Thicker than Water

by DemonBrightSpirit

Rating: everyone
Tags: Rainbow Dash, Scootaloo, Slice of Life, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Sad
Length: 6298

Rainbow Dash discovers a startling secret about Scootaloo's past. It will forever change the relationship between them, but will it bring them closer together or tear them apart?

Rainbow Dash stumbles upon a disturbing truth about her relationship with Scootaloo. Deciding to act on this new information, she changes the way Scootaloo sees herself and her situation—and not for the better. Now Dash must find a way to get through to Scootaloo and start to repair the damage she's done.

A special thanks to my pre-reader and editors: DudeGuyOne, RaylanKrios, Replicant, and SpitFlame. Check them out. They're awesome.

Cover art used with permission by Neilikkaa.

Published 2015-02-23 03:50:02 UTC
Last updated 2015-02-23 03:50:02 UTC

Hidden Past

"Okay!" Scootaloo said, strapping on her helmet. "Ready?”

Rainbow Dash, sporting her own pads and helmet, stood awkwardly on a scooter. Her hooves nearly slipped from the narrow base. "Yeah, no problem," she said.

"Remember, no flying, and the first one back to the orphanage wins," Scootaloo said, pointing out in front of her. The long dirt path led right through the heart of Ponyville. About the impromptu race course were dozens of ponies and stalls, all oblivious to the imminent threat. At the far end, barely visible from their vantage point, stood a large structure with a set of steps leading up to the door.

"Got it," Dash said, fiddling with the strap on her helmet. Instead of finding a way to loosen it, she just unbuckled the strap.

Scootaloo grinned, edging her scooter into position. "Ready…" Her wings buzzed in anticipation as she tightly gripped the handlebars. "Steady…" She dug a hind hoof into the dirt. A huge grin spread across her muzzle. "Go!" She kicked off, buzzing her wings for all they were worth.

Scootaloo might have had more experience riding a scooter than her idol, but Rainbow Dash was the fastest flier in Ponyville. Dash took an early lead, quickly putting ground between her and Scootaloo, at least until they got into town square.

Rainbow Dash struggled to remain in control of the tiny scooter. She just managed to weave between ponies, wagons, boxes—

Wham!

—and stalls.

The impact threw Dash from her scooter. She sat dazed for a moment, a busted potted plant sitting on her head. Shaking off the blow, the pot smashed into the ground. "Sorry. I'll take care of it later," she said to a rather irate-looking Rose before scooping up the scooter.

Thanks to her clumsy crash, Scootaloo had not only caught up to Dash, she had passed her! Taking off at full speed, Rainbow quickly closed the distance. The steps to the orphanage were just ahead. Pouring all of her efforts into her wings, she shot past Scootaloo just as they reached the finish.

Scootaloo skidded to a stop, her wheels just tapping the bottommost stair. Rainbow, however, discovered something quite inconvenient: she had no clue how to stop a speeding scooter. Her scooter smashed into the bottom stair, sending her sailing straight through the door and into the lobby.

Scootaloo winced before rushing in. Hundreds of sheets of paper danced in the air. Behind the flying paper screen, the portly, tan mare at the reception desk inexplicably wore Dash's helmet atop her head. Dash popped up from behind the desk, rubbing her temple.

"Did I win?" Dash asked, only to wither under the receptionist's glare. Dash let out a nervous chuckle as the receptionist removed the helmet. The tanned mare roughly shoved the helmet on Rainbow's head. "I'll, uh, I'll help you clean it up," Dash said, picking up an overturned filing cabinet and setting it straight. Then, she scooped up dozens of scattered papers.

"No," the mare said, pointing to the door. "These files are confidential. Nopony is allowed to see them without proper authority. Leave."

Dash hesitated before looking at the papers in her hooves. She was about to ask something, but her thoughts derailed the moment she looked at the document. Her eyes stayed locked on the document up until the secretary forcefully snatched the whole stack from her hooves.

"Leave," the receptionist said again, her voice laced with animosity.

"Uh, yeah," Dash muttered.

Scootaloo rushed over to Dash's side the instant she stepped out from behind the desk. “That was so cool! Wanna race again?”

