Chapter 1

The winter rain fell gently against the large window as Scratch laid on her bed listening to the soft patter of each drop hitting the glass. It had been exactly six years after her arrival at the orphanage and was, in essence, her birthday. She longed to be out in the morning downpour, to feel the rain on her face. But she was cooped up in the filly sleeping quarters with no escape until Miss. Butterheart came and gathered them up for breakfast. A quiet whimper from the bed next to hers snapped Scratch out of her thoughts.

“What is wrong Ditzy?” She quietly asked.

“I-Is this a thunderstorm?” A gray pegasus filly with a yellow mane and eyes poked her head out from under her blankets “I don't like thunders.”

“I know,” Scratch reassured the younger pony, “it isn't a thunderstorm so you don’t need to be afraid.”

“Can, can I come over and sleep in your bed?” Ditzy whimpered, “I still afraid.”

Scratch sighed heavily.

“Sure,” she replied after little thought “but don't kick me in the ribs again or I will...”

Before the unicorn could finish the pegasus leaped out of her cot and into Scratch's. She landed heavily, bouncing the unicorn a foot into the air. Ditzy snuggled up against Scratch's side and quickly fell asleep. The gentle rising and falling of the fillies breathing and the warmth of her tiny body started lulling Scratch into sleep. But before her world became that of darkness and dreams a loud voice bellowed from the room entrance and tore her out of the sleepiness.

“Girls!” Cried Miss Butterheart, “wake up and make your way to the cafeteria for breakfast! I let you sleep in so you only have five minutes to get down there!”

Scratch heard the door close and her fellow orphans begrudgingly slide out of their beds and toward the door. Ditzy was still asleep so Scratch nudged the snoring pegasus with the tip of her nose.

“Hey, swirly eyes,” Scratch hissed, “breakfast time and you need to wake up. You are lying on my leg and it is starting to fall asleep.”

There was no answer. The unicorn listened closely to make sure there was nopony else in the room. Satisfied that they were alone she took in a deep breath.

“Wake up swirly whirly derpity derp derp!”

Ditzy shot up and looked angrily at her friend. One eye facing Scratch the other at the ceiling.

“I don't like it when people call me Derpy, or Swirly.”

“I did it to wake you up,” Scratch said apolitically, “if it makes you feel better I will give you my muffin.”

The pegasus instantly became a ball of excitement and leaped out of the bed and landed face first on the floor. She jumped back onto her hooves and looked up expectantly at Scratch.

“There not any stuff on the floor that you can trip on,” she warned Scratch.

“Thanks.” The unicorn slid off her bed and landed squarely onto her hooves.

By sheer memory she made her way out of the room and into the hall with Ditzy following close behind.

“What do you think is for breakfast?” Ditzy bounced down the stairs. Pausing on the landing to wait for her friend to catch up and answer her question.

“Duno.” Scratch walked past Ditzy and continued down the next flight of stairs. “Probably oats as usual.”

“Ooh, will there be a cake for your birthday?”

“There might be.” But Scratch doubted the chances of anyone remembering her birthday. They rarely did.

“Oh, I have an idea!” Squealed Ditzy and she bounded next to the unicorn “what if you had a muffin cover it with icing and then that could be your cake! I just invented something! An icing-muffin!”

“Also known as a cupcake,” Scratch stated blandly.

“Oh yeah,” the pegasus giggled.

The both of them walked into the cafeteria, a large white walled room filled with foals of different ages. As they entered Scratch closed her eyes to keep them hidden from the other foals though her long mane practically did it for her. Only a few turned to watch them enter, the rest continued eating. They retrieved there food after a short wait in line and sat down at an empty table.

“Big surprise,” Scratch said when they took there seats. “No cake.”

“Want me to go and ask them for some icing?” Ditzy said hopefully.

“Why?”

“So I can make you a cupcake out of my blueberry muffin!” Ditzy clapped her hooves together in hopefull excitement.

