Guardian Angel

by Mayhem Darkshadow

First published 23rd of March, 2013

Scootaloo had been without a family for a very long time. She has never told anypony about her situation. It isn't until a certain purple unicorn learns about her origins that she discovers what a family truly is.

Scootaloo has never told anypony that she is an orphan, that her parents one day decided not to come home. She has been on her own since she was very little. She has learned to fend for herself, care for herself, and doesn't want help from anypony, including her best friends. It isn't until a certain purple unicorn learns the truth and takes her into her home that Scootaloo realizes she needed help from somepony a long time ago.

Please do not ask if you can continue this story. The answer will be no.

Currently Edited by TimeLord_Whooves, Elric of Melnipony, and Sir Truffles

Formerly Edited by psychohooves and Avatar of Shadow

Cover Art by DawnMistPony
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The Truth

Written by: Mayhem Darkshadow
Edited by: psychohooves

********************

Chapter 1: The Truth

"Ah don't know 'bout this Scootaloo," shouted Applebloom, clearly worried judging by her tone of voice.

Scootaloo was standing on a branch near the top of a very large tree on the outskirts of the Everfree Forrest. She was holding onto a hang glider that she had gotten from her idol, Rainbow Dash. Dash's exact words had been "The wind is just right squirt; you should be able to glide for a long time." Scootaloo had taken these words literally and was now attempting to get her cutie mark in hang gliding.

"Oh come on girls. This is going to be fun! By the end of it we're all going to have our cutie marks in hang gliding for sure," shouted Scootaloo, filled to the brim with adrenaline and excitement.

Applebloom and Sweetie Belle looked at each other nervously.

"Well...if ya say so Scootaloo," replied Applebloom nervously.

Scootaloo smiled at her friends and then looked out over the horizon, picking a trajectory path that was clear of obstacles or other ponies. Finally she got her sights on a good path and waited for the wind to pick up. When it finally did she jumped off the tree limb and closed her eyes.

"Oh Celestia! She's actually doing it!" screamed Sweetie Belle, both excited and scared.

Scootaloo opened her eyes, and she found herself soaring through the sky. Her friends were right below chasing after her. Scootaloo laughed and thought about how she couldn't wait till she told Rainbow Dash about her adventure. She honestly didn't even care about a cutie mark. Right now she was having way too much fun; unfortunately, that fun didn't last. A very powerful gust of wind hit the right side of the glider, and she started losing control.

"Girls! Girls I'm losing it!!" yelled Scootaloo in a panic.

She looked down and realized that her friends weren't below her. She was going so fast that they were far behind, trying desperately to catch up. Scootaloo tensed up and did her best to control the glider, but she couldn't regain control and proceeded to plummet to the ground rapidly. Scootaloo squeezed her eyes shut and eventually felt the hard thud of the ground, which was followed by a sharp pain in her left wing. She opened her eyes back up and saw her friends sprinting towards her.

"Scootaloo!!! Scootaloo!!!" they both screamed.

Scootaloo tried to stand up but fell back to the ground and landed on her injured wing. She winced and yelled a bit. Applebloom and Sweetie Belle tried to help her stand, but the pain Scootaloo experienced was too severe.

"I'll...I'll go get somepony," said Sweetie Belle nervously.

Sweetie Belle ran off, and Applebloom stayed with her fallen friend. Scootaloo refused to cry even though she longed to. She was toughing out the pain just like Rainbow Dash would.

It didn't take long before they saw two ponies running towards them in the distance. One of them was Sweetie Belle, and the other one was Twilight Sparkle. When the two finally made it, Twilight examined Scootaloo.

"What happened?" asked Twilight calmly.

Scootaloo spoke up. "Well we were trying to get our cutie marks in hang gliding and...well it was going well until I crashed.”

Twilight frowned at them. "Let me guess... Rainbow Dash gave you the hang glider?”

They all nodded. Twilight sighed and then tried to look at Scootaloo's injuries. When she touched Scootaloo's wing Scootaloo yelled in pain.

"Well I don't know enough about medicine so let's get you to Nurse Redheart. Can you stand?" asked Twilight.

Scootaloo tried to stand up, but her legs gave out again, causing her to fall right back down again.

"No...I can't..." said Scootaloo as she tried to fight back tears.

"That's okay. I can carry you," said Twilight softly.

Twilight used a simple levitation spell and put Scootaloo on her back. Twilight then turned to the girls and instructed to them a simple task.

"I need you two to go and find Rainbow Dash. Tell her I want to talk to her immediately," she commanded.

Applebloom and Sweetie Belle nodded and ran off. Not wanting to cause anymore injuries to Scootaloo, Twilight trotted briskly instead of galloping. Scootaloo hung onto Twilight's neck. She now realized that maybe hang gliding was a bad idea after all.

**********

It turned out that Scootaloo's injuries weren't severe. When Twilight finally got her to a hospital, Nurse Redheart took them to a room and looked over the little orange filly. Turns out that she only had a sprained wing as well some little bumps and bruises. She said that it could have been much worse and that Scootaloo was a very lucky filly.

When the other girls finally arrived with Rainbow Dash Nurse Readheart was about halfway through patching up Scootaloo.

"You wanted to see me Twi? The girls also said something about the pipsqueak getting hurt?" asked Rainbow Dash curiously.

"Yes I need to ask you something," snapped Twilight with a slightly agitated voice, "Why did you think it was good idea to give three small fillies a hang glider?"

Rainbow Dash rubbed the back of her neck nervously. "Well I mean they asked Twi so I got it for them.”

"But they’re just little girls Rainbow," said Twilight furiously, "What if they had all gotten hurt? You know Rarity and Applejack would be down here having a fit right now. I'm sure when Scootaloo's parents find out, they are going to want to talk to you about why you let their daughter go hang gliding without some supervision."

Rainbow Dash's ears fell.

"I'm sorry pipsqueak..." she said quietly.

"It's okay Rainbow Dash. My parents are used to me doing stupid things. Don't be sad or anything. It's my fault I got injured," responded Scootaloo sweetly.

Rainbow Dash smiled at Scootaloo and then looked back to Twilight. "Anything else Twilight?”

"Well it's getting late so you could take Applebloom and Sweetie Belle home and tell their sister's about what happened. I'm sure they'll have some words for you as well," said Twilight.

Rainbow Dash opened her mouth to say something causing Twilight to assume that Rainbow Dash had a rebuttal, but Rainbow held her tongue.

"Okay, I can do that. Come on girls," said Rainbow Dash.

Rainbow Dash left with the other Cutie Mark Crusader just about the same time Nurse Redheart finished up with Scootaloo.

"She needs to keep that wing bound tight and make sure she doesn't sleep on it," explained Nurse Redheart.

Twilight said that she would be sure to inform her parents, and Nurse Redheart dismissed them. Twilight and Scootaloo walked out of the hospital and to the center of Ponyville together. Scootaloo told Twilight that she didn't need to come and talk with her parents and that she would take care of everything. Twilight tried to argue with her but in the end decided that it was pointless to try. They went their separate ways after Scootaloo thanked Twilight. However, Twilight waited for a moment to see where the little filly went so she could go talk to her parents tomorrow. The only problem was Scootaloo was heading out of town, towards Sweet Apple Acres.

Where is she going? Twilight asked herself.

**********

Scootaloo walked up the steps of the Cutie Mark Crusaders clubhouse. The wind had picked up, and it was a little bit chilly. She walked inside the dark, cold tree house and wished that there were actual windows to keep the wind out. She made her way over to the little box she kept her food in and looked inside it. Inside were a few apples, some of the sweets the Cakes had given her, and a few snacks she had taken from school. Her stomach growled, and she selected a few things to eat. They never satisfied her hunger, but if she ate everything at once, then she would starve tomorrow. She sat down at the little table in the middle of the room and was about to eat when the wind came through again. She shivered and went and grabbed her blanket. It was old and thin so it didn't really help much. She sat back down and was about to eat when she heard creaking. Someone or something was coming up the steps to the clubhouse. Scootaloo turned and faced the door. She was hoping it wasn't something scary that had wandered out of the Everfree forest. The creaking got closer and closer until she knew whatever it was had reached the entrance. It took a step forward, and Scootaloo saw the purple hoof of a pony. Twilight stepped to the top of the stairs and into the clubhouse. Scootaloo looked at her and didn't say a word.

"You could have told me the truth," said Twilight quietly.

Scootaloo fought back the tears that were building up in her eyes. "Were you following me?" she asked rudely.

Twilight nodded.

"I wanted to see were you lived so that I could talk to your parents in the morning. But I'm assuming that isn't going to happen right?" asked Twilight curiously, "How long have you been living here?"

Scootaloo's head and ears fell in embarrassment. "A couple of months.”

"And where...where are your parents?" asked Twilight nervously.

"They...they didn't come home one day..." Scootaloo stammered.

The dams that were holding back the tears finally broke, and Scootaloo started sobbing her eyes out.

"I've been living on my own for years now. I've gone from Baltimare, to Fillydelphia, to Canterlot, and I finally ended up here. My parents never showed up, and nobody ever came looking for me. I've been fending for myself and living off the scraps of food that I can find," cried Scootaloo.

She closed her eyes and let the tears flow through them. She then felt a pair of hooves wrap around her and squeeze her tightly. Twilight was comforting her.

"Well you could have said something to somepony, and I'm sure they would have at the least taken you in so you didn't have to live in this place," cooed Twilight softly, "In fact, I'm not going to let you stay here for another night."

Scootaloo looked up at Twilight. "Are you...are you saying I can come home with you?" she asked quietly.

"Of course, and if you had told me earlier I would have said the same thing," said Twilight sweetly.

Twilight's horn erupted with magic, and she levitated Scootaloo onto her back. Scootaloo once again held on tight, and they left the cold and miserable clubhouse.

**********

Twilight opened the door to her house/library and walked inside. The wind was blowing fiercely outside, and the poor little filly clinging to her back was shivering. Luckily the house was warm thanks to the burning fireplace. Twilight set Scootaloo down right by the fire and wrapped her up in a blanket that was sitting on the couch. Scootaloo thanked Twilight and continued to shiver as she tried to warm herself up. Twilight hadn't noticed that Spike was sitting at his desk looking at them.

"Should I ask?" he said with a confused look.

Twilight looked over at him. "Come into the kitchen, and I'll explain. I don't think I need to ask if you're hungry Scootaloo.”

Scootaloo opened her mouth to answer, but the sound of her rumbling stomach answered for her. She just giggled and moved closer to the fire. Twilight smiled at her and then walked into the kitchen followed closely by Spike. Twilight went into the fridge and pulled out everything she needed to make dandelion sandwiches. Twilight set Spike to work on making some hot soup and spent the time explaining why she had brought Scootaloo home. Spike told Twilight that this was a very generous thing she was doing.

"But...what are you going to do about it in the long run?" asked Spike curiously.

Twilight shrugged as she used magic to pick up the plates carrying some sandwiches and soup.

"I don't know. I really didn't think ahead. She can at least stay with us until I can come up with something," Twilight responded.

Twilight set the food down and then went into the main room to see how Scootaloo was doing. She was still sitting where Twilight had left her. The only change was that Owlowiscious and PeeWee were sitting on either side of her, staring at her curiously. Twilight giggled a little bit before calling Scootaloo to dinner. She was obviously starving because she ran to the table and started voraciously eating. She went through three helping of food before giving in. Twilight just laughed at her. She really was a cute little filly, and Twilight had a hard time believing that somepony could just leave her.

"So did you get enough to eat?" Twilight asked her.

Scootaloo rubbed her stomach and groaned a bit. Twilight chuckled.

"Okay well I'm sure you're tired but there is one more thing we need to do before bed and that's give you a bath," said Twilight.

Scootaloo frowned and her head fell.

"Do I smell bad? I try to find ways to keep myself clean and hygienic," she said timidly.

"You smell fine. You just look a little dirty. Probably from your crash today," said Twilight.

Spike offered to clean up the kitchen so Twilight could take care of Scootaloo. They went upstairs to Twilight's bathroom and she started bath, making sure the water wasn't too hot. While the water was running Twilight very carefully unwrapped Scootaloo's wing and then gingerly levitated her into the tub.

"Alright, I'll let you clean yourself up while I get ready for bed," Twilight told her.

Scootaloo smiled at Twilight and began to clean herself off. Twilight walked to the sink and brushed and flossed her teeth thoroughly. She also grabbed a new toothbrush and container of floss for Scootaloo and set them on the counter. Twilight then spent some time trying to find some bandages to re-wrap Scootaloo wing.

"Twilight, I'm done," called Scootaloo sweetly.

Twilight pulled her head out of the cupboard she was looking in and glanced over at the tub. "Do you need help getting out?" she asked.

Scootaloo's ears fell down in embarrassment, and she avoided eye contact. "Um...yes...if it's not too much trouble.”

Twilight smiled and grabbed a clean towel for her. She carefully levitated Scootaloo out of the tub and wrapped the towel around her.

"Okay now brush your teeth and floss for me while I keep trying to find some bandages to wrap up your wing," Twilight told Scootaloo.

Scootaloo nodded and went to work on cleaning her teeth while Twilight continued her search. It wasn't until Scootaloo was done that she managed to find where she kept the bandages. She made sure Scootaloo was completely dried off before carefully wrapping the wing snugly against her side.

"Is that too tight?" Twilight asked.

Scootaloo shook her head and then let out a big yawn.

"I think it might be bed time," Twilight said with a chuckle.

Scootaloo giggled a bit and then followed Twilight to her bedroom. When they arrived Spike was just getting himself into bed. Scootaloo looked around to see where she was going to sleep but only saw one more bed. Before she could ask, Twilight answered her question for her.

"I don't really have another place for you to sleep," stated Twilight, "So you can just crawl in bed with me for now and we can figure that out later."

Twilight climbed into her bed and then left a spot right next to her for Scootaloo. Scootaloo smiled and carefully climbed right beside Twilight. She had to sleep on her stomach because of her wing but the bed was so comfortable it didn't matter. Twilight pulled the covers over them and the put her head down on the pillow next to Scootaloo's.

"Twilight," said Scootaloo quietly.

"Yes?" whispered Twilight.

"Thanks for being so nice and bringing me into your home for the night," said Scootaloo softly.

"Oh you're welcome sweetheart. But don't think that it's just for the night," replied Twilight.

Scootaloo's ears perked up, and her eyes shot open. "You mean...you're not going to send me away tomorrow?" she asked.

Twilight opened her eyes and looked at the little filly. "I don't know what we are going to do, but you can at the least stay with me until I come up with a solution.”

Scootaloo had to resist jumping out of bed. "You mean that?" she asked.

Twilight smiled at her and nodded her head.

"We can talk about it in the morning," she said softly. "For now though it's time for some sleep."

Twilight put her head down and was out within minutes. It took Scootaloo a bit longer because her head was swimming with different thoughts. Eventually though, out of pure exhaustion, she was able to close her eyes and finally fall asleep.

A New Life

Written by: Mayhem Darkshadow
Edited by: psychohooves

********************

Chapter 2: A New Life

Twilight woke up to the soft buzzing of her alarm. Even though it was Saturday, Twilight always set an alarm to ensure she would wake up at a decent time. She stretched a little, causing Scootaloo to awake beside her. Twilight, for reasons she couldn't understand, affectionately stroked the filly’s mane. Scootaloo's eyes slowly opened and she stretched her legs out.

"Morning sleepy head," whispered Twilight quietly.

"M...m...morning," yawned Scootaloo.

"I didn't mean to wake you, if you're tired you can go back to sleep," Twilight told her.

Scootaloo stood up and stretched some more. "No that's okay. I can't fall back asleep after I wake up.”

Twilight smiled at her and they both climbed out of bed and quietly left the room. Twilight didn't wake Spike because she normally just let him wake up on his own accord, unless she really needed him for some reason. They both exited the room quietly and went downstairs.

"So what would you like for breakfast?" asked Twilight sweetly.

Scootaloo yawned and then thought about what would be really good for breakfast. She normally just ate anything that she had, but now that she was given the option she couldn't decided what would be good.

"Umm...can we make pancakes please Twilight?" Scootaloo responded politely.

Twilight smiled. It was good to see that even though Scootaloo had lived on her own she had very nice manners.

"Of course we can," replied Twilight, "In the far cupboard on the left there is a large mixing bowl. If you could grab that for me while I get out all the ingredients I'd appreciate it."

Scootaloo retrieved the mixing bowl while Twilight got all the ingredients for pancakes, and in about ten minutes the batter was ready and the pan was being heated up on the oven. This gave Twilight some time to ask Scootaloo some more questions and talk about future arrangements.

"So, nopony ever found you and took you in or to an orphanage or anything? Don't you have any other family members?" questioned Twilight curiously.

Twilight could tell these questions made the little filly uneasy, but she still answered them.

"No. Nopony really came looking for me. I had an older brother who I got along with, but he was killed in an accident at the Cloudsdale weather factory. I also had an older sister but we didn't get along, and she wanted nothing to do with me after my parents abandoned us. I think she lives in Las Pegasus, but she's well...a mare for hire I guess is the term," sniffed Scootaloo.

Twilight understood what she meant by mare for hire: a prostitute. She could only think about what a horrible family life Scootaloo came from. She didn't press Scootaloo for any more information because she could see how uncomfortable Scootaloo was becoming.

"Well I don't want you to worry about any of that. Like I said last night, you are welcome to stay with me until we figure out a solution," explained Twilight carefully.

Twilight didn't want Scootaloo to think that she was going to throw her out eventually. Twilight would never bring herself to do that. Deep down she wanted Scootaloo to stay permanently; however, she just didn't know if that was going to be an option.

When the pan was finally warm enough they poured the batter and let the pancakes cook. Twilight pulled up a stool so Scootaloo could flip the pancakes herself, which she did perfectly. The aroma that had filled the kitchen was very pleasant, and it must have worked its way upstairs because Spike showed up right around the time the last pancake was ready.

"Morning," he announced with a groggy tone.

"Morning," replied Twilight as she was setting out plates, "Coffee is ready, and breakfast is almost ready."

"Oh thank Celestia," groaned Spike as he walked to the coffee pot.

Twilight chuckled. Spike's new craving for coffee had been started by Pinkie Pie, and he had an average of six cups daily. Twilight was at least happy he didn't put a mountain of sugar in his coffee like Pinkie did. Scootaloo told Twilight that the last pancake was ready, and Twilight carefully levitated the large platter of food over to the table. They all sat down and dug in to the scrumptious spread of pancakes. Scootaloo had suggested to add a small amount of cinnamon while they were preparing the batter, which turned out quite well.

"These are really good," said Spike with a mouth full of food, "They taste different than normal Twilight."

"Yes they are a bit different. Scootaloo suggested adding a small amount of cinnamon," Twilight told him.

Spike gave Scootaloo a thumbs up. "Great idea Scoots."

This caused Scootaloo to blush and she thanked him.

"Oh Twilight I forgot to ask. Can we go out to club house so I can get my scooter and my saddle bags? I forgot I have homework I need to get done for Ms. Cheerilee before Monday," Scootaloo asked politely.

"Of course," replied Twilight sweetly, "We can go right after we clean up the kitchen."

Scootaloo smiled and went back to eating. Twilight couldn't get over how cute and sweet she was. She told herself that she shouldn't get attached to the little filly, but it was really hard not to. After breakfast was done Twilight sent Scootaloo upstairs and told her to brush and floss her teeth. This gave Twilight time to talk to Spike.

"So, have you given anymore thought about what you're going to do?" inquired Spike as they were doing the dishes.

"I don't know Spike. She's so sweet and I want nothing more than to tell her she can stay here permanently. I just don't know if that is something I can manage. Taking care of a filly isn't easy work," said Twilight.

Spike could tell by her tone of voice that she was having mixed emotions about the situation.

"You're getting attached to her aren't you?" Spike asked curiously.

Twilight nodded. "I told myself I wouldn't, but it's almost impossible. I don't know what to do Spike."

After a brief moment of silence, Spike spoke up again.

"I think you should think more about this Twilight, but I'll tell you want I think. I think that you wouldn't have a problem taking care of her. You've been raising me for sixteen years and I'd say you've done a good job at that."

Twilight had to admit that Spike did have a point. She had been raising him ever since she was a little filly. She gave some though to this as they washed the final few dishes

"If you're really unsure about taking care of a filly talk to Applejack and Rarity. Applejack has been raising Applebloom since she was a baby, and Rarity is always looking after Sweetie Belle for her parents. See what they think," suggested Spike as they finished up.

This was a good idea. Her friends would certainly know how to approach this. They finished the dishes right around the same time Scootaloo came back downstairs.

"I'm ready to go Twilight," Scootaloo called from the living room.

Twilight put away the last dish and then walked into the living room. It looked windy outside so Twilight put on a jacket. She had to look around but she eventually found a jacket that would be big enough for Scootaloo. It belonged to Spike but he didn't use it anymore. They said goodbye to Spike and then left for the clubhouse.

"Umm Twilight…do you think I can go play with my friends after we get my stuff and bring it back to your house?" asked Scootaloo as they walked.

"I thought you said you had homework?" Twilight questioned.

"I do but...well," stammered Scootaloo nervously.

Twilight ruffled her mane. "You can go play, but you have to do your homework when you get back," she told her, "Promise not to do anything dangerous."

Scootaloo smiled and thanked Twilight. This was a good thing though. If Scootaloo was out playing then Twilight would be able to talk to Rarity and Applejack if they weren't both busy.

**********

It had turned out that neither of the girls were busy so Twilight asked them if they could meet her a Sugarcube Corner. Applejack and Rarity showed up around twelve, and Twilight was sitting at a table waiting for them.

"What's up Twilight?" asked Applejack as she and Rarity sat down. "Y'all said yah wanted ta see us and talk?"

"I do girls. I need to asked you something," Twilight explained to her friends. She thought about what she was about to say but couldn't come up with a way to say it. "Girls, did you know that Scootaloo is an orphan?"

Applejack dropped the fritter she was about to take a bite into while Rarity spat out the coffee she was sipping on.

"She's an orphan?!" they both cried in shock.

Twilight nodded her head. She hadn't been expecting her friends to react in such a way.

"I found out last night. I offered to take her home after the hospital visit, but she said she didn't need me to. I decided to follower her, and it turns out that she had been living in the Cutie Mark Crusaders clubhouse for quite some time.”

Applejack and Rarity were still bewildered about what Twilight had said, but they both finally spoke up.

"Applebloom never told me that little filly was an orphan. Wish she would have. Ah would've taken her in and at least made sure she had a nice place to rest her little head and enjoy a meal," croaked Applejack, still thrown off by the startling news.

"The poor dear. You said she's been living on her own for a while?" asked Rarity curiously.

Twilight nodded. "She said one day her parents didn't come home. She also said she had an older brother she was close to but that he got killed in an accident and that she had a sister but she made it pretty clear that her sister didn't want anything to do with her. Anyway I've taken her in for now."

"Well that's good at least Twi, but what are you gonna do with her?" asked Applejack.

"That's why I asked you girls here. I don't know what I'm going to do. She is such a sweet and kind little filly, and I don't want to see her end up in the position she was in again. I want to tell her she can stay with me permanently, but I just don't know if I can take care of a kid. That's what I wanted to ask you both about this issue, seeing as you both have raised or helped raise your sisters," Twilight told her friends with a serious tone.

Applejack and Rarity looked at each other. They both had something to say, yet they couldn't decide who should speak first.

"Well Twi honestly taking care of an older filly is a heck of a lot easier then taking care of a foal," said Applejack kindly after some silence.

"I agree. I remember Sweetie Belle was a very hard to manage as a foal. She's still difficult to manage as a filly but much easier then when she was when she was younger," added Rarity with a reassuring tone.

"It's good when they are older 'cuz they learn to take care of themselves, and y'all just have to guide them along," continued Applejack.

Twilight was happy that her friends had reassured her, but now she needed to move on to the big question. "So...what do you girls think I should do?"

Applejack and Rarity once again looked at each other, but this time they were both unsure about what to say.

"Well Twi," piped up Applejack after much silence, "Ah think that ya have been given a chance to make a huge difference in the life of a pony that hasn't had a good one yet."

"The decision is yours and yours alone darling, but if you feel like she is something that you can and should handle then I wouldn't give it a second thought," added Rarity with a smile.

Twilight was reminded once again why she knew she had the best friends in all of Equestria. They gave her the answers to everything that she wanted to know, and they certainly helped her move closer towards making a final decision.

"Thanks girls. This really helps," Twilight told her friends. "I still need to think about this some more but I think you've both influenced my decision."

"You're certainly welcome sugarcube, but Ah got a question for y'all. What kind of guardian do ya see yourself being to lil' Scootaloo. Just a friend, a sister, or something more?" asked Applejack curiously.

Twilight thought about her friends question carefully. She certainly wouldn't be a friend. The little filly had caused a strange stir of emotion in Twilight. She really didn't know how she felt, but deep down her heart was telling her that she could be something more than a sister to Scootaloo. She knew though that in the end that decision was to be Scootaloo's decision.

*********

Twilight spent the next week thinking about the decision she needed to make, but she didn't let it distract her from making sure Scootaloo was happy. The big issue right now was getting into a routine during the school week. It only took Twilight a day to adjust. She woke Scootaloo up in the morning and got her ready for the day. They ate breakfast together, sometimes with Spike too, and then Twilight would walk Scootaloo to school. Twilight then would go about her normal daily schedule, but at two o'clock, she would make her way to the school house and pick up Scootaloo. They would go back to the library and then Scootaloo would go play with her friends until dinner time. After dinner Twilight would help Scootaloo with her homework and then they would get an hour or two to goof off before bed. The first day was the hardest and the strangest. Twilight got asked a lot of questions from ponies they passed by. Twilight actually had to spend an hour talking to Cheerliee about it. She explained to everyone the position she was in. Twilight was still thinking about what she was going to do about Scootaloo, but each day she felt more and more attached to her and couldn't bring herself to send her away. Spike even admitted her was starting to get used to having another pony in the house. To top that Scootaloo had become best friends with Peewee and Owlowiscious. Twilight was realizing how well she fit in and that they were all more or less a happy family. Finally she couldn't take it anymore. She needed to make a decision, and she was pretty sure she knew what she was going to do.

**********

Scootaloo raced towards Twilight's house on her scooter. She had lost track of time playing with her friends and she knew that she was going to be late. She really hoped that Twilight wouldn't get mad at her. She had been living with Twilight now for close to two weeks now, and her life had improved significantly. She was no longer making bad grades in school, she was happy every day, and she was never hungry. She liked living with Twilight, but she knew that it wasn't going to last forever and she had been preparing herself for it.

She screeched up to the door and ran inside, hoping Twilight wouldn't be mad. She saw Twilight sitting on the couch.

"Sorry...sorry I'm late I lost track of time," panted Scootaloo, hoping for forgiveness.

Twilight put down the book she was reading and smiled at Scootaloo, who let out a sigh of relief knowing Twilight wasn't angry.

"It's okay Scootaloo. Go put your scooter away and then come back here, I need to talk to you about something.”

Scootaloo did what she was told and put her scooter away in the closet. She came back to the couch and sat down with Twilight. Scootaloo got a worried feeling about where this might be going.

"Scootaloo, do you enjoy living here?" asked Twilight sweetly and camly.

Scootaloo couldn't see where this was going now, so she just answered the question. "I do. I love living here with you, Spike, Peewee, and Owlowiscious.”

Twilight smiled, though she had known this was the answer she was going to get. "So remember how I told you when you first arrived that we would figure out what we were going to do with you. Well I have finally made the decision.”

Scootaloo's ear and head fell. She spoke quietly. "You're going to send me away?”

Twilight put her hoof under the little filly’s chin and tilted her head up. "Quite the opposite. You see that folder sitting on the table. Open it and read what is inside.”

Scootaloo looked at Twilight for a second and then picked up the folder she was talking about. She read the few pieces of paper that were in it, and a huge smile erupted on her face followed by tears.

"You...does this mean that?" stammed Scootaloo.

Twilight, who was also crying, nodded her head. "As of twelve o'clock today by the Office of the Mayor of Ponyville I am now your legal guardian.”

Scootaloo, bursting with emotions, wrapped her hooves around Twilight's center and hugged her.

"Oh thank you thank you thank you thank you!!" cried Scootaloo, her eyes full of tears.

"You're quite welcome. I gave it a lot of thought these past few weeks. You just fit in so well it was like you were already a member of the family. After I realized that I knew in my heart this was where you belonged," Twilight mentioned quietly, "Now legally I am only your guardian so feel free to call me whatever you wish."

Scootaloo did have to give what she wanted to call Twilight some thought. After a bit of thinking she came up with an suitable answer to the question. "I really just want to keep calling you Twilight right now. Is that okay?”

Twilight pulled Scootaloo away from her and looked into her eyes. "You can call me whatever you want Scootaloo.”

Scootaloo re-embraced Twilight, still crying her eyes out. "Thank you Twilight.”

Twilight understood why Scootaloo was probably uncomfortable calling her anything else but Twilight at this point in time. It didn't matter to her at all though. The fact that she now had a little filly in her life was enough.

Twilight and Scootaloo hugged for what felt like hours all while crying tears of joy. Finally they broke their embrace and smiled at each other.

"Well I have a little surprise for you. We are going to have a small party at Sugarcube Corner tonight. But you need to get some homework done before we go," said Twilight as she stroked Scootaloo's mane.

Scootaloo smiled at Twilight and giggled. "Okay...can you still help we with it?"

Twilight blushed a bit as she was going to have to get used to being a guardian.

"Yes I can," laughed Twilight.

Twilight pulled Scootaloo in for one more hug and then they went into the kitchen to get some work done. Life was going to be different for the both of them from now on.

Author's Notes:

So a little surprise for everyone who has been waiting. I managed to get the edits done earlier than expected and found a brief window of free time to post this. I did not change the portion I had planned on changing, though I did make lots of small changes throughout. Anyway I hope everyone enjoys this. If you catch any noticeable mistakes let me know.

Update 4/16/2013: I took some suggestions into consideration and made a bunch of changes to ending (as well as some other bits in the beginning and the middle). Still seems to read smoothly from what I can tell.

Adjustments and Learning

Written by: Mayhem Darkshadow
Edited by: psychohooves and Avatar of Shadow

Chapter 3: Adjustments and Learning

"You have all of your books?" Twilight asked Scootaloo as they walked down the main streets of Ponyville towards the Schoolhouse.

"Yes," responded Scootaloo halfheartedly.

It had only been a few days since Twilight had become Scootaloo's new guardian; however, the daily routines hadn't seemed to change. All the residents of the Ponyville Library were still on the same schedule as before.

"What about your lunch?"

"I've got it Twilight."

"Your homework, pencils, paper?"

"Sheesh Twilight," groaned Scootaloo, slightly annoyed. "I've got everything. Stop worrying."

Twilight smiled. "Just making sure. I'm not going to be able to bring you anything today if you forget something. Now don't forget you and your friends are going to Sweetie Belle's house after school. Their sisters and I have something we need to take care of today."

Scootaloo nodded her head in response. Twilight had given no clue as to what they were doing, but Scootaloo figured it was probably something that didn't concern her. As they got closer to the schoolhouse they could hear the bell ringing. They stopped just short of the entrance and turned to each other.

"Well," started Twilight, "Have a fun day of learning and gaining knowledge. Good luck with your test today as well."

Scootaloo groaned in protest. She had forgotten completely about the math test. Twilight smiled and ruffled her mane.

"You'll do fine. We studied long and hard for this one."

Scootaloo gave Twilight a weak smile. Math was her worst subject.

"Also try not to get into any trouble today," added Twilight.

Scootaloo snickered. "No promises on that one."

Twilight chuckled and then sent Scootaloo on her way, watching her until she was inside. As she turned Twilight happened to see Rarity and Applejack walking up the street with their sisters.

"Mornin' Twilight," called Applejack.

Twilight gave them both a smile and watched them send their sisters off to school. When they were finally inside they began to talk about today's plans.

"So do we have everything?" Twilight asked them.

"Big Mac is bringing the cart of materials and tools to the library as we speak," replied Applejack.

"I have all my books and color pallets in my saddle bags," said Rarity as she patted the bags hanging from her sides, "Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie are bringing over everything else I need."

Twilight smiled. So far everything was going off without a hitch.

"Y'all know this is gonna be real hard ta do in a single day right Twi?" asked Applejack.

Twilight nodded. "I know but we need to try. If we need to we can have Rarity's parents watch them a bit longer."

"I'm sure they wouldn't mind at all," assured Rarity.

Twilight nodded, realizing that she had the best friends in all of Equestria. They all turned and trotted off to the Library. Twilight had already hung up a sign to notify ponies. It read "Closed for Renovations".

**********

When Twilight, Rarity, and Applejack got back to the Ponyville Library they realized everypony else were waiting for them. Parked right outside the front door was a cart from Sweet Apple Acres filled to the brim with wood, tools, and other assorted building items. Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie were all carrying Rarity's sewing equipment as well as many assorted fabrics and materials.

"Took your sweet time now didn't ya?" yawned Rainbow Dash loudly. This was very early for her, but when Twilight asked her to help she couldn't say no.

"Hi girls," chimed Twilight full of energy, "Is everypony ready to do this?"

They all nodded. It had been very last minute but Twilight asked them to help her out with a very big project. She wanted to do some serious renovations to the library, specifically giving Scootaloo her own room. All her friends kindly and enthusiastically volunteered to help. She figured, and hoped, that they would be able to get it done in one day. They got Rarity's parents informed in hope they could keep the girls busy while they worked.

"Alright. The only things we are still missing are the bed and the bedside table. That should be here in a few hours," announced Twilight.

"Twilight I know y’all are really high hoped on getting’ this all done in a single day, but as I mentioned before that’s a tall task,” Applejack mentioned.

Twilight, despite knowing her friend was probably right, kept the energy alive. "I know it's a lot of work girls but I think with the six of us we can get it done. Besides we have magic in our arsenal today."

Applejack let out a quiet sigh and shrugged. "Well alrighty then let's get to it y'all. Rainbow and Pinkie Pie y'all are still helping me build shelving and such."

Rainbow Dash let out a small groan and followed Applejack over to the cart. She was starting to regret agreeing to this. Pinkie Pie, energetic as ever, bounced gleefully behind Rainbow.

"Now Twilight you did remember the type of furniture I asked you buy right?" asked Rarity.

Twilight nodded. It wasn't like Rarity had reminded her a dozen times. "Oak wood with a light colored stain."

Rarity smiled. "Perfect. May I look at them darling?"

"They’re upstairs in my room. The store delivered them late yesterday," Twilight told her.

"Excellent. Come Fluttershy dear let's go get a look and start thinking about color schemes."

Rarity trotted off with Fluttershy, while Twilight broke out her check list and checked off the first item.

"Alright. Time for step two," she said quietly to herself.

Twilight had the largest task of the six ponies: physically forming the room. To any other pony this would be a task that alone would take a few weeks. Twilight, however, knew a single spell that would have the whole procedure done in a matter of minutes.

**********

"Y'all did a perfect job Twi," congratulated Applejack as she looked at Twilight's handy work, "This room is just perfect fer a filly."

"You don't think it's too big or too small?" questioned Twilight.

Applejack shook her head, and Twilight smiled. Now that the room itself had been fabricated, they could begin making it into an actual room. Applejack wiped some sweat from her brow. Even though it was getting close to fall it was still quite hot outside.

"I'm thinking maybe a break is in order," said Twilight.

Applejack agreed. They both turned around and took a step forward, only to be hit by yelling coming from downstairs.

"You are not painting her room pink Rarity!" shouted Rainbow Dash at her friend.

"Well we certainly aren't using your idea either. Orange. Unacceptable!" retorted Rarity in anger.

Applejack and Twilight rushed downstairs and found the two ponies ripping each other a new one.

"What's wrong with Orange?" spat Rainbow Dash, voice like venom, "She's got an orange coat. I don't see what wrong with that."

"She's a little filly Rainbow Dash. Fillies like pink," replied Rarity rudely.

Rainbow facehoofed. "Okay for starters not all fillies like pink. Second you don't know the pipsqueak as well as I do. She’s about as far from girly as it gets."

Twilight and Applejack looked at each other, rolled their eyes, and intervened.

"Girls stop arguing this isn't helping us make progress," shouted Twilight, "You are both forgetting that I said I'd make the final decision on color. Rainbow, yes Scootaloo has an orange coat, but I don't think she'd like an orange room. Rarity, she may be a filly but trust me. She would not like pink."

Rainbow Dash frowned, and Rarity bit her lip. Fluttershy, who had been standing there quietly, spoke up.

"Umm...well what about sky blue?" asked Fluttershy quietly.

Twilight nodded in approval. "Now that idea I like. Good job Fluttershy. Before we do anymore though let's take a break and calm our nerves."

**********

After a quick fifteen minute break they got back to work. Rarity and Fluttershy went to work fabricating some blankets and pillows. Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash continued with shelving. This left Twilight, along with Spike, to go out and buy paint and accessories for the room. What Twilight was looking for was mostly school supplies for the desk. She was going to take Scootaloo out later and let her pick out some posters as well as maybe some toys. Twilight was glad she brought Spike because she felt like she may have been ignoring him over Scootaloo.

"Excited to have another pony living with us permanently?" she asked him as they were picking out the proper color of paint.

Spike shrugged. "I mean I don't feel any different than I did a week ago. You sound concerned Twilight."

Twilight rubbed him playfully on the head. "Just want to make sure I'm not ignoring my number one assistant."

Spike smiled, glad that he hadn't been forgotten and took the bucket of paint from the hardware store employee. His fingers were immediately crushed between it and the hard ground. He didn't realize how heavy it was going to be. Twilight helped him free his fingers, all while snickering quietly to herself.

"How...how much for the paint?" asked Twilight after she got a hold of herself.

The employee, who was chuckling quietly, responded. "Let's see you have the premium with primer already added. You have a five gallon bucket. The total will come to one hundred and twenty bits ma'am."

Twilight felt this was an acceptable price and paid it. She let Spike carry the desk supplies while she used magic to carry the bucket of paint.

"I hope she likes this color," she said with a bit of worry in her voice.

"I'm sure she is going to love it Twilight," responded Spike, "The fact that she's getting her own room is going to be enough of a surprise."

Spike had a point and Twilight let the thought go. They picked up the pace so they could get to the library quickly. School was already out and they didn't want to burden Rarity's parents with the girls for too long.

**********

Twilight and the rest of her friends could not contemplate how they had managed to fabricate a room from nothing in just a day. They had literally done the impossible. In the end it was probably the magic that helped them finish. As they cleaned up the mess they all shared their thoughts on how Scootaloo was going to react.

"I think she's gonna flip," said Rainbow Dash as they were picking up the last of the mess.

"Or she could act like a civilized pony and thank Twilight in a kind matter," added Rarity.

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "You really need to get to know her better Rarity. That filly is pretty much a mini version of me."

Twilight stopped them before the bickering worsened because the front door had just opened. Scootaloo and Apple Bloom walked in the door.

