//------------------------------//
// 7 Years - Dash: Part II 
// Story: My Little Rainbows 
// by The PatioHeater 
//------------------------------//

“Do I have to, Mummy?” Swirl moaned. “Homework’s boring.”
Rainbow sighed. “Quit complaining and do it. Your one month exclusion ends on Monday and you don’t want Miss Doltish to moan at you on your first day back.”
“Yeah but-.”
“No buts, Swirl. You shouldn’t have left it all to the last minute.”
“It’s not fair! Ticker only got one week exclusion,” the filly said sourly.
“That’s because she didn’t dislocate a colt’s wing.”
“She punched him in the face!”
“A black eye only takes a few days to heal, whereas I understand Hoops only recently got the use of his wings back.”
Swirl huffed and slumped over the table.
Rainbow tutted and shook her head. She reached into her daughter’s saddle bag and pulled out the various books and pencils onto the dining room table.
“Work, Swirl,” she demanded.
Swirl looked to her mother with sad, glistening eyes and quivered her bottom lip.
Rainbow gave her a stern look. “I know that look, Swirl. Now get on with it!”
Swirl scowled before moodily sitting back up in her seat and pulling an exercise book towards her.
Rainbow watched intently as her daughter scribbled on the page some simple maths questions.

Rainbow was miles away when the doorbell rang a few minutes later, bringing her back to reality with a start.
She got up and set off at a leisurely pace towards the door, pausing to ping the back of her daughter’s headband with a mischievous smile.
“HEY!” Swirl shouted angrily, giving her mother an evil look as she readjusted the white strap around her mane.
Rainbow giggled and continued to the door.

Rainbow opened the door and was surprised to see nopony standing there, but she quickly remembered to look down.
She sighed loudly and banged her head on the doorframe, barely noticing the slight pain.
“Shine, you live here, you don’t have to ring the doorbell,” she said tiresomely. It was at least the third time she had to explain this to her.
Shine started panicking, not able to think of something to say. Luckily for her, a small, tea coloured filly walked to her side.
“I was ringing it for Ticker!” Shine said loudly, trying to sound confident.
Ticker, who was used to going along with such impromptu lies with Swirl, nodded enthusiastically.
“Yeah, sure,” Rainbow said sarcastically. “Come in, Shine. Did you have fun at the park?” she asked, but Shine had quickly darted by her mother’s legs and to her room before she could have replied.
“What are you doing here, Ticker?” Rainbow asked.
Ticker smiled politely before burying her head in her school bag and retrieving a few sheets of paper.
Rainbow took them and looked at them.
“Ah,” she said with a little nod. She looked over her shoulder and spoke loudly, “Looks like some more homework for Swirl.”
Rainbow listened for a second, waiting for the inevitable.
A second later, Swirl shouted, “WHAT?!”
Rainbow tittered. She turned to Ticker once again.
“So, how’s your wing?” she asked curiously, with a little sympathy.
Ticker winced and began to unfold her wing painfully.
“Ah. I guess it hasn’t healed yet.”
Ticker shook her head sadly.
Rainbow pursed her lips and sighed. “Oh well, you’ll get better. Wanna come in?”
Ticker nodded sheepishly.
“Okay, come in. Swirl’s in the dining room doing the past month’s worth of homework.”
Ticker nodded before skipping her way inside.
Rainbow turned to head back inside, but her attention was grabbed by somepony shouting her name.
“Rainbow!” shouted a mare, sounding incredibly urgent.
Rainbow spun round quickly and saw it was Airheart, looking more panicked and worried than she had ever seen her before. What made Rainbow feel even more scared was how Airheart grabbed her by the shoulders.
“Airheart, what is it?” she asked urgently.
“Is Fluttershy here?” Airheart asked quickly.
“What? No. I thought her and Rainbow Dash were going back to yours after flight camp?”
“I went to pick them up and they had already left.”
Rainbow’s eyes widened. “What?”
“Summer said that Fluttershy ran off and Rainbow Dash followed her a few hours ago, but he just thought they were going home early.”
Rainbow’s heart started to race and panic flooded her system. “We have to go find them!”
Airheart nodded.
Rainbow turned back into the house.
“Swirl! Shine!” she called out loudly. “Stay here until I get back. I have to go look for Dash.”
She heard her daughters reply, “Okay,” and turned back out of the door. She pulled it shut until the latch clicked locked.
“Let’s go,” she said, and the two Pegasi flew off with great speed.


Dash flew over Cloudsdale, with panic in her heart and tears in her eyes.
“FLUTTERSHY!” she shouted at the top of her voice. “WHERE ARE YOU?!”
Her eyes scoured the clouds, trying to spot any sign of the small, yellow filly.
She stopped in the air, hovering high above the cloud city, looking around hopelessly. She almost broke down in tears out of fear of not finding her friend when she had a sudden jolt of inspiration.
She spun round and rocketed away, certain that Fluttershy would be there.

Dash land outside a small park, stumbling to the ground as worry prevented her from concentrating on landing.
She charged through the gate and into the park. She slowed as she caught sight of her friend sitting on the roundabout, weeping quietly.
She stopped closer.
“F-Fluttershy?” she said with a little catch in her throat.
Fluttershy didn’t reply.
Dash trotted in front of the yellow filly.
“Fluttershy?”
“Leave me alone,” Fluttershy whimpered.
Dash didn’t know what do to. She had never been in this situation before.
She started to walk backwards and do what Fluttershy told her to do.
“Don’t go,” Fluttershy pleaded. She looked up to Dash with red eyes and damp cheeks.
Dash, after a brief moment of confusion, stepped on the roundabout and sat next to her.
Fluttershy wrapped her forelegs around the rainbow maned filly and began to sob loudly. She buried her head into Dash’s shoulder and cried harder.
After an awkward moment, Dash hugged her back and began gently beating her wings to spin them slowly.
She could feel her shoulder getting damp with tears and began crying herself.

