Where nothing is as it seems
The end of the beginning
(Disclaimer: I claim nothing in this story, copyrights to Lauren Faust and Hasbro, all that legal stuff.)
I left the scene quickly on my scooter, leaving behind the crying filly that was looking at the bloody scene and rapidly bleeding out pegasus in confusion and anguish, not wanting to be reminded of the blood that I spilled, all out of the name of revenge. How could I live with myself for what I've done? Instead of feeling happy that I had avenged the one responsible for Fluttershy's death, I only felt emptiness, and combined with the despair that radiated from the filly, similar to my pain, it left me questioning why I murdered another pony, and a mother, no less. It hurt enough knowing that it was I that drove the knife forward, and even more so that I did not feel any remorse at what I had done to the pony. I don’t even know her name, but I know I’ll be haunted by her face forever. Was it selfishness that drove me? Did I really need to end the life of the one that ruined my day? A part of me said that it was needed. Justified for the greater good. Righting a wrong that one made. But it didn’t make me feel any better about the blood that was now on my hooves. I had just killed another pony, and I would forever bear those marks.
I swiftly drove the knifepoint into her heart; if anything, it seemed to be the fastest way to end one’s life, and I had no desire to watch another pony squirm and scream in their death throes, however much I hated this one pony for ruining my day. The pony had the time to utter a sharp gasp; nothing more could be heard from her, however, as I forcefully drove the knife in her body even deeper. She managed to look up at me, the horror in her face saying more than the dying pony could ever say or express in words. The light in her eyes then died out, and with them, the body itself failed, and I gently closed her eyes. She was dead. Looking down at my hooves, I saw that blood was on them, sticky, sickening blood. It continued to spill over my hooves, and one thought registered through my mind. It was not one of grief, as you may have suspected. It was one of dumbfounded knowledge of what I have done. I killed a pony; I was now considered a murderer. I didn’t expect that I would become one today, no, especially today, but then again, what kind of pony wakes up one day, any day, and for whatever reason, expects to end the life of another? Does one not question how such things come to be, or why things like this must happen? I looked up at the sound of somepony gasping; staring at the body, and eventually, I saw that there was a filly, possibly her daughter, crying out in anguish. Curses, I had wanted to make sure no pony ever found the body, but at least I didn't have the problem of dragging the body somewhere; the mare looked really heavy, probably from the muffins she eats. Despite what everypony says, I still think it's what we lie and say to ourselves that they aren't cupcakes and are good for you for breakfast.
I cornered the one responsible for ruining my day; the one day where I thought I could have the comfort of friends, the overly sweet, sticky taste of cake on my tongue, presents being opened and finding out what the contents within were. She ruined everything; that pony ruined the one day that all ponies have, whether or not they cherished it. No pony had the right to ruin such a day, and this pony just happened to make it fall in one fell swoop. This day meant so much more to me then to other ponies. It made me feel wanted, and not having any parents to look after me made it so hard to get by at times. I don't even know what happened to my parents. They say that a pony must forgive one another, learn from our mistakes, and live in harmony with one another. I can't, though. I don't think I will live in harmony nor forgive myself. I instead was going to live in disharmony for what I was going to do to this gray mare, and I doubt that Fluttershy will forgive me for doing this. I don't think anypony would forgive me for what I was going to do to this pegasus. The mare in question didn’t realize that anything was wrong, at least, not yet, and smiled at me. That nearly stopped me from what I was going to do. Did I have the right to determine if this gray pegasus mare could live? Of course not, but I was going to do it anyway, as anger clouded my judgment, and I could not think straight about what I was about to do. Perhaps if I did, I wouldn't have done the deed, but such things are nothing but 'what-ifs' that we say we should've done. After grabbing the knife quickly from my backpack, I lunged forward at the mare, who quickly realized that something was wrong, fear evident in her yellow eyes, which, I noticed before I stabbed her, were staring straight at me, and not at all crossed like how I first saw her as. She was just like me, a pony, one that just happened to cause an accident she most likely didn't even know she did. It was too late, however.
