Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo are the closest of ponies. They are practically sisterly figures to one another. Their bond is unbreakable, their loyalty to each other unquestionable. Right?
Scootaloo looked up to Rainbow Dash, since she was the closest thing to a real sister, if not a family, that she had ever known. So when Rainbow Dash asked her if she wanted to receive private training for a special race where the winner would get to fly with the legendary Wonderbolts themselves, Scootaloo was over the moon and the sun with joy, spending time with her idol.
Scootaloo dug her hooves into the soft cloud, a few beads of sweat ran down her forehead as the tension of the moment began to creep up and wash over her. Her eyes turned and looked at the spectacle going on all around her, the sound of cheering and whistling from hundreds of pegasi seated upon fluffy white bleachers filled the air, though there was only one pegasus Scootaloo wanted to hear rooting for her, and she knew where that pony was right now.
At the finishing line. That was where Rainbow Dash would be waiting in the audience, to watch her cross the line. To cheer for her. To be proud of her.
Rainbow Dash. The closest thing to a family the little filly ever had in her life. Though many ponies were kind to Scootaloo, only Rainbow Dash had acted like an actual sisterly, if not motherly, figure to her. It was one of many reasons why the filly held the cyan show-off in such high regard and respect.
Gotta keep it together now, Scoots. You and Rainbow Dash have worked long and hard for this. You gotta give it your all. For Rainbow Dash as much as for yourself, Scootaloo's thoughts echoed. But the little pegasus filly just couldn't help but let the memories of her tie spent in the presence of Rainbow Dash flood her mind.
She thought her little tiny heart was going to stop functioning when her idol came out of the blue and asked her if she wanted to try her hoof in a race where the winner would get the chance to meet and fly with the Wonderbolts. Scootaloo didn't love the Wonderbolts as much as Rainbow Dash did. She worshiped them as much as Rainbow Dash did. Perhaps it was because Scootaloo's obsession over the Wonderbolts was second only to Rainbow Dash's own, that the only pony Scootaloo admired more than the Wonderbolts themselves came to her of all other pegasus fillies and colts.
Rainbow Dash had warned Scootaloo that the training would be hard and strenuous, but that it was necessary to see that the little filly would win. But Scootaloo simply smirked and demanded they got started right away. And Rainbow Dash wasn't kidding, the many attempts at the obstacle courses, the many attempts at flapping her wings at a certain rhythm, and the many, many attempts to stick to a special diet while resisting the urge to consume foods which her hero considered 'dangerous to her training' nearly wore Scootaloo out to the point of exhaustion. But the time they both spent with each other through it all certainly bonded them, brought them closer than Scootaloo ever dreamed of being. In a way, Rainbow Dash became more of a sister than a teacher, and the training even made Scootaloo's wings strong enough to lift her from the ground. Finally able to fly about with her mentor, Scootaloo made that moment a precious memory in her thoughts, one she would never, ever forget.
And now, here at the starting line, Scootaloo would show Rainbow Dash just how much her time spent under her wing had paid off. To see her beloved hero and sisterly figure smile with pride as she cheered her on. The image was tattooed inside of Scootaloo's mind, and just thinking about making her idol proud of her was enough to make her squeal quietly in excitement. She looked to her side, at the several other fillies and colts who were lined at the starting point with her, sighing in relief once she confirmed none of them had heard her make that embarrassing noise, especially at what was undoubtedly the most awesome and important opportunity of her lifetime.
A brown unicorn walked past by Scootaloo, a gun levitating in her magical grasp. She seemed to be a little shaky despite her efforts to keep an appearance of professionalism about her, probably because she hadn't gotten used to the idea of walking on clouds quite yet. She stood at the sideline for a moment, taking time to get her footing before her azure eyes looked at each contestant to see if they were ready. She then raised the gun in air, barrel pointed above her head. Scootaloo realized the race was going to start any moment now, and so she closed out the sounds of the world around her, the cheering and whistling of the crowds now barely audible to the filly.
