Birthday Wishesby StarFall825ChaptersChapter 1Chapter 2Chapter 3Chapter 4Chapter 5Chapter 6Chapter 7Chapter 8Chapter 1“Hope Smiles from the threshold of the year to come, Whispering 'it will be happier'...” ― Alfred Tennyson "I'm sorry, Mr. Cypress, but the treatment was unsuccessful." The brown earth pony sitting across the desk took the news in stunned silence. The two sat in a small office tucked into a back corner of the Ponyville Hospital. It was early in the day, and the light of the morning sun could be seen through the slits of the shutters over the office windows. The pegasus doctor’s name was Summer Shower; despite her young age, she was one of the foremost experts on pegasus wing health and development in Equestria. Cypress sat staring at her desk with a vacant look, lost in his thoughts. A minute ticked by on the small clock sitting on her desk before she cleared her throat softly. Cypress looked up at her with pain-filled eyes. "Sor—" his voice rasped, caught in his chest. He cleared his throat and spoke again. "Sorry, Doc, I just... I just don't know what to think right now." Summer relaxed slightly at his reaction to the news. Nopony took this kind of news the same way, and sometimes family members would become... upset. At least Cyprus wasn't yelling at her. Cypress ran a hoof through his short, dark-green mane and breathed deeply. "There has to be something else we can try. What about magic?" Summer shook her head gently. "I'm sorry, Mr. Cypress, we already told you magic couldn't help, remember?" "I do remember," Cypress replied. "I didn't understand it then, and I'm not going to pretend I understand it now. I didn't think it would matter though I really wanted the medicines to work." "Right," Summer sighed. "We'll just take it from the top." Summer reached down to open her desk drawer and pulled out a small packet of papers covered in neat print. "This is a small primer on basic magical theory," she said as she handed him the packet. Taking the papers from her, he looked at the writing on the page. For being a basic overview of magic, it still used a lot of technical wording that he didn't understand. "Don't worry," Summer said with a small grin as Cypress blankly scanned the papers. "I'll give you the summary. Unicorn magic works on the 'Principle of Change'. To put this as simply as possible, it means that unicorns can use magic to change the world around them, everything from changing apples to oranges, to changing the rate at which something grows or ages. Are you following this?" "Yes," Cypress answered, brow furrowed as he focused on Summer. "Unicorns can change things with their magic." "Exactly." Summer gave Cypress a small grin. "Now in medicine the most classic example of this is a 'change back' spell, where the doctors would use their magic to return a patient to health by reversing an injury they sustained. This kind of magical talent is rare though. Unicorns who can use this magic are all specialists in their fields with large demands on their time." "I don't care about that," Cypress cried out. "I'll pay whatever it takes! I just want my daughter to fly!" Summer shook her head once more. "I'm sorry, but that won't work. The problem is, magically, there is nothing wrong with Scootaloo. She is exactly the pony she is supposed to be." "What is that supposed to mean?" An ugly scowl was spread across Cypress' face, and a tight heat started climbing his chest. He sat up straighter in his chair and stared angrily into Summer's sorrowful eyes. "Scootaloo is a pegasus, of course she is supposed to be able to fly!" "It's not that simple," Summer tried to explain. "If Scootaloo's handicap was from an accident or illness it would be a simple matter, but it isn't. She can't fly because her wings didn't develop properly, and that is no one's fault. It is just how her body is." Cypress slumped down in his chair, his head bowed low with inner pain. "So that's it then?" he whispered. "There’s nothing we can do?" To her amazement, a single tear ran down his cheek. Cyprus quickly tried to wipe away the tears. “Sorry, I just—I was really hoping for some good news today.” Summer stood up and walked around her desk to stand next to the Cypress. Placing her hoof on his shoulder, she looked him in the eye. "I never said there’s nothing we can do," she said, and a glimmer of hope shone in Cypress' tear-filled eyes. "Do you remember the three stages of pegasus wing development?" Summer asked. Cypress nodded in reply, wiping the tears from his eyes. "Good, so the problem is that the bones in Scootaloo’s wings grew just fine, but the wing muscles didn't develop. Her wings just aren't strong enough to let her fly. Unfortunately, by the time she was brought in and examined, it was too late; her second growth stage was already over. We gave her the medicine anyways, just in case, but it didn't work." "But," Summer said when Cypress looked downcast again. "There is still the next growth stage in three or four years. We can try the medicine again at that time, and the chances of success would be much higher." "How much higher?" Cypress asked. "Between eighty to ninety percent." Summer smiled at the relief that spread over Cypress. "Don't worry, Mr. Cypress, it’s more than likely that Scootaloo will be able to fly one day. Maybe even as well as a normal pegasus if she's lucky. Now, why don't we go see your daughter?" "Just a minute, Doc." Cypress held up a hoof to stop her as he looked Summer in eye. "Why is Scootaloo like this? What happened to make her like this?" Summer hesitated a moment. "Well, there are several possibilities," she started, but Cypress cut her off. "Is it because I'm her father?" the earth pony asked. The way Summer hesitated again told him all he needed to know. "I'm sorry, Cypress," Summer replied as he hung his head in shame, "but that is the most likely reason." "How did this happen? The doctors my wife and I talked to told us the chances of any problems developing were small." "The chances were small," Summer replied, "but they were still there. If Scootaloo had been diagnosed sooner, this first treatment would have worked. It was just bad luck we didn't catch it quicker, that's all." This only made Cypress’ expression darken further. "So, if I had brought her in sooner, she'd be flying by now?" "It's possible," Summer answered slowly, not wanting to hurt him any further. "It's also possible it would not have made any difference at all." Cypress slumped down in his chair with a deep sigh. "Are you alright, Cypress?" she asked. "You look a bit tired." "I haven't been sleeping well," Cypress replied. "Neither has my wife, we're both so worried about Scootaloo." He gave a deep sigh and looked at the ceiling. "How do I do it?" "I'm sorry?" Summer asked with a small frown. "How do you do what?" "How do I face her?" he asked Summer. She just looked at him, confused. "How do I tell my daughter that I'm the reason she can't fly? All she's ever wanted is to fly, and now she can't because of me." "Hey," Summer said, jabbing him in the chest with a hoof. "This is not your fault, okay?" Cypress shook his head slightly, but Summer just jabbed him harder. "I'm serious, there was no way you could have known what would happen. Scootaloo is not going to blame you for what's happened to her. I've seen the way she looks up to you, she adores you." "I know, that's what I'm worried about. I don't want her to lose faith in me." "That won't happen, alright?" Summer looked him in the eye, waiting until Cypress smiled and nodded in agreement. "Good, now c'mon, we’re going to go see your daughter." Scootaloo lay upon the padded table in the exam room. The white paper lying on the table crinkled annoyingly every time she shifted slightly, so she tried to stay as still as possible. One of the nurses had come in earlier to give her the bad news. The kind nurse had sat next to her, lightly stroking her back as she explained that it would be a few more years before she could fly. Scootaloo sat in silence, giving one-word answers to the nurse's questions until she finally left. As soon as the nurse left, Scootaloo buried her face in her legs and cried. She cried until there were no more tears, and then she sat sniffling for a bit. Scootaloo felt better after that, but she was also quick to dry away her tears on a towel next to the sink that sat along the wall opposite the padded table. She didn't want her dad to know she was crying. After all, she thought, my dad is the strongest pony I know, and he never cries. After being satisfied that she looked as normal as ever, Scootaloo jumped back onto the table and lay down to wait. She waited for a long time, but finally heard hoof steps in the hallway outside, as well as the deep voice of her father coming closer. The door opened inward part way, and Cypress poked his into the room. As soon as he saw the orange filly, he smiled warmly and pushed the door the rest of the way open. Scootaloo felt herself grin right back at him. She couldn't help it; just being around her dad made her happy in that goofy, not-really-sure-why-I'm-smiling way. Cypress walked over and wrapped her up in a powerful hug. "Dad! not in front of other ponies..." Scootaloo whined, squirming in mock protest. Cypress noticed that she hugged him back just as hard though. He let her go, and she sat down again, blushing slightly. Cypress sat next to her on the floor. "Well, Scoots, how do you feel?" Summer asked her. "Pretty good. My wings are still a little sore from those shots a few days ago, but other than that, fine." She extended her wings and stretched them about to prove she wasn't in any real pain. Summer went ahead and examined the wings for a few moments before giving them the all clear. "Well, the wings seem good," Summer remarked as she tested Scootaloo's wing strength by having her push against her hoof. "No complications from the medications. I'll go get you some pain meds, then you're free to go." "Thanks Doc," Cypress and Scootaloo said simultaneously, drawing an amused smile from Summer as she closed the door on her way out. An awkward silence fell on the room as father and daughter both sat waiting. "The nurses already told me everything," Scootaloo said, breaking the silence. Cypress’ smile faded, and his eyes grew sad as he looked at her. "But it's fine, though," she quickly continued, "I mean, it's only a few more years, right? Besides, I don't really mind." Cypress could tell she was lying. Her eyes were still slightly red, and there were dried tears on the white paper she was lying on. He ignored it though, and reached over to ruffle her mane. "Of course you're alright," he said as she pushed his hoof away laughing. "You are one tough kid, am I right?" "You bet I am." Scootaloo smiled at him and Cypress pulled her into another hug. She didn't resist this time, just let him draw her close. "Don't worry, Scoot," he whispered in her ear. "One day, you'll be flying." One day... “Hold fast to dreams, For if dreams die Life is a broken-winged bird, That cannot fly.” ― Langston Hughes Chapter 2It had taken Doctor Summer some time to process the pain medicine, and then she had felt it necessary to go over everything again: don’t eat these kinds of foods, eat more of these, you should really be taking these vitamins, get enough sleep, and on and on and on. Of course Cypress had written everything down, asking all kinds of boring questions until, finally, both adults were satisfied. By the time Cypress and Scootaloo walked out the front doors of the hospital, the sun was at its highest point in the sky. Its heat swept over them like a wave as they left the cool hospital. The air in the distance shimmered with rising heat, too much for even the ground to absorb. At least today’s a day off, Scootaloo thought as she looked at the sun. I can’t imagine how bad it would be if I had to be in class when it’s this hot. Looking down again, she saw her dad in the distance, already halfway down the path towards Ponyville. Scootaloo took off running to catch up with him. Cypress looked over at her as she ran beside him. “You alright?” he asked her. “Yeah, I’m fine,” she replied. “Just thinking.” “Thinking?” he said in mock horror. “What is the world coming to, when little fillies can just go around thinking?” Scootaloo just rolled her eyes. “Well, don’t worry,” he said, “I have just the thing to slow those rusted gears. How ‘bout some ice cream?” “Before lunch?” Scootaloo smiled with a mischievous light in her eyes. “Mom wouldn’t like that very much.” “Well, don’t tell her then.” The two reached the bottom of the trail into the town, and instead of turning left for home, Cypress kept going straight into town. Scootaloo followed close behind him, grinning as she thought about what kind of ice cream she would get. When they were about halfway to Sugarcube Corner, a shadow blocked out the sun above them for a moment. Looking up, they could see several pegasi moving large clouds to provide shade for the busier parts of town. Scootaloo studied them intently for a moment before jumping up in excitement. “Oooh, dad, look! It’s Rainbow Dash!” Scootaloo pointed out a bright blue mare pushing a cloud over the town hall. The pegasus adjusted the cloud slightly before flying out of sight. “Aww...” Scootaloo gave a disappointed frown as she disappeared. “Who’s Rainbow Dash?” Cypress asked, intrigued. “Oh, you’ve never met her?” Cypress shook his head, and Scootaloo chattered away in excitement: “She just moved here from Cloudsdale a week ago to work on the weather teams. She’s a great flier, just amazing, you have got to watch her sometime. I hope I can fly like that one day.” “I thought the weather teams were full,” Cypress said, now really interested. “Why does Ponyville need another weather pony?” “You know how old Mr. Snow Feather is getting,” she answered. Scootaloo kept up on all the pegasus news and rumors, especially those that involved the weather teams. “Cloudsdale just wants to be sure there is enough pony power to handle the weather, especially with the Princess coming to town next month for the Summer Sun Celebration.” “Of course, everything has to be perfect for the Princess.” Cypress nodded in understanding. Everypony wanted to put their best hoof forward. His carpentry business had surged as ponies hired him to fix and pretty up the buildings in town. It was the first time Princess Celestia would be holding the Celebration in Ponyville since its founding. “So, Snow Feather is looking to retire is he?” Cypress asked. “Yeah. Mom says he’s been in charge of the weather teams since she was a little filly. He just wants to make sure there is somepony qualified enough to take over before he retires. Who knows,” she said with a smile, “maybe he’ll ask Rainbow Dash. That’d be so cool, then she could stay here instead of going back to Cloudsdale. I mean, she’d probably say yes. One of her old friends lives in town, and she’s always visiting.” “You sure do know a lot about Rainbow Dash.” Cypress looked sideways at his daughter. “You’re not spying on her, are you, Scoots?” Scootaloo laughed nervously. “No way, dad, I wouldn’t do that.” “Good, I’m glad you know well enough to respect other ponies’ privacy.” “Yeah...” she said quietly, blushing slightly. Cypress just smiled and shook his head slightly. Scootaloo quietly walked beside her dad until he stopped. “Well, here we are,” he said, “and look! It looks like most of your classmates had the same idea.” In front of them stood Sugarcube Corner in all its sugary goodness. Families crowded the place, all of them seeking both shelter from the heat as well as cold treats to cool off with. Cypress opened the front door and the sounds of laughter floated outside. Cypress turned and motioned for Scootaloo to go ahead of him. “After you... Scoot? What’s the matter?” Scootaloo stood with her head and ears down, shuffling nervously on her hooves. At the worried look on her dad’s face, she tried to smile and speak normally. “Oh nothing’s wrong,” she said, but Cypress thought it sounded a little forced. “I just... I don’t really feel like having ice cream anymore, that’s all.” Cypress just stared at her, studying her closely. She tried to meet his gaze, but eventually had to turn away from his intense scrutiny. “Go wait for me in the gazebo over there,” he finally said, and she looked up to see him pointing to a shaded, empty pavilion across the plaza, tucked between two other buildings. She turned back to answer him, but he turned and walked into the shop before she could open her mouth. The door closed behind him, leaving her alone in the street. With little choice other than to obey, she walked over and sat on one of the benches in the gazebo. The sun still beat down on the small town, but thanks to the new cloud cover, as well as the shaded bench, the heat was much easier to bear. Scootaloo only had to wait a few minutes before she saw her dad exit the store and head her way, two wrapped ice cream bars in his mouth. “Here you go,” he mumbled around the ice cream in his mouth, and Scootaloo reached out and took one. “Thanks,” she said as she unwrapped the treat. Strawberry ice cream in a chocolate shell, she thought with a smile. My favorite. Taking a bite, she let the sweet flavor sit on her tongue for a moment before swallowing. Cypress sat next to her on the bench and unwrapped his own ice cream. The two sat without speaking, trying to eat as much of the ice cream as they could before the unnatural heat of the day melted it. Scootaloo finished first and was licking the melted ice cream off her hooves when Cypress spoke up. “So, Scoots, are you having trouble with some of your classmates?” Scootaloo froze mid-lick, the question catching her off-guard. She finished cleaning off her hooves before putting her best smile on. “Of course not, what makes you think that?” “Your mom and I aren’t idiots, kid,” he answered. “We never see you with foals your age, and nopony ever comes over to see you. You spend all your free time with me in the shop or with your mom in the library.” The smile on her face slowly faded away as he spoke, and when he finished she turned away to stare into the distance. “And since when do you ever turn down ice cream? It was pretty obvious by—” “I get it!” Scootaloo turned her back to him, hunching over slightly. “Your mom and I are just worried about you, kid,” he continued in the same steady voice. “I’m worried that you’re just running from fights.” “I’m not running from anything,” she muttered at him over her shoulder. “Oh no? Then what do you call it?” “Avoiding conflict.” Cypress sat quietly for a moment. “Did you get that from Miss Cherilee?” “Yes, she says it’s important to avoid fights at all cost. She says that walking away is the best way to deal with jerks and bullies.” “Typical teacher response,” Cypress said in disgust. “They just don’t want to have to deal with the mess that comes from one student kicking in the teeth of another.” Scootaloo looked over her shoulder at her dad in surprise. He had always got along really well with Miss Cherilee. “Listen, Scootaloo,” he said, putting his hoof on her shoulder and turning her to face him. “Walking away is definitely the best way to avoid a fight, and that’s usually a good thing. Jerks will always try to get you to react to them. It’s how they get attention. There comes a time though, when you have to stand up for yourself. If you run from every fight ever, that’s all you life is going to be, running. Pretty soon, you’ll lose everypony’s respect, and when nopony else respects you, how can you respect yourself?” Scootaloo looked into her father’s eyes for a moment before looking away again. “Can we just go home?” she asked quietly. “Sure,” her father answered. He didn’t sound angry or upset, he just stood up and waited for her to follow him. “Mom said she was going to close the library early today. She’s probably waiting for us at home by now.” Scootaloo avoided looking at him the entire way home, but Cypress watched her carefully, hoping that she would take his advice to heart. The rest of the day went without event. Lunch and dinner had both come and gone, and Cypress stood next to his wife in the kitchen, helping her clean up the day’s dishes. “You took the news pretty well,” Cypress remarked to Misty Dawn, who threw a slightly amused look his way. “Thanks, I guess,” she replied. “Though I don’t know if there’s a way to judge a mother’s reaction when she learns her child may be crippled for life.” She handed him another plate, which he dried carefully and stacked next to him. “Well, you managed to not break down crying at least.” Cypress took the next plate from her, flushing slightly. “So you already did better than me in that regard.” Dawn nudged him with a soft chuckle. “Awww, look at you blush,” Dawn murmured teasingly in his ear. Cypress’ flush deepened and he became so flustered he nearly dropped the glass she handed him. “Being worried over your daughter is nothing to feel embarrassed over.” “I know, it’s just—” Cypress’s expression squirmed about as he searched for the proper words. “It’s just that fathers are supposed to protect their daughters, you know? I’m just having a hard time dealing with this. Knowing there’s nothing I can do right now to help.” “Hey, whatever happened to that carefree, asinine colt I knew all those years ago?” Dawn made her voice airy and cheerful, but her eyes looked on her husband in concern. “I guess he grew up, Dawn,” Cypress replied, his voice thoughtful. He looked at her, and they held their gaze for several long moments before she turned away. “I guess he did,” she replied, handing him another washed glass. A strange sadness crept up on her as she contemplated this unusual change that had come over him. “Well... only a little though,” he remarked, his voice full of mischief as he dumped the small bit of water remaining in the glass over her silver-grey back. She gasped in shock as the hot water ran down her back and sides, glaring over at his smirking face with a look of annoyance mixed with a bit of mischief that made him pause. Dawn quickly retaliated by splashing large hoof-fulls of soapy dishwater right into his face until he gasped out a surrender. “All right, all right, you win,” he cried out, getting a mouthful of sudsy water for his trouble. Dawn beamed at him in victory as he spat the foul water back into the sink. They spent the rest of the time cleaning up giggling at how silly they both looked cover in soapy water. So, where is Scootaloo anyways?” Dawn asked as she passed Cypress the last freshly washed dish. “I sent her to take her bath,” he replied, carefully drying the dish off and putting it in the correct cupboard. “Good.” Dawn emptied the sink water and dried her hooves off. “The oven is busted again, by the way.” “What, again?” he said, amazed. Then he grinned slightly, mischief in his eyes. “Go easy on the appliances dear. They’re your friends, remember?” “It isn’t my fault,” she shot back. She knew he was just teasing her, but she couldn’t help herself sometimes. “The thing’s a piece of junk. We should really think about getting a new one.” “I know. Once I get paid from all this work for the Summer Sun Celebration, we should be able to afford one.” “Well, until then, we’re going to need it fixed.” “Obviously. I’ll talk to Silver tomorrow, he can fix it for us.” “Silver Driver?” she asked, and the strange note in her voice made him look at her closely. “Is that a problem?” he asked in return. “No, not at all,” she replied, but her face said the exact opposite. As she turned around to package up the leftover food, he leaned against the kitchen counter and rested his head on his hoof, waiting. 3, 2, 1... “It’s just...” Nailed it. “...I was talking to May today; he’s started drinking again.” “I know, he came by the shop today, hungover.” “And you’re okay with that?” Dawn said, clearly upset. “Of course not,” Cypress responded. “Silver’s going through a rough patch right now, what with his mother and all. Silver and May are our oldest friends; he needs the work, and we can give him some.” “What if he shows up drunk though?” “Then kick him out.” Cypress shook his head and laughed. “Or come get me, and I’ll do it for you. But he deserves a fair chance from us, and we’ll give him one.” Dawn was quiet for a long time, but Cypress waited her out, letting her think it over. Finally she looked at him from over her shoulder. She still didn’t look happy, but at least she wasn’t angry. “Alright,” she grudgingly gave in. “But you owe me for this.” “Oh,” Cypress said smiling, “I owe you for a lot more than just this.” “Darn right you do.” Dawn smiled in return, then turned to finish up with the leftovers. She heard and felt him move up behind her, standing right next to her, almost touching. He stopped only about a foot behind her. “In that case,” she heard him say, confidence and playfulness running through his voice. “Why don’t I do something to repay you now?” Dawn felt her heartbeat and breath quicken slightly. This game was hardly new to her though, and she was able to keep her voice level. “Oh yeah?” she said. “And just what could you offer me that would make up for it?” Cypress leaned forward and began speaking softly into her ear. She kept her cool, a twitch of her tail and a slight blush were the only signs of what he whispered. When he finished, he leaned back, that confident smirk still on his face. She looked at him over her shoulder again, returning his smirk with one of her own. “That’ll do,” she said evenly, “as a down payment.” “I thought you would say that,” he replied, leaning forward to kiss her. Dawn reveled in the softness of his lips pressing against hers. She closed her eyes as he ran his hoof down her neck, playing with her yellow mane. She felt his tongue on her lips, and opened her mouth for him, and then— “Eeeeewwwwww!” The two pulled away from each other in surprise. Scootaloo stood in the kitchen doorway with a disgusted look on her face, the kind usually reserved for something unpleasant you just stepped in. A towel was draped over her back, and her mane and tail were still slightly damp. “What’s the matter, Scoots?” Cypress grinned at his daughter. “Don’t like what you see?” Cypress kept his eyes on Scootaloo, but leaned in to give Dawn another loud, sloppy kiss. Scootaloo retched into her hoof, then turned and walked out towards her room. Her voice carried down the hall towards the kitchen. “Can’t even walk around my own house without having to see a bunch of sappy kissing!” Dawn and Cypress giggled at each other for a moment before Dawn straightened up, a serious look on her face. “Perhaps we should take this to the bedroom so we don’t offend our daughter’s sensibilities any further.” “I couldn’t agree more,” he responded in a similar tone. “I’ll just go put Scootaloo to bed, then join you.” “Don’t take too long,” she called after him as he left the kitchen. Cypress knocked on Scootaloo’s door and waited a couple moments before opening it to find Scootaloo already in bed, the covers pulled up to her chin. Her bedside light was on, and she was flipping through one of the adventure books her mother had bought her. She looked up at him as he entered her room. “Done being gross?” she asked. “For now,” Cypress replied as he sat at the foot of her bed, reaching over to tousle her mane. “Hey,” she yelped, swatting away his hoof as he laughed. “So, two days ‘til your birthday,” Cypress said, and Scootaloo’s face lit up at the reminder. “Any idea what you want yet?” “Not really,” she replied. “Unless...” “Yeah?” “Do you think maybe you could get Rainbow Dash’s autograph for me?” she put her hooves together to beg. “Please? I’d ask her myself, but I get way too nervous around her.” “I’ll see what I can do. And you’re sure you don’t want a party?” “No,” she said firmly. “Besides, who would I invite? I don’t really know anyone I would want to come.” She didn’t say this with regret or anger, but she slouched down slightly as she realized how true that was. Cypress stared at her with a weird look on his face for a moment. “Alright,” he said, tucking the covers under her. “Well, get some sleep, you have school in the morning.” “Right,” she said with a frown, but she turned over and