A Chance Meeting
Rainbow Dash had never felt so alive.
It was a cloudless day--thanks to her--and the sun shone bright; its brilliant rays caressing the pegasus as she soared above Ponyville. She had always preferred to fly in humid weather. The balmy wind rushing through her mane made the thrilling experience that much more invigorating.
With a whoosh of air roaring in her ears, she torpedoed through the sky. The speed of her flight caused a sharp 'V' to materialize before her, and she narrowed her cerise eyes in anticipation. Once she broke through the apex of this 'V' current, she would pull off a Sonic Rainboom again. She urged her wings to pump faster, and her eyes began to water due to the intense momentum; in a matter of mere moments, tears streamed behind her in hot torrents. She was so close she could practically taste victory on her tongue.
But suddenly, the unsuspecting pegasus was battered by a rough gale, which caused her to lose her focus. She cursed at the wind as the 'V' alleviated into nothing. She had been so close.
With an incredulous huff, she snapped her wings to her side, spiraling towards the ground in a loose (yet controlled) freefall. She sped closer and closer to the earth, a toothy grin pulling at the corners of her mouth; she realized there was a large group of ponies waiting for her below. They were enlivened at the sight of the cyan athlete, and even though she had failed yet another Rainboom attempt, she still drew a crowd whenever she flew.
When she was just a few meters away from hitting the ground, she sharply unfurled her wings, eliciting a gasp from the surrounding ponies. She lowered herself with a steady pace. Flipping her rainbow mane over her shoulder with an imposing grin, she landed with a prompt nod towards the throng; which ignited an uproar of excited screams. "Thank you, thank you!" she cried, waving her hooves with a humbled flair. "You guys are awesome!"
"Rainbow DASH! Rainbow DASH! Rainbow DASH!"
However, there was one pegasus on the outskirts of the mass having difficulty catching a glimpse of Rainbow Dash, and she craned her neck in an attempt to get a closer look. She knew that she could simply glide over the crowd (she had seen a select few do that already), but she didn't want to be rude.
"Um, excuse me," she whispered in a meek tone, prodding the shoulder of a unicorn in front of her. The unicorn whirled around with a nasty glare in response, causing her to recoil in shock. "What do you want, Derpy?"
"Oh, I'm sorry. Never mind. I'll just go over here. Sorry, again," apologized the pegasus, scrambling her hooves as she backed away. Her crossed eyes fell upon a filly who appeared rather kind--her mane and pelt were bright pastel shades of pink and purple. Maybe she would let her squeeze in front of her, or at least beside her. "Excuse me!" Derpy cried out, tapping the pony on the back with a gentle hoof. The unicorn turned around with the same glare as the first--and in an acidic tone spat, "Oh, it's you. What do you want?"
Derpys' ears flattened against her head. "I just wanted to know if I could shimmy-shammy in beside you." The pony rolled her eyes and turned back to the aspiring Wonderbolt; of whom was currently taking selfies with adrenalized fans. "So, is that a no?"
"Obviously," the pony hissed through gritted teeth, adjusting her body to bar Derpy from getting through. The grey filly beside her began to giggle, and the pair sneered at the cross-eyed pegasus.
"Oh, please?" pouted Derpy, her flaxen eyes widening. "I'm sorry, I don't ever beg, but I'm a huge fan! I promise once I get the teeniest glance, I'll go away and never ever bug you again!"
"What could you possibly get out of seeing the Rainbow Dash?" the pony replied, her eyes still transfixed on the cyan pegasus.
"I wanna be just like her! She's brave, can fly super fast, and she's soooo cool!" Derpy rhapsodized. A feverish blush kindled in her cheeks as she thought of her idol; Derpy attempted to obscure this by bowing her head, her blonde locks concealing her face. One of her eyes still remained exposed, and it dilated in alarm as the unicorn wheeled around.
"You will never be like her, don't you get it? Or can you not get that through that small brain of yours? You wanna be a fast flyer?" she paused, snorting in incredulity. "Ha! You can't even deliver my mail without knocking over my mailbox. I've had to buy not one, not two, but six bucking mailboxes because of you!"
