> Storm in the Sky
>  by Dashieluvzcandy
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rainbow Dash! Rainbow Dash! Wake up!"

Two magenta eyes slowly inched open, threatening to fall back asleep. The cyan pegasus mumbled. "Just five more minutes." Suddenly a huge thump came from the window and Rainbow Dash jumped out of bed in fright. "What in Equestria was that!" she exclaimed. Her hooves stumbled down the springy steps of her cloud home. With eyes bleary from sleep Rainbow Dash kicked open her front door in frustration. The greatest flier in Equestria was definitely not a morning person! The cold breeze from outside hit the rainbow maned pegasus right in the face as she looked down to see an orange filly standing below her house.

"For Celestias sake Scoots! What are you doing here at this time it's only 9:00 in the morning! Geez! Not to mention today's my day off from weather patrol!" growled Rainbow Dash grumpily. 
"Heh. Sorry Rainbow Dash but don't you remember, you're taking me to Cloudsdale with you for..." Scootaloo paused and bit her lip "the anniversary." 

The anger instantly seeped from Rainbow Dash's body. How could she have forgotten! Today was the anniversary of her parent's untimely deaths. She scolded herself silently. Her and Scootaloo were going to the Cloudsdale Cemetery like she did at this time every year. Normally Fluttershy would accompany Rainbow Dash but she had to stay home with Angel because the spoiled bunny was quite sick. Anyways Rainbow Dash knew how much her honorary sister loved Cloudsdale. It would also be comforting to have someone who could share the pain of losing both parents. 

Rainbow Dash slowly shook herself out of her thoughts. " Oops! Sorry Scoots! I'll be down in like ten seconds flat!" 
"Ok, I'll just be waiting down here!" said Scootaloo. Rainbow Dash flew indoors and grabbed her saddlebag that was sitting on the sofa, underneath a picture of her at the Young Fliers Competition. She was down on the ground next to Scoots in precisely ten seconds flat. The two pegasi trotted off towards Sugarcube Corner to get some breakfast. It was a cloudy, overcast day to match Rainbow's emotions. The dreadful day was still crystal clear in her brain but she brushed it off to the side and concentrated on trying to make sure that Scootaloo had an awesome time.
"You excited kid?" asked Rainbow.
"You bet I am! You are so awesome! We can see the Weather Factory, watch a Wonderbolts performance, eat hayburgers and much more!" rambled the excited filly. Then her voice dropped to a more subdued tone. "I'm so sorry about your parents Rainbow Dash." Those few word held so much power and raw emotions. 
"Don't worry about it Scoots! I'm the luckiest pony in Equestria to have an awesome sister like you!"
"Thanks! Who knows I might get a comforting a sister cutie mark!" 
Rainbow Dash chuckled to herself. Some ponies never learn! Rainbow flexed her wings with a natural desire to fly.
"Hey kid would you like to hop on my back and I'll see how fast I can get us to Sugarcube Corner?" Her stomach rumbled loudly and Rainbow smiled sheepishly.
"Sure lets get outta here!" exclaimed Scootaloo. As soon as the cyan pegasus felt the light weight drop onto her back she asked,
"Are you ready?"
"Yes!"
"Hold on tight!" With those last word Rainbow Dash surged forwards until she was just a streaking rainbow blur. The wind in her mane filled her with renewed energy.

Within minutes the pair had arrived at Sugarcube Corner. The delicious smell of pancakes, croissants, waffles and many other delectable breakfast foods wafted out of the building. Twilight, Applejack and Rarity were already seated at a table waiting for their order by the time the pegasi trotted in. Pinkie Pie was busy manning the counter and waved enthusiastically at them. "Ohmygoshhirainbowdashandscootalooareyouhereforbreakfastyoushouldgetthewafflestheyarereallyyummy!" she exclaimed in one breath. Rainbow Dash facehoofed.
"Hey Pinkie you should I don't know maybestoptalkingwithoutbreathingoncelikethis." Rainbow exhaled loudly, that was definitely harder than it looked. She went and ordered two plates of waffles and made sure to tell Pinkie to DRENCH her's in maple syrup. 

Rainbow Dash sat down next to Twilight while Scootaloo went to the table that was two places over to chat with her fellow Cutie Mark Crusaders about the awesome trip that was happening today.
"Hi Rainbow Dash hopefully Scootaloo won't be too much of a hoof full, you know how excitable fillies can be." greeted Twilight.
"Don't worry I can handle it." 
"A'hm really sorry about ya know, what happened to your folks." Said Applejack with a solemn face. Rainbow Dash sighed. Pity was something she had never really been good at accepting. But she still appreciated the fact that her friends were making an effort.  Rarity pulled out two scarfs. One was a dark blue polka-dot scarf and the other was a light green.
"Here dahling, I just designed something small for you and Scootaloo to wear on the way to Cloudsdale. It is quite dreadful weather wouldn't you agree?"
"Awww gee thanks Rarity. Yeah the weather is pretty sucky." said Rainbow gratefully. To be honest she sometimes had a weak spot when it came to the cold. Though Rainbow Dash would never admit it to anyone. She still had an awesome reputation to uphold. 