closed her eyes. Cypress reached over and turned off her light, leaving her in darkness, the moon casting its light on the window. He crept out of her room and closed the door behind him, leaving it open a crack so he could look at her. So young, he thought, and already so many problems. Eighty to ninety percent chance she’ll fly one day. That left a ten to twenty percent chance she wouldn’t. There was a time he would have laughed at odds like that, but now? The chances that his being a father would cause problems for his children were so much smaller than this, but it had still happened. Odds and statistics are just a way for us to feel safe, right until the unlikely runs up and bites you right on the tail. He ran a hoof through his mane, dark thoughts flying through his mind. What if the treatment doesn’t work? She already has to put up with so much, what does she do when her dream crashes down around her? What if— “Hun? You know I’m still waiting here, right?” Cypress breathed out the breath he’d been holding with a laugh. “I’ll be right there,” he called, his mind clear again. He wasn’t alone with his troubles, and neither was Scootaloo. No matter what the future might hold, it didn’t matter. They would face their problems together like they always did. “Good night, kid,” he whispered. My other girl needs me a little more right now. Chapter 3Cypress hauled himself out of bed, groaning at the time displayed on his bedside clock. The early morning had come and gone, and he was now truly late for work. Oh well, he thought. I’m already late. May as well take the time to say bye to the wife and kid. Cypress walked into the kitchen, yawning. Dawn stood next to the sink, finishing up the breakfast dishes on her own. She had always hated leaving a mess, so much so that she’d do all the cleaning herself if no one else would. Cypress walked up behind her and wrapped his forelegs around his wife in a gentle hug. “Mornin’ hun,” he whispered into her ear. Dawn turned her head and rested it on his for a moment before the two separated. Turning around, he was greeted by the most wondrous sight: a plate piled high with steaming muffins on the kitchen counter. “Oh, what do we have here?” he asked, reaching out to take one of the delicacies. Dawn’s hoof cracked down on his, and he pulled back with a surprised yelp. “What was that for?” “Those aren’t for you, goofball,” she scolded him. “They’re for the mailpony; she was out sick all last week and these are a welcome back gift.” Cypress sat nursing his hoof for a moment, a confused look on his face. “How did you make muffins with the oven busted?” “I didn’t, obviously,” Dawn replied, regret in her voice. “I bought them from Sugarcube Corner.” Dawn didn’t have anything against the Cakes, but if there was ever any cooking or baking to be done, she prefered to do it herself. “Oh, well, I guess that would explain—” Cypress paused, and confusion passed over his expression. “Scoots, what are you doing with that?” Dawn whirled around to find out what crazy scheme her daughter was planning this time, but of course, nopony was there. “Cypress!” Dawn cried as she spun back around, but her husband was gone—along with one of the muffins. “Cypress, get back here!” Cypress made a beeline for the front door, knowing he only had moments before his wife was after him. Scootaloo sat next to the door, putting her school books into her saddlebag. “Help!” he whispered as he ran passed. Dawn came flying out of the kitchen as he ran out the door, hot on his tail. Scootaloo grinned on the inside and jumped in front of the door, math book outstretched. “Hey, mom, can I get some help with these problems before school?” Dawn screeched to a halt, barely stopping in time to miss hitting her daughter. Dawn looked out the open door after Cypress; Scootaloo could hear her grinding her teeth in frustration. “You’re gonna get it later, Cypress!” she finally yelled out the door after him. Scootaloo could hear his very distant, “Worth it!” in reply. She hid her smile behind her math book. “Okay, dear,” Dawn said to her, half-smiling. “What did you need help with?” “Oh, you know, I just remembered that I didn’t need help after all.” Scootaloo stuffed her book into her saddlebag and ran out the door before her mom could react. “Bye, mom!” She ran down the street as Dawn yelled after her. “Scootaloo, you’re as bad as your father!” “Thanks, Mom.” “That wasn’t a compliment!” The sun was already scorchingly hot, especially for the morning. Looks like I’ll get to find out just how bad school can be in this heat after all, Scootaloo thought. She walked along the street towards the school until she heard a soft voice beside her. “G-good morning, Scootaloo.” Scootaloo jumped at the unexpected voice. She looked over to see one of her classmates walking along side her. “Oh, hey, Sweetie Belle. How long have you been there?” “Only a minute or so...” “Well, you should have said something sooner, you sca—you surprised me.” “Oh, sorry.” Scootaloo had met Sweetie Belle when they both started school together. Sweetie Belle had seemed cool at first; she was kind, enthusiastic, and fun. That changed after some kids started making fun of her voice. Sweetie Belle’s voice was, admittedly, high pitched, but that only seemed to make her more endearing to most ponies. Sometimes though, her voice would crack, especially when she was excited or angry. It didn’t really bother Scootaloo, but some kids thought it was funny. Sweetie Belle, however, did not; she would get embarrassed whenever someone made fun of her. When she finally broke down and cried after some particularly nasty teasing though, she made herself a target for the meaner kids in the class. To Scootaloo, it was almost a relief; she had been the one the others made fun of before Sweetie Belle. She always felt guilty for the sense of relief that swept over her when they moved on Sweetie Belle instead of her, but it was nice to have them ignore her, even if it meant that somepony else was miserable. She never made fun of Sweetie Belle though, and she never laughed at the others’ cruel jokes. Eventually, Sweetie Belle had stopped talking entirely. She would mumble answers when the teacher asked her a question, and she spent recess and lunch on her own. That is, when she wasn’t being tormented; the slightest thing would send her into tears these days, and that only encouraged the bullies to try more often. Scootaloo felt sorry for her, but she also felt a hint of fear when she looked at the unicorn. That could be me if I ever show weakness, she thought. A target. As much as she sympathized with Sweetie Belle though, she kept her distance. She didn’t want to give the other kids something else to make fun of her for. “So, um, Scootaloo,” Sweetie Belle said, barely more than a whisper. “How are your wings doing? I mean, you told us all that you were going to be flying soon, and—” “I have to go,” Scootaloo cut her off. She really didn’t want to talk about that. ”I have an errand to run before school.” Scootaloo turned off the main street and walked away from her classmate. “Oh... okay, bye then.” Scootaloo walked off, feeling slightly guilty at leaving Sweetie Belle like that, but she really did have an errand to do. Sure, she was planning to do it after school, but this was as good a time as any. Scootaloo turned down a few more side streets before arriving at her destination, a shop tucked in between a dry cleaners and a small restaurant. Silver-Flower Repairs was brightly painted over the door, and a light-blue mare stood outside, sweeping the front steps. “Hey, Mayflower, how are you today?” Scootaloo called out to her. The mare looked up and waved at her in return. “Why, hello there, Scoot,” she replied with a smile. “Oh, I’m doing just fine. What brings you around here?” “Mom sent me with a note for you.” Scootaloo pulled out the note and passed it to May. She then sat patiently waiting for her to finish reading it. Mayflower and her coltfriend, Silver Driver, were old friends of Scootaloo’s parents. Silver and Cypress were always together, and May was like an aunt to Scootaloo. “Your oven broke again?” May asked, her brow raised. “We just fixed that four months ago?” “I know. Mom wants to know when you can come over and fix it.” “Hold on a sec,” May replied as she pushed open the door to the shop and reached in to grab a pocket calendar. “Let’s see... best I can do is send Silver over day after tomorrow.” “The day after tomorrow? But that’s my birthday!” “I know, Scoot.” May reached out and patted her head. “That’s the best I can do though; Silver and I have all kinds of work to catch up on. He’s been... distracted lately.” “Oh, okay,” Scootaloo tried shrugged it off, but she was really disappointed; how was she going to get mom’s delicious chocolate cake for her birthday without an oven? “I’ll tell mom when I get home today.” “Nah, don’t worry about that. I was going to stop in and see her at lunch today anyway, so I’ll tell her then.” The town clock tower rang out as the sun finished climbing over the roofs of the village; May cocked her head at Scootaloo. “Don’t you have school today?” Scootaloo tensed up, and then took off down the street. “Oh, no, I’m going to be so late!” May shook her head, amused, as she walked back into the shop. Rainbow Dash was lying down on a particularly fluffy cloud, relaxing after a hard days work maintaining the weather. Today’s extreme heat had called for extra cloud cover again to provide welcome shade for ponies going about their lives on the ground. Which, of course, required a long day of making sure the clouds stayed where they were supposed to. It was next to impossible for a unicorn or earth pony to understand, but clouds often seemed to have minds of their own. They would get up to all kinds of mischief if not properly observed. Some pegasi even believed in small magic spirits called sprites that lurked in clouds to entertain themselves by making trouble for pegasus ponies. Rainbow Dash laughed at these stories in public, but privately she often wondered if there was any truth to them. Clouds certainly have a tendency to ‘act up’ a lot, and sometimes, she was sure she heard voices— “Hello there.” “Gah!” Rainbow Dash sat up straight, her heart racing as she spun around to face the voice. To her surprise, it wasn’t a host of brightly shining spirits, but a brown earth pony in a... hot air balloon? “Hello there,” he said again, this time stretching out a hoof to shake. “Name’s Cypress; sorry if I startled you.” “Oh, no, it’s fine,” she said sharply, making it clear that sneaking up on her while she was napping was certainly not fine. She reached out her own hoof, but instead of shaking like he clearly expected, she hoofbumped him—hard. He pulled back his hoof, shaking it to try and get some feeling back as she smirked at him. “Everypony wants to beat me up today...” he muttered under his breath. “So, I take it you’re Rainbow Dash, huh?” he asked her. “Sure am,” she replied, that self-satisfied smirk still on her face. “Let me guess,” she joked, “you’re looking for my autograph?” He grinned right back at her. “You’re absolutely correct.” Rainbow was sure she misheard him. “Wait... really?” “Really.” “Awwww, yeah!” Rainbow exclaimed as she shot a hoof in the air in celebration. “It’s about time ponies around here started to see how awesome I am. Wait here, I’ll be right back.” Before Cypress could stop her she rocketed off the cloud in a streak of color that flashed away towards the horizon. “I have paper... right here.” He sighed as she disappeared. Well, she certainly is fast, he thought. Less than a minute later, he saw her streaking back towards him, slowing just in time to land gracefully on the cloud. “Here you go,” she said as she passed him a— “A signed headshot?” Cypress asked, stunned. “Absolutely; it’s important to be prepared for your fans when you’re as cool and awesome as I am.” There wasn’t even a hint of a self-conscious blush on her face, just satisfied cockyness. “Oh really?” Cypress deadpanned. “And just what have you done that makes you so awesome?” Rainbow Dash looked at him confused. “Didn’t you ask me for an autograph?” “It’s for my daughter,” Cypress explained. Rainbow slumped down slightly for a moment, but just as quickly regained her self confidence. “Then I’ll tell you why,” she said as she struck a gallant pose. “You’re looking at a future Wonderbolt!” “You got accepted to the Wonderbolts?” He asked, impressed. “Well, not yet,” she answered grudgingly. “But I will be one day!” she continued when he started to scowl. “I’m just not quite old enough for the Academy. I did get through to the finals for this year’s Best Young Flyers’ Competition, though. I’m sure to win. I’ve got a move that’s guaranteed to win me the contest.” “Young Flyers’ Competition? How old are you?” “Seventeen.” “Seventeen?” Cypress looked at her with new respect. “That is very young to be on a weather patrol.” “What can I say?” she asked. “I’m the greatest flyer to ever come out of Cloudsdale.” He rolled his eyes at that, but she didn’t notice as she reached for her pen. “Now, who do I make this out to?” “My daughter, Scoot.” “Wait,” Rainbow raised an eyebrow in understanding. “Is that the little orange filly who’s been following me around?” “That’s her; why, has she been bothering you?” “Nah, not really. In fact it’s good to see little fillies still look up to great role models these days. And who could possibly be a better role model than me?” Cypress stopped to seriously consider an answer to this question, but Rainbow clearly meant for it to be rhetorical. “Here you go.” “So, what’s this great move you were talking about?” He grabbed the signed photo and put it next to him in the basket. Cypress noticed her confidence slipped for a moment. “Oh, right, that. It’s a, uh, secret. Don’t want to give it away before the show.” “Oh, then maybe you could show it to me?” “Sorry, but today was pretty hard on the old wings. Tell you what,” she said as she poked him in the shoulder. “After I take first prize at the competition, how about I come back here to visit and give both you and Scoot a little show then.” “Deal,” he replied, then stuck out his hoof with a smirk. “Shake on it?” “Sure,” Rainbow replied then feinted as if to punch him in the hoof again. He didn’t even flinch; she grinned at that, and took his hoof in her own. “It’s a deal.” Cypress turned and began maneuvering the balloon to fly it back towards town, and Rainbow Dash lay back down on her cloud, a goofy grin on her face. As Cypress flew back to town, he thought about Rainbow Dash’s question. ‘Who could possibly be a better role model than me?’ At first he had been skeptical, but as he thought about it more, it started to make a scary kind of sense. Of course, to her, it was an offhand remark to stroke her own ego, but it was also true. Scoot could learn an important lesson by looking up to her. To Rainbow Dash, her desire to become a Wonderbolt wasn’t a dream, it was a certainty. Scoot would need that kind of confidence if she was going to be flying herself in a few years. Cypress’ stomach rumbled loudly, and he grinned to himself. Almost time for dinner, he thought with satisfaction. He didn’t remember what Dawn had planned for tonight, but knowing his wife, whatever it was, it would be totally worth the wait. “What is this?” Cypress stared at his plate in disgust. It was piled high with asparagus, cauliflower, and alfalfa, all covered in some kind of dressing. Olive, if he had to guess. “It’s dinner, dear,” Dawn replied with false warmth before taking another bite. “It’s a new recipe I’m trying out. Alfalfa, asparagus, and cauliflower, cooked and covered in an olive oil dressing.” The three family members were seated around the kitchen table, Dawn and Cypress on both ends with Scootaloo between them. The young filly looked back and forth between her parents, an expectant smile on her face. Cypress turned his stare on his wife. “I hate every one of those things.” Scootaloo choked on a snort of laughter that she barely caught in her hoof. He shot her a dirty look, but that only seemed to encourage her. She shook with silent laughter, unable to control herself. “Oh, do you?” Dawn radiated embarrassment and concern, but there was a glint of amusement in her eyes that said otherwise. It was one of the most evil things that Cypress had ever seen. “Oh, well, you go ahead and eat it anyways sweetie. After all,” she said, her eyes and voice turning murderous, “it’s not like it’s going to kill you.” He kept staring at her, but she met his gaze unflinching, eating her food calmly. “This is about the muffin, isn’t it?” he finally asked. “Why, I’m sure I don’t know what you mean, dear,” she replied, sweetly innocent once more. “Now, go ahead and eat up. You too, Scoot.” “Right,” Cypress muttered under his breath, and began to scoop the offending meal up. C’mon Cypress, he thought. It’s just food, you can do this. He gagged on the first bite, but managed to keep it down. That wasn’t so bad. Scootaloo sat there giggling at him for a moment before she started in on her own food. The meal past in silence as no one made eye contact with anypony else. Scootaloo tried not to look at her dad, because every time she did she couldn’t help giggling. Cypress had finished off the cauliflower, his most hated of the batch, and was halfway through the alfalfa when Scootaloo cleared her throat. “Hey, mom,” she said, “I don’t really like cauliflower—” “Oh, don’t worry about it, Scoot, just give them to your father.” Cypress looked up, horrified as Scootaloo scraped the cauliflower onto his plate, a wicked grin on her face. He stared mournfully at her for a moment before turning back to his meal. Ten minutes later, he pushed his empty plate away. “Done,” he said, smirking at Dawn, who just smiled sweetly back. She stood up and took his plate into the kitchen, while Cypress turned his smirk on Scootaloo. “That wasn’t so bad.” He jumped as Dawn slammed another plate loaded with food in front of him. “Glad to hear it,” she said. The look of surprise and dismay on Cypress’ face set Scootaloo giggling again. “Because there’s just enough for seconds.” Scootaloo burst out laughing so hard she lost her balance and fell off her chair. Her parents looked at her empty place in surprise as she lay on the floor. After half a minute, her laughter died down to a constant chuckle. Her orange hoof rose over the edge of the table and hauled herself up, gasping for breath. One look at the plate of food though, and she was back on the ground, out of control with laughter. “Seconds...” they heard her choke out. “Priceless!” “And what did I do to deserve this,” Cypress asked, ignoring his daughter. “Getting Scootaloo involved in your little stunt this morning.” “What?! And she doesn’t get any punishment at all?” “You’re the one who roped her into it. And besides...” Dawn looked in Scootaloo’s direction. “If she ever tries anything like that again—” The laughter stopped abruptly, and a pair of violet eyes poked over the edge of the table. “I won’t do it again,” came her much subdued voice. “Good,” Dawn said as she walked back towards the kitchen. “Now sit back down so you can have some dessert.” Scootaloo sat back in her chair as Dawn brought in a plate of cupcakes. “I bought these this morning,” she explained as she put them on the table. “Two for each of us.” Cypress’ face lit up as he eyed the tasty treats. “Dad already had his dessert this morning though, so he won’t get any.” His face fell, but Dawn continued unaffected. “So how about we split his cupcakes, Scoot?” “Okay.” Scootaloo took the three cupcakes Dawn handed her. Cypress sighed and started to empty his plate again. Dawn nodded and smiled to herself. Justice has been well-served today, she thought. “Now,” Dawn continued, “I think I’ll go watch the sunset this evening. You’ll take care of the dishes tonight, right Cypress?” She turned and headed for the door without waiting for an answer. “Yeah... sure,” he replied as she walked out the door. Scootaloo took a bite of her cupcake and moaned loudly at it’s goodness. “Mmmmmmm... this is really good.” “Stop that.” She laughed at him for a moment, then pushed one of the cupcakes at him. Cypress took it with a grateful smile. “Thanks, kid.” Cypress breathed in its delicious aroma before taking a big bite. He let the sweet flavor sit on his tongue a bit before swallowing, then sighed in pleasure and shot Scootaloo a grin. “And in the end, it was still totally worth it.” As Scootaloo fell off her chair again, laughing, Cypress quickly scraped some icing off one of her cupcakes. Chapter 4The ball bounced off the rim of the hoop, ricocheting away from the basket to land in the outstretched hooves of a small blue pegasus. The young filly hefted the ball up with a joyful grin. “Ha!” she exclaimed at her disappointed classmates. “That makes S’s for both of you; if you girls miss this next shot, then I win.” “Yeah, yeah, we know how the game works, Archer,” Scootaloo said, annoyed with herself for missing that last shot. “Just hurry up and take the next shot.” “C’mon, Archer, make it something we even have a chance at,” pleaded Archer’s friend Dinky. “What? No way!” Archer dribbled the ball a fair distance from the hoop, looking for a good trick shot. “I’m on a roll this game, you two never even got a turn. No way I’m gonna pass on a perfect win.” Archer carefully lined up her shot, then launched the ball in a graceful arch. The ball bounced off the backboard and fell through the hoop without touching the rim: a perfect shot. “Yes, I made it,” Archer shouted while Dinky and Scootaloo looked on in disbelief. “Didn’t even hit the rim, which means you have to do the same thing. C’mon Dink, you first.” Dinky walked over to where Archer was standing while Scootaloo fetched the ball. Dinky caught it, then looked at the round target. She wiped the stinging sweat from her eyes and stared down her target. Dinky threw the ball as hard as she could, and it missed completely. Dinky’s face blushed a bright red and she buried it in her hooves to hide her embarrassment while Scootaloo snickered behind a hoof. Sounds of quiet chuckling could be heard from some of their other classmates who were half-watching from the sidelines. “Sorry, Dinky, but you’re a horse,” Archer said while patting her comfortingly on the back. “Don’t let it bother you; so maybe you aren’t the greatest basketball player ever, but you’re still the smartest filly in class.” Dinky just whimpered softly behind her hooves. “Oh, c’mon. Tell you what, after your mom gets here to pick you up, how about later we play a game of chess. That way you can beat my flank at something today.” Dinky looked up in excitement. “Okay, that’ll be fun!” she said cheerfully, letting Archer help her back to her hooves. “For you maybe,” Archer grumbled, still humiliated from their first game of chess. “I still don’t know how you beat me in six moves.” “It was five moves actually,” Dinky cut in. Archer scowled at her, but Dinky just laughed. Archer smiled self-consciously for a moment before nodding her head off the court. “Well, let’s get going then.” “Hey,” Scootaloo called out. “You do remember it’s my turn, right?” “Oh, sorry Scootaloo, my bad,” Archer replied as she ran to fetch the basketball and tossed it to Scootaloo. “Go ahead and take your shot so you can miss and we can all go home.” Scootaloo scowled at her, then lined up her shot. Taking careful aim, she let the ball fly. It sailed through the air to bounce off the backboard, dropping through the net—but not without touching the rim. The foals watching groaned in disappointment, then went back to talking to each other as they waited for their parents to come pick them up. “Tough luck,” Archer said with a conciliatory smile, then she and Dinky walked off. Scootaloo kicked at some loose gravel, sighing in disappointment. “Well, guess basketball isn’t my special talent.” “Oh, look at that, yet another thing you’re not good at.” Scootaloo stiffened at the mocking words. Turning around, she saw Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon walking toward her. The smugness on their faces was only matched by the arrogance in their stride. Just looking at the two of them was enough to annoy her on most days, but today had been particularly bad. “Gee, Scootaloo,” Diamond Tiara continued. “If this keeps up, it seems like you’ll never find anything you’re good at.” “Get lost, Diamond Tiara,” Scootaloo snarled and stomped her hoof. “Yes, it must be horrible to be so talentless,” Diamond said, ignoring Scootaloo and adopting an air of tragic hopelessness. “Unlike Silver Spoon here; did you notice that she got her cutie mark this morning?” “Oh, did she really?” Scootaloo deadpanned. “I can’t believe I missed that, what with you already mentioning it a hundred times today.” “Yes, it’s so nice to be special. Who knows, maybe if you were to hang around me, you could be special one day too. Of course,” Diamond continued with a cruel laugh, “I’d never let a loser like you spend time with me.” Scootaloo snorted in a mix between disgust and amusement before turning to walk away. “What’s the matter,” Diamond called after her. “Flying away again? Oh, that’s right you can’t.” Scootaloo turned around again, her eyes flashing. Diamond Tiara always seemed to know which buttons to push. “Just wait,” Scootaloo yelled without thinking. “I’ll be flying any day now.” The soft background chatter faded for a moment as the rest of the foals nearby looked to see what the commotion was all about. Diamond Tiara smile took on a cruel edge. “Oh, really?” she asked, and Scootaloo nodded in reply. “Well, that’s great news; everypony should hear about it, right? Hey, everypony,” she called out, drawing the attention of their nearby classmates waiting for their parents. “Everypony, come here, I have a very important announcement.” The other students came crowding around, curious. “Hey, everypony,” Diamond said, that cruel smile still on her face. “Scootaloo here just gave me some amazing news. She says she’ll be flying any day now, right Scootaloo?” Scootaloo felt the anger in her chest freeze over with fear and nervousness. “Y-yeah that’s right, any day now,” she lied, unsure of what Diamond Tiara was planning. “Isn’t that great news everypony?” she said to the class, many of whom nodded in agreement. There was a small smattering of applause, and a few ‘great news, Scoot’ from smiling classmates. “Too bad it’s a lie.” The applause and smiles faded away, replaced by worried and confused expressions. Silver Spoon whispered into Diamond’s ear, but Diamond pulled away. “That’s right,” Diamond continued, “turns out Scootaloo here won’t be flying any time soon. She may never even fly at all.” Shame, anger, and fear all settled into Scootaloo’s chest, a tiny ball of writhing emotions that made her head hurt and stomach ache. “How do you know that?” she croaked out, but Diamond’s jeering smile only widened. “No cutie mark, no talent, no wings: just a loser of a pegasus.” One by one smiles turned to disgust as the sharper foals picked up on what Tiara was doing. Those that did not want to watch the unfolding train wreck turned and left the circle of onlookers. At Scootaloo’s sudden, “What about you?” though, they turned back in surprise. “What about me?” came Diamond’s confused reply. “You don’t have a cutie mark either, so what is it that makes you so special? It seems to me that you’re no more special then I am; heck even Silver Spoon got her cutie mark before you.” An ugly look flashed across Diamonds face for a moment before being replaced by her usual arrogance. Silver Spoon backed away from her friend slightly though, looking at the ground. “Ha, I don’t need a cutie mark; I’m already special.” “Oh, yeah,” Scootaloo returned with a derisive scoff, “special at what? Being a spoiled brat?” The stunned look on her face gratified Scootaloo. Dad was right, she thought with a grin. It is much better to stand up for yourself. “After all, the only thing you seem to be good at is talking big, and the one thing you seem to have going for you is that your dad’s rich.” Diamond’s expression darkened and her eyes flashed in anger, but Scootaloo