//------------------------------// // V (FS/RD)- Trip to Manehatten // Story: Taming the Storm // by Wolfie 03 //------------------------------// Mid November, 1004 A.D. (After Discord) It was another average day in Ponyville; mostly clear skies, bird chirping and the local animal care-taker was negotiating peace between field mice and the local farmers. The mice had taken residence in the farm house and Applejack had Fluttershy stop by to talk them into leaving (or at least staying out of the house and other important places). The timid pegasus spent longer than needed to greet the newest residents and described where she lived should they need help. Once she had the mice assure her that they would let her know if something came up, Fluttershy proceeded to find Applejack to explain what had been done. While the farmer wasn't too pleased that the mice would still be on the orchard, it was a relief to know they wouldn't be in the house or barn; the animal care-taker left quickly after that, not wanting to bother the earth ponies further. Fluttershy traveled down the roads back to town when she came across a family of squirrels who wanted to have an afternoon chat about the weather; the canary pegasus floated up and into the nearby trees to talk quietly with them. She was so quiet that the Cutie Mark Crusaders didn't notice her as they went to their clubhouse after the day of school; she was going to say hello to them but their topic gave her pause. “Is Pepper still givin' ya trouble?” Scootaloo attempted to appear nonchalant as they leisurely trotted on the path, not looking at the olive-yellow filly who peered at the pegasus in concern. “Yeah, she's still pretty persistent...” Sweetie Belle frowned lightly as worry flashed across her features at the admission and turned to face Scootaloo as well. “You have better hideouts right? You aren't going to get sick?” Fluttershy leaned forward to catch the response, worry lining every muscle. “... They're ok; nothing's perfect and I have to keep changing locations as Pepper gets more desperate.” “I thought they were doing investigations?” Sweetie Belle cried out in surprise at how the orphanage still hadn't given up; Fluttershy could barely keep herself hidden as she too became concerned as to what was going on and followed the trio as they continued on their way, staying up in the air and hiding behind trees. “I dunno, it's just something I have to deal with.” Scootaloo shrugged her indifference as her friends shared concerned glances. “Well, ya know ya can stay at the clubhouse as long as ya need.” The young pegasus nodded mutely before trying to change the topic, something Fluttershy felt wasn't the right thing to do; she stepped out of her cover and made her quick way to the trio. “H-hello girls!” Three pairs of eyes widened at the sudden call and they whipped around to face the older mare with shaky smiles. “Hi Fluttershy, what are you doing here?” Sweetie Belle tried to keep her voice light and free of worry lest the older pegasus think something was wrong. The other Crusaders took on innocent faces as they let Sweetie Belle do the talking; they were less likely to confuse any 'confession' for anything done if they listened to one talk at a time. Fluttershy appraised the girls, getting an ominous feeling that they were getting used to hiding facts and tried to give them a chance to come clean. “What's been going on lately girls?” The Crusaders shared worried looks at the open ended question. “Oh nothing; we're just coming back from school and were going to hang out in the clubhouse.” Sweetie Belle tried to seem nonchalant while Fluttershy looked at them with close scrutiny. “Oh? That's nice... Scootaloo, how are you doing? Feeling better? No side- or left over-effects?” The orange filly flipped back her ears as she suddenly got the sense of what the older pegasus might have overheard before shrugging nonchalantly. “Yeah, I'm fine.” Fluttershy waited to see if the filly would elaborate but was disappointed when all three remained silent. They remained in awkward silence for a minute longer before Fluttershy decided to take matters into her own hooves. “Ok then, it was good to see you girls but I'll must be going now. Have a nice night!” Three brows rose as the canary pegasus spoke almost louder and slower than usual as she overly waved goodbye; an action soon copied by the trio of fillies who decided that all conversation was to wait until they were in a secure location. Fluttershy flew at speeds she would normally shy away from but persisted in order to find the one pony who said she was going to keep an eye out for Scootaloo; Rainbow Dash was hard to track since she could hardly be found on the ground and often napped in hiding places to avoid being caught. The pegasus flew about the crowds in town but not too high to lose the ability to search in those very crowds as she looked around. She tried