Matthias smiled as he glanced back to see Fluttershy disappear behind library’s doors.
“This went better than I expected it to go.” he muttered with relief, turning towards Ponyville limits. “I thought we were going to spend here half of night trying to calm her down.” he continued to explain Spottedleaf, who walked beside him. “Although, it still wouldn’t be as bad as before...”
He trailed off, still annoyed at how all of his friends (besides Pinkie Pie) were embarrassed around him for how they acted after the reception. His musing, however, was momentarily interrupted by a curious meow.
“About a month before you came around, Fluttershy and the rest all were embarrassed around me for... well, doing some stupid things, I guess. It took me few weeks to bring things between the six of us to a normal level.” seeing Spottedleaf confused gaze, he added: “Pinkie Pie was, strangely, the only one who acted normally that night, although even if she didn’t, I doubt she would care.”
As he recalled how the pink pony kissed him back at Canterlot and later seemed not to care at the slightest, Matthias chuckled despite himself. Pinkie Pie never even brought it up, and that kiss was much more intimate than that little peck on the lips Fluttershy gave him by accident. And that one with Rarity...
He shook his head, preferring not to think about that. In some roundabout way, that kiss brought things back to normal between him and Rarity, and that’s all he cared about.
“Today was a bit tiring.” he mused, holding back a yawn while he and Spottedleaf had finally reached the small river that marked the border of the town, and were about to cross the bridge. “And I still have to-”
A meow interrupted his thoughts. Matthias glanced to his side, and saw that the tortoiseshell cat had stopped right before the crossing. Her ears were perked up and jaw slightly parted, and before he could react, she padded to the side, going under the bridge.
“What’s that cat on about now?” the stallion thought as he followed her.
This wouldn’t be the first time she acted strangely. The whole matter of her enjoying Angel’s company aside, now they apparently were mad at each other because of something. He hoped Spottedleaf had a good reason for dragging him after her.
The reason became apparent to him as soon as he took a glance at the small cavity under the bridge. For a second all Matthias could do was stare, but he soon snapped himself.
“Scootaloo, what the hay are you doing under the bridge at this hour?” he asked the small orange filly sternly, but then he mentally facehoofed himself noticing the sleeping bag. “Let me rephrase that: why are you sleeping under the bridge?!”
Scootaloo looked back at him with a face of a foal caught on breaking something.
“I... umm, I eeh...” she muttered incoherently, her eyes looking around for a possible way of escape.
Before she had a chance to do anything stupid, Matthias took a quick look at the surroundings. He already had a cold feeling in his gut at what possible reason could the filly had for sleeping here, and what he saw didn’t fill him with optimism: there was her scooter, her cask, school books in a carton (no doubt to protect them from water), and several other belongings.
As he expected, Scootaloo jumped for the scooter. Matthias hesitated to tackle her, in fear of harming her; a fear that was not shared by his cat. Spottedleaf leaped and threw the pegasus filly off her balance, resulting in both of them landing on the ground, with the cat pinning Scootaloo down.
“Scootaloo, what is going on?” Matthias asked, no longer with any stern, but with concern. “Why are you sleeping here and what are your things doing here?”
“Please tell me I’m wrong.” he prayed, as the filly began squirming under Spottedleaf and didn’t reply.
Matthias, knowing that despite being only slightly bigger than the cat Scootaloo could easily shake her off, summoned the golden chains, suspending her movements.
“Scootaloo,” the stallion tried again, this time being more direct, “where are your parents?”
As his question made her stop, everything he knew about her parents flooded through his mind: they moved to Ponyville from Cloudsdale a little over two years ago, but worked in some other city; they were extremely busy, which was why they weren’t seen around and didn’t attend any parent-teachers meetings; and they let their only daughter go on sleepovers with her friends very often.
And all those information, while heard from other ponies (Applejack, Rarity, and Twilight, who all in turn heard that from Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Cheerilee, respectively) steamed off from one pony - the same one that Spottedleaf was currently pinning down into the ground under the bridge in the middle of the night, while immobilized by Light’s chains.