kept pushing. “Isn’t that right, daddy’s girl?” Scootaloo turned her confident grin on the rest of her classmates, who looked back and forth between the two fighting fillies. “What do you guys think? Bet she ends up with her daddy’s face on her flank.” A few of the onlookers laughed along with her, but most just stood watching uncomfortably, uncertain of what they should do. Scootaloo turned back to Diamond Tiara, and her grin faded slightly. Anger marred Diamond’s face with a hideous scowl, and her face was suffused with a bright red. Silver Spoon was tugging on her hoof, trying to drag her away. “Let’s go Diamond Tiara, she’s not worth it,” she said quietly, but Diamond pushed her off. Scootaloo involuntarily back up half a step when Diamond stormed right into Scootaloo’s face, her nostrils flaring. “Who do you think you are?” Diamond hissed in her face, spraying saliva over her muzzle. “You’re nothing compared to me. I’m special, talented, pretty, and intelligent. You’re stupid, ugly, and useless.” The anger welling in Scootaloo’s chest grew hotter, sweeping away her shame and fear until the heat was all there was. “You’re worthless,” Diamond spat. Scootaloo shook from the building emotions she was holding in. “And you always will be.” The edges of Scootaloo’s vision went red, she had never been so angry in her life. She felt that if she didn’t do something soon to let the anger out, she’d snap. “Who do you think you are?!” came a high pitched yell, taking everypony by surprise. Scootaloo’s anger ebbed away to be replaced by amazement as she watched a pure white filly bear down on Diamond Tiara. It was Diamond’s turn to take several steps back, startled by Sweetie Belle’s outburst. “So what if Scootaloo can’t fly,” Sweetie Belle yelled right in Diamond’s face. Her face was red with anger, and the way she stared right in Diamond’s eyes made the bully nervous. “That doesn’t make her useless. You’re just jealous that Silver Spoon got her cutie mark before you.” “That’s not true!” Diamond Tiara yelled back. “Yes, it is, I saw you yelling at her before school this morning.” Everypony turned to look at Silver Spoon, who looked down at the ground, flustered. “That’s no way to treat your friend. And why pick on Scootaloo? Scootaloo never did anything to you, so why are you being so mean!” Sweetie Belle’s voice cracked into a high pitched squeak on the last word, and the red drained away from her face in horror. Diamond’s look of confusion and anger slowly changed to a mocking leer. “Oh, look everypony, Squeaky Belle’s found herself a best friend.” Usually Diamond’s nickname for Sweetie Belle would get her a few laughs, but this wasn’t the usual teasing. It was personal, and serious, and the others watching weren’t amused. “I think the two of you are perfect for each other: the loser who can’t fly and the loser who can’t talk.” Sweetie Belle shrank under Diamond’s derisive gaze. “So, Scootaloo will never get a cutie mark of course, she’s good for nothing. You on the other hoof are at least entertaining Squeaky Belle. So what’s your mark going to be?” Diamond’s voice turned thoughtful. “I’m guessing a dog’s toy.” She started laughing at her own joke and Sweetie Belle sank lower, all the way to her stomach and her eyes misted over. This only made Diamond laugh harder, though. Her laughter was cut off by a hoof on her chest, pushing her away from the crying filly. “Don’t touch me!” she yelped, looking on baffled as Scootaloo stepped between her and Sweetie Belle. “Leave Sweetie Belle alone,” Scootaloo growled. “Yeah? And what are you going to do if I don’t?” “How about I punch you right in your ‘pretty’ face? We’ll see just how special you look with a fat lip.” Scootaloo stomped her hoof on the ground a few times to make a point. Diamond’s derisive smile froze as she considered this unexpected turn of events. She was used to picking on what she saw as the ‘weaker’ fillies and colts. Not because she was afraid, she’d tell herself, but because they were much more fun. They never stood up for themselves, and they never stood up for each other. Now these two were doing the exact opposite, and she wasn’t really sure how to react to that and still come out on top. She tried staring Scootaloo down, but the filly just stared back. Her mind raced as she tried to think of someway to win this; then it came to her. Her eyes narrowed in victory and her frozen smile regained its former spiteful life. “Now there’s no need for violence, girls,” she simpered. “I think I know a way to settle this: a bet.” “A bet?” Scootaloo asked dubiously. “What kind of bet?” Diamond’s smile widened and she started to walk slowly around Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle. Scootaloo matched her movements, keeping herself between Sweetie Belle and the bratty bully. “A competition to be exact. You, Scootaloo, pick something you think you’re good at, and I will pick someone for you to compete against.” Diamond stopped after completing one circle. “If you win, then I’ll apologize to Squeaky Belle and promise to leave her alone from now on—” “Deal!” Scootaloo burst out before Diamond could finish. “Now, now, you don’t even know the stakes yet.” “They don’t matter,” Scootaloo asserted. “I won’t let you keep making fun of her.” “Let’s see what you say after you hear the whole deal,” Diamond stated callously. “If you lose...” She paused dramatically, everypony on needles to hear her next words. “Yeah, if I lose, what?” “If you lose, then you have to admit to everypony that I was right, that you are a stupid, ugly, talentless, and worthless pegasus.” Her heartless smile spread over her entire face at the stunned silence that followed. “And that you always will be.” Scootaloo’s eyes opened in shock, and Sweetie Belle whimpered softly. Diamond stepped forward to stand only inches away from her newfound nemesis, whispering to her softly. “Well...?” Chapter 5“Well?” Diamond Tiara asked. Scootaloo bit her lower lip, her mind numb with indecision from Diamond Tiara’s challenge. A small hoof touched her shoulder, drawing attention to Sweetie Belle’s tearful expression. “It’s okay, Scootaloo, you don’t have to do this,” Sweetie Belle said, her wavering voice barely more than a whisper. Scootaloo‘s stomach settled as her earlier confidence settled firmly in her gut once more. Her confident smirk had returned as she turned and stared down Diamond Tiara. That settles it then, she thought. “You’re on daddy’s girl!” Scootaloo said. Diamond’s face twisted into a half snarl that squirmed on her face for a few seconds before settling back into her sickly sweet smile. “Good to hear. So, what do you think you’re the best at... Go ahead, show us all that you are actually are worth something.” Scootaloo thought hard on what she might be the best at. Unfortunately, everything that she was good at, somepony else was better. “Well, Scootaloo?” Diamond’s mocking voice came cutting through her thoughts. “Not giving up already, are you?” “Of course not!” Scootaloo answered, giving her surrounding classmates one last look over. “Alright, I choose a race.” “A flying race?” Diamond asked with a sneer. “No, a running race,” Scootaloo answered with a slight growl, not rising to her bait. “Now, who am I racing against? You?” Diamond Tiara threw her head back and laughed, stomping her hoof in a rather impressive display of dramatized amusement. “Me? As if I would ever let a loser like you race against me.” “I figured, you’re afraid to race me,” Scootaloo retorted. Diamond’s face froze for a half second before she scoffed. “As if, loser. I just want it to be a fair race.” Diamond looked around carefully, ignoring Scootaloo’s incredulous expression before a smirk crossed her face. “Alright then, you have to race her.” Scootaloo turned to see where she was pointing and felt her heart plummet. “Well, go ahead then,” Diamond Tiara said. “Challenge her to a race; or I suppose you could always back out now. Let’s face it, that’s probably better than losing, right?” Scootaloo swallowed her nervousness and walked over to the pony she would challenge. The filly was standing over on the school steps talking with Miss Cheerilee. The two of them must have just walked out the school doors; they hadn’t been there when Scootaloo had looked half a minute ago. Scootaloo had thought she had already left for home, and was relieved when she hadn’t been in sight. “Thanks again for the help, Miss Cheerilee,” the filly said as Scootaloo walked up the steps. “I promise not to fall behind on my work again.” “Don’t worry about that, dear, you’re a very bright student.” The filly gave a smile of mixed pride and bashfulness. “Just make sure to keep doing your best, alright?” “Yes ma'am!” “Okay then, bye Apple Bloom.” Miss Cheerilee turned back to her classroom and Apple Bloom jumped down the steps and turned towards home. “Hey, Apple Bloom!” Scootaloo called after her. “Wait up!” Apple Bloom paused mid step, looking back in confusion that quickly changed to a warm smile. “Oh, hey there, Scootaloo,” Apple Bloom said cheerfully. “Did ya need somethin’?” “Uh, yeah, I did.” Scootaloo swallowed her nerves as Apple Bloom turned to face her. “I, um, I bet everyone that I could beat you in a race.” Apple Bloom chuckled loudly, punching Scootaloo playfully in the arm. “Ha! Good one there, Scootaloo,” Apple Bloom said, as Scootaloo rubbed her arm. “But we both know you wouldn’t have a chance beating me in a race. Don’t get me wrong,” she hurried to say. “You’re pretty darn fast, but you’re nowhere near my level.” “O-oh, yeah! Well then, you should have no problem racing me.” “I don’t, but—” Apple Bloom looked up at the sun, then over her shoulder towards home. “Well, I promised my sister I’d come home as soon as school was over, and I’m already late...” Scootaloo felt her spirits soar. If she’s not racing, then maybe I have a chance after all, Scootaloo thought in excitement. “Aw, shucks, I guess another few minutes won’t matter now. You’re on Scootaloo.” Apple Bloom walked over towards the hoofball field, while Scootaloo followed her with lowered head and drooping ears. The crowd of foals watching ran over to the field to get a better view. “Hey, everypony!” Apple Bloom called out to the crowd. “Ya’ll ready for a good race?” There was a small amount of scattered clapping and a few cheers, but the majority of the crowd just looked nervously between the two racers and Diamond Tiara. Apple Bloom raised a perplexed brow and nudged Scootaloo. “Tough crowd, huh?” she whispered to her her. “Well, since you’re both here, let’s start the race,” Diamond said drawing an imaginary line on the grass. Applebloom eagerly stood behind it, and Scootaloo reluctantly took up a similar position next to her. “First one to run all the way around the field is the winner.” “Good luck, Scootaloo,” Apple Bloom said, not taking her eyes off Diamond Tiara as she raised her hoof. “On your mark...” Scootaloo and Apple Bloom both tensed up. The crowd buzzed quietly in anticipation. “Get set...” Scootaloo’s heart thudded in her ears, and she distantly noticed the crowd of her classmates had gone completely silent. Looking over from the corner of her eye, she saw Sweetie Belle watching her anxiously from the sidelines. Scootaloo gave her a confident smile to reassure her. Sweetie Belle smiled right back, her frown fading away. Scootaloo looked back towards Diamond Tiara, all nervousness gone. I’m definitely going to win, she thought. I won’t let Sweetie Belle down. “Go!” “What a day,” Cypress mumbled to himself as he trudged towards the school. Despite the fact school was already out, he didn’t hurry. Picking Scoot up late was an old game of theirs. When Dawn was helping Cypress start up his business, she came up with the idea of staying open slightly longer than the other shops, to give ponies who worked a chance to get to the store before it closed. A great decision and it really helped give him an early boost in business, but that meant that whenever it was his turn to pick up Scootaloo from school, he was always at least twenty minutes late. It was the same routine every time: he would arrive late and Scootaloo would tease him about his lack of punctuality. He would apologize profusely, offering her anything to make up for it. She would say the only way he could make up for it would be to carry her home on his back, and after some half-hearted protests he would relent to carrying her home, complaining the entire way that she was much too heavy for her age. As far as games go, that one wasn’t too bad. But today, he was relatively early. Instead of working in the shop, he had been out at the town hall, renovating it for the Summer Sun Celebration. The day hadn’t gone all that smoothly though. When he and his two assistants were halfway finished putting in the new floorboards, the mayor had rushed in. “No, no, wait,” she had cried. “I’ve changed my mind. I want a lighter colored wood for the floors.” So they had had to tear up all the hard work they had done. There was something about having to undo good work that made the labor much more draining, and now he was dragging his hooves just walking up the hill towards the school. An entire day’s work wasted, he thought, exasperated. The least the mayor could do is decide what she wants the hall to look like before I start working on it. Oh well, at least we got paid. Finally, when he reached the top of the hill, he was surprised to find a small group of parents watching the hoofball field, and he walked over to see what the fuss was about. “A close race, huh?” He heard one mare say to another. The other nodded her head in agreement. “Yes, a very close race; shame about the loser, I think the others are teasing her now.” “I think so too. Do you think we should stop them?” the first mare asked, her expression worried. The second mare tilted her head in thought for a moment. “No, I don’t think we should. You know foals, they always want to settle everything themselves. Besides, I don’t want one of their parents mad because we messed with their foal.” “I guess you’re right,” the first mare said, though she still looked uncertain. Cypress pushed his way through the other parents to see what was going on. The sight he found sent a chill down his spine. Scootaloo stood ostracized, her classmates standing around her. As Cypress tried to figure out what was going on, he noticed one of the fillies in the crowd stood in front of the others. She was wearing a ridiculous tiara, and the way she carried herself set Cypress’ teeth on edge. She was saying something to Scootaloo; he pointed his ears their direction, but try as he could, he couldn’t understand what she was saying. He could hear her tone though; arrogant, mocking, and filled with cruel amusement. His daughter shrank under the continuous verbal attack. Cypress fought the urge to run over and help Scootaloo. Seeing her so sad and alone like that tore at his heart, but he managed to hold himself back. I need to let her handle this, he thought. I need to know if she can handle this by giving her the chance to stand up for herself. His anticipation died as she began choking back sobs, her shoulders shaking, and he couldn’t wait any longer. “Hey, Scoots!” he called out drawing the crowds attention. “C’mon, let’s go home.” He expected relief at her rescue, but when she looked towards him, he only saw pain in her eyes. Turning from her classmates, she started to walk towards him. She started at a slow pace, but broke out in a run as instead of stopping, the filly with the tiara continued to yell after her. “That’s right, loser, run home to daddy!” Scootaloo hunched forward even more as mocking laughter chased after her. “Who’s the daddy’s girl now?” Scootaloo pushed open the gate to the hoofball field and ran down the path into town. “Hey, Scoot, wait up!” Cypress called after her. She ignored him, running down the path and out of sight. He managed to catch up to her halfway down the hill, running in front of her to stop her. “Slow down, Scoot,” Cypress said as she skidded to a stop before running into him. “What’s the matter kid?” “Nothing,” she replied before trying to walk around him, her eyes held firm on the ground. “That was not nothing, Scoot,” Cypress said, side-stepping in front of her again. “Now just tell me what happened so I can help you.” Scootaloo looked up at him then, the anger in her eyes made him cringe. “I don’t want your help. This is your fault anyways.” Scootaloo said trying to move around him again. Once more Cypress stepped in front of her. “Whoa, hey, slow down. What do you mean this is my fault?” Scootaloo shook her head in anger, and again tried walk around him. “You can’t just walk away like that,” he said, grabbing his daughter with a hoof. “Tell me what I did to mess up. Maybe I can fix it.” “Don’t you get it!” she yelled at him. “I don’t want your help, this is all your fault, I don’t need you making things worse. I—I hate you!” Cypress reeled back from the outburst; regret flashed across her face. “Why can’t you just leave me alone!” She pushed past him and stormed down the hill, leaving her stunned father behind. Author's Note Hiatus is over, and the story goes on! Chapter 6Scootaloo slowed to a fast trot as she reached the bottom of the hill.Her head throbbed in pain, causing the filly to wince; the thoughts were running around her head so fast it hurt. She was angry at Diamond Tiara, angry at her classmates, angry with herself. And she felt guilty, guilty for yelling at her dad, guilty for losing the race, guilty for— Her train of thought was broken as she felt herself hoisted into the air by her tail. Yelping in surprise, she looked up into her dad’s face, her tail firmly held between his teeth. It was hard to tell how angry he was by her angle, but she assumed it was slightly more than a little. “Let me go!” Scootaloo yelled, swinging and kicking uselessly at her father. “Put me down!” She flailed wildly at her father, and as she swung in his grasp, she managed to land a few blows that were little more than grazes. Cypress ignored her; eventually she gave up trying to hit him and subjected to being carried through town like a shopping bag. At least it’s not the most embarrassing thing to happen to me today, she thought to herself in an attempt to raise her spirits but the giggling of onlookers foiled her effort. Her ears and face burned. I can’t believe dad’s doing this to me, she thought as she covered her ears to block out the laughter. This is the worst day ever. It was hard to tell where Cypress was taking her while looking at the world upside down, but she thought they were headed for the center of town. Sure enough, a few minutes later, he was carrying her up the steps to the gazebo in the town square. He was careful to raise her high enough so her head wouldn’t hit the steps, but she still pulled her head in to be sure. After he set her gently down on the bench, Scootaloo immediately sat up and turned away from him, folding her arms in defiance. She cringed in surprise as he spoke right into her ear, not loud enough to hurt, but loud enough to get her attention. “Don’t move from this spot, Scootaloo. Understand?” She didn’t answer, just scooted farther away from him. That was enough for Cypress apparently; she heard him turn and walk away, the clunk of hooves on wood changing to the soft swishing of grass that faded away. She was finally alone with her thoughts. I can’t believe he did that to me, especially after I told him to leave me alone, she thought. This whole thing is his fault anyways. Is it his fault though? She argued with herself. He was trying to help you stand up for yourself. Just because you weren’t strong enough to do so doesn’t mean he was wrong. Well, maybe, she admitted. But he still should have left me alone. Why? Dad saw you were in trouble and he tried his best to help. Instead of accepting it, you yelled at him. Yeah, well, I was angry, she maintained stubbornly, not ready to admit defeat just yet. All I wanted was some time alone, and he wouldn’t even give me that. Well, you’re alone now. Feel better? …No. Scootaloo sighed, burying her head in her hooves. She felt like crying again; all the anger was gone, overwhelming guilt filling its place. She didn’t know how long she sat like that, but when someone nudged her slightly, she jumped. Startled, she looked up at her dad; her emotions must have been written in her face, because he smiled at her sympathetically. “It’s okay to cry, you know,” he said, holding out an ice cream bar for her. Scootaloo just stared at it. Wait, I tell dad I hate him, and I get an ice cream? She must have hesitated too long, because Cypress shrugged and pulled the bar away. Scootaloo quickly reached out and took it before he could move it out of her reach. “I’m not crying,” she said as she slowly opened the treat. “I know, Scoot; I know,” he replied, sitting down on the bench as far from her as he could. He didn’t have a bar of his own he just sat there looking at nothing. Scootaloo took a small bite and grimaced at the taste. The strawberry tasted sour, and the chocolate was bitter. She made a small noise of disgust, and Cypress turned to look at her. He must have seen the look on her face. “What’s the matter?” he asked. “It doesn’t taste right,” she replied, holding the bar out for him to have a taste. He took a small bite and let it set a moment before shrugging. “Things don’t really taste as good when you’re sad,” he said. Scootaloo took another bite of the bar before offering him another bite. He took it, and then she took another one herself. Then she moved ever so slightly closer to him, and he did the same towards her. “Does it taste right to you?” she asked him. “Not really.” They both scooted closer to one another, close enough Scootaloo could grab her dad’s hoof if she wanted. “Dad?“ “Yeah, Scoot?” “Are…are you mad at me?” she asked. Cypress was silent, so silent Scootaloo turned to look at him from the corner of her eye. He didn’t look mad, but he stared into the distance with a blank expression that did little to help her. “Dad?” “No, Scoot, I’m not mad. I’m just confused. What happened, why were they making fun of you?” Scootaloo shifted about, uncomfortable. Cypress turned to face her, a comforting half smile on his face. “Look, Scoot, I know I was pushing you earlier, and I am sorry for that. You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want, but I’m here to help you if you want.” Scootaloo didn’t answer; her nerves and guilt fighting against the part of her that wanted to confess everything to her dad. She felt his eyes staring at her, stretching the silence painfully until, with a sigh, he stood. “Alright, kid, I’ll leave you be,” he said. “Make sure you’re home by dinner.” Cypress turned to walk away, but Scootaloo reached out quickly and grabbed his leg. “Wait, Dad— I do want to tell you, I just…” She stopped, her eyes glancing around at nothing as she searched for the right words. “I just don’t want to talk about it because it’s… embarrassing? That’s not really the right word for it...” “Shame?” Cypress asked. Scootaloo nodded, looking into her dad’s eyes for a split second before the sadness and worry she saw there forced her to look away. She heard him settle back down next to her on the bench, then the familiar weight of his hoof rested comfortingly on her head. “It’s okay, Scoot, take your time and tell me what happened.” Scootaloo took a deep breath, turning to face Cypress without looking at him. “So, you challenged this other filly to a race?” “Yeah,” Scootaloo replied. “Apple Bloom.” “Right, Apple Bloom. So, what happened?” Scootaloo sat quietly, getting up the courage to continue her story. Cypress was too distracted from keeping calm to notice. That his daughter had to defend her worth from a couple of schoolyard brats made him want to kick something, and the effort to keep calm set his hooves shaking. “It… it isn’t fair. I tried hard, really hard,” she said, her voice barely audible as it cracked with emotion. She cleared her throat, blinking rapidly. “I, uh, I ran so fast, faster than I ever have; I was winning!” “What happened?” “I—I tripped.” Scootaloo swallowed visibly, staring straight at the ground. “I took the final curve too fast, and I slipped on the grass. It was horrible; everypony was laughing at me, and Sweetie Belle—“ Scootaloo took a deep, shuddering breath, turning away to hide her face in case she started crying again. “She…she looked—she hates me now.” “She told you that?” “No, but, she has to. I got her hopes up, I stood up for her and then I-I—“ With a strangled cry, Scootaloo turned and buried her face into Cypress chest, hugging herself to try and hold in the tears that wouldn’t stop. Cypress wrapped her up into a tight embrace as her tears ran down his chest, soaking into his fur. “I-I’m not c-crying!” she sobbed into his chest. “It’s okay Scoot, I know, I know,” he whispered into her ear, stroking her back and head, shushing softly to try and calm her. The minutes ticked by, but it wasn’t long before Scootaloo’s sobs turned to sniffles and she was wiping the last of her tears from her eyes. To Cypress surprise, instead of pushing him away, she wrapped her own arms around him, returning the hug. “Feel better?” he asked her once she had calmed down enough. “A little,” she replied in a subdued tone that didn’t inspire much confidence. Still, she did tighten her hug slightly, and that was encouraging. “I’m glad. So, when you said that all this was my fault…” Cypress could feel her face warm where it was buried against his chest. “Oh, right; I’m really sorry, Dad. I didn’t mean any of those things I said.” “So, you don’t hate me then?” he asked. “No, Dad,” Scootaloo answered, blushing from shame. “I—I didn’t mean that; I was just so angry, and I took it out on you.” She pushed herself deeper into his embrace, nuzzling against his chest. “I love you Dad; I don’t think there’s anything you could do to actually make me hate you.” “Really?” Cypress went completely still, then he gently pushed Scootaloo away from him. Confused, Scootaloo reached out, trying to maintain the hug, but the deadly serious look on her father’s normally cheerful face scared her into motionlessness. She felt his hooves on her shoulders shaking. “What if I told you the reason you can’t fly is because of me?” Chapter 7“What do you mean?” Scootaloo asked, her face twisted in worry and confusion. “What do you mean you’re the reason I can’t fly?” Looking back at her small wings, she pivoted them around before turning to face Cypress. “I can’t fly because my wings didn’t grow strong enough, how could that be your fault?” “Well,” Cypress said, running his hoof through his mane. “That’s kind of complicated.” “You don’t really know, do you?” Scootaloo asked with a wry smile, trying to lighten the tense mood. “Funny,” Cypress said flatly. “This is serious though, Scoot.” “I was afraid you would say that,” Scootaloo said, drooping in disappointment. “Like I said, it’s complicated,” he continued. He opened his mouth to continue, but paused before speaking, instead closing his mouth with a sigh. “I’m sorry Scoot, but it has to do with your disease.” Scootaloo’s forced smile faded away into a scowl. “I know you don’t like to talk about it,” Cypress said, putting a hoof on her shoulder. “I’m not sick,” Scootaloo growled out as she slipped out from his touch. Cypress sighed again at his daughter’s stubborn refusal to talk. “Let’s just move on; do you know why you’re a pegasus instead of an earth pony?” Scootaloo kept scowling, but she raised a brow in curiosity. “Well, cause mom’s a pegasus. You’re always the same race as your mom.” “Well, not always but yes, that’s the general rule. I’m also not certain if you’ve noticed, but most ponies tend to stick to there own race when it comes to marriage and families.” Scootaloo’s scowl disappeared as curiosity started to take over her emotions. “They do?” she asked in surprised. “I hadn’t really noticed. Why is that?” “All kinds of reasons, really. But... I’m sorry Scoot but, well, your disease is one of them.” Scootaloo’s eyes shot open in stunned disbelief and Cypress turned away. “I know this is a shock, but it’s something I’ve been trying to talk to