Reconciliation
The “closed” sign on the Sugarcube Corner door was not going to stop Rainbow from achieving her goal. Rainbow scanned the left and right sides of the building, taking in the lack of light and sound in the house. Everypony was probably sleeping. She rose into the air and flew around the house, stopping once she reached a window that was blocked by pink curtains with balloons emblazoned on the fabric. She pressed her head against the glass and tapped on it a few times with a hoof. Within the darkness, there was no response. The abrupt flare of a light onto Rainbow’s pupils caused her to seethe and shut her eyes as the window in front of her opened up. She became merely a multi-colored blur as she was pulled inside.
“Dashie! I missed you!” Pinkie cried out as she pulled Rainbow into a spine-adjusting hug.
Rainbow wheezed, eyes bulging out as she flapped her wings to try and loosen the pressure on Pinkie’s trademarked death hug.
“Can’t… breathe!” Rainbow choked out as she flailed around in Pinkie’s grasp.
Pinkie let go of Rainbow, smiling as she slid her forehooves higher until they were resting on Rainbow’s shoulders.
“Sorry, Dashie. I just missed you so much! I couldn’t help but hug you!” Pinkie exclaimed, either unaware or not caring of the fact that she wasn’t using her inside voice.
“Shh!”
Rainbow looked into Pinkie’s cerulean eyes, finding it harder to stare into them for long. She smiled and sighed in relief as she rolled onto her back, pulling Pinkie until she was sitting on her abdomen. “Pinkie, I need a favor from you,” Rainbow whispered as her wings collapsed against her back.
Pinkie frowned. “Aww… you didn’t just come to say hi, Dashie?” she asked. “I liked the little talk that we had.”
A small pang of guilt assaulted Rainbow’s chest, but she hid it behind a smile.
“No, Pinkie, I’m sorry. I’m just... kinda in a rush. I messed up, harder than I ever have in my life, and I need to make it right.”
Pinkie blinked before she stood up and walked over to her bed. She sat down on it while Rainbow sat up and looked away, expecting a question that she didn’t want to answer.
“Is it with your dad, Dashie?” Pinkie asked, frowning slightly as she stared imploringly down at Rainbow.
Rainbow nodded and ran a hoof through her mane. “Not just my Dad, Twilight too. I hurt them both, and I need to make it up to them. I want to use my birthday party to apologize, and I was wondering if you could help me with it.”
Pinkie’s frown immediately melted into a smile as she jumped up in the air and landed at her bedroom door in a puff of pink smoke.
“Okie dokie lokie!” Pinkie opened her door and jerked her head in the direction of the staircase. Interestingly enough, once the door was open, Pinkie lowered her voice. “Come on, everypony else is sleeping so we have to be quiet. But we can talk in the kitchen and you can help me with the cakes.”
Rainbow nodded as she rose to her hooves and followed Pinkie down the staircase and into the spotless kitchen. Pinkie began throwing utensils and ingredients onto the large kitchen table, each item landing perfectly on its bottom or side. Not a single thing landed out of place.
“Rainbow, if you want to apologize with your party, then we are going to have to pull out some extreme measures!”
Pinkie zipped over to the table, bringing a scroll with her to write down a checklist of things that she needed. “We’re gonna need a big blimp, shaped like Dashie with a big sign above her that says ‘I’m sorry’.”
Rainbow chuckled and patted Pinkie’s shoulder. She pulled a bowl next to her and began cracking eggs into the bowl, whisking them to start up the treat preparation. “Nah, I don’t want anything big. I just want a nice, simple birthday party. Maybe a few banners that say that I’m sorry, but apart from that, I don’t want anything too flashy.”
Pinkie’s eyes widened. “Gee, Dashie. I would have thought that flashy is something that you would want at the top of the list.”
Rainbow sighed. “I’d rather not put ‘I was completely wrong and I’m sorry, take my Dad back’ in glittery letters and leave it at that. I want to tell them both that I’m sorry, in front of everyone, so that they know that I mean it.”
Pinkie bit her lip but upon seeing Rainbow look at her, she smiled and pulled a spare bowl near her, beginning to crack eggs as well. “Where do you want to hold the party, Dashie? At your house?” Pinkie quickly retracted the question. “No wait, everypony else couldn’t attend since your house is up in the sky. How about Twilight’s house?”
Rainbow’s eyes widened before she smiled sheepishly, the question sinking into her. “I… didn’t actually think about where I should hold the party. I guess it just slipped my mind.” Rainbow continued to whisk. “I can’t ask Twilight to hold it at her house.”
“Why not? It’ll be a great surprise!”
“I think the last thing that she wants is more surprises.”
“How about here?” Pinkie asked. “I’ll ask Mr. and Ms. Cake to close down for Saturday and we can hold the party in there! There’s enough room, I know it!”
“I can’t ask that of you, Pinkie. You told me that Saturday is one of the busiest days for Sugarcube Corner! That’s bits just walking out the door!”
Pinkie waved away Rainbow’s worry with a giggle. “I’d gladly give up Sugarcube Corner if it made you happy, Dashie.”
Pinkie bounced over to the refrigerator and after grabbing a glass from a nearby cupboard, she came back with a tray of lemonade. “Want some?”
Rainbow smiled and took a glass, emptying it in one gulp as she set it back down on the table. “Thank you, Pinkie. I really needed that.”
Rainbow pushed her bowl away from the table and laid her head down against it, closing her eyes for a moment as she sighed again.
“I’m so exhausted. I didn’t get much sleep last night and I had to go to work immediately after I ruined my relationship with my dad. I’m sorry, just give me a minute.”
