The Vulture's Coinflip

by Odd_Shot

Rating: everyone
Tags: Scootaloo, Slice of Life, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Drama, Rainbow Dash
Length: 5692

Just within the realm of the Everfree Forest, there is a cave where what was lost can be found again. Scootaloo intends to take her chances.

Show and tell: it’s a classic Ponyville Schoolhouse tradition.

Likewise, there’s a storied rumor of a mysterious cave on the edge of Saddle Lake, where baubles and trinkets are awarded to foals who manage the trek. But the Everfree Forest is no place for ponies, let alone foals.

Scootaloo has nothing to show. So she’ll gladly take her chances.

Reviewed ‘Pretty Good’ by Ghost Mike
and ‘Pretty Good’ by PaulAsaran

”Little stories like these are how I fell into this Fandom, and the reason I remain.”
—IceHawk

Published 2023-05-28 01:50:00 UTC
Last updated 2023-05-28 01:50:00 UTC

Heads

“Scootaloo? Scootaloo?”

“Huh?”

“It’s time for recess, Scootaloo.”

The orange pegasus filly blinked a trance from her eyes, and faced off to the side. In front of her, the trance-breaker prattled on with worry.

“Is everything alright?”

Scootaloo shook herself, and looked back. “Y-yeah!” She put on a smile that pinched at her cheeks. “All good here, Miss Cheerilee. No problems at all.”

“Well, okay.”

For a moment, they sat locked in their staring contest. Outside the window, the cheer of foals on break rang out. Over it all, the distinct sound of the swings creaked through like old boards. It was just enough to force Scootaloo into goosefeathers; her spine rippled with chilled discomfort. She yelped, and hopped out of her chair.

Seeing her victory, Miss Cheerilee tittered quietly. “Have fun with your friends, Scootaloo.”

“O-of course, Miss Cheerilee!” She whipped up a salute for her teacher, but it was wasted on a turned back.

Scootaloo trudged over to the door, hopped up for the handle, and broke free into the outside world.

Free as a flightless filly could be.

And there weren’t any friends waiting for her on the outside steps.

Because she didn’t have those.

Thankfully, one of the swings was unoccupied. Scootaloo was all too glad to clamber aboard her vessel, and push off for take-off.

It was a limited affair, but it meant the world to her.

She gazed down around the schoolyard as she swung in perfect crescendo. The wind whistled through her purple mane and tail in comfortable gusts. She didn’t feel harried in the slightest by the ever-widening pendulum she formed. In fact, as she soared across the swings, her tiny, fragile wings twitched.

Scootaloo dared not bare them to the open sky.

“Hey, Scootaloo!”

She blinked her eyes open in a flash. She held her hooves in and grasped tight to the swing as it slowed back to the earth below. Swing after swing, she passed by the gray colt stood awfully close to her activity.

The pegasus was as little as her, and really, not so different. Maybe, if she put in the effort, they could be friends.

Those thoughts helped to slow her as much as his working wings.

Scootaloo grumbled as the colt sheepishly folded his wings back up. His hoof was still pressed to the chain, until he dodged back from Scootaloo’s half-hearted swipe.

“What do you want, Rumble? I’m kind of in the middle of something.”

The colt blushed—which prompted another groan from Scootaloo—and cleared his throat. “Well,” he started with a squeak, “I was just wondering what you were going to bring to show and tell tomorrow.”

“That’s tomorrow?”

He blinked. “Yeah... so, does that mean you don’t have anything?”

Scootaloo glared. “Of course I have something!”

“Well, what is it then?” Rumble beamed.

The orange filly fluttered her wings at the question-riddled colt. “Why would I tell you? You’re supposed to find out... tomorrow.”

“I just wanted to make sure we didn’t bring the same thing, that’s all.”

Once more, Scootaloo soured. Her hooves’ grip on the swing’s chains grew taut. “What’s that supposed to mean? You don’t think I’m going to bring something cool?”

“Well... not really.” Rumble smiled sheepishly. “I hope it’s not another feather from Rainbow Dash like last year.”

