//------------------------------// // A Peaceful Day In Cloudsdale? // Story: Just One Little Lie // by PonySage86 //------------------------------// "Oh my Goodness." Rarity coos as she looks over the Photo Album Morning Dew has given her. "Rainbow Dash, you were such an adorable filly." Once Rainbow and Rarity arrived, Morning Dew , After not commenting on Rarity's scar, much to her gratitude, started showing Rarity various albums that showcase The Mother's entire time with her Daughter. While Rarity and her mother look at and giggle at the pictures, Rainbow meanwhile is at the edge of the hospital bed holding her head in her hooves in embarrassment. "Come on Dashie." Morning Dew calls to her Daughter."There's no reason to be embarrassed. Come look at the albums with us." Rainbow begrudgingly walks over and stands next to her mother. Rarity giggles at her grumpy expression. "Really Darling, we all used to be fillies." Rarity looks at another picture, this one showing a smiling filly Rainbow Dash standing in front of flight school with Gilda. Rarity practically Squeals. "Oh but you're just so cute." Rarity looks around the room at the albums. "How many of these do you have?" "Just a few." Rainbow says simply. "But Mom packed as many pictures as she could into all of them." "I wanted to capture every moment." Morning Dew defends, she turns the album she's holding to face Rainbow. "Look at this one Dashie, Remember this?" The photo shows Rainbow and Morning Dew standing together at the stadium with both of them wearing a simple sundress, the photo likely taken by somepony Morning Dew asked. "Oh wow." Rainbow exclaims in excitement, grabbing the album from her mother. "This was the first time we saw a Wonderbolts show wasn't it?" Rainbow grins happily. "That was such a great day." "And look how cute you look." Morning Dew coos, causing Rainbow to roll her eyes. "You never wear dresses anymore. You wear them so well." Rarity tries to lean over to peek at the album their looking at. "Their just not my thing mom." Rainbow explains. "It was always your idea to wear them." "I know, I know." Morning Dew says calmly. "But you had fun in Rarity's show right?" Rainbow looks away from her mother to hide her red cheeks. "Maybe." She admits quietly. "But only cause Rare was there." "Speaking of the show." Rarity says to get everypony's attention. "You said Discord let you see it?" "Yes, he gave me a magic mirror that gave me a nice view of the event." Morning Dew explains. "He said he wasn't using it at the time. But he took it back saying it'd be important later." Morning Dew than claps her hooves and smiles broadly. "Speaking of the show, All of your designs were simply amazing and it was quite exciting." Morning gushes a little. Rarity seems to enjoy the praise. "Thank you." Rarity smiles, she then returns to a neutral expression but with a hint of nervousness. "About the designs, the seventh in particular. It was a gray gown with water droplet patterns. What did you think of it?" Morning Dew looks at Rarity with a joyful expression. "Well it was incredible like all the others, but if I had to pick a favorite. Which isn't easy by the way." Morning Dew smiles sweetly and closes her eyes. "I think that would have to be it. It had a simplistic charm and beauty to it that really shows how truly talented you are." Morning Dew opens her eyes but her smile remains. "You were easily the highlight of the show, oh and that finale with you two in the air together." Morning Dew sighs happily as she leans back in her bed with a content smile. "I never thought I'd have so much fun while stuck in a hospital bed. So thank you for an unforgettable night." Rarity gestures with her hoof and Rainbow meets her at the foot of the bed, she turns and looks at the mother sitting happily, her face seems to say 'Don't worry, just come back when you're done talking.' Rarity looks at Rainbow Dash with surprise. "I'm starting to understand why you're so egotistical." Rarity says quietly so Morning Dew doesn't hear. "I'm what?" Rainbow blinks in confusion. "That mare's praise is ridiculous. I feel like if I keep talking to her I'll get a swelled head." "She's pretty great right?" Rainbow chuckles, Rarity giggles with her. "I have to agree with you darling." Rarity says with a nod. "But you could have warned me." She says jokingly, with a smile Rarity turns back towards Morning Dew. "Sorry about that Morning Dew, where were-" Rarity stops when she looks at Morning Dew, the mother has fallen