A Year Later

Chapters

A Request from the Heart
Sharing Faith
Back to Square One
Return to Sender

A Request from the Heart

Rainbow Dash had done it. She had finally been promoted to the manager of the entire region’s weather team. However, while the promotion was well-deserved and very appreciated, it came with its own set of daunting tasks: Endless piles of paper work, long hours, and managing the weather teams, from Ponyville to Canterlot, sapped the energy out of Rainbow Dash’s mind and body. To the contrary, the bigger paychecks and increased benefits were more than enough to make up for it.

She sat for a while in silence at her new desk, staring aimlessly at the door to her office and listening to the birds chirp as they flew by her window. Sometimes she would recline in her new genuine leather chair in an effort to catch a few z’s, but to no avail. She finally decided to go out for an afternoon fly. One unlocked window later, and she was off.

With her rainbow contour following close behind, she tore through the skies of Ponyville and stunned the invisible stadium of ponies watching her various flips, corkscrews, and barrel rolls. She wove effortlessly through the skies, letting the warm afternoon sun let its rays bathe her body in light. After flying for what felt like hours, she saw something familiar. She let out a huff and smiled, and touched down soon after.

The verdant field had started to become dotted with different colored flowers as Spring made its approach. She walked with her head bowed and her tail hanging limp behind her as she gradually made her way over to the little clearing.

She did this every day, or at least when she had the time to. She often became occupied, since her new job sought to that. However, regardless of what she was doing, time could always be made for a trip every single day. On one occasion, it was raining to the point of certain places getting flooded, and she was out there with a raincoat and hat on. No one knew where she would go or what she did during the hours between twelve and one o’clock; but then again, they didn’t really have to.

She reached the spot. It was a little patch of grass she had cleared out herself, and requested the weather team keep rain away from. It was a marker, for it was the spot where she had met Him. Her life had changed the day they met, and wanted to keep a special spot to remember that day by. As she came to this sacred little spot of hers, she laid in the grass and folded her wings to her sides as she settled in for her hour of what she called, “talking time”.

She took a deep breath, looked up at the sky, and started. “Hey, uh… how are you? I mean, I’d imagine you’re good and all, but I never really know for sure. I can fly pretty high, but getting up there is something I haven’t been able to do yet, but I’ll get there one day! Let’s see, what’s new for me… Oh, I got a new promotion! I mean, why wouldn’t I, right? I mean, I know I’m like, the most awesome-est thing in the universe! It’s about time they realized it, right? Hehe… yeah…” Her words faded as she tried to think of what to say. “So, it’s been a year. Can you believe that?! I can’t believe it’s been a year since we met? I can’t even begin to tell you how amazing things have been. Scoots is doing amazing! She goes to high school this coming year, which, honestly, I’m nervous about. She reminds me a lot of myself, and if that’s the case, she’s gonna have a real hard time with some things. I really need some help with knowing how to deal with that.”

There was a shift in the wind, and suddenly a breeze blew against her face. It was soft and warm like a steady flow of sunshine caressing her cheek. She looked down and bit her lip, dreading what she was about to say.

She looked up again, and spoke softly, letting the words out slowly. “There’s another thing...Her parents died in a buggy crash a few months back, and I honestly don’t know how she’s managed to hold on so long. I’ll be honest, she’s probably a lot stronger than I would have been.” She paused, swallowing hard. “But she’s going to break soon, I know it. I get letters from her all the time. She talks about how bad foster care is, and how the parents that come in never seem to notice her, even though she’s always trying to shine. She doesn’t know why anyone doesn’t want her, and it kills me every time she mentions it.” Rainbow looked up at the silent sky, staring for a few seconds. “I don’t know. Can you do… just something with it? I don’t care what it is… just as long as you give her someone to love her. She deserves that much.” With that, she huffed away with tears starting to gather in her eyes.

The breeze shifted once more, this time towards the skies.

Meanwhile, in a land that is unreachable unless accessed a very specific way, a King sat on a throne made of solidified rainbows and clouds. He was dressed in a long flowing crimson robe, that flashed a violet color when the light hit it; a simple golden crown placed upon his head. His scepter was nothing more than a simple wooden shepherd’s cane, and holes were in his hands and feet. Above the throne was written, "King of Kings and Lord of Lords". A winged man dressed in gleaming white armor flew to him, and bowed deeply. Once he rose, he cleared his throat.

“Your Majesty, I have that list you requested. It just came in this evening, from a blue pegasus pony. From a land called Equestria.”

The king took the scroll from the angel, and read it over. “Ah, Rainbow Dash! I love when I get to hear from her! Hmm… let me see. Oh, I miss walking with her on that field, I'd say I'll have to visit again sometime." He read further on. "Oh my. Yes, I’m very aware of this situation. Poor thing...however, I have had a solution in the works for quite some time now, and I just know that all the parties involved will love it!” He excitedly took a quill out from a container holding a very deeply red-colored ink in it, and scribbled something on the scroll, handing it back to the angel. “Thank you, Nathaniel. See that this is carried out according to My word. I pray this works.”

The angel chuckled a little bit at the King saying that. "Why would you pray when you're the One who's in charge?"

