Chapter 10: Scar Stories.

Chapter 10: Scar Stories.

~The sun was setting above the horizon and the herd was back where they belong. Before the night rolled around, the girls also decided to help the farmer grow new crops by planting more seeds and giving them more water, thanks to Lightning's penguin ice powers. Applejack and Rainbow Dash also helped by using their powers to cut down some trees for wood so the farmer can build the fences he's dreamt of. But they couldn't chop a lot of them down because some animals were living in them and Fluttershy would scold them for destroying their homes. They cut down a maximum of five and left it there. Twilight, Rarity and Sunset started a small fire and Pinkie reached into her hair and pulled out a packet of marshmallows, (Don't ask how she got them.) She opened the packet and stuck some marshmallows into two large sticks. Then, she jabbed the sticks into a large burlap sack full of straw so the sticks looked like arms. She added another smaller and rounder sack of straw on top of the first sack and drew a face on it. Finally, she tied the sacks onto a wooden pole and stuck it firmly into the ground, making a scarecrow. Pinkie pats herself on the back and wipes the sweat off her forehead, sighing in relief.~

"Phew…!"

"Good work on the scarecrow, Pinkie." Twilight nodded.

"Thanks! This is exactly what the crops need to grow!"

Rarity looks at the scarecrow. "Hmm. Mind if I add in one more thing?"

~Rarity quickly walks into the cottage and comes back out again holding a stitched up straw hat, a red tartan scarf and a large navy pea coat. She stops at the scarecrow and then proceeds to put the clothing on the scarecrow, so it looks more human-like to fool the birds.~

"There we are." Rarity smiled.

"Now, it's perfect!" Pinkie stated as she wrapped her arm around Rarity.

"And...done!" Sunset said, looking at the campfire.

"Campfire's ready, girls!" Twilight called out.

Pinkie pulled out two more large sticks. "Yay! S'mores time!"

~Sometime later in the night, the girls, the dogs and the farmer were chilling by the lit fire. The farmer had a nice grin on his face as he cooked a marshmallow while the Rainbooms stared up at the night sky once again. Lightning was cuddling with Stitch and both of them almost fell asleep if Pinkie had not jolted up from where she was sitting to announce something.~

"Alright! Who's ready for Ghost Stories?!" Pinkie asked in a creepy tone.

"Not me…" Fluttershy whimpered.

"Aw, but I have some good ones lined up!"

"W-well, it could help me get some sleep." Lightning yawned.

"Are you saying my stories are going to be boring…?!" Pinkie gasped.

"Oh, no...it's just that I'm tired and stories really help me get to sleep quicker. It's been a long day, I need this…" Lightning responded, groaning a little.

"Ok! So, Once upon a time…"

~As Pinkie sat back down and started the story, everyone silently smiled and listened. Lightning was happily listening but then she felt something tingling on her right leg and goes to look at what it was. She pulls up the part of her jeans to see the bite Stitch gave her forming red and bleeding again. She rubs it but it is suddenly noticed by Applejack.~

"Whoa, Lightnin', that bite looks awful! Definitely gonna leave a mark! You alright?"

"Well, it stings...a lot...but, it's not so bad! It's not like I'm going to turn into a werewolf every full moon, am I?" Lightning joked.

"Well, no. But, it will leave a scar…" Applejack pointed out.

Lightning realised this and sighs. "Oh, great. Another scar to add to my collection."

"Another scar?" Rainbow questioned, listening in on the conversation. "What do you mean?"

"Have you seen the multiple scars on my head? There's gotta be at least 5!"

~Lightning stretches her eyebrows up and points to her forehead. Applejack and Rainbow were reluctant at first to look but they leaned forward to take a peek at Lightning's forehead. They squint their eyes a bit to just about see 5 cicatrices on her face. One was in between the eyes. Three of them were high up on the forehead, almost covered up by the hair. And the last one was the largest at about 4 cm across Lightning's cheek.~

"Oh yeah! Huh. How come we've never noticed them before?" Rainbow inquired.

"We didn't look hard enough. How did ya get them?"

Lightning was about to answer but Pinkie jumps in before she could. "Applejack! Rainbow Dash! You're not listening to my story! I'm getting to the good part where the muffin monster is about to sing a song about muffins and-"

"Sorry, Pinkie, but Lightnin' was just 'bout to tell us how she got these here scars." Applejack stated, gesturing to Lightning.

