Rainbow Dash was not happy. She had no reason to be happy. Thanks to her stupidity, she had not only made enemies with Princess Celestia but also lost all her friends in the process. She sighed as she walked through the busy crowd of the market, not noticing how everypony was staring at her like she wanted somepony to perform euthanasia on her.
Her mane was a complete mess thanks to not taking care of it in over a week. Though she never really looked after her mane, it was never as disheveled as it was now. Her own coat was dirty thanks to not bathing and her eyes were as red as blood itself, thanks a lack of sleep and a rare act of crying.
She was so lost in thought of last week’s event that she didn’t realize she bumped into somepony. “Sorry.” She mumbled before trying to move on, but was stopped by a white hoof belonging to a friend of hers.
“Rainbow Dash! Is that you?”
The same pegasus’ ears perked when she heard who was addressing her, and she looked over her shoulder to see a concerned Rarity looking at her with dilated eyes.
“Rainbow!” She began speaking, turning her friend’s body to face hers. “What happened to you!?”
“It’s nothing, really…” Rainbow trailed off as she tried to sound convincing, but that obviously failed.
Rarity shook her head sharply, narrowing her eyes. “You’re not a very good liar darling,” she said as she started pulling on her friend’s hoof. “Come with me, we are going to the one place that helps any lady…” She looked back at Rainbow’s confused face with a bright smile. “The Spa!”
“Yay…” Rainbow rolled her eyes in annoyance, but she didn’t pull back from her friend’s grasp. She didn’t care.
Meanwhile, three little fillies and a baby dragon were looking at the two mares from a distance. One of the fillies looked absolutely wistful seeing her role-model in such a bad condition.
“I’m sorry Rainbow Dash…”
The Ponyville Spa was not extravagant by any means. In fact, compared with even the most basic spas found in Canterlot, it was rather plain. Yet, there was a simple charm to the rustic spa, that gave it a life all its own. The Blossom sisters, Aloe and Lotus, along with their small staff did their best to make the business as pleasant and comfortable as possible. Thanks to their efforts, the spa flourished amongst the residents there.
A few residents in particular were extremely fond of the sister’s spa. None however were quite as enthusiastic about it than the local fashionista Rarity. Both Aloe and Lotus knew her extremely well, as she made a point to come in at least once a week, though in actuality, it was probably closer to two or three times a week. As such, when Rarity came trotting into the spa outside of her regularly scheduled appointment, the two sisters were not in the least bit surprised.
However, the pony that followed her in afterwards was quite a shock. Aloe could probably have counted on all hooves how many times Rainbow Dash had visited the spa. She had made it very well know that she did not consider visiting the spa to be a worthwhile venture. So, when she did actually agree to come in, Aloe and Lotus knew that it was an emergency.
They immediately set to work, preparing the best and most comfortable treatments for the depressed mare. However, nothing that they did seemed to have any sort of effect on her. She sat in silence, listening to Rarity ramble on about something while they sat in the sauna. She didn’t complain as Lotus brushed the knots out of her mane. In fact, she didn’t even complain when Aloe gave her a hooficure. Throughout the entire thing, she simply sat in silence with her eyes down the entire time.
Rarity was not oblivious to this fact. The entire time the pair were being pampered, she kept trying to say things to bring Rainbow out of her shell, but nothing seemed to work. Despite her best efforts, the best that she could get out of her was a couple of grunts and muttered phrases.
Still, Rarity had hoped that something would help Rainbow to relax a bit. Of all the things at the spa, the only thing Rainbow did not completely hate was getting a massage. As such, Rarity kept a close eye on her during the entire time, looking for some change in her friend’s attitude. Unfortunately, not even that was enough to cure Rainbow of her blues.
Rarity sighed. It was clear she was going to have to take a more direct approach to the matter. Giving the signal to the Blossom sisters, the two exited the small room, leaving the two all alone.
“Alright Rainbow Dash,” Rarity said folding her hooves and sitting up straight. “What exactly is the problem?”
Rainbow turned her head away and sighed. “I told you already. It’s nothing.”
“I’m afraid that I don’t believe that dear,” Rarity answered with a smile. “For starters, you somehow managed to get that mess you call a mane even more dirty than normal. Then, you accepted my offer to go to the spa without even trying to argue the point. Why, you even let somepony touch your hooves, and I know how much you hate that. So, please, why don’t you tell me exactly what’s wrong?”
“Fine!” Rainbow flayed her hooves in the air, submitting defeat to the unicorn. “You wanna know what’s wrong?! First I try to protect everypony I love from the enemy but everypony calls me crazy!”
