December 29th, 3095 Imperial Calendar
Scootaloo's house, Ponyville
Rainbow Dash slid on her crusher cap and grabbed her cloak from her bag. She headed out of the spare bedroom that Scootaloo had given her, Castus, and their youngest. Speaking of Scootaloo, the two of them ran into one another as she was going down the stairs, the two stopping on the banister.
"Oh, hey sis", Scootaloo said. "You up to something?"
"Not really", Rainbow said, cracking her neck. "Just going for a quick fly. Been ages since I've been around snow, and I always liked doing it when it wasn't super cold."
"Alright. See you later", Scootaloo said, heading up the stairs past her.
Rainbow Dash opened the door, taking a deep breath as she did so. Cold, crisp air flowed through her nostrils as a smile graced her face. She stepped off the porch and spread her wings, taking off.
She flew low over the town, lazily shifting to the side whenever other pegasi flew by her. Light snowfall from a few of the clouds fell on her, the faint impacts on her back not really worthy of note. She stopped by one of the smaller clouds, touching down on it and sitting down.
From her roost, she cast her gaze over the town. Almost everything was covered in snow, save for the roofs of a few houses which had been cleared off. Ponies of all shapes, sizes, and colors moved through the streets, clad in a variety of winter garments that only made their colors stand out more against the snow. Rainbow looked down at the cloud she was sitting on, scooping out a small clump of the dark grey cloud.
"Oh, hey!", a voice called.
Rainbow looked up, a small smile gracing her lips. "Cloud Chaser. Been a long time, eh?"
The other mare hovered in front of her, a small smile on her lips. "Guess so, yeah. How ya doin', boss?"
"Fine", Rainbow said. "Am I in the way?"
"Actually, kinda", Cloud Chaser said, rubbing the back of her head. "This one and a few others fell off the patch, and Thunderlane asked me to pack it back in with the main bunch." She pointed up to the thick layer of clouds about twenty feet above them, which formed a dome of dark gray cumulus over the town. After a quick glance up, she spotted a few others in a loose circle around her.
"My bad", Rainbow said, hopping off and whirling around in the air, pressing both of her talons on the edge of the cloud. "Here, I'll take this one up."
"Oh, don't worry about it", Cloud Chaser said.
Rainbow said, "I got it. I used to be your boss, remember?"
Cloud Chaser chuckled, before grabbing another loose cloud nearby. "'Spose so."
Rainbow pushed the cloud into the dark patch, smiling to herself as the dark cloud mixed in with the rest of the dome. "Ah. Man, I missed doing this."
"Can't you just do it over Pryha or whatever?", Cloud Chaser asked, pushing in her own cloud.
"Nah. Clouds don't have enough inherent magic. Can't get a good enough grip, and they are a lot less firm. It's just not enough of a pay-off to be worth it", Rainbow said.
"Right", Cloud Chaser said. After a few seconds, she clicked her tongue. "Oh, yeah. Pinkie is looking for you. Something about an 'acronym party' at Sugarcube Corner."
"Acronym party?", Rainbow asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Well, I don't remember the acronym", Cloud Chaser said. "It was just some acronym with a party."
"I see", Rainbow said, sighing. "Very well. Nice talk. Vale."
+++++~+++++
Rainbow landed outside of Sugarcube Corner, her landing displacing the snow around her. Many of the ponies around her watched as she marched up to the door. She didn't pay attention, but vaguely noted the concern that graced the face of some of the older residents.
She stood at the precipice, regaining control of her breathing. After a deep breath, she raised her talon and delivered a firm series of knocks, before stepping back and clicking her hooves together.
After a few seconds, the door opened, revealing Fluttershy. "Oh, Rainbow!", she said. "H-how did you-"
"Cloud Chaser mentioned that Pinkie was looking for me. I figured that there was no point in waiting for you to come harass me about it", she said.
Fluttershy somewhat wilted at the tone of her voice, turning her head away at the gaze of her former friend. "W-well. C-come in."
Rainbow pushed past Fluttershy, giving her a sidelong glance. The interior of Sugarcube Corner had been decorated with most of the usual affair from Pinkie's parties. A large cake was on the table, next to a few bowls of various snacks. Pinkie, Applejack, and Rarity were around one of the tables, talking to themselves in somewhat hushed tones.
