“Are you sure she went in here?” Rainbow Dash’s father questioned, following behind Fluttershy and Scootaloo. “I mean, a garden? Why not like the train station?”
The yellow pegasus turned around and faced the stallion. “That last pony we talked to said that she saw her run in here. So we gotta check.” As Fluttershy finished her sentence two ponies walked out from the entrance of the gardens, past the ever present watch of the statues. The same two ponies that Rainbow Dash had tried so desperately to avoid.
“Did you see that rainbow mare as well?”
“Yeah, but barely. She ran right through some thorn bushes just to hide from us. How rude?” Both ponies were well dressed in Canterlot’s finest apparel.
“I know, I do say.”
This caught the attention of the trio. All three looked at each other simultaneously as if to say, Rainbow Dash. They all stood in silence until one pony spoke.
“Hey,” the stallion called out. “Where did you see that mare?” Her father walked over to the two ponies, blocking their way.
“Down that way.” One of the two pointed to a path inside the gardens. “That silly mare ran straight through the thorns without a care. Who ever raised her obviously didn’t do a good job teaching her any common sense.” The snide remark hurt Dash’s father, and made him angry. No pony talks about Dashie, I mean Rainbow Dash, that way.
With one swift motion he grabbed the pony that made the remark by his collar and held him close. His eyes looking angrily into the wealthy unicorn’s pupils. The pony struggled to get loose, but he was no match for the sheer strength Dash’s father still had in him.
“Put him down, you brute!” the other pony said, in shock of what just happened. Dash’s father held the unicorn up for a couple of more seconds to make his point. He brought his face right up next to the terrified unicorn’s. “Nopony talks about my daughter like that. Do you understand me?”
The pony could not form a word in his mouth to save his life. He was petrified of the pegasus stallion detaining him. All he could do was nod his head in reply. Upon receiving the correct answer he threw the well dressed pony back onto the ground. The unicorn stumbled backward, barely catching his fall.
“Let’s get out of here!” the friend of the unicorn yelled out. Still scared for his life the other pony could only in response, shortly after both took off in a sprint away from the gardens.
Fluttershy and Scootaloo looked on in awe at the scene that had just unfolded in front of them. Both stood mouths aghast, and eyes glued to action. Rainbow Dash’s father brushed off his hooves and turned around to find the two frozen in shock.
“What?”
It was a couple of moments before one of the two spoke up. “Was that really necessary?” Fluttershy managed to speak.
“Yes, nopony talks like that about my daughter.” Dash’s father stood proudly, a feeling of accomplishment swept through him as he started walking down the path of which the two ponies pointed out. “Come on, you mares coming?”
Both pegasi quickly jumped out of their confusion and sprinted to catch up. Their heads scanned the gardens, looking for a unique cyan signature. The sun was high above, about mid day, its brightness illuminating the garden in full. The ornate and stunning plants of the gardens were on full display. Fluttershy could not help but to get lost in the beautiful lush colors. Scootaloo surveyed the plants thoroughly, not getting distracted like Fluttershy, she had a job to do and it had to be done right.
The trio kept walking until something caught Scootaloo’s attention as she passed by. A glimmer of cyan briefly struck her eyes. For a second it was pushed out of her mind as if it was a mistake, but she turned around and retraced her steps. Fluttershy and Rainbow’s father immediately stopped and shot the filly a puzzled look when she stopped and walked backwards. The stallion stared upon Fluttershy, who only responded with a shrug.
Step by step the orange pegasus retraced her steps, trying to find that cyan light. Her eyes scanning all over, taking in all the light possible. The filly’s light purple eyes glowed surveying everything in sight, until she found it.
Quickly she stopped and planted her hooves into the ground, concentrating on the light. Slowly, the filly walked to the edge of the path toward the thorns blocking most of her sight. Her purple eyes fixated on the color.
“There!” Scootaloo pointed into the bushes. “I think she’s lying down.”
Upon hearing the filly’s words, both adult pegasi took action. Rainbow’s father quickly ran over to the filly and flew over the thorns, heading in the direction she had pointed. His strong wings easily letting him glide over the treacherous plant. Fluttershy was next to arrive, but before jumping over the shrubs she looked down at the filly. Scootaloo sat down on the ground, not being able to make the short flight over the bushes. The mare reached down and picked up the filly, cradling her in her arms during the flight. Even though she couldn’t fly, Scootaloo’s face lit up with joy at not being left out.
