Ghosts of the Past

The tears fell on the picture like small puddles, each glistening from the light that came from the small fire.  His anger had faded, now replaced only with saddness and despair.  His life wasn't the best.  In fact, he hated it.  He hated himself the most, because he hated everypony in the world.  He has ever since he was a small filly.

Rainbow Dash's eyes softened at the sight of the stallion's saddness.  She may not understand what was wrong, but she knew better than others what it felt like to be alone all the time.  She wanted to find out what was wrong, but she didn't know how to break the silence.

Shadows danced around the room as the fire crackled in its small home.  Birds were singing strangly off key just outside the windows.  The humming continued from the chest.  The stallion's sobs grew quiet and were replaced by an eerie silence.  This went on for a few minutes before Rainbow Dash found the courage to speak.

"Umm, you okay?" she said with compassion in her voice.

He looked up from the picture and eyed her strangly.  He was so lost in his old memories, that he had forgotten she was even there.  His face hardened as he regained his composure.  He got up and faced the young pony.  He took off his hat and revealed a well-polished horn.

He swiped it downwards at the cyan pegasus.  She closed her eyes and waited for it to make contact.  It never did.  She opened her eyes and looked strangly at the white fabric that had once bandaged her wing dance gracefully to the ground.  She looked at him strangly.

"If the medicine stays on too long, it'll rot it right off.  It should be fine now, so you can leave," he said his voice cracking from the sobbing he had done.

Rainbow Dash wanted to leave and find her friends.  She wanted to save Equestria again, thinking it would help her fall in good graces with the Wonderbolts.  Oddly, something inside of her told her to stay.  She felt she had to.  She wanted answers.  She had to find an excuse to stay.  Luckily, she didn't have to think very hard.  The wind howled outside viciously.  It was as if the forest was screaming for her to stay with the odd crimson stallion.

"The wind is too strong," she said.  "I don't think I'll be able to fly very well.  Maybe I should stay here for the night."

The alicorn started to object, but was drowned out by the wind as it howled in greater force.  He didn't want her to stay.  He just wanted her to leave so he could continue his life of self-exile.  It's what he wanted, but he didn't lose his kind heart over the long years of solitude.

"Fine, you can stay the night.  But that is all.  I want you gone by morning," he said.

She nodded her head in agreement.  Ok,I'm in.  Now I have to get him talking, she thought.

"Well, since we are one time roommates, maybe I can get your name.  My name is Rainbow Dash."

The alicorn thought for a minute.  He didn't have many chances to talk to other ponies.  He actually never talked to other ponies.  He decided to it would be alright to give his name.

"My name is Crimson Dusk," he said breaking the silence.

Crimson Dusk eh.  Sounds kinda cool. thought the young pegusus.

"Alright Rainbow Dash, I have some questions.  First off, how did you even get here."

Rainbow's gaze fell to the ground as she recalled the events of the gala.  Crimson listened intently and his ears perked up when Discord was mentioned.  His seemed to focus more after that point on her story.  When she was finished, there was a long pause.  It was as if the whole world stopped as Dusk let the story sink in.

"I had a feeling the weather was his doing," he finally said.  "I thought he was gone a long time ago, but he must have found a way to come back.  Probably because of you selfish, ungratful ponies."

That comment angered Rainbow Dash.  She immediatly got up and hoofslapped the arrogant alicorn in the face.  It didn't hurt, but he was shocked.

"What gives you the right to call everypony selfish," she began.  "I've just watched all my friends get a royal smackdown from some messed up maniac.  I want to rush out that door and find them, but I have no idea where to begin and the wind is keeping me grounded.  If anything, you are the selfish one all held up in your safe little house."

This just got Dusk angry.  He squatted down so he could look her in the eyes.  They held each other's gaze; both unwilling to give up the silent duel that they held.

"Have you ever done anything for anypony without wanting recognition?" he said with venom in his words.  "Have you done something without expecting a reward?"

