It was morning. A squirrel collected some nuts when it suddenly heard a loud sound coming closer.
It looked up to search for the source of the sound and saw a orange pegasus filly on a scooter racing towards it with an enormous speed. It could barely jump aside before the scooter could hit it.
Scootaloo didn't even notice the squirrel.
“How can it be that I never heard of it before?!”, Scootaloo gasped. “How can it be?” Her thoughts wandered back to the moment just minutes ago, when she was informed about one of the most important days for the most important pony in her life.
The Crusaders were sitting in their clubhouse and all seemed like a quiet, peaceful day for Scootaloo until Apple Bloom asked a question.
“Scootaloo, do ya wanna help us with the present for Rainbow Dash?”
Scootaloo looked to Apple Bloom. “A present for Rainbow Dash? For what?”, she asked surprised.
“Huh?”, Apple Bloom answered. “Haven't ya heard of it? Tomorrow is Rainbow Dash's birthiversary!”
“A birthiversary?”
“Yeah! It's her birthday and the anniversary of the day she moved to Ponyville!”
“Yeah, and she is flying around for days and tells everypony about it!”, Sweetie Belle added.
“But she wasn't in Ponyville the last days!”, Apple Bloom remembered her.
“Oh, yes! Miss Cheerilee made a trip to Canterlot with you, right? But did Rainbow Dash never told you about her birthday and the day she moved to Ponyville?”
“Yeah, she said a change for some days would be good for me after the bullying from Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon.”, Scootaloo answered. “But Rainbow Dash never told me anything about this day......” Sweetie Belle started with another sentence as Scootaloo interrupted her suddenly. “Oh no, I need a present for her! But I have only time until tomorrow to find one!”
“Well, ya can help us! Sweetie Belle an' ah are preparin' a big ol' surprise for her!”, Apple Bloom offered.
“But it needs to be something that comes only from me! I need to buy her something! But what?”
“I know something!”, Sweetie Belle shouted. Scootaloo was hooked immediately.
“What is it?”, she asked excited.
“It's a copy of the book 'Daring Do and the Temple of Terror' and it's the special limited edition! That's the book Rainbow Dash wanted, right?”
“This book? But Rainbow Dash told me it's already sold out! It was limited to hundred copies.”
“I don't know why they still have one. But I saw a copy of it yesterday when I was in the bookstore with Rarity, because she wanted to buy a new book about ancient fashion!”
“Thanks for the tip! I will go and buy it!” Scootaloo was already about to run out as Sweetie Belle interrupted her.
“There is only one problem.”, she added carefully to her last sentence. “The bookstore has closed for some days. You can't buy it anymore before the birthiversary.”
Scootaloo hung her head, disappointed.
“But you can buy it after the birthiversary and then give it to her! I'm sure she's still happy about it then!”
Suddenly, Scootaloo raised her head again. “I know it! There's still a way I can get the book today! I have to go! See you tomorrow at the party, girls!”
And with that, Scootaloo ran out of the clubhouse, jumped on her scooter and raced away.
Luckily, Scootaloo knew exactly who could pull the strings to make it possible that she can buy the book today.
“I will go and ask Filthy Rich to get the owner of the bookstore to open it for me, so I can get the book even when the store has closed today! He has good connections to all stores and shops in Ponyville, I'm sure he can help me!”, she thought, while she raced back to Ponyville.
While she was thinking, she had reached Ponyville. She could see her house, which should be her first stop since she sallied from the clubhouse, coming nearer in the distance. She brought her scooter to a standstill, with the steering rod pointing into the direction in which she planned to race away, when she returns to it.
Scootaloo ran into the house and over the stairs up to the first floor and into her room. She aimed for the cash box on her drawer, grabbed hectic two hooffull of bits, probably too much, while some of the coins felt to the ground, and was out of the door again, before she could hear the coins clinking when they landed on the floor.
She left the house and jumped on her scooter, flapped her wings and raced into the direction of the house where Filthy Rich lives, at the other end of Ponyville. She felt lucky that there weren't any obstacles on the way to it and so, she could reach the house quick. She brought her scooter to a halt again, got off of it and stepped up to the front door.
