Chapters The Odd Life Of ScrewBall
Life can be in cruel in alot of ways. Especially for Screwball, the only fun one she had in her life was from her father Discord. But even when he was around he was there for only a brief amount of time. But when he was there, he made the world... Beautiful. Some people would call it disorganized,weird, but mostly Chaotic. But in Screwballs eyes, it was perfect.
But sadly, it never lasted long. Because of those blasted Elements of Harmony.They always ruined the fun, Her father never did anything to hurt the ponies, he just made their day more interesting. But someponys don't know how good they have it. So every day , Screwball would visit her fathers statue and the two of them would plot their revenge against Ponyville. Weirdly enough, Discord could communicate with his daughter through telepathy. The two of them talked about how Ponyville was going to pay for imprisoning the great Discord, Lord of Chaos. Screwball was never sure she would follow through with their plans though, Since she never really hated any pony since she managed to stay away from them since they might not accept her for who she is. But that had the end soon since she had to start school in the next week.And she was incredibly anxious to finally meet other ponies so she could become friends, But was she a fool for believing in such silly things.
Screwball woke up with a start. She had a terrible nightmare where she was terribly organized and neat. She shuddered at the thought. Screwball had been living in a abandoned cottage on the outskirts of Ponyville by herself after her mother died when Screwball was just a foal. Screwball had managed to get all the basic necessities she needed through stealing,begging, and even rummaging through trash. She looked over at her clock,The only hand working on it was the hour hand but she was still able to guess that it was somewhere around 6:40 . She got out of her bed and went to the bathroom to get ready. She didn't want to be late on her first day of school, or at least terribly late. On her way out the door she stopped to look at the shattered mirror.
" Today, I'm going to show them all" Screwball said. "I'm going to show every pony that i'm just like them"
But as soon as she walked got to the center of town, all eyes were on her, she was immediately given odd and threatening looks as if they were disgusted by her,disgusted even, by the very thought of her. Every pony knew that she was Discords daughter and kept an eye on her to make sure she wasn't exactly like her father, Maniacal and Chaotic. But some ponies took it out of their way to make sure she knew that she was not welcome by throwing things at her and giving her death threats. On her way to school she grew less and less confident that she was going to show all the ponies. As the schoolground grew closer and closer, she was stopped by two little fillies. One a coat of silver, and the other of pink.
"So you're the new kid huh?" Said Diamond Tiara " You look like a freak to me, maybe you should just go back home" she sneered.
'Yeah " said Silver Spoon."Get out of here weirdo"
"I'm just trying to get to school" Screwball said angered at their stupidity, trying to talk down to The Great Discords own offspring. "Just move out of my way and nopony gets hurt"
But the pink pony just laughed in Screwball's face and made her way to her class with her friend. She slowly picked walked to school herself, she looked around to see every pony move their head away to pretend like they didn't just witness Screwball being bullied.
Screwball slowly walked towards her classroom, trying to ignore the intense glaring and the rude little comments they were making about her. As Screwball got closer to the classroom she was immediately pushed aside as every pony made their way into the schoolhouse. When every pony was inside, Screwball walked inside and picked the seat closest to the back. And pretended as if she was not even there. But her hopes of being unnoticed were quickly shot down as Cherilee called her to the front.
"Class, today we have a new student that i would like to introduce to the class" Cherilee said a hint of fear in her voice at the sight of the odd looking mare. " Her name is Screwball and she will be a new addition to our class"
Screwball gathered up her courage and stepped out from behind her teacher and introduced herself. " Hello, My name is Screwball and i'm excited to get to know all of you"
Every pony quickly started whispering to each other about how her eyes were weird looking and how her mane was strangely colored. But the only ponies not talking bad about her were three fillies who were just happened to be best friends and excited to have another. They all waved to Screwball and and she hesitantly waved back. She quickly went back to her seat, fuming with anger over how rude the other fillies were acting and how they didn't deserve to judge her if they didn't even know her, but the thought of the other fillies who were not making fun of her played in her mind for a bit, trying to figure out what their intentions were. The rest of the class went on without anything odd happening. At lunch, Screwball sat alone and quietly thought to herself on how she would show every pony how wrong they were about her. She kept thinking while she was eating her odd lunch of deep fried Oreo and cheese ,when the oddest thing happened. More odd than what Screwball could ever imagine, even in her imaginative mind. The same three fillies came and sat down next to her.
"Hey there" Applebloom said." Ahm Applebloom and these here are my friends Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo"
"Nice to meet you" The other two fillies said at once.
"Um Hi, nice to meet you too" Screwball said quietly, still surprised at the recent event.Screwball decided that they must be playing a mean trick on her by pretending to want to be her friend.
"Sorry that everypony were being mean to you" SweetieBelle said " They can be really mean"
This caught Screwball by surprise." Yes, they can" she said still unsure of their intentions.
But before any of the fillies could reply to Screwballs response The bell rang and they all made their way to the classroom. The rest of the day continued uneventful. And as soon as the end bell rang. Screwball ran to her fathers statue in the maze.Mad at all the ponies treating her with such disrespect when she was the offspring of The Great And Powerful Discord. As soon as she got to the statue in the maze she immediately started crying in frustration right in front of her fathers statue.
"What is wrong daughter dearest" Said Discord with concern. "Didn't you're first day go as well as you hoped?"
"Not at all!" She screamed through her tears." The other ponies were so mean to me, i didn't even do anything" She said still unsure of someponies intentions.
"Now daughter, what have i told you?" He said. " When in doubt, Use your chaos"
Entirely aware that the sentence did not rhyme, Screwball giggled at her fathers humor.
