Scootaloo the Fugitive

by Kaidan

First published 9th of February, 2013

Scootaloo grew up at an orphanage ran by Gerda. The old hag clipped Scootaloo's wings last time she tried to escape. Years later, she finally escapes and ends up in Ponyville. Will she stop running from her past long enough to enjoy her new life

Scootaloo grew up at an orphanage ran by Gerda. The old hag had clipped Scootaloo's wings last time she tried to escape. Now, under cover of darkness years later, she has finally escaped and boarded a train to Ponyville. Will she stop running from her past long enough to enjoy her new life?

A slice of life story that will follow Scootaloo from orphan to daredevil, from the Cutie Mark Crusaders to Dash teaching her to fly, and beyond!

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This story is lightly self-edited and I'm aiming for a pace of a short chapter a day. It keeps me busy while my editors work on my other, more "serious" stories

Warning: This story contains way too many cheesy pop culture references, and horrible title puns. They're my guilty pleasure.

1. Escape from Silent Knoll

Scootaloo swerved down an alleyway, narrowly avoiding a trash can. Nearing the end of the alley, she tucked in her right wing. Banking hard right and beating her left wing, she managed a near ninety degree turn, and then sped off down the sidewalk. She had never run from anything half as fast as she was fleeing now. The rain beat against her and threatened to ruin her plans of escape. The train station was just down the road, and the police colts would be clearing the alleyway soon. Looking around, she saw a group of earth ponies and swerved towards it. Putting them between her and the police, she sped downhill towards the train out of Canterlot.

The train station had several trains awaiting departure, and Scootaloo sped towards the nearest one. Several ponies were no doubt watching her, as she could buzz quite loudly when riding her scooter. With expert precision, she banked right again and boarded the first train, then banked left. Water was flung off her hair and wings onto several nearby passengers as she barreled down the aisle. Nearing the end of the car, she banked right and exited the train, then slowed down. Much more discreetly, she boarded the next train and headed towards the sleeper car. Once there she walked into one of the cabins, and crawled under the bed.

Clutching the scooter tight, she shivered in a puddle of cold rainwater. Her fur was drenched from mane to tail, and her wings were numb from slicing through the cold air. Her heart felt ready to burst, and it was all she could do to control her breathing. She heard someone approaching the cabin, then the door slid open and a pony walked in. The other pony flung two suitcases on top of the bed, and then flung themselves onto the bed in the far corner of the cabin. The pony yawned and adjusted her purple sunglasses on her head.

Scootaloo had never seen a pony with such white fur, or such amazing blue hair. Suddenly she realized she had been holding her breath, and gasped to soothe her screaming lungs. A wave of shivering hit her as her body tried to warm itself back up. Were it not for the sunglasses, she would have realized the mare had been staring at her out of the corner of her eye.

Vinyl saw a small orange Pegasus quivering under the bench across from her. Her eyes were wide, pupils dilated, and she was clutching a scooter so hard that her hooves were turning white from lack of circulation. Vinyl didn't move since the filly looked like a terrorized, cornered animal. While she sat there wondering what could terrorize a young filly so badly, she heard a knock on the door. A grey mare and a police colt slowly opened the door.

"Good evening ma'am, we're here with Gerda who runs an orphanage downtown. Have you seen an orange pegasus on the train?" The police colt looked polite, however Gerda's stare pierced Vinyl like daggers.

"Hah! Do I look like I've seen an orange filly? I just got done DJ'ing at Club Dredgemane. The only thing I want to see is some vodka and cranberry juice." Vinyl kept her head still, letting her eyes move around behind the safety of the sunglasses. The orange filly in the corner was frozen like a statue.

"Ugh so that's what smells? You're drenched in alcohol you bumbling fool. And no one said anything about a filly, so step aside Officer. I'm going to check out this car." Gerda stepped forward into the cabin, only to be stopped by an irate Vinyl.

Wobbling a little, and making sure to exhale right into her face, Vinyl stared at the grey mare. "I don't know who YOU are but I'm DJ Pon3! One call to my agent and I could get you both fired! Now get the hay out of my cabin!" Vinyl's horn glowed purple, and a subwoofer buried in her suitcase began blasting wubs into the small cabin.

"Why . . . . degenerate . . . . . drunken . . . ." The mare's grey face was now red, flush with equal parts blood and anger, as she expressed her hatred for the young DJ.

"What's that grandma? I can't hear you over the wubs!" Vinyl pushed the two out into the hallway and slammed the door shut, locking it. The grey mare looked livid and ready to strangle Vinyl. The police colt nodded his head politely as they headed towards the next cabin.

The train started moving fifteen minutes later, and Vinyl switched the wubstep off. She and the young filly still lay on opposite corners of the car. While Vinyl had waited for the train to start moving, she thought the filly might be dead. The poor thing hadn't moved a muscle in 15 minutes.

"Why?" Vinyl glanced at the orange filly that she thought just spoke. The filly was still curled up there under the bench.

"Why what kid?" Vinyl turned her head so the filly would know she was looking at her.

"Why'd you lie for me?"

"Would you believe I used to be an orphan too kid? Before I got famous, of course. Also, I wouldn't give that old hag the time of day. She looked like she had some serious daddy issues." Vinyl thought she heard a soft chuckle from the orange filly.

Vinyl's horn lit up and she began rummaging through her two suit cases. Amongst the wires, speakers, and other equipment she was looking for a dust rag. It was about four feet by four feet, and Vinyl used it to clean up messes and keep dust off the equipment. Luckily tonight, she hadn't been pelted by any beer bottles so it was relatively clean. She floated the old rag down in front of the filly.

The filly pushed the rag away. "I can take care of myself."

"I didn't say you couldn't kid. Why don't you dry off and get warm, it's a long way to Ponyville."

The filly finally relaxed, releasing her death grip on the scooter. She pulled the rag towards her and dried off, then wrapped the damp rag around herself in an effort to warm up. "So you gonna turn me in at Ponyville?"

"Depends kid, why did you run away?"

Scootaloo remembered when it had all begun, when she had gotten to the orphanage run by Gerda the Kind.

In the tiny yard of the Silent Knoll orphanage, Scootaloo sat in a corner hoping to avoid the other foals. The yard was barely three feet by eight feet and full of dead grass, so they didn't often look for her back here. She sat hugging her knees in the corner, remembering a time of warmth and happiness. A few months ago, she had two loving parents who always smiled. Now all she had was a scooter and a helmet, rusting under her bed from disuse.

"Hey guys, let's check back here. BAWK. bawk bawk BAWK! Come 'ere chicken!" A burly colt walked into the yard, he had large muscles for a colt his age. "Hey guys I found the chicken!"

Scootaloo growled at him. "Leave me alone Boulder."

"What are ya gonna do? Cry to Gerda? She can't keep you locked in your room forever, chicken." Boulder was joined by a unicorn filly and earth filly.

"Want to see a new magic trick?" The unicorn's horn began to glow, and Scootaloo struggled to stay seated. The unicorn was trying to force her down to the ground.

Cracking his neck, Boulder stepped forward. "Looks like I get to do this the hard way, chicken. Now let's see if you've laid us any eggs!" Boulder walked right up to the filly and hit her with the back of his hoof, then pinned her to the ground.

Scootaloo lay there in the dead grass, crying in embarrassment. The three foals were laughing at her and poking at her wings. All of Scootaloo's primary feathers had been chopped off half-way by Gerda. It was a punishment for Scootaloo attempting to fly over the wall of the yard and escape. Gerda promised that from now on, her wings would be clipped regularly. If Scootaloo tried to escape again, Gerda would remove her pinion joint so she could never grow a primary feather again.

Those had been some of the worst days of her life, but she had escaped, and she had learned to fend for herself.

