The Cutie Mark Crusaders finally get their Cutie Marks! Yaaaaay! But they aren't quit what anypony was expecting...
The Cutie Mark Crusaders finally get their Cutie Marks! Yaaaaay! But they aren't quite what anypony was expecting...
This is a look at Cutie Marks and their meanings, along with a bit of world-building. (Ever wonder why the royal guard all look the same? Or why everyponies' CM is flowers or rainbows, not lighters or crossbows? Wonder no more.)
"It's lovely, darling, but don't you think it's a bit...um, dark?"
"It's a crossbow! It's the coolest! I can't believe I finally got my Cu-- GAAASP." Sweetie Bell froze, and then - to Rarity's horror and distress - started hyperventilating. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what was upsetting the filly, either: her blank-friends.
"Sweetie Bell - Sweetie Bell!", Rarity said, sternly, grabbing onto the young filly's shoulder and shaking, gently.
"Oh no. This is bad. Awwwww, they're gonna - Applebloom's gonna hate me!", the white young mare cried, tears brimming in her large eyes.
"My dear, Applebloom is not going to hate you, why would you ever think that? She knew you were going to get your Mark one day - and so is she and Scootaloo. Just because you got yours first doesn't mean--"
"Scoot got hers first.", sniffled the filly, hoof wiping at her eyes.
"Oh. I didn't know - you haven't mentioned anything..." Rarity trailed off, eyeing her sister. The pink-and-purple maned filly was looking at the ground as if it held the secrets of the universe, her ears flicked down and a front hoof kicking lightly at the dirt.
"Um, she - it's..." Sweetie Bell grimaced, still looking concerned - and awkward.
"Dear, whatever her Cutie Mark is, it's nothing to be ashamed of! It's her true talent, after all - nopony should ever be ashamed of that!", Rarity coaxed. "Now, why didn't you tell me? I'd have thought you'd be excited for your friend!"
"It's...it kinda looks like a stain.", Sweetie Bell muttered.
Rarity blinked. "A...a stain?", she repeated. She'd never heard of a pony whose talent was staining things. "Perhaps her talent is in staining wood, or glass...maybe both.", she suggested, though it was clearly guesswork. Usually Cutie Marks were, well, a bit more on-the-nose, to be honest. Rarity hoped Scootaloo's Cutie Mark wasn't just staining things in general - she'd hate to have to ban the filly from her Boutique.
"Ummm, not - not that kinda stain." Sweetie Bell hedged, glancing at the door, praying that somepony would come through - anypony. Twilight, or Rose, even Celestia herself.
"I suppose it could be ambiguous, but wouldn't Scootaloo, at least, know what it was? She was doing - whatever it was when she got her mark, wasn't she?", Rarity prompted.
"Well - Applejack took us hunting with her..."
"She what!?" Rarity gasped, swooning. "You could have been hurt! She could have been hurt! Oh, I'm going to have words with that little pony...!", the white mare promised, face promising that dire threats would be involved, indeed, whenever she got her hooves on the orange Earth mare.
"We were bored, and ran out of stuff to try...And we caught somethin'!", Sweetie Bell protested, motioning at her flank to indicate how. "I - I shot it, and Scoot skinned it."
Rarity, still feeling light-headed from her swoon, fainted with a cry onto the floor.
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'--nd then she fainted!", came Sweetie Bells' voice, becoming clearer as the white mare recovered - physically - from her shock.
Rarity groaned, eyes fluttering open to see her friends gathered in the Boutique, Sweetie Bell sitting next to her.
"Rarity, you alright?", Applejack asked, peering closely at her friend.
Finding a surprising stash of sisterly strength, Rarity let out an outraged "YOU!" before lunging at the blonde mare with her front hooves. Letting out a startled yelp, Applejack fell backwards onto her hindquarters as the rest of the Six stepped back - Fluttershy darting behind Twilight as Rainbow Dash swooped in to hold Rarity back from attempting to strangle her friend.
"What is your problem!? AJ didn't even do anything!", the blue pegasus shouted, tugging at the enraged fashionista's shoulders.
"She gave my sister an awful C--!", Rarity cried out, then stopped herself, glancing around to find the filly in mention. Sweetie Bell's lower lip trembled, and Rarity felt her anger vanish as guilt brought her, weak-kneed, slumping onto the floor. "Oh, darling, no - don't, don't cry. I didn't mean - your Mark is fine, Sweetie, really, it's just...I'm not used to it yet. It was a shock.", she explained, pleading, hushed.
"Ooooh, Sweetie Bell got her Cutie Mark! That's great! We should throw a party!", shouted Pinkie Pie, jumping in a wide circle around the others.
Sweetie Bell sank to the floor completely, face pressed against it, front hooves covering her face. "No!", she wailed. "I don't want a party! It's an awful Cutie Mark, my sister's right! I'm never gonna be able to do anything now!"