Once, leaping the foliage the line of sight to Rainbow Dash was clear. From a distance her father could see her thorn and blood laiden coat. A sense of panic overtook the full grown stallion as he sprinted to check on his daughter. His hooves slid through the soft grass as he tried to stop himself before the cyan heap that laid below his feet. Upon reaching the scene he was able to establish the severity of the situation. His hooves were quickly placed on the mare’s neck, trying to get a heartbeat. The stallion lowered his head to Rainbow’s chest, also checking for breathing. The smooth rhythm of his daughter’s breathing was enough to calm him down.
The scene before him struck home. His one and only daughter, the thing he had lost, lay on the ground unconscious and helpless. Images of Rainbow Dash as a filly swept through his mind. Her soft, smooth tiny mane, replaced by a large flowing thorn ridden one. That small filly frame, replaced with the stature of a full grown mare. His daughter at one point could have been held in one hoof, now longer was this possible, she was all grown up. And he had missed everything.
“Oh my gosh! Rainbow Dash are you alright?” Fluttershy managed to say while sprinting with the filly toward the scene. Scootaloo was released from the mare’s grip, and she as well sprinted over to the scene. The orange pegasus arrived to a horror that she had never before seen the likes of. Her mentor, sister, mother lay bloody and dirty on the grass. Her orange hooves poked Dash’s cyan coat, evoking no response from the mare.
“Is she dead?” A tear dawned her face, at just the thought of her mentor being dead right before her.
“No, this used to happen when she was very young.” The stallion bent down and combed some of the thorns out of his daughter’s tarnished mane, resembling his mane in color. “She would get so worked up and excited, that she would sometimes pass out. I remember when her mother bought tickets for a Wonderbolt show. She got so worked up and excited she ran laps and laps around the house, trying to calm herself down. Eventually the excitement and emotions were just too much, and she just kinda passed out.” Carefully he lifted his daughter upright, her limp body giving no response to the stimuli. With ease the strong stallion gently placed Dash on his back, her mid section on the middle of his back.
“I would have thought she would have grown out of this by now. And don’t worry, I think I still remember how to get her up. Come on, let’s get her back to my hotel.”
Fluttershy and Scootaloo, not questioning the stallion immediately, got up and started to followed him closely behind. There friend lying limp on the back of her father. Citizens looked on with concern as they walked back through Canterlot, heading for the hotel. The trio got stares from almost everypony they came into contact with, they were not sure whether or not the cyan pegasus was dead.
Eventually they reached the hotel and took a long silent ride through its elevator. Nopony really had anything to say. The hotel was clean and proper, not a dump by any standards. The halls were covered with ornate artwork and styling, carpets looked like they were cleaned every night, and the whole building smelled of cleanliness and flowers. Somepony had payed a pretty bit for the hotel room, which was conveniently placed on the top floor.
Dash’s father quickly pushed in the door key, revealing a large, well furnished penthouse suite. The designs inside were even more intricate than the styling outside. The colors popped, and the carpet sparkled. Scootaloo looked on in amazement, never having seen luxury like this.
“What did you do to afford a place like?” Scoots’ mouth dropped wide as she stared at the large, raised ceiling that hung high above her head. The stallion did not immediately answer the question, he quickly trotted toward a large window with a view of Canterlot. Under the window stood a large couch that he slid back, giving it more of an open configuration.
“I will tell you later.” His hooves slowly reached back and grabbed his daughter. Carefully she was raised off her father’s back and onto the couch. Although passed out, Rainbow Dash looked peaceful, almost as to say ‘Don’t wake me, I’m having a great sleep’.
“Okay, if I still remember correctly there is way to wake her right up. Go find Donut Joe, tell him first off, I sent you. He won’t make you pay. Tell him I need the old Dash Special, he should remember what that is, at least I hope so. That woke her up every time she had one of these fits, I hope it still works.”
“Yeah, okay, we can do that. Come on, Scootaloo.” Fluttershy looked over at the filly to see her head still staring up at the ceiling, in awe of its design. “Come on, Scootaloo.” The yellow pegasus wrapped her hooves around the filly and started to pull her out of the hotel room.
