"Wake up! Wake up momma!" An eager, ivory filly bounced on her mother's bed. She had single-braided rose mane and a tail styled to match. "Yah promised! Today yer gonna take me to join the Cutie Mark Crusaders!"
The blank-flank filly spilled off of the bed as her mother sat up. "Mornin' already?" she yawned as she rubbed her yellow-orange eyes.
"Yah promised to take me to the Cutie Mark Crusaders so Ah can get mah cutie mark!" The filly bounced around.
"Good mornin' to you, too, Apple Petal," she chuckled as she pulled herself out of bed. There was no point in trying to go back to bed. She'd learned that years ago. "Give momma a minute to make her bed. You go make yers. Ah know you ain't done it yet," she chided, urging her daughter out the door. "Go on."
"Awww!" the filly uselessly protested before shuffling out of her mother's room.
In just a couple of minutes, she had her bed in order and headed down the well-worn stairs. "Mornin' Apple Bloom!" a familiar voice sounded as she managed to reach the bottom of the stairs. Turning towards the kitchen she found her older sister: Applejack. "I heard yer young'in," Applejack chuckled as she set the table.
"Was I that energetic when I was that age?" Apple Bloom lamented as she gave Applejack a hoof with getting breakfast on the table.
Applejack just laughed at her. "Well, little sis', let's just say that the apple don't fall far from the tree," she joked with a wink.
Apple Bloom rolled her eyes at her big sister. "Ah take it Big Mac's already out in the orchard."
"Yep!" Applejack nodded as she set out a massive stack of flapjacks on the table. "You know him. He'll come back 'n' eat once everypony else is done. Ah swear the big guy's only gettin' shier with age."
Just as the two sisters got the table set, a great galumphing preceded Apple Petal's appearance in the kitchen. "Ah'm all set! C'mon momma! Let's go to the Cutie Mark Crusader's clubhouse!"
"Yah see?" Applejack taunted her little sister as she took her seat. "Yah should've kept yer mouth shut. Two days ago she'd never heard'a the Cutie Mark Crusaders."
Apple Bloom rolled her eyes. "Come on an' eat yer breakfast. It can wait that long."
"But yah promised!" Apple Petal whined.
"Ah promised to take yah today," Apple Bloom clarified as she ushered her daughter into a chair before taking a seat herself. "Now yah can eat yer breakfast 'n' we can go, or Ah can take yah after supper. Now which would yah prefer?"
Apple Petal's response was to try and shove an entire pancake down her throat all at once. Applejack laughed as Apple Bloom pried the flapjack free and set it on her daughter's plate before putting two more on top of it. "Yer pushin' yer luck, Apple Petal," her mother warned as she dumped a pad of butter on them and drowned them in syrup. "Now we ain't goin' until after Ah'm done. So take yer time 'n' eat right."
Apple Petal groaned as she rolled her eyes. "Fine."
It was a fairly brief meal, though to Apple Petal it lasted a couple of eternities. Maybe even three. But finally her aunt and her momma cleared the table and her momma said those words she'd been dying to hear to all morning, "Okay, Apple Petal, let's go."
"Yay! Let's go!" she shrieked her joy as she bolted out the door. It wasn't until she made several strides away from her home that she realized she had no clue where she was going. "Come on, momma!" She bounded up and down impatiently.
"Ah'm'a comin'." Apple Bloom stepped out as she adjusted her saddlebags.
Apple Bloom led her daughter through the vast apple orchards as Apple Petal bounded about as she excitedly speculated on all the amazing things she would get to do as a Cutie Mark Crusader. Thankfully, it wasn't long before a familiar clubhouse came into view. It looked a little worn down compared to how she remembered it. She would have to give it another once-over now that her daughter would be spending a vast amount of time here.
As the duo walked up in front of it, Apple Petal pointed to the clubhouse. "Since when has this been here!?"
"Longer 'n' Ah have," Apple Bloom chortled.
"How do we get in?" Apple Petal puzzled as she looked around.
Apple Bloom pointed up to the raised ramp. "That part comes down. Somepony must be up there to have raised it," she pondered as she tilted her head to the side. With little other recourse, she tossed a rock up at the door. With more luck than skill, she scored a direct hit on the door.
After a few seconds, a tawny unicorn colt with a neat, coffee-colored mane stuck his head out of the door as he looked around. Adjusting his glasses, he spotted the two earth ponies. "Cutie Mark Crusaders! We have intruders!" he sounded the alarm.
A pegasus appeared in one window. She had an azure coat and a sharp-cut, sky-blue mane styled so that it fell over one of her eyes. The eye that was visible was a gentle mauve. The other window had a pegasus colt. His eyes were the same color as the first pegasus's. He had a curly, charcoal mane and a grey coat.
"Howdy!" Apple Bloom waved up to the youngsters.
"This clubhouse is for the Cutie Mark Crusaders only!" the unicorn yelled down as he exited out the door and leaned over the railing with the two pegasi flanking him. Now that he was outside of the building, it was clear that the unicorn actually had his cutie mark. It was an inkwell and quill.
Apple Bloom frowned. She was about to tell the youngsters off when her daughter spoke up, "Ah wanna be a Cutie Mark Crusader!"
The female pegasus leapt up on the handrail before leaping off into a back-flip. "It's another filly! She can join, right?" she looked to the unicorn as she landed flawlessly—not bad for such a young pegasus. After she landed, though, she ran a hoof across her bangs to try to keep them over her eye.
The bespectacled unicorn studied the filly a moment before nodding. "Yeah, but no grown-ups!" he accused, pointing at Apple Bloom.
"Ah'll have yah know that Ah'm already a Cutie Mark Crusader!" She smirked up at the filly and two colts.
Apple Petal gasped as she looked up to her mother. "Yer a Cutie Mark Crusader!?"
Apple Bloom's smile only widened. "Yup! In fact Ah'm one'a the first. Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Ah founded the Cutie Mark Crusaders when we were fillies. Ah'm even the one that came up with the name!"
The trio gasped as they dropped the ramp and stampeded down. "You're Apple Bloom!" they shouted in unison as they converged on the earth pony.
"Easy now." Apple Bloom urged the youngsters away from herself before motioning to her daughter. "This here's mah daughter, Apple Petal, and she'd like to join y'all. What do yah say?"
"Of course!" the unicorn agreed as all three nodded. He then pointed to himself. "I'm Scribble Scrabble."
