Out of the Blue
Chapter 11
Five mares, three fillies, and one dragon sat in the Ponyville Hospital waiting room, anxiously awaiting the doctor's report on their friend. Each had brought some source of entertainment or comfort, but the tension in the room was so thick you could almost feel it.
"Twilight, do be a dear and stop that horn of yours from flashing. I'm trying to knit something here so do stop. Honestly, darling, every time you summon a new book from that inter-dimensional pocket of yours, I drop a stitch."
Twilight was reading up on magical healing spell for broken bones, but she couldn't find any good spells that suited her purpose and were not too powerful for even her. She was too focused to acknowledge that the frazzled white unicorn had just been rather rude.
"I'm fine. If you need a book, Spike can get it off the shelf for you with his ladder, and you can write down your library identification number for him to enter into the database."
Rarity sighed. Fluttershy, who had been playing with her pet bunny Angel's tail, noticed this and slid over on the couches to attempt to comfort her.
"Um, excuse me, Rarity?"
Rarity grumbled something unintelligible. Spike, who was sitting next to the unicorn and attempting to shield her eyes from Twilight's spell, relayed what she had said to the timid mare.
"She said 'do be a dear and let me finish this row', or something like that." He told her.
"Um, okay."
Rarity finished up the row she was working on and turned to the pegasus with a nasty remark at the ready. However, upon realizing whom had approached her, she swallowed it and tried to be pleasant.
"Whatever do you need, Fluttershy?"
Fluttershy scuffed a hoof on the smooth marble floors.
"I wanted to tell you, I really do like your scarf project. I know how to sow but not how to knit. You see, when I was a just little filly, my mother Posey was always doing crafts. She showed me how to work the sewing machine and I was fine because it meant I never had to touch a needle, but I was far more frightened of the knitting needles because they seemed so big, and then..."
Rarity gaped as the usually taciturn pegasus began babbling nonsense. That was a behavior more typical of Pinkie Pie. She gently placed a hoof on her mouth, and then she realized why she wasn't quite herself. Although the shy yellow pony was usually a bit of a crybaby... Her eyes were extra shiny and glazed over.
"Fluttershy, sweetness, are you alright?"
The yellow mare began shivering with quiet and demure little tremors and sobs.
"It's- I just- I don't wanna lose my oldest friend... A-a-and... And I don't want her to lose her dream either and now... Now- now she's all hurt!"
Rarity held her friend close and allowed her to cry into her chest.
"THAT'S IT!! IF THAT COWARDLY MEANIE-MEAN WONDERBOLT MCGRUMPYPANTS BITCH SHOWS HER FACE AGAIN I'M GONNA RIP HER APART!!!"
Everypony present gaped at the unlikely source of the outburst- Pinkie Pie.
"Now now sugarcube, y'all take it easy now, alright? It's okay..." Applejack simultaneously restrained and tightly hugged the furiously struggling party mare.
"No!! That Spitfire is such an awful pony! Look what she's done to my friends! Dashie is hurt and has to put her dream on delay, and that makes Flutters even more internally conflicted than she already was about her FILLYHOOD FRIEND either giving everything she EVER dreamed for up for the sake of her friends because having her dream job since... Since how long again? A LONG TIME, THAT'S HOW LONG!!!"
Pinkie's mane and tail fell flat as she too began to cry.
The Cutie Mark Crusaders had remained in their own little world, huddled together wordlessly up until that point... But now they were scared. If this situation made Pinkie Pie cry, then it was definitely not to be taken lightly.
"Ugh, I'm never gonna get drunk... Never ever..." Scootaloo muttered, feeling a bit nauseous. She didn't acknowledge the tears that fell from her face, nor did her friends.
Sweetie Belle shuddered.
"Yeah... It's only a drink, but it can make a pony want to attack others."
Apple Bloom remained silent.
Suddenly, all waiting room mayhem ceased at the creak of a door opening. A red coated stallion with a white mane poked his head out of the door, and the ponies and dragon eagerly waited to hear the status of their loyal pegasus friend.
"Hello, I am Dr. Crimson Breeze. I'm the local expert on wing anatomy and treatment and I have been assisting Doctor Stables with the recovery of Miss Dash. Oh my- is everypony quite alright? You all look unwell. Is there anything I can help with?"
The stallion had barely finished speaking when three fillies scrambled up to him, speaking at the same time.
"Is Rainbow gonna be A-OK, Mister Doctor Guy?" Apple Bloom wanted to know.
"Yeah mister, is Rainbow Dash gonna die?" Sweetie Belle asked with wide eyes.
"No, dummy, she's just a little banged up. Not even Spitfire could take Dash down. She's the coolest pony EVAR!!" The pegasus filly chirped.
