It was a very warming moment for the honorary siblings and the dinosaurs. After all the pain they had gone through, it was finally over. They were together at last, and they couldn't be happier. Tyrannosaurus and Indominus were shedding tears of happiness while nuzzling Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo. After such a tough and enduring battle, they were glad to finally be with the ones they loved.
Rainbow Dash noticed the raptors standing away from the bonding so she called out to them.
"Get in here too you guys. You four are just as welcome to join in as these guys."
The raptors cautiously stepped forward, unsure of what T-Rex and Indominus would do. Tyrannosaurus turned away from the siblings and looked at the raptor squad. In his other world, T-Rex had a rough past with velociraptors. They had attacked him and tried to kill him, but things had changed. These raptors had risked their lives to save him and Indominus during the fight with Black Death. Their actions had earned them Tyrannosaurus's respect.
T-Rex motioned for the raptors to join in. Indominus was fine with it, since he was grateful for them defending Scootaloo against her DNA doners. With all six dinosaurs nuzzling the surrogate sisters, it was such a beautiful family moment. Scootaloo couldn't stop herself from crying with all the love she was getting. The family she had wished for was finally with her.
Suddenly the moment was interrupted when they heard three sets of giant wings flapping in their direction. The white, green and dark blue dragons touched down in front of them. The dinosaurs stood in front of the siblings, baring their teeth and giving off deep growls. Despite how much the fight had exhausted them, they weren't about to lose Rainbow or Scootaloo again. The green dragon surprised them by stepping forward and speaking in a calm voice.
"Easy brothers, we are not going to fight you. We aren't blinded by power like Black Death was. We came to thank you."
The dragon's response shocked all of them, even Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo who jumped in front of the dinosaurs.
"Thank us, for what?"
"For freeing us from that psychotic monster. You're friends convinced us to put our trust in you, on the promise that you guys would be able to bring him down. That blue alicorn and yellow pegasus really drilled some sense into our brains. Their persuasion got us to fire the attacks that distracted Black Death long enough for you guys to kill him." The dragon gestured over to Luna and Fluttershy, who were watching the discussion from the sky.
Rainbow Dash was definitely proud of Fluttershy for convincing the dragons to help out instead of destroying Ponyville.
"We are truly sorry for the pain we caused because of that monster. You have our utmost gratitude and loyalty for giving us our freedom." All three dragons took a knee and bowed to the dinosaurs and pegasi.
The warriors felt touched that the dragons were bowing to them. So they chose to bow as well, so as to not offend the great creatures. Everypony watched the moment of respect displayed between the warriors and dragons with absolute silence. As they all rose again, the dragons had one last thing to say.
"We don't think we can ever repay you all for what you've done, but we'd like to try. If you ever need any help, you can always find us for assistance." As the dragons turned away, the green one turned his head back and said "we will never forget what you did for us, Guardians of Equestria." With one flap of their wings, the dragons took off into the sky and headed back to their homes.
After the dragons left, the warriors saw the Princesses, soldiers and the rest of the mane six making their way towards them. Celestia, Luna, Cadence and Twilight walked ahead of the others and stopped in front of the transformed siblings.
"Rainbow Dash, Scootaloo, may we please get a look at your saviors? There is something I'd like to say to them."
The siblings complied with Celestia's request and parted so the dinosaurs could step forward. They all kept their eyes of the alicorns, who were just staring at them in disbelief. Then Celestia spoke up and the carnivores held onto every word.
"I've heard a great deal about you dinosaurs. You were kings and hunters in another world, contacted by my sister. Brought into Equestria, had the future of a filly put in your claws. Nearly caused a panic in Ponyville, brought destruction upon our world and...you have saved us all."
Celestia got down on one leg and bowed to the dinosaurs. The other princesses were shocked to see Celestia bow before creatures she had only just met, but they bowed themselves. The soldiers, mane six and the CMC followed suite, and then every citizen in Ponyville bowed to the great carnivores. T-Rex, Indominus and the raptors found themselves being overwhelmed with the amount of praise they had received. Scootaloo found herself tearing up from seeing her saviors gaining so much respect.
"What's wrong Scootaloo," asked Rainbow Dash.
"I'm just so proud of them Rainbow. My boys are all grown up and...and saving Equestria, you have a tissue?"
After the bowing was over, Celestia spoke again.
"Twilight."
"Yes Princess Celestia?"
"I'd like you to see to it that our new guardians feel welcome in Ponyville. Spread the word that they are our new protectors, so they won't have to hide out in the Everfree Forest anymore. Nopony should have to be afraid of them when they happen to stroll through Ponyville."
The dinosaurs were delighted to hear Celestia wanted them to be welcome in their new world, but something began happening to them. The raptors found their bright colors returning to normal, and they shrunk back down to their original size. The ponies were shocked at what was happening.
