14. Trick-or-Treat
October came with the breeze. The trees below Cloudsdale were turning vermillion hues and carrying the smell of fresh maple and peeling bark. Fall was a beautiful season, and one of the most wonderful ones. Not too hot, not too cold. There were also some pretty fun holidays scattered within those three months; one of them being Nightmare Night.
Rainbow had never been trick-or-treating before. Rainbolt never considered her old enough, and after a fright with particular strangers, he hadn’t as much trust with other ponies he didn’t know. Rainbow may have been on the same boat if it weren’t for her innocence. Even though the stallion hoped his daughter would have a fun night, he was also worried about her safety to some degree. That moment she came home from school and kept talking non-stop about Nightmare Night, he knew he’d have to take her or he’d be cursed with never ending pleading.
“Hold still, Squirmy!” Surprise demanded as she smeared some more eye shadow over Dash’s eyelids.
“I don’t like makeup!” She cried out. “I’m not girly!”
Rainbow had her multicolored mane in an odd style. It was sticking up and very spiky. Surprise used a bottle of glue to do it without Rainbolt knowing. She was hoping he never would find out, though. She was hoping it would wash out as if it were normal hair gel.
“You won’t look girly! You’ll like a monster!”
Surprise smudged a final dark circle under Rainbow’s left eye and smiled in satisfactory. “You’re an adorable little monster, aren’t you? Wait until your daddy sees you!”
“Talking about me?” asked a familiar stallion as he entered the doorway alongside a good friend of his.
“Daddy!” Rainbow chimed with a smile. “I’m a monster!”
Rainbolt giggled. “Of course you are, Sweetie. Wow, Surprise…” He examined his daughter’s makeup and mane thoroughly. “You actually did a really good job!”
“Thanks! I dabble a bit in these sorts of things.”
Rainbow smiled brightly and hopped onto her dad’s chest, warmly embracing him with a nuzzle. “Thank you so, so much for letting me go trick-or-treating Daddy!”
“That’s fine, Sweetheart…” Rainbolt returned the hug with a smile. “I got to trick-or-treat when I was your age, so it’s only fair if you do, too.”
“Hey!” Surprise chimed. “You should totally take her to Manehatten to trick-or-treat!”
Rainbolt and Dreamscape both seemed rather confused by her suggestion.
“Manehatten?” Rainbolt questioned. “Why Manehatten?”
“Oh, you know. It’s where we grew up and stuff. Maybe you could even visit your old friends, show her your flight school, have some time to reflect and everything.”
Rainbolt considered it for a moment. “I guess if we stayed on the Northern side, it’d be pretty safe. It is where I grew up…”
Dash smiled. “Daddy, I get to see where you grew up?”
“Yeah… I guess…” He answered unsurely.
Rainbolt may have grown up in the city, but he didn’t know how it had changed since then. He had planned on taking her to a nice little town called Ponyville, but his plans seemed to have changed.
Rainbow gasped. “Yay!” She once again threw her hooves around her father’s neck.
“Yeah… It’s not that exciting. You’re lucky to be growing up in Cloudsdale.”
Rainbow ignored her father’s comment as she laid eyes on Dreamscape and remembered something.
“Mr. Dreamscape…” She started. “Is Fluttershy going with us?”
“No… Fluttershy doesn’t like talking to ponies. I normally just by her a large bag of candy and watch movies with her for the evening.”
“Bor-ring!” Rainbow sang and broke away from her daddy. “Why buy candy when you can just get it for free from strangers?”
Rainbolt and Dreamscape laughed a little at the filly’s paradigm.
“Are you ready to go, Sweetie?” Rainbolt asked his excitable little girl.
Rainbow’s little, cyan wings flapped vigorously in excitement and anticipation. “You bet!”
Rainbolt’s hooves softly touched the stone roads of the large city that raised him. He looked down the dark neighborhood that he’d grown up in. Dashie landed next to him quietly and peered into the neighborhood. The only light was from the flickering street lamps that bordered the sidewalks. There were very little foals trick-or-treating, but there was one rather small group. Dash held an empty bag in her mouth, anticipating the long night ahead of them.
“Now, Dash, do you remember what to say when they open the door?”
“Nightmare night! What a fright! Give me something sweet to bite!” Rainbow chanted cutely in response.
