//------------------------------// // Aftermath // Story: Rainbooms and Romance // by Kodeake //------------------------------// Aftermath Smoke billowed from the smoke stack of a train, blending into the inky blackness of the night sky. The train continued steaming down the tracks spanning the distance between the Crystal Kingdom and Ponyville. The engine towed a total of seven cars; six private sleeper cars and a dining car situated in the middle, with three of the sleeper cars on either side. Inside one of these sleeper cars lay Rainbow Dash, staring up at the ceiling of her darkened car. The light streaming in through the window from the moon and the stars allowed for very little visibility, effectively blinding the pegasus. At this moment, sight didn’t matter to the troubled mare. At this moment, there was only one thing that mattered to her, and that something was in her own private sleeper on the other side of the dining car. What was little more then ten or twenty meters in physical distance may as well have been a gorge miles across emotionally. The thoughts flying through Rainbow’s head and keeping her awake were not ones she was used to. They were feelings of anger, of worry, and of guilt. Never before had she felt them in such magnitude. What did she have to feel angry about? Why was she worried? What was she guilty of? Why should she be kept awake by these pointless, un-cool thoughts, when they were not her fault? No, they weren’t her fault. They were Twilight’s fault. If Twilight hadn’t put herself in danger, Rainbow wouldn’t have worried. If Twilight hadn’t insisted on going alone, Rainbow could have been there to protect her, and she wouldn’t have to feel guilty about not being there. If Twilight had just listened to reason, Rainbow wouldn’t have to be angry with her for making her feel these new and unwanted feelings. If it weren’t for Twilight, Rainbow could be asleep right now. Ever since they had started dating a few months ago Rainbow Dash couldn’t seem to get the gorgeous lavender face out of her mind. That wasn’t always a bad thing, but when it made her sick with worry because Twilight was off doing Celestia knows what against an evil unicorn that had managed to enslave an entire race of ponies, it was a problem. No, the worry wasn’t the problem; it was Twilight going off alone in the first pace that was the problem. Rainbow rolled over in the semi-large bed the sleeper car provided. After they had saved the Crystal Kingdom the Crystal Ponies had all but insisted on giving them the most luxurious cars on their trip home possible. Twilight, ever the humble one, had tried to refuse, saying that they didn’t need anything so fancy, but at the insistence of both the entire nation and Cadence, she had accepted. The most expensive cars they had were hooked up to the engine, cars normally used only for royalty or the most elite of the nobles. For the next two days they would be used for the return trip of the Elements of Harmony; a fitting reward for saving an entire kingdom. They had departed the day after saving the Kingdom, but not before having a party thrown in their honour. Just as Rainbow found a new comfortable spot, the door to her car was slid open momentarily before slamming shut. Rainbow lifted her head to see who it was, but she knew there was only one pony that would come into what was essentially her room in the middle of the night from the direction of the dining car. Her suspicious were confirmed when a purple glow illuminated a lavender unicorn. “Twilight?” Rainbow asked, rolling back over to face the unicorn, but not getting out of bed. She was still mad at Twilight, after all. “You’ve been avoiding me since the party yesterday. I want to know why,” Twilight stated matter-of-factly, walking further into the room and igniting a few of the candles in a glow of magic. Rainbow sat up in her bed and sighed. “I haven’t been avoiding you,” She lied, hoping to hide the fact by pretending to be tired. She rubbed her eyes as if she had just woken up. “I don’t know why you thought that.” “I’m not stupid, Rainbow. I know when I’m being avoided. Every time I came to talk to you at the party you said you had to go to the bathroom and ran off, a few times in the wrong direction. Do you know how many times I came to talk to you?” “No,” Rainbow admitted, still trying to play tired as she slunk out of her bed and onto her hooves. “We were at the party for six hours. In that time, I came to talk to you forty-seven times,” Twilight deadpanned. “Now tell me why you’ve been avoiding me.” “I haven’t,” Rainbow insisted weakly, scrounging her mind for some other excuse that might tied Twilight over until she was ready. “Rainbow,” Twilight sighed, “Just tell