Luna asked "what's happening to them?"
"The power that they were given by the sonic rainbooms has been used up," said Twilight. "They're going back to their normal states."
Upon seeing what was happening, Scootaloo knew now was the best time for Rainbow Dash to come clean.
"Rainbow isn't there something you wanted to say to Indominus?" The cyan mare started blushing heavily as she realized what Scootaloo was talking about.
"What? You mean here, now? In front of everypony?"
"The power is fading Rainbow Dash, if you don't tell him now you'll blow your big chance."
"A-Alright," Rainbow stammered as she walked in front of Indominus.
Staring into the hybrid's crimson eyes made the usually confident mare incredibly nervous. She tried to find the right words to say to him. Everypony watched as Rainbow began to confess to the great carnivore.
"Indominus, there's something you need to know," the hybrid drew closer to her as Rainbow continued. "Even though I only met you a few nights ago, I was mesmerized by you. You were so caring, strong and concerned for me and Scootaloo. You did everything you could to keep us safe from her DNA doners. Your devotion and determination was admirable in my eyes, so that's why I have to tell you that I-"
Rainbow was cut off as Indominus put one of his fingers to her mouth. He had the softest expression on his face that Scootaloo had ever seen. It was like he was saying "I know Rainbow, you don't have to say it." He put both his hands behind her neck and began to pull her in close. Rainbow knew what was happening, and closed her eyes as the two of them kissed. She could feel tears streaming down her face as she finally embraced the dinosaur that had captivated her heart.
Everypony was crying their eyes out from the beautiful confession. Pinkie Pie was spilling waterfalls from the amount of tears she was letting out. Even Celestia and the other princesses couldn't contain their emotions from watching the two lovers.
"That was the most beautiful confession I've ever seen," Cadence said while trying to control herself. "He didn't need words to tell Rainbow that he loved her, he knew how to say it through his actions."
Scootaloo was still teary-eyed as she returned to normal with Tyrannosaurus. Together they watched as Rainbow and Indominus separated from their long kiss, while a red light began to illuminate around them. As the light got brighter, Rainbow said what she had wanted to tell the fierce hybrid.
"I love you Indominus Rex," Rainbow said while looking into his eyes as the light enveloped them and returned the new couple to their original states.
Rainbow Dash felt sad that she had to be small again while Indominus got to remain big. She flew back over to Scootaloo and looked so down. She had finally confessed to the dinosaur that had won her heart, but now she couldn't be big anymore now that the power had been used up. Scootaloo could see the sadness on Rainbow's face and came up with a solution.
"Don't worry Rainbow, I'm sure Twilight could find a spell that could help you out," Scootaloo said while trying to cheer up her sister.
Rainbow looked over to Twilight who gave her a wink back.
"I can probably find a shrinking spell or a growth spell somewhere in the library."
Rainbow got the widest smile on her face that anypony had ever seen. Indominus walked over to her and gently nuzzled her face. The two of them were so happy that they would have more time to spend together. Then everypony heard a steady rumble as all the citizens came over to the dinosaurs. That's when Rainbow Dash got a brilliant idea.
"Scootaloo, I believe that this would be the best time for you to resume the introduction you and the crusaders had planned out."
"Oh, good call Rainbow Dash. Though first, we need to know the names of the other dinosaurs. They are a part of the introduction too."
The crusaders gathered with the dinosaurs while the ponies and Princesses waited with eagerness and anticipation. The citizens of Ponyville gathered behind them as they looked at the dinosaurs with awe.
"Alright boys, can you get the names of these dinosaurs? We'd like to include them in the introduction."
Indominus nodded his head and began communicating with the raptors. Scootaloo figured he had to be part raptor in order to speak with them. After a minute of talking amongst each other, Indominus had each raptor stand in a spot while he began to scratch out their names. The Princesses were amazed at how Indominus was getting their names.
"That is one smart dinosaur," Twilight said while watching Indominus write out the names with his claws.
When Indominus was finished, the crusaders went and memorized the names of the raptors.
"Blue."
"Charlie."
"Delta."
"Echo."
"Those are nice names y'all have," Applebloom said to the raptors. They all chirped in happiness.
"Just one last thing Indominus, what kind of dinosaurs are they?"
Indominus etched two words into the dirt under their names and the crusaders were marveled by them.
"Velociraptors and female. Wow, you guys continue to surprise us."
With the names of the raptors memorized, the crusaders asked the dinosaurs to follow them. They asked the raptors not to mix up their order so it would be easier to tell them apart. The dinosaurs stopped when they were in full view of every pony in front of them. The Crusaders finally began the introduction they had planned for so long.
