Working Towards The Future

by Dasponi

Chapter 69; Dance The Night Away

The three Pegasi made their way off the train and back to Rainbow Dash’s house. When they entered the house Scootaloo ran off up to her room and Star Shine and Rainbow Dash looked around. Neither of them could notice a difference in anything and had no idea that the house had been searched while they were gone. If they looked close enough then they might have been able to, they were just in such good spirits about what the past few hours had brought. For Star Shine and Rainbow Dash the night wasn’t even over.

“Okay Scoots, get out your dress and let’s get you to bed.” Star Shine called up. He had a plan to implement and It was getting late as it was. “You keep yours on though, you’re going to need it.” he added, looking across the room at Rainbow Dash. She raised an eyebrow at him but he said nothing more and instead headed up the stairs to Scootaloo’s room. Rainbow Dash followed him shortly after, electing to keep her dress on just to see what Star Shine was planning. Star Shine and Rainbow Dash entered Scootaloo’s bedroom to see her laid in bed with her dress laid down, folded up neatly, on her dresser.

“I had a lot of fun tonight.” Scootaloo said excitedly as Star Shine and Rainbow Dash stood next to her bed.

“Me too kiddo.” Star Shine said, smiling. “Thanks for that Rainbow.” he added, nuzzling Rainbow Dash. She had paid for everything after all. It had also been her idea to go in the first place.

“Yeah thanks Rainbow!” Scootaloo added, jumping out of bed and wrapping her legs around Rainbow Dash’s neck. Rainbow Dash smiled and giggled nervously under all the affection.

“It’s alright Squirt but you gotta go to sleep now.” Rainbow Dash said after a few seconds. The affection only made her a little uncomfortable. That didn’t mean she didn’t enjoy it. She was also getting used to accepting affection, especially from Scootaloo. It rarely bothered her at all anymore, if ever. Rainbow Dash lowered Scootaloo back down on to the bed and pulled the blanket over her when she laid down again. “‘Night Scoots. Sweet dreams, and don’t forget that I love you.” Rainbow Dash said, kissing Scootaloo on the forehead. Scootaloo smiled and squirmed a little.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you this earlier, but I really do care about you, and you have nothing to do with me going away.” Star Shine added, giving Scootaloo a quick kiss of his own.

“I know.” Scootaloo replied, still smiling. She yawned, closed her eyes, and curled up under her blanket. Star Shine and Rainbow Dash took another look at how cute she was when she was sleeping, or at least trying to get to sleep, and then left her room.

“Sooooo...why did you want me to keep my dress on? We’re not going out and leaving her alone are we?” Rainbow Dash asked Star Shine. She had left Scootaloo at home before, and would work while she was asleep, but she never enjoyed having to do that. She also hated the idea they might actually go out again and leave her behind.

“Nah it’s nothing like that. I just need you to go up to the roof. Got a surprise waiting for ya.” Star Shine replied, trotting off to the nearest exit.

“The roof? What do you want on the roof?” Rainbow Dash called, chasing after him. It was too late and he’d already ducked out of a window and made his way up, presumably to the roof. She thought that maybe he just wanted to look at the stars together or something. They could do that with Scootaloo though. She’d probably enjoy it. She had before. That also didn’t account for why she needed to keep the dress on. She followed Star Shine out the window and up to the roof. When she looked around she couldn’t see him standing there. She couldn’t really see anything remarkable or special set up. There was something off in the distance but she couldn’t quite make out what it was.

“Hey, up here!” Star Shine called from above. Rainbow Dash flew up to him.

“So now will you tell me what’s going on?” Rainbow Dash asked. She was getting just a little impatient at this point.

“Well do you remember a while back we talked about feeling the wind in your feathers, and how you didn’t really know what that was like?” Star Shine asked. Rainbow Dash nodded, not sure where he was going with this. “Well I have a surprise for you. Close your eyes, and don’t open them until I say so.” Star Shine finished. Rainbow Dash sighed but did as he asked. When she closed her eyes Star Shine flew back down to the roof and fiddled with the object Rainbow Dash had noticed. It was a gramophone and a few seconds after he stopped playing with it, Rainbow Dash heard a song play. It was a very light song with a mixture of orchestral and electronic sounds in the beat. She had to admit she liked it. The she heard the lyrics and how it sounded suspiciously like a love song. She felt a shift in the wind as Star Shine came back to her.

“This is nice and all, but what does it have to with the wind in my wings?” Rainbow Dash asked nervously.

“Just trust me.” Star Shine replied. “Now raise your forelegs.” he added. Rainbow Dash decided to trust him and raise her forelegs a little in the air. She jumped as she felt something move around her and press a little too close to her for comfort. “Relax Dashie, relax. It’s just me.” Star Shine said, quick to reassure her. Rainbow Dash calmed down again but occasionally fidgeted.

“Just please tell me what you’re doing.” Rainbow Dash pleaded. “Or let me open my eyes.” she added.

