The bell rang for the daily three o' clock stampede out of Ponyville elementary, and leading the herd was the spunky orange pegasus filly Scootaloo. Breaking away from the crowd at the school gates, she pulled out her scooter and wagon that made up the ever proud Crusadermobile. She looked back towards the schoolhouse at her fellow Cutie Mark Crusaders who were only halfway down the path, rocking her handlebars back and forth with a grin of glee.
"Come on girls! We gotta move it!"
"What's the big hurry Scootaloo?" Sweetie Belle asked. "You have something big planned for today?"
"The biggest!" Scootaloo fished a rolled up flyer from under her helmet and unfurled it for her two friends to see. "Rad Moves' skate park! It's been under construction for over a year, and now it's finally going to open up, today! And we're going to be first in line to show off our awesome moves there! We're going to be Cutie Mark Crusaders extreme skateboarders!"
Sweetie gave a slight frown of nervousness. "Sounds like it could hurt."
"Cain't be as painful as when we tried ta be Cutie Mark Crusader bungee jumpers," Applebloom said. "Ah'm in!"
They then looked at the last member to approve. "Okay...I guess I'm in too," Sweetie Belle finally relented. "But I get to pick what we crusade for next!"
"Fine by me," Scootaloo said as she began to buzz her wings while the others strapped themselves in. "But it'll have to wait until tomorrow, cause the skate park's just the beginning!"
"What else you got in mind for this afternoon?" her yellow-cream passenger called over the rushing wind as they rode off down the lane.
"It's half-off day for fillies and colts under 13 at the amusement park, remember?"
"Oh yeah...we were saving up our allowances for that," Sweetie piped up before pursing her lips in an 'o' in realization. "Uh, we need to stop my house first."
"Mine too," Applebloom said. "Ah fergot it was today."
"No prob, I and know what I'm going to go on first!"
"The Storm Bringer?" her two riders asked in unison.
"The Storm Bringer!" the driver answered triumphantly.
"Scoots, you try to get on that ride every time we go there!" Applebloom complained. "And you always get the same turnout, 'yer too little ta ride'!"
"Not this time, AB. I've got a foolproof plan!"
Sweetie gave Applebloom a look that said 'and we all know exactly how those go', and Applebloom silently nodded.
"Anything else on the Ite-iten...er... any other plans?"
"Just saving the best for last!" Scootaloo swung to the side as the Crusadermobile skidded to a halt outside the large concrete compound. "I'm heading to Rainbow Dash's house for flying lessons! She's taking a day off, just for me!!"
She squealed as she bounced off her ride, gushing all the way to the rental center as the other two hopped after her with infected enthusiasm. "I'mfinallygoingtohavesometimewithRainbowDashandsoonI'llbeflyingwithherandeverythingand-"
"Hey hey hey."
The trio of fillies crashed into an outstretched hoof from a brown shaggy-maned, teal pegasus with freckles and a neat cyclops shades. "Hold up there little dudettes, where do you think you're going?"
"Inta the skate park o' course!" Applebloom chimed. "We're gonna be-"
"CUTIE MARK CRUSADER EXTREME SKATEBOARDERS!! YAY!"
"More like, nay girls. I'm always psyched to see new hot doggers ready to grind the rails, but I think you might want to take a gander at that sign there first."
The three fillies turned in sync to the board he was pointing to labeled SAFETY REGULATIONS:
NO FOOD OR DRINK IN THE PARK
HELMETS AND PADS MUST BE WORN AT ALL TIMES
....
....
NO CHILDREN UNDER THIRTEEN ADMITTED WITHOUT ADULT SUPERVISION
"Awwwwwwwww...." they chorused.
My Little Pony, My Little Pony
Ahh, ahh, ahh, ahhh…
(My Little Pony)
I used to wonder what friendship could be
Until you all shared its magic with me
Big adventure
Tons of fun
A beautiful heart
Faithful and strong
Sharing kindness
It's an easy feat
And magic makes it all complete
You have my little ponies
Do you know you're all my very best friends?
Growing Pains
"Cheer up Scoots. Ah'm sure ma sis will be glad to take us some other time," Applebloom tried to comfort the pouting pegasus as they approached the amusement park on the edge of town.
"It won't be the same," she argued. "Anyways, forget it. You all got your money ready?"
"All set!" Sweetie Belle toted a tiny purse her big sister had made for her that was nearly bursting with bits.
"Yup!" Applebloom procured an equally bulging makeshift satchel made from an old hoofkerchief.
Scootaloo hefted her heavier than usual schoolbag, and when they reached the ticket booth, they all poured the bits in a messy pile in front of the cucumber green earth pony. Her sigh gave the implications that this wasn't the first time today she would have to spend counting up the change from a clutter of coins and broke off three one day passes from the reel next to her and passed them to the bouncing fillies.
"First up, the Storm Bringer!" Scootaloo declared proudly as they raced inside the park, and stopped in front of a long line to a colossal roller coaster that seemed to bend and pass through several small thunderclouds.
"Soooo, what's yer big plan to meet the height requirement?" Applebloom asked.
Scootaloo fished through her bag, and pulled out a large bottle of hair gel. "This!"
Dabbing heavily into the goo and plastering her hair, the little filly's mane was a tall column that nearly doubled her height in a matter of moments. "Pretty slick, huh?"
Applebloom did her best not to giggle while Sweetie Belle simply covered her eyes in embarrassment. "That's not going to work Scootaloo."
"Says you! Just you watch. And when it does work, I have enough for you two to join me."
Not a chance. Rarity will have a fit if she sees me with a hairdo like that.
And give ma big sis and brother one more thing to have a good tease at? I don't think so.
Scootaloo marched right up to the ride operator when her turn came, and confidently leaned her head against the height check board. Her hair just barely touched the red line. "Yes!"
The dark goldenrod unicorn operator did not look amused. He pulled out a long ruling stick and stuck it to the top of her hair.
"H-hey! W-what are you doing?!"
He firmly pressed down.
"N-NO! Wait! Stop! Don't do that!"
The matted, gelled tuffs sank below the red line.
"Noooooooooooo!"
The operator let a tiny bemused smile crack from his lips as he gently nudged the dismayed filly out of the line. "Nice try, kiddo. It was at least better than your stilts attempt last year. Now why don't you run along and find something more safety appropriate for someone your size, like the spinning teacups?"
She grumpily scuffled back to her two friends, one looking smug, the other sympathetic.
"We told ya it wouldn't work Scoots."
"Shut up! It was worth a shot! And besides, the teacups are for babies!"
"Hey! I like the teacups!" Sweetie Belle squeaked.
Applebloom led the trio away from the ride and towards a concession stand. "Aw, don't fret none, Scoots. Come on, ah got some extra bits. Ah'll buy ya a candy apple!"
Scootaloo didn't speak a word until after they had sat down with a treat in each of their hooves.
"If only I were older..." she finally muttered.
Sweetie looked to her friend with a puzzled expression. "But, if you were older, you wouldn't have been able to get that discount today."
The little pegasus bit sourly into her apple. "What good is a discount if all the cool rides are off limits?"
Buzzing out of the park, Scootaloo's mood soon improved as she caught the flowing rainbow fountain of her all-time hero's cloud house in her sights.
"Well, the amusement park may have been a bust, but this is more than gonna make up for everything today!"
"That's the spirit, Scoots! Law of averages says you gotta luck out sooner or later!"
"Yeah! And we'll be here to cheer you on too!"
Applebloom and Sweetie Belle clapped their hooves together. "CUTIE MARK CRUSADER CHEERLEADERS! YAY!"
"RAINBOW DAAAASH!" Scootaloo called out in an equally loud voice as she parked under the shadow of the house.
A rainbow maned, cyan head poked out of the window with a huge grin. "Heya squirt! Ready for your most awesome day ever?"
"You know it!" Scootaloo quivered in glee as the greatest pegasus ever swooped out of the window and gave a quick loop de loop to the ground with a ten point landing.
"Oh, oh! Before I forget! I made these for you!" she poke her head into her backpack and returned with some aluminum tipped coverings filled with cotton on the inside.
Applebloom and Sweetie Belle were at a lost to figuring out what those things were, but any pegasus worth their weight in feathers could tell what this was supposed to be.
"Wing guards?" Rainbow Dash guessed as she felt the soft insides compared to the shiny sleek outsides.
"Yeah! Took me two whole weeks in arts and crafts to finish, but I'd knew it'd blow you away!" Scootaloo gave a huge grin expectantly, and Dash knew what she had to do next.
With a small smile of resignation, she slid her wings into the homemade gear. It was surprisingly comfortable and warm, though would probably last only three to five flights maximum given the materials weren't professionally refined for high altitudes. But still, it did look kinda cool, especially with that rainbow racing stripe painted on the edges.
"Heh, pretty good for a first time, squirt. You may have a future in this."
Scootaloo's pearly whites nearly took up her entire face.
"Now then, first things first. Let's see what you already know. Flap for me."
Rainbow watched with an unusual dignified calm as her trainee buzzed her wings harder than ever before. Her back arched as she went six inches off the ground, then fell back down.
"Wow! That's your highest yet!" cheered Sweetie Belle.
"Well you certainly got your thrust down," Rainbow said with cool demeanor. "But you're moving too much with your wings and not enough with your legs."
"Huh? You need your legs to fly?"
"Of course! Think of your legs like a set of weights. How're you going to move forward or turn if you don't shift them the right way?" She then pulled one of Scootaloo's wings out to full length and continued as she inspected it. "However, given your wing growth, I wouldn't recommend trying to work both at the same time. Let's start you off with some glides. There's a nice hill right over there where we can-"
"Captain!"
Rainbow looked up to see her light green-blue haired sub-captain descend upon her training session. "'Sup, Raindrops? How's it hanging?"
Her teammate regarded her nonchalant greeting with concern. "No time for small talk, you're needed back at the station."
"What? Oh, come on! It's my day off! I actually filled the correct forms and everything myself for once!"
"And no one is more appreciative of that than me, but there's a huge thunderhead brewing up south, and the chances of a tornado forming are 80%, we need a team organized to take that thing out asap!"
"So grab the squad and do it, you're the mare in charge when I'm not."
"You know I have courier duties on Fridays. I can't afford to lead a hours long weather mission when Ditzy needs all the help she can get during the express rush."
"I'm surprised you two still have that job after last spring's incident."
That earned a very nasty look from Raindrops as she crossed her forelegs.
"Uh, nevermind. Fine, what about Thunderlane?"
"Sick in bed with the pega-pox."
"Again?! Geez, when is that guy gonna get over his fear of needles and take his shots like everypony else? Ok, Cloudkicker?"
"You know she cracks under pressure, that's why she never opted for that promotion. Besides, it's gotta be you, Captain."
"Why? What's so special about this particular stormcloud?"
"This particular stormcloud is raining fireballs."
Rainbow Dash's mouth went agape at Raindrops last sentence, then clamped up as she narrowed her eyes in grim determination. "Fury..."
She shot up to Raindrops level in the blink of an eye. "Ok, run a message to the station, I need teams Arcus and Blue Watch to meet me at the low pressure zone 15 clicks southwest from here while everypony else remains on high alert. Oh, and if Doppler's in today, get him to authorize a wind sheer overlimit protocol, we may need to bypass a few safety rules if we want to get rid of this in time, and that'll save us some paperwork."
"Hey!" Rainbow Dash and Raindrops turned their heads to a slightly panicky orange filly. "What about my lesson?"
Rainbow Dash scratched her brow, hating to dump Scootaloo like this. But if she didn't the ponies of Ponyville could end up in serious danger, her included. "Uh...sorry squirt. It's an emergency. You know, part of my job as an element of harmony and all that. I'll make it up to you later. I promise!"
But Scootaloo didn't want it to be later. It was always later, and then later still! Her mind clawed in desperation for a way to stay with her hero a little longer. "T-then let me come with you! Maybe I can help!"
Her foalish exclamation was met by a very disapproving stare from the yellow pegasus. "No offense kid, but this is a grown mare's job. Just don't worry your pretty little head over it, keep playing with your friends, and let the adults sweat the hard stuff."
And with that, the two adults were gone, leaving the trio of fillies all alone with nothing but a whispering breeze to keep them company.
Applebloom and Sweetie Belle looked worriedly at their crestfallen friend. The silence between them was deafening.
Sweetie Belle finally broke the tension. "Uh, Scootaloo?" She bit her lip as her friend looked up with a glum face. "Are you okay?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah...I'll be fine," she murmured halfheartedly.
"Hey, I know what'll cheer you up! S'more crusading! With all the bad luck you got today, there's gotta be some good luck waiting for you now! Like getting your cutie mark!"
"Uh, yeah!" Sweetie tried to match Applebloom's enthusiasm. "I'll even let you even have my turn next! We can do what you want, like...um...rock climbing!"
"CUTIE MARK CRUSADER ROCK CLIMBERS! YAY!"
