Breaking Boundaries

The school bell rang, and all the young equines rushed out of the small building, laughing and smiling at the end of the school day, while the Cutie Mark Crusaders walked out together.

"So, what are we gonna do to get our marks today, Crusaders?" Scootaloo asked as she grabbed her scooter from the side of the schoolhouse.

"Why don't we go visit Blazin' and Chocolate?" Apple Bloom asked in reply.

"Again?" Sweetie Belle asked. "We just saw them yesterday."

"Yeah, but Chocolate's only visitin'," Apple Bloom countered. "We don't know how long she'll be here, so we should make the best of her time here."

"But, what about our marks?" Scootaloo asked. "There's still so many things we haven't tried yet."

"Like what?" Apple Bloom countered with a raised eyebrow. "We've done bowlin', hand glidin'; we even tried workin' for the Foal Free Press." Scootaloo scratched her chin as she thought about all the activities they tried out to earn their marks, and every time she thought of something, she bit her lip when she realized they had already done that.

"Hey, maybe we can ask Chocolate how she got her mark!" Sweetie Belle suggested. "We know how Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and all the others got their marks, but we don't know how she got hers. Come to think of it, we can ask Blazing how he got his mark too!"

"You might be on to something," Scootaloo excitedly observed. "C'mon, Crusaders! We're going to Blazing's!" Scootaloo hitched a light wagon to her scooter before slipping on her helmet while giving her tiny wings a few flaps. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle both hopped onto the wagon before Scootaloo used her wings to drive her scooter with great speed.

"What even is her mark?" Apple Bloom asked as she scratched her head.

"I don't know," Sweetie Belle replied. "I never got a good look at her butt to find out."

"It's a golden heart!" Scootaloo answered as she drove her scooter. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle looked at Scootaloo with raised eyebrows. "What?" Scootaloo asked as she glanced over her left shoulder to look at them.

"You said that with such enthusiasm," Sweetie Belle answered. "Did you actually look at her butt?"

"So what if I did?" Scootaloo countered. "She's got a good body. Not as good as Rainbow Dash, but she still looks good." Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle looked at each other before looking at Scootaloo.

"Scoots, do you like girls?" Apple Bloom asked. Scootaloo pulled her scooter to a screeching halt before looking back at her friends, who gripped the edge of the wagon to keep from falling out.

"What? No! I just know a good body when I see one!" Scootaloo defended herself while her cheeks flushed red.

"Scoots, it's okay if you do," Apple Bloom countered quickly.

"yeah," Sweetie added with a smile. "There's nothing wrong with girls liking other girls. Like your aunts!" Scootaloo slowly smiled at them as they reassured her.

"Nothing wrong with it at all," a female voice caught the attention of the Crusaders as they looked up to find Chocolate hovering over them with a smile.

"Hi, Chocolate!" the Crusaders said in unison.

"Hi, girls," Chocolate replied as she landed on the ground next to them.

"Where's Blazin'?" Apple Bloom asked as she looked around.

"Whoa!" Scootaloo's voice cried. The other three looked to find Scootaloo's helmet spinning on the ground where she stood. They all looked up to find Blazing flying through the sky with Scootaloo in his arms. Blazing performed all kinds of aerial flips and tricks while Scootaloo laughed and cheered at the experience.

"Right there," Chocolate said as she watched Blazing fly Scootaloo around. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle watched with broad smiles on their faces.

After a few minutes of flying around, Blazing dove down and softly landed in front of the group before putting Scootaloo down, her hair all frizzled from the wind in her face.

"That was awesome!" Scootaloo cheered as she smiled at Blazing.

"Better than Rainbow Dash?" Blazing asked with a raised eyebrow over a smirk.

"Er, a close second," Scootaloo answered casually. "No one's better than Rainbow Dash!" Blazing chuckled as he ruffled Scootaloo's purple hair.

"Who's next?" Blazing asked the remaining Crusaders with a smile.

"Ooh! Ooh! Me!" Sweetie Belle cried while jumping in place with her right hand extended into the air. Blazing chuckled and scooped her into his arms, bridal style, before kicking off the ground. "Wee!" Sweetie cried out as Blazing carried her through the skies.

