Chapters The Cutie Mark Crusaders: Down the Road
It was a cool autumn afternoon in Ponyville and a young Earth mare was working in her shop. She was beginning work on the stage that would be used in the Nightmare Night festival, which would take place in six weeks time. She wanted to get an early start on this project, as she always had orders to fill and she wanted to make sure she had ample time to finish the stage. She could wait until one day prior to the festival to even begin if she wasn’t so bogged down with orders all the time, she was that good. The popularity of AppleWood: Improvement and Repair in Equestria kept her busy.
The stage would be too big to complete construction in her shop. She would have to build the frame in pieces, then move outside to assemble it and build the stage around it. She completed the first frame piece and wiped the sweat off her brow. She picked up her pink bow, which had fallen off at some point, and placed it back on her head. It was a fashion accessory that she had never outgrown.
Applebloom was about to start on the second frame piece when she heard the bell at the front desk. Upon entering the main office of her shop she found Zecora. The day before, Zecora had dropped off a table that needed repair because the screws that held the legs to it had been removed and refastened so many times that the screw holes were too big and overused for the screws to fasten securely.
Applebloom led Zecora to the back of the shop where she was keeping the finished table. She explained that she had removed the screw system and replaced it with a new system where the newly threaded legs could simply be inserted and into the table and fastened. She had also stripped the chipping paint, sanded, and applied a brand new coat of paint. The result was a piece of furniture that could have been passed off as brand new.
Applebloom’s work far exceeded what Zecora had originally asked for, which was simply repairing the screw holes. They spent the next several minutes negotiating payment, eventually agreeing on forty bits. This was less than one-half what Applebloom normally would have charged for the task Zecora had requested in the first place. Applebloom would have done the job free of charge, but Zecora wouldn’t hear of it. It was one of the ways Applebloom thought she could repay the mare to whom she credited the discovery of her cutie mark.
Ten years earlier it was not uncommon for Zecora to ask Applebloom to come to her home in the Everfree Forest to fix a piece of furniture that had conveniently broken. Applebloom, who at this point was unaware of her talent, was always happy to help even though she always thought she could see sighs of deliberate sabotage. She remained oblivious to her talent for improvement, repair, and minor construction until Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle pointed out what Zecora was doing. One day, while Applebloom was on her way home after fixing one of Zecora’s cabinets she discovered a hammer, screwdriver, and a wrench had at some point appeared on her flank.
Zecora and Applebloom loaded the table into Zecora’s wagon and Zecora departed with a rhyme of gratitude. Applebloom returned to her work on the stage, reflecting back on the first project she had ever undertaken after discovering her talent. For years the Apple Family had been trying to raise money to replace Big Macintosh’s plow, which had long been in disarray. Applebloom eliminated the need for such a thing by fixing and improving it. By the time she was done the eighty year-old farm implement looked like it was new. In fact it even worked better than it did when it WAS new. Applebloom fixed up a number of things on Sweet Apple Acres and she even helped Big Macintosh build a new house on the land after he and Cheerilee were married. (See The Personal Journal of Big Macintosh)
Over the years Applebloom made a name for herself in Ponyville. It wasn’t until she became known across Equestria after the Canterlot Tallent Show that she thought about starting a business. Eventually AppleWood was born and it took off almost immediately.
Applebloom was half way done with the second frame piece when she looked up at the clock on her wall. It was five o’clock, which meant she had one hour until the reunion. She quit for the day, put her tools away, closed up shop, and went home to start getting ready.
The Cutie Mark Crusaders: Down the Road
The road between Manehattan and Ponyville was progressively being covered with leaves. The Running of the Leaves wasn’t causing this, as it wasn’t scheduled to take place for another month. The cause of the falling leaves was a strong wind resulting from an oversized scooter speeding down the road. The scooter was being propelled not by a motor, but by the wings of its rider.
Scootaloo paid close attention to her surroundings and the road ahead, ready to swerve or make a high jump to evade any pedestrians or animals that might show up. Traveling at fifty-five miles per hour, she couldn’t afford not to be vigilant. Due to a minor wing deformation Scootaloo couldn’t achieve sustained flight. She made up for this shortcoming by employing her various scooters. By using her wings, which were getting stronger by the day, she was ale to propel herself at speeds that no other creature or machine could achieve on solid ground.
