Cloud Nine

Author: Doom Master 1990

It was a dark and stormy day in Ponyville. Rain was scheduled to pour for the next few days. Everypony was snuggled up in their homes either reading a book, making cocoa, or just lazing about. Everypony, that is, except for one little filly…Scootaloo.

Scootaloo had no place to call her home. She had been alone for as long as she could remember. In truth, she couldn't even remember her parents' faces, or if they were even alive. She wondered if they left her intentionally or just lost her somewhere along the line. The only reason she had even survived this long in the first place was due to the fact she adapted to her surroundings after a short time on her own.

She was tucked in an alleyway, curled into a ball under an awning. As the rain fell like tears, Scootaloo laid on the small patch of grass under the awning, taking some small comfort in the fact she was somewhat protected from the gloomy precipitation, though she still could not form a smile because of her current predicament.

Thinking about all the other ponies at home with their families was dragging her spirit down. She wanted somepony to love her; to comfort her when she was crestfallen and frustrated. Was that too much to ask?

Little did she know, her prayers would be answered that day, for in another part of town, a stallion was taking a stroll in the rain. He had solid black fur, an extremely light blonde mane with a streak of black, and wore a black, long-sleeved jacket to cover his torso and forelegs.

The stallion had nowhere in particular to be. He was walking because he liked the rain. It brought him a deep sense of peace and tranquility. He walked for a long while until he saw something out of the corner of his eye. At first, it looked like an orange, but as he moved closer, he could see it wasn't an orange at all. It was a filly with orange fur and a mulberry mane. She was fast asleep.

The stallion couldn't help but wonder what she was doing out here. He began thinking to himself.

"(What's a filly doing sleeping outside in this weather: and why here of all places? Doesn't she know she could catch her death of cold in this weather?)"

Scootaloo was breathing softly in her sleep. She looked so peaceful, like she didn't have a care in the world.

"(She must be dreaming.)"

Scootaloo shifted her body, and for a moment, the stallion thought she would wake up. As it turns out, her body was just automatically repositioning itself into a more comfortable position.

The stallion wondered what he should do, and after a few minutes, he decided there was only one option. Gently picking her up and placing her on his back, the stallion quickly galloped away from the alley back to his home and placed her in his bed. He would wait outside until she woke up.

A few hours later, scootaloo awoke. At first her vision was blurry, but after rubbing her eyes, everything became clear. She was no longer sleeping in the grass, but in a bed.

"Am I still dreaming?" She asked herself out loud in a groggy tone.

She looked around for a minute and saw a table that had an envelope on it. After a while, she got out of the bed and grabbed the enveloped. She opened it to find a note.

The note read this;

"'Hello, I apologize if you're a little frightened by the change in scenery upon awakening. I found you sleeping outside and just couldn't leave you there to fall victim to illness. There was nowhere else to take you, so I placed you in my bed until you woke up. After you receive this note, please meet me outside. I'll be under the awning over the front door."

There was no name attached to the note. Scootaloo realized she was no longer sleeping. She had no idea what to make of the situation. She was well aware that she could be in danger, but her gut told her there was nothing to fear. After all, whoever responsible for carrying her here hadn't seemed to have caused her any harm yet, and even left a note apologizing for any worry they may have caused her.

After looking at the door for what seemed like an eternity, she decided to confront whoever was responsible for removing her from the alley. She walked over to the door and opened it, and was greeted by a stallion.

'Finally awake, sleepyhead?" He asked. His voice was deep, but soft and warm.

"Y-Yeah." She responded then yawned.

"Will you sit with me? I want to talk to you for a minute."

"Okay."

Scootaloo sat by him and waited for him to speak.

"My name is Harmonic Thrash."

Scootaloo found this name rather odd. She only knew a little about music, and harmonies were one of the concepts she didn't know yet. She was also unfamiliar with the term "thrash".

"Harmonic Thrash?"

"It's a musical name meaning to violently shake oneself to musical harmonies."

"Musical harmonies?"

Harmonic realized she didn't have a clue what harmonies meant in the musical sense yet.

"That's a term best saved for another conversation. Right now I want to ask you a few questions. Is that okay with you?"

"Okay." She said reluctantly.

"It's alright. You don't have to have to answer any questions that make you uncomfortable. I just want to know a couple things so I can help you."

This filled Scootaloo with relief. She didn't want to bring up her parents right now.

"Can you tell me your name?"

"I'm Scootaloo."

"Scootaloo, this is my home. I brought you here to keep you from catching a nasty infection. I just hope I got you here in time."

"I feel fine. Thanks for helping me."

"There's no need to thank me. It's always been in my nature to help others. What were you doing in an alley anyway?"

Scootaloo began thinking about the alley. It was a painful thought for her to recollect. She shed a tear. Harmonic noticed Scootaloo had begun crying. Before another word could be spoken, he wrapped his forelegs around her. Scootaloo was shocked by his sudden jester, but the warmth of his jacket and the gentleness of his touch helped her regain some of her composure.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean for that question to make you cry. I won't ask anything else right now."

"I-it's okay."

Harmonic released her from his embrace.

"Um…" Scootaloo began.

"What is it?" Harmonic asked.

"Can you move your mane out of your face? I want to see your eyes."

"Oh." He said, realizing he had forgotten to do that. He knew hiding his eyes when talking caused other ponies to feel anxious or offended because they couldn't read his expression very well. He complied with her request and swept his bangs back, revealing deep blue eyes and a genuinely friendly facial appearance.

"Better?" He asked.

"Yeah." Scootaloo responded.

"Anyway, do you have somewhere you can go? There's no sense sleeping outside in this weather."

Scootaloo looked at the ground.

"No…"

"You mean you can't go home?"

"I…don't have a home."

Harmonic's eyes widened.

"You're homeless?" He asked.

"Y-yeah…"

"Don't you have any friends or family you can stay with?"

"My friends are too busy to take care of me, and I don't even know where my parents are."

"I see…"

There was a long silence. Harmonic could see she was in need of a place to stay. After a few minutes had passed, he offered the best solution he could.

"How about you stay with me for a few days? After this weather clears, I can go to city hall and see if they can find a place for you."

"Are you sure it wouldn't be too much trouble?" Scootaloo asked.

"Taking care of other ponies is never any trouble. I devoted my life to helping others a long time ago."

Scootaloo nearly squeed at the idea of finally having a place to stay, if only for a little while. She couldn't help but hug the black stallion as an act of gratitude for his seemingly limitless kindness. Harmonic smiled and his eyes expressed deep, heartfelt emotion.

"Let's go inside." He said.

"Yeah." Scootaloo agreed.

Before entering, Scootaloo asked one more question.

"How old are you?" She asked.

"25." He replied.

"I'm 10." Scootaloo said.

"You're pretty tough, making it on your own at that age." He said with a smile.

The two ponies entered the house and shut the door. This was going to be an interesting few days for both of them.