Rainbow stared at Scootaloo, blinking a couple of times. Finally, it occurred to her to say something. "I, uh, I need to go." Without any further explanation, she took wing and shot out of the orphanage.

Her mind raced faster than her wings as she zoomed all through Ponyville. She only slowed down once she had arrived back at her cloud home. Lowering herself onto a plush cloud, she tried to find some reason for what she’d seen.

It was definitely Scootaloo’s birth certificate—there was no denying that. But the names on it… Could she have read it wrong? Maybe she just remembered wrong? That could happen, right?

Dash sighed. She reached up to rub her sore head only to discover she still had her helmet on. She slowly flew into her house in a daze, taking off the helmet and unstrapping the pads. Paying them little mind, she discarded them before heading to her room and flopping down on her bed.

She tried and tried to convince herself that she got it wrong that, somehow, she’d misread it or something. Unable to delude herself, she shook her head. There was no way she got it wrong. Scootaloo’s birth certificate had her own parents’ names on it.

It was just so inconceivable that it twisted up her thoughts into knots. Maybe there were different ponies with the same names? That didn’t seem likely, either. Could it really be possible?

Rolling over to the edge of her bed, she grabbed a frame from her nightstand. It showed a rainbow-maned foal in an orange mare’s arms. Next to her was a stallion with a mane just like the foal’s.

Her hoof ran along the smooth, wooden frame as she stared intently at the photograph. “I’m an only child… right?”

Unable to let it rest, Rainbow Dash made a quick flight over to Cloudsdale. She soon found herself soaring through familiar suburbs. The cloud houses were often anchored to the massive clouds that served as Cloudsdale's foundation. Several more, however, floated aimlessly above the rest. One such home had a rainbow waterfall, spilling polychromatic splendor down to the clouds below.

Shifting her wings a bit, she gained altitude and leaned towards that humble house. Giving her wings a few flaps, she disrupted her momentum. She flew there above the house’s front stoop a moment before gently setting her hooves on the fluffy porch. Closing her eyes, she let out a sigh before knocking on the door.

In a few moments, the door opened, and a stallion with a rainbow mane stepped out. "Hey!" he said with a smile, wrapping his hooves around her. "Been a while since I've seen my little girl."

Rainbow returned the hug. "Hey, Dad," she said before she broke the embrace and stepped back.

He opened the door, leading the way. “Come on in. Is there anything I can get you?”

“I-I’m good.” As soon as she cleared the threshold, a hoof went to her nose. A powerful, musty odor hung in the air. A quick glance revealed left out dishes and clothes.

Her dad gave a nervous laugh as he tried kicking around some of the clothes into a pile and grabbed some dishes. “Sorry about the mess,” he said, heading to the kitchen. “You got the package I sent for your birthday, right?”

Dash took a seat nearby on the sofa. “Yeah, Dad. Thanks.”

“Sorry I couldn’t be there,” he said, reentering before taking a seat next to Dash. Rainbow didn’t say anything in turn, leaving disquieting silence between the two. Just a few seconds was more than he could bear. He cleared his throat before speaking up again. “So, what brings you here? Have another meeting with the weather teams here?”

“No, I uh…” Dash shook her head. “Dad, am I an only child?”

He recoiled at the notion, sputtering. “Th-that’s—don’t be silly. You know I loved your mom.”

Rainbow stared hard at him. “That’s not what I’m talking about and you know it.”

“Hey, why don’t I get us some drinks?” he said, leaning forward to get up.

Rainbow grabbed her dad’s foreleg, keeping him there next to her. “Talk to me.”

He put on a small smile for his daughter. “Wh-what do you want to talk about? You know, Father’s Day isn’t too far off and—”

“I want to know,” Dash said, cutting him off. She looked him right in the eye, daring him to hide from the truth. “Am I an only child?”

“I, uh…” Her dad looked down and sighed. “How did you know?”

“What happened?”

Sighing, he rubbed his neck as his eyes fixated on the ceiling. “There were a few times I was going to tell you.” He gave a little laugh before looking over at his daughter. “I never could keep my nerve, though.”

“Like right now?” Rainbow said, raising an eyebrow.

“Yeah,” he said, nodding. He inhaled, and then exhaled.“When… when we found out your mom was going to have another foal, she’d already been sick for a long time.” He shook his head. “The doctor told us that there was no chance that she would be able to go through the pregnancy. I remember he-he told us that your mom probably wouldn’t make it another ten months, let alone the baby.”

