New Endings, Old Starts

by David Silver

42 - Cutie Mark Crusaders, Master Wizards!

"Wow!" Sweetie turned the scroll left and right, still rolled up tight. "Nopony ever let me examine a spell scroll before."

"Here." Comforting played the song over her horn. As promised, it was a simple spell without places to improvise. It was the magical equivalent of hello world, almost. She focused on Sweetie, who began to glow with Comforting's brown magic.

"What are you doing?" Sweetie dropped the scroll to clatter on the ground. "That feels funny."

"I'm making you stronger, better!" Comforting kept the magic strong and even. "Go on, do something. Push something, jump, do anything, um, physical."

"Something physical..." Sweetie looked around and grabbed a small rubber ball in her hooves. "Alley-oop!" She hurled it with all her might. It was, alas, too light. The force it was thrown caused it to smash against the air and it flopped to the ground without making it too far. "That was a poor test."

Scootaloo advanced, slapping down a box and her arm on top of it. "Arm wrestle, you, me, now."

"But you... always win these." Sweetie put her arm to match Scootaloo's. "Let's try..." Even if she wasn't sure, she braced herself. When Scootaloo began to push, she did as well. Comforting could feel a sudden draw on her spell. She was fueling Sweetie's struggle.

"Wait a second..." That meant there was one variable. Sure, it wasn't while it was being cast, but it counted! She could give more or less power. She focused on Sweetie's struggle, the glow aroung Sweetie growing brighter with each passing moment, her horn joining in the glow that seeped out across her forehead in its brilliant glare.

Apple Bloom looked up suddenly. "Woah." The light had grown bright enough for even other ponies to see it. "Poor Scoots, yer goin' against two ponies now!" She began to clap despite the warning tone. "C'mon!" Who she was cheering for, she didn't make clear.

Scootaloo was sweating profusely as she grunted and heaved against the strangely powerful, and glowing, Sweetie Belle. "You're... not going to win... even with her help! You're... still Sweetie Belle!"

"I'm going to... try my best!" Sweetie pushed with all the power she had, which normally was not much, but the brown glow around her was helping her push with the might of herself and Comforting in a combined effort, until it wasn't. The color blinked away. Scootaloo slammed her hoof to the table, getting a surprised and mildly pained yelp from Sweetie Belle. "What happened?!"

"I won is what happened." Scootaloo looked quite proud of herself. "Told you." She looked to Comforting, ready to gloat, but Comforting had flopped over on her side, with Apple Bloom fussing over her. "Oh... is she alright?"

Sweetie stood up, rubbing her still sore arm. "I'm alright." But that question wasn't about her. She spotted the fallen filly. "Oh no!" She hurried to her fellow young unicorn. "She must have tried too hard... We should get her to the hospital."

"Good idea." Apple Bloom proved she had the strength of an earth pony, hoisting Comforting up onto her back and starting towards Ponyville hospital.

Sweetie hesitated a moment before timidly following. "She'll be upset if we're not there."

"Good call." Scootaloo hurried to catch up with Sweetie Belle. "That was a pretty cool trick, until the end... I kinda wonder who woulda won if she hadn't... passed out like that."

"We'll only find out when she gets better, if then."

Apple bloom kicked open the door to the hospital. "Need some help, kindly."

Nurse Redheart sat up at her desk. "Apple Bloom, what--" She could see the limp form on Apple Bloom's back. "Stop right there." She grabbed a cart and rolled it over swiftly, carefully transferring the filly to it. "What happened? Be specific."

Apple Bloom reared up as soon as she was not carrying Comforting. "She was helpin' out Sweetie Belle with an arm wrastlin' contest with her magic, and then she suddenly fell over."

"I see..." Redheart chomped the guide of the cart. "I'll get her somewhere safe and call a doctor. Thank you for bringing her as soon as possible." She hurriedly zoomed down the hallway, the sight of her lost when the door closed behind her of its own volition.

The other two crusaders rushed into the room. "She's... with Nurse Redheart." Apple Bloom pointed the way. "Said she'd get a doctor."

Scootaloo hopped up onto a seat and thumped down to wait. "Sweetie, you're a unicorn. What happened?"

"I'm not an expert!" She threw her hooves high and wide. "I never even learned my first spell! I only have guesses and suspicions."

Apple Bloom shrugged. "Well..." Her eyes wandered over the quiet entryway of the hospital. "We don't have better to do... So what's yer guess?"

"Well..." She reached up to tap just beside her horn. "I've tried really hard to move things. It can really be stressful, especially if it's just too heavy for you. Maybe... I was too much. The whole contest, I mean. She was trying so hard she knocked herself out in the process."

Scootaloo whistled softly. "Well, she made you equal to me, so that's a lot of effort."