A long moment had passed, and the two fillies remained in the same position. Fluttershy was still pressing her facing into Dash’s shoulder, yet she no longer cried.
Dash, whose eyes were red from tears, pushed Fluttershy up so she could talk to her.
“What’s wrong, Fluttershy?” she asked, still sounding on the brink of tears.
“It’s awful, Dash. Awful!” Fluttershy wailed.
“What is?” Dash asked, now slightly scared.
“I thought going to this flight camp thing would make me stronger and stop the bullying. But no!” she roared. “It’s only gotten worse! I hate it, Dash. I HATE IT!”
Dash recoiled slightly. Never before had she seen Fluttershy shout.
Fluttershy broke out into loud sobs again.
Dash moved to hug her, but the yellow filly just pushed her away and turned to face the other way, not wanting her best friend see her like that.
“Fluttershy, please…” Dash pleaded, although she didn’t know what for. “It’s not that bad.”
“Didn’t you hear them?!” Fluttershy screamed. “What they were calling me?! What they were singing?!”
“Fluttershy, please stop,” Dash pleaded again. She could feel fresh tears build up in her eyes.
“Fluttershy, Fluttershy, Fluttershy can hardly fly,” she sang sarcastically, ignoring Dash’s plea. She broke out into sobs, collapsing on the floor and falling off the roundabout, where she remained lying down.
“It’s true!” she cried. “I can’t fly!”
“You can fly, Fluttershy,” Dash said through the tears. “You don’t need to prove anything to those bullies.”
She moved a shaking hoof and placed it gingerly on her friend’s back, only for it to be shaken off viciously.
“It never stops!” Fluttershy shouted. “At flight camp, they sing that stupid song. At school, they call me Klutzershy! I hate them all so much! It makes me wish I’ve never been born at all!”
Dash sped round in front of her. Under her tears she wore an angry face.
“Don’t you EVER say that, Fluttershy!” she shouted, poking Fluttershy’s nose. “Don’t you ever dare say that!”
“But it’s true!” Fluttershy whimpered back. “I wish I’d never been born!”
Dash laid down on the grass in front of her, level with her eyes and staring into them. Her breaths were short and erratic as she held back the larger sobs, yet her eyes still streamed with tears.
“Please don’t say that, Fluttershy,” Dash asked softly. “Please don’t. If you were never born, they we would never be friends.”
“You don’t need me to be your friend, Dash. I'm too slow for you. You should be friends with the other, faster Pegasi!” Fluttershy whimpered, barely audible over the sound of her tears. She looked away, thinking that if she didn’t see Dash walk away then it would be less painful.
Dash roughly yet gently placed a hoof on either side of her face and forced her to look at her.
“But I don’t want the other Pegasi, Fluttershy,” she assured her in an unusually soft voice. “I want you.”
She slowly reached forward, extending her neck, and placed a small, innocent kiss on the yellow filly’s lips.
Dash pulled back not even half a second later.
Fluttershy had stopped crying. Her breath was still shaky and tears still poured, but she was quiet.
“Why did you-?”
“Because you’re my friend, and I love you. I wouldn’t know what to do without you. And when I see you cry it makes me just want to cry with you. I didn’t know how else to cheer you up, so I kissed you.”
Fluttershy remained speechless for a few seconds, leaving them both in a teary silence. She eventually, if not slowly, wrapped her forelegs around Dash and hugged as tightly as she could.
Dash hugged back.
“You shouldn’t pay any attention to them, Fluttershy,” Dash said in a comforting one. “They don’t mean anything to you, and you don’t to them, otherwise they wouldn’t bully you. You don’t need to prove anything to them, because they don’t matter. You mean the world to me, Fluttershy, and I'm sure I mean the same to you, so nopony else matters. You don’t need to care about what anypony else thinks.”
“But Dash-!”
“No, Fluttershy, you don’t. As long as we care for each other, you don’t need to care for anypony else. And you don’t need to prove yourself to me either, because you’re perfect as you are and I love you, Fluttershy.”
Fluttershy hugged tighter, not able to speak any words at that moment.

Rainbow, who had overheard the entire conversation, had stepped from her and Airheart’s hiding spot and quietly trotted over to them.
Neither filly noticed, as both had their eyes closed so they could savour the hug.
Rainbow knelt down beside her daughter and placed a hoof on her back.
Dash jumped and gasped slightly, scared about who the hoof belonged to. She twisted her head so she could see.
She sighed quietly with relief as she saw her mother, wearing a loving smile.
Rainbow moved closer and nuzzled Dash’s cheek.
Dash smiled and dried her eyes on the back of her hoof.
Fluttershy opened her eyes once she felt one of Rainbow’s hooves move away. She looked around to find a reason why. Once her gaze landed upon Rainbow, she smiled slightly.
Rainbow smiled at her and nuzzled her cheek as well.
“Are you okay, Fluttershy? We heard everything.”
Fluttershy nodded and dried her eyes. “Much better now, thank you,” she said politely.
Airheart walked out from the bush. Her eyes were wet and her cheeks looked soaked. It was obvious that Dash’s speech had moved her.
Fluttershy jumped up once she saw her and ran over to her, embracing her in a hug.
Airheart started crying softly as she hugged back.
“C’mon,” Rainbow whispered to Dash. “Let’s get you two home.”
Dash nodded and jumped on her mother’s back.
“Can Fluttershy come as well?” she asked in a voice that broke with tears.
Rainbow nodded. “Of course she can.”
Fluttershy jumped on Airheart’s back and the four Pegasi left for home.