Rainbow remained quiet a moment, thinking over the words for a time. Finally, she spoke up. “I remember when mom got real sick, she put on a lot of weight, but then I remember one time she came back and she’d lost it all and then some.”

“I—we—lied to you back then. We didn’t know for sure if the baby was going to make it, and we definitely didn’t want to get your hopes up. So we hid it from you,” he said, putting a hoof on Dash’s. “But then, when the time came, we realized that both your mom and the baby were going to make it. We talked. We talked and talked and talked. She was getting so sick, and the pregnancy made it that much harder on her.” He sniffled a bit, swiping at his eyes.

“Dad…”

Clearing his throat, he continued. “It was so hard. Your mom fought for all she was worth, and we were barely getting by, and well, we agreed that there was just no way we could take care of a new foal. After she gave birth, we gave her up. Both of us.”

Rainbow nodded. “Oh.”

“It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, Dash,” her father said, looking her in the eye. “Seeing that precious little foal and just… giving her up like that.”

Dash licked her lips, glancing about the room. “Dad, I know that—that it was hard after mom died, but why didn’t you adopt her? Especially after I was old enough to take care of myself.”

He shook his head. “It doesn’t work like that. When we gave her up, we agreed to forfeit our rights to have her in our lives. I don’t know where she is, how she’s doing, or even what her name is.” He sighed, rubbing his neck. “When she’s old enough, they’ll let her know who I am. It’ll be up to her if she wants to come to find me. I-I hope she does.”

Rainbow Dash cast a sideways glance at her dad before looking back down at her lap. “What if you found out where she was? Wouldn’t you be able to adopt her?”

“I wouldn’t be allowed to,” he replied, sighing as he stared up at the ceiling. “It’s a moot point, anyway. Odds are she’s already part of some happy little family somewhere.” He closed his eyes, a small smile touching his lips.

Rainbow opened her mouth, but snapped it shut a mere moment later. Staring hard at the serene look on her father’s face, she shook her head. “H-hey, I really should get going.” She got up, stretching.

“So soon?” her father asked. “But—”

“Hey, I know I don’t stop by as often as I should, but I promise I’ll come back soon.”

He gave a pathetic little laugh. “I’ll, uh, I’ll be sure to have things straightened up by then.”

Dash shook her head as she headed for the nearest window. “No you won’t.”

“I’ll try,” he said, trotting after her.

“I know,” Dash said, spreading her wings. “I’ll see you soon.”

Pandora's Box

Racing out of Cloudsdale, Dash headed straight for Twilight’s castle. Zipping in through the nearest window, she searched the corridors for her. “Twilight! Twilight!” Finally, she found Twilight in the main entrance hall along with a mountain of books. “Twilight, there you are!”

Twilight looked up from a tattered book. “Hey, Rainbow Dash,” she said before turning her attention back to the book. “Spike and I were just trying to restore the books recovered from the library. I’m hoping to dedicate a wing of the castle to be the town’s new library.”

“Nevermind that. I have a huge, huge problem!” Dash said as she landed next to Twilight.

“What’s wrong?”

Rainbow Dash looked over at Spike a moment before turning back to Twilight. “Uh, can we talk in private?”

Both ponies looked over to Spike, causing him to abandon working on a charred tome. “Fine,” he said, rolling his eyes. As he walked out, he stretched his arms up over his head. “I could use a nap anyways.”

“What’s bothering you?” Twilight asked. “What’s got you so worked up?”

“I… I found out something I was not supposed to know. I don’t know what to do. You gotta help me!”

“A secret? Well, usually the best thing is just to be honest,” Twilight said, holding up a hoof. “How bad could it possibly be?” The look on Rainbow’s face crushed what remained of Twilight’s optimism. “Th-that bad, huh?”

Rainbow pawed at the floor. “I think… I might’ve—by accident—broken the law. A little.”

Twilight facehoofed. “What did you do?”

“I-I found Scootaloo’s birth certificate.”

“What? That’s supposed to be confidential!” Twilight glared at Dash. “What did you do: break into the orphanage’s files? How is that an accident?”