Scootaloo trotted over to the table with Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle.
"When will the food arrive I'm starving!" complained Scootaloo. A couple of seconds after she said that a gray pegasus came out of the kitchen with a teetering tray of assorted breakfast foods. The seven ponies all facehoofed simultaneously.
"Not Derpy!" They all exclaimed. Twilight used her magic to straighten the precarious pile of food, Everypony sighed in relief, until Derpy's hooves slid out from underneath her and all the food went flying in their direction. 
"Sweet Celestia!" shouted Rainbow Dash as the 4 friends plus the CMC got covered from head to hoof in food. Derpy looked up with maple syrup dripping through her mane and coffee dripping from her tail.
"I just don't know what went wrong!" she said. 
> Chapter 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Thanks for the breakfast!" called Rainbow Dash over her shoulder to Pinkie Pie. Her and Scootaloo had finally gotten themselves cleaned up after the incident with Derpy. Rainbow had still been pretty ticked off about it though. It had meant that she had to wait even longer for her breakfast. 'Seriously who would hire Derpy of all ponies to work as a waiter? What's even up with that?" thought Rainbow Dash to herself. 'Then again Pinkie can be pretty random sometimes, it probably was her idea.'

"Right kid, you better hop on my back so we can start the flight to Cloudsdale." said Rainbow. Scootaloo was practically jumping up and down with excitement. Rainbow Dash snorted with amusement and a blush crept up the orange filly's face as she quickly jumped on Rainbow's back. 
"Kay, I'm ready to go now." said Scootaloo sheepishly. The two sisters set off into the cloudy, gray sky. Rainbow decided to pace herself since it would take about an hour to reach the city in the clouds. She glanced doubtfully at the sky, 'it better not rain before we get to Cloudsdale,' Rainbow felt vibrations on her back which must be from Scootaloo shivering.
"Oops I forgot about those scarves Rarity gave us! Can you reach into my saddlebag and get them?" asked Rainbow Dash.
"Sure thing!" exclaimed Scootaloo as she rummaged through the brown saddlebag with a lighting bolt shaped buckle.
"You can grab whichever one you feel like." added Rainbow. Scootaloo grabbed the light green scarf and wrapped it around her neck with a sigh of relief. Then she went to pull out the dark blue one but accidentally pulled another object out with it. The object started to descend. As quick as a flash Rainbow Dash soared down and grabbed the object. This time it was her turn to blush as she looked at the object.
"A book?" questioned Scootaloo with disbelief. 
"Not just any book." sighed the rainbow maned pegasus. It was a blue picture book titled 'The Wonderbolts'. Rainbow Dash opened the front page of the book and lovingly stroked the words: ' To Dashie, for her 4th birthday. From Mum and Dad.' 
"This was my first book ever and was also when I first realized my dream of joining the Wonderbolts."

 
A small cyan filly jumped up and down excitedly. The cozy lounge was full of many rainbow-colored balloons strung all around the room. A huge banner was strung across the fireplace with the following words written on it: 'Happy Birthday Dashie!' Wrapping paper was strewn recklessly around the floor and two amused parents stood surveying the scene.

" But Moooommmmm! I want more cake!" complained Dashie. She was already super hypo active and running crazily around the room on a sugar high.
"You've already had enough candy, besides it's time for little fillies to go to bed now." said Firefly.
"But I don't wanna go to bed!" whined Rainbow Dash. "It's way too early!" She tried to do her cutest pout face.
"Well, you've had a big day, turning four is a big deal!" said Firefly with a motherly smile. Rainbow's dad, Obsidian Embers, decided to intervene.
"Hmm." Obsidian pretended to think hard.
"Well how about a race? Bet you can't get to your room before me!" Rainbow's magenta eyes sparkled with joy. Even at a young age the thrill of a competition still excited her. 
"You're so on! I'm gonna kick your flank!' exclaimed Rainbow Dash as she pawed at the ground. Firefly raised one eyebrow.
"Look out hun, I think we've got a wild one here." Rainbow giggled.
"Three, two, one, go!" Shouted Obsidian. Rainbow flew as fast as her small filly wings could take her.She had been an extremely early learner when it came to flying. Lots of pegasi would stop her parents on the street to say what a good little flier you've got there. Obsidian was still streaking ahead but struggled to fly fast through the narrow hallway. Rainbow Dash managed to catch up and squeeze past her father.With a final spurt of energy she reached her room and flopped onto her bed.
"In your face Dad! I am the winner!" Rainbow did a small victory dance on her cloud bed before collapsing into a fit of giggles.

Her dad tucked her into the covers and gently folded her wings down. Rainbow Dash noticed her mother standing in the doorway. She was holding a small parcel with one hoof, behind her back. 
"You thought that you'd got all your presents but there's still one more." said Firefly. Rainbow squealed with delight.
"What is it? What is it? Give it here Mom!"
"What's the magic word?" 
"Pleeeaaassseee!" pleaded the rainbow maned filly. Firefly smiled and handed her the present. Rainbow Dash tore the wrapping paper off, ripping it to shreds. It was a book with a cartoon picture of a Wonderbolt on the front.
"A book! What does it say?" Obsidian nodded at Firefly, gesturing at her to read it.
"This says The Wonderbolts." Firefly pointed at the bright yellow lettering.
"Who are they?" asked Rainbow excitedly.
"Well I'll read it to you so you can find out." Said Firefly. Obsidian turned on Rainbow's nightlight before turning off the main light. He gave her a small peck on the cheek.
"Ewwww! Dad!" Rainbow Dash squirmed. Obsidian smiled and went back to the lounge to read the Cloudsdale Weekly Newspaper. Rainbow stared intently at the pictures as her mother read the story.
"The Wonderbolts are the fastest fliers in all of Equestria! They can do lots of awesome tricks..." 
Once the story was finished Firefly was about to creep out before she heard a small sleepy voice.
"Mom, I wanna be a Wonderbolt."