As Pinkie skidded to a halt - nearly knocking over a dress-dummy in the process - the adult Ponies, sans Rarity, looked at each other in shock. Twilight was giving Rarity a disappointed look, disbelieving the Element of Generosity could say such a thing about her little sisters' Cutie Mark. Having let go of Rarity's shoulders, Rainbow Dash was trying to peer around the mare at the filly's flank, with no success - her tail, pressed tightly against the small ponys' body, hid whatever her Mark was.
"Sweetie Bell, it can't be that bad.", soothed Fluttershy, trotting forward to lay a hoof on her shoulder.
"Yeah! I mean, there's gotta be somethin' you can do, no matter what your Mark is! Look at Derpy, she delivers mail and her special talent is...uh..." Rainbow Dash trailed off, confused.
"Making bubbles?", Twilight guessed, scratching her mane with a hoof.
"Blowing bubbles?", Rainbow shrugged, squinting in thought.
"Oh oh oh, that reminds of a pony I met once. Her Cutie Mark was a smiley face, she was suuuuper good at making ponies happy! I guess she had other talents too, though, 'cause all her customers seemed really happy when they came out of her room at the Rosey Hooves!", Pinkie gushed. Rarity groaned and pressed her hooves against Sweetie Bells' ears, glaring at her excitable friend.
"Sweetie Bell does not need to know about the time you made friends with a prostitute, Pinkie!", the white mare snapped, blushing faintly.
"Oh my Celestia, that's what the Rosey Hooves was?", gasped Twilight. Everypony stared at the purple mare, who blushed deeply. "I, uh, I thought it was a good place to study! It was broad daylight and almost nopony was inside, and -"
"We also don't need to know about the time you mistakenly visited a brothel, Twilight!", Rarity shouted. "What we need to do is change my little sisters' Cutie Mark!"
The other ponies stared. Applejack and Rainbow Dash had horrified looks on their faces. Twilight concentrated blankly at a point to the left of Rarity's shoulder, the wheels in her mind clearly spinning, although it seemed she had forgotten how to speak for a moment.
Fluttershy had let out a barely-audible gasp when Rarity shouted, and Pinkie Pie was giving her white colored friend a speculative stare, head tilted to the side - worried and contemplative all at once.
It was Sweetie Bell who broke the silence, shaking off Rarity's hooves - clearly her grip had slackened since her outburst.
"Can - can we do that?", she whispered, wide eyes going from her sister to Twilight, who rubbed at a temple as she let out a sigh.
"I don't know. I've never heard of anything like it... And frankly, Sweetie Bell, I don't know why you'd want to!", the purple mare exclaimed, hoping her tone hadn't come across as too condescending to the filly as it went from hushed speculation to incredulity. "You finally got your Cutie Mark, you found your special talent..." Her eyes turned sympathetic. "Don't tell me you want to hide it from your friends?"
"N-no! Well, I mean - kinda.", the pony admitted, confused. Her eyes darted towards Applejack. "It's just that there's me and Scootaloo both getting our Cutie Marks, and then Apple Bloom still doesn't have one - it just kinda seems unfair."
Applejacks' jaw dropped, and she stood on four hooves once more, confused herself, now, and a bit incensed on her siblings' behalf. "What'd y' mean, Apple Bloom don't have one? 'Course she does! She got it that day I took ya'll hunting!"
Sweetie Bell jumped to her hooves at this revelation, with Rarity swiftly moving herself out of harms way, moving slightly to stand behind a less-cowering-than-one-would-expect Fluttershy. "She did? What was it? Oh, I bet it was --", the bright-eyed filly gushed, tail flicking in excitement for her friend.
"Ah can't tell ya." Applejack interrupted, apologetic but firm.
The fillys' jaw dropped. "Wha- what? Doesn't she know what it is? Or - or is it like Scoots? Hers was kinda vague, till we thought about it a bit..." She trailed off, a shade of hope that was almost painful painting itself across her rounded face.
"No, she knows what it is. An' so do Ah, Sweetie Bell, but she tol' me not to tell you or Scootaloo." Applejack paused, then continued, tone gentle. "Now, Ah don't know if she'd want me to tell you this, but Ah think she's afeared you two won't like her nomore when you see it."
Sweetie Bell stamped a front hoof on the floor. "That's ridiculous! She's our friend, we'd never not wanna be friends with her! Why's she being so - so dumb!?"
Rarity's voice was as gentle as the comforting hoof that wrapped around her shoulders as she spoke. "I think you know why."
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The orange and white colored duo met up heading to the tree house. They both stared, and a cloud drifted by without comment before either made a move.
"You told your sister?", Scootaloo asked, turning as if she were going to go down the road they had met on.
"Yeah.", replied a morose Sweetie Bell, a heavy sigh shaking her mane as she drew parallel to her friend. "She didn't take it very well."
