Immortality and Changeby mines5ChaptersChapter 1Chapter 2Chapter 3Chapter 4Chapter 5Chapter 6Chapter 1A/N: It appears that I finally have a story to my name, a great many thanks goto Altoid, as he and I co-wrote this story as you see it now. I would appreciate it if you could give constructive criticism in the comments, and if you have any suggestions for a picture that would suit this that would also be appreciated. The wind flowing through her mane was the favorite part of Scootaloo’s dream. Her mind could only guess at what it felt like, to soar through the air, but doing it in her sleep was close enough. For now at least. When she woke the joy of flying would disappear and the fact that she was tied to the ground by her own inability was starting to wear on her. But for now she immersing herself in what she could. That was until there was a knock on the clubhouse door. She shot up so fast she almost managed to pull off a flip. It was at this moment that she panicked, wondering if she could cover up her reasons for being here. With a sort of practiced ease she ran around putting away anything that could give her away before the person at the door could walk in. It was with that the two other cutie mark crusaders walked in. “Howdy Scootaloo,” Applebloom said surprised. “Didn’t expect ya to be here.” “Oh, just thought I would get here early,” Scootaloo noticed one last object of hers that she forgot to put away. She kicked her diary under a blanket and hoped they hadn't noticed anything. “What was that?” Sweetie Belle inquired. Scootaloo bit her lip. “Just a book I’m reading.” “I guess...” said Sweetie. “I didn’t know you even liked to read?” “Can Ah see it!” Exclaimed Applebloom. “NO! I mean, no.” Scoot scrambled for an explanation why. “It is, uh, fragile. The binding is breaking.” “Then why did you kick it?” “Er,” Scootaloo said slowly. There was no way the current conversation was going to end well so she decided to start a new one, “Is that a new bow Applebloom?” “No, its the same one ah always wear. Are ya trying to change the subject?” Scootaloo refused to acknowledge the truth, “your bow looks new.” Applebloom and Sweetie Belle looked at each other and shrugged. Their friend didn’t want to talk about the book and they decided to leave it alone. “Did ya hear that there is a new pony in town?” Applebloom asked. “There’s a new pony in town?” Scootaloo exclaimed. “He says he’s is from Manehattan!” Sweetie continued. “Well then what are we waiting for, lets go meet this new pony!” With that they prepared to head out from the clubhouse, there destination Ponyville, to meet this new pony. Scootaloo let the others exit first so she could hide her things better. On their way through town in search of their target they decided to stop at Sugarcube Corner, and see if anyone could tell them where he was. “How can I help you?” a familiar pink pony asked excitedly. “Hi Pinkie Pie,” they replied together. “Have you seen a new pony in town?” Pinkie’s eyes went wide, “New pony, why didn’t anypony tell me, I’ve been so busy today that maybe my Pinkie Sense didn't warn me!” she exclaimed. “I thought your sense was infallible,” Sweetie questioned. Pinkie shrugged, her face turning more serious than usual, “I guess not.” Just then another pony entered the bakery. Pinkie turned her attention to the new arrival and her mouth dropped. The three fillies turned just as pinkie had, their mouths also dropping. “I was told I could find a pink party pony here at this establishment.” the mysterious stallion said. “She’s pink,” Scootaloo pointed a hoof at Pinkie Pie, “And she likes parties.” “I need to plan a momentous occasion for this town,” Pinkie stated. “What’s the occasion?” The stallion thought for a moment, then smiled, “Sompony’s birthday is today.” “Nope, we have a new pony in town, can you guess who he is?” The stallion looked at her quizzically. “It’s you!” Pinkie threw up her hooves and confetti flew in different directions. “You’re gonna have two parties today! One for you and the other for your foal!” “I only need one party.” “That sounds like a great idea, we can put both parties together!” “If you insist,” he groaned. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a party to prepare!” She trotted out of the room and the stallion turned his attention to the three fillies staring at him. They couldn’t get over how unhealthy he looked, his light brown coat appeared to have been a deep orange once and his blue mane was unkempt and thin. “Will the party be free?” “If you really want to pay somepony you could pay us,” Scootaloo tried to sound business like. “Oh, we could be Cutie Mark Crusader ticket holders!” “What is your name anyway?” Sweetie Belle asked. “Just call me Elderfree.” He smiled twistedly. Scootaloo noticed his cutie mark. “Why is your cutie mark just a blotch of color?” He gave no answer and only smiled as he turned and left. The three friends looked at each other and shrugged. “Back to the clubhouse?” Scootaloo inquired. “Sure,” the other two fillies responded. They were heading back when Applebloom decided that they should stop by her orchard to pick up apple strudels that Granny Smith had cooked. After what seemed like hours to Scootaloo they finally headed to the clubhouse. They immediately noticed something was wrong when they entered. “Somepony moved all our stuff around!” Sweetie Belle cried. Scootaloo didn’t care that much of the items had been moved. Only one thing concerned her at the moment. If it was stolen, damaged or if somepony had read it then everything in her life would be turned upside down. She found her diary splayed on the table, opened to that day’s most recent entry. Under the words she had written she found another sentence in another pony’s writing. Today is your lucky day, Scootaloo. My future daughter. Chapter 2The shock that somepony had read her diary and wrote in it sent Scootaloo reeling in terror and she nearly fell over backwards. Her reaction attracted the attention of the other crusaders making them wonder what could scare their normally brave friend. “What’s got ya so scared of a little book Scootaloo?” Applebloom asked. Scootaloo didn’t say answer her question immediately, so instead of waiting Applebloom walked over to the book. That was until she was pushed aside by an orange blur. “NO! Don’t touch that!” Scootaloo exclaimed closing and swiping up the book in one fluid motion. “Why not, whatever is in there has you spooked,” Sweetie stated. “Yeah, its not like ya got any personal stuff written in that book.” Scootaloo realised that they were going to learn about her secret anyway. She decided that it was best to tell them instead of having them find out on their own. “I was really hoping to not have to tell you guys about this, but...” scootaloo let out a drawn out sigh, “but I need you to promise not make fun of me after I tell you what it is.” “We promise,” they said in unison. Scootaloo took a deep breath, realizing she was about to reveal something that she had never told anyone about. Steeling herself for a moment she worked up the courage to admit what it was. “This book is my diary,” a long awkward pause taking effect,”I’ve been keeping it a secret because I didn’t want anyone to know I had one,” her eyes tearing up slightly. “And the pony that messed with our stuff wrote in my diary.” “Well, why didn’ ya say so, its not like we were gonna pry without asking,” Applebloom stated with a smile, “Right Sweetie Belle?” “Yeah, its not like we don’t have our own diaries to write in.” After Scootaloo’s emotional release they had a group hug, the message in the book forgotten for the moment in all the emotional turmoil. With that over, she put the words that had been written in her diary to the back of her mind in hopes that they wouldn’t ask what kinds of secrets were hidden away in the folds of paper. “Now that all that secret stuff out of the way, what do you think we should do?” “Ah dunno,” Applebloom looked at the pile of furniture and items. “I just can’t get over why somepony would trash our clubhouse like this.” “Speaking of the pony that trashed our clubhouse,” Sweetie Belle interjected, “what did the stranger write in your diary in the first place?” “Well,” the pegasus didn't know how she could explain, “it said, Today is your lucky day, my future daughter.” The other two fillies stared at her. “Really?” they both said. “Why would I lie about someone writing in my diary?” “To sound cool?” Sweetie Belle laughed but she went quiet once she noticed Scootaloo’s stern face. “Well, that sounds pretty, uh, creepy ta me,” Applebloom interjected. “But what could it mean?” Scootaloo asked. The other fillies just shrugged. “Ah wouldn’t worry ‘bout it too much,” Applebloom said reasuringly. Scootaloo nodded in agreement, eager to put the experience behind her. “Let's clean this place up then,” Sweetie said. With all that said, they set about picking up everything that had been disturbed by whomever had decided to rummage through their things. Finally managing to get everything put away a few hours later, with just enough time to get ready before the new pony party Pinkie had planned. Each saying their goodbyes to each other before they split paths to go home and get ready. °~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~° Scootaloo sat inside the clubhouse watching her friends leave to go to the party. She convinced them she would leave a few minutes later by telling them she had a few last things to do. She reopened her diary and looked at the words written by the vandal. “I have a bad feeling about this,” she whispered as if afraid that somepony was listening. Suddenly afraid of being alone, scootaloo packed up her things and headed out the door hoping that her fears weren’t true. The apple trees were flowering that time of year and she watched as the petals drifted around her, momentarily forgetting about her problems. Scootaloo wouldn't have heard the hoofsteps approaching even if she was listening. The first sign that she was being followed though was when a shadow fell across her eyes and a familiar voice whispered somewhat affectionately from behind her could be heard. “Happy birthday my dear.” Before Scootaloo could even turn to face her assailant she felt a sharp pinprick of pressure on her neck and the trickle of blood down her back. She screamed in surprise and pain as the attacker bit down harder, moments later she fell into the painless void of unconsciousness. She was flying again. Her dream took hold quickly and she soared gleefully with her idol. Rainbow Dash glided next to her and prepared to teach the filly a new trick. Then she felt it, a growing urge to kill something, anything. Like a hunger for a daisy sandwich but this time for the life giving fluid in her friend’s body. As she prepared to attack her friend, that was now no more than food, something pulled her out of the dream. “Wake up, you're gonna miss the party if you don’t!” Scootaloo opened her eyes and was met with the visage of Pinkie Pie filling her vision. “Your friends found you sleeping out in the orchard and they asked me to help take you to the party!” Scootaloo rubbed her brow unable to remember how she could have fallen asleep in the middle of nowhere. Though she hadn't been getting enough rest lately, maybe that was it. She looked around at the ponies already arriving to the party. She was looking for one in particular. The strange stallion stood on the outside of the party watching her. When he noticed Scootaloo looking back at him he abruptly turned his gaze and pretended to watch Lyra and Bon Bon bicker over the best types of cake frosting. “I know,” Pinkie said, following Scootaloo’s eyes. “It’s his party and he’s just standing there, not talking to anypony. Weird