Pinkie nodded and continued to whisk the eggs, sparing a glance towards the clock. Her eyes widened upon seeing that it was 2 AM, and she turned back to Rainbow and placed a hoof on her shoulder. “Dashie, if you need to rest, you can go sleep in my bed,” she said as she rubbed her hoof in a small circle to accentuate her words. “This is going to take a while, and if you need your rest—”
Pinkie was going to say more, but Rainbow sat up, pulling her bowl back in front of her as she continued to whisk. “No, I’m fine. Let’s focus on the party. How long do you think it will take to get all these sweets ready? How many ponies are you planning on inviting?”
Pinkie placed a hoof underneath her chin. “Hmm… well, we gotta at least invite everypony that you know! How many is that?”
Rainbow blinked and closed her eyes for a moment, the question assaulting an already exhausted mind. “I don’t know… just invite the usual ponies. Not everypony in Ponyville. They can’t all fit in here.”
“So… sixty-four ponies? That’s including you and me.”
Rainbow nodded and waved her hoof dismissively. “Yeah… that many.”
Pinkie Pie smiled as she began to count on her hooves. “Well in that case… one, two, three... it will take around five hours!”
“Five hours!?” Rainbow repeated before she lowered her voice and faced Pinkie. “Why is it going to take five hours? I thought you did these cupcakes in your sleep!”
Pinkie frowned as she dashed back to the table and began another batch. “I’m sorry, Dashie. I need to have enough cupcakes to last the whole day. I’m only so quick, so it’s going to take a while.”
Rainbow began to whisk with a gaining ferocity, her irritation melting away into a smile.
“It’s fine, Pinkie. Really, it is. You’re already doing so much for me, so I’ll just stay here and cook with you until we’re all ready for the party. I can always drink an energy drink or something if I’m getting tired.”
Pinkie’s smile lit up the whole room as she bounced up into the air with a silent, pink explosion. She landed next to Rainbow and hugged her, initiating another spine-shifting embrace. Rainbow’s eyes bulged out for seconds before she was released and Pinkie snuggled her head on her shoulders.
“Are we gonna masterbake, Rainbow?”
Rainbow rolled her eyes, but couldn’t prevent a chuckle. “Yes, Pinkie. We’re gonna masterbake.”
“Rainbow, you have no idea how much this means to me!” Pinkie walked to her bowl of batter and began to make figures inside of it with a hoof. “I’ve never masturbaked with someone else before! I usually just do it by myself, in the comfort of my kitchen when everyone’s away. You make the best recipes that way!”
Rainbow focused on her batter, despite how much she wanted to look at Pinkie and see what her hooves were up to as she tried to pantomime her explanations and shenanigans. Pinkie brushed up against her again with a chef’s hat as she placed it on Rainbow’s unkempt mane. Rainbow brushed an interloping bang out of her eyes as she smirked and filled up another cupcake tin.
“How about we make it a race? Last one to finish has to clean up the other’s mess,” Rainbow said as she adjusted the hat on her head.
Pinkie froze as she took a step back from Rainbow. The only movement that came out of her was the slow unveiling of her own chef’s hat as she placed it on her head and twisted it to the side, a small locking sound echoing throughout the room. Rainbow looked around to try and pinpoint the sound, but Pinkie merely smirked as well.
“You’re on. Don’t make too much of a mess!”
~~~
A heavenly scent reached Rainbow’s nostrils as she relaxed her wings and landed on the cloudy welcome mat of her home. She opened the front door and glanced towards the kitchen, where Blue Streak was currently flipping pancakes with adept dexterity. Rainbow slowly slid the front door closed, trying to be as quiet as possible so that she could slide up and into her room without having to talk. However, Blue looked over at the front door upon hearing it close and he put on his familiar light smile.
“Good morning, Rainbow. Did you just get home?” he asked.
Rainbow nodded and sighed as she walked over to her kitchen, looking around. Her counter was completely clean, free of the myriad of dirty dishes that Rainbow allowed to pile up when the structural integrity of her takeout bags was compromised. The entire counter shined in the sunlight and Rainbow placed a hoof over her head to block the blinding rays from triggering another headache.
Even though there were a significant amount of ingredients used to make pancakes, it looked like Blue Streak was never in the kitchen, minus the one bowl and pan that he was using to cook the flapjacks.
“I’m making pancakes, did you want any, Rainbow?” Blue asked.
Rainbow didn’t respond as she opened up her refrigerator and pulled out a small black bottle with a lightning bolt emblazoned on the side. She popped open the cap and drained the energy drink, before squeezing it in between her forehooves and throwing it into her nearby trashcan. She sniffed as her whole face began to flush with color. Her eyes shot open and she flared her wings as she leaned against the refrigerator. Blue turned around to face her, staring imploringly with a blink of his tired eyes.
“Twilight’s giving you one chance,” Rainbow muttered.
“Oh.”
Blue Streak flipped the pancake into a clean plate on the counter as he poured more batter into the pan and continued to cook. “That’s nice,” he replied as he turned back to the stove.
Rainbow gritted her teeth, but remained passive as she walked over to the counter alongside Blue and leaned against it.
“Are you going to take it, Dad?”
Blue shook his head, the smile still on his face as he picked up the plate and held it in front of Rainbow. “Here, Rainbow, eat. You look exhausted,” he said. “You don’t look like you’ve eaten in a while either. How long were you gone?”
Rainbow looked towards the kitchen window and then shrugged. “Around twelve hours. I went to talk to Twilight, and then get my party ready over at Pinkie’s house. Baking all those cupcakes was going to take a while, so I decided to stay there and help her out. What about you? What did you do while I was gone?”
“I just cleaned the house and then went to sleep. I was going to go out and get your birthday present when I woke up, but breakfast took longer than I thought. I had to go out and get groceries since you had nothing in the fridge.” Blue looked towards the plate and his smile turned into a small frown. “Eat, Rainbow.”
Rainbow stepped closer to Blue upon hearing his stomach growl. “Sounds like you need to eat more than I do, Dad.” She pushed the plate across the counter until it was next to the stove. Blue looked up to glance at the plate, before he sighed in defeat and grabbed a fork out of a drawer to cut off a small slice.