"Twilight I'm...oh I didn't realize everypony was still here," said Scootaloo when she realized they were all there.

Everypony except for Twilight made a bee-line for the door. Twilight asked them to stay but they had all decided ahead of time to let Twilight and Scootaloo have this moment alone.

"Did...did I do something wrong?" asked a very confused Scootaloo.

Twilight, a bit confused as well, responded. "Of course not I'm just as lost as you are. Anyway I have a surprise for you."

Scootaloo's eyes widened in excitement, though she was still confused. "A surprise? For me?"

Twilight nodded. "Close your eyes and I'll take you to it."

Scootaloo did as she was told, and Twilight levitated her onto her back.

"Keep them shut tight," she mentioned to the filly on her back.

Making sure Scootaloo wasn't peeking Twilight headed upstairs to her new room. Scootaloo could tell they were going upstairs and was still trying to figure out what the surprise was. Once they were inside Twilight set Scootaloo on the ground.

"You can open your eyes now," she told her.

Scootaloo opened and realized she was standing in a room she hadn't been in before. It had a very large bed positioned at the back and a desk near the front. There was shelving spaced out along the walls and a bedside table to match the bed and the desk. It even had a closet. The whole room was painted a calming sky blue and it smelled like freshly shaved wood.

"Welcome to your new room," announced Twilight happily.

Scootaloo was struck speechless. She was too awestruck to comprehend what laid before her eyes.

"I figured it was about time you got your own little slice of privacy. It's not quite complete yet. Some windows still need to be put in and you need to pick out some toys or posters or whatever you wish to make it feel more at home," Twilight told her.

Scootaloo was still silent as she tried to take it all in. Twilight was starting to think maybe Rarity had been right about her reaction.

"This...this is really all mine?" she mumbled quietly.

Twilight nodded. Scootaloo, no longer able to contain herself, responded similarly to Rainbow Dash's predictions. She ran straight to the bed and started jumping on it.

"This...is...the...best...surprise...ever!" she shouted out of pure joy.

She jumped straight off the bed and wrapped herself around Twilight's leg. "Thank you Twilight. You have no idea how much this means to me."

Twilight patted her head softly. "I'm thrilled that you like it so much."

Scootaloo let go of Twilight and looked around the room some more. She could believe how much her life had changed in just a few short weeks.

"Well I'll just let you have a moment to yourself if you want," Twilight told her.

Scootaloo nodded, and Twilight went back downstairs to get dinner started. Once she was sure Twilight was gone Scootaloo started crying -- tears of joy of course. Never had anypony ever been so kind to her as to build her a room in just a day. It was more than she ever could have asked for. If there was an award for best pony in all of Equestria Twilight was the only pony who deserved it.

**********

Scootaloo having her own room now was a big adjustment for both her and Twilight. Scootaloo embraced this new feeling of independence and was nothing but thrilled. Twilight, meanwhile, found it different because she no longer had a little filly curled up beside her every night. It didn't take long for Twilight to normalize to this though, and she still got to tuck Scootaloo in every night per her request. This was only one change though. There were many still to come.

**********

Scootaloo raced home in the biggest hurry of her life. It was a Friday, and she and her friends had some big plans for the weekend. The weather was starting to turn to fall, and today they wanted to get one last swim in before it was too cold to do so. They were planning to meet up in an hour which gave Scootaloo just enough to time to get her scooter and wagon, have a snack, talk to Twilight about her day, and then go and have some fun. When she got closer to the library she was glad the door was open. She ran inside and nearly knocked Twilight and Spike over.

"Where's the fire?" growled Spike as he dropped the stack of books he was carrying.

Scootaloo didn't answer him and dropped her saddle bags before bolting upstairs to her room.

Twilight laughed and then went into Scootaloo's bag. The latest test had been graded and returned to them. Twilight was curious to see how well the studying had paid off. After digging through Scootaloo's saddlebags she managed to find the manila envelope with the papers.

Alright let's see how she did.

She opened the folder and pulled out the stack of five papers. The first one was the Biology quiz.

A-, very good.

Following that was the Geography test.

B+. It's not an A but it's still good.

Then the History quiz.

B+. The studying seemed to pay off.

The next one made Twilight very proud.

One hundred percent on the spelling test. I'm going to have to buy her a treat for doing so well.

Twilight smiled and knew the last paper had to be the math test. She and Scootaloo had worked real hard on this one. Scootaloo, from what Twilight could tell just by working with her, was not very good at math. Her eyes fell out of her head when she saw the grade on the paper.

F? She got an F?!? How, after all that work, did she manage to get an F?

Twilight sighed and looked through each individual test question. Scootaloo didn't get the full points on a single question. In fact, for the most part, she didn't get any points on a lot of the questions. Twilight flipped to the last page and saw there was a note for her from Ms. Cheerilee.

Twilight,

I was a little shocked after grading Scootaloo's test to find that she had failed. I'm starting to worry that nothing is clicking in for her. She does so well in all the other subjects yet struggles severely in this one. I'm not afraid to state that her grade was the lowest in the class by almost twenty points. I had to give her extra time to finish as well. I am requesting that she stays after school an extra hour on Tuesday and Thursday so I can work with her one on one. I'm sure you will also be reviewing quite a bit more with her now. Luckily it's early in the year and the scores on her homework are helping balance out the tests. She is an extremely smart filly and I know she has the potential to do well.

Cheerilee

Twilight put the paper down, and let out a huge sigh. It was not going to be fun talking to Scootaloo about this. She gathered her thoughts on how to go about this. When she heard the clopping of hooves coming down the stairs, she called Scootaloo over.

"Scootaloo. We need to talk before you go anywhere," Twilight called at the filly.

Scootaloo frowned. Her friends were waiting for her. "Can we do it later? The girls and I want to go swimming before it starts to get cold."

Twilight remained solid. "We're going to talk now Scootaloo."

Scootaloo pouted and sat in the chair across from the couch.

"What do you want?" she said in a rather cool tone.

Twilight held her temper and showed the math test to Scootaloo. "You failed your math test. We did all that studying and you still failed the test."

Scootaloo shrugged. "What's the big deal? It's just a stupid math test."

Twilight took a deep breath to calm her nerves. "The big deal is that Ms. Cheerilee is concerned. She's worried that you don’t understand the material. You do well in every other subject except math."

Scootaloo frowned and started whining. "Math is hard compared to spelling or history. All the numbers and stuff get confusing."

Twilight figured this might be the problem and pressed the subject. "You find the numbers confusing?"

"I find the whole subject confusing," complained Scootaloo.

"Well that's what Ms. Cheerilee thinks and that's why on Tuesdays and Thursdays you’re going to stay after school with her and work on it," Twilight told her.

Scootaloo was getting close to a tantrum. "That's not fair at all!"

"You and I will also be spending time working on math as well," continued Twilight.

This was the straw that broke the ponies back.

"Why would you do that to me? Just because I don't understand the stupid bucking subject you’re going to make me do extra work. Well I'd rather fail than do all that extra work!" shouted Scootaloo at the top of her lungs, "You wouldn't be doing this if you were cool."

Twilight didn't say a word. She got off the couch and walked angrily upstairs. Scootaloo realized what she did and tried to apologize.

"Twilight I'm..."

She flinched as she heard the door slam to Twilight's room.

"Nice."

Scootaloo flipped around as saw spike standing in the corner munching on an apple.

"It's not funny Spike," she snapped, "I think I hurt her feelings with that last comment."

"Maybe, but I doubt it. I think you just got her flustered. Move over to the couch and let's have a talk," he told her.

Scootaloo frowned. Not another talk. She, however, did as she was asked so as to not make another resident of the library angry at her.

"You need to cut Twilight some slack," started Spike.

"But I don't..." interrupted Scootaloo.

"Let me finish," snapped Spike.

Scootaloo shut her mouth and kept listening.

"You're going to need to learn that Twilight's life revolves around learning and school work. She prides herself in her intellect. I've never met another pony as smart as she is. I've seen her prove ponies with doctorate degrees wrong. She's only doing this to help you. She may be forcing you to do something you do want to do but she's doing it for your benefit."

Scootaloo thought long and hard about what Spike has just told her. She felt bad for yelling at Twilight. Sliding off the couch she slowly made her way upstairs.

**********

Twilight sat on her bed. She wasn't crying or anything. She was thinking about was Scootaloo had said.

Maybe I treated her too harshly.

Twilight heard a knock on the door. She turned around and faced it.

"Come in," she called.

There was no response as the door opened to the room. Scootaloo slowly walked into the room. Twilight didn't give her a smile or a frown, she just looked at her. Scootaloo walked over the bed, climbed up on it, and sat across from Twilight. After about thirty seconds of silence Scootaloo finally spoke.

"I'm...I'm sorry Twilight for how I acted," she croaked quietly.

"No I'm sorry. I acted too harshly over something silly," responded Twilight.

Scootaloo looked into Twilight's eyes. Twilight saw that they were sparkling with tears.

"I didn't mean to say you weren’t cool. I just got frustrated," sobbed Scootaloo.

She buried her head into the sheets and started crying hard. Twilight lifted Scootaloo up and wiped the tears from her eyes.

"Hey its okay it was a simple mistake Scootaloo," cooed Twilight, "I was the one who over reacted. I should have treated the situation differently."

Scootaloo wiped the tears from her eyes. Twilight ruffled her mane and let her go.

"We can talk about this later. It's a Friday so go have fun with your friends," Twilight told her.

Scootaloo's mood went from regretful to excited in an instant. She wrapped her hooves around Twilight's neck.

"Thanks Twilight," she said before jumping off the bed and running off to her friends.

Twilight smiled and shook her head. She then began to think about the even that had just occurred and how she maybe could have gone about it differently.

I suppose I was a bit pushy about the subject. She obviously doesn't like learning as much as I do. I suppose nopony likes learning as much as I do. Still she needs to get her grades set straight and tutoring is the only way to do that.

Twilight was puzzled as how to go about this. She didn't want to have another shouting match with Scootaloo for the sake of either of them saying something they would regret. After a few minutes of deep thinking Twilight came up with some possible ideas. It was a long shot but if they helped Scootaloo out it would be worth it

********

Twilight decided not to wait to start working with Scootaloo. Just a few days after they had their first argument they both found themselves sitting at the kitchen table surrounded by math books. Scootaloo was not thrilled. Earlier today she spent an hour working with Ms. Cheerilee. She did, however, remember what she and Spike talked about and kept her mouth shut. Twilight finished setting up her portable whiteboard and then turned and faced Scootaloo.

"I know you don't want to do this Scootaloo but it's going to pay off in the end," mentioned Twilight as she sat down at the table.

Scootaloo held back a sigh and prepared for more lecturing. Twilight, however, just asked Scootaloo a simple question.

"Rather than lecture you Scootaloo I just want you to tell me what about math you find hard?" asked Twilight curiously.

Scootaloo looked at Twilight. "You aren't just going to lecture me?"

Twilight raised an eyebrow. "I'd rather know what you find difficult. If you want me to just lecture you though I can do that."

Scootaloo quickly shook her head. "No, no that's okay."

Twilight chuckled. "I'm only messing with you."

Scootaloo laughed nervously. "Well...I just find everything about math confusing. I mean simple addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division I'm fine with. It's...it's everything else that I find difficult."

Twilight smiled and then opened Scootaloo's math book to the current chapter they were on.

"So let's look at what Ms. Cheerilee is lecturing about right now. Can you explain PEMDAS to me at all?" Twilight asked Scootaloo.

Scootaloo scratched her head. Ms. Cheerilee just went over this today with her and she already forgot about it. "Umm...it's the order of operations right?"

Twilight nodded. "Yes it is. Can you tell me what each letter means?"

Scootaloo tried hard to remember. "Umm...umm P is for parentheses. E is for...it's for..."

"E is for exponent," said Twilight calmly.

Scootaloo swallowed nervously and kept going. "M is for multiplication. D is for division. A is for addition. S is for subtraction."

"Take a deep breath and relax Scootaloo," said Twilight, "I think I see the problem. Do you get nervous whenever you take a math test? Or if Ms. Cheerilee asks you to answer a question?"

Scootaloo sniffed and nodded her head. Twilight now understood the cause of everything.

"I see. So this only happens with math? It doesn't happen with any other subjects?

Scootaloo nodded again. "I've never been nervous with anything else. Math has been the only subject. I don't know why. It's never made sense since day one."

Scootaloo slammed her head on the table and moped. She felt Twilight pat her head.

"That's okay we all get nervous sometimes. Now that we have found the root cause I'm going to give you a problem. I want you to use the order of operations and solve it. But before you do that I want you to take a deep breath and clear you head. You are a very smart filly and I know you can do it."

Twilight passed Scootaloo the piece of paper she just wrote on. Scootaloo looked at the equation. (4x6)+(13/13). Scootaloo's heart rate started to rise, and she felt herself start to sweat. She felt Twilight put a hoof on her shoulder.

"Deep breath," Twilight told her.

Scootaloo inhaled and then looked at the problem again. She thought about everything she knew on the order of operations and everything Ms. Cheerilee lectured her on. Taking a pencil she began working out the math. After about thirty seconds she came up with the answer.

"Is the answer 25?" asked Scootaloo confidently.

Twilight nodded. "See you can do it you just need to believe in yourself. Let's try another one."

Twilight took the paper and scrawled down another problem. When she was done she passed it back to Scootaloo. Scootaloo took another deep breath and glanced over the question. (4+3+1)x 2.

"Sixteen," responded Scootaloo after looking at the problem for a few seconds and doing some scratch work.

Twilight smiled. "See I told you that you could do it. Just take a deep breath whenever you get nervous."

Scootaloo smiled. "Thanks Twilight."

Twilight ruffled her mane. "You’re welcome Scootaloo. Alright now let's try some slightly harder problems."

They continued to work until it was Scootaloo's bedtime. Twilight hadn't actually realized that Scootaloo had fallen asleep during one of her lectures. Twilight smiled and levitated Scootaloo onto her back before taking her upstairs. Not wanting to wake her up Twilight zapped Scootaloo's teeth clean before tucking her into bed. As Twilight tucked Scootaloo in the little filly mumbled something before cracking a smile.

"Sweet dreams Scootaloo," Twilight whispered in Scootaloo's ear.

Scootaloo smiled again and moved around. Twilight giggled slightly before giving Scootaloo a kiss on the forehead.

"Good night sweet little filly."

Twilight shut the lights off and left the room. She gave a lot of thought about the last few days. There had been some adjustments, and they had also learned a bit about each other’s personalities. Twilight thought it was a great experience and hoped there would be more in the future.

Author's Notes:

Okay so I know I said I would post stuff periodically this week but then I realized that is a stupid idea and it's been long enough since a update. So here is one and hopefully it's full of feels. Catch any mistakes let me know.

Wickedness Part 1

Written by: Mayhem Darkshadow
Edited by: psychohooves and Avatar of Shadow

Chapter 4: Wickedness Part 1

It was another cold and windy fall day. Today was the Tuesday after a long weekend, and Twilight was rushing Scootaloo along. She had let the little filly sleep in far longer than she should have, so Scootaloo would be late for school if they didn't get moving faster.

"Slow...slow down Twilight," panted Scootaloo. "I don't think Ms. Cheerilee will get angry at me for being a minute or two late."

Twilight, however, wasn't going to have it. She picked up the pace when she saw the school appear on the horizon. Scootaloo, very reluctantly, also sped up so that she was right along Twilight.

"Two minutes to nine. Hurry inside Scootaloo."

Twilight gave Scootaloo a quick nuzzle before sending her off. Scootaloo smiled at her guardian then ran inside. She managed to get to her desk right as Cheerliee rang the bell.

"You were almost late Scootaloo. That's very unlike you," commented Cheerliee.

Scootaloo took in a huge breath. "Sorry Ms. Cheerliee. I woke up a little late."

Ms. Cheerliee looked at Scootaloo then gave her a smile. "Alright class we are going to continue where we left off last Friday. As I recall we were studying the planets. Give me a minute to go retrieve the solar system model from the basement."

Cheerliee made her way to the basement, and, when she saw that their teacher had left the room, Diamond Tiara began to tease Scootaloo.

"Who was that blank flank? Your mommy?" Diamond Tiara sneered.

She bumped Silver Spoon to get her to laugh. Silver Spoon, who had not been paying attention, laughed nervously. Scootaloo’s face turned red in anger and embarrassment.

"Twilight's just my guardian," shot back Scootaloo.

Diamond Tiara smiled and began to laugh. "Hold on that was Twilight Sparkle? Isn’t she the town librarian and Equestria’s biggest egghead?"

Scootaloo's face turned redder. "Twilight is not an egghead!"

"Sure she isn't blank flank. So how is it living in a library with an egghead? Does she give you extra homework?" laughed Diamond Tiara.

Scootaloo's whole face went from red to maroon. "Stop making fun of Twilight!!!"

Diamond Tiara lost it and rolled around in her desk laughing.

"Making fun of students again Diamond?"

Diamond Tiara stopped laughing immediately as Ms. Cheerilee came around the corner.

"I guess that means no recess for you again Diamond Tiara. Also, since this is your third offense this month I'll be assigning you a report due this Friday. We'll talk about it during recess."

Diamond Tiara opened her mouth to complain but shut it when she saw Ms. Cheerliee glare at her.

"Now can anyone remind me where I stopped?" Ms. Cheerliee asked the class, her normal cheeriness enthusiasm having returned.

Ms. Cheerliee looked around the room and called on the one pony that had their hoof raised.

"Yes Scootaloo?" called Ms. Cheerliee.

Scootaloo cleared her throat. "You were talking about the moons of Saturn I think."

Ms. Cheerilee smiled. "Thank you my little pony. Now can anypony tell me the name of at least three of Saturn's moons?"

**********

Scootaloo sat outside eating her lunch with her friends as they discussed more ways to get their cutie marks. Scootaloo was only partially paying attention. The previous events at the beginning of the day still had her worked up.

“What about bowling?” mentioned Sweetie Belle as they brainstormed.

“We already did that Sweetie Belle. Don’t ya remember?” responded Applebloom.

Sweetie Belle scratched her head. “Oh yeah that’s right.”

“You have any idea’s Scootaloo?” asked Applebloom.

Scootaloo wasn’t paying attention. In fact she was looking over at Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. They were both talking to each other and occasionally glancing over at the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Scootaloo wanted to know that they were discussing.

“Scootaloo!”

“Waa…what?” stuttered Scootaloo as her attention diverted back to her friends.

“I said do y’all have any ideas as ta how we could get our cutie marks?” asked a slightly annoyed Applebloom.

Scootaloo rubbed her eyes and shifted her focus back to her friends. “Um…I can’t really think of any off the top of my head.”

“Oh okay,” said Applebloom.

There was an awkward moment of silence then Sweetie Belle asked another question.

“So Scootaloo, how is it living with Twilight?”

“Oh it’s great Sweetie Belle. Twilight is such an awesome guardian. We have a lot of fun together and she is really nice,” responded Scootaloo.

“That’s nice,” Sweetie Belle said with a smile.

“So is she just a friend to ya right now?” asked Applebloom.

Scootaloo nodded her head. “Yes and no I suppose. Honestly I’m not sure what our relationship is right now. All I know is that my life is so much better than it used to be thanks to Twilight.”

“That’s cool I guess,” said Applebloom.

Scootaloo nodded her head. She was about to open her mouth to say more but Ms. Cheerilee came out and rang the bell for them to come in. As they were all packing up their lunches Diamond Tiara came over to them.

"It's okay I'll handle this," Scootaloo told her friends.

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle nodded and went inside. Scootaloo gave Diamond Tiara a frown and walked over to her.

"What?" asked Scootaloo rudely.

Diamond Tiara smiled at her. "I'd like to apologize for what I said earlier. I was wrong for doing that."

Scootaloo raised an eyebrow. "Like I believe you're being sincere."

Diamond Tiara continued to smile. "I am Scootaloo. Also I want to ask you a question. Do you know how to get to that zebra's house?"

"Zebra?" asked a confused Scootaloo, "You mean Zecora? I do, but why do you want to know?"

"Well, the report Ms. Cheerliee gave me is on Zebra magic, and I figured I should just ask an actual zebra rather than read a bunch of books. I’d love it if you could take me there," explained Diamond Tiara, "If you're too chicken though I could ask somepony else."

Scootaloo, not wanting to be accused of being afraid, responded immediately. "I'll take you there. We can go right after school. I'll talk to Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle about it."

Diamond Tiara let out a huff. "I thought you said you knew how to get their on your own."

"I do!" snarled Scootaloo, "Fine! I'll take you there right after school. Meet me out on the playground after school is out."

**********

Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon sat outside on the playground waiting for Scootaloo. Diamond Tiara already informed her friend of her plans, causing Silver Spoon to be rather excited.

"Her reaction is going to be priceless," snickered Silver Spoon.

Diamond Tiara nodded. "I know I wish we could be there to see her face but I don't want to be in that disgusting forest any longer than we need to."

Silver Spoon nodded. As the two of them continued to wait Scootaloo finally showed up.

"Sorry I took so long I had to get away from my friends," explained Scootaloo.

Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon looked at each other. They were about to put on the best act they had ever done.

"It's okay. Why is Silver Spoon here?" Scootaloo asked, slightly annoyed.

"She was curious about Zecora and wanted to meet her," Diamond Tiara told Scootaloo, "That isn't a problem is it?"

Scootaloo rolled her eyes. "I guess not. We should get going if we want to get there before dark."

Scootaloo began walking off in the direction of the outskirts of Ponyville. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon followed in suite. As the two of them followed Scootaloo they smiled. This was going to be one of the best tricks they had ever pulled.

**********

"Wow, it's a lot bigger than I thought it was," exclaimed Diamond Tiara. She, Silver Spoon, and Scootaloo were standing on the edge of the forest.

"Yeah it is. I've been in there quite a few times," boasted Scootaloo.

"Wow," said Silver Spoon in fake awe, "Well shall we get on with it?"

Scootaloo nodded and took a step into the forest. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon followed slightly behind her. The plan was as they walked along Diamond Tiara was going to keep asking if they were going in the right direction with the hopes that Scootaloo would get confused. Then, once they were far enough in, they were going to leave Scootaloo in the Everfree. It was the perfect plan.

"Now are you sure you know where you're going?" asked Diamond Tiara.

"Of...of course I do," snapped Scootaloo nervously.

Diamond Tiara turned to Silver Spoon and they both cracked a smile. It seemed that Scootaloo actually didn't know where she was going from the start. That was even better. They continued to walk for what Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon guessed was approximately half an hour. Every five minutes Diamond Tiara kept asking if they were going the right way. This caused Scootaloo to change their course of direction every time. Finally, after three more changes in their path they stopped.

"Give me a second to get my bearings," grumbled Scootaloo, "Not that we're lost of anything."

Scootaloo walked a bit ahead of them. Diamond Tiara looked at Silver Spoon and smiled. "Time to make the blank flank pay."

Diamond Tiara looked around and, when she found it, picked up a rock in her hooves. She glanced again at Silver Spoon, winked, and advanced on Scootaloo.

"Diamond what are you doing?" hissed Silver Spoon.

Diamond Tiara didn't say a word and kept advancing on Scootaloo until she was right behind her.

"Okay Diamond I think I know where-"

Scootaloo was cut short as Diamond Tiara bashed her on the head with the rock. She managed to hit Scootaloo hard enough to knock her out. Smiling Diamond Tiara tossed the rock aside and looked over her victim. She was still breathing. Diamond Tiara also noticed that she was bleeding a little.

"Sweet Celestia Diamond Tiara!"

Diamond Tiara turned to see her friend running towards her.

"What was that for Diamond? I thought we were just going to leave her in here?" spat Silver Spoon. She was slightly angry and slightly scared, especially when she noticed Scootaloo was bleeding. She began to freak out but Diamond Tiara cut her short.

"I did what needed to be done. Besides this means she isn't going to be able to find her way out. It'll be night before she regains consciousness," explained Diamond Tiara.

Silver Spoon was awestruck. She and Diamond had pulled some mean tricks in the past, though never had they done anything so cruel. Silver Spoon began to feel uneasy.

"Diamond we're gonna get in trouble. Seriously we can't leave her here," sputtered Silver Spoon.

Diamond Tiara's eyebrows lowered and she stuck her face right in Silver's. "We are going to leave her in here and she is going to get what she deserves Silver. We are in this together."

Silver Spoon didn't know what to say. She never would have guessed best friend could be so cruel. "But...but Diamond?"

Diamond Tiara pushed her face ever closer to Silver Spoons until they were pressed together. "You better not say a word Silver Spoon. If you even mention this to anypony then I may just have to let your little secret out during recess."

Silver Spoon gulped. She knew that Diamond was being serious and the last thing she wanted was her deepest and darkest secret leaked. "Okay Diamond...I...I won't say anything."

Diamond Tiara gave her friend a wicked smile. "Good I'm glad we came to an understanding. How let's throw her under that root structure over there and get out of here."

Silver Spoon nodded nervously and together she and Diamond moved Scootaloo underneath an exposed root structure under a nearby tree. Once they were done Diamond Tiara went into her saddle bag and pulled out a compass. Thanks to Geography lessons she remembered that the Everfree Forest was located northeast of Ponyville. If they headed southwest then they would be able to get out of the forest no problem.

"Alright Silver Spoon let's go," said Diamond Tiara.

Silver Spoon bit her lip and slowly walked along with her friend. Before they left though she turned around and spoke to her friends victim. "I'm so sorry Scootaloo."

**********

Scootaloo regained consciousness slowly. Her surroundings were dark, and her vision was blurry. After a couple seconds, her vision focused. She realized she was still in the Everfree forest. Looking around she realized she was under the root structure of a tree. Scootaloo was terrified. She carefully crawled out of the roots and looked around. Despite the fact that she was only out for around an hour, she had no idea where she was. Tears began to form in Scootaloo's eyes. How could Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon do this? She knew they were mean, but this was on a completely different level. Looking up to the sky Scootaloo realized it was starting to get dark. Too afraid to try and escape for fear of the creatures that lurk in the Everfree Forest, she crawled back under the root structure. Closing her eyes Scootaloo began to sob quietly.

"I...I want my mommy," she cried quietly to herself.

Author's Notes:

ATTENTION:

I asked for feedback on potential ships and y'all gave it to me. There will be a poll with the next chapter to help me make a final decision. It will contain my top few choices.

Wickedness Part 2

Written by: Mayhem Darkshadow
Edited by: psychohooves and Avatar of Shadow

Chapter 5: Wickedness Part 2

Twilight sat in the Ponyville library pacing. Six o'clock was about to roll around, and Scootaloo wasn't home yet. Twilight didn't remember her giving any reasons she would be late arriving home. Twilight had no issue with Scootaloo having freedom, though she wished to be informed about Scootaloo’s plans. Twilight decided she would give she would give Scootaloo a few more minutes before she would go searching for her.

That little filly is going to be in so much trouble when I find her. I told her to tell me before doing anything.

Sighing, Twilight sat down in a chair and rubbed her head. She really didn't want to punish Scootaloo though she saw no reason not to. She was about to go into the kitchen and get a glass of water when there was a knock at the door.

Who could that be? thought Twilight to herself.

Getting up from her seat Twilight went to the door and opened the door. It was Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom.

"Hi Twilight. Is Scootaloo home yet?" asked Sweetie Belle.

Twilight was a bit confused, not sure what Sweetie Belle meant by “is Scootaloo home yet?” "No she isn't home. In fact she never came home after school. Do you girls know where she is?"

Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom shook their heads.

"She told us she had ta do somethin' after school," explained Apple Bloom, "She didn't tell us what it was though."

That last sentence concerned Twilight. Twilight expected to get an answer from Scootaloo’s friends; however, when they replied without an answer, Twilight began to panic slightly.

"That filly is going to be in so much trouble when I find her," growled Twilight.

Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom looked at Twilight, wanting to help but unsure how.

"Is there anything we could do ta help Twilight?" asked Apple Bloom curiously.

Twilight nodded. "Could you help me look for Scootaloo, girls? Also if you find her, tell her she is in serious trouble."

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle nodded and ran off to search for their friend. Twilight facehoofed and trotted off to look for Scootaloo. Little did she know that the problem was far more serious than she realized.

**********

Scootaloo sat under the root structure she had been banished to, experiencing an extreme level of fear she could not comprehend. Every sound she heard was startling, and it was so dark that she could barely see her own hooves. She was also hungry and thirsty but there were no chances for her to get food or water without leaving the protective root structure. Eventually she knew she was going to have to do something, but Scootaloo hoped she could wait until the morning. Her only desire right now was to be reunited with Twilight and the comfort she had to offer.

**********

Twilight sat in the Ponyville library surrounded by all her friends as well as Scootaloo's friends. Twilight was very distraught. Neither she nor Scootaloo’s friends could find the little filly even after searching for an hour and a half. Out of panic, Twilight asked all of her friends to help her. However she couldn't bring herself to do anything but sit in a chair and twiddle her hooves nervously, so Applejack decided to arrange the search party.

"Okay, so I think we got everything in order. Does everypony pony know what they need ta do?" asked Applejack. All the ponies nodded in response.

"I'll get a few of the other weather ponies to help me do an aerial search," said Rainbow Dash.

"I'll ask my animal friends and see if they know anything," Fluttershy added.

"I'll gather up some ponies and ask around town to see if anypony has seen Scootaloo," said Pinkie Pie.

"Good. That'll leave Big Mac and I to look around Sweet Apple Acres," replied Applejack, "Rarity can you stay her with Twilight and.. um...comfort her?"

Rarity nodded and moved next to her friend. Everypony looked worriedly at Twilight and then left to get their respective tasks done.

When they all left Twilight broke down and started crying. Rarity wrapped a hoof around her friend and did her best to comfort her.

"Shhh... It’s okay Twilight. We'll find her," cooed Rarity.

**********

Silver Spoon sat in the foyer of her family’s mansion. Her parents were away right now so she was alone with the butlers and maids. The butlers and maids didn’t treat her very well, so she always hated being left alone with them. Then again it wasn't any better when her parents were home. Right now though, that was the least of her worries. She was devastated with what Diamond Tiara had done to Scootaloo. She felt terrible and wished she could let somepony know. However, she didn't want to suffer the wrath of Diamond Tiara. Sighing, Silver Spoon turned back to her homework. The homework was rather easy, so she finished problems rather quickly. As she finished up one of the final problems there was a knock on the door. She listened closely as one of the butlers answered it.

"I'm sorry, but the Master and his wife are not home at the moment," answered the butler rudely.

"Oh, I'm sorry but I just wanted to say that we are looking for a little orange pegasus named Scootaloo. She didn't come home today and we are asking around to see if anypony has seen her,” replied a voice.

Silver Spoon recognized the voice of the pony at the door. It was one of bakers at Sugar Cube Corner: Pinkie Pie.

"I'm sorry to hear that Miss, but I don't believe anypony in this household has seen the pony you are looking for," responded the butler in a slightly more polite tone.

"Okay, well thank you for your time." The butler bowed and shut the front door. Silver Spoon felt the giant knot in her stomach pull even tighter, like she was about to throw up.

"I'm going to go get some air," announced Silver Spoon to whoever was listening. She didn't get any kind of response but she didn't care. Right now she just wanted to clear her mind.

**********

Scootaloo opened her eyes to total darkness. She decided to shut her eyes for just a moment in hopes that she would relax, though it did nothing to ease her tension. She rolled around she felt her stomach growl, indicating her dire need to obtain food and water. While uncertain of how she could obtain nourishment, she knew she needed to if she wished to maintain any strength she had. Groaning slightly, she crawled out of the root structure and looked around. Having nothing to guide her, she began to move in a random direction. Taking one last look at her only shelter, Scootaloo trotted off knowing it was the last time she would see it.

**********

Silver Spoon walked slowly through downtown Ponyville. Her nerves were bothering her worse, feeling knots and butterflies in her stomach. She knew if anything bad happened to Scootaloo she and Diamond Tiara were going to pay dearly. She halted when she saw a group of ponies coming towards her. One of them was Pinkie Pie. While she wasn’t acquainted with the other three ponies, she knew their names were Golden Harvest, Lyra Hearstrings, and Bon Bon. Swallowing nervously Silver Spoon waited for them to stop her. However, they didn't. In fact they walked right past her. As they walked by, Silver Spoon was able to catch some of their conversation.

"Nopony has seen her Pinkie Pie," said Golden Harvest quietly.

"I know that, but we need to keep looking. I'll go tell Twilight I guess. I can just tell her that we are still searching," explained Pinkie Pie.

Silver Spoon felt like she was going to die right on the spot. She knew that nopony would find Scootaloo. This was nearly the breaking point for Silver Spoon. But as Silver Spoon continued to walk, she had a realization.

You know what? I don’t care how Diamond Tiara threatened me, Silver Spoon thought to herself, Scootaloo’s in trouble, and I need to tell somepony!

Silver Spoon then proceed to make haste to the Ponyville Library.

**********

Twilight stared blankly at the wall, still seated in the same spot she was since they arranged the search party. Rarity continued to hold her, trying to ease her pain. Applejack had just returned from searching the fields with Big Mac and was talking quietly to Rarity.

"Big Mac is still out there looking but we haven't seen even a trace of that lil’ filly."

The three of them sat in silence for a moment, Rarity squeezing Twilight’s hoof with a little more force, before there was a knock on the door. Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy walked in with melancholy expressions on their faces. Applejack and Rarity looked at them silently while Twilight continued to stare off into the distance. As they moved closer Rainbow Dash shook her head.

"We searched every inch of Ponyville and the surrounding area. But nothing...we couldn’t find any signs of her... I called off the aerial search because it's too dark to keep looking," said Rainbow Dash quietly.

Applejack and Rarity's faces fell, and Twilight tilted her head down so she was looking at the floor.

"I think we asked everypony in Ponyville," stated Pinkie Pie, "But nopony said that they had seen Scootaloo."

"I...I asked all my animal friends. They...they said that none of them had seen a little pony wondering around," stuttered Fluttershy.

Twilight sobbed quietly at the unfortunate news. Rarity tried her best to comfort her friend by holding her close, while Applejack crouched down and began to wipe her tears. Nopony knew how to comfort Twilight because they all realized that finding Scootaloo would be close to impossible due to the darkness outside.

"Don't worry sugarcube. We'll find that little filly," cooed Applejack.

Applejack’s comforting words proved to do nothing to help Twilight as she continued to sob. The ponies sat in awkward silence, unsure of what to say to help Twilight. Fortunately, their attention was diverted to the sound of a knock on the door. Fluttershy answered it to find a grey earth pony filly catching her breath in the doorway.

"I...I need...to talk...talk to...Twilight Sparkle," panted Silver Spoon.

Fluttershy let Silver Spoon into the library with the other ponies. "Um Twilight...? this little filly wants to talk to you..."

When Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle saw who is was they scowled.

"What are you doing here?" snapped Apple Bloom.

"Trying...to help...blank flanks," panted Silver Spoon. She walked up to Twilight and addressed her directly.

"I...I know where Scootaloo is," she explained after a deep breath.

Twilight’s eyes shot open in shock upon hearing the words, staring down Silver Spoon and feeling her heart begin to race. She jumped up from her seat, startling the ponies around her and ran towards Silver Spoon. Silver Spoon cowered in fear that Twilight was going to attack her but was instead met muzzle to muzzle with Twilight.

“You know where Scootaloo is?!” Twilight shouted in panic, causing Silver Spoon to tremble from her harsh stare.

“She..... she’s probably wandering in the Everfree Forest... P-Please don’t hurt m-me...” Silver Spoon stuttered timidly.

Twilight took a few steps back, seeing that she was terrifying what may be her only chance at finding Scootaloo. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, regaining her composure. “How do you know this..?”

Silver Spoon gulped. She really didn't want to explain the situation to them, but it was too late to turn back now. "I...my friend Diamond Tiara and I...we decided to play a trick on Scootaloo. At first I thought it was going to be funny...but...but Diamond went way overboard when she bashed Scootaloo on the head. I...she made me promise not to tell anypony but...but the guilt was eating away and I just had to tell somepony!!"

Silver Spoon fell to the ground out of nerves and wiped a few tears from her eyes. She felt some of her guilt disappear since she spilled the beans, though still felt the pain from knowing she’s involved. She hung her head, waiting to be yelled at, but it never happened. Instead, somepony lifted her head. It was Twilight.

"Thank you for coming and telling the truth. I’m sure it was very difficult to gain the confidence to do so. I’m not very mad at you because it sounds to me that you had little say in this," said Twilight quietly.

Silver Spoon sniffed and wiped a tear off her face. "You...you aren't mad?"

Twilight shook her head. "No I'm not. Now your name is Silver Spoon right?"

Silver Spoon nodded and Twilight continued to speak to her. "Okay Silver Spoon I need a favor. I need you to help my friends catch the filly that did this to Scootaloo. I would greatly appreciate it if you did. Also if she tries to do anything to you we will protect you."

Silver Spoon knew that they probably couldn't protect her from Diamond Tiara's wrath, but it was the thought that counted.

"Okay. I think I can help you catch her," responded Silver Spoon confidently.

With a smile and no warning whatsoever, Twilight bolted past Silver Spoon and out the door.

"Wait Twilight!! Where are y'all going?!?" called Applejack.

It was too late though as Twilight was already out of earshot.

"Rainbow, come with me. We have to follow Twilight. Pinkie, Fluttershy, and Rarity y'all need to work with Silver Spoon and catch Diamond Tiara," Applejack instructed them quickly before running after Twilight. Rainbow Dash shrugged her shoulders and bolted after her friends. The rest of the older ponies turned and looked at Silver Spoon. They were waiting to hear if she had a plan.

"I...I think I know how we can catch her," Silver Spoon told them.

**********

Later, Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara walked along the main street of Ponyville. Silver Spoon had called her friend and convinced her to go with her to Sugar Cube Corner, secretly leading Diamond Tiara into her trap. Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Sweetie Belle, and Apple Bloom were already at Sugar Cube Corner awaiting their little guest.

"You know it’s kind of late to be going to the bakery," Diamond Tiara said as they were walking.

"I know, but I really just need something to clear my head," replied Silver Spoon nervously.

Diamond Tiara eyed her friend. Something about Silver Spoon’s behavior didn’t seem right, but she decided she was merely overthinking it. As they got closer to the bakery two ponies came out of the front door.

"Well if it isn't the blank flanks," said Diamond Tiara rudely, "Where's the other member of your little group?"

Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom glared at Diamond Tiara.

"I think ya already know where she is Diamond Tiara. Lost somewhere in the Everfree Forest," snapped Apple Bloom.

Diamond Tiara's eyes widened. How did they know? She then realized how they knew. She immediately flipped around and struck Silver Spoon across the face, causing her to fall to the ground cower. Diamond Tiara prepared strike Silver Spoon again when she felt herself become engulfed by magic.

"Don't you dare hit her you little ruffian!!" shouted Rarity in anger.

Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie came out of Sugar Cube Corner wearing angry looks on their faces. Diamond Tiara struggled to free herself but eventually gave up, realizing she was caught.

