Limits Of Loyalty
by RainbowDashian
Chapters
Day 1
Scootaloo awoke with the feeling that something was missing. She rolled out of bed and said hello to the picture of her deceased parents, just like she did every morning. She'd inherited the house after their death, and, with the help of the alienated zebra named Zecora, had kept her life going. Sootaloo walked to the kitchen to make breakfast. After setting the kettle to boil, she walked to the pantry to get some tea bags. Then she realized what she was missing. Her herbal tea.
Zecora made the tea specially for Scootaloo. It helped calm the pegasus filly's nerves, as well as wake her up in the morning. With the violent mood swings the orange filly sometimes had, the tea was necessary. Considering it was a school day, she'd need to get a note from Zecora excusing her absence. Cheerilee would understand, but, without a note, explanations were useless.
So, Scootaloo grabbed her scooter and set off for the Everfree Forest. As she entered the forest, she began to turn left, towards the less dangerous, longer route. Then she remembered that she'd made a promise to the other two Cutie Mark Crusaders, Applebloom and Sweetie Belle, that she'd meet with them after school that day. She veered to the right, taking the faster, riskier way to the zebra's house.
As she sped along, occasionally being flung off of her scooter by hitting rocks, she kept an observant eye on the path in front of her. She didn't want to run into those blue flowers. She reached them within a few minutes. She picked up her scooter and flung it over the flowers. Then she began to hover.
Scootaloo had always had trouble flying, because her father had never been able to show her how. But that day, Scootaloo flew. She looked down in shock as the ground began to disappear below her. Elated, the filly began to loop around in circles above the blue flowers. Then she slammed into a tree branch. It knocked her into a backflip, and she faceplanted into the flowers. "Oh, no!" She said, rushing out of the disease-ridden plants. "I've gotta find Zecora, and fast! She's bound to have a cure."
She mounted her scooter and sped off toward the zebra's hut. As she sped through the forest, there was a ground-shaking roar. Scootaloo sped up. AS she passed a clearing, she spotted the source of the roar. There was a manticore, standing over - over - over Rainbow Dash.
"HEY!" Scootaloo yelled, speeding towards the monster. "Get away from her!" She increased the drumming sound of her wings, throwing herself around the manticore in a circle. It scared the creature off.
Scootaloo jumped off of her scooter and rushed to the side of the blue mare. "Oh, no, oh no!" She said. "This can't be happening!" The rainbow-maned pegasus was severely wounded, covered in claw marks. "I can't just leave her here!" Scootaloo exclaimed. "But on the other hand, she's in such a bad condition, I can't move her! What can I do?" Looking at her idol, wounded and unconscious, she made up her mind. "I'm going to stay here with Rainbow Dash and nurse her back to health."
Three hours later, the orange filly had built a small fire using some sticks and friction from her scooter. She had also wrapped some grasses around Rainbow Dash's wounds as makeshift bandages. She had just sat down to rest when she saw small blue spots beginning to form on her wings. "Oh, no." She moaned. "I can't fly? I just learned how to! And more importantly, it lets me get stuff for Rainbow Dash faster!"
Then the filly felt a drop of water hit her face. She looked up and saw dark clouds above her head. "No, no, no!" She shouted as it began to rain. She spotted a large leaf on the ground and she picked it up. With no time to build a clasp to hold it, Scootaloo was forced to stand there herself and hold the leaf above the unconscious mare. As the water poured down her face, Scootaloo began to cry. Part of it was because she had missed her meeting with Applebloom and Sweetie Belle. Another part of it was that she hadn't gotten her herbal tea. A big part of it was that she had just learned to fly when it was taken away from her. But mostly, she cried because, deep within her heart, she knew that there was no way that she, a small filly, could nurse a gravely wounded mare back to health in the middle of a forest.
She stood there the entire night, outlasting the thunder, the lightning, and the dangerously close falling branches. The rain finally stopped come dawn. As the filly crumpled down next to the mare, she saw the older pegasus open her eyes. "Hey, Scoots." Rainbow Dash said weakly. "What are you doing here?"
"I was getting something from Zecora." Scootaloo said, shivering. "When I saw a manticore attacking you."
"Thanks for helping me." The mare said. "You look cold." Rainbow Dash wrapped an arm around Scootaloo and pulled her closer to herself. "I'll keep you warm. Go to sleep."
Day 2
Scootaloo awoke at noon not knowing where she was. As she surveyed the area, she slowly began to remember the events of the previous day. Worried, she wriggled out from underneath Rainbow Dash's arm to see the latter's condition. It had gotten worse. some of the pegasus' wounds had become infected, due to the wet mud created by the previous night's rain.
Scootaloo searched the immediate area for some herbs Zecora used on infections. She found a small hoof full of them. She removed the grass bandages from Rainbow Dash's wounds, chewed up the herbs, and placed them against the infected area. Then she wrapped it up again with new bandages. The filly re-built the fire that had been extinguished the night before.
Suddenly, Scootaloo was seized by a fit of shivering. She sat down next to the fire and it failed to warm her. She began to get angry. Why isn't it warming me up? She thought. Why am I even here in the first place? If it weren't for that stupid manticore, Rainbow Dash wouldn't have gotten hurt, and I wouldn't be in this mess! Scootaloo got up and slammed her front hoof into a tree. It hurt her. A lot.
"STUPID TREE!" She shouted, kicking it. Why am I staying here? She brooded. I should just leave Rainbow Dash to die. Like it matters to me. Scootaloo got up and started to walk away.
"Don't go, Scoots." Rainbow Dash said weakly.
Suddenly, Scootaloo remembered. She'd never gotten her tea. That meant that she was having a mood swing, and therefore getting mad at nothing. "I'm sorry, Rainbow Dash." She said. "I didn't mean to. I don't have any calming tea. It keeps me from having these mood swings."
"Hey, Scootaloo?" Rainbow dash asked.
"Yeah?" The filly replied.
"Could you make me a little bed?" The mare requested. "I mean, if it's not to much to ask, that is. It's really uncomfortable down here."
"Sure thing, Rainbow!" Scootaloo said, leaping up to find materials.
Six hours later, Scootaloo was done. Not only had she made a bed out of leaves, but she'd built a lean-to as well. Now she needed to find some food. But she was in the Everfree Forest, of all places! How could she find food? Well, it took her two hours. But Scootaloo did manage to find some edible flowers a few feet into the woods. The two ponies munched on those.
"How are you feeling, Rainbow Dash?" Scootaloo asked, looking at the mare in concern.
"Fine, Scoots." She hoarsely replied. "I'm just a little hoarse."
"I know that, Dash." Scootaloo giggled. "That's kind of what 'pony' means."
"No, I meant my throat is sore." Dash said, unamused.
"Oh, sorry." Scootaloo said. "I'll find something to help that." Scootaloo searched the nearby forest and found some lemons. Taking a small cup from her saddlebag, she scooped some accumulated water out of a large leaf, then squeezed the juice into it. Then she let it sit over the fire. Once it had reached the desired temperature, she handed it to Dash, saying, "I didn't have any honey, so it might be a bit sour."
Rainbow Dash drank it. Her face contorted a bit from the sour taste, but she said, "Thanks, Scoots. Much better now."
"Thank Celestia." The filly said, exhaustedly lying down.
"It is getting late, isn't it?" Rainbow Dash said. "Goodnight."
"Goodnight."