PHASE VII: THE SECOND WEEK
Fluttershy smiled as she turned on the lights, the tingling warmth of the kiss she had just shared with Bobbi Gibson still on her lips. Unlike her date with Thunderlane, which was boring and went nowhere, she felt that the thoughtful, funny, and honest bass player was definitely worth a second, maybe even a third date. He was an excellent kisser, too, not that Fluttershy had any prior experience with that.
Her popularity with the boys in this world had come as a surprise; back home, stallions never really seemed interested in her. Then again, there weren't exactly a great many stallions in Ponyville, and most of them were either already spoken for or...
No, such thoughts weren't very nice. Still, even as the pony who embodied kindness, Fluttershy had to admit there were certain ponies she didn't really want to have much to do with. Especially that one with the huge jelly jars. As far as she knew, he was the only outright pervert in Ponyville.
When she'd begun flirting with the boys who approached her, Sunset Shimmer had taken her aside and warned her, rather bluntly, that most boys were obsessed with sex. She had also expressed stark disbelief that Fluttershy, of all girls, was the sudden object of so much attention, when the Fluttershy native to this world had never even so much as talked to a boy as far as she knew. "If any of you had become a boy magnet, I'd have thought it'd be Rarity," Sunset had said. "I hate to admit it, but she's the type, and has the looks to back it up."
She'd been thinking about that a lot since then, and on the way to the concert, Fluttershy had asked Bobbi exactly why he'd chosen now to ask her out, if he'd ever asked the other Fluttershy out, and why so many boys seemed so interested in her specifically.
"It's the way you carry yourself," he'd said. "The other Fluttershy slouched and kept her head down, and shied away from people."
"I...I'm that way too," she'd said. "Back home, I mean."
"But you, well...you carry yourself like..." He'd struggled to find the right words. "Almost like you're in love with your own body. With the way it moves. I think..." He chuckled. "Well, guys pick up on things like that, even if they're not sure what they're picking up on. The easiest way to say it is that all of a sudden, you got sexy."
*In love with my own body...* Fluttershy mused. It was funny how on the mark that observation was, as ever since arriving, she had been exceptionally interested in every little detail of her body.
As she had done the night before, she headed for the bedroom to undress and shower. As she entered and turned on the lights, she caught sight of herself in the full-length dressing mirror, and stopped to admire herself. Even though the clothing she had worn to the concert was far from elegant, there was a certain appeal to it. And the dyed black streaks in her hair added a hint of...something to her appearance, something she couldn't quite put a finger on.
As she got undressed, showered, and changed for bed, she thought over the revelation that she had, inexplicably, become sexy. The notion was a bit scary, as it meant she would draw far more attention than she had ever been comfortable with back home...
And yet, for some reason, it excited her.
* * * * *
"Mornin' ever'pony," Apple Bloom called as she trotted downstairs to breakfast. She let out a huge yawn and shuffled sleepily to the table.
"Mornin', li'l sis," Applejack said. "Did you sleep well?"
"Ah guess," Apple Bloom said. "T' tell th' truth, Ah was awake a long time thinkin' 'bout stuff Ah gotta fix, stuff Ah wanna make..."
Big Macintosh wandered in at this point, hearing that last, and chuckled. "Careful, Li'l Bloom. Keep givin' yourself work, you won't have no time t' go crusadin' fer yer Cutie MaaAAAAA!" The big stallion stared at his youngest sister. "Whut th' hay?!"
"Huh? Whut's wrong?" Apple Bloom asked.
Applejack finally noticed it too. "Um. Well now. That weren't there last night."
"Is it real? It ain't drawed on, or another Cutie Pox potion?" Big Macintosh asked quietly, creeping closer to the young filly and staring.
Apple Bloom blinked at her siblings. "Whut's th' matter with y'all?" she asked. "Stop it...y'all're creepin' me out..."
Big Macintosh blinked. "You ain't seen it yet?" He frowned. "That'd explain why you didn't wake us all up yellin'..." His eyes widened again. "That means it's GOTTA be real!"
Apple Bloom backed away from him nervously. "Seen whut? What're you yappin' about?"
"Your Cutie Mark," Big Mac said.
Apple Bloom's eyes widened. "Mah whut?" At Applejack's hoof gesture, the filly turned around to examine her flank.
Apple Bloom fell flat to the floor, stunned. "Ah...Ah got mah..."
Every creature great and small on Sweet Apple Acres, from Granny Smith who was out gathering eggs, to the sleeping chickens, to the hogs, to the cows, to Winona, looked up in alarm as the entire farm rang with the loud cry from the cozy little kitchen:
"AH GOT MAH CUTIE MARK!!"
* * * * *
As Rarity sipped her morning coffee, she browsed the Internet, searching for ideas as to what would be an appropriate costume for a human stage magician. As she did so, she pondered all the strange differences between human anatomy and pony anatomy, as well as some of the similarities. As her eyes skimmed over images of various tuxedos, robes, and strange getups she couldn't even begin to identify, her wandering mind played back some of the things Sunset Shimmer had told them, that one thoroughly embarrassing day, as well as her own discoveries upon examining her body for the first time.
Her musings were interrupted by a yawn from behind her. "Mornin', Rarity," Sweetie Belle called.
"Hm? Oh, good morning, Sweetie Belle."
"You looked sort of lost in thought there," the younger girl observed. "Is something wrong?"
"Oh...no, not at all. I was just thinking about all the strange little things about the human body."
"Oh?"
Rarity nodded absently. "And I believe I've decided what the strangest thing is."
Sweetie Belle tilted her head. "Really?"
"Yes," Rarity said. "It isn't hands—actually, I'm beginning to find hands preferable to hooves, nor is it the short noses, or the fact that the mammaries are in a truly bizarre place." She paused. "No, the strangest thing about the human body...is toes."
"Toes?" Sweetie Belle asked incredulously.
"Yes. Toes."
"Why toes?"
In response, Rarity pulled off her right boot and held up her foot, wiggling her toes at Sweetie Belle. "Oh, come now. Surely you can't tell me these things aren't weird. It took me three days to figure out that they do in fact serve a purpose, but it doesn't change the fact that their appearance is, well...peculiar."
Sweetie giggled. "Okay, yeah, I guess toes are kinda funny. I just never thought about it before." As Rarity put her boot back on, Sweetie asked, "So, are you going to Pinkie's party tonight with anyone?"