above and in Sugarcube Corner, above the town, in the branches of Golden Oaks Library, the nearby lake, over Sweet Apple Acres, and even tried the prismatic mare's cloud home; Fluttershy was actually growing concerned as to what happened to her long time friend and hovered in front of the cloud residence as she tried to think of what Rainbow might be doing. (What, what if she went out and got hit by a storm and is trapped someplace?! Or, what if she ran into a big ferocious, pony-eating dragon and is now trapped in his lair, about to be eaten!?! Oh no, oh no.... What do I do? Do I go find the others? What if it's too late by then? Oh, Rainbow Dash, I-I never got to tell you -) “Fluttershy? What's wrong?” “EEEEeepppp!” At the sound of somepony calling her name, the timid mare shot forward and tried to hide in the nearest cover; namely, the clouds that made up the floating home.This attempt was only half successful, leaving cream-yellow hindquarters flaring in the air while fore-hooves covered frightened teal-blue eyes. Rainbow Dash had flown up in surprise, knowing that the timid pegasus rarely flew this high up and had been in the act of fretting herself into knots. At the typical reaction of Fluttershy's however, Dash merely rolled her eyes and began to help the frightened mare out of her cloud hiding place. “Fluttershy, it's just me...” “O-oh...” “Sigh, just hold still for a second, I'll help you out...” With some wiggling and tugging on both mares' part, Fluttershy was soon unstuck and blushingly hovering as Rainbow re-adjusted the clouds that made up her home. “Uh, hello Rainbow Dash...” Fluttershy tapped her hooves nervously as Dash stared expectantly back as she hovered next to her old time friend, hooves crossed in aggravation. “Oh, uhm right! I-I came across Scootaloo and she said that she's still having trouble with the orphanage...” Dash frowned at these words and shrugged, thinking of when she last saw the young pegasus. “Oh. Well, she's still around right? Then there's no problem.” It was Fluttershy's turn to frown at the dismissive tone as she looked sternly back. “Yes there is; don't you remember what happened not too long ago? She got very sick trying to hide from them... This is not a very nice orphanage.” Dash looked at the sudden outburst before sighing wearily and rubbing the back of her head. “Well, what am I supposed to do about it? Go there myself and shut it down?” At the brightening and gasp of delight the cyan pegasus wished she had kept her mouth shut. With another sigh and slump of her shoulders, Rainbow begged her friend to let her off the hook; she was tired from her weather work and just wanted a nap. “Fluttershy! I wasn't serious; that orphanage is in Manehatten right? That's a long trip from here, even for me! I only just got back from a weather meeting in Cloudsdale and I just want a nap, not to go flying all over Equestria.” The cream-yellow pegasus looked on with a dejected air; even after having known Rainbow Dash for so long, it was saddening to see he brush the matter aside for a nap. “I-I see... I'll just have to go myself; enjoy your nap.” It was hard to make the animal care-taker mad or upset but Dash could practically see the waves of disappointment coming form the other pegasus as she turned around and started to fly to town. “.... Wait! Sigh, I'll come with you to find out about the orphanage. Come on, we'll need to take the train; you probably can't fly the entire way there.” Fluttershy smiled in relief as Rainbow led the way towards town. While Rainbow Dash was notoriously lazy and avoided work, she always kept her word; an aspect Fluttershy had always admired and appreciated. The two pegasi wasted little time finding and boarding the next train east to Manehatten; though the trip wasn't entirely silent. “Gahhh, can't this thing go any faster? I could be there already!” Dash threw back her head while crossing her hooves as she sat on the pink cushions of the private car Fluttershy had thought to ask for; she had a feeling that the impatient pegasus would get like this and didn't want to be a bother to the other passengers. “I know... Thank you for coming with me anyways...” The brash mare paused in her huffs of annoyance and glanced at the other pegasus who was hiding behind her mane. “Yeah, yeah...” Rainbow stared out the window after settling down further, not noticing the single teal-blue eye peeking out to watch her. The two friends remained silent for the rest of the four hour trip with Rainbow Dash catching that nap she missed and Fluttershy watching curiously. The canary mare wasn't bothered by the occasional snore that the cyan mare let out, even though Dash would claim that she didn't snore; working with the wide range of animals meant that some made very different sounds as they slept, something Fluttershy had long since grown used to. It was the same when they shared a room at flight