Sweetie Belle sung happily as she helped Rarity design a costume.
"Wow, that's quite a voice you have." she complimented.
Sweetie Belle stopped singing and blushed. She really didn't want anybody to hear her sing, for she was too shy.
"Oh, come now! That's a gift you have!" Rarity said.
"Nah... it's really nothing..." Sweetie Belle replied.
Suddenly, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo bursted through the door. At first, Sweetie Belle was happy to see her fellow Cutie Mark Crusaders, but, was quickly saddened, remembering that Scootaloo had received her Cutie Mark almost a year from now.
"Sup'?" Scootaloo greeted her.
"Go play with your friends, I'll finish the ensemble by myself." Rarity told Sweetie Belle.
"Really? Thanks!" Sweetie Belle exclaimed, and then threw off the coat she was wearing.
The three fillies ran out the door.
"So, what are we going to try today?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"Well, I have some news." Scootaloo said.
"What is it?" Apple Bloom inquired.
"I'm returning to Cloudsdale." Scootaloo replied.
"What!?" the two fillies gasped.
"I have some unfinished business. I'm leaving in a week." Scootaloo explained.
"But, you could be killed!" Sweetie Belle cried.
"It's what I must do. It was my fault that Rainbow Dash got injured, and I need to make up for it." Scootaloo sighed.
"B-but Scootaloo!" Sweetie Belle stammered, her eyes filling up with tears.
"What about Rainbow Dash?" Apple Bloom asked.
"She won't be coming with me. I have to do this by myself." Scootaloo informed them.
Sweetie Belle couldn't cry in front of her friends, not again.
"I'm not feeling too well... I'm going home." she sighed.
She ran back to Rarity's shop, not even saying good-bye.
"Why are you back so soon?" Rarity asked when she got back.
"I just don't feel like playing..." Sweetie Belle replied.
"Well, I hope you feel like singing because I signed you up for the talent show!" Rarity said.
"Rarity!" Sweetie Belle cried. "You know I hate singing in front of other ponies!"
"Look, Sweetie Belle, you have all that talent and you can't let it go to waste. Just give it a try." Rarity told her.
The filly bursted into tears, the stress was too much for her. Rarity told her to go lay down and relax. She did so. She lay in her bed, thinking about that horrible day that Scootaloo almost lost her life.
Flashback!
Suddenly, Scootaloo's wing went numb, and she fell off the track.
"Scootaloo!" Rainbow Dash cried.
"Doesn't she have one wing she can use?" Sweetie Belle asked frantically.
"It won't be enough to get her back up! She'll only be able to keep herself up for a few seconds! And the ocean's right below the track!" Rainbow Dash explained.
She flew high up into the air as fast as she could.
"What are you doing!? She's falling!" Apple Bloom cried.
"It's the only way to catch her at this rate!" Rainbow Dash replied.
She swooped down as fast as she could, gaining speed every second. Just as she was about to go through the track, tears started rolling down her face. Suddenly, she bursted into color as she passed the track.
"And wow! It's a Sonic Rainboom!" the announcer gasped.
The crowd was amazed at the light show. Rainbow Dash continued to chase after Scootaloo's falling body.
"Where's Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo!?" Sweetie Belle demanded.
"I can't see em'!" Apple Bloom replied.
"Oh, I hope they're ok..." Sweetie Belle muttered.
Back in the present...
Sweetie Belle shook at that horrid memory. Would she lose her life if she fell again? Rainbow Dash would be too late.
With Apple Bloom...
"Alright, little filly! It's Applebucking season again. I think you're old enough to help yer' brother and I, aren't ya?" Applejack said.
Apple Bloom gulped at the sea of trees before her. She was just a filly, this was going to be hard work. Yet, Applejack had done it almost all by herself one year. Big Mac walked over to the sisters.
"Ready to get started?" Applejack asked.
"Eeyup!" Big Mac replied.
Apple Bloom looked at the field nervously. It was going to be a long season.
