Even long after Scootaloo had joined into the Cutie Mark Crusaders' 'battle-cry' as Apple Bloom called it, not a single one of them said a word as they sat awkwardly looking back and forth at one another. Sweetie Belle was looking about the back of the hut, as if hoping to find some sort of idea tucked away in a dark corner, while Apple Bloom was hunched over the stool that she rested her forelegs upon, a look of intense concentration like none Scootaloo had ever seen before etched into her features. Scootaloo herself was just sitting quietly, contemplating wither to speak or not when Sweetie Belle finally spoke up.
"Well, I understand wanting to help Scootaloo, but... How exactly do we go about that?" Sweetie Belle asked, looking to Apple Bloom. Apple Bloom for the most part just ran her hooves over her head and through her mane, obviously lost in trying to find an answer to the question. Meanwhile, Scootaloo just sank further into the stool she was resting upon, figuring that neither Apple Bloom nor Sweetie Belle would have an answer. A few more moments of silence left the CMC lost in thought, nearly forgetting their surroundings. Each one of them would take sips of the warm brew Zecora had brought them before grunting (except for Sweetie Belle, who let out a 'ladylike humph') before thinking for a bit and taking another sip, just to repeat the process. Scootaloo figured Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle were a little lost in thought, so she decided to speak up, even though she wished to remain silent.
"Umm, girls, I don't mean to interrupt your thoughts, but if we are not going to figure out something soon, we really should get going," Scootaloo said, her voice a bit less forceful that was normal for her. She hated to stop them, but already they had been at Zecora's for nearly two hours, meaning that the sun was no doubt already low in the sky. Not only was it impolite to Zecora, but even the somewhat well-worn path from Zecora’s hut to Ponyville was much more dangerous at night. Both Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle looked at each other, knowing what Scootaloo said was true.
“But we can’t just go back,” Apple Bloom argued. Both Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle gave her a confused look.
“Why not?” Sweetie Belle asked. Apple Bloom just gave her an exacerbated look.
“Because we still have not solved Scootaloo’s problem! You would just go home to Rarity and forget about her?” Apple Bloom asked, more than a bit irritated by her lack of thoughtfulness about their friend.
“Apple Bloom, I understand wanting to help, but it will do us no good it something happens to the three of us in the woods,” Sweetie Belle argued back. By now, both of them had stopped actually paying attention to Scootaloo, who was sitting just to the side of the slowly escalating argument. Even as Apple Bloom opened her mouth to argue her point further, Scootaloo spoke the idea that was slowly worming its way deeper and deeper into her mind.
“Perhaps it would not be so bad if something happened to me…” Scootaloo said, her eyes downcast. Both Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom sat speechless, mouths partly open as their minds slowly processed the implications of what Scootaloo had just said.
“What was that?” Apple Bloom asked, still believing her ears had deceived her. Scootaloo finally looked up, staring directly into the eyes of her friends as she spoke with and unwavering conviction this time.
“Perhaps it would not be so bad if something happened to me,” Scootaloo said firmly, making it clear to the both of them that they had indeed heard her correctly. Before either of them could think of how to respond, Scootaloo elaborated.
“Think about it. I am the reason Rainbow Dash is losing her flight. If something happened to me, the whole deal would be off, right? The flight that I stole would then be returned to Rainbow Dash,” She explained. The idea was sound in her mind, but it was instantly obvious that her friends did not think the same.
“Scootaloo, how dare you even think about something as horrible as that! I cannot believe that you would even consider that an option! Besides, there is no way to know if it would even work,” Sweetie Belle shouted angrily. Scootaloo, and Apple Bloom, were both taken aback, seeing as they both expected it to be Apple Bloom that would deliver the scolding.
“Well, even if we are not sure, it is a far better idea than anything anypony else has thought of so far. Besides, if it was Rainbow Dash-“ It was now that Scootaloo was cut off mid-sentence.
“It doesn’t matter if it is for Rainbow Dash or not, it’s just not right! No pony should have to die for the sake of another! Besides…” Sweetie Belle carried on in an angry tone, though as she spoke, her facial expression began to change, and she even eventually began to tear up.
