//------------------------------// // Not Coming Home // Story: Rainbow's Parents: The Truth // by Songbrony //------------------------------// I guess you could say that a few weeks after Hearths Warming, Fluttershy and I were, well, dating. It kind of came out of nowhere, but I'm happy being here with her. It's a little weird, being back in school and having to deal with the stares from those filly-fooler phobes, but because I'm a popular mare there, things aren't too bad. Fluttershy's social status has sky rocketed since dating me. I know that isn't the reason why she wanted to be with me, but it was a good side benefit for her. What's great this year, though, is that we have all but one of our classes together. Most of our Junior classes are just generics. Personal Finance, Algebra, Weather Patterns, you know, usual pony stuff. The one class we don't have together is Professional Aerial Study. It's like Advanced Flying Techniques, but here we get to go outside of class and see professional fliers in action. Sadly, we don't get to see the Wonderbolts. But they have more important things to do than to have some students come out and watch them during private practice. I walked down the hallways after Professional Aerial Study to find Fluttershy getting bullied and pushed for her love of animals. She gets bullied for many things, being a weak flyer, and for, well, being with me. "Hey!" I shouted as I ran over to the group. I'm not going to tolerate her getting bullied for anything. Especially for being who she is! "What the hay are you doing to her?" I shouted as I flew above their heads. "What's it to you, Rainbow Crash? Are you scared that your mare friend might hurt your reputation?" the jock with a basketball for a cutie mark asked me. "Why should she? Are you afraid that I'll become more popular than you, filly-fooler phoebe?" I asked. "Oh, please. Like you could ever achieve a higher status than me." he said. His posse behind him started to give shouts of agreement. I looked at them, then to Fluttershy. She was in a corner crying. That was all I needed to let them have it. "So, you boys think you're tough because you can push around a shy, defenseless, beautiful pony? Well, how about you try to push somepony your own size!" I shouted, right in his face. He smiled at me. "Alright, Crash. I'll see you after school." he said. "You're lucky your mare friend was here to save you, Flutters." He and his posse left laughing. I glared at them as they left. "You okay, Fluttershy?" I asked as I helped her off the ground. She had tears in her eyes and I wiped them away for her. "Yeah, I'm okay." she said, quietly. "Thanks for helping, but are you really going to fight them?" she asked me. "Heck yeah I am! Nopony pushes you around." I told her. "But won't you get in trouble?" she asked. I drew her in for a hug. "Maybe, but it'll be worth it if you stop being bullied." I said. The bell rang, signaling we were both late for class. Again. "Oh no. That's the fourth time in two days, Rainbow. You really shouldn't keep me held up like this." she said with a smile. She gave me a quick kiss and we ran off to our next class, Weather Patterns. We ran into class and the teacher gave us a stern look. "Ms. Dash. Fluttershy. Thank you for joining us. Mind telling us why you are late?" he asked. "They were probably making out." a random pony whispered. The class laughed but was quickly silenced by the teacher's stare. "Take your seats you two. We were discussing how you know when to let it rain or let the sun shine. But I'm sure you know all about that, Ms. Dash. The weather has been perfect since you became Captain of the Weather Team years ago." he praised. We took our seats and sat through the lesson. He was right. I did know all about it. So did Fluttershy, but only because I taught her about it. I'm lucky. I sit right next to the window where I can see the sky and feel the wind. It's soothing, especially after being in school for six hours. I was in the middle of a daydream when a piece of paper hit me in the face. It had come from outside the window, but when I looked, there was nopony there. I looked at the crumpled paper that sat on my desk. I uncrumpled it as quietly as I could. The teacher had a keen ear for any rustling papers. After I opened the paper, I recognized the writing immediately. It wasn't in blood this time, but the unforgettable writing was definitely the same as the blood that was written in the box. We know where they are. They can't hide forever. Tonight, he will die, and then, she will follow. Don't think of yourself as safe. We know where you are as well. I read to myself. What did that mean? Were they talking about my parents or Fluttershy's? Did it even have anything to do with our parents? I wasn't sure. "Ms. Dash. I understand that you may feel as if this class means nothing to you, but that doesn't mean you should be passing notes." the teacher said. He walked over and took the note. He was one of the few teachers who didn't read notes out loud in class, thankfully, but he did keep them at his desk. As long as he didn't read it, I'd be fine. I looked at Fluttershy who must've seen something on my face. She looked at me with a concerned look. "I'll tell you after school." I mouthed to her. She nodded her head. I sat for the rest of the hour