//------------------------------// // Chapter 2 // Story: Chasing Twilight Stars // by RejectOwl //------------------------------// "Twilight! Twiiiiilight!" Apple Bloom called trotting through the castle. "Huh, there some friendship problem she had to go to today?" "No, the map always sends two ponies, I think, and our sisters didn’t get a blinking cutie mark....unless it called Twilight and Fluttershy." Scootaloo answered. "So where's Twilight?" Sweetie Belle asked. "Found her!" Apple Bloom cheered and trotted into the room. "Hey Princess Twilight, we're here for some boo-" Sweetie Belle stopped as Twilight perked her head up sleepily at the three fillies. "Is that a foal?!" Scootaloo exclaimed, approaching the little colt nestled between Twilight's forelegs. "I didn't even know you were pregnant!" "Wha-? Oh, yeah, I mean no, I wasn't pregnant, he got left on my doorstep, and Spike sent a letter to Celestia and I'm waiting for her to respond because I honestly don't really know what to do with a newborn foal." Twilight answered. "Give 'em food, duh." Apple Bloom answered. "I mean, I never worked with a foal before obviously, but I work with the animals on the farm all the time, when a mama don't want her baby we gotta improvise and milk 'em anyway and give 'em somethin' to make it stick so they can digest it easier." Scootaloo stared at the little foal. "What are you gonna do with her?" Scootaloo asked, her voice oddly distant. "Oh, well...I don't know. And it's a colt." Twilight corrected. "I suppose he'll go into the orphanage, or foster care, once the officials have decided that he's actually truly been abandoned." "No!" Scootaloo yelled. "You can't send him to an orphanage!!" Twilight flinched backwards at the young pegasus's outburst. "And why not?" Twilight asked. "I think we know a bit better than a young filly about how to handle an abandoned colt." "Not if that filly was also abandoned to an orphanage!" Scootaloo screamed, and Star Chaser began to wail again. "Nice goin' you made it cry." Sweetie Belle scolded her friend. "Twilight! You can't put him in the orphanage! You just can't!" Scootaloo exclaimed. "You're a princess aren't you? You can give him a good life!" "Me? I'm not even sure I know how to care for a foal!" Twilight answered. "Nopony does until it happens!" Scootaloo yelled. "And some ponies are even worse at caring for foals than others! You'd be great to take care of him 'til he got a home, or you know, just forever." Scootaloo hung her head and began to sniffle. "It was a long time before I got my parents Twilight." Scootaloo said softly. "Scoots, you sure you wanna talk about that?" Apple Bloom asked gently. "Yes!" Scootaloo said firmly. "Twilight, I spent so long in an orphanage, it was awful! They try to be good, but they just can't not with so many mouths to feed and foals to keep busy." "It might be the best place for him though Scootaloo, and besides, you did get adopted Scootaloo, and even have Rainbow Dash as your honorary sister!" Twilight answered with a smile. "And every day in the orphanage I'd wake up just hoping to either die or be adopted so I wouldn't be alone no more." Scootaloo sniffled. Twilight felt her heart breaking as she saw the tears fall from the pegausus filly's muzzle. "Scootaloo, did they mistreat you there?" Twilight asked gently. "No. Well, not exactly. Some of the foals did get bad foster homes though, most eventually got adopted, like me, but it's awful. There's never enough blankets, your favorite stuffy will most likely get destroyed or stolen, their version of a treat is an apple or something, no cookies, or cakes, or cupcakes, or all those yummy things Pinkie Pie makes. We'd get in trouble for pillow fights! What kinda foal caring place doesn't let a foal have a pillow fight?!" Scootaloo took a deep breath. "But, that's not the worst of it. The worst is seeing your friend walk out with their new parents and hatin' them but being so happy at the same time and you just wanna scream and sob and cheer and it's so awful. You don't get a nice loving hug, or kiss, or nuzzle from your ma and dad, you just feel so lonely." The little Pegasus sniffled and wiped her eyes. "Scootaloo, I'm so sorry you went through that." Twilight whispered as she felt the tightness grip her chest. She glanced down at Star Chaser sound asleep. "I promise Scootaloo, I'll take care of him until he can find a good home. I won't let them put him in an orphange, okay?" Twilight said gently wiping the tears from the little pegasus. "Promise?" Scootaloo asked. "Promise." Twilight nodded.