“- would you just die and leave us behind?! There is no way that is fair,” Sweetie Belle said, slowly starting to openly weep. Scootaloo, who was standing now after the heated argument, took a step backwards. Her expression changed from one of anger, to one of confusion, and even again to one of shame.
“I know you both care about me, but this isn’t about just me. This is also about Rainbow Dash, and let’s be honest there as well, she is a lot more important than I am,” Scootaloo said, unable to make eye contact with either Apple Bloom or Sweetie Belle now. In the end, it was Apple Bloom who spoke next, though in a much gentler tone than earlier.
“Scootaloo, if you were being honest, than you know that Rainbow Dash would never think that. You are her family, her sister. How do you think she would feel if she knew that you died because of her?” she asked as she slowly moved closer, setting a very gentle hoof on Scootaloo’s side. Scootaloo wanted to argue, to say it was different since they were not related, but if anypony knew family, it was Apple Bloom. There was one point, however, that she did find a flaw with.
“I understand what you are saying, but even then it would not be her fault, it would be a choice I made on my own, of my own will,” Scootaloo affirmed. Whether it was to convince Apple Bloom, or herself, she was uncertain of however.
“Scootaloo, do you truly believe that Rainbow Dash of all people will see it that way?” Apple Bloom asked, looking Scootaloo directly in the eye. No, of course not. Rainbow Dash would blame herself and never forgive herself. Scootaloo, who had started trembling slightly, sat down once more.
“I don’t actually want to die,” Scootaloo said, the realization of what she had actually been saying finally washing over her fully. Apple Bloom moved closer, embracing her dear friend even as Sweetie Belle whipped a few more tears from her eyes and also moved to hug Scootaloo, who returned both of their hugs.
“I’m sorry, to both of you. I spoke without thinking,” Scootaloo said, the tender moment lasting a few moments. In the back of her mind, there was only one thought. ‘Where would I be without my two best friends?’
The trio broke apart a few seconds later, each seeming to cry, yet each and every one of them wearing a smile. In the end, they had accomplished nothing, yet they knew they had to leave. They all worked to make sure that Zecora’s hut was even cleaner than when they had arrived. A few short minutes later, they each thanked and bade farewell to Zecora, who smiled and even asked them to come again, though a few parting words caught the interest of the Cutie Mark Crusaders.
“If a cure you seek, back to the beginning must you peek,” she said, giving a small smile and bowing her head before closing her door, leaving the three fillies to ponder her words.
“If a cure you seek, back to the beginning must you peek? What is that supposed to mean?” Sweetie Belle asked as they began to trot slowly though the Everfree Forest. As they moved along, they continue to converse about Zecora’s words.
“I don’t really know. Her words are always so cryptic thanks to her rhymes,” Apple Bloom said, her mind still attempt to decipher the message.
“I guess we first have to figure out the ‘beginning’ Zecora spoke of. What do you suppose that means?” Apple Bloom asked. Almost instantly, both she and Sweetie Belle looked over to Scootaloo.
“What, all of a sudden you think I will know the answer to her riddle?” Scootaloo asked, giving both of them a look of mock agitation. Sweetie Belle, however, just nodded.
“Well, when you think about it, Zecora probably meant the beginning of the curse, which was…” she stated, trailing off in thought. Then it clicked for Scootaloo.
“The Shadow, entering my dream!” Scootaloo stated in revelation. Both Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom nodded in understanding.
“Now, what does she mean by ‘peek’? What exactly are we supposed to find at this ‘beginning’?” Sweetie Belle asked, once more looking to Scootaloo with Apple Bloom.
“Well, if I had to guess, you might not mean peek as a literal statement. I think what she was trying to tell us was to find the Shadow again, so he can make this right!” Scootaloo exclaimed, giving both Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom a smile. They looked at each other, then back to Scootaloo.
“Well, I reckon that makes sense, but then the question is, how?” Apple Bloom asked still a bit confused. Scootaloo just sighed.
