Foalsitting: Scootaloo [AiE]

>"But Mom! I'm old enough to take care of myself!" cried Scootaloo.
>"No buts, Scootaloo," said her mom. "You destroyed the house the last time I left you alone and I won't trust you again."
>"That wasn't my fault! Snickers got out of his cage!"
>"Well the babysitter can make sure that won't happen again."
>The doorbell sounds through the house.
>"Ah. That's probably them now."
>Scootaloo's mother trots to the door and pulls it open.
>A tall pink monkey in a suit towers over her.
>"Ah! Good afternoon, Anonymous!" greet her mother.
"Good afternoon, ma'am. Sorry if I'm a bit late. I had another... "run-in" with Fluttershy and Applejack."
>Scootaloo's mom d'awwed.
>She seems to think that's just the kid's these days way of showing their affection to you.
>Apparently the law of "women can't rape" is more prevalent here than on Earth.

>Scootaloo appeared at the end of the hallway to get a peek at who her hostage taker for the night was.
>Her eyes widened when she saw it was you.
>You spot her down the hall and give her a wave, causing her to duck behind cover.
>Scootaloo's mom looked back to see nothing and then back to you.
>"So anyways, I'll try not to be gone as long as I anticipate I will be. I'll try to be home by 10 PM."
"Will do, ma'am. Have a good night at work."
>"I wish. Perhaps a little liquid courage will make it a bit better, eh?"
>She elbows your calf with a "you know what I'm talking about" grin.
>You return her smile, but disprove of the comment a bit since her daughter was within earshot.
>Checking the clock on the wall, Scootaloo's mom panicked a bit.
>"Ah! I need to go or else I'm gonna be late!"
>She bolted out the front door.
>"Have fun you two!" she called back.
>Your eyes follow her outside until she rounds a corner and disappears from sight.
>Closing the door behind her, you turn around to spot the little orange pegasus standing before you with an angry look in her eye.

>"What are YOU doing here?" challenged Scootaloo.
"I'm your babysitter tonight," you reply.
>"Why?  My mom couldn't find anyone cooler to babysit me?"
"The terms 'cool' and 'babysit' really don't belong in the same sentence."
>"Whatever.  I'm going to Applebloom's house."
>Scootaloo started walking for the door but stopped when your comparatively-sized tree trunk of a leg was in her way.
>She looked up at you annoyed when she realized you weren't going to move away from the door.
>"Move!" she shouted.
"Why?"
>"I want to go to my friends house!"
"Not with that attitude you're not."
>"You can't tell me what to do!"
"I'm your babysitter."
>"You're not my mom!"
"No, but she said to keep you in line.  So,"
>Reaching down and grabbing her beneath the wings, you carry her to the living room.
>"Put me down!" shouted Scootaloo.
>She kicked and flailed her legs and flapped her wings sporadically.
>Her legs were no problem for you, but her wings kept hitting you in the face, further irritating you than her attitude already had.
>Dropping her onto the couch, you pull the armchair over to sit in front of her.
>You prop your ankle up onto the opposite knee and bring your hands to your chin.
>The game of wits has begun.

>Staring.
>Staring.
>So much intensive staring.
>Scootaloo sits with her forelegs crossed and her chin tucked down into her chest.
"Pouting will get you nowhere," you tell her.
>"Why can't I go to Applebloom's house?"
"Because you decided to get an attitude or else I may have let you."
>"You liar."
"Prove me wrong."
>"Can I please go to Applebloom's house?" asks Scootaloo with big sparkley eyes.
"No."
>"I thought you said if I didn't have an attitude I could go?"
"I didn't say that."
>"Monkey."
"Chicken."
>"You take that back!"
"I have a better idea.  Have you done your chores yet?"
>"I don't have chores."
"Bull.  Let's go check the fridge."
>As you stand, Scootaloo races off the couch to the kitchen.
>When you get there, she's standing next to the fridge with puffed cheeks.
>You walk up and inspect the fridge.
>Various child-like drawings and magnets are stuck to the door.
>Then you look at Scootaloo who gave you a big grin.

