Once Rainbow Dash and Cloud Shroud returned home, they wasted no time letting out their frustrations with each other in the living room. The still invisible Windigos were hovering over them, watching with interest.
“First you keep ruining my sleep at night, now you ruin my day!” Rainbow Dash complained angrily.
“What could I possibly be doing to ruin your sleep at night?” Cloud retorted, frustrated. “You’re the one always snoring and you never hear me complain!”
“NO, PLEASE, COMPLAIN!” Rainbow shouted, much to Cloud’s bemusement. “Do you know how much I would prefer that over you just not telling me anything at all?! Fluttershy had better social skills than you years ago! All you had to do was be honest and upfront about the fact that you were a foreigner and you LIED!”
“I didn’t lie, I told you I was a drifter!” Cloud exclaimed in denial. “Drifter, foreigner, same implication in essence!”
“Ooooohhhhh, Mareiam Webster didn’t technically lie to me…” Rainbow derided him facetiously. “And that would just make it so much better...had you not lied by OMISSION!”
“Touche.” Cloud yielded. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you more specifically about what was going on. It was just hard to explain and I didn’t feel it was important.”
“STOP LYING!” Rainbow cried, causing Cloud to flinch. “THAT’S NOT HOW YOU REALLY FEEL! YOU DON’T ACTUALLY CARE HOW I FEEL OR FEEL THAT YOU ACTUALLY DID ANYTHING WRONG! YOU JUST WANT ME TO SHUT UP!”
“Fine then, you asked for it!” Cloud exclaimed, pushing back. “Why did you have to go and make that stupid tape?! If you resent me for not opening up to you that much, why can’t you just be cool with me and get me to open up to you naturally instead of being passive-aggressive?!”
“BECAUSE I DON’T LIKE YOU!” Rainbow yelled. “YOU’RE NOT NORMAL! PONIES ARE SUPPOSED TO BE LOVING, HAPPY, AND LOOKING FOR FRIENDS AND YOU’RE JUST A COLD, SELF-ABSORBED CYNIC! EVERY TIME YOU COME TO THE KITCHEN TO GET COFFEE, ACTING SO BORING WHEN I’M TALKING TO YOU BEFORE YOU TURN AWAY, I JUST WANT TO GIVE YOU A KICK IN THE FLANK!”
Cloud was infuriated. His eyes turned green, exuding purple haze, and an aura of shadow came over him once more.
“OOOOOHHHHH MAN!” Aero exclaimed excitedly. “He HATES her now!”
“He’s gonna KILL HER!” Aera interjected in jest, also excited at the thought of Cloud going off on Rainbow.
“Not a chance.” Aeros said bluntly to burst their bubble. “I’ve looked into Cloud’s memories from when he was a human, he’s endured worse berating. He never snaps over stuff like this. Ever.”
“Say what?!” Aero and Aera responded, disappointed.
Their disappointment grew once they saw that Cloud was just menacingly staring at a now timid Rainbow, doing nothing else to display his intense animosity for her besides muttering in frustration…
“I’ll leave right now if you want me to.”
“Aww!” Aero and Aera grumbled. “We demand our money back!”
“You have no right to complain.” Aeros rebutted them. “You should’ve done more research on our friend by looking more into his soul. He’s a lot more like me than he is like you two, and even I know a few things about friends, ha ha ha...”
Rainbow Dash was also disappointed by Cloud’s underwhelming reaction...but also impressed by his calm reaction to her outburst. Still, she kept up the pressure despite her waning drive to argue.
“Dude, you can’t fool me, drop the zen monk act!” she demanded. “I know you can’t stand me, so just let it out!”
“What do I gain from not yelling at you?” Cloud retorted, his eyes returning to normal. “It’s not like someone’s recording this conversation, looking to use it against me.”
“...” Rainbow was silent after she heard that, completely losing her motivation to continue their quarrel. While she still believed that she had every right to be annoyed by and unaccepting of Cloud’s clandestine way of life, she couldn’t refute the fact that she had done something so shady to him. It was exactly the type of underhanded behavior that defeated her entire line of debate. How could she in good conscience demand a pony she had just been caught spying on to open up?
Silence filled the room before she guiltily said…
“I don’t want you to leave, I just...need some time alone.”
“I’ll happily acquiesce forever, if you’d like.” an upset Cloud replied, turning away and opening the front door. “I understand why you don’t look at me as a good roommate. But it’s truly a shame...because while I never knew how to show it, I considered you a friend.”
