The clubhouse was bathed in a spectral green glow when Scootaloo entered, noticing Sweetie Belle's horn as the source of the light, her face scrunched up, straining over a large book sat in front of her. Scootaloo walked over to Applebloom who was stood nearby, staring on eagerly.
“what's going on?” Scootaloo asked, staring at Sweetie Belle.
“We borrowed a book from Twilight, she's trying ta get her cutie mark!” Applebloom replied. “come on. Ya'll can do it!” She cried, cheering her on.
The little unicorn sat still on the floor, sweat beading down her forehead, her horn glowing more and more vibrantly with each passing second. She groaned aloud as she strained to maintain the magic.
“what's she trying to do anyway? It doesn't look like it's working!” Scootaloo joked.
“Ah Dunno, we borrowed the book, something about experimental magic and she just began trying ta do this!” Applebloom replied as she watched Sweetie Belle strain harder and harder to make it work. As she sat focusing, the room grew a brighter shade of green, until there was a sudden, bright flash, obscuring their view of Sweetie Belle, and everything around them. When the light faded, Scootaloo and Applebloom stood dazed, rubbing their eyes.
“What was that!?” Scootaloo asked, turning towards Applebloom.
“Ah have no idea, I can't see a thing!” She replied, rubbing her eyes with her hooves, trying to see again. Scootaloo turned to where Sweetie Belle had been sitting, letting out a gasp.
“What, what's happened? Has she got her cutie mark!?” Applebloom asked excitedly, finally able to see again. She looked over to where Sweetie Belle had been sitting, and let out an equally loud gasp.
There, sat on the floor in front of the large book, was a little, baby Sweetie Belle. She looked up at them and tilted her head sideways, unaware what was going on. She blinked a few times, her eyes adjusting to the room, before she began to cry loudly, tears streaming from her eyes.
“What the? Whadda we do now?” Applebloom said, yelling over the sound of Sweetie Belle crying.
“How should I know?” Scootaloo replied, clasping her hooves over her ears, trying to block out the sound of Sweetie Belle screaming loudly. The pair clasped their hooves tightly over their ears as Sweetie Belle continued to wail loudly, banging her hooves on the floor around her in protest. Scootaloo ran over to her and grabbed her hooves, stopping her from banging them on the floor. Sweetie Belle looked up at Scootaloo, and stopped crying, her mouth turning to a frown as the big pony ruined her fun.
“There, problem solved.” Scootaloo said, letting go of her hooves. “Maybe if we wait long enough, she'll turn back to normal?” Scootaloo turned to face Applebloom, only to see her laughing to herself. Scootaloo turned back around, to find Sweetie Belle chewing on her violet coloured tail, drooling over it. “Eww, gross!” She quickly whipped her tail out of Sweetie Belle's mouth, and wrung the drool out of it.
Sweetie Belle frowned again and began to whimper, tears appearing in her eyes. Before she could start crying, Applebloom ran over and draped her Cutie Mark Crusader cape over the top of her. Sweetie Belle looked at Applebloom, then sat down, placing a corner of the cape in her mouth, she began to chew on it contentedly.
“There, that should keep her quiet till she changes back.” Applebloom said, walking slowly away from the filly.
“But what are we meant to do in the meantime? She might not change back for days!” Scootaloo said, watching the little unicorn chewing her cape, drool escaping from around her mouth.
“Ah dunno! I guess we just look after her like a normal filly, it can't be that hard, right?”
“You tell me! I've seen how much trouble the Cakes have with their foals! Why can't we go ask Twilight for help? She should know what to do, she's an expert on magic after all!” Applebloom blushed and looked down at the floor, tracing the knots of the wood with her hoof.
“Cause we took it without asking.” She said timidly. “We thought we'd try out a few spells, and return it before she noticed it was missing.”
“Well, what did the book say, maybe it says how long it lasts?” Scootaloo walked over to Sweetie Belle and took the book out from underneath her, the little filly looking up at her with a smile on her face as she munched on the cape. Scootaloo dragged it to Applebloom, and looked down at it, only to find the book was covered in tears and drool.
“Which one was she doing then?” she asked, as she squinted her eyes at the book, trying to make out the words.
“Ah have no idea! She just opened it and started reading! I think it mighta been this one.” Applebloom pointed to a section in the bottom right corner, the page was crumpled and torn from Sweetie Belle's earlier tantrum.
