//------------------------------// // Chapter 8 In Black and White // Story: In The Twilight of Harmony’s End // by Leonofsweden //------------------------------// In the Twilight of Harmony’s End Chapter 8 In Black and White **** Somepony was banging insistently on the door. Reluctantly, Scootaloo pushed herself out of the comfort of her warm and comfortable bed. She could still hear it call out to her as she stumbled out of her room and down the stairs. “Geez! I’m coming! I’m coming!” Scootaloo yelled out in annoyance as the persistent banging continued. When she arrived downstairs, Scootaloo rubbed the sleep from her eyes before unlocking the door. Once opened, she had no choice but to look into the bright sunshine of the new day. Scootaloo squinted to shield her eyes from the sunlight’s glare, making out three pony shadows before her. “Hello, Scootaloo,” the voice of Twilight Sparkle said. “Is Miss Bad Winnie in by any chance? We would very much like to have a word with the two of you regarding the last couple of days. I would also very much enjoy having a look around. I was surprised to learn that there was an orphanage outside of Ponyville, not to mention that you were staying here,” the librarian continued while trying to look over Scootaloo into the orphanage. “What?” Scootaloo uttered in surprise, any hint of drowsiness from having just woken up immediately disappearing from the little filly now caught in the spotlight, so to speak. “We feel that things may have gone a bit out of hoof as of late, so we feel a few ground rules must be set to avoid this in the future,” Rarity’s dainty voice chimed in from the side. “What?” Scootaloo said again. “Listen; just bring Miss Bad Winnie out so we can sort this out, grown-up like. Once this hooey’s been cleared up, I reckon things can go back to the way they’re meant ta be. ‘Cept you won’t be setting a hoof back on Sweet Apple Acres anytime soon,” Applejack said sternly, earning two sharp looks from the other mares standing at the door. “But I still reckon I owe ya an apology for mah hollerin’ at ya yesterday, even if ya kinda deserved it…” Applejack followed up reluctantly. “WHAT!?!” Scootaloo now shouted as she glared up at Applejack, anger radiating off her like heat. “Now, everypony, please calm down,” Twilight interjected when she saw that the exchange was heading towards a new confrontation between the two strong-willed ponies. “We came here to resolve things, not aggravate them,” she finished and gave AJ an even more pointed glare. “Fine!” Applejack said with a huff. “I’ll let you handle this Twi. Seein’ as it’s why we brought ya here an’ all…” “Indeed…” Rarity affirmed. “We do seem to need a pony uninvolved in the issue at hoof to mediate between us.” “And I’m very glad to help you solve this problem,” Twilight proclaimed happily to her companions. “After all, that’s what good friends do for each other.” “So in other words, you’re all here to gang up on me?” Scootaloo scuffed. “Well, I shouldn’t be surprised, really,” Scootaloo affirmed in a very cold voice. All three adult mares gasped at Scootaloo’s statement. “Scootaloo? That’s not true-” Twilight began. “Good heavens, we would never-” Rarity proclaimed dramatically at the accusation. “Why you little vermin!” Applejack yelled, cutting both her friends off. “Ya can’t even last two seconds ‘fore ya go accusin’ up-standing ponies of being nuthin’ more than rowdy hooligans like yerself!” Applejack spat in anger. “Yeah… You all definitely seem very open-minded in this little blame game you’ve got started here,” Scootaloo deadpanned with ill-hidden contempt. “Ah’m tired of wastin’ mah time! Let’s just head on in ta Miss Bad Winnie so we can get this done and over with,” Applejack barked and proceeded to push past Scootaloo in the doorway. “GET OUT!” Scootaloo yelled in anger. “You think you can just tell me I’m not welcome at your place and then come barging into my home the next day!” “Applejack darling, manners please. Also don’t take this the wrong way Scootaloo, but we really need to talk to Miss Bad Winnie so we can work this whole mess out,” Rarity spoke softly and patted Scootaloo on the head as she walked by. “Once we are done, we will be on our way again and you won’t have to see us. Unless you want to, of course.” “This is for the best Scootaloo, so just bear with it for now. And, please, be considerate about AJ; she’s been a bit short-tempered lately because of things you don’t really need to worry about. It’s not just you, so don’t take it too personally,” Twilight said, smiling down at the little orange filly. “Now, please tell us where we can find Miss Bad Winnie.” Scootaloo ground her teeth together as she watched Applejack storm into the kitchen of the orphanage while Rarity stood at the bottom of the stairs with a frown