There was a time when Scootaloo lamented having to rely on her scooter to get from place to place quickly. Ten years ago she had decided to make her reliance on her scooter work for her and stop feeling sorry for herself. It was soon after this that her cutie mark appeared. She was somewhat surprised when she looked at her flank one day and noticed a speeding scooter.
Her apparent weakness turned into her greatest asset when she started her own business, Speedy Scoot Delivery Services, three years earlier. It was the fastest and most reliable delivery service in Equestria and it made the Friendship Express and the Equestrian Postal Service look like a joke. For the first six months she had trouble keeping the business afloat, but now she had trouble keeping up with all the orders.
Scootaloo slowed drastically upon entering Ponyville and made her way to Barnyard Bargains to make a delivery and collect a payment. Upon her arrival she was greeted by a former advisary.
“Hey DT”, she said.
“You’re fifty minutes early”, said Diamond Tiara, who preferred to go by DT nowadays. “Why don’t you leave and come back late like everypony else?”
Scootaloo dismounted her scooter, chuckling at her friend’s sarcasm. She untied the bulky package addressed to Barnyard Bargains. She passed it off and accepted a check from Diamond Tiara, taking a few moments to chat afterward. She then departed after securing another package that was supposed to be in Canterlot by nightfall the next day.
Scootaloo made her way then to Spike and Rarity’s home south of Ponyville. (See The Dragon and the Pony) She gave Spike, the Ponyville Scribe, several important documents from Ponyville and the outlying areas. She gave Rarity a package that was addressed to Carousel Boutique and left.
The Cutie Mark Crusaders: Down the Road
“Alright Sweetie Belle”, said Beat Box. “Let’s take it one more time from “waiting on your cutie mark”.”
Sweetie Belle was standing in a recording room, looking at her producer through the glass. She was having a hard time concentrating with the reunion coming up and fatigue from another long week. She had done this same number four times already, messing them up in one way or another. Usually she only had to attempt something once or twice before she nailed it. Beat Box could tell something was amiss. They went through two more attempts before he decided to just call it a day.
“Ok Sweetie”, Beat Box said. “Let’s take the rest of the weekend to relax. We’ll start fresh Monday morning.
“That sounds good to me”, she replied. It was almost unheard of for them to quit early on a Friday, but it had been an extremely long and stressful week for both of them. Not only was she recording songs, but she was also writing for herself and other artists. On top of that, Beat Box was in the middle of training her to be a producer. The three-way occupation combo was taxing, but it guaranteed her a future in the unstable music industry. She could barely see straight from how exhausted she was, but she loved her job.
Sweetie Belle exited the recording room and made her way down the hall for a drink of water. She got her drink and sat down, massaging her eyelids, which were having a hard time staying open.
“Maybe you outta have a superhero on your flank instead of that microphone. I don’t know how you do it.”
Sweetie Belle looked up to see the one of the two Executive Producers of Octavia Scratch Records. “Hey Vinyl.”
“You’ve got to try and get more sleep girlfriend. You’re running yourself ragged.”
“Easier said than done.”
“Well, Beat Box told me he let you off early today. Go home and get some sleep Honey.”
“You got it Boss.”
It was only two o’clock. Sweetie Bell had plenty of time to go home and recharge her batteries with a couple hours of sleep. She gathered her things of left.
The earlier mention of her cutie mark by Vinyl caused old memories to resurface on the way home and she allowed herself to bask in them on the short walk.
Coincidentally, Applebloom and Scootaloo had gotten their cutie marks roughly around the same time. The three had made a pact upon the beginning of their friendship that anypony among them who got their cutie mark would turn around and help those who had not yet experienced that fortune. Sweetie Belle was oblivious to the possibility of music being her special talent. This was largely due to the fact that she was too shy to sing for crowds.