But Scootaloo didn't cheer.
"Cutie mark crusader rock climbers?" the two tried again.
"Uh, no thanks. I kinda don't feel like crusading anymore today." Scootaloo unhitched her scooter and wheeled it off by her side as she walked off. "You two can go ahead without me. See ya tomorrow..."
Scootaloo kicked some pebbles aside as she trudged along the dirt path in Whitetail woods.
"This stinks..." She felt raindrops start to fall on her as she continued on. Scootaloo figured it was runoff from the storm Rainbow Dash left her to fend off. "Of course. Rain...just kick a pony while she's down why don't you?"
Propping her scooter against the cover of a large maple. She sat down by the trunk to try and wait it out. After a while, she took a moment to view her surroundings. Shrubbery lay all around, giving the grove of spruces and hickories more foliage. Beyond a pair of bushes right next to the maple she was under was a small pond, where she caught a glimpse of her reflection. Walking over to the edge of the water, she looked closer at the filly staring back at her over the rippling surface. The young, tiny, and unimportant filly who couldn't do anything. Scowling deeply, she smacked the water, distorting the image with a splash. Everything that had gone wrong today was the result of one simple fact.
"I hate being a kid."
"And why do bear such feelings to your youth?"
Scootaloo jumped. Turning behind her she saw the source of the sombre voice. An indigo, chrome covered pegasus stood next to her in the rain. The drops slid down her emotionless black glass mask in a way as if she was crying.
"Who are you?" Scootaloo asked, somewhat surprised and somewhat agitated that somepony had snuck up on her and listened in on her grumbling.
"Just a kindred soul...that was drawn by your sadness."
"I'm not sad!" Scootaloo belted out defensively. But the unmoving gaze of the stranger's lapis lens finally made her relent after awhile. "Fine. I am sad. It's just...nothing went my way today, and it's all because I'm a filly."
She looked back at her reflection again and sighed. "A tiny, good for nothing filly. If I were an adult, I wouldn't have any of these problems."
"Is being a child truly such a suffering endeavor?" her mysterious companion asked as her reflection became visible as well.
"Are you kidding me? It's the worst! When you're a little kid...when you're just a child..."
Scootaloo looked to the rainy sky as she open her mouth and let loose her feelings with all her heart.
"When you're a little filly, no one takes you seriously at all.
They say you're just not old enough, you're too young and too small.
What good is being little if you can't do anything?
Why can't I help? Why can't I try? Why can't I spread my wings?
She leapt up onto a large rock outcropping the pond, raising her levitation as she continued while the wind rustled through her hair.
"If only I were grown up, how awesome that would be!
I'd show the world and everyone the wonder that is me!
I'd fly so high and clear these skies, leaving not a speck of grey.
And I'd be with her all the time...if only I was grown up right away!"
"Would being a grown up really bring an end to your troubles? Would it truly make you happy?"
"Of course!" Scootaloo answered her audience. "Do you know what I could do if I was an adult?"
"I'd fly over the highest mountain, brave the fiercest storm.
I'd face against the impossible, feats no one's dared perform.
And I'd kick back on adult delights when the day's all through and done.
No age limit, no kiddy rides, just cool and awesome fun!
I wish I was a grown up, then life would be so great!
No one would tell me what to do, I'd master my own fate!
No obstacle would be too huge, I'd prove myself and how!
I don't care what fillyhood brings...I wanna be a grown up now!"
She stomped her hoof in totality, and then gazed down at her reflection once more. "If only there was a way."
"Perhaps there is."
Scootaloo's head perked up at the statement, and her mouth opened wide to see her company standing in front of her...on the surface of the water.
"How...how are you doing that?"
She did not answer her, but instead touched the crystal emblem embedded in her chest that was shaped like a cracked heart. A sliver of liquid procured from it and hardened into a teardrop shaped diamond. She held the gem in front of the little filly.
"This is the Tear of Covet. It has the power to grant the deepest and most longing of aspirations, but only if the yearning is deemed worthy."
Scootaloo's mind brimmed with questions to this mysterious gift she was presented with, as she held it in her hooves, only the biggest and most important one was able to leave her lips. "How can I make it worthy?"
Her unknown acquaintance slowly skated over the ripples, graceful as a swan, her voice echoing in a beautiful but solemn tune.
"Pray. Open your heart.
Let your desires flow into the tear.
Wish. Let the jewel in.
Let it embrace the feelings you hold dear.
Give it your hope. Give it your dreams.
Wish with all your might, and deserving it'll deem."
Scootaloo held the jewel tightly to her chest. She closed her eyes and thought of nothing but what she wanted.
"Wish."
"I wish I was a grown up."
"Wiiish."
"I wish I wish I wish I was a grown up."
"Wiiiiiiiish."
"More than anything in the world, the only thing that could make me happy, I wish I was a grown up!"
A warm sensation started to ebb from the tear, it wormed it's way into Scootaloo's chest. Her head started to feel light, and then...everything went white, then dark.
"Awaken."
Scootaloo blearily lifted her eyelids. Why was she sprawled out on the ground? Did she pass out?
"What...happened?" Her second word ended with a hint of surprise. A deeper voice she did not recognize was coming from her mouth.
"The Covet has found your wish worth granting. I welcome you to your new life."
Eyes suddenly wide, Scootaloo was up on her hooves. She was now at eye level with her glass plated stranger. Rushing over to the pond, she looked down at her reflection and gasped. Looking back at her was not the tiny underdeveloped filly she had always seen, but a tall, fully grown, orange pegasus mare, her round face now longer with her purplish mane outgrown and extending down to her neck. She turned to look down at her longer legs, and then up to her larger and well-toned body, stopping at her wings. Her wings! Her long, beautiful wings brimming with streamlined feathers!
"I'm...I'm a grown up."
She flapped her wings, and to her delight, she found herself moving up...and staying there!
"I...I can fly!"
She looked back to her new friend, who she now thought was the greatest mare in the world...next to Rainbow Dash of course.
"Thank you! Thank you so much!"
"I did nothing but provide you the window. Now go. Realize the certainties of your dream."
Scootaloo spun upwards breaking through the blanket of gray and into the clear open blue yonder, her voice crescendoing into a uproar of unbridled joy.
"Now I am a grown up! There's nothing I can't do!
I'll soar the skies with wondrous speeds, and earn my cutie mark too!
And best of all, I'll be with her! And with her I will stay!
Never again will I be blue...cause I'm a grown up todaaaaaaaaaay!!~"
The giddy mare streaked off, leaving an orange aftertrail behind, all the while the stranger continued to stand under the rain, which now shrunk and consolidated around her alone.
She sighed. "Such joy that comes with actually grasping the illusion of a fantasy, it will only make the inevitable despair that much greater."
"Umph! Come on, Sweetie! We're almost at the top!"
Applebloom groped another outcropping as she and Sweetie Belle continued up the small rocky wall of a sheer hill at the edge of Sweet Apple Acres orchard.
"Um, Applebloom? I know it's a little late to say this, but don't we need ropes or something for this?"
"Naw, that's only for the big cliffs. Besides, the extra challenge will be sure to give us our cutie marks!"
"But...what if we fall?"
"We won't! Just...don't look down and we won't."
Unfortunately, Applebloom was not destined to get a cute mark in child psychology, because Sweetie Belle did just that. It was a pretty small cliff, granted. But to a non-pegasus filly, ten feet up can seem the same as a hundred.
"A-a-applebloom..." Sweetie Belle clutched her friend's hind leg tightly. "I'm looking down!"
"Woaaah. Easy Sweetie, don't panic or ah'm gonna lose mah-"
The clump of soil Applebloom was clutching gave away, and the pair were free-falling towards the mud below, screaming their heads off. But as soon as the screaming started, it stopped as the two fillies suddenly found themselves scooped into the air by a set of steady orange hooves.
"Nice spill. But I don't think you guys want mud diving cutie marks."
"Huh?" Applebloom looked up at the spunky pegasus who saved them. "W-who are you?"
"Yeah, that's what I said when I looked at my reflection two minutes ago."
Sweetie Belle squinted at the beaming face, then her eyes shot wide open. "Scootaloo?"
The smiled widened. "The new and improved grown up Scootaloo to be exact!" she added with a wink.
Her two friends then began to babble excitedly as she settled down on the top of the hill near a lone apple tree. When their speech finally managed to become coherent, Applebloom asked, "How? How'dya become like this?"
"I met this really awesome pony in the woods, and she gave this magic crystal that could grant my wish, and bam! I'm all coolified up!"
"That crystal?" Sweetie Belle pointed to a tear shaped gem that was embedded into Scootaloo's chest.
She looked down at it with a slight curiosity. "Hey, yeah. That's it. I was wondering where it went after I made that wish."
"Ooh! ooh! Do you have yer cutie mark now that you're grown up?" Applebloom asked energetically as she sneaked a peek at her grown friend's flank.
Blank.
"Not yet, I guess. I wished to be grown up, not get a cutie mark." Scootaloo easily dismissed it. "Not to worry though. With this awesome adult body, I'll be sure to have mine by the end of the day, tops! There's so much I've been wanting to try that I can do now!"
"Whatcha gonna do first?" Sweetie asked.
"It's obvious, ain't it?" Scootaloo cracked her forehooves as she stretched her beautiful wings. "There's a big storm going on south of Ponyville that Rainbow Dash and her team need help fighting, and there's a certain radical orange mare who gonna come and save the day!"
Her two companions cheered as she sped off to meet her destiny.
"You go Scootaloo!"
"Yeah, Scoots! Go get'im...ah nuts!"
"What is it Applebloom?"
"Ah fergot to ask Scoots where ah could find this pony. Ah wanted one of them crystals too."
Rainbow Dash weaved and ducked as best as she could from one pegasus to the next. Between the wind, sleet, and inconceivably, fire, they were holding the line. But they weren't making any progress in dispelling the squall. And every minute that storm prolonged itself was a minute closer to it evolving into an even more devastating tornado.
She directed her attention to a pink, brown maned mare holding a barricade against the winds for the rest of the squads along with two blond stallions, one pale green and one pale yellow. They were being forced back.
"Airheart! You're losing windspeed, you gotta push back harder!"
"I...I can't!" she groaned. A sudden burst of air was all it took to send the three flying.
"Parasol! Get Merry May and Lightning Bolt, and regroup with Airheart's band to reinforce the blockade. Brolly, Drizzle, you're with me on cloudbreaking! Keep your wings slanted up!"
The trio of yellow, green, and white dove to fetch their companions, while a nervous blue maned stallion and a light purple mare took to Rainbow's left and right respectively. Arching above the thunderhead, they skimmed towards the edge in a slicing formation. The cut was clean and definite as a huge chunk broke off when they passed by, but when Drizzle looked back and gasped, Rainbow Dash somehow knew it wasn't as effective as they thought.
"Captain! The piece is trying to reconnect!"
Rainbow Dash looked to where she was pointing and saw the broken clump stretching like a tendril towards it's larger portion. "Punch it away!" She belted quickly.
Brolly was the first to react, but when he went in between to push it aside, he was socked backwards into Drizzle from behind. "C-captain! It punched me back!"
Curse you Fury, how are you doing this?!
A groan and a roar from black bubbling supercells below drew her focus to a large funnel beginning to swirl. "Dizzy Twister! Dust Devil! Anti-circumforce pattern! Now!"
The two tornado cutie-marked pegasi whizzed around in the opposite direction of the growing column's flow as fast as they could while Rainbow continued to bash and buck as much cloud away as she could. After finally managing to clear a large hole in the storm, she gleaned at the action below the clouds.
Even with the two best tornado chasers on the team leading the charge, the funnel was still growing closer to the ground. She was ready to rally her reserves to back them up when she noticed a large lump near the eye swelling up. The two mares working around the column were too busy to see it, but Rainbow could tell, the bulge was positioning itself directly at the flight pattern of the pair.
Rainbow lunged out as fast as she could with speed just short of a rainboom, just as the growth exploded into a massive bolt of lightning. The two cancelers finally gazed up in the direction of the boom, too late to get out of the way of their own. Dash was faster though. Shoving herself into the windstream, she pulled the ash colored mare out of the way just in time. The arcing electricity hotly grazed her wings as she spun away with her teammate in hoof. Briefly looking to the side, Rainbow Dash caught a charred outline on silver covering her wings.
Heh. Came in handier than I thought.
"Dizzy! Where's Dizzy!"
Rainbow's mind went into sudden overdrive at her passenger's outburst. Frantically turning her head everywhich way, the weather captain finally caught a glimpse of the rose maned, pastel orange pony unconsciously plummeting to the ground, her wings completely scorched.
"No!"
She was about to let go of her still flight capable companion to save her non-flight capable one, when another blur of orange intercepted the falling pegasus. The streak of orange curved upwards, riding the wind, and a purple maned, orange pegasus appeared out of the tangerine aftertrail, her comatose rescuee safely in her hooves.