you about for a while now. It’s just... it never seemed like a good moment. You’re wings didn’t grow properly because, well, because I’m not a pegasus.” “So, wait...” Scootaloo stammered. “You knew this would happen to me?” Cypress flinched at the hurt, confusion, and anger etching its way onto his daughter’s face. “Oh, no, Scoot—” he said reaching out his hooves to comfort her. Scootaloo pushed his hooves away from her as she backed up on the gazebo bench. “That’s what you just said, that my... disease is because of you and mom, and that you knew this would happen!” “Could happen, not would,” Cypress responded quietly in the face of his daughter’s anger. “Same thing!” she yelled standing back up. “No, Scoot, it isn’t. Do you think your mom and I wanted this to happen to you?” “Yes!” she cried out, panting a few times from her outburst before blinking rapidly in consideration. “No? I don’t know!” A sudden spike of pain shot through Scootaloo’s head, the intensity and unexpectedness of it making her nauseous. “I don’t feel good,” she said as she lay down on her belly, holding her head with both hooves, eyes screwed shut against the pain. She felt herself gently being lifted up and set down on the familiar width of her father’s back. A slight swaying motion started as he walked. “Of course we didn’t want this, Scootaloo,” she heard him say softly. “Your mom and I both love you.” “Then how is it your guy’s fault?” Scootaloo muttered, as waves of exhaustion swept over her between waves of pain. “First, I need you to know that while, yes, we knew there was a chance of this happening to you, we did everything we could to make sure you were born healthy. We saw all the right doctors, took all the tests, and your mom took all the nasty tasting medicine she could. It was just bad luck; this disease is nopony’s fault, okay, especially not yours, or your mother’s.” “But you said—” “I said that I’m the reason you can’t fly.” Cypress walked on in silence for half a minute before continuing. “That medicine the doctors gave you? You know it was to fix the problems your disease causes, you just got the medicine too late. What the doctors didn’t tell you was that if I had brought you in sooner, than it would have worked.” Cypress waited, giving her time to absorb the news, but she just lay quiet on his back. “Scoot? Did you hear me?” “...Yes.” “Look, Scootaloo, I know this was a lot to throw at you all at once, especially after the day you’ve already had. The thing I’m trying to say out of this though is I’m sorry.” Cypress’ voice cracked over his last few words and Scootaloo cracked her eyes open. He was looking straight ahead as he walked, blinking his eyes rapidly. “I’m sorry I’m not the father you deserve; you’re such a great kid, you don’t deserve this. I should have taken you to see a doctor as soon as I saw you having trouble, I just—” He paused, clearing his throat before continuing. “I just didn’t want to think that my daughter wasn’t perfectly healthy. And because of my selfishness, it will be years before you can fly, if ever.” Scootaloo rested her head back on her dad’s shoulders. “Dad, I—” she started, but Cypress came to a halt, interrupting her. “We’re here”, he said, sitting down so that Scootaloo slid down him to tumble onto her own back. “Hey!” she yelped as she flipped herself back onto her hooves. “You could have given me a warning at least.” She sat back on the ground, rubbing at her head with a pained expression. Cypress gave her a small smile, amazed at her ability to remain upbeat even now. “I’m sorry, Scoot,” he said. “I forgot about your headache. How’s the pain?” “It’s not so bad now,” she muttered, still holding her forehead. Scootaloo looked around at where they were, and glanced at her dad in confusion. “The Library? Isn’t it your turn to watch me today?” she asked. “Sorry kiddo, work didn’t go as planned today, so mom’s going to have to watch you now. Let her know I won’t be home until late tonight, will you?” Cypress turned away, heading in the direction of his workshop. “Wait, Dad!” Scootaloo called after him. He stopped and looked at her over his shoulder. Scootaloo opened her mouth but paused, realizing she wasn’t really sure what to say. Am I angry at him? She had to admit to being at least a little angry, but was it at her dad? She wanted to say it was okay, that she didn’t mind, but that wasn’t true. “...Thanks for telling me, Dad,” she finally settled on. “Even if the news is bad... it’s good to know the truth.” Cypress nodded, expressionless, before turning back on his way. Scootaloo pushed open the door to the library open, breathing in the musty smell of aging books that she had come to know so well. The familiarity and stillness of the tree library was doing wonders to calm her thoughts. A soft humming caught her attention, and she looked up into the second floor to see her mother flying along the rows of books, dusting them. A soft sigh escape the filly as she settled on the ground next to the door, resting her head against the cool ground. The floor was covered with a thin layer of dust, but Scootaloo was too tired and her head hurt too much for her to care. After the day she had, all Scootaloo wanted to do was relax. “Scootaloo?” Scootaloo raised her head, blinking at the setting sunlight shining through the windows. To her surprise, she realized she had fallen asleep. “Are you okay, dear?” A gentle hoof trailed its way down her neck in a comforting manner. Scootaloo looked up into her mother’s worried face. “Where’s dad?” “He went back to his shop,” Scootaloo said, her voice thick with exhaustion. She closed her eyes again, pushing back against the hoof stroking her neck. “He said he had a lot of work to do, and that he wouldn’t be home until later tonight.” “And, of course, he didn’t tell me; big idiot,” Dawn muttered so Scootaloo could barely hear. Scootaloo giggled while Dawn helped her to her hooves. “You didn’t answer my question though; you okay, Scoot?” “Well, Dad did ask me to tell you, for him,” Scootaloo said, avoiding Dawn’s question. “Huh, some messenger you are, falling asleep on the job like that,” Dawn said with wry smile as she started brushing some of the dust out of Scootaloo’s fur. “Sorry,” Scootaloo said sheepishly. “I just had a really long day.” “Right, well, I’m all done cleaning up here, both the library and you, so let’s go home.” “H-hello?” A voice came from outside, and a soft knocking followed. Scootaloo stiffened at the voice, then turned and ran for one of the back rooms. Dawn stared after her in surprise, but was distracted by the front door cracking open. After shaking her head in stunned bemusement, she turned with a smile to the door. To her surprise, a small white filly was peeking her head around the door. “Hi... um, are you Scootaloo’s mom?” she said so quietly that Dawn had to strain to hear her. “Yes, I am,” Dawn answered, pulling the door open so the filly could come inside. “You can speak up though, this may be a library, but you don’t need to whisper.” “Oh, okay,” she said, speaking ever so slightly louder. “Scootaloo left this at school; I brought it by your house, but no one was there, so I brought it here.” The filly held up Scootaloo’s saddlebag. “Well, that was very thoughtful of you,” Dawn said with a smile, and the filly relaxed slightly. “What’s your name dear? I’ll make sure Scootaloo thanks you tomorrow.” Scootaloo in the next room felt her spirits raise the highest they’d been that day. Maybe Sweetie Belle doesn’t hate me after all? she thought with hope. “Oh, I’m Sweetie Belle,” she heard her say. “But, it’s okay; Miss Cheerilee asked me to bring it over since I was the only one who knew where Scootaloo lives.” Scootaloo felt her enthusiasm dampen a little, unsure if that meant Sweetie was mad at her, and just brought her things because Miss Cheerilee asked her to. “Well, thanks anyways; it’s good to know my daughter has such nice classmates.” “Oh, thanks. I, uh, I better get going.” Sweetie Belle turned and ran out of the library before Dawn could say anything. “Thank you!” Dawn called out the door after her before shutting it. “Scootaloo!” she called out as she turned to see her walking back into the main room. “Scoot, what was that all about?” “That? Oh that was—” “Don’t you dare say nothing,” Dawn said, scowling. “... I wasn’t going to!” Scootaloo said, looking away for a moment. “I was going to say that... that I had some trouble after school, but dad already knows about it.” Dawn tried to stare her down, but Scootaloo held her gaze as best she could. “Fine,” Dawn finally said, turning to open the door. “I’ll ask your father about it.” “Mom, I know about you and dad, and my... disease.” Dawn froze, then slowly lowered her head until her forehead rested on the door. She stood like that for several long seconds before turning her head to look at Scootaloo with a solemn expression. “Your father told you, huh?” Scootaloo nodded in response. Dawn sighed, then waved Scootaloo over. When she came up beside Dawn, her mother helped her put on her saddlebag, then knelt down. “C’mon, Scoot, climb on up and I’ll take you for a ride to somewhere we can talk.” Scootaloo climbed up onto her back while Dawn finished locking up the library for the day. “Ready?” Dawn asked, and Scootaloo nodded. She then clutched on tight as Dawn jumped into the air, flying up and over the tree and the roofs of the surrounding buildings. Holding tight as she could, Scootaloo leaned over her mom’s shoulder to look at the ground floating serenely past. A slight breeze rustled her mane, and she gave a long suffering sigh, resting her head on Dawn’s neck. Dawn shook her head with smile. “It’s not a race, Scoot.” “I know that,” Scootaloo said with a slight whine. “But couldn’t we go just a bit faster?” Dawn just smiled and kept flying the same speed. Scootaloo sighed again, resigning herself to another boring flight. It wasn’t that long before Dawn slowed over a lone cloud on the outskirts of the town. She set them both down on the cloud, helping Scootaloo off her back. The two settled down, watching the sunset. “So, what did he tell you?” Dawn asked after they watched the sunset for a few minutes. “He said that my wings didn’t grow right because he’s an earth pony. He also told me that if he had brought me to see a doctor sooner, than the medicine they gave me would have worked.” She stared down at the cloud. “He says that he’s the reason I can’t fly.” “Are you mad at him?” Dawn asked, her voice gentle. “I... I don’t know,” Scootaloo admitted. “I’m mad, sure, but I don’t know if it’s at him, or just, you know, in general.” Scootaloo took a deep breath and looked her mother in the eye. “Do you think it’s his fault?” Dawn carefully considered her next words. “Well, you know that I was a late flier. When you turned seven, and everypony else in your class started to fly before you did, your dad started panicking. He wanted to drag you off to a doctor right away, but I stopped him. I told him to just give you some time, and he agreed. “After a couple of months though, he started to worry again, and so did I. That’s when we took you to Dr. Summer. And that’s when we learned about your condition.” Dawn took a deep breath before continuing. “Your dad may blame himself for this, but he’s the only one who does.” “Then why does he do it?” Scootaloo asked. “Because, no matter what I or anypony else tells him, he still feels guilty.” Dawn reached out and scratched Scootaloo’s head. “So, now you know everything; any questions?” “Well, I do have one...” “What is it, kiddo?” “When’s dinner? I’m starving!” Dawn threw her head back with laughter, scooping up her daughter and pulling her into a tight hug. “You little goof, I’ll make dinner as soon as we get home, okay?” “Okay, mom,” Scootaloo said. “That’s fi—” Scootaloo was interrupted as a powerful sneeze burst from her, then another. Each sneeze sent a throbbing pain through her head, making her groan and grab her forehead. Dawn pushed her away, holding her at arms length as she studied her. “Scoot? Are you okay?” Scootaloo shook her head, sniffling. “My head hurts,” Scootaloo muttered. Dawn reached out and felt her forehead. “You do feel pretty warm; maybe you’re coming down with something. C’mon,” she said, scooping Scootaloo off the cloud and onto her back. “You can rest while I get dinner ready.” Scootaloo held on tight, burying her face in her mom’s thick fur, trying her hardest not to sneeze all over Dawn’s neck. They flew along in silence, Scootaloo sniffing occasionally. Finally, Scootaloo broke the silence with an ear-splitting groan that made Dawn’s stomach jump in surprise. “Seriously, could we please just fly a little bit faster?!” Scootaloo thought about everything she’d learned that day, all through dinner, her bath, and now she lay awake in bed, utterly unable to sleep. Not only was her mind racing, she couldn’t stop sneezing and sniffling, and with every sneeze her head throbbed. After tossing and turning for what felt like hours, she made up her mind. Carefully opening her window, she slipped out of the house and ventured into the dark town. It only took a few minutes to reach her destination. Grasping the handle with her hoof, she turned and walked— Right into the door. With a startled yelp she jumped back, holding onto her nose. Reaching out she turned the handle again, but sure enough, the door was locked tight. Reaching up she knocked— make that pounded— on the door. “Dad!” she called out. “Dad, open up! I need to talk to you!” Scootaloo stood waiting; it wasn’t long before the click of the lock could be heard. The door cracked open, the light from a single lantern inside spilling through to shine on her face, silhouetting her father in the doorway. “Scootaloo?” she heard him say. “What are you doing here this late? Where’s your mother?” “She’s at home; I snuck out through the window.” “You did wha— you did what?” He yelled out before remembering the time and lowering his voice.”Scootaloo, why would you do that?” “I need to talk to you, Dad.” “Okay, what about?” he asked sitting down and folding crossing his legs in front of him, trying to look angry. “Um, it’s kinda cold out here, can we go inside?” “No,” Cypress said, shortly. “If you want to talk, then do it here.” Scootaloo looked at him in surprise, then sighed and went ahead. “I need to know, Dad; why do you blame yourself for my being unable to fly when nopony else does?” Cypress raised a brow in surprise. “I spoke to Mom; she said that the only one who blames you is you. I want to know why.” Cypress looked down at the ground, considering his next words. “Scootaloo,” he finally said with slow deliberation. “It’s a father’s most important duty to keep his children safe, to make sure nothing bad happens to them. If he can’t prevent that, then it’s his job to make it right.” He raised his head again to look her in the eye. “I may not have been able to prevent this from happening to you, but I should have made sure you were okay as soon as you were falling behind your classmates. Like I said, I ignored my first instinct, to make sure you were alright, because I didn’t want there to be anything wrong with you. It was selfish, and your paying for it.” Scootaloo sat still and quiet through his explanation, sniffling occasionally. When he finished, she kept quiet for another minute thinking. “Dad?” she finally said, her voice quavering with restrained emotion.. “Yeah, Scoot?” Cypress said, closing his eyes against the outburst of anger that was sure to follow. Instead of loud shouting though, a small pair of hooves wrapped around his chest tightly. Cypress opened his eyes in surprise, looking down at his daughter as she squeezed him as tight as she could. “I don’t know if it’s your fault or not,” she said quickly, almost too quickly to understand. “I don’t know if I’m mad at you, I don’t know if I even blame you. But I don’t want to hate you, and I don’t want you to be sad, or mad at yourself, or... or...” Scootaloo swallowed audibly, then looked up at him. “I don’t even know what I’m trying to say,” she said with a shaky laugh. “It’s okay, Scoot,” Cypress said, smiling as he tousled her mane like he always did. Scootaloo grinned, revelling in the small bit of affection. “I think I get what you mean. Now, you need to get back home. C’mon, I’ll take you.” “Don’t you have work to do?” Scootaloo asked. “So? No way I’m letting any kid of mine walk around alone at night.” “Dad, I can take care of myschoof! Ohhhhh...” Cypress blinked a few times. “Are you okay?” “I might be a little sick.” Scootaloo said, sniffling. “And you go out walking around at night?” Cypress grabbed her and threw her over his shoulder onto his back. “Do you want to be miserably sick on your birthday?” I have been carried around a few too many times today... Scootaloo thought lazily as she felt herself drifting off to sleep. Chapter 8Scootaloo rolled over in bed, groaning at the pain going through her head. She breathed in sharply to try to clear her nose, but it stayed clogged up. Sighing in frustration, she pried open her eyes, peering up at the silver-grey blur sitting on the edge of her bed. “Mom?” Scootaloo murmured. She felt her mother’s hoof brush a few sweat drenched hairs out of her face. “Mom, I’m trying to sleep.” “I know, hun, I just need to give you some medicine.” Dawn’s hooves wrapped around Scootaloo, helping her to sit up. “Here,” Dawn said, holding out a small paper cup with a couple pills inside. “Take these, I promise they’ll help.” Scootaloo popped the pills in her mouth, then took the glass of orange juice her mom passed her. She slowly sipped the juice, letting its strong flavor sit on her tongue, enjoying the way it cleared her head of its cobwebs. “Thanks, Mom,” she said as she passed the glass back. “I already feel a little better.” “Better enough to go see what your dad got you for your birthday? He’s waiting for you out by the shed.” Scootaloo tilted her head with a sleepy smile. “Presents? Yeah, I might be good enough for that.” Dawn chuckled for a moment before reaching behind herself. “Good, but first, here’s my present.” Dawn held out a thin rectangular package wrapped neatly in paper decorated with smiling faces. Scootaloo took the present with a knowing look. “Really, Mom, another book?” She broke into a wide smile as Dawn lightly blushed. “Yes another book, but honestly, I think you’ll like this one.” Scootaloo tore open the wrapping paper, flipping over the book to reveal the title. “Oh, wow, a new Hamster Huey book! I didn’t even know there was a new one out yet. Thanks, Mom.” She set the book next to her bed and threw her arms around Dawn. “You’re welcome, Scoot,” Dawn replied, holding onto her daughter tightly. She let go and stood up, walking for the bedroom door. “Now, go see what you dad got you, and in the meantime, I’ll see about getting you some food if you feel up for it.” Dawn raised a brow questioningly until Scootaloo nodded, and Dawn smiled once more before leaving. With a final sharp sniff, Scootaloo hopped off her bed. After a quick trip to the bathroom, she walked out the front door to the house. The sun was just coming up over the top of the houses across the street, and Scootaloo stood on the front steps, enjoying the warmth of the sun and a gentle morning breeze. The cool air felt refreshing, especially after being in her stuffy room. After relaxing there for a minute with her eyes closed against the bright light of the sun, she sighed in contentment and walked around the side of the house to the shed in the backyard. Standing out front of the shed was her dad, who looked up at her with a grin. He was waiting next to an object that came about up to her shoulders, wrapped in a white sheet. Whatever was under there was definitely an odd shape. “Hey, kiddo,” he said as she walked over, a confused look on her face. “Happy Birthday! Guess you want to know what’s under the sheet, huh?” Cypress bent over and gave Scootaloo a tight hug, making sure to keep their faces apart from one another. “Thanks, Dad.” Scootaloo nuzzled softly into her dad’s neck. “Yeah, what did you get me?” Cypress let go and walked back over to the sheet covered gift. Striking a self-important pose, he gestured to the sheet. “Under this sheet,” he said in a lofty voice, “is the one thing you have been waiting for all your life.” Scootaloo raised a brow in such dubious disbelief that Cypress broke character to smile at her. “You look just like your mom when you do that,” he said, making Scoot blush slightly, but she kept her brow raised. With a slight readjustment to his pose, Cypress continued. “And now, the moment you’ve been waiting for!” With exaggerated precision, he grasped the sheet in his teeth and pulled, hard. The sheet flew off in a flurry of white, revealing... another sheet, still concealing the object beneath. “Tah Dah!” Scootaloo just sat there, staring at her dad in exhausted annoyance, making quiet sniffling sounds. Cypress held his pose for several long seconds, hoping for some kind of reaction before giving up and dropping the sheet with a frown. “Tough crowd,” he muttered. “I’m sick, Dad.” “Yeah, yeah.” With a disappointed sigh, Cypress reached out and pulled the next three sheets off without fanfare, Scootaloo groaning slightly louder with each one. Finally, he pulled off the final sheet. Scootaloo stared at the mystery gift. She blinked a few times, then stared some more. After a minute, she gave up. “What is it?” “It’s a scooter. You’re telling me you’ve never even seen one before?” Scootaloo shook her head while taking an extra long look at it. There was a wooden base, painted a light-blue, with a metal pole coming out of one end. It was T-shaped, with shiny red grips attached to the ends of the branching part. Attached to the bottom were some more metal spokes sticking out. “I don’t get it; what does it do?” “It’s a toy. You stand on the wooden part and push off the ground, making it roll.” “Roll? Like skates?” Scootaloo asked. Cypress nodded in affirmation. Scootaloo took another close look at the scooter. “Where are the wheels?” “Oh, yeah.” Cypress smiled sheepishly. “This was kind of a last minute idea, so it isn’t quite finished yet. I’ll be home later tonight with the wheels. Actually, this used to be my scooter when I was your age.” Scootaloo tore her gaze away from the scooter to look up at her dad, who nodded. “This was mine way back when.” Scootaloo moved closer and took a tentative step on the wood board. “I replaced everything except the handlebars. The wood’s new and freshly painted, the grips are brand new, and when I get the wheels home tonight, you’ll have a completely refurbished scooter.” Scootaloo stood up on her back hooves, placing her front ones on the grips. She wiggled the bars around, getting used to how it would work. After another minute studying the toy, she looked up at Cypress, hesitation written on her face. “Um, Dad, it’s not that I’m ungrateful or anything, but—” “—but why am I giving you my old scooter?” “Yeah.” “I’m glad you asked, even if it is going to be a long story.” Cypress sat down, motioning for Scootaloo to join him. She got off the scooter and walked over to sit in front of him. “Now, you’re finally getting to that age when you start to worry about your cutie mark. That fight you got into at school got me thinking back to how I got mine. When I was your age, I didn’t just want a cutie mark, I wanted the coolest cutie mark.” Scootaloo grinned at that. “Now, when I was your age, scooters were very popular. That’s why I’m so surprised you haven’t heard of it. So I decided that I was going to get my cutie mark in skateboard stunts. You might not be able to tell by looking at this thing, but you can pull off some really cool tricks on a scooter. I had this rickety old scooter my parents had gotten me, and I spent hours practicing on that thing. “Until, one day, I landed a jump wrong and, bam!” Cypress clapped his hooves together for emphasis. “The wooden base split right in half.” “What did you do?” Scootaloo asked. “Well, I went to my dad, but he said there was no way they could afford another scooter, not with my mom’s medical bills. So, I had to come up with my own solution.” “You made your own,” Scootaloo guessed. “Heh, knew you were smart,” Cypress said while ruffling her mane, coaxing another grin from her. “So I asked Rough Hew, who was the town carpenter before me to teach me some things about woodworking and craftsmanship. He agreed to teach me and provide me with the supplies I would need if I helped him out around the shop. “It took all summer long, but I finally earned the parts I would need, and the skills to make my very own scooter. And, I’m sure you already guessed, as soon as I finished, my cutie mark appeared: a chisel with wood shavings.” “So... you didn’t get the cutie mark you wanted?” Scootaloo asked, worry creasing her brow. “Oh, don’t get me wrong, Scootaloo. I love what I do. I thought I knew what I wanted my cutie mark to be, but after working in the wood shop all summer, I can honestly say I was more than happy that this was what I was destined to do. “Seeing what you have to go through now just got me thinking about what I had to go through. I guess I wanted to give you my scooter for a couple reasons. One, because scooters are fun; and two, just to let you know that your future is out there, even if it’s not what you’re expecting now.” Scootaloo nodded, though she wasn’t sure she really understood, and then sat quietly waiting for a few moments before speaking up. “So... is that everything?” she asked with nervous anticipation. “Why?” Cypress asked with a raised brow. “Were you expecting something else?” “Oh, uh, I thought that... um,” Scootaloo stammered out before standing speechless with indecision for a few moments. Eventually she heaved out a disappointed sigh. “Oh, it’s nothing, Dad. Thanks for the scooter.” Lowering her head in sadness, she turned to walk back to the house. “Huh, well, I suppose you could have this if you want something else.” Scootaloo half-turned, not really expecting much, and froze for a second before a huge smile split her face and her eyes lit up with joy. “You did it!” Scootaloo cried out, jumping for joy back to her father and taking the picture from him. “You got Rainbow Dash’s autograph!” The picture was black and white, with the pegasus mare looking cockily at the camera over one of her wings. To my #1 fan! was scrawled messily on the corner, with an equally messy signature under that. She let out a decidedly girlish squeal that she quickly turned into a cough. “Yes, um, thank you, Dad.” She carefully tucked the signed picture under her wing, then stood up on her back legs to wrap her hooves around Cypress’s neck. “Thank you so much, this is the best present ever.” “Glad you think so, kiddo.” Cypress returned the hug until Scootaloo let go, then turned to head towards the road. “I have to get to work, Scoot, say bye to your mom for me. Get plenty of rest today, okay?” “Bye, Dad, have a good day!” Scootaloo waved goodbye until he disappeared around the corner of the neighbors house, then took one last lingering look at the scooter before heading back inside the house. Dawn was standing next to the stove in the kitchen, boiling some water. “Hey, hun,” she said as Scootaloo walked in. “Did your dad get you something nice?” “Yeah,” Scootaloo answered as she sat at the kitchen table. “What are you making?” “Oatmeal with apple slices.” “Can you put some brown sugar in the oatmeal?” Scootaloo asked hopefully. “Of course! That’s the best way to eat oatmeal after all.” Scootaloo smiled before resting her head on the table with a soft groan. Dawn walked over to her and put her hoof on Scootaloo’s forehead. “Hmm, you still feel warm. You need to go lie down in bed. You can show me what Dad got you when I bring you your breakfast.” “Okay,” Scootaloo said, disappointed. She jumped off the chair and walked down the hall to her room. After pinning the signed picture over her bed, she climbed under the covers and lay back with a sigh. Reaching over, she grabbed her new book, lifting it up to read the cover. “Hamster Huey and the Gooey Kablooie.” Smiling, she opened the book to the first page and started to read.
