Angel of Justice: Blood Moon

Elsewhere in the palace, Raincloud sat in her room staring out of the window. The view afforded to her in this guest room was much better than she ever had in her prison cell. She would be lying to herself if she said she wouldn’t miss it.

She tugged at her new collar and scratched her neck. Ever since she healed her vocal cords back into working order, she could almost swear that it itched even more. Perhaps she just never noticed her original collar being made of a more scratchy material than the one Sparkplug made. Another thing she would unexpectedly miss.

Hearing hoofsteps approaching from outside, the gray mare shifted on her bed and turned just in time to see the door opening and none other than Princess Luna stepping into the room.

“Morning, Moonie.” Raincloud greeted, flashing an impish smirk.

Luna snorted softly, though she couldn’t help but tug a corner of her mouth up. “Good morning, Raincloud… I see your voice has returned in full.”

“I know you missed my ivory tones and witty remarks, no need to look so bent out of shape about it,” Raincloud said, putting a hoof to her neck and clearing her throat. It had taken her roughly a whole day’s worth of rest to get her strength back enough to heal the others and then herself, and even now she was half convinced that there was some scarring on the inside causing a few tickles.

“While I am genuinely glad to see that you are back in good health… I think we both know that I am not here to give you a checkup or listen to you testing your vocal cords.” Luna explained, dropping her lighthearted expression slightly.

Raincloud leaned forward and pooled her hooves in her lap as she looked at the princess of the night with a serious glint in her eyes. “Yeah… I didn’t mention it yesterday, partially because of the… uh… poor timing, and also the whole not being able to talk thing, but I think we have some unfinished business that needs to be resolved.” She suggested pointedly. “Namely, my payment.”

Luna merely stared at her for a few moments, her mouth set in a neutral line. Finally, she took an even breath and spoke. “Raincloud… I believe you recall the details of our arrangement, yes?”

“Of course I do,” Raincloud said. “I help you kill the big bad vampire, and you give me my brother’s journal, which is technically my property to begin with now that he’s dead.”

“That’s not all there was to our deal.” Luna flattened her expression. “I made it very clear that we would only give the journal to you if you didn’t make any further escape attempts.”

“What…? But, how do you-” Raincloud started to ask, until her eyes flashed with revelation and subsequently narrowed. “Which one was it?”

“Rainbow Dash,” Luna explained. “She seemed reluctant to inform me after everything you went through together, but she could not lie to me in good conscience.” She said, her expression hardening slightly. “You attacked Pinkie Pie and very nearly got her and Rainbow killed as a result.”

Raincloud tensed her jaw in the beginnings of an angry growl. She wanted to be angry with the cyan mare. Celestia knew she wanted to be angry, but somehow, she couldn’t find it in her as she sighed and let her head hang.

“Yeah… I guess I did.” Raincloud said softly, gazing up with a saddened look in her eyes. “Well, a deal’s a deal. I’m a mare of my word.”

Luna softened her expression, a bit surprised to see the usually standoffish mare so quiet and reflective. She could almost swear the pegasus even looked regretful. “Normally, I would be far more cross with you for endangering the lives of two close friends.” She said.

Raincloud looked up and skewed a brow, “Normally?”

“Of course, I cannot discount your aid to us throughout the night. You saved many of our lives either directly or indirectly. However… Rainbow Dash also made it very clear that she didn’t want you to be punished over what happened.”

Now, the pegasus cocked her head to the side. “She… she did?” She trailed her eyes to the sides, her ears falling slightly as she thought back to the fight she had with the two mares.

“Believe me, I was as surprised as you are.” Luna smiled softly. “She made a rather compelling case in your favor. It was quite moving. So moving, in fact… that we came to an agreement.”

“An agreement?” Raincloud perked up slightly before trying to reign in her excitement. “What kind of agreement?”

In response to this, Luna turned and opened the door. As she started to exit, Raincloud noticed a familiar cyan mare standing there, clutching a small object to her chest.

“She wanted to give you something… in person.” Luna smiled before allowing Rainbow Dash entrance into the room and shutting the door behind the pegasus, leaving them both alone.

Rainbow formed an awkward smile and a slight nervous chuckle as she looked to the gray mare on the bed. “Hey…”

Raincloud regarded the pegasus for a moment, not really smiling or reacting other than a look of pleasant surprise in her eyes. However, she did give more of a reaction as she shifted her attention to the item the pegasus was carrying.

It was a small book bound in gray cloth, heavily weathered and aged, though not to the degree that it was falling apart. It just looked like it had been used a lot, though it did seem to be in good condition considering, like it had been cared for.