**********

Scootaloo trotted along through the Everfree Forest. She managed to find a fresh stream to obtain water, though she hadn’t eaten out of fear any food she found might have been poisonous. She was becoming desperate. The water had helped her feel less dehydrated, but she was still starving.

I'm gonna collapse if I don't find something to eat, Scootaloo thought to herself.

She was going to give up hope when she came across what she considered to be a miracle. She found a bush and it was covered with berries. She was also smart enough to know that they were blackberries. Sniffing the berries carefully, Scootaloo stuck her tongue out and pulled a berry into her mouth, savoring the heavenly flavor. Scootaloo moved along the bush grabbing berries and eating them voraciously, no longer paying attention to her surroundings. Little did she realize that a pack of Timberwolves were creeping up on her, just as hungry as she was.

"Oh these are so good!! At this rate I'm going to eat everything on the bush," Scootaloo said out loud.

The Timberwolves slowly moved in on Scootaloo, almost right on top of her when one of them stepped on a dry stick. Scootaloo's heart began to beat rapidly. Turning her head slowly she made eye contact with one of the Timberwolves.

Her eyes widened in fear, and she shot off like a bullet. The pack of Timberwolves chased after her with looks of hunger on their faces. Scootaloo didn't take a second to look back and did her best to evade the predators. Becoming timberwolf dinner was the last thing she wanted. Unfortunately, she had no clue where she was running and only had limited energy from the berries. But the adrenaline she was feeling was enough to keep her going, at least until she ran into a dead end. With nowhere to run Scootaloo turned around to face her enemy head on. The Timberwolves slowly approached her, their mouths salivating profusely. Scootaloo swallowed hard and closed her eyes, knowing she was about die.

"GET AWAY FROM HER YOU STUPID ANIMALS!!!"

Scootaloo opened her eyes and looked tried to find the source of the sound. Her eyes fell upon the most uplifting sight she could have ever hoped for. Twilight was standing about ten feet away from them, her horn glowing bright and her eyes filled with fire. Scootaloo could not have felt more joy. Twilight advanced slowly towards the Timberwolves and, after gaining their attention, began to fire jolts of magic at them. The wolves scattered but did not back down. Now instead of going after Scootaloo they had turned their attention to Twilight. Twilight knew in her mind there were too many for her to fight. However she had so much adrenaline pumping through her veins she couldn’t stop. Twilight continued to shoot jolts of magic at the wolves and managed to hit on here and there.

They're moving too quickly, I can't seem to hit them, Twilight thought to herself in a slight panic.

As Twilight was trying to keep tabs on all the wolves one of them caught her off guard. She did her best to dodge but the Timberwolf managed to knick Twilight on right flank. Howling in pain Twilight’s anger increased further to the point where she was firing magic jolt wildly. Somehow this plan worked. One after another the Timberwolves took off, yelping in pain. After the last wolf was out of sight Twilight relaxed a little bit.

"That'll teach those stupid animals," snorted Twilight.

Twilight turned to Scootaloo, who immediately began bawling and running towards her.

"Mommy!"

Scootaloo clung to Twilight middle and bawled into her chest. Twilight held Scootaloo silently, rubbing her mane slowly. Twilight could not have been happier to find her little filly. She proceeded to examine Scootaloo and saw some dried blood in her mane.

What did that horrible filly to her? Twilight thought to herself.

That didn't matter right now though. What mattered was that Scootaloo was safe.

**********

More than a dozen ponies stood in one of the examination rooms at Ponyville Hospital. Scootaloo was sitting on a hospital bed being treated by Nurse Redheart. Twilight, sitting right beside her, had Scootaloo’s hooves in her own. Also in the room were the rest of Twilight's friends as well as Scootaloo's friends along with Silver Spoon hiding in the corner away from everyone. Diamond Tiara was sitting in a chair near the bed being scolded by the Chief of Ponyville Police and another officer.

"Young lady I don't think you understand the severity of the situation," explained the Chief of Police, "What you did was very serious. This filly's parent might press charges against you."

Diamond Tiara had her lip curled, avoiding eye contact with anypony. She was smart enough to know that, due to lack of documented evidence, nopony could press any charges and win.

"Try as you wish to punish me but my daddy will just get me out of it," Diamond Tiara mentioned to the Officers.

The Chief of Police looked at his first officer and shook his head. Twilight hopped down from the bed and shoved her face in Diamond Tiara's.

"You know... you really are a little brat," started Twilight, "What kind of pony doesn't feel remorse for a cruel deed. You're just lucky Scootaloo wasn't seriously injured or killed. If that had happened then you would regret that you ever tried to mess with my little filly."

Twilight snorted and kept her eyes glued on Diamond Tiara waiting for a reaction, but unfortunately she didn’t get one, proving that something truly was wrong with that filly. Twilight sighed and started to make her way back to Scootaloo when there was a knock on the door. One of the nurses entered the room shortly afterwards.

"A Mister Rich is here for his daughter," she announced.

The fire returned immediately to Twilight's eyes. Boy did she have a few things she wanted to say to Filthy Rich.

"Let him in," replied Nurse Redheart.

The other nurse nodded and opened the door. Filthy Rich slowly stepped into the room, his face filled with both anger and shock. He walked over immediately to where Diamond Tiara was sitting and glared at her, causing her to cower. The only thing in the world Diamond Tiara feared was her father’s wrath. Filthy Rich got down in front of her and spoke quietly but sharply.

"You have no idea how much trouble you are in young lady. The punishment that will be awaiting you is so severe than you couldn’t possibly imagine it."

Filthy Rich pulled his face away from his daughter’s and looked at Twilight. He was about to open his mouth to say something, but Twilight beat him to it.

"I need to ask. What kind of a parent are you?" snorted Twilight, "Your daughter feels no remorse for what she did. I may be new to the whole parenting thing but something tells me you might be the direct cause of all this. I mean your daughter really could have hurt Scootaloo!"

Filthy Rich kept silent as he took in all Twilight said. Then, once he felt Twilight was finished, he took one of her hooves in his.

"Ms. Twilight I assure you that I do my best to guide my daughter and parent her properly. This obviously shows that I have not done enough. I guarantee I will be putting a lot more effort into how I raise her. I will also assure you that she will be getting the punishment of a lifetime for what she has done."

Filthy Rich pulled Twilight's hoof up and kissed it sincerely. Twilight's face lit up with embarrassment, realizing she had let her anger get the best of her. Filthy Rich continued to speak.

"I will understand completely if you want to press charges against my daughter Ms. Twilight. I will not stop you at all if you do so."

Twilight was speechless, and the rest of the ponies would be too after her next statement.

"Mr. Rich I had planned to press some serious charges against both you and your daughter... However... I feel that maybe I will just leave punishing Diamond Tiara in your hooves."

Filthy Rich's eyes widened with shock. He didn't know what to say, nor did anypony else in the room. After a moment of awkward silence, the Chief of Police spoke up.

"Are...are you sure you don't want to press charges Ms. Twilight? I mean this is a very serious crime."

Twilight thought about the severity of the crime committed. Though she understood it, she had other plans in mind. "If I see that Diamond Tiara isn't getting any punishment and learning her lesson, then maybe I will press charges. For now though I think I'll let Mr. Rich handle punishing his daughter."

Nopony knew what to say. A lot of them felt Twilight wasn't thinking the whole situation over. Even Filthy Rich was surprised.

"Ms. Twilight I humbly thank you for what you have done. I promise I will set my daughter straight. In fact... we will start right now."

Filthy Rich turned to his daughter and glared at her. "Apologize to both Ms. Twilight and Scootaloo right now Diamond."

Diamond Tiara didn't say a word. She just crossed her arms and turned away from her father.

"Young lady if you don't apologize for all the trouble you've been causing I am going to quadruple your punishment," snapped Filthy Rich. Twilight noticed the vein in his temple was starting to throb.

"I'm not apologizing to that stupid blank flank and her egg head mother," spat Diamond Tiara.

Fire filled Filthy Rich's eyes, yet he kept his composure. "I apologize for my daughter's rudeness... and... for what you are about to see."

Filthy Rich grabbed one of Diamond Tiara's hooves and dragged her out of the room, their shouting probably heard by everyone in Ponyville.

"Ow! Daddy stop! That hurts!"

"I gave you a simple chance to lessen the blow Diamond Tiara. You have no idea how bad you are going to get it when we get home!"

Eventually the two of them were out of range, allowing everypony to return their gaze to Twilight.

"I'll ask one more time Ms. Twilight... Are you absolutely sure you don't want to press charges?" questioned the Chief of Police once more.

Twilight shook her head. "I have confidence that Mr. Rich will see the punishment through. I feel like this may be a much bigger issue that just a simple act of cruelty. However if I feel as if he is not doing a satisfactory job of controlling his daughter, then I will not hesitate to take action against them."

The two officers looked at each other, shook their heads, and left the room. This gave Twilight's friends time to question her sanity.

"Are you nuts Twilight?!" sputtered Rainbow Dash, "You should have done something! If it was me I would be suing his flank."

"I kinda agree with Rainbow on this one Twi. Y'all basically just let that little monster off Scott free," added Applejack.

Twilight listened to what they had to say and presented her rebuttal. "I don't think she's going to get away without some serious punishment. Also, as I just said, I feel like this may be something bigger than what we think it is."

Applejack and Rainbow Dash didn't respond because they knew Twilight had her mind set. Twilight, under the impression her friends understood her decision, rejoined Scootaloo on the hospital bed just as Nurse Redheart put last staple in her head.

"Alright Twilight, make sure the area stays clean. I suggest wiping it with alcohol every night before bed," said Nurse Redheart to Twilight.

Twilight gave her a nod. "Before we go Scootaloo, there is a specific pony I want you to thank. Where is Silver Spoon?"

Silver Spoon jumped when she heard her name. Scootaloo was shocked.

"If it wasn't for your classmate Scootaloo, we wouldn't have known you were in the Everfree Forest."

Scootaloo didn't know what to say. "Um...thanks Silver Spoon."

Scootaloo then, much to her own surprise, gave Silver Spoon a very awkward hug. Silver Spoon's face turned bright red in embarrassment, unsure of how to respond.

Twilight carefully ruffled Scootaloo's mane. "Well I think someone needs to go home and get some sleep."

Scootaloo smiled and followed Twilight and Spike out of the room. They walked home in silence, each of them deep in thought.

"Would you like to sleep with me tonight?" Twilight asked Scootaloo sweetly as they walked along.

Scootaloo nodded. She could only dream of the nightmares she was going to have.

Spike went straight to bed when they got home. This gave Twilight and Scootaloo time to talk. Twilight started

"So...you called me mommy..."

Scootaloo didn't know what to say. "It just kind of slipped. I was so scared and I really needed you."

There was a lot of awkward tension in the air. After a few minutes of silence Twilight spoke up and put a hoof on Scootaloo’s shoulder.

"Scootaloo...do you want me to be your mother?"

Scootaloo was completely silent. All she did was wrap herself around Twilight's middle. "Yes, yes I finally realize that you're more than just a guardian to me...mom."

Twilight, struck speechless, gave Scootaloo a gentle hug, enjoying the fact she now had a daughter. "As long as you're happy, I'm happy."

Scootaloo nodded her head and smiled. Twilight, filled to the brim with joy, picked Scootaloo up and swung her around. This caused Scootaloo to burst into a fit of laughter. The joy continued for about ten minutes before Twilight and Scootaloo fell onto the bed, still giggling. Twilight reached over, gave Scootaloo a nuzzle on the cheek, and pulled the covers over them with magic.

"Goodnight sweet filly," whispered Twilight before giving Scootaloo a kiss.

Scootaloo snuggled up closer to Twilight. "Goodnight mommy."

Author's Notes:

ATTENTION PLEASE READ:

I'm sure you guys have some questions about this chapter. Since I probably can't predict said questions I'll just say if you have one ask me and I'll try by best to answer it.

One more thing I want to touch on. In the last chapter I asked for feedback on a potential ship for Twilight. You all certainly responded and gave good feedback. Now I know I said I was going to do a poll at the end of this chapter but I already made up my mind. Also just to be a massive troll I'm not going to say who. You'll find out in the next chapter though so don't fret or start an angry mob and come after me with pitchforks and torches.

A New Friend

Written by: Mayhem Darkshadow
Edited by: psychohooves and Avatar of Shadow

Chapter 6: A New Friend

Scootaloo was being chased through the woods by the Timberwolves. She ran as fast as she could, but she couldn't escape them. Eventually the wolves cornered her, so she was trapped. As the wolves closed in on her Scootaloo looked around for Twilight to save her, but Twilight never came. Scootaloo screamed and shut her eyes as the wolves pounced at her, not wanting to look death in the face.

**********

Scootaloo woke up panting from yet another nightmare. Ever since Diamond Tiara and the Everfree Forest, the little filly had been suffering such nightmares. Sometimes it was just one per night. Other times Scootaloo would have several. The past week had been rough for both her and Twilight, neither of them able to get any sleep. Scootaloo felt bad for constantly awaking Twilight. However, Twilight told her to not worry about it and that it was part of her motherly duties. Tonight's bad dream was the same one she had been experiencing the past few days. Tears welled up in Scootaloo's eyes, and she sobbed quietly. It didn't take long for Twilight to rush into her daughter’s room. Twilight took Scootaloo in her arms instantly and rocked her slowly.

"Shh... it’s okay Scootaloo... Mama's here for you," cooed Twilight softly.

Twilight wiped some tears from her daughter’s eyes and continued to rock Scootaloo slowly. Scootaloo whimpered and buried her face in Twilight chest.

"Was it the same nightmare as before?" Twilight asked curiously.

Scootaloo nodded her head but kept her face hidden from view. Twilight bent her head down and nuzzled Scootaloo's cheek. "I'm sorry sweetheart. I promise I'll try and figure out a way to help you get through this."

Scootaloo looked up into her mother’s eyes. The sight of Scootaloo’s big purple tear-filled eyes made Twilight's heart melt.

"Please stay..." whispered Scootaloo.

Twilight bent down and gave Scootaloo a kiss. "Of course I'll stay."

Scootaloo smiled weakly and cuddled closer to Twilight. Using magic, Twilight covered themselves with a blanket. Before dozing off, Scootaloo spoke quietly.

"Mom... Do I have to go to school tomorrow?"

Twilight's eyes popped open. Ms. Cheerilee had been very lenient about letting Scootaloo skip school and assured Twilight that she could skip as long as she needed to recover. Twilight had been against the idea but after seeing the effects of sleep deprivation caused Scootaloo and her, she allowed it. To ensure that Scootaloo didn't fall behind in her studies, Cheerilee would bring over the day’s homework and lesson plan. Still, Twilight didn't want the little filly to miss too many days of school.

"No, you don't. I'll send Ms. Cheerilee a note in the morning," replied Twilight.

Scootaloo nuzzled Twilight's neck as a thank you. It didn't take long for her to fall back to sleep. Twilight was awake for a bit longer thinking about how she was going to help Scootaloo get over the nightmares. She had some ideas but she needed to read into them first. For now, she decided that sleep is the best option.

**********

Twilight, despite how much she didn't want to, woke up at her normal time of seven. Scootaloo was still fast asleep, causing Twilight to feel happy. Twilight figured since she wasn't going to be able to fall back asleep, she could use the time to do some research on a method to help Scootaloo sleep. Being extremely cautious Twilight slid out of bed and went downstairs. As she trotted downstairs she thought of some different ways to help her little filly get through the nightmares. The only problem was that a lot of sleep spells and potions had some nasty side effects. Until she was sure that Scootaloo wouldn’t get hurt in the process, Twilight wasn’t going to do anything.

Before anything though I need some coffee, Twilight thought to herself.

Twilight made a bee-line for the kitchen and, within a few minutes, had herself a steaming hot cup of Joe. The first sip was like a gift from the gods. After taking a moment to enjoy her new found energy Twilight went out to the main room of the library and got to work. Using magic she grabbed all the books the library had on sleep deprivation and sleep aids. She was disappointed to find that there were only half a dozen books. Still Twilight knew she was bound to find something. She picked up the first book, made herself comfortable, and began working on her project.

**********

Twilight was the only resident in the entire library. Around nine o'clock Spike rolled out of bed. Finding out that he had to send a letter immediately after he woke up was not his preferred way to start a day; however, after a few cups of coffee he returned to his perky self and proceeded to do his chores.

"So Scoots didn't go to school?" Spike asked Twilight curiously.

Twilight looked up from the current book she was reading and shook her head. "Nope. She had another nightmare, so I'm letting her sleep in."

"I'm sorry Twilight," responded Spike.

Twilight smiled and thanked him. "It’s alright Spike. I guess it’s all part of being a mother."

They both shared a laugh before getting back to their respective tasks. Scootaloo didn't slump downstairs until around eleven o'clock.

"Morning sleepyhead," chimed Twilight.

Scootaloo responded with a grumble and made her way to the kitchen. After finishing the last page of her book, Twilight followed Scootaloo.

"You want some oatmeal?" Twilight asked her tired little filly. Scootaloo only responded with another grumble before she slammed her face onto the table. Twilight giggled quietly and went about fixing Scootaloo's breakfast.

"All I planned to do today is some reading, but if you want to do anything fun, we can," explained Twilight as she was cooking breakfast.

"Um...I kind of just want to go back to sleep," yawned Scootaloo.

Twilight put the bowl of oatmeal in front of the filly and ruffled her mane. "That's fine. You need to catch up on your sleep anyway."

Scootaloo smiled and slowly dug into her breakfast. Twilight rubbed her on the back slowly then proceeded to clean up the kitchen. Neither of them made a peep. As Twilight finished up she turned to see how Scootaloo was doing. What she saw caused her to burst into hysterics. Scootaloo had plopped face first into her half eaten bowl of oatmeal. Twilight couldn't control herself and burst into a fit of laughter.

"Oh Scootaloo, you just brightened up my day," snickered Twilight.

Once Twilight had regained her composure, she retrieved a towel and cleaned Scootaloo up. She had difficulty controlling herself as she did so. After Scootaloo was clean, Twilight took her back up her room and put Scootaloo in bed.

At least she's getting more sleep, Twilight thought to herself.

**********

Scootaloo slept for most of the day which gave Twilight plenty of time to find a way to help Scootaloo sleep better at night. After pouring through the books Twilight believed she found something. A sleep potion seemed to be the best bet since sleep spells were a bit more complicated. The particular potion she found was not very strong and helps soothe the mind as the drinker slept. The worst side effect was heavy sleeping. Twilight felt this was enough of a price to play considering the advantages of having Scootaloo sleep better. Twilight figured that while she had time, she could whip up a bit and they could test the potion tonight, but as she was about to head to the basement, there was a knock on the door. Twilight trotted over to it and opened the door. She had figured that it would be Cheerilee with Scootaloo's homework and her lesson plan. She was surprised to find both Thunderlane and Rumble standing in the doorway.

"Thunderlane this quite the surprise," Twilight said, slightly baffled.

Thunderlane gave Twilight a cheeky smile. "Expecting somepony else?'

Twilight's blushed dark red in embarrassment. "Oh no I just...I'm sorry... I'm making a fool of myself."

Thunderlane chuckled, and even Rumble let out a small snicker. Twilight laughed nervously and let them in.

"So what can I do for the two of you?" Twilight asked politely.

Thunderlane reached into his saddle bag and pulled out a folder. "Cheerilee asked if I could bring these to you. I think she said it was homework and a lesson plan. Also I guess the kids in class made Scootaloo a "Get Well Soon" card. Rumble volunteered to bring it over."

Twilight turned to Rumble and gave him a smile. "Scootaloo's room is upstairs. It’ll be the first door on the right. She probably isn't awake and if that's the case I'll give it to her when she wakes up."

Rumble thanked Twilight and trotted upstairs leaving Thunderland and Twilight alone.

"So...how's she doing?" asked Thunderlane curiously.

Twilight shook her head. "Not good. She hasn't been getting any sleep and she is having one or more nightmares a night."

Twilight let out a sigh and slumped into a chair. Thunderlane took a seat across from her, listening intently to what Twilight had to say.

"I feel so bad for her, and I just don't know what to do," complained Twilight.

Assuming Twilight had nothing else to say, Thunderlane spoke up. "I'm sure you'll come up with something Twilight. How are you doing though? You sound rather stressed."

Twilight eyed Thunderlane. "Yeah I am a little bit stressed, but she's my little girl. I could use a good stress reliever though."

"Well then...maybe you'd like to join me for dinner and a movie this Friday?" Thunderlane asked nervously.

Twilight's face went pink. "You mean...like a date?"

Thunderlane nodded slightly. "It’s only if you want to. If you don't... I'll understand."

An awkward silence filled the room, and, after it became almost unbearable, Twilight spoke up.

"Sure Thunderlane. I'd love to go to dinner and a movie with you," smiled Twilight.

Thunderlane felt as if a huge weight had been lifted from his chest. "That really makes me happy Twilight."

Twilight felt herself begin to blush more. Thankfully, Rumble began to make his way downstairs.

"She's awake Ms. Twilight," Rumble announced. "She also told me to tell you that she's hungry."

Twilight chuckled softly. "Thank you for telling me that Rumble. I guess I should get started on dinner."

Before more awkwardness ensued Thunderlane gathered up Rumble and they made their way out.

"So I'll see you Friday then Twilight," Thunderlane called.

Twilight's cheeks went pink again and she smiled nervously. "S-See you then Thunderlane."

Thunderlane gave Twilight a smile and shut the front door to the library. Twilight let out a sigh of relief and then had a small laugh.

I wonder how Scootaloo is going to take this... Twilight thought to herself.

**********

It turned out that Scootaloo wasn’t mad at all. In fact she was quite happy for Twilight. They chatted about it over dinner.

"So you aren't mad honey?" Twilight asked as they ate.

Scootaloo swallowed her mouthful of food and raised an eyebrow at her mother. "No...Why would I be?"

"I just thought that since Rumble is one of your best friends, you might feel a bit weird about me going on a date with his brother," explained Twilight.

Scootaloo looked at Twilight, processed what she said, and broke into a fit of giggles. "Oh Mom. You are so paranoid! But that's why I love you."

Twilight smiled and joined her daughter in laughter. All the mushy lovey behavior was a bit much for poor Spike.

"Ugh... You two are going to kill me," Spike complained openly.

Twilight and Scootaloo looked at the disgruntled baby dragon and laughed even harder. Spike knew they were joking but decided to leave the table and let them have their moment. After the two ponies wiped the tears out of their eyes from laughing so hard, Twilight finally spoke up.

"Okay sweetheart, why don't you go work on your homework while I clean up the kitchen and go finish up your potion?"

Scootaloo tilted her head in confusion. "My potion?"

Twilight suddenly realized she hadn't told Scootaloo about the sleeping potion. "Oh my bad. I got so caught up in making it that I forgot to tell you about it. To help you sleep better I whipped up a sleeping potion. It calms the mind and induces a deep sleep. Tonight, we're going to find out if it works."

"Oh...okay," responded Scootaloo.

Scootaloo hopped out of her chair and went upstairs to work on her homework. Twilight smiled and proceeded to clean up the dishes which only took her about five minutes. The silence gave Twilight to think about her plans this Friday. Twilight wouldn't deny that she sometimes eyed Thunderlane from afar, especially after the ordeal where he got a fifth of the pegasi in Ponyville sick; however, she decided a long time ago that she didn't have the courage to ask him how he felt.

I'm getting ahead of myself, Twilight thought, Shift your focus back to your daughter, Twilight.

Twilight shook her head and made her way downstairs. A small flask was boiling on a burner. The liquid in the flask was bright blue, which was a good sign.

Good. The potion looks like it's done.

Twilight walked over to the bench and gave the potion a sniff. She sputtered and coughed from the pungent odor, though it couldn’t be smelt from far away.

I'd imagine this potion probably tastes as bad as it smells.

Twilight looked around at the various ingredients she had sitting on her desk to see if she had anything that could give the potion some better flavor. Nothing looked like it was going to work until something in a very small vial caught her eye.

Hmm... spearmint oil. That might work.

Twilight levitated the vial over and gave the contents in the jar a sniff to see if it were fresh. After confirming that it was fresh, Twilight smiled at her brilliance and carefully tipped some of the liquid into the flask and waited to see what happened. She knew that if the color changed even slightly the oil probably altered the potion in a way that it would be unsafe for Scootaloo. After a few minutes of waiting nothing seemed to happen. Twilight bent in closer and gave the potion another sniff. The aroma was much more pleasant now. Pulling the flask off the burner so it could cool down Twilight went back upstairs so she could get a glass for the potion. She had only made enough potion just for tonight, but if the trial run was successful, Twilight would whip up a much larger batch tomorrow.

I just pray that this works. Is it too much to ask for a good night’s sleep for both of us?

Sighing, Twilight grabbed a glass and went back downstairs. The potion was still nuclear hot so Twilight sat down and waited. It gave her time to double and triple check the potion’s side effects. The worst was heavy sleeping and that only happened if the dosage was too high. When the potion was just warm enough to drink Twilight poured it into the cup and went upstairs to Scootaloo's room. She found the filly sitting at her desk scratching her head with a pencil.

"How's the homework going?" Twilight asked curiously.

Scootaloo didn't take her eyes of the paper but did give a response. "Meh."

Twilight set the glass of potion down and took a seat next to Scootaloo. "What are you having problems with?"

"The last problem," groaned Scootaloo.

Twilight pulled the piece of paper with the problem on it towards her and read the question out loud. "Mr. Greenhooves has one hundred and forty feet of fencing to put around a garden. He wants the fence he builds to use all of the fencing. If he wants the fence to be twenty feet wide how long does the fence need to be to use all one hundred and forty feet?"

Twilight pushed the paper back towards Scootaloo and raised an eyebrow at her. "So what's the problem?"

Scootaloo scratched her head. "Well I think I figured out how to do it... I'm just not sure."

"Then explain your method to me," said Twilight patiently.

Scootaloo grabbed a piece of scratch paper and scribbled down the math for her mother. "Well if the fence needs to be twenty feet wide and that means two sides will be twenty feet so total that's forty feet. If you subtract forty from a hundred and forty, you’re left with one hundred feet. Since there are two sides left you can divide a hundred by two and you get fifty."

Twilight looked into Scootaloo's eyes and gave her a small nod of approval. "You're correct sweetheart. You really need to stop questioning your own methods."

"I know I know," replied Scootaloo. She rolled eyes a little bit as she wrote down the answer on her answer sheet.

"Any other problems?" prodded Twilight playfully. She gave Scootaloo a poke in the sides with her hoof. Scootaloo responded with a small fit of giggles and pushed Twilight away so as to avoid further poking.

"No, this homework was actually pretty easy."

Twilight gave Scootaloo one more poke and then pulled the homework over towards her. "Let's just take a look."

Twilight glanced over the homework problems and then double checked the answer sheet. Twilight was very proud to find all the answers one hundred percent correct. She reached forward and gave Scootaloo a nuzzle. "Good job Scootaloo. All correct answers. Why don't you go get ready for bed."

"Sure thing Mom," replied Scootaloo casually.

Scootaloo hopped out of her chair and went across the hallway to the bathroom. Meanwhile, Twilight pulled the blankets back on her daughter’s bed and even fluffed up the pillows a little. She then checked the potion quickly, making sure it was still warm. Scootaloo walked back into the room and gave a big yawn.

"Hopefully this potion helps you sleep better. I guess we'll find out," said Twilight.

Scootaloo really didn't pay much mind to what Twilight was talking about. Right now all she wanted to do was shut her eyes and catch some z's. Before she was completely tucked in Twilight levitated the glass over.

"Alright open up and drink it all," explained Twilight.

Scootaloo gave another yawn and gave a weak nod. With help from Twilight her got the glass up to her lips and started drinking. She immediately started sputtering and spitting.

"What's wrong?" asked Twilight in a slight panic.

Scootaloo coughed a bit before giving a answer. "Blah! Too minty!"

Scootaloo continued to cough, and Twilight patted her on the back.

"I'm sorry... I won’t put as much next time. Try to drink the rest though."

Scootaloo looked reluctantly at the glass of foul liquid. After plugging her nose, she put the glass back up to her lips and quickly chugged the rest of the sleeping potion.

"Ugh that was terrible," complained Scootaloo.

Twilight noted the problems with the potion and made sure she'd take care of them with the next batch, assuming the potion actually worked. It appeared to be working because within a minute, Scootaloo was drifting in and out of consciousness. Twilight gave her a kiss and tucked her in.

"Good night Scootaloo. I'll see you in the morning," whispered Twilight. The only response was a small smile just before Scootaloo was out completely. Twilight smiled and left the room quietly, praying that this would be a sleep filled night for the both of them.

**********

It turned out that the sleep potion worked perfectly. Scootaloo slept soundly and got a solid eight hours of sleep, meaning that, much to Scootaloo's protest, she had to go to school that day. Twilight had to put quite a bit of effort even into getting Scootaloo out of bed, but, after a few stern words and the threat of potential punishment, the two of them were on their way to the schoolhouse.

"You know I would have gotten out of bed eventually," complained Scootaloo, "You didn't have to threaten to ground me."

Twilight, still a bit angry from this morning’s events, responded in a rather rough tone. "Well I didn't want you to be late for school. You've skipped enough days for school in the past week."

Scootaloo could tell Twilight was rather sour so she didn't say another word for the rest of the walk. The silence was unsettling, but Twilight finally spoke up when they arrived at the Schoolhouse.

"I'm sorry for snapping at you sweetie... I haven't had my cup of coffee this morning," apologized Twilight.

Scootaloo gave Twilight a weak smile as a form of acceptance in which Twilight responded with a kiss on the cheek.

"Have a good day at school. If you want to do anything afterwards remember to come at tell me first."

Scootaloo nodded her head and ran inside so she wouldn't be late. With less than five minutes to spare, Scootaloo entered the classroom, much to Cheerilee’s surprise.

"It's good to see you Scootaloo," chimed Cheerilee, "I'm glad to see that you're doing better."

Scootaloo gave her teacher a grin and went to her desk, though she immediately noticed something different. Normally she was squashed between Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara. Silver Spoon was still in her normal spot; however, Diamond Tiara's old seat was now occupied by Rumble. Scootaloo also noticed that Diamond Tiara was not in the classroom. As soon as she sat down Scootaloo leaned across to Rumble and spoke to him.

"Hey Rumble where's You Know Who?" whispered Scootaloo to her friend.

Rumble turned to Scootaloo and gave her a quick answer. "She hasn't been here in a week. Ms. Cheerilee won't say anything or give any hint as to if she's actually coming back."

Scootaloo was about to ask Rumble another question but Ms. Cheerilee called their attention. Instead Scootaloo shot a glance at Silver Spoon, who appeared to be doing fine. In fact Silver Spoon's behavior was the same as always. Her note books were out and she was giving Cheerliee all her attention. I suppose this was why she was the number one student in the class and didn't get anything but A's on assignments and tests.

"Scootaloo are you going to pay attention today or should I send you home?"

Scootaloo's attention snapped back and she realized Ms. Cheerliee was speaking to her. "Oh... Sorry Ms. Cheerliee."

Cheerilee eyed her student but blew it off and started her lesson, but not even ten minutes in there was a knock on the door. It opened to reveal Filthy Rich. Standing by his side was none other than Diamond Tiara, and she looked furious. Scootaloo immediately felt a wave of chills shoots down her spine. Diamond Tiara's glare was going back and forth between two ponies in the room, Scootaloo and Silver Spoon.

"Sorry we're late Ms. Cheerilee," apologized Filthy Rich, "It was a struggle to get out of the house this morning."

Cheerilee examined Diamond Tiara. It was hard to tell what emotion she was expressing. "That's quite alright Mr. Rich."

Filthy Rich nodded at Ms. Cheerilee and pushed Diamond Tiara into the class room. "If she does anything wrong you know where to contact me."

With a nod of his head Filthy Rich left the school house. Diamond Tiara's scowl became worse when she realized all the ponies in the room were staring at her. "What? What are all you losers staring at?"

"Diamond Tiara. Watch your mouth," snapped Ms. Cheerilee.

Diamond Tiara flipped around and glared at her teacher. Everypony waited for something to happen but instead she made her way to her chair. When she realized Rumble was sitting in it steam shot out of her ears.

"Get out of my seat you stupid little pegasus," she growled.

"I just told you to watch your mouth young lady!" shouted Cheerilee, "Your new seat is the empty one in the back. You will take that seat and you'll keep your mouth shut!"

Diamond Tiara clenched her teeth together and walked to her seat. As she walked by she whispered something to Silver Spoon. Scootaloo managed to catch it.

"You’re going to get it at recess."

**********

It was almost torture waiting for Cheerilee to call for recess. Today’s lessons were not that interesting, and everypony, apart from Silver Spoon and Sweetie Belle, had started nodding off. New life filled the classroom when Cheerilee told them to go outside and have a break. Scootaloo kind of wished they could have kept going for Silver Spoon's sake. In fact Scootaloo decided to hang back so she could tell Ms. Cheerliee what she heard, making Cheerilee quite glad towards the little filly.

"I'll keep an eye on her, and I'd like for you to do the same Scootaloo. Call for me if anything happens."

Scootaloo, satisfied that she helped a pony in need, walked outside and found her friends. They all seemed to be staring at something.

"What's going on?" Scootaloo asked them curiously.

Sweetie Belle pointed across the playground and Scootaloo turned her head to see what she was pointing at. Everypony was watching Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara argue. In actuality, it was just Diamond Tiara belittling Silver Spoon. Being able to hear their words only made it harder to watch.

"I can't believe you ratted me out you little brat. I told you that if you did anything to stop me, I'd tell everypony your deepest and darkest secret," spat Diamond Tiara.

Silver Spoon couldn't do anything but cower, making Diamond Tiara even more furious. "Losing your edge Silver Spoon? Normally you'd have some kind of comeback. This, though, is pretty pathetic. You're going all soft."

Silver Spoon gulped. She looked around hoping somepony would help her. Diamond Tiara noticed this and struck Silver Spoon across the face. The poor grey Earth Pony filly hit the ground hard, her glasses sliding away from the impact.

"You're pathetic Silver Spoon. I always knew you were really just my sidekick and not my friend and equal," snarled Diamond Tiara.

Scootaloo couldn't watch anymore and she intervened. "Why don't you leave her alone Diamond Tiara?!"

Diamond Tiara flipped around to see who was challenging her and burst into laughter when she realized it was Scootaloo.

"Defending this little whelp are we you stupid blank flank?" laughed Diamond Tiara, "I guess trash defends trash these days."

Scootaloo glared at her enemy and did her best to defend herself and Silver Spoon.

"You know you really are something Diamond. If you looked up the word ‘snob’ in the dictionary, you'd probably just find a picture of yourself. In fact if you looked up the word ‘pathetic’ in the dictionary you'd also find a picture of yourself!!" retorted Scootaloo.

Fire irrupted in Diamond Tiara's eyes, and steamed poured out of her ears. She began to move in on Scootaloo, who was standing her ground, but was cut short.

"DIAMOND TIARA YOU GET YOUR FLANK INSIDE RIGHT NOW!!!"

Cheerilee was standing the doorway and she was furious. None of her students had ever seen her so angry, causing a lot of her students to feel terrified. Cheerliee stomped over to Diamond Tiara and pulled her, rather forcefully inside the Schoolhouse.

"Scootaloo would you please make sure Silver Spoon is okay," she grunted as she forced Diamond Tiara to follow her.

Scootaloo nodded and started by retrieving Silver Spoon's glasses. When Scootaloo actually got closer to the fallen pony, she realized Silver Spoon was crying.

"Umm...I have your glasses Silver Spoon," Scootaloo said awkwardly.

Silver Spoon sniffed and grabbed the glasses, very happy that they weren’t broken.

"Thanks Scootaloo," whimpered Silver Spoon. As she looked herself over Silver realized that she wasn't hurt.

"There is something really wrong with that filly," growled Scootaloo quietly.

Silver Spoon sniffed and nodded, having nothing to say.

"Seriously though, are you okay Silver Spoon?" Scootaloo asked.

Silver Spoon wiped a few more tears from her eyes. "Yeah I'm okay I guess."

Scootaloo was going to be nice and see if Silver Spoon wanted to come sit with her friends and herself. However, Cheerilee called them inside before they could. They two of them looked at each other and decided to just go inside.

**********

Diamond Tiara was not at school for much longer. Cheerilee had called her father, and Filthy Rich arrived in an instant to take the brat away after he made her apologize to Cheerilee and the class. That was pretty much the only eventful occurrence until lunch. Everypony made their way outside to eat as it was a nice fall day. Scootaloo was with her fellow Crusaders and they were talking about plans for the weekend, though Scootaloo looked over and saw something that actually made her heart sink a little: Silver Spoon eating lunch, alone. This made Scootaloo feel bad as she turned back to her friends.

"I'm going to go see if Silver Spoon wants to eat with us," Scootaloo announced. Both of Scootaloo's friends glanced at her but didn't protest. Besides, Scootaloo would have simply argued if they refused. As Scootaloo walked over to where Silver Spoon was sitting she questioned herself as to why she was doing it. On one hoof Silver Spoon had treated Scootaloo and her friends horribly for years. On the other hoof if it wasn't for Silver Spoon, Scootaloo knew she might not be alive today. Despite how much she wanted to simply turn around and go back to her friends, more of her knew that she needed to extend a friendly gesture to her savior.

"Hey Silver Spoon," Scootaloo said rather quietly.

Silver Spoon looked up from her sandwich. "Yeah?"

"I...I noticed you were eating alone and...I don't know...I was wondering if you maybe wanted to join my friends and me," mumbled Scootaloo.

Silver Spoon gazed at Scootaloo and said nothing, causing Scootaloo to feel rather creeped out. Then finally Silver Spoon opened her mouth and spoke.

"Um...I suppose I could."

Scootaloo gave Silver Spoon a rather awkward smile and waited for her to pack up her lunch. Once she was ready the two of them walked back over to Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle silently. When they sat down Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle eyeballed Silver Spoon. Nopony said anything though and the silence became very awkward. Finally Scootaloo couldn't take it anymore and tried to make small talk.

"So...are you okay after earlier?" Scootaloo asked quietly.

Silver Spoon looked up and nodded. "To be honest that's not the first time that's happened."

Scootaloo, Apple Bloom, and Sweetie Belle all looked at each other.

"Well if that happened before then why are you friends with her?" questioned Sweetie Belle.

"Well," started Silver Spoon, "This may surprise you but I was Diamond Tiara's only friend. I only put up with her so she wouldn't be alone."

"Well actually Silver I ain't surprised that y'all are that brat’s only friend," replied Applebloom.

"Yeah... she's horrible to so many ponies... Not just us. Seriously I don't know anypony that liked her except for you," Sweetie Belle added.

Silver Spoon let out a sigh. "Yeah, you're both right. I wasn't any better either. That’s probably why I don't have too many friends either. Since I associated myself with Diamond so much, most ponies thinks I'm just like her."

"Well maybe this is a chance for you to change that," said Scootaloo.

Silver Spoon looked over at Scootaloo and gave her a small smile. "You might be right. Maybe in time I can right all my wrongs. I certainly don't want to hang out with that sociopath anymore."