Chapter 1“Hope Smiles from the threshold of the year to come, Whispering 'it will be happier'...” ― Alfred Tennyson "I'm sorry, Mr. Cypress, but the treatment was unsuccessful." The brown earth pony sitting across the desk took the news in stunned silence. The two sat in a small office tucked into a back corner of the Ponyville Hospital. It was early in the day, and the light of the morning sun could be seen through the slits of the shutters over the office windows. The pegasus doctor’s name was Summer Shower; despite her young age, she was one of the foremost experts on pegasus wing health and development in Equestria. Cypress sat staring at her desk with a vacant look, lost in his thoughts. A minute ticked by on the small clock sitting on her desk before she cleared her throat softly. Cypress looked up at her with pain-filled eyes. "Sor—" his voice rasped, caught in his chest. He cleared his throat and spoke again. "Sorry, Doc, I just... I just don't know what to think right now." Summer relaxed slightly at his reaction to the news. Nopony took this kind of news the same way, and sometimes family members would become... upset. At least Cyprus wasn't yelling at her. Cypress ran a hoof through his short, dark-green mane and breathed deeply. "There has to be something else we can try. What about magic?" Summer shook her head gently. "I'm sorry, Mr. Cypress, we already told you magic couldn't help, remember?" "I do remember," Cypress replied. "I didn't understand it then, and I'm not going to pretend I understand it now. I didn't think it would matter though I really wanted the medicines to work." "Right," Summer sighed. "We'll just take it from the top." Summer reached down to open her desk drawer and pulled out a small packet of papers covered in neat print. "This is a small primer on basic magical theory," she said as she handed him the packet. Taking the papers from her, he looked at the writing on the page. For being a basic overview of magic, it still used a lot of technical wording that he didn't understand. "Don't worry," Summer said with a small grin as Cypress blankly scanned the papers. "I'll give you the summary. Unicorn magic works on the 'Principle of Change'. To put this as simply as possible, it means that unicorns can use magic to change the world around them, everything from changing apples to oranges, to changing the rate at which something grows or ages. Are you following this?" "Yes," Cypress answered, brow furrowed as he focused on Summer. "Unicorns can change things with their magic." "Exactly." Summer gave Cypress a small grin. "Now in medicine the most classic example of this is a 'change back' spell, where the doctors would use their magic to return a patient to health by reversing an injury they sustained. This kind of magical talent is rare though. Unicorns who can use this magic are all specialists in their fields with large demands on their time." "I don't care about that," Cypress cried out. "I'll pay whatever it takes! I just want my daughter to fly!" Summer shook her head once more. "I'm sorry, but that won't work. The problem is, magically, there is nothing wrong with Scootaloo. She is exactly the pony she is supposed to be." "What is that supposed to mean?" An ugly scowl was spread across Cypress' face, and a tight heat started climbing his chest. He sat up straighter in his chair and stared angrily into Summer's sorrowful eyes. "Scootaloo is a pegasus, of course she is supposed to be able to fly!" "It's not that simple," Summer tried to explain. "If Scootaloo's handicap was from an accident or illness it would be a simple matter, but it isn't. She can't fly because her wings didn't develop properly, and that is no one's fault. It is just how her body is." Cypress slumped down in his chair, his head bowed low with inner pain. "So that's it then?" he whispered. "There’s nothing we can do?" To her amazement, a single tear ran down his cheek. Cyprus quickly tried to wipe away the tears. “Sorry, I just—I was really hoping for some good news today.” Summer stood up and walked around her desk to stand next to the Cypress. Placing her hoof on his shoulder, she looked him in the eye. "I never said there’s nothing we can do," she said, and a glimmer of hope shone in Cypress' tear-filled eyes. "Do you remember the three stages of pegasus wing development?" Summer asked. Cypress nodded in reply, wiping the tears from his eyes. "Good, so the problem is that the bones in Scootaloo’s wings grew just fine, but the wing muscles didn't develop. Her wings just aren't strong enough to let her fly. Unfortunately, by the time she was brought in and examined, it was too late; her second growth stage was already over. We gave her the medicine anyways, just in case, but it didn't work." "But," Summer said when Cypress looked downcast again. "There is still the next growth stage in three or four years. We can try the medicine again at that time, and the chances of success would be much higher." "How much higher?" Cypress asked. "Between eighty to ninety percent." Summer smiled at the relief that spread over Cypress. "Don't worry, Mr. Cypress, it’s more than likely that Scootaloo will be able to fly one day. Maybe even as well as a normal pegasus if she's lucky. Now, why don't we go see your daughter?" "Just a minute, Doc." Cypress held up a hoof to stop her as he looked Summer in eye. "Why is Scootaloo like this? What happened to make her like this?" Summer hesitated a moment. "Well, there are several possibilities," she started, but Cypress cut her off. "Is it because I'm her father?" the earth pony asked. The way Summer hesitated again told him all he needed to know. "I'm sorry, Cypress," Summer replied as he hung his head in shame, "but that is the most likely reason." "How did this happen? The doctors my wife and I talked to told us the chances of any problems developing were small." "The chances were small," Summer replied, "but they were still there. If Scootaloo had been diagnosed sooner, this first treatment would have worked. It was just bad luck we didn't catch it quicker, that's all." This only made Cypress’ expression darken further. "So, if I had brought her in sooner, she'd be flying by now?" "It's possible," Summer answered slowly, not wanting to hurt him any further. "It's also possible it would not have made any difference at all." Cypress slumped down in his chair with a deep sigh. "Are you alright, Cypress?" she asked. "You look a bit tired." "I haven't been sleeping well," Cypress replied. "Neither has my wife, we're both so worried about Scootaloo." He gave a deep sigh and looked at the ceiling. "How do I do it?" "I'm sorry?" Summer asked with a small frown. "How do you do what?" "How do I face her?" he asked Summer. She just looked at him, confused. "How do I tell my daughter that I'm the reason she can't fly? All she's ever wanted is to fly, and now she can't because of me." "Hey," Summer said, jabbing him in the chest with a hoof. "This is not your fault, okay?" Cypress shook his head slightly, but Summer just jabbed him harder. "I'm serious, there was no way you could have known what would happen. Scootaloo is not going to blame you for what's happened to her. I've seen the way she looks up to you, she adores you." "I know, that's what I'm worried about. I don't want her to lose faith in me." "That won't happen, alright?" Summer looked him in the eye, waiting until Cypress smiled and nodded in agreement. "Good, now c'mon, we’re going to go see your daughter." Scootaloo lay upon the padded table in the exam room. The white paper lying on the table crinkled annoyingly every time she shifted slightly, so she tried to stay as still as possible. One of the nurses had come in earlier to give her the bad news. The kind nurse had sat next to her, lightly stroking her back as she explained that it would be a few more years before she could fly. Scootaloo sat in silence, giving one-word answers to the nurse's questions until she finally left. As soon as the nurse left, Scootaloo buried her face in her legs and cried. She cried until there were no more tears, and then she sat sniffling for a bit. Scootaloo felt better after that, but she was also quick to dry away her tears on a towel next to the sink that sat along the wall opposite the padded table. She didn't want her dad to know she was crying. After all, she thought, my dad is the strongest pony I know, and he never cries. After being satisfied that she looked as normal as ever, Scootaloo jumped back onto the table and lay down to wait. She waited for a long time, but finally heard hoof steps in the hallway outside, as well as the deep voice of her father coming closer. The door opened inward part way, and Cypress poked his into the room. As soon as he saw the orange filly, he smiled warmly and pushed the door the rest of the way open. Scootaloo felt herself grin right back at him. She couldn't help it; just being around her dad made her happy in that goofy, not-really-sure-why-I'm-smiling way. Cypress walked over and wrapped her up in a powerful hug. "Dad! not in front of other ponies..." Scootaloo whined, squirming in mock protest. Cypress noticed that she hugged him back just as hard though. He let her go, and she sat down again, blushing slightly. Cypress sat next to her on the floor. "Well, Scoots, how do you feel?" Summer asked her. "Pretty good. My wings are still a little sore from those shots a few days ago, but other than that, fine." She extended her wings and stretched them about to prove she wasn't in any real pain. Summer went ahead and examined the wings for a few moments before giving them the all clear. "Well, the wings seem good," Summer remarked as she tested Scootaloo's wing strength by having her push against her hoof. "No complications from the medications. I'll go get you some pain meds, then you're free to go." "Thanks Doc," Cypress and Scootaloo said simultaneously, drawing an amused smile from Summer as she closed the door on her way out. An awkward silence fell on the room as father and daughter both sat waiting. "The nurses already told me everything," Scootaloo said, breaking the silence. Cypress’ smile faded, and his eyes grew sad as he looked at her. "But it's fine, though," she quickly continued, "I mean, it's only a few more years, right? Besides, I don't really mind." Cypress could tell she was lying. Her eyes were still slightly red, and there were dried tears on the white paper she was lying on. He ignored it though, and reached over to ruffle her mane. "Of course you're alright," he said as she pushed his hoof away laughing. "You are one tough kid, am I right?" "You bet I am." Scootaloo smiled at him and Cypress pulled her into another hug. She didn't resist this time, just let him draw her close. "Don't worry, Scoot," he whispered in her ear. "One day, you'll be flying." One day... “Hold fast to dreams, For if dreams die Life is a broken-winged bird, That cannot fly.” ― Langston Hughes
Chapter 2It had taken Doctor Summer some time to process the pain medicine, and then she had felt it necessary to go over everything again: don’t eat these kinds of foods, eat more of these, you should really be taking these vitamins, get enough sleep, and on and on and on. Of course Cypress had written everything down, asking all kinds of boring questions until, finally, both adults were satisfied. By the time Cypress and Scootaloo walked out the front doors of the hospital, the sun was at its highest point in the sky. Its heat swept over them like a wave as they left the cool hospital. The air in the distance shimmered with rising heat, too much for even the ground to absorb. At least today’s a day off, Scootaloo thought as she looked at the sun. I can’t imagine how bad it would be if I had to be in class when it’s this hot. Looking down again, she saw her dad in the distance, already halfway down the path towards Ponyville. Scootaloo took off running to catch up with him. Cypress looked over at her as she ran beside him. “You alright?” he asked her. “Yeah, I’m fine,” she replied. “Just thinking.” “Thinking?” he said in mock horror. “What is the world coming to, when little fillies can just go around thinking?” Scootaloo just rolled her eyes. “Well, don’t worry,” he said, “I have just the thing to slow those rusted gears. How ‘bout some ice cream?” “Before lunch?” Scootaloo smiled with a mischievous light in her eyes. “Mom wouldn’t like that very much.” “Well, don’t tell her then.” The two reached the bottom of the trail into the town, and instead of turning left for home, Cypress kept going straight into town. Scootaloo followed close behind him, grinning as she thought about what kind of ice cream she would get. When they were about halfway to Sugarcube Corner, a shadow blocked out the sun above them for a moment. Looking up, they could see several pegasi moving large clouds to provide shade for the busier parts of town. Scootaloo studied them intently for a moment before jumping up in excitement. “Oooh, dad, look! It’s Rainbow Dash!” Scootaloo pointed out a bright blue mare pushing a cloud over the town hall. The pegasus adjusted the cloud slightly before flying out of sight. “Aww...” Scootaloo gave a disappointed frown as she disappeared. “Who’s Rainbow Dash?” Cypress asked, intrigued. “Oh, you’ve never met her?” Cypress shook his head, and Scootaloo chattered away in excitement: “She just moved here from Cloudsdale a week ago to work on the weather teams. She’s a great flier, just amazing, you have got to watch her sometime. I hope I can fly like that one day.” “I thought the weather teams were full,” Cypress said, now really interested. “Why does Ponyville need another weather pony?” “You know how old Mr. Snow Feather is getting,” she answered. Scootaloo kept up on all the pegasus news and rumors, especially those that involved the weather teams. “Cloudsdale just wants to be sure there is enough pony power to handle the weather, especially with the Princess coming to town next month for the Summer Sun Celebration.” “Of course, everything has to be perfect for the Princess.” Cypress nodded in understanding. Everypony wanted to put their best hoof forward. His carpentry business had surged as ponies hired him to fix and pretty up the buildings in town. It was the first time Princess Celestia would be holding the Celebration in Ponyville since its founding. “So, Snow Feather is looking to retire is he?” Cypress asked. “Yeah. Mom says he’s been in charge of the weather teams since she was a little filly. He just wants to make sure there is somepony qualified enough to take over before he retires. Who knows,” she said with a smile, “maybe he’ll ask Rainbow Dash. That’d be so cool, then she could stay here instead of going back to Cloudsdale. I mean, she’d probably say yes. One of her old friends lives in town, and she’s always visiting.” “You sure do know a lot about Rainbow Dash.” Cypress looked sideways at his daughter. “You’re not spying on her, are you, Scoots?” Scootaloo laughed nervously. “No way, dad, I wouldn’t do that.” “Good, I’m glad you know well enough to respect other ponies’ privacy.” “Yeah...” she said quietly, blushing slightly. Cypress just smiled and shook his head slightly. Scootaloo quietly walked beside her dad until he stopped. “Well, here we are,” he said, “and look! It looks like most of your classmates had the same idea.” In front of them stood Sugarcube Corner in all its sugary goodness. Families crowded the place, all of them seeking both shelter from the heat as well as cold treats to cool off with. Cypress opened the front door and the sounds of laughter floated outside. Cypress turned and motioned for Scootaloo to go ahead of him. “After you... Scoot? What’s the matter?” Scootaloo stood with her head and ears down, shuffling nervously on her hooves. At the worried look on her dad’s face, she tried to smile and speak normally. “Oh nothing’s wrong,” she said, but Cypress thought it sounded a little forced. “I just... I don’t really feel like having ice cream anymore, that’s all.” Cypress just stared at her, studying her closely. She tried to meet his gaze, but eventually had to turn away from his intense scrutiny. “Go wait for me in the gazebo over there,” he finally said, and she looked up to see him pointing to a shaded, empty pavilion across the plaza, tucked between two other buildings. She turned back to answer him, but he turned and walked into the shop before she could open her mouth. The door closed behind him, leaving her alone in the street. With little choice other than to obey, she walked over and sat on one of the benches in the gazebo. The sun still beat down on the small town, but thanks to the new cloud cover, as well as the shaded bench, the heat was much easier to bear. Scootaloo only had to wait a few minutes before she saw her dad exit the store and head her way, two wrapped ice cream bars in his mouth. “Here you go,” he mumbled around the ice cream in his mouth, and Scootaloo reached out and took one. “Thanks,” she said as she unwrapped the treat. Strawberry ice cream in a chocolate shell, she thought with a smile. My favorite. Taking a bite, she let the sweet flavor sit on her tongue for a moment before swallowing. Cypress sat next to her on the bench and unwrapped his own ice cream. The two sat without speaking, trying to eat as much of the ice cream as they could before the unnatural heat of the day melted it. Scootaloo finished first and was licking the melted ice cream off her hooves when Cypress spoke up. “So, Scoots, are you having trouble with some of your classmates?” Scootaloo froze mid-lick, the question catching her off-guard. She finished cleaning off her hooves before putting her best smile on. “Of course not, what makes you think that?” “Your mom and I aren’t idiots, kid,” he answered. “We never see you with foals your age, and nopony ever comes over to see you. You spend all your free time with me in the shop or with your mom in the library.” The smile on her face slowly faded away as he spoke, and when he finished she turned away to stare into the distance. “And since when do you ever turn down ice cream? It was pretty obvious by—” “I get it!” Scootaloo turned her back to him, hunching over slightly. “Your mom and I are just worried about you, kid,” he continued in the same steady voice. “I’m worried that you’re just running from fights.” “I’m not running from anything,” she muttered at him over her shoulder. “Oh no? Then what do you call it?” “Avoiding conflict.” Cypress sat quietly for a moment. “Did you get that from Miss Cherilee?” “Yes, she says it’s important to avoid fights at all cost. She says that walking away is the best way to deal with jerks and bullies.” “Typical teacher response,” Cypress said in disgust. “They just don’t want to have to deal with the mess that comes from one student kicking in the teeth of another.” Scootaloo looked over her shoulder at her dad in surprise. He had always got along really well with Miss Cherilee. “Listen, Scootaloo,” he said, putting his hoof on her shoulder and turning her to face him. “Walking away is definitely the best way to avoid a fight, and that’s usually a good thing. Jerks will always try to get you to react to them. It’s how they get attention. There comes a time though, when you have to stand up for yourself. If you run from every fight ever, that’s all you life is going to be, running. Pretty soon, you’ll lose everypony’s respect, and when nopony else respects you, how can you respect yourself?” Scootaloo looked into her father’s eyes for a moment before looking away again. “Can we just go home?” she asked quietly. “Sure,” her father answered. He didn’t sound angry or upset, he just stood up and waited for her to follow him. “Mom said she was going to close the library early today. She’s probably waiting for us at home by now.” Scootaloo avoided looking at him the entire way home, but Cypress watched her carefully, hoping that she would take his advice to heart. The rest of the day went without event. Lunch and dinner had both come and gone, and Cypress stood next to his wife in the kitchen, helping her clean up the day’s dishes. “You took the news pretty well,” Cypress remarked to Misty Dawn, who threw a slightly amused look his way. “Thanks, I guess,” she replied. “Though I don’t know if there’s a way to judge a mother’s reaction when she learns her child may be crippled for life.” She handed him another plate, which he dried carefully and stacked next to him. “Well, you managed to not break down crying at least.” Cypress took the next plate from her, flushing slightly. “So you already did better than me in that regard.” Dawn nudged him with a soft chuckle. “Awww, look at you blush,” Dawn murmured teasingly in his ear. Cypress’ flush deepened and he became so flustered he nearly dropped the glass she handed him. “Being worried over your daughter is nothing to feel embarrassed over.” “I know, it’s just—” Cypress’s expression squirmed about as he searched for the proper words. “It’s just that fathers are supposed to protect their daughters, you know? I’m just having a hard time dealing with this. Knowing there’s nothing I can do right now to help.” “Hey, whatever happened to that carefree, asinine colt I knew all those years ago?” Dawn made her voice airy and cheerful, but her eyes looked on her husband in concern. “I guess he grew up, Dawn,” Cypress replied, his voice thoughtful. He looked at her, and they held their gaze for several long moments before she turned away. “I guess he did,” she replied, handing him another washed glass. A strange sadness crept up on her as she contemplated this unusual change that had come over him. “Well... only a little though,” he remarked, his voice full of mischief as he dumped the small bit of water remaining in the glass over her silver-grey back. She gasped in shock as the hot water ran down her back and sides, glaring over at his smirking face with a look of annoyance mixed with a bit of mischief that made him pause. Dawn quickly retaliated by splashing large hoof-fulls of soapy dishwater right into his face until he gasped out a surrender. “All right, all right, you win,” he cried out, getting a mouthful of sudsy water for his trouble. Dawn beamed at him in victory as he spat the foul water back into the sink. They spent the rest of the time cleaning up giggling at how silly they both looked cover in soapy water. So, where is Scootaloo anyways?” Dawn asked as she passed Cypress the last freshly washed dish. “I sent her to take her bath,” he replied, carefully drying the dish off and putting it in the correct cupboard. “Good.” Dawn emptied the sink water and dried her hooves off. “The oven is busted again, by the way.” “What, again?” he said, amazed. Then he grinned slightly, mischief in his eyes. “Go easy on the appliances dear. They’re your friends, remember?” “It isn’t my fault,” she shot back. She knew he was just teasing her, but she couldn’t help herself sometimes. “The thing’s a piece of junk. We should really think about getting a new one.” “I know. Once I get paid from all this work for the Summer Sun Celebration, we should be able to afford one.” “Well, until then, we’re going to need it fixed.” “Obviously. I’ll talk to Silver tomorrow, he can fix it for us.” “Silver Driver?” she asked, and the strange note in her voice made him look at her closely. “Is that a problem?” he asked in return. “No, not at all,” she replied, but her face said the exact opposite. As she turned around to package up the leftover food, he leaned against the kitchen counter and rested his head on his hoof, waiting. 3, 2, 1... “It’s just...” Nailed it. “...I was talking to May today; he’s started drinking again.” “I know, he came by the shop today, hungover.” “And you’re okay with that?” Dawn said, clearly upset. “Of course not,” Cypress responded. “Silver’s going through a rough patch right now, what with his mother and all. Silver and May are our oldest friends; he needs the work, and we can give him some.” “What if he shows up drunk though?” “Then kick him out.” Cypress shook his head and laughed. “Or come get me, and I’ll do it for you. But he deserves a fair chance from us, and we’ll give him one.” Dawn was quiet for a long time, but Cypress waited her out, letting her think it over. Finally she looked at him from over her shoulder. She still didn’t look happy, but at least she wasn’t angry. “Alright,” she grudgingly gave in. “But you owe me for this.” “Oh,” Cypress said smiling, “I owe you for a lot more than just this.” “Darn right you do.” Dawn smiled in return, then turned to finish up with the leftovers. She heard and felt him move up behind her, standing right next to her, almost touching. He stopped only about a foot behind her. “In that case,” she heard him say, confidence and playfulness running through his voice. “Why don’t I do something to repay you now?” Dawn felt her heartbeat and breath quicken slightly. This game was hardly new to her though, and she was able to keep her voice level. “Oh yeah?” she said. “And just what could you offer me that would make up for it?” Cypress leaned forward and began speaking softly into her ear. She kept her cool, a twitch of her tail and a slight blush were the only signs of what he whispered. When he finished, he leaned back, that confident smirk still on his face. She looked at him over her shoulder again, returning his smirk with one of her own. “That’ll do,” she said evenly, “as a down payment.” “I thought you would say that,” he replied, leaning forward to kiss her. Dawn reveled in the softness of his lips pressing against hers. She closed her eyes as he ran his hoof down her neck, playing with her yellow mane. She felt his tongue on her lips, and opened her mouth for him, and then— “Eeeeewwwwww!” The two pulled away from each other in surprise. Scootaloo stood in the kitchen doorway with a disgusted look on her face, the kind usually reserved for something unpleasant you just stepped in. A towel was draped over her back, and her mane and tail were still slightly damp. “What’s the matter, Scoots?” Cypress grinned at his daughter. “Don’t like what you see?” Cypress kept his eyes on Scootaloo, but leaned in to give Dawn another loud, sloppy kiss. Scootaloo retched into her hoof, then turned and walked out towards her room. Her voice carried down the hall towards the kitchen. “Can’t even walk around my own house without having to see a bunch of sappy kissing!” Dawn and Cypress giggled at each other for a moment before Dawn straightened up, a serious look on her face. “Perhaps we should take this to the bedroom so we don’t offend our daughter’s sensibilities any further.” “I couldn’t agree more,” he responded in a similar tone. “I’ll just go put Scootaloo to bed, then join you.” “Don’t take too long,” she called after him as he left the kitchen. Cypress knocked on Scootaloo’s door and waited a couple moments before opening it to find Scootaloo already in bed, the covers pulled up to her chin. Her bedside light was on, and she was flipping through one of the adventure books her mother had bought her. She looked up at him as he entered her room. “Done being gross?” she asked. “For now,” Cypress replied as he sat at the foot of her bed, reaching over to tousle her mane. “Hey,” she yelped, swatting away his hoof as he laughed. “So, two days ‘til your birthday,” Cypress said, and Scootaloo’s face lit up at the reminder. “Any idea what you want yet?” “Not really,” she replied. “Unless...” “Yeah?” “Do you think maybe you could get Rainbow Dash’s autograph for me?” she put her hooves together to beg. “Please? I’d ask her myself, but I get way too nervous around her.” “I’ll see what I can do. And you’re sure you don’t want a party?” “No,” she said firmly. “Besides, who would I invite? I don’t really know anyone I would want to come.” She didn’t say this with regret or anger, but she slouched down slightly as she realized how true that was. Cypress stared at her with a weird look on his face for a moment. “Alright,” he said, tucking the covers under her. “Well, get some sleep, you have school in the morning.” “Right,” she said with a frown, but she turned over and closed her eyes. Cypress reached over and turned off her light, leaving her in darkness, the moon casting its light on the window. He crept out of her room and closed the door behind him, leaving it open a crack so he could look at her. So young, he thought, and already so many problems. Eighty to ninety percent chance she’ll fly one day. That left a ten to twenty percent chance she wouldn’t. There was a time he would have laughed at odds like that, but now? The chances that his being a father would cause problems for his children were so much smaller than this, but it had still happened. Odds and statistics are just a way for us to feel safe, right until the unlikely runs up and bites you right on the tail. He ran a hoof through his mane, dark thoughts flying through his mind. What if the treatment doesn’t work? She already has to put up with so much, what does she do when her dream crashes down around her? What if— “Hun? You know I’m still waiting here, right?” Cypress breathed out the breath he’d been holding with a laugh. “I’ll be right there,” he called, his mind clear again. He wasn’t alone with his troubles, and neither was Scootaloo. No matter what the future might hold, it didn’t matter. They would face their problems together like they always did. “Good night, kid,” he whispered. My other girl needs me a little more right now.
