From One to Another

by DerpyMoreMuffins

Rating: teen
Tags: Sad, Main 6, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Cutie Mark Crusaders, Adventure, Alternate Universe
Length: 45236

Twilight’s casting of Starswirl the Bearded’s spell may have changed the destinies of her friends, but how did they attain these destinies? What sort of past lies in their new lives? When truths come to light, friendships may not last...

The Cutie Mark Crusaders decide to ask ponies around town where they got their cutie marks, specifically Rarity, who has perhaps the most profound, odd cutie mark of all. On their quest to figure out how a unicorn became a weatherpony, however, they encounter many of the other ponies who have odd tales of their own to share. How did Pinkie Pie join the Apple Family? How did Rainbow Dash become an animal caretaker? Why is Applejack a fashion designer? How did Twilight become Celestia’s student? What made Fluttershy decide to dedicate her life to bringing joy to others? And how did Rarity become a weatherpony, a role so outside a unicorn’s skillset? It may be that everything in Equestria is not kind and peaceful after all.

Published 2013-05-11 23:30:02 UTC
Last updated 2013-11-18 05:22:52 UTC

Chapter 2: Pinkamena

The Crusaders are looking for the pony with the most peculiar cutie mark in all Ponyville, and perhaps even Equestria itself: Rarity, the Unicorn Weatherpony. Her story could be the key, the way to find their destinies, no matter how odd or obscure. Applebloom and Sweetie Belle ride in a wagon attached to Scootaloo’s scooter, which she pilots with gumption and skill.

“So where exactly do you think Rarity would be?” asks Scootaloo to Sweetie Belle. She shrugs her shoulders in response.

“She could be just about anywhere,” said Sweetie Belle, “I mean, she just needs to be outside to do her job.” Scootaloo sighs and suddenly swerves out of the way of a puddle, which was being fed by a dark cloud pouring rain. Applebloom and Sweetie Belle are knocked off balance and fall down within the wagon.

“And how well she does it,” says Scootaloo with a sheepish grin. Sweetie Belle and Applebloom laugh nervously as they pull their selves back to their hooves. Suddenly they are knocked out of the wagon as Scootaloo skids to a halt.

“What gives?” exclaims an upset Applebloom as she dusts herself off. Ahead of the trio three rabbits had crossed the road, right in front of the scooter’s path. They are panicked and wild, seemingly running from somepony. Applebloom quickly notices the apples they carry in their paws. With a whoosh, the bushes they came from part yet again as a straight haired pink pony dashes through and gives chase to the bunnies.

“Come back here, you little critters!” yells the pony, running toward them. They scatter and she chases them in a circular motion until she loses her balance and falls onto her face with a resounding thud. The bunnies escape through the bushes on the other end of the road and the Cutie Mark Crusaders run up to the pink pony’s side.

“Big sis!” says Applebloom as she approaches her. Pinkamena rubs her haunch in pain, passing over her cutie mark: three bright red apples. She frowns and pulls herself up to her feet.

“I’m sorry, Applebloom,” she says, planting her butt down to sit, “Rainbow Dash really should watch what her animals are doing.”

“Oh, I know!” says Applebloom excitedly, with a big, wide, and perhaps somewhat unsettling grin directed at her friends. She turns her gaze back at Pinkamena. “Can you tell us how you got your cutie mark, Apple Pie?” The question hits its target like a lightning bolt, bringing tumultuous beads of sweat to her face. Applebloom smiles widely, her eyes lit up. Scootaloo audibly sighs behind her.

“Well, umm, why would you want to know that story?” stammers Pinkamena with a suspicious smile. Applebloom jumps up and down.

“We’re asking everypony how they got their cutie marks,” she says in the cutest tone she can manage. Sweetie Belle fidgets a little and Scootaloo stomps the ground lightly. Applebloom, however, is impervious to their dissent and continues to plead with her sister. “Can you tell us, please please please please please please!”

“Alright, alright, I’ll tell you the story,” Pinkamena says, with a frown. Scootaloo huffs in the background, but it is lost on the others. Applebloom squeaks in glee and sits down excitedly, inviting her friends to do the same. They comply, but not without a little groaning and moaning.

“It all began when I was a little filly,” she begins...

Pinkamena was in the midst of an expansive grey field; she was like a beacon of color in an expanse of nothingness. All around her, her family toiled the same as her, rolling the many rocks on the farm into piles for cultivation. Pinkamena rolled one last rock into the pile she had been developing when she heard a bell ring from the farm house. She looked up sullenly, to see her sisters and parents going inside. Her father was holding the door open with a stern gaze in her direction. He walked in and silently directed Pinkamena to come in before closing the door.

Pinkamena headed toward the house for supper, but stopped a moment and looked at the sky, filled with clouds casting a dark shadow over the land. She paused, as if to wait for something, but the sky remained the same as ever. With a sigh, she went inside. The meal was plain, unexpressive, and uneventful, same as any other meal. She couldn’t help but feel sad at this, knowing she had a family and a life, but no way to express herself.

Pinkamena went to bed early with her sisters and parents, like she did every day, and got up early in the morning, as usual. She spent another few days pushing rocks and making piles, eating plain meals and sleeping, part of this eternal routine. Now, however, unlike any other time, she was questioning things. She felt like something was supposed to happen, like her life should have reached a new stage, as if she was so close to grasping her purpose, but was never going to reach it.

Eventually she became revolted with her boring life. She didn’t know what she wanted to do, but she was extremely uncomfortable with how everypony was never happy, how she was never happy. During a meal a few days into this expanse of sadness she felt, she excused herself early, looking to create her own change of pace.

“I’m gonna go outside,” said Pinkamena to her father. He sternly nodded.

“Don’t you go too far,” he instructed. “It’s almost bedtime and we gotta be up early in the mornin’.” Pinkamena nodded. She was used to this. And used to being outside, as the terrain was all too familiar. She had seen it all a thousand times. It was boring.

“Will it always be like this?” she pondered as she walked through the rock strewn fields to the edge of the farm. She nearly kicked a rock from her path before remembering that the rocks must be placed correctly and not disturbed. Everything must remain the same in this field, she thought.

“Maybe...” she started, “maybe if I went out further, I might find something new.” The premise made her heart flutter, excitement building up in her body. And before she could remember her father’s advice, she set out to the edge of their farm. The trees beckoned her, as she had never before been among them. And she was on her way, nearly free, when she stopped, having heard a sound in the distance. It was a crash, or a snap, of some sort. She heard it again. The sound persistently echoed its way in the direction of the farm, getting louder.

She looked to its source, and heard the sound of a tree being splintered. The forest was shaking; she began to feel the ground rumble beneath her. She looked toward her house, wondering if she should return, and saw her father open the door and rush out. He was far away, but he looked panicked, and frantic. He was looking all about the farm, and soon the rest of the family as well. The ground rumbled more, and the sound approached them steadily. Pinkamena nearly saw something in the trees far away. She looked at her father again.

“Is he looking for me?” she wondered. She was so far away; he might not be able to see her. So she pondered if she should go to him, meet up with her family. She took a step toward the household.

Then, a screech, a roar blared throughout the land, its sound hurting her ears as she clasped her hooves to block it out, and filling her heart with terror.

It destroyed any pretense of logical reaction she may have had.

Her instincts screamed that it was dangerous.

She lost her capacity for logic, or thought...

She lost any kind of will except for one.

To run.

She didn’t see what happened to her father or mother, or her sisters. She took off in the opposite direction, and ran as far as possible, until she couldn’t hear it anymore. She ended up in a cave in the forest, huddled in the corner. It was there she remained for the rest of the night. Though she had thought her life boring, she never knew true sadness, true misery. She had met it on this very night, however.

The morning eventually came, and the sleepless Pinkamena stepped out of the cave and into the sunlight. The forest was strange and alien to her, as she had never experienced it before, but everything seemed normal, as if nothing had occurred. That is, until she looked skyward. Her heart felt terror once more when she saw the plume of smoke in the distance, from the direction where she knew she had come.

She was drawn toward it, back toward her home. She had to go back, even though in her heart she knew the truth. She knew what was waiting for her. The smoke was her guide, a beacon and an omen all at the same time, and eventually she poked through the trees and onto the edge of the rock farm.

It was a field awash with flame. The house, the tower, and the windmill were all gone, piles of ash among flaming embers and burning rocks. She poked about ashes, maneuvering around flames, digging through what used to be her house, to find more and more of nothing. Tears reached the end of her eyes as she frantically searched. She called for her mother, and yelled for her father. She shouted her sister’s names, thinking they might have hid among the wreckage.

She searched and searched but nopony responded. She moved from the house to where the tower used to be, choking down thick sobs as she dug at the ash near the once sturdy doorway. She dug until something caught her hoof, and she quickly threw ash about in order to find out what it was. Her eyes widened as she pulled it out, her tears stopping as her heart was filled with another emotion altogether. Her body collapsed, and from her hooves fell a long, white bone.

Pinkamena stops her story a moment, old feelings rushing back and filling her heart with sadness. She shakes her wave of emotion off, however, and quickly regains her composure. Fortunately, her moment of weakness is lost on the Cutie Mark Crusaders, who are sitting down now, engrossed in the story. Even Scootaloo, formerly uninterested with Pinkamena’s story, is avid to hear the whole tale.

Sweetie Belle scratches her mane, staring expectantly at her friend’s surrogate sister, and asks, “So did you go back home after you ran away?” Pinkamena winces visibly for a moment, but shakes her head. She had glossed over the part of the story she didn’t think these children deserve to hear.

“Well,” she begins, “I wanted a new life anyway, right?” she said, clumsily dodging the big issue. She smiles then, and looks compassionately at the children. The trio of fillies is still confused.

“But don’t you miss your mom and dad?” asks Scootaloo. Pinkamena looks away, her mouth temporarily locked in a frown.

“Yes, I do...” she says, quickly swiping a tear from her eye before the Cutie Mark Crusaders could see it. “But I still write to them from time to time,” she says with a capricious smile. Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle nod, but Applebloom looks a little confused. “Anyway, after I left home I was a lot happier...” Pinkamena continues.

Pinkamena wandered through a gray forest, adjacent to what she once called home. It was all gone now, and she knew she had no place there anymore. The path in front of her, that of the forest, and that of her life, was obscured and difficult to see, but she had no choice but to move forward. The horrors she had left behind chased her thoughts, and she didn’t want to think about it anymore.

She hadn’t eaten in a day, and her belly rumbled to protest. She looked about the forest, but there was nothing but scattered pine needles. Even a patch of grass would have been welcomed with great pleasure, but there was none on the rock farm and none in the dark forest either. She softly moaned and continued to walk, ignoring her painful hunger and parched throat.

Night came just as it always did, and, unable to see even her hooves in front of her face, she could continue no longer. She was more tired than ever before, but too hungry and thirsty to go to sleep. The atmosphere of the forest didn’t help either. She knew there were some very dangerous creatures in the dark. Maybe some of them were like that monster...

She shook her head and closed her eyes, trying to dodge the memories. Throughout the night she couldn’t help but recall, however, with little to do but wallow in misery. She remembered her father, looking out for her. If she had been close to the farm, had she not had that streak of inspiration, he wouldn’t have needed to look. Her whole family could have escaped.

“It’s my fault,” she said to herself, with nopony else to blame. Her own voice was cracked, dry, and dull. It sounded unfamiliar, and alien, and she quickly shut her mouth. She did not speak again for the rest of the night, and got little rest for all the disconcerting noise around her.

The sun rose and filled the forest with meager light, though its rays were mostly obscured by a thick canopy. Pinkamena managed to barely stand up, knowing she needed to move, but not knowing to where. Direction lost its meaning quickly, and she had no real idea where she was heading. A savvy pony might have used the sun’s position to track direction, and fed off the bounty of nature, but the child had no knowledge of such things. The trees had no fruit, only pinecones and sap. Ponies were never meant to thrive in a forest.

The sun set once more, and she was forced to stop, again with no food or water. She was at her edge now, but she didn’t want to think about what would likely happen to her. She spent another night full of terror and panic.

She rose the next morning on the edge of death. With barely any energy she continued to move. Eventually, she found a source of water, as she happened upon a marsh, filled with pools of stagnant, muddy water, and surrounded with reeds of various sorts. With no choice, she slurped the water, its foul taste meaning little in her will for survival, and ate the reeds, having no idea whether they were safe.

After two or three days without water anypony would throw sense out the window. Partially satiated, she continued her search for some kind of civilization, when she eventually saw lights in the distance at dusk. Her heart filled with hope as she began to move, but her legs began to feel heavy, and her body hot. She was overcome with nausea, and her body trembled. She continued regardless, knowing she had no choice.

She broke out of the woods and into an orchard of apple trees. She wanted to go further, but every muscle in her body resisted her. Unable to even call out, she collapsed and passed out of consciousness.

Pinkamena woke up on clean sheets in a comfortable bed. Her whole body was aching, but she felt comfortable and safe. She yawned and rolled over, but, as she was still groggy from her long sleep, she went too far and fell off the bed, taking the sheets with her. She landed on the floor with a heavy and loud thump that echoed throughout the home she was in, not so much hurt as disheveled.

She picked herself up, leaning on the bed for support, and heard muffled voices and the scuffle of hooves on the floors nearby. It got nearer until the door was opened, and two ponies entered: a large, red stallion with a split apple on his flank, and a rather rickety looking old green pony with an apple pie cutie mark. Pinkamena remembered the apple orchard she landed in briefly, and wondered if this was some kind of farm.

“Well, it looks like the sleepy pony is awake,” said the old pony, a grin plastered on her wrinkled face. The young stallion nodded.

“Eeyup,” he said curtly. Pinkamena smiled nervously, unused to this new company. The old mare got close to her and wrapped a hoof around her shoulder.

“Why, Big Macintosh here,” she started, directing another hoof to the other pony in the room, “found you all alone in the orchard around dawn.”

“Eeyup,” he said, nodding once more, and looking away from her at the wall. Pinkamena nodded and averted her gaze with a frown. The old mare smiled at her again.

“You can call me Granny Smith,” she said. Pinkamena nodded. “Now then, little filly, what’s your name?” The question was friendly, but it made her uncomfortable nonetheless. She averted her gaze to the wall and nervously tapped the ground with her hoof, but the two continued looking at her expectantly.

Figuring she owed them at least an introduction, she said, “My name... is Pinkamena...”

“Now if that ain’t the prettiest name a little filly could have,” said Granny Smith with a pat on her head. Pinkamena nodded, but she felt a little faint and collapsed against the bed. Her tummy grumbled audibly.

“Why, I think you could use some food dear,” said Granny Smith. “You sound famished. Big Mac, why don’t you go fetch some apples for our guest.”

“Eeyup,” he said with a smile, leaving the room and heading downstairs. Pinkamena frowned and rubbed her empty belly, hunger paining her stomach. She looked up at Granny Smith who smiled cheerfully at her. Pinkamena smiled back.

Big Mac brought a plate of apple to her, which she scarfed down quickly. As she still had an unbearable hunger, she asked for more immediately afterwards. She ate many apples before she felt full, each juicy bite nearly bringing tears to her eyes. It was some of the best food she had ever eaten. She stopped before biting into another, her heart being filled with guilt. What right did she have to impose on these ponies?

Pinkamena had always been taught to be thankful by her parents. Granny Smith and Big Mac had been waiting there patiently the whole time, but they both noticed her change in mood. She looked up at them, barely stymieing the tears welling up in her eyes.

“I’m sorry,” she said, bowing her head to the others. “I... I took your food without saying thank you.” Granny Smith and Big Mac laughed heartily.

“Now don’t you worry about that dear,” started Granny Smith, “we’ve got more where those came from. And wouldn’t we just be heartless not to help a little filly in need.”

“Eeyup,” said Big Mac with a nod. Pinkamena sniffled, but rubbed tears out of her eyes, not wanting to levy her own burdens onto others.

“Now that yer all fed, I’d like to ask you a question,” began Granny Smith. Pinkamena nervously nodded. “Why were you out there all alone? Where’s yer family?” The sudden unexpected question pierced poor Pinkamena’s heart, bringing all kinds of guilt and melancholy back to the surface. She heard the cry of that monster, remembered the terror, the fear, and the bone. She squirmed around in the bed, and buried her head under the pillow.

Granny Smith and Big Mac were shocked at the reaction. The young stallion’s face scrunched up in worry and the older mare frowned with pity. Pinkamena hid from that look of concern, hiding from her feelings, and fears. Granny Smith took a step forward and put a gentle, comforting hoof on her shoulder.

“Well, why don’t you get some rest,” she consoled the filly. “I reckon you’re still rightly tired.” Pinkamena looked out at the two as they left the room, and Granny Smith smiled compassionately at her. It was still daylight out, and the room was brightly lit, but Pinkamena felt her exhaustion and nausea catch up with her, and soon fell into slumber.

Her sleep was far from sound. Plagued by nightmares, memories, and nightmares of memories, Pinkamena was tortured by her psyche and her body both throughout the day and night, frequently waking up sweating and hot, filled with nausea and unable to walk. Fortunately for her, however, there was always water to drink by her bed and sometimes food to eat.

They were taking care of her with as much love one would direct at their own child. This was a comfort to her, and she was able to look at the future with something other than despair, for the first time in a while. Her rest was not peaceful, but it was at least comfortable.

When the morning came, Pinkamena woke up feeling much better. She could stand, and walk, and maybe even run, though she dared not test that in the house. She no longer felt hungry or thirsty. The rest and food rejuvenated her body, and the kindness and hospitality healed her mind.

It was the middle of the day, and she suspected that everypony was out working. She looked around the room she was staying in for a moment, having not paid attention before. It was sparsely decorated, but clearly had belonged to a filly. She wondered for a moment whom she was displacing, and figured she’d ask later. Pinkamena wandered out of the room, and into the hallway. One door was slightly ajar, and she could barely hear some sound coming from within.

She peeked into the room, and the first thing she noticed was the tall crib in the middle of the room. She gasped as she noticed the foal lying within: a yellow filly with a red mane. She was sleeping soundly, her breathing rhythmic and calm. Pinkamena watched her for a while, absorbed in her peacefulness. She didn’t notice the hoofsteps behind her until a hoof landed on her shoulder and nearly scared her out of her skin.

“Now dear,” said Granny Smith, “let’s not disturb little Applebloom here, alright?” Pinkamena nodded in response as Granny Smith closed the door and ushered her out. The filly hung her head in shame.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have...” she began, looking up at Granny Smith. The old mare smiled.

“Don’t worry about it, everything’s fine, see?” she said. She began to move through the hallways and down the stairs, and Pinkamena followed her. She took a seat in a dining room area and directed the filly to do the same. She complied.

“I feel better now,” said Pinkamena, nervously looking to Granny Smith and away. “I mean, thank you for helping me.” Granny Smith smiled.

“Now, what we did for you is what anypony would do, dear,” she replied. “We wouldn’t have it any other way.” She watched Pinkamena, who was shifting nervously within her chair. Pinkamena took a deep breath.

“Can I... Do you think I could...” she stammered. Granny Smith watched her, keeping a bright and happy smile on her face all the while. “Could I stay here longer? I mean, if it’s okay...” blurted Pinkamena after a few moments of pressure. The old mare’s smile widened, exposing her clean dentures.

“Of course you can dear,” she said, patting the filly on the head, which made her smile happily.

“I can help out, if you need me to,” she said, giddy and barely suppressing an urge to jump around with joy. Granny Smith nodded.

“We have been a little shorthanded around here,” she said. Pinkamena frowned.

“Is this about that pony whose room I slept in?” she asked Granny Smith. The old mare gave a slight nod.

“Well, she is...” started Granny Smith with a contemplative, but also somewhat lonely, look. “She’s away on business,” she finished. “Anyway, it’s fine if you stay in that room, don’t you worry dear.” Pinkamena nodded and smiled. “Big Mac’s working the orchard all by himself. I reckon he could use some help.” Pinkamena smiled and nodded.

“Okay, I’ll help out Big Mac!” she said, rushing to the door.

“Now he should be out in the orchard, dear,” called the old mare after her. “You go and find him.” Pinkamena opened the door and nodded, rushing out to help out her caretakers.

Pinkamena gazed around the orchard in wonder. There were so many trees, all filled with delicious, juicy looking apples. It was colorful, and vibrant, and full of life: a whole different kind of farm than what she was used to. She was lost in the expansive and novel environment, but she knew she had to find Big Mac regardless.

She passed through row after row of apple trees, gazing at them, enchanted by their color. They were all she could see all around her, the forest she had come from being far too distant to recognize. She was marveled on just how new everything was, and how different it was from the forest. It was organized. Pinkamena figured this must mean the orchard would also be easy to navigate.

She thought wrong. Though the layout was neat and an experienced worker could identify the part of the orchard easily, Pinkamena easily found herself lost, the farmhouse far behind her. Big Mac was nowhere in sight. Her heart leaped with panic. Though the situation was by no means the same as her journey through the dark forest, it still brought back that same fear.

She began to increase her pace and run, figuring if she covered more ground she might find Big Mac. She ran through the orchard, panting, but pressing on, unable to think of what else to do. She had to find Big Mac, so she could help out. Eventually her legs folded in and her body collapsed from exhaustion.

With huffs and pants she rolled over to lay down, her breath fast and her heart racing. She looked up and around. Everything was the same, every tree looked like any other. She thought about how terrible she was that she couldn’t help them. It crossed her mind she might never find them, they might just leave her.

She was alone, and that thought filled her with pain. She nearly started to cry, when suddenly she felt a strong hoof on her shoulder. She fell silent and looked up, to see Big Mac, just standing there above her with a kind smile. He didn’t say anything, but she knew what he was trying to tell him.

“I’m sorry...” she said, getting up and hanging her head in shame. “I got lost... I wanted to help you.” Big Mac nodded his head.

“Don’t worry about it,” he said. The phrase was quiet and subtle, but she understood it easily. She nodded quickly, and trained her gaze on Big Mac expectantly. He nervously shuffled his hoofs on the ground. “Umm...” he started, seeming unsure. Pinkamena’s expression quickly turned to a frown. Small beads of sweat formed on his face as he watched the filly grow more and more impatient.

Big Mac shook it off and walked over to a nearby tree where he was previously working. He displayed a quick, sharp and effective kick with his back hooves that shook most of the apples off the tree and into baskets below. He turned back to look at Pinkamena, who was looking on in wonder. He nervously nodded to another nearby tree with baskets.

The filly looked back to the tree and to him, a bewildered look on her face. Big Mac smiled and nodded. Pinkamena knew what he was implying, but she kept wondering if she could really do something like that. Big Mac nudged her toward the apple tree, softly but surely. Pinkamena squeaked a little as she was right in front of the tree. It was tall, and thick, looming over her. It seemed very much like an immovable part of the land. She looked at the young stallion behind her. He was still giving her his nice, compassionate grin. Pinkie smiled back and turned to the tree once more.

With a loud shout she lifted her back hooves into the air and launched them at the tree with all the strength of her haunches and back. She shut her eyes as the moment of impact arrived, feeling an incredible amount of power in her body. She grit her teeth as she finally felt her hooves hit solid bark, with an incredible rush of air, and a sharp sound echoing into her ears.

Just as suddenly, however, she stopped completely as the tall firm tree denied her kick and remained sturdy. She yelped as she lost her balance and fell onto the ground, her hooves aching in pain as she rolled to Big Mac’s feet. She saw the tree before her, completely unchanged. The baskets were free of apples. Pinkamena thought for a moment she saw an expression of shock on the stallions face as he surveyed her handy work, but it vanished and was replaced with a sympathetic sort of content nod.

The red stallion helped her up gently, and she found she was able to stand quite well, her hooves not having been as damaged as she thought. Pinkamena looked at the tree, and her failure, her lips beginning to tremble at her incompetence. She looked at Big Mac apologetically.

“I’m sorry,” she said to him, her eyes wide and welling up with tears. Fear built up in her chest, as she thought about how she failed despite how confidently Big Mac had directed her in the task. Big Mac shook his head and looked right at her.

“Nope,” he began, facing her directly, and firmly, unlike what he had been doing before. “I’m sorry,” he continued, shocking her with his sincerity. Her mouth widened in shock, and Big Mac turned away from her again, returning to his nervous expression. She continued to stand there in front of him, not sure what he meant, or what she should do. “I... umm...” stammered Big Mac, attempting to explain himself. “I expected ya’ to be able to do more than any filly should.” The words he spoke to her were so genuine and caring; Pinkamena could have mistaken him for a sibling right then.

“But, but I... I failed! It’s my fault!” Pinkamena replied. Big Mac shook his head again, and looked at her firmly.

“Nope,” he said curtly, but with such strength and kindness she immediately felt just what he meant. Her downcast face quickly turned happy and she beamed at Big Mac. He was a little distant, and talked little, but she still felt like he was a pillar of strength she could lean on. His way of helping her was so easy to follow, with few words, only actions. He would buck trees, and she could see his muscles in action, the stances he took, and the power he displayed. There was a technique to this line of work, one that Big Mac had developed through experience and dedication.

However, try as she might, Pinkamena could not get it right. Bucking trees had a level of technique to it, but it also required power she didn’t have. Disheveled and embarrassed from yet another failure, Pinkamena looked up at Big Mac, but as always he was not mad.