“Think! When I was first approached, I was asleep, which means,” Scootaloo said, trailing off to see if either Sweetie Belle or Apple Bloom would connect the dots.
“You were dreaming,” Sweetie Belle said, beginning to understand what Scootaloo was getting at.
“And who can ‘peek’ into dreams?” Scootaloo asked. Both Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle realized the answer at the same time.
“Princess Luna!”
A few minutes later, the trio sat outside the door that apparently lead to the room Luna was staying at while in Ponyville to help with Rainbow’s recovery. Scootaloo slowly, but firmly, gave the door a few raps with her hoof, the sound echoing in the near dead silence. After a few moments, the door slowly opened revealing the one and only Princess Luna. She looked down to the three fillies, as if she had half been expecting them, and half dreading their appearance.
“So, Scootaloo, you have finally opened up to at least some of those close to you I presume?” Luna asked, moving aside so the trio could enter. The room they walked into was just as magnificent as the rest of Twilight’s castle, which is where Luna and Celestia were staying for the moment. The door closed softly behind them, emitting a gentle ‘click’.
“I have. And I also remembered that you said you would help me if you were given the chance. I am sorry to bother you so soon after you have helped me already, but I have a request,” Scootaloo said. Both of her friends flanked her to either side, nodding in agreement with her words. At this, Luna’s look turned dark.
“You wish to confront the Shadow once more,” she stated. Already she had figured out her plan? The look upon Luna’s face told them that something was wrong though. Had she tried the same in the past? Or was it simply not possible? Before any of them could give voice to their questions, however, Luna spoke once again.
“I had presumed you would come to me for this eventually. While I do believe it possible, I have never tried. I was turned to Nightmare Moon before I personally had the opportunity. However, this also means that I have no idea the strength of our advisory,” Luna said, before turning to look each of them in the eye, one by one.
“This means I may not be able to protect each and every one of you should it prove even more malevolent than it has been in the past, so before we proceed I will need to hear from each one of you that you are prepared to take such a risk. If you are not, then go no further, I will think no less of you for it,” Luna warned, before looking at Sweetie Belle, who was to the right of Scootaloo.
“I still want to help my friend, I will do it,” she said while returning Luna’s gaze. Luna then turned to Apple Bloom, who also met her gaze.
“I wouldn’t be much of a friend if I back out now. I am still willing to see this through,” she said, her voice nearly overflowing with confidence. Luna’s gaze then turned to Scootaloo, who struggled to meet with her eyes, though after a second she did indeed met her gaze.
“I have very little left to lose. And with my friends there, I think we can overcome anything,” she said, giving Luna a nod as she did so. Luna just closed her eyes and bowed her head.
“I had figured you all would say such. I must still caution you all, though. We would do well to avoid upsetting this entity,” Luna warned once more before leading them to the center of the room. Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom laid down on a very soft and warm rug in the center of the room, with Scootaloo between the two of them, their hooves interlocked with one another. Luna laid down across from them, her horn glowing for a moment, then the world faded to black.
When the Cutie Mark Crusaders next opened their eyes, they found a dense swirling fog all about them, the drab and colorless landscape all too familiar to Scootaloo. A few moments later, there was the sound of hooves landing behind them, and they turned to see Luna standing there. Her eyes, however, were focused forward, as if she was looking at some distant object. The look of hatred in her eyes was unmistakable though. The Cutie Mark Crusaders turn forward to see nothing. There was no outlines, no noise, nothing. Simply, more of the same swirling grey fog. A few moments, however, a voice called from beyond their vision.
“What have we here? A Gift-Bearer, a Forsaken, and two mortals? To what do I owe this rather unexpected surprise?” the disembodied voice asked, once more seeming to come from all around. Luna’s gaze, however, stayed intently focused in the same direction, unwavering.
“Gift-Bearer? Do you mean me?” Scootaloo asked, taking a step in the direction Luna was looking. Her magic tugged lightly at Scootaloo’s mane, letting her know it was unwise to travel any further. Once more, the voice came from all directions, though seemingly just slightly louder for Scootaloo.
