Scootaloo’s Final Nightmare

By Alaborn

Standard disclaimer: This is a not for profit fan work. My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is copyright Hasbro, Inc. I make no claim to any copyrighted material mentioned herein.

Scootaloo ran.

Scootaloo ran, her hooves struggling to find purchase in the soft soil. Her tiny wings buzzed, but not even fear could will them to lift her body into the air. So, she ran.

Her eyes searched in vain for some light, some sign that she was nearing the edge of the Everfree Forest. There was only the gloom of the forest. There was scarcely enough light to see the trees and vines that surrounded her. Already, she had countless scrapes and bent feathers from where she failed to twist or duck in time.

Her ears picked up the pounding of her hooves, the furious beating of her heart, the crackle of the underbrush. But most of all, they picked up the sound of it. It, the thing chasing her, each step resounding like thunder, a terrible noise growing ever closer.

She breathed hard, her lungs burning. Her tail twitched. As she exhaled, she felt its breath, hot and foul, blowing across the purple hairs in her tail. For each two breaths she took, she felt one upon her tail. She felt the breath grow hotter and closer with each occurrence.

Scootaloo dared a glance back, one attempt to see it, to see how near it was. Cloaked in shadow, it appeared enormous, too large to be able to chase her through the twisted woods, but pursue her it did. She turned her head back, but not in time to notice the thick tree root across the path. Her right front hoof caught in the root, and she pitched forward, spilling into the loam. Mud and moss and Celestia knows what else filled her mouth. Spitting, she desperately tried to scramble to her hooves, but the leg that had been snared by the root would not support her weight. Again, she fell.

She crawled, trying to find any shelter, but it loomed over her. She had to let somepony know. She opened her mouth, but her voice refused to respond. Strangled gasps were all she could issue.

It drew closer. As she felt it contact her, felt the pain, she finally screamed.

“Don’t worry, I’m here, I’m here.”

Scootaloo gasped. The pain she felt receded to nothingness. The feeling of it on her faded as well, being replaced by something soft and warm and loving. She waited as her pulse slowed, eyes clutched tightly, tears still managing to squeeze out.

When she finally calmed down, Scootaloo felt a hoof under her chin. It lifted her head. She dared to open her eyes, and saw only the gentle magenta eyes of her adoptive mother, Rainbow Dash.

“I’m here, Scootaloo. It was only a nightmare. I’m here for you,” she whispered.

Scootaloo looked around. She was in her bedroom, the one Rainbow Dash had built for her. The room was dimly lit by the orange glow of the nightlight. The older pegasus was sitting with her on her bed, her wing wrapped around her. One foreleg held her tightly.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“It... it was nothing,” Scootaloo squeaked. “I was alone in the Everfree Forest.”

“You have nothing to be afraid of,” Rainbow Dash said. “I will always be here to protect you.”

“Will you... stay with me?” Scootaloo pleaded.

Rainbow Dash lay down, pulling the blanket over the two of them. “Of course.”

Fortunately, Scootaloo slept the rest of the night. In the morning, Rainbow Dash made sure the filly ate breakfast, brushed her teeth, gathered her homework, and all those other uncool things she still had to do. Finally, she opened the door, and Scootaloo bounded out across the cloud expanse.

“Bye, Rainbow Dash!” she called, waving. She jumped off the cloud, gliding the short distance to the ground, and then trotting off. Rainbow Dash’s cloud home now floated only four feet off the ground, allowing Scootaloo to access it via the rope ladder she installed.

Although Scootaloo had looked happy this morning, Rainbow Dash still worried about the filly. Scootaloo had had nightmares for months after Rainbow Dash had adopted her. And she had many reasons to have nightmares. Losing her parents, mistreatment in the Fillydelphia orphanage, and then running away and living on her own in Ponyville for more than two years—any one of these could wound a foal indelibly. That Scootaloo remained a happy and thriving filly despite this history was a testament to her strength. Rainbow Dash hoped that she could one day be that strong.

