Making a Mark

Ducking through the bushes and branches, Applejack led the way to the Cutie Mark Crusaders’ clubhouse for a low-flying Rainbow Dash. A thin smog dissipated out the door and windows into the normally crisp air of Sweet Apple Acres. “Well that don’t seem like a good sign,” Applejack remarked. “Ah knew ah shouldn’t’a trusted Zecora.”

“I’m sure everything is fine!” Rainbow reassured. The two walked up the ramp to the clubhouse, starting to hear a chorus of panic from inside.

“Where’s the fire bucket?”
“The rug is getting all messed up!”
“This potion looks blue! Shouldn’t it be green?”
“It smells like tree sap!”
“What happened to the cherry blossoms?”

Dash laughed nervously. “Everything is…not terrible?”

“Yeah, sure. And ah’m a three-legged unicorn.” Applejack stepped into the doorway to take a better look at the clubhouse.

“A-Applejack! Wait! Ah can explain!” The Cutie Mark Crusaders slid in front of Applejack, failing to hide the scene behind them. Alchemical ingredients of all colors and origins had fallen out of their semi-organized piles.

The earth mare strode past the fillies into and around the clubhouse, examining the chaos as she went. “Oh, ah don’t need one o’yer excuses. Just tell me what happened.” She stomped on a glowing part of the rug, and a wisp of smoke came up.

The Crusaders looked to Apple Bloom. “Well we were just puttin’ stuff into tha cauldron, an’ all of a sudden it started bubbling really fast! So we tried to stop it, an’ I think maybe we put in s’more herbs and then the bottom of the pot caught on fire.”

Applejack shook her head and sighed. “Did ya ask Zecora exactly how ta do this?”

“Well, no, but-“

“No buts, Apple Bloom. Y’all coulda gotten yerselves hurt!” Applejack peered into the cauldron, which now just contained a gray, viscous liquid. “That’s tha last thing any of us would want.”

Rainbow Dash walked in behind Applejack. “Besides, who wants a dumb old potion Cutie Mark?” Apple Bloom huffed at the comment. Scootaloo’s eyes lit up as Dash walks into the room.

“Rainbow Dash, you came!” She rushed in front of the mare, immediately in a state of admiration. “Did you come to see us get our Cutie Marks?”

“I guess you could say that. Is this what you girls do when we’re not looking?” She took a look at the room she stood in, feeling proud but also unnerved by the amount of Rainbow Dash fan art painted one corner of the house. There was also a balloon pony and… stacks of paper? She shook her head and looked at Scootaloo. “Seems kinda cool, if you meant to make that explosion.” She laughed.

The orange filly turned expectantly with a wide grin to the other members of the group. “Hey Apple Bloom, can we-”

“No. If we’re gonna make potions, they’re gonna be for tha good.”

“Aww,” Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo whined in chorus.

“We’re not in trouble, are we, Applejack?” Apple Bloom looked up to her sister hopefully.

The elder mare could only shake her head. “Since y’all weren’t tryin’ ta do nothin’ wrong, Ah forgive ya. But maybe y’all could tell us? There ain’t nothin’ bad about gettin’ help.”

“Yeah,” Rainbow affirmed. “In fact, Apple Bloom, I was thinking that I could try to help you get your Cutie Mark again. Your sister was just begging me to take you out again.”

“Ah was not!” Applejack turned her nose up indignantly. “Ah just thought, maybe it’d be a good idea.”

Scootaloo stood still in shock, and Apple Bloom shot her a glance. “Ah dunno. Ah mean, we normally do everything together…”

“But you don’t spend every minute together, do you? You never know when a Cutie Mark could show up!” Dash shot the ribboned filly a bright smile. Bloom looked at her sister, who gave a reassuring nod.

“Alright,” she agreed, embracing her opportunity. “Ah’ll see you girls same time tomorrow, okay?” Rainbow put a hoof behind her, guiding her out the door.

“Okay!” Sweetie Belle concurred enthusiastically. The two exited the clubhouse and started the ramp downwards. The unicorn looked to the remaining crusader. She seemed nearly catatonic in her shock. “Scootaloo, are you there?”

She nodded, her eyes staying vacant and her posture static. “Rainbow Dash asked Apple Bloom to let her help…” the filly murmured to nopony specific.

