The Only Chapter in Which Nopony Shouts OBJECTION in Defense of the Accused
“So Rainbow Dash, what do you say, want to fly with us?”
Rainbow Dash stood in front of her heroes…
No, that wasn’t really right anymore.
When she looked at the ponies in front of her, she no longer saw her heroes. What she saw instead was…
Was…
Well…she didn’t really know.
In the past year, or at least since Twilight had become a princess anyway, the group of blue suited ponies had proven themselves to be disloyal to their own ranks, and as of yesterday when Rainbow had been threatened with banishment from the ranks of the Wonderbolts because they thought she had faked a letter to Spitfire’s mom, totally uncool.
Thoughts of their actions had been on her mind all the way to the mountain range that separated the frozen north from the rest of Equestria. Thoughts about how they had all pointed a hoof at her simply because she had been the pony to take Spitfire’s place after the mare had disappeared to search for a cure to a disease that her mom didn’t even have. Thoughts about how things had gone at the Academy, the Games, and all the other times Rainbow Dash had seen the Wonderbolts. As well as thoughts about herself.
But mostly, Rainbow’s thoughts had centered around the past couple of days, and how they had all turned on her because of evidence that was so cur…comfortable? Certifiable…maybe?
Well…she didn’t know the big fancy word for it, but it was that thing ponies did when they pointed to lame evidence and said that it proved an innocent pony was guilty. Like the way her rainbow hair was in the envelope that jerk had left to frame Rainbow with. And hay, they didn’t even bother finding it before accusing her! And it didn’t even prove her guilt anyway! It was really one of the things Rarity pointed out that said she didn’t do it!
The Wonderbolts were supposed to be the best her tribe had to offer, the best pegasi in the sky. But ever since she had gotten close to them, Rainbow Dash was seeing more and more how they were just…lacking.
So, the only response she could give the pony in front of her was... “No.”
Spitfire gave the pegasus a nervous smile. “Well I don’t mean right now of course. We're both way too tired for that, especially with how you dragged me back half the way here. The show’s in the morning, so we’ll have plenty of time to rest before we go on and-”
“No,” Rainbow repeated evenly, cutting Spitfire off as she worked to get the other words to come out before the doubts in her mind could mount. Although for some reason, she didn’t feel all that anxious about what she was about to say. “I mean, I don’t want to fly with you guys. Ever. Get somepony else cause, I’m through with the Wonderbolts, the Reserves...everything. I quit.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, there were a bunch gasps all around, although Rainbow concentrated more on the pain in her chest she knew was coming. Only…it didn’t hurt as much as she thought it would. There was no twisting knife in her gut that Dash had braced for. Instead, all she felt was the prick of a pin.
The confusion over the lack of hurt distracted Dash until Spitfire spoke again. “YOU WHAT?!”
Rainbow looked up to glare at the surprised pony. “I said I quit!” she repeated before finding some fire thanks to the actions of the others over the past few days.
“But-but why?” Soarin whined from beside her.
The question coming from the pony that had been the one to threaten her with expulsion from the Bolts in the first place helped stoke Dash’s inner flame from mildly hot to outright raging. “Why?” she demanded before getting into the air, and then zooming over into the stallion’s face. “WHY? You…YOU HAVE THE BUCKING BALLS TO ASK ME THAT?”
As Soarin retreated from Rainbow’s glare, she turned her attention on all the other flying ponies in the room. “I save three of your lives, and you barely say two words to me at a party. I get partnered up with the most uncaring lead-pony in Equestria, and it takes a nearly-fatal accident for you guys to do anything about her, and I watch you guys nearly replace one of your own bucking teammates with me at the drop of a hat! And after years and years of work, I’m finally an almost-Wonderbolt. I finally get to fly with you guys in a show. But the second, the SECOND something happens it’s all ‘let’s buck Rainbow Dash to the curb’ even though you didn’t have a SINGLE BUCKING BIT OF EVIDENCE I DID ANYTHING WRONG!”
“But-but it was like Wind Rider said, you were the only pony who benefited,” Soarin stuttered.
The response got an even deeper glower from Rainbow. “You mean other than the pony who’s STILL STANDING OVER THERE?” she demanded with a wave of her hoof in the stallion’s general direction.
Off to the side of the room, Rainbow caught Rarity looking over to the stallion. “What is he still doing here anyway?” she asked before looking over to rest of them. “Considering what you were all about to do to Rainbow Dash, I would have thought he would have at least been kicked out of the dressing room, if not had his name stripped from the Wonderbolt’s hall of fame, his records declared void, and there is the question of whether or not he should be placed in jail for his actions as well, all things considered.”
Wind Rider glared at the unicorn. “Oh please! It’s not like everypony else in the Wonderbolts hasn’t done worse! Everypony knows you gotta play dirty if you wanna be the best!”
