Step-Sisters

Chapters

Scoot's Place
The First Visit
Round One
Grounded
Solution
Common Ground
Old Habits
Working It Out
Getting Along

Scoot's Place

Scootaloo rode her scooter through town as fast as her wings could propel her. She swerved around ponies as they went about their daily routine. Why couldn't they just clear a path for her? Didn't they know she had places to be?

By the time she was finished complaining to herself, Scootaloo had arrived at the Cutie Mark Crusaders clubhouse. She drifted around the tree and came to a stop at the bottom of the ramp.

She ran inside to find Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom waiting. "Sorry I'm late guys. I was just...finishing the homework Miss Cherilee gave us yesterday."

Sweetie Belle smiled. "I finished that right after class. It was so easy."

Scoot shook her head as if annoyed, but inside she was letting out a sigh of relief for her friends believing the excuse.

Apple Bloom started jumping around the clubhouse. "What're we gonna do today?"

The morning went into overdrive as the daily crusading began. Today's agenda involved painting a masterpiece, walking a tight rope, firefighting, and winning a pie-eating contest.

Scootaloo was happy to get lost in the adventures of her life. The Crusaders helped her forget the less-lovable things in her world.

But that wasn't so today...

"Hey Scoot! Do you think we might find our special talents at your place?"

Scootaloo froze in horror. "What?!" She couldn't bring herself to look at her friends.

Sweetie Belle narrowed her eyes. "Actually, I don't think we've ever been to your home. Have we Apple Bloom?"

Apple Bloom shook her head. "Never." A smile formed on her face. "We should go!"

"NO!!"

Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom stared at Scootaloo in surprise. Scoot tried to come up with an explanation, but her head was empty. What could she do?

"Why not, Scoot?"

"Uh...uh... My house is being cleaned?"

She did her best to smile. It was obvious that her friends didn't believe her. She could feel the sweat rolling down her face. No...not sweat. A...tear? Was she about to cry? She couldn't! Not in front of her friends!
It was too late though. The others had spotted the tear and were beginning to look concerned.

Apple Bloom stepped forward. "What's wrong?"

Scootaloo shook her head. Why was she crying? There was no reason to be crying. But that wasn't entirely true. Being forced to talk about home was bringing up the memory of that morning. The reason she'd been late to meeting her friends.

"I don't want to go back right now."

"Why not?"

"I...I broke something. An expensive something. I don't want to go back."

Sweetie Belle's eyes widened. "Are you running away?"

"No."

Apple Bloom thought for a moment. "Do yer parents know you broke it?"

That sent Scoot over the edge, the tears coming faster. She sat there, waiting for more questions. Instead she felt her friends embrace her.

"It's okay Scoot. We won't let anything happen to you."

Scootaloo couldn't hold it in anymore. She had held in the secret for long enough.

"I'm adopted."

She opened her eyes to see them staring at her in shock. She slowly nodded her head. "I'm adopted."

Apple Bloom hugged her again. "That's alright. It doesn't make us like you any less!"

Sweetie Belle smiled and joined the hug. "Of course not!"

Scootaloo shook her head and sniffled. "That's not the problem."

"Are you afraid your new parents won't like you anymore?"

"No!"

They backed away from her. Sweetie Belle let her head tilt to the side. "Who are they anyways? Who are your parents?"

Scoot hesitated. How could she tell them? How could she not? She took a deep breath. Another bought of crying was trying to break free. Scoot closed her eyes as the new tears came.

"My dad is Filthy Rich."

Apple Bloom's eyes widened. "But that's...that's..."

Scoot nodded. "Yeah."

Sweetie Belle gasped. "Diamond Tiara's your sister?!"

The tears came faster, but Scootaloo didn't care. That horrid filly was anything but her sister! And it was her fault she was crying!

Her fault....

Her fault...

Scootaloo was running towards the front door. She turned a corner and collided with a pedestal. Where had that come from? It hadn't been there yesterday.

CRASH

Scootaloo froze, looking at the broken item. She didn't know what it was, but it was new and probably expensive.

"No no no no no no no no no! This can't be happening. This can't be happening!!"

She shuffled the pieces together and looked around. Nopony in sight. That meant nopony knew it was broken... Should she hide it? No. It was new. It would be noticed too quickly. That left only one option. She'd have to fix it. But how?

Scoot checked the nearby rooms for anything to use. Her search turned up a roll of tape and some gum.

"Alright. Lets see if I can get my statue fixing cutie mark."

She didn't.

Scootaloo looked at the statue. Was this pony supposed to have three legs? And two tails? Scoot lowered her head.

"Great. Just great."

"What are you doing?"

Oh no!

Scoot turned to find Diamond Tiara gawking at the scene. "You broke Daddy's new statue!" A smile crept to her face. "You're so dead when he gets home! You'll be grounded for sure. Maybe he'll even throw you out finally!"