on her face. Obviously, she didn’t appreciate what she saw when she looked into the spartanly furnished living room. They want to find Miss Bad Winnie do they? Well, maybe I’ll show them exactly where they can start looking! Scootaloo thought with a sneer forming across her face. “I must say that the decor is a bit drab…” Rarity muttered. “Perhaps I should offer Miss Bad Winnie a few pointers.” “She ain’t in the kitchen!” Applejack called out with a bit of annoyance in her voice. “Does Miss Bad Winnie have an office?” Twilight wondered, to which Scootaloo only pointed down the hall, at the closed door at the end of it. “Well, why didn’t you say she was there in the first place!” Applejack grumbled in annoyance as she came out of the kitchen and immediately turned down towards Miss Bad Winnie’s office. “Applejack, you’re not being very sociable,” Rarity reprimanded soothingly. “Oh, can it Rarity!” Applejack shot back, “Ah’m lookin’ ta get this hogwash out of the way lickety-split so I can get back to working the Acres!” “Why, I never…” Rarity scoffed and followed the farm pony with a rather heated glare. “As you can see…” Twilight said with a sigh as she walked away from Scootaloo, “Applejack is rather short with every pony right now.” With a couple of loud knocks, Applejack tried to get the attention of Miss Bad Winnie, who she thought was inside the office. “That’s enough Applejack, if you please,” Rarity said as she walked up to the door and opened it up instead of banging on it like a brute. “I’m so sorry for the noise, Miss Bad Winnie, but my friends and I would like to have a-” Rarity stopped abruptly when she noticed that the room was indeed empty. With a raised eyebrow, she turned back towards the little orange filly still standing at the door, glaring towards the three mares who had just barged into her home. “That does it! You’d best tell us where the hay we can find Miss Bad Winnie right now-” “Or you’ll what?” Scootaloo asked, challengingly. “Beat me again? Tie me up and throw me in the shed to freeze overnight while the Timberwolves claw at the walls? Or maybe not feed me for a few days?” All three mares looked back at Scootaloo in complete horror at what she said, even Applejack. “Scootaloo, that’s really horrible of you to say! Of course we wouldn’t do anything of the sort, nopony would ever do that to somepony else!” Twilight reprimanded sharply. Scootaloo just rolled her eyes and scoffed. “It would be nice if that were true, but unlike you three, I don’t live in a perfect little dream world surrounded by my ever-loving family,” Scootaloo hissed and looked pointedly at Applejack. Then she shifted her gaze towards the prim, white fashionista. “Nor am I obsessed with the latest junk to grab the attention of those snooty and egotistical nobles!” the orange filly continued crossly, electing a gasp from Rarity. “And I sure as Tartarus didn’t grow up in some fantasy castle, doted on by the princess and given every possible chance to succeed, all because I was startled by a Sonic Rainboom at my already failed entry exam to the school nopony can even get near unless they’re wealthy unicorns to begin with!” Scootaloo shouted angrily at Twilight. The three older mares were now standing with their jaws hanging open, unable to fully comprehend what this little filly had just yelled at them. “I, on the other hoof, have been constantly living in a nightmare ever since my parents died! It was bearable up until three years ago when Snips and Snails were adopted, leaving Miss Bad Winnie free to focus all her attention on me!” Scootaloo shouted at the oblivious ponies, living in their separate world from hers, where everypony was apparently happy. “I thought…” Scootaloo started but choked on the words, tears streaming down her cheeks against her will. “I thought that finally Miss Bad Winnie would see that I wasn’t such a terrible filly when she could finally spend some time with me one-on-one…” The little orange filly grit her teeth while she wiped away her tears. “I had never been so wrong! Beforehoof, she never spared me a second thought, but when she had nothing but me to focus on, her true colors really started shining through!” “Scootaloo…” Twilight said shakily, “just… just tell us what’s wrong, and we will help you. I promise.” “Ha!” Scootaloo laughed harshly and glared back at the purple alicorn. “Now you want to help me? When I don’t need it anymore? Like I haven’t asked for help before! Like I haven’t been promised help before! But all you’re thinking of doing is talking to Miss Bad Winnie, isn’t it Twilight?!” the young filly yelled. “What? Well, of course… I’m sure if we talk to her about-” “And then you would have just walked home, convinced of how well you handled that situation and I would have spent another night tied up in the