“Is that…?” Raincloud asked, looking between the book and the cyan mare.

Rainbow Dash walked up to the bed and handed the book off to the gray pony, who just held it for a moment and stared at it. After a moment, a fond smile started to form before Raincloud looked back to the cyan mare and stiffened her lips.

“Go ahead.” Rainbow coaxed.

With this assurance, and after making sure the door to the room was fully closed, Raincloud looked down to the book and lifted her hoof to its cover, hesitating for a moment before carefully opening it up.

A soft paper scuffing sound greeted the gray mare as she opened up to the first page. A wall of crudely written text waited for her, and sitting on the cover, drawn in the same child-like scrawl, was the name of the owner of this journal. Dust Kicker.

“Man… It’s been years since I’ve even seen this thing. He only let me hold it when we were kids.” Raincloud said, a slight chuckle escaping her. “He told me he got rid of it… but I saw him hide it once or twice.”

Rainbow Dash mirrored the slight smile forming on the gray mare’s face. She decided to be respectful and just watch silently for a moment while Raincloud flipped through the pages in both directions.

Through her searching, Raincloud found various journal entries filling up some pages, along with some drawings and sketches from various points in her brother’s life. While even the most recent sketches weren’t exactly groundbreaking art, it was easy to see the improvements from when he was a colt versus when he was a teenager and then a young stallion.

Then, as she turned to one of the earlier pages, she paused and gasped softly. She held a hoof to her mouth and stared ahead, eyes starting to hold a slight shimmer.

“Oh my gosh… I forgot he drew this.” She said, voice laced with more happiness than the cyan mare had ever heard from her.

“Can I see?” Rainbow Dash asked.

After a moment of thought, Raincloud scooted over on the bed, allowing the cyan mare to climb up and sit beside her. She angled the journal so that they both could see.

Rainbow Dash looked at the page seemingly causing the emotional reaction in her companion. On it, there was a small photo taped to the corner of the page of a family of four. In the photo, she could see Raincloud as a filly, and a slightly older brown-furred and black-haired colt that she recognized to be Dust Kicker, along with two older pegasi that must have been their parents.

Below the image, taking up most of the rest of the page, there was a drawing made in crayon. It was slightly better than most drawings made in crayon. The ponies actually looked like ponies, and the proportions were mostly accurate, though the perspective was a little off.

It depicted a scene similar to the photo above, with four ponies meant to represent Raincloud and her family. The only difference between the two was the presence of a heavily shaded black pony silhouette drawn on the ‘ground’ next to Raincloud, which had a simplified purple smiley face and dotted eyes where the head was. Judging by its position and how it was seemingly attached to the filly, this was most likely meant to represent her living shadow.

“Wow… I didn’t take Dust Kicker for the drawing type.” Rainbow noted.

“He would probably deck both of us if he were here.” Raincloud chuckled fondly before letting her expression fall slightly. “I think the only ones that knew he still sketched were me and Grimwood.”

“Grimwood?” Rainbow Dash skewed her expression, struggling to remember who that name belonged to. She had heard a lot of names tossed around when they were fighting the hooded ponies.

“Raven Feather’s little brother. You never met him, technically.” Raincloud explained.

“Technically?” Rainbow asked, even more confused, before suddenly getting a look of revelation on her face. “Oh… right… sorry. I forgot about the whole Shade thing. Poor kid...” She let her ears droop at the somber thought.

Raincloud wrinkled her mouth slightly before sighing. “I wish he never got wrapped up in everything that went down… He was pretty quiet, but he was a good kid. He would let Dust use his paint supplies when no one was watching.”

Rainbow Dash trailed her eyes to the side slightly. She started to say something, only to pause and rethink her words for a moment. “Can I ask you something?”

Raincloud looked up at this. “Uh… sure, why not?”

“Why didn’t you guys try something else?” Rainbow asked.

“Something else?” Raincloud lifted a brow. “How do you mean?”

Rainbow Dash leaned back and stammered uncomfortably, not wanting to ruin this little moment they were having with such an unpleasant question. “I mean… uh… you know, the whole hooded ponies thing. The monsters, and trying to overthrow the princess. Wasn't there some way for you guys to get your message across without… killing people?”

Raincloud scrunched her expression briefly, initially feeling offended and irritated, before taking stock of her response and letting the question sink in. She exhaled softly and struggled for a moment to come up with an answer.