“...!” Aeros was shocked by this expression of sentiment...
...as was Rainbow. She attempted to raise a hoof to object to Cloud leaving, but quickly realized his mind was made up as he flew away. Feeling more remorseful than ever, she despondently went over to her couch and laid down, shoving her head into a pillow.
“I’m awful…” she scolded herself. “Evil force threatening Equestria...how could I overreact like that? I used my wild imagination as an excuse to take out my frustration on him...and I know the truth. I know that if some pony ever recorded me like that, even if it was for a “good cause”, I would lose my mind…”
Rainbow began to hate herself even more, greatly enthusing the Windigos.
“Don’t lose your mind just yet, Rainbow…” they taunted her to themselves. “Their agents have only just begun playing their mind games…”
“Heh heh heh…”
From outside a window in the living room, a purple-haired mare with a yellow coat was snickering scornfully as she glared at a video camera she was holding sinisterly…
Meanwhile, Cloud was flying around aimlessly, hopelessly looking for a place to relax. He hated to admit it, but there was never truly a time he felt relaxed. He always felt assailed by the bitter contempt he had vehemently attempted to shove down and deny for many years. He knew what he could never tell anyone else, especially with the roots of his trauma being irrelevant to the denizens of this world. For it didn’t start here or even when he was an adult human...it started when he was a child.
“...” Cloud didn’t even have anything to tell himself as he predictably found himself at the cloud he always slept on after work. He didn’t want to go into detail about how the way Rainbow talked to him...reminded him of his mother’s mental abuse.
His brooding was soon interrupted though by a group of familiar faces, Billy, Hoops, and Score. This time, however, the three were unnerved, wanting to do anything but approach him.
“Oh no, what is he doing here?!” Billy worriedly cried in the distance.
“Ssh!” Hoops shushed his friend. “We can NOT tell him what happened! Did you see the way he reacted that time? We have to warn Dash to get her ready!”
Score made a gesture of his throat being slit before the three took off, heading to Rainbow’s house. Unfortunately, Cloud had heard them. He quickly pieced together all the implications from the trio’s dialogue and with the realization of the only thing they could be talking about, his heart hit the floor…
“I got fired.” he told himself blankly, having no idea how to express his emotions…
...but it was finally time for the darkness within him to come out...
“Of course you have no idea…” the shadow with green eyes following him said to him scornfully. “Because there’s no other emotion for you to release but absolute, unrelenting rage you’ve been indoctrinated to view as evil, mwa ha ha…”
Cloud was initially startled by the shadow manifesting itself behind him, but once he turned to face it, he quickly recognized it.
“Wait, that voice too…” Cloud replied, recalling past events. “You were the one who told me to beware the lizard with three eyes. Were you just testing me? Because so far, I’ve not seen any cases of reptiles gaining psychic powers.”
“Oh, I would say no such thing in jest.” the shadow denied Cloud’s assertion. “The demon I warned you of is very real, and the purpose of you being brought to this world is to stop him. That is the truth you are denying. That is what is stopping you from finding yourself.”
“How am I supposed to stop something I can’t even see?!” Cloud complained. “Why can’t I just be allowed to live a quiet life?! That’s all I want!”
“You just answered your own question.” the shadow scoffed. “That’s all you want. It’s not just me, Luna, or the Windigos, but also the powers that be that want you to be so much more than a complacent nobody. And you know deep within your heart that you want so much more too. The denial of this inner desire...that is the root of your confusion and despair. If you would only allow me to help you, only then could you hope to finally open up...and accept yourself.”
Cloud looked down at his cloud solemnly in self-reflection. As a shadowy aura enveloped both him and the cloud, he almost felt as if he was staring in a mirror...
“Help me then.” he said bluntly.
With that...the shadow grinned profusely…
“I’ll start by turning your attention to the weather factory…” he directed Cloud forebodingly. “What do you see?”
Almost as if he was in some sort of hypnotic trance, Cloud flew closer to the weather factory...without even using his wings. It was like he was able to just float there...and once he landed, walking closer to the facility, he saw what was stationed outside there…
“A news crew?!”
Rainbow Dash bellowed this in horror after being told the bad news by the trio of pegasi at her house.
“Yup.” Billy said in a crestfallen tone of voice. “That’s what got poor Cloudy canned. Media involvement.”
“The big boss doesn’t want to lose face from it getting out all across Equestria that she hired an illegal resident.” Hoops explained.
“But-but-” Rainbow stammered. “She didn’t know! I didn’t know! And Cloud didn’t know how serious this was!”
