Jerry looked at the pony in the cage before him with an onslaught of pity. There was a sadness in Rainbow Dash's magenta eyes that was so out of place; but even more imminent was the fear that he saw in her. The worst part is, he couldn't blame her.
He had just stood there, the day before when she was being beaten for the amusement for his cousin. Yeah, Steve was high as fuck, but that was no excuse for hurting an innocent pony! Or for just standing around and letting it happen, he thought to himself, his shame burning deep inside.
Jerry wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, but he knew that a place to stay and an apple pop tart weren't going to be enough to make Rainbow Dash trust him. In her shoes, he wouldn't be so convinced either.
“Well.” He cleared his throat a little in an attempt to break the thick silence. “Is there anything that you want to eat? Carrots, chocolate? I'm pretty sure I have some Twinkies, somewhere, so if you're in the mood for--”
“I'm in the mood to get the hay out of here!”
She said it so full of anger and frustration, and it hurt him to see his hero like this. Every time he had envisioned his first conversation with Rainbow Dash the pony, he never imagined it would be in these circumstances.
“How...” he started, avoiding the sadness of her eyes, “How did you get here? I mean, it's impossible. Equestria is--”
“What do you know of Equestria?” Her ears perked up at the mention of her home world and eyes went wide.
“W-well, it's on the HUB channel, and, well, I don't really watch it EVERY day, just from time to time and it's actually quite enjoyable, and, you see, well, I just...” He sighed, the nerves overwhelming. “It's hard to explain. The point is, there's absolutely no reasonable explanation for you being in the middle of freaking Detroit.”
“Detroit? Is that what this world is called?”
“Well, no... That's just this city. I'm well, I'm not really good at this type of thing... My name is Jerry, and I-”
“I know who YOU are! How about you tell me what I'm doing here?!”
“I was kind of hoping to get answers from you, Rainbow.”
“Are you kidding me?” Rainbow's voice was full of anger. “Why should I tell you anything? You kidnap me against my will, lock me in a stupid cage! Oh yeah, not to mention beating the hay out of me!”
“Hey, I'm the one who just saved you! And that wasn't me, it was my cousin! I didn't lay a hand on you!”
“Hand? What's a-- never mind. Maybe not, but you weren't exactly rushing to my rescue!”
Jerry looked down. This wasn't going to be easy.
“Rainbow Dash, I'm so--”
“And that's ANOTHER thing! How is it that every other one of you things in Detroy, or whatever the hay it's called, knows my name?”
“Because you're on T.V!” Jerry smiled a bit at the pony's bewilderment to all the recognition she's gotten. “You're actually even more famous now that you were on the evening news. Every brony from here to Ann Arbor is looking for you!”
“Brony? Is that what they call you ugly things?”
The remark made Jerry feel a bit insulted, put he put it aside. “No. Well, yes. Well, I am, at least-- but not really. I mean, I'm not THAT deep in it, but I kind of am... well, either way, we're humans.”
“I see. And are all humans this bad at answering questions, or just you?”
“Come on Rainbow! I know as little of what's going on as you do!”
“Will you stop calling me that?”
“That's your name, isn't it?”
“Yeah, but that doesn't mean you should know it! Just... just let me out of here, will you?”
He hesitated. “No. Y-you can't go out there.”
“So you're just going to keep me locked up here like a prisoner?”
“You're not my prisoner, Rainbow Dash. You're a guest. And this is my way of saying I'm sorry!”
“The cold metal cage is a nice touch!” she shouted incredulously. “What's next? An embroidered pillow that spells out 'Jail, sweet jail'?”
“Hey! I fixed your wing! The least you could do is be a little thankful!”
“You fixed my-- you.... huh?” She watched him grab a mirror off a desk and hold it up in front of her. What Rainbow Dash saw shocked her.
Her wing was put back in place in a splint against her side. She had barely noticed it before, but the pain wasn't nearly as intense. In fact, unless she tried moving, it didn't hurt at all. It was all patched up with a thin piece of wood and a neck scarf.
“It was messed up pretty bad.” he muttered. “But it should be fine in a month and a half. I... well, I used to have a pigeon, and pegasi wings aren't actually all that different, and...” His voice stammered on into silence before he cleared his throat. “Listen,” he finally whispered in a small voice. “I know that when you got here, I wasn't exactly ready with a welcoming committee. And I'm sorry. I'm sorry I let Steve hurt you. I'm sorry that you had to go through all that. And I'm sorry about the cage. I just, didn't want you running off again. Because, well, they're after you, Rainbow. And if you go out there, you really will be a prisoner.”
Rainbow Dash couldn't trust him. Not after what had happened. But if he was telling the truth, and these humans actually were after her, it didn't seem as though she had much of a choice. She looked in the mirror at her wing. This human, or whatever he was, had given her back her life. It never would have healed otherwise, but now.... The least she could do was give him a chance.
“Okay.” She nibbled suspiciously on the pop tart in front of her. It sure wasn't an apple pie, but it was better than nothing, and she had to admit, a diet of nothing was pretty awful. Her stomached gargled painfully on the moldy bread from earlier.
“Wow.” It escaped his lips before he could think, and there was a hint of amazement in his voice.
“What?” Rainbow looked at him, confused. “You act like you've never seen somepony eat before.”
“Well,” Jerry grinned, “I haven't. Not like you anyways. Ponies here don't have wings. Or talk. And they're not as.. well... blue.”
“Ponies don't talk here?”
“No.”
“How about the cows?”
“Nope.”
“Dragons?”
“We don't even have dragons.”
He giggled at her bewildered expression. I guess she doesn't really get out of Equestria much, he thought. “Actually”, he added out loud, “You're the first pegasus I've ever met. It's a shame you can't fly. I mean, for the last couple of years, all I've wanted to see is a Sonic Rainboom.”
She gasped with a smile. “You know about that?!”
“Are you kidding me?” he grinned. “Best episode ever! You were incredible!”
The term was new to her, but she was more flattered than confused. “Thanks! Hey, do you guys have milk in this world?”
He laughed a little. “Yes, Rainbow Dash. Would you like me to grab you a glass?”
“Yep, and get to it.” She laughed and lay back against the floor of the cage, hooves behind her head.
He laughed and headed downstairs, out of his room, never feeling so happy or excited than he was now. For the first time in his life, he felt like he was doing the right thing.