"Just the girls," Rarity said. "Twilight and Fluttershy are the only ones with boyfriends. Well, I don't know if Fluttershy has a boyfriend exactly, but..."
"It's so weird seeing Fluttershy with boys," Sweetie said. "Our Fluttershy isn't..." She trailed off. "Well, a flirt like yours is."
"Our Fluttershy usually isn't either," Rarity said. "She's changed since she came here." Shrugging, she went back to her browsing. "What do you think I should do for Twilight's magic duel outfit, Sweetie?"
"Huh? I dunno," Sweetie Belle said. "When we were gonna do a magic show, Apple Bloom came up with these really silly outfits, I have no idea where she got them. Girl magicians usually wear something really sexy, and guy magicians usually wear a tuxedo and a top hat."
"Something sexy, huh?" Rarity asked.
"Yeah, like a Playbunny outfit—er, corset and fishnet stockings," Sweetie clarified at Rarity's confused look. She walked over, nudged Rarity out from in front of the computer, opened a few browser tabs, and began pulling up images. "See, like that, and that, and..."
Rarity stared. "That's what's 'sexy' here?"
"Well, yeah."
"What is it you said guys wear again?"
Sweetie dutifully pulled up images of male magicians. Rarity sat looking at these for a moment, then switched back to the racy corsets and fishnets from the previous search. Suddenly, her face lit up.
"I~DEEE~AAAAA!!"
* * * * *
After breakfast, Big Macintosh had convinced Apple Bloom to spend the day in town celebrating her new Cutie Mark with her friends. "Them fix-up chores'a yers can wait a little while," he said. "This is a big day. It ain't gonna rain 'til Tuesday anyhow."
Once Apple Bloom left, Big Mac faced Applejack and Granny Smith with a serious expression. "Alright, y'all, we got a big heap'a plannin' t' do, an' right quick."
"We shore do!" Granny replied.
Applejack looked confused. "What fer?"
"Apple Bloom's cute-ceañera," Big Macintosh said.
"Cute-say-whut-now?"
"Cute-ceañera," Granny repeated. "It's a big shindig for a yung'un that just got their Cutie Mark."
"A big shindig, huh?" Applejack repeated. She grinned. "Well if it's a big shindig, Ah know th' perfect pony for th' job!"
"Pinkie Pie?" Big Macintosh asked.
"O'course!"
"Hmm. But she's like you, she ain't never heard'a cute-ceañeras neither," Big Mac pointed out.
Applejack shrugged. "Ah reckon Mr. an' Mrs. Cake can walk her through th' specifics."
"Well...after all, a cute-ceañera IS just a really big party," Granny Smith said.
"Then like Ah said, Pinkie's our go-to gal!"
* * * * *
"I'm your go-to girl for all your party needs!" Pinkie Pie told the young couple that had walked into Sugar Cube Corner several minutes earlier. "I'm the bestest of the best at party planning!"
"She really is," Twilight Sparkle said from where she sat nearby, studying and having breakfast. "You wouldn't believe what this girl can throw together with practically no notice whatsoever."
The couple blinked at each other, speechless. They had come in to grab a coffee and discuss the details of their upcoming engagement party, which as of yet was neither catered nor really planned out. Pinkie Pie had overheard them and had had what could only be described as an explosive partygasm.
Pinkie pulled out her phone and, after some fiddling, showed them a photo. "See this? This is the setup for a big party at Canterlot High tonight. I worked half the night setting this up!"
The couple stared at the impressive and elaborate party decorations. "You did all that...in one night?"
"Uh-huh! And I can get Sweet Apple Acres to cater, and I know the bestest DJ in town, and—"
"Okay, okay!" the man said, laughing. "You're hired." He paused. "Say, you wouldn't happen to be Pinkie Pie by any chance, would you?"
"That's me!" Pinkie said cheerfully.
He grinned. "Yeah, I've heard of you. They say your parties can get pretty wild. I'm looking forward to it."
Twilight watched with a smile as the couple exchanged information with Pinkie Pie. As they left, she said, "Looks like you just went into business."
"Oh gosh, you're right!" Pinkie said. "Hmm...I wonder where other-me keeps her party cannon?"
"Other-you doesn't have a party cannon, Pinkie," Twilight said.
"WHAT?! No party cannon?! Bummer!"
* * * * *
The very first ponies Apple Bloom ran into were Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash. Scootaloo was teaching Rainbow Dash how to play hoofball. "Hey Scootaloo! Hey Rainbow Dash!" she hollered.
"Hey Apple Bloom!" Scootaloo called back. "Wanna play with us?"
"Ah'd love to, but Ah got lots t' do today," Apple Bloom said.
"Oh? Running errands for the farm?" Scootaloo asked.
"Nnnope," Apple Bloom said. "Well, tomorrow Ah will be, but today's just for celebratin'."
"Celebrating what?" Rainbow Dash asked.
Apple Bloom turned her flank to them.
"WHAT?!" Scootaloo cried.
"Hey, cool butt-mark-thingie," Rainbow Dash said.
Apple Bloom turned back to face them, all smiles. "Ah got it last night," she said. "Woke up with it this mornin', didn't even know at first till mah big bro was freakin' out about it."
Scootaloo stared at her, eyes wide and jaw agape. "You really did it. You really got your Cutie Mark."
Apple Bloom nodded up and down rapidly, beaming.
Scootaloo shook her head, then began hopping up and down, her wings buzzing. "AWESOME! she cried. "Lemme see it again, lemme see it again! How'd you get it? What'd you do? Why didn't you wait for us? We could've all gotten it!"
Apple Bloom sighed. "Ah'm sorry, Scoots. Ah really wanted us all t' get our Cutie Marks together an' all, but...it turns out ever'pony's been tellin' us right all along. It really does come when it's time."
Scootaloo stopped hopping and tilted her head. "You mean it just showed up, just like that? You weren't trying to get it?"
Apple Bloom shook her head. "Nope. All day long yesterday Ah was just fixin' stuff up. Ah fixed a book counter at Twilight's place, Ah fixed a bunch'a stuff back home, Ah saw stuff Ah wanted t' fix but couldn't—Ah was gonna work on that stuff today—an' thought about stuff Ah wanna build onto th' clubhouse, an' somethin' Ah wanna build fer Granny..." She shrugged. "Pretty much all Ah had on my mind yesterday was fixin' an' buildin' stuff. An' then when Ah woke up, bam, Cutie Mark."
