I Love to Singa

Sweetie Belle spent almost half the night at the piano, except when she was called for dinner. Afterward, when mother and father retreated to their room and Rarity went off to work on some sketches in her own room, she looked through the songbook and searched for a melody she can play. Sweetie found one after turning multiple pages. It was a simple tune she learned to play when she was five called “Sunshine Lane,” which was a children’s song.

Her white hooves pressed the keys, and the song filled the emptiness of the living room. It was short song, taking no more than two minutes to play, but it made her feel somewhat better about Apple Bloom and Scootaloo’s choice to not be in the talent show with her. It came to a point where she didn’t necessarily need the book to play the song, however it was good to familiarize herself with it. There was nothing wrong with a little reminder. At the final notes of the song Sweetie mouthed the last few lines to herself. She closed her eyes and imagined herself in her kindergarten class when they used to sing it all the time.

With the last note the song ended, and Sweetie turned the pages to search for another song. It was another short song she learned to play when she was young, a catchy, upbeat tune called “Heart and Soul.” It was a popular song to play on the piano, one must have heard at some point in their life. Sweetie also heard it being played in a scene from a movie she watched some time ago. It was about a small colt who wanted to be big.

Rarity entered the living room just as Sweetie finished the song. “That was wonderful,” she exclaimed. “Are you going to play that for the talent show.”

Sweetie made a face.

“I don’t think so,” she said. “It’s a very overplayed song. I’m pretty sure ponies who are going to play the piano are going to have the same idea. Either that, or the one with the chopsticks, or Fur… Fur something.”

“Fur Elise, darling.”

“Yeah, that one,” Sweetie responded.

“I still believe it sound lovely. Will you play another song for me?”

Sweetie liked it when Rarity asked her to do something in a polite manner. She searched the songbook for a song to play for her older sister. She’d probably would like to hear something more classical, she thought to herself, although her skills were not nearly as advanced. She’d still try, though. Then, after thinking it over, she decided to not play another song from the book. Sweetie readied her hooves and began to play the Cutie Mark Crusaders theme song.

As she played the song she hummed the lyrics, then she was seeing images from the talent show from last year. No matter how bad it was, it was a very special moment for her. They didn’t get their cutie marks that night like they hoped, but they had fun together. That was all she ever wanted.

“You play it so well,” Rarity said. “Tell me, how do the lyrics go?”

Sweetie continued to play. The lyrics weren’t that easy to forget.

When you’re a young pony

And your flank is very bare,

Feels like the sun will never come

When your cutie mark’s not there

So the three of us will fight the fight,

There is nothing that we fear,

We’ll have to figure out what we’ll do next

Until our cutie marks appear

We are the Cutie Mark Crusaders

On a quest to find our cutie marks,

And we will never stop the journey

Not until we have our cutie marks

“You know, I have always wondered what inspired you to write that song,” said Rarity. “It’s very well-written.”

“Well, Scootaloo was trying to make up the lyrics from the top of her head… also she couldn’t play the piano very well, so I helped her. In fact, all three of us wrote the song together.”

“I was meaning to tell you, Sweetie, I was very surprised when I saw you on that stage. Everyone in our family said that you have a marvelous voice for singing, but you were always afraid to go on stage.” Rarity then shuddered after another thought. “And that… costume. How did you ever managed go through with something like that?”

“That’s because Apple Bloom and Scootaloo were there with me.” The melody began to fade, then went to a complete stop. “I didn’t have to worry about everyone else as long as they were around. That was the best part of it.”

Rarity and Sweetie fell silent, save for the muffled laughter from their parents upstairs. Rarity placed the tip of her hoof on her chin, tapping it lightly, deep in thought. “I’ll be right back. You stay right here,” she told Sweetie. She rushed upstairs, leaving Sweetie to stare at the black and white piano keys for a few moments. Rarity returned with her young sister’s stuffed dolls being held by magic. “I would like to try a little experiment,” she said.

“I thought Princess Twilight liked to do experiments. And why are you using my dolls?”

"No reason whatsoever, I just had the idea of playing out a scenario involving yourself.” Rarity positioned the dolls on the couch and empty seat in the living room that was available, and made sure all of them were facing Sweetie. “I would like for you to pretend that you’re on stage and your dolls are the audience. Now play a song.”

Sweetie gave a weird look to her sister, but shrugged and turned around. She motioned her little hooves over the piano keys to play a song, then she froze. She hadn’t realized if she gazed at the white keys long enough they began to resemble teeth. When she tried to reach for the one of the high notes the keys played the wrong note. They even zigzagged back and forth, as if mocking her efforts. Sweetie turned back to find that her dolls held malicious looks on their stitched faces and buttoned eyes. Was that chuckling she heard from them? Sweetie turned back to the piano, paced herself, lowered her hooves.

