//------------------------------//
// Play it Safe 
// Story: Ponyville Dashers 
// by AimBot 
//------------------------------//

	You raise a hoof and block the bright beam of sunlight. A moment later, the beam grows even wider. You feel a shove, and then your blanket flies off and you can hear it smack against the wall. You sit up and look around.
"Get up squirt!" Vinyl snapped, "Octi's coming in a few hours!" 
You rub your head and manage to get to your hooves, despite how tired you are. "Already?" You ask lazily.
Vinyl nods, and pushes you out the door. "Yeah, already. Come on, brush your teeth, wash your face, all that!"
You groan and roll your eyes. "Yes mother!"
Vinyl jabs you behind your shoulder, and you jump a bit. "Don't get sassy with me squirt."
As Vinyl runs downstairs to do Celestia-knows-what, you go to the bathroom. You only need three things at the moment; your toothbrush, some toothpaste, and the faucet. You apply the bright teal goop to your brush, and scrub diligently. The invigorating tingle of the minty toothpaste is enough you wake you up for the moment being.  After a minute or two of brushing, you spit in to the sink and set your toothbrush down. You turn the faucet on, and rinse out your mouth. You shake your head, trying to ignore the unsettling aftertaste of the toothpaste. 
After the sink is clear of any and all traces of toothpaste and saliva, you dunk your head under the stream of water. The cold, crisp water works wonders on waking you up. You take a washcloth from the towel rack, and wipe your face off. 
As you go down the stairs, you flick your tongue around your mouth, still trying to get rid of the aftertaste. By the time you get to the first floor, Vinyl is in the kitchen preparing... Oatmeal, maybe? It's too early to tell, and you can't smell anything familiar. Squeezing behind Vinyl (she's taking up quite a bit of space after all), you go to the refrigerator and snatch up the carton of orange juice.
With Vinyl's back turned, you open the carton and take a quick swig of the juice. It leaves an even nastier aftertaste than the toothpaste, but after another drink, all you can taste is the orange juice. You move for another drink, when you freeze.
"Hey!" Vinyl snaps, "You're lucky mom ain't here, squirt." Vinyl finished, snatching the carton away from you. She turns around, and shakes her head. Then, she takes a drink straight from the carton. 
"Hey!" You shout.
Vinyl smiles at you, "I said, you're lucky mom isn't here." Vinyl takes another drink, "And so am I." 
You laugh and shake your head, "Well then... What's for breakfast?"
"Oatmeal." Vinyl replied dully. "With cinnamon."
"Oh, because the cinnamon makes so much of a difference!" You add with a chuckle. 
Just a moment later, you hear a knock on the door. Vinyl raises an eyebrow.
"She's not supposed to be here for another hour..." Vinyl begins, "Squirt, get the door."
You scoff at Vinyl as you walk to the door. You hear the knock again as you come closer, and you open the door as soon as you can reach it. Not surprisingly, Octavia is standing at the door. She smiles warmly at you, and pats you on the head.
"Hello little one, is Vinyl here?" Octavia asks, peering over your head. 	
"Yeah," You reply, stepping aside. "Come on in Octavia."



Scootaloo ran alongside Apple Bloom towards the house, which grew in size with every step they took. Both fillies raced each other silently, both trying to get one step ahead. They both silently grinned at each other, and ran forward. Just as the details of the house came into sight, both fillies stopped, gasping for breath. They had been running for at least three blocks, after all. 
"Not bad..." Apple Bloom said, grinning, "For a pegasus..."
Scootaloo jerked her head upward, and her wings snapped open. "Oh, you did not just go there."
Apple Bloom grew a smirk, "What ya gonna do about it?"
Scootaloo squinted at Apple Bloom, and grew a look of determination. "I'm gonna win." She whispered. 
Before Apple Bloom could react, Scootaloo had taken off again. By the time Apple Bloom had began to chase, Scootaloo was leaping up the stairs, and onto the wooden porch. Scootaloo flared her wings, and reared up.
"I won! In. Your. Face!" Scootaloo cheered, barely controlling her giggle-fit. She sat down a moment later.
Apple Bloom collapsed on the porch next to Scootaloo, "Fine." She groaned. "You beat me, fair 'n square."