camp, and how close they were until.... (No, it's different now... We're friends again and live in the same town and and.... It's going to be better. I'll make sure to help her this time, even if she does want to run away. But first, we have to make sure Scootaloo doesn't get hurt either....) The train pulled into the city later that evening, with the sun already setting in the late fall season. As it jerked to a stop, Rainbow Dash was jolted awake and gave her mane a scuffing to make sure it hadn't settled while she napped. Fluttershy quietly followed her friend as they stepped off the train and into the big city; the canary mare flinched at the harsh sounds of the city that never sleeps and the crowds that continued on their way regardless of others, knocking into Fluttershy who flinched back and apologized at every touch. “Oh, sorry... So-sorry...! Uhm, excuse me... Sorry... Pardon.... Ex-excuse me...” Rainbow noticed this as she hovered in the air and rolled her eyes at the timidness of her friend; she dropped down and grabbed Fluttershy's front to pull her into the air with an annoyed glare, earning a sheepish smile back. “Come on, let's get this over with.” Dash grumbled to the cream-yellow pegasus who nodded agreement before following the cyan mare further into the city. Fluttershy tried to keep up with the speedster as she flew down the streets rapidly, going for a rapid search instead of merely asking for directions but soon fell behind; she tried to find the cyan blur with no success sighing at the usual behavior of the prismatic mare and floated towards the sidewalk to ask for directions instead. “Uh... Excuse me?” A red maned earth pony glanced around at the soft sound which emboldened Fluttershy to try and get her attention again. “Oh, uhm, pardon me?” The pale pink earth pony finally found the source of the almost whispers and stared at the timid pegasus with a questioning brow. “Yes?” “Oh, uh, do you know where the Hudson Side Orphange is?” The earth pony looked to the sky in thought before nodding and pointing up the street. “Hmm, yes; it's three blocks north and four blocks west.” Fluttershy looked in the direction explained and shyly smiled in thanks. “Thank you.” The earth pony nodded in response before continuing on her way, leaving the quiet mare to float over the top of the crowd to the orphanage. She set down in front of the red building just in time for a blur of blue to come to a sudden stop next to her; Rainbow Dash frowned slightly at Fluttershy who crouched slightly at the look. “Where did you go? I've had to look for you instead of the orphanage!” The timid mare flipped her ears back in worry, she had thought Dash wouldn't have worried about her being left behind. “Oh, ah, well... You, you were too fast for me to catch up...” Rainbow frowned at these words as guilt assaulted her mind as she had forgotten the slower pegasus when she first started the search; the cyan pegasus huffed in annoyance before turning to the building before them. “Guess this is the place, let's go in and-” “I can't believe that you grew up here!” Dash pulled up from her dive to the front door as a pale-gray earth pony and a white unicorn exited. “Told ya Tavi, the place is pretty bad off and harsh. Still pretty amazed that Scootaloo escaped somehow...” The two pegasi had been watching curiously but at the sound of the young filly's name, the bold mare swooped down to shove her face into the unicorn's with the respective companions gasping in surprise. “Oh yeah! How bad is bad? And what would it have to do with Scootaloo? Who are you? What do you have to do with her? Or this orphanage? Huh?” The unicorn blinked slightly surprised cerise eyes before appraising the brash pegasus in turn. “Bad as in real bad. Who are you to ask about Scootaloo?” Dash frowned at the short answer and threw out her chest to appear intimidating. “I'm Rainbow Dash, fastest flier in Equestria! I said I would help Scootaloo and so I will, even if I have to fight off you, your friend and all of the orphanage workers!” Vinyl Scratch raised a surprised brow at the almost threat and rolled her eyes before replying; both Octavia and Fluttershy edged closer to their companions to try and prevent a possible fight. “Yeah well I'm the greatest DJ in Eqestria, Dj Pon-3 and I-” By this point, Octavia and Fluttershy reached their targets and began to whisper in their ears. “Vinyl, honey, we're not here to pick fights with random ponies...” “Rainbow Dash, we shouldn't cause trouble for them...” “We have other things to worry about...” “We, we don't know how they know Scootaloo; maybe they can help us...” “And if you don't behave, you won't get any of the fun I planned for later...” “Please Rainbow? Maybe, we could, uhm, not pick fights?” The two mares listened to the whispers as they stared appraisingly at the other, not hearing the conversation but getting the feeling that it was pretty