right?” Scootaloo nodded, part of her mind nagging her that something was wrong with the picture here. She felt a small itch at the base of her neck and she scratched at it. Then a familiar sensation started to nag at her. She wracked her mind to figure out what it was and where she had felt it before. As Rainbow Dash trotted past and gave a quick hello she suddenly remembered her dream. “I don’t feel too good,” she muttered. “I hope its not too bad, I wouldn’t want you to miss out on all the fun to be had at a party,” Pinkie said. That’s when she started noticing the noise, multiple low rhythmic buh-bump’s in the background. The sound seemed to surround her and spark a deep longing in her mind. “I really don't feel good at all.” Scootaloo’s body was starting to hurt and the roof of her mouth was becoming sore. There was a clink of something small and hard landing on the table and she looked down. A shiny white tooth glinted in the sunlight. She swallowed in fear and a second tooth went painfully down her throat. Scootaloo felt the new gaps in her teeth and felt two pinpricks slowly emerging from the holes. Her eyes went wide. “What’s happening to me?” she exclaimed in a whisper hoping no one had noticed. It would be at that time that Elderfree walked over, he could tell her teeth were just coming in from this distance by the pained grimace that was just barely visible on her face. “You look like you're in pain,” he stated nonchalantly. Scootaloo was surprised at how quietly he had appeared next to her. So was Pinkie Pie. “You are a very sneaky pony!” Pinkie laughed. The only response she got was a passive smile from the stallion. Pinkie noticed that the punch was getting low so she left to go fill it. “What’s happening?” she whispered again, to no pony in particular. “Its your birthday,” he replied sweetly. She suddenly remembered why she had been unconscious in the orchard. Her eyes drifted up to Elderfree’s face, horrified. “Wh-What did you do to me?” “Don’t ask questions right now,” he smiled. “Why don't you go enjoy the snacks. This is your party after all.” She followed where his hoof was pointing but instead of being towards the table of food it was pointed right at her two closest friends. “What are you-” Scootaloo started to say, but at that moment her sharp teeth finished growing and the thirst for blood took hold. Her vision reddened as she continued to stare at Sweetie Belle and Applebloom. No longer were they her friends, just objects that could quench her insatiable hunger. Chapter 3Chapter 3 She edged closer to her friends, much to the delight of Elderfree. The stallion returned to his position outside of the party to watch what he believed would be a very entertaining event, what happened next he hadn’t expected. Scootaloo ever so slowly moved towards her friends. Her bloodlust pulling her forward. The only thing preventing her from rushing towards them in a blood thirsty craze was a small tugging sensation at the back of her conscience. At first it was no more than a slight spark in the swirling mass of dark urges but as she neared them it grew. She edged closer and closer the spark now a flame. When she was close enough to pounce on Applebloom the flame of emotion erupted, but too late. As Scootaloo soared through the air she realized what she was doing and horror filled her heart. Just before she was about to impact, instead of biting down, she knocked Applebloom over leaving them both sprawled on the ground. “What was that for Scootaloo?” Applebloom asked getting back up from the floor. “Uh,” Scootaloo scrambled for an explanation, “surprise!” “Ya could’a just said hello ya know...” Apple Bloom deadpanned. “Hello isn’t, uh, cool enough,” the pegasus was only partially paying attention to her friends. Whenever she looked at them, or any pony for that matter, the hunger started to return, “Now if you’ll excuse me, I, uh- need to go see somepony else right now.” Staring at the floor in an effort to avoid looking at anypony Scootaloo walked out from the party. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle looked towards each other and shrugged going back to the party as if there were no interruption at all. Exiting the park, Scootaloo turned to glare at Elderfree and ask, “Why?” “Why what?” Elderfree replied masking his surprise at her resistance. “You know what I’m talking about,” Scootaloo replied angrily. “Well it depends on what you want to know,” Elderfree continued, a tone of unhappiness in his voice. Scootaloo was the first pony he had ever changed that hadn't immediately started killing. “But I’m sure you're wondering why when you looked at your friends you felt an insatiable hunger for them, am I right?” “Yeah, but that still doesn’t answer my question,” the filly replied. “And I don’t have to,” the stallion laughed, “You will learn so much in the future. I will be leaving now. This town has proved to be surprisingly uneventful.” “And you’re just gonna just leave me here, no explanation at all?” Scootaloo demanded. “Pretty much, yeah,” he said contemplating a moment before adding, “You may want to feed soon if you wish to not cause harm to anypony you love or care for.” Scootaloo just stood there mulling it over in her head. Elderfree began walking off on his way out of town. She was about to rush after him but the urge to attack her friends was quickly returning. Then another urge filled her heart. A burning sensation to seek revenge on the pony who did this to her. Like the urge to feed on her friends, the urge to kill Elderfree rose up and overwhelmed her mind. Scootaloo lunged forward, moving faster than she thought possible. Elderfree turned around just a moment too late and was toppled over by Scootaloo. Fangs bared in a snarling predatory gesture as she went for his throat. “Feisty little thing aren't you,” the stallion stated, throwing Scootaloo off of himself before she could bite. Getting back up off the ground Scootaloo jumped right back in. Despite her efforts she could not gain the advantage and Elderfree was clearly not giving it his all. She felt a sharp ripping sensation in her leg but continued to fight. Eventually though Elderfree grew weary of fighting and pinned her to the ground. So she pulled out her greatest weapon of all, a cry for help. “Aww,” Elderfree laughed, “Is somepony afraid?” “It’s not me who should be afraid right now, its you,” she said, trying to sound brave. “I have not felt fear in more than thirty years.” Just then ponies from the party could be spotted running up to the pair, angry glares pointed at Elderfree. “What are you doing!” demanded Rainbow Dash. “It appears my welcome has worn out,” Elderfree hissed before slipping quickly into the woods before the ponies could react. “And don’t come back!” Rainbow Dash yelled. With the short battle over, Scootaloo’s fighting high began to ebb, and turn to much more dangerous thoughts. “You okay Scoots?” Twilight asked before trailing off with an, “Oh my!” The hunger was quickly starting to rise again but another pain was pressing on her mind, stronger at the time than the need to feed. Scootaloo looked down at her front left leg, or where her leg should have been, and screamed. “Where’s my leg?” Scootaloo exclaimed. Why hadn't she realised this happening earlier. Maybe the murderous craze she had been in prevented her from noticing. A few ponies that still had minds that weren’t totally freaked out by what they saw just pointed to her leg which was a few feet away. What surprised them the most was the lack of blood. She just stared a moment before limping over and picking it up and doing what any little kid would do and tried putting it back in place. What happened next confused her and many of the ponies around her. She just managed to stare with a blank, confused look at the reattaching limb. It was only that few moments it took for her mind to switch from the pain that no longer existed, and from the limb now reattached to its proper spot, to the raging hunger. Her stare pointed now in the direction of the gathering of ponies nearby, the grin she wore was almost as disconcerting as her leg finished doing it’s thing. “You all look so delicious...” Scootaloo said her mouth starting to salivate. A few of the ponies just gave her a confused look, others started backing away slowly, and Scootaloo advanced ever so slowly. Her predatory glance jumping from pony to pony looking for one that would sate her hunger. It was in mere seconds that she leapt into the air, fangs out , landing on Diamond Tiara and sinking them in, beginning the process of draining the life from the pony that she was now feasting upon. The taste of the blood running down her throat was better than anything she had experienced before. But as her hunger became sated and the craze in her mind faded away Scootaloo suddenly realised what she was doing. The smile that was on her face moments ago disappeared in the blink of an eye to be replaced by a frown and tears running down her face. The body of her classmate lay motionless and pale in front of her. “Oh Celestia what am I? What have I done?” She buried her face in her forehooves and started to cry. Giving no heed to the ponies around her. Many ponies stared horrified by what had just happened, some more so than others, had begun running away in sheer fright, screaming with terror. Tearing through her emotional walls Scootaloo looked up to notice many of ponies running, there were only a few stragglers, most of which were staring in confusion and denial. “What are you looking at?” Scootaloo exclaimed her anger flaring, quickly fading back to fear and sadness. Many flinched and backpedaled a little from the outburst, some of those faces turn to scowls of disgust and hatred. Some even picked up pebbles or rocks and chucked them at Scootaloo in an attempt to scare her away. One such rock nailed her right in the forehead knocking her clean off her hooves. “Get out of Ponyville you monster!” A pony screamed at her. Other ponies followed suit. Getting back up she hissed, baring her fangs towards everyone, backing away slowly. Ponies began to follow her, their anger boiling over and leading to a mob formation. Seeing this form her fight or flight response told her to fly. Turning around in what could be considered faster than the blink of an eye she shot off toward the Cutie Mark Crusader clubhouse. She only had to grab a few things and then she could run away from ponyville in earnest, she had a feeling no one would miss her that much. Chapter 4Chapter 4 Scootaloo scrambled to pack her saddlebags. She paused momentarily when she picked up her diary. “Mom, dad...,” she started to cry. “I wish you were here.” As much as she'd have liked to stay there she knew that she had to finish and leave. Her life, or at least whatever was left of it was something she did not want to lose, she still had to get revenge on the sick pony that had ruined her only true safe haven for her. But when she finally finished packing there was a knock at the door. “Scootaloo,” came Sweetie Belle’s voice through the door. “Do- do you want to talk about what happened? We know that you didn’t mean to attack Diamond Tiara.” “How do you know that, what if it had been you?” “Do you want to hurt us?” Sweetie Belle asked. Scootaloo sighed, preparing to slip out of the window. “Not right now. But I know I will.” “I’m sure we could find some help for ya!” “I’m sorry, I truly am, but I have to go before I hurt you guys.” She leaped from the window and silently disappeared into the orchard. She ran for what seemed like hours before she became remotely tired. By then she was miles into the everfree forest. She would have continued running if the emotions and realizations of what had happened suddenly washed over her