"I'm Clear Skies," the pegasus filly introduced herself before pointing to the other pegasus. "This is my twin brother, Cloudy Skies."
"Hi!" Apple Petal smiled and waved.
Scribble trotted partway up the ramp before turning back. "Come on! Let's get Apple Petal initiated!" he urged, waving a hoof.
As the little ones did their thing, Apple Bloom couldn't help but to appreciate the nostalgia of squeezing into her old clubhouse. It was a lot bigger back then!
The Crusaders still had the same stupidly long list of synonyms for "friend" and even the same drums as her daughter was initiated. Scootaloo had once vowed to change that, but it looked like she never really got around to it. As the Crusaders continued to babble on, Apple Bloom couldn't help but to get swept away in her nostalgia.
The furniture had changed completely, but it wasn't all that surprising. Back in her crusading days, the interior of the place changed just about every week to facilitate their often destructive and futile attempts to get their cutie marks. The walls were still covered in posters—even if they were all different. There were a couple of posters depicting the Wonderbolts. The pegasi siblings put them there, no doubt. Interestingly enough, there was a poster of Scootaloo. She was on her scooter doing one of her death-defying stunts. Behind Scribble Scrabble and the podium was a poster of the Cutie Mark Crusader emblem—still unchanged from Sweetie Belle's original design.
Apple Bloom was brought out of her reverie when a loud cheer and the Crusaders hugging together signaled the end of the initiation ceremony. She kicked herself a bit for allowing herself to get so distracted.
Then she noticed it. Something was missing.
"Wait a minute, where's y'all's capes?" Apple Bloom interrupted. "Yer supposed to give 'er a cape when she joins!" All four Crusaders stared back at her with puzzled expressions. Apple Bloom facehooved before pointing to the poster on the wall depicting the silhouette of a cape-wearing filly superimposed on a blue shield. "It's supposed to be a red cape with the Cutie Mark Crusader's emblem on it."
Still seeing a confused look on their faces, she dug into one of her saddlebags before fishing out her cape given to her by Sweetie Belle all those years ago. "Here, Apple Petal." She ceremoniously adorned her daughter with the stained, patched cape. "You can have mine. The rest'a y'all should get some. Maybe Ah'll talk to Rarity when Ah get a chance, though it ain't really the same if it ain't hoof-stitched by a Crusader."
The screams of adoration and excitement were deafening. Apple Bloom just rolled her eyes as she got up and sneaked out. Her daughter would probably be distracted here all day. Maybe now she would finally have enough time to make that new wagon Applejack's been harping on about. She barely made it to the top of the ramp before Clear Skies flew out after her.
"Hey? Aren't you going to stay?" Clear asked as she landed behind Apple Bloom.
"Huh?" she turned around.
"Yeah! Yeah!" Scribble burst out the door followed by the other two. "You know all about the Crusaders! You have to tell us everything!"
Apple Bloom raised an eyebrow at the group of excited Crusaders. "E-everythin'?"
"YEAH!" a collective cry rung out as the fillies and colts dragged the reluctant mare back into the cramped clubhouse.
Apple Bloom sighed as she lied down in a cozy corner. "So what can Ah do yah fer?"
The four Crusaders looked to each other with confusion before looking back to Apple Bloom expectantly. "You're the expert," Scribble asserted. "I mean, you founded the Cutie Mark Crusaders!"
"Ah co-founded it," Apple Bloom pointed out. "With Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle."
"What...inspired you to do that?" Cloudy asked.
Apple Bloom rubbed her chin as she tried to remember. "Well, Ah guess yah could say that we did it because of a bully."
"A...a bully?" Clear absentmindedly groomed her mane, heaping even more of her mane over her hidden eye. Her brother responded by draping a wing over her.
With a small nod, the mare continued, "We get along okay now, but back then a filly really teased us three because we didn't have our cutie marks. We were tired of being 'blank flanks' so we formed the Cutie Mark Crusaders to discover who we are and what our purpose is. Ah can tell yah this much, though: more 'n' anythin' Ah remember the fun we had 'n' the friendships we formed. It ain't all about gettin' yer cutie mark, but Ah'm guessin' yah already know that, eh Scribble?"
All eyes fell on Scribble's cutie mark. "Ah, well, Babs Seed says that once you're a Crusader, you're always a Crusader. She encourages those who get their cutie marks to stick around and help everypony else get theirs."
"Ah heard some time ago that Babs was lookin' after the Cutie Mark Crusaders."
Scribble nodded. "She takes care of all of the stuff we're too young to. She manages all the different branches, organizes field trips and she's in charge of the Cutie Mark Chronicle."
"Cutie Mark Chronicle?" Apple Petal looked to her mother.
Apple Bloom shrugged. "We didn't have no 'Chronicle' or field trips back when we were crusadin'. We only had this branch 'n' the one Babs started."
"The Cutie Mark Chronicle is our weekly newspaper!" the tawny unicorn claimed. "It's got stuff like fun activities we can try to get our cutie marks, what other crusaders did to get theirs and who got their cutie marks."
"Ah'll be darned." Apple Bloom shook her head as she recalled the time they tried to get their journalist cutie marks. Good heavens, that was bad. Maybe the worst hour in the entire history of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. "So how many branches do yah got now?" she asked in an effort to get her mind off of the bitter memories.
"Thirty-two," Scribble claimed. "We're all over now, but this was the first branch, right?"
Apple Bloom nodded. "Right here's where it all started—well, actually it started in Sugarcube Corner. But this became our usual hangout after mah big sis, Applejack, let us have it 'n' Ah fixed it up. Ah was actually thinkin'a doin' some work on the old clubhouse. It's gotten a little rundown."
"Blame Cloudy," Clear claimed as she pointed with her wing. "He's the one that crashed through the ceiling!"
Apple Bloom blinked a couple of times before looking straight up. Sure enough, there was a gaping hole there. "How did Ah not notice that before?" she mumbled aloud.
"Clear is the one that broke the window shutters playing cloudball!" Cloudy pointed a hoof.
"That was not my fault! You're the one that threw that pass a mile wide, little brother!" she argued.
"Ye-yeah well Scribble is the one that leaned on the banister and made it fall off!" he shot back, shifting blame over to the unicorn.
