Snowflake walked in the door, quite quickly. She saw Celestia, looking dumbfounded, and Twilight, equally so. "Twilight?" asked Snowflake, "Is something wrong?" Twilight listened, her ear twitching a little, then she slowly turned her head. She looked over at Snowflake with this look of extreme sadness combined with surprise and grief. Then Twilight said slowly, "Something, no, everything, yes."
She told Snowflake as much as she could muster about what they'd read, without bursting into tears, that is. At the end, Snowflake said, "Okay, then. So… what do we plan on doing about it?" And for the first time in what seemed like hours, Celestia spoke. "I am no longer the mare I was then," she said, "So we continue acting as things were before. But we came to see if you could get a cutie mark, Snowflake, so that's what I plan to do." She levitated the book back up, tilting it gently back and forth. "And I believe that the answer lies within this book," Celestia said, opening it to a certain page and reading aloud.
"January 30," Celestia said, "Dear diary,
Our war with the humans has begun. We think that they only experimented on us because we were the most compatible with the virus. And now that we have broken free of their captivity, we plan on using our superior magic to destroy them. We can make more of us the usual way, thank you very much. Our ways are much better than theirs, and we will simply have to make them see this. And if they don't, then they will be destroyed. We, or rather, I, think that they originally planned to only use us for a time, then toss us away when they figure out how to make the virus compatible with humans. Actually, I know that this is true, because I know that they have already tossed away their sanity and begun experimenting on others of their species. We ponies will never make that mistake. One of the humans that I know of that has already gotten this modification is residing in a small human town on the edge of a large forest. It is a child, of age 4. We will make sure to annihilate that village last."
"Well, if our ability to fly, use magic, and get cutie marks depends on this virus… and that we're pretty sure that Snowflake got that virus… that means that yes, she can get a cutie mark," Twilight thought aloud. "Good thinking, Twilight," said Snowflake with a smile, "Now I can join the Cutie Mark Crusaders!" "I don't know how you manage to be the only human alive after us ponies annihilated everyone of your kind and still seek company with ponies," Twilight said. "I don't know either," said Snowflake, "Probably because humans made that virus and enslaved ponies, but ponies raised me! I… don't think of myself as a human. Just a really odd looking pony."
And so she ran off.
"Luna raised her well," Twilight muttered, trotting out of the Archives. Celestia then began organizing the whole thing. And Snowflake ran off to find the CMC and join their group, in an effort to find her special talent and get her cutie mark. She arrived at the train station and looked down a little to look the pony there in the eye. She was a little over his height, about an inch or two. "This is the train to Ponyville?" she asked. "Um, yes, ma'am…" he said, a little confused as to what exactly she was. "Thanks!" she exclaimed, getting on the train and sitting down. There wasn't a huge crowd, but she did achieve several odd glances, to each she smiled and waved, then looked forward once more. Soon the train left for Ponyville.
When Snowflake arrived in Ponyville, she paid her two bits and hopped (literally) off the train. She ran all the way to the CMC's clubhouse, and she climbed up the ladder. She knocked on the door, and the voices from inside stopped. "I'll get it," said a voice that sounded somewhere between Rainbow Dash's and Pinkie Pie's. A dark orange pegasus filly with a lavender mane opened the door and looked up. "Hey, guys! Guess what! The rumors are true!" she exclaimed into the clubhouse behind her. "What can we ya for, Princess Snowflake?" asked a yellow filly earth pony with red hair and a huge pink bow in her mane, she spoke sort of like Applejack, but higher pitched. "I heard that you had an organization going here, called the Cutie Mark Crusaders?" said Snowflake. "Yeah," said the pegasus, "What's it to ya?" "I'd like to join, I don't have a cutie mark either!" Snowflake exclaimed, pulling up her short skirt. "Can ya'll even get a cutie mark?" asked the earth pony. "Yeah," said Snowflake cheerily.
"Okay, then come on in!" exclaimed a voice from inside, she sounded like a combination of Rarity and Fluttershy. "Sweetie Belle! We can't just let in anypony!" the pegasus yelled back. "Oh, don't worry about it," said the earth pony, "Dodos aren't notably smart." "Hey! Apple Bloom, I told you not to call me that!" exclaimed the pegasus. "Okay, Scootaloo," Apple Bloom sighed. "Apology accepted," said Scootaloo, "Now, we have to do the ceremony."
"What ceremony?" asked Snowflake.
"You'll see," said Scootaloo, "Prepare the ceremonial stuff!"
"Come on back in about a half hour," said Apple Bloom, "We'll have it all ready for ya by then."
"Okay!" exclaimed Snowflake, waving as she left, "See ya later!"
