Doublefun Date, Part Two! [Scootaloo]

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It was going to be a super-fun day! Doublefun! That was because Sweetie Belle had twice as many tickets for rides and games and soda and cake than the average foal. She'd signed up for the Hearts and Hooves Fun Fair, twice! Why twice? Why not twice! She had plenty of fun in her for two partners, she was sure! Maybe she'd even get a Cutie Mark in having fun! (though she was determined not to try for one. She wasn't sure what it would look like!) She was even dressed for the occasion, having put on a necklace of pink coral beads and a matching pink ribbon for her her tail. She might have gone for more decoration, but Rarity said it was smarter to keep it simple for events like fairs. Skidding to a stop by the entrance, Sweetie Belle hoped she wasn't late. Her second partner, she'd discovered, was Scootaloo. And that was surprising too, because she was pretty sure she'd checked 'colt' on both sign ups! Well, it was supposed to be for Hearts and Hooves! Still, she couldn't help giggling, because Scootaloo had signed up at all. As much as she loved her friend, she couldn't picture her fellow Cutie Mark Crusader as any kind of romantic. Sweetie supposed that the lure of free food and rides was the real attraction for the orange pegasus. Still, it might be fun to tease her about it, just a little! Scootaloo would probably want to go on all the rides and eat lots of food, and so this date would be more fun than romantic, but Sweetie Belle didn't mind at all. With a deep breath, Sweetie Belle looked around for her friend. She wondered if her fellow Cutie Mark Crusader was looking to make an amazing entrance on her scooter or something. Or what if... Sweetie Belle smiled like a Cheshire Cat at the idea... what if Scootaloo was feeling shy?

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Scootaloo ran back and forth across Cherilee’s living room, getting this and that together, only to realize that she actually needed that and this instead. She didn’t know WHO the genius that signed her up for this (though she had a sneaking suspicion that it was Cherilee under orders from her mother), but now she was stuck in it. With Sweetie Belle of all ponies. Well, it was only a date if you thought of it like a date anyway, right?

”Scootaloo?”

The voice of her teacher and guardian reached her in her current digging spot, between the wall and the arm of the couch. She poked her head up over the armrest and blinked, a beret perched rather unevenly on her head. This, apparently, was her idea of dressing up. Cherilee paused for a moment at the scene, and there was a bit of an awkward pause between them.

”Would you like...some help?” the ace teacher said, stifling a bit of a laugh at the slightly haggard mane. ”You’re going to be late…”

”Ack!” Scootaloo responded, tumbling onto the floor and moving towards the door, accelerating from a staggering hobble to a run as she went. Cherilee rolled her eyes and, as the filly attempted to pass by, caught her.

So, Scootaloo got herself a bit of a grooming. She kept the beret, though Cherilee did some of her strange makeshift magic stuff and managed to get some hidden clips to affix the hat to her mane “so that you don’t lose it.” At first she had sighed grumpily at this unasked for doting, but it was forgotten as soon as she was out the door.

What Scootaloo had no time to think about as she dodged carts and ponies and other obstacles alike was what, exactly, one was supposed to do on one of these date things. Especially a ‘date’ with one of your best friends. Instead, she just figured it was a good chance to go on a bunch of rides with one of her besties without having to do a single chore to earn it. She’d never been to a winter carnival, though, so what sort of rides they had there would be a surprise. A totally rad surprise! Probably! Hopefully.

As she approached the entrance to the fair, she slowed down to a nice, moderate pace. She didn’t feel like looking like she was in too too much of a rush, this time. She’d try to pass off her tardiness as...oh, what would Sweetie Belle call it...being fashionably late. She rounded the last bend and there was Sweetie Belle, looking as Sweetie Belleish as ever. She pulled up to a stop and locked the scooter safely in the proper rack, removing her helmet and walking up to her friend. “Hey! Like the necklace!” she said, not really knowing how to start one of these things. Her hat, while still held on by the ingenious little clips that Cherilee had installed, looked a bit squished from the helmet. Her tail was a bit frizzy again, despite attempts to tame it, from the ride, and the mane that stuck out behind her helmet looked a little worse for wear too, if one were to consider it closely. And, if one were really picky, there was actually a feather out of place underneath her wing. But Scootaloo had been chided before about preening instead of paying attention, so for now it would have to itch.