Scootaloo looked up from under the tortoiseshell cat. “They’re dead.” she said in emotionless, empty voice. “They died few years ago.”
Matthias did his best to not let it show how much this news shocked and saddened him, despite already expecting it. He motioned for Spottedleaf to let her go and dispelled the chains.
“You have some explaining to do.” he told her as gently as possible.
“No I don’t!” Scootaloo replied instantly, rising up. Her wings buzzed as her face quickly converted from it resigned and empty look into that of pure anger. “I managed to survive by myself for this long, without anypony’s help. I do not need to explain to you anything!”
The paladin was slightly taken back by her sudden burst of anger. He had never heard her speak to anypony like this. However, beneath that all anger there was sadness, both in her voice and herself. Matthias, never foreseeing to find himself in such situation, decided to do what his heart was telling him to: he didn’t reply, and simply looked into Scootaloo’s eyes.
At first, nothing changed. She continued to stare at him angrily, not backing down or even attempting to escape. But slowly, very slowly, her gaze wavered. Matthias could see it in her eyes: the chaos of emotions that was raging within her, all triggered by one pony finding out her secret. The corners of her eyes became moist.
Finally, she gave up.
“They...” Scootaloo muttered, looking down. “They died about three years ago... some accident at the Weather Factory...”
“I am sorry to hear that, Scootaloo.” Matthias replied truthfully, taking a step closer to the filly. “But that doesn’t explain how you ended up here.”
Scootaloo poked the ground with her hoof and didn’t reply. Once again choosing to listen to his heart, the stallion delicately lifted her chin up, so that she would look at him.
“Scootaloo, if you don’t want to talk to me about this, its okay, I won’t press you on that.” as the relief washed over her face, he added: “But I cannot let you sleep here”
“No!” she immediately retorted, slapping his hoof away. “I am not going back to that orphanage in Cloudsdale, forget about it!”
“Who said anything about that?” Matthias said. His tone would be nonchalant if it wasn’t filled with compassion right now. “I was going to offer you a room at the Everfree Abbey, which was just finished today.”
Scootaloo’s expression changed from enraged and scared to dumbfounded, only to return to the angry one again.
“I don’t need pity!” she exclaimed, stomping the ground.
“I’m not making this offer out of pity, but because I am your friend, Scootaloo.” he replied soothingly. “That friends help each other is something I shouldn’t explain to you.”
“I don’t need help...” she muttered, although Matthias could see that she was hesitating.
“Scootaloo, how long do you expect this to last?” he asked, deciding to push the issue. “Sooner or later another pony would stumble upon you as I did, and they could be much pushier with questions.”
“I’ve been doing fine for two years now.” Scootaloo replied, a mix of defiance and sad pride in her voice. “Nopony noticed anything-”
“Including Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle?” Matthias cut her. “How come you haven’t told your two best friends about it?”
That finally made the pegasus filly look down in shame. As he had guessed, she didn’t even told those two truth - if she had, than they would undoubtedly made her live with one of them.
“I... I wanted to tell them, but...” she mumbled again.
“Scootaloo, you can’t live your life in a lie.” Matthias told her, putting his hoof on her shoulder. “One of these days you will have to tell them. But for now, you are coming with me.”
The small pony continued to stare at the ground for several moments, before she finally responded: “Okay...”
Few minutes later, Matthias, Scootaloo and Spottedleaf, having taken all of filly’s things, set out for the Abbey. The paladin, despite still not understanding how the filly ended up in Ponyville, stopped himself from asking any questions. It was good enough that he managed to convince her to come with him. She would tell him when she was ready...
“When my parents died...”
Matthias turned his head to regard her as she unexpectedly began to open up. She was riding on her scooter, using her wings to propel herself, but she wasn’t paying too much attention on steering it. Her eyes, clouded with memories, were looking down.
“... I was put in an orphanage in Cloudsdale. I didn’t have any relatives that could take care of me, and ponies in Cloudsdale aren’t as close with each other as in Ponyville. Here a close friend or a neighbour would’ve taken me in, but...”