Rainbow Dash sighed with contentment as she recalled these memories. For the rest of the flight she thought about all the awesome memories she had with her parents. It felt like years later when the sparkling white city of Cloudsdale came into view. Scootaloo breathed in awe.
"Welcome to the city filled with the greatest fliers in all of Equestria. Cloudsdale."
> Chapter 3
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Scootaloo hopped onto the soft springy cloud surface of Cloudsdale. She could see why pegasi liked this place. It was a glistening white city surrounded by the sky that just looked so inviting. If Scootaloo could fly she would have soared into the sky at this very second. 
"It's pretty cool, huh?" remarked Rainbow Dash.
"Yeah, it's like pegasi paradise!" exclaimed Scootaloo. Then she thought to herself, ' since when did I become so sappy?'
"Well, we'll have time to take a look around later but we better go to the cemetery first." said Rainbow quietly. Scootaloo mentally slapped herself, she was supposed to be here to comfort her idol instead of standing there gaping.
"Oops, sorry Dash! I can call you that right?" asked Scootaloo.
"Sure. And just between you and me, it's much better than being called dahling!" said Rainbow in a very exaggerated imitation of Rarity. The two pegasi laughed together at how ridiculous Rainbow Dash had sounded. Their laughs died down though as they came to a huge gate with a wall that was surrounding Cloudsdale. A line of stern looking guards stood outside the entrance. Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo kept walking until they were facing one of the guards.

"Ummm, hey?" said Rainbow Dash with a confused look on her face. 
"Identification please!" commanded the guard. Scootaloo noticed that Rainbow Dash looked even more confused then before.
"What do you mean by identification?" 
"I mean just that Miss. Where are your identification details?"
"Identification my flank! Since when did we need them?" The guard was starting to look quite annoyed.
"Look here and just answer my question! Have you got any identification papers?" Rainbow Dash double checked her saddlebag. Scootaloo checked her own one as well and found nothing. She shrugged at Rainbow.
"Look here pal. We haven't got any papers but we have something really important to do so I think you can bend the rules a bit here."
"No identification papers no entry!" Uh oh! Scootaloo looked over and saw that Rainbow Dash was looking quite angry. The cyan pegasus flew right up to the guard's face.
"Do you even know who I am? I am one of the Elements of Harmony, friends with Princess Twilight herself, I won the Best Fliers Competition here in Cloudsdale, I am the ONLY pony to ever perform a Sonic Rainboom, I defeated Discord, defeated Nightmare Moon and I fought an army of changelings!" Fury sparked in Rainbow's eyes but the guard didn't seem the least bit affected.
"Quite frankly, I don't really care if you were Princess Celestia. I have a duty to perform and that duty is keeping out crazy mares LIKE YOU!" At the word 'crazy' Rainbow Dash looked positively livid. Scootaloo was surprised. She had never seen her idol this ticked off about something before. By now ponies were starting to stare at the argument that was taking place. Scootaloo knew she should do something so she very, very reluctantly tried pleading.
"Hey mister guard dude, umm we really need to get in here. We just forgot those papers 'cause we didn't know that they were needed. Can you please, please let us in? I promise we won't forget them again!" Scootaloo tried to hold back a gag. She really hated begging. 	The guard's expression softened a bit as he looked at the orange pegasus.
"Well... I guess I could let you off just this once. But if this EVER happens again you guys will just be sent back home. You got that?" Scootaloo nodded and Rainbow finally nodded too with a poisoned glare at the guard. The gates swung open and the two pegasi trotted in to the city.

Rainbow ruffled Scootaloo's hair.
"Thanks back there kid. That jerk back there was annoying the hay outta me."
"Aww, it was nothin. I just wanted to stop delaying and get in here." Scootaloo surveyed the area they were walking through. It was the shop area of town. To be honest she was much more interested in seeing the Cloudsdale Stadium. As they walked down the street they noticed there was a small stall selling perfumes, blech! The pony manning the stall was a mare of average height with an ice blue mane, white body, light pink eyes and a cutie mark that looked like cherry blossoms. There was a box of money on the counter and a sign that Scootaloo couldn't read from this distance. Suddenly two stallions that were whispering in front of the stall split up. One of them ran towards the money box while laughing cruelly. The other grabbed a bottle of perfume and threw it at the mare.
"Take that earth-pony lover!" he shouted then they ran off into the side alley. Scootaloo gasped. She ran to catch up with Rainbow Dash who was shouting,
"Hey! Come back here you cowards!" Scootaloo slowed to a stop in front of the stall. The mare was softly crying as blood dropped from her hooves where she had tried to shield her face from the glass that shattered on impact. Scootaloo silently looked at the sign that read: 'Please try Ice Petal's beautiful perfume! Satisfaction guaranteed'
"Are you alright?" asked Rainbow Dash. 
"Well if having your profit stolen and being hit in the hooves with a perfume bottle counts as fine than sure I am." said Ice Petal.
"Not like it's the first time this week either." She added sadly.
"Why did they call you an earth-pony lover?" asked Scootaloo. Ice Petal sighed.
"Well, I came here from Fillydelphia to buy some new perfume ingredients. Fillydelphia is mainly an earth pony city and pegasi here seem to think that wanting to live around earth ponies is weird." Scootaloo was confused.
"But I thought that when the different races live in harmony together it is a good thing? That's what make Ponyville really special! 
"Yeah and since when did Cloudsdale pegasi become so jerky towards earth ponies?" added Rainbow Dash.
"Ponyville? The pegasi here will have a riot when they hear that. As for the civilians not liking earth ponies it's not just them they don't like, it's unicorns as well." Ice Petal said bitterly. She started to put a few bandages on her cuts.
"If you hate it here so much why don't you leave?" questioned Rainbow Dash.
"It's not that easy..." Ice trailed off and refused to say anymore. Rainbow Dash raised one eyebrow but the expression on Ice Petal's face told her not to press the matter any further.
"Well Scootaloo, we better hurry up and visit the cemetery so that we can get there before lunch." Scootaloo waved to Ice before following Rainbow Dash down a side street that had a sign pointing towards the Cloudsdale Cemetery.