"But father i can't control my powers"ANd even if i could what would i do" She said sadly
"Don't fret my dear, I'll teach you everything i know" Said Discord. "We will show them all"
As Screwball perked up at these words. Discord started laughing and and so did his daughter, Laughing at how they were going to show the other ponies. Laughing at how much fun they would have seeing the the Ponyville residents screaming and begging. But mostly, Screwball was laughing at how she would show all those ponies at school.
The Odd Life Of ScrewBall
Screwball woke up with a groan. She looked around to find herself in the middle of the maze, next to her fathers statue. Her sleepiness passed immediately as she realized that she had fallen asleep as she was talking to her dad the night before. Shock ran through her body as she realized that she had probably missed school. She quickly got on her feet.
"Daddy, Do you know what time it is?" She asked with a scared tone in her voice. " I think i'm late for school." She was in no hurry to get back to school after what had happened the day before, but she still had to get there.
"Daughter dearest, I'm afraid you've forgotten my predicament" Discord said with a hint of amusement in his voice. " I'm trapped in a statue, I have no sense of time "
Dumbfounded at her stupidity, she picked up her bags and ran off before turning back to say. " See you later Daddy!"
"Sometimes i wonder about that girl " He thought to himself " Now, back to more pressing issues, such as the function of a rubber duck, hmm... "
Screwballs fear quickly subsided as she came closer to the view of the school and found that her classmates were all playing happily. Her fear rose again as she saw three colts galloping towards her with an angry look on their faces. She tried to look anywhere but the colts to avoid confrontation. But alas, the filly had no such luck. As the three colts came closer she slowed to a walk.
"You should turn back around little filly" The leader of the cronies said. " Before anyone gets hurt" He said with a sneer.
Screwball was about to rebuttal with a witty comment of her own, when three fillies rushed to her side. They were obviously trying to protect the young filly from the colts. The each stood as tall they could to look menacing but fell just a bit short. Any doubt that Screwball had about the three fillies diminished when they spoke up for her.Scootaloo was the first to speak up of the three.
"Get away from her punks!" With such courage that could rival Rainbow Dash's own. " She hasn't done anything to you!"
" Yeah" SweetieBelle and Applebloom said in unison. " Or you'll have to go through both of-" Applebloom tried to say before she was punched across the face by the leader of the colts. The other three fillies could only watch in horror as she fell to the ground and they were then too tackled by the other two colts.
Screwball watched in horror as all three fillies were being beaten by the colts. She looked around her, with wild eyes to see if somepony, anypony were going to help. She even hoped that one of the would tell an adult. But they all just avoided eye contact. As if the fillies were the fools for trying to even stand up to the three colts. Screwballs anger grew as she watched the three fillies be beaten mercilessly. She was mad that no one was helping, she was mad that they tried to help and gotten themselves into this mess, but she knew it was out of the kindness of their hearts, but she was especially mad that they had even tried to take on the Daughter of Chaos. Her vision began to grow red and her breathing began to turn heavy as adrenaline coursed through her body like a wild wave. Next thing she knew, she had punched both cronies off SweetieBelle and Scootaloo and was rushing with great speed at the leader of the bullies. He had managed to get his fifth punch in on Applebloom when Screwball managed to grab his hoof and spin him around until she finally let go of him and let him fly into a nearby tree.
Screwball could feel the adrenaline subsiding but she kept going. She walked over to the colts body, groaning in pain. Screwball lifted his body against the tree and continued to punch him in the jaw and nose and finally the temple until he passed out from the pain she had inflicted.She spun around wildly, giving a such a stare to the other two colts that it could rival Fluttershys, the two colts both passed out. She let the leaders body slide against the tree as he fell down, and she walked over to her three new friends to help them up. As soon as Screwball helped Applebloom up from the ground, she collapsed from all the energy she had just inflicted on the three colts.
Screwball woke up a couple hours later. She slowly looked around at her surroundings. Just moving her head took alot of her energy, She managed to notice three things, The Cutie Mark Crusaders were in their own beds to the left of her, The three colts she had beaten were to her right, all groaning in pain. And the last thing that she noticed was that Cherilee had left her some homework on her nightstand, Wonderful. The three fillies soon realised that their their purple friend was awake and they all managed to make their way over to her bed. This time, SweetieBelle was the first to speak.
" Are you okay Screwball?" She said in a worried voice. " We were really worried about you"
" I'm fine, But what about you guys?" Screwball said. " That was quite a beating."
" Are yah kidin? You totally saved us!" Applebloom said happily. " We cleared it up with tuh nurses that yah helped us, by tuh way"
" Saved us?" Scootaloo said " More like kicked their flanks like it was your job, You were just like Batcolt. You were like, BAM,POW, KABLOOIE. It was totally SWEET!" Scootaloo said, bouncing with enjoyment.
The fillies continued to talk for hours until they were told they were cleared to leave. The colts that Screwball had beaten up had to stay a bit longer since their wounds were a bit more....intense. Rarity ran to the fillies as soon as she was able to, She wasn't able to see them before because the doctors wouldn't allow it, Rarity quickly began fussing over the cuts and bruises that were inflicted upon the fillies. She then kept thanking Screwball for helping her sister and her friends. Screwball didn't think she needed the praise, but was glad to know that not all Elements of Harmony were bad. Rarity explained that the fillies were going to have a sleepover at the boutique and that Screwball was invited. All the fillies insisted on it, finally Screwball broke and said yes. But she explained that she had to do something before she went there. As Screwball happily trotted to her fathers statue in the maze, she began humming happily, thinking about how her day was such a success. Making friends, going to a sleepover, And most importantly, Missing school.
The Odd Life Of ScrewBall
Screwball was happily humming to her stuff as she was lost in thought. She was having the best day ever, and it wasn't even over yet! Not only had Screwball managed to kick some flank and gain three new friends, but she was also invited to a sleepover. Although she wasn't entirely sure what a sleepover was, she was sure it would be something fun. She was so lost in thought that she had actually managed to walk right into Discords statue.
