//------------------------------// // Friction and Hearbreak // Story: Sky Pirate Cowboys // by Ghost wolf //------------------------------// *Two months after Maverick left Canterlot* Ever since dear Maverick left about two months prior, my sister has been sending letters to him asking for forgiveness. Maverick hasn’t given a correspondence back yet, to which I believe he won’t be doing any time soon. Not that I told my dearest sister this as she is still faithful in making amends, but despite this “positive” attitude, I can see it wearing her down. She hasn’t done her makeup for a while now, and she seems distracted every time anypony tries to speak with her. As if her mind is elsewhere, which it is. But that wasn't all. After Maverick left, we had a discussion about her actions, actions that were out of her character. During our talk, I took notice of... something. I wasn't sure what it was, but there was... something that my sister's eyes held. Something I couldn't describe. It gave me a strange, instinctual feeling; she still isn't telling the whole truth about why she kept everything from dear Maverick. Not to mention there’s been something amiss about her lately as well since then, but I just don’t know what it is. It will make itself known eventually, when she is ready, so I'll let her keep her secrets. For now. What I won’t allow her to do is hide what she had done to Maverick. After our discussion, I had told her that she needed to make an apology to not only Maverick, but to everypony involved in this whole debacle. And to also make it known to her student as well. “Cover it in a friendship lesson if you have to, but tell her of your mistake,” I told her. We also discussed how I will no longer be left out of personal projects and that anything opened or closed with SAM-D will take both of us to action. Although I doubt anything like this will ever happen again, it would be wise to make preparations for future events. She agreed. Today, though, I wanted to see my sister again. This time, just to have a morning tea with her before I make my way to my bed. It has been a busy few days, so I was looking forward to having some quality time with her. To make up for lost time. As I neared her chambers, I saw that her two sentinels looked like they were trying to talk through my sister's door. I trotted up to them hastily. "Sentinels, is there something wrong?" I say. At my presence, they stood rigid; one of them spoke up. "Your Majesty, there seems to be a ruckus in Princess Celestia's royal chambers. We heard yelling and things being destroyed. There's something blocking the door and we can't get in there. She also isn't responding to us. We are unsure what is going on." The sentinel seemed to be a bit spooked. I narrowed my eyes. "Your job is to ensure Princess Celestia's safety. My sister's safety. Why haven't you blown the hinges off? Step aside, I shall ensure of her safety for you, sentinel." The Royal Guard is not like it was back then, that's for sure. "Y-yes, Princess Luna." The sentinels stood back as I readied a spell and discharged it at the door, turning it, along with the dresser blocking us from entry, into woodchips. "Sister! We are here to save you! What has happened!?" As I entered the room, I immediately saw chaos and broken furniture. Dressers and drawers were broken and their contents littered the ground. The beautiful pictures that were hanging on the walls were nothing more than broken frames and ashes. Her bed was flipped and her pillows were torn apart. The stone walls themselves had cracks and scorch marks. It was a mess. "Sister? Where is thee...?" As I scanned the dark room, my voice drifted off as I saw a dark figure in the corner of the room, quivering and crying. She was in bad shape. Her form was sweaty, dirty, and full of cuts and scrapes. "Sister? Are you okay?" I ask as I made my way to her fetal form. She didn't answer, instead she wrapped her hooves around me as I knelt down to her. She continued to cry, her tears staining my coat. I hadn't known what happened, but I was here for her and I always will be. "Shh... It's okay, Tia, just let it out." I repeated the mantra as she cried harder. I heard the sound of somepony walking over the broken door pieces; it was the sentinels making their way in, albeit they did so reluctantly. I used my hoof to shoo their useless flanks away. Through her crying, my sister finally said something to me. "W-why did we do it, Luna? W-why d-did I do this? I-I should have l-left it alone, but I-I didn't," she gasped through her tears, "why did we do this!?" Celestia cried, looking into my eyes. She was more than a broken mess--she was utterly destroyed. The hairs on my coat rise and I felt goosebumps on my body. "What? What do you mean, Tia? Do what?" She held onto me tighter. She leaned into my ear as she whispered to me. "Friction, Luna. FRICTION." At first I was confused. Friction? What friction? But as I thought about it, it