Rarity cocked her eyebrow. “Enemy?”
“Nightmare Moon.” Rainbow replied flatly. “The one you helped defeat not so long ago, with your element. Yet she still around!” Rainbow’s eyes were burning with rage and from tears. “She managed to turn everypony I love against me and I know she’s just biding her time to get strike!”
“Why do you say that?” Rarity asked her friend, listening intently to Rainbow’s reasons for despising Luna.
Rainbow calmed herself down a little before she spoke again. “I read up on some old books my friend Gilda got me from her country,” she explained to Rarity. “Those books told me that ponies and other creatures infected with the Nightmare never got better and they destroyed and killed how many lives in their path.”
“Oh my…”
“Yeah!” Rainbow said, starting to get some of her bravado back with Rarity’s listening ear. “The only way to stop them apparently was to end them permanently!”
Rarity gasped at Rainbow’s words, placing a hoof to her mouth. “You can’t possibly mean—”
“End their lives, banish them, etc.” Rainbow answered Rarity’s question. “I bet you that’s why Princess Celestia did that to Nightmare Moon in the beginning! She couldn’t kill her sister, even when her sister was gone forever!”
“But if we used the elements on her, shouldn’t she be gone now?”
Rainbow furrowed her brow in thought. “That’s just it. I think that the Nightmare knew that it was going to get banished again. So in order to avoid that, it went into remission so that the elements weren’t able to sense it and couldn’t do anything. Then, once the time is right, BAM!” she said smacking her hoof hard against the table for emphasis. “It comes back and attacks us all!”
“I see,” Rarity hummed, tapping her chin thoughtfully. “I suppose that does make some sense.”
“Yes! Thank you!” Rainbow exclaimed nearly jumping into the air. “Finally, somepony gets it! No matter who else I’ve told about this, they all insist that I’m overreacting. They just won’t see what’s in front of their own noses. Heck, I even walked in on Nightmare Moon trying to attack the Crusaders, and everypony got mad at me for rescuing them instead!”
“Yes, I did hear about that. I take it that nopony agreed with your reasoning?”
“That’s the understatement of the century…” Rainbow muttered as she rolled her eyes. “They were all convinced that they were just ‘playing’ and I was wrong for trying to stop her. And now… now they won’t even talk to me anymore.”
Rarity paused and looked over to Rainbow Dash. The pegasus had once again lowered her head back down, dejectedly laying it on her crossed hooves.
“May I ask you a question Rainbow?” she said, leaning down as well. “Did you ever ask the crusaders about what happened?”
Rainbow Dash shuffled nervously. “Well, no…” she said sheepishly. “But I saw the looks on their faces. They were afraid, afraid of being attacked by Nightmare Moon.”
Rarity chuckled softly, much to the pegasus’ annoyance. “Well, I did talk to them about the whole ordeal, and Sweetie Belle told me the whole story. Apparently they were playing a game of Tag and Luna was ‘it’ as it were. She said she wasn’t scared of being attack, Rainbow, she was scared of being tagged.”
Rainbow groaned, and turned her head back to the floor. “Perfect. You’re siding with them as well.”
“I’m not taking any sides here Rainbow,” she said softly as she turned to her friend. “I think it’s nice that Sweetie Belle finds Luna to be a kind pony, but I still haven’t really spent time around her to come up with my own consensus on whether she is evil or not.”
“Huh?”
Rarity sighed before answering. “In other words, I haven’t made up my mind about her. Still, I won’t just go against my family or my friends simply because one likes the other or not.”
“Well thanks, I guess…”
“Though I believe it is rather unfair to judge a pony simply because some old books tell you to despise him or her for something they had no say in.”
Rainbow rubbed the back of her head nervously. “I guess…”
“Right, I’m sure if you took the time to get to know her better, you might see her as a different pony.”
“I’m not taking my chances, sorry.” Rainbow refused, raising her head from her hooves. “I need to be away from her so that she doesn’t use her influence on me. Like she did with Fluttershy—”
“Fluttershy? What does she have to do with it?” Rarity asked curiously as she raised her own head and saw Rainbow lower her head.
Rainbow sighed as she closed her eyes. “She’s always going to Twilight’s library to spend her time with ‘her’, I don’t know what’s really happening over there when she’s with her alone. She never invites me over to protect her in case something bad happens! It’s like… I don’t even matter anymore…” she trailed off, her own lips quivering.
“Rainbow…” Rarity reached out to Rainbow, but stopped when she saw Rainbow’s eyes leaking liquid. “Have you tried talking to her about this at all?”
