and we can still make things right. And what about Sunset? We ruined her whole life. I keep having nightmares about her.” She yawned. “In my dream she told me to 'enjoy the rest of your break' and then I just hear my sister arguing and crying for the rest of the night.”
“I-I'm sorry, I had no idea.” Scootaloo said.
“I have dreams like that too, but we still can't. My sis is gonna disown me if she ever finds out about this.” Applebloom leaned back in her chair and exhaled.
“Sorry girls, I can’t do this anymore. I gotta go home and tell Rarity.” Sweetie Belle stood up and headed for the exit ramp.
“WHAT!? NO! YOU CAN'T!” Applebloom jumped up in a panic and grabbed Sweetie Belle by her wrist, as Scootaloo blocked the exit with her body.
“Let me go! I have to do this!” Sweetie Belle shouted.
“NO!” The girls all wrestled with each other until Sweetie Belle was restrained to a chair. Applebloom tightened the rope on the back of the chair and around Sweetie Belle's ankles completely immobilizing her.
“What are you girls doing? Untie me!” Sweetie Belle screamed. “HELP! SOMEBODY!”
Scootaloo grabbed a roll of duct tape from the arts and crafts cabinet and gagged Sweetie Belle's screams with it. The girl looked up from her bondage with hatred.
“Oh no, what are we going to do now?” Applebloom said, gripping the sides of her head.
“We can't keep her like this forever!” Scootaloo paced around the room.
“Um, we can just keep her like this fer now while we buy time an figure out what we're gonna do. Scoots, can you run to the store and get us all some snacks? I think we might be here a while figuring this out,” Applebloom said.
“Alright, I'll be back as soon as I can.” Scootaloo dashed out the door and down the street.
“Now then, um… Sweetie Belle?”
“MMPH!” Sweetie Belle grunted and stared venomously.
“Are ya sure you want to rat us all out?” Applebloom asked, Sweetie Belle nodded.
“Uh, well… gosh darn it… think Applebloom think…” Applebloom paced around the room and stared out the window hoping for some inspiration when she heard the squeak of wood scraping against wood and some thumping. Her head spun around and she saw Sweetie Belle jumping towards the exit with a chair tied to her back and her ankles bound together.
“Hey! Get back ere!” Applebloom shouted, chasing after her escaping prisoner.
Applebloom watched Sweetie Belle make it to the start of the ramp before she watched the girl slip to the right.
CRACK.
“S-Sweetie Belle? Are you okay?” Applebloom cautiously peered over the edge of the ramp and saw her friend laying motionless in the snow. She hastily made her way down the ramp to get a closer look.
“Sweetie Belle! Say somthin! Please!” She shook her limp friend revealing a bloody wound on the side of her head. Sweetie Belle's head must have struck the root at the base of the tree when she fell from the ramp.
Applebloom began sobbing and hyperventilating. “Oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosh I killed her!” She untied the rope and pulled Sweetie Belle into her arms.
“Sweetie Belle! Please wake up! Please! SWEETIE BELLE!” Tears fell onto Sweetie Belle's face mixing into the trickles of blood running from the gash above her right eyebrow and into the creases of the duct tape still around her mouth. Applebloom's heart was beating out of her chest as a million thoughts raced through her mind, none of them coherent. However she knew that she had to do something, and that first something that came to mind was to continue doing what she had been doing all along, hiding the truth.
Applebloom carried the chair and the rope back up to the tree house and arranged it to look like Sweetie Belle escaped. She ran back down and lifted Sweetie Belle several yards further into the apple orchard plopping her down at what she deemed to be a discreet enough location. Applebloom then dug a child sized hole with her hands and rolled her friend into the hole face up. She packed some snow on top so the girl was hidden. She finished by smoothing the surface with the flat side of a nearby snow shovel that she was too shocked to notice earlier.
After carefully retracing her steps and obfuscating them with the shovel she returned to the tree and buried the bloody spot on the tree with snow. After the whole ordeal, she returned to the tree house, collapsed to the floor on her side, and broke down crying. She knew what she was doing was wrong, her own actions made her sick, but she was in too deep to turn back. Not ten minutes have passed when Scootaloo returned. “Hey, Applebloom I got th… where's Sweetie Belle?” Scootaloo dropped her plastic shopping bags on the floor of the clubhouse sending snacks tumbling out.
“She escaped.” Applebloom managed to lie between her sobs.
“You let her escape!? We're done for.” Scootaloo sank to her knees.
“Hey, quit crying, you're going to make me cry.” Scootaloo's eyes watered.
“We should go look for her. I bet she went home. Come on, Applebloom lets go.” Scootaloo rubbed her eyes, stood up and ran off in the direction of Sweetie Belle's house.
