Rainbow watched Twilight trot away into the darkness, quickly disappearing behind the falling snow. She yearned to go after her to try and make things right, but a small part of her mind told her that she needed her space right now. Biting her lower lip, Rainbow turned around and shot one last glance over her shoulder, then sullenly walked back inside the hospital, her head hung low.
She pushed the door open and allowed herself a smile as she felt the heat from inside purge the cold from her coat. Rainbow felt a shiver run down her back as she closed the door behind her. She stood in the empty lobby as her stomach twisted itself into knots. Rainbow swallowed, trying to keep the contents of her stomach down. She was starving, but her concern for Scootaloo outweighed everything else. Even though she trusted Twilight without reserve, she still had to see Scootaloo alive with her own eyes.
Rainbow knew she had to find out where Scootaloo was. She figured that setting a couple of broken wings and bandaging some cuts wouldn’t take that long, so Scootaloo must already be in one of the recovery rooms.
Everypony here knew that Rainbow Dash was strong, that nothing could ever faze her. She had to be strong. Showing that she was hurting would make her look weak in everypony’s eyes, and she could not have that at all. Rainbow took a deep breath to calm her racing heart, puffed out her chest, and fluffed her wings.
She didn’t feel tough at all.
Stepping up to the nurse’s desk, Rainbow lifted her head to meet her gaze. The nurse offered a comforting smile as she stood up. “Come with me, Miss Dash. I’ll take you to her.”
“T-thank you,” Rainbow choked out. She was grateful that the nurse knew what she needed because she doubted she had the strength to ask. The nurse led her down the hall and up the flight of stairs at the end. They walked past a few empty rooms, then the nurse opened a door on the left side and held it open for her.
Rainbow nodded at the nurse, silently expressing her thanks. Though just as she was about to turn and step inside, her stomach grumbled loudly, making the two of them pause.
“Would you like me to fetch you something to eat, dear?” the nurse asked softly.
Rainbow’s stomach grumbled again. “Yeah, that’d be... nice. I’ll be inside, if that’s alright.”
“Of course it is!” She glanced inside the room. “We had to give her some pretty strong pain medication, Miss Dash. Having both her wings broken, I... can’t imagine how much that would hurt. But never fear, for she’s going to get the best care around! I’ll be back with some food for ya.” The nurse turned and trotted down the hallway, leaving Rainbow alone.
Rainbow turned to look inside the room, and as soon as she saw Scootaloo, her breath caught in her throat and tears formed in the corners of her eyes. Scootaloo was fast asleep, laying on her stomach. Her wings were fully encased in a cast that ran over her back. Her feathers were completely encased in thick bandages and her cuts were covered by gauze. Scootaloo’s mane was an absolute wreck. She was missing a little bit of her mane and tail, and her face and neck were covered in large, black bruises.
Rainbow’s eyes glazed over as she began to feel light-headed. Rainbow stumbled over to Scootaloo’s bed, tripping over her hooves. She sat down on the cold floor and heard what sounded like a group of stallions trotting down the hallway. Rainbow looked and saw four of Luna’s personal guards stop outside of the room. She knew, deep down inside of her, that Twilight had sent them for her. Rainbow cracked a small smile and looked back at Scootaloo.
A few seconds later, the guards outside slammed their spears on the ground, shocking Rainbow. Her head whipped around as she glared at their backs. Feeling anger build up inside of her, she trotted up to the door and yanked it open to find the nurse blocked off from the room by four very sharp spears. The poor mare was quivering in terror as she looked up at the four bat ponies blocking her way. The tray of food she was holding looked like it was about to slip from her grasp. “Can’t you guys keep it quiet out here? Scootaloo is trying to sleep!” Rainbow snapped, her voice hoarse.
“Sorry ma’am, but we have strict orders from Princess Twilight to keep this room locked down.”
“Even from the doctors and nurses that are doing their job to help our daughter?” Rainbow asked incredulously.
“We were just about to ask for her credentials, ma’am,” the same stallion answered. “Once we are able to determine that she works here, we’ll—”
“Don’t bother, this nurse was just bringing me food. I vouch for her.” Rainbow pushed her way past the guards and held out her hoof. The nurse hesitantly took a step forward and placed the tray in Rainbow’s outstretched hoof then darted away.
