"H-how is she, doctor?"
"Her condition is stable, to say the least," came Doctor Martingale's response, which was met with relieved sighs from the many ponies in front of him: Twlight Sparkle, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Cloudchaser, Flitter, Thunderlane and Sunburst, who had been waiting anxiously ever since the night before, and for a very good reason.
"The doctors and nurses tending her last night told me she just needed a few weeks rest," he continued, "but for her back, wings and ribs, she might need at least five months to recover completely."
"Five months," Applejack grumbled, crossing her hooves with her voice lowering into a mutter.
"Can't imagine what Ah miss in five months..."
Twilight nodded, unable to perceive it herself. Still, it was better than what she assumed her injuries to be when they first saw her through the window.
Rainbow Dash was tucked in the bed, with a tangled, colored mess of wires hanging from nearly every part of her body and an oxygen mask on her snout. Her forehead was completely bandaged, along with her chest and waist, covering the many bruises around her body, with her neck and hooves connected to an IV drip, where every droplet falling down was almost timed with the beeping monitor beside her.
"She might experience difficulty in flying, seeing how a few of the bones are dislocated."
Doctor Martingale let out a hefty sigh, placing the clipboard on the waiting chair.
"She's lucky she wasn't paralyzed. Any more twisted joints and broken tendons, it would be the end of flying for her."
"But she'll be fine by walking, right?" Rarity asked, albeit hesitantly.
"Or would she require physical therapy like her previous... accident?"
"Luckily, no. She might feel a slight sting at first in her hooves, but she'll be fine. However, I do suggest she does a little exercise every now and then. Would help with her recovery."
"And..." Fluttershy piped in, asking the question lingering in all of their heads.
"What about... Tassee...?"
All eyes turned towards the said colt sitting inside the room with their injured friend, looking down despondently at the floor. He was cringing in his seat, his head buried in the sheets of the bed with an endless waterfall of tears already staining it in a darker shade. There were a few times he gritted his teeth, scolding himself harshly yet quietly, as if bringing himself the same torment that he had put Rainbow through.
His grip on the mare's hoof was tight, and there were a few times he would glance up in bloodshot eyes, staring down at her face with only grief and remorse. His wings were as frazzled as his mane, with loose feathers sticking all over the place; the result of the colt pulling them out with his teeth out of hatred at himself, and one that the doctor had recently stopped.
"He did this..." Twilight muttered softly, devoid of emotion.
"But... does he deserve it...?"
The rest of them just stared at the colt, ravaged between the state of the mare before him and the cause of her affliction: none other than he himself. They wanted to believe he was to blame for this, yet somehow it doesn't seem right. After all, it was his double personality that caused it, and he was the one who brought her to the hospital in time.
"Tormented by his past, this young colt," Doctor Martingale said suddenly.
"He carried the weight of guilt of his mother's death for so long, and to bring it back up was what agitated him. You can't blame Rainbow for starting it, nor you could blame Taciturn for ending it."
"But... I don't understand..."
Twilight stared back at the couple, shattered by the events of last night. There's so much of love she doesn't understand; she knew it was exaggerated in all those romance novels, and even Cadance and Shining they have problems with each other sometimes, but this?
"One of them has to be at fault, right?" she asked.
"How could this happen if none of them started it?"
"The answer is, per say, out of ordinary," the doctor began.
"In the case of Miss Dash, she wanted to figure out about what happened to Taciturn in his early days and understand why his father abandoned him. She wanted to know why for the sake of the colt she came to love, and that alone, in the end, freed him from the weight he was carrying all this time."
"Taciturn might seem at fault, but apart from his second personality, he was still in love with Rainbow Dash, even if he started losing trust in her. Of course, when he lost control that night, being the sensitive colt he was, he lost sight of what was important to him in the present, and he realized it at the last moment, which spurred him to rescue her before it's too late. Like her, he blamed himself for what happened, even though they both never realized it would never happen without the other."
"So you're saying... they're both at fault?"
"Perhaps," came the doctor's response, much to the disbelief of everypony else.
"Or perhaps, you could say it was a challenge. To pit two lovers against each other and test their relationship. How their affection remained strong after such a disastrous event was still a mystery to me. You could say Rainbow would wake up hating Taciturn forever, or that Taciturn would be to afraid to love her again after what he had done, but in your heart, you know that's plain false."
