//------------------------------// // 28. The Moon and The Sky: Epilogue // Story: Raising Rainbow // by Pizzema Forte //------------------------------// There she was; a broken mare with a shattered heart, resting on her bed in pure internal agony. Her once again shattered heart burned with sorrow. Her heavy head rested on the pillow beneath her, which was drenched in her own tears. In her hooves was another pillow she hugged onto tightly for comfort. Please…Please just make it stop… Please just make all the pain go away…It hurts…so bad. The mare deeply sniffled as tears cascaded down her red cheeks. Her swollen eyes burned under the intense heat of her bedroom lamp. Her heart ached, and had been all that day. Just one night earlier, she’d been on a date with high hopes and a steadily healing heart, but everything was shattered when she was told she wasn’t a big enough bitch. Seriously? The depressed mare cried out in her head. How do I get denied because I’m too nice…? How?! The mare sniffled up some mucus and wiped away some tears with her hoof. Sure, I may not be the prettiest mare, or have the best breath, and I can sometimes be socially awkward when it comes to attractive stallions, but I’m not that bad! I just want…somepony to love me again….I want somepony to think I’m perfect… I want them to love me, cherish me, cuddle me, kiss me, and make me happy… I just want to be happy again. Is that too much to ask…? At that moment, the mare felt more tears gush from her reddening eyes. Her heart thumped soundly and her insides ached. I just want the pain to go away… It was then, the mare heard something completely unexpected. From her living room came three loud taps. Somepony was at her door. Instantly, the mare’s ears stood up erect and her heart skipped a beat. Almost all sadness seemed to evaporate from her at that moment. Who could that be…? Moonstruck? Maybe he came back to apologize for the previous night! Maybe it’s Mr. Skies… I mean, probably not, but…you never know. Oh, I just hope it’s some sweet, dashing, loving stallion to make everything feel better. Or… you know, a distant relative. With a little ounce of hope in her, the mare got up from her comfortable bed and left her room, went down the hall, and then proceeded down her staircase. She quickened her pace every second to make sure her guest didn’t leave or think of her as rude for not answering quickly enough. Soon, her steady trot became a gallop as she raced down the stairs. From the bottom of the staircase, Mrs. Skies trotted down her hallway, and into the living room. When she was mere feet away from the door, another series of knocks came. "I'm coming! I'm coming!" Ugh, freaking impatient ponies! Not even taking a moment to look through the peep hole, the mare wrapped her hoof around the doorknob and swung opened her front door, only to be greeted by- “Rainbolt…” With a nervous grin, the stallion dug his hoof into the cloud base beneath him. “Yeah…” “What in the name of Celestia could be so damn important, that you couldn’t even wait to get to work to tell me? I mean, it’s eleven at night! This is your day off! Go home and make spaghetti with the kid or something!” A bit angry and annoyed, the mare then proceeded to slam her front door closed, leaving her employee out in the cool, night air. Instead of angrily storming away like Rainbolt wished to, he sighed and put a hoof to the mare’s door, giving it another knock. “Ma’am… I know you’re upset… I heard you crying in your office yesterday evening…” To that statement, Mrs. Skies went agape and frowned a bit, embarrassed to have had her weaknesses show. “I just wanted to let you know that I understand what you’re going through, and there’s no need to be ashamed about it.” The stallion cleared his throat and continued to speak through the door. “When Firefly first broke my heart, I was devastated. I felt awful, hated everything and everypony, and took my anger out on innocent targets.” Rainbolt felt tears in his own eyes. “I-I don’t know what you need to get over this, but I thought I could provide you with some company or something to help you…” There was then a moment of silence. Mrs. Skies was on the inside, laying there and listening. For a moment, she didn’t reply. She simply stared off into space and continued to feel sorry for herself. She then heard the stallion on the opposite side of the door let out a breath and continue on. “Listen… I know the past few times I’ve offered my help, you’ve completely denied it, and you can again, but…” There was a brief pause and some rustling noises beyond the door. “I’m leaving you some comfort food at your door to help you through it… I’ll just, you know stand out here for a minute so you can make up your mind.” Again, there was nothing but silence. Sunny felt tears reinvade her swollen eyes. “R-Rainbolt…?” From the other side of the door, Rainbolt pressed his ear against it. “Yes, ma’am?” His response didn’t come verbally, but with the opening of the nearby door, which almost made the stallion