A small filly sat under a tree, up high on one of the hilly areas of Ponyville. She was an off white, like a cloud picking up some colour from the blue sky. Her short mane and tail had an array of colours, and she looked much like another well known Pegasus. On her wings, she had them bound in gauze and splints. They had been broken many times, and after so many harsh words from other fillies and colts, and so many failed attempts, she believed she would never fly again.
So she sat here, as high as she thought she would ever get again on her own, crying to herself.
A sound of something cutting through the air, rocketed toward her, but she paid little mind too it. After a short moment, a thud of four hooves planting down on solid Equestria, and a snort of disapproval, made the little broken filly turn her ear to the direction.
"What are you doing?" Came the voice she knew very well, one of a pony who did not like to waste time, and words. "Why are you still wearing those?"
She did not look, she did not need too, she knew the blue Pegasus, with a mane like her own, but so much brighter, with the six radiant colours of the rainbow. "Be...cause..."
The mare moved to her quickly. "Don't be stupid Cloud Chaser, you've been in those for way too long, the doc said you'd be fine like a week ago"
"Whys it matter? I can't fly again..." Her voice was crackling with pain of the thought, something she was born for, was taken from her.
The other had little patients for this. "Stop being such a cry filly!" She put a hoof on her back, and pinned her, as she used her mouth to start taking off the bandages. All the time, the littler Pegasus crying out for her to stop. "Dash no!"
After a moment, the mare was done, and stepped back a little bit, as the filly sat up again, wings limp at her sides. She looked now with a mixture of annoyance, to her sorrow.
"Common, fly!"
"I can't" She snapped, anger getting better of her.
Rainbow Dash stomped her hoof. "Yes you can! No sister of mine, can't fly, now work those wings!"
Halfheartedly, she lifted her wings, and made slow flapping moments. With much less harshness, Dash asked. "You feel any pain?"
"A little stiff..." She said flatly.
"Then keep at it till they ain't!"
Rainbow Dash was a harsh teacher, she was always for the quickest way to get things done, even if it was not always right. But after a few moments, the Cloud Chaser did feel it was easier to move them.
"Ok? Time to fly, get in the air"
"But?"
"Gonna buck yours, common!"
She tried, she did give it her best, but she was so down by the whole thing, she could not get herself to flap hard enough to even hover. She tried a few times more, but after reality that all the flapping was for show, she started to get teary eyed again, and laid to the grass again. "I...can't do it..."
"For Celestia sake..." Dash muttered. She moved in, and grabbed her by the back of her neck, with her mouth.
"Ow, Dash that hurts!"
She was a bit muffled, with the filly in her way. "Then, you bedder fwap, cause we are gedding you in da air"
Panicked, Cloud Chase flapped harder than she could ever recall having done. Soon Dash was into the air, with her little sister in her mouth, flapping for dear life.
"Once you ged some air, you'll be fine. Now," She began her instruction. "I'm nod going do do anyfang more, dhan follow your lead. You fly around, and I'll guide you"
The little Pegasus took it in, and nodded, best she could with her neck a bit bunched. She did her best, and started to flap around, flying like she was doing it, for the briefest moment, she forgot she was not. All the fears, and pains were rushing a way like the wing through her mane.
"Can we go higher?" she was starting to enjoy herself now.
"Up to you kiddo, said you are doing this, not me" Dash said, and she nodded, and started to fly higher.
"There, you are doing it!" She noticed something. Her neck did not hurt, and she also noticed her sister's voice was not muffled. With a cautious glance, she looked to see the other around her, when she saw she was not, she panicked, and started to fall. "Dash, you let go of me!" She cried out, feeling betrayed.
"You foal, you were flying! Now doing it, you don't need me!"
She tried, but she was feeling so confused, and scared by the sudden rushing of air as she plummeted to the ground, she could not bring herself to alight and fly. "Dash?!"
"DO IT!" The other stayed away, waiting for her to fix her own problem, but as she neared hard Equestria, she grow a bit more worried, hidden by frustration. "Darn it..."
She could not see past her tears, but the blurry image of the ground was getting bigger, and she nearly felt she was done for. A sound like the sky shattering, echoed through out the land, and in a bright flash of colours, and a sudden rush in a new direction, Cloud Chaser was no longer falling, but on the back of a pony rocketing through the sky leaving a wave of rainbow colours behind her.