asleep. her face gentle but her breathing ragged and shallow. "She looks a little better." Rainbow Dash says quietly. "Do you think this is working?" "It's certainly not hurting anything." Rarity assures her friend. "Impossible to say if her improvement has anything to do with us." "I'm having fun though." Rainbow says happily, she looks away from her mother and smiles. "Hey, wanna see something cool?" "What did you have in mind?" Rarity asks. Rainbow gestures with her hoof and the two leave together, agreeing to return to check on the mother later. "I wanna show you a place me and my mom went all the time when I was a kid." Rainbow explains as they head out of the hospital. It doesn't take long until the couple arrives at the Cloudsdale Park. Not a park in a traditional sense as it has no trees or grass, but it is a large area made for outdoor activities with benches placed around and a trail running through. many Pegasi can be seen enjoying the day around the area. "How lovely." Rarity admires as she looks over the area. "This was our favorite place." Rainbow explains. She turns her head and smiles. "Oh sweet, it's still open." Rainbow says before leading Rarity over to an ice cream stand. "You want one Rare?" "I don't know, I'm trying to watch my figure you know." Rarity says hesitantly, Rainbow just gives a blank look and points at the stand insistently. "Oh very well, I'll have one scoop of vanilla ok?" Rarity groans as the two arrive at the stand. "But if I gain any weight I am blaming you." "Fair enough." Rainbow chuckles before addressing the owner of the stand. Soon the two are sitting on a bench enjoying their treats, Rarity having brought many napkins to ensure they left no mess on themselves or anywhere else. Rarity has her vanilla while Rainbow has two scoops of chocolate and sprinkles. "Really darling don't you think that's to much? You are an Athlete after all." "No worries." Rainbow says confidently. "I'll work all this off next time I practice." "That's true I suppose." Rarity admits as she enjoys the scenery of the park. "This is rather nice, I can understand why you and your mother would come here." "It was a great way for us to connect." Rainbow explains. "We'd sit like this, eating ice cream and talking. We'd fly together or maybe she'd teach me something about weather making or flying." Rainbow smiles fondly in remembrance. "And soon you and Scootaloo will be able to enjoy moments like that." Rarity notes happily. "You'll just have to find the right spot." She says thoughtfully before jumping slightly with a smile. "Oh I know, how about the hill outside of town? The one where you taught her how to glide? Go up there with a picnic blanket to sit on and it'd be perfect." "Great Idea." Rainbow agrees. She looks forward while peeking at Rarity from the corner of her eye. "You think maybe you'd wanna come with?" "Me? Come with?" Rarity questions. "Are you sure? I wouldn't want to interrupt your family time." "You wouldn't be." Rainbow says simply. She then looks away nervously and continues licking her ice cream. "Well... If you insist." Rarity says slowly, she then smiles and looks at Rainbow. "I'd be honored." "YES!" Rainbow suddenly shouts excitedly while standing up. She quickly sits down and tries to act nonchalant. "I mean that's cool." "Goodness Darling, I'm supposed to be the dramatic one." Rarity jokes. Rainbow laughs with her. The two sit together on the bench and enjoy their ice cream together. After finishing their treat Rainbow leads Rarity into the town to show her the sights. MORNING DEW'S ROOM Ever so slowly Morning Dew opens her eyes, she sits up in her hospital bed and stretches with a yawn. Blinking her eyes she looks around the room. "Oh, I fell asleep." She says to herself. "I hope they'll come back." Morning Dew isn't alone for long though, after a bit a mare wanders into the room looking confused, she has a long auburn ponytail and a maid uniform. "I didn't know this hospital had a maid service." Morning Dew thinks to herself. "Wouldn't they just have janitors? It's not like theres much to clean in a cloud hospital." "Um, excuse me." Morning Dew calls, only to jump in surprise as the maid seems to almost jump out of her skin. The maid slowly turns her head to look at the mother with a nervous expression. "Oh, h-hello. Excuse me. I didn't mean to i-intrude." The maid says nervously. "I-I'm a little lost, I'm not sure where to go. I meant to ask a nurse or s-somepony else but they looked so busy I couldn't bother them