Inside her home Scootaloo was greeted with the worst possible news that her awful parents could've said.
"Daughter, it has come to our attention that a couple of monsters rampaged through your school," Sheer Cold said while holding the paper in one hoof.
"So we have decided that this town isn't fit for a filly to be raised in." Scootaloo was growing more fearful with each second. She had a feeling that the outcome of this wasn't going to be pleasant.
"Therefore, we are going to be moving out first thing in the morning," Spoiled Rotten said with utter spite. "It seems you won't be seeing your little friends ever again."
Scootaloo felt the fear in her heart turn to anger. Her parents had been neglectful and ignorant, but taking away her friends and idol all because her saviors defended her against Diamond Tiara? The pegasus filly had finally had it with her crazy DNA doners.
"THERE IS NO WAY I'M LEAVING JUST BECAUSE YOU PONIES SAY SO!!! YOU CAN'T TAKE ME AWAY FROM MY FRIENDS ALL BECAUSE OF ONE INCIDENT!!" In her outburst, Scootaloo failed to notice that her DNA doners were unfazed. In fact they were laughing maniacally at the outburst.
"Have you forgotten about our project chicken? You will do as we say, or else it will lay waste to this town and all your friends will die because of your selfishness." Scootaloo was about to throw in the towel, but remembering how T-Rex and Indominus destroyed the Hydra gave her some extra willpower.
"My friends could take on your project and destroy it," she said with some confidence in her voice. Her DNA doners looked at each other for a moment, then laughed again.
"Oh please, you really think that your blank flank Crusaders and Rainbow Crash could stop our project? It has been around for years, this family has always had it's great power to destroy anypony we want. Nopony in all of Equestria could stand against it." Scootaloo held her ground and continued to fight back. Since her parents didn't know about the dinosaurs, she was being as discreet as possible while trying to get under their skin.
"I never mentioned my fellow Crusaders or Rainbow Dash. They're new friends I met, and they can kill your little project. After all, they managed to kill the Hydra in Froggy Bottom Bog." Now both pegasi had their curiosity peaked, they hadn't heard of any pony that could take down a Hydra. But only for a minute after they thought Scootaloo was playing a bluff.
"You think some lie is going to get you out of this, well you're wrong!" Spoiled Rotten was practically bellowing at Scootaloo, and the filly's confidence had been destroyed by the anger in her so called mother's tone. "We are moving whether you like it or not, and your friends will never see you again!! If you don't obey our orders, we will use our project to kill your precious Rainbow Dash. Then you can watch your so called hero burn with this world!!"
In an act of pure desperation and to keep herself from breaking down in front of the animals that were her parents, Scootaloo grabbed her school bags and bolted out the front door. She jumped onto her scooter and jolted down the street with tears flowing down her face and trailing behind her. Scootaloo didn't bother to look and see if her parents were following her, all she wanted was to get as far away from them as possible. Sheer Cold and Spoiled Rotten didn't get a chance to stop Scootaloo because she was long gone by the time they got out the door.
"Do you think we should try and go after her," asked Sheer Cold.
"No, not yet. She'll go to her friends for support after what we dealt her, and try to calm her nerves. We'll unleash the project when she's with Rainbow Crash, then she'll watch her precious idol die. The best way to break the chicken's heart is to kill the one she loves the most. Once it's over, she'll be too broken to argue with us again and we can drag her out of Ponyville. Then our project can lay waste to this pitiful town once we're gone."
"Sounds like an excellent idea," Sheer Cold agreed with the plan. But he was a bit more skeptical about what Scootaloo had said. "Do you think she wasn't bluffing when she talked about having friends that could take on our project?" Spoiled Rotten looked Sheer Cold right in the eyes.
"Dear, there is nothing in all of Equestria that can stop our dragon. It has been tied to this family for years, every new generation is given the helm of controlling it's power. I personally haven't seen what the dragon can do on a grand scale, but I have heard the story of how it destroyed half of Equestria. Our ancestors called upon it's power to show the ponies of Equestria what a real monster can do. Now we are going to use it's power to destroy a filly's life. No creature can stand against our monster, and walk away alive."
The two awful pegasi began to set their plan in motion for when Black Death would be unleashed upon Equestria again.
Scootaloo didn't stop until she had reached the clubhouse, and the whole way there not one guard could stop her because of her speed. She ran through the door, shut it behind her and just cried her heart out. It seemed like no matter how much happiness came into her life, those filthy pegasi always managed to take it away. Now they were threatening to kill the very pony that she idolized and counted on for support. Scootaloo needed some serious support to get through such a horrendous ordeal. Luckily, the very pony she needed had been watching the whole time and had followed Scootaloo to the clubhouse.