Rainbolt smiled. “Adda girl. Now, we only go to the ones with decorations or lights on.”
Rainbow smiled and looked around the neighborhood. Her eyes locked on a modestly decorated house with dark blue lights around the door frame and a miniature stature of a dark-looking alicorn with glowing, white eyes and a wavy dark blue, shimmering mane.
“That one?” She asked, gazing up at her dad with eyes as wide as saucers and a pointing hoof.
The stallion gently nudged his daughter towards the house and stepped towards it along by her side. She smiled and took off eagerly towards the glowing house. Rainbolt sighed and flew next to her, landing on the porch with her. She smiled widely as she knocked loudly on the stranger’s front door.
Moments later, a stallion came out. He was smiling at the little filly and wearing an eye patch over his left eye and a large pirate hat on his head.
“Hey there, Cutie. What are you supposed to be?”
Rainbow let out a long, fake growl. “I’m a monster! Rawr!”
Rainbolt’s yellow eyes circled counter-clockwise to the back of his head with a smile. She was so cute, it was at times painful.
Rainbow gasped as the stallion’s dark blue horn lit up and watched in awe as a little piece of candy levitated out of a large, purple bowl and into her plastic sac. The stallion smiled.
“You two be safe. Have a nice evening!” The stallion closed the door and wondered back inside his own house.
“Daddy!” Rainbow immediately exclaimed. “That cone head picked things up without touching them!”
Rainbolt lead his daughter away from the porch. “That’s because he’s a unicorn, Sweetheart. They can do things like that.”
“Oh…. I wish I were a unicorn. That’d be cool.”
Rainbolt giggled. “Then you wouldn’t have your wings… Unless of course you were royalty like Princess Celestia…”
“What’s she have?” Rainbow asked curiously as they walked down the street to the next house.
“She has wings and a horn.”
“She gets both?! That’s SO cool! And not fair…”
“She raises the sun every single morning, Sweetheart. I think it’s the least to say it’s faire she gets both.”
Rainbow looked down. “Okay, Daddy…”
The stallion looked at the ground with his daughter. There must have been some way to lighten the mood.
“What’d you get, Sweetie?”
Rainbow looked in her bag and pulled out a little, green packet and held it in her hooves. It was decorated with purple, smiling circles.
“You got Crackles!” Rainbow looked at her father with confusion, not knowing exactly what she’d gotten. “They’re these little candies that pop in your mouth! Gosh, those were my favorite when I was a little colt.”
Rainbow unsurely held her hoof out to her father. “You can have ‘em, Daddy.”
“Oh, no! I couldn’t! This is your first Nightmare Night, and I want you to make the very best of it!”
Dash put the candy back into her bag and continued walking down the lane silently in search of the next house.
The night flew by fast; very, very fast. Within an hour or so, Rainbow’s large sac was nearly filled three quarters of the way. She happily skipped down the sidewalk with a smile.
“One more house, Dashie. That’s it. You’re already going to be up all night with all that sugar.”
Dash let out an irritated grunt. “But Daddy!”
“Shush it, Rainbow. I don’t like wondering around this late at night!”
“I do!” The little filly announced proudly as she walked down the street. “It’s all dark and mysterious and cool!”
“And dangerous!” Rainbolt harshly reminded. “Who knows what kind of creepy things linger around in this darkness?”
“Pssh! You actually believe in ghost and goblins and stuff?”
“No… Sometimes it’s the ponies around us who are more terrifying than any of those things…”
“Daddy… you’re talkin’ weird.”
Rainbolt admit it, from Dashie’s perspective, it probably sounded as though he were speaking in riddles.
“Never mind…forget about it…. Look, how about we go to that house up there?”
Rainbolt’s periwinkle hooves pointed towards a house at the very end of the street. It had a bright porch light and Nightmare Moon statue in the window. Dash smiled with a nod, spreading her wings and rushing towards it.
“Hey! Wait up!”
Rainbolt stretched out his wings and flew after the adventurous filly as quickly as he possibly could. She landed on the front doorstep of the house seconds before Rainbolt did.
“Don’t fly off from me like that!” Rainbolt commanded in an aggressive tone. Rainbow looked up at her daddy.