Scootaloo frowned. "Sooo...all you were doing was stuff you're already good at, and that's it?"
"Just like ever'pony's been tellin' us this whole time," Apple Bloom confirmed. She rolled her eyes. "Now that Ah realize that, Ah kinda feel like an idjit." She shook her head and smiled. "But Ah wouldn't trade our time crusadin' fer Cutie Marks for nothin'. You an' Sweetie Belle are mah best friends. Even though we've had our share of fights, an' we've gotten in a heap'a trouble plenty'a times..." She lunged forward and grabbed Scootaloo in a hug.
"Aww," Rainbow Dash said, smiling at them.
After the hug, Scootaloo had a pensive look on her face. "Does this mean...does this mean it's over? Is this the end of the Cutie Mark Crusaders?"
"Heck no!" Apple Bloom said. "But from now on, things ARE gonna be diff'rent. But in a good way." She grinned. "Come on, we gotta find Sweetie Belle!"
"Yeah!" Scootaloo waved at Rainbow Dash. "Sorry, gotta go! See you later!"
* * * * *
Rainbow Dash stared at the soccer ball sitting on the grass in front of her, mocking her.
She took a step backward, drew back her foot, and gave the ball a mighty kick.
It veered off to the right, careening out of bounds. Rainbow Dash wobbled on one foot, pinwheeling her arms.
A small group of students from the various sports teams watched from the bleachers. They were all male.
"Oh, dude. This new Rainbow Dash is pathetic!" one of them chuckled.
"Hey man, chill. She'll get better."
"She'd better get better soon, or we'll have to get a new captain."
"Yeah, we can't let this...horse drag us down."
"I still don't buy that whole magic horse thing."
"Dude, all I wanna know is, you think this Rainbow Dash puts out?"
A chorus of groans met this question.
"Dude, give it UP."
"Well, do you?"
"The old Rainbow Dash didn't."
"Yeah? Well neither did the old Fluttershy."
"Hey, yeah! For all we know they could all be like, super easy."
The soccer ball bounced off the face of the boy who had said that. Rainbow Dash stalked up to the group, eyes blazing with fury. "You know what we do to jerks like you back home?" she asked. "We geld them." With that, she stormed off the field.
The guys watched her go.
"Bet she's gay."
"Yeah, she's probably doin' it with Applejack."
* * * * *
Rarity smiled at the three fillies who were prancing around in her boutique, laughing and giggling and cheering.
"I always thought you'd be the first to get yours!" Sweetie said, hugging Apple Bloom for the fifth time. "I'm so happy for you! And so jealous! And so happy!" She pulled back. "Oh! Oh! You know what you need? A cute-ceañera!"
"Hey, yeah!" Scootaloo said. "We should go to Sugar Cube Corner and talk to Pinkie Pie! She'll totally throw you a cute-ceañera!"
Just then, the door flew open and a puffy pink head popped into the boutique. "Rarity! We've got work to do! Party work!" Pinkie shouted. Then she noticed the three little fillies. "APPLE BLOOM!" she cried. "Let me see it let me see it LET ME SEE IT!"
Apple Bloom blinked. "You already know?"
"Big Macintosh just came by," Pinkie said. "He asked me to plan your cute-ceañera!"
"Well Ah'll be," Apple Bloom said, grinning.
Rarity smiled. "I'm not entirely certain what a cute-ceañera is, but I shall help in any way I possibly can!"
"Oh! Oh! We've gotta invite EVERYPONY!" Scootaloo said.
"And Diamond Tiara, we've gotta invite her too!" Sweetie Belle said.
"Eww! Why?!" Scootaloo asked, pulling a face.
"So Apple Bloom can rub it in her face! Literally!"
Apple Bloom made a retching noise. "Sweetie Belle! Ah don't want Diamond Tiara's face anywhere near mah flank!"
"Oh, I am just not even touching that one," Rarity said.
* * * * *
The Apples had been up since the crack of dawn working farm chores. Applejack had slowly adjusted to the human way of doing her chores, but it still made her back and arms mighty sore. She was inwardly thankful it was winter now; she didn't think she was ready to deal with the apple orchards just yet.
The one thing about the farm that had unsettled her the most were the horses. The Apples owned six horses, kept in an insulated stable, which Big Macintosh had explained they used to haul apple carts during the harvest to save on gasoline costs. They also produced useful manure, which Big Macintosh had cheerfully explained before his brain had caught up with his mouth.
"Jes' for th' record," Applejack had said with a flat, half-lidded glare at her brother's doppelganger, "Ah ain't never gone out an' done mah private business on th' fields."
"How DO y'all deal with...uh...that where you come from, anyway?" Apple Bloom had asked, unable to contain her curiosity.
"Same way y'all do. We use th' bathroom proper-like."
The rest of that evening had been rather awkward.
In hindsight, though, the conversation was admittedly funny. Applejack chuckled to herself as she hefted a massive bale of hay onto her shoulder and carried it into the stable. "Y'all sure do eat one heck of a lot," she told the six horses. The fact that these horses couldn't talk and weren't as intelligent as ponies back home creeped her out, but she could see a certain level of intelligence in their eyes, and made a point of spending a little time with them every day.
As she distributed the new hay, she heard the distant banging of a copper pan against a hanging sheet of tin. She blinked. "Time fer lunch already?" She finished up her chore, then headed up to the house, grimacing and rubbing her lower back.
Within ten minutes, the three Apple siblings had scrubbed up their hands and faces and gathered around the old kitchen table that reminded Applejack of home. Apple Bloom looked winded, but as full of energy as her own sweet little sister. Big Macintosh looked a bit glum. "What's up, Big Mac?" she asked.
"Ah think Ah'm gonna hafta cut down ol' Bloomberg," he said.
Apple Bloom gasped. "Oh no!"
"Eeyup," Big Mac said sadly. "That ol' tree's lookin' mighty sickly. Ah don't think it's gonna make th' winter."
A cold chill ran through Applejack as she heard that. She took off her hat and held it to her chest. "Didn't know y'all had a Bloomberg," she said.