Rainbow walked back inside Scootaloo’s room and closed the door as softly as she could. She walked back towards the bed and placed the tray of food on the edge of Scootaloo’s bed, eyeing the applesauce hungrily. She ripped the lid off of it and emptied the entire thing into her mouth in one go. Rainbow swallowed it, and did the same to the other one. Tossing the empty plastic cartons back on the tray, she slid it under Scootaloo’s bed.
Rainbow’s shoulders slumped as she looked back at Scootaloo. The poor filly slept away soundly, her chest rising and falling with each breath. She looked so peaceful laying there. It occurred to Rainbow that the last thing Scootaloo must have seen before she was knocked unconscious was her parents beating her. Rainbow knew from personal experience that waking up in a strange place after an accident was pretty disorienting, so she wanted Scootaloo to see her first. She hoped that Scootaloo didn’t hate her for not being there for her in her time of need, just like she had promised.
Rainbow hopped onto the bed, doing her best to not disturb Scootaloo. She lay down on her side and laid a wing over Scootaloo’s back, taking care to not touch the cast. Even though she knew that Scootaloo was out from the medicine, it didn’t stop her from doing what she wanted to do. She nuzzled her daughter right between her ears, a loving smile forming on her face as Scootaloo’s left ear flicked back and forth.
“Momma’s here, Scootaloo...” Rainbow laid the lightest of kisses on the back of Scootaloo’s head and brushed the filly’s mane out of her face as gently as she could. “And Momma loves you very much...” She lay her head down on a pillow and settled down for the night. Rainbow thought about turning off all of the lights, but decided against it. If Scootaloo did happen to wake up in the middle of the night, Rainbow figured that, after such a horrific experience, she would like to see where she was: safe in Rainbow’s embrace.
As sleep tugged at her weary mind and body, Rainbow laid one last kiss on Scootaloo’s muzzle, then fell asleep a few minutes later.
Rainbow woke up in the middle of the night, feeling something stir under her sensitive feathers. Knowing that it was Scootaloo waking up, she sat up and lifted her wing to find Scootaloo wiping her eyes with her hooves. Rainbow cleared her throat as softly as she could, making Scootaloo’s head whip up.
Their eyes met. Rainbow simply smiled as Scootaloo stared up at her. Scootaloo’s whole body trembled, her eyes were filled with confusion and terror, and her ears lay flat on her head.
“M-Mom? Is that r-really... you?” Scootaloo croaked out. Tears filled her eyes as she slowly recognized Rainbow looking down at her with a warm and comforting smile on her face. She coughed a moment later as her tears began to fall down her cheeks.
“Yeah, Scootaloo, I’m here... Momma’s here...” Rainbow choked on her words, her breath catching in her throat. Rainbow covered Scootaloo’s forehead in kisses. She leaned down and nuzzled Scootaloo’s cheek, closing her eyes as tears flowed down her face. “I'm so s-sorry, squirt... I’m so glad you’re alive.”
Scootaloo buried her face into Rainbow’s side, right behind her shoulder as the tears started to flow freely. “Everything hurts... M-my wings... will I ever get to fly with you?”
That drove a spike into Rainbow’s heart. “Of course you are!” Rainbow gently pulled Scootaloo closer with her wing and held her tightly, letting her daughter cry as much as she needed to. “There, there... I’m not going anywhere, Scootaloo...” She felt Scootaloo latch onto her leg, her tears wetting her fur.
Scootaloo sobbed into Rainbow’s leg for the next couple of minutes. Her cries softened after several seconds, then she fell silent. Rainbow lowered her head and found that she was fast asleep. A soft giggle escaped past Rainbow’s lips when she saw that Scootaloo’s head was propped up against her leg like it was a makeshift pillow. Rainbow knew her leg wasn’t the softest thing around, but she figured that if it worked for Scootaloo, then it’d be alright.
Laying her head back on the pillow, Rainbow silently prayed that Princess Luna was watching over Scootaloo’s dreams.