'Why is this place so strange, I expected it to be different' thought Scootaloo doubtfully.
> Chapter 4
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Memories flickered like a slideshow through Rainbow Dash's mind as she stood staring at the steel arch reading: "Cloudsdale Cemetery." Gravestones stretched at far as the eye could see, many had bunches of flowers laying around them. Ponies were mourning lost ones and sadness hung in the air. Suddenly Rainbow felt a small hoof put itself around her neck, she looked down to see Scootaloo smiling reassuringly. A spark of understanding passed between the two pegasi. Rainbow Dash's hooves carried her towards the two gravestones that she had visited a number of times. Yet each time was still painful and she would never fully get over what she had lost. 

"Hey Rainbow, long time no see." said one of the gravediggers that the two sisters were walking past. He wiped sweat off his face and was leaning on his shovel. Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, she saw the gravedigger, Iron Harvest, at this time ever year.
"Sup?"
"Well I got a pay rise last month but that's about it." Iron Harvest got back to his work and put all his energy into digging an already deep grave.
"See ya later then." Rainbow Dash's heart pounded as she got closer to the row where her parents were buried.
"Dash I have a question. How come when pegasi are buried they don't just fall down to the ground? Since the clouds aren't really thick enough to dig a hole in." Scootaloo asked curiously.
"The places where cemetery's are put normally get upgraded so that the cloud is much thicker there. After being buried for around a century the body eventually just disintegrates into the cloud." Scootaloo looked down at the clouds.
"Does that mean we're walking on dead pegasi?"
"Yeah probably." answered Rainbow Dash. Scootaloo wrinkled her nose in disgust but didn't say anything else.

Rainbow Dash came to a stop in front of two medium sized gravestones. One said: "Here lies Obsidian Embers. A hard worker, loyal husband and an amazing dad." The second gravestone said: "Here lies Firefly Dash. A fast flier, loyal wife and a caring mother." Scootaloo nudged Rainbow's shoulder lightly and pointed at Firefly's gravestone.
"What does that say?" Even more grief poured into Rainbow's heart as she read out the tiny lettering that was barely legible in the corner of the gravestone.
"An unidentified foal also lies here." The polychromatic pegasus tried to hold back tears that were threatening to ruin her tough facade. Scootaloo still looked confused so Rainbow let out the secret that she hadn't even been ready to tell her closest friends.
"That unidentified foal was my sibling. My mom was pregnant when she was killed, also killing the little sister or brother that was in her stomach." Crystal tears slid down her face as she tried to furiously wipe them away. Scootaloo was normally not into showing her affectionate side especially when her idol was around. But that act had slowly disappeared after the whole Whitetail Woods fiasco. She wrapped her orange hooves around her sister and even shed some tears of her own.  

Many thoughts rushed through Rainbow Dash's head at that moment. Surprisingly the most awesome pony in Equestria found it comforting to just let her emotions out. Coming across as cool and popular had always been one of Rainbow's top priorities. She normally had trouble trying to express her sadness without sounding too sappy. She felt the urge to just spill out her whole life story to Scootaloo but Rainbow didn't want to dump all her problems onto somepony else. With a great amount of resistance Rainbow Dash wiped away her tears and gave Scootaloo a watery grin that was much more like herself.
"Thanks squirt." Rainbow Dash said simply. Scootaloo nodded with understanding and slowly unraveled herself from Rainbow. The brown saddlebag was lying on the ground and Rainbow Dash opened it to get out something. Scootaloo saw the glint of a medal that had a rainbow colored ribbon around it.
"Isn't that your medal from the Equestria Games trials?" she asked.
"It sure is. Most ponies leave flowers by their family's graves but I think my parents would like something like this better." The medal was placed at the foot of the two stones.
"What if somepony tries to steal it?"
"Well I might have to pay that unlucky pony a visit and show them what a real fight is." Rainbow Dash grinned mischievously. Her stomach started to rumble. Rainbow checked the time to see that it was 12:30pm and closed her saddlebag. As much as she wanted to stay longer she knew Scootaloo would probably be starving by now as well. With one final glance at her parent's graves the cyan pegasus gestured for her companion to follow.
> Chapter 5
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cold droplets that soon turned into raining bullets came from above. Neon lights flickered up ahead as the two pegasi burst into the building with water dripping from their manes. The sky was much darker then before as rain pounded down heavily on the sidewalk outside. Scootaloo was literally drooling at mouth from the delicious scent of pizza in the air. She stuck close to Rainbow Dash while fluffing out her wing feathers for warmth.

Although the thought of eating from what Rainbow Dash claimed as the "best pizza parlor in Equestria " excited Scootaloo she could not shake off the sickening feeling that sat in her belly. Rainbow's revelation had caught her off guard and disgusted her. She knew that Rainbow's parents deaths might have been an accident but the other option was a possibility too. If they had been murdered it was just too horrific to contemplate. What sort of pony would kill a small filly's parents, especially if one of them was pregnant? Scootaloo really wanted to know the truth but she also understood what her idol was going through. She remembered when Sweetie Belle had kept pestering her about what happened to her parents and was relieved when Apple Bloom intervened. Scootaloo just hadn't been ready to tell anypony, although Rainbow Dash knew what had happened now. Luckily her parents weren't dead but they still seemed lost to Scootaloo. They had given her up because they were extremely ambitious and didn't want to be tasked with the job of looking after a foal. Scootaloo didn't even remember her parents, she grew up in a foster family always believing that they were her real family. It wasn't until a couple of years ago that her foster mom and dad told her the truth. Scootaloo clearly remembered the stages that lead to her accepting the fact that her parents didn't want her. First there was denial, then burning anger and finally sadness. Even now she felt a pang of resentment just thinking about her parents.