After the quick save, Dash landed back by that tree, and Cloud got off, and stood there shaking and crying. "R...Ray Ray, I'm sorry..."
"What ever..." She took a few trots, and laid down by the tree, looking very mad. It was getting late, and she did not seem like she wanted to return home.
"Are... we not going back to the cloud?" the filly came around too get her in sight, but the older mare looked away.
"No, can't fly, you roll out of bed, might fall" she said harshly, and grumpy.
Cloud Chase lowered her ears, and looked a way, moving a bit a way and laid down. She could tell her sister was disappointed, and now she feared she lost her flight, and her sister.
***
The night came, and Dash was asleep, but Cloud could not. She laid there for so long, worrying about her future. "What is there, for a Pegasus who can't fly?" She sniffled, and lifted her head up, taking a glance at the blue mare. "What would such an awesome flyer, want with a grounded pony?" She could feel her tears building, but something pushed them down, and with a determined blink, she stood up. "No!" She shouted in her head. "I'm not gonna loose everything, I was flying, for a bit"
She looked around, they were as high as they could get, but the trees offered some more height. So she quickly climbed one, and started to jump from the lower branches. After a couple falls, she started to manage to glide down. It was a start.
She heard Dash mumble something in her sleep, but she could not make it out. She went on, getting higher in the tree, and trying and trying, glide down from higher and higher, trying to find the height she could use to get enough air to fly.
She was up on a massive tree, it was a bit away from where Dash was sleeping, but she did not care, she needed all the air should could get to try and fly.
She did not bother with working her way up, she went right to the top, and after a brief moment of courage gathering, she leaped from the tree. She flapped hard, trying to get her now sore wings, to get the air just right, using those feathers and well designed limbs, to do what they were meant for.
She was quickly reaching the point where she would have to abandon the flapping, for a glide, or she would find a very bad fall awaiting her, she pushed as hard as she could, and with a fluid motion, she lifted up. She was so excited, she nearly forgot to keep it up, but she did it again, and again, till she was fully flying.
Her voice echoed, as she laughed, and cried out in happiness of being able to fly again. She shot through the air, not like Dash could, but not bad for a filly who never thought she would be able too again.
Cloud had a legacy of show offs, and stunt ponies in her, and so she went right into some of her tricks, doing some rolls, and moves she has seen Dash do.
After a while of playing, she was tired, but did not want to leave the sky, she was again a cloud in it's home. The bright moon shined on her, and she just hovered there, looking out at Ponyville, and the endless sky she was now able to claim as hers.
"Having fun?" The voice caused her to loose all her focus, and she started to fall, till she was suddenly stopped. "Don't have a relapse" Dash said, with a laugh in her voice.
Cloud rode on her sisters back, as they flew toward home. She was very tired now, and even though she wanted to, she could not get the energy to fly. First her mind, now her body. At least it was no longer permanent.
"I'm sorry Rainbow Dash, that I couldn't do it before... I know you were disappointed in me..."
"What?" Dash stuck her tongue out, making a rude noise. "Disappointed in you? No, I was just... upset" Dash's voice trailed a bit.
"Upset?"
"Yeah, I knew you could, your my sister after all! I was upset that you were so hurt by everything, you had no confidence. I was disappointed in myself, for not doing a better job at protecting you"
She paused a moment, her next few words sound like they came from somepony else. For none had ever heard the quick moving, uncaring Pegasus, bare her heart. “After the horrible fire, I lost so much... I thought you were one of those. By the time I found you, with bound up wings, and no spirit... I thought maybe I did loose you” Her voice was filled with pain, and truth.
She turned her head a bit, too look at her. "I Love you kid, and I can do anything, but bare the sight of you so badly hurt... sorry I was so rough, I'm not very good at using a gentle hoof. I just figured you needed a harsh push, to beat what every happened to you"
Cloud Chaser's eyes were warm with tears, at this point, she was surprised she had any left, surprised more when she saw them in her sister's eyes too. She held tight to her. "I love you too big sister! I needed it. The fear of having you upset with me, was what pushed aside the other pains"
“I am sorry I had to do it..." Rainbow Dash smiled after a couple moments, when she knew Cloud was not mad or upset at her. She looked forward. "Hey, let's not tell any pony about how hard I was on you... you know who will buck my flank if she found out" She laughed nervously.
Cloud laughed, and nodded.
The two sisters went to the cloud made home, and after a long day, the two sisters were closer than ever.
-The End-