My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic

Starlight, Starbright

Chapter 17

Meanwhile, Back in Ponyville II

The train from Manehatten rolled towards Ponyville. Onboard was a sister one of the Mane 6 hasn’t seen in a LONG time.

“I… I don’t know about this, Applebloom. I wasn’t exactly the best pony to be around.” Applebloom’s companion said, digging it’s fore-hooves into it’s thighs.

The grown-up Applebloom, with her bow now tied around her neck instead of in her hair, turned to her and sighed with a chuckle. “trust me, they will. I love you and I’m sure they’ll love you too.”

“Are you sure? You didn’t exactly tell anyone in any of your letters. You’re being as cautious as I am.”

Her companion had her there. Applebloom nervously chuckled as she scratched her neck. “well… true. But that was only because I couldn’t think of a way to explain it over a letter. But maybe meeting you and Crown in person is the best way to introduce you.”

Applebloom’s companion sighed. “If you say so.”

Applebloom seductively chuckled and kissed her companion. “Trust me. It’ll be okay. Besides, I’m sure my friends won’t make a big spectacle.” she paused for a moment. “Well, Babs Seed might.” her companion chuckled. Applebloom chuckled as well.

It was a spectacle. Least it won’t be for awhile.

Upon learning from Sweetie Belle and Rumble that Dinky, Scootaloo, and Applebloom are coming to Ponyville today, their sisters and mother’s couldn’t help but get overly exited.

Since Sugarcube Corner was too small for the ‘welcome home’ party they were planning, they moved it to the library.

“Oh, this is going to be awesome!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed. She hasn’t seen Scootaloo in a long while, it felt like forever.

She still remembers all the trouble she went though with Manni Peddi just to adopt her and Draconequus Eris. Man, that was rough. And having to deal with Discord in the mean-time wasn’t pretty. Boy, it sucked that Manni died not long after Scootaloo graduated from High School. Scoots took it hard. Dash thinks that’s why she left for Feather Top with Feather Weight.

“I hope so.” Applejack said. “it’s been a long time since we’ve seen them. I just hope they remember us.”

“Sweetie Belle remembered Rarity after all this time.” Derpy said as she flew up and hung some streamers. “I’m sure Dinky and the others will as well. Besides, it’s only been 6 years. I doubt they’ll have forgotten us that fast. I mean, eTu`nes hasn’t seen me in 8 years and he turned into a giant homicidal beast but he never forgot about me, nor I for him.”

Applejack and Dash looked at each other. Not… the best way they would’ve put it, but she had a point.

“So when do they get here, Sweetie Belle?” Twilight asked her young sister-in-law.

“Well, Dinky, Scootaloo, and Babs should be here soon. Applebloom… is gonna be a little bit late.”

“late?” Applejack asked, overhearing it. She walked over, causing Zilver to fall off the ladder. “why is she going to be late?”

“well, due to what Babs told me, she had some trouble getting her special somepony to come along. Apparently, her special somepony was really worried with coming.”

“Why?”

Sweetie Belle shrugged. “your guess is as good as mine.”

A knock came from the door, causing everyone but Twilight to hide. “what, is this a surprise party?” eTu`nes asked, not really sure why they’re hiding and his mouth full with a twinkie. Derpy didn’t answer as she dragged her behind a table.

Twilight walked over to the door, turning off the lights in the process. “Who is it?”

“it is a very cold reporter and a equally cold archeologist and apple farmer.” Scootaloo first said.

“now open the door, we’re freezing!” Dinky and Babs exclaimed.

Twilight opened the door and the 4 grown-up mares, along with 2-full grown stallions, walked in. “Man, it is surprisingly cold out there.” Pip said.

“no need to tell me twice.” Feather Weight said. “but why is it so dark?” he found the switch and flipped it on.

Everyone burst out of hiding and cheered, “WELCOME BACK!!!”

Naturally, it caught them off guard, though Pip may have hammed it on. They all smiled wide and everyone burst out laughing.

“Oh, it’s been too long, Scoots.” Dash said, hugging her adopted daughter.