“I can’t do it,” she said, stating what she had found to be the truth. She expected disappointment, but Big Mac was lenient instead, and helped her up once more. He took an empty basket, and he brought it to her. Pinkamena looked at it, as if asking what it was for, but Big Mac had settled next to another tree, brimming with apples. He looked at her, and at the basket, and his meaning clicked in her mind. She picked it up, and carried it on her back. It was rather bulky, but not heavy at all, so she brought it over to the tree.

With the same matter of fact demeanor he had displayed before, Big Mac delivered a heavy kick to the tree. Set into motion, Pinkamena set about capturing the falling apples, and was able to capture a few. The majority, however, fell out of her grasp and onto the ground below. She sighed as she saw all the apples strewn across the grass. They fell quickly, and unevenly, and were hard to track. She couldn’t be everywhere at once.

Big Mac set about gathering up the apples, putting them into the basket, and Pinkamena quickly moved to help him, rolling the apples by her nose and into little piles. Big Mac shook his head and put the apples into the basket. Looking at her pile being deconstructed, Pinkamena was taken aback at what she had done out of memory.

It was almost as if that method which she had known all her childhood was being taken out of her. She remained there, unmoving, as it dawned on her just how unfamiliar this whole situation was. She got lost not because the orchard was a too large or confusing, but because it was strange and alien to her. Her hooves were very nearly locked into place as she remembered how she used to work, piling rocks all day.

She snapped out of it when she realized that Big Mac was staring at her, and that there were tears in her eyes again. She threw the past away once more and returned to reality. Big Mac had collected all the apples, but he was watching her now with sadness and realization. It went on like that for a moment, with Pinkamena trying to maintain her stability and Big Mac trying to figure out what to do.

“Come with me,” the stallion finally said after a few moments of thought. He guided her through the trees and she followed him without a thought. He was walking so surely, and with such purpose that she forgot about everything, and just focused on the reality around her. Regardless of how hard this work was, or how foreign it was, she liked it here. She was enchanted by the color, and the air, and the taste of the food.

More importantly, she was drawn to the family. They had treated her so well, and cared for her more than she could have ever expected. Granny Smith was friendly and understanding, with wisdom that seemed uncanny coming from such a delightful old mare. Big Mac was shy, but compassionate and sturdy. She didn’t want to leave, but she felt like this life could slip away from her at any moment, like everything was fragile. She wanted stability, to have a life that she could rely on, never to be taken away from her again. What she had thought she desired before all of this was just a far away, rejected ambition.

Big Mac had led her to the farm house and went inside. She followed suit, to find Granny Smith and Applebloom sitting down in the dining room. The foal was in a high chair eating softened, mashed apples. She was happy and cheerful, pushing them about her plate but also consuming them with glee. She saw Pinkamena and flashed a wide smile at her.

While she was watching Applebloom, and smiling back at her, Pinkamena saw Big Mac whispering to Granny Smith and the two leaving the room without her. She almost went to see where they were going, but returned to the foal instead, enjoying her carefree innocence and wonder. She may have heard a few hushed words from another room, muffled by walls, but she disregarded them. It was only when Big Mac and Granny Smith returned that it occurred to her they were probably talking about her.

“Pinkamena, listen,” began Granny Smith, walking over to her. Pinkamena turned to her, and immediately her panic and fear settled in once more. All of the kind acts from Big Mac, and the mare in front of her were thrown out by her mind. She had done too badly, and they were going to kick her out for it. She knew it, and mentally kicked herself for being so worthless. She should have worked harder, and tears began to fill her eyes, dripping onto the floor before she could suppress them. Granny Smith quickly put a hoof on her. “No, dear, it’s alright,” she said.

“I’m sorry,” Pinkamena sobbed, rubbing tears from her eyes. “It’s just this is all so new to me. I’ll work harder, I swear!” She was down on the floor, kneeling before Granny Smith as if to beg forgiveness. Big Mac and Granny Smith both shook their heads.

“Now come on dear, we don’t mind if you got a little trouble in the fields,” said the old mare, rubbing Pinkamena’s mane. “You’re still just a little filly, and this work is a little too much for you,” she said. Pinkamena sniffled and clenched her stomach as it filled with anxiety. “Now then, dear, don’t be sad,” she continued. Pinkamena looked back up at her. “We have something you can do. Pinkamena, would you like to foalsit little Applebloom?” Pinkamena gasped in shock, and instinctively looked over at the little foal. She was lying there, staring blankly at Pinkamena who was crying. Pinkamena realized how she may have made Applebloom feel, and quickly put on a smile.

“Can I really? I would love to!” she said, looking at Applebloom. The foal laughed and waved her front legs about, knocking some apple onto Pinkamena’s face. She laughed as she wiped it off, licking some off as well. Applebloom giggled and the other two in the room chuckled, and Pinkamena was happy and excited. The child seemed so full of life, and it was as if she expressed something Pinkamena had lost.

The day was drawing to a close, and she had a happy meal with the whole family. They didn’t talk much, but it was comforting to be so close to ponies. The food was sweet and flavorful, and everypony was full of good cheer. The filly felt so connected to this family, and even though she knew it was all new, and that old life was still fresh in her mind, she could forget that, and settle with them.

She fell asleep that night content, knowing tomorrow she could babysit the little foal, and dreamed of the time they could spend together.

Pinkamena cautiously tip toed down the stairway after she woke, still groggy from her long and deep sleep. She off handedly surveyed the room below her. It was still morning and sun was shining brightly into the dining room from the windows. Granny Smith and Big Mac were both at the table, possibly having just eaten breakfast. The stallion was staring into space, seemingly lost in thought, and did not notice her coming down the staircase.

She hit a creaky board on the stairs, which blew her silence and alerted the room to her presence. Granny Smith turned her head toward her, and waved vivaciously at her. Big Mac looked up at her, shaking his mane once in seeming dizziness. He smiled slightly at her as she reached the bottom of the stairway.

“Well, good mornin’ sleepyhead,” greeted Granny Smith as she sat down at the table. Pinkamena nodded with a smile.

“Good morning, Granny Smith. Good Morning, Big Mac,” she said, looking at her hosts respectively.

“Eeyup,” said Big Mac in response. He looked at her for a moment, but then averted his gaze and continued his pensive trance. Pinkamena turned to Granny Smith.

“Well, dear, today I have to go out and run the apple stand out in town,” said the Old Mare to Pinkamena gently. “So we’ll need you around to watch little Applebloom.” Pinkamena beamed and nodded recurrently.

“I would love to!” she responded with great excitement. Granny Smith chuckled and patted her head. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Big Mac looking at her somewhat wistfully for a moment, but he quickly turned his head.

The stallion got up from his chair and looked briefly at Granny Smith with a nod, before leaving the house, calmly and assuredly. Pinkamena watched him with a befuddled expression about her face, her eyes squinted and nose scrunched up.

“Umm,” she started, turning to Granny Smith once she had left, “what’s going on with Big Mac?” Her question fell upon the old mare like a grey cloud, and darkened her face, as a bit of gloom passed over her features.

“Oh, don’t worry about him he’s alright,” she said, after contemplating a while. “He’s just a little fretful about some personal things, darling.” Pinkamena slowly nodded, but she still felt like he was a little off. She wondered for a moment if she had caused him some worry or pain, but she discarded the notion, not wanting it to be true.

Granny Smith brought her some breakfast after a while, and they casually talked to each other for some time. Around noon Granny Smith got out of her chair. Pinkamena looked up at her with an expectant look.

“I’ll be going out to run the store now, dear,” she said. Pinkamena nodded excitedly. “So I’ll be needin’ ye to watch little Applebloom. When she wakes up she’ll be needing food, but don’t be lookin’ here. You need something else.” Granny Smith pointed to a container that was full of mashed apples.

“Ok,” said Pinkamena with a smile. Granny Smith then went over various foal care topics, rattling off a series of methods. Pinkamena listened to her vaguely, trying to make sure she had everything she needed, and thinking of what she could do with Applebloom.

“You got everything then dear?” asked Granny Smith at the end of her tutorial.

“Yes,” replied Pinkamena quickly, grinning brightly. The old mare chuckled and patted the top of her mane gently.

“I’ll be back in the evening, dear,” said Granny Smith. She waved goodbye as she went out the door and took a path that led out to the town. Pinkamena watched her for a while until she could no longer see her. After that she turned around and began to walk slowly. Her body jolted, however, when she heard a sudden and loud cry from upstairs. She moved quickly up the stairs and burst the door to the foal’s room open.

Inside Applebloom was crying, sitting upright in crib. Pinkamena briefly wondered what she wanted, but she noted she couldn’t smell any funny business, and that probably meant she was hungry. Granny Smith had told her not to use the solid food until later, she thought. She frantically scratched her head, trying to recall what Applebloom needed when she woke up. She had an idea, suddenly, as she remembered what the old mare had told her.

Pinkamena ran downstairs, bypassed the food container and went into the cabinet. What she was looking for must have been elsewhere though. She nervously looked up at the stairs where the cries were coming from, and resolved to find it fast. She looked in the icebox and let out an affirmed gasp. There it was, the bottle of formula Granny Smith had directed her to feed Applebloom! She mentally kicked herself, knowing that she had probably been told exactly where it was, and this would have been a lot easier if she had just listened.

“Oh well,” she said, running up the stairs with the bottle held in her mouth. The frantic filly entered the foal’s room with a start and stopped by the side of the crib. “Here you go little Applebloom, have some breakfast,” she said as gently as she could. The small foal looked up at her, her cries momentarily ceasing. Pinkamena slipped the bottle into her mouth as surreptitiously as she could manage.

Applebloom made kind of a happy squeal as she began to drink. Pinkamena smiled widely as the happy baby warmed up her heart. Watching her there, such a delicate small pony, was full of wonder. Applebloom was pure and innocent, her heart unmarred by the fallings that plagued older ponies. The foal made her happy, plain and simple.

After she had seemed to have her fill, Pinkamena took the bottle away from her. The foal sat there, looking contently at Pinkamena. It was such a calm, peaceful moment; Pinkamena scarcely knew what to do. She tried to recall what Granny Smith had said about this. After she ate, what was she supposed to do?

Pinkamena recalled the answer quite quickly when she noticed how restless the little foal was. She seemed to be rolling about in the crib, bumping up against the sides and shaking the whole structure. Pinkamena laughed heartily and went to undo the door catch.

“Aww, you need some exercise don’t you,” she said with a bright smile. Granny Smith had told her once Applebloom got up she should be let out to play. She let Applebloom get out of the crib, and onto the floor below. The foal laughed as she began to walk around the room. Pinkamena watched her happily, sort of dazing out as she observed the baby. “Oh no, wait!” she said suddenly.

Applebloom had gone out the door to the room. Pinkamena didn’t know what she might do, or whether she was allowed to leave the room. Once again she chastised herself for not paying attention and ran out to follow the foal. Applebloom looked back at her, coming up with her face all screwy and nervous, and laughed loudly. Pinkamena got a little closer, and then the foal bolted. She went down the stairs with incredible dexterity for such a young pony, and then turned the corner.

Pinkamena followed not too far behind. She rounded the corner to see Applebloom sitting there, taunting her with mischievous eyes and an impish grin. Pinkamena stopped short, leaving some distance between her and the foal. They waited, eyes locked for a moment. The filly took a cautious step, but it was in error. Applebloom turned and ran the other way, and Pinkamena tried to take off quickly. She slipped in her haste and tumbled over.

She heard the baby’s laugh from the other side of the room where she had stopped. She groaned as she got up, but instantly began to sprint toward the baby. Applebloom turned around a corner, and kicked a table as she went by. It fell over, blocking Pinkamena’s path. She couldn’t stop quickly enough and tripped over it, sliding alongside a rug and rolling it in a bundle around her.

She struggled against the rug, knowing she had to capture her objective. The foal walked up closer to her, giggling all youthfully and full of mirth. She was so close, yet there was no way the filly could catch her rolled up in the rug like she was. She gave up and sighed. Applebloom stopped giggling after a little bit and looked at her inquisitively.

Pinkamena looked up and said, “Now aren’t I such a screw up...” The foal looked at her, a bit of a shrewd frown on her face. “All I had to do was watch you, but look what happened to me now,” she continued, shaking a little bit to no outcome. She strained her eyes and frowned. She had thought this would be easy, but somehow she messed up watching a baby. She didn’t listen carefully. She took her responsibility lightly. “I... I’m sorry Applebloom.” She was on the verge of tears.

The foal watched her, but didn’t move away, or laugh, or jump about. She took a step closer, and then kneeled down next to her and nuzzled into Pinkamena’s mane. The filly felt such warmth from her, not just of the body, but of the soul as well. She stopped crying, and smiled at Applebloom. The foal went around to the other side of the bundle of rug and pushed it. It unfurled and Pinkamena was let free.

The rug lay stiffly against the ground as Pinkamena slowly got up, her leg’s shaking a bit as she set herself straight. Pinkamena stepped up and hugged the foal, who laughed childishly for her. Applebloom looked at her for a long time then, before she started to look confused. Pinkamena waited nervously as she gave her a puzzled stare.

“Apple...jack?” the foal said after a while, her words unstressed and pronounced oddly. Pinkamena was taken aback, seeing the foal must have mistaken her for somepony else at first. It was only now she had a good look.

“Umm, no, sweetheart,” said Pinkamena, patting the foal’s head. “My name is Pinkamena Diane Pie,” she said, almost a little shocked at letting out her full name. She hadn’t done that for a while. The foal’s response was rather confused.

“Apple... Pie?” she inquisitively responded. Pinkamena smiled, laughing a little knowing the foal could never pronounce her full name.

“No, dear, that’s Pink...” she began when she was cut off by the foal.

“Apple Pie!” said Applebloom loudly in protest, with a smile on her face. Pinkamena laughed and shrugged. She was used to ponies with apple themed names, the filly figured.

“Ok, then Apple Pie it is,” she said, patting the foal’s red mane. She giggled and nuzzled her head against Pinkamena’s hoof. They played for a little longer, until the foal seemed to be tired.

Pinkamena brought her back to the room and sat with her, changing her diaper after the foal had to relieve herself. It was stinky, but Pinkamena seemed to be performing better, and did it easily. The foal lay down groggily, and Pinkamena took a seat in a nearby chair.

“Ok, sweetie, I guess it’s time for you to sleep,” Pinkamena said. “You’re such a cute foal, though.” She looked to the side, with a bit of a torn glance. The foal reminded her of innocent times, and ponies she had lost. Applebloom was just a foal, so she wouldn’t mind if Pinkamena unloaded a bit, surely.

“I’d never seen a foal before, you know,” she started. “Well, I guess not since I was one myself... My mom always used to say I was the cutest little foal, a real darling.” Applebloom focused on her, a hard look in her eyes. “My dad wouldn’t say it often, but he loved me to. I know he did. They all did...” Tears settled on her eyes. “They wouldn’t go without me, I think. That’s why I lost them.” She settled her gaze on Applebloom.

The foal’s lower lip was trembling. Pinkamena didn’t notice at first, but an utmost look of heartbreak was plastered about her face. Then, as Pinkamena moved in closer to comfort her, Applebloom began to cry louder than she had before, screaming in such a manner Pinkamena could tell it wasn’t need she was trying to communicate, but a great sadness.

“Mama... Dada!” said the foal in between screams. Pinkamena’s look turned to one of utmost surprise. She tried to think about what the foal might want, but came up with nothing. It was if she brought out some suppressed sadness from the foal.

“Oh no, oh no,” Pinkamena repeated, trying to calm the foal, but she resisted. The screams were deafening, and she had no way to stop it. “I’m sorry, Applebloom! I’m sorry!” Her words did not reach the foal. She looked around frantically, and tried to give the bottle to her. Applebloom merely kicked it aside, and it flew up and out the crib and hit the wall hard, bursting open.

Pinkamena was completely clueless as to how she was supposed to handle this situation. She didn’t even think Granny Smith had any instructions for this kind of thing. It was just completely unprecedented to her. She couldn’t do this on her own. She took a look at Applebloom again, but she was showing no signs of calming down. Pinkamena turned back and ran out of the room. The screams followed her out the door of the home.

“I need to find somepony...” she said to herself. Big Mac could surely be a big help to her. She took a look around, and ran out to find the stallion. She ran through rows of apple trees, and down hills and up again, but there was no sign of him anywhere. She covered a lot of distance, frantically looking about, but she didn’t find him. Eventually, she ran into a secluded clearing in the orchard that she hadn’t seen before.

It was a serene, calm place, and coming in she slowed and couldn’t help but breathe in deep. It was mostly featureless, covered with verdant grass, neatly trimmed. Pinkamena felt a little calmer being here, as if she found something secret. She looked to the center of the clearing.

A momentous wave of sadness washed over Pinkamena as she noticed what lay at the center. They were things she had never seen before, two monuments that stood over the grass. They weren’t that tall, but Pinkamena felt belittled by them. She didn’t know what they were, but they felt somber, and full of bad feelings.

Pinkamena walked forward to the two towering stones that lied in the center, placed neatly next together. There were words etched on them, but she could hardly see them at a distance. She stopped in front of them, and sat down to read the words. What she saw brought to her a great deal of fright, but also realization, and sympathy. She was scared, but she knew there were more important things.

The filly turned away from the graves, shedding a few tears on them, but began to walk away with a determined strut. Applebloom needed her.

The day faded into twilight as Pinkamena reached the house once more. She could tell no one was home yet the moment she arrived, but that didn’t matter. She made a mistake, and she was going to fix it.

As she walked up the stairs, and heard Applebloom’s perpetual cry, she thought about how happy the foal had made her, and in fact, how all of the Apple family had brightened up her sad heart. She wanted to make the foal smile. She wanted to bring joy into her life. She wanted to do this more than anything else in the world.

The door was still slightly ajar from her earlier rush out, and she went through swiftly. Applebloom was as she had left her, in a fit of sadness, sobbing and calling for her parents. Pinkamena walked up gently.

“I’m sorry Applebloom, but they aren’t here anymore,” she said softly, but didn’t deter the foal’s attention. “But I am, and I’m not going to leave.” She looked at Applebloom with sincerity. The foal looked back, moved, but not pacified. Pinkamena knew it wouldn’t be easy, but she had cheer up the foal.

Pinkamena did everything she thought of to make a foal happy. She made funny faces, to no avail. She made funny sounds, but it was not enough. Pinkamena even tried singing, and dancing, but the foal did not pay her attention. Her determination was inexorable, however. A few failures could not dampen her mood.

She went into the kitchen, and grabbed a bag of flour, with a sudden moment of inspiration. She brought it back up to the room, and beckoned Applebloom. After earning a few moments of the foal’s attention, she poured the whole bag onto her face. Applebloom stopped for a moment, looking at her with a wide eyed expression, tears still streaming down her face. Pinkamena smiled at her hopefully, but Applebloom’s peace did not last.

Despite being denied, over and over again, Pinkamena felt she could not be deterred. Hearing that foal laugh was all she wanted, and she would do anything for it. She wanted that smile, and she was going to get it. She looked at Applebloom, and remembered her laughs from earlier, and the fun times they had spent together. It wasn’t long, but she still thought she had made a special connection.

Her thoughts and memories brought her an additional idea, one that she sincerely hoped would calm the foal down completely. She walked up the crib, and undid the latch on it, leaving an opening for the foal to escape. Then Pinkamena took a step back, and got the foal’s attention. Applebloom looked at her, her face still sundered with pain and sadness.

Pinkamena smiled, and tripped herself, falling over, and rolling over the rug. She did it with such force that the rug bunched up and rolled around her, trapping her within. She took one last gander at Applebloom as she wildly struggled to free herself. The foal was looking at her, a blank, dull look on her face. Then, slowly, her lips twitching all the while, her mouth morphed into a smile, and she began to laugh.

It was like an orchestrated melody of perfection on Pinkamena’s ears, and she smiled widely and laughed with Applebloom. The foal got out of the crib and unrolled the rug again.

“Apple Pie!” she said, nuzzling in on Pinkamena’s neck. Pinkamena hugged the foal tightly, and laughed and smiled brightly.

“I’ll stay with you,” said Pinkamena. “I’ll stay with you forever...” Her eyelids felt a little heavy, and she noticed Applebloom’s activity catching up with her. The two lethargic ponies fell asleep in each other’s embrace.

A few days passed, each full of cheer and happiness as Pinkamena spent time with the family. They were welcoming, kind, and supportive toward her, and she in return took great care of Applebloom. Though they started as strangers, the foal was very friendly and accepted Pinkamena completely. The filly cherished every moment, and soon she had been living with them for about a week.

Pinkamena yawned, the seventh day of her new life having nearly ended. She was in the living room with Granny Smith and Big Mac, talking to them a little, but mostly just enjoying their company. The young stallion looked at Pinkamena and smiled softly, shaking his head.

“Looks like somepony is tired,” said Granny Smith with a grin and a sympathetic countenance.

“Eeyup,” echoed Big Mac. Pinkamena laughed softly and somewhat nervously, and yawned again. The young stallion and the old mare both laughed with her. Her eyelids were growing heavy, however, and she felt she really needed to go to bed.

“Well, why don’t you go to bed now, dear,” Granny Smith told her softly. Pinkamena nodded languidly and somnolently, her head weighed down by her torpor. Yet another yawn escaped from her inimical gullet. Soon, another yawn resounded throughout the room; Pinkamena looked to her right to see it was Big Mac. He looked around nervously, and sheepishly smiled at her when he saw her staring. Pinkamena laughed brightly, her mirth like a euphonious bell that rang right there in the room.

With her legs weighed down by her drowsiness, she trudged up the stairs. Against her expectation, she was not followed by Big Mac. She took a brief look back. He was lying on the couch, but still maintained his composure. Pinkamena figured that he likely had some more stamina than her.

She passed Applebloom’s room, which was open a crack, and took a peek to make sure she was at peace. The foal was sleeping in her crib, quietly and with rhythmic breath. Pinkamena gave a tired smile and continued to her own room. As she entered it again, she briefly wondered about how comfortable she felt here. She could sleep carefully, without a care, despite the room having been hers for barely a week.

That line of thought passed quickly, however, and she crawled into bed. This room was relaxing to her, and that is the only thing that mattered. She lied in bed complacently for a while, her mind drifting about to thoughts of her new family members. After some time in this drowse she heard a noise from outside, and a knock on the door. Her body was too heavy, and her mind too dormant to truly react, however.

She vaguely heard voices from downstairs. They were mostly unfamiliar, but she thought she could make out Granny Smith talking some. Whatever these words were was a mystery, however. Despite a tingle of curiosity, she was soon completely asleep.

When she woke in the morning, Pinkamena had mostly forgotten about the events that had taken place the last night. She stretched her legs and hooves out as she rolled out of bed. Landing softly on the hardwood floor, she took a moment to fix the covers and make the bed look nice.

Pinkamena went straight downstairs, and she noticed both Granny Smith and Big Mac sitting there. As she descended, they noticed her and immediately turned their gazes her way. She stopped at the bottom, looking back. Big Mac was looking at her with a rather sullen, sympathetic gaze, but quickly turned his head to the side nervously. She turned to Granny Smith.

“Good morning there, dear,” she said, her voice a little more mellow than usual. She was sitting in her chair, rocking it back and forth ever so slightly as she spoke. Pinkamena thought she caught some trembling in her steady movement.

“Good morning, Granny Smith,” she greeted with a small smile. She turned to the young stallion. “Good morning, Big Mac.” He looked at her, his face so quickly turning it was almost jarring.

“Uhh, good morning,” he said back to her with a nervous nod, nearly sweating. He looked at Granny Smith for a moment, and she made some kind of gesture Pinkamena couldn’t quite make out. He left without a word, seemingly rushing out of the door. The filly watched the space where he had recently evacuated for a moment, rather surprised by the sudden exit.

“Ok then, Pinkamena,” started Granny Smith, snapping her out of it and turning her attention away. “I have something for you to do today,” she said. Pinkamena nodded slowly, but then became somewhat confused.
“What about Applebloom?” she said, remembering her usual duty. Granny Smith shook her head.

“It’s okay, dear, I’ll be watching her today,” she explained. Pinkamena looked away for a short time, but then returned her attention to the old mare and nodded again, this time more confidently. Granny Smith began, “We need you to go into town to pick up a package.” Pinkamene nervously shuffled her hooves about.

“In town?” she said. She looked away and quietly said, “But... I’ve never been there.” Granny Smith patted her on the shoulder.

“The town isn’t a maze, dear, you’ll be fine,” she said reassuringly. She immediately continued, “Now, the place you need to go is called Sugarcube Corner.” Pinkamena was still a little apprehensive, but she nodded in affirmation all the same. She turned to the door but the old mare stopped her. “Wait dear. You should get some breakfast first.”

Pinkamena ate her meal slowly. Granny Smith was there with her, but she was somewhat off. Pinkamena couldn’t quite put her hoof on it, but it was like something was on her mind. They didn’t talk at all, and it seemed rather awkward to Pinkamena.

After she had finished her meal, she got up again. Granny Smith looked at her, but stayed where she was. The old mare gave a short reminder of what she was supposed to do, and Pinkamena nervously nodded. She left the house with a sluggish, unsure gait. She knew from watching Granny Smith leave which direction the town was in, and set off down the road, and away from the apple orchards. It didn’t take her long to see buildings beyond the trees.

