Masks 2 - Beneath The Facade
It had been a tough day clearing clouds over Ponyville. Some rogue cumulonimbus had blown over from the nearby Everfree and had taken longer than normal for Rainbow Dash to clear. Her usual rate of ten seconds had been out back to thirty which had put her in a foul mood. She checked her watch, 1.10pm. Time for a break. She had the rest of the afternoon to clear the clouds over Sweet Apple Acres, which would finally get Applejack off her back.
“I'll do a few stunts over the town square.” Rainbow thought to herself with a smirk. Rainbow flapped her powerful wings a couple of times, accelerating towards the centre of Ponyville. At this time of day it was guaranteed to be busy, which meant attention, and Rainbow drank in attention like a foal drinks breast milk.
1.13 pm – “What shall I do?” She wondered to herself. She didn't feel like a rainboom, besides, it always left her with a cramp in her wings that needed a couple of days massage to work out. Instead the cyan skinned athlete settled on an old routine, couple of barrel rolls, somersaults, forward and reverse flips and an inverted corkscrew to finish. On a low swoop just barely clearing the trees she thought she heard her name called out from somewhere below her. Turning her head just slightly she caught sight of a stallion sat on a bench in mid wave, a pile of cigarette butts at his feet. Rainbow flicked her ear at him in response, resolving to land and say hi. “Not bad looking either, wonder if he’s single?”
1.15 pm – Rainbow landed in a clear spot just a few feet away from the bench the cute (in her mind anyway) stallion was sat. Making her way over Rainbow was disappointed to see he’d gone. All he'd left behind was the used pile of butts on the floor. He'd obviously been here a while. “Bet he thought I hadn't noticed him.” Rainbow mused to herself. The thought was pushed out of her head as Pinkie bounced up to her.
“Hey Dashie!” Pinkie’s usual exuberant greeting washed over Rainbow like a tsunami. “You seen where that guy went who was sat there? I was handing out invitations to my party and I must've missed him, which is weird cos I don't normally miss people and then I realised I missed him so I thought ‘what can I do about missing him’ then I thought I'd come back and find him now I can't find him cos he's all gone and if he's all gone I can't give him this ticket which I really wanted to give him now I can't cos he's gone!”
Dash just smiled at Pinkie and waited for the verbal hurricane to die out, which it did once Pinkie realised she had to pause for breath.
“Gimme the ticket Pinkie I'll give it to him, I kinda want to find him anyways.”
"Okie dokie lokie!" Pinkie Pie reached up and fished the ticket from her pouffy hair, handing it to Rainbow. “I should get back to Sugar Cube Corner anyway, I want to try out a new cupcake recipe I found.” She leant in close to Rainbow and with a conspiratorial whisper said “wait till you get a load of the ‘secret ingrediant’, you'll love ‘em!” And with that Pinkie was off, merrily bouncing her way back to the bakery.
1.25pm – Rainbow wondered how she'd find the nameless stud muffin she was after. Element of Loyalty she might be, psychic she wasn't. At a loss for any other course of action she asked the passers by, but nobody remembered anyone sat there at all, let alone what he looked like or where he lived. Rainbow was about to give it up when she saw her old friend Blue Moon, the old police Unicorn was always doing his best around the town centre this time of day, reliable as ever. She approached him with a grin, making a mental note to catch up with him when he was off duty.
“Hey Blue, how's it going?”
The old stallion straightened at the greeting, saw Dash and smiled back. His greying black coat hidden mostly by his pristine uniform, his long silver grey hair neat as ever.
“Afternoon Miss Dash, what can I do for you?” His soft voice contrasted her own, and Rainbow was always amused at his formality.
“Awww c’mon ‘officer Moon’, how long you known me? I told ya its Rainbow.”
“Not while on duty.” Blue replied with a smile, brushing his badge that had his cutie mark, a blue moon with three craters in the shape of a heart, on it. “So, what's up, Miss Dash?”
Rainbow smiled to herself, she knew there was no point pushing the issue, Blue liked his protocols and formality. Instead she asked him if he knew anything about the stallion who was sat on the bench was, and if he knew where he’d gone.
As it happened Blue did know him, although not very well. Blue had seen him sit on the same bench every almost every day for about the past year, keeping to himself, quietly smoking his cigarettes. Blue Moon had spoken to him a few times, as it is his protocal to get to know everyone in town. The guy's name was Whisper, he told Rainbow, and Blue pointed her in the direction of the small street where he thought he lived. Rainbow thanked him and flew off, Pinky's ticket in hand and a plan in mind.
1.40 pm – Rainbow had knocked on six houses in the ten house street, so far with no luck. Nobody so far had heard of anyone called Whisper. She flew over the street, knocking on the door of house number seven. This time the middle aged mare who answered had actually heard of the guy she was after. She told Rainbow there was a stallion named Whisper who lived next door – the one Dash was going to try next – with his two young colts who were most likely at Cheerilees school by now. Rainbow thanked the mare and hovered over the dividing fence to land on the garden path leading to the front door.
"Colts huh?" She thought out loud to herself. Not a deal breaker by any means, although Rainbow had honestly never thought seriously about kids before. Too busy with the weather team and saving the world for the tenth time. Still, instant family might be awesome, she'd have to see where it went.