Moments later the door shut behind the pair, leaving Rainbow Dash and her father. The sunlight beamed in and illuminated the mare’s bright mane and coat. Her father immediately set to work and started pulling thorns out of his daughter’s body. Each pull was deliberate and careful, as to not hurt Rainbow Dash. After each prick was pulled, a bandage was carefully placed over it.
Through the whole process he couldn’t get the idea out of his head that this thing in front of him, was his daughter. Flesh and blood, her mane similar to his, their muscular bodies and wings, stunningly similar. He had created this life that sat before him, unconscious. Her life was created using his DNA, and each every cell inside the mare was almost identical to his.
Her foalhood had gone by. The only things he ever really witnessed first hoof was her birth and conception. The rest of his time was spent trying to avoid and dodge his responsibilities. The early years of her life where he would come home late just to avoid any confrontation. All of his priorities were different, him first, wife second, and daughter third. Only now did he realize the mistake in his ranking.
Once finished with her mane, the stallion moved closer. It was covered in dirt and debris from the thorn bushes. Each and every strand had been imbedded deeply from the sprint through the wretched plant. With each hoof stroke another thorn was removed, revealing a bright rainbow in its wake. Her father carefully ran his daughter’s soft mane through his hoof tips, each silky smooth, the only thing left over from her foalhood. He set the debris off to the side and shortly after, he finished the job.
He admired his job. Bandages lay scattered about on the cyan surface, all the blood and thorns had been removed. Rainbow Dash’s mane was left without impurities, one could say it almost sparkled without the debris. For a couple of moments Dash’s father stood back and admired his daughter. My daughter, my Dashie. His heart ached for his daughter, and at this moment he could not deny it.
Anger started to swell inside the stallion. Why am I such an idiot? I missed out on all this! Her foalhood, her teenage years, and most of her young adulthood. What more can I miss? His right hoof swung furiously, knocking over a vase in a sheer anger. The vase shattered into a million pieces upon impact. This only intensified his anger. Great, just great! What have I become, so angry at such a stupid thing. After a quick walk around the penthouse he returned back to the site of the shattered vase.
He looked up at his daughter and down back to the vase. I can fix this, and I will. She instantly set out in the room, looking for something. Moments later he returned with an empty shoe box. Piece by piece the shattered vase was lifted into the box, every piece was found and placed carefully into the box. Once complete, he sat on the floor and looked at the broken pieces that sat before him. I can fix this. He got up and walked over to the kitchen and placed the box directly on the kitchen table, setting it down gently.
I don’t care what the consequences, or what I have to do. I will fix this. I don’t care if I have to fly ten million miles then run five million more, I will fix this. No matter the trials or tasks set before me, I will be a part of my daughter’s life. I have to fix this, and will. Rainbow’s father turned around back to his daughter. His eyes looked longingly upon Dash. The once small helpless filly left at flight school was no longer innocent, a full grown mare had taken her place. The stallion took a seat next to Rainbow on the couch and looked out of the glass window overlooking the city. His hoof stroked his daughter’s mane, as he looked out the window, thinking.
Around 40 minutes later the pair returned exhausted and out of breath, with a bag. Both Fluttershy and Scootaloo’s manes were in disarray, like they had just run 10 miles. Once they entered, the stallion immediately jumped up to meet them.
“We... got the... stuff... you asked for,” Scootaloo wheezed, pausing in between breaths.
“We got it... as fast as we... possibly could,” Fluttershy added, in the same shape as her friend.
Rainbow Dash’s father quickly walked over and snatched the bag out of Fluttershy’s hooves. “Glasses and water are over there by the sink.” He pointed to the sink, opening the bag as he walked back over to Dash. Scootaloo and Fluttershy, with what energy they had left, made their way over to the sink where Rainbow’s father pointed.
The bag was opened with haste, revealing an ugly looking donut with rainbow sprinkles on top. The donut had enlarged from the contents that were housed within it. An odd smell originated from inside of the warm confection. Steam rose off the freshly baked pastry while being brought to Dash. Carefully the donut lowered right under Rainbow Dash’s nose, the steam and smell filling her nostrils. Fluttershy and Scootaloo were over by the sink gulping down water as fast as possible when it happened.