“I’m not sure if I’m the best pony to ask about that… Although, I guess I’m the only pony you can ask about that.” Raincloud let her ears droop a bit as she eyed down toward the journal in her hooves. “I… I think… I don’t know. When me and Dust met Raven Feather, she already had her plan in mind. We… well, mostly me, had been picked on and beat up and treated like monsters for so long that… I guess I didn’t care about letting ponies see what real monsters looked like. And Raven Feather… she had things so thought out and… she seemed so confident, that we believed her when she said she wanted to make Equestria better. I still think she did… in her own way.”

The pair sat in silence for a moment after that, neither one able to think of anything to add.

Finally, Rainbow broke the uneasy silence. “This is really awkward, isn’t it?”

Raincloud smirked. “Yeah…” She muttered, reaching down to turn a page, if only to have her hooves do something.

However, as she did turn to the next page, she paused as she heard something small slip out of the journal and hit the floor.

Both of the mares looked down, only to find a folded-up piece of paper on the floor. Raincloud closed the journal and set it beside her before reaching down and picking up the scrap. She shared a curious look with her cyan companion before unfolding it and reading it to herself.

There was a date near the top corner, which the gray mare remembered to be around the time that she and her brother met Raven Feather and moved into the mansion. Below was a message, seemingly written by Dust Kicker to her.

Raincloud, if you are reading this, get out of my journal.

But, since you aren’t going to see this anyway, I might as well get some stuff off my chest. I know you told me that what happened with mom and dad didn’t bother you, but you’re my sister. You might be good at lying, but you’re not that good.

What they said to you was not ok. You’re not a freak. I’ll be the first to admit that shadow of yours creeps me out, but as long as it doesn’t hurt you, I’m fine with it.

I know this Raven Feather girl offered to take us in, but I’m still not sure about her. If she so much as hints at wanting to use you like some kind of tool, I’ll sock her harder than I socked dad.

But hey, at least we get to sleep in a mansion instead of on the street, even if it is older than Celestia’s grandmother. I just want you to know, if this group doesn’t work out, I’ll stick with you wherever we go.

We didn’t choose to be siblings, but I’m glad we are. You and your bad luck shadow have been nothing but good luck to me, and as much as I want to strangle you some days, you’ve always had my back. It’s only fair that I have yours, even if we are joining a cult.

Are we seriously joining a cult? Is that what this is? Eh… whatever. Those hoodies Raven Feather gave us are pretty sweet.

Love you, sis’... but seriously, get out of my journal. If you somehow find this, I will literally put you through a window.

Off to the side, Rainbow Dash softened her expression as she saw Raincloud’s eyes starting to water. The gray mare sniffed and bit her lip to try and stop it from quivering, but eventually, the flow of emotion was too much for her to stop. She dropped the piece of paper and hid her face in her hooves as she quietly cried.

“It’s ok…” Rainbow Dash said softly, reaching out and placing a hoof on her companion’s shoulder. She was surprised as the gray mare jerked away and turned to her with an irritated look in her eyes.

“Stop that!” Raincloud raised her voice briefly before pausing and taking a few shaky breaths.

Rainbow inched back a bit, a confused and concerned expression plastered on her face. “Stop what?”

Raincloud started to wipe her eyes with a hoof, only to let it linger as she clenched her eyes shut, allowing more tears to fall freely down her cheeks. “Why are you so nice to me? After everything I’ve done to you! I’ve done nothing but yell at you and try to hurt you! And you… y-you just act so forgiving and treat me like… l-like…” She paused, opening her eyes and staring at the ground, “like a friend…”

Rainbow Dash set her mouth in a neutral line and exhaled softly through her nose. “I wouldn’t exactly call us friends… and I haven’t forgiven you. I don’t know if I ever will… You got Twilight killed, along with a lot of innocent ponies.” She explained, no hostility to her voice. If the unicorn hadn’t been revived, she would probably be too angry to be this close to the pale pegasus.

“Then why?” Raincloud finally looked up, managing to meet the cyan mare’s gaze, albeit with fragile and trembling eyes. “You could have just as easily convinced the princess to toss me back in jail and throw away the key. You even stuck up for me after I tried to cut and run the first time.”

“Y’know… I hate when people answer a question with a question, but… I think this one is important.” Rainbow Dash said, forming a small but genuine smile. “Who do you want to be, Raincloud?”

“Wh… what?” Raincloud shook her head slightly, confused at such an unexpected response. She recalled Cadence asking her the same question, and despite how much time had passed, she still felt like she didn’t know the answer.

“Let’s pretend for a second that the hooded ponies, the bullies, and your shadow didn’t exist. You grow up without any of that junk ever happening. What would you want to do?” Rainbow asked.