“Rumble... I’m going to give you five seconds before I start pushing this swing again.”

“Okay okay, I get the idea!” The gray pegasus backpedaled slightly. While Scootaloo’s ire turned to a triumphant grin, he started again. “But maybe you should think about going to Vulture’s Cove!”

Scootaloo had been moments away from following through on her swinging threat. Now, she froze, and turned her thoughts back over to Rumble. “Vulture’s Cove?”

“Yeah, you know, because you’ll probably find something really neat, there!”

With a dismissive hoof, Scootaloo readied her hooves for a kick-off. “That place isn’t even real—”

“My brother says he went there when he was a colt.” Rumble puffed up with pegasus pride. “So, I know it’s real.”

Scootaloo’s reply was flat and dry. “Then why don’t you go there yourself?”

Rumble’s façade broke. “Well—” His eyes scanned the ground before he came back up with the proper retort. “You’re the one who wants to fly with the ‘coolest pony in Ponyville’. So, maybe you should prove yourself.”

“Hey! Don’t bring Rainbow Dash into this! She’s too awesome for stuff like that.”

“I bet she’s gone to Vulture’s Cove before,” Rumble happily bubbled out.

It took all of Scootaloo’s willpower to not scream. She loosened her grip on the swing, then hopped down. Rumble trot backwards with a well and truly concerned laugh. She crept right up to him, and leaned in until they were muzzle-to-muzzle.

“And I’ll bet that you’re wrong.”

“Totally real, squirt.”

“What?!”

“Oh yeah, tons of cool stuff there.” Up above her, Ponyville’s coolest pegasus rolled about on her cloud. Bits of her rainbow mane and tail drooped through the thin, white, mobile napping station. “You should definitely go to show and tell with something from there.”

“But it’s in the Everfree Forest.”

“That’s no problem, just f—” Rainbow Dash paused in a wingbeat.

Scootaloo’s stomach dropped. “Just what, Rainbow Dash?”

“Just, uh, just leave it to me.”

Scootaloo blinked. “Leave what to you?”

“Well, I can get you there. I think—er, I definitely remember how to get there. It’s just a quick flap over Saddle Lake, right?”

“Yeah,” Scootaloo nodded. “On the edge of Saddle Lake. Vulture’s Cove. In the Everfree Forest,” she recited.

“Yup! That’s the place. Should be plenty of neat stuff left after all these years. I think it even gets more stuff, somehow.”

“Really? How?”

Rainbow Dash rolled over from her barrel-up position, cresting the cloud. She idly tapped against the cloud with a thinking hoof. “I dunno. Probably some magic s’magic. What matters is that there’s cool stuff, and I can be your ticket.”

Scootaloo sighed. “I guess that’s... fine.” She paused. “Wait, does that mean we can hang out?”

Rainbow Dash smiled. “I guess so, squirt.”

Life surged back into Scootaloo as she gathered up a lungful to express her excitement.

“But just don’t distract me while I’m flying, okay? I don’t want to drop you while we’re flying over Saddle Lake. Not that I would, but...”

Scootaloo sucked it in, and nodded. “Y-yeah, of course, Rainbow Dash!”

“Cool! Then I’ll come find you when I’m not busy, okay?” She tapped her cloud for emphasis. “I’ve got a schedule to keep.”

Scootaloo would have never guessed that this would be her ticket to hanging out with the Rainbow Dash. And in the moment, all thoughts of the Cove and school gave way to pure, albeit contained, excitement.

She skittered happily across the ground, and bounced up high. “Thank you!”

“Heh. Thank me when we find you something cool, squirt.”

Tails

The moon’s silhouette braved the sky. The distinct ‘moon mare’ shadow was merely a telltale glint. And best of all, a warm breeze clocked against the sky above Saddle Lake. It was a good, clear, bright night for flying.

At least, Scootaloo hoped they were all good omens. It was either good, or bad.

She nervously kicked at the pebbles by the water’s edge. She didn’t usually leave her home at this point in the evening, and she definitely didn’t leave town. She could at least be certain that tonight was going to be an especially memorable one... whenever Rainbow Dash appeared.

