Chapters Rainbow Dash rushed past the third checkpoint. The wind whipped through her mane as she sped through the course, passing through the rock path of the course with ease. The only noise she could hear was Pinkie Pie’s voice over the megaphone on her hot air balloon, which was the only way she could figure out how the other racers were doing without looking. Thankfully for her, Pinkie had been giving constant updates, meaning Rainbow could focus exclusively on the course and still have constant info on her lead. Right after she passed through the rocky part of the track, she heard Pinkie’s update:
“Rainbow has cleared the rock path, making it look easy as pie! Coming in behind her is… ooh, ouch, it looks like the other racers are having trouble on these rocks. They’re slipping and sliding everywhere! Boy, it really looks like Rainbow has this race licked, everypony!” Yelled Pinkie. Once Rainbow heard that, her grin spread wider than it had been in some time. She decided that, since the other racers were having trouble, she could momentarily slow down from a sprint to more of a gallop for a bit, in order to get some energy back. However, right after she started to slow down, she heard Pinkie’s voice again:
“Whoa, hold the phone, everypony! It looks like AppleJack has just cleared the rocks! I can’t believe how fast she pulled that off! She’s catching up to Rainbow Dash, fast!” Yelled Pinkie.
Rainbow gawked. She was with Pinkie in that she couldn’t believe how fast AppleJack had passed the rock course. She took a look over her shoulder and saw the brim of AppleJack’s hat over the hill, and it was coming in fast. Rainbow immediately shifted gears and started sprinting again to try to keep her lead. Despite her efforts, however, AppleJack quickly caught up to Rainbow Dash. As they sprinted neck and neck, AppleJack turned her head toward Rainbow Dash and said one thing to her:
“Nothin’ personal, Sugarcube, but this Iron Pony has a race to win.”
Once AppleJack said that, she turned her eyes back toward the finish line that was now in sight, and started to inch ahead of Rainbow.
“Not on my watch .” Rainbow thought to herself, as she put all of her energy into her legs, focusing every fiber of her being on crossing that finish line first. Her legs were aching like mad and her face was beginning to turn purple as she slowly caught back up to AppleJack, but she didn’t care. She just had to win this race, and she wasn’t about to let some achy body parts stop her. Right as they were about to cross, Rainbow gave herself one final push, allowing her to just barely cross the finish line ahead of AppleJack.
The second she crossed, Rainbow collapsed to the ground, gasping for air. As her eyes slowly closed, only one thought ran through her mind:
“I… did it… ”
After a few minutes, Rainbow finally got her breath back. She reopened her eyes, got back up, and looked around her. She was standing on a pedestal, in front of several hundred ponies. To her right, on a much smaller pedestal, was a cyan colored pegasus with a blonde and blue striped mane and tail that Rainbow had never seen before. To her left, on a slightly lower pedestal than her own, was AppleJack, who seemed to be happy for Rainbow, if a bit bummed out. She then looked out at the crowd, who were screaming her name to the heavens in absolute adoration. She let off a smile as her medal was placed around her neck and the announcer called out that Rainbow was the winner of the Running of the Leaves. However, the best part of the day was when AppleJack talked with her after the crowds had dispersed. “Well, blow me down, Rainbow Dash. I guess ya really are the Iron Pony after all. Congratulations on the race!” AppleJack said.
“Thanks AppleJack. Although really, there was never any question that I’m the fastest!” Rainbow said with a laugh.
AppleJack rolled her eyes and said, “Maybe this time, but just wait till next year, Rainbow Dash.” Both Rainbow and AppleJack let off a quick nod, and went their separate ways.
“… And that is how I won the Iron Pony competition today, squirt!” said Rainbow Dash to Scootaloo, who was looking up at her in pure fascination.
“Rainbow, that’s… that’s fantastic! Congratulations!” said Scootaloo as she rushed to hug Rainbow Dash. She threw her arms around Rainbow, but recoiled a bit once her arms touched Rainbow’s sides. Rainbow raised an eyebrow at Scootaloo’s recoil, but quickly shrugged it off and started staring out the window. Scootaloo looked out the window Rainbow was staring out of, but was unable to see anything of interest. She then looked up at Rainbow, who looked… off. She didn’t seem to be very excited, which was odd, considering that she had won that medal just today, and yet it didn’t seem like it was the main thing on her mind. That was definitely weird, no doubt about it. After a bit, Scootaloo decided she had to press this matter further.
“Rainbow, are you alright? You seem… off.” Scootaloo asked.
“Yeah, well… I just really felt a weird sense in that race. It felt like the last one AJ and I had competed in, only… fair.” Rainbow replied.
“Umm, yeah? What’s your point?” asked Scootaloo in a confused tone.
“The thing is, it felt like… something was missing from this race. I feel like there was something in the last race that wasn’t in this one, aside from the multiple occasions of cheating.” Rainbow explained
“What was missing? The rope around your waist?” Scootaloo asked.
“The what around my what now?” Rainbow asked back.
Scootaloo’s eyes widened for a second before quickly going back to normal. “Nothing, Rainbow.”
Rainbow gave Scootaloo a confused look, then continued talking.
“I don’t know if I can explain it, squirt. It just… it really feels like my life is missing something. It’s like there’s something that I used to have in my life, but don’t have anymore, but I just can’t for the life of me remember what that something is. It’s just really weird. Any ideas on what that something could be, squirt?” Rainbow asked.
Scootaloo’s eyes widened to the size of saucers for a moment. However, they quickly dilated back to normal as Scootaloo quickly said, “No idea, nope, none whatsoever!”
Rainbow looked at her with a confused glance, then sighed and said, “Yeah, I guess there’s no way you could know, huh Scoot?” Scootaloo let off a nervous nod.
“Maybe I’m just really tired. It was a really long day for me, Y’know? I’m sure a good night sleep will make me feel all better!” Rainbow said with a small laugh.
Scootaloo also let off a small laugh and said, “Alrighty, then. Goodnight, Rainbow!”
“Night, Scoot.” Rainbow said as she headed off to bed. As Rainbow headed up the stairs, Scootaloo only had one thing going through her mind:
“…What if she finds out? ”
Rainbow tossed and turned, trying her hardest to get to sleep. However, despite her constant attempts to get comfortable, she simply couldn’t sleep. Whatever was missing was the only thing that she could think of, and now it wouldn’t even let her go to bed. After a half hour of tossing and turning, Rainbow decided that she needed to talk with one of her friends about this. Rainbow rushed to the phone, and dialed in Pinkie’s number, as Pinkie was the only one who was ever up this late. She didn’t have to wait for long, because immediately after she dialed the number, she heard Pinkie’s voice on the other end saying, “Hello? Pinkie Pie here!”
“Hey, Pinkie Pie. It’s Rainbow Dash.”
“Ooohh, Dashie! I’m so glad you’re calling! Listen, I’m currently working on something that I want you to hear about! You see, I was thinking about gems the other day. I mean, ponies like us can’t eat them, yet Spike seems to absolutely love them! That got me thinking about all the flavors we must be missing out on! Omigosh, can you imagine them?? It made me so excited that I decided that I’d try to make something that’ll allow ponies to eat gems as easily as anything else! What do you think??” asked Pinkie Pie, who sounded like she had said the whole thing without taking a breather.
Rainbow removed her ear from the phone and took a look at it for a second, trying to figure out Pinkie’s mind set. When that failed, she put the phone back to her ear and said, “It’s, umm, definitely… something.”
“Isn’t it though? Omigosh, this is the greatest idea ever! I can’t believe nopony’s ever thought of doing this before!”
“Probably for good reason .” Rainbow thought to herself.
“Anyway, why are you calling this late, Rainbow?” asked Pinkie.
“Oh! Right. You see, I’ve been having a really hard time sleeping tonight.”
“Ooh, that’s no fun. Something on your mind?”
“You could say that. It feels like…”
“WAIT!!! ” yelled Pinkie Pie suddenly, hurting Rainbow’s ear.
“What?” Rainbow asked.
Pinkie remained quiet for a moment, before whispering, “I think we should talk in person, away from here. I don’t want to wake up Pound and Pumpkin.”
“If you don’t want to wake them up, then why did you just yell wait at the top of your lungs??” Rainbow asked.
“I wanted to make sure you actually waited, of course! Anyway, meet me by the lake. If you want to talk, I’ll be there waiting for you. Off I go!” said Pinkie Pie, just before she hung up the phone, leaving Rainbow in silence.
“I swear, I will never understand that pony.” Rainbow muttered to herself as she went outside and headed for the lake.
_________________________________________________________________________________________
It was about a quarter till midnight when Rainbow arrived at the lake. The moonlight was reflecting off of the water, which made for quite a pretty sight. Rainbow stood in awe of it for a moment, then looked up and saw Pinkie Pie sitting on the edge of the dock, her lower legs hanging over the edge. Rainbow tilted her head at the odd way Pinkie was sitting, then walked up next to Pinkie and said, “Hey, Pinkie Pie. What’s with the odd sitting position?”
Pinkie turned her head once she heard Rainbow’s voice and said, “Oh, hi Rainbow! I was just trying something out. I was talking with Lyra the other day, and she said that it really feels comfy when you sit on your rear with your legs dangling over the edge. I was skeptical, but it turns out she’s right; this is really comfy! Try it!”
Rainbow shrugged, then sat down on the dock in the same way that Pinkie was sitting. “Huh. What do you know?” Rainbow said as she felt her legs dangle. Pinkie was right: this was pretty comfy. Pinkie then turned her head toward Rainbow and asked, “So, what’s been on your mind, Rainbow?”
Rainbow sighed and said, “Well Pinkie, I just haven’t felt… complete recently, I suppose is the best way to put it.”
“Complete? Like how?” asked Pinkie.
“It just feels like something is missing from my life, that’s all.” Rainbow replied.
“Like somepony else or something?”
“I don’t think so. It feels more like a part of me is missing from my life.”
“What part? Is it my fault?! Am I the missing part?! Ohmigosh, Dashie, I’m so sorry that I’m not a good enough friend! I promise I’ll do better!” said Pinkie apologetically.
“What? No, it’s not your fault, Pinkie! You and the others are the best things that I could ever have! It’s just, I should be content, but recently… I’ve just felt that something in my life is wrong.” Rainbow explained.
