Chapters "Applebloom, I have good news for ya!" Applejack called.
Applebloom hurried up to Applejack on rapid Earth filly hooves. Good news was always called good news for a reason: it was good! It was news any filly loved to hear.
"We just got a call all the way from Manehatten. Babs is gonna come over soon," Applejack told her sister.
Applebloom gasped in delight.
"Oh boy! How long is she stayin' fer?" she asked excitedly.
"Calm yerself, filly! Yer more bouncy than jumpin' beans on a Saturday morning!" Applejack said with a little laugh. "Ya won't believe it! Babs' family has an important business trip to make this summer and cannot find a foalsitter for Babs. She's comin' here for the summer."
Applebloom's eyes widened with glee.
"The whole summer?!"
"Precisely, sis."
Summer vacation had just started, and now three months with Applebloom's favorite cousin would make it better. Applebloom danced with joy.
"When will she get here?!"
"She'll be arrivin' in the train nine o' clock tomorrow. We'll leave for the train station at around eight thirty."
"Ah gotta go tell Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo," Applebloom said.
"Just make sure yer home for lunch," Granny Smith reminded, poking her head out of the kitchen.
"Seriously, ah wouldn't miss out on yer apple pie for the world!" Applebloom said before heading outside.
Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle were waiting in the Cutie Mark Crusaders clubhouse. Applebloom burst in panting but smiling big.
"Wow, something put you in a good mood," Sweetie Belle said.
"Babs is coming back to stay, but this time, she's stayin' for the whole summer!" Applebloom huffed.
"Awesome!" Scootaloo exclaimed.
"She's right on time, because we have so many plans for earning our cutie marks this summer," Sweetie Belle said.
"We better get prepared, 'cause Babs is showin' up tomorrow at nine o' clock," Applebloom told her friends.
So for that day, the three fillies cleaned up their clubhouse and Applebloom's bedroom. They also talked nonstop about what they would do with Babs and how they would achieve their life goals of getting their cutie marks. This chattering drove Applejack up the wall, but she managed to keep her cool seeing how excited Applebloom was.
Sure enough, at nine o' clock the next day, Applebloom with Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Applejack saw the train coming up to the station. After the train stopped, a few ponies got out and stretched themselves. Babs Seed came out last. She smiled and blew her mane out of her face, then ran up and embraced her cousin.
"Boy, am I happy to see you."
"Yup, same here, Bad Seed."
Babs rolled her eyes knowing that she still had that nickname.
As everypony walked back to the farm, the happy fillies talked about they were going to do for the summer. Applebloom insisted this would best summer ever just because Babs Seed was here. Babs was glad to escape the city for a couple months, as well as see her beloved cousin who actually believed she was there and was nice to her. After making it to the farm, Applejack told everypony they could go their ways but to be careful. The Crusaders went the clubhouse.
"Say, Babs, where's yer Cutie Mark Crusaders cape?" Applebloom asked.
Babs' ears fell. She looked like she was about to cry.
"Did ah say somethin' wrong?" Applebloom asked, concerned.
"Oh...no you didn't, it's just..." Babs Seed trailed off.
"Did you lose it?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"Sorta," Babs admitted.
"Please, Babs, tell us what happened," Scootaloo said.
"A bully back in Manehatten...let's just say he teased me and...stole the cape," Babs said with a sniff.
"Ah have so had enough of bullies," Applebloom said under her breathe.
Sweetie Belle suggested they all go out for a walk in town to hopefully make Babs feel better. Everypony agreed.
So the Cutie Mark Crusaders walked through Ponyville. Scootaloo came up with the idea of going to Sugercube Corner to cheer Babs Seed up. On the way there, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were walking on the other side of the road and saw Babs.
"Look, Silver Spoon, it's Babs Seed again! Why don't we go over and give her a piece of our minds?" Diamond Tiara asked.
"Good idea. I mean, it took me a whole hour to wash all that mud off of my coat," Silver Spoon agreed.
Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon crossed the road and stood in the Crusaders' way.