Scoot ran to the door and left the mansion. She hopped on her scooter and flapped her wings.

How could she have been so stupid? She had just broken yet another piece of art. What would her father say? She had promised him she'd be more careful. She'd said it would never happen again! She was dead. Worse than dead...

Scootaloo wiped away her tears. She felt so stupid right now. She'd been crying in front of her friends for pony's sake! And yet...they didn't care. They didn't hate her.

"You...you don't hate me."

Apple Bloom looked hurt. "Of course we don't! It's not yer fault you've got a prissy filly for a sister."

Sweetie Belle chimed in. "You're the one we like Scootaloo."

Scoot felt a smile creep onto her face. She sniffled for a moment before responding.

"You guys are the best."

Another group hug ensued. When they broke apart, Scoot wiped the last of her tears away and straightened up.

"So what's next on our list?"

Sweetie Belle put a hoof to her chin. "Hmm... We could try..." Her eyes brightened, but not in an epiphany way, a mischievous way. "Sister pranking."

The three fillies fell over laughing. What did a pranking cutie mark look like?

The First Visit

"I don't know about this guys."

The Crusaders were walking towards the mansion. It had taken a few hours of coaxing, but Scootaloo had agreed to bring the others over.

Apple Bloom nudged her. "Come on, Scoot! It's not as if we've never been around Diamond Tiara before."

True, but to have to deal with her outside of school? Scootaloo loathed her at school, but she also had to deal with her at home. That was one of the reasons she had never brought her friends over. She didn't want them to undergo the same torture that she put up with.

They reached the front door and Scootaloo pushed it open. "Wipe your hooves or we'll never hear the end of it."

Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom stared wide-eyed at the sight before them. The front entry of the mansion revealed a grand hall with a huge staircase at the far end. The walls were decorated with paintings and other various art pieces.

"You really live here?"

Scoot nodded. She led the way inside, shutting the door behind her friends. Their hoofsteps echoed on the floor as they walked towards the stairs.

"What are they doing here?"

The voice echoed through the hall. The Crusaders looked for the source only to discover Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon at the top of the stairs.

Scootaloo glared up at the fillies. "What, I'm not allowed to have friends over?"

Diamond Tiara sneered down at the Crusaders. "You never brought them over before. It's bad enough having one blank flank in the mansion."

Silver Spoon turned around. "Let's get out of here before they burn the place down."

The two fillies walked away giggling.

Scootaloo shook her head. "I hate it when they get together."

Sweetie Belle turned to her. "But they're always together."

"Exactly."

Apple Bloom jumped onto the first stair and smiled. "Come on! We've got a whole mansion to explore!"

The Crusaders smiled and charged up the stairway.

Scootaloo took her friends on a tour of her home. They went everywhere from the dining room to the backyard garden. And every room brought looks of awe from them. They ended their tour at Scoot's room.

"Wow!"

Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom looked around at the room they stood in. There were Wonderbolts posters and cloud diagrams covering the walls. A rainbow wig sat next to a photo of Scoot and Rainbow Dash. And in the middle of the room, a white cloud was floating a few inches off the floor.

Apple Bloom walked over to the cloud. "Is this yer bed?"

Scootaloo smiled. "Yep. Rainbow Dash helped me pick it out. It's one of the fluffiness clouds from the sky."

Apple Bloom jumped, expecting to land on the cloud. She fell straight through and hit the floor. Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo giggled.

Scoot helped Apple Bloom stand up. "Only pegasi can stand on clouds. But trust me, it's comfy."

Sweetie Belle walked around the room. "This is so cool! I can't believe you never brought us over before!"

Scootaloo shrugged. "It's not that fancy. I like simpler things. You should see Diamond Tiara's room. It's awful! Glitter, gems and pink everything."

They laughed at the thought of such a flashy room.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

The three fillies turned to the door. It opened to reveal a tall stallion. He wore a fancy shirt and coat along with a bow tie.

"Your father would like to see you Scootaloo."

Scoot took a step back. "About what?"

The stallion didn't respond. He stepped out of the doorway and beckoned her with a nod. Scoot began to walk forward. Her friends followed, walking on either side of her.

They followed the stallion to a large set of doors. They opened inward to reveal a large library. Or at least it looked like a library. It was in fact the personal study of Filthy Rich. And he was sitting behind his desk, filing through papers.

The Crusaders slowly approached the desk. Scootaloo tried to back away, but the doors had already shut behind them.

Filthy Rich looked up. A look of surprise crossed his face as he saw the three fillies. "Are these your friends Scootaloo?"

She nodded slowly. "Yeah. I thought it would be okay to invite them over."

The stallion stood up and smiled. "Of course! I'm surprised you didn't bring them by a lot sooner."