dawned on me. Friction. Friction between worlds. The danger of it all. Oh no. Oh gods no. "Sister, you don't mean..." I couldn't finish my sentence as she gave me a tearful nod. My pupils shrunk into pinpricks. That's why she kept it from him. That's why she ghosted Maverick. Why she lied to him. Oh dear gods, no... "...D-dear sister, why didn't you tell me this sooner?" I say, slightly shivering myself. How could I tell Maverick? How could I tell him that... his.... his... I shut my eyes, tears forming in them as well. I understood now. I understood why she couldn't tell him. I don't even think I can. No, I know I can't. She has kept this to herself for so long now, it just finally hit a breaking point now. She was trying to protect him. I can't tell him, it would destroy him. Dear gods... please forgive me, Maverick. Please. *Seven months after Maverick left Canterlot and three days after finishing the Cabin Cruiser* Rainbow was very excited to show me something she did to the Cabin Cruiser, leading me to the site with a blindfold on. After we finished the build, she told me that she needed to do some final touches to it and to not go the cruiser until she went and got me. I obeyed her and stayed home, though I was quite anxious that I couldn't fly my cruiser right away. I figured that she was painting on the name she thought of, to which I was also excited to finally see. I was hoping it would be a good name, but I trusted Rainbow. If there's one thing she's good at, its being awesome. Either way, even if I didn't like it, I was gonna keep it. "Alright, Mav, almost there. Oh man! I can't wait for you to see it!" Rainbow flew above me, guiding my head with her hooves. Why is she so weird. "Yeah, I can't wait either. Mostly because I want to take this blindfold off." I gave a smirk as I teased her. "Oh har har. Alright, here we are. On the count of three, go ahead and take it off." She let go of me as she flew to somewhere in front of me. "One... two... three!" With that I took off my blindfold. My eyes took a second to adjust, but when they did, I saw what she named it. Free Spirit was written on the side of it in a fancy font. Not a bad name at all. "I decided that her name is gonna be Free Spirit! I think it fits with this whole thing about exploring and being able to be free. Hope its not too cheesy." Rainbow looked at the ground with a sheepish smile and a hoof behind her neck. I studied the name for a moment longer before trotting up to her and giving her a large bear hug. "I think its a great name, Dash! It fits perfectly. Thank you." Her cheeks turned slightly red as it contrasted with her blue coat. "Uh... haha, yeah. I know, I'm awesome." I ended the hug and looked towards the ship again. She was finally ready. I felt a gust of air as Rainbow flew above me to the deck of the ship and looked down at me. "Well? What are you waiting for? Lets go take her for a spin!" She disappeared, presumably to the cockpit of the cruiser. Sorry, of the Free Spirit. Might as well make it habit to say her name now. Anyway, I followed up, making it to the cockpit. Already, I saw Rainbow at the console trying to start her up. I just laughed. "You gotta turn on the master power switch before anything else. Its the lever right there. Yeah that one." Rainbow flipped the master power switch and the console lit up with some buttons highlighting different things as it went through a power cycle. After a few seconds, some warning lights and gauge lights turned on. "Awesome, what next?" She asked, not even trying to hold in her excitement. "Alright, we gotta make sure all the fluids in the ship are primed, so go ahead and turn that dial to run. Yep just like that." As I explained how to turn on the ship, I walked up next to her. After a moment, the gauges and warning lights turned off. Good. "Next, after all the warning lights have shut off and the gauges are reading good numbers, go ahead and prime the ignition. It'll be a series of sets to get it going. First hit the first switch--yup right there." With a flick, the first switch was flipped and a loud turbine could be heard turn on. Excellent, all is going good. "Go ahead and hit the next switch--do it in sequence with about five seconds a part with each switch. There's four of them." Rainbow listened attentively and flipped all the switches. Everything was working smoothly. Thank God. "Okay, Rainbow. Last thing. You ready?" I ask with a smirk. She smirked back at me. "I was born ready, lets friggin' do it!" With that, we pushed the helium inflation system button together and the ship made a loud groaning sound before a loud rumble sounded. As the balloon began to fill, a gauge showed how much was in the balloon. As it made its way to a steady one-hundred, we began to lift off the ground. Its finally happening. All those of months of work, putting this thing together with my own blood, sweat, and tears--and with Rainbow's help--its finally in the sky. I