Scootaloo sat in the clubhouse. After her fitful sleep she had taken a walk through Sweet Apple Acres. She had been sure to avoid meeting anyone by staying near the back of the property. Scootaloo taken the walk to try to clear her mind, but it hadn't worked. Thoughts still swirled around in her head.
What is the point of being a pegasus if you can't fly? she kept asking herself. She thought about her dreams. They were more like nightmares, really. And afterword... that voice. Scootaloo felt like that had been more real than a dream. Like someone was whispering in her ear while she slept. But who would have come to the clubhouse and talked to her while she was sleeping? That would be creepy. For that matter, why would they say something so weird to her? Scootaloo had no idea.
"Probably just a dream," she told herself. "It's nothing to keep thinking about." But she did keep thinking about it. There was something... something that Scootaloo couldn't quite put her finger on.
She hadn't gotten much rest from her nap, so she curled up on the floor to try to sleep again.
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"Scootaloo... Scootaloo...."
Shadows swirled around and around, fading in and out of existence. Amidst the emptiness of Scootaloo's dream, there was the voice. It whispered to Scootaloo. There was something enchanting about the voice that made Scootaloo want to forget all her troubles and follow the voice's commands.
"Hello? Who's there?" asked Scootaloo.
"Oh, Scootaloo. I see your struggles." said the voice. "I want to help you."
"Help me? What do you mean?"
"Your problem," whispered the voice, "I can fix it."
"Huh? What problem?" Scootaloo asked. The voice however, remained silent. Scootaloo wondered why it didn't respond. What's up with the silent treatment? she thought. What 'problem' is it talking ab-
The answer hit Scootaloo like a brick wall. Oh. That problem. Scootaloo looked at her underdeveloped wings and hung her head.
"Yes, Scootaloo, I can fix them," said the voice. "You would like that very much, wouldn't you?" Scootaloo nodded vigorously, but then stopped.
"Wait....'fix them'? That's impossible. The doctors said that there was no medicine to make them grow into normal wings, not even magic." She drooped her ears, remembering that she couldn't be helped. She scolded herself silently for ever hoping in the first place that this strange voice could mystically heal her. She needed to accept that she would never be normal. Scootaloo sighed.
"Who said anything about normal wings? You don't want plain old boring wings, now do you Scootaloo?" the voice had a persuasive tone. Truth be told, Scootaloo had wanted regular wings. But now the idea seemed silly after the voice rebuked it.
"Of course I don't want regular wings," said Scootaloo with certainty. But wait... she did want regular wings...didn't she? She wanted to be rid of her flightlessness, at least. Scootaloo's thoughts weren't connecting properly. The voice seemed to make everything run a bit slower in her mind. She shook her head to clear her thoughts. "Wait...If I don't want regular wings, what do I want?" asked Scootaloo.
The voice seemed to chuckle. "You want something better... Something special for little Scootaloo..."
"Special? Like what?"
"Mmmm...You'll see..."
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Scootaloo woke with a start. Woah, wierd dream, thought Scootaloo. She remembered the strange voice. Scootaloo yawned and squinted her eyes groggily against the bright light of the clubhouse. Her eyes quickly snapped open when she saw that the floor was nearly ten feet away from her. "Whoa!" she yelled.
"Am I...flying?" Scootaloo hardly dared to believe it. She tried to flap her wings. They felt different somehow. There was a funny feeling in them. Scootaloo blinked the rest of her sleepiness away and craned her neck around to get a look at her wings. She promptly hit her head on the floor.
"Ow!" she exclaimed. "What...? The floor?" What was the floor doing there? She was hovering ten feet in the air. The floor didn't simply move that high. Maybe she had hit her head on the ceiling?
Suddenly Scootaloo realized what was going on. She was lying on her back, still on the floor, and she was looking at the ceiling. The floor wasn't ten feet away from her, it was the roof. Scootaloo sighed. Yet again, her dreams had been crushed. She stood up and shook her mane. Her wings still felt funny, though. "Wait! That voice promised new wings! Maybe..."
Scootaloo heart rate went up. New wings! At last. She could finally be normal. She turned to look at her wings, but hesitated. This could change everything. She wanted to savor the moment. Slowly, she turned her head. Her eyes focused on her wings, and she saw...
Her wings were completely unchanged. "Wh-what?" screamed Scootaloo. No! The voice had promised wings. New, flyable wings. Scootaloo gave her wings a pitiful flap. She winced as pain shot through them, followed by a tingling sensation. Her wings had fallen asleep while she slept on her back. She must have been sleeping on them.
Tears welled up in Scootaloo's eyes. "Not again... Not more crushed hopes..." Scootaloo's sadness washed over her as the familiar feeling of despair overtook her. She couldn't believe she had believed in her stupid dream. It was just a voice from her subconsciousness, whispering false hopes.
"NO!" Scootaloo shrieked. "No! I know that voice was real. It wasn't like any dream I've ever had." That wasn't a figment of her imagination or a phantom. It was real, and Scootaloo knew it. She pulled back her tears. She decided she was going to trust this voice. It had seemed so nice, so soothing, its promises were sure to be kept. Scootaloo steeled herself and stepped outside the clubhouse. It was night.
"Hello? I know you're there." said Scootaloo. "You- you promised me new wings. Special wings. Where are they?" Scootaloo was nearly shouting, but the darkness didn't respond. She tentatively stepped down the ladder and walked a few feet from the clubhouse. "Hello!" she shouted again. "Please come out! You need to fulfill your promise to me!" She paused to listen. Still, nothing. Discouragement creeped from the back of her mind, but she mentally swatted it away. She couldn't stop now. She needed those wings, and that need drove her onward. "I know you're real! So come out already!"
Suddenly, the faint shadows made by the moon started to move. At first, Scootaloo thought it was her imagination. But no, the shadows were definitely moving. They creeped together until they were all in one place, and merged into one pitch-black shadow. The shadow moved in front of Scootaloo.
"Hahaha..." The shadow laughed. It was somewhere between a caring chuckle and a cackle. "Well done Scootaloo... You have recognized my existence." Yes! This was the same voice from Scootaloo's dream. "Not many can find me amidst the shadows of the mind. Most have dismissed me for a mere legend. But you, my special Scootaloo, have done what no other could. You found me. You have proven that you are better than all others, and for that you will be rewarded." Rewarded! Scootaloo liked the sound of that.
"So... Do I get my wings now? The wings you promised?"
"Yes, you will get them. And hopefully you will let me give you so much more..."
The shadow swirled for a second, then leaped into the third dimension and enveloped Scootaloo.