She raised her hoof and knocked on the door twice, still a bit hectic.
After some moments of silence, Scootaloo was already about to knock on the door again, with the intention to knock much louder this time, a familiar voice, that sounded annoyed, came from behind the door. For a moment, Scootaloo felt guilty that she came so early on the day. She could hear the sound of hooves coming closer to the door and then, the door opened.
“Yes, who is.....” It was Diamond Tiara that opened the door, not Filthy Rich. “Oh, it's you, the flightless bird! What do you want here, chicken?”
Under normal circumstances, a comment like this would have made Scootaloo sad. Rainbow Dash and her friends helped her to get her self-confidence up again, after Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon bullied her and after Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle left her behind on the day after it. Thanks to the encouraging words of Rainbow Dash and the heartwarming apologies of her best friends, she felt the same like before the bullying and was again aware of it, that she is as worthy as other pegasus, even when she can't fly.
But the fear that her dream may never come true, her weak spot that Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon attacked that day, still pained her.
But now, she only could think about it to get a present for Rainbow Dash and so, she almost overheard Diamond Tiara's nasty comment. “I must speak your dad! Is he here?”, she asked excited.
“What do you want from him?”, Diamond Tiara asked back, still with the nasty tone in her voice.
“I need a book and it's an emergency!!!! But the bookstore has closed today and I have to ask your dad if he can ask the bookstore owner for the favor to open the store for some minutes, so that I can buy the book I need!”
“Well, that's bad luck. He is on a business trip, so you will not get your book!” Diamond Tiara grinned malicious at Scootaloo.
“Then....”, Scootaloo hesitated for a moment, “then you must help me!”
“What?” Scootaloo didn't understand first what Diamond Tiara meant.
“The bookstore owner knows you! If you ask him, I'm sure he will open the store too for a moment!”, she explained.
“What makes you think that? Why should I help you with something, chicken?” Scootaloo began to feel discouraged.
“Because..... Because..... Because Equestria is in danger and I need the book to save it!”
“What? Do you really expect that I believe you that? You just want to make me help you with that pathetic little story!”
“You must get the book for Rainbow Dash, no matter what!”, Scootaloo thought to herself. “Come on Scootaloo! Now it's all about your theatrical abilities!”
Diamond Tiara stepped back and started to close the door again, but Scootaloo interrupted her. “Wait, it's true! I'm not lying!” She shoved a hoof between the closing door and the door frame.
She made her voice sounding desperated, which was luckily not very hard at the thought that she will maybe not get the book for Rainbow Dash.
“Rainbow Dash sent me! She said there is a old temple in the north of Equestria and that an evil creature, that is imprisoned there, tries to break out from it! She is already on the way to this temple with her friends, but they need the book, because it explains how they can use a device in the temple, that prevents the creature from escaping! She said that she and her friends must be there in case the creature can escape and so she tasked me with getting the book and bring it to the temple!”
Scootaloo was not sure if it will work, but surprisingly, Diamond Tiara tried not to close the door again. Diamond Tiara still was not sure if she should believe what she just heard. And she had better things to do then to save Equestria from a threat, that maybe not even exists, together with a flightless pegasus that only annoys her.
And she didn't care about Rainbow Dash or any of her friends, even when they are the ones that were chosen by the Elements of Harmony, and not even because one of them became a princess recently.
But Diamond Tiara was also not stupid. She knew, like every other pony, very well that Equestria has many enemies and that attacks from them are not rare. She also knew which enemies the bearers of the elements had to fight in the past and when one of them said something about an evil creature that tries to escape from an old, ancient temple, then there must be something behind it.
These thoughts and the desperation of Scootaloo she could see slowly turned her disbelief into belief. Diamond Tiara opened the door again. She snorted and then asked:
“And this is really not just a stupid excuse? Because I have better things to do then to save Equestria from a threat that not even exists!”
“It is true!”, Scootaloo answered. “But we don't have much time! We have to go now! Nopony knows how long the temple can keep the creature inside!”