The town seemed rather small, but she had never been in a town before. As she approached, she noticed something rather strange, but having little knowledge of what the town should look like, she couldn’t quite figure it out. Once she reached the end of the path and entered the town fully, however, exactly what was wrong hit her with gale-like force.

There were many colorful, sturdy buildings, but she noticed there were also a few that were charred, broken down, or destroyed. Scaffolding covered various houses, with various workers working on repairs. Other homes were not so lucky, and had been razed to the ground. Deconstructed and taken apart, as if by some... foul beast.

She stopped completely, her hooves planted firmly. She could do little more than stare in shock. Around her various ponies went about their business, passing her by, carrying bags, and going in and out of shops. There were quite a few, and she even saw some pegasi and unicorns. She had never seen them before, but the novel experience was off put by her bridled horror at the situation. For the first time in days, she remembered again, and she didn’t want that.

She very nearly turned around right there and ran back to the Apple farm, but she knew Granny Smith was counting on her. Even more than she feared these reminders of her home’s ruin, she feared disappointing her new guardian. She gulped and took a few steps forward, looking down at the ground and taking it slow. She yelped and fell to the ground when she ran into somepony.

She dizzily gathered her bearings and lifted herself up, holding her sore head and wincing from the pain. After about a moment, she shook off the pain and looked up. The pony she had crashed into was giving her a weird look. Pinkamena nervously smiled, but the white colored mare simply glared at her and huffed off.

Pinkamena tried to laugh off the event as she continued forward. This time she was careful to look where she was going, and to survey the area to find the building Granny Smith had described. It should be a colorful place decorated like a dessert, which was likely unique. Looking around filled her heart with negative feelings and panic, however, and she wanted to get out of the town soon.

Try as she might to focus, her attention was nearly dominated by the charred buildings, and searching for Sugarcube Corner was more difficult than she thought it would be. She bumped into a few other ponies, but they barely gave her a moment’s notice as they continued on their way. She was surrounded by others, but none had anything to do with her. It was odd, for the first time in her life she was near many ponies that cared little for her at all.

She resolved to get out of the situation and return to her new home as soon as possible. She didn’t like being ignored, and she didn’t like being away. The new people, faces and events here were strange, and she felt like changing, or trying to make friends would only be a dire mistake. Sticking with the life she had now was the best thing she could do.

As she was embroiled in thought, she saw a carriage pulled by two pegasi fly off into the sky. It caught her attention as she saw it go, and she looked at where it came from. It was a rather large, colorful building that looked like it was built from sweets and baked goods. She gasped as she realized she had found her destination, and galloped over to it, narrowly avoiding two bystanders in her hurry.

She entered the door with a bit of a rush, nervously walking a few steps in. She took a quick look around, the vibrant setting catching her a little off guard, and she felt a little awkward. Pinkamena was almost certain she was in the right place, but she could be wrong, and it would be really embarrassing if she had made an error.

“Hello there, sweetie,” said a mare inside the room. Pinkie looked up and saw a mare with a blue coat, and a swirly, pink colored mane, standing behind the counter. Pinkamena walked a little closer, her eyes darting about the room anxiously.

“Umm... hello,” she said softly, but politely. “Is this Sugarcube Corner?” she managed to blurt out, her face a mess of anxiety.

“Why, yes it is,” said the mare with a delightful grin. Pinkamena audibly sighed in relief. The mare looked at her for a moment, studying her. “Why, aren’t you just the cutest little filly? You remind me of a little sweetheart who was here not too long ago. Her mane was pink, like yours.” Pinkamena slowly and awkwardly nodded, small talk not being something she felt particularly adept at.

“Umm, I’m her to pick up a... umm, a package,” she stammered uneasily. She looked a bit down and to the right, away from the mare behind the counter.

“Aha, you must be Pinkamena!” the mare replied excitedly. “Oh dearie me, I should have known. Let me fetch that for you,” she said, taking a quick trip behind a door. Pinkamena barely had time to contemplate before the mare had returned with a white box held on her back. She it down on the counter and smiled.

“Thank you... umm,” Pinkamena began, attempting to be grateful. The mare happily nodded and came from behind the counter to help secure the package on Pinkamena’s back.

“You can call me Mrs. Cake, sweetie,” she said as she tied the package on, not too tightly, but quite balanced.

“Thank you, Mrs. Cake,” Pinkamena finished with a slight smile. She left the shop to enter the town again, and saw the traffic passing through. She knew she could not afford to bump into anypony, lest she risk ruining the package. “Ok,” she said under her breath. “They’re counting on you.”

She walked through the town carefully and with great focus. She was able to avoid crossing other’s paths, and she even managed to avoid looking at the rubble. With that off her mind, she was feeling more confident, livelier, and her task was a lot less foreboding.

Soon she exited the town from where had she come, and sighed in relief. The hard part was behind her, and now she only had to get back to the house. With a load taken off her mind, she began to ponder what was in the package. It was from a bakery, so she figured it was some kind of baked good.

She slowed a little as she wondered what exactly it was, and why she had been sent to get it. It made little sense to her. The odd errand was a pretty strange change of pace for her, but she realized that hadn’t been the only strange thing that happened today. Big Mac was acting extremely oddly and nervously, and left without a word.

Granny Smith was really awkward around her too. She would normally do this kind of errand herself. Pinkamena slowed even more and frowned. She thought hard about why the two might act like that around her. Everything had been fine the night before.

Suddenly Pinkamena remembered the strange voices from the door when she was going to sleep the previous night. She had censored the event because of its weirdness, but she was now sincerely worried about its meaning. Who had showed up at the house and talked to Granny Smith? Why were they there?

The filly sweat as she considered it could have been about her. Maybe they were strange ponies who were trying to take her away. They could have been anypony, and the ambiguity dug at her consciousness like a sharp rock. Those voices, the strange attitudes, and this odd errand, all connected in her mind to create a kind of paranoia.

She stopped when she recalled the state of the town. It was damaged, like her previous home. She didn’t know why, but maybe it had something to do with those strangers. She thought maybe somepony had figured she was connected to disaster, and came to apprehend her, and the errand could be a distraction. All kinds of thoughts flittered about her head, and her panic grew more and more, until she couldn’t take it anymore.

She burst into a gallop toward the house, little care in her mind for restraint or the box on her back. She didn’t notice it fall off and tumble into a nearby ditch. Pinkamena merely headed for her new home, that she was so very afraid of losing. She burst into the door and into a dark room, and shouted for Granny Smith. There was no response. She gasped and ran up into Applebloom’s room.

The foal was not there, her room seeming bare and empty without the sleeping foal. Pinkamena stopped and waited there for a moment, taken completely aback. Tears began to flow from her eyes and she sobbed fearfully. She felt abandoned, and every bit of stability she had made was slipping away quickly.

She turned and quickly searched the house, but it was dark and completely empty. She scoured the house to no avail, and she felt her heart being squeezed, tightened by her fear. The place was evacuated completely, and without her. She left, with nothing else to look for there.

“Why?” she said between sobs as she scoured the orchard. “I’ve been good this time,” she choked out. “I did everything I was supposed to.” She then noticed there was nothing on her back, and screamed with utter horror. “No, no, no, I’m sorry,” she said as she looked around the path for the box she must have dropped. She found it, crumpled and covered with bits of leaves and grass, small amounts of what looked like frosting leaking out. She tied it on her back.

She looked around, for anywhere they might have gone. She wanted some kind of sign, some signal everything would be alright. She looked around the orchard for a while, but couldn’t find anything. Unbridled sobs and tears escaped from her as she lost more and more hope. She realized how long she had been gone in town as the sun began to dip below the horizon.

The light was leaving the area, and her time was running out. She walked through the orchard, looking for Big Mac, who had always been so nice to her, even if a little shy. She wanted to see Granny Smith, who could always make her feel happy, no matter what. She wanted to see Applebloom, who she felt such a powerful connection with.

She stumbled into a corner of the farm she had not been in before. It held a large red barn, which Pinkamena could kind of notice seemed to be filled with light. She felt a sting of hope in her heart and walked toward it, this time careful not to knock loose the disheveled package.

Standing in front of it, she noticed there was definitely light in there, and stopped a moment. She wondered if everypony was really in there, or if that would be too good to be true. She put a capricious hoof on the door and looked away as she pushed.

Light and sound flooded over her as it opened, and small bits of colorful paper flew about the air, causing her to step back. She squinted to see the forms of many ponies within.

“Surprise!” shouted a multitude of voices at her from within.

The barn was full of ponies, of all sorts. They were all smiling widely at her as she awkwardly shuffled in, looking around, and scouring the whole place for three special ponies in particular. Then, she saw, next to a yellow coated filly with a green, pig tailed mane, and near a stallion in cow boy garb, were Granny Smith and Big Mac, with Applebloom sitting on top of her older brother.

She looked at them for a moment, and they smiled at her widely. Then, she burst into tears as she ran toward them and gave as big a hug as she could manage to Granny Smith, burying her face in the old mare’s chest. Everypony in the room watched her as she cried there, nopony speaking a word. Then, Big Mac came up close to her and joined the hug.

“You’re here!” Pinkamena cried. “I got the package! It’s a little crumpled, but I got it!” Pinkamena put it down, and opened it, to see the broken up remains of a cake, with text on top that was now smeared and illegible. Granny Smith smiled compassionately, as other ponies throughout the room exchanged confused glances. “I thought you were gone. I thought I had lost... my family... again.” The others held her tight.

“It’s all right, Pinkamena,” said Granny Smith tenderly. “We would never leave you. You mean too much.” Pinkamena sobbed a little, but looked at up her and began to smile. “We’re all so sorry we made you feel like that.” Everypony had a bit of a sad look in their eye. Big Mac held her tight and let Applebloom come down and nuzzle the filly.

“Apple Pie!” said the foal, getting in closer.

“We love you, Pinkamena,” said Big Mac with a nervous smile, but complete fortitude and sincerity in his voice. The filly nodded, with tears in her eyes.

“We heard about what had happened, dear,” began Granny Smith, looking at her with great wisdom and compassion. “How much you had lost. Some of the royal guard came here and asked about you last night.” Pinkamena nodded, slowly. Even hearing about this didn’t make her afraid if Granny Smith was saying it. The old mare’s sincerity and heart made her feel safe. She knew she was truly happy her, surrounded by her new family.

“Will they take me away?” Pinkamena said meekly, a little bit of apprehension still digging at her. But everypony shook their heads firmly.

“Nope,” said Big Mac, pulling out some papers from his saddlebags. Pinkamena read the text on them, and her eyes widened when she realized what they were.

“As of today, you are officially adopted into the Apple family,” said Granny Smith with a wide grin. Pinkamena’s mouth curved upward, steadily more and more, until her smile was so wide it strained her face muscles. Happiness filled every part of her body, more than she could have possibly ever imagined.

“We can be a family?” she said, nearly overcome with delirium. She could scarcely believe it to be true, but there was the proof right in front of her, held in Big Mac’s hoof. It was the kind of stability she could have only imagined. They both nodded at her. “Forever?” They smiled and laughed, and nodded again.

Finally, the joy overcame her, and she screamed loudly with such joy and jubilation that it was passed onto everypony in the room. It was a feeling she could never describe, like complete fulfillment. She hugged Granny Smith tight, and then Big Mac, and Applebloom, and even a goofy looking orange colt with a cowboy hat and wheat in his mouth.

She felt Big Mac prod her, and she looked at him. He smiled and pointed at her flank, and she turned to look at it. Three red apples had appeared, arranged in a triangle of sorts. She gasped and squealed with glee.

“My cutie mark!” she shouted. “I really am a member of the Apple family now!” She smiled with joy, and all the members of her new family throughout the barn stomped the ground with fervor and joy.

She smiled so widely. Nothing would have to change. She could live with her new family, and work for them, and raise her new little sister. Someday she might be able to do hard work, and collect apples, and fix pipes. It was stable, and it was simple. It was everything she needed. At a time she had wanted to expand her world, to look for things that were fun, but she knew she didn’t need that anymore.

She had a family again, one that she would not lose another time. She spent a while looking at her new cutie mark, it standing as a symbol of her new life, permanent, and indicative of her role and path in life.

“And that’s how I joined the Apple family and earned my cutie mark,” Pinkamena says to the three Crusaders who are all sitting down in front of the pink mare. “Some of the work is hard, but I love my family more than anything.” Sweetie Belle smiled and looked at Scootaloo, who was gaping in awe. After she noticed Sweetie Belle staring, though, she quickly reverted to a scowl and shrugged. Applebloom was smiling as well, but she also had a bit of a perplexed gaze about her.

The filly wondered about the story she had been told. She remembered Apple Pie being there with her as long as she could remember, but as far as she thought she had always been part of the family. She never knew Pinkamena had another family. She had never heard of those letters she supposedly sent.

She was about to raise an objection when Sweetie Belle interjected, “I bet my sister has an even better story!” Scootaloo smiled wryly and looked to the side.

“Yeah, that’s enough sappiness! Let’s find some action!” she said, getting up on her Scooter. Applebloom looked back at Pinkamena for a moment when she was interrupted again.

“Come on Applebloom,” said the other Crusaders in unison. Applebloom looked at them and nodded, walking toward the scooter.

“See you later, Apple Pie,” said the filly to her sister as she left. Pinkamena smiled and nodded at her, her face with compassion, but also a nearly undetectable sadness.

The Crusaders took off, continuing their search for the story of the most interesting pony in town. Pinkamena’s story weighed heavy on their hearts, but they knew they had more tales to hear.

Author's Note

I'm quite happy with how this turned out.
I may make a blog post about me and the writer explaining why Pinkie Pie is best pony.
Anyway, stay tuned for the next mega chapter!
Edit: Want to ask Pinkamena a question? Ask her on the Strange6 Ask Blog found here.
Note: Following the Ask Blog is not required to fully enjoy the Fanfiction. It is only for those interested in the story's universe.

Chapter 3: Rainbow Dash (I) Nopony's Territory

The Crusaders ride down the road, wind in their mane, and fire in their gut. They all have a determination to see their quest through. Scootaloo figures covering as much ground as possible will make their search easier. She raises the speed, causing Applebloom and Sweetie Belle to shake around a little bit with the sudden burst.

“We’ve got to find Rarity,” says Scootaloo, with a gritty smile on her face. She takes a quick look back at her friends, who are holding on tight, fearing they may at any moment fall to the ground. Scootaloo laughs impishly at them, but her friends now wear panicked expressions.

“Scootaloo, watch out!” says Applebloom, pointing her hoof at the road in front of them. Scootaloo looks forward quickly and sees ducklings crossing the road in her path, her scooter practically about to hit them. She screams and slams the breaks, turning the scooter slightly so that the vehicle stops just short of the crossing ducklings. She wipes her forehead nervously and sighs heavily.

“Whew, that was a close one,” she says. Her friends breathe out loudly, and relax their tense muscles. Scootaloo breathes deeply and leans on her handlebars. Suddenly she is jolted out of her position as a blue pegasus with a vibrant mane rushes out of the bushes nearby, and quickly gathers up the ducklings, placing them on the side of the road. She sits with a huff, glaring a little at Scootaloo.

“Be careful, you could have hurt them!” she scolds breathlessly, training a stern look on the smaller pegasus. Scootaloo waves her hooves around and rolls her eyes.

“They’re fine, see?” she says, pointing in the direction of the ducklings. “I know what I’m doing here.” The older pegasus shakes her head, but continues to coddle her ducklings.

“Rainbow Dash?” says Sweetie Belle to the mare. Rainbow Dash takes a little time to nod.

“That would be me,” she says, studying Sweetie Belle for a moment. “Oh, you’re Rarity’s sister, right,” she says, taking only a few seconds before returning her attention to the ducklings. She was watching them as if they might disappear at any moment, her nervousness showing in her slightly trembling body and tightened up wings.

Applebloom looks at her cutie mark, of three pink butterflies arranged next to each other in a triangle. She looks at the other two Crusaders evocatively, with a devilish grin. Sweetie Belle nods rapidly, but Scootaloo shakes her head, waving her front hooves in a cross format. This only makes Applebloom’s grin wider.

“Hey, Rainbow Dash,” calls out Applebloom. Scootaloo nervously bites her lip as the older pegasus turns her head toward the earth pony.

“Yeah?” she says curtly. Applebloom takes a short look at Scootaloo and then turns back to Rainbow Dash.

“Can you tell us how you got your cutie mark?” asks the filly with a wide innocent beam plastered on her face. Rainbow Dash is a little taken aback, and scrapes the soil for a moment with her hoof. Scootaloo is staring intensely at her, with a kind of desperate attitude.

“You see, we want our cutie marks, so we’re asking ponies all around town,” chimes in Sweetie Belle with a charming grin.

“We were looking for Rarity!” says Scootaloo with a venomous tongue. Whether it was lost on everypony else or they ignored it, she could not tell, for none had any reaction.

“Well,” Rainbow Dash starts, “I don’t see why not…” Applebloom and Sweetie Belle cheer, whilst Scootaloo moans loudly and hits her hoof against her forehead. “But,” continues the blue pegasus, “I have to do some things real quick first. Why don’t you three wait in my cottage for a bit?” The three look amongst each other, not very eager to wait. Scootaloo has a look of absolute rebellion about her. Applebloom looks down for a second, and Scootaloo opens her mouth to speak, when the yellow filly quickly raises her head, and gets in front of her friend.

“Sure, no problem,” she says before Scootaloo can utter a single word. The pegasus looks on in shock and near absolute disbelief as the group begins to move, Rainbow Dash keeping careful watch over the ducklings.

It isn’t long before they reached the cottage. It is a medium sized building, covered with foliage, and bordering a small stream. There are various birdhouses nearby, but Scootaloo notes the apparent lack of birds visiting them. She huffs as they cross the threshold and enter the cottage.

“You three wait right here, I’ll be right back,” says Rainbow Dash as she leads the ducklings into a cage within the cottage. She leaves just as quickly as she came, and suddenly the Crusaders are alone. Scootaloo looks around quickly, and gasps as she sees the multitude of cages surrounding the place, encapsulating all manners of creatures.

Some are big, and some are small. Others pound at their cages, attempting to escape. Scootaloo sees all the animals, and note some weren’t even from Ponyville. She wonders where Rainbow Dash got these animals from, and why they were all here.

Sweetie Belle shakes a little bit as she says, “This is a little weird.” Scootaloo scoffs and repeatedly taps her hoof on the floor.

“Tell me about it…” she says. Then she turns to the other two, a bit of an irritated expression about her face. “Rainbow Dash is such a loser!” she says, stomping the ground a little softly with a hoof. Her friends look at her nervously.

“Scootaloo, that’s mean…” says Sweetie Belle. Scootaloo rolls her eyes again.

“Yeah, I know, but come on,” starts the pegasus. “I mean, she’s so uptight about all of these animals! She has no idea what she’s doing. And that’s not what a pegasus is supposed to do; we are supposed to fly real fast! At least, that’s what I’ve always wanted to do…” She hits the floor softly with a hoof, and instinctively flaps her small wings.

“Well, everypony is different,” reasons Applebloom with a frown. Scootaloo sighs and shrugs her shoulders. She takes another look around the room, looking at all the animals, and shakes her head. Suddenly a foul stench wafts into her flared nostrils and she quickly brings up her hooves to cover her nose.

“Uhh, do you guys smell what I smell?” Scootaloo says while waving the air in front of her in a futile attempt to dispel the odor. Applebloom and Sweetie Belle exchange confused glances before it catches them too.

“How often do these animals get walked?” Applebloom asks, looking around and noticing various unsavory piles throughout the room and in the cages. She uncomfortably settles back into the couch and tries to cover her nose. Sweetie Belle takes a quick walk around the room and finds a nearly empty jar, with only a few bits inside.

“Looks like Rainbow Dash is nearly broke…” she says softly to the others, pointing at the hapless jar. Scootaloo snorts and shakes her head again.

“How does she expect to be able to take care of so many animals when she has so little money?” says Scootaloo. The other Crusaders shrug. “Arrrgh! That’s it Crusaders, we’re out of here!” She makes for the door, and though reluctant to be rude to Rainbow Dash, the others follow. When she gets to the door, however, it suddenly opens and Rainbow Dash rushes in.

She looks haggard and panicked, and carries a squirrel with her that looks just as bad. It struggles against her grip until Rainbow Dash inserts it into a cage with a few other squirrels. She breaths deeply and sinks into her couch.

“So you guys want to hear my story, huh,” says Rainbow Dash. The Crusaders look at each other nervously, and though Scootaloo objects with every part of her being, the other two are genuinely curious, and nod.

“If it’s no problem, Rainbow Dash,” says Sweetie Belle. Scootaloo huffs loudly behind her, but Rainbow Dash doesn’t notice, and nods lightly.

“Well, it began when I was in summer flight camp,” she begins, and Scootaloo sighs and sinks into a chair.

Rainbow Dash was flying, weaving through clouds and catching updrafts. The wind was heavy on her mane, and her wings beat rapidly to maintain her speed. She smiled, knowing she was easily one of the best fliers in her class. She was quick, and agile, and extremely cool, just like her idols, The Wonderbolts.

She was flying her usual practice course when she saw, out of the corner of her eye, a yellow coated Pegasus sliding off a cloud bank, and being launched into the air. She flew into an orange flag and took it with her as she plummeted onto a cloud below, wrapped up in the fabric, and disheveled. Rainbow Dash chuckled, knowing she could recognize her friend Fluttershy anywhere.

As she continued, however, she noticed that her clumsy friend had been set upon by two rambunctious colts, who seemed to be giving her a hard time for her fault. Rainbow Dash frowned, and narrowed her eyes into a determined glare. She saw a look of surprise on Fluttershy’s face as she zoomed past behind them, and with a deft and agile flourish, landed beside her, in between the bullies and her friend.

“Leave her alone!” she said to the two colts, lowering her body and tensing her muscles.

“Ooh, what are you gonna do, Rainbow Crash?” taunted the one on the right, a light brown fellow with three basketballs on his flank. Rainbow Dash narrowed her eyes in irritation at the all too frequent insult. To her right Fluttershy seemed upset and taken aback, but Rainbow Dash paid it no mind.

“Keep making fun of her and find out!” she returned, her glare intensifying. Her adversaries tensed up their bodies in response.

“You think you’re such a big shot? Why don’t you prove it?” said the colt to Rainbow Dash’s left, a dark brown pegasus with a white mane. Rainbow Dash’s scowl turned into a smug smile.

“Whaddya have in mind?” she challenged, confident that she had what it takes to beat these jerks. They look at each other for a moment, and then back.

“Umm, how about…” started the one on the right, his chin upturned in a confused manner. His friend shared his abashment for a moment, before looking right at her with a grin.

“A race!” said the dark brown colt. Fluttershy’s eyes widened and she nervously looked at Rainbow Dash, but the blue pegasus was already raring to go.

“Pfft, anytime, fool!” she said, her smile widening and becoming even smugger. The bullies glare at her, and tighten their stances.

“Fine! We’ll race on the practice track through the cloud loops!” said the lighter colt with a glare. His friend nodded.

“See you there, Rainbow Crash!” he said, with a brief patronizing wave. They laughed at his insult as they took off, heading for the practice course. Rainbow Dash tensed her legs and prepared to follow when she was tapped lightly by a hoof.

“Um, excuse me, Rainbow Dash…” said Fluttershy. Rainbow Dash turned around and looked at her, but Fluttershy anxiously averted her gaze. “Well, you see, I’m…”

“Don’t worry, Fluttershy,” interrupted the hot shot pegasus with a smile. “Nopony’s picking on my friends! Not while I’m around!” Fluttershy nervously smiled, and looked up at her.

“What about the race, though?” said Fluttershy. Rainbow Dash laughed heartily. “Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean…” she trailed off.

“Don’t worry about me, Fluttershy!” said Rainbow Dash confidently. She began walking down the cloud path, beckoning the other filly to follow. “Come on, just watch me; I’ll show them that they aren’t so great.” Fluttershy smiled and began to walk beside her.

“Well, I think you are the best flier in our class,” complimented Fluttershy softly. Rainbow Dash felt her cheeks heat up and laughed it off, taking a moment to run her hoof through her mane. Fluttershy looked away nervously.

“Well, I know I can fly better than those morons!” said Rainbow Dash after a moment, looking back at Fluttershy. Her friend smiled and nodded, with a content expression. The practice track was quite far away, but Rainbow Dash knew Fluttershy would have a hard time flying there. Plus, she had no qualms about making those stupid bullies wait.

They walked there at their own, peaceful pace. Though it wasn’t often Rainbow Dash took things slow, she still enjoyed this calm moment, taking time to look at the majestic cloudscape of the flight camp. Below them stretched a large plains, and nearby a thick and deep forest. The ground was mostly just a set piece, however. Rainbow Dash had never considered what it was like.

She quite enjoyed doing things Fluttershy’s way, even if just for a moment. They didn’t have much in common, but deep down she knew Fluttershy would always be a good friend. Fluttershy walked gracefully along the clouds, humming softly, but audibly. It wasn’t long before they arrived at the practice track. There, a crowd had gathered, and the two colts were stomping the clouds impatiently.

“Ha, if you’re that slow you’ll never beat us, Rainbow Crash!” said the dark brown moron with a grin. Rainbow Dash smiled and shook her mane softly.