"Oomph" The pink filly yelped " Oh, Hey there Daddy" She said through a blush " Sorry, Didn't see you there"
" No problem daughter" Discord said with his usual booming voice " But alas, I can tell theres something on your mind, Perchance, a certain colt has caught your eye?" He telepathed with a chuckle.
" Daaaad!" Screwball exclaimed " I'm only a filly. But what did happen today was that i got three new friends, There names are Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and -
" WHAT?" Discord boomed " You are friends with the sisters of the ponies that entrapped me in this prison?" He said, his anger growing. " I forbid it!"
" But Dad, they are not like them, they're different." Screwball squeaked. She decided that it was best to not tell him about Rarity, or the sleepover, but especially the fight.
" I do not want to hear it daughter, This conversation is over" He said, trying to regain his composure. " Now let us start with your lesson, today we make it rain, Chocolate Rain!"
The rest of the lesson continued without any problems, Screwball was able to make a small rain cloud, or rather cotton candy cloud, and made it rain a little. Not much, but enough to fill a glass with it. Discord was of course, not able to use his Chaos, so he patiently instructed her on how to do it. The whole time, Screwballs mind was racing on how fast she could get to the sleepover. She was obviously going to disobey her father's orders and wanted to get there fast. When it ended, She hurriedly said goodbye and ran to town. As soon as she arrived, she realized that she had no idea where the boutique was located, let alone what it was. She saw a colt near Sugarcube Corner, his cutie mark was a picture of a bee and some butter. Odd was what her first thought but she still approached him.
"Excuse me sir, but do you know where the boutique is? Screwball said "I'm new to town" She was almost telling the truth since she was living on the outskirts of the town and rarely went to the town.
"Why yes, I do" The colt said " It is right there" He said pointing at the huge building only ten feet away from them. " You shouldn't be out this late little filly, there are strange people around.
This seemed even more odd to her since it was only around four o'clock, but she shrugged it off and went on her way. She grew more fearful as she approached the boutique since that colt didn't seem so faithful when it came to directions. But her fear subsided when she knocked on the door and was welcomed inside by Rarity. She was then greeted almost immediately by her three friends, The Cutie Mark Crusaders. they all exchanged greetings, and Screwball was led to the the back room where the girls had obviously been playing. Screwball still had no idea how a sleepover worked but she assumed that she would sleep on something. The girls played for hours with occasional appearances by Rarity, bringing food and dress up clothes to put on. As the night went on, Screwball found out that a sleepover was when you go to sleep and a friends house. She found this out when she was asked by SweetieBelle where they wanted to sleep. They decided it'd be best to sleep in the living room. A few hours later, when the rest of the Cutie Mark Crusaders had fallen asleep, Screwball got up to shuffle to the bathroom. As she came back out to find the front door was open slightly. Perplexed, she made her way into Rarity's room, where she was wearing her sleeping mask and her robe. Screwball woke her up and was greeted by a dramatic awakening.
"Oh whatever is it, i need my beauty rest to be the best" Rarity said pulling off her mask. " Oh hello there Screwball, what seems to be the problem>"
"I'm sorry for waking you Miss Rarity, But do you usually leave your front door open when you go to sleep?"
" No, why do you ask darling?" But Rarity's question was answered as she heard loud a loud noise from downstairs, followed by three screams. Both of them flew down the stairs to be greeted by a broken vase on the floor and Applebloom held by none other than the same colt Screwball asked directions from earlier. AppleBloom was writhing in his hold.
" Stop right there, and nopony gets hurt" The colt said menacingly.
" Let her go you rapscallion" Rarity screamed at the thief.
"Not until you give me all your bits first" He said. "Right now"
Rarity scurried off, frantically looking for her jewels and money. But Screwball just couldn't let Miss Rarity be stolen from. Especially by this weirdo. Celestia knows what he would do with those bits. Screwball looked around the room and saw the other two fillies shivering in the corner, staring with pleading eyes at Screwball, She only had one moment to act, she mustered all her energy and made a huge cotton cloud appeared right over the colt. He looked up with eyes as round as saucers.
"What in Celestia?" he said, shocked as chocolate rain fell down
"NOW" Screwball yelled to Applebloom. Applebloom reacted as fast as she could and bucked the colt in the knees, making him buckle down in pain. It was as if time slowed down while Screwball galloped at him hoof ready. As she got closer, she jumped and punched him in the side of the face. Sending him flying against the wall. Rarity ran in with a bag of bits and jewels when she stopped dead in her tracks.
"What happened" She said, followed by a whimper as she saw the puddle of chocolate on the rug.
"Screwball saved us!" All three fillies said. "She distracted the bad colt and then punched him" Screwball could only blush as they all hugged her in happiness, even Rarity. Afterwards, Rarity went out and called the guards, as the girls tied the colt up in ropes. He was soon escorted off by the guards and the girls were left all alone. They all tried to get back to sleep but to no avail. The excitement from the past few hours had rattled them all. Rarity decided it'd be best if they all had an early, early, breakfast. Afterwards, the girls played again for a few hours and Screwball was officially made a Cutie Mark Crusader even though she already had one. In addition of becoming a member. She was shown the clubhouse. But after awhile, the girls parted ways and Screwball made her way to her cottage. Only to find it being moved into.
The Odd Life Of ScrewBall
Screwball could not believe her eyes, a strange pony and his wife, were actually moving into Screwballs cottage! Although, technically it wasn't her home, and she no one knew she lived there... But that didn't matter right now! She was going to be homeless soon. She thought it'd be best if she didn't seem to suspicious, so she walked away slowly. Screwball trudged her way to her fathers statue and tried not to look sad. But Discord was good at sensing when something was wrong.