like a cold wave. She fell to the ground and wept. When the tears stopped coming she looked up and was surprised to see the sun rising. She had been so absorbed in her emotions that the night had passed without her noticing. She laid there for a few minutes before retriever her diary from the saddlebag. Dear Diary Yesterday my life ended again. For the second time after my parents died I’m without a home. But this time I’m sure that I will never find a new one. She hastily closed the book as the painful emotions started to well up again. She didn’t bother holding back the tears she knew would come, no one was around to see her. She stumbled forward, no idea where to go. Only that she couldn’t go back. She walked for several days, her body not becoming tired in the slightest. Eventually she stumbled across a thin and overgrown road, she decided to follow wherever it led her. It wasn’t until a couple days later that she could see lights off in the distance. She hesitated, leary about entering a populated area. But her hunger had yet to return and she decided that it wouldn't hurt to find out where she was. the path soon became a paved road. The sun was starting to peek over the horizon when she passed the first house. A large mansion surrounded by iron gates loomed on a hilltop. On a wall sat a plaque that said. Madam Pufeltop’s Orphanage Scootaloo backed away and continued down the road. The orphanage brought back painful memories from when she was littler. She could smell salt water in the air and tall buildings loomed out of the fog. She passed a sign that said, ‘now entering Manehattan’. The city was quite possibly the brightest thing she had ever seen. As she approached the city she could hear everything quite well, and from what she could see, blending in wouldn’t be a problem. As she made her way through the crowd she stumbled into another pony carrying a bag of groceries. “Watch where you're going!” exclaimed the grocery pony. Scootaloo’s mind momentarily switched to a more feral and defensive mode. She crouched down taking a predatory stance but quickly composed herself again. “Oh, uh,” Scootaloo stuttered, “I’m sorry.” “Stupid parents letting their fillies roam around the city without supervision.” The pony huffed, “Get home and watch where you’re going!” As the pony trotted away Scootaloo felt a strange hateful sensation in her gut. The same one that compelled her to attack Elderfree. She forced herself to ignore the dark urges and she focused her attention on finding a suitable location to settle down for the day. Though she was not physically tired her mind seemed to be running slowly. She headed towards the center of the city and reached the quietest place she could find. The city park was mostly empty and in the middle stood a small bridge. Scootaloo decided to rest under it, away from the prying eyes of other ponies. Getting down to the spot was going to be a problem from what she could tell. She placed her saddleback behind a bush. Instead of trying to find a way down she jumped from the bridge. She ended up in the river instead of the outcropping. She took a deep breath in fear and her lungs filled with water. She quickly sank to the bottom and expected to drown. She opened her eyes and looked around at the dark underwater view, and shook her head in disappointment, she had actually hoped to die. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the relaxing silence of the water and the sounds the fish made as they passed her by. ‘Maybe I should stay down here forever,’ she thought to herself, falling into what could be considered an alertful sleep. °~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~° the sound of a boat passing over pulled Scootaloo out of her rest. She opened her eyes just as an oar passed inches in front of her face. She kicked off of the riverbed and up to the surface. Once surfaced she expelled the water from her lungs and looked around. A stallion and a mare looked at her in confusion from the boat. “How long have you been down there?” the stallion asked. “We have been on this stream all morning, and we never once saw you go into the water.” “A few hours give or take,” Scootaloo laughed. “What?!” the couple said, jaws dropping to floor of the boat. The filly didn’t answer as she made her way onto the shore. She retrieved her saddlebag and headed back through the city. She was just exiting the Manehattan limits when the hunger started to edge back into her psyche, so she decided to walk faster from the inhabited areas. It was after reentering the forest that she could really feel it, she could hear every little heartbeat within a thousand hoof-lengths of her ears. The loudest she noted was the size of a deer, and it was that sound that drew her closer to her target. She wasn't that hungry yet but anything to postpone the urge when she was around other ponies. Not really bothering to keep quiet in her pursuit of the deer, she lunged at it once in range sinking her teeth in and beginning the gruesome process of draining the blood from its body. Once the deed had been done Scootaloo looked at what she had done with a slight bit of revulsion, she didn’t like what she had to keep doing just to prevent herself from going insane. With that done Scootaloo returned to the road and began her journey to nowhere. Chapter 5Chapter 5 A beautiful young mare sat in a Las Pegasus restaurant, watching other ponies pass outside of her window. Five and a half years had passed since she became the monster she was now but anypony who looked at her just saw another pretty face. Scootaloo sipped a glass of water, the only thing her body allowed her to drink other than blood. Helped keep ponies from becoming suspicious whenever she stopped by a restaurant and ordered nothing. She had been surprised when her body continued to grow, believing that vampires stopped aging after they became converted. Scootaloo had gone to libraries to learn more about her ‘condition’. Turns out a vampire that had yet to reach puberty would continue to age until they started to mature. She had recently stopped growing so Scootaloo guessed that she would be in the form of a teenaged mare forever. She noticed a pair of stallions watching her from a table across the room. She could tell what they were thinking. She formed their presumed conversation in her mind. “Hey man, look at that mare over there.” “I see her. Should I ask her out?” “Yeah man, she’s looking at you. You should totally get it on with her!” As if on cue one of them stood up and made his way towards her. “I’m not interested,” Scootaloo stated as she waved her hoof dismissively. After the short exchange she left through the front following the path until she got to an alley and turned in. She knew exactly what was going to happen next, and to her it was the best alternative she could find on short notice. “Hello there sexy,” said a pony from behind her. “I’m sure you know what you’re doing,” Scootaloo replied, “although you may find I’m the one on top soon.” The stallion approached, disregarding what she had said. He slowly walked over, not noticing that she was staring at him hungrily. Only as her lips parted to reveal her fangs did he finally understand what Scootaloo had meant with her cryptic words. By then, it was too late to do anything to save his life. Scootaloo looked around very quickly to make sure nopony would witness and she lunged at him. His eyes were still focusing on the spot she had been when Scootaloo knocked him to the ground and ripped into his neck. The stallion let out a gurgled scream then became silent and still. The pony was dead within a few seconds and Scootaloo drained him of the crimson liquid. After Scootaloo had finished with her ‘dinner’ for the night she walked over to her saddlebags. Pulling out a small cloth she tried her best to wipe away the blood from her lips. The second stallion rounded the corner, intending to join in on the ‘fun’, but instead stumbled across the body of his friend. Scootaloo looked at him and momentarily wondered what she should do about this sudden complication in her day. "Well, you've just seen something that I can't let you tell other ponies about," she stated nonchalantly,"so how would you like your life to end?" “Pl-please don’t kill me!” “I am sorry, but its too late for that.” she shook her head sadly. “Do you promise not to scream?” As soon as she finished saying that he turned on his hooves and began running for his life. A scream was barely out of his lungs when he felt her teeth sink in. His scream was cut short as her fangs sank into the base of his skull, severing his spine. He fell to the ground in a heap with Scootaloo on top of him. Scootaloo was no longer hungry so she released the stallion and watched him die, blood dripping from the wound she had inflicted. She almost smiled for a moment, sadistic pleasure surfacing shortly. She shook her head, disgusted with herself. “Oh Scootaloo,” she muttered quietly, “Look what you've become.” She turned and went back to her saddlebag to clean herself up. Then proceeded to walk back into the street as if nothing had happened. She decided that there was nothing in Las Pegasus to see so Scootaloo headed towards the city limits. She knew it would be a few hours before anyone noticed those two were missing she would be long gone by that time. Gone and on her way to the next town. Dodge Junction or Appleloosa sounded nice this time of year and they were only a few day’s walk non stop from Las Pegasus. She decided to head towards Dodge Junction and she hoped that they had forgotten about her from the last time she visited nearly a year ago. Scootaloo was about halfway to Dodge Junction when she heard what she presumed to be a group of ponies following behind her. She had no desire to walk with others so she quickened her pace, hoping to lose them. Suddenly the ground gave out before her hooves and she plummeted into a pit. A wooden spike drove up through her stomach but other than that she had managed to miss the other poles jutting out of the pit’s floor. As she pulled herself off of the spike five ponies dressed in violet and black cloaks circled around the hole’s opening. “This one is a lovely specimen,” one of them stated as Scootaloo hissed like a cornered snake at them. “Look,” another laughed, “it’s trying to make us fear it.” “Be careful,” one warned. “It isn’t as injured as we expected it to be.” “I am going to kill you all!” Scootaloo screamed, preparing to jump out at them. They chuckled, and one of them replied, “Just try.” She crouched down then released her tensed up muscles, hurtling herself at the nearest one. Before she collided with him he sidestepped and in a fluid motion drove a stake into her chest, barely missing her heart. Scootaloo screamed as the blood she had drank from the stallion poured out of her. She writhed in the dirt, now muddy with blood, unable to break through the mind numbing pain coursing through her body. Her assailant gathered around her, preparing to finish her off when one of them suddenly collapsed to the ground dead, a throwing knife protruding from the back of his head. The others turned and faced the new arrival. “I would leave her alone before more of you join your friend,” a dark red unicorn smiled as he levitated two more throwing knives. On him were belts with more knives that glistened in the desert sunlight. “What do the Spectres want with this vampire?” Demanded one of the cloaked ponies. “She is young and unimportant!” “All the more reason to protect her.” “Why you protect these monsters is a mystery to us,” the apparent leader of the cloaked ponies growled. “But you killed my nephew and I will seek vengeance for this!” The shadowy ponies ran in different directions and disappeared