"I don't know! Maybe it'll be super fun to be all the same!"
The cutie mark's influencing Pinkie.
"Sort of."
"More pleasant than fun, I guess..."
"Something odd about that staff."
"I haven't studied Eastern unicorns as much as I should have..."
"...but I'm pretty sure Meadowbrook only had eight magical items, not nine."
"And I don't remember any of them being a staff."
"Well, it looks like you'll have plenty of time to try to think about it."
"Choose equality as your special talent."
"Difference is frustration."
"To excel is to fail."
"Be your best by never being your best."
"Conformity will set you free." Don’t you hear others snoring?
"Accept your limitations, and happiness will follow."
"You're no better than your friends."
"I've got it!"
Ah, whatwhatwhat, we're up, we're up!
"I know how we can get out!"
"Forget it, Twilight. This door's not opening."
One does not simply walk to freedom.
"And I'm afraid the windows are much too small for escape."
"But there is a third way."
"Of course! Eventually the wind and the weather..."
"...will wear down the walls until they start to crumble!"
"Then all we have to do is wait for a big enough hole to form..."
"...and we can just walk out!"
"It's the perfect plan!"
"I guess."
"We don't actually have to escape."
"They'll just let us out when they think we've accepted their philosophy!"
"But they're never gonna believe we switched over in just one night."
"There's one of us they might believe."
Insert here some lightings and thundersounds, please.
Or just Pinkie crazily staring right on you.
Huh?
"Oh! Me?!"
"You've been saying how great this place is since we got here!"
"But that's because everypony's so nice..."
"...and their village is so pretty..."
"...and, and..."
"Oh, you're right."
"They probably would believe me. I hate to lie to them."
"They've been so welcoming and friendly..."
"...aside from locking us in here and trying to brainwash us into abandoning the things that make us special..."
Thinking about everything special you could lose.
"I'll do it."
"Woo-hoo!"
"I mean, cool."
"But what do I do once I'm out."
"You've gotta find a way to get our cutie marks back."
Gulp.
Fluttershy "joins" the town[]
Glados - er, Starlight Glimmer: "Oh, good morning!"
"I trust you had a pleasant night?"
"This way, please."
"There are some friends who'd like to see you."
"Gather round, friends, gather round!"
"We've come to ask if any of you are ready to join us!"
"There are so many friends to be made once you realize you don't need your cutie marks..."
"...or the talents that come with them."
"We have a welcome ceremony for new friends! The whole village joins together to build you your own cottage—"
"Not interested!"
"You may have them now, but we're going to get our cutie marks back!"
"Y'all don't understand, do ya?"
"You can't force nopony to be friends! It don't work like that!"
"Please join us!"
"We love new friends!"
"It's all right, everypony. This is a perfectly normal part of the equalization process for those who haven't..."
"...quite seen the light yet."
"We'll try again tomorrow..."
"...once you've had a bit more time to consider our philosophy!"
Hey, Flutters, don't forget the plan!
"I'd like to join!"
Was that too much monotone or not enough?
Seems like nopony's suspecting anything.
Twilight's "upset" that Fluttershy believes in the town's philosophy.
"If giving up my cutie mark means I get to stay in this lovely village with these lovely ponies, then I'll do it."
Part 1 of the liberation - check!
"We have a new friend, everypony!"
"Now, there's one more order of business."
"It seems some in our midst might be..."
"...dissatisfied with the village life!"
Le Gasp!
"Unfortunately, it's all too true, my friends!"
"Will you kindly tell us the names of those friends..."
"...who so desperately miss their cutie marks..."
"...that they would sneak around in the shadows..."
"...talking to strangers about it?"
Nervous smiles are nervous.
"Just so we can be sure your intentions are indeed pure."
gulp again
Uh...
Party Favor confesses[]
"Um, I don't know who they were."
"Um, I'm sorry. I don't know your names and faces yet."
"Nonsense!"
"Obviously these ponies must have asked you directly."
"Kindly point them out!"
At least it's good they didn't choose Pinkie Pie.
"It was me!"
"It was only me!"
"But I only wanted it back for a little while!"
"And you're quite certain it was only you?"
"I just wanted to remember what it was like."
"And no thought to the pain you'd cause your friends."
"Such selfishness."
"I'm sorry, everypony!"
"I never wanted to leave the village!"
"I love all of—"
What have we done...?
"What was I thinking?! I can't believe I even considered asking for my cutie mark back."
"Don't worry. Fluttershy will have us out of here in no time!"
"Didn't you see what just happened out there?!"
"Your friend has accepted our way!"
"You will all accept our way!"
"It's only a matter of time!"
"This guy's a barrel of laughs."
"Laughs don't come in barrels. They come from inside you as your body's response to delight."
Even without her cutie mark, Pinkie takes phrases way too literally.
"So what are we gonna do while Fluttershy's out there lookin' for our..."
