//------------------------------//
// Chapter 12 
// Story: To See Her One More Time 
// by TheMessenger 
//------------------------------//

Chapter 12

"Read it and weep."

Robert smirked in response to the collective groan as he laid down his cards. A pair of kings and three sixes, a full house.

"No frigging way man," one of the players moaned. Like Robert and the rest of the fellows huddled around the small coffee table, he wore a red apron and a name tag. And like anyone that wasn't Robert, he tossed his own hand down in an unceremonious heap in frustration. "No frigging way."

"Aw, shut up Dick," said the man with a red beard. "Ya know Bobby here don't cheat. He beat us fair and square."

Robert chuckled. "Well, I suppose nothing's fairer than luck." He packed all the cards together into one neat deck. "We should probably clean up before the manager hears us. My break's almost over anyhow."

"Boy-scout," teased the sole female in the group. She tossed her ponytail back over her shoulder as she readjusted her glasses. "At least give us the chance to win our cash back."

"Nope." And with a guiltless grin, he pocketed four green bills. Forty dollars total. "Thanks guys but I really need to get back to work."

The door to the break room was swung open as Robert exited. The three others faded away. As Neil and Eva approached the door it opened again and in stepped Robert and the man with the red beard. Both looked more tired than they had been before but Robert's smile remained. In the crook of his arm was a pink box of doughnuts.

"A fan of sweets eh?" Red beard laughed. "Is that what you're spendin' all ya steal from us?"

"Well, that and utilities," Robert said, setting the box down and tossing off his uniform. "Got to pay the bills somehow and, well, this job isn't the best around to be honest."

"Aye, I get ya. You know, I've got a brother whose sister-in-law is a lawyer to one of them big industries. She's gettin' me a job and if ya hurtin' maybe I can throw in a good word for ya. Course, first ya've gotta give me a doughnut."

"I appreciate the offer but these doughnuts are too valuable," joked Robert, holding the box closer to his chest. "Sorry, but I'm kind of attached to this place."

"Really, this dump? No offense."

"None taken. I didn't mean the store though," he explained. "I meant the community."

"We have a community?"

"Now I'm starting to take offense. It's my home. I can't just leave it right now. I'm...I'm not ready."

"Hey, hey, I understand Bobby." Red wrapped his arm around Robert's shoulder. "I miss my homeland too some days."

"Ireland?"

"No, Jersey. Can't ya tell from me accent?" The larger man shook his head. "No, but what I'm tryin' to say is that sometimes ya gotta grow and let go. Home isn't where you were born or raise, it's where ya heart is, ain't it?" He patted Robert on the back, leaving behind a powdery hand print. "Thanks for the doughnut."

"...hey!"


*****


"How come we don't have a car?"

Robert looked up from his Sudoku puzzle. "Hmm?"

Rainbow Dash pointed at the television screen. Brightly colored cars zoomed toward them as they past a turn. "Like one of those," the Pegasus said. "Why don't you have a car?"

Robert shrugged. "There was never any real need for one," he explained. "Besides, I don't have the money to buy one right now."

"Oh." Rainbow turned back to the race. A man on a raised platform was waving a checker flag as the first car crossed the finish line. Cheering roars and applause competed against the rumbling thunders of engines. "I'd like to ride one of those one day. They go so fast."

"I've seen faster."

"Faster than race cars?" Rainbow turned away from the TV. "Really?"

"Oh, yeah." Robert smiled as he brushed aside the curtains and looked out the window. "Rain stopped," he announced. "Ready to head..."

The television went dark. Rainbow Dash was by his side, holding up his coat.

"...to the park," he finished, bending down to pick up the coat and throwing his arms through the sleeves. "Now, remembered what we agreed to?"

"Fly only high enough that people can't see me but I can see them," the filly droned. "Watch where I'm flying, don't bother any birds if I see them, don't fly out of shouting distance, stay in the park's air zone, don't look directly into the sun, wait for you to give the all clear before landing, don't fly over nearby buildings, make sure I can always see you, listen to you when you say it's time to head back, don't fly too hard that my wings start hurting, don't do any tricks that are too dangerous, don't try anything that the TV says not to do at home even though we're at the park and not at home...did I miss anything?"

"Yeah." Robert opened the door just a crack and peeked through. The crack grew larger until the the door was completely ajar. He gestured toward the sky and gave the pony a thumbs-up. "Have fun."

Rainbow rolled her eyes before taking off. She was getting much faster at getting into the air, Robert noted. Despite the somewhat shaky beginning the Pegasus was becoming quite the expert flyer. She took to the sky like a natural, naturally.

