"Oh, are you sure about this, Scootaloo? I've never even heard of a pony zip-lining before." Sweetie Belle asked with uneasiness in her voice as the Cutie Mark Crusaders stand on a wooden platform nailed on a tall tree with a rope tied around it and with them wearing zip-lining gear.

"Neither have I, but Spike told me it was awesome!" Scootaloo said with confidence and jumps bringing the other two with her. As they went flying down they shouldn't have used a rope because the rapid speed is causing the rope to burn from the hooks. They then slowed down as they lost speed and stopped in the middle and notices the burning the hooks have caused above them which made the rope snap. The three screamed as they fall down to the woods below landing the branches and leaves before hitting the ground with tree sap and pine needles stuck on them.

"See anything?" Applebloom asked weakly and Scootaloo checks only to find tree sap on her flank.

"Tree sap and pine needles, but no cutie mark." Scootaloo answered disappointedly.

"Plan B?" Sweetie asked.

"Yeah. You know where we can find a cannon at this hour?" Scootaloo asked with a confident smile which made the two flinch in worry.

"It's no use! No matter what we try, we always end up without our cutie marks. And, surprisingly often, covered in tree sap." Scootaloo said as the three took off their gear.

"Maybe we should do something less dangerous? Like pillow testing. Or flower sniffing." Sweetie suggested.

"This town is full of ponies who have their cutie marks. Why don't we ask them how they did it?" Applebloom mentioned passing over two buckets of water to them with towels as she w.

"That's a great safe idea." Sweetie said.

"Yeah! And we can start with the coolest pony in Ponyville." Scootaloo said.

"Applejack!" Applebloom said.

"Rarity!" Sweetie joined.

"Come on, guys, I said 'cool'! You know who I'm talking about. She's fast. She's tough. She's not afraid of anything!" Scootaloo hinted.

"Pinkie Pie?" Applebloom and Sweetie asked in unison.

"No! The greatest flyer ever to come out of Cloudsdale." Scootaloo said.

"Fluttershy?" Applebloom and Sweetie asked again in confusion.

"No! Rainbow Dash!" Scootaloo answered.

"Oh! Yeah, that makes much more sense." Applebloom said.

"Of course!" Sweetie agreed.

"Let's do it. Let's find out how Rainbow Dash found her cutie mark!" Scootaloo announced.

"YEAH!" the three clapped each others hooves but Scootaloo forgot to wipe her hooves thus getting the other two stuck on her as they struggled to free themselves from the gooey sticky substance. They groaned and went to clean off the sap so they can get some inspiration from Rainbow Dash as soon as possible and see what other stories holds in store for them.

-Main music plays-

After the three washed the sap off their hooves Scootaloo drives her scooter as she pulls the other two in a cart behind her as they make their way to find Dash. On the way they gasped to see three rabbits hopping down the path with apples. Scootaloo went to a complete halt just before she could hit them.

"Get back here, you thievin' varmints!" a familiar voice yelled coming from the direction the rabbits came out of.

"Thievin' what now?" Applebloom repeated as the rabbits retreated away. All of a sudden Applejack jumps out from behind a bush surprising the fillies as well as Applejack as she braced for impact. After the collision the group were knocked to the ground landing on each other.

"Applebloom!" Applejack scolded slightly. Applebloom then looked at Applejack's cutie mark and something hit her.

"Hey sis! How'd you get your cutie mark?" Applebloom asked.

"I never told you that story?" Applejack asked curiously with a raised eyebrow.

"Hey! I thought we were gonna ask Rainbow Dash." Scootaloo reminded.

"We need all the help we can get." Applebloom said.

"Ugh! Fine." Scootaloo gave in and the three sat down to listen to Applejack's story.

"Why, shoot. I was just a little filly. Even littler than y'all." Applejack said as memory returns to her as a little filly traveling away with a picture of her aunt and uncle in her bag leaving Sweet Apple Acres with crying broken heart young Big Macintosh and Granny Smith. Later she arrives at a city incredibly similar to Zach Lanson's home with buildings and landmarks also similar.

"I didn't want to spend my life at a muddy old apple farm. I wanted to live the sophisticated life, like my Aunt n' Uncle Orange. So I set out to try my luck in a big city. Manehattan! The most cosmopolitan city in all of Equestria." Applejack said.