Scootaloo visibly relaxed. Maybe she wasn't in trouble after all.

"Now about the sculpture."

Drat!

Scoot fumbled for her words. "I didn't...it was just...I couldn't... It was an accident!"

Rich sighed and walked over to her. "I figured as much, but I can't just forget about it. Do you remember last week?"

She lowered her gaze and gave a small nod. Last week had been an old vase from before the rise of Nightmare Moon.

"Do you remember your promise?"

Another nod.

"You said it wouldn't happen again."

Her voice was barely audible. "I know."

"You promised more than you could give."

"I'm sorry."

Rich let out another sigh and pulled her into a hug. "I know. But you'll have to learn to be more careful. No more running inside. Okay?"

"Okay."

Rich let her go and nodded toward the doors. "Go on. Have fun with your friends. We'll talk later."

Scootaloo smiled and gave him a hug. "Okay."

As the Crusaders exited the study, they found Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon standing outside. Scootaloo stuck her tongue out at them as she walked passed.

Round One

The bell rang for recess and the classroom emptied. The Crusaders ran over to their favorite shady spot ad began making their plans for the afternoon's crusade.

"What about clock makers?"

"Circus clowns!"

"We could be musicians!"

"Musicians?"

"Yeah. You could play... The accordion!"

"I still say circus clowns."

This seemed to be how every recess went. But today would bring an interruption.

"Of course you could be clowns. You three would be naturals."

Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were standing behind the Crusaders. They pushed between them so they stood in front.

Silver Spoon snickered. "I doubt they'd even be good clowns."

Diamond Tiara brushed her mane back and sighed. "I guess Ponyville will just have to deal with having three talentless ponies."

Scootaloo flared her wings out. "The only talentless ponies here are you two."

The two fillies turned to their sides, revealing their cutie marks.

"Then what do you call these?"

Scoot laughed. "Those aren't proof of talent. Those are proof that you two are spoiled brats!"

Diamond Tiara glared at the pegasus. "If I'm spoiled, than so are you!"

"And yet I don't walk around like I'm royalty."

"That's because you weren't born into a good family. Why else would you have been put up for adoption?"

"What did you say?!"

"I guess it makes sense why you don't have a cutie mark. You come from other talentless ponies."

Scoot's hoof landed before she had even thought of punching Diamond Tiara. The filly fell to the ground, shock written all over her face.

Silver Spoon ran towards the schoolhouse. "MISS CHERILEE!!"

Scootaloo sat in the study, waiting for Rich to enter. How could she have been so reckless? She hit Diamond Tiara! Sure it felt good in the moment, but now the consequences were pulling her into a deep, deep hole. What would happen to her? Cherilee had sent her home early for the punch. What would her father do? What would he say?

The door opened behind Scoot. She couldn't bring herself to look. She listened as a set of hooves walked into the room. The hooves came into view as Rich stood in front of her.

"Unless you expect my hooves to talk, look up here."

She slowly raised her gaze to met her father's. He had a stern look about him.

"Tell me what happened."

Scoot swallowed and took a deep breath. "She...she was making fun of my friends."

"And that means it's okay to hit her?"

"She called us talentless!"

"And that was wrong of her, but that still doesn't give you the right-"

"She said my parents abandoned me!"

That caught Rich off guard. He was speechless for a few moments. He shook his head and looked towards the door.

"Bring Diamond Tiara to the study."

A pony had been standing in wait at the door. And now she was heading for Diamond Tiara's room.

Rich turned back to Scootaloo. "What she did was wrong. Very wrong. But you're not in the right here either. Do you understand?"

She nodded.

The door opened again to reveal Diamond Tiara, a hoofprint still visible on her cheek.

"You called Daddy?"

Rich glared at her. "Did you say something about Scootaloo's parents?"

"What? Um...no."

He continued to glare at her. Diamond Tiara started to shuffle her hooves. He could tell she was lying. He looked between his two daughters for a few seconds before sighing.

"Both of you have some thinking to do. And some apologizing. You're both grounded for a week. No friends, no fun."

Scootaloo and Diamond Tiara were both ready to argue the point, but their father's look told them it was a lost cause.

"Both of you go to your rooms."

They left without another word.

Scootaloo could feel a tear forming in the corner of her eye. No crusading for a week? No seeing Apple Bloom or Sweetie Belle?

"I hope you're happy!"

No she wasn't. She-

Wait...that voice had been out loud. Scoot turned her head to see Diamond Tiara glaring at her.

"You got me in trouble! How is that fair?"

Scoot narrowed her eyes. "Do you want a matching hoofprint?"

Diamond Tiara jumped back, covering her good cheek.

Scootaloo nodded. "I thought so." With that, she turned towards her room and walked away.

It didnt surprise her that Diamond Tiara wanted the final word.

