Applejack, Big Macintosh, and Granny Smith were in the living room, playing a game of Jenga. Several minutes had passed since they first started; it was nearly nightfall as of now. It was by sheer luck that the tower of blocks had not fallen. Each of the Apples had taken a turn removing a block from grand, miniature tower and balancing it on top. Now, it was Applejack’s turn. Her hoof sweat as she slowly, and carefully, removed a block. She began to analyze the tower, choosing the right spot of where to put it. Her eyes scanned the model until she found the perfect spot. All was silent. All eyes were on her. She slowly put the block on--
SLAM!
The loud noise almost shook the entire house. The Apples were startled, trying to figure where the noise was coming from. Their attention was finally back on the tower. It shook a little, but no serious damage was done. To their relief they continued playing. Now, all Applejack needs to do is to slowly put the block on top of--
SLAM!
There was that noise again. It sounded as though somepony was slamming a door really hard. The tower began to wobble, much to the Apples’ fear. The wobbling ceased, with no block falling off. The Apples sighed with sweet relief and proceed with their Jenga session. Now the orange mare was beading with sweat, trying to put the block perfectly on the tower. Her hoof felt heavier with each passing moment. She hovered her hoof downward, ready for the moment of truth. She was almost there. The block was nearly on the---
SLAM!
It had finally happened. The jenga tower could no longer contain the shock wave caused by the third slam. One of the blocks fell off the tower, causing a chain reaction. The tower had collapsed onto the table. Game over. The three Apples groaned loudly in defeat and marched upstairs to confront the pony making all the noise.
In the bathroom was an unusual sight. Apple Bloom, the youngest of the Apple Family, tied a piece of string on her mouth and tied the other end onto a doorknob. She slammed the door multiple times, hoping to get rid of whatever was annoying her mouth. Despite spending fifteen minutes doing so, she was not successful. She slammed the door so much she almost broke the doorknob and locked herself in. She was filled with disappointment, deciding to surrender when she heard angry knocks on the door. She opened it, revealing her very annoyed and frustrated family.
“Apple Bloom, yer driving everypony crazy with yer loud noises! What the hay are ya doin’ up here?!” Big Mac furiously asked.
“Sorry, I was just trying to get rid of my loose tooth,” Apple Bloom innocently replied. She pointed her hoof to her mouth to show everypony where her loose tooth was. The Apples shook their heads in annoyance.
“Apple Bloom, I told you time and time again your tooth will fall out when it’s ready. Ya can’t just force it out,” Applejack said. “C’mon now, it’s gettin’ late. It’s time fer bed.”
“And no more foolin’ around, missy!” Granny Smith commanded. Apple Bloom shook her head and untied the string from her tooth. She brushed her teeth and turned in for the night. However, she could not sleep, for she was still thinking about her loose tooth. She had it for weeks now, and it refused to leave her mouth; it was overstaying its welcome. For a long time, she could not even take a bite out of an apple or any other hard snacks, fearing doing so would send a tremendous amount of pain to her. She had to eat softer foods such as hay, pudding, oatmeal, and similar items. It was annoying her to no end. Before she went off to slumberland, she prayed to the gods that her baby tooth be out of her mouth by tomorrow.
The rooster crowed in the new day as the sun rose above the mountains. The light from sun shined on the yellow, red-maned filly. She slowly opened her eyes to see the sun was staring at her. She sat up and yawned, stretching her forearms as she did so. She walked toward the bathroom to wash up, but first she looked at her reflection on the mirror. Her red mane was unkempt, but nothing but a little brushing couldn’t fix. She opened her mouth to see if her loose tooth was gone. She played with it by using her tongue; unfortunately, it remained in her mouth. She sighed to herself and prepared for the new day.
On her way to school, thoughts of her tooth occupied her mind. Applejack assured her that her it will fall out when it’s ready. But what if it would be a long time before it happens? What if her tooth will never fall out, and she’ll be stuck with her baby teeth forever? It would be the same as her cutie-mark. At that moment, she uncovered a horrifying realization.