"Eeyup. Why, y'all had Bloomberg in Equestria?"
Applejack nodded. "Yeah. A couple years back, we transplanted 'im t' Appleloosa. Last I heard from Cousin Braeburn, he's still goin' strong."
Big Macintosh nodded thoughtfully. "Y'all don't lose many trees on y'all's farm there, do you?"
"Never lost one yet," Applejack said. "That's th' earth pony magic at work. We're connected t' th' land, so we can tell when a tree's havin' problems, an' take care of it before it's too late. Not that many of our trees ever get sick."
"That must be nice," Big Macintosh said. "We usually lose at least two trees a year."
Applejack shuddered.
"Grub's on," Granny Smith announced as she entered the room. "Big Mac, come help yer ol' granny bring on th' victuals."
"Eeyup."
Soon, there was a huge platter of something Applejack couldn't identify right away in the center of the table, as well as a huge bowl of mashed potatoes, two gravy boats full of a type of gravy she'd never seen before, and a heaping bowl of green beans. After loading all the serving dishes onto the table, Granny came back with a big pitcher of sweet iced tea and filled their glasses. "Alright, y'all help yerselves," she said as she speared one of the large, golden-battered slabs off the serving platter and plopped it onto her plate.
Apple Bloom's eyes were dancing with delight. "Alright, chicken fried steak!" she cheered.
"Who fried whut now?" Applejack asked.
Apple Bloom gasped. "Oh my gosh! You don't know what chicken fried steak is?!"
"Uh, hello, pony from another world here, reckon we've met?"
"Oh yeah, right, heheh," Apple Bloom said, giggling. "Just...trust me, this is th' best thing you'll ever taste."
"Eeyup," Big Macintosh agreed. He'd already placed one of the steaks on his plate, and was heaping mashed potatoes next to it. Apple Bloom grabbed one of the gravy boats and drowned her steak in the thick, white, creamy gravy.
Applejack loaded up her plate with one of the unfamiliar steaks, a heap of mashed potatoes, and a larger heap of green beans than the others had taken, then mimicked her siblings and poured a generous quantity of gravy over her steak and potatoes. Cutting off a bite of the steak, she placed it in her mouth and chewed.
Her eyes widened.
"Great, ain't it?" Apple Bloom asked through a mouthful of potatoes.
Applejack couldn't answer. She was busy reveling in the tender texture of the meat, its flavor still unfamiliar to her but appealing, teasing her taste buds with its delicious wrongness, and the light, crispy, savory taste of the golden fry batter wrapped around it. To say nothing of the smooth, creamy, slightly spicy heaven that was the gravy! "Sweet Celestia, that's good," she said.
Apple Bloom blinked at her. "What's Principal Celestia got to do with it?"
Applejack chuckled. "Sorry, force of habit. Seein' as Princess Celestia's th' ruler of Equestria an' all." She took another bite of steak. "Ah ain't never had nothin' like this before."
The meal passed pleasantly, with everyone having a second helping of everything, and pleasant mealtime conversation among family. At times, Applejack even forgot she wasn't back home with her own pony family, because their human counterparts were so closely matched she truly felt at home.
But there were things that reminded her of home, and reminded her that no matter how comfortable she got here, she had a life to go back to in Equestria once the portal opened again, though it would be well over two years before she'd need to worry about that. *Two years and change,* she mused. *Ah wonder what Ah'll be goin' home to...*
She must've said this aloud, because her temporary family was looking at her. "Hey, that's right," Apple Bloom said. "When our Applejack comes back, you'll have graduated high school in her place. She'll miss out on that."
"Eeyup," Big Macintosh said.
"An' Ah bet mah Apple Bloom'll already have her Cutie Mark by th' time Ah get back, an' Ah'll miss out on that," Applejack said quietly.
"Cutie Mark?" Apple Bloom asked, tilting her head.
Applejack sipped her tea, then launched into an explanation of the most sacred part of a little pony's coming of age...
* * * * *
Twilight Sparkle and her mother were enjoying an afternoon stroll around Ponyville when they encountered Fluttershy, who looked distinctly rattled. "Hey Fluttershy, what's wrong?"
Fluttershy looked up, blinking. "Oh, n-nothing. I'm fine, really."
"Fluttershy..." Twilight Sparkle said with a warning tone and a smile.
The pegasus sighed. "I...found something strange in my—I mean my double's—house. It...it's just...I'm a little freaked out."
"Oh?" Twilight Sparkle asked. "What is it?"
"Maybe...I should just show y—oh! Who is this?" she asked, noticing Twilight Velvet.
"Fluttershy, this is my mother, Twilight Velvet. Well, Pony-Me's mother. I mean, she's almost exactly like MY mother—"
Twilight Velvet tilted her head with a smile. "Really. You've been here what, a week already? And you're STILL fumbling over 'this me' and 'that me'?"
Twilight Sparkle laughed. "Well, it's...we're still getting used to this whole thing." She shook her head. "Anyway, Fluttershy, let's go see what's gotten you so freaked out."
Several minutes later, they stood in Fluttershy's living room. The pegasus placed her hoof on a book and tilted it down. The bookshelf swung open with a click to reveal a stairwell.
The two Twilights glanced at one another. Velvet's eyebrow was raised. "Interesting."
The three mares descended; Fluttershy stepped on the switch that turned on all the lights. The Twilights gasped as they looked around. "Oh...my," Velvet said.
Sparkle's jaw dropped. "Is this...is everything here...a knitting project?!"
"Yes," Fluttershy said. "Apparently, the other me has a very bizarre knitting obsession."
"Bizarre? I'd almost call this sick," Velvet said. "Impressive, though."
"I'm more interested in how she managed to build a room like this under a quaint little cottage," Twilight Sparkle said. "And how is there electricity down here, anyway? There aren't any power lines or anything!"
"Power lines?" Twilight Velvet asked.
"You know, wires? They transmit electricity from the source?"
Twilight Velvet chuckled. "What a quaint notion!"
"Quaint?" Twilight Sparkle asked. "Then...then how does electricity work here?"
Twilight Velvet rolled her eyes. "Come along, I'll show you."
* * * * *
Twilight looked up at the electricity transmission lines suspended from tall wooden poles and frowned. "How inefficient...I wonder why they haven't developed wireless energy transfer here yet?"