"Just you wait! I'll get you back for this!"

Scoot looked over her shoulder at the angry filly and smiled.

"Good luck with that."

Grounded

Scootaloo and Diamond Tiara walked into the schoolhouse together. They were followed closely by one of the maids from the mansion who had been given temporary nanny duties over them.

"Good morning girls."

Cherilee stepped forward and nodded to the maid. The mare turned and left. Cherilee motioned to the empty classroom.

"Scootaloo, you will be sitting in the front corner there. Diamond Tiara, you'll be in the opposite back corner. And you won't have to worry about being disturbed by your friends. They won't be sitting near you."

Both fillies stared at the ground in shame. Wasn't it bad enough that they were grounded at home? No! Their father had to go and talk to Cherilee as well. When he said no fun, he meant no fun.

The two fillies sat in silence as the classroom began to fill. Scootaloo watched as Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom were directed to the back of the class. How could this get any worse?

"Do I have to sit there Miss Cherilee?"

Scoot froze. She wouldn't. She couldn't! Would Cherilee really do it?

Scoot slowly turned to find out...

She had.

Silver Spoon was sitting at the next desk.

Scoot put her head down on her desk. "Great. Just great."

Silver Spoon groaned. "How do you think I feel?"

It was going to be a long morning....

The bell for recess went off and everypony raced outside. Scootaloo and Diamond Tiara made a break for it, but came to a halt as Cherilee stepped in front of the door.

"I'm afraid you two will be remaining inside. Go back to your seats."

They returned to their corners, defeated. Cherilee nodded approvingly and stepped outside.

Diamond Tiara glared at Scootaloo. "Thanks a lot!"

Scoot rolled her eyes. "Do you think I wanted this?"

"Yes! You hit me!"

"Only because you were telling lies!"

Diamond Tiara sat back with a huff. There was silence in the room for several seconds. Both fillies tried to find something to fill the boredom. Seconds became minutes as neither one wanted to speak to the other.

Until...

"Did Silver Spoon say anything?"

Scootaloo turned to the back corner. Diamond Tiara was leaning forward, waiting for a reply.

Scoot shook her head. "No... Did the Crusaders say anything?"

Another shaking head. "No. Not to me anyways."

"Yeah. Why would your friend speak to me or my friends speak to you?"

"Yeah..."

Silence took over again and the fillies sighed.

Scootaloo looked at Diamond Tiara. They locked gazes, neither one looking away. Scoot could feel the words sticking in her throat. She didn't want to say them, but they came out anyway.

"I'm sorry."

Diamond Tiara looked even more shocked than when she had been punched.

"What?"

"I'm sorry, okay?"

"You? You're sorry?"

"Don't make me say it again!"

Diamond Tiara continued to stare at Scoot in shock. Scoot turned away, uncomfortable with the situation.

"My parents didn't abandon me. They... They died."

"How?"

"I don't know. Dad won't tell me."

"Oh."

RIIIIINNNNNNGGGGG

The classroom began to fill up again. Cherilee followed at the back of the crowd.

"Alright. Take your seats and we'll continue our lesson on Saddle Arabia."

Scootaloo glanced back at Diamond Tiara. Their eyes met for a brief moment before looking back to Cherilee.

The two fillies walked through the front door of the mansion. They let out sighs of relief. School had seemed to last twice as long today.

Scootaloo started up the stairs.

"I'm sorry."

Now it was her turn to be shocked.

"What?"

"You heard me."

Diamond Tiara rushed past her without looking back.

Scootaloo walked into her father's study. Rich was behind his desk, his brow furrowed as he worked.

"Hi Dad."

He glanced up. "Hey. How was school."

"Horrible."

He smiled. "Good."

"We... We apologized."

Rich paused and sat up. "You two made up?"

Scoot nodded.

He smiled. "Good for you." And with that, he went back to work.

"Um... does that mean our punishment's over?"

This warranted a chuckle from Rich. He sat up again. "No."

"What?! But.. We apologized!"

"You both did or said things that have consequences. Your punishment isn't over just because you made up with your sister."

"Why not?"

"Because I said so."

Scootaloo frowned. That was always his excuse!

Rich sighed. "It's only a week Scootaloo. You'll survive."

He went back to work. Scoot wanted to continue, but she knew there was no point. She walked away.

Scoot returned to her room. But instead of going in, she walked over to Diamond Tiara's door and knocked.

"Who's there?"

"Me."

The door opened a crack, revealing one of Diamond Tiara's eyes.

"What?"

"Do you...want to do something...together?"

"What could we possibly do together?"

"I don't know! Anything so we're not bored out of our skulls!"

Diamond Tiara stared at her for a few seconds before opening the door all the way. She smiled and nodded.

Scoot walked forward.

And then the door slammed in her face, her nose crushed between her head and the wood.

