The forest air offered her a sort of clarity that the city never could. Rainbow supposed it was a pegasus instinct, to know and love the air. She hadn’t felt air this clear in a long time.
Rainbow did like the city, though. It was chaotic and busy in its own unique way. But every now and then she missed the open skies, and so she’d find herself flying miles upon miles just to find a place like this.
She walked down the hiking trail at her own pace, feeling the rough, coarse dirt beneath her hooves and the wind against her face. The air was cool, although the sun was up, but Rainbow didn’t quite mind.
The path ahead of her mixed in with the grass and rocks that surrounded it on either side. Trees stretched up towards the sky, acting as silent guardians for a city of animals. Their branches sprawled about above them, stretching out to the heavens although they’d never reach them.
Leaves gently drifted through the air in a carefree, spiraling pattern before they hit the ground. Once there they joined a crowd of pinecones, other leaves, and small stones to make up the forest floor, covering the earth like a blanket.
It was so peaceful and so serene here that Rainbow felt like an intruder. She felt like a robber sneaking into nature’s mansion, robbing it of its beauty and its perfection. So she carried on, trotting down the path.
Eventually the camp came into sight. The wooden cabins and buildings sat in neat rows, sprawling across the open plains. It was quaint, though not as much as Sweet Apple Acres was. Still, it was a pleasant break from the traffic and smog of the city.
Rainbow sighed and took a deep breath of the fresh mountain air. It reminded her of brisk early mornings and long hikes through the hills, and of endless fields of flowers and trees as far as her eyes could see.
It was funny. She may have been more alone now than she ever was, but she could still hear the voices. She could hear Rarity talking about the aesthetics of the flower field, and Applejack telling tales of how she knew the land. She could feel Twilight’s excitement as she went on and on about botanical anatomy or plant viscera. Pinkie would chime in with a relevant joke before ranting about everything she wanted to do, while Fluttershy played with the animals.
And as fast as they came the voices left again, merely remnants of the past. Airy words with little substance. But still, they made her smile. She hadn’t been to Camp Naimat in a very long time, but she still trotted in as if she’d never left.
The buildings were quite familiar to her. The cabins sat in a small semicircle around some of the central buildings, including the dining hall and the administration office. There were bathrooms, showers, and other services as well for those who preferred buildings over tents.
Rainbow didn’t spend much time in the compound itself. She’d often be off in the wilderness, sleeping under stars or in canvas tents. Or she’d be sailing and diving high above the grounds, or be miles away down some hidden trail by the river.
The cabins and buildings here were old. Rainbow wasn’t quite sure how old, but she knew that this place had been around forever. The glass was mismatched and stained, the doors creaked loudly, and the walls had been repainted more times than she could count.
A few vending machines were mounted near the entrance to the dining hall, selling cold water and sodas.
But there was still a strange allure to it. Rainbow laughed as she remembered how hard it was to convince Fluttershy that it wasn’t a place straight out of an ancient horror movie set.
As Rainbow neared the dining hall, she hesitated before trotting up to the wooden double doors. She gently nosed it open, briefly skimming the notices and menus taped onto the glass, before entering the room itself.
She was greeted by row after row of benches and tables, running parallel to each other. On the far end were the serving tables and a large window, with a few pitchers of lemonade still sitting on the countertop.
But what caught her attention was the pegasus wiping down the counter. Bow Hothoof leaned on the counter and winked at her. “Hey there, champ! How’s it hanging?”
Rainbow couldn’t help but laugh. “Hey, dad. Figures you’d be here.”
She trotted over as Bow poured out a glass of lemonade. “Of course! Where else would I go? The air, the weather, the ponies… it’s all so perfect!”
“I swear, sometimes it feels like you loved this place more than you loved mom,” Rainbow joked, accepting the offered glass.
Bow winked at her with a mischievous grin. “Now don’t you go telling her that.” He poured out a second glass and raised it to her. The two cups blinked as they made contact, and both pegasi raised them to their lips.
“Ah. Now there’s the watered-down monstrosity I remember,” Rainbow declared as she felt the liquid wash back against her throat.
“You’re hurting me, kid. Hurting me. Did all those years with Sun Twi not teach you anything?”
Rainbow snorted, almost spitting out her drink. “Dad, how do you not know Twilight’s name?”
“I’m getting old, kid, cut me some slack!”
They laughed again, and Rainbow took another sip, savoring the strange tangy taste on her tongue. She looked around the room, eyes trailing over the aged wooden support beams and the decorations over the fireplace.
A tacky checkered tablecloth was draped over each table, with napkin holders and baskets of sauces dotting the surface, forming a strange navy in a sea of squares. Every now and then a pitcher would interrupt the flow, acting as a sort of lighthouse full of ice cubes.
“So what brings you by here?” Bow asked. “Can’t imagine you came all the way out here for nothing.”
Rainbow sighed, gently setting her glass back on the counter. “I dunno. I just had a realization, I guess. That this place isn’t going to be around forever… even though I kind of wish it would.”
Bow nodded sadly, pouring himself another glass. “Mm. I feel you there. Really does suck, huh?”
She nodded, staring at the bottom of her glass.
“Well, hey, it won’t be gone forever. I mean sure, they might tear down this place and build like a mall or something, but at least we’ll still have the memories. And they can always build other camps, but they can’t build new memories.”
Rainbow closed her eyes and tried to remember what the birds sounded like out here. “Yeah, I guess.”
She felt Bow reach across the counter and gently lift her chin. “Hey, champ, look at me. I know things don’t look so good right now, but they’ll get better. They gotta, that’s how life works sometimes.”
Rainbow couldn’t help but chuckle at that. Her dad didn’t always have the most elaborate way of putting things, but he knew what he had to say. “Yeah, you’re right. Thanks, dad.”
“Any time, squirt,” he replied. “You know where you’re headed next?”
Rainow glanced to her right, out the window and towards the mountains. “Not sure, wherever I need to go, I guess.”
“You need directions?”
Rainbow smirked. “Sure, what’ve you got?”
“Go wherever your heart tells you to, and don’t look back.” Bow looked at her with a sad smile. “And… keep us in mind, kid. Keep your eyes to the sky like you’ve always done and you’ll go far. Even farther than you already have.”
He pulled her into a hug from across the counter and gave her a few slaps to the back. “You’re strong, Rainbow. Stronger than you know.”
They pulled apart and Rainbow sighed, glancing out the window again. “Thanks, dad. I… thanks.”
She turned around to find that the shutter on the counter was closed, leaving her alone with an empty glass of lemonade.
Rainbow smiled and trotted out of the dining hall. She could have sworn she heard a bird chirping as she left.