Scootaloo sighed. “Well, that's no help. I guess we'll have to wait, or go ask Twilight.” She flipped the pages over to see if there was a clue on the next page. There wasn't. She let out a groan and turned back to face their fellow Crusader, hoping she might know. “Hey Sweetie Belle, which one were you doing?” She pointed at the book on the floor, hoping she might know.
Sweetie Belle looked up at them blankly, and kept chewing the corner of the cape. She rolled onto her back, and waved her hooves in the air.
“Does she even remember who we are?” Scootaloo suggested. She walked over to Sweetie Belle and bent down next to her. “Hey Sweetie Belle, do you know who Applebloom is?” She asked. The filly rolled back onto her front, looked up at her and blinked. “Do you know who I am?” She continued. Sweetie Belle just kept chewing the cape, not making a sound beyond the occasional slurp as she drooled onto the floor. Applebloom walked over and bent down next to her as well.
“Hey Sweetie Belle. I'm Applebloom, and this is Scootaloo. We're gonna look after you fer the day, okay?” She said. Sweetie Belle looked up at her and giggled, waving her hooves at them.
“So she doesn't remember who we are? That's weird!” Scootaloo said, trying to understand what had happened. “Do you think she'll remember us when she changes back?”
Applebloom nodded in response. “Ah hope so, or else this will be even harder to explain!” She reached down and held her hoof out to Sweetie Belle, who looked at it, tilting her head. She looked up to Applebloom, and saw a smile on her face, Applebloom nodded at her. She reached out and grabbed Applebloom's hoof with her own, shaking it up and down. She giggled loudly as Scootaloo did the same.
“Well at least she trusts us, huh?” Scootaloo said. As she turned to leave, she felt a tug on her tail. She turned back to see Sweetie Belle had grabbed hold of her tail again and begun to chew on it. Scootaloo pulled it out and handed her the crusaders cape again. Sweetie Belle put the corner back in her mouth before sitting up, spitting the cape out of her mouth. She lifted her hoof to her mouth and pointed at it, making a groaning noise.
“What's the matter, you hungry?” Scootaloo said, to which Sweetie Belle nodded and smiled. Scootaloo turned to her saddle bag, and fetched out her lunch box, placing it on the floor in front of the little filly. Sweetie Belle sniffed at the food, and reached in, munching away at the food, her short, curly mane rubbing the food in the box, bits of carrot and apple stuck in it when she withdrew her head.
After a few minutes of eating, she burped and curled up again on the floor under her cape, letting out a small sigh.
“Awww!” Applebloom and Scootaloo both said in unison. Despite the bizarreness of their friend reverting to a filly, they couldn't help but find the situation adorable. Unfortunately the situation didn't remain cute for long. As Sweetie Belle lay under her blanket, she rolled over, let out a loud 'prrrrrt' and then smiled widely. The odour soon reached the pairs nostrils, and they recoiled at the smell. They both stood dumbstruck at the prospect of what had to be done next.
“I'm not doing it, it's your fault we're in this mess!” Scootaloo blurted out, as she covered her nose and ran to open a window, trying to escape the foul odour in the air. Applebloom ran to the window and began fighting to stick her head out first, the smell grew nauseating.
“Whadya mean my fault? I didn't pick the spell, she did! You should do it, she likes you more!” Applebloom replied, as she breathed in the fresh air from outside the window.
“No way am I going near that, you should do it!”
“Nope, you are!”
As the pair argued, Sweetie Belle rolled over, and opened her eyes suddenly, a frown upon her face. She started to cry out from behind them, they both pulled their heads inside the window, turned around and saw her writhing uncomfortably under the cape. Scootaloo stood there and sighed.
“Fine, I'll do it. But you need to go get some diapers from the Cakes.” Applebloom nodded in response, and ran out of the club house as fast as her hooves would allow. Scootaloo turned back to face Sweetie Belle, only to see her sat under the cape, waving her arms at Scootaloo, wanting to be picked up. She kept on crying aloud, her face stained with tears, as she let out whimpers between breaths.
Scootaloo reluctantly walked over to her, holding her breath, and patted her quickly on the head. She sat there, looking up at the orange pony, a bemused expression on her face. She reached her fore hooves up again and prodded Scootaloo's chest. Scootaloo took a deep breath, and picked her up by her mane, carrying her outside the clubhouse.
Once outside in the fresh air, she felt slightly better about the situation. She carried Sweetie Belle over to the nearby lake to wash her off, when she started kicking and squirming, trying to get free. Scootaloo hurried to the water, dropping her in the shallow end before she could run away. As soon as the little filly hit the water, she began wailing loudly and began to shiver. Scootaloo grabbed her mane, and shook her about in the water to get her clean, before lifting her out again. The little unicorn sat on the grass, soaking wet, water dripping off of her head. She shivered as the water rolled down her back, tears and water combining on her cheeks.