"M-Maybe..." Pinkie Pie finally spoke, breaking out of her dismal reverie.
"They still love each other very much, and they just need each other to be happy again?"
The answer, despite being blatantly obvious, was that one small flicker that lit up in their heads. And, as some (maybe none) ponies would say, one minuscule flicker could light up into a flame, be it docile in the hearth of a fireplace, or berserk for the path of destruction. To them, however, it seemed like the former, and it granted them faith.
"Maybe we should organize some sort of party for them?" Twilight suggested.
"A Get-Well party, or some sort of reunion maybe? Something that could bring them back together?"
"I don't wanna burst your bubble, Twilight, but I don't think this needs a party," the pink mare replied and, being the aficionado of parties, surprised everypony else.
"I think all they need is just some alone, lovey-dovey time together! That would make me happy if I have a super special somepony! We don't need parties to be happy all the time now, do we?"
Almost as if in time with her words, a loud gasp suddenly erupted from the room, whirling their attention back to the window. Their jaws dropped once they saw Taciturn bouncing from his seat, hugging tightly a now chuckling Rainbow Dash. Tears fell rapidly from both of their eyes, the colt stuttering out the thousand of apologies to 'Dashie' that he had been storing throughout the night, paving way for the mare's turn once he was done.
"Young love..." Doctor Martingale muttered, sighing dreamily once they hugged again, their affection palpable to all those watching. Soon after, Rainbow sat up from her bed, leaning her head against Taciturn's own as they nuzzled their snouts together, much to everypony's delight.
There was an urge to speak among each of them, though all thoughts of it were stilled at the heartwarming display of tender affection being played before them like a romance movie. It was as silent as it was glorious, much like the sun shining outside, giving warmth to the flower of their hearts and blossoming at the sight of the couple.
"They passed the test," Twilight mumbled.
"Now... we'll just have to see what they'll do next..."
And all of them knew, as did the couple they were fawning over, that they were very excited to see them grow.
"Got your paintbrushes?"
One nod.
"Got your paint and palette?"
Two quick nods in succession, followed by a puff-cheeked grin.
Rainbow Dash chuckled, letting the tendency of ruffling his mane get over her. With a soft sigh, she folded the dress she ordered from Willow Wisp; the same one she wore for the ball, now tarnished and stained with mud. Despite how mangled it was, Rarity had promised she would fix it. Some way or another.
Latching her suitcase shut, she grinned when Taciturn slid it up his back, uniting her luggage with his. He strained out a small smile at the extra weight, albeit a necessary one: the doctors advised Rainbow not to put a lot of pressure on her back, especially when it involves luggage.
With a sigh, Rainbow watched as he slowly carried himself down the stairs, his hoof wobbling slightly. There were a few instances she thought (much to her disappointment at herself) that he would trip over and fall flat on his face. It would be unfortunate as much as it was comedic, and she was relieved she was wrong when he made it safely to the bottom.
"I should be the one to carry it," the mare quietly muttered, limping towards the front door as she held his hoof. Turning to the blanched colt, she let out a small sigh, catching his attention.
"I'm the one who started this, remember?"
Taciturn just shook his head, his smile just growing wider with one hoof on her shoulder. It was his fault too, his expression said, and he wanted to make it up to her. Rainbow chuckled warmly at that, feeling a little lucky to have him as a coltfriend again.
"But you don't have to carry all my stuff every single time, okay?" she added jokingly.
"It really... makes me feel like.. like I need help all the time. You know my style, don'tcha Tassee?"
The colt just rolled his eyes, prompting her to snort with laughter, though it dropped into silence once another pony stepped into their presence. His orderly suit covering his lanky figure was enough of a telltale that it was none other than Fidus Shadowtear, the distinguished butler of the household.
"So it seems you two are ready to go," he said, glancing at the suitcases.
"Have you called for the carriage yet?"
"Just this morning, yeah."
Rainbow wasn't keen on talking to him; she felt a twinge of guilt ever since that night, even more than meeting with Doctor Martingale. Perhaps it was because she knew the doctor more than him, or perhaps he sounded more threatening when he gave his warning. Then again, it could be worse.
"You're gonna be fine here all alone?" she asked out of curiosity.
"Take care of the old place for the rest of your life or something?"