"OUCH!!"

A giggle came from behind the door.

"Now we're even."

Solution

Two days passed without any further incident between Scootaloo and Diamond Tiara. They were quiet in class and were quiet at home. Frankly this concerned Filthy Rich. Had he done too much?

And then the shouting started again.

"Well at least things are back to normal..."

"How could you get my friends in trouble like that?!"

"It's not my fault they were being annoying!"

"It's your fault that they got detention!"

They had been at it for a half hour now. It took another ten minutes before both fillies were out of breath.

Scootaloo was the first to get her voice back. "We're not going to survive five more days of this."

Diamond Tiara nodded. "We have to get Daddy to unground us."

"How?"

"I don't know! Why do I have to do all the thinking?"

"Because you never think at school!"

"Are you calling me stupid?"

"Maybe I am!"

Dinner was set on the table. Rich inhaled the aroma of fresh fruit and vegetables. The door to the dining room opened. Scootaloo and Diamond Tiara walked in and sat in their chairs.

"How are you doing girls?"

"Fine Daddy!"

"Really good!"

Rich paused, a celery stalk halfway to his mouth. He looked over at his daughters. They were smiling. They were happy!

"Are you two alright?"

Scootaloo grinned. "Better than alright."

Rich's eyes narrowed. "That's odd. Because I could have sworn I heard you two arguing earlier."

Diamond Tiara giggled. "Oh that? It was nothing."

"Really?"

The fillies nodded in unison. Rich looked between them, unsure of how to react. Were they really getting along? He closed his eyes and shook his head. He looked again. There were still two smiling fillies sitting at the table.

"Aliright. So why are you two so happy?"

Diamond Tiara continued to smile as she began. "We were arguing earlier when we realized that we always argued over silly things."

Scoot jumped up. "Exactly! We both thought it was dumb to argue over pointless stuff, so we made up. Now we're going to be...(gulp)...best friends!"

Rich looked between his daughters again. Could it be? Had his punishment worked? No more yelling? Wait...

"Best friends? You two?"

Scoot's smile twitched as she nodded. Diamond Tiara wasn't much better off.

"You wouldn't be trying to trick your father into letting you out of being grounded, would you?"

They shook their heads.

"What if I said I saw Diamond Tiara rifling through your room Scootaloo?"

"SHE DID WHAT?!"

"I never did that! I wouldn't go anywhere near her stupid room!"

Rich sat back and smirked. The fillies realized the mistake and lowered their heads.

"Can spending time together really be so painful? I raised you better than that. Sisters aren't supposed to hate each other."

He could tell he was getting through to them. The fillies were slowly lowering themselves to the floor in shame.

Scoot raised her gaze to her father. "We're sorry Dad. We just...don't have anything in common."

Rich smiled. "Than that's what you can do the rest of the week. Your punishment will end when you two find something in common and you can enjoy it together. Deal?"

They nodded slowly.

Author's Note

Sorry this is so short. I couldn't think of any other way to bridge the gap for the next, much longer, chapter. Hope you're enjoying it so far!

Common Ground

Scootaloo was sprawled out on her cloud, staring at the ceiling. She was never going to see her friends again. She would never be able to leave the mansion. And why was that? Because she had nothing in common with Diamond Tiara. That prissy little- Sometimes Scoot just wanted to...

Diamond Tiara took a pillow from her bed and screamed into it. Her life was ruined. She was going to be a loser like every pony at school! And it was all Scootaloo's fault. Why'd she have to be so dumb? Sometimes she just wanted to...

Rich sat down in the kitchen for an afternoon snack. Today had seemed like a great day. He wondered what was so different...

"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!"

Rich dropped his plate of cookies as the high-pitched screams echoed through the mansion. He covered his ears until the sound subsided. He looked down at the broken plate and now-crumbled cookies. He narrowed his eyes and put his head back.

"GIRLS!!!"

Scoot and Diamond sat in the library alone. Their father had put he in here in hopes that time together would force them to get along.

"What do you like to do?"

Scootaloo looked up. "Huh?"

Diamond rolled her eyes. "What do you like to do?"

"Umm.... Usually I like to try anything that could get me my cutie mark."

"We'll that doesn't help."

"What about you then?"

That forced Diamond to think. She remained silent for a few minutes. Scoot took to looking at the shelves of books while she waited.

"I like to...mrflmxpd."

Scoot turned to the filly. "What'd you say?"

"I like to...mrflmxpd."

"Say that again."

Diamond hesitated before repeating herself again. "I like to rollerskate, okay!"

Scoot stared at her in shock. "You?"

"I... I don't do it often. I think it's...fun. But you better not tell anyone!"

"How come you don't have a skating cutie mark then?"

"I started skating after I got it."

