Chapters Rainbow Dash sighed, rolling in her soft bed of clouds. Her bedroom, usually a bright white this time of day, was currently a dark gray. “Why did they have to schedule a thunderstorm on my day off…?” Dash sighed at the thought of all the wasted time that could be spent practicing. She closed her eyes and tried to fall asleep, but she couldn't help her restlessness.
Normally she didn't mind flying through the rain, even during thunderstorms. While the lightning was dangerous, she could normally feel the ionization of the air and would move out of the area. This storm was different; there was a large increase in the amount of electricity. Somepony in Cloudsdale must have overcharged this group of clouds. Dash was sure she would be zapped from the sky if she left the safety of her home.
Time seemed to slow to a crawl, and it was going slower with every passing minute. Dash sighed for the hundredth time as she pushed herself off of the bed. She circled her room slowly for several minutes, trying to conquer her boredom. Suddenly lightning flashed across the sky, filling the room with light. The only bookshelf in her room drew her attention. Dash walked towards the shelf, eying her small collection of books.
There were three books on the shelf, filling only a small portion of one shelf. While Dash constantly told herself that she would fill it up over the years, she never found any books that caught her interest. The first book had a blue cover, the spine worn from years of use. It's cover reads; “Goldwings flying tips: Advanced tricks for the everyday flier.” Although the book covered only basic flight topics that Dash mastered years ago, it was given to her by somepony close to her. It had a very special place in her heart. The next book also had a blue cover, titled “Behind the Mask: Wonderbolts.” Its spine was still stiff from disuse. Dash had picked up the book for stories and advice, but only found gossip and steamy rumors. The last book was much older than the other two. Its leather cover was tarnished from use and age. This book contained no words, only pictures taped into the dull white pages.
Dash pulled the photo-book away from the other two with her hoof, grabbing it in her mouth and walking back to her bed. She threw herself the last couple feet and landed with a soft plop. She dropped the book and opened it, the dull light barely adequate enough to view the photos. Not that it matters, she had already committed them to memory.
She glanced past photos of her parents and childhood home, pushing the anger that was bubbling up back into the darkness of her mind. She flipped through several more pages before stopping at a photo of a dark blue foal with a blond mane. She smiled at the first couple pages of photos; the first steps, first walk and first flight. In the following pages, there was a new pony in the photos, a young cyan colored pegasus with a rainbow colored mane and tail. Dash's smile faded as the memories flooded her mind.
Rainbow Dash was born into an average Cloudsdale family. She had a healthy, happy mother and father. At the time Dash was born her family had one other child, a dark blue pegasus with a blonde main and tail and golden eyes. Sunray, named for his mane and eyes, was six years old at the time. Everypony called this young colt Ray, a habit that has stuck with Dash even now.
It was hard for her to remember the early years, the only vivid memories left were of Ray. How he would zoom around the house, with her struggling to keep up. How he was always calm and cool in any company or circumstances. But most of all she remembered his teasing and goading. It was never too mean or serious, but it always motivated her. Ray was the first to notice her natural talent for flying, and he drove her to reach farther and fly faster. Dash always looked up to and idolized him. She even tried her best to imitate him; his personality, his coolness, his tricks and even his looks.
It was Ray that gave Dash her dream, that fateful day etched into her mind. He woke her up early, even before Celestia raised the sun. Ray filled up a couple saddlebags with enough oats for the two and placed one on the drowsy eyed Dash. He explained nothing to the sleepy pony as they left their home and then Cloudsdale. They flew for hours, or if you would have asked her at the time, forever. Around midday they stopped flying, settling down near an open field. It didn't take her long to recover from the trip. She began to pester Ray about why they were there. He would only smile and tell her to be patient. Boredom quickly set in after a short flying session and several failed attempts into goading Ray into a chase. So she did the next best thing to having fun: take a nap.
“Dash.” A voice pierced through her sleep. “You're missing it.” She quickly opened her eyes to Ray smiling. “Good, you're up.” He said before turning his attention skyward. As she blinked the sleep from her eyes, she followed his gaze. Her eyes widened as streaks of blue crossed the sky. She followed the lines till she found their creators; four pegasi who flew through the air, leaving the trail in there wake. Their patterns started as simple lines and shapes, but quickly turned into complex figures and patterns. Dash could only stare up in amazement. The four practiced for several hours. None seemed to notice the two young ponies watching their every move. Three of the pegasi flew off as suddenly as they arrived, as the forth looked down at the two ponies. She quickly began a downward drop. A smile spread across her face as she watched the two children stumble about trying to hide as if they did something wrong. She pulled up just in time to fly over their heads, leaving a orange trail in her wake.
After watching the trail disappear into the air, Dash turned to Ray. “Who were those ponies... They were amazing!” She exclaimed.
He smiled and replied, a large grin plastered on his face. “The Wonderbolts. They are the best fliers in all of Equestria.”
She quickly interrupted. “And coolest?”
He nodded. “That's why I am going to be one.” He smiled, but she only returned a silent stare.
“Me too!” She responded after almost a minute of silence. He laughed and nuzzled the side of her face.
“How are you going to be a Wonderbolt if you can barely keep up with me?” He teased. The rest of the day dissolved into a blur. They ate and flew home, arriving shortly after sundown, sharing a punishment for leaving and skipping flight school.
Nearly a year later, the summer after her sixth birthday Dash faced the hardest challenge of her life: two months without Ray. He was off at summer flight camp, while she was stuck at home. To her the two months felt like several years. She filled most of her days with flying. Practicing every morning ‘till just before noon and going for a relaxing flight every night; although she loved the sky, it felt empty, so she would spend the hottest hours of the day in her home.
