Author's Note
"Trust in a new tomorrow! That's where the strength within starts! What counts is that we struggle to find the peace that exists within our hearts!"
-Have Heart, What Counts
Triumph and Gold
Twilight coated her mouth in a dark shade of lipstick that matched her bow and Lolita dress. She intended to spend the afternoon with her friends.
"You almost ready," she heard a familiar voice question. Spike entered the bathroom. He was wearing a black duster coat with a tank top underneath, black jeans, and a pair of black boots.
"Just a sec."
"You look pretty."
"That's sweet of you to say."
"What can I say? I'm a sweet guy."
"You're just a little Romeo, aren't you?"
"I'd like to think I have a little bit more common sense than that guy."
A vehicle engine was momentarily heard.
"Must be Rainbow," the young dragon deduced.
"Yo! We're coming in!"
Spike and Twilight's companions piled into the house one after the other. The reflection of light that emanated from Fluttershy's cross nearly blinded them.
"Long time, no see," Rainbow stated.
"It's only been a week," Twilight replied with mild disapproval.
"How's my favorite little dragon doing?"
Spike blushed ever so slightly.
"Fine."
"You look like an anime girl."
Pinkie snorted with laughter before speaking.
"Something smells yummy!"
"What you cookin', Twi," Rainbow asked.
"Some peas, mashed potatoes, buttered bread, rice, and steak."
Rainbow could feel her mouth watering.
"Everything should be about ready by now. Let's go to the kitchen."
Twilight made plates for each of them while they settled in. She left the steak off Spike's and Fluttershy's.
"Dig in, guys."
"You don't gotta' tell me twice," Rainbow gleefully acknowledged, "So, what have you bozos been up to, anyway?"
"Actually, I've been working on this."
Twilight took a notepad and handed it to Rainbow. Upon further examination, the blue Pegasus discovered it was a script for a supernatural found footage horror film.
"This is epic, Twi! It's like The Blair Witch Project, but good!"
"Thanks."
"How did you even come up with this?"
"There was a recommended song while I was searching for new music called Embalmer by Macabre. I threw a ghost and a plot into a blender, and this is what I came up with."
Rainbow chuckled.
"What?"
"Plot."
"Are you five?"
"No, I'm four."
Twilight groaned in frustration.
"You need to do something about all that stress. It'll kill ya'."
The group sat around and talked for awhile. They discussed their daily routines and the latest news. Based on their conversation, nothing particularly unusual was happening for the time being.
"It's about time to get going," Rainbow commented after checking the clock.
The others nodded. They followed her out the door. Twilight locked the door behind them. Rainbow, Twilight, Fluttershy, and Applejack got in the main car, leaving Pinkie, Rarity, and Spike the open area in the back. Rainbow took a disc from her CD case and popped it into her CD player. A furious wave of uplifting, brutal hardcore punk pervaded their ears. A determined air overcame the entire party. Rainbow backed out of the driveway and headed into town.
The next several hours were spent at the gym. Six months ago, there were a number of jewel thefts committed in the vicinity. At Twilight's request, the group investigated alongside the police. Thanks to the physical evidence left behind, the criminals were quickly apprehended. A violent assault was also committed not long after. Rainbow Dash caught the offender while he was on the run. When word of their activities reached Celestia's ears, they were offered positions in the local precinct, however, they declined, stating they preferred to remain independent. This led Celestia to offer an alternative. Between them, they would form a civilian public safety unit and receive a monthly salary based on their performance. Twilight came up with most of their tactics and strategies, though she occasionally received aid from her friends. Ever since then, they'd trained as often as possible to keep themselves alert and prepared.
"I think I'm done for," Rarity stated adamantly. Her muscles were screaming for mercy.
"You guys did good," Rainbow complimented.
"We should probably patrol the area before we write our reports," Twilight suggested.
"Right," Rainbow agreed, "Still, wish we had time to catch a movie."
"We can tomorrow."
"Sounds like a plan."
Rainbow Dash methodically drove down each street, keeping a lookout for any unusual activity. It took another two hours to get through the main city. Everything seemed clear.
"I guess we can start wrapping this up."
"Hang on," Spike cut in, "There's someone over there."
Rainbow looked out her door window. There was an elderly earth stallion sitting behind an old concrete building. He was malnourished to the point of rib cage visibility. Rainbow stopped the car.
"We've gotta' help him."
The others nodded and got out of the truck. They approached the man.
"It's gettin' kind of late out," Rainbow informed him, "You should be somewhere safer. The crazies tend to come out at night."
The stallion sighed. He responded with a thick southern accent - even thicker than Applejack's.
"Ain't got nowhere to go."
"Oh...Sorry to hear that."
"Don't concern yourselves with me. I'm just an old man. I ain't much longer for this world anyway."
"We can't do that."
Rainbow pulled out her identification.
"We're the CPSU. As far as we're concerned, this is a public safety issue."
"Can't say I've ever heard of ya'."
"We haven't been around very long. Our priority is the welfare of the local citizens. If you need more proof, we can contact our superior."
"Who's your superior, if you don't mind my askin'?"
"Celestia. She approved our unit directly."
"You've gotta' be yankin' my chain, here."
"I don't think he believes us, guys. Twilight?"
"On it."