“Dad, do you remember the first birthday that we had without Mom?”
Blue Streak let his fork fall to the plate as he looked back to the stove. With a swivel of his other hoof, the stove turned off and the perfectly cooked pancake rested inside of the pan. His hoof shook as he released the knob and stared at the floor.
“Dashie, I don’t want to talk about that,” he mumbled.
“But, I do, Dad.”
Rainbow grabbed Blue’s forehoof and held it in her own, staring into her dad’s mane since his eyes were on the floor. “Please, Dad, just hear what I have to say.”
Blue Streak lightly nodded, but didn’t lift his head.
Rainbow released his hoof and smiled as she leaned against the counter. “Dad, what did you do for me during that birthday? How did we celebrate it?”
“We… I… booked a reservation for your favorite restaurant. You told me that Mom took you there once and you wanted to go again, to remember her.”
Rainbow nodded. “And what happened the moment we got there?”
Blue Streak sighed. “Some fancy celebrities bought the restaurant for the day and they had to give away our reservation.”
“And what did you do?”
“We… went back to my house. I bought you a cake and we had your birthday there, with a few of your friends.”
Rainbow smiled and hugged Blue. When she pulled back, she tilted his chin up.
“And it was the best birthday that I’ve ever had, Dad.”
Blue’s eyes widened before he looked away.
“I don’t know how… you really wanted to go to that restaurant, and I couldn’t get us in.”
“I couldn’t care less about the restaurant, Dad,” Rainbow said with a sigh. “I chose that place because it was where you had your first dinner date with Mom. I thought it would cheer you up, but to you, that didn’t matter. You moved all of my presents and the cake back to my house. You flew to the houses of all the party guests and told them that it was going to be at my house, just so that the party wasn’t without them.”
Blue waved away Rainbow’s words. “Any father would do that for their daughter, Rainbow. You’re just exaggerating to make me feel better.”
Rainbow shrugged. “Maybe that’s the case, Dad, but you know what? I found out something about you because of that party.”
“And what is that?” Blue asked as he dumped the final pancake onto the nearby plate before he began to clean up.
“You’re loyal to the ones that you love. You did everything that you could in order to give me the best party ever, every year. You broke up with Twilight right after our second fight, because you were scared that it was going to affect our relationship.”
“It should have been the first time.”
“Dad, don’t focus on that, focus on what I’m saying.” Rainbow paused. “How did you manage to keep the house when we didn’t have Mom’s income anymore?”
“I… took double shifts at the library.”
“And why did you do that?”
“Because… I didn’t want to drag you down with me. You were so happy, so determined to get into the Wonderbolts. I wanted to give you everything that I could to make sure that it happened, even if it meant losing some hours of sleep just so that I could pick you up from school.”
Rainbow smiled and placed a hoof onto Blue’s shoulders. “It worked, Dad. I’m in the Academy, and I’m going to be a Wonderbolt really soon.” Her eyes began to mist up as she pulled him into another hug. “Dad, I love you. I know… I don’t get to say that a lot, because I don’t visit as much as I used to. But, I want to change that. I said that I wanted to go back to the way things were… but… I’ve changed my mind. I don’t want to go back to the times where I stopped coming to your house because I couldn’t make you happy anymore.”
Rainbow released Blue, but kept her hooves on his shoulders as she stared into his eyes. “Dad, I was scared, for you. You were stuck in Mom’s house for years, and I thought you would never get out. Now, look at you. We both had a fight and here you are, giving breakfast to the one who talked you into giving up the one who made you happy.”
“You’re my daughter, Dashie, you’re the only one I need to be happy,” Blue replied as he smiled lightly.
Rainbow gritted her teeth. “Stop… lying… to me. And stop lying to yourself.” Dash pointed towards the stove and the plate with a bite of pancake missing. “Is this what you want? An empty house for the rest of your life? Dad, you and I both know that’s not what you want. If it was, you wouldn’t have tried to date Twilight.”
Rainbow walked out of the kitchen and into her bedroom, where a clean wicker basket of laundry sat upon her bed. She rummaged through it and pulled out her Wonderbolt Academy uniform. She walked back out into the kitchen and held it out for Blue Streak to see.
“You see this, Dad? This was given to me because of a chance. I still have it, because I took that chance. You took your chance with Twilight, and the only difference between you and me is that you gave up.”
Rainbow dropped her outfit onto the dining room table and sighed. “Dad, I know that you’re scared. I’m scared too, because I don’t know if Twilight is going to take you back. But this is a chance, and I’ll be damned if I’m going to let you give it up just because you’re too scared to move on.”
The two of them stood in silence as Rainbow looked between her outfit and her father, waiting for some kind of reaction. His light smile had melted away to an expression of pure thought, even with the nervous fidgeting of his hooves upon the cloudy floor and his shifty eyes.
“I’ll ask one more time,” Rainbow added. “Are you ready, to take that chance? Forget about the what ifs. Forget about what I want. What do you want, Dad?”
Blue Streak looked at the floor. “I want her back,” he mumbled.
“Hmm?” Rainbow placed a hoof behind her ear. “I can’t hear you.”
“I want Twilight back,” Blue mumbled again, slightly louder.
“One more time!” Rainbow cheered, smirking as she rose to her hind hooves while pumping a forehoof into the air.
“I want Twilight back!” Blue Streak yelled out as he mimicked Rainbow, pumping his forehooves into the air while he flew a foot off the ground. He laughed and tackled his daughter, pulling her into a spine-splitting hug before he let her go. “You’re right, Dashie. You’re absolutely right,” he said, “I love you, I’m so glad that we had you.”