The darkness had left Rainbow Dash’s head. Her mind began to start thinking and processing. Memories, names, dates, and friends all came rushing back to mind, like her life was flashing before her eyes. Images of her father began to arise, as a familiar, yet unknown, smell overwhelmed her. It was something that she remembered from early foalhood, but could not put a name to it. The days where her father had taken her out while she was young, came flooding back to her for some unknown reason .
The day her father had taken her to a Wonderbolts show, the day the Equestrian Games were being announced, and a few others she remembered. Certain images of her father smiling and laughing along with her held close. All the good times they had together. Meanwhile, her brain started to pick up with speed, eventually letting her open her eyes, revealing a donut right in front of her face.
It was the Rainbow Special, that’s where she remembered it. The donut treat Donut Joe tried to sell once, that caused all of his customers to vomit but Rainbow Dash. That day was special to Rainbow Dash. Donut Joe had tried a new recipe, something to experiment with. The first day he sold them, at least 5 customers puked from the revolting taste. Right before his shop closed and the last donut was thrown away, Dash and her father walked in. Joe had given them the rest of the dozen for free. He said he was throwing the rest away. Her father immediately spit out the pastry upon tasting it. Rainbow almost reluctantly tried the confection, and to her surprise she loved it.
The taste was out of the world to her, everything was in the right quantities and places. To Dash, it was the perfect treat. The first one was gulped down almost immediately after tasting it, and second was quickly lifted from the donut box. Like the first, she swallowed it down almost whole, in total love with the flavor. Both Joe, and her father looked in horror at the filly swallowing donut after donut. Eventually Rainbow reached her limit, but not wanting to stop she kept going, not listening to either adults’ warnings. The old saying of what goes in what must come out held true, on the 7th donut it all came flooding out, staining the clean floor. That was where she remembered the donut from.
Her head carefully lifted off the soft couch, as she tried to move to an upright position. Slowly Rainbow Dash’s eyes started to open, revealing her change in location. The first thing that filled her vision was the sight of her father, holding a donut in her face. The last memory in her mind was in the park, now for some unknown reason she was in a fancy hotel room. The stallion watched his daughter slowly coming to terms with reality again.
“What, what happened?” Rainbow Dash groaned, wiping her eyes.
“You passed out, like you did when you were younger.” He sat the donut down right next to the cyan pegasus, and took a seat right next to her. Rainbow looked up to see her father looking directly out the window overlooking the city. The smell of the donut next to her pulled her attention away from her father, and back on it. I haven’t had one of these episodes in a while, I thought I outgrew those. More importantly how did he remember that?
“You remembered the donut?” The donut was lifted off the couch and brought close to her face again, absorbing its smell all over again. It brought Dash back to her foalhood, the good times. Rainbow’s mouth began to water at just the thought of eating the delicious pastry. It had been well over 10 years since she had one of these bad boys.
“How could I forget? On your seventh donut I thought you puked your guts out. Heck, I think that stain might still be there.” Both father and daughter laughed at the recollection of the distant memory. It was far in the past, but the way they laughed, it was like it happened yesterday. A silence fell over the two, nopony speaking.
“Rainbow, you know all I can say is sorry. And I know that’s not good enough, it’s not, but its all I can do.”
“Yeah, you think I don’t know, I hated your guts. Everyday I cursed you under my breath, all I ever wanted was somepony to be there for me.”
Dash’s words stung the older stallion a little, but he knew they were true all the while.
“I let you and your mother down.” He looked off, toward the sun outside, illuminating his face. “I am failure, I understand that now, I am nothing without your mother. I don’t know why she even stayed me with over the years, all I did was screw her over in the long run. I want you to know that, you and your mother, are the same pony, and I ruined that.”
Her father refused to look away from the window, like he was almost looking beyond the glass, beyond the view outside the window, beyond. Rainbow Dash remained silent, listening and watching.
“Your mother and you, are two peas in a pod. Strong, compassionate, loyal, loving, and awesome, truly two of kind. I’m glad you’re more like your mother than me, because what am I? A coward.” The stallion tilted his head, facing right toward his daughter, looking directly into her magenta eyes, matching his own.
“Heck, yeah I am. I forced your mother away, and she followed because she couldn’t make herself leave me. It’s all my fault!” Rainbow’s father punched the couch firmly, somewhat alarming Dash. It wasn’t a normal outlash, more of an inner rage, pent up for years, starting to be let out.
