A sky full of stars shone brightly over an empty meadow, the tall grasses rippling and swaying in a light breeze. A lone pony stepped from the trees at the meadow’s edge, amber eyes scanning for any unnatural movement. The nearly full moon cast a beautiful pale glow upon the terrain below, illuminating even the forest floor enough for a pony to see. Sensing no danger and wishing to linger not a moment longer than necessary, the small pony darted across the field, her cloak fluttering behind her.
She reached the edge of the forest within only a minute, her breath only slightly faster than it had been. A quick glance over her shoulder revealed no noticeable followers, but her path through the grass was clearly visible. The pony wasted no more time in entering the shadows of the forest, treading quickly but carefully. A stick snapped under her hoof and she silently cursed her carelessness. She stopped, listening, barely daring to breathe. Standing as still as possible, the little pony waited for a minute that felt like forever. When nothing but the soft and far-off hoot of an owl met her ears, she continued.
The moon was low in the sky by the time she neared her destination. She could not yet see it, but she could hear the waves lapping at the shore and smell the salt in the air. “The ocean,” she breathed, hurrying her pace. The ground was becoming softer beneath her hooves and the trees were getting more and more sparse as she neared the great expanse of water. Glancing left and right before setting hoof on the open stretch of beach, the pony trod out over the sand. Normally scorching during the day, the night had cooled the beach and brought a certain kind of freshness to the waterside.
As the young equine halted just out of reach of the lapping water, she couldn’t help but inhale in awe. A dusky pre-dawn light hung over the water and the waves glistened with pale light as they crested over and rolled towards the shore. Taking one more steadying breath, the pony shed her cloak and stepped tenuously toward the water. It was cool to the touch, but not cold, and she slowly waded further in. The water was just beginning to lap at her pale chest when she heard a rustling noise in the trees behind her. Whirling around, she saw a familiar pony charging over the sand, coming directly at her. With a gasp, she surged forward, treading water now, and swam as quickly as she could away from the shore. The other pony was quick, however, and was at the edge of the water now.
“Applebloom!” the larger pony yelled, “What in the hay do you think yer doin’!? Come back here right now!” Applejack was standing just at the edge of the tide, fear and worry etched upon her face. Applebloom ignored her sister, swimming farther into the waves. It was getting difficult now, but she was determined. “Applebloom, please. Git back here before Ah hafta go in an’ getcha mahself!” Applejack tried again.
“Ah can’t!” the yellow filly wailed, “Ah promised Ah’d do this!”
“Do what? Git yerself killed by running away from home in the middle of the night and swimmin’ out ta sea? Applebloom, yah had me an’ yer brother worried sick, and Ah’m just glad Ah found ya before anything bad happened to ya, now please come back here an’ explain what yer doin’.”
Tears welled in the younger pony’s eyes, and her resolve faltered. She turned to look at her older sister, waiting on the beach. With one last glance across the ocean, where the sun was beginning to rise and cast a beautiful glow over the water and into the sky, Applebloom began the swim back to shore.
“Ah’m sorry, sis,” she sniffled when she reached the shallower water where she could stand again. “Ah didn’t mean ta scare anypony, Ah just, well, Ah figured Ah had ta do this by mahself. Nopony else would understand.”
Applejack could only frown, wrapping a comforting foreleg around her little sister as the yellow filly slowly made her way out of the water. “Ah’m sure ya meant well, Sugarcube, but what you did was dangerous-“ she started, but was cut off by Applebloom beginning to sob.
“Ah, Ah promised Scoots, Ah promised her Ah’d come visit her on her birthday this year. Ah just wanted to show her Ah meant it!” she wailed. Applejack drew her sister into a comforting embrace, waiting until the filly settled down before beginning to speak.
“Listen, Sugarcube, Ah know ya wanted ta visit Scoots for her birthday, but nopony coulda known things woulda happened the way they did. Ya can’t blame yerself fer that, and ya know ya can’t just go swimming out into the ocean. Scootaloo woulda wanted her friends ta be happy without her, and Ah’m sure she’d understand if ya just visited the shore of the ocean if ya wanted to pay yer respects. Understand?”
Applebloom sniffled and nodded, turning away from Applejack’s chest to stare out across the water. “Ah’m sorry, Scoots. Ah shoulda really thought this one through better. Ah know Ah can’t visit the place where ya, where ya… fell,” she paused to wipe her face with a hoof before continuing, “but Ah promise Ah’ll visit ya right here when Ah can. And Ah’ll think about ya too. Ah bet Sweetie will too, even though she’s in Canterlot now.” Another tear escaped her golden eye, but Applebloom let this one slide down her cheek and fall to the sand. She sat in silence beside her sister for a long moment before speaking again. “Ah’ll visit next year too, and maybe Ah’ll have my cutie mark by then. Ah’ll show ya, Ah’ll get mah cutie mark, and Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon won’t be able to say nothin’ about me bein’ a blank-flank no more.”
The yellow filly felt Applejack gently patting her back, and put on a brave smile. “Ah guess Ah’ve got ta say goodbye now, Scoots, but it doesn’t hafta be goodbye forever. Ah’ll keep crusadin’, and Ah know you’ll be right there with me, in spirit.” She then closed her eyes and whispered, too softly for her sister to hear, “Bye Scootaloo, Ah’ll miss ya. See ya someday.”
When Applebloom opened her eyes, the sun had just risen above the horizon and was casting a brilliant orange glow across the waves. She smiled, saving the beautiful memory alongside all the others of her best friend, and turned for home.