Rainbow chuckled. “Yeah, it’s not everyday that an awesome mare like me is born,” she said with a wink. Once Blue let her go, she sank back to the floor and looked to the front door. She grabbed Blue’s forehoof and turned to face him.
“Dad, you trust me, right?”
Blue nodded. “Of course, Dashie. Why do you ask?”
“Well…” Rainbow bit her lip. “My birthday party is tomorrow. Twilight is coming, and you’ll have your chance to make it up to her then. But, before the party, I think there’s one more place that we should go.”
Blue Streak raised his eyebrows in confusion. “And where is that?”
“Somewhere that we haven’t gone in years. But first, we need a bouquet.”
~~~
“Where... are we... going?” Blue asked, his words shivering due to the cold breeze, chilling him down to the bone. He turned his head, but couldn’t see past the blindfold that was tied snug around his eyes.
Rainbow let out a small “oof” as the both of them descended and their hooves met hard ground. She exhaled a cloudy mist as she looked up at the stone arch in front of them, the words “Ponyville Cemetery” emblazoned across it. Rainbow’s gaze shifted to the sky, overcast clouds mimicking the environment's mood. A spasm of fear shot through her hooves. She brushed a hoof along the bouquet in her saddlebag before she turned towards her dad.
“We’re here.”
Rainbow raised a hoof to Blue’s blindfold and slid it behind his head to untie the knot. “Remember our promise, you won’t run away?”
Blue merely nodded and stared ahead. Once the blindfold fell onto the floor, his face drained of color as he choked. His hooves shuddered as he took a step back and attempted to take another before Rainbow grabbed and pulled him into a hug.
“Dad, you promised.”
Blue looked down at the floor and pressed a forehoof to his chest. “I’m not… running. I’m just… surprised.”
Rainbow broke the hug, allowing Blue to stare back at the arch. He gulped and stepped towards the entrance, its wooden gates wide open and inviting. Blue held his head high as he wrapped a wing around Rainbow’s back and began to walk inside. Rainbow followed, licking her lips nervously as she opened her mouth to speak, but decided against it.
Rainbow felt a shiver crawl down her spine as Blue and her walked down the dirt path, passing familiar granite gravestones with engraved writing that they didn’t dare look at. Not a single soul besides the two of them lingered in the graveyard. Rainbow stopped once they reached a fork in the dirt road, both paths trailing off into the distance with more indicators of death. She looked down the left path until she felt the heat of Blue’s wings leave her back.
Blue proceeded down the right path, head bent down as he glanced at the gravestones with every few steps. Each stone passed by his peripheral vision once they checked out as the incorrect occupant. Rainbow quickly caught up, walking back over to Blue’s side. Once she was perfectly in sync with his walking, Blue raised his wing over her back once more, as if she never left.
“Here lies Firefly…”
Blue stopped as the correct headstone met Blue’s vision, and he turned to face it. Rainbow turned to Blue as he stopped, seeing him sink to his haunches on the dirt road. He bent his head down and covered it with his forehooves while Rainbow sat down next to him and ran a forehoof down his back.
Blue remained silent for minutes, his head on the dirt while the howling wind and nearby tree filled in for the sound. Rainbow looked over at the gravestone and pressed her other hoof to her chest. Her heart began to chill with the wind.
“Firefly? I… know it’s been a while since I’ve talked to you.”
Blue sat up and looked over at the headstone, his forehooves shifting along the dirt as he lightly smiled.
“I… know that I should have came here earlier. It’s just… I got busier… and then… scared… and then...”
Blue cleared his throat and looked to Rainbow as she continued to run her hoof up and down his back, smiling in consolation. His smile widened as he turned back to the headstone.
“I… I’m back though, and I brought Rainbow.”
Rainbow turned to the headstone and smiled as she wrapped her wing around Blue’s back. She coughed to get the frog out of her throat as her eyes began to water. “Hi, Mom. I… miss you.”
Blue chuckled as he bit back his tears. “Your daughter is all grown up now. She’s made me proud, and I’m sure that if you were here,” Blue Streak paused, “you’d be proud too.”
Blue gulped and looked down at the road as he tried to search for the right words. Rainbow rubbed his back again and smiled as she pressed her chest to his shoulder.
“I’m right here, Dad. I’m not going anywhere.”
Blue stared into Rainbow’s eyes and nodded, smiling as he turned back to the headstone. “Dashie’s going to be a Wonderbolt soon. I know you would have loved to see that.”
“Yeah, they let me into the Academy after I showed them some of your awesome moves!” Rainbow added, smiling brightly as she marveled at the headstone. “All of our hard work paid off, Mom! I’m gonna be a Wonderbolt!”
Rainbow forced a laugh as she leaned against Blue, who laughed as well, if only for a few seconds. Upon receiving no response, both of their faces fell while Blue sighed. Rainbow looked down at Blue’s forehooves and took his left into her own, smiling as she leaned against him. Blue gripped her hoof with a building ferocity as he sniffed and looked back to the road. He chuckled.
“I’m trying not to cry in front of you, Firefly. I know… that’s the last thing you saw of me before your eyes… closed.”
Rainbow’s hoof began to throb with pain as Blue gripped it harder.
“I haven’t talked to you in seven years… and there is so much that I want to tell you. But… at the same time… I don’t know if you’ll ever forgive what I have to say. I barely even forgive myself.”
Blue gulped and released his grip on Dash’s hoof with a sigh.
“Firefly, I left our room exactly the same as when you went to the hospital. I only washed the sheets when they started to get dusty every now and again. Our house… is exactly the same. I haven’t changed a thing, except for one letter that’s now framed on the wall. Firefly, I… haven’t changed a thing. I now know, that if I want to move on, I can’t have my house stay the same.”
Blue chuckled again as he shuffled his hind legs underneath him to get more comfortable.
“I know, me, moving on. Sounds hilarious, doesnt it? I practically tackled you to the floor when you were gone for a week for that one Wonderbolt show in Manehatten. I’m clingy, and I know it. But… I can’t be in despair anymore.”