“If I never get my cutie-mark, and my baby tooth won’t come out... I’ll never be a grown-up pony,” she said to herself. She stood there on the sidewalk, trying to comprehend the desperate situation. Why was this happening to her? What was she to do? Who could she go to for times such as this? She returned to earth once the school bell rang, signaling all the colts and fillies to be in class this instant.
Once in class, everypony was in their seat waiting for Miss Cheerilee to begin her lesson for today. Once in awhile Apple Bloom would play with her loose tooth with her tongue. She figured if she did it hard enough, her tooth would fall out completely. However, Applejack told her several times it was not a good idea, as it will only make the pain worse than before. But what choice did she have? All her other ideas failed. She wiggled her tooth with her tongue for a few minutes. She gagged when she tasted her blood.
“Apple Bloom, are you alright?” asked an orange pegasus next to her.
“I’m fine Scootaloo, just tryin’ to get rid of this tooth and all,” Apple Bloom answered.
“You have a loose tooth? Mine came out last week,” a white unicorn excitedly said.
“Lucky you,” Apple Bloom replied melancholy. Sweetie Belle wanted to say something else until Miss Cheerilee opened the door. She sat at her desk and looked at their young, smiling faces.
“Good morning class,” Cheerilee cheerfully announced.
“Good morning Miss Cheerilee!”
“Today, I have a special lesson for you all,” she continued. “Now, raise your arm if any of you have recently lost a baby tooth.”
The children all raised their forearms, even smiling at her to show the gap where their teeth were missing. It seem that all the children raised their arms. All except one.
“That looks like everypony in here... oh, everypony except Apple Bloom,” Miss Cheerilee deducted.
“Figures she still have her baby teeth,” commented a pink-coated filly with a tiara. Her name was Diamond Tiara, as the name implies. In her mocking tone, she put much emphasis on the word “baby,” much to Apple Bloom’s chargin. She shamefully bowed her head, while the other children giggled and chuckled.
“Class, don’t make fun of her,” Cheerilee said. “It takes awhile for baby teeth to come out. That’s why I wanted to show you this pleasant film about taking care of your teeth.” She pulled a film projector from the back of the room into the middle of the room. She asked a unicorn colt to close the windows and dim the lights. Afterward she started the film. The movie was... intriguing, to say the least.
****
A large, pristine white tooth with a red and blue propeller hat and an eternal smiling face materialized on the screen, with cheesy, generic edutainment music playing in the background. Next to him was a sky blue toothbrush, who was also about his size. He too had an eternally, awkward smile.
“Hey colts and fillies! I’m Timmy the Tooth!”
“And I’m Wally the Toothbrush!”
“We’re here to talk about why taking care of your teeth is important,” the tooth happily announced.
“Yep, that’s right,” the toothbrush added.
“You see kids,” Timmy began. “Teeth need nourishment, and need special attention everyday. Things like brushing and flossing can make sure no germs or bacteria will ever harm them.”
“Germs and bacteria?” Wally asked, surprised that such a thing exist. “What do they do?”
“Lots of stuff Wally. Sometimes, they make your teeth yellow and ugly!”
“Eww, that’s gross!”
“And a lot of times, those bacteria could cause certain diseases, like gingivitis,” Timmy replied, putting an eerie emphasis on the disease.
“Gingivitis? What’s that?”
“Gingivitis is what happens when there’s a party in your mouth, and the nasty germs barge in uninvited. They come in and wreck the entire place! They sit on your dad’s favorite chair, make rude and inappropriate jokes, destroy an expensive vase, and shave the cat!”
“Oh dear! I don’t want gingivitis in my mouth!”
“And that’s not all Wally, gingivitis also makes you have bad breath, and does something fierce with your gums; like change color and make them swollen and bleed!”
“Oh my! How do I prevent gingivitis Timmy?”
“By brushing and flossing every single day! Even visiting a dentist!”
“But I’m scared of the dentist, Timmy! He might pull my teeth out!”
“Don’t be silly Wally, the dentist only wants to take care of your teeth. In fact, I invited one here right now. Oh Mister Dentist!”