Dash loved her mother and father, although she was usually arguing with her mother, and being punished by her father. Her mother was born into one of the wealthier families in Cloudsdale. She never worked a day under the sun, but was the spitting image of the perfect house wife and the elegant mare. (“Rarity would be surprised...” Dash mumbled out loud, interrupting herself.) Dash's mother protested her training, attitude, habits, and especially the pranks Dash had quickly become fond of. Her father was the complete opposite. He grew up in a group of traveling performers. He left and became a stunt flier at a young age. About a year before Ray was born he was in a midair collision. He broke his left wing and was stuck in the hospital for a couple months, where he met his future wife. He had a light hearted attitude towards Dash and her punishments.
The last week before Ray returned home was like hell for Dash. She had left home for a couple days to practice where she first saw the Wonderbolts, camping in the trees near the field. When she returned home, her mother, in a mixture of rage and worry, began to yell at her. When Dash tried to stand her ground her mother slapped her across the snout. She could only remember running to her room, tears streaming from her eyes. She didn't notice her father enter her room. “No flying for a week.” He talked to her for an hour, but those were the only words she could remember. They haunted her mind long after they left his lips.
She spent the week in her room, only leaving when she absolutely needed to. At first she slept as long as she could everyday. Filling the remaining hours with any exercise she could think up. As the week drew to a close she turned to a book Ray had given to her for her birthday, “Goldwings.” She read through the book several times; trying to memorize every trick she could, even trying several maneuvers in her room. As the last day of her punishment drew to a close she talked to her mother for the first time that week. Dash apologized and was forgiven on the terms of never leaving like that again.
On her first day of freedom, she spent the morning stretching her wings before deciding to bathe in the sun. She hadn't realized she had fallen asleep until she heard a soft thud on the cloud she was laying on. “This cloud is occupied.” She said lazily.
“I'm gone for two months working my flanks off, and I come home and find you napping?” The voice responded playfully. Dash's eyes snapped and turned to owner of the voice.
“Ray!” She yelled, jumping to her feet in surprise. She quickly hugged him.
“I missed you too.” He responded.
The hug didn't last long. “I've got something to show you.” He said happily as he pulled away from her. He turned to the side, showing off his flank. “Check it out.” Three golden lightning bolts, the color of his eyes, streaked down his flank.
“Rayrayrayrayray!” She yelled out excitedly as she started jumping up and down on the cloud.
“Calm do--” Before Ray could finish his sentence the cloud gave-way below their hooves. They fell several feet before Ray turned into a dive, Dash quickly following his lead.
The impromptu flight lasted the rest of the day. The siblings returned home shortly before sunset. Together they watched the sun lower over the horizon. “You've been practicing all summer.” Ray said staring at the sky.
“You could tell?” Dash asked looking at him. He nodded. Silence filled the air as the light began to fade from the sky.
“Dash, are you ready?” He said quietly.
“For...what?” She stammered.
“Training. You still want to be a Wonderbolt, right?” Dash nodded. “Then we start. Tomorrow.”
Special thanks to Eskeal for editing. Thanks to PonyKrieger for the art
Over the next six years their flight practice and games had turned into full out training. They would leave before the sun peaked over the horizon, head to flight school and return to practice as soon as they were let out. It seemed that everyday Ray had a new challenge or an obstacle for her to overcome. Although she felt overworked, the results were plain to see. She was faster and could fly longer then ever before.
She saw that her hard-work paid off when she went to summer flight camp. She was the fastest of her age group and easily faster then any other pegasi at that camp. Her time trials on straightaways were setting camp records that would last for years to come. The only problem was that while Ray's training emphasized speed and endurance, the camp's courses were also focused on agility and maneuverability. That was her biggest downfall. On most courses with a high degree of obstacles her time was below average at best; not completed at worst. Her high speed tactics would always leave her shooting off course and straight into the cloud barriers and walls. It was from those tracks and the many incidents Dash was involved in that she earned her nickname: Rainbow Crash.
Halfway through the camp something happened to Dash. She had been resting on a cloud that looked over one of the cloud ring obstacle courses. For the last half hour she watched as many pegasi flew through the rings with ease. She sighed softly as a yellow pegasus with a pink mane tried to fly through a ring and tipped over it. She had to stifle back a chuckle as she tumbled down the slide of the cloud hanger. Dash felt bad for the older pegasus, but couldn't hold back her laugh as the pegasus took out a flag.
Dash decided to fly down. As she got to her feet she saw two colts approach the filly. “Nice going Klutzershy. They ought to ground you permanently.” The darker one said.
“Hah! My baby brother can fly better then you.” The light brown colt followed, before they both started laughing.
Dash quickly flew down, circling around the colts before landing between them and the pegasus. “Leave her alone!” She shouted. “Ohhh. What are you going to do Rainbow Crash?” The one closet to her taunted.
“Keep making fun of her and find out!” She retorted.
“You think your such a big shot? Why don't you prove it?” He sneered.
“What do you have in mind?” She said, not backing down.
“A race of course.”
Dash stood at the starting line. Next to the two ponies that were picking on the yellow pegasus. Confidence radiating from her, as they waited for shy pegasus to start the race. As soon as the flag was waved she took off, not caring to look back. One, two, three rings. “Right turn!” She thought to herself, veering hard to the right. She barely made it through the ring. She grinned as she heard the familiar sound of somepony crashing into a barrier. She zoomed forward with renewed speed. “Left! Right! Left! Dive!” She repeated the course in her head, zipping between each ring. “Seven down, one left!” Before she could finish her thought somepony hit her. “See you later rainbow Crash!” The light brown pony took the lead on her, making a sharp dive for the last ring. Dash flew at the ground with a renewed energy, flapping her wings harder and harder.