Scootaloo couldn't believe her ears. This pain-in-the-flank liked skating!

Diamond sighed in defeat. "Look, I want this punishment over with as much as you do. So why don't you get your scooter and we can go."

Scoot slowly nodded in agreement.

The two fillies walked out into the garden. Scoot pushed her scooter along while Diamond carried her skates. They paused by the fountain and Diamond began to slip the skates on.

Scootaloo looked around the garden. "This will be the best area. Walls all around so nopony spots us. And right at home so Dad will spot us. And the garden has a pretty good path. Almost like a racetrack."

Diamond Tiara nodded as she laced the last skate. "Let's get this over with."

Scoot smiled. "Race ya!"

With that she took off, her wings moving rapidly as they propelled her forward. She made the first turn without trouble, chuckling at leaving Diamond in the dust.

And then something passed her.

Diamond stuck out her tongue. "Catch you later!"

The pegasus couldn't believe what she was seeing. She almost biffed the next turn, narrowly missing the garden wall. Her wings went into overdrive as she worked to catch up.

Diamond looked behind her as Scoot closed in. "Pretty good for a blank flank."

Scoot narrowed her eyes. "Pretty fast for a stuck-up priss."

They rounded another turn and evened out, rolling side by side. The fountain was just ahead.

Scoot looked at her opponent and smiled. "Finish line?"

Diamond nodded. "Agreed."

And now it was on.

Rich stood up from his desk and stretched his legs. He had been working too long in one position. He paced around his office, passing by the window.

Wait...

He backed up to the window and looked down into the garden. He rubbed his eyes to make sure he was seeing clearly. The girls were racing!

Scootaloo and Diamond Tiara both skidded to a stop at the fountain.

"Yeah! I so beat you!"

"No, I beat you!"

"Priss!"

"Blank flank!"

They glared at each other for a moment before falling over, both giggling.

"We'll I didn't think it was possible."

The fillies sat up as their father walked up to them.

Rich smiled. "Diamond, I didn't know you could skate."

She brushed herself off and shrugged. "It's just a hobby."

Scoot nodded. "Yeah. We just wanted to see who was faster."

Rich chuckled and turned back towards the mansion. "Why don't you two go out. You've been cooped up for far too long."

They stared after him in shock.

Diamond was the first to regain her voice. "You mean... We're not grounded anymore?"

Rich gave a curt nod and disappeared inside. The girls looked at each other for a moment before giving each other a high-hoof.

"Yeah!"

They froze, realizing what they were doing.

Diamond yanked her hoof away. "That...never happened."

Scoot smiled. "Agreed."

"So...I won right?"

"What?! No way!"

"Rematch?"

"You're on!"

Rich returned to his office, ready to finish the day's work. Just as he was about to sit down, he looked out his window again. The girls were racing again. He smiled to himself. "Have fun you two."

Old Habits

Scootaloo ran into the classroom. She spotted Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom and grinned. "Guess who's not grounded anymore?"

Her friends cheered and tackled her to the floor. They all laughed as they enjoyed a group hug.

Diamond Tiara was out in the schoolyard when she saw Silver Spoon run up to her. They both smiled.

"Bump, Bump, Sugar Lump, Rump!"

Silver Spoon sat back and rolled her eyes. "It's been so boring without you around."

Diamond groaned. "You should have seen how awful it was at home!"

Cherilee stepped in front of the class. She smiled at seeing her students back to normal. The Crusaders were all together and smiling like it was Hearth's Warming Eve. And Diamond Tiara was with Silver Spoon. Luckily the two groups didn't sit near each other.

"Alright class. Today we're going to prepare for the math test you'll have on Monday."

Scootaloo felt her heart stop. There was a math test on Monday?! Why hadn't she known about it?

Diamond Tiara froze in her seat. They had been studying math this week?

The bell rang for recess and the classroom emptyed. The Crusaders went to their favorite spot and sat down.

Sweetie Belle smiled. "It's so nice having you back Scoot!"

Scoot returned the grin. "Yeah. It's nice being back."

Apple Bloom looked at her. "Is somethin' wrong?"

"I didn't know we had a test coming up."

"Haven't you been paying attention in class?"

"Well...not really. I've been so bummed out by being grounded I just kind of...zoned out in class."

"What a surprise. The blank flank doesn't even have a talent for math!"

The Crusaders turned to see Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara standing nearby.

Silver Spoon continued. "I guess that makes sense though. I mean, ponies that still have blank flanks can't be that smart. Right Diamond?"

Diamond Tiara, who hadn't been paying much attention, focused in on her friend's remark. "Huh? Yeah! Obviously we'll have no trouble at all."

Silver Spoon laughed. "That's because we're better!"

"And smarter!"

"And prettier!"

"Anypony not like us couldn't possibly hope to be as amazing."