Derpy winced, her shoulders raising in submission as she withdrew from the crowd altogether. As she retreated, the ranting pony followed, "You've crashed into town hall, you've destroyed countless mailboxes across the town, and the whole reason they won't fire you from being a mailmare is because you're a retard!"
"Am not!" Derpy retorted, flaring her wings in defiance. But her courage faltered when the pony began to chant the insult, drawing a new crowd around Derpy. Derpys' quivering body collapsed, and she covered her eyes with quaky hooves. She compared the ponies around her to buzzards, circling to feed on whatever scraps of confidence she had left.
"Retard! Retard! Retard!" was all Derpy could hear, along with the occasional, "You've broken my mailbox!" and "I've had to pay for your damages on my house!" Behind her hooves, Derpy began to sob.
There were bystanders, but the majority of them scurried away to avoid conflict. The others stood slackjawed, paralyzed as they were uncertain how to intervene.
However, Rainbow Dash herself took notice of the mass around her beginning to thin, and she tilted her head in perplexion. Where could they all be headed in such a hurry? Was there a cooler pony on the block?
Rainbow Dash scanned the area around her. She saw a thick crowd up ahead, and their chanting crescendoed into a deafening bellow--"retard! retard! retard!" Dash's eyes narrowed into furious slits. That wasn't a group of screaming fans, it was a crowd of bullies. And Rainbow Dash knew that only one pegasus could cause such an abhorrent clamor. "Derpy," she murmured, her hooves stomping and causing grooves to form in the soft ground. "Not on my watch."
She flapped her wings in a steady rhythm, which kept her aloft just above the ground. And then, without warning, she darted forward. She became a rainbow blur, zooming by so fast that it caused dust to churn and rise behind her in billowy clouds. "Move it!" she commanded as she drew closer to the crowd, and the startled ponies shrieked and dove for cover. She landed with a thud next to Derpy, her mane flowing due to her self-induced gale.
Derpy uncovered a puffy eye as she felt the impact. All she saw was blue as her vision swam into focus. She brushed away her mane, sticky with tears, trying to get a better look at--"Rainbow D-D-Dash?" she cried, 'hics' from her sobbing making her stammer.
Rainbow Dash turned to Derpy, giving her a wink. "Yeah, it's me. Now hold on, I've got a little something to take care of. Chill here for a sec'." The majority of the crowd began to bail at the sight of her. The ones who remained wore either smug, shocked, or fearful expressions. "Alright," Rainbow Dash began, turning her head sharply to crack her neck. "I want to know who started this. Now."
Nopony moved, and an eerie silence fell. Dash caught a few guilty glances towards a pink filly, of whom stood stagnant and wide-eyed. "Really? You all are going to follow something that a filly started? Why do I have to be the adult here?" Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, stomping towards the filly, of whom cowered in her shadow. Her grey friend, of which Rainbow Dash recognized as Silver Spoon, bolted, hiding behind a nearby topiary.
"No surprise here," scoffed Dash, "Diamond Tiara."
The filly fidgeted at the sound of her name, which was riddled with scorn. Diamond Tiara, as a last resort, attempted to create a blameless facade. "But I-I didn't do anything! I was trying to help poor--"
"Don't play the innocent card on me! I hear about all the stuff you do to my little Scoots." Diamond Tiara loosened in befuddlement, her brow crinkling as she thought. "Oh, yeah, in case ya didn't know, Scootaloo is my sister. And everything you do to her and her little friends comes back to me."
Diamond Tiara's eyes darkened into a navy blue, her pupils shrinking into anxious pinpricks. "I know you think you're cool, you probably think you are 20 percent cooler than me! But picking on ponies, no matter who they are or what they've done, is totally uncool."
Diamond Tiara hung her head in humiliation. She was being scolded. And if that wasn't demeaning enough, it was by Rainbow Dash--the legend herself! Her father would hear about this!
"Now, what will amp up your coolness meter is an apology," Dash gestured towards the ditzy pegasus, of whom was starstruck at the sight of her idol. But she, too, felt embarassment fizz beneath her fur. She never wanted Rainbow Dash to see her like this! Derpy prodded at the dirt with her hoof, her cheeks flushing.