"And what, pray tell is the matter with you ?" Discord said " Not from being with those fillies i hope, because we both know what would happen if you disobeyed my orders "
Screwball shuddered at the thought of her Fathers wrath. "No Daddy, of course not" She lied through her teeth. " I would never try to disobey you"
"Then what is wrong ?" Discord mused. " And don't try lying to me " The Lord Of Chaos added sinisterly
"Well, the cottage i've been living in was moved into" She said " And now i have nowhere to live, and i'm scared, and i'm cold, and - She cut off as she broke into tears.
"Sweetie, there is no reason to cry, you are a very strong filly and you won't let anything get in your way " Discord said trying to calm down the weeping filly. " I'm sure you'll figure something out, I personally like to sleep under little ponies beds and scare them while their half asleep, its quite a thing to see
Instead of having a lesson that night. They continued to talk for as long as they could. Screwball, not wanting to sleep on the ground again, decided she could sleep in the Cutie Mark Crusaders Clubhouse where she was shown earlier. Meanwhile, She and her Dad talked about various things, such as Ponyville demise, taking back the throne which is rightfully theirs, and other boring stuff like that. The conversation soon got to the story of how Screwball had gotten her cutie mark. Its an odd tale at best.
The tale starts when Discord was back from his imprisonment in the statue and they were both catching up. Screwball had been saying to her Father how she wished she could go to a baseball game before he left when he snapped his fingers and a stadium appeared right in front of them. She was practically bouncing with excitement as they walked into a crowded stadium. It was full of ponies with different unusual features to them, Such as big eyes, limp horns, deep voices, and there was even one who looked like a hairless ape. As they walked in, Screwball was under the impression that they would be watching the game but was surprised to find that she was actually playing. As she stood at the pitchers mound, her excitement grew as everypony cheered for her. Forced of course by Discord, but cheering nonetheless.
She wound up her pitch and threw the ball at the horrified batter. The ball threw at a fast speed, but was going slowly in Screwballs point of view. She watched as the batter swung the bat with all his might. But the baseball went straight over his head and than back down. The whole stadium roared with excitement. She felt the adrenaline rush flow and continue d to throw screwballs at all the batters. After the game she left, satisfied with her game. They continued to walk as Discord shot happy glances at her. She asked him why he was doing this, and he simply replied with " Check your flank " She tried to comprehend what he was getting at and slowly turned her head to her flank. She almost jumped! On her flank was none other than her cutie mark. A screw with a ball next to it. Signifying that she was good at baseball and causing confusion.
They both thought about this happily. As there conversation continued, the night grew cold. Discord taught her to conjure up a blanket to keep her warm She told her Father that she knew where she would sleep tonight and she left without a goodbye left. As she grew away from his mental connection. He grew sad, he wondered if he failed as a father, he hadn't been there for his daughter. She grew up without a Dad. But it wasn't entirely his fault. He just wanted to add life to the ponies already dull lives. But at what cost? His Daughter was the only answer.
Screwball ran as fast as she could. The clubhouse was on the edge of Ever free forest but it was still dangerous to be any where near the forest. She came closer to the Clubhouse and soon had relief wash over her. as it came into view. She wan't her good at direction but she did her best. As she walked in, she was hit with the smell of a wet coat of fur. She thought that some animal was in their but was surprised to find the last thing she'd thought would be in there. Scootaloo, She slowly lifted her head with her eyes half open only to reel back with fear. She calmed down when she saw that it was Screwball but her relief washed over with embarrassment.
"W-What are you doing here Screwball" Scootaloo said with a stammer " I thought you lived in a cottage by yourself"
" Somepony moved in and now i have no place to go" She said sadly "Wait, what are you doing here, don't you live with-" Her words cut off as she realized that Scootaloo had never even mentioned a family member. Scootaloo could only shake her head slowly as molten tears fell down her face. Screwball could only comfort the orange filly by conjuring up a blanket for both of them. Scootaloo continued to tell her dark story of how she had been living with her drunk father and drug addicted mother,both beat her constantly and spewed insults at her. When they had both died from an untimely wagon accident, Scootaloo tried to get away from being in a orphanage by pretending like she had a home. She had kept this secret up for months without letting anyone know. The two girls eventually fell asleep from all the drama from that night.
Applebloom had almost finished her chores for the day when Applejack called her over and told her that she needed to fix the roof in the clubhouse. Applebloom tried to get out of it but her sister would have none of it. Applebloom trudged her way to the clubhouse when she heard soft snoring coming out of the clubhouse. She was sure that some sort of bear had made its way in and she would have to get Fluttershy. But she peeked through the window and found two sleeping fillies inside. Perplexed, she walked inside and awakened the two sleeping fillies. They both proceeded to explain their situations without a pause. Applebloom decided she couldn't have her two friends be living in the rickety old clubhouse, so she decided there was only one thing to do, with Granny Smiths permission of course. Applebloom kept it a secret from the other two fillies for the moment and led them to Sweet Apple Acres. The two fillies spent the day helping the apple family with the chores and were having dinner when Granny Smith stood up from the end of the table and told them the best thing they've ever heard in their lives (or at least at the moment)
"Hey little ladies, we got a spare room upstairs for ya ta sleep in if you want er sumthin" Granny Smith said, very quick to the point.
" She means that we want ya to live with us' Applejack explained
"Really!?" Both fillies said in unison, also very excited
"Eeeyup" Big Macintosh confirmed
Both the fillies squealed in excitement at their brand new home with their bestest friend. After dinner, the girls ran upstairs and played until the time came for bed. Applebloom showed Screwball and Scootaloo their spare bedroom and all the fillies went to bed while thinking about the past day and how they were so lucky to be able to have a warm bed to sleep in, the were happy until they realized that the next day was Monday and they had school, And sadly, their amazing weekend came to an end. But it was probably the best weekend they had all ever had.