"...cutie marks."
"We have to stay as positive as we can."
"If Party Favor sees how much we really do like each other, even though we're all different, maybe we can use him to spread our message to the rest of the village."
"To excel is to fail."
"Let's hope they don't convert any of us first."
The truth about Starlight[]
I still think this is supposed to be an equalized version of Meghan McCarthy's OC.
"Gosh, you really are the nicest ponies I've ever met."
"Come. All new friends stay with me until their cottage is completed."
"Let's get you settled..."
"...and then you can enjoy all that our little village has to offer."
"Get the cutie marks back. That's all you've gotta do, Fluttershy. Just sneak through the dark up to that spooky old cave with the scary magical staff and get the cutie marks back."
"Okay, you're doing great. The cave's gotta be close now..."
Not even.
"Excellent work, Double Diamond."
"Of course..."
"...but I don't understand why you wanted me to bring them here."
"Fluttershy is one of us now. Surely she can be trusted."
Ok, first; don't call me Shirley. About their cutie marks...
"This one belongs to a princess. It could be very important to our cause."
"But if Twilight Sparkle becomes our friend, then why do we care about this old cutie mark?"
"I just want to keep them close until everything is... settled."
"You may go, Double Diamond."
Ah!
Fluttershy definitely would never win in "hide-and-seek".
Well, at least it seems that Starlight Glimmer never even played this game.
"Oh, dear. How am I ever going to get the cutie marks back now?"
Seriously, woudn't anyone notice big head looking right into your window?
"Ugh! Starlight, you clumsy foal!"
She's melting! MELTING!
What in Equestria?!
Why the dirty double crosser!!! She stole all of those ponies' cutie marks.....BUT SHE STILL HAS HER OWN?!
Oops, better not tell....
Hiding something, Starlight?
Deception by cutie makeup
Huh?, What was that?
Who's there?
Isn't that usually Pinkie's thing?
"Oh no!"
Party Favor "joins" the town[]
The next morning...
"I've got a good feeling about today! So, do any of you have anything you'd like to say?"
Do they even eat in this cottage?
Rainbow just looks like "Whatever."
"Aw, pity."
"Well, let's try this again tomorrow, shall we? No new friends today, I'm afraid!"
"Wait! I'd like to lock them in."
"Marvelous, Fluttershy!"
"That's the spirit!"
"Party Favor, will you join us, please?"
"I'm sorry, Starlight!"
"I'm sorry, everypony!"
"I've seen the error of my ways!"
"I never want to look at my cutie mark again!"
"It seems there's cause for celebration after all!"
"They tried to break me!"
"They wouldn't stop talking about how different they are..."
"...and that somehow makes their friendship stronger!"
"Such backwards thinking."
"But I didn't listen!" Derp :P
"I knew what they were up to..."
"...and I didn't listen!"
"Well done, Party Favor!"
"We welcome you back with open hooves!"
"Um, Starlight?"
"I think we might have one more friend joining us today."
I bet everyone kinda saw this coming.
Starlight excitedly pushes Party Favor aside.
"Is this true?"
"I-I think so. But I just want to be sure."
"If I agree to leave my cutie mark in the vault, I'll really be happier?"
"Just look around! Equality has given us more happiness..."
"...than you've ever known!"
"And you wouldn't let me just live here in the village with my old cutie mark?"
"Out of the question."
"A pony with a different cutie mark in our midst would destroy our entire philosophy."
"We are all equal here!"
"Then how do you explain this?!"
Fluttershy's got the bucket and she's splashing it.
Seems that Fluttershy had much better aim when she was discorded.
"I knew you couldn't be trusted!"
Starlight's plan exposed / The cutie remarking[]
Huh? What is this?
"No! Get away!"
The truth comes out.
Guilty Starlight is guilty.
Seems Babs Seed has somehow gotten to her, too.
"Wha... What are you looking at?!"
"They're the problem, not me!"
Way to go, Fluttershy!
"How could you?"
"You said cutie marks were evil! You said special talents led to pain and heartache!"
"They do! Don't you see?!"
"Look at them!"
"Then why? Why did you take ours and not give up your own?"
"I..."
"I had to, you fools!"
"How could I collect your cutie marks..."
"...without my magic?!"
"But the staff has all the magic we need!"
"The staff is a piece of wood I found in the desert!"
"It's my magic that makes all this possible!"
"You'd all still be living your miserable lives thinking you're better than everypony else..."
"...if it weren't for my magical abilities!"
" brought you friendship!"
" brought you equality!"
"I CREATED..."
'HARMONY!"
"You lied to us!"
"So what?"
"E-Everything else I said is true!"
"The only way to be happy is if we're all equal!"
"Except for you."
Anyone else heard a bit of the Springtrap jumpscare sound here?
"Everypony has unique talents and gifts..."
"...and when we share them with each other, that's how rea—"