"Hey! Outta the way, you rube!" a stray high class pony scolded as young Applejack jumps out of the way.

"I knew I'd find out who I was meant to be in Manehattan." Applejack narrates as her younger self reaches her destination. She knocks on a door with an orange sign on it and it opens revealing her aunt and uncle both with high class fashion.

"Aunt Orange! Uncle Orange! Thank y'all so much for lettin' me stay!" young Applejack thanked.

"'Y'all'. Ahahaha... Isn't she just the living end?" Aunt Orange laughed.

"How quaint." Uncle Orange chortled.

"Don't worry. We'll have you acting like a true Manehattanite in no time." Aunt Orange assured. After countless training young Applejack was ready to be a high class pony changing her mane to her aunts style. Soon their was a party of rich ponies enjoying themselves at the table with fizzing drinks in front of them.

"And how are you finding good old Manehattan?" a colt asked young Applejack.

"Oh, it's simply divine." Applejack said in a suave voice.

"Very well said, my dear." Aunt Orange complimented.

"Although, I must admit the city noise took some getting used to. Where I'm from, nights are so quiet you seldom hear a peep until the roosters wake you." Applejack said.

"The... what?" a mare asked.

"I say, my dear, what in the world is a 'rooster'?" the colt asked.

"What's he talking about? What do I say? I don't wanna look like a fool." Applejack narrated.

"Dinner is served." a server announced entering with multiple dinner trays.

"Thank goodness. Being a city pony's hard work. I'm so hungry I could eat a-" young Applejack stopped after the tray opened revealing only a straw of grain and small orange pastry the size of a seed. Applejack was disappointed by the sight and skipped dinner. The next morning Applejack woke up early to see the sun rise in the distance.

"Cock-a-doodle-doo... Oh, I wonder what Granny Smith and Big McIntosh are up to. I bet they're applebuckin' their way through the Red Delicious trees. Oh, what I wouldn't give for just one bite..." young Applejack said leaning on the window and shed a single tear missing her Apple family she left behind.

"I never felt so homesick in all my days as I did right then." Applejack said as she continues to tell her story. Suddenly a loud exploding sound startled the young filly and looks into the distance to see a rainbow trailing down to none other then her home Sweet Apple Acres which formed a joyful smile from her lips.

"It was amazin'! A rainbow pointin' right back to... home. In that moment, it all became clear. I knew right then just who I was supposed to be." Applejack said as she tells the remaining of her tale as her younger self rushes to the farm where Granny Smith and Big Macintosh were waiting with surprised smiles on them. Applejack reaches Granny Smith and nuzzles her. At that exact moment a shining light appeared on Applejack's flank and appeared her triple apple cutie mark.

"That's when this here appeared. I've been happily workin' in the farm ever since." Applejack finished. She then heard raspberry's near by and sees the three rabbits she was chasing earlier with the apples in their paws and ran.

"There they are! Get back here, ya thievin' varmints!" Applejack yelled and started chasing the three again.

"Aww... That was such a sweet story!" Sweetie said with a nodding Applebloom.

"Sweet? Try sappy. [mock-gags] Come on! We've got to find Rainbow Dash and hear the cool way to get a cutie mark." Scootaloo urged as she hops on her scooter and the other two jump on the wagon and they zoomed off resuming their search for Rainbow Dash. On the way to Ponyville another unexpected moment awaited them as Fluttershy suddenly steps in front of the path making the three fillies scream. Scootaloo tries to stop but sends the three flying into the air landing just a couple feet away from Fluttershy. They see a line of baby ducks passing by in front of Fluttershy.

"All right, little ones. This way. This way. You really should be more careful. Somepony could get hurt. Why are you in such a hurry anyway?" Fluttershy asked the three crusaders.

"We're trying to find Rainbow Dash, so we can hear how she earned her cutie mark." Scootaloo answered.

"Oh, that would be interesting. You know, I wouldn't have gotten my cutie mark if it weren't for her."

"Rainbow Dash?! Really?!"

