Vacantby Marcellus JonesChaptersPeer PressureUltimatumRepercussionsTormentPeer PressureAuthor's Note This is my first time writing any sort of fanfiction, I hope you enjoy it. Let me know what you think, be real with me. Honesty is the best policy. Thanks -Marc Peer Pressure The Cutie Mark Crusaders were huddled in their clubhouse, plotting another strategy to finally discover their cutie marks. They looked at the list they had crossed out. Cutie Mark Crusaders: Beekeepers Stand Up Comedians Tandem Swimmers Flash Dancers "What haven't we tried?" Sweetie Belle stared at the list. "I dunno, I reckon we done tried everything. I'm fixin' to just give up and go home," Apple Bloom looked dejected. "Wait, girls, we haven't tried everything. I just thought of something wicked that'll totally get us our Cutie Marks," Scootaloo pitched. "What do you have in mind?" Sweetie Belle asked. "Alright, hear me out on this one, you ready?" Scootaloo asked melodramatically. "Yeah, we're ready," Apple Bloom nodded. Scootaloo flipped her cape up over her head, "BOO! CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS: GHOST HUNTERS! I've been keeping an eye on that abandoned house on the outskirts of town, I heard it's haunted. If that doesn't get us our cutie marks, I don't know what will." "Have you lost your apple pickin' mind?" Apple Bloom scoffed. "No, we should try it. Come on, don't leave me hanging," Scootaloo begged. "Well, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to at least try," Sweetie Belle reluctantly agreed. "Why do y'all always come up with the most dangerous ideas?" Apple Bloom sighed. "Don't be a buzzkill, AB, this'll be fun," Scootaloo jumped down the ladder. She forgot that she couldn't fly yet, and so flapped her little wings helplessly, but they didn't break the fall at all. She hit the ground with a loud thud, but jumped back up and played it off like nothing happened. "Ya see what I mean? You could've killed yourself, you maniac," Apple Bloom sighed. "I'm fine, let's go!" Scootaloo led the way. Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom followed. The Cutie Mark Crusaders trotted through Ponyville. The streets looked eerily empty at night. They felt as though they were being watched, but they tried not to pay it much mind. After around fifteen minutes of trotting, they were now on the front porch of the abandoned house. "This is the place! I'm excited, my heart is racing and I'm sweating bullets already, we haven't even gone inside yet!" Scootaloo jumped up and down. "Scoots, you need to take it easy," Sweetie Belle coaxed. "Nah, dude, this is about to be so cool," Scootaloo tried to open the door, but it was locked. "Hey, it's locked," she pointed out the obvious. "Of course it's locked, it's an abandoned house," Apple Bloom sighed. A gust of wind blew and the trio shivered. They pulled their capes tighter around them like blankets. When the wind slowed back down, they were met again with silence. It was so deathly quiet, you could hear a pin drop from across town. "I guess there's no way in," Scootaloo sighed. "Let's go before the next gust of wind sweeps us away," Sweetie Belle said. "It's about time y'all came up with a sensible idea," Apple Bloom smiled. When the three of them turned to leave, Scootaloo felt something tap her side. She turned to Sweetie Belle, "Was that you?" "Was what me?" she asked, a bewildered expression on her face. "You tapped me, didn't you?" Scootaloo raised an eyebrow. "No, that wasn't me," Sweetie Belle shook her head. "Alright, I'm taking your word for it," Scootaloo shrugged it off and the three of them turned to face the direction of the clubhouse. Scootaloo had barely taken a step when she was tapped again, "Sweetie Belle, I told you to quit poking me." "I already said that wasn't me, we've had this discussion already," Sweetie Belle sighed. There was a sound of creaking wood that stopped the three of them dead in their tracks. They turned to face the direction the sound was coming from. The locked door to the abandoned house had been flung open somehow. "Now I done heard enough scary stories and read enough horror books to know that we need to get the hay on up outta here," Apple Bloom said to them. Scootaloo smirked, "No, it's finally open, let's go have a look inside." Sweetie Belle was apprehensive about it, she stayed back with Apple Bloom. Scootaloo took a few steps toward the porch. When she realized her friends were not following her, she stopped and turned around, "Don't be chickens, come on!" "I tend to some chickens. You ain't never been in that coop, but them chickens ain't afraid of nothing. Them birds are vicious," Apple Bloom shared the random anecdote. "Just come on!" Scootaloo leaned against the wall next to the open door. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle gave in to the peer pressure and followed her inside. They left the door open to shed more moonlight into the room. Cobwebs were everywhere, everything was dusty. The parlor looked like it hadn't been touched at all in the years it has been vacant. There was a wooden rocking chair in the middle of the room. The wind from outside was making it rock seemingly on its own. This freaked the girls out a little bit. "Why is it so cold? It's April, it wasn't nearly as cold at the clubhouse," Apple Bloom complained. "All you've done is complain since we left it, you're being a serious buzzkill. Let's just go and have a look around," Scootaloo sighed. Sweetie Belle looked down, "Scootaloo, maybe Apple Bloom is right. We really shouldn't be here. Nopony should be. The house is vacant for a reason. Nopony lives here anymore because the place is just creepy. I knew it looked scary from outside, but now that we're inside, it just confirmed in my mind that I want to go home." Apple Bloom patted Sweetie Belle on the back, "Good idea, let's get out of here. It's getting late, we need to get some sleep. It would be better to investigate during the day, it'll be easier to see." Scootaloo sighed, "Okay, Apple Bloom, fine, let's go home and we can come back here another time." The trio finally came to an agreement and they turned and headed for the open front door. Just as they were about to leave the house, the front door slammed shut in front of them. UltimatumAuthor's Note Moved the rating from E to T because things are starting to get a little dark. Received a little positive feedback, so I've decided to continue the story. I hope you enjoy the 2nd chapter. I don't know how long I intend to keep this going, but I intend to keep it short. If I change my mind later, then stay tuned, I guess. Ultimatum Apple Bloom went to turn the door knob, but it was locked. Part of her was expecting this to happen and she was cursing herself for ever listening to Scootaloo. Sweetie Belle was still trying to open the door even though it clearly wouldn't budge. Before the three of them could say anything to each other, they heard a voice coming from another room. "You are not welcome here, leave this place." "Who said that?" Scootaloo replied to the whispers. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle huddled closely to each other, chills going down their spines. Scootaloo continued to feign bravery and began to trot toward the hallway. "Scootaloo, where are you going?" Sweetie Belle asked. "I'm trying to find out who's talking to us," she answered nonchalantly. "Well, think about it this way. Everypony says the house is abandoned. We have been locked in by an unseen force and now we hear a random voice. What does that tell you?" Apple Bloom was already connecting the dots. "The stories of this place being haunted must be true, so let's go find out for our Ghost Hunter cutie marks," Scootaloo said as if it were something as trivial as cleaning her room. "What if they're mean spirits?" Sweetie Belle was scared. "They done told us to leave, but they locked us in. I think they might be a little confused," Apple Bloom speculated. Sweetie Belle stayed silent, she was thinking of what this could possibly mean. Scootaloo impatiently waited for them to follow her down the hall. "Oh, no, I just thought of something," Sweetie Belle had drawn her conclusion. "What is it?" Apple Bloom inquired. "What if by 'you're not welcome here', they mean Equestria? What if they take us away?" she laid on the floor, covering herself with her cape. She had started to cry and she didn't want her friends to see. They could hear the dry heaves, so it was obvious. "Sweetie Belle, please don't cry. We promise we ain't gonna let nothing happen to you, we're in here together. Rest assured, wherever we end up, we'll all be there together," Apple Bloom comforted her friend. Scootaloo nodded, "Yeah, once a Cutie Mark Crusader, always a Cutie Mark Crusader!" "I've never been this scared before," she sniffled. "I'm scared too, but you ain't alone. You've got us, we'll always be here for you," Apple Bloom said. Sweetie Belle regained her composure and wiped away her tears, "I feel better now. Thanks, girls." "Ain't no problem," Apple Bloom smiled. The smile faded when she saw movement in the corner of her eye, she looked in the direction she had seen it. Nothing was there. She turned back to face her friends again, "Did anypony else see that?" "See what?" Scootaloo asked. "I thought I saw something move," she said. "I hope it was just your imagination," Sweetie Belle peeked out from under her cape. "So do I," Apple Bloom took a deep breath. "We need to find a way out of here," Scootaloo was finally beginning to feel scared. "Scoots, I'm sorry if this comes out sounding mean, but if you didn't fall for that obvious trap, we wouldn't have had to follow you in here and we wouldn't be in this situation," Sweetie Belle replied. "No, you're right, it's fine. I'm sorry I dragged you two into this mess," Scootaloo conceded. "It's okay, like I said, we're in this together," Apple Bloom said. "I'm glad you didn't leave me behind," Scootaloo smiled. "We would never do that, Scoots, don't be ridiculous," Sweetie Belle was shocked that she would even think that. "I know, my mind's getting the best of me. This place is driving me crazy," Scootaloo replied. "It's okay, don't worry about it," Sweetie Belle tried to comfort her friend. Apple Bloom saw the same shadowy figure flash by much closer this time, "I don't know what I'm seeing, but I saw it again." "Could it be one of the spirits who told us to leave?" Scootaloo wondered aloud. "I wouldn't doubt it," Sweetie Belle concurred. "I am delighted that you've come to join me." "Who are you?" Scootaloo asked. "Neither enemy nor friend." "What do y'all want from us?" Apple Bloom was afraid to ask. "Your souls, I want to revel in your screams of pain and torment." "No, please don't hurt us. Just let us go, we promise we'll leave and we'll never come back. We're sorry for bothering you," Scootaloo pleaded. "You made your choice. I gave you a chance to leave, but you entered anyway. Now the three of you will be with me forever." "Forever?" the Cutie Mark Crusaders couldn't believe what they were hearing. "I have one ultimatum for the three of you. Consider this my one final act of charity before unleashing Tartarus upon you." "What is it?" Apple Bloom was afraid to find out. "Since the orange one wanted so desperately to find me, she'll stay with me. You two can leave and live to warn the others. Dead mares tell no tales." "We're not leaving without her," Sweetie Belle declined the offer. Apple Bloom nodded in agreement, "Just let us go. Have mercy on us." "You're trespassing, you have to suffer the consequences for your actions." "Well, you told us to leave, but the door was locked, so we couldn't. We tried turning the lock and everything, it wouldn't open. The door was jammed. You set us up," Scootaloo accused. "I already gave you that option outside. You turned it down and invaded my abode, now you will stay here forever. Your friends can leave, but you won't be going anywhere." "That's not fair," Scootaloo sighed, looking down at the floor. "Oh, it's not? If I remember correctly, you're in my house. That means it's my rules. Your only options are you stay and your friends go or you all stay. I will not tell you three again. Make your choice." "We already said we're not leaving without her, that's what we meant," Sweetie Belle was adamant on staying behind. "Yeah, we're in this together," Apple Bloom agreed. "Suit yourselves, I look forward to making you all suffer." RepercussionsAuthor's Note For lack of a better term, shit gets real. Repercussions A candle sitting on a small table next to the rocking chair lit fire on its own. It began to levitate, the light bounced back and forth. "How does spontaneous combustion sound?" "I don't think that's a good idea, what if it burns down the whole house?" Sweetie Belle tried to talk the spirit out of it. "I'm already dead, so it wouldn't concern me all that much. I do have other ideas though." The candle set itself on the floor, but stayed lit. It was the only source of light in the entire house. The Cutie Mark Crusaders huddled around it. "Like moths to a flame..." The spirit caused the fire to erupt in an inferno, the sudden change in the size of the flame forced the three friends to dive out of the way. They were nearly burned by the flame. They let out shrill screams and the specter laughed maniacally. "Don't play with fire, children. Oh, I have another idea, we can play pin the tail on the pony." A nail rose from one of the wooden floorboards and floated in the air. It danced around in the air slowly before gaining speed and lodging into Scootaloo's coat. It hit her in the flank, where her cutie mark would be if she had one. She began to scream and cry and gallop in circles. The pain from the nail being lodged in her skin was unbearable for her. The spirit laughed again. "Look at her go! Round and round the mulberry bush, the filly chased the weasel. The filly fell down and oh, what a sound. POP GOES THE WEASEL!" A disembodied hand grabbed hold of Scootaloo's leg and pulled her to the floor. She struggled against it, but it was too strong. It began to drag her down the hall. "APPLE BLOOM, SWEETIE BELLE, HELP ME!" she begged. They both grabbed hold of Scootaloo's front legs and tried to pull her. "Hey, I wouldn't do that if I were you..." "What do you mean?" Apple Bloom kept a firm grip on Scootaloo's leg. "Let's just say she won't be 100%." "Let go of her!" Sweetie Belle squealed. "As you wish. Just remember you asked for this." Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle fought against the pull of the spirit. The spirit yanked back one more time before letting go. Scootaloo collided with her friends and the three of them toppled over. "I can't feel my back legs, that nail didn't strike a nerve did it?" Scootaloo was still crying and in unbearable pain. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle froze in total shock. They could not believe what they were seeing. "What's wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?" Scootaloo was petrified. Her friends were at loss for words. They covered their eyes with their front hooves and turned away. They started crying too. "What have we done?" Sweetie Belle sniffled. Apple Bloom was speechless, the three of them continued crying. Scootaloo was still confused as to what was going on. The spirit chimed back in again. "I warned you that this would happen, you two didn't listen." "She's going to die!" Sweetie Belle squealed, coughing from the excess crying. "What? How? What do you mean?" Scootaloo coughed, she began to spit out blood that was pooling in the back of her throat. She rolled over slowly and was horrified by what she saw. Her back legs had been completely severed, ripped off by the spirit. Her body was torn completely in half, she could see her intestines. Blood was all over the floor. It looked like someone poured gallons of red food coloring into a pond. The sight caused Scootaloo to faint. The spirit's demented laugh could be heard once more. "Not so full of yourself now, are you?" "Why are you torturing us like this?" Apple Bloom cried, still covering her eyes. "Discipline, children need to be punished for doing bad things. Trespassing was your crime, your sentence is death." "You're sick," Sweetie Belle sniffled. "You still have a chance to live if you leave your friend behind. Her soul is mine, you will be spared but she will not. I'm being awfully generous allowing you to reconsider. You will suffer the same fate as her otherwise." "Scootaloo?" Apple Bloom ignored the ghost's taunting and turned her attention to her hopefully unconscious friend. "She's bleeding out! What are we gonna do?" Sweetie Belle panicked. "I have an idea! I learned this in a first aid course I took with my sister," she untied her bow, letting her mane down. She wrapped the bow around Scootaloo's waist and tied it as tightly as she possibly could. "How is that gonna help her?" Sweetie Belle raised an eyebrow. "Redneck tourniquet, it puts pressure on that wound, it'll slow down the bleeding. She's lost a lot of blood already, I don't know if it will save her. I don't think anything vital was damaged though so if she can hang on, we might be able to save her. She'll never be able to trot again, but at least she'll be alive," Apple Bloom tried to remain optimistic, given the circumstances. "I hope you're right. If she dies, I don't think I'll ever forgive myself," Sweetie Belle looked down at the floor. "Nice try, I applaud your efforts. Seems to be a day late and a bit short, unfortunately." "No way," Apple Bloom couldn't believe it. "See for yourself." Apple Bloom reluctantly checked Scootaloo's pulse. She froze in shock. One of her closest friends had just died right in front of her. She didn't know how to register that in her mind. She kept telling herself she was just knocked out. "Scootaloo, wake up, you're gonna be okay!" Apple Bloom shook what was left of her body. It fell cold and limp. "Scoots? Stop fooling around, please wake up, don't leave us," Sweetie Belle begged. It was to no avail. Scootaloo had passed on, when that sank in, they began to scream and cry again. "SCOOTALOO, NO!" The spirit spoke again, "This is why we don't go to places we don't belong. You do bad things, bad things happen." "You're a monster!" Sweetie Belle seethed. "Maybe so, but you're next." TormentThe fillies began to feel sick. The stench of death and fecal matter filled the room. They tied their capes around their snouts, hoping to tone the smell down. They were retching from the smell. The spirit taunted them. "Hey, do you smell that?" Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle were too busy dry heaving to bother replying to it. "I said, Do you smell that?" The fillies nodded. "It's Death, children. Nothing else in Equestria smells like that. It smells like...Victory." "How did you die?" Sweetie Belle asked. "You're the first to ask that question. Since my death, you're the only mortals I've had any interaction with. I lived here when I was still alive, I was just a humble farmer, like the Apples. I grew Oranges, but my property line is right on the edge of the Pear family's. I interacted with the Pear family a lot, most of them were nice folks. One of their daughters took a liking to me, we hit it off pretty well. We did pretty much everything together. I'd help her harvest her pears, she'd help me pick my oranges. We'd set up booths in town right next to each other. If she missed her sales goal, I'd buy the residual. She did the same for me. We were that close." "I built the courage to pop the question and she agreed to it. We were married for around 10 years. Things were going so well until one day, I was coming home from picking oranges. I noticed my front door was open, I didn't leave it open so I knew something was wrong. When I got in my house, I heard a scream. I thought my wife was in danger, so I hauled flank trying to get up there to help her. She was doing things with another stallion. In a jealous rage, I charged in there with my scythe and beheaded him. He was already dead, but I kept slicing him. I turned to her. I asked her, How could you do this to me?" "She begged me not to kill her, begged me to 'have mercy' on her, she 'implored me to reconsider'. I told her she won't have to worry because we'll be dying together. I disemboweled her, a C-Section style cut across her stomach, everything just fell out like I spilled a bowl of spaghetti. I held her til she stopped breathing. When she was dead, I turned the blade on myself and committed sepuku." "I was doomed to remain here as a punishment for my actions, but I was betrayed by the one I loved and trusted most. Wouldn't you be angry? Wouldn't you want justice? Revenge? I took matters into my own hooves. Now I haunt this place and I put whoever dares to enter my little corner of Tartarus through the same pain and torment that I put them through. That's enough story time though, looking back on it just makes me angry. I was making puns while ripping a filly in half, think of what I'm capable of when I'm angry." The two remaining Cutie Mark Crusaders remained silent, enthralled by the spirit's story. They looked to each other, then back down the empty hallway. "I still don't understand why you killed her, Scootaloo never hurt you in anyway. She never even knew who you were," Sweetie Belle lamented. "When she was begging for her life, she reminded me of that traitorous whore. It rekindled that anger and I took it out on her." "Well, not