“It doesn’t matter…” Billy replied with a discouraging look on his face. “You know the way the media is…”
“They’re going to omit any context from the situation that doesn’t suit their agenda.” Hoops said with a frustrated grunt. “They don’t need any bothersome facts getting in the way of their top story…”
Score angrily used a hoof to draw the symbol of an upside-down cross in the air.
These additional comments hit Rainbow hard.
“What to do...what to do…” she said in her panicked mind. “Just the threat of him losing his job was enough of a trigger to make him actually show anger...after how much I goaded on him, he’s going to blow SKY HIGH! There has to be something I can do to make him calm down, but what?”
“Needless to say, there’s no way to hide the truth from him.” Billy remarked. “And I’m sure you also doubt that an apology will be enough to sate his wrath.”
“As much as we hate to talk about your roommate like he’s some angry god we have to appease with a sacrifice…” Hoops interjected wearily. “...it seems the best course of action is to try and make amends with him by telling him sorry while offering him a gift. Do you have any idea what he likes?”
“Of course not, the guy was an enigma!” Rainbow exclaimed in frustration before she gave the situation more thought. “But in hindsight…”
Rainbow’s retrospective overview allowed her to recall that one of the few things that motivated Cloud to come out of the attic was...coffee.
“I’ve got it!” Rainbow declared, smiling in relief. Opening her window, she dashed out and flew towards the clouds outside her home. Spinning around one at lightning-fast speed, she was able to make the vision in her head of the perfect gift for Cloud a reality.
“Ta-da!” she cried, proudly displaying her creation. “I present to you…”
Her creation was revealed to be...
“...an oversized coffee mug made of cloud!”
The trio of pegasi were astonished, staring bemusedly at her and the gift at the window.
“You...sure he’ll like it?” Billy asked in concern.
“Of course!” Rainbow answered optimistically. “He likes coffee, he likes clouds, and of course he’s going to like the message of my gift! That even though he lost his job, he still has a cup of coffee to enjoy at my place!”
“And you’re...sure he’s not going to misinterpret it?” Hoops also asked in concern.
“What else could he infer from this?” Rainbow replied obliviously. “That it’s some kind of gag gift meant to poke fun at him and his situation? Who would take it that way?”
Score made the gesture of somebody taking a picture with a camera to remind her of the situation of the press being involved.
“Ha!” Rainbow cried mockingly. “Like even the worst tabloid peddler could spin what I’m about to do! Once I show Cloud how sorry I am on national television, everything will be made right, and everypony will know it!”
The trio of pegasi could dissuade her no further, as Dash had already jetted off towards the weather factory with the gift in her hooves at supersonic speed.
“This won’t end well…” Billy said pessimistically.
“It’s not her brain that works lightning-fast, for sure…” Hoops remarked in disgruntlement.
Score used a hoof to make what looked like a gun-to-head gesture.
“Heh heh heh…” the watching, invisible Windigos laughed.
“I guess in this world, it’s a hoof cannon-to-head gesture…” Aero commented on what Score did. “Too bad that’s not the only thing from the human world Equestria will soon be forced to adopt…”
“Once Equestria is forced to understand the pain humans are going through right now, only then will they be able to understand us.” Aera interjected. “The stupidity of the rainbow-haired simpleton revealing Cloud’s inner turmoil to all will be the perfect start.”
“Indeed…” Aeros agreed with a smile that soon turned to a concerned frown. “But I have a feeling the benefits we’ll reap from her folly will mostly aid us in the short-term. As for the long-term...I have a stirring of uncertainty about how Cloud’s fire shall be fanned...now that I’ve learned something new about this friendship…”
“...!” this new sentiment from Aeros shocked Aero and Aera.
“Could it be…” they thought. “...that he’s finally starting to understand...why we loved each other when we were alive?”
What Aero and Aera surmised was true. Aeros was beginning to get what drew ponies to friendship, but that didn’t mean he was beginning to accept what would directly contradict his view of friendship. Especially when both of his comrades were entirely in on his plan…
...to redefine the meaning of the word, “friendship”, in Equestria…
Meanwhile, Rainbow Dash was racing towards the weather factory with her gift. Looking for Cloud, the first place she checked was his hangout spot, but the cloud he normally rested on laid bare.
“Not that I wanted to take care of this in private anyway…” Rainbow smugly mused. “I hope he’s actually at the factory, because I want this to be in front of everypony.”
