//------------------------------//
// Why do you want to adopt her? 
// Story: Pinkie's greatest Challenge. 
// by Lethrael 
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Pinkie didn't stay lay down in the apple orchard for a long time, but bounced back on her hooves quickly and looked after Scootaloo's hoof-prints. 
She followed them of course, but stopped after the first few steps.
“I...just wanted to help you, Scootaloo.”
She mumbled to herself, rubbed over the eyes and stroke her mane with the same hoof. She glanced over the trail on the ground, but didn't follow. She had learned just one week ago, that it isn't the right course of action to push further, when a pony needed time to calm him or herself down. Uhm or a donkey in the particular case. Pinkie sighed, but turned around for all that.
“Twilight...knows what to do, certainly.”
This idea brought a glimpse of a grin back to Pinkie's face and she trotted slowly back to Ponyville. She thought so intensely, that she didn't faced anypony on her way back, even her smile was vaguely. Of course a few ponies wanted to speak with hear on her way back, but she answered just with tokens like,
Yeah, totally or of course.
She knew Ponyville like home, well it was her home after all. She knew it so well, that she could be blind folded, or distracted like today, but would always find her way. She let her hooves guide her to her forethought destination. The Golden Oaks.

Two small hooves hugged her, stopped her pacing and a giggling voice brought her back to reality. She raised her own hooves automatically and hugged the little filly almost as bone crushing, as she did.
“Pinkie? What are you doing here?”
The light blue filly grinned wide, nestled her head against the pink chest and nuzzled the mare happily. Pinkie petted over a tangled grey mane and touched a small horn on the forehead. First she was unsure what to do next, than a genuine smile appeared on her face. She blew a really cold gust down the filly's neck. She yelped surprised and trembled. So she let her go and jumped away with a giggle.
“Hey. That's unfair!”
She didn't sound really angry, or peeved, but mocked indignant. The filly grinned happily and coltish to the mare. Pinkie smiled back and ducker her head down, till it stayed so low, that it almost rested against her front hooves. She leaned kittenish down to the little filly and sounded way lower than usual.
“I'm the Ice pony, Bloo. And I like to haunt little fillies with my icy breath.”
The filly giggled again and covered her face with both hooves in a pretend appealed way. She pranced a few steps away and raised her head as high as possible.
“Oh no, than I should run away and hide. Bet you can't catch me.”
The filly giggled once more and jumped back into a huge house. Pinkie raised her head, cocked it and looked confused to the roof of the house. What did she do here at the Ponyville Orphanage?
Pinkie stood there and stared to the door so long in fact, that Bloo came back and looked out of the doorstep.
“Hey, what's keeping you so long?
I thought the Ice pony wanted...uah!”
The filly was caught out of the blue by a cold gust of wind down her neck and jumped back with another squeak. She giggled and fled from the mare. Pinkie followed her finally and smiled.

The joyful chase ended for Pinkie after multiple rounds through the whole orphanage. She declared an other foal, a colt to be the Ice pony and all the fillies and colts came closer and hugged her. She grinned to everypony and said goodbye.
“I've to talk with Caring, but I'll return shortly and we can play a little bit longer.”
All the foals were screaming with joy and fled from the new Ice pony, a small white pegasus. He flapped his wings and lifted off. First it seemed to be an unfair advantage, but it was clear very soon, that the colt couldn't fly well enough, to chase after anypony. Pinkie grinned, as he crashed into a bed after his first failed attempt to catch a friend. He shook his head, frowned and ran after an earthpony filly. 
The mare sighed and turned to an open door to her left. At the level of the smaller fillies were many pictures from a yellow mare with a huge heart as a Cutie Mark. The mare just smiled, or waved, or played with many painted foals. At the level of the older foals were a shield with a name, Caring Heart and sentences.
“Whatever problem you might have come in, when the door is open. 
If the door is closed, please wait or knock, when the problem is really big.”
At Pinkie's level was another shield with the name and sentences.
“Thanks for your help and come in, if you want to.
Knock, if the door is closed, but stay outside, till I answer.”
Pinkie took a deep breath, smiled shortly and walked. Yes walked, she didn't bounce, she didn't trot, she walked.
She walked into the small office. Caring Heart sat on her seat, bruted over a list and wrote numbers in different columns. Her ears raised and the mare raised her head too, as she heard the hoof steps from a pony entering her office. First she looked to a level, who a foal might be and smiled gently, but as she saw just a pink belly, she raised her head higher. Her smile widened and she spat the pen on the paper.
“Hello Pinkie. I've heard you're in the house already. Nice to see you again.
What can I do for you?
Do you think it's time for another cheering up party?”
The mare sounded calm and friendly first, but she added a hint of worrying in her last sentence and cocked her head. Pinkie approached her desk, shook her head and thumped her hoof to the ground once. This sound let the smile in Caring's face fading away and she looked confused to the younger mare.
“I'm not here for that, Caring.
I'm here, because...”
Pinkie took a deep breath and put on a wide smile, which Caring just copied. Pinkie sounded lower, than she expected and that confused her even more.

