Chapters The roosters along the neighboring farms crowed a sunrise welcome as the rested inhabitants of Ponyville stirred from their soft linen beds. Drops of dew lined the blades of grass and flowered petals of gardens, parks, and rolling fields, but the mostly clear skies promised a warming that would make for another perfectly pleasant day. At Sweet Apple Acres, a small house in Ponyville, and the Filly & Colt Orphanage, three fillies woke and rose with the excitement that only another day of fun and friendship could promise. Apple Bloom, descending the staircase of the Apple's house to find her sister's smile and a bowl of hay and juice both welcoming her, could hardly finish her breakfast quickly enough. Sweetie Belle, by contrast, preceded her parent's wakening and, happily singing a rousing tune in her lovely, practiced voice, served her own meal but attacked it with no less ferocity. Though she lived in a small orphanage's community, Scootaloo was as happy as could be to eat under the watchful, but soft eyes of the caretaker.
As each of them finished, they plopped their bowls and cups into their respective sinks for a quick rinse and dry. Sister, Parents, and Caretakers alike could all be quite stern on the matter of cleanliness when it came to dishware. Apple Bloom gave her mane a quick brush and retied the lightly colored ribbon she was so fond of. Sweetie Belle took longer with a brush; after all, with a sister like Rarity who had every hair carefully aligned, she often took special care with her own mulberry and rose-colored mane. Scootaloo, well, she dusted hers back with a hoof and just might have caught a glimpse of it in a passing mirror, but not all filly's priorities turn out the same. Sooner or later, though, all of them finished their preparations, packed a light bag, and blew out the door. It was time to meet up - though none of them yet had their cutie marks, it wasn't for lack of trying, and that day promised to be another adventure, if not a successful pursuit of their special talent.
Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom were happy to trot along on their hooves over the dirt or cobble-lined paths that made up most of Ponyville's travel routes. Scootaloo, though, a sturdy helmet atop her head that was carefully buckled beneath her chin, flapped her furious, saffron-colored wings at a speed that turned out a light droning sound. Four hooves standing firmly on a light blue scooter with a small wagon tied behind it, she blazed along the roads, dodging perambulating ponies and upsetting carried loads, sipped drinks, and startled citizens. Being such a familiar sight, however, most had learned to associate the approaching hum with the disaster-on-wheels and sprung to the sides accordingly.
At such a pace, Scootaloo was easily first to arrive at the park the Cutie Mark Crusaders had chosen for the day's activity. She skidded to a halt, but winced as her little right wing fanned out to aid in stopping power. She flexed it a bit, but the rising soreness that had crept up diminished, and she shrugged with both shoulder and wing, dismissing it. She hopped off the scooter, leaving it propped against a handy, nearby oak tree. She hoofed open the sack she had placed in the wagon, pulling out a short list of events the Crusaders might or might not try out that day, weather, time, and inclination permitting. Weather! she thought. Inside the pack was a small calendar; though the calendar was printed annually, each week the Pegasi of the area posted in the Ponyville town square the planned sun, rain, and everything in-between days. Today was still marked as 100% sunshine, so that was good.
Small hoofbeats sounded nearby, and Scootaloo smiled, seeing Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle, clearly having converged along the path, approaching the park together. "Hi, Scootaloo!" they called out together, and she rose on her hind legs and waved both forehooves in greeting. The pair drew close, and the three fillies gave each other their customary greeting, including a mutual high-hoof in the air. Each of them spoke excitedly about the day's plans, and it wasn't long before they had rushed off together, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle being pulled along in the wagon, the brisk wind ruffling their manes as the reigning scooter speedster zipped them to their goals.
Jumping jacks, hopskotching, and dodge ball didn't result in cutie marks. Nor did boating, fishing (purely catch and release!), or swimming. Or brushing, for that matter, when Sweetie Belle insisted on straightening up after drying off from the dip in the lake. Sweetie Belle suggested they try to find precious gemstones, but after moving a lot of dirt and finding nothing but rocks, that idea was tossed. Trying to win at cards against some of the town's retired elders at the cafe was a bust.
After a particularly grueling physical effort using most of a playground as an obstacle course, Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom were hopping back into the wagon, but Scootaloo paused. Her wing was feeling sore, again, not unusual after a long day of zipping and running about as they had been doing, but this felt a bit sharper than mere tiredness.
Apple Bloom noticed the pause and spoke up in her light drawl. "You feelin' okay, Scootaloo?" she asked.
Scootaloo's first notion was to laugh it off, which she did. She knew that Rainbow Dash; champion flier, Wonderbolt hopeful, and all-around majorly awesome pegasus, had done a lot more strenuous and heroic work in her time. "Oh, I couldn't be better - I just thought maybe I'd worn you two out already!" The girls bonked her gently on the backside with their hooves and the trio started giggling. "Get movin', ya horsebrain!" chuckled Apple Bloom.
They took off at lightning speed. They'd finished their cutie mark trials for the day; no success, as usual, but it had been fun, so they were going to end it with some hayshakes in town. The landscape blurred and houses zoomed by. Raising her head to enjoy the feel of the rushing wind, Scootaloo noticed a light rainbow trail keeping pace above them. "Rainbow Dash!" she cried in glee. Turning over in mid-air, the blue-coated, rainbow-haired mare noticed her young idolizer and her companions, smiled, and gave a sharp salute before taking off higher in the air towards some pesky, lingering clouds. Scootaloo beamed in pride, hoping that it wouldn't be long before she got to spend some more time with her sister-adoptee.
The hayshakes, cool, thick, and tastetastic, really hit the spot. Conversation between the trio turned to Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara, who had become snotty once again when a new 'blank flank' had arrived at school. Her family had recently moved here, and the Crusaders were optimistic that the new arrival would be open to joining the club. Babs Seed had inducted two members of her own at her recently-established branch of the CMC, wasn't it just wonderful how the idea was taking off? At this rate, being a Crusader would be the cool, hip thing to be, and those two sourpuss fillies would be the ones pouting.
Delicious desserts downed and dusk threatening to approach soon, Apple Bloom wished the others a fond farewell - she had to return to the farm and knock out a few chores. Scootaloo offered Sweetie Belle a lift; her parent's house was pretty much along the way back.
The young filly Belle, tired from the day's running, laid on all fours on the wagon. Scootaloo flexed once again and took off in a burst of speed. They almost ran into a started Twilight Sparkle, whose levitated book (something about history, no doubt), was caught in the wake and almost smacked into her surprised horn, but she smiled and magicked it forward as she walked towards her own home.
Trees passed by as the skirted around town, when...
Crack! Not a noise, but the soreness and sharp pain that she had felt earlier suddenly crested straight to the front of Scootaloo's mind, and she let out all her breath in a half-cried gasp as a wave of pain erupted from the base of her right wing. It drooped almost immediately as her muscles spasmed and she lost control over its flapping. With one wing's motions blocked, and the other still buzzing strongly, the scooter and wagon careened to the right as she lost balance. Sweetie Belle, almost frozen in shock, grabbed the sides of the wagon in fear.
The sharp turn swung the wagon out; the scooter grinding into the dirt as a high-velocity spin began. Overturning itself, the wagon spilled Sweetie Belle front-first into the path, and she slid painfully across pebbles and sticks, too shocked to cry out. The scooter flipped, sending Scootaloo tail-over-head and rolling off the path, tumbling towards the base of a maple tree, which she struck and then lay still, moaning.
Sweetie Belle struggled to rise to her feet. Being propelled across the path, a few pebbles had driven across her coat, leaving long scratches which welled with tiny drops of blood in a few places, including her face. She spit out a mouthful of dirt and dust, coughing for a few moments, but she didn't seem to have broken or sprained anything. Dazed, she looked around in a bit of confusion, then remembered her friend. "Scootaloo!" she choked out, and spun to look at the wreck behind her. The wagon and scooter had collided as momentum brought them together again, and a few wheels were still spinning upright in the air. She saw the pained form of her friend piled at the tree, and, stumbling a bit, rushed over there.
"Scootaloo! Are you hurt?!" she called out, wanting to touch hoof to her friend but afraid to do harm.
Scootaloo, her eyes clenched shut, did her best to respond. "W...wing...can't...move," and stopped, pressing a hoof to her mouth and biting it, both sobbing and shrieking.
Sweetie Belle did the best thing she could think of. She dashed a few feet back to the road and screamed. "HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELP!" she cried, her singing voice tuned to a glass-shattering pitch and volume. A few hundred feet away, ponies lifted their heads and listened to the call.
