More Than a Simple Fantasy
More Than a Simple Fantasy
"So, what do you think?" Rainbow Dash asked eagerly, leaning upon the table in the centre of Twilight Sparkle's crystal library.
Across from her, the purple alicorn in question sat with a rough manuscript magically hovering before her, or at least she thought she could call it that. She knew Rainbow Dash had always wanted to try her hoof at writing, well ever since she'd read her first Daring Do book at least. Twilight had always been very fond of the idea, the thought that she'd inspired somepony else to start writing only filled her with pride, and she'd supported her friend every step of the way.
Only she had to admit, as eager as Rainbow had appeared, she'd never acutely though the pegasus would ever act upon her ambitions. It was a very harsh and somewhat arrogant state of mind she knew. Yet as selfish as it made her feel, she couldn't dismiss the fact that there was a lot more to writing than fantasy and inspiration. There was a good story, then there was a readable one, and as much as she hated to admit it, the work Dash had finally presented her with was strongly lacking in the latter category.
"It's... It's, very interesting" Twilight offered weakly, biting her lip and secretly cursing herself for having agreed to be an editor on top of all of her other duties.
Rainbow Dash nodded happily.
"Of course it's interesting, but what else? What about the setting, or the characters? Oh', oh' and the action parts, they were so fun to write!" The pegasus expressed, literally flying about the room with excitement.
Twilight looked at the piece of paper before her, and noticed there were at least half a dozen mistakes upon it, all of which she'd crossed out and corrected best she could. Unfortunately, once she'd gotten past the slew of punctuation and grammatical errors, not to mention the weak format, she'd not found much time to evaluate the plot or its features. Worse still, she didn't know whether to be relieved or worried about that fact.
"Well?" Rainbow Dash pressed, finally settling down on the other side of the paper strew table.
Twilight strived to focus one eye on the manuscript while keeping the other on her giddy friend. That was hard enough, yet she also had to try and force her best supportive expression.
"Well as first attempts go it's certainly imaginative" She improvised quickly, making an even swifter effort to read through the closest pages for any key plot points she could make observations on.
"Yeah I know that Twilight, that's basically what you just told me" Rainbow Dash responded, then fell right back into excitement mode as she went on. "But what about the story? I put a lot of time and effort into it, especially the big fight scene right at the end. You know, the one where Storm Talon, saves Violet from the evil, undead robots!" She exclaimed, as if Twilight should be fanfillying over the idea as much as she was.
All the alicorn did was nod slowly, then her horn glowed brighter as she flipped through to the end of the story to find the part in question.
"Oh’ right, now I remember" She stated sheepishly, as she found a paragraph of rough scribbles that matched Dash's passionate description. "Storm Talon, right..." She cleared her throat. "Storm Talon, the pony-griffin hybrid from the lost kingdom of Boreallus, trained by the league of shades, captain of the of the lightning bolts and beloved hero of all of Equestrion" She read out skeptically.
Rainbow Dash smiled widely at the description. "Yeah, he's so awesome! At first I really wanted to make him related to Daring Do, but when I told Rarity about the idea she told me I shouldn't because it's..." Rainbow trailed off, thinking hard about something. "Think the word she used was plag-iar-us?" She stated in confusion.
"Plagiarism, I think she meant plagiarism. It's when somepony copies another pony's work and tries to pass it off as their own" Twilight swiftly explained, before Rainbow could strain her thoughts too much.
"Oh' that makes sense, besides as big a Daring Do fan as I am, she's nothing compared to any of my characters, especially considering Storm Talon is based on yours truly" She added, pointing to herself and leaning back proudly.
Twilight nodded again, each bob of her head a cautious one.
"All of my characters are based on my friends. Surprise was Pinkie, Murmur was Fluttershy, Second Best was Applejack and Fabulousity was Rarity" She explained happily, then paused abruptly. "Wait, that's not plag-iar-ism to it is?" She asked warily.
Twilight didn't even have time to offer Rainbow Dash a clear response as something else entered her mind.
"Wait, if you based all of your characters on us, then that must mean I'm..." She looked down at the page, in particular at the description of the pony Rainbow's bold and brave protagonist continually rescued.