“I want to adopt Scootaloo!”
The mare stared directly into Caring's eyes and her smile became even more friendly. The mare wasn't relieved or happy, or positive surprised by her statement, quite different than Pinkie would have guessed. She looked rather like a mare, that Pinkie had told, that she has to cancel a party.
“Pinkie, this...you....this isn't f...”
The pink mare cocked her head, her formerly excited smile flattened and she drew circles on the ground. Caring cleared her throat, stood up and approached her. A group of running and joyful yelling fillies and colts crossed the open door, but neither Pinkie, nor Caring paid attention to them. Caring started to draw circles on the ground too and raised a hoof.
“How did you even get this idea, Pinkie?”
She stared confused to Pinkie and the younger mare took a deep breath. She thumped a hoof on the ground, almost like a spoiled child and answered.
“I want to adopt Scootaloo.
Because...I feel sorry for her.
Because...she will have a family than...
Because she....”
Caring raised her hoof higher and stopped Pinkie's hastily blabbered list of reasons. She even touched her chest and petted it in a clear attempt to calm her down.
“This is what anypony would say.
Have you asked her? What did she want?
Is she okay with you adopting her?”
These questions let Pinkie remember, what happened today and Scootaloo's yelled sentence came back in her mind.  She cocked her head, looked down to the ground and scrunched her face. Pinkie sighed a long sigh, sat down, put her back legs close to her and stroke her chin with one hoof. 

The mother of the orphanage wasn't finished yet and pestered her with even more questions.
“What did the Cakes have to say about this? Or your parents?
How do you plan to take care of her?
Where do you live with her?
Can you help her with her homework?
Who else can take care of her, when you're getting ill, or when you have to save Equestria again?”
Pinkie stroke her chin with streams of sweat gliding down her cheeks, tried to stay focus on the desk but failed and her eyes drifted nervously through the room. Caring didn't stop her, sighed and shook her head finally.
“It's very nice of you, that you want to help her, really Pinkie.
But I don't think, that you're the right pony for th...”
Pinkie jumped back to her hooves, before the other mare was able to finish her sentence and stared almost challenging to her. Caring cocked her head, as the smaller mare started to speak.
“I'm the only pony. Nopony else wanted to adopt her. And this is really, really, REALLY sad, Caring.
She deserves a lo...”
Pinkie tore up, but brushed the tears away with a simple snort. She snuffled and continued.
“I want to...”
She yelled, stopped and took a deep breath. Pinkie shivered, sat down and brushed away more tears. She sounded almost bidding right now.
“I just want to really, really, REALLY help her. Can you tell me, what I've to do to become the right pony?
Pretty please?”
She elongated the word, like a gum and took a deep breath after that. She couldn't fight back her tears any longer and started to sob. Caring Heart stared at her with wide open eyes. A group of fillies and colts crossed again the door and Caring closed it finally.

She sighed, approached Pinkie Pie and laid a hoof on the crying mare's mane. She petted her gently and cuddled closer to her.
“Th...this isn't so easy, Pinkie.”
The mare raised her head, brushed away more tears and nodded. She looked firmly into the other mare's eyes and sighed.
“I know!
How should I start?”
Caring sighed too, opened her mouth to demur more, but something else came out of her mouth and she seemed to be surprised by that.
“Think what's best for Scootaloo.
She needs a place to life, help in school and somepony who is there for her all the time.
Talk with the Cakes, your parents and especially Twilight, okay?”
Pinkie nodded, stood up and stayed on her shivering hooves. Her eyes looked around and her ears pressed flat against her head. She frowned and thought for a while.
“Do you think it's okay, when I invite Scootaloo to a sleepover?
I have scared her a little...”
Her voice just whispered and Caring couldn't understand the last sentence clearly, but she smiled gently and nodded.
“That's a good idea, Pinkie. So you two get to know each other better.”
Pinkie nodded and her smile widened, but as she remembered her arguing with Scootaloo, she sighed again. The mare had to brush away tears again and started to shiver. Caring's smile stayed, she hugged her and nuzzled over her cheek.
“Hey, don't worry, I think she would...”
Pinkie sighed again and stroke her mane on her own, touched the letter and took a deep breath. She pushed Caring's hoof away very gently and looked inquiring to her. The older mare stopped and had to think about something. Her face put on an inquiring expression too, as longer she thought and she  looked  over Pinkie.
“Say, how did you get the idea to adopt Scootaloo in the first place?”
This question let Pinkie sigh again and she stroke her mane once more. She grabbed the letter and pulled it slowly out of her mane.
“Scootaloo had...”

Somepony knocked on the door and a low voice sounded through it. Both mares jumped on their hooves, squeaked surprised and listened with a hoof on their mouths.
“Caring, I have to tell you something.
Am I disturbing you?”
It was Scootaloo's voice and Pinkie turned her head slowly to the door. Caring looked to the other mare, but Pinkie didn't answer, or react, so she put on a confused expression and opened the door. She managed to smile to the ducked down pegasus filly in front of the door and nodded.
“I think, you have to wait...”
Before she was able to finish, the little filly jumped forwards, hugged her and started to mumble apologies.
“I didn't want to take the letter,
I have seen my name on it and...I'm sorry.”
Pinkie heard low sobs, cocked her head and smiled gently to the shivering filly. Caring stared to Pinkie really confused, pulled Scootaloo into the office quickly and closed the door with her back hoof. She hugged her back and petted gently over her mane. She looked to Pinkie very confused at the same time.
“What letter?”