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Act I2,058 words
Act II2,045 words
Act III2,007 words
Act IV1,540 words
Act V1,007 words
Credits37 words

Act III

"Can you please keep still?"

Scootaloo did her best to stop shuffling, but it was incredibly difficult given the circumstances. "Mom, could you at least work a little faster? I can feel my sanity declining by the second!"

"If you were to keep still, I could do this faster," Cheerilee replied, exasperated.

"But-"

"Who can move quickly?"

Scootaloo sighed. "You win."

"I thought I would," Cheerilee smiled. She added another pointer to her checklist. "5 colours." Since closing the doors behind her, to reduce the chance of anybody seeing what was going on, she had been noting things down on a pad of paper, trying to establish precisely what this ballgown was, and how best to help her daughter. Not that it really mattered anymore. Scootaloo's self esteem, not to mention her image, was pretty much shot as it was.

"How much stuff have you written on that list?" Scootaloo asked quickly, keen not to interrupt her mother's work too much.

Cheerilee consulted the list. "Let's see; seven individual layers, 6 foot diameter skirt, more fabric types than I know of and care to name, a corset set like a boa constrictor, two high heeled shoes made of crystal." She paused. "I think they're made of crystal. I'd need to consult a jeweller. Most recently I observed that this thing has five different colours in it."

"Blue, blue, blue, blue and blue?" Scootaloo asked.

Cheerilee shook her head. "Very funny." She went back to her list. "I think that's more or less everything. Now then, what precisely happened after I left you?"

Scootaloo sighed. "Well, I met up with Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom in the corridor, and they asked me why I was wearing my normal clothes. I explained why, and they eventually went on ahead of me."

"Why did you stay behind?"

"I needed more time to prepare myself," Scootaloo sighed.

Cheerilee sighed too. "You don't seem to be yourself tonight. Usually you're not this self conscious about your clothes." There was a look of exasperation on Scootaloo's face, which Cheerilee finally spotted. "Oh, continue."

Scootaloo nodded. "I was left on my own, when suddenly Rarity went past, singing and sparks shooting from her fingers. I guess I got hit by one, and then this happened." She indicated to herself.

Cheerilee looked over out of interest. "What song was she singing? This incident sounds a little familiar."

Scootaloo tried breathing in, but her face went purple. "Co-could you loosen the corset a bit? I can barely breath."

Cheerilee went over, and freed it a bit, making it easier for Scootaloo to carry out a crucial process for staying alive. "Thanks. Whoever thought such a garment was a sensible idea?"

"What song was she singing?" Cheerilee asked again.

"Oh! That," Scootaloo answered, before going into her best voice for the circumstances.

"Life is a runway,
When you see it my way;
Take all the good inside
Make it beautiful!
Fashion is a way to start,
Showing what's in your heart;
Call it superficial
I call it irrefutable!"

"You can be the girl
That you want to be;
With a little love
And some accessories!
Don't be scared to show you have
Personal style;
Just go do your thing
You'll make everyone smile!"

Cheerilee stopped a moment. "That sounds like what happened to me."

"What?"

Cheerilee looked at her daughter. "Remember that time when I came in from shopping last November and my outfit was completely different to when I went out?"

Scootaloo nodded. "Yeah. You think this is the same sort of thing? How long did the magic take to wear off?"

"About two hours."

Scootaloo looked miserable. "The universe hates me, doesn't it?"

"Don't worry Scootaloo, we'll fix it," Cheerilee smiled, putting a hand on her daughter's shoulder.

Scootaloo looked up. "You don't think that's a bit weird? You know, putting your hand on my skin?"

"You weren't exactly wearing anything when I gave birth to you, so no," Cheerilee laughed, before her voice was interrupted by a loud knock.

Cheerilee went over the door and opened it. "Hello? Who's there?"

"I'm right here," said a voice. Cheerilee looked down to see that the person standing behind the door was none other than Rumble. Her eyes went wide when she saw how he was dressed.

Rather than the usual suit and bow tie, he was dressed in brown boots, red dress trousers with a cream stripe up the sides, along the creases. As well as that he wore a formal army jacket, also coloured a khaki-brown colour, with a green belt to complement it. A band of gold ran around the neckline, and two dark gold epaulettes over his shoulders. A golden clasp over his neck completed the look, presumably holding his jacket in place.

"That's not in keeping with the event clothing regulation!" Cheerilee exclaimed.

"I know," Rumble shrugged. He then looked beyond and saw Scootaloo in the distance, somewhere in the midst of her ballgown. "Hi Scootaloo!" he called. "Did you just get back from the panto?"

Scootaloo facepalmed. "Nice to see you too, Rumble," she sighed. "And you look like you stepped off the set of War and Peace! Or failing that, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band!"

Rumble looked down. "I thought the Russian army wore green, and it sure has been lonely without you," he replied. "Was Rarity in your viscinity by any chance?"

Cheerilee's head snapped up. "What did you say?" she asked, confused at what Rumble had said.

"I said, 'was Rarity in your viscinity, by any chance'? Because she certainly was in my case."

Cheerilee charged forward, and pulled Rumble through the door, closing it behind her. "TELL ME EVERYTHING YOU KNOW!" she demanded.

Rumble shook slightly from the volume, and then recovered. "May I sit down and take this jacket off? It's a little hard to breathe or even walk in this lot. Seriously, these pants are so tight!"

"You think you're having a hard time?" Scootaloo asked. "You're not the one wearing a corset!"

"Oh yeah?" Rumble asked. "You're not the one who's neck is being squished!"