shed while you slept in your warm and comfortable bed!” Scootaloo cut Twilight off. “Now you cut that out right this minute, Scoots!” AJ said in a stern voice. “Ah don’t believe fer one second that that’s really what’s goin’ on. Miss Bad Winnie’s good at takin’ care of fillies an’ colts: this wouldn’t be her job if she weren’t. Ah’m sure if ya just spoke up about it, instead of spewin’ all this here nonsense about yer life bein’ Tartarus, she coulda helped ya fix any little problem ya had.” “Oh… am I interrupting something? I could come back later… If that’s okay with you girls,” the meek voice of Fluttershy sounded from the door behind Scootaloo, causing all four of them turned towards her. “Flutters! Perfect timin’! Now we can get back on track here,” Applejack said with glee as she waved Fluttershy into the orphanage. “Oh… it’s okay… As I said, I can come back later-” “No! Angel deserves an’ apology. You said he was kicked just ‘cuz he picked up this here hooligan’s carrot, which she dropped. So Scootaloo ain’t gettin’ mah apology ‘til she fesses up ta what she did yesterday,” Applejack said sternly. “You want me to come clean about yesterday AJ?” Scootaloo said through clenched teeth. “I punched Angel after he tried to steal the only food I’d managed to get my hooves on during the entire day! It’s true that I dropped it, but that was after he’d kicked me in the face! And this isn’t the first time he’s done that to me: or other foals, for that matter! Also, just so you don’t misunderstand me: if I ever get the chance, I’ll make sure he ends up in the jaws of a Timberwolf so he can’t pull anything like that ever again!” the little orange Pegasus roared as loudly as she could at Fluttershy and Angel. The yellow Pegasus clutched the white bunny to her chest as she flew out, tears streaming down her face. “Darling, wait!” Rarity called after Fluttershy, but to no avail; she was already gone. Angered, the white unicorn turned towards the orange filly. “Scootaloo! How could you? That was just appalling behavior: quite unbefitting a lady!” “Do I look like- HEY!?!” “That’s it! Yer goin’ to yer room right now!” AJ affirmed with steel in her voice as she picked up Scootaloo with one limb. “You girls see if ya can’t find Miss Bad Winnie - Ah’ll make sure this troublemaker stays put!” With that, Applejack started dragging a wildly kicking and screaming Scootaloo up the stairs. When the stronger Earth pony mare made it to the top of the stairs, she saw that the closest door to the stairs was open. She then made her way over, unceremoniously shoved Scootaloo into the room and slammed the door shut behind the filly. Applejack was looking for a chair to block the door with when she saw that the door was conveniently equipped with a bolt lock on the outside - she used it to lock the rowdy filly in the room. “Now you sit in there and think about what you’ve done! Once we’ve talked to Miss Bad Winnie about what ta do with you, we’ll let ya out, but not before that, ya hear me?” Applejack yelled through the door. “Buck you!” Scootaloo shouted back while hitting the door repeatedly. With a huff, Applejack left Scootaloo to her pouting and rejoined her friends in search of Miss Bad Winnie. **** It had been over an hour when Scootaloo finally heard several sets of hooves making their way up the stairs. It had only taken them a short while to discover the blood stains on the grass in the backyard, and how it left a very gruesome trail leading off towards Everfree forest. This discovery starting a very loud and frantic discussion between the mares, which Scootaloo couldn’t really follow from where she was. Once they had established that something was terribly wrong at the orphanage, and that Miss Bad Winnie was most likely dead, Twilight, Rarity and Applejack had quickly made their way back inside again. But to Scootaloo’s surprise, they didn’t come for her; they instead made their way back to the office on the first floor, where they started rummaging through whatever Miss Bad Winnie had in there. Now, as the bolt locking her in was released, Scootaloo looked up from where she lay on top of her bed as the three mares made their way into the barren room, one after the other. Twilight entered first, of course, and set herself in the middle of the room. She looked sorrowfully at the orange Pegasus lying on the bed before once again starting to read the material she brought with her. Rarity instead moved to the foot of the bed, looking at Scootaloo with equally sorrowful understanding and pity. Lastly, Applejack closed the door again and leaned against it, looking anywhere but towards the little filly she had treated rather harshly over the last couple of days. With a long sigh, Twilight finally looked away from the books and paperwork she had brought with her. “Okay… So