“I know, Mom. It’s been a long time, too.” Scoots said, hugging back.

They hugged for a long minute before breaking. “why didn’t you tell me you were coming?”

“well… I wanted it to be a surprise.”

“And surprised I was. And look at you, a full-blown reporter.”

Scoot’s didn‘t mention that she was a reporter. “you saw the report on that destroyed museum?”

“yeah. I have to admit, you’re a pro.” Dash turned her attention to Scoot’s hubby. “thought I wish you would’ve told me you were getting married.”

“Eloped, actually.” both Scoots and Feather Weight said.

“it was her idea, actually.” F.W. said. “and I didn’t complain. I loved her too.”

“who said we were complaining?” Storm Shadow asked. “me and Dash eloped and we couldn’t be happier.”

“we know.” Scoots said with a smile.

Dash grabbed a cupcake and bit into it. “So, how’s Feather Top been treating you?”

“it’s been great.” Scootaloo said with genuine enthusiasm. “So many people, so many buildings. So many sights and sounds. It‘s cool.”

“anything happen while you were there?” Shadow asked.

“Plenty. I got a job at GNN; the worlds biggest news program, and Feather Weight works at Feather Top’s biggest newspaper and also doubles as my camera man at times.” “but the biggest one was Zaltan dieing.” Feather Weight said.

Dash and Shadow hadn’t heard that. Their hearts sank a little bit. Zaltan, the former king of the Gryphon Kingdom and father to Dash’s friend Gilda, was Equestria’s most trusted ally. Thanks to his help, they were able to find the spell that turned them back into Ponies after Trixie had foolishly turned them human and gave Celestia his forces to win the Winter War. Without his help, they’ve would’ve lost long ago. He also married Dash and Shadow in a private ceremony with just them 4, Gilda, and Gilda’s boyfriend Jason; their version of eloping. They didn’t even tell the others until they got back.

“Oh. We… hadn’t heard that.” Dash said. “how… how did he go?”

“Natural causes.” Scootaloo explained. “Died in his sleep. He just… didn’t wake up. Gilda took it the hardest. She wouldn’t eat for 4 days. Thank goodness Jason was able to pull her back on her feet in time for her coronation.”

“Coronation?”

“yeah. Gilda’s queen of the Gryphon Kingdom now.”

Dash whistled. But also felt saddened that neither Scoots or Gilda would write to tell them what had happened. Well, Gilda she can understand because she is now the new queen and all; she has a ton of responsibilities now. But Scoots? She wrote every week; why stop when that happened?

“surprised to see you here, Babs.” Applejack said, giving her niece a gentle hug.

“I know. I’m surprised too, Aunt Applejack.” Babs replied. “but, when Applebloom insists I come along after a full month of begging, you tend to come along.”

“hahaha. I know that. She can be very persistent.” A.J. looked around for a moment. “where is she, anyways?”

“she’s right behind me, time wise. She had some trouble trying to convince her special somepony to come.”

“Applebloom has a special somepony?” Zilver asked.

“yeah. And they already have a kid. Well, she’s the special somepony’s but Applebloom doesn’t care.”

Applejack smiled. That sounds like Applebloom, all right. “well, wait, who’s the special somepony?”

Babs went ‘eh…’ for a moment. “she… wants me to keep it a secret until she arrives. She wants to surprise her friends, though her special somepony is nervous as hell.”

“why?”

Babs chuckled. “not at liberty to say. But do you want to meet my wife?”

“wife? You never let on you were a Filly-Fooler.” Zilver said.

Babs shrugged. “what? Things can change.” she gestured to her wife, who was at the buffet table, to join her. She did just that. “you remember Silver Spoon, right?”

“Silver Spoon?” Applejack and Zilver surprisingly said in unison.

Silver Spoon nervously blushed and scratched her cheek. “you do remember me, huh?”

It was hard to forget that she and her friend Diamond Tiara were some pretty nasty bullies to Applebloom and the others. Babs likely didn’t know that when she married her. “y-yeah. H-how did you two meet?”

Silver shrugged. “just by random. We were both wandering though Manehatten when we happened across each other at the theater. 3 years later, we got married.”