The Carousel Boutique was not far away, and Rarity, hunched over one of her sewing machines, could not help but immediately recognize her little sister's piercing cry. The fabric forgotten and the machine stopped, she strode full-force through her shop, sending tailoring objects flying to walls and floors and a scared Opal to cower under a cabinet. Her horn glowing, she cast the door open so hard it nearly splintered when it struck the wall.
Rainbow Dash, lightly napping on a bit of leftover cloud, was also alerted. Transitioning into full flight in seconds, she zoomed towards Sweetie's alarm. She got there just ahead of the land-bound ponies who came galloping to the site, each of them with looks of concern plastered about their faces.
Sweetie Belle didn't wait for anyone to speak up, but turned her shriek into a desperate explanation. "SCOOTALOO...HURT HER WING...CAN'T MOVE!" her lungs bellowed. "I'M OKAY," she added, though the scratches and swelling skin declared otherwise. "HELP HER!" she entreated.
Dash zipped towards the fallen filly, worry gnawing at her core. It'd only been a few weeks since she and Scootaloo had really started bonding, when she'd agreed to take the kid under her wings, in several meanings of the phrase. What with attending Wonderbolt flight camp soon after that, they hadn't had much time to spend together. She feverishly hoped the filly wasn't badly injured.
Scootaloo seemed to have passed out, the pain from her wing overwhelming her senses. Dash moved in closer. Left wing looks okay , she thought, but Scootaloo had fallen upon the other. With her hoof and muzzle, Dash gently rolled the filly over. She paused in growing horror. Scootaloo's right wing was clearly damaged, the feathers misaligned at the base in a wrong angle. Just picking her up was clearly not an option.
Rarity thundered through the pony crowd like a raging bull, stopping in front of Sweetie Belle, her lilting voice fringed with panic. "What happened, Sweetie Belle? Are you okay?" Her little sister, tears in her eyes, caught her up in a big pony hug and sobbed with her face buried in Rarity's mane. Rarity, trying to eye her sister for damage, knelt her hind legs and drew her fore legs around the little filly, murmuring comfort.
"We need a stretcher! Or levitation!" shouted Rainbow Dash from under the tree. A few unicorns from the crowd came forward, horns pulsing in light glows as they moved to the filly's front and back. Dash spoke up again. "Careful...careful! Her wing is broken. We need to get her to the hospital, quickly, but do it without nudging her around." She stamped the ground with meaning, her heart racing. The unicorns nodded, and the soft glow from their horns enveloped Scootaloo, working together to raise her in the air. At a slow trot, they began flying her towards the local hospital. Rainbow Dash, galloping on her legs a distance away before taking off in flight, so as not to disturb the levitation, flew towards the hospital and bucked the doors hard, startling the nurse at the front desk.
"We've got a filly with a broken wing coming in!" she announced in a fast cry. The nurse, recovering quickly, buzzed the doctor.
The unicorns with the floating burden came through a minute or so later. Behind them, Rarity, with a sniffling Sweetie Belle beside her, followed. A few other concerned citizens had milled about, but considered things to be under control and were slowly dispersing. A light tan Earth pony with silvery hair had picked up and scooter and wagon and laid the slightly-bent contraptions to rest against the wall before looking around and backing out respectfully. The Doctor, a pair of glasses resting over his eyes, came through the admittance doors and looked at Scootaloo. "Okay. Bring her in. Second room on the right, here." The Doctor and the unicorn carriers disappeared through the doors along with Scootaloo.
Rainbow Dash made to follow them, but a bulky nurse carefully obstructed the way. "Not now, Rainbow," she urged.
Dash looked ready to bowl the nurse over. "I need to..." she started, but the nurse interrupted. "Let them work! Stay here. Wait. We'll let you know what's happening as soon as possible, I promise," she said, tendering her words with a bit of knowing compassion. Dash, too worried to argue further, stood in place as the nurse also went through the doors.
Rarity had taken Sweetie Belle to the couches in the waiting room. Rainbow Dash, looking at the same time both dejected and furious, came over to them and with a flash of anger kicked the wall. "What the hay happened?" she demanded.
Looking stern, Rarity responded before Sweetie Belle could. "Rainbow Dash! I know you're worried, and I am too, but don't you dare take such a tone with Sweetie Belle! She's been quite scuffed up herself, and yelling simply will not improve the situation!"
Dash let out a snort, but shut her eyes and took a deep breath. "Okay. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to...to yell. Could you tell me what happened, Sweetie Belle?"
The other young filly, eyes red from her earlier weeping, stuttered out a reply. "We were just...scooting along, she was going to drop me off at home. I don't know what happened then, she kind of gasped, then the scooter and the whole wagon went out of control and before I knew it we had both been tossed." That was apparently the best answer Dash would get for now, as Rarity shook her head to stave off further inquiry. Another nurse came into the room and walked over to the three. She looked Sweetie Belle over, spoke to Rarity, then took them two of them off to an examination room to fix up the scratches and bruises the filly had suffered.
Dash sat alone in the room, listening to an old clock ticking.
She hoped for things to be alright.
Dash waited as best she could, standing up to pace around the room, then throwing herself back onto the waiting room couch in frustration. The unicorns who had carried the little pegasus to the hospital emerged from the back rooms, but they could not impart any information to her. She thanked them for their help; they nodded somberly and took their leave. She kicked one of the lamp tables, the lamp atop it rocking back and forth precariously but somehow failing to fall.
She paced some more. Her eyes wandered around the room and fell upon the bent scooter and wagon that had been left against the wall, seeming to notice it for the first time. She stopped moving, but just stood and stared, not knowing what to think. She worried, but felt a rising heat as she struggled to cast that feeling aside. After all, Scootaloo had taken falls and bruises before. Any Pegasus that spent time near the ground was bound to collide with something or other every so often. A broken wing hurt, sure, but it would mend in time. The next Wonderbolt training weekend was a few weeks off; she vowed to spend some more time with 'Scoots' while she could. Heck, they could work on her cutie mark some more! I'll bet just working on fixing up the wing will turn up her talent! Still, she kept moving, back and forth across the floor.
The doors opened again and she looked over in anticipation and concern. It was Rarity, leading in front of Sweetie Belle, whose face and body had creams and bandages applied to her slightly battered self. One of the nurse ponies returned, stationing herself at the front desk again. Rarity nudged her sister towards a small red cushion on the floor, then nodded to Rainbow Dash and the pair moved off to the side.
"I didn't get to look in on her," started Rarity, "and don't ask her!" she included, when Dash looked ready to honor her name and bowl the purple-maned pony over along the way to the nurse. "She was tending to Sweetie Belle, not Scootaloo."
Dash sighed. "Okay. It's the waiting here that stinks."
Rarity nodded and took her friend in a quick embrace, as Rainbow Dash blushed a little in embarrassment before giving a squeeze back. "Rainbow, dear, I'm sure it's going to be okay. Let the Doctor and nurses do their work. I've got to walk Sweetie Belle home and tell our parents what happened. I'll stop by Twilight's and let her know you're here. Is there anything you need? Some food or drink, perhaps?"
"No...I'm fine. I just want to hear the news as soon as I can."
Rarity nodded, looked like she was about to say something more, but stopped and turned, her groomed, purple tail swishing as she walked. She nudged her sister, who got off the cushion. The pair walked out the door, though Dash and Sweetie locked eyes for a moment as the filly turned to look behind her.
More waiting. Interminable. Insufferable. But the clock kept ticking, Dash kept pacing, then sat on the couch some more. Finally, the back room doors opened again and the Doctor strode through. He paused, looking at Dash, appeared to make up his mind about something, then continued over to her, as she bounded from the couch to look at him expectantly.
"So, is she okay? It's just a wing break, right? No big deal?"
The Doctor held up a hoof, trying to mollify the rushing wave of inquiry. "Yes, it is a wing break..."
"HA! I knew it. Just needs some setting and a few weeks recovery, yeah?"
The Doctor didn't match her enthusiasm. "Look, Rainbow Dash..."
"What? What?"
"It's not the whole story. I'm not sure how to phrase this, but. We appreciate you taking charge of the situation and bringing Scootaloo here, but...is there something...further..." He seemed at a loss as to how to proceed.
Dash wondered what the hay he was trying to get at, but figured out what the Doc was prancing around. "Oh. Uh. I'm not just...being a good citizen or whatever. She's a friend. More than that, really. Erm. We've grown close. I was kind of...adopting her as a little sister?" She couldn't help but blush at the surge of namby-pambyness.