The three Crusaders all smiled at each other. They would have never guessed that this was Silver Spoon's normal behavior. Individually they were all glad that they were getting to witness the better side of their former enemy.

"Hey Silver Spoon you wanna hang out with us after school?" Scootaloo asked.

Silver Spoon thought about the request. She obviously wouldn't be hanging out with Diamond Tiara anymore. Also her parents were still gone so if she went home she's probably just sit around doing nothing.

"Sure," replied Silver Spoon quickly, "Why not?"

The four fillies spent the rest of the time talking and getting to know one another better, mostly the Crusaders learning more about Silver Spoon and Silver Spoon learning more about the Crusader's. When Cheerilee called them in from lunch all four of them were excited for when school ended so they could go have fun. Silver Spoon was especially excited. While she didn't want to jump to conclusions this felt like the start of some wonderful friendships.

Author's Notes:

So I was kind of nervous about this chapter. You all know my choice now. After collaboration (and some convincing) my editors and I came to the decision that Thunderlane was the best choice. If you like it that's great. If you don't like it...well sorry about that.

The Foalsitter

Written by: Mayhem Darkshadow
Edited by: psychohooves and Avatar of Shadow

Chapter 7: The Foalsitter

Twilight walked up the steps of Sugar Cube Corner. She had received a note yesterday telling her to come to the bakery after she dropped Scootaloo off at school. She was able to recognize Pinkie Pie’s sloppy penmanship almost instantly. Twilight had no idea what was in store for her. As soon as she stepped inside the building, she was hit with a blast of confetti.

"Oh Happy Two Monthiversary! Happy Two Monthiversary! Happy Happy Happy Happy Happy Two Monthiversary!" Pinkie Pie sang at the top of her lungs. Twilight was pleasantly surprised. Looking over at a nearby table, she saw all her friends sitting and staring at her.

"Hi girls," Twilight said as she sat down. "What's going on?

Applejack opened her mouth but Pinkie Pie, before Applejack could even get a single syllable out, popped up out of nowhere and shoved her face into Twilight's.

"Well we're having a party silly! We have to celebrate your Two Monthiversary!" Pinkie blabbed.

"My two month what now?" Twilight asked, utterly confused. Pinkie remained pressed up against Twilight.

"You're Two Monthiversary silly. You've been a mommy for two months, and we need to celebrate."

Pinkie disappeared in a flash, and all the ponies at the table shared a laugh.

"Okay, so what is the real reason I am here?" Twilight asked. Applejack, after checking around to make sure she wouldn't be interrupted, spoke up.

"Well it's really just to see you Sugarcube. You've been so busy with your new responsibilities that we all felt like we needed some time to catch up."

Twilight felt a flood of emotions surge through her body. "Aww, thanks girls. I have been rather preoccupied with Scootaloo lately, but I really do miss our time together."

The instant Twilight shut her mouth, Pinkie Pie burst out of the kitchen carrying trays of cupcakes. "Alrighty girls! Let's party!"

They each took a cupcake and engaged in some small talk.

"So um...how has everything been Twilight since...the incident?" Fluttershy asked quietly. Twilight swallowed her mouthful of cupcake and spoke up.

"Really well. It was rough for the first week, but it's much better now."

"How bad did it actually get?" Applejack added.

"She would have nightmares each night, sometimes even more than one. Scootaloo's taking a sleeping potion now so it's been much better," Twilight explained to Applejack. Pinkie, her mouth full of sweets, mumbled something.

"IbechayuenjybinammyTliht."

"Um... maybe you ought to swallow first Pinkie," Rainbow Dash snickered. Pinkie Pie strained a bit but managed to get the massive mouthful of food down.

"I said... I bet you enjoy being a mommy Twilight!" Pinkie said excitedly.

"Well, I haven't been a mother for that long, Pinkie," Twilight replied.

Pinkie couldn't seem to comprehend that sentence. "Huh? You adopted Scootaloo two months ago Twilight. That definitely makes you a mommy for a while."

"Yes Pinkie, I did, but Scootaloo didn't start calling me ‘Mom’ until a few weeks ago. Before that, she only called me Twilight," Twilight explained, speaking slowly to ensure Pinkie Pie would understand. Pinkie Pie cocked her head sideways and gave the blankest of stares. The rest of the ponies at the table could see steam beginning to pour out of Pinkie’s ears. The silence was broken by Rainbow Dash breaking into a fit of hysterical laughter. Soon, the rest of them joined in on the laughter, with the exception of Rarity. She had not taken her eyes off of Twilight since she showed up.

"Something wrong Rarity?" Applejack asked. "Ya have been rather quiet."

Rarity took a small nibble from her cupcake and cleared her throat. "Well, a little birdie told me something, and I've been waiting for a chance to speak."

“Well then speak your mind then drama queen!" Rainbow Dash snorted. Pinkie Pie joined her in more laughter. Rarity rolled her eyes and then turned her gaze to Twilight.

"Keeping secrets from us are you Twilight?" Rarity asked rather sourly. Twilight raised an eyebrow.

"S-Secrets?" she stuttered.

"I was under the impression that we were friends Twilight. Friends tell each other when important things happen," Rarity said coldly.

"Rarity... I don’t see where this is going..." Twilight said rather impatiently.

Rarity took a deep breath and moved a bit forward in her seat. "Your date with Thunderlane? You plainly decided not to tell us something that was so important!"

The silence was unsettling. Twilight was rather annoyed by the comment.

"It's not really that important Rarity," Twilight told her friend, "So anyway Applejack how did the fall harvest go?"

Applejack opened her mouth to speak, but Rarity cut her off.

"Not important? Not important!? Twilight the importance this matter holds is astronomical!" Rarity cried in disbelief.

Twilight groaned. She was hoping Rarity, of all ponies, would not find out about her plans tonight.

"It really isn’t Rarity. I have more important things on my plate now," Twilight shot back, feeling rather annoyed. "So Fluttershy how-"

"Twilight! I am taken aback by what I'm hearing. What could be more important than what is most likely your first date?" Rarity sputtered.

Twilight took a deep breath and held her composure, though struggling to. "Oh... I don't know Rarity... Perhaps my daughter and her wellbeing."

Rarity's cheeks went pink in embarrassment. The tension in the room built with every passing second. Luckily, Applejack decided to break it.

"Well girls this was fun but I gotta get back to Sweet Apple Acres and help Big Mac finish the winter preparations," Applejack said hastily. The rest of the ponies felt it was best to leave as well. Rainbow Dash was about to take off and head home when Twilight called her.

"Hey Rainbow! I need a favor!" called Twilight

Rainbow Dash halted her take off and turned to face her friend. "Sure Twilight. What is it?"

"Are you free tonight?" Twilight asked.

**********

Scootaloo paced back and forth in the main room of the Ponyville Library. She was amazed how fast Friday had come. Tonight Twilight was going on her date, and she was going to be at the mercy of her foalsitter. The worst part about all of this was that Twilight wouldn't tell her who that foalsitter was but instead said that it was a surprise. This had been eating away at Scootaloo's brain for days. She wanted to know who it was. Her initial guess had been Spike, but Twilight said she wanted someone a bit more mature to take care of her. Spike actually pulled Scootaloo aside shortly afterwards and said he actually was going to be her sitter originally, but Rarity had asked him to help out with a party she was throwing for some of her esteemed clients. This hadn't helped Scootaloo get an answer to her question. In fact, by the time Friday had rolled around, she was actually a bit angry with her mother.

"Why won't you tell me?" Scootaloo complained to Twilight, who had just came downstairs.

"I told you it's a surprise," Twilight replied quickly, "In fact they should be here in a few minutes."

With that, Twilight left Scootaloo to continue her pondering. Scootaloo gave up trying to figure out who it was and started going through the possible ponies. It would be cool if it was Rainbow Dash, but Scootaloo knew Rainbow Dash was too cool for that. She kind of hoped it wasn't Rarity, though if it were, she'd probably bring Sweetie Belle. Pinkie Pie would be fun, and they'd probably spend the night making delicious treats. She also kind of hoped it wasn't Fluttershy because it would probably mean she'd be entertaining herself for the evening. Finally, there was Applejack who would probably bring Apple Bloom. Honestly there was no clear choice. It could be any of them at this point. Scootaloo had actually thought it was going to be Dinky's older sister Sparkler, and that's only because Dinky said Sparkler was foalsitting on Friday. It turned out Sparkler was not foalsitting Scootaloo.

Ah the wait is killing me, Scootaloo moaned to herself, I just want to know who my foalsitter is.

That answer came immediately with the knock of the door.

"Scootaloo, can you get the door? That's probably your foalsitter."

Scootaloo bolted straight to the door and opened it. Her body nearly exploded in excitement when she saw who was standing in the doorway.

"Rainbow Dash!"

The rainbow maned pegasus gave her a smile. "Hey squirt. Are you ready to have some fun?"

Scootaloo was lost for words. She couldn't believe that the coolest pony in all of Equestria was going to be her foalsitter.

"Cat got your tongue, pipsqueak?" Rainbow Dash snickered. Watching the little orange filly gawk at her was quite amusing.

"I guess she liked the surprise," Twilight said with a laugh as she came out of the kitchen. The two older ponies chuckled at the filly’s expense. Scootaloo was still speechless.

"Yeah, I guess she did," Rainbow Dash replied. The laughter died down to a snicker, and Twilight pulled Scootaloo into a hug before leaving.

"Be good for Rainbow sweetie. Listen to everything she tells you to do."

Twilight then turned to Rainbow Dash. "Rainbow, I have a list for you on the table. There is pasta salad in the fridge and ice cream for dessert in the freezer. Don't let Scootaloo convince you to let her stay up. She needs to be in bed by eleven."

"Sheesh Twilight, calm down. Scoots n’ I are gonna have some fun," Rainbow Dash said jokingly.

Twilight smiled at her friend and gave Scootaloo a kiss and nuzzle then departed. Just before she left, Twilight whispered something to Rainbow Dash.

"Scootaloo has been taking a sleeping potion. It's in the fridge. She's pretty embarrassed by it, but she needs to drink it."

Rainbow Dash nodded and shut the door as Twilight left. She then flipped around to face Scootaloo.

"Alright Squirt, what do you want to tonight?" Rainbow Dash asked the filly.

Scootaloo scratched her chin with her hoof. "Um...well I don't really know. Mom didn't tell me who was going to be my foalsitter, so I didn't really make a plan for the night."

Rainbow Dash joined Scootaloo in some pondering. They stood there for a solid five minutes looking off into the distance in deep thought. Finally, the pseudo light bulb went off above Rainbow Dash's head. She had come up with a brilliant idea.

"I got an idea. It's been a while since we did some flying practice. Why don't we step outside and do that?"

Scootaloo's eyes lit up in excitement. She and Rainbow Dash had worked on flying some time ago, but Rainbow Dash became so busy that the two of them forgot about it. Scootaloo instantly became nervous when Dash asked her next question.

"I know you and I haven't done this for a few months, so I need to ask Scoots. Did you practice at all on your own?" Rainbow Dash asked curiously.

Scootaloo gulped nervously. "Well...n-not r-really."

Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow and let out a sigh.

"Well that may or may not be a problem," explained Dash, "Let's just step outside and find out."

Scootaloo gritted her teeth nervously and followed the older pegasus outside. Her head immediately began to fill with thoughts of her failing and Rainbow Dash giving up on her bitterly. Scootaloo immediately wrote those thoughts off as crazy. Rainbow Dash would never do that to her.

"Alright Pipsqueak, I think this is fine," said Rainbow Dash after they had walked about ten feet from the front door of the library, "Let's see if you remember anything I have taught you."

Scootaloo smiled nervously and fired up her wings. They buzzed to life and she slowly began to lift off the ground; however, didn't get far before falling back to the ground with a thud. In fact, she only got about three feet into the air. Determined though, she jumped right back up and tried again. She didn't get any higher than the first time. After three more tries, Rainbow Dash had her stop.

"Hey... I don't want you to hurt yourself Squirt. Twilight will kill me if you do," said Rainbow Dash, panicking slightly.

Scootaloo pouted and crossed her arms. "Why don't my stupid wings work? Why am I the only pegasus in all of Equestria that can’t fly? For Celestia’s sake Pound Cake can fly, and he's a foal."

Rainbow Dash opened her mouth to say something but closed it. She didn't want to say anything to make the little filly angry. She knew though that not practicing was probably why Scootaloo's performance was, to be blunt, terrible.

"The only thing I can say is that you need to keep working at it. You probably lost the muscle built up from all our practicing," Rainbow Dash explained.

Scootaloo looked up at Rainbow Dash with a sour but hopeful face. "You think so?"

Rainbow Dash nodded and rustled Scootaloo's mane.

"I'm sure of it. I promise that if you practice every day, you will soon be able to do it," Rainbow Dash replied with a smile.

Scootaloo, filled with new determination, jumped up from the ground and continued to try. Rainbow Dash sat there and watched her. Every once in a while, she'd give the filly a pointer, but for the most part she let Scootaloo go on her own accord. Rainbow Dash only called an end to the practice when the sky turned crimson, letting them know that evening was upon them. By that time, Scootaloo was sweaty and dirty. She was also quite drained of her energy.

"Ready for some dinner then?" Rainbow Dash asked as they walked inside.

Scootaloo gave a nod and followed her idol into the kitchen. Rainbow Dash pulled the pasta salad Twilight made out of the fridge and grabbed some plates. She gave herself a fair amount of pasta and then gave Scootaloo a mountain’s worth.

"I'm sure you worked up quite the appetite," she said.

Scootaloo nodded and dug in. As they ate, they were both completely silent. Neither Scootaloo nor Rainbow Dash could come up with any small talk. Finally Dash came up with some questions for the filly. Most of them were about her new situation.

"So Squirt...do you enjoy living with Twilight?" Rainbow Dash asked curiously.

Scootaloo finished chewing her mouthful of food and spoke up. "Yeah, I do. Twilight is an awesome mom."

"She seems like she is a good mom. Twilight also has been really happy since she adopted you," Rainbow Dash replied.

"Yeah, we've had some rough patches here and there, but we've taken care of them," Scootaloo mentioned.

Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow. "Problems?"

"Oh nothing big. Just conflicts of personality," Scootaloo told Rainbow Dash.

Rainbow Dash took a bite of pasta and asked another question, one that was more serious than the first.

"So why didn't you tell me that you were in such a bad position before Twilight found you? You know... I could have helped you."

"Well...I...I didn't really think about that. I suppose it just never crossed my mind," Scootaloo responded nervously.

Rainbow Dash reached over and ruffled Scootaloo’s mane playfully. "Hey, it's all good Scoots. Honestly it was probably better that Twilight took you in as opposed to me."

Scootaloo let out a laugh. Her idol was probably right about that.

"Hey if you want, though, I could be like your awesome big sister," Rainbow Dash mentioned. "That's only if you want me to."

Scootaloo's face formed into a huge smile. "That would be awesome, Rainbow Dash. I kind of thought of you as a sister anyway."

They two pegasi shared a laugh. Scootaloo couldn't believe how awesome of night this was so far. To be honest, she really wouldn't have cared who her foalsitter was, but she was ecstatic that her mom had thought about her when picking.

"Alrighty squirt, Twilight said she wanted to make sure you had a bath before you went to bed. Why don't you go upstairs and get that started? I'll be up in a moment," Rainbow Dash said as she was cleaning up the kitchen. Scootaloo gave Rainbow Dash a smile and trotted upstairs to the bathroom. When she got upstairs, she found a bottle of glowing pink liquid sitting on the tub. It also had a note on it. Scootaloo picked up the bottle and read it.

Scootaloo,

I whipped this up the other day so you could use it tonight. In this bottle is a special Bubble Bath Potion. Put five drops into the tub and have fun relaxing. Be careful though. Don't put more than five drops in the tub. Just in case you do though, there is a potion under the sink labeled “Bubble Away.” Put it in the tub immediately and it will dissolve the bubbles instantly. Hope you have a fun night with Rainbow Dash sweetheart.

Love,

Mom

Scootaloo smiled and started the bathtub. Being extra careful Scootaloo put five drops of the potion into the tub. As soon as the potion hit the water the tub filled with thick, white foam bubbles. Scootaloo jumped into the tub and was immediately filled with bliss. She couldn't put her hoof on it, but there appeared to be a special chemical in the potion that made every muscle in her body feel like they turned into Jello. As Scootaloo fell into a slight snooze Rainbow Dash walked into the bathroom.

"Enjoying ourselves?" Rainbow Dash giggled.

"Mhmm," Scootaloo mumbled quietly. Rainbow Dash held a hoof to her mouth to suppress the giggles and took a better look at the tub. She then saw the bottle sitting on the counter top and realized why Scootaloo was so zoned out.

"Ah. I see Twilight made you some of her special bubble bath potion. That stuff is amazing," Rainbow Dash exclaimed.

Scootaloo looked up from the mountain of foam at her foalsitter. "It feels like my body's turned into mush."

"Yeah, that's the best part about it. Twilight gives us a bottle every year for our birthdays. She won't tell anypony how she makes it, but oh Celestia it's like heaven in a bottle," Rainbow Dash explained to Scootaloo. Scootaloo let out a blissful moan and slowly sunk into the water. Rainbow Dash gave the filly a playful smile and splashed water into her face.

"Gah! Rainbow Dash!" Scootaloo sputtered.

Rainbow Dash only smiled and continued to splash playfully. Scootaloo decided the only thing to do was to fight back. It didn't take long before the two ponies were having a full on water fight. Everything was going fine, but in an instant, things began to go horribly wrong.

"Ah! I think I got soap in my eye," Scootaloo cried as she covered her left eye with her hooves. Rainbow Dash went straight into a panic and pulled the filly out of the tub.

"Let me see Scootaloo," Rainbow Dash told her.

Scootaloo whimpered and moved her hooves. Her eye, however, remained glued shut.

"Come on squirt, open up and let me see," Rainbow Dash grunted as she tried to pull Scootaloo's eyelid open. Scootaloo continued to whimper and slowly opened her eye. It was bloodshot and watery. Rainbow Dash immediately picked up Scootaloo and brought her over to the sink.

"Okay Squirt I know this is going to be uncomfortable but we need to flush that eyeball out with water," Rainbow Dash explained. She put Scootaloo's head into the sink, tilted slightly, and turned on the water. The filly immediately began to struggle. The water didn't hurt but it was really bothersome.

"Rainbow Dash, please! I don't like this," Scootaloo whined.

Rainbow Dash wouldn't let her go and even went so far as to hold Scootaloo's eyes open. "I know it sucks Pipsqueak, but it's the only way to get the soap out. Besides Twilight would kill me if I left this alone."

They kept at this for a solid three minutes. Scootaloo struggled for the first half but eventually gave in dealt and with the slight inconvenience. When Rainbow Dash was finally satisfied, she moved Scootaloo over to the toilet and wiped her eye with a clean towel.

"Sorry about that Scoots," Rainbow Dash apologized. "I know that was really annoying, but it would have been bad if we left that alone."

Scootaloo rubbed her eyes and looked up and the older pony. "It's okay Rainbow Dash."

Rainbow Dash gingerly dried Scootaloo off and then the two of them went to Scootaloo's room.

"Alright Squirt, it's almost bed time. You want me to read to you or something until then?" Rainbow Dash asked awkwardly.

Scootaloo's eyes lit up in excitement. Was her idol asking her if she wanted story time? For some reason though this made Scootaloo rather timid.

"Um...yes please Rainbow Dash. M-Mom has been reading me the latest Daring Do book," Scootaloo said quietly.

Rainbow Dash rustled Scootaloo's mane playfully. "Alright, that's a good one. I just finished that yesterday."

Scootaloo gave Rainbow Dash a smile and crawled into bed. Rainbow Dash pulled up a chair, pulled the book off of the bedside table, opened it, and cleared her throat.

"Ah, you stopped at a good part here. Well, let's keep going then," said Rainbow Dash. She started reading, and it didn't take long before both Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo were engrossed in the book. Rainbow Dash spoke with her most dramatic and theatrical voice while Scootaloo jumped out of bed and began pretending she was Daring Do. After about an hour of reading, though, Scootaloo was staring to doze off, and Rainbow Dash stopped for the night. She was about to tuck Scootaloo in when she forgot something important.

"Your potion!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, "Totally forgot about that. Give me a second to go get that."

Scootaloo sort of nodded and snuggled under her blankets a bit more. Rainbow Dash trotted downstairs and went to the fridge. She was happy that Twilight had labeled the cup. Grabbing the cup in her mouth, Rainbow Dash carefully left the kitchen and was about to go upstairs when the front door opened. Twilight and Thunderlane walked in mid conversation.

"That was one of the best comedies I've ever seen. I'm generally not one for slapstick but...oh Rainbow Dash how did it go?" Twilight asked after seeing her pegasus friend.

Rainbow Dash put the cup down and spoke. "Not bad. I was just about to give Scoots her potion."

"Oh is she still awake?" Twilight asked curiously, "I can give it to her and tuck her in if you want."

"Sure Twi, go ahead she's still awake," Rainbow Dash told her friend.

Twilight smiled and took the potion bottle from Rainbow Dash before trotting upstairs. This left the two pegasi co-workers alone. Thunderlane did not like the look Rainbow Dash was giving him.

"Something wrong boss?" he asked in a rather worried tone.

Rainbow Dash furrowed her brow and spoke to Thunderland quietly and sharply. "Listen hot shot, I just want to say something about all this. I don't particularly mind you dating Twilight, but I just want to lay something down. Don't you dare do anything to hurt Twilight or Scootaloo. Twilight is one of my best friends and that filly means a lot to me. Just know that if you do anything at all, even just making one or both of them even a little bit sad, you're going to have to answer to me. Got it?"

Thunderlane gulped nervously. Despite the fact that he was a whole head taller than the cyan pegasus Thunderlane knew that Rainbow Dash meant was she said. He also knew that she would easily exercise her "Boss" title and it probably wouldn't end up well for him.

"G-Got it Rainbow Dash," Thunderlane stuttered, "Don't worry though I don't plan to do anything stupid to ruin this."

Rainbow Dash gave Thunderlane an aggressive snort. "Sure thing Hot Shot."

"Is something wrong?" Twilight asked as she came downstairs.

Thunderlane and Rainbow Dash both quickly regained their composure and pretended as if nothing happened.

"Oh nothing Twi," Rainbow Dash laughed nervously, "So is Scoots asleep?"

Twilight got to the bottom of the stairs and nodded. "Yes, and she told me to tell you thank you by the way. She had a really good time with you. Thanks for doing this for me Rainbow."

"It's no problem Twi. I enjoyed spending some time with the Squirt too. We actually mostly worked on flying, and if you don't mind I'd like to keep doing so."

"I think she'd love that Rainbow Dash, and I'd love it if you would. Also, I might be calling on you again to do more foalsitting," mentioned Twilight.

Rainbow Dash gave her friend a smile. "Sure thing Twilight. Well I'll see you later then and I'll see you in the morning Thunderlane."

Rainbow Dash made her way to the door but Twilight stopped her.

"Wait Rainbow, let me pay you before you leave," Twilight called. Rainbow Dash turned around and shook her head.

"Getting to spend time with Scootaloo was enough payment Twilight. Seriously, you don't need to give me any money," Rainbow Dash replied.

Twilight frowned and continued to insist she pay her friend for her trouble. After a few back and forth comments though, she realized she wasn't going to win.

"Fine Rainbow, you win this time, but I'm going to pay you in some way," Twilight shot playfully.

Rainbow Dash laughed and gave her friend a smile. "Yeah yeah Twilight. We can talk about it later. Anyway I need to get home and feed Tank. See you two later."

Rainbow Dash opened the door and took off into the sky leaving Thunderland and Twilight alone.

"Well...I had a really fun night Thunderlane," Twilight said timidly.

"I did to Twilight," Thunderlane responded, "I'd love to do it again sometime. Maybe next Friday or Saturday?"

Twilight's cheeks went pink and she nodded. "I'd love to Thunderlane."

Thunderlane's face lit up with a huge smile. "Okay, that's awesome Twilight. Well...I'll see you later then. Night Twilight."

They exchanged a hug and then Twilight let Thunderlane out. Once he was gone, Twilight locked up and let out a huge yawn.

Wow, what a night. I think tomorrow, though, it's time for some mommy daughter bonding.

Twilight gave another yawn and went upstairs. Rather than go straight to her room she walked into Scootaloo's and crawled in bed with her. Before falling asleep Twilight zapped her teeth clean with magic and gave Scootaloo a nuzzle.

"Good night my sweet little girl," Twilight whispered.

Author's Notes:

Okay guys sorry this took so long I know a lot of you have probably been waiting for this. Now all of you can stop bugging me about when Rainbow Dash is going to have some time with Scootaloo.

Now one more thing I want to touch on so people will stop asking. I know I have not including anything about Twilight telling the family and the Princesses about Scootaloo. Not the next chapter but the chapter after that (and probably one or two more after that one) will cover all this. Essentially what is going to happen is Twilight, Scootaloo and Spike will be going to Canterlot for the Holidays. It is then that Scootaloo will finally get to meet the rest of her family and the Princesses. I'm sorry if this is a bit spoiling.

Conflict and Resolution

Written by: Mayhem Darkshadow
Edited by: Avatar of Shadow and TimeLord_Whooves

Chapter 8: Conflict and Resolution

Scootaloo pulled up on her scooter as she reached the front door of the library. Not only did school let out early today, but it was also a long weekend. Scootaloo was looking forward to some bonding time with Twilight. They weren't doing anything special to be honest, just dinner out and other little things. Twilight even mentioned maybe a spa day. Scootaloo was really happy that her mom was going to put work aside to spend time with her. For the past few days Twilight had been bogged down with papers and reports to Princess Celestia.

"Mom, I'm home!" Scootaloo called as she walked inside. What she found was Twilight and Spike both rushing around the Library grabbing items.

"Be sure to get all the quills and scrolls we have Spike. The Princess wants extremely detailed notes," mentioned Twilight as she stuffed some books into a bag. Neither Twilight nor Spike had realized Scootaloo was standing in the doorway completely dumbfounded.

"Um...is something going on?" Scootaloo asked curiously.

Twilight immediately came to a halt. "Oh sorry sweetie, I didn't hear you come in. Let's have some lunch and talk about something."

Scootaloo could tell something was up, but she waited for Twilight to speak first, which she didn't do until she pulled Scootaloo's lunch out of the fridge.

"What's up Mom?" Scootaloo asked, "You and Spike look like you're going somewhere."

Twilight sat down and let out a small sigh. "We are Scootaloo. Princess Celestia sent me an emergency message today. Both her assistant and her backup assistant are sick and she's leaving for Phillydelphia for a big meeting. The Princess requested that Spike and I accompany her because of the level of importance of the meeting."

Scootaloo swallowed her mouthful of sandwich. "So, do I need to pack then?"

"Sorry honey," Twilight apologized as she shook her head, "But unfortunately you can't come."

Scootaloo dropped her sandwich and Twilight prepared for a temper tantrum. "Why can't I come?"

"Because I'm going to be so busy with the Princess that I'm not going to be able to keep my eye on you. Same goes for Spike since he's helping me out," Twilight explained calmly.

"But can't I just come with you. I can be quiet and it would be like I'm not even there," Scootaloo shot back.

Twilight closed her eyes and rubbed her face. This wasn't going anywhere. "These meetings go for hours at a time Scootaloo and I know you can't sit still for more than one. I'm sorry, sweetheart. I know you were looking forward to some alone time just you and I. I was to and this was all of a sudden. If I could bring you with me, I would, but I'm worried if I do, I'm going to completely ignore you."

Twilight got out of her seat and tried to give Scootaloo a kiss but Scootaloo turned away. This hurt Twilight's feelings a little bit.

"Scootaloo, you're making my heart ache," Twilight said quietly in her daughter's ear. There was no response, but then Twilight heard a sniff and realized she was crying.

"I...I just really wanted to s-spend some time with you because you've been so busy," Scootaloo sobbed.

Twilight pulled Scootaloo into a hug and gave her a kiss. "I know baby girl, I know. If it's any consolation, I'll be back Sunday, so we can still have Monday together."

Scootaloo wiped her eyes and cleared her throat quietly.

"You promise?" Scootaloo asked. Twilight nuzzled Scootaloo slowly and whispered into her ear.

"I promise, Scootaloo. Monday will just be about you and me having one on one time."

Scootaloo smiled and wrapped her hooves around Twilight's neck.

"Is Rainbow Dash taking care of me?" she asked.

"Well, she was originally, but something came up. Thunderlane offered though and I took him up on that," Twilight responded.

Scootaloo pulled away from her mother and raised an eyebrow. "Is it just him or is he going to bring Rumble?"

"He's bringing Rumble, don't worry. He's actually looking forward to getting to know you a bit better," explained Twilight quickly, so as to avoid any conflict. Scootaloo picked up her sandwich and shrugged her shoulders.

"Meh, I mean it's fine with me."

Twilight gave Scootaloo a smile and rustled her mane playfully. "Alright, sweet filly. He's going to be over in a few hours. Until then, me and Spike are going to be packing. You can help if you'd like?"

Scootaloo shook her head and continued eating. Twilight ruffled her mane once more and then went back into the main room of the library. Scootaloo sat at the table, eating and thinking about how this weekend was going to go. She had absolutely nothing against Thunderlane. However, she was still unsure about how she felt about him. At least he was bringing Rumble.

Maybe this weekend won't be too bad after all.

**********

True to what Twilight said, Rumble and Thunderlane arrived at the library a few hours later. Scootaloo answered the door since Twilight was still fanatically packing.

"Hiya Scootaloo," Rumble chimed.

"Hey Rumble. Hi Thunderlane," Scootaloo replied.

"Hey short stuff," Thunderlane said as he ruffled Scootaloo's mane. Scootaloo let him do it to be nice, but inside she wasn't very happy about it. Twilight realized they had arrived and stopped working so she could say hi.

"Hey, thanks for doing this Thunderlane, even though it's last minute. Also, sorry I had to cancel on the date."

Thunderlane gave Twilight a peck on the cheek. Scootaloo furrowed her brow at him but he didn’t notice.

"It's fine, my parents dropped Rumble on me last minute too anyway," he explained.

Twilight’s cheeks went red and she giggled. "Okay well, so long as you don't mind. Now just some things I need to mention. Some ground rules more or less. First of all, Scootaloo has been taking a sleeping potion. I'm trying to wean her off it, so only give it to her if she has a nightmare. Otherwise don't. Also, and don't let her argue about this, but she needs to be in bed by eleven."

"Oh come on Mom, can't I stay up later?" Scootaloo complained.

Twilight raised an eyebrow and went into parent mode. "No Scootaloo, your bedtime is eleven."

"Oh come on!" Scootaloo whined.

Thunderlane stepped in and tried to talk some sense into Twilight. "Twilight, let her at least stay up until twelve. That's Rumble's bed time on the weekends. It's not really fair for Scootaloo to go to bed before him."

Twilight looked back and forth between Thunderlane's convincing stare and Scootaloo's pleading eyes and knew she wasn't going to win.

"Fine fine fine, she can stay up till Twelve, but no later," Twilight sighed, "Now just some other things. Thunderlane, you and Rumble will have my room for the weekend. The bed is made up and ready. I did some grocery shopping so there is plenty of food in the fridge. Other than that, Spike and I will be home probably Sunday afternoon or evening. The number for the hotel I'm staying at is on the front table, as well as the address. Call me if you need me."

Twilight levitated all her bags over and hung them on her sides. She then bent down and gave Scootaloo a nuzzle and a kiss.

"I love you sweetie. Be good for Thunderlane. We'll have some fun as soon as I get home," she whispered to her daughter.

Scootaloo smiled and gave Twilight a kiss back. "I love you too Mommy."

Twilight stood up and gave Thunderlane a hug. "Thanks for doing this for me Thunder. I'll see you in a few days."

After doing one more double take to make sure nothing was forgotten, Spike and Twilight left. Thunderlane shut the front door and then turned to the two smaller ponies.

"Well now, what shall we do?" Thunderlane pondered out loud. Rumble and Scootaloo both joined him. None of them could come up with a solution though and soon boredom ensued. Finally, Thunderlane spoke up with a question.

"Hey Rumble, what games did you bring with you?" he asked his brother. Rumble went straight for his saddlebag and pulled out a bunch of boxes.

"Let's see, I brought Battlecruisers, Monopony, and a few simple decks of cards," he called back. Thunderlane scratched his chin and tried to make a decision.

"Rumble, grab a deck of cards. We can play Hearts," he finally decided, "Scootaloo, do you know how to play hearts?"

Scootaloo shook her head. "Nope...I don't even know what Hearts is."

Thunderlane let out a chuckle as they walked to the table. "It's really easy. The object of the game is to not get any of the point cards in your hand. Point cards are all the Hearts and the Queen of Spades. The Queen is worth thirteen points by the way. Anyway, once the cards are dealt, you pick three cards and pass them along. Who you pass them to will vary and I'll just tell you. Once the cards have been passed, the player who has the two of Clubs plays that card. If you have a club, you must play it and the player who plays the highest card has to take the cards played. If you don't have that suit, then you can play whatever you want. Hearts cannot be played on the first turn. We keep going until all the cards have been played and then we count up for scores. Understand?"

Scootaloo could feel the gears in her head grinding away and smoke pouring out of her ears. "Um...ah..."

Both Thunderlane and Rumble laughed quietly.

"It's okay Scootaloo," Rumble chuckled, "It took me a few tries to understand the game too."

Thunderlane and Rumble laughed some more and dealt the cards out. Scootaloo couldn't tell if her hand was bad or good, but went with it. They passed their cards along and played. Scootaloo did her best, but could already tell that she was not that good. She just kept going along and tried her best not to get frustrated. When the game ended, they tallied up their scores. Turns out she didn't lose. Rumble won and she came in second.

"Good job Scoots," Thunderlane told her, "Wanna play again?"

"Please don't call me Scoots," Scootaloo said.

Thunderlane looked at her and raised an eyebrow. "Pardon me?"

"Please don't call me Scoots, Thunderlane," Scootaloo responded, rather annoyed.

"I can't call you Scoots?" Thunderlane asked, "Why not?"

"Only specific ponies are allowed to call me that," Scootaloo explained in an angry tone.

Thunderlane got a bit annoyed and rolled his eyes. "Like who?"

"Um, like my friends, my mom, Rainbow Dash. Ponies I'm close to," Scootaloo shot back.

Thunderlane held his tongue so he wouldn't say anything he regretted.

"Okay, that's fine. I figured there would be some boundaries. We were getting off to a good start and I'd rather not ruin it. Come on, let's play another game."

Scootaloo just shook her head and got up from the table. "No thanks, I'm just gonna go up to my room."

Once Scootaloo left the room, Thunderlane slammed his head onto the table and groaned.

"That was...very unlike Scootaloo," Rumble said awkwardly.

Thunderlane rubbed his temple. "I thought everything was going fine. I don't understand what I did wrong."

"I'm not quite sure bro," Rumble replied. He was just as confused as Thunderlane was. Normally Scootaloo was pretty friendly and always enjoyed having fun. Something seemed a bit off.

"I just want to get to know her better since I've been spending so much time with Twilight," Thunderlane told his brother, "If she acts like she just did though, it's going to make it very hard."

Rumble shrugged his shoulders. "You want me to talk to her or something? I mean, we are best friends so she probably won't get snappy."

"No, that's okay Rumble. I'm going to try and work this out on my own," Thunderlane replied as he got out of his seat. While he figured maybe it wasn't the best idea for him to tackle the beast head on, but he wasn't going to be able to figure out the problem if he didn't. He walked slowly upstairs and opened up the door to Scootaloo's room. He found her lying on her bed, reading a book.

"Hey, can we talk?" Thunderlane asked.

Scootaloo looked up from her book then glanced back down at it. "I'd rather not."

"Please Scootaloo, I just want to get to know you better," Thunderlane said hopefully, "Seriously, let's do something fun before dinner. Why don't we go outside and Rumble and I could help you with flying."

Scootaloo looked up and slammed her book shut.

"Stop trying to be my friend, Thunderlane! Have you ever thought that maybe I don't want you to be one to me? Also, I only do my flying practice with Rainbow Dash!" she shouted.

Thunderlane was done. He knew that he was going to need to be assertive otherwise this weekend was going to be a struggle.

"First of all, don't raise your voice young lady. Your mother left you in my charge and you will follow my rules. Second of all, you know Rainbow Dash isn't the only pegasus in Ponyville. Seriously, I work with her so I can tell you she isn't as awesome as you think she is. Rainbow Dash is rude. She thinks too high of herself and she is the laziest pony in all of Equestria. Why couldn't I help you with flying? Who do you think taught Rumble how to fly? Now cut the attitude and let's go downstairs and have fun," Thunderlane snapped.

Thunderlane immediately regretted everything he just said. Scootaloo's eyes filled with tears and her rage burst forth.

"GET OUT OF MY ROOM!!!"

Thunderlane immediately left and shut the door. He was not in mood for arguing.

I'll leave her alone for a few hours and then maybe let Rumble try.

**********

The next few hours were rather uneventful. Thunderlane and Rumble played a few more rounds of Hearts and then Thunderlane decided he should work on getting dinner ready. In the mean time, he asked if Rumble could go talk to Scootaloo for him. Rumble said he wouldn't have a problem with it and made his way upstairs slowly.

"Scootaloo?" Rumble called quietly as he opened the door, "Can we talk?"

Rumble opened the door a bit further and could not comprehend what he saw. Scootaloo was not in her room and the window was open.

"Um, Thunderlane," Rumble shouted downstairs in a panic, "Scootaloo is gone."

There was the clinking of dropped pans, followed by the hurried rush of hooves up the stairs. Thunderlane appeared in the doorway with a look of sheer terror on his face.

"Oh sweet Luna no," Thunderlane gasped when he saw the open window. An hour ago it had started snowing pretty hard. It was also freezing outside. If anything happened to Scootaloo, he knew Twilight would kill him.

"This is bad, if she's out there, she's going to freeze," Thunderlane panicked, "Rumble, you need to wait here in case she comes back. I'm going out there to find her."

Rather than use the front door, Thunderlane shot out the window. He knew was going to need help and there was only one pony he could turn to.

**********

"YOU DID WHAT?!?!?" Rainbow Dash shouted. Thunderlane went straight to Rainbow Dash's house looking for help. He knew there was going to be some yelling and chastising but he had prepared himself for it.

"YOU SAID ALL THAT TERRIBLE STUFF TO HER? SERIOUSLY THUNDERLANE, HOW THICK ARE YOU?" Rainbow Dash shouted furiously, "SHE LOOKS UP TO ME. SHE CONSIDERS ME MORE IMPORTANT THAN CELESTIA OR LUNA. INSULTING ME IS BASICALLY A DIRECT BLOW TO HER."

Thunderlane took what was coming and when Rainbow Dash was finally done, he spoke up. "I regret everything I said to her, Rainbow Dash. I was only trying to be her friend, but I guess I was trying too hard. Right now though, Scootaloo is out there somewhere freezing to death. I don't want anything to happen to her. I don't even care if this ruins mine and Twilight's relationship, but if I'm responsible for that filly getting hurt, I will never forgive myself."