When Scootaloo heard the door open, her heart jumped into her throat in terror. She thought her parents had followed her to the clubhouse. She was so relieved when she saw Rainbow Dash enter the room, and tried to wipe away her tears.
"Scootaloo," Rainbow Dash was truly concerned after seeing how fast the little filly had bolted out of her home. "Is everything alright?"
Poor Scootaloo was trying her best to look strong and tough in front of her idol. "Yeah Rainbow Dash, everything's fine. Y-You don't have to worry about me."
Rainbow Dash wasn't buying any of it, she could see how upset Scootaloo was underneath the tough pony act. She slowly walked over to Scootaloo and placed a wing over her.
"Scootaloo, please tell me what's really going on. I promise it'll be between just you and me." Rainbow was speaking so gently that Scootaloo felt herself break down again. She buried her face in Rainbow's fur and cried her very soul out in front of her idol. Rainbow Dash let Scootaloo cry out all the pain while slowly stroking her surrogate sister's mane with a free hoof. After a few minutes, Scootaloo calmed down enough to try and tell Rainbow Dash the truth.
"R-Rainbow Dash, it's my parents. They want to take me away from Ponyville all because of the incident in the paper." Rainbow Dash was clinging to every word while trying to understand why those pegasi would make a hasty decision like that.
"Scootaloo, why would they want to take you away? It was just one incident."
"Because they think Ponyville isn't a proper place to raise a filly." Rainbow Dash was appalled that Scootaloo's parents would jump the gun and make such a ridiculous conclusion.
"Did you try and reason with them and tell them it was a crazy decision."
"I tried, but then they threatened me with..." Scootaloo trailed off before she could finish. She didn't know how Rainbow Dash would react.
"What did they threaten you with Scootaloo?" Rainbow Dash was curious, but seeing the look of fear in her sister's eyes also made her worried. She thought that she would be prepared for any answer, but nothing could've prepared the rainbow mare for what Scootaloo said next.
"They said that if I don't go with them, they'll use their project to kill you!"
All Rainbow Dash could do to hide her shock and anger was to wrap both legs around Scootaloo and hold her tight. Those filthy pegasi had the gall to threaten their own kid, and planned on killing their child's idol in the process. Now Rainbow Dash understood part of the torment that had been taking place within that house. She also had a possible connection with the info that Twilight had given her. She vowed to herself that those two would pay for the pain they had caused, but first things first, she had a terrified filly to cheer up.
"Scootaloo, I'm not about to let those rotten pegasi take you away from me. I'll let you stay with me until this whole mess gets sorted out."
Scootaloo looked up from the cyan fur into the eyes of her idol.
"Y-You mean that Rainbow Dash? You won't make me go back to that house?" The filly was met with a look of sincere honesty from Rainbow Dash.
"I'll do everything I can to keep you safe and happy Scootaloo. I'm not about to let those monsters have their way."
Scootaloo was so overjoyed that she wrapped her front legs around Rainbow Dash's waist and hugged her idol. Rainbow Dash gladly returned the hug and held her surrogate sister, grateful that she could still make Scootaloo's day. After a few minutes, the two pegasi broke their bonding hug and Rainbow Dash decided to take Scootaloo to her cloud mansion.
"Come on squirt, let's get going before it gets too dark."
Scootaloo followed Rainbow Dash out of the clubhouse and the two honorary siblings took off into the air, unaware that one of Scootaloo's protectors had once again witnessed another beautiful moment.
After all the bonding moments he had witnessed between Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash, Indominus wasn't sure how many feels and hits he would be able to handle and take. He had been drawn to the clubhouse from hearing Scootaloo crying, and camouflaged himself when he saw Rainbow Dash show up. He couldn't look inside, but the carnivore was able to hear everything that went on inside the clubhouse. Now even he knew about the threats Scootaloo's parents had been making against her, and the time to fight the project was drawing near. But what caught his attention was how caring Rainbow Dash was towards Scootaloo.
Indominus heard how Rainbow promised to look after Scootaloo and keep her safe. He was slowly understanding why Scootaloo looked up to her so much. When he saw Scootaloo fly away with Rainbow Dash, Indominus decided to relay what he had learned to Tyrannosaurus before keeping an eye on them. So he headed back into the forest, still having to elude the troublesome guards.
Once he found his partner and made sure nopony could hear them, Indominus told T-Rex all he had heard through their growls as their way of communication. Tyrannosaurus couldn't believe that anypony would threaten Scootaloo, but was relieved that Rainbow Dash was looking out for her. T-Rex was also a little envious that Indominus got to see Scootaloo's idol and he didn't. Both dinosaurs eventually realized that their introduction with Rainbow Dash might have to be put on hold with everything that was going down. But keeping Scootaloo safe was more important, so both predators picked up her scent and tried to find where she was.