“No! I, well, I crashed into the filing cabinets and the papers went all over the place,” Rainbow said. “I was just trying to help clean it up, honest!”

Twilight sighed, a small smile gracing her lips. “That I can imagine.” She reached out, putting a hoof on Rainbow’s shoulder. “Just forget about it. Everything will be okay.”

Dash hung her head. “It-it’s not that simple, Twilight.” Looking up, she found Twilight giving her a reassuring smile. “Scootaloo is my sister.”

Twilight’s eyes widened. “Wh-what?” She shook her head. “How is that even possible?”

“I thought I was an only child, too, but I just talked to my dad. He said that… Look, Scootaloo is my sister—the flesh and blood kind. My folks gave her up for adoption when she was born.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “You’re sure?”

“Her birth certificate had my parents’ names on it! My dad just told me that they had a foal and gave it up for adoption!” Dash shouted back at her. She breathed a deep breath out through her nose, reigning in her emotions. “I’m sure.”

Twilight’s eyes darted back and forth a moment, before focusing on Dash again. “I guess that complicates things.”

“I don’t know what to do, Twilight,” Dash said, turning around and stepping away. “Dad says they won’t let him adopt her, that he isn’t even supposed to know where or who she is. He thinks she’s in a happy family.” Her wings twitched, rubbing against her sides as she turned back around to look at Twilight. “You should’ve seen his face. He looked so…” Dash shook her head. “He was so sure that he did the right thing and that Scootaloo was happy.”

Twilight tilted her head a bit. “Isn’t she happy? You know, I see her every week, and she’s never so much as mentioned her… home situation.” She offered Rainbow Dash a reassuring smile. “Her biggest concerns are flying and getting her cutie mark, just like any other filly. Doesn’t that mean that she is doing well?”

“That’s not the point!” said Dash, shaking her head. “She deserves better.”

Twilight sighed, rubbing her temple a moment. “What do you want me to tell you?”

“I don’t know. Just something that will make this all better!” Dash replied, her voice almost begging.

“I can’t make them let your dad adopt her, and I’m not sure she would like to be taken away from Ponyville, either. I hate to say it, but isn’t the status quo the best in this situation?” Twilight asked, staring Rainbow down.

“That’s not—what am I supposed to tell my dad? He misses her, but if he knew that she never got adopted, he’d never forgive himself. And doesn’t Scootaloo deserve to know who her real family is?”

Twilight’s ears folded back, and she looked away, her gaze finding anything other than Rainbow Dash to be absolutely enthralling. “Those aren’t answers I can give you. Scootaloo is happy where she is, and she already thinks of you as her sister. I don’t even know if Scootaloo wants to know who her real family is.”

“Whatever.” Dash gave her wings a powerful flap, sending a few damaged books flying as she took to the air.

Blowing off steam by soaring in the skies above Ponyville quickly proved counterproductive. Almost as soon as she left the castle, she spied Scootaloo and her scooter. They were both on the ground amidst a cloud of dust.

“Hey! Are you okay?” Dash asked as she landed.

Scootaloo sat up, her head and eyes spinning. A vigorous shake of her head cleared it right up. “F-fine,” she said, holding her helmeted head. “I just wrecked, that’s all. Is the scooter okay?”

Dash picked it up off the ground, pushing it towards Scootaloo. “Looks to be about as sturdy as you are.”

Scootaloo put her front hooves up on the handlebars, leaning on her trusty scooter. She didn’t move to get on the thing, she just stared at it. “Are you… mad at me?”

Dash’s eyes widened before she tilted her head. “What? No. Why would I be mad at you?”

“Well, I mean, I got you in trouble and you took off like that, so I just thought—”

“No.” Rainbow shook her head. “I’m not mad, I just…” She rubbed the back of her neck. “Uh, hey, you wanna talk?”

Scootaloo raised an eyebrow. “Talk?”

Rainbow Dash glanced about, finding a whole lot of nothing. She then looked up to find a cloud overhead. “Come on,” she said, picking Scootaloo up and hoisting her up to it.

The diminutive cloud didn’t offer much room, so Scootaloo ended up lying against Rainbow Dash. She cast a few wary glances over the edge. She gulped. “Uh, is this about flying?”