and now I don't know what to do so I've just been wandering the hospital not knowing where anything is and-" It's at this point in the maid's rambling that Morning Dew waves a hoof to try and get her attention which surprisingly silences the mare immediately. "Don't worry." The Mother says calmly. "Just take a breath and relax." Morning Dew raises and lowers her hoofs in a breathing in and out gesture. The maid obediently follows along and seems to settle down. "Now, if you don't mind me asking. What are you doing here?" "Oh, Uh." The maid hesitates. "Working I guess?" She looks down at the floor. "Though I can't say it's something I'm looking forward to doing." "What kind of work?" Morning Dew inquires. "I can't talk about it." The maid says apologetically. She then looks up with a startled expression. "I'm sorry, I'm being a bother again, I'll leave now." she then starts to leave. "Hold on." Morning Dew urges, though she blinks in confusion when the maid halts immediately and turns respectfully to the mother. "Uh, I mean, Please don't leave yet." Morning Dew chuckles to herself and scratches the back of her head. "I know this is none of my business but you seem kind of stressed. Are you ok?" "Yes, Yeah. I'm ok." The maid nods but frowns. "I think? Maybe not." "Well what calms you down?" Morning Dew asks. The maid looks at her with a small smile. "Cleaning. It's my favorite thing to do." The maid says quietly but happily. "Well, theres not much here to clean. But being calm would make it easier to ask the hospital staff what you want to ask them wouldn't it?" The Mother reasons. The maid blinks at her. "Are you sure?" The maid asks nervously, the mother nods in approval. "OK, sure. Maybe that will help." The maid pulls some cleaning supplies seemingly out of nowhere. She starts cleaning a counter near the bed. "So whats your name?" Morning Dew inquires. "Oh... Well." The maid mumbles. "That doesn't matter." Morning Dew observes the maid as she works, watching with an inquisitive expression. She crosses her hooves and begins to think. CLOUDSDALE OUTDOOR CAFE "We should have done this sooner." Rarity muses to herself out loud as her and Rainbow Dash sit at a table outside the cafe, they haven't ordered anything and likely won't as they ate earlier. But Rarity thought it looked like a nice spot, Rarity has been constantly stopping to enjoy the view of Cloudsdale. "I can't believe I'd never thought to visit this place before, It's a lovely city." As Rarity observes the sights of the cloud city her horn lights up for a moment and then fades. "Well you can't usually walk on clouds so it makes sense." Rainbow says with a shrug. A Server approaches the table but Rainbow politely holds up her hoof and shakes her head. She turns her attention back towards Rarity as the server leaves. "Alright, so what would you like to see next?" We can go anywhere in all of Cloudsdale." "Well there is somewhere I'd like to see." Rarity muses. "Perhaps you could show me your mother's house? I want to see where you grew up." "No problem." Rainbow says with a grin. "We can head there at anytime, I know my mom won't mind." Rainbow blinks as Rarity's horn lights up for a moment. "Hey Rare, you're horn ok? It's been blinking for a little while now." "Oh, you don't need to worry about that Darling. I'm just reinforcing the cloud walking spell." Rarity explains casually. "Really? That often? I didn't know the spell had that short of an effect." "It doesn't. Even though I don't have Twilight's magical talent, since I'm only using it on myself it should still last for a few hours." Rarity giggles lightly and closes her eyes with a smile. "I suppose I'm just being overly cautious." "Well better safe than sorry as.... uh..." Rainbow scratches her head for a moment. "Well as somepony whose not me would say." Rainbow leans back in her chair. "I'm not really an expert on magic or anything but wouldn't recasting a spell like that be exhausting." "No worries Darling. I assure you I'm quite alright." Rarity insists. "Now why don't you lead the way? No use sitting around here." Rainbow nods and both mares get up, Rainbow Dash begins leading the way to her childhood home. Unbeknownst to Rainbow Dash, when Rarity gets off her seat she stumbles a little bit before catching herself. Rarity shakes her head as her horn lights up to reinforce the spell once more. "I really am being ridiculous." Rarity thinks to herself, she then takes a big breathe before exhaling and following Rainbow Dash down the Cloud