Party of Three
Party of Three
Scootaloo awoke to a throbbing pounding in her head.
Groaning, the filly, eyes still closed, lifted a hoof and rubbed her face in a fruitless attempt to ease her suffering. Upon contact, she noticed an abstraction on her fetlock, making the rubbing less of a soothing motion, and more of a rough scratching upon her forehead.
Opening her eyes, Scootaloo found that her forelegs were both bandaged and had the strange sensation of stinging yet being numb at the same time.
"Where am I?" She asked groggily, shifting her eyes around.
"The Everfree Forest." A deep voice said from her left. Scootaloo tensed as she saw the imposing figure before her. A stallion, draped in a tannish cloak was sitting beside her. She couldn't make out anything about him besides the brown forelegs that protruded from his cloak and the piercing, almost oppressive, icy blue eyes that peered at her over the scarf that hid his face.
His eyes locked onto hers, making the filly feel a discomfort she couldn't really describe. It wasn't that he was bigger than her, nor the dangerous and deadly weapon that was attached to his right foreleg. It was an indescribable feeling of general fear and a fleeting sense of reality, the best she could do to describe it was as a minor feeling of impending doom.
"Sorry." He said looking away. And just like that, the strange and inexplicable feeling of discomfort Scootaloo had felt was gone. "Old habit."
Scootaloo was about to question what he'd done, but a shifting inside the crook of her left foreleg drew her attention to the small, white ball of fluff currently snuggled up against her. "Angel?" She asked, a little confused. The bunny's ears perked up and his head followed suite, he smiled at the pegasus foal and hugged her side.
The filly's heart warmed at the sight, she had a lot of questions, but at least she could take comfort in knowing she wasn't without a familiar face.
"Here." The stallion grunted, holding a matalic canteen in front of Scootaloo's face.
It was only upon hearing the sloshing of the liquid inside that she'd realized how parched she was. Scootaloo took the container and began chugging the water within, the cooling liquid sating the burning dryness of her mouth and throat, draining the container almost completely. She sighed in relief before noticing how much she'd taken and grinned sheepishly. "Umm, sorry."
The stallion took the canteen back and sighed. "It's fine, you had quite the ordeal. Not many may engage a pack of timberwolves and live to tell about it."
Hearing that brought everything back. The wedding, the wolves, her run through the Everfree, Angel, Macintosh... that pink pony. Scootaloo began to look around frantically, but the stallion calmed her by reassuring her of her safety. "Easy kiddo, they're gone, you're safe now."
Scootaloo glared at her presumed savior skeptically, the last time she'd been promised such a thing, she was dragged off to who knew where.
"How... how am I still alive? Did... did you save me?"
The shrouded pony didn't speak, but answered only with a solemn nod.
Scootaloo was dumbstruck at the concept. Of course she was reluctant to believe it, but... if it weren't true, than how was she alive? "How did you do that? Timberwolves are strong and big."
He turned to look at her again. Yet another strange feeling of intimidation overtaking her as she looked upon his eyes. It wasn't the awful sense of impending doom and discomfort, but an air of superiority and intensity, as if the stallion had both seen and done things. Things that the filly dreaded to even think about. "Very carefully." He turned away again and slowly stood from his spot. "We need to get you back to Ponyville, think you can walk?"
Scootaloo's eyes narrowed to pinpricks at the notion and she looked anywhere but at him. She couldn't go back there, not with what almost happened. She didn't want to go to an orphanage or to foster care, and she'd rather die than ever see Macintosh Apple ever again.
"Kid?"
"No."
The stallion sighed. "Fine, I can carry you to the edge of the forest, there's a cottage there owned by a mare named-"
"NO!" Scootaloo shouted, desperate to do anything but return to her home town. "I can't, please don't make me go back there!"
"Okay, why?" The stallion asked, slightly off put by her outburst.
Scootaloo turned away again, her desperation heating to anger as she bore a flaming hole of rage down into the earth beside her. She didn't know what to say, so she didn't say anything.
Surprisingly, her savior didn't push the issue for a good few minutes before finally breaking the silence, not with gentle words of coaxing, but laying down the cold hard facts of her predicament. "You've almost been mauled by wolves, have a sprained ankle and are prime for an infection. Are you certain you're in a place to reject my assistance?"