There was something about this mare that seemed familiar, but Dash couldn't place her hoof on it.
"Don't worry Rainbow Dash, I've got your back!"
Yep, definitely something familiar. That energetic voice, that spunky smile, that bare flank-
Wait, BARE FLANK!?
Rainbow Dash's wings almost froze in mid-air as her eyes bugged out. "Squirt?!"
"Can't exactly call me that now, can ya?" Scootaloo said with a smirk.
"But...I- How-?"
Thunder cracked in the background as funnel touched down.
"We can talk later. For now, it's time for action! You ready to rock this storm?!"
Dash's mind continued to race for a few moments, but looking at her number one fan's confident smile slowly pushed the jumbled thoughts aside, and in no time she matched it with a grin of her own.
"Let's blow it away!"
Passing Dizzy Twister to Dust Devil, Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash sped off and hovered near the roaring tower of flame and lightning beginning to churn the ground below.
"Shoot. This is what I was hoping to avoid. Stopping a thunderstorm is one thing, but a tornado is near impossible!"
"Awesome pegasi like us eat impossible for breakfast though, right?"
"It's not that easy. Once a tornado touches down, it uses the ground as an anchor to keep the winds stable and the clouds above to keep the flow strong. Running a cyclone the opposite way with our current numbers would only slow it down, not break it."
"...What if we made it faster instead?"
"Huh?"
"Remember that airshow we saw two months back? Misty, Silver Lining, and Fleetfoot did that huge vacuum trick that sucked up all the clouds and squeezed them into a ton of waterbursts?"
"THE WHISTLING WIND WHIRLPOOL!" they shouted together.
"Yeah! If we can't break this storm, we'll just burn it out! Nice thinking Scootaloo!"
Tensing her wings, she gripped her partner's hoof tightly. "We'll need to be in the eye to pull this off. That means breaking the wind wall. You ready?"
"Grown ready!"
The two corkscrewed into the onslaught of gales and disappeared behind the walls. The rest of the weather squadrons were gradually being able to approach the center of the storm as the winds shut off around the outside to intensify the destructive capabilities of the tornado. They finally halted in a encircled formation around the traveling funnel.
"What do we do now?"
"We can't break a tornado."
"Where's the captain?"
"Hey, wait, shouldn't the sky be darker?"
They all looked upwards at the strange phenomenon going on above them. The large black blanket was shrinking inward to the eye. The vortex was swirling so fast and furious that the team was forced to pull back aways to prevent being sucked in. After a minute the huge array of dark clouds had diminished to the rim of the tornado, and still the winds circled even faster. As the last of the grey and black matter circled the drain of the whirling winds, the cyclone began to sway. It spluttered and coughed for more fuel, but all it could breathe now was empty air. Unsightly seams began to rip along the once indomitable bulwark of wind and debris as it rippled, leaking streams of rainwater. The wobbling and teetering grew more intense with each gasp the now dying maelstrom emitted. Until finally, the instability became too great. The remaining winds refused to hold each other together any longer and scattered harmlessly around.
Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash hovered in air above the squad. Their bodies soaked from the cloud density, but their cocky grins said it all.
"Mission accomplished!"
In no time at all, the two were hoisted by their backsides by every pegagus in the area as they cheered and whooped for the two.
"I still don't know how you got to be this way, but I ain't complaining! You're one heck of a partner, squirt!"
"Partner? Me? Omigoshomigoshomigosh!" Scootaloo gushed all the way as they were carried back towards Ponyville to celebrate.
It's just as knew it would be, being grown up is the most awesomest thing ever!!
The morning sun peeked into the windowsill of Ponyville's latest housing addition, a small, one roomed cloud house just on the edge of whitetail woods. It's simple, domed shaped appearance made it seem more of tent than a house, and the unsmoothed lumps made it seem not much more different than a regular cloud. Still, it was home to Ponyville's newest 'independent' mare.
Scootaloo rubbed her eyes groggily. What a party it was last night. When Pinkie Pie found out the second guest of honor at the 'Rainbow Dash and team saved Ponyville from Fury's tornado' party was her, she threw a second party there on the spot, a 'congratulations you're all grown up now Scootaloo' party. And then came all the missed birthday parties Pinkie felt she had to make up for.
The Cakes still didn't know how she was able to find four times the capacity of buttercream in their larder.
Twilight seemed to be the only damper to the celebration. She kept trying to analyze Scootaloo and the gem in her chest. 'There's no such magic that can permanently make a foal an adult, it shouldn't exist!' she kept saying. She finally gave up after an hour of no results and left the party early to try and read up on this Tear of Covet.
But enough about last night, what mattered was here and now. Today was going to be Scootaloo's first morning as a grown pegasus. There were so many plans she had for the day! And she probably would be more giddy about it if it weren't for the fact that she had enjoyed the adult privilege of no set bedtime a little too much.
"Unnngh...is this why grown-ups like coffee so much?" she said to herself as she crawled out of her fluffy sheets. Her room wasn't much, just a bed and a table, but she'd get more furniture and space later. After munching on last night's leftover cake(cake for breakfast? But of course! Grown-ups could eat whatever they want, whenever they want!), the buzz of sugar turned that tired frown into a perky grin.
Flapping out the door(boy did she love being able to fly now), she stood on the porch steps waiting for you-know-who to arrive. She didn't have to wait long. Rainbow Dash zoomed by and looped the building once before settling above her.
"Morning squi-I mean Scootaloo. All psyched for your first day on the job?"
"You bet, Rainbow Dash! It's gonna be so awesome that...that I'm gonna run out of awesomes to say!"
As Rainbow began to lead her grown up fan towards her new job site, she gave a quick look back at the unfurnished cloud house. "You made that yourself too?"
"Just like you did!" Scootaloo chimed. "Only worked on it for about an hour before I tuckered in, but I'll add to it later! Plus, the location is so choice!"
"Yeah, it certainly is." Rainbow looked at the surrounding area below. It was a pretty prime spot to build a cloud house. Not too far from the outskirts for easy access to the town, while still out of the way enough to keep most of the noise out, especially from Vinyl's night club. Easy commute, excellent view...now that she thought about it, why hadn't she built her house in this zoning area? There was...something about this airspace that...completely escaped her mind. Ah, well. Maybe it'll come to her later. For now it was time to show the rookie the ropes.
Cloudsdale. For any other pegasus it would have just been a ordinary, bustling city like any other in Equestria. But for Scootaloo, it was a majestic wonderland. An immense metropolis of clouds, shaped in beautiful designs and breathtaking houses, each one different. Even the businesses were uniquely tailored to their owner's tastes. Immense rivers of rainbows and crystal clear water cascaded down fountains of every height. The gigantic areodome where every pegasus proved themselves in annual competitions towered to her left, decorated with ionic pillars against a grand archway. The lighter than air feeling that came with every bounce she took on the outer tufts of the city limits where her hero grew up in. All her life she had wanted to see the capital of the pegasi, her capital, her roots, and now she was here! On her own two wings!
But why was she here? Rainbow Dash only came here for contests, airshows, and the occasional cloud pickup. She didn't live here anymore. Not that living here wouldn't be the coolest thing ever! Rolling around in a place where even the streets were cushiony, and so many cool colors and shapes that one could be relieved of boredom just by watching the city for days.
Rainbow Dash didn't lead her companion that far in when they stopped in front of a large pillared complex with about a dozen fountains and stacks that puffed out mist and cloudy puffs. A lilac pegasus with a hot pink mane and bubblegum streak greeted them at the gates.
"Morning, Rainbow. Is that her?"
"Yeah, Scootaloo, this is Starsong. She's the director for weather factory #12. She's going to be your supervisor."
Scootaloo looked at Rainbow Dash with surprised disappointment. "Huh? I'm working here? But I thought I was gonna be on your weather team."
"Sorry, Scoots. Ponyville's weather patrol is already overstaffed. I could try and ask the board for an exception, but then it'll probably go into a mountain of paperwork involving budgeting, redistributing work areas, and a ton of blabbity blah that I barely understand that will more than likely end up with the answer still being no."
She then quickly addressed the growing discouragement on Scootaloo's face with an energetic motion of her hooves to the factory doors. "But hey! I was able pull some favors and get you a job here. I mean, I only direct the weather, you get to make it! Plus, you're actually getting a higher pay cut than me!"
"Than I, Dash," her factory friend corrected.
"But I wanted to work with you..." Scootaloo said, somewhat dejectedly.
Rainbow Dash gave the less energetic mare a comforting smile along with a little noogie. "Hey, don't sweat it. It's just for the job. We can hang right after work, just you and me, that cool?"
Scootaloo didn't answer for a minute, but then she gave her best smile possible and nodded at Dash. "Alright, can we try a round of thunder tag this afternoon?"
"You bet! Hopefully you'll be better than my last partner." And with that the two pegasi high hoofed and parted ways. Rainbow heading back to her patrol route, and Scootaloo being lead in by Starsong.
The rhythmic clinking and pumping of machines swam in Scootaloo's ears as she watched devices of all sorts pour, mix, press, and roll out clouds of all kinds as she walked by in her white worker's uniform and helmet. Fascination filled her eyes, looking at the various buttons, cranks and levers pulled, pushed, and turned by her fellow workers. Some were even kneading the clouds like dough as rain was poured in. All this cool equipment, maybe Rainbow was right. This job would be a blast! And there were so many ways she could think of earning her cutie mark here too. She especially hoped she would get to work one of the charging stations that was loading the clouds with lightning bolts. And when she was done, she'd rush on over to Rainbow's place for some wicked neat adventures!
"This way," Starsong directed the new recruit pass all the equipment and into a long corridor of offices. As they entered the one second from the right, Scootaloo blinked. Were they still in the same building? There were no large vats of rainbows or massive cloud making machines here, just a bunch of desks with maps and graphs all over the walls. It looked like she was back in Cheerilee's geography lesson.
"You can hang your coat and helmet here," she continued, pulling a small rack from the side of the doorway.
"What is this place?" Scootaloo asked.
"Forecast department. Here's where we assign where everything goes." Starsong brought her to a corner desk next to a huge map with a ton of funny lines and symbols over it. "You're lucky you started today, it's the start of a high pressure week. You'll be able to ease into the filing system at a leisurely pace."
She opened a cabinet and looked through some folders before pulling one out. "Ah, good. The Los Pegasus weekly chart is ready. You can start with that."
She placed the stack of papers in front of Scootaloo, who looked down at it like she had just gotten extra homework. She wasn't too far off in her opinion when she asked, "What am I supposed to do with these?"
"Take a look at the conditions, match requests and adjust inventory and factory budgets accordingly, and allocate the resources along with the weather teams lists for the next week's weather in the area."
Before Scootaloo could comment on her supervisor's explanation. A large knock came from the office door followed by yellow-orange stallion walking in. "Uh, boss? Nimbos is having a bit of a problem with the repairs on the blue pipeline for station #3, can you give us a hoof?"
"No sweat. Oh, and Scootaloo? If you need anything, just ask Silver Script or April Showers." She pointed to two other ponies working the papers at their respective desks, one a teal-green mare and the other a royal purple, gray maned stallion, who both gave a small wave when mentioned before resuming their work.
All Scootaloo could do was keep looking at the papers in front of her as her boss left. This was her job? Filling out weather orders? And all these numbers and charts...it was like she was back in math class.
Well, alright. I guess I could try and do this. Nothing ventured, nothing gained right? I mean, I'm pretty much deciding when and where it rains. Can't be more boring than school, right?
Ugh, this was soooooooo BORING!! And it was so much harder than any math she knew.
Half of these symbols on the map she couldn't make heads or tails of, not to mention the words on the forms were so complicated and dragged out the issue.
'humidity level increase by 2.09...300 cubic liters...altostratus...' Agh! Why can't they just say, 'we need these many clouds, here, here, and here'?
She looked to her two co-workers. Maybe she should ask for help? No, that would be embarrassing on her first day. She could figure it out, she just had to....to....
Oh forget it. You know what? Just 'yes' to all. She scribbled and hoofprinted the approval sections on all the forms and stuffed them back in the folder. There. All demands satisfied. Everypony's happy.
She then opened the file cabinet across from her desk to put the folder back, and gawked at the numerous others stuffed inside that still needed to be filled out.
I can't do this all day! I'm on the verge of wigging out from just one of these! There's gotta be something else I can do here!
Fate answered her pleas when a cool gray pegasus with a fuzzy and shiny indigo and lavender mane and tail burst in.
"Hey Peppermint," April greeted as she looked up to the newcomer. "Bringing in another snowflake count update?"
"Actually, April, I was hoping you had some extra time on hoof. Snow Catcher got his leg caught in the cooling unit and has to take sick leave. We need someone to fill his remaining quota for the day."
"Sorry, I've only made it halfway through the Colton files. Won't be done until-"
"I got nothing else to work on, I'll do it!"
A trio of heads turned to the zealous orange mare waving her hoof frantically.