"Oh yes. It all started at Summer Flight Camp." Fluttershy began her flashback in cloudsdale. She was a pretty thin filly compared to the other young ponies but had the same shyness she always had.

"You'd never guess, but when I was little I was very shy. And a very weak flyer." Fluttershy narrated. Her younger self watches the other experienced fliers fly through the ring clouds as she struggles to get over one cloud ring. As she was about to pass over one she accidentally got caught on it and was sent falling down a cloud slide and flew up to the air into an orange flag landing with the flag on her head.

"[laughter] Nice going, 'Klutzershy'! They outta ground you permanently." the first younger bully of Rainbow Dash from the best flyer competition mocked.

"HA! My baby brother can fly better than you!" the second younger bully joined and the two continue to laugh at Fluttershy as she cowers to the ground with a sad face.

"It was the most humiliating moment of my life. And then, out of nowhere..." Fluttershy said as she remembers seeing multicolored flying by while it's shadow startled the two bullies and sees a younger Rainbow Dash land right in front of them and Fluttershy with an angry look on her.

"Leave her alone!" young Dash ordered angrily.

"Ooh, what are you gonna do, 'Rainbow Crash'?" the young second bully mocked.

"Keep making fun of her and find out!" young Dash answered.

"You think you're such a big shot? Why don't you prove it?" the first bully challenged.

"Whaddya have in mind?" young Dash asked with a competitive expression. Soon a starting line was set in place with the three young pegasi line up waiting for Fluttershy to wave the checker flag with an audience watching young and grown.

"You're going down!" the second bully declared.

"In history, maybe. See you boys at the finish line!" young Dash said as they prepared themselves for the race. Just then Fluttershy waved the flag and the three were off zooming at incredible high speeds faster than a speeding bullet. But unfortunately they were going so fast that it sends Fluttershy spinning rapidly thus falling off the cloud she was standing on sending her down screaming in horror. She tried flapping her wings to gain some altitude but she was still too weak to even fly. She was getting nearer and nearer to the ground waiting to accept her fate until something amazing happened that will change her life. A large pack of butterfly's flew underneath her and caught the filly saving her from hitting the ground. She was in state of confusion at first but smiled at the colorful sight that is holding her up.

"I had never seen such beautiful creatures. Butterflies don't fly as high as my cloud home. And I've never been near the ground before." Fluttershy explained as she goes along with her story.

"What is this place

filled with so many wonders?

Casting its spell

That I am now under

---

Squirrels in the trees

and the cute little bunnies

Birds flying free

and bees with their honey

---

Hooneeeeey!

---

Oooh, what a magical place

and I owe it all to the Pegasus race

If I knew the ground had so much up its sleeve

I'd have come here sooner, and never leave

---

Yes, I love everythiiiiiiiiiiiing!" young Fluttershy sang her heart out just the moment a loud explosion to place all of a sudden. She looks up to see a rainbow shockwave roam across the sky which startled all the animals sending them back to their dens, nests, and homes. Fluttershy knew she had to do something to comfort the little creatures.

"Shhh. It's okay." Fluttershy said calmly to a group of shaking bunnies under a bush and her voice comforted them which made them hop out.

"You can come out." Fluttershy said in a squirrel hole in a tree and they come out as well.

"Everything's okay. There's nothing to be afraid of." Fluttershy managed to say in the pond where the frogs hid and went to the sky getting the frightened ducks to come out too. She soon had different multiple species surrounding her without any fear towards her knowing they can trust their lives in her hooves. And just like that a light appeared on her flank and appeared her triple butterfly cutie mark.

"Somehow I had the ability to communicate with the animals on a different level." Fluttershy finished.

"Wait, wait, wait. What happened to Rainbow Dash? What about the race?" Scootaloo asked anxiously.

"Oh. Well, I wasn't there, so I don't really know what happened." Fluttershy admitted.

"Come on, Crusaders. We've gotta find her. Besides, I can't take any more singing." Scootaloo urged.

"Maybe my sister knows where she is. Bye, Fluttershy!" Sweetie said as she and Applebloom got on the cart and Scootaloo takes off.

"Bye, girls!" Fluttershy said back waving. As soon as the three crusaders arrived at Carousel Boutique they got caught up at Rarity's sense of fashion as she measures the three fillies with dressing cloths around them.

