Twilight crossed her hooves, shifting her weight into a more comfortable position before returning her attention to Honest Herbology: A History. A few pages flew by, reduced to a line of notes. Twilight cleared her throat, cringing as the sudden noise filled the quiet library. She waited, listening. No response. She sighed to herself and continued reading. Another page of notes passed without so much as a peep. The quill dropped into the inkwell with a clink, and she stared at the book. At this point, Twilight was almost sure that she was going to completely lose her mind. The library was simply too quiet. Sure, most of the usual sounds were there: the shuffle of turning pages, the scratch of quill on parchment when she took notes, even the faint chirping of birds filtering through the window almost completed the library’s typical atmosphere – emphasis on almost. She hadn’t realized how much she had acclimated to Rainbow Dash’s rather unique reading style until today.
At first she had found her friend’s outbursts to be a minor annoyance at worst. There was something really endearing about the way Rainbow Dash would actually cheer Daring Do on, gasping with every trap, every twist. You could tell she was enjoying the story as much as anypony possibly could. Now, though, it was painfully obvious that having Rainbow reading in the same room in perfect silence was much worse. Twilight risked a glance.
Rainbow was in her usual spot: lazily sprawled out by the stairs, surrounded by stacks of Daring Do books. Even from across the room, Twilight could see something was wrong – rather than a look of total immersion, the only adjective that suitably described Rainbow’s expression was pained. Her brows were furrowed, and she was glaring at the page with such intensity that she might as well have been trying to see through the book. It was almost as if she was struggling to understand the story. Twilight tried to shake the thought from her head. Sure, Rainbow Dash wasn’t the most avid reader in Equestria, but there was nothing in the Daring Do series that should give her any difficulty. And yet, the way she was soundlessly moving her lips was an undeniable sign of reading trouble.
Twilight snapped her head in the opposite direction, using a hoof to try and shield her face from Rainbow’s view. A deep blush of shame and embarrassment burst across her cheeks, sending chills down her spine. She had seen something she really wasn’t supposed to. What was she going to do? It’s not like she could just casually broach the topic and run with it. If there’s anything Twilight had learned since she had moved to Ponyville, it was that Rainbow Dash’s pride wouldn’t let her accept help, or even admit that she had a problem. Especially one as embarrassing as this.
Twilight found herself biting her lip in an attempt to calm herself. There had to be some way out of this situation that wouldn’t result in everypony feeling mortified. Okay, well, maybe there wasn’t, but the least she could do was to try and make it as painless as possible. She couldn’t just leave Rainbow like this – she obviously enjoyed the series way too much. To let her get stumped now on something small would be a crime against literature.
Twilight was up on her hooves, heart pounding madly before her brain realized that the sound she had heard was not, in fact, a massive explosion. She turned towards the source, catching a somewhat flustered Rainbow Dash in the process of picking up the book she had been reading.
“Oh, uh... sorry about that, Twi,” Rainbow Dash muttered, not meeting Twilight’s gaze.
“It’s fine, really, don’t worry about it... you just almost scared the hay right out of me. Is everything alright?” Twilight asked, taking a step towards Rainbow Dash.
“Everything’s fine. Just peachy,” Rainbow replied, her voice oddly toneless. “I just uh, remembered that I have to go do some flying... clear my head, practice, you know. That stuff.”
“Really? It’s—” Twilight paused, peeking out the window. “—still pretty early.”
Rainbow visibly flinched, shuffling closer to the wall. “Yeah, I really have to get going now, Twilight,” she said, sidling towards the door. “I’ll see you later, okay?”
“O-oka—”
Twilight didn’t even get to finish before the door slammed shut, Rainbow already flying off. She trotted over to the window and stared at the sky, not really seeing. Just before the door had closed, if only for a moment, Rainbow’s smile had faded. There had been fear in her eyes.
“I’m worried, Spike. No, more than worried, I’m concerned,” Twilight muttered, pacing around the library’s central desk.
“Yes, that much I can see,” Spike said with a hint of sarcasm. “But you haven’t actually told me anything at all, and you’ve been pacing like that for over an hour!”
Twilight screeched to a halt, staring at her faithful assistant. He was right, of course. She wasn’t going to accomplish anything trying to swallow her fears and pacing a rut in the floor. She knew she was being silly. If there was anyone she could trust, it would be Spike. Besides, maybe talking it out would help her relax and clear her mind.
“Spike, you have to Pinkie Promise me you won’t breathe a word about what I’m about to tell you to anypony else, and you absolutely can’t do anything at all to try and help, at least not yet,” she said, trying to keep her tone as dead-serious as possible.
“Yeesh! Alright, I Pinkie Promise. Now tell me already, before you give the library a new basement!”