"The race is about to begin", the unicorn mare said, and all the fillies suddenly hunched down and got into their ready stances. "On your marks..."
Ahead of Scootaloo, a line of rings constructed from cloud matter made up the array of checkpoints that the flyers had to go through. To win the race and claim her prize, Scootaloo had to fly through every checkpoint and then cross the finish line. She would be awarded points at the end of the race based on her position, but extra points were rewarded for each checkpoint she flew through perfectly, though she would lose points if she messed up while trying to pass through them, such as any part of her body touching the rings themselves. Therefore, simply finishing the race first wouldn't guarantee an immediate victory - it could all come down to how well a flyer did on the obstacles as well as how fast they were.
"Get set", the unicorn said as she used her magic to load the pistol."
And the ponies who would be scoring her and the other flyers were none other than the Wonderbolts themselves. Not that it was really much of a surprise to Scootaloo. After all, who better to judge flying than those who were the best at it? Scootaloo silently confessed to herself that just knowing that the Wonderbolts would be watching their performance - and her performance - in the race, was nearly enough to make her lose her calm and collected self. She denied her hindlegs permission to tremble from the peer pressure.
Scootaloo continued to stare forward, eyeing the track ahead of her, waiting for the sound of the -
BANG!
"GO!"
Scootaloo's eyes went wide, and almost instantly her little body shot forward before any of the other foals even lifted a hoof off the starting line. She smiled, the time she and Rainbow Dash spent working on her quick-starts having already assured she'd have the early lead. By the time the other competitors had stepped over the line, Scootaloo was already flapping her little wings and going airborne.
The first checkpoint was coming up, and Scootaloo tilted herself slightly to her right to align her body just enough to pass through flawlessly. Scootaloo allowed herself to take a quick glance behind herself, to see her opponents also clearing the first checkpoint. At the very back of the pack, a pale green pegasus colt swerved a little too far to his right, and his wing clipped the edge of the ring. From their cloud above the scene, the Wonderbolt judges observed the mistake, and began to scribble away at their clipboards.
Scootaloo pressed on, being careful not to exhaust too much of her energy until nearing the finishing line just as Rainbow Dash had taught her. She perfectly shot through the next three checkpoints without much difficulty, tucking in her wings at just the right time before she passed through the first and second cloud rings, and opening them out again just as she cleared the third. Her feat left the other flyers behind her in awe, almost causing them to miss the checkpoints themselves. Their distraction was momentary, but it was all Scootaloo needed to take herself even further ahead.
For now, it was a clear zone. There were no checkpoints to fly through for a few ten yards, and Scootaloo had attained a comfortable lead, so she slowed down her pace to conserve her strength while she could, and allow her time with her thoughts.
She imagined herself passing the finishing line, Rainbow Dash in the bleachers at the side cheering for Scootaloo with the same enthusiasm and energy as the filly herself displayed for her. Spitfire, Soarin and Fleetfoot would be applauding for her, and Spitfire would personally fly down to present the winner's trophy to Scootaloo, her name engraved in large golden writing. And then Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash both would take to the skies with the greatest flyers in all of Equestria by their sides, circling all of Cloudsdale and making their dreams come true at last for them both.
And the best part of it all would be that Scootaloo would be doing it all with the coolest pegasus mare in the whole wide world next to her, whose help and faith in her made her chance of winning today possible. "I knew you could do it, kiddo! I just knew you'd win! You're the best most coolest little filly in the whole of Equestria! No wait, in the whole universe!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed as she grabbed hold of Scootaloo in mid-flight and hugged her for all she was worth, Scootaloo doing nothing to stop her hero from showing the affection she craved for.
Scootaloo's daydream ended there and then, leaving a smile on her face. And a good thing it ended too, because the next hurdle of checkpoints were just about to come up, and the competition had just began to catch up to Scootaloo. So Scootaloo returned her attention to the race, ready to tackle the rest of the course.
Get ready to be proud, RD. I'll see you at the finish line real soon...