“I can’t tell you. It’s something best felt and shown. Now spread your wings wide but don’t flap them. You’ll be safe, I promise. I’ve got you.” Star Shine replied. Rainbow Dash gave him the benefit of the doubt one more time. She had no reason to not trust him. She unfurled her wings and felt the slump when she stopped moving her wings. True to his word, Star Shine was holding her well enough for her to not fall more than maybe a couple of centimetres. Rainbow Dash felt Star Shine nuzzle up to her and heard him unfurl his wings to their full length. If he stopped flapping too then they’d both fall.

“Hey um, what are you-” Rainbow Dash began before Star Shine gave a huge flap of his wings, and sent them both flying backwards. The wind was whipped away from her mouth but she felt it run through her mane and feathers and she smiled. The experience really was like nothing she could describe. She’d felt the wind in her mane, and even in her wings, but she’d never really taken the time to feel it properly. The way the wind would dance between her feathers, gently tickling her as it passed through. It was like having water go through them but a much more gentle and pleasant experience. She laughed and smiled with glee as Star Shine gave another gust and sent them flying again. This time he only used one wing to send them off in another direction. “Can I open my eyes now?” Rainbow Dash asked after a few more movements. There was something about the way Star Shine was moving that she wanted to verify.

“Of course you can.” Star Shine replied. Rainbow Dash opened her eyes to see him smiling at her. She looked around and saw that she was right about what they were doing. Star Shine might have tried to hide it as something else but the movements were too precise.

“Hey Star?” Rainbow Dash asked, attracting his attention. “We’re...we’re dancing aren’t we?” she asked, her face flushing as soon as she did. Star Shine was controlling his wings very well. He would either flap both of them at the same time to send them flying backwards or he would carefully control one of them to spin them both around. He would also adjust the angle of his wings to send them up or down accordingly. No matter what Star Shine wanted to call it, or how it had started, the two were undoubtedly dancing in the sky. Star Shine nodded slowly, his own face flushing.

“I did want to just show you what it was like to have the wind in your feathers but then I...uh...I wanted to dance with you too.” Star Shine managed to say.

“Next time just say that.” Rainbow Dash replied, hugging up to him. She closed her eyes and rested her head on his chest. Star Shine giggled and nuzzled the top of her head. The song changed a few more times but none of them stuck in Rainbow Dash’s head as much as that first one. Rainbow Dash took the lead with the dance a few times and it was during one such time she felt the need to finally ask. “Hey Star, just what was that first song called?” she asked. She got no response. When she looked Star Shine over she saw that his wings weren’t spread like they were before. They were now just slumped against him. She wasn’t too worried because could still feel him breathing so it was obvious what had happened; he’d actually fallen asleep on her. Rainbow Dash carefully moved so that he was positioned safely on her back and turned the gramophone off and picking it up with her forelegs before heading inside the house. She was tempted to leave Star Shine on the couch but with everything he had done and been through lately she felt he deserved better than that. He’d been putting himself through so much for her and Scootaloo’s sake and pushed himself so hard that he’d actually fallen asleep on her. He deserved a good rest and that was what he was going to get. Rainbow Dash carried him up the stairs, and into her room. She gently laid Star Shine on the bed and curled up next to him. If she was going to unwittingly dance with him, he was going to unwittingly sleep with her.

It was the best nights sleep either of them had gotten in a long time.

Author's Note:

NOT IN THAT WAY! He's not going to sleep with her in that way! This fic is still rated "E" and while it may push "Teen" boundaries, that will not be one of them. I write fluff, not clop.

Anyway, sorry if this chapter seems a little rushed at the end. While I was writing it I had a huge mistake I made brought to my attention. Back in chapter 38 Scootaloo lies to Applejack about her parents being on holiday, and where they had been lately. This was in response to the Gabby Gums article, and Applejack asking if Star Shine was her dad. Sweetie Belle says "I thought they were on holiday?" and this was AFTER Scoots had confessed to her friends that she had no parents. It's actually not as bad a mistake as first thought, and it's easily corrected. I've changed it so that Sweetie Belle's line is cut and so the new line reads “So he ain’t your daddy or nothin’?” Applejack asked, leaning down to talk to Scootaloo directly. Scootaloo was a little taken aback by the question but responded how she normally did when the subject of her parents came up.

“Nah, my parents are away on business.” Scootaloo said. She had gotten used to saying that she was able to say it quick enough for nopony to question it. That everypony believed her lies so easily was another reason nopony had really asked her about her past. She was too good for her own good. “They were on holiday and came back a few days ago and saw how well I was doing with Rainbow. They asked if she could watch me for a little longer while they took care of some business. They’re really busy ponies and were happy they found someone who could take care of me.” Scootaloo explained effortlessly. Sweetie Belle wondered why Scootaloo would lie like that, but didn't call her out on it. With how hard it had been for Scootaloo to hide the truth about her parents from her own friends she could understand that lying was just easier for Scootaloo than admitting the truth. It wasn't exactly healthy but Sweetie Belle didn't want to push Scootaloo like that. She had reacted so badly to Star Shine doing that and didn't want that to happen to her as well. She vowed to support her friend through everything, even her lies."

