A Coven of Sisters

It was another beautiful day. The sun was shining over the clubhouse of the CMC's. Birds were chirping and bunnies nibbled happily on dandelions and other wildflowers that seemed to smile at the world around them. Yet, inside the tree house, three little fillies sat glumly.

“Rock climbing?” Apple Bloom suggested.

“Rraaahh, you said that one five minutes ago!” Scootaloo vented through clenched teeth, the pencil in her mouth still sharp and unused.

“And we tried that last week.” Sweetie Belle added. “Along with firefighting, hoof gliding and modern artistry.”

Scootaloo laid her face against the wooden floor boards of the tree house, sighing dejectedly. “We'll never get our cutie marks.”

“Oh cheer up.” Apple Bloom smiled. “Mah big sis keeps telling me it's he journey that makes the character. Naht the destination.”

“Rarity's says that too.” Sweetie Belle screwed up her face. “Haven't figured out what it means though.”

“Huh.” Scootaloo looked away, hiding the sudden tears that sprang to her eyes. “Must be a sister thing.” Adding softly, “I wish I had a big sis.”

The three sat in uncomfortable silence. Both Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle knew that Scootaloo was an orphan, but they never found the courage to ask more. The little fillies felt sorry for their friend, but didn't really have a clue of what they could do to help make her feel better.

“Hey, A'h gaht an idea!” Apple Bloom shot to her hooves. “Let's go visit Princess Twilight!”

“And how does that exactly help?” Sweetie Belle asked, shifting eyes from Apple Bloom to the dejected orange pegesus

Apple Bloom smiled. “Well, first off, Twilight's a Princess.”

“No, really?” Scootaloo mumbled. “I would've never guessed from the title of Princess.”

“And she's gaht a library in that castle of hers.” Apple Bloom pressed on, ignoring her mopey friend.

Sweetie Belle cocked her head to the side. “And that helps, how?”

Apple Bloom smiled. “There's books in the library.”

Scootaloo sat up and dead panned. “You're two for two.”

The yellow filly stamped her hoof impatiently, annoyed that her friends just weren't getting what she'd figured out.

“Books, on different subjects!” She practically yelled. “More books than we can count! A'h bet there's loads of subjects we've never thought about before in there.”

Scootaloo seemed to moll that over. “And if we haven't thought of them before.”

“Then we haven't tried them yet!” Sweetie Belle finished excitedly. “Apple Bloom! You're a genius!”

Closing her eyes, Apple Bloom buffed a fore hoof on her chest. “A'h have mah moments.”

They all giggled, grabbed their Cutie Mark Crusader capes and took off towards Twilight Sparkles crystal castle.

The trip didn't take long, and they even had enough time to stop by Sugar Cube Corner and try one of Pinkie's latest cupcakes flavors, Plumb Strawberry. While the name sounded strange, the moist plumb cake hid a delicious strawberry cream filling that seemed to contrast in a way that they could taste the full flavors of each fruit without loosing any potency of the other. A few hooffulls of confetti it was declared a success, but alas, no cupcake taster cutie marks were to be had. Undeterred, the three crusaders made their way to the crystal castle of friendship.

“Why hello girls.” Twilight smiled, looking up from an old tomb she'd been studying for the last few days. “And what can I do for you, my little ponies?”

Apple Bloom gave her best, most innocent smile. “Well, Princess Twilight. We were hoping that we could nose around your library for a bit and find some books to help us get our cutie marks!”

The Princess of Friendship looked both pleased and a little doubtful. “Well, I'm glad that you would come to a place of learning to find wisdom, but I'm afraid that my books won't give you a cutie mark like that. Cutie marks are your special talent, and special talents are found by doing, not reading.”

“Says the pony who spends most of her free time reading and studying.” Spike jibed. He was laying near by on a comfy cushion, taking a light nap.

“Well, there is a lot to learn in the world, and reading it saves time on the more tedious studying and experimenting I'd have to do otherwise.” Twilight gave a few false laughs. “Not that I wouldn't want to be experiment, but I digress.”

“Most every day.” Spike opened an eye. “You promised that you'd cut back to a book a week. What is that one? You're third?”

Twilight gave a nervous grin. “Fourth, actually. So, what kind of subjects were you looking for?” She asked Apple Bloom.

Apple Bloom opened her mouth, then shut it, then opened it again, only to shut it and think. “A'h don't know, actually. Anythin' really, A'h guess.”

Twilight gave an understanding smile. “Just be sure to put the books back after you've read them.” And went back to reading the old tomb while Spike started snoring lightly, mumbling something about Rarity under his breath. The three crusaders made their way into the two teared library hall.