Scootaloo zoomed straight through the center of the checkpoint ring, flawlessly as though it was child's play. Her time spent in training under Rainbow Dash's wing that long but worthwhile month had helped to hone and perfect her accuracy with such obstacles. Clearing the trio of rings, there was nothing left to stop her from going straight to very last checkpoint of the race. Scootaloo allowed herself a quick glance over her wing at the other competitors, to see how close they had caught up to her during the past six minutes.
The other pegasus foals were not too far behind her, they were probably about a couple of yards give or take. Their faces displayed sheer dominating persistence, but there was the unmistakable hint of frustration and stress on their wings and bodies too. If the sounds of the crowd's wincing was anything to go by, Scootaloo had to guess some of the flyers behind her hadn't been nailing the perfect checkpoint fly-throughs like she had. Which only meant that just finishing this race now would certainly guarantee absolute victory.
The last checkpoint was quickly approaching Scootaloo when she returned her attention to what was in front of herself, and it was sheer luck that she managed to position herself in time to clear it straight through the middle of the ring. Scootaloo composed herself quickly after clearing it, sighing in relief that she hadn't messed up her flawless run at this crucial moment.With the last of the checkpoints cleared, now it was merely a matter of crossing the finish line and ending this challenge.
Scootaloo gave a mock salute to the competitors behind her, not caring much whether they saw it or not. "Here I come, Rainbow Dash!", Scootaloo yelled, and mustering every fiber of her remaining strength, she sped off ahead towards the finishing goal.
The crowd in the stands either side of Scootaloo roared with cheers and whistles as Scootaloo began to make her way towards the finishing line. The noise was incredible, and the applause built up excitement in the little filly. She couldn't resist holding in a smile and hoof-pumping the air, her confidence and cockiness now completely took over her.
The black-and-white exchequer banner was straight ahead of her. It was a clear path to victory. Scootaloo summoned all of her remaining strength, pushing every last fiber of energy into her little wings to push herself forward with great speed. She wanted to finish this race already so she could see Rainbow Dash at the podium.
As she got closer and closer to the finish line, something in the very corner of her eye got Scootaloo's attention, and she immediately turned her head to see what it was. There, in the crowd, with a widest smile Scootaloo had ever seen on her face, was Rainbow Dash. Her idol was waving her forelegs ecstatically, literally jumping up and down as though she had suddenly become Pinkie Pie. Somewhere within the cheering of the spectators, Scootaloo could just faintly hear Rainbow Dash's voice, repeating one word iover and over again in a chant; "Scootaloo!"
The filly's heart had never pounded so furiously before in her life as it was doing now. It had always been Scootaloo who cheered on her hero, and to see their roles reversed, with Rainbow Dash cheering for her instead, brought tears of joy to Scootaloo's eyes. This moment, this very moment, was perfect. The sound of the ponies save for the one who mattered suddenly seemed to die away, leaving Scootaloo with the sound of Rainbow Dash chanting her name in chorus. Scootaloo felt happy.
Rainbow Dash's joyful look suddenly turned into one of horror, oddly enough, though she continued to chant Scootaloo's name. The little filly gave a puzzled look.
She saw Rainbow Dash starting to call out to her, panic plastered all over her cyan face. Scootaloo continued to observe the odd behavior of her idol, trying to understand what was happening. She then noticed the rest of the crowd begin to follow suit, and look towards her with worried or horrified faces.
What's going on with them? Why are they looking at me like that? Scootaloo wondered to herself, starting to feel a little frightened. Then, Rainbow Dash started pointing at something.
When Scootaloo turned her head away to see what she was pointing at, it was already too late. During her distraction, Scootaloo had unknowingly veered to the side, moving away from passing the finish line. A immense pain surged all over her face as she collided muzzle-first into the wooden pole that held the finishing line banner up, and she collapsed onto the cloud bank in a daze.
