In the rural town of Ponyville, the chilling autumn breeze blew soundly and carried leaves of many assorted colors with it, for the season has just begun. Just on the outskirts of town, no one none other than the cyan pegasus by the name of Rainbow Dash, who was soaring in the skies. Her blue wings beat rapidly as she did so, with the additional fall-weather winds blowing through her colorful mane. Rainbow slightly shivers in the cool atmosphere, and proceeds to land on a cloud. She lets out a huff of air, which was visible in the cold conditions, and catches a glimpse at the setting sun near the horizon.
How long was that again? Rainbow Dash thought to herself, Maybe half an hour or something? Seems about right. She chuckles lightly to herself after finishing her thought. But, a moment later, Rainbow spots an orange figure.
"What's that?" she asks herself, proceeds to lay on her stomach, and started beating her wings rapidly once again while on the cloud, dashing closer and closer to Ponyville. Upon being only a few feet from the paved cobblestone path, the figure starts running toward her. With each step, the image for the pegasus starts to become clearer and clearer. A grin begins to form on her face.
"Is that-" However, she was interrupted by a shout from a mere child.
"Rainbow Dash!" they called out. Below the very cloud said pony was relaxing on stood a tiny orange pegasus filly with the color of purple for their mane and tail.
"Scoots!" Rainbow said, and hopped off her cloud to give the filly a noogie, ruffling the hair. The said child giggled and smiled in response. "It's good to see ya, squirt!" Scootaloo chuckled a bit more.
"I can say the same thing too, Rainbow Dash!" she said. A gust of wind brushes against the both of them, sending individual strands of their fur to stand on end. Rainbow shivered once again.
"Gee, those pegasi could have at least raised the temperature up a notch or two! I can barely stand this cold!"
"Me either, Dash. But I'm sure we, especially somepony as awesome as you, can maybe survive it!" Rainbow couldn't help but make a small smile at Scootaloo's comment. She put one foreleg behind her head and scratched it, lightly laughing. Her admiration never ceased to somehow make her day brighter.
"Hehe, thanks, kid. I mean, yeah, you're right! It's just only a tiny bit cold. I guess I'm not too used to the seasonal change yet." Rainbow Dash paused, and focused her attention at the little filly right in front of her. Scootaloo's irises have shrunk, and seem to be darting in every direction possible. "Say, have you been alright lately, Scoots?" Said pony snapped back to reality, and widely shook her head.
"Say what?"
"I've been noticing you're acting kinda, you know, weird!"
"Weird?"
"Yeah, weird! Sometimes you, like, start laughing out of nowhere, and even mumble to yourself!" Rainbow's own magenta eyes start to shake, as her's met with Scootaloo's light purple ones. "I'm just kinda worried, Scoots." The filly in return, laughed.
"Why do you have to worry about me, Dash? I've been telling you, I'm perfectly fine!" she replied, adding an innocent smile.
"Well, I-I just think something's up. That's everything isn't fine."
"Oh come on! It's not like this was going one for that long, right Dash?" Rainbow brought a hoof to the lower area of her muzzle, and starting tapping it, pondering. It has only been a few days since this started showing up.
"Er, okay. You've made a point. But still, I think you need a fall check-up, just in case."
Suddenly, Rainbow Dash raised an arm. "Ooh! Speaking of fall! Didja know Nightmare Night is tomorrow?" Scootaloo made a low jump.
"Oh! Really?"
"Yes! Aren't you excited or what?" The orange pegasus went and hugged her idol.
"Totally!" Rainbow smiled and rubbed orange back with a single hoof, and gently pushed her away.
"I can't wait until we can pull some sick pranks together! What are you going to be, huh?" This time, it was Scootaloo's turn to raise a hoof and think.
"Hm, I'm actually not sure. I haven't thought about it that much, really."
"For real? Well, you better think of something quick, ki-" Once again, Rainbow was interrupted.
"Ooh! I got it! I've got just the perfect thing!" Scootaloo said with a wide smile, and soon led Rainbow Dash to smile along with her.
"You have? Well, tell me!" The filly giggled.
"It's a surprise!"
"Aw come on! I hate suspense!" Rainbow stamped a hoof on the ground, with a pout.