A tan pony with a white jacket and red bow-tie appeared on screen, smiling awkwardly at the tooth and toothbrush pair. He then looked to the camera and spoke to the (bored) audience.
“Thank you, Timmy. Hello folks, I am a professional dentist. My job is to make sure that your teeth are clean and healthy, and devoid of the many bacteria lurking around.”
“Mister Dentist, I heard that you pulled teeth out. That isn’t true isn’t it?” Wally cautiously asked.
“Oh no Wally, we rarely pull teeth out... not unless it was really necessary.”
“... What?”
“You see kids, if you don’t take good care of your teeth, you expose them to the elements. And if they’re exposed to the elements, they rot faster than day-old fruit. Not to mention the appearances of cavities. And we’ll have no choice but to use this thing!” He pulled out a terrifyingly huge drill-like tool.
“W-what is that?” Wally fearfully asked.
“My special tool I use to pull out all the bad teeth and fill those nasty cavities.”
“Yikes! Will it hurt?”
“It will unless you’re filled with laughing gas, Wally. Which reminds me... you’re overdue.”
The dentist turned on his drilling tool and jumped on Wally’s face. He put the drill in his mouth, and which Wally cried and screamed in pain, begging for mercy. Timmy the Tooth appeared in center-view and smiled his nightmare inducing smile to the young audience.
“Remember kids, brush and floss every day, or you’ll end up like Wally. See ya later!”
Fade out.
****
The film was over and the room brighten again. Cheerilee presented her trademark smile to her young class. The children could nothing but give awkward stares at their teacher.
“Well class, any questions?”
“That movie was dumb,” said Scootaloo. Her comment received bustling laughter from the class. Cheerilee rolled her eyes.
“Yes, I know Scootaloo. The movie was made a long time ago. Back when ponies first started learning about personal hygiene. Now, any real questions? Yes, Sweetie Belle.”
“Did Wally die?!”
Sweetie Belle’s question also generated laughter from her classmates. Miss Cheerilee had to explain to her that Wally the Toothbrush only had his cavity filled by the dentist. She also had to remind her that she needn’t worry about Wally, for he was an inanimate object whose only purpose was to teach those who lack the knowledge of dentistry and to provide comic relief. Diamond Tiara was the last to ask her question.
“I have a question, you think Apple Bloom will ever lose her baby tooth?” she asked in a mocking tone. Bloom sank deeply in her chair when she heard the dreaded laughter from her fellow classmates. “Maybe Big Mac can buck her tooth out!”
“Or better yet, maybe that dentist can use that drill of his to get it out,” Silver Spoon added. More laughter filled the room, and Apple Bloom desperately wished she was invisible. The lunch bell rang and Apple Bloom sped out of her chair and out the door. The rest followed suit.
Lunch wasn’t a particularly nice time either. She saw a nice, juicy apple and wanted it so badly, but remembered her tooth would make eating it difficult. So she had to make do with tomato soup. She sat down with her two friends, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. She looked at Diamond Tiara, who was sitting with her large circle of friends. They were laughing, probably something Tiara said about her.
“It’s just ain’t fair,” Bloom grumbled under her breath.
“What’s not fair?” asked Sweetie Belle.
“Everypony lost their baby teeth except me! Now all ya think I’m a baby!”
“We don’t think you’re a baby,” Sweetie Belle said.
“Yeah, you’re the most grown-up filly we’ve ever known,” Scootaloo assured her.
“Oh yeah? Tell that to Diamond Tiara!” Bloom angrily said. She glared at the pink filly who was told another hilarious joke. Belle and Scoots looked at each other worryingly.
“Bloom, you shouldn’t let what Diamond Tiara said get to you,” Scootaloo said. “You know how she likes to make fun of us.”
“Why are you telling me this? You easily turn red when she jokes about yer wings!”
“... I told you not to talk about that,” Scoots said in a dark tone.
“I just wish she’d leave me alone about my tooth. If she comes by one more time with all that baby talk--”
“Well, well, well. If it isn’t Little Baby Bloom,” Tiara said from behind Apple Bloom’s back. She slowly turned around and glared at the pink filly.