"Arrrgh, damn it! Who put that pole in my way?" Scootaloo winced as she threw her hooves up to her face, her muzzle throbbing from the impact. Her hindlegs stamped down on the cloud beneath her as the painful throbbing began to intensify. Scootaloo thought she felt something pour from her nostrils. Fantastic. A nosebleed. So much for a photograph with the Wonderbolts then. "Stupid pole getting in my way of winning the...the..." Scootaloo trailed off before her eyes went wide with panic. "Shit! The race!"
She pushed all thought of her sore muzzle and quickly got her wings flapping. She was literally just a few inches from the finish line. All she had to do was cross it and...
A filly suddenly shot straight past Scootaloo, her little eyes clenched closed and a strained look on her face as she gave all there was worth into her wings and zooming past under the black and white banner before Scootaloo could so much as put one hoof across.
The hospital room was but a blurred scene when Scootaloo opened her eyes, groaning from the slight headache that immediately struck her. After a moment of blinking her vision began to correct itself, and the world returned to normal. The first thing Scootaloo realized upon waking up, was that she was in a hospital bed. The second thing she noticed as she raised her hoof to her head in a futile attempt to ease her headache, was that it was bandaged. The third thing she finally noticed was Rainbow Dash standing over by the window, staring out into the sky world of Cloudsdale.
"R...Rainbow Dash?" Scootaloo said weakly. But Rainbow Dash did not seem to hear her.
Scootaloo tried calling out again, this time a little louder than before. "Rainbow Dash?".
This time, her hero lifted her head, indicating her attention. Slowly Rainbow Dash turned her head to look at her, and Scootaloo saw a stern frown on her face. Her eyes narrowed as she looked at the little filly disappointingly. No. No, it wasn't a look of disappointment but more of...disgust?
"Oh...you're awake." Rainbow Dash said dryly.
"Oh, my head is spinning," Scootaloo winced. She tried to clamber out of the bed to go over to her hero, but a sudden jolt of throbbing pain suggested it was probably best to stay put, just for the time being. "RD, did I...did I make it to the end?" Scootaloo asked.
Rainbow Dash scoffed. "You made it to the end. But you didn't pass it. You lost the race, Scootaloo. You just had to cross the damn finish line and you screwed that up spectacularly." Scootaloo felt a sickening feeling in her stomach began to build up. She lost the race? After her flawless performance throughout the rest of the course, it all concluded with defeat? She wanted to ask what place she came in, but her gut told her she was better off not knowing lest the truth pained her more than the headache.
Rainbow Dash moved away from the window, walking over to the end of Scootaloo's bed. She stopped and turned to look at the little filly, a total lack of emotion in her features. "Three months," she said.
Scootaloo looked up at her puzzled. "S-sorry?" she asked, feeling rather timid all of a sudden despite being in her idol's presence.
"Three months, Scootaloo," Rainbow Dash repeated, this time louder and with a hint of anger to her tone. "I spent three months with you, getting you into shape, teaching you how to fly and getting those wings of yours to work properly. Three whole months. That's about eighty-four days of my own life, my time, I spent helping you get this good. I really thought you were going to do it, Scootaloo. I really thought you was going to win the prize, but you screwed it up for both of us. All you had to do was cross the finish line, not fly right into the post! How did you mess that one simple thing up so badly? I was cheering for you, Scootaloo. Now I feel awful for rooting for the loser!"
Scootaloo listened to each word spoken, feeling them piercing her like ice-cold daggers to her little chest, her eyes beginning to fill up with tears. "R-Rainbow Dash, I-I'm sorry. I really am. I'll make it up to you somehow! I promise!"
But Rainbow Dash was hearing none of it. "Save it, Scootaloo!" she snarled, leaning over the bed baring her teeth. Scootaloo ignored the pain in her head as fear gripped her and she backed up against the headboard in fright. She'd never seen Rainbow Dash this angry before.
"I really thought you were worth all those hours I gave to you," the rainbow-mane mare continued. She pointed a hoof at the trembling pegasus child. "But you went ahead and made it all a complete waste of my time! Do you realize how humiliating that makes me feel? Everypony will look at me and know me as the pony who trained the filly that flew into a freaking finishing line pole! Did you even think of me when you did that? Did you consider how stupid you losing would make me look?"