everypony's out to hurt you. You said it yourself, you're dead, so it doesn't concern you," Apple Bloom retorted. "You make a valid point, little one. Perhaps there's a way I can rectify all this. It is beyond my power, of course, but I know somepony who does possess such abilities. I doubt she'll want anything to with me, but it is a possibility that you two could bring her here." "Really? You're letting us go?" Sweetie Belle was excited. "That's a sudden change of heart, I'm definitely not complaining, but what brought it forth?" Apple Bloom was curious. "Guilty conscience, you two were right, she did nothing to me. Besides, having you both witness that was punishment enough." "Who is coming to help us?" Sweetie Belle asked. "You'll see. You'll have to be asleep for this to work, so I'll have to forcefully induce a comatose state." "How?" Apple Bloom was afraid to ask. Two disembodied hands lifted the two remaining friends up in the air. "What are you doing? You said you'd help us," Sweetie Belle panicked. The spirit didn't respond, he threw the two of them into the air and they collided with each other with such great force that they both fell unconscious. While they were unconscious, images of Scootaloo's corpse flashed in their minds. They also saw images of themselves suffering similar fates or worse. This nightmare fuel lured the pony that the spirit was trying to summon. A bright light flashed and glowed, remaining stationary. A figure began to descend from this light. It was a familiar blue alicorn that appeared. Princess Luna had arrived, as it was her duty to guide ponies through nightmares. The two fillies and the alicorn stood in a dark ethereal plane. They curtsied to the princess. "My word, what happened here?" she stared at the two and a half Crusaders. She took a closer look around. Her expression went from bewilderment to fear when she realized where they were. "Whose idea was it to come here? WHO BROUGHT YOU HERE?" Princess Luna went from concerned to cross quickly. "Scootaloo brought us here, she said she wanted us to search here for our Ghost Hunter cutie marks," Sweetie Belle explained. "Well, lucky for you, I can get the three of you out of this. Next time, I won't be able to use this power. It's normally forbidden. Consider this your one 'Escape Death Free' card," Luna shook her head. "We're glad ya got here when ya did. The ghost was the one who knocked us out. He said somethin' about knowin' somepony who could help us and then he knocked us both out," Apple Bloom informed her. "Really? Citrus 'C-Section' Splash, one of the most sinister serial killers who ever lived and died showed remorse and brought me here? I'm impressed," Luna raised an eyebrow. The fillies nodded to corroborate the story, "Yes, he said you were the only one who could help us." "He was right. Let me see what I can do," Princess Luna's horn glowed, Scootaloo began to glow from her magic. Scootaloo's back legs slid across the floor from the end of the hall. The blood that was splattered everywhere evaporated. Scootaloo's lower half was reconnected to her upper half. She was sealed back with a loud crunch. Her spine was snapped back into place after her body was put back together. "She'll wake up in a few hours, let her rest," Luna said. "What do you mean she'll wake up? She's--- wait you mean you was able to resuscitate her?" Apple Bloom stared in shock. "Yes. Like I said, this is magic that I am normally forbidden to use, but just this once, I'll let it slide. I won't be able to save her from death again, not everypony gets a second chance, so she should consider herself extremely lucky. Now then, let's get the three of you out of here, I need to take care of one more thing though," Luna turned her attention to the ghost. "We meet again. I haven't seen you since the wedding of the Murderer and the Traitor." "Citrus Splash, rest your soul. You no longer have to haunt this place, you are free now," Luna said. "Where are you sending me?" "Below, now begone at once," Luna's horn glowed. The hands were gone, the outline of a stallion could be seen now. He strobed and flashed like a siren before disappearing. "Okay, now to take the three of you home. Put Scootaloo on my back and then take my front hooves," Luna stood still. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle did as commanded. She used her magic to unlock the front door. She opened it and jumped, unfurling her wings. She flew to Sweet Apple Acres first. She stopped at the farmhouse and let Apple Bloom go. "Get some sleep, pretend this never happened, that's the best advice I can offer you," Luna said. "Is Scootaloo gonna be okay?" Apple Bloom asked. "You'll find out tomorrow, now go to bed," Luna's answer was short and cryptic. "Thank you for saving us," she entered the house and went up to bed. Luna took off in full gallop and jumped, unfurling her wings again. She landed at Carousel Boutique next. She let Sweetie Belle go. "Next time Scootaloo tries to convince you to do something stupid, jump her and beat the brakes off of her," Luna advised. "I'm not going to hurt my friend, Princess Luna," Sweetie Belle was taken aback. "Would you rather have her be injured in a safe place or dead in a dangerous one?" Luna shot back coldly. "Injured in a safe one," Sweetie Belle answered. "Then do as I tell you. Get some rest and for my sister's sake, stay out of trouble," Luna replied. "I'll try, thank you for getting us out of there," Sweetie Belle smiled. "Don't mention it," Luna looked annoyed. "No, I mean, I appreciate--," Sweetie Belle began. "EVER," Luna cut her off. "Oh, I'm sorry," Sweetie Belle looked down at the floor. "You should be, don't ever go near that house again or any other potentially haunted place in Equestria. If you hear stories that sound ridiculous to you, they're probably true. Anything is possible, believe me, I've been around for thousands of years and have seen things you couldn't even begin to fathom," Luna left it at that. Sweetie Belle entered Carousel Boutique, relieved and happy to be alive. "One last stop," the Princess of the Night said to herself. She took off again, flying toward Cloudsdale. When she got there, she flew through the window of the cloud mansion Rainbow Dash resided in, she laid her on the floor near Rainbow's bed. She let her rest there and backed away. "You're her problem now, my work here is done," Luna turned her back to the sleeping mares. She breathed a sigh of relief and jumped back out the window, she unfurled her wings and glided through the night sky. She flapped them a few times to pick up speed, then turned to make a bee line for Canterlot. The Cutie Mark Crusaders were safe and the evil spirit that haunted the house had finally passed on. Everypony was safe and everything was back to normal. Luna kept flying, disappearing into the night. Author's Note I decided to give this a happy ending by having the Cutie Mark Crusaders rescued and the ghost was able to cross over. Everybody wins. Credit for the Luna idea goes to 29000 Kevin from the comment section, I liked that idea the best out of the ones he suggested. Also, bonus points for anyone who gets the "Do you smell that?" reference in the beginning.