“What’s tha matta wittle baby bwoom, afraid to talk,” Tiara said in a cute by mocking tone. Fire appeared in Apple Bloom’s eyes. Thoughts about her tooth were gone, replaced with images of bucking Diamond Tiara in the mouth all the way to next week.
“Tiara, I’m warning you. Leave me alone or--”
“Or what? Tell on me? I knew you were such a baby,” she said. Her friends laughed at her snarky comment. Apple Bloom clinched her front hoof, while at the same time trying to restrain herself.
“Glad to see you lost yer tooth, there. Ready to lose another one?”
Apple Bloom’s comeback gained a collective “ooh” from the other kids. Tiara then turned serious and brought her face closer to Bloom’s.
“Laugh all you want, but face the facts that your tooth will never come out and going to be a big, stupid, baby forever!”
“At least I don’t get spoon-fed like a baby like you do!” Apple Bloom shot back. Another great comeback that generated both laughs and “oohs,” even cheers. Diamond Tiara growled as her pink face turned blood red.
“Get outta here, Diamond Tiara! You’re smugging up the place,” Scootaloo joked.
“That’s right you mean... meanie... mean-face you!” Sweetie Belle added. Bloom and Scoots both gave her a look.
“Sweetie Belle, leave the insults to us,” Scootaloo said.
“Come on Silver Spoon, I see nothing but dumb babies!”
Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon walked away, leaving the CMC to themselves at the lunch table. Even though Tiara was defeated, it still was not over. By tomorrow, she would come up with even newer, and hurtful insults. For the remainder of the day, thoughts of her baby tooth was all that was on her mind.
The school day came to an end when the last bell rang. The Cutie-Mark Crusaders decided to take the other way out of the school, in order to avoid another shouting match with Diamond Tiara. While Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo talked about their plans for crusading, Apple Bloom wiggled her tooth with her tongue. Belle and Scoots stopped talking to look at the yellow filly with concerned eyes.
“Jeez Apple Bloom, doesn’t that hurt?” asked Scootaloo.
“What, this? Nah, I’m fine, see?” answered Apple Bloom. She pretended to smile, trying to hide the pain traveling through her mouth.
“You know, if you want that tooth out so bad, why can’t you just pull it out?” Scootaloo asked again.
“Because Applejack said I shouldn’t. She said it will fall out when it’s ready, but I had this dang thing in my mouth for weeks now! I can’t even eat a single apple thanks to this goshdarn tooth,” Bloom cursed. She wiggled it once more and gagged when she again taste her blood.
“Girls, I got an idea! What if we make it look like an accident?” Sweetie Belle suggested. Scoots and Bloom gave confused looks at each other.
“What do you mean?”
“I was thinking, since Apple Bloom’s tooth won’t come out, what we make it look like an accident? You know... an accident?” Sweetie asked with shifty eyes. Scoots and Bloom were even more confused. Suddenly, their eyes widen with realization, and then narrowed with delicious delight.
“Come on girls, let’s to my house,” Apple Bloom ordered. The Cutie-Mark Crusaders ran down the trail that led to Sweet Apple Acres. Apple Bloom slowly opened the barn door, making sure nopony was in. When the coast was clear, they tiptoed inside and grabbed items that was sure to make Bloom’s tooth come out. Scootaloo looked through an old box and her face beamed when she found a slingshot.
“Apple Bloom, we could use this!”
Apple Bloom turned around to see what Scoots was talking about. A sudden chill traveled up her spine when she saw the slingshot.
“Scootaloo, we said to make it look like an accident, not kill me!” she reminded her.
“Aw c’mon! You want that tooth to come out, don’t you?”
“Not if that thing can make a hole in my head!”
“I know, how about boxing gloves?” Sweetie Belle asked. She found boxing gloves in the corner of the barn. What were they doing there was anypony’s guess. “We can pretend we’re practicing boxing, and either me or Scootaloo could “accidently” punch you in the face?”
“What, and break my jaw too? Heck no!” sneered Apple Bloom.
“I’m game! Come on Apple Bloom, put the gloves on,” Scootaloo excitedly said.
“I told you, I ain’t putting on those gloves!”