Blue raised a hoof to brush a bang of his hair out of his face as he turned to stare back at the gravestone.
“Firefly, I was in a despair because of y… because of what happened. I couldn’t let you go. You were the best thing that ever happened to me.”
Blue turned to Rainbow and smiled as he wrapped a hoof around her back, underneath his wing.
“And you gave me one of the best things that ever happened to me, Firefly. I love you, I always will love you. But I need to tell you why I can’t despair any longer.
“I will always grieve because of you, Firefly. You were an amazing mother and wife. You had a more fulfilling life than I ever would. But, because I couldn’t get over you, I was starting to bring down everyone around me. My daughter stopped visiting me, and I ruined the only other relationship that I managed to make because I was scared of you. Dashie said that dating my marefriend would ruin your memory, and while we have reconciled that problem, the thought still lingers in my head. I tossed and turned in that uncomfortable guest bed, wondering if she was telling the truth. If Twilight coming to my house and laying on the same couch that you laid on, or on the same bed that you slept in, was ruining your memory. I’ve decided that it doesn’t, it merely strengthens it."
Blue smiled. “Yes, Twilight Sparkle is her name. She’s a wonderful pony. She’s a librarian, like me. We met when I visited her house because she sent a letter for a very specific book that was needed from the Cloudsdale library. We chatted and instantly connected. A month and a few library visits later, we were dating.” Another pause, followed by a sigh. “Yeah, we were dating. I messed up, Firefly, as I often do. But… I’ve forgiven myself for that. I have one more chance tomorrow to make it up to Twilight, and I’m going to take it.
“I want her back, Firefly, because I don’t want to despair any longer. I’ve had seven years of despair, and I’m sick of it. Nothing happens when you despair. You just sit idly by and wait for your shift to end. Then you pick up takeout food on the way home and eat it on the couch while you flip through the newspaper. I want to cook again. I want to go outside again. I want to sit down at a restaurant again, and take Twilight to one to eat and talk. I want to talk to her again about the mating rituals of butterflies, or read another book with her in the Canterlot Maze. I can do that if I set aside time to grieve, but not if I only despair.”
Blue Streak stood up and grabbed the bouquet of flowers from Rainbow’s saddlebag. He walked around Firefly’s plot with the flowers in his mouth until he reached the headstone. Releasing the flowers into his hoof, he lowered them alongside the gravestone and smiled with misty eyes. Rainbow bit her lip and merely bent her head down as Blue walked back to the road and embraced her. Blue shifted the two of them to the side as he looked back at the headstone. The lavender asters resting underneath Firefly’s name blew in the breeze as Blue released Rainbow.
“Rainbow, is there anything that you want to say to Mom?”
Rainbow turned to the headstone and yawned before she shook her head. “I’ve said all that I wanted to say to her. But I do want to say that I love you, Mom, and I’ll come visit more often.”
Blue chuckled and ruffled Rainbow’s mane. “For now, Firefly, that’s all I can say without bursting into tears. Wish me luck, because tomorrow, I’m going to need it.” Blue sank to his haunches and smiled as he turned his back to Rainbow. “Come on, Dashie. You’re exhausted and I bet that energy drink is wearing out. I doubt you’ll make the flight home.”
Rainbow wobbled a few steps towards the exit. “I’m fine, Dad. I don’t need…” Rainbow’s words were cut off as her hooves began to shake and buckle. Blue quickly dashed in front of her and caught her as she collapsed against his back. Blue smiled and grabbed her saddlebag, holding it in his teeth as he shifted Rainbow around to his forehooves. He kissed Rainbow on the forehead before he began to ascend into the sky.
“Sleep well, Dashie. You earned it, thank you.”
~~~
“This… is your singing telegram, right outside your house!
I tried to open your door, but it won’t move an ounce!
The party’s in an hour and I thought that you should know!
That everything is all set up and you just need to go!”
Rainbow’s eyes shot open at the familiar voice and she shifted around in her bed sheets, jerking every direction until she saw Pinkie’s grin taking up the entirety of her window. Rainbow jumped, but smiled as she placed a forehoof over her chest.
“Oh, it’s just you, Pinkie.” Rainbow smiled and laughed, one of her forehooves searching around her bed until she realized that she was in her house.
Pinkie giggled. “Yeperooni! Gee, Dashie, you were sleeping for a while! You really weren’t kidding when you said that you were tired!”
Rainbow slid out of bed and onto her hooves. “Yeah well… I went to do something after I left your house.” She walked over to Pinkie, who lowered her head to allow Rainbow to take the invitation that was in the basket atop her head. Rainbow slit open the envelope and paused upon pulling the invitation out.
“Do I even need this?” Rainbow laughed as she placed the invitation on her bedside table. “I already knew that I was going, and that it was at your house.”
Pinkie looked behind her at the pile of balloons that kept her up and she shrugged.
“I dunno, Dashie, you don’t look like you’re ready to come. I thought it would be nice to give you a heads up!”
Rainbow examined herself and began to realize what Pinkie meant. Her wings looked like they hadn’t been preened in a while, even though it was just because of the monolithic amount of flying that she had to endure throughout the week. Her mane carried the plague of bed head and while she thought about it, her shoulders and wings ached from her marathon of flying. Rainbow groaned in pain as she closed her eyes and ran a hoof through her mane. Her hoof lowered to rest on her forehead, where she felt a headache starting to ooze into the back of her head.
“Yeah, maybe I do need a few minutes.” Rainbow turned to Pinkie and lowered her hoof. “I’ll meet you at the party, I just gotta take a shower.”
Pinkie Pie nodded as she pulled a balloon out of the pile atop her and slowly began to descend. She released the balloon inside of Rainbow’s room and smiled widely as she sank down.