“Sorry… I will from now on…”
Rainbolt forced a smile and gently rubbed Rainbow’s back. “It’s okay... I get worried about not being near you at this hour, though. I’m just looking out for you, Sweetie.”
“I’ll be okay, Daddy…” She argued, as she raised her hoof to the door and tapped it against the wooden surface three times.
Rainbolt decided it was best to shut up. He didn’t want to be lecturing his kid when the pony answered the door.
After short moments of waiting, a gentle-looking stallion answered the door and smiled. He had green eyes and soft, light-purple coat. His mane was a light shade of blue and two wings were attached to his back. Both Rainbolt and the stallion’s eyes shot wide when they noticed each other.
“Mr. Frost…?” Rainbolt questioned with a gasp. “Wow… it has been a long time…”
“Rainbolt.” He greeted simply. “I see you have a kid now… Evidently, it had the misfortune of getting your physical traits.”
Rainbolt giggled and Rainbow seemed lost as the two spoke. “Daddy… Who’s this?”
“This is Sonnet Frost. He was my English teacher at flight school… He’s an interesting character to say the least… Mr. Frost, this is my daughter, Rainbow Dash.”
The stallion stared at the filly, then back at Rainbolt, then exchanged glances between the two. His daughter was a mess of glued-up hair and smudgy makeup. Her smile was wide and her eyes were sparkling. Sonnet’s eyes remained emotionless and he finally spoke.
“I…see…” The teacher grabbed a piece of candy and tossed it to the little filly. “Stay in school, kid.”
“I will!” She chimed, and caught the chocolate chunk in her bag.
Rainbolt awkwardly smiled at his ex-teacher. “Well… it was nice seeing you again. Have a nice evening!”
“You, as well, Rainbolt.”
The teacher gave another glance at the two, shook his head, and closed the door.
“Daddy,” Rainbow started as they walked away from the final house of that night. “That stallion didn’t seem to like you too well…”
“Yeah… I wasn’t exactly his favorite student and he was never my favorite teacher…”
“Oh…” Rainbow looked at her bag of candy and smiled. “Hey!” She grabbed a little pouch from the top of her pile. “It’s those things you like!” She offered the familiar candy to her father once again.
“That’s okay, Sweetheart, I don’t want your candy…”
“Awe…” Dash threw the candy back into her blue, plastic bag and froze. Rainbolt too stopped in his path and looked at his daughter.
“Can we fly home now?” She asked cutely.
“Of course we can.” Rainbolt outstretched his wings and his daughter smiled widely, unfolding hers as well. With an approving wink, the stallion and little filly took off into the night sky. The cool, evening breeze felt amazing in their manes and brought a wonderful rush to the blood coursing through their veins. It felt riveting and awesome!
The pair of pegasi looked down on all the street lights and speeding carriages on the roads of Manehatten. The beautiful fumes of late-night restaurants and night air filled the ponies’ nostrils. Rainbow kept a tight grip on her candy as she stared at the city in awe.
“Wow… It’s beautiful. I can’t believe you grew up here.”
Rainbolt sighed at fond memories. “I was… it really is a beautiful city.
As the little filly concentrated, she soon heard something particularly strange over the sound of the rustling carriages, busy city folks, and whining foals. She heard…crying. Not just a little foal shedding tears over a lost toy, but something more. Crying that could only be produced by somepony calling out for help. Rainbow became paralyzed as she heard the sound. Rainbolt turned as his daughter froze.
“Rainbow?” Rainbolt questioned. “Are you…alright?”
Rainbow’s ears where erect, trying to pick up the source of the noise.
“Do you…hear that…?” She asked.
Rainbolt’s ears arose and he attempted to listen for whatever it was Dashie was hearing. The only noise that his ears detected was the busy movement of the town below.
“I don’t hear anything… What do you think you’re hearing?”
Rainbow didn’t answer her father. She looked down into the large crack between two buildings below.
“I think it’s coming from down there!”
Without another word, Rainbow dashed into the alley below and Rainbolt watched.
“Rainbow!” He yelled. “I thought we talked about this!”
Ignoring her father, the little filly flew down into the alley. The sound of the sobs grew louder the moment she entered the dark, city hallway.
“Hello?” Dash called. “Anypony here?”
A timid, crackling voice answered back through the shadows. “H-hello…?”