He nodded as she paused. He heard already that’s how such things were handled in Ponyville, and that was why this town didn’t have an orphanage.
“I lived there for some time, but I... couldn’t stand it. All those other orphans, always making fun of me for not having a cutie mark, or... or not being able to fly...” she paused again as her voice broke. Matthias continued to be quiet, letting her go through this at her own pace. “I... my parents told me that I was... born with a weaker wing’s muscle structure or something... I can still learn how to fly, but... that would require some kind of professional, rigorous training, like the one pegasus go on a rehabilitations after serious accidents. They wanted to sign me up for that when I was a bit older, but then...”
Her wings stopped moving the scooter as she pressed her head against the handle, crying. Matthias took a step to her and wrapped hooves around her. Scootaloo almost immediately let go of the scooter and pulled herself into his hug, letting the tears that she hadn’t ushered in Light knows how long fall on his chest.
“I... I couldn’t stand all their teasing...” she continued to talk, almost incoherent by now. Matthias didn’t do anything to stop her from it, understanding that she needed to do this. “... they were just too cruel, and that... old hag that run the orphanage... she didn’t do anything! So... I run away, I had some money, and I bought a balloon trip to Ponyville. They didn’t even try to look for me...”
Scootaloo, who was calming down as Matthias patted her gently on the head, stopped talking then. They stayed like this for few minutes, in a hug, while the filly was trying to stop crying. When she finally did, she pushed herself away gently. Matthias, taking a clue, released her.
“What happened when you came to Ponyville?” he asked as Spottedleaf wrapped herself around the filly in attempt to comfort her.
“I... didn’t want ponies to know that I run away from an orphanage.” Scootaloo replied, petting the cat. “I was afraid they would send me back. So I told everypony that my parents were just too busy to be seen around. I signed myself to school. It was really easy; Miss Cheerilee didn’t ask many questions once I said that my parents were working in another town, and did most of the paperwork for me. I just gave her faked signature of my parents, and that was all.”
“I guess I can see how that worked.” Matthias muttered. “But... what did you eat?”
“Oh, I... took some minor jobs. You know, mowing the lawn, cleaning windows... and later, once I became friends with Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle, I got often invited for their family’s dinner.”
“And personal hygiene?”
Again, Scootaloo wouldn’t meet his eyes. She looked to the side, and mumbled quietly: “Nopony ever locks their doors around here...”
Matthias suppressed a thought upon hearing that. Considering everything that she’s been through, he couldn’t bring himself to berate her for this, and he doubted that citizens of Ponyville would, either.
“Let’s get back to Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle, then. Why didn’t you tell them?”
“I...” the pegasus began, still not avoiding his gaze. “I wanted to, but... I’ve been lying to everypony for so long back then; I just... couldn’t bring myself to tell them.”
“Scootaloo, look at me.” Matthias told her, and waited for her to lift her head. When she did so, he noticed that her eyes were still teary, and that now there was fear in them, too. He smiled warmly, hoping to dismiss her fear. “I won’t tell you what you have to do now. It’s your choice if you want to tell them and everypony else the truth. But, Scootaloo, I will not let you sleep under that bridge any longer. From this day, you will live at the Everfree Abbey.” seeing that she was about to protest, he added: “I am your friend, Scootaloo, but I am also bound to abide by the Equestria’s law. Either you will accept my offer, or I will have no other choice than to send you to Cloudsdale.”
Scootaloo looked down, and her ears flattened. “I guess I prefer the first option.” she sighed.
“So, you accept my offer?” Matthias asked. “Because, it will mean that you will have to tell everypony truth, sooner or later. And I will have to talk with Cheerilee, regardless of when you plan to do that.” seeing her puzzled and fearful gaze, he explained: “If you stay at the Abbey, it will make me your legal guardian. I will have to inform Cheerilee about it. I’m sorry, Scootaloo, but-”
“You think they will be mad at me?” Scootaloo cut him off.
“Who?”
“Everypony. My friends, Miss Cheerilee, Rainbow Dash...” she trailed off, as she no doubt began to fear what her idol would now think about it.