Just like in the show...

For a moment, Robert lost sight of the flying blue pony. He scanned the clouds, trying to squash the rising sense of panic. He released a sigh as he saw a little hoof stick out and wave. Locking the door behind him, Robert shoved his keys into his pockets and began to walk. His eyes remained on the puffy cloud that mysteriously floated above him. 

The man looked around. As usual, the park was empty. Robert lifted his head and waved both arms over his head. Rainbow Dash appeared moments later. 

"Alright, what do we have planned today?"

"Well, I saw this guy in a leotard on TV doing flips and and twists and stuff in the air," Rainbow said. "I thought it was kinda lame but maybe I can make that stuff look cooler since I'm in the air way longer. I'll call it...the Awesome Cartwheel."

"Awesome Cartwheel?"

"Yeah, the announcer person said the guy was doing a cartwheel so I'm going to do one too, but in the sky so it'll be awesome."

"Alright, but why 'awesome'?" Robert asked. "Why not 'cool', so you'd have an alliteration?"

"A alliter-what now?"

"It's when you have words that begin with the same sound next to each other," the man explained. "Like 'Cool Cartwheel'."

"But cool doesn't have the same number of...syllables, that's it! Yeah, cool doesn't have the same number syllables as cartwheel. Nah, I'm sticking to Awesome Cartwheel."

"Fine," Robert conceded. "It's your move, you get to name it. Let's see it in action."

"You've got it!"

Rainbow shot into the sky. Cheers from below followed the filly as she flew by. 

"Neil, are you cheering too?"

"What, no, you're crazy. It must have been the wind."


*****


"...the end." Robert closed the picture book and set it on the coffee table before yawning. "Ready for bed?"

"I'm already in bed," Rainbow replied, snuggled beneath the comforters. "Or couch, remember?"

"That you are," Robert said with a smile. Carefully as to avoid disturbing Rainbow's little nest, he crawled under his own blanket. "Ready to sleep then?"

"I guess." The filly pulled the extra pillow closer to her and placed her chin on top of it. "Um...can I ask you something?"

"Sure, what's up?"

"Well, I was wondering..." Rainbow shifted onto her side, bumping a hoof into Robert's gut. "Sorry."

"It's fine, don't worry about it. What were you wondering?"

"I was wondering...if I could have my own room?"

The man lifted his head and pulled himself up onto an elbow. "Your own room?"

"Yeah, like my own bed and everything. Maybe a small bookshelf, I don't know."

"Your own room...well..."

"I mean, it doesn't have to be too big. It's just...sleeping here's getting a little uncomfortable. Sorry."

"I'll see if we've got extra space," Robert answered. "But it might take some time to raise money for a new bed, okay?"

"That's okay," the Pegasus said with a yawn. Her head laid down on the cushion and closed her eyes. She nestled against Robert's arm. 

Robert raised a hesitant hand and set on the filly's head, gently stroking through her mane. Reaching with his other arm he turned off the illuminating lamp, bathing the room in darkness. 


*****


"Did you see it? Did you see it?"

"You bet I did," Robert laughed. "What was that one called "

Rainbow paused in the middle of a twirl. "Uh...I haven't thought of a name yet."

"Well, how about..."

"Ooh, Buccaneer Blitz sounds cool. That's the Buccaneer Blitz, performed by the one and only Rainbow Dash!" She did another loop in the air and looked down. "Ahem?"

"Oh, uh, right." Robert threw his arms out and cheered.

"I'm going to do it again-whoa!" 

The filly wobbled and fell from the sky, landing in Robert's outstretched arms. 

"Ow."

"You over-exerted yourself again," he sighed, shaking his head. "You really need to be more careful. No more tricks for today, alright?"

"Aw, I'm not that tired." Rainbow leaped out of his arms and trotted in place. "See? I'm fine."

"How about a ten minute break?"

The Pegasus thought for a moment before nodding her head. "Sure, just ten minutes, right?"

"Just ten minutes." Robert lowered himself into the grass. "My throat's getting a little tired," he noted, taking out a water bottle from his sweatshirt pocket and removed the cap. After a few gulps, he handed it to Rainbow Dash, who accepted it gratefully."

"Slow down, Dashie," Robert cautioned. The bottle was already almost half empty. "You'll get sick if you drink so fast."

"Sorry," she grunted. She took a few more sips before giving it back and laid on her back. "Do you think the birds will back soon? They're late this year."

