Ciderholic

by twilightsparkle3562


Confronting Rainbow Dash

Chapter 4

"Confronting Rainbow Dash"

Rainbow Dash could hardly believe what was happening to her. One moment, she was hiding in her room with a bad source of therapy and the next she was in the office of her idol and superior with her friends also in on the action.

"What are you all doing here?" demanded Rainbow Dash, who was now becoming hostile. "I've told you once and I've told you a hundred times, for pony's sake. I will not give up the alcoholic cider."

"Stop it, Rainbow Dash!" snapped Twilight, slamming her left front hoof down onto the ground. "Listen to yourself! This is not the Rainbow Dash that would be there for her friends at the speed of light. We care about you and don't want to see you ruin yourself!"

Rainbow Dash jumped at the sound of her friends' voice. Twilight would normally get angry, but this was a different side of Twilight that she had never seen before. Even Applejack was also starting to show her dark side as well. After all, she was the one who would provide Rainbow Dash her family's cider, the cider that she always drank.

"You should be ashamed of yourself, Rainbow Dash," thundered Applejack, glaring at her. "I know you love cider, but there are two different kinds of cider. The cider that is good for you and the cider that is bad for you. I can't imagine what it is like for the most loyal pony in Ponyville to drive herself to this level of depression. How do you think that Tank would feel if he woke up in the spring to see you like this?"

Hearing the name of her pet tortoise made Rainbow Dash think long and hard about the situation that she was in now. Everything that she had done up to that point was about Tank, trying to keep him awake by preventing an entire season from coming to Ponyville by breaking into the weather factory and destroying everything that Pegasus ponies like her work hard on for an entire year.

"I…I…" stuttered Rainbow Dash, who was starting to cower. "I think he would be upset about it. I mean, after the situation with Gilda, I always wanted one friend that I could turn to in my times of despair. When Tank hibernated, I had nothing to turn to, nothing! How would you feel if something so valuable to you was lost?"

"We would remember the good times that we've had with it," said Applejack, firmly. "But Tank didn't die, Rainbow Dash. Everything you have done had made it seem to us like Tank was dying, but he didn't. He just went to sleep for the winter and you were just too blind to see that."

Rainbow Dash then turned over from Applejack's attention towards Fluttershy who had tears forming in her eyes. Seeing Fluttershy like this was making Rainbow Dash think long and hard about the situation that she had put herself in. She was in denial about Tank and would do anything to keep him from hibernating. But, it seemed that she cared more about keeping Tank by her side than allowing a part of Equestria's cycle from taking place.

"We all worry about you, Rainbow," said Applejack, taking her hat off. "There are better ways to cope with situations like this. It's not easy, but it's a part of life in Equestria. We know that when winter comes, it comes and there is nothing we can do about it."

"Besides," added Rarity, stepping next to Applejack. "What would Scootaloo think if she heard that the pony she admired was drinking herself to shame? It's a good thing that she is not here to see you in this condition!"

Hearing Scootaloo's name caused Rainbow Dash's heart to sink like a rock. After all, Scootaloo was the one who had the most inspiration and faith in Rainbow Dash. Scootaloo was the one who wanted Rainbow Dash to be like a big sister to her and Rainbow Dash obliged to take her under her own wing. Rainbow then walked over to a mirror and looked at herself in the mirror, seeing her rainbow colored mane all frazzled, her face drooped and her eyes red as a cherry.

"What have I become?" she thought to herself, closing her eyes and trying to prevent herself from crying. "Why have I decided to act so foolish and let winter come as it is?"

Rainbow Dash then sat down on the floor and lowered her head, shedding tears from her red eyes. It was at this moment that a major breakthrough had taken place and everypony in the office could see that Rainbow Dash was finally getting the message of what she had done.

"It's all right, Rainbow Dash," said Fluttershy, consoling her friend with tears in her eyes. "I know it's hard, but you have to let go of Tank for a few months. He'll be back, you wait and see. In fact, when winter wrap up comes, I will let you be the one to wake him up from his sleep. But please, I beg you, don't do this to yourself ever again! We love you and can never live with ourselves if anything were to happen to you!"

At that moment, Fluttershy threw herself onto Rainbow Dash and the two pegasi cried their hearts out while everypony else watched. Soon Rarity and Pinkie Pie also joined in, not bearing to see Fluttershy cry and that it was heart wrenching to see anypony cry.

"I'm only crying on the inside, Twilight," said Applejack, lowering her hat over her eyes. "So, don't get any ideas."

Twilight then decided to let Rainbow Dash alone with the other ponies as she, Applejack and Spitfire stepped out of the office, shutting the door behind them and leaving them inside.

"I hope Rainbow Dash realizes that all we did was for her own good," said Spitfire, taking in a heavy sigh. "She's more than just a wonderbolt to me, Princess Twilight, she's like an inspiration to me as I was to her."

"She's an inspiration to all of us, Spitifre," replied Twilight, still hearing the noises of crying coming from the other side. "I just hope she realizes that in time, she will make the right decisions when it comes to coping."