Scootaloo glanced up at the sky back toward Ponyville. “C’mon...”

“Found you!”

A quick dash of air sent Scootaloo spinning and tumbling away from the water’s edge. “R-Rainbow Dash!”

“Hey, squirt. What’s up?” The fast flier touched down against the ground, folding her wings neatly. “I didn’t spook you, did I?”

“N-nah.” She graciously took the offered hoof from Rainbow. “You’re just so fast that you knocked me down.”

“Heh. Sorry about that.”

“It’s fine, it was awesome.”

“Now that’s what I like to hear!” She looked over her withers at the water, then back to Scootaloo. “So, where we headed?”

“Uh... Vulture’s Cove?”

“Vulture’s what?”

Scootaloo was speechless. “...Um.”

“Ha! You should see the look on your face, squirt!” Rainbow Dash belted out a quick laugh. “I’m just messing with you.” She stood from her hunched laugh, and trot toward Scootaloo. “Now, c’mon. Are you a saddler, or are you a pony who likes the view from below?”

“What’s a ‘saddler’?”

“Here, I’ll show you.” Rainbow Dash backed up beside Scootaloo, and crouched down. “See all that space between my wings? Get up on my back.”

Scootaloo did a double-take. “Wait, really?”

Rainbow Dash puffed. “Uh, yeah.”

“Is that safe?”

“Ha! Danger is my middle name! And don’t you forget it, squirt!”

“But I—”

“Oh, come on, Scoots! I’ll keep you safe. I’m not going to take chances with you. I promise.”

Scoots... Scootaloo really liked that nickname. “O-okay, here I go...”

Scrambling up her hero’s back, the giddiness fostering in Scootaloo all day swam back up from the depths of her worries. Just past the twin cerulean ears and spill of rainbow mane, the teal and violet night sky gleamed back at her, twinkling with stars. The breeze from below felt even better up on Rainbow Dash’s back, and as the pegasus below her stood fully, Scootaloo’s heart soared.

Scootaloo finagled herself into a position where her hindlegs hooked around the base of Rainbow Dash’s wings, and forelegs draped over her withers.

“Comfortable?” Rainbow Dash asked, flexing her stretched wings.

“Uh...”

She shifted. Even with how uncomfortable this position might be in the long-term, Scootaloo wasn’t about to get down and get herself picked up. Next time, she would ask to be held.

Next time... the very thought helped seal everything into place.

“Yeah, it’s perfect.”

“Aw, yeah!” Rainbow Dash took a few experimental steps forward. “Hold on tight. I’ll have you at the cove in no time!”

And in a blink of an eye, Scootaloo found herself flying.

Her stumpy little wings had no reflexive reaction to the sudden takeoff, but they twitched with each little beat of Scootaloo’s adrenaline-filled heart. Within moments of touching off of the Saddle Lake beach, Scootaloo was filled to the brim with joy.

So very rare was flying for her, that flying above the water like this... it may well have been akin to being crowned a princess.

Yes, with Rainbow Dash as her guide, Scootaloo truly felt purpose invite itself back into her body.

“Woohoo!”

In reply, Rainbow Dash skimmed at the water below. It was an incredibly fine touch, and just as brief, but it was enough to send up a spray of lakewater into her wings, where it formed into a harmless mist around Scootaloo.

This was everything. She could have turned right around with Rainbow Dash right now. Gone straight to the steps of the Ponyville Schoolhouse, and passed out from joy right there. Woken up just in time for show and tell, and delivered a story about the joys of flight.

And instead...

It passed in seconds.

The whistle of the wind died sharply as Rainbow Dash’s hooves thud against the earth.

“Alright, squirt, you can get down now.”

“W-what? But, why?” She clung closer to Rainbow’s withers.

“Well, uh, we’ve gotta hoof it from here. I don’t want you to get swatted by branches.” Rainbow jostled awkwardly. “So uh, you can climb down now, Scoots. Anytime. Preferably tonight, though.”