Rainbow Dash was still furious, but knew Thunderlane was right. "Well then, don't stand there, let's get going. The longer we wait, the closer she is to something bad happening."

The two of them peeled out of Rainbow's cloud house and broke off in different directions. Rainbow Dash didn't tell Thunderlane, but she had somewhat of an idea where Scootaloo might be.

**********

Scootaloo walked up the steps of the Cutie Mark Crusader Clubhouse. She shivered as she walked indoors and got out of the snow and wind.

I never thought I'd find myself sleeping in here again. Tomorrow I'll go see if I can stay with Rainbow.

Sighing slightly, Scootaloo pulled a blanket out her saddlebag and curled up on the floor. Once again she hated the fact that this Clubhouse didn't have actual windows. At least there was a front door shutting out most of the wind. Still, she couldn't beat around the bush. She was absolutely freezing. Curling up a bit more, Scootaloo was questioning whether or not she was actually going to be able to do this.

Maybe I should just go home, Scootaloo pondered to herself. She then shook these thoughts from her head and decided she was going to suffer through it. Not much time went by before Scootaloo's teeth were chattering and she was struggling to keep warm.

What were the first signs of hypothermia again? Scootaloo thought to herself as she started losing the feeling in her hooves. Still Scootaloo could not convince herself that what she was doing was absolutely stupid. More time wore on and Scootaloo's body was starting to go numb.

"Feeling rather cold, are we?"

Scootaloo slowly turned her head and saw Rainbow Dash standing in the doorway. She looked angry.

"We'll talk about how massive of a plot head you are later. Right now, we need to get you home and warmed up."

Scootaloo just shivered. She couldn't bring herself to talk. Rainbow Dash picked up Scootaloo; all while keeping her wrapped up, and put Scootaloo on her back. Scootaloo, despite how much it hurt, wrapped her hooves around Rainbow Dash's neck.

"Hold on Squirt, we are gonna be booking it back to the Library."

**********

Thunderlane burst through the front door of the library and shook the snow off his coat. He had been looking around for a solid hour and a half, but he gave in because he was freezing. Thunderlane had a massive knot in his stomach. He really was hoping Rainbow Dash had found Scootaloo, because he knew this was going to end up bad if she didn't. Rumble was sitting in a chair tapping his hooves.

"Did Rainbow Dash...find her?" he asked his brother. Rumble gave him a nod and he shot straight upstairs for Scootaloo's room. However, he found the door locked. He could hear voices on the other side of the door, but he couldn't make out what was being said. After waiting patiently, there was a small click and the door opened. Rainbow Dash came out of the room and shut the door immediately.

"Before you go in there, we need to talk. Let's go to Twilight's room," Rainbow Dash told him quietly. Thunderlane didn't argue and followed. The two of them sat down on the bed and Rainbow Dash spoke, but didn't look at Thunderlane.

"She's alright, she's just warming up. I'm no doctor, but I'm pretty sure she was pretty close to suffering from hypothermia," Rainbow Dash explained. Thunderlane gulped nervously and allowed Rainbow Dash to continue.

"We talked about why she did that and I was a bit surprised by her response. She said she didn't want you to be her friend because she doesn't want you to date Twilight anymore," Rainbow Dash continued.

"She...she doesn't?" Thunderlane baffled said, "Should I ask why?"

"She only said that, because she's worried if you and Twilight start getting closer, she's going to lose more time with her mother. I pushed this subject a bit further and she told me that for the past week, Twilight has been rather busy with reports and they hadn't been able to spend much time together," Rainbow Dash said.

Thunderlane gave a bit of a sigh and swallowed nervously. "I didn't realize that's how she felt. I....I really wish she would have just told me that instead of running off."

"Don't worry about that, she realizes that was an extremely stupid way to handle the situation. She also wants to talk to you if you're up for it," Rainbow Dash added.

Thunderlane didn't even give that a second thought. He really wanted to clear the air with the little filly. He gave Rainbow Dash a nod and the two of them went back to Scootaloo's room. They opened it and walked inside. The room was dimly lit by the bedside lamp. Thunderlane sat down in the chair that was beside the bed. Scootaloo was covered with layers of blankets and was staring off at the wall behind Thunderlane. Rainbow Dash stuck her head next to Scootaloo's and whispered.

"Thunderlane agreed to talk with you. I'll be outside if you need me."

Rainbow Dash left the room, but did leave the door slightly ajar. Neither Thunderlane, nor Scootaloo said anything for a few seconds, but then, finally, the little filly spoke up.

"I'm sorry for causing you so much grief, Thunderlane," Scootaloo apologized.

Thunderlane patted Scootaloo on the head lightly. "I'm sorry too, Scootaloo. I shouldn't have yelled at you and said all those things."

"You shouldn't be sorry, I was being selfish," Scootaloo rebutted .

"How so?" Thunderlane asked her with a raised eyebrow.

"I was worried you were going to take my mom away from me. I was worried that I would be spending less time with her with you around. I didn't even take her own happiness into consideration," Scootaloo sniffed. Thunderlane let Scootaloo wipe some tears from her eyes before continuing.

"Rainbow Dash said Twilight had been busy, so you two hadn't been having much time together. That must hurt and I can't even begin to understand it. To think that I'm going to take your mother away though is silly. I would never ever get in the way of your relationship," Thunderlane explained. Scootaloo wiped away a few more tears and snuggled up under the covers a bit more.

"I know that I wasn't thinking," Scootaloo grumbled.

Thunderlane, rather carefully, patted Scootaloo on one of her exposed hooves. "It's alright. So, do you maybe want to start over and try and have a good weekend?"

Scootaloo flipped around and stared at the ceiling for a bit. Thunderlane didn't press her at all. Finally, after about a minute of silence, Scootaloo flipped around and spoke up.

"I'd like that, Thunderlane," Scootaloo said quietly. Thunderlane gave her a smile and then got up from his chair.

"I'll go let Rainbow Dash back in then," he told her. Before he got to the door though, Rainbow Dash opened it. Thunderlane knew that she had probably listened and honestly didn't care. Rainbow Dash went straight for the bed side and talked to Scootaloo quietly.

"Everything go okay then?" she asked the filly. Scootaloo nodded her head and Rainbow Dash gave her a smile.

"Can you stay?" Scootaloo asked her idol. Rainbow Dash looked at her and then at Thunderlane.

"I don't care," he said with a shrug. Rainbow Dash gave Scootaloo a nuzzle and then got up from her chair.

"I'm gonna go talk to Thunderlane for a bit and then I'll be back up," she told the filly. Thunderlane took that as a cue to leave and Rainbow Dash followed him in suit. The two of them went downstairs to the kitchen. Before he was able to sit down, Rainbow Dash gave Thunderlane a smack on the back of the head.

"Ow, what the hay was that for?" Thunderlane shot in annoyance.

"That's for what you said about me, dumb plot," said Rainbow Dash with a small snicker, "On a more serious note though, thanks for handling that seriously."

Thunderlane rubbed the back of his head a bit more before speaking up. "Well, I suppose I deserved that. So you’re not gonna give me grief about all this?"

"Well, some of this is your fault," Rainbow Dash told him, "But to be honest, most of this is Scootaloo's fault for not thinking properly."

"I mean yeah, she wasn't really thinking, but I still feel like I was the main cause of this," Thunderlane responded. The next thing Rainbow Dash did threw him for a loop. She gave him some compassion and understanding.

"Don't beat yourself up, Thunderlane. Yeah, you shouldn't have yelled at her, but Scootaloo really should have thought this through a bit or at least talk to you rather than run away," Rainbow Dash said, "Anyway, I'm gonna hit the hay. Don't feel bad about this and don't worry about Twilight. If something happens, I'll talk to her."

As Rainbow Dash walked away, Thunderlane called after her. "Hey Boss...thanks for helping."

Rainbow Dash gave him a smile and then disappeared for the evening. Thunderlane sat at the table for just a bit longer before grabbing Rumble, who had fallen asleep on the couch, and heading upstairs.

At least the weekend is probably gonna go better now.

**********

Thunderlane sat downstairs in the library reading a book and sipping on a cup of coffee. It was amazing how fast time flies because it was already Sunday. Friday may have been rough, but Saturday had been great. Thunderlane, Rumble, and Scootaloo spent pretty much the entire day playing in the snow. Rainbow Dash even joined them for half of it. They went out to dinner at the Ponyville Cafe and then went and saw a movie. Scootaloo's attitude had changed dramatically between the two days and this made Thunderlane happy.

I almost wish we could have some more time for fun, he thought as he took a sip of coffee, I'm sure there will be time for it in the future.

As Thunderlane placed his cup down, the lock on the door clicked and Twilight walked in. She was carrying Spike on her back and their bags were levitating next to her.

"Brr, its cold out there," Twilight shivered as she shut the door. Thunderlane set his cup down and got up to help.

"You're home rather early," he mentioned as he helped Twilight set down the bags.

"Princess Celestia let me and Spike leave early. Might have been because I blabbed so much about wanting to be home with Scootaloo," Twilight explained, "So how was everything?"

Thunderlane sighed and Twilight eyeballed Thunderlane. "Did something bad happen?"

"Why don't you set Spike down and we can talk over a cup of Joe," Thunderlane told her. Twilight felt this was fair, but she was worried that something was wrong. After setting Spike down, they went to the kitchen. Twilight kept pestering Thunderlane, but he didn't speak until she had her coffee. Afterwards, he talked and she listened. This went on for a solid half an hour.

"Now before you say anything," Thunderlane finished, "Please don't be mad at Scootaloo. Rainbow Dash tried to convince me that this wasn't my fault, but it really was. If I hadn't yelled at her, she wouldn't have left. So whatever happens, I understand."

Twilight took a sip of her coffee. Thunderlane couldn't tell if she was angry or not. It didn't seem like it, but you never know.

"I'm not mad, Thunderlane," she finally said.

Thunderlane was speechless so Twilight kept speaking.

"You both seem to be at fault, but to be honest I think this is my fault."

"Wait wait, hold on a sec," Thunderlane sputtered, "How in the world is this your fault?"

Twilight took another sip of coffee and cleared her throat. "For the past week, Scootaloo has been asking to have some of my time. I kept promising it to her, but then I would get caught up in something. I told her later, but later never came and I feel like a terrible mother for doing so. She understands that I have my work, but I feel like I should have just put the work down and done something with my daughter."

Before Thunderlane could even stop it, Twilight was bawling.

"Hey hey, it's okay Twilight. It happens to all of us. I couldn't even count the amount of times I had to bail on plans with Rumble because something came up. It's just a simple mistake," Thunderlane cooed. Twilight sniffed and wiped some tears from her eyes.

"Yeah, but she's my little girl, Thunderlane and I don't want to be a bad mother," Twilight cried.

"Well then, don't let it happen again, Twilight," said Thunderlane sympathetically, "That's really all you can do. If you love her as much as I know you do, you'll be fine. You're a great mother, Twilight and it plainly shows."

Twilight looked at Thunderlane and gave him a smile. "Thanks, Thunderlane, you're right. Why don't you and your brother stay for breakfast."

Thunderlane chuckled and gave Twilight a peck on the cheek. Twilight's face went pink and she giggled a little. She gave him a kiss back and then got up and started to work on breakfast. As they cooked, they just talked. Nothing romantic or anything. Just a plain and simple chat. Twilight was really happy she had so many ponies in her life that cared for her.

Author's Notes:

This is everyone's Christmas and Birthday present. Big shout out to TimeLord_Whooves for editing this in one night and sending it straight back to me. I hope everyone liked it. This chapter was sort of influenced by how in certain movies the mom gets a new boyfriend and initially the kids don't like them. After spending some time with them though they become friend and so on and so forth. Anyway guys I hope you enjoyed. I can't promise the next chapter will come out very soon but I'll try my best to not take to long.

Welcome to the Family

Written by: Mayhem Darkshadow
Edited by: psychohooves and Avatar of Shadow

Chapter 9: Welcome to the Family

Twilight walked into Scootaloo’s pitch black room, hesitating not to turn on the lights. It was dark even though the blinds were wide open. This was because the clock had just struck four thirty in the morning. Twilight let out a yawn; she hadn't had a cup of coffee yet, and walked over to her daughter's bed. Scootaloo was sprawled out on the bed and she was making small grunts and flapping her wings every few seconds.

Awe she's dreaming, Twilight thought to herself as she smiled at her daughter. She hated that she had to wake Scootaloo up, but they had to get going. It was the Friday before school was out for winter break. One of Scootaloo's first treats was Twilight was letting her skip school today. The only reason though, was because Twilight had asked and Cheerilee said they honestly weren't going to do anything and she was probably going to let them leave before lunch. She told Twilight it didn't really matter if Scootaloo went to school or not.

"Scootaloo," Twilight whispered into the filly's ear as she nuzzled her cheek, "Time to wake up, baby girl, we need to get you fed before we leave."

"Five...more...m-minutes," Scootaloo grumbled. Twilight continued to nuzzle her and tried to push her up. Scootaloo didn't budge though.

"Come on honey, I know it's early. You can sleep on the train ride to Canterlot," Twilight said with a bit more force in her voice. Scootaloo grumbled, let out a yawn, and slowly crawled out of bed. When her hooves hit the floor, she immediately collapsed to the ground. Twilight suppressed a laugh and levitated the tired filly onto her back before making her way downstairs to the kitchen. Spike was already down there sipping a coffee and yawning every few seconds. Twilight plopped Scootaloo down in a chair and put a bowl of oatmeal and a doughnut in front of her.

"Eat up Scootaloo," Twilight told the sleepy filly. Scootaloo mumbled something and slowly ate her breakfast. Twilight poured herself a cup of coffee and sat right next to Scootaloo.

"So, I packed your new Daring Doo book and your blanket for the train ride. I suspect you probably want to spend the entire time sleeping though," Twilight said quietly. Scootaloo mumbled something that sounded like a yes and then shoved a spoonful of oatmeal into her mouth. Twilight put her hoof on the filly's back and rubbed it slowly. All was quiet until there was a knock on the door.

Who could that be? Twilight wondered immediately. Getting up from her seat, she went and opened the door. She found Thunderlane standing in the doorway.

"Thunderlane...this is a pleasant surprise," Twilight said with a bit of surprise in her voice. Thunderlane shook some snow out of his mane and stepped inside.

"Sorry if this is so sudden, but I wanted to bring my Hearth's Warming gifts before you all left," he explained.

"Oh Thunderlane, you didn't have to buy us gifts," Twilight replied. He gave her a smile and walked with her into the kitchen.

"Of course I did," he told Twilight. Thunderlane opened his bag and first pulled out a leather pouch and tossed it to Spike. The young drake opened the bag and immediately drooled at the sight. It was filled with gems.

"Took Rumble and me forever to find them, but it was well worth the effort," Thunderlane explained with a smile on his face. Spike was beside himself. Not sure how to best show his gratitude, he attached himself to Thunderlane's leg and thanked him a million times over. Thunderlane gave the dragon a noogie.

"No problem buddy, enjoy those," Thunderlane laughed, "Alright, now for Scootaloo."

Scootaloo's head popped up when she heard her name. Thunderlane pulled a thin package out of his saddle bag and gave it to her. Scootaloo set her spoon down and opened the gift. Her body was quickly filled with life.

"Oh wow, a Wonderbolts Scarf!" Scootaloo gasped, "This is so cool Thunderlane, thanks."

Thunderlane ruffled Scootaloo's mane and gave her a smile. "No problem munchkin, I figured you'd like it."

Thunderlane then pulled out one more package from his bag and gave it to Twilight. "I hope you like it Twi."

Twilight opened the box and pulled out a small bottle of perfume. "Oh Thunderlane, you shouldn't have."

"So you like it?" he asked. Twilight stepped forward and gave him a kiss. It completely threw Thunderlane off.

"I love it. Cherry Blossom is my favorite scent. This is just perfect," Twilight told him, "Actually since you're here, I'll give you my gift. Hold on a second while I go get it."

Twilight left the room briefly and was back carrying a small gift. Thunderlane graciously accepted the package and unwrapped it. He was lost for words when he saw what was inside.

"T-Twilight I...I don't know what to say. This is my favorite cologne. They stopped making this years ago. H-How did you get this?" Thunderlane said in absolute shock.

"Well, this is actually a rather funny story. When we went on our second date, I noticed you were wearing cologne. I recognized the scent immediately because, funny enough, this is my Dad's favorite cologne as well. He actually knows someone who worked for the company that makes it and that pony helped me track down a bottle," Twilight explained to her bewildered stallionfriend.

Thunderlane didn't know what to say, so he just embraced Twilight and squeezed her tight. "You have no idea what this means to me Twilight. I've been using this stuff since I was twelve, when my parents bought me my first bottle. I was so sad when they announced they were going to stop making it. This is the best gift ever."

They shared a quick kiss and a hug.

"You're welcome Thunderlane. I knew you would like it," Twilight replied with a giggle.

"I do Twilight," he said, "Anyway, I should probably get going to work. Big snow storm coming in and we need to get ready for it. I'll see you all in a few weeks."

Thunderlane gave Twilight and Scootaloo a hug and Spike a rustle on the head before leaving. Twilight and Spike finished their coffee and then got all of their bags. When Twilight came back into the kitchen to get Scootaloo, she found the filly passed out from exhaustion. Twilight wrapped Scootaloo's new scarf around her neck and levitated Scootaloo onto her back.

"Ready to go Spike?" Twilight called.

"Yeah Twilight, I just went through the checklist for the checklist," Spike called back, "We're all good."

Twilight walked into the main room, looked over everything, including the checklist, and then used a shrinking spell to make all the bags small enough for Spike to carry.

"Alright Spike, I think that's everything. Let's get going.” Spike gave Twilight a rather weak thumbs up as he locked up the door to the Library. It took them ten minutes to get to the train station and that was only because of all the piled up snow.

"At least it's not windy," Spike said with a shiver as they walked along. Twilight had to agree. A cold winter had been predicted and so far the weatherponies were right. For weeks now, the temperature had been below freezing. After suffering through the cold and the snow, they finally made it to the train station. They walked up to the counter and found that pony manning it was asleep.

"Um, excuse me," Twilight said quietly, "Sorry to wake you, but I need three tickets to Canterlot."

The pony gave Twilight an icy stare and handed her the tickets. "A hundred bits ma'am."

Twilight paid the pony and left before she caused any problems. Luckily the train was already there, so they were able to board and get out of the cold. They found themselves a night carriage, which honestly wasn't too hard the whole train was pretty much vacant. Spike curled up on one of the beds and, before they even left the station, was fast asleep. Twilight placed Scootaloo onto the opposite bed and laid down right next to her. Lastly, she grabbed Scootaloo's blanket out of her saddle bag and draped it over the two of them. It was one of many gifts Scootaloo had gotten early. Since they were going out of town, Twilight and all her friends met up a few days ago to exchange gifts. Twilight hadn't known, but they all brought gifts for Scootaloo as well. From Rainbow Dash, the Limited Edition Daring Doo Holiday Novel. Twilight didn't even have this one. Applejack, with a lot of help from Apple Bloom, had taken Scootaloo's old and tired scooter and fixed it up. From Pinkie, no surprise at all, a giant box of sweets. The blanket came from Rarity and Fluttershy. According to Rarity, they had been working on it for weeks. It was red and gold and had the Cutie Mark Crusaders logo in the middle of it. They had informed Twilight and Scootaloo that this was Sweetie Belle's idea. Scootaloo had fallen in love with the blanket and had been sleeping with it every night. As Twilight wrapped the two of them up in the blanket, Scootaloo snuggled up even closer to her mother and grunted a bit.

"Oh Scootaloo, you are a silly little filly," Twilight whispered. Scootaloo smiled and grunted again. Twilight giggled quietly and pulled the current book she was reading out of her own saddle bag. Since she was awake, she figured she'd use the three hours of silence to catch up on her reading.

**********

Four ponies stood on the main platform of the Canterlot Train Station. Three of which were smiling, but remained composed and proper. The other, a pink alicorn, was bouncing up and down and talking rather rapidly.

"Are they here yet? Why aren't they here yet? They should be here by now. I just want to meet my niece," she spat out in excitement. Two of the other ponies, a blue unicorn with a darker mane and a pale white unicorn with a purple and white mane, eyeballed the other composed pony, a white unicorn with a two toned blue mane.

"She's been like this all week. Don't look at me like this is my fault," he shot at them. Night Light and Twilight Velvet snickered and Shining Armor turned and tried to calm down his wife.

"Cadence, you really should calm down," he said calmly, "You are acting like Twilight's friend, Pinkie Pie. Also, other ponies are starting to stare."

Cadence stopped bouncing, but was still jittery. Shining Armor let out a sigh and Night Light and Velvet laughed quietly. None of them could understand how Cadence was so wired at eight in the morning. Everypony was excited to finally meet Twilight's daughter and get to know her. Funny story behind it all was Twilight had only told them a few weeks ago that she was going to come home for the holidays. Then, a week before that, she let them know about Scootaloo. Initially, they had all been angry, apart from Cadence anyway, but only because Twilight had kept something so huge a secret from them. She explained to them in her letters that she wanted them to be as surprised as possible when they arrived, but didn't want to completely withhold the information from them.

"Oh, I see the train!" Cadence shouted in excitement. The three other ponies looked down the track and indeed saw a train approaching. It only took seconds before Cadence was bouncing up and down again, but they let her go at it. The train pulled up to a halt and ponies began to depart. Since not many were on the train, the group was able to easily pick out Twilight, Scootaloo, and Spike.

"Mommy, Daddy, Shining, Cadence," Twilight called. The two groups met halfway and exchanged greetings, hugs, and kisses. Scootaloo, sort of nervous and slightly afraid, hid underneath her mother and remained quiet. It wasn't until Twilight stepped back that Scootaloo was out in the open, surrounded by staring eyes.

"So everyone, I know you have all been dying to meet her. This is my little filly, Scootaloo," Twilight explained. The silence was painful. Scootaloo looked up at the four ponies that were staring at her. She couldn't tell if they were happy or not. Finally, Cadence got down on Scootaloo’s level and spoke softly to her.

"Hi there Scootaloo, I'm Cadence. You were at my wedding weren't you?"

Scootaloo gulped nervously and nodded.

"I remember you were one of my flower fillies. Well I'm glad to finally meet you. I'm sure we're going to be the best of friends," Cadence continued. Scootaloo gave Cadence a smile and opened up a bit more, as did everypony else.

"Oh Twilight, she's adorable," Velvet said with a smile.

"A little cutie," Night Light added.

"Been waiting for this all week, Twilight," Shining Armor said. Twilight smiled. Deep down, she was a bit worried about how the family was going to take to her adopting Scootaloo. So far it seemed to be going okay, but they had only been in Canterlot for five minutes.

"Well, why don't we head on back to the house and have some breakfast. I'm sure you three are hungry," Night Light announced. Literally a second later, there was a loud growling. It was Scootaloo's stomach.

"I believe we have our answer," Twilight chuckled.

**********

The walk back to the Sparkle Household took a fair bit of time. This was for three reasons. One was the snow; the streets were filled with it. Apparently it had dumped down quite a bit last night. Two, was that the house was located on the far side of Canterlot, near the castle mind you. The third thing was that they spent the entire time talking. Really though, everypony, apart from Twilight and Spike, were asking Scootaloo all kinds of questions. The little filly was enjoying all the attention and told them all about herself and all her interests. Twilight was sort of glad that nopony had brought up cutie marks yet. To explain the Cutie Mark Crusaders would take hours, most likely. Twilight also wasn't surprised that by the time they actually reached the house, Scootaloo and Cadence were already best friends.

"Oh, you are so sweet, I could just eat you up," Cadence said with a giggle as they walked inside the house. Scootaloo's cheeks went pink and she laughed nervously. Since breakfast was going to take some time, Cadence took Scootaloo outside to play in the snow. Spike decided to go upstairs and sleep until food was ready. This left Twilight alone with her mother, father, and brother.

"Alright, let the questions begin," she announced as they started cooking. Night Light and Velvet looked at each other.

"If you're thinking that we're going to judge you, sweetheart, we aren't," Night Light responded quickly and calmly. Twilight raised an eyebrow and Velvet continued.

"We don't think there is anything wrong with what you did, Twilight. Your heart was obviously in the right place and Scootaloo seems to be very happy."

"Well, whether or not you all like her; I wouldn't have cared. She's my little girl and I love her to bits," Twilight said with a smile.

"Well, we're glad you do, Twilight and I'm sure I speak for your mother when I say, we already do. We finally have a grandchild to spoil," Nightlight snickered.

Twilight glared playfully at her father. "Not on my watch, Daddy."

Night Light chuckled even harder and Velvet suppressed her own laughter. Twilight smiled and turned to her brother, who had been quiet for quite some time now. Velvet also seemed to notice this and decided to ask why.

"Shiny, you've been rather quiet. Something on your mind?"

Shining Armor let out a sigh and bowed his head onto one of his hooves. "I don't know; I just have weird feelings about this."

Twilight took this comment the wrong way and went on the attack. The attack came in the form of a smack on the head.

"Owe, Twilight, what the hay!" Shining Armor shouted in pain. Twilight glared at her brother and tried to smack him again, but Night Light stopped her.

"If you say that again, I'm going to smack you again. She's been so nervous about today and was worried that you all were going to hate her. What you just said is the last thing I want Scootaloo to hear."

Shinning Armor rubbed his head and then went into explanation. "I don't hate her, Twilight, I think she's absolutely adorable and I can't wait to get to know her better. I only have weird feelings about you having a daughter."

Twilight's glare disappeared and she relaxed. Shinning Armor continued.

"You're my little sister and I'll always think of you as such. I just have a hard time accepting that you're growing up."

Twilight felt her heart jump and in a second, she had her hooves wrapped around her brother. "Oh, Shiny."

The touching moment lasted for all of five seconds because Night Light and Velvet began laughing their muzzles off. The two of them waited for their parents to get a hold of themselves before questioning what was funny. Their parents beat them to the punch though.

"Shining Armor, you sound like an old man. That was not something we expected to come out of your mouth." Velvet explained as she tried to gain control of herself.

Twilight and Shining Armor looked at each other and shrugged it off. After everypony had regained their composure, they managed to knock out breakfast. Scootaloo and Cadence, both covered in a layer of snow, walked into the house just as the plates of food were being set on the table.

"Who's ready for Grandpa's famous Hot Cakes?" Night Light asked as Scootaloo hopped up into her chair.

“Me,” she replied quickly, “I’m so starving I could eat a Manticore.”

The rest of the family sat down and dug in. As soon as Scootaloo put a bite of pancakes into her mouth, her body was filled with bliss.

"They're good aren't they honey?" Twilight asked. The only response she got was a small nod as Scootaloo proceeded to shovel the delicious meal into her mouth. All the adults laughed quietly. Scootaloo cleared her plate and immediately filled it up with more.

"So what's on the agenda for today then?" Twilight asked her parents.

"Not much really," Velvet replied, "Your father has to go in to work, so we probably won't be doing much of anything."

Night Light took a sip of coffee and then addressed Twilight. "Actually, Twinkle, if you'd like to join me, I'm grading exams for my upper level Equestrian History class."

Twilight's face lit up in excitement. It was as if Hearth's Warming Eve had come early. "Of course Daddy, I'd love to help you grade exams."

"It's a date then," laughed Nightlight. Twilight turned to her daughter, who was still voraciously shoveling pancake into her open mouth like a wood chipper.

"That means you get to have some bonding time with Auntie Cadence, Uncle Shiny, and Grandma," Twilight mentioned. Scootaloo looked up from her plate, smiled, and then went back to eating like a cave pony. Twilight shook her head and then turned back to the rest of the family.

"Well, for lunch I think we'll go to the Botanical Cafe. Then maybe we could go ice skating or something," Velvet said, "Assuming Scootaloo is going to be able to eat anything until tomorrow."

At that very moment, Scootaloo let out a small, but satisfying belch as she rubbed her belly. "So...good..."

**********

After breakfast, Twilight and Night Light left for the University. Shining Armor and Cadence offered to clean the kitchen along with Spike. This left Velvet and Scootaloo alone for some Grandma/Granddaughter bonding time. Velvet decided to take Scootaloo up to her office.

"So Mom says that you write books, Grandma?" Scootaloo mentioned as they walked down the hallway. Velvet gave the little filly a nod and a smile.

"Yes I do sweet heart. Twilight says that you’re quite the Daring Doo fan," Velvet replied.

Scootaloo nodded her head in excitement. "I love them. Mom's friend Rainbow Dash got me into them. I'm reading the Limited Print Holiday Novel."

"Ooh, that's a good one," replied Velvet. They reached the closed door at the end of the hallway and Velvet opened it. For a novelist’s room, it was rather clean. On the desk there was a typewriter and a massive pile of papers, both filled and blank. Behind the desk was a wall sized bookshelf filled with everything from biographies about famous Equestrian authors all the way to books about grammar.

“So do you enjoy reading any other books besides Daring Doo Scootaloo?” Velvet asked as she pulled a second chair up to her desk.

“Umm not really,” Scootaloo replied quickly, “Mom wishes I would read more but I don’t really enjoy sitting around for extended periods of time. I don’t know how Mom does it.”

“Oh well your mother get’s her unquenchable thirst for reading from myself. You sound a lot like your uncle. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him pick up a book that he hadn’t been forced to read in the first place,” Velvet responded.

“Books just aren’t my thing I guess,” Scootaloo said with a weak smile hoping she hadn’t insulted her Grandmother.

“Well perhaps I can change your mind,” Velvet mentioned as she pulled a book sitting on the desk towards her, “This is the last book I wrote in my mystery series. Do you want me to read a bit to you?”

“Umm...I don’t know...I’ve never really liked any of the mystery books Mom tried to make me read,” Scootaloo said plainly.

“I promise you’ll like it,” Velvet said with a convincing smile. Scootaloo almost said no but figured she should just make Velvet happy.

“Sure maybe just like the first chapter or something,” Scootaloo replied. Velvet smiled, put on a pair of reading glasses, and then open the book in her hooves with magic.

"It was a grey and dreary day as Detective Cooperfield walked up the long drive of one of the most prestigious estates in Canterlot. The call had come to him early in the morning. The family that owned the estate had requested his service to solve a crime. He had a gut feeling that it was going to be a long day..."

**********

Velvet ended up reading to Scootaloo until around the time the whole family left for lunch. Scootaloo was so completely enthralled by just the first chapters that she asked Velvet to keep going. She had also requested that they read more later on. Velvet was happy to oblige.

The walk to the Cafe was a rather short walk from the Sparkle household. Everypony was glad about this because it was rather cold outside. The Cafe, however, was pleasantly warm and inviting. They were seated immediately, near the fire none the less, and then left to their own accord. Scootaloo was completely baffled by what to order as she drooled over the menu. Shining Armor noticed this and whispered into his niece’s ear.

"Your mother's favorite dish is the Creamy Tomato Soup and the Daisy and Rose Petal Sandwich. She's been ordering it ever since she was your age. Might want to give it a try."

Scootaloo gave her Uncle a smile and put her menu down. Their waiter came back and took their orders. As soon as he left, Shining Armor brought up a question most of the family had on their minds.

"So Scootaloo, your mother was telling us you and your friends have your own little group, the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Care to explain?"

Scootaloo took a sip from her drink, brought in a deep breath, and then went into detailed explanation. This went on nonstop until they got their food arrived fifteen minutes later. Even though she hadn’t explained everything there was steam pouring out of Velvet and Shining's ears and Cadence's eyes were rolling around in her head. Spike found all this rather funny and was laughing his scales off.

"Don't worry," he told them, "It's made absolutely no sense to every pony they've ever explained it to."

Scootaloo frowned at the baby dragon and slugged him on the shoulder. It hurt her more than it hurt him. All the adults were, of course, not paying attention because they were still trying to contemplate what had just been explained to them. Scootaloo just smiled and went about eating her food. Not able to make heads or tails of any of the information the rest of the family did the same.

**********

The family finished their lunch rather slowly and then left the restaurant. They had opted to not go skating because it had started snowing while they were eating. Velvet suggested they could go do some shopping and Cadence was on board for that. Scootaloo, however, was not. Shining Armor noticed this and came to his nieces rescue in the form of a request.

"I actually need to slide in to work and pick up some papers," Shining Armor explained to his mother and wife, "Maybe you'd like to come with me Scootaloo?"

Scootaloo jumped on this opportunity if it meant she didn't have to go shopping. Velvet and Cadence seemed a bit disappointed. One of them whispered about a lost opportunity to try on dresses. They all walked together to the shopping district and then Scootaloo and Shining Armor broke off and made a bee line for the castle.

"Thanks for getting me out of that, Uncle Shining," Scootaloo mentioned as they walked along. Shining Armor gave her a smile and a nod.

"I feel your pain. Don't tell your Auntie or your Grandma, but I hate going shopping with them. I say we procrastinate on getting those papers. I'll take you on a tour of the castle grounds. That should eat up a bunch of time," Shining Armor told his niece. The two of them approached the front gates and the two guards outside saluted and let them in. Scootaloo noticed that they were both eyeballing her, but didn't say anything. Shining Armor also noticed this and figured that at some point, somepony was going to ask why a filly was following him around. That actually came much quicker than he thought when one of the few ponies that was his superior, Captain Steelbolt, walked up to him.

"Captain Armor!" Steelbolt called, "I thought you were on vacation lad?"

Shining Armor gave the Captain a salute and replied quickly. "Yes sir, I am, but I needed to swing by and pick up my cadet evaluations."

Steelbolt gave a hearty chuckle and patted Shining Armor on the shoulder. "Ah, procrastinated on those, did we lad. I'll match you on that. Paperwork is the worst part of this job." Steelbolt gave another powerful laugh and then noticed Scootaloo standing close to her Uncle. He raised an eyebrow, but gave her a smile.

"And who do we have here?" he asked Shining Armor, "Is this your daughter, me boy? I didn't realize you and the Princess decided to adopt."

Shining Armor had actually forgotten for a moment that Scootaloo was with him. "No sir, this is actually my niece."

"Yer niece?" Steelbolt replied, slightly baffled, "Do you have another sibling I don't know about, lad?"

"No sir, my only sibling is my sister, Twilight," Shining Armor explained, "This is her daughter."

Steelbolt seemed to be unable to comprehend this. Probably because he had known the Sparkle family since Shining was a Cadet. "But yer sister is just a wee lass. Just a filly herself."

Shining Armor chuckled quietly. "She's twenty-one, sir. Scootaloo is her adoptive daughter."

"Awe, the wee fillies name is Scootaloo," smiled Steelbolt, "Well she's a mighty cute one, Shining."

Scootaloo's cheeks went pink and she turned away bashfully. Steelbolt gave her a wink and her whole face went red. "Well, I won't be taking any more of yer time," Steelbolt said cheerfully.

Shining Armor and Steelbolt saluted each other and they went their separate ways. Once they were far enough away, Scootaloo let out a small giggle. "He's an...energetic individual."

Shining Armor gave her a light knock on her shoulder and chuckled. "Yes he is, but if it wasn't for him, I wouldn't be a Captain today."

**********

The two of them spent the next few hours walking around the castle grounds. They did not go into the castle itself, but Shining Armor wouldn't tell Scootaloo why. The last stop that they made was Shining Armor’s office. It was a lot larger than Scootaloo expected. While Shining Armor dug through his desk for the particular papers he needed, Scootaloo looked at some of the awards and items he had placed about. The one item she focused on for quite a bit was her Uncle’s helmet. For some reason she could just see herself wearing one. Strutting around in glittering armor, protecting ponies she cared about. Shining Armor, who had actually found his papers a few minutes ago, noticed this and watched Scootaloo closely. Then, using some magic, he picked the helmet up off the shelf and plopped it onto Scootaloo's head.

"Military service is a standing tradition in our family," Shining Armor explained, "Grandpa, I believe, is the only stallion in the family for two centuries to not join."

Scootaloo, who was a little thrown off by how light the helmet was, thought about how cool it would be to follow that tradition. "Have any mares in the family been soldiers?"

Shining Armor thought about this. "I don't think so. Why? Want to be a solider like your Uncle"

"It would be cool to be a soldier," Scootaloo said. Shining Armor pulled the helmet off and gave Scootaloo a pat on the head.

"I don't know if your mother would go for that, but keep it in your mind if it's something you're interested in," he said. Scootaloo laughed at the comment about Twilight and Shining Armor joined in on it not a moment later. While Shining dug around for his papers the two of them exchanged jokes and funny stories at Twilight’s expense, promising of course that Twilight never found out.

**********

After they got the papers, Shining Armor took Scootaloo to his and Cadence's house so he could drop the papers off in his home office. They took a small amount of time and did a walk-through of the house. Scootaloo was most interested in all trinkets and items her Aunt and Uncle had from all their travels, both together and separately. Once they were done, they took the long route back to the Sparkle household and spent the entire time talking.

"You two took your time," Velvet called as they entered the house. The two of them walked into the foyer and found the family relaxing around the fire. Night Light and Twilight were chatting about Magical History. Cadence and Velvet were reading a magazine and seemed to be currently engrossed in an article about the Wonderbolts. Spike seemed to be missing, but he was actually sitting right up by the fire.

"Yeah, we spent some time walking around the castle grounds as well as mine and Cadence's house," Shining Armor explained.

"Well it sounds like you two had fun," Twilight said with a smile, "Did you behave for your Uncle, Scootaloo?"

"Yes Mom, I did. Uncle Shiny and me had a lot of fun," Scootaloo replied.

Shining Armor ruffled his niece's mane playfully. "She was a little Angel."

"Well you two got home just in time," Velvet stated, "Dinner should be ready in a few minutes. I made Great Grandma's famous Alfredo lasagna. Why don't you two go wash up and then we'll eat."

As soon as Velvet said that, Scootaloo looked up at her Uncle and lowered her eyebrows. "Race you to the bathroom, Uncle Shining."

Scootaloo shot off like a bullet and Shining Armor chased after her. The rest of the family laughed at them. "I'm glad to see those two got to bond today," Night Light mentioned. The rest of the family agreed.

"Twilight, I actually have a question about Scootaloo if you wouldn't mind answering it," Velvet said. Twilight looked over at her mother with a sort of confused look.

"Sure Mom, what is it?" Twilight asked curiously.

"Well, I've been watching Scootaloo and noticed she always walks. Can she not fly?"

Twilight shook her head. "She can fly, but not that well. My friend Rainbow Dash has been working with her, but we haven’t seen that much progress."

"Does she have Stiff Bone Disease?" Cadence asked, "Or is it something genetic?"

Twilight shook her head. "We aren’t sure, but we’re pretty sure malnourishment caused a stunt in growth. Poor girl thought she was never going to be able to fly."

There was some silence as the rest of the family thought about what Twilight said. That was interrupted by a ding from a timer. "Ooh, supper’s ready," Velvet said loudly as she rushed into the kitchen. The rest of the family got out of their seats, but were cut off by orange and white blurs.

