Bolted Hearts

"I just.. I don't know, Applejack. It's like no matter how I look at it, there's always a right to a wrong and a pro to a con," Rarity explained as best she could. She was exasperated. For the past few days she had been teaching Scootaloo everything she could possibly think of. She quickly grew to understand that her expectations for the android were almost insulting.

In a matter of two hours she could read and comprehend novels that Rarity had gathered across her numerous trips back and forth between Canterlot. When all of those had been exhausted, she had to resort to simply bringing Scootaloo over to the Golden Oak Library and chatting with Twilight whilst her creation browsed at her leisure.

"She's learning incredibly fast - too fast some might argue - and even so there's a feeling of naivety within her words, apparent in her actions. For all intents and purposes, Scootaloo acts and thinks like a full-fledged member of society - an adult. But there's just something empty about her. She's missing something crucial," the white unicorn continued, taking a sip of the coffee Applejack had prepared for her.

"Y'ever stop and wonder what that thing might be?" came the reply to Rarity's rambling. The orange woman across the table from Rarity always had a habit of answering questions with questions - it was her way of replying when she didn't quite understand everything herself. "I've made plenty of machines - even tried my hand at some technical ones - but none have turned out quite like yours did. I reckon this is more of somethin' you gotta look for in yerself before you go pokin' around someone else."

"The only conclusion I can come up with is the most difficult and quite possibly impossible notion - I wish for her to feel emotion. As of right now, she can simulate any number of expressions through memory and mimicry," Rarity went on, looking away from Applejack as she spoke; it was a telltale sign that she was deep in thought. "But she doesn't react to things. I specifically left out pain within her wiring but I did try to include a number of responses to emotional stimuli. I simply don't know how to trigger such responses."

"Well.. What exactly are you goin' for here? You wanin' her to feel pain or for her to smile?" came another question, bringing forth another round of deep thought that let Rarity know this was the right decision to visit Applejack. She was a mechanic, like Spike, but much more varying when it came to her dealings.

For one, she didn't just fix things - she created them. It was under her motivation that the idea to create a free-thinking android came to realization. Her company was small and family-owned as well as family-operated, but she had managed to create quite a successful reputation despite those self-imposed limitations. Core Industries, her company name, dealt in all things mechanical. Whether it be simple scrap or extremely complex gadgets, Applejack tried her hand at anything that had a cog involved. And some things that did not.

Her questions weren't just aimed at Rarity; she was trying to figure out ways to upgrade Scootaloo. This agreement between she and Rarity had come about in the very beginnings of Scootaloo's creation. As the schematics were drawn up, so too were the details of a business plan that involved a life-long process of keeping Scootaloo in top-notch shape.

Applejack had agreed that, should the project become a success - and it had - that she would constantly keep an eye out for ways to modify, upgrade, and enhance the workings that went on within Scootaloo that made her function beyond that of a simple machine. As of yet, only minor things such as minor tweaking to hardware and teachings had come about. This did not mean she'd be letting down her guard - a promise was a promise, and she had made one to her friend.

"Well I, uh.. It's a bit hard to admit, darling," Rarity said as she snapped out of her contemplative state and considered the question being aimed at her. She could feel herself getting flustered, but wouldn't allow it to go too far - if anyone would be understanding of her plight, it would most definitely be Applejack. And if she did not understand, she would outright state it.

"You don't have to share, Rare, but I reckon I could help a bit more earnestly if ya did," Applejack said before taking a sip of her own coffee. By comparison, her drink was considerably more potent than Rarity's - her work required it. As such, it came as no surprise to Rarity when Applejack made a smacking noise with her lips and grunted as the bitter taste hit her tongue.

"If that's the case, then I believe it'd be better if I was blunt about it. I would like to teach Scootaloo how to love," she said matter-of-factly as best she could, though her voice nearly faltered just as she was finishing and she wondered if her friend could pick up on such a thing. If the long, awkward pause between the two was any indication, she had indeed noticed the cracking of her voice.

"So, uh.." Applejack began as she shifted in her seat and cleared her throat. "You wanna teach Scootaloo how to love. You mean like.. Romantically? Friendship-like? Or both?"

"Both, preferably," Rarity answered quickly. It felt like the world around her had slowed down to a standstill and shrunk to fit only the small room that she and Applejack now sat in. Now that she thought back, perhaps this wasn't the best idea to come to Applejack. Fluttershy is a much more understanding individual when it came to such matters, albeit it took a bit of convincing to get her to speak of it.