Just a few moments later, the door opened. Sweetie Belle stepped out, wearing her "Apple Zappers" jersey; Number Six. The jersey, contrasting the bright "Ponyville Dashers" jersey, was a dark orange with white lining. Both Scootaloo and Apple Bloom stood up.
"Are you ready for practice today?" Sweetie Belle asked, the question obviously directed at Apple Bloom. "Where's your jersey?"
Apple Bloom nodded. "AJ's bringin' it for me. What about you, Scoots? Where's your jersey?"
"I left my bag at our field, so I don't have to lug it around all the time." Scootaloo replied. "Come on, we might be late if we don't get going."
The three fillies took off, walking towards the park. The three passed the time by kicking stones, playfully jabbing each other, and humming their very own theme-song. 
"So..." Apple Bloom began, glancing at Sweetie Belle, and then staring at Scootaloo, "How's that friend of yours, Number Eleven, right?"
Scootaloo paused, "What do you mean? He's fine, as far as I know. I haven't seen him since yesterday when he walked home with me."
Sweetie Belle tapped Apple Bloom's shoulder, and whispered something in her ear. Both fillies broke out laughing. 
Scootaloo stepped back and stared, wide-eyed, "What? What's so funny?"
Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle turned to Scootaloo. "Nothin' Scoots, just something funny happened at practice yesterday."
Scootaloo squinted at the two, and shook her head. "You're just jealous 'cause my team is awesome."
Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom stared at Scootaloo. Scootaloo turned her head, and looked upward with a proud smile. 
A few moments later, the three stopped at the edge of the park. On the edge of two of the hoof-ball fields, Rainbow Dash and Applejack stood, in an apparently heated argument. 
"My foals could whoop your team!" Rainbow Dash shouted, shaking her head. "I'd bet my feathers on it!"
"My team could run laps around yours!" Applejack spat back, "I'd bet my hat on it!"
The two mares exchanged heated words for a few minutes before the three fillies stepped in. Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom attempted to push Applejack away, while Scootaloo attempted to defuse Rainbow Dash. 
Both coaches stepped away. Applejack shooed her two players towards the field opposite where they were, while Rainbow Dash stepped in front of Scootaloo.
"That's it! You're going down! I can't wait for our teams to meet, so we can crush you!" Rainbow Dash called, waving a hoof to dismiss Applejack. 
Applejack, and Rainbow Dash, turned to their Crusader players "I don't want you hanging out with them during practice." both mares scolded. 
All three Crusaders peered around their coaches, and exchanged sad looks. Before they could say a word, their coaches began pushing them towards the fields. 
Scootaloo kicked the turf as she walked, Rainbow Dash had gotten far ahead of her. "I'm not allowed to Crusade on practice days?" she asked herself silently. "That only leaves weekends... Not counting game-days..."
Scootaloo noticed a few of her teammates on the field already, trading passes or just sitting on the bleachers. Then she noticed a few unfamiliar faces in the bleachers; grown-up mares. The white unicorn mare from yesterday, and a dark gray mare sitting next to her... And the Number Eleven, right in-between them. Scootaloo grew a smile; "At least I have one friend I can visit anytime..."



You sit, silently, right in-between Vinyl and Octavia. They've both been talking about things; things you can't understand. Like something called a "date", it must've been some kind of new wagon, because Octavia went on one with a stallion a couple days ago. It must've been fun, because her and Vinyl kept bringing it up. Meanwhile, you just sat awkwardly, trying to understand whatever it was they were talking about.
After they stopped talking about the new wagon (or whatever the hay it was), Octavia looked at you.
"So, how goes hoof-ball?" Octavia asks.
"Good. I made a new friend; her name's Scootaloo." You reply.
Octavia smiles, and raises an eyebrow, "Her?"
Vinyl grins, and leans over you and whispers something into Octavia's ear. Octavia managed to stifle a giggle, while Vinyl openly broke out laughing. Octavia looks at you with a warm smile, and pats your head. 
While they discussed whatever the hay it was this time, you notice Rainbow Dash, the Apple Zappers' coach (what was her name, Applejack?), Scootaloo, Apple Bloom, and Sweetie Belle all standing in a group. It seems like Rainbow Dash and Applejack were having a rather heated argument. A few moments later, Rainbow Dash is back over in the field checking the equipment, and Scootaloo is trudging towards the field with one of the saddest looks you've ever seen. After she gets closer, she seems to notice you, and she smiles. 