Beside her, Rainbow Dash shrugged. "Beats me. You'd think with all these computers and phones and things that work without wires..."
"Yeah." Twilight frowned, studying her friend. Rainbow's shoulders were slumped and she was dragging her feet as they walked. "What's wrong?"
"Huh? Oh, nothing."
"Rainbow..." Twilight said warningly.
Rainbow sighed. "It's just...I'm havin' problems with this body. My balance is all off, I can't even kick a stupid ball right..."
Twilight frowned. "I have to say I'm a bit surprised you're the one who's having the most trouble adapting. As athletic and physical as you are, I just assumed you'd take to your new body faster than any of us, and be amazing us all with your sports skills in no time."
Rainbow shook her head. "You couldn't possibly understand. I've spent my entire life using my wings for everything. How often do you ever actually see me walk anywhere?"
Twilight tilted her head thoughtfully. "I've seen you on your hooves lots of times, and you run almost as fast as Applejack," she pointed out.
"Well, yeah, but...I'm nowhere near as comfortable on my hooves as I am flying. My wings are so important to me, and now..."
Twilight looked at her morose friend, and hugged her. "It'll be okay, Rainbow Dash. We'll all help you get used to this."
"I'm not sure I want to get used to this," Rainbow Dash said. "I'm scared, Twi. I'm scared if I get used to this crazy body, I'll forget what it's like to fly. Then when we go home, I won't be...I won't be me anymore."
"Rainbow Dash!" Twilight exclaimed. "How could you possibly think that? I refuse to believe that you of all ponies would ever slow down for anything, or forget what it feels like to be the awesome flier you were born to be!" With a smile, she added, "But I do believe that if you don't make every effort to become the superior athlete this world's Rainbow Dash is, you'll never forgive yourself. Giving up isn't who you are."
Rainbow smiled. "Yeah...you're right. Besides, the teams are all counting on me, even the jerks from before, and I can't just leave 'em hangin'."
Twilight frowned. "Wait, jerks from before? What?"
Rainbow Dash explained the heckling she'd heard during her disastrous soccer practice. When she was done, Twilight was scowling. "Even the worst stallions back home weren't that ill-mannered."
"Yeah," Rainbow said darkly. "And if I ever hear 'em talkin' about us like that again, especially if they badmouth Fluttershy, I'm gonna do what I shoulda done today." At Twilight's questioning look, she elaborated, "Kick 'em in the junk."
Twilight winced. "Aaaanyway," she said, "I need to go meet Flash. He's going with me to pick up the props for my magic act."
"Oooh, can I come?" Rainbow asked. "I wanna see what this world calls magic."
"Sure," Twilight said.
* * * * *
The Cutie Mark Crusaders had wandered around town for most of the day, Apple Bloom proudly displaying her new Cutie Mark while her friends paraded at her sides like an honor guard. Apple Bloom received many congratulations from the ponies around town. When they stopped to have lunch, Big Macintosh found them and presented Apple Bloom with a present: a filly-sized set of tools in a sturdy leather pouch fitted to sling around her neck and ride just behind her shoulder for easy access.
Later in the afternoon, the Crusaders found Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon sitting at an outdoor cafeteria, having tea and saying rude things about the ponies that passed by on the street. Rather, Diamond Tiara was saying rude things, and Silver Spoon was simply laughing.
Apple Bloom trotted up to them. "Hey girls," she said.
Diamond Tiara glared hatefully at her. "WHAT do YOU want, blank flank?"
Apple Bloom grinned at her. "Oh, Ah just came t' invite y'all ta mah cute-ceañera," she said. As she did so, she turned so that the two fillies could see her flank. Diamond Tiara's jaw dropped in disbelief.
"YOU got your cutie mark?" she asked. "You, the most useless, disaster-prone hayseed in all of Ponyville?"
"Yeah. Me. An' unlike some ponies Ah could name, MAH cutie mark actually means somethin'."
Diamond Tiara stared at her, then shook her head. She tittered lightly into her hoof. "Oh, I see. This is another trick, right? A spell, or a potion? Or you've got the cutie pox again?"
"Nope. This time it's th' real deal. Mah special talent's fixin' stuff."
A passing waiter overheard this, and stopped. "You don't say? Because we've got a couple of wobbly tables over here..."
Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon could only watch, wide-eyed, as Apple Bloom effortlessly repaired the two tables. "Solid as a rock," the filly said brightly.
The waiter beamed at her. "That's wonderful! Here, let me get you and your little friends some crepes as thanks..."
"So," Apple Bloom said, "Ah hope Ah'll see you both at th' party."
"Oh, we'll BE there," Diamond Tiara said savagely, gritting her teeth.
With far less hostility, Silver Spoon said, "Congratulations."
Apple Bloom gave her an odd look, then left with her friends, munching on crepes.
Once the Crusaders were gone, Diamond Tiara shot Silver Spoon a venomous glare. "WHAT was THAT?" she asked.
Silver Spoon snorted, rolling her eyes. "Apple Bloom found her special talent. She's no different from us now."
"Yes she is!" Diamond Tiara insisted hotly. "I don't care about the Cutie Mark, she's still a loser!"
Silver Spoon frowned at her, then trotted away without another word.
* * * * *
Rainbow Dash stared at the bizarre pile of junk Twilight and Flash had extracted from the Apples' storage shed. "What the heck IS all this?" she asked.
Flash looked around at the collection of props. "Vanishing cabinet, handkerchief trick, flowers from a handkerchief trick, trick rings..." He shook his head. "This is kid stuff. None of this is gonna cut it against Trixie."
Twilight drooped. "Really?"
Flash nodded. "She's not great, and when she tries to pull off professional-grade illusions it always fails spectacularly, but at the very least she's mastered the fire-moving trick. That's way above the level of this junk."
Twilight wilted. "This isn't good..."
"Eh, don't worry about it, Twi," Rainbow Dash said. "I'm sure with all of us helping you, you'll do fine. And you can always get better props, right?"
Flash nodded. "Yeah, new props is no problem." He frowned. "At the very least, you can use this stuff to practice. Get the hang of the basics before you try anything good enough to face Trixie with." He tilted his head thoughtfully. "Maybe you can learn the 'saw-a-woman-in-half' trick. I'm sure Pinkie wouldn't mind being your assistant..."