Rainbow was at the supermarket, doing her weekly shop.
“Let’s see now, what’s left?”
She stopped with the trolley and took a sheet of paper. She looked over it, checking things off in her mind that she already picked up.
She furrowed her brow and tilted her head in a puzzled manner.
“Really? Is that everything?”
She looked back in her half empty trolley.
“I guess so. Better go pay then,” she said as she started pushing the trolley to the checkout.
The supermarket was surprisingly quiet, but it was a Wednesday in the early afternoon, after all.
Rainbow pushed her trolley up to the checkout and unloaded it onto the conveyor belt.
She looked up at the cashier and was taken aback by the sight of the yellow mare.
“Sass?” she asked with surprise.
“Hey, Sugar,” Sass replied with a small laugh.
“When did you get back from Baltimare?”
“A couple days ago. I did come round to see ya, but you weren’t in.”
“Oh…” Rainbow tried hard to think of a reason why. “I was probably at work. I work at the post office now.”
“Really?” Sass asked curiously. “It’s about time you got a job, Sugar.”
Rainbow snorted. “Yeah. So how was Baltimare?”
“It was fabulous. The sun, the sea, the drinks,” Sass said with a raised eyebrow. “I hadn’t had so much fun in years. And I swear I’ve lost weight.”
“I thought you looked a bit skinnier. What about Honey and Coal? Did they have fun?”
“I think so. But you know how teenagers are.”
Rainbow snorted. “Yeah. I can’t wait,” she said sarcastically.
“How are your three, then?”
“They’re okay. Swirl broke her leg.”
Sass gasped. “Is she okay?”
“Yeah, she’s fine. She got into a fight and dislocated a colt’s wing, so it’s all good.”
“Right…” Sass wasn’t sure what else to say.
“Hi, there” said a third voice from behind them.
Rainbow felt her heart race, but she didn’t know why. That was until she turned around.
“Oh, err… hey, Jet Stream,” she said girlishly, starting to blush.
Jet looked over her shoulder. “Hi, Sass.”
“Why, hello, Jet. You good?” Sass asked politely.
Jet ignored her.
“Hey, err… Rainbow. I was wondering if you remembered that conversation we had a while ago in the hospital waiting room?” Jet asked casually, pretending to be calm.
“Oh, yes. Why?” Rainbow asked. A smile was slowly growing over her face.
“Well, I was wondering, because I'm free on Saturday, and I was wondering if you would want to, y’know, meet up, or something.” He started shifting his weight about his hooves awkwardly.
“Err… sure,” Rainbow replied, a smile now stretching from ear to ear.
“Great!” Jet said enthusiastically. The smile he wore soon fell away as he tried to formulate his next question, but struggled.
“How about half twelve? After I drop Dash of at flight camp?” Rainbow suggested.
“Err… okay,” Jet said, relieved he didn’t have to think of anything.
“I know a good café on Cumulus Square. How does that sound?”
“That’s sound good.”
“Good.”
“Okay then, I guess I will see you later,” Jet said as he started walking off. He kept looking at her and smiling suavely, he even waved slightly.
Rainbow waved after him. “Yeah, see ya.”
Jet tried to walk away and keep his cool, but the knowledge of what he had just done hit him and he went light headed. He stumbled out of the automatic doors, tripping over his hooves. Fortunately for him, the only Pegasus to see him was Fleetfoot, who was waiting outside for him.
“You better have done it this time,” the young mare said sternly.
Jet nodded and kept walking.
Fleetfoot sighed with relief. “Finally. That’s only the eighth time you tried,” she jested.
Jet wasn’t listening; he was in his own world, feeling strangely proud with himself.
Meanwhile, Rainbow turned to Sass, wearing a huge, idiotic smile. She squealed with excitement.
Sass chuckled.
“It’s about time,” she jested.

The end of the school day came, and Rainbow went to collect her children. She watched her daughters trot out onto the playground, paired up with their best friends.
Shine’s friend, whom Rainbow had never met, seemed to depart rather quickly, as if embarrassed for some reason.
Fluttershy had also parted ways with Dash, heading quickly to Airheart, who stood further away than usual. Rainbow could tell there was a little conversation between them, but whatever it was she couldn’t make out. The two Pegasi left abruptly, which worried Rainbow a little.
Swirl trotted over with Ticker glued to her side. She had that look in her eye that she had already gotten out of trouble, and it was only her third day back.
“Hi, Mummy,” she sang as she stopped in front of her. “Can Ticker come round?”
Ticker looked up at her with a polite smile.
Rainbow nodded. “Sure.”
Swirl and Ticker bumped their hooves together in celebration.
Rainbow watched as Dash approached her, with head hung down as if her heart was heavy.
“What’s up, Dashie?” she asked in a playful tone, hoping it would lighten her mood.
“Those bullies are getting to Fluttershy again,” Dash said solemnly.
“Oh dear,” Rainbow said affectionately.
“I hate them,” Dash said, kicking the ground with a hoof. “I wish there was something I could do.”
“Do you want me and Ticker to beat them up?” Swirl asked hopefully.
Ticker smiled excitedly at the prospect.
“NO!” Rainbow said sternly once she noticed the glee in her daughter’s and her friend’s eyes. She knew that Swirl would use her cast as a heavy blunt object, and was worried by the consequences it would most likely cause.
She looked to Rainbow. “Don’t worry, Dashie. I'm sure everything will turn out fine.”
“Hmph,” Dash muttered.
“Hi, Mummy,” Shine said exhaustedly.
Rainbow sighed. “Hey, Shiny. So what’s got you so downbeat as well, huh?”
“It’s Star Scream,” she said with a little sigh.
“Who?”
“My friend. He’s a colt I like, but he’s starting to act really weird.”
“Oh?” Rainbow asked, clearly intrigued. “How so?”
“I think he might be evil. Like, really evil,” she elaborated. “Like, takeover-the-world-evil-and-kill-everypony evil.”
“I see,” Rainbow wasn’t sure what say after that. Shine tended not to exaggerate things.
“I don’t think we’re going to hang out anymore.”
“Oh dear,” Rainbow said in a comforting tone. “Never mind. Let’s go home.”
The five of them lifted off into the air and set off for the house of Rainbows.

“Oh!” Rainbow said as she suddenly remembered something. “Swirl?”
She slowed down in the air so she was level with the filly.
“Yeah?” Swirl asked, panting slightly from the flying.
“I got a date!” Rainbow said excitedly.
Swirl went wide eyed. “Really? With Jet Stream?!” she asked excitedly.
Rainbow nodded frantically.
Swirl spun in the air in a celebratory manner. “WHOOHOO!” she screamed.
Rainbow chuckled; she knew Swirl would be excited by that. She picked up some speed and rejoined Dash at the head of the group.


