The Search
It was Hearts and Hooves Day once again. Even after the disastrous events of last year, the Cutie Mark Crusaders had decided to try their hooves at matchmaking again. The three of them were brimming with excitement, and their teacher, Miss Cheerilee, could see it.
After the final bell, the three fillies brought her the giant card she'd come to expect from them each year. Cheerilee was overjoyed that the girls cared about her so much, but she had to ask.
"Girls?" A note of worry tinted her voice.
"Yes, Miss Cheerilee?" they said in unison.
"You three aren't planning on setting me up with Big Mac again, are you?" The farm stallion was a nice pony, but she just wasn't comfortable being set up with anypony, especially by three little fillies.
"Of course not." Sweetie Belle said.
"We're settin' our sights on somepony else this year." Apple Bloom stated in that cute southern accent that Cheerilee loved.
"So, you're not giving up on matchmaking?" Cheerilee asked, fearfully.
"Oh no." Scootaloo said. "Matchmaking is too much fun to give up. We just won't go to the same measures we did last year." A blush had found its way onto her face as she remembered the events of the previous Hearts and Hooves day.
"So no potions?"
"No potions." Apple Bloom assured her. Cheerilee breathed a sigh of relief.
The three fillies turned and started to walk away, but Sweetie Belle paused at the door and said over her shoulder, "We still think you and Big Mac are perfect for each other."
Cheerilee laughed and replied, "I think somepony else has her eye on Big Macintosh." The fillies ran back into the room, eager to get their hooves on this tasty morsel of information.
"Who is it?" Scootaloo asked.
"Do we know her?" Apple Bloom wondered.
"Where is she now?" Sweetie Belle said.
Cheerilee chuckled again. "She'll never admit it to anyppony. I guess she's just too.... shy." The schoolteacher said with a wink. The girls instantly understood.
"No way!" Scootaloo said, astounded.
"Fluttershy?" Sweetie Belle squealed.
"Ah don't believe it." Apple Bloom whispered, shaking her head.
"Neither did I, at first." Cheerilee said. "But the more I think about it... Well, you'd better get going if you want to make two ponies happy this Hearts and Hooves Day."
"Oh!" they gasped, and dashed out the door before she could say good bye.
Cheerilee sat at her desk to grade papers and read cards. Even though she was relieved, she was also kind of... hurt that the girls had given up on trying to find a match for her. Not that she was looking for a Very Special Somepony. It was just touching that they wanted her to be happy, that's all.
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The three fillies trotted through Ponyville, looking for two ponies to set up with each other.
"What about Fluttershy an' Big Mac?" Apple Bloom asked.
"She likes him." Sweetie Belle. "But he isn't blind. He'll find it out on his own."
"Yer right." Apple Bloom said solemnly.
"Speak of the..." Scootaloo whispered. "There he is!" Sure enough, the sweet, silent hulk that was Apple Bloom's brother was trotting their way with a toolbox in between his teeth.
"Hey big brother!" Apple Bloom said cheerfully as he came closer. He nodded to them, and as he trotted on by, the Cutie Mark Crusaders Matched his pace.
"Going somewhere?" Scootaloo asked.
Big Mac stopped and set the box on the ground. "Eeyup." He responded in his tipical single-syllable, monotone voice.
"Care to tell us where?" The tiny pegasus asked, eyes wide in hopes that they could redirect him to a certain house on the outskirts of Ponyville.
"Fluttershy's cottage." The Crusaders smiled at each other. It couldn't be a coincidence.
"Any reason why?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"Ah'm fixin' her roof... again." The stallion answered.
"Ah see, Ah see." Apple Bloom said, almost unable to contain her joy. He didn't know about Fluttershy. They could set them up.
"Ah swear, if that mare don't stop destroyin' her house, Ah'm gonna start chargin' her." Big Mac said, but his expression betrayed his words. He appeared happy to have a reason to continue to visit Fluttershy. He turned to the girls, a huge smile on his face, and said, "Can you girls keep a secret?" The girls nodded.
Big Mac quickly swiveled his head to make sure that nopony except them could hear, and then he said, "Ah like Fluttershy, an' Ah'm gonna ask her to be mah Very Special Somepony."
"That's great, big brother." Apple Bloom said.
"Yeah, great..." Scootaloo mumbled. Sweetie Belle bumped her and gave her an angry look. "I... I mean, that's great!" She said with more enthusiasm. Big Mac nodded, picked up the toolbox, and galloped off toward Fluttershy's cottage. The girls turned to each other when he was out of their sight.
"This sucks," Scootaloo groaned, "At this rate, we'll never get two ponies to like each other."
"Now, hold on." Apple Bloom said. "We've only crossed off three ponies from mah list here. Ah'm sure we'll find at least two ponies who're perfect fer each other."
"Yeah!" Sweetie Belle piped up, "Let's keep searching!"