Chapter 3Cypress hauled himself out of bed, groaning at the time displayed on his bedside clock. The early morning had come and gone, and he was now truly late for work. Oh well, he thought. I’m already late. May as well take the time to say bye to the wife and kid. Cypress walked into the kitchen, yawning. Dawn stood next to the sink, finishing up the breakfast dishes on her own. She had always hated leaving a mess, so much so that she’d do all the cleaning herself if no one else would. Cypress walked up behind her and wrapped his forelegs around his wife in a gentle hug. “Mornin’ hun,” he whispered into her ear. Dawn turned her head and rested it on his for a moment before the two separated. Turning around, he was greeted by the most wondrous sight: a plate piled high with steaming muffins on the kitchen counter. “Oh, what do we have here?” he asked, reaching out to take one of the delicacies. Dawn’s hoof cracked down on his, and he pulled back with a surprised yelp. “What was that for?” “Those aren’t for you, goofball,” she scolded him. “They’re for the mailpony; she was out sick all last week and these are a welcome back gift.” Cypress sat nursing his hoof for a moment, a confused look on his face. “How did you make muffins with the oven busted?” “I didn’t, obviously,” Dawn replied, regret in her voice. “I bought them from Sugarcube Corner.” Dawn didn’t have anything against the Cakes, but if there was ever any cooking or baking to be done, she prefered to do it herself. “Oh, well, I guess that would explain—” Cypress paused, and confusion passed over his expression. “Scoots, what are you doing with that?” Dawn whirled around to find out what crazy scheme her daughter was planning this time, but of course, nopony was there. “Cypress!” Dawn cried as she spun back around, but her husband was gone—along with one of the muffins. “Cypress, get back here!” Cypress made a beeline for the front door, knowing he only had moments before his wife was after him. Scootaloo sat next to the door, putting her school books into her saddlebag. “Help!” he whispered as he ran passed. Dawn came flying out of the kitchen as he ran out the door, hot on his tail. Scootaloo grinned on the inside and jumped in front of the door, math book outstretched. “Hey, mom, can I get some help with these problems before school?” Dawn screeched to a halt, barely stopping in time to miss hitting her daughter. Dawn looked out the open door after Cypress; Scootaloo could hear her grinding her teeth in frustration. “You’re gonna get it later, Cypress!” she finally yelled out the door after him. Scootaloo could hear his very distant, “Worth it!” in reply. She hid her smile behind her math book. “Okay, dear,” Dawn said to her, half-smiling. “What did you need help with?” “Oh, you know, I just remembered that I didn’t need help after all.” Scootaloo stuffed her book into her saddlebag and ran out the door before her mom could react. “Bye, mom!” She ran down the street as Dawn yelled after her. “Scootaloo, you’re as bad as your father!” “Thanks, Mom.” “That wasn’t a compliment!” The sun was already scorchingly hot, especially for the morning. Looks like I’ll get to find out just how bad school can be in this heat after all, Scootaloo thought. She walked along the street towards the school until she heard a soft voice beside her. “G-good morning, Scootaloo.” Scootaloo jumped at the unexpected voice. She looked over to see one of her classmates walking along side her. “Oh, hey, Sweetie Belle. How long have you been there?” “Only a minute or so...” “Well, you should have said something sooner, you sca—you surprised me.” “Oh, sorry.” Scootaloo had met Sweetie Belle when they both started school together. Sweetie Belle had seemed cool at first; she was kind, enthusiastic, and fun. That changed after some kids started making fun of her voice. Sweetie Belle’s voice was, admittedly, high pitched, but that only seemed to make her more endearing to most ponies. Sometimes though, her voice would crack, especially when she was excited or angry. It didn’t really bother Scootaloo, but some kids thought it was funny. Sweetie Belle, however, did not; she would get embarrassed whenever someone made fun of her. When she finally broke down and cried after some particularly nasty teasing though, she made herself a target for the meaner kids in the class. To Scootaloo, it was almost a relief; she had been the one the others made fun of before Sweetie Belle. She always felt guilty for the sense of relief that swept over her when they moved on Sweetie Belle instead of her, but it was nice to have them ignore her, even if it meant that somepony else was miserable. She never made fun of Sweetie Belle though, and she never laughed at the others’ cruel jokes. Eventually, Sweetie Belle had stopped talking entirely. She would mumble answers when the teacher asked her a question, and she spent recess and lunch on her own. That is, when she wasn’t being tormented; the slightest thing would send her into tears these days, and that only encouraged the bullies to try more often. Scootaloo felt sorry for her, but she also felt a hint of fear when she looked at the unicorn. That could be me if I ever show weakness, she thought. A target. As much as she sympathized with Sweetie Belle though, she kept her distance. She didn’t want to give the other kids something else to make fun of her for. “So, um, Scootaloo,” Sweetie Belle said, barely more than a whisper. “How are your wings doing? I mean, you told us all that you were going to be flying soon, and—” “I have to go,” Scootaloo cut her off. She really didn’t want to talk about that. ”I have an errand to run before school.” Scootaloo turned off the main street and walked away from her classmate. “Oh... okay, bye then.” Scootaloo walked off, feeling slightly guilty at leaving Sweetie Belle like that, but she really did have an errand to do. Sure, she was planning to do it after school, but this was as good a time as any. Scootaloo turned down a few more side streets before arriving at her destination, a shop tucked in between a dry cleaners and a small restaurant. Silver-Flower Repairs was brightly painted over the door, and a light-blue mare stood outside, sweeping the front steps. “Hey, Mayflower, how are you today?” Scootaloo called out to her. The mare looked up and waved at her in return. “Why, hello there, Scoot,” she replied with a smile. “Oh, I’m doing just fine. What brings you around here?” “Mom sent me with a note for you.” Scootaloo pulled out the note and passed it to May. She then sat patiently waiting for her to finish reading it. Mayflower and her coltfriend, Silver Driver, were old friends of Scootaloo’s parents. Silver and Cypress were always together, and May was like an aunt to Scootaloo. “Your oven broke again?” May asked, her brow raised. “We just fixed that four months ago?” “I know. Mom wants to know when you can come over and fix it.” “Hold on a sec,” May replied as she pushed open the door to the shop and reached in to grab a pocket calendar. “Let’s see... best I can do is send Silver over day after tomorrow.” “The day after tomorrow? But that’s my birthday!” “I know, Scoot.” May reached out and patted her head. “That’s the best I can do though; Silver and I have all kinds of work to catch up on. He’s been... distracted lately.” “Oh, okay,” Scootaloo tried shrugged it off, but she was really disappointed; how was she going to get mom’s delicious chocolate cake for her birthday without an oven? “I’ll tell mom when I get home today.” “Nah, don’t worry about that. I was going to stop in and see her at lunch today anyway, so I’ll tell her then.” The town clock tower rang out as the sun finished climbing over the roofs of the village; May cocked her head at Scootaloo. “Don’t you have school today?” Scootaloo tensed up, and then took off down the street. “Oh, no, I’m going to be so late!” May shook her head, amused, as she walked back into the shop. Rainbow Dash was lying down on a particularly fluffy cloud, relaxing after a hard days work maintaining the weather. Today’s extreme heat had called for extra cloud cover again to provide welcome shade for ponies going about their lives on the ground. Which, of course, required a long day of making sure the clouds stayed where they were supposed to. It was next to impossible for a unicorn or earth pony to understand, but clouds often seemed to have minds of their own. They would get up to all kinds of mischief if not properly observed. Some pegasi even believed in small magic spirits called sprites that lurked in clouds to entertain themselves by making trouble for pegasus ponies. Rainbow Dash laughed at these stories in public, but privately she often wondered if there was any truth to them. Clouds certainly have a tendency to ‘act up’ a lot, and sometimes, she was sure she heard voices— “Hello there.” “Gah!” Rainbow Dash sat up straight, her heart racing as she spun around to face the voice. To her surprise, it wasn’t a host of brightly shining spirits, but a brown earth pony in a... hot air balloon? “Hello there,” he said again, this time stretching out a hoof to shake. “Name’s Cypress; sorry if I startled you.” “Oh, no, it’s fine,” she said sharply, making it clear that sneaking up on her while she was napping was certainly not fine. She reached out her own hoof, but instead of shaking like he clearly expected, she hoofbumped him—hard. He pulled back his hoof, shaking it to try and get some feeling back as she smirked at him. “Everypony wants to beat me up today...” he muttered under his breath. “So, I take it you’re Rainbow Dash, huh?” he asked her. “Sure am,” she replied, that self-satisfied smirk still on her face. “Let me guess,” she joked, “you’re looking for my autograph?” He grinned right back at her. “You’re absolutely correct.” Rainbow was sure she misheard him. “Wait... really?” “Really.” “Awwww, yeah!” Rainbow exclaimed as she shot a hoof in the air in celebration. “It’s about time ponies around here started to see how awesome I am. Wait here, I’ll be right back.” Before Cypress could stop her she rocketed off the cloud in a streak of color that flashed away towards the horizon. “I have paper... right here.” He sighed as she disappeared. Well, she certainly is fast, he thought. Less than a minute later, he saw her streaking back towards him, slowing just in time to land gracefully on the cloud. “Here you go,” she said as she passed him a— “A signed headshot?” Cypress asked, stunned. “Absolutely; it’s important to be prepared for your fans when you’re as cool and awesome as I am.” There wasn’t even a hint of a self-conscious blush on her face, just satisfied cockyness. “Oh really?” Cypress deadpanned. “And just what have you done that makes you so awesome?” Rainbow Dash looked at him confused. “Didn’t you ask me for an autograph?” “It’s for my daughter,” Cypress explained. Rainbow slumped down slightly for a moment, but just as quickly regained her self confidence. “Then I’ll tell you why,” she said as she struck a gallant pose. “You’re looking at a future Wonderbolt!” “You got accepted to the Wonderbolts?” He asked, impressed. “Well, not yet,” she answered grudgingly. “But I will be one day!” she continued when he started to scowl. “I’m just not quite old enough for the Academy. I did get through to the finals for this year’s Best Young Flyers’ Competition, though. I’m sure to win. I’ve got a move that’s guaranteed to win me the contest.” “Young Flyers’ Competition? How old are you?” “Seventeen.” “Seventeen?” Cypress looked at her with new respect. “That is very young to be on a weather patrol.” “What can I say?” she asked. “I’m the greatest flyer to ever come out of Cloudsdale.” He rolled his eyes at that, but she didn’t notice as she reached for her pen. “Now, who do I make this out to?” “My daughter, Scoot.” “Wait,” Rainbow raised an eyebrow in understanding. “Is that the little orange filly who’s been following me around?” “That’s her; why, has she been bothering you?” “Nah, not really. In fact it’s good to see little fillies still look up to great role models these days. And who could possibly be a better role model than me?” Cypress stopped to seriously consider an answer to this question, but Rainbow clearly meant for it to be rhetorical. “Here you go.” “So, what’s this great move you were talking about?” He grabbed the signed photo and put it next to him in the basket. Cypress noticed her confidence slipped for a moment. “Oh, right, that. It’s a, uh, secret. Don’t want to give it away before the show.” “Oh, then maybe you could show it to me?” “Sorry, but today was pretty hard on the old wings. Tell you what,” she said as she poked him in the shoulder. “After I take first prize at the competition, how about I come back here to visit and give both you and Scoot a little show then.” “Deal,” he replied, then stuck out his hoof with a smirk. “Shake on it?” “Sure,” Rainbow replied then feinted as if to punch him in the hoof again. He didn’t even flinch; she grinned at that, and took his hoof in her own. “It’s a deal.” Cypress turned and began maneuvering the balloon to fly it back towards town, and Rainbow Dash lay back down on her cloud, a goofy grin on her face. As Cypress flew back to town, he thought about Rainbow Dash’s question. ‘Who could possibly be a better role model than me?’ At first he had been skeptical, but as he thought about it more, it started to make a scary kind of sense. Of course, to her, it was an offhand remark to stroke her own ego, but it was also true. Scoot could learn an important lesson by looking up to her. To Rainbow Dash, her desire to become a Wonderbolt wasn’t a dream, it was a certainty. Scoot would need that kind of confidence if she was going to be flying herself in a few years. Cypress’ stomach rumbled loudly, and he grinned to himself. Almost time for dinner, he thought with satisfaction. He didn’t remember what Dawn had planned for tonight, but knowing his wife, whatever it was, it would be totally worth the wait. “What is this?” Cypress stared at his plate in disgust. It was piled high with asparagus, cauliflower, and alfalfa, all covered in some kind of dressing. Olive, if he had to guess. “It’s dinner, dear,” Dawn replied with false warmth before taking another bite. “It’s a new recipe I’m trying out. Alfalfa, asparagus, and cauliflower, cooked and covered in an olive oil dressing.” The three family members were seated around the kitchen table, Dawn and Cypress on both ends with Scootaloo between them. The young filly looked back and forth between her parents, an expectant smile on her face. Cypress turned his stare on his wife. “I hate every one of those things.” Scootaloo choked on a snort of laughter that she barely caught in her hoof. He shot her a dirty look, but that only seemed to encourage her. She shook with silent laughter, unable to control herself. “Oh, do you?” Dawn radiated embarrassment and concern, but there was a glint of amusement in her eyes that said otherwise. It was one of the most evil things that Cypress had ever seen. “Oh, well, you go ahead and eat it anyways sweetie. After all,” she said, her eyes and voice turning murderous, “it’s not like it’s going to kill you.” He kept staring at her, but she met his gaze unflinching, eating her food calmly. “This is about the muffin, isn’t it?” he finally asked. “Why, I’m sure I don’t know what you mean, dear,” she replied, sweetly innocent once more. “Now, go ahead and eat up. You too, Scoot.” “Right,” Cypress muttered under his breath, and began to scoop the offending meal up. C’mon Cypress, he thought. It’s just food, you can do this. He gagged on the first bite, but managed to keep it down. That wasn’t so bad. Scootaloo sat there giggling at him for a moment before she started in on her own food. The meal past in silence as no one made eye contact with anypony else. Scootaloo tried not to look at her dad, because every time she did she couldn’t help giggling. Cypress had finished off the cauliflower, his most hated of the batch, and was halfway through the alfalfa when Scootaloo cleared her throat. “Hey, mom,” she said, “I don’t really like cauliflower—” “Oh, don’t worry about it, Scoot, just give them to your father.” Cypress looked up, horrified as Scootaloo scraped the cauliflower onto his plate, a wicked grin on her face. He stared mournfully at her for a moment before turning back to his meal. Ten minutes later, he pushed his empty plate away. “Done,” he said, smirking at Dawn, who just smiled sweetly back. She stood up and took his plate into the kitchen, while Cypress turned his smirk on Scootaloo. “That wasn’t so bad.” He jumped as Dawn slammed another plate loaded with food in front of him. “Glad to hear it,” she said. The look of surprise and dismay on Cypress’ face set Scootaloo giggling again. “Because there’s just enough for seconds.” Scootaloo burst out laughing so hard she lost her balance and fell off her chair. Her parents looked at her empty place in surprise as she lay on the floor. After half a minute, her laughter died down to a constant chuckle. Her orange hoof rose over the edge of the table and hauled herself up, gasping for breath. One look at the plate of food though, and she was back on the ground, out of control with laughter. “Seconds...” they heard her choke out. “Priceless!” “And what did I do to deserve this,” Cypress asked, ignoring his daughter. “Getting Scootaloo involved in your little stunt this morning.” “What?! And she doesn’t get any punishment at all?” “You’re the one who roped her into it. And besides...” Dawn looked in Scootaloo’s direction. “If she ever tries anything like that again—” The laughter stopped abruptly, and a pair of violet eyes poked over the edge of the table. “I won’t do it again,” came her much subdued voice. “Good,” Dawn said as she walked back towards the kitchen. “Now sit back down so you can have some dessert.” Scootaloo sat back in her chair as Dawn brought in a plate of cupcakes. “I bought these this morning,” she explained as she put them on the table. “Two for each of us.” Cypress’ face lit up as he eyed the tasty treats. “Dad already had his dessert this morning though, so he won’t get any.” His face fell, but Dawn continued unaffected. “So how about we split his cupcakes, Scoot?” “Okay.” Scootaloo took the three cupcakes Dawn handed her. Cypress sighed and started to empty his plate again. Dawn nodded and smiled to herself. Justice has been well-served today, she thought. “Now,” Dawn continued, “I think I’ll go watch the sunset this evening. You’ll take care of the dishes tonight, right Cypress?” She turned and headed for the door without waiting for an answer. “Yeah... sure,” he replied as she walked out the door. Scootaloo took a bite of her cupcake and moaned loudly at it’s goodness. “Mmmmmmm... this is really good.” “Stop that.” She laughed at him for a moment, then pushed one of the cupcakes at him. Cypress took it with a grateful smile. “Thanks, kid.” Cypress breathed in its delicious aroma before taking a big bite. He let the sweet flavor sit on his tongue a bit before swallowing, then sighed in pleasure and shot Scootaloo a grin. “And in the end, it was still totally worth it.” As Scootaloo fell off her chair again, laughing, Cypress quickly scraped some icing off one of her cupcakes.
Chapter 4The ball bounced off the rim of the hoop, ricocheting away from the basket to land in the outstretched hooves of a small blue pegasus. The young filly hefted the ball up with a joyful grin. “Ha!” she exclaimed at her disappointed classmates. “That makes S’s for both of you; if you girls miss this next shot, then I win.” “Yeah, yeah, we know how the game works, Archer,” Scootaloo said, annoyed with herself for missing that last shot. “Just hurry up and take the next shot.” “C’mon, Archer, make it something we even have a chance at,” pleaded Archer’s friend Dinky. “What? No way!” Archer dribbled the ball a fair distance from the hoop, looking for a good trick shot. “I’m on a roll this game, you two never even got a turn. No way I’m gonna pass on a perfect win.” Archer carefully lined up her shot, then launched the ball in a graceful arch. The ball bounced off the backboard and fell through the hoop without touching the rim: a perfect shot. “Yes, I made it,” Archer shouted while Dinky and Scootaloo looked on in disbelief. “Didn’t even hit the rim, which means you have to do the same thing. C’mon Dink, you first.” Dinky walked over to where Archer was standing while Scootaloo fetched the ball. Dinky caught it, then looked at the round target. She wiped the stinging sweat from her eyes and stared down her target. Dinky threw the ball as hard as she could, and it missed completely. Dinky’s face blushed a bright red and she buried it in her hooves to hide her embarrassment while Scootaloo snickered behind a hoof. Sounds of quiet chuckling could be heard from some of their other classmates who were half-watching from the sidelines. “Sorry, Dinky, but you’re a horse,” Archer said while patting her comfortingly on the back. “Don’t let it bother you; so maybe you aren’t the greatest basketball player ever, but you’re still the smartest filly in class.” Dinky just whimpered softly behind her hooves. “Oh, c’mon. Tell you what, after your mom gets here to pick you up, how about later we play a game of chess. That way you can beat my flank at something today.” Dinky looked up in excitement. “Okay, that’ll be fun!” she said cheerfully, letting Archer help her back to her hooves. “For you maybe,” Archer grumbled, still humiliated from their first game of chess. “I still don’t know how you beat me in six moves.” “It was five moves actually,” Dinky cut in. Archer scowled at her, but Dinky just laughed. Archer smiled self-consciously for a moment before nodding her head off the court. “Well, let’s get going then.” “Hey,” Scootaloo called out. “You do remember it’s my turn, right?” “Oh, sorry Scootaloo, my bad,” Archer replied as she ran to fetch the basketball and tossed it to Scootaloo. “Go ahead and take your shot so you can miss and we can all go home.” Scootaloo scowled at her, then lined up her shot. Taking careful aim, she let the ball fly. It sailed through the air to bounce off the backboard, dropping through the net—but not without touching the rim. The foals watching groaned in disappointment, then went back to talking to each other as they waited for their parents to come pick them up. “Tough luck,” Archer said with a conciliatory smile, then she and Dinky walked off. Scootaloo kicked at some loose gravel, sighing in disappointment. “Well, guess basketball isn’t my special talent.” “Oh, look at that, yet another thing you’re not good at.” Scootaloo stiffened at the mocking words. Turning around, she saw Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon walking toward her. The smugness on their faces was only matched by the arrogance in their stride. Just looking at the two of them was enough to annoy her on most days, but today had been particularly bad. “Gee, Scootaloo,” Diamond Tiara continued. “If this keeps up, it seems like you’ll never find anything you’re good at.” “Get lost, Diamond Tiara,” Scootaloo snarled and stomped her hoof. “Yes, it must be horrible to be so talentless,” Diamond said, ignoring Scootaloo and adopting an air of tragic hopelessness. “Unlike Silver Spoon here; did you notice that she got her cutie mark this morning?” “Oh, did she really?” Scootaloo deadpanned. “I can’t believe I missed that, what with you already mentioning it a hundred times today.” “Yes, it’s so nice to be special. Who knows, maybe if you were to hang around me, you could be special one day too. Of course,” Diamond continued with a cruel laugh, “I’d never let a loser like you spend time with me.” Scootaloo snorted in a mix between disgust and amusement before turning to walk away. “What’s the matter,” Diamond called after her. “Flying away again? Oh, that’s right you can’t.” Scootaloo turned around again, her eyes flashing. Diamond Tiara always seemed to know which buttons to push. “Just wait,” Scootaloo yelled without thinking. “I’ll be flying any day now.” The soft background chatter faded for a moment as the rest of the foals nearby looked to see what the commotion was all about. Diamond Tiara smile took on a cruel edge. “Oh, really?” she asked, and Scootaloo nodded in reply. “Well, that’s great news; everypony should hear about it, right? Hey, everypony,” she called out, drawing the attention of their nearby classmates waiting for their parents. “Everypony, come here, I have a very important announcement.” The other students came crowding around, curious. “Hey, everypony,” Diamond said, that cruel smile still on her face. “Scootaloo here just gave me some amazing news. She says she’ll be flying any day now, right Scootaloo?” Scootaloo felt the anger in her chest freeze over with fear and nervousness. “Y-yeah that’s right, any day now,” she lied, unsure of what Diamond Tiara was planning. “Isn’t that great news everypony?” she said to the class, many of whom nodded in agreement. There was a small smattering of applause, and a few ‘great news, Scoot’ from smiling classmates. “Too bad it’s a lie.” The applause and smiles faded away, replaced by worried and confused expressions. Silver Spoon whispered into Diamond’s ear, but Diamond pulled away. “That’s right,” Diamond continued, “turns out Scootaloo here won’t be flying any time soon. She may never even fly at all.” Shame, anger, and fear all settled into Scootaloo’s chest, a tiny ball of writhing emotions that made her head hurt and stomach ache. “How do you know that?” she croaked out, but Diamond’s jeering smile only widened. “No cutie mark, no talent, no wings: just a loser of a pegasus.” One by one smiles turned to disgust as the sharper foals picked up on what Tiara was doing. Those that did not want to watch the unfolding train wreck turned and left the circle of onlookers. At Scootaloo’s sudden, “What about you?” though, they turned back in surprise. “What about me?” came Diamond’s confused reply. “You don’t have a cutie mark either, so what is it that makes you so special? It seems to me that you’re no more special then I am; heck even Silver Spoon got her cutie mark before you.” An ugly look flashed across Diamonds face for a moment before being replaced by her usual arrogance. Silver Spoon backed away from her friend slightly though, looking at the ground. “Ha, I don’t need a cutie mark; I’m already special.” “Oh, yeah,” Scootaloo returned with a derisive scoff, “special at what? Being a spoiled brat?” The stunned look on her face gratified Scootaloo. Dad was right, she thought with a grin. It is much better to stand up for yourself. “After all, the only thing you seem to be good at is talking big, and the one thing you seem to have going for you is that your dad’s rich.” Diamond’s expression darkened and her eyes flashed in anger, but Scootaloo kept pushing. “Isn’t that right, daddy’s girl?” Scootaloo turned her confident grin on the rest of her classmates, who looked back and forth between the two fighting fillies. “What do you guys think? Bet she ends up with her daddy’s face on her flank.” A few of the onlookers laughed along with her, but most just stood watching uncomfortably, uncertain of what they should do. Scootaloo turned back to Diamond Tiara, and her grin faded slightly. Anger marred Diamond’s face with a hideous scowl, and her face was suffused with a bright red. Silver Spoon was tugging on her hoof, trying to drag her away. “Let’s go Diamond Tiara, she’s not worth it,” she said quietly, but Diamond pushed her off. Scootaloo involuntarily back up half a step when Diamond stormed right into Scootaloo’s face, her nostrils flaring. “Who do you think you are?” Diamond hissed in her face, spraying saliva over her muzzle. “You’re nothing compared to me. I’m special, talented, pretty, and intelligent. You’re stupid, ugly, and useless.” The anger welling in Scootaloo’s chest grew hotter, sweeping away her shame and fear until the heat was all there was. “You’re worthless,” Diamond spat. Scootaloo shook from the building emotions she was holding in. “And you always will be.” The edges of Scootaloo’s vision went red, she had never been so angry in her life. She felt that if she didn’t do something soon to let the anger out, she’d snap. “Who do you think you are?!” came a high pitched yell, taking everypony by surprise. Scootaloo’s anger ebbed away to be replaced by amazement as she watched a pure white filly bear down on Diamond Tiara. It was Diamond’s turn to take several steps back, startled by Sweetie Belle’s outburst. “So what if Scootaloo can’t fly,” Sweetie Belle yelled right in Diamond’s face. Her face was red with anger, and the way she stared right in Diamond’s eyes made the bully nervous. “That doesn’t make her useless. You’re just jealous that Silver Spoon got her cutie mark before you.” “That’s not true!” Diamond Tiara yelled back. “Yes, it is, I saw you yelling at her before school this morning.” Everypony turned to look at Silver Spoon, who looked down at the ground, flustered. “That’s no way to treat your friend. And why pick on Scootaloo? Scootaloo never did anything to you, so why are you being so mean!” Sweetie Belle’s voice cracked into a high pitched squeak on the last word, and the red drained away from her face in horror. Diamond’s look of confusion and anger slowly changed to a mocking leer. “Oh, look everypony, Squeaky Belle’s found herself a best friend.” Usually Diamond’s nickname for Sweetie Belle would get her a few laughs, but this wasn’t the usual teasing. It was personal, and serious, and the others watching weren’t amused. “I think the two of you are perfect for each other: the loser who can’t fly and the loser who can’t talk.” Sweetie Belle shrank under Diamond’s derisive gaze. “So, Scootaloo will never get a cutie mark of course, she’s good for nothing. You on the other hoof are at least entertaining Squeaky Belle. So what’s your mark going to be?” Diamond’s voice turned thoughtful. “I’m guessing a dog’s toy.” She started laughing at her own joke and Sweetie Belle sank lower, all the way to her stomach and her eyes misted over. This only made Diamond laugh harder, though. Her laughter was cut off by a hoof on her chest, pushing her away from the crying filly. “Don’t touch me!” she yelped, looking on baffled as Scootaloo stepped between her and Sweetie Belle. “Leave Sweetie Belle alone,” Scootaloo growled. “Yeah? And what are you going to do if I don’t?” “How about I punch you right in your ‘pretty’ face? We’ll see just how special you look with a fat lip.” Scootaloo stomped her hoof on the ground a few times to make a point. Diamond’s derisive smile froze as she considered this unexpected turn of events. She was used to picking on what she saw as the ‘weaker’ fillies and colts. Not because she was afraid, she’d tell herself, but because they were much more fun. They never stood up for themselves, and they never stood up for each other. Now these two were doing the exact opposite, and she wasn’t really sure how to react to that and still come out on top. She tried staring Scootaloo down, but the filly just stared back. Her mind raced as she tried to think of someway to win this; then it came to her. Her eyes narrowed in victory and her frozen smile regained its former spiteful life. “Now there’s no need for violence, girls,” she simpered. “I think I know a way to settle this: a bet.” “A bet?” Scootaloo asked dubiously. “What kind of bet?” Diamond’s smile widened and she started to walk slowly around Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle. Scootaloo matched her movements, keeping herself between Sweetie Belle and the bratty bully. “A competition to be exact. You, Scootaloo, pick something you think you’re good at, and I will pick someone for you to compete against.” Diamond stopped after completing one circle. “If you win, then I’ll apologize to Squeaky Belle and promise to leave her alone from now on—” “Deal!” Scootaloo burst out before Diamond could finish. “Now, now, you don’t even know the stakes yet.” “They don’t matter,” Scootaloo asserted. “I won’t let you keep making fun of her.” “Let’s see what you say after you hear the whole deal,” Diamond stated callously. “If you lose...” She paused dramatically, everypony on needles to hear her next words. “Yeah, if I lose, what?” “If you lose, then you have to admit to everypony that I was right, that you are a stupid, ugly, talentless, and worthless pegasus.” Her heartless smile spread over her entire face at the stunned silence that followed. “And that you always will be.” Scootaloo’s eyes opened in shock, and Sweetie Belle whimpered softly. Diamond stepped forward to stand only inches away from her newfound nemesis, whispering to her softly. “Well...?”