For just a moment, Rarity thought Applejack was moving towards the door to simply leave her in the confused, awkward mess she had brought upon them both. It didn't occur to her until she was about to apologize that the orange-toned woman was reaching for something behind her desk. When she returned, she simply sighed as she rolled out a large white paper onto the table and pinned its corners.

"If we're gonna do this, we're gonna need a better plan than just 'I wanna do it'," Applejack explained as she took another sip of her bitter, caffeine-infused fuel and grabbed a pencil from her shirt pocket. "For one, I reckon a lot of things go into love before it becomes love. Y'know what I mean?"

She sat in a stunned awe at how calmly Applejack was taking this, but after a bit of waving from the aforementioned woman, Rarity came to her senses and stuttered out, "Oh! Yes! I mean, yes, I understand. You're saying that we need to trigger other emotions before trying to have her feel affection."

"Exactly. And to do that, I'd imagine we gotta figure out someone who doesn't even know about themself. That brings up a whole 'nother problem - how much, exactly, do you know about Scootaloo? About how she thinks?" the questions came pouring out, Applejack's expression nearly unchanging as she inquired about the life of someone that only awoke to life a few days ago.

With that in mind, could Scootaloo be considered young? Her mind had matured to the level of comprehension that Rarity felt was on-par with her own and her body was designed to be like an adult's. For reasons ranging from material-conservation to societal-pressure relief, the decision to make Scootaloo awaken in an adult body was in unanimous agreement between Rarity and those she had sought council from.

After answering Applejack's various questions, she asked one of her own. "Applejack, darling, would you consider Scootaloo young? Perhaps even an.. Infant?"

Her eyebrows raised and her mouth pursed for a moment, but then dropped into the ever-neutral and tranquil expression that was her usual form. "The way I see it, she's got the soul, mind and body of a full-grown woman. Besides that, I reckon machines - pardon me, androids - get a free pass when it comes to things like age and maturity - they tend to have different rules when it comes to that kinda stuff."

Her mind at ease and her worries at rest, Rarity let out a small sigh of relief. It made her a bit more comfortable with the idea of wanting to have Scootaloo feel such things - she wanted to understand her entire mind, not just the mind that she herself had programmed and taught.

And so, with her worries put behind her, she and Applejack set to work in making the plan composed entirely of good intentions. She only hoped that it ended in more than just those good intentions. It wasn't long at all until she found herself smiling - she was, for the first time since Scootaloo's activation, relaxed.

Meanwhile, on the other end of Ponyville, a certain unicorn and her draconic assistant found themselves absolutely stunned by the sight before them. Twilight sat drinking tea and holding a book open whilst Spike leaned onto his knees and rubbed his hands together, his tail idly tapping against the floor.

Not a word had been read from the book she was holding, but rather her attention was focused entirely upon the oddity before her. The robotic woman sat cross-legged upon her floor and flipped through her library's contents at an unbelievable speed. She wasn't opposed to having her books read - quite the contrary, in fact - but that didn't mean she wasn't surprised with who was reading them. Scootaloo had been brought to the Golden Oak Library recently in an attempt to teach her how to understand Equestrian's written form.

The result was that she had understood it within minutes and had developed a lust for knowledge that could only be described as a primal urge within organic beings. Considering she was far from that, it would be more accurate to describe it as a.. need. She had to learn; it was no longer a simple matter of wanting to better herself. It was as if reading had become an integral part of her life.

She was a woman after her own heart, really. As she went through book after book, Twilight was busy studying her habits. Her eyes hardly moved; rather, she stared at the very middle of the open book between the two pages and took all of the text in at once. It was something Rarity must have designed herself, or at least without Twilight's knowledge, but it was astoundingly efficient.

It wasn't the choice of hobby nor the method that most interested her, however, but the fact that she had taken up the hobby in the first place. Twilight had expected Scootaloo to have a few base desires - things like survival, energy, and self-discovery - but she was showing a complexity that hadn't been projected for at least a few weeks after activation. But with all of this knowledge, she showed very little signs of reaction to the stimuli that she was receiving.

"Scootaloo," she called out, deciding to test the water a bit before she studied further. Upon receiving the android's full attention, she moved up and over to Scootaloo and took a seat beside her. "I'd like to ask you a question, if you don't mind."