Both pegasi were deep in thought at that moment. Scootaloo managed to shake herself out of her thoughts to sit down on one of those diner stools that spun around. The table was next to the window so Scootaloo could get a view blurred by rain of what was going on down the street. The parlor was on the same road where her and Rainbow Dash had found Ice Petal. Speaking of Ice Petal Scootaloo could faintly see her stall still standing out there in the rain. As she squinted her purple eyes harder Scootaloo could just make out a white figure shivering violently while trying to find shelter.
"Hey squirt you wanna look at the menu and pick out something?" asked Rainbow Dash with a note of sadness still in her voice.
"Yeah I will soon, be right back." With that Scootaloo ran to the double doors and flung them open to run out into the rain.
"Scoots! What are you doing? Now I'm gonna have to get all wet again!" Scootaloo heard Rainbow Dash call behind her as she ran to the drenched perfume stall. She heard wing beats catching up from behind and turned around to see Rainbow at her side with an annoyed expression on her face.
"Where are you going?!" she grumbled.
"I told you to wait inside, I'll be fine alright? Just trust me!" Rainbow Dash shook her head stubbornly.
"Not a chance, wherever you go, I go." Scootaloo nodded in defeat and barely managed to stop her hooves from sliding out beneath her as she skidded to a halt in front of the surprised perfume seller. 
"Remember us? Well we're having lunch down at the pizza parlor. Would you like to join us inside and out of this yucky weather?" Scootaloo said quickly since she didn't want to get wet for much longer.
"Slow down there Scoots remember this money is coming out of my wallet." said the cyan pegasus. Scootaloo looked dejected as she realized she had just rushed into the decision without asking.
"Just kidding! You don't think I'm that much of a jerk do ya? Of course she can join us!" Rainbow gave the filly a grin. Scootaloo sighed in relief.
"Though not to be rude but we're getting soaked out here so if you're coming you might as well come now." added Rainbow Dash. Ice Petal on the other hoof looked over-whelmed.
"Sorry, sure I will join you it's just that no other pegasi has been so kind since I came here." The pair that had now swelled to three started to run through the pelting missiles back to to the pizza parlor.


Greasy goodness filled Scootaloo's taste buds with joy.'Dash was right, this pizza is amazing!' thought Scootaloo happily to herself. She choked back a giggle of amusement as she watched Ice Petal wolf down her entire pizza in about 30 seconds. It was even faster than Rainbow Dash's pizza eating record, which was saying something since Rainbow was pretty good at making unbeatable records. She still had half of her pizza left and already felt pretty full. Rainbow Dash had already finished as she looked at Scootaloo then Ice Petal.
"Are you feeling full Scoots? Would you like me to take care of it?" Scootaloo nodded gratefully. But instead of eating it herself Rainbow pushed the box over to Ice Petal.
"Here you can eat it. I'm feeling pretty stuffed myself." 
"Thanks, you guys are so nice I don't think I can ever repay you." said Ice Petal thankfully.
"Aww shucks it's only pizza but if you wanna thank someone then thank Scoots over here. She was just as kind as my friend Fluttershy." Rainbow threw a wink in Scootaloo's direction. Scootaloo felt herself puff up with pride at the compliment. 'Oh my gosh. oh my gosh, oh my gosh!' thought Scootaloo gleefully. 'Calm down Scootaloo, you can't go all crazy every time the most awesome pegasus in Equestria congratulates you,' she told herself.
"Thanks Dash." she said as a slight blush crept into her cheeks. 
"Yup this pizza is pretty delicious but nothing can beat cookies and cream ice cream. Nothing at all!" Said Ice out of the blue. Scootaloo exchanged a glance with Rainbow Dash. This pony was actually pretty bubbly once you spent a bit more time with her. Ice Petal finished the rest of Scootaloo's pizza and rubbed her stomach happily.
"Hey you know what? I could take you guys to the new indoor sports arena that's just been set up. I've wanted to visit it but haven't had time what with trying to collect money and all." Ice's pink eyes looked a bit more dull at the mention of her business.
"Awesome! I love sports! Can we go there Rainbow Dash? We don't need to start the journey home until around 5:00." Scootaloo asked excitedly.
"Sure but we might wanna get some umbrella saddles. Like that one that Rarity has since we probably don't wanna get too wet."
"I know where they sell those, just follow me." Said Ice Petal. Scootaloo watched as Rainbow placed some gleaming gold bits as a tip on the table." 

