Cloudsdale’s sky was radiant. At the Wonderbolt’s Academy a big race was going to take place, including only the best from the Academy. On this day, the top five contestants must race, the winner will become of the Wonderbolts.
Scootaloo was in the waiting room with all the other contestants. She was pumped and ready for this race. The moment she dreamed since when she was a filly was finally here. She then sat on her haunches and stared at the floor.
She thought of back to that day, when she had been just a filly. The day she lost the mare that had taken her under her wings. The day she had lost Rainbow “Danger” Dash.
It seemed like a nightmare, not quite real. The day Princess Twilight told her about Dash’s accident. The memory came clearly to her, causing a tear to fall down her orange cheek.
Scootaloo was hanging out in the CMC’s clubhouse with her best friends, Applebloom and Sweetie Belle. She was drawing a picture of Rainbow Dash and herself as Wonderbolts, the both of them. Applebloom and Sweetie Belle were drawing pictures as well, though they were much different.
It was late in the evening when they each finished their drawing. Scootaloo started by showing them the drawing she had made, the one of her and Rainbow Dash.
“Umm, Scootaloo, you’ve drawn that picture like a one hundred times!” Sweetie Belle said, frowning at the drawing.
“Yo know Scoots, Sweetie Belle does have a point.” Applebloom said raising her eyebrow at the repeated picture.
“Well obviously! That’s because she’s the coolest and the best sister a filly could ask for!” Scootaloo started hovering around them, talking much too fast for her. She then landed in front of them and continued, though a bit slower. “And on top that when she wins the race to and becomes Wonderbolt today, she’ll give me some lessons. And she’ll tell me what it’s like being…”
Before Scootaloo could finish justifying her picture Princess Twilight, Apple Jack and Rarity walked up to the bottom of the clubhouse and called out to the three friends.
“Sweetie Belle, dear? I would like for you to come down now.” Rarity said, her voice carrying a sad tone.
“Applebloom? Would ya come down; your family needs to talk to ya!” Apple Jack called. She put her hat on her head at the wrong angle, but she didn’t bother to fix it.
“We need to talk to all of you,” Twilight sighed, her sweet voice riddled with sadness.
The Cutie Mark Crusaders simultaneously responded with cheers, oblivious to the sadness of the three friends.
“Ok, we’re coming!”
The three fillies happily ran down the clubhouse stairs and stopped directly in front of the mares.
They scanned their sister’s faces, and knew that something was wrong. Applejack’s hat was held slightly over her muzzle; Rarity hung her head low and her beautiful mane covered her face; while a tear ran down the side of Princess Twilight’s lavender cheek.
“Princess Twilight, why are you crying? Where’s Rainbow Dash?” Scootaloo asked the purple pony.
Princess Twilight looked at her, more tears pouring down her face. At that moment Scootaloo decided she didn’t want to know why she was crying. She feared the worst. Deep inside she felt that something had gone terribly wrong. But she’d figured that nothing would’ve happened to Rainbow Dash, so she repeated the question.
“Where’s Rainbow…”
“She’s… She’s gone Scootaloo.”
“Gone? What do you mean, she’s not gone.” Scootaloo’s ears flopped down. She’d known what the word meant, both ways. But she wanted to believe that the meaning the Princess had meant was that Rainbow Dash far away from some possible issue. She did not want to believe otherwise.
Rarity and Apple Jack held their hooves wrapped around their sisters. Princess Twilight walked and sat besides Scootaloo and put her lavender wing around the filly’s orange coat. She then looked down at Scootaloo face. The tears filled her eyes, blurring her vision, but she continued to speak
“Rainbow Dash… is… is… she’s dead.”
Scootaloo ran from under her wings and turned to look up at Twilight’s face. Tears started running down the orange filly’s face.
“Wha- What! How?”
“She was in the race that determined which cadet would move up to being a Wonderbolt. But on the last round, just as she neared the finish line, her wings cramped and well” Tears started flowing down thicker from Twilight’s purple eyes. “She lost control of her flight, and she plummeted to her death. The Wonderbolts tried to save her but couldn’t reach her in time because of the speed at which she was falling.”
Scootaloo’s head hung low, her magenta hair drooping. She sniffed and tried wiping the tears from her eyes, but failed to keep away the oncoming sadness. Before Twilight could say another word, she ran away from them. Twilight held out her forehoof.
“Scootaloo, wait!”
She didn’t listen. She didn’t stop. Neither did she want to do either of the two. She just couldn’t…
She wanted to be left alone. She ran straight into the Everfree Forest and sat on a lone rock where she cried, she cried all that night.
“Why, why did she have to die?” Scootaloo wailed as she wiped the tears from her cheeks and the mucus from her nose.
“It- it just isn’t fair.” Scootaloo kept weeping until she had not the strength to weep anymore. She started to remember all the times she and Dashie had spent together. Then she hopped down on her hooves and vowed to fulfill Rainbow Dash’s dream, her dream of becoming a Wonderbolt.
“Don’t worry Rainbow Dash I’ll train hard from this point on to complete your dream as a Wonderbolt. I won’t fail you Rainbow Dash. I promise.”