The Doc took it in stride, but his face stayed a little stern as he spoke again. "I can appreciate that, Miss Dash. I'm certain she will love to have you visit, and no, she's not in mortal danger. But there are other...circumstances here, and I know you're not her legal guardian."
"No, she... she's from the orphanage in town."
"Correct. And it's Ms. Weaving that I'll really need to speak to..."
Rainbow Dash was turning red in the face and looked about ready to explode. "Doc, you better tell me what my s... what Scootaloo is going through right now and then I'll go fetch Ms. Weaving or all of Ponyville or Celestia herself if I gotta!"
The Doc sighed, but gave in. "Her right wing is broken, yes."
"And?"
"But that's just a symptom. Not the cause. We took some magic rays and looked at the whole area to get an idea of the break. We saw that easily enough, but that wasn't all we found. She has...malformed growth in the bone connecting her wing to the rest of her skeletal structure. It's something that would have come up in a few months during her regular checkup, and it's not something we would have seen in the last one."
"What the hay do you mean, malformed? She's one of the fastest little speedsters I've seen, how could her wing be...malformed?"
"It's growing, but it's doing so...bent. If it continues, it's going to cause serious damage. I wouldn't be surprised if she had already been experiencing some soreness or joint pain. From what I can tell, hearing about this accident," he surmised, "It may have been an occurrence of pain that caused the accident in the first place."
"But if it's...going to continue...?"
The Doc raised a hoof to his head, pushing his glasses back up along his nose. "The wing has to come off, Miss Dash. We need Ms. Weaving in order to get consent for the operation." Dash fell to her haunch, stunned. "She's on painkillers, still out like a light, she probably passed out from the pain of the two problems. Normally I would want to include her in the decision, but that's just not feasible now. We could set the break, but the underlying problem would remain."
Dash still struggled. "She's not...how will..."
"Please, Miss Dash. Go now. We can't keep her under forever, and you don't want her to experience the pain of waking up without this dealt with. Get Ms. Weaving." He left the shaken mare, returning to the back rooms of the hospital. The desk nurse, though she hadn't tried to eavesdrop, clearly understood the seriousness of the situation and gave Rainbow a sad look.
Dash got to her hooves. How could this happen? she thought in a rush of fury. I was going to be the one to teach her how to fly! She felt ashamed and hated herself for a moment as that bit of arrogant pride came through. She swallowed, and forced the selfishness away. So she'll need me now more than ever. Celestia's backside, I don't know what we'll do, but I've got to help her. She near-galloped to the door and went through it in a blitz.
Dark had taken over the town entirely as she had waited inside the hospital. She flapped hard and lifted in the air...she'll never get to do this now - a wave of sadness - focus! ... took a moment to orient herself, and zipped towards the orphanage.
Filly and Colt Orphanage certainly wouldn't qualify as 'pristine' or even 'well-kept', but it was a big, solid foundation with a sturdy roof, like many houses in Ponyville. Dash wasn't sure, but she thought it had been some old mare or stallion's actual home before being left as an orphanage as a donation. Hadn't the old one been out further in the countryside, or something? At least this place meant the little ones could more easily enjoy the things the town had to offer. She really hadn't paid much attention to that sort of thing. Why hadn't she visited Scoots here before? Probably would've gotten a big kick out of it. Would've swelled up like a balloon about to burst, she bet. She plowed through the front doors.
The place was pretty open. A few young ponies, until then playing on the floor with a few aged toys, looked up as they were startled by the noise of the doors crashing open. Dash stamped a hoof a bit nervously, and called out. "Hello? Ms. Weaving?"
A grayish-coated older mare with a light yellow mane came trotting down the stairway. "Not so loud!" she hissed. "The foals are in bed..." The mare reached the bottom step and stood, brows furrowed. A younger stallion wearing a small blue hat came partway down the stairs, then turned about and headed back up when the caretaker waved him away with a hoof.
"I'm sorry, I really am," Dash got out quickly. The mare raised one eyebrow but stood emotionless. "There was an accident, Scootaloo broke a wing..." The mare's expression softened at the mention of one of her wards. Then narrowed again.
"Is this your fault?" She hazarded.
"No! I heard Sweetie Belle calling and a bunch of us ponies arrived. They had crashed, and..." Dash relayed the rest of what happened, including the trip to the hospital, the discovery of the problem, and the need for Ms. Weaving's presence. The old mare looked sad, but did not delay.
"Junior!" the caretaker called out, somehow whispering but doing so...loudly. Dash looked at the children playing nearby. One of them had a raggedy pony with one of the beads meant to be an eye hanging dejectedly from the end of a thread sticking a inch out. The blue-hatted pony came halfway down the steps again. "Yeah, ma?" he asked.
"I must attend to Scootaloo at the hospital," she responded. "You're in charge while I'm out. Put the others to bed in a half hour." Her son nodded assent, and she turned back towards Rainbow Dash. "Very well." She rummaged for a moment at a nearby desk, then tipped a small sack over her side. She spared no look behind her but headed out the door, leaving Dash to follow.
They returned to the hospital in silence. There wasn't much to say. Dash wanted to fly back with the news, but the gray Earth pony walked with a calm intent that somehow infuriated her. How can she accept this so calmly? she seethed. Good call, handing a bunch of children over to such an uncaring...pony! She trudged beside the caretaker, silently ranting. The hospital doors didn't welcome them, but opened anyhow.
Twilight Sparkle, one of Rainbow Dash's most trusted friends, was standing near the desk, speaking with the desk nurse. "Twilight!" shouted Dash.
"Rainbow Dash..." The unicorn with the streaked mane faced her, face displaying an uncommon sorrow.
Ms. Weaving looked toward the nurse, who nodded and indicated the back room doors with her hoof.
"Twilight..." Dash said again. She stopped moving, looked stunned again for a moment, then shrieked in furious glee. "Wait, Ms. Weaving, stop!" The caretaker looked back, unchanging in expression. "Magic, don't you see?" Dash kicked up and waved her front hooves excitedly. "Twilight, use your magic! Do you know what's going on? You can fix her wing! And the bone!"
"Rainbow..." Twilight tried to get in a word.
"What are you waiting for? Where's your books? There's got to be something in them about this Find it!"
"Dash, I can't!"
"Why not?! Don't you have it? Where is it? Canterlot's library? I'll get it - just wait! Tell me where it is."
"Rainbow Dash!" Twilight's voice raised higher. "The Doctor's a unicorn himself! He would know a spell if there was one - but it doesn't work that way! He could fix a break, but they told me about the rest...it's too complicated! It's too dangerous! She might die trying to use magic like that!"
This time, Rainbow Dash did knock the lamp to the floor when she lashed out at the table again. "Then write Celestia!" Twilight shook her head. "Write Luna! Get the Elements! Do something!" Her friend could only stand there, unable to respond to the torrent of entreaties.
"What good are you, then?!" Dash's voice rose to a wail. "What good is your magic if it can't...help my f...frieeeeeend!" She fell to the floor, sobbing uncontrollably, hooves pounding the floorboards in misery. The caretaker, her shoulders heaving slightly, faced the back doors again and continued through at last.
Twilight knelt on the floor, took her friend's muzzle, and placed it against her mane. She raised a hoof and stroked Rainbow's rough technicolor hairs, humming soft 'there, there's as Dash's choked sobs reverberated against her coat.
In the operating room, the Doctor and the caretaker exchanged some words in low voices.
Not long after, he started to operate.
Rainbow Dash laid upon a waiting room couch at the hospital and slept uneasily. Somepony had brought out a cream-colored blanket and covered the pony's flank. She snored a bit, as was typical for her, mouth opening wide and coming shut to blow out the air. Little did she know the rhythm of her inhalations and exhalations had synced with the old clock nearby.
She dreamed, though she would not remember the details when she awoke. She was flying. The wind was cold, bitterly so, a chill that struck down into flesh and bone, deep beyond what pegasi normally felt. Even the lofty heights of Cloudsdale were normally cozy. She was far above in the sky; below, all the land of Equestria spilled out, a blurry mix of green, blue, brown, and a thousand other colors. She thought she saw tiny forms dotting the landscape, but knew that could not be. She raised her eyes, and saw an inky blackness above her, broken by soft points of light that seemed to spin as she soared.
She felt slow, and longed for dizzying speed, though the chill felt as if it would sap every last bit of energy from her aching muscles. Hooves aimed ahead of her, she flapped her wings, struggling against the thinned air. Below her, Equestria shimmered and rolled past; she was flying past strange lands, unfamiliar terrain. Mountains and oceans and long, rolling fields of grass passed by in seconds. She felt a familiar power growing; a sort of shimmer, and she started a rainboom, adding a colored trail to her wake.