"Wow kid, and I thought I had it rough. My name's Vinyl, what's yours?" Vinyl looked down at the orange filly, but she had passed out and was snoring softly. "Good idea kid." Vinyl eased herself onto a pillow and counted whiskey bottles until she fell asleep.

Author's Notes:

Proofread by: 11thWonder
Cover art by: IDSmehlite

2. It's Always Sunny in Ponyville

Scootaloo was woken up by a sudden jolt, causing her to bump her head. Opening her eyes, the last images from her dreams faded. Bright light poured into the cabin of the train, and Scootaloo quickly remembered what had happened. She had finally escaped from the orphanage! She would be able to do whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted. As she slid out and gathered her scooter and improvised blanket, she saw the white mare from last night in front of her.

The white mare was passed out and snoring loudly, oblivious to the world around her. Scootaloo unlocked the door and opened it slowly. With a quick glance down the hallways, she saw a few ponies getting up and exiting the train. The signs outside the window said "Ponyville Central Station" in large block letters. Quietly closing the door behind her, she exited the train and stepped out into the warmth of Celestia's sun.

Standing there on the platform, she could feel the infinite possibilities stretching out before her. She would never have to eat dry oats twice a day again. She could run and play, or nap in the sun. She could make friends who wouldn't bully her. Most importantly, she would never have her wings clipped by an old hag again. All she had ever wanted or needed since her parent's passed away was her scooter and the thrill of speed.

Looking around, she realized it was a fairly large village and she had no idea which way to go. She loosened the straps of her helmet, which had been fastened to her head all night. Stepping up on the scooter, she stretched out her wings. A gentle breeze ruffled the feathers, causing them to twitch slightly in joy. A few of her primaries hadn't grown back in yet. Once the majority of them had started to reach full length, she had moved forward with her escape. Now they would all finish growing in, and she might even be able to fly one day.

With a buzz she began beating her wings in the only way she knew how. The air currents around her wings propelled her forward towards Ponyville.

Scootaloo eventually found her way to town square, buzzing along and dodging many ponies and stalls. She had taken her scooter out in Canterlot a couple times before being sent to the orphanage, but the snooty ponies there yelled at her for going so fast. Here everyone seemed friendly, and aside from nearly running over a few of them, didn't mind her rocketing down the roads at unsafe velocities.

Scootaloo pulled over for a minute when she smelled something delicious baking. Every sweet scent she could imagine floated out of a building labeled "Sugarcube Corner." Her mouth was watering and her stomach began to rumble. It had been awhile since she ate, and she considered stealing something to eat. Looking inside several ponies were sitting around enjoying their snacks. It wouldn't do her any good to get caught stealing, in fact she'd end up right back at the orphanage with Gerda if that happened.

With a sigh, Scootaloo walked the scooter around the corner and got ready to continue exploring. Something in the cloud above her caught her eye. The fluffy white cloud seemed to have grown a prismatic tail. She had never seen such beautiful colors, were they really attached to somepony? Watching in awe, a yellow pegasus with a pink mane landed on the cloud. She looked worried, pointing into the distance and trying to get the other pony to wake up. After a brief exchange, the cloud disintegrated as a rainbow colored blur shot into the distance. The yellow pegasus nearly fell to the ground when the cloud vanished, and then gave pursuit.

"Wow, that was so awesome!" Scootaloo looked around and everypony seemed to have missed the spectacle of the rainbow mare.

Bringing her wings up to full speed, she took off in the direction of the blur. Before long, she had reached rows of apple trees beyond the edge of town. Just beyond the apple orchard, was an unruly forest with menacing looking trees. Something in the dark forest reflected the sunlight into her eyes and caught her attention. Resuming her buzzing, she zoomed off towards the dark forest.

About a hundred feet into the forest there was a run-down barn. The weather vane from the roof had fallen off and landed in the ground. This must have been what Scootaloo had seen as a glint of light. Pulling the weather vane inside with her mouth, she put it out of sight and looked around. The wood was weathered and planks were missing here and there. The wood had not begun to rot, and most of the planks were still attached to the walls. There was a ladder up to a small loft, and a few bales of hay that had mostly rotted and turned to mulch.

Climbing up the old ladder, she found the floor was surprisingly intact. Aside from beams of sunlight piercing through the roof, this would be a perfect place to sleep.

Scootaloo climbed back down and took inventory of what else was in the barn. There were some old tools, some loose planks of wood, and a couple buckets. She stashed the blanket from the mare on the train behind a bale of hay. Her stomach began rumbling again, so she stepped back on the scooter and headed for the grove of apple trees. The whole time she was in the barn, a pair of green eyes watched from the bushes.

Once she had reached the farm it was easy to get over the small fence. Up above her were some of the most delicious looking apples she had ever seen. Scootaloo was against stealing, it's how many orphans got caught after escaping. It also meant admitting she couldn't take care of herself and earn the food. Her stomach rumbled and growled, disagreeing with Scootaloo's ethics in favor of a juicy morsel.

There were so many apple trees that nopony would know if she took a couple to eat. Scootaloo walked up to the tree and tried hitting it with her hooves a couple times, but none of the apples budged. She then spun around and bucked it with all her might, and it still didn't move an inch. Unfastening her helmet, she threw it up at one of the apples. After a few more tries, she had managed to knock an apple off.

Greedily consuming the scrumptious morsel, she failed to notice a large shadow approaching her from behind.

"What have ah told you fillies 'bout stealin' apples?"

Scootaloo jumped, and turned wide-eyed to face an orange mare wearing a tan stetson.

"Come on now, ah came to Cherilee's class and told ya'll to stop sneakin' onto mah farm."

"Sorry. I'm uh. . . new in town. I didn't know." Scootaloo looked back at her helmet and scooter and began to inch towards them. "So I'll just get off your farm--"

"Not so fast, who are your parents?"

Scootaloo paused at the mention of her parents as a wave of emotions hit her.

Scootaloo had a happy childhood in Canterlot. Despite the fact that she had been small for her age, she had two loving parents. Her mother was on the Canterlot weather team. She had long held an important position as the blue team leader. Her father worked at the rainbow factory, and commuted to Cloudsdale every day.

Thinking of them, and the comfort of their love, had gotten her through many lonely nights in the orphanage. She had also begun to resent them, blaming them for placing themselves in harm's way. They had died, leaving her alone in a dark, cruel world to fend for herself. Scootaloo had dropped her last name, and had sworn she would take care of herself.

"Nimbus and Autumn Rain." Scootaloo looked at the mare who finally cracked a grin to relieve some of the tension.

"Well now, if ah catch ya sneakin' round the farm again, Ah'll have to go have a talk with your parents. My name's Applejack and ah own this farm." Applejack bucked the tree with enough force to knock down a single apple. She caught it with a hoof, then tossed it to the stunned filly. "Next time, ya'll should try askin' nicely if ya want an apple. Fillies who steal things will end up in lots of trouble."

Scootaloo managed half a smile. "Thanks ma'am" She quickly gathered her helmet and scooter, and headed for the forest with the apple balanced on the handlebar between her hooves.

"HOLD IT! Ya'll can't go in that forest, that's the everfree. It's far too dangerous for fillies."

Turning around, Scootaloo saw Applejack had closed the distance to a few paces behind her. "Oh I didn't know, thanks again!" Scootaloo turned and zoomed towards town. Once she was sure the orange mare wasn't watching, she circled back to her home in the forest.

Scootaloo spent most of the day cleaning up the abandoned barn. She carried all the hay that wasn't rotted up to the loft, to make a small bed. She had consolidated all the tools into one toolbox, they would come in handy to keep her scooter repaired. She stored the apple in a smaller lockbox and moved it up to the loft with the tools. In one corner she piled all the good wooden planks that had fallen from the roof. In another corner, she left the rest of the odds and ends she might be able to use. Resting her scooter against the wall, she climbed up into the loft.