“I got more presents at Sugarcube Corner, so don’t forget to come to the party with a smile, Dashie! It’s your birthday!”
Rainbow smiled and waved at Pinkie as she slowly descended out of sight. Once she was gone, Rainbow sighed and walked over to her shower, dragging her hooves as she knocked one of the nearby clouds, allowing water to spray down upon her.
As the lukewarm water leaked down her fur and onto the cloud beneath her, Rainbow let out a sigh of relief as she ran her hooves down her sides, making sure that every part of her was wet and ready to be soaped. She looked over to the corner of her shower, recognizing the small bottle of shampoo that she worked into her body when she was nothing but a frame of angst and boiled blood.
Rainbow picked up the bottle and leaned back against the shower wall, allowing the water to wet her hind hooves.
“So, this is it. If this works out, there’s no going back.”
She bent her head down as she opened the bottle and poured some soap onto her forehooves. Her headache leaked away with the water as she closed her eyes and massaged her scalp, breathing in the lavender scent.
~~~
“HAPPY BIRTHDAY, RAINBOW DASH!”
Rainbow would think, after all of the parties that she had attended, she would be ready for the surprise. But yet, her ears popped and her heart nearly stopped as she opened the door to Sugarcube Corner to find as many ponies as could be comfortably packed inside, all staring at her with smiles on their faces and party hats atop their heads.
Rainbow smiled as her five friends walked up to her and gave her a group hug. She laughed and closed her eyes, letting the ten forehooves wrap around her as the once silent room melded into a myriad of conversations and snack munching.
“I haven’t seen you in a few days, Rainbow!” Applejack said as the five released their hug. “I’m glad that I got to see you again at one of Pinkie’s parties. I haven’t been to one of these in a while.”
“I say, Pinkie Pie, you surely have outdone yourself this time. I love how you were a little more subtle with the decorations. It isn’t some huge… explosion of color and celebration! It’s a little more calculated. I like it,” Rarity added as she looked up at the walls, all of which were covered in giant letters that spelled out “Happy Birthday Rainbow Dash!”. Apart from the letters, however, the decorations remained upon the dining room tables, livening up the room with its colorful snacks. Rarity adjusted the purple party hat on her head and squealed slightly in adoration. “You even got the party hat in my color!”
Pinkie giggled. “Of course I did, oh! That reminds me!” Pinkie pulled out a large party hat, its rainbow colors glistening throughout the room as she held it high above her head. “I forgot to give you the birthday hat!”
Rainbow laughed as Pinkie placed the head atop her head while Fluttershy offered a glass of cider. “Thanks you guys!”
Rainbow took the cider and drained the glass in one gulp. She sighed in relief as she placed the glass on the closest table before walking back to the group.
“We didn’t surprise you too much, right?” Fluttershy asked as she silently sipped on her cider.
Rainbow smiled. “Nah, I’m okay. I didn’t expect such a surprise, actually,” she admitted with a small laugh. “I thought I was going to be early or something.”
Rainbow looked away from her friends to scan the party. “Is my dad here?”
Twilight frowned, but since nopony except Rainbow had their eyes on her, she was able to mask it easily with a fake smile. “Yeah, he’s over there, talking to the Cakes.” She pointed over to the back of the room, where Blue Streak was indeed talking to Carrot Cake, who had Pumpkin in his arms with a bottle.
Rainbow looked over to Blue Streak and her smile widened once she saw Blue laugh and take a drink of his cider. She turned back to her friends and sighed in relief.
“Thank you, all of you, for coming to my party. And Pinkie, thank you for decorating while I was gone. I wanted to help, but I had something I had to do, and I just lost track of time. I’m sorry.”
Pinkie shook her head and shoved a cupcake into Rainbow’s mouth. “Don’t worry about it, silly filly! This is your birthday party, you shouldn’t have to worry about anything!” She replied. “Just relax and enjoy yourself!”
“If only it was that easy,” Rainbow mumbled under her breath.
Twilight chuckled, but the mane six’s attention was captured by Apple Bloom, who ran over to Pinkie and stopped in front of her. Apple Bloom looked at Rainbow and smiled lightly before she met eyes with Pinkie.
“Pinkie Pie, can you play Pin The Tail On The Pony with us? I heard that you’re one of the best at that game and I want a challenge!”
Pinkie smirked as she pulled off her tail and held it atop her head. “You’re on, Apple Bloom!”
The remaining five laughed as Pinkie and Apple Bloom ran over to a corner of the room with the other fillies, each of them with blindfolds and tails in their hooves. Rainbow turned back to Twilight and bit her lip while Rarity, Applejack, and Fluttershy remained silent. Rainbow opened her mouth to speak, but Applejack cut her off.
“I’m gonna go fill up some more tables with cupcakes since Pinkie is busy. Talk to you four later?”
The remaining four merely nodded as Applejack walked towards the kitchen and disappeared amongst the crowd. Twilight turned to Rarity and Fluttershy and bit her lip.
“Girls… do you mind if I talk to Rainbow alone? Just for a few minutes?”
Rarity’s eyes widened, but she smiled and nodded. “Of course, Twilight. Come on, Fluttershy. We can talk about our plans for Pinkie’s birthday. It is coming up, after all.”
Fluttershy smiled and turned to Rarity. “Of course. I personally think that if we can manage a mixture of white and pink, the color combinations will work from the ground up,” she said as she walked with Rarity off and into the myriad of sound that was the party.
Rainbow turned back to Twilight, who placed a hoof on her lips and covered her own.
“Shh.” Twilight walked over to the front door and opened it. Rainbow followed until the both of them were outside, the front door and sound closing behind them. Twilight sighed and placed a hoof on Rainbow’s shoulder.
“Rainbow, I want to apologize for the night you came over. I know that I wasn’t exactly… in the best of moods,” Twilight said as she outstretched her hooves for a hug. “I’m sorry.”