Applebloom climbed up onto her hands and knees and wiped her face on her sleeve. She lumbered up onto her feet and slogged after Scootaloo.
Life is strange. You begin telling lies and spreading rumors... and end hiding the dead bodies of your former friends.
"I better not be dead, I got to come clean to Rarity so she and the rest of the Human Mane 6 can know what really happened, of course I don't care what happens to Applebloom and Scootaloo now for them tying me up like that."
Well I agree with what Sweetie-Belle just said, maybe you could have Pinkie's Doozy sense go off and she comes running the Farm to figure what why it went off and wants her to go there, that way she could find the hurt Sweetie-Belle packed in the snow and get her to the hospital.
Hope the death of your friend is worth it Applebloom.
Still good chapter
Well, Sweetie Belle might have a chance at redemption. But the other two... yeah, no.
I will be waiting for the moment when they're finally caught.
Burying your friend in your orchard... that's a paddlin'.
Well that escalated quickly.
Wow. That escalated quickly.
But I'm sure it will all blow over!
I man, the fact that Flash Sentry put Gilda in a coma certainly did!
Even if she isn't dead, the cold and the eventual lack of air from being buried will not help. In real life this is a sign that things have officially gone way too far. There's little chance of the Crusaders being friends after this.
Hmm, I wonder if this is a dream sequence. Either way, this is a very interesting development
Fuck me, that got really dark really quickly.
Just like we all ordered.
Really, really hyped to see where this goes!
Well, at least one of the CMC truly regret what they did to Sunset. And I'm having a hard to think how AB will not end up in a prison cell after this chapter.
Please tell me there will be another update soon.
Rarity is going to be so pissed when she finds out about this.
HOLY SH-
UPDATE FASTER!!!
7518247 While I want Sweetie Belle to be relatively alright that would be a cop-out.
At this moment Applebloom knew she was so screwed.
Update faster mate can't wait to see what happens next.
Hopefully Sweetie Belle is ok and tells the truth then probably transfer schools right?
Yeesh, this is getting way too dark. Sweetie Belle better be alright, or else I'm out.
Well that just happened.
I hope so, if not the story went too far in my opinion. Emotions, hate, and drama sure, Cupcakes? no thank you. I can handle stories like Cupcakes and Rainbow Factory but the gore and horror creates thrill but ruins the drama.
"Just my opinion though, no need to go spreading it around." -Jeff "Joker" Moreau-
She better be fine. She actually feels bad about what she did for the right reason and is willing to risk her friendship for it. Hopefully she's not too far deep and wakes up shortly after they left with just a concussion
Well ... that happened.
Not like there's a thing called a hospital, checking someone's pulse, or anything like that Applebloom.
Hmm, imagine if she hit the back of her head and then suffered from amnesia. Now that would be something.
Anyway, this story is amazing keep up the good work.
Oohhh boy. Looks like Sweetie Belle may end up getting more dirt then she ever did when she was posting secrets. Hopefully, she can get out and reveal the truth.
As for Applebloom and Scootaloo, at the rate they're going, they're going to end up at a youth center or something if they are too young for jail. They refuse to come clean, and unlike Sweetie Belle, can care less if their sisters are miserable due to believing it was Sunset, and loosing Fluttershy's friendship. And now, holding Sweetie Belle hostage so she can't reveal the truth. This makes their desire to have more time with their sisters look even more disturbing, as it shows they clearly don't care about how they or anyone else feels: all they care about is getting what they want.
Uhh...the fuq?
That was some fast gravedigging work; the Winchesters would be proud,
... Y'know, except for the whole 'getting one of your best friends killed and trying to cover it up' part,
My goodness. This got really dark, really fast all of a sudden. It's not just their family and friends they've humiliated, they've humiliated countless students in the process. They destroyed the Mane 5's relationship, ruined Sunsets friendship with them..and now they actually were planning on doing something to Sweetie because she wanted to tell the truth. Thats it, this has gone way too far. The truth needs to be hold, and for what Applebloom and Scootaloo just did; they need to face criminal charges. I just hope that theres some measure of justice in this story..
7518204 I was thinking the exact same thing
I'm going to assume by the Author's note at the end of the chapter that Sweetie Belle is knocked out rather than dead
OH JEEZE SWEETIE BELL!! Ok ok ok...This gone too far, and it's too late, what she did, what they done...t's over thier freindship is over Rarity will never forgive Apple Bloom or Scota for this, she will lash out at them and thier sisters.
Thier freindship is OVER!!
7518220 Flash was defending himself. so it was justified.
7518491 True and I don't think Princess Twilight is going to bother trying to fix this.
7518433
AMNESIA! thats the answer to prolong the story so that Sunset can have a wonderful life in CPA! She can teach SciTwi magic personally (stopping the Friendship Games's disastrous final from ever happening), Make some rightful ammends with the Dazzlings (She took something very deeply from them, their powers), stops and befriends bully Sunny Flare from attempted suicide (something from my headcanon lol) and so much more!
