[Classic] The Scootaloo Diaries

Warm sunlight washed over Scootaloo as an early morning breeze parted the curtains. She felt a chill and realized Silver Spoon was asleep in her arms as she tried to pull a blanket over herself. The calming sound of birds chirping and the sweet smell of the morning air put Scootaloo in a welcomed state of mind. She felt completely at ease, as if for the first time in her life, everything was the way it was meant to be.

Her ticket to Las Pegasus trotted into her thoughts. She figured living in Ponyville with Cheerilee might prove troublesome once she had broken it off with her. Scootaloo took a deep breath and rolled over to face her lover.

"Psst, Silver. You awake?" She nudged the sleeping mare with her muzzle.

Silver Spoon opened her eyes and attempted to focus before reaching over to grab her glasses. "Good morning Scootsy, what's up?"

"What would you do if I ran away from Ponyville? Like really, really far away?" Scootaloo stared at the ceiling, hoping she was making the right choice with her approach.

Silver's smile dropped immediately. "Why would you ask that? I thought you were happy here with me again."

Scootaloo let out another deep breath and hugged her partner. "I am happy. I was just asking, um, rhetorically. Like, 'what if?'"

Silver hugged back, closing her eyes to try to imagine how she'd honestly react. "Well, I'd run away with you. I'd follow you anywhere Scootaloo."

Satisfied with that answer, Scootaloo changed the subject. "I'd do the same for you Silver. So, what do you want to do today? It's summer: no school, no responsibilities. I say let's have some fun."

"Fun, huh? I agree, let's have some fun." Silver Spoon rolled over on top of her lover and began to kiss her.

Scootaloo decided to let her mind rest while she enjoyed the little things the day had to offer. There'd be plenty of time to worry later, but for now, Silver Spoon deserved all of her attention.

Rainbow flew out the window of Cheerilee's home and figured she should begin her search for Scootaloo. The little orange mare couldn't have gone far. She did a quick fly-by over Scootaloo's old home and the town park, but there was no sign of her there. Then it hit her: she was obviously with Silver Spoon again. Rainbow pulled up mid-air, before swooping down to land on the road. She began to trot slowly while her mind wandered. Maybe, just maybe, Scootaloo's better off being happy with Silver Spoon, just enjoying her youth...

Rather than continue to Silver's house, Rainbow decided to head back to the library. She made her way back to Twilight, figuring that asking one of the smartest ponies in Equestria for her opinion on the matter might not be a bad idea. She trotted in and let out a sigh of relief as the cool air in the library hit her. It was surprisingly hot out, considering the more mild summer temperatures of the week so far.

"Twi, I need to talk to you about something. Wanna head upstairs with me?" Dash asked, glancing down at Spike.

He rolled his eyes and stood up. "Don't bother, I'm heading out anyway." He snapped his tail and stomped out the front door, slamming it behind himself.

"I don't know what's gotten into him lately... Anyway, what did you need to talk about Dash?" Twilight smiled and put her book down.

"Advice, actually. I need your opinion on something before I make a terrible mistake. Basically, what do you think is more important for a young mare? Enjoying herself and having fun while she's young, falling in love and spending all her time with another pony? Or sacrificing a potential relationship to focus on studying and making sure she'll get into a good college and succeed in life? I just hate to imagine Scootaloo living like me because she made the same mistakes I did at her age. Right now, I'm really leaning towards making her stay with Cheerilee until she finishes school. Cheerilee has the means to get her into college, and she clearly has the money too. With her help, Scootaloo really has an amazing opportunity to go far in the world... She's a smart kid, she deserves better than what I have. I want to see her succeed." Rainbow looked down with her mane hanging in her face.

Twilight frowned and leaned her cheek on her hoof. She looked up into Rainbow's eyes before coming up with an answer. "Dash, I can honestly say that I regretted living in a shell, studying all the time while my friends had fun and fell in love. I hated it, and wished I had been like them, but I convinced myself I was better off without them. That learning and studying were the most important things in the world. I used to regret it, but look at me now. I have a promising career, I'm being mentored by Celestia herself, and I get to live in a library and study whatever I want while learning about how great it is to have friends. Best of all, I now have you. Last year I started to fall in love with you, and then you fell in love with me. Now we're together, and I couldn't be happier. Dash, what I'm saying is that sometimes what seems bad and hard pays off in the end. I can't make the decision for her, but if I compare it to my life, I'd never change anything I did back then, because a few years of suffering turned into a lifetime of happiness."