Seeing that this wasn't about to end well, Apple Bloom stood up and stamped her hoof to bring attention to herself. She succeeded...and she also stomped her way all the way through the floor. Pulling her leg free she offered a squeeworthy smile. "Ah'll fix it. All of it," she assured. "Now y'all stop yer arguin'. Do Ah make mahself clear?"
"Yes, Apple Bloom," the trio chimed in unison in that "I've been scolded" voice that all children seem to magically know.
"Good." Apple Bloom nodded before heading for the door. "Ah'll go get mah tools 'n' get started," she said just before exiting the clubhouse. Again, she made it all the way to the top of the ramp before she was stopped by a pegasus, but this time it wasn't a filly.
There sat a pegasus on a bulky scooter. The front basket went all the way from the handles to near the ground. It was half-full of letters and packages. The pegasus piloting the unwieldy behemoth of a scooter was sitting on a handcrafted seat with a large mailbag over her shoulder. Apple Bloom knew the seating compartment was hollow for more packages largely due to the fact that she had built it herself.
"Hey Apple Bloom!" Scootaloo waved up to her old friend. "I was just at the farm. They told me to come find you here!"
"Looks like yer not even halfway done with yer route." Apple Bloom trotted down the ramp and to her friend. "Ah take it yah got a letter fer me?"
"A package, actually," Scootaloo replied as she leaned over and fished a small box from the bag. "Here."
Apple Bloom observed it a moment before rolling her eyes with a sigh. "Ah don't know why they didn't have yah leave it at the farm. It's a part Ah needed to build the new wagon."
Scootaloo just shrugged as she looked up at the old clubhouse. "What brings you out here? Feeling nostalgic?"
Apple Bloom giggled a bit before proudly stating, "Apple Petal joined the Cutie Mark Crusaders today."
"Cool, cool. Say, how long are you gonna be here? I might stop by after I finish my route," Scootaloo smirked. "The stories I could tell..."
Apple Bloom sighed. "Actually, it's lookin' like Ah might be here all day. Ah just promised them Ah'd fix up the old place," she lamented. She suddenly perked up as an idea struck her. "Tell yah what, Scootaloo. You do me a favor or two and Ah'll treat yah to lunch."
Scootaloo grinned. "Sure!"
Apple Bloom handed Scootaloo the package. "Take this back to the farm, 'n' while yer there get mah tools and tool belt. Ask Big Mac fer some lumber, too," she requested as she reached into her saddlebag and brought out a small bag of bits. "When yer finished with yer route, pick up some lunch fer all of us and meet us here. There's me, Apple Petal, 'n' three other Crusaders."
"That's three, maybe four favors." Scootaloo leered at Apple Bloom.
Apple Bloom met Scootaloo's stare with one of her own. "We both know yer gonna do it anyway. So stop wastin' time 'n' get to it."
Scootaloo sighed as she broke the stare. "Fine," she relented. Shifting her weight, she flapped her wings at a dizzying speed. They propelled her and the unwieldy scooter away at a blistering speed. "You owe me!" Scootaloo shouted back as the scooter shot off into the distance.
Apple Bloom sighed once the dust settled. Deciding that she didn't want to be out of earshot of her daughter and that she definitely needed at least a small break from the fillies and colts, she found a nearby shady spot and settled down into the cool grass. Aside from the occasional laughter or joyous shout, it was peaceful out here in this secluded little corner of the apple orchard.
She closed her eyes and snuggled her head into her crossed forelegs as she began to relax. It was nice that Apple Petal seemed to making new friends so quickly. She just hoped that her daughter wouldn't get into as much trouble she often found herself in. If she ever caught her daughter stirring up trouble with a cockatrice or getting mixed up with a love poison she would...ohhh what she would do!
"Sleeping on the job already?" Scootaloo's voice shattered Apple Bloom's slumber as a heavy tool belt landed next to her, followed by a small pile of lumber.
"You're back," Apple Bloom observed as she stretched and got to her hooves. Ah must've fallen asleep.
"Just long enough to make the delivery." Scootaloo winked as she shifted her weight on the scooter. "Don't forget our lunch date!" she shouted as her wings again propelled her away at a dizzying speed.
Strapping on her trusty, well-worn tool belt, she called up to the clubhouse, "All right! Ah'm ready to start workin' on the clubhouse!"
She stopped in front of the pile of lumber only to wonder how Scootaloo managed to get it all here in one go. Sighing, she picked up a single piece and slung it over her shoulder as she turned again to the clubhouse. She was about to shout for the Crusaders to vacate the premises, but she found them charging at her.
"Cutie Mark Crusader builders! Yay!" they shouted, minus Apple Petal who had yet to catch on to the trademark phrase. The pegasus twins worked together to get a single piece of wood. They grabbed opposite ends of the same piece and flew together carefully towards the clubhouse. Scribble and Apple Petal each grabbed an end of another piece. They reared up onto their hind legs to manipulate the board with their forelegs as they slowly worked their way along.
Although she was tempted to tell them to leave it to her, they did seem to be taking their time and showing appropriate caution. "Be careful," Apple Bloom instructed. "Stack this wood up beside the clubhouse on the side that still has a guard rail!" With the help of the Cutie Mark Crusaders, she got the lumber up in half the time it would have taken her on her own.
The fillies and colts were actually pretty helpful, even if she did have to constantly scold them for horseplaying on a worksite. Over time, however, their help slowly shifted into hindrance. Thankfully, they seemed to be running out of patience as well.
"Why don't you four go and play while Ah work on the clubhouse?" Apple Bloom suggested.
"We've been at this forever and none of us have a cutie mark to show for it," Cloudy groused.
The other three seemed to be in agreement. "Let's go guys!" Scribble shouted as he headed for the ramp.
"Be back in time fer lunch!" Apple Bloom called after the quartet. "Ah've got somethin' special planned!"
The group of four found themselves gathered at the picnic table a stone's throw away from the clubhouse. "So what do y'all normally do to find yer cutie marks?"
"A little bit of everything," Clear announced as she sat next to her brother.
"Babs Seed says that having fun and being safe is as important as anything else," Scribble explained. "We usually do the suggestions in the Chronicle, then when we've done all of those we just try to come up something that sounds fun."
Cloudy scoffed. "In case you haven't noticed, Scribble likes to take charge. Too bad you can't take off whenever you want like me and sis'."
Clear's visible eye rolled. "Don't let my little brother discourage you. Scribble has a lot of good ideas, but you're new! That means you have ideas we haven't thought of yet! Let's do what you think might be a good idea."