“Ahh come on, you never used to mind cold water!” She said, as she fanned Sweetie Belle dry with her wings, blowing the excess water away. She stopped crying for a moment, and began to giggle quietly, clapping her hooves as the wind blew through her mane, enjoying the sensation.
“There, better now?” Scootaloo asked, and Sweetie Belle nodded her head. She got up, and began crawling away, happy to explore outside the clubhouse. “Hey, wait a minute!” Scootaloo cried, running after her, she grabbed her tail and lifted her up by it, the little foal letting out a whine as she was carried inside. “You can't run off, we've got to stay here and wait for Applebloom to come back.
They went back inside the clubhouse, and Scootaloo placed Sweetie Belle down in a new corner of the club house, giving her a new cape to wrap up in. She then began the awkward task of cleaning up the mess. She swallowed deeply, held her breath, and flapped her wings throughout to try and mask the smell.
By the time Applebloom got back, the mess had been cleaned up, and Sweetie Belle was fast asleep again. She walked in, saddle bags full to the brim, and dropped them on the floor. Scootaloo stepped over and rummaged around inside for the diapers, pulling one out with her mouth.
“You're gonna do it now? While she's still asleep?” Applebloom commented, her face frowning in disapproval. Scootaloo dropped the diaper on the floor and rolled her eyes.
“Hey, you didn't have to clean up the mess, and I don't want to do that again. I'm waking her up now.” Scootaloo said. She picked up the diaper and walked over to Sweetie Belle, who was sleeping gently, breathing quietly and smiling in her sleep. Every so often she let out a contented murmur and rolled onto her side, gripping the cape tightly in her front hooves, her tail poking out the back adorably.
Scootaloo looked down at her, dropped the diaper on the floor, and nudged the sleeping foal with her foot. “Hey, wake up Sweetie Belle.” Sweetie Belle woke up with a start, and looked up at her rude awakener. She began to whimper, her eyes slowly watering, when Scootaloo bent down and looked her in the eyes. “I've got something for you!”
Sweetie Belle's eyes lit up, a smile appearing upon her face. She crawled forwards and sat down by Scootaloo, crossing her legs, gazing up excitedly at her. Scootaloo picked her up, dropping her onto the open diaper on the floor, and quickly fitted it over her rear legs.
“Uhh, how do you do these things up?” She said, struggling to hold the diaper in place while Sweetie Belle began kicking her legs in the air in protest of hew new attire. Applebloom walked over and grabbed the strap with her mouth, pulling it tightly into place, while holding Sweetie Belle's hooves down.
“There, that oughta do it!” Applebloom said, letting go of Sweetie Belle's hooves. The foal sat up and looked at her diaper, frowning. Applebloom rested a hoof on her head and fussed up her mane. Sweetie Belle let out a giggle and clapped her hooves happily. She then looked at what she was wearing, and began trying to take it off, struggling to reach. Applebloom picked her up and sat her down on her cape. Sweetie Belle nudged at it with her hooves, laying down with a sigh.
“How did you do that?” Scootaloo asked, amazed at how easily she had cheered her up.
“Ahh dunno, ah guess I'm just a natural when it comes to cheering up kids!” Applebloom replied, smiling at the thought. She then walked back to her saddle bags, and began unpacking several blankets and cushions.
“hey, what's with all the sheets? Are we making new capes?” Scootaloo said excitedly, jumping up and down.
“Nope, this is for us to spend the night!”
“Whaddya mean, spend the night?” Scootaloo responded, confused at the suggestion.
“Well, after ah got the diapers and stuff from the Cakes, ah ran into Rarity and Pinkie Pie, and they were asking me if ah'd seen Sweetie Belle, so ah said we were having a sleep over in our club house. Ah didn't want em to know that Sweetie Belle was suddenly a baby, or we'd get into trouble!” She explained as she lay out pillows and blankets in a row, all next to each other.
“Ohh, I see! Nice thinking! Hopefully by morning, this will all be over, and then we won't have to explain either!” Scootaloo replied. She then ran over to the bed in the middle of the three and leapt onto the pillow, rolling back and forth to check it was comfortable. “Nice, I'll take this bed!”
“Nope, that one's for Sweetie Belle.” She responded, as she walked over to the sleeping pony. She bit hold of the cape that she was laying upon, and slowly dragged it over to the bed, trying not to wake her up.