Road. MORNING DEW'S HOSPITAL ROOM "Wow... Uh..." Morning Dew stammers as she observes the maid working, she'd started off slowly but was now cleaning up a storm, every non cloud service in the room was sparkling and looked better than new. The maid had just pulled out a strange looking feather duster with fluffy white feathers when Morning Dew had finally spoken her amazement, this causes the maid to practically jump out of her skin.... Again. "O-oh... I'm sorry." She says meekly. "I forgot that I wasn't alone." Her head becomes downcast. "I just uh... I... Uh..." "Got in the zone?" Morning Dew offers, The maid looks at her in surprise. "My Daughter can get like that too. So focused she doesn't think about much if anything else." "Oh, Yes. I suppose that's it, It's not often I get lost in my work though." The maid says shyly. "I need to make sure I'm paying attention encase somepony needs something." She looks around the room. "Otherwise I get carried away." "No really it's fine, you did an amazing job actually." Morning Dew assures the maid. "I've never seen something this clean before. You're incredible at what you do." "W-What?" The maid says in shock, as if she's never heard a compliment before. "I-I'm not really worthy of uh.... of uh...." "Praise?" Morning Dew asks to which the maid nods meekly. "Well I disagree, I could never have done this even on my best day." Morning Dew looks at the object The maid has in her hoof. "But what is that? You already dusted didn't you?" "Oh this? It's for the walls and floor." The maid twirls the object and smiles. "It's a specially designed duster that can collect dirt and other unwanted materials from clouds. I had to save up for a long time to afford this, my salary isn't very large but it was worth every bit." The maid gushes excitedly. "She seems to be getting more comfortable." Morning Dew thinks to herself. "If I keep this up maybe I can help her." "Being a maid seems hard." Morning Dew begins. "How long would you have to do it to get that good?" "Oh well, personally I've been working as a maid for almost three years. Mostly in my home town of Trottingham." The maid smiles. "It's not really that hard, anypony could do it. It's just fun." "I doubt anypony could do it like you do." Morning Dew says kindly. "Does being a maid pay well?" She questions, generally curious. "Kinda depends on the work, some jobs pay more than others. The one I have now pays only a little but I work everyday and I even get to stay in the laundr- uh... Guest room." The maid explains cheerfully, though her expression goes neutral at the end. Morning Dew puts her hoof to her chin in response. "So you don't live at home." She thinks outloud, deciding to address the end of her sentence later. "You must be in your twenties now then right?" "Oh uh... No. I'm actually turning nineteen this year." At the maids words Morning Dew freezes like a statue. "That means....." Morning Dew says slowly. "You were only sixteen when you left home?" "Well... Of course." The maid says as she hangs her head. "I-I'd been s-such a burden to my parents finances... M-My mom said it was t-time I learn to t-take care of myself. I know t-they wanted me to...To leave because they love me and wanted to... uh... Something..." The maids voice peters out. Suddenly she feels hooves on her shoulders and looks up quickly and sees Morning Dew's face. The mare having suddenly gotten up and dashed over to the edge of the bed, tears are welling in the mother's eyes. "BUT YOU WERE STILL JUST A BABY!!!" Morning Dew shouts before bringing her hooves around the maid and embracing her. "Ma'am, should you be getting up like that?" The maid says with concern. "You're a good girl." Morning Dew says which catches the maid off guard. "You're talented, dedicated and very sweet." She pulls back and looks the maid in the eyes. "You put others so far ahead of yourself you never think about your own feelings." Morning Dew laughs. "That's my job I'll have you know." "You're... Really nice." The maid says quietly. Her eyes than open wide as Morning Dew begins coughing, the mother slowly makes her way backwards and lays down into bed. "I'm sorry about that." Morning Dew apologizes. "Shouldn't have done that." "Are you ok?" The maid asks. "I'm just fine, it's nothing life threatening." Morning Dew says with ragged breath, after a few moments her condition seems to improve. "It's funny, never had to stay in a hospital for even a full day before. Guess my immune systems not what it used to be." "Why