"How did we get roped into this? Oh, we'll never hear Rainbow Dash's story." Scootaloo complained.

"Are you girls still obsessing over your cutie marks?" Rarity asked.

"Of course! Most other fillies at school already have theirs." Sweetie pointed out.

"Mmm, I know how you feel. For the longest time I couldn't figure out why I didn't have mine." Rarity admitted and started having a flashback of her own. She went to the same exact school the three crusaders attend when she was young. Rarity's story begins where there is a practice for a school play going on. A group of fillies including a younger Cheerilee the future teacher of Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo's class are in costumes for the play: a group of fruit, a dandellion, a cake, a stack of hay, and a flower. A younger Rarity and her old teacher are watching the play practice from behind the stage.

"Well done, Rarity. Your costumes are very nice." Rarity's teacher commended.

"Nice?! They need to be spectacular! And the performance is tomorrow!" Rarity cried. The next day she tried everything she could come up with to make the costume designs magnificent but she couldn't find the right touch.

"I tried every trick I could think of, but nothing seemed to work. The costumes just weren't right. And the play opened that night." Rarity narrated.

"Maybe I'm not meant to be a fashionista after all..." young Rarity said sadly with a drooping head. But as she was about to give up her horn started glowing unexpectedly and started forcing her out the boutique surprising the filly as well.

"What's going on?!" young Rarity exclaimed in confusion and surprise.

"I had no idea where my horn was taking me. But unicorn magic doesn't happen without a reason. I knew this had to do with my love of fashion and maybe even my cutie mark!" Rarity said as she talks about her strange magic journey as her horn started levitating her across the parks, desert, hills and the wasteland where the diamond dog incident will take place with a bored expression on her face through the whole trip. Finally she bumps into a giant boulder standing upright in front of a cliff. She rubbed her head and looked up at the massive structure with confusion.

"I knew that this was... MY DESTINY!" Rarity declared.

"A ROCK?! That's my destiny?! What is your problem, horn? I followed you all the way out here for a ROCK?! [groans] Dumb rock!" young Rarity whined kind of bending the truth of Rarity's statement. However a large exploding sound just occurred scaring the younger Rarity as she looks up to see a rainbow soundwave roam across the skies. The sound just made the large boulder crack and breaks in half and falls to the ground revealing to Rarity's surprise she sees hundreds of sparkling jewels inside of it in all shapes, sizes, and colors. She managed to get them all back to her shop and created the fabulous costumes she pictured for the play. That night the audience watched in awe to see the filly dancers perform in their new sparkling gem sewed outfits. The teacher looked at Rarity with a proud smile and sees a shining light on her flank. Young Rarity looks to see the light on her flank and appeared her triple diamond cutie mark thus ending the tale.

"Ugh! These namby-pamby stories aren't getting us any closer to our cutie marks! They're all about finding who you really are and boring stuff like that." Scootaloo whined.

"Yes, Scootaloo, that's exactly-" Rarity was about to explain but sees Scootaloo pushing the two out the door in a hurry.

"Come on, girls! We need action! We need Rainbow Dash!" Scootaloo urged and were out the boutique. Soon than the three realized they got caught up to Twilight Sparkle's story at a restaurant with intrigued looks on Applebloom and Sweetie while Scootaloo holds a bored uninterested expression.

"As a young filly in Canterlot, I always wanted to go to the Summer Sun Celebration, where Princess Celestia raises the sun. And I saw the most amazing, most wonderful thing I've ever seen." Twilight said as she remembers those moments when she was young. It started at Canterlot where the celebration is taking place at the time. Horns started sounding on a porch with a large sun statue guards surrounding it. Young Twilight started squeezing in the crowd to get a better view. When she got to a comfortable spot she sees Princess Celestia herself walking down the porch and started summoning her magic and flew up into the air filling Twilight's eyes with excitement. As Celestia reaches to the center of the sun statue the actual sun shines brightly making the crowd gasp in awe. Celestia finishes and the crowd cheers in shear excitement for the princess leaving Twilight speechless at her magic. This made her want to become just as powerful as the princess so she went to her home to study some magic.