Chapter 5“Well?” Diamond Tiara asked. Scootaloo bit her lower lip, her mind numb with indecision from Diamond Tiara’s challenge. A small hoof touched her shoulder, drawing attention to Sweetie Belle’s tearful expression. “It’s okay, Scootaloo, you don’t have to do this,” Sweetie Belle said, her wavering voice barely more than a whisper. Scootaloo‘s stomach settled as her earlier confidence settled firmly in her gut once more. Her confident smirk had returned as she turned and stared down Diamond Tiara. That settles it then, she thought. “You’re on daddy’s girl!” Scootaloo said. Diamond’s face twisted into a half snarl that squirmed on her face for a few seconds before settling back into her sickly sweet smile. “Good to hear. So, what do you think you’re the best at... Go ahead, show us all that you are actually are worth something.” Scootaloo thought hard on what she might be the best at. Unfortunately, everything that she was good at, somepony else was better. “Well, Scootaloo?” Diamond’s mocking voice came cutting through her thoughts. “Not giving up already, are you?” “Of course not!” Scootaloo answered, giving her surrounding classmates one last look over. “Alright, I choose a race.” “A flying race?” Diamond asked with a sneer. “No, a running race,” Scootaloo answered with a slight growl, not rising to her bait. “Now, who am I racing against? You?” Diamond Tiara threw her head back and laughed, stomping her hoof in a rather impressive display of dramatized amusement. “Me? As if I would ever let a loser like you race against me.” “I figured, you’re afraid to race me,” Scootaloo retorted. Diamond’s face froze for a half second before she scoffed. “As if, loser. I just want it to be a fair race.” Diamond looked around carefully, ignoring Scootaloo’s incredulous expression before a smirk crossed her face. “Alright then, you have to race her.” Scootaloo turned to see where she was pointing and felt her heart plummet. “Well, go ahead then,” Diamond Tiara said. “Challenge her to a race; or I suppose you could always back out now. Let’s face it, that’s probably better than losing, right?” Scootaloo swallowed her nervousness and walked over to the pony she would challenge. The filly was standing over on the school steps talking with Miss Cheerilee. The two of them must have just walked out the school doors; they hadn’t been there when Scootaloo had looked half a minute ago. Scootaloo had thought she had already left for home, and was relieved when she hadn’t been in sight. “Thanks again for the help, Miss Cheerilee,” the filly said as Scootaloo walked up the steps. “I promise not to fall behind on my work again.” “Don’t worry about that, dear, you’re a very bright student.” The filly gave a smile of mixed pride and bashfulness. “Just make sure to keep doing your best, alright?” “Yes ma'am!” “Okay then, bye Apple Bloom.” Miss Cheerilee turned back to her classroom and Apple Bloom jumped down the steps and turned towards home. “Hey, Apple Bloom!” Scootaloo called after her. “Wait up!” Apple Bloom paused mid step, looking back in confusion that quickly changed to a warm smile. “Oh, hey there, Scootaloo,” Apple Bloom said cheerfully. “Did ya need somethin’?” “Uh, yeah, I did.” Scootaloo swallowed her nerves as Apple Bloom turned to face her. “I, um, I bet everyone that I could beat you in a race.” Apple Bloom chuckled loudly, punching Scootaloo playfully in the arm. “Ha! Good one there, Scootaloo,” Apple Bloom said, as Scootaloo rubbed her arm. “But we both know you wouldn’t have a chance beating me in a race. Don’t get me wrong,” she hurried to say. “You’re pretty darn fast, but you’re nowhere near my level.” “O-oh, yeah! Well then, you should have no problem racing me.” “I don’t, but—” Apple Bloom looked up at the sun, then over her shoulder towards home. “Well, I promised my sister I’d come home as soon as school was over, and I’m already late...” Scootaloo felt her spirits soar. If she’s not racing, then maybe I have a chance after all, Scootaloo thought in excitement. “Aw, shucks, I guess another few minutes won’t matter now. You’re on Scootaloo.” Apple Bloom walked over towards the hoofball field, while Scootaloo followed her with lowered head and drooping ears. The crowd of foals watching ran over to the field to get a better view. “Hey, everypony!” Apple Bloom called out to the crowd. “Ya’ll ready for a good race?” There was a small amount of scattered clapping and a few cheers, but the majority of the crowd just looked nervously between the two racers and Diamond Tiara. Apple Bloom raised a perplexed brow and nudged Scootaloo. “Tough crowd, huh?” she whispered to her her. “Well, since you’re both here, let’s start the race,” Diamond said drawing an imaginary line on the grass. Applebloom eagerly stood behind it, and Scootaloo reluctantly took up a similar position next to her. “First one to run all the way around the field is the winner.” “Good luck, Scootaloo,” Apple Bloom said, not taking her eyes off Diamond Tiara as she raised her hoof. “On your mark...” Scootaloo and Apple Bloom both tensed up. The crowd buzzed quietly in anticipation. “Get set...” Scootaloo’s heart thudded in her ears, and she distantly noticed the crowd of her classmates had gone completely silent. Looking over from the corner of her eye, she saw Sweetie Belle watching her anxiously from the sidelines. Scootaloo gave her a confident smile to reassure her. Sweetie Belle smiled right back, her frown fading away. Scootaloo looked back towards Diamond Tiara, all nervousness gone. I’m definitely going to win, she thought. I won’t let Sweetie Belle down. “Go!” “What a day,” Cypress mumbled to himself as he trudged towards the school. Despite the fact school was already out, he didn’t hurry. Picking Scoot up late was an old game of theirs. When Dawn was helping Cypress start up his business, she came up with the idea of staying open slightly longer than the other shops, to give ponies who worked a chance to get to the store before it closed. A great decision and it really helped give him an early boost in business, but that meant that whenever it was his turn to pick up Scootaloo from school, he was always at least twenty minutes late. It was the same routine every time: he would arrive late and Scootaloo would tease him about his lack of punctuality. He would apologize profusely, offering her anything to make up for it. She would say the only way he could make up for it would be to carry her home on his back, and after some half-hearted protests he would relent to carrying her home, complaining the entire way that she was much too heavy for her age. As far as games go, that one wasn’t too bad. But today, he was relatively early. Instead of working in the shop, he had been out at the town hall, renovating it for the Summer Sun Celebration. The day hadn’t gone all that smoothly though. When he and his two assistants were halfway finished putting in the new floorboards, the mayor had rushed in. “No, no, wait,” she had cried. “I’ve changed my mind. I want a lighter colored wood for the floors.” So they had had to tear up all the hard work they had done. There was something about having to undo good work that made the labor much more draining, and now he was dragging his hooves just walking up the hill towards the school. An entire day’s work wasted, he thought, exasperated. The least the mayor could do is decide what she wants the hall to look like before I start working on it. Oh well, at least we got paid. Finally, when he reached the top of the hill, he was surprised to find a small group of parents watching the hoofball field, and he walked over to see what the fuss was about. “A close race, huh?” He heard one mare say to another. The other nodded her head in agreement. “Yes, a very close race; shame about the loser, I think the others are teasing her now.” “I think so too. Do you think we should stop them?” the first mare asked, her expression worried. The second mare tilted her head in thought for a moment. “No, I don’t think we should. You know foals, they always want to settle everything themselves. Besides, I don’t want one of their parents mad because we messed with their foal.” “I guess you’re right,” the first mare said, though she still looked uncertain. Cypress pushed his way through the other parents to see what was going on. The sight he found sent a chill down his spine. Scootaloo stood ostracized, her classmates standing around her. As Cypress tried to figure out what was going on, he noticed one of the fillies in the crowd stood in front of the others. She was wearing a ridiculous tiara, and the way she carried herself set Cypress’ teeth on edge. She was saying something to Scootaloo; he pointed his ears their direction, but try as he could, he couldn’t understand what she was saying. He could hear her tone though; arrogant, mocking, and filled with cruel amusement. His daughter shrank under the continuous verbal attack. Cypress fought the urge to run over and help Scootaloo. Seeing her so sad and alone like that tore at his heart, but he managed to hold himself back. I need to let her handle this, he thought. I need to know if she can handle this by giving her the chance to stand up for herself. His anticipation died as she began choking back sobs, her shoulders shaking, and he couldn’t wait any longer. “Hey, Scoots!” he called out drawing the crowds attention. “C’mon, let’s go home.” He expected relief at her rescue, but when she looked towards him, he only saw pain in her eyes. Turning from her classmates, she started to walk towards him. She started at a slow pace, but broke out in a run as instead of stopping, the filly with the tiara continued to yell after her. “That’s right, loser, run home to daddy!” Scootaloo hunched forward even more as mocking laughter chased after her. “Who’s the daddy’s girl now?” Scootaloo pushed open the gate to the hoofball field and ran down the path into town. “Hey, Scoot, wait up!” Cypress called after her. She ignored him, running down the path and out of sight. He managed to catch up to her halfway down the hill, running in front of her to stop her. “Slow down, Scoot,” Cypress said as she skidded to a stop before running into him. “What’s the matter kid?” “Nothing,” she replied before trying to walk around him, her eyes held firm on the ground. “That was not nothing, Scoot,” Cypress said, side-stepping in front of her again. “Now just tell me what happened so I can help you.” Scootaloo looked up at him then, the anger in her eyes made him cringe. “I don’t want your help. This is your fault anyways.” Scootaloo said trying to move around him again. Once more Cypress stepped in front of her. “Whoa, hey, slow down. What do you mean this is my fault?” Scootaloo shook her head in anger, and again tried walk around him. “You can’t just walk away like that,” he said, grabbing his daughter with a hoof. “Tell me what I did to mess up. Maybe I can fix it.” “Don’t you get it!” she yelled at him. “I don’t want your help, this is all your fault, I don’t need you making things worse. I—I hate you!” Cypress reeled back from the outburst; regret flashed across her face. “Why can’t you just leave me alone!” She pushed past him and stormed down the hill, leaving her stunned father behind. Author's Note Hiatus is over, and the story goes on!
Chapter 6Scootaloo slowed to a fast trot as she reached the bottom of the hill.Her head throbbed in pain, causing the filly to wince; the thoughts were running around her head so fast it hurt. She was angry at Diamond Tiara, angry at her classmates, angry with herself. And she felt guilty, guilty for yelling at her dad, guilty for losing the race, guilty for— Her train of thought was broken as she felt herself hoisted into the air by her tail. Yelping in surprise, she looked up into her dad’s face, her tail firmly held between his teeth. It was hard to tell how angry he was by her angle, but she assumed it was slightly more than a little. “Let me go!” Scootaloo yelled, swinging and kicking uselessly at her father. “Put me down!” She flailed wildly at her father, and as she swung in his grasp, she managed to land a few blows that were little more than grazes. Cypress ignored her; eventually she gave up trying to hit him and subjected to being carried through town like a shopping bag. At least it’s not the most embarrassing thing to happen to me today, she thought to herself in an attempt to raise her spirits but the giggling of onlookers foiled her effort. Her ears and face burned. I can’t believe dad’s doing this to me, she thought as she covered her ears to block out the laughter. This is the worst day ever. It was hard to tell where Cypress was taking her while looking at the world upside down, but she thought they were headed for the center of town. Sure enough, a few minutes later, he was carrying her up the steps to the gazebo in the town square. He was careful to raise her high enough so her head wouldn’t hit the steps, but she still pulled her head in to be sure. After he set her gently down on the bench, Scootaloo immediately sat up and turned away from him, folding her arms in defiance. She cringed in surprise as he spoke right into her ear, not loud enough to hurt, but loud enough to get her attention. “Don’t move from this spot, Scootaloo. Understand?” She didn’t answer, just scooted farther away from him. That was enough for Cypress apparently; she heard him turn and walk away, the clunk of hooves on wood changing to the soft swishing of grass that faded away. She was finally alone with her thoughts. I can’t believe he did that to me, especially after I told him to leave me alone, she thought. This whole thing is his fault anyways. Is it his fault though? She argued with herself. He was trying to help you stand up for yourself. Just because you weren’t strong enough to do so doesn’t mean he was wrong. Well, maybe, she admitted. But he still should have left me alone. Why? Dad saw you were in trouble and he tried his best to help. Instead of accepting it, you yelled at him. Yeah, well, I was angry, she maintained stubbornly, not ready to admit defeat just yet. All I wanted was some time alone, and he wouldn’t even give me that. Well, you’re alone now. Feel better? …No. Scootaloo sighed, burying her head in her hooves. She felt like crying again; all the anger was gone, overwhelming guilt filling its place. She didn’t know how long she sat like that, but when someone nudged her slightly, she jumped. Startled, she looked up at her dad; her emotions must have been written in her face, because he smiled at her sympathetically. “It’s okay to cry, you know,” he said, holding out an ice cream bar for her. Scootaloo just stared at it. Wait, I tell dad I hate him, and I get an ice cream? She must have hesitated too long, because Cypress shrugged and pulled the bar away. Scootaloo quickly reached out and took it before he could move it out of her reach. “I’m not crying,” she said as she slowly opened the treat. “I know, Scoot; I know,” he replied, sitting down on the bench as far from her as he could. He didn’t have a bar of his own he just sat there looking at nothing. Scootaloo took a small bite and grimaced at the taste. The strawberry tasted sour, and the chocolate was bitter. She made a small noise of disgust, and Cypress turned to look at her. He must have seen the look on her face. “What’s the matter?” he asked. “It doesn’t taste right,” she replied, holding the bar out for him to have a taste. He took a small bite and let it set a moment before shrugging. “Things don’t really taste as good when you’re sad,” he said. Scootaloo took another bite of the bar before offering him another bite. He took it, and then she took another one herself. Then she moved ever so slightly closer to him, and he did the same towards her. “Does it taste right to you?” she asked him. “Not really.” They both scooted closer to one another, close enough Scootaloo could grab her dad’s hoof if she wanted. “Dad?“ “Yeah, Scoot?” “Are…are you mad at me?” she asked. Cypress was silent, so silent Scootaloo turned to look at him from the corner of her eye. He didn’t look mad, but he stared into the distance with a blank expression that did little to help her. “Dad?” “No, Scoot, I’m not mad. I’m just confused. What happened, why were they making fun of you?” Scootaloo shifted about, uncomfortable. Cypress turned to face her, a comforting half smile on his face. “Look, Scoot, I know I was pushing you earlier, and I am sorry for that. You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want, but I’m here to help you if you want.” Scootaloo didn’t answer; her nerves and guilt fighting against the part of her that wanted to confess everything to her dad. She felt his eyes staring at her, stretching the silence painfully until, with a sigh, he stood. “Alright, kid, I’ll leave you be,” he said. “Make sure you’re home by dinner.” Cypress turned to walk away, but Scootaloo reached out quickly and grabbed his leg. “Wait, Dad— I do want to tell you, I just…” She stopped, her eyes glancing around at nothing as she searched for the right words. “I just don’t want to talk about it because it’s… embarrassing? That’s not really the right word for it...” “Shame?” Cypress asked. Scootaloo nodded, looking into her dad’s eyes for a split second before the sadness and worry she saw there forced her to look away. She heard him settle back down next to her on the bench, then the familiar weight of his hoof rested comfortingly on her head. “It’s okay, Scoot, take your time and tell me what happened.” Scootaloo took a deep breath, turning to face Cypress without looking at him. “So, you challenged this other filly to a race?” “Yeah,” Scootaloo replied. “Apple Bloom.” “Right, Apple Bloom. So, what happened?” Scootaloo sat quietly, getting up the courage to continue her story. Cypress was too distracted from keeping calm to notice. That his daughter had to defend her worth from a couple of schoolyard brats made him want to kick something, and the effort to keep calm set his hooves shaking. “It… it isn’t fair. I tried hard, really hard,” she said, her voice barely audible as it cracked with emotion. She cleared her throat, blinking rapidly. “I, uh, I ran so fast, faster than I ever have; I was winning!” “What happened?” “I—I tripped.” Scootaloo swallowed visibly, staring straight at the ground. “I took the final curve too fast, and I slipped on the grass. It was horrible; everypony was laughing at me, and Sweetie Belle—“ Scootaloo took a deep, shuddering breath, turning away to hide her face in case she started crying again. “She…she looked—she hates me now.” “She told you that?” “No, but, she has to. I got her hopes up, I stood up for her and then I-I—“ With a strangled cry, Scootaloo turned and buried her face into Cypress chest, hugging herself to try and hold in the tears that wouldn’t stop. Cypress wrapped her up into a tight embrace as her tears ran down his chest, soaking into his fur. “I-I’m not c-crying!” she sobbed into his chest. “It’s okay Scoot, I know, I know,” he whispered into her ear, stroking her back and head, shushing softly to try and calm her. The minutes ticked by, but it wasn’t long before Scootaloo’s sobs turned to sniffles and she was wiping the last of her tears from her eyes. To Cypress surprise, instead of pushing him away, she wrapped her own arms around him, returning the hug. “Feel better?” he asked her once she had calmed down enough. “A little,” she replied in a subdued tone that didn’t inspire much confidence. Still, she did tighten her hug slightly, and that was encouraging. “I’m glad. So, when you said that all this was my fault…” Cypress could feel her face warm where it was buried against his chest. “Oh, right; I’m really sorry, Dad. I didn’t mean any of those things I said.” “So, you don’t hate me then?” he asked. “No, Dad,” Scootaloo answered, blushing from shame. “I—I didn’t mean that; I was just so angry, and I took it out on you.” She pushed herself deeper into his embrace, nuzzling against his chest. “I love you Dad; I don’t think there’s anything you could do to actually make me hate you.” “Really?” Cypress went completely still, then he gently pushed Scootaloo away from him. Confused, Scootaloo reached out, trying to maintain the hug, but the deadly serious look on her father’s normally cheerful face scared her into motionlessness. She felt his hooves on her shoulders shaking. “What if I told you the reason you can’t fly is because of me?”