"You think Blazin' would make a good daddy?" Apple Bloom asked Chocolate with a smile, earning a blink from the older pegasus.

"Are you kidding?!" Scootaloo called as she walked up. "That stallion loves kids! Think of how he makes time for us!"

"What about your sister, Rainbow Dash?" Chocolate asked.

"Oh, Dash and Scoots ain't related," Apple Bloom answered.

"But, she could be my big sister!" Scootaloo countered. "That would be so awesome!" Chocolate chuckled at the young pegasus' excitement. "Anyway, she's in charge of the weather in Ponyville, training to be a Wonderbolt, and she keeps Equestria safe with her friends!"

"Sounds like a busy equine," Chocolate observed.

"She still makes time for us, especially me, but she has more to worry about than Blazing," Scootaloo added.

Blazing landed on the ground before putting Sweetie Belle down, her two-toned pink and purple hair messy from the flight and a big grin on her face. Sweetie stumbled a few steps as she walked back to Apple Bloom's side. "That was awesome!" she sighed.

"How about you, AB?" Blazing asked with a smile.

"I'm good," Apple Bloom answered with a thankful smile.

"Oh, c'mon, Apple Bloom!" Scootaloo protested. "It's not every day an earth pony can fly with a pegasus!"

"That's okay, Scoots," Blazing said as he ruffled the orange pegasus' purple hair. "She doesn't have to fly if she doesn't want to. Though, the offer still stands," Blazing told Apple Bloom with a smile.

"Thanks," Apple Bloom replied with a thankful smile.

"So, what brings you three to this neck of the woods?" Blazing asked.

"We wanted to ask you guys how you got your marks," Scootaloo answered with a smile as she stood by her friends.

"I never told you that story?" Blazing asked as he scratched his chin while looking at a stray cloud in the sky.

"Shit!" Chocolate cursed herself. "What the hell am I gonna tell them?"

"Well," Blazing began, "I was a little older than you three when mine appeared. Not too different from how Rainbow got hers." Scootaloo blinked as she bounced in excitement. "I was very competitive as a colt, always racing other pegasi, but I wasn't good. I lost every race I participated in. So, I did everything I could to make my wings stronger. I worked out daily, working my wing muscles and doing everything I could to get faster." Chocolate watched Blazing as he told his story while taking in every last ounce of joy the three fillies were radiating. "One day, I challenged myself to my limits. It wasn't a race against anyone else but myself. To fly faster than I ever had before." Blazing's excitement increased with every word as he told the story with his hands and wings. "I flew as fast as I could, and I flew faster! The wind was rushing through my hair and tail! My wings sliced through the wind like a hot knife through butter! I didn't realize it at that moment, but my wings actually were burning!" Blazing extended his wings as he looked at them. The yellow base where the bone protruded from his back fading to a rich red as they held the feathers. "That day, I learned that my wings somehow could generate fire." Chocolate blinked as she stared at Blazing's wings.

"Wait! What?!" she asked herself.

"That night, at home, my mom smiled at me so brightly," Blazing continued. "I had no idea what put that smile on her face until she pointed at this," Blazing turned to his side to show the pegasus wing engulfed in flames sparkling on his flank. "It wasn't until years later I understood why this was my mark."

"Wow!" the Crusaders said in unison.

"Why would flaming wings be your talent?" Sweetie asked.

"Now, that is a story for another time," Blazing answered with a smile.

"Could he be one of those rare breeds of pegasi that can conjure the elements with their wings?" Chocolate asked herself as she stared at Blazing's wings.

"Chocolate?" Blazing's voice pulled Chocolate out of her thoughts as she blinked. "The girls want to know how you got your mark too," Blazing explained. Chocolate could sense his concern as she looked at the girls, who all smiled at her eagerly.

"Well, my story's not at exciting as Blazing," Chocolate said with a warm smile. "I just have a gift for match-making, is all. I can't tell who likes who and if they should start a relationship."

