Make a Wish

by Perpetual Lurker


Scootaloo's Wish: Part 8

"Rainbow! Slow down!"

"No! The rest of you need to speed up!" The bearers of the Elements of Harmony raced through the Everfree Forest, Rainbow Dash taking the lead. The Elements themselves glowed softly as they generated the ghostly trail of white light that the group followed, illuminating just enough of the path ahead of them to prevent anypony from running headlong into a tree.

"Rainbow Dash! Stop!" A violet aura surrounded the blue pegasus, halting her in mid air.

"What's wrong with you, Twilight? We can't stop now!" Dash shouted, struggling against Twilight's spell.

"We can't keep going like this!" Twilight shouted back. "Most of us can't move as fast as you."

"Fine, I just won't go any faster. You've all been keeping up with me so far, anyway. Now let's go already!"

"No, Rainbow, we need to slow down," Twilight said, setting Rainbow Dash down as she gestured to the rest of the group. "Most of us can't keep this pace up much longer. Applejack especially is in no condition to run like this any more."

"Now wait... just a... minute there..." Applejack panted, taking the opportunity to lean against a nearby tree. "Don't y'all let me slow ya down any on account of my condition... If we need to keep movin'... I'll keep movin'..." Rainbow Dash knew better, though. The orange mare looked like she was about to pass out, and the rest of the group didn't look too great, either. Even Pinkie Pie, normally an endless fountain of energy, was merely standing casually rather than her normal idle bouncing.

"Applejack..." Rarity sighed. "You really mustn't push yourself like that! It's not healthy!"

"Rarity's right, AJ," Twilight said in agreement. "The spells that were required to reverse that wish's transformation magic put a lot of strain on your body. You're likely to injure yourself further if you keep this up."

"But-"

"No, Applejack, they're right," Rainbow Dash said, sitting down. "I'm pushing my problems on to the rest of you, and that's not fair. I can't expect the rest of you to make up for my mistakes..."

"Don't say that, Rainbow," Fluttershy said, sitting down beside her friend. "We're all here together, and we can solve our problems together."

"This is my problem, though. My mistake. My responsibility... My fault if anything goes wrong... What if she's already-"

"Don't you dare finish that sentence Miss Mopey Wings!" Pinkie Pie interjected, jumping right in front of Rainbow Dash's face and glaring at her. "The Rainbow Dash I know would never talk like that! She's the kind of pony that could smash into a cliff face first, shake it off, and keep going! I would know, I've watched her do it! The real Rainbow Dash wouldn't get angry or sad like this. She would shake it off and do what she had to do! Now are you the real Rainbow Dash or not?"

Am I? Rainbow Dash wondered. For that matter, should I be? All I've done is screw up... The correct answer was quite clear, though. "Yes," she replied. "I am!" Pinkie is right! I can't let my mistakes define me. How I overcome them defines me, and I will take this head on! No more self-pity, for Scoots' sake! She leaped to her hooves, ready to face what lay ahead.

"Do you Pinkie Swear?"

"I Pinkie Swear!" Dash smiled and performed the motions, ending with covering one eye with her hoof.

"Perfect!" Pinkie Pie giggled and snapped back to her normal, cheerful demeanor. "I knew I could get that smile back!"

"Alright, lets rest a few more minutes before we get moving again," Twilight said, the rest of the group nodding in agreement. Twilight then turned back to Rainbow Dash. "It's nice to have you back, Rainbow."

"Thanks," the pegasus replied. "I'm still worried, though. At the pace we're going, who knows how long it will take to reach the end of this trail. We don't even know how far away the end is."

"I wouldn't worry too much. This was Princess Celestia's plan, remember?" Twilight smiled. "In fact, we're only phase two."