Suddenly, a pegasus on a puffy, white cloud soared overhead. The fillies looked up to see Rainbow Dash bring the cloud to a stop and pull a book out of the fluff, probably Daring Do.
"Rainbow Dash!" Scootaloo cried out. "We could find a great stallion for her!"
"Um... Scootaloo." Apple Bloom said. "Doesn't Rainbow like girls?"
"I... I actually don't know. I'll ask." She turned and called out to Rainbow Dash. The blue pegasus flew over to them, leaving her book on the cloud.
"What's up, Scoots?" She said.
"Just a quick question." Scootaloo said. "Do you like mares or stallions?" Rainbow Dash gasped, as if insulted, and flew into the blue sky. She returned with a dark cloud. "Crud." Scootaloo mumbled as Dash drenched her.
"Rainbow!" Sweetie Belle cried. "She only asked you that because we're trying to pair two ponies together this Hearts and Hooves Day!"
Dash stopped jumping on the cloud. "Oh." She laughed. "Sorry Scoots. I'm just... that's a sensitive topic for me. Ponies used to make fun of me because I looked like I would be into mares and... The truth is, I don't know right now. I've never really considered it at any length." Dash gave Scootaloo her patented Rain-blow Dry.
"What do ya mean?" Apple Bloom asked.
"I guess it just doesn't matter to me right now." Rainbow Dash saw the three fillies disappointment and added, "Tell you what, come back next Hearts and Hooves Day. I'll have made my decision by then."
"Okay." The girls mumbled. That didn't actually help them right at the moment. Rainbow Dash patted Scootaloo on the head, earning an instant ear-to-ear smile from the orange filly. Then, she flew off on her cloud. Apple Bloom crossed her off the list.
"Ugh! Isn't there anypony alone on Hearts and Hooves Day?" Scootaloo growled. Then, the Crusaders saw a sight they never expected to see.
"Is that...?" Apple Bloom whispered.
"It is." Scootaloo said.
"Discord?" Sweetie Belle gasped. The last time the three of them had seen this character, he had been trying to take over Equestria. They didn't want to believe it, but it was right in front of their faces. The reigning king of chaos was back. The draconequuis, noticing his being noticed, smiled and slithered toward the fillies.
"Oh, my three favorite fillies." Discord said, laughing and coiling around them. "You know, I never got to thank you properly for setting me free last time." The girls looked down, ashamed because they knew that it was their disharmonious actions that had tipped the scale and let loose the Avatar of Chaos. "Cotton Candy cloud?" he said, pulling a pink puff-ball out of the sky. "No? More for me, then." And with that, he popped the pink treat into his mouth. The girls gulped, their eyes wide with fear. Discord looked at them and laughed hysterically. "Oh... oh..." He gasped. "I'm sorry... Just let me..." He giggled.
"Yer not gonna hurt us, are ya?" Apple Bloom whispered.
"Hurt you? Oh, no my dear. You see, when I was imprisoned for the second time, I did some thinking. At first, I thought about destroying Equestria when I broke free. It would have been easy. I have the power, and being encased in stone doesn't actually deminish that power like being imprisoned inside of the moon. But that would be too predictable. Far too predictable. So then, I thought, what would make the least amount of sense for me to do?"
"Cause that's what yer about, right? Not makin' sense?" The fear-filled filly said, her voice trembling.
"Correct, my little pony. And do you know what I came up with?" The fillies shook their heads. "I've decided to be a good guy!" Discord was right. That made no sense whatsoever. He was laughing again.
"Isn't that just a cop-out reason?" Sweetie belle asked.
The chaotic, mix-and-match creature snorted. "So? Do you three really think that I, Chaos Incarnate, need a reasoning for the things that I decide to do?" They had to agree that this sounded about right for a being of chaos.
"So... you're good now." Scootaloo said skeptically, raising an eyebrow. "Surely you would be alone this Hearts and Hooves Day." Her hopes were steadily rising.
Discord guffawed. "Actually..." He said. As if on cue, Pinkie Pie bounced into sight.
She giggled and said, "Discord, don't walk so fast. I'd almost lost you for a second back there."
The girls jaws dropped. "You and.... Pinkie Pie?" They cried incredulously.
"Mm-hmm." Pinkie answered for the draconequuis. "Chocolate rain, please?" Discord conjured a glass and another cloud. He squeezed the cloud's contents into the glass, and they watched as it filled from the top down.
"He really is good now, girls." Pinkie said. The Crusaders might not trust Discord, but if Pinkie said he'd changed, they'd trust her. Pinkie Pie sprang up onto Discord's back and said, "See you later girls!" They began to walk toward Sugar Cube Corner.
"There goes the weirdest couple." Scootaloo said. They all burst into laughter.
Apple Bloom crossed out Pinkie's name. "Now what?" She said.
"Let's follow them to Sugar Cube Corner!" Sweetie Belle said enthusiastically.
"Yeah!" Scootaloo agreed. "We can narrow our list there!" So the fillies followed Discord and Pinkie Pie to the sweet shop.