"Yeah!" the other two Crusaders chimed in as all eyes fell on Apple Petal.
She looked around nervously. "M-me?"
"Yeah! You're the only earth pony," Scribble pointed out. "You probably have a lot of unique ideas!"
Put on the spot, Apple Petal spoke the first thing that came to mind. "Ah, uh...Ah usually like to go down to the swimmin' hole when it's hot like this. Maybe we could try somethin' there?"
"Uh-um...no," Clear denied as she stroked her mane to put more hair over her eye. "I-I don't like swimming."
"Is there somethin' wrong with yer eye?" Apple Petal reached across the table and brushed the mane away from her eye.
Clear gasped at about the same time Apple Petal did. Clear recoiled as she fiercely used both forelegs to try and bury her eye under her mane, as if the action would make Apple Petal unsee. Cloudy reflexively draped a wing over his sister as he sent Apple Petal a fierce glare.
"It's red!" Apple Petal couldn't stop herself from blurting out. At Apple Petal's words, Clear winced as she leaned against her brother and buried her face in his shoulder. Cloudy comforted his sister by running a hoof through her mane as he continued to glare at Apple Petal. Even Scribble Scrabble was giving her a disapproving look.
She didn't quite understand it, but she had apparently done something very bad. "Uh, hey! Don't cry," Apple Petal leaned over to try and put a hoof on Clear's shoulder. Her efforts were in vain. Cloudy swatted the hoof away when it got close to his sister. "Ah didn't mean nothin' by it. Really," she muttered as she rubbed her foreleg. "Ah just...Ah thought it was really neat. Ah've never seen a pony with two different eye colors before."
Clear sniffed as she tentatively peered at Apple Petal with just her mauve eye, keeping the other one safely hidden against her brother. "R-really?"
"Yeah! Ah think it's really pretty!" Apple Petal smiled. "It must be really cool havin' two eye colors like that!"
"It's not!" Clear quickly denied as she turned to face Apple Petal—making sure to keep a hoof over her bangs to keep her eye hidden. "Everypony makes fun of me for it! I hate it! It's ugly!" She quickly hid back into her brother's chest as fresh tears stung her eyes.
"We-well why the hay would anypony tease yah about that?" Apple Petal mused aloud. "Ah get teased a lot, but it's because Ah got a blank flank."
Not seeing any change in Clear Skies's demeanor, Apple Petal lowered her head. "Hey, Ah-Ah'm sorry if'n Ah hurt yer feelings. Ah really didn't mean nothin' bad by it. Ah was just...surprised. Ah never saw nothin' like it before. And, Ah really do think it's neat... Yer eye, Ah mean. It ain't ugly at all, if yah ask me."
After a few tense moments, Clear finally moved away from her brother. She kept her gaze locked on her lap as she sniffled and rubbed her face with a foreleg. Daring a glance up, she saw Apple Petal looking earnestly back at her.
"Ah'm mighty sorry," Apple Petal apologized, holding out a hoof. "Forgive me?"
Clear tentatively reached out and her hoof met with Apple Petal's, eliciting a smile from her as Apple Petal roughly shook her hoof. "I-I just... I don't want anypony to see it," she mumbled.
"Ah won't tell anypony," Apple Petal offered, finally earning a small smile from Clear Skies.
Seeing his sister smile, Cloudy managed to shake his frown. "Sis' got bullied a lot back in Cloudsdale. It got so bad we had to move here," he explained as he kept a wing draped over Clear. "We're not looking forward to going to school once it starts."
"But Cloudy and Clear are the whole reason we have the Cutie Mark Crusaders!" Scribble finally spoke up. "They were part of the Cloudsdale branch, but we didn't have one here. I joined them and we found out about the clubhouse here from Babs Seed."
"Oh! Ah just got a great idea!" Apple Petal waved her hoof in the air as if she was in class. She then grabbed her cape and held it up. "Momma said that we should get more capes from Rarity, right? Why don't we do that?"
The other three lit up at the suggestion. "Now that's a great idea!" Scribble announced as he leapt away from the picnic table.
"Ah know where Rarity's place is," Apple Petal assured as she took off in a gallop. "Follow me!"
"So they just cancelled all your shows?" Rarity asked as she set out two glasses on her kitchen table.
"Yeah." Sweetie Belle nodded before sitting down at the table. "Since my next performance isn't until this weekend in Manehattan, I decided to come home and spend time with my favorite sister!"
"Sweetie Belle, darling, I'm your only sister," Rarity pointed out as she took a seat across from her little sister.
Sweetie Belle dismissed the notion with a wave of her hoof. "I never get a break anymore. I miss everypony here in Ponyville."
Rarity sighed. "Yes. I imagine it must be quite the chore to constantly tour Equestria, dazzling sold out crowds and signing autographs for thousands of fans..."
Sweetie Belle rolled her eyes. "It's not all fame and fortune, you know," she complained with a pout. "This is the first time I've had more than two days to myself in months!"
"Well, Sweetie Belle—"
CRASH!
"Cutie Mark Crusader fashion designers! Yay!"
"Rarity! Are you okay?" Sweetie Belle's voice squeaked.
The next thing Rarity knew, she was pulling herself up off of the ground. She shook her head as she tried to still her beating heart. "I-I think I just-just may have had a flashback," she stuttered.
"Um...I think you have more guests." Sweetie Belle peeked out into Rarity's workshop.
Rarity followed after her little sister to find her workshop overrun by fillies and colts. "Just what do you think you're doing!?" she harshly demanded, causing the youngsters to instantly cease their action.
"Uh...well," Apple Petal stammered as she dropped the cloth in her hooves. "Momma said that we needed capes to be official Cutie Mark Crusaders." She held up her cape for emphasis. "She said that we could make them here."
Rarity facehooved as she mentally cursed Apple Bloom. "You just think it's okay for you to just barge in and start using my materials without even asking permission first?"
All four Crusaders sheepishly put away the stuff that they had grabbed as their ears folded back. "No," they collectively replied.
Suddenly, Scribble perked up. "Oh my gosh! Is that Sweetie Belle!?" he asked as he pointed.
The pegasus twins tilted their heads in opposite directions a moment before the recognition clicked. "It is!" Clear exclaimed as she zoomed over. "You're Sweetie Belle!"