“Wow, Diamond Tiara was right, you really are a baby...”
The barn was silent. Apple Bloom gave a long, menacing glare to the orange pegasus. Sweetie Belle closed her eyes, shielding herself from the damage the yellow filly might cause. After a moment of intense silence, she finally spoke.
“Fine. Just get this over with.”
Scootaloo grabbed one of the gloves and put it on her front hoof. She came closer to Apple Bloom, who nervously gulped. The orange pegasus extended her hoof, ready to make contact with the scared filly’s face. That was until Apple Bloom held out her hoof to stop her.
“Wait one moment,” she said. She materialized a piece of white cloth and wrapped it around her eyes. “Okay, continue.”
Scootaloo held Apple Bloom’s head with one hoof and extended her other hoof. Sweat beamed down both their faces. Bloom’s entire body shook with fear, impatiently waiting for the disastrous impact that awaited her smooth face. Scootaloo wanted to back out the last minute, but she had to do this for her friend. Scootaloo applied as much force to her arm as possible. Sweetie Belle shield her eyes, not wanting to see the result of Scootaloo’s hoof-to-the-face technique. After long, intense moments of anticipation, Scootaloo finally swung her hoof straight at---
“Howdy girls, glad to see ya home from school,” Applejack announced.
Scootaloo stopped her hoof mid-swing.
Applejack’s smile suddenly turned into a frown as she took in the awkward scene. She looked at Sweetie Belle cowering in front of her. Then she stared at her little sister and Scootaloo. She noticed that Scoots had a pair of boxing gloves on; one of which was aiming at Bloom’s face. She put the two together, and glared at the children.
They were in trouble.
“Apple Bloom, what in tarnation are ya three doing?!”
“Trying to get our cutie-marks in... boxing?” Scootaloo meekly said with a nervous chuckle. The look on Applejack’s face told them that she wasn’t buying it.
“Oh yeah? Ya done that two months ago,” Applejack barked.
“Please Applejack, this isn’t what it looks like,” Sweetie Belle pleaded.
“Then what in the name of Johnny Appleseed is going on?! C’mon, get out with it!”
The Crusaders were dead silent. Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo thought of another excuse until Apple Bloom finally came forward.
“It’s not their fault. I convinced Scootaloo to punch me in the mouth with that boxing glove so my tooth could fall out,” Bloom said with shame in her voice.
“Apple Bloom, you didn’t--” Sweetie Belle began, but Bloom was quick to stop her.
“It was all my idea... I’m sorry,” she said. She bowed her head in shame.
“Apple Bloom I am very disappointed in you! Don’t you realize you could have seriously gotten hurt?! You would’ve had more than just a broken tooth! Now get to your room, we’re going to have a little discussion about this,” Applejack commanded. Apple Bloom slowly walked out of the barn with her head lowered. She then turned her attention to Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, both whom were quivering with terror.
“I want ya two to go straight home, now! Apple Bloom won’t be crusading with ya for a long while,” she ordered. The two shook their heads and headed out the barn. She watched the two go and walked back into the house, ready to a long conversation with Apple Bloom.
Apple Bloom sat on her bed, becoming miserable each passing moment. She picked her loose tooth with her hoof slowly. No matter how hard she tried, it just wouldn’t come out. She lied on her back, thinking about how this little, irritating tooth made her life so difficult. She heard the door and her elder sister entered. She looked at Applejack with shame in her eyes. Applejack sat down next to Apple Bloom, a moment of silence passing through.
“Apple Bloom, what on earth were you thinking when you let Scootaloo hit you?” she asked as if her sister was out of her mind.
“She never hit me. Well, she almost did until you came in.”
“Still, why did you think it was a good idea in the first place?”
“Because... because I wanted to get rid of my tooth,” she answered slowly. Applejack shook her head the moment she heard those words.
“Honey, how many times do I have to tell you? You can’t force your tooth out, it will come out when it’s ready.”
“But Diamond Tiara and everypony in my class were laughing at me and calling me a baby because it won’t come out! And she kept on saying how I’ll be a baby forever because of it!”
