„Why? “ Scootaloo asked. Her voice sounded like she was going to cry. “Oh why, Applebloom?”
Applebloom avoided Scootaloos eyes. “Ah’m sorry, Scoots, but we just cain’t trust ya anymore. Ya’ve abused our trust for way too long.” She turned to Sweetie Belle. “Sweetie, it’s her - or me. Decide now.”
Tears ran down as Sweetie tried to find an answer. She couldn’t believe what Applebloom just had said. But still, it seemed like the only possible way. “Scootaloo…” She started. Scootaloos eyes were slowly dropping tears now. She felt them on her cheek, but she didn’t make an attempt to wipe them.
“I’m so sorry, Scoots, but Applebloom’s right…” She released a small whimper. “I can’t believe that you really did that. And you don’t even try to explain it! I still like you, Scootaloo, but I just can’t trust you anymore.”
“Please, Sweetie!”
“Just go! Leave, and never come back. I don’t want to see you anymore. How could you steal? All these years I thought I knew you, but you just lied to me all the time! I can’t trust you anymore, and I don’t want to be friends with you anymore. Maybe someday I can forgive what you’ve done, but I wouldn’t wait for it, if I was you.”
Scootaloo was panicking. “But… We are the cutie mark crusaders! That does mean something, doesn’t it?”
She wanted to explain everything so bad, but she couldn’t. But that would mean that she would lose the crusaders! They were the only thing that gave her hope. The only ones, who had awoken the will to live in her miserable life in the gutter. She knew she didn’t deserve their friendship. Who was she, after all? An orphan, a homeless filly, a thief.
She knew it wasn’t right, but she had to eat something! She never took more than she needed to live! Sure, it was bad, but how was she supposed to live without food? She just wanted to live her life in peace.
But the thing she wished most... was a big sister. Somepony that would care about her, somepony that would love her. But now it seemed like she was about to lose the last thing she had.
Her friends, the ones that always had been there for her, when she needed moral support. She loved them, and she wished that they would never leave her.
Still, she could understand them. She did abuse their trust, and she had lied to them. In this moment she got an idea. She knew what she would do.
“Look, gals… You’re right. I did abuse your trust and I have stolen. I know it isn’t right, and I truly am sorry for it. But even though I wish that I could stay with you two forever, I will accept your choice, whether it is to kick me out of the crusaders or to let me stay. You are right, Applebloom. But I have one request. Try to forgive me.” Sweetie’s tears had stopped during Scootaloos speech, and now she looked in Appleblooms face, hoping it might have changed her opinion.
Appleblooms freezing eyes told her otherwise. “Ah will try, Scootaloo, but Ah cain’t promise anything. Ya really hurt me with all ya lies and it truly is breakin’ mah heart to say this, but: Ya are no cutie mark crusader anymore.”
As they left the clubhouse, Scootaloo hung her cape over a fencepost. Then she looked deep in Sweetie Belles and Appleblooms eyes. It broke her heart knowing it might be the last time she saw them.
It was sad that they had to separate like this. As Scootaloo turned around, a single tear dropped from the eye of each of the three young ponies. Scootaloo stopped for a moment. As she started walking, she felt the eyes of Sweetie Belle and Applebloom on her back.
---
“The train to Manehatten is incoming! Please stand back!”
Scootaloo boarded the train and looked for an empty seat. As she sat down, she looked out the window, as the train started moving. She looked back to the town, as it vanished in the distance, knowing she might never return.
She knew she couldn't stay in Ponyville, but the filly wasn't sure what to do once she arrived in Manehatten. Now that she thought about it, she noticed that she had already started to miss Ponyville. Back there she had come closest to being happy.
She had had friends there. She had had a place to live. Surely the old, abandoned garage and her cardboard box weren't the greatest place, but they kept her from freezing during the winter. And they were something for her to come back to.
After she had talked to the crusaders, she had gone there one last time to pack up her things and say goodbye to the place. She picked up one of the two photos she had. It showed her, Sweetie Belle and Applebloom on the day of the talent show. They already wore their costumes in the picture.
As she stared at the picture, memories flashed up in her mind.
The day at Diamond Tiaras party, where Sweetie Belle and herself jumped out of their hide underneath the table to protect Applebloom from Diamond Tiaras and Silver Spoons bullying shouting “Do you have a problem with blank flanks?” Afterwards they had promised to never leave each other.
What had happened to this promise? It was like it never existed. Still, Scootaloo could feel Sweetie Belle and Applebloom in her heart. Maybe that was the true part of the promise. That they’d always keep each other in their hearts. Scootaloo wondered whether Applebloom and Sweetie felt the same way as she did.
The next memory flashed up.
The day they had a sleepover at Fluttershy. She remembered how Sweetie had sabotaged Fluttershys song to keep all of them awake. Scootaloo loved Sweeties voice. When Sweetie started singing, it was like Scootaloos heart was suddenly reflecting it. Suddenly, Scootaloo would feel warm and just happy, deeply sunk in Sweeties voice.
Now Scootaloo thought about the day, when Babs Seed had come to Ponyville and how Babs first was nice and suddenly, when Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon showed up, turned into a bully. It was so hard for all of them to understand, until Applejack told them that Babs was bullied in her school in Manehatten. At that time, Babs already was in a manipulated ride that was supposed to throw her into the mud. They barely reached Babs and pulled her out of the ride, even though they would land in the mud instead.
All of that wouldn’t have happened if they’d just listened to Sweetie, who wanted to talk to Applejack about Babs from the beginning on.
Then she remembered the day, when Sweetie had brought the capes to one of their meetings. When she gave one to Scootaloo, she suddenly felt like she finally got a place where she belonged. From that moment on, she had looked to the crusaders as her family, not just as her friends.
All these memories made Scootaloos eyes tear, as she woke from the trance the memories had put her in. She carefully put the picture in one of her saddlebags, moving on to the other picture she had. It showed Rainbow Dash, relaxing on a cloud.
Another memory entered her mind.
She remembered the day, when the cutie mark crusaders, their sisters and Rainbow Dash had gone camping outside the town. She had been so stuck in trying to make Rainbow Dash proud, that she rather couldn’t sleep a few nights than to talk to the rainbow-maned mare about her fears. After some time she just couldn’t take it anymore and asked her, if she could take Scootaloo under her wing. The few moments it took her to response felt like forever for Scoots, but as Rainbow agreed, she nearly cried out of pure happiness. She thought that nothing could stop her now, with this mare on her side.
Scootaloo shook her head to clear it. If only she had known how wrong she had been that day… She gave the picture a sad look, then picked it up and put it in the same saddlebag as the other one.
She grabbed the nearly burnt down candle, which was her light in the dark for nearly 5 years now and the flint stones she used to light it. She filled the other saddlebag with them and slowly left the garage. Outside she turned around and looked at it for the last time.
She remembered the day, when she first came here.
It had been a rainy night, and Scootaloos mane was soaked with water and she was freezing. Suddenly she noticed the old garage, which was slightly open. She peeked into it and found it was empty. Inside she had found the candle she still was using, the flint stones, dry papers that seemed to be made for a campfire and the carton she slept in.
Scootaloo sighed. “Goodbye… Thank you, for all these years you’ve kept me alive…” She whispered. Then she turned away. It was time for a new change.