Peer PressureAuthor's Note This is my first time writing any sort of fanfiction, I hope you enjoy it. Let me know what you think, be real with me. Honesty is the best policy. Thanks -Marc Peer Pressure The Cutie Mark Crusaders were huddled in their clubhouse, plotting another strategy to finally discover their cutie marks. They looked at the list they had crossed out. Cutie Mark Crusaders: Beekeepers Stand Up Comedians Tandem Swimmers Flash Dancers "What haven't we tried?" Sweetie Belle stared at the list. "I dunno, I reckon we done tried everything. I'm fixin' to just give up and go home," Apple Bloom looked dejected. "Wait, girls, we haven't tried everything. I just thought of something wicked that'll totally get us our Cutie Marks," Scootaloo pitched. "What do you have in mind?" Sweetie Belle asked. "Alright, hear me out on this one, you ready?" Scootaloo asked melodramatically. "Yeah, we're ready," Apple Bloom nodded. Scootaloo flipped her cape up over her head, "BOO! CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS: GHOST HUNTERS! I've been keeping an eye on that abandoned house on the outskirts of town, I heard it's haunted. If that doesn't get us our cutie marks, I don't know what will." "Have you lost your apple pickin' mind?" Apple Bloom scoffed. "No, we should try it. Come on, don't leave me hanging," Scootaloo begged. "Well, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to at least try," Sweetie Belle reluctantly agreed. "Why do y'all always come up with the most dangerous ideas?" Apple Bloom sighed. "Don't be a buzzkill, AB, this'll be fun," Scootaloo jumped down the ladder. She forgot that she couldn't fly yet, and so flapped her little wings helplessly, but they didn't break the fall at all. She hit the ground with a loud thud, but jumped back up and played it off like nothing happened. "Ya see what I mean? You could've killed yourself, you maniac," Apple Bloom sighed. "I'm fine, let's go!" Scootaloo led the way. Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom followed. The Cutie Mark Crusaders trotted through Ponyville. The streets looked eerily empty at night. They felt as though they were being watched, but they tried not to pay it much mind. After around fifteen minutes of trotting, they were now on the front porch of the abandoned house. "This is the place! I'm excited, my heart is racing and I'm sweating bullets already, we haven't even gone inside yet!" Scootaloo jumped up and down. "Scoots, you need to take it easy," Sweetie Belle coaxed. "Nah, dude, this is about to be so cool," Scootaloo tried to open the door, but it was locked. "Hey, it's locked," she pointed out the obvious. "Of course it's locked, it's an abandoned house," Apple Bloom sighed. A gust of wind blew and the trio shivered. They pulled their capes tighter around them like blankets. When the wind slowed back down, they were met again with silence. It was so deathly quiet, you could hear a pin drop from across town. "I guess there's no way in," Scootaloo sighed. "Let's go before the next gust of wind sweeps us away," Sweetie Belle said. "It's about time y'all came up with a sensible idea," Apple Bloom smiled. When the three of them turned to leave, Scootaloo felt something tap her side. She turned to Sweetie Belle, "Was that you?" "Was what me?" she asked, a bewildered expression on her face. "You tapped me, didn't you?" Scootaloo raised an eyebrow. "No, that wasn't me," Sweetie Belle shook her head. "Alright, I'm taking your word for it," Scootaloo shrugged it off and the three of them turned to face the direction of the clubhouse. Scootaloo had barely taken a step when she was tapped again, "Sweetie Belle, I told you to quit poking me." "I already said that wasn't me, we've had this discussion already," Sweetie Belle sighed. There was a sound of creaking wood that stopped the three of them dead in their tracks. They turned to face the direction the sound was coming from. The locked door to the abandoned house had been flung open somehow. "Now I done heard enough scary stories and read enough horror books to know that we need to get the hay on up outta here," Apple Bloom said to them. Scootaloo smirked, "No, it's finally open, let's go have a look inside." Sweetie Belle was apprehensive about it, she stayed back with Apple Bloom. Scootaloo took a few steps toward the porch. When she realized her friends were not following her, she stopped and turned around, "Don't be chickens, come on!" "I tend to some chickens. You ain't never been in that coop, but them chickens ain't afraid of nothing. Them birds are vicious," Apple Bloom shared the random anecdote. "Just come on!" Scootaloo leaned against the wall next to the open door. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle gave in to the peer pressure and followed her inside. They left the door open to shed more moonlight into the room. Cobwebs were everywhere, everything was dusty. The parlor looked like it hadn't been touched at all in the years it has been vacant. There was a wooden rocking chair in the middle of the room. The wind from outside was making it rock seemingly on its own. This freaked the girls out a little bit. "Why is it so cold? It's April, it wasn't nearly as cold at the clubhouse," Apple Bloom complained. "All you've done is complain since we left it, you're being a serious buzzkill. Let's just go and have a look around," Scootaloo sighed. Sweetie Belle looked down, "Scootaloo, maybe Apple Bloom is right. We really shouldn't be here. Nopony should be. The house is vacant for a reason. Nopony lives here anymore because the place is just creepy. I knew it looked scary from outside, but now that we're inside, it just confirmed in my mind that I want to go home." Apple Bloom patted Sweetie Belle on the back, "Good idea, let's get out of here. It's getting late, we need to get some sleep. It would be better to investigate during the day, it'll be easier to see." Scootaloo sighed, "Okay, Apple Bloom, fine, let's go home and we can come back here another time." The trio finally came to an agreement and they turned and headed for the open front door. Just as they were about to leave the house, the front door slammed shut in front of them.