“Fine.” Diamond Tiara snorted again, this time more angry. She stepped out of the door and closed it behind her. She turned round and walked past Scootaloo.
“Then let's go and get this over and done with. But don't expect that I follow you to that temple! You can bring it to the temple by yourself, I won't help you with that!”
“This isn't necessary! I only need you to get the book, I can do the rest by myself!”, Scootaloo snapped back a little. Now, that she was so short before getting the book, she remembered again how much she doesn't like Diamond Tiara. She was not quite keen about it that she needed the help from Diamond Tiara of all ponies to get the book, but she was more than willing to make that sacrifice for Rainbow Dash.
Diamond Tiara was already some meters ahead. Scootaloo hurried and got on her scooter again to follow her. She suddenly saw that her helmet was not there and realized that she must have forgotten it at the clubhouse, because she was in such a hurry.
But she didn't plan on racing through Ponyville for the rest of the day either, so she didn't care. Soon she would have the Daring Do book that she wanted to give to Rainbow Dash as a present tomorrow, she wouldn't need to hurry anymore now.
Scootaloo started flapping her wings to move the scooter again, flapped them fast for some seconds, until she had catched up with Diamond Tiara, and then returned to a slower speed.
Their way to the bookstore passed off without a word, the silence only interrupted by the sound of Scootaloo's wings and some faint sighing from Diamond Tiara here and there.
When they arrived at the bookstore they headed to the back door, the entrance of the living area of the building, that was separated from the store.
Diamond Tiara knocked on the door and some seconds later, the owner of the bookstore opened. His mane was ruffled and he looked like he just got out of the bed. Again, Scootaloo felt a little guilty, because she was the reason that a pony got knocked out of the bed that early. That the bookstore owner was angry didn't make it better.
“What do you want? Do you even know how early in the morning it is?”, he asked grumbling.
Diamond Tiara wasn't even batting an eye. “My dad sends me. He wants that you open the store for this filly.” She pointed at Scootaloo. “There is a book she needs today.”
He looked to Scootaloo, who answered with a sheepishly grin, and then back to Diamond Tiara. “If it's that urgent, she could have come yesterday to buy the book. I announced it days ago that my bookstore is closed today and tomorrow! She can come and buy this book when I open the store again overmorrow.”
“My dad also said”, Diamond Tiara's voice got a threatening sound, “that I should remind you that you still owe him money.”
That worked. The stallion mumbled something, lifted a key from a hook and made his way past them to go to the front door and open the store. Scootaloo followed him closely and then, after some steps, she stopped and turned around to Diamond Tiara, when she recognized that she wasn't following her.
“Why are you looking at me like that? Should I go with you and pull the book out of the shelf for you, because you are too dumb for it?”, she asked scathing.
Scootaloo immediately regretted that she wanted to wait for her. She was glad that she could soon relinquish her company. She turned in the other direction again and hurried to catch up with the owner of the bookstore. He had already opened the door when she reached him and waited impatiently for her.
Scootaloo couldn't hold her excitement anymore now. She stampeded past him into the store and headed straight to the fiction area and the shelf with the adventure books. The store owner followed her slowly.
Scootaloo looked observantly through every row of books in the shelf to find the book she was looking for. She became nervous when she reached the end of the last row. The book wasn't there. “What? But.... Where is the book? Sweetie Belle said it's here!”
“Which book?”, the store owner has stepped behind her.
“Daring Do and the Temple of Terror! I heard there is still one copy left!”
“Oh yes, that! I dropped it in the storage room on the day the sale began, some weeks ago, and it slid under one of the shelves there. I forgot about it and just remembered on it a few days ago. Let me think.....”
He thought about the book for a moment.
“Yes, now I remember. It's already sold. Aloe from the spa came over yesterday and bought it. She said she needs a book for reading during her break.” Scootaloo's ears dropped when she heard that news and she stared sadly at the floor. The store owner became impatient again.
“Is there any other book you want? It's still early in the morning and I would prefer to go back to.....”