“Why does she need the best bed? She's happy on her cape!” Scootaloo argued, watching as she slept soundly while being dragged across the floor by Applebloom. Scootaloo got up and walked away from the bed, unpacking the rest of Applebloom's bag.
“Cause she's just a little filly, and if she don't sleep well, then we'll be up all night, listening to her crying!” Applebloom placed Sweetie Belle on the pillow, and lifted the large blanket, draping it over the top of her, who sighed contentedly, squirming under the covers to get comfortable. She then carried on preparing her bed next to Sweetie Belle's, moving a book from under the sheets, placing it next to her pillow.
At the sight of the book, Sweetie Belle rolled onto her belly and stuck her hooves out from under the covers, grasping for the book out of her reach, groaning as she stretched for it.
“What'sa matter? You want ta hear a bedtime story?” Applebloom asked, looking at the book she had brought for herself to read, seeing Sweetie Belle's attempt to grab hold of it, while staying warm under the covers. Sweetie Belle looked up at her and nodded, still stretching her arms out for the book.
Applebloom sat down next to her, picking the book up. Sweetie Belle immediately crawled out from under the covers and sat on Applebloom's lap, an eager smile spread on her face.
“Okay then, but we're only reading it fer a short while, then you're going ta bed!” She said, the little Filly sitting in her lap, sucking her hoof. Applebloom turned the front cover of the book and began reading aloud to her, when Sweetie Belle placed her hooves on the pages and turned her head to face Applebloom, frowning.
“What's the matter, ah thought you wanted ta hear a story?” She said, when Sweetie Belle turned to face Scootaloo, pointing one of her hooves in her direction, murmuring unintelligibly. “Ohh I see.” Applebloom continued. “Scootaloo, Ah think she wants you to sit with us as well!” She then patted her hoof on the bed the other side of Sweetie Belle, and smiled at her. Scootaloo stood still, unsure of what to do.
“Hey, I'm not one for bedtime stories, so I'll just stay over here, you know?” She replied. Sweetie Belle sat smiling, and began banging her hooves on the bed next to her, giggling loudly.
“Ah don't think ya have a choice!” Applebloom said, smiling as Scootaloo walked over and got into the bed next to Sweetie Belle. As soon as she was in, Sweetie Belle looked back up at Applebloom and began tapping the pages of the book again, whining slightly. “Okay, I'm reading it!” She said, as Sweetie Belle grabbed Scootaloo's tail again, chewing it in her mouth. Scootaloo went to pull it out, only to see a happy Sweetie Belle and Applebloom frowning at her. She put her hooves back by her side, and let the filly have her fun.
After half an hour of reading with Sweetie Belle giggling all the way, her stomach began to grumble loudly. She looked down at her belly, wide eyed at the noise she heard.
“That means your hungry Sweetie Belle!” Applebloom said, patting her head. “Hey Scootaloo, I took a bottle of milk from the Cakes, can you get it fer me?” She said, turned to face Scootaloo, only to see she was asleep. She gently hit her over the back of the head when Sweetie Belle wasn't looking.
“Hey! What'cha do that for?” She cried, before seeing Sweetie Belle looking up at her, confused. Scootaloo realised her mistake, and smiled at the filly, gently patting her mane.
“Can you get the milk out of my bag?” Applebloom repeated, Scootaloo nodded, removed her tail from Sweetie Belle's mouth with difficulty, then went and got the milk, sitting back down next to them. As she did so, Sweetie Belle turned to face her, stretching her arms up for her bottle.
“Here ya go kid!” She said as she handed the bottle to her. Sweetie Belle tried to hold it in her tiny hooves, but only dropped the bottle and watched it roll away, letting out a little whimper, she banged her hooves on Scootaloo's leg. “Oww! Hey, watch it!” Scootaloo cried out, but Sweetie Belle just laughed at her reaction, and hit her again. Applebloom couldn't help but giggle at the scene, which only served to spur Sweetie Belle on. She reached out to hit Scootaloo for the third time, when Applebloom grabbed her hooves and put them down gently in front of her.
“That's not nice Sweetie Belle. We don't hit other ponies, remember?” She said, stern faced, only to be met with a dumb found look in return. She then turned back to face her bottle of milk that escaped, and began to whimper. Scootaloo reached over and picked it back up. She held the bottle out to Sweetie Belle so she could drink it.
Sweetie Belle wrapped her teeth around the bottle and began drinking, smiling happily while she sat in Applebloom's lap. Applebloom resumed reading the story, as Sweetie Belle slowly fell asleep, comfortable with her two friends.