The small group exited the parlor once again and walked out into the rain.
"Is this place close?" Asked Scootaloo doubtfully. Ice Petal just nodded as she tried to find her bearings in the downpour. She suddenly started to trot purposefully towards a dark alleyway. The two sisters followed but Scootaloo started to get a nagging feeling that something wasn't right. She remembered the lesson that all fillies learned about not walking into an alleyway unless it's well-lit. Who knew what dangerous creatures or ponies could be lurking in the dark? Ice Petal was already far ahead and got swallowed up by the alley. Rainbow Dash slowed down to walk next to the orange filly.
"What's up? You look like something's wrong."
"I don't know Dash but I feel like this isn't right." Said Scootaloo doubtfully.
"Yeah I have that feeling too but I'm sure Ice Petal wouldn't lead us into a trap after what we did to help her." admitted Rainbow with a hint of suspicion in her voice. Scootaloo shivered as she came to a stop in front of the yawning entrance into the alleyway. She felt Rainbow ruffle her hair as she stood stock-still, staring at the evil looking darkness. Scootaloo could hear the close by hoof-falls of Ice Petal as she trotted through the alleyway. Suddenly they came to a stop. Ice Petal's voice called out to them.
"Come on you guys I assure you it's saf.........." A high pitched scream pierced the air, it was even louder than the thumping rain.
Two eyes, magenta and purple looked at each other.
"Ice Petal!" The two pegasi shouted in unison before sprinting towards the noise. 
> Chapter 6
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Why are you doing this?" screamed a voice as the sounds of a scuffle could be heard drawing nearer and nearer.
"You know too much." growled what sounded like a stallion's voice. The cyan pegasus surged forwards with Scootaloo at her heels. She came within close enough distance to see Ice Petal grappling with the two stallions that had stolen her money earlier that day. They reminded Rainbow Dash of those jerks from flight camp, Dumb-Bell, Hoops and Score. The stallions were definitely of the same build as the bullies.
"Scoots stay back from the fighting, I'm gonna go in there and help Ice out."
"No I can fight as well, those guys won't catch me." exclaimed Scootaloo.
"Look squirt, no arguments you're staying back." But it was too late for Scootaloo to retort because the two pegasi had arrived at the fight scene. 

Rainbow flew straight into the mess. She jumped on one of the stallion's backs who was cornering Ice Petal and started to rain down blows on him. She snuck a quick glance to the side to see Ice Petal and Scootaloo throwing punches at the other stallion. The little orange filly was pretty agile as she ducked and dived under the bigger pony's blows. Rainbow averted her attention back to her fight. The stallion gave a strong buck that sent Rainbow flying off his back, she responded quickly, using her wings to bring her to a stop. Pain flared through the polychromatic mare's wings as the stop had been much to sudden. Her opponent came hurtling through the air towards Rainbow Dash. She just had time to fly out of the way and gave a small chuckle as the stallion smashed into a cloud brick wall.
"Ha, my grandma can fly faster than you! I guess not everypony has the skills to defeat the fastest pony in Equestria!" taunted Rainbow. The stallion looked enraged as he got back on his hooves. He flew right up to Rainbow's face and whispered.
"At least I still have parents, yours are probably glad they don't have to put up with a loser like you anymore." Rage took over Rainbow's senses as she slammed into her opponents chest, pushing him hard into the ground. Adrenaline kicked into overdrive as she gave the stallion a hard punch to the jaw. She continued to inflict wounds on the stallion without a shred of mercy. Suddenly Rainbow gasped for air as her opponents hoof made impact with her stomach. She lost her footing and tumbled backwards. Rainbow tried to shake off the pain but she felt dizzy from lack of air. Teeth punctured her wing as she tried to get back into the air. The stallion had a steely look in his eyes as she twisted around to see him holding on tight. The teeth suddenly let go as the attacker tried to grapple with the younger pegasus that was on his back. Rainbow quickly swooped in to grab Scootaloo as the stallion gave a vicious buck.
"Nice one kid." She flew down to the ground to let Scootaloo get off and managed to block a punch that came from the side. The other stallion was nowhere to be seen. Ice Petal came to join them with a bleeding gash on her leg. 

The three pegasi managed to corner the remaining stallion that had been fighting Rainbow Dash. 
"Why did you attack her?" growled Rainbow, gesturing to Ice Petal. 
"None of your business. I was about to defeat you if your stupid friends didn't intervene. Such a shame that one of the Elements of Harmony couldn't defend herself. Oh wait that's why there need to be six of you. You're all weaklings without each other." Rainbow slapped the irritating pony across the face.
"I don't think you're in the position to make insults so just do yourself a favour and shut up and answer my question. Why did you attack her?"
"So we can get the chance to hurt one annoying pain in the flank mare." He smirked. Rainbow thought for a second that he meant Ice Petal.
"Dash look out!" screeched Scootaloo. She twisted around just in time to see the glint of a knife plunge into the part attaching her wing to her body. White hot burning pain made Rainbow drop to the ground. White stars danced at the edge of her vision. Pain like nothing she had ever felt before consumed Rainbow. A scream that sounded nothing like herself burst out of the mare's mouth. Warm blood soaked her blue wing feathers as a welcoming black void swallowed everything. Rainbow Dash sunk into a blissful unconsciousness. 


Ice Petal could only look in horror as she saw the pony who had helped her crumple to the ground with a look on her face that looked like she was enduring pure agony. Behind her stood the other stallion that had abandoned the fight with Ice. Now she realized that he must have run off further down the alley so that he could make a surprise ambush. His blade glinted with red and he had a maniacal smile on his face. She desperately hoped there wouldn't be another fight because her leg was causing moderate pain and they needed to get Rainbow Dash to a hospital. Fast. Luckily the stallion that they had been talking to was pretty injured and didn't look like he was up to another fight.
"Oops my knife must have slipped. Don't worry we'll be paying you two another visit soon." Smirked the newcomer as him and his companion flew down the alley towards the exit. 