Cheerilee released the clasp on Rumble's jacket, and he took it off, putting it on a chair, revealing a white long sleeved shirt underneath. Rumble walked into the centre of the room, wobbling about on his boots.

"So, what happened?" Cheerilee asked him again, a look of concern on her face. She was keen to get to the bottom of this mess.

Rumble sighed, as he sat down on a chair. "Well, I was up on stage performing my set with Pipsqueak and Button Mash, as well as a few others. We'd just finished 'Blank Flanks Forever' when I noticed that Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle running out of the auditorium. I could have sworn their clothes were different to when they came in. I shrugged it off, and went on. It was shortly after we started 'With a Little Help from my Friends' that Rarity appeared at the front of the crowd, really into it. Then something flew out of her hands and hit me, and voila!"

"Did anybody react?" Scootaloo asked.

"Given we've seen bands with magic wings, ears, and ponytails, clothes changing in an instant is hardly the weirdest thing to happen around here. Besides, they assumed it was a stage effect. Once it had ended, however, I headed off and tried to find you. I figured Cheerilee would be in the library, as she often is, so I came here and saw you both."

Scootaloo sighed. "Yeah. More or less the same thing happened to me, and everyone saw it."

"Nobody has a picture of it though," Cheerilee replied. "I made each and every student that harassed you delete the pictures they had."

Suddenly, the door flew open, and who should pop through but Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom, both of whom promptly got stuck in the door.

"Move back!" Sweetie Belle demanded.

"Me move back? You move back, more like!" Apple Bloom exclaimed, before they both fell over in the door and landed on top of each other. It soon became clear why they had got stuck. Sweetie Belle was wearing a yellow ballgown, and Apple Bloom a red one. And both of them had huge skirts, which was how they had got stuck.

Cheerilee and Rumble went over to help them up. "I'd ask how this happened to you," Cheerilee said, "but I think we already know the answer."

"You do?" Apple Bloom asked.

"We don't," Sweetie Belle answered.

"Well, what happened?" Rumble asked.

So Apple Bloom began to tell the tale, as the world suddenly went foggy...

Apple Bloom continued to look about the dance floor, trying to spot Scootaloo. But such luck she was having none of, if indeed she was meant to have any luck today. Scootaloo was nowhere to be seen. "Have ya seen Scoots anywhere?" she called to Sweetie Belle.

"No, not since the corridor!" Sweetie Belle called back, looking concerned. "She shouldn't be taking this long!"

Apple Bloom went to Pip to alleviate her concerns. "Where's Scoots?" she asked.

Pip called over to her. "Why? I haven't seen her anywhere!"

"It's been a few minutes since she said she'd be in here in a few minutes!" Sweetie Belle answered, as the beat continued to pound through the night and echo across the floor. "Should we ask Miss Cheerilee?"

"Good call!" Button Mash shouted. "We'll hold the floor for you, you go and ask her!"

"On mah way!" Apple Bloom called, as she and Sweetie Belle sprinted over to Cheerilee, who was propped against a wall with her hand on her forehead.

"Miss Cheerilee!" called Sweetie Belle. The teacher instantly snapped to attention.

"Hello girls!" she called. "How can I help you?"

"We ain't seen Scootaloo!" Apple Bloom told her. "She said she be in here in a few minutes, and she ain't!"

Cheerilee sighed. "She's probably a little embarassed she has nothing to wear," Cheerilee sighed. "I'll go find her, don't you worry. Now why don't you girls go and have fun?"

Sweetie Belle sighed, as Rumble took the stage and began to sing some old Elvis numbers. "C'mon, let's go," she said to Apple Bloom. Both girls headed back to the dance floor, when suddenly both became aware of something very odd going on.

"Why do I suddenly feel heavier?" Sweetie Belle asked, looking confused. "It's suddenly quite difficult to move!"

"Yer not the only one!" Apple Bloom replied, before looking down and gasping. "Sweetie Belle! Yer dress!"

Sweetie Belle glanced down in confusion, to see the skirt of her dress start to grow longer, and suddenly she looked up again. "Apple Bloom! It's happening to you too!" she cried.

Apple Bloom pointed for the exit as the hem of her dress reached the floor and began to turn red. Both students ran to where they couldn't be easily seen, and straight through the door, which they succeeded in closing just in time. And it was just as well too, as their skirts suddenly exploded outwards in a dome shape.

"What just happened?" Sweetie Belle asked. "This has to be some sort of weird dream!"

Apple Bloom pinched herself. "Nope, this is real alright," she said. Moments later, she saw Rumble vanish off down a corridor in the direction of the library. "But Rumble's lookin' a little off too."

"Just like a handsome prince," Sweetie Belle said, blushing a little.

"Scootaloo would be so mad if she found out you got the hots fer Rumble!" Apple Bloom replied. "Wait, what if this has happened to Scoots too?"

"Let's go!" Sweetie Belle called, before almost immediately tripping over her skirts.

"I think the factor connecting us all is Rarity," Scootaloo concluded, once Apple Bloom had finished speaking. "So, we need to find her, and get this put right!"

"Let's go!" Rumble called, and they all went through the door... and fell over all at once.

Cheerilee facepalmed. "One at a time," she said, shaking her head.

Author's Note:

The plot thickens!

Chazkopa suggested the idea of the same fate befalling Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle (the latter of whom wouldn't mind being dressed like that, I suspect) and I decided to incorporate it. The shenanigans you can get out of this are unlimited.

If you are wondering, Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom look like this;