Rainbow leaned back on her couch. "Thanks Twilight. I knew I could count on you to make things clear." She trotted up to her lover. "You're too smart, ya know that?"

The two shared a kiss and Rainbow put on a cocky grin. "So, you started to fall for me last year huh? Our first time?"

Twilight blushed. "Yes Dash, you were just that good."

Rainbow looked up and smiled wider. "So good, in fact, that you went straight to sleep and didn't return the favor after I took care of you. By my count, you owe me one."

Twilight rolled her eyes. "Right, just one."

Rainbow backed up and looked her lover in the eye. "I'll be calling that in soon. For now, I should probably go find Scootaloo."

The little orange mare lay panting in bed with her lover collapsed next to her. Silver Spoon hugged onto Scootaloo's side while she ran a hoof in circles on her chest. "So Scootaloo, did you ever, you know... with Cheerilee?"

Scootaloo gulped and cringed. "I don't really wanna talk about that."

"So you did then, didn't you..." Silver Spoon lowered her head, wondering why she had brought that upon herself.

"Yeah, I did... I'm sorry, okay? I wish I could go back in time and erase the past, but I can't." Scootaloo attempted to swallow the lump in her throat.

"Forget it, I'm sorry I said anything. I shouldn't ask, it's none of my business." Silver brushed the mane out of her face and closed her eyes.

"I should head out, I need to break up with Cheerilee now..." Scootaloo felt tears welling up in her eyes already.

"Okay... hurry back, love. I'll be waiting." Silver lifted her hoof to allow her lover to get up.

Scootaloo looked back and smiled, before leaping out of the window and fluttering to the road below. As she began to trot down the long road to Cheerilee's house, Silver came running out the front door. "Scootsy! Wait!"

Scootaloo turned back to see her lover galloping up next to her. "What are you doing?"

"I'm coming with you. I think I should be there by your side, just in case... well, you know." Silver lowered her eyes and matched Scootaloo's pace.

"I don't know if I'm comfortable with you being there - I don't want you getting hurt... Physically or emotionally." Scootaloo slowed down and stopped.

"Don't worry, I'll have you there to make sure I'm safe. I want to be with you when this happens, okay?" Silver seemed adamant.

"Alright, have it your way. Just don't provoke her. I want this to be as easy as possible." The pair continued on their way to their teacher's house.

Dozens of possible scenarios ran through Scootaloo's mind as they walked. By the time they reached Cheerilee's front door, her mind was a wreck. She knocked and waited until Cheerilee answered the front door with a bright smile that immediately vanished when she saw Silver Spoon.

"Um, hello girls. What brings you here Silver Spoon?" Cheerilee held her positive attitude as best she could.

Scootaloo stepped forward. "I need to talk to you Cheerilee. I'm leaving you to be with Silver Spoon. I've made a lot of choices in the past that I regret, and I need to try to fix some of them. I can't have you both, and I really love Silver Spoon with all my heart. You've been good to me, Cheerilee, and I'll always love you for that, but this is it. Goodbye."

Cheerilee's eyes shifted back and forth between the two young mares in front of her. "Wait..."

Scootaloo placed her hoof on Silver's shoulder and turned to walk away. Cheerilee stood still in the doorway, not yet fully come to terms with what had just happened. "Wait! Scootaloo, wait! Please wait, just a minute."

The two fillies continued trotting away as Cheerilee began to break down. "Get back here right now, Scootaloo! Right now!"

Cheerilee fell down in her doorway and began to cry. Rainbow Dash, you liar...

As the two young mares trotted out of sight, Scootaloo began to feel guilty. "Silver, I can't just leave her like that. I need to make sure she doesn't hurt herself or something. I love you, but I have to go back. Okay?"

"What? No, she'll be fine!" Silver protested.