“Apple Bloom, you shouldn’t take everything Diamond Tiara says at heart. Ya know how she is, don’t you? And so what if she and everypony else calls ya a baby? The only thing you can do is to act grown-up in front of them,” she said sternly. “And having Scootaloo punch you in the mouth was not grown-up of you!”
“I know. But I want my tooth out now and I want her to stop calling me baby!”
“Apple Bloom, just like getting your cutie-mark, losing your tooth takes time and patience,” Applejack calmly said. “You can’t make those things happen, you just have to let it happen on their own pace.” Apple Bloom touched her tooth with her tongue. How long must she wait before it comes out? She let out a sigh of defeat and said nothing else. Applejack looked at her with pity. However, an idea crossed her mind.
“I know, how about tomorrow I take you to the dentist?”
“What! But I don’t wanna go to the dentist!” Apple Bloom cried.
“Apple Bloom, yer gonna have to go to the dentist sometime. Everypony has to.”
“But what if they use things to pull my teeth out?! What if they drill holes in my mouth?!”
“What? That ain’t never happen before. Who told ya that?”
“Timmy the Tooth and Wally the Toothbrush.”
“... I ain’t even gonna ask. Now your dinner will be ready in a little while. In the meantime, try not to do anything dangerous involving yer tooth,” Applejack pleaded.
“I won’t,” Apple Bloom simply replied. Applejack smiled at her and exited the room. Apple Bloom stared out her window, thoughts of the dentist in her mind. It would be her very first time going to such a place. She gulped nervously, hoping her visit would be a pleasant one.
The next day in class, Apple Bloom approached Miss Cheerilee. She handed her a note and she read it with a smile.
“Oh, you’re leaving early. To go to the dentist?” she asked.
“Yeah,” she said.
“Very good. It’s always important to visit your dentist at least twice a year.” Apple Bloom nodded to her brief aesop and took her seat next to Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. Scootaloo had an apologetic look on her face.
“Apple Bloom, I’m sorry I got you in trouble yesterday. I didn’t mean to.”
“That’s alright Scootaloo, you were trying to help.”
“I can’t believe you have to go to the dentist,” Sweetie said. “Even I never been there before.”
“It was only a matter of time Sweetie Belle,” Apple Bloom answered. “Besides, Applejack thought I was gonna hurt myself if I didn’t get professional help,” she joked.
“Going to the dentist huh?” a voice asked in a mocking tone. A voice Apple Bloom knew all too well. She looked to see Diamond Tiara and her lackey Silver Spoon, all in their smug glory.
“Diamond Tiara, I really have no time for this.”
“What do you mean you have no time for this?!” she asked surprisingly. “You’re going to the dentist today. It’s my job to make fun of you based on that information. Otherwise, I would neglecting my label as a bully.”
“Look Tiara, I have a lot of stuff on my mind, and I don’t need you to make it worse. If you’re here to tease me, push me around and call me a baby, be my guess. I’m gonna have to ignore you and focus on my first trip to the dentist. You don’t know how it feels like when a random pony you don’t know wearing a white jacket and rubber gloves has to touch yer mouth for fifteen minutes or more. I don’t know, because this is my first time and I’m really nervous about it. And I bet you don’t know either. In fact, I bet you don’t know a lot of things. So if you don’t have anything intelligent to say, why don’t you be a good little filly take your seat and actually learn something today, will you do that?”
The other two Cutie-Mark Crusaders, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were stunned from the words that came from Apple Bloom. She had the audacity to tell her what to do. She also had the nerve to say that she was going to ignore her all day. Nopony ever ignores Diamond Tiara. Worst of all, Apple Bloom implied that Tiara was an uneducated idiot. That was what made her paralyzed. She was brought back to reality thanks to Silver Spoon. She glared back at Apple Bloom.
“Fine! I don’t need to bully you anyway! There are tons of foals I can bully for amusement. Hey! Twist! Your hair is stupid!” Diamond Tiara ran off the other direction, Silver Spoon in tow. Scootaloo patted Apple Bloom on her back.
“That was righteous,” she proudly said.