I don't think this was a good direction to head at all.
It's out of the blue and I don't feel it is at all in tone with the rest of the story.
Applebloom is acting notoriously out of character and things like trying to hide bodies rather then freaking out that her friend might be dead really doesn't suggest she actully cares about Sweetie as a friend or even a human at that point.
If she is complacent enough to allow a death to preserve her innocence of what was little more then cyber bullying and calm enough to not only decide on hiding the corpse but actually go ahead and dig a grave, no matter how shallow and rushed, means she doesn't consider Sweetie, her friend, to be anything more then unfortunate collateral.
For a story I consider to be rather good, this chapter in my opinion, is garbage.
7518624
Oh, sure. It was justified. But having put someone into a coma from which they might never wake up, most human beings have, you know, some sort of emotional response. More so than a few moments of angst and a "Wow, I feel really bad about that." before going back to business as usual. Putting someone I the hospital and then going about the rest of your week like normal is a sign of either a) deep repression of one's feelings, or b) Sociopathy.
The fact that we don't see any reaction from CHS regarding Gilda's hospitalization is also rather telling. You'd think the studets would be a bit more shocked and horrified that one of their own has been so grievously injured. Even if she started the fight, such an outcome was never expected and definitely tragic. But we see no real reaction from, well, anyone.
And now Applebloom is engaging in kidnaping, manslaughter, and... I don't know what hiding a body falls under, even if you weren't responsible for the death... Seriously, one of your best friends is hurt/dead/dying and your first thoughts aren't "Dial 911" but "where can I hide the body?" Really? So far the only person in this fic who hasn't come across as some sort of sociopath is Sweetie Belle!
7518814 It could be that no one liked her... I know I never lost any sleep when the bully in my middle school got hospitalized
JESUS TAP DANCING CHRIST
SHIT JUST WENT DOWN
7518814 I'm more worried about Celestia, supposedly one the most empathetic and kind characters in the series, just shrugging and saying "Oh, well I guess I have to expel you now. What you did wasn't all that bad though."
In all honesty, I am finding this hard to read. So many of the characters reactions seem out of character even by the standards of the already OOC Christmas special comic. Sunset's friends were a lot more caustic and A LOT more passive than any of their canon representations (Except for when they inevitably need to beat themselves up over something) while shouting at each other for reasons blatantly created by the author to get them to do exactly that. Then there is the CMC, who are just... WOW! How could this be even remotely considered relevant to how ANY child would act? Granted, we haven't seen much of the CMC in the equestria girls universe so they could all just be mini-psychopaths just waiting to happen.
This story feels like the author is only writing this to vilify Pinkie and co. as well as the CMC and to make them suffer, while glorifying Sunset and whoever is on her side (even though Sunset is acting just as OOC as everyone else).
All it takes is one bad day...
7518683 Twi: I learned something about all of you today: Sunset Shimmer and Anon-A-Miss did nothing you didn't do to yourselves.
AJ: You're not gunna help us fix this ain't ya?
Twi: If I fixed this for you, none of you would learn anything. Thank you for that teaching tool Discord.
Rarity: But we miss her so!
Twi: Princess Celestia is responsible for sending her little sister to the moon for 1,000 years and she was able to do both Luna's duties as well as her own competently with that on her conscience. You stop whining.
7519412 lol
I feel that ether Sweet is knock out or is dead.
7518331 Oh very much piss off
After rereading this chapter...yeah, you still jumped the shark here. This completely kills the story. Not only is it incredibly extreme and OOC for Apple Bloom, but it came completely out of left field. It's almost like it belongs in a different story altogether.
There is a difference between throwing in a shocking development (a la Scream) and then throwing in a shock equivalent to a jumpscare (any Paranormal Activity).
7519482 Applebloom and Scootaloo are so dead.
7519499 Oh so dead.
7519556 dog meat dead
7519559 Oh so much and nothing can undo any of what has happen. The damage is done.
7519575 hope those two like jail food.
7519583 That a bit heirs. But not out of the realm pustule.
Blah, this is what I was worried about when you put up that vote a couple of chapters ago. Being dark can be fine when done well, otherwise it feels like your jumping the shark. Everything you did before this (with the exception of the Gilda incident) was fairly lighthearted, if a little sad since the HuMane 5's friendship was starting to deteriorate. Going straight to (maybe) killing someone just feels too quick. And though you say Sweetie isn't dead, I'm curious as to how she will survive being buried in the snow unconscious with a major head wound. Unless Applejack, Big Mac, or Granny Smith happen across her soon, Sweetie is as good as dead.