“No, there is no other one.”, Scootaloo interrupted him in a low voice.
“Fine, then please leave now, so I can close the store again.”
Scootaloo stood up again and walked out slowly. She didn't turn back, when the owner of the bookstore closed and locked the door of the store, and walked back to Diamond Tiara. She was sad. Now that the book was sold, it would not be easy anymore to get it. Scootaloo had planned to ask Aloe if she sells her the book, when she offers her more money than she paid for it, but she was afraid that Aloe would say no.
Diamond Tiara already awaited Scootaloo with an angry glance. Her mood didn't seem to became any better in the meanwhile.
“So, did you get your great book, so I can finally go home again?”, she asked impatiently.
“No.”, Scootaloo answered, still with the low voice she had in the store. Diamond Tiara snorted hearable.
“The owner of the bookstore said he sold it yesterday to Aloe..... We must go to the spa to get it.”
“Great! Now I have to spend even more time with you pathetic, flightless pegasus!”, Diamond Tiara said hurtfully and walked away to make her way to the spa.
Her expression showed that she, while angry because she had other plans for this morning, also enjoyed it to aim at Scootaloo's flying inability with her comments. This time, the comment hurted Scootaloo more, hitting her in a moment of insecurity and nervousness. But she pressed back the tears, got up on her scooter and followed Diamond Tiara slowly, this time with some distance. She couldn't afford any weaknesses now. She still wanted to get the book for Rainbow Dash and she knew that it won't be easy to convince Aloe to sell her the book.
She thought for a moment how happy Rainbow Dash would be when she gives her the book. She knew what a big fan of Daring Do, Rainbow Dash was and she could already see the big grin on Dash's face, when she would see her surprise tomorrow. She smiled. Thinking about Rainbow Dash's reaction had given her more courage again and the nervousness and insecurity, that she just felt moments ago, were suddenly completely blown-off. She increased her speed to catch up with Diamond Tiara.
While Scootaloo thought on Rainbow Dash, Diamond Tiara was dwelling on her own thoughts. She knew that she could just go now. The book was already sold and Scootaloo could try to get the book from Aloe alone.
But it wasn't completely safe to assume that Aloe would believe them when they tell her about a threat for Equestria that can only be stopped with the book. She knew that she will may think about that as an excuse to talk her into giving them the book. It was also not safe to assume that she was willing to sell the book to them.
But, it was quite safe to assume that she would agree on a little bargain of another sort. Her dad, Filthy Rich, has once helped the spa financially and while Aloe and Lotus already paid the money back, she knew they would be willing to return the favor. So she stayed, even when this book search already got on her nerves very much.
When they arrived at the spa, Diamond Tiara stayed outside again, in the hope that she won't be needed and that she could go back home again soon.
Scootaloo entered the spa and was greeted by Lotus Blossom, the second pony that worked there. “Hello, little filly.”, she said friendly. “How can I help you?”
“I must speak with Aloe.”, Scootaloo answered. “Is she here?”
“Oh, I'm sorry, she's not here at the moment. What do you want from her? Can I take a message for her?”
“No, I must speak to her in person. I wanted to ask her if she would sell me the book she bought yesterday. It's the only copy that is left and I need it as a present for Rainbow Dash. Tomorrow is her birthiversary!”
“I'm not sure if she would give away the book, she seems to like it.”, Lotus said with a slight frown. “But it's really better when you ask her yourself for it.”, she added. “She headed into the Everfree Forest a while ago, to buy some new herbs from Zecora.”
“Then I will look there for her!” Scootaloo turned round and stormed out of the spa, before Lotus had the chance to say bye to her.
This time, Scootaloo was the first one that said something when she got back to Diamond Tiara. “We must go into the Everfree Forest! Lotus said Aloe is at Zecora's hut to buy some herbs!” Scootaloo was so eager to finally get the book that she even didn't wait for an answer of Diamond Tiara.
Instead, she jumped on her scooter and she was already about to race away into the forest when Diamond Tiara began with her answer. “This time it will cost you more than time, when I should go with you in the forest.”