“Well, maybe we could figure out what’s wrong by seeing what’s not wrong! What do you have now that you feel should make you content?”
“Well, let’s see. I have five great friends, a really nice home, a kid who looks up to me like I’m her hero, and incredible athletic ability.”
“Hmm. Sounds to me like you’ve got it made!” Pinkie said enthusiastically.
“I know it does, but… I… I just can’t convince myself of that. I must sound incredibly selfish right now, huh?” Rainbow asked somewhat sheepishly.
Pinkie shrugged and said, “Eh, not really. We’ve both had more selfish moments then this. But instead of looking into that, why don’t we try seeing when these thoughts came up?”
“Hmm…”
“Well?” asked Pinkie.
“…They’ve been around in my head off and on for as long as I can remember, but it’s never been this big before.” Rainbow replied after a bit of contemplation.
“Why did it come into your mind this time?”
“Well… I think it was due to Scootaloo’s odd behavior.”
“Scootaloo, huh? How was she acting strangely?”
“She just seemed really… twitchy. When she gave me a hug after I told her about the race, she recoiled a bit, as if her arms had touched something weird. In addition to that, she seemed really jumpy when I asked her about it.” Rainbow explained.
“Maybe your sides feel different from the rest of you? Maybe they feel like sharkskin! I bet that’s it! They must feel…” started Pinkie as she rubbed her hoof along Rainbow’s sides, than around her back and neck.
“…Just like the rest of you?” Pinkie finished in confusion.
“Yeah, it’s weird. It’s like she was expecting something different than what she felt in that hug.” Rainbow said. Pinkie didn't reply for a moment, and instead appeared to go deep into thought about that. After a few seconds, Pinkie's head shot up, as if she had figured out the answer.
“Ooh, I know!! I bet it’s not what she felt, but what she didn’t feel!” said Pinkie excitedly.
Rainbow scratched her head in confusion and said, “I don’t follow.”
“Think about it, Dashie! When she gave you that hug, she was expecting to feel something on your sides. However, they weren’t there! So, what do you think she was expecting to feel, that can only be felt on your sides?” Pinkie asked.
“Umm…”
“Oh COME ON , Rainbow Dash, isn’t it obvious? She was expecting to feel your wings!” Pinkie exclaimed.
“I don’t have wings, Pinkie. Scootaloo knows that. Heck, everypony knows that! Why in Equestria would she be expecting to feel wings?” asked Rainbow skeptically. Pinkie tilted her head, and went back into thought. After a moment, Pinkie Pie gave an answer.
“Umm, maybe she sees you as a Pegasus like her, even though you’re an earth pony? I’ve heard of sisters being the closest thing to a mother somepony has ever had, so isn’t it possible that she has such a close relationship to you that she sees you not only as a sister, but also a Pegasus, despite the fact that you are technically neither?” asked Pinkie Pie.
“That’s…” began Rainbow, before she stopped and thought about it. After a moment she continued.
“…actually possible, I guess. That would explain why she flinched: she was so caught up in her illusion of me as a Pegasus that she would be a bit shocked that she felt no wings.”
“That’s what I think, Rainbow. Does that help with your missing feeling?”
“…Not really. That moment may explain Scootaloo’s odd behavior, but it doesn’t explain why I’ve been feeling like something was missing off and on since forever ago.”
“Well, I’m no psychiatrist, but if I were to give advice, I’d say don’t worry about it too much. Maybe this’ll go away, maybe it won’t, but I wouldn’t get hung up on it. If you keep living life to the fullest, and doing everything that you feel is important, then you’ll eventually feel completed. And who knows? Maybe one day you will discover the one thing that you were missing! I mean, just look at me! As a filly, I never would’ve dreamed that the thing I was missing from my life was party planning, and yet here I am now, as Ponyville’s designated party pony! If you just complete what you feel is important, I’m sure what’s missing will come up sooner or later! Does that make sense to you, Rainbow Dash?” Pinkie Pie asked.
Rainbow stared at Pinkie for a second, then sighed and said, “You know what? You’re right. I guess I am being a little selfish, being so self-absorbed with what I feel is missing. It’s a problem I’ve always had, even as a filly. I’ve always looked at myself and just felt inferior to other ponies. I’ve always felt like I should have the magic of a unicorn, or the speed and mobility of a Pegasus, but was instead just a ground-bound loser who could be easily pushed around by either one. And that’s honestly something I still have troubles with…”
“What do you mean? I thought that…”
“Besides our friends, Pinkie. It’s just… ever since that time in grade school, when I was verbally abused by Comet Dust and Afterburn…”
“Comet Dust? Afterburn? Who are they?”
“They’re two bullies from grade school. Comet Dust was a unicorn, and Afterburn was a Pegasus, and both of them really seemed to hate me. They often attacked me for my lack of a cutie mark, among other things. However, even when I got my cutie mark, they weren’t phased in the slightest, and simply congratulated me on discovering my talent for running away. I tried to explain that it was for speed, but they would only laugh and shift it to me being skilled at fleeing. It eventually got to the point where I…” said Rainbow, before stopping for a moment.
“Where you what?” asked Pinkie.
“I… I really don’t want to talk about it, Pinkie Pie. Can we please just drop it?”
“Oh… Ok then, Rainbow.”
Rainbow sighed and then said, “Oh well, as traumatic as it could get, it gave me a goal. It gave me a reason to push myself: to show that even without their gifts, I could still be the greatest athlete in Equestria! Everypony would know the name Rainbow Dash. That would be awesome!” she finished with a content sigh before lying down on the dock.
Pinkie lied down as well, and the duo looked up at the stars for a moment. After a bit, Pinkie said, “Well, I’m glad that you at least seem to be doing better now, Rainbow Dash. What do you think you’ll do next?”
“Next? Hmm… I guess I’ll ask Scootaloo about your theory. I think that your theory makes sense, but I just want to be sure. Also, I’ll probably ask her if there’s anything she’s hiding, since she seemed a bit nervous when I talked about my missing feeling.” Rainbow replied.
“So, you’re still going to pursue your belief that something is off, huh?” asked Pinkie.
Rainbow shrugged and said, “What can I say? Some ponies just let things happen to them, and some ponies make things happen. I’ve always been one to make things happen.”
“That you have, Rainbow Dash. That you have. Same time next week?”
“Are you crazy, Pinkie? It’s twelve o’clock at night!” Rainbow said with a small laugh.
“What? I thought all psychiatrists said that!” said Pinkie, also while giving a light laugh.
“But you’re not a psychiatrist, Pinkie! You said so yourself!” said Rainbow, who was still giggling.
“Never too soon to start!” said Pinkie, who was also giggling.
“We’ll see. Thanks, Pinkie.” Said Rainbow Dash, as she got up and walked back home.
“See you tomorrow!” yelled Pinkie over her shoulder.
“You too!” Rainbow yelled back.
Meanwhile
Scootaloo hid in a bush, listening to everything that Rainbow and Pinkie had said. When Rainbow had finally left the area, Scootaloo crept out of the bush and started to panic.
“Oh no, Rainbow really does know something’s up! I knew I shouldn’t have been so jumpy in that hug. Still, I can’t believe Rainbow has felt so low and inferior, and ever since foalhood, no less! And worst of all, it’s all my fault. If I told Rainbow about what has happened, and why she feels something’s missing… would she ever forgive me?” Scootaloo said to herself, all while trying to avoid breaking down and sobbing.
Suddenly, she heard a voice behind her say, “Why wouldn’t she?”
Scootaloo rocketed up and started to fly away, but was pulled back to the ground by something. When she reached the ground, she spun around, to see that it was Pinkie Pie who was holding her down.
“Again, why wouldn’t Dashie forgive you, Scootaloo? What could be bad enough for her to hate you?” Pinkie asked.
“Please Pinkie Pie, you don’t understand. I have accidentally taken away one of the most important things in Rainbow’s life, all for my own selfish intentions! She’d never forgive me if she knew what I’ve done…” said Scootaloo as she sniffled a bit.
Pinkie put a hoof around Scootaloo and said, “Scootaloo, don’t worry, you can tell me. I can keep quiet about it if you want me to.”
“But… but it’ll sound so crazy. Nopony would ever believe it.”
“Try me.” Said Pinkie Pie in a more serious tone than Scootaloo had ever heard her sound in her life.
“Well… ok. But you have to promise not to tell Rainbow Dash about this, okay?”
“Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye!” Said Pinkie, as she moved her right hoof around a bit while saying it.
“Huh?” asked Scootaloo in confusion.
“Oh, that’s just how I Pinkie Promise. When I do that, then it means that I swear on my life that I will keep my promise.” Pinkie explained.
“Oh, okay then. I’ll talk. Let me explain everything…” said Scootaloo.
“Well, it all started about a week ago, during recess." Scootaloo began. "Applebloom and Sweetie Belle were sick that day, so I was the only crusader at school. I was just relaxing on the slide, looking up at the clouds, dreaming about how I would one day soar through them as easily as Rainbow Dash does, when…”
“Whoa there, Scootaloo! What in Celestia’s name are you talking about?” asked Pinkie Pie.
“Oh yeah, I guess I forgot to explain that, didn’t I? You see, in reality, I am… well, was a horrendous flier, barely being able to get off the ground. Meanwhile, Rainbow Dash is… well, was the best flier ever to grace Equestrian skies.” Scootaloo explained.
“But… she’s…” Pinkie began
“An earth pony now, I know. I know it’s hard to follow, but just stay with me. Anyway, I was just relaxing, when suddenly Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon ended up cornering me. They, as usual, tried to attack me with the fact that I have no cutie mark. However, for whatever reason, their taunts didn’t bother me that day. I ended up counteracting their arguments, by asking them what their cutie marks meant. Neither of them were able to come up with an answer, and they instead just wandered away speechless. It felt great! However, they didn’t give up. Later that day, they came at me again, but this time asked me a couple questions that eventually caused me to burst into tears.”
“What did they say specifically?” asked Pinkie Pie.
“Well, the conversation went something like this:
‘Hey Scootaloo.’ Diamond Tiara said to me.
‘Diamond Tiara, please go away. I really don’t want to hear anything more about you having a cutie mark, and me not having a cutie mark. I’m honestly sick of it.’ I said in response.