Sweetie Belle smiled as the fillies and colts gathered around her. "I love your theater performances!" Scribble enthused. "Especially your operas. They're incredible!"
She blinked at the praise. "Wow," she giggled at Scribble. "Colts your age don't usually appreciate opera."
"Who cares about opera? Her concerts are the best!" Cloudy contended.
"I have all your records!" Clear added.
Sweetie Belle just smiled down at her tiny fans until something caught her eye. "Hey, that looks just like—" she zoomed over to Apple Petal as she tugged at the cape "—it is! I made this when I was a filly!"
"Yes," Rarity spoke, rolling her eyes. "I remember that fiasco."
"Momma gave it to me!" Apple Petal beamed. "She said that all Cutie Mark Crusaders should have one! That's why we're here. We need one for each of us!"
"Where is Apple Bloom?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"Momma's fixin' up the Crusader's clubhouse," Apple Petal asserted, pointing in a seemingly random direction.
Sweetie Belle grinned as she patted the filly's head. "Why don't you girls have Rarity help you make your capes?" she asked as she sent her older sister a pleading glance.
"Hey! We're not girls!" Cloudy pointed to Scribble.
"You still need capes, right?" Sweetie Belle giggled as she stepped by the Crusaders. "I'm gonna go pay Apple Bloom a visit. Have fun!"
Rarity groaned as she hung her head. Here she had thought that the days of her taking care of the Cutie Mark Crusaders were behind her. "Come along, girls," she sighed as she trotted over to her sewing machine.
"We're boys!" Cloudy shouted.
Apple Bloom wiped her brow before giving her patch a good kick to make sure it was sturdy. All right, that should be good enough for now, she decided as she picked up a couple of stray tools before jumping down from the clubhouse roof. The next thing she should focus on would be the broken railing. That was definitely a safety hazard.
As she turned the corner, she spied a white unicorn coming up the ramp. "Sweetie Belle!" she exclaimed before rushing over and embracing her fillyhood friend. "It's been forever since Ah saw yah."
"Hey, Apple Bloom!" Sweetie Belle returned the hug with gusto. "Sorry about that. My manager's been keeping me super busy."
"Ah'll say," Apple Bloom agreed as she broke the hug. "Ah ain't seen yah in weeks."
"Forty-seven days, actually," Sweetie Belle lamented as she passed Apple Bloom so that she could peek into the old clubhouse. "Your filly came into Rarity's boutique a little while ago. I didn't know she'd joined the Cutie Mark Crusaders."
Apple Bloom beamed as she followed Sweetie Belle in. "She actually just joined today. There weren't even a Cutie Mark Crusaders branch here anymore until a few weeks ago. I just found out about it a few days ago in a letter Ah got from Babs Seed," she prattled on as the two mares settled down in the musty old clubhouse. "When I told Apple Petal she was so excited..."
Sweetie Belle let out a contented sigh. "When was the last time we were all here?"
Apple Bloom sat down as she rubbed her head. "Shoot, Ah'm sure Ah couldn't tell yah. Oh! But hey, Ah have Scootaloo comin' by later with lunch!"
Sweetie Belle leapt up with a huge grin. "Really!? It'll be like a reunion!" she spoke her thoughts as she draped a leg over Apple Bloom's withers.
"Uh...we always hang out, Sweetie Belle." Apple Bloom removed Sweetie Belle's leg. "Every time you stop by."
She beamed. "Yeah, but this time we'll all be here in the clubhouse! It'll be a Cutie Mark Crusaders reunion!"
"So...how long're yah gonna be in town this time?"
Sweetie Belle flinched at first, but then she put on a genuine smile. "There was some flooding in Trottingham, so all my shows got cancelled. I'll be here all week until my first show in Manehattan this weekend." She gave a hollow chuckle, "Can you believe my manager is trying to make me put on a show here in Ponyville to make up for the all the cancelled stuff?"
"Yah should tell him to go to—" Apple Bloom sighed heavily "—yah should stand up fer yerself. Tell him you wanna spend more time with yer friends 'n' family."
Sweetie Belle gasped as she looked around. Finding the old spot, she sat under an old lamp and on top of faded paint in the shape of a target. She smiled and pointed up before suddenly putting a hoof under her chin and scrunching her face up in mock concentration.
Apple Bloom rolled her eyes as she barely suppressed a chuckle. She walked over and clicked on the light, signaling Sweetie Belle to jump up as if she'd just had a good idea.
"I...Ow!" she crashed into the lamp, being much taller than she was before.
Apple Bloom laughed and it didn't take Sweetie Belle long to join her. The two ended up flat on their backs next to each other. "S-so what's yer bright idea?" Apple Bloom snickered.
"Oh!" Sweetie Belle rolled over and onto her hooves. "I had a great idea! Why don't we have a concert here? We can invite everypony from Ponyville!"
"Here? But Ah've still got work to do fixin' up the clubhouse," Apple Bloom claimed as she got up.
Sweetie Belle rolled her eyes. "Are you telling me you can't have all this patched up by this evening? I know you can do it."
"Ah guess so, but don't it take a lot for a concert? Snacks and tables and we ain't got no stage or nothin'."
Prancing out to of the clubhouse she leaned over the railing and dramatically threw her hooves in the air. "This will be my stage! It might be a little narrow, but I can make it work! And I'm sure Pinkie Pie can throw something together. Oooh! And I know the perfect pony for setting up a sound system."
Apple Bloom raised an eyebrow as she trotted out after Sweetie Belle. "Tell me: why do yah need a manager again?"
Sweetie Belle groaned as she got back down onto all four hooves. "Why don't I help you get this in order until Scootaloo gets here?"
"Uh..."
"I promise I'll be careful," she swore, giving Apple Bloom her most pleading look.
Sighing, Apple Bloom hung her head. "Ah know Ah'm gonna regret this..."
The duo worked for some time—without incident—before Scootaloo showed up with lunch. This time she rode in on a sleek, lightweight scooter that she used for tricks and stunts. "Apple Bloom! I'm back!" she shouted as she flew up to the clubhouse with a bag slung over her shoulder. "I got lunch!"
"Scootaloo!" a piercing shout preceded a speeding white mass that nearly knocked the pegasus down with the force of her hug. "It's been so long!"
Only after prying Sweetie Belle off of herself did Scootaloo realize who had just tried to crush her to death. "S-Sweetie Belle, I didn't know you were back in town!"