"Oh, alright. I'll give you a hint, Dash!" Said pegasus' eyes sparkled. "I'm actually going to make it myself!" Rainbow Dash smiled and laughed.
"That's awesome, Scoots. I can't wait to see how it'll turn out!"
"Yeah! Maybe I'll get a costume-making cutie mark for it!" They both shared laughter. Rainbow glanced at the sky.
"Good luck with your hoof-made costume, Scoots! I'll see you tomorrow!" Her wings spread wide open, and she was about to take off. However, there was yet another shout from Scootaloo.
"Wait!" Rainbow looked behind herself to face the filly.
"Yes, Scoots?"
"One more thing."
"What is it?" A single step forward is what Rainbow Dash took. Scootaloo approaches her, but a shiver was sent down Rainbow's spine.
"Goodnight." At the spur of a moment, that filly was on the pegasus' back, like a leeching parasite. A gasp escaped the mare.
"Wait what? Scoots, what are you doi-"
The next thing Rainbow Dash knew, she felt a blow to the back of her head, and everything went black.
Moments later, she awakens on a wood floor, feeling the rough surface on the back of her body. Nothing surrounds her but darkness, with the exception of a nearby lantern, barely giving off light. Ruffling of trees and the sound of blowing winds can only be heard. Rainbow Dash lets out a slight groan.
"Ugh, where am I?" She was about to attempt to stand, but Rainbow realizes she was actually restricted, her forelegs and wings tied up by a large string of rope. She gasps and immediately squirms in desperation.
"WHAT? Oh gosh, no! Urgh, come on! You can do it, Rainbow!" The wiggling of Rainbow Dash continues, trying to break out of the rope. She even attempts to make a huge chomp through them. However, no matter how hard she tried, Rainbow remains as the tied-up pegasus she is.
Then there were hoofsteps, followed up by a voice, out of the blue.
"Hi Rainbow Dash!"
The said pony lifted her head up, seeing that right across from her was the orange filly she knew, Scootaloo. Rainbow instantaneously lets out a sigh of relief.
"Oh, thank Celestia! Scoots, we gotta get out of here! Where are we, anyway? Also, do you mind if you lend a helping hoof, and get me out of this thing?" Scootaloo, in reply, raised an eyebrow with a slight smile.
"Why should I do that?" Rainbow Dash's magenta eyes just go completely blank, for only for a moment. But, she chuckles.
"You're kidding, right? Because we need to get out of here?" Her eyes start to dart around the room. Thanks to the nearby lantern, Rainbow begins to recognize her surroundings. She sees a piece of paper plastered upon the wall with doodles of various objects, and pink curtains drawn over a window, where Sweet Apple Acres can be seen, bathed in the night sky.
...No way...
"But I don't want you to leave." There was complete silence, until Rainbow giggles once more, except there were hints of sweat drops starting to form on the side of her head, and her voice slightly cracks when she speaks.
"Y-You know what, Scoots? T-this is j-just a prank, right? Yeah, a prank! Probably set up by Applejack o-or Pinkie Pie too, r-right? Hehe, h-hey guys! You can come out now! ... This isn't very funny!"
"Oh come on, Rainbow Dash! You can be braver than that! I'm just going to do a little something, that's all!" Right at that moment, the cyan pegasus knew that she had to get out of the very room that she's currently in. Rainbow squirms to her greatest extent, and even manages to move a few inches to the nearby door. However, Scootaloo decided to take matters into her own little hooves.
She runs to the corner of a room, and hastily grabs a hammer and removes two nails off of the floorboards with squeaks. Then, Scootaloo proceeds to land directly on top of her idol. She turns around, with a hammer in her mouth and a nail in a hoof, with her tiny purple pupils gazing right at Rainbow Dash, as the mare in return opens her eyes right open.
"No! Don't you dare, Scootaloo!"
However, the said filly ignored her demand. Scootaloo brought a nail to a blue hind hoof, and wielding the hammer, pounds it vigorously upon the leg. Slight squishing, and even cracking, can be heard as blood also oozes out. Rainbow, in return, shrieks in pain, feeling the cold metal piece pierce through a part of her body, and a burning sensation at the same time.