"That's it?" Scootaloo asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Well, I know a couple of pegasi who really liked each other," Chocolate began, "so I told them to be together. That's when this appeared," Chocolate thought about Zuro and Angel when she told that story. She only partially told the truth, as that was the day she came up with her disguise, as well as the day she encountered Zuro and chose to let him live.

"Aww!" Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle said in unison as they smiled at Chocolate, who blushed slightly.

"Eew!" Scootaloo countered. Blazing chuckled as he picked Scootaloo up.

"You won't think it's disgusting when you find your mark, Scoots," Blazing said with a smile.

"Yeah, right," Scootaloo countered as she jumped out of Blazing's hold.

"Just you wait, Scoots," Blazing began, "one day, you'll find your marks, and it won't be some kind of extreme sport like Dash. It'll be something simple. Maybe even something you'll share with your friends, like Dash and her friends."

"That would be so cool!" Sweetie Belle exclaimed.

"Yeah!" Apple Bloom agreed. "All three of us gettin' our marks together! That would be cool!"

"Maybe we can get our marks in listening to mamby-pamby stories!" Scootaloo groaned as she put her helmet on her head while getting on her scooter. "C'mon, Crusaders. We've got better things to do!"

"We did love your stories," Apple Bloom said as she pulled herself into the wagon hitched to Scootaloo's scooter.

"Yeah," Sweetie Belle added. "Thank you for sharing, you guys." Sweetie sat next to her friend before Scootaloo used her wings to zoom away. Blazing chuckled as he watched the trio leave.

"I don't remember being as obsessed with my mark as those three are," Blazing observed.

"What's so special about those marks again?" Chocolate asked as she stood next to Blazing.

"They're a big part of who we are," Blazing answered. "They show us what we're most skilled at.

"Sounds like a prison to me," Chocolate observed.

"Not really," Blazing countered as he began walking down the road with Chocolate. "Many think that the mark is a sign of the one and only thing we can do in our lives, but the mark is more of a trophy of what we're best at. The one thing I'm known for is my flaming wings, but I'm good at cooking and stuff."

"So, say your mark is that of a rock?" Chocolate asked.

"I imagine that'd mean you know more about rocks than anyone in the world," Blazing said as he scratched his chin. "Or, you focus on the study of rocks more than anything else, but you could still be good at baking."

"Interesting," Chocolate observed as she walked with Blazing.

~~)oOo(~~

The next afternoon, Chocolate sat on a cloud by herself as she looked over the horizon. She had a few minutes to herself since Blazing needed to run some errands for the house. Chocolate did not mind being alone for a few minutes; she relished quiet moments under Queen Chrysalis' service, especially since they were few and far between.

Chocolate thought about the events of the day before and what she had learned about equine lives. Despite her best efforts to think about almost anything else, she could not tear her mind away from one event that happened yesterday. The moment she felt Blazing's lips press against hers. That moment she gave in to her base desires and leaned into Blazing's warmth. She never felt more charged before, and she wanted that feeling again.

Chocolate sighed as she lay on her side while staring at the land in the distance. "What's wrong with me?" she asked herself. "I shouldn't be feeling like this; I'm a changeling!" she quietly cursed herself. "And why is he so damn trusting of me? Why is he so open and caring? Especially when he knows what I am?" Chocolate asked herself these questions repeatedly since she woke up in Blazing's home. "How is he able to make me feel like this?" She paused as she asked this question as if listening for an answer that would never come. She sighed at the silence as she sat up on the cloud.

Suddenly, the skies filled with bright lights coming from the north. Chocolate watched as the light painted the skies with every possible color. She stared in awe at the lights as her body filled with warmth and comfort, unlike anything she had ever experienced before. A warmth that amplified the feelings she felt towards Blazing.

"What the hell?" She asked herself as she stared at the lights. She followed the source until her eyes met the icy horizon of the frozen north. She narrowed her eyes to try and see better before shifting them to eagle eyes. Eagles could see from great distances, but even with the improved vision, she could only make out sparkles from the frozen wasteland. "Why would anything be coming from the north?" She asked herself. "There's nothing there but-" she froze when she thought of the only possible thing that could be out there. "Impossible!"