She stumbled on the first key.

“I can’t do it!”

“What do you mean?” asked Rarity.

Sweetie made a gesture toward her dolls. “I can’t do it in front of them! They’ll laugh!”

“... They’re just dolls.”

Sweetie opened her mouth, only to quickly remove herself from the living room. A moment later she returned to collect her dolls, then dashed to her bedroom and locked the door. Despite her sister’s eccentric behavior, Rarity tried not to let it bother her. She’s only a little filly after all. Hopefully Sweetie will not think ill of her, she thought.

It was the moment Sweetie waited all her life for. She had her doubts, she had her second thoughts, but the stage finally belonged to her. Sweetie stood by the right wing of the stage in her violet dress and glass slippers as the announcer came into center view. With a loud voice that was enhanced by the microphone, the announcer introduced Sweetie Belle to the applauding audience.

This had to be a dream. There was no way this was actually happening. No, she shouldn’t think about that, now was not the time. This was her moment. The world was going to hear her magnificent voice.

Sweetie Belle stepped forward to the center of the stage. The arena was in a frenzy. Ponies hollered, stomped their hooves, cameras flashed to get a glimpse of her beautiful face. She looked to the front row to see her smiling family, including Rarity, the one who was always there throughout her life. There was nothing else on earth that can surpass this moment. Finally, all was silent. Sweetie approached the microphone. The orchestra braced themselves, and the conductor held his baton to ready the players into full motion. Into the first notes of the string instruments Sweetie opened her mouth.

A blow-horn was heard.

Instantly, she covered her mouth out of shock. What was happening? Maybe she was stressed, but how could be? She was feeling fine before. Sweetie opened her mouth again. She produced a cartoonish sound effect. The audience was murmuring, even her family looked at her weirdly. Sweetie was afraid to open her mouth again. Most of the crowd started to laugh at her, as though this was a comedic performance. She had to prove them wrong. Sweetie opened her mouth once more to force her excellent singing voice into the ears of the spectators. Much to her dismay she sounded like an elephant.

There was mixture of booing and laughing from the audience. Sweetie turned to her family only to find they have sneaked out of the arena. There was a little note left behind on Rarity’s spot. Sweetie took a closer look, and her once high spirit was broken when it read “I’M SORRY” in fine print.

Two other ponies joined the stage from opposite sides, laughing at her as well. Her entire world was torn asunder when she saw that the young ponies looked like Apple Bloom and Scootaloo. Apple Bloom was tap dancing in a mocking fashion and Scootaloo was clothed in a purple jumpsuit with a giant yellow lightning bolt stitched on the front with a helmet, with a fancy-looking new scooter. To make matters much more frightening, her stuffed dolls and toys from her fillyhood part of the laughing audience, all of them with jeering faces like before.

This had to be a dream. A very bad dream. All she wanted to do was to wake up.

“Sweetie,” a voice said. “Sweetie, wake up darling.” Sweetie Belle knew that faint voice. She forced her eyes open, and out of the darkness she saw the outline of Rarity, obscured by sunlight from the window. It took awhile for her blurry vision to make a clear image of gorgeous blue hair. “Sweetie, are you well? You were tossing in your bed like a madness!”

“Rarity I had the most awful dream ever!” Sweetie said. “I was getting ready to sing in front of a large crowd, but I couldn’t! I kept making all these strange noises! Everypony laughed, then Scootaloo and Apple Bloom were there laughing at me! You, mom and dad were there too, but all of you left me when things got worse!”

“Oh my… that does sound dreadful. Are you alright, dear? You gave me such a fright.”

“I think so,” Sweetie said, unsure of herself.

“I’m glad to hear.”

Sweetie yawned and climbed out of bed, drowsily. “Well, I guess I have to get ready.”

“For what?”

“For another day at school.”

“But Sweetie, it’s Saturday.”

Sweetie Belle paused on her steps. She knocked herself on the side of her head with her hoof. Of course it was Saturday. Darn that terrible dream, she thought. “Sweetie, are you sure you are feeling well?” Rarity asked again.

“I’m fine. That dream threw me off. I just need to lie down for awhile… and watch some cartoons or something.”

Sweetie Belle stepped out of her bedroom, on her way to the kitchen to make herself a bowl of cereal, then retreat to the family room to watch her morning animated programs. Before Rarity left her room she caught a glimpse of one of Sweetie’s stuffed dolls. There was a stitched pony in a clown costume sitting on the shelf above her bed. Rarity was very sure she would have a bad dream as well with that clown sitting above her head.