//------------------------------// // Chapter 6 // Story: A Matter of Perspective // by Vic Fontaine //------------------------------// Chapter 6 With smoldering debris still raining around her, and a storm of emotion raging through her body, Twilight raced to the fallen mare, finding her slumped down in the shallow pool of water that formed the base of one of Celestia's prized fountains that were the centerpieces of the grand room's decor. On instinct, the jumped into the pool, the water rising only just past her hooves. Leaning down on her haunches to look Rainbow over, Twilight cringed in shock as her eyes surveyed the pegasus. The tips of her mane were singed, her normally bright coat matted and smeared with a combination of sweat, heat, and the charred remains of the amplifier. Though she had no obvious broken bones or wings, Twilight could already see a multitude of bruises and cuts on just about every inch of the mare, due mostly to her nearly suicidal run at the now disintegrated Changeling Queen. She's alive. Thank Celestia, she's alive. But, is Rainbow still here? Cupping her hooves underneath the mare's chin, Twilight lifted Rainbow's head, bringing it level to her own. Her violet eyes, stained red with tears of worry and happiness all at once, gazed directly into two bright magenta eyes, any hint of the green that had possessed them now gone. Waving a hoof in front of the pegasus, Twilight called out to the pony that she desperately hoped was still in there. "Rainbow? Are you there? Can you hear me? It's me...Twilight. Please, if you're there, say something....anything at all!" Her words were met with silence, the magenta eyes showing no sign of movement, or recognition. A tide of failure washed over the unicorn, breaking any shreds of emotional control that she had left. "Rainbow, no! You can't leave like this!". She was nearly yelling at the still listless mare, grabbing her blue muzzle in her hooves. "You saved my life, but how can I live knowing that you traded your life for mine?! Knowing that every time I see you, I'll see a pony that was Rainbow Dash -- the Element of Loyalty, the fastest flier in Equestria, a future Wonderbolt! My friend...a friend that loved me!" Bitter tears of regret streamed down Twilight's face as she sobbed into the mare's blue coat. "You said we would come home together, and I can't leave without taking you with me. I won't leave - not until I find a way to bring Rainbow Dash back. Leaning further into the pegasus, Twilight wrapped her forelegs around Rainbow, her hooves meeting each other as they slid underneath the mare's wings. Lifting the wings a bit to tighten her grip on her seemingly lost friend, Twilight felt something splash in the water next to her. Blinking hot tears from her eyes, she turned her head to see what had made the noise, expecting it to be yet another piece of debris. Her eyes were transfixed by the small green orb that laid in the water next to Rainbow, its surface unscarred by the destruction that had nearly consumed the entire room. Recognizing it immediately, Twilight's heart nearly jumped through her chest as she regarded the glowing orb that contained everything that her friend was. And will be again, she said to herself. Scrambling to her hooves, she gripped the orb in a gentle cocoon of magic, hovering it near her as she struggled to pull the limp pegasus into something resembling a sitting position. Satisfied that the mare would at least not topple over again, Twilight mirrored the motion, sitting within reaching distance of the pegasus. Grabbing the orb again from behind her, Twilight brought it to rest halfway between the two ponies, levitating it just above their heads. The importance of what she was about to attempt, and the consequences of failure, hit Twilight like a brick. Her research had uncovered references to memory repair spells, some papers even suggesting the possibility of complete replacement in extreme situations. But, none of them had accounted for a pony's identity being trapped in a glowing orb either. Breathing as sharply as her lungs would allow, Twilight tried to fight a growing sense of doubt that threatened to overtake her at a moment's notice. then, as if on cue, Rainbow's words spoke out to her again: The Elements are all inside of each of us. That goes for you too, Twi. Twilight closed her eyes, willing her mind to replay the same memories of her friends that she chose to look at in what should have been her final moments of life. Letting them wash over her mind, she lit her horn, the magenta glow slowly building from the base towards the tip. Despite her mental and physical exhaustion, the Elements buoyed her inner self, giving the unicorn the necessary strength to continue building the spell. The magenta wave spiraled to the tip of her horn, the glow of a single concentrated point of magic coalescing at the tip. sharpening her focus, she reached out with a small tendril of magic, gently reaching out to the green orb hovering in front of her. Taking another deep breath, she pushed the magical beam the last inch forward, making contact with the glowing orb. There was no way that she could have anticipated what happened next. Her mind was flooded with a rush of memories, as Rainbow Dash's very existence poured itself out to the unicorn's mind. Images of ponies, places, and events whirled by Twilight, running her mind through the full spectrum of emotion. The joys of flight camp and junior speedsters. Pure elation at performing a sonic rainboom and earning her cutie mark. Crushing heartbreak as her mother left her in the hooves of an abusive father. Anger and regret for not doing more to protect a certain yellow mare in Flight School. Confusion and boredom as she settled in Ponyville. Then, she saw a memory that she recognized -- the speeding pegasus running headlong into an impatient unicorn, knocking both of them into a puddle of mud. Then, everything changed. Gone were the regret, the boredom, the simmering anger. All that was present in Rainbow's inner self was a sense of joy, of optimism, of contentment. Twilight began to watch the events of the past two years unfold again, only this time through a pair of magenta eyes. From the battles with Nightmare Moon, Discord, and Chrysalis, through the Young Flyers' Competition and Hearth's Warming Eves, to hours upon hours of reading, flight research at the hands of a certain unicorn, and dozens of milkshakes. Rainbow's mind had recorded it all, each memory with a singular focus - Twilight. What began as a sense of duty to protect the mare quickly morphed into something