“What?” Scootaloo looked surprised at her.
“The forest is a dangerous place. If you want that I go inside of it with you, you must pay me for it!”
“What? But it's for Equestria! It is in danger, have you forgot that already?”, Scootaloo asked with a pretended shocked tone in her voice.
“I don't care. You will need me to get that book from her, so, if you want that Equestria will be saved, you better give me what I want.”
Scootaloo felt that she was fighting a losing battle. Diamond Tiara was right, even when the threat for Equestria was only a fake from her.
Diamond Tiara made the bookstore owner to open the store for her and maybe she could help her in a similar way when Aloe don't wants to give her the book. She knew that she needed her and so, she decided to agree to her demand. Luckily, she had put enough money aside to buy the book and to pay Diamond Tiara. “Ok, I give you my money.”, she said yielding. “But I need the money I have with me now to pay Aloe for the book. I give you the rest of the money I have put aside when I got the book and when I was at home again!”
Surprisingly, Diamond Tiara was satisfied with that. “I hope so.” Her face turned cold suddenly. She stepped up to her and put a hoof on her chest.
“If you don't pay me for this trip into the forest, I will take care of it, that you get into big trouble for lying to me!”
Scootaloo choked a little and then nodded slowly. Then she turned round, flapped her wings and headed into the direction of the forest. Diamond Tiara followed her.
When Scootaloo reached the edge of the forest, she stopped, turned round and waited. Diamond Tiara was still quite the distance behind her and was going forward only very slowly. As Scootaloo watched her slow movements, while she waited for her, she thought that she was probably just afraid of going into the forest. It was a dangerous place after all, even when they just planned to go to Zecora. Her hut and the path to it were located in a calm and mostly inactive part of the forest. But there was still a small chance to meet a manticore or some timber wolves there.
She felt guilty again now. After all, what she told her about the threat for Equestria was only made up by her to ensure she will help her and no one, not even Diamond Tiara, deserved it to become eaten by a timber wolf. And Scootaloo knew, if that would happen, it would be all her fault. But she also couldn't give up now. She was just before her goal. She just couldn't.
Finally, Diamond Tiara had catched up with her and reached the edge of the forest too. Instead of going into the forest immediately, she stopped and hesitated. Scootaloo could see that her body trembled. It was the first time that she saw Diamond Tiara in fear of something. Seeing her like that just increased the feeling of guilt inside of Scootaloo. She reached out to the bully, whose only destiny seemed to be to make her life miserable, and placed a hoof on her shoulder. “Don't worry, it's just the path to Zecora's hut! I was there plenty of times, it's safe! There will nothing bad happen to you!”
Diamond Tiara didn't answer and made the first steps into the forest instead. Scootaloo followed her eagerly. She couldn't wait to get the book. “I just hope that we really don't meet one of the dangerous creatures here.....”, she thought a bit worried. Suddenly, she felt something wet at her flank.
She jumped a little and turned her head. But there was nothing. She looked up to the sky. It was full of grey clouds. She was so busy with searching for the book, that she hadn't recognized that the pegasi prepared a rainstorm.
It didn't took long until Scootaloo could feel the next raindrop hitting her. And then right after it the next one. After some seconds, the rain was coming down in sheets and Scootaloo and Diamond Tiara were wet to the bones. This was reason enough for Diamond Tiara to show again that side of her, that Scootaloo only knew too well. The rain shower seemed to have completely chased away her fear.
“Great, now it's even raining! As if this forest here wouldn't be already enough!” Luckily, she refrained this time from insulting Scootaloo. She was more busy with complaining about the rain and the quickly decreasing temperature.
Which was the next problem: It began to become cold. Scootaloo hoped that they will reach the hut of Zecora soon. It couldn't be far away anymore. But the rain dimmed their sight and made it even harder for them to see where they are, as the darkness of the forest already did.
Ten minutes passed and then Scootaloo was sure that she and Diamond Tiara became lost. She was sure that they weren't on the path to Zecora's hut anymore. Scootaloo stopped. She began to shiver.