into the haze of the desert. The red unicorn walked over to Scootaloo and attempted to help her up. “Don’t touch me,” she hissed, knocking his hoof away. “Very well,” he backed away and watched her. Scootaloo pushed herself up and checked her wounds. The hole in her stomach was halfway healed but the spike still protruded loosely from her chest. She yanked it out, wincing in pain, then threw it. “Who are you?” She demanded. “The organisation I work for calls me Spectre 23,” the unicorn replied with a smile. “But you can call me Red.” She looked at him, distrust in her eyes. “What is this organization?” “We are a group of ponies and non ponies who like to walk in the shadows making sure those in the light stay safe.” “What do you want with me?” “I am what you could consider,” Red paused to think. “a recruiter.” “Let me guess,” Scootaloo laughed. “You want me to join?” “Yes.” “And what makes you think that having a blood drinking monster in your club is a good idea?” She rolled her eyes and started walking again trying to outpace Red. He followed. “Because you wouldn't be the only one,” he replied sympathetically. She stopped and looked at him. “Are you like me? But I hear your heart beating and I can smell the blood in your veins.” “Oh no,” He smiled. “I am not but my mother is. That is why I am so... agile. A small percentage of the vampire traits were passed down to me.” “But,” Scootaloo tilted her head in confusion. “I thought vampires couldn't have children?” “Lets just say we have our ways of bypassing problems like that.” Scootaloo started walking again but slow enough that Red could keep up. “What would I get out of this?” She asked. “Well, you would get friends and sanctuary from a world that doesn’t appreciate you,” he walked next to her. “But the most important thing you would get is a home.” Scootaloo looked at him and smiled. “That sounds very tempting.” He smiled in reply. “But I am going to have to decline,” she continued. “Whenever I find a place to call home something happens and I lose everything.” Red stopped smiling. “I am very sorry to hear that. Just watch out for those cloaked guys. They call themselves the Shadow Trackers.” “Thank you for the offer and goodbye.” She walked faster leaving Red behind. As she disappeared into the dusty haze he shook his head “I am not letting you get away that easily my dear.” Scootaloo arrived at Dodge Junction two and a half days later. She felt hungry all over again, the wound that had been inflicted on her drained her considerably. It was time to find a suitable candidate for consumption. “Help!” A mare’s voice cut through the air. “That pony just robbed the bank!” That was easy Scootaloo thought to herself. Walking up to the pony that yelled Scootaloo asked, “Which pony was it?” “Him!” She pointed to a pony boarding a wagon. “You’ll have your money back by the end of the day,” Scootaloo told the mare. The wagon pulled away and Scootaloo trotted after it. When she was out of view of Dodge she broke out into a full gallop and easily caught up to the wagon. Once she had caught up she jumped quietly into the part that the bank robber was in and told it to him straight. “Today was a bad day to steal from the bank.” “How in the-” he was cut short by the evil smile on Scootaloo’s face. The ponies pulling the carriage didn't notice the exchange going on behind them and they didn’t even hear his stifled screams as she tore into his neck. The only thing that caused them to realise that their plan had been shot to the moon was when Scootaloo jumped onto one of their backs and snapped his neck and then proceeded to do the same to the next stallion. She decided to not let anything go to waste and she promptly drained each body of their blood. Someone would find this later, but she hoped that no one would catch onto the fact that it was her. Plus, the vultures circling overhead would help obscure the evidence. “Skillful one aren’t ya.” Scootaloo spun around and faced Red. “What are you doing here?!” Red shrugged, “First of all this is the same road you left me on. Second of all, I like a good show.” “I am not a theatrical program that you can admire,” she hissed. “Of course not,” he smiled. “You are something better.” “Are you trying to flatter me?” “A little.” he chuckled. “Don’t tempt me to kill you,” she warned, albeit not seriously. “Sorry.” He trotted away laughing. Scootaloo returned to Dodge and gave the stolen money back to the mare. “Oh thank you!” she clapped her hooves together with joy. “However did you get it back?” Scootaloo smiled. “Mostly luck. They were in such a hurry that they didn't notice that the bag had fallen off the carriage.” “Thank you again!” she hugged an uncomfortable Scootaloo. “How ever can I repay you?” An hour later Scootaloo checked into a hotel with a saddlebag full of money. She entered her room and made a beeline towards the bathroom to take a shower. She couldn’t remember the last time she had showered, it had been so long. As the water ran down her body she allowed herself to forget about her problems. She knew she had to leave soon or she would attract suspicion, but a night or two couldn’t hurt she thought. As she dried herself off and prepared to relax for the night, four cloaked ponies silently approached her door. Chapter 6Chapter 6 If the door to her room could have an emotional response at the moment it would probably be surprised. One moment it was on the hinges the other it was on the opposite wall. The mood in the room at the moment could also be felt changing just as quickly as the door. “What now?” Scootaloo exclaimed angrily. She leaped up out of bed as the four cloaked ponies rushed around her. Before they could get close enough to attack she jumped straight up through the ceiling and into the room above. She shook her head, trying to eliminate the daze caused by impacting through the wooden floor and looked around. Two ponies stared at her from their bed. “What-” the stallion started to say but was cut off by the four ponies jumping up through the hole Scootaloo had made. She charged the nearest window and dove out into the cold desert air, plunging 3 stories before impacting the ground with a thud. The four ponies watched her run away, knowing they could keep up. They went back down into her room and found her saddlebag. They rummaged through her possessions before coming across her diary. One of the ponies started to read it but the leader stopped him. “Don’t read that!” He growled, snatching the book away. “Why?” The leader put the book back into the bag. “Don’t risk getting attached to the monster.” “Then what are we going to do with it?” a mare asked. The leader smiled. “Maybe we could use it as bait. Vampires are very protective of sentimental objects from their old life.” “And if that doesn’t work?” another asked. “Then we will use the hound.” Scootaloo laid in a desert cave. It was not the first time she had hidden in there. Two years ago she had lost control of her hunger and attacked a storekeeper on his way to work. Ponies had pursued her but she had escaped easily. Now she found herself hiding yet again but this time from a more dangerous foe. She only had a few options open to her at the moment and some of them were less pleasant than others. But one thing was sure, she needed to retrieve her possessions and kill the ponies who took them. She dwelt on it for the rest of the day and slowly a plan formed in her mind. The sun was setting when Scootaloo left the cave and headed back towards Dodge Junction. Her tongue already anticipating the taste of blood. °~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~° The cloaked ponies situated themselves around their camp. To an outside observer it appeared that they were casually camping out for the night. But they were far more alert than anypony could have realised. No movement in the surrounding desert went unnoticed. The youngest of the Shadow Trackers absentmindedly tossed a stick into the fire as he looked at the surrounding countryside. They believed that anyone sneaking up on the camp would be seen and they were correct in believing that. The vampire they had been hunting appeared and was making her way towards them. What surprised the cloaked ponies the most though was that she wasn’t trying to sneak up to them. She was in a full blown run! “Here she comes!” He screamed. The others jumped to their hooves. But too late. By the time they were completely ready, Scootaloo was already among them. But to their surprise she was not trying to kill them. She snatched up her possessions and quickly took off back into the darkness of the desert. “I am growing weary of this one,” stated the group’s’ leader. “Release the hound and let us be done with her.” “Yes sir,” the youngest said as he unhinged a cage. Scootaloo didn’t stop running for two days until she reached the edge of the Everfree Forest. Only then did she stop and pull herself together. She stopped by a small stream and looked wearily at her reflection. "What did I do to deserve this?" she whispered tears starting to form in her eyes. Unbenounced to her, a black pony like figure with blue eyes and bug like wings stood watching wondering what could have gotten this pony so disturbed. This stealthiness was not to last though as he stepped on a twig. “Who’s there?!” Scootaloo screamed flipping around to face where the sound had come from baring her fangs in a loud hissing predatory stance. “Don’t hurt me!” screamed the thing that looked like a pony as it cowered in fear. “Who are you?” she inquired after backing down her stance to a more normal one, and taking a closer look, “what are you?” Realizing that he was no longer under threat of impending doom he poked head out from underneath his ‘hoof’ finding the pony, or at least what looked like one, standing there waiting for an answer. “I’m an outcast... and a... changeling...,” he said hiding his head back under his hooves, “please don’t hurt me!” “Why shouldn’t I eat you now, the last changelings we ran into were evil and tried to take over Canterlot during the wedding,” she said moving her head back to the stream, “its not like you're any different.” This was the perfect way to prove to her that he was a better changeling than the rest. He had a different philosophy for his consumption of love. “Thats where you’re wrong, I consume love only the true love from actually getting to know somepony. It may seem weird to hear but its what has driven my brothers to forcibly remove me from the hive.” the outcast explained standing back up. “So what brought you to me then?” “I could only describe it as a hole, you are its epicenter.” “What's that supposed to mean?” “What I meant, was that you have less love in your life than anyone I’ve ever met, and thats saying something.” “Are you saying I’m lonely?!” Scootaloo stated becoming indignant and flustered, “its not as if anyone would care to be with me, most who see who I really am run screaming, which ends with me having them for a snack.” “What could be so terrifying that they’d run in fear,” Outcast said donning a confused look, “I have yet to meet a pony that can actually scare other species, aren’t you all cute and cuddly?” “This would be why.” Scootaloo said as she approached opening her mouth enough for the changeling to see the inside of her mouth. “I don’t see how some pointy teeth get people all worked up...” “Stay here for a moment, I’ll show you a reason,” she said as she trotted off to go find some kind of animal in the brush. The changeling just stood there and waited, he was too dumbfounded to move anyways. A few moments later Scootaloo popped out from behind a tree holding a squirrel in her mouth. It didn’t appear to be moving, and her face was slightly more red than when the changeling first met her. “Oh...” Outcast’s face blanched.
