//------------------------------// // Facing Fear // Story: Trapped // by Gylden Glor //------------------------------// It's starting to get dark, and my feet are hurting. However, as my present company halts, I look around at the clearing we've arrived at. "So, this is the spot?" I ask. "Yep. Right in that cave." Applejack responds. "No need fer' any tents. Jus' sleepin' bags." The world seems to zoom out around me. "Wh-Why in the cave?" I ask, my heart beating a million times per second. As I look into the dark mouth of the cave, I swear I can see a Creeper staring at me... "What? You afraid of some old cave?" Rainbow asks me with a smirk. "N-No," I respond, my hands shaking. "I...I'm afraid of what may be in them," I admit with a gulp. "L-Like monsters, and falling stalactites...or stalagmites, I never knew the difference. B-But if I have to sleep in there, I'm sleeping where I can get out easily." Rainbow rolls her eyes at me. "Peter, you're such a pansy," she sighs. "Yeah, I could take that cave on, no problem!" Scootaloo declares, puffing out her chest with pride. "While y'all are debatin' who's the best, Ah'll be gettin' everythin' ready," Applejack announces. "No problem!" Rainbow Dash cries, spreading her wings. Within a minute, everything is prepared. "Sweet," I remark as I sit down on one of the logs. Scootaloo sits down next to me, and pokes at my bag suggestively. "Really? Again?" I sigh. "Shouldn't you be getting firewood?" She disappears, and reappears with a large bundle of sticks on her back. I frown in appreciation. "Not bad." She dumps the sticks into the center of the stones that form the fire pit, and Applejack promptly lights it. "Well, Ah think it's time for some marshmallows," she announces. I resist the urge to bite Rarity. As we impale our defenseless marshmallows on sticks, we hold them over the fire. I wait until mine is simply browned, and consume it. I lean back, absolutely stuffed. My stomach is the size of a pea, and I get full before food even reaches my stomach. I look up at the night sky, and can't help but smile. "I've never seen so many stars before," I remark, lying back on the ground. "Really?" Rainbow asks me, lying down next to me. "I see them every night!" "Yeah, but, where I come from, there are so many lights, that you can't really see the stars above..." "Oh, so ya' lived in a city?" I hear Applejack ask. I sit up with a smile. "Yep. In Brooklyn. Best pizza in the world," I say as I toss a dead leaf into the fire. I huddle up, listening to the sounds of crickets and trees in the nighttime. "What was it like?" Rainbow asks me. "I bet it was glorious!" Rarity declares. "It was like any old city," I shrug. "86th Street was right near my home. Oh, that's a giant shopping area. Kind of run down in certain places, but what do you expect..." "What of the glamor?" Rarity asks, somewhat crestfallen. "There wasn't that much glamor," I respond. "At least, not where I lived. Hell, some poor bastard was stabbed a few blocks away from me. Half the time, there would be drunkards all around 86th Street...thankfully, I lived right near the Verizano Bridge, so there were almost no drunk guys around...But there were some really nice parts of Brooklyn. Like...Well, where I lived was pretty nice. Y'know, compared to New Jersey. "There was a park a few blocks away, as well as a golf course. I barely ever went to either, I'm more of a secluded, indoors kind of guy. It's not like I could go camping whenever I wanted, because the nearest full-nature place was, like, at least fifty miles away. I mean, there are parts of Brooklyn that are kind of nature-y, but Long Island takes the cake for that one, what with the Hamptons and stuff. And overall, Brooklyn is more like a suburb. Rarity, for the buildings you like, you'd have to go to Manhattan." I sigh as I recount everything I can think of in Manhattan. A deluge of emotion is beginning to hit me: love for a city, admiration for the men and women that built it, and a profound feeling of longing for the sweet, sweet satisfaction of a hamburger in Peter Lugers'... "Oh, you would love it, Rarity, because while there are some crappy areas, there are shopping malls, and beauty pageants, and beautiful women, and jewelry, and clothes, and...I used to hate to go shopping," I tell my friends with a smile. They're all watching on in interest as I speak of a life long gone. "But now, I would give anything just to see the inside of Macy's once more, to be able to see the exhibits in the Metropolitan Museum of Natural History, to taste the air of a city full of hope and achievements, and of dreams come true..." I take a deep