Twilight Dialed Celesta's number. The phone rang.
"Hello?"
"Hey."
"Oh, Twilight! It's good to hear from you! How are things going?"
"We found someone hanging around the news building. He wants to confirm our identities."
"Strange. I would've thought everyone was aware of you by now."
"I don't think he's up to date on the current situation."
"Very well. I'll speak with him."
Twilight handed her device to the old man.
"Is it really you, Ms. Celestia?"
"Yes. I understand your skepticism regarding the local unit. Rest assured, they are indeed working on my behalf."
"Can't say I ever expected to talk to you like this."
Celestia giggled.
"Life can be full of surprises sometimes, can't it?"
"I reckon so."
"They'll take care of you. Trust in them."
"I will, ma'am."
"No need to be so formal. Celestia will do just fine."
"Thank you."
"Of course."
Celestia hung up.
"Believe us now," Rainbow asked confidently.
"Guess I ain't got much choice."
The party took the stallion to grab a bite to eat before helping him get a hotel room. They pulled together their remaining money and gave it to him.
"This should be enough for food for the next few days," Rainbow asserted.
"Would ya' mind if I asked a personal question?"
"Shoot."
"This wasn't about your CPSU duties, was it?"
"You're pretty sharp."
"Then why?"
"'cause it's the right thing to do."
"I don't understand."
"Everybody deserves to be treated with decency," Spike said.
"You're an interesting bunch. Can't really say I've seen much kindness in the world lately. It's kinda' refreshing."
"It's been difficult to come by," Applejack admitted.
"Do you mind telling us your story," Rainbow inquired.
"Not much to tell, really. My wife left with the kids and I got laid off. Lost my home and been wanderin' 'round ever since. Must've been ten years ago now."
"That's rough."
"In an ideal world, it wouldn't be an issue, but nothing's perfect, I suppose."
"Hopefully you'll be able to get back on your hooves soon."
"Thank ya'll for all your help."
"No thanks necessary. It's what we do."
"Here," Spike offered, "Take this. It can get pretty chilly at night."
"Spike, that's your only coat," Twilight protested.
"Rarity, would you mind making me a new one?"
"Of course, darling!"
"Problem solved."
"Call us if you need anything," Rainbow told the stallion, "We'll help however we can."
The old man nodded. The party saw themselves out. When they reached the parking lot, they started celebrating by cheering themselves and each other on. Rainbow beamed with enough pride to do a backflip without the support of her wings. Their praises of joy could be heard from the hotel doors to Rainbow's truck. They drove away while blasting more uplifting hardcore music.
After finishing their written reports, Rainbow, Twilight, Spike, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie, and Rarity decided to unwind for the night. Rainbow borrowed Twilight's laptop and played her friend's custom music mix while she streamed on Twitch. Spike and Twilight played video games in the background while the others rested. Not long into the stream, one of their regular viewers showed up. His screen name was DragonMaster666.
"Yo, DragonMaster! What's up, my guy!"
"That guy stole my title," Spike yelled comically.
DragonMaster started typing.
"How's work been goin'?"
"Good enough for us to get paid."
"I don't normally like to make serious posts, but I feel like I can trust you guys to help me. Will you hear me out?"
"Of course we'll help. That's why we're here."
"Well, lately, I've been thinking a lot about death and suicide. I don't know what to do. It's really been bumming me out."
Rainbow winced. While it was true she was surrounded by the concepts in media, dwelling on them was something she hadn't done much of during her life. However, she did know two people that had.
"Spike, Fluttershy, can you guys help me out?"
"What's wrong," Fluttershy asked.
"Read this."
The dragon and mare were horrified. Now they understood.
"Are you okay, dude," Spike asked.
"I don't know, man. Every day, I wake up, go to work, come home, take a shower, and watch the news until I fall asleep. Between the daily grind and all the depressing stuff on the TV and in the papers, it's hard to stay positive."
"We understand," Fluttershy said sweetly and sympathetically, "We've had struggles of our own."
"You have?"
"Fluttershy has generalized anxiety disorder," Spike stated, "Pinkie's a manic depressive, and I was suicidal for a few months."
"Why?"
"I used to get made fun of a lot for being the loud fat kid. All I was really trying to do was make people laugh, you know? I guess they didn't really see it that way. I got so used to being that way that I didn't know how else to be."
"How did you deal with it?"
"A lot of support. I started hanging out with these guys and things just kind of started looking up from there. They taught me a lot about being a better person."
"So...self-improvement?"
"That's part of it, but I also had to take control of my life. I know how easy it can be to feel sorry for yourself and pity everyone else, but the only way we can actually fix it is by doing something."
"What can I do?"
"What you feel is right."
"Could I do the same thing as you guys?"
"Absolutely, man. You can do anything you want to do and be anything you want to be. Appeal your case to Celestia and she'd probably be more than happy to make you part of the team."
"Thanks, dudes. I feel better now."
"Glad to hear it."
"If you ever need someone to talk to, we're here for you," Fluttershy said.
"Would you guys mind streaming a little longer than usual tonight? I could use the company."
"I'm cool with it," Rainbow said.
"As am I," Rarity replied.
The others concurred.
"You guys must be real-life superheroes or something."
Spike let out a lighthearted laugh.
"I don't know about all that, but we try."