"Taciturn's assigned to you, so you could assume I might be here for quite a while, yes," he said with a halfhearted chuckle.
"Though, I have to admit, it would become of a bore to waste time taking care of the estate. Perhaps I might auction it off or something, but that would seem unruly to the deceased lord's wishes. Master Valente did say I inherited the entirety of his mansion in his will, after all."
Of course, Rainbow smiled to herself. It was yesterday, three days after being discharged from the hospital, that the will was announced. There a few gifts here and there, which were admittedly a little strange: one pony got a small set of ornate tuning forks, and another had half a pair of scissors and a rusted screw. The worst was the pony who got a research book titled Fimo Equino, which she found out that, much to her crude amusement, it was Latin for 'horse dung'. She tried not to guffaw at every heirloom being sent out; it must be really disappointing for those ponies who came all the way here for a bunch of trash.
However, there were some white sheeps among the black herd. Instead of Fidus owning the mansion, there was Willow Wisp, who had the portfolio of Dove's designs. There was that librarian who got the complete book collection, and there was Doctor Martingale as well, who got, much to his delight, a notebook filled with intricate drawings of pony anatomy. She still didn't understand why the excitement over it, however; whether it was some morbid fascination, or just some scientific breakthrough for the doctor, Rainbow knew she would never have the heart to read something concerning body parts.
Then there was Taciturn's gift.
To her, besides a small collection of message in bottles to some unlucky pony, it was the most mystifying, not to mention the most intriguing. Along with his mother's butterfly medallion, Tassee had a letter from his father, to which he had read it in private in the bedroom with her waiting outside. When he finished, he stepped out of the door looking never more merrier, which only heightened her curiosity.
But of course, she knew better than to ask him. Curiosity was the one that gave her these scars, after all.
"What about you, Miss Dash? What of your future endeavors?"
"Well, instead of not being able to fly from one end of Fillydelphia to another in ten seconds flat for the next five months," she began, both her and Fidus chuckling slightly.
"I'll think I'll spend some time with my buddy here," she patted Taciturn's head, "and maybe have a little therapy and such. Do some exercises that don't really matter and all, but for now, Tassee's my main focus. Ain't that right, bud?"
Taciturn nodded eagerly, to which the butler widened his smile.
"Well, it seems I've done my end of the duty here," Fidus began, placing some of their bags on his back and heading towards the door. The trio stepped out into the afternoon, their necks tingling from the winds of spring as they led themselves down the gravel path, slowly approaching the rusted iron gates in the distance.
"It'll not be long before I see you both again, I presume?"
"Maybe..." she replied hesitantly.
"And... about what you were trying to tell me before. You know, about Tassee..."
"No need for an apology, Miss Dash. Such is the past, and I prefer it very much to remain it that way."
Fidus finished with a modest nod; one that tamed the guilt that had been growing like a weed in her heart ever since. Rainbow finally let out a genuine smile, relieved that he wasn't holding any grudges against her, and she to him.
"Taciturn places his utmost trust in you in the present," he continued.
"I suppose it's fair that I shall do the same."
The mare just beamed at that. Taciturn seemed to share her exuberance, as he suddenly let out a squeal, though the other two ponies realized what he actually meant when they heard the familiar crumble of rocks and pebbles being crushed by wood, the silhouette of a whistling pony pulling a carriage behind reminiscent of those in the old Western films and heading up to them.
"Well, that's our ride alright, buddy," Rainbow said, holding the bleached colt's hoof before turning to Fidus.
"Thanks for letting us stay here, Fidus. We really appreciate it!"
"Anytime," came the welcoming reply, just as the carriage stopped to a halt right in front of them.
Rainbow stepped in first, watching with quiet dissatisfaction at herself as the two colts moved the luggage into the back of the carriage. Her desire to help was whisked back into hiding when Taciturn shifted next to her, the mare giving him a weak smile, to which he gave a more cheerful one in return.
"Farewell, Miss Dash! Farewell, Taciturn!" Fidus exclaimed, giving them a wave once the carriage started moving, signaling the start of their return to Ponyville. Taciturn gave a gleeful wave back, looking almost as if he was jumping out the carriage, the sight of which made Rainbow giggle.
"Tassee, you silly little colt..."