Scootaloo tried to answer, but Rainbow Dash stopped her. " Don't bother Scootaloo! I don't want to hear your excuses. You screwed up big time out there. You made me look like an idiot, all that training and practice I gave you trying to get make you the best there was, maybe even second to me. And you nearly fooled me into believing so too!"
"B-b-but Rainbow Dash it was an accident!"Scootaloo cried out, throwing her hooves above her head. "I-I saw you in the crowd and I saw you cheering for me and I just felt...happy. I felt excited that I was making you proud of me that I just lost focus for a moment and then...!" Scootaloo sobbed, her tears leaking from her eyes. "I did the best I could for you, Rainbow Dash, I really did!" The filly moved a little closer towards her mentor, hooves clasped together as she begged to her idol. "I'm sorry I lost! Please forgive me!"
Rainbow Dash shook her head. "No, Scootaloo. I won't forgive you. You let me down more than you think. You made me believe you had a lot of promise, and I hate liars more than Applejack does. Don't ever come near me again, Scootaloo." Rainbow Dash turned away and began heading towards the door out into the hallway.
"No! Rainbow Dash, wait! Please! Please!" Scootaloo scrambled over her bed sheets and fell to the floor flat on her face, intensifying the throbbing ache of her head. But she ignored it as she began crawling after the rainbow mare. "Rainbow! I'm sorry! Please don't leave me! Please forgive me! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"
Her cries echoed in vain, yet she continued to pull herself to the door. But whenever she got closer to the exit of her room, the more distant it suddenly appeared to be. Like as if the doorway was moving further away from her each time she got closer.
"RAINBOW! I'M SORRY! DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE HERE! RAINBOW DASH!"
Suddenly, Scootaloo's whole world began to shake and shudder, and she curled up into a ball and cried into her legs.
Then from out of nowhere, she heard a familiar voice shouting out to her. "Scootaloo! Wake up!"
The little filly's eyes shot wide open, and she bolted upright in her bed, gasping for breath. Beads of sweat fell down her cheeks, and her pupils shrank to the size of pinpricks. After a moment she resumed breathing normally, and she looked to her side to see Rainbow Dash, wearing a look of genuine concern on her face.
"Geez, Scoots, don't do that to me!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, letting out a sigh of relief. "You had me worrying sick when you started shaking and mumbling like that! Thought you were having some kind of fit or something, kiddo!"
Scootaloo observed her surroundings. "Wha-what am I doing in the hospital? Wasn't it all a dream?" she said worryingly.
"You hit the finishing line pole pretty hard back there, Scoots," Rainbow Dash explained. "The doctors say you're fine apart from a big bump on your noggin, but they wanna keep you in bed for a day or two, just to be sure. Not many foals do what you did and get off with just a bump after all, especially at that speed you were going. Speaking of which, what the hay happened out there, kid? You were doing so well until - woah!"
Rainbow Dash suddenly felt the air in her lungs get squeezed out of her as two small forelegs wrapped themselves around her, a sobbing head buried into her chest. Rainbow Dash's eyes looked down at the crying filly, taken totally by surprise by her little admirer's action. "Hey, Scootaloo! I wasn't that worried sick, kiddo! I'm not angry with you or anything! C'mon, calm down, Scoots!"
Rainbow Dash's words did not fall on deaf ears, as Scootaloo's sobbing began to slow down, becoming quiet chokes as Scootaloo steadied her breathing. The little filly slowly looked up into Rainbow Dash's eyes, though kept her head close to the mare's chest like a cub to its protective mother bear. Rainbow Dash looked back at her, shocked at the appearance of her red puffy eyes.
"Rainbow Dash! I'm so so SO sorryI lost the race!" Scootaloo cried, the stream of tears continuing to pour forth from her eyes. "I didn't mean to lose it after all the time you gave and wasted on me! Please don't abandon me! I'll do anything if you'll just forgive me! Please! I don't care about the stupid Wonderbolts, I just wanted to make you proud!"
