//------------------------------//
// Rainbow Dash vs. Scootabuse 
// Story: A fortress of friendship 
// by Midnight Page 
//------------------------------//

	Scootaloo was half dragged by the RED Scout as they made their way to her new “room”. The room was really little more than a small cage that has a thin scrap of cloth meant to be a blanket and an old flour sack as a pillow. The cage reeked of decay and other things that Scootaloo would rather not think about.  She turned to her new “teacher” and asked, 
“Is…is this where I really have to sleep?” 
He grinned and said
“You’re gonna sleep where ever I tell you to, got it? Good, now go to bed.” 
She swallowed. 
“Yes…” 
Scootaloo was unfortunately used to this kind of treatment. Her Father would usually beat her on a regular basis, and do other even crueler things to her when he was drunk. Shivering in memory, she examined him closely. He did not look drunk or have that dark look in his eye as her father did, so that was good. But her hesitation to get into her bed earned her a sharp crack on the head with his bat. 
“I said GO TO BED, you brat.” 
She whimpered and crawled into the space, lightly touching the new welt on her back gingerly. Scootaloo just hoped the others, if they managed to get away from their new owners that they would not wait up for her long or worse, get in more trouble while doing so… 
Scootaloo woke up the next morning aching all over. The beating she had suffered last night had kept her up all night and the wound had now swollen into a large purple-black lump on her head, making it look deformed. She had hoped to get out of bed before the RED Scout woke up to check on her friends, but the Scout was waiting for her at the door of her cage. 
“Alright, alright get up already, we have a long day today and you have a lot of work to do…” 
He dropped a large bag at her feet as she walked out of her prison. 
“You need to deliver all these messages by sundown or else…” 
He gazed at her threateningly. She nodded quickly, eager to have the freedom of walking around the base. As if sensing her hope, he crushed it saying, 
“And don’t get any ideas about seeing your friends, they are busy doing stuff for the others, now get going!” 
With that he smacked his bat against her back leg and laughed as she stumbled. Scoot rose and ran out of the room, tears threating to fall from her eyes. She blinked hard and pulled out the first message. It was for the RED Spy. Scootaloo hoped she could find him, the invisibility watch he had was going to make him difficult to track down. After a few hours, Scootaloo had all but given up on the mission. Strangely all the letters were for the Spy, and after a mere moment of second thoughts, she opened it. It said, 
“Hey Spy, do me a favor and beat some manners into this runt for me, she has no respect. I owe ya one, Scout” 
After a quick check, she found all the letters said the same thing. 
“Why would he go to so much trouble just to have me beaten?” 
Suddenly a fist contacted with her skull, breaking the train of thought. 
“Why have you not delivered the message yet? Are you-” 
The enraged Scout paused noticing the open letter in her hoof. 
“You… you read the letter? Oh you are SO going to get it.” 
He started to hit her repeatedly with is bat, and Scootaloo could only gasp in pain. 
“Now-” 
The Scout suddenly jumped to the side, and Scootaloo felt a sharp burning pain enflame her chest. A baseball had struck her in the chest, and now Scootaloo was completely still. The last thing she saw before slipping into unconsciousness was her idol Rainbow Dash, rushing forward at full speed. Knowing that she would be in good hoofs soon, Scootaloo embraced the darkness that clouded her mind…
Rainbow Dash had been making her usual rounds when she spotted her. Scootaloo, covered in bruises and welts was standing limply as the RED Scout started to beat her with a blood stained bat. And that blood had to be her blood… Rage clouded Dash’s mind as she viewed the horrible scene. Scootaloo had suffered enough from her father, who beat her and abused her so often, some days when she came to watch Dash practice, she would be more black and blue from the bruises than she would be orange, her natural coat color. Without thinking, Dash launched a ball up in the air and swung. And to this day, what happened after that swing haunted Rainbow Dash’s darkest nightmares. The RED Scout side steeped the incoming ball, as if knowing it was coming. And the ball kept going until it made contact with the nearest RED team member. Scootaloo. Scootaloo’s eyes seemed to widen, and recognize that Rainbow Dash was there, before rolling to the back of her head as she collapsed on the ground, completely still. Dash was frozen in shock. Did she just HIT Scootaloo, while she was already receiving a beating. And after years of beatings from her father, Rainbow Dash, her friend and idol, who had sworn never to hurt a hair on her mane and protect Scootaloo from ponies who would try to hurt her. Ponies like that pig of a father of hers… And her eyes… those eyes had recognized her. Did she know that it was her idol that had stunned her and possibly… No, she thought, the ball is meant to stun not kill she said to herself. The ball is MENT for somepony much older than her… whispered a dark voice inside her head. 
“What am I doing, I need to get down there and save her, and make things right…” 
She rushed down to Scootaloo at top speed, ignoring the taunts the RED Scout was throwing at her. Once she reached the ground, she ran over to Scootaloo and checked her pulse. It was very faint, but there. 