Applejack walked in front of Scootaloo. “It’s fine. Rainbow doesn’t always think everythin’ through. Here, do y’all want to try a hoof at workin’ the apple orchards?”

“No thanks! Rarity will want me back home soon, and I already got to try all kinds of farm stuff during the Sisterhooves Social. It was so fun!” Sweetie Belle started towards the doorway herself after shuffling around some herb piles in a futile cleaning attempt. “Same time tomorrow, Scootaloo! Have fun with Applejack!” The unicorn bounced her way out of the clubhouse, leaving the two ponies alone in the room.

Still seemingly out of touch with the real world, Scootaloo nodded again. “I guess I can help. Not like I have anything better to do…” Applejack looked down at the pegasus with worry.

“C’mon, Ah’ll show y’around. The apples right around here are Jonagolds, so that means…”

The path to Hoofington Beach was a pleasant and sandy one. The nearer the two walked to the boardwalks and beaches, the stronger the ocean breeze grew. It was only about a half hour’s trek at the pace of the red-ribboned filly. “This isn’t gonna be like the last time ya took me around ta get mah Cutie Mark, is it?” she asked skeptically.

“Oh, nonnono.” Dash shook her head without a care. “Think about it. I got my Cutie Mark at flight camp. Twilight went to Canterlot, Pinkie got hers on a rock farm, and who knows where Fluttershy landed during the race. See what I’m getting at?” Apple Bloom kept walking, looking up expectantly. “You get your mark when you find what you’re meant to do. That’s not always going to just swoop down into your hometown and show up on your flank. It’s a big day when a filly gets to go out searching for it!”

Apple Bloom nodded passively, thinking about her implications. “Hey Rainbow Dash, what does your Cutie Mark mean?”

“It means that I’m the fastest flier in all of Equestria!” Dash beamed.

She nodded again, looking at the bottom tip of the lightning bolt. “Yeah. But what does it mean for you? Are ya supposed ta be a Wonderbolt?”

“Hay yeah I am, Apple Bloom!”

“Then why’re you a weather pony?”

“Because, the Wonderbolts don’t have an open spot right now.” She picked up her pace.

“An’ what does the cloud mean? You do all yer super fast flying below the clouds,” Apple Bloom observed.

“Because clouds are cool? I dunno.” Her trot changed to a canter to get ahead of the filly, who followed suit.

“And why’s it a rainbow, anyway?”

“Because it’s awesome, alright?” She turned her head straight ahead, away from the younger pony. “It looks cool because I’m awesome and awesome ponies get awesome Cutie Marks.”

“Alright…” Apple Bloom stepped away from Dash, losing ground to the faster gait. She kept quiet for a few minutes.

“Do ya think Ah’ll get a cool Cutie Mark, Rainbow?”

She slowed down, waiting for her companion. In that time, she looked at her mark, admiring how cleanly the colored streaks ran together to a bottom. How the bolt perfectly matched the curves of the cloud, and how the pattern perfectly filled out her look. Apple Bloom stopped when she reached the pegasus. “I think,” Rainbow began, “that your mark is going to be as good as you make it. And if you want to do more than just what other ponies tell you, you’ll do it.”

“Wow.” Apple Bloom stepped in front of Dash, motioning to the approaching low skyline of boardwalk attractions. “Ah never thought of it like that. You an’ Applejack are both so smart!” The filly looked admiringly at the adult Pegasus.

Rainbow Dash started back up the canter to the beach. The hotter sand of the shore relaxed her hooves. “Yeah. I guess just because we disagree doesn’t mean we’re not alike.” The whole rest of the way, Apple Bloom tired to hold her questions, but looked at Dash like she was someone worth respect.

“No, we tried that one. And that one. And kiiinda that one, but not really?” Dash studied a list scrawled on a cheap notepad while occupying her other forehoof with multiple slices of daisy and sunflower pizza. “And we tried rainbows and dashing, but neither of those worked too well…”

“Maybe we just need to try it all again!” Apple Bloom gnawed away at her own piece of the pie. “Apple Bytes spent weeks before she found out her special talent! So did Berry Pinch! And Featherweight!”

“Maybe. We don’t have that much time left, though. I don’t think Applejack would like me if I got you home too late.” She pushed the notepad aside. “What was your favorite, Apple Bloom?”