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“Hey! Like the necklace!” Scootaloo looked, Sweetie Belle thought with only a mild twinge of regret, as unflappably cool as a snowpony. No shyness there, or so it seemed! "Thanks! I really like your hat!" Sweetie Belle replied, with enthusiasm. The white filly reached out a hoof, then hesitated a moment. She suddenly felt a little awkward, but she didn't know why. It was silly! Scoots was one of her Besties! A fellow Cute Mark Crusader. She wasn't about to get all shy about being with Scootaloo, was she? Never! With decision, Sweetie belle reached out a second time and... tilted Scootaloo's beret slightly, to just the right, Rarity approved angle, poofing it up a bit as she did so, and adjusting the clip so it wouldn't pull on Scootaloo's mane too much. "A Beret is just the right hat for you!" she added, approvingly, with her best impression of Rarity's Fashion Wisdom. "It can be cool and chic, but it can also be tough and hardcore, like the Pink Berets... or was it blue?" "Anyway!"Sweetie shrugged it off with a grin- "Are you ready to have some fun? There's lots to do- I took a quick peek- They have sledding and skiing and snowboaring up on that hill. They even have a sort of rope-pulley thing going so you don't even have to walk up the hill- just grab on and slide back up to to the top! There's a snowball war going on over there, but I'm not sure that's actually part of the fair. I think Snips and Snails just started chucking snowballs and ponies joined in." Sweetie Belle giggled. "There's also some real fair rides- Tilt-a-whirl, Carousel, Ferris Wheel... A couple roller coasters, A drop tower... And of course, a tunnel of LOoOoOvE!" The unicorn filly couldn't help warbling on the last word before breaking into laughter again. "Also, food and lots of games! and other stuff I didn't see yet! Whatcha wanna do first?"

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Ssssssomething was up with Sweetie. Scootaloo couldn’t quite place it, but something was definitely weird. Firstly, she liked the hat that Scootaloo wore. That wasn’t weird, she just wanted to make a note of it. Small victories, you know. But actually worryingly was the weird hesitation before her friend moved to fix her hat. Admittedly, at the time, Scootaloo had gotten a bit tense. Not when she had first moved, but when she paused. It wasn’t expected, and it kinda threw her off. Afterwards, though, she didn’t quite understand it. Not wanting to settle on it too long, she just decided that Sweetie had wanted to fix the hat, but wasn’t quite sure how yet.

Jeez, this mare was absolutely infectious. Even though her fixation on the word ‘love’ made Scootaloo a bit uncomfortable, she couldn’t help but join in on the giggle afterwards. The fair did sound like a lot of fun! ...Not that she’d ever admit to Miss Cherilee that she had been right and this had been a good idea. She peeked at some of the rides that she could see from there. Honestly, the snowball fight was really tempting, but Cherilee’s voice rang through her head. ‘Remember, this isn’t just about you, you have to make sure you BOTH have fun.’ She didn’t think Sweetie was much of a snowball fight pony. Not REALLY.

There was still other stuff to do, anyway! Lots of stuff! And maybe once they were done running around and having fun, the snowball fight would be winding down and they could sweep in and conquer all of them. Wa ha ha!

“Hmmm…..Let’s hit the rides first!” she exclaimed, getting excited all over again. This was gonna be an awesome day. Carnival rides were always among her favorite things, and she knew that Sweetie Belle would love it too.

But there was something else that bugged her...Sweetie Belle knew quite a lot about this fair from just a quick peek...maybe she’d ask about that later.

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“Hmmm…..Let’s hit the rides first!” Rides?! Sweetie Belle's smile froze for just a second. Just. One. Second. Spike was waiting at the biggest, scariest roller coaster. And the line wasn't that long! She couldn't bring Scootaloo to that ride! She should have known her pegasus friend would want to go on the rides first! She should have suggested something else to Spike! Of course Scootaloo was going to make a beeline for that very ride! What was she going to do?! Play it cool, Sweetie Belle! If things aren't going the way you like, you need to take more control of matters! That was like, the unicorn's motto! Suddenly, she was all smiles and cheerful, bubbling enthusiasm again! "That's a great idea! Lets do the drop tower first!" The unicorn filly suggested in a tone that managed to be surprisingly firm and decided, though it still had every ounce of cheer and enthusiasm that a pony could wish for! "C'mon Scootaloo, its this way! Race ya! Last one there is a Diamond Tiara!" And with that, Sweetie Belle broke into a gallop towards the ride she had selected. Despite the momentary hiccup, she was already having fun, and she hadn't even been on a ride yet! This was going to work out just fine! It was all a matter of timing, that was all!