A growing sense of dampness joined the sensations. The sky, previously clear, had started to coalesce into grayish, immense clouds. The world below began to look fuzzy, and the stars above became hard to discern. She pushed on, racing her sensations, showing the whole world her rainbow, but the clouds deepened. Soon, everything had become gray. She could no longer see above, or below, or more than a few feet ahead. So incredibly high in the sky, a gnawing fear that ahead, perhaps in less than a second's time, would be the biggest mountain there ever could be, a mountaintop from which the idea of all lesser structures were merely pitiful tributes. She did not slow; she sped.
Faster, faster. It felt like swimming, droplets of rainwater splashing against her coat, then enveloping it completely. Every inch she passed loomed terribly. Had she felt that there was danger ahead? Impossible. Ahead lay the only safety - the danger was behind, a gnawing, loathsome enemy that wanted to catch her, break her, and leave her ruined form in terrible wrath on some forsaken land. She could outrun it. She was the best.
Even the gray started to fade. Her body had lost all feeling. Neither the wetness nor the cold existed anymore. Blackness rose all around. Had she been flying? No, she was floating. She was not circling the Earth she knew, but lost in pitch blackness, crying out. Eyes open or shut, she could not see. She could not hear, or feel. Only a salty taste on her dried tongue and a faint, metallic smell gave any indication she lived.
It might have been minutes or hours later, for all she knew, but she felt a soft tapping on her shoulder which roused her from the disturbing dream. She opened her eyes, the lids each feeling like a pound of weight. The Doctor, his light blue uniform missing and glasses fallen downward on his nose again, looked down at her. She licked her lips, trying to bring saliva around her dried-out mouth, and swallowed. She gazed at him, not speaking.
"It's done," he said simply. "No other complications." He looked impossibly tired, perhaps sad, but appeared to draw on a reserve of strength. "She's sleeping now, rather than passed out. We put a cot in there, next to the bed. If you want. Ms. Weaving said you're to visit as much as you want." That seemed to be all he intended to say.
Dash just nodded. She wanted to add more, but any form of thanks didn't seem necessary, at least not just yet, and the nightmare had drained her of any effort to communicate. She stood, lowering herself from the couch to the floor, but noticed a couple items at the other end of the seat.
Daring Do and the Quest for the Sapphire Stone . First edition, and rather dog-eared. An apple, a little small, and somewhat pale red rather than the full crispness that time would bring, but it looked like a heavenly treat. Her stomach reacted at the sight, growling its desire. She didn't know when she had last eaten. She couldn't make out the hands on the clock; everything more than a few feet away seemed to shimmer.
The Doctor drew one more breath. "Room 3." he said, and walked away. Going home, perhaps, or to his office. A nurse was still at the front desk. The same one, or not? With their white hats and clothing, they all looked the same, and it didn't matter anyway. Dash chewed through the apple in a few bites, biting the stem and dropping the core in a trash bin in the corner. With her muzzle, she hefted the book, and at last passed through the doors that had been effectively barred. The bent scooter and wagon remained behind.
The hallway was wide, larger than that of a home, and coated in a fading yellow paint which matched the sickly light coming from the fixtures above. Room 3 was the second door on the left. No doorknob; it swung on a hinge when she pressed against it, and when she was through, it softly shut again.
There were two beds in the room, each with a privacy curtain ringing them. One curtain was wide open, the bed within bare. The other was partially closed, through which she could see the edge of a bed and a window, underneath which a small spring cot lay. She took a breath and went through the opening. Scootaloo came into view, tucked mostly below the white linen sheets, her head laying on one cheek and some of her unruly pinkish hair resting across her eyes. She looked peaceful, though Dash was loathe to imagine the bandages and stitches that surely lurked at the little filly's side. After dropping the book on the window sill, she moved to the bedside and stood. Raised a hoof, brushed the filly's hair back into an approximation of normalcy, careful not to disturb her rest.
She wanted to speak. Wasn't sure what to say. Just stood watch a while.
"Hey, sis." The words came out softly, haltingly. Just two little words. They felt strange to say, but at the same time like they were the most natural thing ever. It was all she needed.
She went to the cot. The old springs groaned and protested as her weight pressed down. Sleep came back quickly. There were no dreams.
Daylight returned, and Dash awoke to the sounds of one of the nurse ponies pulling aside the privacy curtain. Feeling somewhat unkempt, and seeing that Scoots was still asleep, she edged past the nurse, who was lifting the patient's sheets to inspect the surgical site. Dash walked to the small adjoining bathroom, and with her hoof, nudged the lever that pumped water into the low-slung sink. She splashed her front hooves through the chilly water and patted it against her face. Took a little sip, wet her parched throat. Lowered her head and stuck the top of it directly under the flow, water cascading across her mane. She drew back out, careful not to bump the faucet, and turned the water off. Walked over to the tub, violently shook her head, sending droplets spraying across the porcelain container. Good enough .
She left the bath and returned to Scootaloo's side. The nurse had pulled the bedsheets down to the filly's lower legs, leaving a view of her mustard coat, soft, feathered left wing, and the bandages which coated her other side and wrapped around her body for stability. Dark, ruddy spots showed through the thickness where her right wing formerly lay. Dash looked at the nurse, who caught her eye.
"The stitching is fine," came the answer to the unasked question. "Some bleeding is to be expected. We'll have to wash and change the bandages every day, and look out for infection. She'll need a few weeks."
The filly stirred, and eyes half-opened sleepily, then shut again. The nurse pony looked at Rainbow Dash. "She won't know what happened, yet."
Dash raised fore hooves to the bed, drawing closer to her friend. "I'll tell her," she said, not looking back. The nurse pulled the sheets back up, then backed out past the curtain, moving its rings to close off the little partition. The doors to the room made a soft whisk, whisk noise as they swung to a close.
Scootaloo's eyes opened halfway once again, but caught sight of Rainbow Dash, her face trying to convey a little smile. "Rainbow Dash..." said the filly. "We were flying..."
Dash pressed a hoof to her protege's shoulder, but a little pain of sorrow rose in her throat. "You bet we did, kid."
"There was..." Eyes opened wider. "A crash?"
"Yeah. You hit a tree, champ." Trying to add a little levity. Dash had to bring up the wing, but how could she?
"Was sore... too much crusading." The words came out a little flippant. Posturing for her idol. "You're the one who's supposed to be Rainbow Cr..." She stopped. Dash's mouth felt dry all over again. "Why is..." Scootaloo's leg moved, and the bed sheet flipped, folding over from right to left.
"no." The word was a tiny mewl.
"There were problems," started Dash.
"No!" came the response.
"Scoots... kid..." Dash tried to head off the impending explosion, but her thoughts seemed frozen, she didn't know which way to turn.
"My wing..." the shout lowered to a whisper. "Why?!" And rose again.
"It was the bone, it was growing wrong..." A surge of anger through her, as her thoughts cursed magic and technology for being unable to protect this child. "There was no choice."
All the life seemed to drain from Scootaloo, and her body sank into the bed, hooves flopping down to her sides. "Go away, how could you?" She cried. "Go away, how could you, go away, how could you." Not questioning, but stated sadly, again and again and again.
Go away. A nurse was back. Dash hadn't heard her enter. There was a needle.
How could you. She stumbled backwards. Scootaloo kept moaning the two phrases. Dash watched as the nurse pressed the needle to the filly's soft coat. The moaning slowly subsided, but still echoed through Rainbow's head.
She ran from the room. Out the door, then more doors, then more doors. The sunlight attacked her as she came outside, and she felt blinded. She stopped, panting, a mixture of rage and depression. Go away, go away, how could you? .
How could I? But what could I do? I'm a stupid hero. There's no enemy to kick, no cloud to chase, no race to win. Go away!
~ ~ ~
Twilight had stopped by the Apple farm first thing that morning, trying her best to calmly explain what had happened to the two sisters. Apple Bloom looked shocked, but the Apple family had known tragedy before, and with some sniffling and offered hugs, Applejack comforted her sister. Twilight left, but the two sisters remained to talk. Applejack seemed satisfied that the event wouldn't be too traumatic, at least.
Apple Bloom was concerned, and wanted to visit her friend. They walked the path into town quietly, passing by row after row of orchard trees, the apples still blooming but nearing harvest quality soon. Ponyville seemed a little smaller, today, and there weren't many ponies out and about.
Inside the hospital, Sweetie Belle, bruises from the incident shining brightly in waves of dark blue and black, ran up to hug the newly-arrived Crusader. Applejack nodded a somber greeting at Rarity, who had apparently escorted her own sister here. Applejack trotted over to the front desk and questioned the nurse. "Is it alright' if the two fillies visit their friend?" her drawl tinting the words with its inflection.