The air around her began to ripple strangely, but she was too preoccupied to notice. The wind became almost unbearable as it was stinging her face and eyes. A multitude of colors began to appear in the ripple around her hooves. The ring was so close, she had to win, she had to push forward. When she hit the ring something amazing happened; she turned up and flew faster then she ever flown before, a rainbow trail in her wake. “The Sonic Rainboom! Goldwing said it was only an old mares tale!” She crossed the finish line, circling over Cloudsdale. It was one of the happiest days of her life.
The rest of her time at the camp was spent trying to recreate the rainboom, but she never managed to repeat the trick. However, the remaining time at the camp wasn't a complete waste: Fluttershy, the pegasus she stood up for, had quickly become her friend. Although at first she would follow Dash around like a lost little foal, she quickly grew on Dash. Fluttershy was quiet and listened to Dash talk about Ray for hours. She would even cheer Dash's attempts to recreate the rainboom. As the camp drew to a close she discovered that Fluttershy lived only a couple minutes down the cloud from her home.
Upon arriving at her home, she noticed Ray laying in the yard. He seemed to be napping. She flew straight at him, hitting him and sending the two into a laughing spin. The rolled side over side until Ray stood over Dash.
“You should know you can't beat your older brother!” He said with a grin.
“You'll never believe what happened to me at camp!” She quickly changed the subject. Ray listened quietly as she told him the story of how she got her cutie mark in great detail.
After finishing her tale, Dash looked over at Ray. He was wearing a serious expression, one that Dash had rarely seen. After a couple minutes of silence she spoke up, “Ray. Earth to Ray. Sunray can you hear me?” Ray blinked a couple times before turning to her.
“Are you ready?” He asked her. As soon as the words hit her ears she grinned.
“For what?” She asked playing along.
He grinned. “Tomorrow we train harder then ever before. And there will not be any time for naps.”
The next year was a roller coaster ride for Dash. Ray graduated flight school and with their fathers blessing left their home. Before Dash could even miss him, he told her to drop out of flight school; he promised he could train her better then any boring old teacher. She was more than happy to agree, but they had to convince their mother. After many heated arguments with her mother, Dash finally convinced her to let her drop out. She was never happier, the next six months felt like an extended summer.
Over the last three months the training became more extreme and dangerous. Dash tried her best to live up to Ray's standards, which lead to iced wings every night and a sore body every morning. They practiced six days a week, resting on the seventh. The worst part of the training was the pain. It had many causes; accidents, exhaustion, overexerted muscles and even emotions. The thought of letting her brother down was almost unbearable. Sometimes she just wanted to quit, but all it took was a talk with Ray to set her back on course.
Then Dash's life hit rock bottom. The day started like any other. Ray and Dash woke up before dawn, packed their daily rations and left Cloudsdale just as the sun was peaking over the horizon. The air was calm and the sky was partly cloudy; perfect for the days activity.
They flew about an hour away from the cloud city before touching down. After a quick breakfast they were airborne again. Together they flew higher and higher into the sky. It wasn't Dash's first time with extreme heights, but she always felt uneasy when it was hard to breathe. They spent the whole day doing high altitude dives. The rush with every drop was exhilarating. The siblings would dare, push and goad each other into pulling out of the dive later and later. As the sun began to fall they rose for one final dive. They rose high enough for their breath to become icy and sting their lungs.
Dash was the first to drop. Ray quickly following on her tail. As she fell from the sky, something in her clicked and she started beating her wings hard. Dash quickly pulled away from Ray. Everything felt right as the air around her began to form a barrier. She could see the ground quickly approaching as she passed through the clouds. She hit the barrier and struggled to break through. Suddenly she found that the barrier held, sending her flying upwards back into the sky. She tumbled skyward till she hit something hard. She heard a grunt as she yelled out in pain. Then as suddenly as she was thrown up, she began to fall. She clutched onto the thing she hit, flailing her wings, trying to regain control. As the floor quickly approached she screamed out loud. The ball of feathers hit the floor with a thump.
The next thing Dash remembered was waking up, her entire body wracked in pain; her wings were numb and her head was pounding. She heard someone coughing violently behind her. She turned her head to see that Ray was the source. Pools of blood lay on the floor between them and on his mouth and chest. “Ray...” She whimpered, but there was no response. She tried to get to her feet, but when she put pressure on her left front hoof, pain spiked through her whole body. Her tears began to flow, she sobbed softly as she began to crawl towards Ray on three good limbs. She laid her head against his chest. She closed her eyes and continued to sob, until the pain and the tiredness of her body forced her into a deep sleep. In her sleep she was unable to feel his chest rise and fall for the last time.
Rainbow Dash woke, her head throbbed and her limbs were numb. A beep chimed every couple of seconds adding to her throbbing pain. She turned towards to the source of the noise. It was a white box with a black screen, a red line ran through the machine. An upside down lightning bolt would appear and beep when the line hit the center of the box. An iv drip was attached to the box, a tube connected the machine and the drip to a shaved portion of her arm.
Looking past the machine she could see a pony sitting on a pillow on the floor, sleeping in an awkward position, its head was leaning against the wall. By the color of her coat and mane she could tell it was Fluttershy. “Fluttershy.” Dash called out. Her throat was dry and it was hard for her to raise her voice above a whisper, but she gave it another try. “Fluttershy.” This time she managed to catch the pony's attention. Fluttershy awake just in time to watch Dash begin to cough loudly.