“No, I just wanted to talk to you,” Rainbow said. She unfurled a wing, hovering it over Scootaloo for but a moment before snapping back to her side. She cleared her throat. “Do you, uh, do you ever wonder about your family? Y-your parents, I mean.”

Scootaloo looked down at the cloud between her forelegs. “Uh, well, yeah. Sometimes,” she said, shifting uncomfortably. “Nopony will ever tell me anything. I don’t even know how they died or anything.”

Rainbow Dash bit her lip. “Do you know why I got in trouble earlier? I—accidently—found your birth certificate. I read it.”

Scootaloo’s attention immediately snapped over to Rainbow Dash. “Y-you know who my parents were?”

Rainbow nodded. “I’m really not supposed to tell you anything, but if you want to know, I can tell you.”

“I want to know!”

Dash sighed. “You…” She shook her head. “H-how do I say this?”

“Is it bad?” Scootaloo asked, looking up at Rainbow Dash.

“It won’t… just don’t get your hopes up, okay?” Rainbow waited for Scootaloo to nod before continuing, “You know, I couldn’t believe it when I read it. That was why I took off like I did.”

“Who are my parents?”

Dash gave her an uneasy smile. “Hey, you know how you used to wish you had a big sister like Sweetie and Apple bloom? Well, turns out, you do.”

Scootaloo sprung up, nearly tumbling from the precariously small cloud. “Who?”

“Me.”

Scootaloo scoffed, rolling her eyes. “I know that. You took me under your wing months ago.”

Rainbow shook her head. “No, I mean you’re my sister. My real sister. Your birth certificate had my parents’ names on it.”

Scootaloo’s eyes widened as she gasped. “Really?” Just as quickly as her smile appeared, it washed away. “Oh my gosh! I didn’t know that your parents were, uh…”

“They’re not,” Dash said. “Uh, I mean, not both of them.” She sighed, closing her eyes and hanging her head. “Listen, I just found out about this today. I never knew I had a sister!”

Scootaloo furrowed her brow. “If they’re not… gone, then h-how can I be an orphan?”

“Mom—our mom—was really sick for a really long time. When she had you she was… she was already dying. She only made it a couple of months after you were foaled,” Rainbow said, keeping her eyes locked on the cloud. “She knew that she wouldn’t make it much longer, and Dad was already struggling with just me. So they gave you up for adoption.”

“They… abandoned me?”

“H-hey!” Rainbow draped her wing around Scootaloo. “They thought they were doing what was best for you. Dad was falling apart and Mom was just so sick. They knew they couldn’t take care of another filly. They thought that you would be adopted right away.”

She looked up at Dash, her eyes wet with unshed tears. “Didn’t they want me?”

Rainbow pulled Scootaloo into a hug, wrapping her forelegs and wings around the little filly. “Come on, who wouldn’t want an awesome filly like you?”

Scootaloo wrapped her hooves around Dash’s neck. “Just about everypony,” she mumbled.

Dash rubbed Scootaloo’s back. “You should’ve seen dad when he talked about you. He really misses you.”

Scootaloo shuddered as she failed to suppress her sobs. “Then why did he throw me away?”

“Scoots, Dad loves you. You gotta believe that.”

She pushed herself away from Dash, a single hoof slipping from the edge of the cloud before she got her balance. “He’s never even met me!” Tears dripped down her cheeks, and she glared at Rainbow Dash. “Did you really not know I was your sister?”

Rainbow shook her head. “I had no idea, not until a little bit ago.”

Clenching her jaw tight, Scootaloo looked away from Dash, focusing instead on the edge of the cloud. She drew a hoof across her face as she sniffled. “I always thought I was an orphan because my parents had passed away. I never thought it was because… nopony wanted me.”

“Scoot—”

“Let me down!” Scootaloo said, struggling to maintain what little composure she had. “I want down!”

“Hey, listen to me,” Rainbow said, reaching a hoof towards Scootaloo. As she did, the filly jumped! She leapt after her, barely catching Scootaloo before she hit the ground. After gently setting her down and making sure she was all right, she glared at the filly. “Don’t go jumping off of clouds like that! You could’ve gotten hurt!”