Chapter 1A/N: It appears that I finally have a story to my name, a great many thanks goto Altoid, as he and I co-wrote this story as you see it now. I would appreciate it if you could give constructive criticism in the comments, and if you have any suggestions for a picture that would suit this that would also be appreciated. The wind flowing through her mane was the favorite part of Scootaloo’s dream. Her mind could only guess at what it felt like, to soar through the air, but doing it in her sleep was close enough. For now at least. When she woke the joy of flying would disappear and the fact that she was tied to the ground by her own inability was starting to wear on her. But for now she immersing herself in what she could. That was until there was a knock on the clubhouse door. She shot up so fast she almost managed to pull off a flip. It was at this moment that she panicked, wondering if she could cover up her reasons for being here. With a sort of practiced ease she ran around putting away anything that could give her away before the person at the door could walk in. It was with that the two other cutie mark crusaders walked in. “Howdy Scootaloo,” Applebloom said surprised. “Didn’t expect ya to be here.” “Oh, just thought I would get here early,” Scootaloo noticed one last object of hers that she forgot to put away. She kicked her diary under a blanket and hoped they hadn't noticed anything. “What was that?” Sweetie Belle inquired. Scootaloo bit her lip. “Just a book I’m reading.” “I guess...” said Sweetie. “I didn’t know you even liked to read?” “Can Ah see it!” Exclaimed Applebloom. “NO! I mean, no.” Scoot scrambled for an explanation why. “It is, uh, fragile. The binding is breaking.” “Then why did you kick it?” “Er,” Scootaloo said slowly. There was no way the current conversation was going to end well so she decided to start a new one, “Is that a new bow Applebloom?” “No, its the same one ah always wear. Are ya trying to change the subject?” Scootaloo refused to acknowledge the truth, “your bow looks new.” Applebloom and Sweetie Belle looked at each other and shrugged. Their friend didn’t want to talk about the book and they decided to leave it alone. “Did ya hear that there is a new pony in town?” Applebloom asked. “There’s a new pony in town?” Scootaloo exclaimed. “He says he’s is from Manehattan!” Sweetie continued. “Well then what are we waiting for, lets go meet this new pony!” With that they prepared to head out from the clubhouse, there destination Ponyville, to meet this new pony. Scootaloo let the others exit first so she could hide her things better. On their way through town in search of their target they decided to stop at Sugarcube Corner, and see if anyone could tell them where he was. “How can I help you?” a familiar pink pony asked excitedly. “Hi Pinkie Pie,” they replied together. “Have you seen a new pony in town?” Pinkie’s eyes went wide, “New pony, why didn’t anypony tell me, I’ve been so busy today that maybe my Pinkie Sense didn't warn me!” she exclaimed. “I thought your sense was infallible,” Sweetie questioned. Pinkie shrugged, her face turning more serious than usual, “I guess not.” Just then another pony entered the bakery. Pinkie turned her attention to the new arrival and her mouth dropped. The three fillies turned just as pinkie had, their mouths also dropping. “I was told I could find a pink party pony here at this establishment.” the mysterious stallion said. “She’s pink,” Scootaloo pointed a hoof at Pinkie Pie, “And she likes parties.” “I need to plan a momentous occasion for this town,” Pinkie stated. “What’s the occasion?” The stallion thought for a moment, then smiled, “Sompony’s birthday is today.” “Nope, we have a new pony in town, can you guess who he is?” The stallion looked at her quizzically. “It’s you!” Pinkie threw up her hooves and confetti flew in different directions. “You’re gonna have two parties today! One for you and the other for your foal!” “I only need one party.” “That sounds like a great idea, we can put both parties together!” “If you insist,” he groaned. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a party to prepare!” She trotted out of the room and the stallion turned his attention to the three fillies staring at him. They couldn’t get over how unhealthy he looked, his light brown coat appeared to have been a deep orange once and his blue mane was unkempt and thin. “Will the party be free?” “If you really want to pay somepony you could pay us,” Scootaloo tried to sound business like. “Oh, we could be Cutie Mark Crusader ticket holders!” “What is your name anyway?” Sweetie Belle asked. “Just call me Elderfree.” He smiled twistedly. Scootaloo noticed his cutie mark. “Why is your cutie mark just a blotch of color?” He gave no answer and only smiled as he turned and left. The three friends looked at each other and shrugged. “Back to the clubhouse?” Scootaloo inquired. “Sure,” the other two fillies responded. They were heading back when Applebloom decided that they should stop by her orchard to pick up apple strudels that Granny Smith had cooked. After what seemed like hours to Scootaloo they finally headed to the clubhouse. They immediately noticed something was wrong when they entered. “Somepony moved all our stuff around!” Sweetie Belle cried. Scootaloo didn’t care that much of the items had been moved. Only one thing concerned her at the moment. If it was stolen, damaged or if somepony had read it then everything in her life would be turned upside down. She found her diary splayed on the table, opened to that day’s most recent entry. Under the words she had written she found another sentence in another pony’s writing. Today is your lucky day, Scootaloo. My future daughter.
Chapter 2The shock that somepony had read her diary and wrote in it sent Scootaloo reeling in terror and she nearly fell over backwards. Her reaction attracted the attention of the other crusaders making them wonder what could scare their normally brave friend. “What’s got ya so scared of a little book Scootaloo?” Applebloom asked. Scootaloo didn’t say answer her question immediately, so instead of waiting Applebloom walked over to the book. That was until she was pushed aside by an orange blur. “NO! Don’t touch that!” Scootaloo exclaimed closing and swiping up the book in one fluid motion. “Why not, whatever is in there has you spooked,” Sweetie stated. “Yeah, its not like ya got any personal stuff written in that book.” Scootaloo realised that they were going to learn about her secret anyway. She decided that it was best to tell them instead of having them find out on their own. “I was really hoping to not have to tell you guys about this, but...” scootaloo let out a drawn out sigh, “but I need you to promise not make fun of me after I tell you what it is.” “We promise,” they said in unison. Scootaloo took a deep breath, realizing she was about to reveal something that she had never told anyone about. Steeling herself for a moment she worked up the courage to admit what it was. “This book is my diary,” a long awkward pause taking effect,”I’ve been keeping it a secret because I didn’t want anyone to know I had one,” her eyes tearing up slightly. “And the pony that messed with our stuff wrote in my diary.” “Well, why didn’ ya say so, its not like we were gonna pry without asking,” Applebloom stated with a smile, “Right Sweetie Belle?” “Yeah, its not like we don’t have our own diaries to write in.” After Scootaloo’s emotional release they had a group hug, the message in the book forgotten for the moment in all the emotional turmoil. With that over, she put the words that had been written in her diary to the back of her mind in hopes that they wouldn’t ask what kinds of secrets were hidden away in the folds of paper. “Now that all that secret stuff out of the way, what do you think we should do?” “Ah dunno,” Applebloom looked at the pile of furniture and items. “I just can’t get over why somepony would trash our clubhouse like this.” “Speaking of the pony that trashed our clubhouse,” Sweetie Belle interjected, “what did the stranger write in your diary in the first place?” “Well,” the pegasus didn't know how she could explain, “it said, Today is your lucky day, my future daughter.” The other two fillies stared at her. “Really?” they both said. “Why would I lie about someone writing in my diary?” “To sound cool?” Sweetie Belle laughed but she went quiet once she noticed Scootaloo’s stern face. “Well, that sounds pretty, uh, creepy ta me,” Applebloom interjected. “But what could it mean?” Scootaloo asked. The other fillies just shrugged. “Ah wouldn’t worry ‘bout it too much,” Applebloom said reasuringly. Scootaloo nodded in agreement, eager to put the experience behind her. “Let's clean this place up then,” Sweetie said. With all that said, they set about picking up everything that had been disturbed by whomever had decided to rummage through their things. Finally managing to get everything put away a few hours later, with just enough time to get ready before the new pony party Pinkie had planned. Each saying their goodbyes to each other before they split paths to go home and get ready. °~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~° Scootaloo sat inside the clubhouse watching her friends leave to go to the party. She convinced them she would leave a few minutes later by telling them she had a few last things to do. She reopened her diary and looked at the words written by the vandal. “I have a bad feeling about this,” she whispered as if afraid that somepony was listening. Suddenly afraid of being alone, scootaloo packed up her things and headed out the door hoping that her fears weren’t true. The apple trees were flowering that time of year and she watched as the petals drifted around her, momentarily forgetting about her problems. Scootaloo wouldn't have heard the hoofsteps approaching even if she was listening. The first sign that she was being followed though was when a shadow fell across her eyes and a familiar voice whispered somewhat affectionately from behind her could be heard. “Happy birthday my dear.” Before Scootaloo could even turn to face her assailant she felt a sharp pinprick of pressure on her neck and the trickle of blood down her back. She screamed in surprise and pain as the attacker bit down harder, moments later she fell into the painless void of unconsciousness. She was flying again. Her dream took hold quickly and she soared gleefully with her idol. Rainbow Dash glided next to her and prepared to teach the filly a new trick. Then she felt it, a growing urge to kill something, anything. Like a hunger for a daisy sandwich but this time for the life giving fluid in her friend’s body. As she prepared to attack her friend, that was now no more than food, something pulled her out of the dream. “Wake up, you're gonna miss the party if you don’t!” Scootaloo opened her eyes and was met with the visage of Pinkie Pie filling her vision. “Your friends found you sleeping out in the orchard and they asked me to help take you to the party!” Scootaloo rubbed her brow unable to remember how she could have fallen asleep in the middle of nowhere. Though she hadn't been getting enough rest lately, maybe that was it. She looked around at the ponies already arriving to the party. She was looking for one in particular. The strange stallion stood on the outside of the party watching her. When he noticed Scootaloo looking back at him he abruptly turned his gaze and pretended to watch Lyra and Bon Bon bicker over the best types of cake frosting. “I know,” Pinkie said, following Scootaloo’s eyes. “It’s his party and he’s just standing there, not talking to anypony. Weird right?” Scootaloo nodded, part of her mind