“I just didn’t feel like having a fight with Diamond Tiara is all. I got enough stuff to worry about.”
By the time lunch period ended, Applejack arrived at Ponyville Elementary to pick up her sister. Before she could go, Miss Cheerilee handed the filly her homework assignment for the day. The two Apple Sisters walked into town and found their way to the dentist building. It was a square shaped building, partly made of glass and bricks. One of the more modern buildings in Ponyville. Applejack opened the door and let her sister in.
Once they were inside, Applejack spoke to one of the assistance. The inside wasn’t at all what Apple Bloom thought it would be. It was neatly lit, with a clean glass window giving her a perfect view of the town. Three rows of chairs were seated at the opposite sides of each other, with a table containing outdated magazines in the center of the waiting room. And the room felt cool, thanks to the air conditioning. Apple Bloom sat down on one of the chairs and took in her surroundings. Just then, Applejack sat down next to her.
“Alrighty then, somepony should be with you in just a few minutes,” she said happily.
“Yeah. Great,” she simply said. She tried to smile, but she was too nervous to do so. A few minutes passed while they waited, but to Apple Bloom it felt like an eternity. The more time passed, the more nervous she felt. Finally, a mare called out for Apple Bloom’s name.
“Apple Bloom, Colgate will be here in exactly one minute,” she said with a smile. Bloom gulped and stood up, her legs shaking.
“Don’t worry sugarcube, I’ll be right here with you,” Applejack whispered. At least that gave some sort of comfort. A blue unicorn mare with a dark blue mane complete with a white streak walked into the waiting room. Her irises were also blue and her cutie-mark was an hourglass. She smiled at the yellow filly in front of her.
“You must be Apple Bloom. My name is Colagate, and I will be your dentist today,” she said warmly. “Is this your sister?” she asked nicely. Applejack introduced herself and the two shook hooves. Colgate led Applejack and Apple Bloom down the hall into her office. She pointed a chair and motioned for Apple Bloom to sit down. It was a long, minty-green chair with a circular mirror hanging over it. Applejack sat on a chair on the other side of the room.
“So what seems to be the problem?” Colgate asked in a polite manner.
“Well... I have a loose tooth that’s been in my mouth for weeks,” she explained.
“Ahh, I see. Let’s take a look. But first I like to do a check up. Open your mouth please.”
Apple Bloom did what she was told and opened her mouth. Colgate levitated a rubber on her hoof and touched her tooth with a piece of tissue.
“You’re right, it is loose,” she said in a joking manner. While she was doing this, Apple Bloom looked around the room. There were so many posters about why taking care of your teeth is important. Another poster explained the dangers of plaque and another on the topic of how to prevent tooth decay. Colgate walked away from Apple Bloom for a moment and searched for some tools. She levitated two intimidating looking tools. Apple Bloom’s pupils shrunk at the sight of them.
“Oh, don’t worry these. These are things I use to perform check-ups. This one is called a “mouth mirror.” I use it took at areas around the mouth that are hard to see. And this called a “sickle.” I use this to find soft spots in the mouth and holes caused by cavities.”
“Will they hurt?”
“They won’t hurt, I promise you,” she assured her.
Colgate did a quick examination on Apple Bloom’s mouth. After spending a few minutes scanning her mouth she found no cavities, much to Apple Bloom’s relief.
“So, how was your first check-up?” Colgate asked.
“I don’t know. It kinda tickled actually,” Apple Bloom answered.
Colgate smiled at her response. She then levitated a piece of tissue and used it to touch her mouth. Apple Bloom thought she was doing another examination. When she was done she walked away from Bloom for a brief moment. At that time, Apple Bloom asked her the question she wanted to ask ever since she first came here.
“Umm... are you going to use anything to pull my tooth out?” she asked innocently.
“You don’t mean this tooth, do you?”
Colgate levitated the same tissue with her magic, and lo and behold, her tooth was there. Apple Bloom’s eyes were as wide as dinner plates. She was speechless as to what Colgate did. To make sure it was actually tooth, she used her tongue. All she felt was a soft spot her tooth had been previously. Her breath was literally taken away.