"I poured myself into learning everything I could about magic." Twilight naratted as she goses along. She never used moving magic before and it's a basic spell for unicorns so she started there first and concentrated as hard as she could on a book she was reading while grunting at the difficulty. Eventually she managed to flip the page and made her smile in joy as continues reading. Hours later until it was night time she read every last book without any boredom getting the best of her.

"My parents decided to enroll me in Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns." Twilight said as her parents entered with a paper with Twilight's name on it and a check mark meaning she is free to enter. This made young Twilight jump in shear joy.

"It was a dream come true! Except for one thing... I had to pass an entrance exam!" Twilight narrated as her younger self found herself in an unexpected situation in a classroom with four examiners watching her. Her parents on the side of the room signaled to smile which she did. A stallion pushes a cart in with a dragon egg on it. She has to open the egg with the dragon alive.

"Well, Miss Sparkle?" the first examiner asked. Twilight was in a state of pressure and nervousness as she sweats rapidly. She chuckles nervously which made the four write down their notes on their clipboards which made Twilight looks at the egg nervously unsure on what to do.

"Well, Miss Sparkle?" the first examiner repeated with serious looks on each of their faces as one of the examiners coughed. Young Twilight then focused and struggled to use her magic on the egg only to get small sparks from her horn. This made another of the examiners yawn in boredom. The first examiner looks at her watch to see how long it has been.

"We don't have all day." the first examiner reminded. Young Twilight did everything she could doing every action she thought could work but still got no result.

"I knew this was the most important day of my life, that my entire future would be affected by the outcome of this day and I was about to blow it!" Twilight said remembering that she had tried one last attempt but still only get sparks from her horn and lets herself fall to the floor.

"I'm sorry I wasted your time." young Twilight apologized shamefully lowering her head while the examiners write down their notes with disappointed expressions. But when things looked very bleak at that very moment a very loud earthquake shaking explosion startled the filly and her magic was starting to go out of control. A beam of magic shoots out from Twilight's horn and hits the opening it to reveal a rather younger baby dragon Spike. Twilight's eyes began glowing in a radiant white light while purple energy surrounds her frightening the examiners and her parents. A beam casts onto her parents and turns them into plants. Spike on the other hand got a beam as well which sends him growing until his giant head breaks the ceiling with electricity coming out. This happen to catch Celestia's attention nearby. As Twilight struggles to take control of her magic she felt a hoof on her shoulder and looks to see the princess herself before her with a warm smile on her. This made Twilight calm down and just like that the examiners were put back down, her parents were back to their normal selves with shocked looks on them, and the fully grown Spike was too back to his normal baby state as the toddler dragon sucks on his tail.

"Twilight Sparkle." Celestia spoke.

"Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean-" the scared young Twilight tried to apologize.

"You have a very special gift. I don't think I've ever come across a unicorn with your raw abilities." Celestia admitted happily.

"Huh?" Twilight questioned.

"But you need to learn to tame these abilities through focused study."

"Huh?!"

"Twilight Sparkle, I'd like to make you my own personal protege here at the school."

"HUH?!"

"Well?" Celestia asked. Twilight looks at her parents as her father nods frantically in excitement while her mother gestured her hoof to take the offer with an excited looks as well.

"YES!" young Twilight jumps in the air with pure joy.

"One other thing, Twilight." Celestia added.

"More?" Twilight asked in shocked disbelief and lets herself fall to the ground. Celestia then pointed at Twilight's flank and she looks to see her lavender sparkling star cutie mark.

"My cutie mark! Yesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesy esyesyesyesyesyesyesyes..." Twilight started jumping around Celestia in absolute excitement and not only is she now the personal student to the ruler of the country but received her cutie mark.

"...yesyesyesyes..." Twilight in the present day is too jumping around the table where she and the three crusaders are sitting at.

"Okay, okay." Applebloom said.

"We're happy for you, Twilight." Sweetie said.

"Yeah, thrilled. Let's get out of here while we still can." Scootaloo urged and the three left leaving the excited Twilight.

"...yesyes, YEEEES!" Twilight screams still jumping around in happiness but came to realization that she is attracting some onlookers around her.

"Are you okay?" one of the watchers asked curiously.