"Huh.  You're right.  There is no chore list."
>Scootaloo's eyes beamed success.
"But looking at the sink, I think your mother would appreciate you doing the dishes for her.  Seeing as she's going to come home so late, I'm sure it would make her feel better."
>Scootaloo's smile slowly faded to one of defeat.
>You pull up a little step ladder so that she would be able to reach the sink.
>Running some hot water, you pour a bit of soap in the sink and let it fill.
"There you go.  I already got it started for you."
>Scootaloo garbled something through her full mouth.
"I'm sorry, what was that?"
>She repeated herself.
"You're going to have to speak up."
>Looking to the side, she didn't want to spit up the evidence she was so obviously hiding.
>Her face turns to one of discomfort as you see a lump bulge through her esophagus as it falls into her stomach.
>Tears well up in her eyes, but she at least she got away with it.
>After a few deep breaths, Scootaloo spoke.
>"I said, my mom likes to do the dishes and clean the house.  That's what moms do."
"Yeah, I highly doubt that.  Now get to work."
>You grab a newspaper that was folded up on the table and take a seat.
>Scootaloo whined some more but you weren't having it.
>Defeated, she finally submitted to her duties and got started on washing the dishes.

>Scrub scrub.
>Splash.
>You frequently peeked up from your newspaper to watch Scootaloo half-assing the dishes.
>She would scrub two circles around the plates and bowls before dropping them in the other part of the sink to rinse.
>You just bide your time and go back to minding your own business.
>She'll learn soon enough.
>When the stack of dishes had disappeared from the counter, she started stacking them up on the other side.
>You folded up the paper and stepped over to stand next to her and watch her work.
>Grabbing a plate to inspect it, you grab a rag and dry it off.
>Bits of food were still stuck to it.
>You scrunch your face and set it back in the soapy end of the sink.
"That's disgusting."
>Scootaloo watched the plate plop back into the water.
>"Hey!  What are you doing that for?"
"That's not even clean."
>"Yes it is!  I washed it!"
"Well you're doing it again."
>Scootaloo grumbled as she started working on the plate again.
>You look over the rest of the stack.
>Some still had stuck food, but others were actually clear.
>You decided to throw them all back into the sink anyways.
"Do it right the first time and you won't waste time doing it again later."

>"This is filly abuse," cried Scootaloo.  "I should call the guards on you."
>Ah, the old "I'm gonna get you in trouble" ruse.
"You can try, but I'll just tell them you're trowing a tantrum.  What if one is a father?  Who's he gonna believe, me or you?"
>Scootaloo opened her mouth to speak, but shut it right quick.
>She turned back to the sink and started to scrub all over again.
>You feel like an asshole, but perhaps she won't be such a brat in the future.
>And maybe her mom will appreciate all your work.
>Some time later, Scootaloo had finished the dishes again.
>Checking them over again, they were actually pretty clean.
"Here, I'll help you stack them in the cupboard."
>When that was done, you thought of something else to try and teach Scootaloo responsibility.
"Is your room clean?" you ask her.
>"Yes."
>You raise an eyebrow at her.
>"... No..."
"Yeah, I thought so.  Let's go."
>Scootaloo hops down off the step stool and leads you to her bedroom.

>It takes a bit of force for you to open the door large enough for you to squeeze through.
>When you do, you see what looks like the aftermath of tornado in here.
>Literally everything she owned was on the floor.
>All of her toys, crayons, paper, posters with ripped corners, pillows and blankets.
>Hell, even her matress was off the bed and on the floor.
"Wow..." was all you could muster to say.
>A disaster like this had to take some amount of work and skill to create.
"You have a long night ahead of you," you start.
>Scootaloo groaned.
>"I don't wanna!"
"I don't care.  This room is destroyed and-"
>The odor of old milk hits your nostrils, causing you to pull your shirt over your nose and mouth.
"Oh my god.  It smells disgusting!"
>Scootaloo sniffed the air.
>"Well if I could find it I'd clean it up," she shrugged.
"Exactly.  Get to work."
>"But I'm hungry!"
"I was getting to that.  You do this while I make dinner.  Sounds like a fair trade, no?"
>"No."
"Tough.  If you need anything, I'll be in the kitchen."
>You leave the door ajar as much as it could go and you go prepare dinner.