Scootaloo's eyes widened as she saw all the books in the hall, a broad grin spreading from ear to ear. “Apple Bloom, you're a genius!”

"A'h thought we established that already.” She replied mildly, again buffing a forehoof. “But A'h appreciate that you understand who the brains are here.”

“So, here's the plan girls,” Sweetie Belle said, pitting a hoof to her chin, thinking as she spoke. “We'll spit up. Apple Bloom, you take the left side, Scoots, the right and I'll go straight. Take a half hour to find anything that interests you. After the half hour's up, we'll show what we found, and write down all the new ideas and we'll start trying them!”

“Yay! Cutie Mark Crusaders Interest Finders Go!” They yelled and off they split.

A half hour came much too soon for the three fillies, and excitedly they presented the dozens of books they found on various topics ranging from Phoenix breeding to geology- which none of them knew what the word meant. And so Sweetie Belle started recording each subject, making their exhausted list look like posted note. It wasn't until two hours latter that they were done writing down all the subjects they'd took a liking too.

“With this list, we'll find out cutie marks in no time!” Apple Bloom beamed, looking at the long list of things to try.

“Uhh, guys?” Scootaloo looked at a book that they'd missed. She picked up the tomb with the tattered black cover. “Did this make it on the list?”

“I don't think so.” Sweetie Belle stared scanning the subject list. “What's it called?”

The orange pegasus opened it, the spin crackling, as if the book was very old. “Coven guide to forming your own Coven.” She looked up with a funny look. “What's a Coven?”

Sweetie Belle looked up from the list. “I can't find it on the list. Should we check it out?”

Apple Bloom looked nervous. “A'h don't know girls. Princess Twilight might get upset if we just up and take this book without askin', and the word coven doesn't sound very nice.”

Scootaloo looked at the book for another few moments before tucking it under her wing. “Oh, she won't know. After all, there's THOUSANDS of books here. I doubt she'd miss this tattered old thing. “

“Well,” Apple Bloom still looked unsure about the idea. “If you say so.”

An hour later Spike rose from his nap and headed into the library to check on the girls, only to stopped dead in his tracks. “Sweet Sapphire!” He gulped. “How could three little fillies make such a big mess?” He paused for a moment, remember just who the three little fillies were. “I take that back. I'm actually surprised that they didn't COMPLETELY take off every book from every shelf.”

With a shrug he made his way to the kitchen for a carton of ice cream before Twilight called him to clean up the gigantic mess. It was going to be a long afternoon.

At the club house, the three fillies poured over the tattered old book, eyes wide as they read of secrets and rituals that made no sense to them.

“Here!” Scootaloo pointed at a passage. “What's it say?”

Sweetie Belle scanned it. “It says that we can become blood sisters, which is a stronger bond than actual family. As blood sister's we'd be equal and can preform magic that not even Alicorns can preform.”

Apple Bloom thought about that. “Really? Huh.”

The orange pegasus, eyes wide, smiled at the her friends. “I say we do it!”

Apple Bloom looked uncomfortable. “A'h don't know. It sounds mighty strange.”

“Well,” Sweetie Belle said slowly. “There isn't anything here that says it's dangerous. We just need a cup, a kni-”

“Why would we need a knife?!” Apple Bloom demanded shrilly. The two others just glared at her. “A'h-A'h mean, what's the knife for? Heh, heh.”

“We're suppose to make a little cut,” Sweetie Belle explained, glancing through the ceremony passage. “We each give a few drops and we all are suppose to take a sip from the cup and chant some mummbo jummbo. That's it.”

Scootalooo was the first on her hooves, fishing out a pair of scissors from behind the podium. “Will these work?”

“I suppose so.” Sweetie Belle shrugged. “But you sure you want to do it now?”

The pegasus pointed at her. “You have Rarity.” She pointed at Apple Bloom. “She has Apple Jack, Big Mac AND Granny Smith, not to mention more cousins than she know what to do with. I don't have any of that.” Scootaloo sat on the rough floor, sniffing. “I..I don't have any of that. So, yeah, I want to do it now. That means I get two sisters, blood sisters, and then I won't be alone any more. I'll finally have a family.”

It was hard hearing their friend say that, and after a glance at each other, both Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle knew they couldn't say no. Apple Bloom went to fetch a cup and soon they drew the circle and triangle the ceremony called for. They each sat on a point, each chanting the opening line of the ritual.

“Three to one, and one to three, give thy blood and blood receive.”