was ecstatic. I glanced over to Rainbow, who happened to look to me as well. A large smile was plastered on her face. "Its working, Mav. Its actually working!" She went in for a bear hug of her own, lifting me up somehow, and crushing my ribs. "Yup! A-all thanks to your h-help, Rainbow!" I said between breathes. She set me down and gave a confuse look. "All thanks to me? Mav, I barely did anything. YOU did all the work." I gave a nod. "Well, I did all the super complicated things, but without your help, I'd still be fixing things inside the ship. Hell, you even gave it a better name than what I was thinking. This couldn't have been done this quickly and this well without you, Dash." I gave her an honest smile as she stared up at me with flushed cheeks. I think mine were too to be honest. We sat in silence for a moment before her face lost its redness and her expression turned serious. "I want to go with you." It wasn't a question, but more of a demand. I sighed, way to ruin the moment, Rainbow. "Rainbo--" I was immediately cutoff. "Before you say anything... yes. I know what I will be leaving behind. I love my friends, I don't really like my job, but I do enjoy my time here. And I don't want to give up my dream in becoming a Wonderbolt... but I want to go with you. I want to explore the world with you, Mav." Her voice was quiet, different from her usual brusque attitude. She was serious. Dead serious. Rainbow... dammit. I had a feeling she was going to do this. Don't get me wrong, I love being in her company--she's my best friend in this world... but her life is established here. I can't just whisk her away, I can't let her just dump her dreams. She's on track to be a Wonderbolt for Christ's sake. Hell, she's the Element of Loyalty! I can't take her away. What if they need her? I took a moment to think before saying anything brash. I gave another sigh, "Rainbow. I want you to go with me too. I'd love for you to be in my company..." I hesitated. She looked to the ground. "But?" She asked. "...But, you can't. I know you're willing to drop everything to go with me... but you're too important." I say. She didn't say anything, so I continued. "You're a hero here, Dash. THE Element of Loyalty. If you went with me, what would happen if Equestria needed you?" She immediately retorted. "They'd figure it out! I believe in my friends, they are resourceful and capable. They could... they could find another way to save Equestria." Her words seemed to hurt her as she said it. "Not only that, what about your dream about becoming a Wonderbolt?" She tried to say something, but I kept going. "You just said you don't want to give that dream up! I don't want to take that from you! You even told me that they are scouting you right now. And your friends... they love you too. You're the Element of Loyalty, what would everyone say if you just left? For your sake and reputation, you can't go Rainbow. Your friends... they need you. Equestria needs you!" I say. "Well, I need you!" Rainbow yelled in response. I froze. She froze too. What? She closed her eyes for a moment, before gulping and meeting my gaze again. "I need you, Mav. Don't my needs matter too? I might have not known you as long as my other friends, but you... we get along so well. Its like you're a piece of me that I finally found. Somepony I can get along with and you understand me. I mean, I've told you things that no pony else knows. I feel like I can be myself around you. You mean... you mean a lot to me." For the first time since I've known her, I saw Rainbow Dash cry. I didn't know she felt this way. I couldn't help but slowly tear up a bit myself. A large part of me wanted to say fuck it and let her go with me, but the small, more logical part of me knew that I'd be taking someone who was a key person for the peace in this land. The embodiment of life or death. I can't take her. I want to, but I can't. My heart began to hurt. Not like when I found out I couldn't go home, but like something else. I could only stare at Rainbow. Her face began to tense up. "Well? What do you say?" She asked. Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck. I slowly walked up to her and put my claw up to her face. She looked up to me, meeting my eyes. I closed them out of shame of what I was going to say. "Rainbow. Your needs are important too. And you are my best friend. Maybe... even more... but I can't. I'm so sorry, Dash, but I can't let you come with me." I said the last part quietly. She didn't say anything, for a long time. "...O...Okay." She said quietly. She turned to leave. "Wait--Rainbow..." I went to stop her but she moved away. "I need to be alone for a while, Mav. I'll see you later." With that, she left the cockpit and flew away. It was just me, myself, and the Free Spirit now. I could only sigh. Its for the best. She might hate me right now, but she's just too important. Important to her friends, to Equestria... to me. She's just too important to me.