//------------------------------// // Chapter Three: The Cottage // Story: Find Your Heart // by Spirit Chaser //------------------------------// "Morning Twilight!" Rainbow Dash practically screeched into her friend's ear. "Ahhh! Rainbow Dash!" Twilight Sparkle screamed in surprise as she sat straight up in her bed. "You're still here?!" "Yup I'm here to make your morning about 20-" "Please don't start, Rainbow." "Hehe, sorry. Anyway, I'm going to help you fix up the hole in your roof-" "The hole you put in my roof?" "Sure, that one." "That's alright, Rainbow. Spike and I can handle it, you should head over to Fluttershy's before it gets too late," said Twilight as she rose from her bed. "Uh, Twilight? It's morning. Plus you know I could zoom over there at the last second," announced Rainbow as she spread her wings proudly. "Actually you may have forgotten that you still can't fly and galloping over there could reopen your wounds," Twilight reasoned as she fixed her bed sheet. "What? I have to able to fly by now!" Rainbow shouted as she attempted to flap her wings and fly. "Ugh, uggh, ugggh! Why won't this work?!" "Rainbow, it's not because of your injuries, I realized that you're preventing yourself from doing what you love." "In english?" "Seriously? Look, your confused feelings about what you want are preventing your body from using your wings effectively." Rainbow continued to a have confused look on her face. Twilight shoved her hoof into her face. "You love Pinkie? You can fly. You don't love Pinkie? You can fly. No in-between." "Ohhh. Oh," Rainbow repeated sadly. She couldn't fly until she realized her true feelings? Even thinking that sentence made her want to throw up. She's doomed. "Huh, well I guess I should get going then, see ya later Twilight," Rainbow said halfheartedly as she calmly walked out the door. "Bye Rainbow Dash, I hope you find what you're looking for," Twilight said as Rainbow closed the door. Rainbow started walking in the direction she hoped Fluttershy's Cottage was in. but she was too confused by herself to check to see if she was going the right way. She had to at least get the basics of her situation down so she can better explain to Fluttershy. She... Pinkie... lovey... mushy. She didn't even know where to start, it was all too confusing. How was she this confused over something so trivial? Does she or doesn't she love Pinkie Pie? Somehow it was a lot more complicated than that. She tried to think back to that moment when it all started when- "DASHIE!" screamed a familiar voice from behind. Oh no, please not now. Rainbow slowly turned around only to be tackled by a big glob of pink. "Ow! Get off Pinkie Pie!" Rainbow struggled to get out as she was pulled into a crushing bear-hug from Pinkie. "Oh Dashie! I was looking up at the sky when I saw a long and I mean LONG rainbow falling from the sky, but then I thought 'silly Pinkie. Rainbows don't fall from the sky!' But this one did! And it landed inside of Twilight's Library! I galloped over to see if I could help fight off this nasty Rainbow when I saw you asleep on the ground! Twilight told me that you just fell out of nowhere so I helped put you into bed and put bandages on you and before I knew it, everypony else was there and Twilight explained what happened again and then Rarity whispered something into Twilight's ear and asked me to leave but I didn't wanna leave you so Rarity levitated me into Sugarcube Corner allll the way from the Library and I thought that was funny so I just went to bed, the end!" Pinkie said in one breath. "That's cool and all Pinkie, but can you let me go now?" Rainbow begged as she began losing consciousness. "Oh, sorry Dashie," Pinkie said happily as she released Rainbow. As Rainbow straightened herself out she noticed that she was blushing. She turned away quickly to prevent Pinkie from noticing. "Where are you going anyway? At least I think you're going somewhere, are you going somewhere? Ooo, can I come with?" Pinkie inquired. "No!" Rainbow shouted as she turned around. Pinkie's happy expression shifted into that of her sad one. Rainbow felt like she'd just been hit in the stomach. Way to go, Rainbow. "I mean, I'm going on a secret mission, one that no one but me can do, because you know, I'm the most awesome pony in all of Equestria. So you get it?" Rainbow explained. "Hmm, got it!" Pinkie replied happily. "Good, I'll just be on my way, see you later Pinkie," Rainbow had the sudden urge to end that sentence with I love you. She panicked and placed a hoof over her muzzle to prevent those words from escaping. "Bye Dashie!" Pinkie said as he went trotting in the opposite direction. Rainbow turned and returned to trotting to Fluttershy's Cottage with new thoughts beating heavily on the inside of her head. At least now she knew she wouldn't be able to simply decide that she didn't love Pinkie at all anymore, but was that such a good thing? More importantly, why was she just now beginning to act weird around Pinkie? That had never happened before. What did her brain or wherever she was getting this feelings see in Pinkie anyway? Why couldn't it have been any other mare? She decided to shelve these thoughts so she could better discuss them with Fluttershy, whose Cottage was now in sight. She realized she had a weird feeling in her wings so she craned her head to get a better look at them and immediately regretted looking. Oh no. She thought once again. Rainbow groaned and shoved her head into the ground, unable to accept the fact that her wings were standing perfectly upright on her back. Seriously?! A-a-a wingboner?! Rainbow couldn't believe that a siimple hug from Pinkie Pie had done this to her. In fact, now that she knew