“H-h-how did you do that? I didn’t feel a thing!”
“Simple - I pulled it out,” Colgate said lightly. Apple Bloom still could not believe what just happened. She managed to pull out her tooth with no tool - heck, she pulled it out with no effort at all. Applejack chuckled at her sister’s amazement.
“Now let’s clean those beautiful teeth,” Colgate said with glee. She materialized a tube and told Apple Bloom to open her mouth. She sprayed a liquid substance in her mouth. Bloom thought it had a minty flavor to her. Colgate told her to spit it out into a small cup. She then had her drink a small cup of water. Apple Bloom gargled the water and spat it out on the same cup. Afterward, Colgate let her go.
“Wait, before you go, I have somethings to give you.” Colgate gave Apple Bloom a brand new red toothbrush. She didn’t think much of it, but smiled anyway. The next gift was a small black case. She levitated on Apple Bloom’s hoof and she opened it.
It was her tooth.
“Think of it as a souvenir; from your first trip to the dentist,” she said. Apple Bloom smiled at her and gave her a hug. Applejack couldn’t help but smile at the heartwarming moment. Apple Bloom waved goodbye to Colgate and she waved to her. On the way out, Applejack looked proudly at her sister.
“So how was your first trip to the dentist?”
“I can’t believe I got worked up over nothing,” Bloom exclaimed. The sisters laughed and walked down the street.
“I’m very proud of you, Apple Bloom. You were very brave. Let’s celebrate, what do ya want?”
“A nice - sweet - juicy apple!” Apple Bloom said, her voice full of excitement
“I thought so,” Applejack chuckled. The Apple Sisters merrily walked the long road home, and Apple Bloom was proud of herself for her first major accomplishment in her young life.
**Two Weeks Later**
The dentist waiting room had another unexpected visitorter. Filthy Rich and his daughter, Diamond Tiara. Earlier that day, during gym class, the children were playing a game of dodgeball. It was Team Tiara against Team Scootaloo. Team Tiara won most of the matches, much to Scootaloo’s chargin. However, how she ended up at the dentist was just as you had expected.
During one of those games, Tiara made some unkind and hurtful remarks to memebers of Scootaloo’s team. She insulted everyone, but it was mostly Scootaloo and Twist. Tiara made of how small and tiny Scoots’ wings were and how ugly Twist’s hair - and to an extension, her face - was. This made Scootaloo so angry that she threw a ball right at Tiara’s face with rage.
And she missed.
Diamond Tiara continued with her taunts and insults. She then targeted her teasing at Twist. She called her names like “twisted sister,” “freckled freak,” and the one that really set her off, “ugly soulless ginger.” Twist, deciding that she have had enough of her antics, smacked Diamond Tiara in the mouth with one of those red rubber dodgeballs in point blank. The results were disastrous; her mouth was completely damaged from the impact. The moment she hit the floor, her face swollen. Not to mention she was missing a lot of her teeth. Diamond Tiara was sent crying to the nurse’s office. They both got afterschool detention, but Twist was a hero to her fellow peers that day.
So here was Diamond Tiara now, her mouth now swollen by the ultimate dodgeball-to-the-face attack. Filthy Rich glared at his bratty, spoiled daughter. His glare made her whimper and cowar in her seat.
“I hope you learn your lesson, young lady,” he scolded. “Your mouth is what got you into this mess.” Diamond Tiara looked down at the floor in shame. A moment later, Colgate the Dentist entered the waiting room.
“Hello Mr. Rich. Are we ready for Diamond Tiara’s appointment?” she asked in a polite manner.
“Why yes we are. Miss Tiara here had a little... accident during gym. And she needs something done with her mouth immediately.”
“Don’t worry Mr. Rich, I have just the solution for that,” Colgate said. She led Filthy Rich and his daughter down to her office. She motioned for the pink filly to sit in the mint-colored dental chair. Colgate then went to the other side of the room to grab her dentistry instruments. She had found the perfect tool.
Diamond Tiara’s pupils shrunk.
A terrifying buzzing sound was heard.
“Don’t worry Diamond Tiara, this won’t hurt a bit.”