thinking who they were talking about and who 'they' were. And what did they mean I wasn't safe? The note said they knew where I was. I was snapped out of my thoughts when the bell rang. "Enjoy your weekend, class." the teacher said as we started to leave. "Ms. Dash, a word please." he said before I could reach the door. I stopped and acted like nothing was wrong and looked at Fluttershy. "I'll be right out. Hold on a second." I said. I walked over to his desk. It was covered with notes from other students, and I spotted mine dead center. "You probably know why I called you over here." he said. "Because I'm a good student?" I asked, knowing that wasn't the reason. "Ms. Dash, we both know that's not the reason," he said and pushed the note closer to me. "Can you explain this?" he asked. "It's just a little prank somepony has been playing on me." I lied. "This is some serious prank." he said. "And yet, I don't believe it is." "It's just one of the jocks messing with me. It doesn't mean anything." I said. "I don't mean to be rude, sir, but I have to get going. I have a meeting with some friends after school." I turned to leave but was stopped once again. "One more thing. I have to file a report like this to somepony who you are in contact with, a brother, a sister, a friend, or a relative." he said. "Who would be the best pony to send this to?" he asked. I thought about it and realized something. He wasn't a relative, but he was the best way to get answers about who 'they' were. "Send it to the Doctor." I told him. "Doctor...?" he asked me. "Just the Doctor. He can help with it." I said and left for my fight. There was a large crowd gathered by the flag pole. I could see the posse of jocks pumping their buddy up for the fight. I searched the crowd for Fluttershy, locked eyes with her and ran over to her. "Sorry about that. The teacher wanted to see me about the note." I told her. "What was on the note?" she asked. "I'll tell you once we're done with the fight." I said. I walked to the flag pole where the jocks were and tapped their buddy on the shoulder. "You ready to lose?" I asked him. His posse faded back into the crowd when he turned to face me. "Lose? Please. When I win, you're going to be nothing here." he said. "Okay. Then let's prove it." I said, and kicked him in the leg. He fell on the ground as he leg buckled underneath him. "Hey! That's not fair! I wasn't ready!" he shouted at me. "You sounded ready." I said with a smile. He jumped up and swung at my face. I dodged it easily. He was like Felix, stronger, but slower. I ran to his left and hit his back leg. He retaliated with a swing and nicked my shoulder. "You call that a hit? Feels like I'm fighting a fly." I taunted him. He kicked at my chest, but I dodged it too. "I'm going easy because you're a mare." he said, and swung in the direction I had dodged. He made contact with my face and I fell on the ground. It hurt, a lot. My nose was bleeding and by the taste in my mouth, I think I bit my tounge. "Rainbow Dash!" I heard Fluttershy call. I regained my footing, remembering exactly why I was fighting him. I spit the blood in my mouth on the ground and smiled at him. Usually, most ponies would quit there. But I kept fighting. I wasn't about to go down this easy. "Oh-Ho! She's got some more fight in her." he taunted me. I chuckled. "Oh please. This is nothing." I said. It was true too. I've suffered worse injuries from crashing after a flight. It still hurt, though. It was different from my usual leg or wing injuries. I swung at him and when he dodged, I kicked him in his legs. He stumbled a little and I jumped behind him and gave a strong kick to his hindquarters. He collapsed in pain as he grabbed his rear in pain. The crowd that had been cheering got real quiet. He was laying on the ground crying. Here, if you cried during a fight, you lost all respect. It was a tough school, so fights generally didn't happen because of that. I heard hoof steps coming from behind me. At first I thought it was a teacher, but when I saw a yellow pegasus rush by, I knew I was fine. "Did you really have to hit him that hard?" she asked me. Okay, maybe I was still in a little bit of trouble with Fluttershy. He groaned as he stood up. "Leave me alone, Flutters. I don't need your help." he said. He walked over to his posse, but was rejected as they walked off without him. He started his walk of shame back to his house. "Well, he was a jerk. You only wanted to help him, right?" I asked Fluttershy. She nodded her head. "Oi! What's going on over here?" I heard a familiar voice say. The crowd dispersed quickly. They must've thought it was a teacher, but I knew it wasn't. "Hey there Doctor. What are you doing here?" I asked as he walked up to Fluttershy and I. "Well I did come here because I the police called me to come here. Something about a prank." he said. "But what was that fight about?" "Just me being awesome and defending Fluttershy." I gloated. "And yet you look like you took a beating." he said. My nose had stopped bleeding, but I still had blood on my face. I'm sure there were more injuries to my face, but I didn't care about them. "I may have, but I won." I said. "Only because you kicked him so hard that he won't be able to sit for a week." Fluttershy pointed out to me. "It worked though!" I said, defending