"Dash! You can do better than that!" The sociopathic Scootaloo said in return, and grabs another nail with her hoof, with the mare only being able to weakly scream.
"No! No no no-"
But, the piece of metal strikes through Rainbow's other hoof anyway, producing the same cracks and squishes as the red liquid trickles out of the spot. Scootaloo wipes her forehead with one of her orange hooves, and let out a sigh of relief.
"Phew! That was harder than I thought it was going to be!" Meanwhile, Rainbow Dash remained still, now nailed to the floor with her own two hind hooves continuously bleeding, with even a few tears starting to shed out of her eyes.
"W-Wait until your friends come here and see that there's blood on the floor of your clubhouse! O-or even my friends! You're in big trouble, Scoots! I'm telling you!" The filly gained a mischievous, and even insane smile.
"Well, they are my friends and your's, like you said! So, if I told them something after cleaning all of this up, why wouldn't they have a reason to trust me?" Rainbow snapped. She was right. Scootaloo's strange behavior only begun recently. Nopony would suspect a thing from her, not from a filly such as Scootaloo.
"Alright, finally! You're staying still!" she said, with a seemingly innocent smile. "Now to actually make my costume!" Rainbow Dash then made her mouth gape wide open, her irises shrinking to the size of mere peas.
"What?!" Realization struck her. This wasn't an ordinary costume she needed for a holiday. Scootaloo needed something special to make it, and it was her. She was the costume.
The filly in question walked back to a corner of the clubhouse, and came back with a butcher knife in her very mouth, with a deranged grin across her face. Rainbow Dash, one of the bravest ponies anyone has known, had her heart pumping to its limits, and it's all due to her own idol.
With a forceful pound, Scootaloo put a hoof on her, causing a gasp.
"Hm, hey Dash. I think I need some ideas for my outfit. Ooh, ooh wait! I know! I need a wig!" Grasping the knife in her other hoof, she takes a swing to the top of the mare's upper head, lazily chopping off a section of the rainbow mane. However, due to the lack of precision, severe cuts were left on both of Rainbow Dash's ears. Low groans of agony came from her, as the now damaged ears bled with the blood flowing right on to the forehead.
"You're better than this, you know!" Scootaloo said, proceeding to swing her butcher knife once more, but on the lower half of the rainbow mane instead. The chop also left another severe cut on Rainbow Dash's neck too, instantaneously starting to bleed. "Oops, sorry!" Rainbow could only reply with her heavy breathing, even with even more tears starting to shed from her eyes.
"Aw, c'mon Dash! This will all be over soon!" The mare begins weeping excessively, the salty water streaming down her face and eyes slowly turning pink, while Scootaloo walked to Rainbow’s lower half.
“Y-yes! Very reassuring, Scoots! After you put nails in me!” With yet another hash, the filly brought the knife down on the multi-colored tail, hacking it off and leaving a small crack in the floorboards as well.
“Don't be like that.” she replied. With an orange hoof, she gathered the strands of rainbow mane and tail, each almost perfectly preserved in their respective shape, and with doing so, Scootaloo equipped both of them, putting the clump of hair onto her own, and the tail on top of her’s, and flashed a smile. “Look, Rainbow Dash! It's almost done!” The said pony continued to softly cry. That is, until Scootaloo walked back to Rainbow's chest area.
"Hold still." she said, putting a hoof on the blue body once more, which only causes pure panic for the pony.
"W-What are you doing now? S-Scoots?" There was no response from the filly, but only with a single motion of Scootaloo bringing her knife down on the rope that was keeping Rainbow Dash from not even moving a smidge, and starting sawing into it. With that, brought an eyebrow to raise for Rainbow. "S-... Scootaloo?" Eventually, a piece of rope broke off, freeing both of her blue wings. However, they still kept her arms still. She could only let out a shriek.
"Whoa, Wait! No no no, what are you doing?!"
That is, until a right wing has hashed right off. Blood spewed and a harsh crack of the bone was made as the limb was removed, leaving a dreaded scream of agony. Then, the filly went to hack the other wing, producing the identical grotesque effects of fluids spilling. Moments later, Rainbow was left on a puddle of nothing but her own blood as she begins to heavily sob, while being exasperated at the same time.