Rainbow's thoughts soon wandered, eventually settling down on the events of the past few days when she was still in the hospital. Despite a few dozen lengthy protests, she managed to convince her friends, including Cloudchaser, to go back to Ponyville before her dismissal from the hospital. Doctor Martingale also left for Canterlot the day before, though not before he bid them farewell and good luck, of course.
Sighing as she glanced out of the carriage, her eyes soon caught sight of two ponies in the meadow, just a few feet away from the mansion. They were... dancing? A waltz in the middle of the sun? Nevertheless, despite their strange, ethereal forms in their arabesques, she could make out a mare, with mane striped red and pink and coat as white as her partner, who glanced down at her with dreamy eyes. His mustached visage, however, left her speechless once he turned to give her a smile, the rainbow-maned pegasus recognizing him immediately.
"V-Valente Bleach...?"
Soon, the mare beside him caught sight of their single audience as well, before both husband and wife (she guessed) gave a simultaneous nod, mouthing out two words:
Thank you
"T-Tassee! Did you see--!"
The sight of Taciturn already asleep, head leaning against her shoulder with lips curled into a smile, stopped her in her sentence. The urge to wake him up was replaced with a sense of serenity, before she glanced back at the now empty meadow, sighing as she too leaned her head on the colt's own.
"They're watching over you, buddy," she could only whisper in his ear.
"Watching over... us..."
"Dashie," he muttered in his sleep as if it was a fully-conscious response.
Rainbow just giggled, holding his hoof as she closed her eyes, leaving behind a painful ordeal. Sure, it was her curiosity that beckoned her into this, but as much as it was tragic, it felt fulfilling, knowing how she could help him even more than before.
Hugging him like her favorite Wonderbolt plush toy, she soon fell into a deep sleep, letting fatigue take over. To know they have two guardian angels watching over them soon made her smile. It somehow felt fitting, that their son had equally seraphic wings that saved her, which reminded her she forgot to congratulate him on conquering his fear of flying for the first time.
Despite her friends seeing him fly that night, neither knew of his hesitance to soar through the skies, much less the mere five feet descent from their home. Nevertheless, the mare wanted it no other way; it doesn't seem fun once everypony knows about it.
"It'll be our little secret," Rainbow once promised, and she'll keep it, even when he had already defied it.
"Between you and me, buddy."
"Finally!"
With a loud, delighted cry, Rainbow Dash dived into the confines of her cloud sofa despite the aching of her back, her wings buzzing weakly. She gave her hooves a long-needed stretching after that seventy-bit carriage ride, flicking her mane to the side as she watched Taciturn stepping in with a gingerly beat of his colossal wings.
One last step, and the colt's hooves finally gave away, sending him tumbling down with every suitcase bouncing off his back, his pupils spinning like pinwheels. The flimsy sight only made his marefriend laugh quietly, before she stepped forward, lifting his dazed self up from the floor.
"Kinda heavy, isn't it?" she said teasingly, wiping away a few beads of sweat from his head.
Taciturn soon emerged triumphant, however, when it was time to feed her. It was one of his duties as her guardian (again), seeing how she has a slight complication from the many lacerations and abrasions around, all bandaged up from view. Of course, being Rainbow Dash, he knew she wasn't a keen mare on being baby-fed by somepony else.
"Hooves off the spoon," came her growl once he strutted back in, holding in his hooves a hot bowl of congee, mixed with diced apples, cinnamon, almonds and raisins (which were Tank's favorite and reminded her of obtaining the tortoise back from Fluttershy's care). Despite her warning, both knew he wasn't going to let this chance slip away.
With a demurring sigh, Rainbow hesitantly opened her mouth, rolling her eyes again once the Porridge Express playfully snaked around its train tracks, before softly landing onto her tongue. Despite it's mischievous entrance, the food was undeniably delicious, yet her pouting face hid any trace of it.
"Y-You don't have to do that every time, you know," she quipped with a slight blush, to which Taciturn just retained his coy grin. She sighed in defeat, scrunching up her face when every spoonful of congee fills her mouth, entertaining the colt and, much to her embarrassment, herself.
Once she was done with dinner - she gulped - it was onwards to her wound cleansing.
She wasn't sure if Taciturn was able to do it, almost as much as she could bear through it either. The turmoil of that night was still freshly carved in their heads, and the thought of reigniting a spark from that fateful day only threw her in a pit of uncertainty.