Saturday rolled on quickly; Rainbow put that down to excitement, both from her and Swirl.

Rainbow arrived at the café and sat at a table. The October air was a bit chilly, but she still chose her usual table outside.
She shivered as a breeze past over her, but she refused to move from her spot to an ever so slightly warmer one inside. She couldn’t help but feel a scarf would be useful.
Rainbow hadn’t felt so nervous in a long time, and she wasn’t even sure why.
This was the first date she had been on ever, when she thought about it.
She never so much went on dates with Red- she paused to growl at his name- only hung out with him, but this was the first and she wasn’t sure what she should do.

A waitress approached her.
“Is everything alright, Miss,” chirped a young, enthusiastic mare. “Can I get you anything?”
“N-n-no. I'm w-w-waiting for somepony,” Rainbow replied nervously.
The mare smiled deviously. “A-ha. First date, I'm guessing?” she said with a raised eyebrow.
Rainbow nodded and began to blush.
“I knew it!” she said cockily. “So, who’s the lucky stallion?”
“J-Jet Stream,” Rainbow said sheepishly.
The mare’s eyes widened. “Really? You lucky thing. I wouldn’t mind a piece of that.”
Rainbow looked to the waitress with a puzzled expression. “Aren’t you, like-?”
“Half his age? Yep. But still, he’s hot!”
Rainbow looked away awkwardly.
“I'm sorry, I'm making you uncomfortable, aren’t I?” the mare said apologetically.
“A little bit,” Rainbow said with an uneasy smile.
“Sorry. I can get a bit carried away sometimes. I’ll tell ya what; I’ll give you and your colt a free cake, on me.”
“Thanks!” Rainbow said, slightly surprised by the kind gesture.
The mare smiled and trotted off to a new customer.
Rainbow returned to waiting nervously, but she was starting to grow excited.

The brown stallion landed a little way down the path from Rainbow. Jet Stream looked up and smiled, trying to look confident.
He trotted over to Rainbow, nearly stumbling over a stray bit of cloud on the path, making Rainbow giggle quietly.
“H-hello, Rainbow,” he said as he stepped next to her, pretending that he hadn’t nearly fallen over.
“Hi, Jet Stream," Rainbow replied.
Jet made numerous attempts to lean into her, but each one failed for he wasn’t sure if he should hug, kiss or shake her hoof. In the end he just sat down.
They remained silent for some time, not at all sure what to say. It may have only been a minute before either of them spoke, but it was the longest minute either had experienced in a long time.
“So,” Rainbow said, wanting to break the silence.
“So,” Jet Stream replied enthusiastically, glad that somepony else was starting a conversation.
There was another, much shorter moment of silence as Rainbow tried to think what to say next.
“How are you?” she asked.
“Yeah, I'm good. You?” Jet replied.
“Yeah, I'm fine.”
Silence reigned over them once again, which wasn’t broken until the waitress appeared besides them.
“Hi!” the enthusiastic mare greeted, making the other two Pegasi jump. “I’ll be you… err… Waitress! That’s it! I’ll be your waitress today, obviously,” she said with a chuckle.
“Right,” Jet said to fill in the silence. “Okay.”
“What can I get you?” the mare asked politely.
“Err…” the other two said together and they both went to grab the small menu on the table, only for them to pull their hooves away and smile awkwardly. They both laughed slightly.
“I’ll just have my usual,” Rainbow said to the mare.
The waitress stared at her, with mouth hanging open slightly. “Huh?”
“Oh, sorry,” Rainbow apologised, forgetting she hadn’t met her before. “Yes, err… a large cappuccino, hot and sweet, please.”
“Alright,” the mare said before scribbling it on a small pad of paper. “Not too unlike you friend here.”
Jet blushed and looked away, yet he felt rather flattered.
“And what about you, handsome?” she asked the stallion.
Jet laughed embarrassedly. “Err, I don’t know.” He took the menu and looked at it. “I think… I will have… a hot chocolate, please.”
Rainbow smiled and pressed a hoof against her mouth to stop her laughing.
Jet shot her a contemptuous look. “What? What’s wrong with getting a hot chocolate? It’s a hot drink and it’s a chilly day.”
“I know, but… I don’t know, it’s just not very… it’s girly.”
“To be fair, with all those countless kinds of coffee, coffee isn’t any better.”
Rainbow tilted her head back and forth. “I suppose.”
The waitress, spotting a gap in the conversation, began talking. “What about whipped cream? Marshmallows? Grated chocolate?” she asked Jet.
“Err… yes please,” Jet replied.
“Okay,” the waitress said with a small grin.
Rainbow sniggered under her breath.
Jet sighed slightly and shook his head.
“I’ll be back with your drinks in a jiffy,” the waitress said confidently, finishing writing the order with a flourish.
She pushed the paper pad into her apron and trotted back inside. She slowed, however, as she passed Jet Stream, so she could look at his flank. She sped up again after nearly halting and disappeared inside the café.
Jet turned his head to look inside after the waitress.
He turned back to Rainbow wearing a puzzled expression.
“Was she just-?”
“Checking you out? Yeah,” Rainbow stated simply.
They both laughed slightly.
The waitress returned with a tray grasped between her teeth. She placed it down on the table.
“Here you are,” she said as she removed the two plates from the tray. “Two big slices of chocolate fudge cake.”
Rainbow looked at the large slice before her and her mouth began to water.
Jet, on the other hoof, looked both hungry for it and confused.
“But we never-.”
“They’re on the house. I made your mare here feel rather uncomfortable so I thought it was decent compensation.”
“I see,” Jet replied. He would have questioned further about giving away free cake for no real reason, but the cake looked too delicious.
Rainbow pulled one of the two plates towards her and took a small forkful of cake. She placed it in her mouth and began to chew.
She made a noise of great approval. “This is scrumptious!” she praised loudly, covering her mouth with a hoof to hide the cake inside.
The waitress smiled.
“I’ll be back with your drinks in a minute or so.” She left them and returned to the café to take a few more orders from other customers.