"Why am I the dummy? You don't sound worried about her, Scoots!"
"Enough you two, quit ridiculin' an' fightin' each other an' stuff, it won't get us nowhere!" Apple Bloom snapped tiredly.
"We aren't ridiculing each other!" Sweetie and Scootaloo both responded simultaneously.
"Yeah, we were only having a friendly debate. In which insults are thrown." The spunky pegasus filly added for good measure.
Apple Bloom facehooved. "Sometimes, Ah swear y'all are hopeless. Ridiculin' means teasing or makin' fun of somepony."
"What are you, a dictionary?!" Scootaloo yelled, causing Sweetie to giggle.
Apple Bloom and Scootaloo glared at her, and she took off running, closely followed by her fellow crusaders in a chase around the waiting room.
Twilight took a good look at the scene that had unfolded and resisted the urge to burst into laughter.
"Um, is she alright?" She inquired.
"Yeah, and can we see her?" Spike followed up.
The stallion was a bit dumbfounded at the fillies' behavior, but after all, professionalism is important, so he opted to speak to the purple unicorn.
"Your friend Rainbow Dash is quite alright, she'll awaken soon- from her anesthesia- she required a couple of stitches. Her stallion is in there with her already, so we can only allow one other visitor at a time- seeing as he won't even let go of her hoof, let alone leave her bedside."
The worried mares and dragon exchanged glances with each other. One by one, everyone's gazes fell on Fluttershy, who couldn't help feeling nervous from the stares.
Rarity gestured towards the timid pegasus. "Fluttershy, you go in first. You've known Rainbow longest, after all."
"Oh, somepony else can go before me... I really really don't mind at all." She said.
Applejack shook her head, her tail flicking impatiently. "Sugarcube, y'all go first. Y'all two've known each other since before y'all were even in your first year of flight school!"
"Oh, well, um, if you insist... But I don't want to claim dibs just because I've known her the longest, it's not fair. Can't we just all squeeze in?"
Fluttershy then began to create the saddest face anypony had ever seen in the history of Equestria. One of her ears drooped down in pure disappointment while the other remained slightly more perked in a hopeful and pleading matter. Her lower lip curled out and began to tremble ever so slightly, and her eyes were so sad.
Dr. Breeze managed to mostly maintain his professionalism, but then the three fillies caught on and stopped their chase, imitating the shy pegasus mare.
"Oh, alright, but be quiet and don't over-excite the poor dear." The stallion said, surrendering to the request.
When they all solemnly filed into the boring hospital room, they found Rainbow Dash lying in the bed, unconcious, and with a troubled look on her face. She squirmed constantly in her artificially induced sleep, muttering under her breath and whimpering.
Soarin was sitting on his haunches at her bedside, clutching her hoof firmly in one of his own. His face was obscured by the shadow from his hair, but tears glimmered on his cheeks as a token of the pain he felt from having been betrayed by one of his closest friends.
He came to his senses at the creak of the door. Hastily, he used his free hoof to wipe his cheeks.
"Oh, uh, hey ladies."
Spike grumbled to himself.
"Oh, and Spike also, sorry dude. Um, I think she'll be awake soon."
Almost as soon as he said this, she fidgeted a little bit, and opened the eye that wasn't awfully swollen.
"H-hey guys," she said, grinning.
Everypony broke into smiles at the sight of the happy pegasus mare. The friends all visited with her until Dr. Stables and Dr. Breeze told them they had to go home, as visiting hours were over.
They said their farewells, promising they'd come back tomorrow. Only Soarin stayed behind, preferring sleeping in the other cot in the room to going home. He glanced at her, and wondered why she seemed apprehensive.
"Hey, you okay? Do you hurt anywhere?" He asked her.
"N-not really, I'm just... I've been having odd dreams lately. I relive my parents' splitting up, my father's death later that year, and then there are the nightmares where I keep reliving my fight with Spitfire and I- I just feel so bad that I caused her pain... I stole you a-and that's not right, but what she did wasn't either and-"
He silently climbed onto the hospital bed with her, trying not to disturb the IV tube that kept her hydrated while she was out. He held the trembling mare close to him, in his arms, and he gently stroked her hair, talking in a soothing voice into her ear.
"Dashie, you can go to sleep now. I'm here and I won't let you have nightmares. You've relived enough of the past and you deserve some peace, so I'll stay here with you."
She snuggled up close to him, and drifted off into a finally-peaceful slumber.
-----------
The next morning, the two pegasi were barely rubbing the sleep out of their eyes when there was a knock on the door.
"Come in," Rainbow Dash said sleepily, hardly understandable through a thick yawn.
A nurse timidly pushed the door open.