Slowly, she trotted into the bedroom and settled herself down onto the wide expanse of her bed, with the pale colt following closely behind. She started to removed her bandages, with each wrapping steadily landing onto the sheets, forming a strewn coil and revealing the jarring scars on the side of her head. Her teeth soon sank in her lips once she saw Taciturn recoil from the sight, which only made her glance away.
"I-It's okay, T-Tassee..." she stammered after a moment of silence.
"I don't blame you for what you did."
Taciturn crawled closer at that, though his gaze still remained averted from the deep wounds. Holding her breath, Rainbow felt his breath tickling the sides of his neck, trying not to whimper at the sight of him dipping a cotton pad into a bowl of antiseptic, before watching its gradual approach to her open wounds.
She let out a loud hiss, clamping her mouth shut to suppress a yell at the last minute once the fiery pain stung from her forehead. Her hooves clenched tighter onto the bedsheets, beginning to tremble after a few more dabs. Taciturn's free hoof soon found hers, and he gripped it tighter when a few tears fell from her eyes, staining the sheets below her.
The next few dabs on her severed skin became more pervading, her attempts of calming down with lengthy breaths within every interval to no avail. Ravaged by pain and guilt, Rainbow gasped out a sob, feeling her heart clenching up simultaneously with Taciturn's sniffles as well. She could hear them, those sounds deprived of happiness, with only one last dainty step to silence; an effort to wear a mask of bravery, albeit not a fitting one.
With one last sting that parted her like dandelions from a stalk, the mare tenderly shifted towards him, quietly lying down on his chest; in return, Taciturn spread out his wings, embracing her figure with utmost sincerity, his snout buried the chromatic ocean of her mane, halting her sniffles immediately.
"Tassee?"
A small purr.
"Would... w-would you still... hate me?"
His response was hasty as it was relieving; a nimble shake of his head.
Rainbow's hoof reached around his neck, pulling his head closer to his. She stared into his black pupils, the whirlpool of onyx shimmering with a single tear, luring her towards him before she drew her eyes shut.
"C'me here..."
Without hesitation, both lips met despite the abnormality of their position, flickering their hearts with fondness of one another. Fresh tears leaked out from both their eyes as their hearts unite as one, combining both tragedies and comedies that they had faced in the Fillydelphian premises.
They could remember it all: rain, stone, blood and tears, all strung by a streak of untamed rage. The sensuality grew, fueled from the ravaging despair of that night as their tongues soon came into the scene, swirling in the cauldrons of each other's mouths. Sweat dripped from both of their bodies, before both collapsed backward, breaking the French ardor enveloping their affection and leaving with them only breathless, light pants.
Silent as the colt beside her, Rainbow curled up into his embrace, to which he replied promptly by fanning out his wings. She didn't bother to bandage her forehead back, for she felt safe and secure already in the solace of Taciturn Bleach; the innocent reason of her injury. He was already quietly sleeping beside her, which prompted her to reach for the table at the side, fumbling through the near-empty drawers as she searched for the one last secret she will keep from him, and will forever do so until the time is right.
A small smile crept up to her face once she held, in her hooves, a small black box. Flipping it open with a click, her smile grew wider at the sight of the hoop nestled in its red, cushioned interior. It was golden, adorned with a patterned row of rubies and sapphires and a large diamond embedded in the center. She bought it from a shop in Fillydelphia on Hearts and Hooves Day unbeknownst to the colt beside her and, despite how pricey it was, she felt it was worth it.
Now, when would she pull it off? In the middle of some elegant dinner, or when he was adding another painting to his gallery? And how? Would it be just some simple kneel-down, open-box traditional whatnot, or some crazy procession that Twilight might organize like some ponies these days?
Rainbow bit her lip: usually it was the colts who do this. She only ever read about stallions proposing to mares, not the other way around, but if it was somepony as reticent as Taciturn, she doubt he would ever wanted to give it a go. Then again - her hoof reached up to her scarred forehead - there were some things she might have to consider.
With a smile, she brushed the sleeping colt's mane aside absentmindedly, sliding the box back into the drawer. There's still a lot more she might need to know about him and, no doubt, he from her as well. Maybe then, she told herself, there would be a perfect time.
"Maybe next time, Rainbow..." she said to herself with utmost determination, breaking out a yawn.
"Maybe next time..."