"Everypony," they said proudly in perfect sync. "We'd like to introduce you all to our friends and protectors, the only dinosaurs in Equestria." They pointed to each dinosaur as they introduced them. "Please welcome Blue, Charlie, Delta, Echo, Indominus Rex and Tyrannosaurus Rex. Our great defenders that defied the impossible and killed the legendary Black Death."
The citizens cheered and gave their praises to the dinosaurs. Each of them felt honored and grateful that nopony was afraid of them. The ponies started to walk towards the dinosaurs, but Scootaloo stopped them.
"Now hold on everypony. I know all of you are anxious, but you have to go through the same greeting routine that my friends did. All you have to do is bow to them, and when they bow back, then you can go touch them."
Everypony, even the Princesses followed Scootaloo's instructions and bowed to the great dinosaurs. The raptors were confused on how to respond to the gesture, so they looked to Indominus and T-Rex on what to do. The rexes stood on both sides of the raptors so they could see how to respond to the bows. They took one step forward and bowed their heads to the ponies. Blue felt it wasn't right for carnivores to bow to such creatures, but after the praise they had received, she decided that she would let it go this one time.
So she and her sisters followed the rexes and bowed to the ponies. Now that they had gained the dinosaurs' approval, the citizens could thank their saviors properly. Indominus and T-Rex gladly accepted the hooves stroking their faces while Blue and her squad preferred to meet one pony at a time. One nice thing for Blue and her squad was that the ponies were respectful and didn't crowd them after seeing they were nervous. The mane six waited for the crowds to disperse before they got to give their thanks. They had plenty to say to the dinosaurs.
After all the ponies in Ponyville had greeted and thanked the dinosaurs, they moved off to the side so that the mane six could have their turn. Scootaloo was about to go with them, but Celestia pulled her aside for a minute.
"What is it Princess Celestia?"
"It's about your note and letter Scootaloo. The Princesses and I were looking over it the day before all this happened." Scootaloo was practically holding her breath, nervous as to what Celestia would say. "We talked it over while the citizens were greeting the dinosaurs, and we've decided to make your wish come true at the next Grand Galloping Gala."
Scootaloo leaped for joy, but stopped mid-air and went back down as she asked one question.
"Why so long? The Gala is six months from now."
"Because I want it to be a night that you will remember for a lifetime. Also I'd like the others to have some time to bond with your saviors, get to know them better. It'll be the night that you get to celebrate and go home with a real family. I want it to be special for you, Rainbow Dash and the dinosaurs."
Scootaloo looked over at the other Princesses for confirmation and they nodded their heads happily. The filly hugged Celestia's leg in delight.
"Thank you Celestia."
"Oh don't thank just me, thank the one who made this possible." Scootaloo walked over to Princess Luna and tried to find the best words.
"Princess Luna, I can't thank you enough for doing all of this for me," Scootaloo said as she hugged Luna around the chest. The blue alicorn wrapped a leg around Scootaloo and felt her eyes watering up.
"You're quite welcome Scootaloo. I'm glad that I could bring you and Rainbow Dash closer and give you a real family. It means the world to me to see you happy and away from those pitiful pegasi."
"Thanks, now come on Princesses, it's time for all of you to meet my saviors. Even though you've met them all first Luna," Scootaloo said in a sly voice.
"Heh, guilty as charged," Luna said sheepishly as she joined Twilight, Cadence and Celestia.
Scootaloo could hear the compliments the mane six were giving the dinosaurs. Applebloom and Sweetie Belle were standing by the raptors to keep them from being frightened by the hyperactive Pinkie Pie. It helped them to have somepony who could keep things calm. Rainbow Dash was snuggling and hugging Indominus's face and she looked so happy to be near him. Fluttershy was shy at first, but she mustered up enough courage to talk to Tyrannosaurus. She could understand what he was saying, so it was easy to hold a conversation with the king of the dinosaurs.
Rarity was giving compliments on the bright colors of the raptors. She respected their personal space, and Blue was starting to grow fond of the ponies. Applejack was complimenting the dinosaurs on how strong their bodies looked. It made her wonder how strong they really were after seeing their fight with Black Death. When the Princesses walked over, the mane six moved so they could give their thanks. Rainbow broke away from Indominus and went over by Scootaloo so she could watch.
Luna was the first one to walk forward, and the dinosaurs immediately recognized her. The raptors ran up to her and rested their heads on her. They respected her deeply after all she had done to give them their new found freedom. Tyrannosaurus and Indominus nuzzled her face gently, they respected her as well, because she was the sole reason for everything that had happened. Luna chuckled at the attention she was getting from the dinosaurs.
"It seems you're a favorite in their book sister," said Celestia.
"Well, I was the first pony they had ever come in contact with," Luna said as she turned back to look at her sister. "I gave them time to trust me, and I gained their trust when I fulfilled my promise, right guys?" The dinosaurs all nodded their heads in agreement. "Alright sister, would you like to meet them next?"