Twilight grabbed Spike and pulled him close, dropping her voice to a whisper. “I think... I think Rainbow Dash might be dyslexic. Or something else... I don’t know!”
Spike pushed away from her and laughed, but he settled down the second he saw how serious she was. “All this over something you don’t know? Wouldn’t you know for sure if Rainbow Dash is dyslexatever?”
“No Spike, that’s just it. I don’t. At first I thought it was just some reading issues, like she was having problems understand the words... but it’s too sudden. Most ponies with dyslexia are born that way – and she’s not near or far-sighted. Whatever it is has to be a recent development, and that means... that means it has to be bad.” Twilight dropped her gaze, trying to swallow the hard lump that had formed in her throat. She had been wrong. Vocalizing her fears had just made them worse, more real. Sudden panic welled up, and she closed her eyes and took deep breaths, trying to force her legs to stop trembling.
Two scaly arms wrapped her in a tight embrace. “It’ll be okay, Twilight, don’t worry...” Spike whispered into her ear. “Tomorrow we’ll go and see Rainbow Da—”
“No!” Twilight choked out with a barely-suppressed sob. “Haven’t you seen the way she’s been acting recently? Don’t you think I tried that? She’s gotten really weird... angry and impatient all the time. Talking to herself. Sometimes I see her and you can tell she hasn’t been eating or sleeping well. I... I tried to bring it up once, last week, and she just ran away from me and avoided me for days and days!”
She shuddered, and Spike tightened his grip. She had come far enough, so she had to say it.
“The truth is... I don’t really think the problem’s dyslexia, or bad vision. I wish it was, but none of those really make sense. No, I t-think there’s something wrong with Rainbow’s head. She’s not thinking clearly, not acting herself... and I’m scared.”
She could feel Spike squeezing her, like he could wring the sadness right out of her.
“I know, Twilight, I know.”
“Alright Twilight, what do you want?” Rainbow Dash said as she walked through the library door. "I have a lot of training left to do today, so let's make this quick."
“Spike, now!” Twilight yelled, seeing that Rainbow had cleared the entranceway. The little dragon quickly slammed the door behind Rainbow Dash, locking it with a crossbar and a padlock. Rainbow spun to glare at Spike, who shielded the door with his body.
“What gives, Twilight? Huh?” Rainbow screamed, turning away from the door. “Are you gonna lock me up here—is that what you’re going to do? Gonna lock me up and throw away the key?” Rainbow Dash continued in a low, bitter tone.
The sudden accusation hit like a ton of bricks, but Twilight bit back the tears. She had prepared herself for this. Right now, no matter what happened or what Rainbow Dash said, she would follow through. Her friend needed her.
“Nothing like that at all, Rainbow! I promise,” Twilight said, stepping slowly towards Rainbow Dash. “I know what you're going through – I just want to help. I know you must be scared, but you have to trust me.” Twilight edged closer, trying to keep up a stream of reassuring statements.
Rainbow Dash stared back, tight-lipped. Twilight reached out a hoof, trying to embrace Rainbow in a hug. If she could just get through, past the shell of fear and anger, she was sure she’d find the Rainbow Dash she knew and loved.
“Everything’s going to be all righ—” The air rushed out of Twilight’s lungs as Rainbow Dash’s shoulder thrust into her chest, knocking her to the ground. Twilight looked up, stunned.
Rainbow Dash wasn’t even looking at her – the other pony had smashed her hooves against her ears and started screaming.
“R-Rainbow?” Twilight said weakly, trying to get back on all fours.
“Just shut up! Disappear already! You aren’t real and you don’t exist and I can’t hear you—lalalalalalalal!” Rainbow continued, focusing all her attention on a space to Twilight’s left.
“Rainbow! Who are you talking to? What’s going on?”
Twilight had to fall backwards to avoid another tackle from Rainbow Dash, who remained hovering over her. Up close, she could see just how disheveled and miserable Rainbow Dash was; her mane was tangled and dirty, and she had huge bags under her eyes. At least, that was all she could make out through the tears.
“And you – you’re even worse than him! Everything’s going to be all right? What do you know about being all right, Miss Celestia’s Favorite Pupil, most magical unicorn super-student, huh? Know what I'm going through! What a joke! When have your dreams ever come falling down around you like a deflated cloud? You don’t know anything! Nothing!”
Rainbow Dash seemed to pause, her expression going blank, before shaking her head. “I’m done with this, Twilight. I can’t have you ruining all my fun... you can’t keep me here.” Rainbow Dash looked around the library, a very odd smile creeped across her face. She chuckled mirthlessly, walking towards the center of the room.
Twilight felt herself being lifted up by Spike’s firm grasp. She tried to gather her wits, to find the words that would turn this disaster of an intervention around, but it was too late.