Their drinks had been brought to them by the waitress. They said their thanks to her and then descended into silence again for a brief moment, with the only sounds being those of sips and quiet gasps as they drunk their drinks.
“Your hot chocolate looks nice,” Rainbow said as she looked at the beverage piled high with whipped cream and marshmallows.
“Not so girly now, is it?” he jested.
“No, it still is, but it does look good.”
Jet slid the tall glass over to her. “Try it, if you want.”
Rainbow smiled sweetly and took the glass. She took a small sip.
“That’s good. I can see why Dashie likes these so much.” She placed the glass down and pushed it back to Jet.
“You’ve got a little um…” he said, gesturing towards her nose.
Rainbow gently rubbed her nose with a hoof and looked at it. She saw a bit of cream on and quickly licked it off.
“Is that all of it?”
Jet nodded. “Do you come here often?” he asked curiously.
Rainbow nodded. “Yep. Why?”
Jet shrugged. “Just wondering. I take it it’s good then.”
“It is, rather. Savoury stuff isn’t that bad, but the deserts are just… scrumptious. And drinks are always huge and hot, and delicious, of course. Are you sure there isn’t anything on my nose?” She couldn’t stop wriggling her nose. She grabbed a napkin and rubbed her nose vigorously.
Jet smiled. “I'm sure.”
Rainbow sighed through the napkin before lowering it and placing it on the table. She tried her hardest to ignore the fact she was now completely aware of her nose.
“And I guess this Dashie is Rainbow Dash?” the stallion guessed.
“Yep.”
“I knew it,” he said cockily with a smug look on his face. “How is she? And the others, then?”
“Oh, they’re fine.”
“How’s… Swirl, was it? With her leg?”
Rainbow nodded and placed her mug back on the table. “She’s fine, really. No different at all. Still a little trouble maker, just has a bit of a limp because of her cast, but that should be off in a few more weeks. Was finally let back to school on Monday.”
Jet gave her a puzzled look.
“She dislocated a colt’s wing, so of course she was excluded from school, for a total of one month.”
“That must have been fun,” he said sarcastically.
“Y’know, it was, really,” Rainbow said as if amazed. “She’s always a laugh.”
“That’s alright then.”
“Yeah. And Dash is fine. No change there. Same little speedster as always.
Jet smirked. “Yeah. At flight camp she really puts a lot of effort in. Never happy with less than, as she says, awesomeness.”
Rainbow laughed slightly, almost spitting out some drink. “Typical Dashie.”
“If she keeps it up she could probably get into the Wonderbolts! Plus, with a mane like hers, she probably won’t have to be as fast as the others.”
Rainbow furrowed her brow slightly. “What?”
“Well, she looks the part. She looks kinda awesome, and that’s what Wonderbolts go for. I was amazed I got chosen when I'm just a dull brown colour.”
“Are you kidding?” Rainbow said as if annoyed. “It would be stupid if they chose anypony else over you!”
Jet laughed once. “Ha. Yeah, it would have,” he said arrogantly. “I don’t mean to brag, but when they chose me, I had a wing power of twenty nine,” he bragged, surrounded with a smug air.
“Really?” Rainbow asked, doubting him greatly. “I followed the Wonderbolts for pretty much all my life, and I know for a fact that the Captain when you were in only had a wing power of twenty four.” She pushed his shoulder playfully.
“Well, I did,” he said with a shrug. “But the Captain was definitely a better flyer than me.”
“Y’know,” Rainbow started thoughtfully, leaning her head on a hoof. “I don’t ever remember hearing about you in the Wonderbolts.”
Jet shrugged again. “I was never really noticed. Probably because of my boring colour scheme.”
Rainbow shrugged as well.
There was a small, quiet moment, as Jet thought.
“What about your third daughter?” Jet asked, not entirely sure if such a filly existed.
“Shine? Yeah, she’s fine. Boring as usual.”
“That’s a bit mean, isn’t it?”
“I know, but she is. Compared to the other two, anyway. A goody four shoes. Chubby and asthmatic.” Rainbow chuckled warmly. “But you got to love her. She’s just funny, y’know, just by being herself.”
Jet smiled and shook his head. “I can relate. I used to be like that, without the asthma, of course.”
Rainbow accidentally ignored him.
“What about Fleetfoot?” she asked, pretty sure it made sense to ask to him, of all Ponies. “How is she?”
“She’s fine, yeah,” he said with a smile. “She’s getting really excited about her birthday.”
Rainbow tittered. “I love how kids get like that. When is it?”
“Like, three months away.”
Rainbow’s face twisted with confusion.
“I know, I know. Probably my fault though. I said I’d take her to the Everfree for the day, and she got really excited for some reason.”
“The Everfree? In January?” Rainbow questioned, thinking it to be a preposterous idea.
“I know, I don’t know what I was thinking. But it’s too late now and I have to go. Y’know, last time we went we saw a Hydra!”
Rainbow’s eyes went wide as saucers. “Really? I’ve always wanted to see one of those.”
“I tell ya, they’re amazing. And so huge! Taller than the Cloudiseum by far!”
“Wow.”
Jet looked up slightly as an idea popped into his head. “Hey. How about you come with us?”
“Really?” Rainbow said with a little bit too much glee than desired.
“Yeah. Why not? Fleetfoot seemed to like you; she’s the one who got me to ask you out, for crying out loud! And you can bring your daughters as well.”
“I’d like that. We could bring a picnic or something!” Rainbow said excitedly.
“I think a barbeque would be better, since it’s gonna be cold and all.”
Rainbow nodded enthusiastically; she couldn’t wait now.
“It’s nice how you care so much for your niece. Really, it is,” Rainbow said with a fond smile.
He smiled back. “Thanks.”
“What does your sister think to you taking care of her?”
“She doesn’t mind at all. She knows the reason why.”
“Oh?” Rainbow said, clearly intrigued.
Jet’s face sunk and went solemn.
“Oh,” Rainbow said again, but only more guiltily this time for bringing something painful up. “I guess it’s something to do with your wife?”
Jet nodded.
Rainbow felt a familiar mix of feelings of awkwardness, sympathy but mostly guilt. “I see. You don’t need to explain.”
Jet shook his head. “No, I might as well tell you now that it’s been brought up. And it feels kinda good unloading the feelings.”
“I-if you’re sure,” Rainbow said tenderly.
Jet sighed and hung his head down. He shut his eyes. “About twelve years ago now, she died… obviously.” He managed a small chuckle.
Rainbow flashed him a quick, sympathetic smile.
“She was pregnant as well.”
Rainbow gasped quietly and brought a hoof close to her mouth. She could see where he was going.
His eyes started glistening and his breath became deep and shaky.
“Hey,” Rainbow whispered affectionately. She reached forward and held his hoof. “It’s okay.”
He looked down at Rainbow’s hoof as it touched his. He drew comfort from it.
“There was… something wrong with the baby, and it was affecting my wife. They needed to get the baby out as soon as possible. But it was too late. Neither of them made it. I lost a wife and a son in less than an hour.”
“I’m so sorry,” Rainbow said quietly. She could have cried. She could only imagine the pain of letting her children go like that, and that was more than enough.
“That’s why I quit the Wonderbolts. I just… couldn’t handle the stress.” He shut his eyes.
Rainbow could see he was about to cry. “Hey,” she whispered affectionately. She leant forward across the table and rubbed his shoulder. “It’s alright.”
“After it happened, I went back to our house. Seeing that big double and that empty cot was too much to bear. I had a headache so I went to get some paracetamol. I had a couple and went to but the bottle back, but I just held it in my hoof, staring at it for ages, I don’t even know how long. To this day I still don’t know what I was going to do.”
Rainbow felt her heart sink as he said it. “What happened?”
“I was so glad I had my sister. She helped me a lot. And I mean a lot. My sister walked in to check on me, and she found me in the kitchen with that bottle of pills in my hoof. I remember hearing her gasp in horror. She slapped the bottle away from me and hugged me, telling me it’s all going to be okay. I don’t remember much else after that.”
Rainbow didn’t know what feel, let alone what to say.
A smile curled to his mouth and he shook his head to himself.
“What I do remember, though, is waking up on my sister’s sofa in the middle of the night, and Fleetfoot was curled up against me, fast asleep. She was barely a year old, and so small and cute. I think she got scared in the night and just wanted to sleep there with me. I picked her up and hugged her against my chest. I felt a weight lift off my heart at that moment. I’ve loved her ever since.”
Rainbow smiled fondly at him and her eyes shined with tears.
“I stayed round her house, sleeping on her sofa, for ages! I just wanted to spend time with Fleetfoot. It got to the point where my sister had to kick me out.”
Rainbow’s brow furrowed with a small amount of anger. “Why?”
“Don’t worry, it wasn’t because she was angry or anything. She didn’t particularly mind me staying there. I helped around the house when I could and looked after Fleetfoot. She just couldn’t afford to feed four of us. Her husband included, of course.
“I still went round every day, mind you, just had to get my own food. Fleetfoot loved me coming round as well. Her father worked hard and had not as much time for her as I did, so I got to play with her and take her out and everything. So, yeah… that’s the story of how I lost and gained so much in so little time.”
He let out a deep sigh of relief, feeling a huge weight lifting from his mind.	
Rainbow didn’t know what to say. She just wriggled his hoof slightly to get his attention and smiled lovingly at him.
“I remember, as well, the Captain of the Wonderbolts was really understating, as were the rest of the team. They said there would be a place for me on the team if I ever wanted to come back.”
“That’s nice of them.”
Jet chuckled. “Yeah, it was. But I can’t be bothered to go back anymore. I'm getting old. For a Wonderbolt, anyway. And, if I'm honest, I prefer just lazing around and living off my savings.”
Rainbow smirked slightly.
“And helping out at that flight camp is fun. It’s always good to pass on my talents. Although, I just can’t stand that Summer bloke.”
Rainbow chuckled.
Neither of them spoke for a while, but it wasn’t awkward, more like nothing needed to be said.