“She cried for weeks, after we left, weeks! And you want to know what I was doing about it? Nothing! Jack squat! All the pain I put her through, it was unjust, I wish she would have just left.”
Her father buried his hooves in his face, years of guilt were catching up.
“Sometimes I think I’m not your father at all. There is no way, you’re your mother’s daughter, not my daughter, you turned out too good to have come from me. You have great friends, ones that even accompanied you here. Friends that love you for who you are, and will always do so. I was never able to accomplish that in my whole life, and you did it within the first quarter of yours.”
Rainbow Dash looked at a broken stallion, that was torn down over the years. But that torn down pony, was her father. He breathed life into her, without him, she would never exist, none of this would have ever happened. All her friendships, relationships, and life would not have been created.
“I bucked up, I realize that now, and Dash-” Her father paused. “Rainbow Dash, I don’t ever expect you to forgive me. If I were you I would never forgive the pony that abandoned me for the entirety of my young life. But, I didn’t come here to beg for forgiveness for myself, I just want you to forgive your mother. That’s my new goal, and if I can at least make that happen, well then I can die happy.”
The older stallion looked up, back into his daughter’s eyes once again. This time, his were eyes teary red, drops of water flowing down his cheeks, off his head and onto the couch below.
“Your mother was the best thing that ever happened to me, and I overlooked that gift everyday of my life. She loves you, Dash, she really does, take it from me if you can. I just want to do something right for the first time in my life, show her I can do something, for the right reasons. To thank her for everything, for putting up with me, loving me, and teaching me. If I could switch places with her, I would do it a heartbeat, without a doubt. Why she is in the hospital ill, and I am healthy, I don’t know.”
The stallion stood up, wiping the tears from his eyes simultaneously.
“Please, Rainbow Dash. All I ask is one thing, please forgive your mother. I know, I know, I am in no place to ask you of anything. If anything it should be the whole way around, you making me do things. But if you do, I can leave once again, and know that I will never come back, bother you ever again. I will always be there though, waiting, if on the off chance you did want to talk, but only with your consent. And when you want me to leave, I’m gone.”
He moved off, leaving Rainbow Dash and the donut on the couch, quickly trotting toward the sink to clean himself up. The cyan mare looked at the donut, then out the window, trying to see what her father saw. The soft sound of running water broke her concentration.
She quickly scanned her surroundings, honing in on a white patch on her side. A bandage, stained crimson red in the middle. Shortly after making that discovery, she found a couple more scattered all over her body, each placed with care, deliberately. Dash had no recollection of putting them on herself, and she had yet to see Fluttershy or Scootaloo, so it must have been... her father.
“How far away are the Canterlot gardens from here?”
The question took the stallion of guard, while continuing to wash his face.
“Um, I don’t know, maybe a mile or two.”
There was no way Fluttershy could have gotten her here, with wings and all. Scootaloo couldn’t have either, she didn’t have a scooter and was too young. That left one pony once again... her father.
Gears turned in Rainbow’s head, he had taken the time to bandage her up, walk her over a mile on his back, and get her this donut, which had eluded her for some many years. For the first time, her attitude toward her father wasn’t strictly hate, although still there in a much smaller amount. The thought that crossed her mind, was a shock to her, something she had never thought possible since foalhood.
“I’ll go.”
Although Rainbow Dash couldn’t see it, her father’s face lit up, letting out a sigh of relief at the same time. Nopony said a word as he finished wiping off his face and returned to the couch. Taking a seat next to his daughter, he resumed his watch out the window. A weight had just been lifted from his soul, like some small goal had just been achieved.
At that moment something happened in Rainbow Dash’s head, something that nopony could have seen coming. Forgiveness. Her father had left her early on in life and tried to stay away. But, deep down inside him, he always had a love for his daughter. It was only now in his life that he could recognize it. I will always hate him for what he did, but he can at least try to make up for it, can’t he? Instantly her whole demeanor toward her father changed, he had remembered the donut and everything.
Time for thinking was done, it was now time for eating. With her body still lying down, she managed to prop herself just upright enough to swallow comfortably. All the while the mare’s taste buds welled with anticipation of the gooey goodness about to grace her mouth. The first bite sent Dash into heaven, it was just like she remembered it. All the flavors blending together perfectly, and the whole treat encased in warm dough. Each bite there after was slow and deliberate, savoring every single moment. Rainbow’s father looked down upon the cyan pegasus eating away, in ecstasy.