Rainbow let out an angry snort. “The only ponies who think like that are losers who know they can’t compete,” she said before landing to trot over to the only unicorn in the room. “Come on Rarity, let’s get out of here and find something to eat. I’m hungry after all that flying.”
“Rainbow Dash wait!” Spitfire cried out, making the blue pegasus mare let a little growl.
She turned around, and put a frown back on her face when she looked back up at the fiery pony. “Don’t even try to talk me out of this Spitfire. You need two thing to fly with other ponies in a group. Trust, and respect. None of you guys trust me, and I sure as hay don’t respect any of you anymore.”
“That’s not…” Spitfire paused to let out a long sigh. “Actually, what I was going to do was congratulate you.”
The pegasus on the grown frowned at the one still floating in the air. “Oh great, so now I’m getting a pat on my back for not doing anything wrong and proving my innocence. What the hay happened to it being the other way around? Last I checked, that’s the way the law was supposed to work.”
Apparently ignoring Rainbow’s jab, Spitfire just went on. “You flew all the way to the Crystal mountains, and dragged me back with you in record time, literally record time. And since this all happened before you quit with me there to witness it, I just wanted to tell you that you now hold the long distance flying record.”
For some reason, Rainbow Dash didn’t feel all that awesome about it. She didn't know why either. The pegasus knew she should have been jumping up and down over the fact that there was solid proof she was better than the Wonderbolts at something. But...all Spitfire's words did were remind Rainbow of the race at the Equestria Games, and how she had come from very last place to barely lose to Spitfire by an inch or two just as they crossed the finish line.
Maybe that was it, why the fact there was finally a piece of paper saying she was better than the Wonderbolts didn't matter to her. Rainbow already had her proof. She already had the evidence she needed to say she was the fastest flier alive. And it was a silver medal, of all things. A second place trophy that said she was better than the best. The irony almost made her want to laugh.
And so, she motioned to Rarity with her head, and they headed out the door.
“WHAT?” the other blue pegasus demanded as he stepped forward. “ B-But that’s my record! You can’t do that to me because of some…whiney little reservist!”
“Oh shut up!” Spitfire snapped back at him. “Your stupid little record is the least of your worries. You committed a crime at night, and that puts you under Princess Luna’s jurisdiction! By the time she’s through with you, being expelled from the Wonderbolts and losing your pension will be the least of your problems!”
Whatever Wind Rider was going to say in response was cut off when Rainbow slammed the door behind her in anger after exiting the dressing room. Although the ache in her wings and stomach told her she needed to get some food and rest, she found herself just standing in the hallway.
The Wonderbolts…her dream for the future…it was…gone.
Although no pain in her chest followed, the pegasus did feel a weight settle on her back at that little fact.
“Rainbow Dash? Are you alright?”
She looked up to see the white unicorn standing beside her, and forced herself to smile. “Yeah, I…thanks for believing in me Rarity. That I didn't do it, I mean.”
In response, the other mare giggled and smiled back. “Oh my dear, I couldn’t help it,” she replied. “Not only would it have been completely against who you were as a pony to do such a thing, every bit of the evidence pointed in another direction. I just did what I learned from reading the books about Shadow Spade, and the truth became obvious.”
Rainbow threw up a wing and stepped closer to nuzzle her friend before putting her feathers across Rarity’s back. As the unicorn returned the gesture, a rather disturbing thought occurred to the pegasus, and she broke cheek contact while still keeping the other pony under her wing. “Uh…by the way, is that Shadow Spade real, like Darring Do was?”
Rarity giggled. “Oh no. I’ve met the author, and he’s nothing like the character he writes. I’m afraid we’re not all as lucky as you to meet your fictional hero in real life.”
The comment made Rainbow hide a cringe, while she had been an awesome athlete, Darring Do hadn’t been all that friendly when they first met. And the follow-up visits Dash had with her hadn’t done much to improve on Rainbow’s opinion of the pegasus’s personality. Cool flier, egghead archaeologist, lousy friend. That was DD in a nutshell.
She looked back at the door leading to the Wonderbolt’s dressing room and sighed.
“Yeah well…you know what they say about meeting your heroes.”
Author's Note
And there's that little thing because...you know, although the episode had plenty of stuff to keep me entertained while I just waited for the new guy we all know who did it to get caught, it just seems to me that every single damn time the Wonderbolts get some air time next to Rainbow Dash...they turn out to be total losers.
While Rainbow being suspect because she was the replacement was understandable, the fact she had to prove her innocence instead of the other way around when they didn't even have the planted evidence was just...ugh, especially when the guy leading the charge to hang without a trial was the one whose spot Dash saved when it came to Equestria Games.