I followed the gray pegasus mare throughout Ponyville. It wasn't hard, considering her haphazard way of flying, but the backpack holding the knife was making it a bit uncomfortable to move around. I briefly pondered about this mare's hazardous flying. Did she do it on purpose, or was something she had no control over? I briefly thought it over before realizing that she was almost out of my sight. I quickly renewed my chase, going faster on my scooter, not wanting to have her leave my sight. Eventually, the pegasus stopped at a building, and she went around it, leaving my eyesight. I panicked, and quickly rounded the building as well. I found her setting down her blue bags down in front of the postal building. So that's where I thought I recognized the blue bags she was carrying. She must have been a mail-mare. Come to think of it, I think she was the one who delivered mail to us, but I had no way to be certain that this pegasus was that mare. After all, a grey pegasus was very common here in Ponyville, and without actually seeing this mare's cutie mark before today, it just made it all the easier to do what I was going to do. I read in a few stories (Stories that would most fillies would've fainted from) that in order to kill somepony, you had to deponyize them, turn them into something, anything, less than a pony, so that when you do end up killing them, you feel no remorse at what you've done. I walked up to the gray mare, and put on a sad face while speaking a low, sobbing tone, hoping that this would work.
"H-Hey? Can you w-walk with me, I h-have a problem."
The gray pegasus looked confused; my heart sank as I realized that this probably wouldn't work. What kind of filly goes up to a complete stranger, crying, and asks them for help instead of their parents? Things, however, took a change for the better, as the mare nodded, and offered me a muffin. I politely shook my head. I doubted that I would be able to stomach the muffin, and I didn't want to throw it back up after stabbing her. The gray mare shrugged, eating the muffin herself. I pointed over towards a nearby alleyway; it would be the perfect place to stage what I was going to do. A nice, dark alleyway, where nopony would enter for awhile. Entering the alleyway, I noticed that the mare hesitated just outside it. I sighed, and pointed outside the alleyway, out into the sunlight, where she could be safe.
"T-This is private...I don't w-want anypony else k-knowing."
Thankfully, the pegasus didn't argue with me, and followed me into the alleyway. That's when I got off my scooter and made my move on her.
I was distraught by what had happened. It was terrible. The party was ruined, and it was all because of that gray mare. I don't know who she was, but she was going to pay. I watched, terrified that Fluttershy was injured horribly. My heart sank as ponies carried out a battered and broken pegasus, the one that had taken care of me where my parents couldn't. I gave a cry of anguish as Twlight Sparkle gently lowered her body down onto one of the few tables that were still intact, tearing dripping down her face. I stood over Fluttershy's body, crying out tears rapidly. Looking down at that calm, serene face, even in death...It angered me. Fluttershy didn't deserve to die. That gray mare did. Was I thinking straight? Killing another pony? That was insane. But, looking at Fluttershy, dead, gone, no longer able to take care of me...Something broke inside of me. Quickly, I ran out, managing to grab the cake knife that was set aside on a table and stowing it in a backpack before anypony realized it was gone. Rainbow Dash, however, saw me leaving, and called out my name, but I wasn't going back. Not until I killed the gray mare for what she did. I grabbed my scooter; It took awhile to learn how to use it, but eventually, it felt like an extension of my body.
I gasped as the support beam started to wobble; ponies nearby me looked at me curiously, then shrugged, thinking I was a drama queen. I wish I was just overreacting, because none of this would be happening then. The support beam, while not weak, was certainly unstable after the gray mare collided with the beam. Looking around, I saw that I was the only one who actually saw her collide with the beam, and I watched as the gray pegasus fly out of the barn doors. Then, disaster struck. I turned around, and watched in horror as the support beam fell...Right on top of Fluttershy.
The party was in full swing, and I was having some of the most fun any pony could have in a party. I laughed as AppleBloom told me a funny joke, and looked back at the table that was quickly stacking up with presents. But the true gift I wanted was all here, spending time with friends. Even if some of those friends were like Pinkie Pie, taking parties up to a whole new level. I sighed, and AppleBloom noticed this.
"Somethin' wrong?"
"No, AppleBloom, nothing's wrong."
"Well, if yeh say so. Oh, hay, there's the cake!"
Looking up, indeed, the cake was coming. For once, Pinkie Pie wasn't the one baking the cake, which was a surprise, and asked Mr and Mrs Cake to make the cake for her while she was at this party. They had agreed, and apparently sent the cake by way of pegasai. It was big enough that it had to be carried by three of them. Two were normal pegasai, without any distinguishing features that set them apart. One, however, interested me greatly. She was a gray mare, carried blue bags that looked empty, and had bubbles for a cutie mark. That wasn't what interested me, though. One of her eyes were crossed, and she couldn't seem to look in one direction without her other eye looking in another. It must've been really weird, having to fly like that. They dropped the cake off at a large table, and Fluttershy paid them what looked like quite a large bag of bits. I immediately protested.