“I still don’t understand how you like those. I guess that’s what makes you unique. The only pony in Equestria able to stomach those.”
“Oh, shut up,” Rainbow Dash managed to say, with her mouth full. “It’s good and you know it. You’re just not stallion enough to say it.” After finishing the sentence, her full attention was again set back to the donut.
The stallion watched his daughter munch away in happiness, just like how he remembered from all those years back. The whole time he couldn’t get over how cute Rainbow Dash looked, lying on the couch with her mane and tail sprawled all over, eating away. Love and a feeling of closeness overcame him, while without thinking he placed his hoof on the mare’s cyan shoulder. Quickly remembering back to their conversation earlier, his hoof violently retracted, thinking of his daughter’s words.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean it. I just forgot, don’t get mad. I will leave you alone.”
Rainbow Dash pulled her head back from her sliver of donut that still existed, and looked up at her father. Truth be told, she didn’t care anymore. He had remembered that one crucial memory, that Dash herself had forgotten in time. Really, she actually kinda liked it.
“I never told you to stop.”
Dash’s father did a double take, as if to question whether or not she had just said what he thought she did. Love overcame the stallion as he laid his hoof back down on his daughter’s shoulder. The warmth from her body radiated up his hoof and into his body. Seemingly warming his heart. In that moment everything had changed, his window of opportunity stood right before him, and there was no way he was going to miss out this time.
Both father and daughter sat there together on the couch staring out into Canterlot. Rainbow Dash carefully munched on her prized donut as it slowly became nothing. Celestia’s sun came gleaming through the window, illuminating the scene. The stallion took a moment and savored the scene for what it was. A new memory, a new opportunity and a new beginning. He had lost his daughter, and it was time to get her back.
Rainbow Dash too, took in the moment for what it was. A new day with her father, she never really had a dad, but that was about to change. A pony to be there for her, in the worst times and the best. A pony to help ease the nightmares, and sooth the soul. The kinda pony she needed as a foal, was now part of her life once again.
Throughout the entire scene, Fluttershy and Scootaloo watched from a distance, not wanting to interrupt the father daughter bonding. Scoots had tried to walk over, but the yellow mare quickly placed a hoof on her shoulder, stopping her movement. When the filly turned and started to ask why she was being stopped, Fluttershy quickly hushed her, not wanting to miss a second of the scene unfolding before her.
So both of them sat idly by, and watched. The yellow pegasus couldn’t help but spawn a smile on her face. She had done it, after 10 years of trying and trying it finally happened. Their relationship had been rekindled. A bright future was now in front of them. For an hour everypony in the room just stayed put, neither talking nor moving. Watching the sun slowly dropping was the only source of entertainment.
After the hour had passed, Rainbow Dash’s father left for the hospital, and the others followed suit. This trip was completely different from the one earlier the day. A sense of calm precedence fell over all four ponies as they walked in silence toward the hospital. The streets of the royal city had peaked at around midday, and now they slow started to die down. Rainbow Dash didn’t notice but her father was smiling the whole time, grinning ear to ear, he had been given a chance.
The hospital was virtually the same as the time they left. Ponies of all ages sat in dull silence as they waited about the room. The papers Dash had knocked over had been cleaned up, and the staff had changed, meaning nopony would remember the incident, much to her relief. The group of four walked past all the ponies right under the nose of the clerk who just shot them a nod and kept looking at his computer screen. Rainbow Dash hit the button with the arrow pointing up, which lit up upon her touch. Again, nopony spoke as they shuffled inside the small elevator.
Swiftly the doors of the elevator closed leaving Fluttershy, Scootaloo, Rainbow Dash, and Dash’s father alone. Shortly after closing, the yellow mare pressed the floor 3 button. And shortly there after the elevator groaned to life, squeaking as it gained momentum. This trip was nothing like the first time around for Rainbow Dash, there was no fear, no pain, and no anxiety. One could say a feeling of calmness presided over her.
Each pony cast their gazes around the small elevator, making eye contact with everypony. Scootaloo’s eyes met Rainbow’s and both instantly smiled, the recent couple of days events had brought them closer than ever before. The filly’s heart skipped a beat as her idol looked upon her with love in her eyes. Moving around the room, Fluttershy stood next to Scootaloo.
