//------------------------------//
// The beginning  
// Story: Wayward Found 
// by Scootaloo96 
//------------------------------//

It was a cold, windy night in Ponyville, and I wandered through the snow-laden town centre, fighting through the chilly blasts of snow and seeking cover. I was beginning to think that I would just have to rough it out for another night when a door opened. “Get in here before you freeze,” a mare shouted towards me. 

I quickly rushed to the door and dived into the house, not knowing who the mare was until I was inside the house and looked around. She was a white unicorn with a spiky blue mane, wearing headphones around her neck and a concerned expression on her face. Adorning the walls were plenty of photos of an alabaster mare. “What were you doing out in this weather?” the mare questioned. Her words snapped me out of my daydream and I quickly tried to think of a reason, any reason.

“I got lost,” I stuttered out. I clenched my jaw, trying to stop my teeth from chattering as I shivered violently.

She looked at me quizzically. “So where do you live?” 

“I live near Sweet Apple Acres,” I quickly responded, hoping she wouldn’t question me again. 

“I don’t know of many houses around there,” she briskly countered.

“Well it’s not exactly a house,” I muttered.

“What do you mean?” she responded. Oops, I hadn’t meant for that to slip out. I opened my mouth, trying to cook up some lame excuse, but nothing was coming to me and I realized that I didn’t have much choice but to tell her the truth. 

“I live in a treehouse,” I declared, looking down sadly.

“Why do you live in a treehouse? Where are your parents?” she asked me.

“I don’t have parents.” No parents, no real home… Honestly, I didn’t like admitting these sorts of things freely, but it was getting to the point where I pitied myself enough to let other people pity me. Anything to get me out of the cold.

“Well let’s just get you warmed up and then you can tell me more. My name is Vinyl by the way.” She led me into the lounge where a fire was roaring.

"My name is Scootaloo,” I responded. I watched her head towards the kitchen and retrieve a tub from the cupboard. She measured out some of the powder in the tub and began making me cocoa. I was mesmerized as I watched her magic at work; it was like a fine art, the way she moved things gracefully with just the tendrils of magic from her horn. Once she had finished, she brought the cocoa over and hoofed it to me. “T-thank you,” I said sheepishly.

“Now tell me why you were out in this snowstorm,” she asked tenderly.

“It’s a long story,” I informed her. I swirled my mug around, watching the lone marshmallow slowly dissolve in the warmth of the drink.

“Well we have a long time,” she countered whilst looking out at the still-raging snowstorm.

“Okay. Basically, I was making my way back to the treehouse when this storm hit. I wasn’t quick enough to beat it.”  

“Well you can stay here for the night and we can get your situation sorted tomorrow,” she stated caringly.

“Thank you,” I said slightly tearfully. She just smiled at me.

“I’ll go make a bed for you,” she said, disappearing out of the room, whilst I sipped the cocoa. As she set up the bed I peered around the room, noticing pictures of her and a grey mare plastered around the room.

She returned a little while later. “We should get you to bed,” she said.

“Okay, but who’s the mare in the pictures with you?” I asked inquisitively, whilst getting up from the sofa. 

“That’s Tavi—she’s my marefriend,” she said whilst smiling and leading me to a bedroom, which was rather plain aside from a few photos of Canterlot so I assumed it must have been a guest room.

“Where is she?” I tilted my head slightly in confusion.

“She’s a musician, so she’s currently playing for the orchestra. Now, you should get into bed.” She tapped the bed. “You need to sleep.” 

“Okay,” I replied, yawning as I climbed into the bed, pulling the covers over myself and nuzzling into the pillow as I slowly drifted off to sleep.





I slowly blinked my eyes awake, looking around the foreign room before getting out of bed. I made a beeline towards the door sleepily, then slowly I opened the door and headed towards the lounge. “Good morning, Scootaloo. Did you sleep well?” I heard from behind me, and I turned around to see Vinyl.

“Yes, thank you, Vinyl. Did you?” I responded sleepily.

“Yes, thanks. Would you like some breakfast?” she asked. “Though I will say I’m not a good cook,” she added, laughing.

“Yes please, Vinyl,” I responded. She then walked toward the kitchen and I followed her, looking around as I did.

“You have a very nice house, Vinyl,” I remarked whilst following, looking at all the pictures of what I assumed to be musical symbols. One of the pictures looked like her cutie mark and there were many more photos of Vinyl with Tavi in different locations, some I recognised to be Canterlot. 

“Thanks, but most of the decoration is done by Tavi.” She laughed and entered the kitchen. “So what do you like?”

“Uhh, I usually just have apples from the apple trees,” I admitted, looking down. She placed a hoof on my wither.

“I’ll make you some toast, and then after breakfast we can try and find you somewhere to live,” she said caringly before going and to make some toast. I went and sat at the kitchen table, watching Vinyl silently as the tendrils of her magic took plates from the cupboard and butter from the fridge. It always amazed me to watch unicorn magic at work. Sweetie Belle in particular always looked cute when she tried. Vinyl then turned and faced me, smiling, before taking the toast out of the toaster and buttering it. Then, she floated it onto the table and in front of me.

“Thank you, Vinyl,” I said thankfully, and I then used my hoofs to pick up the toast and slowly ate it, savouring the buttery taste on the warm and crispy bread.  “It’s delicious.”

“You’re welcome but it’s just toast, “ she said, laughing, which made me blush faintly.

“That doesn’t mean it’s not delicious,” I quickly remarked, smirking slightly.

“Heh, well thank you, Scootaloo. I’m glad you like it.” She smiled at me and proceeded to make herself some toast as well, sitting down once it was made and eating it slowly. That’s when I heard the front door open and close.

“Vinyl, I’m home,” a pony said with a Trottish accent. I looked towards the kitchen exit as a grey mare entered and locked eyes with me.

“...Who is this?”