"Yeah, I guess they are." The man shrugged. "I'm sure they'll be back soon."

"That's nice." Rainbow rolled over onto her side. "Why isn't there anyone else here?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, this is a park right?" She gestured to the decrepit remains of the swing set. "Why are we the only people that come here?"

"We saw that nice old lady the other day."

"You mean the one with the weird looking cat? She was on the streets. I meant here, at the park? Why aren't there any other kids around? Where are all the other Pegasi?"

"Other...Pegasi?"

Rainbow nodded. "Don't get me wrong, I love flying, but sometimes it gets kind of lonely without a flying buddy." She looked back to the clouds above. "I wish you had wings."

"Same here. Listen, Dashie, I...I don't know if we'll ever find another another Pegasus and, well, I don't know if it's a good idea for other kids to see you."

"Oh." 

"I'm sorry."

Rainbow brushed aside Robert's apology with a wave of her hoof. "Doesn't matter," she said. "You know what, if we never meet another Pegasus that makes me the most awesome one by default, right?"

"Ha, yeah, I guess..."

"You guess? Please." The filly leaped back onto her feet. "There's nothing cooler than me in the skies. Never has been, never will be. Is ten minutes up yet?"

"No, not yet." Robert shook his head, biting back a chuckle. "It's a good thing you can fly. I don't think we have enough room on the ground for your ego."

"Ha, as if! Wait, what's that suppose to mean?"


*****


"Is this enough?" 

"Almost, I need twenty one hundred for a Dratini."

"You do realize there's more to this game than the Game Corner, right?"

"Hey, if you know an easier way to catch a Dragon-type, I'm all ears," the part-timer grumbled. "The shiny Gyarados doesn't count."

"It can use Dragon Rage, right?"

"Doesn't make it a Dragon."

Robert rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to the old game handheld. "There, two thousand one hundred coins to buy a virtual dragon snake thing. Now will you let me get back to work? Break's over and I need get to my station before the manager catches us."

"Yeah, yeah." The boy took the system and pocketed it. "Hey man, thanks, I owe one. You ever thought about doing this as a living?"

"I don't think the gambling mini game market is very lucrative," Robert deadpanned, tying the straps of his apron. 

"No, I meant real slots, real craps, the works. You know, at a casino."

"Please, don't be ridiculous. I mean, seriously, me, making it big at a legitimate casino? Where would I find one to begin with? Vegas is out of the question."

"Well, you heard about how they're turning those deserted lots into factories, yeah?"

"I've heard the rumors, yes," sighed Robert. 

"Well, the next step is of course casinos."

"Excuse me?"

"Listen, buddy, it's how the economy works. First you have the jobs, then you have the money, then you have to have a system to circulate the money around."

"...commercialism?"

"Nah, communism. But see, this is America so we have casinos instead. Factories first, fixes the economy, people have money, then we gamble it all away. It's the circle of life."

"I...need to get back to work." Robert quickly hurried out the break room, completely unaware of the rapid scratches of a pen against a notepad that were following him.

"Neil, why are you taking notes?"

"Because now it all makes sense."


*****


"Hey, uh, Dashie?"

The Pegasus turned away from the televised car race. She grabbed the remote laying beside her and lower the volume of the laughing sea sponge. "Yeah?"

"I have something to show you. Do you mind coming upstairs?" 

Setting aside the bowl of popcorn, Rainbow leaped off the couch and began to follow Robert up the stairs. She hovered over every few steps when she thought the man wasn't paying attention.

"Dashie, you know the rules. No flying indoors."

With a huff, the filly settled back onto the floor and scurried next to Robert's legs. "What is it?" she asked.

"A surprise. But first close your eyes."

Rainbow tilted her head to the side as she pondered the request. "How am I gonna see where I'm going then?" 

She yelped in surprise as Robert bent down and scoped her into a cradle. "There. Now will you close your eyes?"

The pony considered protesting. She wasn't a baby and didn't need to be carried everywhere. Her curiosity however was stronger than the indignity she felt and though her pride fought valiantly, the desire for the mysterious surprise won out and she closed her eyes. 

"Alright, you can open your eyes."

Rainbow Dash obeyed and looked around. A twin-sized bed complete with mattress and sheets sat in front of her. A few boxes marked in faded marker were pushed against the blue walls. Robert set her down on the bed and stepped back.

"Well, what do you think?"

"Is...is this my new room?"