“Just… leave me alone!” Scootaloo shouted back at her as she jumped on her scooter. Not bothering to look back, she fired up her wings and took off, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Rainbow Dash extended a hoof after the retreating filly. She opened her mouth to protest, but no words came. She just sighed as she set her hoof down. She angrily kicked the dirt for lack of the ability to actually kick herself. “Idiot.”

Deciding that Scootaloo could use some time to cool off, Dash took to the air. There was at least one pony that might know how to fix this.

I just hope she doesn’t say that she told me so…

“I warned you that something like this might happen!” Twilight said, stomping a hoof.

“I know,” Dash replied, hanging her head low. “I need to fix it, but I don’t know how.”

Twilight facehoofed. “Rainbow, this kind of thing takes serious therapy to fix. We’re talking months, maybe years! You should have just waited until she was older to tell her.”

Rainbow’s ears folded down. “There has to be something I can do.”

“Urgh!” Twilight grunted, pacing in front of Dash. “I can’t believe you thought this would be a good idea!”

Rainbow raised her head, her ears flicking up. “She’s my sister! She deserved to know.”

Shaking her head, Twilight glared at Dash. “Deserving to know and being mature enough to handle the reality of the situation are two very different things. Why do you think they don’t let these kinds of kids see their own birth certificates until they are older?”

“I don’t know!”

Twilight let out a frustrated sigh. “Look, I’m not sure how to ‘fix’ this. You just changed the way she sees herself and her situation, and not for the better, either. You’ve opened pandora’s box, and the evil you let out can’t be stuffed back in.”

Dash stared at the ground a moment before looking back up. “Wait, wasn’t there still hope left in the box?”

Against her best efforts, a small smile touched Twilight’s lips. “Yes, I suppose there was.” She shook her head. “While there is always hope, I just don’t know what you can do to try to rectify the situation.”

Rainbow stamped a hoof. “I have to try!” Her wings flared out, and she took off, a rainbow trail following after her.

Consequences

Rainbow Dash checked the orphanage, every inch of Ponyville visible from the air, and even the schoolhouse and Sweet Apple Acres. She couldn’t find Scootaloo anywhere. Even Cheerilee and the ponies at the orphanage didn’t know where Scootaloo would be, so who would?

Without any other leads, Dash stopped her repetitive circling over Ponyville to sit on a convenient cloud. She regretted the decision as she looked at the bit of fluff next to her. She could almost see Scootaloo’s crying face staring back at her.

Rainbow sighed. I made her feel that way. All this time and Scootaloo never really felt unloved or unwanted. Well, if she did, she certainly kept it to herself. She always seemed so… happy, energetic.

Idiot.

Here all this time she had been playing the role of surrogate sister to her real sister. Worse, she stunk at it! She had stupidly crushed Scootaloo’s spirit and made her feel unloved. She didn’t even know where to find Scootaloo. Did she really know anything about her little sister at all?

Dash sat on the cloud, ruminating on her actions well into the evening. The sun drew ever nearer to the horizon, and still she had seen neither hide nor hair of Scootaloo. Just as she began to lose hope, tiny shouts sounded from below.

Leaning over the cloud to look straight down, she found Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle staring expectantly up at her. “Hey! Have you two seen Scootaloo?”

The duo looked at each other, then back up at Rainbow Dash. “Yeah,” Apple Bloom said. “She wouldn’t say much, but she was hurtin’ something awful.”

“We tried to help, but she just wouldn’t listen,” Sweetie Belle said. She turned and pointed a hoof. “She took off for Winsome Falls. We couldn’t keep up with her.”

“What is she thinking?” Dash said as she spread her wings. “I’ll go get her!” With a mighty burst, she took off in the direction of Winsome Falls.

Even with her blazing speed, Rainbow Dash didn’t make it far before Luna ushered in the night. The red light of evening faded to the pale light of the moon and stars. Dash grunted as she approached the bottom of the mountain. All the speed in the world wouldn’t avail her if it grew too dark to spot the filly.

Dash slowed herself, lowering her altitude to just above the treetops. She bit her tongue against the urge to cry out the filly’s name. Odds were that Scootaloo just might flee at the sound of her voice. She scanned the well-worn trail below her, praying that Scootaloo hadn’t managed to get lost—or worse.