The week had flown by. Sweetie Belle practiced for the talent show, breaking down even in front of Rarity multiple times. Apple Bloom labored to get all the apples off the trees, collapsing from exhaustion several times. Scootaloo trained for her mission in Cloudsdale, which had arrived rather quickly. The three fillies met in Sugarcube Corner.
"Good luck, Sweetie Belle. I hope you win the talent show. And Apple Bloom, I know you can do it." Scootaloo encouraged.
"Come back safely, you hear?" Apple Bloom said.
"I will, and that's a promise." Scootaloo replied.
The three fillies hugged each other mournfully, and then departed to their important destinations. Little did they know of the miracle that was about to happen to them all.
Scootaloo arrived in Cloudsdale and looked at the clouds below her. She remembered her reaction to when she'd first came here.
Flashback!
"We're here!"
Scootaloo gasped at the wonder of Cloudsdale. The sky was clear blue, the Pegasi soared freely through the air, and colorful rainbows filled the sky. Scootaloo's face lit up with joy as she took in the sight.
"Pile off!" Rainbow Dash said.
Scootaloo looked down at the support from the sky to the ground, it was just a cloud. She gulped, afraid she would fall to her death.
"R-rainbow Dash?"
"Yeah?"
"Won't I fall through the clouds?"
Rainbow Dash just laughed, and then pointed to her hooves.
"Pegasi can walk on clouds!"
The clouds looked fluffy and inviting, but could be lethal. Scootaloo looked at her wings, and then back at the clouds below her.
I'm a Pegasi... I can do this!, she told herself.
Scootaloo carefully stepped off Rainbow Dash's back. The young Pegasi flinched as her hoof was just inches above the support. Rainbow Dash patiently waited on Scootaloo, never tiring. Suddenly, the lack of balance caused Scootaloo to fall off Rainbow Dash's back, making her scream,
"Rainbow Dash! Help!"
She knew that she was falling, plummeting to her death. A voice stopped her fear,
"Um... Scootaloo? You're stable."
Back in the present...
Scootaloo knew that she'd looked so stupid. But, today was the day that she knew she was going to prove herself. Just like she'd vowed to do on her first day at Camp Cloudsdale.
Yet another flashback...
Scootaloo's wings throbbed as she lay down in bed that night. She was sleeping at the campgrounds, and boy, were her wings sore. Suddenly, she heard a voice,
"Psst! Psst! New kid!"
"Huh?"
"What's your name?"
"Scootaloo, yours?"
"People call me Alpha Flier, or Alpha."
"So, you're the best of the best?"
"You better believe it! I saw you out in training today."
"Really? Do you think I did good?"
"Good!? You earned yourself a title!"
"On my first day! What is it?"
"Wait for it... wait for it..."
Scootaloo couldn't wait to hear her title. And from the best flier in the whole camp!
"Scootaloser!"
The room filled with laughs from Pegasi ponies. Warm tears rolled down Scootaloo's cheeks, she couldn't help it that she wasn't a good flier and had to be trained. In that moment, she decided that she'd beat him. Somehow, someday, she'd beat Alpha at a race to prove herself.
And we find ourselves in the present once again...
Scootaloo walked over to Camp Cloudsdale where she'd been trained to be a perfect flier. But, her wings had failed her on the day that'd counted the most: the day of the race. Now, she planned to make up for her loss.
"Well, well, well! If it isn't Scootaloser! Did you come back to lose again?" a familiar voice taunted.
Scootaloo looked at the owner of the voice, it was Alpha Flier, the top flier in Camp Cloudsdale (as the name implies.) He was also a big bully.
"No, Alpha, I came for a rematch." she replied.
"I don't think you're worth my time. But, if you insist, I accept you pathetic challenge." Alpha said.
"Let's do it."
Scootaloo and Alpha lined up at the starting point. The referee held up the flag, symbolizing it was almost time to go. Scootaloo held up her rump, displaying her proud Cutie Mark of a scooter. She remembered how she'd got it.
Why are there so many friggin' flashbacks!?
