//------------------------------// // FaR Chapter Four // Story: Following a Rainbow // by malikvamp //------------------------------// FaR Chapter Four- Putting the Pieces Together The crisp evening air engulfed Applejack like a blanked, the slight chill running with the breeze forcing her mane to stand on end. She walked slowly through the streets of Ponyville; all around her foals were preparing to head in for the night, and the sun's rays began disappearing over the horizon. The evening scenery was beautiful, illuminating the mountains in the distance, and the dancing trees of the Everfree forest. AJ didn't notice. 'Rainbow gave up.' It was the same thought that had haunted her from the moment she heard it. Rainbow was her idol, her friend, and in a way the cyan Pegasus was Applejacks goal, her dream. Not only had the orange pony lost her best friend, but her role model as well. "I can't believe this!" AJ stomped through the streets towards the outskirts of town, but not in the direction of her home. Instead she neared the vast cloud citadel of Rainbow Dash, growing angrier as she walked. "It- It's not possible! Ah don't believe this for a moment." At long last Applejack broke free from Ponyville, and made her way to her destination. Then she was there. Standing under the great cloud castle, bewildered. Before she even called out Rainbow's name Applejack knew that the place was empty. Rainbow had once told her that cloud houses had to be tended to nightly, or else the clouds would begin to drift away. Looking up at the vacant house, small holes dotted the walls, and pieces altogether were missing. "Rainbow?" Applejack called sheepishly, and to her surprise a head popped up over the clouds, staring at her. It wasn't the rainbow maned Pegasus she'd hoped for though. It was not even a Pegasus at all, neither an earth pony nor a unicorn. Instead of a coat this creature was adorned in feathers. Her head was colored white, the rest of her body a light brown. She had a beak, two glaring eyes, and a powerful set of muscled wings. The creature's body was well defined, lean but trained. Gilda. "Who the hay are you?" Her voice was lined with hatred, as if she was speaking daggers. "The name's Applejack." AJ could feel hatred running through her veins. Did Gilda have something to do with Rainbow's sudden vanishing act? "You..." Gilda dropped from the cloud in the blink of an eye, landing before Applejack with a thud. "Are Applejack?" "What's it to you?" Tensing up Applejack prepared herself, trying to stand tall despite her fear of the larger creature. Suddenly Gilda calmed down, relaxing. She seemed to shrink as her previously extended wings sunk to her sides. The hatred in her eyes calmed, and sadness took over. "Finally. I've been waiting for you." The air had grown colder, the wind picking up quickly. On the horizon the last of the sun's rays fought to stay strong, but son darkness would consume Ponyville. Luna's night was strong, the stars bright, and had a strong feeling of peace to it. "What?" The orange pony was stunned. "Why me?" Gilda, obviously more exhausted then she let on, sat back on her haunch. "Applejack, I... I was worried about Rainbow, after that whole thing with the wonder bolts. I came to check on her, to see if she was alright, and... She was gone." Applejack's suspicions were confirmed, but still many questions remained un answered. "What do Ah have to do with this?" "When I got here," Gilda motioned to the cloud castle with one of her claws. "The place was totally empty. Food, clothing, everything. Gone. Except for a letter, left in Rainbow's bedroom." "A letter?" Gilda nodded sadly. "A letter, with your name on it." Moving slowly the griffon raised one of her claws, a crumpled letter held tightly in her grasp. She threw the letter to Applejack, and continued speaking. "I did not read it..." "Gilda," Applejack eased as well now, sensing no danger from the griffon. She had waited at the castle all day, guarding the letter. Gilda wanted to ensure that Rainbow's wishes be carried out, and AJ understood the feeling well. "Ah'll read it out loud. You deserve that much." Gilda's eyes brightened the golden orbs excited and relieved. "Thank you!" Opening the parchment, Applejack began to read. Applejack, I'm so sorry. I know that I shouldn't have told you, and that you may never see me the same way, but... I just had to be loyal to my heart! I'm sorry for whatever it was that I did to make you leave for so long, and I hope that one day you can forgive me! Please know that you mean so much to me, and that I