Author's Note

So I originally wanted this to be a teaser, but that was a lie to cover something up. A member of my family who me and the rest of my family who we all hold dear is going to pass away any day now. As of late I've lost the will to write, what you see now is what I could sum up. The rest will come eventually, but as of now I can't put my heart into it. Please forgive me.

Tooth and claws part 1

It was early in the morning as three small fillies walked along the path that lead into the Whitetail Woods, each carrying saddle bags. Leading the group was an orange pegasus with a magenta mane. "Come on, girls! Pick up the pace!"

"Uhhh...Why did we wake up so early? It's Saturday. I wanted to sleep in." Wined a unicorn with white fur and two-colored mane of light pink and purple.

"Ahh, come on, Sweetie Belle. Ain't nothin’ wrong with early mornin’ walks." Chimed an earth pony with yellow fur, red mane and a bow on top.

"That's easy for you to say, Apple Bloom. You always wake up early to work on your farm." Sweetie Belle pointed out as they traveled deeper into the woods. "So, why are we here again, Scootaloo?"

"I told you already; we’re gonna try and get our cutie marks in exploring, or maybe even discover a new species of creatures like my parents!" Scootaloo chirped, growing more excited as she picked up the pace.

Apple Bloom hurried up and walked beside the pegasus filly. "Ah’ve been meaning to ask, but where are ya folks, Scoots?" This caught Sweetie Belle's attention as she trotted up to their friend’s other side.

"They travel to different parts of the world discovering new creatures and plants to help better Equestria." Scootaloo proudly puffed out her chest as they continued onward. As the trio made their way deeper into the forest, the sound of rushing water could be heard coming from up ahead. "Hey, you girls hear that? Sounds like there’s a waterfall nearby."

Following the sound, the fillies find themselves at the edge of a waterfall pouring into a pond within a large cove. "Wow. Look at this place. It’s beautiful." Sweetie Belle said as she marveled at the cove.

"Ah’ll say. I ain't ever seen anything like it." Apple Bloom added, but when she noticed that only two of them only responded, she quickly glanced around to see why. "Hey, where did Scootaloo go?"

The two looked around until they saw their pegasus friend lowering herself down with some rope. "Well, what are you two waiting for? Let's check it out!"

After the trio managed to safely make it to the bottom of the cove, they each split up, searching different spots of the cove. Apple Bloom looked along the roots of the trees, while Sweetie Belle looked near the water's edge, admiring the clearness of the water and how you can see toward the bottom. Scootaloo was turning over every stone she could find in an attempt to discover anything new.

For a moment, there didn't seem to be anything that could have piqued her interest, until….
"Whoa! Girls check this out!" The other two turned to look at their friend as she held up a black scale in her mouth. "It's some kind of scale, and there’s more this way." She spat out the scale as she followed a trail of them, which stopped near a large boulder that sat in a patch of grass

Stopping in front of the boulder, she turned to face her companions "I'm positive that some unknown creature lives around here, and if we find it and bring it back, we could get our cutie marks in finding creatures!" She said with glee as she twirled around in place. "….. hey, what's wrong?" Scootaloo asked, noticing her friends clinging together, shaking. Both fillies extended their hooves, making a pointing motion to look back. When Scootaloo turned around, she immediately went stiff. Standing taller than her and her friends, combined with black leathery wings, feline like eyes staring at her, and a jaw filled with sharp teeth, was a dragon.

Apple Bloom and Sweetie could only watch as the dragon moved closer to their pegasus friend. Scootaloo, who remained completely frozen in place, watched as the dragon's clawed hands and black wings moved closer and closer toward her. Until finally, once they were close enough, it snatched her from her spot as she let out a blood curdling scream.