Pacing around the bed, she tested all the boards by putting some extra weight on them. They seemed sturdy enough, and soon she laid down in the hay and pulled her blanket over her. It was already getting cold and dark as the sun set, and the moon rose high into the sky. She heard a soft rumbling in the distance, and identified it as thunder. It was likely going to rain tonight.

Curling up, she fell asleep and began to dream.

"Nice black eye chicken! Maybe tomorrow we can give you a matching one!" Boulder walked into his room as Gerda glared at him.

"Everyone get in bed, now! If I hear another peep out of you worthless urchins there will be no breakfast tomorrow!" Gerda came to Scootaloo's door, and Scootaloo fled to the safety of her bed. The door slammed closed, and a tumbler in the lock clicked into place. She was now locked in the dark room for the night.

Laying there, she heard a growling noise and smelt something foul. She heard something coming closer. "Boulder? Is that you?" She suddenly saw the pony step out of the shadows with the head of a wolf.

Scootaloo awoke with a start, and continued to hear the growling. Looking down through a small knot in the wood, she saw something crawling around in the bottom of the barn. It was comprised of twigs and branches, and emitted a foul odor. It had a ghastly green glow about it, and was sniffing the scooter and looking around. Scootaloo didn't need instinct to tell her what it was. It was a predator, and it had come for her.

Laying there as silently as she could, she waited for the beast to leave. After several minutes that felt like hours, she felt a drop of water land on her head. It was nearly enough to make her scream in fright. Soon another drop, then another, fell upon her head. It had begun to rain, and the wolf-creature below left the barn to find better shelter. Scootaloo sighed with relief, now she was wet but safe. She'd have to fix the broken door on the barn tomorrow to keep predators out. For now, she'd try to sleep through the rain.

Author's Notes:

Proofread by: 11thWonder

3. My Name is Sweetie Belle

The rain had let up by the time the sun came up. Scootaloo had spent the night trying to find a spot under the roof of the barn with no cracks for rain to trickle through. Eventually she settled for the corner of the loft in the barn. Curling up under the damp blanket, she fell asleep as the first rays of the sun fell on the barn. She was exhausted and fell into a deep dreamless sleep, waking up once the sun was high in the sky.

Scootaloo pushed the blanket off, and stretched her hind legs. The muscles tensed, and then relaxed sending a wave of euphoria over her. She repeated the process with her forelegs, and then walked to the edge of the loft. There was a plank of wood missing here, and Scootaloo could see the area in front of the barn. The bright glare of the sun was scattered by the thick forest canopy of the Everfree. Thorny bushes grew around the trees, choking out all other plant life. The trees had several gnarls on them, and other odd looking protrusions. Several trees looked like they had faces, and all of them shared a dark black bark. The narrow path to the barn was the only area the bushes and vines had not spread to.

Stepping back, Scootaloo stretched out her wings widely. Forcing her feathers apart as much as she could, she stiffened and relaxed her muscles. After several knots had been worked out of the wings, she approached the edge of the loft. It looked about ten feet above the ground, and she was feeling bold. Her wings began to hum loudly as she steeled herself. It's not that far I can totally glide down.

Scootaloo leaped off the loft and hovered for a couple seconds. Just as she began to smile, she plummeted to the ground like a brick. Getting back to her legs, she examined her limbs and luckily had only damaged her pride. Looking around she saw the slanted, broken door to the barn. One door was intact, while the broken door had come unhinged at the lower hinge. The door was slanted inward nearly thirty degrees and could fall at any time. After examining the door, she was able to nudge it until the hinges had nearly lined up again. Heading over to the toolbox in the loft, she pulled out a hammer and looked for anything that might fit the hinge. There weren't any nails, spikes, or other useable items.

Taking the ladder this time, Scootaloo went back to the floor of the barn. Walking around the barn, she finally found what she needed. There was a rusty nail half-buried in the dirt. Dropping the hammer, she dug the nail out. Walking over to the door, she resumed her poking and prodding to get the hinge lined up. The nail only went in an inch. Heading back over to the hammer, she took it in her mouth and attempted to hammer the nail in. It was a lot harder to hammer something using her mouth than she thought. A unicorn sure would come in handy about now. After breaking a sweat bashing the nail, and every wood plank within a foot of it, she had managed to drive the nail through the hinge.

Pushing the door shut took the rest of her energy, the rusty nail was not a good substitute inside the hinge. Once it was closed, she tried the other door. It opened and closed much more easily, she could use it instead of the other door. Closing both doors, she saw two hooks on the bottom and two on the top that looked the right size to drop a two by four into. Carrying one of the pieces of wood from the corner, she dropped it in the lower slot. It would serve to bar the door at night.

A short time later, Scootaloo had finished eating the apple from yesterday and inspecting her scooter. Everything looked to be in order, and she could already feel the adrenaline pumping. Every pegasi was built to cherish the feel of wind through their mane, and the rush of speed, as the world blurred past them.

Closing the barn door behind her, she clicked the strap to her helmet and stepped onto the scooter. Buzzing her wings, she rocketed off down the dirt trail leaving a growing dust cloud behind her. She reached the edge of the forest in seconds, and made a wide turn towards town. The apple orchard from yesterday was empty, the owner must have harvested the apples.

Reaching the bridge into Ponyville, she sped up and used a rock for a small ramp. Landing on the guardrail of the bridge, she slid across and then spun through the air, before landing and continuing forward. Two mares were walking towards her, oblivious to the orange missile. Tucking her wings in, she passed between the two with only millimeters to spare. She heard them shout something from behind her, but it was drowned out by the glorious sound of her buzzing wings.

She had no idea where she was going, but as long as she had the energy she was going to turn this town into her racetrack. Rounding a corner, she nearly collided with the orange mare from yesterday whose name was Applejack. Weaving around her apple stand, she dodged behind a cherry stand and through a narrow alleyway.

Nearing the end of the alley, a white filly stepped in front of it, blocking the exit. She was looking off at something in the distance, and didn't see Scootaloo bearing down on her like a bullet. Before Scootaloo could think, she reacted. Her wings had already spread out perpendicular to the ground, beating furiously to slow down. It looked like she might slow down in time as the white filly turned to see what the buzzing noise was. Scootaloo registered a wide-eyed expression of shock on her face before they collided. Scootaloo jumped off the scooter, hoping to spare the filly some of the force of the impact, and skidded across the dirt to a stop.

"ugh, my wing. . ." Scootaloo glanced at her wing which, though it appeared intact, had taken the brunt of the impact. A couple small orange feathers were still floating to the ground. Checking her wings she was relieved none of the larger feathers had been ripped out. It would probably be sore for a couple days. Remembering about the filly she ran over, she glanced back and quickly went to her aid.

"Hey! Are you alright?" Scootaloo watched the white unicorn's eyes roll around in their sockets for a couple seconds. "I don't usually run ponies over, honest!"

"Oww. . .Whoa what was that?" The white filly stood up and began dusting all the dirt off her white coat, and out of her pink and purple mane.

Scootaloo rubbed a hoof over the back of her neck. "Well, it was a scooter. I was going down the alleyway but you blocked the exit."

"Oh well I suppose I should pay a little more attention to where I'm going. My name is Sweetie Belle, what's yours?" Sweetie picked up the scooter and handed it to Scootaloo.

"I'm Scootaloo, thanks." Taking the scooter she quickly checked the key areas: axles, wheels, and bolts seemed to be in order.

"I haven't seen you around town before, did you just move here?"

"Yeah, well if you're ok I've got stuff to do."

