Rarity had just finished working on the last dress of her order. She smiled as she realized that she had finished earlier than she thought she would. She looked at her artwork again and she was very proud of how those dresses turned out.
“Even better than I expected.” she said. “Why Rarity, you ARE a talent…” she looked over at Opalescence who was boredly watching her from the table. “What do you think?” Rarity asked her cat.
“Meow.” Opal shortly replied before closing her eyes in order to fall asleep. Rarity heard the door being opened and turned to see Sweetie Belle walking inside.
“Back so soon?” Rarity asked her sister. “Hu? Sweetie, what`s wrong?” she added as she noticed that the filly was limping.
“Me, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo tried to get racing Cutie Marks.” Sweetie Belle said and sat down. “As if it wasn`t enough that we didn’t, I also tripped off a rock and I stubbed my hoof.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.” Rarity trotted over to her sister and examined her hoof. “Well, it doesn’t look that bad. Does it hurt when I touch it?”
“No, but it does when I`m walking.” Sweetie Belle replied.
“Well then, I think you just need to rest a little.” Rarity smiled to her. She noticed that the filly was covered in dirt and her coat and mane were scruffy. “Come on, Sweetie, let`s go clean you up.”
Sweetie Belle stood up and followed her sister to the bathroom. Rarity helped her wash off the dirt form her coat and then brushed her mane and tail. When Sweetie Belle was all cleaned up, Rarity smiled and said:
“Fluttershy invited me over this afternoon. I finished my order a few minutes before you arrived and now I`m able to go to her. Would you like to come along?”
“Sure, big sis!” Sweetie Belle replied grinning.
Rarity smiled again and trotted out of the bathroom. “Does your hoof still hurt?” she asked Sweetie Belle that was right behind her.
“A little. I can barely feel the pain anymore.” she replied.
“I`m glad to hear that.” Rarity said. “Get ready, we leave in five minutes.”
Rarity and Sweetie Belle arrived to Fluttershy`s place. The pegasus was outside, waiting for Rarity. She smiled as she saw them coming.
"Rarity! You made it!" she exclaimed happily. "I thought you weren`t going to show up anymore."
"Well of course I did." Rarity replied, approaching the other mare. "Tough I wasnt entirely sure Id be here in time. But Im glad I finished the dresses earlier so I didnt make you wait for me too long."
"I see you brought Sweetie Belle too." Fluttershy said as she saw the little filly behind Rarity.
"Why yes, she returned home sooner and I thought she would enjoy to come along." The unicorn told looking at her little sister which was waving to Fluttershy.
"So, would you like to help me feed the animals?" Fluttershy asked.
"Sure-"
"Yeah!!" exclaimed Sweetie Belle. "Maybe I`ll get an animal feeding Cutie Mark!" she grinned happily and ran to the backyard. Fluttershy and Rarity looked at eachother, then after Sweetie and they both giggled.
"She never stops testing her talents, doesn`t she?" Rarity said to Fluttershy.
"It seems so." the pegasus replied. "But I hope she gets her Cutie Mark soon, it must be exhausting to search for your special talent everyday..."
"At least she`s having fun." Rarity replied and trotted over to the backyard along with Fluttershy.
It was indeed fun to do so many different things a day. And there was also so much to do, Sweetie Belle and the other two Cutie Mark Crusaders never really got bored. If one of their attempts at getting a Cutie Mark failed, they`d always have another option to test. But it was also exhausting. Usually when they returned home they were too tired to do anything else than just sleep until late.
Feeding Fluttershy`s animals took a while, but they still managed to do it in no time. When they were done, Sweetie Belle looked at her flank and she was disapointed that it was still blank.
"Darn it!" she said. "I hoped to get my Cutie Mark now!" she slammed her hoof against the ground angrily.
"Now now, Sweetie," Fluttershy approached. "Im sure youll get your Cutie Mark soon enough. You just have to be patient."
"But I want it! I want it now! I have been waiting for it so long, just HOW LONG to I have to wait?!" the angry filly shouted, causing Fluttershy to jump.
"Well, youll clearly not get a yelling Cutie Mark..." Rarity rolled her eyes, already common with her sisters constant whining. "Or will you?..." she wondered aloud.
Sweetie Belle, now calmed down, sighed. "I dont think so. I dont think Ill ever get it..." she lowered her head sadly. "Im a blank flank, and I`ll die a blank flank..." she said, apparently giving up.
"But Sweetie Belle, you are so young, theres plenty of time for you to get your Cutie Mark! Just keep trying, Im sure you`ll find your special talent soon, but you must not give up." Fluttershy tried to comfort the little filly which sighed again.
"I know, but... the waiting`s driving me nuts." she replied.