>Sifting through the cupboards, you look for anything that you could prepare for the two of you.
>There really isn't much.
>Looks like Scoot's mom needs to go grocery shopping.
>There's barely anything in the fridge either.
>Time to improvise.
>You pull a box of macaroni out of the cupboard and throw it on the stove in a pot of water.
>There's a bag with 2 potatoes beneath the sink.
>After washing your hands and the potatoes, you find a bowl and a knife and start peeling them.
>Slicing them up, you toss them onto a frying pan with some butter.
>They don't have many veggies, but peas and carrots will do.
>Finding another small pot, you mix the two cans together to let them simmer and get warm.
>Without a strainer, you have to tilt the pot over the sink and use a wooden spoon to try to keep the macaroni from falling out.
>Add a bit of milk, butter, and cheese.
>And BAM!
>Improv mac and cheese.
>The potato slices for fried up nice and brown so those were taken off the heat.
>The veggies were also warmed up nice and soft.
>Setting two places at the table, you serve up both plates and take a step back to admire your handiwork.
"You done good, Anon," you tell yourself.

>Time to check on Scootaloo's progress.
>It had to have been some 30 minutes since she had started.
>That's enough to make a decent dent so long as she wasn't procrastinating.
>You knock on the door twice and call her out.
>You'd rather not go into her room if you didn't have to.
>The thought of that rotten milk smell made you shudder.
>No response or sight of Scootaloo makes you knock again.
>When she doesn't respond you poke your head in.
>Her room was exactly as you had left it.
>But you freaked out when you saw her window was open.
>She escaped.
"Aw!  Damn it, damn it, damn it!"
>You slam your fist on her door with each outburst.
>You're a real idiot for not checking up on her or even trusting her alone.
>Running out the front door, you bolt down the road to try to find her.
>Sweet Apple Acres here you come.

>Racing down the road and vaulting over the front gate, you run up to the front porch and knock on the door.
>Applejack, the last one you hoped would be home, answers the door.
>"Well my, my.  Good evening, Anonymous," she said in a tryhard seductive voice.
>Applejack leaned up against the door frame to try to make herself look more attractive.
>"I knew it was only a matter of time before you came running back to me.  And all sweaty and out of breath already?  We can go up to my room unless you just wanna do it here on the porch."
>Applejack turned and swayed her hips wide as she took several steps into her home.
"Cut the shit, Applejack.  Have you seen Scootaloo or Applebloom around?"
>Applejack's face turned to one of annoyance.
>"Well no I haven't, but Applebloom's been at her club house all afternoon.  Said she's got some work to do over there.  And you know... That means she won't be around to catch us in the act."
>A sadistic smile appears over her face.
>You quickly reach into the house and pull the door closed as Applejack leap at you.
>The hard thud of her face hitting the closed door was all you heard as you booked ass towards the CMC club house.

>When you realized Applejack wasn't after you, you slowed your pace to a walk.
>You'll need the element of surprise if you want to capture the target alive.
>...
>Or rather, you'll need to get the drop on Scootaloo or else she could run away again.
>Yeah, that's better.
>Coming up on the club house, you see the flicker of a candle and can spot two shadows.
>A couple of muffled voices come from inside.
>Creeping up steps, you press your ear to the door to listen in.
>Yeah, that's definitely Scootaloo.
>You twist the knob on the door, but it's locked.
>Crap.
>The club house goes silent.
>Knock knock.
>Frantic whispers are barely able to be heard through the wooden door.
>"Who is it?" calls a voice with a southern drawl.
"Anonymous.  May I come in, Applebloom?"
>"Just a minute!"
"I got you now," you mutter to yourself.

