//------------------------------// // Hidden Past // Story: Thicker than Water // by DemonBrightSpirit //------------------------------// "Okay!" Scootaloo said, strapping on her helmet. "Ready?” Rainbow Dash, sporting her own pads and helmet, stood awkwardly on a scooter. Her hooves nearly slipped from the narrow base. "Yeah, no problem," she said. "Remember, no flying, and the first one back to the orphanage wins," Scootaloo said, pointing out in front of her. The long dirt path led right through the heart of Ponyville. About the impromptu race course were dozens of ponies and stalls, all oblivious to the imminent threat. At the far end, barely visible from their vantage point, stood a large structure with a set of steps leading up to the door. "Got it," Dash said, fiddling with the strap on her helmet. Instead of finding a way to loosen it, she just unbuckled the strap. Scootaloo grinned, edging her scooter into position. "Ready…" Her wings buzzed in anticipation as she tightly gripped the handlebars. "Steady…" She dug a hind hoof into the dirt. A huge grin spread across her muzzle. "Go!" She kicked off, buzzing her wings for all they were worth. Scootaloo might have had more experience riding a scooter than her idol, but Rainbow Dash was the fastest flier in Ponyville. Dash took an early lead, quickly putting ground between her and Scootaloo, at least until they got into town square. Rainbow Dash struggled to remain in control of the tiny scooter. She just managed to weave between ponies, wagons, boxes— Wham! —and stalls. The impact threw Dash from her scooter. She sat dazed for a moment, a busted potted plant sitting on her head. Shaking off the blow, the pot smashed into the ground. "Sorry. I'll take care of it later," she said to a rather irate-looking Rose before scooping up the scooter. Thanks to her clumsy crash, Scootaloo had not only caught up to Dash, she had passed her! Taking off at full speed, Rainbow quickly closed the distance. The steps to the orphanage were just ahead. Pouring all of her efforts into her wings, she shot past Scootaloo just as they reached the finish. Scootaloo skidded to a stop, her wheels just tapping the bottommost stair. Rainbow, however, discovered something quite inconvenient: she had no clue how to stop a speeding scooter. Her scooter smashed into the bottom stair, sending her sailing straight through the door and into the lobby. Scootaloo winced before rushing in. Hundreds of sheets of paper danced in the air. Behind the flying paper screen, the portly, tan mare at the reception desk inexplicably wore Dash's helmet atop her head. Dash popped up from behind the desk, rubbing her temple. "Did I win?" Dash asked, only to wither under the receptionist's glare. Dash let out a nervous chuckle as the receptionist removed the helmet. The tanned mare roughly shoved the helmet on Rainbow's head. "I'll, uh, I'll help you clean it up," Dash said, picking up an overturned filing cabinet and setting it straight. Then, she scooped up dozens of scattered papers. "No," the mare said, pointing to the door. "These files are confidential. Nopony is allowed to see them without proper authority. Leave." Dash hesitated before looking at the papers in her hooves. She was about to ask something, but her thoughts derailed the moment she looked at the document. Her eyes stayed locked on the document up until the secretary forcefully snatched the whole stack from her hooves. "Leave," the receptionist said again, her voice laced with animosity. "Uh, yeah," Dash muttered. Scootaloo rushed over to Dash's side the instant she stepped out from behind the desk. “That was so cool! Wanna race again?” Rainbow stared at Scootaloo, blinking a couple of times. Finally, it occurred to her to say something. "I, uh, I need to go." Without any further explanation, she took wing and shot out of the orphanage. Her mind raced faster than her wings as she zoomed all through Ponyville. She only slowed down once she had arrived back at her cloud home. Lowering herself onto a plush cloud, she tried to find some reason for what she’d seen. It was definitely Scootaloo’s birth certificate—there was no denying that. But the names on it… Could she have read it wrong? Maybe she just remembered wrong? That could happen, right? Dash sighed. She reached up to rub her sore head only to discover she still had her helmet on. She slowly flew into her house in a daze, taking off the helmet and unstrapping the pads. Paying them little mind, she discarded them before heading to her room and flopping down on her bed. She tried and tried to convince herself that she got it wrong that, somehow, she’d misread it or something. Unable to delude herself, she shook her head. There was no way she got it wrong. Scootaloo’s birth certificate had her own parents’ names on it. It was just so inconceivable that it twisted up her thoughts into knots. Maybe there were different ponies with the same names? That didn’t seem likely, either. Could it really be possible? Rolling over to the edge of her bed, she grabbed a frame from her nightstand. It showed a rainbow-maned foal in an orange mare’s arms. Next to her was a stallion with a mane just like the foal’s. Her hoof ran along the smooth, wooden frame as she stared intently at the photograph. “I’m an only child… right?” Unable to let it rest, Rainbow Dash made a quick flight over to Cloudsdale. She soon found herself soaring through familiar suburbs. The cloud houses were often anchored to the massive clouds that served as Cloudsdale's foundation. Several more, however, floated aimlessly above the rest. One