The King smiled, “Well, my young Nathaniel, There are three of us, after all. Would you like me to explain that again?”

Nathaniel threw his hands up, “No! Not that again!” He flew away quickly as the King let out a jolly belly laugh.

“Oh, that will never stop being funny…”

Back in Ponyville, about a month later, an out-of-breath Rainbow Dash was busting some clouds in the sky, cleaning up some sloppy mistakes. She wiped her forehead off as she looked around for anymore clouds that needed re-arranging. While she didn’t find any clouds, an excited Scootaloo nearly crashed into her mentor.

Rainbow was busy catching her breath when Scootaloo hovered in her face with a beaming smile and tears in her eyes, “Rainbow Dash! I have such amazing news! You may want to stop flying for this one.”

Raising an eyebrow and looking at Scootaloo through squinted eyes, Rainbow replied, “Is this one of those things where you start off with good news then that bad news thing happens? Because, I’m not in the mood for bad news today.”

“No bad news, I swear! This is all good!”

They flew down, touching down on soft green summer grass. “Okay, so you know how my life has been hell since my parents died, right?” Scootaloo asked this with smile on her face as her words raced out of her mouth, prompting Rainbow Dash to take a step back.

“Uh, yeah… Um, are you sure you’re okay?”

“Absolutely! And you know why I’m okay?!”

“Uh… no clue. Can we hurry this up? You’re starting to freak me out a little, Squirt.”

“I’m getting adopted!”

Rainbow’s mouth dropped and her eyes went wide. “No way, you’re kidding! That’s amazing, Scoots!” She picked Scootaloo up and hugged her tightly, prompting a squeak from the filly. “You have no idea how much I wanted this for you!”

“R-really?”

“Yes! Who’s adopting you? I bet it’s someone totally awesome and amazing! Who is it?!”

“It’s Applejack and her family!”

Rainbow stopped dead in her tracks. “Are you serious? That’s like, the best family to ever be adopted in! And you get a new step sister too? Can we please trade places?”

Scootaloo and Rainbow laughed, but fell silent. Rainbow looked at Scootaloo with tender eyes, a warm feeling rushing through her body. “Scoots, I’m so glad for you. I have been praying every night that something would be done. I’ve been praying ever since I heard about it! See? Just have faith kid, it’ll come back to ya.”

Scootaloo smiled. “I’ve been praying too. Strength in numbers, right?” She nudged Dash’s side, earning a giggle from the elder pegasus.

A moment of silence passed between the two, and Scootaloo took a deep breath and let it out. “Well, Applejack said I can start to move in any time I want. So, I’m gonna go and start today! After I get done, you wanna chill? I can show you some moves I’m choreographing for the acrobatics club at school!”

“Sure thing, squirt! Just make sure to knock first today instead of coming right in, I’m probably going to be doing some remodeling today.”

“Okay. See you later, Rainbow Dash!” With that, she zoomed into the sky toward the direction of Sweet Apple Acres.

Rainbow Dash looked back up at the sky, tears forming and starting to roll down her face. “Thank you I just… yeah. Thank you.” She flew back to her house, determined to install a new washer and dryer unit.

Author's Note

Here it is, the follow up story to "The One Above All". I hope you all enjoy. Now, here's the thing: I'm thinking about extending this a little bit. Not sure how, but if I do wind up doing that, I'll figure out a way. No guarantees for now, so I'll just leave the status as "incomplete" for now, so I can go back to it as I wish. Thank you all so much for your love and support, and we'll see where this story goes.

Sharing Faith

“Take that! And that! And that!” Rainbow huffed as she exhaustingly molded the sculptures of a washer and dryer unit into her home. Her last experience at a laundromat was less than exemplary, so she decided it was high time to have her own laundry room. She had invited Scootaloo over to help, but she did little more than laugh at the odd predicament her mentor had herself in.

“Rainbow Dash, I hate to break it to you, but-”

“Not now, Squirt! Hand me some more cumulus! I think this time I finally got it-”

“Rainbow, this isn’t going to work.”

“What do you mean? Of course it’s gonna work! I’m the one building it, so it’ll be awesome!”

“Rainbow Dash, what do you use to wash clothes?”

Rainbow’s face fell flat. “Uh, duh, water and soap”- Rainbow Dash shook her head, and went back to trying to mold clouds -“what do they teach you in school nowadays?”

Scootaloo stifled another giggle. “Exactly. So, when you try to do a load of clothes, what’s going to happen to your clothes, which are made of water?”

Rainbow slowly came to a halt in molding her clouds as the realization struck her in the head. “Oh. Yeah. Um...mayyyybe I didn’t think this one through all the way.”

“I’d say not. Looks like you’ll be stuck going into town to the laundromat every week, huh?”

Rainbow scoffed. “As if! I’ll find a way around this, Scoots. Besides, I still don’t think the owner has completely forgiven me or Flutters yet.”

The two sat down in the living room, wanting to get out of the small space Rainbow had designated as her laundry room. Rainbow got some cola out of the fridge and walked over to where Scootaloo was sitting on the couch, popped them open, and gave one to her little pseudo-sister. “Hey, how’s things going with the Apples? I’d imagine things are working out, right?”