Scootaloo hopped off Fluttershy's back and went to the place where Rainbow Dash had picked her up on her first day. The sun was setting and ponies were starting to turn in for the night. Suddenly, Scootaloo saw her scooter, which was still in the place she'd left it. She hopped on and started to head home. She felt as if she were at peace on the transportation device, so, she rode some more. Pretty soon, she was zooming around Ponyville, getting everypony to notice.
"Woo-hoo!" she shouted.
The town was in shock at how good the young Pegasi was on the scooter. Scootaloo rode until she was unable to keep her eyes open. The next day, Scootaloo ran outside in the morning to take in the fresh air. She remembered the previous day's events and how she'd given up on getting a Cutie Mark. But, she was totally fine because of her wonderful ride. She rode her scooter to the Cutie Mark Crusaders' clubhouse to tell the fillies that she was resigning.
"Apple Bloom! Sweetie Belle!" Scootaloo called.
"Scootaloo's back!" Apple Bloom's voice cried happily.
"Actually, there's something I need to tell you two..." Scootaloo replied sadly.
Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle came running down the ramp of their clubhouse, and then gasped, putting shocked looks on their faces.
"I know... I know... you're surprised to see me alive. And, I also know that I was being a jerk before I left. I'm sorry, I was just so caught up in getting a Cutie Mark that ignored the only thing that really means anything: friendship. I can't say it enough: I'm so sorry..." Scootaloo explained.
"B-b-but...!" Apple Bloom stammered.
"Yes, I know your sorry for pushing me into the lake. But, I was the real jerk the whole time. After the fall I took, made a very hard decision. I've decided to quit the Cutie Mark Crusaders because all the ideas I have never contribute to the club. We never come close to having any good ideas when I'm in charge. I just can't be put in anymore life-threatening situations, Rainbow Dash always has to save my rump." Scootaloo told her friends.
"Sc-Scootaloo..." Sweetie Belle stuttered.
"I know it's hard, but, I think you two will be better off without me." Scootaloo comforted.
"SCOOTALOO!" Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle yelled at the same time.
"What?" Scootaloo asked.
"LOOK AT YOUR FLANK!" Sweetie Belle screamed.
Scootaloo looked at her rump. There, right in front of her face, was a Cutie Mark. It was her scooter!
"OH MY CELESTIA! OH MY CELESTIA!" Scootaloo shouted giddily, bucking happily as she did so.
Back in the present...
The referee waved the flag, and both Pegasi took off at a fast pace.
With Apple Bloom...
Apple Bloom bucked at a tree, sending a wave of pain through her body. The filly was ready to give up on Applebucking season. It was hopeless, she was too out of shape to continue. Apple Bloom started crying. She would never get her Cutie Mark here, and she knew it too.
With Sweetie Belle...
"Next up is Sweetie Belle!" the announcer called Sweetie Belle's name.
"Alright, you can do this." Rarity pushed the filly out onto the stage.
Sweetie Belle gulped at the large number of ponies staring at her. She was frozen, she couldn't sing or do anything. The crowd murmured about her, and Sweetie Belle knew she wouldn't ever get her Cutie Mark in the thing she loved doing the most.
Back with Scootaloo...
Scootaloo lagged behind Alpha. The older Pegasi smirked as he kept gaining speed.
"Hey! Scootaloser! You wanna know something about the race we did?" he teased.
Scootaloo was too focused on the task at hand to listen to his ridicule.
"I numbed your wing so you couldn't fly! But, you were going to lose anyway!" Alpha stuck his tongue out.
Not only was he a bully, but, he was a cheater as well. This enraged Scootaloo, and she started to fly as fast as she could. This bully had to be stopped. Before she knew it, Scootaloo was going to fast beyond comprehension. Tears filled her eyes as she gained more speed. Suddenly, white barrier of light surrounded her, leaving a trail of white behind her. A boom of colors filled the sky and she far surpassed Alpha.
Back with Apple Bloom...