"Yeah, you're Violet" Rainbow finished for her, seeming to forget the previous topic as excitement took hold of her again.
Twilight read a few lines more, hoping to better understand the fictional persona that had been modelled after her. Violet was a pretty, purple unicorn who, as a foal, had been captured and experimented on by the evil Doctor Typhoon. The monster was Rainbow’s main antagonist and Storm Talon’s arch nemesis, on account of him turning the characters' whole family into statues long ago.
Twilight tried to overlook how farfetched that story sounded, yet she couldn't dismiss the fact that, as a result of the experimentation, the character of Violet had grown wings. Yet for all that, she seemed to be nothing more than a damsel in distress for Storm Talon to save again and again, certainly nothing like a magical alicorn should be.
"More like she’s somepony for Rainbow Dash to save" Twilight thought to herself, wondering why she of all Dash's fictional characters, had taken such a role.
"Rainbow, this character is exactly like me. The only thing you've changed is her personality, her background and oh', you've given her a slightly different cutie mark. Other than that she looks exactly the same as me!" Twilight pointed out indignantly, while still trying to hide the slight irritation she harboured at the idea of being portrayed is such a way.
Rainbow Dash sank back slightly at the observation, seeming somewhat ashamed.
"Also, why does my character act so unbelievably, and why does she always has to be saved by your perfect one?" Twilight pressed on, only to release how serious she was taking this.
"Common Twilight, it's only a story. It's not like Rainbow Dash actually sees you that way" She thought to herself, then paused.
What if Rainbow Dash really did she her that way? What if Storm Talon was how she saw herself, and the situations the two characters found themselves in though the story were how she…?
The alicorn blushed slightly at the thought, then she sat back to hide her embarrassment best she could.
"Yeah, about that" Rainbow offered weakly, recoiling awkwardly as she bit her lower lip.
Twilight set the manuscript down on the table, her mind racing. What did Dash think she was? Some kind of pretty princess that needed saving all the time? No, there was no real reason to believe for that, and there was no evidence to support the idea either. Dash was one of her best friends and had never seemed to think any less of her, least of all because she was a princess.
Twilight knew there had to be something more to her friends reasons however, a reason why Dash would envision her like this. At that thought, she glanced down at the paper and recalled she something she knew about ponies who chose to write in their free time. To many it was a form of escapism, a way to live out their greatest fantasies freely and expresses themselves while still remaining grounded reality.
She also knew that, for others it was a way to fill a void that they never truly could in their real, everyday lives. The biggest question for her however, was did any of those things apply Rainbow Dash, and if they did what did that mean? Could Rainbow really feel like that about her? The somewhat shameful look on the pegasus' face didn't help to dismiss the fact in the slightest, and as a result both ponies fell into an awkward silence for a few unbearably long seconds.
"Hey Twilight, they're just characters I came up with, they don't..." Rainbow Dash finally said, breaking the quiet tension.
Even so, she spoke in a way that seemed rehearsed and prepared. Yet as she trailed off, it sounded as if she was reconsidering that routine for the first time. Twilight considered Rainbow’s words carefully, making note of her eyes as they darted about nervously.
It certainly wasn't like the Rainbow Dash she knew, and as the odd observations grew, it felt like there were a million little books flying about within her head trying to find answers. Many told her to just ask, but for some reason she couldn't bring herself to be so blunt. Finally, Rainbow Dash straightened, then puffed herself up as confidently as she could.
"Look, Twilight I've... I've never really told anypony about this before, and I know I should have but..." Rainbow began, then paused seeming to deeply consider opening up about her thoughts.
In the end the former decision seemed to win out, and she pressed on tentatively.
"Before, I met any of you guy's I never really had anypony. I mean sure there was Fluttershy and I knew Gilda back then too but..." Her words dissolved into consideration again, and Twilight managed to settle a little so she could listen.
If nothing else this could be a great friendship lesson for them both, but she had a feeling it was far more than that to Rainbow.
