It was a particularly gloomy Monday afternoon. It was supposed to rain all day, which caused the light to not reach the small town of Ponyville easily. Rainbow Dash was lying on her couch, enjoying an afternoon nap. She couldn't sleep on a cloud, otherwise she would get wet. A knock at the door awoke her from her tranquility. She poked her head up as the knock was heard again, this time a little louder.
"Coming..." Rainbow Dash grumbled. She had a feeling that the visitor would be another weather pony; telling her the old, "get off your lazy butt and help with the weather", but instead, somepony very familiar was there. It was Scootaloo. The rain had soaked her mane, causing it to be lower on her face. It was unmistakable that she was upset.
"Come in, Scoots!" Rainbow said as Scootaloo silently walked in.
"Hey, Rainbow."
Rainbow Dash sat on the couch, a little upset she couldn't curl up and sleep. She knew her sister had to come first, though. "So... what's on your mind?"
Rainbow's eyes widened as she saw Scootaloo close to tears. "I can't take it anymore..." She mumbled silently.
"Come again?"
"She won't stop making fun of me!" Scootaloo responded, her voice raised. She slammed her forelegs down, startling Rainbow.
"Who?"
"Diamond Tiara." Scootaloo grunted as she slouched in a seat. "Everyday for the past few years, she's been bullying me about being a blank flank and my lack of flight." The tears started to form in her eyes, and some even fell. "I just... can't take it anymore. Can you help me with this, Rainbow Dash?"
Rainbow motioned for Scootaloo to sit on the couch with her. When she did, Rainbow made the filly feel at home by putting a wing around her.
"It's okay, Scoots. You know, when ponies bully others, it's sometimes because they're jealous."
Scootaloo sniffled. "I know, Rainbow. I want to actually stop her from bullying me, though."
"Hm..." Rainbow thought for a moment. Two dots suddenly connected in her head.
"I got a question for you, Scoots."
"What?"
"You know how I help teach others about friendship?"
Scootaloo paused for a moment. "I thought it was Twilight who taught others."
"Well, not only Twilight. I do sometimes, too."
"W-why are you asking me this?"
"Because I'm going to teach that bully the importance of being nice."
"Really?!" Scootaloo responded, jumping off the seat. She then got a more disappointed look on her face. "What if she doesn't learn? What if she continues bullying? What if-"
Scootaloo was cut off by Rainbow's hoof on her mouth. "Hey, chill out." Rainbow then took her hoof off of Scootaloo's mouth and continued, "I will make sure that she learns, and will never bully you again."
Scootaloo gave a small smile. "Thanks, Rainbow Dash."
"No prob!" Rainbow responded, walking towards the door. "She's the daughter of Filthy Rich, right?"
"Yeah."
"Okay. Then I know where she lives." Before Rainbow took off, she looked back at Scootaloo. "It's raining pretty hard out there. Why don't you stay at my place?"
"Really?"
"Of course! Just... don't touch my Wonderbolts stuff, okay?" With that, Rainbow flew outside.
The rain was stinging Rainbow's face as she dashed through it. She had to fly lower to the ground to find the mansion. She knew it wouldn't be that hard, though.
She soon came across a red-brick mansion with a blue roof and balcony adorning the outside. She trotted up to the door and rung the doorbell, which caused a little tune to play.
The door opened to reveal Filthy Rich looking over Rainbow Dash. "Hello there, Miss. Do you need something?"
"Yeah. May I speak to your daughter?"
Filthy Rich raised an eyebrow. "Oh, you mean, Diamond Tiara?"
"Yeah!"
"Well... alright. I'll call for her. You may come in, but make sure to dry off in the main foyer before stepping anywhere else, Miss..."
"Rainbow Dash."
"Ah, Rainbow Dash." Filthy Rich responded as he walked to the stairs.
"Diamond, sweetie!"
"Yes?"
"Somepony is here to see you!"
"Who?"
"Young lady, does it matter who? Please, come down!"
"Alright, fine!" Diamond responded as she walked down the stairs. She kept her head held high, like a pony in Canterlot. She then caught sight of Rainbow Dash.
"I remember you! You were coaching us to carry the flag into the Equestria Games!"
"Yeah. May I speak to you in private, please?"
"I can move to my room, if you want to talk here." Rich suggested as Rainbow Dash nodded.
"Thanks, Mr. Rich."
"No problem! Have a nice talk, ladies!" He responded before walking into his room and shutting the door.
Now, Rainbow Dash was alone with Diamond Tiara. She knew she had to start talking; Scootaloo was depending on her.
"What do you need to talk to me about?" Diamond asked, breaking Rainbow Dash from her thoughts.
"Um, as you may or may not know, I'm Scootaloo's sister."
"You are?!" Diamond responded as her eyes widened. "Scootaloo said that she was an only child!"