“Why, of course. You bear the Gift I have bestowed upon you. You are able to fly, you may perhaps even have the potential to be the best,” the voice called. The swirling mist seemed to condense even more as Luna gave Scootaloo a sharp tug, pulling her a step backwards.
“Ah, the Forsaken seems to be wary of me. Tell me, with your own words, why have you sought me out once more? You, who has forsworn my Gift, who has squandered their own potential,” the voice asked, seemingly slightly more agitated than usual.
“The ‘Gift’ you bestowed upon me proved to be a curse, one which almost took my sister’s life. If I am Forsworn in your eyes, then I will gladly accept the title,” Luna said. She spoke in her Royal Canterlot Voice, making it clear that she was taking things very seriously.
“Very well, you have spoken your piece. Now, why do two mortals stand before me? Who has deemed them worth to stand in my presence?” the voice asked yet another question. It was becoming clear that the entity was already displeased. Being as such, Sweetie Belle spoke for both Apple Bloom and herself.
“We have accompanied your Gift-Bearer, with her blessing, to help to support her, in a time of need,” Sweetie Belle said, making sure to carefully choose her words as she did so. There was a moment of silence before the voice spoke again.
“The Gift-Bearer has had her one true wish in life fulfilled. Why would she be in a ‘time of need’ as you put it?” the voice asked, seeming to be less irritated now. It seemed best to keep things that way.
“I am honored by your Gift, I really am, but I have come to see that such is not my one true wish. My brash actions have caused someone dear to me to become hurt, and I merely wish to see things put right,” Scootaloo said. She hoped her words were as gilded as Sweetie Belle’s though there was little way for her to compare their words in such a tense situation. The voice’s replay came almost instantly, as did a sharp tug upon all of the Cutie Mark Crusaders as they were pulled right next to Luna, who was still hover just above the ground.
“You are displeased with my Gift? Do you wish to become Forsaken as well, young pony? To throw away your one chance at true happiness?” the voice asked, seeming to be much closer than before. Before either Luna or Scootaloo could speak though, the silent Apple Bloom finally let out a furious shout.
“You call what you have done to Scootaloo a ‘Gift’?! You say this is her one chance at happiness, but really you have destroyed that one chance already!” Her anger was evident, even after her words had faded. Suddenly, Luna’s gaze turned from one of hatred, to one of shock and concern. Her magic flashed brilliantly before the four of them, making a midnight blue wall that looked all but impenetrable. Still, it did little to block the voice emanating from the mist.
“Know your place!” it screamed in anger. A moment later, the blur of the Shadow itself shot from the mist, seeming to move almost faster than the eye could follow, its shape nothing more than a blurred line. At that moment, there was an ear-shattering crash as Luna’s barrier was pieced by the Shadow, not even slowing it. Even as Luna recoiled to cast another spell, the blur shot just by Scootaloo, sending the most bone-chilling cold down her spine, as if the Shadow was sucking the heat from the very air around it. It all happened so fast, that by the time Apple Bloom’s scream was heard, she was already gone, as was the Shadow. Still, the voice came once more.
“You know not the powers that truly rule this world. The Forsaken there believes it is her and her sister, and that before them it was Discord. But Discord was but a fool. He chose to play with his power, instead of learning to harness its full potential,” the voice called. It sounded much different than before, as if the words were spoken my some unspeakable horror. All about, there were brief glimpses of movement. It was now that Luna landed.
“Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, you must awaken! Now!” Luna shouted, her eyes seeming to somehow track the Shadow as it flitted about.
“But what about Apple Bloom?” Sweetie Belle asked concerned. It was obvious that Luna was unable to protect them, so Scootaloo turned to Sweetie Belle.
“We are in a dream, remember? The worst that can happen is that Apple Bloom wakes up in the real world,” Scootaloo bluffed. She wished to believe it herself, but something about the frantic way Luna was protecting them told her otherwise.