The orange pegasi winced in sympathy. "Well, I have a plan to cheer you and Applebloom up! See, first we we gotta..."
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"Her Cutie Mark is a crossbow!?", shouted Rainbow Dash. Her jaw might have touched the floor, if she hadn't been flapping at least three hoofbreadths off the floor. It was hard to tell, even for her close friends, if she was merely surprised, shocked, or jealous.
She was definitely not scandalized as Rarity was, who was hanging off of Twilight's foreleg. "M-my sister's C-Cutie Mark is a crossbowwwwww!", she wailed, and looked to be on the edge of sobbing until Applejack pulled her off of Twilight, who heaved out a sigh and nodded in appreciation.
“It’s a crossbow?”, repeated Fluttershy, sounding oddly curious. The other five ponies turned to look at her, and Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow in a silent ‘get on with it’ gesture.
“Well, it’s just that - I knew somepony who had a Cutie Mark like that once…”, the yellow mare said, her already quiet voice wasting away to a whisper as she finished her sentence. This was probably not helped at all by Rarity very nearly pouncing on the shy Pegasus.
“What!?”, she breathed, eyes shining. “You mean there are other ponies like her? Oh, thank Celestia! We can fix it!”
Fluttershy squeaked, and pushed the edges of her front hooves together. Now Applejack spoke up, startling both of them. “Ah don’t see why you’d wanna change your sister at all.”, the Earth pony said, tone cold. “She’s yer sister, an’ you wanna go an’ change her destiny for her!?”
Rarity gaped, shocked and hurt at the clear anger in her solid friends‘ voice. Pinkie Pie came to a halt next to the white unicorn, half-stepping between her and Applejack. “She wants to protect her, Applejack. But I still think we should throw a part for her real Cutie Mark, though…”, the pink party pony protested, eyes widening as she pouted at her unicorn friend.
“I - you agree with Applejack, Pinkie? Truly?”, Rarity asked, wilting.
The mare, unusually solemn, nodded. “Sweetie Bell shouldn’t try to change it, or get it changed, unless she wants to, Rarity! It’s her destiny, and nopony else can change it for her. Only a silly filly would think that!”, she giggled.
Rarity grimaced and traded looks with Twilight - who was making a similar expression, clearly remembering the disastrous time their group had all switched Cutie Marks. It had been awful, even if it was accidental. “I - I suppose you’re right.” She shot an apologetic look at Applejack. “I shouldn't try to change her, no matter what she ends up doing. I should simply offer support and guidance, like any good older sister.” Applejack blushed faintly at the compliment, but nodded.
Then three familiar fillies burst through the door, ruining the moment of silence as the door slammed shut behind them again.
“Didja think of anything while I was gone?”, panted Sweetie Bell. She, flanked to the left and right by Applebloom and Scootaloo, were all sweating - and all three wore cloaks.
Rarity traded significant looks with Applejack and Pinkie Pie, moving standing on all four hooves again as she straightened her mane out a little. “Actually, my dear, we - ah, that is, I think you do whatever you want with it. I’m sorry I was so rude before, Sweetie Bell - that was awful of me, and --”
“I want to change it! We all do!”, interrupted the pale filly, throwing off her cloak in a flurry of fabric. The crossbow Cutie Mark stood out on her equally pale flank, the dark brown wood and black metal and arrow only highlighted by the flick of her tail.
Like her friend, Scootaloo’s Cutie Mark was dark, and no less distinct for all that it was a blotch. The red Mark clashed with her orange coat, normally just a blank canvas. Everyone - aside from the other Crusaders, and Applejack, who had seen it already - stared. Much like her friend, Scootaloo had dropped her cloak to the ground as well when the trio had come through the door. “She’s right, all three of us want to change ‘em! Can’t you do anything, Twilight?”, the small Pegasus pleaded. “You’re the most magic-y pony we know!”
The purple unicorn in question looked startled. Rarity was picking her jaw off the floor, and Rainbow Dash had landed on the floor behind her with a solid thwack! after the three made their announcement. Applejack, standing to the left of a curious Pinkie Pie and a wilting Fluttershy, was staring at her sister.
“Well, I - I don’t think I can, girls.”, Twilight admitted. “I've never heard of anypony changing their Cutie Mark - and if they try to change somepony elses, it never ended well. Even if I could find an otherwise harmless spell, I don‘t think I have enough power to use it.”, the reluctant unicorn added. “The spells I heard of take amazing amounts of magical strength, and the curses take even more…”
“Um.” Fluttershy cut in, hiding partially behind her pastel-pink mane. “That pony I knew who wanted to change his Cutie Mark…”
“Go on, Fluttershy.”, Twilight prompted, as all eyes turned to the shy Pegasus. “What happened?”
“Well, he went to Celestia.”, she confided.
There was a heavy beat of silence.