‘No, please listen. Diamond Tiara and I have a question that only you can answer, and it has nothing to do with cutie marks, I promise.’ Silver Spoon said in a somewhat kind voice. I was taken aback by the fact that Silver Spoon was actually being polite for once! I decided that I should at least hear them out.
‘Okay then, what do you want to know?’ I asked Diamond Tiara.
Diamond Tiara let off a smile, and asked, ‘What is your dream, Scootaloo? What do you want more than anything else in the world?’ I was shocked that she was asking me that, but I took it in stride.
I said to her in a proud voice, ‘I want to be the greatest flier in all the world! I want to be just like Rainbow Dash when I grow up!’
Right when I said that, I heard Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon start snickering.
‘What’s so funny?’ I asked.
‘Oh nothing. It’s just that…’ Diamond Tiara began.
‘Just what?’ I asked.
‘Just… do you have any idea how stupid that sounds?’ Silver Spoon said as she fell over while laughing hysterically. I was shocked that they were laughing hysterically at my life’s ambition, just smashing it into the dust!
‘W-why does that sound so stupid? I think it’s a great dream!’ I said to Silver Spoon.
‘And I agree. It would be a great dream… if it wasn’t coming from a handicapped Pegasus!’ Diamond Tiara said between bursts of laughs.
‘Handicapped??? What do you mean, handicapped??? I’m not…’
‘Oh give it a rest, blank flank. You obviously are.’ Silver Spoon said to me.
‘I thought we were going to leave that out of this! You promised that you’d leave that out of this!’ I said to her angrily.
‘Wrong as always, Scoots. She said the question had nothing to do with your flank. Neither of us said that we would completely ignore it for the whole conversation.’ Diamond Tiara said to me.
‘But… I’m not handicapped though. I’m not the only Pegasus who can’t fly…’ I said, although I was beginning to feel some tears building up in my eyes at this point.
‘Come on, dodo, who are you trying to fool? That excuse might work for your lack of a talent, but it won’t work for your lack of aerial abilities!’ Diamond Tiara replied. I was really mad at this point, and wanted to knock that smirk right off those two’s faces, but I knew that that would only result in detention, so I instead said something that I regretted almost immediately after I said it.
‘Prove it!’ I yelled at them. They immediately nodded, and parted apart to reveal that every Pegasus in my class was lined up right behind them. Diamond Tiara then took out a whistle and blew it, which prompted all of the pegasi behind them to fly about ten feet up and started performing some tricks, such as barrel rolls, figure eights, somersaults, and several others. As I watched, I couldn’t help but release a couple tears, since I knew what was going to happen next. Sure enough, after a minute, Diamond Tiara blew her whistle, which prompted everypony to return to the ground. She then turned to me and said, ‘You’re up, dodo.’
I gulped, and then started flapping my wings as hard as I could. I put all of my strength into getting off the ground. After about 20 seconds of intense strain, pushing myself as hard as I could, and feeling like I had flown miles high, I opened my eyes… and discovered that I was only about a foot off the ground. When I saw that, I gave up and stopped flapping, just letting myself fall back to the ground. The second I hit, I heard several ponies start laughing hysterically at me. I covered my face with my hooves and begged for them to stop, but nopony listened. After she had let me suffer for a moment, Diamond Tiara stuck her hoof under my chin and lifted, forcing me to look her and Silver Spoon in the eye.
‘So, do you get it now, blank flank? Do you understand just how useless both you and your dream are now?’ They asked me in unison.
‘I… I’m not…’ I began to say. However, Silver Spoon put a hoof over my mouth before I could finish talking, essentially silencing me.
‘Stop with your denial! Just face the fact that you are the only Pegasus in Ponyville who can’t fly!’ Silver Spoon yelled.
‘But… there are more pegasi than just our…’ I began.
‘Zip it, you waste of everything! We know that there are more than just our classmates! But guess what? Every single one of them can fly better than you can! Even the one that weighs 300 pounds and has wings smaller than an apple can fly better than you! Even the pony who can’t see two feet in front of her thanks to her crossed eyes can fly better than you! Even the Cakes baby can fly better than you can!’ Diamond Tiara said to me.
‘But… But…’ I said. I was trying my hardest to come up with any sort of counterargument, but was simply drawing a blank.
‘Time to face the facts, ‘Ms. Future Rainbow Dash’. Even a newborn foal…’ Diamond Tiara began.
‘…Would make a better Rainbow Dash than you could ever be.’ Finished Silver Spoon.
At that point, I just broke down sobbing. I knew that they would only use my crying as leverage against me later, but I didn’t care. I just couldn’t take everything they had said. In the course of a single afternoon, those two had destroyed my dream, my confidence, my… everything. I just ran away from that playground. Away from that school. Away from… everywhere. However, no matter how far I ran, I couldn’t escape the taunts that continued to ring through my head. No matter how far I fled, all I could hear was malicious laughter. After a long period of running, I finally ran into a cave with a small pool in it. I collapsed on the ground next to the pool, then looked down into it. I tried my hardest to see the pony I wanted to be in my reflection, but no matter how hard I looked, all I could see was… a failure. A waste in every single way. A talentless chicken. A disabled loser who couldn’t even do what every single other Pegasus ever can do without even trying! I placed my head into the pool, and started breathing in the water, all while crying. I figured that the best thing a talentless stain like myself could do for others is to leave their lives forever. However, after a few seconds, I heard a voice suddenly call out to me, saying, ‘Young Pegasus, why are you bawling in this place?’
I shot my head out of the water and took a look around. However, I couldn’t find anypony nearby who could’ve said that. I considered going back to trying to drown myself, but instead decided to see if I could find out who was asking that question.
‘Hello? Who said that?’ I asked.
Almost right afterwards, I heard the voice say, ‘It is not a matter of who, little pony, but of what. Although I have no name, I can tell you this: you are at the Pool of Desire. Since you have come here, you clearly wish for something to be different in your life. Is that correct?’
I once again looked around, but couldn’t find where the voice was coming from. Regardless, I answered the question it had asked.
‘Yes, I do want things to be different. You see...’
‘There is no need to explain. Your tears have already explained everything. You have been verbally assaulted by two of your schoolmates about your lack of flight skill. You ran away blindly, hoping that you could get away from their words. However, you only found yourself believing them as well. Is that correct?’ the voice asked me.
I nodded and said, ‘Yes, it’s true.’
The voice was silent for a moment, before it said, ‘Do you still want your dream to be a reality?’
‘I do, but I just don’t know if I can make it a reality. I mean, as much as I don’t want to admit it, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon are right; I can barely fly, and I’m one of the only pegasi in Ponyville with that problem. How can I ever fly as well as Rainbow Dash with wings that are as weak as mine?’ I asked.
‘Simple. If this is what you truly desire, then I can make it so that your wish will be fulfilled. However, be warned that desires are not free. If you get your true desire… then another who is close to you must be put through the opposite.’ The voice replied.”
“Let me guess.” Said Pinkie, interrupting Scootaloo’s story, “You took the deal, and because of that, Rainbow now has to go through the flightless suffering that you did?”
“Yeah.” Said Scootaloo with her head bowed down.
“Well… I guess I now know why she feels incomplete. But… why do you think she became an Earth pony then, instead of a flightless Pegasus that you claim you were? And furthermore, why does she remember being an Earth pony from birth?” Pinkie asked.
“Umm… I’m not really sure. The voice at the pond said that her memories of being a grand flier would be ‘locked away’, but it never mentioned anything about replacing all of her memories with new ones. Well, all except for the ones that remember our relationship, I guess.”
“Hmmm… I have to wonder one thing. You said this started a week ago, right?”
“Yeah, I’ve been living like this for about a week.”
“So… why is it just now starting to bug you?”
“Well, truth be told, when I first saw Rainbow Dash without her wings, I screamed a little inside. I was really worried that she would be… really depressed or something now that she could no longer fly. But no, she acted as if her being flightless and me being a strong flier was the norm! When I saw that, I figured that this wasn’t that bad. I was living my dream, Rainbow Dash was really proud of me for that, and I didn’t have to take abuse from certain ponies about it anymore. In addition to that, it seemed like this, while not perfect, was ultimately pretty harmless for Rainbow Dash, since she wasn’t moping or anything like that, and she’s still keeping up with her dream of becoming the best, although in a different context. However, hearing that she has felt as if a part of her was missing, and it’s been like that her whole life, and she even went through almost the exact same thing that I went through when she was a filly, eventually leading to her almost commiting suicide…”
“Whoa, hold it, bucko! How do you know that that’s what her childhood bullying led up to?” Pinkie asked in absolute shock.
“I know how she sounds and emotes, Pinkie Pie. With a tone like that, it couldn’t have been anything else.” Scootaloo explained.
“Oh, okay.”
“Anyway, at first I was simply worried about getting caught. However, when I heard her talk to you about her past, I was absolutely crushed. I have ruined Rainbow Dash’s past, present, and future, and all for a stupid pair of wings. I just… I can barely take it, Pinkie Pie.”
“Umm, Scootaloo?” asked Pinkie Pie.
“Yes, Pinkie Pie?”
“You’re saying that you’ve made Rainbow’s life miserable, right?”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
“But… she really doesn’t seem that miserable to me. I mean, sure she had a pretty bad past, but she seems content with her present and confident in her future! I really don’t see why this is such a big deal.”
“No, Pinkie, you don’t understand! I’m the reason she got abused as a filly! I’m the reason that she feels some resentment towards unicorns and pegasi! I’m the reason that she has constantly struggled with the inner pain of knowing that she’s incomplete, but not knowing why! I forced my hero to go through all of the crap that I’ve had to go through, and even more! And I did it all with no hesitation, no consent with Rainbow Dash, nothing! I… I feel like such a heartless monster right now…” said Scootaloo as she started to softly sob. Pinkie didn’t reply for a moment, and instead let Scootaloo cry. Once Scootaloo had finally finished crying, Pinkie started talking.
“Hmm… if this is really hurting you this badly, then why don’t you just go back to the pool and get this fixed up?”
“I want to Pinkie, but…” Scootaloo began before stopping for a moment.
“But?” pressed Pinkie.