Sweetie's eyes fell on Scootaloo's flank. "Wait! You're a blank flank too?" Sweetie Belle trotted right alongside Scootaloo. "I um. . . My sister wants me to go to this cuteceanera to make friends. I really don't want to go because I don't have a cutie mark. Maybe you can come with me, there will be lots of cake and snacks."

Scootaloo's ears perked up. "Snacks?" Her stomach rumbled in agreement. "Yeah sure, so what's a cuteceanera?"

"Haven't your parents told you about it? When somepony finds their cutie mark you throw a big party."

"I guess it sounds fun, when is it?"

"I was on my way there when you collided with me. Wait, are you ok? It looks like some of your primary feathers are missing."

Scootaloo folded her wings more tightly against her back to hide the few feathers left that had obviously been clipped with scissors. "Yeah it's nothing, pegasi lose feathers all the time! Just uh. . . molting! So let's go check out this party!"

Sweetie Belle picked up her pace and led Scootaloo to Sugarcube Corner. Once there, Scootaloo could smell the many wonderful treats inside. Putting her scooter and helmet away just inside the door, she followed Sweetie Belle in. Not many fillies had arrived, and the adults were still setting up tables and streamers. One pink mare in particular seemed to have an entire roll of streamers, several party hats, and an endless supply of confetti in her mane.

"So I guess you can introduce me to some of your friends Sweetie?"

"Oh, I don't have many friends yet. . ."

Scootaloo grabbed a couple cookies and began eating them. "Why--not?" The cookies were still warm, the chocolate melted before it even hit her tongue.

"I'm still new myself, my parents moved to Ponyville so I could spend more time with my sister Rarity. I have been studying so much for school I haven't had much time for friends."

"Ha! studying is for eggheads." Scootaloo grabbed some licorice off a nearby tray. It tasted like fresh cherries.

"Well don't blame me when you fail a test. . . Say I haven't seen you in Cherilee's class, you go to school right?"

"No."

"Oh your parents are home schooling you?"

Scootaloo glanced around and many other fillies and colts had shown up. "Uh, maybe. We're really new so I don't know yet." Scootaloo grabbed a cup of fruit punch.

"Oh quick, it's Diamond Tiara." Sweetie tugged Scootaloo's leg and pulled her under a table. "She is the one with the tiara, and her friend with the glasses is Silver Spoon. She's always giving me a hard time for being a blank flank."

"Why? There's nothing wrong with having a blank flank. I've dealt with plenty of bullies, I just need to knock her down a peg."

Sweetie grabbed Scootaloo to stop her from getting out from under the table. "No! You'll get us both in trouble if you pick a fight. Let's just wait a bit until she talks to somepony else and we can go get more snacks."

Scootaloo rolled her eyes. "Fine, whatever."

The music was suddenly interrupted with a screech of the record. Looking over at the fillies that Sweetie had mentioned, she saw them approaching a yellow filly.

"Oh that is an amazing cutie mark." The two fillies appeared to be mocking her, backing her into a corner.

"Nice try, blank flank!" The silver fillies in their frilly saddles taunted the yellow filly in unison. They continued to laugh at her as she stood alone and the whole room watched.

Scootaloo could feel her blood boiling. She wanted to rush out and make them eat their words. Sweetie was right though, this wasn't another orphan picking on her in an orphanage. This was a room full of adult ponies. "Sweetie, follow my lead."

"You got a problem with blank flanks?" Scootaloo stepped out from under the table with Sweetie Belle nervously in tow. Several ponies gasped as the new fillies. "I said, you got a problem with blank flanks!"

"The problem is, I mean, she's like, totally not special." Silver spoon gestured with her hooves and the yellow filly looked ready to cry. Sweetie and Scootaloo moved to stand at her sides.

Sweetie retorted. "No, it means she's full of potential!"

"It means she could be great at anything!" Scootaloo spread her wings to make herself look a little more intimidating. She took on a shrill tone to mock Silver Spoon. "The possibilities are like, endless."

"She could be a great scientist, or an amazing artist, or a famous writer. She could even be mayor of Ponyville someday."

Scootaloo grinned and moved in for the kill. "And she's not stuck being stuck up like you two!" She pointed right at the pair, and now they felt just as alone as the yellow filly had been a minute ago. The ponies were laughing again, but at them and not at the blank flank.

"Hey! This is my party, why are you two on her side!" Diamond Tiara's face was turning red and her eyes narrowing. This was her special day, not theirs.

"Beacuse." Both fillies turned to show their blank flanks to everypony in the room.

"You don't have your cutie marks either! I thought I was the only one." The yellow filly was smiling again, standing on her rear legs in excitement.

"We thought we were the only two!"

A lavender unicorn stepped forward. "I for one think you are very lucky fillies."

"Lucky?" Diamond Tiara raised an eyebrow. "How can they be lucky?"

"They still get to experience the thrill of discovering who they are, and what they're meant to be."

Applejack stepped forward. "And they've got all the time in the world to figure it out, not just an afternoon."

Everypony gathered around to chat with the blank flanks. There was a mass of fillies talking about all the opportunities they had. A few of them even wished they'd gotten a cooler cutie mark.

"Name's Scootaloo."

"And I'm Sweetie Belle."

"Applebloom."

The trio headed over to a table to chat. Once the music started back up everypony started dancing. Scootaloo never had friends, at best she had ponies that would go a week or two without picking on the small pegasus. Standing there at the table with Sweetie and Applebloom, she felt whole for the first time since her parents passed away. That familiar feeling of warmth, once almost forgotten, returned to her. Now she would have something to do aside from racing around town and avoiding predators at night.

"So I was thinking, now that we're friends. I mean, we are friends, right?" Applebloom glanced back and forth at the two fillies.

"How could we not be, we're totally alike. We don't have cutie marks, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon drive us crazy." Scootaloo rolled her eyes for emphasis.

"Totally crazy." Sweetie chimed in and then laughed with her friends.

Applebloom had an idea to share with her new friends. "Well now that we're friends, what if the three of us worked together to find out who we are, and what we're supposed to be?"

"Oh oh, we could form our own secret society!"

"I'm liking this idea!" Scootaloo waved an approving hoof in the air.

"A secret society, yeah, we'll need a name for it though." Applebloom put her hoof on her chin and stared into the distance for inspiration.

Scootaloo's head sprung off the table. "The Cutie Mark Three?"

"The Cutetastically Fantastics?" Sweetie's high pitched voice cracked a little.

"How about, the Cutie Mark Crusaders?"

"It's perfect Applebloom!" Scootaloo and the other two fillies began speaking over each other in their excitement.

"What do you say we celebrate with some of these delicious cupcakes?" Scootaloo balanced a cupcake on her nose before letting it fall onto the table. Her mouth was already salivating at the prospect of more free food. It was too bad she didn't have a saddlebag, or she could carry home enough sweets for a week.

Applebloom stopped Scootaloo with her hoof. "Not the cupcakes! Trust me."

"Let's see if there are any cookies!" The trio headed off to find other snacks, having only narrowly avoided Pinkie Pie's Tobasco cupcakes.

The three danced for a while, discussing what to do first. "We should start looking for our cutie marks after school tomorrow. You're both in Cheerilee's class right?" Applebloom was doing a small square dance, tapping her hooves with the rhythm.

"Yeah, I sit in the back row." Sweetie belle danced along in an awkward two step.

Scootaloo said nothing and just continued to flow with the music. She never realized how fun it could be to just dance.

"What about you Scootaloo?"

"Oh. . . I haven't started school yet." If she walked into class, the teacher would probably insist on meeting her parents. There were probably applications, and placement exams. Then she would be stuck there every day learning. On the other hoof, they might have a school cafeteria, and she would get to hang out with Applebloom and Sweetie every single day.