never wanted to hurt you. I've gone home, to live with my parents. Not in Cloudsdale, but in Appaloosa where they've made a home for themselves. Everypony is moving on but me, they all have so much ahead of them! I hope that one day we can meet again, and that we can be friends like we used to be! Oh, and one last thing. Please tell everypony I'm sorry. That I'll always love all of them, and never forget the time we spent together! I'm just no longer needed, and when they all move on I can't be left behind in the dust! I've gone to seek out my own future, not to run away! And Applejack, thank you. I've never told anypony this, but that day when I first ran into you, that day I was alone. I'd given up on the world, but you kept me strong! You gave me faith, and I've never stopped loving the warmth of your smile, the way you push me to be better, and that cute little accent of yours. Love: The one and only Rainbow Dash. "She's lying." Gilda's expression once again returned to sorrow. "What? Why do ya say that?" Applejack felt offended, and didn't try to hide it. "Rainbow never told you why she left Cloudsdale, did she pip-squeak?" It wasn't a sarcastic tone in Gilda's voice. It was worry. She was worried about... Applejack? "No, Ah reckon she didn't." Applejack thought back to all of her days with her rainbow colored friend. "She didn't like t' talk about her past. "Yeah, well," Gilda snorted angrily. "There's a reason for that." Before Applejack could respond Gilda was walking past her, towards Ponyville. Quickly Applejack's gaze followed the... Acquaintance? Friend? She wasn't sure if she still hated Gilda. "Wait, Gilda, where are you going?" Applejack spoke suspiciously, as she followed the Griffon, making sure to grab Rainbow's letter first. Gilda did not stop, nor turn as she spoke. Her voice, carried by the wind, was loud in AJ's ears. "Well, seeing as I was sitting around all day waiting for you, I believe that you owe me dinner while we speak of a certain little Rainbow's past. They moved slowly through Ponyville, Gilda certainly taking her time. As they walked everypony stared in awe; it wasn't every day that you saw a griffin in Ponyville. Finally the duo came to a halt. Before them was a large building, decorated brightly. "Here we are!" Gilda spoke. "And just where, exactly," Applejack responded solemnly. "Is 'here'." Ignoring the question Gilda entered the building, Applejack close behind her. AJ hadn't noticed how cold it was outside until they got inside. Immediately Applejack felt her tense muscles loosen, fond of the warmth in the building. Her hooves began to hurt as the numbness was chased away. "This is where Dash and I used to hang a lot," Gilda smiled reminiscently. "when we were still close." No answere came to Applejack as they moved further into the building. In truth the design of the room they stood in was nothing special. Dark, wooden planks formed the walls, the ceiling, and the majority of the rooms floor. Before the strange pairing was a counter where a white unicorn stood, behind him a vast room filled with tables, chairs, and at the far end a small performance stage. It took a moment, but soon Applejack's memory recalled the building as an inn of sort. It was a place ponies came to relax, kick back, and watch the occasional musical performance. At night the owners rented out several rooms to visitors of Ponyville, offering lodging to travelers. "Ah, Lady Gilda!" The unicorn behind the desk had a deep red mane that stood out against her white body. Her voice seemed well-refined, speaking the way that those in Manehattan had spoken. "It is good to see you again. How may I help you tonight?" Applejack watched in silence, unsure of what was really going on. "A table for two, please." Gilda continued to talk with the host, their conversations varying from topic to topic. "Will Rainbow be joining you tonight, as per usual?" a pang of hurt shot through Applejack as the unicorn spoke Rainbow's name. She wanted to hold Rainbow, to find her, to watch her fly through the orchard and a sweet autumn day. Applejack longed for the sight of a beautiful, cyan coat, and a rainbow mane that took her breath away. She dreamt of a sweet set of lips, slowly drawing closer until they shared breath. And then- "Applejack!" Gilda's voice drew the pony from her thoughts. Gilda was already making her way towards their table. "You coming, or what?" Applejack quickly caught up with the strange griffin, speaking proudly. "O'course Am am!" Together they made there way to the closest table, and quickly found their