“oh. Well, they say love comes from anywhere.” Zilver said.

“Do you know what happened to Applebloom?” Applejack asked. “Does she know about this?”

“yeah, she does. And she approves.” Babs said.

“no. I meant, what happened to her? I heard that she left Manehatten a few years ago and moved to Trottingham to open up her vet practice. And you said she was right behind you.”

“well, our trains left at the same time, but Trottingham’s farther so, technically, she is right behind me, but Trottingham is closest in terms of mountains to cross and...”

Ugh, all this fancy mathematic talk was hurting Applejack’s and Zilver’s brains.

Derpy hugged her daughter as hard as she could, not wanting to let her go. “OH, you have no idea how much I missed you!” Derpy squealed.

Dinky was trying to avoid getting her neck constrained by her mother’s python-like legs. “Yeah. Nice to see you too, mom. I can’t breath, though.”

Derpy chuckled nervously and let go of her daughter. “sorry.”

“so why didn’t you tell us you left with Daring Do and Silverbolt?” eTu`nes asked.

Pip shrugged. The only way he could best describe it was, “it was just a spur of the moment thing. She offered, we accepted.” he said in a much more mature voice then he had when he was a colt. “Plus, Daring is so cool.”

“I can’t blame ya.” the dragon said. Dinky sighed and rolled her eyes. She used her magic to pull over a cupcake and bit into it. “Un… Dinky, don’t you think you should cut back on the sweets. You’re starting to get a bit chubby.”

“Chubby?” Dinky and Pip looked at each other, then chuckled warmly.

Derpy and eTu`nes were confused by their laugh. “um… what? Did we miss something?” Derpy asked.

Dinky’s chuckled faded and she put her cupcake down. “um, Mom. There’s something you should now.” she smiled wide, having wanted to tell her for a long time. “Mom. Dad. I’m pregnant.”

A full 10 seconds passed, which to Dinky and Pip felt like forever, before Derpy happily gasped and smiled wide. “Oh!” she hugged her daughter again. “OH, My baby’s having a baby! OH!”

“Mom…” Dinky choked. “This can’t be good for the baby.”

“Oh.” Derpy quickly let her go and dusted off Dinky’s shoulder.

“Congratulations.” eTu`nes said, shaking Pip’s hoof.

“Thanks.” Pip replied. “When we first found out, we were freaking out big time. The baby wasn’t planned; he was a accident. But, like with Twilight and Starlight, sometimes the best things come though accidents.”

Derpy didn’t care about that and was more focused on the small details, close to the point of hyperventilating. “when is it due? Is it a boy or a girl? Is it a unicorn or a Pegasus or…”

“mom, mom. Calm down.” Dinky said. Derpy stopped hyperventilating and took a deep soothing breath. “I’ve having twins, a boy and a girl, which are due any day now. And I don’t know what species; I want that to be a surprise.”

Derpy still couldn’t believe it. She still remembers when Dinky was still a little filly, running and playing with her friends. Hard to believe she’s already having kids of her own. Happy tears filled her eyes and she wiped them away. “mom, you okay?” a concerned Dinky asked.

“Yeah, just un… just happy for you. Really.” she really was.

A carriage rolled up to the library and stopped in front of it.

“still not sure this is a good idea.” Applebloom’s companion said.

“Trust me. It’s gonna go fine. They’ll love ya.” Applebloom walked out of the carriage. “just wait here until I call you in. boy, Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Silver Spoon are going to be surprised when they see you.”

“I’m sure they will.”

Applebloom turned and headed to the door.

Applebloom opened the door to find that everyone was having one hell of a time partying and chattering. Applejack finally noticed her after a full minute.

“Applebloom!” she exclaimed. She ran over and hugged her little sister. “It’s been far too long, squirt.”

Applebloom didn’t fight it and hugged her back. “nice to see you too, Sis. Been a long time, hasn’t it?”

“yeah. At least 4 years.” Applejack and Applebloom hugged each other again. “So, what’s up? Anything new happen to ya?” she asked, trying to hide that she heard that heard from Babs that she had a special somepony.

