Unmarked

Three Months Earlier

Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo listened as the bell rang, and everypony present in the schoolhouse darted out of the doorway. The two were still curious on what Apple Bloom wanted to meet in the clubhouse for, and what she had planned. Deep down, both the unicorn and pegasus had a bad feeling about what Apple Bloom was planning, but seeing they were young, they only thought it was their imaginations being overactive.

Apple Bloom caught up with them, noticing both of them seeming unsure of what she had planned. The young filly's grin was blank, making it only more obvious that Sweetie and Scootaloo's suspiciousions were more than true, and they didn't have a single idea of what Apple Bloom's plan was yet. The unicorn and pegasus felt a stroke of fear slither down their spines, as Apple Bloom finally spoke through the dead silence of the empty schoolhouse.

"Somethin' wrong?" she asked in a cold voice. "You two look as if you've seen a ghost."

Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo had not noticed the change in their expressions, showing only fear and discomfort. It could've just been the weather, seeing the pegasi had formed storm clouds, and were preparing for a mild thunderstorm. They were hesitant to answer, shaking their heads in unison.

"We're fine, Apple Bloom," assured Scootaloo.

"Yeah. It's just the weather," added Sweetie Belle, her voice cracking.

Apple Bloom expressed a smile, but not a happy smile, more a devious smile that seemed hazardous.

"Good, now let's git to the clubhouse before the storm starts. We need to talk about somethin' important."

Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle looked at each other with fear in their eyes, as Apple Bloom started out the door of the schoolhouse. Apple Bloom noticed that Sweetie and Scootaloo had not joined her, and immediately she looked back at them.

"You two comin' or what?" she asked, startling the two fillies.

Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle just swallowed, and quickly caught up with Apple Bloom.

The walk back to the clubhouse seemed like eternity for Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, while for Apple Bloom, it seemed like just the same old twenty minute walk that they did every day when school ended. To avoid getting wet from the storm, the three fillies rushed up the stairs, into the small clubhouse. Apple Bloom was the first one in, so she held the door for Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle then shut the door to the clubhouse nice and tight.

It was dark, so Apple Bloom switched on the lone lightbulb that hung from the ceiling. It lightened the room mildly, so to provide some extra light, Sweetie Belle lit the tip of her horn with her magic. Even though the room was lit, a strange heaviness was still present, and only grew more heavier, as Apple Bloom stood high behind the Cutie Mark Crusaders podium. She pounded her hoof against the wooden surface of the podium, which Sweetie and Scootaloo mistaked for thunder.

"This meetin' of the Cutie Mark Crusaders will officially begin," announced Apple Bloom in a high voice. "As both of you know, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon have been harassin' us for some time, and if you ask me, it's time that they get a taste of their own medicine."

The strange heaviness grew heavier the more Apple Bloom spoke. Her voice echoed, rumbling the wooden floors of the clubhouse, and causing Sweetie and Scootaloo to quiver. Her words were like poison, slowly infecting their eardrums and caressing their minds with thoughts that they never thought they'd consider.

"What are you proposing?" asked Sweetie Belle in a shaky low voice.

"Well, as y'all know, they mock us for being "blank flanks," so what better way to teach em' a lesson than by removin' them of what makes them different from us?" clarified Apple Bloom.

Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle were shocked, yet confused at the same time. How could they possibly take a cutie mark, and the thought of taking a cutie mark from somepony; the one thing that made almost a pony unique in their own way. How could they possibly do such a thing? It was hard to swallow, but the urge grew, as Scootaloo thought back to the events of that day. The acts that they did were cruel and unnecessary, all over the three of them being blank flanks.

"Let me ask. Apple Bloom, how do you plan to remove them of their cutie marks?" asked Scootaloo. "Sweetie Belle isn't exactly a scholar in magic like Twilight, so she couldn't even do something like that."

"I'm aware, Scoots, but who said anything about removin' their cutie marks with magic?" stated Apple Bloom.

Apple Bloom's words caused Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo's blood to run cold, knowing what was coming next. From under the wooden podium, Apple Bloom grabbed a large knife with a leather grip, and placed it on the surface of the podium.

"This is how we'd remove those two of their cutie marks FOR GOOD!" she yelled, planting her hoof hard against the wooden surface of the podium. "Removin' their cutie marks like this makes it impossible for them to EVER get em' back! We'd remove em' then dispose of em' somewhere where they would be impossible to ever be recovered!"

Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle were shocked that Apple Bloom would ever consider something so malevolent, yet they secretly were tempted. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon had been nothing but cruel to not just the CMC, but others as well for no reason, and they had to be stopped. Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle nodded their heads in agreement.

"How do you plan to get them here?" asked Scootaloo.

"Come on, Scoots. We're the Cutie Mark Crusaders. I'm sure we can handle those two," assured Apple Bloom.

"Yeah, we've done more than those two will ever do in their lives," added Sweetie Belle.

"Point taken," replied Scootaloo. "What's everypony's role in this cutie mark removal thing?"

"Well, Sweetie Belle is the sister of Ponyville's top fashion designer, so she's good with sewing and cutting, therefore, Sweetie Belle would do the cutting. I can do things like assisting in handing Sweetie Belle things she needs, while you keep Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon content during the entire thing, Scoots."

Scootaloo nodded her head, along with Sweetie Belle.

"We'll bring em' here, and perform the removal of their cutie marks in the upper section of the clubhouse. Make sure to cover their eyes and mouths with somethin', and put something like earplugs in their ears so they don't recognize our voices."

"Sounds like a plan, but how do you plan to get them here, Apple Bloom?" asked Scootaloo.

"Simple. Trick em' into joinin' us for somethin' like a tea party, put somethin' in their tea to knock them out, then so on and so forth," confirmed Apple Bloom.

"I like your style," replied Scootaloo. "When do we go after them?"

"Tomorrow. I still need to add some restraints to the tables in the upper section of the clubhouse, so they can't get away from us."

Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle expressed evil looks, following chuckles as the first bit of thunder from the storm erupted.

Apple Bloom stopped talking, struggling to mutter out anything. Dr. Coltstein grew curious, wondering what was troubling the young filly, due to this story finally giving him some sort of an idea of why Apple Bloom did what she did.

"Is everything okay, Apple Bloom?" asked the doctor. "You were doing well.

Apple Bloom didn't respond, only hung her head, following some tears falling to the floor. Dr. Coltstein was about to stand when a sudden outburst made him stop dead in his tracks.

"NOT YOU! GO AWAY! I NEED TO TELL HIM!" exclaimed Apple Bloom.

The doctor was both confused and scared at the same time, unsure what to do.

"Apple Bloom, who are you talking to?" he asked.

Apple Bloom didn't respond, only continued to shout at whatever she was speaking to.

"I'M SORRY! LET ME GO! PLEASE! I NEED TO TELL HIM! I NEED TO TELL HIM WHAT HAPPENED!"

The doctor had no idea what to do. Should he sedate her with some sort of syringe? Let her continue? Call a nurse? He stood up, not wanting to be in such a vulnerable position, if she were to attempt any sort of attack. He scurried back to his desk, with his hoof close to the nurse button, if he needed to call one to sedate the filly. He listened carefully to Apple Bloom, the more she struggled against the invisible force she was speaking to. He decided to document this, so he switched on his recorder next to the nurse button, and recorded everything Apple Bloom said, hoping to catch something.

"IT WASN'T ME! IT WAS YOU! YOU'VE BEEN THERE SINCE THE DAY IT ALL BEGAN! GO AWAY! LEAVE ME ALONE! I NEED TO TELL HIM WHAT YOU DID! WHAT YOU DID TO MY FRIENDS! WHAT YOU DID TO ME TO PUT ME IN THIS HELL!"

Apple Bloom let out a growl, but not a normal growl, more a demonic sounding growl. Dr. Coltstein couldn't believe what he was hearing, and immediately had a feeling of what was happening, even though he wasn't a believer in things like demons or ghosts. He wasn't going to ignore the possiblility of his suspicions though, despite his beliefs. He believed Apple Bloom was experiencing a possession, if so, how in the world did she get possessed? He needed more information to know if his suspicions were correct.

Apple Bloom finally calmed down, looking at the doctor, standing behind his desk with a look of horror on his face.

"What happened?" she asked.

Dr. Coltstein was shocked. How could she not remember what happened only moments ago? He decided to lie, not wanting to frighten the filly anymore than she already was.

"Let's just say you blacked out for a second, Apple Bloom," he lied.

"Why are you so frightened, doctor? Do you want me to continue?" she asked.

Normally, he'd want a patient to continue a story, but he was too afraid that she might go into a dangerous state again.

"No. We're done, for today," he said in a shaky voice. "Thank you for your time, Apple Bloom."

Apple Bloom looked at him with a confused look then made her way out of the office, wondering what had Dr. Coltstein so shooken up. She'd soon find out.