It took a lot of talking, a lot of facing her fears, for the nightmares to end. She hadn’t had a nightmare for more than eight months, until that night. Hopefully, it was just a normal nightmare. Scootaloo mentioned the Everfree Forest, a common theme of nightmares for foals in Ponyville. But the Everfree Forest held an unfortunate significance for Scootaloo. She had gone there before, without having a nightmare afterward. And if memory served, Scootaloo went into the Everfree Forest yesterday. Was something different this time?

The clouds could wait to be cleared. Rainbow Dash instead few to the center of Ponyville, flying to the open second story window of the Golden Oaks Library. The young alicorn who lived there had learned the joy of having an open window, to fly whenever the mood struck her. But Rainbow Dash was not surprised to find that, instead, Twilight Sparkle was in the mood to study.

“Oh, good morning, Rainbow Dash,” Twilight Sparkle said, lifting her nose from a book. She looked at the pegasus with a worried expression. “Is something wrong?”

Rainbow Dash didn’t know if her face gave something away, but the only things that brought her to the library before it opened were a new Daring Do book and problems with Scootaloo. And since the new book wasn’t coming out for another five months, it wasn’t hard to figure out which it was. “Scootaloo had another nightmare,” she said.

Twilight Sparkle closed her book and walked next to Rainbow Dash. “What happened?”

“I’m not sure. She didn’t say it was one of her old nightmares, but she didn’t tell me much about it,” Rainbow Dash said. “She did mention the Everfree Forest. You took her there yesterday, right? Did something happen?”

“I did, but no, nothing happened,” Twilight Sparkle replied. “I escorted Fluttershy and the Crusaders into the Everfree, to see Zecora. We didn’t run into any problems on the trip, not even the distant howl of a timber wolf. After talking over tea and trading, we let the fillies practice collecting herbs.”

“But still no cutie marks?” Rainbow Dash commented. She then mentally chided herself; this was not the time for jokes. “Did you notice anything with Scootaloo? Any strange expressions? Any change in behavior?”

“I can’t say I did,” Twilight Sparkle said. “Applejack is the pony who’d notice if somepony has been hiding something. It might be something subconscious, like something we saw triggered some repressed memory. Didn’t Scootaloo lose her parents in the Everfree Forest?”

“Yes, but I don’t think even Scootaloo remembers. She was so young,” Rainbow Dash replied. “You might be on to something with that subconscious thing.”

“I wonder if there’s any information in the police report,” Twilight Sparkle wondered. “I’ll talk to my brother, and see if he could facilitate us getting a copy of that investigation.

“I came over as soon as I heard,” Rainbow Dash said.

Twilight Sparkle gathered in her magical aura the dozens of papers and scrolls that had been scattered by Rainbow Dash’s sudden arrival. “I can see that,” she said as she dealt with the mess.

“Sorry, Twilight,” Rainbow Dash said. “But if you got that police report, then I don’t want to waste a minute!”

“I’ve read it, and I think we were on the mark.” Twilight Sparkle pushed a large envelope over to Rainbow Dash.

Rainbow Dash muttered to herself as she read. “Pegasus filly recovered... west-central border of the Everfree Forest... parents presumed dead and eaten?” Rainbow Dash set down the report. “She never told me exactly how she lost her parents.”

“Yes, it’s not a pleasant story,” Twilight Sparkle said. “Based on the report of Scootaloo, the investigators concluded that her parents held off a manticore, allowing her to escape. When the police and a guard contingent searched the next morning, they found feathers and blood, but no bodies.”

“That’s... uh....” Rainbow Dash said, uncharacteristically at a loss for words.

“Based on the map included in the report, there’s a good chance I accidentally brought Scootaloo near the place where this attack happened. I’m sorry, Rainbow Dash.”