are you being so nice to me?" The maid asks. "You don't even know me." "Well what's your name then?" "Oh, It's Spiffy Jiffy." The maid says before clamping her hooves over her mouth. "I uh... I mean...." "Hello Spiffy Jiffy, I'm Morning Dew. It's a pleasure to meet you." Morning Dew says kindly, though she's confused as Spiffy Jiffy looks at her like her blood has run cold. "M...Morning Dew?" Spiffy Jiffy says with a terrified expression. "Yes? Why? Is something wrong?" Morning Dew asks with concern. "It....I.....You.....But...." Spiffy Jiffy rambles. She takes a step backwards. "Hello Morning Dew." A Stallion Doctor says as he comes walking into the room. "I just need to- Oh hello, I hope I'm not interrupting." "No, no it's ok. Spiffy Jiffy this is Dr. Rainy Day." Morning Dew introduces while still looking at Spiffy with concern. "Dr. Rainy Day?" Spiffy Jiffy says slowly. She looks between Morning Dew and the Doctor several times before settling on the doctor, the expression she wears is not her usual shy one. "Doctor I need to speak to you." CLOUDSDALE: 1354 STORM AVE. "Well here we are." Rainbow announces as the two approach a moderately sized house in between several other houses. "It's lovely." Rarity says happily. "Are you sure your Mother won't mind if we go inside?" "I used to live here it's fine." Rainbow waves off. She then opens the door and shows her companion inside. As the two walk inside Rarity looks around, the house is simply and doesn't seem to have more than it needs, the entry way is barren save for a small table with a family portrait and a coat rack. She follows Rainbow into the living room which has more pictures some of which Rarity doesn't know as they likely depict Morning Dew's parents and other family members. "I'm guessing." Rarity takes a breath. "If I looked I wouldn't find anything of yours?" "Yeah, I took all my stuff when I moved out." Rainbow says as she looks around the house, Unsurprised at how little it's changed. "To be honest, I was probably to excited when I left. I just really wanted to show I could do things on my own." "Your mother a little over bearing I take it?" Rarity asks as she wanders into the kitchen. "Absolutely, but that's one of the things I love about her. If you need her she'll try to help you before you even know you need help." Rainbow answers as she enters the kitchen, she immediately starts checking the food throughout the room. "Yeah, some of this stuff has got to go." "This house is rather spacious." Rarity stops for a moment to straighten herself as she had started leaning. "A little big for just two ponies isn't it?" "I guess? We usually spent most of our time outside. I had more fun playing out there anyway." Rainbow explains as she dumps the unattended food stuffs into the garbage. "We really shouldn't go in my moms room but we can at least go see what she did to my room after I moved out." "That sounds like a good idea." Rarity agrees as she looks at her feet and her horn flashes once more. The Couple head up a flight of cloud stairs and find what used to be Rainbow's room at the end of the hall on the right with Morning Dew's being across the hall. Rainbow opens the cloud door and steps inside. "Wha.....huh?" Rainbow says in confusion as she looks around the room. A dresser sits in the corner near a closet while a bed with a nightstand next to it is positioned next to a window. Rainbow blinks as the only thing different about the room is the fact that her stuff isn't in it. She chuckles good naturedly. "Mom you need to get a hobby." "I think it's sweet." Rarity says with a sigh. "She has it ready encase you ever needed a place to stay." "Man I hope I don't get this sappy when I'm Scootaloo's m-.... Guardian." Rainbow says, though she wears a happy smile. "Rainbow Dash." Rarity calls, causing the pony in question to turn around. Rarity wipes a bead of sweat off her forehead before continuing. "I really must thank you." "Huh? What for Rare?" "For today." Rarity takes a deep breath. "What with this situation with Blueblood and the potential problems it could cause, I've... Well I was feeling rather stressed." Rarity looks at Rainbow with admiration. "But you really helped me forget my worries, your can do attitude makes me feel like everything will be ok." Rarity blinks her eyes a couple times. "I had fun today, you have a talent for making me smile." "Aw jeez Rare, You're gonna make me blush." Rainbow says with a chuckle. "Again." She thinks to herself. Though she looks at her companion