“Thank Celestia…” She whispered. 
Then she turned around, anger spiking,
“YOU, HOW DARE YOU DO THIS TO HER, AFTER ALL THAT SHE HAS SUFFERED THROUGH!” 
She ran over to him, and before he could react, slammed him into the wall with her bat. 
“Don’t EVER touch her or her friends again, understand?” 
He nodded weakly. Then without warning, Dash hit him again, so hard that his body was flung into the air and over the wall. Dash then ran back over to Scootaloo and after checking her pulse, gently picked her up and started to run. Dash just hoped she could get ether to Fluttershy or Applejack in time…
Applejack was closer so Dash choose to take her dying number one fan to her base.
“Applejack! Help me please!”  
Applejack rushed over to her. 
“Hang on Dash, what is wrong-” 
She froze and paled at the sight of a still Scootaloo being cradled by Rainbow Dash, with tears flowing from her eyes. Applejack worked quickly and cleared off Dash’s napping cot near the Applespencer for the injured filly. Together, they laid her down and watched as the medical matrix of the Applespencer began to slowly heal the wounds of her beatings.  Dash couldn’t take it anymore. 
“I…I am the reason she is like that AJ, I-I-I saw the RED Scout beating her and I tried to stun him with a ball, but he dodged it and it...it hit her… oh Applejack.” 
She sobbed and buried her face in her friend’s mane. 
Applejack held her emotionally hurt friend tightly and whispered calmly, 
“I-it’s alright sugar cube, you didn’t mean for that ball to hit her. Ah am sure once she wakes up and you explain she will-”
Rainbow Dash cut her off. 
“And what if she doesn’t wake up AJ, I may have just killed my…” 
She continued to sob as Applejack brushed her mane and whispered in her ear, 
“Remember when you got poisoned Dash, and ah carried you back here?” 
Dash nodded. 
“Well, if the Applespencer can heal you when you were so weak, it should have no problem healing Scootaloo.” 
“But-” 
Dash began.
“Now come on Dash, your worrying an’t gonna help anypony, and ah want you to calm down now, you need to be strong for Scootaloo you here?”
Dash nodded, tears still in her eyes. 
“Thanks Applejack, I needed that…” 
Applejack smiled and nuzzled her affectionately.
“Don’t mention it sugar cube.” 
After giving Dash a quick kiss, she turned and said in a determined voice, 
“Well, let’s see what we can do to speed up her recovery.” 
Dash rose and together they got to work on the upgrades. When they finished, Dash silently crawled into bed to share her warmth with the shivering hurt filly…

Scootaloo head pounded as she came to and tried to figure out what happened.  She was getting beaten by the RED Scout, and then Rainbow Dash appeared. Dash did… something, and then Scootaloo had felt that awful pain slam into her chest. Had Rainbow Dash hit her? No, the Scout jumped out of the way, and the ball hit her instead. Dash had not meant to hit her, Dash would NEVER hurt her. They were practically sisters. Scootaloo was suddenly aware of some other pony in the bed curled up with her in the bed. Opening her eyes, she found Rainbow Dash, who was snoring silently, had wrapped herself protectively around the young filly. Scootaloo smiled, and though it was slightly bittersweet since she was free while the others were still captive at the RED base, right now Scootaloo could not be more continent or happier. Her idol had saved her, and protected her as she healed. 
“Thank you Rainbow Dash...” she whispered. 
Dash slowly opened her eyes.
“Sure thing kid, you know I would never sit by if I saw that you were hurt, I could never leave you hanging…” 
She trailed off and closed her eyes before opened them again wide in shock.
“Scootaloo! Are you all right? I am so sorry I did not mean to hit you, I saw what the RED Scout was doing to you and I got so angry… I never thought to stop and check if he saw me…” 
She trailed off. Scootaloo smiled, tears shined in her eyes. 
“I don’t blame you Rainbow Dash, I know you would never hurt me, and if you had not come when you did, I don’t know if I would still be alive by now…” 
She shivered. Dash looked at her concerned. 
“Was he as bad as…?” 
Scoot stopped her. 
“No, not as bad as…him. But he was close Dash, really close.” 
Dash held her closer. “I am just glad you are ok Scootaloo, if something happened to you because of me, I…” 
Scootaloo returned the hug. 
“It’s fine really, I am just sorry you had to rescue me, we will save Applebloom and Sweetie Bell right?” 
Dash hugged her tighter. 
“Of course kid, of course we will…” 
Scootaloo sighed, relived.
“You know what Dash…?” 
She asked.
“What Scoot?” She smiled.
“You’re a totally awesome sister!” 
As she snuggled close to her idol, Rainbow Dash smiled, and a tear slowly fell from her eye.
“Not nearly as awesome as you kid…” 
And slowly closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep…