The first thought that popped into Scootaloo's head before she opened her eyes was that the hay somehow felt different than usual. It felt so comfortable and warm, yet light as air and slightly wet like morning dew. She began poking the fluffy material a few times before she finally opened her eyes and took a good look at this strange bed surface. Surprised at first, she did not see hay, but a pretty white cloud. A smile formed on her face when she finally remembered just what was going on, and as she took a good look around the spacious room of white, the pleasant reality came to her like merry thoughts on a Hearth's Warming Eve's morning. This was not the chicken coop she had been used to.
"Finally awake, Squirt?" The orange filly heard from the door behind her. With a happy smile she turned around to see Rainbow Dash lean against the cloudy doorway, forelegs crossed and looking as cool as ever while Tank was hovering beside her with his noisy turtle engine. "You seemed so peaceful when you were sleeping, so I didn't wanna wake you up. Not on our first day together."
The orange filly jumped up from the cloud, tearing a little bit of it along with her as she stormed over to the rainbow-maned pony and jumped in for a big hug. She almost knocked Rainbow Dash over, though the rainbow mare was able to catch her footing and quickly returned the filly's hug. Even Tank moved in and nuzzled the orange pegasus on the side, careful not to accidentally cut her with his rotor.
"Did you sleep well?" Rainbow Dash asked the happy filly, cutting off the hug so she could look her in the eyes when she answered.
"Sure did," was the answer, accompanied with an excited nod. "I've never slept in a cloud-house before. It's really awesome."
Dash giggled briefly and placed her hoof on top of Scootaloo's head, gently stroking her mane back and forth. "Well, it's about time then. Every pegasus should try and sleep on a cloud at least once. It's so much better than sleeping in a regular bed, don't you think?"
While the orange filly was hastily nodding in agreement with Rainbow's statement, the rainbow-maned pegasus suddenly showed a face of realization, thinking about what she just said. Finding out only yesterday that Scootaloo had been living alone, and that she had been carrying such a painful secret with a straight face for as long as they had known each other, made Dash realize how little she actually knew about her little fan. She was carrying a pain from her past that Rainbow Dash knew she would never be able to truly comprehend.
And yet, here she was, smiling sweetly in her presence. She was looking right into Dash's eyes with a true light of happiness that brought a genuine smile upon the rainbow-maned pony's lips as she continued to nuzzle the filly's mane. However terrible her past experiences must have been, Rainbow Dash was happy that she could somewhat turn Scootaloo's frown upside down.
"Scootaloo," Rainbow Dash started with a low and serious voice, though her smile never lessened its intensity. "You trust me, right?"
A little surprised, Scootaloo dropped her happy face and stared in wonder at the teal pony's gentle expression. "What you mean?"
"Well," Rainbow soaked her lips and looked to the ceiling, taking her time to find the right words, careful not to say something that would hurt the filly's feelings. "I've just been thinking: Seeing you there on the churchyard yesterday… well… I'm really not sure how to say it, but I think I've finally found out a little something about you."
The filly tilted her puzzled head to the side. "Found what out?"
"Actually, it's not so much about you as it is about me." Taking her gaze off the ceiling and returning it to the filly, Rainbow Dash took a deep breath to prematurely calm herself before she would become too nervous to continue. She had been hiding from her problems for too long these days. "I haven't really been a very good adult. Truth is… I've known for a while that you were hiding something… I'm pretty observant about these things after all… Yet I…"
"It's ok, Rainbow Dash," the filly started with an adorable smile, but Rainbow Dash raised a hoof to silence her, all the while returning the filly's smile.
"Let me finish, all right?" she said, and Scootaloo nodded in acceptance while leaning in to listen. "I've ignored you. I know you don't agree, but it's the truth. It's not like I don't like you or anything, I mean you're really awesome. Kind of like a small version of me, although your flying skills sucks." The rainbow-maned pegasus was doing a few awkward motions as she said this, and grinned nervously. But, luckily, Scootaloo just sniggered at what she was saying, making it easier for Rainbow Dash to continue. "Yeah, as I was saying: I've never been much of a role model, or of an adult, or of a nice pony at all. But that's why… I wanna change all that. I wanna get to know you, Squirt. I wanna be there for you and be somepony special to you. Just like how you're special to me."
Scootaloo's smile widened and her eyes were shaking, beaming with a happiness that the filly had not felt in a long time. She was about to jump in and give Dash another hug, but was stopped by Dash's hooves, which held her back by her shoulders. She looked back up at her rainbow-maned idol and spotted a sense of worry in her eyes, making her own excitement drop a tad as she curiously remained silent to hear what else she had to say.
"That's why…" Dash continued with a low and serious voice, showing just how much she feared how Scootaloo would react to what she was about to say. "I wanna know everything about you. I want you to tell me… about your life. About your mom and dad and… well… about everything."
Hearing these words, Scootaloo backed away from Rainbow Dash, finally breaking out of their little, comfortable zone. She sat quietly on her flank and looked to the side while Rainbow Dash bit her bottom lip in nervous anticipation of her response. The moment could not be called awkward, but it was definitely intense, as if Scootaloo's answer would shape their entire future. The only thing disturbing the silence in the air was the sound of Tank hovering cluelessly in the background.
Still looking to the side, the filly opened her mouth and made a few inaudible noises before finally answering in a low tone of voice: "You know, you're the only one I'd ever tell, Dash."
This answer was enough for Rainbow Dash to let her breath out in a short burst of relief. She nodded with closed eyes and a happy smile at the filly, who was once more looking at her with a smile of her own. "Yeah, I figured," Rainbow said with a large grin. "And don't worry, Pipsqueak. I'd never tell anypony without your permission."
"Promise?" Scootaloo asked while looking directly into her idol's dark pink eyes, as if she was trying to read her mind.
"Hey, I may not be the element of honesty," she answered proudly with one hoof to the heart and another in the air. "But the element of loyalty also includes being trustworthy, so yeah, I won't tell anypony. You can believe in that."
Happy as ever, Scootaloo once again jumped in for a hug, though this time there was no hoof to stop her. Instead, as she tightly grabbed the rainbow-maned pegasus around the waist, she felt a couple of hooves cross each other on the back of her head, pulling her even closer to the soft coat of the teal pony. It had been a long time since the orange filly felt quite as comfortable, and even longer since she had felt such warmth against her cheek. Everything somehow felt just right.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
"Come on!" Dash called from the ground as Scootaloo stumbled through the air. "You can do it! Flap those wings!"
This day's training session was somewhat different. First of all, it was taking place during school time. Since Dash had let the Scootaloo sleep in, they decided they would use the rest of the day bonding. They could always find some excuse to Cherilee later. And so, the filly and her idol took their time getting to know each other, practicing Scootaloo's underdeveloped flying skills just outside of Rainbow Dash's home.
The wind was somewhat stronger than usual. Not strong enough to be of any real danger to anypony, but enough to make the thinner branches of the trees point in the same direction, along with making the leaves dance in the gentle symphony of the breeze. Rainbow Dash had no trouble standing still on the ground in the wind, with only her mane and tail swaying along with the current of air, but for Scootaloo it was a different tale altogether: It was hard enough for her to stay in the air and maintain her balance as it was, but since she had no contact with the ground whatsoever, the strong wind made her struggle to move without stumbling around too much. It was even necessary for her to narrow her eyes as much as possible, or the wind would hit her eyeballs and make the task even more difficult.
"You ok up there?" Rainbow Dash called out, noticing the filly's trouble. "You can come down if you want to."
"I'm fine," Scootaloo stubbornly answered, focusing on the path before her. She felt the sweat running from her pores and her breathing becoming unstable as her body became more and more exhausted from fighting with the wind. After a few minutes of being pushed around like a flag, she could hardly stay in the air anymore, but that did not keep her from trying. She had to prove to Rainbow Dash that she was getting better at flying.
"Seriously, Squirt," Rainbow Dash called out again, this time with a slightly more serious tone of voice. "Come down from there. The wind's too strong."
"I'm telling you, I'm fine," Scootaloo answered once again, panting as she did.
"No, you're not fine. Now come down before you get hurt." Rainbow Dash stomped the ground a single time with her foreleg, indicating she meant what she said not only as a piece of advice, but as an order as Scootaloo's new adoptive parent.
This time, Scootaloo did not say anything back, but instead groaned a bit and slowly descended. She landed right in front of Rainbow Dash and pouted a bit before she spoke: "I was doing fine, you know."
"I know," Dash said with a sigh and a smile, reaching out to nuzzle the filly's mane. "But don't get ahead of yourself. You're still inexperienced, and it's kinda windy today."
"It's not that windy," Scootaloo answered, though Dash simply sniggered at her stubbornness.
"Sure it isn't," she said with a sarcastic, joking tone. "You know, you may be a fast learner, but you're not a superpony. No way you'd be able to fly already."