"Those ponies in there were kinda like my friends for a lot of that time, I'm mean sure they’re different now because I changed them to be more like guys. Only, I was always like Storm Talon in my head, or more like him than I am already" She laughed a little at that. "But they all really helped me get by when I was alone, and I know it sounds stupid, especially now I have my friends, but…” She paused again, eyes pointed down at the papers as she bashfully rubbed the back of her neck with a forehoof. “Once, those characters were just as much my friends as anypony real"
Upon finally letting her feelings out, Rainbow Dash sighed and sat back. It looked as if great weight had been lifted from her chest, yet the relief seemed short lived, and moments later she leaned forwards to gather up the papers. She looked upon them with a fondness that didn't care for how bad they appeared, and it was clear that to her the story was one of the most important things in all of Equestria.
"I always thought it would all just be in my head, and I was fine with that. But after you made me realise how much I love to read, I thought I could make it all something more" Rainbow explained, as she finally looked back at Twilight.
The alicorn took a moment to swallow the information, yet there was one thing Rainbow had failed to mention, the one major idea that was lingering upon her mind. The thought of Rainbow’s feelings for her made her feel like there was a giddy pony dancing in her head, the likes of which she couldn't quite comprehend.
"That's nothing to be ashamed of Rainbow, I'm sure there are plenty of other ponies who feel that way, and it's quite admirable that you have such a powerful imagination, it's just..." Twilight began, her voice slightly nervous as she tried to shroud her concerns.
Evidently her sheepishness was more than a little obvious, and Rainbow Dash looked at her friend with a small smile the moment she finished.
"You wanna know about Violet don't you?" She asked knowingly, half hopeful and half terrified.
Twilight didn't feel any less afraid to press on, but she nodded regardless.
"Bet you think she's more like Rarity then you, hur?" Rainbow asked jokily, seeming to hold off on the deeper meaning until she had nothing else to verbally postpone it, and when the time finally came she sighed.
“Violet was a mare I really liked, only she was never real and I'd spend hours heartbroken because of it..." She began, a deep passion swiftly taking hold of her words. "But when I met you, and I got to know you, and well... You really reminded me of her. It's really stupid I know, and I know you're not her Twilight. But the idea she wasn’t as fake as I thought made me so happy" Rainbow Dash finally admitted, trying to be as casual as she could, even though the powerful emotions underneath where clear as day.
Twilight fell into silence again as she battled her emotional stupor, and sure enough Rainbow’s look slowly morphed into one of shame.
"I'm sorry if I creeped you out Twilight I... I think I'll just get out of your mane" She muttered weakly, before finally standing up and gently placing the manuscript upon her back.
“All of my suspicions are true then? Rainbow loved a fictional character, one like me?” Twilight thought to herself, then at the realisation her thoughts snapped to attention and she looked about.
Thankfully she glimpsed Rainbow Dash by the door, her hoof pressed to it as she moved to exit.
"Rainbow Dash wait" She finally squeaked, her voice small and frail.
Rainbow Dash looked back to see the alicorn had stood. She opened her mouth to say something, yet could find no words as Twilight gingerly made her way over.
"You don't have to leave" The alicorn offered with a small smile.
Rainbow's look turned curious, and Twilight sighed.
"Besides, I'd be lying if I said I didn't have my fair share of imaginary friends, especially from back when I was alone in Canterlot. I know how much they can mean to you" She admitted, with as small blush of her own.
All Rainbow could recognise was how cute Twilight looked, so much like she'd imagined in her stories.
"You saying it's not that bad?" The pegasus asked hopefully, motioning back towards the rough papers on her back with a nod.
Twilight leaned closer, half of her mind uncertain, the other stuck thinking about all the times her fantasies had pulled her through the hard times in her life. Much like Rainbow, she'd wished some of them were real once, especially when she'd been teased as filly.
"It was never bad, it was your fantasy, and..." Her respectfully timid words fell into a murmur.
Rainbow Dash's muzzle curled into a smile, hope gleaming in her magenta eyes.
"I don't think it should have to be a fantasy anymore" Twilight finally admitted, her words soft and kind as she looked at Rainbow Dash.
At that, the pegasus placed a wing upon her blushing friends back.
"It never was for me Twilight" She told her simply, that age old void in her chest finally feeling as if it were filled.