breath, and exhale as I look up to the sky. "But I would definitely miss the stars," I chuckle, trying and failing to count the amount of twinkling fireballs in the night sky. "Would you give me up to go back?" Rainbow asks me, softly. I look over to her, and raise an eyebrow. "You seriously don't know the answer to that question?" I ask her with a small smirk. She smiles, and I give her the answer. "Of course I would! I mean, you just never stop snoring, and you're so annoying, and ugh...I would prefer getting stabbed to having to spend one more night with you!" I smile, to let her know that I'm kidding, and I hear the ponies around me hold their breath in shock. "That can be arranged," she growls at me, a cold stare across her face. I laugh, and wrap an arm around her. "Oh, Rainbow, you know I'm joking, right?" I ask her. She nods. "Duh." I smile, and let go of her. "So, it's getting late out. You gonna tell us a story before we set up our 'bags?" Rainbow nods, and proceeds to tell the story of he Headless Horse. Applejack and Rarity wrap forelegs around their sisters, and hold them close with smiles on their faces. "It's no fair," Scootaloo mumbles to herself. I observe, rather astutely, that nopony is holding her, and that Rainbow is standing by the fire. So, I reach over, and do the same as Applejack and Rarity. "Peter?" She asks, stunned at my gesture. I smile down at her, and she smiles at me, leaning into me as Rainbow begins the story proper. As she steps into the light of the fire, I can't help but notice that the cyan Pegasus is staring at me in a way that says "that's mine, and you can't have it." I smile, and she clears her throat as the story begins. "Never again?" Scootaloo whimpers as the story ends. "Never, ever, ever again!" Rainbow reinforces, leaning into Scootaloo menacingly. Scootaloo buries her face in my shirt, shaking and whimpering in fear. I pat her on the back until she's calmed, and Rainbow raises her eyebrows, bearing a small frown. "Scootaloo? Are you okay?" She asks, softly. "Yeah! I-I'm fine!" Scootaloo responds, pulling her face off of my shirt. Rainbow smirks at the young filly. "You're not scared, are ya?" "Says the Pegasus afraid of birds," I remark. Rainbow blushes, and Scootaloo giggles lightly. "Hey! Don't you laugh at me!" "Sorry," Scootaloo says. "But it's true, you were afraid of those birds! So much for bein' fearless, huh?" Rainbow Dash frowns, and looks to the ground in disappointment. She sits down with a sigh, and begins to apologize to Scootaloo. "Yes, Scootaloo, I was afraid of those birds...I'm sorry, buddy. I failed you." "What do you mean, you failed me?" Scootaloo asks. "You didn't fail me! Hay, I was afraid of the stories you told, okay? I said I wasn't because I thought you would...think I wasn't cool enough to be your protege. But now, you're afraid that you're not cool enough to be my mentor?" Rainbow looks up, and I see sadness in her eyes. "Yes," she admits. The other ponies watch on in stunned silence, unable to believe that their friend is admitting to being afraid. "Scoots, I know how your parents treat you. And I don't want to be a repeat of them. They're supposed to love you, and care for you, but they don't. And I'm supposed to be strong, and fearless, but obviously, I...I'm not. " Scootaloo smiles sadly, and I let go of her so that she can hug Rainbow Dash. "Rainbow, I don't care about that. You're still awesome, no matter what." "But you shouldn't look up to me," Rainbow Dash says. I blink, taken aback. "What?" Scootaloo asks, unable to believe what she just heard. "You should look up to Peter," Rainbow says. I blink in surprise once more. "He cares about you, and he's kind, and he's braver than I am. I'm terrified of birds, he just charged on in and shouted them off. Plus, he's a genius, and you could learn a thing or two from him. Whereas, from me, you would learn how to keep your feelings for somepony locked away, and to never show how much you care because you're afraid...But Peter isn't afraid." Rainbow smiles at me, and I blush. "He's not afraid of anything. He's the perfect role model for you, Scoots. Better than me, and definitely better than your parents." I shake my head. "No, Rainbow Dash, I'm not. You say I'm afraid of nothing? I'm terrified of so many things." I list a few things I'm afraid of: heights, mirrors, what people think about me, etc., before coming to my greatest fear. "And I'm terrified, absolutely terrified, of..." I take a deep breath before admitting my deepest and darkest fear. "Flowers." Everypony around me begins to snicker. "Flowers?" Rainbow Dash asks. I nod. "When I look into