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Oh. OH. Is is ON.

Invoking the name of The Vile One was a sure fire way to get Scootaloo (or any of the crusaders, really) at least a LITTLE riled up. As soon as Sweetie Belle dashed away, Scootaloo was off. She may not be the fastest pony on foot, but it was amazing what the threat of having to BE Diamond Tiara could do to your ability to get from point A to point B. Somewhere between the front gate and the Dropper ride, Scootaloo passed her dear friend and, with a triumphant pose and a turning, skidding stop, won her bragging rights smack into a signpost.

”...M’ok!” She said, not sheepishly at all, brushing herself off and rechecking her hat.

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Dang! So Sweetie Belle was going to be a Diamond Tiara this time. That's what she got for challenging Scootaloo to a race. The active little pegasus wasn't just fast on her scooter! Sweetie Belle poured on the speed, but she just couldn't catch her friend. Then again, the unicorn considered with a wince as she watched her friend crash into a sign- Then again, maybe it wasn't so bad to be a Diamond Tiara. Sometimes. ”...M’ok!” Scootaloo called. No, She decided, remembering the hundreds of petty embarrassments and annoyances, It definite sucks to be a Diamond Tiara. All the time. She trotted the last few steps to Scootaloo's side, discreetly checking out the length of the line. Nice and long. Perfect! "I... I guess... you won!" she panted, managing a smile. It was just the littlest bit discouraging to see that Scootaloo wasn't even out of breath! Oh, wait, how long had she been here? Spike had to be close to the front of the line now. She had to get back to him! She needed an excuse! "Um... Ummmmm..." she began, worriedly, then it it hit her! Or rather, Scootaloo had hit it! "Are you sure you're okay?" Sweetie Belle asked, a little too anxiously. "You hit that sign pretty hard! Oh, I know what to do!" the filly brightened. "I'll get you an icepack!" Sweetie Belle waved off any protests that Scootaloo might have been about to make, such as the fact that she'd said she was okay, that it was already cold out, being winter, and that there was plenty of snow around on the ground anyway, if she needed a cold compress. "Don't worry about a thing!" the white filly insisted, cheerfully. "I'll be right back! You just wait here and keep our place in line!" And like that, she was off again without waiting for Scootaloo to give her an answer, running for what appeared to be the other end of the fair!

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Scootaloo started to say something about four times while Sweetie Belle was talking, but it didn’t lead to anything. Twice she was interrupted, once she had a hoof placed over her mouth, and the final time, when she finally managed to get the word ‘I’ out, she was gone. Scootaloo tilted her head. She had no idea what was going on, but she was quickly forming the opinion in her head that these ‘date’ things made anypony unfortunate enough to be on one completely lose their marbles.

But, as there wasn’t much to do aside from get in line (the ride DID look awesome enough to justify not worrying about her friend’s strange behavior), she did just that. The line moved rather slowly, she felt. Maybe that was a child’s imagination playing up the wait, but between every step, Scootaloo was staring hard at the spot she was supposed to step to next, when the stupid line would just MOVE ALREADY!!

She occupied herself by making a variety of annoyed sounds and gestures, including leaning hard against the railings they’d put up leading to the ride, prolonged groans of exasperation, and so much hoof-to-ground grinding that one of her potholes nearly tripped up the foal behind her.

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Five Minutes. Ten Minutes. Sweetie Belle had been gone quite a long time... Fifteen minutes... Was she getting an ice pack or an ambulance? Twenty- ah! There was Sweetie Belle, trying to race towards her and tie up her hair ribbon which had somehow come loose. If one had observed the unicorn filly a little closely, signs of frazzlement were just beginning to show on Sweetie's face. "I'm... back..." she wheezed, crawling under the railings that divided the crowds from the lines, much to the annoyance and disgust of the ponies in line behind them. Somewhere far in the back, a plaintive filly's voice cried "Not again!"... it might have been Dinky's. Sweetie Belle finished tying her ribbon back in place and managed a smile for her friend, a smile that froze when she saw Scootloo's expectant face. Something was wrong. What was it? Suddenly, she remembered what she'd forgotten! "Oh! The- the ice pack!" she stammered, "Th-they didn't have one! I'm sorry!" It felt kinda bad to lie to Scootaloo, and not even a very good lie, but at least it was only a little fib. Like a white lie. Those were okay, ...right?