Their drinks had been drunk and their cakes had been eaten. Rainbow placed her mug down with a gentle clink.
“You wanna go for a walk,” Rainbow suggested, feeling slightly bored of the café.
“Sure. Where do you want to go?” Jet replied, also eager to leave.
“How about the park?”
“Okay. Let’s settle up here, then.”
Rainbow reached her hoof under the table and retrieved her handbag.
Jet lifted his hoof and waved it at Rainbow. “No, I’ll pay.”
“Are you sure? I really don’t mind.”
“I insist,” Jet said authoritatively. He reached into his jacket pocket and rummaged around for a second. He froze for a second before returning to his search with increased urgency.
He pulled his hoof out and used it to slap his forehead.
“I can’t believe it,” he muttered. “I left my wallet at home,” he admitted sheepishly.
Rainbow rolled her eyes and smiled. “Never mind,” she said in a friendly manner. “I’ve got this one. You can get the next.”
Jet looked up at her slowly. “The next?”
Rainbow blushed. “Yeah, the next.”
He smiled.
She dropped a couple bits on the table and the two Pegasi left.

They arrived at the park after a short flight across town.
Rainbow landed lightly on the ground, barely making a sound with her light hooves.
Jet Stream, on the other hoof, landed much more impressively. He stood to his full height slowly and dramatically. The wind blew through his short mane, ruffling it, and the sun silhouetted him.
Rainbow tittered.
“You can tell you used to be a Wonderbolt,” she jested.
Jet broke face and chuckled.
“Yeah, old habits and all that.”
They walked side by side through the large gate of the park.