much more, much deeper. Now, Rainbow was doing things for Twilight out of want, rather than duty. Then out of a pure need to simply be around her. Oh stars, she was falling head over hoof for me all this time? And I never so much as noticed a thing?! She must think I'm terrible. Finally, Rainbow's memory caught up to the last few days, and to their argument in the library. She saw the frustrated look on her own face, cringing a bit as she saw how harsh her attitude was toward the pegasus. Then, the pair of magenta eyes turned to face the bedroom window, but what she heard next was missing from her own recollections: " I-it wasn't about the milkshakes, Twi...I mean, I could totally see that... that they were happy together...” A pang of rejection hit Rainbow's mind as she absorbed Twilight's response: "Rainbow, I'm sorry. I don't know how you got the idea that Rosetta and Daring love each other—let alone the fact that they are both homosexual—but it just isn't there.” Her now dejected eyes looked down at a crack in the floor, following it until it stopped at the tip of Twilight's hooves. Refusing to look up, lest the unicorn see the tears forming at the edge of her eyes, she whispered, “But... but it has to be...Daring... Daring totally loves her...” Daring totally loves her. Or, rather, Rainbow totally loves me. Oh Celestia, she really does love me. Rainbow didn't nearly kill herself protecting me because she had to. She did it out of love -- for me. That final thought ripped open a part of Twilight that she had long repressed. A wave of pent up emotion, of longing for somepony to call her own, not just a friend, ripped through her body, sending her heart into overdrive. Opening her eyes, she locked her stare directly at Rainbow, the mixture of green and magenta colors reflecting off of her eyes as the thrum of magic surrounding the green orb steadily increased in intensity. Above her, the magenta tendril of magic sharpened into a solid line as it emerged from the other side of the orb, slowly crossing the gap towards the top of Rainbow's head. Twilight broke her gaze from the pegasus for a moment to observe the tendril closing the last few inches of empty space. Despite sitting in a pool of cold water, a feeling of pure warmth crept into her body, and a smile of pure joy crept across her mouth. All this time, I thought my friends were enough. And they are, but deep down, I wanted more than friendship. That special pony was right next to me for months, and I never noticed it. Yet, she never gave up, never moved on, never lost hope that she could somehow make the impossible happen. Just like Dari-- Oh, Celestia, she really is Daring, isn't she? How could she not be? And how could Rosetta not love a pony like Daring? How could I not love a pony like Rainbow? "I can't. I am in love with Rainbow Dash". Twilight closed her eyes and leaned forward, her lips meeting Rainbow's at the same time that the magenta beam of magic made contact with the mare's forehead, completing the connection between both ponies. Years of pent up emotion forced their way through Twilight's lips, trying to draw every last moment from the tentative kiss. A burst of magic rose from Twilight's horn, surging into the green orb, spinning it faster and faster until it became a green blur suspended in the air. She held the kiss for a few seconds, then broke away into the strongest embrace that she could give, holding onto the pegasus for dear life. Burying her muzzle in chromatic mane, she prayed to Celestia that the spell would work. Then, in a final act before completing the spell, she whispered words that mere days ago had been the furthest thing from her mind. "I love you, Rainbow Dash". Commanding a final wave of magic from within her, Twilight sent an even bigger surge of energy into the orb, breaking the first part of the connection between herself and the orb. For two beats of her heart, she stared at the orb, her eyes imploring it to give her friend, her love, back to her. A crack of energy shook the fountain as the orb gave up its closely held contents, sending its own surge of power down the last half of the connection. A green and magenta glow enveloped the pegasus as the whole of Rainbow Dash rushed down the magical line, refilling mind, body, and soul. Slowly, the orb emptied its secrets back to their owner, dissipating into the ether as it did so. When the last of the aura had faded away, Twilight opened her eyes, still holding on to Rainbow as tightly as she could. forcing herself to lean back, she brought her face back in line with the pegasus, one hoof still touching the mare's right shoulder. "Rainbow? Are you there?" With a series of slow flutters, cyan eyelids opened to reveal two brilliant magenta eyes, this time with the warmth of life burning behind them. "Twilight? What happened? Where am I?" Almost at a loss for words, Twilight could only mumble a completely obvious question. "What's the last thing you remember?" The pegasus thought for a second, a slow smile spreading across her lips as her mind played its most recent recording back to her. "This." Lunging forward, she threw herself at the unicorn, drawing their lips into an intense kiss. The initial contact elicited a small yelp from the unicorn, but her surprise was quickly overcome by the raging fire that burned through her mind. Wrapping her forelegs around the unicorn's neck, Rainbow poured every last bit of strength that she had into her lips, her soul pouring itself out with each movement of her mouth against Twilights. Breaking the kiss, she leaned her head back, tears of joy welled up in her eyes, her lungs gasping for air. Looking directly at the unicorn, Rainbow could barely speak. "Twilight, I..I" "I know Rainbow, I know. And I do too." Her eyes nearly exploded in her head as words that the pegasus never thought she'd hear sounded in her head. Most other times, she'd fly in circles to celebrate, but this moment called for something much better. Leaning in again, she embraced Twilight like the unicorn was the last lifeline she had. Twilight eagerly returned the embrace as the two mares buried their muzzles into each other's manes. They sat in silence for minutes, letting their minds, and their still accelerating heartbeats, speak for them. Finally, Rainbow pulled away from the embrace, and looked again at Twilight. My Twilight, she thought to herself. "How did you figure it out, Twilight? All this time, I never told you how I felt, well not directly, anyway." Her own smirk lighting up her face, Twilight looked up at Rainbow Dash. "It was just a matter of perspective".