"I'm gonna beat you, Uncle Shining," Scootaloo shouted at the top of her lungs.

"I don't think so, munchkin," Shining Armor shouted back playfully. Twilight and Cadence snickered and Night Light shook his head.

"Don't break anything you two," Cadence laughed.

**********

After dinner, another surprise came for Scootaloo, a trip to Donut Joe's. Scootaloo could only drool about the treats that she was going to be able to choose from, and that was only because Cadence was describing them all to her in great detail as they walked to the shop. There weren't drips of saliva coming out of Scootaloo's mouth so much as a waterfall.

"The Triple Chocolate Devil's Food Cake is probably my favorite," Cadence told Scootaloo as they walked into the shop. Twilight laughed at the two of them. The walk over to the shop had been rather eventful. Somehow, every friend of either Velvet and Night Light or Cadence and Shining seemed to be out. All of them had asked the same two questions. Did Shining Armor and Cadence decide to adopt or had Velvet and Night Light adopted Scootaloo. When they were told that Scootaloo was actually Twilight's daughter, there were mixed responses. Some ponies were happy, some were a bit confused, and some didn't believe it. Scootaloo didn’t seemed to be bothered at all, mostly because Cadence had her full attention all the way to the shop.s

"Well, well, well, if it isn't the Sparkle Family," Donut Joe called from the counter. The Sparkle Family had known Joe since he first opened his donut shop and he was constantly saying that they were his best customers. This was probably why, despite the fact the shop should have closed an hour ago, Joe was still here waiting for them.

"You are the best for staying open late, Joe," Night Light said as they walked up to the counter. The two of them shook hooves and then Joe noticed Scootaloo.

"Who is this little filly?" he asked them all, "Did you two decide to adopt a kid, Night Light?"

Night Light shook his head. "You’re probably the twelfth person to ask, but no we didn't. This is Twilight's daughter, Scootaloo."

Joe's eyes widened a little bit from shock, but he didn't burst out like most of the other ponies. "So you're a Mom now, Twilight? Seems like just the other day you were coming in here with Velvet."

Twilight’s cheeks went pink and she smiled. Joe gave her a wink. He then looked down at Scootaloo, who was eyeballing all the delicious treats.

"Let's start with the little one then," he said, "What can I get you, Scootaloo."

"Can we skip me," Scootaloo replied, "I can't make up my mind; there are too many good choices and Mom said I can only have two things."

As soon as Night Light and Velvet heard this, Grandparent mode was engaged. "Now Grandma and I won't have that," Nightlight told Scootaloo, "When you are at Grandma and Grandpa's, your mother has no say. Have whatever you want, Scootaloo."

"Yes and if your mother gives you a hard time at all, you come and get one of us," Velvet added.

Twilight knew her parents were poking fun at her, but she still tried to have a say in all this. "Mom, Dad, don't undermine me in front of my daughter."

Velvet and Night Light burst into laughter. "That's what Grandparents are for, sweetheart," Night Light said, "Now order whatever you want, Scootaloo."

Scootaloo let out a squee of delight. This is the best day ever.

**********

Four donuts and two cups of hot chocolate later, Scootaloo was riding on Twilight's back, groaning happily. Everypony was rather surprised that she was able to eat and drink that much. Twilight felt this was a just punishment.

"Do we know now that we should maybe listen to Mommy?" Twilight mentioned as they walked along. Scootaloo groaned a bit more and nodded her head. Nopony seemed to be on Twilight's side though. The rest of the family felt bad for Scootaloo despite the fact she brought it on herself.

"Don't you be mean to my sweet little nieceipoo," Cadence shot as she gave Scootaloo a smile and a wink. Twilight glared at her sister in-law even though she knew everypony was messing with her. As they reached a fork in the road, Shining Armor and Cadence departed from the group after they said their goodbyes.

"Alright you two don't forget breakfast is at eight tomorrow morning," Velvet called as Shining Armor and Cadence walked away. The rest of the walk back to the house was quiet and uneventful. Scootaloo had passed out and the rest of the family was pretty tired as well. When they finally got home, they all decided to go to bed. Tomorrow was going to be a very busy day.

"Night, Mom and Dad," Twilight said quietly as she walked into her old room with Spike and Scootaloo in tow.

"Night, Twinkle," they both called. Twilight smiled and shut the door to the bedroom. It looked like her parents hadn't moved anything since her last visit. In fact, most of her stuff from when she was a filly was still sitting clean and cared for on the many shelves. Spike went straight for his bed and was out in a second. Twilight levitated Scootaloo onto the bed and then nudged her in an attempt to get her to wake.

"Hey munchkin, I need you to wake up and get ready for bed," Twilight whispered in her daughter’s ear. Scootaloo groaned and slowly woke up. Twilight smiled and rubbed her head. Scootaloo jumped off the bed and slowly trudged her way to the bathroom. Twilight followed closely and the two of them silently got ready for bed.

"Don't forget to use the bathroom, Scootsy, you drank quite a lot of coco," Twilight mentioned as she finished flossing. Scootaloo grumbled and did as she was told. Twilight finally finished just as Scootaloo was done using the toilet. As soon as she washed her hooves, Scootaloo went right back to bed. Twilight used the bathroom herself and then followed in suit. She immediately remembered how comfortable her bed was. Twilight reached over and gave Scootaloo a kiss good night and then drifted off into sleep. They were going to need all the rest they could get. Tomorrow was going to be a very eventful day.

Author's Notes:

Well I hope everyone enjoyed this little treat. Also you all can finally stop bugging me about when Scootaloo will get to meet the rest of the family. The next two to three chapters are going to be all about this vacation and hopefully I can get the one that will actually talk about Hearth's Warming Day on Christmas Day. I do hope this chapter wasn't sickly sweet I spent the last hour and a half toning it down a bit per recommendation from one of my editors. As usual if you see anything wrong let me know so I can fix it.

Princesses, Preening, and Performing Pegasi

Author's Notes:

Sorry this took so long guys. I hope you all enjoy.

Written by: Mayhem Darkshadow
Edited by: psychohooves and Avatar of Shadow

Chapter 10: Princesses, Preening, and Performing Pegasi

Twilight was up about an hour earlier than she needed to be. Scootaloo was still fast asleep and curled up next to Twilight. Not wanting to wake her little angel, Twilight levitated some of her old books off of her shelf and over to the bed. Oh why, here are some of my old adventure novels.

Not able to resist, Twilight opened the old, worn book and started reading it. She had forgotten how much of a thrill this novel was. Twilight continued to read until Scootaloo began to stir. There was a little bit of grumbling, some yawning, a bit of stretching, and finally Scootaloo opened her eyes and looked up at her mother.

"M-Morning Mommy," she yawned. Twilight ruffled Scootaloo's mane and kissed her on the cheek.

"Morning, muffin. Did you sleep well?" Twilight asked. Scootaloo nodded her head and then buried it in Twilight's chest. Twilight eyeballed the little filly. What is she up to? Twilight thought. Scootaloo took in a deep breath and then blew a filly sized raspberry into her mother's belly. Twilight quickly burst into hysterical laughter.

"Oh, honey… honey, stop, I'm ticklish," Twilight giggled. Scootaloo continued her onslaught until Twilight managed to get the upper hand. Pinning Scootaloo to the bed, Twilight blew her own round of raspberries on Scootaloo's soft underbelly. Scootaloo cackled like a witch.

"Bah, please stop, Mom, please, I'm going to pee myself if you don't," Scootaloo howled. Twilight ceased her attack and then proceeded to kiss every inch of Scootaloo’s belly. The filly didn't seem to like this.

"Mom, stop, it's embarrassing," Scootaloo whined. Twilight stopped what she was doing and looked down at her victim.

"Nopony is here to see this, sweetheart. I suppose I could just go back to blowing raspberries," Twilight whispered with a devious smile. Scootaloo’s eyes, playfully, went wide in horror. Twilight smiled and gave Scootaloo a nuzzle. Scootaloo nuzzled back and wrapped her hooves around Twilight's neck. Twilight picked her up and hugged her back.

"All right, muffin, let's get downstairs I'm sure Grandma and Grandpa are wondering where we are," Twilight said to the filly. Twilight set Scootaloo down and the two of them raced downstairs. Velvet and Night Light were down in the kitchen. Velvet was drinking a cup of tea and scratching down some notes on a notepad. Night Light was sipping on a cup of coffee and reading the paper.

"Looks like my girls are finally awake," Velvet said when she noticed Twilight and Scootaloo walking into the room. Scootaloo trotted over to her Grandmother and hopped up onto her lap.

"Whatcha up to, Grandma?" she asked curiously. Velvet ruffled Scootaloo's mane and put her pen down.

"Just writing some notes down for my next book. Now, though, I'm going to give you a bath," Velvet explained. Scootaloo let out a little eep as Velvet picked her up.

"Ah, Grandpa, save me from Grandma's wrath," Scootaloo called as she tried not to laugh.

"Sorry, munchkin," he called from behind the newspaper, "but if Grandma wants to bathe you then there isn't anything I can do."

Scootaloo turned to her mother with pleading eyes. Twilight playfully shrugged and Scootaloo hung her head. "I succumb to your wishes, oh mighty Grandmother," she mumbled. That was soon followed by a fit of giggles. Velvet placed Scootaloo down and led the way to the bathroom. Twilight sat down with her father and decided to take a glance at her mother’s notes. That only lasted for about a second because the doorbell rang. Twilight got up from her seat and went to the door. It was her brother and Cadence, who was bouncing up and down.

"Where is my beautiful little niece?" she asked excitedly.

"My mother is giving her a bath as we speak," Twilight told her. Cadence let out a squeal and shot off to the bathroom. Shining Armor shook his head and followed Twilight to the kitchen. Night Light had gotten up from the table and was working on getting breakfast started. Twilight and Shining Armor joined him.

"I swear, Cadence loves Scootaloo more than me," Shining Armor sighed. Twilight giggled and Night Light let out a chuckle.

"Yeah, Mom was a bit obsessed with bath time," Twilight mentioned.

"Well, your mother always loved giving you two baths when you were kids. I think she relishes the idea that she can now do it with her grandchild," Night Light explained. This made a lot of sense to Twilight and Shining Armor. The two of them reminisced about those fun times. Velvet always made each bath special. Twilight was sure Scootaloo was probably enjoying herself. Smiling, she turned back to helping out with breakfast. All three ponies worked through the silence but that was soon interrupted by Cadence.

"Hey Twilight, could you come here for a moment, please?"

Twilight turned around and found Cadence standing in the doorway. Twilight put down her potato peeler and walked over, confused as to why she was needed.

"Is there a problem, Cadence?" Twilight asked curiously. Cadence said nothing but walked towards the stairs.

"No, no, not really a problem per se. It’s just as your mother and I were giving her a bath, I noticed Scootaloo's wings were a bit unkempt. I asked her about it, and well, she told us she does them herself. Do you not know how to preen?" Cadence asked. Twilight went deathly quiet. Cadence stood there staring at her sister in-law.

"Um, Twilight," Cadence said with a slightly scared tone. Twilight didn't hear her, though. All she could think about was an event that happened a few months ago. Her mind could only think about how she held her crying daughter in her hooves while she tried to get her wing to stop bleeding.

"Equestria to Twilight; come in, Twilight," Cadence called. Twilight snapped back into reality and shook her head.

"I… I tried once but… I just… I hurt Scootaloo. In fact, I made her bleed. I felt so bad that I never tried again. Scootaloo told me it was an accident, but I just couldn't bring myself to help her preen. I don't want to hurt her, Cadence," Twilight choked. Cadence listened intently and then spoke calmly.

"It's okay, Twilight. Sometimes bleeding happens with inexperienced preening. I know the first time I let your brother preen me, he made me bleed. It just takes practice and care," Cadence explained in a soothing tone.

"Cadence, she cried so hard it made me start bawling," Twilight replied quietly.

"Well, it hurts like Tartarus. It doesn't matter how tough you are, I bet you even your friend Rainbow Dash would cry if someone pulled one of her feathers out the wrong way. It's one of the most painful things ever, trust me," Cadence said. Twilight opened her mouth to speak but then shut it because she didn't have anything else to add. Silently, the two of them walked into the master bathroom. They found Velvet blow drying Scootaloo's soaked mane and tail.

"Just about done," Velvet mentioned as Cadence and Twilight sat down next to her and Scootaloo.

"Did Grandma get you all nice and squeaky clean, muffin?" Twilight asked Scootaloo as she rubbed the filly’s cheek playfully. Scootaloo nodded and then stretched her wings out so they could be dried. This allowed Twilight to get a good look at her daughter’s wings. They weren't terrible, but clearly they weren't good, either.

"All right then," Velvet said as she turned off her hair dryer and put it away, "I'll leave you three to your business. I'm sure your brother and father need help with breakfast anyway."

Velvet left the bathroom and then Cadence moved into position behind Scootaloo. "All right let's get those wings preened, Scootaloo," Cadence told her niece. She then turned and addressed Twilight.

"I'm going to do one wing, Twilight, so watch closely. I want you to do the other one. The best way to learn preening is practice."

Twilight gulped and moved closer so she could see what Cadence was doing. "Now, you can either do it with your teeth, or you can buy a special preening brush for an astronomical amount of bits. Personally, I prefer teeth; it just works so much better. Then all you need to do is slowly and gently work your way from the tip to the base," Cadence explained. Twilight nodded her head and then watched as Cadence slowly worked her way across Scootaloo's wings, straightening and smoothing out the feathers as she went along. Scootaloo closed her eyes and enjoyed the wonderful sensation. It didn't take Cadence too long for her to finish. The difference was very noticeable.

"All right, Twilight, your turn," Cadence said happily. Twilight swallowed hard and then traded places with Cadence. She sat there for a second and contemplated trying to get out of this, but figured Cadence would make sure she did it one way or another. Swallowing once more, Twilight bent her head down and cautiously started fixing the feathers.

"Oh, Mom, that feels so much better than last time," Scootaloo said quietly. This comment gave Twilight a bit more confidence and she started to pick up the pace. It was all lost, though, when she came across a broken feather. As soon as she saw it, Twilight's heart began to beat fast and her mind went back to that eventful day.

"Okay, looks like you found a broken feather," Cadence said when she noticed Twilight had stopped. "I'm going to teach you the best method for plucking. Go ahead and grab the feather right around the middle."

Twilight stayed frozen for a moment but did what she was told. Scootaloo was also a bit nervous. She still remembered how painful it was when her mother had last tried to pluck a feather.

"All right, now I want you to rotate the feather clockwise five times and then quickly pull it straight towards you. Don't move your head up or down even slightly."

Twilight nervously rotated the feather around and, when it was finally time to pluck it, closed her eyes and jerked the feather towards her.

"Good job, Twilight; you did it perfectly."

Twilight opened her eyes and looked at what she had accomplished. Scootaloo wasn’t bleeding or crying her eyes out; she was just sitting there smiling at her mother. Twilight smiled back before spitting the feather out and finishing up the preening.

"That wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be," she said as she finished the last bit of wing.

"Like I said, it just takes practice," Cadence replied. As soon as Twilight finished, Scootaloo stretched her wings a bit and then folded them up against her body.

"I didn't even feel the feather come out. Even when Rainbow Dash does it, I can still feel something," she said as they walked out of the bathroom.

"Auntie Celestia taught me that. It's her technique that she's developed over the centuries. If you ever want to experience pure bliss, you let Auntie Celestia preen you. When I was little I used to ask her all the time to do it," Cadence said as they walked down the stairs. Twilight and Scootaloo snickered and Cadence shot them a playful dirty look. Twilight now felt a lot more confident about preening. She was still terrified that she was going to hurt her little filly, but figured as a mother it was something she needed to be a part of. Plus it was another thing she and Scootaloo could bond with, and losing a bonding activity was the last thing Twilight wanted to do.

**********

Breakfast was rather uneventful. They ate scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, and toast with jam. Once breakfast was done, Velvet and Night Light cleaned up, and Twilight, Scootaloo, Cadence, and Shining Armor went out into the den. It was there that Twilight dropped the surprise of the day.

"So are we doing anything today?" Scootaloo asked as she sat down with Twilight on the couch. Twilight decided she would best surprise the filly by jumping into it out of the blue.

"Well, we're going to have lunch," Twilight explained calmly, "Oh, and then we're going to see the Wonderbolts Holiday Show."

Scootaloo had to do a double take when she heard those words. "We're going to see a Wonderbolts show!" she squealed in delight. Twilight gave her a nod and Scootaloo just about lost it.

"I'm assuming you told her about today's surprise," Velvet said as she walked into the room carrying a tray of coffee. She passed them all out and even gave a mug to Scootaloo.

"Don't worry, it’s hot cider," she explained when she saw Twilight open her mouth. The family sat down and engaged in small talk. Really it was more questions about Scootaloo, which she answered perfectly. One question did come around about Twilight, which she really had rather hoped wouldn't.

"So, Twinkle, any suitors that your mother and I need to be concerned about?" Night Light asked with a rather evil grin. Twilight, not wanting to give her family any leverage against her, weaved a wonderful lie.

"Nope, not at all," she shot back, "Scootaloo is my life right now."

Twilight felt this was going to keep her family at bay. That was until Scootaloo decided to open her mouth. "What are you talking about, Mom, don't they know about Thunderlane?" The family jumped on this.

"Who's Thunderlane, Twilight?" Velvet asked curiously.

"Yeah, Twilight," Shining Armor added, "who is he?"

"Thanks for this, sweetheart," Twilight shot at her daughter. Scootaloo just gave her mother an innocent smile and sipped her cider slowly.

"You ought to just tell us, Twinkle. We'll find out one way or another," Night Light said. Twilight rubbed her hooves together nervously but knew her father was right.

"Um… he's my boyfriend," Twilight said quietly. There was general murmuring.

"When did this happen?" Shining Armor asked rather calmly.

"About a month ago," Twilight told him. The rest of the family looked at each other and smiled.

"Well then, when do we get to meet this stud, Twilight?" Cadence asked curiously. Twilight thought about this, but she really didn't have an answer. Instead, Velvet answered this question for her.

"I'm sure we'll get to meet him next time we're in Ponyville, which will be soon, probably."

Twilight let out a sigh of relief. At least she would have some time to forewarn Thunderlane of the soon-to-come situation. However, the family spent the next half an hour asking Twilight, as well as Scootaloo, all about Thunderlane. Twilight, rather reluctantly, answered all of them. Her saving grace was when they had to leave and get to the restaurant. She managed to get everypony’s focus on the Wonderbolts show. Scootaloo was ecstatic. She had always dreamed of going to a Wonderbolts show, but of course that had only been a dream. Now that it was a reality, she couldn't contain herself.

"I'm just so excited! I love the Wonderbolts," she stated as she bounced up and down in her chair. Twilight had to admit she was excited as well. She hadn't been to a Wonderbolts show since she herself was a filly. It was going to be a fun day. They took their time eating lunch, since the show wasn't until two. Even when they did finish, they still made it to the stadium a half an hour early. The rest of the family decided to head to their seats; they had a VIP box reserved. This was not something Scootaloo was in favor of, though; she couldn't wait that long. Cadence decided to solve this problem.

"Scootaloo, do you want your auntie to take you to the gift shop?" she asked the impatient filly. Scootaloo's eyes lit up in excitement and she nodded her head. Cadence turned to Twilight to make sure that was okay.

"Go ahead. I know how impatient she gets when she sits for too long," Twilight said. Cadence smiled, and she and Scootaloo left the box and made their way to the gift shop. It was a lot bigger than Scootaloo had imagined. They had everything Wonderbolts there: T-shirts, sweaters, jackets, scarves, toys, and many other items. Scootaloo, however, was most interested in the Wonderbolt plushies. Cadence noticed this and decided to treat her niece.

"You want a plush, Scootzy?" Cadence asked.

"I would love one, but I don't think Mom would let me spend any of my allowance money. She always makes me put it away," Scootaloo said with a sigh.

"Oh, don't worry about that, it's my treat," Cadence replied with a smile. Scootaloo's eyes lit up in excitement.

"You don't have to do that, Auntie Cadence," Scootaloo said despite how much she wanted it. Cadence patted her niece on the head.

"Don't worry about it, Scootaloo. Now, which plush do you want?" Scootaloo looked at her options. There was a plush for each of the main flyers: Spitfire, Soarin, and Fleetfoot. It was an impossible choice for the small filly.

"Ahh, I can't choose. I… hmm… I guess I'd like a Spitfire plush." Cadence levitated one of the dolls off the counter and went with Scootaloo up to the register. Cadence paid, despite how much the cashier insisted they take the plush for free, and then they left the store. As they walked back, Cadence and Scootaloo talked. Scootaloo then asked a question that Cadence was a bit uncomfortable answering.

"So Aunt Cadence, if you don't mind me asking, why don't you and Uncle Shining have any foals?"

"Oh… well," Cadence started, "your uncle and I are trying, but it just hasn't happened yet. We hope that it will happen soon, though."

Scootaloo looked up at her aunt and smiled. "Well, I hope you have a baby soon. I bet you'd be a great mother. Mom always talks about how much of an awesome foalsitter you were."

Cadence stopped walking, bent down, and gave Scootaloo a kiss on the cheek. "You are the sweetest little filly in the world. I hope mine and your uncle's foal is as nice and caring as you are."

Scootaloo blushed and hugged her aunt around the neck. Cadence picked her up and they walked up the steps to the VIP box. Twilight noticed Scootaloo carrying a bag and asked about it.

"What do you have there, sweetie?"

Scootaloo pulled the Spitfire plush out of the bag and gave it a squeeze. "Aunt Cadence bought me a plush!"

Twilight turned to Cadence and shook her head. "Cadence, you didn't have to do that. Let me pay you back for it," she told the alicorn. Cadence shook her head.

"No, Twilight, it was my treat. I'm not taking your money."

Twilight tried to argue but Cadence stood firm and refused to the take the bits Twilight pushed on her. Twilight eventually realized she wasn't going to win and gave up. Scootaloo loved the soft toy. She held it tight as they waited for the show to start.

"How much longer?" she asked impatiently. Twilight knew Scootaloo was getting impatient and was glad that her father said the show would be starting any minute. Scootaloo started to fidget but, much to a few ponies’ relief, three blurs shot out from under the stadium.

"And here they are, ladies and gentlecolts: the Wonderbolts!" the announcer shouted through the sound system. "Today for your entertainment we have Captain Spitfire along with Soarin and Fleetfoot."

Scootaloo was out of her seat and was jumping up and down, squealing with delight. It really was truly amazing to see the best fliers in Equestria pull off spectacular dives and tricks.

It's no wonder Rainbow Dash wants to be a Wonderbolt as bad as she does, Twilight thought to herself. She looked over at Scootaloo, who was on the railing looking at wonders before her. Twilight smiled and pulled her back to her seat.

"Don't want you to hurt yourself," she mentioned as Scootaloo looked up at her. Scootaloo rolled her eyes and went back to being engrossed in the performance. Twilight patted her on the head and also turned her attention back to the Wonderbolts. The show was spectacular. Twilight couldn't even believe some of the tricks the Wonderbolts were doing; they looked impossible. The show went on for a solid hour and a half before intermission came.

"And the waiting is back," Scootaloo sighed as the three pegasi exited the stadium.

"A good time to go get snacks," Shining Armor mentioned. "I don't know about anypony else, but I could use a drink."

A few other family members nodded. Night Light volunteered to go pick up the grub. "Scootaloo, do want to come with me?" he asked.

Scootaloo nodded and left the box with her grandfather. They had to walk clear across the stadium to get to the concessions. Apparently, every other pony had the same idea because the line was rather long. They joined it, and slowly, the line moved.

"Hey, Night Light!"

Night Light flipped around and saw one of his co-workers. He waved and the pony made a motion for him to come over. "Scootaloo, a pony I work with needs to talk to me. Can you hold our place in line and call for me when you get closer to the stand?"

Scootaloo nodded and Night Light jumped out of line. Scootaloo stood there and sighed. The line was moving painfully slow. Her patience soon paid off, because soon she was almost up to the counter. At least, she was until she was pushed out of line. She fell to the ground and looked up at her assailants, two pegasi colts.

"Hey!" Scootaloo shouted as she jumped back up. "That's my place."

"Well, it's our place now, loser," one of them said. Scootaloo got flustered and her wings began to buzz. The two colts looked at each other and burst into laughter.

"Look at the size of those wings. My baby brother had wings bigger than that," the other laughed. Scootaloo’s face went pink. The colts may have been bigger than her but she wasn't about to lose her place in line.

"Give me my spot back," Scootaloo grunted as she charged at them. Their eyebrows fell, and together they shoved Scootaloo back down. Scootaloo hit the ground hard and felt a sting on one of her legs. Looked at it, she realized she was bleeding. Scootaloo felt some tears build in her eyes, which brought on some teasing.

"Aw, look, she's crying," one colt said to the other with a laugh. Scootaloo sniffed and wiped the tears from her eyes. Luckily, both the concession stand worker and Night Light came to her rescue.

"That's enough!" the two adults shouted. The stand worker grabbed the two colts while Night Light helped Scootaloo off the ground.

"I think I'll give security a call so they can take you back to your parents," the stand worker declared. She turned to Night Light, who was taking a look at the scrape on Scootaloo’s leg, and offered her apologies.

"I'm so sorry for not noticing sooner that these two were hurting your filly, sir. Consider your food to be on the house."

"Thank you, miss," Night Light said, "Do you happen to have a first aid kit?"

The mare nodded and levitated a box over to them. Night Light opened the kit and pulled out a alcohol wipe, some disinfectant spray, and a band aid.

"This is probably going to sting, Scootaloo," Night Light said softly as he moved the wipe towards her scrape. Scootaloo winced when it touched the open wound. Night Light cleaned the wound up and then sprayed it with the spray. That stung worse than the wipe. Finally there was the band-aid and then Night Light gave it a kiss.

"Better?" Night Light asked softly. Scootaloo nodded and hopped down from the bench. Night Light gave the first aid kit back to the stand worker and then ordered some food. As promised, it was free of charge, though Night Light did try to pay for it. Once they had everything, the two of them walked back to their seats. Just in time, too, because the two-minute warning call came over the loudspeaker.

"That took a while," Velvet said as they walked up the final steps.

"Sorry, we had to deal with a bit of an incident," Night Light said as he took his seat. Twilight was about to ask but then noticed the band-aid on her daughter’s leg.

"What happened?" she asked with an alarmed tone.

"Some colts decided to push Scootaloo out of line," Night Light told her.

"And you were where, Dad?" Twilight shot back.

"A few feet away, talking to a pony I work with. I realize I should have just stayed with her, though."

"It's okay, Grandpa," Scootaloo said, "I should have stood my ground."

"They were twice as big as you, Scootaloo," Night Light replied. Twilight rubbed Scootaloo's knee. Though she was concerned, Scootaloo seemed to be okay and her father obviously felt bad.

"It’s fine, Daddy, just maybe pay attention to your Granddaughter next time."

Night Light was going to open his mouth to speak but the show was starting again. Any thoughts about the events at the concession stand were immediately wiped away as the amazement renewed.

**********

"That was… it was just… totally awesome!"

The rest of the family smiled at Scootaloo as they walked along the streets back towards home. They had just gotten out of the Wonderbolts show and Scootaloo couldn’t stop talking about it.

"All those dives and all those tricks and the pure coolness of it all! I… words can't…"

"Calm down, muffin," Twilight said with a pained expression, "I know you’re excited, but you’re gonna wear us all out."

Everypony else seemed to silently agree with the statement. Scootaloo’s blabbing ceased, but her amazement at what she just saw continued to grow. Twilight wasn't quite sure how she was going to take the news of the other event planned for the evening.

"Well, I guess we'll see you all in a few hours for dinner," Shining Armor said as he and Cadence broke off from the group.

"Dinner?" Scootaloo questioned. "Why would you need to leave us before dinner?"

"We're going someplace special tonight, Scootaloo," Twilight explained. "I'll tell you about it when we get back to Grandma and Grandpa's."

Scootaloo eyeballed her mother in the hope that maybe she would learn something, but Twilight's lips were sealed. They all said goodbye to Shining and Cadence and then made their way home. Upon arriving, Velvet and Night Light departed to their bedroom and Spike went to the kitchen for a snack. Twilight took Scootaloo upstairs to their room.

"So what's up, Mom?" Scootaloo asked as they walked into the room. "Why is everypony being so secretive with me?"

"Well, we didn't want you to worry about tonight," Twilight told her.

"Worried?" Scootaloo responded. "About what?"

Twilight didn't say a word but rather levitated two dresses out of the closet and placed them on the bed. One of them was her own, and the other was one she had Rarity make for Scootaloo. "There is a reason I had Rarity make you this dress, honey. Tonight you are going to meet two very special and very important ponies. Both of them have wanted to meet you ever since I told them about you."

"Are they friends of yours or something?" Scootaloo asked.

"You could say that," Twilight replied, "One is a friend, but the other is more of a mother in a way. She's been watching over me since I was your age."

Scootaloo thought about this. She pulled up every little bit of information she knew about her Mom and tried to put everything Twilight was saying into context. It didn't take long for two and two to come together, as well as for butterflies to appear in the filly’s stomach. One look of uneasiness was all Twilight needed to figure out that Scootaloo had come up with an answer.

"They both really want to meet you, sweetheart. When I was gone from you those few days, all I talked about with Princess Celestia in our little bit of free time was you. Princess Luna also knows about you since she and I write letters to each other regularly. They both are very excited to finally meet the little filly that has made me so happy."

Scootaloo could feel the butterflies build to the point where she was slightly nauseous. "But what if they don't like me? What if they don't think I'm as special as you made me out to be?"

Twilight got low on the floor so she was muzzle to muzzle with the filly. "You thought the same thing about the rest of your family when we first arrived, and look how much they love you. Don't worry yourself about something so trivial, sweetie. I guarantee you that they will both like you."

Scootaloo looked into Twilight eyes. They were very reassuring. "Promise?"

Twilight gave Scootaloo a kiss on the forehead. "I promise, sweetheart. Now let's hurry up and get ready; we don't want to be late."

**********

Velvet, Night Light, Shining Armor, and Cadence all sat downstairs in the living room. They were still waiting for Twilight and Scootaloo to come downstairs. "Twilight, you two need to hurry up or we're going to be late," Velvet called.

"Sorry, I'm trying to do something about the frizz that is my daughter's mane and tail," Twilight called back. This comment was followed by some notable grunting and whining. The four ponies eyeballed each other and waited to see if everything was okay. It was, and within a few minutes Twilight and Scootaloo walked downstairs. Twilight was wearing an old dress from the Grand Galloping Gala, modified slightly by Rarity to be somewhat more casual. Scootaloo was sporting a new dress and the sight of her made Cadence and Velvet melt. Scootaloo's mane was brushed smooth, as was her tail. Her dress was a two-toned blue and, when taking into account that her coat was orange and her mane and tail were magenta, she looked like a walking sunset.

"What's wrong with Grandma and Auntie Cadence?" Scootaloo asked her mother quietly.

"I think they like your new dress," Twilight explained to her. Scootaloo jostled her feet and body around. The dress, despite the fact that it was silk, felt uncomfortable.

"Well at least someone does," she said with a note of distaste in her voice. She tried not to complain too much, though, because she knew the fancy new clothes and the mane and tail primping were all necessary.

"Well then, the carriage is waiting outside for us," Night Light told them all. The entire family departed out the front door and into the awaiting carriage sitting in the driveway. Scootaloo clung to her mother's side. The butterflies in her stomach were pretty bad.

Mom told me not to worry, Scootaloo thought to herself, but what if she's wrong?

One thing was for sure, she was about to find out.

**********

The carriage ride was rather quick, since the Sparkle household was not that far from Canterlot Castle. As the front gates opened and the carriage pulled onto the castle grounds, Scootaloo could feel her heart pounding inside her chest. With each foot, the pounding increased, and by the time they actually reached the front doors, it felt like somepony was playing the drums inside her chest.

"Calm down, princess," Twilight whispered into Scootaloo's ear as they exited the carriage. Scootaloo couldn’t figure out how she was going to be able to calm down, especially once she saw that Princess Celestia and Princess Luna were waiting for them at the front steps.

"Princess," Twilight squealed in utter delight. It had been a few months since their last face-to-face visit.

"Ah, there's my faithful student," Celestia said with a smile. The two of them met halfway and shared a nuzzle. Scootaloo watched her mother and couldn't understand how she could remain so calm in front of Equestrian royalty. The rest of the family didn't seem to have a problem with it, either. Scootaloo, however, felt as if she had ingested a butterfly garden.

"So where is your daughter, Twilight?" Princess Celestia asked. "I have been anxious to meet the little filly that has brought you so much joy."

Twilight looked around and saw that Scootaloo was standing behind Velvet. "Looks like she's hiding behind her Grandmother."

Scootaloo let out a small "Eep!" when she heard her name and slowly walked forward. She very shakily made her way over to the two princesses and bowed politely.

"There will be no need for any of that nonsense, my dear," Celestia said softly. The Solar Princess gracefully walked forward and looked over Scootaloo. Scootaloo looked up from the ground and saw the smile spread across Princess Celestia's face.

"There is no need to be shy, either, my dear," Princess Celestia said to her quietly. Scootaloo looked up and very nervously smiled.

"Well, Twilight, I do see what you were going on about in Fillydelphia. She is an adorable little filly," Princess Celestia told her student. Scootaloo's cheeks went pink and Celestia chuckled quietly.

"Well, I can't wait to get to know you better, Scootaloo, in these next few weeks," she said to the filly. Scootaloo came a bit more out of her shell and thanked Celestia. Next came Princess Luna. Before the night princess said anything, she and Twilight talked for a moment.

"Princess Luna, it's good to see you. We missed you at Ponyville's Nightmare Night Celebration. All the fillies and colts were asking why you weren't there," Twilight explained.

"We are sorry, Twilight," Luna said with a very unusual bland tone. "We were quite sick that entire week. We really wanted to come and entertain the children, though."

"Well, there’s always next year, Luna," Twilight replied with a smile. Luna nodded her head and then shifted slightly so she was looking at Scootaloo.

"I think I remember you from my first Nightmare Night, my dear," Luna said to Scootaloo. Scootaloo nodded her head.

"Well, why don't we make our way to the dining room. I believe the first course should be ready soon," Princess Celestia announced. The Solar Princess led the way to the smaller, more private dining hall. Not many ponies knew about the room, and in fact it was rarely used. The Princesses only used the room for special events such as dinners with close friends or family. They found the table in the room set with enough places for all of them. The plates and glasses were sparkling. Currently there were ponies bustling around setting out food.

"Looks like we arrived just in time," Princess Celestia said as they took their seats. As soon as they were seated, the head chef presented their meal.

"For your appetizer tonight, we have a creamy lemongrass soup with a sprig of rosemary. Enjoy."

The chef took a bow and then left them to their meal. From there, small talk ensued. As they talked, Princess Celestia asked Twilight a rather important question.

"So, Twilight my dear, I must ask. How did Scootaloo come into your life?"

"Oh, well, I had known Scootaloo from living in Ponyville. She and her two friends have caused some chaos around town. Anyway, Scootaloo and her friends are obsessed with getting their cutie marks and decided that hang gliding was a good idea. Long story short, Scootaloo got hurt and I was the first pony that her friend Sweetie Belle found. She was pretty beat up, and I took her to the hospital. Luckily, she wasn't that badly hurt. Anyway, I offered to take her home because I wanted to speak with her parents. She told me that I didn't need to do that and we went our separate ways. I decided to follow her, however, and before I knew it we were outside Ponyville. Turns out she had been living in Applejack's sister’s clubhouse for a while. I brought her home with me and kind of took her in from there. A few weeks after that, I filed for adoption."

"Could have probably gone for the abridged version, Mom," Scootaloo deadpanned as she rolled her eyes. Scootaloo's comment prompted another question from Luna.

"So when did Scootaloo start calling you Mom?" Luna asked curiously. "Was it right away or did some event bring it out?"

Both Twilight and Scootaloo froze in their places. Neither of them spoke, bringing about staring from everypony else.

"I… I guess it was an event," Twilight said quietly. Everypony was still staring.

"You guess?" Velvet asked. Twilight didn't really do or say anything. Scootaloo had closed her eyes. Twilight reached under the table and grabbed her daughters hoof in hers.

"Twilight, something is really bothering you and Scootaloo," Night Light said as he looked at the two of them.

"It’s just… something… something really bad happened," Twilight said, not looking at anypony. Nopony said anything; they were all waiting for Twilight to speak. Twilight didn't want to, but figured she had no choice since it was already out in the open.

"It was about a month after Scootaloo had begun living with me. A filly in Scootaloo's class named Diamond Tiara, who enjoys tormenting fillies and colts, decided to poke fun at Scootaloo. Well, their teacher caught her teasing Scootaloo and punished her for it. And apparently Diamond Tiara wasn't too happy about this so she decided to get revenge. She convinced Scootaloo to take her to see a zebra that lives nearby in the Everfree Forest. Once they were in far enough, Diamond… she… she bashed Scootaloo on the head with a rock and… left her for dead."

At this point both Shining Armor and Night Light were struck speechless, just starting at Twilight. Velvet had her hooves on her mouth. Cadence was blinking rapidly, and if you looked closely you could see a few tears in her eyes. Luna and Celestia were trying to remain composed but what Twilight had just said was disturbing to both of them. Twilight swallowed and did her best to continue.

"I was really distraught when Scootaloo never came home. Luckily, Scootaloo had a angel looking out for her. Silver Spoon, one of Diamond's friends who happened to be with her when she assaulted Scootaloo, came forward and told us where Scootaloo was. I went straight after her and I'm glad Silver Spoon came when she did because if she had done it a minute later I… I probably would've lost Scootaloo. When I finally found her, she had been cornered by a pack of timberwolves. They were about to pounce but I managed to stop them. Scootaloo came frantically running towards me and that was when she first called me Mom."

Twilight finished and then just sat there. Nopony said anything. What Twilight just described to them seemed to have put everypony into shock.

"I certainly hope this filly has paid for her crimes," Princess Celestia said quietly. Twilight nodded her head.

"As far as I'm aware, her father won't let her attend Ponyville School anymore. In fact nopony has seen Diamond Tiara in months," Twilight explained. The room got really quiet again. A few members in the room tried to get back to eating their soup. Both Velvet and Cadence had ceased eating and were just sitting there. Both the Princesses were still trying to think about what they had just been told.

"How bad were the after-effects?" Luna asked calmly.

"She had nightmares for weeks. She missed so much school because she couldn't get any sleep. Eventually it got so bad I had to put her on a sleeping potion. Luckily, it has passed, though I'm hoping bringing it back up doesn't cause anything to happen," Twilight replied. Twilight then bent down and whispered in her daughter’s ear, making sure she was okay. Scootaloo nodded and tried to go back to her soup. There was a lot of tension in the room, but fortunately it was broken quickly by the waiters coming out with the next course of food, and small talk resumed.

"So, Scootaloo, what the best thing you like about your mother?" Velvet asked the filly. Scootaloo swallowed the food in her mouth and thought about the question. It was something she never really contemplated before.