The Odd Life Of ScrewBall
Screwballs eyes slowly opened only to be shut again by the light streaming through the window. She laid in bed, thinking about the night before. Her happiness from when she was invited to move in with the Apple Family, was still fresh. She slowly got up as the rooster crowed a little while later. She groaned as she sat up in the tough bed. She was surprised to find that Scootaloo was not in the bed with her. While Screwball walked downstairs, she heard the sound of talking coming from the kitchen. When she walked in, she was surprised to find everyone all up and ready. Applebloom was the first to notice her.
"Hey there Screwball" Applebloom said " How'd ya sleep?"
"I slept okay, Why are you guys up so early?" Screwball said " I thought that I was early"
" We all woke up an hour ago" Scootaloo said with her mouth full of cereal " Applejack wanted us to get some chores done, Hey Screwball, school starts in like 30 minutes, you should get ready.
Screwball ran up the stairs as Scootaloo finished her sentence. She had totally forgot that it was Monday, and she wasn't even ready yet! It only took her a few minutes to find all the things to get ready, Applejack yelled to her a few moments later to tell her that it was time to go. In only a few minutes, Screwball was ready to go to school with her friends, on the way they stopped to pick up Sweetiebelle from the boutique. Applebloom soon filled her in on the situation that Scootaloo and Screwball were in, and how it was fixed. After the story, they all realized that they were right in front of the school yard ,and they all realized that the other were fillies staring at them. Screwball assumed it was because of what she did the week before to those colts. Screwball tried to find the colts but was unlucky.
"They must still be in the hospital " She thought " I bet everyone thinks i'm a freak still "
This thought was soon diminished as everypony stood in a circle around Screwball and began asking her questions.
"Did you really stop a robber from stealing from the boutique?'" One asked.
" How did you beat up all those colts? Were you scared?" Another asked.
Screwball was immediately frightened from all the prying questions and squeezed her way from the crowd, back to her friends. Before she could apologize, the school bell rang, indicating that school had begun. Everypony made their way into the classroom and sat down in their seats. Screwball was disappointed to find that their were no seats next to her friends and she had to sit down in her old street at the back of the room. As class went on the rest of the day, she had a fairly normal time, other than a surprise pop quiz on the Elements Of Harmony ( Which Screwball knew all about) And a odd stack of papers on Miss Cherilee desk, it was a good day. After lunch, Cherilee announced that they were all going to have a field trip on Wednesday, Screwball was especially happy to go on a trip with her friends. The field trip also explained the papers on Cherilee desk. Which were details of the field trip, Screwball only glanced over the paper and noticed that she needed a parents signature.
After class, Screwball asked Cherilee if she would be able to get a signature from a legal guardian, And Cherilee said yes. Screwball was happy to hear this and happily made her way home with the Cutie Mark Crusaders. The girls played for a few hours. Until Sweetiebelle was picked up by her mom and dad. As the rest of the girls went home, they talked about how excited they were about the field trip. At the farm, Applejack told the girls that she was legally their guardians now since she had filled out the paperwork that afternoon.. Screwball was the first to give Applejack a huge hug. It was the closest she had come to hugging a mom in a long time.
After the girls gave their thanks to Big Macintosh and Applejack, by giving them hugs and promising to make sweets for them later. They started their chores for the day. Screwball soon found out that she was pretty good at bucking apples. After the chores they had a big dinner of apple treats, such as pies and fritters. Screwball noticed that Scootaloo's wings were looking better now that she had some nourishment. As the girls got ready for bed, Screwball suddenly remembered that she had to see her dad tonight. She had missed the day before and she couldn't afford to miss another one.
Screwball sneaked through the house at the middle of the night, careful not to awaken any of the sleepers in the house. As she came through the front door, She immediately ran to her fathers statue, not noticing that there was a shadowy figure in one of the windows of the house.
She soon approached her fathers statue and slowed to a trot. She could almost feel her fathers anger, even though he was trapped in a statue.
" Where have you been " Discord bellowed " I've been worried sick, what were you thinking ?"
" I'm sorry daddy, I've been.... busy" Screwball blushed
" Doing what ?" Discord said "Trying to make me die of fright ?"
Screwball once again apologized for her foolishness and they continued with her lesson. It was on how to make a bunny grossly disfigured. After the lesson, they talked about her day at school and the matter of the field trip came up.
" Where is the trip going to be my dear?" Discord said " I find that the Gates Of Tartarus are beautiful this time of year" He said, implying that it changes with the seasons, which is most certainly does not.
"I'm actually not sure, here, let me check" Screwball said before realizing that she had not brought it with her.
Which is a good thing, since her father would probably want to know who signed it for her. But she acted sad anyways. They continued to talk for awhile until Screwball realized that she couldn't be up too late since school was the next day. She told her father goodbye and made her way to the farm. As she got back into her bed she slept soundly for the rest of the night. When she got up the next morning, she made her way to the kitchen. A bit earlier this time, thank Celestia. She was greeted by Applejack who had a sad look on her face.
"Sit down for a sec Screwball" Applejack said. " I got something to ask ya "
"What is it Applejack?" Screwball said " Did i do something wrong?"
"I want ya ta answer me honestly, okay sugar cube?" Applejack said " Where did you go last night?"
Screwball realized that she would have no chance at answering by lying, Applejack being the element of harmony and all,so she told the truth " I was visiting daddy at his statue and we talked last night" Screwball explained
" And what did y'all talk about?" Applejack said.