The sun beat down on the ground, warming the air and destroying the chill it carried. The park was lined with trees that were slowly changing from a deep green to a wonderful combination of golds and browns. Leaves were scattered on the path, dancing around the hooves of the Pegasi that walked along it.
Rainbow loved this place.
She sighed contently. “I love this place at autumn,” she said largely to herself. “Inspired some of my best works.”
Jet came back from the depths of his mind and looked at her. “Your best works?”
“I'm an artist,” she said with very little arrogance. “Mostly paint, but I dabble with other media.”
“Are you any good?”
Rainbow snorted. “You better believe it,” she said with now appropriate levels of arrogance. “One of my paintings I sold to the gallery in Trottingham for seven thousand bits!”
Jet froze with awe, and his eyes shrank. “That’s… that’s pretty impressive.”
Rainbow turned to face him where he stood.
“Yep. That was my most famous and best works. Everything doesn’t look nearly as good as that one.”
“I'm sure they are.”
A small smile appeared on Rainbow’s lips. “Oh you,” she said playfully.
The warmth of the sun reached her back, soaking through her coat and filling her with a comfortable feeling.
She flared her wings, stretching them, and shook her body, rising onto her back hooves slightly. She sighed contently.
“The weather’s certainly improved,” she said largely to herself as she went on all fours again.
“It has rather,” Jet said, trying to keep the conversation going, and failing.
Rainbow glanced briefly in Jet’s direction, and then looked again for a while.
Jet could feel the eyes staring at him; it was becoming unbearable.
“What?” he asked with an annoyed tone, which was entirely unintentional.
“Sorry,” Rainbow replied quickly, looking away even quicker. “It’s just that… you’re shorter than you look.”
Jet turned to look at her. “Huh?”
“I don’t think I’ve ever stood next to you before, and you’re short!” she said childishly.
“Actually, I think it’s more the case that you’re tall,” Jet said confidently.
“No,” Rainbow corrected. “I'm only just taller than average, whereas you are almost a hoof shorter than me.”
Jet started blushing embarrassedly.
“Whatever,” he said to end the conversation topic.
They fell silent again, and remained that way for a while. They weren’t even trying to think of something to say.

Pegasi walked past them, enjoying company of loved ones or exercising, lost from the world with music blaring into their ears or with conversation.
Rainbow and Jet Stream remained standing next to each other, blissfully unaware of everything around them, despite the fact they were staring at everything that went by.
Rainbow wobbled on her hooves slightly, nearly falling over, but Jet was there to keep her from meeting the hard ground.
He pushed her back onto her hooves with a gentle shove.
She felt his brown coat stroke over her own, a feeling she wasn’t used to, save for when she hugged her daughters.
Her head started swimming and her stomach filled with butterflies; a feeling she hadn’t felt in so long.
She looked to Jet; he was smiling up at her. She couldn’t help but smile back. Her breathing became deeper yet silent.
They broke eye contact as soon as they made it, looking in opposite directions, and laughed slightly and awkwardly. It died down after a second.
They looked back at each other again, smiling as if they were still laughing.
Rainbow felt the feeling again only it was far more intense.
They lost their smiles as they looked into each others’ eyes and became completely detached from everything except each other.
Rainbow felt her head move closer to his. She almost pulled away, but then she noticed that he was leaning in as well.
It was the longest few seconds either of them had ever experienced, like a relentless drum roll. Their minds became a frenzy, unable to think coherently, only of the fact of what was happening. Their vision had blurred and gone shaky.
Rainbow could feel his breath on her nose. It tickled her and made her fur stand up on end both with excitement and nerves.
Their lips almost touched, but Rainbow pulled away just as she felt him brush against her. She looked deep in thought.
Jet didn’t notice, and so he almost fell and nearly kissed her shoulder instead.
“Is something wrong?” Jet asked, his mind still recovering from the rush of excitement.
Rainbow shook her head. “No. I just have the feeling something awesome is about to happen.”
“I think I know what,” Jet said suavely as he placed his hoof delicately yet firmly on her cheek.
Rainbow pushed his hoof away and began looking around for the feat of pure awesomeness.


Fluttershy stood on a cloud, looking up at all the other Pegasi in the sky, playing games and having fun. She wished she could join them, even if they were only flying through rings. Fear and embarrassment ran rampant through her, preventing her from flying, and keeping her wings lock tight against her sides.
She saw a ring that was in her reach, and if she could fly through it, then she could do anything, but, more importantly, she could join in with Dash and the others.
She unfolded her wings, setting the nerves in firmly, yet she tried her hardest to ignore them.
She jumped, fluttering her wings, but only to come back down again on her cloud.
She jumped again, but this time she beat her wings harder. A rush swept over her as she gained altitude, despite how little it was.
She flew up and through the wing.
“I did it?” she thought excitedly. “Oh my goodness! I did it!”
In her excitement, her wings lessened their speed, causing her to slowly fall.
Her hooves hit the ring, catching her off guard.
The surprise shot new fear into her system, locking her wings to her side and keeping them there.
She fell from the ring, falling down onto the cloud she once stood, only this time hitting the curved side.
She slid down the cloud, fear gripping her tightly. The cloud ended with a small lip, pointing upwards.
Fluttershy’s eyes dilated as she came to the lip. She sped off the end, as if it was a ramp, sending her flying through the air, and unable to stop.
She collided with a flag, becoming entangled and confused.
She hit the solid ground, buried under the small patch of cloth.
Unfortunately for her, this event didn’t go unseen.
Hoops and Dumbbell were hovering above her, laughing their heads off.
“Nice going, Klutzershy! Dumbbell laughed. Him and his friend flew down and landed in front of her. “They oughta ground you permanently.”
“HA! My baby brother can fly better than you,” Hoops mocked.
Both of the small colts began laughing in the face of the terrified yellow filly, finding her lack of strength hilarious.
Fluttershy had never felt so humiliated.
But then, out of nowhere, a rainbow maned filly zoomed past overhead.
The colts instantly stopped laughing. Their heads looked in all directions to see the source of the whooshing and the shadow that past over them, but before their eyes, Rainbow Dash landed in front of them, ready to defend her best friend.
“Leave her alone!” she ordered, all the while giving the colts her best evil stare.
“Ooh,” Hoops said sarcastically, pretending to be scared. “What are you going to do, Rainbow Crash?” he mocked.
“Keep making fun of her and find out!” Dash screamed back, her voice breaking midsentence with anger.
Dumbbell stared moodily at her. “You think you’re such a big shot.” He stepped closer to the speedy filly. “Why don’t you prove it?” he challenged.
“What did you have in mind,” Dash replied confidently. She was up for a race, especially if it would defend Fluttershy’s honour.

