Decisions

by Sleepy Panda

Rating: teen
Tags: Dark, Sweetie Belle, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
Length: 960

Sweetie Belle does some deep thinking.

Sweetie Belle is bored and has had a not-so-good past couple of days. Bored and having nothing else to do to stimulate herself, she does some thinking on something Rarity mentioned the other day.

Thanks to Thunderbolt Sentinel for pre-reading and giving me valuable feedback.

Published 2015-05-25 21:40:02 UTC
Last updated 2015-05-25 21:40:02 UTC

What if...?

I'm bored.

"Sweetie Belle, what have I told you about this? Just because your friends jump off a cliff doesn't mean you should too. I've told you that many times. Just because Apple Bloom and Scootaloo stole those cabbages doesn't mean you had to as well. You knew that it was the wrong thing to do, and yet you did so anyway against your better judgement. You should have reported them to a responsible adult."

I mean, who cares about the dumb alligators? Zoos stink. Literally. Fluttershy would have a fit if she saw how poorly the animals were kept.

"But Rarity, we were just trying to get our cutie marks!"

They have sharp teeth. I guess that's kind of cool.

"That doesn't matter! You're grounded next time this happens."

Why did Miss Cheerilee think that the zoo would be fun? We do this every year. It gets tiring.

"But Rarity! That's not fair! I didn't do anything bad enough for that!"

I almost wish Rarity had grounded me yesterday so that I wouldn't have to go on this dumb trip.

"This isn't about the severity of your misdemeanors, Sweetie. This is about you not learning your lesson after being punished for the same thing repeatedly."

Almost, but not quite. At least Rarity isn't here to scold me.

"Lesson? What lesson? You mean that thing where you keep telling me not to push people off cliffs just because my friends do it?"

I find myself gazing enviously at Scootaloo, who is standing a few feet in front of me, gazing wistfully into the sky. Probably daydreaming about flying with Rainbow Dash. That's a wish we both share right now. Maybe if I were a pegasus, I could fly away to someplace more fun. Anywhere but here, really. This place is full of animals. I don't particularly like animals, especially not that evil cat of Rarity's - if you can even call it a cat. Personally, I'm convinced that it's a demon of some sort.

"Well, that's not exactly what I said, but yes, that's the general idea."

I don't bother trying to stifle my yawn of extreme boredom as I look over at Apple Bloom, who is casually leaning against the railing of the bridge and chatting with Twist, that odd pony with a stupid mark on her butt. The fence isn't very high; either filly could easily lean a bit too far and fall into the alligator habitat. It's rather dangerous; you would think that the zoo would be more concerned about the safety of its visitors, but apparently not. Those alligators look rather hungry...

Why won't Apple Bloom talk to me instead? Stupid Twist is stealing her from me. It’s not fair. I’m Apple Bloom’s friend, not Twist. Twist ruined her chance when she went and got her cutie mark before Apple Bloom did. It was so rude of her! So why is Apple Bloom talking to her? Can’t she see that I’m the better friend?

Currently, my words from yesterday are echoing through my head. It isn’t the most enlightening conversation I’ve ever had, but it sure is more interesting than listening to some dumb pony explain the difference between reptiles and amphibians.

"You mean that thing where you keep telling me not to push people off cliffs just because my friends do it?"

It was less of a lesson than common sense, really. Who would push somepony off of a cliff in the first place? Ponies just don't do that.

...But that doesn't mean they can't do it. It's entirely possible for a pony to do that. I mean, it's not like they'd want to, but they can.

Just one action could change a life. One tiny decision, but such a large impact.

Anypony could potentially kill another pony, but so few choose to do so.

It's stupid, really. Who would actually do that? I certainly wouldn't, right?

Apple Bloom is still ignoring me.

Seriously, how long can that annoying tour guide talk about alligators? Doesn't she realize by now that nopony cares? She's acting like they're the most fascinating thing in the world.

This is so boring...

I wouldn't do that... Right?

Right?

But... I could.

It would just take one...

I step forward.

Little...

I reach out and place my front hooves on Twist's body, but I hesitate for a moment as I make contact with her. She starts twisting - heh, twisting - around to look at me, presenting me with a partial view of her annoying face, and-

My brief moment of weakness is over.

Push. I think that's the most confused scream I have ever heard in my entire life. It's actually kind of funny-sounding, given her lisp; I nearly giggle at the sound. But I hold in my laugh until the next satisfying sounds that follow. Those are much more worthy of being laughed at. I mean, you don’t hear those sorts of noises every day.

Nobody laughs with me, but that’s okay. I don’t care. They’re all so silly and ignorant of the mechanics of this world, inferior to me in every way. For I understand life now. It's all so clear. I've broken through all of my restraints and now I am free to do whatever I please without any repercussions. There's only so much other ponies can do now that I've stopped being afraid to do what I want to, and make decisions without letting other people influencing me. It's not like I'm being evil or anything. Only criminals and monsters are evil.

Maybe Apple Bloom will talk to me now.

At least I won't have to stay at the zoo for any longer.

A small smile tugs at the corners of my mouth.