"She's gonna be in town for a few days this time," Apple Bloom claimed as she put her front legs up on the freshly repaired hand rail and leaned on it. It was secure.
"I'm going to put on a show for the Cutie Mark Crusaders!" Sweetie Belle proudly proclaimed. "We need to start getting things set up right after lunch!"
"Wha-here?" Scootaloo looked around.
Sweetie Belle nodded. "I can sing from up here," she explained as she motioned out over the railing, "and we can set up tables and stuff out here. Pinkie Pie can cater and we can invite everypony in Ponyville!"
"Invite everypony in Ponyville to what?" a tiny voice drew attention to Apple Petal and the other three Crusaders as they approached the clubhouse. While Petal still wore her mother's old cape, the other three had freshly-made capes several shades brighter.
"I'm gonna put on a concert!" Sweetie Belle waved to the fillies and colts. "It'll be a special Cutie Mark Crusader show!"
Several gasps could be heard in response. "Can we come!?" Clear Sky flew up in front of the banister.
"Of course!" Sweetie Belle assured with a warm smile.
The rest of the Crusaders stormed up in a cacophony of squeals and excited shouts. As they descended upon Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom brought a hoof to her mouth eliciting a piercing whistle. As all eyes fell on her, she pointed to Scootaloo. "Scootaloo here brought us lunch. Let's sit down 'n' eat. We can worry about all that after we've got a belly full."
It wasn't easy fitting four youngsters and three mares into the small clubhouse, but they managed to all squeeze in. "Y'all should thank Scootaloo fer bringing us this food," Apple Bloom announced once they all got settled in.
"Thanks, Scootaloo!" the Crusaders said in unison along with Sweetie Belle.
After only taking a single bite, Scribble Scrabble spoke up, "So, you three were the original Cutie Mark Crusaders?"
Apple Bloom nodded. "Yep. If it weren't fer Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle stickin' up fer me at Diamond Tiara's cute-ceanera, the Cutie Mark Crusaders would've never existed."
"What happened?" Clear asked.
Apple Bloom rubbed her head a bit as she struggled to pull the memories free. "Well, back then Diamond Tiara was kind of a bully..."
"'Kind of a bully?'" Scootaloo scoffed. "She made us miserable at every opportunity! She went out of her way to make us feel bad!"
Apple Bloom glared at Scootaloo with a scornful expression as she pointed to the fillies and colts. "Anyway," she sighed as she got back to the story, "we had a lot of trouble with bullies because we didn't have our cutie marks yet."
"Ooooh! Ooooh! How did you get your cutie marks?" Clear eagerly requested.
Scootaloo pointed to Sweetie Belle. "Sweetie Belle here got her cutie mark first! She was the first Cutie Mark Crusader to ever get her cutie mark!"
"It's a great story," Apple Bloom smiled as Sweetie Belle blushed. "Yah see, Sugarcube Corner got a machine from them scammin' Flim-Flam brothers. They called it a 'carry-okay' machine. It was basically just a gramophone that didn't play the vocals with the music so somepony could sing all on their own."
"It was so much fun!" Sweetie Belle smiled. "You could pretend you were your favorite singer as you sang along with the music."
Scootaloo nodded. "We all went in to play with it, but nopony enjoyed it as much as Sweetie Belle. She was also the best at it. Her singing was better than some of the stars'."
"I got so carried away singing and dancing that I didn't notice all the ponies that had heard me and come into Sugarcube Corner. When I finished there was an explosion of applause and I looked and saw everypony cheering for me," Sweetie Belle remembered the day as if it were just yesterday. "It was the best feeling. And then I got this," she emphasized her flank to show off the cutie mark: a microphone with sound waves.
"That sounds fun!" Apple Petal squealed. "We should try that some time!"
"Well, uh... Yah can't," Apple Bloom offered a sheepish smile. "Yah see, not everypony that got on that machine was the best singer. After a while, the ponies of Ponyville formed an angry mob and destroyed it."
"With extreme prejudice!" Scootaloo pounded one hoof into the other.
The fillies and colts looked a little down for a moment before Apple Petal spoke up, "Well, Ah know how momma got her cutie mark! Ah heard that story a dozen times! After she 'n' 'er friends destroyed a whole bunch'a stands, they had to rebuild 'em. Momma got her cutie mark after getting praised fer doin' such a good job fixin' 'em."
Apple Bloom displayed her cutie mark: several tools aligned to make the outline of an apple. "Yep. That's how Ah remember it."
"Well, I finally convinced Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom to join me in doing some awesome stunts," Scootaloo jumped at her chance to tell a story. "I think Sweetie Belle had roller skates and Apple Bloom had a skateboard. We went to a construction site and were doing all kinds of awesome stunts and we...uh... Well, the short version is that after doing some wicked awesome stunts Rainbow Dash saved us from this...uh...building that sort of fell over—totally all on it's own. But I got my cutie mark!" She turned to her flank as she pointed to a helmet and pads there.
"Um," Scribble started, raising an eyebrow, "you three sure seem to find yourselves around a lot of destruction."
"Yeah, there for a couple of weeks we got declared a natural disaster," Sweetie Belle blurted out, earning facehooves from Apple Bloom and Scootaloo.
The fillies and colts just stared at Sweetie Belle for a few seconds before Apple Bloom cleared her throat. "Heh, why don't we get to workin' on that concert. Ah can handle the rest'a the repairs on the clubhouse, but y'all need to tell everypony and get all the rest of the stuff."
"Okay!"
In short order Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Big Mac, the Cakes and their twins were all setting up tables and setting out food. Apple Bloom was putting the final touches on the clubhouse and planning on propping up the ramp in order for Sweetie Belle to use it as a makeshift stage. Vinyl Scratch was busy hooking up speakers as Fluttershy and her animal friends worked to securely place the speakers into the trees.
Inside the clubhouse, Rarity was doing her best to get Sweetie Belle into a fashionable dress for her show. Of course, that was easier said than done. "No...no that's not quite right either," Rarity complained before shoving Sweetie Belle behind a screen for the umpteenth time.
"This isn't an official show, you know," she reminded her big sister. "Do I really need to wear anything at all?"
"Blasphemy!" Rarity denied as she skimmed through the outfits she brought.
"Oh! I just got an idea!" Sweetie Belle leapt out from behind the screen, free from any dress. "This show is for the Cutie Mark Crusaders! Do you still have the cape I made?"