Twilight stared at him, eyes wide. "The WHAT trick now?!"
* * * * *
Twilight Sparkle gaped at the hydroelectric dam Twilight Velvet had led her and Fluttershy to. "What...WHAT?!"
"There isn't much electricity usage in Equestria," Twilight Velvet explained. "For the most part, it's intertwined with thaumatic emissions from certain magical minerals. Those emissions are what allow for the transmission of energy to whoever needs it."
"So...magical wireless electricity?" Fluttershy asked.
"Yes. But again, there's very little call for it. It mostly powers specialized equipment, like hospital equipment, laboratory equipment, movie projectors, and such. The system works better if we don't overtax it, and the normal alternatives are usually just as good if not better, so..."
"Still...wow. That's impressive." Twilight Sparkle shook her head. "It's even more impressive that you can do THIS and hardly even use electricity. Back where we come from, life is practically impossible without it."
* * * * *
A good third of the students of Canterlot High had turned out for Pinkie's "first week in this world wrap party". Vinyl Scratch was working the turntables, a catering table was crammed end-to-end with piled-high plates and bowls of delicious food and drinks, and everyone was having a wonderful time.
Quite a few people had been surprised by the minor yet startling change in Fluttershy's appearance. She was dancing with Bobbi Gibson, only occasionally agreeing to dance with other boys; Twilight was dividing her time between dancing with Flash and dancing with her best friends, who were mostly dancing alone or together, but occasionally took a turn on the floor with a random boy.
Surprisingly, Principal Celestia had come to the party. Even more surprisingly, she'd braided her hair and was wearing faded old bell-bottom jeans, a tie-dyed shirt, a suede vest, and a headband. Twilight couldn't help but stare at her attire. Pinkie, however, had taken one look at her, giggled, and said, "Groovy!"
Rarity had developed a twitch when she saw the principal. Twilight didn't realize why at first, until it dawned on her that Rarity was probably having flashbacks to her week with Wheat Grass and Flax Seed.
About halfway through the party, Twilight saw Fluttershy walk up to Vinyl and say something to her. The DJ had actually taken off her sunglasses to stare at Fluttershy before responding. They had spent a minute hurriedly going back and forth at one another, before Vinyl shrugged and put her glasses back on.
As the current song ended, Vinyl stopped the turntables and plugged a laptop computer into the mixing board.
Something loud beyond loud erupted from the speakers. Thundering bass guitar riffs. A screeching, grinding guitar chord. Drums that sounded like a buffalo stampede.
Quite a few of the kids in the gym cheered. Quite a few more rolled their eyes and moved to the bleachers or the refreshment table, looking put out. Principal Celestia frowned mildly.
"Oh, by all that is sacred, what is that horrendous noise?" Rarity complained from nearby.
"That'd be Hëd Kräbb," Flash said, chuckling.
At the center of the floor, Bobbi and Fluttershy were headbanging to the thundering retro metal. A few others were joining them.
After six minutes of eardrum abuse, Vinyl went back to spinning her own party mix. Pinkie bounced over to Twilight, Flash, and her other friends. "Wow, that was wild!" she exclaimed, beaming.
"Yes...Fluttershy has most definitely become wild," Rarity said.
"I think it suits her," Flash said. "Besides, Bobbi's a good guy, he won't take advantage of her, and it'll be good for her to learn how to have a good time."
"Well, I guess so," Rainbow Dash said. "I just never thought I'd see Fluttershy...rocking out."
"Did I hear you say something about rocking?" a reedy male voice said. A smarmy-looking boy with what he probably thought was a charming smirk on his face walked up to Rainbow Dash. "Cuz if you want your world rocked...heh...I'm the guy."
Rainbow rolled her eyes. "Get lost."
"Aww, don't be like that," the creep said, getting in her face. "I just wanna show you how friendly the guys here can really be..."
Applejack walked over, grabbed the guy by his collar, hoisted him above her head, and carried him to the gym doors, tossing him out. As she walked back in, she muttered, "That little turd's been hittin' on me an' Apple Bloom both."
"What IS it with the boys here?" Twilight demanded. "Uh, the boys who aren't you or your friend," she amended, looking up at Flash.
Flash sighed. "Yeah, way too many of the guys here go around thinking with their di—err, instincts."
"If you were going to say dicks, just say dicks. I won't put you in detention," Principal Celestia said with a teasing grin as she walked past.
Twilight stared after her. Rainbow snickered. Flash turned red.
Applejack looked confused. "Dicks? What?" Rainbow explained it to her, and her expression shifted to one of deadpan disapproval. "Eeeeyup, that figures."
*I didn't think this world's Celestia was as weird as OUR Celestia,* Twilight thought.
* * * * *
Rainbow Dash flew in a lazy circle above Ponyville's town square. It hadn't taken her long to get the hang of flying, and she could fly relatively fast already, but Soarin had advised her to take long, slow flights around town to build up her wing strength before plunging headlong into the kind of speed flying her pony counterpart was apparently famous for.
As she arced around, a second pegasus descended from the clouds above, flying parallel to her and matching her speed. This mare had a golden coat and a two-tone, fiery orange mane and tail, and wore a navy blue uniform—well, the top half of one anyway—and aviator sunglasses. "Hello, Rainbow Dash!" she said.
"Hi there," Dash said. She then did a double-take at the mare and screeched to a halt in midair. "SPITFIRE?!"
The golden mare, Spitfire, blinked, stopping to hover in front of Dash. "You recognize me?"
"Well, yeah," Dash said. "I mean, I know you back where I come from. You're on the track team. Actually, you pretty much run the track team. I'm the captain but I'm usually busy with soccer or basketball."
Spitfire raised an eyebrow at that. "Okay then," she said. "Anyway, Soarin tells me you're flying like a natural already. Looks like he's right."
"Yeah," Rainbow Dash said. "It took a while, but what can I say? I'm awesome."
Spitfire rolled her eyes. "Yeah, you're EXACTLY like our Rainbow Dash." Chuckling, she added, "Anyway, since you can fly now, are you ready to settle into Rainbow Dash's house?"
Dash blinked. "Oh yeah! I'd totally forgotten about that. I'd gotten too used to the library."