Scootaloo took a deep, shaking breath. She released Rainbow’s withers, pushed herself up, and stood atop the older mare’s back. And with a small plod of her own, thumped down on the forest soil beside Rainbow Dash.

They would have stayed that way, side-by-side, had Rainbow not started hovering again.

“Alright, I think it’s... thataway.”

“You mean you know, right?”

“Yeah, of course! Come on, squirt. Let’s go find us a Vulture’s Cove...”

With little fanfare, Scootaloo followed after the fastest flier in Ponyville... on hoof.

The forest was not nearly as much of a threat as Scootaloo had imagined it’d be.

As they trot through the thin outcrop of trees on the edge of Saddle Lake, it slowly became clear that this was not quite the Everfree Forest. Sure, it probably was within the realm, but the way the trees lacked ferocity, and the fact that the lively sound of the night’s creatures boomed proudly? No, this was very much the Whitetail Woods.

Still, Scootaloo trot close to the hovering Rainbow Dash.

They barely spoke, much to Scootaloo’s disappointment. Then again, she didn’t exactly have anything interesting to offer her hero. That only served to remind Scootaloo of her purpose for being out here, and on top of that, the reason Rainbow Dash was helping her.

“I hope I’m not wasting your time,” Scootaloo said numbly.

“What? No, of course not, Scoots.”

“It’s just—”

“Look, we’re already here. I told you it wasn’t far.”

Together, they stared at the mouth of the cave. It was inset into a tall outcrop of soil and rock that merged into the forest behind it. In fact, this seemed to be the point where the terrain turned from the smooth edge of Saddle Lake, and toward the nasty hodgepodge of cracks, falls, and crevices that the Everfree Forest was infamous for. None of that was an immediate concern, though: the darkness of the cave was the real problem.

“It’s dark,” Scootaloo pointed out.

Rainbow Dash squinted. “Yeah... it sure is. Huh.”

“What’s wrong?”

“I just remember it used to be brighter... Maybe all the lights and stuff are inside, now.”

That didn’t seem right to Scootaloo, but she hadn’t been here before. And she’d never been to a ‘magical cave’, either.

“Hold tight, squirt. I’ve got an idea.”

“Wait—”

It was a quick veer into the sky for Rainbow Dash, leaving Scootaloo alone on the forest floor.

She looked anxiously into the thicker woods behind the cave’s entrance. The moon was still high and bright, but that didn’t make things any less unnerving.

A minute passed, and Scootaloo’s worries deepened.

“Rainbow Dash?” she called out to the open sky.

There was no reply.

She glanced at the opening to the cave mouth.

Another minute passed.

A howl rang out.

Scootaloo tucked in a breath.

“Lights inside, huh...?”

Steeling herself, Scootaloo trudged toward the cave mouth, and delved into the dark.

Within, the warm night gave way to cold.

Scootaloo fluffed up with her tiny wings as best she could, squinting and hoping her eyes would adjust to the darkness. Soon enough, she was feeling her way through the rock walls. She hugged close, and trot slowly.

And sure enough, as the light of the night outside gave out, the cave interior gave way to flickering cyan hues.

They were dim pinpricks of light, but the strange cyan fires that burned on the other end of the dark chasm between her and the next bend of the cave flaunted openly at her. As Scootaloo crept ever-forward, she descended to a crawl, doing her best to ignore the seemingly ceaseless abyss to her left.

When she finally reached the fires, it was a moment to breathe a sigh of relief.

They were strange things. Contained to metal lamps, the flames burned within. They were one flat color, and holding a hoof close prompted no signs of warmth.

“Huh.”

Scootaloo tapped at it curiously, then looked around further. At her hooves, she saw more of the same brownish metal. But much of the once-long pieces had shattered and broken into little more than scrap.

It was strange, but not as intriguing as the trail of it leading deeper within.

Scootaloo reached up to the lamp she’d tapped, and squinted at its fixture.

It took one good twist and pull of her neck to pop the light out.

With her cyan fire, she crept deeper into the cave.