Dash rushed towards the nearby voice, and only turning one corner her pink eyes laid on a weeping, young mare. She had pretty purple eyes and a light-pink coat. Her mane was raggedy and blue. Her flanks were tattooed with a trio of blue lightning bolts. Her eyes looked wide at the little filly.
“Miss?” Rainbow asked with a concerned tone. “Are you okay…?”
“I…I…I think you should go find your parents.”
“But you’re hurt!” Rainbow grabbed a few hoof-fulls of candy from her bag and set it on the ground in front of the mare. “I think you need this more than I do…”
Firefly looked shocked. “Sweetheart…this is very, very sweet, but I can’t accept it…”
Before the filly could ask why, she heard a very familiar stallion calling her name.
“Rainbow Dash! Rainbow! Dashie!”
Rainbow poked her head around the corner. “Daddy! Come here! I found a mare and I think she needs our help!”
Firefly shook her head at the little filly, but Rainbow ignored her. Firefly was begging hopelessly. She didn’t want to be seen like that. A wet sobbing mess, living on the inside of an alley. Alas, it wasn’t moments later the recognizable face looked around the corner. His yellow eyes widened and he gasped. She looked awful… Her mane was a wreck. There was a bruise under her left eye, and tears filling her purple eyes. Rainbolt gasped and no words came out of either ponies’ mouth.
“Daddy!” Rainbow said. “I think we should take her home! She needs food and shelter and stuff!”
Firefly heavily blushed. “Listen, Sweetheart… Go to your dad and just leave me alone.”
“No!” Rainbow squealed. “Daddy we need to help her!”
Rainbolt wordlessly turned to his ex-lover. She looked so miserable. Just seeing the large amounts of sadness in her eyes almost made him feel… almost bad for her. However, there was no way in Equestria he felt bad enough to allow her a place in his house.
“Rainbow…Let’s go home.”
“What?! No! We have to do something for her!” the little filly said with a cry.
Rainbow bolted down into the arms of the little mare and hugged her. Rainbolt gaped.
“Rainbow, we’re leaving now!”
“No!” She protested again. “She was crying, Daddy! We’re going to go home and sleep in our comfortable beds, under a roof, and with plenty of food in our house! She’s not as lucky as us, and I won’t be able to sleep tonight knowing we didn’t do anything to help her!”
Firefly and Rainbolt awkwardly stared at each other. Rainbow was so clueless of their past, and so innocent… but her heart was in the right place. Rainbolt sighed. Denying the mare entrance to his home would be a bad influence to his daughter. She was doing her best to welcome a stranger into a more comforting place, and he had to respect that. The stallion sighed.
“Rainbow… give me a minute to talk to this mare, okay?”
The little filly seemed slightly confused. “Okay, Daddy…”
As Rainbow removed herself from the hooves of her mother, her father gestured the mare into the nearby alley. Firefly blushed and took in a breath of courage. She could already feel tears swelling in her eyes as she stood off the ground and slowly made her way behind the corner. Rainbolt turned to his daughter.
“Stay right here!” He hissed to Rainbow.
Rainbow obeyed his command as him and Firefly went into the alley together. When Rainbolt assumed they were deep enough in for his daughter not to understand what they were about to discuss, he turned to his ex and took in a breath. The strong, unnatural emotions brewing within him caused him to tear up.
“Listen, Firefly… I know it’s been a long, long time, but I-“
Just those simple words, along with hearing her name off those forgotten lips made her swelled emotions pop like a bubble. She broke down into a storm of tears and wrapped her hooves around the stallion she so dearly missed.
“R-Rainbolt! I-I’m s-so sorry…a-about everything. I-I’m s-s-sorry about b-being irresponsible a-and causing you so m-much heartache! P-please forgive me! I-I made a h-huge mista-ake! I was a s-stupid teenager!”
The stallion was mostly shocked by the actions of the mare. He stared for a minute before forcing her out of the embrace and looking her in her tear-flooded eyes.
“Listen, Firefly, I know you’re sad about everything. Surprise told me about your current situation a few months ago. Obviously, Dash feels bad for you. That is the only reason I’ll be letting you stay with me.” Even though Rainbolt’s tone remained assertive, his eyes were a mixture of many complex emotions.