Sweetie answered for her. "She just moved to town so she hasn't signed up yet. All you need to do, Scootaloo, is show up to class and sign the roster. She has parent-teacher meetings every few months to introduce herself to the new filly's parents."

Scootaloo smirked, in a few months she could think of something. For now, she would get to hang out with her two best friends. "Sounds awesome, what time does it start?"

"Eight in the morning, it's at the end of main street near the park."

"Oh, I haven't been there yet. I uh. . . live near Applejack's farm." Scootaloo gave them a wide, innocent grin.

"That's perfect! Applejack's my big sis, I can meet you in the morning and show you the way to school."

"Why don't we try to get a cutie mark tonight too?" Sweetie stopped dancing to think of something fitting. "Sewing? No. Baking? Nah."

Applebloom looked over at Scootaloo. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"Well gee, where are we going to find a 12 foot stunt ramp at this time of night?"

"No Scootaloo, we can be Cutie Mark Crusader Dancers!"

"Awesome! I saw this rad break dancing move once, watch." Scootaloo spun around on the floor, winding up dizzy and out of breath. Odds are it looked pretty cool, so it was totally worth it.

"Hmm we're missing something. . . I know a cheer! Shout Cutie Mark Crusader Dancers with me on three. One. . . Two. . . Three!"

CUTIE MARK CRUSADER DANCERS!!!

Author's Notes:

Proofread by: 11thWonder

4. Cheerilee's Playground

It was dark by the time Scootaloo got back to her home in the barn. Spending time with Sweetie Belle and Applebloom had rekindled something deep inside her. She couldn't explain it, for it was such a foreign emotion, yet she knew she had felt it before. Beneath the many walls she had built up around herself to keep out negative emotions, a crack had formed. Through this crack flowed a warm emotion that made her want to turn around right now, and rush back to hang out a little longer. Sweetie Belle and Applebloom had been taken home by their big sisters though, and Scootaloo had to leave the party.

Scootaloo slowed at the edge of the Everfree forest. At night, the moon threw wicked shadows across the ground. Each gust of wind whistled through the gnarled tree branches, sounding a symphony of ominous white noise. The rustling bushes and eerie sounds made every shadow appear as a hungry predator. The pegasus filly stared into the distance at a black shape with a featureless white face before snapping out of her trance. "Well, I've got nowhere else to sleep. Besides, what's the worst that could happen?"

Accelerating up to full speed she flew down the dark path towards the barn. Her wings drowned out the sounds of the forest, but also attracted some attention from the various fauna of the Everfree’s edge. When she reached the barn, Scootaloo pushed the door open and quickly shut it. There were two hooks in the door to bar it with a plank of wood, but she could only reach the lower one. She dropped a sizeable plank of wood in it and she tested the barrier to make sure it would hold. "Hah! That wasn't so hard." Scootaloo set her helmet and scooter down near the ladder that led to the loft. She climbed up and picked up her blanket, which she had hung over a crossbeam to dry.

She heard movement outside. Going to the missing plank that was her peephole over the barn doors, she saw a familiar sight. Down below was the timberwolf that had stalked her the previous night. It came up to the door and tried to nudge it open. When it found the door wouldn’t move, it started scratching and pawing at the wood. "You may be bigger, but you're dumb as a rock." The timberwolf looked up with a predatory glare at the orange head sticking out of the hole in the roof, and then began to dig under the door.

"Celestia damn it!" Scootaloo looked around for something heavy that could fit through the window. Scrambling down the ladder she managed to find a couple rocks and carried them back up the loft with her. She took position at the window and aimed a rock down at the timberwolf. "Get lost freak!" The rock flew through its hollow body harmlessly. The timberwolf looked up and she could have sworn it had chuckled through its toothy wooden grin. Aiming the other rock, she threw it down at the timberwolf and managed to knock a couple loose twigs off its head.

Backing off slowly, the timberwolf stepped into the bushes and out of her throwing range and crouched. The two branches that had been knocked off slowly pulled themselves along the ground, surrounded by a green haze. They reattached to the timberwolf, who remained hunkered down and waited patiently for Scootaloo to go to sleep. "Yeah, well two can play that game you mutt!" Scootaloo carried up a dozen rocks to the loft. If the wolf came back, she would be ready. Even if he got in, she should be safe in the loft, unless he had learned how to climb.

With a final glance at her nemesis, she gave him a raspberry with her tongue and proceeded to curl up in the corner. Scootaloo chuckled to herself. I guess this still beats the orphanage. Laying down with her blanket, she rode the sugar rush to its inevitable crash, and fell asleep.

Scootaloo woke up to the sound of pins aligning in a tumbler. That sound means that breakfast is being served. Rolling out of bed, she found herself in the kitchen. Before her is a trough and half a dozen colts and fillies fighting over the dry oats that had been sloshed inside of it. To the side there is a single bucket of water.

Ignoring them, she found herself in the back yard. None of the usual sounds of the city were present, but she knew why she was here. This is the moment she escapes. A unicorn filly appears, her one friend at the orphanage. She had recently learned how to levitate small objects. Using her help and a plate stolen from the kitchen, she would get a boost and hopefully fly over the wall on her tiny wings.

Scootaloo is hanging on the wall, trying to pull herself over. The flightless filly is so close but feels a heavy weight on her, impeding her progress. She hears her friend scream, and lets go. The matron of the orphanage is using her magic to pin the filly, and saw off her horn. She wants to charge, to help, to kill the cruel hag. Her feet are stuck in cement as her friend screams and screams. The mare releases the unicorn and glares at Scootaloo.

Back in her room, Scootaloo is crying into the pillow. She had been pinned by Gerda and can hear the sound of metal lightly scraping together. "You know I had a parrot once? We clipped its wings so it didn't fly off. I think the concept is the same for brats like you."

Scootaloo's eyes jerked and she could feel sweat beneath the blanket. "It was only a nightmare. She can't hurt me anymore. . ." Scootaloo thought talking to herself would help, but the images were still imprinted on her retinas. She hadn't seen the unicorn filly since the escape attempt. Was she dead or adopted? Maybe locked away for months? The guilt still bothered Scootaloo. Looking back at her wings, primaries grown out fully, she finally calmed down.

Sure, I can just grow my feathers back. But her horn...

Sleep did not come for her again that night, and the sun rose in the morning to find her curled up in the corner. Her thoughts had turned to Sweetie and Applebloom, she would meet them at school today and convince the teacher she was a new filly in town.

She got up and looked around. Everything seemed as it was when she left it. In a flash, she remembered her altercation with the wooden predator the previous night. She hurried over to her plankless position, only to find the timberwolf wasn’t around. She heaved a sigh of relief and prepared to meet her new friends.

Heading out towards the apple farm, Scootaloo waited where Applebloom had told her to. There was a sign that said "Sweet Apple Acres" in large red letters down the road from where she had exited the forest. She noticed two ponies approaching her, and quickly saw that it was Applebloom and Applejack trotting over to her.

"Mornin' sugarcube, you get enough sweets last night?" Applejack tipped her trademark Stetson at the pegasus filly.

"Heh, not even close. Those were some of the best cookies I ever had though."

"Scootaloo! Are ya excited to start school today? I already got some ideas about our cutie marks." Applebloom came alongside Scootaloo, who suddenly realized she couldn't zoom off on her scooter with Applebloom keeping pace. Maybe later she could think of a way to give her friend a ride, then they could talk while zooming around town.

"Yeah I guess I am, are we picking up Sweetie Belle too?""

"Nah, she’ll meet us there." The two fillies suddenly noticed Applejack leaning against the fence, listening in.

"So sugarcube, did ya forget your saddlebag? Ya'll need some school supplies and lunch too. Better head back home and get 'em quick, ‘fore schoolin’ starts.” She righted her Stetson and turned to leave. “Alright you two, have a nice day."