“There’s no need to apologize. There’s no way you could have known. But thanks for your help. Now I have something to talk to Scootaloo about.”

She did talk with Scootaloo as soon as the filly returned home. But it didn’t help much. Scootaloo had been too young to really understand what had happened. She barely remembered that there was a manticore involved.

At least in the six days it had taken for the records to arrive, Scootaloo hadn’t had another nightmare. As Rainbow Dash tucked her in that night, she hoped the nightmares were again a thing of the past.

It was behind her again.

Scootaloo couldn’t exceed its pace. No matter how fast she ran, it ran faster. The sound of its approach grew louder. It echoed off the trees. Even though trees shouldn’t echo, the sound came from everywhere around her.

Her ragged breaths. Her frantic galloping. And it. That was the extent of her universe. She ran, trying to find an exit that would not appear.

“ENOUGH!”

Even while facing her doom, the sudden bellowing made her skid to a stop. In the aftermath of the shout, it was eerily quiet. Perhaps it was as afraid as she was.

She turned around. The shadows that pursued her were frozen. But not just that. The trees, the branches, the leaves underhoof, all were still, unnaturally still. Even in the dim light of the moon, it was clear that something had frozen this scene.

The moon....

Scootaloo turned around again, this time seeing a majestic figure approach. The light of the moon seemed to always shine upon the midnight-colored coat of Princess Luna.

“Young Scootaloo, why have I returned to your nightmares? Why are you afraid again?”

“I... I don’t know,” Scootaloo said, looking away.

“Tell me, what do you see?” she continued, pointing to the frozen darkness.

Scootaloo refused to look, burying her head under her foreleg.

“You learned to face your fears. You learned that everypony faces fear, even the bravest and coolest,” Princess Luna said. “In the past year, you have shared your many fears with those ponies who care for you, and that put an end to your nightmares. So why do you still keep this fear inside?”

“I don’t... it’s... it’s different,” Scootaloo squeaked.

“But much is the same,” Princess Luna said, extending a wing protectively around Scootaloo. “Think of who is there for you.”

Scootaloo looked up. She smiled as she found she was not alone. She saw Rainbow Dash, who rested a hoof on her withers. Beyond her, she saw the smiling form of Twilight Sparkle. Then there was Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. Miss Cheerilee. Applejack and Rarity. Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy. And beyond them, the countless townsponies who welcomed her in her new life in Ponyville.

Princess Luna flared her wings and looked up at the moon. Its light brightened, simultaneously illuminating the dreamscape and shining on the shadowy figure. Scootaloo studied the interplay of light and shadow. She could see the moonlight trace patterns on the ground, numerous concentric circles, each shining on some of the ponies that cared for her. Each one was a shield, a pony who could protect her from this nightmare.

“Young Scootaloo, the source of your nightmare is still unclear to me. It is unclear to everypony. But I know you can see into the shadow. Only you can illuminate the source of your fears. Count on your family, your friends, for protection. But they can only aid you if you share with them your fears.”

Princess Luna flared her wings, taking off into the night sky. “Rest easy tonight!” she called in her booming voice. The light faded, along with the shadowy figure, as Scootaloo closed her eyes, smiling.

Rainbow Dash opened her eyes. Her wings had picked up a subtle change in the airflow in her bedroom, a sign that the door had been opened, and that woke her from her slumber. She looked, and saw Scootaloo standing hesitantly by the door.

The older pegasus rubbed the sleep from her eyes with her fetlocks. A quick glance out the window confirmed it was just after dawn. “Did you have another bad dream?” she asked Scootaloo.

“Yes, but Princess Luna reminded me that I need to face my nightmares,” she replied.

Rainbow Dash patted her cloud bed with her hoof. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“I do,” Scootaloo replied, and then hesitated. “But this is important. Can we talk about it with Twilight Sparkle?”

“Of course,” Rainbow Dash said.