"Well, I adopted Scoots as my sister." Rainbow tossed her mane back and continued. "Well, as a sister, I am there to help her."
"And what does this have to do with me, exactly?" Diamond questioned.
"She told me that you have been bullying her for years."
Diamond suddenly looked very offended. "I have NOT!"
"Oh, really?" Rainbow raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah! I don't know what that dodo was thinking!" Diamond responded.
"That sounded like bullying right there."
"Uh, no."
"Yeah. Calling her a dodo is mean, considering she can't fly yet."
"Well, I'm sure she has the capability to fly, she's just not brave enough to try."
Rainbow got an angrier look on her face. "She has a wing handicap! She can't fly! Well, not yet, at least!"
"Really?"
"Yes!" Rainbow paused for a moment, letting the anger leave her. "Tell me, do you have any insecurities?"
"Why would I tell you?"
"Because I can help." Rainbow flipped her mane back again. "I am the Element of Loyalty, after all."
"Well..." Diamond paused for a moment, still a little confused that Rainbow wanted to know one of her biggest secrets. "I have always been a little upset that nopony except Silver Spoon would ever want to be my friend."
Rainbow tried her best to get a mean look on her face. "Oh, so you could end up alone if she leaves. Your new nickname will be: Loner. Yeah, that sounds good!"
Diamond was really taken aback by this. "Why? I thought you said you were going to help me! Not insult me!" A few tears were reaching Diamond's eyes as she tried her best to hold them in.
"Oh yeah. You know what else you are?'
"What?"
"A snobbish pony who only cares about money. That is why you will never have a good friend."
"STOP!" Diamond interrupted, a few tears falling down her cheeks. "This isn't helping me at all."
"Well, in a way, it is."
"You call that helping?!"
"I said, 'in a way'." Rainbow lowered the tone of her voice a little bit. "I'm showing you what you do to everypony at school."
"T-they feel just like that?"
"Probably even worse."
"R-really?" Diamond questioned as a few tears fell from her eyes. She then straightened her posture a little bit. "But... what you said isn't true! The fact that your sister is a blank flank is!"
"Really?" Rainbow raised an eyebrow. "What if one day, your cutie mark vanished, and everypony at school made fun of you for it?"
"Uh, I will get my daddy to instruct them to not bully me!"
"But how would it feel to be constantly teased about something you can't control?"
Diamond paused for a moment. "Pretty bad... I guess..."
Rainbow Dash softened her tone. "See? That is how Scootaloo and her friends feel. Maybe you should stop making fun of them for stuff that doesn't really matter."
"Y-yeah..."
Rainbow smiled a little. "This could also help you make new friends."
"Really?"
"Yes. If you stop making fun of others, you might have more friends."
"I-I never thought of that..." Diamond admitted, wiping some tears from her eyes. "But... what if they don't accept me?"
"Well, I know the Cutie Mark Crusaders will accept you. You could always apologize to them, and turn to them when you need help."
"I guess..."
"And, to keep your friends forever, you need to stay loyal to them. Never ditch them for something you want much more. That shows your friends that you really care about them."
"Well, yeah, I'm sure that's pretty important..."
"Yeah, it is."
Diamond wiped a few more tears. "Please, tell Scootaloo I'm sorry. I didn't realize I was doing this, and-"
"I will tell her. Until then, remember what I said. True friendship is one of the most amazing things in all of Equestria."
"I imagine."
Rainbow then opened the door and stepped outside. "I hope to hear good things about you, Diamond Tiara."
"Okay. Bye, and thanks for telling me."
"See ya." Rainbow said before flying away, still feeling the sting of the rain hit her face.
She soon got to her own home and opened the door to find Scootaloo laying on the couch.
"Hey, Rainbow Dash!" Scootaloo greeted as she hugged her sister.
"Hey, Scoots. I have something to tell you."
Scootaloo pulled apart from the hug. "What is it?"
"She says she's sorry."
"Diamond Tiara?!"
"Yes." Rainbow then put a hoof on Scootaloo's shoulder. "Promise me something."
"Yeah?"
"If she comes over to you and wants to be friends, please accept her."
Scootaloo gave a smile. "Of course, Rainbow Dash."
"Great." Rainbow then took her hoof off of Scootaloo's shoulder and gave a smile. "Do you want to invite your friends over for a sleepover here?"
Scootaloo grew a big grin. "Yeah! Thanks, Rainbow Dash!"
"No prob!" Rainbow responded, looking out the window at the rain. She hoped that Diamond Tiara would stop bullying for good, and make new, great friends. She smiled at the thought. She looked over to see that Scootaloo had already left, going to find her friends.
"I know you could be a great friend to her, Scootaloo..." Rainbow quietly said as she walked back over to her couch.