"[giggle] Um... yes." Twilight answered nervously. Meanwhile the three fillies ride their way through the busy streets of Ponyville searching for Rainbow Dash. On the way Zach Lanson notices the zooming three and couldn't help but be curious on their actions. He used his wings and flew over the three. Scootaloo hears the flapping of wings above her and got a little excited at first on who she thought it may be.

"Rainbow Dash? Is that... Oh. Hey, Zach." Scootaloo greeted a little disappointed at who she saw.

"Hey, slow down a bit, your going to get yourself into a wreck." Zach warned.

"We already did, twice."

"Oh, well, take it easy a little. What's with the rush, anyway? You three look like your late for something."

"We're trying to find Rainbow Dash. Have you seen her?"

"No. But I sense that she's at Sugarcube Corner right now."

"Oh, finally! A location to her! I'm getting tired of hearing these cutsie sappy stories from the others!"

"Ah, so you've been hearing the origins of the rest of the gang, haven't you?"

"Yes, but our main target is Rainbow Dash because we need some inspiration to find our cutie marks and of how awesome she is! But so far I didn't get much confidence from the others. Just some softy touchy stories."

"Hey, speaking of which, can we hear how you got your cutie mark, Zach?" Applebloom asked.

"But didn't our sisters tell us that story already? I mean, the Nightmare Moon incident, right?" Sweetie reminded.

"Oh yeah. Well, can we hear how you started out to getting to that point?" Applebloom asked.

"I don't know, there really isn't much inspiration to my tale." Zach said unsurely.

"Oh, come on! How uninspiring can it be?" Sweetie asked.

"How about being stuck in an orphanage, where the manager is nasty and mean, makes you do every chore in the whole place, get dumped by many foster parents, get picked on by most of the kids, and led up to a life changing moment involving a world I never knew existed?" Zach asked in one breath with a goofy smile.

"...Okay, we see your point." Sweetie gave in.

"Told ya. But I suppose the only inspiration I can give you is to keep looking on to the things you see you're good at. Try to notice something you're really great at compared to the other things." Zach advised.

"Okay, we'll try." Scootaloo said.

"Would you like me to teleport us to Sugarcube Corner? It'll be faster." Zach offered.

"No thanks. I'd rather give my wings some flapping practice." Scootaloo declined.

"If you insist. Well, I'll see you there then." Zach said and with that he disappears with his unicorn magic.

"Oh, I can't wait to hear Rainbow's cutie mark story! I know it's going to be awesome!" Scootaloo said with excitement.

"You're looking for Rainbow Dash? What for? That sounds exciting, and fun! I'm excited and I want to have fun! I'm interested to know what you want from her! If she's at Sugarcube Corner, than I want to be at Sugarcube Corner! Hey! I have an idea! Wanna go to Sugarcube Corner?" Pinkie Pie came out of nowhere on the cart with a helmet on and shook excitably nearly losing her balance but Applebloom saves her from falling off.

"Well, we're sort of looking for Rainbow Dash, so we can hear how she got her cutie mark." Sweetie explained.

"Cutie mark? Come with me and I'll tell you how I got mine!" Pinkie said and the two fillies look at Scootaloo waiting for an answer.

"[sigh] Why not?" Scootaloo groaned as she continues to drive.

"Alright!" Pinkie cheered and began her story at a rock farm where her and her family lived gathering rocks. It was a dark cloudy gloomy and depressing place to live in. She wasn't always the Pinkie Pie everypony knows today. In fact she didn't even look like the one today. She was a bit darker and her hair was straight without the unkept bouncy curly hair. A bell then rung signaling work was over as Pinkie's parents and sisters walked inside to the farmhouse with disappointed glares at young Pinkie which made her sigh and drop her head in a depressing manner.

"My sisters and I were raised on a rock farm outside of Ponyville. We spent our days working the fields. There was no talking. There was no smiling. [sigh] There were only rocks. We were in the south field, preparing to rotate the rocks to the east field when all of a sudden..." Pinkie narrated as she tells of a loud boom which scared her a little and looks up to see a massive rainbow wave pass above her in the sky clearing away the gloomy dark clouds. Then the shockwave arrives creating a typhoon of wind at young Pinkie as she stands her ground trying to withstand the strength. As the wind stop she immediately changed as her color comes to a more brighter appearance and even her hair poofed up making that bouncy hair Pinkie always had. Just then a beautiful rainbow arches above the farm with animals coming out of nowhere at the field. This atmosphere made young Pinkie smile as wide as she could for the first time in her whole lifetime as the rainbow dissipates.