Naturally, Rainbow went closer to the factory, up to the gate where the news crew had stationed themselves. She flew high to avoid the camera ponies and went straight to who they were focused on. They were recording a pompous-looking pegasus who had a white mane and tail, an aquamarine coat, and a pompadour style of hair. He was wearing a purple-red jacket and sunglasses and holding a microphone with the logo, “PNN”, on it.
Rainbow was startled when she saw that he was interviewing none other than...Cloud Shroud. Not by her friend being there, but by the conversation he was having with the reporter…
“So now that this company you’ve worked so hard for has thrown you out like yesterday’s dishwater, how do you feel?” the reporter asked deviously, smirking arrogantly.
“What?!” Rainbow exclaimed in surprise in her mind. “They’re trying to frame the weather factory as the bad guys?! What’s going on here?!”
She hovered right above Cloud, extremely curious of his response.
“Inadequate.” Cloud tersely answered, knowing this interviewer was shady.
“Any further comments?” the journalist slyly prodded.
“I don’t dislike them for this.” Cloud decided to express his honest opinion. “This is just the way companies are, they’d do this to anyone.”
“I see,” replied the unphased reporter, ready to change tactics, “so moving on, how do you feel about your roommate, Rainbow Dash? She recommended this job to you, correct?”
“Yes.” Cloud answered, leading Rainbow to gulp.
“Would he…” she thought worriedly.
“Do you feel she should be held accountable for not inquiring more about you before making a referral?” he asked in a cunning tone of voice. “Shouldn’t one of Equestria’s Elements have known better than to push somepony she had only just met into working a position at this facility? How much responsibility does she owe, in your personal opinion?”
“WHY, YOU DIRTY-” Rainbow yelled in her mind, struggling to control her temper.
“Gah, this weasel!” an annoyed Cloud exclaimed in thought. “The worst part is...he makes a good point…”
“Cloud, please…” Rainbow silently pleaded in thought. “I was too hard on you, but...you can’t hate me that much for it...can you?”
“...I should’ve known better…” Cloud thought regrettably. “I had a good feeling he was going to be smarmy, but I wasn’t prepared adequately enough to counter his gaslighting. I guess this is it then. I can’t sell out Rainbow, but I can’t deny the fact that I’m mad at her...I won’t backstab someone who tried to help me and I won’t hold back how I feel anymore...so I’ll just give Rainbow what she wants and finally open up!”
And with that, Cloud finally answered the question in a way that would shock the public and change Rainbow’s perception of him forever…
“She only owes as much responsibility as I do. We both share the blame because we’re friends, and that’s what friends do!”
The reporter’s cocky grin finally receded as he, his crew, and nearly every pony watching all across Equestria from the Crystal Empire, to Manehattan, to Ponyville, were awe-inspired. This included Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy, who were all slack-jawed staring at the TV screen from a table at Sugarcube Corner.
“That plasma TV investment really was worth every coin…” Pinkie remarked, not regretting her decision for an attempt to liven the establishment and help the Cakes out.
And of all the ponies, the one most astonished by this turn of events was Rainbow Dash…
“I totally misjudged a book by its cover…” she told herself in thought regrettably. “Even though he doesn’t like to show it, he really does care...HE CARES!”
That exclamation of joy in her mind, however, would precede an even more unprecedented turn of events that Equestria could never have prepared for…
Rainbow pumped her hoof hard, knocking the gift she had prepared for Cloud with enough force from her elbow to cause the coffee mug-shaped cloud to produce lightning. And since she was positioned above Cloud, the lightning hit him…
*ZAP-PZZT-fwoo*
...but it did not electrocute him. Cloud was left feeling bemused from a tingle, while the news ponies were actually shocked, wondering if he was wearing a transparent rubber suit. But that wasn’t the explanation for what was transpiring before their eyes...which they would soon realize when Rainbow’s gift began to break apart into smaller clouds, gravitating towards Cloud and becoming absorbed into his body...and finally, the secret of how this anomaly worked came to light thanks to the shadow manifesting from Cloud…
“Crystals…” the shadow said ominously in a familiar voice. “ICE CRYSTALS…”
Cloud, realizing the meaning of this message, was the most aghast…
“There are ice crystals inside of me?” Cloud mused in terror, having felt their strange tingle inside his body even before he absorbed the clouds. “But that...means…”
Cloud finally understood what the Windigos meant by their promise of giving him an immortal, immaterial body as he accepted the truth of himself in front of all of Equestria…
He was made of cloud…
...and shadow.