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Chapter Eight: Resolution
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Twilight Sparkle was asleep with a book under her head inside of her Tree house Library. Spike had brought a blanket for her before he went to his own bed, which he still saw on her as he came down the stairs. She had stayed up all night to try to find a solution to help Rainbow Dash, but she couldn’t find the book she needed.
“I hope Rainbow Dash is alright…” Spike said lowly, to not wake up Twilight. He went over to a window facing a part of Ponyville. Business resumed as normal with ponies continuing their lives but clouds lined the skies. No one had yet found a new Sky Clearer since Rainbow Dash was taken out of commission a week ago. Spike sighed, wondering what could have happened to start all of this. A small ray of sunlight began to shine through the window. Spike had to shield his eyes to block it, but looking out again he could see more sunlight beginning to appear over the town. Other ponies started to look up to the growing blue skies. Spike ran outside to see who it was, but all he saw was a rainbow colored streak. He thought Rainbow Dash had come back, but the streak had a grey outline on the sides of it. More and more of the clouds quickly disappeared as the streak made contact with them. Soon the streak came around and landed near the Library. Rainbow Dash gave her wings another stretch before tucking them back in on her side.
“Looks like I’m still the best at that.” Dash said admiring her own handiwork.
“Rainbow Dash! You’re alright?!” Spike shouted, running to her from the front door, holding a couple of scrolls.
“Oh hey Spike.” Rainbow Dash said, greeting the small dragon. “Is… Twilight still in there?”
"She's sleeping right now. You got out of the hospital early?" Spike asked her, glancing at her wings.
"Yeah, in a way." Rainbow Dash said with a chuckle. "How... How is Pinkie Pie doing?" She asked nervously.
"She's doing great! From what I heard from her yesterday when I visited her she should be out tomorrow." Spike said happily. "She has been asking about wanting to see you but no one could reach you to tell you and from what I heard you were in pretty bad shape for a while."
"Pinkie... wanted to see me?" Rainbow asked, surprised. She looked towards the direction to the hospital.
"Yeah, she was really excited. Let me put these up first and I'll come with you." Spike said as he ran inside to put up the two scrolls, one he sent by fire to Princess Celestia, the other he put aside to send later. When he went back outside, Rainbow Dash was gone.
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"You can see her tomorrow when she is released." A Nurse Pony, diffrent from before but with a similar color, told Rainbow Dash in the reception area. "You cannot enter the hospital with those... whatever they are."
"I can't leave my wings at the counter, they're attached to me!" Rainbow tried to explain, even opening her wings to show her the connection points, but with each wing feather molded to a point now it looked like she was about to attack.
"H... help! Security!" The Nurse Pony, startled, ran off. Instead of looking for more trouble Rainbow left the room and back out into the sunshine. She walked sown the hospital path for a moment before turning around, looking up among the open windows. She streched out her wings, a low chime emmiting from them, and took flight upwards, looking into each and every open window. It was her fourth window that she saw Pinkie's room but the same Nurse Pony from before was in there.
"Why can't I see Rainbow Dash? Is she sick? Is she hurt too?! Did aliens kidnap her!? Oh no! I need to find her!!" Pinkie Pie started rambling on despite the effort the Nurse Pony was making to keep her in the bed.
"I told her you can see her when you leave later today. She just can't enter this building as she is now. Speaking of which, I'll find the doctor to see about your leaving." The Nurse Pony said sternly as she left the room. Pinkie Pie slumped in her bed, her bubblegum pink mane flattened out over her bandaged face. Rainbow Dash took the chance to fly into the room, landing in front of the recovering pony's bed. Pinkie Pie looked up at the new arrival.
"Rainbow... Rainbow Dash!!" Pinkie Pie shouted out her mane puffing up suddenly. She leaped out of the bed and tackled Rainbow Dash ignoring the lingering pain in her legs and torso and ended it with a hug, hanging onto her friend tightly as they both tumbled to the floor. "Are you alright? I was really really worried about you after I heard what Applejack did!"