“nice. Helios is doing great, looking after the ol’ homestead outside of Trottingham. Being a Vet is quite the paying job. Speaking of which…” Applebloom reached back and pulled out a bag of bits, which she tossed to Applejack. “here. I heard that the farm wasn’t doing so good.”

“it wasn’t. and thanks. This’ll help.”

Applebloom stayed quiet for a moment, not sure how to say this next part. “Listen, Sis. There’s something I have to tell you.”

“what?”

“Well…”

“APPLEBLOOM!”

Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Babs dog-piled on her, causing them to fall over onto the floor. Feather Weight, Pip, Dinky, and Silver Spoon just watched with wide smiles as they swarmed Applebloom. “Oh, it’s so great to see you!” the 3 of them all said.

Applebloom was also ecstatic to see her friends again. “yeah. It’s good to see you guys too.” Applejack rolled her eyes and got them off before they could smother her to death.

“So what’s the deal? You stopped writing 11 months ago. Why?” Sweetie Belle asked.

Applebloom scratched her cheek. “well, I was… busy.”

“Busy?” Pip asked. “busy with what?”

“Eh… getting married, for one.”

A.J. angrily frowned. “You got married and didn’t tell me?”

“well… yeah. Sorry, Sis.”

“I just wish you told me.”

Applebloom put her hoof around her sister in a friendly way. “Tell you what, sis. Next time I get married, I’ll be sure to invite you. Okay?” she said in a joking manner.

“Applebloom…”

“I’m serious.”

Scootaloo rolled her eyes. “So, who’s the lucky stallion?”

Applebloom paused for a moment. “Eh… he’s a mare.”

“a mare?” A.J. said with a confused eyebrow raised. “you never let on you were a Filly-Fooler. Though that would explain why you could never keep a guy for more then a month.”

“I know. I didn’t realize it until I met back up with her.”

“met back up?” Dinky muttered to herself.

“So. Who’s the lucky mare?” Feather Weight asked, not hearing Dinky‘s suspicions.

Applebloom thought on how to reveal who it was. “well… it’s probably better if I show you.”

“Show us?” Dinky asked.

“yeah.”

Applebloom lead her friends and her sister Applejack out to the carriage. The others stayed at the party because, well, it’s a party. And a Pinkie Pie party, with some help from her friends.

“What’s going on, Applebloom?” Pip asked. “what can’t you tell us?”

Applebloom stopped in mid-step. She turned her head back to them. “listen, she’s… nervous about meeting you all. She didn’t really leave things on a pleasant note with you guys.”

“pleasant note?” they all muttered.

“and please. Don’t freak out when you see her.” Applebloom pleaded. Everyone, not really sure what she’s going on about, nodded in agreement.

That was all her companion needed as she opened the door by herself. to everyone’s surprise, including Applebloom’s former CMC friends, Applebloom’s wife was none other then…

“DIAMOND TIARA!?!” they all yelled in surprise.

“hi… guys.” a nervous and surprisingly meek Diamond Tiara said.

Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Dinky were shocked to see that Applebloom is married to Diamond Tiara. She was the worst bully ever. She’d make the kid from the game look tame.

“Applebloom, how can you be married to her? She was the worst pony in school!” Scootaloo exclaimed. Knowing full well this was a argument for them alone, Pip, Feather Weight, Babs, and Silver Spoon backed out of the picture.

“I know that…” Applebloom started, knowing what she was talking about. “but if you--”

“no no no. we want to know what was going though your mind when you decided that marrying Tiara was a good idea!?” Sweetie Belle demanded.

“She was--”

“just what was wrong with you?!” Dinky also demanded.

Applejack couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “now hold on just a cotton-picking minute! I can’t believe what I’ma hearing here. My sister found happiness with a pony she loves deeply and all you have to say is that she’s messed up in the head?! Just what is wrong with you?”

“but she was…”

“I know Diamond Tiara was a bad bully back when you all were fillies but people can change over time.”

“not Tiara!” Scoots sternly said. “once a bully, Always a bully!”