Rainbow Dash didn’t know what to think. Fluttershy had been the driving force for getting her to Canterlot in the first place. And without her none of this would have ever happened. The yellow pegasus let out a soft smile when their eyes met. Fluttershy was proud of her friend, she had worked years for this moment, and it finally was going to happen. For a moment Rainbow Dash didn’t know how to respond, she had to do something. Her mouth formed the words ‘thank you’, upon seeing her gesture the mare’s smile grew twice as large.
Last in the elevator was her father, he sat slouched back in the corner of the elevator, the grin he wore walking into the hospital with, had not faded. His eyes and coat seemed to glow, like life had just been pumped into his body. Their eyes met, and Rainbow Dash smiled, never had she thought in her wildest dream this would ever happen. Recognizing his daughter’s gesture, he picked himself off the wall, and moved his daughter toward him. Placing his hoof on her back. The cyan mare smiled back and placed her hoof on her father’s back likewise.
In seemingly no time at all the elevator doors opened, nopony had listened for the beep. Fluttershy and Scootaloo were first to empty out, leaving Dash and her father. Both walked out with their hooves still planted firmly on each other's backs.
Nothing in the hall had changed from earlier in the day. The fading sun still found a way to creep into the dimly lit hall. The four walked together down the hall to the corner, leading to Dash’s mother’s room. Images of what happened earlier came back to Dash. The hate, the anger, and the pain. The tears she had cried, along with the raging emotions, all of which were now replaced with a sense of calmness.
The ponies rounded the corner and headed straight toward room 316. Rainbow and her father continued to walk together, with Scootaloo and Fluttershy walking out ahead of them. Within moments they reached door, the yellow mare and filly stood outside the door and waited. Rainbow’s father and Dash herself trotted in first.
The cyan mare was met with something she would never have been prepared for. There in front of her, on a dry clean bed, laid her mother. Tubes and machines were hooked up to the pegasus, constantly beeping and running tests. The mare had not held off the side effects of ageing as well as her husband had. She was tired, face wrinkled, and breathing labored. The bright colors that used to illuminate her coat were replaced with tired dull ones, faded by time.
A window across the room caught a picture of the setting sun, coloring the room in all shapes of red, illuminating the room more than the lights. Rainbow’s mother laid straight up in the bed, with her head tilted to the side, looking out the window. Cables, wires, and monitors were hooked up all over her body and face as she tried to lay in comfort the best she could.
Upon hearing the group enter, the old mare used the remaining energy she had to move her head upright to see her guests. Her tired eyes immediately fixated on Rainbow Dash, she was not concerned with anypony else in the room, except for her. One could see her mind starting to go into overdrive at the sight of her daughter. The largest smile the cyan mare had ever seen dawned on the old pegasus’ face. A tear came to her mother’s eye as Rainbow Dash and her father approached her bedside.
Pushing past all the wires and cables connected to her body, Rainbow’s mother raised her left hoof up and grabbed onto her daughter, proving that she was not dreaming, and solidifying the fact that the cyan mare in front of her was the pony she thought it to be. Stroke by stroke Dash felt her mother’s warm hooves moving up her fore hoof, a sensation she had not felt since foalhood. The love and compassion in the old mare’s eyes could be easily seen by anypony in the room, her pupils glowed with excitement, the daughter who she had lost now returned. Both mother and daughter’s gazes connected, their eyes the exact same color and shade.
“I told you she would come,” Rainbow Dash’s father whispered, setting his hoof onto his wife's.
“Rainbow Dash,” she said weakly, gripping her daugher tighter, as if she was afraid that the cyan mare would leave. Her voice was soft and sweet, despite her current condition. Every word was a struggle but there was no force in Equestria that was going to stop her from being apart of this moment.
“Mom.” A tear formed in the cyan pegasus’ eye, matching her mother’s exactly. A couple moments of silence went by as the pair watched each other. The only noise came from the sound of beeps and pongs being generated from the equipment behind her.
At the same time, Fluttershy directed Scootaloo to the back of the room, at which end sat a couple of chairs. The filly didn’t give a fuss and happily walked toward the yellow mare, taking up a spot on soft seat. Each pony studying the touching scene in front of them, not wanting to miss one single moment.