"I don't mind," Scootaloo replied, closing the book she held and laying it atop one of the many piles that surrounded her position.

"How do you feel?" Twilight asked very plainly, raising an eyebrow and readying her mind for whatever response Scootaloo could fire back at her.

"With my hands," came the answer, complete with Scootaloo holding up one of her hands and spreading her fingers. Off to the side a young dragon could be heard stifling a laughter for a few moments until it evolved into a soft, almost-soundless laughter that came from Spike running the reply through his head a few times more.

"Sorry! I'm sorry," he said after laughing for a few moments and seeing Twilight's death-glare shooting towards him. "It's just that you're asking her all wrong. You've got to ask her in a way she understand. Watch. Scootaloo," he called casually, leaning back onto his knees and letting out a soft chuckle to finish off his bout of laughter. "What emotion are you currently feeling?"

The response this time was not an accidentally-humorous joke but a pondering stare, like she was searching her mind for some kind of answer to give him. But after several seconds of dead silence and awkward staring, she came up with literally nothing. "I do not know," came her answer. Immediately she turned towards Twilight and leaned in as she asked, "Do you have any books upon this topic?"

"I, uh.. I could check for you?" Twilight said with eyes wide open. She hadn't actually seen Scootaloo look so determined before - which was peculiar in and of itself, considering Twilight assumed she didn't even know what feeling determined was like. Despite that, she did her best in searching the library's catalogs and stock records for anything that might help Scootaloo.

"It doesn't look like it. But I could certainly tell you what I have personally studied upon the subject - I have quite a few varying experiences pertaining to-" she began as she slid into her analytically scientific personality when she realized that her personal account could be used so effectively. It became less of a study and more of a lesson for her, which not only excited her but also intrigued her that she might teach someone so eager to learn.

"Welp!" Spike announced rather boldly, cutting Twilight off before she could launch him into a preemptive sleep for the day. "I do believe I'll go and see what Rainbow Dash is up to. Or what Applejack is up to. Or what anyone is up to as long as it doesn't involve a lecture."

Completely ignoring her assistant, Twilight began drawing up a diagram upon a nearby chalkboard that could describe the differentiating, basic emotional states of sentient beings. She always kept the chalkboard in the main library just in case she needed to teach someone a new concept, brainstorm, or occasionally let someone doodle while she was busy.

Now, however, it was filled with graphs, charts, and depictions of philosophy. Anything that could give twilight an edge in her explanation and Scootaloo an advantage towards her understanding. Every so often Twilight would paused and turn around only to find the same thing each time; Scootaloo awaited the next section of teaching eagerly and patiently, with her expression unchanging and still.

This went on for a good three hours before Twilight interrupted herself with a grumbling deep down in her stomach. She couldn't remember if she had eaten this morning - nor if she had eaten last night, either. Twilight had a bad habit of skipping meals when her interest was piqued, and Scootaloo had provided plenty of reasons for that interest to be raised well beyond its normal levels.

"Let's take a break, Scootaloo. I've got to eat something and I'm sure you'll want to process all of this," Twilight suggested with a bit of a smile. She hadn't meant to make the pun about processing, but that didn't mean she couldn't be happy about it. Off to the kitchen she went, with her mind coming up with a few more jokes along the way.

Scootaloo, however, had no need to eat. In fact, Rarity had specifically told Twilight that she fed off of solar energy; certain plates along her torso gave her more energy than she could possibly use in a day. Taking this into consideration, Twilight still turned back to politely ask if Scootaloo would like anything to do while she ate. What she found, however, was an empty room and a few missing books from various piles.

She sighed and shrugged her shoulders; she'd have to inform Scootaloo on how to check out books in the future. Having them randomly disappear from her library was bad for business - and for her health, considering how worked up she got about organization. There was no telling which direction Scootaloo was heading, however, so she made no extra effort to chase after her.

Instead she moved over to her cabinets with a small sigh and began to prepare some tea. A bit of relaxation would suit her, she believed. At least until she had to remove herself from that relaxation and go clean up the rather large mess made by an over-curious android with a hunger for knowledge.

"Maybe I can have Spike clean it up for running out on me," she told herself with a bit of a smirk, testing her tea with a small sip. "Lovely," she concluded, pouring herself a cup and setting it down. At least for right now, she could sit pretty and wait for a while.