"I repeat: you just have to be patient. The Cutie Mark will appear when it`s the right time." Fluttershy said.
"I keep hearing this, and it also drives me nuts too." Sweetie Belle said and got up. Then she trotted away from Fluttershy. The pegasus sighed. She felt sorry for Sweetie Belle. Seeing her unhappy, was also making her unhappy. (Where`s Pinkie Pie when you need her?) But there was nothing she could do about it.
Fluttershy turned to Rarity. "About what you said earlier about her having fun while searching her special talent... I don`t think she is."
"Shes always like this." Rarity replied. "But when shes with Scootaloo and Apple Bloom they do have fun together. When she`s not with them she can get a little screwy."
Suddenly, Sweetie Belle began to scream again. "Bee! Bee! BEEEEEE!"
"Uh-oh.." Fluttershy started. "Sweetie got a bee sting!" Rarity rushed to her sister right away.
"You might need some ice for that." a voice said. The mares turned to see an old stallion standing a few meters away from them. His Cutie Mark was an ax with a stump behind it. He was a forester. Fluttershy nodded and went to get some ice.
"I`m sorry, but who are you?" Rarity asked politely.
"My name is Jud, I work at the other side of Everfree forest, cutting trees. And I`m done for today. Now I was walking back home which is not far away form here." he told.
Fluttershy returned but with no ice. "Oh, no, I`m afraid I ran out of ice!" she said worriedly.
"Maybe I could help you." Jud said. "I have some ice back and my house."
Fluttershy and Rarity followed the stallion as he turned to walk to his house, the unicorn carrying Sweetie Belle on her back because the sting still hurt.
Jud led them to a path across Everfree forest and they were soon able to see his house which really wasnt far at all. They waited for him outside as he went to get the ice. Rarity placed Sweetie Belle down and the filly rubbed her aching sting. Jud returned with a few ice cubes in his teeth. As Rarity placed the ice on her sisters sting, Fluttershy saw something that made her quite curious.
"Where does that path there leads to?" she asked as she pointed to a path near Jud`s house which she had never noticed before. She had a strange feeling about it.
"Oh well, I could lead you there if you want." Jud replied. "It`s a really peaceful place at times."
"Umm... okay... why not.." Fluttershy replied unsure.
"Oh! Oh! I wonder if I could get an exploring Cutie Mark?" Sweetie Belle suddenly said, making it clearly that the bee sting wasn`t bothering her anymore.
Rarity just laughed. "Well, let`s go then."
Fluttershy had a strange feeling about this. She felt that Jud was hiding something. But she still followed the others into the woods. On the edge of the path was a broken sign."Pet Sematary" was written in paint as if spelled by a little school filly.
As they approached it, they saw that there was a clearing, and in the clearing were many stones, most of them misshapen, as if foals had dug dirt just to put a rock in its place.
"What are the rocks for, Jud?" Rarity asked. But she kind of knew the answer. The rocks couldn't be placed randomly without a reason.
"They're graves. Ponies' pets are buried here."
Sweetie Belle looked around. "...Graves? Y-You mean... for... for d-d-d-dead pets?" she asked. She bit her bottom lip, nervous. This was her first experience near death. No one of her family or friend had died yet, so she had never been to a cemetery. Fluttershy and Rarity looked at each other, then at the filly.
"Yes, Sweetie. Just remember, it's natural. It's going to happen to everypony one day... Not today, of course, but we all have to die at some point." Rarity told her. Sweetie Belle was still looking around nervous, trying to ignore the fact that animals were buried right beneath her hooves.
They stood around for a while until Fluttershy spoke up. "Jud, I think it's time we got back."
Jud turned to the pegasus and nodded, his white mane fluffing around his neck. They all turned to leave. Sweetie Belle looked back one more time at the small cemetery, before she followed the other three ponies. They went back down the path, and passed by Jud's house as he led them out of the Everfree Forest. They soon spotted Fluttershy's house in the distance.
Rarity turned to Fluttershy. "Well, it's kind of late. The ponies who had ordered the dresses should arrive in half an hour and I must return to the boutique."
Fluttershy nodded. "See you later Rarity."
"Thanks for inviting me over. You too, Jud, for showing us around."
"Hey, how about coming over to my place tomorrow? My wife would love to meet you." the stallion said.
"Sure. Considering all the free time I'll have tomorrow, I don't see why not." Rarity replied. Jud seemed a nice pony.
On the way back, Sweetie Belle couldn't stop thinking about the small cemetery they had been into. Thoughts flooded her mind. What would happen if Opal would die? Or even her sister? She didn't know what she would do if she would lose somebody. We all have to die at some point. Rarity's worlds echoed in her mind. At some point. She hoped that nobody would reach that point too soon.
The filly shook her head and tried to think of anything else but death.