The piles of metal curled up along the walls on the side of the hallway. The further she went, the higher the piles grew. The cave belched down and around in twisting ways, but it was never too steep to turn around, nor pocked with holes and crevices to fall into. It was just long and steady.

And for some strange reason, Scootaloo felt compelled to stick it through to the end.

In time, Scootaloo wandered. There hardly seemed to be a limit to this place as she trot down the suspiciously unnatural cavern hallways. Maybe if she’d paid a little more attention to Cheerilee’s lectures, she could place a geological event to the creation of this serpent-like place. Even then, there were no branching offshoots from the path, only the darkness, and the piles of metal, and the occasional cyan-fire lamp. And through it all, Scootaloo pressed on, not stopping to question her latest trance.

She was going to let life guide her. She could have stayed outside the cave, or gone in. She’d made her decision. Now, it was time to see it through to the end, and see what consequences awaited her.

Whether she liked it or not, this cave was going to give her something. The world owed her at least that, after the life it’d given her so far.

Slick black tears, oiled by the grease rubbed off from her hooves, joined Scootaloo in the silence.

Finally, perhaps mercifully, the tunnel came to an end.

Spectres of cyan fire lit the vast hoard before her. The cavern’s riches, the baubles and trinkets... it was all here.

Piles of all kinds of things were here. Toys from Canterlot craftsmares piled to one side, odds and ends that belonged to antiques from another. The goodies here were arranged in a chaotic display, and had no means of categorizing themselves beyond the riches ready to depart this sanctum, and those that required assembly.

Scootaloo’s mind was racing like the pegasus she was meant to be.

She had scarcely a moment to compile the contents of the imposing cavern into some form of a plan, because the moment she stepped toward any of the piles of glittering gold and oiled wood, the guardian of this place emerged.

It screeched at her from its perch up high, as if to yell at her. It was almost like a voice called ‘Stop!’

And she did.

Scootaloo dropped her lamp, and it thud to the floor safely. Her throat locked up, and no sound emerged. Not even the faintest dribble of fear left her.

Oh, there was fear, but there was no means for her to express herself when the glossy eyes of the creature glided down to meet her.

The nasty browns and blacks of the creature clung close to the beautiful white undertips on its wings. It was beautiful, in a horribly mismatched kind of way. The same could well be said for its face, which was pinstriped red, and dotted at the end with a streak of white. Beady black eyes, glossed over, but apparently still capable, screamed out at her.

It was bigger than her, and the claws that clacked on its landings told her it could surely hurt her.

And surely, it would, as it raised its folded wings back out into an imposing figure.

Scootaloo squealed, bracing as she stumbled back toward the way she’d come.

The creature simply turned its back to her, its wings spread wide.

And the back of the Vulture spoke to her.

“You are found, pony.”

Despite its best attempts at appearing in a low tone, the voice was a shrill one, and like its owner, a tiny one.

Scootaloo stared in awe at the tiny fascimile of a pony.

It had dainty, film-like wings like a butterfly, but a gray mane and tail like any other pony. It had long-reaching antennae for its size, but a white barrel and legs that wouldn’t appear to out of place on a pony. It had green eyes filled with life, but so much more sorrow than Scootaloo had ever seen.

“What is your name?” the creature on the back of the Vulture squeaked again. He was entrenched in the feathery back of the Vulture’s wings, and yet, he didn’t appear to be much of a blemish or irritant to the creature.

Scootaloo’s gaze flicked briefly from the tiny stowaway and to the watchful turned eye of the Vulture. Its beady black eyes sent her back to the creature.

“S-Scootaloo.”

“Scootaloo. Well met. I am Lignite Breeze.”

“I-it’s nice to meet you,” she whispered.

The tiny little Lignite smiled at her. “You may stand, Scootaloo. You have dirtied yourself enough on the path here.”

She looke down at her oil-licked hooves, then raised herself carefully off the cavern floor ground. At the very least, the metal piles still hugged the walls behind the piles of treasure.

“You have come here for a reason. What do you seek?”