"Oh yeah, thanks." Scootaloo and Applebloom started down the road towards the schoolhouse. Had Scootaloo paid more attention, she might have noticed Applejack watching them walk away with a slightly tilted head and raised eyebrow.

"And then the rope on Big Mac's yolk snapped, and threw 'em all in the mud!" Applebloom pantomimed a mare falling into the mud. Scootaloo started laughing so hard she nearly fell off her scooter. By this time, the two fillies had reached the schoolhouse and were just disembarking the scooter.

Once Scootaloo had recovered, Applebloom led her to Miss Cheerilee. "Mornin' Miss Cheerilee, this is mah friend Scootaloo!"

"Good morning Cheerilee." Scootaloo gave her the best innocent smile she could, raising her eyebrows a touch and showing her front teeth.

"Good morning Scootaloo, you must be new in town. Have you come to sign up for classes?"

"Yep."

"Ok, well you can park your scooter out in the hallway, and there are lockers here to store your school supplies. You did bring any with you?"

"Uh, actually I didn't, I left them at home." Scootaloo noticed the deep pink pony's cutie mark. She had never seen a smiling sunflower before. I wonder if those are real plants?

"Well, we have half an hour until class starts. You can take this form and have your parents fill out your contact information, and then get your supplies."

"Oh." Scootaloo glanced at Applebloom for help, then remembered she was keeping her in the dark, too. Applebloom did manage to pick up on the concern in her friend’s face. "My parents already left for work. . . They commute to Canterlot, being pegasi and all. And they sorta forgot to buy me school supplies."

"It's ok Miss Cheerilee! I'll share my school supplies, and if Scootaloo needs anything I bet my family could help!"

"Alright my little ponies. Scootaloo, you can go ahead and take a seat near Applebloom. Fill out your name and your parents’ names on this form, and your street address if you can remember it. Let your parents know we have a parent teacher conference this week where we can get to know each other."

Scootaloo glanced to Applebloom and whispered in her ear. "I thought you said she only has those every 3 months or something."

Applebloom whispered back. "Well I guess it's been 3 months, just get at least one of 'em to come if they're busy."

Sighing, Scootaloo took the paper in her mouth and headed over to the desk. She was quick to write down her name and the names of her parents. She wasn't sure if the teacher was resourceful enough to figure out her parents were dead, so she made up a surname. Cloud. There were a million pegasi named Cloud.

She turned the paper back in to Cheerilee. That's one problem down, guess I'll just deal with the parent thing later this week. Maybe I can eat some rotten fruit and vomit, make her think I've got the filly flu.

"Come on, Scootaloo! Let's go out and meet Sweetie." Applebloom tugged on her friend’s hoof to get her attention and led her outside. It was a short journey to the playground where they saw an unwelcome sight.

"Please, I wouldn't be caught dead wearing those ugly strips of wool your sister calls clothing." Silver Spoon laughed at Diamond Tiara's insult.

"Don’t say that! She's a better designer than anypony, and she even finds gems twice as nice as that clump of mud you're wearing!" Sweetie Belle stood her ground in front of the two fillies.

"Hah, you know what we use your sister's clothes for blank flank?" Diamond Tiara's smile flattened out, and her eyebrows lowered. "Cleaning the dishes."

"You take that back!" Scootaloo stepped in front of Sweetie with fire in her narrow eyes. She lowered herself to the ground and spread her wings slightly, only barely restraining herself from pouncing.

"Or what blank flanks? Come on Silver Spoon, let's get out of here before they start crying."

The two mares turned to leave, and Scootaloo lunged at Diamond's back. She was stopped with a sudden jolt; something had a vice grip on her tail. Turning around, she saw Applebloom spitting out a mouthful of her pink tail.

"Come on Applebloom, I won't let them push my friends around like that!"

Sweetie Belle sighed dejectedly. "It's. . . ok, really."

"No, it's not 'ok' Sweetie. If we don't do something they'll keep picking on you."

"Scootaloo, my sis says that some ponies are just rotten apples that fall too far from the tree. . . Or was it too close? Anyway, they just wanna make everyone else mad cuz they ain't happy. It's not worth gettin' in trouble over."

Scootaloo sighed and felt most of the tension leave her body. It wouldn't do her any good to get in a fight. She already had to think up a reason her parents couldn't attend the parent teacher meeting later this week. If she got in a fight, Cheerilee would probably try to march over to Scootaloo's house and talk to them tonight.

"Alright then, so what are we learning about in class today?" Scootaloo managed a weak smile.

"We're going to learn about the Stalliongrad civil war. It's the last time in history a pony ever fought another pony. Back when they passed a la--" Sweetie Belle was interrupted by the bell ringing.

"Sounds like you already know all about it, egghead." Scootaloo laughed, and the two fillies joined her. Scootaloo could feel the warmth again, it pierced the barricades she had built to keep the sorrow and pain out.

She would do anything to hang onto moments like this. Being an orphan on the run was worth feeling happy again.

Author's Notes:

Proofread by: 11thWonder

p.s. Can't get enough Scootaloo? Check out the short story I posted earlier today. Dash and Scootaloo break into Twilight's laboratory to make homemade rainboom-fireworks! What's the worst that could happen?

5. Get to The Scoota!

"Thanks for meetin' me Fluttershy." Applejack tipped her hat to the yellow mare.

"Oh, anything for my friends. Well, not dragons. . ." Fluttershy cringed just thinking about a huge, gigantic, terrible, enormous, teeth-gnashing, sharp scale-having, horn-wearing, smoke-snoring, could-eat-a-pony-in-one-bite, totally-all-grown-up dragon.

"Don't be silly, ah just wanted to ask about the sleepover ya'll had last night."

"Oh, Applebloom was very well behaved. I guess I'm just as good with children as I am with animals."

"Now Fluttershy, ah've seen the fillies crusaderin' and ah know that can't be true. But ah actually want to know about Scootaloo. Did anything with her seem . . . well, strange?"

"Hmm. Well there was the broken table, and the singing, and then the chicken hunting, and Twilight being turned to stone, and a cockat--" Applejack interjected.

"Whoa back up there, Twilight was turned ta stone? By a cockatrice, and ah'm just hearin' about this now?"

"Oh well, it was just a misunderstanding. Everypony is alright, and Scootaloo was very brave. The other fillies were hiding behind her while I used the . . . stare."

"Well, movin' right on past how you and my sis ended up in the middle of the Everfree with a stoned Twilight, did Scootaloo talk about her parents at all?"

"No. Well, I haven't seen her around that much, or her parents. Scootaloo seems to prefer being on her own."

"Well shoot, ah can tell the filly is hidin' something. Ah'm just worried it could be something bad that she shouldn't be hidin' in the first place."

"Ok, if you need anything else let me know. She seems like a very nice filly though, please don't scare her."

"Come on now, my coffee mug don't say number one sister fer nothin'!"

Scootaloo was exhausted. It was hard enough going to school, doing homework, and finding creative ways to get food without resorting to stealing. Luckily, Sweetie Belle was able to explain a few of the harder lessons to her, and Applebloom always came to school with lots of extra snacks and apples. Then, she would rush out from school to the field outside Ponyville where Rainbow Dash practiced her stunts. She had barely been in town a week, and already she had found her calling. She still went crusading with the Cutie Mark Crusaders, but she already knew her special talent. She was going to be exactly like Rainbow Dash.

Today was the talent show; it was also a very busy day before that. The Cutie Mark Crusaders renovated a clubhouse that was held together by duct tape, spit, and childhood hopes and dreams. They had tried at least a dozen different jobs without getting a single cutie mark. Then they planned and performed at a talent show scoring first place for comedy. Despite their unblemished success, the fillies didn't even get a comedy cutie mark!