UltimatumAuthor's Note Moved the rating from E to T because things are starting to get a little dark. Received a little positive feedback, so I've decided to continue the story. I hope you enjoy the 2nd chapter. I don't know how long I intend to keep this going, but I intend to keep it short. If I change my mind later, then stay tuned, I guess. Ultimatum Apple Bloom went to turn the door knob, but it was locked. Part of her was expecting this to happen and she was cursing herself for ever listening to Scootaloo. Sweetie Belle was still trying to open the door even though it clearly wouldn't budge. Before the three of them could say anything to each other, they heard a voice coming from another room. "You are not welcome here, leave this place." "Who said that?" Scootaloo replied to the whispers. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle huddled closely to each other, chills going down their spines. Scootaloo continued to feign bravery and began to trot toward the hallway. "Scootaloo, where are you going?" Sweetie Belle asked. "I'm trying to find out who's talking to us," she answered nonchalantly. "Well, think about it this way. Everypony says the house is abandoned. We have been locked in by an unseen force and now we hear a random voice. What does that tell you?" Apple Bloom was already connecting the dots. "The stories of this place being haunted must be true, so let's go find out for our Ghost Hunter cutie marks," Scootaloo said as if it were something as trivial as cleaning her room. "What if they're mean spirits?" Sweetie Belle was scared. "They done told us to leave, but they locked us in. I think they might be a little confused," Apple Bloom speculated. Sweetie Belle stayed silent, she was thinking of what this could possibly mean. Scootaloo impatiently waited for them to follow her down the hall. "Oh, no, I just thought of something," Sweetie Belle had drawn her conclusion. "What is it?" Apple Bloom inquired. "What if by 'you're not welcome here', they mean Equestria? What if they take us away?" she laid on the floor, covering herself with her cape. She had started to cry and she didn't want her friends to see. They could hear the dry heaves, so it was obvious. "Sweetie Belle, please don't cry. We promise we ain't gonna let nothing happen to you, we're in here together. Rest assured, wherever we end up, we'll all be there together," Apple Bloom comforted her friend. Scootaloo nodded, "Yeah, once a Cutie Mark Crusader, always a Cutie Mark Crusader!" "I've never been this scared before," she sniffled. "I'm scared too, but you ain't alone. You've got us, we'll always be here for you," Apple Bloom said. Sweetie Belle regained her composure and wiped away her tears, "I feel better now. Thanks, girls." "Ain't no problem," Apple Bloom smiled. The smile faded when she saw movement in the corner of her eye, she looked in the direction she had seen it. Nothing was there. She turned back to face her friends again, "Did anypony else see that?" "See what?" Scootaloo asked. "I thought I saw something move," she said. "I hope it was just your imagination," Sweetie Belle peeked out from under her cape. "So do I," Apple Bloom took a deep breath. "We need to find a way out of here," Scootaloo was finally beginning to feel scared. "Scoots, I'm sorry if this comes out sounding mean, but if you didn't fall for that obvious trap, we wouldn't have had to follow you in here and we wouldn't be in this situation," Sweetie Belle replied. "No, you're right, it's fine. I'm sorry I dragged you two into this mess," Scootaloo conceded. "It's okay, like I said, we're in this together," Apple Bloom said. "I'm glad you didn't leave me behind," Scootaloo smiled. "We would never do that, Scoots, don't be ridiculous," Sweetie Belle was shocked that she would even think that. "I know, my mind's getting the best of me. This place is driving me crazy," Scootaloo replied. "It's okay, don't worry about it," Sweetie Belle tried to comfort her friend. Apple Bloom saw the same shadowy figure flash by much closer this time, "I don't know what I'm seeing, but I saw it again." "Could it be one of the spirits who told us to leave?" Scootaloo wondered aloud. "I wouldn't doubt it," Sweetie Belle concurred. "I am delighted that you've come to join me." "Who are you?" Scootaloo asked. "Neither enemy nor friend." "What do y'all want from us?" Apple Bloom was afraid to ask. "Your souls, I want to revel in your screams of pain and torment." "No, please don't hurt us. Just let us go, we promise we'll leave and we'll never come back. We're sorry for bothering you," Scootaloo pleaded. "You made your choice. I gave you a chance to leave, but you entered anyway. Now the three of you will be with me forever." "Forever?" the Cutie Mark Crusaders couldn't believe what they were hearing. "I have one ultimatum for the three of you. Consider this my one final act of charity before unleashing Tartarus upon you." "What is it?" Apple Bloom was afraid to find out. "Since the orange one wanted so desperately to find me, she'll stay with me. You two can leave and live to warn the others. Dead mares tell no tales." "We're not leaving without her," Sweetie Belle declined the offer. Apple Bloom nodded in agreement, "Just let us go. Have mercy on us." "You're trespassing, you have to suffer the consequences for your actions." "Well, you told us to leave, but the door was locked, so we couldn't. We tried turning the lock and everything, it wouldn't open. The door was jammed. You set us up," Scootaloo accused. "I already gave you that option outside. You turned it down and invaded my abode, now you will stay here forever. Your friends can leave, but you won't be going anywhere." "That's not fair," Scootaloo sighed, looking down at the floor. "Oh, it's not? If I remember correctly, you're in my house. That means it's my rules. Your only options are you stay and your friends go or you all stay. I will not tell you three again. Make your choice." "We already said we're not leaving without her, that's what we meant," Sweetie Belle was adamant on staying behind. "Yeah, we're in this together," Apple Bloom agreed. "Suit yourselves, I look forward to making you all suffer."
RepercussionsAuthor's Note For lack of a better term, shit gets real. Repercussions A candle sitting on a small table next to the rocking chair lit fire on its own. It began to levitate, the light bounced back and forth. "How does spontaneous combustion sound?" "I don't think that's a good idea, what if it burns down the whole house?" Sweetie Belle tried to talk the spirit out of it. "I'm already dead, so it wouldn't concern me all that much. I do have other ideas though." The candle set itself on the floor, but stayed lit. It was the only source of light in the entire house. The Cutie Mark Crusaders huddled around it. "Like moths to a flame..." The spirit caused the fire to erupt in an inferno, the sudden change in the size of the flame forced the three friends to dive out of the way. They were nearly burned by the flame. They let out shrill screams and the specter laughed maniacally. "Don't play with fire, children. Oh, I have another idea, we can play pin the tail on the pony." A nail rose from one of the wooden floorboards and floated in the air. It danced around in the air slowly before gaining speed and lodging into Scootaloo's coat. It hit her in the flank, where her cutie mark would be if she had one. She began to scream and cry and gallop in circles. The pain from the nail being lodged in her skin was unbearable for her. The spirit laughed again. "Look at her go! Round and round the mulberry bush, the filly chased the weasel. The filly fell down and oh, what a sound. POP GOES THE WEASEL!" A disembodied hand grabbed hold of Scootaloo's leg and pulled her to the floor. She struggled against it, but it was too strong. It began to drag her down the hall. "APPLE BLOOM, SWEETIE BELLE, HELP ME!" she begged. They both grabbed hold of Scootaloo's front legs and tried to pull her. "Hey, I wouldn't do that if I were you..." "What do you mean?" Apple Bloom kept a firm grip on Scootaloo's leg. "Let's just say she won't be 100%." "Let go of her!" Sweetie Belle squealed. "As you wish. Just remember you asked for this." Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle fought against the pull of the spirit. The spirit yanked back one more time before letting go. Scootaloo collided with her friends and the three of them toppled over. "I can't feel my back legs, that nail didn't strike a nerve did it?" Scootaloo was still crying and in unbearable pain. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle froze in total shock. They could not believe what they were seeing. "What's wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?" Scootaloo was petrified. Her friends were at loss for words. They covered their eyes with their front hooves and turned away. They started crying too. "What have we done?" Sweetie Belle sniffled. Apple Bloom was speechless, the three of them continued crying. Scootaloo was still confused as to what was going on. The spirit chimed back in again. "I warned you that this would happen, you two didn't listen." "She's going to die!" Sweetie Belle squealed, coughing from the excess crying. "What? How? What do you mean?" Scootaloo coughed, she began to spit out blood that was pooling in the back of her throat. She rolled over slowly and was horrified by what she saw. Her back legs had been completely severed, ripped off by the spirit. Her body was torn completely in half, she could see her intestines. Blood was all over the floor. It looked like someone poured gallons of red food coloring into a pond. The sight caused Scootaloo to faint. The spirit's demented laugh could be heard once more. "Not so full of yourself now, are you?" "Why are you torturing us like this?" Apple Bloom cried, still covering her eyes. "Discipline, children need to be punished for doing bad things. Trespassing was your crime, your sentence is death." "You're sick," Sweetie Belle sniffled. "You still have a chance to live if you leave your friend behind. Her soul is mine, you will be spared but she will not. I'm being awfully generous allowing you to reconsider. You will suffer the same fate as her otherwise." "Scootaloo?" Apple Bloom ignored the ghost's taunting and turned her attention to her hopefully unconscious friend. "She's bleeding out! What are we gonna do?" Sweetie Belle panicked. "I have an idea! I learned this in a first aid course I took with my sister," she untied her bow, letting her mane down. She wrapped the bow around Scootaloo's waist and tied it as tightly as she possibly could. "How is that gonna help her?" Sweetie Belle raised an eyebrow. "Redneck tourniquet, it puts pressure on that wound, it'll slow down the bleeding. She's lost a lot of blood already, I don't know if it will save her. I don't think anything vital was damaged though so if she can hang on, we might be able to save her. She'll never be able to trot again, but at least she'll be alive," Apple Bloom tried to remain optimistic, given the circumstances. "I hope you're right. If she dies, I don't think I'll ever forgive myself," Sweetie Belle looked down at the floor. "Nice try, I applaud your efforts. Seems to be a day late and a bit short, unfortunately." "No way," Apple Bloom couldn't believe it. "See for yourself." Apple Bloom reluctantly checked Scootaloo's pulse. She froze in shock. One of her closest friends had just died right in front of her. She didn't know how to register that in her mind. She kept telling herself she was just knocked out. "Scootaloo, wake up, you're gonna be okay!" Apple Bloom shook what was left of her body. It fell cold and limp. "Scoots? Stop fooling around, please wake up, don't leave us," Sweetie Belle begged. It was to no avail. Scootaloo had passed on, when that sank in, they began to scream and cry again. "SCOOTALOO, NO!" The spirit spoke again, "This is why we don't go to places we don't belong. You do bad things, bad things happen." "You're a monster!" Sweetie Belle seethed. "Maybe so, but you're next."
TormentThe fillies began to feel sick. The stench of death and fecal matter filled the room. They tied their capes around their snouts, hoping to tone the smell down. They were retching from the smell. The spirit taunted them. "Hey, do you smell that?" Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle were too busy dry heaving to bother replying to it. "I said, Do you smell that?" The fillies nodded. "It's Death, children. Nothing else in Equestria smells like that. It smells like...Victory." "How did you die?" Sweetie Belle asked. "You're the first to ask that question. Since my death, you're the only mortals I've had any interaction with. I lived here when I was still alive, I was just a humble farmer, like the Apples. I grew Oranges, but my property line is right on the edge of the Pear family's. I interacted with the Pear family a lot, most of them were nice folks. One of their daughters took a liking to me, we hit it off pretty well. We did pretty much everything together. I'd help her harvest her pears, she'd help me pick my oranges. We'd set up booths in town right next to each other. If she missed her sales goal, I'd buy the residual. She did the same for me. We were that close." "I built the courage to pop the question and she agreed to it. We were married for around 10 years. Things were going so well until one day, I was coming home from picking oranges. I noticed my front door was open, I didn't leave it open so I knew something was wrong. When I got in my house, I heard a scream. I thought my wife was in danger, so I hauled flank trying to get up there to help her. She was doing things with another stallion. In a jealous rage, I charged in there with my scythe and beheaded him. He was already dead, but I kept slicing him. I turned to her. I asked her, How could you do this to me?" "She begged me not to kill her, begged me to 'have mercy' on her, she 'implored me to reconsider'. I told her she won't have to worry because we'll be dying together. I disemboweled her, a C-Section style cut across her stomach, everything just fell out like I spilled a bowl of spaghetti. I held her til she stopped breathing. When she was dead, I turned the blade on myself and committed sepuku." "I was doomed to remain here as a punishment for my actions, but I was betrayed by the one I loved and trusted most. Wouldn't you be angry? Wouldn't you want justice? Revenge? I took matters into my own hooves. Now I haunt this place and I put whoever dares to enter my little corner of Tartarus through the same pain and torment that I put them through. That's enough story time though, looking back on it just makes me angry. I was making puns while ripping a filly in half, think of what I'm capable of when I'm angry." The two remaining Cutie Mark Crusaders remained silent, enthralled by the spirit's story. They looked to each other, then back down the empty hallway. "I still don't understand why you killed her, Scootaloo never hurt you in anyway. She never even knew who you were," Sweetie Belle lamented. "When she was begging for her life, she reminded me of that traitorous whore. It rekindled that anger and I took it out on her." "Well, not everypony's out to hurt you. You