"Yep and everything in it." He reached into one of the boxes and pulled out a ragged stuffed lion. "This...this is...I can't remember where I got this but it's yours now, if you like. I mean. I know you might be a little too old for these kind of toys but-"

Robert stumbled back as Rainbow tried tackling him. She reached around his neck. 

"Thanks."


*****


"You seem awfully excited today. A brand new trick?"

"Kinda," Rainbow said as she stretched, flapping her wings as a quick warm up. "I've got an idea and that's about it."

"Well, what's this idea?" Robert asked, taking a seat on one for the wooden benches after confirming the lack of splinter. "Come on, don't keep me in the dark."

Rainbow Dash hummed as she tapped her chin. "Hmm...I don't know. It's a surprise after all."

"If you tell me now, I'll buy a great big cake from that new bakery that opened down the street for your birthday."

The pony gasped. "You mean the one with the giant pink cupcake for a sign?"

"The very one. Heck, payday's in a week, maybe we'll grab an ice cream cake this year. Well? Will you at least give me a hint?"

"Hmm...nah." Rainbow smirked and with two beats of her wings, the Pegasus was airborne. "Keep guessing!" she shouted before drawing a few figure eights and zigzagging between the clouds. 

Robert hollered back, throwing a fist into the air as she zoomed overhead. He smiled and cheered as the flying pony bolted across the sky, punctuating every turn with a loop-de-loop. "Do a barrel roll!" he laughed as Rainbow corkscrewed around. Her giggles echoed his. 

He settled back onto the bench and for the moment, simply watched as his little pony race off against forty two incredibly fast flyers. He didn't need to be able to see the others to know just who was in the lead. There was another turn and suddenly Rainbow banked, changing her direction upwards. She climbed higher and higher as one by one, the invisible racers fell behind.

With a hand shielding his eyes from the sun, Robert leaped up and squinted at Rainbow's rapidly shrinking figure. He swallowed and sweated as panic bubbled within him and he opened his mouth to call Rainbow back to the safety of the ground

Even at this distance, he could still hear her laughter, her whoops and joyous shouts. Robert still cried out but no fearful commands or worried pleads were heard. Instead, all he and Dash heard was a cheer, a cry of encouragement, a holler and a hurrah. Like a maniac, Robert had leaped onto the bench and threw his arms up.

"You can do it!" he screamed, not knowing whatever 'it' was. "You can do it, Dashie! You-"

He saw the rainbow before he heard it. His jaw would have fallen if the blast hadn't knocked him off his feet. His ears ring painfully as the loudest boom he had ever experienced washed over him like a wave. It was louder than thunder, louder than any simple old explosion.


*

When an object passes through the air it creates a series of pressure waves in front of and behind it. These waves travel at the speed of sound and as the object's speed grows, the waves are compressed because they cannot get out of each other's way. Eventually they merge into a single shock wave. The explosive sound that results is known as...

*


"A sonic boom," Robert breathed. Laying on his back, he stared up into the color filled sky. "A..." He laughed weakly. "A sonic rainboom." He felt something land softly on his stomach and tilted his head. 

"Did you see that?" Rainbow screamed, punctuating each word with an excited bounce. "Did you see what I did? Did you hear it? That. Was."

"Amazing? Cool? Nice?"

"Ha, try awesome!" She leaped off onto the ground and cheered. "I've gotta try that again. Oh man, that was..." She shook her entire body, much like a child on a sugar high. "I need to do that again!"

"Whoa, hold on there, missy. I think we need to celebrate first."

"Birthdays happen every year," Dash argued. "I have to do that again!"

"Yeah, but cutie marks only come once a life time?"

"Cutie mark?" The Pegasus turned as Robert pointed to her flank. A white cloud with a lightning bolt of yellow, blue, and red stood out like an island in a sea of cyan. "What's that?"

"Your cutie mark," Robert declared proudly, grabbing Rainbow Dash up and spinning her. 

"A what mark?" she asked as Robert stopped and recovered from dizziness.

"You know, a-"

The shouts and the blaring alarms grew louder or perhaps his ears had finally stopped ringing. Whatever the case Robert quickly stuffed the Pegasus under his jacket and ran, ignoring her muffled protests and dodging the broken glass that littered the streets. He ran past a red windowless Toyota that screamed as its lights blinked on and off. He hurried past the bakery with the sign shape like a cupcake. He made his way around the owner, whose mouth hung open and as she examined the damage and calculated just how much her insurance would cover.  

Robert barely had time to close the door behind him before Rainbow ripped through the jacket, gasping for air.

"Can't...breath..." 