It was two years ago that she entered the forest with Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle, when they tried to get their cutie marks together for the first time, to search for Elizabeak, and that they met the cockatrice here, but Scootaloo still felt a big respect for the forest. She never set a hoof in it since then, at least not in a part, that must not be traversed to get to Zecora's hut. Diamond Tiara, who was some steps behind her, ran into her.
“Why do you stop? Do you think it's something I wish for to run into your flank, chicken?” There was the word again that Scootaloo despised so much and that it was now used in this place felt like a strange irony to her. But this was something she didn't have ears for now. They were in trouble, in big trouble. And she knew that it was her fault that they are now lost in the Everfree Forest, without any knowledge about where they had to go to escape from it. She turned round to Diamond Tiara.
“I..... I think we are lost. We must have missed the way in the rain and I don't know where we are and how we can come to Zecora's hut.”
“What? You want to tell me that I'm now lost in the most dangerous place of Equestria, while it rains, in search for a stupid book?!” Scootaloo only looked to the ground, with a guilty expression, and without giving an answer. That was enough for Diamond Tiara. She was loosing her nerves.“Great!”, she added to her last sentence. “Now I will die here and that with you of all ponies!” Scootaloo looked at her and started to say something, but Diamond Tiara interrupted her. “Shut up, chicken! You shouldn't dare to say anything now! It's your fault that we got lost here!”
While Diamond Tiara used to insult Scootaloo because she enjoyed it to pick on her, it was simply pure rage over the situation that spoke out of her now.
“It's not surprising that we got lost here with YOU leading the way! Just look at you! A flightless pegasus, worth of nothing! How can somepony expect that such a useless pegasus like you could lead the way through the forest without getting lost!” Diamond Tiara talked herself more and more into rage. “Do you want to know something?” She stepped up to her. “You will never fly!”
She touched one of her wings and lifted it up condescending. “Your wings are crippled, they are useless! I heard you want to become like Rainbow Dash, becoming the best flyer in all of Equestria, but you can forget that!” Diamond Tiara breathed more and more heavier the longer she spoke. “You will always be grounded, like a dumb little chicken! You will not become the best flyer in Equestria! And you will never fly at the side of Rainbow Dash!”
That was enough for Scootaloo. She was able to withstand the tauntings of Diamond Tiara, since she opened the door of her house after she knocked on it, but now, Diamond Tiara had poked so heavy on her fears, that she couldn't hold it back anymore. She sank down and began to cry, loud and uncontrollably.
Diamond Tiara did not even pay attention to it how much she just hurted her feelings. Instead, she began to call her out. “Now, what? Do you even want to lure some timber wolves to us with your pathetic little sobbing?” Scootaloo didn't listen and just continued crying.
“Hey, have you even heard what I said? You shall stop that!” Scootaloo still didn't listen. Now, the anger inside of Diamond Tiara turned into fear again, bigger fear this time. She was in panic and had to stop her. But since comforting her was out of the question for Diamond Tiara, she decided for a more drastic solution. She grasped the still crying Scootaloo, lifted her up and raised her hoof to give her a slap in the face. But before she could finish her movement, she was interrupted by a loud roaring that seemed to come from all sides.
Scootaloo opened the eyes and looked scared into all directions, while the tears still streamed over her face. When the first timber wolf jumped out between the trees, this was enough to awake her from her stiffness and to stop her crying fit.
She tossed Diamond Tiara aside and jumped on her scooter. Diamond Tiara followed her without hesitation. More and more timber wolves appeared from between the trees. Scootaloo flapped her wings as hard as she could and the scooter raced forward before the timber wolves could react. For a moment, Scootaloo thought that she was able to outpace them. But when she looked back, she saw that the timber wolves followed them. And they were coming closer very quick.
Scootaloo flapped her wings even harder in her fear and managed it to increase the speed of her scooter a bit more. The distance to the timber wolves became bigger and bigger. But then, she overlooked a thick root on the ground. The scooter clattered over the root, tilted to the side and hit the ground, throwing them off of it. The timber wolves didn't hesitate to make use of this advantage and began to run faster. Scootaloo tried to get up again, with her front hooves still on the steering rod of her scooter, but her legs hurted. She sank back to the ground. She tried it again, harder this time, but with the same result.