myself. "Anyways, Doctor, I have something I think you should know about." I told him. "Is it about the note?" Fluttershy asked me. I nodded my head. "I know what note you're talking about, and that's why I need you to come with me. You two aren't safe here." he said. "Why aren't we safe?" Fluttershy asked. I explained what the note said and her face drained of its usual yellow color. "But how do they know where we are?" she asked. "I don't know, but right now, I'm taking you to Canterlot for the weekend. Felix is already there." he said. We went to the train station and headed straight for Canterlot. "Are you sure they won't find us there?" I asked. "They shouldn't. Princess Celestia is going to have guards patrolling the area." he said. "But, won't that look odd and out of place?" Fluttershy asked. "Not with a perception filter." he told her. "A perception filter? What is that?" I asked. "When you are around it, ponies can't see you." he explained. "So it makes us invisible?" Fluttershy asked. "Well not entirely. It just bends the light in a certain way. They see you, but they don't see you." he said. He turned to us with a questioning look on his face. "Don't they teach you that in school?" he asked. We shook our heads. "What has the world come to." he whispered to himself. We arrived in Canterlot and were led to a hotel. It was big and full of 'noble' ponies. They gave us stares of disapproval as they passed us. We walked into an elevator and were taken up to the top floor. "Go down the hall and take a left. Your room is the fourth one on the right." he said, giving us a key. "Where are you going?" I asked. "I have some stuff to do. It's of timey wimey importance." he said as the elevator door closed behind us. Fluttershy and I walked down the hall and followed the Doctor's instructions. When we arrived at the door, I could hear crying from the inside. I opened the door with the key and walked in. "Felix?" I called in. He was sitting on the bed when we entered. He turned to us and wiped his eyes. "Hey there, Dash." he said, trying to hide his tears. "What's going on?" I asked, worried. I had never seen him cry, not even the night our parents left. "Come over here." he told me. I walked over and sat next to him. He put a hoof around my shoulder and drew me in for a hug. "You know I love you, right?" he asked me. "Of course. I love you too. What's going on, Felix?" I asked, concerned. He looked to Fluttershy and motioned her over. She came by and sat to the other side of him. "Fluttershy, you're basically family. You've been great to have around." he said as he pulled her in close too. "Felix? Please. What's happening?" I asked. He looked to the floor and gave a sigh. "Dad isn't coming home." I sat there in shock. "What do you mean? He has to come back." I said. "He won't be, Dash." Felix choked. "Mom is safe though. She said she'll be home in about a year." "Don't tell me that!" I shouted at him, leaving his hold. "Don't you dare say that to me! He will be back!" I couldn't believe it. I wouldn't believe it. "Rainbow?" I heard Fluttershy say. I looked at her with tears starting to form in my eyes. She was crying too. Not out loud, but tears were streaming down her face. "Rainbow, your scaring me." she said quietly. I lost it then. I crumpled up and cried. I've been so tough for so long. I've been keeping every single tear about my parents in for so long that when it hurt when I let them out. I felt Fluttershy's unmistakable soft mane touch my back. She hugged me and whispered comfortingly to me. "I'm sorry, Dash." Felix whispered again. He was crying, but not as hard as me. He must have been crying long before I had gotten here. The door opened and the Doctor walked in. "Felix..." he said. Felix walked over to him and the Doctor whispered something to him. The Doctor walked over to me and knelt down. "Hey you two." he said quietly. I looked at him with watery eyes. "I'm so sorry about your dad. He was a good pony." I sniffed and started to wipe my eyes. "How'd you know him?" I asked. "We were partners years ago. Normally I don't become close friends with those who I work with. Bad things tend to happen to them. But, we became friends rather quickly, and look what happened." he said. "It's my fault..." "No, it isn't. You did what you could." Felix said. I looked at him questioningly. "What happened?" I asked. The Doctor sighed. "Fluttershy, your father isn't actually dead." he said. "What? But how?" she asked. "We don't know." he said. He started to continue again, but I cut him off. "Who's 'we?'" I asked. "It doesn't matter. What matters is that we know who killed your dad and we have him in custody with Celestia." the Doctor said. "I think I deserve to know!" I shouted at him. Fluttershy put a hoof on my shoulder. She looked extremely calm and in control while I was here in a ball on the ground trying my hardest to keep myself from crying. I'm suppose to be the tough one, not Fluttershy. But...I liked that she was here, holding me. "Rainbow, it's okay. Maybe we'll find out later." she said, and looked at the Doctor. "Right?" He nodded his head. "As soon as this is all over." He looked to Felix, gave a nod of his head, and turned to leave out the door. "Wait." I said. He turned and looked at me. "Make sure that he pays." I told him. He nodded and left.