It wasn't about him at all. Scootaloo was grateful for his help, honest she was, but by the same token...
"I can't go back..." She whispered hoarsely.
The stallion looked confused at the statement. "What do you mean you can't go back? You're family must be worried about you."
Scootaloo's pulse skyrocketed, her temper flaring. She resisted the urge to bark at him for his assumption. What did he know? He'd just met her, and he was going to come to conclusions he knew nothing about?!
Alas, the filly held her temper and replied with the facts as they were. "My family's dead..."
His eyes changed a little, but if he felt sympathy for her suffering, he only barely showed it. It was... actually a nice change. Scootaloo was so used to ponies showing her pity and sympathy for her loss, looking at her as if she was a wounded animal about it. The cloaked pony didn't look at her that way.
"That sucks, kiddo. But what do you plan to do? Stay in the forest?"
Scootaloo pouted, crossing her forelegs across her barrel. "Better than going into Foal Protective Services or whatever."
That earned a little more of a reaction. "Guess I can't blame you for that."
A long, tense silence passed between the two. As much as she didn't want to admit it, he did have a point. She didn't have any means of surviving out here, hay, the only reason she was alive right now was because of him. She didn't stand a snowball's chance in Tartarus in making it two days out here on her own.
What was she going to do? Where was she going to go? If she went to any of her family, they'd turn her in for sure. Not like any of them wanted anything to do with her anyways. Applebloom and Sweetie Belle wouldn't be able to help her... she really didn't have anypony anymore. She was all alone again...
Well, she had Angel, but she didn't think he'd really be much of the caretaker she needed. He certainly wouldn't be able to provide the food, water, shelter and necessities she'd become accustom to.
"What's your plan, then?" The stallion asked.
Scootaloo sighed and fought the hopless tears threatening to fall. "I don't know..."
Another round of silence passed, the pegasus' mind a silent gale of conflicting thoughts, thinking about everything and nothing. What was there to think about? She had one of two choices. Go back to Ponyville and face being put in foster care or worse the orphanage, or face the harsh world alone where she'd likely die of exposure or dehydration. Neither option really appealed to her.
She checked on her hooves, and placed her foreleg on the ground with some weight. Aside from some slight stinging, her front hooves and legs felt fine, though the dull ache in her hind leg promised problems when weight was applied.
"I'm heading to Trottingham." The stallion said out of the blue. "If you want, I can escort you there."
.
Scootaloo looked up at him quizzically. "R-really? But... what would I do there?"
The stallion shrugged and concluded it was better to be escorted to civilization if she didn't plan to return home. The filly nodded, she could appreciate the kind gesture, but that didn't really answer her question.
Slowly and much to Angel's chagrin, the orange pony pushed herself up, gingerly testing out all her extremities and winced as her left hind leg fulfilled it's promise. She wouldn't be galloping or running any time soon, but she was pretty sure she could walk. After all, there was no point in sticking around the Everfree Forest of all places.
"When do we go?"
"Soon enough." The stallion replied. "Before we go, I want you to be absolutely certain you don't want to go back to Ponyville. The world is a cold place for foals. You've got no friend's who'd take you in or anything?"
"No." Scootaloo said, her resolution on the matter firm.
The cloaked pony eyed her for a moment, testing her now solidified resolve, looking for any cracks or fractures to exploit, though there was none to be found. Even without his help, the filly would not be returning to the small town. He tried one last time to make her think about her decision, but the results were the same.
"You're call, kiddo."
"Scootaloo." She corrected. "My name is Scootaloo."
The stallion chuckled and shook his head, prompting her to ask what was so funny.
"I will never understand how you Equestrians get your names." He declared. Scootaloo didn't know what to make of his words, what was wrong with her name? She liked her name.
"Pft, yea? Well what's your name if you're going to make fun of mine, huh?" She scoffed.
"You may call me Mister Islander." The stallion replied.
Scootaloo quirked a brow. "You're name means islands, and you're going to make fun of my name?"
Islander went silent, making Scootaloo well up a little in pride that she'd gotten the better of him. Though, something about his name did sound familiar, the filly's foggy mind couldn't really recall why.