“Ah really liked surfin’! Even though ah really didn’t do that well. But ah was good at the carnival games, right?” The filly held up a small plush Mare-do-Well and grinned. “Those balloons didn’t stand a chance!”

Dash laughed. “You did great, Apple Bloom! We need to come back here again. Get you to try out some more things, you know?” She took a drink of Red Manticore, her favorite high-sugar beverage. “It’s pretty different here than in Ponyville. Maybe you’ll fit in, if you’re careful.”

“Ah hope so! Ah really wanna fit in somewhere.” For just a moment, she had sounded serious. “There’s all sorts of things I saw! Ponies were playin’ volleyball, and diving, and eating tons of ice cream!” Apple Bloom abandoned the crusts of her pizza on the plate, using her forehooves to mimic what she was talking about. “And then they were doing magic tricks, too! And playin’ in arcades and makin’ music and sunbathing an-”

“Calm down, now. Do you think Applejack will let us out here again?”

“If it’ll help me get mah Cutie Mark, ah know she will! She always wants tha best for me.”

“You think so?” Dash took another gulp of the strongly flavored, even more strongly colored drink.

“Of course! She always lets me help around on the farm, and go explorin’ with Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle! Ah get to try out all sorts’a stuff. She looks extra happy when ah’m workin’ the farm, though. Sellin’ apples, plantin’ apples, makin’ apple pie, you name it!”

Rainbow Dash took a long look at the filly across the table from her, and then glanced at the notepad full of failed ideas on the edge of the table. “It’s good that she lets you try a lot. I hope you get your Cutie Mark soon. And I know that when you come out here again, you’re going to have fun.”

“Thanks, Rainbow Dash. Can we go now? I think Applejack will want me home, but it looks like there’s lots going on outside!”

Leaving the restaurant, Rainbow noticed that the nightlife had turned on while they were eating. Frequent streetlights from the beach side and neon tubes and spotlights from the storefronts illuminated every square inch of plank. Candy stores on each block shouted to foals with old-fashioned fonts and bright pink advertisements. Displays of jewelry, beachwear, kites, street art, and a hundred other media of merchandise lined the walk, each backed by their store’s accompanying lights and sounds.

Apple Bloom’s precarious attention span was caught by three mares hawking the wares of their shop about a hundred feet down the stretch. The loudest pony was a slate black unicorn with an even darker mane filled out with streaks of a fluorescent blue. Her tail looked more like a cat’s than a pony’s, and her cutie mark was a blue-eyed Cheshire grin. Next to her, a tan-coated unicorn with an abnormally long horn and a flowing blue mane was making energetic conversation with a stallion whose gaze suggested more interest in the mare than the product. Apple Bloom’s attention was drawn to the tan salespony’s pocketwatch Cutie Mark. The chain of the watch spiraled down her leg, eventually disappearing behind low-cut socks.

“Hey Rainbow!” The filly bounced up and down next to Dash. “I bet she has a real interestin’ Cutie Mark story. I’ve never seen anythin’ like that before!”

“What are you talking about?” Before the pegasus even had time to react, Apple Bloom was on her way galloping towards the shop. Having no qualms about any possibility of making a scene, Rainbow Dash flew towards the crusader and picked her up off the ground. The two of them floated a yard or so higher than the boardwalk, and they faced the storefront. Its glass walls were covered with hundreds of colorful stickers, and they were all designs of Cutie Marks. The leftmost wall had cherries, linked horseshoes, hourglasses, flowers, and a plethora of other designs Apple Bloom had seen around Ponyville. On the opposite side was an assortment of much more elaborate marks: a joined bass and treble clef, islands, crowns, and even Celestia’s sun and Rainbow Dash’s lightning bolt.

The inside of the building was immaculately white in contrast to the rest of the blacks and neons of its surrounding world. It looked more like a salon than anything else. Modern, porcelain-toned furniture characterized the entrance area, where a few ponies in front of and behind the counter were holding a conversation. It seemed big enough to hold about a dozen ponies comfortably, and two doors set on the back wall looked like they could swing open to the next part of the store.
“Apple Bloom,” Dash scolded, interrupting the filly’s thoughts, “Don’t go running over to places like this. It could be dangerous for you.”