“Rainbow Dash! Are you ok?” She called out quickly rushing to Dash's side.
“Water...” Dash wheezed between coughs. Fluttershy nodded before she quickly left the room. She shortly returned with a glass of water and a nurse trailing quickly behind her.
The next week was a blur of people; family, friends, nurses and doctors. She was asleep most of the time, only woken by doctors and visitors. She would try to ask about Ray, but only received vague answers. Also she was under the influence of painkillers, they made it hard for her to piece together any information she discovered. After nearly a week of straight rest, the doctors began to lower her dosage and she finally managed to convince somepony to tell her about Ray.
She woke early one morning to find the iv drip disconnected. She moved her left forearm, it throbbed with a light pain, but her head was completely clear. As she started to regain her focus she heard a soft breathing coming from her left. Fluttershy was in the same position she was the first time Dash woke up. Dash smiled when she noticed Fluttershy was awake, looking at her. “Fluttershy.” She said cautiously.
“Rainbow Dash. Your awake.” Fluttershy said before yawning. “How are you feeling?” Dash could hear the sleepiness in her voice.
“I'm...Fine. Wheres Ray?” Dash asked eagerly. Fluttershy froze.
“I...I...I...” she stammered as she looked at the floor.
“Tell me.” Dash said impatiently after a couple seconds.
After a minute of silence dash began to grow agitated. “Tell me now!”Fluttershy squeaked in response. Dash set up and tried to slide out of the bed. As she attempted this maneuver she slammed her left fore-arm into the railing of the bed. She yelled out in pain and threw her herself against the bed. When she hit the bed she clipped her bandaged wing, causing her to yell out again. Fluttershy rushed to the side of the bed, forgetting about her shyness.
“Don't move or your going to hurt yourself more.” Fluttershy said as Dash struggled to get back up. “Hes...Hes....” Fluttershy mumbled. This caused Dash to momentarily freeze.
“He's what?” Dash blurted out. “Where is he?” She continued. Fluttershy looked back at ground.
“He's....dead.” She whispered. Dash began to chuckle. The chuckle quickly turned into a laughing fit. Dash's eyes watered and tears began to drip down her cheeks.
“Nice prank...” Dash said as she tried to catch her breath. Fluttershy looked back up at dash before shaking her head.
“Don't move! Please! Your going to hurt yourself more!” Fluttershy begged, which caused Dash to struggle more. Suddenly she felt Fluttershy's weight lift off her.
She turned to find Fluttershy's muzzle an inch away from her own, Fluttershy's eyes were larger then normal. Dash's eye's were drawn to her's, she couldn’t look away. She felt herself shrinking back into the bed. “Now Listen here, your going to stay in bed and stop squirming and be a good pony. Do you understand?” Fluttershy asked, her voiced was filled with an authority Dash had never head before. Dash quickly nodded in response. “Good girl.” Fluttershy said as she ran a hoof through dashes tangled mane. Suddenly she blinked, reverting back to her normal self. She squeaked and pulled her hoof away from Dash. “Sorry...Rainbow Dash.” Fluttershy whispered.
As the news of her brothers death began to sink in, Dash began to cry.
Dash opened her eyes slowly and rubbed them with her hoof, feeling the matted fur on her cheeks. Her eyes were red and puffy, she blinked a couple times trying to clear them. She felt a sudden pressure on the right side of her bed and turned to see Fluttershy laying her head against it. Dash watched her sleep for a couple seconds before turning back towards the ceiling.
Before she could get lost in her thoughts. The door to her room opened and brown stallion in a white coat entered the room. He looked familiar, but she couldn’t remember him. Dash quickly shook Fluttershy as he strode to the bed. She was yawning softly just as he started talking. “Hello Miss Rainbow Dash. I'm Doctor Pattella How are you feeling?”
“I'm fine.” She lied, ignoring the silent stare that Fluttershy was giving her. The doctor quickly nodded before looking at the charts attached to her bed.
“Well then Rainbow Dash, I'm here to tell you about your accident.” Dash quickly nodded in response. “Well, with what you went through you are lucky to have lived. It seems you landed on your wings, and left fore-arm. They took most of the damage. Your fore-arm will be fine, as well as your right wing, But your left wing is another story. You have a break in the Ulna and several fractures on the Humerus bone. Now if they heal right you may regain practical use. In-fact, I'd say this is the type of injury that grounded your father.”
The entire time Dash had a look of disbelief on her face, not sure what to say. Everything was processing so slowly. She barely understood the doctor. His last sentence snapped her from her daze. “You know my father?”
The doctor nodded. “Yes, I was his doctor as well....” He was interrupted by a young pegasus that walked through the door, “Doctor your needed in room 210, now.” She said urgently before she quickly left the room. “If you need anything Miss Dash, let one of the nurses know.” He said, smiling, before he left as well..
They sat in silence for several minutes. As everything sank in Dash began to breath heavily, she tried her best not to cry again. She didn't want to cry again. She turned to Fluttershy to find that she was looking down, Dash could see the tears dripping down her face. “Flutte....” As Dash spoke out, Fluttershy quickly sprang to her feet. She looked away from Dash.
“Sorry Rainbow Dash..” She said quietly before sprinting out of the room. Leaving Dash once again alone with her thoughts.
Dash stared at the ceiling unsure of how much time had past, since she found out she would never fly as she used to, how much time had past since her best friend had abandoned her. She lied in the darkness trying not to think of Ray or her wings or her friend.