The tension in Rainbow’s chest released upon hearing Twilight apologize. Rainbow pulled Twilight into the hug and held her close, holding back her tears.
“And… about your dad,” Twilight began, but Rainbow cut her off this time, breaking the hug and placing a hoof on her lips.
“Wait, Twilight. Please, let’s talk about this later.” Rainbow wiped her tears and smiled. “Let’s just enjoy the party for now.”
Twilight smiled as well and nodded with a sigh. Rainbow lowered her hoof and opened the front door behind her.
“There’s something that I need to tell you, Twilight, but… it has to wait. All I want to say is, please don’t make up your mind about Dad until after the party,” Rainbow added, almost begging in her tone.
Twilight’s eyes widened, if only for a second before she scuffed a hoof against the floor. “You don’t have to worry, Rainbow. I still haven’t decided. I just… don’t know if he’s changed, or if he’s pretending to be happy just to make you feel better.”
Rainbow nodded and sighed. “I’d like to think that he’s changed, Twilight, but I don’t know. What I do know is that I trust him, despite everything that we went through.” Rainbow took a deep breath as she brushed a hoof through her mane, unable to meet Twilight’s hues, “I hope that when the party is over, you’ll know your answer for sure. But,” Rainbow paused and looked back to the party, relentless noise assaulting her left ear. “No matter what your choice is, you’ll always be my best friend.”
Twilight placed a hoof over her heart and blinked back tears. She walked over to Rainbow to give her another big hug. Rainbow held her close before she released Twilight, and the both of them walked back into the organized chaos of the party.
~~~
Rainbow wasn’t sure how she managed to quiet the room. Perhaps it was because she was the birthday mare and that gave her clearance to arrange everypony in the room as she saw fit. Perhaps it was because the gigantic, four layer cake was levitating over to her own table before it settled down, gathering the attention of everypony in the room. After all, who didn’t love cake? From the crowd’s undivided attention, apparently no one.
Rainbow marveled at the cake before her. Each layer was a different color, and presumably a different flavor, if the aroma wafting to her nose was any hint. Strawberry, blueberry, vanilla, and lemon all assaulted her senses at once, along with the four cinnamon pylons above each layer that connected each flavor layer. Mrs. Cake smiled as she stood alongside the cake, holding a large knife. However, before she cut the cake, Mr. Cake came out with two numbered candles and Pinkie grabbed the candles and Spike so that she could perform the finishing touch. One pink dust cloud later and the number 21 rested atop the cake, both candles burning with Spike’s flame as Rainbow hovered up into the air, sore wings bringing her face level with the candles.
Pinkie smiled as she stood in front of the cake and looked at the crowd, motioning towards Rainbow. “Alright everypony, let’s sing it!”
“Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Rainbow Dash, happy birthday to you!”
Rainbow scanned the crowd, her eyes growing misty as her father and Twilight melded into a blur. She closed her eyes and blew out the candles. The entire room bursted into cheering and clapping as Mrs. Cake raised the knife and smiled widely, eying her creation.
“What flavor piece would you like, Rainbow Dash?” she asked.
“I’ll take the blueberry,” Rainbow replied with a smile as she sank back into her chair, leaning back against it while the entire crowd watched Mrs. Cake give out the first piece.
“Hey, when are you gonna give me some grandkids? I’m feeling old over here!” Blue Streak yelled out, which prompted a wave of laughter from the crowd.
Rainbow laughed lightly as well. She pushed herself out of her chair and walked around the table, leaning against it as she stared out into the crowd. The few murmurs and conversations that rippled through the crowd ceased once they realized that Rainbow wanted their attention.
Rainbow smiled weakly and ran a hoof through her hair.
“Hey, uh… I just wanted to say something before we all sank into this cake.” Rainbow gulped as she scanned the crowd one more time. Every eye was on her.
“I hope everypony is enjoying the party so far. If you are, please make sure to thank Pinkie Pie and the Cakes. I know that the party was kind of short notice, to everyone.”
Rainbow heard a small mutter around the crowd in agreement. She swallowed and continued.
“But I appreciate that you all came. There’s one pony that couldn’t attend, no matter how much I wish she could. That pony, is my mother.”
Another murmur spread throughout the crowd, but it was more polarized this time. Half of the crowd was completely surprised while another crowd nodded in silence. Rainbow clenched the table and looked back at the cake before she turned back to meet eyes with Blue Streak.
“My mother… died… seven years ago, when I was just a filly.”
Another murmur, but Rainbow continued talking as she spread her gaze amongst the crowd, which quieted the crowd once more.
“She was sick, and didn’t get better in the hospital.” Rainbow sighed again. “I… don’t know why I’m telling everypony this. All I know is that I have to, because there are two more ponies that I have to thank for where I am today. Sorry if I’m… interrupting your cake time.”
Rainbow smiled sheepishly, but the crowd remained serious. She brushed a hoof against her neck in thought, trying to search for the right words.
“My mom… was the best. I know some ponies always say that their dads could beat up someone else’s dad. That was the case with my mom. I’m sure you all know her. Firefly, the ex-Wonderbolt.”
Rainbow saw a lot of nods, but continued before her train of thought was broken.
“Everyone knows the first side of her. The side that she shows in the magazines, where she talks about her workout regimen or practice trials for the Wonderbolts. The side that she never showed, was the mother side. My mother… was me. One hundred percent. My dad told me a funny story about how my mom and I got into a little argument the moment I was able to speak.”
Rainbow laughed and lowered her hoof back to the floor.
“It takes two to argue, and Mom and I were always that two. I got my brain from my mom and my looks from my dad. Dad always joked about what would happen if I got the opposite. Heh. My family was perfect. My mom taught me how to fly, and brought home a major amount of the flour that my dad would bake into bread, if you catch my drift. I always saw my dad happily walking around the house, cleaning anything and everything while he helped me with my homework. The moment I was done, it was outside to practice flying with Mom. Looking back on my fillyhood, I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Rainbow bit back her emotions as she looked down at the floor.