“Before I answer, Pinkie, can you promise not to look down on me for what I’m about to say? It’s probably going to sound really selfish…”
“I won’t think any differently of you. I promise.” Said Pinkie, as she moved her right hoof around a bit.
“Well… this is really hard for me to say, but… I’m not sure there’s a good reason to return everything to normal. I mean, I know I’ve caused Rainbow a lot of past pain, but at the same time, if I fix this, I just have to go through more of the same pain myself, while she’s already finished with hers. And no matter how much I try to convince myself to go, I can’t deny that I haven’t made Rainbow’s present bad. She’s still a top class athlete, even though it’s in a different way, she still has her dream of becoming the best, and she’s still getting almost as much attention as she normally did. Really, the worst thing she has to deal with in the present is a few sleepless nights. Meanwhile, I’m living my dreams, and loving every moment of it! Well, except for the moments with Rainbow Dash.” Scootaloo said. She then sighed and said, “But those were always the best moments…”
“They were? How so?” asked Pinkie.
“Just flying in the air together.” Scootaloo answered.
“Wait a minute! Didn’t you just say a little while ago that you were a terrible flier?” Pinkie asked with a raised eyebrow.
“I was usually riding on her back.” Scootaloo replied. Pinkie nodded her head, prompting Scootaloo to continue.
“We’d soar over Equestria, looking down at everything the world had to offer, and using anything we saw as a way to start talking. It was rarely anything too extreme, but it didn’t need to be. We were usually content with just discussing our lives as we flew, undisturbed by the world around us. It was the only time when I felt truly secure. But now… when I do the same thing alone…” Scootaloo said before cutting off.
Pinkie nodded and said, “I think I get it. Getting your dream has meant that you feel that you have no true sanctuary anymore?”
“Well… I don’t know if I’d put it that way, since that’s not all, but yeah. Now, all I hear is quiet. Sure, it’s peaceful, but it’s also lonely. It’s like this deal I made has driven a wedge between me and Rainbow Dash that only I can see. Sure, we may still be close, but this deal has taken away the one time that we truly felt secure and unified. Rainbow doesn’t remember that, but I sure as heck do, and I can’t forget it.”
“Hmmm…” said Pinkie Pie as she immediately started thinking about everything Scootaloo had just said. After about a minute, she said, “Well, I really don’t know what to tell you there, Scootaloo. I mean, it would be easy for me to say that you should do one or the other, but that would really do you a disservice.”
“It would? How so?”
“Scootaloo, I’m not going to pretend that I know everything. I have never experienced any of the things you have. I don’t know what it feels like to have wings, nor do I know how Rainbow Dash was with wings. I have no way of knowing your guilt or joy. Really, you’re the only one who can decide what to do here. I personally would rather be down than have one of my friends be down, but that’s just me. If you truly feel that life for you and Rainbow Dash is better now than it was before, than keep things as they are. If you feel that life before was better, than go fix it. I’m sorry I can’t answer the question for you, but ultimately, you're the only one who can answer this, Scootaloo. It seems to me as long as you’re happy with your choice, Rainbow Dash will be happy with it as well. It’s all up to you.” Pinkie said.
“No, Pinkie, please don’t say that! I don’t know what would be the better choice!” pleaded Scootaloo.
“Just give it some thought. Eventually, you’ll know, I’m sure of it.” Pinkie said, as she softly put a hoof around Scootaloo.
Scootaloo kept silent for a moment, quietly staring down at the dirt below her. After a minute, she looked up at Pinkie Pie and said, “Ok, I’ll think about it.”
“Good to hear, Scootaloo!” said Pinkie Pie enthusiastically. After she had said that, she asked, “So, what are you going to do next?”
“Next? Well… I guess think about whether or not I should bring everything back to normal. In the meantime, I guess I’ll have to make sure not to do anything that would make Rainbow Dash suspicious. I don’t want her to think I’m crazy or something. What about you, Pinkie Pie?”
“Me? When I’m done here, I’m gonna go back to working on making gems edible, most likely.”
“Do I really want to know?” asked Scootaloo.
“I dunno. If you do, just ask Rainbow Dash!” said Pinkie happily.
“Um, okay then. Just remember not to let Rainbow know about this, ok?”
“I already Pinkie Promised you on that one! Don’t worry, Scootaloo; your secret will never leave my lips.” Said Pinkie Pie in a very serious tone.
“Alright. Thanks Pinkie Pie!” Scootaloo said as she started to walk back home.
“No problemo, Scootaloo. See ya later!” Pinkie said.
“You too!” Scootaloo replied.
It had been a week since Pinkie had talked with Rainbow and Scootaloo, and in that time, things had appeared to return to normal between the two of them. Or so it appeared. In reality, neither of them fully recovered from their inner feelings. Although Rainbow Dash no longer lost sleep over her ‘missing feeling’, it never truly left her mind. It still pestered her, but she was able to shake it off, for the most part. Scootaloo, on the other hand, was not so lucky. Even though she acted perfectly fine when anypony else (especially Rainbow Dash) was nearby, on her own she often found herself in an existential crisis, unable to decide one way or the other what to do, and often spent long sleepless nights lying in bed, looking up at the ceiling as she thought about it. On the one hand, deep down, she knew what the right choice was, but on the other hand, the thought of going back through the turmoil of her old life caused her to become petrified. As a result, she kept everything as it was, simply because she couldn’t work up the courage to go back.
However, this decision caused her to start drowning in guilt. This guilt of knowing what she did and was doing to Rainbow Dash kept building up inside her, until one day, during the Junior Speedsters Award Ceremony, where she finally bursted. She had just won the gold in the Speedster 350, which was the most prestigious race that the Speedsters had to offer. However, as she stood on the pedestal, and looked out at the crowd of faces, she didn’t see what everypony else saw. While everypony else no doubt saw hundreds of ponies screaming her name to the heavens, she saw… something very different. She had trouble explaining it, but it felt like she was out of place. It felt like she had stolen someone’s spotlight. And she knew full well why she felt that.
After the awards ceremony, Scootaloo hopped off of her pedestal and slowly walked home. She hoped that she could have some quiet time alone on the walk, but sadly received no such luck, as the second she was out of the crowd, Rainbow Dash was right next to her congratulating her on the race. However, everytime Rainbow said a word to her, Scootaloo felt some tears build up in her eyes. She fought these back for as long as she could (roughly 13 words), but was simply unable to, and started crying softly. Rainbow quickly noticed, and said, “Scoots, are you okay?”
“NO! NO, I’M NOT OKAY, RAINBOW!!!” She yelled out as loud as she could manage.
Rainbow jumped back in shock and said, “Whoa, no need to snap at me. Whatever I did, I’m s…”
“No, Rainbow, you don’t get it! This is… you… You should’ve been the one to win that, not me!!! You need to…!! It… I’ve been lying the whole… AGH!!!!” Scootaloo yelled, before suddenly flying away from Rainbow Dash as quickly as she could.
“Wait!!” Rainbow yelled as she started to chase after her. Unfortunatly for her, Scootaloo quickly flew above the clouds, making tracking her impossible. Once Scootaloo was out of sight, Rainbow stopped and considered what to do next. Although she wasn’t sure what Scootaloo was babbling about, she had made one thing clear: Scootaloo needed some time alone. Rainbow decided to go home, and ask more about this once Scootaloo came back.
…
Rainbow got home and waited for Scootaloo to return. However, she never did. As the seconds became minutes and the minutes became hours, Rainbow became increasingly worried. Sure, Scootaloo wasn’t exactly an indoor kid, but she was almost never out for this long, especially after something as big as winning a race. After 5 hours of waiting, Rainbow was practically beside herself in worry. She wasn’t sure why Scootaloo was gone for so long, but she knew that she had to go find Scootaloo, on the double.
After a minute of searching, she discovered AppleBloom and Sweetie Belle in front of the Town Hall, waving swords at each other. When she saw that, her pupils shrunk to the size of pinpricks, as her mind put together what could’ve happened. She immediately rushed right at the duo and slammed into them, forcing them both to the ground. She then jumped on top of them and yelled, “What are you two doing?! Where’s…”
“Oh, hi Rainbow. How have you been doing?” Sweetie Belle casually asked, interrupting Rainbow’s yelling.
“How have I…? What are you two doing?! Why are you waving swords at one another?! Have you…”
“These ain’t swords, Rainbow. They’re called foils.” Interrupted Applebloom.
“I DON’T CARE WHAT THEY’RE CALLED!! DO YOU KNOW WHERE SCOOTALOO IS OR NOT?!” Rainbow yelled at the top of her lungs. This caused both Cutie Mark Crusaders to start to tear up. Rainbow took the hint, and got off of them, allowing them to get back up.
“Sorry for scaring you two like that.” Rainbow said apologetically.
“It’s okay, Rainbow Dash. We probably shouldn’t have cut you off like that.” Sweetie Belle replied.
“Anyway, is Scootaloo with you two?” Rainbow asked.
“She was.” Sweetie Belle said.
“Tell me everything you know” Said Rainbow Dash. AppleBloom nodded, and began to explain:
“Well, a few hours ago she flew over to us with a gold medal around her neck. Once we saw that, we realized she must’ve won that big race she’s been training for all month. We congratulated her for her win, but she never returned the thanks. Instead, she just looked down and to the side, as if she felt really bad about somethin’. Ah asked her what was up, but she didn’t say a word. We tried to do some crusadin’ like we usually do, but at no point did she seem like she was into it. She was constantly lookin’ down, muttering ‘this is wrong’ to herself over and over again. Ah swear, ah’ve never heard anypony sound that down while stuffin’ piñatas in all my life! After that flopped, she just up and ditched us! Ah can’t believe she gave up after just one failure!”
“Do you know where she went?”
“Well, she said that she needed to go look something up, so I’m guessing she’s at the library.” Sweetie Belle said.
“Ok then. I just need to know one more thing.” Rainbow said.
“Shoot” said AppleBloom.
“What are you two doing with those swords?”
“We’re trying to get our cutie marks in fencing.” Sweetie answered, “And they’re called foils.”
“Isn’t that dangerous? Couldn’t you two get hurt doing that?” Rainbow asked.
“If we were using sabers, then yeah. However, these are foils. They couldn’t hurt a foal.” Applebloom answered.
