In the Heat of the Night... No, Sweetie Belle, We Are NOT Having a Siesta! ( >д<)
Chapter 0: Intro (Because I Forgot I Wrote An Intro Basically)
Load Full StoryNext ChapterIt was 6PM, Nightmare Night, and the Cutie Mark Crusaders were gathered in their clubhouse—notably without their costumes. The club-house was slightly gloomy, lit by a combination of outside light creeping through the inexpertly-made windows and the lantern sitting on the table.
With a small grunt, Applebloom heaved a dark, black book the size of her entire head onto the table. It landed with a thump, and shook the lamp beside it, threatening to spill over before Sweetie Belle caught it with a hoof.
"Hey!" she said. "Be careful."
"What is that thing anyway?" Scootaloo asked, prodding at the strange-looking eldritch volume with a cautious poke. She eyed the book uneasily, as though she expected it to grow feet and begin walking at any moment. Books were, in Scootaloo's opinion, generally not to be trusted.
"Well duh, it's a book, silly!" Applebloom said, grinning. "I found in one of the back sections of Twilight's library when she was busy."
"That's where you're always finding weird old books," Scootaloo said. She eyed the newest entry in Applebloom's ill-gotten book-club with an eyebrow raised. "And they always get us into trouble."
"I'm pretty sure that's just a coincidence," Applebloom said with a huff. "Anyway, this one's special. It's gonna help us get our Nightmare Night cutie marks!"
"I'm not really sure I want a Nightmare Night cutie mark," Sweetie said, looking wistfully at her blank flank. "I mean, a cutie mark that only works one night a year doesn't sound like it would be very fun..."
"Just 'cause you get it on Nightmare Night doesn't mean it only works on Nightmare Night, doofus!" Applebloom smacked a hoof into her forehead. Forehoof. "If you get your cutie mark on a holiday, it just means its extra special, and you get to spend the whole rest of the year reminding everypony else about your favorite holiday. Pine Wreath still comes out of his house even though it's not Hearth's Warming, doesn't he?"
"Oh... I guess that's true," Sweetie said.
"So we have an extra chance to get super awesome mega powerful cutie marks just because it's Nightmare Night?" Scootaloo asked. Her eyes were wide, and she leaned forward.
Applebloom nodded. "O'course. Didn't anypony else hear stories when they were growing up, about all kinds of spooky magic happening on Nightmare Night?"
"Rarity told me a story about a vampire who couldn't find her sunscreen," Sweetie added.
Applebloom rolled her eyes. "Not like that. Stuff like... somepony waking up in the middle of the night to a knock on their door... and they went downstairs to open it and... nopony was there!" Applebloom's mouth fell open, eyes open, and began to shiver.
Now it was Scootaloo's turn to roll her eyes.
"Come on, that's lame! When I was at camp, I heard about a demon pony that kidnaps you if you're out without a costume... and if you've been bad, she bakes you into a pie and eats your soul... with ice cream!" Scootaloo shook frantically and grabbed her shoulders to try and hug away the vision of the demon pony.
"Jeez... that's pretty scary..." Applebloom said.
"What's so special about this book, anyway?" Sweetie asked.
Applebloom smiled and flipped the book open.
"It's a magic book! It's got all sorts of cool spells and pictures and stuff. I can't really read most of 'em... but there's gotta be at least one cool spell in here that'll help us get our cutie marks."
"We already tried getting magic cutie marks," Scootaloo said, adding a sigh. "Remember? We tried to grow mustaches for four hours and all that happened was I got a headache and Sweetie Belle thought she maybe felt herself grow an extra mane hare. Maybe."
"I was like sixty-four percent sure I felt it!" Sweetie yelled, crossing her forelegs in front of her.
"Quit it you two!" Applebloom shouted back. "It's almost night-time and we gotta get started before everypony else has the same idea and gets all the cool spells and cutie marks."
Sweetie, Scootaloo, and Applebloom shared a 'Cutie-Mark-Crusader' patented Look™. And a Nod™.
"You guys told your parents you were out trick-or-treating?" Scootaloo asked. She glanced nervously to either side.
"I told ma sis and brother that Rarity was taken us," Applebloom said.
"I told Rarity Big Mac was taking us," Sweetie said, her voice squeaking.
"I, uh... yeah. I told my parents I was with... you guys," Scootaloo said. "Heh," she said. Was I supposed to laugh, instead of saying 'heh', she thought? Quit reading my thoughts, Applebloom.
"Uh... what was I sayin'?" Applebloom said.
"You were telling us what's so special about this dumb book!" Scootaloo said, glaring. She sat back in the chair on her side of the table, leaning it on its hind-legs.
"Well... check this out, fer instance." Applebloom flipped a few pages through the tome and picked one out seemingly at random. "Look! This one has a picture of a pony in a circle... with wings! They're all spiky and spooky and stuff. Maybe we could learn how to fly!"
"This one has a picture of a bunch of things that look like twirlers... maybe they're for a dancing cutie mark?" Sweetie added.
"Woah! This one has a pony wearing armor with a big freakin' axe!" Scootaloo picked up the book and pointed frantically to the illustration she'd noticed. The pony in question looked the size of a small-building, if to-scale, and wearing armor that would have made a suitable battlement if not occupied by its herculean host. The armor was spiked. Scootaloo's eyes beamed. With stars in them.
Applebloom shifted nervously back and forth. She was the only one at the table not sitting.
"Well... maybe we could start with the wings, and if that doesn't work, we could try—"
"Battle-axe cutie mark crusaders, activate!" Scootaloo yelled, jumping up from her chair and waving an invisible war-piece around her head.
Applebloom's eyes darted back and forth. "Uh... yeah. That one."
Sweetie squealed and kicked in her seat. "I can't wait to be a pony of the night!" she said.
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