The two fillies walked away giggling, leaving the Crusaders to simmer.

Sweetie Belle frowned. "Hmmph! Those two make me so angry sometimes!"

Apple Bloom nodded. "I know, right?"

Scootaloo nodded as well, but she wasn't angry. She was confused. Why had Diamond joined in on the bullying?

Scoot sat in her room looking over the math review. And then she she let her head fall to the desk.

"Ugh! Why is math so...numbery?"

She looked up at the clock. She'd been studying for... Three minutes?!

"Woah Scoot! New record!"

Something like that deserved celebration. And that meant a break!

Diamond Tiara looked at the math review. It seemed like fairly simple stuff, but why did she have to know it? She was going to be in her father's company one day!

"When will I ever need math in business?"

She tossed the papers aside and left her room.

Scootaloo sat in the kitchen enjoying a glass of chocolate milk. She looked around, making sure nopony was coming, and opened one of the lower cabinets. Couldn't risk anypony finding out about her stash.

She pulled out a brown bag and dumped the contents onto the counter. A smile crossed her face.

"Beautiful."

Pinkie Pie had recently created a new treat. It had been by accident, but ponies loved them so much that it was added to the Sugar Cube Corner menu.

Scoot picked one of the treats up. It was two chocolate cookies with a creamy center. And it was delicious! She popped it into her mouth, savoring the flavor for as long as she could.

"Where did you get those?"

Scoot froze. Horse feathers! She turned to see Diamond Tiara standing at the kitchen door.

Diamond stepped closer. "I didn't see any in the pantry. Where did you get them?"

Scoot swallowed and tried to think of an explanation..... Nothing.

Diamond walked over and sat down. "Could I have one?"

The two fillies sat there for a moment in silence. In that moment, Scootaloo recalled their encounter earlier at school.

"I'm sure you wouldn't want cookies that a 'dumb blank flank' had."

Diamond looked confused. And then it clicked in her head.

"I...I didn't mean that!"

"Oh come on! You said it right to my face! And my friends' faces!"

"I only did it because Silver Spoon was there!"

"So you think you can bully me at school and then just expect to be pals at home?!"

"Well..."

Scoot didn't wait for an answer. She stood up and walked away.

"Keep the cookies. I've lost my appetite."

Working It Out

"This is it! We'll definitely have our cutie marks after this!"

"This was a great idea!"

"I never figured our special talent could be yoga!"

The Crusaders walked across the meadow. There was a group of ponies gathering for their weekly yoga meet. After everything that's ever happened in Ponyville somepony had figured some relaxation was needed. Nopony could have guessed who that pony was though.

The Crusaders laid down their yoga mats in the front of the group, waiting for the instructor to start.

"Come on everypony! I wanna see you stretch!"

Pinkie led the group through a warmup, everypony sighing as they relaxed and stretched.

The Crusaders watched carefully and did their best to copy the pink pony.

Scootaloo looked at her friends. "Can you guys bend that much?"

She didn't need an answer. She could see that Sweetie Belle had tangled her hooves up and Apple Bloom had fallen over. She sighed to herself. They definitely weren't getting yoga cutie marks.

Scoot tossed her yoga mat on the floor and buried her face in her cloud. Yoga was a bust. Why did nothing the Crusaders try ever work out?

She looked down at where the mat had landed. How could stretching be so hard?

Maybe it just took practice...

Deciding to give it one more chance, Scoot got down from her cloud and unfurled the mat. She sat down and assumed the position she'd seen Pinkie do earlier. So at so good.

She inhaled and closed her eyes. "Time for some relaxation."

"Relaxation?"

Scratch that off the list. Scoot opened her eyes to see Diamond Tiara standing in the doorway.

"Can I help you?"

"What are you trying to do?"

"It's called yoga. It helps ponies relax. Especially the ones that have annoying sisters!"

Diamond scowled. "If there's an annoying sister in this house, it's you!"

"What?! You're way more annoying!"

"Are you kidding? With you and your friends running around all the time, you're obviously annoying."

"And yet you're the one that goes around making fun of others. Nopony thinks that's nice!"

The two fillies glared at each other, their muzzles an inch apart by this point.

Scoot took a step back and sighed, sitting back on her mat. She closed her eyes and inhaled.

Diamond was at a lose for what to do. "Is that it? You're not going to argue anymore?"

No response.

"Ha! I win then!"

Scoot's eyes remained closed. "What did you win?"

"The arguement of course! That means I was right. You're the annoying one."

Scoot exhaled. "And yet you're the one annoying me right now."

She smiled to herself. Wow! This yoga stuff makes you smart!

"Well... You're just..."

Scoot opened one eye to see Diamond struggling for her words. Diamond finally groaned and sat down.

The relaxed pegasus opened both eyes and frowned. "Why do you always have to argue?"