1.45 pm – Rainbow knocked on the door for the third time, getting no answer. Weird. The mare next door had definitely seen him come back home about ten minutes ago. The impatient woman as she was Rainbow wad tempted to buck the door open, but thought against it as it might not exactly create the desired first impression. She wanted to date him not scare him to death. On a whim she glanced up, saw what she guessed was a bedroom and bathroom window. Ordinarily she wouldn't pry into anyone's privacy, especially some guy she didn't know, hot as he was. She just had a, feeling. Something was off, not anything she could nail down, it was just a bad feeling.
“Buck it.” Her mind made up she flew up level with the bedroom window and took a glance inside. “Must be his room.” She thought, given the minimal furniture of bed, dresser, wardrobe and drawers, and that in her opinion it was way too clean for two kids.
1.50 pm – Rainbow was hovering beside the bathroom window. She didn't really want to look in, in case she caught him on the toilet or something dumb like that. Definitely not the way to make a good first impression. Although the glass was frosted for privacy the window at the top was open just a little. “If I'm quick, I can fly past and he won't notice I was here.” Rainbow flapped her wings twice, her burst of speed taking her part the window in seconds. Chancing a glance as she went past what she saw chilled her very soul. The stallion she knew only as Whisper was laid unconscious in the bath, knife in a loose grip of his right hand, blood streaming from wounds in his arms, pooling around him staining his jeans and shirt.
Not again.
Rainbow's shocked mind transported her back to Cloudsdale flight camp, to a scared teenage cyan Pegasus, who'd just endured her fourth week of constant bullying. Sat alone crying on her bed she had a knife in her hands, she'd added more scars to those on her wings, hidden by the downy blue feathers. She’d been about to draw the knife across her wrist when her roommate had burst in, rushed to her side and took the knife from her. Fluttershy had sat with her for hours that night, comforting her. Her life had gotten better since those awful days.
Rainbow shook herself back to the present, Whisper needed help, and quick by the look of it.
Blue Moon. She'd get Blue. Flying as fast she could safely manage she made her way back to the town centre, luckily she spied Blue still walking his beat near the town hall. Screaming his name Rainbow landed in front of the old police officer, ignoring the outraged looks on the shoppers faces, and hurriedly told him what she'd seen, and where Whispers house was. Without waiting further Blue had told Rainbow to make her way to the Ponyville hospital, while he teleported to the address he’d been given. Hopefully there was still time.
Rainbow took off, flying over the houses towards the hospital. She knew however fast she flew Blue would be there before her, sometimes she envied the Unicorns teleporting ability. Then again, although flying was admittedly slower it gave her some time with her thoughts. She thought about Whisper, hoping he'd be alright. Blue Moon would have him at the hospital by now, the emergency team would be treating him. “Please let him be ok.”
Rainbow Dash could only imagine what had gone so badly wrong with Whispers life that he felt the knife was his only release. She herself had been in his situation, although that was fourteen years ago now. Her memories of her awful time at the flight camp were as clear as ever, try as she might to forget them. She had only made it through with the help of her friends Fluttershy and Ace, though she hadn't seen Ace for a while since their break up eight years ago. She wondered what he was up to these days.
Rainbow shook herself as she flew steadily towards the hospital. She knew she could've been there by now, but there was no need to rush. She'd only be in the way if she barged in through the doors demanding answers. No, best take it easy, let Whisper be treated, let the doctors do their jobs, then go and see him.
Rainbow felt her brash cocky mask slipping as memories of her past began to surface, a past she thought she had long buried, a past only her and two other people knew anything about. She hardly knew Whisper, knew almost nothing about him or his family whatsoever. She didn't know why she cared about him so much, or why she was so worried for him and his colts. Rainbow had certainly never pegged herself as the maternal type before. Maybe it was because she had been where he was now. She knew how he must've felt, she knew the desperation that must've driven him to his actions.
Whisper would need someone there for him, whether he wanted it or not. Rainbow knew the months ahead would be hard, and she was determined to help him just as she herself was helped.
2.15pm – Rainbow Dash landed in front of the hospital doors, took a deep breath and prepared herself to go to Whispers side. Sure she wasn't family or a friend – not yet, but her name carried a bit of weight around town. Rainbow never liked to play up her connections or fame, well, not too much anyway, but she was confident she'd be at Whispers side before long.
She opened the door of the hospital, walked in and came face to face with the last Pegasus she ever expected to see. He looked just the same as he had eight years ago. From his bright orange skin, jet black hair and deep green eyes to his easy smile Rainbow could tell he hadn't changed a bit. The only thing different was the white doctors coat and stethoscope wire around his neck. She drunk in the sight of him, barely able to breath the name of her first colt friend.
“Ace Barding……”
To his credit Ace looked as stunned to see her as she was to see him, the sudden shock causing his orange wings to flare up at his sides. After a moment of struggling he succeeded in getting his wings under control and offered Dash a flash of the smile she had fell for back in Cloudsdale.
"Hey Dashie."
A quick blue hand whipped across his face, the impact stinging Ace’s jaw. An outraged Rainbow glared up at him, fury overtaking her momentary surprise and made her forget for the moment quite why she was at the Ponyville hospital in the first place.
“Don't you ‘hey Dashie’ me!”