Lightning shows the others her scars and Fluttershy gasps. "Goodness! What happened to you?"

"You must have been through a lot to get them. No wonder you can handle a lot of pain." Twilight said.

"Yeah...So, the one in between my eyes was the first one. I was a curious toddler and I face planted on the concrete." She begins to explain. "The second and third and fourth one was an accidental friend attack. And the fifth one was when...my...sister…" She freezes and glares. "Forget it. I didn't say anything again!"

"Not again." Stitch sighed.

"Is she alright?" Farmer Bonsai asked.

"Something happened to her family, we presume, but she won't say what happened." Sunset answered.

"It's hard, ok! As...As I age sequentially, it gets harder and harder!" Lightning cried.

Twilight looked puzzled. "What do you mean-"

"Nothing!" Lightning interrupted while trying not to cry again.

Stitch sighs once again.

"I wouldn't worry about it anymore…" Spike shook his head.

"Then, why is she starting another conversation about it? It's like she wants us to be concerned." Rainbow complained.

"I'm right here, you know? Okay. Fine. Let's talk about something else, shall we? Pinkie-Finish that wondrous story of yours!" Lightning proudly said, calming down now.

"Uhh...Ok. So! The-"

~Pinkie happily continued with the story and everyone happily continued with the listening. However, Sunset was getting a little curious. She stared at Lightning who was listening to the story rather gloomy-like. As well as rubbing her head and scratching Stitch's back at the same time. Sunset looks with envy and finally decides to get to the bottom of this. Without anybody knowing, she looks down upon her geode and slowly lifts it closer to her face as it begins to glow. She then looks down at Lightning's hand and slowly goes to touch it. However, Lightning notices Sunset and jumps to her feet.~

"Huh-What? Sunset? What are you doing?"

"Um...I-Well…" Sunset stuttered.

"Were you about to see through my memory to find out what happened to my family?"

"Lightning, I…"

"Seriously?!" Lightning grew mad and shouted.

"Lightning, you seem upset about it and I want to help, but if you don't tell us what is wrong, we can't help." Sunset answered calmly.

"So, you thought it would be a good idea to stick your nose in my memories?! My privacy?!"

~Lightning began shouting louder and this caused Pinkie to stop telling the story once again. She and the other girls look at Lightning and Sunset blankly and frightfully. Lightning blushes when she realised all eyes were staring at her, but she shakes it off and leaves the campfire in a huff.~

"Maybe you should watch what you're doing and think it through, Sunset. Because it's now going to take longer for us to trust each other. Especially for me to trust you now." Lightning glared at Sunset before walking off.

"Well, that didn't go the way I wanted it to." Sunset sighed sadly.

"I know we want to find out what happened, Sunset, but maybe that was too sudden." Twilight said.

"Yes, I...I would suggest waiting until she does fully trust you." Bonsai suggested. "How long have you girls known each other for?"

Pinkie answered easily and happily. "...5 days, 9 hours, 1 minute and 16 seconds! 17 seconds. 18 seconds. 19 secon-"

"I think we get the idea, Pinkie." Applejack calmly interrupted.

"Ok! Just wanted to make sure!" She shrugged.

"But...Lightning may never trust me now...Oh, I really messed up now...What do I do?" Sunset groaned.

"It's never too late to do what's right, Sunset. Lightning has begun to trust me and the others but she has not yet told us the truth." Twilight stated.

"I guess...I need to make it up to her. But how…?" Sunset began to think.

Stitch cuddles up beside Sunset to get her attention. "Me think me will see where she went. Me will try to cheer her up! Me funny and fluffy!"

~Stitch puffs up when he said 'fluffy' and he shakes his body all over the place before racing off to find Lightning like a hyperactive wild animal. Twilight looks back at the campfire then to Farmer Bonsai's watch hanging on his wrist to check the time.~

"It's getting late. We should probably get some sleep if we're going to leave early in the morning."