“Well, be careful anyway. Don’t want you two to poke each other’s eyes out.”
“Will do, Rainbow Dash.” Sweetie Belle said.
“Well, thanks for the information!” Rainbow said as she started to run for the library.
“Yer welcome, Rainbow! Hope ya find Scootaloo!” Applebloom called out after her.
“I hope so, too ” Rainbow thought to herself.
A couple minutes later, Rainbow made it to the library. She burst through the doors and took a quick look around. However, she didn’t see Scootaloo at the library. She did see Twilight though, and immediately ran to her.
“Hello, Rainbow.” Twilight said casually.
“Hey Twilight. Have you seen Scootaloo?” Rainbow asked.
“I have. However, she left just a minute ago.” Twilight answered.
“Where’d she head off to?”
“I don’t know. She didn’t say.”
“Well, what was she doing while she was here?”
“Well, she ended up asking to look at a book called ‘101 Magical Places You’ve Probably Never Heard of.’ I was a bit confused, as Scootaloo never seemed like the book learning type, but I complied and gave her the book anyway. She then spent the next hour or so reading it.” Twilight explained
“Do you know what she was looking for in that book?”
“No. I wasn’t paying much attention to her, as I was reading in my room, so…”
“I know.” Said a third voice from the right. Twilight and Rainbow both turned their heads and saw Spike, holding a scroll in his right hand.
“I was down here cleaning up this level, and saw Scootaloo making a drawing of one of the maps from that book. I asked her what she was doing, but she kept pretty vague about it, only saying that she was gonna ‘fix everything’. She then handed me the map she drew, and asked if I could make a copy of it. I’m no artist, but I drew a pretty decent copy of it, if I do say so myself. She then took one copy and flew off, leaving me with this copy.” Spike explained.
“Do you know where she’s going?” Rainbow asked.
“Well, the place she x’d, according to the book, is a place called the ‘Pool of Desire’. Apparently, if you go about 40 miles north by northeast from here, you should end up running right into it.” Spike replied.
"40 miles?! Why is she willing to fly 40 miles just to reach this place?!" Rainbow yelled.
Twilight and Spike both took a step back, before Twilight said, "Rainbow, don't yell. I get that you're confused, but there's no need to yell at us."
"Oh... um, sorry guys. She's just been acting weird all day, and I really..."
"Eh, it's fine Rainbow. You don't need to explain. We understand." Spike said, cutting Rainbow off.
“Thanks. Anyway, can I have that map, Spike? I really need to find her, before something bad happens.”
“Sure, Rainbow Dash. Here you go!” Spike said as he handed the map to Rainbow Dash.
“Thanks Spike. You’re really helping me out here.” Said Rainbow Dash.
“Eh, don’t mention it, Rainbow. I’m happy to help. Good luck!” Spike said.
“Thanks” Rainbow said as she rushed out of the library. She didn’t know what Scootaloo was up to, but she did know one thing: She had to find her. And she was going to do that, no matter what. At least, she hoped so.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
The familiar sound of an alarm clock reverberated throughout Scootaloo's room, awakening her from sleep. Groggily, she reached a hoof out and slammed it onto the top of the clock, silencing the beeping. Scootaloo rubbed her eyes for a moment, and prepared to lie back down in her bed again, before a sudden realization hit her like a pile of bricks, causing her to shoot upwards.
The Pool of Desire. The wings. The promise.
Scootaloo leaped out of her bed, and immediately looked back at her wings. They appeared to be back to their normal size now. In order to reassure herself that they were indeed her original wings, she attempted to fly. After a minute of straining, she managed to reach a height of eight inches off of the ground.
Scootaloo lowered herself to the ground, looked back at her wings, and sighed. For better or for worse, things seemed to be back to normal with her once again. No more flying, no more awards... and no more living a lie. Still, despite her best efforts, she couldn't help but feel her face contort into a look of disappointment. Sure, it was for the best this way, but even so, Scootaloo couldn't help but miss what she had. Flying had been the best experience of her entire life, and now... it was gone. Scootaloo stared at her backside for a moment, before violently shaking her head.
"No." Scootaloo said out loud, "Get yourself together, Scootaloo! You made a promise to Rainbow Dash! You promised her you wouldn't mope and dope over this!" As she spoke, she said each new word louder than the last, in order to make sure it sunk in. "Rainbow, I promise that I will fly someday! I will be the greatest flier of all time all by myself, just watch!" she shouted. She knew that Rainbow Dash couldn't hear her, but she liked to imagine that Rainbow would've been proud if she heard what she just said. With a confident nod, she walked out of her room, and headed for her kitchen. Before anything, she'd need something to eat.
Knock Knock Knock
Scootaloo looked up from her half finished apple with a confused expression. Other ponies didn't usually knock so early in the morning, right? Why the heck would anyone come to her house so early? She took a final bite out of her apple, before walking over to the door. Before she reached the door, the pony on the other side started knocking again. Scootaloo wasn't sure who was at her house, but whoever it was sure wasn't very patient.
"Coming!" Scootaloo shouted, which stopped the knocking for a moment. She opened the door, and saw that nopony was on the other side of the door.
"Umm... hello?" Scootaloo asked, as she took a few steps out of the house to see if she could spy somepony running off. However, nopony else was in sight. After taking a few steps, Scootaloo turned around and began walking into her house... before the sudden sound of a scream rang out from behind her!
"Gah!" Scootaloo screamed, leaping several feet away in shock. She was about to slam the door behind her, when the sound of a familiar voice rang through her ears.
"Gotcha!" the other pony exclaimed while trying to hold back laughter. Scootaloo immediately stopped in her tracks. She'd recognize that voice anywhere. She slowly turned around, and sure enough, saw Rainbow Dash sitting on the ground in front of her house, loudly chuckling.
"Rainbow Dash! It's you!" Scootaloo exclaimed. She leapt right at Dash, tackling her to the ground. The duo collapsed to the ground, Rainbow chuckling the whole way through.
"You know it, Squirt! Just wanted to try a little prank on ya! Glad to see you doing so well!" She exclaimed, wrapping one of her wings around Scootaloo as she spoke. The second Scootaloo felt her wing, her smile grew enormous.
"Your wings! They're back!" Scootaloo said at the top of her voice, the excitement overwhelming her, "You can fly again! You're back to normal! This is so gre...!" Rainbow quickly put her hoof over Scootaloo's mouth, silencing her before she could continue. Scootaloo looked up at her hero, and noticed that Rainbow was looking at her with a puzzled expression, as if she had no idea what Scoots was talking about.
"What are you talking about, Scoots? When did I ever not have my wings?" Rainbow asked. Scootaloo's excited expression changed to one of confusion. What the heck was Rainbow talking about? Why didn't she remember?
"Don't you remember, Rainbow? That wish I made? The one that got rid of your wings? The Pool of Desire? Any of this ringing a bell?" Scootaloo asked. Rainbow looked to both sides, and then turned back towards Scootaloo.
"I have no idea what the hay you're talking about, Squirt." Rainbow said without hesitation. Scootaloo could only manage to continue to stare at Rainbow in confusion. She just didn't get it: How could Rainbow have forgotten? Did the pool do something to make Rainbow forget all about it? Or...
Scootaloo felt her heart sink as the new possibility entered her mind. Could it be... that Rainbow didn't remember... because it never happened. Was it all just a dream Scootaloo had conjured up?
"But... that can't be!" Scootaloo said to herself as she continued to run it though her mind. It couldn't be a dream! It was all way too real to be a dream! But if it was something the pool did... then why didn't it alter Scoots memories? Rainbow made this wish after all, right? So if her wish caused Rainbow to forget her past, than wouldn't Rainbow's wish cause Scootaloo to forget about these events?
"What can't be, Squirt?" Rainbow asked. Scootaloo didn't respond. If she had just dreamt it, it would explain everything, but... if that was true, then that would mean... nothing Rainbow said to her then was real...
"Scootaloo! Equestria to Scootaloo! Hello?" Rainbow shouted, finally getting Scootaloo's attention. Once Scootaloo was looking at her, Rainbow asked, "Again, what can't be, Squirt? What are you talking about?"
Scootaloo shook her head. She had no idea what to think. Was it real? Was it fake? Scootaloo wasn't sure anymore.
"I honestly have no idea." Scootaloo finally admitted. Rainbow took a look towards the horizon, just right of the sun rise, before turning back to Scootaloo.
"Well, y'know what I like to do when I'm confused?" Rainbow asked. Scootaloo shook her head. Rainbow stood up and stretched her limbs out, "I like to take a flight. No destination, no rush, nothing. I just fly and talk it out with myself. It makes it so much easier to sort everything out, you know?"
Scootaloo felt a grin return to her face. She knew exactly what Rainbow was suggesting they do.
"I mean, I don't have cloud duty today, so my schedule's clear. What do ya say, Squirt? Think a flight might help things along?" Rainbow asked with a smile on her face. Scootaloo felt her grin grow wider. It felt like it had been forever since she was last able to do this, and it was something she missed dearly. A chance to talk with her hero in the sky. She'd be darned if she missed it.
"I'd love to, Rainbow Dash!" Scootaloo said with a determined grin. Rainbow Dash nodded back, before lowering herself to the ground.
"Well then climb on, and hold tight, Squirt! We've got a long flight ahead of us!" Rainbow exclaimed. Scootaloo climbed onto her Rainbow's back, and wrapped her forelegs tightly around Rainbow neck. Once she was firmly holding on, Scootaloo held on as tightly as she could as Rainbow rocketed off of the ground at top speed. As Scootaloo felt the sudden wind rushing through her mane as they rocketed off, she couldn't help but scream in excitement. Rainbow knew how much she loved going fast, and the speed Rainbow flew at was beyond anything she'd ever experienced. There was no doubt about it; Rainbow knew how to make her happy.
After about a minute of flying at top speed, Rainbow slowed down and increased the duo's altitude. They were just below the highest layer of clouds, with nothing but the clear skies of Equestria below them. As the duo looked down, Rainbow turned to Scootaloo and said, "Well squirt? Things seem any clearer now?"
Scootaloo's eyes widened. In the excitement of the flight, she'd completely forgotten about what bothered her down below. However, it wasn't long before the doubt returned.