She had returned home quite some time ago and Scootaloo found Sweetie Belle outside with another person. She was like her, but without the horn atop her head. She also noticed no wings upon her back, so she was not a pegasus; she had seen a few on her journey back to the Boutique. Her skin was a pale yellow and she had a bright red bow pinned to her hair; Scootaloo had seen a few pictures of her laid about Rarity's home.

"Hey there, Scootaloo! Are you the one Sweetie Belle's been goin' on about?" she asked. She held out a hand and Scootaloo hesitated for just a moment before taking it very gently - a far cry from how indelicately she had shaken Spike's hand upon activation. "Name's Apple Bloom! I'm Applejack's sister and we live a little ways that way," she finished by pointing her thumb over her shoulder and towards a nearby forest.

"They live on a farm," Sweetie Belle clarified, silencing Scootaloo's further inquiry as to whether or not they lived in the actual forest.  She hadn't actually seen a farm before, but the fact that a friend of Sweetie Belle's lived on one made her desire to see it.

"It's nice to meet'cha!" Apple Bloom excitedly claimed as she let go of Scootaloo's hand. "Sweetie Belle and I were just on our way out to Apple Acres - the farm I live on. Ya wanna tag along?"

"Yeah! Come on, Scootaloo - we'll introduce you to Applejack! She helped build you so I'm sure you'll get along fine," Sweetie Belle chimed in. Without a moment's opportunity to decline Scootaloo was grabbed by both girls and pulled along towards the direction Apple Bloom had indicated earlier.

Walking through town, the expressions of confusion, awe, and displeasure weren't lost upon Scootaloo. Nobody made a move to intervene or converse with Scootaloo, nor did they bother either Sweetie Belle or Apple Bloom, both of which were happily chatting away as they tugged Scootaloo every which way towards the farm. Topics ranging anywhere from their activities for the day to hunting for something called a "cutie mark".

"What is a cutie mark?" Scootaloo asked inquisitively. Neither slowed their pace but Apple bloom reached up and pulled her right sleeve up until her shoulder was bare.

"Whenever someone finds out what they're gonna do for their life - what they're really good at - they get this little mark on their arm right here," she rubbed her bicep. "Ya never seen one up until now? Almost everyone's got one! Well, I mean.. We don't, but we're gonna get it any day now! I can feel it."

"Rarity has one," Sweetie Belle commented, looking back at Scootaloo with a smile. "It's a symbol of three diamonds and she says she got it after making her first gadget with a spell-crystal."

Cutie marks. Spell-crystals. Rarity's history. With every step through this conversation, Scootaloo found more and more reason to visit Rarity. Unlike the first night of her activation, she'd have plenty of questions to ask of her this time.

With that clear in her mind, it wasn't difficult at all to set it aside the moment she entered what must be the farm they spoke of. It was true that they lived beyond the forest; most of the trees must have been cleared out within this small vicinity to make way for Apple Bloom and her siblings' home. A massive field, with even rows and leafy plants sewn into it, stretched out far and wide until it reached two buildings. One was large, red, and had doors that must have been three times her own height, Scootaloo estimated. The other looked as if it were more suited to be a home, with multiple support beams and windows being blatantly evident on the outside.

"Here we are," Apple bloom announced by letting go of Scootaloo's hand, spinning around and stretching her arms out wide to display the splendor that was her home. "I'll go on up and let Applejack know you're comin'." True to her word, Apple Bloom sped off as fast as her short legs could carry her, belting out a call of, "Applejack! Guests are here!"

"Well tell 'em I'm comin'! Just workin' with Rarity on somethin'!" came a reply from somewhere inside the large red building.

"Applejack is just as nice as Rarity, so don't worry," Sweetie Belle reassured Scootaloo softly and tugged on her hand ever so slightly. Scootaloo gave a small nod in response and move in sync with her young companion as she began walking forward.

".. and I'd just like to thank you for all of the help you've given - oh! Scootaloo?" Rarity said with a bit of surprise in her voice. "I didn't expect to see you until later on tonight. " Emerging from behind the door came a rather tall figure that was apparently accompanying Rarity out of the building.