Chapter 7“What do you mean?” Scootaloo asked, her face twisted in worry and confusion. “What do you mean you’re the reason I can’t fly?” Looking back at her small wings, she pivoted them around before turning to face Cypress. “I can’t fly because my wings didn’t grow strong enough, how could that be your fault?” “Well,” Cypress said, running his hoof through his mane. “That’s kind of complicated.” “You don’t really know, do you?” Scootaloo asked with a wry smile, trying to lighten the tense mood. “Funny,” Cypress said flatly. “This is serious though, Scoot.” “I was afraid you would say that,” Scootaloo said, drooping in disappointment. “Like I said, it’s complicated,” he continued. He opened his mouth to continue, but paused before speaking, instead closing his mouth with a sigh. “I’m sorry Scoot, but it has to do with your disease.” Scootaloo’s forced smile faded away into a scowl. “I know you don’t like to talk about it,” Cypress said, putting a hoof on her shoulder. “I’m not sick,” Scootaloo growled out as she slipped out from his touch. Cypress sighed again at his daughter’s stubborn refusal to talk. “Let’s just move on; do you know why you’re a pegasus instead of an earth pony?” Scootaloo kept scowling, but she raised a brow in curiosity. “Well, cause mom’s a pegasus. You’re always the same race as your mom.” “Well, not always but yes, that’s the general rule. I’m also not certain if you’ve noticed, but most ponies tend to stick to there own race when it comes to marriage and families.” Scootaloo’s scowl disappeared as curiosity started to take over her emotions. “They do?” she asked in surprised. “I hadn’t really noticed. Why is that?” “All kinds of reasons, really. But... I’m sorry Scoot but, well, your disease is one of them.” Scootaloo’s eyes shot open in stunned disbelief and Cypress turned away. “I know this is a shock, but it’s something I’ve been trying to talk to you about for a while now. It’s just... it never seemed like a good moment. You’re wings didn’t grow properly because, well, because I’m not a pegasus.” “So, wait...” Scootaloo stammered. “You knew this would happen to me?” Cypress flinched at the hurt, confusion, and anger etching its way onto his daughter’s face. “Oh, no, Scoot—” he said reaching out his hooves to comfort her. Scootaloo pushed his hooves away from her as she backed up on the gazebo bench. “That’s what you just said, that my... disease is because of you and mom, and that you knew this would happen!” “Could happen, not would,” Cypress responded quietly in the face of his daughter’s anger. “Same thing!” she yelled standing back up. “No, Scoot, it isn’t. Do you think your mom and I wanted this to happen to you?” “Yes!” she cried out, panting a few times from her outburst before blinking rapidly in consideration. “No? I don’t know!” A sudden spike of pain shot through Scootaloo’s head, the intensity and unexpectedness of it making her nauseous. “I don’t feel good,” she said as she lay down on her belly, holding her head with both hooves, eyes screwed shut against the pain. She felt herself gently being lifted up and set down on the familiar width of her father’s back. A slight swaying motion started as he walked. “Of course we didn’t want this, Scootaloo,” she heard him say softly. “Your mom and I both love you.” “Then how is it your guy’s fault?” Scootaloo muttered, as waves of exhaustion swept over her between waves of pain. “First, I need you to know that while, yes, we knew there was a chance of this happening to you, we did everything we could to make sure you were born healthy. We saw all the right doctors, took all the tests, and your mom took all the nasty tasting medicine she could. It was just bad luck; this disease is nopony’s fault, okay, especially not yours, or your mother’s.” “But you said—” “I said that I’m the reason you can’t fly.” Cypress walked on in silence for half a minute before continuing. “That medicine the doctors gave you? You know it was to fix the problems your disease causes, you just got the medicine too late. What the doctors didn’t tell you was that if I had brought you in sooner, than it would have worked.” Cypress waited, giving her time to absorb the news, but she just lay quiet on his back. “Scoot? Did you hear me?” “...Yes.” “Look, Scootaloo, I know this was a lot to throw at you all at once, especially after the day you’ve already had. The thing I’m trying to say out of this though is I’m sorry.” Cypress’ voice cracked over his last few words and Scootaloo cracked her eyes open. He was looking straight ahead as he walked, blinking his eyes rapidly. “I’m sorry I’m not the father you deserve; you’re such a great kid, you don’t deserve this. I should have taken you to see a doctor as soon as I saw you having trouble, I just—” He paused, clearing his throat before continuing. “I just didn’t want to think that my daughter wasn’t perfectly healthy. And because of my selfishness, it will be years before you can fly, if ever.” Scootaloo rested her head back on her dad’s shoulders. “Dad, I—” she started, but Cypress came to a halt, interrupting her. “We’re here”, he said, sitting down so that Scootaloo slid down him to tumble onto her own back. “Hey!” she yelped as she flipped herself back onto her hooves. “You could have given me a warning at least.” She sat back on the ground, rubbing at her head with a pained expression. Cypress gave her a small smile, amazed at her ability to remain upbeat even now. “I’m sorry, Scoot,” he said. “I forgot about your headache. How’s the pain?” “It’s not so bad now,” she muttered, still holding her forehead. Scootaloo looked around at where they were, and glanced at her dad in confusion. “The Library? Isn’t it your turn to watch me today?” she asked. “Sorry kiddo, work didn’t go as planned today, so mom’s going to have to watch you now. Let her know I won’t be home until late tonight, will you?” Cypress turned away, heading in the direction of his workshop. “Wait, Dad!” Scootaloo called after him. He stopped and looked at her over his shoulder. Scootaloo opened her mouth but paused, realizing she wasn’t really sure what to say. Am I angry at him? She had to admit to being at least a little angry, but was it at her dad? She wanted to say it was okay, that she didn’t mind, but that wasn’t true. “...Thanks for telling me, Dad,” she finally settled on. “Even if the news is bad... it’s good to know the truth.” Cypress nodded, expressionless, before turning back on his way. Scootaloo pushed open the door to the library open, breathing in the musty smell of aging books that she had come to know so well. The familiarity and stillness of the tree library was doing wonders to calm her thoughts. A soft humming caught her attention, and she looked up into the second floor to see her mother flying along the rows of books, dusting them. A soft sigh escape the filly as she settled on the ground next to the door, resting her head against the cool ground. The floor was covered with a thin layer of dust, but Scootaloo was too tired and her head hurt too much for her to care. After the day she had, all Scootaloo wanted to do was relax. “Scootaloo?” Scootaloo raised her head, blinking at the setting sunlight shining through the windows. To her surprise, she realized she had fallen asleep. “Are you okay, dear?” A gentle hoof trailed its way down her neck in a comforting manner. Scootaloo looked up into her mother’s worried face. “Where’s dad?” “He went back to his shop,” Scootaloo said, her voice thick with exhaustion. She closed her eyes again, pushing back against the hoof stroking her neck. “He said he had a lot of work to do, and that he wouldn’t be home until later tonight.” “And, of course, he didn’t tell me; big idiot,” Dawn muttered so Scootaloo could barely hear. Scootaloo giggled while Dawn helped her to her hooves. “You didn’t answer my question though; you okay, Scoot?” “Well, Dad did ask me to tell you, for him,” Scootaloo said, avoiding Dawn’s question. “Huh, some messenger you are, falling asleep on the job like that,” Dawn said with wry smile as she started brushing some of the dust out of Scootaloo’s fur. “Sorry,” Scootaloo said sheepishly. “I just had a really long day.” “Right, well, I’m all done cleaning up here, both the library and you, so let’s go home.” “H-hello?” A voice came from outside, and a soft knocking followed. Scootaloo stiffened at the voice, then turned and ran for one of the back rooms. Dawn stared after her in surprise, but was distracted by the front door cracking open. After shaking her head in stunned bemusement, she turned with a smile to the door. To her surprise, a small white filly was peeking her head around the door. “Hi... um, are you Scootaloo’s mom?” she said so quietly that Dawn had to strain to hear her. “Yes, I am,” Dawn answered, pulling the door open so the filly could come inside. “You can speak up though, this may be a library, but you don’t need to whisper.” “Oh, okay,” she said, speaking ever so slightly louder. “Scootaloo left this at school; I brought it by your house, but no one was there, so I brought it here.” The filly held up Scootaloo’s saddlebag. “Well, that was very thoughtful of you,” Dawn said with a smile, and the filly relaxed slightly. “What’s your name dear? I’ll make sure Scootaloo thanks you tomorrow.” Scootaloo in the next room felt her spirits raise the highest they’d been that day. Maybe Sweetie Belle doesn’t hate me after all? she thought with hope. “Oh, I’m Sweetie Belle,” she heard her say. “But, it’s okay; Miss Cheerilee asked me to bring it over since I was the only one who knew where Scootaloo lives.” Scootaloo felt her enthusiasm dampen a little, unsure if that meant Sweetie was mad at her, and just brought her things because Miss Cheerilee asked her to. “Well, thanks anyways; it’s good to know my daughter has such nice classmates.” “Oh, thanks. I, uh, I better get going.” Sweetie Belle turned and ran out of the library before Dawn could say anything. “Thank you!” Dawn called out the door after her before shutting it. “Scootaloo!” she called out as she turned to see her walking back into the main room. “Scoot, what was that all about?” “That? Oh that was—” “Don’t you dare say nothing,” Dawn said, scowling. “... I wasn’t going to!” Scootaloo said, looking away for a moment. “I was going to say that... that I had some trouble after school, but dad already knows about it.” Dawn tried to stare her down, but Scootaloo held her gaze as best she could. “Fine,” Dawn finally said, turning to open the door. “I’ll ask your father about it.” “Mom, I know about you and dad, and my... disease.” Dawn froze, then slowly lowered her head until her forehead rested on the door. She stood like that for several long seconds before turning her head to look at Scootaloo with a solemn expression. “Your father told you, huh?” Scootaloo nodded in response. Dawn sighed, then waved Scootaloo over. When she came up beside Dawn, her mother helped her put on her saddlebag, then knelt down. “C’mon, Scoot, climb on up and I’ll take you for a ride to somewhere we can talk.” Scootaloo climbed up onto her back while Dawn finished locking up the library for the day. “Ready?” Dawn asked, and Scootaloo nodded. She then clutched on tight as Dawn jumped into the air, flying up and over the tree and the roofs of the surrounding buildings. Holding tight as she could, Scootaloo leaned over her mom’s shoulder to look at the ground floating serenely past. A slight breeze rustled her mane, and she gave a long suffering sigh, resting her head on Dawn’s neck. Dawn shook her head with smile. “It’s not a race, Scoot.” “I know that,” Scootaloo said with a slight whine. “But couldn’t we go just a bit faster?” Dawn just smiled and kept flying the same speed. Scootaloo sighed again, resigning herself to another boring flight. It wasn’t that long before Dawn slowed over a lone cloud on the outskirts of the town. She set them both down on the cloud, helping Scootaloo off her back. The two settled down, watching the sunset. “So, what did he tell you?” Dawn asked after they watched the sunset for a few minutes. “He said that my wings didn’t grow right because he’s an earth pony. He also told me that if he had brought me to see a doctor sooner, than the medicine they gave me would have worked.” She stared down at the cloud. “He says that he’s the reason I can’t fly.” “Are you mad at him?” Dawn asked, her voice gentle. “I... I don’t know,” Scootaloo admitted. “I’m mad, sure, but I don’t know if it’s at him, or just, you know, in general.” Scootaloo took a deep breath and looked her mother in the eye. “Do you think it’s his fault?” Dawn carefully considered her next words. “Well, you know that I was a late flier. When you turned seven, and everypony else in your class started to fly before you did, your dad started panicking. He wanted to drag you off to a doctor right away, but I stopped him. I told him to just give you some time, and he agreed. “After a couple of months though, he started to worry again, and so did I. That’s when we took you to Dr. Summer. And that’s when we learned about your condition.” Dawn took a deep breath before continuing. “Your dad may blame himself for this, but he’s the only one who does.” “Then why does he do it?” Scootaloo asked. “Because, no matter what I or anypony else tells him, he still feels guilty.” Dawn reached out and scratched Scootaloo’s head. “So, now you know everything; any questions?” “Well, I do have one...” “What is it, kiddo?” “When’s dinner? I’m starving!” Dawn threw her head back with laughter, scooping up her daughter and pulling her into a tight hug. “You little goof, I’ll make dinner as soon as we get home, okay?” “Okay, mom,” Scootaloo said. “That’s fi—” Scootaloo was interrupted as a powerful sneeze burst from her, then another. Each sneeze sent a throbbing pain through her head, making her groan and grab her forehead. Dawn pushed her away, holding her at arms length as she studied her. “Scoot? Are you okay?” Scootaloo shook her head, sniffling. “My head hurts,” Scootaloo muttered. Dawn reached out and felt her forehead. “You do feel pretty warm; maybe you’re coming down with something. C’mon,” she said, scooping Scootaloo off the cloud and onto her back. “You can rest while I get dinner ready.” Scootaloo held on tight, burying her face in her mom’s thick fur, trying her hardest not to sneeze all over Dawn’s neck. They flew along in silence, Scootaloo sniffing occasionally. Finally, Scootaloo broke the silence with an ear-splitting groan that made Dawn’s stomach jump in surprise. “Seriously, could we please just fly a little bit faster?!” Scootaloo thought about everything she’d learned that day, all through dinner, her bath, and now she lay awake in bed, utterly unable to sleep. Not only was her mind racing, she couldn’t stop sneezing and sniffling, and with every sneeze her head throbbed. After tossing and turning for what felt like hours, she made up her mind. Carefully opening her window, she slipped out of the house and ventured into the dark town. It only took a few minutes to reach her destination. Grasping the handle with her hoof, she turned and walked— Right into the door. With a startled yelp she jumped back, holding onto her nose. Reaching out she turned the handle again, but sure enough, the door was locked tight. Reaching up she knocked— make that pounded— on the door. “Dad!” she called out. “Dad, open up! I need to talk to you!” Scootaloo stood waiting; it wasn’t long before the click of the lock could be heard. The door cracked open, the light from a single lantern inside spilling through to shine on her face, silhouetting her father in the doorway. “Scootaloo?” she heard him say. “What are you doing here this late? Where’s your mother?” “She’s at home; I snuck out through the window.” “You did wha— you did what?” He yelled out before remembering the time and lowering his voice.”Scootaloo, why would you do that?” “I need to talk to you, Dad.” “Okay, what about?” he asked sitting down and folding crossing his legs in front of him, trying to look angry. “Um, it’s kinda cold out here, can we go inside?” “No,” Cypress said, shortly. “If you want to talk, then do it here.” Scootaloo looked at him in surprise, then sighed and went ahead. “I need to know, Dad; why do you blame yourself for my being unable to fly when nopony else does?” Cypress raised a brow in surprise. “I spoke to Mom; she said that the only one who blames you is you. I want to know why.” Cypress looked down at the ground, considering his next words. “Scootaloo,” he finally said with slow deliberation. “It’s a father’s most important duty to keep his children safe, to make sure nothing bad happens to them. If he can’t prevent that, then it’s his job to make it right.” He raised his head again to look her in the eye. “I may not have been able to prevent this from happening to you, but I should have made sure you were okay as soon as you were falling behind your classmates. Like I said, I ignored my first instinct, to make sure you were alright, because I didn’t want there to be anything wrong with you. It was selfish, and your paying for it.” Scootaloo sat still and quiet through his explanation, sniffling occasionally. When he finished, she kept quiet for another minute thinking. “Dad?” she finally said, her voice quavering with restrained emotion.. “Yeah, Scoot?” Cypress said, closing his eyes against the outburst of anger that was sure to follow. Instead of loud shouting though, a small pair of hooves wrapped around his chest tightly. Cypress opened his eyes in surprise, looking down at his daughter as she squeezed him as tight as she could. “I don’t know if it’s your fault or not,” she said quickly, almost too quickly to understand. “I don’t know if I’m mad at you, I don’t know if I even blame you. But I don’t want to hate you, and I don’t want you to be sad, or mad at yourself, or... or...” Scootaloo swallowed audibly, then looked up at him. “I don’t even know what I’m trying to say,” she said with a shaky laugh. “It’s okay, Scoot,” Cypress said, smiling as he tousled her mane like he always did. Scootaloo grinned, revelling in the small bit of affection. “I think I get what you mean. Now, you need to get back home. C’mon, I’ll take you.” “Don’t you have work to do?” Scootaloo asked. “So? No way I’m letting any kid of mine walk around alone at night.” “Dad, I can take care of myschoof! Ohhhhh...” Cypress blinked a few times. “Are you okay?” “I might be a little sick.” Scootaloo said, sniffling. “And you go out walking around at night?” Cypress grabbed her and threw her over his shoulder onto his back. “Do you want to be miserably sick on your birthday?” I have been carried around a few too many times today... Scootaloo thought lazily as she felt herself drifting off to sleep.
Chapter 8Scootaloo rolled over in bed, groaning at the pain going through her head. She breathed in sharply to try to clear her nose, but it stayed clogged up. Sighing in frustration, she pried open her eyes, peering up at the silver-grey blur sitting on the edge of her bed. “Mom?” Scootaloo murmured. She felt her mother’s hoof brush a few sweat drenched hairs out of her face. “Mom, I’m trying to sleep.” “I know, hun, I just need to give you some medicine.” Dawn’s hooves wrapped around Scootaloo, helping her to sit up. “Here,” Dawn said, holding out a small paper cup with a couple pills inside. “Take these, I promise they’ll help.” Scootaloo popped the pills in her mouth, then took the glass of orange juice her mom passed her. She slowly sipped the juice, letting its strong flavor sit on her tongue, enjoying the way it cleared her head of its cobwebs. “Thanks, Mom,” she said as she passed the glass back. “I already feel a little better.” “Better enough to go see what your dad got you for your birthday? He’s waiting for you out by the shed.” Scootaloo tilted her head with a sleepy smile. “Presents? Yeah, I might be good enough for that.” Dawn chuckled for a moment before reaching behind herself. “Good, but first, here’s my present.” Dawn held out a thin rectangular package wrapped neatly in paper decorated with smiling faces. Scootaloo took the present with a knowing look. “Really, Mom, another book?” She broke into a wide smile as Dawn lightly blushed. “Yes another book, but honestly, I think you’ll like this one.” Scootaloo tore open the wrapping paper, flipping over the book to reveal the title. “Oh, wow, a new Hamster Huey book! I didn’t even know there was a new one out yet. Thanks, Mom.” She set the book next to her bed and threw her arms around Dawn. “You’re welcome, Scoot,” Dawn replied, holding onto her daughter tightly. She let go and stood up, walking for the bedroom door. “Now, go see what you dad got you, and in the meantime, I’ll see about getting you some food if you feel up for it.” Dawn raised a brow questioningly until Scootaloo nodded, and Dawn smiled once more before leaving. With a final sharp sniff, Scootaloo hopped off her bed. After a quick trip to the bathroom, she walked out the front door to the house. The sun was just coming up over the top of the houses across the street, and Scootaloo stood on the front steps, enjoying the warmth of the sun and a gentle morning breeze. The cool air felt refreshing, especially after being in her stuffy room. After relaxing there for a minute with her eyes closed against the bright light of the sun, she sighed in contentment and walked around the side of the house to the shed in the backyard. Standing out front of the shed was her dad, who looked up at her with a grin. He was waiting next to an object that came about up to her shoulders, wrapped in a white sheet. Whatever was under there was definitely an odd shape. “Hey, kiddo,” he said as she walked over, a confused look on her face. “Happy Birthday! Guess you want to know what’s under the sheet, huh?” Cypress bent over and gave Scootaloo a tight hug, making sure to keep their faces apart from one another. “Thanks, Dad.” Scootaloo nuzzled softly into her dad’s neck. “Yeah, what did you get me?” Cypress let go and walked back over to the sheet covered gift. Striking a self-important pose, he gestured to the sheet. “Under this sheet,” he said in a lofty voice, “is the one thing you have been waiting for all your life.” Scootaloo raised a brow in such dubious disbelief that Cypress broke character to smile at her. “You look just like your mom when you do that,” he said, making Scoot blush slightly, but she kept her brow raised. With a slight readjustment to his pose, Cypress continued. “And now, the moment you’ve been waiting for!” With exaggerated precision, he grasped the sheet in his teeth and pulled, hard. The sheet flew off in a flurry of white, revealing... another sheet, still concealing the object beneath. “Tah Dah!” Scootaloo just sat there, staring at her dad in exhausted annoyance, making quiet sniffling sounds. Cypress held his pose for several long seconds, hoping for some kind of reaction before giving up and dropping the sheet with a frown. “Tough crowd,” he muttered. “I’m sick, Dad.” “Yeah, yeah.” With a disappointed sigh, Cypress reached out and pulled the next three sheets off without fanfare, Scootaloo groaning slightly louder with each one. Finally, he pulled off the final sheet. Scootaloo stared at the mystery gift. She blinked a few times, then stared some more. After a minute, she gave up. “What is it?” “It’s a scooter. You’re telling me you’ve never even seen one before?” Scootaloo shook her head while taking an extra long look at it. There was a wooden base, painted a light-blue, with a metal pole coming out of one end. It was T-shaped, with shiny red grips attached to the ends of the branching part. Attached to the bottom were some more metal spokes sticking out. “I don’t get it; what does it do?” “It’s a toy. You stand on the wooden part and push off the ground, making it roll.” “Roll? Like skates?” Scootaloo asked. Cypress nodded in affirmation. Scootaloo took another close look at the scooter. “Where are the wheels?” “Oh, yeah.” Cypress smiled sheepishly. “This was kind of a last minute idea, so it isn’t quite finished yet. I’ll be home later tonight with the wheels. Actually, this used to be my scooter when I was your age.” Scootaloo tore her gaze away from the scooter to look up at her dad, who nodded. “This was mine way back when.” Scootaloo moved closer and took a tentative step on the wood board. “I replaced everything except the handlebars. The wood’s new and freshly painted, the grips are brand new, and when I get the wheels home tonight, you’ll have a completely refurbished scooter.” Scootaloo stood up on her back hooves, placing her front ones on the grips. She wiggled the bars around, getting used to how it would work. After another minute studying the toy, she looked up at Cypress, hesitation written on her face. “Um, Dad, it’s not that I’m ungrateful or anything, but—” “—but why am I giving you my old scooter?” “Yeah.” “I’m glad you asked, even if it is going to be a long story.” Cypress sat down, motioning for Scootaloo to join him. She got off the scooter and walked over to sit in front of him. “Now, you’re finally getting to that age when you start to worry about your cutie mark. That fight you got into at school got me thinking back to how I got mine. When I was your age, I didn’t just want a cutie mark, I wanted the coolest cutie mark.” Scootaloo grinned at that. “Now, when I was your age, scooters were very popular. That’s why I’m so surprised you haven’t heard of it. So I decided that I was going to get my cutie mark in skateboard stunts. You might not be able to tell by looking at this thing, but you can pull off some really cool tricks on a scooter. I had this rickety old scooter my parents had gotten me, and I spent hours practicing on that thing. “Until, one day, I landed a jump wrong and, bam!” Cypress clapped his hooves together for emphasis. “The wooden base split right in half.” “What did you do?” Scootaloo asked. “Well, I went to my dad, but he said there was no way they could afford another scooter, not with my mom’s medical bills. So, I had to come up with my own solution.” “You made your own,” Scootaloo guessed. “Heh, knew you were smart,” Cypress said while ruffling her mane, coaxing another grin from her. “So I asked Rough Hew, who was the town carpenter before me to teach me some things about woodworking and craftsmanship. He agreed to teach me and provide me with the supplies I would need if I helped him out around the shop. “It took all summer long, but I finally earned the parts I would need, and the skills to make my very own scooter. And, I’m sure you already guessed, as soon as I finished, my cutie mark appeared: a chisel with wood shavings.” “So... you didn’t get the cutie mark you wanted?” Scootaloo asked, worry creasing her brow. “Oh, don’t get me wrong, Scootaloo. I love what I do. I thought I knew what I wanted my cutie mark to be, but after working in the wood shop all summer, I can honestly say I was more than happy that this was what I was destined to do. “Seeing what you have to go through now just got me thinking about what I had to go through. I guess I wanted to give you my scooter for a couple reasons. One, because scooters are fun; and two, just to let you know that your future is out there, even if it’s not what you’re expecting now.” Scootaloo nodded, though she wasn’t sure she really understood, and then sat quietly waiting for a few moments before speaking up. “So... is that everything?” she asked with nervous anticipation. “Why?” Cypress asked with a raised brow. “Were you expecting something else?” “Oh, uh, I thought that... um,” Scootaloo stammered out before standing speechless with indecision for a few moments. Eventually she heaved out a disappointed sigh. “Oh, it’s nothing, Dad. Thanks for the scooter.” Lowering her head in sadness, she turned to walk back to the house. “Huh, well, I suppose you could have this if you want something else.” Scootaloo half-turned, not really expecting much, and froze for a second before a huge smile split her face and her eyes lit up with joy. “You did it!” Scootaloo cried out, jumping for joy back to her father and taking the picture from him. “You got Rainbow Dash’s autograph!” The picture was black and white, with the pegasus mare looking cockily at the camera over one of her wings. To my #1 fan! was scrawled messily on the corner, with an equally messy signature under that. She let out a decidedly girlish squeal that she quickly turned into a cough. “Yes, um, thank you, Dad.” She carefully tucked the signed picture under her wing, then stood up on her back legs to wrap her hooves around Cypress’s neck. “Thank you so much, this is the best present ever.” “Glad you think so, kiddo.” Cypress returned the hug until Scootaloo let go, then turned to head towards the road. “I have to get to work, Scoot, say bye to your mom for me. Get plenty of rest today, okay?” “Bye, Dad, have a good day!” Scootaloo waved goodbye until he disappeared around the corner of the neighbors house, then took one last lingering look at the scooter before heading back inside the house. Dawn was standing next to the stove in the kitchen, boiling some water. “Hey, hun,” she said as Scootaloo walked in. “Did your dad get you something nice?” “Yeah,” Scootaloo answered as she sat at the kitchen table. “What are you making?” “Oatmeal with apple slices.” “Can you put some brown sugar in the oatmeal?” Scootaloo asked hopefully. “Of course! That’s the best way to eat oatmeal after all.” Scootaloo smiled before resting her head on the table with a soft groan. Dawn walked over to her and put her hoof on Scootaloo’s forehead. “Hmm, you still feel warm. You need to go lie down in bed. You can show me what Dad got you when I bring you your breakfast.” “Okay,” Scootaloo said, disappointed. She jumped off the chair and walked down the hall to her room. After pinning the signed picture over her bed, she climbed under the covers and lay back with a sigh. Reaching over, she grabbed her new book, lifting it up to read the cover. “Hamster Huey and the Gooey Kablooie.” Smiling, she opened the book to the first page and started to read.