“Why don’t we put that to the test?” she said as she got closer. They smiled, and a devilish twinkle seemed to appear in the lighter brown colt.

“Ha, if we’re racing for Fluttershy, then why doesn’t she wave the flag to start it?” he said. Rainbow Dash lowered her body to the ground and glared, opening her mouth to object, but Fluttershy stepped forward first.

“Ok, no problem,” she said softly, but with an iron will. Rainbow Dash looked at her with surprise, and then rejection.

“No way Fluttershy, you can’t do that,” she said to her friend, trying to be as quiet as possible. The flag waver would stand in front of the racers, perched on a single cloud platform. She couldn’t let anything happen to Fluttershy.

“It’s okay Rainbow Dash, it’s the least I could do,” she whispered back. Rainbow Dash looked at her pleadingly for a moment, but Fluttershy would not change her mind. After a while, she heard a loud and obnoxious yawn behind her, and shook her head.

“Ok,” said Rainbow Dash, walking forward, and retrieving the flag. She handed it off to Fluttershy and went with her to the edge. The platform sat there in the midst of an open void in the cloudbank, not too far away.

Rainbow Dash patted Fluttershy on the back, and took a step back, looking at her nervously, but readying herself for the worst. The two jerks behind her smiled gratuitously, but she ignored them, training her eyes on Fluttershy. The yellow coated filly took a capricious step forward, but then tensed her legs.

With one push, she was off, over an expanse of nothing but air. She flapped her wings wildly and pushed herself forward. She landed on the platform and sighed in relief. She looked back at Rainbow Dash with a smile, through the flag pole clenched in her teeth. Rainbow Dash looked proudly back at her and got into position.

“You’re going down!” said the light brown colt. Rainbow Dash tensed her body, ready for flight.

“In history, maybe!” she declared. “See you boys at the finish line!” Fluttershy waved the flag, and the three took off with all the speed their strong wings could afford them.

Rainbow Dash flew with all her might, stretching her wings to their limit. Their forceful start created a sizable draft, but she paid it no mind, focused entirely on staying ahead. She accomplished this with ease, and was quite a ways in front of her adversaries. She rounded a bend, flying through the cloud loops with perfect accuracy, and heard one of them crash through a cloud, unable to make the turn.

She smiled as she picked up speed, the rush of adrenaline filling her body with joy. The wind blew through her mane, whipping it up and down as she accelerated. She beamed widely as she rushed down a series of loops, passing through each one with accuracy and precision. Her mood was spoiled when she was hit in the side by the light brown colt, who had seemingly skirted the lines of the course.

“Later, Rainbow Crash!” he said with a smug wave, capitalizing on his interruption of her momentum. She was shocked first before her expression turned to anger.

“Hey!” she yelled, beating her wings faster, flying nearly straight downward to catch up to her opponent. Her heart burned with a new desire: to win, no matter what. She had nearly caught up, but then, just out of the corner of her eye, she saw something amidst the thin air. She turned her head, to see a yellow-coated, pink-maned pegasus, her legs waving about.

Her heart skipped a beat and she stopped dead, looking forward to see her opponent continuing to fly the course. For a moment she wanted to do nothing more than catch up to him, surpass him. She knew, however, that she couldn’t fly idly while her friend was in danger. With a turn she turned her flying prowess toward Fluttershy.

With a quick twist of her body she had turned all her momentum toward the pony in distress, directing her movement downward. She was flying as fast as she could, her muscles beginning to tire and wear, but she would not stop. She felt the air clenching around her as she dived through it, resistance forming as she flew ever faster and faster. She felt quicker than anypony ever was. For all her effort, though, she could not seem to close the distance.

She yelled as she continued to move, the air seemingly forming a barrier around her, her adrenaline and rush propelling her to incredible and unknown speed. Her face began to feel as if it might be peeled off. She could not see anything but her friend in peril, however, and she was still too far away.

Despite all her speed and power, she began to have doubts. It was her fault this happened. She put her friend in a dangerous situation, and disregarded her when she was in trouble. Her heart sank, and filled with despair, and suddenly she felt as if all the air she was pushing out of her way just a moment ago formed a wall.

Just a short distance away from Fluttershy, she was stopped completely, and her momentum was bounced back. She lost control of her flight path, and flailed wildly, unable to see what was around her, or where she was going. She screamed wildly as she fell, all the speed from her flight being maintained. She could feel the ground looming near her.

She had no idea what she was heading for, and her fears came to realization soon enough. She slammed into an immovable object with an incredible force, and screamed with pain as she crushed her wing against her body. She felt her head lighten as she began to fall down, hitting protruding branches and crashing through leaves.

When she landed on the ground, she caught only a few glimpses of the wooded area around her before she passed out.

Rainbow Dash awoke a few hours later, groggy, disheveled, and in a lot of pain. She moaned as she pulled herself onto her hooves, and attempted to stretch her wings. As she did, she suddenly felt a sharp, potent pain shoot throughout her right wing, and she quickly pulled it back against her body, clenching her body until the pain settled.

She eventually got up again, with a groan. It was still broad daylight, but everything seemed so dark to her. The sun should be out, but it seemed to be hidden under the canopy of wood and leaves that stretched out above her for miles. She could see little around her but more trees. Her hooves felt awkward against the rough, hard terrain, much different than the cloud cover she was used to.

All around her were various plants and underbrush, growing out wildly everywhere. There was little order; Rainbow Dash felt a touch of fear travel throughout her body. She didn’t know much about the ground, but she did know there was a place nopony travels to, where nature went wild on its own: the Everfree Forest.

She saw broken branches strewn around her, and looked up, to see that the tree she was next to was heavily damaged, and up near the top was a visible scar. Suddenly she remembered exactly the circumstances that had led her here, and she fell to the ground in shame.

Fluttershy had fallen from the sky, and it was her fault. She couldn’t even save her, no matter how hard she tried. It was the kind of feeling she could not shake, no matter how hard her efforts. She screamed, and shook her body, but it only triggered the pain in her wing, and the ache in her joints, and she collapsed.

She was in a forest alone, with a broken wing and no way to fly. The forest was the most feared wood in Equestria, and she didn’t think anypony would know she was there. Her whole body was in pain, and her best friend was probably dead. Rainbow Dash closed her eyes, unable to grasp any kind of hope.

There, under the tree she had ravaged with her own body, she lay for quite some time. She had thought she might just lie there forever, when she suddenly felt a soft touch on her face. She quickly opened her eyes, and saw a creature skitter backward until a few feet away from her.

It was a rodent, with a bushy tail and puffy cheeks. She looked at it for a while, and it just stood there, looking back. She thought about it for a moment, and realized she was looking at a squirrel. She didn’t know much about animals, but everypony could name a few, even Cloudsdale pegasi.

“Hey…” she said softly and raspily. It turned its head to the side a bit. She continued to stare, coughing once or twice, but it didn’t budge, neither running nor approaching. After quite a while, the creature, took a few tentative steps forward. Rainbow Dash did not move. Quickly, it covered the distance between them, and set down an acorn near her head. Just as fast as it had come, it scurried away, up a tree and into the leafy cover above her.

She stared at the little thing for a while, in shock and confusion. After a while, she realized how hungry she was, and without a second thought gobbled it up. She didn’t feel restored, or rejuvenated, or recomposed, but she did feel a little better. She got up, slowly, but surely, and once more looked around the area.

The forest was in reality neither barren nor dark. As she surveyed the forest she began to see life everywhere, and she was enchanted. Rainbow Dash had never realized how populated the world was before, but she had an idea now. She wondered what the big deal was with a forest that just had a bunch of animals in it.

She began to move, step by step, and soon found herself viewing nature head on. There were a few squirrels and chipmunks abound, that kept their distance but did not appear overly fearful. Up in the treetops were birds of many shapes and colors, singing pretty songs to each other, and filling the forest with sound.

Watching the animals go about their business, she found places to find food. There was no grass, or apples, but there were acorns, and on a few trees delicious figs grew. There was a stream nearby where she got water, and by the end of the day she was neither thirsty nor hungry. She wondered briefly for a moment whether anypony would find her, but she tried to put the thought off.

As night began to fall, she began to fear being caught out in the open in the dark. She didn’t know where she should go or what she should do, but after watching animals crawl into hollows in trees, or burrows underground, she saw a small overhang nearby, covered with vines and moss.

She frantically rushed in, but upon parting the mossy cover she noticed it was occupied. A ferret was staring at her standoffishly, and she stopped. That continued for a moment, and eventually Rainbow Dash took a shaky step backward. The ferret adjusted its head, but then, to her shock, relaxed its position and lay down.

She stopped, but the ferret continued to lay there and look at her, not with challenge, but with a certain amount of accommodation. She smiled at it, and it turned its head to the side. She took another step, and fell onto her good side, careful to avoid moving her broken wing.

Though her body still was weak, she felt like she might make it. Looking at the ferret, and remembering the squirrel that had fed her, she knew exactly who to thank. She had never known how incredible animals could be, but she was shown here.

Her exhaustion and ordeal caught up with her, and eventually she fell asleep in the ferrets den. Though she tried her hardest to not think about it while conscious, her shames and fears caught up with her in her dreams. Her night was abound with images of her failure.

Come early morning, the damp, bumpy ground and underlying panic awoke Rainbow Dash. In the den, she was curled up amongst leaves and rocks, the ground around her disturbed as if she were thrashing about in her sleep. She yawned raspily and turned to look at the other end of the den. The ferret was not there, and indeed it was as if it never were.

She raised her aching body up to her hooves, and took a peek through the brush covering the area. There was a dim light throughout the forest, telling her the day had just begun. Various birds sung in the trees, and she could already see a considerable amount of animal activity. It surprised her just as it had yesterday, not having known animals were so active.

She looked skyward through branches and leaves, and saw the sky was tinged with clouds of various sizes. There were no structures, just plain clouds, moving along the sky lazily and without direction. Rainbow Dash wondered about that for a moment, considering that everything she had ever known about clouds implicated the involvement of pegasi.

These clouds, they were so rough, so raw, so wild, she could hardly comprehend them. This whole forest had this odd kind of feeling to her, one that she had not noticed the previous day. The plant life was overgrown and unrestricted, and the animals were unrestrained, and uncared for. It was so unlike not only her home, a sky-bound city with incredible cloud architecture, but also the rest of Equestria.

This was the place she had been thrust into, perhaps by her own arrogance, or as some kind of ironic punishment. She had always been wild and free spirited, and now she was in the midst of the most unrestrained place in Equestria. She was unsettled, and unnerved, but mostly she was just scared. Thinking back on the conditions that brought her here, she had almost no hope of being found.

She spent a sizable time intertwined in this internal conflict, and she eventually began to feel pangs of hunger, and parches of thirst. At the very least she had resources at her disposal that she had learned from the animals. She thought about all of them, scurrying about to gather food and water, and realized they were in the same situation as she.

To her, the animals seemed happy, and free of worry, and despite her misgivings, she admired that. She followed them to food, and to water, and thought that this place indeed had its own kind of peace. She found it hard to miss Summer Flight Camp when all her thoughts of it only brought her shame.

She got fresh water from the stream, but food was scarce. She wandered around for a while until she noticed a rabbit sitting at the base of a tall tree. She cautiously approached, careful not to alert the creature, and it eventually turned its head at her quickly.

Rainbow Dash thought she must look pretty harmless, because the rabbit did not flee; it turned back to its activity. She eventually sat beside it, but at a distance, and took a closer look. It had, among its paws, a small, and half eaten apple, colored green, and rather roughly shaped. It was unlike anything she had ever seen, a sort of stark testament to the rawness of nature.

She thought, based on the rabbit’s enthusiasm, that it might also be a delicious testament to nature, and looked around the nearby ground. There was naught but twigs and leaves, however, and she frowned. Within a moment, however, it struck her that apples did not grow on the ground, and she looked up. Indeed, the above tree bore quite a few of these fruits, high in its branches. She instinctively moved her wings out, and cringed when a searing pain shot throughout her body.

She lay there for a moment, her hooves drawn inward, and her body arched, until the pain passed, and resolved once more to leave her wing alone. She frowned as she looked back at the tree, and the delicious food it contained, and thought of how she might retrieve it. She took a brief running start and attempted to jump up and latch onto the tree, but her body was far too small to get a good grip, and she could feel her strength and stamina draining.

To her left, the rabbit had withdrawn a small distance, and was watching her with a strange sort of look. She ignored its judging gaze, and tried once more to ascend the tree, and failed once more as a result. She was not deterred, and tried again. Her effort was fruitless.

Rainbow Dash paused a moment, finally having realized that she would not attain her goal like that. She looked at the apples, and thought about the farms they came from. It suddenly occurred to her that when ponies harvested apples, they bucked the trees. She looked at her figure, and wondered if she had what it takes. She was no earth pony, but she was athletic, and if she could get enough speed, she might be able to dish out some force.

She walked away from the tree for quite a distance, the rabbit watching her all the while, and turned toward the tree. She narrowed her eyes and stamped the ground, her focus on the apple tree in front of her. Then, she was off, pumping her refined leg muscles as much as she could, her steps echoing throughout the forest. When she was within point blank range of the tree, she thrust her body out from under her, bracing on her front hooves, and twisted her body with incredible agility, losing no momentum.

Rainbow Dash felt her hooves hit the tree with all the force of her run, a great sound cracking throughout the forest, and fell down, unprepared for the back blow of her hit. She dizzily held her head with her front hooves, but then she felt something hit her head. The suddenness of the blow knocked her down, but only for a moment.

Looking to see what it was, she noticed it was one of those small little apples. She took a bite with delight, and although it was somewhat bitter, its juices and substance filled her mouth with pleasure. Around, a few others had fallen, although not many. She didn’t mind, knowing she couldn’t eat many. She looked to her left for the rabbit that had been there, but she noticed it was absent.

She was a little unsettled about this, but returned to her meal shortly. It was not the kind of food she was used to, but it was the most fulfilling sustenance she had acquired in quite some time, and she quickly adjusted to the strange taste. Rainbow Dash was halfway through the second apple when she heard something behind her, and noticed a shadow looming over her.

Her whole body was almost instantly pumped full of adrenaline, and she bent her whole figure as close to the ground as it could go, moments before a heavy claw seared the air above her, and cleaved a sizable chunk of wood from the apple tree. She slid along the ground and jumped to her hooves, whose soreness from her kick had entirely vanished.

Rainbow Dash took only a moment to look back at her assailant, which was some kind of large, beastly creature with a lion’s face and a scorpion’s tail. It looked irritated, and she soon turned her attention back in front of her, knowing no option other than to flee. It chased after her, chafing the tree as it went by, causing the whole thing to topple over, and heading toward Rainbow Dash.

She yelped and increased her speed as much as she could, just barely managing to avoid being crushed by the trunk. She heard a crash and a smash behind her, and felt splinters of wood scatter about and pelt her body. She rounded a tree, dove under some branches, and jumped over a rotting log with incredible speed. She heard each of these obstacles being obliterated by raw power, and increased her speed.

As she ran, she noticed there were no animals on the nearby ground, but saw a few in the trees. There were a few scurrying animals diving into dens here and there, and the sight made Rainbow Dash wish she had somewhere of her own to retreat to. However, she did not, and the beast would not relent.

She jumped over a stream, and passed through a narrow gap between two thick trees. Behind her, she felt a loud crash, but not the splintering of wood, and figured she had made a little headway in her escape. She heard a low and forlorn moan as she darted through trees and slid down a small earthen bank.

She ran a little while longer, and eventually took a look behind her to see if the chase was still on. To her astonishment, there was no beast in sight, and she sighed in relief. Her hooves continued to move under her, however, and she soon felt her momentum halted by a tree. She fell to the ground, on her good side, and clenched her face in pain.

Everything was a blur for a little while, her adrenaline having been reduced once she was out of danger. She got up, eventually, and rubbed her aching head, taking a lazy look around. It was safe enough, it seemed, as the activity in this section of the woodland was normal. She got up, but noticed a sound nearby.

It was a sort of whine, or perhaps a kind of shriek. Though soft, it was loud to her, seemingly coming from within a few feet. She took a look around the whole area, scouring the brush near her feet, until she saw something odd. She bent in closer, and observed a sort of circular structure made from twigs, slightly disheveled from an apparent fall. Rainbow Dash identified it as a nest.

Inside the nest, she saw a single youthful bird, which was covered in a grey pigment, though the tips of its wings were tinged a grey blue. It has a wide, thick beak, and a round featureless head. Rainbow Dash paused and looked at the bird, which was lying down, clearly hurt, and shrieking for help and it sunk in that what happened was her own fault.

Shame and indignation rose in equal quantity as she watched the bird, and almost without a thought she picked up the nest and carried it with her as she set out to find it food and nurse it back to health.

She walked away with the nest with a heavy heart, upon which was laid the responsibility to take care of another living being. She looked at the bird, which seemed to be looking upward, and crying repeatedly and almost rhythmically. It seemed to almost meld into the landscape; its grey feathers made no contrast against the brown and green backdrop of the forest.

Rainbow Dash stopped after a moment, thinking of any kind of help she might offer the creature. She was no expert on these affairs, but she assumed a degree of food and water was necessary for the little bird. She sat down and set the nest down in front of her. Her charge made little reaction, continuing its former actions as if it was still in motion.

She thought for a moment, and studied the bird for a while. She had seen many birds of all colors in the forest. There were red birds with crests, grey birds with white bellies, brilliantly colored blue birds, and a variety of brown small birds that fed amongst the trees. She noticed some grey birds feeding on the ground, but they had red bellies, unlike the bird she was caring for.

She went through many of the other birds she had seen, but their visages were temporal amongst her mind scape, and she did not have a good grip on what exactly they might have fed on. She remembered golden birds with black streaks that caught her eye, but they could not have been the same as her small bird. She looked at the small grey bird, but she could not remember seeing other birds like it ever before.

Her mind befuddled by the prospect that her bird was seemingly unique, Rainbow Dash gave up on identifying its diet by its peers. She sighed and took a look around the forest nearby, which was as vibrant as ever, yet still carried a high element of immediate danger. She would not be fooled into complacence again, and she kept on high alert.

Looking at the small bird, crying in need, and in her mind, need for her, she resolved to maintain her guard. She did not go far from the small nest, and foraged in the nearby area. With no idea what the bird may have to eat, she decided to instead go through trial and error. To her gratification, the young bird seemed to have a broad diet. It ate the berries she offered, as well as the small bits of crushed acorn, after some reproaching.

It had finally stopped crying, and Rainbow Dash sighed in relief, and sat down next to the chick. It seemed to be sleeping now, curled up in the nest with pleasantness about its countenance. Rainbow Dash smiled softly and relaxed for a moment. She closed her eyes slowly.

They snapped back open when she heard a harsh shriek blare through her ears, and she looked around, getting up onto her hooves in a moment’s notice. There was nothing around, but she could still hear shrill calls around her. She heard a rustling above, and suddenly saw a pair of brilliantly colored blue birds descending upon her.

She looked at her charge, and put herself between it and these assailants. The two blue birds shrieked and tried to get around Rainbow Dash, but she would not let them. She did not know what these birds wanted, but she had a duty to take care of the small bird. The two birds circled around above, and then suddenly descended upon her. Rainbow Dash heard the chick screaming behind her, and then felt sharp beaks pelt her from above.

She yelled in pain, but did not back down. The two aggressive birds continued to peck at her, opening wounds. One took a shot at her broken wing, and she nearly seized from the pain. The pegasus buckled, but stayed her ground, and curled herself above the shrieking chick she was taking care of. The angry birds continued to peck at her, and the pain worsened.

She could not give in. Rainbow Dash felt obliged somehow to take care of the chick, as it was her own fault it was in danger. The birds pelted her at attempts to presumably do something to the small bird below her, but she did not move. As they pecked at her, she shielded only her eyes, leaving them free reign to pelt her whole body. She felt her wings be pecked at, and it hurt more than anything ever had, but she stayed her ground nevertheless.

After what seemed like an eternity, the birds drew back, and shrieked at her again. Rainbow Dash looked at them, but they no longer seemed to be angry and just looked at her blankly. The pegasus’ consciousness undulated as she watched them, but after a moment they just flew away, their cries lower and less shrill then they had been. Rainbow Dash crawled forward, and then fell on her side. The small bird was sitting there, looking at her.

Rainbow Dash moaned loudly as she got up, and took a look around her. Where it had last been bright still, she could see the sky was becoming dark. She picked up the bird and limped forward in a bid for shelter. Somewhere close by, near a stream, she found a steep cliff with a deep impression in it, and she looked inside. It was empty, and floored with discarded leaves and pine needles. She set down the nest.

She winced as she set about getting water to drink, and gathering vines and leaves to lie over the entrance. Eventually she had a good shelter, and she settled in the dark hole next to the chick. She lay down softly, careful not to disturb her wounds, and curled around the chick for the night. Her sleep did not come for a few hours, and when it did it was far from pleasant.

At the crack of dawn, Rainbow Dash awoke with considerable discomfort. Whereas yesterday she had been full of determination and adrenaline, today she had no restraint on the wounds that covered her body. She moaned and wondered how such small birds could cause so much damage. That kind of effort and ferocity was completely unprecedented.

As she lay there she spared a moment to wonder why the birds had attacked, and what they were after. She knew they wanted the chick, but not why. They were blue birds that ate nuts and berries, she knew from watching them. There was no reason, no connection. The previous day she did not need a reason; she merely needed to protect her charge. After thinking about it, though, she realized it didn’t make any sense.

That aggression and determination that the birds displayed was the territory of angered mothers, she thought offhandedly. Rainbow Dash suddenly froze and took a look at the chick beside her. It was mostly grey, but she knew she saw some blue on it.

She didn’t stir again for a few hours, and few thoughts crossed her mind. Light began to pour through the cracks of her makeshift den, and the fledgling continued to sleep. Rainbow Dash was hungry and thirsty, but she couldn’t get up. She didn’t feel like she could do anything.

Eventually the chick woke up, and began to cry shrilly. Rainbow Dash turned to look at it, and slowly pulled her aching body up. She picked up the nest where the fledgling was stuck, and carried it upon her back the same way she had been doing. She winced at every motion, but carried on nevertheless.

Outside the forest was bright with the light of morning and full of chirping birds, crying squirrels, and rustling leaves. The sounds fell deaf on Rainbow Dash’s ears, however, and she simply began to move in the direction she had thought she had come from. After a moment she stopped to feed the chick, but then kept moving right after.

Eventually she reached her destination. The ground between the trees was covered with broken twigs, rustled leaves, and just a small amount of blood. Her wounds needed no reminder to give her pain, but she still felt unsettled being here. She blocked the pain and set down the nest in the clearing. The baby bird cried the same way it always had.

Rainbow Dash moved away from the nest to a spot between the trees, and then sat and waited. The bird’s cries continued, echoing throughout the forest, and dampening Rainbow Dash’s heart. She waited for a few hours for the cries to be answered, but none came. There, in the clearing, in the aftermath of a futile struggle, it waited, but the only creature that heard or cared was Rainbow Dash.

After a while, she found she could not possibly let the fledgling wait any longer. She slowly walked back to the baby bird, and it turned its head up at her. Its eyes were small, bright, and enticing, and she sat down next to the bird and gave it crushed acorns to feed on. After a while the cries stopped.

Rainbow Dash smiled ever so slightly, but her expression betrayed her affront. As she took up the nest and headed back toward where she had made a den, she wondered about the chick, and the two birds that had fought her for it. She had hurt all of them. She took from the animals, but she never gave back.

To this chick, and to the animals around, she knew she had little to offer. She landed in this forest with nothing but a broken wing and a damaged soul. As she entered the den in the evening, she made a silent vow to herself, one that she would never break.

Rainbow Dash watched the bird until nighttime, when a building force of hunger and thirst began to overtake her. She walked out of the den to gather, swearing to be back shortly. The sky was dark, but there were no stars. The only light there was in the sky was a full moon. Despite her cravings, she spared a moment to look at the mysterious orb of light.

She was suddenly felt with a sense of foreboding, and the moon locked her in. She had heard legends about the moon before, and few were good. The light from the full moon seemed to dim for a moment, and, startled, Rainbow Dash focused on it. Across the moon there seemed to fly a large pegasus, but Rainbow Dash noticed there was something strange.

It had a horn as well, like unicorns were supposed to have. She was filled with dread and suddenly cowered as the shape flew by. Though in truth she had no idea what it was that passed over, it was that unknown factor that scared her. Stories about the moon echoed in her mind, and fear filled her.

She cowered there in the bushes with no thoughts but to stay hidden. It was as if apprehension paralyzed her body. There she sat, doing nothing at all in near terror. Her body shook, and she felt relief from her physical ails as her instincts began to act.

It was after a while in this still state that she began to feel something from afar. It was as if the ground was rippling, and ever so slightly she could feel her body trembling with the earth. She stood at alert, but she had nowhere to run, and nowhere to hide. She looked around, but could see little through the darkness and foliage.

She felt the tremors increase in severity and frequency and looked around more and more, but could still see nothing. The fear of the unknown paralyzed her, and Rainbow Dash found she would give anything for a sight of the danger facing her.

It wasn’t long before she could see. Suddenly the forest was alive with noise and light. She saw it coming from afar, a dim orange glow, and a crackling. In just a few seconds, the light reached her and suddenly she felt a heavy steam of heat rush over her head and through the area. Where just a moment before the forest had been cold, quiet and calm, it was now hot, loud, and full of activity.