Still caught off-guard by Lignite and the Vulture’s presence, Scootaloo scuffed the ground. “Um... nothing.”

“You do not need to fear me. I was born weak, much like you and the wings upon your back.”

Scootaloo bristled at that. “H-hey!”

The Vulture screeched, and she stepped back again.

The exit was right behind her, she could turn around, and surely outpace the Vulture in the tight corridor. Surely...

“I’m sorry,” Lignite murmured, his low tone still just a squeak of his tiny voicebox. “But I have seen many fliers like you. None had lost so much as you, or I.”

“What are you, anyways?”

“It matters not. Only that I have learned your language, so that we may arrange your retrieval in a simple, meaningful way.”

“Well, it matters to me,” Scootaloo managed. “What is this place? Who are you? Why—”

“I have said more than needed. You came here for something!” Lignite somehow boomed. His eyes softened, and he tucked his hooves back into the feathers beneath him. “What do you seek?”

Scootaloo fell quiet. She looked around at the piles, the cyan fires lit about, and the bare metal perch from which the Vulture had descended. There, she spied scraps of forest bounty: berries, grasses, nuts... meager means to an end.

“I’m looking for something cool to show other ponies...”

“’Cool?’” Lignite asked.

“Yeah. Like...” she chewed her lip. “Like... Like Rainbow Dash.”

Lignite shuddered. “Describe them.”

“She’s... well, she’s the coolest pony ever.” Passion flooded back into Scootaloo, and all thoughts of escape swam away in the urge to explain this to its fullest extent. To explain why her hero was her idol. “She’s just the best at everything she does, she’s brave, she helps everypony in need, she’s always there, but most importantly, she’s—”

“The faster flier in Cloudsdale?”

Scootaloo stopped at the cutoff. “She... yeah, I guess, she was...”

“And she is your friend?”

“Well... tonight was actually the first time we’ve ever really done something together.”

“I see. Then you have much of a life to look forward to.”

Scootaloo blinked. “I guess so?”

Lignite simply nodded. “Rainbow Dash dreamed big. She came here with ambition, because she thought she might find something to make her life even faster.” He pulled his hooves from the feathers again, and rested them against the Vulture’s back. He looked longingly off to a nearby cyan flame. “She was, indeed, a fast flier. So fast that she came, saw, and took her prize before a full conversation was had. In a way, it was a blessing.”

At that, Scootaloo had nothing to say.

“But that is long past now, I feel. Your story is now. You wish to follow her?”

“Yeah.” Scootaloo swallowed thickly, then nodded. “Yeah, I do.”

“And how will you do so with no wings like her?”

A dry heave ran its way up Scootaloo’s throat, but she fought it down, and didn’t budge. “I-I don’t know.”

“You will.”

Scootaloo watched with total captivation as Lignite plucked himself from the skewed feathers of the Vulture, and took flight. His tiny little wings fluttered to keep him up. But then, the Vulture’s wings twitched, and its beady black eye tracked Lignite as it curled and twisted a flap behind itself.

And Lignite floated gently on the Vulture’s breeze.

“Come, Scootaloo!” Lignite boomed again.

She glanced at the Vulture, then hurried after the gliding Lignite.

He floated over on his dainty wings to a pair of piles. These ones were much more scrap than complete.

“I have no treasures that will help you fly. But here... you may create something worthy of your wings.”

Scootaloo stared at the piles. There were wood and nails galore, and a few carved pieces of both wood and stone. They actually appeared quite clean and usable, but at the same time... “This is all junk. How am I supposed to make anything with this stuff?”

“There is no need to worry.” From the corner of her eye, a cyan glow and hum bobbed out. “Because I am here to help you.”

The piles shifted, shuddered, and ultimately, glowed. Scootaloo gaped in awe as bits of the piles levitated themselves into the air.

“Do you wish to be fast like her?”

“W-well, a little.”

Four wooden wheels, conjoined with metal fixtures, levitated before her.

Scootaloo peered out and touched at one of them, spinning it lightly where it floated. It spun freely and smoothly.