Rainbow made it over halfway to the top of the mountain before she spotted her first signs of the wayward filly. Fanning out her wings, Dash braked before floating down and hovering just above the lonely path. There, she approached a seemingly benign object dangling from a low branch.

It was one of Scootaloo’s kneepads. Rainbow yanked it from the branch. Looking up, she observed the scene. There weren’t any feathers or fur. Her scooter and the rest of her gear were nowhere to be found. There weren’t even any tracks. Frowning, Dash looked back down at the tiny kneepad, running a hoof over it.

With a mighty burst, Dash shot back above the trees. She must be further up. She’s gotta be. This time instead of just following the trail, she rocked back and forth. She soared dozens of yards out in either direction, scanning the dense wood all around the path.

Then, she saw it.

Next to the raging river that cut through the mountain, Dash espied a small silhouette. She swooped down, and as she got close, she managed to see the silhouette more clearly. It was Scootaloo. She sat next to the rushing water, while her pads, helmet, and scooter were piled in a heap nearby.

Scootaloo looked up, and their eyes met. She stood, never taking her eyes off of Dash. Then, she turned towards the river and jumped!

Redoubling her speed, Dash dove towards the river. “Scootaloo!” she shouted, scanning the dark, rushing waters.

Out of the swirling waters, Scootaloo burst free, kicking her forelegs to keep her head above the water. Dash zipped there in an instant. She looped her forelegs around Scootaloo’s torso, lifting her up and out of the water.

Rainbow Dash carried Scootaloo safely over to the shore. “What the hay were you thinking?” she nearly shouted at the filly after she set her down.

Scootaloo gave her hide a thorough shake, flinging water everywhere and making Dash flinch away. “There!” she said, not even looking at Dash. “We’re not sisters anymore!” She only paused momentarily to shake more water from her hind leg before marching towards her scooter.

Rainbow shot up and over Scootaloo before landing in front of her. “What are you talking about?”

Scootaloo stopped, taking a step back. She glared at Dash. “You said you’d take me under your wing and be my big sister so long as you didn’t have to pull me out of anymore rivers in the middle of the night,” she said, thrusting a hoof in the direction of the river. “Now we’re not sisters anymore.”

“Hey, you are my sister, and nothing is ever going to change that,” Dash said, taking a step forward. “I don’t care if you jump in a river or a dozen rivers, you’ll still be my little sister.”

Scootaloo took a step back. She glanced to the side. Suddenly, she sprinted towards the river.

Without thinking, Dash’s reflexes kicked in and she tackled Scootaloo before she’d made it halfway to the churning waters. Pinning the filly on her back, Dash glared down at her. “Stop that!”

“Lemme go!” Scootaloo struggled uselessly underneath Rainbow Dash.

“What’s gotten into you?” Dash asked. Scootaloo snapped her head to the side, doing everything in her power to not look at Rainbow. Dash’s throat tightened, making her voice crack. “Do you really not want to be my sister anymore?”

Scootaloo squeezed her eyes shut, purging her eyes of tears. “Why?” she asked, her voice quivering as she began to cry. “If we’re sisters, wh-why did you get a family and I didn’t?”

Dash shook her head before getting off of Scootaloo and letting her up. “I-I wish I knew.” She pulled Scootaloo into a hug, wrapping both her forehooves and her wings around the filly. “I wish I could make it better.”

Gripping tight to Dash, Scootaloo buried her face in Dash’s chest. “What did I do wrong?” She shook, sobbing. “Why don’t I get a home… a f-family like everypony else?”

Rainbow ran a hoof through Scootaloo’s messy mane. “Shh, you didn’t do anything wrong.” Leaning down, she kissed the top of Scootaloo’s head as she moved her hoof down to rub the filly’s back. “Other ponies messed up, and you had to suffer because of it. Dad, me… Mom.” Dash nuzzled the top of Scootaloo’s head. Rainbow sniffled, trying her best to keep her voice even. “I’m sorry, Scootaloo. We really messed up.”

Scootaloo sobbed, muttering apologies and shaking her head, soaking her tears into Rainbow Dash’s chest.

Pulling a wing up to her face, Dash wiped the tears from her eyes. “I-I can’t give you a home.” She shook her head. “I don’t—I don’t think I can even give you a real family, but I am your sister. I can at least be that for you, if you’ll let me.” Dash felt Scootaloo nodding as she cried into her chest.