“It’s all my fault honey. Rainbow Dash knows that now.” Tears covered the stallions eyes as he too started to cry. “It was all my fault and she knows it. She knows it. She knows...”
“No.” Dash’s mother struggled trying to form words. “It’s not your fault. It’s our fault, I let it happen as much as you did. I am not without blame.”
“That’s not what is important right now.” Rainbow Dash looked into her mother’s failing eyes. The sight before her was nothing like she had remembered from foalhood. Once strong, beautiful and graceful, now weak, sickly, and dying. It hurt some place in Dash’s heart that she had never felt before. Some place new, untouched and unused for years.
With her other spare hoof, Rainbow began to wipe the tears from her mother’s face, like she had done to her many years ago. The gesture made the old mare smile, remembering that she had done the same thing.
“I never thought I would say this, but...” She paused, thinking about her next words very carefully. An idea crossed her mind she would have never thought possible. “I love you, mom.” Forgiveness.
The old mare was taken back by her daughter’s words. Never once had she thought those words would come from Rainbow Dash’s lips, not in anyone's wildest dreams. Even Dash’s father paused, he had never expected that to happen. He laid his hoof on his daughter’s back, as pride swelled inside the old stallion at his daughter's forgiveness.
Rainbow’s mother grabbed the cyan mare’s hoof tighter, never wanting the moment to pass. She struggled trying to form her next words.
“Just... promise me that you won’t make the same mistake we did... Please... live life to the fullest, find ponies you love, and never let them go.”
The cyan pegasus turned her head, staring back at her two friends sitting in the back of the room. “I already have.”
Both Fluttershy and Scootaloo smiled from her warm acknowledgement.
“Although not intentional, you taught me the true meaning of friendship. A pony should never leave their friends or family hanging, not for any reason. Staying loyal to the ones you love is the most important thing.” Rainbow Dash’s eyes met Scootaloo’s as she kept speaking. “I noticed a filly in need. A filly not to much unlike myself, lacking a family, alone in this world as a foal. And so I did something about it, hopefully the adoption papers will go through so time next week.”
Fluttershy almost fell over in her chair upon hearing Dash’s words. She had done it, taken the plunge into parenthood of a foal. All the convincing and pleading had paid off. Scootaloo had a similar reaction. Upon hearing her mentor’s words, she too, almost fainted. Rainbow Dash and I are going to be sisters! She is adopting me! Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh!
The filly got up from her seat in an instant and began a sprint across the room, Jumping on the cyan mare’s waist in excitement.
“Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!” The orange filly’s hooves wrapped tightly around her mentor, not for one moment did she want this moment to end. The coolest, fastest, and most awesome pony in all of Equestria had just adopted her. Never again was she to be alone, lost without love. Never again would she live in fear of going back to the orphanage, a warm and happy home now would greet her everyday.
Rainbow Dash let go of her mother, and turned her whole attention to the filly wrapped tightly around her midsection. Tears formed in both her mother’s and father’s eyes while they watched the scene in front of them unfold. The stallion’s hooves rested gently in his wife's, watching the events happen before there eyes. The cyan pegasus bent down and returned the filly’s hug.
The tip of Celestia’s sun was just over the horizon out the window, coating the room in warm shades of red and orange from the spectacular sunset. Time seemed to slow down in that moment. Dash’s mother and father held hooves, observing. Fluttershy sat in the back trying to come to terms with what had just happened. And in the center were Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash, embracing each other in a hug unlike any they had ever shared before.
“Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.” Scootaloo began to join in with the group, and began to cry herself, the sheer emotions overwhelming the young pegasus.
Rainbow Dash’s parents were both thinking the same thing, and feeling the same thing. They had failed as parents, yes. But a feeling of pride welled inside them, their long lost daughter conquered the disposition they had put her in. Rainbow Dash had beat it all, and proved that love wins every time, no matter what circumstances.
“I love you, Rainbow Dash.” Scootaloo was shocked at what she had just said, never once had she said it outloud, or even in public.
Both filly and mare continued to embrace, Scootaloo firmly wrapped around her mentor, as Rainbow Dash hugged back likewise. Two ponies not related at all, no relatives, no genes, no nothing in making them family. And yet they hugged, like two lost friends finally meeting each other again.
“I promise, Scootaloo. I promise to never leave you. I love you.”