"Sorry. I-"

"So...smelly..."

"...I am a little less sorry now." Robert tossed off the ruined coat to the side, shaking his head. His mourning for the loyal hoodie was short lived however as he turned back to the young filly before him. She spun in circles, trying to get a good look at the mysterious symbol on her flank.

"So what is this thing?" Rainbow asked, pointing toward the lightning bolt. "You said it was a..."

"A cutie mark," Robert explained. "It's a sign for, well, special ponies like you that shows the world what their special talent is. It appears when a little filly like you discovers just what that talent is." He leaned down and lightly tapped a finger on Dash's nose. "And I think you can guess what your special talent is and what your cutie mark means."

"It means...I'm good at racing, I'm good at going fast." She grinned. "I'm good at going fast. No, wait, I'm amazing when it comes to speed!" Rainbow Dash tore off into the living room with Robert hurrying behind and leaped into the armchair. "I'm the fastest thing you've ever seen or will ever see!" she shouted, laughing as she hopped.

Robert smiled as she smiled. He couldn't even bring himself to remind Dashie the rules against jumping on furniture. "So, ready to celebrate? I think we've got a few reasons to today."

"Ice cream cake?"

"Ice cream c-oh, wait." The memory of the bakery's condition intruded into Robert's thoughts. "Sorry but I don't think that bakery's going to be in business today."

"What? Are you kidding?"

"And I don't think there's anywhere else opened that sells cakes," he sighed, folding his arms.

"What about doughnuts?" suggested Rainbow. "Doesn't the place you work at sell doughnuts?"

"Oh, no, we are not going to celebrate with just a box of doughnuts."

"...two boxes of doughnuts?"

Robert shook his head as he motioned the Pegasus toward him and headed into the kitchen. "We're going to do this right," he declared, opening one of the cupboards. He reached in and pulled out a small book that would have appeared brand new if it weren't for the fine layer of dust on the cover. "With a cake," Robert said, flipping through the pages. "A delicious, moist, Rainbow Dash-worthy cake." He knelt down and showed Rainbow the picture of a three layered cake, with white frosting in between each layer and a strawberry on top.

Rainbow Dash quickly scanned over the words next to the image. "W-we're gonna make it ourselves?" she asked, wiping away a dribble of drool from her lips.

"Oh yeah."

"Awesome! What do we do first?"

"Says here we need a mixing bowl, some flour...no, not that kind!

"Oh."

"The flour's in the pantry next to you," Robert directed. "We have eggs, butter, I guess we can substitute milk with chocolate milk...there's still some chocolate sauce left so we can use that for frosting, we have sugar, maybe throw in a few M&Ms...nothing we can do about cinnamon, I think the oven still works...Dashie, be careful!"

"Whoa!"

The bag of flour fell to the floor with a loud thud. Powder flew into the air and drifted back down, painting the entire kitchen white. Both he and Rainbow rubbed flour off their faces. Rainbow smiled sheepishly with a blush that was mostly concealed behind her new snowy coat.

"Heh, oops?"


*****


"Ugh, I don't think I feel too good."

"I can't believe you ate all that cake, if that even qualified as a cake."

"Hey, it didn't turn out that bad," Rainbow grumbled as she let herself be lowered onto her bed. "We only burnt half of it. Most of it was still edible."

"I suppose so," Robert said, wiping off the lingering chocolate stains on Rainbow Dash's lips. "At least we had fun."

"Yeah. Um, sorry about, you know, the kitchen."

"The floor needed to be mopped anyways." He pulled away the covers and ushered the filly under them. "I'll finish tidying up downstairs, then be going to bed myself. My door will be unlocked like always so if you need me, just come over alright?"

"Yeah, I got it," she muttered tiredly as Robert tucked her in. "Goodnight Daddy," Rainbow Dash yawned, turning over onto her side. "I love you."

For the second time today, Robert's jaw drop. His eyes blinked several times and he grabbed his wrists to keep his hands from quivering uncontrollable. His mouth shut, then fell open once more. He brought a trembling hand up to cover the gaping portal only to lose control and let it fall back to his side.

At last, the man took a steady breath, much like what Rainbow would often do before taking to the skies, and stopped shaking. He leaned forward, brushing his lips gently against the little pony's forehead.

"Goodnight, my little Dashie," he whispered softly, so softly that Eva and Neil nearly missed it. He got up and put a hand on the light switch. 

"I love you."

Neil's wrist grew warm as soon even the light of a cartoonish nightlight faded away in the darkness.