After washing up, the two pegasi walked the short distance to Twilight Sparkle’s home. Eschewing the open window for the front door of the currently closed library, Rainbow Dash knocked. Twilight Sparkle was quick to open the door. Seeing the two pegasi, she ushered them in without delay.

Rainbow Dash looked expectantly at Scootaloo. The filly hesitated; Rainbow Dash responded by draping her with her wing. With a light squeeze from the wing, Scootaloo finally spoke.

“I have something I need to talk about. Something I haven’t told anypony.” Scootaloo looked around nervously. “Twilight, could you, kind of, make it so nopony outside the library can hear us talk?”

Twilight Sparkle was about to start a lecture about the frivolous use of magic, but one look at the fear in Scootaloo’s eyes made her change her mind. Her horn glowed, and a magenta aura expanded out from the three of them to the walls of the library.

It was utterly silent. One never realizes the volume of the sound of chirping of birds and ponies going about their daily activities until it disappears.

“I... I talked to you, Rainbow Dash, about all my fears, back when... you know,” Scootaloo said.

“When we learned you were... living on your own,” Rainbow Dash said.

Scootaloo nodded. “I told you about the orphanage, about how I got sent there.”

“The manticore,” Rainbow Dash said. The review of the circumstances of Scootaloo’s situation left that memory fresh in her mind.

“There was no manticore,” Scootaloo admitted. “I was abandoned by my parents.”

The two mares stood there, their mouths agape. The tiny “eep” uttered by Twilight Sparkle sounded like a peal of thunder in the unnaturally quiet room.

“What happened?” Twilight Sparkle asked.

“It was late at night. I had just fallen asleep, when I was picked up by my father. We flew out of our house in Cloudsdale, down toward the ground. I didn’t know what was going on. I remember only little things, random snippets from the night. I remember the full moon. I remember my little hooves kicking at the stuffed saddlebags my father wore. And I remember the forest. It was scary for me not to be able to see the sky.

“Most of all, I remember the last image of my father. He looked... terrifying. He had been mean to me in the past, but this was worse, so much worse. And then he spoke to me.”

Rainbow Dash could feel Scootaloo trembling underneath her wing. She pulled her closer. “You can do this,” she urged. “What did he say?”

“He pointed in a direction and said, ‘We were attacked by a horrible monster. It was like a lion with a twisted face and the tail of a scorpion. You ran while we tried to stop it. And if you ever tell anypony anything different, I will kill you.’”

Twilight Sparkle gasped. Rainbow Dash reared up, assuming a defensive posture, her forelegs ready to strike. “He won’t lay a feather on you,” she stated.

“I tried to forget that. I think at one point I convinced myself I actually ran from a manticore that night. But I guess something in the Everfree Forest triggered my memory, my real memory,” Scootaloo said.

“How could anypony do that?” Twilight Sparkle wondered.

“I can remember arguments. The words my father used. He said I wasn’t a real pegasus,” Scootaloo recalled.

Rainbow Dash flicked the feathers of Scootaloo’s wing. “You look real to me, squirt.”

“It’s because I can’t fly!” Scootaloo yelled.

“Now, Scootaloo, we don’t know that for sure,” Twilight Sparkle cautioned.

“But every day that passes, it becomes more and more certain!” Scootaloo said.

The room fell quiet again. Both Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle reflected on Scootaloo’s words. She was right. The more time that passed, the more fixes tried and failed, the more likely it was she had some rare condition that would leave her grounded.

“That was very brave of you, coming to us,” Twilight Sparkle said, breaking the silence. “But I’m going to have to ask you to be brave again. You’re going to have to tell this story to some guardsponies. Okay?”

Scootaloo nodded.

The response to Scootaloo’s revelation was quick. A letter sent via Spike to Princess Celestia brought a contingent of guards and several police ponies to the library before noon. Rainbow Dash stood by Scootaloo’s side as the filly recounted everything she remembered about that night, described her parents, and answered all the detective’s questions, no matter how intrusive. Twilight Sparkle simply observed, limiting her involvement to bringing refreshments for everypony.