“And then he got it changed into a duck!?”, Pinkie Pie gasped. Rainbow Dash groaned, hoof meeting her face.
“Erm, no.”, Fluttershy negated, shaking her head.
“Then what did happen, dear?”, Rarity lead, a tinge of impatience in her voice.
“I, um, I haven’t actually talked with him since he went to see her…”
The silence now was sharp. Applejack had paled, and the trio at the door looked wary, worried. “You mean he - he…?”, Applebloom trailed off.
Fluttershy gasped, shrinking, as she figured out what they had assumed. “Oh, no! Nonono, I just haven’t seen him lately! He’s written me letters and everything since then. Um, sorry.”
As everypony sighed in relief, Rainbow Dash leaned in, a wicked grin on her maw. “Sooo, this stallion you know - he your special somepony?”, the blue pegasi teased.
Fluttershy turned a bright red. “No! He’s my brother!”
Rainbow Dash’s eyes grew wide as she tried to cover for her mistake - even as every other pony startled grinning, then laughing. Eventually, even Fluttershy giggled, and Rainbow laughed a little herself.
“Aw, I’m sorry Fluttershy, I didn't know.” Rainbow Dash paused. “I didn't even know you had a brother!”, she added, sounding wounded.
“Nor did I!”, agreed Rarity. The others nodded in agreement, looking puzzled.
Fluttershy frowned. “I didn’t either until recently. I’d never keep something so important from you! Or from any of my friends.”, she assured them.
“Ah’m glad you got some new family, Fluttershy, but did your brother ever get his Cutie Mark changed?”, pressed Applebloom. She moved forward into the room, Sweetie Bell going to nuzzle Rarity for comfort as Scootaloo gravitated towards a staring Rainbow Dash.
“He never mentioned it. When I asked, he avoided the question.”, the yellow Pegasus admitted.
Rarity cast an eye to her sister, then to her friends. “Well then. Do you know where he lives, Fluttershy? I think it’s time we took a trip.”
“Okay, everyone ready?”, Rainbow Dash prompted, eager to put hoof to the road.
“Maybe I should get just one more…”, Twilight murmured, glancing back towards the library, whose leaves could be seen from where the group had gathered. Applejack’s hoof stopped the purple mare.
“We’re ready. Twi’s got her books - an’ you got more’n enough, don’t gimmie those puppy-dog eyes, cuz Ah ain’t gonna help you carry any more of ’em - the girls’ve got their things, and Pinkie has…” The mare glanced askance at her pink, bouncing companion, who had her saddle bags packed. With what was a mystery she refused to speak of. “Uh, whatever she’s bringin’. Let’s go. It’s gonna be a long trot to Canterlot.”
“It’s not that long, really. It just looks like it’s further away because of perspective.”, Twilight rattled off, though she stepped into a trot to keep up with the others hurriedly; she fell into step next to Pinkie Pie, and they brought up the back of the herd. The trio of fillies were in the middle, with Applejack slightly ahead and Rarity - a wide-brimmed hat sitting daintily atop her head - to the left of the Crusaders. Rainbow Dash was attempting to fly in an upside down corkscrew somewhere above their heads, and Pinkie Pie was hopping alongside Fluttershy in the very front. All told, it was a good-sized parade.
“We won’t have to camp anywhere out here at night, will we?”, came a softly-voiced question. Even unable to see her, Twilight easily guessed the speaker.
“We shouldn’t have to, no. As long as we can keep up this pace, I think we’ll get to Canterlot before nightfall.”, the unicorn replied confidently.
“Wait, didn’t you come to Ponyville the first time by flyin’ coach?”, asked Applejack, turning her head and flipping her mane over to look back at the librarian. Twilight flushed a little; clearly, the cowpony hadn’t been very impressed by the gilded chariot. And after living in Ponyville, which was so much more - ‘utilitarian’ wasn’t quite the word she wanted, and ‘plain’ was rude, but it was all Twilight could think of - the chariot and the guarded escort did seem to have been a bit…much.
“Er, yes.”, she admitted. “But I've looked at maps since then, and it really shouldn‘t take a lot of time, even if we aren't going by carriage or coach.”
“I don’t see why we couldn't have taken one of those today!”, sniffed Rarity, purple tail flicking as she drew herself into the conversation. “Or some form of transportation besides our own four hooves. I’m certain my full pedi is going to be ruined by the time we get there. (1)”
“We’re doin’ it incognato -” - “Incognito!”, corrected Twilight, who was summarily ignored - “- so as few ponies as possible see the girls.”, Applejack explained, a bit heatedly.
“’m sorry, Rarity.”, Sweetie Bell said, pressing against her older sisters’ flank. "We just don’t want nopony seeing us…y’know.”
The white unicorn pressed into the small filly, turning her neck to breath softly on her siblings’ nose. “It’s fine, dear, really. I wouldn’t want you near those rough-and-tumble carriage stallions anyway. Who knows what kind of breeding they have!”