"Because."

"That's not an answer."

"Well... I'm supposed to be better than you!"

"Why?"

Diamond was stumped again.

Scoot repositioned herself so she was sitting normally. "Look, I like arguing with you too. It's one of the few things we like doing together. But why does one of us have to be better than the other? Can't we both just be ourselves?"

Diamond looked shocked at the response. "When did you get so...smart?"

"This yoga stuff. I don't know what it is, but it works. And it really relaxes you."

"Can you teach me?"

"Sure!"

Diamond sat down across from her sister. "I could use this. I've been stressed about that math test tomorrow."

"Tell me about it! I doubt I'll pass."

"Me either."

"You think we should look at the review after this?"

"Probably, but will we really do that?"

"No."

The fillies laughed and started stretching.

Diamond looked at Scoot. "I'm sorry about the other day."

"You mean at school?"

"Yeah."

"Thanks. And I'm sorry about hitting you. And I really mean it this time."

"We'll I'm sorry I talked about your parents."

"Well technically we have the same parent, so you insulted Dad."

They locked eyes with each other as that sank in.

Scoot looked to the doorway and then back at Diamond. "That doesn't leave this room."

"Agreed."

Getting Along

Scootaloo paced around the clubhouse. How was she going to do this? How could she even think of doing this?! No! She had to! This would make things easier. And she had made a promise too. She couldn't go back on a promise.

"Hey Scoot!"

The pegasus looked up to see Apple Bloom enter the clubhouse. Sweetie Belle wasn't far behind. The three fillies sat down and finished their 'hellos' as quickly as possible.

"What was so important we needed an emergency meeting?"

Scoot took a deep breath. This was it. Now or never!

"Okay. So... Me and Diamond Tiara have been...hanging out. At home."

Apple Bloom shrugged. "Is that all? Well gosh Scoot, she's ur sister. Of course ur gonna hang out sometimes!"

"You don't get it. We like spending time together."

That got their attention. The two fillies stared at their friend for a moment. Scoot began to feel uncomfortable as the silence continued.

Sweetie Belle was he first to speak. "So... You and Diamond Tiara are....friends?"

Scootaloo nodded. She closed her eyes, waiting for the arguing to begin. They would kick her out for sure!

"So what's the emergency?"

Her eyes flew open. "Huh? Aren't you guys going to yell or anything. I just admitted to being friends with Diamond Tiara!"

"Well that coulda been an emergency if she wasn't ur sister."

"So... We're cool?"

"Of course we are!"

Scoot let out a sigh of relief. "Okay, that takes care of one problem."

Her friends became confused.

"One problem? You mean there's more?!"

"Yeah. I think, since we're getting along so well, that we should all be...you know...nice to each other."

Once again, silence took over the clubhouse.

Apple Bloom's mouth moved for a second before sound came out.

"You want us to be...nice?! To Diamond Tiara?!"

Sweetie Belle chimed in. "She's never been nice to us! She's the one you need to talk to!"

Scoot put her hooves over their mouths.

"Look. Diamond and I are friends. We're nice to each other. You guys are my friends too. So I want my friends to be nice to my other friend. Got it?"

Both fillies looked at each other before slowly nodding.

The school bell rang, signaling recess. The Crusaders ran over to their favorite spot.

Scoot turned to her friends. "Okay! Are you guys ready?"

"No."

"Nope."

"Perfect!"

She looked across the schoolyard to see Diamond Tiara talking to Silver Spoon.

Uh-oh.... They were arguing. They weren't shouting, but Scootaloo could tell that whatever Diamond was saying wasn't going over well. Was she... She was trying to convince Silver Spoon on being nice! Why had she waited until now to have this conversation?!

Silver Spoon was stamping her hoof, probably trying to convince Diamond not to do this. Luckily the sisters had spent enough time together to know they liked each other's company. And Diamond wasn't backing down.

Scoot watched as the argument came to its climax. Diamond had narrowed her eyes and was saying one final thing. Silver Spoon looked shocked for a moment before letting her head droop. The two fillies began to walk towards the Crusaders.

Scoot met them halfway. "Hey Diamond! How's it goin'?"

"Okay. I talked to Silver Spoon."

"Yeah. I figured. So? Are we good?"

"I think so. How about your friends?"

"They should be okay."

She turned to the Crusaders.

"Come on guys!"

The Crusaders walked over and met the others. They all stood there for a minute until Diamond finally suggested a game.

"Tag, you're it!"

She tagged Silver Spoon and everypony took off.

Filthy Rich was walking towards home when he saw the school. It appeared to be recess. He walked closer until he could see the students. It wasn't the students that caught his attention though, it was a sound. The sound of laughter. He spotted Diamond and Scootaloo with their friends. They were all running after each other in a game of tag.

And they were enjoying themselves.