Scootaloo Stops for Red Light
Speed! Velocity! Momentum! Rapidit—
“What am I, a dictionary?”
No, you’re thinking of a thesaurus. A dict—
“A whatasaurus? Are you calling me a prehistorical chicken? Because—”
No, a thesaurus. The word comes from ancient—
“Uh, yeah, whatever! Skip the lecture, Twilight. Just get to the story.”
Sorry, yes, the story … Ahem …
Speed! It was the ultimate freedom, the pure catharsis of the soul through—It’s my story, I can tell it how I like, you know!—the raw flow of adrenaline. Her blood was roaring through her veins like the wind in her ears as she soared over the hills and landed with a screech of wheels against the gravel. The scooter swayed, and her balance shifted to compensate as she held on tight. Kicking up a cloud of dust, she disappeared like a rocket down the road.
The line of trees marking the Everfree Forest followed her on the right as she raced down the long road towards the Ponyville Lake where all her friends were having fun. This stretch of the road was her favorite in all of Ponyville. It was long, mostly straight, and empty. You could see any obstructions or wandering ponies from far away. She grinned and leaned over the handle of the scooter, reducing the resistance of the wind as she pushed her wings to their limit. The wheels barely touched the ground as she blew across the landscape at a breakneck pace.
Scootaloo laughed and stood up on her scooter, feeling the air push back hard against her. She laughed at the wind. She was so enraptured by the thrill and the feeling of freedom that she almost didn’t see the red light appearing ahead, shining brightly on a pole beside the road. She looked down at saw it at the last second. She turned and came to a screeching stop in front of the traffic light, coughing at the cloud of dust she had stirred up.
“Seriously? A traffic light?”
Yes, by the side of the road there was a traffic light! And it was red, which means you have to stop. It’s the law.
“Who puts a traffic light in the middle of the road to Ponyville Lake? There’s, like, nothing there!”
How should I know?
“Uh, ‘cause you’re the egghead telling the story?”
Fine, the mayor did it! The citizens of Ponyville demanded action against all the speeding wagons on that road. Now, there she was, standing in front of the traffic light, looking up at the shining red signal telling her not to cross. A minute passed, then another. Scootaloo yawned and looked around. Birds chirped, and soft white clouds drifted by along with the minutes.
It was by the fifth minute that she sat down on her scooter and rested her chin on the handle, staring up at the red light. Off in the distance a dog barked, and a snail crawled by on its way to somewhere else. Scootaloo glanced down at the gentle gastropod, her drooping eyes following its slow crawl along the road.
The snail had almost disappeared out of sight in the distance when her eyes closed. Scootaloo yawned and shook her head, blinking at the red light still shining above her. The sun began its slow descent, turning darker orange and then red; red like the light shining from the pole by the side of the road.
Wake up!
“Sorry. Uh, you know, I bet you have a lot of … reading to do. Maybe we should just—”
It’s a good story! Sit down! Now, where was I? Yes, there she was, waiting patiently and obediently like a good little filly for the light to tell her that it was okay to go, when who should walk by but her two best friends, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle, on their way home from the lake. Their wet manes and tails were drying in the last heat of the sun, and they had smiles on their youthful faces.
“That’s us?”
Yes, the very same. Her two friends asked her what she was sitting there for, why she hadn’t been at the lake where everypony was having fun in the sun and the water, and Scootaloo pointed at the red light and told them that she was waiting for it to turn green.
Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle looked up at the light in unison. A minute passed, and then one more. Soon the sun had set, and the three fillies were getting hungry and tired, especially Scootaloo who had been sitting there all day. And so, as they were sitting there in the glow of the red light, one of them had a bright idea!
“Me?”
Sure, why not.
“Yes!”
Apple Bloom had a bright idea. As they sat there, she suggested that she and Sweetie Belle should go get their tents and stuff, so that they could set up camp and keep Scootaloo company as she waited for the light to turn green. They all thought that was a brilliant idea, and so Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle galloped off home to get their things so they could have a real camp by the side of the road.
“Why didn’t I just turn around and go home?”
Because! You wanted to get to the lake. Now, a little later her two friends returned, and they set up camp next to the red traffic light. They had such fun, roasting marshmallows and singing campfire songs in the soft red glow of the traffic light, that their little camp attracted other ponies who wanted to join in. Soon other tents had been set up, and when there wasn’t enough room around their fire, other fires sprung up. Everypony sang and roasted marshmallows, and some set up stalls to sell other treats, like popcorn, lemonade, cupcakes, and apple snacks.
Everypony had such great fun, that Apple Bloom thought it would be great if even more ponies knew about it. She had the idea to make some big signs to draw ponies from all over, and with a bit of wood and some paint she set to work.
“You’re just full of bright ideas today, AB.”
“Sure am.”
“What about me?”
Yes, and Sweetie Belle had a bright idea too. All these many ponies were singing at all these many different campfires. It was really hard to hear any of them, and she thought that was kinda sad, because some of them even brought instruments. She told her idea to Apple Bloom, and Apple Bloom built a large stage so that ponies could sing and entertain there for the whole crowd.
“Is this going anywhere?”
Yes. Because you see, girls, this is how the first Redstop Festival was made, right here in our very own Ponyville by three little fillies! And not only that, but Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom both discovered their cutie marks and learned valuable lessons that night.
Everypony had such fun all night, singing and dancing, drinking and eating, that it was decided it should become an annual event. As the years went on, it grew and became properly organized with real bands and everything.
Apple Bloom became chief of construction and advertisement, building stages and stalls, and making sure that all of Equestria heard about Ponyville and its fabulous festival.
Sweetie Belle became director of bands and organizer of songs, inviting great musicians and making sure that the festival stayed edgy and cool compared to all the other festivals.
And so the years went by, the festival grew, and everypony thought it was the best festival of all!
“That’s great. Really great, Twilight.”
Thank you, Scootaloo. That is very nice of you to say.
“Yeah. So what did I get?”
You got to help your friends realize their special talents and paths in life, and that is the most valuable thing of all. Nothing can be greater than sharing in the joys of your friends.
“Yeah yeah, but seriously, what did I get?”
Beyond the satisfaction of helping your best friends realize their dreams, you showed admirable patience and adherence to the rules, which earned you a very special cutie mark for road safety and responsible driving!
“Let me guess. It’s a red traffic light, right?”
Why, yes! Very observant. You see, Scootaloo, patience and strict adherence to the rules is the mark of a model citizen and will serve you well in life. You went on to find your talent and a job as a police officer, making sure that all of Ponyville could walk safely on the roads without fear of being run down by wayward scooters and carts. Serving and protecting your fellow ponies, that is one of the coolest cutie marks you could ever hope to get!
“Thanks, Twilight. That was … uh, a very educational story.”
Thank you! I knew—
“Hey girls! I know what we should try next!”
“What?”
“There’s this demolition derby in town tonight. I bet if we talk to Rainbow Dash, she’ll get us in!”
“Yeah!”
“Cutie Mark Crusaders Demolition Derby Drivers! Go!”
No, girls … Girls! Hey! Come back here! You still need to fix the hole in my roof! Girls!