At this point, Screwball broke down and told Applejack the whole story. From the very first time she visited her father and on. She made sure to explain that she really didn't want to hurt any pony anymore and that she was really,really sorry. Applejack just sat there listening to Screwball, occasionally nodding her head to signify that she was listening. After Screwball told Applejack everything, Applejack smiled at the filly and gave her a hug. And Screwball happily returned it.
" I'm glad ya told me everything sugar cube" Applejack said " And ah believe ya when ya say that you mean no harm, so i'm going to let this go, On one condition. When ya visit yer father, don't tell him anything about yer life outside of talking with him, or else things might get a bit intense. Ya hear me?"
Screwball promised not to and thanked Applejack for letting he off easy. Soon afterwards, the rest of the family made their way downstairs and and joined Screwball and Applejack who were talking about miscellaneous things.
As the girls left the farm with their papers, they picked up Sweetiebelle as usual and made their way to school. Once again, The other ponies tried to ask her more questions and they all made their way to the classroom. After another usual day, It ended with the ponies giving their papers to Cherilee. Before Screwball handed hers into the teacher. She read it completely and was horrified to find THE.WORST.POSSIBLE.THING. She shakily handed the paper to her teacher and worried about it for the rest of the day. The field trip was going to be at the maze where they would be going over all the things in the maze, such as the statues. Such as her father. Who was entrapped in his statue.
The Odd Life Of ScrewBall
Screwball looked around horrified. To her surprise, no pony seemed fazed by the field trip destination. Maybe she was over thinking it, maybe it wasn't a big deal. But at that moment, she remembered the fury her father displayed when he told Screwball to stay away from The Cutie Mark Crusaders. Imagine his anger when he found out that she had deliberately disobeyed his wishes! She practically shuddered at the thought. She thought she could it would be best to talk to Cherilee about it after school but thought better of it. She wouldn't understand her predicament anyways.
Screwball headed to her fathers statue when school ended after she made an excuse to her friends. She trudged along at a slow pace. Her mind raced with ways she could get out of the field trip. Pretend to be sick? No, Applejack would easily see through her lie. Skip school? No,no these ideas would never work. Screwball thought it would be best if she sat down and think but was soon distracted by something else.
Where was she? She looked around to try to figure out if she'd ever been there before but was disappointed and frightened to find that she didn't recognize it at all. Had she walked into the Everfree Forest? Was she near her father's statue?
In the distance she could the timber-wolves howling. She hoped to Celestia that they weren't too hungry. Fortunately, they weren't attacking... yet. The first thing she learned from living alone was that she had to find some food. Maybe there was a berry bush around here somewhere. She looked around a clearing in the forest she was in and found a lonely berry bush in a corner of the clearing. She picked most of them and decided the next thing to do was make a shelter. Lacking the proper supplies, she thought it would be a good idea just to sleep in the trees. She already knew how to make a blanket thanks to her father, She suddenly remembered her father was probably waiting for her. But she had no idea where she was at so she couldn't just walk their. So she just tried to get to sleep. She had a big day of trying to get the hay out of the forest the next morning.
Screwball woke with a start. She was wondering why her bed was so hard and smelly when she rolled right off the bed, or at least she thought it was until she fell down 20 feet. Oh Celestia the pain, she was hoping to have broken some bones with hope of missing the field trip, but with no such luck. Only some bruises and the wind knocked out of her. She laid there for what seemed like hours but was only minutes before she heard a low growling noise. Her heart sank, as she already knew the noise very well. She had heard it many hours of the night, as she lay restless in her bed. The sound of a growling noise followed by the familiar howl. She groaned, knowing full well what was coming next. The unstoppable leap as the timber wolf tried to pounce on its victim, and in this case, Screwball.
Fortunately, she was smart enough to remember to dodge out of the way. She had seen all the timber wolves ways of attacking its victim by watching a certain shy,yellow pony when she wasn't realizing it. The timber wolf tried to attack her but she quickly stared it down with piercing glare. Thanks to the yellow pony, Screwball was able to predict the next attack of the assailant, which was a recovery followed by a slash. Screwball managed to get behind the animal and hit it at a certain point on its spine. The wolf crumpled to the ground, not paralyzed. But momentarily dazed and unable to move. She took this opportunity to choke out the animal. Once he was out cold ( she assumed it was a male by the way it growled.) She repeatedly punched him in the face, Just like she had done to the colts. She only stopped when she saw blood coming from his mouth. She didn't want to kill the animal by any means so she stopped.
Her adrenaline overcame her once again as she realized the potential murder she had possibly committed. She was beginning to notice the scenery around her and it looked like the area around that yellow ponies cottage. She grabbed the wolf by the paws and dragged him towards where she thought was the way to the cottage . She could almost squeal with delight as it came into view. She was right, she was near the cottage. She hurried to the door as fast as she could and knocked hard on the door three times as hard as she could to try to wake the pony. But it wasn't needed as the door opened immediately after the third knock. She was immediately curious as to why there was a half dead wolf on her door step. Screwball explained the best she could without leaving any details out and the yellow pony understood that it was self defense.
Screwball found out that that the yellow's pony was Fluttershy.Screwball and Fluttershy talked a bit more before Screwball realized that it was almost sunset. She thought this was odd since she was just sleeping in the forest an hour ago. She figured that it must be darker in the forest.She went on her way after they had finished talking about animals and things like that. It turns out that the timber wolf had just been beaten pretty badly and would recover soon. Screwball figured that she should visit her Father really quick before she made her way home, She remembered her friends waiting for her, they must be worried sick.
She had just about made her way to the statue when she realized she didn't have a good excuse as to why she bruised and why she was late. Screwball decided she'd just wing it. Finally she had made it to the maze where the statue was located.
