Honestly, she rather liked winter.

Too often the sky was tranquil. A quiet, calm canvas in which her wings painted her next masterpiece as she seemed to defy the laws of physics. Her movements becoming an effortless exercise of perfected precision, basking in her own mastery under the warmth of Celestia’s golden rays.

But during the winter, the sky finally bared it's fangs.

Rainbow Dash took it as a challenge. A test to make sure that after a long summer of showboating and stunt flying, she hadn't ignored any of the essentials. The violent freezing air and harsh precipitation making every subtle motion of her wings a conscious, imperative decision, no longer able to merely rely on simple muscle memory.

However, such an exercise took a backseat towards a more pressing matter, and for the first time Rainbow felt some empathy for those who cursed the harsh weather. Her mind was screaming at her to make it to a certain filly, a task made all the more difficult by the stinging sleet and whipping winds. Perhaps she had taught Cloud Kicker a bit too well about preparing a textbook harsh winter.

Even with the hazardous weather reducing visibility, the small speck of orange in the back yard stood out like a sore hoof against the monochrome void that was a snow covered Ponyville. The wind stung Rainbow’s face as she swiftly dived down towards the filly on the ground below with a practiced shift of her wings.

The young Pegasus was a mess. Her eyes, bloodshot from hours of crying, squinted lifelessly into the swirling white void, utterly bereft of emotion. Snow had begun to build up over her frame, coating her mane and back with a thin layer of white. Even from this distance, Dash could tell her wings had been mutilated, a couple loose orange feathers littering the yard and dancing in the cold winds. The few clumps of down that were still desperately holding on to exposed flesh were buried in twin mounds of snow, the situation causing the young mare to shiver violently as her body did it's best to resist the encroaching cold.

Dash tried to approach quietly, but the sound of her hooves sinking into the snow tipped the filly off to her presence, and she quickly turned away from the Wonderbolt, snubbing her entirely. When it was clear Dash wasn’t going to leave, she let out a pained sigh. ”Finally decided to show up, huh?"

“Better late than never.”

Scootaloo’s voiced was laced with venom. ”What are you doing here? Aren’t you supposed to be in Cloudsdale? You know... Flying?”

Her words stung worse than the sleet tearing through her coat. Dash paused, settling on her haunches a few paces behind Scootaloo, doing her best to ignore the chill that ran up her spine from both the cold seat and her friend’s tone. “Something more important came up."

The statement caught the filly off guard, and her eyes wavered for a moment before she quickly steeled her gaze again. The young mare let out a huff, still ignoring the Wonderbolt.

Rainbow decided it best to broach the topic gently. "So uhh... You're a little underdressed for playing out in the snow. And whatever you're playing seems kinda rough. What's up with that?"

The younger filly looked down at her battered wings buried in the snow and her eyes narrowed. "Maybe if they get frost bitten, they'll have to cut them off. At least then I could pass for a skinny Earth Pony."

"Kiddo... How could y-”

"Just don't, okay?!" Scootaloo snapped, the outburst taking Rainbow by surprise. The filly had never once raised her voice to her before, even when she probably should have. "What is with you grown ups and trying to make me feel better?! I don't want to feel better about this! I can’t feel better!" Her eyes filled up with tears as they fell back to her battered wings. “This is what I want! I'm not gonna have these stupid things mock me for the rest of my life!" Scootaloo lifted a shaky forehoof and started piling more snow on top of her wings, her speech stammered through shivering teeth. "I couldn't take it... "

Dash got back on her hooves. ”You can't fly, Scootaloo."

The harsh truth lit the filly’s eyes up with rage. ”Stay away from me!"

Rainbow kept moving toward the smaller Pegasus, ignoring her protests.

“Stop it! Go away! What do you want from m-"

And then Rainbow Dash hugged her, taking her small, cold, battered body in her cyan wings, wrapped her neck around Scootaloo's. The world around the pair seemed to fade away, graciously retreating and allowing them this moment, idol holding fan as she shivered and whimpered in a mess of conflicting emotion. The whipping winter winds pelting Scootaloo’s coat seemed to subside in Rainbow's hooves, replaced with her feeling of her warm touch and gentle sound of her heartbeat. Scootaloo held her closer, afraid she'd lose herself if she let go. When Dash finally decided to talk again, she spoke past the younger mare, her voice strained and quiet.

"I'm sorry, kiddo."

Scootaloo froze, a confused gasp leaving her lips as her brain attempted to come to terms with the fact that Rainbow Danger Professionalism Dash just said she was sorry to her.

Rainbow ran a hoof through the filly’s snow covered mane. “You’re right. I have no idea what I'm talking about. I couldn't deal with what you're going through right now. I'd be going even crazier than you are.”

"But I can't just sit back and watch you hurt yourself like this. Not after everything I've already done to you..."

“What do you mean?”