She looked frantically around her, but she saw little but broken branches and flames. Smoke began to rise and fill the area, obscuring her vision and clouding her head. She coughed and waved the smoke away, running forward around the fire that spread around the forest.

Without a clear grip on where she was, she blindly moved forward, her eyes squinting through the grey and black clouds of smoke that filled the area. The area was the same she had been in the whole time, yet she could not recognize it. Try as she might, she did not know the way.

That an area could change so quickly was a surprise to her, but she swallowed it along with her fear. She leapt over a fallen branch, wincing as she felt her legs cry out in pain. Her belly barely cleared a smoldering twig, but she felt the heat nonetheless. She landed with a slight roll, having lost her balance, but she soon got back up.

She stopped and looked around frantically. This time, she noticed that the trees, though caught up in a blaze, were familiar, and that right beyond them a stream passed by, unaffected by the fire. A gasp came out of her mouth, though it was obscured by coughing. She walked forward to where she knew there was a hidden cavity, but a flaming branch broke above her and began to descend. She dived forward, but she felt her leg sear as it was hit by part of the flaming branch.

She screamed louder than she thought she even could as she rolled to the side. The part of the branch that had hit her was sharp, heavy, and covered with fire, and though she managed to get out from under it, she had not escaped it fully. She could not bear to look at her wound, and settled with merely grabbing her leg in hope the pain would cease.

It did not, and Rainbow Dash continued to shout, wishing anypony might hear her, to just stop this pain. She heard her screams echoing above the cracking of fire and the crash of fallen branches and trees. She looked up at the out stretching branches above her, and hoped that none would fall, for she knew she would not have the strength to avoid them.

Her screaming ceased as she ran out of energy, and she took one last look at the den she had made. Though faint, she could hear cries coming from within, and she stretched out her hoof as far as it would go. Through the sounds of the great fire, she could hear the sounds of the stream, and the faint rush of wind. Then, quietly, but unmistakably, she heard the beating of wings.

She turned over and looked skyward, and saw two uniform clad pegasi with lightning bolt decals on their flanks, coming from the sky, and deftly dodging flaming branches. Within just a second they landed on the forest floor beside her. One was a mare with a mane much like the fire that covered the forest, and the other was a stallion with a deep blue mane.

She felt lost hope being restored to her. Despite all her doubts, the Wonderbolts, the fastest pegasi in all of Equestria, were standing right in front of her. She nearly squealed, but all that came out of her mouth was a gasp of air. She looked at them, but she felt her eyelids droop.

“What’s a little filly doing all the way out here?” said the stallion, bending down to take a closer look. She opened her mouth to speak, but could only cough. The two looked at her in pity.

“Doesn’t matter,” said the mare with a shake of her head. “But we gotta get her to Cloudsdale fast.” She bent down to Rainbow Dash to pick her up, but she shook her head and pointed at the den. The mare looked a little confused and looked up at the stallion, but he merely shrugged. She went to scoop up the filly again but she struggled.

“Wait…” she choked out, crawling toward the den at the expense of her body. She yelped in pain, but kept moving. The two Wonderbolts exchanged worried looks and hurried toward her. “The… bird,” she continued, barely getting the words out of her mouth. Her limbs screamed out in pain, and she could hear her labored, exhausted breathing even over the ambient sounds of the forest fire.

“The birds will be fine, we’re in Everfree,” said the stallion. The mare nodded and went ahead of Rainbow Dash, trying to wrap her hooves around the filly’s damaged body without causing harm. Panic rose in Rainbow Dash as she realized she would be taken away from the bird, and she slipped out. Though her hind leg was in no shape to move, she dashed toward the den, every movement deepening her wounds.

She thrust her head in and saw the bird, looking at her, with panic in its eyes, its small beak opening only to cry out for help. It was faint, and hardly noticeable. Rainbow Dash tried to get closer, but then felt thick hooves wrap around her body and pull her away. Within just a second she felt a rush of air and heat as she was whisked into the sky. She looked up to see the stallion looking at her with pity.

“This is for your own good,” said the mare, who was flying to the side. Rainbow Dash futilely struggled, but gave up and looked down at the burning forest she left behind. Her frustration gave way to lament, which in turn led to exhaustion, and she felt her body succumb to the allure of unconsciousness.

To be continued...

Author's Note

Part one of the two-part Rainbow Dash story. The five remaining ponies have longer stories than Pinkamena and will be split into parts for convenience. This also means that updates will come sooner.

Also follow the canon-but-not-necessary-to-comprehend-the-fanfiction Ask Blog for From One to Another found here. Only Pinkamena is taking questions at this time and Rainbow Dash will join her eventually.

And feedback in the comment section is always appreciated!

Rainbow Dash (II) Inherent Tenacity

Rainbow Dash woke up in a clean, brightly lit room. She was lying on her good side, and noticed her broken wing was wrapped up and held stiff by a cast. Her body was covered with bandages, with a particularly large and thick one on her left hind leg. A small needle was stuck into her right front leg, connected to a tube that extended from a bag that hung above her.

Rainbow Dash felt lightheaded and numb, like her body was not even connected to her. With all the covering on her body, she could barely move. She also knew that without them she would hardly have better luck. Though she was too tired at first to realize it, she did recognize this place. It was the hospital in Cloudsdale, which had the best treating facilities for pegasi in all of Equestria.

She knew she would be okay, now that she was here. She found herself unhappy nevertheless, and her thoughts stretched back to the forest. The animals must have suffered so much. Not to mention the fact there was a poor chick, stuck by itself in that nightmare. She had left it behind, despite her promise, and she felt her limbs trembling, and her throat burning.

Her face twisted and contorted as her emotions churned about. She was unable to move, unable to express her anger. She would have yelled, but she could barely whisper. Eventually, she was left with nothing but a profound sadness and the sensation of tears brimming in her eyes. She could do little other than lay there and wallow in sadness.

After a while she ended up just laying there, looking at the wall. Her eyes were dull, and her body still. She didn’t react when the door opened. A brown mare pegasus wearing a nurse’s outfit came in and walked to the side of the bed. She replaced the bag that was hanging above Rainbow Dash quickly and efficiently. The filly just looked at her all the while.

The nurse was about to turn and leave when she saw Rainbow Dash looking at her, and though she tried to hide it, she was visibly shocked. She smiled widely, though her eyes were a little narrow and nervous.

“Oh, you’re awake now, sweetheart?” the mare, looking at her. Rainbow Dash slowly nodded, not trusting herself to speak just yet. The nurse looked at the door quick and said, “Your parents have been worried sick!” Rainbow Dash’s mouth opened in surprise, but it faded. She knew they would be here, but she had almost forgotten about them. She missed them so much after all.

The nurse left the room shortly, leaving Rainbow Dash alone in the bright, anti-septic room. She had been away from home for a while, at Summer Flight Camp and then in the Everfree forest, but she never really thought about it. Now she didn’t really know what to think. She didn’t want to face her father after how poorly she had done.

She had always wanted to be a good flier like him, and looked up to the Wonderbolts as role models. Thinking about it now, though, she was scared: afraid that she may have reached her limits. Thinking of the pegasi who had inspired her brought a sense of disillusionment upon her, and she soon remembered why.

The Wonderbolts had ignored her pleas, and simply left behind all the animals without a care. Disillusionment crossed her mind as she thought about the event. It was a shattered dream and a broken promise. She looked at her broken wing and scowled.

She heard some footsteps and immediately looked at the door. It appeared to be opening slowly at first, but it sped up and in an instant the whole thing was thrust open. A blue coated pegasus with a mane much like her own came in. Rainbow Dash gasped as she recognized her father, but then looked down at her sheets nervously.

“Dash, are you okay?” he said, rushing to her side and sitting down. She looked at him after a moment. He was staring at her worriedly, his eyes not leaving her own for a while. She nodded slowly in response.

“Hi… Dad,” she said slowly, with a cough. He frowned and shook his head, putting a hoof on her forehead.

“You probably shouldn’t talk,” he said. “Doctors said your throat is in pretty bad condition.” He smiled at her, but she caught him for looking at her broken wing for just an instant. He took a seat on the chair next to the bed. “I’m so sorry about all of this,” he said, a shadow passing over his face. “Nopony should ever go through what you did.”

Rainbow Dash apprehensively looked down at her sheets and nodded her head slowly again. Her father looked at her worriedly for a while, without moving or hardly twitching. He was a determined kind of pony who didn’t let distractions get in his way. He pursued his goals with a kind of fervor, and right now he was fixated on looking after his daughter.

It was the kind of attitude that she tackled life with as well. As she sat in her bed, unable to move because of her wounds, she felt like she was still connected to the forest where she had attained them. It was an attitude she could not shake, no matter how she might try.

Her father suddenly said, “They said your wounds are bad, but they will heal in time.” She looked up at him. He had a bit of a stern look on him, and continued, “You need to rest a lot though. I know you probably want to get back to your friends at camp, but it will be a while.” At the word she suddenly remembered her own friend, and she trembled and convulsed as far as her bonds would let her.

“Fluttershy…” she coughed out, looking at her father pleadingly. He was a little taken aback at first, but he then began to smile.

“Oh yeah, she was your friend, right? She was found in some place called Ponyville,” he said, and Rainbow Dash felt relief pour into her body. There was nothing she wanted to hear more than that Fluttershy was alright, though she was curious how she had been saved. Regardless of her curiosity, however, she felt happier than she had for a long time.

Her dad looked at her inquisitively, as she began to smile. She looked at him in the eye for a moment, and she could see confusion. She supposed nopony knew what had happened that day, and she thought she knew why. Nopony was looking at them, nopony noticed Fluttershy fall. Suddenly her eyes began to burn and she lowly and inaudibly growled.

“Did she have something to do with what happened to you, Dash?” asked her dad with concern. She looked up at him, and nodded slowly, trying to mask her chagrin towards the other ponies at the camp. Her father seemed to be thinking for a moment, looking up and into empty space with his forehead furrowed. He looked down at her after a while and asked, “She fell, didn’t she? And you tried to save her?”

Rainbow Dash was rather surprised by the accuracy of his guess, and she nodded slowly. He smiled sympathetically at her and patted her mane, but it did little to dispel her mood. She saw him look quickly up at a clock in the room, and then back at her without a word.

“You are very brave, but that would be hard on any little filly,” he said softly. “Don’t let it get to you,” he said knowingly, and she nodded, but she knew that she would never just let go. Though she was happy that Fluttershy was okay, she still knew she had failed to save her own friend, and that was a burden she had to carry with her. “Stay strong, but in bed, ok? I have to go back to work now,” he said with another look at the clock.

She sighed but nodded. He noted he would be back to see her and that if she needed anything to just call a nurse, and then he was gone. Just as quickly as he had arrived, he disappeared. Though it was nice to see him, she was embroiled in passive fury that everypony could have been so negligent.

After a while she was brought food, and she had not realized until then how hungry she was. The food was processed, mashed, and compact and she didn’t have a very hard time swallowing it. Though it was rather bland, and somewhat bitter, she got it all down within a moment’s notice. She knew real food was likely beyond her capabilities.

Soon after that she fell asleep once more, her activities the past few days continuing to take their toll. As she slept, she dreamed of her peers, laughing and waving as they watched her fall beneath the clouds and to the earth, her wings nowhere to be found.

It wasn’t until around noon the next day that she slowly woke, her consciousness coming in gradually. She was tired, but her muscles ached less, and her external wounds were closing up. Her throat felt clearer, and breathing no longer caused a burning sensation in her larynx. She had healed faster than she would have expected.

As soon as she took a look around, she noticed a rather conspicuous display on the table beside her. There was a vase, in which were placed a considerable amount of flowers. Rainbow Dash’s eyes widened at the colors, seeing red, orange, yellow, green, blue and violet flowers all arranged together precisely. Placed against the vase was a decorative, yet simple, card.

It was a get well card from her mother. Rainbow Dash figured she had visited while she was asleep, at some time in the night. She hadn’t been there long, but there was a startling lack of activity around her. Nurses only came in rarely, and she hadn’t seen a doctor. Though she heard little of the hospital’s staff, she could hear the voices and steps of many others throughout the hospital around her.

With some effort, she propped herself up and took a look around the room. Other than the flowers, it was completely barren: a white and immaculate wasteland. She sighed as she viewed her body, which was in no condition to go anywhere. Even as she sat there and waited, there was only one thing on her mind.

The door opened and she figured a nurse was coming in to change towels or something, but she was surprised when she saw her dad. He came in with a smile and confident gait. He seemed to have something sticking out of his saddlebag, but it was obscured from her view by his wings and she could hardly see it.

“Dad!” she said, her voice not quite clear, but certainly audible, and not painful to her. His face lit up as he heard her voice, and he gave her a careful hug. He took a seat, and she tried to angle her head to see what he was hiding, to no avail.

He sat there and smiled as she kept on moving her head, until she gave up and lay down in wait. His look was extremely smug, and Rainbow Dash was just so curious and distracted she began to become frustrated. She pouted and crossed her front hooves in protest.

With a laugh her father said, “I got you something, Dash.” She whipped her head around and stared intensely at him as he brought the object out from his bag. She recognized it instantly as something she had asked her parents for: a Wonderbolt action figure. “It’s Spitfire, your favorite,” he said, as she gawked at it. “She’s one of the ones that rescued you!”

“Oh, it’s great,” she said after a moment. “Thank you, dad.” He seemed a little shocked at her lack of enthusiasm, but he seemed happy nonetheless. She put the toy down on the dresser beside her with a smile, and looked back at him. Though he seemed calm, she noticed he kept looking at the clock and frowned.

“What’s wrong?” he asked compassionately, noticing her change in attitude. She looked to the side and shrugged, but he pressed the issue.

“Do you have to leave again?” she asked. Her dad looked down at the ground, and then back at her.

“I’m sorry, Dash,” he said after a moment. “Everypony is busy right now, and your mother and I can hardly catch a break. But we’ll come and visit you as much as we can.” Rainbow Dash nodded, but she was still frowning, and her eyes were downcast. She couldn’t help but wonder why exactly everything was so busy though.

She had nearly forgotten until she had seen the toy, but she could feel her mind being drawn away once more. She looked at her dad, and she nervously tapped her front hooves on the table next to her. Her dad looked at her inquisitively all the while.

“I… um…” she started, but she couldn’t quite finish the thought. His gaze seemed to pore into her, leaving no room for hesitation. “I spent a lot of time in the forest,” she began again, this time with some fervor, “and the animals helped me a lot. But I think they are in trouble now, and I want to help.”

Her father gasped and shook his head, asking, “What are you saying, Dash? The Everfree Forest is too dangerous!” He seemed strange, and Rainbow Dash was worried he might become angry.

“But I came out fine, Dad,” she said. “I can’t say the same for the…” she began, but she was cut off by her dad.

“You nearly died, Rainbow Dash!” he said, with a sharp edge to his voice. “Frankly, it’s a miracle you lasted as long as you did!” He seemed to be trying to maintain his calmness, but his anger was apparent. Rainbow Dash drew herself back and looked away. He sighed and looked at her. “Listen, the animals there can take care of themselves; they are different. I know you had a hard time, but you need to get rest, so you can go back to flight camp.”

She looked at him for a moment, and then back down, and she slowly nodded. Her father sighed again and looked to the side. He was sitting, but he looked to be extremely uncomfortable. He began to look at her again, and his eyes were steel, and inescapable.

“Just focus on getting rest, Rainbow Dash,” he said. “Forget about that forest. It’s nopony’s territory.” She nodded again, but only weakly. He stayed a while, but didn’t say anything at all. He left with a good bye, and a smile, and she smiled back. To her, the whole thing was empty and meaningless. After he was gone, she looked to the toy next to her.

She picked it up and glared at it. She wouldn’t forget what they had done. Were it not for the Wonderbolts, she could have saved the bird and the other animals as well. She threw it under the table next to her with all the strength she could, and looked away. She would not give up on them, no matter what anypony said.

The rest of the day went by slowly and uneventfully. Rainbow Dash wondered if she would ever see her mother, but through the night she never did. She had nothing to do, and still could not move. All she had were thoughts and intentions, and she made the most out of them.

She slept that night without any dreams. Come morning, she noticed that her mother had left another card for her, and she pondered for a moment just when her mom was visiting. It must have been late into the night, for she knew that she had been awake for quite some time. She also noticed that the needle that had been in her arm was gone, supposedly having been taken out while she was asleep.

She rested and waited. Her dad returned that afternoon for a few minutes, and he talked to her about her flight camp and how he knew she would be great someday, and all the while she smiled and nodded. He seemed to be wondering where the toy had gone, but he never asked about it.

She had never thought she would be unhappy to see her own father, but she found his exit to be a relief. Despite everything he had taught her, she could not get past how fiercely he had dismissed her. Her father had always taught her to follow her dreams, but she couldn’t help but feel he only wanted her to follow his.

The next day her father came back in and sat down, and he looked tired and ragged almost, as if he had been up the whole day and night. He smiled and waved at his daughter and sat down, but he didn’t do much more than sit there, and breathe heavily. Rainbow Dash looked down at her covers, and then at him.

“Hey dad…” she said quietly, looking him in the eye. He looked back at her, and he seemed to wake a little, returning her gaze.

“What’s up, Dash?” he asked with a wide, strained smile. She looked at him for a few moments, and away and then back again.

“You said I should always follow my dreams, right?” she asked, and he waited a few moments, not necessarily surprised or stunned, but rather, just thinking.

“You always should, Dash,” he said after some time of that. “Never give up on what is important to you. I remember when you were still a foal, and you told me you wanted to be the best flyer in Equestria.” When he said it, she saw a touch of pride on his face, and a sort of powerful nostalgia.

“I don’t think I am any good at flying anymore, Dad,” she said. He was taken aback, but before he could respond she continued. “I can’t, and I don’t even want to. But I have a new one now, Dad! I want to be with the animals!” She looked him right in the eye, with the look of uttermost determination on her face, but before she knew he had matched it.

“Listen Rainbow Dash, I watched you every day as you grew up, and I know what you are good at,” he began. “And even as a filly, you are one of the best flyers I have ever seen. You can’t give up because of one failure!” She shrunk back, but he did not stop. “You have to get back up! Soar faster than any pegasus has before!” He was not angry, but regardless his persistence frightened her. She had thought she had everything cleared, but her father raised a new doubt, and she didn’t want to face it.

“I… I won’t give up, Dad,” she said. “They need me, I know it.” She looked away, hoping she would have the last word. After a moment, he still had not said anything, and she looked back at him. He was there in the chair still, but he was looking down and away from her, and she could not see his face.

“Dash… I’m sorry you had to go through that all,” he said, his voice shaking and trembling. “But I know what is best for you. Please, can’t you trust me?” She looked at him, and for a moment she thought she might simply concede and go back with him. But then she remembered the sadness of the bird as it cried out for help, and she looked down.

Her father got up and went towards the door, but stopped short of it. He turned around, and his eyes were full of tears. She was drawn into them, and for the longest time she could not look away. She could not speak, or argue, or even think. She just couldn’t bear that reality any more, and she looked away.

When she looked back, her father had gone. So many thoughts churned in her mind that she could hardly bear thinking. Just as before, she was stuck in her bed, unable to go anywhere, or do anything. After a long time she simply could not bear to lay there anymore, and she threw off the sheets and got out of the bed.

She found her body was fine, and her leg was as limber as ever. She supposed that it had never been damaged too badly; most of the wounds were probably superficial. Her wing was still far from healed, and still wrapped up in the heavy cast, but she found she couldn't care less.

She paced around the room for the rest of the day, returning to her bed only when a nurse would come in. She looked out the window at the huge, majestic cloudscape of her home, and found neither pleasure nor pride in it.

Eventually night came, and though her eyes began to tire, she did not sleep. Eventually a nurse came in and turned the lights off, and she pretended to be asleep. The facility went dark, and soon, as did the streets below.

Rainbow Dash got up and took a few steps around the room, and then went up to the door. She took a deep breath, and then opened it and went through. All that awaited her was a dark hallway, unpopulated and unmonitored. She made her way through and down a flight of stairs, and eventually came up to a lobby that was dimly lit. To her chagrin, there was a pony at the desk, sitting down with a bored look.

She fled the area before that pony could spot her, and looked around. There were no more doors around, and she began to expect she might have to make a break for it. However, before she did any such thing, she heard the receptionist talking, and she hid behind a wall. She couldn’t hear quite well, but it seemed that somepony was there for a visit, and would require an escort.

She heard the two ponies begin to walk away, into the hallway where she had come from. She soon made her way across the lobby. She kept her ears attuned, and almost thought she heard her name, but disregarded the thought; the doors to the outside were right before her, and she went through them.

The streets of Cloudsdale were empty and dark, but Rainbow Dash did not let her guard down yet. She stuck out like a sore hoof, and she couldn’t let anypony spot her. Every now and then she had to duck and hide from some passing pegasus, and to her they all had the same tired and haggard demeanor. Trying to shake off thoughts of hesitation or regret, she headed quickly toward her destination.

Unfortunately for her, the cloud distribution facility was not as vacant as she had hoped it would be, as there were a few workers within talking loudly and working profusely. She ducked behind a small pillar, and listened.

“Listen up,” said a heavy set stallion with a gruff voice of authority. “We still gotta send rain over all of Equestria.” The workers nodded and got back to work, though each of them seemed to have the same dull and tired look about them. She watched from the shadows as they began to move huge barrels of water to different ports in the facility. She heard some grunt talking and tried to listen.

“Where is this water going anyway?” he said with a yawn as his knees shook under the weight of a large barrel.
“Oh, didn’t you hear?” his coworker said. “These clouds are going to the Everfree forest.” The first pony nearly buckled over as a shiver ran down his body.

“Everfree? Doesn’t that place have its own clouds?” he said with an incredulous look. “Nopony’s got business there…” His coworker shrugged as he loaded the barrel into a small cubby and attached a pipe to it.

“Place got hit pretty hard. Either way, I’m glad only these clouds need to go there,” he said, and the two walked away from the port. Rainbow Dash watched them leave and snuck across the floor. There was a small door in the port labeled ‘do not enter.’ With some effort, she pushed open the heavy door.

Outside she almost yelled when she found herself standing on a ledge on the end of Cloudsdale. She backed off, and leaned against the wall, trying not to look off the edge. To the side of her was an opening, behind which she heard some kind of machinery. There were a grinding and a sort of blowing noise, and then from the opening came a large cloud, thick and apparently full of water.

She snuck over, taking as much care as she could to not fall. The cloud was beginning to move, but before it got away she jumped with all the power her legs could afford, and landed on the top. Rainbow Dash sunk into the soft, wet cloud.

She stayed there for what felt like a few hours, taking a peek out over the ground every now and then. Eventually she floated over exactly what she had been looking for. The trees below were thick, yet some were bare and burnt, and it seemed the whole forest had an eerie mist over it. The cloud began to release its water and shrink, getting lower and lower.

Eventually it skimmed along the trees, unable to stay high under her weight, and sunk below the cover of the forest. Eventually the cloud collapsed entirely and she fell a few feet, bracing her legs for impact as she landed on the forest floor.

She took a look around. The leaves were thick, and the trees were tall. The ground was covered with leaves and twigs and all sorts of outreaching roots. She could hardly see ten feet in front of her through the thick fog that covered the area. The whole place seemed eerily quiet.

It was the most frightening place in all of Equestria, and she was in the thick of it. Rainbow Dash looked ahead and walked with determination. There was only one concern she had, and she would fulfill it no matter what stood in her way.

Though she could hardly see in the forest, she continued moving nevertheless. The forest seemed still, and unmoving. There was almost no sound, and this was in no way reassuring to the filly. The ground was hard against her hooves. Though it had been days, she could taste ash with every breath. It was as if the forest was still aflame.

Rainbow Dash stepped around a tree when she heard a loud sound overhead. She looked up, but there was nothing there. She stayed there for a moment, looking at the cloudy sky, before she once again looked ahead of her. Though she couldn’t see anything, she began to hear some sounds from afar.

She frowned and moved forward. Between the trees ahead of her she could see a soft orange glow, and she instinctively head toward it. In no time she reached a clearing, full of burnt and fallen trees. In the center there was a small fire, fed by the remains of a once tall evergreen. She took a step closer, and noticed the flame was rather isolated and confined.

She wondered how a small fire like this could have lasted for such a long time. The flames were small, but were so bright they lit up the entire clearing. She was keeping her distance, but she felt the heat pressing against her face as if she were right next to it. The fire flickered and waved, but it never weakened. It had depths, the likes of which she could not fully understand.

She sat there next to the warm fire, though the noises she had heard did not cease. Though it was part of the scion of this forest’s ruin, it brought her comfort, and warmth. She did not know why she stayed, but she did nonetheless. It lasted until she heard snapping twigs and the sound of hooves not too far from her at all.

“Rainbow Dash!” yelled a familiar voice from the woods behind her. She froze, recognizing her name, and slowly turned around. The woods were dark, and she could not see, but she knew they were not empty. She was rooted to the spot, unable to act on her thoughts.

She heard her name called again, and ducked in the clearing. Her hoof slipped and she heard a twig snap next to her. She winced and hoped she was not heard, but those wishes were dashed after only a moment. From the trees in front of her she noticed a figure approaching, and then entering the clearing.