I should… Hang on a second…” Twilight looked back into her book again, flipping through a few pages. “Aha… okay… that question makes sense…” She muttered and looked back up at the orange filly in front of her, “So, how are you feeling Scootaloo?” “…seriously?” Scootaloo answered, looking back at Twilight with a blank expression. “You’re going to ask me questions from…” she looked at the cover of the book and read out loud, “Foal psychology for dummies?” Scootaloo couldn’t help but laugh. “This is going to be hilarious.” Twilight exchanged an uncertain look with Rarity and Applejack. “Look, Scootaloo - is it okay if I call you Scootaloo?” Twilight asked, as if this was the first time that they had ever met. Scootaloo couldn’t help but face hoof now. “Twilight, we’ve known each other for three years: it’s okay that you call me by my name,” The filly answered calmly as she looked up at the purple alicorn again. “Oh right…” Twilight answered and start shuffling her hooves nervously, “we just need to be careful with how we approach this trauma you have experienced.” “Yeah right, this is all about my trauma. Nothing at all about what you three are feeling at the moment,” Scootaloo scoffed, causing the three adult mares look at each other even more uncertainly; the young filly wasn’t reacting at all like they thought she would. “Okay then darling: could you please tell us what you know of what happened to Miss Bad Winnie?” Rarity instead tried. “She was eaten by Timberwolves,” Scootaloo said without as much as a stutter. “Oh, you poor dear! It must have been awful: hearing something like that while hiding under your bed,” Rarity said and moved up to sit beside Scootaloo, trying to smile comfortingly down at her. “Hiding under the bed? I saw the whole thing,” the little filly said and then shocked the three mares by smiling broadly, “I can’t tell you how relieved I was! I was finally free from her thanks to those Timberwolves.” The eerie quiet that settled over the room was more than a little unnerving for Twilight, who just stared at Scootaloo. Rarity had pulled her hoof back as if it had been burned. And finally, Applejack just couldn’t hold it in any longer. “What in tarnation did you just say, young filly?!?” AJ yelled in disbelief, to which Scootaloo only raised an eyebrow. “No, no! Wait Applejack! This actually makes perfect sense according to the book!” Twilight said stabbing her hoof at a particular page. “Scootaloo is suppressing her feelings by mentally alienating herself from her caretaker, thereby making the pain seems smaller than it actually is…” “I don’t know Twilight…” Applejack said suspiciously and gave a little shudder, “she looked pleased as punch ta me when she said that about Miss Bad Winnie being eaten.” “And why shouldn’t I?” Scootaloo cut in before Twilight could continue her psychological rant, “She had left me tied up at the door to go fetch a hammer in the shed, so she could destroy any sliver of chance I’d ever had of flying by smashing my wings to bits!” Scootaloo screamed at a now very shocked Applejack. Twilight looked at Scootaloo with wide eyes and Rarity, despite her white coat, was even paler than usual. “Scootaloo, I know you’re hurting right now,” Twilight said soothingly when she had finally gathered herself again, “But that’s still not an excuse for you to go making up accusations like that. It would just be horrible if somepony actually started believing that about Miss Bad Winnie.” Scootaloo couldn’t help but stare at the purple alicorn. She then looked over to Rarity, who was fanning herself as she tried to regain her composure. For her part, Applejack just looked at Scootaloo, a very angry expression adorning her face once more. “I’m banging my head against the wall here, aren’t I?” Scootaloo asked in absolute disbelief, “You three are going to make sure that whatever is said about what happened here fits into your own little picture of how the world should work… no matter if it’s to truth or not.” “Darling we know-” “It doesn’t matter that Miss Bad Winnie has been hitting me every day for three years, or that she’s been starving me every now and then just to amuse herself, or even made me sleep in the shed in the dead of winter! Of course I didn’t sleep those icy cold nights; if I had fallen asleep I would never have woken up again!” Once again, the oppressing silence was back in the room after Scootaloo’s statement. None of the grown mares really knew how to proceed, what with the discussion going in the direction that it had. This was so vastly different from what they had expected the little filly to do, that they simply couldn’t process it. “Okay… Well…” Twilight said while clearing her throat, “it is clear that this trauma has left Scootaloo much more rattled than we first believed. We should