"I never felt joy like that before. It felt so good I just wanted to keep smiling forever. And I wanted everyone I knew to smile too, but rainbows don't come along that often. I wondered, how else could I create some smiles?" Pinkie said as goes along with the story. Young Pinkie laid a thinking hoof on her chin rubbing it for a couple moments until she had a brilliant idea in her head and rushes to the silo where she had been working on a project all night. The next morning arrives and the Pie family wakes up to get ready for another working day.

"We better harvest the rocks from the south field." Pinkie's father said just before he hears some faint polka dancing music coming from the silo along with the rest of the family.

"Pinkamina Diane Pie! Is that you?" Pinkie's mother called.

"Mom! I need you and dad and the sisters to come in. Quick!" young Pinkie exclaimed opening the door with balloons and confetti popping out and closes the doors leaving her parents looking at each other with curious looks. Pinkie's father slowly opens the door revealing the room filled with balloons, confetti, streamers, tables with all sorts of food including cake. They all looked around the room in confusion wondering what the meaning of this is.

"Surprise! You like it? It's called... a party!" young Pinkie exclaimed in excitement and waited for her family to answer. They all had incredible shocked looks on them with Pinkie's father letting the wheat plant slip from his mouth showing more of his reaction. Pinkie bites her bottom lip in worry as she's her family's lips quiver trying to find the words after seeing the sight.

"Oh. You don't like it." young Pinkie said in disappointment as she awaits her punishment. However after a couple moments of looking around the room with their lips still quivering they finally smiled widely in complete happiness.

"[gasps] You like it! I'm so happy!" Pinkie declared in joy as the Pie family dance to the music having fun for the very first time together. As they dance Pinkie's flank shined and appeared her triple yellow and blue balloon cutie mark.

"And that's how Equestria was made." Pinkie finished going way off topic.

"Wha... huh?" Scootaloo halted in confusion after hearing that.

"Look! We're here!" Applebloom pointed out seeing that they are right in front of Sugarcube Corner.

"Maybe on the way home I can tell you the story of how I got my cutie mark. It's a gem!" Pinkie said as she trots her way inside forgetting the exact topic she has been talking about. Scootaloo looks at the other two with a worried expression.

"Oh, come on. She's just being Pinkie Pie." Sweetie reminded with Scootaloo groaning in annoyance and made their way inside. As they entered the bakery Scootaloo was thrilled to see her hero inside.

"Rainbow Dash! You're here!" Scootaloo said as the rest of the group made way for her to approach the three fillies.

"I hear you're looking for my cutie mark story?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"[sigh] You have no idea what I've been through today to hear that story." Scootaloo said as she sits down to hear the story she has been waiting for all day.

"It all happened during the race at Flight Camp, where I stood alone against all odds to defend Fluttershy's honor." Dash began as she begins the story just the moment the race began. Young Dash looks at her opponents with a competitive look as she blows out some steam from her nostrils. Young Fluttershy then raises the flag ready to wave it as the racers prepared themselves. Dash licks her lips waiting for the suspense to kick in. As the three competitors unfurl their wings young Fluttershy waves the flag as it leads up to Fluttershy's cutie mark moment. As the race goes on the racers pass each ring as they go with onlookers watching in awe. Dash speeds up taking the lead by a huge margin. They cut to a sharp turn which results a crash in a pillar from the first bully stuck in the cloud structure.

"I've never flown like THAT before. That freedom was unlike anything I've ever felt. The speed, the adrenaline, the wind in my mane... I liked it a lot." Dash narrated. As young Dash smiles victoriously thinking she has already wrapped the race up the second bully comes out of nowhere bumping Dash out of the track.

"Ha! Later, Rainbow Crash!" the second bully mocked as he takes the lead.

"Hey!" young Dash scolded and rushes down to the earth to retake the lead.