Scootaloo took a drink from her bottle. “Yeah! I mean, it’s a lot at once, though. Apple Bloom is still getting used to the idea that I’m her big stepsister now, and we’ve had some battles over who can have the last piece of pie, but yeah. Granny Smith is really super nice to me, and Big Mac...well, he’s Big Mac. Doesn’t say much, but doesn’t seem to mind having me around either, ya know?”

Rainbow chuckled. “Sounds like the Apples for ya. I’m really happy for ya, Scoots.” She took a long drink and blankly stared at the wall for a minute.

Scootaloo noticed, and gave a loud clap of her hooves to snap Dash out of her stupor. “You okay? You’ve seem a little off since you heard I was being adopted.”

Rainbow gave a little sigh. “I’m just amazed at how things have happened, ya know? Last year, I was in a real bad spot. Now look at everything. You’ve got your wings working, you found a family, I got a promotion, and it’s all just so...surreal, I guess.”

“Like it’s too good to be true?”

“Yeah, I guess so.”

Scootaloo smirked. “Well, if it’s any consolation, I thought the same thing at first. But then I had the thought that sometimes, you just have to go with it. Sometimes we question things too much, ya know? All we can really do is just take it in stride, and do our best to do our part. The rest is out of our hooves, so what can we do but our best?”

Rainbow was stunned. To hear such profound wisdom come from someone so young floored her. “Where did you ever learn that?”

“Maybe you aren’t the only one to learn a thing or two from the guy upstairs.”

Rainbow pulled Scootaloo in for a hug, which she gladly reciprocated. “I’m glad I wasn’t the only one who got something from all of this.”

Scootaloo let out a small breath. “Have you told anyone else since it’s happened?”

“Since what’s happened?”

“Well, ya know, all of this?”

They separated from their hug. Rainbow never really thought about telling anypony else, since she felt like this was hers and Scootaloo’s little secret. But, there’s no harm in telling others about something that’s helped you out.

Right?

Rainbow spoke slowly. “I mean, I guess it never really struck my mind. Shouldn’t we keep this between us though? I mean, I’m pretty sure we were the only two really involved in all of it, shouldn't we keep it that way?”

Scootaloo pondered her question for a moment, and made her decision. “No, we should share this. I mean, look how much He’s done for us, imagine all He could do for everypony else! My wings are the perfect story too! Everyone and their brother has been asking how my wing got healed. I figured it was a long, complicated story to keep telling over and over again, so I just said it was a miracle.”

“Heh, you can say that again.”

“It was a miracle.”

Rainbow pulled Scootaloo in for a noogie, and let her go once she was laughing too hard to breathe. “Well, I suppose there’s no harm in telling the girls, I mean, what’s the worst they can do, right?”

“Right! And you know just as well as I do who’d be the perfect pony to tell first.”

“I feel like I know where this is going.”

“Twilight, silly!”

Rainbow laughed. The thought of telling Twilight Sparkle about an all-knowing, all-powerful, and always-present God who answers personal prayers of anyone who prays to Him would keep her in an intellectual coma until probably the next apple harvest. “Sounds like the perfect pony to start with.”

The two finished out their day re-sculpting the clouds back into Rainbow’s house. When dusk was upon them, Scootaloo hugged, said her good-byes to Rainbow, and flew back towards Sweet Apple Acres. Rainbow cleaned up what little bit she had left from her day with Scootaloo, and settled down for the night. She went to sleep excited to tell her friend exactly what had happened last year, and all of the wonderful things that came from it.

Rainbow found herself knocking on Twilight’s door, instead of her usual flying through the window and causing Twilight’s temper and number of broken windows count to rise. Twilight opened the door and smiled, “Rainbow! What brings you here today? It’s nice to see you know how to work a door, by the way.”

“Oh, ha-ha. I just wanted to drop in to...talk to you about something.”

“Oh? What about? Is something wrong?”

“No no, nothing like that, I just had something happen and I wanted to see what you thought about it.”

Twilight scrunched her face at her friend’s hidden message in her words. “Sure, come on in. I don’t have anything to do for today, so I’m free to talk as long as you need me for.”

The two made their way casually to the parlor, where a fire place had a cozy fire built in it, and an open book was sprawled on one of the two chairs next to the large coffee table.

Twilight gingerly placed a bookmark in the book, and set it on the oak table in front of her. She gestured for Spike to make some tea, and proceeded with her conversation with Rainbow. “So, what is it you came to talk to me about?”

Rainbow told her the whole story, from start to finish. She told how Jesus was the Son of the One true God, and how He healed Scootaloo, and how he had answered her prayers about Scootaloo getting adopted. She even threw in how she got a promotion on top of it.

By the end of her story, Rainbow felt quite out of breath, and craving something to drink. So, she picked up her tea, and got ready for a nice, hearty sip. “So, whadda ya think?”

Twilight pondered for a moment, then let out a long, deep sigh. “Rainbow, I’m glad that things have been going well for you, I really am. And the fact that you’ve found a sense of peace in your life make me feel really good for you. But, I just...how can I put this nicely...I just don’t buy it.”