"F-Fluttershy, how many b-bits was the cake...?"
"Oh, it's nothing, really."
"That bag of bits didn't look like nothing, Fluttershy!"
"Well, I did get a discount, since I'm friends with RainbowDash..."
I gave up trying to argue with Fluttershy. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw that cross-eyed mare that interested me earlier. I watched, wondering how she could fly like that. The truth was, very badly. She looked as if she'd tumble at any moment. Then, I stifled a gasp as she collided with a support beam.
"OH CELESTIA! I WASN'T EXPECTING THIS!" There were so many ponies here. I saw Twilight Sparkle, AppleJack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and RainbowDash...So many ponies in one barn! Was it possible? My train of thought derailed as Big Mac came up to me, and placed a party hat on my head, giving me a warm smile.
"Eeyup, birthday pony is here!"
I looked around for my cake, but I couldn't find one anywhere. My heart sank. A birthday party without cake? That's...That was hardly a birthday party at all! Noticing how close I was to tears, Pinkie Pie bounded up to me, and smiled.
"Oh, dontcha worry, the Cake's are running super SUPER slow today! I told them they needed to make the BIGGEST and BESTEST cake for a filly like you! The cake should be done REAL soon, so have fun while you wait, party pony!" She bounded off just as quick, Gummy latched onto her tail. At that, I couldn't help but roll on the floor, laughing. Pinkie sure knew how to cheer somepony up. So I went and enjoyed myself in the party.
About thirty minutes into the party, somepony called out.
"Hey, the pegasai are here with the cake!"
I was so excited. How could I have forgotten?! It was my birthday! What kind of filly would I be if I just forgot my own birthday? That being said, I could hardly bring myself to eat my breakfast of oatmeal as I was too busy wondering what the day's events were going to be like. Fluttershy noticed, and smiled gently at me.
"You know, you should eat your oatmeal before it gets cold."
"But Fluttershy, it's my birthday!"
"I know, but it's important to eat a healthy breakfast everyday."
"Oh, but when will we celebrate my birthday?!"
Fluttershy thought for awhile, then smiled.
"Let's go to Sweet Apple Acres first to buy some apple juice."
I groaned, but I wasn't about to argue with Fluttershy. I finished my oatmeal, grabbed my scooter, and eventually, we were on our way to Sweet Apple Acres. Fluttershy walked over to a barnhouse, and I followed her, confused.
"Uh, Fluttershy? Couldn't we just go talk to Granny Smith? She's just over there."
"Oh, but...Um...I think AppleJack is inside here, and we shouldn't bother Granny Smith."
Nodding slowly, I accepted this information without any hesitation. Fluttershy gave me a wink, which was odd; I wasn't sure what she'd be winking about. I quickly found out, however, as streamers, confetti, and a whole colorful array of ponies jumped out.
"SURPRISE!"
I yawned as I rubbed sleep from my eyes. I looked around in confusion; this wasn't Rarity's place. I then remembered that I was sleeping over because my sister didn't want me to bother her. A yellow pegasus with a pink mane stood next to me, smiling.
"It's your birthday, Sweetie Belle."
(Okay, this fiction might not what you would've expected it to be, and I know you probably have a few questions, so I'll answer the two most obvious ones to me right now and give any other questions the answers later in the comments section. So, how and why Sweetie Belle? Everything points towards Scootaloo. Sweetie Belle makes no sense, she has parents and lives with Rarity! Well, here's my reasoning behind this. First off, the scooter that is mentioned a few times. Sweetie Belle doesn't use a scooter, Scootaloo does! Well, for this fiction, I gave Sweetie Belle the ability to ride a scooter, and even gave her her own scooter. Her parents? Well, seeing as we never see them again during the show, I like to believe that they got lost on a vacation and were never found again. Why did I chose Sweetie Belle? Well, Scootaloo just seemed too obvious a choice for this, and...Other than that, I really have no idea why I chose Sweetie Belle. This was an attempt to start at the ending of a story and end it with the beginning, how'd I do, and would you be willing to read another story like this?)