Rainbow Dash smashed straight through the glass window, leaving nothing behind but the tinkle of glass and the echo of a laugh.
“Goooood morning, Rainbow Dash!”
“Stop talking,” Rainbow Dash moaned, crawling out of bed, her eyes still closed. Her head throbbed, and she nearly scrambled back under the covers. Not that it would do her any good. Sleep held no release for her. It couldn't protect her from the headaches anymore, or from him. Rainbow Dash cradled her head in her hooves. Today’s headache was the worst she had ever experienced, like somepony had bucked her head over and over again until all of her thoughts had leaked out.
“You've really hurt my feelings this time, Dashie-poo,” the voice continued in a melodramatically hurt tone.
“Quiet! Just shut up,” she hissed under her breath as she made her way to the adjoining bathroom. She reached out a hoof and found the hot-water knob and easily set it to her preferred temperature. She kept her eyes closed, and tried to focus on the hot water streaming over her face. At least this way she could pretend that she was alone. No, that wasn't right, she couldn't let him get to her like that. She was alone. Him who, right? She was alone, enjoying a shower, alone. Just by herself.
Rainbow Dash relaxed a little as the warmth worked its magic, tension and worries washing down the drain. Even her headache was fading, the pain retreating further back into her skull. That was better, much better. She reached for the sponge and soap.
“Dashie, the mail's here! I think there's something in it for you,” cooed the voice.
The soap slipping out of her grasp. She cursed, scrubbing furiously with the sponge anyways. The harsh sting from a cut on her side forced her to slow down. She grit her teeth. She didn’t even remember getting that cut, and now it had to interrupt the only peace and quiet she had left in her life. Rainbow Dash took a deep breath to calm herself, retrieved the wayward bar, and went back to washing her wings. No, she wasn’t going to let her temper get the better of her. That was the same as him getting the better of her. With the last of the night's dirt off of her, she unsteadily trotted to the sink. She hated this part.
She opened her eyes.
“There you are, Dashie! I thought you were going to ignore me forever, even after I went through all the trouble of waking you up on time,” Discord said from the other side of the mirror.
“You aren’t real,” she asserted, more to herself than him.
“You’re only as real as you think you are,” he replied with a smile. “And what with all your little lies and your head in the clouds, I'd say I'm quite a bit more real than you! At least I know who I am, Dashie-poo.”
Rainbow Dash spun away from the mirror, trying to hide her eyes from Discord's piercing gaze.
“Oh, I almost forgot! You got a letter... and it looks like it's from the Wonderbolts! Isn't that nice?”
She gasped as another Discord appeared next to the towel rack, waving a letter like a fan. It couldn’t be real, there was no way it was real. It had to be a trick. And yet she couldn’t give up the smallest, tiniest chance that it was from the Wonderbolts. She bit her lip and snatched the envelope, her eyes hungrly scanning the return address. There was no doubt about it, it was absolutely, definitely from the Wonderbolts! She could hear Discord prattling on, but her whole world had already been reduced down to the envelope. With a trembling hoof, she tore at the seal.
The letter let out a wail like a deflating balloon and started to evaporate.
“Three times, Dashie! Three times! I don't think anypony's fallen for that trick more than once in a couple of thousand years!” Discord laughed, chalking another line under his name before waving the floating scoreboard away.
Gritting her teeth, she tried to hold back the now-familiar wave of crushing disappointment, and she knew she only just barely succeeded. A hastily-raised hoof was all that prevented Discord from seeing the tears in her eyes.
At the edge of her consciousness, she heard Discord click his tongue and flinched as a scaly arm wrapped itself around her shoulder.
“There there, don’t cry Dashie, you could be a Wonderbolt. Oh, I’ve seen how hard you practice, I’m sure you have all the skills need to actually be a Wonderbolt, you just haven’t gotten the chance... but I could give you that.”
Rainbow Dash impulsively went stiff as a board, her heart racing.
“Being a god of chaos has all sorts of perks, you know. Coincidence, accident, mishap, mayhem, luck, I rule them all.”
Discord paused, bending his head close to hers.
“Let’s say that today, you go flying and just so happen to save Spitfire from a terrible weather accident. And she just so happens to be so grateful that she gives you a backstage ticket to one of their shows. You go, of course, and by freak accident one of the Wonderbolts has some problem, I don’t know, sprains their wing or something, and by some miracle of chance you just so happen to be perfect to take their place. Maybe, just maybe, you do such an amazing job that they ask you to stay afterwards, as a temporary replacement. Maybe more than temporary. It could happen – it’s not impossible. Just unlikely.”
She swallowed hard. It was obvious what he was implying. Everything she had ever wanted, the chance she needed, it could be hers.
“What do you want me to do?” she whispered, her voice hoarse.
“Love me back.”