"Okay, you ever worked in snowcraft before?"
"Oh, sure. I'm the snow champ back home," Scootaloo bragged, recalling how every winter, she always came out on top during the snowball fights at recess.
"Okay, grab your coat, and let's get you stationed. Hopefully Northern Lights has a spare condensing rod since Snowy broke his in the process....boy that's another one coming out of his paycheck.
Yes! No more stuffy paperwork offices for her! Now she could do some real work and make some real weather! Scootaloo was so excited at the prospects before her, it had completely slipped her mind to ask what a condensing rod was and why she would need one.
The temperature seemed to drop fifty degrees as Scootaloo entered the winter weather section. She eagerly accepted a pair of earmuffs and scarf Peppermint Crunch passed to her.
"Alright, you're going to be operating here." She led her to a large table beside a long convertor belt-like tube. There was a small glass hatch on the tube's side. Flipping a switch on the small console on the table, Peppermint slid the hatch open as a cold and wet stream of air began to flow through the clear pipe.
She stuck her hoof in for a second, then smiled to Scootaloo as she twisted a knob to the number 5. "All set. Cutting tools are in blue box to the left, your condensing rod is over there, and the remaining quota count is 178. Make sure to check off the log when finished."
Scootaloo looked blankly to the workstation before her. "Um...what do I do again?"
"I thought you said you had experience with making snowflakes?"
"Uh, yeah! But that was years ago," the orange mare lied. "I think I may need a refresher?"
Peppermint raised an eyebrow, but didn't regard it any further. "Alright, stick the rod in tube to collect the water into ice crystals. The knobs here control the rate of flow and water density which affect crystal size and shape. Then take your tools and cut the formed crystals into flakes. The examiner device on the wall next to your station can check if it's an acceptable piece when you're done. If it passes, place it in the green cooling bin where we'll empty the contents into cold storage for next winter. Fail, and toss it into the red one, where it'll be recycled for more material."
Peppermint demonstrated as she stuck the rod into the hatch opening, and pulled it out a minute later with a small six pointed crystal on the end of it. Placing it on the table, she opened the blue box and took out one of the many different knives, scissors, and other splicing knick-knacks and proceeded to trace and carve over the crystal with delicate precision. When she was done, she held up a glistening snowflake, which she placed on a small dish over a machine that shone a light over it. The machine beeped pleasantly as its green bulb blinked, and she deposited the finished work into the small green freezer at the end of the workstation.
Seems simple enough. "Ok, I got it! Thanks!"
Peppermint nodded to her before trotting off. "Oh, and remember the three absolutes in snowflakes. Symmetrical, hexagonal, and unique."
Scootaloo rubbed her hooves together as grinned with glee at the tools before her. Yeah! I'm gonna make the coolest snowflakes in the history of snowflakes! I'll bet I earn my cutie mark after only my first three! This is so much funner than that boring stuffy paperwork!
*BZZZZZT*
The machine buzzed it's red light again as it spat the crooked flake on Scootaloo's nose.
"Oh come on! That was my best one yet!" She banged her head against the table and looked at the huge mess of broken crystals that made up the steadily growing reject pile.
Not a single one had passed since she began.
So much for this being funner...maybe if I set the power a little higher.
She turned the flow gauge to its maximum. Then, placing another sheet of ice she fished out on her table, she once again tried to cut it up as carefully as she could. After a numb inducing five minutes, she held up the pristine flake.
No bumps, no bends, no rough spots. This is it! This has to pass!
She held her breath as she placed her latest work under the tester. A green light beeped.
"Yes!"
*Bzt* *Bzt*
The red light flicked for a second as the words WARNING: NOT UNIQUE temporarily flashed in front of her.
Scootaloo stood rigid, and swore as best as an eight year old in a twenty-three year old's body could. "Are you kidding me?! I finally get one right and now you tell me somepony else already made one like this?!"
She jammed her rod back into the pipeline in frustration. There had to be an easier way to do this? What would Rainbow Dash do?
Wait.
Rainbow...
Her eyes lit up. Of course. Her snowflakes just needed to be unique now. What could possibly be more unique than a rainbow snowflake?
Glancing around to see in anypony was watching, she took her flake and tip-clopped away from her station towards the next room over. Pools of liquid rainbow could be seen all around. Each vat had a pegasus occasionally stirring it to keep the colors mixed. Grinning gleefully, she snuck up to the nearest one and gingerly dipped her hoof in it. She pulled out the crystalline artwork, now soaked in a seven color hue. It was beautiful.
Awesome, I don't know why anypony thought of this before!
Then it melted into a sticky residue of pigmentation.
Oops. Guess that's why.
"Hey! What are you doing?"
Scootaloo eyes widened at the approach of an orange, white maned stallion with four green gems for his cutie mark. "You can't stick your bare hooves in there! You're contaminating the entire tank!"
"Oh. Sorry! I-I'll just be going now-"
She took a step back, and slipped on some of the offspill. Sliding back uncontrollably, she crashed rumpside into the next worker over, pushing her in the pool.
"Abbppht! Help! It burns my eyes!" she screamed as she flailed in the colored water.
"Ack! Sorry! Let me help you!" She hovered over and yanked the disgruntled worker out. Too bad the fluid all over the other pony made her very slick to the touch, or she might have been able to hang on long enough to avoid dropping her on yet another pegasus carrying several cans of cloud dye.
"I got it!"
Scootaloo leapt up to catch the free-flying cans. One, two, three...she just had the last one and...*BAMF*. Ouch! Smack dab into one of the holding tanks! Scootaloo rubbed her head, and heard a large creaking noise.
Uh oh.
The tank was tipping! In a panic, she scrambled to the other side and pushed with all her might to steady it...just a teensy bit too hard.
Swinging the other way, the larger container collided with the one next to it, and that one hit the one afterwards. Scootaloo gaped in horror as the domino chain reaction released a torrent of color into the workstations. The workers tending to their vats only had time enough to look up before they were swept away by the river of rainbow. When the tide finally settled, the rainbow pools were now more like a rainbow swamp, a swamp filled with very peeved rainbow muck monsters all looking at Scootaloo.
"Uh...my bad?"
"What's going on in here?!"
Scootaloo's guilty grimace only furthered as Peppermint fluttered up to her. "What are you doing away from your station?"
"I...I just wanted to make my snowflakes cooler."
"Did you at least turn off your pipeline's valve before you left it unattended?"
A powdery explosion from the winter weather department answered the question for her. The two of them rushed in to find the entire floor in pandemonium as pegasi galloped to and fro trying to catch scattered snowflakes everywhere. The two of them marched up to her station, where a large hole in the tubing next to it had been the epicenter of the blast. Peppermint jerked the frozen over condensing rod from the open hatch, and glared at Scootaloo.
"You left the rod clogging the tubing while the flow was at maximum power! Did you not think something was going to happen with all that built up pressure?"
"Sorry?" was all she could squeak out.
Peppermint sighed as a large whistle blew throughout the complex. "You know what? It's lunch break. Just...just go out, get something to eat, and hopefully we can sort this out afterwards without anypony blowing their stack."
Scootaloo brooded as she walked the cloudy streets in search of a restaurant. Her first day as a grown-up certainly wasn't turning out like she thought it would. Half a factory demolished by her. Well, how was she supposed to know all those unwritten rules on workstation responsibility and safety? She was just a kid.
She stopped cold and shook her head hard. No! She wasn't a kid, she was an adult now! You can't keep thinking like this Scootaloo. That's why you got in trouble back there! And when I get back from lunch, I'm going to do the adult thing and apologize to everypony there and clean up my own mess! And then- oh! A Burger Wings!
She galloped into the fast-food establishment and skidded to a halt right in front of the counter. For the first time in her life, she didn't need to be hoisted up to see the menu overhead.
"Can I help you?" the peach stallion with the employee cap and uniform asked as Scootaloo checked her cash supply. 23 bits, that should be enough to hold her a few days until she got her first paycheck. Another perk of being a grown up. You could earn your own money to spend on your own.
"Yeah, I'll take the little wings combo number 2, please."
The stallion raised a surprised eyebrow at her request. "The...little wings combo?"
"That's right."
She got a weird look for half a second, but then the cashier just shrugged it off. "You get ponies of all kinds in this business, I guess."
Scootaloo watched in anticipation as the colorful red box was wrapped up and presented to her. Placing 4 bits on the counter, she nabbed it and proceeded to a nearby booth. As she opened it up and dug into her daisyburger, she fished around with her other hoof for the Wonderbolt card and figurine that came with it.
Nice! High Winds! I don't have her yet! Ooh, nice stats. They got her hair color a little off though.
Before she could critique the newest addition to her collection any further over the hayfries, an obnoxious laughter invaded her ears. Glancing up, she suddenly saw that almost every pony in the entire restaurant was looking at her strangely. The laughter, however, was coming from three jock stallions in weather factory coats at the other end of the room.
"Heh heh. Check it out. It's that noobie that blew up building 12."
"Is she seriously eating from the kiddie menu? Oh man, what a baby!"
"Hurr hurr hurr..."
"Oh, oh. I think she noticed us."
Scootaloo marched right over to supposed leader of the trio, a dark brown stallion with a large sandy fringe reaching to his eyes.
"Were you three just laughing at me now?"
"Well, what do you know boys? She's got a brain in there after all."
Scootaloo leaned her face in angrily as they had another laugh. "Just what is so funny?"
"Oh, nothing. It's just the fact that a grown mare who still plays with the toys that come in the foal size lunches is enough to split my sides."
"They're collectable action figures, what's wrong with that? They're cool!"
"Yeah, that's just the thing an eight-year-old would say. What a kid!"
"That's probably why she's still a blank flank there, eh Billy?"
Fire flashed through Scootaloo's eyes at the remark from the tannish orange pegasus on the left. So, even grown ups had bullies, huh? Good thing for her she was a A-rank bully stomper!
"Say that again! Call me blank flank one more time! I dare you!" She was almost nose to nose with the three now.
The brown one smugly smirked. "Really? You think I'm not afraid to hit a girl? I've tussled with Rainbow 'Crash' herself, y'know. It's no skin off my nose if you want that pretty face bruised."
"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?!" By now, everyone was focused on the escalating rage that was Scootaloo. "NOPONY INSULTS RAINBOW DASH IN FRONT ME! EVER! YOU TAKE THOSE WORDS BACK NOW!"
"What's it to you?" he retorted in return, seemly pleased he struck a nerve. "You her fillyfriend or something?"
"I bet she is. Makes perfect sense once you think about it."
"Hurr hurr hurr!"
"Yeah! Losers of a feather flock togeth-"
Passerbys on the cloudwalk quickly dispersed as shattered cloud glass decorated the area around where a brown stallion with a bloody nose landed with an orange mare pinning him down.
"YOU READY TO TAKE THAT BACK NOW?!" Scootaloo screamed. Her raised hoof was suddenly caught though by the large gray stallion of the three. The other one leglocked her forelegs and hoisted her up effortlessly as she struggled to get free.
The brown stallion got to his hooves and wiped the blood from his nose. "Hoops, Score. Hold that foal of dam steady for me!"
He walked up to the squirming mare and gave several hard punches into her soft underbelly. Scootaloo gasped in pain at each one. "Now then, how about you say you're sorry before things get any uglier?"
What these three didn't know, however, was that Scootaloo was used to odds like these. Whenever she tried to confront Diamond Tiara for something mean she said at recess, the snobby filly always managed to get the colts in her class to ponypile her instead while she got away. She learned to scrap her way out of that eventually. Compared to this, three jocks only a quarter of a pony taller than her were nothing.
With a quick snap of her jaws, she bit right into her attacker's nose. He cried out in surprised pain as his two compatriots loosened their grip in stunned surprise, giving her the chance to flip them both right on top of him. They didn't stay that way for long. In no time at all they were all up and circled around Scootaloo in a three pronged frontal. Each one trying to come in close for a hit when she turned back to hit another.
This kept up for several minutes as each of them accumulated bruises upon their various body parts. Then suddenly, Hoops nudged his friends and pointed down the street.
"Pull out, it's officer Crowd Control."
With a nod, the three broke off began to pussyhoof away. Scootaloo, oblivious to the situation, took the chance to pound them against the wall.
"Where do you think you three are going? You still haven't taken those words back!"
*PHEEEEEEEEWT*
Scootaloo suddenly found herself pinned to the ground and hoofcuffed by a large navy blue stallion in an officer's hat.
"For crying out loud, it's way too early in the day for domestic disturbance."
"Hey! What are you doing?!"
"The more you resist ma'am, the worse you're going to make it."
Scootaloo managed to pull her head up from the fluffy pavement just in time to see the jock trio flying off as inconspicuously as possible.
"Hey! No! Don't let them get away! They're the bad ponies! Arrest them! Arrest them!" she shrieked as she flailed against her bonds.
An electric joint then ran through her spine, and she passed out.