>The bolt to the door unlocks and it cracks open just a bit.
>Applebloom's head is all you're able to see.
"Hi there, Applebloom.  I'm looking for Scootaloo.  Have you seen her?"
>"Nope.  Sorry, Anon," she replies.
"I'm supposed to be babysitting her.  She took off.  You really haven't seen her?"
>Applebloom shook her head.
>You crouch down to get somewhat level with her.
"Applebloom, I don't think your sister would take too kindly to your dishonesty."
>Her ears fall flat and she frowns.
"Please tell me."
>Applebloom hangs her head dejectedly and steps to the side as she pushes the door open wide enough for you to duck through.
>"She's right over-"
>She's gone.
>Out the window.
>Again.
>Damn it!
>You turn and bolt out the door once again.
"Thanks anyways, Applebloom!" you call back.
>Unlike last time, you haven't a clue to where she could be going now.
>Sweetie Belle's house?
>No, that's too obvious...
>Where could that little brat have gone...
>Perhaps you could try back at her house?

>It was starting to get late and the sun was going to set soon.
>You should be in a hurry, but since curfew for children is sundown, Scootaloo was sure to be home by now lest she get caught by the guard for being out after dark without an adult.
>Surely she wouldn't risk being grounded by her mom for something so silly.
>Making your way back to the house, you try to get through the front door.
>Too bad it's locked.
>On the up side, she's home.
>On the down side,
"Open the damn door, Scootaloo!"
>You start pounding on the front door but there's no response from inside.
>Walking around the house, you peer in through the kitchen window.
>At least she had her dinner, so there's no complaints there.
>Except she ate your plate too.
>Damn, you were looking forward to that mac and cheese.
>The plates were stacked up in the sink again as well.
>Then, idea.
>If she got out through the window, you can get back in.
>Genius.
>Walking around the house, you try every single window, but they're all locked.
>Looks like she got the best of you this-
>The lock on her mother's window jiggles a bit when you try to pull on it.
>By repeatedly pulling on window, the lock slowly jiggles it's way free.
>You slide the window up and crawl through.
>HQ, this is Ghost.
>We're in.

>Not being the most stealthy character in the house, you decide to just romp through and find the little girl.
>Under the beds, in the closets, behind the shower curtain, in the cupboards...
"Come on out, Scoots.  I don't want to be a jerk, but you're making it real hard to not be."
>No response.
>You were kind of banking on her giving herself away.
>Touche, pony.
>You continue your search but uncover nothing.
>You go outside to sit on the doorstep and think.
>She came home to eat, but you never saw her leave.
>Plus all the windows were locked.
>How did she-
>You lift your head and look back at the door.
>It was unlocked when you came out here.
>Plus you've been at the back of the house screwing with the window.
>You facepalm so hard you're sure to leave a mark.
>Good going, dumb ass.
>Now to find Scootaloo again.
>She wouldn't dare go back to Applebloom's house and going to Sweetie Belle's would be too obvious.
>What other friends does she have?
>There's always Pinkie Pie.
>Or Twilight.
>Or...
>Standing up, you make your way through the dark streets; guided by the candlelight street lamps.

>You do what you can to stay off the streets.
>Keeping to the shadows, moving through backyards, and ducking behind bushes is not to keep hidden from the cops, but to keep hidden from Scootaloo.
>You need to work on your ninja skills or something because vaulting over chain link fences and kicking through piles of leaves just makes too much noise.
>Once you're off the streets and on the outer edges of the town, the lights fade almost completely.
>All that's left to see is the bright light of the full moon.
>Your destination is the park.
>Everyone knows, and yourself confirming after seeing all the merchandise in her room, that Scootaloo idolizes Rainbow Dash.
>And it's common knowledge that Rainbow Dash likes to practice her aerial acrobatics in the park.
>As you quietly come upon said park, your eyes happen to take to the skies.
>A streak of neon courses through the night sky at breakneck speed.
>Stopping to check out the sight, you watch as several streaks of colored neon dip, wave, and spiral through the air.
>You come to the conclusion that Rainbow Dash must be doing some night practice with glow sticks strapped to her wings and body.
>The rainbow light trail she leaves is significantly more breathtaking than what you see from her during the day.
>So anyways, back on track.
>If Rainbow Dash is here, Scootaloo must be within sight.
>You crouch to the ground and start stalking.