“And now… I’m never going to have that, again.” Rainbow sniffed, her ears ringing from the silence in the room. She pointed over at Blue Streak, whose face drained of color as every pony in the room turned to face him. She raised her head to stare at him. “This stallion, my dad, did everything that he could to make me happy. My mother, his wife, was gone. Despite that, he remained strong.
“He was there for me whenever I needed him, despite double shifts every now and then and whatever amount of sleep he managed to get. I on the other hoof… wasn’t. My dad… was sad. Obviously, I doubt anyone would act natural after what happened. He stopped cooking, cleaning my Mom’s room, and soon enough, he moved into the guest bedroom so that he didn’t have to sleep in the same bed that my mom used to. He was depressed, heartbroken, and I couldn’t do anything about it.
“I tried though. I certainly tried. I took him to parties and Wonderbolts shows to try and cheer him up, but I’ve never seen him truly happy. Soon enough, I gave up. I failed. But somepony showed up into his life recently that completely turned his life around. This special somepony has put smiles on my dad’s face that I haven’t seen since my mother. That pony, is Twilight.”
Twilight’s eyes widened as the focus shifted to her. She smiled and blushed as she grabbed her nearby glass and obscured her face within it. Rainbow played with her forehooves before she looked back down to the ground.
“To be honest, I should have seen something like this coming. If it wasn’t dating, I at least expected them to become friends sometime or another. The both of them love reading, they are both librarians, and I’ve never seen two ponies talk about butterfly mating rituals without falling asleep in their chair.”
Some members of the crowd laughed and Rainbow grinned as she continued.
“The two of you are a perfect match, it’s just a shame that I didn’t agree until now.” Rainbow sighed and straightened herself, no longer leaning on the table as she pointed at Twilight. “This mare… is another one of the best things that ever happened to me. Before I met her, I was a cocky and dismissive show-off. Anything that I believed to be wrong was simply wrong. Sure, I stood by my friends through the thick and thin, but I hardly had any friends to start with since I was so aggressive. When I thought that my friends did something wrong… it was hard for me to change my mind. But Twilight showed me that not everything is black and white. Sometimes, there’s a bit of gray area. A lot of gray area now that I think about it.
“Without you, I wouldn’t have five best friends that I would give my life for. I wouldn’t know what my true meaning in life is without you. Finally, at least until a few days ago, I wouldn’t have a father that was able to be happy again. If I ever had to choose somepony else to be my new mom, somepony else that I could trust with my dad’s happiness, I’d pick you, Twilight.”
A resounding “aww” echoed through the room as Rainbow walked over to Twilight and hugged her. Twilight closed her eyes as she began to cry, the small amount of blush that she had put on for the party smudging across her cheeks.
“I love you… Twilight,” Rainbow choked out.
“I love you too, Rainbow!” Twilight squeezed her forehooves against Rainbow’s shoulders as she bit back her emotions and sighed to try and calm herself.
The crowd clapped, some of them standing up as Rainbow and Twilight hugged for minutes. Rainbow was crying now as well, sobbing as she broke the hug and beamed.
Blue Streak walked over to the two and joined the hug, wrapping his forelegs around them before the three pulled back. He met Twilight’s eyes, but looked away, his own face cherry red.
“I… you don’t have to choose right now, Twilight. I know… Rainbow kind of put you on the spot, and I just want to give it some ti—”
Twilight’s lips pressed against Blue’s, taking his breath away for a second before she stepped back and smiled. Blue’s eyes closed for the split second that the kiss occurred, and as he opened them, he chuckled, the message clearly sent.
“Um, excuse me?” Mrs. Cake smiled as everypony turned to her, her knife gleaming in the sunlight. “Shall we give the first slice of cake to the new family then?” she asked.
“I propose a toast first,” a scratchy voice said, drawing the attention over to the orange filly. Scootaloo raised her glass and smiled. “To Dash’s new mom.”
Sixty-four glasses pointed towards the ceiling as the words resonated through the room. Scootaloo bit back any extra words as she drained her cup, sighing as she stared at the new family in the center of the room.
“Enjoy it, Rainbow. I’m glad that you have a new mom.”
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Why is Dash's mom buried in a Ponyville Cemetery?
I cried.
You amazing bastard. You made me cry.
Hm.
Alright. Rainbow redeemed. Nice work.
~Skeeter The Lurker
3349404 Because, you can't burry decomposing lumps of flesh in clouds.
That and plot convenience.
3349839 you could but i would not recomend it could fall through and crash onto pinkie pie but knowing her shed probs eat her
Don't think of her as your new mother Rainbow! Think of her as a sister that sleeps with your dad!
Wait, no, that's~ that came out wrong...
That cemetery scene was powerful. I really felt for those two.
I've not visited my grandfather's grave since he passed away... not even once. I couldn't do it. It just hurt so much. Maybe - maybe I should, though. Maybe I should...
I admit, I was losing faith in this story. After being drawn in by the unusual pairing but then stuck with reading about why Rainbow didn't like it for 8 or so chapters almost made me give up on it. However, I'm surprised at how well you logically turned it around in only 2 chapters, so I guess I'm glad I stuck around.
Crap, now I'm obliged to update the trope page more!
And all's well that ends well!... except maybe for Scootaloo
the reconciliation pretty much happened in the previous chapter
All I can add is: Yay for Masterbake!
I'm such a dirty pervert, that I misread that line.
poor scoots
I don't catch your drift.
Honestly, I didn't like where this story went. But until this part.... THIS PART HAD MEH!
I was the crowd at that moment.
Shivers up my spine is an understatement....
3689774
Are you still a dirty pervert?