"Yes, but not too long. She had to be mildly sedated, earlier. It's going to be very hard to adjust to, I'm sure. If she gets upset," this addressed to the young ones, "you must leave her be." They nodded.
Scootaloo was lying with her face towards the window, hiding her eyes as the two fillies approached. When they came around the side, they could see she was awake.
"Hey, Scootaloo," they tried.
"Leave me alone." No anger came through, just a dead response. Apple Bloom looked at Sweetie Belle, who had pursed her lips slightly.
"Ah know this is hard for you, but you're our friend and we just want to do what we can..."
"Can you grow a wing back?" A little bitterness.
"It's..." the little Apple meant to continue.
"And what do you know? Where are your wings? Did someone cut off yours, too?"
Sweetie Belle piped in. "You've lost that, Scootaloo, but there's still potential...like we told Apple Bloom when we first met...for so much..."
"So much except flying, you mean. Or anything like that! I can't even scoot, now, could I?" her voice rising. "What would you know? You'll still get your magic? Apple Bloom won't be missing anything! What am I? A pegasus who can't fly? I don't care...about my...my talent, I had a dream, don't you understand? I had a dream, I wanted to be like my hero, what can I do now? Hop along the ground and watch her soar in the sky? I could wait, sure, I could wait and wait and wait because I knew someday it would happen, but they stole that from me and she let it happen! What dreams did you have? What have you lost?"
Apple Bloom spoke sadly. "You know my parents..."
"Oh, can it! At least you had them! At least you knew them! What have I ever had? A chilly bunk in a broken down rotting old house! Just...just leave me be!"
Sweetie Belle tried to pick up the pieces. "You..."
"Go away! " The shouting drew a nurse to the room, and she glared at the stunned fillies. With a hoof, she ushered them away from the reclining pegasus, and they could only leave the hospital feeling sad, unsure of how to reach their hurt friend.
"She needs some time." was the best Rarity could offer.
~ ~ ~
Dash came back. The privacy curtain had been pushed completely open, and she found the filly much as the two friends had. Scootaloo stared out the side window, her face betraying no emotion. Dash didn't speak at first, but grabbed the book she had left on the sill. She dropped it at the bedside, though Scootaloo didn't react to it.
"I thought I would... read to you. Twilight got me hooked on this, last time I was in here..." She saw the filly's eyes glance toward the cover, then return to the window. "Daring Do...she's a lot like you. Or me."
It only seemed to enrage the girl immediately. "I'll never be like y...her, now!" Her eyes took on a maddened look.
"Scootaloo, please..." Rainbow lifted the book atop her hoof. "If you give it a chance..."
"No!" Scootaloo lashed out suddenly and furiously, striking the book sharply with her own hoof. It flew from Dash's grasp, skidding across the room to end up beneath the second, empty bed. Go away, go away.
"I'll come back later." Dash found herself standing and moving away. There was no response from the filly, who had settled back into her window pose. Dash left the book to lie where it was, and walked to the door. She looked back, but said no more.
The nurses cleaned the wound that night, and changed the bandages. They checked on the patient a few times throughout the night.
Several hours after the last glimpse inside the room, a nurse showed up to bring breakfast to the filly.
She was gone.
Word spread quickly from the hospital; Ms. Weaving had to be informed immediately, of course, and likewise the local detachment of guards. With a young filly missing or lost and having recently been through surgery besides, news passed through town like a web of Hearth’s Warming lights firing up. When Dash found out, she was ready to burst through every door in Ponyville looking for little Scootaloo. She had slept at Twilight’s library, not wanting to be alone after the rejection she had been given. It took the best of Twilight’s reasoning to convince the brash speedster that some strong organizational skills would aid a search better than strong hind leg kicks, and Dash reluctantly agreed.
Twilight rummaged through desk and shelf, gathering up paper. “Spike, grab one of my clipboards,” she ordered. The little dragon nodded assent and took one from off a hook near the doorway. “Dash,” Twilight turned to her friend to address her. "Gather up Ponyville in the town square. Make sure the mayor is there! We'll need everypony's help if we want to move quickly." Rainbow looked grim, but the need for action spoke to her skills, and she flew out the door.
Earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns were stopped, spoken to, and hustled to the town square. The Mayor, having already been informed of the situation in great detail, was headed to the speaking stage normally used for announcements. She stood to the side of the megaphone as Dash swooped down next to her. "Is Twilight assembling a plan?" she queried.
"Yeah," said Dash. "She should be here soon."
"Very well." Most of the citizens were gathered past the stage, now, murmuring and talking amongst themselves as the last bit of ponies were told about the missing filly. Someone had even told Zecora, and the striped equestrian alchemist sat with nearby ponies nervously glancing her way. Twilight, levitating some large, tubular object, had reached the edge of the crowd and was pressing through. Trailing in her wake was Spike, who carried in his arms several stacks of paper and clipboards, along with a sack brimming with pencils and other various tools. "I shall address them, then let her speak."
The Mayor thumped the end of the megaphone, which reverberated over the crowd. She cleared her throat, and the talkative ponies quieted down and looked toward the stage front. She could see Ms. Weaving from the orphanage standing in the front, a solemn expression on her face; she must have placed her son in charge of the orphanage again. Twilight climbed up the short staircase of the stage and both she and the dragon companion laid their items down.
"Citizens of Ponyville, your attention, please! Many of you have already heard the unfortunate event that occurred today, but let me explain the details. Recently, a young filly named Scootaloo was in a crash along with one of her friends. She suffered a broken wing, but an underlying examination revealed that her wing bone itself was forming improperly. Because of the serious nature of this growth, it was necessary to amputate the broken wing completely." Several of the pegasi in the crowd gasped, and most of them looked over towards Dash. "The surgery was completed without undue complication, and she was placed in one of the recovery rooms." She cleared her throat again briefly, and continued. "Very early this morning, one of the nurses conducted a routine check on the patients throughout the hospital. Scootaloo was the only patient within room 3, which has two beds, and she appeared to be sleeping normally."
"During the next check, however, she was missing. The window, which only opens from within, had been unlatched. The sheets and nearby area do not show anything that might indicate violence, and the staff assure me that nopony unauthorized entered the hospital, and I cannot imagine anypony wishing the child harm. We can only assume that Scootaloo has, for some reason, decided to leave."
"I cannot stress the important of finding the filly as soon as possible. She may be confused and disoriented; she is almost certainly under stress and in pain. She may be hiding, or trying to run away, or even hurt and unconscious somewhere. Twilight Sparkle has volunteered to coordinate our efforts to locate the girl. Please give her full cooperation and let's find our missing filly." The Mayor stepped back and nodded to Twilight.
The big tube raised in the air as Twilight aimed her magic at it and unfurled into a massive map of Ponyville and the surrounding areas. Several pens and pencils floated out of the sack that Spike had carried, hovering in front of the map.
"Okay, everypony. We're going to form several teams, and have several special purpose groups as well."
"Cloud Kicker," began Twilight. The pegasus female raised a hoof in acknowledgement. "I need you to choose ten of the fastest pegasus ponies here," Twilight turned slightly to include Dash in her sight, "But not Rainbow Dash." She looked back at Cloud Kicker. "Fan out above the open fields and hills that border the town. You shouldn't need to go more than twelve miles, given Scootaloo's condition and the amount of time she's had, but check as far as fifteen, just to be sure."
Cloud Kicker nodded, and called out. "Pegasi, over here!" The winged ponies gathered to one side, and Cloud Kicker moved amongst them, speaking quietly and tapping several of them on the shoulder with her hoof.
Twilight continued. "Applejack." Her earth pony friend shouted, "We're here, Twilight!" Twilight gave her a brief smile. "You and the rest of the Apples know your farm better than anyone else. I need you to search your farm and orchards."
"You bet, Twi!" Applejack agreed. "Eeyup!" Big Mac added. They made to leave, but Twilight interrupted. "Wait! This is very important for everyone to hear. We must keep our assignments sectioned off so that Scootaloo, if she is awake, doesn't move through one area and the next between the time that we search both. Do all the unicorns here know the warning ward?" Members of the crowd nodded. "If you haven't learned it, don't worry, I can teach you, it isn't hard. If you tune it to ponies, we can set them around our search areas in small rings - they don't have to be spheres since Scootaloo can't fly, and the ward will sound off. We can expand and contract them as need be. Make sure you only set it around an area that had been checked and is clear of ponies! We don't want false alarms. Somepony please accompany the Apples to their farm. Actually, two or three of you better go." A few of the unicorns moved to join the Apple family, and the group galloped off towards Sweet Apple Acres.