"Well, if you really want to stay at the library, that's your call, but..." Spitfire grimaced. "Just so you know, the other Rainbow Dash stuck me with housesitting. She said I was the only pegasus she trusted to look after the place and take care of her turtle."
"Turtle?" Rainbow Dash echoed, blinking.
"You'll see. Even if you don't move into Rainbow Dash's place, you need to at least take Tank off my hooves."
"Uhh...yeah, okay," Rainbow Dash said. "I do kinda wanna see where the other me lives."
"Then come on, let's go," Spitfire said, flying off to the east. Rainbow Dash followed her.
As they flew, Rainbow Dash asked, "So what's with the uniform? Are you like, in the Pony Air Force or something?"
"Air what?" Spitfire asked. "No, I'm captain of the Wonderbolts."
"Oh!" Rainbow Dash said. "Yeah, Soarin told me about the Wonderbolts. Heh, I still can't get over that name."
"And why is THAT?" Spitfire asked challengingly.
Dash laughed. "Well, back at Canterlot High, all our sports teams are called the Wondercolts."
"Huh," Spitfire said. "Anyway...we're almost there."
The two pegasi approached a massive formation of clouds. Rainbow Dash's eyes tripled in size, her jaw dropping halfway to the ground.
What sat before them, drifting serenely over Ponyville, was an enormous pile of fluffy white clouds, supporting what she could only properly call a three-story tower. The whole thing was white, with huge windows all over each level, Greek columns holding up the cloud balconies, and a massive rainbow that arced from the top, seemingly feeding several small fountains and waterfalls of liquid rainbow that dripped and pooled in the cloud basins.
"WHOA," Rainbow Dash said.
"Like it?" Spitfire asked, grinning.
"I...I've never seen anything so...so...AWESOME!"
"Rainbow Dash is a big fan of classical Pegasus architecture," Spitfire said. "Big, showy, epic...visible for miles." She shook her head. "I gotta admit, it was kinda fun housesitting for her. I just have a little apartment in Cloudsdale, and I'm almost never there anyway."
"Is...is the other me loaded or something?"
"Loaded?"
"You know, rich. Lots of money."
Spitfire shrugged. "I have no idea. That doesn't really matter when it comes to cloud houses. I'm pretty sure she built this herself."
The two pegasi entered the massive cloud structure, Rainbow Dash marveling at the grand scale of the whole thing. Not long after they landed on the floor of what she assumed to be the living room, something hard bounced off her head. "Ack!" she cried. "What the—?!"
She turned around...and came face to wrinkled green face with a flying turtle. "Buh—huh?!"
"Yeah, that'd be Tank," Spitfire said. "Rainbow Dash's pet tortoise."
"A...tortoise."
"She's crazy about this little guy," Spitfire said, chuckling. "She'd have to be, to go to all the trouble of rigging up that crazy flying harness."
It was then that Rainbow Dash noticed the bizarre contraption of leather and metal that was keeping the tortoise aloft. Her eyes bugged out. "Whoa. That's..."
"Let me give you the tour," Spitfire said. "Then I gotta bail."
Numbly, Rainbow Dash followed Spitfire around the cloud house, Tank trailing behind her.
* * * * *
As usual, come lunchtime Monday, Twilight had her nose buried in a book. Her friends hadn't seen her since the party Saturday; she'd told them she intended to spend Sunday researching the fake "magic" of this world.
To say she looked somewhat frazzled would be an understatement. "Are you okay, Twilight?" Rarity asked.
Twilight sighed. "Yeah, I just didn't get much sleep last night. This so-called "magic" may all just be cheap tricks and theatrics, but it's actually quite fascinating!" She paused, then frowned. "And I hate to admit it, but...I'm not sure I can learn to do even the most basic illusions in two weeks. I can just barely hold a pen, and these tricks require some serious finger control!"
"Oh? Like what?" Pinkie asked. Twilight pointed out a trick in the book she was reading. Pinkie looked it over, nodded, and said, "I can do that."
"Pinkie, you've only had hands a week. ONE! WEEK! There's no WAY—"
Pinkie Pie pulled a coin out of her purse, then began deftly flipping it over and under the knuckles of her right hand. The coin expertly passed across the top of one finger, then underneath the next, then over the back of the next. Then, abruptly, the coin vanished. Pinkie showed the others her empty hand with a flourish.
Rainbow Dash stared. "Whoa. How'd you DO that?"
Pinkie smiled, and pulled the coin out from behind Rainbow's ear. "Ta-daaah!"
Twilight gasped. "That...that's two different coin tricks! That...HOW?"
Pinkie shrugged. "I dunno. Same way I do crazy stuff like this back home, I guess." She continued playing with the coin, doing an assortment of light-fingered tricks, to the awe of her friends.
"Maybe YOU should be challenging Trixie," Rainbow said.
Pinkie laughed. "Nah, I wanna watch Twilight beat Trixie again. I'd be happy to be her assistant, though!"
Twilight sighed. "That's a relief. I think I'm gonna need your help with all this most of all."
"Okie-dokie-lokie!"
* * * * *
"TWILIGHT!" Rainbow Dash called as she barged into the library. "You have got to come see this!"
Twilight looked up from the intermediate unicorn primer she was reading. "What is it, Rainbow Dash?"
"I just saw my house for the first time! And it. Is. AWESOME!"
"Your house?" Twilight asked, frowning. "Oh, you mean pony-Rainbow's cloud house?"
"Yeah!" Rainbow Dash said. "I'm gonna move in today, now that I can fly and know where it is. But I want you to see this place. You REALLY have to see this place!"
Twilight smiled. "Well...I haven't really been practicing flying that much, but...I can fly across Ponyville without getting too tired. So...sure!"
The two ponies took wing, headed east. Despite her excitement, Rainbow Dash forced herself to keep a pace Twilight could keep up with.
When they reached the cloud home of Rainbow Dash, Twilight's eyes nearly popped out of her head. "That's..."
"I know, right?" Rainbow Dash asked, grinning.
Twilight shook her head. "How...how is something like that even possible?! I mean...it's a tower. Sitting on clouds! With columns! And...and...and rainbows don't work that way! How...what...I...just..."
Rainbow rolled her eyes. "Do you wanna go inside, or do you wanna stay here bein' an egghead?"
Twilight blinked, shook herself out of her physics-induced daze, and followed her friend into the impossible magical Pegasus house.