The next morning the crusaders awoke, the sound of birds chirping through the clubhouse. Applebloom opened her eyes, blinking before the bright sun that shone in through the windows. She lifted the covers off her body and looked under the bed, looking for the filly that had been asleep in her arms.
“Sweetie Belle? Where are ya?” She called out, checking underneath the entire blanket. Scootaloo woke up with a start at the noise, and went to roll over, stopping suddenly, she lifted the sheet up and looked down, sighing heavily.
“She's over here.” She replied, her voice sounding exasperated. “Looks like she isn't changing back any time soon.” Scootaloo flicked back the covers, revealing Sweetie Belle, sleeping on her legs. She gently nudged the sleeping filly onto the bed, covering her back up. Sweetie Belle rolled onto her back, let out a little yawn, and clutched at the crusader cape between her hooves.
“Well ah guess we better take her to Twilight then.” Applebloom sighed, and put her saddle bag on, strapping it in place. She picked up the worn book they had borrowed from Twilight, and put it in one side of her bag. She then looked over to where Scootaloo was standing, as she stretched her wings out. “Err Scootaloo, if you'd be so kind?” She said, nodding to Sweetie Belle, who was still sleeping peacefully under the blanket.
“Alright. Come on Sweetie Belle, time to get up” Scootaloo stuck her head under the covers, emerging a few seconds later, the filly hanging from her mouth. She looked around weary eyed, blinking as she tried to work out what was going on.
“Come on Sweetie Belle, we're gonna go fer a walk!” Applebloom said softly, smiling at her friend. Scootaloo walked over to Applebloom and dumped her into the saddlebag. Sweetie Belle sat dumbstruck for a moment, rubbing her eyes with her hooves.
“Hang on a minute” She said, and ran back to the bed, returning with a crusaders cape in her mouth. She dropped it in the saddle bag on top of Sweetie Belle, who was now looking up at Scootaloo, smiling, arms stretched upwards, wanting to be held again. “Can't have her getting cold, now can we?” She said, her face turning a shade of red. Applebloom nodded and smiled back as Scootaloo closed the bag.
The trio left the clubhouse, a cold breeze blew through the trees, as winter slowly began to approach. They trotted off in the direction of Ponyville town centre, hoping Twilight would be up this early. As they went past Sweet Apple Acres, Sweetie Belle stuck her head out of the bag and began trying to grab Applebloom's tail as it jiggled about with each step she took. Scootaloo turned to see her reaching for it, and managed to grab her by the mane, right before she fell out of the bag. She placed her on the ground, and sighed.
“You gotta be careful Sweetie Belle, or you'll get hurt!” She said, gently scolding the filly. Sweetie Belle ignored her and began crawling off towards a nearby apple tree. Scootaloo walked after her, picking her back up before she got lost. Sweetie Belle frowned and crossed her front hooves as she was placed back into Applebloom's bag.
After a few more minutes walking, with Sweetie Belle repeatedly sticking her head out of the bag, and Scootaloo having to quickly hide her from the eyes of passing ponies, the trio arrived at Twilight's home. The giant tree's branches swaying gently in the morning breeze, the birds nestled on the branches, singing songs of the morning. Applebloom stood still, looking up at the balcony.
“Well, ain't we going in?” Scootaloo asked, nudging Applebloom's side gently.
Applebloom sighed, and lowered her head. She felt Sweetie Belle stirring in the saddle bag as she began to shiver from the cold morning air, letting out a low whimper.
“Yeah, let's go in.” She said, as the pair trotted to the door. Scootaloo knocked gently, while Applebloom stood awkwardly behind her, unsure how Twilight would react. Twilight opened the door with a cheery smile.
“Oh, hi girls! What can I do for you today?”
“Hey Twilight. Can we come in, we need your help with something.” Applebloom said from behind Scootaloo, a sullen tone to her voice. Twilight nodded and stood aside, waving them in. Spike was hard at work inside the library as usual, dusting every shelf and rotating the books following Twilight's weekly schedule.
“What's the matter girls?” Twilight asked as she used her magic to levitate a pitcher of lemonade, pouring drinks for her guests. She placed them safely on the ground in front of them. Scootaloo placed the straw in her mouth and began gulping it down eagerly, while Applebloom shifted uncomfortably. She stood up and took off her saddlebag, placing it on the floor. She reached in and removed the book they'd borrowed, handing it to Twilight.
Twilight used her magic to flick the pages of the book, inspecting it for damage, frowning when she came to the torn, damp pages, coated with drool.
