The one and only...
"Come on, we've got to get everything ready."
A stream of rainbow shot over the top of Ponyville. The ponies on the ground shook their heads with a smile and carried on with their daily activities. Their friend had been panicking a lot this week; ever since she had recieved a letter in the post. The rainbow came closer to the ground and a blonde mare reached out to catch it. Out of the sky came the blue pegasus.
"Omph," she cried as she hit the floor. "What'd you do that for AppleJack?"
The mare above her titled her stetson hat and helped her friend back onto her hooves.
"Just trying to stop you worrying so much sugarcube."
Rainbow Dash laughed nervously and brushed her mane franitcally.
"Worrying, who's worrying?"
"Honestly darling, there's no need to be so overdramatic," piped up the white unicorn nearby. The other ponies all smirked to themselves. If anypony could be too overdramatic it was Rarity; yet she never seemed to notice it herself.
"Overdramatic! This isn't just any visit, this is my Dad we're talking about. My Dad!" The blue pegasus skipped on the spot, squealing with delight and terror. "It has to go perfectly. Oh no, my house! I have to clean my doorstop again." She shot back into the air and straight through the sky. Her friends watched her go, puzzled.
"What's up with Dashie?" asked the pink bouncing pony tying balloons to a banister. AppleJack shrugged.
"Well, it's the first time her Father's coming to see her in Ponyville," a small voice muttered. Nopony paid her too much attention. They all went on discussing what they thought could be wrong with their friend. Fluttershy tried to get her voice heard but still there was no reaction from the other mares.
"Maybe he was captured by zombies years ago and this is going to be their big reunion. Wait, what do zombies eat? Do they eat cake?"
"Pinkie, ah somehow doubt he's a zombie, but there sure must be something special about him." AppleJack turned to the yellow pegasus sweeping placidly next to her. "Fluttershy you've known Rainbow longest, don't you know?"
The mare nodded.
"Then why couldn't you tell us?"
Fluttershy said nothing.
"So why is Rainbow Dash so particular about this event?" Rarity pondered. Fluttershy remained sweeping, silent. Her pet rabbit knocked against her side and pointed to the ponies in front of him. She drew some breath, garnering the courage she always felt she needed when assisting in a conversation.
"It's the first time her Father's come to Ponyville," Fluttershy told them, still sweeping, avoiding eye contact, "she barely ever saw him when we were at flight camp together. I remember, he was her hero."
The others looked at one another astounded. They didn't even know Rainbow could have a hero that wasn't herself. It explained a lot though. Especially the whole being-over-dramatic behaviour; it was much the same way that AppleJack had often seen a certain young orange pegasus behave around her own cyan idol. Sort of cute really. But only if it didn't harm anypony else in any way. Imagine if your hero was a nasty pony or monster-- then you'd be in for some trouble.
"So Fluttershy." Rarity stepped closer to the shy mare. "What's this ruff-- I mean Father like?"
"He's--- nice."
"That's it? Just nice?"
Fluttershy blushed.
"I've only met him once, and even then only in the distance."
"So how'd you know it was Dash's Father then eh?" AppleJack questioned. It was in these types of moments the other ponies struggled not to remark on the similarities between the apple farmer and the soon-to-be-Wonderbolt's vocal patterns. Creepy.
"He looks a bit like her. He had the same mane." Angel prodded her. "Oh yes-- well-- he did look nice, but very lonely. Yes, very, very lonely."
"What about Dashie's Mom?" Pinkie Pie asked before swallowing a slice of cake which had seemingly appeared out of nowhere.
"As far as I know she died just before Rainbow Dash came to Flight School. Then again-- like I said-- I don't really know. You'd have to ask Rainbow about it."
"And what-- get kicked in the flank? No thanks."
Silence fell around the square and all of them moved off to do certain tasks. They grumbled to themselves if the task was too hard but tried to finish the job anyway. Honestly, they were looking forward to meeting one of their close friends' relative. It was their oppurtunity to see if Rainbow had gained any of her characteristics from somepony she knew and loved.
A carriage pulled up near the large tree in the centre of town. An old broken down sign stood on top-- the remnants of what it once was. The wind whistled omniously on the clear-skied day. 'No, seriously,' thought a gardener, 'where has that breeze come from? It's almost as if its arrival was to froeshadow some kind of oncoming traumatic event'. To which Roseluck had merely shrugged and carried on her usual duties.
Elsewhere Rainbow Dash brushed at the corner of her welcome mat, desperately trying to clean the scuff put there after many incidents of skidding onto her landing. 'Oh, it would never do for her Father to see her house mat in such a state. He wasn't happy with her choice to leave Cloudsdale and go to Ponyville as it was. She had to prove that he'd made the right decision in letting her go and live her dream-- to be a Wonderbolt-- something else he thought was unsutiable'. Rainbow's heart had almost died when her Father had told her she mustn't waste her life on her dream-- then again, his heart hadn't done too well when her Mother had died, so she forgave him for his lapse in judgement. He was still her idol.