“Rarity, you’re friends with a pony who lived on a rock farm once. I don’t think you can point horns.”, noted Twilight, dryly.
“Ooooh, who was that? Cuz, y’know I used to work on a rock farm, and I know we’d get along and we could talk about farming -- ooh, Applejack, you’d get along with them too, you could talk about apples and rock even though they aren’t the same thing at all kinda like oranges and isn’t it weird that you have family named Orange I mean hellooooo?”
Applejack blinked as Pinkie hopped merrily along - backwards - and chattered at her. Even Fluttershy was trying to hide a smile.
Eventually, their group did reach the edges of Canter lot - the /edges/ of Canterlot because Rarity refused to step hoof inside of it without looking her absolute best. Finding a lake nearby, all nine decided to take a swim; everypony was dusty and sore.
Ignoring the waves in the lake that Rainbow Dash’s canon ball caused - not to mention the game of chicken Pinkie Pie was trying to get others to join - Applejack lay in the shade of a nearby tree, running a hoof absently through her mane as she chatted with Fluttershy.
“Ah just don’t know about gettin' her Cutie Mark changed. It’s supposed t’ be a part of every pony… Just don’t seem right.”, the Earth mare worried - quietly. The clearing around the lake was big, but noises carried, and the last thing Applejack wanted was for her little sister to change her mind just because Applejack herself wasn't a fan of the idea.
“Well, my brother never said if he did get his changed. I don’t think I’d want mine changed; I love taking care of my animals!”, Fluttershy replied, glancing fondly at the trio of pink butterfly’s on her side.
“An’ Ah couldn’t imagine doin’ anything but runnin’ the farm. Workin’ with apples is in my blood.”, Applejack agreed, huffing out a sigh.
“You aren’t disappointed that Appleblooms’ Cutie Mark isn’t apple related, are you?”, asked Fluttershy, eyeing her friend with both understanding and wariness. It was a delicate, difficult question, and she probably wouldn’t have asked it had anypony else been close enough to hear the answer.
“…Ah dunno, Fluttershy. Ah mean, we all just kinda assumed…” Applejack winced, rubbing a hoof over her face. “But Ah reckon almost anything would be better’n something she hates, right? If her talent ain’t with apples, s’ no reason to disown her or anything. She’s still family, she’s still one of us.”, the orange mare declared, then grinned mischievously. “Heck, I got a cousin on my moms’ side that’s got a hoe fer a Cutie Mark. You wouldn‘t believe how many jokes she‘s heard about it. ‘Least Appleblooms’ is better‘n that, even if she don‘t get it changed.”
Fluttershy, blushing brightly, nodded. She stood when everypony was out of the water, and nudged her friend in the grass. Collecting her hat, Applejack followed the shy Pegasus to where Rarity was putting the finishing touches on her mane.
“It will do, I suppose.”, the white unicorn sighed, a bit of magic placing her broad sun-hat back on. “Is everypony else ready to go?”, she asked, glancing around.
There were nods all around, and so the small herd set off, their hoofs striking cobbles almost as soon as they got back onto the road.
“Uuugh, we get it, Twilight! Don’t touch anything, don’t break anything, don’t get into fights with the guards… We’ll be fine, you egghead!”, Rainbow Dash complained, spreading her wings even as she pled with the unicorn.
“I just wanted to make sure, Rainbow Dash! I mean, I’m the only who knows her way around the castle, and…” Twilight started, trailing off as she noticed an Earth pony stallion, armor glinting in the sun, trotting towards their group.
“Miss Twilight Sparkle?”, he asked, glancing at the group huddled just outside the gate. When Twilight nodded, the stallion continued. “Princess Celestia says she can talk to you and your…entourage…in the Lesser East Meeting Room. Please follow me.”
The group followed obediently across the grounds of Canterlot Castle and through winding hallways and large, airy rooms, though the trio of fillies made their way further and further to the head of the group as they walked. Eventually, it was Scootaloo who couldn’t hold the question back anymore; “Hey, mister guard pony, what’s your Cutie Mark?“
Twilight winced; clearly they hadn‘t paid picked up any basic Cutie Mark etiquette, in school or around Ponyville. Not surprising considering they had just recently gotten theirs, but the lapse was still embarrassing even by proxy. “I’m so sorry, you don’t have to answer that, she’s just --”
“It’s alright, Miss Sparkle.”, the guard said, shaking his head. He had a softer expression on his face than any the ponies had seen on a royal guard’s face yet. “My Cutie Mark is a bone.”, he answered the small orange Pegasus. “You just can’t see it right now because of my armor.”
That got the attention of the other two fillies, who craned their heads and squinted at his hindquarters. Pinkie giggled loudly as Rarity face-hoofed. “Can y’ see it alright when y’ take yer armor off? Bones’re white, an’ you’re white. How can y‘ tell what it is if it blends int‘ you?”, Applebloom asked.