Her memories were being interrupted by somepony calling her name. Scootaloo… Hey, Scootaloo… Scootaloo!
“Huh, What?!” Scootaloo quickly arose to her hooves, wings flapping.
“The race will start soon, and we have to be at the starting line like, right now. Are you alright?” Rumble asked the mare, looking at her awkwardly.
“Heh, Don’t sweat it, I’m fine” Scootaloo replied as she passed him to the entrance.
The crowd was cheering wildly as Scootaloo, Rumble, Rainy Feather, Tornado Bolt, and Purple Skies flew over to the starting line.
Madden stood on a patch of plush cloud that floated over the racing track.
“All right! This is the Wonderbolt Academy Showdown! This is where the top contestants will race! The winner of this race will be the next member of the Wonderbolts!”
The crowd continued to cheer wildly, in fact, they increased from their last debut.
“All right! Now to get this race started. These contestants will have to go around this wide track nine times. There are no rules in this race, so pushing one-another off the track is allowed. This will prove their strength, endurance, and skill. You all have a chance at becoming a Wonderbolt So, are you all ready!”
The crowd roared.
As Madden announced the names of the contestants, Scootaloo was in deep thought. She thought of Rainbow Dash, and she thought of her promise.
“I will make sure to win the race for you Rainbow Dash. I promise.” SHe whispered
“And finally to the far right we have Scootaloo from Ponyville!”
Scootaloo looked around as the stadium’s crowd roared her name, “Scoot-a-loo!, Scoot-a-loo!, Scoot-a-loo!”
Madden’s patch of cloud hovered just above them as he started the count down. He held his hoof high in the air.
“Ok, get ready! Three! Two!” All the contestants got prepared for take off. Scootaloo spread her wings and was in full focus, her mind silencing out the noise of the crowd. “One, Go!”
As soon as Madden’s hoof dropped, the contestants were off. Rumble was ahead of all of them and heading to the other side of the race track.
They didn’t begin at top speed, for there were nine rounds. Rumble however decided to gain some distance first before relaxing into a steady pace. And so they went on for the next seven rounds at the same moderate pace they had started with.
When they got to the eighth lap everyone started speeding up, and they used all of their energy. They left Scootaloo in last place. Scootaloo, being at the back, started hearing Rainbow Dash’s voice. Rainbow starting speaking to her.
“Hey, squirt, what’s happening? Why did ya slow down?”
“Rainbow Dash?! But… but how?”
“No time to chat, kiddo, you want to win this race, but that’s not gonna happen if you’re flying at a tortoise’s speed. I’m not talking’ about tank.”
“No wait! I want to tell you something.”
“What is it?”
Scootaloo stood in her mind and looked straight into Rainbow Dash’s rose eyes.
“I wish that you didn’t die… and that you were here today with me. You’re always like the big sister I never had…” She sniffed “I wish you were here to see me get better at my flying skills, and I wish you were here to see me get better in the Academy.”
“A’ kido,” Rainbow Dash wiped the tears from her little sister’s eyes. “Just because I’m not with you physically doesn’t mean I can’t watch you from afar. Why else would you think I’m here? I’ll always be watching you Scootaloo. Now, win this race so I can watch you become a Wonderbolt.”
“Scootaloo is falling behind! Will she be able to catch before this match is over?” Madden shouted, shaking Scoots out of her daydream.
Scootaloo regained full focus. She shot forward with great speed, catching up to the other contestants in the blink of an eye.
They were on the last lap, and Rumble was flying at top speed. He was still keeping in first place. Scootaloo, with her will bent on winning the race, had smoothly passed through every one of the racers. She flew right along side Rumble as they curved the first turn.
Rumble started violently ramming into Scootaloo’s side. It was apparent that he didn’t want her winning at all.
“You’re not winning Scootaloo! I am, for my brother!” Rumble yelled out across the field.
“No, I’m winning this, for Rainbow Dash!”
Both stepped up their speed with all of the remaining energy that they could muster. Scootaloo, however, put all of her effort into winning this race. Thus passing Rumble and winning by an inch.
“And the winner of this race is Scootaloo, from Ponyville! I’m actually surprised that this race went smoothly. But we now have our winner!” Madden said to the crowd.
Spit Fire flew over to Scootaloo and gave her the Wonderbolt’s Uniform and a pair of flight goggles.
“You did well, Scootaloo. Now you’re one of us.”
“Thank you, thank you so much!” Scootaloo responded, taking the uniform in her mouth.
After the celebration, Scootaloo flew up high and landed on a giant patch of cloud. She was alone and there was no weather pegasi intervention going on. She looked out onto the setting sun. She was completely excited that she won the race and was now a member of the Wonderbolts.
“I did it. I did it all for you Rainbow Dash. And, and if you’re still out there, I just want you to know that I’ll be the best Wonderbolt member that ever got in.”
“Heh heh, I know you will squirt. I never doubted that for a second...”
Rainbow Dash sat next Scootaloo’s side and held her firmly with her cyan wings as the sun set, the explosion of color resembling the mare’s prismatic mane.
~The End