A knock came on the door next to her, making her jump. He was early. And this mat clearly wasn't shiny enough. She scrubbed and scrubbed as fast as she could until she had to admit defeat. There was no way she could just leave her Father, Blitz, out on the doorstep like a common pony whilst she cleaned a tiny bit of dirt. How would he take that? He certainly would think her manners had left her when she'd left Cloudsdale, and then Ponyville wouldn't look too good to him.
Nervously, yet bravely she pulled open the door handle with a big smile. Outside a blue unicorn sneered back at her, her eyes wide and bright. The pegasus jumped backwards and struck up a fighting pose.
"You? How'd you get here? Get out! Get out!"
She shut her eyes and boxed her hooves, trying to ward away the danger at her door.
"Now Speedy, is that any way to talk to your old stallion?"
Her eyes opened. There 'he' was. The stallion she had devoted a lot of her heart to growing up-- holding hooves with-- TRIXIE?
Rainbow Dash looked on terrified. Her Father chuckled and tapped her under the chin before walking through the door and looking around her house.
"Well speedy," he said to his daughter, "you've done well for yourself. This really seems like a nice place-- big too."
Rainbow Dash remained silent. Trixie wandered over to Blitz's side and rested her head on his shoulder. He smiled, whilst Rainbow remained at a loss of what to do.
"And you've got yourself a steady job with the weather ponies here. Good for you."
Blitz turned to look at the rainbow-maned mare behind him. Still she didn't move from her fairly vacant expression.
"What's eating you speedy? Aren't you happy to see me?"
"Maybe it would be best if I go to check on my carriage," Trixie told him. He nodded and she moved towards the door. Then just as she was about to leave she said, "See you soon sugar lump."
Rainbow could have just about vomited there and then. Trixie left and the father and daughter were left staring at one another. Blitz rubbed the back of his head.
"So-- how've you been doing here speedy?"
Rainbow glared at him. He took a deep breath and walked closer to her but she merely stepped backwards away from him.
"Look, I know this might seem really strange--" he started. Rainbow cut him off.
"Strange?! Strange? Oh yeah because my Dad showing up with Trixie isn't strange." She snorted. Blitz rubbed his mane anxiously.
"So you've already met Trixie then?"
"Met her? She's-- she's-- horrible. Do you know how hard it is to fly with one massive wing?"
"No."
"Well I do, and it's all because of her. What's she doing here?"
The more she spoke the angrier she became. This was the worst thing possible to come about-- and she loved her Dad so much.
"Trixie--Trixie's my-- fiance," Blitz stuttered. "And I won't have you saying rude things about her young filly."
"YOUNG FILLY!!" Rainbow Dash bellowed, "She's the same age as me. You're going out with somepony the same age as your daughter!"
Blitz looked at the annoyance coming from the mare and puffed up his chest.
"Now listen here, Trixie might be around about the same age as you but that just means that you're an adult too, and should behave as one. You're behaving like a silly foal Rainbow Dash."
Rainbow's glare intensified.
"Better to be a silly foal than actually getting married to one." She excersised her use of impressive snorts again. Her Father copied this noise unintentionally.
"She makes me happy speedy--" His lips quivered and he sank onto the floor. "It's been a long time since I've felt happy."
Rainbow watched him slide downwards off his pedastal, a single tear falling down his cheek. She'd never seen him cry before-- not since she was very young. Her anger subsided slightly and she went and put her hoof awkwardly around her Father. She didn't hold it there for long-- not sure how to cope with affection. Anger was by far easier than this.
"I just don't get it. How did you even meet her?"
"Well-- it goes like this....."
I was visiting a friend in Fillidelphia-- they're eldest son was ill in hospital and they needed somepony to help work the business with them, which I said I'd do. Technically I owed them anyway since they looked after you so often growing up.
Anyway, I'd been given a list of supplies I had to collect from the city so I'd set off on the local bus and gone to find them. It was in the town that I'd seen her. She was performing some sort of magic show, nopony paying too much attention to her, poor thing so I stuck around a bit to watch it. It seemed only fair that somepony should take an interest in what she was doing; everypony else was shunning her and I didn't feel like it was fair.
Poor thing had tons of cuts and grazes on her body and didn't look like she'd eaten anything in weeks. As a proper Gentlecolt I had to do something-- especially since I had a daughter her own age-- so I offered to take her for a meal somewhere and get fed. Thankfully she accepted. I ran off to do my chores and then came back to her.
And that's how it all started. I began to go on a daily basis to give her something to eat and then we started going out to places together. We really hit it off you know? I never thought after your Mother died I would ever meet anypony to care for this much again-- but I did. And I've never been more happy speedy.
Truly. I just wish you'd feel the same way.
Eventually you're going to have to get used to it. Trixie will be your stepmother and-- I'm sorry-- nothing you say can change my mind.
