Scootaloo Discovers Flight

by Mockingbirb

Scootaloo Adopts Rainbow Dash?

"If you're doing it pegasus style, the trick is to use your folded wings just slightly, to adjust your ballistic trajectory after you shoot out of the cannon," said an athletic mare named Scootaloo. "If you try to FLAP your wings, spreading them out that far just slows you down. And then you fall short of the target, or your wings catch on one of the hoops."

Ponies in the audience murmured. In the press section, some used pencils and quills to take notes.

Scootaloo was a leading competitor in the new Equestrian sport of cannonflight. Any type of pony could do it--pegasi, unicorns, and even earth ponies.

Trixie Lulamoon had invented competitive cannonflight three years ago, when she'd borrowed one of Pinkie Pie's party cannons and tried to shoot herself down the throat of a manticore. Those were dark days in Trixie's life, when her career had been failing and she'd felt she had nothing to live for.

But now things were looking up, for Trixie and for other cannonflight athletes too!

Trixie took her wizard-style hat off her head, revealing a conical crash helmet. "Scootaloo's pegasus style is good, of course. But the Great and Amazing TRIXIE knows some tricks of her own. Cannonflight is like surfing. Every part of your body can help you balance and steer. Even your tail can get into the game."

"Wow!" a little blue pegasus said, peeking out between two larger ponies in the front row. "I wish I could be as good at cannonflight as you and Scootaloo are. Using just my wings I can fly fast, but not as fast as if a big cannon had shot me into the sky."

Trixie smiled down at the little pegasus filly. "You certainly are adorable."

The pegasus said, "I'm an orphan. Looking more adorable than anypony else is the only way I can survive."

Trixie nodded. "Would you like somepony to adopt you, and teach you the ways of cannonflight?"

The little pegasus pressed forward, squeezing through the gap between two other ponies to stand in front of them. "WOULD I! Is that something that can really happen? To ME?"

Trixie shrugged. "Ask Scootaloo over there. I'm not a pegasus."

With a flash of light, a purple unicorn appeared between Trixie and Scootaloo. She wore a shawl over her shoulders and back. There weren't any purple alicorns in this timeline, so she couldn't have been one of those.

The blue filly stared, her mouth falling open. After a moment, she asked, "Are YOU my new mommy?"

The unicorn shook her head. "I'm here to kick purple unicorn tail." She craned her head around to look at her own body. "Not MY tail. I mean a DIFFERENT pony with a horn, which she uses for EVIL. I'm here to put an end to this timeline, and restore the proper stream of history."

"Aw!" the blue filly complained. "I thought maybe today I was FINALLY going to be adopted."