"Um… I don't think I can just pick one thing about Mom that I like the most. She so caring and loving. She's always there for me. She’s a really good cook. She reads me stories almost every night before bed. She helps me with my homework if I ever get lost. She tucks me in every night and sometime waits for me to fall asleep. I'm so glad she found me and adopted me. She loves me and I love her. She's the best mom in the world," Scootaloo finally said. Twilight, overcome by emotions, wrapped one of her hooves around Scootaloo and gave her a squeeze. There was a small sniff and everypony’s attention turned to Luna who, despite the fact she was smiling, currently was wiping a few tears from her eyes.

"We are sorry," she said calmly, "we just thought that was really touching."

Luna composed herself and they continued to eat the delicious meal before them. Soon the dishes from the second course were taken away and the main course was brought out to them. It was so much food that Scootaloo couldn't figure out how she was going to get through this course and then dessert. Still, it was one of the most delicious meals she had ever eaten.

"Now, of course I'm sure you all remember that you are invited to sit with my sister and I in the private balcony during the Hearth's Warming Eve pageant. I do hope that this year’s group does as a good a job as you and your friends did, Twilight," Princess Celestia said to everypony.

"I'm actually a bit relieved that I don't have to do it this year. It was fun but way too stressful. I'm sure the Canterlot University Drama Department will do a good job though," Twilight added. The rest of the ponies around the table nodded. Canterlot University's Drama Department was well known throughout Equestria.

"Also, you are all of course welcomed to the annual winter ball afterwards. By the way, Twilight, did your friends receive their invitations?" Princess Celestia asked.

Twilight nodded her head. "Yes they all did. Applejack won’t be coming because she’ll be in Appleloosa for the holidays. Everypony else should be coming though."

"Is Sweetie Belle coming, Mom?" Scootaloo asked. Twilight nodded and Scootaloo let out a squeal of delight.

"Then of course Luna and I want all of you to come to Hearth's Warming dinner. I also invited all your friends, Twilight. It'll of course be very casual," Princess Celestia continued, "I'm sure you have all this marked down in your day planner though, Velvet."

"Of course, Princess," Velvet said with a smile, "How would my family survive without my day planner?"

Once this comment left Velvet's lips, Twilight and Shining Armor rolled their eyes and Cadence snorted in her drink cup. Velvet looked at the rest of them and raised an eyebrow. Princess Celestia chuckled. As the Princess sipped her wine, she let her mind wander. Social parties with Canterlot's finest were fun, but there was always something about private dinners with friends and family.

**********

Following dinner they moved into the library for drinks and more chatting. As time wore on, Scootaloo eventually fell asleep in Twilight's lap. It was at that point the family decided it was time to head home.

"Tonight was really fun, Princess," Twilight said as she hugged her mentor good night.

"Yes, it was," Princess Celestia said with a smile. "I cannot wait to get to know your daughter more, Twilight. She is very sweet."

"Hehe, give her time, Princess and you'll get to see her more wild side," Twilight laughed.

"I look forward to it," Princess Celestia replied.

"As do I," Luna added as she swapped places with her sister and gave Twilight a hug as well. With good nights out of the way, the family headed home. As they walked along, Twilight couldn't help but reflect on how excellent the night had gone.

To think it’s only day two. We’re going to run out of things to do at this rate, Twilight thought to herself.

Eve

Written by: Mayhem Darkshadow
Edited by: TimeLord_Whooves and Elric of Melnipony

Chapter 11: Eve

Hearth's Warming Eve was in the air. As Twilight woke up, the smell of peppermint hit her nose. After moving around, Twilight realized something, or rather somepony, was missing.

"Scootaloo?" Twilight called quietly. No response was given. Confused but not worried, Twilight crawled out of bed and made her way downstairs. The first thing she noticed was Cadence passed out on the couch. Taking care not to wake her, Twilight followed the smell of cooking into the kitchen. She found Scootaloo standing on a stool next to Shining Armor.

"All right, now dump the peppermint bark into the batter," Shining Armor told Scootaloo.

"I think we might need more, Uncle Shining," Scootaloo said as she emptied the bowl in her hooves.

"All right, grab the last bag and crush it up for me. I'm going to get the waffle maker warmed up."

Twilight smiled and walked up behind the two of them. "Morning, you two."

Scootaloo and Shining Armor both jumped in shock.

"Oops, sorry for scaring you," Twilight laughed. "Making breakfast?"

"Morning, Mom," Scootaloo said as she nuzzled Twilight's chest. "Uncle Shiny and I are making peppermint bark waffles."

Twilight smiled and that was quickly followed by a yawn. "How… how long have you two been up?"

"Not too long," Shining said. "Cadence would probably be awake but I think she had one glass of wine too much last night."

"I… did not..."

There was the quiet clopping of hooves as Cadence walked into the kitchen, eyes half open, groaning slightly.

"Morning, Cadence," Twilight said quietly. Cadence smiled and gave Twilight a kiss on the side of the head.

"Is the coffee on, Shining?" Cadence asked.

"Of course, my sweet."

Cadence gave Shining Armor a kiss on the cheek, and then poured coffee for herself and Twilight with some magic.

"Shall we adjourn to the living room, Twilight, and snuggle up by the fire?" Cadence asked. Twilight nodded and the two of them moved out to the living room.

"So, Cadence," Twilight started as they sat down by the fire, "No kids yet?"

Cadence took a sip of her coffee before speaking. "We’ve been close but no cigar just yet. I'm kind of jealous that you have Scootaloo."

"You could always adopt, Cadence," Twilight mentioned nonchalantly.

"Yeah, I know, your brother and I have considered that option if we can't get pregnant," Cadence replied.

"Well, hopefully it happens soon. The more grandkids, the merrier."

Twilight and Cadence looked behind them and saw that Velvet and Night Light were coming downstairs.

"You all are up early," Velvet said as they reached the bottom of the stairs.

"Some of us don't really want to be," Cadence said with a yawn. Twilight couldn't agree more.

"What's cooking?" Night Light asked as he took a long breath to enjoy the scent floating around them.

"Shining and Scootaloo are making peppermint bark waffles, apparently," Twilight told her father.

"They are about ready, too!" Shining Armor called from the kitchen, "You all should make your way in here."

Slowly but surely, the rest of the family made their way into the kitchen. They found Shining Armor setting up the table and Scootaloo carefully putting the last waffle on the serving plate.

"Wow, you two, it smells great!" Velvet complimented as she sat down. Everypony else followed, and Shining Armor levitated the serving plate over to each of them. They all filled their plates and quickly dug in.

"Oh, wow, these are amazing, you two," Twilight said as she shoved another bite into her mouth. Everypony nodded in agreement.

"Thanks," Shining Armor replied with a smile on his face. "We weren't quite sure if these were going to work out, but it seems like they did."

"Why have you never made these before, Shining?" Cadence asked curiously as she stuffed her own face.

"Well, it was Scootaloo's idea to put in the peppermint bark," Shining Armor answered. Scootaloo's cheeks went pink and she looked away bashfully.

"I kind of got the idea when I ate that peppermint bark cake last night for dessert. I told Uncle Shiny about it, and he said we could try it," Scootaloo said proudly.

"Well, you both did an excellent job," Velvet said. Both Shining Armor and Scootaloo looked at each other and smiled.

"By the way, I think we should talk about the plans today. I think you said you have some, Velvet dear," Night Light mentioned as he sipped on his coffee.

"Yes, I do. I need to go to the mall and pick up some special candles for Hearth's Warming Dinner. I also need to get a few more ingredients for tomorrow’s dessert. I believe you said you had some plans of your own, dear?”

"Ah, yes, Shining and I need to go out and pick up a few good bottles of wine and possibly a bottle of brandy as well. I figured Spike can come with us if he wants," Night Light said. Spike looked up from his plate and gave a happy nod of his head.

"Okay, well why don't the three of you go do that. The rest of us can go take care of the rest of the shopping," Velvet said.

"Mmm, sounds like a plan," Twilight said as she smiled around a mouthful of food.

Once breakfast was finished, Night Light and Shining Armor left immediately; Cadence and Scootaloo had to wait for Velvet and Twilight to get ready. As soon as Velvet and Twilight were finished, they left and headed straight for the mall. It was insanely busy, but that was no surprise. They pushed their way through the crowds to Velvet's favorite candle shop. Cadence, Twilight, and Scootaloo watched in both amusement and slight horror as Velvet fought other ponies to get the candles she wanted.

"I didn't think Grandma could fight like that." Scootaloo sat, eyes wide and jaw dropped, watching Velvet bulldoze through a group of ponies towards the checkout counter.

"This is… well, the darker, more unseen side of Grandma, sweetheart," Twilight explained, just as surprised by her mother's behavior.

"Yeah, I’ve got to say that I've never see her like this before," Cadence said, slightly terrified. Finally, Velvet finished checking out and walked over to them, panting ever so slightly.

"All… all right, I got what I wanted. You three want to go try some clothes on for fun? It'll take Night Light and Shining some time to pick out what they want," Velvet panted.

"Um… sure, why not," Twilight said. Velvet adjusted her mane slightly, as it had been ruffled a bit from her struggle, and they continued walking through the mall. As they walked along, Cadence heard somepony call her name.

"Cadence! Cadence!" the voice called. Cadence looked around and then saw the pony calling her.

"Oh my gosh, Sun Drops is that you?" Cadence called back. Cadence ran towards the other pony, a yellow unicorn with a bright white mane.

"Cadence, I haven't seen you since high school," Sun Drops said.

"Sun, I thought you were stationed in Stalliongrad?" Cadence asked.

"I'm home on leave right now. The stand called me yesterday, though, and asked if I could possibly fill in today… like old times," Sun Drops told Cadence. Cadence looked around and realized no customers were at the stand. Scootaloo was curious what the stand sold and, upon investigation, saw earrings on display.

"Not really the best day is it?" Cadence observed with a small laugh.

"I've sold a bunch of earrings, but haven't really done any piercings," Sun Drops said.

"I remember the old days when you worked here," Cadence mentioned. "Remember that time you ‘borrowed’ that piercing gun and we all did up our ears?"

"Oh, I remember how much trouble I got in with my parents," Sun Drops said. "Still, that was so much fun. So, want me to do your ears for old times sake?"

"Oh, I don't wear earrings anymore, Sun," Cadence said sheepishly.

"Oh, that's too bad, Cadence! We have some nice earrings on sale plus piercings are half off as well," Sun Drops said.

"Can I get my ears pierced?" Scootaloo asked curiously.

"Absolutely not, Scootaloo," Twilight replied immediately. This brought on complaining from the filly.

"Aw, why not, Mom? Can't I use some of my allowance money to pay for it?" Scootaloo whined.

"No means no, Scootaloo," Twilight said sternly. Velvet and Cadence, however, didn't like that answer very much.

"Oh, why not, Twilight? I think Scootaloo would look really cute with some earrings," Cadence said in defense of her niece.

"Heck, I'd pay for it just to see how cute she would look," Velvet added.

"I'll pay for half as an early Hearth's Warming gift," Cadence said. Twilight was not happy with their responses, though, and she started to get irritated.

"She is my daughter and I said no. I don't want her to have her ears pierced," Twilight growled.

"Why not, Twilight? Velvet asked her daughter, “What would she be hurting by having her ears pierced?"

Twilight didn't have a good answer for this. "Because… she… I… urgh! Fine, she can have them pierced, but I'm not happy about it."

"All right then, hop on up into my chair, sweetie, and I'll get you ready," Sun Drops said. Scootaloo did as she was told. She was pretty excited until she saw Sun Drops bring out the needle and put it into the piercing gun.

"Does… does it hurt a lot?" Scootaloo asked nervously.

"Just for a few seconds," Sun Drops answered in a sweet tone. "Now I just need you to pick out the earrings you want before I do the piercing."

"Oh, how about something simple," Velvet suggested.

"Yeah, what about those simple silver rings?" Cadence offered, pointing at a pair of earrings on display.

"What do you think, Mom?" Scootaloo asked.

Twilight only gave them a grumble; she was standing off to the side with a huge scowl on her face. Scootaloo's mood fell a little bit when she saw her mother's displeased look.

"All right, Scootaloo, was it? I need you to hold your head up straight for me," Sun Drops said as she levitated the piercing gun towards Scootaloo's left ear. "I'm going to count down from three and then you're going to feel a little sting," Sun Drops told Scootaloo as she wiped her ear off with an alcohol wipe. Scootaloo nodded her head and then Sun Drops started the countdown.

"Three, two, one."

Scootaloo felt a sharp stinging pain in her left ear and a little bit of warmth. "A little bit of bleeding, but that's normal," Sun Drops said as she moved a cotton ball up against Scootaloo's ear with magic. Sun Drops then shifted around, cleaned off Scootaloo's right ear, and adjusted the position of the gun.

"All right; three, two, one."

Scootaloo felt another sharp pain, but it wasn't as bad as the first one. "Okay, we'll just wait a minute or two until the bleeding stops, and then I'll put the earrings in," Sun Drops explained.

"You did really good, Scootaloo," Cadence said. "I cried the first time I let Sun pierce my ears."

"Aw, I remember that day," Sun Drops said. She and Cadence started talking and Velvet took the chance to go over and talk to Twilight.

"You know, Twilight, I have to say I am really disappointed with your behavior over something so simple," Velvet said quietly. Twilight shot a glare at her mother. Velvet continued to scold her daughter.

"This was something very simple, Twilight, and your daughter really wanted to do this," Velvet said quietly.

"But I didn't want her to, Mom, and she’s my daughter. I’m in charge of her and I make the rules last time I checked," Twilight shot back.

"That’s true, honey, in most cases. It’s the holidays, though, and it was something fun for us to do. You, however, took something that was small and turned it into a big deal for no reason at all," Velvet said. She said nothing more and walked back over with everypony else, Sun Drops was just putting in Scootaloo's new earrings. Twilight stood there in a huff and let out a sigh.

"All right, Twilight, we're heading out," Cadence called. Twilight walked over silently to the rest of the family, and they walked along towards the mall’s largest department store. As they were walking along, Scootaloo fell back and spoke to Twilight.

"Mom, I need to go to the bathroom," she said quietly. Twilight nodded her head.

"Mom, Cadence, I'm going to take Scootaloo to the bathroom. We'll meet you at the store," Twilight told them. She and Scootaloo broke off from the group and made their way towards the nearest bathroom. They walked in and found one the larger stalls. Twilight stood there and kept thinking about what to say to apologize. However, Scootaloo spoke up first.

"Mom, if you really don't like the earrings, I could just take them out if it will make you happy," Scootaloo said to Twilight quietly. Twilight let out a sigh.

"Honey, I'm sorry I kind of overreacted to the whole situation. You look very cute with earrings, and I really do like them," Twilight apologized. Scootaloo looked up at her mother to see if she was really telling the truth.

"You aren't just saying that to make me happy, are you?" Scootaloo asked.

"No, Scootaloo, I really do think they are cute and I want you to keep them," Twilight replied.

"Well okay, Mom, just so long as you say you're okay with it," Scootaloo said as she finished with the bathroom.

“I do want to ask one thing though,” Twilight mentioned as they walked from the stall to the sink, “Earrings seem...well out of your zone I suppose. It’s just a little weird that you asked I guess.”

Scootaloo was quiet, probably she was mustering up the courage to explain why. “Can you keep a secret?”

“Well of course I can sweetheart,” Twilight replied quietly.

“I’ve been pretending to hate girly things for so long, especially around my friends and Rainbow Dash, because I’m afraid of being made fun of,” Scootaloo explained.

“Well that’s silly Scootaloo. If they truly are your friends that would accept you no matter how you acted. Also Rainbow Dash would never make fun of you for being girly she’s not exactly the perfect tomboy herself. Plus if she did make fun of you I’d beat her flank all the way to Cloudsdale,” Twilight laughed, “But why the sudden change?”

“I...I guess I’ve sort of gotten comfortable with myself ever since you adopted me,” Scootaloo said with some confidence in her voice.

“Well good for you honey it’s hard to keep up facades for a long time,” Twilight said, “It’s your life so take it by the reigns and lead it in the direction you like. I’ll always love you no matter what you choose to do.”

Scootaloo smiled and hugged her mothers leg. Twilight put a leg over her and gave her a squeeze.

“So how do you feel about tattoos?” Scootaloo asked with a snicker.

“And we’re done here,” Twilight said as she broke the hug and pushed Scootaloo out of the bathroom.

The four of them spent an hour in the department store trying on an assortment of different clothes; Velvet and Cadence even convinced Scootaloo to try on a dress, though there was a lot of complaining involved. From there they decided to go home and see if the boys had returned; they soon found that the boys were already home and waiting for them.

"Hello. You four have a good time?" Night Light asked as they walked into the house.

"Yes we did, dear," Velvet responded. The four of them took off their jackets and joined Shining Armor, Night Light, and Spike in the den. As soon as they walked in, the boys noticed something different about Scootaloo.

"Well, looks like somepony got their ears pierced," Shining Armor finally pointed out. Scootaloo blushed and sat down on the couch next to Twilight.

"It was kind of out of the blue," Cadence explained. "I don't know if you remember my good friend Sun Drops, Shining, but she was running the piercing stand, and well, one thing led to another. We think she looks cute."

"And I'd have to agree with you," Shining Armor said as he winked at his niece. Scootaloo blushed and looked away out of embarrassment.

"Anyway, I'm glad you all came home when you did. I just got a note from Princess Celestia. They want us to come over for lunch and said we could just stay until we go to the play," Night Light told all of them.

Everypony was on board for this, especially Velvet. "That sounds like fun. Also, it means I don't need to cook lunch."

The family took about thirty minutes to get ready and then left for the castle. When they arrived, they found that only Princess Celestia was joining them for lunch.

"Luna would have joined us," Princess Celestia explained as they walked to the eastern sun room, "except that she needs her sleep for tonight's events."

"Actually, I could think of somepony else that should have a nap before we go out tonight," Twilight mentioned. Scootaloo knew that her mother meant her and, as any young pony would, expressed her concerns and discontent.

"Oh, come on, Mom, I'm not a foal, I don't need a nap," Scootaloo whined. Twilight raised an eyebrow and went into parent mode.

"If you want to stay up all night, I think it would be wise if somepony took a nap," Twilight explained sternly. Scootaloo whined some more but Twilight did not change her mind. Scootaloo scowled and crossed her hooves in anger. Twilight, however, ignored her daughter and instead decided to talk to her mentor. Mad at her mother, Scootaloo shifted over and stood next to Shining Armor.

"Mama's being mean Uncle Shiny," Scootaloo said in her best baby voice. Shining Armor smiled, knowing full well that his niece was trying to get him on her side, and patted her on the head.

"She's just looking out for your well-being, Scootaloo," Shining Armor told the filly. "Besides, don't you want to be awake for the party tonight and the play?"

"Well, yes," Scootaloo started, "But..."

"Well, maybe you should listen to you mother, then? I think she's right, don't you?" Shining Armor asked Scootaloo.

"I guess so," Scootaloo said as her face fell. Shining Armor put a hoof on Scootaloo's back and rubbed it.

"Heck, I might even catch a few Z's after lunch. It's going to be a late night," Shining Armor added.

"Yeah, you're right, Uncle Shining," Scootaloo said with a bit more pep in her voice.

"Glad to hear I was right, then," said a voice behind them. Shining Armor and Scootaloo turned around and found Twilight behind them.

"Your uncle won't always be there to defend you and be the cool uncle, Scootaloo," Twilight said with a snort. Scootaloo and Shining Armor eyeballed each other and then Twilight before breaking into a fit of snickering. Twilight rolled her eyes and bopped each of them on the back of the head.

"I do believe lunch is ready," Princess Celestia announced as a horde of chefs brought in platters and set them on a small table. They contained an assortment of vegetables, breads, and spreads for sandwiches.

"Well, everypony, dig in," Princess Celestia said to all of them.

Two hummus and cucumber sandwiches later, Scootaloo was feeling bloated. She was also, despite how much she didn't want to admit it, rather tired from all the rich food. As much as she tried to avoid it, she started nodding off while they were all sitting on the couch catching up. Twilight had noticed and figured a nap was in order.

"Ready for a nap, Scootaloo?" Twilight asked as Scootaloo rested her head on her mother’s sides. Scootaloo didn't say a word; she just yawned and closed her eyes.

"I'll take that as a yes, then," Twilight said with a smile.

"Do you want me to take her upstairs to a room, Twilight?" Princess Celestia asked her student.

"You don't need to do that, Princess, I can manage it," Twilight replied. Celestia chuckled; this was typical Twilight behavior.

"It's not a problem, my dear. I was going to head upstairs anyway and check on Luna," Princess Celestia explained to Twilight.

"Well, okay then, I suppose I can take a trip to the library if you do that," Twilight responded. She then pushed Scootaloo up and got her to wake up.

"Go along with Princess Celestia, honey. She's going to take you to a room so you can take a nap," Twilight said to Scootaloo. Nodding, Scootaloo hopped off the couch and followed the solar princess upstairs. There was absolute silence as they walked along the breath taking hallways. Eventually they arrived at a set of magnificent oak doors, and centered in each door was a large golden sun. Princess Celestia opened the doors with magic and led Scootaloo inside; the filly didn't realize that the Princess had brought her to her private quarters. The room was quite large and open, with walls of windows letting in massive amounts of sunlight. Centered in the middle of the room was a magnificent canopy bed. The princess led Scootaloo over to the bed and helped her up into it.

"If you need anything, my little pony, Luna's room is just down the way. If you head out of this room, on the right a little way down there will be another hallway that connects to a similar large hallway. Down on the end you'll see an identical pair of large doors. That is her room and she's in there if you need her," Princess Celestia explained as she tucked Scootaloo in. Scootaloo yawned and smacked her lips a little.

"Th...Thank you, Princess," Scootaloo said quietly. Princess Celestia smiled and walked quietly out of the room and shut the door. Having Scootaloo around reminded the princess of the days when her mother used to live at the castle, back when Celestia herself was a filly.

Scootaloo was experiencing pure bliss as she napped. She couldn't figure out what it was, but Princess Celestia's bed was the most comfortable thing she had ever slept in. It had this natural warmth, but Scootaloo couldn’t figure out where it was coming from. She honestly didn’t care, though, because she was in heaven right now. As she was lying in the bed, enjoying the peace and quiet, there was a rather loud knock on the door.

"Auntie Celestia, are you in here? I couldn't find you downstairs and wanted to ask you a question?" a voice said through the door. The door knob clicked and a white unicorn with a blonde mane walked into the room.

"Auntie Celestia, you aren't taking a nap are… WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY AUNTIE’S BED?!?" the pony shouted at the top of his lungs. Scootaloo jumped when she heard the yelling.

"I… she put me here for a nap," Scootaloo fumbled. The pony didn't seem to buy it, though.

"A likely story, you street rat. No pony of such regality would allow trashy little vermin like you to sleep in their bed. It's more probable that you decided you'd sneak into the castle and experience royalty for fun. Well, I will not be having that!"

Before Scootaloo could say any more, the pony yelling lunged at her, though she was lucky that he was too pompous and arrogant to actually run and charge. Scootaloo shot out of the bed and made a beeline for the door. The pony lunged at her again, missed, and fell to the ground because he lost his balance.

"Get back here, you little ruffian!" the pony yelled. Scootaloo didn't look back, though; she just ran for her life towards the room Princess Celestia told her to go if she needed help. Scootaloo did take a second to look back, and it looked like that mean pony wasn't following her. Still, she was terrified that he was going to find her and so she ran straight for Princess Luna's room. She opened the door quickly, for fear the pony chasing her was close, and closed herself inside. The room was dark and Scootaloo took a moment to catch her breath, making rather a lot of noise. As Scootaloo stood there huffing and puffing, she didn't notice a dark shadow coming up behind her. That shadow moved silently until it was right behind the filly. Reaching out, the shadow put a hoof on Scootaloo and flipped her around. Scootaloo screamed.

"Scootaloo, it is us," Princess Luna said in a panic, realizing she had scared the filly out of her wits.

"Oh P-Princess Luna, I'm sorry. Did I wake you up?" Scootaloo said quietly.

Princess Luna shook her head. "Do not worry, dear filly, we were due to get up in a few minutes anyway. We must ask, though. Why are you in our room and why do you seem to be scared?"

"Oh, I… well, Princess Celestia put me down for a nap in her room. I had just woken up when somepony came into the room and yelled at me. I didn't understand what I did wrong, but he tried to grab me. I ran for my life, and Princess Celestia told me to come here if I had any problems," Scootaloo explained quietly. Princess Luna listened to Scootaloo talk and then put a hoof on her shoulder.

"We are sorry you got so scared, dear Scootaloo. Why don't you take a seat on our bed while we get ready for the evening. Then we can go find this pony that decided it was okay to chase a filly around," Princess Luna said quietly. The Night Princess led Scootaloo over to her bed, which was very similar to Princess Celestia's bed, and then went to the doorway of the bathroom.

"We will be in here if you need anything, Scootaloo," Princess Luna said before shutting the door. Scootaloo stretched and made herself comfortable. That comfort didn't last that long, though. All was silent and then, suddenly, the door burst open and the pony that had been chasing her was standing in the doorway.

"Ah-ha, I finally found you! First I find you in my Auntie Celestia bed and now Auntie Luna's. That is the last straw. Since the guards around here apparently don't know how to do their jobs and keep street rats like you out of the castle, I'll just have to take care of it myself."

It seemed like the pony was using his brains this time, because before Scootaloo could do anything, she was enveloped in a magical grasp.

"Ahh, let me go, you stupid butthead," Scootaloo whined. This apparently was a bad choice of words because her captor got furious.

"How dare you address me with such words, you common piece of trash! You will treat me with respect and need to be taught some respect!" the pony yelled. He raised a hoof to smack Scootaloo and there was nothing she could do to defend herself. However, no smack ever came; a very loud noise of another sort assaulted the ears of everypony in the room.

"PRINCE BLUEBLOOD, YOU UNHAND THAT FILLY THIS INSTANT!"

Scootaloo wished she could have covered her ears, because she had never heard anypony yell so loud. Princess Luna was standing in the doorway of her bathroom and she looked furious.

"Ah, Auntie Luna, I didn't know you were in here. I found this little rat sleeping in Auntie Celestia's bed and I was just about to throw her out of the castle," Prince Blueblood explained. Princess Luna's eye twitched slightly.

"It seems you are ignoring what we just said, Blueblood. We just told thee to release that filly from thy grasp," Princess Luna growled.

"But… but, Auntie," Prince Blueblood stuttered. Luna's eyebrows furrowed, and she stalked forward into Blueblood’s personal space.

"Put her down now," Princess Luna spat. Prince Blueblood trembled slightly and released his magical hold on Scootaloo. Scootaloo fell to the ground with a thud. Luna rushed to her and made sure she was all right. Blueblood, figuring Princess Luna was too busy to notice, slowly crept towards the door.

"Don't you dare think about leaving, Blueblood," Luna snapped. Blueblood froze in place, and Princess Luna was in front of him in an instant.

"What do you think you are doing, Prince Blueblood?" Princess Luna asked in a low voice. Blueblood swallowed nervously.

"I… I was attempting to throw this filly out of the castle. I found her in Auntie Celestia's bed," Prince Blueblood explained.

"Why did you not ask the filly why she was there instead of just trying to grab her and throw her out?"

"Well… well, she said some ludicrous statement about Auntie Celestia putting her there for a nap. As if that is hardly believable," Blueblood scoffed.

"This filly is a guest, Blueblood, so it seems entirely believable that our sister would allow dear Scootaloo to sleep in her bed," Princess Luna told him.

"But… but I have never seen this filly before. She is certainly not of any noble descent, I would certainly know if she was. She doesn't belong here, Auntie Luna," Blueblood replied. Princess Luna, sick of Blueblood’s attitude, raised her voice and got right up in his face.

"Two things, Prince Blueblood. First of all, you are to refer to us as Princess or Princess Luna. Our sister may allow you to call her Aunt, but you are not our nephew and you will not call us Aunt. Secondly, you have no say in who is and isn't allowed to come into ours and our sister’s castle. You may have been given the title of Prince in our absence, but we have never thought that you deserved it. This filly is the daughter of Twilight Sparkle and deserves to be in this castle far more than you do."

Prince Blueblood swallowed. "But this filly can't be Twilight Sparkle's daughter. Twilight Sparkle isn't married. She doesn't even have a boyfriend. I have asked her many times on dates but she always declines. I told her she should get her head out of the books and do what mares are suppose to do and be a stallion’s marefriend. The stupid pony hit me after that."

This statement filled Scootaloo with rage. "Don't you dare call my mom stupid!" Scootaloo snarled. Luna put a hoof to her side and stopped Scootaloo from charging at Prince Blueblood.

"We will handle this, dear," Princess Luna told Scootaloo quietly. Luna then turned her attention back to Prince Blueblood.

"What you said is beside the point, Prince Blueblood. That fact is that you chased, yelled at, and even tried to hit an innocent little filly who happens to be a guest at this castle. Not only that but you also insulted our sister's prized pupil, a pony who, on the totem pole of rankings, is far higher than the likes of you. Just know that we will be speaking to our sister about your behavior, and there will be punishment arranged for you," Princess Luna told Prince Blueblood. Blueblood opened his mouth to speak but Luna cut him off.

"Not another word, Blueblood. You are to leave the castle grounds this instant. If we see you at all for the rest of the evening, you will regret it."

Prince Blueblood swallowed nervously and scrambled out of the room. Princess Luna then turned her attention back to Scootaloo. "He will not be bothering you anymore, my dear. We didn't finish getting ready, so just give us a bit more time."

With that, Luna went back into the bathroom. Scootaloo let out a small yawn and decided to look around the room. She then spotted something that piqued her interests: a rather large flatscreen TV. She decided to investigate and was even more surprised when she saw everything that was connected to the TV, a whole bunch of video game systems. There was a Ponystation 3, a Gamesphere, a Zbox 720, and one other item that made Scootaloo lose her marbles.

"What? A Ponystation 4?!?" Scootaloo exclaimed loudly. "These don't even come out for three more months. How in the world does Princess Luna already have one?”

"Oh, well, we are a big supporter of Pony Electronics. We are one of their game testers and have been for a while now. They gave us a call and told us they were sending us a free Ponystation 4 before the release date."

Scootaloo turned and saw Princess Luna standing in the bathroom doorway smiling. "I don't know what to say other then I'm extremely jealous," Scootaloo said, in awe over the device she was staring at.

"We did not realize you were a gamer, Scootaloo," Luna said as she walked over to the drooling filly.

"Um, not really," Scootaloo said. "Mom won't let me buy any video games. She says they'll rot my brain. I play them sometimes when I go over to my friend Button's house, or sometimes if I go to my friend Sweetie Belle's."

"Then we suppose we don't need to go downstairs just yet. I think maybe we shall play some video games instead," Princess Luna told Scootaloo. Scootaloo turned and looked at Princess Luna with wide, happy eyes.

"Can we play the Ponystation 4?" Scootaloo asked. Princess Luna nodded her head and turned the TV and game system on. Scootaloo's eyes completely dilated when the screen lit up with the Ponystation logo. Princess Luna levitated a controller towards Scootaloo and then grabbed one for herself.

"Well, show us what you've got Scootaloo," Princess Luna said with a smirk.

Princess Celestia slowly made her way upstairs to her bedroom. It had been a few hours and it was probably time for Scootaloo to get up. Being sure not to be too loud, she opened the door to her bedroom and slowly walked in.

"Scootaloo, it's time to get up, my dear. We need to be leaving in… in…"

Celestia couldn’t finish her sentence; Scootaloo wasn’t lying in her bed. In fact, there was no sign of the filly at all in the vast room.

"Scootaloo, are you in here?" Princess Celestia called. She received no answer. The princess didn’t panic, however. She figured maybe Scootaloo had gone over to Luna's room, or at least that’s what she hoped. She was really hoping that poor Scootaloo hadn't got lost in the castle corridors, because some of them were rather confusing. Keeping her composure, Princess Celestia left her own room and made her way towards her sister’s room. As she got closer, she heard yelling. Now starting to panic, Celestia picked up the pace. She quickly got to the door and threw it open. What she found was not what she was expecting.

"You're going down, Princess. You just so happened to pick a game that I am good at," Scootaloo shouted as she mashed the buttons on her game controller.

"We don't think so, youngling. We have never been beaten at this game before and today shall not be the day we are," Princess Luna shouted back as she too mashed all the buttons on her controller. Princess Celestia stood there and watched the two of them, realizing they hadn't heard her come in. Luna still had a hard time being around adults, but she never had a problem playing with fillies and colts. Smiling to herself, Celestia quietly walked into the room and sat down behind the two of them. They were so engrossed in the game that they still hadn't noticed they weren't alone. The TV was flashing all sorts of colors, and the two ponies in front of her were frantically pressing all the buttons they could until something unforeseen happened.

"I won!" Scootaloo screamed at the top of her lungs. Princess Luna sat there, struck completely speechless.

"We… we have never lost before," she said rather quietly. The princess dropped the controller out of her magical grip and just sat there. Meanwhile, Scootaloo bounced up and down around the princess, a huge smile on her face. Then out of nowhere, Princess Luna lunged at Scootaloo. The filly let out a loud “Eep!” and then ran away from her attacker.

"Can't catch me, Princess," Scootaloo said playfully as she stuck her tongue out at Princess Luna. The Night Princess gave her a wicked smile and lunged again. Scootaloo bounced onto the bed but was soon cornered. Princess Luna got closer and closer until she was right on top of Scootaloo. Scootaloo's eyes went wide in playful fear as the princess raised one of her hooves.

"And now we shall punish thee for embarrassing us as you have," Luna announced, all while trying not to giggle. Her hoof then fell like the ax of an executioner, only to stop suddenly just before she lightly bopped Scootaloo on the top of the head. Scootaloo, very dramatically, fell to the ground and pretended she was dead. There was silence for a few seconds, and then the two of them burst into a fit of laughter. Princess Celestia also gave a small chuckle.

"Well, it seems like you two are having fun," she said to the other ponies in the room. Both Scootaloo and Luna jumped in shock.

"Sister," Princess Luna said with a heave, "we did not notice you come in."

"Oh, I've been watching you two for a few minutes now. I came upstairs to get Scootaloo up from her nap, and when I couldn’t find her I figured she was here," Celestia replied.

"Actually, speaking of that, sister, we need to talk to you about something later," Princess Luna explained to the older alicorn. "We fear if we speak now it will make us late for the play this evening."

"As a matter of fact, we should probably get going," Celestia announced. "I believe everypony else is waiting downstairs."

Luna and Scootaloo both nodded their heads and quickly picked up the small mess they had made before departing the room.

"We want a rematch some time, Scootaloo," Princess Luna said as the three of them walked down the hall towards the stairs. Scootaloo looked up at her and furrowed her brow.

"You're on, Princess," she said with delight in her voice.

The family and the princesses had a light dinner before departing to the Grand Canterlot Theater for Canterlot University’s rendition of the Hearth's Warming Eve play. They had wonderful seats up in a private box large enough for more than a dozen. This was perfect because with all those who were invited, every seat was taken up. Scootaloo was very happy that she got a seat next to Sweetie Belle. Even though it had only been a few days since they last saw each other, they had so much to talk about.

"Oh my gosh, Scootaloo, you got your ears pierced!" Sweetie Belle squeaked as she pointed at the pieces of metal in her friend’s ears.

"Yeah, Grandma and Aunt Cadence paid for them. Mom wasn't very happy at first but they've kind of grown on her," Scootaloo explained to her friend.

"I wish my parents would let me pierce mine. Then again, I'd probably be too scared to do it." Sweetie Belle sighed. "Anyway, how's Canterlot been?"

"So awesome! I love my family so much. Plus I've gotten to hang out with the princesses, too. Luna and I played a bunch of video games," Scootaloo exclaimed to her equally excited friend.

"I'm jealous," Sweetie Belle said with a smile. The two fillies continued their very enthusiastic chatting while they waited for the play to start. Behind them, all the adults conversed quietly. Twilight was engaged in a conversation with her friends, who all wanted to know how Scootaloo was adjusting to her new family.

"I think she’s thrilled to pieces that she got to meet all of them," Twilight explained to all of them, "She's been bonding with all of them, especially my brother. Those two are like two peas in a pod."

"Oh, I'm glad to hear she is adjusting well. I remember how terrified I was when I had to meet my stepfather’s family," Fluttershy said in her normal quiet tone.

"It looks like she's missed her friends, though," Rarity added as she glanced over at the two fillies, who were still chatting away about video games.

"I think she has," Twilight replied, "I hope she gets some cousins at some point. Still she hasn't really showed it that much, since she really likes everyone else in the family."

"Good to hear, Twi," Rainbow Dash said to her friend. "The few times we hung out before you guys left, she told me she was kind of worried. I told her not to be bothered with it because your family is awesome."

Twilight giggled and her cheeks went a little red. Just as she was about to speak up again, the lights began to dim and curtains opened. Twilight once again found relief in the fact that she and her friends didn't have to manage a play this year. There was a collective and quiet sigh among all of them as they settled in for a wonderful production.

The play ended up being fantastic; it was so much more organized than the year the Elements were in charge of it. Instead of leaving right away, they decided to relax in the box for a moment. The party at the castle was not due to begin for another two hours, so they had time to relax. Once the theater had cleared up some more, they were escorted out by a patrol of guards to their carriages and taken back to the castle. By the time they got there, they had about half an hour before the party would start. The only ponies who had a problem with this were Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle.

"Children, why don't you join us in our room and we can play some Ponystation 4?" Luna asked the two of them.

"What? You have a Ponystation 4?" Sweetie Belle squeaked in excitement, "Oh, let's go play, let's go play!"

Sweetie Belle got behind the Princess and tried with all her might to push her along. "Sweetie Belle, do not do something so childish to the Princess. Plus those video games you like will rot your brain," Rarity scolded. Luna, however, chuckled quietly.

"Don't worry, Rarity, it is quite alright," Luna laughed. "Come along now, children."

In a flash, Luna, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle were gone. Rarity and Twilight shook their heads and followed everypony else to the library for small talk and pre-party drinks. The main topic of conversation was the play.

"I feel like they did an exquisite job," Rarity said to everypony. Many nodded their heads.

"I don't know; I feel like the pony playing Commander Hurricane wasn't brash enough," Rainbow Dash replied. A few others nodded their heads.

"While I did enjoy that immensely, I felt like you girls did a much better job last year," Cadence said to Twilight and her friends.

"I wholeheartedly agree," Night Light added.

Within half an hour the party had started. Many esteemed guests poured into the castle every single minute. The castle staff had done a magnificent job decorating and were working hard to make sure everypony had a drink or something to eat. Unfortunately for Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, there were not a lot of fillies or colts at the party. What was worse, Princess Luna had been pulled away from them by a couple of Canterlot's Finest to talk about grown-up things. This left the poor fillies high and dry with nothing to do at all. Rarity was busy talking to Fancy Pants and Fleur, Twilight was with Princess Celestia talking to some professors, Rainbow Dash was with the Wonderbolts, Pinkie Pie was being Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy had disappeared completely.