The guard looked amused, and opened his mouth to answer when their group reached the correct room. “Ah - here we are. The Princess will be with you shortly, if she isn’t inside already.”, he announced, pulling open one of the doors with his mouth, while a guard who was stationed inside the doors pushed the other one open.
Inside, Princess Celestia stood. She turned from looking out of a window to nod regally at the group, waiting politely until they had gotten closer before speaking; they could have heard her almost anywhere on the castle grounds, but no conversation would have been possible.
“Greetings, my faithful student - and her loyal friends.”, the white alicorn welcomed, mane flowing, as it always did, in a wind that did not exist. She cast her eyes over the small group, and noticed the ‘new additions’ right away. “As well as you three fillies.”, she added, questions clear in her voice as she glanced towards her lavender student.
Twilight rose from her bow, clearing her throat. “Princess Celestia, I brought Applebloom, Sweetie Bell and Scootaloo here for a…um, private reason.”, she revealed, glancing towards the two guards. Stone-faced though they were, certainly they still had ears - and gossip traveled fast in Canterlot.
“…Of course. 4-Speed, Knight Shade, could you please wait outside? (2) Thank you.”, the Princess ordered. As the two stallions closed the doors behind them, she cast her eyes upon the group once more. “While I enjoy seeing you and your friends, Twilight Sparkle, I’m not certain what could be so dire to require you to arrive without prior notice?”, Celestia lead.
Twilight scuffed her hoof on the floor. “Ah, about that -”
“How did ya know we were comin’, Princess?”, cut in a curious Applejack. “We hadn’t even gotten past th’ gate afore your guard showed up.”
“When all six of the Elements of Harmony decide to leave town on the same day, together, accompanied by three fillies disguised by cloaks, ponies notice.”, the alicorn explained, tone dry but not stern - rather, she sounded almost amused. “Naturally I was informed, and if you hadn’t arrived by nightfall, I would have sent some of my personal guard to look for your group.”
The mares looked sheepishly at each other, and the three fillies shared looks - their cloaks had hidden their shame, but not their shapes.
“Oh. Well, we wanted to talk to you about the girls, here, and Fluttershy had some questions, too, I think. It was too sensitive a subject to write a letter about…” Twilight trailed off, beckoning the three fillies forward. Eyes huge in the face of royalty who raised the sun, the three minced forward, awkwardly bowing. “You see, the girls got their Cutie Marks, but they’re - well -”
“They’re horrible!” “They’re stupid!” “We can’t do nuthin’ with ‘em!”, the three girls in question burst out, talking at once. The Princess looked surprised and a bit confused, sloping her neck to be on more level ground with the three school-fillies.
“I doubt that is true. Anypony can do whatever they would like, whatever their Cutie Mark might be! Don’t tell me you didn’t feel a connection, when you use your special talent?”, Celestia said, speaking gently, encouragingly. But though the three traded glances, there were head shakes all around.
The Princess rose to her full height, clearly thinking. “Well. Let me see… I think I have just the thing to show you three.”, she announced with a smile. “If you don’t mind my showing them around, of course?”, the alicorn asked the six mares, who shook their heads. “I’m sure you six can entertain yourselves - I know Twilight could give you quite a tour of the grounds.”
“Um, oh dear, Princess Celestia, if you don’t mind…”, Fluttershy started, sinking down towards the floor when the Princess turned her attention to the yellow Pegasus. “Um, I was wondering, if you might know about a unicorn stallion named Fizzle? He - he said he came to you about his Cutie Mark…”
Mysteriously - it being one of the few facial expressions Fluttershy was expecting upon bringing up her brother - the princess smiled. “Ah, I do indeed remember him. I think at this time of day you’ll find him near the Northeast Gardens, practicing with some friends. He’s a very hard-working stallion, Fluttershy, you should be proud.”
The Element of Kindness perked up at the kind words. “Really? I knew he would be good - thank you, Princess.”, Fluttershy smiled, bowing her head. “I’m sure Twilight can find the gardens, right?”
The purple unicorn nodded confidently, tail swishing. “We’ll be fine. After all, what could go wrong?”
Fluttershy broke into a quick trot as the group rounded a fence that lead into the correct garden. (It had taken Twilight two gardens and a ballroom to find the right meeting place. Nopony was quite sure why the castle had a ballroom covered in ivy and plants, but it had been rather pretty, they all agreed.)
“Fizzle! Fizzle, it’s me, Fluttershy!”, the yellow Pegasus called out as the three stallions noticed the oncoming group and stopped their lunges and kicks.
“Fizzle?”, a large blue Pegasus snickered. A unicorn with a pink, white and turquoise mane - the turquoise the same shade as his coat - glared at the Pegasus, tail flicking irritably.