Diamond Tiara tried to fight back the tears but couldn’t. she didn’t want them to see her cry so she ran off. “Tiara!” Applebloom called out. She angrily looked to her friends. “What is wrong with ya’ll!?” she exclaimed. “Tiara did change but you’re so focused on the past that you can’t accept the fact that she did change! You didn’t though a fit when Babs married Silver Spoon!”

“Because she didn’t know her the way we did!” Sweetie Belle exclaimed. “Tiara and Spoon were horrid bullies and you know it.”

“Yeah, I do. But I was able to overlook it!” A.B. angrily sighed. She turned to run after her wife when she stopped in mis-stride. She angrily looked back to her ’friends’. “Tiara has enough bad things in her life and she doesn’t need this piling on it.”

Applebloom left her so-called friends behind and ran after Tiara, leaving them confused by her last comment. “what bad stuff?” the 3 of them said, wondering what she meant by that.

Applebloom found Tiara in their hotel room, softly crying into a pillow. The yellow mare sat down next to her and comforted her.

“I knew coming here was a bad idea.” Tiara softly cried.

“I know and I should’ve listened. I was really hoping they would’ve gotten over the fact you were a bad bully and just accept you. I mean, my sister did.”

Tiara raised her head from the pillow. “true. But they still hate me.”

Applebloom stayed quiet. They sure didn’t show any love for this. Least A.J. was supportive, although she wasn’t happy of not being invited to the wedding. A idea then entered her mind, something that might work. But first, she had to find a filly that had disappeared. She didn’t have to look far. Heck, she didn’t have to look.

“Mommy!”

A little golden filly with Diamond Tiara’s hair ran out of the closet and piled onto Applebloom. Applebloom played along and fell onto the bed.

“Hey there, you little giddy squirt!” Applebloom chuckled.

“hey there, Mommy.” the filly calmed down enough for Applebloom to put her down. “why was Mom crying?”

Applebloom and Diamond Tiara looked at each other. “Eh… it’s a long story, love.” Tiara said, wiping the last of her tears away. She used her magic to pull her up. “Come here, my little Silver Crown.”

Tiara’s magic tickled Crown as she pulled her over. Applebloom snickered evilly. She ducked down beneath the covers, pretending to be a ghost. “Ohh. Ohh. I am the ghost of hotel’s past.”

Crown laughed as a little girl would. Tiara lightly chuckled at this. “I have come to warn you that pretty soon, your mother will be kissed by a yellow mare.” Applebloom pocked her head out of the other side and kissed Tiara on the lips.

Crown exclaimed like the toddler she is. “Mommy! A ghost came and told us Mom was going to be kissed by you!”

“Really?” Applebloom played along. “did he say anything about the tickle monster?”

The cheer on Crown’s face was replaced with fear. “oh, no. no, not the tickle monster!” Applebloom laughed evilly then lunged at her daughter. Crown yelled as she ran into the closet and locked it.

Applebloom jumped back onto the bed with a wide smirk. “I can’t believe the plan worked. Now we’re alone.”

Tiara seductively chuckled and cuddled up next to her. “Really? Well then…”

The two of them shared a passionate kiss which Crown saw and, “OOH!!”

“Silver Crown!” both Applebloom and Diamond Tiara said.

Applebloom, Diamond Tiara, and Silver Crown quickly fell asleep in each other’s hooves. In doing so, they forgot to close the door to their apartment, which had a few ponies in the doorway.

“Look at them. So peaceful. So… at peace.” Dinky said.

“That’s the same thing, Dinks.” Scoots said.

“I couldn’t think of anything else. So sue me.”

Sweetie Belle felt horrible for yelling at Applebloom back then. “Maybe… we were being a little too rash. We didn’t really listen to what Applebloom had to say about why she and Tiara ended up being wife and… wife.”

Her friends somberly nodded in agreement. They were pretty mean, not wanting to even give Tiara a chance. Given how perfect Applebloom’s image is, they should at least try. For her sake.

Author's Notes:

aw. how cute. and who guessed that Applebloom would be married to Diamond Tiara, and with a kid? come on. show of hands.