When Scootaloo gets close enough, she calls out "Hey! Wanna practice passing?"
You jump off the bleachers, and trot over to her. While you walk with her, you turn around to stare at Octavia and Vinyl. They're both in a giggle-fit, and staring back at you. Neither of them can control it either. 
Scootaloo bumps you, and you look at her, "Who's that with your sister?" she asks.
"Oh, Octavia." You reply, shrugging. "She's kinda-sorta like my aunt; she's my sister's best friend, and she always gives me advice."
Scootaloo looks at the ground. "I wish I had a big sister. My brother is always gone."
You look at her with a puzzled face, "It's not all fun and games though. Since my mom is always out on business, Vinyl's like a substitute mom, too. Octavia is like a second-sister."
Scootaloo perks her head up, and cocks it sideways. "...Do you have a... dad?" She asks, as if the word was painful.
You shake your head. "No. Vinyl says our mom and dad broke up after she was born, but they got back together, and broke up again when I was born. But mom doesn't like to talk about it. What about you?" 
Scootaloo shook her head. "No. He's not dead, but I never knew him. Anyway, I think practice is starting; come on."
You follow Scootaloo to the line-up of foals, and take your place. Rainbow Dash paced up and down the line, examining her players. 
"As you all know..." Dash begins, still pacing, "Our first game is the day after tomorrow. We're going up against the Cloudy Kickers, a team made up of mostly pegasai. We've worked on everything except blocking and defense. So..." 
Rainbow Dash stops in front of you and Scootaloo, and points at you. "You. You're the first goalie. Take this; play it safe."
Dash gives you a face-mask (which is apparently mandatory for little-leagues), and sets you up in the goal. You're nervous, and maintaining balance on your rear hooves is a bit tricky. But you get used to it after a moment. 
You slide the face-mask down, and nod. "I'm ready!" 
One of the colts steps forward, and kicks a ball right at you. You take a stable stance, and jump to block. The ball flies right through your hooves, and rockets into the net. You stand back up, and shake your head. A filly steps forward, and kicks just like the colt. This time, you're ready for it. 
You take another stance, and focus. Before you know it, the ball is sitting right at your hooves. You smile under your mask, and kick the ball back. 
"Whoo!" You hear from the side-lines. When you look, you see Vinyl cheering like she normally does, she's over doing it... "That's my brother!"
Two more foals take shots at the goal. Both get blocked. Dash lands beside you, wraps a hoof around you, and smiles. 
"I think you're gonna go far kid. Looks like we got ourselves a goalie." Dash says, patting your back.



You toss your mask into your bag, and sigh. The inside of the mask is drenched with sweat, and your face is just as drenched. Even worse, a couple of times the excess sweat rolled down your face and right into your eye. Then, you had to sit out for five minutes, at least, and get it out. Vinyl and Octavia (who were both still giggling like school-fillies) were no help at all. Apparently, you're the team's main goalie now. But on the bright-side, you got the mask for free. 
As you tossed your jersey (the collar was soaked far more than the rest of it) into your bag, Scootaloo came up next to you. 
"Hey," She said, bumping you, "You're not a half-bad goalie."
"Thanks." You reply, "You're pretty good with offense."
"It's nothing really..." She begins, her face flushed, "Just kick the ball and run."
You zip up your bag, and strap it around your shoulders. As you begin to walk towards Vinyl and Octavia, Scootaloo follows, to your dismay. 
"Uh, hey..." She starts, a tad nervously, "Is it alright if I, uh, hang out with you for a bit?"
The question stuns you. You stop in your tracks, and that familiar knot in your insides comes back. Your mind starts screaming at you, "Of course she can! Say yes you idiot!", but one last thought remains, WHY?
"Huh?" is the first thing you manage to choke out, "Uh... Wouldn't your other friends miss you?"
Scootaloo shakes her head meekly. "No... Since they're on the Apple Zappers, I'm not allowed to play with them on practice days."
The knot in your stomach tightens. "Oh, um.... Sure... Vinyl won't mind."