"So, if you're Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash's mom, then why haven't we seen you around at all?" Sweetie Belle asked as she sat down next to Apple Bloom on a fallen log. The three ponies had been following the strange trail of light for about twenty minutes, and they needed to take a break if they wanted to keep their strength up. "I never really thought that much of it before, because, well..." The unicorn cast an awkward glance over to Apple Bloom, who met her friend's gaze for a moment before looking away and staring at the ground, ears drooping.

"Yeah, it's not that strange..." Apple Bloom added, not bothering to look up. "I never even knew my parents..."

"But you're still... around," Sweetie Belle continued, putting a leg around her friend to comfort her. "What happened?"

"I failed her, that's what happened," the mare answered. "It just took me until a few days ago to realize it. Rainbow Dash has been taking care of Scootaloo on her own for almost her entire life. Scootaloo never knew me, either."

"But now that you're back, things can get better, right?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"Yeah, Scootaloo must have been real happy to finally meet ya," Apple Bloom said. "I know I would've..."

"She was, actually. She really was... and I was happy too. I finally got a second chance." The mare smiled, remembering their tearful reunion on the balcony. The smile quickly faded as she recalled what followed, though. "I failed again, though, and Scootaloo got hurt for trusting me. I don't expect her to ever trust me again after that..."

"Well, we trust ya," Apple Bloom stated, standing up. "And I'm sure Scootaloo'll come back around soon, especially once she sees ya bein' so dedicated to helpin' her!"

"Yeah!" Sweetie Belle shouted, leaping to her hooves as well. "I've only known you for a few minutes, and you're already one of the most dedicated ponies I've ever seen! There's no way that Scootaloo wouldn't forgive you after this!"

"I hope so..." I don't think I can even forgive myself, though..


"So, what exactly do you need me to do?" Scootaloo asked, awkwardly sitting down on the dais as her legs began to ache from standing.

"Just stay right where you are for now, I have some preparations to go through, first," the voice answered.

"What kind of preparations?"

"Well, right now I'm gathering energy. Then once I have enough we can begin preparing the spell."

"If that's all you needed to do, then why did we have to come all of the way out here?"

"This place has the energy I need. You can't feel it, but to me, this whole castle... hums with an ancient power." The voice seemed to tremble as it spoke of this, as if in awe. "Long ago, this place was the site of the final confrontation between Princess Celestia and Nightmare Moon. Together, Elements of Harmony unleashed their power and banished Nightmare Moon for a thousand years. When she eventually escaped, the Elements were used again in this very room, this time purging Princess Luna of the darkness that had consumed her heart. Twice the Elements of Harmony were unleashed here, and twice their power seeped into these walls. It's that power that I'm drawing upon. It's... beautiful... The voice trailed off, leaving Scootaloo in silence.

Well, now's as good a time to ask as any, I guess, Scootaloo decided. "So, I know that it doesn't really matter since we're out here already, but why are you doing all of this?"

"To reverse your wish, of course!" the voice replied.

"No, I mean what's in it for you? What reason does a... whatever you are have to help me?"

"Well... the voice began, almost seeming to sigh as Scootaloo pushed the subject, "technically, I'm not so much going to reverse your wish as simply... take it."

"Take it... as in take it to use yourself?"

"...Yes."

"And you just expected me to give it to you? No questions asked?" Scootaloo asked, raising her voice a bit.

"Yes."

"No! No way! Not happening!" Scootaloo shouted at the disembodied voice, pulling herself to her feet once again. "Fixing everything is one thing, but I am not just going to let some mysterious voice in my head have something that powerful! How stupid do you think I am?"

"See, this is why I didn't want to tell you!" the voice shouted back. "You would have said no right away, just like the others! At least this time you'll have to hear me out first. I'm your only ticket out of here."

"Oh yeah? How're you gonna get- Wait." Scootaloo paused, the full meaning of what the voice said finally hitting her. "Did you just say 'others'? This was never about me at all, was it? I'm not the first pony you've offered this to?"

"No! I mean, Yes! I mean, I- I don't know!" the voice stuttered.

"What do you mean you don't know? Either you've asked somepony else or you didn't!"