"Fair enough." He admitted.
Another silence fell, and Scootaloo decided to ask about where all the stallion was planning on going. Islander craned and cracked his neck, casually mentioning how Trottingham would be his first stop for medical supplies and water, seeing as how she had dipped into both, but failed to mention where he was going next.
That avenue of conversation exhausted with a dismissed apology, Scootaloo began to think about other questions she could ask. If she was going to travel with the pony, a pony who could go hoof to hoof with a pack of timberwolves and was her only source of food, it would serve her well to get in on his good side.
"You said, 'you Equestrians'. Aren't you an Equestrian too?"
Islander regarded her for a moment and shook his head in the negative. "No, I'm afraid I'm an immigrant to your country."
"Where from?"
"The Federation."
"The Federation? I've never heard of that, where is it?"
"Due North West of here, across... I think you call it the North Luna Ocean?"
Scootaloo thought back to her time in school, about the large world map that hung on the wall of the class room. She knew where the North Luna Ocean was, and tried to recall which landmass he was talking about. The only one she could think of was the large island that wasn't labeled to be the country in which he spoke of.
"I'll be right back." Islander said before venturing off into the brush, leaving Scootaloo to her thoughts.
'"I can't help her, it'll compromise my position!" Says the pony who gave his real name.'
Sin internally groaned.
Firstly, that's my last name, a name pretty much nobody around here knows me by. Second, the kid's got nobody else. You heard her, her family's dead and she's got no where to go. She's so desperate to get away from the government that she'd rather run out into certain death than stay and suffer through it. Ten bills say that I'll be looking after her for a while, whether I like it or not. I can already see giving a fake name becoming a problem. So might as well tell her the truth until I figure out what to do with her. Besides, it's not like she's going to go ratting me out anytime soon.
'And how do you intend to explain to her that you're on the run from the law?'
Simple: I don't.
'And you don't foresee problems with that? Because I can name a few right now.'
Again, Sin internally groaned. The consequences didn't align with his favor at all no matter what course of action he took. If he told her, there was a high chance she'd run off rather than be around a fugitive. If he told her that now, she'd likely run off into the forest again and die, and if he told her once they were around civilization, she may or may not turn him into the guard. Neither scenario worked out well for his interests.
'Well, you've got a point there. On the upside, Kid's happy you found her, thinks you being so generous and kind without his intervention is a step in the right direction.'
Sin knew he would, though his decision had come long before the filly had even awoken. If she wasn't simple, than there was only a few reasons a filly of that age would dare venture out this far into the woods. And with the way her pulse was behaving a good ten minutes after the wolves had left, and how long she'd slept, it was clear her coming this far was no accident. She was running from something, and if the past few days were any indication, his emotional personification would make him watch over her if she didn't go back home or have any place to go.
It wasn't really a decision, so much as a logical conclusion.
But truth was that he felt something for Scootaloo. Maybe it was her resemblance to Uppity that made him so fond? Maybe it was the fact that she was totally reliant on him for the current point in time, maybe it was the respect he had for her to suffer the wilds rather than be imprisoned in foster care, but he did feel a slight protective of her already.
'You know, you really could have put more effort into convincing her to go home.'
To which home? The government run orphanage or the one with her dead family?
Critic didn't reply, it was a cheap shot, but still an accurate one. It wasn't really fair of Sin to take a jab at the critic, after all he was just the messenger for the kid. Still though, it did feel good to finally feel like he'd won something for once. The pony was growing to loath his emotions more than ever now, at least before he could just suppress and repress them and their irritating affects upon his psyche and objective mindedness, but now they had power over him.
It was pointless to struggle, but he etched a note to find a solution to this problem on the inside of his skull. The kid would pay for all of the inconvenience and bullshit he'd put the stallion through, Sin would see to that.
The Critic pointed out that Scootaloo might have been lying, that she may have been in some kind of trouble and had dashed out into the woods to escape punishment for her misdeeds. A notion Sin almost fell over from. He made it sound as if she'd failed a math test or something, but Sin refused to buy that. Scootaloo didn't seem the stupid type, certainly one who could judge risk vs benefits and see the lopsiddedness of the Everfree Forest vs a parent's scolding.