“I was wondering where this book had gotten to!”
“I told you I didn't misplace it!” Spike piped up from behind Twilight as he descended the ladder and began moving to the next section of the book shelf. Twilight rolled her eyes, and put her focus back onto Applebloom and Scootaloo.
“Why did you girls have my book though? And what happened to these pages?” She inquired, examining the book diligently, trying to work out what had been there. Before Twilight could realise what spell had been marked down on the page, the answer revealed itself as Sweetie Belle crawled out of the saddlebag and smiled broadly at Twilight. Twilight stared blankly, mouth agape at the sight. Before she could say anything, Sweetie Belle had begun running around the library, exploring her new surroundings, namely the small green dragon that was dusting a book shelf.
“Woah, hey what the!?” Spike cried as Sweetie Belle began running around his feet. She grabbed the apron around Spike's waist, and began tugging at it, chewing the corner. “Hey! Give that back, I need it!”
“Is that Sweetie Belle? What on earth happened to her?” Twilight asked as she walked over to her and bent down, looking her in the face. Sweetie Belle stopped chewing the apron and sat down, staring back at Twilight. She clapped her hooves together and spat out the apron, giggling loudly. She ran straight between Twilight's legs, heading over to Scootaloo, trying to bite her tail again. Scootaloo anticipated this, and quickly moved before she had a chance to grab hold. Sweetie Belle lunged for it again, Scootaloo quickly jumping back another step. She kept on jumping backwards, trying to get away, before bumping into Twilight, who stood stern faced, watching the entire ordeal.
“Oh, uhh sorry Twilight!” Scootaloo said, and walked away slowly. Sweetie Belle took the chance and latched onto her tail, sat down, and began to chew it vigorously, being dragged across the floor, a smile upon her face. Applebloom bent down and took hold of Sweetie Belle by the mane and pulled her away from Scootaloo, the filly only letting go when the hair slipped from between her teeth. Applebloom placed her onto the floor and removed the crusaders cape from the bag, wrapping it around her small body, as she curled up in a ball and began to fall asleep.
“So can ya change her back, Twilight? Please?” Applebloom pleaded. Twilight walked over and watched the filly sleeping, and let out a smile. Spike walked over and bent down next to her, watching as she snored peacefully.
“I dunno about you guys, but I like her like this!” Spike joked, only to look up and find three ponies frowning at him. “Or change her back, you know, whatever you think is best!” He blushed, and quickly darted back to dusting.
“Did she do this to herself?” Twilight asked, suddenly realising what had happened. She ran back to the worn spell book and levitated it back over to the trio, and opened it to the drool covered page, reading the few legible words, mumbling to herself as she did so. “Of course, this was my experimental age spell!” She cried. “I never expected it to work, or to work so well for such an inexperienced unicorn! Did she really do this to herself?” She asked, tilting her head to the side.
Applebloom swallowed and nodded her head. “Yep, she opened the book and just started trying to do it.”
“Then there was this bright green flash of light, and when we could see again, she was like this!” Scootaloo chimed in, jumping up and down excitedly.
“Wow, I mean, I had only written it down as an idea, but I never expected it to work, or to work so well! Especially for a filly with no magical experience! How long ago did she do this?” Twilight asked, her voice growing frantic and high pitched.
“Yesterday afternoon.” Scootaloo said. “What's that got to do with anything?” Twilight scrunched up her face and began counting quietly to herself.
“Hmm. It was only supposed to be temporary. It should have worn off by now. Strange.” She picked up her book again and turned several pages until stopping suddenly. “Ah ha! Here it is!” She read the page quickly, before stopping. “I'm going to need you girls to stand back while I do this. If you wouldn't mind standing over by Spike?”
Scootaloo and Applebloom nodded, and began to trot away, when Sweetie Belle woke up, and lifted her head up to see them leaving. She sat upright and began crying, stretching her arms out to them. The pair stopped and looked back at Sweetie Belle, who now had tears running down her face, a low whimper began to fill the air. They walked back over to her and sat down next to her. Sweetie Belle smiled and wrapped her hooves around Scootaloo in a tight embrace, before she quickly grabbed her tail and began chewing on it, then turning to Applebloom, hugging her tightly.
Twilight and Spike stood nearby, looking on as the filly refused to let her friends leave her alone. Twilight walked over and bent down next to her, gently stroking her mane. Sweetie Belle looked up at her and frowned.