There was nothing she could do anymore. The timber wolves were almost there. She began to scream, accompanied by Diamond Tiara, and closed her eyes. Instead of being bitten, she suddenly felt lifted up after some seconds passed. She opened her eyes slowly and saw that she was in the air! She looked up and expected to see Rainbow Dash, but the pony that saved them was another pegasus she knew well. The pegasus mare looked down at them, with her eyes pointing in different directions as usual.
“Are you alright?”, she asked with her slight clunky voice.
Scootaloo nodded with a smile and then looked to Diamond Tiara. She was still shocked over their sudden encounter with timber wolves and didn't say anything, but from what she could see she seemed to be fine.
Derpy flew them over the forest back to Ponyville and landed with them near the town hall. On the ground again, Scootaloo let go of her scooter, that she still had clasped between her hooves during the flight.
“What were you doing in the forest? Why did you go into such a dangerous place?”, Derpy called them out. Scootaloo explained her with some quick words what happened in the past hours. While doing so, she felt again the, already familiar, feeling of guilt, cause she had to tell Derpy the same wrong story like Diamond Tiara, since the latter one was still there. She decided to tell her the truth when everything was over.
Derpy made both of them promise to not enter the forest alone anymore, said goodbye to them and flew away. Scootaloo looked up, waved at her and then, she recognized the sky was clear again. In all her panic and fear she had completely missed that the pegasi have moved away the clouds again. She turned round and looked at Diamond Tiara. The fear could still be seen in her face. They were both saved by Derpy, but this didn't change the fact that Scootaloo has brought both of them in danger and she considered to tell Diamond Tiara that she doesn't need her help anymore and that she should go home.
She apologized to her, which was just answered by Diamond Tiara with another snort, and then started to tell her that, but Diamond Tiara interrupted her again.
“I have enough now! I will go home, call up the spa and tell Aloe she should come to my house!”
Scootaloo was surprised. She had expected that she would just leave her alone now. And suddenly, she sounded much friendlier than in the forest, when she said all those cruel things to her. The shock didn't seem to have lost the impact on her completely yet.
But Scootaloo knew that this effect will not last long anymore, so she used this advantage. After all, there was nothing anymore that could bring them in danger, just a simple phone call. “Great, then let's go!”, she said cheerfully.
“Not so fast!”, Diamond Tiara replied. “Just look at you! Do you really think I let you in my house like this?” Scootaloo looked down on her. It was just now that she realized that she was almost completely covered in mud. Diamond Tiara didn't looked any better. “I need a shower before I call Aloe! And you should get one too, when you want to enter my house so that we can wait for her there!”
“Okay, then let's meet in an hour at your house!”, she said and made her way back home.
“And don't forget to bring my money!”, Diamond Tiara cat-called her. Scootaloo guessed that her shock was finally over now.
One hour later, Scootaloo knocked at the door of Diamond Tiara's house. Diamond Tiara opened her, her mane still wet from the shower. Scootaloo entered and closed the door behind her.
“Have you already called Aloe?”, she asked.
“Not yet.”, Diamond Tiara answered. “Have you brought over my money?”
Scootaloo pulled out the rest of her savings and handed them over to her. While Diamond Tiara brought the money to her room, Scootaloo looked around a bit. She was happy now. After everything she had to go through today, she was sure to manage this last obstacle too. She thought on Rainbow Dash and saw again that happy grin that she would make tomorrow when she gave the book to her. Her glance felt on a table nearby and Scootaloo froze. There was a green book on the table, showing an all too familiar adventurer.
“Daring Do and the Temple of Terror”, she read loudly. “What? How can that be? Why is the book here?”, she asked herself.
Diamond Tiara entered the room again and Scootaloo turned round to her, showing her the book. “Where did you got that book from?”, she asked, with a sense of foreboding.