"Well, well, if it isn't Babs Seed," Diamond Tiara said with a smirk.
"Oh, you two, just scram," Applebloom sighed.
Babs was scared and hid behind Scootaloo. She had completely forgotten about these two.
"Leave Babs alone! You totally deserved getting told off by her!" Scootaloo said in the toughest voice she could manage.
Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon did not leave. Everypony had pointed and chuckled at them as they walked through Ponyville on the way home leaving trails of wet mud behind them.
"But Babs made a fool of us! No way will we let any blank flank get the best of us!" Diamond Tiara argued.
"No, you guys brought that embarrassment on yourselves," Sweetie Belle said.
"But Babs just ditched us!" Diamond Tiara exclaimed.
"Because youze was bein' jerks to us just because we don't have any cutie marks! We're not the only fillies in Equestria without them, you know!" Babs Seed piped up.
"True," Silver Spoon admitted. "But all the failed efforts to try to get them makes you look so desperate."
This actually hurt the Crusaders. Sweetie Belle stepped in and tried to be mature.
"Well, I think this argument is pointless, so let's just get to Sugercube Corner already," she ordered.
"Hmph, be that way," Diamond Tiara pouted.
She and Silver Spoon pranced away with their heads high. Applebloom turned to see Babs Seed but she was not there. The other Crusaders turned around just in time to see Babs Seed running away through town.
The Crusaders followed Babs. She could run fast for a filly her age.
"Babs, wait! Don't take the argument so seriously!" Applebloom called.
But Babs Seed ignored and kept running. Tears flew from her green eyes. She was expecting to come here and escape the bullying, but instead she came to more. Babs tripped on a rock and face planted. Applebloom rushed to her aid. Babs sniffled as Applebloom brushed dirt out of her mane.
"Babs, why did ya run away like that?" Applebloom asked her cousin.
"Because...I really thought I could escape them bullies by coming here, but instead, I come to more bullying," Babs said quietly.
"Hey, Babs, why don't we all go to the clubhouse and you can talk about your bullying in Manehatten? Maybe talking about it will make you feel better," Sweetie Belle suggested.
Babs nodded. The four fillies headed to the clubhouse and entered. They sat down and let Babs get comfortable.
"Well, they definitely wouldn't let me hear the end of bein' a blank flank," Babs said sadly.
She cleared her throat and began her story:
"Hey, blank flank! Nice cape you have there! You think you'ze a superhero? You certainly are a hero at lameness!"
"Shut up, you! I ain't wearin' this cape for that reason!"
"You're right, because you can't be hero at anything!"
"Then that bully came up and snatched the cape. I chased him but he was much faster. I caught up to him but he had already fed the cape to his dog," Babs said. "That dog had ripped it to shreds in such short time."
"Awww, little baby blank flank gonna cry?"
"Why did you do that? Just...why?"
"I felt like it!"
"That was his excuse," Babs grumbled.
"Did he ever get punished?" Scootaloo asked.
"Are you kiddin' me? I go and tell adults at school about those dang bullies but they don't believe me!" Babs said with a huff.
"Now I lost my Cutie Mark Crusader Cape! Can my life get any worse?!"
Babs got home but didn't bother saying hello, because she knew she would get no answer. Her mother was in the kitchen talking on the phone about stuff the filly didn't care about, and her father was lying on the couch drunk as usual. Babs hoped to seek comfort from her sister, but then remembered that she was at a friend's house for a sleepover.
"And is isn't like I'm allowed to have any sleepovers. Heck, anything I ask my parents they say no. I'm surprised they even feed me any food," Babs said with a grunt.
"Why wouldn't they?" Sweetie Belle wondered.
"I always feel like they don't want me around and they would think they would wasting bits for food for me. However, they love my sister. They always spoil her rotten and I get nothing new," Babs responded.
This was true; Babs' older sister was always given what she asked for at some point while anything Babs asked for would never come around. This spoiling made her a brat. In fact, whenever Babs told her sister about the teasing she receives at school, she just scoffed and told Babs to suck it up.