Firefly sniffled and looked up at Rainbolt. “Y-you’re letting me stay with y-you?”
Rainbolt sighed. “Yeah, I guess… It’s only because of the kid, though! Don’t think I’m still not pissed at you for leaving me and the kid like that!”
“I….I… thank you, so, so much….”
“A few things though. One; I do not want Dash knowing how we used to be connected in any way! Two; I don’t want Rainbow to know how you’re connected to her at all, either! And thr-“
Rainbolt was interrupted a shrill, loud scream coming from around the corner.
“Th-that sounds like Rainbow!” Rainbolt cried and flew down the alleyway and to the right with Firefly fallowing him closely behind. As soon as the worried pair turned the corner, she was gone…
“Oh no! Oh no! Oh no! Rainbow Dash? Sweetie?”
Tears begun to swell in Rainbolt’s eyes as he frantically looked around for his baby. He looked around the near-by trash can, in Firefly’s “home”, and in the perimeter of the entire alley in panic. He then returned to Firefly when he’d given up hope of finding his child in that area.
“I-I’m so, so scared…” He admitted. “Th-this is all my f-fault for telling her to stay there! Why’d I take my eyes off her?”
Firefly watched as the guilt-filled stallion fell to the ground and started silently weeping to himself. He felt…awful. How could he possibly be so…irresponsible? Thinking about what he’d done made him realize that maybe he was no better than Firefly had been.
Rainbolt perked his ears up when he felt a gentle hoof stroke his back reassuringly. He turned around and met eyes with his ex.
“Don’t freak out… I know where the kid most likely is…”
Rainbolt wiped a tear. “You…You do?”
Firefly nodded. “Well… you obviously know what I do for a living… And well, Surprise told me about how funny you thought it was… But-“
“Wait! Surprise told me she hasn’t seen you in months!”
Firefly sighed. “That’d be better for her to explain later… Anyway, I have a certain… customer…” As the word “customer” left her lips, her face lit up red. “I’ve seen him several times… He pays really well. Anyway, He, uh… offered that I be the ‘whore of his gang’ to put it simply. He said he’d provide me with food, water, shelter, and anything else I needed, but the one rule of the gang is once you enter, you’re not allowed to leave… I refused because I really want to think I have a better future… Anyway, he tried to convince me more and more, and I found out that the majority of members were taken into the gang at a young age. He claims they take children off the street and train them to kill…”
Rainbolt was gaping and tears were streaming from his eyes. “You mean to tell me… my daughter was by a gang…?”
Firefly nodded. “Most likely…I could get her back, though…”
Rainbolt’s tears once again subsided. “You…really?”
“Yeah… I know where my regular lives… If I tell him I accept his offer, then I’ll be able to get into their little hideout… If Rainbow was there, I think I’d be able to find her easily.”
Rainbolt smiled a little then. “Thank you, so, so much… If you could actually save her… I’d owe you my life.”
Firefly did nothing but nod. “I have a plan to get her back. Okay, so we-“
“Wait…” Rainbolt interrupted. “What if it wasn’t the gang that took my daughter?”
Firefly looked at her ex in disbelief. “I know a member of the gang, okay? They always hang around this part of town, and from some information I got, they take young-aged children. You act as if I haven’t spent hundreds of nights living out on these streets! I think I know what I’m talking about!”
“I was just saying a huge ‘if’, okay? Jeesh, you get so up-in-arms about everything.”
Firefly rolled her eyes. “I don’t have to be helping you, you know? I could just say, ‘Hey, it’s your kid, not my problem’!”
“Oh, like the way you’ve been doing the past five years?”
Firefly gasped and removed themselves from the topic. “Whatever… Arguing isn’t getting Rainbow home any sooner.”
The stallion sighed. “You’re right… So... What’s the plan?”
The group of stallions smiled at the little filly. All were wearing false leather coats and had their manes done in the same, slicked-back style. They sat in chairs around a large, wooden table, admiring their new member. The little filly stared around the room in confusion and fear. She’d been placed in an individual chair across from nearly everypony else. Where was her daddy? Why was she there?
