Won't Let it Bring Me Down

Won't Let it Bring Me Down

By: Crystal Heart

Chapter 6: Hardships and Revelations

Rainbow Blaze and Hoops were out for a light morning flight together, after Dash had gotten up, and flew out of the house without warning. She was doing that a lot now, and frankly, Blaze and Firefly had no clue why.

Hoops was doing a few simple flips in the air, thinking about his marriage.

"Sir..." he started, looking over to Blaze. Blaze chuckled, and put a hoof on his shoulder.

"Please, Hoops. Call me Blaze," he said. Hoops gave a small smile, and nodded.

"Blaze... do you know why Rainbow Dash is being so secretive?" he asked him. Blaze gave him a tender smile, before frowning, and shrugging his shoulders.

"It's good to see a pony who cares so much about my daughter, but no. I don't really know. I just feel like she's been so secluded from the family for some time now. Hopefully, after the wedding, she'll be better. I know her. She doesn't stay like this for long," he said. Hoops looked away, lowering his head slightly.

Maybe he could try harder with Rainbow Dash? He himself saw how miserable she was. Usually, she was immediately start insulting him in the morning, but she simply gave him a nod earlier today, before walking away.

Blaze looked over to his future son in-law, and frowned.

"Everything okay, Hoops?" he asked. Hoops' eyes widened, as he nodded quickly.

"Oh! Yeah, sure," he said, before quickly flying forward, and away from the periwinkle stallion.

Blaze raised his eyebrows, before his ears pricked up in surprise. From nearby, he heard some voices. Loud ones, as well.

He looked back at Hoops, and quickly excused himself to go check it out. Hoops shrugged, and went onto a nearby cloud to think to himself.

Rainbow Blaze ducked behind a cloud, to look at one just a little ahead of him. It seemed to have two ponies in it.

One of which, he knew very well.

Rainbow Dash was laying on the cloud, with a baby-blue stallion pinning her down. He had a navy blue swept back mane, and Blaze instantly recognized him from the immense amount of posters inside his daughter's room.

He gasped, as he saw the scene in front of him, but decided to stay put a little longer.

"Because you're not making a barrel of sense! One second, we're enjoying breakfast together, and the next, you're screaming at me, and flying away. What is going on with you?" Soarin said, making his voice louder and louder by the second. Blaze stopped dead.

Enjoying breakfast? Had they been on a few outings before this?

"Maybe if you'd stop being so persistent, I could get out, and deal with my own problems!" Rainbow Dash yelled back. Blaze scrunched his eyebrows in confusion. What problems?

"Maybe if you told me about your so-called problems, I could help you!" Soarin said, before Dash snorted.

"Yeah right. And what help would you be? Oh Rainbow Dash, I guess I should feel sorry for you. Do you want a hug?" she mocked. Blaze managed to hold in a snicker. Oh Rainbow Dash... you'll never change...

"How... how dare you! I don't talk like that! And besides, what could be so bad, that you can't tell me?" Soarin said, softening his expression, and allowing the mare to get up and sit across from him on the cloud.

"It is bad. It's very bad. You wouldn't understand. You'd never understand. No one would underst-" she started, before starting to tear up. Blaze gasped silently to himself. What could be so bad that she was crying in front of a total stranger?

Blaze then saw Soarin's expression instantly changed into one of worry, as he looked upon her distressed face.

"Rainbow Dash...?" he asked softly, cupping his hooves around her, and pulling her in for a hug. Dash's throat hitched, as she began to cry freely into his soft fur. She clamped her hooves tightly around him, and just let everything out. "What happened?"

Blaze set his eyes upon the scene in front of him, looking at his helpless daughter completely letting herself out to this stallion who was just stroking her mane softly.

His eyes turned into one of sadness. He knew exactly why his daughter was acting like this... he just didn't want to admit it to himself that... she didn't love Hoops. She loved this stallion.

"I... I... I don't know..." she said. Soarin tutted lightly.

"Dash... what's going on?" he asked her yet again. Rainbow Dash let go of him, and roughly shook her head.

"I can't tell you, Soarin," she said simply. Soarin breathed heavily, and nodded.

"Okay, fine. I understand. You don't have to tell me. But can I at least do this?" he asked.

Blaze knew what he was about to do. For he himself had done the exact same thing to a mare named Firefly almost twenty-eight years ago. He quickly shut his eyes, and looked away from the duo.

"Do wha-" he heard from his daughter's mouth, before her voice hitched up, and light humming was played.

Blaze turned his body, his eyes still closed, and faced away from Dash and Soarin. Slowly, and steadily, he opened his eyes, and didn't glance back. What was the point?

He flapped his wings, and flew away from the couple, who were busy with themselves still on the cloud.

Blaze now knew where his daughter was going all these times, when she just exited the house without warning.

She loved Soarin... and he loved her back... but Blaze knew they could never be in a relationship. Only because of his stupidity from all those years ago.

For the arranged marriage with Hoops wasn't only because of his friendship with Basketball Dream. It was for something entirely different.

Financially, Blaze wasn't the most well off.

When he married Firefly, he was looked down upon quite often by his family, because Firefly came from a very poor family. Blaze did as well. Blaze's parents always wanted him to marry for money, not love.

Thankfully, Blaze was able to snag a scholarship to a nearby college which was quite well off. He got in due to his athletic abilities. He and Firefly met at the college.

While he was there, he and his dorm-mate became very good friends. This stallion's name was Basketball Dream. They were in most of the same classes, and both majored in athletics.

They became very good friends, even to a point when they shared every single aspect of their lives to one-another.

Blaze learnt about how rich Basket's family was. They were very well off. Blaze definitely kept this in mind as the years passed.

Life was ran, until Blaze got married to Firefly, and Basketball got married to his own partner, Champion Star. When both mares were expecting, Blaze and Basketball got together to celebrate.

While they were partying, Blaze remembered something.

He couldn't provide his daughter with necessary things in life to live to the fullest. He could only pray that she would find a stallion that was very well off financially, but that might not happen...

Blaze then remembered that the stallion before him was making millions by the minute. He couldn't do anything else, but to talk to him about setting up a marriage between the foals.

Now, when Rainbow Dash got married to Basket's foal, she would be able to enjoy life. With the money that Hoops had, they would both be able to raise a family without having to beg for money like Blaze and Firefly had to...

He had thought he had done this for Dash's benefit... but now he saw just how much of a mistake that was...

Rainbow Dash was miserable.