“Rainbow Dash!” said her dad as he got closer and wrapped his hooves around her in a hug. She sat there, unmoving, unable to bring herself to look at him. “Oh, Rainbow Dash,” he said, clinging to her. She felt tears drip onto her shoulder, but she did not move. “I found you… I’m so glad,” he continued, holding her ever tighter.

Every regret and preconception she had rose as her father hugged her, and sobbed onto her shoulder. She could feel him tremble, his solid body weak and his heart fragile. This was not what she had wanted, she thought. She had hoped to get back to the forest, and leave her father and mother behind where she didn’t need to worry about them.

“You were missing, and your mother couldn’t find you,” he said. “We searched all of Cloudsdale, but you were nowhere. I knew you must have come here, and I wasted no time.” He looked away as he explained this to her, and she could hear his ragged and irregular breaths. Suddenly he pulled her face up, and she was forced to look right into his eyes. “Why?” he asked, curtly, but she felt the question tear into her nerves. “Why did you come back here?”

She looked away, and closed her eyes, trying to struggle and back away. She didn’t want to face him, but he had a hold of her, and he pulled her head toward him once more. His eyes were so full of steel; they seemed to pierce her, and gazed directly into her heart. Try as she might, she could not escape, and she had no answer for him.

“I guess it doesn’t matter,” he said after a while. He loosened his grip on her, but not his gaze. “Come on Rainbow Dash, we’re going home,” he said, his tone inexorable. It was then she knew he was going to take her away, and render everything she had done pointless

“No!” she yelled, slipping out of his grip with a burst of motion. She felt her bandaged wing chafe against his powerful legs, and winced. He shook his head and took a step forward. She tried to back up, but she was quickly cornered against a tree. She looked all around but could see no escape. Her father went to reach for her, and she pressed herself against the tree as far as she could.

They both stopped and froze when a loud and pervasive howl echoed throughout the forest. It shook her very bones, and it sounded close. Fear clouded her thought, and she could hardly move. She could vaguely hear her dad yelling, and could feel him shaking her, but she was unable to respond. She heard the howl again, and this time she knew it came from right in front of her.

She looked up, and saw her father standing in front of her, tense and unyielding. At the other end of the clearing, she saw a few creatures emerge. They were shaped like wolves, but made of wood. Their eyes were fierce and glowed green, and clouds of foul green smoke blew from their nostrils. A pungent smell filled the area.

“Damn, timberwolves…” said her dad. “Rainbow Dash, we have to go, now!” he said, taking a moment to look back. She was frozen with fear, and he made a move to grab her. Before he could though, she heard a deep roar and the pounding of wooden paws against the forest floor. She screamed as loud as she could.

The timberwolves were running at them full speed, and her dad whirled around in the air, unfurling his wings in the motion. He spun around and kicked the nearest timberwolf with all the force he could muster, and its wooden face shattered against his hoof. Another passed him and lunged for Rainbow Dash. She yelped as she ducked and rolled to the side, barely dodging the creature’s jaws. Her father flew into it in a blur, and the wooden wolf was scattered into various logs and twigs.

Her dad turned toward her, his eyes wide and trembling. She could tell he was afraid something might happen to her, but she screamed as she saw a timberwolf approach him from behind. The foul creature bit into her father’s leg, and she heard him yell.

She felt her heart jump, and she backed up, looking away. She heard a commotion, and a yell, and the sound of wood scattering on the ground. She backed off even more as she heard her dad calling her name, and a wolf’s roar. She looked forward, and saw him fighting them off, but there were still many wolves, and some ran toward her.

Her father looked back and shouted, but he was grappling with a wolf. Her thoughts stalled, and soon ended, as she lost all her reason. The timberwolves were nearly upon her when she took off running in the opposite direction.

“Rainbow Dash!” she heard echoing after her as she darted through the darkness. She was unable to react, or indeed do anything other than run. The wolves were behind her, she knew, pursuing with an unnatural persistence. She could hear the pounding of their stiff paws on the hard ground, and the smell of their rotten breath.

She stopped next to a tall, darkened tree in the midst of darkness after running for a long time. As she stood there and breathed heavily, it slowly occurred to her what had just happened, who she had left behind. She nearly collapsed, holding herself next to the tree as she felt her feelings come back and well up.

“No… no, no regrets,” she said, wiping her eyes, and swallowing her doubts. Her father was many things, but he was not weak. She could not let him monopolize her thoughts when she had a job to do. She shook her head and looked around, and suddenly it occurred to her that the area she had wandered into was familiar.

Though there were burnt trees and ashen logs scattered about, it very much resembled a skeleton of the wood where she had been cast away from. She felt excitement come up in her heart, and she began to move. Though she had just been full of fear, she felt the familiarity of the area fill her with hope. She moved around the tree, and walked along a nearby stream.

There, ahead of her, she saw a small cliff face covered with ivy. She felt her stomach leap as she walked toward it. Her breaths were heavy and labored as she parted the vines to open a small space underneath.
Inside, there was nothing but an empty nest, and a few scattered twigs and seeds. She stopped and looked at it, shocked motionlessly. She knew what she had left here, but it was nowhere to be found. After a moment she came out and into the night, and opened her mouth to call for the bird, but she stopped.

She had never given it a name, and she had nothing to call it by. The wide forest loomed before her and she had no idea where to look, or whether it was even still around. There was so much she didn’t know, and so much she couldn’t tell, that she was lost in a sea of doubt. She backed away into the den, shielding herself from the mystery of the night.

She didn’t know what had become of her charge, but she did know she had lost it forever. She was alone in the forest, separated from her father by what must be miles of dark forest, with nothing but a failed quest. She threw herself on the ground, and tried to forget about him, but the thoughts would not let go.

Even as she lay there and stared at the nest though, she was reminded of exactly what kind of place she was in. Her nerve would not shake, no matter what stood in her way. Like her father, she would not back down. As she fell asleep, her thoughts fell to the animals that needed her, and how she would help them.

To be continued...

Author's Note

Part one of the two-part Part two of the two-part Rainbow Dash story. Decided to make this a three-parter at the last minute when I realized how big this was getting. So don't worry about the next chapter being short. Rainbow Dash's journey is FAR from over.

As always check out the in-universe Strange Six Ask Blog found here. Updates are a little slow but more will come eventually.

Thanks for reading and you're encouraged to give your thoughts on the story (positive or negative) in the comment section!

Rainbow Dash (III) Sylvan Trepidation

It wasn’t until high noon that she felt safe enough to venture outside. Before she left, she turned her head back to the inside of the clearing, as if in a sort of false hope. The nest lay there, empty and barren, and as hard as she looked she couldn’t find a single clue within. She stood there in the threshold for a while, but eventually the starkness of the scene got to her and she turned on it.

The forest was not like she remembered it; healthy trees were sparse, and wildlife was nowhere to be found. She looked throughout the area, but she could not locate any creatures. Rainbow Dash shook her head as she began to walk.

The previous night she had given up on the life she used to live. She had tried to run, but in the end it was to no avail. Her father fought for her, and she turned and ran. When she thought about it, her cowardice irked her. She didn’t think her father was in real trouble, but at the same time, she could scarcely believe she had run away.

She remembered those creatures—Timberwolves—that her father had been fighting for her, and how voracious and fierce they had seemed. Truthfully, she had not realized that the forest held anything that dangerous before, and the prospect frightened her. As she walked through the decrepit forest she had chosen over her family, she slowed down, and eventually stopped.

Those feelings were unacceptable to her. She would break every barrier she found, and worry about the consequences later. She had found her purpose, she thought, and nothing would stop her. Her father may have rejected her decision, but she would follow his teachings to the end regardless. She would never give up, even in the face of terror and ruin.

The forest may not be safe or hospitable, but she would take it on with everything she could muster. There were animals out there that were in trouble, and nopony else would do it. There was danger behind every corner, but she would make it by regardless. Rainbow Dash took the first resolved steps of the greatest adventure she had ever taken.

Rainbow Dash stopped abruptly, and leaned against a tree. She heard a noise, and quite a bit of commotion nearby. The scuffling continued, and she quickly looked at where it had come from. There, she saw a bunny of medium size. Its white fur was blotched with dirt and blood, and it was limping and breathing heavily.

The creature limped for a moment, and then fell over. She was about to take a step out toward it, but before she did a vile smell wafted into her nostrils, and she stepped back. There, from the trees behind the bunny, she saw a group of Timberwolves step out.

The wolves did not know she was there, and Rainbow Dash knew she could make a quick getaway. Though she felt afraid, she would not give in. Before her was a helpless animal being preyed upon by monsters, and this was just the sort of thing she had feared the animals might face. She gritted her teeth, shook her head, and stepped out from behind the tree.

In no time, the beast’s turned toward her, ready to tear her apart. As they turned their concentration away from their prey, for the briefest moment, she slid underneath their gaping jaws, and gnarled claws. The beasts turned to catch her, but she had already grabbed the bunny and begun to run away.

She rounded a tree and took a deep breath, but the wolves began to give chase. The bunny shook a bit, but she would not loosen the grip of her teeth. A Timberwolf got close enough to nearly bite her tail, but Rainbow Dash took off in a split second and it missed. Her legs were working greater than they ever had, despite how damaged they had been just a few days before.

She regulated her breath and worked her muscles just like she might have when flying, and treated the trees like an obstacle course. She waved through them, ducked under branches, and jumped over logs with ease. She did not pay attention to the wolves behind her, for all she needed was to outrun them, and keep the bunny safe.

The creature was still in her grip, but she felt its warmth and trembling. She kept it as still as possible, trying to keep it from falling or getting hurt, but she knew if they were to have a chance that she needed to give running her all.
She could not look back, but she did hear the creatures behind her. A mixture of primal roars and clattering wood filled her ears, and spurred her onward. She was running faster than she thought she could, and she was only getting faster.

The trees whizzed by her, and she stepped around them all without slowing down. Not a single log, twig, or rock in her path was a hindrance; she merely jumped over them. She saw a deep stream ahead, filled with rushing water.

She held the bunny tightly, and picked up speed. As she approached the edge she tightened all of her muscles, and took a deep breath. For a moment she slowed down, her body arching and tensing. Then, with a springing motion, she pushed against the ground with her hooves and propelled herself into the air.

She crossed over the stream, not taking a moment to look down into the rushing waters underneath her. Her wings twitched with the air as she soared through it, but she kept them by her side. Her eyes were trained on the opposite bank, and her focus was unbreakable.

After what seemed like a long while, she finally landed on the ground, just barely clearing the brook. She skidded along the ground for a short distance, but quickly regained her position and dashed across into the trees. Behind her she heard a splash, and she stopped quickly, maneuvering adeptly to turn around completely.

She saw a Timberwolf thrashing about in the water, trying to fight the current. As hard as it tried, however, it could not reach the other side, and was torn apart by the force of the rushing water. The two other wolves stopped at the edge and glared at her, but did not move. She sighed in relief and took off into the woods.

She ran at a good pace for a while, until she began to feel tired. The forest was quiet and somber, and she could see nothing but the same marred landscape in all directions. She leaned against a particularly large tree and let the bunny down. It stumbled around a bit, and then dropped down, breathing quickly and haggardly.

The bunny was covered with scratches and wounds. Upon closer inspection, Rainbow Dash noticed that one of its ears was slightly shorter than the other; it had seemingly been bitten. Rainbow Dash looked at the bunny in shock, realizing just how badly it was hurt.

It looked at her, and she saw its eyes widen. It shook, and crawled along the ground. As much as it might try, however, it didn’t get anywhere. Rainbow Dash looked down at it, and stepped slowly toward it before getting down and wrapping her hooves around it.

“Hey there, little guy, don’t be scared,” she said, as gently as she could. The bunny shook, but stopped, and glared at her. “I’m sorry, I am sure you had a hard time there. But you’re safe now.” She tried to be soothing, but the bunny didn’t seem to calm down. She stepped back, and it tried to get up, to no avail.

It chittered and cried out, and its breathing quickened. Rainbow Dash looked at the creature, so weak and helpless, and knew what she had to do. It needed care and help, and looking around at the vacant forest, she knew she was the only one who could do it.

“This time,” she said under her breath, “I will not fail.” The bunny continued to look at her, as if questioning her. It reminded her of the chick she had lost, and suddenly a thought came to her mind. “You need a name,” she said, and paused. In this forest of brown and blackened trees, this bunny was a spot of white. It had entered her, and seeing it filled her with hope. “I will call you... Angel,” she said, and she hugged the bunny tightly.

After darkness settled over the forest, Rainbow Dash crawled into a small hole beneath the roots of an old tree. She carried Angel on her back, between her wings. He slept fitfully, and she could hear its loud breaths easily amongst the silence of the forest. She set Angel down on the ground next to her.

The quietness of the woodland was disconcerting, but at the same time she knew it was a sign that they were safe. They may be the only creatures around for miles, but they were alive at least. As she settled into this hole, she noticed that in one corner there was a small pile of nuts and berries.

This place was vacant, but it must have been occupied recently. She tried not to think of what happened to the former occupant, but she could not help lamenting the loss of whatever woodland critter which may have amassed this food. She noticed Angel was awake, and as she looked down to the bunny, he crawled back a bit, keeping his distance.

Rainbow Dash smiled, and moved some of the food over to the bunny. It stared at it grudgingly, and looked away. The filly waited patiently, not moving or forcing anything. Eventually, Angel took a peek back at the food, with a single eye. His belly grumbled deeply, making Rainbow Dash grin wildly. The bunny seemed to sigh, and began to eat some berries.

Rainbow Dash made sure Angel got his fill before eating herself. The supply was meager, meant for a single creature smaller than herself, but it sated her hunger for the time being. The bunny crawled into the corner and slept there, looking away from her. She tried to make herself as comfortable as possible, but the lack of maneuvering space did her no favors.

Eventually she went to sleep, lulled into unconsciousness by Angel’s rhythmic breathing and the soft light of the moon from above. She woke many times throughout the night, but never left the hole. Come morning, she was tired, sore, and thirsty. The light of the sun entered through the entrance, and the warmth and brightness of it roused her.

She gently rubbed Angel with her hoof, attempting to wake the bunny. He stirred, slowly, and turned around, opening his eyes. He made an exaggerated yawning motion and then glared at her, crossing his front paws. Rainbow Dash merely extended a hoof, attempting to coax the bunny into coming to her.

In response, Angel merely shook his head, and took a few steps forward. Rainbow Dash frowned as she saw the bunny wince, and stumble before he fell down. He looked at her, and she could see disappointment emanating from his eyes. Rainbow Dash grabbed him and placed him on her back, just as she had the night before.

He sat there and pouted as she made her way out of the hole. The forest was still quiet, and she saw nothing around her. Rainbow Dash walked around for quite a while, until she heard the gurgle of a stream nearby.

She approached the sound, until she found the water. It was smaller than the brook she had jumped, and far less wild. She knew it wouldn’t give her any trouble because of that. She set Angel down, and took a drink. The water was nourishing and fulfilling, and she continuously lapped up the fresh bounty.

To her side, Angel took a few steps toward the stream. At first, he only went to take a small drink. After that though, he glared at Rainbow Dash, and took a few steps back. She noticed him moving out of the corner of her eye, and quickly turned. As she stepped forward toward him, she saw a look of defiance from him, and before she could reach him, he stepped back. He could not keep his balance, however, and soon stumbled.

Rainbow Dash gasped as he fell into the stream. It was shallow, but Angel was small, and she feared for him. Indeed, he was caught up in the current and began to drift away, barely staying afloat.

“Angel!” she shouted as she began to sprint along the stream. The bunny flailed and chittered loudly, gurgling through the water that he was submerged in. She ran faster, and called for him again. The bunny looked at her, and his eyes widened. It was a look from him she had never seen before: a pleading look.

She pulled up next to Angel. He was drifting quickly, but she matched his speed. She tensed her muscles, and reared back. Then, with a herculean effort, she lunged forward, her front hooves outstretched. Angel cried out, and then, with a smooth movement, she grabbed him, carrying her whole body with her in the motion.

She crossed over the stream, and rolled, keeping the bunny safely tucked against her chest. She felt her broken wing hit the ground for a moment, but she ignored the pain. She slowed down into a stop, and settled into a prone position on the ground. Angel coughed and sputtered, but he was breathing fine. She sighed in relief, and lay down. The bunny then settled down right next to her. He probably wasn’t able to go much further.

The forest would have been completely silent but for the sound of the stream, and the breathing of a pony and her bunny. There were neither friendly creatures nor monsters nearby. Rainbow Dash turned over and looked at Angel. He was shaken, but also strangely at peace.

She held out her hoof, and Angel looked at it. It stayed like that for a moment, and then finally the bunny reached up and grabbed it. She smiled and lifted him up onto her back. Instead of struggling or pouting, he lay down and grabbed her fur. With her friend in tow, Rainbow Dash began to search for food for the two of them, with the whole forest open to her.

The forest had little bounty for the two of them, and at the end of the day Rainbow Dash found her belly empty. While she was low on food, however, she was high in spirit. Angel was different now; he was far more calm, and seemed to enjoy being with the Pegasus.

The sun hung low, barely peeking over the tree line. Soon, she knew it would be dark, and that was the most dangerous time of the day. Angel lay on her back, still recovering, but almost in good condition. Rainbow Dash looked around, but the area she was in had no large trees, no caves, and no holes in the ground.

She felt tendrils of fear grip her heart as she realized how barren the area was. There was nowhere to hide, and nowhere to sleep. Orange light flickered through the trees, like a dying candle. There would soon be darkness, and they would be consumed.

Rainbow Dash stood still, looking around at the tall brown trees and leaved ground around her. She had never denied the fact that this place would always be dangerous, but never before had the raw wilderness been as reflected in the conditions as it was now. She had no home, and no shelter.

She had been stupid. Of course the forest wasn’t full of hiding holes and safe spots. Rainbow Dash had thought such out of the pure luck she had in finding them in the nights before. She sighed loudly, and Angel stirred. While she could not find anything right now, however, there was no reason for her to give up.

Rainbow Dash observed the area around her. She was in a clearing lined with tall, thin pines when she saw the last beam of sunlight fade. Already most of the sky had been overtaken with blackness, but to her frustration she could not see a single star. Even the moon would not reveal itself to her.

She shivered in open fear, and her wings trembled. She felt Angel rouse, and noted that he was looking at her, but she could do little other than to put on a brave face and swallow her misgivings. The forest would not defeat her; she would not let it. Throughout the entire night she would have to stay alert and ready for anything. This night she was protecting more than just herself.

She heard some nervous and stressed squeaks from her companion, and frowned. She had no idea how she would make it. In truth, she wasn’t even sure if she could. This time of the day was dangerous, dark, and inhospitable. Anypony in reasonable circumstances would just sleep through it.

“Why does Princess Celestia have to set the sun?” she pondered to herself as she peered into the abyss that was the night. She longed for the light of day, but knew it was far off. “Come on Angel,” she said to the bunny gently. “I won’t let you get hurt.” That was all the reassurance she could give.

She sat down next to a tree, and waited. She couldn’t see, so moving seemed unadvisable. She could do little other than sit idly in the woodland. Boredom was the last thing she felt, however. As the ambient noises of creatures that only came out at night increased, she felt her heart skip.

Angel hid behind Rainbow Dash, clearly perturbed by the rise of the night. Time passed, and she endured it in terror. She had never been out this long before except on the night she came back. The thought made her shudder; it was not an experience she wished to repeat.

“This time, I’ll protect you,” said Rainbow Dash. In Cloudsdale, night was a time of rest, but it could sometimes be as lively as the day. In this forest, she felt something different altogether. It was a void, and it threatened to consume her. She began to feel restless and perturbed, and she took up Angel and began to walk.

She soon stubbed her hoof on a fallen branch, and nearly walked into a tree. She heard her companion chattering as they moved. She shivered as she was touched by the cold night breeze, and breathed deeply. Even her lungs were chilled by the stark night air. A sharp fear came upon here, and she soon began to feel an unsettlement at the spot she was in that she could no longer bear. She soon threw caution to the wind, and began to move, hoping to ease her fears.

The air seemed to carry more than mere coldness, however. Even as she moved through the dark wood, she began to feel uneasy. She was plagued by a sense of foreboding and dread that she could not shake. The further she walked, and the more time that passed, the harder it grew for her to simply say everything would be okay.

She stepped over a log after bumping into it, and into a small area of barren ground. She walked forward and balked as she felt her hoof touch something sticky. She heard Angel gasp, and he was tugging at her coat, crying out to her. She thought she saw something next to her as she looked around, but it vanished before she could get a good look.

The area was surrounded by dead trees and fallen logs, and as she squinted to peer through the darkness, she could see they were all hollow. Angel continued tugging at her, and without a thought she began to move to escape the area. Before she could get to the other side, however, her path was blocked.

From the logs came what seemed like a mass of shadow, covered with sharp spikes. She would have thought it was a single object, but then she saw pairs of small, glowing, red eyes open. She nearly screamed, but tried to stay calm. She turned around to the other side, and moved. To her dismay, however, a mass of the creatures emerged from there as well.

It wasn’t long before she was completely surrounded. The small and black creatures gathered around the edges of the area and stared at her with their beady red eyes. She frowned as she stood in the center, and glared back at them. She snorted and stomped the ground, and tightened her body. She received no response.

After quite some time of this tension, she moved to an edge in an attempt to escape. As she neared the strange creatures, however, she heard a strange clicking noise, and looked down. Their eyes burned as spikes extended from their spiny backs, and she felt one pierce her right front leg. It made only a small wound, but she felt an immense amount of pain rock her entire body.

She wheeled back and stumbled into the center of the clearing with a loud scream. Her limited vision of her surroundings was dim, and even after the initial agony subsided, she felt a dull pain where she had been wounded. The creatures that surrounded her seemed to make clicking noises among each other, with the noise spreading out throughout the group, almost like a wave.

Like a moving shadow, they seemed to be heading toward her, slowly, but surely. Rainbow Dash swayed about, but stood tall, and snorted at the creatures more. Angel was making sharp, fearful noises into her ear, and she felt him trembling upon her back. The swarm grew closer to her, and she tensed her body. They continued to click, and slowly she could see their spines extend.

Angel was holding his head as if strained by thought, but Rainbow Dash hid him amongst her wings. She could do little other than wait as they approached her, and the bunny seemed to be waiting, watching and listening. She began to panic and sweat as the horde got closer, unable to do a single thing.

Then, just as they were about to reach the Pegasus, Angel jumped off from her and onto the ground. She gasped and reached for him, but he made a strange click with his tongue. To her astonishment, the circle of the creatures parted around him, and he passed through. He stood there in the middle, and waved her over, nervously.

Rainbow Dash nodded nervously as she took a step forward, quietly. Spikes nearly reached her, but Angel continued to make the clicks, and they retreated. Her body shook, and she felt an ache where the last spine had hit her, remembering the pain it had caused her upon entry. As much as she tried to be brave, she couldn’t discard that fear.

She looked away from their piercing beady eyes, and concentrated on following Angel. His mouth mimicked their sounds, and they seemed to respond to it. Angel moved forward strongly and surely, his body still and calm amongst the shadows. She saw the edge of the circle open, and felt a rush of anticipation. Just before she got out, however, she heard a strange click that was unlike the others, and a tenuous growl amongst the strange creatures.

She looked behind her to see the mass of red eyes and black spikes converging on her. The glow of their eyes was far more intense than before, and it filled her with sudden and incredible terror. She screamed and began to run, as fast as she could, grabbing Angel as she passed him.

She reached the tree line and tripped, as she felt the pain in her front leg suddenly increase. She looked back, and saw the mass of shadow hanging far away. Without a thought, she got back up, and limped into the forest. Her progress was slow, but eventually she looked back and could not see them anymore. She stopped, and began to breathe heavily.

Overhead, she saw a glimmer of light. In just a few moments, the moon emerged from behind a dark cloud, and suddenly the sky was illuminated. She felt the soft white light reach down to her, assuaging the fear she felt. She felt the pain in her leg decrease as well, until it was nearly gone. She sighed.

Nearby was a thick tree, covered with green leaves. It was tall, but its branches were low and sturdy. She smiled as Angel pointed to it, and climbed up the branches steadily, but surely. In the midst of the branches she found a niche that was rather comfortable and easy to lay in, where she was away from the terrors of below.

She felt comfortable up in the tree, and lay down. She knew bunnies didn’t usually sleep in trees, but Angel seemed quite comfy atop her. Soon she felt her drowsiness overtake her. She had made it, and she had her new friend to thank for it.

She had lost all of her old friends, but she knew now that she had a new one. She had never thought she would so easily find a place or a purpose, but she knew where it was now. As she fell asleep with the bunny dozing upon her, she knew she would stick by Angel no matter what happened.

Angel was hopping alongside Rainbow Dash as they walked through the barren forest. Though he was injured just the day before, he was moving quite well. The Pegasus beside him could hardly keep up with his energetic stride; she was actually walking slower than she usually would.

It was already morning, after the sun was above the horizon. Her hooves were heavy due to her exhaustion, but she pressed on. There were so many things she had to accomplish during the day. Even as she looked at the sun, early in its trek through the sky, she felt her time running out.