"That old thing?" Rarity failed to hide her disgust. "It might be in storage back at the boutique, but could you even fit that tiny thing on you?"
Sweetie Belle hung her head. "Oh...I guess not."
Rarity sighed. Of course. Only Sweetie Belle could have her heart set on something so garish. Seeing that pathetic, crestfallen look on her sister's face settled it. "If I leave now, I think I can put another one together in time for your performance," Rarity offered. "I still have the materials left out from earlier."
"Really!?" Sweetie Belle perked up. "Thanks!"
"I'll get started right away," Rarity nodded as she stepped out of the clubhouse. Outside, she caught sight of Scootaloo as the pegasus poked her nose into other ponies' business. I know I'm going to regret this... she swallowed her trepidation. "Oh, Scootaloo!" Rarity beckoned as she trotted down the ramp. "I don't suppose I could trouble you for a favor?"
"What'cha need?" Scootaloo shot over on her scooter, careful not to kick up too much dust.
"Well, Sweetie Belle wants me to make her one of those Cutie Mark Crusader capes before the show, so I need to get back to my boutique in a hurr—"
"Say no more!" Scootaloo yanked Rarity onto the scooter in front of her as she fired up her wings. "Hang on!"
The scooter nearly hit the Cutie Mark Crusaders as they arrived. The wind from Scootaloo's wing buffeted the bunch, forcing them to stop and brace themselves.
Cloudy Skies coughed along with the others at the stirred dust, "Was that *cough* Scootaloo?"
"I think so," Clear replied, a hoof holding her mane in place from the windy assault.
"Wow! Look at all this!" Apple Petal marveled once the dust cleared enough for them to see the various ponies setting everything up. "This is gonna be amazing!"
"Hi Apple Petal, Scribble Scrabble, Clear Skies, Cloudy Skies!" Pinkie bounced over to the group. "I bet you're super-excited. 'Cause I'm super-excited! It's been forever since Sweetie Belle's been around and you got her to do a concert here! We should totally have a party to celebrate!"
"Hi Pinkie!" the group chimed in unison.
"Hey everypony! The guests of honor have arrived!" Pinkie jumped up and shouted as she motioned towards the fillies and colts.
Applejack approached the group as she nudged Pinkie away. "We still got a whole lot'a work that needs gettin' to," she informed the Crusaders once she had coaxed Pinkie back to work. "Sweetie Belle 'n' Apple Bloom are out by yer clubhouse if'n that's who yer lookin' fer."
"Actually, we wanna help!" Apple Petal exclaimed as the rest of the Crusaders gave her a funny look. "There's a little bit'a everythin' here! We can try lots'a stuff here to get our cutie marks!" The suggestion caused the other Crusaders to abandon their confused stares in favor of excited smiles.
Applejack rolled her eyes. "Just watch that yah ain't been more trouble than help," she advised before waving the raucous group off.
First, they tried helping Vinyl Scratch with the wiring. After an "incident" that left Vinyl's coat black and smoking, they decided to try to help Fluttershy with the speakers. The pegasus twins were actually being fairly helpful until a stray breeze threatened to blow Clear's mane away from her eye. She dropped the speaker she was flying with to keep her protective barrier in place. Fluttershy managed to keep it from smashing into the ground, but somehow she ended up tangled in wires dangling from a tree branch.
Leaving Fluttershy twisting in the breeze, the Crusaders tried instead to help set up the tables and snacks. It didn't take long for nearly every table to get launched over, sending food and beverages flying everywhere. Just as the sweets and drinks were about to smash into the ponies and the ground—they stopped. The tables simultaneously righted themselves as the food and drinks carefully set back into their places, completely unharmed.
"Wow, looks like I got here at just the right time."
"Twilight!" Pinkie shouted as she glomped the alicorn. "You saved the day! Again!"
Twilight giggled as she uselessly tried to pry the pink vice off of herself. "I'm surprised so many ponies have shown up already. I guess Sweetie Belle is more popular than I thought."
While Twilight and the rest of the ponies mingled, Applejack managed to corral the Cutie Mark Crusaders. "If it weren't fer Twilight, y'all would've ruined the whole thing!" she scolded the quartet. "Ah know yer excited, but yah can't just go wreckin' everythin' in yer path." She settled her gaze specifically on Apple Petal. "Ah got more'a that than Ah could stand with yer mom. Ah swear, them capes turn normal fillies into turbo-charged whirlwinds'a destruction!"
"We're colts!" Cloudy stomped a hoof.
Applejack groaned as she rolled her eyes. "Just behave yerselves. All right?"
"Yes, Aunt Applejack," Apple Petal hung her head.
Applejack blushed. "N-now, Apple Petal, Ah done told yah a thousand times to just call me 'Applejack,' yah hear?"
The Crusaders giggled at Applejacks embarrassment before slipping away into the growing crowd.
By the time Scootaloo got Rarity back, the crowd was so thick that she couldn't possibly scoot through without causing mayhem. Instead she stepped free of her scooter. "Looks like the ride ends here," she said as she tried to coax Rarity off of her scooter.
Rarity had to pry her hooves off of the handlebars. Her face was permanently contorted in fear and her mane was completely frazzled by the wind. She tried to stammer out some sort of response, but only managed a weird, squeaking noise as she forced air through her throat.
As soon as Rarity was free from the scooter, Scootaloo kicked it up before folding the handlebars down and looping a strap over her shoulder. With her scooter safely secured on her back, she grabbed Rarity in her hooves and flew over the crowd towards the clubhouse. As they neared, it became apparent that she would've had to fly Rarity up anyway. Apple Bloom had propped up the ramp to make it a makeshift stage projecting out from the clubhouse. It was going to give Sweetie Belle more room for her show, but now there wasn't any way for ponies without wings to get up and down.
Setting Rarity down, the duo walked into the clubhouse to find Sweetie Belle sitting in a corner mumbling to herself. Scootaloo looked to Rarity. She shrugged in return. "Uh, Sweetie Belle?" Scootaloo hesitantly spoke up.
Sweetie Belle instantly perked up as she spun around. "Hey, Scootaloo! Rarity!" she greeted, smiling. As a bit of red sticking out of Rarity's saddlebag caught her eye, she gasped. "Is that my new cape!?"
Rarity's blue aura dragged the cape free before securing it around Sweetie Belle's neck. "It was the best I could manage with so little time."