Scootaloo bleary opened her eyes to find herself in a large grayish holding room. The only things visible were a small hanging bench, a window too small to squeeze out that was the only source of light, and the large row of stratocumulus bars fencing her in.
Wait, BARS?!
Jumping upright and placing herself against the blackish-gray pillars holding her in, her eyes swiveled down the long dimly lit corridors to find matching rooms as far as she could see. I'm in a jail cell!?
No, no, no this wasn't right! Only bad ponies go to jail! Okay, maybe Cheerilee gave her a few detentions for some 'misconducts unbefitting a filly', but-but jails were for robbers, villains, and monsters! She was just a little kid!
No...I'm...not a kid...I'm a grown up now... she realized as she slumped back down away from the bars. She lay down on her hooves, trying her best not to tremble. "And grown up ponies...have grown up punishments..."
Was...was she going to spend the rest of her life here? Stuck in a cold and lonely little room forever just because she went a little out of control back there? She could feel her chest tighten in fear and her breath come in shorter intervals. Her blood then froze as she heard the sound of approaching hoofsteps.
Swiveling her head back to the cell door, she saw the same officer that had subdued her lumber up to the lock, fish through a long string of keys, and then slide the door open after he found the correct one.
"Alright, lass. Your pickup's here."
Scootaloo shakily took a step outside the cell, and saw Starsong waiting for her down the corridor leading to the entrance of the station. The orange mare quickly broke into a gallop towards her boss, and swung her forelegs around her tightly.
"Oh thank you, thank you, thank you! I so scared I was going to be in there forever! I mean, I wasn't really scared or anything, but didn't think anyone would-"
She was pushed abruptly from the hot pink pegasus' chest to a talkable distance from her, and was met with very stern and irritated eyes. "Scootaloo, would you mind telling me what exactly happened earlier this morning in my factory?"
Scootaloo's wave of relief ebbed with an onrush of guilt. "Oh, did Peppermint talk with you?"
"Not yet, but it's nice to hear you admit your involvement with that as well." She lead her out of the station while fishing in her coat pocket for something. By the time they reached the street corner, she pulled out folder and some papers.
"I just received a report from the Los Pegasus weather station, who got their delivery about an hour ago. Are you aware that your paperwork scheduled three monsoons and a hurricane there all on the same day?"
"What? But, I was just-"
"The San Palomino desert has turned into one gigantic mudball, and to make matters worse, the surplus you assigned emptied our warehouse for what was supposed to be reserved for Vanhoover's dry spell relief. Their crops are going to suffer because we don't have enough clouds left for the scheduled rainfall!"
"I-I was just trying to give everypony what they asked for."
"That doesn't mean checking every approval box on the sheets! Distribution, workforce, and available resources have to be factored in! Why didn't you at least add the resulting figures together and compare them with the factory's supply? Or at least double check the form with the other workers? It's almost like you didn't even finish elementary school with answers like these!"
Scootaloo's eyes averted her gaze as she winced at the irony of those words.
"Scootaloo..." Starsong's voice was low and heavy. "When Rainbow Dash came to me asking me to hire you, you had no credentials, resume, or list of applicable skills I could reference. This position was given to you solely on Rainbow's recommendation, that's how much I trust her judgement. So when you perform badly, it reflects on her credibility."
Scootaloo's heart sank at the bombshell that was dropped right before her. "What? But Rainbow's-"
"I know her well enough not to think that, but there are a lot of other ponies who don't, and she'll have a hard time moving up in the world if she has to appeal to those ponies with a damaged reputation. It's a horse eat horse world out there in the big leagues, no matter how much one hates to admit. Not every pony can live the dream when there's only so much room at the top."
Scootaloo didn't want to hear anymore, this was not like any scolding or lecture she ever received. She had often had talks about hurting other ponies feelings, or messing with stuff that wasn't hers. But...this seemed like something a simple apology couldn't fix. This was huge mistake.
A grown up mistake...
Starsong's features finally softened a little, but still held a firm, stern look. "You can go home for today. I can see you've been through enough. But tomorrow, we're going to have serious talk about work ethics and we'll see if you can keep this job after that."
Softly gliding back into Ponyville's outskirts, Scootaloo made a beeline for the Ponyville weather station. It was a rather small building compared to the massive cloud structures she had seen in Cloudsdale. Heck, the simple array of radio antenna used to communicate with the other stations on the roof made up about a third of its size. But considering it was the only commercial building aside from the airmail loading platform in the area that needed to be on a cloud, it could have been the size of a fruit stand and you still wouldn't be able to miss it.
Scootaloo pushed open the doors to the facility, trying to buck up the cheeriest face possible. If anything could make her feel better about this day, it would be practicing a few tricks and having some fun with Rainbow Dash.
That thought brought her back to Starsong's conversation. Her idol's reputation could have been hurt because of her today. She'd have to find a way to make it up to her, but how? She didn't really want to admit she messed up something Rainbow stuck her neck out for on the first day. This was a lot bigger than confessing she got nightmares from scary stories. She'd...probably find some way to ease into it while they hung out. Maybe Rainbow Dash, as cool and awesome as she was, made a few slips ups on her first day too.
Before Scootaloo could deliberate any further, she bumped into a mare charging out from behind the reception doors. She recognized her right away as the same pegasus who dragged Rainbow away for duty the other day.
"Ow! Oh, good. Are you the relief temp from Fillydelphia?"
"Uh, no. I'm...here to see Rainbow Dash?"
The yellowish mare sighed in stressed disappointment. "Ugh, another complaint. Don't worry. I promise our teams are doing everything we can to clear up the mess as quickly as possible. Just bear with it a little bit longer."
"Uh, what mess?"
"Oh, so you're not here to yell at us? Well that's a relief. Afraid the captain's not in right now. Apparently some rookie at the Cloudsdale factories screwed up a bunch of orders, including a flash flood to Los Pegasus. And the runoff is building up into a huge fog bank over Galloping Gorge. Almost everypony in the station has had to put in unwanted overtime to contain it!"
The air in the room seemed to grow five times heavier as Scootaloo continued to hear the implied accusations.
"Believe me, the last thing anypony here wanted is to work late on a Saturday. Captain seemed especially steamed. Kept saying something about being held up from hanging with her new wingmate or something. Boy, I tell you, if I ever find out who turned half the western coast into a disaster area I will personally-"
Raindrops paused to suddenly note that she was talking to empty space in front of her now.
"Huh. Guess whatever she wanted wasn't that important."
Scootaloo felt like she was six under despite being a mile high. Not only had she probably gotten Rainbow Dash in trouble for her trouble, but she had also caused her and so many other ponies extra work and aggravation.
No way she's going to be in the mood to hang when she gets done, not when she finds out it was because of me. Maybe I'll just go home and lie under the covers for the rest of the day.
She slowed up for a landing at her makeshift bachelorette pad...when a huge delivery truck being hauled by a pair of pegasi smashed right into it!
Scootaloo gaped at the messy remains of her 'house' as a gruff, unshaven brown stallion flew up from the fluffy, splintery wreckage.
"Hey lady! What's the big idea setting up shop in the middle of our delivery route?! Don't you know this is restricted airspace?"
"What? Restricted?"
"Don't tell you built this without even going to the zoning office first! They have laws against this kind of corner cutting you know!"
"I-I'm sorry. I didn't know-"
"Well, 'sorry' isn't going to get my carrier back in working condition in time to avoid late fees, now is it?" He pointed to the crumpled cargo bay where his two drivers were trying to reattach a bent wheel that kept popping off.
"Well, maybe I can help-"
"You wanna help? Beat it! I already have enough bumbling mares in the service that do nothing but get in the way, I certainly don't need another!"
Gulping at yet another unfortunate series of events she ended up involved in, she sank into the woods below. I can't even make my home without making a big mess of things...
She wanted to just curl up and sulk away all her failure right then and there as she touched the ground, and she almost did if she hadn't heard a series of voices coming not too far off. Creeping up to a large shrub near a clearing, she poked her head halfway up through the leaves to see a sight that made her want to laugh as loud as she could.
There, sitting with a ton of stamps and used envelopes stuck all over their bodies and overly sized mail caps covering them, were Sweetie Belle and Applebloom. Beside them with an equal amount of postage covering was a palish purple gray unicorn filly Scootaloo recognized as her classmate Dinky. Her mother sat next to her with her saddlebag and delivery cap on as she peeled a large half bit sailboat off her nose.
"Well, ah guess we can cross cutie mark crusader mailponies off the list," Applebloom said as she fussed with a rather stubborn stationary tangled in her mane.
"I actually thought we did pretty good today," Dinky said.
"We got yelled at by that big scary stallion fourteen times," Sweetie deadpanned, "and that was only at the sorting boxes."
"Exactly! That's a record low for momma!"
"Well, we still didn't get our cuties marks," Applebloom grumped.
"It was fun though wasn't it?" Dinky asked. "Especially when Sweetie got her tail stuck in that printing press."
"It wasn't fun for me," Sweetie said.
"But we all laughed at those photos that came out of it in the 'end' right?"
Dinky giggled, then Applebloom, and Sweetie relented too as Ditzy joined in.
"And you know what goes best after a good day's work? Some muffins!"
"Cutie mark crusader muffin eaters! YAY!" The pair cheered as Dinky bounced around her mother singing a cheery tune.
"Do you know the muffin mare?
The muffin mare~ The muffin mare~
Do you know the muffin mare?
She lives on Derpy Lane!"
After a few verses, the other two joined in the song, hopping and giggling around the bubbly mare as she fished through her sack.
"Banana Nut!" She passed the first one to Applebloom.
"Chocolate Chip!" Sweetie eagerly took that one.
"Blueberry for me and...orange cranberry!"
Scootaloo's mouth watered. Orange cranberry, her favorite flavor. And then her eyes began to water as well as she watched Dinky snatch it up and chomp into it merrily. Watching the three foals and the mare, her chest swelled in pain as her vision replaced the pale unicorn next to Applebloom and Sweetie Belle with a small, orange pegasus filly wiping the crumbs off her cheeks. Her vision was interrupted as a twig snapped under her hoof, and Sweetie turned towards the source of the noise. Their eyes met for but a second.
"Scoota-"
The figure in the bushes disappeared before another syllable could be uttered.
Galloping as fast she could, her breathing heavy, Scootaloo finally flopped down underneath a large maple, her eyes on the verge of leaking. Memories of fun, foalish adventures racing through her mind.
Fun she could never have again...because she was a grown up now. That's why Dinky was with them now, right? Because she couldn't be. She couldn't mess around and go crusading anymore because that was for kids. Burying her head in her hooves, she felt her left one touch a metal wheel. Looking up, she saw this was the exact same spot she had ended up yesterday, and laying right there was her scooter, which she had just remembered she left behind last time. It looked significantly smaller now and another painful though flashed through her mind as she came to that conclusion. Grimacing, she carefully tried to mount her favorite ride, but the standing platform was too narrow to fit her legs on. Straining for balance, she bent down to the handle bars to steady herself, but all the extra weight caused it to topple over to the side. She landed with a thud in the ground next to the edge of the pond. As she pulled herself up, the image of a disheveled and heartbroken mare looked back at her on the pond's surface.
"Nothing's changed...no, now it's even worse. I still don't have my cutie mark, I still can't hang with Rainbow Dash, I can't even ride my scooter anymore or be with my friends!"
Her eyelids finally gave way to the rush of tears that trickled down her cheeks.
"I can't do anything as a filly..."
The tiny stream edged down her neck.
"I can't do anything right as a grownup..."
A long drop broke off onto her chest.
"I'm...I'm...I'm worthless..."
And it touched the crystal embedded there, which suddenly started to glow with a bright intensity. Scootaloo suddenly broke away and stared at the jewel in surprise, which was suddenly starting to pour water out at an alarming rate. As more liquid oozed out, it started to spread around her body and gel.
"W-what's going on? What's happening!"
"The induction of the Covet's tear."
Thunder boomed as rain suddenly began to pour down. Scootaloo turned to see the strange chromed pegasus standing right behind her.
"What do you mean? What's that?"
With a sigh, lazuli lens gazed into Scootaloo's eyes with cold indifference. "The Tear of Covet is not just a stone. It is an egg. An egg for a magical creature known as a woebeghoul. They feed on sadness and misfortune, thus they incubate their eggs by granting their hosts with what they believe is true happiness."
She wistfully turned her head, staring off into the horizon as the condensing flood began to murken. "If only I were taller...prettier...richer...if only I was that instead of this. Such thoughts grasp at what they believe is an ideal, but is it really? There is a saying...the grass is always greener on the other side. When that side is reached, and you find that even there, your fantasy has not come true, it is then that you realize...that is all it is...a fantasy. And that realization gives birth to a great sadness. Such sadness...and when that sadness reaches it's peak, the being will mature and emerge in your carnation."
"W-what?" Scootaloo tried to struggle, to reach up and pull the tear out of her, but her body could not move against the growing gelatinous mass that was now up to her neck.