Apple Bloom suddenly punched Scoots in the shoulder. "Stop gloating! I know you like Rainbow, but this isn't the time."

Scootaloo wilted at that, silence looming large over them. "Hey!" She broke that pause with a chime. "Idea. I'll go tell Fluttershy what happened. Any of our parents would be really annoyed if they didn't know we were in the hospital. Um, besides visiting somepony else."

Sweetie gave a hooves up. "Now that sounds like a great idea. You're the fastest one here."

"But not for long." Scoots vacated the area, no longer being the fastest one there. She hopped on her scooter and with rapidly fluttering wings, she powered through the town to Fluttershy's little cottage. "Fluttershy!" she came to a skidding half, hopping free of her scooter as it tipped over. "You there?"

The door cracked open and Fluttershy poked her head out. "Oh my. What's wrong?" It wasn't hard to tell that something was going on. "Have you seen Comforting?"

"About that... She was, uh, working too hard with her horn and kinda passed out." Scootaloo pointed off towards the hospital. "She's at the hospital. I think she's alright?"

Fluttershy frowned as she stepped free and closed the door behind her. "Thank you for telling me... Were you involved?"

"Um..."

Answer enough. "Then you probably should come with me." Fluttershy began the march towards the hospital. "Did the doctor say she was alright?"

"We didn't get to talk to them. The nurse hurried her away and left us to wait in the front." Scootaloo huffed softly. "Hospitals, right? She... wasn't like looking bad, just suddenly asleep."

"Oh my..." Fluttershy hastened her steps to the hospital and inside. "Oh, thank you all." She nodded at the other girls gathered. "But you don't have to stay. I'm here."

Sweetie crossed her arms with a pout. "It was partially my fault. I'm not leaving, Miss Fluttershy."

"Me neither!" Scootaloo trotted quickly to join the others. "She's our friend, and we let her get hurt. The least we can do is wait here."

Apple Bloom nodded firmly. "I'd expect them to do the same fer me if I got roughed up. Ain't fair to expect what you wouldn't do yerself."

All three were nodded in unison, and not moving. Except Scootaloo. "Want me to tell your parents what's going on?"

Sweetie gusted with relief. "Please! I don't want to worry them for nothing. You're the best."

Apple Bloom tipped the hat she wasn't wearing. "Right appreciate it. We'll keep an eye while ya do that."

And so Scootaloo hurried back out once more to deliver news of what was going on.

"Fluttershy." Nurse Redheart was there, at the door leading further in. "A word?"

Fluttershy pointed at herself, as if there could be a lurking shutterfly nearby. "Of course..." She walked across the room to be near. "Is she alright?"

"We'll start there. She's fine. Nothing more than any pony that ran too hard. She'll be a little out of it for a little while, but nothing permanent should come of it. " She had to pause as the crusaders cheered and stomped despite her being, she thought, too far way for them to hear. She smiled wryly, not that upset. "She just needs a little love, which I think you are ready to give."

"I'll do my best! Any, um, thing else? Things I should... avoid, or try to have around?"

"She's just a little pony," assured Redheart with a slow nod. "A tired one. Make sure she gets rest and she'll bounce back from this."

Fluttershy returned to the still celebrating crusaders. "She'll be fine... Sweetie Belle, you're also a unicorn."

"Yep!" She couldn't argue that fact, as clear as the point on her head. "Why?"

"Has this ever happened to you? Or anypony you know of?"

Sweetie frowned, but it went away swiftly. "If there's any unicorn I can think of that'd be in this pickle, I'd ask Twilight! I feel certain she's probably done this more than once. I haven't. I... don't do a lot of unicorn 'things', truth be told." A thought arrived. "Huh... A lot of us don't."

Fluttershy raised a brow. "Come again?"

Sweetie pointed to Scootaloo. "Doesn't fly." She pointed to herself. "Doesn't use magic." She pointed to Apple Bloom, just to be shoved suddenly.

"Don't be implyin' nothin'! I can and do buck trees. Not as good as my sibs, but I can do it!" Apple Bloom thumped herself on the chest. "Earth pony through an' through! Still... That is two out of three. Funny. Never thought of it that way."

Scootaloo raised a brow. "We are not the same, Sweetie. Not that way..."

"True." Sweetie didn't even argue that. "I can use magic, I just need to practice a lot more... Maybe not as much as Comforting was though."

Scootaloo prodded at Sweetie. "Well, get on it! If you can do it, do it. Enjoy what you have instead of sitting on it."

Apple Bloom came between her friends. "Calm down! We're all tryin' our best. Let's focus on what we're already doin' instead of what we 'should' be doin', which is up to us and the pony we see in the mirror."