"Why do I have to apologize for--" A stern glare from Rainbow Dash caused the foal to gasp, then huff in annoyance. "Fiiiine," she whined, sauntering towards the despondent pegasus. She avoided her crossed eyes as she indignantly murmured an apology beneath her breath.
"LOUDER!" Rainbow Dash commanded, snapping her wings open.
"I'm sorry, Derpy," Diamond Tiara muttered. Although there was no sincerity in her tone, Derpy still simpered at the filly.
"S'all okay, Ms. Tiara," Derpy replied, forcefully pulling the filly into her arms. She squeezed her in a tight embrace, causing Diamond Tiara to emit an agitated squeal. "I forgive you."
"Put me down, re--"
"Ahem!" coughed Rainbow Dash. The filly rolled her eyes towards the athlete to see that she was tapping her hoof to the ground in obvious disapproval. A single brow was raised beneath her sideswept bangs.
"Please?" Diamond Tiara added hurriedly, and Derpy loosened her grip at once. The filly scuttled backwards, ensuring she was out of Derpys' reach.
"Seeeee? That wasn't so hard, was it?" teased Dash, nosing at Diamond Tiara. The priggish pony gritted her teeth behind clamped lips. "Now, you best be running along. You wouldn't want me to change my mind about letting you off this easy."
"Thanks," responded the filly sardonically, murmuring beneath her breath as she vacated the scene. After she left, the bystanders followed, and soon it was only Derpy and Dash remaining.
Dash inhaled deeply--she had practically been holding her breath throughout the entire confrontation. Derpy began fidgeting; suddenly finding an acute interest with the buckle on her saddlebag as she saw Dash approaching her from the corner of her eye.
"You alright, Derpy?" Dash inquired as she placed a gentle hoof on her shoulder. The pegasus gasped and pulled away from the touch, keeping her head down to disguise the fact her eyes were watering. "Y-yeah," Derpy croaked through dry lips. The response was froggy and forced, and Dash took notice.
"Are you sure?" Her voice was riddled with genuine concern, and Derpy languidly turned to look at Dash, who offered her a wry smile. Within her half-lidded eyes was an emotion that was intangible to Derpy, but she knew that it was good.
Without warning, Derpy leapt at Dash and buried her sobbing face into her untamed mane. The astonished pegasus gripped Derpy tight as she struggled to remain upright. Derpy mistook this reaction as an embrace, and she wrapped her hooves around the nape of her neck. "I'm s-s-sorry, Rainbow Dash!"
"F-for what?" squeaked Dash, the sudden, awkward hug catching her off guard. She felt fluid, of which she prayed was that of tears and not mucus, seep into her mane.
"Everytime you see me, I'm screwing something up! You always have to cover for me and--" Derpy was interrupted as her throat clenched admist sobs, "--I really am a retard! I'm sorry, Dash!"
Rainbow Dash was flabbergasted. "Hey, calm down, you aren't always messing things up."
Derpy pulled away, sniveling as she wiped her muzzle with her hoof. "B-but that's why nopony wants me as a friend. All because I'm super duper clumsy and a dummy..." Derpy trailed off, burying her face in her forehooves.
"Well, buck them!" Dash exclaimed.
The grey pegasus jerked her head up, gasping at the profanity. "Oooh," Derpy whispered, "you said a wordy-dirty."
"Err, sorry," Dash apologized. "But seriously, if ponies are gonna be like that, they don't deserve to be your friend!" She stomped her hoof on the ground to drive the point home.
"I guess so," Derpy shrugged, rising to her hooves and sniveling, wiping away another tear that dared to fall. "Can I be honest with you, Rainbow Dash? Can I tell you some of my deepest secrets?"
"Derpy," Dash began, placing a caring hoof on her shoulder, "you can trust me. I promise you."
"Okay, well," Derpy sighed, "everypony wonders what I carry in my bags. I don't just carry mail. I never thought I'd be showing you this, Dash, so please don't laugh at me or run away."
Dashs' expression turned quizzical as Derpy opened her bag, rummaging around inside. Finally, she pulled something out with her teeth with a gentleness that Dash thought unusual for the gauche pegasus. Derpy placed the object on the ground in front of her, not wanting to show pride if Dash happened to shoot her down.