'This is all my fault, I really need to stop rushing into things.' thought Ice Petal miserably. This pegasus and her companion had been the only ones to show her kindness in Cloudsdale. ' I should have been more careful!' Ice reproached herself. The cry of a broken filly brought her back to reality.
"Rainbow Dash!" sobbed Scootaloo as she crouched down at her side. Ice Petal rushed over quickly to inspect the wound. She swallowed back disgust at the blood. There was heaps of blood but not enough for the knife to have punctured an artery. Ice saw that the cut had gone about a quarter way through the part that was attaching Rainbow's wing to her body. She knew that as the only grown up here it was her job to do something.
"I need something to staunch the blood flow, what do you have?" She said briskly to Scootaloo. The orange filly slowly untied her scarf and handed it to Ice Petal.
"I guess this will have to do for now. We need to get her to the hospital ASAP." Ice tied the scarf around the wound tightly but not too tight otherwise it would completely cut off the blood flow to the wing. She spotted Rainbow's saddlebag lying on the ground nearby. It must have flown off during the fight. 
"Scootaloo if there's any water in there pass it here." Scootaloo pulled out a bottle that was about half-full. Ice Petal gently propped Rainbow up a bit so she could untie the scarf from her neck. She folded the scarf up and poured water on it. Ice squeezed out the excess water and cleaned off the blood that was slowly beginning to dry on Rainbow's wing. She hoped that she was doing everything right because Ice Petal had only ever been taught first aid once when she was a filly. She had never performed it before.
"Ok I'll carry her. I might need you to try and put her on my back though." Ice Petal crouched down so as to make it easier for Scootaloo to drape the limp form of the rainbow-maned pegasus on her back. Scootaloo had a surprising amount of strength for such a small filly. Ice didn't know that she got it from doing all those tricks on her scooter. Rainbow Dash wasn't actually that heavy so Ice Petal found it easy to try and keep up a fast pace. Scootaloo walked at her side as the two pegasi came out of the dark alley and into the street. Luckily the hospital was just down the block.

'This has turned out to be such a bad day.' thought Ice Petal with a huge sigh.
> Chapter 7
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The white sterile hospital room slowly came into focus. The sharp scent of antiseptic hung in the air and a blinding light hurt the cyan pegasus's eyes. 'Where am I?' thought Rainbow Dash sleepily to herself. She felt a throbbing pain coming from her right wing and the hospital sheets were starting to become quite stuffy. Rainbow flung the sheets off and proceeded to stretch out her wings. 
"Youch!" She grit her teeth together and flopped back down onto the pillow. As the mare looked down at her wing she saw that the skin attaching her wing to her body was covered by bandages. She was feeling sort of dizzy and light-headed.

Suddenly it all came back, Ice Petal, the fight, getting stabbed and finally the pain. 
"Where's Scootaloo and Ice Petal, are they alright?" asked Rainbow hoarsely. She noticed the doctor standing close to the door and writing on a clipboard. He looked up briefly before returning to his scribbling.
"I see you're awake Miss... Rainbow Dash. Feeling any better? You did have a fair amount of blood loss after all."
"I'll survive but what about Scootaloo and Ice Petal? Are they alright?" repeated the pony in question. 
"I'm guessing that they are the pegasi who brought you here. If you're talking about the orange filly and white mare then they are exhausted but otherwise relatively alright." 
"Yes, who else do ya think I meant? Can you get them in here?" The doctor looked a bit uncomfortable at this newest request.
"Well, as much as you guys would like to see each other I'm afraid it's against the rules. Unless they are family or royalty than they're not allowed to come in."
"WHAT? But those two bought me here and knowing Scoots they probably have been waiting for me to wake up. You gotta let me see them doc!" exclaimed Rainbow. What was wrong with these ponies? First the guard and now the doctor. These guys really like to stick to the rules. Besides she needed to know what happened back in the alley.
"Uhhhh, can you just give us five minutes at the least?" she groaned. The doctor sighed and gave a big huff.
"Alright but the head doctor isn't going to be too pleased about this."
"Yeah, yeah, whatever." As Rainbow Dash waited for her companions she got a sense of déjà vu. She always seemed to be ending up in hospitals these days with some sort of wing injury. 'Hospitals are so boring!' Rainbow started to fiddle with the lamp switch that was sitting on a small table next to the bed. 'Then again my time in hospitals haven't been all that bad. Last time I got to talk with a Wonderbolt who was pretty decent compared to some of his team mates. The time before that was when I first discovered the best books in all of Equestria.'

Before she knew it the prismatic maned pegasus felt somepony wrap their hooves around her. 
"Rainbow Dash! I'm so happy that you're alright! There was all this blood and I thought that the worst had happened!" sobbed Scootaloo.
"Awww Scoots! Don't you worry, it'll take more than some wing injury to bring this pegasus down." She returned the hug and gave the filly one of her trademark grins. Even though the two were only honorary sisters any onlooker could clearly see that they cared for each other just as much as real sisters. Ice Petal sat down on the edge of the bed and looked wistfully at the scene. She thought about how much she missed her family.
"So how long have I been here for?" asked Rainbow Dash.
"Well it was around 1:00pm when we got here and now it's 5:00pm." said Ice as she looked down at her watch. 
"Horseapples. I guess I'm gonna be here overnight huh?"
"Yes Miss Rainbow Dash, we'll check up on your wing tomorrow but I don't think you'll be out of here for a couple of days. We have to keep an eye on your wing otherwise it could get infected. Then once we dismiss you from the hospital I recommend staying off that wing for around two weeks so you don't reopen the wound. While you were unconscious we put stitches in." reported the doctor. Rainbow groaned loudly. 'How was she going to survive two weeks without flying?' 
"I guess we'll get to be flightless buddies together Dash." said Scootaloo as she nudged Rainbow. She winced as the nudge poked her wound. 
"I'll leave you with your visitors for ten minutes then I'm afraid they will have to go." The doctor exited the room and Ice Petal was heard to give a sigh of relief. Suddenly Rainbow Dash remembered that the others would be wondering where she'd got to, not to mention Scootaloo's foster parents. 
"Darn it, what are we gonna do with you Scoots."
"I dunno, I wanna stay here with you though."
"Thanks squirt but you have to get back to your parents."
"But I want to be here when you get better. Besides how are you gonna get back to Ponyville if you can't fly for two weeks?"
"I'll manage, they have chariots here that I can catch. Real sorry kid but once the doctor comes back I'm gonna ask for some paper so that I can send a letter to them and I'll write one to Twilight as well. No point writing a separate letter to everypony else since she'll probably tell them anyways." Scootaloo looked downtrodden as she gave a small shrug. 
"Fine, how long will it take for them to get the letter and arrive here?" 
"Well every town in Equestria has a post office where they keep a big furnace that has enchanted dragon fire in it. The letters get dropped in the fire and arrive in the post of whatever town you addressed it too. Twilight is pretty lucky to have Spike though since she can send letters whenever she wants. Your parents should be here in like an hour." Rainbow sighed now that all the boring organizy talk was over. She had a sneaking suspicion that there was something Ice Petal wasn't telling them and there was probably more to this attack than she was letting on. Talking about the fight Rainbow Dash was relieved to notice that Scootaloo didn't look too hurt with the exception of some scrapes and bruises whatnot. The unfortunate icy blue maned mare on the other hoof had a big band-aid on her right foreleg. 
"So Ice Petal what exactly happened back there? I need to know what we got ourselves into back there."