much the same; 'don't cause trouble please'. “Alright Fluttershy...” Rainbow gave a short snort along with a roll of her eyes while Vinyl gave her marefriend a quick nuzzle. “Alright Tav', I'll be good.” The two bold mares faced one another again though with less hostility than before. “I'm Vinyl Scratch and this is Octavia Melody. Scootaloo and I both went to this orphanage at one point; after hearing that it was still bad as ever from her, my marefriend and I came to see what we could do to help.” The cyan pegasus raised a curious brow at the coincidence and crossed her fore-hooves in thought. Fluttershy couldn't help her blush at how the other two mares were in a relationship and waited for the other pegasus' response; something that would either raise or lower her hopes for how her feelings would be received. “Hmmm... So you came here to help Scootaloo stay out of the place?” Vinyl nodded before realizing they were still in front of the orphanage in question and glancing around conspiratorially. “Yes, but we may want to talk someplace else; Hannigan already knows me and Tavi are trying to get in trouble. There's a cafe nearby that we can sit at and talk.” The unicorn waved for the pegasi to follow as she and the gray earth pony led the way down the street. As they went for the cafe, Fluttershy had a moment to reflect on how Rainbow Dash didn't seem to care about the fact that the couple was both mares; which was something that sparked a tiny flicker of hope in the cream-yellow chest. In moments they found the small cafe that had inside and outside tables for ponies to dine at. The four mares chose a booth that was in a corner away from the sparse clientele and began to talk business. “So, like I was saying; we did a quick tour of the place as if we were looking for a foal to adopt. She used the same old techniques to hide how bad off the place was as we looked around. Some of the oldest orphans remembered me though, and Hannigan became suspicious of us so we took off soon after that.” Vinyl shrugged as she finished her explanation in time for a unicorn waiter to come by for their orders. The four ponies ordered simple drinks to satisfy being in the cafe; Dash would have gotten a lot more but Fluttershy reminded her that they didn't have a lot of time to stay. Once the stallion was on his way, they continued with Dash offering a plan of her own. “We just need to prove that the place is just as bad as you say right? Well, what if we snuck in like totally awesome spies and take pictures of all the bad stuff that goes on?” Octavia raised a curious brow at the energetic tones and suggestion of Rainbow Dash while Fluttershy smiled slightly at her friend and Vinyl merely rubbed her chin as she thought about how well the suggestion would work. “Yeah... Yeah, that should do it. That and testimony from other orphans that lived there...” The pale-gray mare frowned slightly at 'others' and looked at Vinyl questioningly. “You kept in contact with other orphans from when you lived there?” Vinyl's ears tipped back as she glanced at Octavia briefly before looking out at the cafe. “I got reacquainted with some after I got bigger in the music industry.” Tavi frowned at what sounded like leeches who only wanted to say they knew a famous DJ; the white musician looked at the mare next to her and understood what had gone unsaid. “It's not like that Tav'; they actually apologized and wanted to congratulate me on finding a mare like you.” Even though the explanation was quietly stated, the two pegasi could hear it and watched the couple share a blushing nuzzle. Dash couldn't stand all the mushy feelings and rolled her eyes in aggravation; she was going to say something but caught sight of Fluttershy slowly frowning in disappointment at the cyan mare. The quieter mare could tell that Rainbow Dash had been growing impatient at the display of affection and wasn't sure if was because of the gender or the display itself (though she had a hunch it was the act not the ponies that Dash was offended by). With another roll of light cerise eyes and a sigh to go with it, Rainbow sat back and just watched as the waiter came back with a platter of drinks. “Ok, so you guys are going to sneak around get the pictures right? Then I'll track down the testimonies and we'll bring the whole thing to the guards for them to shut the place down.” Dash and Fluttershy nodded in agreement to the unicorn's statement as they all sipped at their drinks. “Uhm, but, ah, we-we don't have a camera...” Vinyl's sharp hearing meant that she easily heard the quiet mare, giving her the chance to think about the supplies needed for the 'mission'. “Yeah, I guess you would need a camera to get pictures...” The DJ cast an inquisitive look to Octavia as she rubbed her chin; the pale-gray mare smirked back as she replied. “Yes, I'm sure we can find a camera in short order. Let's take care of this and we can