Rainbow held Scootaloo for quite some time, until the crying stopped. The exhausted filly had finally drifted off into the numbness of sleep. Carefully, she lifted Scootaloo up onto her back. Then, she gathered up the scooter and pads and took off, slow and steady, for Ponyville.

Although Dash was tempted to just stop at her house and have Scootaloo spend the night, the two of them were already in a heap of trouble. Scootaloo’s curfew passed at least two hours ago, and she… well, she didn’t mean to break the law and see Scootaloo’s birth certificate. Hopefully that wouldn’t come out—ever.

So she kept flying, only stopping once she had reached the orphanage. After dumping the scooter and pads, she lowered Scootaloo off of her back and stirred her awake. “Hey, come on. You need to get up.”

Finding herself on her hooves, Scootaloo looked around. As soon as she realized where she was, she hung her head and her ears folded down. She sighed.

Dash nudged Scootaloo. “Hey, I’ll see you after school tomorrow, okay?”

Scootaloo nodded.

“Listen, Scootaloo, I know Dad probably isn’t your favorite pony right now—”

“I hate him,” Scootaloo said with a conviction no child should possess.

Rainbow closed her eyes and sighed. She nodded before she looked back down at Scootaloo. “If-if you ever want to meet him, just let me know, okay?”

Scootaloo turned away. “Whatever.”

With another sigh, Rainbow knocked on the door. “I really wish I could make it better.”

Scootaloo didn’t reply, and the two stood in silence until the door opened to reveal a grey mare with a greying brown mane. She looked down at Scootaloo then back up at Dash. “Do you have any idea what time it is?” she asked, her voice thick with contempt.

“I know. I’m sorry,” Dash said, looking down. She idly kicked hoof. “I guess I, uh, lost track of time.”

“Really?” she asked sharply as she pulled Scootaloo inside. “The fact that it’s night didn’t register with you for two hours?” She looked down at Scootaloo. “Off to bed. Now.” Her tone was demanding but not without compassion.

Scootaloo nodded before trudging out of sight.

“I screwed up, all right?” Dash said. The mare just rolled her eyes before putting a hoof on the door. Rainbow managed to just slip her hoof in, stopping the door from closing. “Hey, I’m not done with you,” she said, her wings spread out as she glared at the pony.

“What?” she asked.

“Why hasn’t Scootaloo been adopted yet?” Rainbow demanded. “She’s been here her whole life. She deserves better.”

“You think I don’t know that?” the aging mare shot back.

The mare stepped back, opening the door fully again. She sighed. “Scootaloo has had a bad run of luck. Nopony picked her when she was a foal, and even by the time they’re half her age…” She shook her head. “Everypony wants a little foal they can shape and guide—somepony who is going to love them unconditionally from the very start. Once they’re old enough to be distrusting, it gets a lot harder to place them. And Scootaloo? She’s going to be out of here in a few years anyway. She’s not far from being able to take care of herself.”

“That’s besides the point!” Dash stomped a hoof.

“No. That’s the entire point,” she replied. “It is a long and hard process to adopt a child. By the time someone would be able to adopt Scootaloo, they’d have her for a year or two and then she would be old enough to fly the coop. Nopony wants that.” She shook her head as she grabbed the door again. “I hate it as much as you do, but Scootaloo’s chance has already passed.”

Rainbow’s face twitched after the door closed in her face. Like that mare cared even half as much as she did! With an angry grunt, she took off for home.

It may have only taken her seconds, but Dash’d worked herself up into a frenzy by the time she got home. She kicked the door in, slamming it back behind her. Seething, she immediately swept a forehoof across the nearest table, dumping whatever was on it to the floor. Being in a cloud house, she was denied the satisfying sound of things smashing.

She sat, leaning back against her door. Rubbing her face with her hooves, she let out a long sigh. Nopony was going to adopt Scootaloo. Scootaloo wanted nothing to do with their dad. Dash couldn’t make somepony adopt her, and she couldn’t make Scootaloo accept their dad’s decision.

Scootaloo wanted nothing more than a family and a place to belong, and Rainbow Dash couldn’t do a single thing to make that happen.