Scootaloo snorted softly. "If I could... Sorry, uncool of me." She took a slow breath to clear her head. "Sorry... Seriously though! I bet you could be really good at it. When she's back on her hooves, I bet Comforting would be super excited to give some tips."

Sweetie colored at that. "You think? She's a busy pony. So am I! We'd have to figure out when that could even happen, if it could."

Fluttershy sat near the chatting fillies. "I think she really would like that... And teaching somepony instead of running at full tilt ahead herself may be just the thing she needs, so I will suggest it to her. I can't promise she'll do it... I may be her mother, but I'm not that kind of mother, and she could say no..."

Sweetie burst into giggles. "I get it... My parents don't boss me around, usually. They're great!"

Apple Bloom inclined her head. "The ponies in charge of me sometimes tell me what to do. Kinda gotta if you want a farm to keep workin'." She didn't sound like she had a lot of hard feelings. "But mostly they let me do my thin'."

Scootaloo snorted softly. "Mine are Celestia-knows-where, doing all kinds of stuff that doesn't involve me... So they don't boss me around either." A wry smile spread over her muzzle. "That's something we all have in common then. Our parents let us do things we want to do."

Apple bloom pumped a hoof. "An thank goodness fer that! The crusaders couldn'ta formed if we had our parents leaning over our shoulders real hard."

Author's Note:

Comforting has this bad habit of rushing ahead and falling face first in the process. Slow down, filly.

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Comments

[Chrome Masquerade]

"I won is what happened." Scootaloo looked quite proud of herself. "Told you." She looked to Comforting, ready to gloat, but Comforting had flopped over on her side, with Apple Bloom fussing over her. "Oh... is she alright?"

Sweetie stood up, rubbing her still sore arm. "I'm alright." But that question wasn't about her. She spotted the fallen filly. "Oh no!" She hurried to her fellow young unicorn. "She must have tried too hard... We should get her to the hospital."

Con: Mp = 0;
Pro: +50 exp

[Chrome Masquerade]

Scootaloo snorted softly. "If I could... Sorry, uncool of me." She took a slow breath to clear her head. "Sorry... Seriously though! I bet you could be really good at it. When she's back on her hooves, I bet Comforting would be super excited to give some tips."

Though, I've said it before; I'll say it again.

Scoots. Bulk Biceps can (sorta) fly. Flurry Heart can fly. Pound Cake can fly. You'll get there.

[Moonlight_Mist]

11269931
Flurry Heart's wings are huge. I assume she has to grow into them, unlike the norm where a pegasus' wings have to grow to support the whole. Honestly, I think her biggest problem is accounting for the different center of mass, but that's something she's going to have to unlearn as she gets older...or not. Given the length of her horn, the strength of her magic, and the ease with which she picks up new spells even after her magic flux was forcibly curbed early for the sake of those around her, her wings might grow with her. She might just be an Alicorn among Alicorns.

...Whew, that was a tangent. Anyway, as for the others...well, Bulk Biceps is honestly a strong argument for Scootaloo being disabled, and Pound Cake is never not a baby until the epilogue timeskip, where he's only seen briefly and never flying, so it's hard to tell where he falls.

[Allen_Paluszewski]

Greetings and Salutations,

I just recently came upon your fic through the Main sercer.
I have not yet read this. ai hope to follow your works.

[Midknight Defender]

11269931
I’ve thought for years that Scootaloo’s problem is one of technique, not ability. The thrust her wings can generate on her scooter is impressive, but she’s vectoring that behind and above her, which is the wrong direction for flight. Retraining her muscle memory and perhaps some physical therapy to help correct muscles used to flapping the wrong direction should see her zooming up and around easy peasy apple squeezy.

[Emtu]

It's just magical exhaustion. A mana potion and some rest and she'll be fine.

[Chrome Masquerade]

11270045

11269964
So like...
i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/510/851/669.jpg

[Amethyst Dragonfly]

Comforting just tried so hard to help her friend that she wasn't paying attention to how much her magic use was draining her.

[Midknight Defender]

11270084
Yes, just like.

[TheLocalCannon]

"Wait a second..." That meant there was one variable. Sure, it wasn't while it was being cast, but it counted! She could give more or less power. She focused on Sweetie's struggle, the glow aroung Sweetie growing brighter with each passing moment, her horn joining in the glow that seeped out across her forehead in its brilliant glare.

Around

[chibilink]

"She's at the hospital. It think she's alright?"

A lesson has been learned.

[Luckyfanisaac]

The other two crusaders rushed into the room. "She's... with Nurse Redheart." Apple Bloom pointed the way. "Said she’ll get a doctor."

"We don't have anything better to do... So what's yer guess?"