me what’s wrong. Is it something I did?” Finally, something in Rainbow snapped. If Twilight wanted to know, she would know. It was Twilight’s fault anyway. “Yeah, Twilight; it is something you did. Do you wanna know what you did?” Rainbow snapped, taking a firm step forward and levelling a glare at the unicorn. Twilight looked surprised at the sudden outburst, but remained silent. “I’ll tell you what you did. You went off on your own to find that stupid Crystal Heart thing, all by yourself, when there was that nutcase Sombra running around doing whatever it is he does. I was worried sick about you, all because you were too focused on passing some stupid test to get help.” Rainbow started pacing as she ranted, letting hours worth of pent up anger and frustration pour out, all aimed at Twilight. “Did you ever once think to stop and consider how any of this would make me feel? Because it wasn’t fun to be next to helpless as my marefriend was trapped on the top of the tower with that lunatic flying at you. Do you know how guilty I felt after that? And to top it all off, it wouldn’t have happened at all if you had let us help you.” Rainbow took a deep breath and stopped her pacing. She turned to face Twilight. “So yeah, I’ve been avoiding you. I’ve been avoiding you because I’m mad at you, and I don’t like being mad at you,” Rainbow finished with a sigh, falling back to her haunches and waiting for Twilight to say something. Twilight’s mind was reeling at the sudden revelations. Rainbow Dash was worried about her? She felt guilty because she couldn’t protect her? Rainbow Dash was mad at her? It was a new experience for Rainbow to actually be mad at her. Sure, over the months they had been dating they had argued, but it never lasted more then an hour before one of them realized how stupid they were being. But this? This was worse then any argument the two could have had. This was Twilight’s fault; that much she knew. Already she felt the guilt balling in her stomach. Just how worried Rainbow must have been to actually get angry, or admit it at all, considering how ‘cool’ she normally acted. “I…” Twilight fumbled with her words, sitting down and staring at Rainbow. “This is why I’ve been avoiding you,” Rainbow admitted quietly, averting her eyes to the ground instead of Twilight, “I knew this would happen if I talked to you before I got over it.” Twilight continued to sit in stunned silence, unsure of what to say. What could she say? Rainbow was right, about everything, so what should she say? “Rainbow…” “I… I don’t like being mad at you Twi,” Rainbow sniffled, her eyes hidden by a veil of rainbow mane as she stared at the ground. After a moment’s hesitation Twilight flung herself at Rainbow, throwing her hooves around her shoulders and holding her tightly. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, nuzzling into Rainbow’s neck, “I had no idea…” “When you were trapped, when Sombra was coming at you… I thought… I though I’d lost you” Rainbow trailed off sadly, shaking her head as tears leaked from her eyes, gently streaming down her cheeks and falling off her chin. “Don’t ever do that to me again, Twilight,” Rainbow said firmly, squeezing the unicorn tightly in the embrace. “I won’t, I promise you I won’t,” Twilight assured, pulling back and smiling weakly at her pegasus lover. “You better not,” Rainbow murmured before leaning in a giving Twilight a short, loving kiss. Rainbow held Twilight’s gaze for a few seconds before a loud yawn escaped her lips, causing Twilight to giggle. Rainbow chuckled, a light blush glowing across her cheeks. “Guess I could use some sleep.” “Go on, I’ll see you in the morning,” Twilight said, motioning to Rainbow’s bed as she stood. “Not so fast Egghead, you’re not getting off that easy,” Rainbow called tauntingly, drawing Twilight’s attention with a raised brow. Rainbow crawled into the relatively small bed and patted the space next to her. “You made me worry about you; I need to make sure you’re safe.” Twilight giggled at Rainbow’s excuse, but complied with a smile. “And what, pray tell, could be dangerous on a train?” She asked as she sidled up next to Rainbow. “I dunno, maybe your car is cursed, and for your own safety you can’t risk sleeping in it?” Rainbow offered, rapping her hooves firmly around Twilight and squeezing her to her chest. “And what would curse a train car?” Twilight asked, looking up at the mare holding her tightly. She came face to face with a sleeping Rainbow Dash. She giggled as she adjusted to a more comfortable position, resting her head against Rainbow’s chest and sighing happily. “Good night, Dashie, I love you” She whispered, kissing Rainbow’s muzzle lightly before closing her eyes and joining her in sleep.