search the nearby shops.” With a plan of action in place, the four mares went to pay the bill and head into positions. The two pegasi waited near the orphanage for a camera which was soon delivered by the white unicorn who tried to be subtle and failed. The pegasi then floated up and looked into a window on each floor, surveying what was going on before starting to take pictures. The building was large, being five stories tall with a fenced-in ally way that had a mesh wire covering the top that prevented any pegasi orphans that could fly from escaping. Each floor had four windows, giving a view into a much harsher world. Foals of all ages and sizes were doing chores ranging from mending threadbare blankets and cloths, washing dishes to even scrubbing the floor; it would seem almost normal save for the bruises and almost sickly thin bodies of the children. Older orphans oversaw it and were quick to speak harshly or even smack any slow working foal. Dash stared on slack-jawed at the poor living and working conditions, surprised to the point that she almost forgot the camera in her hooves. It was as an older pony went to subjugate one of the foals scrubbing the floor that Dash tightened her hooves in an attempt to be ready to fight off the threat when she felt the camera in between two cyan hooves. With an annoyed growl at being unable to help, the bold mare lifted the view scope to snap a few pictures of the beating before going to each window to find more examples of abuse and malnutrition; the entire time Rainbow did recon, she couldn't help the angry frown at the bad conditions, like the almost non-existent mattresses and small meal portions (she later found a stash of proper food in the care-taker's office, meaning that only one pony in the whole place ate properly). At each image of horrible living, Fluttershy trembled in fear as the sights before her merged with memories of her past. It hadn't been as bad as this orphanage, but the sight of bullies as well as the dejected and saddened faces of the orphans brought to mind the Cloudsdale Orphange; the pegasi foals that stayed there had more food and better living conditions, but it was one of the older institutions meaning that they didn't have all that much to begin with, barely making it livable and tolerable. As the fear became almost too much for Fluttershy, she went in search for Rainbow Dash only to find her hiding in between windows with a scowl on her face. “Rain-Rainbow Dash?” The cyan pegasus shushed the already rather muted caller with a hoof to her muzzle to emphasize. “Shh, the care-taker, Hannigan?, is in the room; she almost saw me but we need pictures that prove that she's behind it all.” Fluttershy nodded silently and floated up to peek inside; there was an older earth pony with orange-red mane and pale-cream coat who was towering over the orphans who cowered in fear. The canary pegasus flinched along with the foals, something the bolder pegasus noticed and nudged her long time friend to get her attention. “Hey, Fluttershy; you know I'd never let something like that happen to you right? And we're going to protect Scootaloo from this too; we just need those photos!” Fluttershy nodded with a blush at the assurances and clenched her hooves in determination at their mission. With a gentle tug, the quiet mare pulled the camera out of the other's grip and floated up to the next window over from where the care-taker was berating the children and snuck inside; Dash hissed at the sneaking mare to stay out but was studiously ignored. Fluttershy crept far enough around the doorway to see the older mare in the midst of beating a young unicorn for having tried to cast magic against her; while it was very terrifying for the shy mare, the promises of both protection and the halt of this abuse helped Fluttershy snap a few pictures of the pale-cream earth pony turning her attention to all of the foals before her to ram home the 'lesson'. The group was so busy that they didn't notice the small flashes of light nor the small clicks; they certainly didn't spot the canary pegasus exiting just as quietly as she entered out the window. Just as Fluttershy closed the window with a soft sigh, she was swept up in cyan hooves as Rainbow Dash grabbed her friend and flew further away from the building before starting to question her. “What were you thinking? You could have been caught!” Fluttershy curled in on herself as she peered at the other pegasus who looked back in worry and annoyance. “Oh, uh, well, we needed the pictures and you had almost been seen and-” “That was amazing! You were great and all sneaky like and they never saw you coming!” Fluttershy had jumped lightly at the sudden outburst and rapid change of emotion, though she was soon shyly smiling at the energetic pegasus. “W-well, you said that you would protect me and that you would use the pictures to stop her, so it's really thanks to