"I'm fine I'm fine! Let go Pinkie Pie..." Rainbow Dash chuckled, hugging Pinkie back before pushing her back a little so they could get up. It was a little shaky but Pinkie Pie managed to stand on her own. "You really were worried about me?" Rainbow Dash asked Pinkie Pie but Pinkie seemed to be a little distracted with the shiny wings on Dash's back.
"Ooooooo... Did you get an upgrade? They look so awesome. I wish I was a Pegasus so I could get wings like that." Pinkie Pie said excitedly, looking all over her friend's metal wings.
"Do you remember anything that happened that day...?" Rainbow asked her straightforward. Pinkie froze on the spot, her mane deflating once more. She turned away from Rainbow and walked back to her bed.
"Yeah, I remember. I was worried something was going on with you so I made a very special cupcake for you to help you calm down. It was to help you relax because you looked a little stressed about something I didn't know about. I wasn't going to pry into it but... maybe I should have." Pinkie said sadly. Tears started forming in her eyes. "I know you must be mad at me for something... what was it? Why did you do that to me?" Pinkie asked Rainbow, looking directly into her eyes.
"I..." Rainbow started to say why but hesitated. -No.... she needs to know...- Rainbow thought to herself. "I've been having these dreams of you but they weren't nice. You cut me up to make some sort of cupcake you were working on. When I saw that cupcake you said you had made for me, I thought that dream was real and it was happening." As Rainbow Dash was trying to explain Pinkie just sat on the floor and listened, as if Rainbow had come to her for advice. Rainbow Dash began to pace the room. "I thought you were going to do those things to me again so I panicked. I grabbed the nearest weapon I could and I did what I thought I needed to defend myself."
"You really thought... I would do something like that to one of my bestest friends?" Pinkie Pie asked sadly. "You know I can't do something like that. That... ew... " She shook her head in disgust.
"You're... Really not mad at me?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"I can't say I am or not." Pinkie said straightforward. This seemed to be a little out of her nature, but she continued. "You almost killed me when I was only trying to help. I should try to make sure you get banished to the deepest scariest most horrifying forest imaginable. Where bad little ponies go to forever be banished... where so many burn as they try to repent for the actions of the unjust!" Rainbow lowered her head, expecting this. "But... You came to see me still, even after all that's happened."
"If there's anything I can do to help you, just name it. Anything." Rainbow said sternly, walking up to Pinkie so their gaze was met face to face. Pinkie giggled a little.
"You look so cool like that Rainbow Dash." Pinkie Pie said to her. Her mane poofed out once more. "I just want to see those wings so you don't have to be so serious." Being oblivious to her own healing injuries she stayed focused on Rainbow's wings.
"By the way, where did you hear all that banishment stuff from?" Rainbow Dash asked, curiously.
"From this book a blue pony let me borrow. I can't remember his name... was it water, taver, patvier... I don't know, but it is a good book. He said he needed it back a couple of days ago but nevermind that lemme see those new wings!" Pinkie Pie said happily. Rainbow Dash however, felt a little better about everything that's happened and a smile appeared across her mouth despite her mind wandering a little about why Waver would have such a book. In the end she was laughing along with Pinkie Pie so loudly from a joke she was telling that it attracted the attention of a certain Nurse Pony.
"Oh boy." Rainbow Dash said before taking off outside the window, accidentally slicing through the curtains as if it was paper. Pinkie Pie stared in awe as her friend flew out of sight through the sky.
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Rainbow Dash decided to fly down to the Library again. While she was in the air she noticed Applejack and Rarity heading there along with Fluttershy making a straight beeline from the Everfree Forest, crashing into the upper side where it was mostly limbs and leaves. Despite being alright with Fluttershy, she needed to be sure that the rest of her friends didn't resent what she did to Pinkie. She landed near the main door to the treehouse and tucked in her wings carefully, noticing the orange and white ponies shortly thereafter. Rainbow Dash fought off the instinct to run away just as she made eye contact with Applejack, but there wasn't anger in the farm pony's eyes this time.