"It's great!" Sweetie Belle trotted around in circles as she struggled to turn her head enough to get a good view of it.
"Um...Sweetie Belle, what were you doing just before we got here?" Rarity halted the dizzying spin by using a hoof to make her sister look her in the eye.
"Oh! That!" Sweetie Belle used her green aura to hold up a quill and pad. "Vinyl Scratch wanted me to give her a list of which songs and what order to play them in...I'm trying to figure it out, but I don't usually do this stuff. I just sing whatever the music starts playing."
Scootaloo raised an eyebrow. "So...why don't you just do that?"
Sweetie Belle tilted her head a bit with a confused expression until the gears in her head meshed together. "Oh! That's a great idea!" She beamed as she scribbled on the pad. Ripping the sheet free, she shoved it into Scootaloo's hooves. "Here, take this to Vinyl!"
Scootaloo gave Sweetie Belle a salute before zipping out of the clubhouse. Once outside, she scanned for the DJ. All the sound equipment seemed to be in place, but Vinyl was nowhere to be found. She flew out over the crowd before she spotted her. Vinyl Scratch had set up her station right underneath the makeshift stage.
Zipping over to the DJ, Scootaloo handed her the list that had just three songs written on it before "Just play my songs" was scrawled on the fourth and final line.
Vinyl laughed as she read the note. "I think I can handle that!" she confidently said with an even more confident grin. "I'm all set here. Is our diva ready to go on yet?"
Scootaloo shrugged. "I guess."
Vinyl grabbed a microphone and switched it on, eliciting a deafening explosion. While the DJ looked around in a panic for which of her precious speakers just committed suicide, the crowded roared and cheered.
"Oh wow!" Scootaloo smiled at the multicolored shockwave in the sky before rushing away. "Rainbow Dash is here!"
Giving her sound system one last check to be sure, she brought the mic to her muzzle. "Is everypony ready for some music!?"
The cheers grew louder as the crowd stomped their applause. Still dressed in her Wonderbolts costume, Rainbow Dash landed next to Scootaloo. They exchanged a hoofbump since there was no way any shout was going to be heard over the crowd.
Meanwhile, Twilight used her aura to rearrange the snacks so that one table was cleared. Once it was, she gently lifted the Cutie Mark Crusaders up onto the tabletop so they could see the show over-top of the rest of the ponies.
Finally, Sweetie Belle stepped out wearing nothing more than her Cutie Mark Crusader cape and holding a microphone. "Hey, everypony!" she greeted, receiving another deafening cheer in response. Once they had calmed down enough for her to be heard again, she continued, "Today I'm giving you a special concert; just for my Ponyville friends and family! This concert is all about you and especially for the Cutie Mark Crusaders!" She gave a twirl so that the crowd could get a good view of her cape. "My two best friends and I formed the Cutie Mark Crusaders when we were fillies, and, thanks to Babs Seed, they are still around. Today we celebrate a new generation of Crusaders!" she announced as she pointed to the quartet on the table. "Let's give them a round of applause!"
Another deafening cheer continued until Vinyl kicked on the first bit of music. "Okay! Now this first song is going to be the first song I ever helped write. Most of you might've heard it before, but only once!" Sweetie Belle winked to the crowd. "Now, I can't possibly do this song without my two best friends to help me sing it! Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, come on up here!" she beckoned with her hoof.
"Don't worry, everypony! I'll be singing the lead vocals this time!" She winked again as Scootaloo set Apple Bloom on the stage before landing herself.
At her cue, Sweetie Belle began to sing a very nostalgic tune,
"Look, here, are three little ponies,
Ready to sing for this crowd!"
At hearing the cheers, Sweetie Belle held out the mic so the sound system could pick up the adulation. In the background, two microphones flew up onto stage and into the awaiting hooves of Apple Bloom and Scootaloo.
"Listen up, 'cause here's our story,"
Stepping back so that she shared the spotlight with her two best friends she gave each of them a nod in turn.
"I'm gonna sing it,"
Scootaloo and Apple Bloom joined in, making the last two words full and noisy,
"VERY LOUD!"
Back in the crowd, the four Crusaders up on the table were in a tizzy. None more so than Apple Petal. Today really was the best day ever for her. She got to join the Cutie Mark Crusaders, made three awesome new friends, got to attend a special concert in their honor, and now there was even a special song just for them. Just for the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Had she been any more elated, Apple Petal would have died of sheer joy. Had she been any more excited, her little heart would've exploded.
After gorging on juice and sweets, dancing and playing all evening and getting her cape signed by Sweetie Belle, Apple Petal was so exhausted that she didn't even have the energy left to make it back to the farm. Instead, Big Mac carried the sleeping filly on his back as a small group of ponies headed toward the Apple farmhouse under the moonlight.
"You were great out there tonight, Sweetie Belle," Apple Bloom praised in a soft tone.
Sweetie Belle smiled as she replied in a raspy voice, "It was really fun. I'm glad the Crusaders got such a kick out of it."
"We all did," Scootaloo agreed, nudging Apple Bloom, "Right, fellow Crusader?"
"Yeah, it was great." Apple Bloom stared up into the starry sky. "Ah really miss this, though. Us three hangin' out 'n' havin' fun."
Scootaloo nodded in agreement. "No doubt."
"Hey! Then let's plan on something else tomorrow!" Sweetie Belle eagerly offered.
"Apple Bloom needs to get workin' on that wagon," Applejack denied with a frown.
Scootaloo hung her head a bit. "I have to do my mail route, too."
"Oh," Sweetie Belle sighed dejectedly.
"Well, why don't you girls just come over to the farm once yer done with all that? We could build the wagon together," Apple Bloom suggested. "Might not be as fun as a concert, but it's a chance fer us to spend some time together."
"That's a great idea!" Sweetie Belle said just a bit too loudly, threatening to break Apple Petal's slumber. She blushed and offered a sheepish smile at Apple Bloom's motherly glare.
"I'll pick up Sweetie Belle after my route and come by." Scootaloo grinned. "It'll be like old times."
Applejack groaned. "Ah hope not too much like old times. Ah'd prefer not to have to rebuild the entire barn...again."
The adult Cutie Mark Crusaders gave Applejack their most innocent look as if to say: "Who? Us?"
"Good thing we got another reunion comin' up," Applejack groused.
"Eeyup."