“Sure.” Scratch took a bite out of a cucumber sandwich and continued talking with a full mouth “just don't tell them it's for me.”

“Why not?”

“Because they are probably still mad from the time when I put baking soda and vinegar in one of the cook's pots as a prank two weeks ago. Not to mention, but every prank that happens here is instantly blamed on me.”

“Why don't you stop doing pranks then?”

Scratch opened her eyes and stared at the pegasus. Ditzy squirmed under the blind, blood red glare of her friend and turned away.

“Stop doing pranks? Stop doing the one thing that allows me revenge for the way they treat me here?” She shook her head and closed her eyes “I don't think so. Plus, it's fun.”

“But when you get in trouble...” Ditzy trailed off.

“True, Madam Puffeltop throws me into the basement without food or water for two days and then makes me do everyone’s chores for another three days. But it just makes me want to do another prank even more. Speaking of which, do you have any ideas for a prank and who should I do it to?”

Before Ditzy could answer, a sarcastic and arrogant sounding voice cut in from behind Scratch. The unicorn had heard her approaching but neglected to acknowledge her arrival.

“Hello Blood Eyes,” hissed a pink unicorn with a green mane who looked very much like her mother, Madam Puffeltop. “What are you and derpy face talking about all by yourselves without any other friends? What, are your friends to busy?” she laughed. “Oh, that is right, you don't have any friends.”

“Don't call me Derpy!” Growled Ditzy, her eyes crossed in anger.

“What do you want Puff Tart?” sighed Scratch.

“Nothing really,” she giggled. “Just seeing how you parentless freaks are doing. Oh and my mamma says that if you do another prank anytime soon she will lock you in the basement for an extra two days. So Derpy, still hoping that your family will come back for you and take you home? How about you Blood Eyes, have you fallen down any stairs lately?”

When the orphans didn’t answer she laughed and trotted away. Scratch sat fuming and brooding over everything Puff Tart had just said. Ditzy sat silently crying.

“Oh Ditzy,” Scratch said after a few moments of listening to Ditzy's tears hitting the table, “you can't let people calling you Derpy bother you so much. Heck Ditzy isn't even your real name either. When somepony calls you Ditzy, Derpy or Swirly Eyes ignore them.”

“But why does she have to bring up my parents leaving me!”

“Because she is a pampered snob who only cares about herself and her mother is a pile of dragon shit.”

Ditsy gasped in shock and whispered, “you said shit.”

“Yeah, I know,” Scratch smiled.

“But, isn't that a bad word?”

“So what if it is,” she laughed “nopony can stop me from saying it.”

“I don't like bad words,” Ditzy said quietly. “Bad ponies say them.”

“Ditzy, you are so silly. Okay, I won't say any bad words. Around you at least.”

“Good.” Ditzy left her seat, “I am going to get that icing now.”

A minute later the gray pegasus returned with a spoonful of vanilla icing in her mouth, an expression of pure joy spread across her face.

“Wook wat wy wav” she muttered happily through the spoon “wy wav wicing!”

As Ditzy promptly covered the top of a blueberry muffin Scratch pondered ways to get back at Puff Tart. Ditzy finished and looked up at her friend.

“Here you go,” she squeaked happily, “happy birthday!”

“Thank you,” the unicorn said as she magically took the muffin-cupcake. She took a bite and returned to her thoughts.

“What you thinking about?” inquired the pegasus.

Scratch smiled slyly, her eyes open once again.

“What,” Ditzy asked with a tinge of fear.

Scratch ate the rest of her birthday gift and answered.

“So, Ditzy, you want to pay Puff Tart back for her insults?”

“A little,” both of Ditzy's yellow eyes stared straight at her friend in nervous anticipation.

“Then how would you like to help me in one of my pranks?”

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I do not own MLP:FIM. If I did, well, I would use my money to buy you all muffins. Hasbro and people with more life skills own it.
Feel free to comment and give thumbs. (I need thumbs, I lost mine)
Next chapter will be longer.