Rainbow's wings squeezed her tighter and her voice somehow got softer. "I messed up yesterday. I should've been the one who told you back at the hospital, when you needed me but... part of me still feels like I made this a whole lot worse than it would have been otherwise. Part of me blames myself.”

Scootaloo hugged her tighter. “That’s stupid…”

Dash smiled. “Maybe it is. I think though, I kinda wish it was my fault somehow. At least if you hated me, you wouldn’t be hating yourself like this.” The older Pegasus sighed. ”But the truth is, this isn't anypony's fault. It's just who you are. This is a part of you now. For better or worse."

Rainbow steadied her gaze on the younger mare, her voice regaining some of its usual bravado. "So you own this, you understand me? I don't ever wanna catch you trying anything like this again." Dash's hoof carefully slid the snow off of her junior's wings, careful to not damage them any more than the young mare already had. "And I also don't wanna see you putting yourself down, thinking you're any less of a Pegasus, any less of a pony, because of it. Because that's horsefeathers."

With the snow removed, Dash could see more of the damage Scootaloo had done to her wings. While it didn't seem serious, a good amount of her feathers had been ripped out, and the flesh underneath was covered in scabbed over bite marks. She gave the filly an extra squeeze. "You know ripping out the feathers is pointless, right? It hurts like hell and they just grow back anyways."

Dash felt the filly nod. "I was just so angry..."

Rainbow gave her own wings a quick shake. "I can only imagine." The Wonderbolt sank back to her haunches, embracing the younger Pegasus in much the same way Shy would when she was upset, making sure to hold Scoots extra tight as she nuzzled her neck. "You know what your problem is, kiddo? And before you decide to be a smartass, it has nothing to do with your wings."

Scootaloo's voice was muffled as Dash felt her sink even deeper into her embrace. "What?"

"You've spent all this time trying to be somepony you're not. Trying to be me. And even worse, I let you."

Rainbow paused for a moment, waiting for protest from the young mare. When none came, she continued. "But being an awesome flyer? Being a Wonderbolt? That was never your dream." Dash let out a laugh, as if she was telling herself all this just as much as she was her number one fan. "I just flaunted it so much I made you think it was. And that one's on me, kiddo."

"Pegasi rule the skies. That's what we do. It's expected of us. But you know what? That makes it predictable. And predictable is boring.”

Scootaloo’s brow furrowed. "Wait... you think you're boring?"

The older mare loosed a nervous chuckle as she backpedaled a bit. "Well, I mean, I'm a Wonderbolt, so I can make flying awesome anyways." Rainbow laid a forehoof on Scootaloo's shoulder, making sure to look her square in the eye. "But you? Nah... you're completely different squirt. And I know you. This might be hurting all kinds of bad now, but you’ll bounce back. You’re not gonna let this get the best of you. And do you know what that means, right?"

Scootaloo's eyes started to shimmer. "W-What does it mean?"

Dash stood back up and smirked. "It means you're gonna do something new.”

Scootaloo's only response was a desperate attempt to stifle her tears.

Shaky hooves adjusted a familiar pair of flight goggles as Dash did her best to keep her own emotions under control. She took a few steps away from Scootaloo, facing away from the younger mare, gaze locked on the soft winter sun dipping just below the horizon, casting a subtle golden glow across the canvas of white that covered Ponyville. Dash loosed a short breath, steadying her voice. "So get back on your hooves, kiddo. Get back out there. And keep going. Go do something so awesome, so crazy, so amazing, so you, that even I won't be able to see it coming."

Rainbow Dash turned her head and gave Scootaloo the warmest smile she could muster, confident the goggles hid her own tears.

"After all, I'd expect nothing less from my little sister."

And then she was gone, the Wonderbolt disappearing ahead of a spectrum contrail making its way towards Cloudsdale, leaving the young Pegasus to her thoughts.

_______

The bandages went on quickly. She was pretty good at doing that by now.

Scootaloo let out a long sigh in between sniffles as she slumped back into the couch, tossing what was left of the bandage wraps aimlessly among the rest of the mess that was her parent’s house. The fireplace crackled and sparked as the kindling caught and the fire began to grow, the room slowly being infiltrated by a pleasant heat that penetrated deep, warming the young mare to her core. She let out another weary sigh as she let her muscles relax, tension sluggishly leaving her body as her eyelids became heavy, the warmth lulling her body into a relaxing trance. She sank further into the cushions, welcoming their soft velvet embrace. Her body was still weak from the cold, her wings in particular still ached, and her heart was still rather heavy. She cast a glance at the crude patch job she had done on her wings with a hint of melancholy; as much as she hated getting beaten up during her flying attempts, this was probably the last time she’d ever have to patch herself up like this, considering her circumstances. The thought brought some of the pain back to the forefront of her mind, and Scootaloo curled up, wanting to feel small. She rolled over a few times, sinking into the couch’s embrace, trying to find another comfortable position before getting lost in the intricate patterns of the worn couch cushion, her forehoof unconsciously playing with the end of her tail, a mindless mechanical motion to distract her from her thoughts.