Rainbow froze mid-sip, and almost coughed on her drink. “Wha-what? You don’t buy it? What do you mean?!”

Twilight winced at her friend’s sudden reaction. “I’m sorry Rainbow Dash, but I just don’t buy it. Everything you described sounds lovely, it really does. But...I just don’t see how it’s scientifically possible. First of all, a human being has not been recorded being seen in Equestria for several millennia, much less any recent millennia. Furthermore, I can’t see how just touching someone can heal them. It’s preposterous. A complete disregard for physics or the natural order.”

“Then how the buck do you explain Scootaloo flying? The doctors said she’d never fly, that her wings were permanently stunted! Twilight, I saw it with my own eyes, the man healed her. He completely took away her stunted wings and gave her a working pair, all with a single touch!”

“Did you actually see it? Did you see her wings physically grow?”

“Well, no...but there was a light! And no one could see! If you want, I can go get Scoots right now, and let her tell you!”

Twilight felt herself start to get frustrated that Rainbow wasn’t seeing her point. “Rainbow, we both know that her wing growth is amazing. And, some might even classify it as a miracle of sorts. However, lots of things could have contributed to this! Nutrition, exercise, hormones...maybe Scootaloo just finally hit puberty? She’s at that age, after all.”

It was Rainbow’s turn to start feeling frustrated. “No, Twilight, just no. I know what I saw, and I know what Scootaloo saw. Jesus healed her, no if, and’s, or but’s about it. I just...I can’t believe that you don’t believe me. That really hurts, ya know? I mean, we live in a land filled with dragons, spirits, alicorns, and literal magic, but you can’t believe this?” She got up from her chair and began to pace, trying to walk off some of her emotions.

Twilight let out another deep sigh. “Yes, that’s all true, Rainbow. However, those things have been with us here in this dimension for as long as time began. What you’re telling me just seems so...out of the blue. I just need proof, that’s all. Do you have any physical evidence that this Jesus person was here?”

Rainbow thought hard about that question. Surely she had to have something, right? Some piece of critical, case-breaking evidence to prove that she was telling the truth. However, all she could think of, was her little patch of holy dirt in the field where she first encountered Him. “No, I...I don’t.”

Twilight’s face fell at her friend’s seemingly defeated state. She walked over to where Rainbow was standing, and saw her ears fall limp to her side and her wings hang limp. Twilight put her hoof on her friend’s shoulder, as a peace offering. “Look, Rainbow, I know this is all very important to you, otherwise you wouldn’t have come here to talk to me about it. And I truly appreciate you talking to me, this has all been so fascinating. However, I just don’t believe the same way you do. Maybe if you had some kind of evidence to back this up, I’d be more inclined to see the same things you do. But for now, my opinion stands with me, just like how your opinion stands with you.”

Rainbow felt betrayed. She thought that out of all the ponies she knew, Twilight would be the one to instantly be curious and ask all the questions in the world about what kind of person Jesus was, where he came from, and all that jazz. What she was met with, however, was doubt, disbelief, and rejection.

The rest of the visit was awkward. There was attempts at small talk from both ponies, but not much else was said. Sensing the elephant in the room, Rainbow decided to make her way back home for the evening. “Well, I uh, I think I’m gonna go back home. I was wanting to get a few things done around the house, thanks for everything Twilight.” She finished her tea in one gulp, and started to make her way out the door.

Before she left, however, Twilight wanted to say one more thing. She rested her hoof on Rainbow’s shoulder, with the same tenderness she did earlier. “Rainbow Dash, I’m sorry. I just wanted you to know that there’s no hard feelings, okay?”

Rainbow didn’t look back at Twilight, and shrugged. “Yeah, no hard feelings. I’m sorry too, but for different reasons.” With that, she flew quickly out the door, and back to her cloud mansion.

Rainbow ate some kale chips that Fluttershy had made her earlier during the week for dinner, and had some hot chocolate to warm herself up for the evening. She got into bed for the night, but couldn’t sleep. She looked out her window and into the moonlight, wondering how Jesus was doing. It had been over a year since she’d seen Him, and was wondering when she would get to again. She thought back to the day’s events, and what was said. She felt tears in her eyes, but refused to cry. She tried to suck it up, to not be such a wimp about it. At least, that’s what she told herself.

“I tried to stick up for You, You know that, right?” She was met with silence. “You know that I still care and stuff, right?” Silence. She thought about the day some more, and thought about the silence that greeted her, and felt her dam break. She felt the tears fall down her cheeks, and let out a sob, and another one, and another. Her last thought was how one of her best friends didn’t believe her, and her last action was crying herself to sleep.

Author's Note

Big thanks to Washi for helping me edit. Thanks! :twilightsmile:

There's more on the way soon, so stay tuned! God bless, as per usual :rainbowkiss:

Back to Square One

Twilight woke up from a restful sleep. After her talk with Rainbow Dash yesterday, she found it hard to fall asleep last night. When she did, however, she fell into a deep dreamless sleep that surrounded her like a mist of fog. She woke up early, but did not rush getting ready for the day. She took her time brushing her mane, and even felt adventurous enough to put on some makeup. She had several meetings to attend today, and found that looking her best was an easy way to persuade others to see things in her particular light.

