Happiness and Tears
Ink Mage
Chapter 32: Old Friends
Scootaloo smiled widely as she walked towards her friends. Sweetie Belle and Applebloom had always been her best friends ever since she moved to Manehattan.
“Lovely day, isn’t it?” she said, looking up into the sunshine pouring through the trees. The two of them nodded.
“For sure!” Sweetie Belle said, eying Scootaloo’s outfit.
“Hey Scoo? Where did you get that scarf?” Applebloom asked. Scootaloo grinned, looking down at the purple shawl she was wearing.
“Got it on sale a few weeks ago. I guess I never really had the chance to wear it,” she said, beginning to walk.
“Is wearing a scarf really the best idea in this kind of weather?” Sweetie Belle asked, eying her with concern. Scootaloo shrugged.
“It looks cute, so why not?” she said, pursing her lips into a thin pout and looking at the cart in front of her. The three of them grimaced.
“When are ya’ going to tell your brother in-law about this old thing?” Applebloom asked, looking at the rotten pieces of wood strung together with a piece of… was that tape?
Scootaloo sighed. “I’ll do it sooner or later… knowing him, I’m probably going to have to get some sort of part time job to pay for it,” she said, looking at her freshly shined hooves, “but I guess it’ll have to do for now.”
“By the way, Scoo, the curls really suit you,” Sweetie Belle said, as the three of them climbed into the cart. “I’m sure Electron will pass out at your hooves if you continue wearing these adorable outfits and styling yourself in the hottest ways. Every girl at college wishes to be your friend, you know.”
Scootaloo smiled, looking at the two of them. “Whatever. That’s why I have you two,” she said, playing with her curled mane. “And thanks, Sweetie Belle.”
Sweetie Belle nodded, signaling the driver to start the journey.
“Did y’all hear about the new transfer student?” Applebloom asked, fixing the huge bow in her mane.
Scootaloo’s ears perked up. “A new transfer student? This far into the year?” she asked. Applebloom nodded.
“Yeah, I’m pretty sure it’s a stallion and by the looks of it, he transferred here from Cloudsdale,” she said.
Scootaloo nodded. “He’ll be instantly popular, then,” she said with a twinkle in her eyes. She knew many ponies who went to Cloudsdale Community College, seeing as she herself was going to go there if she hadn’t moved to Manehattan. The colleges in Ponyville were fine, but she wanted an adventure. And that’s what she got.
“You know, I’m sure all the mares will go instantly nuts over him,” Sweetie Belle pointed out.
Applebloom snorted. “That is, unless… he turns out ta’ look like a donkey!” she laughed. Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo chuckled as they pulled into the school driveway.
“We’re here,” the driver said curtly, opening the doors of the carriage and letting the three of them out.
“Thanks, Darling,” Sweetie Belle said, winking at the old stallion as she let Scootaloo lead them out.
“Yeah, thanks. Tell Rainbow Dash to give you a small tip on my behalf. You know, for putting up with me and the girls,” Scootaloo said. The stallion grunted something, but smiled gratefully.
“Have a wonderful day at school, girls,” he said, before riding away.
Manehattan College was a great school. Everypony was welcome, and nopony felt left out at the school. Everypony played a part, whether it be after school book club, cleaning up after the freshman in the chemistry lab, helping with the track team, washing the cars that drove by as part of the fundraiser- there was a little of everything.
Scootaloo and her friends had built up quite a reputation during their four years here. Now as seniors, everypony looked up to them. They were the most popular mares in the grade.
“Morning, Scoo!” somepony said as they passed.
“See you in AP physics, Scoo!”
“Hello, Scoo!”
“How’re ya’, Scoo?”
Scootaloo waved and smiled at all her ‘fans’. She grinned and shook some ponies’ hooves, wishing them good luck on a test they had, or saying good morning to a teacher.
“What I don’t understand,” Sweetie Belle said, smiling at a mare passing them, “is how you can be so popular, yet so kind.”
“You’re too sweet, Sweetie Belle,” Scootaloo said, blowing a kiss to one of her friends who was walking into the building.
“Yo, Scoo!” a stallion’s voice rung out. Scootaloo groaned, turning to face a bright orange-coated pony with flaming red hair. He had mares surrounding him, touching him all over his body. He puckered his lips at her. “Movie tonight?”
Scootaloo internally grimaced, offering a wave. “Tell me how it was!” she said, earning a few laughs from the ponies around her.