said it yourself, you're dead, so it doesn't concern you," Apple Bloom retorted. "You make a valid point, little one. Perhaps there's a way I can rectify all this. It is beyond my power, of course, but I know somepony who does possess such abilities. I doubt she'll want anything to with me, but it is a possibility that you two could bring her here." "Really? You're letting us go?" Sweetie Belle was excited. "That's a sudden change of heart, I'm definitely not complaining, but what brought it forth?" Apple Bloom was curious. "Guilty conscience, you two were right, she did nothing to me. Besides, having you both witness that was punishment enough." "Who is coming to help us?" Sweetie Belle asked. "You'll see. You'll have to be asleep for this to work, so I'll have to forcefully induce a comatose state." "How?" Apple Bloom was afraid to ask. Two disembodied hands lifted the two remaining friends up in the air. "What are you doing? You said you'd help us," Sweetie Belle panicked. The spirit didn't respond, he threw the two of them into the air and they collided with each other with such great force that they both fell unconscious. While they were unconscious, images of Scootaloo's corpse flashed in their minds. They also saw images of themselves suffering similar fates or worse. This nightmare fuel lured the pony that the spirit was trying to summon. A bright light flashed and glowed, remaining stationary. A figure began to descend from this light. It was a familiar blue alicorn that appeared. Princess Luna had arrived, as it was her duty to guide ponies through nightmares. The two fillies and the alicorn stood in a dark ethereal plane. They curtsied to the princess. "My word, what happened here?" she stared at the two and a half Crusaders. She took a closer look around. Her expression went from bewilderment to fear when she realized where they were. "Whose idea was it to come here? WHO BROUGHT YOU HERE?" Princess Luna went from concerned to cross quickly. "Scootaloo brought us here, she said she wanted us to search here for our Ghost Hunter cutie marks," Sweetie Belle explained. "Well, lucky for you, I can get the three of you out of this. Next time, I won't be able to use this power. It's normally forbidden. Consider this your one 'Escape Death Free' card," Luna shook her head. "We're glad ya got here when ya did. The ghost was the one who knocked us out. He said somethin' about knowin' somepony who could help us and then he knocked us both out," Apple Bloom informed her. "Really? Citrus 'C-Section' Splash, one of the most sinister serial killers who ever lived and died showed remorse and brought me here? I'm impressed," Luna raised an eyebrow. The fillies nodded to corroborate the story, "Yes, he said you were the only one who could help us." "He was right. Let me see what I can do," Princess Luna's horn glowed, Scootaloo began to glow from her magic. Scootaloo's back legs slid across the floor from the end of the hall. The blood that was splattered everywhere evaporated. Scootaloo's lower half was reconnected to her upper half. She was sealed back with a loud crunch. Her spine was snapped back into place after her body was put back together. "She'll wake up in a few hours, let her rest," Luna said. "What do you mean she'll wake up? She's--- wait you mean you was able to resuscitate her?" Apple Bloom stared in shock. "Yes. Like I said, this is magic that I am normally forbidden to use, but just this once, I'll let it slide. I won't be able to save her from death again, not everypony gets a second chance, so she should consider herself extremely lucky. Now then, let's get the three of you out of here, I need to take care of one more thing though," Luna turned her attention to the ghost. "We meet again. I haven't seen you since the wedding of the Murderer and the Traitor." "Citrus Splash, rest your soul. You no longer have to haunt this place, you are free now," Luna said. "Where are you sending me?" "Below, now begone at once," Luna's horn glowed. The hands were gone, the outline of a stallion could be seen now. He strobed and flashed like a siren before disappearing. "Okay, now to take the three of you home. Put Scootaloo on my back and then take my front hooves," Luna stood still. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle did as commanded. She used her magic to unlock the front door. She opened it and jumped, unfurling her wings. She flew to Sweet Apple Acres first. She stopped at the farmhouse and let Apple Bloom go. "Get some sleep, pretend this never happened, that's the best advice I can offer you," Luna said. "Is Scootaloo gonna be okay?" Apple Bloom asked. "You'll find out tomorrow, now go to bed," Luna's answer was short and cryptic. "Thank you for saving us," she entered the house and went up to bed. Luna took off in full gallop and jumped, unfurling her wings again. She landed at Carousel Boutique next. She let Sweetie Belle go. "Next time Scootaloo tries to convince you to do something stupid, jump her and beat the brakes off of her," Luna advised. "I'm not going to hurt my friend, Princess Luna," Sweetie Belle was taken aback. "Would you rather have her be injured in a safe place or dead in a dangerous one?" Luna shot back coldly. "Injured in a safe one," Sweetie Belle answered. "Then do as I tell you. Get some rest and for my sister's sake, stay out of trouble," Luna replied. "I'll try, thank you for getting us out of there," Sweetie Belle smiled. "Don't mention it," Luna looked annoyed. "No, I mean, I appreciate--," Sweetie Belle began. "EVER," Luna cut her off. "Oh, I'm sorry," Sweetie Belle looked down at the floor. "You should be, don't ever go near that house again or any other potentially haunted place in Equestria. If you hear stories that sound ridiculous to you, they're probably true. Anything is possible, believe me, I've been around for thousands of years and have seen things you couldn't even begin to fathom," Luna left it at that. Sweetie Belle entered Carousel Boutique, relieved and happy to be alive. "One last stop," the Princess of the Night said to herself. She took off again, flying toward Cloudsdale. When she got there, she flew through the window of the cloud mansion Rainbow Dash resided in, she laid her on the floor near Rainbow's bed. She let her rest there and backed away. "You're her problem now, my work here is done," Luna turned her back to the sleeping mares. She breathed a sigh of relief and jumped back out the window, she unfurled her wings and glided through the night sky. She flapped them a few times to pick up speed, then turned to make a bee line for Canterlot. The Cutie Mark Crusaders were safe and the evil spirit that haunted the house had finally passed on. Everypony was safe and everything was back to normal. Luna kept flying, disappearing into the night. Author's Note I decided to give this a happy ending by having the Cutie Mark Crusaders rescued and the ghost was able to cross over. Everybody wins. Credit for the Luna idea goes to 29000 Kevin from the comment section, I liked that idea the best out of the ones he suggested. Also, bonus points for anyone who gets the "Do you smell that?" reference in the beginning.