nagging her that something was wrong with the picture here. She felt a small itch at the base of her neck and she scratched at it. Then a familiar sensation started to nag at her. She wracked her mind to figure out what it was and where she had felt it before. As Rainbow Dash trotted past and gave a quick hello she suddenly remembered her dream. “I don’t feel too good,” she muttered. “I hope its not too bad, I wouldn’t want you to miss out on all the fun to be had at a party,” Pinkie said. That’s when she started noticing the noise, multiple low rhythmic buh-bump’s in the background. The sound seemed to surround her and spark a deep longing in her mind. “I really don't feel good at all.” Scootaloo’s body was starting to hurt and the roof of her mouth was becoming sore. There was a clink of something small and hard landing on the table and she looked down. A shiny white tooth glinted in the sunlight. She swallowed in fear and a second tooth went painfully down her throat. Scootaloo felt the new gaps in her teeth and felt two pinpricks slowly emerging from the holes. Her eyes went wide. “What’s happening to me?” she exclaimed in a whisper hoping no one had noticed. It would be at that time that Elderfree walked over, he could tell her teeth were just coming in from this distance by the pained grimace that was just barely visible on her face. “You look like you're in pain,” he stated nonchalantly. Scootaloo was surprised at how quietly he had appeared next to her. So was Pinkie Pie. “You are a very sneaky pony!” Pinkie laughed. The only response she got was a passive smile from the stallion. Pinkie noticed that the punch was getting low so she left to go fill it. “What’s happening?” she whispered again, to no pony in particular. “Its your birthday,” he replied sweetly. She suddenly remembered why she had been unconscious in the orchard. Her eyes drifted up to Elderfree’s face, horrified. “Wh-What did you do to me?” “Don’t ask questions right now,” he smiled. “Why don't you go enjoy the snacks. This is your party after all.” She followed where his hoof was pointing but instead of being towards the table of food it was pointed right at her two closest friends. “What are you-” Scootaloo started to say, but at that moment her sharp teeth finished growing and the thirst for blood took hold. Her vision reddened as she continued to stare at Sweetie Belle and Applebloom. No longer were they her friends, just objects that could quench her insatiable hunger.
Chapter 3Chapter 3 She edged closer to her friends, much to the delight of Elderfree. The stallion returned to his position outside of the party to watch what he believed would be a very entertaining event, what happened next he hadn’t expected. Scootaloo ever so slowly moved towards her friends. Her bloodlust pulling her forward. The only thing preventing her from rushing towards them in a blood thirsty craze was a small tugging sensation at the back of her conscience. At first it was no more than a slight spark in the swirling mass of dark urges but as she neared them it grew. She edged closer and closer the spark now a flame. When she was close enough to pounce on Applebloom the flame of emotion erupted, but too late. As Scootaloo soared through the air she realized what she was doing and horror filled her heart. Just before she was about to impact, instead of biting down, she knocked Applebloom over leaving them both sprawled on the ground. “What was that for Scootaloo?” Applebloom asked getting back up from the floor. “Uh,” Scootaloo scrambled for an explanation, “surprise!” “Ya could’a just said hello ya know...” Apple Bloom deadpanned. “Hello isn’t, uh, cool enough,” the pegasus was only partially paying attention to her friends. Whenever she looked at them, or any pony for that matter, the hunger started to return, “Now if you’ll excuse me, I, uh- need to go see somepony else right now.” Staring at the floor in an effort to avoid looking at anypony Scootaloo walked out from the party. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle looked towards each other and shrugged going back to the party as if there were no interruption at all. Exiting the park, Scootaloo turned to glare at Elderfree and ask, “Why?” “Why what?” Elderfree replied masking his surprise at her resistance. “You know what I’m talking about,” Scootaloo replied angrily. “Well it depends on what you want to know,” Elderfree continued, a tone of unhappiness in his voice. Scootaloo was the first pony he had ever changed that hadn't immediately started killing. “But I’m sure you're wondering why when you looked at your friends you felt an insatiable hunger for them, am I right?” “Yeah, but that still doesn’t answer my question,” the filly replied. “And I don’t have to,” the stallion laughed, “You will learn so much in the future. I will be leaving now. This town has proved to be surprisingly uneventful.” “And you’re just gonna just leave me here, no explanation at all?” Scootaloo demanded. “Pretty much, yeah,” he said contemplating a moment before adding, “You may want to feed soon if you wish to not cause harm to anypony you love or care for.” Scootaloo just stood there mulling it over in her head. Elderfree began walking off on his way out of town. She was about to rush after him but the urge to attack her friends was quickly returning. Then another urge filled her heart. A burning sensation to seek revenge on the pony who did this to her. Like the urge to feed on her friends, the urge to kill Elderfree rose up and overwhelmed her mind. Scootaloo lunged forward, moving faster than she thought possible. Elderfree turned around just a moment too late and was toppled over by Scootaloo. Fangs bared in a snarling predatory gesture as she went for his throat. “Feisty little thing aren't you,” the stallion stated, throwing Scootaloo off of himself before she could bite. Getting back up off the ground Scootaloo jumped right back in. Despite her efforts she could not gain the advantage and Elderfree was clearly not giving it his all. She felt a sharp ripping sensation in her leg but continued to fight. Eventually though Elderfree grew weary of fighting and pinned her to the ground. So she pulled out her greatest weapon of all, a cry for help. “Aww,” Elderfree laughed, “Is somepony afraid?” “It’s not me who should be afraid right now, its you,” she said, trying to sound brave. “I have not felt fear in more than thirty years.” Just then ponies from the party could be spotted running up to the pair, angry glares pointed at Elderfree. “What are you doing!” demanded Rainbow Dash. “It appears my welcome has worn out,” Elderfree hissed before slipping quickly into the woods before the ponies could react. “And don’t come back!” Rainbow Dash yelled. With the short battle over, Scootaloo’s fighting high began to ebb, and turn to much more dangerous thoughts. “You okay Scoots?” Twilight asked before trailing off with an, “Oh my!” The hunger was quickly starting to rise again but another pain was pressing on her mind, stronger at the time than the need to feed. Scootaloo looked down at her front left leg, or where her leg should have been, and screamed. “Where’s my leg?” Scootaloo exclaimed. Why hadn't she realised this happening earlier. Maybe the murderous craze she had been in prevented her from noticing. A few ponies that still had minds that weren’t totally freaked out by what they saw just pointed to her leg which was a few feet away. What surprised them the most was the lack of blood. She just stared a moment before limping over and picking it up and doing what any little kid would do and tried putting it back in place. What happened next confused her and many of the ponies around her. She just managed to stare with a blank, confused look at the reattaching limb. It was only that few moments it took for her mind to switch from the pain that no longer existed, and from the limb now reattached to its proper spot, to the raging hunger. Her stare pointed now in the direction of the gathering of ponies nearby, the grin she wore was almost as disconcerting as her leg finished doing it’s thing. “You all look so delicious...” Scootaloo said her mouth starting to salivate. A few of the ponies just gave her a confused look, others started backing away slowly, and Scootaloo advanced ever so slowly. Her predatory glance jumping from pony to pony looking for one that would sate her hunger. It was in mere seconds that she leapt into the air, fangs out , landing on Diamond Tiara and sinking them in, beginning the process of draining the life from the pony that she was now feasting upon. The taste of the blood running down her throat was better than anything she had experienced before. But as her hunger became sated and the craze in her mind faded away Scootaloo suddenly realised what she was doing. The smile that was on her face moments ago disappeared in the blink of an eye to be replaced by a frown and tears running down her face. The body of her classmate lay motionless and pale in front of her. “Oh Celestia what am I? What have I done?” She buried her face in her forehooves and started to cry. Giving no heed to the ponies around her. Many ponies stared horrified by what had just happened, some more so than others, had begun running away in sheer fright, screaming with terror. Tearing through her emotional walls Scootaloo looked up to notice many of ponies running, there were only a few stragglers, most of which were staring in confusion and denial. “What are you looking at?” Scootaloo exclaimed her anger flaring, quickly fading back to fear and sadness. Many flinched and backpedaled a little from the outburst, some of those faces turn to scowls of disgust and hatred. Some even picked up pebbles or rocks and chucked them at Scootaloo in an attempt to scare her away. One such rock nailed her right in the forehead knocking her clean off her hooves. “Get out of Ponyville you monster!” A pony screamed at her. Other ponies followed suit. Getting back up she hissed, baring her fangs towards everyone, backing away slowly. Ponies began to follow her, their anger boiling over and leading to a mob formation. Seeing this form her fight or flight response told her to fly. Turning around in what could be considered faster than the blink of an eye she shot off toward the Cutie Mark Crusader clubhouse. She only had to grab a few things and then she could run away from ponyville in earnest, she had a feeling no one would miss her that much.