"Now rise, my new soldier of despair. It is time to spread your mournful feelings to everyone else...for my master Ruinate."
"EEEEEEEEEEK!"
Scootaloo jerked what little muscle control she had left towards the sound of the screech. There, standing paralyzed in fear, were Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Dinky.
"M-monster!"
"It's eating Scootaloo!"
"Guys! Help mff-!" The ooze reached her mouth and drowned her voice out as a massive tentacle shot out from the body beginning to take shape. It seized all three in one fell swoop. Uncontrollable tears flooded from Scootaloo's eyes as she watched the thing dangle the helpless fillies over her. Her friends were being hurt, and it was all because of her.
A cry of bravery rang out through the woods as Ditzy flew in towards the watery beast. But unfortunately, she had only manged to knock her daughter out of its grip when a second appendage struck out and grabbed her. Dinky fell to the ground and scrambled to her hooves, kicking newly formed mud up to her knees. She looked back in alarm as the woebeghoul approached.
"Mommy!"
"Run my muffin! Get help!"
Dinky sprinted off back towards the town as the creature slowly proceeded to pursue. Only Scootaloo's pupils remained above the surface as the monster continued to grow and take shape.
This never would have happened...if I didn't even exist...
That was the last coherent thought that passed through her as her mind grew hazy and her body sank underneath the sea of tears.
"Ugh, what a day."
Rainbow Dash lazily hovered over Ponyville feeling exhausted. Not because she had to do a fog cleanup all the way over in galloping gorge, she had that over with ten seconds flat(in her mind at least), but because she had looked over the town top to bottom twice over when she had gone to Cloudsdale and found out that Scootaloo had already gone back.
Where are you hiding squir-I mean, Scootaloo? Geez, it's gonna take me longer than I thought to outgrow that nickname.
She spotted Applejack by her apple stand chatting with Rarity and Twilight. Hey, she's always hanging out with AJ and Rarity's sisters. Maybe I can find her if I find them.
Swooping down with renewed vigor, she poked her head right between the two unicorns with a cheeky grin. "Heya, guys. What's happening?"
"Nothing much, just Rarity here trying to get a crazy idea of an apple beauty product in ma head thanks to Twilight here."
"All I just mentioned was that apples hold a large amount of B5 and B9 in combination with vitamin C, a key blend in anti-aging skin cream."
"Just think, Applejack. Your apples could appeal to a whole new clique of ponies. Oh, and of course, I would certainly be thrilled to be your first customer."
Applejack shook her head stubbornly as she gestured to a tray full of tarts and pies. "This is the fifteenth time ah'm gonna tell ya, Rarity. Apples are fer eating, not rubbin' all over yer coat!"
"Yeah, yeah. Hey, you pause talking shop for a sec? You know where your sisters are?"
Applejack adjusted her stetson as Rarity and Twilight moved aside for a customer. "Well, last ah saw of her, AB was going over ta CT's ta fetch a cup o' molasses fer granny."
"And I believe Sweetie Belle had a playdate today with Dinky."
"Come ta think of it," Applejack paused to hoof over her patron's change and three fritters, "They should be in the same place, what with Ditzy being roomies with her and whatnot."
A high shrill and squeaky scream pierced the market square as everypony's necks snapped in the direction of a frantic unicorn filly bounding across the cobblestones as much as her little legs could. As she careened towards the crowd of ponies, her hoof hit a crack in the ground as she tumbled into a roll straight at Applejack's stall. Luckily for her, there was an awesomely heroic pegasus there to catch her before she got her horn wedged in the planks.
"Oh, well whaddya know? Hey Dinks, how's it going?"
"M-monster! W-water! Aliveeatfriendshelprainruncomingsavemommyhelp!"
"Woah woah woah. Breathe there, little filly." Applejack ran a hoof across her back gently. "Now back up fer a moment an' start over slowly so's we can understand ya."
"Wasn't Sweetie Belle supposed to be with you?" Rarity then stood aghast as she glanced at Dinky's muddy hooves. "Oh don't tell me you all have been splashing in puddles again! She's already had two baths today!"
"Sweetie's in trouble!"
Rarity's fussbudget attitude quickly changed to worried. "What? Sweetie Belle? What happened? Is she hurt? Is-"
"Rarity? I think you're squeezing her a little too hard."
Rarity snapped out of her panic to find that she was nose to nose with the filly, her hooves firmly pressed against her cheeks and lifting her upwards. She gave Twilight a sheepish smile and settled Dinky down. "My apologies. But do be a dear and please tell us what's happened from the beginning?"
"Well, I got up this morning and went downstairs. Auntie Carrot Top was making her carrot cobbler for breakfast and-"
"Uh, Dinks? Fast forward a bit."
"Oh, okay. So me, Sweetie, and Applebloom had just gotten out of the post office and were enjoying some muffins mommy brought when-"
"The horror! The horror!"
Everypony's heads swiveled again to catch the flower trio fleeing from their shop, which was under attack by a towering behemoth seemingly made of water. Its large, amorphous torso rested upon a gushing column of water that foamed at the ground like a moving waterfall. Two pairs of muscular arms, the length of its body grasped their sticky spherical claws around the shop and effortlessly tore off a huge portion of the wall as the myriad of watery tentacles on it's back fished inside the opening. Lifting what was perhaps Daisy's entire stock of sunflowers, forget-me-nots, and petunias, over it's small, single, unblinking crystalline eye that belied its huge gaping maw similar to a cave opening, it let out a slithery, frothy roar.
As per usual, the trio's infectious panic soon spread to the entire town. With a rallied cry of hysteria, and a stampede of hooves, both heavy and light, the square was deserted within seconds with the exception of four mares and a filly by an apple stand. Two of which eyed a particular pair of tentacles holding flailing blobs of yellow and white in a wild panic.
"Applebloom!"
"Sweetie Belle!"
"HEEEEEELLLLP!!!" the filly pair chorused as a greyish set of hooves from a swaying appendage on the other end kept trying to swim over to the endangered couple.
"Mommy!" Dinky cried.
"What is that thing?!" Twilight exclaimed.
"Dunno, but in a few moments its gonna be toast!" Rainbow shot off at the monster, nimbly dodging the ballistic missiles of flora it hurled at her. With a one swift motion, she angled her wings and cut through the three hostage holding limbs like they were water, which in this case was more of a literal sense than metaphorical.
Drenched in salty liquid, a foal in each hoof and a wall eyed companion grasping her mane and inadvertently covering her own eyes, she came in for a one point landing back at the apple stand. Sweetie Belle and Applebloom were immediately snatched up in their sisters' hooves while Dinky pounced right on top of Ditzy and Rainbow.
"Mommy!"
"Oh, my little muffin!"
"AB, you alright?"
"Yeah, Applejack, I knew you and yer friends would save me!"
*Sniff* "Sweetie Belle! My one and only sister! You don't know how much I was worried about you!"
"Rarity...I can't breathe..."
"Uh, girls? We still have a problem over here."
Everyone barely managed to perk their heads up to Twilight only to duck them down again as half a cartful of pears sailed over them.
"No, prob. Like I said, I got this." Rainbow pushed Ditzy off her back and shot again at the creature with a swift karate kick. It lodged and stuck within the monster's left side, along with her. She flailed and flapped to no avail as a tentacle wrapped itself around her. "Okay, I don't got this. HELP!"
A large bottle rocket suddenly jammed itself into the base of the creature's arm. With a colorful bang, a huge cascade of gushing water flushed Rainbow into the dirt where she washed up beside Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy. Both were wearing their element forms.
"Heya Dashie! Can I ride that thing next?"
"P-pinkie Pie?" Rainbow sputtered though her soaked mane. "What was that?"
"Laughter feature 74, firework slingshot!" She held up a large sling with another bottle rocket loaded in the band, which disappeared under a trapdoor in her fabric moments later. "It's the strangest thing. I was at Fluttershy's cottage, preparing to use this put on a little show for her sick chickadees, when all of a sudden I got a nose itch and a slippery hoof, which meant my Dashie needed 500 mg of sodium nitrate launched in her general direction soon or else she was going to be in biiiiiiig trouble!"
Then her tail twitched and Fluttershy was barely able to yank both away to a safe distance before a three fourths of a chimney was dropped on them by the creature. Everypony watched in amazement as the creature, which had looked like a cookie that somepony had taken a really big out of now, reformed its entire left side in a swelling motion.
"That there thing is tougher than the side of a brick wall fastened by my second uncle Bismarck's homemade mortar," Applejack noted. "Anypony got any idea on how ta put the kibosh on that beast?" They all dove behind her stand as a katamari of windows and shutters rolled through. "Preferably before half of Ponyville is leveled?"
"I guess we could always try using our powered up elements, but I left mine back at the library."
"Gotcha covered Twilight!" Pinkie placed Twilight's tiara on top of her head.
"....Pinkie, why do you have my element with you?"
"Well, right after I got the nose itch, hoof slip combo, I got a wiggly left molar and an ear tickle. That means Twilight's gonna want our elements of harmony on hoof soon!"
"You know, your Pinkie Senses are getting more and more oddly specific these days."
"Quit lookin' a gift pony in the mouth an' let's get ta beatin' this here varmint!" Applejack said as she slipped her element on and began to grow her leathery bark armor.
She hadn't taken half a step towards the rampaging bulk of water when her little sister grabbed her legs. "Wait AJ! Don't hurt 'er!"
"Applebloom! Let go an' git on back where it's safe! That there thing is dangerous! It almost ate you and it's destroying the town! It's-"
"IT'S SCOOTALOO! THAT THING IS SCOOTALOO!"
Rainbow Dash's blood ran cold as she and everyone else's jaws dropped. "W-what did you say?"
"It's true!" Sweetie Belle piped up with Dinky behind nodding vigorously. "That thing came out of the gem in her chest and- and- and she melted into it!"
"The little ones are correct."
A flash of lightning announced the presence of the mysterious pegasus perched upon one of the rooftops. She looked down upon the group with her faceless chrome mask as rain suddenly began to pour down from out of nowhere. "The one you call Scootaloo now serves as the host for my woebeghoul."
"Hey! It's Blue Gloomy again! Hi Blue Gloomy! You wanna have that welcome to Ponyville party now?"
A flash of lightning blinded the ponies for a moment, and 'Blue Gloomy' was now suddenly right in front of them at ground level. "Poor Scootaloo. Enticed by my Tear of Covet's promise, and broken by the disenchantment of her delusions. She is nothing more than a well of anguish now, trapped within her own melancholy. Destined to forever be my agent of sadness. Such pitiful, unbearable, sadness."
Rainbow jumped to her hooves as her element fully armored herself, pointing an accusatory hoof. "So you're the one responsible for this? You got a lot of nerve showing your face then! Just who the heck are you!?"
A tense moment of silence passed as nopony moved in the pittering rain. As a rumble of thunder broke it, the mare's somber, melodic voice echoed in the air.
"...Miserain...herald of sorrow..."
"I kinda like Blue Gloomy better."
"Pinkie!"
The woebeghoul frothed some more as it clasped its arms together, lifted and brought them down upon a thatched roof.
"Sorrow...everlasting sorrow...it is the one true feeling that will never leave a heart. Happiness, wonder, desire, affection...they are but fleeting aspects that cannot remain in a pony indefinitely. And when it is gone, there is nothing left but sadness. No matter how often it is filled back up, it will only empty again, leaving more regret than before, just like no matter how strong or lasting friendship is, it will eventually drift apart and fade, leaving only bitter memories behind."
Several more walls were bashed away as a large tower collapsed upon the square's well.
"That is the true nature of this cruel, unforgiving world. The only thing that will remain when everything is destroyed by my master Ruinate. I am merely...facilitating its inevitable conclusion."
"Facilitate this!" Rainbow's armor glowed crimson as she lunged straight at the herald of sorrow.
Another sigh of indifference, another flash of lightning, and Rainbow was headfirst into a bunch of watermelons piled in a crate directly behind where Miserain once stood.
"Ya think she would've learned by now..." Applejack muttered as she rushed over to yank her out. Rainbow struggled with a full head of rind before popping it off and spitting a string of seeds out.
*Phbt* *plah* "Why can't anypony we fight not have some freaky powers?"
"One problem at a time Rainbow. First, we got to stop this woebeghoul." Twilight tapped her chin and tugged at the brim of her hat. "Let's see...did I read anything about them in my exotic creatures bestiary?"
"Forget it! Let's just blast it with our elements!"
Twilight annoyingly frowned at Rainbow with skepticism. "Rainbow, we can't just haphazardly sling our powers at it like we first thought. If what Miserain says is true, then its using Scootaloo as a heart!"
"All the more reason we need act now!" Rainbow's face wore a mask of indignation rimmed at the eyes with a hint of worry and belied a twitch of guilt on her lips. "Every second we spend 'strategizing' is another second Scootaloo is trapped all alone inside that thing! There's no way I'm gonna leave her hanging like that any longer than I have to!"