>You do your best to stick to the shadows but that's not always feasible.
>There are less trees and bushes around the park.
>Good thing you're wearing your suit to help blend in.
>You peek up to the sky everyone once in a while to see that the light show is still going on.
>Scootaloo wouldn't dare miss it, so you still have time.
>You circle the entire area as you search.
>You'd think finding an orange pony at night would be fairly easy.
>Her voice finally sounds out and catches your ears.
>"Wow!"
>Wait a minute.
>You stand up and peer over the bush you were currently behind.
>There on the ground, lying on her back and staring up at the sky, was Scootaloo.
>You peer up at the show above you to see just what exactly Scootaloo was marveling at.
>Rainbow Dash had started a routine of quick corkscrews, loops, and barrel rolls.
>The speed she was maintaining caused the tails of the chem lights she was carrying to extend far beyond what they had before.
>It was actually kind of beautiful.
>As a big finally, she shot straight up to the sky, spinning with her wings wide all the way up.
>At the top, it's almost like an explosion.
>Rainbow Dash releases the chem lights from her body, sending them falling around her to the ground below.
>Her two spectators watch for a few minutes longer while she hovers there in the dark.
>You watch as her dark form finally flies away; probably home for the night.

>Scootaloo sighed deeply.
>"Wow..." she says again.  "I wish I could do that."
>She's still unaware of your presence as you stand just beyond the bush behind her.
>You sit and contemplate for a brief moment on how to approach her.
>It's a prison warden chasing an escaped convict.
>Any sudden movements and she's gone again.
>Take it slow while you're both calm.
>You cautiously step around from behind the bush and kneel down beside her.
>Her eyes are closed.
>Is she sleeping?
>You reach out and softly nudge her shoulder.
"Scootaloo."
>The pegasi's eyes fly open and her head snaps in your direction.
>Scootaloo lets out a terrified shriek and bolts.
"Scootaloo! Wait!"
>You take off after her.
>"No!  You're probably going to make me scrub the toilet!"
"Scootaloo please!  Stop so we can talk about this!"
>No dice.
>Scootaloo reaches the road where her scooter had been sitting.
>Quickly slamming her helmet onto her head, she rears up and takes off just as you're about to reach her.
>She's easily twice as fast as you on that thing.
>You need to out-maneuver her or something if you want to catch her.
>Instead of following after her, you take the first left you find and run.

>Scootaloo zips and zags through the darkened streets of Ponyville.
>No way will she be caught by the likes of you.
>When you're out of sight, she slows it down a bit and starts ramping off and bunny hopping random debris in the road.
>It's not quite flying, but the speed and wind grant the same euphoric sensation.
>It's one of the few things that makes her happy.
>Rounding a corner, she makes the mistake of scooting with her eyes closed to try and make the most of the ecstasy that she's feeling.
>When she opens her eyes, she only barely spots you barreling out from behind a house.
>A hard right makes her avoid you.
>Scootaloo turns down two more streets to try to get away, but then...
>Two night watch guards just happen to be patrolling through these particular streets at this time.
>Scootaloo hits the breaks.
>One of them hears the noise of her stop and glances in her direction.
>"What the?  Hey!  What are you doing out past curfew!"
>Scootaloo does a total 180 and flies back down the road away from the guards.
>Needless to say, they also give chase.
>As you leap over a fence, you hear the buzzing of Scooraloo's frantically-flapping wings zoom by with the two guards in pursuit.
>Running out into the street, you attempt to wave them down.
"Hey!  Wait!  It's okay, she's with me?"
>One of the pair stops while the other keeps chasing the pegasus.
>"Oh yeah?" he remarks.  "Well you can take responsibility for allowing a minor to run around at night."
>He takes off again.

>Well this is just perfect.
>The one time the guards are around to help and they're assholes.
>That could possibly rule out any help with any future uncomfortable scenarios you may run into.
>Since they're no help and probably looking for any bit of action they can find, you'll have to do this alone.
>She will probably try to race them home.
>If she had any common sense, that would be the best way to avoid getting in trouble.
>And if she gets busted, you get busted.
>Not just by Johnny Law, but the wrath of an angry mother will come down on your ass like you've never seen before.
>Especially if she made due on her promise of that "liquid courage" she made before she left.
>Oh God!
>You haul ass to try to beat her back to the house.
>You're not getting locked out again.

