//------------------------------// // ... And Six Feet Under // Story: When Rainbows Cry // by well_thishappened //------------------------------// Please read this chapter while listening to this song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkHTYoli5kw Rainbow leaned over the edge smiling widely, but her excitement descended into confusion, for instead of seeing Scootaloo flying, she was flailing about. Or so she thought. All that she could see was a small blur of falling orange with the occasional magenta streak. As fate would have it, right as Rainbow opened her mouth to call out to her, the sun started to darken. Looking up she saw that a solar eclipse had begun, and rather rapidly at that. Half covered, blink, three quarters covered, blink, nine tenths covered, blink, darkness. Rainbow attempted to create as big a gap as possible from her and the edge. Feeling something like a rock, she grabbed it, but soon she too found herself falling, a string of curse words pouring out of her mouth quicker than the speed she was falling. Remembering that at least she could fly, Rainbow opened her wings and started flapping steadily. By now the sun was coming out mor-- THUD! Rainbow felt the ground beneath her. A foul taste attacked her mouth. Her ears were ringing and her vision was blurry. But being the well trained flier that she was she shook most of it away. A small orangey red blob lay on the ground, small throaty groans coming from it, and her memories returned from their short trip. "Scoota--," Rainbow coughed into her hoof, a thick crimson goo dripping down it, enveloping her chin, snaking down her neck following her veins, staining them red. She took a slow, shaky step forward, and then another, and another, and another, and another, and another, and another... It seemed she was getting nowhere. Looking behind her she saw a smeared trail of gooey crimson. By now the liquid that was tracing her veins was dripping off her, right by her heart. She saw behind her the figure of a pony with rainbow hair, cyan blue fur, and a thunder cloud shooting out a rainbow lightning bolt for a cutie mark. Smiling, its eyes black and dripping with blood, its mouth drooling with red-stained saliva. It took a step towards her; its grin grew. Slowly it opened its mouth, a dripping tongue licking its teeth, smearing bloody spit over a yellowed smile. It croaked something inaudible, and as it grew closer it started to sing: "Come little children I'll take you away into a land of enchantment, Come little children the time's come to play here in my garden of shadows. Follow sweet children I'll show you the way, Through all the pain and the sorrow." Rainbow was transfixed. She had completely forgotten the potential carcass that lay silent behind her. "Weep not poor children for life is this way, Murdering beauty and passion. Hush now dear children for it must be this way, To weary of life and deceptions." The sirenesque pony now loomed over her, its gaping holes for eyes parallel with hers, its tongue slithering out of its mouth, like a snake stalking its prey. "Rest now my children for soon we'll away, Into the calm and the quiet. Come little children I'll take the away, Into a land of enchantment." Its tongue coiled around her neck, licking the blood that was now dried and brown. It followed the dry stream down to her legs, and once back at her neck, it wrapped itself around, slowly retracting, dragging itself closer to Rainbow. "Come little children the times come to play, Here in my garden of shadows..." Its mouth opened like a feeding python's, and the blackness returned. An unconscious pony lay on the ground. Rainbow gasped as she shot up, pain shooting through her spine and neck. She couldn't see the creature. In fact she could barely see anything, as the eclipse was still in full swing, but she could still faintly hear a sweet serene voice singing in the back of her head. Running, she covered the gap between her and the possibly deceased Scootaloo. Seeing the slow, jittery rise and fall of Scootaloo's chest calmed her racing heart. "Scootaloo? I-I thought you said you could fly." It sounded a lot more heartless than she'd intended. "Ar-Are you alright?" Now that Rainbow was actually speaking she realised just how scared she was. "Ugh-Ucgh-huh" was all that came out. The realisation finally hit. Scootaloo was dying, and it was her fault. The sound of crying filled the air. Then a noise that sounded as quiet as the wind blowing "I'm sorry Rainbow, I'm so sorry!" That's when it all added up: riding the scooter, not flying, not knowing about dangerous rocks, and now...this. "Why, if you couldn't fly, why didn't you just tell me?" "I-I-I wanted you to be proud of me, until I told you that I could fly, I was just a little filly that you allowed to hang out with you. But once I told you I could fly, you treated me like your sister." Scootaloo strained, though it came out more as a faint whisper. "Scootaloo..." Rainbow choked out, her voice muffled with tears. "My only regret is lying to you. So long Squirt, I'm just gonna take a quick nap." The whispers died down until there was nothing more than a faint release of a filly's final breath. Blink, completely covered sun, still Scootaloo. Blink, nine tenths covered sun, still Scootaloo. Blink, five sevenths covered sun, still Scootaloo. Blink, three quarters covered sun, still Scootaloo. Blink, two thirds covered sun, still Scootaloo. Blink, half covered sun, still Scootaloo. Blink, one quarter covered sun, still Scootaloo. Blink, uncovered sun, still Scootaloo. Blink, uncovered sun, still Scootaloo. Blink, uncovered sun, still Scootaloo. Blink, uncovered sun, still Scootaloo. Blink, uncovered sun, still Scootaloo. Blink, uncovered sun, still Scootaloo. Blink, uncovered sun, still Scootaloo...