Life With Benefits

Chapter Four The Fire.

When I Got back to Silvers all I could see was smoke. My mouth dropped as I looked on in horror. This couldn't be happening I thought to myself.

I took a shirt out out of a saddle bag and wrapped it around my face to filter the air. I didn’t know what to do, so I did something that a smart pony wouldn't and ran in. I screamed and yelled out Silver’s and Lightning’s names.

But there was no luck in them hearing me as I called out to them, I feared the worst knowing I had to find them. I ran up the stairs hoping I would find them in Silver’s room, but all I could see was the burned corpse of the maid. I shook my head at the sight of her charred body feeling sorry for what had happened to her.

Sure she was a bitch to me and Lightning this morning, but no pony deserved to be burned alive. The sight of her drove my fears wild as I worried for Lightning and Silver Spoon, screaming out their names once more as I ran out the door. All I could hope was that Silver and Lightning did not have the similar fate.

“Hello anypony there?” I called out as one of Silver's maids ran past me.

“Ms. Scootaloo you got to get out!” She tried to pull me towards the closest exit as I dug my hooves into the floor.

My eyes watered as my fears grew all the more, “But I got to find Silver and Lightning, I’m not leaving them in here!” I cried pulling my hoof free from her grasp.

She stared at me in shame but knew there wasn’t much she could do,”They’re in the kitchen last I saw.” She ran off unable to face me, knowing I would demand she helped me save them.

I wanted to call her a coward for taking off, but knew it would do no good. Taking off I ran back down the stairs and through what was left of the door frame to the kitchen. And there they were safe from what harm her butler could protect them from. He was shielding Lighting and Silver Spoon from the the fire but even still his magical stamina was beginning to wane.

As their eyes locked with mine I ran as fast as I could, “Scoo…” Silver Spoon called out to me only for her voice to soon be drowned out by a ringing noise.

I don’t know what caused it, but for some reason I found myself on the ground. Unable to move regardless of what I did, and even my body felt too heavy to move. Looking at them I could see both Silver and Lightning began to cry as they called out to me.

And Lightning… my poor baby… how he banged on the wall of the barrier, trying with all his might to get through and come to me. Though it was faint I saw it in the eyes of both Silver Spoon and her butler, I was trapped under a pile of burning rubble. She could save me, but to do so her butler would have to drop the barrier.

Exposing the three of them to the smoke and hot air. How long would they last, three… four minutes? And even if Silver or her butler saved me, could he even muster the stamina to put up another barrier?

I didn’t blame either of them in the least, they were making the right choice. Even if Lightning would resent them for the rest of their lives, they were doing what was best and I accepted that. Looking around myself I saw the flames were slowly making their way towards the part of the wood that had yet to burn.

It was too heavy for me to move off myself, and so I closed my eyes slowly passing out as my hearing slowly returned. Lightning’s crying as he begged them to let him come save me was the last thing I heard before slipping out of consciousness. The world around me was dark, cold, and I was afraid to believe it.

Yet even still part of me knew. I had died in that fire and this was it for me. I wouldn’t get to see my only foal grow up, I wouldn’t get to see him earn his cutie mark, or meet the pony of his dreams, or even… see the family he would start.

I could feel myself letting out a shrieking cry. I didn’t want this, I didn’t want to die, not yet, not like this. I had just started to try and get my life back on track, to be a better role model for Lightning.

To show him that he could do better in this world so long as he tried, but I wouldn’t have that chance now. I continued to cry as I heard the faint tapping of something upon the ground, I could only assume what it was as it drew closer and closer to me. I shouted about how I wasn’t ready to go, how I wanted to stay and raise my foal, to be a better parent in his eyes.

But in this world my voice had no sound, I made no noise regardless of how hard I tried. I bargained and pleaded with whatever it was to let me stay, to let me live so I could at least try to do better in life. But that damn tapping grew louder and all the more closer to me.

I couldn’t see much of the figure as it stopped and stood before me. All that I could see was its skeletal muzzle as it stuck out from under its hood. My tears ran down my face as I stared at it, I know who it was who stood before me.

And still I wished this wasn’t true, that this wasn’t happening. I even hopped and begged that this was a nightmare, that I would wake up in bed next to Silver Spoon cuddling me as she used to.

The cloaked figure raised its hoof and pointed at me, “Scootaloo…” I could see his cold icy breath as he called out to me, “come.” Without hesitation I followed though I wished not to.

I tried to stop, I tried to dig my hooves into the ground. But all I could do was follow him as he walked. I didn’t know where he was going or even why I was following him.

“Don’t worry…” He groaned as though he knew what I was thinking, “it will all be over soon enough.” His words only made me worry far more as we walked.

Before long we entered a tunnel with a blinding white light all around us.