Raincloud didn’t answer at first. She just sat there, staring through the cyan mare into the distance. She sniffed once and wiped her eyes before furrowing her brow as she gave the question some serious thought.

“I… I’m not sure.” Raincloud said. “I was a pegasus filly, so… I probably would have wanted to be a Wonderbolt at some point when I was growing up.” She reasoned, to which Rainbow Dash smirked. “I guess… I don’t know. I never really put much thought into the future in school… and I was so busy studying shadow magic with Raven Feather that… I never really thought about what I wanted to do if we ever did get the normal lives that we wanted so bad.”

“Well… I think you should be able to make that choice yourself, without anypony dragging you down and telling you you’re a bad omen or something. You really want to know why I’m helping you? I’ll just tell you what I told you the first time I visited you in jail.” Rainbow Dash explained.

Raincloud looked down in thought at this. A look of revelation slowly washed over her face as she thought back to that meeting. “You’re helping me because… I need it?”

Rainbow Dash nodded. “That’s right… I think that deep down, you are a good pony, Raincloud. A good pony that got beaten down by some not-so-good ponies, and… did some terrible things because of it. I won’t excuse the things you’ve done… you’re serving out your punishment for that anyway. But if all you need is some help to make you see that there are good ponies in the world, I think that’s the least I can do. And hey… in a couple years when you get out on good behavior, if you need someone to talk to, maybe we can try to start over and be friends?”

Then, the cyan mare saw something that made her give pause. Something that she never expected to see in her life. A small, genuine, and warm smile was forming on Raincloud’s face.

“You really think they’ll let me out on good behavior?” Raincloud asked coyly.

“I guess that depends on if you’ll have good behavior,” Rainbow replied with a smirk, causing a quick laugh from her companion that she shared.

After they were done, Rainbow Dash got up to leave.

“I think Princess Luna is going to let you stay here for a few more days, as long as you don’t try to escape,” Rainbow said as she paused before the door.

Raincloud sighed and nodded. “Yeah, yeah. Although, I wouldn’t be so tempted if the guards she keeps posted on me had a collective i.q higher than room temperature.” She said, raising her voice slightly to make sure she was heard by the stallions outside.

Rainbow Dash stifled a laugh and nearly blew spit on herself. She could only imagine how much restraint the pair outside was showing not to throttle the gray mare.

“You know, I think I could sweet talk the princess into letting you come outside with me sometime. You interested?” Rainbow asked. “I’d like to see how fast you are without shadow magic.”

Raincloud smiled slightly. “You’re on, but don’t go crying to your friends when I beat you.”

“Oohoho, you are so gonna get creamed.” Rainbow Dash said before opening the door and starting to leave.

“Hey, Dash…”

The cyan mare paused and looked back to see Raincloud wearing a bit of a somber expression.

“For what it’s worth, I’m sorry about your friend.” The gray mare said. “And, I’m also sorry for all those times I almost got you and your friends killed… even Twilight Sparkle.”

Rainbow Dash’s expression fell slightly as the blue stallion was brought up. Still, she was surprised to hear Raincloud so soft-spoken and openly vulnerable as to apologize unprompted for her own mistakes.

“Thanks… That means a lot, actually.”

Raincloud nodded before adopting her usual wry smirk. “Oh, and if you tell little Ms. Magic that I said that, I’m breaking your nose. Remember, I have a hard head.” She tapped her own forehead pointedly.

The cyan pegasus gave an amused snort and smiled before turning and exiting the room.

After shutting the door behind her and walking away, she found Princess Luna standing there, waiting patiently.

The alicorn perked up as the pegasus approached. “How did it go?”

Rainbow Dash glanced back to the door before facing the princess and smiling. “Surprisingly, really well.”

“Oh?” Luna lifted her brows in surprise. “By all means, please elaborate.” She said, resting a hoof on the cyan mare’s back as they started to walk away.

Meanwhile, inside of the room, Raincloud sat alone as she had grown used to doing over the past few months. However, there was a more contented and cheerful expression on her face as she was left to her thoughts.

She turned to the journal on the bed beside her and rested a hoof on its cover, brushing up against the note still lying on its surface. After a moment of thought, she grabbed the note and opened the journal, flipping through pages until she found the right one.

Raincloud placed the folded-up piece of paper back into the book, right beside the drawing of her family, covering the depiction of her shadow. She looked up to the picture taped in the corner, pressing her hoof to it and covering her parents so she could better see the filly and colt next to each other.

She stared at it for a few moments, her eyes softening as she did, before closing the journal.