"Actually Luna, I'll go last. What I have to say is something that deserves to be saved for last."
"In that case, I'll meet them next," said Cadence.
The pink alicorn stepped forward as Luna went alongside her sister. Cadence was amazed at the very sight of the dinosaurs.
"What you guys did today was noble, fierce and incredibly loyal. I've never seen creatures show such dedication before." The dinosaurs all nodded their heads in thanks. Then Cadence's eyes fell upon the hybrid and she flew up to Indominus's level. She could feel a great soul behind the crimson eyes that looked at her.
"You must be Indominus Rex right?" The hybrid nodded his head to her and Cadence continued. "I didn't know that dinosaurs could be romantic. That was the most beautiful confession I've ever seen. You must really love Rainbow Dash to kiss her like that." Indominus nodded his head as his eyes drifted down to the cyan mare. "Take good care of her, she's a very loyal pony and appreciates somepony with charm and spunk."
Indominus gave Cadence a soft growl as Twilight stepped up to the carnivores.
"Thank you guys so much for saving me and my friends, what you all displayed today was simply amazing." Her eyes drifted up to T-Rex and Indominus as she spoke again. "You two must've spent a lot of quality time with Scootaloo to follow her to the very end of Equestria." The rexes nodded, then Twilight focused her attention on the raptors. She could see they were a little on edge so she spoke softly to them "Don't worry, this is a safe place to live, you girls won't have to deal with any danger here."
The raptors nodded their heads in understanding, then all six dinosaurs stepped forward as Celestia walked right alongside Twilight. Celestia's presence was unique to the dinosaurs, they could feel a great authority behind the gentle eyes and flowing mane.
"Dinosaurs, I wish to thank you all from the bottom of my heart. You all have earned a special place in my heart for not only saving my student and her friends, but also an entire town. I have never met creatures with your loyalty, bravery and determination before. That's why I would be honored if all of you attend this year's Grand Galloping Gala."
The ponies all squealed in delight after hearing Celestia's announcement. Rainbow Dash was just as happy as Scootaloo had been.
"The Princesses and I will also see to it that Scootaloo's wish will be granted that night as well. I will even have something special for you six when the Gala happens too."
The raptors looked confused on what Celestia was talking about, Indominus and Tyrannosaurus were stumped on what the Grand Galloping Gala was. So Fluttershy, Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash stepped up to give them explanations.
"The Grand Galloping Gala is an event where ponies go to have fun, mingle and spend quality time with others," Fluttershy said to the dinosaurs. Each of them starting painting an image in their minds of what the Gala was like.
"Scootaloo's wish was for all of you and me to become her new family. Celestia and the Princesses are planning on making that happen at the Gala," Rainbow said to the carnivores. Indominus and T-Rex knew about Scootaloo's wish, but the raptors had only just found out.
"I know Tyrannosaurus and Indominus are aware of this, but would you and your sisters like to be part of our family as well Blue?" The beta Velociraptor seemed to be thinking about bring part of such s big family.
She talked amongst her sisters to see what they thought. Charlie, Delta and Echo liked the idea of being in a family. It sounded more promising than being left to fend for themselves in a world they knew nothing about. Blue asked Indominus if he and Rexy would like to have them included. The rexes thought it would be nice to have more dinosaurs in their family, so they nodded their heads. The raptor squad turned back at Scootaloo, and happily chirped to show they would love to.
The filly was overjoyed, the family of her dreams was finally going to become a reality.
"Splendid! Now over the course of these six months, I would like all of you to spend quality time with these dinosaurs. To make them feel more welcome, and get to know them better. I'd like to hear about all your experiences at the Gala."
The mane six agreed and it was settled, but there was one last issue that needed to be taken care of. Celestia turned back towards the dinosaurs with a serious tone.
"Rexes and raptors, before the bonding begins I have a request I must ask of you six. Would you guys like to be the ones to carry out Sheer Cold and Spoiled Rotten's judgement in two days?"
The dinosaurs all had a bone to pick with Scootaloo's DNA doners. They hated how those pegasi had tried to kill Scootaloo during the fight. They easily nodded their heads while baring their teeth in response.
"Excellent, now how about you guys get some rest? That fight must've taken a lot out of all of you. Oh, and welcome to Equestria great and noble dinosaurs."
The dinosaurs were definitely worn out and they could use some good sleep. Before they went into the Everfree Forest, they bellowed glorious roars into the sky. The ponies cheered in delight from the magnitude of the roars. Tyrannosaurus and Indominus shared warming nuzzles with Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo before they dragged their tired bodies back to the cave. The raptors followed after them, having decided that the rexes would be their alphas after the leadership they had shown.
All six dinosaurs huddled together as they drifted off into peaceful slumber. They had a lot waiting for them in the months that would lead up to the Grand Galloping Gala.