Scootaloo peaked through the farmhouse curtain and watched as Rainbow Dash and Applejack held each other lovingly in one another's hooves. Though she would never admit it, she was envious of the two. She wished she had some pony she could go to when she was scared or upset, some pony she could trust.
"So, what happened at the race?" Scootaloo finally asked, breaking away from the window.
Raven Flame shrugged, "I'm not really sure, she was just taking the lead when she just sort of crashed." She trotted over to the window and poked Scootaloo in the stomach, "Why are we talking about Rainbow Dash? Aren't you supposed to be helping me with math?"
Scootaloo bounced up a little as a reflex from the prod. She looked around till she spotted the writing desk in the corner of the living room and moved toward it. She hummed to herself in thought for a moment, "I'm not really sure where to start so… what part are you having trouble with?"
"All of it?" Raven Flame said slowly.
"Right…" Scootaloo pulled off the top sheet of paper from a stack and dipped the quill into the jar of open ink and scribbled on some basic multiplication problems and laughed, "Guess we should start off with teaching you how to count."
"Har-har. You're hilarious." Raven Flame replied sarcastically, but she couldn't help but grin a little.
"Anyway, it's really not that difficult. All multiplying really is…" Scootaloo thought for a moment, "It's just adding sets of something I guess. Do you understand what I'm saying?"
Raven Flame laughed, "Not really."
"Okay…" Scootaloo tried to think of another way of explaining it, "Got it! Okay let's take as an example, one times three. Each of our hooves represents one set of one, and we have three of them so you add them together." She waved her two hooves in the air, "So that's one, and two." Without thinking she grabbed at Raven's hoof.
A faint pink filled Raven Flame's cheeks at Scootaloo's touch, her eyes locking with the twinkling lavender eyes for a few brief seconds "Three…" she finished.
The two broke away from the gaze and a silence filled the room as the two sat there awkwardly. Scootaloo cleared her throat, "So, anyway… Division is basically the same thing, just instead of finding out much it makes, you are finding how many sets it takes to make that number."
Raven Flame nodded, "So, twelve divided by two would be six then?"
"Pretty much, I mean it gets a little harder with the bigger numbers, but nothing really changes and we haven't gotten into long division yet so I think you'll be fine."
Raven Flame batted her pendant back and forth. She didn't want to sound rude but curiosity finally got the best of her, "Why are you always so interested in Rainbow Dash?"
"I am not always interested in Rainbow Dash!" Scootaloo argued.
"We've had like three conversations and they have all ended up talking about her at one point or another." Raven Flame giggled, "Do you like her?"
"What? No!" Scootaloo's cheeks brightened, "I don't like her, it's just... never mind it's stupid."
"Oh it's stupid? Now I really want to know!" Raven grinned.
"I don't think you'd understand."
"Pfft, I just learned both multiplication and division in five minutes!" Raven said sarcastically.
Scootaloo let out a frustrated sigh, "Fine." She said but didn't continue.
Raven Flame tilted her head, "Well?"
"I wish I could be her…" Scootaloo said shamefully.
Raven Flame laughed a little, "Why?"
Scootaloo hopped off the writing desk's chair, she wasn't even sure why she was saying this in the first place, "She's so much stronger than other ponies, and I don't mean athletically. With everything she's gone through, I think most ponies would have given up. But not her, she keeps on fighting."
She began to pace towards the fireplace, staring at the dozens of pictures placed on the mantle, "She's loyal and she puts everyone before herself. Not many ponies realize the sacrifices she makes, or just how far she is willing to go for a friend."
She moved away from the fireplace and sat on the soft cushiony couch, "She is so brave. She isn't afraid of anything. Most ponies would cry and run away screaming like hysterical ninnies, but not Rainbow Dash, she has the courage to face it. I wish I could be as strong, or as brave as she is."
Scootaloo turned towards Raven Flame and put up an unconvincing fake laugh, "Stupid, huh?"
Raven Flame shook her head, "Not at all, I thought it was kind of sweet, and I do understand." She sat down next to the orange filly on the couch, she could tell there was something else she wasn't saying, "But why would you ever need to be that strong?"
Scootaloo froze at the question, silently debating whether to tell the truth, only fear holding her back and eventually the fear won over, "No real reason I guess."
Raven Flame eyed the Pegasus suspiciously who was wearing an awful poker face, "Okay..."
"Hey where's Applebloom, I haven't seen her around." Scootaloo asked, hoping to change the subject.
Raven Flame shrugged, "She went to Sweetiebelle's last night. Said something about about a croquet mallet and a pair of skis."
Scootaloo blinked, "I'm not sure I want to know..."
Raven Flame nodded in agreement.
Another silence filled the room. Scootaloo relaxed a little and thought to herself that maybe she did have some pony she could trust. She stared into Raven Flame's large sapphire eyes and for the first time in her life she felt safe, "Thank you."
Raven Flame raised her eyebrow, "For what?"
"No pony has ever actually bothered asking me… well anything really. It's nice to talk to some pony, so… thank you." Without warning Scootaloo grabbed Raven Flame and hugged her.
The hug caught Raven Flame off guard; she sat there paralyzed for a moment before slowly hugging back, "Your welcome."