the bloom, I feel like it's watching me," I explain, barely able to contain my own laughter. Rarity bursts out laughing, and so does Applejack. Rainbow Dash already burst out laughing a few seconds ago, and the three fillies are laughing with their older counterparts. "Peter, that is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard!" Rarity exclaims. I nod. "Yeah, it's pretty ridonkulous, ain't it." Rainbow Dash stops laughing, and stands. "Hold on, I've got to try something," she says, before running off into the forest. She returns, moments later, with a... Flower. "Eeuugh!" I cry as I jump away from it. Rainbow Dash bursts out laughing once more and begins to chase me around with it. And I swear, the entire time, that fucking flower is watching me! It wants me dead! Just like Little Shop of Horrors... When Rainbow Dash has me cornered, she puts the flower right in front of my face, and I cringe. I can hear the ponies laughing rambunctiously behind Rainbow Dash, and I try to force myself to slap it away. Unfortunately, I'm also horrified of touching flowers. "What's the matter? Can't take a little beauty?" She asks me, pressing the flower into my face. I cry out in fear, and have flashbacks to a certain video game... As I sit down at the fire, Rainbow presses the flower into my face again. I panic, grab it, and toss it into the kindling. "Wow, you really hate flowers," Rainbow Dash remarks with a chuckle. "Would you mind if I ask why?" Rarity asks. I smile, and take a deep breath. "There was a game," I begin, "called Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. For the computer, there were Venemous Tentacula, which are giant carnivorous plants. In the first game, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, they were stationary. But in this game, they could crawl, and follow you around. They scared the crap out of me. Like, when I saw one coming my way, I would panic. I couldn't even cast Diffindo, because my first thought was to run away as fast as possible. They kept killing my character in the game, and I never looked at a flower the same way again, mostly because they looked so much like flowers, and would always turn to face me and then follow me...I mean, they didn't look that much like flowers, but it was close enough for me." Rainbow Dash shrugs. "Okay, I gotta admit, flowers that want to eat you and that can crawl are pretty creepy..." I nod. "Yeah, tell me about it...as you saw, I still can't stand flowers." "No kiddin'," Applejack remarks. I smile, and look down to Scootaloo, remembering why I had explained all of this in the first place. "Y'know, maybe you should look up to me," Rainbow says to Scootaloo. "Given Peter's fear of flowers." She snickers again, and I smile in spite of myself. Scootaloo sighs, and begins to laugh, falling off of the log as she does so. "You nut heads!" She cries out, looking at us. "I look up to the both of you!" Rainbow and I exchange a glance, and I begin to fake choke the cyan Pegasus. "There can be only one!" I roar. Suddenly, you, the audience, feel a whimsical feeling of whimsicallness! Oh, my, look! You can see everything! Oh,what's this-WHOA! Look, we're flying! Oh, wow! Weeee! I'm totally getting fired for this, aren't I? Who cares! Look, there's Scootaloo! She seems to have quite a lot of thoughts right now! Let's go seeeeeeee! Scootaloo I giggle as Peter fake-chokes Rainbow Dash. I didn't lie when I said that I look up to the both of them. Rainbow is cool, and I respect her because she's awesome. However, I know there's something...more, underneath all of that, and I saw that tonight. As for Peter, he's nice. He's intelligent, he's wise, and he cares. Plus, he's...he's kinda cute. Yeah, I know, he's not a pony, but I don't mean cute as in attractive. I mean cute as in how he acts, and what he says. Plus, he's fun to hang out with. I might just have a tiny crush on him... Of course, I won't let Rainbow Dash know that... Oh, my, it's happening again! You're flying! Oh, watch out for the giant banana monster! And look out for the clop realm! No, abort trip, ABORT TRIP! BACK TO PETER! BACK TO PETER! Peter I let go of Rainbow Dash, and look down to Scootaloo. "Well, it's getting late out," I say. "Time for bed, little one." With that, I pluck her up, and carry her to the cave like a football. She's surprisingly light, and when I reach the cave mouth, I jump up and down, holding her up and shouting "touchdown!" "Hey!" Scootaloo shouts with a giggle.. "Let me down!" Rainbow Dash flies past me, and snatches her from my grasp, carrying the filly up into the clouds. "Touchdown!" She screams from the clouds. I