//------------------------------// // Vinyl Scratch: I Love my Family // Story: Our Stories: Else World Tales // by SciWriter //------------------------------// “You can't catch me!” He shouted, taking off running. I watched my five year old brother, Fire Scratch, tear away from me. I grinned and shot after him. I caught up to him in only a few seconds and took him to the ground, rolling to keep from landing on him. I was two years older, so of course I was stronger... much stronger... so much I was able to hold him down... kinda, for about five seconds at time before he could rip me off him and we would be in the grass wrestling again. I tried my horn a few times, but the worst I could do with it was slightly tickle him. A few times I did use it to tickle him this fight and finally he threw me off and rolled away. He grinned, his horn sparking. I grinned too, activating my horn as well. Sparks flew off and we both fired beam spells at each other that were actually visible, half the time, if you squinted. Our magics slammed against each other. I could hold mine for about half a second more then him- I think... maybe. I was about to win... no I can't explain what winning would mean, if I have to explain... when dad grabbed us both and used him magic to toss us into the forelegs of mom, knocking her over. We all laughed. It was the last day of dad's vacation, I was gonna miss him, a lot. We sat down to eat, mom indulging my brother a little and letting him listen to his favorite mix tape with head phones while we ate. I never understood why he liked that tape so much, just the same ten songs over and over, but he loved them. I remembered one night when the tape recorder tried to “eat” his tape. He was scared he would lose his tape and started crying. Dad was out and mom didn't know how to fix the recorder. Hearing him crying, I went straight into action. That darn player had messed up several times on my favorite story tapes and over the last few months I had learned what dad did. I got out dad's tools, mom saying I shouldn't, but we both knew neither of us could put up with Fire's crying for too long. She caved. In a few seconds I had the film of the tape set free and I reset it. Hearing his beloved music again, Fire smiled and calmed down, running over and hugging me tightly. I loved my brother, and when dad was away, I was basically his substitute protector, dad had told me so. But today of course, dad was here, so I could relax watching him a little. Finally a carriage rolled up. I looked up, seeing Celestia's sun was going down. “Nooo!” I whined. I looked over at my daddy. “When we get home, can we stay up late? Please, please, please?” “Well I mean wh-” but mom, the traitor, gave him a look. He sighed. “No... no, no. You have school tomorrow. “But I don't get to see you that much.” “Hey, now that's not entirely true, what about Sunday's?” he asked. I looked down. “I hate waiting.” He pulled me over with his magic and wrapped me in a hug, “So do I my little fix it girl, so do I.” “Hey, you aren't gonna say you miss me?” Mom asked. “What about when you're at school?” “I see you all the time!” I said back. “Can't wait to see that wrench cutie mark when you get it Vinyl,” dad said. “It's probably going to be flowers Bolt. I'm teaching her to garden way more than you teach her to fix things,” mom said. He gave her a cocky grin. “We'll just see about that.” “Indeed we will,” she said, pulling Fire up to her side. He rested his head on her side. She sighed. “They're being so cute right now, I hate to go.” Dad opened the door to the carriage and levitated me into the back. “Well you're the one who doesn't wanna stay up late,” dad replied. “That's not fair!” mom snapped back. He levitated up Fire as well. “C'mon, we can snuggle, you and me,” dad said. She sighed, “It's not the same.” “Should I be jealous?” dad asked, depositing Fire next to me. “No... I like it we he falls asleep like that, it's cute,” she said. Dad cocked his head and mom got up, them both cleaning up the picnic blanket. (***) Fire was fast asleep on my side, his tape ending a long time ago, me reading my copy of Sherlock Hooves. Dad had to help me with the big words, but really, I loved learning to be a detective- maybe that would be my side job, after I was done fixing houses for the day. I looked up, mom had fallen asleep on dad's shoulder too. He smiled at me. I went back to my book. I looked- Blackness met my eyes and I felt myself thrown into the air. I slammed into the ground, hearing an awful crunching sound and feeling pain through my right shoulder. I screamed, pulling myself up on the dirt road. It hurt so bad... I needed mommy, she would make it better. I pulled myself up, crying loudly. I looked around. Where was everyone? Were was dad, where was mom? Where was Fire? I looked for our carriage, I must have fallen out somehow. I looked over at a train that was loudly passing... I screamed. I ran towards the train, the remains of the carriage, now covered in blood. One of the earth ponies that had been pulling it ran over and grabbed me before I could reach the scene. “MOM! DAD!” I screamed. “I'm sorry... I'm so sorry... I don't... I don't know how, we got distracted, I... I'm so sorry...” The stallion held me close. I kept screaming. “You shouldn't see them... I'm sorry, they're gone...” “Fire!” I shouted. “My little brother- I have to protect him, he needs me, where is he, where's Fire...” the stallion set me down and shook his head. “Where's Fire?” I could barely see straight through my tears. Maybe I hadn't seen him. “Look... I... don't know what to... I grabbed a few things as we went through the bodies, something to give the survivors...” he sighed. “Not sure what I was thinking.” He gave me dad's Sherlock book, covered in dirt, but it was alright, mom's necklace and... I fearfully took my brother's tape recorder, the wire for the head set torn in two. There were small amounts of blood on all of the items. I fell down on my side and just cried. I just heard the stallion, apologizing over and over. (***) I woke up in a strange bed, in a strange room. Three