“She won’t talk to me anymore, remember?” Rainbow huffed, turning away from Rarity. Her voice began to grow quiet as she tried to fight back her tears.
“Rainbow?”
“I’m scared Rarity.” She finally admitted. “I just… do you remember when we found her in her cottage? I was so worried that she was going to die right then. I don’t know what I would have done if she had.”
“You can’t keep beating yourself up for that Rainbow. None of us saw the signs.”
“But I should have!” Rainbow insisted, clenching her teeth. “You don’t understand. Fluttershy was my first friend; the very first friend that I’d ever had. Before I met her, I was teased nonstop by bullies. Despite her own shyness, she was the only one willing to stand up for me in the end.
“She’s done so much for me and I let her down. I should have been there for her and I failed her.” She drooped her head with a sigh. “And now, she won’t even let me help try to help her anymore.”
“I am sorry Rainbow Dash,” Rarity said with a sigh of her own. “It seems to me that really what you’re the most worried about, is something bad happening to Fluttershy again though, isn’t it?”
Rainbow nodded slowly. “I just don’t want to see her get hurt again.”
“So tell me dear, if Fluttershy was willing to talk with you again, what would you say to her?”
“I don’t know… I guess, I’d tell her that I’m sorry for losing it like that. And I’d also tell her that I’m just trying to look out for her,” Rainbow muttered. “It’s too bad that she won’t listen to me though.”
Rarity smirked. “Oh? I wouldn’t be too certain of that dear.”
Rainbow Dash looked up at Rarity confused. The unicorn simply smiled before looking off in the distance behind Rainbow. She turned around, her confusion quickly replaced by shock as she saw a certain yellow pegasus standing in the spa’s doorway with a light smile.
“Hi Rainbow Dash,” Fluttershy said meekly. “I hear you have something you want to say to me?”
“Well…” Rainbow started, but her eyes suddenly went wide as realization kicked in. “Wait a minute!” She turned sharply to Rarity. “You planned this?!”
“Hmmm…” Rarity smirked as she shrugged. “Maybe.” She stood up and made her way out of the room, leaving her two friends behind.
Fluttershy walked slowly towards Rainbow and sat down next to her, still wearing her soft smile though her eyes were becoming softer by the moment. “Please Rainbow, tell me what you have to say.”
Rainbow gulped, looking into her friend’s eyes. “Well…” she started speaking before blinking and looking away from Fluttershy for a moment before she spoke again. “I’m sorry for losing my cool like that at the library that day… I just wanted to keep everypony safe and not have them go through what you did… I mean, if only I acted faster, you wouldn’t have suffered like that…” Rainbow looked up to her friend, her lips quivering and her eyes streaking with rivers of tears. “I don’t want to lose you Fluttershy, you’re my best friend in the world. The same with all of our friends too. I—”
What came next silenced Rainbow indefinitely. A pair of hooves encircled her and she was brought into a hug by Fluttershy, who rested her head on her shoulder. Rainbow felt a few droplet of tears on her back and felt Fluttershy nuzzle her as she held onto her.
“Oh Rainbow!” Fluttershy squeaked out as she rubbed her friend’s back. “I forgive you. You’re a great friend too, the best friend I could ever have in my life. Please don’t be mad at yourself!
“And I’m sorry as well Rainbow. I should have thought about how badly I must have scared you as well. I shouldn’t have yelled at you like that just for trying to help.”
Rainbow Dash smiled weakly, but wasn’t able to respond before Fluttershy continued. “Still, although I appreciate your concern, I really am fine now. I feel much better now and I really feel like I need to help Princess Luna to get better as well. You need to try and forgive her Rainbow. It wasn’t her fault for what happened to me.”
Rainbow sighed. “I… I can’t do that Fluttershy,” she said turning her head away. “I just can’t trust that she’s completely better right now.”
Fluttershy nodded. “Alright. I understand what you mean. You still want to look out for your friends and I respect that.” Then, grabbing Rainbow’s chin, she pulled her head back around forcing her to look at her. “But can you at least promise me that instead of keeping all this to yourself or lashing out at Luna, that you’ll talk to me about what you're thinking instead?”
After a moment of hesitation, Rainbow nodded. “I… I think I can do that,” she said before quickly adding, “but only if you’ll promise me that you’ll let me keep on eye on you as well, just so that if anything bad happens, I’ll be there to help out.”
Fluttershy smiled warmly. “It’s a deal,” she said pulling Rainbow Dash into a tight hug once again. “Thank you Rainbow,” she said warmly.
Rainbow Dash returned the hug. For the first time in over a week, she smiled warmly as she nuzzled her friend. “Thank you Fluttershy.”