"Well..." Scootaloo began, but was unable to coax any other words out aside from 'Well'. After a moment of silence, Rainbow chuckled.
"Thought not. Well, I didn't expect it to clear out right away anyway. Luckily, we've got all the time in the world up here. Go ahead, speak your mind, Squirt." Rainbow said. Scootaloo sighed to herself. She wasn't particularly eager to tell this story a third time, but if Rainbow truly didn't remember, telling it again might jog her memory.
"Well, it all began a week ago..." Scootaloo began, as the duo flew together through the sky.
"...And that's what happened." Scootaloo said, after thirty minutes of flying. She had long since stopped looking down at the ground, and was now lying on her back, lazily running her hoof through the layer of clouds as she spoke. Rainbow Dash hadn't asked too many questions, but had made it clear she was listening through her responses. Once Scootaloo finally finished, Rainbow chuckled to herself.
"Well, Squirt, that was certainly quite a tale you told. If you said that to anypony in town, they probably would've called you insane." Rainbow responded. Scootaloo felt her heart drop, but tried to convince herself that the feeling was just Rainbow Dash beginning to descend.
"Do you remember any of it?" Scootaloo asked. Rainbow remained silent. Scootaloo waited for a moment, before sighing to herself, "Yeah, I was worried about that. I mean, it couldn't be a dream, could it? It was all so real! But if you really don't remember a thing, then that means that either that Pool did something to your memories, or..." Scootaloo felt her voice peter out. She didn't want to imagine that she'd dreamt it, because if she did, then that would mean that Rainbow hadn't said any of those things to her...
"There's been something about the story that I'm curious about." Rainbow began. Scootaloo rolled over onto her belly, and got her first view of the ground below. It appeared to be a desert of some sort.
"What's up, Rainbow?" Scootaloo asked. Rainbow looked around the area for a moment, before pointing a hoof towards one specific area.
"I'll tell you on the way. For now, you might wanna hold on, cause I'm about to pick up the pace!" Rainbow exclaimed. Scootaloo wrapped her forelegs around Rainbow's neck, at which point Rainbow dived towards the area she pointed to at an insane speed. They went so quickly, that Scootaloo was half convinced that she would get to experience a Sonic Rainboom first hand. The idea made Scootaloo so excited, that she spent the entire descent looking behind her, hoping to see the legendary technique first hand.
Rainbow, however, wasn't bothered by the speed, and spoke as if she weren't moving at all, "Here's my question, Scoots. Did this cave where you found this 'pool of desire' thing..."
Rainbow suddenly stopped her speedy descent, and lowered herself and Scootaloo onto the ground. Scootaloo immediately hopped off of Rainbow's back, and felt her jaw drop in surprise. She knew where she was.
"...look something like this?" Rainbow finished with a confident grin on her face. Scootaloo just looked up at Rainbow in shock. She'd didn't tell Rainbow where the pool was while they were flying, and she was sure Rainbow wouldn't have looked it up in a book for no reason. That could only mean...
Scootaloo turned towards Rainbow and nodded, unable to say anything. Rainbow just continued to grin as she spoke, "I got it right? Well, lucky me." Scootaloo felt her heart rising up again, but couldn't bring herself to say anything.
"I have to say, I really liked that bit at the end of your little story, squirt. Y'know, the bit where I said I knew you were gonna be a great flier someday, and you promised me you would become a great flier? I really liked that bit. Really spoke to me, Scoots."
Scootaloo began smiling from ear to ear, as she wrapped her forelegs around Rainbow. She didn't even know what to say; she was just so happy her idol remembered that everything else seemed to melt away.
"I guess the only question I have for you, Squirt." Rainbow Dash began, wrapping her wing around Scootaloo. Scootaloo looked up at Rainbow Dash, "Think that little promise will come true? Because I do."
Scootaloo continued to embrace Rainbow Dash. It had been one heck of a journey for her, but Scootaloo couldn't have been happier with the resolution. She knew she had a long way to go, but she also knew that her idol believed in her, and frankly, that was enough for her. There was only one answer to Rainbow's question, and they both knew full well what it was. Nothing left to do but to say it.
"Yes, Rainbow Dash. It will. I know it." Scootaloo answered.
Author's Note
I'd like to be the first to apologize that this took so long. A lot of stuff has gotten in my way since I started this, and the project itself had a lot of missteps that I couldn't have predicted. Between lost drafts, real life drama, and having to move house, this project has gotten delayed endlessly, and if you were looking forward to this story's climax, I can only apologize that it took so long. I hope that it was a satisfying ending for you, and I will make sure my next project is complete before I begin the upload process. It's only fair.
Cheers
Charles Spratt
Scootaloo flew across the desert at top speed, making a beeline straight for the Pool of Desire. She'd had enough of everything being wrong, and simply wanted Rainbow Dash to have her life again. Scootaloo knew that if she fixed everything, she’d go back to being harassed once more because of it, as well as being the butt of many a flightless bird joke, but at this point, she didn’t care. If that’s how things had to be, then so be it. It was worth it to have Rainbow back to normal. She only hoped that Rainbow wouldn’t hate her for what she had done.
After she'd been flying for about half an hour, Scootaloo finally reached the cave where the Pool of Desire was. She entered the cave, walked to the pool, and yelled out, “Hello?”
Almost immediately after yelling that, she heard the familiar voice say, “Greetings once again, young Pegasus. I didn’t expect your return so quickly.”
“Let’s just cut to the chase, voice.” Scootaloo said, who just wanted to get everything fixed as quickly as possible.
“Very well. What do you wish to change?” the voice asked.
“I want to go back to normal. I want to undo my first deal.” Scootaloo said.
“I see. And why do you want that?” the voice asked.
“I just can’t take the guilt I’ve been feeling. I’ve made Rainbow Dash’s life an absolute wreck. She suffers from insomnia, inferiority complexes, resentment towards other types of ponies, and just an all-around worse life, and it’s all my fault! I don’t deserve these wings, and Rainbow Dash doesn’t deserve this life! She deserves far better! She deserves her old life, and that’s why I want her to have it back!” Scootaloo yelled.
“Hmm… that’s rather noble of you, little pony. Most ponies who get their desires don’t care about the lives they hurt in the process. They just ignore the damage and enjoy the wealth. I am honestly impressed that you aren’t like that, considering what you’ve been through.”
“I know what will happen to me if this is undone. However, I think it’s worth it.” Scootaloo replied.
“I see. You really want things back to normal, and that is quite commendable.” The voice said.
“Heh, thanks” Scootaloo said while blushing a bit.
“Unfortunately…” the voice began.
The second Scootaloo heard that word, she felt her heart drop into her stomach. “WHAT DO YOU MEAN, UNFORTUNATELY?!” she yelled.
“You see, this pool handles desires deep within the heart. And while you desire this very strongly, it is no longer your decision. You’re not the one who dreams of something more, nor are you desiring to get to normal simply for your own sake. This life isn’t one that you can change anymore, at least not alone. The only way it can be changed is if the one you forced to endure your pain also desires your wish.”
“But… but…”
“Young Pegasus, I understand your concern. However, unless the one you wronged desires what you now have, there is nothing that can be done.”
Scootaloo collapsed to the ground, unable to believe what she was hearing. She knew that she had to fix this, but at the same time, how would she ever be able to convince Rainbow Dash to trek through forty miles of empty plains and desert? She could tell Rainbow that it would make Rainbow’s life better all she wanted, but she knew that Rainbow wouldn’t believe her without her memories of being a pegasus. She thought for a moment, then remembered the map she had Spike hold on to.
‘Wait… I’ve been gone a while. Maybe Rainbow is looking for me? Maybe she found the map? ’ Scootaloo thought to herself. She knew it was a bit of a stretch, but if Rainbow was heading towards her…
“Wait… what if…what if she came here? What if she made the wish?” Scootaloo asked.
“That would be acceptable. As long as she truly wanted that, of course.” Came the voice’s reply.
“Ok then, voice. I’ll have her here in a moment’s notice!” Scootaloo said as she dashed away from the pool.
‘At least I hope so .’ Scootaloo thought to herself.
Scootaloo immediately rushed for the cave’s exit, praying that Rainbow was on her way. She knew that if she didn’t see Rainbow during the flight back to Ponyville, then it would be virtually impossible to fix the damage that she had caused. She was just about to exit the cave, when she suddenly rammed right into something, causing her to get knocked backwards a bit. After she managed to recover from the knockback, Scootaloo looked up to see Rainbow Dash standing right in front of her, staring down at her.
"Rainbow!" Scootaloo exclaimed.
"Scootaloo! There you are! Phew, I'm glad you're ok. After you were gone for so long, I began to get a little bit worried about you, and went out to check on you. Glad to see you're ok." Rainbow said
"I'm glad to see you too Rainbow! Listen, I need you to..." Scootaloo began.
"No." Rainbow said, cutting Scootaloo off.
"No?" Scootaloo asked in bewilderment, clearly not expecting Rainbow to answer that way.
"If you honestly think I'm about to do you any favors right now, you've got another thing coming! You've got some questions you need to answer to first!" Rainbow exclaimed.
"Huh?"
"What's been up with you for the past week? For as long as I've known you, you've always been a very confident filly. However, other this past week, you've been acting really anxious around me, to the point where you ran away from home into this desert, looking for some sort of..." Rainbow stopped for a minute to double check the map she had before continuing.
"...Pool of Desire. Why?" Rainbow inquired.
Scootaloo paused for a moment, trying to think of the best way to respond.
"Am I just... not good enough for ya, Scoots? Did you just think I'm just... inadequate?" Rainbow asked with a hint of hurt in her voice.
"W-what? No! That's not true at all! Nopony could ever replace you!" Scootaloo exclaimed.
"Then what's been going on?" Rainbow asked.
"W-well, you see... um..." Scootaloo said hesitantly. It was clear what she had to say, but actually saying it proved difficult for her.
"Well what?"
"W-well, Rainbow, I... I..." Scootaloo stuttered.
"You what? Spit it out, Scoots!" Rainbow said with a growing level of impatience.
"Rainbow...I..." Scootaloo said slowly, before suddenly bursting into tears.
"Oh Rainbow, I'm so sorry! I'm really, really sorry!" Scootaloo exclaimed. Rainbow jumped backwards a bit in surprise.