The three foals stood at the start sign, all eagerly awaiting the start.
Summer was particularly excited to see how they were getting on, and so he let them race.
Fluttershy was stood on a small cloud in the sky, holding the chequered flag in her mouth.
She wished Dash hadn’t convinced her to stand on such a precarious and dangerous place and that somepony else could wave the flag, but Dash’s logic was as sound as a seven year old’s logic could be.
It was Dash’s idea that it would add insult to injury for the Pegasus they constantly picked on to start the race in which they were destroyed.
The crowd was waiting for the start with great anticipation, for these three foals were some of the fastest at the camp.
Hoops turned to his foe to his side.
“You’re going down!” he threatened.
Dash turned and looked him square in the eyes. “In history, maybe.”
She turned and faced the start.
“See you boys at the finish line!”
Fluttershy was ready.
Dash raised her rump so she could get a good start, and her wings popped up. Her eyes narrowed, focusing entirely on her destination. She licked her lips with eagerness.
She could smell the victory already.
Fluttershy brought the flag up.
Dash waited, watching the flag in her friend’s mouth intently.
Fluttershy brought it down again and waved it.
The three foals exploded from the start line with such speed that nopony noticed Fluttershy fell from her cloud.

Dash rocketed through the sky. The force of the wind buffeted her small body, but she kept going, pumping her wings ever harder to gain as much speed as possible.
Everything around her became a blur as she only focused on the next ring that hovered in the air.
She zoomed past the countless spectators over Cloudsdale, from amazed foals to adults alike; they all looked on in complete awe.
She risked a glance over her shoulder. Hoops and Dumbbell were still behind, but not by much.
With a look of total determination across her face she beat her wings harder and easily gained more speed.
A sharp corner came up in front of her, but she skilfully banked right and curved around the cloud, passing flawlessly through the next ring.
Dumbbell wasn’t so lucky. He misjudged the time to break and collided with a column, getting his head lodged in it. He was out of the race, leaving only Dash and Hoops left.
“WAHOO!” Dash screamed in her head as she slalomed through the next set of hoops, zigzagging through the sky with a trail of rainbow behind her.
“This is so much FUN!”
She spun through the air, doing tricks like there was no tomorrow.
“I love this! I love this! I love this! I love this! I love this! I love this! I love this! I love this! I love this!” She shouted over and over again in her mind as she exploded through the sky. Never before had she raced so fast before. It was unreal.
The speed. The adrenaline. The wind in her mane. She liked this. She like this a lot.
In all the enjoyment, she had lost a little speed, and Hoops managed to catch up with her.
He barged into her side, knocking her off course.
“Ha! Later, Rainbow Crash!” he mocked one last time. He saluted in an insulting manner and rushed downwards to the final ring.
“HEY!” Dash screamed after him.
She curled her body up slightly, coiled like a snake, and then released the energy. She rocketed downwards with a speed she had never felt before.
The force of the air coming off of her spun Hoops off course, disorientating him to the point where he might as well have been out of the race.
Dash could see the ring getting closer and closer, but she didn’t dare slow down so she could safely zoom back up again.
She kept going faster.
The air was starting to put up a monumental resistance to her, but her small wings continued to beat harder and harder with each passing second, beating the sky into submission.
“Oh my gosh,” she thought to herself. “I. Love. WINNING!”
The sky gave up trying to stop now.
After a final push the air deformed around her, and Dash pierced the sky like and arrow. The result was a huge explosion, the force of which propelled her upwards back to Cloudsdale and stopped her colliding with the approaching ground.
The explosion radiated outwards in all the colours of the rainbow, leaving a huge disc of awesome colour in the sky.
Dash flew up. Her eyes wide as the huge noise and the massive increase in speed took her by surprise.
She looked back over her shoulder, and her face ripped in half with a huge smile.
She saw the disc of colour that caused the explosion. She couldn’t believe it. A Sonic Rainboom had been mere legend, thought to be impossible, but from that day on she knew she could accomplish anything, even the impossible.
She looked at the massive rainbow following her, seeming to flow straight from her mane. It was the brightest and most vibrant rainbow she had ever seen, and she loved it.
She looked back around and saw the finish line.
She cut through the chequered banner, being rewarded with the many cheers of her loving audience.
She didn’t stop there. She carried on going, speeding over Cloudsdale to share her magnificent rainbow with the rest of the Pegasi in the city.
She felt a tingling on her flanks, and she so wished that what she was thinking was true.

Rainbow and Jet looked up from the park. Their mouths were hanging agape as they watched the rainbow be painted across the sky.
“I told you something awesome was going to happen,” she teased, nudging his shoulder playfully.

Dash curled back round to the Cloudiseum, now that her rainbow had faded away. She landed on the largest cloud where most of the foals and instructors stood, and was immediately swamped with attention, which she loved.
Her mane was also inexplicably longer as a result, reaching down to her hooves, but she didn’t care.
She started bouncing high in the sky, above the heads of the instructors.
“YES!” she screamed ecstatically. “YES! I won the race AND got my cutie mark!”
She landed again and looked at her flank. “And it’s AWESOME! Look! Look!” she shouted excitedly, wanting anypony and everypony to get a good look and the rainbow lightning bolt on her flank.
She looked around for the yellow filly she did this all for. She want her to see it more than anypony else. She asked, completely oblivious to what happened to her, as was everypony else, “Where’s Fluttershy?”