"But we don't know what could happen to her! She's clearly bonded with that thing on a biological level. Any effect the elements will have on the woebeghoul could affect her as well. It could accidentally destroy her for all we know!"
"And that thing won't?!"
"Incoming!" Rarity immediately fastened her orbiting gems into a dome that consolidated the group together as woebeghoul spewed a mini-river into the streets. As they pressed together under the shield, Twilight could feel Rainbow trembling in frustration against her skin.
"It wasn't supposed to be like this. This was supposed to be her day, I wanted to make it her day! She should be soaring the skies with me right now, playing hoofball or outcooling each other with loop de loops! Enjoying herself after a hard day's work. But no, I got stuck pulling overtime and ended up leaving her stranded at the weather factories, which I found out after I got there had a huge accident because nopony there was looking out for her or showing her the ropes, something I could've stayed behind to do and be late for work by only ten minutes! And now look! She's been monsterfied by one of Ruinate's creeps because no one was there by her side to stop it from happening!"
Her eyes weren't tearing yet, but Twilight could tell from the misty eyed look that Rainbow was beating herself up about this. "I promised her...I promised I'd take her under my wing...like a sister. And yet, I keep ending up leaving her behind. It doesn't matter what the reason is, saving Ponyville from some freak storm, having to deal with paperwork, pulling an extra shift, it doesn't change that I wasn't there for her when I could have been, I could have made time for her. You make time for stuff that's important." Her ears drooped as she gave her lip a tiny bite."Some sister I make..."
"Rainbow Dash..." Twilight brought her hoof around her neck and squeezed against her for a brief moment. "Alright, let's try it. Let's not keep Scootaloo waiting for you any longer."
The two of them then nodded to the others, who nodded back as their emblems began to glow brightly. "Rarity, when I give the signal, drop your gem shield."
The rush of water around them finally ebbed as the woebeghoul began to crawl towards the ponies for a more direct attack. When it covered roughly half the distance across the venue, Twilight shouted. "Now!"
The diamond dome came undone as a wave of rainbow light shot forth and enveloped the woebeghoul. For about half a minute, it rooted the creature in place like a binding rope. But eventually, the beast slowly inched forward, straining against the bonds as a deep dark indigo light from inside it began to shine and overtake the rainbow light. Soon, the light from the elements of harmony had completely dissolved into the woebeghoul, swallowed up like a tall glass of fizzy pop.
"But...but that's impossible! How could the elements have done nothing?" Twilight exclaimed.
"Because the child's sadness is greater than your friendship."
Miserain hovered over her immense minion as it lumbered towards the group. "How sad...truly sad. It is futile, yet you still resist. You chase false hope in the belief that your ties can endure any tribulation, but bonds were made to break." She gave a forlorn glance at the insignia on her flank, a cracked heart shedding a tear, then touched the lapis jewel around her lower neck and chest that held the same shape. "This woebeghoul's seed, the Tear of Covet, was procured by my element of sorrow. Its power is derived directly from its influence. So long as her heart belongs to sorrow, nothing can overcome it."
Rainbow Dash's mind raced. So Miserain's element is canceling ours out? For the love of Luna, these things were supposed to be our ace in the hole! There's no way I'm going to let this pony of the opera freak get away with this! I gotta save Scoots! I just gotta!
Grunting in frustration, she stomped a hoof to the ground and looked to her friends, hoping they had an idea. When her eyes fell on Applejack, they drifted from her face to her legs where she saw Applebloom huddled underneath for comfort. Her gaze turned next to Rarity, who had Sweetie Belle nestled safely behind her. Then she looked at Ditzy. As she watched Dinky cling tighter to her mother's neck as she lay on her backside, something clicked in her. She looked up at the dim light emitting from the woebeghoul's body with a steadfast heart.
I know how I can save her...
"Guys..." She took a deep breath and puffed out her chest as she took a few steps forward. "Hang back for a bit. I've got an idea. It's crazy, it's dangerous, but then again, when have any of mine not been?"
"Rainbow? What are you-?"
Rainbow cut Twilight off. "I'll be right back with Scootaloo. Just step away, and don't freak out at what you're about to see."
Before anyone could say or do anything else, Rainbow opened her wings and flew straight at the woebeghoul's open jaws.
"RAINBOW!" they all cried.
The adversary's mouth widened to catch the incoming pegasus. She licked her dry lips as a dark abyssal expanse was all she could see ahead.
Miserain's voice rang out from above. "You cannot save her. I can feel her endless sadness, she is too far gone. It is impossible."
"You clearly haven't heard of me then. Rainbow Dash makes the impossible possible!"
The sticky, gooey rows of thick and jagged fangs closed in around her.
"I'M COMING FOR YOU SCOOTALOOOOOOOOO!!"
*GULP*
Rainbow opened her eyes in the bubbly, murky, midnight blue depths. All around her was an eerie, inky expanse. It was like she had dove so far into a lake she couldn't see the sun peeking through from the surface anymore and still couldn't find the bottom. There was one thing she could make out though, a faint glowing sphere somewhere below. Tucking her wings in and straightening her body she streamlined like a torpedo for the only distinct feature in the emptiness. She soon started to feel her lungs ache as she approached. In hindsight it might have been a good idea to take a deep breath before she literary went into the belly of the beast. But she couldn't turn back now, she was not going to leave her number one fan behind again!
As her mind reminded herself, her armor seemed to resonate a vibrant red aura. Rainbow suddenly felt her aches disappear and her muscles moved with renewed vigor. She then realized she was breathing, and yet none of the liquid was filling her lungs. So my Rainbow armor has a built in scuba feature, huh? That's good to know for future fights.
Reaching the large bubble, she peered in and made out the shape of pony curled up into a tight little ball. She pounded against the skin of the prison. "Scootaloo!" her voice gurgled out in bubbled burps. The pony inside did not respond. Rainbow rallied again, trying to force her way in. "Come on, Scoots! You gotta fight this! I know you can!" After the fifth try, she finally heard something other than her own voice. A muffled, whimpered, sob, echoed from bubbled until it felt like it could be heard from all around. The sound pierced Rainbow's heart as she winced and scowled. "That's it. Let me in you stupid bubble! LET. ME. IN!"
Backing away a bit and coming back in a full body tackle, Rainbow slammed into the filmy ball and pressed with all her might. She could feel herself squeezing through bit by bit. And with a sudden pop, she found herself squished together with a droopy maned pegasus inside a tight, milky greenish container.
She pressed her hooves against her resecuee, prompting her with a little nudge. "Scootaloo. Scootaloo! Get up! It's me, Rainbow Dash! I'm going to get you outta here!"
Scootaloo did not look up, she simply shuffled her wings at Rainbow's touch, murmuring softly. "Rainbow? No...no...you shouldn't be here. Now I've caused you even more trouble. Just...just go. Stay away from me from now on."
"We both know that's not happening. Get it together, pal! This woewhatever is going to trash Ponyville and everypony in it! I need your help to stop it."
"I can't help. I can't do anything but cause problems. None of this would have happened if it wasn't for me..."
"Scoots, I know about the incidents at the weather factory, Starsong told me everything. It wasn't your fault-"
Scootaloo abruptly uncurled herself, the crystal in her chest glowing a sickly blue. She glared at Rainbow with empty purple eyes that continued to release uncontrollable tears. "Yes it was! Everything happened because I was selfish, stupid, and useless! I made the wish to grow up to this monster crystal because I didn't want to be treated like a little filly anymore, but it didn't change who I was! I wanted to be an adult when the truth was I didn't know the first thing about being an adult, and so everything I tried to do as one only ended up hurting me and everypony else! I even hurt you! I was the one who caused that giant fog you had to clean up! I was the one who caused you and so many others extra work! I ruined your name at the factories!" Her voice cracked and broke as she fought a sniffle. "I gave up my fillyhood, my friends, even my scooter, for what? A series of never-ending failures? To drag everypony else down? Creating a monster that's going to hurt everyone I know and love? You don't deserve a pony like me, Rainbow Dash. Equestria doesn't deserve a pony like me. A pony...a pony who would be better off if she wasn't even born!"
Rainbow Dash slapped her hoof square across the bawling mare's cheek. "Don't you dare say something like that ever again! Do you hear me?!" She held Scootaloo's face up and looked deep into her eyes. "I couldn't care less about any of the bad stuff that's happened today, I couldn't even care if you ran Cloudsdale into the ground! I wouldn't give you up for anything, not even the Wonderbolts! And it's not just because I'm loyal either, it's because I genuinely care about you. Remember our camping trip to Winsome Falls? When I said I was up for taking you under my wing? That wasn't some decision on a whim, I meant it. You are, or were, the coolest filly I ever met. You had spunk, moves, the biggest can do attitude, and plenty of other stuff you did right by my book...and you still do now."
Scootaloo panted heavily as she stared back in mournful disbelief. "Then tell me, Dash. What have I done right? Give me one single thing since this entire mess began that I've done right."
Rainbow couldn't help but grin smugly. "I can think of two." She opened her wings out of her armor one at a time, displaying a silvery sheen with a rainbow stripe. "This. And this."
Scootaloo blinked twice as Rainbow gestured to her right wing, then left. "My...wing guards?"
Rainbow flexed them a bit to show the burnt part that hadn't been cleaned off yet. "You know, right before you arrived to help me blast away that crazy storm, these things really saved my bacon. They actually deflected a rouge lightning bolt targeting my squadmates. And they didn't have anything to do with whether you were a kid or a grown up, all that mattered was that you made them."
She then hoisted Scootaloo into an upright sitting position as she settled herself down. "And that's another thing. Your plan to stop the tornado. Was that because you were a grown up? No, it was because you were you. You came up with it all on your own. Sure, you needed my awesome self to pull it off, but I never would have even had the idea if wasn't for you."
She then reached deep behind her wing, looking for something under the folds of her feathers. "And if that isn't enough to convince you how much you're an awesome part of my life, I'll bet this will." She pulled out what appeared to be a small keychain. Attached to it was a cracked lens that had been fashioned into a charm of sorts shapely vaguely like a wing.
Scootaloo's eyes widened at what she was seeing. "You...you still have that?"
"Carry it with me all the time, being that it's attached with my house key. Still, how could I not? Not when it reminds me of the day I got my first fan...my number one fan."
Scootaloo buzzed through town, completely bored out of her skull. Ponies took it slow on Sundays, but in Ponyville, it was practically a freeze frame. Every pony that wasn't at the market for their weekly shopping trip was either sitting at home lounging around or sitting outside lounging around. Which pretty much meant she had to find something to do all by herself yet again. Maybe some stunt jumps near the stalls? Nah, Cherry Berry hadn't had enough time to cool off for her last poppin' wheelie knocking over three whole baskets of her wares. A snack? No. That would only kill ten minutes at best anyways. The swimming hole? She'd been there three time already this week!
Parking in the park, Scootaloo looked around again. Bon Bon and Lyra chatting it up on the benches, yawn. Junebug picking flowers, snorefest! Key Lime, was she-? Really? Watching a ladybug crawl across a leaf? Sighing with resigned mentality, Scootaloo wheeled over to a patch of grass and flopped down, ready to just lie there until the sun went down. She had to face facts, nothing exciting ever happens in Ponyville, because no exciting ponies ever come here.
Suddenly, a flash of a rainbow contrail decorated the skies above her. Startled by the sudden appearance of bright color, Scootaloo sprung up a little too hard and tumbled over backwards. Regaining her hoofing, she galloped as fast as a pegasus filly could after the trail, eager to find the source. Her chase led her to an open clearing full of low hanging clouds. There, spinning and whirling with incredible speed and dexterity, was a cyan pegasus with a rainbow mane and tail, clearing the skies at remarkable speeds in her weather patrol goggles.
Scootaloo watched in amazement as the mare loop-de-looped around a rather large one, shaping it into a bullseye and then running right through the center. Then she scooped a small tuff into her hooves, came down low to the ground dribbling it, then rocketed up and slam dunked it into the cloud she pulled it off of. When she sheared one to vapor with a corkscrew, Scootaloo could contain her energy no longer.
"Yeah! Yay!" she cheered as she stomped her hooves as hard as she could. The cyan mare suddenly stopped to notice the little spectator below her.
"Huh? Hey squirt. You enjoying the show?" she hovered down low to get a better look.
"Are you kidding? That was the raddest thing I ever saw! You're amazing! You're awesome! You're...you're the most coolest pony I've ever seen!" Scootaloo gushed.
The cool pony obviously ate it up as she took the praise with a cheeky grin. "Well, I am pretty awesome." She rubbed her hoof against her chest, then blew on it as she continued to ham herself up. "I mean, it's practically my middle name. Rainbow 'Awesome' Dash. But that was just me doing a little weather cleanup. I wasn't even trying back there."
"Really?" Scootaloo's eyes glistened in awe as she inched closer to the swelled mare. "What else can you do?"