My thanks to Chinlamp for pointing it out, and my thanks to Celestia that it was so easy to fix!

By the way the song that Star Shine played, for I see no reason to actually not tell you, was "Lights" by Aviator and can be found here;http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nVTW-BqruE I love this song and of all the songs I wanted to reference in my fic, this was one of the few that was viable. I've also referenced the song Rainbow by Koroshi-Ya in an earlier chapter.

Next, back to Scootaloo! I told ya, this romance stuff is a background thing and Rainbow Dash really does have Scootaloo as her number one priority right now. I just couldn't resist writing this as soon as I got the idea to. Star Shine was going to stress at some point that sometimes friends dance too, but I couldn't find a place to put it.

Comments

[CoolB]

Huzzah! New chapter!

Awww... so sweet.

At the end of the chapter though it reads "... and curled him next to him." Either one of those pronouns should be 'her' or you forgot to tell us Tank was there too.

[twilightsparkle13]

my heart, it exploded....

[Zoshe]

so touching, que the fan art

[Aporatael]

3232143 You don't have Tank in your story, where is he?

[Dasponi]

3232143
Hmm...I'll look over that. I'm extremely tired right now Thanks for pointing it out. At least it's not something that requires me to change a good chunk of a chapter that' a few months old

3232224
Well it needs to go back together again

3232225
Yeesh I wish. That would make my day.

[Dasponi]

3232281
...that is actually a good point. To be honest though I think it would be kinda strange to randomly have him appear now and it might just be better to have him be a non-existent entity in the story. If he randomly appears now it'll be like "Hey, I forgot he existed! Here he is!"

...which, to be fair, I did and it would be exactly like that

Poor Tank

[Aporatael]

3232289 Not to mention that tank can fly. How would that hurt Scoots if tank, a tortoise, could fly and she couldn't.

[CoolB]

3232296
Well, Tank flies with a magical contraption and Scoots is learning to fly with a magical contraption... so they're like kindred spirits...

[Rainbooms]

I write fluff, not clop.

Quote of the Year 2013.

[Frankie2]

Interesting. I actually thought Applejack was going to confront Scootaloo later, but forgot. I, too, forgot about Tank (even though he could have been at Fluttershy's for some reason.) I wonder what Star's reaction will be when he wakes up in Rainbow's bed.
In any case, nice job. As always, I look forward to your next chapter.

[Shimmering Honor]

another great chapter, but

She laid him gently on the bed and curled him next to him.

just though i would point that out

[chinlamp]

3232068 It's fine, I just thought I should point that out. Sweetie Belle would have the presence of mind not to do that. It would also mean that AJ would have no reason to start doubting either as no one makes her change her story at any point.

Honestly, that scene were you just kind of force AJ into talking about her parents was pretty weak in my opinion. AJ just assumes something is going on (and the only reason I could see for her assuming something was wrong was Sweetie Belle saying what she did) and goes straight to assuming that Scootaloo has no parents (or that they aren't around often if at all) and tells her all about her own. I felt like the whole scene was just ticking off items on a checklist, there wasn't any emotion to it.

Well, in my opinion anyway. Obviously it's in the minority.

[TwixiePony]

My god I was listening to that same song not 2 minutes ago it is one of my favorites.

Another good chapter :D

[Dasponi]

3232296
It's almost worth putting that in now for that. Poor, poor Scootaloo.

3232356
Excellent point

3232364
Give it time, give it time

3232405
AHH That's a perfect way to introduce Tank! Fluttershy hasn't even made an appearance yet, so it would work. Now to decide if I want to do it. It won't be Deus Ex Machina...not at all. I was a little surprised you didn't notice the potential mistake way back then. I did hint at the time that Applejack didn't really believe her either, but was willing to let it slide.

3232500
I think that has since been fixed. Hope so. I remember doing it earlier and I'm not that out of it.

3232595
I do get what you mean. To be honest I felt like that about the scene myself. Luckily it's pretty much one of the only times I've really had to force something. Every other time I felt I had to force something I usually found some other way to do it. Some scenes have changed dramatically because they would have felt forced otherwise. Guess that chapter wasn't as easy to fix as I thought

3233034
It's an awesome song I've listened to on repeat before...so awesome

[Cold Spike]

I got nuffin... MOAR!

[Dasponi]

3234489
Godding is basically when an OC knows and does everything. If you know what a Mary Sue is then that's basically Godding. If you've ever read a story with an OC and they're pretty much perfect and can do no wrong, then it would be Godding. I do believe it's kinda short for "God Moding" so, yeah, it's basically when an OC controls the universe rather than being a part of it

3235009
Sooooooooooon.