She hadn't realize she had fallen asleep until she felt somepony shake her. She quickly opened her eyes, but was blinded by the light of the room. It took a couple seconds for her eyes to adjust. A blurry figure stood before her, but quickly turned into her father as she rubbed her eyes. His breath reeked of apples and his eyes were slightly blood shot. This was the first time he had visited her while she was awake. “Dad?” She asked quietly. His head snapped towards her, as if he had just been awoken from a trance.
“Oh. Rainbow Dash. Your awake.” He spoke slowly, a pained expression on his face. “Its good to see you up....” He spat. “Do you know what you did?”
“No...” She shook her head.
“You killed him... You killed Ray!” He yelled as he moved to Dash's side. “How could you do this? How could you kill your brother!”
“I didn't kill...” She tried to plead, but he interrupted her.
“He....he had so much to live for...” His eyes were bulging with rage, he had been yelling the entire time. The dam of emotions Dash had been trying to hold back suddenly broke. She began to sob. “Don't cry! You don't deserve to cry! Your not dead!” Time seemed to slow as he spoke again. “I wish it was you instead of him.” His expression suddenly changed and he looked away from her. “Das...” He was interrupted by a sudden banging on the door.
“Is everpony okay? The doors locked!” A voice carried through the door. Her father turned towards the door, without so much as a glance back to her, opened it and left the room. A nurse quickly rushed in past him. She started to speak, but Dash couldn't understand her. She turned her head to the side, looking away from the worried nurse. “No....No more crying...” She repeated over and over.
“...Hungry.” Something called out to her, pulling her from the blackness of sleep. She shook her head, resisting the call and trying to edge back into sleeps hands. A sweet smell hit her nose and started to rouse her empty stomach. She opened her eyes.
Fluttershy was next to her, eating a shiny red apple. “Are you sure?” She said holding out an apple in her hoof. Dash tried to glare at her, but fluttershy's soft smile stopped her in her tracks. Dash grabbed the apple and quickly bit into it. As the sweet juices hit her tongue she smiled, then proceeded to devour the apple in record breaking time. Fluttershy giggled softly as Dash looked around for more apples. Fluttershy pulled a small basked full of apples from the floor and placed it onto the bed.
After clearing out the basket Dash began to feel better. “Where did you get those apples. They were awesome.” Dash said breaking the silence.
“There from Sweet Apple Acres. Its a farm near a small place called Ponyville.” She quickly looked at the floor. “Im sorry Rainbow Dash.” She suddenly squeaked. “I... didn't want you to see me cry...” She whispered, but suddenly spoke up again. "Also.. I wanted to cheer you up...so I got you this,” there was a slight blush on her face. She ducked her head down and came back up with a stuffed wonderbolt plush; Dash instantly recognized the orange mane pegasus as Spitfire.
“You came back.” Dash whispered, the spitfire plush tucked safely under her left fore-hoof.
“What was that Rainbow Dash?” Fluttershy asked. Dash shook her head and smiled. She had a friend she could count on. Someone to help keep away the sadness. Ray wouldn't have wanted her to bed sad, he would tell her to fly. And she would try...
Dash spent the next month at the hospital. She was amazed at hoe much Fluttershy had learned about medical care. Everyday she would help Dash with her bandages and splints. Dash's Mother would come and visit her almost everyday for the first three weeks, but had suddenly stopped. As for her father, he hadn't come at all. She didn't know if she she should be worried or relieved. She didn't hate her father after what happened... She was just unsure how to feel.
Her fore-arm felt much better, the splint having been abandoned two weeks into her stay. Her wings had healed better then expected. To the doctors amazement they were almost as good as new. She was cleared to leave.
Dash left the hospital on her own. She took to the sky as quickly as she could. Even with a month of downtime she felt like she never left the sky. It did take her a couple tried to get off the ground and even longer still to gain decent speed. She relished the sunshine and the cool breeze, she had missed them dearly.
An old spark ignited in her as she rose higher and higher, struggling against her tired muscles. As she lifted herself above the cloud city the spark disappeared, feeling her with a sense of dread and fear she had never experienced in sky. She quickly guided back to the cloud floor and did something she hadn't done in years... walk home.
The following month was a strange period in Rainbow Dash's life. She didn't fly as much as she used to. Opting to spend her time on the cloud with her mother or Fluttershy. Even when she flew, it was never too high above the cloud line (Not that Fluttershy minded). Dash even made several trips to the ground with Fluttershy, to see the animals that she cared for.
Dash's Mother welcomed her with open arms and treated her as if she had never left. She would spend much of her free time with Dash, as if she was afraid to loose her. Fluttershy visited almost everyday, only leaving to take care of her animal friends. She begun staying at the house several nights in a row every week. Dash never minded, Fluttershy helped keep her mind away from her father.
As for Dash's father, he ignored her. At first she was outraged, but while she was alone, the anger passed and a confusing longing surfaced. She soon realized she would do anything to gain his attention. It started with begging and pleading, but swiftly moved into a destructive phase. She started partying with an old friend she made in flight school (Although, she didn't much care for that... griffin at the moment...) That part of her life didn't last long, as her behavior had no effect on her father and only hurt her mother and Fluttershy. As the idea that he wanted nothing to do with her sunk in, she decided to try one last desperate act. She went back to the sky.
Dash woke before sunrise, careful not to wake the sleeping Fluttershy that was sharing her bed. She packed enough oats for the day and left before any other pony in her home woke. She flew until the sun began to warm the sky.When she reached a nearly nearly empty field, she glided to the ground to drop her supplies before flying back into the sky. As she flew upwards and passed through the clouds, her faux confidence began to fade and was quickly replaced by fear, but she powered through the clouds and into the upper atmosphere on sheer stubbornness... If this is what she had to do to get his approval... then she wouldn't back down.