"Okay, I'm not asking, I'm telling you what I have to do." Scootaloo sounded unusually stern, something Silver wasn't used to.

"Ugh, fine Scootsy, but will you at least walk me home? I don't want to go back." Silver stood closer to her lover, knowing she'd be unable to refuse.

"Yeah, sure - we're almost there anyway." Scootaloo let out a deep sigh and prepared her mind to confront Cheerilee again, alone.

As Silver Spoon's house came into view, they spotted Rainbow Dash at the front door with Silver Dollar. Rainbow was cautiously backing away and the stallion sounded furious. "... and I don't want you or your kind near my family ever again!" He shouted as the two fillies approached the home.

Rainbow seemed shocked and she backed away, spotting Scootaloo. Silver trotted up to her dad to investigate his not-so-unusual anger. "Dad, why are you yelling?" she asked with the softest of tones.

"You have much explaining to do, child. Now get to your room, and we'll discuss your punishment in due time!" Silver Dollar shouted, nudging his daughter inside.

"And you, you little orange scum. Stay away from my daughter, you hear me? You and your kind aren't welcome here any longer. I've been far too lenient, and this is what it got me... You all sicken me..." He slammed the door behind himself and a series of clicks from an overabundance of locks followed.

"What the hay was that all about?!" Scootaloo demanded as she began trotting away with Rainbow.

"I guess he didn't realize you two were a couple. I asked him if you were there and it kinda slipped out. He was yelling at me for thinking you were there all the time, so I told him why. Well... he asked, I guess." Rainbow attempted to explain herself.

"Wait - you told him we were dating? Are you insane?!" Scootaloo groaned and placed a hoof on her face.

"Sorry, I didn't realize he'd freak out like that. Well, the good news is that he made your decision for you. He's not gonna let you two hang out anymore, so now you can just be with Cheerilee." Rainbow tried to point out the positive side to the situation.

"Yeah, if it wasn't too late. I already broke up with her." Scootaloo sighed and tried to figure out what to do.

Rainbow stopped trotting and looked up. "You broke up with her? When?" she asked, trying to make a time frame in her mind.

"Just now. That's where me and Silver were coming from."

"Crap..." Rainbow shook her head before grabbing Scootaloo and quickly flying over to Cheerilee's.

The door was shut and it seemed quiet. Dash knocked. "Hello, it's me - Rainbow Dash. I brought Scootaloo, open up!"

There was no answer. She flew up to the bedroom window, but it was locked shut with the curtains drawn. "Open up Cheerilee!" Rainbow shouted into the glass, to no avail.

Scootaloo rolled her eyes from the ground. "I don't want to be with Cheerilee anymore, Dash. I already decided on Silver Spoon."

Rainbow flew back down. "Well that's not gonna work, so Cheerilee's your only choice."

"I'll figure something out - I need your help though. I'm going to run away with Silver Spoon." Scootaloo looked up with wide, watery eyes.

"Whoa there kiddo - run away? I don't think so. You're gonna work things out with Cheerilee, and you two will be happy." Rainbow ignored her friend's request and continued knocking.

"Dash, I'm serious. Even if you don't help me, I'm still running away." Scootaloo stamped her hoof and put on a determined face.

Rainbow sighed and rolled her eyes. "And where will you two go, hmm? You gonna go live on the streets of Manehatten? That'll be nice. The pair of you can get raped and murdered, but at least you'll die with the one you love - right? Stop being such a foal and grow up. Sometimes things don't work out. There's no need to go bucking both your lives up to chase some silly little dream of true love. Trust me."

Scootaloo glared at her idol, her heart broken and her intentions belittled. "Fine! If you don't want to help me, then I'll just do this on my own!" She began galloping away as fast as she could.

Rainbow groaned and turned to chase the filly, but just then, Cheerilee opened the front door. "Really? Now you answer?" Rainbow looked after Scootaloo as she sped over a hill and out of sight.

"Alright Cheer, we gotta talk." Rainbow made her way inside and sat down with Cheerilee.