And again, it's not like the Federalist could just drag her into Ponyville, even if he wanted to.
Slowly, he crept forward through the brush and spied on the place the Trotski had set up camp. She was just in the middle of packing up, meaning that the two would be free to move soon.
The Federalist wasn't sure how long the Trotski wold remain at the Judgement, and wanted to get there prior to them moving if they'd planned to.
'Seriously? You've just found an injured foal and you're going to drag her into your revenge chase?'
My plans haven't changed. Puddinghead needs to die to ensure that Macintosh is safe, kiddo over there might be in danger, but that's how it has to be. Too bad if the kid doesn't like it.
'And how do you think she'll take seeing you kill, what's likely to be, multiple ponies?'
Sin had also given that some thought. Of all places they'd be going, it just had to be Trottingham. The place was a fucking cesspool of crime crowned with pedophile sex rings, so leaving her unattended there wasn't an option. He'd likely have her hide somewhere under the crashed airship while he went in and took care of business.
In short order, he found himself back with Scootaloo and began packing up.
"We're moving, think you can walk?"
Scootaloo bit her lip and rolled over onto her belly, pushing up and standing on her three "good" legs and took a few experimental steps. Sin watched with faint amusement as Angel also stood and took a few tentative hops, catching the filly as best he could when she stumbled.
He hoped the rubbing alcohol would be enough to hold off any infections she may get, but had a few anti-biotics on him just in case. If memory served, there was a stream just outside of the forest treeline outside Trottingham. He hoped the filly and rabbit could wait until then for some water.
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I'm glad you will!
The other option is that old Sin actually isn't as callous as he thinks he was.
Of course she doesn't tell Sin the whole truth.
And I also realized this: A flightless pegasi joins the party of another pegasi who doesn't want to fly (but technically can.) Smells like drama to me!
6952605 ohhhh yes, there will be much drama there. Fun fact: sins original character concept was made from this scenario. A flightless pegasus meets a foal who wants to fly. Also scootaloo wants her cutie mark, while sin had his removed. So there's that to.
Fun times ahead, I might make a new story just to follow these two. Plus angel, if course.
This is going to be an interesting meet and greet.
Sin can be quite intimidating when he needs to be.
Jeez. First, I hated this bunny with a passion. Now I like him. Interesting on how you are able to persuade me to either love or hate certain characters. Shade is the only character you created that makes me either love or hate him in a short period of time. One day I love him. Another day I hate him. It's weird like that.
*long sigh*
This might take a LONG while before Scootaloo will ever trust Big Mac again........It's the canterlot wedding incident all over again. Except, this is worse.
This is one of the things I love about Sin. His blunt honesty.
ooooo.........that hurts.
I think I know where this is going.
If only she had heard what Big Mac had said.......
That's nice of him.
Well, scootERloo, in his defense, your name is funny.
That is a much more unusual last name in retrospect.
Smart.
Oh. I didn't know the federation was across the ocean from Equestria. That explains the necessity to travel by air. As well as the Griffins and Pegasi that have shown up from the Triple M.
The voice does have a point. Sooner or later, someone is going to put two and two together.
That's an interesting way on looking at Scootaloo's predicament.
Point taken.
very true.
I don't thinks so. Sin doesn't know the full story, so he really does not have the leverage to persuade her to go back unless he used force.
I would imagine that Sin was going to do something like that. After all, he refuses to be anyone's slave, including the critic, the alicorn, and the emotional kid. He prefers to be his own stallion.
You be surprised Sin. One time, David Crockett ran away from home when he was twelve because he did not want to get his butt whipped by his dad. He did not return home until he was fifteen.
They plan to kill Sin anyway if he doesn't go after them and if they find out that the Assassin failed to terminate Big Mac, then they will make a second attempt. None of them can be at large anymore. They either need to go to prison or to hell.
Easier said than done.
Well.....I have to say, the story has officially gone away from slice of life to adventure, and I always prefer these kind of genres. Plus, I always wanted to read a story where a freedom loving individual is travelling with a CMC member. Although I was thinking of Applebloom at the time. I wonder if you can read minds, because you seem to write what I envision into paper and I'm loving every second of it.
Onwards then.