"But you were able to do a sonic rainboom when you were my age," Scootaloo said, looking up at the rainbow-maned pegasus with wide open and admiring eyes. The filly was amazed at her idol's achievements, yet they also made her feel somewhat inferior, being a pegasus that could barely fly at all. It could not be helped though, since Scootaloo never had anypony to teach her before Dash came into her life.
"Yeah." Rainbow Dash gave the filly a toothy grin before she proudly jumped into the air and started flapping her wings. She did a little pirouette as a display of her abilities, mostly because she saw a chance to brag about her abilities, but also to make sure Scootaloo would not take the whole thing too seriously. "But that's because I'm awesome."
"You sure are," Scootaloo said admiringly. "I hope I can one day be as awesome as you, Rainbow Dash."
"Aim for the top, kiddo," the rainbow mare said with the pride of a king.
"Well, it sho' seems like you two are havin' a might' good time," the familiar voice of Applejack called out. Both Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash turned their smiling faces in the same direction to see the farmerpony walk towards them in a steady pace. She was carrying a couple of baskets full of delicious red apples, one basket on each side of her, and smiling widely at the two hardworking pegasi.
"Hi, AJ," Rainbow Dash greeted as she stopped her flapping and carefully got all four hooves in contact with the ground below. "What's up?"
The cowpony reached around her back and grabbed the handle connecting the two baskets with her teeth. With a little effort, she lifted the heavy baskets and carefully removed them from her back before she finally put them down before her. With a swipe of the hoof, she wiped her forehead and breathed out after lifting these heavy apples all at once. "Phooey, that's some heavy stuff," she said with a breathless smile on her face. "Anywho, Ah just thought Ah'd stop by with a little somethin'. Ah know ya'll like them red apples a lot, and Ah had a little to spare so Ah thought, 'hay, why not let RD have 'em?'"
Noticing how Scootaloo was sitting with a happy face behind Rainbow Dash, Applejack thought that they probably already had their little chat. She continued to smile and wave heartily at the little filly, who just as heartily waved back. "So Ah'm guessin' the two of you've worked things out?" the cowpony said with her gaze having returned to Rainbow.
"Worked what out?" Scootaloo became a little puzzled by the cowpony's words, not to mention a little suspicious about Rainbow Dash's promise from this morning. They had been together the entire day, but it was possible Rainbow Dash had told somepony about her before she woke up. The filly then rose from the ground and trotted up to the side of Rainbow Dash, where she looked up with a serious face and a slight sense of worry. "You didn't tell anypony, did you?"
"No way," Rainbow Dash defended, waving her hoof back and forth in front of her to wipe away the filly's suspicions. She was grinning heartily so Scootaloo would not make a big deal of the situation, and continued to explain exactly what happened: "But Applejack heard about what happened between you and Applebloom the other day. She was the one who made me realize I've ignored you."
"Oh," Scootaloo responded with a sense of relief. "Yeah, that sounds about right. Sorry I doubted you, Rainbow Dash."
"Hey, no problem, Squirt," Rainbow heartily replied, giving the filly a nudge with a single hoof. "But I gotta have a little talk with AJ now. Why don't you go practice? Just don't fly too high. Don't want the wind to catch you off guard."
The filly nodded hastily, gave the rainbow-maned mare a quick hug and then rushed off, setting a distance between them of about 10 meters before she took to the air and restarted her little battle with the wind.
"Guess Ah didn't think before speaking there," Applejack said, giving Rainbow Dash an awkward smirk.
"Nah, it's cool," Rainbow responded as she looked at Scootaloo practicing with a proud look in her eyes, as if Scootaloo's progress had suddenly become as important as her own, if not more. "We've had a good chat last night. I really learned a lot about her and such. Actually, a lot happened, which is why I wanted to talk with you, pony to pony."
"Did ya find out what the problem was?" Applejack asked curiously, and Rainbow Dash returned her gaze to her as she nodded in response. The cowpony then leaned in, ready for Rainbow to tell her in a whisper. "So, what was it?"
Rainbow Dash took a deep breath and let it go as soon as her lungs were filled. "Sorry, AJ," she said with a smile. "But I promised not to tell."
"That so?" Applejack asked a little confused. She looked at Scootaloo who was practicing her flank off and then back to Rainbow Dash, who was looking at her with a strange, relaxed sort of nervousness. "Then what'd ya wannna talk to me about?"