with concern when she stumbles backwards a little. "Hey Rare? You ok?" "Yes, Yes... Of course." Rarity says slowly, her horn sparks to life once again but fades for the aura fully forms. Rarity's eyes sag before closing for a moment, but they open wide as she suddenly slips through the clouds. Rarity falls through the floor into the living room and keeps going, she falls off Cloudsdale entirely but before she even starts screaming Rainbow Dash swoops down and catches her, one front leg looped around her back legs knees while her other cradles Rarity's head.. "You ok Rare?" Rainbow asks with concern. Rarity looks bewildered for a moment before looking at Rainbow. "Yes, Yes. I'm alright Darling." Rarity raises a hoof and feels her horn. "I must have exhausted myself by casting the cloud walking spell to many times. It's not my talent so it takes more out of me than I thought." Rarity puts her hooves down. "And I guess when I ran out of energy my spell wore off." "So let me take a guess." Rainbow says while giving Rarity a dead pan look. "You weren't casting that spell just because you were feeling 'Overly Cautious.' Right?" "Well. No." Rarity admits. "It was for another reason." "Which iiiissss." Rainbow urges. "I." Rarity turns away. "I had a nightmare last night ok?" "What?" Rainbow asks as she cracks a smile. "It's not funny Rainbow Dash." Rarity huffs. "It happened last night. I had a dream, a recurring one actually. I was falling away from the Cloudsdale Stadium during the Best Young Flier Competition. But instead of you using the Sonic Rainboom to save me-" "Don't finish that." Rainbow insists "Jeez who've thought I'd have to reassure somepony having nightmares again." Rainbow shakes her head and chuckles. "So you were just scared?" "Yes, I suppose I was. As embarrassing as it might be." Rarity huffs. "Tell you what." Rainbow smiles. "Let me tell you a secret. You're not the only one who has nightmares, shoot you're not the only one who has nightmares about that day." "You too Rainbow Dash?" "Yeah, And any time it happens I wake up and head right for your boutique. I need to make sure you're safe." Rainbow Dash sighs. "I don't know what I'd do if anything ever happened to you Rare." "But that's how I deal with it." Rainbow continues. "When I see that your ok I know it was just a dream and that in the real world everything is ok." Rainbow winks at Rarity. "So you just remember that I will always be there to catch you when you fall Alright? That's a promise." Rarity stares at Rainbow with a smile before suddenly flinging forward and hugging her around the neck. Rainbow is surprised at first but soon smiles and holds her tight. "Hey Daarliing~" Rarity says in a singsong voice. "Huh? What is it Rare?" Rarity just giggles into Rainbow's shoulder before speaking. "You are definitely going to be as sappy as your mother." Rainbow Dashes only response is to begin screaming at the top of her lungs as Rarity continues to giggle. CANTERLOT: AN ALLEYWAY DEEP IN THE CITY Trixie huffs and taps her hoof. She begins pacing around the alley occasionally pulling a pocket watch out of her cloak and checking it before putting it away. After what feels to her like an eternity of waiting a stallion finally arrives, his fur is dark and he's hard to make out in the alley. "Well it's about time you got here, Do you have any idea how long you kept Trixie-" Trixie stops as she looks at the stallion and scowls. "Who are you?" "My name is Deep Look. I assume you were expecting Quiet Inspection?" The Stallion asks calmly. "So Blueblood bought him off already huh?" Trixie huffs. "Trixie would be impressed if she wasn't so annoyed." "There doesn't need to be any hostility." Deep Look assures Her. "Oh Really?" Trixie says sarcastically. "Then Trixie supposes Blueblood didn't send you here to threaten Her or Her loved ones in anyway?" "Not at all. The prince would never even think of such a thing." Deep Look says unconvincingly. "No. I was sent for another reason." "Oh? Trixie is intrigued now." Trixie says with a laugh. "This should be good." "The Prince simply offers an invitation to tea." Deep Look says respectfully. "He'd love a chance to speak with you on important matters." Trixie observes the Stallion, her face is unexpressive as she looks him up and down. The silence between the two drags on for several minutes until Trixie uses her hoof to flip up her hat to ensure Deep Look can see her entire face and her classic smug look placed on it. "Very well. Please lead the way."