Night after night she would toss and turn until promptly landing on the floor. She didn't know why she was experiencing this now, but it was happening. Finally, the rainbow maned pegasus had enough of hurting her back on the cold, hard floor. Rainbow Dash flew back to the attic and grabbed the album.
She sat down and flipped to the middle of the book and revealed a picture of the whole family before the attack. It had her mother, father, brother, sister and herself. They looked perfect, like the Cakes family. She traced her dad's picture with her hoof. He was a handsome stallion, with a short rainbow mane and a pale indigo coat. His light brown eyes were heavy looking, but with a spark of laughter she knew so well. Rainbow thought back to the day he had taken her to the Equestria Games announcement, she was a little filly who hadn't even earned her cutie mark yet. She had been so disappointed when Cloudsdale hadn't become the host, but soon after her father took her to get ice cream to make up for it. Rainbow Dash smiled at this thought. It was both a good and bad day wrapped into one cloud. She flew back into reality and flipped the page. This image featured Ink Twist after his first dance competition,the colt had just won the second place trophy and his cutie mark, a pair of dance shoes laying upon a cloud. Their mother was in the shot also, helping him hold the trophy and beaming brightly. She then turned the page one more time and found a picture of Spectrum Melody and herself trying to write music. Their father had caught them off guard when the picture was snapped so there was an embarrassed Rainbow Dash and a mortified Spectrum Melody. Rainbow could see the notes on the paper and instantly remembered the tune. She began to hum it, then sing. No one was there to hear her, so she hadn't cared.
"So high in the clouds, we both do soar
Our love is so fluffy and strong as can be here
the sun kisses us
and wraps us in light
we've found our peace in this land, we've found our peace in this land
But the moon will come and replace the sun
The night will set in and diminish our fu-uh-un
The sun is gone, and the sky is dark
at least we have love to remember the day by."
She almost choked near the end. It was the song Spectrum had been humming the day of her death, during the picnic. Again the memories flashed back in her mind and forced her to remember. Rainbow Dash was rushing to find her brother and found him cornered by the timberwolf. It was slowly closing in on Ink. Rainbow threw a rock to get its attention. It slowly turned its head to face her, but the fear took hold of her body when the acid green eyes laid upon her. Ink took this moment to dance away from it and join his sister.
Their mother jumped in front of them, with the kindness in her eyes gone. "Go, children. Now. Fly home to the clouds."
Rainbow was shaking with fear. Her mother would die, she knew. She knew that then and she knows it ow. But she was always told to follow orders from her parents. She dashed, just like her name, out of the forest and into the clouds. She saw her brother and sister following, but were to far away for her to call out. She reached Cloudsdale and zoomed in and out of the ponies trying to find her father...She was trying so hard but felt like it was in vain. She saw a dark mare looking from a corner as if trying to stay discreet and hide. Rainbow Dash ignored this and continued on.
Her tiny blue wings quit flapping and she could barely land properly. Her surroundings began to shift and the clouds fell away. Somehow she was with the timberwolf once again, facing those horrible, acid green eyes. It had crouched down, about ready to pounce. She was going to die the same as her mother. She wanted to sob. She shouldn't have left. She should have stayed....But she hadn't. She fled. She stood straight and readied for the attack. Rainbow Dash stared it in the eye, and was surprised at the sight. The wolf's eyes had changed to those of a familiar princess's. As it lunged forward, so did the pegasus.
She had fallen asleep looking through the album. Rainbow looked at the page she had last turned to...It was another from their family photo day. The rainbow family were all laying down, their parents on the left and right, then Ink next to their mother and Spectrum Melody next to their father. Rainbow wedged herself between the adults and smiled.
Rainbow Dash put her borrowed copy of Daring Do and her photo album in her bag and flew down to Ponyville. She spotted ponies of different colors and different talents conversing in a more up-beat fashion than usual. Rainbow Dash wondered what the occasion was, but she shrugged it off for the time being. She landed in front of a very familiar tree house-library and knocked on the door.
A flustered gasp came from behind it, and Rainbow knew Twilight had something planned. The purple unicorn threw the door open and looked terrified until she recognized the pony at the door. "Oh, Rainbow Dash. Its only you."
"Yeah, its just me Twi. I'm here to return the book you lent me." The pegasus looked over Twilight and the library's interior. Both of them looked to be a wreck. "Uh...what's up? Something about to happen?"
Twilight's eyes locked onto Rainbow's. "What's happening is both princesses are visiting this evening. Everything needs to be perfect, and the six of us haven't been rehearsing what we'd say and....and where have you been?!" Twilight began to be even more flustered. "I've been so busy getting everything prepared for the princesses that I must not have noticed you were gone. Didn't Fluttershy tell you?"
"I've been busy at home. I couldn't come down to Ponyville for a few days, and you know how Fluttershy hates to visit me because of the height," Rainbow Dash told half of the truth. She wasn't being busy, she was being demented. "But anyway, here's the book back." She handed over the book and Twilight put it on the shelf with the rest of the series.
"Rainbow, Princess Celestia wants us to explain why our friendship is so strong and how our past has affected our elements of today," Twilight explained. "Can you manage a short speech before she and her sister arrives?"
Rainbow Dash nodded. She knew exactly how her element had been affected, but she didn't think she could explain it. "I'm on it. When do they get here?"
Music began to play and Rainbow had gotten her answer. In the distance she could make out the golden chariot against the now orange-purple shy. She and Twilight made their way to the town's square to greet the princesses. Celestia was tall and lanky, with an imperial white coat and a waving pastel mane. She seemed to be a living embodiment of the day. Her sister, Luna, reflected the night perfectly. She was a midnight blue alicorn, with a starry mane that flowed similar to her sister's. They both were emitting a regal presence, as any princess would.
"My faithful student, Twilight Sparkle, are you and your friends prepared for this story on your elements?" Celestia asked once all the ponies had stood from their bows.
"Yes, Princess. We are." She shot a shaky glance to Rainbow Dash. "I would like to start off." So Twilight dove into a long winded speech about how her element had been affected by her need for learning. Next Rarity explained always recieving for being such a pretty filly and wanted to give back to her admires. Fluttershy about being bullied. Applejack didn't like the dishonesty that her schoolmates had used. Pinkie Pie about having a booor-ing childhood. Finally it was Rainbow's turn. She took a deep breath and began to speak.
"When I was a filly, I...I ran from something my family didn't run from. I abandoned th...." He voice cracked. She couldn't share this story. It was too scary to retell..."I'm sorry. I can't do this." She put out her wings and soared into the night. Tears welled in her eyes. She found a cloud away from the crowd and landed on it. Rainbow Dash pulled out the album. As she flipped through the pages, the happiness held within each photograph seemed to increase. She closed the book and placed her head down. She just wanted to lay there and rot, but that hadn't happened. She drifted off into something she hadn't had in a long time; a dreamless sleep.