Chapter 4Chapter 4 Scootaloo scrambled to pack her saddlebags. She paused momentarily when she picked up her diary. “Mom, dad...,” she started to cry. “I wish you were here.” As much as she'd have liked to stay there she knew that she had to finish and leave. Her life, or at least whatever was left of it was something she did not want to lose, she still had to get revenge on the sick pony that had ruined her only true safe haven for her. But when she finally finished packing there was a knock at the door. “Scootaloo,” came Sweetie Belle’s voice through the door. “Do- do you want to talk about what happened? We know that you didn’t mean to attack Diamond Tiara.” “How do you know that, what if it had been you?” “Do you want to hurt us?” Sweetie Belle asked. Scootaloo sighed, preparing to slip out of the window. “Not right now. But I know I will.” “I’m sure we could find some help for ya!” “I’m sorry, I truly am, but I have to go before I hurt you guys.” She leaped from the window and silently disappeared into the orchard. She ran for what seemed like hours before she became remotely tired. By then she was miles into the everfree forest. She would have continued running if the emotions and realizations of what had happened suddenly washed over her like a cold wave. She fell to the ground and wept. When the tears stopped coming she looked up and was surprised to see the sun rising. She had been so absorbed in her emotions that the night had passed without her noticing. She laid there for a few minutes before retriever her diary from the saddlebag. Dear Diary Yesterday my life ended again. For the second time after my parents died I’m without a home. But this time I’m sure that I will never find a new one. She hastily closed the book as the painful emotions started to well up again. She didn’t bother holding back the tears she knew would come, no one was around to see her. She stumbled forward, no idea where to go. Only that she couldn’t go back. She walked for several days, her body not becoming tired in the slightest. Eventually she stumbled across a thin and overgrown road, she decided to follow wherever it led her. It wasn’t until a couple days later that she could see lights off in the distance. She hesitated, leary about entering a populated area. But her hunger had yet to return and she decided that it wouldn't hurt to find out where she was. the path soon became a paved road. The sun was starting to peek over the horizon when she passed the first house. A large mansion surrounded by iron gates loomed on a hilltop. On a wall sat a plaque that said. Madam Pufeltop’s Orphanage Scootaloo backed away and continued down the road. The orphanage brought back painful memories from when she was littler. She could smell salt water in the air and tall buildings loomed out of the fog. She passed a sign that said, ‘now entering Manehattan’. The city was quite possibly the brightest thing she had ever seen. As she approached the city she could hear everything quite well, and from what she could see, blending in wouldn’t be a problem. As she made her way through the crowd she stumbled into another pony carrying a bag of groceries. “Watch where you're going!” exclaimed the grocery pony. Scootaloo’s mind momentarily switched to a more feral and defensive mode. She crouched down taking a predatory stance but quickly composed herself again. “Oh, uh,” Scootaloo stuttered, “I’m sorry.” “Stupid parents letting their fillies roam around the city without supervision.” The pony huffed, “Get home and watch where you’re going!” As the pony trotted away Scootaloo felt a strange hateful sensation in her gut. The same one that compelled her to attack Elderfree. She forced herself to ignore the dark urges and she focused her attention on finding a suitable location to settle down for the day. Though she was not physically tired her mind seemed to be running slowly. She headed towards the center of the city and reached the quietest place she could find. The city park was mostly empty and in the middle stood a small bridge. Scootaloo decided to rest under it, away from the prying eyes of other ponies. Getting down to the spot was going to be a problem from what she could tell. She placed her saddleback behind a bush. Instead of trying to find a way down she jumped from the bridge. She ended up in the river instead of the outcropping. She took a deep breath in fear and her lungs filled with water. She quickly sank to the bottom and expected to drown. She opened her eyes and looked around at the dark underwater view, and shook her head in disappointment, she had actually hoped to die. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the relaxing silence of the water and the sounds the fish made as they passed her by. ‘Maybe I should stay down here forever,’ she thought to herself, falling into what could be considered an alertful sleep. °~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~° the sound of a boat passing over pulled Scootaloo out of her rest. She opened her eyes just as an oar passed inches in front of her face. She kicked off of the riverbed and up to the surface. Once surfaced she expelled the water from her lungs and looked around. A stallion and a mare looked at her in confusion from the boat. “How long have you been down there?” the stallion asked. “We have been on this stream all morning, and we never once saw you go into the water.” “A few hours give or take,” Scootaloo laughed. “What?!” the couple said, jaws dropping to floor of the boat. The filly didn’t answer as she made her way onto the shore. She retrieved her saddlebag and headed back through the city. She was just exiting the Manehattan limits when the hunger started to edge back into her psyche, so she decided to walk faster from the inhabited areas. It was after reentering the forest that she could really feel it, she could hear every little heartbeat within a thousand hoof-lengths of her ears. The loudest she noted was the size of a deer, and it was that sound that drew her closer to her target. She wasn't that hungry yet but anything to postpone the urge when she was around other ponies. Not really bothering to keep quiet in her pursuit of the deer, she lunged at it once in range sinking her teeth in and beginning the gruesome process of draining the blood from its body. Once the deed had been done Scootaloo looked at what she had done with a slight bit of revulsion, she didn’t like what she had to keep doing just to prevent herself from going insane. With that done Scootaloo returned to the road and began her journey to nowhere.
Chapter 5Chapter 5 A beautiful young mare sat in a Las Pegasus restaurant, watching other ponies pass outside of her window. Five and a half years had passed since she became the monster she was now but anypony who looked at her just saw another pretty face. Scootaloo sipped a glass of water, the only thing her body allowed her to drink other than blood. Helped keep ponies from becoming suspicious whenever she stopped by a restaurant and ordered nothing. She had been surprised when her body continued to grow, believing that vampires stopped aging after they became converted. Scootaloo had gone to libraries to learn more about her ‘condition’. Turns out a vampire that had yet to reach puberty would continue to age until they started to mature. She had recently stopped growing so Scootaloo guessed that she would be in the form of a teenaged mare forever. She noticed a pair of stallions watching her from a table across the room. She could tell what they were thinking. She formed their presumed conversation in her mind. “Hey man, look at that mare over there.” “I see her. Should I ask her out?” “Yeah man, she’s looking at you. You should totally get it on with her!” As if on cue one of them stood up and made his way towards her. “I’m not interested,” Scootaloo stated as she waved her hoof dismissively. After the short exchange she left through the front following the path until she got to an alley and turned in. She knew exactly what was going to happen next, and to her it was the best alternative she could find on short notice. “Hello there sexy,” said a pony from behind her. “I’m sure you know what you’re doing,” Scootaloo replied, “although you may find I’m the one on top soon.” The stallion approached, disregarding what she had said. He slowly walked over, not noticing that she was staring at him hungrily. Only as her lips parted to reveal her fangs did he finally understand what Scootaloo had meant with her cryptic words. By then, it was too late to do anything to save his life. Scootaloo looked around very quickly to make sure nopony would witness and she lunged at him. His eyes were still focusing on the spot she had been when Scootaloo knocked him to the ground and ripped into his neck. The stallion let out a gurgled scream then became silent and still. The pony was dead within a few seconds and Scootaloo drained him of the crimson liquid. After Scootaloo had finished with her ‘dinner’ for the night she walked over to her saddlebags. Pulling out a small cloth she tried her best to wipe away the blood from her lips. The second stallion rounded the corner, intending to join in on the ‘fun’, but instead stumbled across the body of his friend. Scootaloo looked at him and momentarily wondered what she should do about this sudden complication in her day. "Well, you've just seen something that I can't let you tell other ponies about," she stated nonchalantly,"so how would you like your life to end?" “Pl-please don’t kill me!” “I am sorry, but its too late for that.” she shook her head sadly. “Do you promise not to scream?” As soon as she finished saying that he turned on his hooves and began running for his life. A scream was barely out of his lungs when he felt her teeth sink in. His scream was cut short as her fangs sank into the base of his skull, severing his spine. He fell to the ground in a heap with Scootaloo on top of him. Scootaloo was no longer hungry so she released the stallion and watched him die, blood dripping from the wound she had inflicted. She almost smiled for a moment, sadistic pleasure surfacing shortly. She shook her head, disgusted with herself. “Oh Scootaloo,” she muttered quietly, “Look what you've become.” She turned and went back to her saddlebag to clean herself up. Then proceeded to walk back into the street as if nothing had happened. She decided that there was nothing in Las Pegasus to see so Scootaloo headed towards the city limits. She knew it would be a few hours before anyone noticed those two were missing she would be long gone by that time. Gone and on her way to the next town. Dodge Junction or Appleloosa sounded nice this time of year and they were only a few day’s walk non stop from Las Pegasus. She decided to head towards Dodge Junction and she hoped that they had forgotten about her from the last time she visited nearly a year ago. Scootaloo was about halfway to Dodge Junction when she heard what she presumed to be a group of ponies following behind her. She had no desire to walk with others so she quickened her pace, hoping to lose them. Suddenly the ground gave out before her hooves and she plummeted into a pit. A wooden spike drove up through her stomach but other than that she had managed to miss the other poles jutting out of the pit’s floor. As she pulled herself off of the spike five ponies dressed in violet and black cloaks circled around the hole’s opening. “This one is a lovely specimen,” one of them stated as Scootaloo hissed like a cornered snake at them. “Look,” another laughed, “it’s trying to make us fear it.” “Be careful,” one warned. “It isn’t as injured as we expected it to be.” “I am going to kill you all!” Scootaloo screamed, preparing to jump out at them. They chuckled, and one of them replied, “Just try.” She crouched down then released her tensed up muscles, hurtling herself at the nearest one. Before she collided with him he sidestepped and in a fluid motion drove a stake into her chest, barely missing her heart. Scootaloo screamed as the blood she had drank from the stallion poured out of her. She writhed in the dirt, now muddy with blood, unable to break through the mind numbing pain coursing through her body. Her assailant gathered around her, preparing to finish her off when one of them suddenly collapsed to the ground dead, a throwing knife protruding from the back of his head. The others turned and faced the new arrival. “I would leave her alone before more of you join your friend,” a dark red unicorn smiled as he levitated two more throwing knives. On him were belts with more knives that glistened in the desert sunlight. “What do the Spectres want with this vampire?” Demanded one of the cloaked ponies. “She is young and unimportant!” “All the more reason to protect her.” “Why you protect these monsters is a mystery to us,” the apparent leader of the cloaked ponies growled. “But you killed my nephew and I will seek vengeance for this!” The shadowy ponies ran in different directions and disappeared into the haze of the desert. The red unicorn