Finally, the detective rose. “Princess, we promise a full investigation. The ponyhunt will search across Equestria until we find these despicable miscreants. Rainbow Dash, we will keep your daughter safe. You have my word.”

“Thank you, detective,” Twilight Sparkle said.

As the guards and police ponies departed, Rainbow Dash could feel Scootaloo burrowing under her wing. She lifted her wing, revealing the filly’s fearful face. “A brave pony like you deserves a reward,” Rainbow Dash said. “Why don’t you go out with the Crusaders?” She pressed a few coins into Scootaloo’s wing. “Treat them to milkshakes!”

“Okay!” Scootaloo replied cheerily. But her brave expression faded as she stood in the threshold of the library, staring out to the newly terrifying outside.

Twilight Sparkle approached, laying her horn on Scootaloo. Her warm and calming magic spread over her. “You’re now protected by an alarm ward,” she explained. “If you are ever in trouble, I will teleport to your side immediately.”

“So what do you think? Milkshakes?” Rainbow Dash said.

With a slight nod, the brave filly stepped outside.

Rainbow Dash closed the door and turned to Twilight Sparkle. “Speaking of ‘what do you think’, what do you think?” Rainbow Dash asked. “Do you think the police can catch Scootaloo’s...?” She couldn’t bring herself to use the word parents.

Twilight Sparkle sighed. “I want to say yes, but... so much time has passed.”

“But we know their names and appearances! We know their cutie marks!” Rainbow Dash countered.

“Names can be changed. Coats can be dyed. Manes can be styled. Even cutie marks can be altered,” Twilight Sparkle said. To Rainbow Dash’s raised eyebrow, she continued. “There’s makeup, illusion spells, even some permanent changes. Take her mother’s cutie mark, a snowflake. It’s the third most common cutie mark among pegasi, and it could easily be disguised with a second flake, a cloud, or a different background.”

“Can’t you just, you know, cast a spell to find them?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“I’m afraid magic doesn’t work that way,” Twilight Sparkle said. “If we can find them, I know Princess Celestia could see through their disguises, but they have to be present first.”

Rainbow Dash slumped to the ground, dejected. But Twilight Sparkle forced herself to smile. “No matter what, we’ll keep Scootaloo safe.”

Two months had passed. The communications received from the investigators grew more infrequent. Scootaloo put on a brave face, but each night saw her go to bed with a heavy heart. The unsolved case seemed to weigh on her soul, draining the filly’s energy.

Rainbow Dash checked on her adopted daughter. She wasn’t trying to sleep. Instead, she stood on her bed, resting against the wall, looking out the window. She stared at the beautiful full moon.

“Something on your mind, Scoots?” Rainbow Dash said.

“Same thing as every night,” she replied. “Do you want to sleep outside tonight? Under Luna’s moon?”

“I’d love to.”

The two pegasi stretched out on the clouds outside Rainbow Dash’s home. The older pegasus fell asleep quickly. Scootaloo lay on her back, enjoying the warmth of Rainbow Dash’s wing and their shared blanket, but found rest hard to come by. She stared at the moon, wishing only for the solace of the night princess.

Scootaloo looked around. The featureless expanse marked this place as a dreamscape. Apparently, she had fallen asleep. But it was quiet, not another nightmare.

Soon, Princess Luna appeared out of the nothingness. “It is rare I hear such a call by one not in the throes of terror,” she said.

“My nightmare is in the real world,” Scootaloo said. “I just want it to end.”

“Twilight Sparkle has told me of your tragic history,” Princess Luna said.

“Can you help my nightmare end?” Scootaloo asked.

“I will do what I can, though I know not how I could help.” Princess Luna studied the filly. “You have an idea?”