"It's not that simple! You wouldn't understand!"

"Well, you're going to have to try and make me, then!" Scootaloo's shouts echoed through the empty room unanswered as the voice fell silent. After about a minute, the voice finally spoke again, this time in a calm, determined manner.

"You know how you said that you wanted to fix everything? Well you're wrong. You just want to fix your life. No, I'm the one who wants to fix everything, because I lost everything. The universe is- Uh oh." The voice fell silent, as if just noticing something for the first time.

"What now?"

"Something's coming. Something big. We need to get on to the next step!"

"Wait, what's happening? What's coming? What next step? If you think that you can just rush me into this so you don't have to explain-"

"I will explain! I'll just have to do it as I work. We can't afford any interruptions. You'll always be free to walk out any time, I won't stop you. I promise." As the voice spoke, a glowing white fog rose from the edges of the dais and began to swirl around it. "Step two is focusing the gathered energies in the physical world. This step must continue uninterrupted for a while, and if the circle is broken, I'll have to start over. Luckily, I think I can-"

"Foolish foal! You know not what forces you tamper with!" another voice boomed out of the darkness, it's incredible volume only amplified as it echoed off the chamber's walls.

I've heard this voice before! Scootaloo realized. It would be nearly impossible to forget a voice like that. No sooner had she remembered when the air in front of the dais flashed with a brilliant white light, leaving a single pony standing there when it cleared. She stood much taller that the average pony, wings unfurled and horn alight with magic, her ethereal, blue mane billowing as if in a gentle breeze. Scootaloo could only stare in awe as Princess Luna stepped forward, her eyes narrowing as she eyed the swirling mists around the filly.

"As a Princess of Equestria and Guardian of the Night, we cannot allow this ritual to continue!" Luna shouted, lowering her horn to aim it at the magical mist. "Stand back, child!" A beam of blue light erupted from her horn and flew at the fog. Much to the Princess's dismay, however, it only splashed harmlessly against an invisible barrier, the energy dispersed in a dome shape around the circle.

"As I was saying," the voice began again, more or less unfazed by Luna's sudden interruption, "luckily, I'm able to divert some of the energy into creating a barrier. It'll slow down the process a bit, but it'll hold."

"I see. You are a fool if you think that such a spell can stop me, as well as if you truly trust whatever entity is behind this," Luna said, dropping the pretense of the Royal Canterlot Voice as she once again prepared her magic. "There is more to the forces at work here than the likes of you could ever imagine."

"Then would you just give me an explanation for this already!" Scootaloo shouted, looking first at Luna, then at the swirling mist. "Both of you!"

"You shall have your explanation after you cease this ritual and exit the barrier! If you do not yield, then I shall be forced to tear it down and retrieve you myself!" When it became clear that Scootaloo was not going to move from where she stood, the Princess again unleashed a torrent of magic upon the shield, this time with enough force to shake the ground they stood on as the air around the filly exploded. This attempt, too, was was unsuccessful, only managing to scorch the floor around the dais.

"It's no use, Luna," the voice said, now echoing aloud throughout the room, though still without any discernible source. "This shield is created from the residual power of the Elements of Harmony themselves. It is far beyond you or any other living pony's ability to undo. Of course, you know all about that, don't you?" Luna's eyes widened as the voice said its last sentence.

"Show yourself, coward!" Luna shouted in anger. "We demand you tell us what you know of this!"

"I think you're the one who needs to tell us, Princess. The nice filly asked for for explanations from us, and neither of us are in any position to deny them to her, especially since everything that has happened here is your fault," the voice responded with what sounded like contempt. "You first."

Her fault? How is any of this Princess Luna's fault? Scootaloo wondered. She's just trying to save me, even though she doesn't know what's going on... does she?

"Very well," Luna replied, sighing in resignation. "Once, long ago, I was visited by some old friends..." Her horn glowed as the world around them warped, forming an illusory image of events long past...