A loud boom got Apple Bloom's attention. She looked up, and found that the sky was full of colors and beauty. To the filly, it was a miracle and it gave her what she needed to get right back up and buck.
"It's a Sonic Rainboom!" Applejack cried.
Back with Sweetie Belle...
The judges were getting ready to kick Sweetie Belle offstage. Suddenly, the sky filled with color and a loud explosion could be heard. Everypony was too shocked to speak. All the beauty suddenly gave Sweetie Belle the courage to sing. She knew she could do it, despite all the odds.
With Rainbow Dash...
Rainbow Dash was sleeping on a cloud when a loud boom woke her up.
"Wha...?" she yawned, and then was shocked to see the miracle only she'd been able to perfect. "Sonic Rainboom!"
What pony has done this?, she asked herself.
Back with Scootaloo...
Scootaloo left a colorful trail behind her as she crossed the finish line. Alpha was shocked at the Rainboom she'd made, and even more so that he'd lost. Abruptly, the camp consoler came crashing to the finish line.
"What in the name of Celestia's going on here!?" she demanded.
She gasped at Scootaloo, who was proudly flying in circles above her head, leaving rainbow trails behind her.
"Scootaloo!" the camp consoler cried.
The filly zoomed down to her teacher.
"You... did a Sonic Rainboom?" the camp consoler asked.
Scootaloo smiled and nodded. She and the consoler hugged, and then Rainbow Dash came crashing in.
"W-who... did t-that R-Rainboom?" she panted.
"You can thank Scootaloo for that!" the camp consoler replied.
"You did that, kid?" Rainbow Dash gasped.
"Yep." Scootaloo replied.
Rainbow Dash grabbed up the filly into a hug.
Back with Sweetie Belle...
"IT'S TIME TO BEGIN
ISN'T IT
I GET A LITTLE BIT BIGGER
BUT THEN I'LL ADMIT
I'M JUST THE SAME AS I WAS
NOW DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND
I'M NEVER CHANGING WHO I AM"
Sweetie Belle finished the song and everypony stamped their hooves in applaud. She took a bow, that rainbow had given her a big inspiration. She walked backstage to Rarity, who looked amazed.
"Sweetie Belle... look at your flank!" she gasped.
The filly looked at her rump and discovered a music note was imprinted on it. She'd finally gotten her Cutie Mark!
"OH MY CELESTIA!" she yelled.
Back with Apple Bloom...
No matter what happens, I will help run this farm, Apple Bloom told herself as she bucked an apple tree.
She'd really been inspired by that Sonic Rainboom.
"Um... Apple Bloom?" Applejack called. "Look at your flank, you might be surprised."
Apple Bloom discovered an apple bloom on her rump, and she leaped for joy.
"You'll never believe what happened to me!" all three fillies shouted at the same time when they were reunited.
"Ok! Sweetie, you go first!" Scootaloo said excitedly.
"Well, during the talent show I froze up. Just as I was about to get kicked off the stage, the sky filled with this beautiful color and it gave me the inspiration to sing! And I got my Cutie Mark!" Sweetie Belle explained.
"Uh..." Scootaloo was interrupted by Apple Bloom.
"NO WAY! Just as I was about to give up on bucking, I saw the same thing and it gave me the hope to continue! And I got my Cutie Mark as well!"
"I was the one who made the Rainboom!" Scootaloo said.
Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle gasped.
"You did a... Sonic Rainboom?" Apple Bloom asked, shocked by her friend's confession.
"Yep!" Scootaloo replied.
Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle took the filly up into a hug.
"You helped us get our Cutie Marks! You're the best friend a filly could ever have!" Sweetie Belle said.
"Thanks guys... this truly is a miracle."
"Dear Princess Celestia, as your student, you probably know that I don't believe in the paranormal or luck or anything along those lines. But, today I was convinced that miracles are real. Two fillies got their Cutie Marks and one helped cause all that with the incredible Sonic Rainboom. Also, a bully was defeated. How can I deny miracles are real now? With the power of friendship, anything is possible. You most faithful student, Twilight Sparkle."