“If that is true, then there is no trouble with me staying, as I will just wake up!” Sweetie Belle stated defiantly. Scootaloo normally liked that stubborn streak she could get, but at the moment it was so annoying.
Just then, there was a sound that resembled a hundred whips being cracked all at the exact same time, and the same chill overtook
Scootaloo. Before here, was only swirling mist, swirling frantically as it pulled by some unknown wind. Before Scootaloo could even react, Luna all but fell upon Scootaloo, using her body as a shield.
“Leave, Forsaken. You are just as unwelcome as the others,” the Shadow said. It was now that Scootaloo could finally see the Shadow. It was a wretched abomination of living shadows that writhed and swirled as if each was attempting to escape its form. Scootaloo’s breath caught as she could make out the outline of a draconequus.
“I will not! Not until you have at least returned those two fillies to us,” Luna demanded, though Scootaloo felt they were in no position to so as such. The Shadow took a very threatening step forward as Scootaloo’s stomach turned and twisted. Something about the Shadow seemed unnatural, even twisted in nature. Scootaloo could do little more than stay crouched, however, as Luna still stood low over her. She had to do something!
“Please, wait!” she shouted, causing both the Shadow and Luna to look at her.
“I see it was wrong to upset you, but that was not the point of my visit. I am here to say it was not you, but I who was wrong. You delivered your promise of granting me your Gift, but as with Luna, it is wasted on me, therefore I feel unworthy of it. Do you not feel the same?” Scootaloo asked, hopeful that her little speech could save her friends and Luna. The Shadow stopped, seemingly lost in thought. A moment later, it spoke again.
“You are mistaken. Your words tell me you are far more than deserving of my Gift, your flaw is your attraction to others. You can go very far, but to do so, you must break the chains that bind you. Your ‘friends’, your ‘family’, they tie you down, keep you from achieving your full potential. The potential that I have delivered unto you. You may feel this way now, but let them all go, and you shall find your true happiness” the Shadow said, no longer speaking in the same beastly tone, but once more in the gentle voice she had first heard. There was only a brief pause before the Shadow spoke again, this time raising what appeared to be a clawed hand.
“Your time here is at an end. Remember my words, my Gift-Bearer, and let go of the bonds that chain you. I have given you your first step, the rest is up to you,” it said. A moment later, there was a snap and the misty landscape faded.
Scootaloo groaned as she forced her eyes open. It was a few moments before her eyes adjusted enough to tell where she was. She could feel the same warm rug beneath her, and soon the same room they had been in crept into view. Scootaloo still felt groggy as she look over to Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom, who were still next to her, their gentle breaths reassuring her. She turned to Apple Bloom.
“I am sorry to make you go through all of that. At least we are all safe,” Scootaloo said with a small smile. A light glow from in front of her drew her attention away from her friend, however. Luna was now up, the light emanating softly from her horn, and a frown upon her face.
“No, it is I who is sorry, Scootaloo,” she said as a tear stained the fur beneath her eyes. Scootaloo’s ears dropped as the Shadow’s words echoed in her head.
‘…let go of the bonds that chain you. I have given you the first step…’
Scootaloo turned once more to face Apple Bloom.
“You’re just joking, right? Hey, Apple Bloom, it is time to get up now. Come on, get up,” Scootaloo cooed gently to the motionless Apple Bloom. With no response, Scootaloo turned to Sweetie Belle.
“Come on. You both need to get up. I know it is late, but your parents will really start to worry if you are not home soon,” she once more gently spoke, this time also softly shaking her friends. Even as she began to speak once more, tears began to flow freely from her eyes, her voice occasionally getting caught in her throat.
“Th-That’s enough playing around. I know you are both tired, but we are going to have a long day tomorrow. I-I need b-both of you wi-th me, plea-se. Get up,” Scootaloo choked out softly, still calling to her friends. Finally, it was too much to bear. With a soul-crushing wail, Scootaloo threw herself between her friends, embracing them both tightly, wishing they would finally awaken. Luna simply knelt down beside Scootaloo, her own tears falling unto the carpet they all rested upon.
“I truly am sorry, Scootaloo.”