>The shouting of the guards resonates throughout the village, helping you keep tabs on Scootaloo's position.
>You make it to the house and stop to listen.
>If your guess is correct, she's coming right for you.
>You open the door to try to cull her inside.
>As you do though, you get an unexpected surprise.
>"Hi, Anon!" greets Scootaloo's mother.
"Mrs. Scootaloo's mom!  Hi!" you shout in surprise.
>"Why are you shouting?"
"I- uh... What are -you- doing home so early?" you stammer.
>"I got finished early and I thought you'd be excited to go home early."
>She pauses.
>"Where's Scootaloo?"
>Beads of sweat start forming on your forehead.
>The shouting grows closer.
"One minute."
>You turn around and slam the door behind you before she can ask why.
"Oh sweet baby Jesus please help me."
>The wheels of the scooter screech as Scootaloo comes flying around a corner.
>You wave your arms frantically.
"Scootaloo!  Here!  Quickly!"
>It seems she'd rather face you than the cops.
>She rolls up and leaps off her scooter and into your arms.
>The vehicle ghost rides into the nearest bush and under cover.
"Your mom's home," you whisper quickly into her ears.
>Her eyes go wide as saucer plates.
>You nearly kick the door in as you go inside; kicking it hard again to close it.

"Don't worry about a thing I-"
>You stop shouting when you see that her mom isn't standing at the door where you left her.
>The fast clopping of the two guards outside pass by without stopping.
>The two of you breathe a deep sigh of relief.
>"Hi, sweetie!" greets her mom.
"Ah!" the two of you scream in surprise.
>Her mom raises an eyebrow at your suspicious behaviors.
>"What is the matter with you two?"
"I- uh... We-"
>"Anonymous took me to go see Rainbow Dash's night practice!" interupted Scootaloo.
>"Wow!  Really?  That was nice of you, Anonymous!  I hope the two of you had a good time?"
>"Yup!" beamed Scootaloo.
>She didn't even look nervous.
>You were damn near close from pissing your pants, though.
>"I see you made dinner," said her mom.  "Scootaloo?  Sweetie?  Why don't you go take care of the dishes since Anonymous cooked?"
>Scootaloo groaned.
>"But mom~! I already-"
>You subtly flick Scootaloo in the back of the head, causing her to look up at you angrily.
>Nodding your head towards the kitchen, she lets out a sigh of defeat.
>"Fine..."
>Hopping down out of your arms, she saunters off towards the sink.

>"I hope she didn't cause too much trouble," said her mom when Scootaloo was in the other room.
"Just a bit.  Nothing I couldn't handle, though."
>You pulled that out of your ass.
>"Well I'm grateful that you would come so readily at such short notice.  I'm glad Scootaloo has a good role model to look after her."
>She reaches her neck down to the floor and picks up a small pouch of coins with her teeth at her hooves.
>You kneel down to take it in your hand.
>When it's released from her teeth, she gives you a quick peck on the cheek.
>"Have a good night, Anonymous," she says with a smile.
>You sit there frozen with a dumbfounded look on your face.
>Scootaloo's mom walks into the kitchen to check on her daughter.
>"Scootaloo?  Did you clean your room yet like I told you?"
>"Yes."
>"So if I go in there to check it's going to be clean?"
>"Yes."
>"Alright then."
>"No, mom wait!"
>"You didn't clean your room!"
>"I was going to!"
>"Go clean your room Scootaloo!"
>"But mom~!"
>"No 'buts' missy!"
>You decide not to stay and leave promptly before this gets heated.
>You check the pouch as you stand on the doorstep and count your pay.
>A measily 5 bits, but the surprise kiss makes up for a lot.
>Fucking score.
>You make your way home to pass out for the night.
>You need a new line of work because this shit's gonna get real old real fast.