They passed the cup, cutting a small incision on their foreleg, doping in a dozen blood drops each.

Drink of blood and boon to make, the blood of three, sister through fate.”

Passing they cup, each took a small swallow of the warm, salty, copper tasting liquid. As repulsive as they found it tasting, they held it down through will power, finishing the final line.

“Sisters through blood and blood we are founded, eternal through life, our souls are now bounded”

A strange blue light lit from the triangle and circle drawn on the floor, before dying, leaving no trace that the white chalk marks were ever there to begin with.

“Sisters!” Scootaloo flung her hooves around the neck of her now blood sisters and hugged them tightly. They all giggled and settled down to read what their new bond could do, through this magical book that somehow brought them closer together.

Several Weeks latter, Silver Spoon found herself on her way home from Sugar Cube Corner, alone, in the evening. It was a strange twist of fate that she was alone, but her dad was suddenly called away for business meeting and her nanny had the day off. But, Silver Spoon was old enough now to take care of herself. She had her cutie mark after all, it wasn't like she was a blank flank who couldn't be trust with anything.

And so after buying her favorite sweets, she made her way home, deciding to go the back way to her family's manor traveling through what little wooded area that wasn't considered the Everfree Forest.

The wind blew lightly, rustling the leaves in the trees, snapping a twig here or there, but she didn't mind. Truth was, her mind was pondering more about the strange conception of a cupcake called the Plumb Strawberry Delight, rather than thinking about the brisk breeze around her.

The wind kept blowing, creating a low moan that seemed to echo around the wooded area. Silver Spoon heard the moan of the wind many times in her short life, but this was different. It wasn't a hollow sound that sounded more like a whistle from lips much to wide, but rather a breath of an ancient creature that was beginning to stir, just on the edge of consciousness. She sped up her pace, just a little.

A dusty rattling sound floated down to her sensitive ears, that seemed to magnify everything. Looking up, gulping slightly, Silver Spoon found the rattle to be nothing more than leaves. Hundred of hundreds of bone dry leaves, all shaking in the chilly wind that swept them back and fourth, knocking them into each other. It almost seemed that the leafy canopy was a dull, brown husk of a monstrous snake on the verge of shedding it's dead skin.

“J-just the leaves.” Silver Spoon laughed to herself. “Nothing to worry about.”

The light was starting to fade quickly, and the gray filly felt the urge to speed up to a trot. Not because she was worried. She wasn't afraid of the low moaning wind or the dry, husky shaking of the dead leaves, or the steady hoof clops that seemed come from behind her. Silver Spoon stopped in her tracks, hearing the clops. Slowly, she turned to see no pony behind her, yet the steady hoof beats played on her eardrums. Each step matching her heart beat.

With a shaky laugh, the gray filly figured it was just her heart beat pounding in her ears, because she was tensing up over nothing. That was it. It was nothing. Just her imagination. Like that hot breath on the back of her neck. Nothing but her imagination.

Eye wide with shock, Silver Spoon spun around, not seeing a thing, but dying trees, their limbs stretched high over top, like skeleton fingers clawing at the sky, the loud moaning of the wind their dying breath. Yet still, the steady measured clop of a pony could be heard and a hot breath could be felt on the back of her neck.

With a scream, the once dignified bully burst into tears and dashed down the path towards her home, where she'd knew she's be safe, and could hide under her bed, dropping the bag of sweets as she sprinted.

The moaning of the wind grew, changing, morphing into a scream, the scream of pony. The rattling grated on her ears, now sounded more like bones knocking into each other, and the hoof falls sounded like they were closer than before, without speeding up their steady pace. Silver Spoon's heart raced, her eyes stung with tears and her throat burned from gasping the now icy air around her.  As she galloped she saw something in the road before her. A bag of sweets. Laughter swirled around her. Laughter she knew, laughter she'd heard before.

Panicking, she threw her head up to see the leaves of the trees were replaced by the skulls of ponies, grinning down in an empty, mirthless smiles, as the hot breath bore down on her neck, as the hoof falls stopped, directly behind her. Silver Spoon turned and screamed at the abomination behind her, bearing down on her.

It was several hours before any of the search ponies found the shaking form of Silver Spoon the next morning. The gray filly was found huddling under a tree near the Ever Free Forest, eyes bloodshot from crying, voice lost, mouth working wordlessly. She didn't recognized the presence of any pony, not even her father. All she could do was shiver on her bed and stare out the window to Everyfree Forest, mumbling under hear breath, still hearing the last sound she'd remembered from the night before. The laughing of three little fillies.