“Hey, don't worry Sweetie Belle, you can trust me!” Twilight began to pull funny faces to cheer her up, only for Sweetie Belle to turn and bury her head against Scootaloo's side. Twilight got up and walked back to stand with spike. “Can you believe that? I'm usually great with kids!” She sighed.
“Oh don't beat yourself up about it Twilight, she's probably just better with them as they've been looking after her all night. That, and they are her best friends after all!” Spike said, before realising the absurdity of it all. “Here, watch, I bet she does the same when I go over there!”
Spike took off his apron and walked over to Sweetie Belle, sitting down in front of her. She turned to face him, as Spike reached forward and gently tickled her ribs. Sweetie Belle starting to giggle loudly and began clapping her hooves together happily.
“Haha, you like that, don't ya? Who's just a silly little filly then?” Spike laughed as Sweetie Belle enjoyed the attention. “Hey Twlight, it looks like I'm a natural with kids as well!” He said, before turning back to face Twilight, who was now looking angrier than before. “Oh. Right.” He said, sighing. “Sorry little girl, but I've gotta go now. Don't worry about Twilight, she won't hurt you!” He smiled and stroked her mane, before he was levitated away by Twilight, who dropped him next to her. He shrugged his shoulders, an apologetic look crossed his face.
Scootaloo and Applebloom continued to sit with Sweetie Belle for a minute, gently patting her mane, before Applebloom spoke up.
“Now Sweetie Belle, we're gonna go stand over there while Twilight turns you back to normal, okay?” She smiled down at the little filly, who just sat there, chewing Scootaloo's tail, unaware what was going on. Sweetie Belle reached out to Applebloom again, the pair hugging tightly. She turned to face Scootaloo and did the same, until she noticed Applebloom standing up. She quickly turned around and grabbed her long, red tail with her hooves, all the while continuing to chew on Scootaloo's violet tail.
Scootaloo stood up and pulled her tail out of Sweetie Belle's mouth, and reached for her little hooves to free Applebloom, when she starting crying loudly. Applebloom tried to walk away, only for Sweetie Belle to tug tighter on her tail, digging her hooves into the floor. The pair felt their hearts ache as their friend cried out, afraid of being alone. They wanted to bend down and hug her again, when Twilight stepped between the two, levitating Sweetie Belle away from Applebloom's tail, placing her on the floor.
“Don't worry, she'll be safe. Go stand with Spike, while I turn her back to normal.” Twilight said, smiling towards them. Applebloom and Scootaloo looked at each other, both knowing it was the right thing to do, despite how much it hurt them. They went and stood next to Spike, who held out a plate of cookies he had baked earlier in the day.
Twilight walked closer to Sweetie Belle, and stood smiling at the little filly. Sweetie Belle lay down on the floor, and cowered up in a small ball, avoiding Twilight's gaze. She felt uneasy as Twilight approached her, horn glowing again, so much so that she began to shake and quiver, her teeth chattering. Having seen this, Twilight levitated her into the air and wrapped her tightly in her crusaders cape, so tightly that she couldn't move. She squirmed uncomfortably in it, beginning to cry.
Twilight looked at the filly levitated in the air, and began to focus her mind. As she did so, a bright purple glow began to bathe the room and envelop Sweetie Belle within. Loose sheets of paper blew around the room, Scootaloo's and Applebloom's manes blowing violently back and forth. The two crusaders held their manes out of their eyes with their hooves, not wanting to miss what was about the happen. As they stood watching, the small filly, wrapped tightly in the cape floated higher into the air, before being blocked from view entirely by the bright, purple light. Soon all they could hear was the sound of her crying, screaming loudly as she was affected by the magic.
“Spike, you gotta stop Twilight, it sounds like she's hurting her!” Scootaloo pleaded, yelling over the hum of the magic that coursed throughout the room.
“Yeah Spike, this ain't right! There has ta be another way ta do it!” Applebloom shouted as her eyes began to fill with tears at the sound of Sweetie Belle's plight. Spike looked on uneasily, the wind blowing him about on his feet, all he could hear were the sounds of Twilight's spell, the two fillies shouting for him to help, and the third screaming in what he hoped was only fright and not pain. He knew he had to do something. Spike leant into the wind and began to stride forwards as quickly as possible, trying to reach Twilight.
“Hey! Hey Twilight! Stop! This isn't working!” He shouted, trying to be heard.
“What?” Twilight shouted back in confusion. “I can't hear you Spike, what's wrong?” Twilight said, her horn still glowing bright purple, eyes clenched shut.
