Rainbow Dash spent the next few hours downstairs reading “Wonderbolts Monthly”, or more accurately, trying to. Unsurprisingly, she found it impossible to stay focused; her thoughts were constantly drifting toward the orange filly upstairs. It had been a few months since Scootaloo moved in, and truthfully Rainbow had never been happier, but this latest hiccup had impressed upon her the necessity of thinking long term. Or, at least, slightly longer term than she was used to thinking anyway.
She knew she loved Scoots, that much she was certain about; however, Rainbow was also forced to admit that these last few months had made her a better pony. She was more patient, more considerate of others, and less selfish. Her friends had all told her that Scootaloo was clearly a good influence on her, and though they had been joking when they said it, there was a fair amount of truth to that statement. The last few months had also seemed to do Scootaloo a world of good. Granted, some of that was because she was no longer being abused and had a home she could feel safe in again, but regardless, Scootaloo was closer to her optimistic, Discord-may-care self than she had been when she first moved in with Rainbow; and besides: if living together was beneficial for both ponies, why shouldn’t they keep doing it?
Rainbow had no problem taking care of the filly for as long as Scoots was happy with her, but if this was going to continue, it was probably best to consider the legalities of the situation. There was a world of difference between thinking about this in an abstract sense and pondering the very real ramifications, not the least of which would be how Misty felt.
Legally, Scootaloo was still Misty’s child. FPS hadn’t removed Scootaloo from her house, and as far as they were concerned, Scootaloo was staying with a family friend with her mother’s blessing; that was okay because Misty hadn’t complained and Scootaloo was happy, so nopony else had any reason to report anything. But that situation meant that if Misty wanted Scootaloo back, all she would have to do is ask, because if Rainbow Dash refused that would be all the reason Misty needed to go to the police with a legitimate foalnapping claim. There were other problems as well: Rainbow couldn't make officially make medical decisions if Scootaloo got hurt, she couldn't enroll Scootaloo in flight school if it became necessary, as well as a myriad of other issues which would put their new-found home in a precarious position unless Rainbow could become Scootaloo’s legal guardian.
So, Rainbow began to think about what to do, but there were no easy answers. When Scootaloo first moved in, Rainbow told her that repairing her relationship with her mother was her prerogative. Rainbow would be involved as much or as little as Scootaloo wanted, but now it appeared that getting more involved was inevitable. The only thing she was sure of was that Scootaloo deserved a say, maybe the only one, in where she lived.
She was debating exactly what she wanted to say to Scoots when she heard the telltale sound of hoofsteps coming down the stairs. A few seconds later, Scootaloo came into view, looking remorseful and nervous, her mane more unkempt than usual, and her ears pinned flat against her head.
“Umm... hi, Rainbow Dash,” she said with her eyes cast toward the floor.
“Hey, squirt,” Rainbow replied as though nothing was wrong.
“I’m sorry I yelled at you… uh… that’s it. I’ll leave you alone now.”
Before Scootaloo could even move in the other direction, Rainbow pounced on the opportunity.“C’mere, kid.” Rainbow lifted a wing as an invitation for Scootaloo to sit next to her. The orange filly happily jumped up on the couch and snuggled next to her sister as Rainbow gave her a reassuring squeeze with her wing. “It’s okay. Heh, Rarity would say it was a good thing.”
“Huh? You’re not mad at me?”, Scootaloo said, surprised.
Rainbow started to say what few words she had carefully been able to craft, but ended up abandoning them three words in. “No, I’m not mad at you. What happened… aw, hay kid, there isn’t a right way to deal with this sort of thing. What happened to you sucks, and I figure you gotta have all sorts of emotions swirling around in that noggin. I’m not sure how I would handle it, and you’re just a filly. So if you’re mad, be mad. No one can tell you how to feel. And if you need to yell at somepony, it might as well be me. I won’t take it personally.”
“But I don’t want to yell at you. You’re the best thing that ever happened to me.”
Rainbow’s heart melted more than a little at that last statement.
“You’re okay too,” she said as she lightly pressed her forehead to Scootaloo’s, definitely not choking up at all. “You open that letter?”
“Yeah, it didn’t really say anything; just hi." She paused for a moment, then pressed her head into Rainbow’s shoulder, taking comfort in the familiar haven. She turned her face sideways feeling the soft fur against her cheek, “Sometimes I feel like maybe I can forgive her, and then sometimes I get so mad. How could she not believe me...?” Scootaloo asked with equal parts pain and anger.
“I don’t know, kid,” Rainbow said, giving Scootaloo a quick nuzzle across the top of her head to reassure her. “We need to talk about your mom, though.”
Rainbow could feel Scootaloo tense up under her wing. “Why?”
“Because she’s your mom, and you’re a filly. With one letter to FPS, she could force you to move back in with her.”
“Why would she do that? I like it here,” Scootaloo said, unable to conceal the fear in her voice.
“I know you do, and I don’t think she would do that; but the law says fillies belong with their parents unless there’s a really good reason why they shouldn’t be.” Rainbow figured that since she had committed to being honest with the kid she might as well go all the way with it. “We should probably start thinking about if you want to make this permanent.” She paused, hesitant about saying the next part. After a long sigh, she let it out. “If you wanted, I could try and adopt you.”
Scootaloo’s eyes went wider than Rainbow had ever seen them. “You’d do that? You’d be like my new mom?” she asked with a hope filled voice that made Rainbow definitely not choke up again.
“Eh, I wouldn’t go that far,” Rainbow said, momentarily deflating Scootaloo’s optimism. “I mean, your mom’s the pony who powdered your diapered little butt when you were a foal. Misty’s always going to be your mom, and I’d still be your sister, but yeah, you’d kinda be my responsibility, all official and what not.”