Matthias could not help but smile as he said: “Where did you come up with that? They wouldn’t be mad at you; if anything, they would be mad at themselves for not realising the truth and not helping you. And as for Rainbow Dash - I bet she will be pretty impressed how you managed to live by yourself for two years.”
“You... really think so?” Scootaloo asked as hope rose within her.
“I know so.” Matthias replied with honest smile. “Now, come on, let’s get you to your new home.”
“This is really my own room?” Scootaloo asked ten minutes later.
Matthias smiled to the filly. They were within the Abbey’s barracks, one of the rooms that were prepared for higher ranking paladins in the future, to be exact. Due to the late hour, Scootaloo agreed to wait with sightseeing the Abbey until tomorrow after school (although she was curious as to what that orange glow above Chapel’s roof was), and let herself to be led to through the barracks. The only pony they met was Cherry Bomb, who was standing guard at the entrance to the Abbey, and thankfully quit asking questions once Matthias told him that Scootaloo would be staying here for some time.
The room he decided to give to her wasn’t exactly big, as paladins, even high ranking, were still soldiers, not some prissy nobles. It had a simple bed, a drawer for personal items, a desk, and some free space for a pony to do whatever she or he wanted. It was actually a tad bigger than Matthias’ own room, which was one of the reasons he gave it to Scootaloo. There was also a small bathroom attached to it, letting her have more privacy.
“Yep, it’s all yours.” he replied, happy at seeing excitement that he was so used to when it came to Scootaloo return on her face. “You have a school tomorrow, right?”
“Yeah...” she said, and immediately doubt once again crept into her.
“I will talk with Cheerilee after your class is over.” he told her. “I will ask her to keep this a secret, and let you tell everypony else when you are ready.”
“Thanks.” she muttered weakly, not looking forward to that.
“Once you wake up, you will find breakfast under your door. Don’t bother looking for me - by the time you will have to go to school, I will be already busy for few hours with the fighting practice.
“Fighting practice?” she asked, curious and excited again.
“I will not give you any lessons in that matter, young lady.” he cut off any ideas she might had at once. “And bear in mind that armory is off-limits to you, unless an older pony is accompanying you. Do you understand that?”
“Yeah, okay...” Scootaloo muttered, annoyed.
“Well then, good night.” Matthias told her, and prepared to leave.
As he was about to turn around, he felt something small throw herself at him and give him a strong hug. Smiling, Matthias hugged Scootaloo back.
“Thanks, Matt.” the small filly said, and he could sense that she meant it.
“Think nothing of it; any of your friends would do the same if you’d have let them.” the paladin replied, kissing her on the forehead. “Now, off to bed with you.” he added with pretended sternness. “A filly of your age not sleeping at this hour?”
Scootaloo stifled a giggle, and wished him a good night. As she was closing the door, Spottedleaf quickly slipped through the gap. Smiling at the cat’s decision, Matthias headed for his own quarters.
“How is one supposed to work while sitting on such chair?” Matthias wondered out loud as he tried to get more comfortable, but every time he moved, so did the chair, resulting in him getting further from the desk.
Sighing, he pulled himself closer to it, and pulled out a pouch from one of the lockers. Matthias opened it and took all the loose pages, scrolls, notes and notebooks from it, letting them all fall on the desk.
“Brann could have at least sorted them out.” Matthias thought wistfully, glancing through all of them. “‘Experiment 25463-D’... ‘Experiment 12-B’... Ah, here it is: “By the hand of Rhonin, Kirin Tor’s findings on the-’”
“Okay, now pay attention.” Arthas told Bolvar and Ner'zhul. “For everything to go as we planned, we must all concentrate. One mistake and this will all be for nought.”
As the other two spirits nodded, Arthas - while the other part of his soul was reading through the notes - began singing:
It's time for us to come together
It's the only way that things will-
“What the hell are you doing?” Bolvar asked him glancing his way with his scorching eyes.
“Um, sorry.” Arthas mumbled, as he just now realized what he did.
Blush of embarrassment crossed his cheeks as he briefly pondered how much Equestria affected him.