The warmth hitting her back reminded her of Rainbow Dash, how her touch had made things just a little bit better. In Rainbow’s hooves, she had smiled again. That had to count for something.

Time passed, and the fire began to abate, burning itself out as the last few embers desperately clung to life. Scootaloo considered grabbing some more firewood, but she figured a bed and a blanket would be a far less nagging source of warmth to continuing her wallowing, so she put the cinders out of their misery and slowly made her way upstairs, heavy hoofsteps reverberating through the empty structure. She hesitated for a moment before entering her room, flicking on the lights with a sigh as she remembered the place was a mess after her temper tantrum this morning. The floor was littered with toys and tattered pieces of crumpled posters that had been destroyed in a fit of rage. Her mattress was still propped up against the wall, its blankets strewn about, covering up even more damage. Feathers littered the floor, seeing them now with more calm mind proved to be a rather eerie experience, her wings twitching beneath their bandages. An open window let in the frigid winter air, the area surrounding the window sill beginning to flood with snow. A particularly potent gust of wind cut through the room, threatening to undo the work the fireplace had done. She quickly weaved her way through the mess and slammed the sill shut, and with a heavy sigh, got to work on cleaning up.

One particular item gave the filly pause, lodged into the corner of the room buried under and she froze halfway to her haunches, grabbing the picture frame by the one edge that was still intact, careful to avoid the shards of shattered glass that had protected the now crinkled photograph up until this morning.

Her eyes began to shimmer. Staring back at her was her younger self, surrounded by the smiling faces of friends, the snapshot having ended the day of the Sisterhooves Social a couple years back, the one that had nearly ended in disaster after Rainbow Dash almost didn’t make it, her budding fame as a Wonderbolt doing its best to keep her otherwise attended. The proud Pegasus was floating above the group in the photo, her charisma dominating the composition. Scootaloo herself was a bit less photogenic, trapped bug eyed in an overly aggressive embrace from both sides by Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom, the pair relieved that their friend was okay after her breakdown when she thought Dash had abandoned her. Applejack and Rarity both were looking down at the trio with an amused smirk at their sister’s antics. Big Mac was off to the side, nearly out of frame.

There was one pony from that day that wasn’t in the picture, though. The one who had volunteered to take the photo, his blurry off-grey hoof obscuring the upper left edge of the photo.

If you need to talk, you know where to find me.

Scootaloo did her best to prop up the ruined picture frame on her dresser before digging through the drawers, quickly throwing on the first winter clothes she could find, draping an old scarf around her neck and shoving on a dorky looking hat she hadn’t even thought about in years. It was a bit too small for her now, and her ears had folded uncomfortably under its tight fit but she didn’t bother fixing it, instead bolting downstairs and out the front door, housecleaning abandoned in light of a new mission.

The snowfall had begun to die down, the torrent of frigid sleet giving way to a more casual flurry of fluffy snowflakes, the rows of street lamps spotlighting their delicate dance through the cold air. Hoofsteps echoed down the quiet road as tiny orange hooves clumsily making their way through the fallen snow as a young Pegasus mare made her way towards the home of a certain Unicorn stallion she had so shortsightedly snubbed this morning.

"I have an apology to make, too.”

Author's Note

aaaaaaaaand he lives!

Man…does it feel good to be publishing something again. I have a lot, of ideas halfheartedly kicking around in the ol’ noodle, but this short was something I felt was absolutely essential to get done at some point. The biggest complaint I had gotten about What You Mean To Me was that Dash got the shaft, but the whole time I had planned on penning this scene soon after finishing the story proper.

It’s just a shame “soon after” turned into “seven months later”.

Writing has been a massive challenge for me ever since completing that book. With something finally finished under my felt, I’ve been terrified of letting people down with whatever comes next if it didn’t stack up. I’m still more used to drawing, and at least with visual art its easy to tell if your lastest work is better than your previous.

Writing… not so much.

I still am not 100% satisfied with how this turned out, but I’ve never been satisfied with anything I’ve done, so thats no real surprise.

Add that to the whole “Running a YouTube channel as your only source of income with 50,000 subscribers waiting for new content” and getting pen to paper unfortunately ends up taking a backseat more often than not.

Whats next after this? Man I don’t even know. I want to start writing original fiction, but I’m still at a loss in terms of what I’d want to write. I have almost ten ideas, but none have completely clicked just yet. I’m still trying to find my genre. I think stuff like this, slice of life with a bit of a fantasy bend to it, is my jam, but creating an original lore and then not being heavy handed about it is tricky.

So perhaps I may go back to Trixie or Avert Your Eyes while I mull it over. Who knows.

…this really should have just been a journal entry.

Till next time folks.

-TO