"She didn't take what I told about the bullyin' by heart. Instead, she laughed at me," Babs complained.
This angered the others greatly, especially Applebloom.
"We need to talk to Applejack about this," she said.
"What would she do?" Babs asked angrily.
This troubled Applebloom. Babs Seed continued her story.
"Sis, can I talk to you?" Babs asked her sister when she came home.
Babs Seed told everything about the bullies out in town and school. Her sister rolled her eyes and chuckled.
"Oh, just deal with it!" Babs' sister said with hate in her teeth. "Do I look like I want to give any words of wisdom to a worthless little filly?"
Babs angrily raced to her room and slammed her door. She jumped into bed and moped for a good two hours.
"Freakin' sister freakin' sucks! I don't care! I hate this pathetic world!" Babs furiously said as she threw her pillow against the wall.
Babs Seed bitterly thought about her 'family'. Her 'mother' always ignored her, her 'father' was always drunk and lashed out at her, and her 'sister' obviously didn't look out for her and help her through life.
"So, there's my family for all of you," Babs said.
The other Crusaders were shocked and saddened.
"If it weren't for you guys, I probably wouldn't be here," Babs piped up.
"What?! What do you mean?" Applebloom asked in alarm.
"Well, my social life is cruddy, my family is neglectful, and there's nowhere to go in the city with you always havin' to worry about foalnappers and all a' that, but you guys here show me actual care," Babs answered. "I-I've been thinking suicidal lately."
The other three fillies gasped in horror.
"So, that's why you did what you did," a voice suddenly said.
The others looked up to see Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon standing outside the door.
Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon had not looks of hate on their faces, but looks of sorrow. They shyly entered the clubhouse.
"So that's why you stood up for the others instead of us at the end," Diamond Tiara said.
"We thought you just had a city attitude," Silver Spoon added.
The Cutie Mark Crusaders were stunned at these twos' behavior. They actually felt sympathy for Babs.
"Wait, so you were listening in?!" Scootaloo asked angrily.
Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon shuffled there hooves slightly.
"Kinda..." Diamond Tiara admitted.
"We were at first wondering what tactic you going to try for your cutie marks so we make fun of you for failing it, but then we heard Babs talk her life in Manehatten, so we stayed and listened," Silver Spoon explained.
"But how did you hear us anyway?" Sweetie Belle wondered.
"Actually, these walls that make up this clubhouse don't drown out vocals," Diamond Tiara said sheepishly with a little grin.
"Uumm...sooooo...we have to confess on something," Silver Spoon said with her ears falling.
"We've been bullied a lot as well," Diamond admitted hanging her head.
Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon told their own stories of bullying. They were teased for being rich, especially Diamond Tiara. Eventually Silver Spoon met up with Diamond Tiara at a park where two bigger stallions were hurting Diamond's feelings. Silver got in front of Tiara and stood up, causing the stallions to shrug and trot away. The duo had been friends ever since. Diamond Tiara even said that "blank flank" was a nickname she received a lot before, so she called the Crusaders that to make her feel better. Silver Spoon was also a late bloomer when came to cutie marks. After the two had finished everypony in the clubhouse was silent. Sweetie Belle broke the silence.
"So, would you guys perhaps like to be our friends? We feel everypony should be treated equally, and that's how a Cutie Mark Crusader treats a friend."
Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon smiled big. Their hearts grew bigger and filled with warmth.
"We're both very, very sorry for everything we said," both said at once.
The fillies relaxed and laughed. Diamond even invited all of them over for a sleepover at her place to celebrate the beginning of summer. All agreed. So now, the once-bullies became better fillies. Sure, they still boasted from time to time, but they have yet to improve. Unfortunately for Babs, her family was still neglectful, but her sister thought about how she had treated her before, and decided to stay home more often to spend time with her. Her mother and father couldn't believe she was going to waste her time with such a useless filly, but she didn't care. Babs needed somepony.
Author's Note
To be perfectly honest, I really don't know why someone would be bullied for being rich. I wanted to use a largely established trait with DT and SS, though.