what this feeling was, she could remember feeling something similar to this when...she...was...falling. Rainbow Dash could just explode from a rush of emotions. Was this the reason she fell? Because thinking about Pinkie too much had-had-had, she couldn't even complete that thought. She collapsed on the ground in front of her from the shock of this new revelation when suddenly she heard a soft and familiar voice. "Oh, that is you Rainbow Dash, but what are you doing laying here on the ground with your wings spread out like that?" Fluttershy asked innocently as she trotted over to where Rainbow was laying. "Hey Fluttershy, I was just coming to see you actually, and don't worry about my wings...seriously though, don't even mention them right now," Rainbow insisted as she trotted into Fluttershy's Cottage. "Oh, well come right in Rainbow, but be careful, I was tending to my new bird friends and they're not quite housebroken yet." "Trust me, that's the least of my worries right now," Rainbow said as she looked around. Rainbow looked around for any sign of the "leaky" birds but saw none so she attempted to take a seat on the couch only to be violently thrown onto the ground. "Ow! What's the big idea?! Huh?" looking back at the red couch she saw Fluttershy's pet Angel Bunny shaking his fist at her. "Oh, um, I'm sorry Rainbow, but Angel likes having the couch to himself most of the time, I hope you understand," Fluttershy announced as she flew inside and hovered over the couch. "Most of the time? More like 24/7!" Rainbow shouted more at Angel that at Fluttershy. Angel said something in bunny language that Rainbow couldn't understand but Fluttershy understood just fine. "Angel! Rainbow didn't mean it so please just be nice okay?" Fluttershy begged. Angel began to say what Rainbow assumed to be more mean things, but simply closed his mouth and turned around. "Thank you Angel, now um, what did you need Rainbow? Oh, if you don't mind me asking," Fluttershy half asked, half apologized. Rainbow Dash took a deep breath, steeled herself and told her equally feathered friend all about her current predicament, including the conversation she just had with Pinkie before she came to the Cottage. At the end of Rainbow's long tale, Fluttershy wore a worried expression on her face. (Well, more worried than usual.) "Oh goodness, this is quite a doozy, hmm," Fluttershy said as she started thinking. "And now I'm more confused than ever with the fact that I actually do have some feelings for Pinkie. Ugh!" Rainbow groaned. "It sounds like you're awfully confused with all of this-" "Clearly!" Rainbow interrupted. "So I suggest you start by actually listening to what your feelings have to say, in other words, listen to your heart." "My heart? Doesn't emotion come from the brain?" "Well, yes, but it's traditional to say that you can sense how you feel about someone by listening to what your heart has to say about them." "Oh, that, I just use my instinct to find out how I feel about someone, it's pretty much always correct." "Excuse for saying so Rainbow, but your instinct hasn't always been the best guide in the past, I wouldn't suggest using it for something like this." "Hey, it makes more sense than using my heart, right?" "Um, I suppose, but-" "Then it's settled! I'll go with my gut and totally wing it with Pinkie, I'm sure everything will be fine." "Well, I can see you're determined, so I won't stop you, but please just remember what I told you, okay?" Fluttershy asked. "Sure, sure, now if you'll excuse me, I got a particular pink pony to find, later Fluttershy!" Rainbow called out as she galloped out the door. "That's not all you have to find, Rainbow Dash," Fluttershy mumbled to herself. As soon as she left The Cottage, Rainbow made a beeline to Sugarcube Corner, hoping to find Pinkie there, practically waiting for her answer. Finally, she would be able to settle all this nonsense going through her head, finally, she would have an answer to her problems, finally, things could go back to the ways they used to be. Rainbow finally reached Sugarcube Corner and began to slowdown to a trot. "Pinkie? Are you here?" Rainbow asked as she trotted inside the baked goods filled store. She didn't need to call out though, because Pinkie Pie was standing in the kitchen eating a pink cupcake with rainbow sprinkles. As soon as she heard/saw Rainbow Dash, she smiled immensely and swallowed the entire cupcake whole. "Hi Dashie! Are you back from your mission? Well, obviously, you because you're standing right here, but what I mean is: did your mission go well? Oh, that answer is also obvious, did you-" "Let me stop you right there Pinkie," Rainbow announced as she plugged Pinkie's muzzle with her hoof. "I kinda have something to say." Pinkie Pie's eyes blinked with anticipation. Alright gut, do your thing. Rainbow mentally explored her gut for something to say, she left no stone unturned, ready to release everything in one statement that explained how she felt. Except... she didn't find anything. How could this be? Her gut always told her something about the pony in question, or dragon, or zebra, or changeling, the list went on but the point was that it seemed like her gut couldn't tell her anything out of the ordinary about Pinkie. Rainbow's entire body relaxed as she released her plug on Pinkie's stream of words, but instead, all that came out of Pinkie's mouth was a sincere question: "Um, wasn't there something you wanted to ask me Dashie?" Hearing her famous nickname in a moment like this seemed to finalize Rainbow's thoughts. "I-I-I don't know!" Rainbow cried out as she galloped full speed out of Sugarcube Corner, going wherever her legs wanted to take her broken soul.