"Rainbow, you've got a visitor, but I wanted to ask if you were alright with that since it's so early..."
She glanced at Soarin.
"I guess it's fine, I mean, the damage is done. We're awake." She said to the nurse.
"Alright, I'll go let her know." With that, she left to retrieve the mysterious guest.
A few minutes later, there was another knock.
"Come in." Rainbow said.
The door slowly creaked open to reveal a golden-yellow pegasus mare with tearful orange eyes, a mane like fire, and a fireball cutie mark.
Rainbow gasped and began shaking, afraid the fierce Wonderbolt was back for more. But the golden pony didn't seem like that was what she came here for. She brushed a stray clump of flame hair out of her eyes, and, bowing her head slightly, she tried to speak.
She never got the chance to.
"Spitfire." It was Soarin, livid beyond belief.
"I-"
"Why did you come here?!"
She lowered her head even further. "I- I only wanted to tell Rainbow Dash that-"
"You don't get to say her name. You don't even get to talk to her after what you did. You shouldn't even be allowed in the same room!" He yelled furiously.
Rainbow tried to stop him, but he was on a roll.
"You broke her wing and beat her up because you were so pettily jealous of her that you went and had too much to drink. I'd thought you'd changed at the academy, but you betrayed my trust. What do you have to say for yourself?!"
Spitfire fell onto her haunches, hanging her head miserably. Her shoulders shook with sobs as she felt like the guilt had pierced her chest and now his interpretation was salt being drizzled slowly into the wound.
"I- I was just- I felt so bad that I let you go! I was just another stupid teenaged filly, scared to be the one losing... So I built up some fake problem to make our breakup your fault, but I would be the heroic filly who was to be pitied because she was mistreated by 'that jerk', but... I realized my mistake, and now I've lost you."
Soarin felt his anger drain away. She had made some bad choices, but after all, Spitfire was his oldest friend. He was still disappointed, and felt that she needed to feel the pain for her actions. He made no move to comfort the sobbing mare.
"I- I'm so sorry! I'm so really very sorry!!" She sobbed uncontrollably.
When it finally died down a little bit, she felt somepony's hoof on her back. Glancing up, the tear-soaked mare's eyes widened. Rainbow Dash had pulled out her IV tube, gotten out of her bed, and limped over.
----------meanwhile somewhere in Equestria------------
Pinkie Pie cheerfully woke up as the bright rays of Celestia's sun beamed through her window, filling her room with golden light.
"Woooohoooo! After I'm done watching the twins and covering my shift, I get to go see Dashie!!" She chirped as she bounced happily down the stairs.
The pink party mare had just sat down at a table with a basket of scones, muffins, and danishes when she began trembling and shaking uncontrollably.
"W-w-o-OOO--ooa-ah! N-n-n-o-t th-i-i-ss agaaaaaain!!!"
----------meanwhile back at the ranch... I mean hospital------------
"I forgive you."
The yellow pegasus was astonished, as was Soarin.
"Huh?" She gaped.
"I said, I forgive you." Rainbow repeated.
"But... But I hurt you so badly because I felt jealous over such a petty thing and I drank too much and let myself lose control!"
"Doesn't matter. I hurt you too, even if I didn't do it intentionally."
Spitfire was moved to tears. "Thank you, Rainbow Dash- thank you so much for your forgiveness..."
Rainbow wrapped her hooves around the crying mare as a gesture of comfort.
--------beep beep beep (Pinkie Pie radar)------------
Pinkie Pie was trying her very super duper hardest to get to the hospital without spilling the basket of goodies she was bringing Rainbow Dash.
Slowly but surely, she worked her way there.
"F-f-i-i-i-n-a-l-l-l-yyyyyyyy!!" She said brightly as she opened the door.
She froze mid-spasm and came crashing to the floor.
Rainbow looked at the source of the noise.
Soarin and Rainbow exchanged looks.
Soarin raised an eyebrow. Why the fuck is Pinkie Pie paralysed on the floor of the hospital room?!
Rainbow's mouth formed a curious frown. Beats me, it's just Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie I suppose.
They shrugged, and Rainbow turned back to Spitfire.
"I need to get back to the HQ, so I'll be off in a sec," Spitfire told her.
They reached in for one more friendly hug, and then she took off out the window.
Cuz, ya know, why not?
---------later that same day------------
Soarin helped his fillyfriend exit the hospital, relieved she had been released.
As soon as the pair stepped out the door, a whirlwind of confetti blew by and caught the surprised pegasi, who quickly became dizzy.
By the time they were functional again, it was long over.
"I'd bet my flank that was Pinkie." Rainbow grumbled to her coltfriend.
