//------------------------------// // Light or Flight // Story: Enclosed // by TwizzleDragon //------------------------------// Scootaloo awoke, after hours submerged in the darkness. Confused and weakened, she attempted to grasp the reality in front of her. She found herself in darkness, only darkness. There was no sight for her to have in this area, only blindness. The walls could only be felt. The entire place smelled of wretched death and disturbed rests. “Help!” She screamed, unable to accept that nopony was around when she fell to hear her screams, but she continued to scream, “Help, please!” Scootaloo fluttered her wings frantically, expecting this time, out of all the others, that she would finally fly. It did nothing more than bend and make her feathers dirty. How long will I be down here? She thought, staring straight up to where she assumed she had fallen from. She paused, halting her wings from ruffling her feathers any longer. You can’t give up, Scootaloo! Rainbow Dash would never give up, and neither can you! She tried again, this time clinging herself to what felt like a wall of the cave, grasping each grippable part she could find on the wall. Her feathers bristled together with such force that her wings felt as if they were on fire. She inflicted great pain, stress, and sadness in herself with this attempt. Scootaloo fell, crashing into her right wing. Crack. There it was, the acute pain sending her into a panic. “Ow!” Scootaloo screamed, grabbing her wing, placing her hoof on it to ease the pain with pressure. You can do this! You are a pegasus, ruler of the sky! And again, she tried, even under the pain of her wing, climbing the wall of the cave, only to fall down once again. But this time... She would not be able to try again... With her defeat, she cried lonely tears, tears that would not be heard, would not be seen, would not be felt. She cried for hours, rejecting the darkness, and then she once again, fell into slumber. “Hey, Rainbow Dash!” Scootaloo greeted, trying to keep up with her role model. “Hey, Squirt, what do you want?” Rainbow landed on the ground, prepared to listen to the orange pegasus. “Oh, nothing... I just thought we could maybe spend the day together. Sweetie Belle is helping Rarity and Applebloom is stuck with chores so...” “Sure, Squirt. I can cut some time out of my practice for you.” “You really mean it?” Scootaloo jumped in excitement. “Yeah, what do you want to do first, Scootaloo?” “Uhh...” Scootaloo had been caught unprepared, probably expecting a “No” or for Rainbow to decide. “Could you...” she paused. “Could I what?” “Could you maybe teach me how to fly...?” “You sure?” “I mean, anything is fine with me, just as long as I’m doing it with you, Dash,” Rainbow blushed, her cyan face warmed with emotions. “I guess I can try but I’ve never been one for a teacher, it just came naturally for me,” Scootaloo gave a brief frown, thinking the obvious. “I’m not prepared to teach you anything today. How about tomorrow, a whole day with the awesomest pony in Equestria teaching you how to fly. How does that sound?” “Sounds great, but I have some crusading to do in the morning with the others.” “Good. I’ll get some time for shut eye.” They said their goodbyes, and off in their own ways they went. She awoke, hoping with all her faith that she would be back in her bed, that she would be back in her home, that she would have ponies there to be with her, but this would not happen. Darkness enveloped as quick as her eyes had opened. Again, she was blinded in a world of sight. Her fur had become drenched from the moisture, filthy from all the dirt, grime, and bugs that inhabited the cave. She could not see it for herself, but Scootaloo’s mane had started to darken. But this world was without sight, and for that she was still beautiful. It was uncertain of why Scootaloo decided to start walking, as it had only been one night. She hugged, what she believed to be the cave wall, and walked along with it. Hours passed, the cave was unending, unmorphed, flat as if water or ice had once held great pressure inside this cave, but where did it all go? Scootaloo didn’t wonder, as she was more of the athletic type than the thinking. She was tired after all the walking, and sleep would take over her precious mind, usurping her from reality. “She has nowhere to go!” “She has to, everypony has someplace to go...” “This one is different, this one is alone.” “Look at her, Charger, she’s a beautiful pegasus... We can take her in, she can be-” “I know you want your own little pony, but we can’t... She isn’t ours, we can’t take care of some non-blood in this family!” “There are a few things in life that you just can’t say no to. This foal is one of those... We can’t leave it in the cold...” “Leave it, somepony else will take it... She is not our burden to bare.” Scootaloo awoke in tears, she had this dream before, or at least forms of this dream. Ponies looking at her as a foal, not wanting her, looking at her as if she was diseased. It was her worst nightmare, being alone. She lifted her head, scanning the darkness as if she had forgotten it was all around her, as if this was the nightmare and the dreams were reality. This time was different, she saw a bright light down the cave. Crystals, a whole heap of them, shining bright, purple right into Scootaloo’s pupils. It was little hope, but it was the only clear hope to her. She started into a sprint for the crystals, light was her objective, and light was right in front of her. She ran her little heart out, a mere 30 minute straight sprint, a slow one at that. The crystal was not that far from her now, she would not give up on this. It came closer and closer, when eventually it was right in front of her eyes. They were risen a great feet above the ground, shadowing over Scootaloo had they not been a light source. A head poked around the crystals, it seemed frightened of Scootaloo, shooting it’s head back behind the obstacle. “Hello?” Scootaloo called, uncertain if it was an illusion placed by her nearly broken mind. “H-Hello...” It called back.