seats; across from one another. The seats, designed for ponies, made Gilda squirm uncomfortably. The inn smelt of low quality food, and Applejack quickly found herself wondering why Rainbow and Gilda would hang out in such a place often. And then, music started. It was beautiful, filling the room with tranquil melodies, emerging from the cello playing, grey earth pony on stage. "Her name is Octavia." Gilda laughed lightly at Applejack's stunned expressions. "Usually she performs in Canterlot, but occasionally she comes down to play here, in Ponyville. Now, onto the topic at hoof... Rainbow Dash." "Well, it's about time! Now, would ya kindly get on with whatchia were sayin' bout Rainbow lyin' in her letter?" Applejack had been anxious to hear Gilda's reasoning the moment that the Griffon contradicted Rainbow's writing. Then again, Gilda was being kinder to Applejack then then Gilda had been to most ponies. "Please?" "Fine. Look, in the letter, Rainbow said she was going to live with her parents, right?" Gilda continued after receiving a quick nod from the pony opposite her. "Rainbow's parents are dead." "What!" Applejack pounded her hooves down on the table, as if demanding Gilda to repeat herself. She must have heard wrong. "Dead. They died the same day that Rainbow ran away. It was, sort of, why Rainbow ran away; on top of bullying from the kids at school. Rainbow Dash disappeared the moment she learnt of her parents death, she couldn't take it..." The tavern was growing quiet around the two, growing awkward stares. As if on cue Octavia's music rose in volume, drawing back the room's attention. Applejack tried to speak, but didn't know what to say. And so, Gilda continued. "I, being one of Rainbow's few friends, tried to follow her. However, by the time I found her..." "Yes?" Applejack was eager to hear the rest of the story, angered by Gilda's silence. "Well," Gilda stared harshly at Applejack, her golden eyes seeming to stare directly into AJ's soul. "when I found her she had already found a new home. A new best friend. You." Again, silence. Octavia pulled a close to her song. Applejack, convinced that she should not start the conversation again until after the next song started, had a moment to think to herself. 'It was. Because of me that Gilda didn't get to peruse her friendship with Dash?' The music started again, this time the song was of faster pace, and louder. "Ah'm sorry." Applejack spoke. "Sorry?" Gilda was honestly taken back. " Don not be sorry for what you did that day, ever! Look, Applejack, to be honest I wasn't expecting to find Rainbow Dash at all! If I did find her, I was almost certain that it would be too late." Applejack was speechless. Was Rainbow Dash really in that bad a place in her life that day? If Rainbow hadn't crashed into Applejack, was it possible that there would have never been a Rainbow Dash again? "Applejack, listen to me." AJ looked up to meet Gilda's eyes, her own already growing damp at the thought of a Rainbow-less life. It would be a life that lacked so much color. Gilda waited for a moment, picking her words carefully before continuing. "Somewhere, out there, Rainbow Dash, our friend, is alone! She could be in the same mindset now as she was that day, and left un-checked that... Might not end well." Applejack did not speak when Gilda allowed her time to. She sat in silence, contemplating. And so, Gilda continued. "I believe some of what that letter said though. The part about Rainbow Dash loving you, for example." Applejack poorly attempted to hide a blush. "As well, I believe that Rainbow did go to Appleoosa. It was her way of reaching out to you through the letter, without really asking you to follow her." "So... what should Ah do?" Applejack could feel several tears wetting her cheeks already. "Ah love her, Gilda! Ah can't stand losing the brightest part of my life! She... She's the dream Ah promised myself Ah would never let go of!" "Well then, Applejack, I have only one question for you." the music stopped. Octavia, her performance over, began to leave the stage. "And what, exactly, is that?" Before Applejack finished her sentence Gilda had placed a large sum of bits of Applejack's side of the table. It was more then enough to pay for a trip to and from Appleoosa, as well as any necessities along the way. Confused, Applejack spoke again. "What is this for?" "This is to get you to, and back from Apploosa safely, as well as to afford a second return ticket." Gilda winked happily. "I can't be who Rainbow Dash needs right now, but you... I don't know what you're waiting for."