She broke her gaze off and looked at the floor.  A few things came to mind.  She thought about the time she saved that pony from the well, but then recalled that it led to her only wanting more recognition.  She then had the thought about her accepting Tank as her pet, but remembered she only did it because she wanted a pet.  She couldn't really say anything to answer his question.  Everything she ever did was to either satisfy her ego, or to try and get her praise from the Wonderbolts.

"That's what I thought.  You ponies are all the same.  You all say that you do things for others when in reality you do it only for yourselves."

She closed her eyes as tears began to well up inside.  She couldn't find anything wrong with his arguement.  She represented the element of loyalty, so she remained loyal to her friends and home, or was that the case.  Had she done it for her home, or for herself.  Uncertainty started to creep inside her.  She wasn't sure which was the truth.  She doubted all her actions.

She began to feel terrible about herself, until she remembered her friends.  She remembered how they accepted her into their group.  She remembered how they dressed up as some superhero to save her from her growing ego.  She remembered how she turned down the offer to be with the Shadowbolts to help her friends.  She opened her eyes and starred directly into his intensly.

"I may not be the most generous pony, or the most humble.  I, on the other hoof, know one thing.  My friends need me.  They are out there in that storm and they need my help.  Equestria needs me, no us.  If we don't stop Discord, no pony will and that's the end.  You might think I'm doing this for selfish reasons, but this time I'm not."

The humming grew louder from the chest.

"My friends have had my back since day one.  I can always count on them. When my ego gets the better of me, they help me through it.  They helped me through some rough times."

The humming was deafiining now, but that didn't stop Rainbow Dash.

"I believe in my friends, and they believe in me.  The only way we got through everything is because we had faith in each other!"

The chest gave a bright flash as if agreeing with the stubborn pony.  Crimson Dusk was taken back by the intensity of the flash and Rainbow Dash was stunned by it.  When it stopped, Rainbow Dash looked at Crimson Dusk.  He slowly walked over to the chest and opened the lid.  There in the middle of the box was a still humming stone orb.  Dash was astonished at what she was looking at.

"That's an element of harmony!" she gasped.

He looked over at her and said, "Yeah, it is.  It's the element of faith.  It only acts like that when real faith is in a pony's heart.  Your the first one that has made it act like that in such a long time."

"Wait, isn't faith and loyalty the same thing?" she asked.

"Most ponies think that, but they are far from the same.  Loyalty is when a pony will stop at nothing to help their friends.  Faith is believing that they will.  Faith is believing in one another, even when times are dark.  They are very close and commonly confused, but they can not live without each other.  Faith is basically what binds a friendship together  Loyalties may shift, but faithfulness is forever."

Rainbow Dash had to think for a minute.  What he said made sense as one could be loyal to another, but loyalty has a tendency to shift back in forth.  When you have faith in something, it is very hard to lose that.  She nodded her head in agreement.

"You really care for your friends that much?" he asked.

She nodded again.  "I love my friends and always want to be there for them.  I could be your friend to, if you want me too."

She held out her hoof.  Crimson Dusk hesitated.  He had believed for a long time that ponies were selfish, yet this one wanted to be his friend.  His heart fluttered a little inside.  He wondered if this was what true frienship was, or if it was something completely different.

"It has been a long time since I have ever had a friend," he said taking her hoof and shaking it.  "I will give it a chance.  Anypony that shows that kind of faith in her friends can't be that selfish."

Rainbow smiled and, for the first time in ages, Crimson Dusk returned the smile.

The wind stopped outside and everything seemed fine.

"I want you to help me find my friends," she pleaded.  "I bet you know this forest better than anypony."

He nodded in agreement.  He knew every tree and rock in the forest.  He wanted to help his new friend.  He grabbed his saddlebag and placed the element of faith in it.  He threw it on his back and they both moved to the door.  When they were outside, they extended their wings and took off into the dark skies.