The scent led the dinosaurs far from where the guards were searching, so they wouldn't be spotted by anypony. It led them to Rainbow Dash's cloud mansion, and they could hear laughter coming from inside. That told them that Scootaloo was having a grand time with her idol and more importantly, she was happy and safe. Both dinosaurs laid down amongst the trees and waited, watching the cloud mansion as the sun set while listening to the joyful laughter.
Inside Rainbow Dash's home, she and Scootaloo were having the best time. They were chowing down on warm pizza, having a montage of board games, watching TV and having such a grand time together. Scootaloo ended up winning a few more times than Rainbow Dash, but she didn't let her competitive spirit get in the way of their bonding. After an hour and a half of games and fun, both pegasi retired to relaxing on the couch and watching TV. Rainbow had cleaned up the mess she and Scootaloo had made, and put away the rest of the pizza for later.
While they were relaxing, Rainbow noticed that Scootaloo was writing on one of her school notepads. The mare's curiosity got the better of her, and she wanted to find out what Scootaloo was writing.
"What are you writing about Scoots?" Scootaloo looked up from her writing and dropped the pencil from her mouth onto the pad.
"Oh it's just a little list of things I'd like to happen for my future."
"Wow, that's pretty deep Scootaloo. Would it be alright if I had a look?" Scootaloo felt there was no reason why Rainbow couldn't look. Rainbow held the list and began to read what Scootaloo had written.
What I want the most in my life
1. To not be afraid of going home.
2. To have Rainbow Dash in my life.
3. Have my new friends being able to talk.
4. For somepony to tell me 'I love you.'
5. Have a family that cares for me.
6. For my new friends to meet Rainbow Dash.
7. To have my new friends and Rainbow Dash as my family.
Rainbow found it really hard not to tear up at what Scootaloo had written. They were all things that she had been denied by her 'parents,' or some she never had the chance to experience. The parts about her friends being a family with the two of them brought conflict into the mare's heart. She still hadn't met the ones Scootaloo kept talking about, she wasn't sure if she could make that wish come true. Ignoring the conflict in her heart, Rainbow pulled Scootaloo close with a wing.
"Squirt, I think these are beautiful wishes. Though, in regards to your friends being a family with us, I still haven't gotten to meet them yet. So I honestly don't know-" Rainbow was cut off by Scootaloo putting a hoof to her mouth.
"Don't stress about it Rainbow Dash, they understand. They can wait until this whole mess is dealt with, and they want to meet you just as badly." Scootaloo pulled her hoof away from Rainbow Dash so she could ponder what she had been told.
Rainbow was becoming more determined to meet Scootaloo's friends than ever. They definitely sounded like the ideal kind of ponies that would do anything for the ones they cared about. But the night was getting late and the day's events were beginning to show on Scootaloo.
"Alright Scoots, time for us to get some shuteye. You've had a rough day and I think you're in need of a good nights sleep." Scootaloo wanted to protest, but one heavy yawn told her otherwise.
"Yeah...I guess you're right Rainbow Dash," the little filly said sleepily.
Rainbow Dash led Scootaloo up the spiral staircase to the bedroom. When Scootaloo walked into Rainbow's room, she swore she had gone to Wonderbolt heaven. She had never seen so much memorabilia and posters scattered all over the room. Scootaloo knew Rainbow longed to be a Wonderbolt, but she didn't know just how much her idol idolized them. Scootaloo's gaze at the amazing room was broken when Rainbow got her attention.
"Since I don't have a spare room you'll have to sleep with me tonight, I hope that's ok."
"Yeah that's totally fine with me." Scootaloo may have been playing it cool on the outside, but on the inside she was squealing like a fangirl meeting her hero for the first time.
It was the ultimate experience for her, to have so much bonding time with Rainbow Dash and sleep alongside her. It would've felt like the family picture she had always envisioned, but there was one thing missing: her saviors. It was the same feeling when she was racing with them and Rainbow Dash wasn't there. The experiences Scootaloo had with the dinosaurs and Rainbow Dash just didn't feel complete without both of them together.
Regardless, Scootaloo was still overjoyed when she crawled into the bed alongside Rainbow Dash. Being so close to her idol felt much more peaceful than being back at her house.
"Rainbow Dash...thanks for letting me stay with you," Scootaloo said sleepily.
"You're welcome Scootaloo," Rainbow replied as she put her wing over Scootaloo's body and pulled her in closer. The warming comfort of being so close to her idol lulled Scootaloo into a peaceful sleep, but she had one last thing to say before she passed out.
"I love you Rainbow Dash," was what Scootaloo managed to say before the embrace soothed her to sleep.
Rainbow carefully leaned down, kissed Scootaloo gently on the forehead and replied softly " I love you too my little sister." She laid her head down and slowly drifted off into her own peaceful slumber.