"Oh, and watch out for Tank!"
"Tank?"
*BONK*
"OW!"
"Yeah, I think that's how he says hi..."
* * * * *
Flash had asked Twilight to hang out after school. He didn't use the "d-word", but it was heavily implied. She had agreed, with much blushing, and the two of them wound up in a park not far from the dormitories, with an assortment of take-out food and a thick, warm quilt spread out on the cold, crunchy ground. Flash was tuning his guitar and strumming idly as they sat comfortably against each other, Twilight still studying her magic books.
"So, this Trixie thing," Flash said.
Twilight rolled her eyes. "I should never have let her get to me. I'm going to make a complete idiot out of myself! I just...my fingers are practically useless, so how can I ever hope to do all these complicated tricks?"
"Hmm," Flash said. He idly strummed a few chords on his guitar. He paused, then looked down at his instrument. A slow smile spread across his face. "I know how you're going to get good enough to beat Trixie."
Twilight blinked and tilted her head. "Huh? How?"
In response, Flash drew her attention to his hands, then began playing a guitar solo. Twilight stared at the fast, intricate movements of Flash's fingers.
"Clear your schedule," Flash said. "You just signed up for two hours a day of guitar lessons."
* * * * *
Pinkie Pie had decided to turn Apple Bloom's cute-ceañera into a huge outdoor party at Sweet Apple Acres. She'd recruited Vinyl Scratch to help with the setup and to DJ the party. It had taken most of the week to turn an acre of barren, cold dirt into a dance floor surrounded by picnic tables, firefly lamps, buffet tables full of food and drinks, an earthshaking sound system, and lots of party decorations. Apple Bloom was wearing an outfit that consisted of a puffy-sleeved checkered blouse and bright red cowpony boots, with a Stetson covering her trademark hair bow. Rarity had insisted on designing an outfit that would leave her flank bare, allowing everypony to view her Cutie Mark. Most of Ponyville was in attendance, as was a sizeable portion of the extended Apple Family, who had been coming in for four straight days from far and wide.
"Congrats, Cuz!" Babs Seed said, dragging Apple Bloom into a hug. It was only one of many dozens of congratulatory hugs Apple Bloom had received, and her ribs were starting to ache. Still, she was very happy.
The cute-ceañera had started before sundown. It was now well into the night, and the party showed no signs of stopping any time soon. There had been plenty of dancing, eating, laughing, and general revelry for hours. Though Apple Bloom was mingling, her friends and fellow Crusaders were always close at hoof—and she'd been surprised that Silver Spoon was trailing their little group, and hadn't spent even a single minute of the party with Diamond Tiara. She wasn't talking to them much beyond congratulating Apple Bloom, but the fact that she was there with them was interesting enough to make the farm filly's mind spin.
As the Crusaders took a break from mingling and dancing to enjoy some of the good food, the conversation came around to the future of the Crusaders, and how the others would proceed with trying to earn their Cutie Marks. Apple Bloom had told them that the grown ponies who kept telling them that Cutie Marks come when the time is right had been right all along—that there was just no way you could rush a Cutie Mark. "But," she added, "that don't mean you just sit around waitin' t' find out who you are. Ah reckon th' real trick is, if there's somethin' you love doin' as much as life itself, then that's th' thing you oughtta do th' most. It might just be your special talent."
"Like you with fixing things?" Scootaloo asked.
"Eeeyup. Ah didn't realize how much Ah loved buildin' an' fixin' stuff, because Ah was always too wrapped up in all our crazy schemes t' see that there was one part Ah looked forward to most of all. Now that Ah know where Ah was goin' wrong, Ah know Ah coulda had mah Cutie Mark a long time ago, if'n Ah'd just paid attention t' mah big sis."
Sweetie Belle groaned. "Well then I'll never get my Cutie Mark," she whined. "I'm not good at anything! If you ask Rarity, I'm a walking disaster area! I don't think there's anything I love doing that much!"
As Vinyl Scratch started the next song, Apple Bloom suddenly got an idea. "Hey, Sweetie Belle," she said. Before Sweetie could even turn around, Apple Bloom was pushing her up onto the stage.
"Ack! What're you—Apple Bloom—!"
"Sing, Sweetie Belle!" Apple Bloom said.
"Huh? Sing?" Sweetie Belle paled. "I can't sing! I just...no, everypony's watching, they'll—"
"Just sing," Apple Bloom said with a smile. "For me. Please. Just sing."
Seeing this exchange, Vinyl grinned and changed the mix, levitating a microphone to the younger unicorn. "Go for it, kiddo!" she said.
Around the stage, the filly's friends started stomping their hooves and calling out her name. Feeling the heat rising in her face, Sweetie took the microphone and shakily started to sing the first thing that came to mind.
Everypony has a special something
Something only they can do
We're all looking, looking for that one thing
The one thing that'll make, make our dreams come true
Earth pony, pegasus, unicorn
Don't you know that we're all, that we're all the same?
It doesn't matter how or where you're born
There's just one way that you'll make, that you'll make your name...
Nervous at first, Sweetie Belle became more confident as everypony cheered her on. Her voice became stronger and clearer.
Find out who you are!
Just reach out and touch that brightest star!
It's never far away!
Everypony gets her Cutie Mark one day!
Sweetie Belle was now dancing as she sang, smiling at the crowd and encouraging them to dance and make noise. As she twirled around and raised the microphone high above her head to belt out the chorus again, a dazzling light engulfed her, sending winking sparkles trailing away from her flank like fireflies. The crowd cheered louder as the dazzling sparkles faded away, revealing...
Find out who you are!
Don't you know, don't you see, you're a shooting star!
It's never far away!
Everypony gets her Cutie Mark one day!
Find out who you are!
Go ahead, just reach up, touch a shooting star!
It's never far away!
Everypony gets her Cutie Mark one day!
One day!
Oooooone daaaaaay!
TODAY!
Cutie Mark Crusaders, yaa~aay!
My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic and My Little Pony: Equestria Girls are copyrighted intellectual property of Hasbro. This intellectual property is used without permission with no intent to profit from said use. Other referenced properties are also used without permission, with no intent to profit from said use. The unique content contained on this page is the property of Mythril Moth, and redistribution of this content without express permission is strongly discouraged.
