One by one, each of the mane six leave Rainbows Dashes cloud home bedroom, their heads lowered in disappointment that they couldn't mend her sadness.
“Well, I just don't know what to do girls.” Twilight says, looking onward to her friends expressions, clearly at a loss for what to do at this point.
They each offer their own outlandish characteristic ideas to help Dash, but Twilight concludes that none of them would help their rainbow maned friend.
Right then they all hear a knock at the front door of the cloud house, hastily opening the door to find you behind it.
You had heard about what happened to her beloved pet Tank, a few hours ago and stopped off to get the Pegasus a gift.
“A rear gold leaf cover addition of a Daring Do book Dash hadn't even read yet would sure be able to make her feel better!” You thought while at the bookstore picking it up.
Upon seeing it through, the five ponies felt that even this probably wouldn't even be enough to help and suggested that you just go in and try to talk up Dash's spirits and try motivating her in some way. You did have a good way with words after all, and thought that it was a good idea to at least try.
You knock lightly on the door a few times, but apron audibly hearing her sobbing on the other side, you had decided it was best just to enter.
You walk up beside her cloud bed after placing the book down and see her curled up into a ball facing away from you, hooves covering up her face to hide her tears while her wings had wrapped themselves around herself, making a cyan blue fluffy ball of feathers and sadness.
“Hey, Dash.” You say quietly under your breath as already you feel kind of feel sad just from seeing her like this.
“Um, I just thought we’d talk for a few minutes. If, that's okay with you of course, I, I know this is difficult.”
Dash slowly turns back to you and lowers her hooves to wipe away her many tears as you see the fur under her eyes visibly soaked from all her crying.
“What, what could you possibly have to say to me to make me feel better huh, tell me!” Her face looks angrily at you, but you can see a hint of desperation in her emotional expression as well, desperation for comfort? desperation to be loved? Yes, Dash looked like she had lost a piece of her very soul today.
Something that you concluded, her friends had missed when they tried to help.
“I'm afraid that...I can't say anything that would help. And well, all I can do is be there for you Dash.”
“Yeah, be there for me? Like tank was before he hibernated! I can't go through that again, I won't.”
“I'm...” tears start to pour out of her eyes again as she turns away. “I'm better off just being alone from now on.”
What she said really made your heart sink. You got to do something before she ends up sad for the rest of her life.
You go over scenarios in your mind about how this could end up, but decide to approach her anyway. You had to try. Even if that meant getting a hoof to the face.
You gently sit on the puffy cloud bed and put a hand out to Dashes shoulder, feeling the soft texture of her dark purple and white trim bathrobe as you caress up to her neck, feeling her rainbow mane cascading around your hand.
“No.” You say in a stern but soft tone. “You don't have to be alone for the rest of your life. Dash, you deserve to be loved, you deserve to have friends.” You sigh gently before continuing. “You deserve to be happy.”
“And, Just because someone you loved isn't in your life anymore, doesn't mean you have to be alone for the rest of yours for fear of it happening again, I know you were looking forward to hanging out with Tank for the winter. But, he'll be back in the spring.”
“And...well until then, maybe I could hang out with you.”
She turns her head now to face you as you move your hand down her forehoof, resting it under her back as she flips around.
“You.” she sniffles a few times before continuing. “You really want to hang out with me?”
“Oh Dashie, of course I do!” You tell the mare as you wipe a loose tear away from her eye.
“I'll be your Tank, if you'll let me.”
She giggles at your last comment as she raises her hooves to hug you to which you oblige, pulling Dash close to you in a tight embrace. Her wings wrapping around your back for a warm wing hug.
“Now, are you going to be okay?” you say as she nuzzles under your chin and into your neck, trembling against you, feeling her soft chest and stomach through the open bathrobe press against yours as her strong heartbeat throbs against your own.
“I, I think I'll be okay.” Rainbow says, lifting her head up to meet yours.
“I have a question though.”
“Of course, What is it?”
“Do uh, do humans...hibernate, by any chance?”
You smile gently at her before replying. “Nope, you'll be stuck with me all year long.”
“Really? She says cocking an eyebrow. “Good, but if you're gonna be my tank, I'm gonna haft to be your rainbow.”
Dash tells you lovingly as she moves in for a kiss.
Both your lips meet as you taste the salt from her tears on them. Breaking off a few seconds later she says. “Hey, what's that over there?”
Dash says, jumping off the bed and trotting over to a nearby dresser. Going up into her hind hooves to look on top of it, finding the gift you had bought for her.
“D, Daring Do! The gold leaf cover special edition of which only fifty thousand were made? OH. MY. GOSH! This is so awesome!”
And just like that, the pain of her loss seems to be mended. “Yeah my assumption was correct.” You think, quite satisfied with your decision and hay card charge of 500 bits.
Without warning, Dash comes flying at you and presses you into the puffy cloud bed, kissing you on the forehead. “ Oh thank you thank you thank you!” Dash says pressing her body firmly into yours “I love you.” she whispers into your ear. “Yup, that book was definitely worth every bit.” you think trying to get as close as you can to the Pegasus, trying to merge with her small yet toned soft frame.
You just lay back on the bed with Dash now, watching her while she furiously reads the book like Twilight would a text book before final exams day.
Dash gets about a quarter of the way through before placing her Daring Do bookmark and closing the adventure novel. To which she notices you next to her now taking a nap. It wasn't that the story was boring, you just couldn't help yourself after a long day picking Applejack’s apples, mixed with the softness of the cloud bed, it just took all your consciousness away.
Dash smiles lovingly at you as she takes off her bathrobe and places it on the door, slowly crawling back up onto the cloud mattress to join you in your dreams, snuggling deeply with you as she wraps all her legs around you, falling off to sleep soon after from your warmth.
“So, how do you think it went?” Rarity asks.
“Oh, I hope it went well, they've been in there a while now.” Fluttershy adds.
“Think wa should go in, see how ya'll doin?” Applejack inquires to Twilight.
“No, I think she'll be OK girls, let's head back to the castle, I think the cutie map has another mission for us anyway.”
“Oh great! what is it this time, a cult, another dieing city?”
“Come on now Rarity, we won't know until we be getting’ there.” Applejack says pushing Rarity out the door of the cloud home.
Slowly, Dashes bedroom door opens, a violet eye peeking out through the crack. “I think they're all gone now.” The sneaky Pegasus says opening the door as you both walk out.
“Are you sure it's a good idea buying me skis, i'm pretty sure I'd kill myself on the slopes.”
“Oh come on! it's easy, i'll show you. But we also have to get fitted for snowboards too, I've been wanting to try that as well.”
“Yeah, not to mention I have no winter clothing.” You chime in, leaving for the Cloudsdale ski shop.
You never liked the winter before, but now that you have your rainbow, you have a feeling you're about to enjoy that time of year a lot more now.
The End.