Applebloom rolled her eyes. “You’re mad, you know that? Electron is the hottest guy in the school, and he has a crush on you! Why don’t you just go for it?” she asked. Scootaloo groaned.
“Because I don’t want to date somepony because of how they think I look,” she said, “however hypocritical that makes me sound, it’s the truth. I want a coltfriend for what he looks like on the inside.”
Sweetie Belle laughed. “Yeah, I-”
At that moment, a carriage pulled into the school driveway. It went unnoticed by Scootaloo and her friends, but everypony else’s breaths hitched at the sight of it.
It had to be one of the most beautiful carts anypony had ever seen- tall, sleek, and agile. It was a bright red color, and had streams of curtain material floating on the sides.
“Honestly,” Scoo was saying to Sweetie Belle and Applebloom as they stood on the road. “I just…”
“Hey!” a new voice chimed in from behind them. Scootaloo’s ears perked up at the rude tone.
Scootaloo shrugged, turning back to the conversation like nothing was happening.
“And then I…”
“Excuse me!” the voice said again.
Scootaloo growled, before turning around. “Who dare disturbs Scoo at six o’clock in the morning?” she said, looking at the huge cart behing her. Her eyes widened as the curtains opened and a stallion became visible.
The world around them stopped as the two stared at one another.
He had a light gray coat, and his mane was a two-toned sleek alignment that was colored blue and yellow. He had on dark shades, hiding his eyes from sight. Scootaloo stared at him in awe. He was… hot.
Scootaloo gaped at the stallion. She couldn’t help but feel as if there was something familiar about him… like they had met before?
And then she saw it. The way his lips creased down… he was frowning. What? He was… he looked… he looked angry?
“You’re blocking the road!” he grunted. Scootaloo’s eyes widened and her jaw dropped. She scoffed, flipping her mane and walking away from the road. “Good grief…” she heard him say, parking the carriage and stepping out.
The entire ground whistled.
“Wow…” Sweetie Belle said under her breath.
“Gee… he’s…” Applebloom said, blowing softly with her lips.
Scootaloo huffed. “I don’t know who that jerk thinks he is, talking to me like that?” she said, crossing her hooves.
“Who is he?” Sweetie Belle said. “I feel like I’ve seen him somewhere before…”
“Same,” Applebloom said.
“Can’t say I don’t feel the same way,” Scootaloo said, narrowing her eyes at the strange stallion who was walking through the grounds.
“What’s his name?”
“Who is that boy?”
Scootaloo breathed lowly, looking at him. She stuck her nose up high, marching across the grounds and walking up to him.
Sweetie Belle and Applebloom stared at her in shock, but Scootaloo didn’t care. She was going to find out who that stallion was if it was the last thing she did.
He saw him arch an eyebrow in her general direction as she approached. The strange stallion looked at her, holding his sunglasses to his face.
“Can I… help you?” he said expectantly, hiding a small smirk at the corner of his lips. Scootaloo scoffed.
“Who are you?”
She didn’t waste time with common courtesy. She just wanted to know why she felt so drawn to him. She had never felt this way about anypony before.
The stallion hummed.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t help but feel like we’ve met somewhere before,” Scootaloo explained, crossing her hooves.
“Maybe we have, and you just don’t remember,” the stallion said with a shrug.
“Uh… that didn’t really answer my question,” Scootaloo pointed out, not wanting to be rude.
The stallion leaned close to her face, a smirk now evident on his face. Scootaloo’s cheeks gradually became redder as he approached.
“Hi,” he said, slipping his glasses off, “… Scootaloo.”
Scootaloo’s eyes widened as she recognized his familiar eyes. She instantly knew who he was… but how?
“I…” she mumbled.
The stallion grinned, leaning closer. “Oh, by the way… If you must cross a course cross cow across a crowded cow crossing, cross the cross coarse cow across the crowded cow crossing carefully.”
Scootaloo gasped. That was… that was the tongue twister she had dared Speedy to do all those years ago at the Ponyville Carnival!
“Finally got it,” Speedy said, clicking his tongue and slipping his shades back on. He whistled as he turned and walked away from her.
Sweetie Belle and Applebloom approached their shocked friend nervously.
“Who’s the cow?” Applebloom asked.
“Why is it crossing a cow coarse?” Sweetie Belle questioned.
Scootaloo felt like she was on fire. “… Speedy?” she said softly, touching her cheeks.
“WHO’S SPEEDY?!”