"Turns out the only thing I liked more than flying fast... was winning!" Dash said as she tells her life changing moment. Young Dash was going unbelievably fast for her age that she sends the second bully out of control. She started feeling a force trying to push her back but is determined to counter it. As she heads down to the final cloud ring near the ground she began her very first sonic rainboom chain reaction as she goes up at zooming speeds at the exact same time. She looks behind her to see a rainbow trail being made right from her hair and smiles widely at the sight not believing her eyes. She then sees the finish line ahead of her and produces a confident smile at the feats she accomplished that day.

"Most ponies thought that the Sonic Rainboom was just an old mare's tail. But that day... The day I discovered racing... I proved that the legends were true. I made the impossible happen!" Dash said as she finishes the story with her crossing the finish line with the rainbow trail still following her and the crowd cheering wildly as she arches above the whole city of Cloudsdale. At that very moment her flank shines earning her red, yellow, and blue thunderbolt cloud cutie mark thus ending the tale.

"And that, little ones, is how you earn a cutie mark." Dash finished.

"Wooooow..." the Cutie Mark Crusaders gasped.

"Wait a second. I heard that explosion. And I saw the rainbow too. Rainbow Dash, if you hadn't scared the animals, I never would have learned I could communicate with them and gotten my cutie mark." Fluttershy intervened.

"I heard that boom! And right afterwards there was this amazing rainbow that taught me to smile." Pinkie joined.

"When I got my cutie mark, I saw a rainbow that pointed me home. I bet it was your sonic rainboom!" Applejack added.

"There was an explosion I could never explain when I got my cutie mark." Rarity said.

"This is uncanny! If that explosion didn't happen when it did, I would have blown my entrance exam. Rainbow Dash, I think you helped me earn my cutie mark too!" Twilight also joined and Pinkie unexpectedly threw herself at Dash to the ground into a hug.

"We all owe our cutie marks to you!" Pinkie said.

"Do you realize what this means? All of us had a special connection before we even met." Fluttershy added.

"We've been BFFs forever and we didn't even know it!" Rarity joined.

"Come here, y'all." Applejack said and the six girls joined together in a group hug embracing each other happily. The sight made Zach smile sweetly along with Applbloom and Sweetie.

"Aren't you going to join us, Zach?" Pinkie offered with the others staring at him happily.

"Me? I never had a connection with you six from the beginning." Zach reminded.

"Yes you have!" Twilight disagreed.

"Oh? If so, how?" Zach asked curiously.

"You are represented to an element of harmony, right?"

"Yeah, so?"

"So, you've been destined to be an element of harmony from the very beginning. We've all had that connection to the elements of harmony, including you. So if anything, you have been our best friend too."

"And we couldn't have anypony better." Dash added happily.

"Oh, girls." Zach said quietly and couldn't help join them in the hug as well happy to be accepted by the big embrace. This made Applebloom and Sweetie coo at the sight.

"Ewwww... Gimme a break. Come on, Crusaders! Maybe we just need to try zip-lining again." Scootaloo urged but the two quickly grabbed her and pulled her to an embrace as well which made her sigh in annoyance.

"Hey. How about a song?" Fluttershy asked as everyone agreed excitedly which made Scootaloo widened her eyes in horror.

"NO!" Scootaloo screamed in desperation. Later after a great time together Zach and Twilight returned to the library to write down their new learned lesson.

"Dear Princess Celestia,

Today I learned something amazing. Everypony everywhere has a special magical connection with her friends, maybe even before she's met them. If you're feeling lonely and you're still searching for your true friends, just look up in the sky. Who knows? Maybe you and your future best friends are all looking at the same rainbow." Twilight said as Spike writes down her words on a scroll while Twilight rests her head on the window looking at a rainbow in the sky dreamily.

"Gross! When did you get so cheesy?" Spike asked disgustedly.

"Just write it, Spike." Twilight ordered which Spike obeyed. Sometimes in life there will be strange events that could ironically meet up with other lives that you will one day meet. So keep a sharp eye out because who knows? You just might bump into your future friends who had experienced something similar to what you do.

[This episode is dedicated to the poor unfortunate young lives who sadly were murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary at Newtown, Connecticut. We'll never forget.] :'(