Fallen Pegasi

Rainbow Dash was taken to Cloudsdale Hospital and Wonderbolt Academy contacted her parents to tell them about the accident. Rainbow Blaze and Rainbowshine were able to get word to their daughter's friends before they left for the hospital; just by the tone of Spitfire's voice, the two knew they'd likely need all the moral support they could get.

In the hospital waiting room, everypony was quiet. Twilight Sparkle was pacing, Applejack sat next to Fluttershy who'd hardly responded to anything since arriving, Rarity calmly flipped through a fashion magazine, while Rainbowshine and Rainbow Blaze sat at opposite ends of the waiting room, each lost in their own thoughts. Pinkie Pie, unfortunately, was stuck babysitting Mr. and Mrs. Cake's twins.

Out of nowhere, the silence was broken when Rarity began bawling. Twilight gave a weak smile and walked over to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

"It's all right, Rarity. This is difficult for all of us, but-"

Rarity calmed down slightly and wiped away her tears. "Oh, that's not why I'm upset, darling. It's this article I was reading. It says that sky blue is out of season. I'll have to rethink my Beautiful Blues collection for the boutique."

Twilight could only stare at Rarity, mouth slightly agape. Rarity gave her a confused look in return.

"What? It was going to be a good sell, I guarantee it!" Rarity said.

"How can you possibly think of fashion at a time like this?" Fluttershy asked quietly.

"What do you mean?" Rarity asked and Twilight gestured her head towards the next room. "Oh, pish posh. Rainbow Dash will be just fine; likely she only chipped her hoof. That's a shame though, really; do you think we should take her to the salon after she's released?"

Twilight was about to tell Rarity the severity of the situation, when a nurse came running into the waiting room.

"Where are the parents of Miss Dash?" The nurse asked, panting slightly.

Rainbow Blaze and Rainbowshine walked up to the nurse, who took them to a quieter area of the room.

"We need your permission to operate." The nurse quickly said.

"O-Operate?" Rainbowshine repeated.

The nurse nodded. "The burns on your daughter's wings are so severe that she could develop a serious infection if they aren't removed."

"You want to amputate our child's wings?" Rainbow Blaze asked, his voice beginning to rise.

"Sir, please keep your voice down. It's the only option at this point: her wings or her life."

Rainbowshine and Rainbow Blaze gave each other a saddened look, before Rainbow Blaze turned to the nurse again and nodded. The nurse quickly left without another word and the Rainbows returned to Rainbow Dash's friends.

"What did the nurse want?" Applejack asked.

"She needed our permission to operate on Dashie. Th-They need to amputate her wings." Rainbow Blaze explained.

There was no time for the news to sink in, as Rainbowshine started to wail. Rainbow Blaze gave an embarrassed look and wrapped an arm around her.

"Shine, please. Why don't we sit down." Rainbow Blaze suggested.

Rainbowshine shrugged her husband off violently. "This is all your fault! You always pushed her when she was a filly, telling her how she had to be the best flier in all of Equestria! She wouldn't have gone to that academy if it wasn't for you!"

"It was her dream! Not mine!" Rainbow Blaze shouted.

"This is why I divorced you, Blaze! You insisting that everything was what Dashie wanted, when it was you who wanted to be a Wonderbolt!" Rainbowshine argued.

Realizing that this was getting out of hoof, Twilight stepped between the feuding parents. "Mr. Blaze, Ms. Shine, this is not a time to fight. Rainbow Dash will need you both once she comes out of that operating room; not her parents at each others throats."

"With all due respect, your Highness, that is all my ex-wife is good for: arguing." Rainbow Blaze said.

Rainbowshine huffed and walked away to a corner of the room. Twilight sighed in defeat as Rainbow Blaze walked away.

In the operating room, Dr. Ember had just begun the surgery on Rainbow Dash. Taking his scalpel, he made an incision into the charred flesh. He laid down the scalpel and picked up the bone saw, cutting away at the first wing bone, having the nurse sponge away at the blood when necessary. Having successfully cut away at the bone and muscle tissues, he carefully handed the first wing over to the nurse and then started work on the second wing which was even worse shape; her wing bone even managing to become singed by the fire and making it more difficult to cut it off. Though, after cutting the bone away, it was easier to remove and she had minimal blood loss. After handing the final wing to the nurse, he started to stitch up the incision.

"Doctor, shall I throw them away?" The nurse asked.

"No. Wrap them carefully and ask her parents if she will want to keep them." Dr. Ember ordered.

"Doctor, they're so badly burned. They don't even look like wings." The nurse said.

"We just robbed this mare of her dreams. Let's not rob her of memories, nurse."

The nurse nodded and wrapped up the burnt wings, and then left the operating room so that Dr. Ember could finish up his unfortunate task.