send somepony from the mental ward of the hospital to take a closer look at her as soon as we can,” The purple alicorn continued, as if Scootaloo was no longer even in the room, “once we have determined what’s wrong with her, we can move on from there.” Scootaloo could now feel icy chills running down her spine; she was telling them what really happened and they weren’t listening at all. It did not fit into their world, so they would not accept it, and that was that. “WHY WON’T YOU LISTEN TO ME!?!” Scootaloo screamed in utter dismay, once again forcing the three mares to look towards her. Fidgeting a bit, Twilight walked up to the now openly crying filly. “Scootaloo,” Twilight began as soothingly as she could, “I know this is difficult for you to understand right now, but we are generally trying to help you. You’re confused, frightened and scared. Once you’ve calmed down, you’ll see that whatever fantasy you build up isn’t real.” “THIS ISN’T A FANTASY! SHE’S A HORRIBLE MONSTER!” Scootaloo yelled even more desperately, while she backed away from the outstretched hoof Twilight was trying to comfort her with. Growing a bit frustrated with the young filly’s refusal to see the logical side of things, Twilight did the only thing she thought could to solve this problem: start peppering Scootaloo with facts. “I’m sorry Scootaloo, but Miss Bad Winnie has been working here for years without any complaints being raised,” Twilight stated and levitated quite a substantial mass of paperwork up beside her, “and from the reports on you in this official documentation, you have been working against her every chance you got. If anything, I would even say you should be grateful for how well she’s been taking care of you, what with all the lying and mischief you are constantly up to. And don’t try to deny it young filly; it is written here in black and white.” “What!” Scootaloo said in shock, “but that’s not true! She’s lying! She-” “SHUT IT!” AJ suddenly roared, “Ah get thet yer real deluded. I can tell you ain’t lyin’, an’ that’s ‘cuz you actually believe yer tellin’ the truth. Ah get it! But if ya don’t quit bad mouthin’ Miss Bad Winnie right this instant, I’ll give you such a spanking ya won’t be able to sit down until next winter wrap-up! For Celestia’s sake Scootaloo, she’s darn well the closest thing ya got to a family!” Pressing herself against the wall, Scootaloo looked back in disbelief and no small amount of fear at the looks she was receiving from Applejack, Twilight and Rarity. Each was very different, but one and all conveyed the same message: they didn’t believe her for a second. Suddenly, a voice sounded in her head, snapping her out of her stupor. They are coming for you little one… The voice from last evening said urgently in her head. “No!” Scootaloo screamed, making the three mares in the room flinch at the terror in her voice. You have to flee now! It’s your only chance! The voice proclaimed. “Darling don’t be scared, Applejack is not going to hit you, I promise,” Rarity said daintily while giving the apple farmer a very stern look, “Now please calm down and we will get everything sorted as best we can.” Rarity, Twilight and Applejack were now standing much closer to the bed, looking worriedly at the clearly panicking orange filly. Oh yes… They’ll make you see things their way before long… and when they’re finished with you, you’ll be standing at Miss Bad Winnie’s funeral, telling every pony how well she treated you and how sorry you are that she’s gone… The voice said, finishing in a sneer. “NO! I WOULD RATHER DIE!” Scootaloo shrieked, and hurled herself off the bed between Twilight and Rarity. The terrified filly took a tumble as she landed, but almost instantly bounced up and shot off towards the unguarded door. But just as Scootaloo reached it, the door was encased in a purple glow making the desperate filly slam face first into it, even though she pulled down the handle to get out. “Scootaloo, calm down!” Twilight yelled anxiously. Because yelling at some pony that was clearly in a panic always calms them down. The thunder of hooves hitting the wooden floor told Scootaloo that Applejack was inbound. With all the strength she could muster, Scootaloo pushed off from the door, narrowly avoiding being blindsided by the farmer. The little filly spun around, blood running down her snout; frantically looking for a way out. “Oh dear... please calm down Scootaloo, you’re hurting yourself.” Rarity said in dismay. “Applejack, please stop frightening her further by doing anything else rash!” That was when Scootaloo’s way to freedom was made clear to her. With her wings buzzing and hooves digging into the floor, she shot off like she had been fired from a cannon - propelling herself straight through the window in a mighty crash. “SCOOTALOO!!!” Three