Just as she finished touching up her mascara, she heard a knock on the door. She cocked her head to the doorway, “Who is it?”

“Who do you think.”

Twilight rolled her eyes and grinned at the casual reply. “Come on in, Spike.” The door creaked open, and a green and purple baby dragon made his way inside.

“Good morning, Twilight. Did you sleep well?”

“Yes, for some reason. Usually the day before meetings I can’t get a wink of shut eye, but last night was...different. What’s up?”

Spike revealed several scrolls rolled up under his arm. “I came to review the meeting notes from last time to refresh you on what the topics are today.”

“Oh, okay. Fire when ready.”

“Okay, so. You have a meeting with Celestia at ten o’clock. This is about her formal request for a weekly cake sent from the Pie household.”

“And how I have to convince her that eating like that will only end up in tragedy for her waistline?” Twilight gave a small chuckle.

Spike snickered, “For sure. Next up is a meeting with the newly elected King of Griffonstone.”

Twilight clapped her hooves. “Ohh! I’m so eager to talk diplomatic and friendship relations with him! What do you think he’ll be like? He’ll probably love books, be smart, brave”- she looked out the window of her room -“probably handsome…”

“Ahem. Moving on. After those two meetings, you’ll break for lunch-”

A sudden thought struck Twilight. “Hey, how’s Rainbow Dash doing?”

Spike stammered, as he tried to quickly hop on this sudden train of thought. “Wha-what? Who? Oh, Rainbow Dash? I guess she’s fine. Haven’t heard from her since yesterday. Why?”

Twilight rubbed her chin. “Well, we had a few...words between us yesterday. She left in a bit of a hurry, and I was just making sure she was doing okay.”

Spike remembered yesterday. He had gone off to fetch some tea, and heard the whole argument from the kitchen. “Like I said, I wouldn’t know. Why don’t you take a break after lunch to go check on her? I was just getting to the after lunch schedule, and it shows that you have a block of an hour free time.”

“I suppose I could. I mean, after yesterday, what harm could come from it, right? If anything, she’ll know that I still care about her.”

“Yeah, it might do some good.” Spike turned to leave, but a thought popped into his mind. “Hey, Twilight, quick question.”

“Yes, Spike?”

“What Rainbow Dash said yesterday, about the man being here and doing all those things...I mean, I know how you feel about it, but do you think she could be right? Could what she said happened really have happened?”

Twilight sighed. “Spike, almost anything is possible. Except that. I’m sorry, but it just doesn’t make logical sense. It’d be foolish to let something like that into our conscience. Especially with no actual proof to back it up.” She turned to give herself one more once-over look in the mirror. “It may help Rainbow Dash feel some kind of spiritual fulfillment; but for me, it just sounds like another fairy tale.”

Scootaloo picked up her back and hugged Applejack goodbye. “Later! I’m off to school!”

Applejack grinned. “And you better head right to school, got it? No sneaking off to Rainbow Dash’s house to bug her now that you got them purty little wings.”

“Psh. Why would I do something like that? I value my education far too much to do a silly thing like that!”

The last thing Scootaloo heard was Applejack yelling at her in her thick southern accent as she flew out the door.

Scootaloo flew to Rainbow’s house quickly, as to not waste too much time. She knocked on the door, and Rainbow answered. “Hey Scoots, what’s up?”

“Oh, nothing much. I’m on my way to school. Just wanted to stop by and see how yesterday went with you and Twilight.”

Rainbow scratched the back of her head. “Oh. Yeah, that. It uh, it went...well.”

Scootaloo raised an eyebrow. “Rainbow, you know you’re a horrible liar, right?”

Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Look, it just didn’t go as well as I thought. Maybe it was a dumb idea. After all, it is Twilight we’re talking about.”

“Well, I’m sure she’ll get over it. She’s the princess of friendship, after all. Look, I gotta get going, and you have to get to work. Cheer up, alright? Don’t forget, tomorrow’s our practice day.”

The two exchanged a quick hug, and parted ways. As Rainbow Dash prepared to leave for work, she pondered her exchange with Twilight a day earlier, and muttered to herself, “I hope you’re right, Scoots.”

Rainbow Dash busted clouds with vigor as she neared her lunch break, and it couldn’t come soon enough. When she returned back to her house last night after her argument with Twilight, she forgot to eat anything, and woke up late this morning, which meant no morning bagel for her. No dinner and a missed breakfast due to poor time management meant one hungry blue pegasus.

The lunch whistle let out it’s afternoon steam, and all the ponies around to hear it broke for lunch. Rainbow flew to her house for a salad and some apple juice, as well as a well-deserved power nap to follow it up.

She heard a knock on the door, just as she was about to take her first bite into her salad. “Aww, come on! Ugh, coming!” She got up from her recliner and flew gently to the door, and peered through the spyglass.

It was Twilight.

