Nitpicking your math errors is how I show I care.
The Cutie Mark Crusaders are a team. Even now that they're adults, their friendship has never wavered.
So when something arises to threaten that friendship, Sweetie Belle will do everything in her power to protect it. No matter what.
Written as a Christmas gift for Wish, who has been trying to force me to write Sweetie Belle for years.
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That was a good story.
Ouch this story hits something.
I'm always a sucker for unreliable narrators, and this immature Sweetie Belle definitely qualifies. :D
This is a really interesting take on the CMC ten years later, so to speak. I've had several friends in several friend groups who have kind of... stagnated, the way Sweetie has here. I've always kinda been the Scootaloo in those friend group break-ups, so it's kinda fascinating to see things from Sweetie's perspective.
If I'm being entirely honest, I dislike this Sweetie Belle as a character--she's immature and selfish in the extreme. But that doesn't feel out-of-character for her, here, and it sorta feels like I'm supposed to dislike her, you know? That's usually the sign of pretty good character writing, so kudos for that. :)
Good story. People and priorities change, and it's hard sometimes to let go of the past to move into the future.
11113519
Then again, the Mane Six established that it's possible to teach at the School of Friendship on top of most other full-time careers.
Oh man….. I’m having a hard time deciding if I’d consider this canon. This hurts….deeply.
But, this doesn’t mean the full end for the crusaders. Something will always bring them back together
There are so many things I love about this story, but I think my favorite part is how perfectly you captured the quiet sadness of everyday life--the simple pain of being alive and having time and the world pass you by.
Oh daaamn, this story is good.
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At the bare minimum, one would expect they'd keep in touch like the Mane Six in "The Last Problem".
The joy of MLP is that the "Magic of Friendship" is a real & genuine force. What you've written here is a very realistic portrayal of the breakup for a friend group. However, that's not MLP. I grant you, categorically, that you've done a well-written & realistic take on this issue. However, MLP is, at it's core, a bit of quasi-utopian escapism.
11115248
Sums it up quite well. Don't get me wrong, this is well written, but I don't think I'll be coming back to it. You've encapsulated the feeling too well, & it strikes too hard & too deep.
11115248
A reasonable assumption. And perhaps it’s just for a season. Each season of life is different, and with their destinies intertwined, there’s no doubt they’d return stronger than ever.
They are, after all, Cutie Mark Crusaders throughout Equestria and beyond
What is true friendship? To preserve things as exactly how they used to be? To try to mimic a nostalgic bygone time? It's not.
I think that is where Sweetie Belle missed the mark.
This story really hits close to home for me. And I bet a lot of people as well, who've had to deal with changing friendships.
I feel like this story focuses on a friendship problem that was briefly touched upon in "The Last Problem", but could have been explored more thoroughly in the show. Ironically, I feel like Sweetie Belle taught Rarity a similar lesson about changing friendships in "Forever Filly".
Growing up is hard to do
Hello!! You know the drill: check out your review here :)
Howdy, hi!
Gosh, you hit me right in the feels with this one. Glad I took the recommendation from Mush and read this one. I love me sad fics with no obvious stab to the heart, just a low pull as you realize everything is falling apart and that ends on that bittersweet note. I was genuinely worried going through that Sweetie wouldn't have let go, but she did and found a glimmer of something new to do. The just slow build-up to the climax was solid and the payoff was worth every word to read.
It also helps that most people won't write this kind of slow degradation of friendship. It happens all the time, but you don't see stories tackle it. Thsi one handled it perfectly.
Anyways, a fantastic read, thank you for this one!
augh, this was so great! just a lovely exploration of the CMCs' futures, and how their special bond as fillies, while always meaningful, was never going to mean that they would be that close in that way for the rest of their lives. in fact, reading this, and despite Sweetie's understandable dread about it, that pedestal had to break, in order for the three mares to fully grow into themselves, with natural priorities other than staying in the same town with the same job.
and i just loved how there was no single strike of lightning or hyperreal moment of drama in this tale. just the slow dissolution, drifting apart, plate tectonics. just great understated character work all around, thank you for writing!
As sombre as this was for Sweetie Belle and the tone of the fic in general, I really liked the way it ended. it felt very real from start to finish and it gives you a spark of what Sweetie can do for herself at the end. Bravo
That hit hard.
Friendship is not unilateral, no affective relationship is, really. It requires effort from both parties to work properly.
I know very well how Sweetie feels. That feeling of giving everything you have to maintain a bond, and still losing it. That horrible feeling that you aren't reciprocated, that others are unconsciously and forcibly removing you from their lives, regardless of whether you want to keep them in yours. It is impotence in its purest and most sensitive state.
They don't suffer. They made their decision and they're happy with it. It is you who suffers.
The worst comes when you reflect on this. You realize that neither you nor they did anything wrong, and despite that it doesn't stop hurting.
And the reason for that is simple: it's a cycle. Everything that begins must end.
Something so simple to reason, but so difficult to accept. That's what they don't tell you about friendship. AND IT HURTS SO MUCH
aww, such is life in a small town like Ponyville!
definitely setting up for some dramatic irony
oof, much too relatable
aww, fun to imagine Sweetie getting more Rarity-like when she is older
oof, lots being held by that em dash
and yeah, none of their foalhood adventures ever felt quite like this!
yeah, because every time it is making Apple Bloom’s absence feel just a little bit more the new normal…
that feels more Rainbow Dash than Scootaloo, hoowee the CMCs really are taking after their older sisters!
and oof, that mismatch in obligations and expectations is so real. and the bonds of family taking priority over the bonds of friendship, even deep ones such as this, as one grows up is a tale told millions of times
and oof, that pain in finding out the difference between Sweetie Belle’s expectations of how the ponies closest to her viewed their relationship, and the actual reality. one of the hardest things to face!
and oof. augh, really feeling that secondhand pain for Sweetie Belle here, not picking up on what was unsaid
aww, love Rarity being the older sister here and telling Sweetie what she needs to hear, as painful as it is to hear
and oof! can’t help but think about how the show also forgot about her, just like Sweetie Belle
oof, yeah. Sweetie having to find out this way really does twist that knife
yeah, honestly, they should be on the same page about this!
honestly still kind of annoyed that her mark never had anything to do with potions and was just an apple but i guess this is what that naturally leads to!
and oof, yeah, that is the natural progression of Scootaloo’s side arc here. at least Sweetie Belle gets to hear it all at once
and oof.
really love how these pieces fit together to explain why Sweetie Belle is the one to be so attached to the CMCs as an idea! and it is one with a powerful hold to break out of, given how much of their lives and identities centered around their quest for cutie marks together
and augh, it is nice to end on a hopeful note with an eye toward the future! finally breaking out of the unfortunate mold set by their unfortunately matching cutie marks. okay maybe i wouldn’t be so grumbly if the matching were done in a more aesthetically pleasing way but still! really great to see the CMCs getting around to exploring who they are as individuals as adults, and a really great exploration of the pain and fear that comes with such big changes in life and identity. it also just feels like a tribute to the millions of stories throughout history and time of friend groups that did not come apart due to any awful circumstance, but just time and change, and the poignance in considering this.