“Shut up, Blue Blaze! Why don’t you and Sugar Trot go race around the tracks, huh? I’ll race the winner.”, the young stallion suggested. The blue Pegasus shrugged and trotted away, the Earth pony who had completed the trio following without a backwards glance.
As the duo departed, the rest of the group drew level with the two siblings. It wasn’t a difficult deduction to note that the unicorn looked irritated.
“My name’s Fanged Doom now, not ‘Fizzle’.”, he snapped, sneering his old name as if it were a bad word. Fluttershy blinked in surprise; clearly, she hadn’t been expecting such vitriol from her younger brother.
“Um, right! I’m sorry - er, Fanged Doom. I’m just so glad to see you! I like writing to you, and getting your letters, of course, but my friends and I actually had a question or two for you.”, Fluttershy apologized.
Now he looked curious, and craned a bit to see the rest of the group over his sister. The unicorn was smaller than the mare, still, and although he had his Cutie Mark, it was clear he was closer in age to a colt. “Yeah, sure, sis. Who are these friends of yours, anyway? Kinda look familiar.”, he asked, accepting the yellow Pegasus‘ apology absently.
“Oh! Yes, well, that’s Twilight Sparkle, there’s Rarity and Applejack, and that’s Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash, too.”, introduced Fluttershy happily. Each pony waved or nodded at their names, although Rainbow Dash’s was the only one to get a reaction besides boredom from the green-blue unicorn.
“The Rainbow Dash?”, he asked, and Rainbow puffed out her chest.
“The one and only! I knew Canterlot-ians would know who I was - hah! Bet you saw my rainboom from the Best Young Fliers’ competition, huh? I wondered if Canterlot would be able to see it.”, she bragged, grinning. The others smiled or laughed a little; it was always nice to see a friend get recognition.
Not this time, however - what had seemed to be excitement from the young stallion soon turned to sneering. “I thought that was you. Geez, I can’t believe the guards let you on the castle grounds!”, Fanged Doom snorted, tossing his head.
“B-but, she worked really hard on that! And she helped me with my confidence, too…”, protested Fluttershy, looking hurt and confused as her brother ragged on one of her closest friends.
“I just mean, your Pegasus friend’s a bit of a stutter step, isn’t she? Can’t seem to keep ‘em on the ground from what I hear.”, Fanged shrugged in reply. He cast an eyes over the blue Pegasus in question, sneering. “And a rot-feather, too - has she even groomed her wings in the past moon? It’s a pity, sis, I though you kept better company.”
Fluttershy looked horrified at her brother‘s words, and Applejack looked almost as furious as Rainbow Dash - she would have been taking the rude unicorn to task for her friend if she hadn’t been holding said Pegasus back by her tail; it took both hooves and some massive strength to do.
As the hot-blooded cowpony was busy, Rarity instead took up defending Rainbow Dash’s honor - over the loud curse-words being yelled by said wanna-be Wonderbolt.
“You - you utter brute!”, she exclaimed, pawing at the ground in anger. Fanged Doom sneered, though he took a step back as the other unicorn’s horn started to spark. “How dare you insult our friend! What gives you the right to speak to Rainbow Dash that way!?”
“Yeah. Why’n’t you go an’ make yourself scarce, ya limp horned salt-licker!”, snapped Applejack. “Before Ah decide to let my friend here go! Then you’d see just what she can do with her wings!”
Fanged Doom sneered, a few errant bubbles spilling out of his horn as color rose on his turquoise cheeks, muzzle pulling back to bare his teeth. “I doubt she could ruffle my forelock with those scraps of fluff!”
“Fiz-- um, Fang! S-stop that! There’s really no need to insult Rainbow Dash.”, Fluttershy protested, taking comfort from seeing Applejack holding the blue Pegasus back and Pinkie Pie comforting her. “I’m sure it was all a misunderstanding, little brother.”, she pleaded. “I want you to get along with my friends, not fight with them. I - I think we all need to calm down, maybe, um, take a break?”
The turquoise guard-in-training snorted, but quietly. “Yeah, fine. C’mon, Flutter, I can show you around the training grounds while your friends calm down, I guess.”, he accepted, sulking away.
Shooting her friends a pleading, apologetic look, Fluttershy hurried to keep up with her brother.
As the siblings cantered out of sight, Applejack let go of Rainbow Dash, though Pinkie Pie hung on still. “He was not fun at all!”, the pink Earth pony declared. “He was so mean! I can’t believe he’s really related to Fluttershy!”
“I know he was being rude, but my trainee is young. I think he’s homesick, too, I reckon, an’ prolly wasn’t expectin’ a whole group a folks to be accompanyin’ his older sister.”, came a gruff, accented voice from behind the group. Turning - or shuffling, in the case of Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie - the group saw the speaker was an older stallion. He was two or three shades darker yellow in his coat than Fluttershy was, but life in the Royal Canterlot Guard had given him a solid, broad frame - and age had put a bit of a paunch on him, as well. He nodded in greeting to the group of five, introducing himself. “Name’s Tex. I’m the current Captain of the Night Guard, of which Fanged Doom is training for. Pleasure to meet you ladies.”