Suddenly, her gut felt a hundred pounds heavier, and she couldn’t breathe right. What if things would be awkward? What if Twilight came to berate her some more for her beliefs? She looked through the spyglass again, and saw Twilight waiting patiently with a plain expression on her face. Rainbow took a deep breath, and closed her eyes. She put on her best fake smile, and opened the door for her friend. “Twilight! So good to see you! How you doin’, girl?”

Twilight raised a weary brow upon seeing her friend’s overzealous greeting. “I’m alright, I suppose. That’s the reason I came here, actually, to check up on you.”

“Oh, you didn’t have to, really. Wanna come in? I just made a salad.”

“Sure, that sounds great.”

The two walked into the house. Rainbow offered her some lunch, “Want a plate?”

Twilight put a hoof up. “No, really, that’s fine. Listen, about yesterday, I-”

Rainbow waved a dismissing hoof. “It’s okay, Twilight, I get it.”

“You do?”

“Sure. I mean, I have to admit, I was a little offended at the fact that you thought I was lying, but-”

“I never said you were lying, I just said that I didn’t believe you.”

Rainbow’s face fell. “Twilight, that’s like, the definition of thinking someone’s lying.”

Twilight shook her head. “Either way, I’m sorry. I hope this hasn’t come between us. You know how hard it is for me to get into the supernatural side of things. I’m more for hard science, not fairy tales.”

Rainbow felt her blood beginning to heat a bit at Twilight using that term. “Fairy tale? Is that what that was to you? My life changes in so many different ways in such a short time, extraordinary things happen to me, and you dismiss it as a fairy tale?”

Twilight panicked. “No no! I didn’t mean it that way, I-”

“Then how did you mean it?” Rainbow closed in on Twilight. “You come to my house to apologize, and now you insult me?”

Twilight found herself bumping her backside against the door. “Rainbow, please! Can you listen for just one minute?”

Rainbow calmed down enough to take a few deep breaths. “What?”

Twilight let out a breath of her own. “Okay, look. I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I just said that, and I’m sorry things ended the way they did yesterday. But, you have to understand, this is hard for me, you know? I’m not good with this kind of stuff. And when you came to me, I thought something was wrong. I thought you were hurt or needed something. But when you told me what you told me, I just didn’t know what to make of it. I felt like I wanted to ask questions, but I didn’t know what to ask. Plus, no offense, but you kind of spoke really super fast.” Twilight looked down at the cloud floor, as looking up at Rainbow Dash seemed to be too much work.

Rainbow felt her growing rage subside as she looked at her friend. Worried, scared, whatever anypony wanted to call it, Twilight was feeling something. And whatever she was feeling, it wasn’t arrogance. Rainbow could tell that much.

Rainbow sighed. “Nah, you’re good. I just guess I was excited, ya know? Nothing like this has ever happened to me, or anypony else in forever. I just thought what better person to share this with than you? You love this kind of stuff! You’re always reading books on mythology, and science, and all this other brainiac stuff that no one cares about, I figured you’d care about this.”

That last statement hit Twilight hard in the gut like a cannonball. She let out her breath she was holding and looked at Rainbow with a half smile. “Look, I have an idea. If you want, you can re-tell it to me. Maybe I missed something, or just wasn’t paying close enough attention.”

Rainbow blushed. “Yeah, I kind of was talking fast, I suppose.”

Twilight’s ears perked up. “I’ll tell you what. Come by the castle after work, and you can tell me there. And I promise, that I’ll actually ask good questions, ones that will actually spike my own curiosity. Deal?”

Rainbow returned the half-smile. “Deal. I guess I should get back to work, it’s almost two and I have another acre and a half of clouds to clear by four o-clock. Time’s-a-ticking.”

They said their goodbyes and Rainbow closed her door. She turned back to her chair, only to see an uneaten salad glaring back at her. “Gahh! When can I ever eat?!”

After Rainbow Dash and Twilight had met together once again later that evening, Rainbow re-told her story. She described it in as much detail as she could remember, and Twilight listened intently to every word and even asked for clarification when she needed to.

“And then I came to tell you the other day, and, well, we all know how that ended.” Rainbow said the last statement with a bit of meekness attached to it, as she did not want to unearth old memories of the other night.

Twilight spoke slowly as she carefully chose her words. “So Rainbow, if you claim to know this man, how do you communicate?”

Rainbow rubbed the back of her head. “See, that part’s kind of tricky. It’s like, I talk to Him, and He makes stuff happen. I’m not sure how to describe it.”

“You mean you pray?”

Rainbow’s eyes lit up. “Yeah! That’s it! I pray, and He hears me.”

“Hmm. This sure does make for some interesting possibilities. Is there a way you can have me talk to Him?”

Rainbow cocked a brow in confusion, “What do you mean? Like, a letter or something?”

“Yes, that’s exactly it. Can you have this Jesus person write a letter to me?”

Rainbow tossed her words around in her head. “Well, I don’t know. See, it’s a pony-to-pony thing, ya know? The way I talk to Him might not be how you do, and so on. I mean, the most I can tell you is to just...talk. Just talk like you would to me, or any other pony. And He’ll hear you, if you believe.”

“Well, how am I supposed to talk to Him if I don’t believe?”