Scootaloo buried her head back into Rainbow Dash's chest as the mare looked down at her in awe.
"Scoots, what in the hay are you talking about?" Rainbow Dash asked, bringing a hoof around the filly and getting her to look up at her. "What's gotten you so worked up like this?"
Scootaloo wiped the tears from her eyes as she collected her breath. "Rainbow, you spent a lot of time with me trying to get me in shape and top form for the big race. I enjoyed spending more time with you, so I really really wanted to win the race for you. I didn't want you to think I had been a total waste of time. I wanted to do you proud, Rainbow. I wanted to make you proud of me." Scootaloo hung her head sadly. "You're my hero, Rainbow Dash...and I wanted to win, for you."
Rainbow Dash tilted her head, listening to the filly pouring her heart out to her. "So...the reason you're upset right now is because of what happened at the end of the race, with the pole and everything?"
Scootaloo sniffled as she nodded her head slowly.
Rainbow Dash frowned. "Scoots, winning the race would have been awesome, sure," she said. "Not to mention that flight with the Wonderbolts would have been nice too."
Rainbow Dash smiled sheepishly as the thought of herself in a Wonderbolts suit entered her mind. Wonderbolt Dash, however, was quickly pushed aside when Rainbow Dash's attention was brought back to the filly looking at her in a funny way.
"Um, but, ah, as cool as any of that would have been, it doesn't matter. I mean, did you see yourself out there, Scoots? You rocked that competition!" Rainbow Dash flew up above Scootaloo and began flying around the room, imitating the stunts that the filly had pulled off during the race. "You were passing through every checkpoint like a pro! You were going so fast I nearly felt kinda threatened, and you were dong it all in style, kiddo!"
Rainbow Dash landed back down next to the filly, who looked up at her hero with hopeful eyes. "I won't ask what happened at the end with the whole 'colliding into the pole and blacking out' thing, but I'm telling you the truth Scoots, when I say that up until that happened you were 120% awesome! Like, that's a lot of percent, you know!"
Scootaloo wiped the wetness from her eyes and gave a small smile. "So...you won't make me go away even though I lost the race?"
"Of course not, you little twerp!" Rainbow Dash said with a smirk, as she scooped the filly up in her hooves. Scootaloo couldn't hold back her giggles as Rainbow Dash twirled around, still holding the little pegasus. "Just because you messed up in that race doesn't mean I'd just give up on you. We'll just keep practicing until next year's contest, and by then you'll clear that track twice as fast!" She stopped spinning about and set the filly down. "And next time, you'll clear the finish line before looking over at me," she concluded, ruffling Scootaloo's mane.
Scootaloo looked back up at Rainbow Dash with a sheepish smile, her cheeks a rosy red hue. "Yeah. I'll keep that in mind next time, Rainbow," she replied with a chuckle.
"Atta girl, Scoots!" Rainbow Dash said, pulling her in close for a hug. They broke off after a few moments, and Rainbow Dash turned around. "Okay, Scoots. You get back in bed and rest up, okay? And if they let you go tomorrow, we can get straight back into training for next year's race!" Rainbow Dash said as she exited through the door.
Scootaloo grinned. "Okay, Rainbow Dash! I'll see you - wait, 'tomorrow'?" Scootaloo's joyful expression changed to one of confusion. "But, Rainbow!" she called out, "it's a school day!"
Rainbow Dash poked her head back around the door frame. "I know, but I pulled a couple of strings - mostly Cheerilee's and your parents - and I got you a whole month off! We have to use that time to get you ready as soon as we can! See you tomorrow, kid!" And with that, Rainbow Dash's head disappeared.
Scootaloo stared at the door where her idol was, unblinking for a few moments, before deadpanning. "Guess that means no cutie mark crusading for a while, then," she groaned.
It was a good thing she liked spending time with Rainbow Dash.