panicked voices screamed from behind her while she plummeted towards the ground. With her wings buzzing even harder, Scootaloo managed to slow her descent enough to only have a hard impact, and not a crippling one. “Ohffff!” Scootaloo grunted as she hit the ground and rolled several times. “Scootaloo!” Twilight’s voice called out again. The adrenaline coursing through the young filly’s body made her bounce up immediately and start running for the Everfree forest. Just as she reached the border, she heard a pop behind her, signaling that Twilight Sparkle had just teleported there. “Scootaloo wait!” The alicorn’s desperate voice called out, “Don’t go in there! You are hurt and bleeding!” Twilight yelled even more desperately; she knew there wasn’t a predator in the forest that wouldn’t catch the scent of Scootalo’s blood with the way she had been cut up going through the window. But it was now too late; Scootaloo was lost in the undergrowth of the dark forest. Twilight could do nothing but stare into the murky woods while Rarity and Applejack came running up behind her. **** Scootaloo was running. She had been running for what felt like hours while the voice had told her to go right or left; faster or to freeze in place; hide or run her little legs off. STOP! The voice’s shout echoed in her head, into the bushes and stay quiet. NOW! Having learned to trust the voice’s instructions the hard way earlier, Scootaloo immediately jumped into the nearest bush and tried getting her breathing under control. Not even ten seconds later, four Timberwolves shot past the Bush she was hiding in. But to her great dismay, the lead wolf suddenly stopped abruptly, almost getting run over by his followers. Agitatedly, it started to sniff the ground, moving around in a circle, before it lifted his head back the way they had come from. RUN! The voice yelled with clear worry, Run towards your left; it’s your only hope! Scootaloo exploded out of the bush in the direction she had been told to go. Behind her, a long chilling howl sounded, proclaiming that the Timberwolves were now truly on the hunt for her. With her heart racing and lungs burning with effort, Scootaloo ran onward. She was running faster than she even thought possible. However, even as fast she was running, the Timberwolves were clearly gaining on her. With tears streaming down her cheeks, Scootaloo burst out into a clearing… only to immediately come to a screeching halt, leaving long furrows in the ground. With eyes wide in disbelief, Scootaloo looked up at the being standing in front of her. “Oh, come on! This isn’t fair!” She yelled. She was answered by the loud roar from a Manticore, the beast having been rudely woken by her loud entrance into its preferred napping spot. The Manticore began moving in on Scootaloo; its massive frame overshadowing her while still lightly padding towards its intended snack on massive filly-sized paws; licking its lips at the free meal before it. When its focus was abruptly shifted towards the Timberwolves who burst into the clearing after the little pony. They too came to an abrupt halt when they saw what was waiting for them. The wolves started growling fiercely at the Manticore. It roared out in a clear challenge in response: spreading its tiny wings and raising its large stinger. An instant later, the four Timberwolves were fighting tooth to claw with the Manticore. One of the Wolves was immediately reduced to nothing more than splinters before two of them could pull the Manticore to the ground, leaving the third free to go for the throat. But before it could reach its target, its back was pierced by the Manticore’s stinger. The venom that was now being pumped into the Timberwolf had quite the effect, because the Timberwolves let out howls of pain before shuddering and collapsing into pieces. The magical essence of the Timberwolf oozed out of the previously animated wood and disappeared back towards wherever Timberwolves called home. Just then Scootaloo noticed how the first Timberwolf the Manticore had struck down was now starting to reassemble itself from its fragmented pieces. Move filly… The voice ordered sharply, they will not fight forever. As the yellow eyes once again lit up in the previously dead Timberwolf, Scootaloo spun around and started running away from the battle as fast as her little hooves could carry her. **** Shortly thereafter, the little orange filly could finally see where it was the voice had been leading her all day. An old castle ruin was situated on the other side of a small rope bridge connecting the isolated cliff the castle was on to the rest of the forest. The sun was now hovering low in the sky, painting the world in a purple twilight. Under any other circumstances, the sight would have made even Scootaloo take a second look at the