Scootaloo looked down at the floor, her eyes darting back and forth as they did whenever she was unsure of herself. “I think… I think I would like that.”
Rainbow shook her head gently. “You don’t need to decide right now. It’s a big decision, Scoots, and one you really shouldn’t have to make. If you want me to do it, I will, but it’s not as easy as just signing some papers.
“What would I have to do?”
Having decided that Scootaloo deserved some say in where she lived, Rainbow couldn’t very well sugarcoat the process. “Well, the easiest way to do it would be if your mom wrote a letter saying that she was okay with me being your legal guardian. I don’t think she’d do it if I asked her to, but if you sat down with her and explained that this is what you wanted, she might.”
“What if she says no?”
Rainbow sighed; the idea of fighting Misty for custody of her only daughter in a court battle was not a scenario she particularly wanted to contemplate. “I could ask a judge to award me custody anyway. Twilight might support it, but if your mom says no, this could get really ugly, Scoots. Look, like I said, this isn’t the type of thing that you should ever have to worry about, but whatever you decide, I’ll support you the best I can.”
“I don’t want to cause anymore problems for you,” Scootaloo said softly.
“Hey, I thought I told you to let me worry about that stuff?” Rainbow looked down at the filly still snuggled close to her. “You don’t have to decide anything right now: and no matter what, I will still love you, squirt. Never forget that, okay?”
Scootaloo looked up at the pony who she had come to depend on to make her feel safe. “I love you too,” she replied, unable to otherwise express her feelings.
The pair shared a hug for a few tender moments before Rainbow broke it, clearing her throat. “Umm, getting a little mushy in here squirt. How bout another episode of Baking Bad? We’re almost done with the series.”
Scootaloo giggled. “You’re the mushy one,” she said as she climbed on top of Rainbow’s head, her preferred TV watching spot.
“Bah,” Rainbow replied eloquently, taking a playful swipe at the filly burrowing into her mane.
After an episode of Baking Bad, things were really not going well for anypony on that show, and after a bedtime story, both ponies fell asleep in their own respective beds.
The next day of Scootaloo’s suspension passed without incident. She spent the day at Fluttershy’s and Rainbow went to work on her usual day shift; nothing of note happened to either pony, much to Scootaloo’s disappointment.
-
Later that evening, Rainbow was surprised to see Scootaloo sitting at the table staring at an empty sheet of paper.
“Whatcha doin there, squirt? It’s almost time for bed.”
“I have to write a stupid apology letter to Diamond Tiara,” The filly replied glumly. “I don’t know what to say.”
Rainbow chuckled softly. “Wanna know a secret about apologies? You don’t have to mean them.”
Scootaloo’s eyes went wide with surprise. “I don’t? Mrs. Cheerilee always says that you shouldn’t say you’re sorry if you don’t mean it.”
“Are you sorry you hit Diamond Tiara?”
“No.”
“Is Cheerilee going to let you go back to class if you don’t write an apology?” Scootaloo shook her head. “Then you say you’re sorry whether you mean it or not.”
“What am I supposed to say?”
“‘I’m sorry’. You don’t need to say anything more than that.”
Scootaloo scribbled a quick note and folded it up with a smile. “Bedtime story?”
Rainbow chuckled again, “Bedtime story.”
The next day, when Rainbow dropped her off at school, Scootaloo was surprised to see her two friends running over to her as she walked up. “Scootaloo! Diamond Tiara was telling everypony that Cheerilee had you arrested and sent to jail and that nopony would ever see you again!” Sweetie Belle exclaimed excitedly as she gave her friend a bone-crushing hug.
“We were gonna go bug Twilight to pardon you, but Applejack said you weren’t in jail,” Applebloom added.
“Oh, nope, I was just at Fluttershy’s. Did I miss anything while I was gone?” Scootaloo asked, catching her breath, recovering from Sweetie’s enthusiastic greeting.
“Not really. Diamond was suspended for one day, and Snails actually ate a snail, but other than that it’s been same ol’ same ol’,” Sweetie said.
Scootaloo was about to finish catching up with her friends when Cheerilee stepped outside.
“Diamond Tiara, Scootaloo, could you both come with me please?” she announced in her formal, ‘I’m-serious’ voice.
Scootaloo and Diamond gave a quick nod to their respective friends and followed their teacher into the classroom. The two fillies glared at each other from opposite sides Cheerilee as she began the peace accords.
“Diamond, do you have something you’d like to say to Scootaloo?” Cheerilee asked.
“I’m sorry,” the pink filly said nonchalantly as she handed Scootaloo a small note card.
Dear Scootaloo,
I’m sorry I called you a chicken; I know it must have made you feel bad because you can’t fly.
Diamond Tiara
Scootaloo rolled her eyes at Diamond’s passive aggressive note, though she wasn’t really in a position to throw stones regarding heartfelt apologies.
“Thank you, Diamond. Now, Scootaloo, do you have anything you’d like to say to Diamond Tiara?”
“I’m sorry,” she said flatly while handing her own apology note to Diamond.
Dear Diamond Tiara,
I’m sorry I punched you in the face and made you cry.
Scootaloo
Diamond quickly read the note and scowled at the pegasus standing in front of her. The pair made eye contact as they shared the understanding that their feud was far from over.
Cheerilee sighed, fully aware that she had not brokered any sort of lasting peace agreement. “Thank you, Scootaloo. You know you girls could really help each other if you gave friendship half a chance. But, if you can’t play nice, do you think you could at least leave each other alone?”
“Yes, Mrs. Cheerilee,” both fillies replied deadpan and in unison.
Cheerilee sighed again. If her experience had taught her anything, this was unlikely to be the last time the three of them met under these circumstances “Go take your seats. I’m going to call the rest of the class inside.”