“And like her, her purpose is not entirely that of speed.”

“No... you’re right.”

A wooden board joined it, and with it came more metal to bind it together.

“Do you have friends?”

“I’d like to.”

Lignite smiled sadly as he worked. “She started with one. Perhaps you could start there.”

More metal rose up from the pile, fastening itself to the edges of the flat board. Reinforcements.

“This looks... weird.”

“And we do not?”

Finally shaking the situation, Scootaloo peeled back. “What’s with that? Why do you keep comparing yourself to me? We don’t even look anything alike.”

“But we are built... with similar weaknesses.”

Finally, his antennae ceased to glow, and the wheeled board came to a gentle rest on the floor before Scootaloo.

“But these are things that only we can find strength in.” Lignite gestured out at the board. “Take a step, then. See how it feels.”

Tentatively, Scootaloo placed a hoof on the board.

The wheels rolled over the smooth cavern floor.

“Okay...”

One hoof became two. She rolled it from side to side.

“This...”

Three hooves.

“I think...”

Four.

She stared ahead at the Vulture, who had now folded its wings, and stared intently at her from its perch on the floor.

With her place on the board, however, she now matched the Vulture in height.

She looked it in the eye.

“Well.”

Scootaloo looked over at Lignite. The tiny pony had come to float next to her.

“I think this could work.”

“Yes... And I have just the hill for you to start your journey on.”

For once in their conversation, Scootaloo knew what he meant.

She wheeled her board over to the entrance to the cavern. The darkness from which she’d emerged stared back at her, waiting for her to slope back down and out.

As she stood there alone, with nothing but her breathing and anxiety for company, she heard more metal clinking. It was much like the few bits she’d scattered by in the darkness, but something more... familiar.

She turned around again to see the Vulture had moved to stand next to her.

And yet, she didn’t jump.

And in the Vulture’s beak, clenched tight like a vice, a shiny piece of gold glittered.

An Equestrian bit.

Lignite’s voice called out from the back of the Vulture. “We take many chances in our lives. Not all of them succeed. Many choices made in chance block off other paths that we may have taken. Sometimes, it means we will never go home again.” Lignite paused. “Other times, it means we have the chance to prove ourselves worthy.”

He emerged over the crest of the Vulture’s red and white head. His antennae glowed again, and the beak of the Vulture joined its shimmering aura. It allowed its beak open, and the coin floated out, only to come to a perfectly balanced rest atop the beak of the Vulture. Its beady black eyes honed in on the coin’s new location, all the while Lignite bobbed close by.

“Rainbow Dash chose heads. From the inspiration she gives you, it is clear she chose correctly. But for this coinflip, what will you choose?”

Scootaloo’s hooves flexed against the board beneath her. She swallowed again. “I-I guess... I’ll choose tails.”

“And why is that?”

“Because... because there’s no difference between either side of the coin... it’s just... luck.”

Silently, Scootaloo thanked herself: she had listened to Miss Cheerliee enough...

But there was more that school didn’t teach...

“And because I’m not going to be exactly like her... but I’d like to try.”

“Tails... it is.”

And the Vulture snapped.

The coin flipped up at the beak’s behest, and it tumbled through the air on a swerving paradigm.

Below her, Scootaloo felt the board move of its own accord... a push from a helpful spirit she hadn’t expected to find.

And into the depths of the Vulture’s Cove did she descend once more.

Outcome

Rainbow Dash landed just outside the Vulture’s Cove.

She stood there for a brief moment, with the angry black cloud under her wing.

She’d gone off toward Saddle Lake in search of clouds, but she hadn’t any luck.

So she turned to the Everfree in a last ditch attempt, but the clouds there were never going to go easily with her...

So it’d taken a lot longer than she expected to get it together, big deal.

“Hey, Scoots, I’m back!”

She looked around.

Nopony.

“Uh, squirt? You still here?”

Nothing.

Slowly but surely, her gaze drifted to the cave.

“Oh no...”

The cloud under her wing flashed an ‘I told you so’ at her.