Rainbow hung her head a bit in exasperation, and as she did so, something fell off of her head. It was a neon pink envelope with sparkly balloon stickers. Soarin felt on his head too, and sure enough, there was one for him as well.
Upon opening his, he found a simple written invitation inviting him to a party at Golden Oaks Library, then asking him not to tell 'Dashie' what his card said should he read his first.
She opened hers.
"SURPRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIISE!!!!!!!" Pinkie popped her head out of the pink invitation envelope. "Hiya Dashie!"
Rainbow shrieked loudly. "EEEEEEEEEEEEK!!!!! PINKIE PIE?!"
Rainbow dropped the envelope on the ground and jumped up into the air.
"Ouuuuch! That hurt, why didja have to drop me?" She began wriggling her way out of the envelope until it finally burst in a puff of sparkles and confetti.
"Wheeeee! That was fun! So were you surprised? Were ya? Were ya? Huh huh HUH?" She bounced up and down excitedly.
Rainbow was frozen in midair, unable to do anything but flail her limbs everywhere make choking and gurgling noises.
Soarin nudged the bouncing party mare.
"Um... Pinkie? I think you just broke Rainbow Dash."
"Yep!"
---------even later that same day------------
The party was great, as any Pinkie-party will be. The decorations were beautiful... Well, there was the giant banner that read "Welcome to the Dashie-got-out-of-the-hospital-because-she's-20%-cooler-and-heals-super-duper-fast-and-managed-to-make-up-with-and-befriend-the-pony-who-beat-her-to-a-pulp-the-other-day-at-a-bar Party", courtesy of Pinkie Pie.
The guests had mostly left, and now only Twilight, Spike, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Soarin, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, and Fluttershy remained. They lay on a rug in front of the fireplace, chatting the night away... Except for a certain blue mare who found her mind wandering towards the earlier events of the day.
"Rainbow, dear, you seem awfully... Subdued." Rarity said nonchalantly, though clearly she was begging for the latest gossip.
Rainbow tried to deny it, but eventually told her friends what had happened.
"-and then I just felt... So sympathetic all of a sudden. I went right from hating her guts for breaking my wing and accusing me of stealing him when she gave him up to feeling so bad for her. Something snapped and I actually hugged her, and we're friends now, so... Yeah." She lamely finished.
She was awaiting a response for a while, seeing as this shocked most of her friends into silence.
"You actually forgave that mare? Pardon me, darling, but that seems ridiculous after what she did to you." Rarity was the first to voice her opinion.
Rainbow Dash was hesitant to defend her new friend, mostly because she wasn't sure she had done the right thing.
"Well... I dunno, there were some misunderstandings, and although this by no means makes her actions okay, it certainly changes things. I normally hold grudges for way longer than I ought to, but suddenly I knew where she was coming from. And I realized that despite the fact that bad ponies can make bad choices, bad choices don't have to make bad ponies, so I gave her a helping hoof. Something to be happy about in her darkest time."
Twilight nodded, smirking at the pegasus as she scribbled something on a scrap of paper, then duplicated it with her magic. She found some plastic wrap and wrapped two cupcakes- one with white and yellow swirled frosting and one with blue and purple, and packaged them up with one of the notes she wrote. Spike sent the box along.
"Yaaaaay! Now the princesses can party too!!!" Pinkie got up and jumped up and down on the pillows.
Everypony laughed at her silly antics. Twilight leaned over to Rainbow and hoofed over the copy of the note, whispering a quiet "thanks" and remarking that it'd been quite a long time since she'd sent a friendship letter to her mentor.
She hugged her friend in response.
When the party was truly over, and everypony split ways, Rainbow Dash found herself in quite a pickle.
They were walking down the front path to the library when all of a sudden, Rainbow exclaimed quite loudly. "SHIT!"
Soarin quickly looked her over. "Ohmygod Dashie! Are you okay?!"
She waved his concerns off with her hoof. "Yeah yeah, I'm fine, but I literally just remembered."
He looked at her curiously.
"I just realized, that we're pegasi, and-"
"Well no shit, Sherlock." Soarin snarked.
"And we live in the sky."
Her coltfriend facehooved.
"And furthermore," Rainbow continued, "I can't fly."
"Oh... Right. Yeah..."
Rainbow glanced at her special somepony. A quick assessment proved that he wasn't in any condition to be flying. He'd barely slept while she was in the hospital, and judging from the permanent coloring of his cheeks and his slightly different than usual attitude, he'd had more than his fair share of the punch.
He'll offer to carry me, which would be sweet, but unlike the last time, he's the drunk one. He might not even make it home by himself at this rate. Yep-we are sooooo totally fucked. With that in mind, I'd better find us a place to crash at.