"Well I'll be," she said as she pushed the tip of her hat backwards and rose her eyes to meet Scootaloo's. It was assumed that this was Applejack, but it wasn't until she greeted Scootaloo that the assumption was made into fact. "Only a few days out of the gate and you're already up and about like a dog after a bath."

Rarity rolled her eyes at the crude gesture that made no sense to Scootaloo, but Applejack continued nonetheless. "My name's Applejack; I'm sure you've heard it a few times here and there. And judgin' by the exoplating and rotators attached at your knees and elbows, I reckon you must be Scootaloo." She held out her right hand and Scootaloo instinctively reached for it but hesitated when she saw just how unusual her arm looked from the others.

It was metallic and shiny, a bit like her own arm when Rarity had separated the plating from her "skeleton". She looked back to Applejack's face and found she was smiling. "I figured that'd get'cha. And before y'ask - no. I ain't exactly like you; just my arm is. That's what happens when ya don't watch yerself around automatic saws. Now don't be shy; it'd take somethin' a lot stronger than you to put a dent in this arm - I built it myself."

With that established, Scootaloo no longer hesitated. She took hold of Applejack's hand, noting the dense material beneath the realistic-looking skin and strong grip that she exerted. It was slightly refreshing to have such an unusual force pressed upon her and Scootaloo made sure to stow away the memory of this feeling for later study.

"I'm glad you're here, Scootaloo. Although I'm surprised, I was on going to seek you out soon after leaving here," Rarity chimed in as the handshake finished running its course. "Applejack and I just finished going over schematics for a plan and readjustments that involve you at the center of it all. I do hope you've not wasted too much energy today, as you and I will be staying up long into the night to get this right."

"And that means that Sweetie Belle here is gonna be stickin' around the farm for the night. Sound good to you, girls?" Applejack asked with her hands on her hips and a smile on her lips. There was a show of cheering, then a show of running from both Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. Then, as per her usual style, Sweetie Belle ran back and hugged both Rarity and Scootaloo.

"Bye, sis! Bye, Scootaloo! I hope you have a good night!" she wished before returning to her excited friend and chanting in a sing-song voice about "crusading" and "hunting" for cutie marks.

"I got a long night ahead of me, looks like, so I'll be lettin' you two get a move on. Best of luck, Rare; I know you'll get the job done," Applejack announced as she moved forward and wrapped Rarity in a warm embrace.

"Thank you again Applejack. I promise that I'll find a way to repay you," came the reply, with Rarity's eyes lit up in determination.

"You always do." With that, the conversation was finished. Applejack turned with a wave and made her way back towards the large red building while Scootaloo turned away with Rarity as they walked back towards the heart of Ponyville.

"I simply cannot wait to get back home, Scootaloo!" Rarity said as soon as they were out of earshot from both the farm and the town. "I've got quite a few tests I'd like to run with you that will require a bit of privacy."

"Like what?" Scootaloo asked right around the time that Rarity was coming to terms with how flirtatious she was sounding at the moment.

"N-nothing too intimate! I think. At least I'm rather certain nothing in my plans.. No, of course not! Just some simple tests designed to see just how capable your hardware and software is," Rarity explained as a bit of color flushed throughout her face. She began fanning herself with an open hand in an attempt to cool off, but it seemed as if it did her no good.

She was told not to stare so Scootaloo followed that instruction, turning her attention towards the road ahead of them. The sun was beginning to dim, painting the sky with a hue not unlike the color of her skin. She held her hand up towards the sky and compared the two, feeling a bit of a connection somewhere deep within herself. There was something trying to reach out and respond to the notion, but further prodding found no results. Was this perhaps an emotion that she so deeply craved?

Whatever it was, it didn't cause enough trouble to plague her mind for very long. Soon enough she found herself drawn back to Rarity, whose face was clear of the pink coloration that had flooded over her face previously. Judging now as good a time as ever, with nobody around to distract either of them, Scootaloo asked her question.

"Rarity," she began, with the opposite party giving her attention immediately, "could you possibly teach me how to feel emotions?" Her question was blunt and to-the-point, and the reaction that came over Rarity's features was instant. A grin began to spread across her face and a small giggle was all she let out before speaking.

"You and I are going to have so much fun tonight, darling. Come! Let's get home before the night overtakes us," she answered as she picked up her pace, with Scootaloo quickly catching up. While it wasn't a direct answer, Scootaloo was satisfied - perhaps tonight would hold the answers she so keenly desired.