“That’s something you’ll have to work out with Him.”

Twilight smacked her forehead. This was harder than she thought.

Rainbow saw how stressed she was, and put a hoof out onto Twilight’s. “Look, I’ll tell ya what. I’ll ask Him the next time I talk to Him about you, and see if He can, I dunno, cook something up. Maybe if I pray for you, it’ll be like encouraging Him or something. I’m not really sure how this works, but it couldn’t hurt, right?”

Twilight smiled at her friend’s gesture. “Of course, Rainbow, thank you.”

The two talked for another half an hour about odd and end things to finish off their night on a lighter note. Rainbow said her goodbyes and flew off into the night towards her home. Twilight waved her friend off, and returned to her quarters for the evening.
Twilight once again heard the familiar tap tap of her door, followed by a tiny dragon making his entrance. “Is it okay if I come in?”

“I believe you already are. But yeah, come in.” Twilight smiled at Spikes delayed manners.

“So, how did the revised talk go?”

Twilight huffed. “Well, it went better than last night’s, that’s for sure. I actually find myself curious to talk to this Jesus guy, but I’m not sure how.”

Spike put his claw up to his chin in thought, and had an idea. “Why don’t you write Him a letter? I’ll even send it off for you.”

Twilight smiled at her number one assistant’s humble suggestion. “Thank you, Spike, but I’m not sure He’d even get it.”

“You never know, Twilight. Stranger things have been known to happen. And so what if He doesn’t get it? At least you’ve tried.” He suddenly had a minor coughing fit, to which several throat-clearing attempts were made after.

Twilight’s expression lifted for a moment, “Spike, are you okay?”
Spike laughed. “Just a little cough is all. All those nights outside Rarity’s window trying to serenade her are catching up to me, I suppose.”

Twilight rolled her eyes and playfully slapped Spike’s shoulder, to which he giggled.

After a good minute or two of laughing and kidding around, Twilight thought back to what Spike had previously said, and pondered his suggestion for a moment. “You know what? Spike, I’m going to do this. Could you leave me for a few minutes while I collect my thoughts?”

Spike smiled. “As you wish, princess.” He turned, closed the door, and left Twilight to her letter.

Twilight walked gingerly over to her writing table, got a fresh sheet of parchment out, dipped her quill in her ink, and penned her letter.

Dear Jesus,

My friend Rainbow Dash speaks very highly of You. In fact, upon hearing her description of You, I find this hunger to know who, or rather, what You are. I’m not quite sure if this letter will reach You, but I do ask that You would contact me as soon as possible for a talk. I’d love to get to know You, if You’re everything Rainbow says You are.

Sincerely,

Princess Twilight Sparkle

Looking down at what she wrote, she smiled. “Spike!” No sooner than she called him did he poke through her doorway.

“Yes?”

“Could you please send this out? I’m not sure to where, but I’ll trust your judgement.”

“I’ll do my best, Twilight.” With that, he blew his signature green flame onto the letter, and it dissipated in thin air.

Twilight yawned, and stretched out her forelimbs. “C’mon, let’s get some sleep. It’s getting late, and if I remember right, you have a cough to fight off.”

They chuckled, and retired for the night.

Princess Celestia signed the last of her documents and blew out her candles for the evening. She left her study, and locked the door. As she walked down the halls, she caught glimpse of Luna raising the moon in the sky. She nodded in silent acknowledgement, and continued on to her quarters.

Celestia brushed her mane, and got ready for bed. Just as she was getting tucked in, a scroll dropped out of a green tint of light onto her comforter. Figuring it was for her, she gently opened it, and read its contents. She felt the corners of her mouth tug into a grin, and set the letter on the nightstand.

Before she went to bed, she made a mental note to have a talk with Twilight as soon as she could.

Return to Sender

Twilight pranced around her quarters that morning with purpose. She was up early, awaiting the arrival of her letter written to her from Jesus.

She looked at the clock. It was ten in the morning. “Ugh. For someone who’s all-powerful, He sure does take His time.” She paced some more. After ten more minutes, she fell on her haunches. “I’m not getting anywhere.”

After a few more minutes of thinking, she called for her assistant. “Spike!”

Spike emerged in the doorway. “Yes, Twilight?”

“Where did you send that letter that I wrote yesterday?”

“I sent it to Celestia.”

Twilight’s eyes went wide. “What? Why? I thought you sent it to Jesus?”

Spike shrunk back slightly. “Well, I wanted to, but I didn’t know how to reach Him! I figured maybe she could like, forward it to Him or something.”

Twilight took a breath, then smiled. “It’s okay Spike. I know you were just doing your best. I just don’t know what to expect now that Celestia has it, and I guess I’m worried she’ll think I’ve gone off the deep end or something.”

Spike chuckled. “Twilight, we’ve fought monsters from practically every realm of time, and are on speaking terms with the essence of chaos himself. Do you really, really think that she’s going to knock points off of you for talking to someone in the sky?”

“Well, I guess not...still, you should have told me that you were planning on doing this. So what now? Do we just wait for Celestia’s next move? It’s not like she’s going to magically appear in my room with answers or anything.”