All three of them looked up as she entered, removing her cap and setting it on one of the tables. Pinkie sprang up, bouncing over to her and wrapping a hoof around her back. "Dashie! So glad you could come!"
"Might I ask why you requested my presence?", Rainbow asked.
Applejack said, "Well, we didn't really get the chance to have ya open our Hearths Warmin' presents-"
"I didn't realize you had gotten me something", Rainbow said, relaxing her posture slightly.
Rarity said, "Oh, no yes. We did. Pinkie figured this would be a bit more... personal, than simply asking Scootaloo to give them to you."
"Very well", Rainbow said.
She sat down, grabbing the first box in front of her. It was a cylinder covered in simple blue wrapping paper. She knew what it was before she even grabbed ahold of the wrapping. Tearing it to shreds with her talons, she revealed the item: a keg of Sweet Apple Acres cider.
"Vintage stock", Applejack said, a smile on her face. "Been agin' fer two months."
"Gratias", Rainbow said, setting it next to her. She grabbed the second box, eyeing each of them. For the most part, they all sat there, watching either her or the floor.
This box was smaller, wrapped in turquoise paper with purple and red patterns. Tearing it open, this one was a simple cardboard box. Taking off the lid, she saw it was a simple red dress made of silk. Pulling it out, she examined it and shifted it around in her grip. It was a simple affair with a single shoulder strap and a pair of slits for her wings.
"Gratias, Rarity", Rainbow said, folding the dress back up and placing it in the box. After closing it, she reached for the next one.
"Oh, oh, oh!", Pinkie said, pointing at the pink bag with red polka dots. "That's mine!"
Rainbow shredded it open, opening up the box and pulling out the contents. Inside was a large silver jug, shaped like a swan and covered in intricate engraving. The wings reached up and closed together, forming the handle while the head was lowered down, allowing liquids to flow out of the beak. She asked, "This is quite expensive, Mrs. Pie. Where did you get this?"
"Oh!", Pinkie said. "Well, I know my sister Limestone, obviously. Anyway, she's with a stallion named Short Fuse, and they have the cutest little filly together. Anyway, Short Fuse also has a brother, who knows a mare, who knows another mare, who knows a griffon. And the griffon knows a silversmith in Griffonstone, who I pooled money with my wife and my husband in order to get this for you!"
"I see", Rainbow said, setting the jug down. She looked over at Fluttershy, who was still standing by the door, her eyes hidden behind her mane. "Do you have something, Ms. Fluttershy?"
"N-no", Fluttershy said. "I-I figured that y-you wouldn't w-want anything from me. I-I-"
"Frankly, I wasn't expecting anything from you four", Rainbow said, standing up. "However, I will say, it was a pleasant surprise. Normally, I would've gotten you all something in exchange, but-"
"Oh, don't worry about it!", Pinkie said. "It's fine!"
Rainbow glared at her, before her gaze shifted to each of the others in turn. "This is an attempt to get me to forgive you, correct?"
Instantly, all of them looked away, while Rainbow sighed. "You all understand why I am... hesitant to do so?" When each of them nodded, she grabbed the jug. "Well, those reasons still stand. I simply find myself unable to trust you all again, and I don't think that any form of real reconciliation would work out in the long run, given all that has happened."
"But-", Pinkie began, only to be cut off by Rainbow holding up a wing.
"However, this doesn't mean that I will be continuing with what I have done previously when it comes to you", she said, drawing confused looks from her former friends. "By that, I mean I will not threaten you nor try to insult you at every interaction. We will not be friends, but at the least, we can treat one another as acquaintances."
The others looked between them, before nodding in agreement. "That works fer me, Dash", Applejack said.
"Indeed", Rarity said.
"Y-yes. Thank you, Rainbow", Fluttershy said, before retreating back under her mane as Rainbow stole a look at her.
"Uh, c-can I...?", Pinkie asked, pointing to a record player.
"Permission granted", Rainbow said. Pinkie squeed in excitement, before dashing over to the record player. As the music started, Rainbow allowed herself a small smile.