"Fluttershy."
"here..."
"Fluttershy?"
The shy pegasus spoke up, if not exactly loud. "Sorry...I'm here, Twilight!"
"Fluttershy, can you get the squirrels, rabbits, birds, and other animals to help us?"
"I...I think so, Twilight. What do you want them to do?"
"Have them search the trees, dens, nooks and crannies around town. Make sure they know to look for a small pony...and that reminds me. Everypony else, please bring your fillies, colts and foals to the town hall! We'll have several ponies watch over the group, but we have to clear the buildings so our wards will work. Fluttershy, take Spike with you. Have him send me a message if your animal friends report anything to you."
"Of course, Twilight." Fluttershy moved to the stage's staircase, and Spike, at a nudge from Twilight, hopped down and climbed atop the pegasus when she lowered her shoulders. The pair headed off to Fluttershy's cottage at the edge of town. Behind Twilight, Dash began pacing back and forth, her hooves thumping against the wooden construction.
Twilight looked at the remaining ponies, and was relieved to see a striped participant out in the crowd. "Zecora! I'm glad you're here. We need to include the Everfree Forest in our search, but I'm not sure how, given how large and dangerous it is. Do you have any ideas or advice?"
The zebra sage, a little circle opening up around her, appeared to consider the question. "A potion I know: to make the woods sing, to whisper their secrets and share everything. If Scootaloo's hoofsteps are ones they have heard, the one with this brew will soon receive word."
"It sounds perfect...can you make it?"
"If taking this path is what you desire, this potion needs gemstones of ruby and sapphire."
"Anything!" exclaimed Rarity from a few feet away. "I have lots, dear, allow me to fetch a pile and accompany you." Zecora and Rarity took off, as well.
"Okay," said Twilight, turning her attention back to the group at large. "Everypony else, I need you to divide into four groups. The pens and pencils still hovering in front of the map wavered, then drew 4 lines across it that met within the depiction of the town square. Cheerilee, you'll take the northwest group. Mayor Mare, you handle the northeast group. Berry Punch will coordinate in the southwest, aaaand... Pinkie Pie, you work with the southeast group."
"Right-o, boss mare!"
"Search the buildings in your section carefully, then place the wards when you're certain they're empty." The map curled up again and lowered to the floor. "That's all - let's do it!"
Rainbow Dash confronted Twilight as she moved away from the megaphone stand. "Twilight, what about me? Shouldn't I be with the fastest fliers, or what? You didn't give me an assignment," she accentuated the accusation with an angry hoof stamp.
"I know, Rainbow Dash. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle are going to be with the other children in the town hall. Apart from them, you might be the pony that knows Scootaloo best. Think of the places she loves; ones that might be special to her or have meaning. We will be searching every spot eventually, but with your speed, you might find her at one of those places before we get to them."
Dash nodded vigorously. "That's a good idea, brainiac," she said, roughing up Twilight's mane with a hoof as the purple-haired pony stood there. "Now I remember why we keep you around!" Twilight grinned as her friend seemed to be improving in spirit.
Dash flexed her feathers and leaped to accompany their strong flapping. She soared up into the sky, finding a lonely patch of snowy white cloud, then landed on it, looking out over Ponyville. Now to think. Special places. The orphanage? No...not really a home. Ah...her crusader's clubhouse? The cloud let loose a puff as her hooves kicked against it, and she flew down, heading to the mostly-unused corner of the Apple's property.
She pushed open the clubhouse door and peered within. Although strewn with various furniture and items, including, she noted with a tug at her heartstrings, several posters of herself, there was no filly within. She checked the nearby grounds, but saw no sign of somepony recently passing by. She sat down on her haunch at the bottom of the ramp to think again.
Hospital, no...School? No...Why don't I know more about her? She snorted in frustration. What's the most special... She stopped. Visions of a river, cascading water, and trees entered. Songs, campfires, and scary stories. A worried filly, a confessing mare, a promise of sisterhood. Winsome Falls. Of course, but...it's so far. How could she have reached that in just a few hours? I'll have to check...
She flew. The landscape blurred as she sped. She did not want to cause a rainboom and disturb the other parts of the search, but not using her full potential annoyed her and she struggled to contain the pressing need to go faster, faster, faster. The open grassland below her turned to rocky, forest-covered hills. On one side, a twisted, rushing river dug a little canyon. The rainbow-and-cloud-filled Falls came into view far ahead, and Dash considered for a moment where to head. The campsites along the way, or the falls? she wondered, picturing the young filly being borne aloft in the air in a moment they had shared. She sped towards the falls.
Nothing. Nothing, as the soft mist of spraying water blew apart when the angry mare flew past, combing over the falls.
Fine, campsites then.
Nothing at the first place, where they had set up tents.
Nothing at the cave. She checked every last bit of stupid rock in the place.
She went to the spot in the river where the filly had gone over, her cries rousing the rainbow mare from sleep and leading to a nighttime rescue. The soft ground nearby where Scootaloo had opened up about her fears, where Dash had admitted to the same, and where both expressed a desire for sisterly love. Nothing. Nothing!
She stamped at rocks on the ground. She kicked with her hind legs at a nearby tree, again and again, striking the trunk and breaking bark off to fly in little chips all around. Her breath rose in her chest and she shrieked. "I don't know! I don't know where!" The words seemed to echo strangely, being sent back by the forest to crash against her ears. know where, know where, know where... the cries said.
"RAINBOW DASH. " came a thunderous voice, and she paused mid-kick, wings flapping and hind hooves slowly lowering back to the ground. The voice had sounded from above, and Dash looked at the sky to see an inky, dark form approaching. Was it...
"Princess...Luna?" the mare answered, waveringly.
The darkly colored moon Princess landed her tall, lithe body in front of the stunned Dash. "YES. " She still had trouble occasionally with the Royal Canterlot Voice she had been accustomed to for so long. The princess moderated her tone. "We have come to speak to thee, Rainbow Dash. We know of thy search."
"You...you do?"
"Yes. We feared the matter was not settled. Some of the blame must be laid at our hooves for what has happened."
"What do you mean?" Dash spoke with a hint of snarl.
"Most do not know, but we have the duty, as Princess of Night, to guard the dreams of our subjects, and intervene if we deem it needful. We watched the little one the nights you were here. We saw her dreams, and we saw her fears. We spoke to the child, and sought to aid her. She told thee of her fears, did she not?"
"She was afraid...to disappoint me. By being afraid. I'm a hero to her - but she wanted more than just to...to worship me. She wanted a sister...and I said yes. I didn't know until that night...how much I had wanted that, too. I've always wanted friends, and I've been good at earning them - Twilight and Pinkie and Rarity and Fluttershy and Applejack - they all mean a lot...even when we clash. I mean, I tease them, but they're... I will always be there for them. I've always wanted fans, too...to be a Wonderbolt, to win a race, to show everyone what I can do. And I've done that, too. Not just selfishly, I mean... I've tried to inspire them, make them better at what they can do. I was never more proud of Fluttershy than the day she helped with sending water to Cloudsdale. But I've never had someone like...a sister. Where I could be more than those things...be a teacher."
Luna's dark mane waved as she drew closer to Dash, who had teared up as the speech drew from a well of emotion. "Then thou has learned thy own lesson and the meaning of what thou went through here."
Dash wiped at her face. "I understand, but Scootaloo is still missing."
The Princess looked stern, for a moment reminiscent of the nightmare she had once been. "Abort thy search. We have taken the child."
"What?! " Rainbow Dash's thunderous shout rivaled even the ancient Canterlot standard.
A soft glow sprang form from Luna's horn as she gently restrained the angry mare. "Do not misunderstand us. We did not snatch thy friend from her bed like a thief in the night."
"Then what gives?" demanded Dash.
Luna continued. "The ch...Scootaloo had decided to run away. The loss of the wing was... hard... for her. She pretended to sleep, late in the night, and when last checked upon, rose from the bed and left through the window. The town lay quiet and cover of night made slipping away easy."
"But... why would she run?"
"She does not appear to have planned beyond her decision. It is... difficult to relate to thee her reasons. We see in dreams what words cannot express fully. We have kept... vigil... on the child. As she entered this forest, she grew tired, and lay upon its ground. She knows of our ability, and sought to hide from us."
"We can do that?" Dash wondered.