“Talking to Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle and the detectives forced me to relive those distant memories. Every time I thought of the evil in my father’s expression, I hurt. But at the same time, I saw something different from my mother. I think it was worry.”

“Worry, though she did nothing to stop this travesty,” Princess Luna said.

“Do you think she has nightmares?” Scootaloo asked.

“All parents—all good parents—have nightmares about losing their foals,” Princess Luna explained. “They do not admit it, as they wish to appear strong, but these fears are always present. I do not normally visit these nightmares, but I feel them nonetheless.”

“Do you think you can look deeper? Can you find a pony whose nightmares are more intense, more specific? If my mother had some good in her, then surely she suffers at night.”

Princess Luna bowed her head. “You are wise, young Scootaloo. I shall endeavor to find this mare in need of an end to her nightmares.”

Rainbow Dash soared above Cloudsdale, flanked by Spitfire and Soarin’. The air flowed around the contours of their Wonderbolts uniforms, enabling them to reach incredible speeds. Contrails of rainbow, fire, and smoke formed an intricate braid as the three pegasi executed their high speed acrobatics. Turning their movement skyward, they rose to great heights. Spitfire and Soarin’ began circling downward, forming a delicate helix, as Rainbow Dash rose higher. Finally, when the Cloudosseum was barely distinguishable below, she turned and descended. She felt the pressure build in front of her outstretched hooves. Her wings strained as she willed herself to break the barrier. Thousands cheered below as she pushed, pushed....

...and woke up to the sound of somepony flying into her room.

A brief moment of panic gripped Rainbow Dash before she saw that it was just Twilight Sparkle. Before the pegasus could complain about the alicorn interrupting her favorite dream, Twilight Sparkle spoke. “They found them! They found them!”

“Found who?” the groggy pegasus replied.

“Scootaloo’s parents! A mare in Cirrusburg turned herself and her husband in! It’s them!”

“What? That’s great news!” Rainbow Dash shouted. “But how?”

Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle turned to see Scootaloo standing in the doorway. It was two weeks after she had spoken with Princess Luna, but the night princess succeeded. “It’s what Princess Luna always says. The only way to end your nightmares is to face them.”

Scootaloo was unhappy to return to Fillydelphia, the source of so many of her nightmares. But since Cirrusburg was the pegasus city serving Fillydelphia, the trial fell under the jurisdiction of that city’s courts. A second nightmare was facing the stallion that chose to abandon her and threatened to kill her.

But as she flew in the royal chariot, flanked by Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle, she realized she had never felt safer.

Scootaloo felt safe in the courtroom as well, but more because of the large number of guards present. The trial would feature the testimony of two princesses and two Elements of Harmony. After a while, she wondered if the guards were more there to keep control over the press.

Scootaloo told her tale again, this time on the witness stand. The damning testimony came from her mother, or rather birth mother. Snowfall described how she went along with her husband Silverguard’s plan to get rid of Scootaloo, a pegasus too weak to meet his standards. She cried as she recalled her pleas not to kill the filly, suggesting the alternative of abandoning her. Snowfall looked old, too old. The nightmare she had been living for five years had taken a toll on her, but as she addressed the court, she seemed relieved. Scootaloo knew just what it was like to finally end a nightmare.

Through it all, the pony who was once her father sat, defiant. He maintained the look of a pony who was sure he had done no wrong. Ponies called by the defense spoke for him, but he did not take the stand.

Scootaloo’s final nightmare ended with a sentence for Silverguard—twenty years’ hard labor. The intercession of Princess Luna saved Snowfall from a term at hard labor, though not from a period of imprisonment. The nightmare was over. And as she departed in the company of her mother, Rainbow Dash, Scootaloo could once again focus on her dreams.

Author's Notes:

I personally prefer stories where Scootaloo has a normal life, but I got this idea for a Hard Knock Scoots story, so here it is. It's a happy ending because that's what Scootaloo deserves.