Scootaloo could feel the burning in her shoulders, back, and wings. Even her abdomen was sore from standing upright on the scooter all day, and dancing at the talent show. If that wasn't enough, she had spent half the day towing a wagon she had attached to her scooter. Pulling the fillies around was more difficult than she thought it would be, but now she could go fast and hang out with her friends at the same time. She might even be able to pull off a few tricks; they did all wear helmets after all.

There was only one thing on Scootaloo's mind now: Sleep. The cold loft beckoned her, the raggedy blanket promised a warm night of sweet dreams. She could sleep in, even show up to class late, because her aching body demanded rest. Once again, Scootaloo was far too tired to consider the fact that the parent teacher conference was tomorrow. She would probably decide to use the filly flu excuse, all she needed to do was a little acting, and she had proven her talent at that earlier today.

Approaching the barn at about half her normal speed, Scootaloo could already feel her muscles and brain surrendering to the alluring embrace of sleep. She heard a roll of thunder and knew that the Everfree was going to do what it did best: unpredictable weather, and chilly wet nights. It was no longer an issue; she had improvised with a small tarp to keep a corner of the loft relatively dry.

The first raindrops started to fall, causing her to speed up a little. The barn wasn't far, and she hopped off the scooter and took her helmet off. The straps had been cutting into her chin all day, and her mane felt like it had been shoved into an oven. Perhaps she would come out in the rain for a little while to wash off the sweat from a day of hard crusading with her friends.

Carrying the helmet in one hoof, and pushing the scooter along with the other, she opened the barn door. Before her brain could register any other details, a large mass crashed into her and her face collided with the door as she dropped her helmet. She instinctively tried to get back up, but the door slammed shut on her midsection. She could smell something foul, and a faint green pair of eyes were glowing in the dark. Frantically she kicked out at the timberwolf who was using its weight to keep her pinned and helpless. Her wings were pinned against the ground, but she forced them open anyway, squirming and thrashing about. The clever bastard had been waiting in the barn for her to return.

She felt some kicks connect, but most missed. In a matter of seconds from the initial impact, she had wiggled most of the way out of the barn doors. She had also taken a few cuts from the timberwolf's free claw. Using the scooter as leverage, she forced herself out from between the two doors, and without a moment's hesitation jumped on the scooter and rocketed off as if the gates of Tartarus had opened to spew forth hellfire at her. stupid, stupid stupid. How could I have not thought of that, what good is a door that only locks on the inside?

Scootaloo was too scared to slow down, realizing she should have reached the farm by now. Instead, the forest was getting even thicker. Taking the first path that led away from the trail she was on, she turned right and hoped to circle back to the edge of the forest. If I'm where I think I am, and by Celestia I hope I am, this should at least get me out of the forest and near Ponyville.

Something crashed through the brush, flashing past her mane and missing her by inches. She knew it was the timberwolf without looking. She knew that to survive this nemesis she had to keep her eyes forward, and her screaming muscles working as hard as they could. Each breath of air ignited her sore lungs, and her heart ached as it struggled to supply itself enough oxygen.

Scootaloo burst out of the Everfree forest without even realizing it. One moment there were trees, bushes, and obstacles in her path, and the next there was grass, the rainy sky, and small knolls. She heard branches behind her snap as the timberwolf burst out, still in pursuit of the young pegasus. Scootaloo spotted a cottage up ahead and she flew towards it. She felt ready to collapse, every muscle in her body burning and begging for release. She would make for the door and try to get inside. If the door is locked. . . well I hope he chokes eating me.

She careened towards the door, quickly gauging which shoulder was aching less at the moment. Choosing the left one, she lept from the scooter and threw her shoulder at the door, hoping to tumble through it and then quickly close it behind her. As she sailed through the air every muscle tightened up, bracing for the coming impact. With a loud popping sound, her shoulder hit the unyielding door. Scootaloo fell to the ground, screaming in agony. She struggled to get to her hooves as she watched the timberwolf. Thirty feet, twenty five, twenty, fifteen, ten feet. . . Scootaloo stared death in the face, and death flinched.

A massive furry paw came out of nowhere, shattering the timberwolf to pieces. Turning to face her savior, she saw a giant grizzly bear. The bear reached down and scooped Scootaloo up. Before she could think of heroic last words, the pain caused her brain to shut down. At least she would be unconscious for the end.

Author's Notes:

Proofread by: 11thWonder

6. Rule Six: There is no Six

Scootaloo awoke, groggy and dazed. She was slowly coming to, and felt something tugging at her injured left shoulder. She willed herself to wake up faster, but to no avail. She remembered a timberwolf, and a bear, but it was all very hazy. Was this what having a limb pulled off felt like? As the hooves continued to manipulate her shoulder, the pain helped her wake up more quickly. Wait, bears don't have hooves. Scootaloo had regained some control of her muscles and tensed her shoulder up. Something jerked the shoulder and Scootaloo felt a sharp pain, and heard a loud pop.

Finally recovering from her stupor, Scootaloo looked up to see Fluttershy, the mare who only a couple nights ago had let the Cutie Mark Crusaders have a sleepover. Scootaloo noticed she could move her shoulder again and most of the pain was gone.

"Fluttershy! There was a timberwolf, and a bear! We have to get inside!" Scootaloo tried to scramble to her feet, but Fluttershy pinned her down with a hoof.

"Easy Scootaloo, that was my friend Baloo. He helps me keep dangerous animals from leaving the Everfree and bothering ponies in Ponyville."

"What?" Scootaloo looked off the porch to see a bear grinning sheepishly and waving to him.

"You dislocated your shoulder. . . I'm sorry if I hurt you when I relocated it. Now let's get you inside and out of the rain." Fluttershy scooped her up and flew inside. "Oh this is horrible, your parents are going to be so worried!"

"Oh uh. . . they had to work overtime, they won't even know."

"So. . . how did you get attacked by a timberwolf? If you don't mind." Scootaloo kept getting lost in her smile, slowly being disarmed by her kindness. She relaxed onto the sofa and felt her stress melting away as her limp legs dangled off the edge.

"I was riding my scooter back home, and it jumped out of the Everfree and chased me here!" Scootaloo sighed, this was going well.

"What about your helmet? And the bruises? And the cuts. . . I'm sorry, I should slow down. You are not in trouble, but this alcohol is going to sting while I disinfect your wound."

Scootaloo thought over how to reply, and was interrupted by a stinging sensation over her flank. There were some scratches similar to what Opalescence had once given her. These scratches were larger, and deeper. She clenched her jaw tightly and tensed her sore leg muscles to keep them still. Every millimeter of exposed flesh from the cuts felt like a fiery inferno. The stinging didn't last long before the nerves began blocking out some of the pain signals. She started relaxing her jaw as the worst of it was behind her.

"You took that well Scootaloo, you're a very brave pony. Now, please, Baloo saw you come out of the Everfree. He sent his cousin Gryll into the forest to check for more timberwolves. Why would you go out there at night? I thought after the cockatrice. . . I don't know what I'd do if you had gotten killed." Fluttershy was crying gently now, a single tear rolling down her cheek.

Scootaloo was speechless, and she couldn't think of a lie. How could this pony she had only spent one night with care for her so much? All the adults she had ever known treated her like a child, who needed to be told what to do and how to act. Well, to be fair, Dash has never told me what to do.

"Why? Why are you being so nice to me? Why aren't you yelling or taking me to my parents?"

"Scootaloo, everypony deserves kindness. Especially when they are hurt." Fluttershy smiled again, wiping away any trace of the tears she had shed.

Scootaloo looked down to see her flank had been wrapped with a bandage, and Fluttershy took a towel and began to dry her hair.