One day the other two crusaders asked her to rehearse their theme song for them, saying that they were having trouble remembering the lyrics and music. Sweetie Belle sensed that something was amiss, but she agreed. She didn’t know that they were secretly recording the song. The two promptly shared the recording with everypony they knew. Sweetie Belle resented them at first, but after several days of being showered with compliments everywhere she went she saw the sense in what they had done and quickly forgave them. Over the next three months her friends did what they could to help her get over her stage fright and eventually a microphone appeared on her flank.
Sweetie Belle arrived at her home, which had once been Carousel Boutique. Rarity had given this home to her after she and spike had relocated to their new home/shop south of Ponyville (see The Dragon and the Pony). Sweetie Belle had promptly moved out of her parents’ home to moved in to her sister’s old home upon this development. She planned on turning the downstairs shop area into a record store one day, but so far she had yet to find the time for such an endeavor.
She made her way upstairs and set her alarm for four-thirty so as to have plenty of time to get ready for the reunion. She crawled into bed and fell asleep almost the second her head hit the pillow.
The Cutie Mark Crusaders: Down the Road
Scootaloo arrived at Sugar Cube Corner fifteen minutes early and was greeted by Pinkie Pie, who had taken over management ever since Mr. and Mrs. Cake had relocated to a new sweet shop in Canterlot. Pinkie Pie directed her to a reserved table with three seats in a more secluded part of the shop. Applebloom and Sweetie Belle arrived at six o’clock sharp, not surprised to find that Scootaloo was already there. Pinkie pie took their orders and the tri-annual reunion of the Cutie Mark Crusaders began.
The crusaders had stayed close even after they had all gotten their cutie marks, still managing to devastate and entertain Ponyville with their shenanigans. Two and one-half years ago Twilight Sparkle had pulled some strings and arranged for the Cutie Mark Crusaders to perform in the Canterlot Talent Show, which would be attended by ponies from all over Equestria. They decided to do the same thing they had done for the school talent show nearly nine years earlier. This time, however, adjustments to the regiment were made. Sweetie Belle was the lead singer, Scootaloo was the main choreographer, and Applebloom was in charge of costumes, sets and props.
This arrangement earned them a standing ovation, first prize, and paved the road for their futures. Sweetie Belle was offered a record deal that very night. Scootaloo’s delivery service skyrocketed after they advertised it during the act. Applebloom decided to start her own business when ponies from all over Equestria came to Ponyville looking for the pony who had designed the magnificent sets, props, and costumes in the winning act of the talent show. After this the Cutie Mark Crusaders were unable to spend much time together so they decided to hold a reunion every four months to help prevent them from drifting apart.
“So how’s that sonic rainboom coming along Scootaloo?” asked Applebloom with an excited smile.
“I’m up to two hundred miles per hour”, said Scootaloo with enthusiasm. She was determined to be the first pony to ever accomplish a sonic rainboom on a solid ground. Applebloom had helped her design and build a specialized scooter just for this purpose with a special high-speed speedometer compliments of Twilight Sparkle. She only had another one hundred and forty miles per hour to conquer before reaching this goal.
“That’s amazing!” exclaimed Sweetie Belle. “You’re gonna have do it in no time.”
“Let’s hope so”, said Scootaloo.
“We know so”, said Applebloom. “You’ll probably be even more famous than Rainbow Dash for that.”
“I wouldn’t go that far”, said Scootaloo growing red.
“You’re too modest Scootaloo”, said Sweetie Belle.
“Anyway, Sweetie Belle I hear they’re training you to be a producer at Octavia-Scratch Records”, said Scootaloo wanting to change the subject.
“That’s amazing”, said Applebloom. “That’ll give you job security for sure.”
The three friends stayed talking well into the night. Eventually Pinkie Pie decided to close up shop. “I’m gonna go home girls. Be sure to turn off the lights and lock the doors when you leave.”
“We will Pinkie”, responded Sweetie Belle. “Tell Red Delicious we said hi.”
They all bid good night to Pinkie and then continued their conversation. They stayed until three o’clock in the morning. They reminisced about the old days, talked about the present, and tried to imagine their future. No matter what was in store for the three friends one thing was clear. They would always be the Cutie Mark Crusaders and best friends until the end of time.
