//------------------------------// // 4. ... But He Will Never Hurt Me // Story: Only Bone Deep // by The Grimm Reaper //------------------------------// Ducking and diving away from pitchforks and other sharp tools is not exactly my idea of fun. But as I do this little activity, I begin to wonder how this might work for me. Sure, I would be labelled as some form of monster or other, but if given enough infamy, My home could potentially keep those away from prying eyes. That would leave Scootaloo free to be with me without being found out. After all, the worst assumptions could occur if somepony spotted a young filly such as her spending time with an undead skeleton. They'd believe she had been brain-washed or something along those lines. I recall Scootaloo mentioning something about a Zebra in the forest; Zecora, I believe her name was. I might have to pay her a visit in order to talk to her about making the castle safe for a filly. It was common knowledge that Zebras are more in tune with the dead than any other creature known to Ponykind. Still, that would have to wait until morning. While I don't tire, I'm sure she still does, and she wouldn't want a spirit/skeleton/pony knocking on her door in the middle of the night. Besides, I don't exactly know where to find her. The sounds of yelling die down somewhat as I make it through the edge of the Everfree Forest. Scootaloo had told me that ponies feared it because of its seemingly unaided growth, not to mention the creatures that lived there. It was what convinced me she was safest at home, with her Uncle. As if to validate my decision, snarls and growls emerge from the shadows, sending back the last of the followers brave enough to venture into the forest. Scootaloo was right. Nopony was brave enough to venture into the forest alone in the middle of the night unless they knew where they were going. Turns out we were both wrong. As soon as I make it to the castle and step through the rubble, I see (rather than feel) myself being jerked forward into the nearest wall. The slight cracking sound made me feel grateful to not be able to feel anything. Without a moment's notice, I was thrown around and pinned, back against the wall. I was then met with the strangest sight I'd ever seen. A rainbow in the night met me before it fell, my gaze following it to a cerulean pegasus mare with magenta eyes... very angry magenta eyes. Oh boy. "Alright, pal! You better start talkin', otherwise we're gonna see how high up a Skeleton can go before bones start to break on the way down." she threatens. "You make a very good case, madam. What would you like to know?" I respond. I figure; it's best not to get on the bad side of a very threatening pegasus. She looks at me as if she didn't really expect me to talk, but that expression quickly disappears and gets replaced by the previous one. She was brave. "Don't 'madam' me, buddy! What were you doing in Ponyville?" her interrogation began. "Making sure a friend of mine got home safely." I reply, sounding as calm and collected as if I were talking to Scootaloo. "And why were you in front of Scootaloo's house?" her voice sounded different then. More... controlled. "She was the friend I was seeing to. This forest is no place for a filly after all." I reply. She seemed confused at to a part of my answer. "Ah, you must be Rainbow Dash. Scootaloo told me so much about you. You're her idol, and her kinda-sorta sister figure, if my short-term memory serves me." I add. Now the pegasus was on the defensive. "How do you know her?!" she demands. "I met her not long after I awoke. Poor thing was out here in the forest all alone. She got caught in the storm and noticed I'd put up a fire. Naturally, in order to avoid scaring her, I played dead and watched over her throughout the night. Then this morning, I protected her from a couple of bullies who were being rather... excessive in their abuse. That's when we first became friends." I reply. The cogs in Rainbow Dash's head seem to turn as she works out my explanation. Of course, I omitted some of the details regarding her physical state. There might have been a reason Scootaloo didn't go to Rainbow Dash for help in the first place. "Say your story is true; why would you care about a single filly when there are countless others in situations much worse than hers?" she asks. A valid question, though not hard to answer. "Scootaloo was simply the first one I saw who needed somepony to be there for her. If I do have some sub-conscious reason for wanting to protect her, I'm afraid I couldn't say. All I remember are the past two days." I say. I can hear my clothing being slowly and partially loosened from her grip. "Did she look like she needed help?" she asks. I waste no time in answering that question. "More than you know." I reply. "Then why didn't she come to me for help?!" I hear her grip on my clothes tighten once again. Fortunately, I know how to answer this. "What filly wants to show their concept of weakness to their idol? She probably believed you wouldn't think so highly of her once you found out." I respond, as calmly as ever. "And what could be so bad that I would think less of her for it?!" Rainbow Dash demands. I bring my glowing orbs for eyes to the right to see the filly in question standing scarred just near the tree-line, a fresh cut on her face. "Maybe you should ask her that now." I respond, tilting my head so the pegasus holding me to the wall would know we had an audience. Rainbow Dash turns around quickly and spots Scootaloo. Whether she sees the fresh cut or not is difficult for me to tell. "Dash, please don't hurt him." Scootaloo lets out meekly. It was obvious she'd been crying. A silent pause between the three of us creeps in and it's colder than the night