~Everyone agrees with Twilight and walks off to find a spot to sleep at. As soon as Pinkie was finished with a mouthful of marshmallows.~

~Later in the night, Sunset couldn't sleep. Not because the floor was uncomfortable and soggy, but the fact that she feels awful about trying to read Lightning's mind and making her more upset. So instead of continuing to toss and turn in her leaf bed, she gets up to think of something to make it up to Lightning. However, when she turned to look at Lightning, she saw that her bed was empty. Stitch was also missing.~

"Lightning?" Sunset inquires.

~Sunset peeks out of the cave, then sees Lightning and Stitch. Lightning was hugging her legs and staring at the view beneath her while Stitch nuzzled against her. Sunset stepped forwards and was about to sit beside Lightning but stopped when Stitch and she began to talk among each other.~

"Should I tell them?" Lightning sadly whispered.

"It would be best. They'll understand." Stitch smiled.

"I don't know...I want to tell them, but, do I trust them enough to tell?"

"Of course. You saved them. And helped them throughout your last adventure or so. And the beauty of helping people is that they'll help you back."

"I guess...I don't know about Sunset Shimmer though. She instantly tried to figure things out herself by going through my brain of cherished memories. I don't know how the superpower works, but what if I wasn't thinking about my family and about something else I don't want anyone to know about. Not even you or Karly knows." Lightning frowned.

"You make a point but she wasn't causing you any harm."

"Physically. Emotionally, that's a whole different story."

"Hm. What me would do is calm down and talk to her in the morning."

"Yeah, but I don't trust her very much now. Actually, I still don't trust you very much."

"Then why are you telling me this?"

"You're the only one I can talk to. I mean-I'm sort of trusting you, who said I wasn't!" Lightning sighs. "I will give you this, you are a good listener, Stitch. And your advice you just gave me actually now makes sense."

"Thanks." Stitch purred.

Lightning breathes in, then out. "Ok, Fine. Once we find Karly, I guess I'll tell everyone what I'm going through, but Sunset…" She sighs again. "I don't know now…"

"I didn't mean to cause you harm."

Lightning turns around and gasps to see Sunset standing above her. "Sun-Sunset! How long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough. Is this seat taken?" She points below her.

"Go...ahead."

~Sunset slumps next to Lightning and pets Stitch on the head as she looked at them both.~

"I know you don't want to talk about your family, and that's fine. I won't ever try to go through your memories again. And I'm sorry about it."

"It's…" Lightning looks at Stitch and he nods slowly at her and closes his eyes while doing so. "It's alright. I'm sorry for getting all up and angry. Just don't play Detective with or without me.

"I won't. Promise." Sunset softly chuckled.

"Thank you. Just so you know, I'll...tell you and the others about my family, when I feel like the time is right."

"We'll be there for you, Lightning. Don't you worry. I know you don't trust me yet, but listen to Stitch and give me another chance…"

She sighs. "Alright…"

~Lightning and Sunset both smile at each other but they both go awkwardly silent afterwards. They don't have anything else to say and just end up quietly staring at each other. So, Stitch tried to make some weak conversation.~

"So, how's your night going?"

"Good…" Lightning said.

"Fine…" Sunset answered.

The awkward silence continued.

Lightning then broke it and turned to Stitch. "That's the best you could come up with?"

"Me wanted to break the silence. Talk!"

"...Soooooo, how did you get your second, third and fourth scars again?" Sunset asked, smiling.

"A game of Rounders became an attack! Rocks were thrown instead of baseballs by friends and they teamed on me because I was the most skilled at sports!" Lightning exclaimed and explained.

"That's…intense." Sunset looked at her fearfully.

"I'm ok though. It was an accident. The scars aren't my problem. Really it's not! It's an adventures. The violence. The crimes lurking around every corner! The-"

Stitch walked off a little so Lightning and Sunset could talk in peace. "Hm. Me glad to see Lightning and Sunset talking. Hopefully, they will trust each other before we find Karly." He said to himself.

~Stitch proudly looks at himself and Lightning in the moonlight. But then suddenly he sees something else glistening in the light by the trees. He turns to see what it is, but it disappeared.~

"Hmm...Is something there?"

~Stitch snorts suspiciously and sniffs around the trees but finds nothing. So, he trots back to where the two girls were still sitting and chatting and falls on their lap to sleep. A pair of yellow eyes suddenly open in the darkness of the trees and glared at him.~