"Hiya... guys." Rainbow said to the others, trying to attempt to sound like her old self again.
"Hey Rainbow..." Applejack said, not stopping her stride until she was face to face with her. "Ah am sorry about before, with what ah did to ya." She said clearly. "Ah was just so mad about what happened to Apple Bloom ah wasn't thinking straight. Ah know you and you wouldn't do anything to harm her or any filly in Ponyville in your right mind. Can ya see it in your heart to forgive meh?"
"Well..." Rainbow dash looked as if she was debating the answer, her eyes browed. Rarity and Fluttershy were worried for the two, if they could mend their fractured friendship. "I did try that once already and ended up with a wing job..." Rainbow Dash said, turning around so her back was to Applejack. Applejack sighed, hoping an apology would be enough but it's not to be. "Ah.. Ah'll be your servant for a week!" Applejack forced out, catching Rarity by surprise.
"Applejack..." Rarity said, shocked and wide eyed.
"That's not needed." Rainbow said, turning back around. "I just had to think for a moment..." She had a smile on her face. "Starting today, I can have three barrels of apple cider a month. My own personal set and only you can make it."
"Uh... fer how long?" Applejack asked, cocking her head to the side.
"Two years should be enough, one for each wing." Rainbow said casually. Applejack lowered her head for a second in thought then raised it, a determined look to her eyes as she raised a hoof. Rainbow raised her own and tapped it.
"Agreed... is the least ah can do." Applejack said, smiling.
"Rainbow Dash?" Twilight called out from inside. She came to the doorway, seeing her lowering her hoof with Applejack's. "You're already-"
"Yes yes YES, I'm already out of the hospital." Rainbow said with a chuckle. "For now everything's all patched up, right Applejack?"
"Yep, all's well now." She responded.
"That's good." Twilight said, yawning. "Where's Fluttershy?" As if on cue she fell from the upper branches and landed on top of Rarity before she could respond.
"S... Sorry Rarity..." Fluttershy meeped, covered with broken branches. Rarity just laid there stunned while the others got Fluttershy off of her.
End of Chapter 8
FIN
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Extra Chapter: Mission
From around the corner of the grocery store, Lunar Waver smiled, happy that Rainbow was able to reconcile with her friends despite the spike that was wedged between her and them. Behind him a solid green pony with a light green mane and a dark green diamond cutie mark on her flank walked up to him. She looked at him with her aqua green eyes. Her voice contained a hint of royalty to it. "You called for me Eri-?"
"Don't call me that Emerai Glow." Waver said silently, not moving his gaze. "It's Lunar Waver while we're here."
"Sor-ry." She said. "How long do we need to stay here. This form's a bit of a pain for me..."
"You can walk in the sunlight correct?" Waver said.
"There's a diffrence between my sunlight allergy and looking like a donkey..." She growled, but then sighed.
"Any news on... him?" Waver asked her.
"He's hidden himself well. I have learned however that he might be posing as a doctor in this world. I highly doubt he could change his accent, as we couldn't when we came here but so far that's all I know." She explained, shaking her head to move some of her mane from her eyes.
"A doctor huh?" Waver said, thinking. His gaze moved to Rainbow's Wings. "A doctor of what I wonder..." He turned to face Emera. "I might know who he is in this realm. That other blue pony's wings is the key I believe." Waver walked past her, leaving her a little confused. She looked around the same corner.
"Rainbow...? What's a blue colored rainbow got to do with anything?" Emera asked.
"I had guessed, but our target is a master of metal correct?" Emera nodded. "Put the pieces together and you'll see what I mean." Waver stopped moving. "For now, update the others. I think our time here may be fruitful after all." His blue eyes flashed a hazel grey-green for a second. "One second Emerai." She looked back to Waver for a moment. "That one still in the hospital in Canterlot... Apple Bloom. Keep an eye on her. I think 'he' might have something in mind for her." Emera looked over at the weird rainbow pony before moving on herself to find more information. Waver slowly began his walk to the Everfree Forest once more, to learn more about his mission with Zecura's assistance.