Dash was astonished. Before her was a stuffed animal that was obviously modeled after her. It had cute, fuschia buttons for eyes and rainbow strands of yarn for a mane. It's wings, although hanging limp by its sides, (probably due to lack of stuffing) were beautifully designed.
"Derpy, did you make this?"
Derpy nodded, refusing to meet Dash's eyes.
"It's--it's wonderful," Dash admitted, nosing at the stuffed animal, which flopped to its side with the light touch.
"You're probably wondering why I made it, I hope you aren't creeped out," Derpy started, placing the toy upright again. She inhaled, her wings twitching nervously as she began her lament, "Rainbow Dash, I wanna be just like you. I saw your first Rainboom m-many years ago when I was having a hard time. I almost," Derpy coughed, her ears drooping with dejection, "I almost ended my own life."
"Derpy!" Dash cried with shock, and Derpy waved her hoof dismissively, "but that was maaaany years ago. I don't think bad thoughts anymore."
"Anyways," Derpy continued, gaining confidence as she spoke, "I saw your Rainboom and thought, well, maybe this world wasn't so bad at all. Maybe my purpose in the world was to make ponies happy like your Rainboom did for me. And that's how I got my cutie mark."
Dash was staring blankly at the ground, taking all the information in. So it wasn't just the Elements of Harmony who recieved their cutie marks because of her Rainboom, it was Derpy too.
"Years later, I heard about how you saved Equestria with Ms. Sparkle. And I knew that you had to be the pegasus who pulled off the Rainboom. I just knew it. And you happened to live in the same town as me. I would pass by you sometimes, but was too scared-ed to talk to you. I was so excited that day I happened to be working with you with the weather thingy, but I was so nervous. I messed everything up and broke town hall. I was really sad after that, because I thought that you wouldn't like me. I cried a lot.
But, I kept seeing you throughout town and heard that you wanted to be a Wonderbolt. And knowing that you kept pushing yourself for your dreams made me realize that I could too! So I made this doll, to remind me whenever I'm sad that you're the bravest, most loyal pony ever and that I can better myself. And even when ponies make fun of me and call me a retard," Derpy flinched at the word, but continued regardless, "I can get through it."
Dash smiled at Derpy, and stood silent. A bittersweet lump welled in her throat, and her eyes watered. "I," Dash began, sniffing as she held back her tears, "you know, Derpy, I was always kinda jealous of you too."
Derpys' eyes widened in tawny orbs of astonishment. "H-huh?"
"You always seem so carefree and happy. If you run into something, you never lay there in defeat. You get back up and try again. And that has nothing to do with me, that's all you, Derpy. In fact, youare probably the bravest pony I know."
They both stood in silence, Derpys' cheeks igniting with a feverish blush. They embraced again, although this time wasn't as clunky as the last. "H-hey Dash?"
"Yeah?"
"Can you teach me how to fly as good as you, one day?"
Dash chuckled. "Only if you can teach me how to bake some kickin' muffins! Actually, you wanna crash at my place tonight?"
"Really?" Derpy's golden eyes scintillated, an instant smile tugging on her lips. "T-tonight?"
"Of course!"
Derpy squealed. She was going to spend the night with Rainbow Dash! All of her dreams were coming to fruition. Her day, no, her whole outlook on life, had brightened. "Let's go! We'll have so much fun together!" Derpy cheered, flapping her wings to take to the air--and then fell flat on her face.
"Derpy!" Dash cried, shaking the unresponsive pegasus with her hoof. After a few moments, Derpy shot up, giggling at her imprint in the soft earth. "Oopsies," she murmured, an abashed blush on her cheeks. "I have trouble flying when I'm super-duper excited."
"Alright, alright, I'll think of some way to get you there. My house is in the sky, so...," Dash scratched her unkempt mane with a hoof.
"Well, I have an idea. I don't think you'll like it. It's kinda silly," offered Derpy.
"Go on, shoot it at me. No idea is too crazy for me!" Dash exclaimed, a confident smirk on her face. Derpy gave a sheepish grin, extending her forearms. Dash gave her a puzzled look.
"C-carry me?" mumbled Derpy, her expression disconcerted yet hopeful.
Dash mentally facehoofed.