She knew that this question was going to come along sooner or later. Ice had fleeting flashbacks of the events from the previous week. It wasn't Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo that she had trouble telling though because the cyan pegasus was the Element of Loyalty for pony's sake. If the Elements of Harmony vanquished the evil side of Princess Luna, turned Discord back to stone and rescued Princess Celestia and Luna from those black vines than it was pretty safe to assume they could be trusted. No, it wasn't her companions that she was suspicious of but the staff here at the hospital. The doctor was going to be back soon and who knew if he was on their side. Anypony here in Cloudsdale could be a spy for them. She shuddered as she thought about how evil ponies could be. Snippets of conversation came to mind and made Ice Petal feel sick to the stomach. Darkness was brooding here in Cloudsdale, there was no doubt about that. She just wished she could get back to the safety of Fillydelphia and sell her perfumes. Ice Petal remembered all the friendly faces that always stopped to say hi. Everyone knew her and she knew them. Selling perfumes wasn't a chore like it was here, it was nice to make ponies happy with her products. She never tired of standing in the park with her stall and smelling the invigorating scent of flowers that could all be used for her perfumes. The nice symphony of birds chirping and the excited sounds of fillies playing were always pleasant to listen to. At the end of a long work day she would relax at Meg's Coffee Cafe which was well-known in Fillydelphia for having the best coffee. Ice Petal let a small smile creep onto her lips at the memory. It wasn't until she heard Rainbow Dash clearing her throat pretty obnoxiously that Ice remembered she had a question to answer.

"Oh umm right, what happened back there.." Ice Petal trailed off. She shifted awkwardly at the edge of the hospital bed.
"You gonna tell us or what?" snapped Rainbow. Ice flinched involuntarily and gave a quick nervous glance around the room. She tried squinting her light pink eyes to see if she could see the doctor coming through the open door. Rainbow Dash gave a small sigh.
"Look I'm sorry that I shouted at you but we overheard those stallions saying something about how you know too much. What was that about?" 
"Yeah why are those two being such jerkfaces to you? You seem pretty nice to me." piped Scootaloo. Ice Petal got off the bed and trotted closer to the pegasi.
"I can't tell you guys now but once you get out of the hospital, Rainbow Dash, I promise I'll tell you what I've found out so far. It's not safe to say anything here. For now I'm just going to say that I may have overheard something that I shouldn't have." hissed Ice. Rainbow's eyes widened slightly as she nodded.
"What about me? I will be with my parents soon." scowled Scootaloo as she sat on the ground and crossed her forehooves.
"Well maybe it's for the best because information like this isn't good for young fillies to here." The white mare shrugged apologetically.
"Hey, I'm not that young! I'm 12 years old you know." 
"Wow! 12! I thought you were around 5 years old squirt." The mischievous pegasus chuckled.  Scootaloo gave her a light punch on the shoulder.
"Awww shuddup ya big meanie."
"Ya don't mean that about the awesomest pegasus in Equestria do ya?" Rainbow feinted hurt for about 2 seconds before bursting into laughter. She leaned over from the bed, picked Scootaloo up and tickled her till she begged for mercy. The orange filly was gasping with laughter and squirming around.
"Please stop it!" 
Ice Petal bit her lip worriedly as she watched Scootaloo's flailing hooves get dangerously close to Rainbow's injured wing. But seeing the two having a good time after the stress of the day's events made Ice lighten up. She was soon giggling like a schoolfilly and felt relieved to be laughing instead of crying. 
"What do you think Ice? Should we give her mercy?" Rainbow Dash tilted her head as if she was thinking. 
"Hmmm, I don't know? What do you think?"
"If Scoots here admits that I'm the most super-ultra-extra-awesomazing pony in Equestria than I might give her mercy."
"No never!" said Scootaloo dramatically.
"Oh well I guess there will be no mercy for you."



This was how the doctor found his patient and her visitors when he came into the room. He cleared his throat angrily.
"Miss Rainbow Dash! This is very unacceptable! Your visitors must leave now!" commanded the doctor. Of course nopony listened to him for a good five minutes. The doctor gave a huge sigh. 'How do I get roped into these things?'