"It is so, though it takes an uncommon will to resist, and the child is young." Luna paused. "But we are not one to... intrude... when a pony is unwilling, or desires privacy - such liberties taken would be a crude and undeserved act. But we can sense distress or find the dreamer still. It is a skill we are still recovering," she admitted, "after our long exile. We learned she had abandoned safety, trading it for flight, and came to ensure her recovery."
Dash stared hard at the Princess. "Then why is she not here? Where have you taken her?"
"She will be placed somewhere new."
Dash was incredulous. "You can't just... decide that!" She sputtered angrily. "Just because you're some snotty royal flank-head doesn't mean you can uproot your subjects whenever you see fit!"
To her astonishment, the Princess laughed in mirth. "Rainbow Dash, thou truly art the element of loyalty, not of fealty! It is Scootaloo who chose this path. It is she who spoke to us when we came. It is she who asked to be spirited away."
"I don't understand," Dash shook her head. "She wants to leave her friends? Her school? Everypony she knows? And... me?"
"Do you," Luna obviously struggled for a second, trying to match modern dialect, "have a hero, Rainbow Dash?"
A bit taken aback, Dash thought for an answer. "Well, sure. The Wonderbolts - I've always wanted to be one of them."
"One of them." Luna carefully put emphasis in the sentence. "Why?"
"I've always been the fastest, one of the best. They're like me, if I can prove myself good enough for them. And they're loyal, too - when you're a Wonderbolt, you're one for life, even when you're too old to fly in the shows anymore. When we found and used the uh... Elements," she spoke quicker, clearly uneasy at discussing Nightmare Moon's downfall, "I guess I learned I had loyalty, too."
"So you admire them because they represent the best of what you already know you possess?"
"When you put it that way... sure."
"The difference between you two," the Princess said softly, "is she worries she has nothing worth possessing. You want to be with your heroes because you believe you can show the same strengths they have. She wants to be her hero because she believes she has no strengths. You have friends who complement your weaknesses, and you have learned, or are learning, to draw upon their strengths when your own do not fit. She has grown afraid to reach out to any friend in the belief that calling upon them weakens them, as well. This has not been apparent, but was seeded long ago and has grown crooked, like her unfortunate wing."
Dash sat down on her haunch. "But if that's true... what can I do?"
"You have already given her the most important gift you can. Your offer of sisterhood has touched her deeply, though in her fear and anger she has lashed at you and anyone near. I... know something of the path that this resentment may lead to. I believe I can nurture your gift until she accepts the important truth."
"Which is?"
"That she has worth. That a hero represents what we believe ourselves capable of and inspires us to seek."
Saddened, Dash pawed at the ground, pushing bits of dirt with her hoof. "Okay. I'll... try to understand. I'll have to go back... tell the others."
"Celestia has likely already informed them. We agreed it was most important I seek you directly." The Princess placed a hoof under Dash's chin, and raised it gently to look at her again. "Take heart, young one. She will be safe, and she will remember your gift. One day, she may return it thousandfold. The two fillies will not understand as well as you, but thou must help them," she lapsed towards Ancient Equestrian again. Dash could only nod sadly.
Luna backed away, and her dark blue wings unfurled. She offered one last look at the other mare, and sighed slightly. "We can see thou art still troubled, my friend. Look to your stories . Thou hast already spoken thy new desire, which will provide thy spirit with solace through these burdens." And then she was gone.
Dash wept.
Later, she rose.
She stood staring at her wings. They looked like big, strong wings, didn't they? She didn't want to use them. It wouldn't feel right... to fly away from this place knowing what she now knew.
So she walked.
The path meandered downwards towards Ponyville, and the pegasus trod along it. Despite what Luna had said, something had been stolen from Rainbow Dash that day. Something she had never felt before was rising up to etch itself upon her face, to tie down her wings, to drag her hooves, and to make her lower her head. It was regret - for not spending more time with Scootaloo, for not learning more, for feeling as if she had failed the filly, and knowing she might never see the little one again. Luna's words rang true but at the same time felt hollow. Stories. What is that supposed to mean?
The town came into view, but Dash halted at the edge of it. So now what? Where would she go? What would she do? She wondered if Celestia had spoken to Apple Bloom or Sweetie Belle. Dash knew she would have to speak with Scootaloo's friends, but she couldn't face that. Not yet. Who else? Cheerilee. The schoolteacher knew the the children well enough. Dash thought about the orphanage, and the old mare who ran it. She wondered what Ms. Weaving had said or done when she found out the filly was being taken away. Dash couldn't think of anyone else close to the girl.
Stories . She knew campfire stories. Is that what Luna meant? They had scared Rainbow Dash long ago and had done the same for Scootaloo, and admitting that to each other had brought them closer. But... what was she supposed to do with that knowledge? Hang around town and shout the story of the Headless Horse or the Olden Pony to passerby? Good idea, becoming the town crazy. What else was there? She didn't know many stories besides the series that Twilight had gotten her hooked on. Daring Do . She thought of Scootaloo knocking the first book off of Dash's hoof in anger. She stood up and crossed into town.
The search ended and the missing filly found, if not returned, the ponies of Ponyville had returned to their normal activity. As she passed by them, most spared her a glance with varying emotions, but all chose to leave her be. Her hooves thumped against cobble and dirt.
Glass from the hospital windows reflected the afternoon sun's rays into blinding spots as she approached the place and pushed through the entrance. The nurse at the front desk looked at her. "I left one of my books in the room," she said simply. The nurse waved her through.
Dash went through the second set of doors, back into the long hallway. She could see the Doctor down at the end, conversing with another member of the staff. She saw him take notice, his eyes shifting away from the conversation, which lulled, but he seemed to understand her loss and with the raising of a hoof drew the nurse and himself into one of the offices. Dash pushed against the last door, the one to room 3.
Scootaloo's former bed had been made; the sheets changed and tucked down with a sharp crispness to the folds. The window had been latched again, and the privacy curtain drawn halfway shut. That wasn't the spot she had to go to, though. The book had flown far in the filly's fury, sliding under the other bed. For some reason, the curtain there had also been drawn closed. Suddenly nervous, Dash decided it had probably been occupied. She tried to walk softly across the floor, though she could not entirely stop the thick and sturdy soles from resounding. She drew aside the curtain, wincing as the metallic rings atop the guiding pole screeched in protest.
It was occupied. A tiny shape; it appeared to be an Earth pony, not much older than a foal. She had a coppery brownish coat and a curly, lightly-greened mane. On one leg was a small wrapping from which came a short tube connected to what she guessed was an IV drip. The foal didn't seem to have woken from the noise, so Dash knelt to peer under the bed. There it was - scrunched up against a corner far underneath, a short, slightly cleaner path through the dust showing the path it had taken, although it looked almost as if the book had moved back and forth already. Maybe it had been disturbed by the nurses. She had to lay down flat and stretch her leg to its limit, but was able to nudge a corner and pull the old adventure novel back towards her.
Clang . She muffled an exhalation of breath as she misjudged the edge of the bed's frame and banged against it coming back up. The book lay half-exposed, and Dash stared straight into the wide open eyes of the foal. The child's pale green eyes looked completely awake, not as if she had just been disturbed at all.
"What are you doing?" the foal's voice piped cheerfully.
"I... uh... dropped this book here earlier," said the pegasus.
"What were you sick with? Was this your bed? I just got here today," the foal announced.
"I wasn't sick, I was visiting a... a friend."
"I have the flu!" Spoken in a tone of pride. "They have to put flu-ids in me and make me rest. Isn't that funny, flu and flu-ids going together?" Carefully pronouncing the illness. "Your hair is funny, you know," the foal spoke primly, "With so many colors."
Dash gave the child a bit of a smile, though she saw little humor in any of it. "Yeah, you're right, it is. Well... bye." She picked up the book, grasping it in her muzzle, backing away from the bed before turning to the door. For some reason she paused, though, and took the book atop a hoof while looking back. The foal still laid there, staring at her. "What's your name, kid?"
"Penny," she piped. Dash turned and left.
~ ~ ~
She took up her pensive walk again after she exited the hospital. Her hooves led her to the Golden Oak library which served as Twilight's home. She knocked, and the purple-maned pony soon magicked it open. "Rainbow Dash," she acknowledged. Behind her, Rarity and Applejack appeared to have been talking, but had stopped at the interruption.
"Bringing back your book," was all that Dash mumbled with the bound pages in her mouth.. Twilight clearly wanted to say something, but just indicated the few inches of space along a shelf lined with titles extorting the adventures of Daring Do . The book slid into place at the front of the line.