"There! We're done, Rainbow Dash!" Scootaloo said happily, the mad smile etched on her face as she gathers both of the wings, and trots to a corner, as the said pony continued to weep the hardest she ever had in a very, very long time, and mumbles merely three words.
“How could you?”
However, yet again no reply came from the filly who’s question was directed towards her, but instead wield the same hammer used to pound the nails. Scootaloo walked over to the bound hooves, now covered in dried blood, and removed both of them as low groans can be heard.
Suddenly, an almost eerie silence fills what used to be a clubhouse for three innocent fillies, but a scene of a brutal harvest. With a breath of air, Rainbow Dash speaks.
“Y-... You're not going to kill me?” she says. As if hearing a hysterical joke, Scootaloo laughs.
“Of course not, Dash! Now why would you think I was going to do such a thing!” she said in reply, her eyes twitching and her smiles still stretching. “I'm just going to take you to an extremely safe place!” With a chomp of the rope, Scootaloo manages to drag the mare out of the clubhouse with her teeth.
The winds howl as the leaves blew steadily from the outside, as well as the moon shining brightly upon the two ponies. Outside the structure was a fairly sized trench, about a few feet under the ground with the soil exposed to the surface.
“No pony can harm you when you're down there!” exclaimed Scootaloo, pushing the blue body down the hole as even more bones can be heard cracking from Rainbow Dash, along with monotone moans.
The orange pegasus then walks away, and comes back with a shovel in both of her hooves. One by one, she starts scooping clumps of dirt with it, then throwing it in the trench, where the mare helplessly hacks out the chunks of dirt.
For the next few minutes, Rainbow laid on the dirt, seemingly accepting the fate that is going to be bestowed upon her. However, when the dirt covers her whole body except her head, she manages one word to be spoken.
“Wait!”
The shower of dirt stops, with Scootaloo still at the top, with an innocent expression.
“Yes, Rainbow Dash?”
“I… I have a question. Just one… simple, easy, question… Why? Why are you doing this, Scoots? Why in the world are you doing this to me? Your idol? Your big sister?”
“... That's the exact reason why, Rainbow Dash.” Scootaloo says, even leaning forward a bit for a shadow to be cast upon her humongous purple eyes. “You just explained it right all to yourself.” She scoops another shovel of dirt with both of her orange hooves, and spoke her final words to her.
“You are my idol, Dash. I've been looking up to you since who knows how long. Don't you realize?”
“I wanna be just like you.”
Then, there was a final scoop, into the hole, leaving no reminiscent of the mare once known as Rainbow Dash.
The next evening, the town of Ponyville was decorated to the fullest, with black and orange streamers galore, spiders, and many more scattered around the town. Fillies and colts were trotting happily as they knocked on residents’ homes, receiving their treats.
In the town square was a white unicorn filly with a black witch hat and a matching robe standing alongside a yellow earth-pony filly, who as well had a costume. She wore a black robe too, but had a hood over her head and a scythe made out of pure cardboard in one hoof. Moments later, an orange figure comes running after them.
“Scootaloo!” They both shout, as the said filly showed up in a rainbow wig, along with strands of rainbow in her tail. Her once tiny orange wings were now covered in blue feathers. The trio hugged one another, until the two other children realized the outfit Scootaloo was in, and chuckled.
“Wow, is that what I think you're in?” The unicorn said, perplexed but otherwise amused.
“Aw, come on, Sweetie Belle! You have to admit, it's pretty awesome!” said Scootaloo.
“Ah do have to admit, it does look pretty darn impressive for a costume,” stated the yellow filly, who goes by the name of Apple Bloom.
“Yeah!” squeaked Sweetie. “It looks so real too!”
“Oh, and by the way,” started Apple Bloom,” -we both appreciate how ya took the time to fix up the clubhouse for us, Scoots. But didja really really have to work all night for that?” Scootaloo in reply crossed a leg on top of another.
“I just thought I'd started helping out my fellow Crusaders. Nothing special.” Sweetie Belle still remained in her perplexed state.
“Alright, but still, Scootaloo. I know how much you like Rainbow Dash, but isn't this a little too much?”
“Eh, well, I guess you can say that… I'm just her biggest fan.”
Author's Note
I'm sorry.