And so Snowflake came back in a half hour, and Scootaloo was standing in back of a set of large drums, Sweetie Belle was standing atop a podium, and Apple Bloom was standing on the other side of the podium. Snowflake entered, and Scootaloo enthusiastically banged on the drums, maybe a bit too enthusiastically. Everyone in the room was sort of shaken. But they quickly got back on track, and Sweetie Belle picked up the paper. "We, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, elect Princess Snowflake…" she said, then Snowflake said, "Just Snowflake is fine." "Okay," said Sweetie Belle, "Just Snowflake… to join us as a friend through thick and thin, a sister in triumphs both large and small, and an amiga toward the goal in achieving our cutie marks! We now proclaim you for now and forever more, as a fellow Cutie Mark Crusaders! Congratulations!" And so Apple Bloom pulled out from behind her back a cape, and Snowflake bowed down so Apple Bloom could put it on her. "So," said Snowflake, "What kind of crusading do we want to do today?" "Sky diving!" exclaimed Scootaloo. "Sewing!" exclaimed Sweetie Belle. "We could help mah sis out on the farm!" suggested Apple Bloom. "Let's do all of those things!" exclaimed Snowflake, "Well, excepting possibly skydiving. That might be a bit dangerous. Also, it costs a bunch of bits."
"I'd only agree with you on the second one," said Scootaloo, "But let's get to sewing! We can sew something for you, Snowflake!" "Great idea!" exclaimed Sweetie Belle, "C'mon, girls, let's go to my sister's place to get some supplies!" They all put their hooves and hands together and exclaimed (incredibly loudly), "CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS, OUTFIT MAKERS!" Then they ran outside into the autumn air, toward Rarity's boutique.
When they arrived, Sweetie Belle told the rest to stay outside while she got some fabric and stuff. She came back with a ton of fabric, apparently she'd given Rarity the 'adorable eyes' treatment. Then they all rode off in the scooter-drawn wagon… thing. Whatever. Anyways, they arrived back at the clubhouse and everypony got to work. Meanwhile, Snowflake modeled for everything. Sweetie Belle sketched it out, just like Rarity usually does, although, as Scootaloo pointed out, it looked like some sort of cowering timberwolf. Sweetie Belle shoved her away and continued, saying, "IT'S A WORK IN PROGRESS!"
Then came the designing of the pattern, which they didn't do, they went straight to doubling over the base fabric and having Snowflake lay on it, arms and legs extended out to the sides. She got poked with the scissors multiple times while they were trying to make it. But they made the skirt knee-length and very puffy, it had ¾ length sleeves that were incredibly loose. There were ruffles EVERYWHERE, courtesy of Sweetie Belle, and since she didn't have her sister's talent with magically affixing gems to things, they made a silver chain for the necklace and left it at that. They made a pair of stockings that went up to her mid-thighs, with ruffles at the tops, of course. They were blue and white striped, the dress was bright red and there was a gigantic pink bow on the back, courtesy of Apple Bloom. There were a ton of lightning bolts everywhere, courtesy of Scootaloo.
In the end, it fit, but the dress looked like a mixed up jumble of stuff that all the Crusaders would wear. It had stuff that Apple Bloom would wear, therefore it had a bunch of red and yellow and apples and leaves, also a bunch of pointed bits. It had parts that Scootaloo would wear, therefore it had lightning bolts all over and a bunch of blue, and also, there were rainbow-colored gloves. It had stuff that Sweetie Belle would wear, hence the puffy skirt, also a bunch of shiny stuff and loads of ruffles. Actually, on the ends of the gloves, there were SHINY RUFFLES. Regardless, it looked really weird, and when Snowflake looked at herself in the mirror, she fell over laughing. Thankfully, her overly puffy skirt kept her from getting bruised. Her crown fell off and rolled across the floor, landing at Sweetie Belle's hooves. Sweetie sighed, looking at the crown and it's bright white snowflake design.
"Girls, I appreciate your help, but…" said Snowflake, unsure of how to phrase it. "But it's all a messed up jumble of stuff that doesn't make any sense?" said Scootaloo. "And we shouldn't have designed an outfit for ya that didn't match yur interests, but instead only captured ours?" added Apple Bloom. "And that if we had asked you what you wanted in a dress, we wouldn't have gotten this mess of a thing?" Sweetie Belle finished. "We know," they all chorused, "And we're sorry." "It's okay, girls," said Snowflake, "Wanna try again?" "You bet!" exclaimed Scootaloo. "Yeah!" exclaimed Apple Bloom. "Great idea!" exclaimed Sweetie Belle. "CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS, DRESS MAKERS!" they all exclaimed, "AND WE'RE GONNA DO IT RIGHT THIS TIME!"