It was Applejack who approached the pegasus then. She didn't speak, but touched cheek to cheek with her friend, lifting a hoof to wrap behind Dash's neck, giving her a big squeeze. Dash closed her eyes and laid her head beside Applejack's light hair.
"Need a place t'stay," she added. Twilight and Rarity looked at each other, surprised, wondering about Dash's Cloudsdale home.
Rarity drew closer, adding her own hoof to Rainbow's mane. "Of course, dear. I'll have a guest bed placed in my thinking room. Stay as long as you wish."
When the pegasus had left, the others sat down on the floor.
"Will she be okay, Twi?" asked Applejack.
"I hope so, Applejack. Celestia said we should give Rainbow time. She has to work things out. All we can do is be here for her when she needs us."
"What about the Elements?" said a hopeful Rarity. "Or the memory spell you used on us before?"
"She is one of the Elements, I don't think we can use them on her like that. And she hasn't forgotten her friendships, she's just... working out how she thinks about things. You know she is strong... it just needs time."
~ ~ ~
Dash stopped flying. No longer did she soar through the sky, zip along above the ground, or kick up from below to bowl people over in a laughing gust of wind. Everywhere she went, her hooves took her with the same slow plodding she had begun on the way down from Winsome Falls. She had a message delivered to the Wonderbolts Academy, announcing her withdrawal from the program. Even when Spitfire herself showed up (delayed by doing so at Cloudsdale at first) to demand an explanation, Dash would only shake her head and apologize, refusing to elaborate until the frustrated flier left. Dash's Cloudsdale home she sold, offering some of the money at first to Rarity, who gently refused, then to Cloudsdale to make up for leaving her weather duties. She wouldn't leave the ground.
Most days she left Rarity's house in the morning, leaving the fashion designer to sigh and wipe away little tears before turning to her works of fabric. Dash walked to the park most of the time, just to sit beside the little lakes and gaze at water and grass and trees. Even Pinkie Pie realized that silliness and craziness wouldn't help, but brought sandwiches and cupcakes to the pegasus whenever Dash spent lunchtimes out there.
Some days she sat across the street from the hospital, or the orphanage. Never really talking to anypony, though she would give short answers to questions. Most of them being "No thanks."
Stories . She couldn't forget Luna's words. Days blurred, weeks passed. Her wings stayed pressed to her sides.
It was outside the hospital she sat again one day when some ponies walked up the path.
"Hey, it's the silly-haired girl! It's me, Penny!" The foal happily waved from between the escort of her parents. "I got a stone in my hoof!" Dash half-raised a hoof in response, but Penny had already been swept inside.
A few hours later, the two pony parents came back out, less their foal. Rainbow had agonized during this time, but came to a snap in her head and stood to approach them. "Is she staying the night?"
"Yes," they answered, "Just to keep an eye out for infection."
Stories , she thought. "Do you mind if I could... read to her?"
The two ponies glanced at each other, but saw nothing amiss with the request, and acceded. "Please do, Rainbow Dash."
She hurried to Twilight's library. Her friend was not home, so Dash just entered the mostly-public ground floor herself. She looked at the shelves and shelves of books, finding the one which contained the dozen or more Daring Do adventures. Although she hesitated, looking at the first one, Daring Do and the Quest for the Sapphire Stone . Not that one , she thought, that's for Scoots . Instead, Dash grabbed the second book, Daring Do and the Altar of Misfortune .
Once again, she entered the hospital, explaining the received permission to the desk nurse, and, as fate would have it, ended up in room 3. The copper-coated foal was happily sipping from a cup. "Hi!" she exclaimed in glee, followed by a brief spasm of choking as she apparently inhaled a little bit of the hay drink.
"Careful, kid," said Dash.
"Penny! I'm Penny. You never told me your name." Accusing look, but tinged with mischief.
"I'm Rainbow Dash. I talked to your parents... I had this idea that you might like hearing a story, but they told me you don't like hearing about adventures or big ol' heroes."
"Not true! Not true!" objected the little one. "I love stories!"
"Oh? Well... I did bring one with me, just in case..."
"Tell me!" said Penny, flinging herself back against the mass of pillows until she sat half upright.
"Well, if you insist," said Dash, pulling a small stool over from a far corner to sit her flank on, before pulling aside the book's cover and turning to the first page of the story. "Daring Do, her brimmed hat pulled down on her head, shading her eyes, entered the cantina as music blared from within. She was meeting the pony that had hired her to recover the ancient statuette, but she expected trouble..."
She read to the foal all afternoon, the child's eyes widening, blinking, closing in amazement as the depiction of the adventure filled her thoughts. Dash took only a few moments now and then to wet her throat from the sink, the speaking having dried her out. Supper for the patient arrived, and Dash continued the story as Penny nibbled and slurped her meal away.
Late in the eve, the story concluded, and the foal applauded with ferocity, banging her front hooves together in a salute.
Dash smiled at the child. "Thanks for putting up with an old pony like me," she said, shutting the book.
Penny didn't let her go so easy as that. Her high-pitched voice piped again and again and she came up with one more question after another for Dash, asking about adventures, Rainbow Dash, Ponyville, and everything else that popped into her mind. Dash learned how the little pony liked to catch frogs from the creek, giggling at their green skin that matched the color of her mane before plopping them back into the running water. Dash told her how pegasus ponies can walk on clouds and kick them apart, or even pull them together. The foal wondered how far away dragons normally live, and why do they fly so far? Dash spoke about the juicy crispness of Apple family cider in the fall.
Finally, the girl's eyelids dropped, and she abandoned a remark mid-sentence to drift off to sleep. Rainbow Dash rose quietly and with a measure of tenderness brought the bedsheets up to Penny's chin.
Another day in the park, and Dash sat looking out over the water. Suddenly, a clod of dirt struck her mane, and she looked around, startled. A little foal giggled from behind a tree, and Dash recognized the bedside friend.
"What are you doing here, my little pony?" she asked.
"Another story!" came the pleading reply.
Dash walked with the child to the library. They sat on the cushions there, Twilight Sparkle smiling at them whenever she passed through the room, and the two read Daring Do's third adventure.
A few weeks later, a slightly older filly asked to join the reading. " 'S my sister, Nickel," said the copper foal.
Stories. The three of them shared adventures, hopes, and dreams. They read at the library, at the park, lying in the grass under the trees lining the roads. Penny insisted on acting out one of her favorite scenes, and Rainbow Dash asked a beaming Rarity for some costumes. They enacted their little play at the town stage. Some of Penny's friends had come - they all wanted to watch. "We're starting school together next year," said Penny.
They all joined the reading group. Weeks later, when Ms. Weaving asked Dash to have one of her story sessions at the orphanage, the pegasus could not help but agree. Foals, fillies, and colts watched and listened with rapt attention as words came to them. They held every session there, after that, except when Ms. Weaving allowed all the children to visit the park under careful supervision. Pinkie Pie helped, often - the Cake twins were young, but somehow the stories kept them calm and attentive.
Months went by, and every week Dash shared with them a new adventure. But finally, the final book had been read, and Dash stood in front of the long shelf, staring. Look to your stories , came the memory. She pulled down the very first book, the one she had skipped, and headed out.
Two dozen children sat under the trees of the park as Dash later finished the end of the book. "The cunning Ahuizotl cackled, holding up the sapphire statue with the hand at the end of his tail. 'With Daring Do out of the way, the world will suffer mightily at my hands. I am victorious!' Suddenly, the brave Daring Do swept past him holding onto a vine, snatching away the statue and landing on an outcropping of rock!" From behind her, Dash heard a soft woosh and the landing of hooves, but she turned to the last page.
She froze, unable to continue. Someone had written on the back inside cover. Dash moved her eyes across it again and again, but a rising clamor from the children at the story's interruption urged her to complete the reading. " 'What? Nooo! Curse you, Daring Do!' shouted the wicked Ahuizotl. Daring Do escaped with the sun setting over the jungle behind her. And so, with Ahuizotl defeated, and the sapphire statue secured...the world was safe and sound once again, thanks to Daring Do!"
She looked once more at the added inscription. The hoofbeats sounded behind her again, closer, and she could sense a presence.
I love you Rainbow Dash .
She turned.
Princess Luna moved to the side to reveal a saffron-coated filly...with one wing.
"I read it anyway, after you left," Scootaloo said sheepishly.
The two embraced. Rainbow Dash felt her heart soar, all the joy within rising until she felt so full of energy she thought she would explode. Her wings, for so long held at her side, unfurled the bright blue feathers and the pair rocketed away from the ground, giggling together.
Rainbow Dash sped until the air finally surrendered.
BOOM.