"I've talked with Scootaloo about this and…" she took a break from speaking, soaking her lips while she was looking through her inner vocabulary in search for the right words, while Applejack nodded in anticipation. "I'm gonna adopt her."
The cowpony's jaw dropped and her eyes almost blasted out of her skull when she heard this surprising exclamation. "Hold on, whaa? But ya can't just adopt 'er. What in tarnation do ya think 'er parents would-." Before she was able to finish her sentence, she noticed how Dash was biting her bottom lip and smiling in an awkward sort of way. The rainbow-maned pony's expression was telling the whole story, and made Applejack realize part of the story on her own. "Ooooh," she said, biting her hoof as she looked back at the training filly with sympathetic eyes. "So that's why…?"
Rainbow Dash nodded, her smile having faded a bit on her face. "Yeah, that's what I felt like when I found out too. She hasn't told me anything specific yet, but she made me promise not to tell anypony about what I saw yesterday. She doesn't want anypony to pity her." She looked back over her shoulder at the filly, and once again smiled at her happy face when she was practicing in the gust. "She's really proud."
"Ah'd say," Applejack responded, though she was somewhat less pleased with the filly's stubborn nature. "But RD, ya really just gonna adopt 'er like that?"
"Well, what's the problem?" Rainbow Dash asked the cowpony with a tone of annoyance. "You said so yourself, didn't you? 'I'm the grown up. I gotta act the part,' right?"
"Yeah, but." Applejack was still a little shocked at this sudden piece of information. She rubbed her cheek with a hoof, pondering the situation and trying her best to find out what to do and say. "But suddenly deciding to adopt 'er, Ah mean, what are ya thinking, Dash?"
"I don't get you," Rainbow said, now slightly angered by Applejack's sudden shocked attitude. "First you want me to be a responsible grown-up, then when I finally decide to help her, I'm doing it wrong?"
"That's not it, Sugarcube. It's just…" The cowpony took a break from speaking here and began poking her own forehead, thinking about what sort of measures would be best in this situation. She lifted a hoof to tell Rainbow to give her some space, and used this space to close her eyes and calmly recollect everything that had been said. With her thoughts finally settling in her mind, she was able to calmly and caringly explain her thoughts to the irritated pegasus, and proceeded to do so: "Listen, RD: Ah'm glad ya figured everythin' out and Ah'm glad ya took me seriously yesterday. But ya rushing this whole thing. Ah mean, ya don't even know anything about Scootaloo's situation, do ya? Ya know bits and pieces, yeah, but ya still don't got the bigger picture: If ya wanna adopt 'er, ya gotta fill out all sorts of paperwork and whatnot. Ya gotta find out who she's been living with 'till now, what else she's kept a secret and so on. And besides, ya can't keep yer promise to Scootaloo 'bout not tellin' anypony if she's gonna live with ya?"
Suddenly realizing the sense in the cowpony's words, Rainbow Dash became a little nervous about the whole situation. She had rushed into this whole thing without a single thought about the consequences, though she was still a little confused about the last thing Applejack said. "Well, why do I have to break my promise? I don't see why I should tell anypony."
"Because," Applejack continued. "Everypony's gonna figure it out eventually. They're all gonna think it's might' strange that the two of ya suddenly live under the same roof, and then they're gonna put two and two together. They're gonna pity Scootaloo even more if she just stubbornly keeps acting like nothing's wrong, when it's obvious that somethin' is. Ah mean, even Applebloom and Sweetie Belle now knows somethin' ain't right."
"I never thought of it that way," Rainbow Dash said in a low voice as she looked to the side at the still happy filly with a couple of worried eyes. "Guess it's gonna be a tough road, huh?"
"Ya bet yer flank it's gonna be tough," Applejack concluded with a nod. "So, ya still intend to adopt 'er?"
"Of course." The rainbow-maned pony responded without a moment of hesitation. However, she quickly became a little quieter again. "Though I might have to have another little talk with her then..."
"Ya sure this is what ya want?" Applejack said with a lot of care in her words. "Ah could always help ya out here, ya know."
"Thanks AJ," Rainbow responded without looking at the farmer pony. "But I'm sure about this. I guess I've grown to like that little squirt."
With a sigh and a friendly smile, Applejack reached out a hoof and planted it on her teal friend's shoulder. "Guess there's no stoppin' ya. Well, Ah bet Scootaloo would be might' happy living with ya, Rainbow."
Rainbow nodded slowly and looked the cowpony in the eyes, a smile forming on her face. "I sure hope so."