Just as she was starting to gallop off to the cave, she screeched to a halt.

She leaned forward, head tilted to the side, ears cocked...

“Is that...?”

“WOOHOO!”

Rainbow Dash leapt back as the blur sped by on the rocky surface outside the cave. “Woah!" She raised a wing to shield her eyes from the sputtering debris.

She yelped as the angry Everfree cloud—now freed from its hold—zapped at her, and fled back to the sky.

Rubbing her now sore flank, Rainbow Dash squinted through the clearing dust. “Squirt, is that you?”

“Rainbow Dash! Yeah, it’s me!”

Scootaloo’s approach parted the dust left by her entrance. As the filly approached, Rainbow leaned forward. There was some kind of board in her foreleg...

“Oh... hey!” Rainbow cooed impressively. “You went in already?”

“Yup!” Scootaloo beamed, shaking the board happily. “Got this cool thing out of it.”

“That’s a skateboard, Scoots.”

Scootaloo blinked, looked down at the board, then back to Rainbow Dash. “What’s a skateboard?”

“...It’s awesome!” Rainbow whooped. She trot over and beamed down at the board. “It uh, it doesn’t look great...”

“But it got me here.”

“Heh, it definitely did.” She squinted at the oil-stained wood. “Did you fix it yourself?”

“I had a little help.”

“Uh huh... Well... they should’ve helped more.”

Scootaloo giggled. “Nah, I think I’ll figure something out on my own. This is just to get me started.”

“Well, sweet. In and out of Vulture’s Cove in ten minutes flat. Not bad!”

“How long did it take you?”

“A lot faster than that.” Rainbow Dash grinned, holding a hoof out. “Can I get a closer look at it?”

“Yeah, of course.”

Scootaloo didn’t seem to mind the grease all across the board... but then again, neither did she.

“So... what did you get from Vulture’s Cove, Rainbow Dash?”

She replied as she inspected the board. “It was something a lot smaller. Not as cool as this, but still pretty cool.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. A Wonderbolts pendant.”

“But that’s awesome!”

Rainbow Dash shrugged. “It’s not as cool a thing to show off as this board.” She passed it back to Scootaloo.

Scootaloo didn’t immediately reply: her eyes were busy roaming across the board.

There were plenty of blemishes, and lots to clean, but this could be turned into something even better... and she definitely had the time to make it happen.

Rainbow smirked at the young not-quite flier. “You’re gonna go far with stuff like that, squirt.”

“Thanks, Rainbow Dash.”

“I think it’s about time we get you home, anyways.”

“And what about the cave?”

“What about it?”

“Well... what about... y’know, him?”

Rainbow Dash blinked. “The Vulture?”

“Well no, but... yeah... and Lignite.”

“Huh...” She looked at the cave.

Scootaloo eyed her warily. “Are we just going to leave them there?”

Rainbow held her stare for a second longer, then looked back. She grinned at Scootaloo. “If they’re still in there, then that’s loyalty I can get behind.”

Scootaloo wasn’t convinced: her head turned down. “Lignite seemed lost to me.”

Rainbow looked down at the little orange filly. It seemed hard to think of before, but the more she thought about it, the more she saw a bit of herself in her. Maybe they hadn’t taken the same approach to the Vulture’s Cove, but they’d both gone in, and found something that gave their life a bit of pursuit.

And what better pursuit was there than being your absolute best?

Rainbow lowered herself. “Hey, look at me.”

Scootaloo looked up.

”Trust me, Scoots. We’ve all got a place to find. I know a lot of ponies like that... Fluttershy especially. But Ponyville’s home for us, and maybe for them, here’s the place they need to be.”

Scootaloo breathed, then nodded. “I don’t think they knew they’d end up here, but if that’s where they want to be... then that’s cool to me.“

Smiling, Rainbow flared her wings. “We’re all gonna make it.”

“Yeah... I hope so.”

“I know so.”

Scootaloo smiled gently, and lifted her own wings. “I just wanted to make sure it’d be okay.”

“It will, squirt, it will.”