“That's none of your beeswax!”, she answered.
“I HAVE TO KNOW IT!”, Scootaloo shouted, louder than intended. It was almost a scream. She said it even that loud, that she made Diamond Tiara cringe and answering.
“Aloe gave me that book. She is my aunt and bought that book for me yesterday, because I didn't got one at the big sale some weeks ago. I just haven't known that she also bought another book, especially not such an important one.” “Why do YOU care about that?”, she added harshly.
Scootaloo returned the book back on the table. Everything was over. She wouldn't get the book for Rainbow Dash now. “That doesn't matter anymore.” she answered quietly. “You don't need to call Aloe anymore now. Everything I told you was a lie to make you help me.” Diamond Tiara's face darkened.
“I needed this book as a present for Rainbow Dash for her birthiversary tomorrow.....” The last words she almost sobbed.
The expression in Diamond Tiara's face changed again, showing naked spite now. But before she could say anything to her, Scootaloo ran out of her house. She was running through Ponyville, aimlessly. Now she had to go through so much and everything was useless. She tried so hard to get the book for Rainbow Dash, but she couldn't achieve her goal. This thought pained her even more than Diamond Tiara's words in the Everfree Forest. Scootaloo ran until she reached the park of Ponyville. There, she sat down on a bench and began to cry. After some minutes of sobbing and crying, someone slapped on her shoulder.
Scootaloo opened her eyes and looked up. Rainbow Dash sat suddenly by her side.
“What's wrong, Scoots?”, she asked worried. Scootaloo didn't answer. Instead, she looked at the ground.
“Derpy told me she saw you in the Everfree Forest with Diamond Tiara. She said you told her some strange story about how you must save Equestria. What happened?”, Rainbow continued asking.
Scootaloo looked at her again, new tears filled her eyes. She let herself falling in Rainbow Dash's arms, sobbing. Rainbow Dash hugged her tightly and gave her the chance to cry out on her chest whatever hurted her so much. Scootaloo cried for about ten minutes, before she became calm enough to talk about it. She told her everything what happened that day and Rainbow listened carefully until she ended.
“I'm happy that you wanted to do that for me.”, she hugged her a bit tighter. “But that was dangerous! If Derpy wouldn't have been there, you wouldn't be alive anymore now!”
“But”, Scootaloo answered, “the book was so important for you!”
“Not as important as you! What do you think would I do without you?”
“But..... but.... I don't have any present for you now......” Scootaloo started to cry a little again.
“Listen, Scootaloo.” Rainbow Dash lifted her up so she could face her. “For me, it doesn't matter if you have a present for me or not. As long as I have you. YOU are the best present I could wish for, just because you're there!”
“REALLY?” Scootaloo's lips began to form a smile.
“Sure! I only have one little sister, after all!”
Scootaloo laughed and felt back into her arms to share another hug with her. They remained like that for some minutes and then Rainbow Dash asked: “So, what about I fly you back to the clubhouse now? I'm sure Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle are still there!”
“That would be great! I can still help them with.... you know..... 'The thing you don't know about'!” Scootaloo grinned at her and they laughed together. She climbed on Rainbow Dash's back and let herself bring back to the clubhouse by her.
On the next day, at her party, Rainbow Dash stood excited in front of all three Crusaders. She already knew that they prepared a surprise for her, but not what it was. Scootaloo stepped forward.
“And here is your birthiversary present from us! We worked all day on it!” She flapped her wings, hovered a little and pulled a tarp from something big that hung from the branch of a tree. A huge piñata, in the look and shape of Rainbow Dash's cutie mark, appeared.
Rainbow Dash was marveled over the size of it. “You did that all by yourself?”
“Yap!”, Apple Bloom answered. “An' it's filled with all ya favourite sweets! Only the best for the best coach!”
“And the best big sister!”, Scootaloo added.
“Do you like it?”, Sweetie Belle asked her.
“If I LIKE it? It's awesome! I LOVE it!” She bent down and gave all of them a big hug. Then she took a branch and broke open the piñata, watched by the best present she could wish for.......