beauty of it. As the circumstances were now, Scootaloo hadn’t even noticed the soon to be setting sun. Panting heavily, she looked behind her. Scootaloo couldn’t hear anything, but she knew the Timberwolves were still tracking her, and that Manticore couldn’t be far behind either. It had actually been her lucky day that the two predators had found her at the more or less same time; they’d wound up fighting each other for the honor of eating her, then actually fully concentrating on hunting her through the Everfree. Hurry… The wood spirits are closing in… and I cannot confuse them for much longer… The voice told her. That was all the prompting the exhausted little filly needed. With stumbling steps she crossed, the rickety bridge, more or less collapsing the minute she was at the end of it. Good… Almost none of the creatures in this forest will dare tread upon this hollow ground… But ponies and dragons unfortunately will, therefore you have to make it inside the castle before you can rest, my brave little one… The voice said soothingly. “Oh, come on…” Scootaloo panted, “I’m dying here…” Hardly… troublesome your road has been, but dying you are not… The voice said with mirth, besides, now you are finally within my reach, I will be able to help you more than ever… No sooner had the voice finished did Scootaloo feel her aches and pains starting to fade away. “Huh?” The little filly uttered in surprise when the soreness of her body disappeared. The injuries were still there - she could clearly see the cuts and bruises all over her body - but thankfully, she no longer felt them. Without feeling the soreness of her body anymore, Scootaloo stood up, but quickly realized she wasn’t okay by a long shot; her legs trembled beneath her from just the effort of holding her up. Now take heed… You no longer feel your injuries, but they are still there… The voice warned. Fierce growls now sounded from behind Scootaloo. When she looked back, she could see that the Timberwolves had finally arrived at the bridge. However, just like the voice had promised, they did not try to cross. They growled and howled and snapped towards the little filly in agitation. Still, caution is the better part of valor, so Scootaloo started making her way onwards. On very unsteady legs, she managed to make her way over to the entrance of the castle complex. As she came in through the open double doors, made of thick, sturdy oak, she was greeted by a crumbling hall. The roof had caved in, and several of the pillars were broken. In the middle of the hall stood and ornamental-looking sculpture, with five arms stretching out in different directions. If Scootaloo remembered Rainbow Dash’s numerous re-accountings of the Nightmare Moon tale, then this was where they had found the elements of harmony in their dormant form. Yes it is… The voice whispered in Scootaloo’s head, now continue further in; you will not be able to sleep comfortably here without a roof. Too tired to really argue anymore, Scootaloo simply staggered on. Through the broken back window, the little filly could see a stairway leading up into a different part of the castle: for some reason, she felt that that was where she had to go. Slowly making her way through the courtyard that separated the hall she came out of from this other structure she felt she had to get to, Scootaloo noticed that she had more and more trouble keeping her eyes open. If she fell down here in this tall, and most likely wonderfully soft grass, there was no doubt in her mind that she would fall asleep immediately. Stubbornly, she trudged on, making her way up the stairs and arriving at the entrance of the former tower. After staggering on through a small curved hallway, Scootaloo emerged into a throne room which, mercifully, had a completely intact roof. You have suffered much today, my young one… But you are almost done... just reach the dais at the end of the hall... then, you may rest in safety while I hold vigil. The voice promised soothingly. With a last effort of will, Scootaloo made her way over to the three steps leading up on the dais. As she staggered to the center of it, all she could see were the remnants of some old, broken ornamental armor laying scattered on the floor. Now, my young one… The voice cooed softly, sleep, and I will heal you… Scootaloo just collapsed onto her side amongst the splinters of the armor. Just before she closed her eyes, Scootaloo could have sworn she saw one of the smallest pieces of the armor turn to liquid shadow and start moving over the floor towards her. “Okay… That’s…” But she couldn’t utter another word, Scootaloo’s wary body and mind finally gave out, plunging down into blessed sleep. **** Thanks to Mikemeiers - pre-reader/editor Thanks to Evanescyan - pre-reader/editor Thanks to Syvvak - pre-reader/editor