Almost as if on cue, Celestia herself popped in a light of magic in the middle of Twilight’s study. Twilight let out a loud “gah!”, much to Celestia’s amusement. Clearing her throat, the regal alicorn spoke. “Twilight, worried as ever I see. Do you have a moment?”

Twilight sighed and face-hoofed. “I guess now is as good a time as ever. Spike, keep a close eye on things would you? With what we’re tampering with, I’d hate for anyone to find out about it without a direct explanation from me.”

Spike let out a few cough sputters. “You got it.”

Twilight turned to Celestia, her eyes filled to the brim with uncertainty. "So, what now?"

Celestia grinned. "I think a field trip is in order."

No sooner had Celestia said those words that Twilight found herself in a poof of magic that transported them to an open field. Celestia sighed in content, as she looked around with a smile tugging at her face. “This will do just fine.”

She sat down, and gestured with a hoof for Twilight to join her. Twilight bit her lip, and cautiously looked around. She did a quick scan of the area for anypony that might be dropping in for an unexpected visit, and once she saw the coast was clear, she hastily took a seat next to her mentor. Celestia gently cleared her throat, “Twilight, it’s come to my attention that you’re investigating a certain someone. Care to tell me who that might be?”

Twilight’s ears drooped, and she let out a sigh. “I know you already got Spike’s mail. Well, my mail, to be more precise. But Princess, while it wasn’t meant for you to see, it’s not as if it was malicious in nature. I’m just curious to know who Rainbow Dash is going on and on about. It’s even affected our friendship to a certain degree, and I’m not sure in a good way. Who is this Jesus she talks about, and why is He so important?”

Celestia chuckled. “I see that your thirst for knowledge is parched. However, this story is one best told not by me, but by someone else.” She pointed to a spot in the field that had no grass, but was as dry as a desert. “If you wait there, He will come. However, you must be patient.” Celestia got up, and flew away.

Twilight ran in the direction that Celestia flew, “Wait! Wait! What does that mean! Is He actually going to show up?! How will I know it’s Him? Wait! Come back!” Twilight Sparkle flailed all her limbs in a vain effort to usher her mentor back to where she was, but her efforts were unfruitful, as Celestia was well out of earshot by now.

Twilight looked around frantically. Panic was starting to set in, and she knew it. She was waiting for Pinkie Pie to burst out of nowhere with her blasted party canon and scare the bejeezus out of her. However, the only thing she found to be her company, was the soft breeze of the spring day, accompanied by the lone chirping of a few stray birds.

She walked gradually back to the spot that Celestia had showed her, eyeing it down and over-analyzing it as she usually did. She kicked at it with her forehoof, she sniffed it; and, just for good measure, she even tasted it.

It didn’t taste very good.

As she spit out the dirt, she realized that no matter how much she seemed to prod, nothing came of it. There were no signs from above, no beaming lights, no angelic chorus to greet her, or frighten her. It was just the mellow ballad of a warm spring day, and it was starting to take its toll. She laid down on the lonely spot of dirt, and felt her eyes get heavier. She tried to keep herself awake, but as the warm air surrounded her, hugging her in a gentle embrace, she felt the temptations of sleep con her into a nap she could not avoid, and felt her fatigue slowly lose itself to the spring day.

Twilight jerked awake.

Panic overtook her as she realized what had happened: she had fallen asleep, and nopony knew where she was. What about Spike? He had that cough that she just knew he did nothing about while she was gone, so there would be that do deal with. And what about Rainbow Dash? She was expecting to hear back from Twilight...wasn’t she? Oh, all these thoughts and nothing was making sense! Twilight knew she had to get back to the castle, and pronto, before something could potentially blow up in her face.

Then she heard it.

Her left ear twitched, then her right, then both of them, trying to find the audio-perpetrator.

She got up and ran frantically in one direction, then turned and ran in the other. She then stopped, breathing the warm air in heavily. She looked around left and right and above her, but no one was there. She then felt her head fall down, and let out a tired sigh. What was there besides a patch of dirt in the ground? She took a deep breath, then turned to walk away.

As she was walking, she promptly bumped into someone and fell to the ground.

“Hey! Watch where you’re...going…” Her words trailed off as before her, stood a creature like she had never seen. It stood on two legs, and was clothed in a simple white robe with a length of rope for a belt. It had a walking stick in what appeared to be a very strange looking hoof on the right side of it’s body, and had long hair. It was smiling though, which seemed rude, considering this thing just knocked her down.

However, all these thoughts and more were stifled as she could not seem to close her mouth upon seeing this very foreign creature. She stumbled back, shuffling as fast as she could. It was extending its appendage out to her. Was it a weird claw? It looked fleshy, so it couldn’t have hurt her, right?

Then, to her shock, it spoke.

“I’m sorry. I hope you’re not hurt. Allow me to introduce myself.” He helped her stand up, and lightly brushed her coat of any dust that might have gotten on it.

“I am Jesus.”

Author's Note

I'm SOOOO sorry for the delay! Life has been really hard lately, and not leaving me much time to write. So, please accept this as a token of my deepest apologies, and as a new commitment to start writing more often and publishing more frequently!