"Hey Daddy, sorry i'm late, homework and all that" Screwball apologized
"Than where did you get all those scrapes ?" Discord asked "Are some ponies bullying you? "
" No, I uh.... fell down" Screwball lied through her teeth.
Fortunately, he didn't see through her lie and continued the lesson. This time, it was a lesson on changing the area around herself. Mostly just making whatever around you become chaotic and unnatural. Screwball was only able to do it about ten feet around her. Not alot of area but still good. Alot of questions were asked by Discord on the subject of her housing arrangement. She was able to change the subject but only a few times. She eventually had to make an excuse to run off and she went to the farm.
Thankfully, they hadn't called the guards or anything. But Applejack was still very stern with Screwball and she started ranting on and on about how she shouldn't stay out late she was worried sick, the usual stuff. After awhile, Applejack asked her about her scrapes and bruises and then it was Screwballs turn to explain her side of the story. Which mostly consisted of lengthy details on her encounter with the timber wolf and talking to Fluttershy, she also mentioned visiting her dad and decided it'd be best to just stop there. She was growing tired and didn't feel like continuing. Applejack understood completely and agreed that Screwball was late for a very good reason. Applejack treated Screwballs wounds and sent her off to bed.
The other two fillies had fallen asleep already. Screwball felt guilty when she realized all the turmoil she put the family through. Especially Applebloom and Scootaloo since they seemed to have been trying to wait up fro her but were beaten by the sleepiness. Screwball squeezed into the bed with Scootaloo hogging all the blankets.Just like the other nights. But to Screwball, this was the usual since Scootaloo had done this every other night.She was finally happy to finally be accepted. Screwball fell asleep with a a huge grin on her face.
She awoken the next morning rather abruptly. Both Applebloom and Scootaloo were jumping on Screwballs bed and were yelling her name.
"Where were you last night?" Scootaloo asked.
"We were worry sick" Applebloom said " Scootaloo was practically crying"
" WAS NOT!" Scootaloo retorted. She was obviously ashamed.
" Oh i was nowhere in particular" Screwball said with a grin threatening to break her serious tone " I was just hanging out in the Everfree forest and beat up a timber wolf. No big deal" Screwball said with a cocky attitude.
" No way?" Scootaloo said doubtful. " You got to be joking"
" I'll explain it during break feast, come on." Screwball said.
Screwball proceeded to guide the two fillies downstairs while she explained the situation she was in just hours ago. Scootaloo was the most impressed with Screwballs feat and was entirely enthralled with her recent adventure. Screwball explained it all down to the very last detail and even Big Mac was listening to her story. Screwball was so impressed with herself that the time flew by at a alarming rate and they were all rushed at the door and sent off to school. As usual they picked up Sweetiebelle and Scootaloo herself described where Screwball was the night before and had described every last situation she was in with alot of exaggeration, but Screwball was okay with this. After school, Screwball worried about the field trip that was the next day and decided she should just go with the flow. Things couldn't be that bad, Right?
The Odd Life Of ScrewBall
"This is the day" Screwball thought to herself. " Today is the say of the field trip" She thought to herself grimly.
She was sitting at the Apple family's breakfast table, barely noticing the conversations going on around her. She was in her own state of mind, which raced with anxiety and fear. Her father would defiantly be angry at her. Of this she was certain. And there was basically no way out of the situation. She feared for the worse, and she was correct to be anxious about it. Screwballs thoughts were interrupted as Scootaloo snapped her back into reality.
" Hey Screwball, what are you thinking about?" Scootaloo asked curiously. "You seem kind of out of it this morning"
" Its nothing, don't worry about it" Screwball snapped at Scootaloo, She was not intentionally trying to hurt Scootaloo's feelings, she was just very scared for her friends safety and herself.
Scootaloo flinched at Screwballs outburst and hurt washed over her face. The rest of the breakfast was awkward for everyone, including Screwball. Thankfully, they were finally on their way to school. All the girls were walking towards the schoolyard when something big and menacing got in the way. And not only one thing, but three. To Screwballs surprise, it was the three colts she had beaten up on the first day of school (which felt so far away to her) She wasn't scared of them, she had taken them out once, she could easily do it again. No, they weren't going to hurt her, but Screwball kept her guard up on the slim chance of another confrontation. What they did do surprised her even more.
"W-We're sorry that we tried to beat you and your friends up" The leader said shakily, he was obviously still afraid of Screwball and didn't seem comfortable around her.
" Yeah! Us too" The other two piped in, unlike their leader ( Who Screwball found out his name was Quarterback later on) they weren't as frightened since they hadn't been beaten up as bad.
"Just don't try it again" Screwball said flatly, she knew she was being rude but didn't care, she just wanted to get to school.
Screwball continued to class as the other fillies stared at her in disbelief. They were surprised at their friends sudden outburst and were also mad at her. They also continued to class begrudgingly. Class had barely begun when Cherilee announced that the field trip would start immediately. At this point, Screwball began to hyperventilate and freak out. She was freaking out so much that she didn't even notice that they were all walking out the door with fillies having random conversations on different subjects. She didn't even notice that they were at the maze. She suddenly looked up horrified to see her fathers statue. She looked around to see if her friends were around her.
She was horrified to find that they were right next to her, talking about how SweetieBelle was a dictionary. She backed away from them slowly. Cherilee continued to talk about the statues and what they represent. The three fillies soon realized that there friend was missing and they went out to find her. They found her under a bench a little bit away from the statue. She was holding her head because of the pain she was experiencing. Her father was yelling at her, questioning her on the Cutie Mark Crusaders and her blatant disregard of his advice. He was not happy at all.