Delighted to show off, Rainbow took to air. "Take a seat kid, you're about to see the greatest show of your life!" She climbed up high into the air and then began veer on her side. "I call this one the Fantastic Filly Flash!" She somersaulted into a downward spiraling dive and then lifted up inches from the ground, sending a rush of slipstream through the filly's mane. "And this one's the Buckaneer Blitz!" Scootaloo squinted at the amazing flash of lightning that spewed out as Rainbow K.O.'d a row of clouds with one hoof.
"And now for the grand finale!" Rainbow zoomed up higher than before until she was just a speck in the sky. She then came down faster than ever, gaining speed with each second. Her lips rippled against the G-force building up as a cone of air began to build up in front of her. Scootaloo held her breath as she watched her get faster, and faster, and faster until...she bounced off the backlash of air and went careening into the trees at the edge of the meadow.
"Omigosh! Are you okay?" Bounding up into the thickets, she found Rainbow with her head against the trunk of an old spruce, eyes spinning as little stars whirled around her head.
"Oooog. I really thought it would work that time." Shaking her head, she looked down at the orange filly who was looking up at her with judgmental eyes. "Uh, heh, squirt? Can we pretend that last bit didn't happen?" she chuckled nervously.
"It's okay! You're cool even when you crash!" Rainbow tried her best to focus on the word cool and not the word crash as Scootaloo said it with an enthusiastic smile. She then noticed some green shards sitting on her legs. Feeling up, she pulled off her goggles and noticed the one of the lens was completely smashed while the other was cracked beyond repair.
"Aw, geez. This was my favorite pair!"
"Oh, sorry." Scootaloo drooped a bit.
Rainbow immediately patted her on the head. "Hey, no worries, squirt. Not your fault. It's not that big a deal anyways. It's just, they don't make lenses like these anymore. This pair was probably the last intact one for miles around. One-of-a-kind in a sense, made me feel like, I dunno, they were lucky."
"Lucky?" Scootaloo's eyes lit up. "Hey, I got an idea! Be right back!" She ran galloping off to where she left her stuff, and a few minutes later she was back with some sheets of clear litmus wax. "My friend Sweetie Belle learned how to do this from her sister!" She arranged the broken lens pieces into a rough wing shape around one sheet of wax, folded it over to wrap all around the shape, then applied several more layers to hold it in place. "There! Your lucky goggles are now a lucky flight charm!" Her smile faltered as Rainbow took it in her hoof and looked at it with a discerning eye. "D-do you not like it?"
Rainbow's mouth curled into a sleek grin as she pinned it under a fold in her wing. "You kidding? It's awesome! You made it, like, 20% cooler now!" She then gave Scootaloo a quick rub in her mane. "Heh, you're alright squirt. You got a name?"
"I'm Scootaloo!" the filly belted out excitedly. "And-and staring today...I'm your number one fan! That's cool, right? I can be that?"
Rainbow's head swelled so much, any more ego and it would have exploded. "Hey, it wouldn't be cool not to be a fan of the Rainbow Dash! And you're pretty cool yourself kid!" She playfully punched the filly as she gave a little squee of delight.
"Do you think...I could be as cool as you are someday?" Scootaloo asked hopefully.
Rainbow cocked her head with a hotshot nod and a wink. "Hey, stick with me squirt, and you'll go places. I guarantee it!"
Scootaloo had remained entranced, staring at the charm in her hooves, when she felt the warm, feathery embrace of cyan wings wrap around her body.
"Scoots. There's a lot of things I'm naturally awesome at, but...being a role model isn't one of them. I don't always make the right choices at first. Heck, my first day on the weather team made blowing up a factory look like foal's play in comparison. But I'll tell you this, I don't stay that way. And it's not because I'm cool like that, even if I am. It's because I have ponies who count on me. Ponies that look to me with a smile, even if I fail. Even if I make the worse of a situation, they're willing to pick me up, nudge me in the right direction, and get me to try again. They're ponies that give me that drive to be more awesome than I could ever be. Ponies like Twilight, Fluttershy, Applejack, even Ditzy..." Rainbow then wrapped a hoof around Scootaloo's neck. "And you, Scootaloo. You keep me going everyday. I'm the luckiest pegasus in the world to know I'll always have ponies like you."
Her warm hug grew tighter she felt the mare's body shudder. "And you'll always have me...always. So don't ever give up trying, even if it's just a little bit at a time, because I won't let you.
I love you Scootaloo."
"R-r-rainbow D-d-d-dash...." Scootaloo's dark eyes finally regained their violet luster, and she buried them deep within the side of her companion's neck, sobbing tears, genuine tears...of pure, unbridled joy. Rainbow just smiled and just took it in for a full minute or two, all the feeling, all the warmth, all the release.
"And if you ever tell anypony I was this mushy," she finished, pulling Scootaloo out of the hold, "I'll noogie you 'til your mane falls off. Now come on, let's show that herald of sorrow you can't keep a good pegasus down!"
Scootaloo nodded, wiping the tears away with a grin. "Yeah, and I've already got another good idea how to beat this thing. You up for one more tag team trick?"
"Always! What's the play-by-play?"
"Blaze and Fire Streak's trademark duet..."
Rainbow's bright red aura began to build up again and envelop Scootaloo as well as they announced at the top of their lungs, "FIRESTREAM FIRECRACKER CROSS!"
"That's it. Ah'm goin' in after her."
Twilight barred Applejack's way with a stern look on her face. "Rainbow told us not to engage it. She was going to get Scootaloo out."
"It's been five whole minutes. Ah cain't wait any longer! Whatever plan RD had, it obviously didn't work, and now we got two ponies in need of savin'! Personally, Ah'm surprised we even let 'er try one of her harebrained schemes in the first place. That pony's got as much common sense as...as a Pinkie Pie!" Applejack stepped to the side only to be blocked by Pinkie, who had some strange mouthpiece masking her mouth and a hoof extended in front of her face.
"I find your lack of Pink disturbing..." she rasped in a low, metallic male voice.
"What the-?"
Pinkie Pie giggled at the taken aback farmer as the mouthpiece retracted under her collar. "Laughter feature 222! Voice changer!"
"And why did you use it just now?"
"Cause it's the only way that line would have worked, duh! It would have worked even better if you started to pretend choke too. I mean, really! And you say I don't make any sense!"
"Ya still don't..."
"Wait a minute! Look girls! Something's happening!"
Everypony looked to where Rarity was pointing. The woebeghoul stood paces away, carrying a stand in each arm. The small structures fell from its appendages as it suddenly convulsed when the dark light from its chest began to glow red hot. Staggering back, the foamy trail it left behind transformed into vapors of steam. Its tiny eye disappeared underneath the surface of its watery membrane as bubbles began to erupt from its body. It hunched over, arching its back in pain. Then, slowly but surely, it began to rise into the air, seemingly carried by the bright light making its way towards the head of the creature. Pools of steaming water fell from the monstrosity it as pushed above the rooftops, its jaws frothing like a sick animal. Portions of its body started to bulge and spike, like something was banging against its insides like a pinball. As it eclipsed the sun in the mares eyes, the extra light pouring through it revealed a fiery helix of pure power spinning at an insane speed inside. Time seemed to slow up at that point, as in the stance of half a second, the floating hulk of water burst into a deluge of rainfall, painting the sky with multiple rainbows as a stream of fire emerged from the epicenter of the explosion, skyrocketing above the clouds.
Inside the climbing tower of flames spun two pegasi, both wearing an expression that could only be described as adrenaline induced ecstasy. Both were so engrossed in the spur of the moment, neither one noticed the red aura of Rainbow's armor enveloping the tear in Scootaloo's chest, which began to crack and emit a blinding light of its own, adding to the brightness. When the rush finally stopped, Scootaloo managed to open her eyes as her ascent slowed. Did Rainbow Dash suddenly seem bigger to her? Her chest felt slightly odd. Feeling it, she realized she couldn't feel the crystal embedded in it anymore. She looked down to confirm it and gasped. Not only did she see that it was gone, but she also saw a pair of stubby, little hooves. She felt her face, checked her wings and tail, shook her legs a bit, and a smile stretched across her face from ear to ear. "I'm a filly again!"
Her smile vanished as quickly as it came as she realized the implications of what just happened, where she was, and what it was going to mean in a few seconds. Uh oh, I'm a filly again...
Buzzing her once again tiny wings as fast as she could, she hovered for a fleeting moment, and then started to drop like a rock. She waved her forelegs screaming as fell...right into a blur of rainbow that scooped her up. "I gotcha squirt!"
Scootaloo looked up into the smiling face of her hero, and nuzzled her tightly. "Rainbow Dash, you really are the best."
Rainbow gave a light chuckle. "No Scoots, we're the best."
Landing smack dab in the center of the wreckage, Scootaloo had taken two steps out of Rainbow Dash's reach when she was ponypiled by her two best friends.
"Scootaloo! You're back to normal!"
"We were so worried about you!"
"Eh, it was no sweat. Not when I had the coolest pegasus around to help me out of a jam."
After a minute or so of excited babbling from the the trio, alongside an equally group of five mares around Rainbow Dash. Scootaloo gave a nervous cough as Dinky slinked her way into the circle. "Uh, so. Now that I'm...no longer...you know, is it okay if I can go crusading with you guys again?"
Applebloom gave Scootaloo a look one would give somepony who just asked if the sky was blue. "Whaddya talkin' about Scoots? You've always been welcome to come crusading with us!"
"Huh? But, you were with Dinky...and she was eating my favorite muffin..."
"Orange cranberry is your favorite flavor too? That's neat! We can be muffin buddies!" Dinky chirped. Ditzy then marched right up and fished another orange cranberry muffin from her sack.
"I was wondering why I had an extra one of these on me this whole time that wasn't my special emergency muffin. Now I know!"
"You had one for me this whole time?" Scootaloo gave a small gleeful smile that was matched by Sweetie Belle and Applebloom.
"Of course! That's why we followed you back in the woods, so you could join us! Once a crusader, always a crusader!"
"Yeah! Crusaders fer'ever!"
The fillies brought their hooves together has every mare brought theirs to their ears, knowing what was going to happen next.
"CUTIE MARK CRUSADER BEST FRIENDS FOREVER! YAAAAAY!!!"
*BOOM*
Rain pattered down from out of nowhere as everypony whipped their heads to face the stoic herald that walked out from behind a pile of broken crates.
"The tear has been destroyed...my woebeghoul is no more. How? Were your dreams not shattered? How has my servant been pulled from the fathomless abyss that is sorrow?"
"It's because I have them," Scootaloo pointed to her friends. "Yeah, my dream didn't come true and I ended up making a big mess of things too. And at some point, I believed I had nothing left worth having in life, which you wanted me to think. But I was wrong and so were you! Cause I still had them." She then looked up at Rainbow Dash who now protectively circled around her, glaring intensely at Miserain. "And I had her."
"So..." Miserain reiterated. "You freed yourself from my element's grasp...through your bonds with those you love. You had someone there for you in your darkest hour...willing to share their happiness, and your pain............how sad, truly sad..."
"Sad? I've never been more overjoyed in my-"
"For me..."
The dark cloud above her shot a massive bolt upon her, and with one final flash, she was gone along with her rain.
Dear Princess Celestia,
Today I learned that being an adult is not all fun and games, nor is it the best thing in the world. When I got my wish to grow up, temporary, I found out I couldn't do anything right as a grown up, because I had skipped all the important stuff that was supposed to come in between. It took me becoming a giant monster born from sadness and a daring rescue from all my friends to make me realize something important. Growing up doesn't just mean becoming older, it means learning from your experiences and encouraging yourself and others to improve upon your mistakes. So from now on, I'm going to enjoy my fillyhood the way it should be, playing, learning, and helping with my friends in the here and now. And some day, I'll be a better mare than I ever was today.
Your raddest little filly,
Scootaloo
P.S. Any chance I can play with princess Luna again? Preferably on my next sleepover?
Scootaloo carefully wheeled over to the edge of the half pipe at Rad Moves' skate park in her in-line skates. She peered over the large drop, then back to her two crusader companions. "You guys ready yet?"
"Almost, I just need finish strapping on this last knee pad," Sweetie said as she fumbled with the protection on her back. "Aren't you supposed to be wearing one on every knee?"
"Aw, come on. The sign just says I have to wear helmets and pads. It never said how many," she pouted back.
"Hey now. She's right you know. Safety first." Scootaloo gave a reluctant smile as the other three pads were fastened onto her.
Applebloom shakily wobbled up to the edge, falling onto her rump when she tried to stop. "You know, ah was surprised when you said you wanted to come here again. Ah thought you said it wouldn't be the same with some grown up foalsitting us here."
"You're right. It's not the same." Scootaloo looked up to the cyan, rainbow haired mare who had filed away another vacation day at the weather station and put on the knee pads for her. She received a little wink as they both leapt off edge, spinning and gliding the pipe in joyful tandem.
"It's better!"