Twilight was the first to recover, nodding her head back in greeting. “Nice to meet you, Tex. I’m Twilight Sparkle, and these are my friends…” Naming off the four others, the bookish mare couldn’t help but notice a distinct difference between Tex and the few Night Guard ponies she’d seen: he was, although a muted yellow, still much, much brighter than the assortment of ponies the unicorn had ever seen around the Lunar Princess.
“Nice t’ meet you an’ your friends, Miss Twilight.”, Tex smiled, eyes roving to the mostly-calm Rainbow Dash as she trotted closer. “An’ I feel awful about how Fanged treated ya’ll. I’ll have a talk with him, next time I see him.”
“You shouldn’t be the one apologizing!”, snorted Rainbow Dash. Pinkie Pie, to her left, nodded in a agreement. “He should be.”
“He should apologize to Fluttershy, too.”, Pinkie Pie added, scowling in the direction the two had gone.
“He’ll come around, Ah’m sure.”, Applejack said, assuringly. “Fluttershy’s as meek as a pony can be, but she is an older sibling, an’ we’ve got all sorts’a tricks fer dealin‘ with younger siblings.” She grinned, and eked out a return smile from the pink party pony.
“Speaking of, I’m glad the girls weren’t around to see that display.”, sniffed Rarity. She’d sidled over to Tex when nopony had been looking. Now, she batted her eyes. “Though I’m sure you could have calmed everything down, hmm, Captain?”
Twilight rolled her eyes and muffled a giggle. Leave it to her to make ‘connections’ already!, she thought. The giggle made its’ way out as Pinkie giggled as well, and soon the other two ponies were snickering behind their hooves.
“Oh, what? I’m merely being sociable!”, the white unicorn defended herself, one hoof touching her chest for emphasis.
“While I appreciate it, ma’am, I don’t think my old mare would if she heard about it.”, Tex joked, stepping away gently. Rarity looked only mildly downhearted; she bounced back rather quickly - and literally, as a pink blur bounced its’ way onto her withers with some force.
“Aw, don’t worry, Rare! I’ll be your date to, uh, whatever you need a date to!”, Pinkie chirped. Rarity smiled, covering it partially with a front hoof.
“Thank you, Pinkie Pie. I appreciated the…thought. But I don’t need a date to anything right now.”, the unicorn demurred. “I don’t there is anything coming up that one would need a date to on my social calendar for quite some time, actually.”, she added, musingly.
“Well, there’s always the Winter Solstice gathering. Lots of mares take dates.”, Tex noted, the added, slyly. “Or find them there, like Summer Blaze an‘ I did.”
Twilight, the only pony who didn’t look puzzled, coughed and blushed slightly. The five others turned to her, varying stages of curiosity on their faces. “It’s just that the, ah, tradition for the Winter Solstice in Canterlot involves ponies jumping over the embers of fire together. A lot of ponies do it if they’re trying for foals - it’s said to bring fertility. A lot of ponies do it by themselves just because they’re hoping for fertility for their businesses or homes.”, she explained. Now the blush heightened again. “And, well, there are a lot of ponies who find a date just for that night.”
Pinkie Pie leered, grinning. Somehow, the two expressions worked together for her. “Twilight! You got laid!”, she crowed.
“I think I’ll take my leave. See ya’ll later.”, Tex murmured, badly hiding a grin as he trotted off.
“It was - just the once, I mean - never saw him again…” she purple unicorn muttered, one hoof rubbing at the back of her neck.
“You owe me five bits!”, shouted Rainbow Dash, laughing as Applejack muttered under her breath and dug the bits out of her saddle bag. Twilight felt her jaw drop.
“You bet on whether I’d - if I was a -”, she sputtered, somewhere between angry and embarrassed.
“Oh, Twilight, it was just right after you first came to Ponyville. We didn’t really know you then, you understand.”, explained Rarity - handing over bits of her own to Rainbow Dash, who smiled gleefully. “And don’t give me that look! You were rather reclusive, you know, and frankly you seemed like you could give Fluttershy a run for her bits when it came to shyness around stallions.”
Twilight rubbed a hoof over her face. “Just because I like to read doesn’t mean I don’t want to - well, you know.”, she said, defensively. Applejack butted her in the flank, smiling.
“Well, we certainly know that now!”, the cowpony grinned. Twilight snorted, and grinned back, amused despite herself at the situation, annoyance fading away.
“Fluttershy isn't that shy around stallions.”, Pinkie Pie declared, shaking her head at Rarity. The pink curls flopped as the Earth pony went on. “You should have seen her this one time at a special Tuesday Party of mine…”