years went by. Three years, six homes, all temporary. I got older and older. Fire's tape got worn down from over use, I lost mom's necklace- or rather THEY did, my stupid foster parents, so eager to move me to the next home. Dad's book was left at a bank and my den mother wouldn't let me go back to get it... who knows where it is now. It was hell. I wanted out, to be adopted, to have a new mom and dad... no one could ever be as good as my real family, but anything was better than this. Still, it wasn't looking good on that front. At first, a number of mares and a few stallions looked in my direction when they came to look at children to potentially adopt. But they always took my younger “brothers and sisters”. You'd think, maybe there was a silver lining right? How many friends did I make? The younger children would be adopted in almost not time flat, so I couldn't mentor someone like my brother. The older children, I tried to make friend with at first... after being moved the third time, I just gave up. School was awkward, to say the least. Several times, three times in one year once, I had to start again in a new classroom with new classmates, a new teacher and class work I had never seen before. A few times I tried talking to the other fillies, crushed on a colt or two but... what was the point? I never stayed in one place long enough to make a friend. Soon I just started eating by myself, reading the continuing adventures of Sherlock during recess. I was given a new book, after I lost dad's... and after each time the new one was stolen by a bully trying to make me cry- “it's just a book!” they taunted. I gave up coming out of my room when new parents came to adopt. I was ten, no one would take me, and I knew it. They all wanted toddlers and babies, this was my life now and I knew it. (***) A new set of ponies was coming today, a pair of earth ponies and their daughter. There were like... I think four earth pony kids in this home, and one was two. My den mother... I don't remember what her name was, doubt she even knew mine... anyway she told me to come out. “Act cute,” she said. Whatever, why bother? I would be asking for not only an older adoption, but an interracial adoption, that's like one in ten million. No one wants a child of a different race. Sounded like a good time to catch up with the only friend I really had. Sherlock. My homework was done, so we could hang out. I looked around my room. Where was it? Where was my book? I looked under my pillow, in my dresser, under my roommate's pillow- where was it? I walked out of my room. There it was- with a group of toddlers. I went and grabbed it away from one of the brats, him screaming and crying about it, but what did I care? He would get another toy in a few seconds anyway. I opened the book to start reading as I left. The pages were warped, like someone had drenched the book. I had no idea what happened. I had no idea who took it, what they did, why... I didn't know... it was destroyed. Life sucked okay? It just sucked. I slumped my head down, looking at my book, seven books removed from dad's copy... I couldn't even keep my books... I found a corner and sat with my back to it, crying over my book. A three year old colt came over to me, he held out his sandwich to me, like he thought it would help. I just screamed at him until he ran away crying himself. I then went back to crying. The den mother came over to scold me for being a brat, but I screamed at her louder and louder, just screaming “NO!” over and over. I didn't even hear what she was saying, just shouted until she gave up with her feathers ruffled and stomped away. I curled up over my book and just sobbed. Finally I felt someone sit beside me. “Hey... what's wrong?” I looked at her. It was an earth pony I didn't know. She had black hair and a light gray coat. It wasn't hard to figure out who she was. “The buck do you care?!” I demanded. “Cold Dawn is right over there,” I said, pointing at a blue earth pony colt who was about two years old. “I know he's the one you guys want so just take him and go, don't bother me.” This wasn't the first time a child or adult visiting from the outside had tried to be nice to me, but who cared? She was just going to be gone in a few minutes anyway and I would never see her again. She didn't go away though. I pointed and she raised her hoof, like she was going to come towards me instead. “NO! Just go!” I shouted. She moved towards me and I got up, my face inches from hers, “LEAVE ME ALONE!” There, now she was crying too... well she had a few tears anyway. I levitated my ruined book by my side and walked away. I heard her shouting for her mom behind me. I squeezed my eyes shut, remembering what it was like to have someone to call that. I opened the door to my room and went into my room. I opened the book. Maybe there were some readable pages left. I had practically memorized half the stories by now, it was just something to do. I would whine till I got a new one soon. My ears perked up as I heard a light tapping on the door. “I'm not coming out.” I stated matter-o-factly. “No one wants me anyway. Go away.” A few seconds went by as I kept looking through my book. The tapping started again. “I said NO!” I shouted. The tapping started again. I grunted and got up, throwing open the door, getting ready to let out another series of screams when my face was across not from my stupid den mother but... that filly again. She still had tears running down her face as she looked at me, holding up a file with the name “Vinyl Scratch” on it. “But we do want you, you're the one we came for.” I stopped dead in my tracks. “Am I not... can I be your sister?” I looked up, two gray earth ponies on either side of her, a mother and father. I just stood frozen in place. I couldn't move, watching as her father took the file. “But... she... we can't...” her father pushed her from behind. “You don't know what it's like Octavia, just go give her a hug,” her dad said. She walked up to me hesitantly, then grabbed me and embraced me. It must have taken me a full ten seconds to finally hug her back. I cried so hard.