“You need to stop Twilight! It sounds like she's in pain!” He yelled again, before getting blown backwards. Scootaloo jumped forwards just in time to catch him before he slammed into a bookcase. Spike tried to stand up, only to be blown back again. “Twilight, please stop! Can't you hear her? She's suffering!”
Twilight continued with her magic, and in a split second, there was an almighty purple flash, and the sound of crying, the ear piercing wails stopped, an eerie silence taking over the room. Twilight sat down on her haunches, and hung her head, panting heavily. In front of her, laying on the floor was Sweetie Belle, back to her normal size. At the sight of her, Applebloom and Scootaloo breathed a heavy sigh of relief. They helped Spike to his feet, and then ran over to Sweetie Belle.
“Sweetie Belle! Hey Sweetie Belle! Are ya'll okay?” Applebloom shouted, shaking her back and forth. As the pair stood by her side, she slowly opened her eyes, blinking in the bright light. She lifted her head up to see her fellow crusaders stood over her, looking down and smiling brightly.
“Wha..what's going on?” She murmured, rubbing her head with her hoof. “Where am I?” she stood up shakily and looked around, her fellow crusaders jumping on her and hugging her tightly as soon as she was up.
“Sweetie Belle, It's good to have ya back!” Scootaloo said, as she held her tightly.
“Yeah, we missed you!” Applebloom joined in, wrapping her hooves around her friend. Sweetie Belle smiled and hugged the pair back, before letting out a small frown, her face flushing red.
“Why am I wearing a diaper?” She said, looking back at her flank. She quickly squirmed out of it and threw it in the bin, shuddering uncomfortably after doing so. Spike stood in the corner, holding his hands over his mouth, stifling a laugh.
“Don't you remember? You turned into a baby, and we had to look after you!” Scootaloo said, smiling uncomfortably as she realised what she was suggesting. “You turned yourself into a little filly, and we had to get Twilight to turn you back again.”
Sweetie Belle furrowed her brow and looked around her, as Scootaloo stared on, face beaming. She turned to look at Applebloom, getting the same response.
“No! I don't remember any of that!” She said her voice squeaking as she spoke. The trio looked over to Twilight, who was still sat on the ground, hunched over. She raised her head and looked at them, a lone tear running down her cheek.
“You okay Twilight?” Applebloom asked. Looking concerned for her.
“Yeah, I'm fine. It was just more tiring than I anticipated!” She said, wiping the tears away from her cheeks.
“But why can't she remember what happened Twilight?” Applebloom asked her.
“I guess my magic needs refining, she should have been able to remember It.” She said, her voice sounding hoarse, cracking ever so slightly. The trio looked at each other, confused, before deciding to leave.
“Well, thanks Twilight, you really saved us from some trouble!” Scootaloo said, as she ran over and gave Twilight a hug.
“Yeah, thanks Twilight. Sorry we took your book, we won't do it ever again, we promise.” Applebloom spoke apologetically.
“Err, Thanks for changing me back, Twilight!” Sweetie Belle said aloud, unsure of what to really say. Scootaloo then released her grip on Twilight, and the trio walked out of Twilight's house, waving goodbye, giggling softly to each other. As they stepped out the door, Sweetie Belle pulled a violet coloured hair from between her teeth. She looked at it, and smiled widely. “Hey! Wait up!” She yelled, running after her friends, playfully nudging them as she ran between the two.
Spike stood watching them leave, before shutting the door and turning to face Twilight, who was sat solemnly, her head hung low.
“Are you okay Twilight? what really happened?” Spike asked, an air of concern in his voice. Twilight lifted her head up and looked at her assistant, tears in her eyes. He leant in and gave her a hug. “Twilight, what's wrong?”
She took a deep breath and swallowed deeply. “Spike, when she was crying, she was in pain. I didn't expect it to happen, but it did. I couldn't stop it, or she'd suffer even more. But it hurt me so much, to hear her in pain, pain that I was causing.” She said, holding back the tears as best she could. Spike looked down solemnly, before chirping up again.
“But she doesn't remember it now, and she's not in pain any more! so it's fine, right?”
Twilight sunk her head down again. “Yes Spike, she won't remember, but I still feel terrible about it. I shouldn't have to brainwash a small filly, ever.” Spike put a claw under Twilight's chin and raised her head so she was looking him in the eyes.
“You know what will cheer you up?” He asked, his tone more playful than before. “A big bowl of chocolate ice cream, that's what!” Spike jumped up and ran to the kitchen to make Twilight an extra large sundae. She chuckled to herself and got up, following Spike into the kitchen.
“Don't eat it all, or you'll be the one in pain!” She joked.