"I'm going to have to tell your parents what happened, you know. I. . . I don't want to get you in trouble, but you can't be doing stunts in the Everfree. And if you don't want to tell me why, then I'll tell your parents what you told me. However, you have to pinkie promise never to go in the Everfree again."

Scootaloo's last wall around her emotions broke and she began to cry. Is this what my mother would have been like if she hadn't died? Is this the life their death denied to me? "You take pinkie promises very seriously around here? Sweetie Belle was telling me about them."

"Yes Scootaloo, and Pinkie Pie has a sixth sense that allows her to tell when someone is about to break a pinkie promise. She can be. . . very persuasive." Fluttershy took out a brush and began to brush Scootaloo's mane. "When I look at you Scootaloo, I see myself as a filly. So lonely, and afraid to get close to ponies. If you pinkie promise to stay out of the Everfree and not repeat it, I'll tell you my story."

Scootaloo was too sore and tired to even consider resisting Fluttershy. If this was it, if this was the night she got sent back to the orphanage, there was no stopping it now. "Ok, cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye." She tried to make the gestures but her sore muscles didn't comply. "I still don't get why you're doing all this. You already know I was lying."

Fluttershy smiled. "It's okay, just listen for now. When I was a filly in flight school, I wasn't a very good flier. One day, a bunch of bullies were picking on me and Rainbow Dash came to my defense. She challenged them to a race, and when they started, I was knocked off my cloud at the starting line. I was falling through the air and I couldn’t use my wings to slow me down because I was just too scared. I thought I was going to hit the ground, but a gentle cloud of butterflies caught me and slowly set me down on the ground. It was my very first time on the ground, and I was still very scared from the fall. But, when I looked around, I saw a bunch of my animal friends gathered around to see if I was okay. The ground was so wonderful, and all the cute little animals were so nice, I never wanted to leave. I knew that day that I wanted to spend my life on the ground, caring for them. Just then, I felt a tingling on my flanks, and when I turned around, my cutie mark had appeared! When the instructors found me, I didn't want to go back.

“Once they got me back to Cloudsdale, I told my parents I was dropping out of flight school. I was going to study to be a veterinarian and return to the ground. They. . . weren't pleased. Up until the day I was old enough to move out, they kept telling me it was a mistake. They tried to get me into college, and into other flight camps. My whole family had a proud legacy of Wonderbolts, weather team leaders, and managers at weather factories across Equestria.

“When I finally got old enough and left, they told me if I walked out that door. . . that I was dead to them. They considered me a failure for not living up to their legacy. It was so cruel, but I knew what my cutie mark meant. I was meant to spread kindness, to help those who can't help themselves. That was nearly ten years ago, and it still hurts. I've been alone since then, the only friends I’ve had had been Rarity and Rainbow Dash until Twilight came to town.

And when I look at you Scootaloo, I see that same loneliness."

Scootaloo sat in silence as she absorbed her story. She couldn't imagine anyone else was as lonely as she had been. "Why did you give up your family? I'd do anything to have my parents back."

"I left because I knew it was my job to be kind to animals, and ponies like you Scootaloo. Now, I pinkie promise not to tell anypony about your parents. Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye. How did they die Scootaloo?"

"How. . . how long have you known?"

"I've been suspicious. . . not that I was spying, oh I would never do that. My animal friends saw you going into the Everfree several times and um. . . no one in town has seen your parents even once."

"Ugh, alright, you got me. I doubt I could get up and leave even if I wanted to. I'll tell you how I became an orphan, and why I will never let anypony send me back.”

Scootaloo was asleep when her aunt woke her up. "Scootaloo, I need you to come with me to the hospital."

"It's late, why do I have to go?" The tiny filly yawned and tried to disappear back beneath the sheets."

"There has been an accident. . . Please come with me."

"What?" Scootaloo rolled over to face her. "Who got hurt? Was it mommy and daddy?"

"Please Scootaloo. . . Just come to the hospital and I'll explain there."

"What happened to mommy and daddy! Tell me!"

Her aunt was crying, and scooped Scootaloo up in her arms and flew towards the hospital in silence. Scootaloo kept asking what was going on, but her aunt would not answer. Finally, they got to the hospital and went inside. The doctors and nurses parted before them as they approached a room no different from any other.

Entering the room she saw a few other distant relatives were gathered around. "Where's mommy and daddy! What happened!" Scootaloo squirmed out of her aunt's grip, falling to the floor and running over to the bed. She could see the familiar orange coat of her father under the bed sheet. Everypony in the room looked away and began crying as Scootaloo approached the bed.

Scootaloo had to hop up to reach the sheet and uncover her father. "Daddy, wake up daddy." Her father didn't answer. He lay there with a tube down his throat, several wires and machines had been hooked up to him but were all turned off now. He was bruised and cut, and so cold. "Daddy?" Scootaloo hugged his neck, and saw her mother's beautiful pink mane on the bed next to her.

Leaping to the bed, she uncovered her mother to a similar sight. She was badly hurt, cold and unmoving. The iv needles and tubing still taped to her arm, tubes in her mouth. . . Scootaloo couldn't believe what she was seeing. "No! NO! WAKE UP! YOU CAN'T LEAVE ME!!"

"Scootaloo. . . they're gone now." Her aunt approached her, and Scootaloo realized the others were murmuring in the background. "I need to take you home now."

"NO! YOU'RE NOT--MY MOMMY! I--WANT MY--MOMMY!" Scootaloo was hysterical, and as soon as her aunt touched her, she jumped off the bed and bolted out of the room. She ran from the pain and the anger. She ran until her legs could not carry her any further. She ran until she was so exhausted that the only thing she could do was collapse in the embrace of sleep. Curled up in a cardboard box in an alleyway, she cursed Celestia for taking her parents from her.

Now Fluttershy was crying again. "Scootaloo. . . I had no idea. I'm so sorry."

Scootaloo wasn't faring much better having just relived her worst memories. Sobbing, she replied. "Why are you sorry? You--didn't take them from me! You--weren't stuck--in the orphanage." Scootaloo curled up and burst into tears. "The worst—part is—nopony—ever came—looking—for me—they just—left me—all alone—" Fluttershy slowly patted her mane and began to sing a lullaby, until Scootaloo was gently snoring.

Scootaloo awoke in the morning to the smell of cinnamon mixed with hay and the odor of a dozen different animals. She was still on the sofa, but she had a pillow and a warm bed sheet. The sun was shining through the windows, and no sooner had she woken up, Fluttershy came in carrying some breakfast.

"Scootaloo. . . I want you to stay here with me. . . um if you don't mind. I won't let any pony take you back to the orphanage but. . . I don't know if I can ever replace your parents."

Scootaloo smiled, and began to move her stiff muscles. "Thank you, but what's the point? I can't go to school like this, Cheerilee will worry about me. Then my parent's won't show up to parent-teacher night because I don't have any. . . and I'll have to go back." Scootaloo was on the verge of tears again, but Fluttershy lifted up her chin.

"You let me worry about Cheerilee. You are going to stay here and rest, and if you need anything Angel will get it for you. And Angel," she turned to stare at the bunny. "You won't give any attitude to our guest."

Angel nodded submissively. He had a penchant for mischief, of which both ponies were well aware.

"Thank you. You've been so kind. . . I accept. I'll stay here until we can figure something out" Scootaloo smiled and Fluttershy returned a warm smile of her own.

Scootaloo had never opened up to any pony, and now that she had, she felt so good. A huge weight had been lifted off of her. She felt the same blissful feelings she felt when hanging out with Applebloom and Sweetie, only a hundredfold stronger. Despite not knowing what the future would bring, she had this wonderful moment with Fluttershy. For that whole day the thoughts of her parent's death and Gerda did not haunt her.

Author's Notes:

Proofread by: 11thWonder