such home had a rainbow waterfall, spilling polychromatic splendor down to the clouds below. Shifting her wings a bit, she gained altitude and leaned towards that humble house. Giving her wings a few flaps, she disrupted her momentum. She flew there above the house’s front stoop a moment before gently setting her hooves on the fluffy porch. Closing her eyes, she let out a sigh before knocking on the door. In a few moments, the door opened, and a stallion with a rainbow mane stepped out. "Hey!" he said with a smile, wrapping his hooves around her. "Been a while since I've seen my little girl." Rainbow returned the hug. "Hey, Dad," she said before she broke the embrace and stepped back. He opened the door, leading the way. “Come on in. Is there anything I can get you?” “I-I’m good.” As soon as she cleared the threshold, a hoof went to her nose. A powerful, musty odor hung in the air. A quick glance revealed left out dishes and clothes. Her dad gave a nervous laugh as he tried kicking around some of the clothes into a pile and grabbed some dishes. “Sorry about the mess,” he said, heading to the kitchen. “You got the package I sent for your birthday, right?” Dash took a seat nearby on the sofa. “Yeah, Dad. Thanks.” “Sorry I couldn’t be there,” he said, reentering before taking a seat next to Dash. Rainbow didn’t say anything in turn, leaving disquieting silence between the two. Just a few seconds was more than he could bear. He cleared his throat before speaking up again. “So, what brings you here? Have another meeting with the weather teams here?” “No, I uh…” Dash shook her head. “Dad, am I an only child?” He recoiled at the notion, sputtering. “Th-that’s—don’t be silly. You know I loved your mom.” Rainbow stared hard at him. “That’s not what I’m talking about and you know it.” “Hey, why don’t I get us some drinks?” he said, leaning forward to get up. Rainbow grabbed her dad’s foreleg, keeping him there next to her. “Talk to me.” He put on a small smile for his daughter. “Wh-what do you want to talk about? You know, Father’s Day isn’t too far off and—” “I want to know,” Dash said, cutting him off. She looked him right in the eye, daring him to hide from the truth. “Am I an only child?” “I, uh…” Her dad looked down and sighed. “How did you know?” “What happened?” Sighing, he rubbed his neck as his eyes fixated on the ceiling. “There were a few times I was going to tell you.” He gave a little laugh before looking over at his daughter. “I never could keep my nerve, though.” “Like right now?” Rainbow said, raising an eyebrow. “Yeah,” he said, nodding. He inhaled, and then exhaled.“When… when we found out your mom was going to have another foal, she’d already been sick for a long time.” He shook his head. “The doctor told us that there was no chance that she would be able to go through the pregnancy. I remember he-he told us that your mom probably wouldn’t make it another ten months, let alone the baby.” Rainbow remained quiet a moment, thinking over the words for a time. Finally, she spoke up. “I remember when mom got real sick, she put on a lot of weight, but then I remember one time she came back and she’d lost it all and then some.” “I—we—lied to you back then. We didn’t know for sure if the baby was going to make it, and we definitely didn’t want to get your hopes up. So we hid it from you,” he said, putting a hoof on Dash’s. “But then, when the time came, we realized that both your mom and the baby were going to make it. We talked. We talked and talked and talked. She was getting so sick, and the pregnancy made it that much harder on her.” He sniffled a bit, swiping at his eyes. “Dad…” Clearing his throat, he continued. “It was so hard. Your mom fought for all she was worth, and we were barely getting by, and well, we agreed that there was just no way we could take care of a new foal. After she gave birth, we gave her up. Both of us.” Rainbow nodded. “Oh.” “It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, Dash,” her father said, looking her in the eye. “Seeing that precious little foal and just… giving her up like that.” Dash licked her lips, glancing about the room. “Dad, I know that—that it was hard after mom died, but why didn’t you adopt her? Especially after I was old enough to take care of myself.” He shook his head. “It doesn’t work like that. When we gave her up, we agreed to forfeit our rights to have her in our lives. I don’t know where she is, how she’s doing, or even what her name is.” He sighed, rubbing his neck. “When she’s old enough, they’ll let her know who I am. It’ll be up to her if she wants to come to find me. I-I hope she does.” Rainbow Dash cast a sideways glance at her dad before looking back down at her lap. “What if you found out where she was? Wouldn’t you be able to adopt her?” “I wouldn’t be allowed to,” he replied, sighing as he stared up at the ceiling. “It’s a moot point, anyway. Odds are she’s already part of some happy little family somewhere.” He closed his eyes, a small smile touching his lips. Rainbow opened her mouth, but snapped it shut a mere moment later. Staring hard at the serene look on her father’s face, she shook her head. “H-hey, I really should get going.” She got up, stretching. “So soon?” her father asked. “But—” “Hey, I know I don’t stop by as often as I should, but I promise I’ll come back soon.” He gave a pathetic little laugh. “I’ll, uh, I’ll be sure to have things straightened up by then.” Dash shook her head as she headed for the nearest window. “No you won’t.” “I’ll try,” he said, trotting after her. “I know,” Dash said, spreading her wings. “I’ll see you soon.”