She yawned heavily as she looked around her. Angel glanced in her direction briefly, but then quickly continued hopping about just as before. Rainbow Dash trudged in his direction slowly, and then leaned against a tree. She was thirsty, but there were no streams or pools in sight. Angel stopped just a short distance away.

He stood upright, and seemed to be completely still. As Rainbow Dash observed him, however, she noticed there was an errant twitch in his ears. He looked back at her for just a moment, and began to hop away through the trees to her left. She quickly steadied herself and began to follow.

It only took a minute or two before she realized where he was headed. It was apparent when she heard the gurgle and spillage of water over rock in the distance. It was faint, but she knew they were getting closer

Just a moment later, she moved some underbrush out of her way to reveal the source of the noise. There was a short cliff face in front of her, standing over a pile of loose, weathered rocks. Water poured from the cliff and over the pile. It pooled in small hollows in between scattered stones.

She quickly stepped forward, but Angel stepped in front of her abruptly, and protested with a quick squeak. She stopped with her front hoof in the air, quickly catching herself and remaining still. She looked at the bunny, curiosity in her eyes. He looked tense, and his eyes were full of worry.

It took her a moment to realize that Angel was pointing out a gathering of small plants around the spring. They were small, blue flowers, with large petals that surrounded a small crown. They were quite striking in appearance, and she was rather surprised she had not noticed them before. As intrigued as she was by them, however, Angel seemed quite insistent about staying away from them.

Rainbow Dash took a step back away from the flowers, and Angel sighed in relief. She was still thirsty, however, and she began to look around for ways to the water. Angel watched for a moment, and looked back, but eventually shrugged. He backed away from the stream, and Rainbow Dash realized he was going to leave.

She, on the other hoof, would not give up so easily. The whole spring was surrounded by the flowers, so she could not circumvent the problem. As she circled it, looking for openings, she suddenly felt stiff in her leg, and stumbled on a loose rock that had come from the pile. She barely managed to catch herself before falling into the vegetation.

As she steadied herself, she looked ahead of her, to the pile of rocks in the center of the spring. It was rather tall, and composed of various stones of many sizes. There were rocks strewn about the whole area. Even in the patch of flowers there were various stones.

She turned back, and saw Angel waiting at the edge of the clearing. She walked towards him, and he nodded his head slightly, directing her toward the forest. Just as she was beside him, however, she turned around. Then she was off, running, right towards the flowers. She heard a screech of protest from the bunny, but she didn’t respond to it. Rather, she jumped right at the edge of the flowers, easily clearing the patch, and landing on the loose rocks in the spring.

She struggled to maintain her hoofhold, and felt she might fall at any moment. Before she did, however, she turned and kicked the pile of rocks as hard as she could manage. It shook, but remained intact. She shuffled her hooves until she became steady once more, and then kicked the stack of stones a second time.

The pile collapsed, and rocks began to tumble down. Rainbow Dash didn’t flinch even as she became even more unsteady. She caught a brief glimpse of Angel’s face, which seemed to be scrunched up tightly. She braced herself, and then jumped.

She landed on the other side of the blue plants, stopping after a short walk to slow her momentum. She turned around to survey her handiwork. Just as she had hoped, the rocks had fallen to cover up a patch of the allegedly dangerous flowers that had impeded her progress.

They now had a steady path to the spring, and could bypass the plants entirely. While she may have been able to get a drink while balancing on the other side, she knew Angel couldn’t. As she walked across her makeshift path to the water, she beckoned her companion to do the same.

The water was clear, and pure. She felt renewed after drinking it; her lethargy dissipated quickly afterwards. She spent the remainder of the day with a lot of energy. Angel was active and ready as well. He found food in places she would never have looked, and detected threats she would have been unaware of completely.

As she moved alongside Angel, she felt the kind of connection she had never felt before. She was drawn to him, and he was connected to her. The forest was unforgiving, but she knew they could surmount it together.

The two companions were eating some berries Angel had found when the bunny’s ears perked up and twitched about. Rainbow Dash stopped what she was doing and took a step back, watching him. He dropped his food, and hopped forward, looking about the area, and remaining quiet and still. After only a moment, he looked at Rainbow Dash, fear in his eyes.

She had a guess what this meant, and prepared to follow him. He began to hop away, and she ran alongside him. Angel’s senses were strong, and she was willing to trust him. They ran some distance before they arrived at a steep cliff face. Rainbow Dash stopped.

In its side was an opening, which appeared to lead to a chamber of a significant size. Seeing the bunny’s panicked face, she quickly moved to enter the cave. Angel hung back a moment, looking at the cave, and then off to the woods. As he did, however, a piercing howl echoed throughout the area.

“Come on, hurry!” yelled Rainbow Dash, waving her hoof at the bunny. He rushed toward her, a grimace on his face all the while. Once he passed her, she began moving as well, and they entered the cave together.

They retreated into the bowels of the cave, which went far deeper than she expected. As the moved further in, she could no longer see the wide entrance of the cave. It was obscured by the winding stone walls that surrounded them.

It was dark, and she could scarcely see where she was going. She felt a prickling fear run through her body, but she swallowed it. She heard soft chitters from Angel nearby, their tempo quickening progressively. She took a few steps back, and felt her hoof slip on a loose rock. She nearly fell, but managed to catch herself before she did.

She felt cold, and began to shiver. Around her was a sea of darkness; although she could feel the ground beneath her, and barely see the walls around her, there was still the sense that everything that surrounded her was unknown. She shook her head, and took a slow step forward, breathing deeply.

Rainbow Dash knew she was holding her hoof out, but all of the sudden she couldn’t feel it. For a moment she didn’t breathe, and didn’t move, but then she felt a burst of pain shoot through her front leg, on the right. It quivered, and began to shake uncontrollably, knocking the Pegasus off balance, and causing her to fall forward.

She gasped with pain as she landed, right on a hard and pointy object that jabbed her side, causing her to roll suddenly onto her other side. She felt many more such articles touch her body, but none with the severity or the sharpness of the first. She began to reach around, trying to clear the debris and get back on her hooves. She heard a clang of metal as her hoof hit something, and she quickly felt around to find what it was.

It was a small cylindrical metal container of sorts, with a wiry handle and a rim around the bottom. There seemed to be a dial of sorts on it. Rainbow Dash didn’t need to see to figure out what she was holding; after just a moment, she knew it must have been a lantern. Despite the comfort of having found a potential source of light, she still felt an indescribable chill at the presence of the object.

She lit it up by turning the dial, and figured out why she felt so apprehensive soon after. As the area was illuminated, she found she was sitting in a pile of bones from a shattered pony’s skeleton. She felt her breath escape her, and nearly screamed. She quickly kicked some bones and slid back away from the pile. All the while, Angel was looking at her morosely.

For some time, she sat there and hyperventilated. The skeleton lay there, some bones from its back half broken and scattered about. Though she did not want to, she observed them. The bones were white, and the skull was intact. It had likely been an Earth Pony due to the lack of a horn or wings.

Scraps of fabric adorned it, drained of color almost entirely. It may have been a sort of cloak before. The remnants of a saddle bag hung off of the cracked spine. Then, in the crook of what had once been a front leg, she saw a slip of paper. It seemed as if it was being clutched by this pony tightly.

She picked it up and took a closer look. Through the flickering light of the lantern she was able to identify it as a picture, of two ponies, though it was faded, and limp. One was a rather haggard looking stallion with a shrewd smile, and the other was a jubilant Earth Pony mare with a light pink coat, and a visible cutie mark that looked like an extravagant flower.

Behind them was a sort of cottage, surrounded by a small stream, with a bridge crossing it. It was of medium size, and looked as if it were covered with foliage. At the bottom of the picture, she could see words scrawled down. She squinted to read them.

‘I’m sorry,’ they read: simple, and to the point. She found herself wondering what the story was here, but as she did, her eyes were drawn to the bones beneath her hooves. Shaking her head, she looked at the picture again, and studied it, before flipping it over to look at the back. There was writing on it, and it seemed the deceased pony had left a statement of some sort. Angel tugged on her, but she ignored him to read it.

This is the testament of Deep Theory

That was the first line at the top. It was written roughly, and the text seemed as if it were scrawled down in a hurry. The paper was covered with pockmarks, likely from spots of moisture laid upon it in the past. In parts it seemed to be covered with rust colored stains, but they did little to render the text more illegible. She continued.

I find myself in this darkening cave, and I am beginning to suspect that I cannot leave, and will not be able to find a way out. I find the darkness deepening, and my lantern seems to be growing more and more dim as the seconds tick on...

There was a break in the writing, after which it seemed to become even more rough and scratchy. Rainbow Dash briefly felt a chill run down her spine. She shook her head, and looked around. The lanterns light hung on the cave walls, illuminating the whole area with ease. She could even identify where it was she came from. She continued reading.

I am here, knowing that I have failed. I abandoned the only pony I ever shared kinship with, Orchid Sage, for this forest, and I am alone. I spent a long time denying that I hurt her, but I am left with no room to do so anymore. I cannot find the exit...

There was another break there, as if the pony had stopped writing for some time. Rainbow Dash felt heavy, as if the letters were weighing her down. She grimaced under the mental burden, but nevertheless looked back the note to read its final passage.

Now I know what is in this cave. It harbors a strange horde of creatures: magical constructions made of shadow and covered with needles. I had dubbed them Umbraspines in the recent past upon observing them for the first time. I can still feel the throes of pain from that wound they had inflicted upon me.

They are getting closer, and I feel my heart quickening. I’ve tried to move, and to find the way out, but the more I looked, the more I feared that there is truly no escape. Now I cannot move. My leg is stiff, and I can hardly think straight for the pain I feel. I knew what they were, and what they did to me... I knew how to stop it. But I made a mistake. They are watching me, and I cannot fight them any longer. They won.

Rainbow Dash finished reading the last line, and stayed there, looking at the words for a while. Angel tugged on her leg, but she found herself unable to respond. She could no longer see the walls; it was as if the room had gotten darker.

Slowly, realization dawned upon her. Then, a wave of emotion overcame her, and she fell down. She remembered the toy her father had given her that she had thrown away. She recalled a striking bouquet of flowers that she had abandoned by her bed side. She remembered a voice in the hallway of the hospital she was escaping.

Rainbow Dash saw, in her mind, her father, standing in front of her, covered with wounds, and surrounded by Timberwolves. That day, she had run away, and abandoned those who loved her. She looked around the cave, but she could see nothing but darkness, all around her. She trembled, and felt tears stream down the sides of her face, uncontrollably.

“I’m alone...” she said between sobs. “I am going to die here.” She breathed heavily, but she still felt winded, as if she were going to suffocate. The lantern’s remaining glow was dim; she could scarcely see her own hooves under its light. She struggled, and tried to get up, but her front leg felt stiff, and hurt far too badly. She fell, succumbing to the pain. Then, she felt a soft, gentle sensation on her leg, caressing her.

She turned her head toward it, remaining silent, and saw Angel, who stood out against the blackness. He glared at her for a moment, and she opened her mouth to speak. Before she could, however, he raised his paw and swiftly slapped her across the face.

Her head wobbled back and forth, but she jumped up with shock and landed on her hooves. She looked back to Angel, and he stood there, shaking his head, with his front paws crossed. At the sight of him she couldn’t help but chuckle, even as she went to rub the area he had struck.

“I-I’m sorry, Angel,” she choked out, her voice still trembling. “I forgot about you. At least you are here with me.” Angel shook his head quickly, and stomped the ground dramatically. She stared at him for a moment, and then said, “You think... we can get out of here?”

He smiled and nodded, hopping around her quickly, and pointing into the darkness. She sat there, unflinchingly, for some time, but eventually she got up and picked up the dimming lantern with her teeth. She smiled as best as she could with the obstruction in her mouth, and turned to Angel.

As they began to move, she began to see shadows moving around her, and forms of small creatures covered with dark spikes emerged around her. She gritted her teeth, and picked up her pace, following Angel as he hopped through the cave, taking a path around winding cave walls she couldn’t even see.

She recognized the creatures, as she had seen them in the forest, the night before. These ones, however, seemed to be much a part of the background. They closed in around them, but she managed to avoid coming in contact with their needles. Ahead of her, Angel seemed to be making strange clicking noises: the same ones that had been made by the creatures before.

Here, however, she noticed an eerie silence, and it wasn’t long before she saw that Angel stopped moving. He looked back at her, and there was panic on his face. She looked ahead, and observed that they were standing before the entrance to the cave. It was sealed off, however, by darkness and glaring red eyes; only a few spots of light poked through.

It was covered by the creatures, and as hard as Angel tried to part them by mimicking the clicking sounds the ones from the forest had made, they would not budge. They stood there, and the creatures seemed to close in around the entrance, covering it with an increasingly thick layer of shadows.

The dark forms came together, and made a creature of frightening appearance, and terrifying proportions. It seemed to be a mass of spindly legs and claws formed around a maw of great size, in which were a considerable amount of sharp spines. Not all the creatures joined this formation; she noticed they were still entirely surrounded.

She stepped back, but nearly fell into the spines of the swarm around her. Angel and she were ushered toward the massive creature, unable to escape. She yelped as it swiped a claw toward her, and swung the lantern at it. She felt a hissing sound as the creature backed away. It struck again, but she brandished the lantern, and the creature seemed to shrink away.

Angel was nearly frozen, unable to move, and shaking ever so slightly. She tapped him lightly, and nodded her head, and he stayed there. Then, as quickly as she could, she grabbed the lantern and smashed the glass around the flame open. For a moment it gleamed with a brilliant flame, but the darkness made it just as dim as before.

It swiped at her again, and she moved out of the way, feeling a slight ache in her leg. Angel stood right beside her, however, and she managed to avoid the claw. Then, she arched her head back, gripping the lantern tightly with her teeth, before tossing it with all the force she could muster directly at the creature that blocked the door.

She heard a screech, and the sound of flames, as she shielded her eyes from the sudden burst of heat and flame that came her way. Then, she turned back to the entrance, and gasped as light shined on her face. Right in front of her, a hole had been burned right through the mouth of the large creature. It was lined with flames, but large enough for a filly to fit through.

The Umbraspines, as the lost pony had called them, began to move toward the entrance at a fast rate, and she saw the hole slowly begin to close. Losing no time, she scooped up Angel with her teeth and began to run, taking off with a sudden and incredible burst of speed. She jumped into the hole, spinning slightly as she did so, and felt her wings being singed by the flame that lined the opening.

As she moved, she felt dim light upon her face, and opened up her eyes. She could see the forest, she could see the sky, and most importantly, she could see the sun. She felt like she was hanging there in the air for a long while, as Angel flailed around in her mouth, suspended in that one moment of escape.

Then, she hit the ground with a thud, though she instinctively rolled to soften the fall. She ended up laying on her side, with Angel next to her. He breathed heavily in and out, before slowly getting up, and dusting himself off. Then, he slowly turned to glare at her. She looked back, wondering what was bothering him.

Then she saw it. His fluffy tail, which had formerly been so pristine and clean, had been burnt by the flames as they escape. Angel sat there and pouted, but as she continued looking at him, she couldn’t help but burst into hearty laughter. Angel stopped glaring after a moment, and crossed his arms and seemed to frown, but she reached out and petted him.

“Hey buddy, cheer up,” she said, picking him up onto her back. “Nothing can stop us now.” She walked out into the forest nearby, feeling secure, if only because she had just escaped something so dangerous, and walked forward bravely and without a worry.

Angel soon was fully healed, and together they were able to go around the forest with little trouble. The bunny was very savvy about finding good hiding spots and food. Together, they were able to confront many of the forest’s hurdles with only moderate trouble.

Rainbow Dash and her companion never stopped moving. She knew that the further they went, the less familiar she would be with her surroundings, but she hoped that they could find somewhere that was more abundant and forgiving than this forest.

The first night after they escaped the cave, they were chased by Timberwolves. The beasts very nearly caught them, but Angel was able to find a place to hide. The day afterwards Rainbow Dash encountered another animal. It was a ferret, and it seemed to be almost possessed with fear. She approached it, but it soon ran away and disappeared into the underbrush.

Not even an hour later she heard a bloodcurdling roar echo throughout the forest. It was close, but not right near her, and as hard as she looked, she could not find anything around her. She looked at Angel, but he shrugged casually. Rainbow Dash slowly and cautiously walked to where the roar came from, and Angel grudgingly trailed behind her.

As she moved forward, she saw something peculiar ahead of her. She picked up her pace and ran to it, and saw a single apple on the ground, with a few bites taken out of it. She looked up, but there were no apples in the nearby trees.

The apple sat there, covered with a bit of dirt. It was fresh, as there was little browning or rot on the apple. She looked away, and into the nearby woods, but there were no animals in sight. She assumed there was an animal here before. She figured it must have run away after the loud roar just a few minutes earlier.

“I hope it got away,” said Rainbow Dash, looking back to the apple. Angel hopped up to it, and sniffed it, but he quickly recoiled. He held his nose shut and waved his front paws around in front of him. Rainbow Dash walked up to him, but he quickly began to hop away. She took one last look at the apple, and decided to leave it.

Even as she was walking away, she couldn’t help but to think about the apple, and whatever little critter had left it behind. She was embroiled in this thought when she heard a howl. Her ears perked up as she looked around, and suddenly her nostrils were filled with a fowl stench. Angel nervously looked ahead of them, and went to turn around, but he stopped.

The noise sounded close, but it was not in her vicinity. As she listened, she could tell it wasn’t heading toward her either. It was getting further away, and though she was in no danger, she couldn’t hold back fear. It wasn’t the kind of fear that makes a pony run away, however. Angel tugged on her in the opposite directions, but in just a moment, she was walking. Not away from the commotion, but towards it.

She heard resistance from Angel, but she kept moving, and began to run. It wasn’t long before she saw a Timberwolf with its back to her. It was standing in front of a fallen log, shoving its gnarled paw into a hollow within. Rainbow Dash hesitated, but she soon heard a small and soft cry from within the log.

Suddenly she felt a powerful surge of will and determination from within her, and she began to run toward the wolf with reckless abandon. It did not turn, its arcane gaze fixated on the log in front of it. She screamed as she approached it, and turned her body around, readying her back hooves. She kicked the Timberwolf’s leg with all the force she could muster and it broke off.

The wolf reeled back, and turned its gaze on her. It was fierce, predatory, and unfeeling, but she stood her ground and stared back at it. Their gazes were locked together, but she did not back down. After a moment, the wolf stepped back, with a strange grin about its mouth, and hobbled away. Rainbow Dash sighed in relief, and went to look in the hole in the log.

“Hey, little buddy, it’s okay,” she said, as she peered in. “You’re sa—” She stopped, a great chill running through her body. Her limbs trembled, and she found herself unable to continue speaking. Angel stepped up behind her, and tapped on her flank worriedly.
She slowly stepped back, and looked away from the hole. Her mouth was open, and her ears were drooping heavily. Angel looked up at her and squeaked, but she did not respond. Slowly, she trudged away, and leaned against a nearby tree. She fell into a daze, her mind reeling back and forth.

Minutes passed when she was jolted back into reality by a scream from Angel. She looked, and saw him right in front of her, pointing into the trees, and she quickly turned her head. There were many Timberwolves emerging from the trees, and the one at the head of the pack was missing a foreleg. Their wooden faces expressed little, but Rainbow Dash could see malice in them.

They stopped a short distance away for a moment. The head Timberwolf regained his missing leg; the pieces that were stuck in the log drifted to it by some unseen force. She grimaced upon looking at the foul claw, which was soiled with blood.

The beasts turned their gaze toward her and Angel, and seemed to relish in the fear they instilled. Then, without even a moment’s notice, they charged, roaring and growling fiercely. Rainbow Dash gasped, and quickly turned and grabbed Angel. She began to run as quickly as she could away from the large pack of Timberwolves.

They were right behind her, and running became harder the further they went. The roars, snarls, and snapping of wooden jaws filled her heart with trepidation, and she felt her body become heavier. Her leg soon began to ache, presumably under the strain of her running, and she could feel them getting closer to her. Rainbow Dash knew she needed something to get away from them, and fast.

Ahead of her she found precisely what she was looking for. Her ears were greeted by the rush of water, and she saw a large stream. She grunted as she braced her body for what she would have to do, and turned course directly toward the rushing water. Behind her, a claw barely missed her tail as the pack of monsters neared her.

“Hold on Angel,” she said, gritting her teeth and increasing her speed past its limit. The water was getting closer. Then, just as she began to jump, she heard Angel squeak fearfully. Suddenly, the dull ache in her right front leg flared, and her whole body was rocked with an immense tremor of pain. She winced as she tried to make the jump across the wide stream.

Then, before they could make it even halfway across the stream, she sank out of the air like a stone, the ill-preparedness of her jump taking its toll. Angel and Rainbow Dash fell into the rushing water, sinking below the surface and then back up. She felt her bones being chilled by the water as she gasped for air above the surface.

She saw the Timberwolves watching her from the bank, their eyes burning with malice, before she slammed into a rock, carried by the strong current. A writhing and distressed Angel was the last thing she saw before she slipped out of consciousness.

Rainbow Dash squinted into the darkness as she walked through the forest. She had trouble seeing, but she couldn’t tell whether it was day or night. Even though she was in the forest, she found she had no idea how she had gotten there. It was unclear.

She was alone. As she moved through the inexplicably dark forest, she found the stark lack of company was affecting her more. She grimaced as she felt a low branch tugging at her leg. Her leg seemed stuck, and it took a few pulls to loosen it. Pain shot through the limb, and she fell down, grasping her leg.

Then, as she was on the ground, she saw a fallen log just a short distance away. She couldn’t quite put a hoof on it, but it seemed familiar. Despite the pain in her leg, she quickly got up and began to walk toward it. As she approached it, a putrid odor enveloped her, and her body began to feel weak.

It seemed as if the world was shaking, but she couldn’t tell how or why. She wanted to stop, and run away, but she couldn’t. Her hooves kept moving, trudging through the weakness she felt as she neared her destination. Then she took one final step, in front of a hollow in the fallen log.

Inside was a mess of white fur, stained red. It had paws, and ears, and a soft, small mouth. All of its appendages hung limp, and in the center of its chest was a large, open wound. No blood flowed from it, however. As Rainbow Dash started at it, she found no activity, no life. There was no attitude, or pettiness. There was no love.

Rainbow Dash screamed as she woke up on the bank of a flowing stream. Her head ached heavily, and her body could scarcely move. Above her, the sky was painted orange, and the sun hung just above the horizon, beginning to rise. Though she was not moving, she found herself at a loss for breath, and clutched her chest.

She looked around, but there was no fallen log around her, nor was it dark in the forest. She also quickly found that Angel was nowhere to be seen. She was by herself, on the bank of a river, hardly able to move. As she thought about the situation, she began to remember how she had gotten there.

They had been chased, and she had tried to get away. She couldn’t, however. She fell into the river, and so had Angel. He was struggling: a small bunny caught in a current he couldn’t possibly fight. Rainbow Dash could only hope he had washed ashore somewhere downstream.

He had to be alive, she thought. She slowly pulled herself onto her hooves, looking down the river. She had to find Angel, he had to be somewhere, and she would force herself to keep on going until they were together again.

She thought of him, in the hollow of that fallen log, and stopped, clutching her head. It was as if she could not discern reality in a storm of worries. She saw tears drop off of her face, falling down to the forest floor. The drops of water were so small, but for a moment they seemed profoundly deep. She could see herself in the reflection, disheveled beyond recognition.

She stopped crying, unable to think about her own sadness. Her legs felt strong as she straightened them, and stretched her body. Rainbow Dash forced away her doubts, and her fears. Instead, she called back on her promise. She had vowed to herself, and to Angel, that she would keep him safe.

The stream was her only clue, and she thoughtlessly began to travel alongside it. The forest around the water was no less thick than anywhere else, so progress seemed slow, but Rainbow Dash would not give up. She kept on walking, for minutes, then hours.

She soon found that she was getting nowhere. The ground was cluttered, and obstructions were everywhere. She began to worry that even if she managed to come across Angel, a tree or log might obscure him from her view. The Pegasus rounded a bend in the river, and then stopped.

Angel could have been stranded anywhere. He could be directly downstream, or he could have moved far away from the river. She looked across the stream, to the miles and miles of forest on the other side. The scale of the woodland weighed heavily on her, and she found herself unable to grasp just how puny her chances were.

The forest was too big, and she had nearly no hints as to Angel’s location. There was simply too much ground for her to cover on hoof. She looked at her small legs, and frowned. They had carried her far: across streams, over logs, and away from all kinds of threats and dangers. The more she thought about it though, the smaller and weaker she seemed.

She was a Pegasus; born pure and proud. Her whole life before this ordeal had been dedicated to being the best flyer she could be. Now, she was grounded, and helpless. Her injured wing was bound. Moreover, her life before seemed a farce and a lie considering what she had been through; flying almost doomed her best friend, and her idols had abandoned the animals of the forest without a care.

Now, however, she came to the conclusion she had nothing else. Pegasi were built light and fast; they didn’t have the strength of Earth Ponies, or the magical prowess of Unicorns. On the ground, they could do little more than run. It was the wings that set them apart.

Even as she sat on the cold, hard ground, the sky called to her. She hated it, but it was where she belonged. Her wings had failed her, but they were all she had. The Wonderbolts had scorned her simple wish, but they were the only models she could ever look up to. They had failed to save the animals, and stopped Rainbow Dash from doing it herself.