"Whoa there, squirt. What are you talking about? Why are you apologizing? What happened?" Rainbow asked.
"You see, I ended up taking something really important from you, all because of my own selfish desires! I just kept it to myself! It's the reason that you have felt something is missing for so long!"
"Wait a minute, how did you know that I've felt that something was missing for a long time?" Rainbow asked.
"Look, Rainbow, this is going to sound crazy, but I need you to believe me. Everything that you've ever known, including your memories as a filly, are wrong! Nothing that you know is correct! It's only like that because of me!" Scootaloo explained.
"Um, Scoots, are you feeling okay?" Rainbow asked, her head tilted to the side.
"No Rainbow, no. I haven't been feeling okay. I've been living with the guilt of what I've done to you for the past week. I'm sick of it, so I tried to fix it, but..."
"Kid, can you please start making some sense? What did you do to me?" Rainbow asked.
"I... I took your wings!" Scootaloo said before closing her eyes and looking away. After a moment, she reopened one of her eyes to see Rainbow standing there, looking at her with a look of complete disbelief on her face.
"...What?" Rainbow said after about a minute of staring.
"It's true! You used to be a Pegasus, not an Earth Pony! At least, until I sort of, um... took them by accident." Scootaloo said sheepishly. Rainbow didn't respond right away, opting instead to stare at the young filly. After what felt like an eternity of silence, Rainbow finally spoke.
"...Kid, I think you may need to go to the hospital. You're speaking complete and utter nonsense." Rainbow said in a serious tone.
"No, I'm being serious! The voice at the pool said that your memories of being a Pegasus were locked away! That's why you don't remember it!"
"No, I'm pretty sure that I don't remember it because it never happened." Rainbow calmly answered.
"Look, Rainbow, I promise I'm telling you the truth! I can show you if you want!" Scootaloo exclaimed.
"Umm..." Rainbow said as she considered her answer.
"Please, Rainbow Dash, I'm begging you." Scootaloo said as she got down on her stomach and wrapped her forelegs around Rainbow's front left leg, "Please let me show you the truth!"
Rainbow stared down at Scootaloo, carefully considering what her response should be. On the one hand, what Scootaloo was saying sounded completely delusional. Then again, Scootaloo also seemed really convinced that it was fact, to the point where she was actually begging Rainbow to allow her to show her the 'truth'. 'She seems really upset over this. I suppose it wouldn't hurt to see what she's fussing about .' Rainbow thought to herself.
"...Okay, Scootaloo, since you're so desperate to show me this 'truth' of yours, I guess I can let you show me." Rainbow proclaimed.
"Really?! Oh thank you Rainbow Dash! Thank you!" Scootaloo exclaimed, getting slightly teary eyed as she said it.
"Hey, don't start crying over it. Just show me this truth you keep babbling about." Rainbow said.
"Right away! Follow me, Rainbow!" Scootaloo shouted as she ran into the cave with Rainbow in pursuit.
Scootaloo rearrived at the pool with Rainbow Dash in tow. Rainbow took a look around, before saying, "So, Scoots, where's this 'truth' supposed to be? All I see is an ordinary pool of water!"
"Just wait, Rainbow Dash. Just wait." Scootaloo said before turning toward the pool. Sure enough, after a moment, the familiar voice from the pool spoke once more.
"Hello again, young Pegasus." the voice said. The second it talked, Rainbow jumped back a little bit, startled at the voice that had just come out of nowhere.
"What the... who said that?" Rainbow asked.
"It is not a question of who, little pony, but..."
"Hey, don't call me little!" Rainbow exclaimed.
"...but of what." the voice finished, before it began speaking to Scootaloo again.
"So, I see you've brought the one you've wronged. That was rather quick."
"Yeah, well..." Scootaloo began.
"There is no need to explain." The voice began, "All I need to know is if your friend here wants everything to go back to normal."
Rainbow slowly turned her head toward Scootaloo and asked, "Uh, Scoots? What's going on? Where's that voice coming from? What is it talking about?" Scootaloo opened her mouth to answer, but the voice beat her to it.
"You have no need to worry. You are in no danger here." it said to her.
"It's not that I'm worried about danger... voice. It's just kinda weird talking to a voice without a body. It's just... weird, ok?" Rainbow said in response.
"Funny. Considering everything that has happened today, I'm surprised that you consider anything weird anymore, Rainbow Dash. " the voice replied.
"Hey, that's not..." Rainbow began, before pausing for a moment, "...Wait a minute, how do you know my name? You've never even seen me before!"
"Simple, Rainbow Dash. I know you because your young friend there has made my knowledge of you mandatory." the voice calmly said.
"What? What are you talking about?" Rainbow asked in bewilderment.
"Why not let your young friend explain?" the voice replied. Rainbow spun her head towards Scootaloo, who was looking at the ground in an ashamed manner.
"Well, you see, Rainbow... I sorta... accidentally... took your life away from you..." Scootaloo admited sheepishly. Rainbow didn't say anything, so Scootaloo continued, "You used to be an incredible flier, while I was unable to get off of the ground. I ran into this cave, and discovered that I could make any desire I had come true just by wishing for it, but in return... someone close to me had to go through the opposite. I... I took the deal anyway, because I really couldn't take the harassment anymore... I never thought that it would affect you the way it did... I'm really sorry, Rainbow..." Scootaloo finished, before she slowly looked up at Rainbow Dash, expecting to see a look of unbridled anger on her face. Instead, she saw Rainbow looking at her with a look of confusion.
"But... that doesn't make sense. If what you're saying is true, then... why don't I remember anything like that?" Rainbow asked.
"It was because your memories were locked away." the voice at the pool said.
"What?! How is that even possible?" Rainbow asked.
"I can make any desire a reality, Ms. Dash. Anything is possible." the voice said.
Rainbow slowly walked toward the pool, and looked down into it, seeing her reflection staring back at her. She silently stared for a moment, and then slowly began talking.
"So, you mean that all of my memories... They're all...?" Rainbow began.
"An outright fabrication. Completely fictional." the voice replied.
"But... they all felt so real... I... I can't believe they were all fake..." Rainbow slowly said.
"I know it's hard to believe, but it's true, Rainbow!" Scootaloo yelled out.
Rainbow continued to stare into the pool, not saying a single word, just blankly staring as she tried to piece everything together. After a while, she finally spoke.
"This is just so weird. This is all really confusing. This whole day has been confusing!" said Rainbow.
"I can imagine." the voice said. Rainbow remained quiet for a moment, before she continued to speak.
"So... you both say that I'm not who I remember, right?" Rainbow asked.
"Yeah." Scootaloo said.
"Indeed." the voice answered.
"But... if that's the case, then I just want to know one thing." Rainbow said.
"And what might that be, Ms. Dash?" the voice asked.
"Who... was I?" Rainbow asked.
"Well, if you truely wish to know, just take a quick drink of some of the water in the pool, and all will become clear." the voice said. Rainbow heeded the pool's advice, and lowered her head toward the pool, just before she took a small sip of the pool water. Right after she did, she got back up on her hooves and waited. However, nothing seemed to be happening.
"Doesn't feel like anything's happen..." Rainbow began, before she suddenly froze in place. Scootaloo ran over next to Rainbow Dash, and saw that her eyes were glowing white. Scootaloo was about to yell out to Rainbow, but before she could, she watched as Rainbow was slowly lifted off of the ground, as if by magic. Scootaloo slowly backed away from Rainbow, unsure of what was going on. It was right then that Scootaloo noticed that the crystals along the sides of the cave were suddenly flashing, apparently reacting to Rainbow. Soon afterwards, the crystals began displaying various moments from Rainbow's life for Scootaloo to observe.
"Are these... Rainbow's locked away memories?" Scootaloo asked herself. After a bit of observation however, there was no doubt that they were exactly that. Scootaloo watched as the crystals flashed through various key moments of Rainbow's life, holding on each one just long enough to identify what it was before going on to the next moment. Rainbow's first interaction with Fluttershy. The very first Sonic Rainboom. Rainbow's arrival in Ponyville, and the subsequent first meetings with each of her other friends. The defeat of Nightmare Moon, Discord, and the Changling army. The day she won the Junior Flyers Competition. The days she spent at the Wonderbolt Academy. The camping interactions between herself and Scootaloo. These and many other moments flashed across the crystals, causing Scootaloo to become mesmerized. After a few minutes of images had passed, the crystals stopped flashing. Once they did, Scootaloo turned towards Rainbow, who had been lowered to the ground. Immediately, she ran over to look at Rainbow's reaction. Rainbow's jaw was hanging open a bit, and she wasn't making any movements, instead just staring straight ahead wide-eyed at nothing in particular, practically paralyzed with shock. After a couple seconds of waiting, Scootaloo nudged Rainbow's side, which snapped the rainbow maned pony out of her trance. She spun her head toward Scootaloo, and stared with an unusual expression. Her expression appeared to display hurt, anger, confusion, and oddly enough, some joy on it all at once. Rainbow continued to stare at Scootaloo for a moment before she turned to the pool and said, "Can you excuse us for a moment, voice? Scoots and I have to talk." Scootaloo gulped, fearful of the events that were about to occur, now that Rainbow grasped the full gravity of their situation.
"But of course, Rainbow Dash." the voice said. Rainbow nodded and walked out of the cave, motioning Scootaloo to follow.
Once they arrived at the mouth of the cave, Rainbow turned toward Scootaloo and began talking.
"Scootaloo... Just... Why?" Rainbow asked with a hurt tone of voice.
"I'm sorry Rainbow! I'm honestly sorry! Please don't hate me!!" Scootaloo exclaimed.
Rainbow stared at the young filly for a moment, before letting out a quick chuckle.
"Heh. Do you really think I hate you?" Rainbow asked.
Scootaloo sniffled a bit, then looked up at Rainbow and asked, "Y-you're not mad?"
"Who said anything about not being mad? I'm just asking why you think I'd hate you over this."
"B-because... don't your wings mean everything to you?" Scootaloo asked.
"Scootaloo, let me make one thing perfectly clear: there are a few things that mean everything to me, but my wings aren't one of 'em. Sure, they're important to me, but there are more important things out there." Rainbow replied.