"Well this is kind of boring," Scootaloo said with a groan to her friend. Sweetie Belle nodded. The two of them decided to walk to where the food was being served, though neither of them were really that hungry. As they walked along, they heard somepony call their names.

"Sweetie Belle! Scootaloo!"

The two of them turned to see Silver Spoon trotting towards them. "Silver, what are you doing here?" Scootaloo asked as the gray earth pony filly met up with them.

"I came here with my mom and stepdad. We were invited by Princess Celestia since my mom is the one that sells them all their silverware," Silver Spoon explained.

"Well at least you’re here, Silver," Sweetie Belle said with a smile, "There don't seem to be any ponies our age here."

"There never are any, normally," Silver Spoon sighed, "I have to come to this every year and spend three to four hours being bored to death. At first I thought I was seeing things when you passed by. Anyway, you girls want to meet my mom?"

Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle nodded, and Silver Spoon led the way towards what looked like a taller version of her. Silver's mom was currently in conversation when they walked up to her, but she broke off when she realized Silver was standing there.

"I was wondering where you ran off to, Silver," her mother said, "Who are these two fillies?"

"Mom, these are my two friends from school, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo," Silver told her mother. "Girls, this is my mom, Silver Platter."

Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle smiled and said hi. Silver Platter smiled back at them. "It's good to meet the two of you. Silver has told me a lot about you two and your other friend, Apple Bloom. You two live in Ponyville, I take it?"

"Yes, I live with my parents out near the lake," Sweetie Belle told Silver Platter. "My sister also lives in Ponyville."

"Your sister is Rarity, right?" Silver Platter asked. Sweetie Belle nodded her head. "Your sister is quite possibly the best fashion designer I have ever met. I've bought all my favorite dresses from her."

"Don't tell that to her face. She might faint," Sweetie Belle said with a giggle. Silver Platter chuckled and then switched over to talking with Scootaloo.

"Now, Silver tells me that you were just adopted, Scootaloo?" she asked the filly. Scootaloo nodded.

"My mom, Twilight Sparkle, adopted me about four months ago. I was living on my own before she found me," Scootaloo explained.

"Yes, I had heard about that. That and what that nasty little filly Diamond Tiara did to you,” Silver Platter replied. “I always told Silver I never liked her that much. Silver's stepfather adored Diamond, though. Still, it's good to hear that somepony took you in. I can't say I've ever met your mother, but I've heard many good things about her.”

"Mom, is it okay if I hang out with my friends rather than you and Steel Works?" Silver Spoon asked. Silver Platter nodded her head.

"I know how bored you get at these parties, so that's fine with me."

Silver Spoon thanked her mom, and then the three of them ran off. When they were far enough away, Sweetie Belle asked a question that was on her mind. "Hey, Silver, who was that gray stallion that was staring at you while we were talking to your Mom?"

"Oh, that's my stepdad, Steel Works," Silver Spoon told her.

"Did your parents get divorced or something?" Scootaloo asked, just as curious as Sweetie Belle was. Silver Spoon shook her head.

"No, Dad passed away when I was really young. I don't remember him that much, but Mom said he was the kindest stallion she had ever met. He would do anything for anypony if they asked. He was a philanthropist, and he used a portion of the money he and Mom made with our silversmithing business to help those who were in need. I really wish I could remember more about him."

"So… um… if you don't mind me asking, what happened to him?" Sweetie Belle asked her friend nervously.

"It's okay; I feel proud every time I share this story,” Silver Spoon said. “It happened when we were still living in Fillydelphia: a fire broke out in the shop where we sold all our silver products. The building was rather old, and it didn't take long for the flames to engulf the whole thing. I think Mom said the smelter got too hot or something. Anyway, the fire had trapped four of Mom and Dad's workers in the building and the fire department still hadn’t arrived yet. Well, Dad, being the pony he was, ran right into the building. Mom almost fainted when he did and waited there. Slowly, one by one, he carried every single pony out of that building. The fire trucks finally arrived when he was carrying the third pony out. They told him they would take over, but he didn't listen to them and ran back in to get the last worker. Within minutes, they were out of the building and Dad was called a hero for saving all of them. Everything turned bad, though, because he collapsed as soon as they were out. They took him straight to the hospital, but the doctors said there was nothing they could do; they said he had inhaled too much smoke and it had poisoned him. The only thing they could do was make him comfortable for the last few moments. I was there when he took his last breath. Mom was a mess, she cried for three straight weeks. I was young so I didn't really understand. I always asked when Daddy was coming back and never understood why they always told me he was gone. I understand now that I'm older.”

Scootaloo was speechless and Sweetie Belle's eyes were sparkling. They couldn't understand why Silver Spoon was so composed. "I'm really sorry, Silver," Scootaloo choked out.

"Don't be; I'm very proud of what my Dad did. He gave his life to save four other ponies. Even today, he’s still considered a hero in Fillydelphia. The area where the building burnt down is now a tribute garden and has a statue of him there. Anyway, a few years passed and Mom finally moved on when she met Steel Works. They dated for a while before marrying and we moved to Ponyville. He's sometimes mean to me, but I know my Mom loves him so I put up with it."

"That was really touching, Silver," Sweetie Belle said after she wiped a few tears out of her eyes. “Anyway, why don’t we go eat? I’m kind of hungry now.”

Scootaloo and Silver Spoon agreed, and the three of them ran off. Across the room, Twilight had been watching to see what they were doing. Seeing that they were all right, she turned her attention back to the conversation she and Princess Celestia were having with some professors from the School of Gifted Unicorns.

"Anyway, Ms. Twilight, I would love it if you would read our paper on the Theory of Long-Distance Teleportation and tell us what you think," one of the professors said to Twilight.

"Of course, Professor, I’ll gladly look at it and tell you what I think," Twilight told him. Smiling, the three professors bowed and then walked away from Twilight and Celestia.

"I was wondering when they would finish talking with us," Princess Celestia whispered to Twilight.

"I know, and I had to try hard not to tell them that their theory was completely hare-brained," Twilight whispered back. Princess Celestia snickered and suppressed the sound with her hoof.

"Is something funny, sister?"

The two of them turned to see Princess Luna walking towards them, a plate of food levitating right next to her. "Oh, it's nothing, Luna. You probably wouldn't find it funny anyway," Celestia explained to her sister.

"Oh, okay," Princess Luna said, "Have any of you seen Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle? We were going to see what they were doing."

"Actually, didn't you say you had something to talk to me about, Luna?" Celestia asked.

"Oh, maybe I should tell you later, sister," Princess Luna said, "I don't want to get Twilight angry with this crowd of ponies around."

"Angry?" Twilight questioned. "Why would I get angry, Princess Luna?"

"Umm…" was all Luna said as she scratched the back of her neck nervously. It didn't really help that both her sister and Twilight were now clearly waiting to hear what she had to say.

"Luna," Princess Celestia said more sternly, "tell us what happened."

"Um… well the reason Scootaloo was in our room when you came upstairs to get her was… was because Prince Blueblood chased her out of your room. We didn't know this when she showed up in our room. We went into the bathroom for a moment, but came right back out when we heard yelling. We… we saw the prince with poor Scootaloo in a magical grip, and he was in the process of trying to hit her."

Dead silence. Neither Celestia nor Twilight said anything. Finally there was an outburst, one that was loud enough to silence the entire room.

"HE DID WHAT?!"

Everypony looked in the direction of the noise. Twilight was standing there, her eye twitching in anger and her face completely red.

"Why did everypony suddenly fall silent?" a rather familiar voice asked, breaking the silence. Prince Blueblood was standing in the ballroom doorway, his small entourage slightly behind him. Twilight spun around and met his gaze with hers. One look sent the Prince into a panic. Before he could escape, though, Twilight was in front of Blueblood and had him backed up into against the wall.

"How dare you touch my daughter, you arrogant butthead!" Twilight shouted at the top of her lungs. Prince Blueblood gulped nervously. Some ponies in the room thought he might lose control of his bladder. "Do you find joy in trying to hit small fillies, Mister So-Called Prince? Do you honestly not think anything through before you do stupid things?" Twilight continued.

"I… I found your little rat of a daughter in the bed of royalty. Maybe you should keep an eye on her, Twilight Sparkle," he said, trying desperately to keep his cool.

"If you ever call my daughter a rat again, you ignorant, pompous hothead, I'll turn your tongue into a snake! Also, did you ever think that maybe my daughter was put there so she could take a nap?" Twilight snapped in anger.

"Well, that is just silly. The servant that put her there should definitely be fired then, since they clearly…"

"Prince Blueblood, I've heard enough from you!"

Everypony turned to see Princess Celestia walking towards Twilight and Blueblood. She was doing a very good job remaining composed, but she was clearly very angry.

"Before you go accusing this castle’s staff, who are far more than mere servants, did you ever think that maybe I put Twilight's daughter in my own bed?" Princess Celestia said with a stern voice.

"But why would you…"

"Because Scootaloo is the daughter of my faithful student, who is herself like a daughter to me and somepony I consider part of my family, and I wanted to make sure that she took a nap somewhere safe. There is no law that says I can't let anypony sleep in my own bed, Prince Blueblood," Princess Celestia scolded.

"But… I… Auntie…"

"No. I have let you get away with calling me Aunt for far too long," Princess Celestia interrupted. "You are not my nephew, despite how much you like to tell ponies you are. You have managed to ruin a wonderful party and we will be discussing your behavior and punishment at length later on. For now, you and your ‘friends’ are no longer welcome at this party."

Prince Blueblood opened his mouth to speak, but one look from Princess Celestia caused him to shut it. Angrily, he turned back to Twilight and took his rage out on her. "Thanks for ruining this night for me and my friends, you stupid wench."

What happened next went by almost as if it were in slow motion. Twilight's right front hoof reared back and then shot forward. It made contact with the prince’s nose and slowly crushed it. Prince Blueblood fell back and covered his nose with his own hoof. Blood poured down his foreleg and dripped onto the floor despite the pressure that he put on it. Instead of fighting back, Blueblood turned and ran off, followed closely by his entourage.

"It's about time somepony hit him."

Everypony turned around to see who had spoken those words, only to find that they came from both Fleur and Rarity's mouths. There were a few awkward seconds before normal conversation continued. Twilight stood in the doorway, breathing heavily in an attempt to calm herself down. One of the butlers came up to her with a tray of drinks.

"Something tells me that Madame would like a drink," he said politely. Twilight nodded, grabbed a glass, and took small sips from it. Across the room, Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Silver Spoon were staring at Twilight with open mouths.

"Did… did your mom just punch Prince Blueblood?" Silver Spoon muttered.

"Uh-huh," Scootaloo replied.

"Mr. Thunderlane better hope he never makes your mom mad, Scootaloo," Sweetie Belle said quietly. "If he ever did I sure wouldn't want to be him.

The party lasted for another few hours after the Blueblood incident. Things mostly went back to normal, although some stallions were keeping their distance from Twilight. The Sparkle family stayed there until the last guests had left, leaving them alone again with the princesses.

"Well, tonight was rather… eventful," Celestia said to all of them as they walked towards the main door of the castle. "Now, what time did you say dinner would be starting tomorrow, Velvet?"

"Six o'clock or six-thirty. Appetizers will probably be out around five-thirty or so. Does that timing work for you, Princess?" Velvet asked. Celestia nodded her head.

"Are you sure you don't need us to bring anything?" she asked Velvet, "A bottle of wine? Anything at all? It really isn’t a hassle."

Velvet shook her head. "We have everything we'll need for tomorrow. I don't want you or Princess Luna to lift a hoof."

Princess Celestia smiled and gave an understanding nod. Many upper-class ponies had found it hard to believe that their Hearth's Warming Day party invitations would always be declined for an evening with the Sparkle Family. Truth be told, Princess Celestia would rather spend the evening with them than all of the snooty ponies that lived in this city. The princess had been invited to dine with the family the first year Twilight became her student. She humbly accepted, much to her young pupil’s delight. The evening had been so joyous and eventful that she found herself coming back every year after that. This year would be Princess Luna's first year attending the dinner; she didn’t go the first year after her return because she was still struggling to adapt. Princess Celestia knew that she was in for a wonderful treat.

"Well, good night, my little ponies. Princess Luna and I will see all of you tomorrow evening," Princess Celestia said to all of them. Everypony said good night, and then the family made their way to the carriage waiting for them. Scootaloo was still awake but only just.

"Did you have a wonderful night, Scootaloo?" Twilight asked her. The filly nodded her head and let out a yawn.

"Tonight was awesome," she said quietly.

"What did you like the most about tonight?" Twilight asked out of curiosity.

"When you punched that jerk Prince Blueblood in the nose and he ran off like a foal," Scootaloo replied with a snicker. The rest of the family burst into laughter and Twilight's whole face went red.

"That… I didn't mean to," Twilight mumbled, completely embarrassed.

"So many guards would've paid to be in your shoes, Twily. Heck, I would love nothing more than to give that arrogant prick a pop in the jaw. He deserves it for how he treats us sometimes," Shining Armor mentioned.

"Can we please stop talking about it?" Twilight whined while the rest of her family kept laughing. "No, seriously, can we please stop?"

The laughter died down, but Twilight knew everypony was still thinking about it. She got a horrible feeling that this was going to end up in some newspaper after the holidays were done.

"I suppose we can set this aside," Night Light said as he wiped a tear out his eye. "Tomorrow is a big day, after all."

Tomorrow was a big day, indeed: Hearth's Warming Day, the most anticipated day throughout the entire year. A day of fun, family, and of course gift-giving. Tomorrow was especially important for one pony riding in the carriage: tomorrow was Scootaloo's first Hearth’s Warming with her new family.

Author's Notes:

Well hope you all liked this one. For all of you who kept begging me I hope you enjoyed the Blueblood abuse. I certainly had fun writing it out. The next chapter will be the last one in this Hearth's Warming mini series and then I will move on to new material. For any who are concerned about the earring thing being too girly it was always my plan to have Scootaloo mellow out a little bit. Elric and I agreed that it was a good way to handle it. Don't worry though this is probably about as far as I'm going to take it. I'm not sure when the next chapter will be up and I can't guarantee it'll be soon, real life is really busy right now, but I will try my best to not take too long.

Mayhem D.

The Fun Will Never End

Author's Notes:

So sorry this took so long guys. I found some free time and decided to get the last bit of editing done now instead of this weekend. School is almost over so this hopefully won't happen again. Enjoy.

Written by: Mayhem Darkshadow
Edited by: TimeLord_Whooves and SirTruffles

Chapter 12: The Fun Will Never End

Twilight was as comfortable as one could possibly get when sleeping. The blankets were warm and her pillow was soft. Last night had been a very late night, the family didn't get home until three o'clock. Twilight was quite content, snuggled up under the blankets. That bliss, of course, was rather short lived.

"Hearth's Warming Day! Hearth's Warming Day! Time to wake up! Time to wake up!"

Twilight's eyes slowly opened. Who in their right mind was awake already?

"Sc...Scootaloo? How are you even awake?" Twilight grumbled as her vision adjusted and she saw her daughter grinning at her.

"Because it's Hearth's Warming Day, and I'm just so excited!" Scootaloo shouted.

“Shhh” Twilight hissed, fearing that Scootaloo was going to wake everypony else up. Twilight then turned and looked at the clock, and her face fell.

"Scootaloo, it's only six o'clock," Twilight groaned, "Everypony has only gotten three hours of sleep. You need to come back to bed."

"But I'm wide awake," Scootaloo whined. "I can't sleep because I'm too excited."

Twilight grumbled and put her head back on her pillow. Hopefully she'll tire herself out and go back to bed.

"Come on Mom just wake up," Scootaloo grunted as she shoved and against Twilight's side impatiently. Twilight mumbled something and her legs shot out from under the blankets, grabbed Scootaloo around the middle, and pulled her under.

"Shh shh just go back to sleep my little chicken," Twilight whispered as she closed her eyes.

"Ga! Can't...breathe...Mom...holding me...too tight," Scootaloo gasped. Twilight smiled and loosened her grip just enough so Scootaloo could breath, but not enough to where she could escape. Scootaloo struggled to break free, but after struggling to pry her mother’s legs apart she gave up.

"We can...wake...few hours," Twilight yawned as she drifted back into slumber. Scootaloo frowned and decided she might as well get comfortable while she waited.

It was a few hours later when sunlight finally started to fill Twilight’s room. As the light hit her face, Twilight's fluttered open. She stretched and suddenly remembered she was holding Scootaloo. Upon further inspection she found the filly had passed out.

Good she fell back asleep.

Twilight, with great care, unwrapped her legs. Scootaloo didn't even stir. Twilight smiled and quietly hopped out of bed and went to peak out the door and see if anypony was awake. All the bedroom doors were still shut and it didn't sound like anypony was downstairs. Twilight shut the door and then tried to decide what to do while she waited for everypony to wake.

You know what? A hot bath sounds really good right now, she thought to herself.

Twilight slowly crept along to the bathroom and got the water running. As the tub filled up it occurred to her that she had never taken a bath with Scootaloo before. Smiling at just the thought she went back into the bedroom to retrieve the filly. Twilight carefully picked her up and then went back to the bathroom. Once the tub was full she climbed in.

"Just perfect," she said quietly to herself. Twilight then levitated Scootaloo over to her chest. Twilight smiled at her sleeping angel and splashed some water over Scootaloo's body with a hoof. Scootaloo’s eyes fluttered open when felt the warmth.

"Morning sleepyhead," Twilight whispered. Rubbing her eyes, Scootaloo's vision cleared up.

"Morning," Scootaloo replied softly, "Why are we in the bathtub?"

"Well, nopony is awake, so I figured we could have some mommy daughter bath time," Twilight explained. Scootaloo smiled and then closed her eyes.

"For a second there, I thought my dream about going to the beach had come true," Scootaloo mumbled. Twilight patted her on the back.

"We will certainly go to the beach sometime. Once the weather warms up a bit," Twilight replied playfully.

"Have I ever told you how much I love you Mom?" Scootaloo asked quietly.

"I'm not entirely sure you tell me that enough," Twilight snickered. Scootaloo splashed some water in her mother’s face, which earned her a splash back. The two of them giggled. Twilight then grabbed a bottle of shampoo and lathered up Scootaloo's mane. Scootaloo rested her head and let her mother do all the work. Twilight rinsed the soap out and then took care of her own mane.

"I find it funny that you were wide awake just a while ago, and now you can't even keep your eyes open," Twilight chuckled as they relaxed in the water.

All Twilight got in response was a grumble.

"Maybe my tired little baby should go back to bed for awhile then?" Twilight added.

"Not a baby...Mom," Scootaloo yawned. Twilight chuckled and rubbed Scootaloo's back slowly. Soon they heard the sound of doors opening and shutting.

"Sounds like everypony is starting to wake up," Twilight said," I suppose we can get out of the tub and go downstairs."

Scootaloo perked up immediately and jumped out of the tub. "Oh boy! presents!" she shouted before bolting out of the bathroom.

"Wait sweetheart I still need to dry you off!" Twilight called. All she heard was a screech and then a thud.

"I'm okay!" Scootaloo announced after some silence. Twilight rubbed her temple and pulled herself out of the tub.

Honestly, I will never understand how that filly goes from tired to alert in an instant, she thought to herself as she grabbed a towel and made made a beeline for Scootaloo. She also took a moment to prod Spike in an attempt to wake him up, which he did after a few pokes.

The rest of the family was already downstairs by the time the three of them finished getting ready. The smell of cinnamon rolls teased their nostrils as they got closer to the bottom of the stairs. Night Light had his eyes glued to a book but they kept shutting every so often. Cadence was leaning up against Shining Armor, and she was clearly trying really hard to fall back to sleep. Shining Armor himself looked awake and alert, but upon closer inspections his eyes were completely bloodshot and there were bags under them.

"Everypony looks like they're dead," Scootaloo whispered to her mother. Twilight nodded as they reached the main floor. Nopony seemed to take notice that they were even there, they all seemed like they were in a trance.

"Umm...morning everypony," Twilight finally said. They all just turned their heads, so slow they should have been creaking as they moved.

"Morning you two," Night Light yawned, "Sleep well?"

"This little missy here decided to wake up at six o'clock and bounce on top of me until I was awake," Twilight complained while looking at her daughter. Scootaloo smiled innocently, and Twilight to roll her eyes.

"Well your mother is about done with the rolls," Night Light explained, "Where's Spike?"

"He was right behind us," Twilight said as she looked up towards the second floor.

"I guess he went back to bed. Scootaloo can you go get him?" Twilight asked. Scootaloo nodded and bolted up the stairs towards the bedroom.

"Just wake him up don't do anything to make him angry," Twilight shouted.

Oof!

Too late.

Scootaloo came flying down the stairs and hid behind Twilight. Spike stomped down the stairs, staring malevolently at Scootaloo.

"Next time you want to wake me up try not jumping on me," he growled. Scootaloo stuck her tongue out at him and Spike lunged. Twilight kept the two of them apart as they flailed arm and leg at each other.

"Scootaloo," Twilight grunted, "Apologize."

"I'm sorry Spikey Wikey," Scootaloo giggled. Spike's cheeks went pink and he sat down without saying another word. Twilight rolled her eyes and pulled the two of them closer to her.

"I love the two of you but you're both going to drive me up the wall someday."

Both Spike and Scootaloo struggled to get out of Twilight's maternal grip, but when were unable to break free they accepted their fate with fallen heads. Twilight gave each of them a kiss on the temple, and then let the them go. As she did Velvet called all of them into the kitchen to plate up.

"Oh thank Celestia I’m so hungry I could eat a hydra," Shining Armor groaned as they all walked into the kitchen. Velvet rolled her eyes and let out a powerful yawn. Everypony quickly filled their plates and then went back out into the living room.

"Alright let’s get started with presents then," Night Light announced after everypony had sat down, “As per family tradition we start with the youngest. Looks like Spike doesn't get to go first anymore."

Spike had the most crestfallen look on his face, for a few seconds anyway.

"Well I suppose it does mean I'm not the baby in the family anymore," he said while looking at Scootaloo. Scootaloo stuck her tongue out at him before taking the present being handed to her.

"This one is from your Aunt and I," Shining mentioned as Scootaloo tore into the package.

"Official Wonderbolt's Goggles!" she screamed with joy.

"Take a look at the headband," Cadence told her. Scootaloo tilted the gift to the side and about lost her marbles when she saw what was written on them.

"Each of the Wonderbolt's signatures," she cried in delight before jumping at her Aunt and Uncle and embracing them, "Thank you thank you thank you thank you!"

"You're welcome," they both said.

"By the way, that’s magic ink that won't fade over time. Those signatures will look that good for an eternity," Cadence added. Scootaloo smiled and put the goggles on top of her head.

"Well looks like we have the next Wonderbolt right here," Night Light said with a whistle. Scootaloo smiled and then look her seat, waiting slightly impatiently for it to be her turn again.

"Alright Spike this one is from your sister," Twilight said as she dropped a gift into the dragons lap. Spike raised an eyebrow. The shape of the gift sort of gave away what it probably was, but he was not expecting the item hidden behind the wrapping paper.

"The Complete Power Ponies Encyclopedia A to Z," he read out loud, "So that's why I couldn’t stand in line to wait for this the day it came out."

"Yeah because I went and stood in line to get it for you," Scootaloo told him. Spike gave her a smile and thanked her for the gift before he opened the large book up and began to read from it. It only took about two seconds for Spike to stop paying attention to his surroundings.

"Spike...Spike...Spike!"

"Wa what?" he fumbled, snapping back into reality.

"Put the book away you can read it later," Twilight said calmly. Spike gave his best attempt at puppy dog eyes but Twilight didn't budge. The baby dragon sulked and set the treasure aside, for now anyway.

Gift unwrapping went on and before Scootaloo knew it, it was her turn again. Excited she took the gift passed to her and opened it sporadically. When she saw what was inside she couldn't believe her eyes, neither could Twilight.

"Hold on a moment," Twilight said, in complete shock, "That isn't the new Daring Do book that doesn't come out for another month is it?"

"It just so happens that it is," Velvet told to her daughter. Twilight was baffled and Scootaloo was stunned.

"You owe me twenty bits," Cadence whispered into her husband’s ear quietly. Shining Armor rolled his eyes and everyone went back to watching Twilight and Scootaloo. Finally they got a reaction.

"This...is...so...awesome!" Scootaloo shouted at the top of her lungs," Thanks Grandma and Grandpa."

"You're quite welcome, sweetheart," Night Light said, "By the way open the cover. There's a little surprise inside."

Scootaloo did what she was told and found some text on the inside cover. "To Scootaloo," she read out loud, "Go for the gold and never give up. Sincerely, A.K. Yearling."

"I don't believe it," Twilight said in shock, "Mama may have to borrow your book and never return it, Scootaloo."

The filly wrapped her hooves around the treasured item. Twilight poked and prodded at Scootaloo's sides but the book remained guarded from prying hooves.

"And now you owe me forty bits," Shining Armor whispered into Cadence's ear. It was now Cadence's turn to roll her eyes. Twilight eventually stopped and Scootaloo put the book well out of her mother's reach. Gift giving continued, Spike got more comic books and The Gem Hunters Basic Guide to Hitting it Big, Twilight got a large tome to replace one of her old ones that had fallen apart, Cadence got jewelry and, and some foal clothes. That earned Shining Armor a well deserved smack on the head. Soon they were down to the last few gifts

"Okay you two, I have a few things for you to open together," Twilight said as she passed a few gifts to her children. "Start with this card."

Spike took the card and opened it. Scootaloo looked over his shoulder while he read it aloud. "I know you two sometimes complain about how the only thing to do at home is read. So I caved in and got us a TV. Enjoy the mind numbing pleasure. Love, Mom."

Spike and Scootaloo dropped the card and embraced Twilight. "Best gift ever!"

"Well it's a gift for me too," she told them, "Now I don't have to listen to the two of you complain about only being able to read books. It should be there when we get back. Now I have one more gift for each of you."

Twilight grabbed the last two gifts and gave them to Spike and Scootaloo. They opened them up together.

"Oh my gosh a JoyBoy 3D," Scootaloo shouted with glee. "And it's the Ponymon edition."

"The complete first three season of The Power Ponies! These aren't even on sale anymore," Spike said with a smile on his face. The two of them put their gifts down and hugged their mother once more.

"You're the best, Mom," Scootaloo said.

"No kidding," Spike added. Twilight gave each of them a kiss and nuzzled them on the cheek, but the tender moment was cut short by Velvet.

"Okay everypony we need to all get ready for the day and start preparing for tonight's dinner."

There was a unanimous wave of moans and groans, but Velvet wasn't having any of it. "Come on all of you. Chop chop. We're having Royalty over for dinner tonight so we need to make sure that everything is perfect.”

This time there was a collective sigh from everypony, as they all knew arguing with Velvet was always a losing battle.

“Shining and Cadence I would like it if you can clean upstairs for me. Twilight, would you please take care of the bathrooms. Spike and Scootaloo, that leave the two of you to clean up the mess from opening gifts. Your father and I will clean up the kitchen and get the cooking started. Let's go," Velvet commanded.

Needless to say chores were the last thing everypony wanted to do that day, but they all knew that if they did them it would be for their own benefit. Just before Princess Celestia and Luna were due to show up the finishing touches on the cleaning and preparing were being taken care of. Twilight, Scootaloo, and Spike were setting the table while Shining Armor and Cadence were putting out the Hor d'oeurvres.

"Hurry up everypony the princesses will be here any minute," Velvet called from the kitchen.

"Is Grandma always this excessive with attention to detail?" Scootaloo asked her mother as they finished up.

"Every since she was your age according to your Great Grandma and Grandpa," Twilight mentioned as she made sure all the silverware was placed in the proper positions on the table, with the hope that she wouldn't be yelled at for doing it wrong.

"Let’s go everypony I can see their carriage," Velvet yelled from the kitchen. A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door, which was answered by Twilight.

"Happy Hearth's Warming Day everypony," Princess Celestia and Luna said as they entered the home. Twilight had to take a second to look back and forth between the two sisters. Princess Celestia looked no different than she did any other day, though Twilight noticed she wasn't wearing any of her regalia. Luna, however, was completely decked out in all sorts of holiday apparel. Everything from the stereotypical red and green sweater to a Santa Hooves hat that flashed "Merry Hearth's Warming" in big red letters. Top that all off with a fake red nose and magical lights wrapped around her horn and Luna was basically the poster pony for the holiday.

"Well don't you look...festive Luna," Twilight said politely, all while trying to hold in her laughter.

"Why thank you Twilight. Hearth's Warming time is my favorite time of the year, ever since I was a filly," Luna explained. Twilight swallowed struggled to contain herself. As Princess Celestia walked by her student she whispered in her ear.

"There was no convincing her to take that all off, or at least the lights and the nose. She's really happy and cheerful though, more than she's been in a long time. So let's try and not laugh at her if we can."

Twilight nodded her head and made a note to spread the word, starting with the two individuals who were most likely to do the laughing.

"You both are just in time," Velvet said as she walked out into the living room, "Dinner should be ready in thirty minutes or so. So feel free to talk among yourselves and eat some appetizers while I finish the cooking."

All the adults, minus Luna, gathered around the couch and engaged in simple small talk. Spike decided to move over to the fire and finally get to work on reading his new book. Scootaloo and Luna, meanwhile, nestled up on a loveseat together and entertained themselves with Scootaloo’s JoyBoy. As they waited there was suddenly a knock on the door.

"I'll get it," Twilight said before trotting out of the living room and into the entrance way. Her mood quickly took a dive bomb when she saw who was at the door.

"Good evening Twilight and a Merry Hearths Warming to you," Prince Blueblood said politely as the door opened. Twilight glared at him.

"What do you want?" she spat. The Prince kept his composure and spoke.

"I have come here to apologize for my behavior last night and for all the things I said about you and your filly. Would you mind if I stepped inside so we could talk about it?"

Twilight shook her head. "Let's do this outside. I wouldn’t want my family to hear you blubber like a foal if I end up punching you again."

Blueblood held his tongue once more and Twilight stepped outside. The two guards that were standing on the front porch eyeballed them as they walked away from the house.

"Well then?" Twilight said with a raised eyebrow.

The Prince cleared his throat before speaking. "I apologize for what I did last night. It was uncalled for. I shouldn’t have tried to hit your daughter and then go and insult the both of you. Can you forgive me?"

Twilight wasn't really buying it though. She knew there was something going on. "Are you just saying this because Princess Celestia and Luna are making you do it?"

Prince Blueblood shook his head. "I am doing this on my own accord. I feel bad for what I did last night and I want to make amends," he said.

Twilight still couldn't believe it, but she also kind of felt like he was being sincere. "Well since you are apparently doing this on your own and not because you have to, I suppose I could forgive you," she told him.

"Well, that is good to hear," he said with a smile, "I am glad we were able to work this out of the way. I'll let you return to your family then."

Twilight stood there for a moment and looked at the Prince. She was pleasantly shocked. He wasn't trying to do anything. Prince Blueblood, for once in his life, was caring about somepony other than himself.

"Well have a Happy Hearth's Warming then," Twilight said before turning around.

"You too,' he called back, "Oh by the way."

Twilight stopped in her tracks. I knew it was too good to be true.

"Maybe one of these nights you can get a foalsitter for that daughter of yours and you and I can go out on a date. I promise I'll show you a good time."

Twilight's cheeks went pink and she flipped around. "Here I thought you had actually grown up. Glad to see I was wrong."

"What did I do wrong," Prince Blueblood snapped, "I just asked you out on a date. Is there something wrong with that? I'm just trying to show you that there is more to life than those books you like to attach yourself to. Most mares would melt if they could have me as there piece of hoofcandy."

Twilight’s cheeks went red and she got up in the Prince's face. "First off I have a boyfriend. Second, I like ponies with a little brain, something you seem to lack. Lastly I would go on a date with any stallion in Equestria before I would go on one with you. If you were the last stallion left, well then I'd become a fillyfooler. That's how little of a chance you have."

"You would be the last person in the world to have a boyfriend Sparkle," Prince Blueblood said with a snort, "You have the social skills of a wet towel and wouldn't even notice a stallion looking at you unless they were right up in your face. All I was asking was that you find a pony to look after your brat while I show you a good time. You're the only mare in Equestria that would ever turn down a romantic evening with royalty. How does the idea of lying down in bed with the most gorgeous stallion in all the land not..."

The Prince could not finish his sentence, though. In fact he was about to experience some serious Déjà Vu. As quick as lightning, just like last night, Twilight's hoof made contact with Prince Blueblood's nose. Blueblood staggered back after the blow, covering his nose wit his hoof. The snow just below him was slowly being stained crimson.

"If you ever come near me or my family again a broken nose is going to be last thing you'll have to worry about," Twilight snarled before turning around and trotting back into the house. Blueblood, struggling to keep pressure on his nose, looked at the guards standing in the doorway.

"Aren't you going to help me?" he asked.

"The whole guard has been instructed to not take orders from you anymore Prince," one of them said. The two guards eyeballed each other and smirked as they watched the beaten Prince slowly stagger away, cursing under his breath.

When Twilight walked back into the house everypony was already at the table waiting for her. "Who was that, Twinkle?" her father asked her. She sat down next to her daughter and didn't utter a single word.

"Twilight you seem rather bothered," Velvet commented. Twilight crossed her legs and her cheeks got pink.

"Prince Blueblood came to apologize," she said with bitterness in her voice. Many at the table were surprised by this comment.

"On his own accord?" Shining Armor asked curiously. Twilight nodded her head. Many at the table were actually impressed.

"So why are you flustered then?" Night Light questioned. Twilight mumbled something that was all but understandable.

"What was that, Twily?" her mother said with an ear raised so she could hear better.

"Let's just say he said some things that got me pretty angry followed by a few insults," Twilight said with a growl. All the sympathy for the Prince was gone in an instant.

"That boy just can't seem to learn, can he?" Princess Celestia said with a sigh, "I guess I'm going to have to have another talk with him."

"Don't bother," Twilight replied, "I took care of it."

Everypony in the room could tell Twilight was holding something back, but she wouldn't tell them what it was out of embarrassment. Still everypony was curious as to what happened, and thus the poking and prodding continued.

"Twinkle, you're hiding something from all of us. Just tell us what it is and you might feel better," Night Light said calmly with hopes Twilight would open up. She sat there in complete silence for what felt like forever. Finally, much to everypony's relief, she told them what happened.

"Let's just say he probably has a serious case of déjà vu right now," she told them.

Complete and utter silence. Everypony was thinking about this and it didn't take long to figure out what Twilight meant by this. Shining Armor was the one that broke the silence, because he couldn't contain his laughter.

"Can we please swap bodies or something?" he joked, "Do you know how many times I've wanted to pop him in the jaw, but I couldn't? I'm pretty sure the tallies alone could fill a small book. Seriously, how can you get so lucky that you get to punch him not once, but twice in just two nights?"

Twilight’s whole face went completely red and she took a rather large sip from the glass of wine sitting in front of her. "Can we...can we just pretend it didn't happen and have a wonderful evening?"

For the sake of Twilight's mood for the rest of the night everypony dropped what she told them. Scootaloo had never seen her mother in a bad mood, and Spike told her that she ought to pray she never did.

Dinner was rather uneventful. Velvet had made a traditional Hearth's Warming dinner, just like she did every year. Scootaloo asked if she could try her mother's wine, but was quickly told no. She got kind of sour when Spike was allowed to have a small sip. She was told when she was older she could try some. After dinner everyone retired to the living room for dessert and casual conversation. Scootaloo was wondering if they would be giving gifts, but Twilight explained to her that years ago they stopped doing it because it got too complicated. Therefore, it came as a surprise when Luna announced she had a present to give, to Scootaloo none the less.

"Luna you didn't need to do that," Twilight said as the Night Princess levitated a rather large gift into Scootaloo’s lap.

"Well after the fun we had yesterday I wanted to do this Twilight," Luna replied quickly. Scootaloo carefully opened the gift, and couldn’t believe her eyes when she saw what was inside.

"I..." was all she could get out. Sitting in her lap was a Ponystation 4 box.

"After I saw how much fun you had playing with this yesterday I knew that you should have this. I can wait to get another one when they come out," Luna explained. Scootaloo was lost for words.

"I...Princess Luna, I can't take this," she said quietly. Luna smiled and put a pushed the gift a bit closer to Scootaloo.

"Take it Scootaloo. I know how happy it made you to play it," Luna insisted, all with a smile on her face. In a flash the box had been carefully set aside and Scootaloo and Luna were locked into a rather tight embrace.

"You are the best Princess. Thank you so much," Scootaloo said.

"You are welcome my dear. Just know that when I do get a new system we are going to have another rematch. I promise that I will beat you," Luna said with a sneer.

"You're on," Scootaloo giggled.

Twilight walked upstairs quietly and carefully. Scootaloo was riding on her back and was passed out. Spike was walking next to her and was drifting in and out of sleep. The Princesses had left about ten minutes ago, along with Shining Armor and Cadence. Night Light and Velvet were downstairs cleaning the kitchen. Twilight planned to join them as soon as she put Scootaloo and Spike to bed.

"Goodnight Spike," she said quietly as they walked into the room. She gave him a kiss on the cheek and tucked him into his bed. He was out in seconds. Twilight then walked over to her bed and got Scootaloo settled.

"Goodnight princess," she whispered as she kissed her too. Scootaloo smiled and adjusted her position under the blankets. Twilight left quietly and then made her way back downstairs.

What a vacation, she thought to herself, It's too bad tomorrow is our last day.

The last day came and went and the following day everypony found themselves at the Canterlot Train Station saying goodbye to one another.

"We promise we’ll come visit soon," Shining Armor said as he gave his niece a huge hug.

"You better keep that promise, Uncle Shiny," Scootaloo responded quickly, causing Shining to chuckle and squeeze her even harder.

"If you ever need someone to watch her, Twilight," Cadence mentioned as she and Twilight shared a nuzzle.

"I will let you know immediately," Twilight told her for the hundredth time.

"Hey don't leave us out of all this," Night Light and Velvet said together. Everypony couldn't help but laugh. Scootaloo was the center of attention once again. Twilight couldn't believe how well this vacation had gone. It had its moments, ones that she'd rather not think about, but overall she couldn't help but call it a success. Scootaloo bonding with her family had been the most important part of this trip, and bond she did.

"I promise I'll try to get us up here more often," Twilight mentioned as she hugged her parents.

"Of course Twinkle," Night Light said.

"You don't even need to tell us," Velvet added, "Just show up whenever. We'd love to have you."

Twilight smiled and hugged them all once more before herding Spike and Scootaloo onto the train. They found a nice spot to sit and then looked out the window and waved. Everypony waved back and continued to do so as the train started moving. When they could finally no longer see anypony the three of them sat down.

"Are we going to go back soon, Mama?" Scootaloo asked as she rested up against Twilight for the long ride home.

"Of course baby," Twilight said as she stroked her mane, "And hopefully it'll be soon."