“Dangerous?” Apple Bloom asked. “What could be dangerous? Why, this looks like tha kinda place that could help me get my Cutie Mark!”

Rainbow groaned at the filly’s naivety. “What did I tell you before we came here? It’s different than Ponyville here. Why did you run over here, anyway?”

Apple Bloom pointed enthusiastically at the unicorn salespony. “Miss Cheerilee said Cutie Marks only appear on somepony’s flank. So how come that one keep goin’?”

Dash took a better look at the mare in question. It wasn’t a trick of the eye; the mark really continued past where it should have. Rainbow shook her head. “I dunno, Apple Bloom. I think she cheated a little bit.”

“Cheated?” Apple Bloom’s mind was now abuzz with questions. “How could anypony ‘cheat’ at gettin’ a Cutie Mark? Why would anyone cheat to get a Cutie Mark?”

Rainbow tried to read the filly’s expression. She sounded genuinely curious and a good bit angry. “I’ll explain it to you when you get your own Cutie Mark, okay?”

Dash, of course, had inadvertently greatly offended the filly beside her. Apple Bloom looked up to Rainbow, widening her eyes and growing a frown. “But ah’m not a little filly, Rainbow Dash.”

“When you’re old enough, I’ll tell you,” Dash replied stubbornly.

”But…” Apple Bloom reared back, drawing in a huge breath, before letting out a signature bout of fast speech. “Everypony in my class already has their Cutie Mark and ah’m just as old as all the rest of ‘em and they get to be big ponies now but ah still have to be little and ah’ve been trying so hard to get my Cutie Mark but ah still don’t have it and ah’m bein’ way more responsible than those other ponies and ah know ah’ll get it soon but if there’s some easier way to get my Cutie Mark, ah wanna know ‘cause,” she took one last breath, “ah want it now!”

Unable to resist the plea, Rainbow sighed and looked Apple Bloom in the eyes. They were wide open and her pupils were constricted. “Look, they basically drew on the Cutie Mark. It’s a bit more complicated, but that’s all it is.” Apple Bloom eyes shimmered with worry. “It’s not the same as a real Cutie Mark. Look closely at the chain.” The two switched their gaze back to the mysterious watch. “It looks like you have the plain old watch Cutie Mark on her flank, and then somepony else made the chain look like that. See, the watch looks less fancy.”

Apple Bloom squinted and tried to get her best look at what Rainbow meant, taking a few steps forward in the process. “But ah don’t get it,” said the blank flank. “That’s not her Cutie Mark. That’s not her. Cheerilee and Twilight said that’s not even possible! Why wouldn’t she be happy with what she got?”

Rainbow Dash glanced back at her own cutie mark before putting a hoof on the filly’s shoulder. “That’s probably something you and me should talk about later, when we have time. Some ponies just want to fit in. You’ll get it when you’re older.”

“But-“

“No buts, Apple Bloom. You’re not getting any more out of me. Now come on, we’ve done a lot today. Little fillies need their rest, right?” Dash poked at Apple Bloom, who gave a pouty expression. “Come on, there’s lots to do when we get home. We can work on getting your Cutie Mark again tomorrow.” Dash nudged Apple Bloom down the boardwalk in the direction of Ponyville. “Do me a favor, though?”

“Whaddya mean, Rainbow Dash?” Apple Bloom started walking alongside the older pegasus.

“You can tell Applejack about the surfing and the games and the ice cream and all. Just don’t mention this shop, alright? I can handle it with her.” She took deliberate, high steps, looking down at Apple Bloom during her request.

“Uh, sure, ah guess. Ah don’t really see what the big deal is, but okay.”

Rainbow smiled and looked forwards at the far away end of the boardwalk. “Thanks, Apple Bloom. Now let’s get you home.”

A high grunt accompanied the thud of wood and the rustling of leaves. Through branches, dozens of red fruit tumbled into bushels. “Wow, Scootaloo, that was great! Good job.”

“Heh. Thanks, Applejack! This is more fun than I thought!”

Only the sounds of rainbow waterfalls and a ticking clock played in the background of Dash’s thoughts. That filly’s gonna get it soon. I bet she’s way better then Applejack let’s on. All she needs is a little confidence. And I could beat Applejack. Good plan? She nodded.

Great plan.