chuckle, and watch as she comes back down with the filly. Scootaloo giggles as I set up the beds. Rarity brings out her tent, and Applejack sets up two beds for herself and Apple Bloom. "So, Scootaloo," I say as I arrange our beds, "do you want to play that game again tonight?" I don't know why, but I feel giddily happy, almost as if I've just made a best friend. And maybe I have. Who knows?" "Wait," Rainbow says as I'm about to lay down. "I wanna do something." With that, she arranges the beds so that hers and mine are close to each other, and so that Scootaloo's is right in between ours. "To play that game, you two need to be close," Rainbow explains. "And I don't wanna feel lonely." Scootaloo and I nod, and sit up in the sleeping bag, holding my iPad up for Scootaloo to see. She leans against me, and snuggles against my side. I smile down at her, and Rainbow Dash sits so that her head is resting on my shoulder, and her hoof on Scootaloo's shoulder. "So, how do you play?" Rainbow asks. "Start a new game!" Scootaloo commands. I raise an eyebrow at her, but do as she says. May as well include Dash, eh? As we play, Scootaloo slowly falls asleep, and when she's fully asleep, Rainbow gently lays her down under the blankets of her sleeping bag, and tucks her in. "Goodnight, Scoots," she whispers. "I'll see you in the morning." I smile as Rainbow Dash kisses me, on the lips. I place my iPad aside, and reciprocate. "Goodnight, Peter," she giggles, pulling away as I was starting to get into it. "If you're good, we can make out when we get back to Ponyville..." I nod, and watch as she retreats to her own bed. I stretch a bit, and, after making sure that I won't wake up Scootaloo with my fidgeting, I lay down and conk out. I sigh as we arrive at Ponyville. It feels like it's been years since we've been here... "So, Rainbow, where're you going to sleep?" I ask her as we walk to Twilight's library. "Probably in the library, with you," she responds. I nod, and turn to the filly walking with us. "And you, Scootaloo?" Scootaloo shrugs. "Back at home, I guess..." "Isn't it a bit late to walk back on your own?" I ask her, concerned. "Not like my parents care," Scootaloo sighs. I pause, and kneel down in front of her. "How about you stay in the library with us tonight?" I suggest, softly. She looks up to me with a smile. "Really?" I nod. "Of course. Rainbow and I will look after you, Scoots." Scootaloo smiles, and hugs me. "Thank you, Peter," she says as I hug her back. I hold her for a few seconds, before letting go. "Let's go," I say as I stand, walking back to the library with a smile. Rainbow Dash nudges Scootaloo as we walk. "Aren't you excited? You get to spend another day with me!" Scootaloo laughs happily, and for a moment, I can see her look at me out of the corner of my eye. I smile, and continue walking as they have an excited conversation about all the fun things they can do together. As we arrive at the library, I open the doors to an ominous feeling. My smile fades, the spark in my eye disappears, and my heart slows. Nothing is at is was a mere moment ago. That singular feeling of something feeling...Off. Of something lurking, just around the corner, waiting to strike... I don't know what it is, but something just feels... Wrong. "Do you feel that?" I ask Rainbow, tensing my muscles as I look around the room. "I'll bring our stuff downstairs!" Scootaloo announces as she runs down the stairs, bags trailing behind her. "Feel what?" Rainbow asks. "Are you okay, Peter?" Just then, we hear a scream coming from the basement. "Scootaloo!" We both cry, rushing down the stairs to see what's going on. We see Scootaloo, staring at a pillar made of what seems to be solidified blood in the center of the room. I grab Scootaloo, and get her upstairs as Rainbow Dash investigates the pillar. When we get upstairs, I help the young filly breathe, and regain her composure, patting her on the shoulder to calm her. "Peter?" Rainbow calls from the basement. "You...You might want to see this." I give Scootaloo one last comforting pat before I go downstairs, and I see something that I hadn't noticed before. I blanch, and lean against the wall. "Go tell Celestia," I stammer. "Don't bother with the train, just fly, fly as fast as you can!" She nods with a small "hmph", and is gone in a flash. "Scootaloo, stay with Peter!" I hear her shout as she leaves. A distant bang tells me she just did a Sonic Rainboom, and will arrive at Celestia's castle within moments. I dare to look at the object once more, and gulp. Sitting atop the pillar... Is a purple egg, spotted with green polka dots, and laced with black veins.