Scootaloo panicked, feeling lost and alone. She made her way to Rainbow's old house. For a cloud home, it seemed unusually low, but still so far out of reach. She climbed a nearby tree and stood on the highest branch she could get to. With three deep breaths, she began shaking the branch up and down, preparing to jump. Alright Scootaloo, you can do this, you can do this, you can do this...

With another deep breath, she used the movement of the bouncing branch to give her more momentum as she jumped as high as she could into the sky. She began frantically fluttering her wings, desperately trying to fly to the cloud surface. For several seconds, she held herself level in the sky, neither getting higher nor falling. She cringed and started flapping harder and harder until she felt herself gaining altitude. The wing that had gotten injured last year was weaker, and even though she had made a full recovery, she'd never properly rebuilt the muscle tone she once had.

She looked back down. The tree seemed so far away now, and the cloud above was nearly in reach. She stretched her front hooves out and touched the base with their tips. With only a few inches to go, she was able to grasp onto the edge of the cloud. With a exhausted groan, she pulled herself onto the base and attempted to catch her breath. Yes, you did it...

After taking a moment to recompose herself, she trotted through Rainbow's cloud home. On the bedroom nightstand, she found her ticket to Las Pegasus. She recalled seeing pictures of the amazing city once before. It was near the ocean, which was something she had always wanted to see. It was a huge mass of clouds, at least twice the size of Cloudsdale and had two large waterfalls pouring over each side. Beneath the huge cloud-city were the Flats of Las Pegasus, a city on the ground where most of the lower class factory workers lived, including her uncle. She tried to picture what that new lifestyle would have in store for her, but couldn't imagine it.

She collapsed on Rainbow's bed and pushed her face up against the pillow. She wanted to trust her idol so badly, but it seemed that just when things were finally beginning to make sense, they had started falling apart more than ever before. Rainbow seemed to be helping to make things worse, and it seemed like the only one she could trust... was herself.

Scootaloo knew Rainbow would never think to look for her in her own house. She felt tired and emotionally exhausted. After a few moments of relaxing on the bed, she began to drift off to sleep. An image of Cheerilee stained her mind - angry, with a bottle of alcohol in one hoof, and the other raised, ready to strike. Scootaloo cringed in her state of half-sleep and hugged onto the blanket.

Rainbow watched as Cheerilee frantically paced through her home, periodically take a swig from an unmarked bottle. "Settle down there, it'll be alright. I heard what happened, but what I said earlier still stands."

"Face it Rainbow, she doesn't want to be with me anymore. Silver Spoon is her own age, and she's much better... much better off..." Cheerilee allowed her depression to take control of her actions as she leaned against a wall and slid easily to the floor.

Rainbow let out a deep breath and took a seat, contemplating her next move. "Okay, you need to stop. Look, don't worry about Silver Spoon. I sabotaged their relationship already. I lied to Silver's dad, and he took care of the problem for us. I told him some things that might have been a little harsh, but it was worth it. He said that Silver's too good for Ponyville anyway, so I think he's gonna take her out of your school too."

Cheerilee wiped her eyes and looked up. "Really? So, Silver's gone?"

"Not quite yet. But she will be, and Scoot will realize how much she loves you." Rainbow walked over to her and placed a hoof on her cheek, before pulling the mare to her hooves.

"Clean yourself up Cheer, and get your smile ready. I'll be back with Scootaloo tomorrow morning. Just make sure you want this kid in your life, and make sure you're willing to take a little more pain or stress. Scootaloo's a great kid, you just gotta have a little patience with her. Remember what I said earlier. I'm gonna talk to Scootaloo and set her straight today, so she'll be good by the morning." Rainbow looked up, making sure she had covered everything.

"Okay, Dash... Please make this work, because I can't do it on my own..." Cheerilee sniffled and wiped her eyes again.

"You're just as much of a kid as she is, aren't you? Don't worry, it'll all be fine." Rainbow trotted out the door, shaking her head.

Cheerilee stood up and attempted to fix her mane, before heading into the kitchen to pour herself a drink. She lifted it to her face and stared for a moment, then dropped it to the floor, allowing the glass to shatter. In a fit, she tossed the bottle across the kitchen making a much bigger mess. This is good, I can handle this. This is nothing...