As the familiar tingling of ice began to from on the tips of her wings she stopped. Each cold breath she took hurt her lungs and froze her chest. “Now or never. Now or Never. NOW!” She yelled as she folded her wings in and closed her eyes and tumbled downwards through the sky.
After falling several hundred feet she opened her wings slightly to control her fall. The sharp instincts that she had acquired no more then a six months ago were as strong as ever. As the fall began to feel like a routine she had practiced, her confidence began to return. She began to pump her wings, propelling herself at an even faster speed towards the ground. As the wind began to sting her face, she started to laugh. She could now see the ground clearly, and it was coming up fast. She flared her wings to slow herself, then suddenly shifted her body in a way that her momentum propelled her forward, skimming just over the tops of the trees that were scattered across the field she was flying over. She had been laughing the entire time and couldn't stop, even after she had landed.
It took almost half an hour before she could calm herself down. While she tried to catch her breath, she tried to figure out why she started laughing and why she couldn't stop. She watched the clouds for several minutes before she realized her answer, she was happy. The sky, one of her oldest and dearest friends, had welcomed her back with open arms. It was at that moment she understood that she could never truly leave the sky.
Rainbow Dash picked up her training where Ray had left off. Although she looked for ponies to mentor her(mostly ex-wonderbolts), most would not respond and several were brash enough to wave the accident in her face. So she decided that there was only one pony cool enough to train her, and that was herself. Every morning she would leave for a small forest about an hour south of Cloudsdale. There Dash would meet up with Fluttershy, shortly before she began her daily care of her animals, and they would share a breakfast. Dash would spend the day exercising and practicing, while pretending to ignore the quiet cheering of her only fan. In less then three months Rainbow Dash was at the top of her game; she was faster, stronger and had much more energy then she even knew what to do with.
On a whim, she decided to compete in an amateur race. On the day of the race, she wasn't nervous, she wasn't cocky, she was ready. Although she was competing with ponys with greater wingspans or larger muscles, she had no fear. As soon as the race started she left her competition in a rainbow colored contrail. Her only real competition was the course record, which she nearly halved. This was only the first of many victories to come.
Rainbow Dash soon became semi famous in the amateur race circuits, she was known for her speed and reckless style. Every victorious race built her confidence, and soon the only thing that surpassed her accomplishments was her ego. She even received a invite to one of Cloudsdale's most prestigious flying events; the Best Young Fliers Competition, but when she replied with interest she was disqualified due to her age.
Although she started flying to regain her father's admiration, but she began to forget about her original purpose as racing seemed to fill the void her father left in her life, but soon this was going to change.
Rainbow Dash had woken up early as per her usual schedule while training. She was expecting to head down to a quiet breakfast, her father hadn't uttered more then a hello to her in the last couple months and her mother had been unusually distant after she had started racing. As she walked into the dining room, the smell of apple oatmeal flooded her nose. She hadn't eaten apple oatmeal since she was a filly. As she approached the table, she noticed her father was snout deep in a news paper. As she took her place, he set down the paper and looked directly at her, she froze.
“Good morning Dashie.” He said with a hint of cheerfulness. Dash was shocked, she hadn't heard him sound happy in months, and it had been even longer still since he called her by the nick name given to her as a filly.
“Morning...” She stuttered, but before she could say anymore he turned his attention back to the paper as if nothing out of the ordinary happened.
“Rainbow Dash! Good morning!” Her mother said after setting a bowl in-front of her. Dash slowly nodded, still recovering from her fathers greeting. She watched as her mother moved next to her father. He set his paper down again and looked up at his wife and then to Dash. “We have wonderful news. We're pregnant!”
Suddenly as if somepony had flipped a switch, Rainbow Dash's life had changed again. Dash once again grew close to her mother. She began to spend most of her days at home, racing less and less, eventually stopping all together as her mother's pregnancy began to show. Dash quickly took her mothers place in their home, but as she quickly learned, through many accidents, she wasn't made for the home life. So with Fluttershy's help (well, mostly due to Fluttershy's help), Dash was able to keep her home in pristine condition.
For Dash the best part of her new life was a renewed relationship with her father. It started with cheerful greetings and small conversations and lead back into a full talking relationship. She felt closer to him , then she had in years, even before the accident. It was as if the void she tried to fill with racing had suddenly been filled and she felt a large pressure lift from her shoulders. For those few months everything seemed perfect, but as with most of life, perfection never lasts forever.
Sunshine, named after Sunray, was born on a bright summer day. She had the yellow mane of her father and the white coat of her mother. Dash was happy that she had the chance to be the coolest sister ever. Although, the thought of being an older sibling brought out painful memories of the accident, she couldn't help but be happy that she could show Sunshine the love that Ray had shown her.
Both Dash and Fluttershy continued taking care of Dash's home while her mother recovered. They would also take care of little Sunshine whenever they needed to. Fluttershy was constantly surprising Dash, because she was a natural at taking care of the little filly. Dash learned allot about caring for her sister from Fluttershy.
As the days become weeks, months and even years, Dash noticed as her family's attention drifted away from her. At first it was her mother, she was paying more attention to little Sunshine, but Dash didn't mind. It wasn't until her father began to slip into his old habits, that it began to eat at her. She would rarely talk to her father. The only pony keeping her attached to the family was Sunshine.
As Dash watched her little sister grow she was surprised at how much the filly looked up to her. Once Sunshine could walk, she would follow Dash everywhere. While she was learning to fly, Dash tried to teach her everything she knew. When Sunshine started to fly on her own, she would chase after Dash for hours at a time. Little Sunshine was full of surprises, she picked up flying faster then both Ray and Dash. Dash was sure that Sunshine would be a great flier....but not better then her.