you that I was brave enough to get in by myself.” Dash leaned forward as the cream-yellow mare spoke; by the time Fluttershy finished, Dash rubbed a fore-hoof across her chest as she boasted. “Yeah, well, I am that awesome; but I didn't go it alone and totally caught that mean mare in the act. Let's go turn over the camera and see if anything else needs to be done.” The two friends flew back to the cafe to find the two musicians back in the booth they had used earlier in the evening; upon seeing the two pegasi Vinyl and Octavia straightened from their spots against one another and waved them over. “Hey, done already? Get any good shots?” Rainbow rapidly nodded as she hoofed over the camera with a large grin to the white unicorn who started to sort through the images. “Yeah, you should have seen it! Little ol' Fluttershy here went inside and got the best photos of the lot!” As the prismatic pegasus stated this she wrapped a hoof around Fluttershy's shoulders and gave her a little shake; at the sudden attention the timid mare hid behind her mane once more which drew smiles from the others and eye roll from the bold pegasus. “I'm sure you two did a great job. We'll take these and get the testimonies within the month; hopefully we can get this finished quickly.” Octavia smiled warmly at the mares across the table before turning and nudging the unicorn who had been looking through the photos. At the encouraging nudge Vinyl looked up and nodded her agreement to what her marefriend had stated. “Yeah, you guys were a lot of help. We'll let you know how it goes.” After that, the four mares shared contact information which led to another surprise of the evening; they hadn't expected to be living in the same town for almost the same length of time. Both pairs of friends went to the train station for the long trip home, choosing private booths so that the more brash mares wouldn't bother each other or other passengers. Fluttershy and Dash (barely suppressing eye rolls and annoyed sighs) sat across from one another in the private compartment, both staring out the window at the night view passing by, absorbed in their own thoughts. (Geez, Fluttershy was amazing tonight! I thought that thing with the dragon was a fluke, she hadn't shown that much courage afterwards... I'll have to keep an eye on her though; that Orphanage was pretty bad and she'll be thinking about her own time at the one in Cloudsdale....) (… I'm so happy that Rainbow Dash is going to stop that mean care-taker, she must have lost her caring heart a long time ago, to be that mean to little children... It was really nice of Dashie to come with me on the trip, even though she hates train rides... Maybe, maybe we can do more things together... Oh, I hope so...) Dash flicked an ear over to the canary pegasus at the sound of a muted squee of joy; she was almost tempted to ask what was going on but didn't want to break the comfortable silence that seemed to appear with the quiet mare. She might not like silence all that much, but the kind that Fluttershy offered was warm and soothing (something that the 'cool' pegasus would never tell her friend). Rainbow also didn't want to start talking only to have the conversation turn to 'mushy' stuff like what happened in the past, so the cyan mare remained silent for the trip as she watched the scenery slowly change from city, to rolling hills to grass land of their home. The train pulled into the small town station as the night sky showed stars usually unavailable to be seen in the big city. The two pegasi disembarked and began to head into town, the animal care-taker heading for home while the bold defender escorted her, flying just above the ground as they headed for the cottage on the outskirts of town. “Uhm, you, you don't have to come with me Rainbow Dash...” The cyan mare shrugged as she continued to fly next to her old friend. “Nah, it's fine... Just, you know, uh, making sure you're ok... You were shaking pretty badly before you got real courageous.” Dash couldn't meet curious teal eyes as she explained; Fluttershy smiled softly to herself at the reason and tried to control the blush that tried to make it's way across her muzzle. “Oh, ok... Thank you...” Rainbow didn't say anything else for the remainder of the trip, dropping off the canary mare at her grass covered cottage and flying off to her home to spend the night awake, thinking of various subtle ways to check on Fluttershy without it seeming like it. That night, the cream-yellow pegasus spent most of her time with a pillow in her hooves as she relived the attention and care that was shown her from the usually standoffish mare. Her soft squees of joy hardly roused any of the animals that lived there who had gone to bed as soon as they were sure their care-taker was back safe and sound. Fluttershy had high hopes for the next few days, and started on plans to spend more time with the bold pegasus.