walked over to Scootaloo and attempted to help her up. “Don’t touch me,” she hissed, knocking his hoof away. “Very well,” he backed away and watched her. Scootaloo pushed herself up and checked her wounds. The hole in her stomach was halfway healed but the spike still protruded loosely from her chest. She yanked it out, wincing in pain, then threw it. “Who are you?” She demanded. “The organisation I work for calls me Spectre 23,” the unicorn replied with a smile. “But you can call me Red.” She looked at him, distrust in her eyes. “What is this organization?” “We are a group of ponies and non ponies who like to walk in the shadows making sure those in the light stay safe.” “What do you want with me?” “I am what you could consider,” Red paused to think. “a recruiter.” “Let me guess,” Scootaloo laughed. “You want me to join?” “Yes.” “And what makes you think that having a blood drinking monster in your club is a good idea?” She rolled her eyes and started walking again trying to outpace Red. He followed. “Because you wouldn't be the only one,” he replied sympathetically. She stopped and looked at him. “Are you like me? But I hear your heart beating and I can smell the blood in your veins.” “Oh no,” He smiled. “I am not but my mother is. That is why I am so... agile. A small percentage of the vampire traits were passed down to me.” “But,” Scootaloo tilted her head in confusion. “I thought vampires couldn't have children?” “Lets just say we have our ways of bypassing problems like that.” Scootaloo started walking again but slow enough that Red could keep up. “What would I get out of this?” She asked. “Well, you would get friends and sanctuary from a world that doesn’t appreciate you,” he walked next to her. “But the most important thing you would get is a home.” Scootaloo looked at him and smiled. “That sounds very tempting.” He smiled in reply. “But I am going to have to decline,” she continued. “Whenever I find a place to call home something happens and I lose everything.” Red stopped smiling. “I am very sorry to hear that. Just watch out for those cloaked guys. They call themselves the Shadow Trackers.” “Thank you for the offer and goodbye.” She walked faster leaving Red behind. As she disappeared into the dusty haze he shook his head “I am not letting you get away that easily my dear.” Scootaloo arrived at Dodge Junction two and a half days later. She felt hungry all over again, the wound that had been inflicted on her drained her considerably. It was time to find a suitable candidate for consumption. “Help!” A mare’s voice cut through the air. “That pony just robbed the bank!” That was easy Scootaloo thought to herself. Walking up to the pony that yelled Scootaloo asked, “Which pony was it?” “Him!” She pointed to a pony boarding a wagon. “You’ll have your money back by the end of the day,” Scootaloo told the mare. The wagon pulled away and Scootaloo trotted after it. When she was out of view of Dodge she broke out into a full gallop and easily caught up to the wagon. Once she had caught up she jumped quietly into the part that the bank robber was in and told it to him straight. “Today was a bad day to steal from the bank.” “How in the-” he was cut short by the evil smile on Scootaloo’s face. The ponies pulling the carriage didn't notice the exchange going on behind them and they didn’t even hear his stifled screams as she tore into his neck. The only thing that caused them to realise that their plan had been shot to the moon was when Scootaloo jumped onto one of their backs and snapped his neck and then proceeded to do the same to the next stallion. She decided to not let anything go to waste and she promptly drained each body of their blood. Someone would find this later, but she hoped that no one would catch onto the fact that it was her. Plus, the vultures circling overhead would help obscure the evidence. “Skillful one aren’t ya.” Scootaloo spun around and faced Red. “What are you doing here?!” Red shrugged, “First of all this is the same road you left me on. Second of all, I like a good show.” “I am not a theatrical program that you can admire,” she hissed. “Of course not,” he smiled. “You are something better.” “Are you trying to flatter me?” “A little.” he chuckled. “Don’t tempt me to kill you,” she warned, albeit not seriously. “Sorry.” He trotted away laughing. Scootaloo returned to Dodge and gave the stolen money back to the mare. “Oh thank you!” she clapped her hooves together with joy. “However did you get it back?” Scootaloo smiled. “Mostly luck. They were in such a hurry that they didn't notice that the bag had fallen off the carriage.” “Thank you again!” she hugged an uncomfortable Scootaloo. “How ever can I repay you?” An hour later Scootaloo checked into a hotel with a saddlebag full of money. She entered her room and made a beeline towards the bathroom to take a shower. She couldn’t remember the last time she had showered, it had been so long. As the water ran down her body she allowed herself to forget about her problems. She knew she had to leave soon or she would attract suspicion, but a night or two couldn’t hurt she thought. As she dried herself off and prepared to relax for the night, four cloaked ponies silently approached her door.
Chapter 6Chapter 6 If the door to her room could have an emotional response at the moment it would probably be surprised. One moment it was on the hinges the other it was on the opposite wall. The mood in the room at the moment could also be felt changing just as quickly as the door. “What now?” Scootaloo exclaimed angrily. She leaped up out of bed as the four cloaked ponies rushed around her. Before they could get close enough to attack she jumped straight up through the ceiling and into the room above. She shook her head, trying to eliminate the daze caused by impacting through the wooden floor and looked around. Two ponies stared at her from their bed. “What-” the stallion started to say but was cut off by the four ponies jumping up through the hole Scootaloo had made. She charged the nearest window and dove out into the cold desert air, plunging 3 stories before impacting the ground with a thud. The four ponies watched her run away, knowing they could keep up. They went back down into her room and found her saddlebag. They rummaged through her possessions before coming across her diary. One of the ponies started to read it but the leader stopped him. “Don’t read that!” He growled, snatching the book away. “Why?” The leader put the book back into the bag. “Don’t risk getting attached to the monster.” “Then what are we going to do with it?” a mare asked. The leader smiled. “Maybe we could use it as bait. Vampires are very protective of sentimental objects from their old life.” “And if that doesn’t work?” another asked. “Then we will use the hound.” Scootaloo laid in a desert cave. It was not the first time she had hidden in there. Two years ago she had lost control of her hunger and attacked a storekeeper on his way to work. Ponies had pursued her but she had escaped easily. Now she found herself hiding yet again but this time from a more dangerous foe. She only had a few options open to her at the moment and some of them were less pleasant than others. But one thing was sure, she needed to retrieve her possessions and kill the ponies who took them. She dwelt on it for the rest of the day and slowly a plan formed in her mind. The sun was setting when Scootaloo left the cave and headed back towards Dodge Junction. Her tongue already anticipating the taste of blood. °~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~° The cloaked ponies situated themselves around their camp. To an outside observer it appeared that they were casually camping out for the night. But they were far more alert than anypony could have realised. No movement in the surrounding desert went unnoticed. The youngest of the Shadow Trackers absentmindedly tossed a stick into the fire as he looked at the surrounding countryside. They believed that anyone sneaking up on the camp would be seen and they were correct in believing that. The vampire they had been hunting appeared and was making her way towards them. What surprised the cloaked ponies the most though was that she wasn’t trying to sneak up to them. She was in a full blown run! “Here she comes!” He screamed. The others jumped to their hooves. But too late. By the time they were completely ready, Scootaloo was already among them. But to their surprise she was not trying to kill them. She snatched up her possessions and quickly took off back into the darkness of the desert. “I am growing weary of this one,” stated the group’s’ leader. “Release the hound and let us be done with her.” “Yes sir,” the youngest said as he unhinged a cage. Scootaloo didn’t stop running for two days until she reached the edge of the Everfree Forest. Only then did she stop and pull herself together. She stopped by a small stream and looked wearily at her reflection. "What did I do to deserve this?" she whispered tears starting to form in her eyes. Unbenounced to her, a black pony like figure with blue eyes and bug like wings stood watching wondering what could have gotten this pony so disturbed. This stealthiness was not to last though as he stepped on a twig. “Who’s there?!” Scootaloo screamed flipping around to face where the sound had come from baring her fangs in a loud hissing predatory stance. “Don’t hurt me!” screamed the thing that looked like a pony as it cowered in fear. “Who are you?” she inquired after backing down her stance to a more normal one, and taking a closer look, “what are you?” Realizing that he was no longer under threat of impending doom he poked head out from underneath his ‘hoof’ finding the pony, or at least what looked like one, standing there waiting for an answer. “I’m an outcast... and a... changeling...,” he said hiding his head back under his hooves, “please don’t hurt me!” “Why shouldn’t I eat you now, the last changelings we ran into were evil and tried to take over Canterlot during the wedding,” she said moving her head back to the stream, “its not like you're any different.” This was the perfect way to prove to her that he was a better changeling than the rest. He had a different philosophy for his consumption of love. “Thats where you’re wrong, I consume love only the true love from actually getting to know somepony. It may seem weird to hear but its what has driven my brothers to forcibly remove me from the hive.” the outcast explained standing back up. “So what brought you to me then?” “I could only describe it as a hole, you are its epicenter.” “What's that supposed to mean?” “What I meant, was that you have less love in your life than anyone I’ve ever met, and thats saying something.” “Are you saying I’m lonely?!” Scootaloo stated becoming indignant and flustered, “its not as if anyone would care to be with me, most who see who I really am run screaming, which ends with me having them for a snack.” “What could be so terrifying that they’d run in fear,” Outcast said donning a confused look, “I have yet to meet a pony that can actually scare other species, aren’t you all cute and cuddly?” “This would be why.” Scootaloo said as she approached opening her mouth enough for the changeling to see the inside of her mouth. “I don’t see how some pointy teeth get people all worked up...” “Stay here for a moment, I’ll show you a reason,” she said as she trotted off to go find some kind of animal in the brush. The changeling just stood there and waited, he was too dumbfounded to move anyways. A few moments later Scootaloo popped out from behind a tree holding a squirrel in her mouth. It didn’t appear to be moving, and her face was slightly more red than when the changeling first met her. “Oh...” Outcast’s face blanched.