When her parents found out that Dash was teaching Sunshine, they quickly grew concerned that she would follow in Rays hoof steps. At first they stopped leaving Sunshine in Dash's care. Then they started discouraging her flying unsupervised. When Dash discovered what was happening she flipped; She started arguing with her parents worse then she had in years. Although she tried to hide their fighting from Sunshine, she would occasionally catch the filly crying in her room after a heated dispute.
It wasn't long before Dash hit her breaking point, it started when she arrived home early from a training session. She found her father and Sunshine talking in the living room, neither noticed the pegasus enter the house. “Daddy... Why don't you like me flying?” Sunshine asked in a curious tone. He remained silent for several seconds. As Dash was about to enter the room he spoke.
“Do you remember who Sunray is?” Dash froze.
“Mhmm. Hes my Brother,” Sunshine answered happily.
“Right. We don't want you to go away, like Sunray.”
She giggled quietly. “Why did Sunray go away daddy?”
“Dash made him go away, forever.” He replied calmly.
“Is that why you don't want me playing with Dashie?”
Before he could respond Dash left, slamming the door, making her exit known.
Dash quickly went to Fluttershy's house to look for the pegasus. When she found out that Fluttershy was not home, she knew exactly where to look. She flew down to the small forest where Fluttershy took care of some of the local animals. After a couple minutes of searching she found the yellow pony singing in a clearing. Several birds were surrounding the shy pegasus, chirping in tune with her singing.
“Oooh what a magical place and I owe it all to the pegasus race!”
Dash quickly dove to the floor, scaring both the birds and Fluttershy. She stood her ground breathing loudly until Fluttershy recovered.
“Rrr...Rraainbow Dash. Whats wrong?”
“I need to leave home for a couple days... and your coming with me.”
“What about the...” Fluttershy tried to protest, but Dash cut her off.
“I said your going!” Dash yelled, causing Fluttershy to cringe. She quickly nodded under Dash's commanding glare.
Rainbow Dash took Fluttershy to the spot Ray had taken her to see the Wonderbolts. An awkward feeling hung over both of them during the flight and neither pony had said a word. Once they arrived Dash apologized and promised to make it it up to Fluttershy. Fluttershy had quickly stopped asking what happened, because Dash outright refused to speak of what had caused her to become so angry.
They spend the next few hours looking around the woods that surrounded the clearing. Not too long after they stopped a family of bunnies approached the pegasi. Rainbow Dash watched Fluttershy play with the bunnies until she couldn’t take sitting still anymore. “Thanks Again for coming Fluttershy.” Fluttershy looked up from the bunnies and smiled. “I’m gonna,” Dash pointed up with a hoof, “go up.” Fluttershy nodded.
Dash flew up a couple hundred feet. She spent half an hour performing a portion of her basic tricks. The entire time Dash was checking to make sure that Fluttershy was watching her. After her third fantastic filly flash, Dash grew bored and decided to fly higher into the sky. She flew until her wings tingled in the cold and her breath was icy. She stared down, looking for the dot that was Fluttershy. “If one pony is here...If one pony can see me... If one pony cared.. I can do another sonic rainboom.”
Dash flipped herself and began diving towards the ground. When she reached optimal speed she began to power herself forward with her wings. At six hundred feet from the ground, the air around her began to sting her entire body. At four hundred feet the wind around her grew silent. Two hundred feet, Colors began to form in the air around her hooves. At one hundred feet the world froze. Her gaze was drawn to the left. In the sky, flying next to her was Ray. “Ray! I'm doing it! I’m doing the rainboom!” She yelled happily. He smiled at her.
“Pull out.” She could hear his voice perfectly. “Pull up Rainbow Dash.” This time his voice sounded different. Before she had time to figure it out her attention was brought back to the ground as her fall resumed. Dash quickly spread her wings, but she couldn't pull out.
Dash couldn't remember hitting the ground. She didn’t feel somepony drag her across the ground. “Almost did it....Did you see Ray.” ” Dash said weakly and closed her eyes.
“Please wake up...” A calm voice replied in the darkness.
Rainbow Dash woke up when the light from the morning sun reached her eyes. Her body felt sore and tired. She could tell she was lying on the ground, it was cold and hard. In contrast the sun was keeping her warm as it fought away the shadows. As she tried to get to her feet she heard Fluttershy call out.
“Rainbow Dash! Your awake!” Fluttershy quickly rushed over and help Dash stand. Dash winced and sharply inhaled as a dull pain flared down her side. “Are you in pain?”
“I'll live.” Dash grinned and slowly moved away from Fluttershy. “But, more importantly, did you see him? Did you see Ray?!” She asked excitedly. Fluttershy stared at her.
“Ray... Has been dead for a long time...” She said softly. “How could I see him?”
“He was there, just before I.....crashed. He was flying in the sky next to me. He knew I was going to crash, so he told me to pull up. Hes.... Still with me.” Dash smiled.
Fluttershy shook her head. “Rainbow Dash.... I was watching you and I...” Fluttershy trailed off and looked down at the ground. “Maybe your right.” She said softly.
They spent the next couple days camping in the field. Although Dash's injures weren’t severe, her right wing was just a little too sore for her to fly long distances. After the first night Fluttershy became quieter then usual. No matter what Dash would do to get her to liven up, she couldn't break through Fluttershy's shell. On the third day Dash gave up.