fall. He looked his depressed boss in the eyes and smiled softly. She, however, didn’t smile back. “What’d you’d bring me?” she asked in a very quiet tone. Rainbolt’s smile became more genuine as he shoved the dark blue gift bag towards the heartbroken mare. Raising an eyebrow, Mrs. Skies brought the bag closer to her and took out a rumpled sheet of tissue paper. She gasped at the item inside and pulled it out. The item was a good sized, brown box with a pink ribbon around it. The mare looked up at Rainbolt with an almost confused expression. Across the top, the box read El Charco: An Arrangement of Supreme Chocolates. “Why’d you…get me this?” Rainbolt blushed. “It’s umm… the same thing I used to binge on when Firefly broke up with me,” he admitted, still smiling. “I know you may not have the exact same taste in comfort food, but it was worth a shot. Most ponies don't complain when they get chocolate, though...” Mrs. Skies, for a moment, simply looked down at the chocolate, then up at Rainbolt with an agape frown. Slowly, the frown formed into a smile, and tears of joy fled into her eyes. “B-Bolty…this is so, so sweet…. Why would you-? How could you-? I mean, I this is just…” Having troubles verbally expressing her gratitude, the mare simply wrapped her hooves around the stallion with no warning. He was a bit taken back, but accepted the hug anyway and even gave her a few reassuring pats on her back. “It’s okay… I know how you feel… I’m sorry about all this…” In that moment, the mare felt happy in the hooves of another, and it made her heart soften like butter. Her eyes closed as comfort surrounded her. This…This is just what you needed. All you needed was somepony to comfort you. Why didn’t you accept this before…? You really were a bitch... Shooing away her guilt, the mare got comfortable in the hooves of her employee and rested her head on his shoulder. For the first time, she accepted all the comfort with no guilt or shame, and actually felt very comfortable. This is nice…this is so, so nice… For the longest moment, both ponies said absolutely nothing. They just remained in the comforting position for another long moment. “Rainbolt…?” Mrs. Skies asked after a good minute of calming down. “Yes?” “Why’d you do this for me…?” Rainbolt rolled his eyes and smiled at her question. “I’ve already answered that more than once. I know how you’re feeling…and, well, I just want to provide you with the comfort I wish I could have had...” It was at that moment Sunny felt herself tearing up at the stallion’s statement. “But I treated you really…bad at times…” “I know… but that’s when you need me the most…” It was then, the stallion broke away. “Listen, ma’am, I always fully respected you as my boss, but I also respect you as a pony. That’s why I was so persistent… I know what it all felt like, and…I just didn’t want to see it happen to you, too… You’re kind of like family to me, and I don’t like seeing you down.” “Thanks… That means a lot…” “Anytime. Just know I’m here when you need comfort. It’s not something I’m always the best at, but I try…” He smiled. “Just let me know if you need anything…” “Okay…” She sniffled. “Thank you so, so much…” “You’re welcome.” Mrs. Skies didn’t respond, but awkwardly shuffled her hoof in the cloud layer below. Her blue eyes looked up at the full moon above. She looked back to Rainbolt, who was becoming slowly uncomfortable with the silence. “I think… I should be going… It’ll be a long day tomorrow, and I really should be getting to bed.” “Oh, no problem!” Rainbolt smiled. “I’m just happy I get to sleep in tomorrow!” The thought of sleep in the moment made the stallion yawn. “Lucky!” She said with a smile and giggled. “Well… I’ll be going.” The mare turned around and went into her house, and watched as her comforter walked away and prepared to take off into the night sky. A sudden urge formed in her stomach that didn’t cease easily. She stood at her doorway and watched as the stallion unfurled his wings. It was then she knew she couldn’t let him get away. “Wait, Rainbolt!” Almost immediately, the stallion stopped in his tracks and turned his attention to the mare. “Yeah?” “Could you come here?” Rainbolt hesitated, but slowly put back his wings and trotted towards the mare in curiosity. “What do you need?” “Come here.” The mare pointed towards the spot in front of her. The stallion started to feel uncomfortable as he obeyed his boss' order. When he was in the spot she’d asked him to be in, she instantly wrapped her hooves around him, leaned in, and unexpectedly pressed her lips against his. Rainbolt’s face instantly lit up a dark shade of crimson as the familiar sensation took place. For the first time in ten years, Rainbolt felt the soft massage of somepony else's lips against his. As spontaneously as she’d started the kiss, she ended it with a smile. “You have a nice evening, okay?” “U-Umm…. O-okay. You too, ma’am…” With no more words, the mare closed her front door, leaving Rainbolt confused and a little embarrassed. Well, umm…that happened.