This time, however, she couldn’t. Rainbow Dash grasped the binding on her wing with her teeth, and pulled on it with as much speed and strength as she could muster. She screamed as it unwound and fell off her wing quickly, and without finesse. It had been days, she knew. Her wing must have healed by now. She needed it to be, and so did Angel.

She sternly frowned as she did her usual pre-flight exercises and stretches, the actions having been molded into her body by years of practice. She folded her wings in, and then out again, ignoring the pain. The Pegasus took a few steps back, making sure there was ample space ahead of her.

She ran for a moment, and then tensed the muscles in her hindquarters. Her legs kicked the ground beneath her, and she jumped into the air. She unfolded her wings, and began to flap them. She floated in the air, moving forward, nearly achieving flight, but only to the extreme strain of her wing. Unable to maintain her exertion, she fell from the air, and onto the ground.

She moaned as she dusted herself off, but then she was back on her hooves. She stretched out her wings, causing a harsh crackling sound, but she ignored it. Rainbow Dash took a few steps back again, and focused on the sky above her. Her concentration intensified, and she took off again.

She cried out in pain as she slammed into one of the nearby trees, after she flew a few meters. Again, she fell down to the ground. Then, again she was backing up, focusing on the sky. She steeled her nerves, and readied her mind. However, as she took off once more, she found that her body was not ready.

Her right wing seized movement, unable to keep flapping due to its injuries. She spiraled out of control, and fell down, scraping into various branches as she descended. She hit the ground on her side, and rolled a short distance before settling into a full stop. She breathed haggardly and coughed as she lay there.

“No!” she yelled, pulling herself up once more. She couldn’t give up. Flying was her last resort. Failure was not an option. Angel was always so strong, and so confident. He wouldn’t let her down. She had to fight, not for own sake, but for his. She had no right to be weak.

She snorted and glared, looking up. In the sky, she could see everything, and traverse the forest with ease. It was her only option. With a stomp, she braced her body, and then took off. Just as she made her jump to enter the sky, however, her body was paradoxically rocked with both great numbness and incredible pain.

Her jump fell off course, and even as she unfolded her wings and attempted to stabilize herself, she lost control completely. She plummeted out of the air, and could only look on with panic as she noticed she was heading directly for the rushing water of the stream.

Unable to avert her course, or control her body at all, she fell into the water with a splash. The liquid felt like nothing other than a brick wall, and she found it difficult to maintain consciousness as she was submerged.

She was under the surface of the water, assaulted by the freezing temperatures, and overcome by pain throughout her body. Her front leg seemed to be the crux of the sensation, but by no means was the rest of her body spared. Her injured wing was stiff, and moved awkwardly.

She was an athlete, but her body was weak. She had trained for years, but now it was all for nothing. Nopony could match her devotion and willpower, but she could not reach her goals regardless. Something was wrong with her. The world wasn’t cruel; she just didn’t have a place in it.

Then she was thrust above the surface of the water by her own buoyancy. Her lungs took in a gulp of fresh air as she breathed in deeply by reflex. The stream carried her along, but she soon found herself thrust against a bank as it rounded a bend. She slowly crawled onto land, coughing and sputtering.

Rainbow Dash moved until she was on solid ground, and then collapsed. She pounded the ground with a hoof a few times, but soon found she didn’t even have the strength to continue. A few tears dropped from her eyes, and she winced and tried to stay strong. She could not, however, and soon her anguish exploded from her in full force.

Angel had trusted her. He had depended on her. She was supposed to keep him safe. That one task was all she had focused on, for the longest time. However, as hard as she tried, she was simply too weak to do it. Everything that she loved was hurt by her. Everything she tried she failed at.

The world was simply too heavy for her to bear. She had collapsed under its weight. It wasn’t because life was hard, or because it was unfair. It was because she couldn’t keep up. All of her goals and aspirations had passed her by.

As determined as she was to save Angel, she had been forced to learn that focus was only one step away from fear. Now that her concentration had been shaken, her mind was flooded with doubts. Her efforts had failed, and she was forced to come to terms with the fact that her mind was just as weak as her body.

It was this very fear that so profoundly flooded her body with pain. It overcame her, as if she were stuck with needles all over. She couldn’t explain it, and truly had no idea why or how it was happening to her. Even as she thought that, however, she remembered similar experiences. This condition had plagued her for quite some time.

Since she had run into the Umbraspines, she thought. Through her pain, she experienced a small moment of clarity. However, the truth gave her no relief. Those needles had seemed deadly, but it was now clear that they were poisonous as well.

She was stuck: banned from the sky, and unable to move even a step forward. Angel was lost, somewhere far away, and there was no chance she would find him. In addition, she had been struck with some potentially fatal ailment, and she hadn’t even known it.

After she had escaped from that cave, she had thought she had truly made it. However, she had never really escaped. She had no hope. Time began to pass, and Rainbow Dash could only lie there, unresponsive. Afternoon had come when she heard a rustle in the bushes.

For a moment she felt hope fill her, and she got up suddenly. Then a severe fetor wafted into her nostrils. Her heart sank as she saw a wooden paw poke through the bushes. She backed up as a group of Timberwolves emerged from the underbrush.

In that moment, she was forced to make a decision. She could run, or she could die. Though to her, the two choices seemed very much the same. Hope seemed so far away to her that she couldn’t fathom survival. Even despite that though, she couldn’t help but think of Angel.

For him, she would do anything. Even if it was hopeless, or harmful, she would not hesitate to try whatever she could. Angel was her only friend now, and that was something she couldn’t let go. The Timberwolves snarled at her, but she only turned away from them. Her legs felt weak, and her body was in pain, but she gritted her teeth and began to run.

With a series of growls and roars, the Timberwolves were running after her. Their sharp, wooden jaws snapped at her, and their claws ripped through the ground with every step they took. There was little she could do but try her hardest to run, but as they got closer, the possibility she might escape only got smaller.

She stumbled over a fallen branch, and then looked ahead of her. Her eyes widened, as she saw nowhere to go; a cliff stood over her, far too steep for her to scale. The Timberwolves were already behind her, and she saw no escape. She had only her hooves.

Rainbow Dash knew she could have made that distance easily if she could fly. For a true Pegasus, such a leap was paltry. She had tried flying, however. Her attempts had all ended in failure. The cliff was so tall she could never jump up to it. Gauging the distance, she knew would fall just short.

Then she remembered trying to fly. The Pegasus was far from true flight, but her wings had carried her. She thought, maybe, just maybe, that they might carry her far enough to reach the cliff. She stalled for a moment, but the Timberwolves were nearly upon her, and she knew she had no choice.

Angel was out there somewhere; she knew it. If she had even a chance, she would have to try. She narrowly avoided a strong wooden claw, and began to run towards the cliff. Then, with as much power as she could muster, she jumped and unfurled her wings. The edge of the cliff was just a short distance away from her.

She groaned as she flapped her wings as hard as she could, to the extreme resistance of every part of her body. The growls and savage roars of the Timberwolves below quickened her heart, but she closed her eyes and thought of Angel. Her wings carried her closer, until she was just close enough to grasp the edge.

The weight of her body finally overcame the power of her wings, and she felt herself lose momentum, and begin to drop. She screamed as she grabbed on to the edge, unable to heave herself upon it. She hung from the ledge, kicking at the sides, attempting to pull herself up.

Below her, the Timberwolves snarled at her, and scraped their claws against the bottom of the cliff. As she looked down, she could see anticipation in their arcane eyes. Her hold on the ledge was wearing thin; she would soon be their meal.

As her time was running out, she tried to pull herself up. No matter what kind of effort she put forth, her body was just too heavy. She began to slip, dust falling down as her hoofs scraped against the cliff’s side. She knew now that she was going to fall. Her last chance was gone.

She had nearly lost her hold when she felt a soft, but surprisingly strong, tug on her hoof. Her gaze quickly turned ahead of her, to the top of the cliff, and she saw a delicate white bunny pulling on her hoof as if his life depended on it. Her eyes widened, and she began to smile.

“Angel!” she cried out. He responded with a frantic squeak. Then she remembered she was about to fall off a cliff and into the sharp claws of fierce Timberwolves. She began to sweat. Her body was still heavy, but Angel’s efforts seemed to be keeping her from falling. He was trying his hardest; she wouldn’t let him down.

She pulled on the ledge with all the force she can muster. She kicked along the side, trying to scale it in any way she could. Even her wings were a part of the effort; she beat them rapidly, creating a small, but significant, amount of lift. The Timberwolves below howled at her, and snapped their jaws, but she looked away.

Today, she was going to survive. Not for herself, but for the bunny that saved her. Slowly, but surely, she heaved her weight up the cliff. Her legs were strained, and her wings hurt badly, but Angel was holding her tightly.

An enormous sense of relief came over her as she stepped onto the cliff. Angel fell back, panting due to the strain. Rainbow Dash stood there, watching him and breathing heavily for a moment, and then she suddenly leaped forward and hugged him tightly between her exhausted hooves. For a brief moment, Angel smiled too, but then he struggled out of her hold.

She looked at him with puzzlement, but in response he pointed to the cliff. She looked down, and saw the Timberwolves moving away, and heading in a different direction. It immediately occurred to her that they might be looking for another way up. This was a small victory, but they needed to get out of there, as fast as they could.

Angel squeaked at her, and then took off. She began to follow him, having few other options. The howls of the Timberwolves did not cease; in fact, they seemed to proliferate, echoing throughout the nearby forest from nearly all directions. Rainbow Dash looked around the nearby woodland, but she could not find anywhere to hide.

Her body was weary, and wounded. She knew that she would not be able to outrun them. As Angel lead them, she looked everywhere for someplace to hide. Just like the forest just a few nights before, however, there was nowhere. They were surrounded by tall trees that covered up the sky. There were no cliffs, holes, or thick bushes for them to retreat to.

She wanted to be secure, and to be safe, but she knew now the forest didn’t offer that. It was a place of true danger, which required strength and responsibility she could not possibly match. As much as she hated to admit it, her dream was broken. Now, she was just looking for a miracle.

A loud, blaring howl sounded near her, stopping her in her tracks. It was not an isolated noise; it was as if it came from all directions. It was the chorus of the Timberwolves’ hunt, synchronized in perfect form. She began to hear the rip and tear of the ground nearby, and the rustling of leaves. They were close: too close.

Angel was looking at her, in panic and impatience. She couldn’t see a way out, however. He waved his paw at her, but then she leaped on top of him, shielding him with her very body. She crouched low to the ground, and closed her eyes. He deserved to live, and she would do anything to give him that one last chance.

“I’ll protect you...” she said, as the noises approached. Angel squeaked loudly, and struggled. She tried her hardest to keep him still, but he managed to wriggle out of her grip. Her hair stood up, and her body began to experience the needlelike feeling that came to her with fear. Rainbow Dash took a step toward Angel, but he snarled, his eyes full of fury, and jumped on top of her.

He made a sound then, that was so loud, so full, and so commanding, she could scarcely resist. Then, he grabbed her by the ears, and kicked her in the side. As if by instinct, she began to run. Angel steered her by pulling on her head, and she complied. His grasp was gentle enough to not hurt her, but it had a sense of purpose in it she had long since lost.

As she was running, she whiffed the foul odor of Timberwolves. Then, from all around her, a pack of the beasts came within her sight range. There were too many for her to count: far more than she had seen any other day. They pursued her with blind ferocity and persistence. She could feel their intent, and knew that right now, their sole purpose was to catch her, and to kill her.

Angel, however, did not let her slow down, nor did he let her give up. He seemed to be staring ahead, his face transfixed on the direction they were heading toward. The Timberwolves were catching up quickly, and she knew she would not be able to move faster than them.

Despite the graveness of the situation, she felt no fear. Angel was guiding her, and she trusted him. It was do or die, and at that moment the concept of fear seemed so pointless, so unnecessary, that she discarded it altogether.

She felt them right behind her, just when Angel squeaked in excitement, and she peered ahead. They were heading towards a distant light, which so heavily contrasted with the dark forest. Angel gripped her head, and pointed forward.

Rainbow Dash did the only thing she could. With a possible salvation ahead, she threw away caution and restraint, and pushed her body to its limit. Without fear, she felt no pain. If Angel was right about where they were headed, then she could save him. She could even save herself, a concept that had formerly been so unlikely she hadn’t considered it.

The light was hope, and she dashed towards it with everything she had. She felt her muscles strain, and wounds open. Her bones creaked, and her tendons were on the brink of snapping altogether. As she headed forward, however, none of that mattered. Her body could fall apart, but she would deliver them no matter what.

The light was right before her, and just as a Timberwolf missed snapping at her flank by a narrow margin, she broke through. It didn’t take her long to see what the light was, and why it shone so brightly.

They had entered a green pasture, crossed with a stream of medium size. Some small trees were scattered throughout, but only sparsely. Most importantly, however, there was a tall cottage in the center of the area, which was covered with greenery and birdhouses. The forest stood tall behind them, but now she could feel powerful sunshine upon her face.

She ran a short distance further, and got to a bridge over the stream. Unable to move any further, she collapsed. She prepared for the worst, and looked back to the forest. However, the Timberwolves had not left it. Instead, they stood at the edge, watching her with furious intensity.

Though she couldn’t place it, she had a feeling that they were angry. Angry that they could not reach her, and that she had escaped from their domain. They were angry that they had lost. Still, she knew the forest was still there, and it was expansive. It was a place where monsters roamed, and where hope lie only outside its boundaries.

The Timberwolves still ruled it, and she knew she could never reside in there again; the forest was nopony’s territory. She knew that now. However, looking at her side, she saw Angel, lying beside her, breathing heavily as he stared into the depths of the forest. He was alive. The forest had given them no mercy, but she had liberated him.

“Angel...” she said, patting him on the back. “We did it.” He turned to her and smiled widely, his face glowing. It was a sensation she had never before seen, and she began to temble. Before she knew it, tears were streaming out of her eyes uncontrollably. Angel patted her softly, and his eyes were inquisitive. “No, it’s not that,” she said reassuringly. “I’m just so... happy.”

She had learned a lot in the past few days. She had learned of the aggressiveness of nature. She had learned how dangerous the dark was, and how inhospitable the forest was. She had reached her limits, and nearly died trying to overcome them. The truth was simple. That forest would never be safe, and it would never be conquered.

Rainbow Dash knew she had to give or take her blessings as they were handed to her. The Everfree forest was not her home, and she knew that now. At that moment, however, she began to feel lost. She had a goal. Now that she had lost it, she was left with nothing but her life and Angel’s. She turned around.

There was the cottage, standing there, idly. It was rather secluded, but she could tell that there must have been a settlement nearby. She walked up to the door, and knocked on it, but received no reply. Then she walked in, unhindered by any locks or barricades.

The inside was rather empty. There were some minor furnishings, and a desk area in a corner, and a sleeping area upstairs. Dust had settled on the tables and objects, and it was clear the place hadn’t been inhabited for a long time. It was stocked with quite a bit of food, however. There were also a variety of other supplies present, and types of equipment she didn’t understand.

She walked to the desk, which was covered with papers filled with jargon she couldn’t comprehend. Then, she saw a picture, unframed and facing down. She picked it up to look at it, and gasped. There were two ponies in the picture; the same ones from the picture she had found in the cave.

It was all clear to her then. The place was uninhabited because its former owner had died. He was a victim of the Everfree forest. A surge of pity hit her, and she spent a few moments in sorrow. The cottage remained uninhabited, however. Angel sat down in a corner, watching her as she explored the place.

They were both safe in here. There was ample food, and it was a large and comfortable place. She knew the previous owner had died, but this place seemed very convenient. It was a sanctuary offered to them. They had marched out of the forest, only to be greeted by a greater hope.

She had long searched for her purpose. At first, she had thought she would become the greatest flyer there ever was. Then, she had aspired to be a guardian of the forest animals. She had given up that goal to survive. Her desire, and her ambition, was still strong, however. Angel was sitting there, safe and sound.

These walls protected them. They would give them the resources and supplies to continue living. It was a blessing with a value she could not deny. She realized that she wanted to share this gift, and spread her happiness anywhere she could.

There were still animals in the Everfree forest. It was an unnatural place, full of abominations. For their sake, she had to liberate them. She could bring them here, and keep them in the cottage. They could be safe.

She looked out the window, and noticed the Timberwolves had left. They were out to butcher more innocent creatures, no doubt. She wouldn’t let them, however. Too many had died in that forest for her to accept. Even if she had to risk her life, she couldn’t let it be. Just like Angel, they would all be safe.

“I can’t let them die anymore,” she said to Angel. He looked up at her, confused. She turned away, however, to look at the forest once more. In truth, her goal had never been discarded. She convinced herself of that. “I’ll take care of them. No matter what.” She said it with resolution, and Angel stared at her, wide eyed.

He was looking at her flank. She turned her head, and noticed it was glowing, and that upon it were three butterflies. They were delicate, but beautiful. She gazed at them in awe, and realized she had found her destiny. This was where she was supposed to be.

It was as if a huge weight had lifted off of her; like she no longer had to be afraid. The fear that she had faced in the darkness of the forest, and at the mercy of its beasts, had been lifted from her. In realization, she looked at the right leg on the front side of her body. It was looking as perfect as ever. The pain she had felt before had been banished completely.

She smiled. The world was tough, and she would never conquer it. What she had found in the cottage, however, was a sanctuary. It was one that would stand to protect all the animals she could save from that place. The world was harsh and unforgiving, and it was also very beautiful.

Angel looked at her, but she only pet him softly. She was so glad he would never be at risk again. Now, she only had to do the same for more animals like him.

Rainbow Dash looked around her cottage with something resembling pride as she finished her story. Her silence was filled with the sounds of all kinds of animals, keeping the area from ever reaching true quietness. The three crusaders stood on the couch, somewhat shocked, and nearly exhausted from the length and depth of her story.

Scootaloo saw a small blue bird flying around overhead, and out of reach. Rainbow Dash was looking at it too, and then she quickly jumped into the air, using a small stool as a step, and grabbed the bird. She put it into a cage near the corner, next to many other cages. As she shut the door, Scootaloo heard the bird cry out, and glare at the birds nearby.

Rainbow Dash turned back to the fillies, and said, “I’ve rescued all these critters from the Everfree forest, since that day.” Sweetie Belle and Applebloom nodded slowly, but Scootaloo beamed, and eyed the older Pegasus’ dwelling with admiration.

She heard Applebloom mutter something about the animals living conditions, but passed it off. She noticed that Rainbow Dash’s wing was rather crooked and deformed, even as the mare went about her activities with the kind of step that a flyer can’t maintain. She was grounded, and formidable in her movement.

“So...” started Sweetie Belle, looking confused, and touching her lip, “is running away from home the only way to get a Cutie Mark?” Rainbow Dash looked shocked, and the other crusaders eyed her inquisitively. “Well, it’s just that... Pinkamena said she ran away from home, and so did you, Rainbow Dash.”

Applebloom and Scootaloo wondered for a moment, but then nodded in consent. Rainbow Dash looked puzzled, as if she were trying to solve a difficult problem. She brushed the ground with her hoof for a few moments, before nodding slowly.

“Well, it’s not the right thing for everypony,” she said, smiling at the Crusaders. “And Pinkamena didn’t exactly have a choice... Anyway, maybe you should ask some other ponies about their cutie marks. I’m sure my friends have interesting stories to tell.” Then the Crusaders remembered Rarity, and their desire to get to the bottom of her strange Cutie Mark.

“We should find Rarity,” said Sweetie Belle. The other two nodded, but then Applebloom came forward, and looked up at Rainbow Dash.

“What about Angel, your bunny?” she asked. “Is he still here?” Rainbow Dash looked at her for a second, and then nodded with a smile. She walked behind a pile of cages, and came back with one, held in her mouth.
Inside the cage was a large bunny, his fur stained brown, though spots of white shone through. Though bunnies are usually lean and nimble, this one was covered with reserves of thick fat, and had the look of a bunched up pile of furs if one didn’t notice the face.

He seemed to be sleeping, and lay there limp, completely inactive. The three fillies stared at him, but he didn’t respond. The only real indications that he was even alive were the slow, but steady, pulsing of his body, and the faint sound of his breathing. Rainbow Dash opened the door to his cage, and pet him softly.

“Wake up Angel, some little ponies wanted to see you,” she said, smiling widely. An eye opened, quickly followed by another, and he lazily glanced at the Crusaders. Then, without a sound or even a nod, he went back to sleep. Rainbow Dash put his cage back where she got it, and then returned. When she got back, however, the Crusaders had already left.

As they walked down the path, away from the cottage, a grim look accompanied the faces of Applebloom and Sweetie Belle. Scootaloo, meanwhile, was running down the road, and beckoned her friends to hurry up, bypassing her parked scooter.

“Hey Scootaloo,” said Applebloom, “Aren’t you going to take your scooter?” Scootaloo stopped and turned back for a moment, but then shook her head.

“A real Pegasus puts her own four hooves on the ground!” shouted Scootaloo. “That’s what being cool is really all about! Now come on, let’s find Rarity!” She began to run down the path, forcing the others to hurry in order to catch up. They exchanged glances, and shared the same unsettled feeling.

The sun still rose in the sky, and as they went to search for Rarity, they all felt the same sort of excitement. Not an upfront, bubbly enthusiasm like that donned by Scootaloo, but a more subtle feeling. Even as Rainbow Dash’s cottage stood behind them, they had a feeling that the day was just beginning.

Author's Note

Again sorry for the delay. Rainbow Dash is finally complete though! Feel free to give your final thoughts on her cutie mark story in the comments.

Look forward to the next cutie mark story! It'll be a lot shorter next time...

Chapter 1: Chasing Cutie Marks

The Cutie Mark Crusaders are tied to harnesses at the canopy of a tree, ready to try out their latest scheme in their eternal quest: Ziplining. Sweetie Belle speaks a few words of hesitation, but the rowdy Scootaloo would have no such thing, and pulls the trio off the ledge and into the action. Soon, however, the three stop short of their goal, suspended in midair. They panic and scream as the rope begins to tear and break.

The Crusaders are dropped into the forest below. They bounce off various tree branches which break their fall, but hurt no less for it. Applebloom glances at Scootaloo.

“See anything?” asks the young earth pony. Scootaloo turns her head toward her flank and sticks her hoof in the tree sap that has covered it.

“Tree sap and pine needles, but no cutie mark,” she says, dejected.

“Plan B?” asks Sweetie Belle, with a sheepish grin. Scootaloo turns toward her and smiles devilishly.

“Yeah. You know where we can find a cannon at this hour?” In response, the other two flash quick expressions of panic. Scootaloo frowns and throws off her helmet. “It’s no use! No matter what we try, we always end up without our cutie marks. And, surprisingly often, covered in tree sap.”

Sweetie Belle brushes some pine needles off her coat and says, “Maybe we can try something less dangerous. Like pillow testing, or flower sniffing.” Applebloom passes out some buckets of water and towels to the others.

“This town is full of ponies who have their cutie marks,” she says, dipping her head in water and brushing herself off with a towel. “Why don’t we ask them how they did it?”

“That’s a great, safe idea,” says Sweetie Belle with excitement plastered on her face. Then, suddenly, the clouds above move wildly into a plaid pattern and shower the Crusaders with rain. It quickly passes them and drenches another location. Scootaloo shakes her mane out and grimaces at Sweetie Belle.

“Looks like your sister is messing with the weather again,” she says, referring to the town’s weather pony, Rarity. “You’d think the first Unicorn Weatherpony would be a little better at her job.” Sweetie Belle frowns and looks at the clouds, now arranged in a checker board design.

“She does her best,” reasons the little unicorn. “She just has a few quirks.” Sweetie Belle laughs nervously. Scootaloo shrugs and prods at the ground.

“I wonder how she got her cutie mark,” the pegasus asks. “I mean, a unicorn prodigy that could control the weather as a filly?”

“Yeah!” exclaims Applebloom. “And we can ask my big sis too!” The others give her a strange look.

“Pinkamena always seems a little, you know…” starts Sweetie Belle, trailing off nervously.

“Miserable,” finishes Scootaloo, with a nod of her head. Applebloom stomps in the dirt and glares at the two.

“Don’t talk about Apple Pie like that, she’s the best sister anypony could ask for!” says Applebloom, with a snort of her nostrils. Her friends grin and avert their gazes. “I mean, she isn’t as strong as most earth ponies, so she has a little trouble with the work, but…” She trails off and frowns.

“Sorry, Applebloom,” says Scootaloo, with a genuine look in her friend’s direction.

“Yeah, we know how important she is to you,” says Sweetie Belle, with a smile. Applebloom smiles back and hugs her friends, entrapping a reluctant Scootaloo in the embrace. A black cloud wizzes by and washes the three with heavy rain before continuing on, knocking them off their hooves and onto the ground. The Crusaders groan loudly.

As they get back up and brush themselves off from the water again, their discomfort quickly turns to curiosity once more. The Crusaders all think of the local weatherpony and what could have led her down this path.

“Let’s find Rarity!” Scootaloo exclaims.

“Yeah!” say the other two in unison.

Author's Note

Writer: http://www.fimfiction.net/user/Idiosyncreation
Editor: http://www.fimfiction.net/user/WritingDragonfly (check out his fic about scales)
Creator and guy who came up with 65% of the plot: Me