“My wing feels better...Its time to go.” Dash said coldly to Fluttershy, who was playing with a little raccoon. Fluttershy looked up at Dash and tried to speak, “Rainbow Dash... I'm... So...” Dash flapped her wings and rose into the air, not waiting for the pegasus to finish. Their trip back was just as quiet then their trip out. When they arrived back at Cloudsdale, Dash streaked off without a word, leaving Fluttershy in the middle of a rainbow colored wake.
Dash had not seen Fluttershy for almost two weeks after the trip. She decided that it was probably because of the way she treated her friend... Although she tried to apologize, every time she found herself on Fluttershy's doorstep, a fear surfaced that she hadn't felt in years; and she would leave. Today, she decided, was the day that she would apologize to her best friend.
Dash flew to Fluttershy's house, determined to make everything right. She knocked on the door, but there was no answer. So she sat in front of the door. After an hour of waiting she decided to rest her eyes from the bright midday sun. Then she decided that the door was rather comfortable, the perfect place for a nap.
“Rainbow Dash...Wake up... Dashie?” A voice pulled her from her sleep. A slight blush crept her face from hearing her nick name. She quickly opened her eyes. Fluttershy was sitting a couple feet away from her. They stared at each other for several minutes before Dash decided to speak up.
“Fluttershy, I'm sorry I was such.... such a mule.” Dash said, eating hoof fulls of her pride with each word.
Fluttershy shook her head. “I’m Sorry Rainbow Dash... I didn't believe you... about Ray,” she said. Dash smiled. Before she could respond Fluttershy pulled an envelope out of her saddle bag. “I got this for you.” Fluttershy said with the letter in her teeth. She passed it to Dash, which she swiftly opened. Inside were two blue tickets to an upcoming wonderbolt event. Dash's eyes widened as she read them over and over.
Before Fluttershy realized what happened Dash had her pinned to the cloud floor in a hug. “Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou.” Dash repeated over and over again not noticing the blush spreading across Fluttershy's face.
“Okay.” Fluttershy said quietly.
The time had come for the aerial event, it was held at the Cloudsdale Coliseum. It had lasted for several hours. Dash watched in quiet wonder as the Wonderbolts would blaze across the sky in perfect formation. Fluttershy was sitting next to Dash, more interested in the rainbow mare then the show going on in the sky. Suddenly Dash turned to Fluttershy. Fluttershy turned away from Dash quickly. “Fluttershy. I think... I think I know what to do. I have to do it for both us. I have to do it for him.” She said before turning her gaze back to the sky.
“If going to be a wonderbolt...” Dash trailed off. “I...I have to go... Please come see me tomorrow.” Dash quickly jumped from her seat and flew down to the aisle. She leaped from the balcony and dove under the stadium. Although she stayed away from the performers, her trail had caught the attention of the stadium. Mummers about 'Rainbow Danger Dash' return could be heard from the occasional pony in the stand. Or at least that what Dash liked to think.
She flew from the stadium to the weather factory. She knew she had too much history in Cloudsdale to really be able to move on, so she would leave her home, her family...and even her best friend... to achieve Rays and her dream.
She applied for a weather tending position in Manehattan, but all they had was a weather management job in a small town called Ponyville. So she took it. Heck, if the current manager wasn't a fan of armature racing, or had she not signed an autograph....or taken several pictures... she might have not gotten the job.
Dash didn't realize it then, but she was going to make a mistake she would regret for many years. The job started a couple day after she had accepted it, but she left the next day. She didn’t have much in her old home. Just two books, A photo album and Goldwings. She couldn't bring herself to tell her parents, but she figured they didn't care. They hadn't spoken in almost a month.
As for Sunshine, she couldn’t remember the exact conversation, but she did remember the little filly crying and begging her not to leave. She promised her that when she was a famous Wonderbolt, she would come and visit her, and take her all over Equestria. Dash stayed with her till the filly feel asleep.
The last thing Dash did before she left was write a letter to Fluttershy.
'Fluttershy,
I'm sorry for being a bad friend and leaving. I know I should have told you in person, but I don't think I could leave...if I made you cry again. Please don't worry about me, just know that you were my best friend and I will remember you forever.
Your Friend,
Dash stared at the short letter that she left hanging on Fluttershy's door. She knew she was bad at writing, but she was even worse at goodbyes. This would have to do... It was the best that Fluttershy would get. She wouldn't know, for many years, how much that she had hurt Fluttershy that day.
Rainbow Dash yawned as she woke, feeling a strange sensation against her face. She sat up and opened her eyes. She had fallen asleep against a book, a photo book. It was open to the last page, but there was no photos on this page, only a single dark blue feather. She smiled as she pulled the feather from the book and closed it. She picked up the book and put it back in its place on the shelf.
Dash turned back to her bed and stared at the golden feather she had left on the bed. She turned her head towards her dresser and eyed the golden ticket laying on her shelf. “Almost there Ray... This is for both of us.” She picked up the feather and tucked it into her hair behind her ear.
She left her room, glancing at the gala tickets one last time before closing the door. She glided down the stairs and landed at the foot of her kitchen, where she packed a hardy meal into her one of her saddle bags. Then she proceeded to do her morning stretches, taking care not to disturb the feather on her head.
As she left her home, the sun was already rising over the horizon and there was no trace of the intense thunderstorm that passed through Ponyville. She looked over the remaining clouds, scanning the shining objects. A flash of gold caught her eyes for an instant. She could almost see the dark blue pegasus flying through the morning sky. She knew he would always watch over her.
She opened her wings and flew.
A/N:
Thanks again for reading. Leave comments below, (Im going to try to start responding!) and rate if you would like to.