"Are you okay" Sweetiebelle asked
"You're not looking so good" Scootaloo said
"Go away, i don't want to talk to you " Screwball snapped " I'm tired of you guys always letting yourselves in my business"
The CMC were obviously hurt by Screwballs sudden outburst. And they didn't let her get away with it either, the four of them fought while the rest of the class walked away. Screwball was getting very verbal and physical to the Cutie Mark Crusaders when she saw the eerie light coming from an unknown area. She, of course was busy trying to defend herself and paid no attention to it. Little did she know that this was just the beginning of a increasingly horrible today.
" Hello daughter, i'm expecting an apology" Discord said in his usual tone that held a tint of aggression.
Ever have one of those moments were fear grips you're very insides and you realize that there was a shitstorm about to happen? Yeah, it's one of those days. Screwball slowly turned around, there her father stood at twice the size of the Statue he was imprisoned in. And he did not look happy at all.
"Hey Daddy, I can explain" Screwball squeaked " I met them and we got to know each other, their really nice and -"
Wham, she could barely begun to explain herself before she was slapped across the face by her father. She flew about 5 feet back. She quickly brushed away the blood that was trickling down her open cut on her cheek. She was more shocked than hurt.
"Why, why would you do that daddy?" Screwball said frightened, this time her friends weren't there going to help her.
" When I tell you something and you agree to my comment" Discord said grimly " I fully expect you to stick to that promise, now that i am free we have some things to do daughter"
Screwball was having one of those moment where your minds racing. (Is he really here,why'd he hit me, should I help him?) All these things were racing through her mind. But the main thing that stuck in her mind was should she help him or not? He was her father, she said she would help him, and her friends were obviously mad at her. On the other hand, she loved her friends, and her father was kind of a jerk. She glanced at her friends, the were huddled in a group together, staring at Screwball why they shivered uncontrollably. It was like the first day of school all over again. As she stared at her friends, she made her decision. Her friends were more important her father. She had a new family, and a new home. She wasn't going to lose them. Oh screw it.
Screwball rushed at Discord. Getting ready to land one right on his stupid face. Discord teleported from his spot at the last second, leaving Screwball to hit the ground hard. Screwball realized that she was',t going to be able to get close to him, not without taking a beating. She tried every trick she knew, every chaotic power she knew, with little to no luck. She was able to get in one or two punches before getting counter attacked and receiving a broken nose. Screwball could not take much more, she was tired,dirty and beaten, Rarity would have a fit if she knew how she looked at the moment. Speaking of Rarity, where were the elements of harmony. Screwball practically face hoofed. They were at Canterlot on royal business. She was alone.
Discord picked up Scootaloo by the mane and threw her against a statue. Scootaloo looked bad, there blood trickling down her face. Discord was making his way towards Sweetiebelle and Applebloom before Screwball intervened, exhausted as she still tried to help her friends. Discord merely brushed her aside as if she were a fly. Applebloom and Sweetiebelle tried to run away before they were stopped almost immediately by Discord. He picked them both up and squeezed them as they tried to wriggle out of his grasp.
"You're friends will betray you one day Screwball,the moment they can, they will get rid of you"
"No, you're wrong. You will always be wrong about my friends. You don't seem to grasp that these are my friends, I would do anything for them and they would do anything for me. More than you would, NOW SCOOTALOO" Screwball yelled
Discord had fallen into her trap, she had been planning this with Scootaloo since she had tried to intervened with Discord. The plan had gone perfectly, Scootaloo (with what little energy she had) had flew towards Discord at a fast speed. Every one was surprised at this sudden outburst of energy, even Scootaloo. Screwball took her opportunity to attack why Discord was distracted. She came in close, with a bone crunching punch to the jaw,oh but she didn't stop there. The shitstorm had only begun. No, she began to punch him in the stomach until he joust about coughed up blood, she than grabbed him by the tail and threw him into a nearby building. Screwball practically flew towards him as fast as she could. He was on the ground trying to catch his breath. Screwball grabbed him by the neck and spoke in a quiet demeaning voice.
" If you ever try to hurt my friends again, i won't stop beating you, I will kill you." Screwball said
Screwball tossed him on the ground and stepped on his throat lightly. She was about to do something she'd never done before. Screwball gathered all her energy and let it out all in a burst. She was going to turn her father into stone, forever, this time. Before she could finish the spell, Discord used his own powers to give her a goodbye present. Discord was once again entrapped in his cold prison. But there was no time to rejoice, Discord had succeeded in casting a curse on her. Screwball was slowly turning to stone, from the hoof up. Screwballs friends ran up to her.
" I don't have alot of time, so let me talk. I love you guys and I want you to do anything you can to live a normal life, with or without me. I probably won't make it but don't cry about it, go back to Ponyville and get the Elements of Harmony to lock up Discord where he wont ever be a problem again" Screwball was beginning to cry again, and so were the CMC, the stone was up to her neck. " What a horrible night for a curse" Screwball said with a smile.
The stone passed over her smile. She was a statue. All of the fillies huddled around their friend, until someone came and saw the wreckage from the fight and got help.
1 year later
The Cutie Mark Crusaders continued to live the next year as normally as they could, for Screwball, it was the least they could do. Screwball had saved their flanks on more than one occasion, and she would've done it again. Scootaloo recovered from her injuries, and with a little help from Rainbow Dash, she learned how to fly properly. Applejack started apple bucking and made a new outhouse for the family. Sweetiebelle earned her cutie mark for singing when she did a concert that was in memory of Screwball. The girls lived there lives as normally as they could after they dealt with a loss of a friend. Celestia honored Screwball with her own spot in the gardens, Declaring her Ponyville s savior. A rank almost as good as Element Of Harmony.The girls visit the statue everyday. Maybe one day, they can figure out how to save their friend.
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