air. "She can't hurt me, Scootaloo." I say, breaking the silence. "I can't feel pain. I can't really feel anything beyond the emotional." I add. Rainbow Dash finally lets go of me entirely and I am free to straighten my clothes out. Once done, I walk over to Scootaloo who holds me in a tight hug. Rainbow Dash is just standing there, looking at the scene before her. I bring their attention to the latest cut. It's gone over the one I cleaned earlier today. "Did your Uncle do this?" I ask. She nods. "Yeah, he caught me laughing at him after you scared him." she says with a slight chuckle. "It was worth it, I guess." she adds. "Come on, then. Let's get you inside so we can have a look at getting it cleaned." I say, lifting her up into my arms. Sub-consciously, I'd abandoned the concept of my bones coming apart from each other. It was obvious some form of magic was still holding them together. I doubt they'd come apart without my say-so. "Can Rainbow Dash come with us?" she asked. "Let's ask her, shall we?" I reply, turning my attention to the stunned mare before us. "Coming, Ms. Dash? I'll get a fire started so we can warm you both up." I say, stepping past her. Out of the corner of my vision, I notice her shake herself conscious and hear her turn to follow us inside. It's a good thing we have a roof over our heads. It seems to rain a lot here in the Everfree. It took only minutes for the rain to pour down. Fortunately, I still had plenty of fire wood from last night. Scootaloo sat close to Rainbow Dash as I examined her cut. She'd complained earlier that when she tried to lightly rub the wound, it hurt more than usual. Upon closer inspection, it seems that a tiny fragment of glass had embedded itself into her cheek. "How do we get it out? Is it dangerous to even do that?" Rainbow Dash asks, clearly more open-minded about my intentions towards her little-sister figure. "Well, it's not causing the wound to bleed any more than it already is, so I'd say it's not in danger of cutting any vital veins. That being said, the only thing we could use at this point to get it out would be my quill... unless you carry a pair of tweezers for some reason, Ms. Dash?" I ask, looking to the older of my guests. She looks back at me with a raised brow. "Why in Equestria would I have tweezers?" she asked. "For when Scootaloo gets splinters learning to fly? I don't know, I'm not a Pegasus, and in case you have forgotten, I have no memory." I respond, slightly nastier than I intended. "Well you're an Alicorn. Your wing's don't work, but what about your horn? That's not broken, so why not try and pull the glass out with magic?" she suggests. That was something I never considered. I knew I had a horn, but magic was the last thing on my mind. In all actuality, that would help with my reconstruction of the castle greatly. "Well... I suppose I could try. I haven't actually used magic since I woke up, so I don't know how good I am at it." I say, turning towards one of the available branches of fire wood. Concentrating on it, I willed it to levitate on the spot. The familiar sound of a Unicorn's magic fills my ears and a white aura surrounds the branch before it lifts into the air. It was easier than I expected. I place the branch back down and return to Scootaloo's little gift from her uncle. "Is this going to hurt?" she asks shakily. "A little bit. It depends on the actual size of the fragment. We don't know how deep it actually is." I reply. Lying to her about this would not bode well for trust points from Rainbow Dash. I picked up the branch with my magic, broke it in half and offered her the thicker end. "Bite down on this. It should stop you from biting your tongue should this be more... upsetting than I thought." I say. Scootaloo takes the bit of branch and places it between her teeth. "Very good. Now hold our hands." Rainbow Dash says, taking one of Scootaloo's hands. I take the other and she squeezes them tightly. With my free hand, I turn her face so the light from the fire shows the glass fragment as clear as crystal. With focused concentration, an aura appears around the fragment. "Alright, I have it in my grasp. Now do we want slow and careful, or quick and... less painful?" I ask. Scootaloo hesitates before mumbling for the second option. "Okay, one...two...three!" I yank the glass fragment out of her cheek and she gives a slight yelp. It was longer than I expected. Ten millimetres long, Scootaloo's wound had a clean hole in it now. Having sterilised the handkerchief in a pot of boiling water, courtesy of the kitchen, or what remained of it, I began to wipe the wound ever so gently with the nice, warm handkerchief. She seemed to like it against her face. "Good girl, you were very brave." Rainbow Dash says in a soothing tone very out of character for her (if Scootaloo's description as well as my personal encounter with her was anything to go on). "Thanks Dash." she says with a hint of shakiness to her voice. "Now that that's taken care of, we can move on to those other wounds. I want to make sure there's absolutely no chance of infection." I tell her. Scootaloo nods and proceeds to take her clothing off. I only expected her to remove her torso, but it seemed that there were cuts and scars all over. Rainbow Dash gasped in horror at the sight. "Who the hay did this to you?!" she fumes. Scootaloo seems apprehensive about answering. Fortunately, I can do that for her. "Those two bullies I mentioned earlier and her Uncle at least." I say. Though most of the cuts were over her torso, there was a considerable amount around her legs and inner thighs. "Ms. Dash..." I add, stopping the pegasus just short of exploding. I see Scootaloo's underwear come off and I notice something that makes me feel cold. "She's not a virgin."