"But... I... I stole them from you! I didn't even ask you if you were ok with it!" Scootaloo exclaimed.
Rainbow nodded. "Did you know what you were doing?" she asked.
"Huh?"
"Did you know what you were doing? Did you know that I'd lose my wings if you made your wish?" Rainbow asked.
"N-no, I didn't." Scootaloo slowly replied.
"Exactly! Why would I hate you for something you did accidentally? As long as you weren't personally trying to hurt me, I can't hate you for it." Rainbow said.
Scootaloo breathed a sigh of relief, and said, "Thanks for being so understanding, Rainbow Dash."
"With that being said..." Rainbow began.
"Oh no. " Scootaloo thought to herself.
"What I am mad about is that you flat out lied to me! Multiple times!" Rainbow yelled out angrily.
"What? What do you mean?" Scootaloo asked.
"Remember that night after I won the Iron Pony Competition? Remember how I told you about my feeling that something was missing? You knew full well what was missing, didn't ya?"
"Um, well... yes." Scootaloo said as she shrunk down to the sandy ground.
"Then why in the buck would you say that you knew nothing?!" Rainbow angrily shouted.
"Because... well... I was afraid to."
"Why?"
"I...I didn't want to get caught..." Scootaloo said.
"Why?! Did you think I'd just flip out on you?! Banish you from my life? Is that what you thought?!" Rainbow asked angrily.
"Umm... kinda?" Scootaloo managed to squeak out. Rainbow let off a deep sigh.
"Scoots, look me in the eyes." Rainbow said, lowering her head to Scootaloo's eye level. Scootaloo rose up to her hooves and stared straight into Rainbow's eyes.
"Good. Now, listen very carefully to what I'm about to say: Even if I remembered my wings, I promise that I wouldn't have done any of that to you." Rainbow said slowly.
"R-really?"
"Yes, really." Rainbow said sincerely.
"T-thank you, Rainbow." Scootaloo said before wrapping herself around Rainbow's foreleg. Rainbow let Scootaloo hold her embrace for a few seconds before shaking her off. After Scootaloo had let go, Rainbow began to speak.
"Alright, now that we got that out of the way, why don't you tell me exactly why you did what you did?"
"Everything?"
"Yes Scootaloo, everything. Please tell me everything you told Pinkie Pie."
"Wait, how did you know about that? Did Pinkie..." Scootaloo said angrily.
"Scoots, I saw you sitting there with Pinkie Pie that one night." Rainbow said, cutting Scootaloo off.
"...oh." Scootaloo said quietly to herself.
"After I walked away, I took one last look behind me to see you telling something to Pinkie. At the time, I didn't think anything of it, but now I'm pretty sure that you were telling your story to her, weren't ya?"
"Yes, I was. Did you hear anything of it?" Scoots asked.
"Nope. I tried to ask Pinkie about it the next day, but she refused to give me an answer."
"Well, good to know that she keeps her 'Pinkie Promises', I guess."
"I guess. Now can you please tell me what you told her? I really want to hear your side to this." Rainbow said.
"Well, I guess there's no point in hiding it anymore, is there? I'll talk. You see..." Scootaloo said, before she began her story. Rainbow sat and listened intently for the whole thing. After about 25 minutes, the story ended.
"...And that's everything I told Pinkie." Scootaloo concluded, before looking up at Rainbow, who appeared to be deep in thought.
"Hmm... I see." Rainbow said after a while.
"Um..." Scootaloo said, unsure of what to say in response.
"...Well, I guess I now understand everything better. So, you didn't know that I'd be affected like I was?" Rainbow asked.
"No, I had no clue." Scootaloo answered.
"And it's been like this for a week?"
"Yes."
"I see." Rainbow said quietly, before lowering herself to the ground. Scootaloo walked over to Rainbow, and watched as she traced something into the sand with her hoof, apparently mulling everything over some more. After a while, Rainbow said, "There's just one thing that's bugging me about your tale, Scoots."
"Rainbow, I'm not lying! Honest this time!" Scootaloo exclaimed.
"I know you're not. I know you're telling the truth. There's just one thing that your story was missing."
"What?" Scoots asked.
"What are your opinions?" Rainbow asked.
"What? What do you mean?" Scootaloo asked.
"How did you enjoy your wings? Did you enjoy your flights? If the problem with me was a non-factor, would you say that you having wings was a positive experience?" Rainbow asked.
"Well... yes. But Rainbow..." Scootaloo began.
"I'm just saying one thing: how much did you enjoy it?"
"A lot! Flying was fantastic!"
"Exactly, which brings up my question: do you really want to lose it so easily?" Rainbow calmly asked.
Scootaloo was taken aback by this. She was expecting Dash to beat her over the head for stealing her wings, not ask for her opinions!
"But Rainbow... you love your wings!" Scootaloo exclaimed.
"You're right, I do love my wings. However, there are six things that I love even more."
"What are they?" Scootaloo asked.
"Those things are my friends. Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, AppleJack, Twilight, Rarity, and..." Rainbow paused for a moment before continuing, "...and you."
"R-Rainbow..."
"You and I both know that I would love to go back to flying again, there's no question about it. However, I don't want it at the cost of seeing any of my friends miserable. If me getting my flight back would result in you becoming a quivering wreck who'd be miserable that she lost her dream, than I'd rather stay grounded." Rainbow explained.
"But... wouldn't you miss flying?" Scootaloo asked.
"Of course I'd miss it. I was missing it even when I didn't know I'd once had it. The question is, would you? It's your call, Scoots."
"Rainbow... you... you'd really give up your wings for me?" Scootaloo asked while trying to hold back her tears.
"Kid, if nothing else, I'd at least know what I was missing, and I'd have the satisfaction of knowing that my sacrifice would've made your life better." Rainbow said, "Just think about it. I promise I'll be fine with whatever you decide."
Scootaloo didn't respond. She was unable to believe it. Rainbow... was she really offering her a choice? Scootaloo just stared into the distance, unable to believe what she had just heard. After a while, she finally took a deep breath, turned to Rainbow, and said, "Thank you, Rainbow Dash. Thank you so much... for everything."
Rainbow blew a bit of her mane out of her eye and said, "Eh, don't mention it. Just let me know when you decide."
Scootaloo nodded, and flew around a bit, considering everything carefully. She thought long and hard about it, before she finally nodded to herself, confident of what her answer should be. She flew down to the ground, and tapped Rainbow Dash's side, since Rainbow had become preoccupied and had started drawing in the sand again. Once Rainbow felt the tap, however, she snapped out of her trance and turned her head towards Scootaloo.
"Ok, Scoots, I guess you've made your descision?"
"I have." Scootaloo said. Rainbow nodded, but didn't respond, instead looking at Scootaloo expectantly. Scootaloo nodded and continued to talk.
"Rainbow, I love living my dream. I have flown to the highest reaches, won the biggest flying competitions around, have felt the true freedom that only a casual flight can provide, and I have loved every minute of it. The only downside was that you no longer could do any of that anymore." Scootaloo began. Rainbow nodded understandingly, prompting Scootaloo to continue.
"However, with that being said, that was a pretty big downside. The world felt a bit lonely sometimes, knowing that the one pony who I wanted to experience it with was no longer able to do so. However, the flying was still really fun. That's why, I've ultimately decided... that I want things to go back to normal." Scootaloo said.
Rainbow looked surprised by this, due to that not being the answer she was expecting.
"Why?" Rainbow asked in confusion.
"Because, as much as I love these wings..." Scootaloo said as she unfurled them once more.
"...You need them more than I do." Scootaloo finished.
Rainbow stood there with a warm smile for a moment, not saying a word. After a while, she replied.
"Squirt... I like your answer." Rainbow said happily.
"Thanks, Rainbow." Scootaloo replied, blushing slightly.
"However, before we get this whole mess sorted out... I want you to promise me one thing, Scootaloo." Rainbow said.
"Anything, Rainbow Dash! You name it!"
"Promise me this: Even though you lost your dream, never, ever lose sight of that dream. I'm sure you'll be able to fly someday, I just know it. Don't feel down about what you lost, instead use it as a motivation. Make it happen, Scoots. Can you do that for me?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"I will, Rainbow Dash! I promise!" Scootaloo said, her face filled with determination.
Rainbow Dash nodded her head and said, "Good. Glad to hear it!"
Scootaloo nodded and flew into the cave, Rainbow following close behind.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Rainbow and Scootaloo ran up to the pool. Once they had arrived, Scootaloo called out.
"Hello, voice? We're back!"
"Greetings again, young Pegasus. I assume you're ready to fix everything?" the voice asked.
"Yep, Rainbow Dash and I talked about it, and we've decided that we want everything back to normal." Scootaloo explained.
"I see. Is this true, Rainbow Dash?" the voice asked.
Rainbow nodded her head and said, "Yep, that's right!"
"Very well. You both already know what will happen, correct?"
"I do." Rainbow replied immediately. Scootaloo, however, didn't reply right away. Instead, Scootaloo stared at her wings, mulling everything over. She thought about everything she had experienced over the past week, both good and bad, and thought about how it was all about to disappear forever. She unfurled her wings one last time and rubbed a hoof along one of them, memorizing the feel.
"One day... " Scootaloo thought to herself, before she finally opened her mouth to speak.
"I do." Scootaloo said.
"Do you both truly desire it?" the voice asked.
"Yes!" Rainbow and Scootaloo said in unison.
"Very well." the voice said.
Immediately after the voice said this, a small spark of magic shot out of both Rainbow and Scootaloo's hearts. Rainbow looked down at hers in shock, unsure of what was happening. Scootaloo, on the other hand, averted her gaze, continuing to stare straight ahead. Each ponies spark spun around them for a few seconds, gaining speed with each orbit, until it was going so fast that it completely surrounded the duo. Right afterwards, the two ponies were slowly lifted upwards towards the roof of the cave. Rainbow Dash looked over towards Scootaloo, who still looked relatively calm, as if she were used to this, much to Rainbow's surprise. After a couple minutes, the duo heard the voice again: "Now it is the time, little ponies. Just close your eyes, and everything will be altered by the time you open them again." Rainbow and Scootaloo took one last look towards one another, and gave each other a quick concise nod. They then closed their eyes simultaneously, allowing the magic to swirl around them...