The trip there was pretty scary for Dash, too. She was dragged not around town, but under it through a sewage system. The entire trip she smelt the awful stench of rotten eggs and decaying animals. Not to mention she had a strange stallion covering her mouth the entire time. After a little while of traveling, he shot up back into the open and they were beside a large, deserted hotel surrounded by barbed wire and tall fencing.
For the longest time, nopony spoke. The sustained silence and stares made Rainbow feel extremely uncomfortable. She wanted more than anything to be home with her daddy. Why didn’t she just keep flying and not listen to the cries?
“A girl this time, huh?” One stallion finally spoke up in a thick, Manehatten accent. “Wouldn’t be usin’ this one for actually fights. She may be useful in other ways, though.”
“I wouldn’t say that…” One commented in the same accent. “This one put up more of a fight than some colts I’ve seen.”
“Oh really?” The brown-coated stallion leaned in, making his face only inches away from the filly’s. “Do you enjoy fightin’, Sweetheart?”
“I can fight…” She answered hesitantly. “I wanna go home, though. Not fight.”
“Awe…that’s cute. You’d better get used to this place, ‘cause this is your new home.”
“Under an abandoned hotel?” Rainbow asked with large eyes.
Several of the members closest to her nodded their heads with smiles. Rainbow stared blankly.
“But I live in the sky… This is the opposite of the sky…”
“No, no, Sweetheart…” The stallion closest to her commented. “You used to live in the sky.”
Firefly and Rainbolt walked nervously up the staircase in the apartment complex. It was a pretty decent place, considering the part of town they were in. The majority of their trip had been silent and awkward. Both wanted to save Rainbow, but both also had their mind uncontrollably think about the pony they were with, and everything they used to be together.
Rainbolt had to admit, Firefly’s plan wasn’t too bad, and could have actually worked. She’d tell her regular that she’d accept his offer, and she’d be lead to their hideout. Rainbolt would fallow very closely behind. When they entered, he’d get the police in the area, and Dash would be saved. It may not have been too well thought-out, but it was better than nothing. No matter what happened, they vowed to get Dashie home safely.
“Jeesh…” Firefly spoke up. “I can’t believe how irresponsible of a parent you turned out to be...”
Rainbolt didn’t deny it. He simply looked at the ground shamefully. “Shut up… it’s not like you’re any better….”
“Well, at least I never lost a child in a dangerous city like Manehatten!”
Rainbolt scoffed. “You weren’t a parent long enough to even lose the kid!”
“Well even if I had stuck around, I would have turned out a better parent than you did! I always doubted you.”
“Well you’re acting real mature! And no, you didn’t! Unless you lied to me in that little letter you left me instead of saying it to my face!”
“I didn’t want to deal with the emotions of saying it to your face! I’m sorry, okay?” The pink pegasus thought for a moment. “And I never said anything that encouraging in the letter I left!”
“You did too!”
“I did not!”
“Yes, you did!”
“Ugh! Whatever, you can’t prove anything!”
“Yeah I can! I still have the damn thing saved somewhere if you want to see it!”
Firefly stopped and turned to Rainbolt. “You…still have it…? After all these years?”
Rainbolt shyly put his head down. “Yeah…whatever… Let’s just focus on what’s important…”
“Okay…”
Silently, the duo climb up to the fourth story and Firefly sighed. “We’re here. I’m going into the apartment. Stay behind the corner and wait for me to come out, then fallow us!”
“Got it!” Rainbolt whispered back and stood silently behind the corner. He listened as three loud knocks landed on a hard, wood door. The bangs were followed by a long moment of silence and then a high-pitched creaking noise.
“Firefly…” He heard a low-pitched voice greet the mare. “What a surprise… Come on in.”
Firefly entered the cozy apartment slowly. Every time she entered the home, it always reminded her of Rainbolt’s old apartment. She remembered visiting there after school as a teenager and spend long evenings cuddling and singing to each other, racing and bonding closer every day.
“What brings you here?” He asked in his usual, Manehatten accent.
Firefly’s purple eyes darted to the ground. “I… I accept your offer… About being your friends little ‘toy’ for the gang.”
Her customer smiled at her. “I knew you’d come to your senses and grow tired of living on the filthy streets.”
Firefly stared at the ground. If she were to ever legitimately say yes to the offer, all her pride would be lost, along with any chance of getting into a better situation.
“So, uh… Are you going to introduce me to the rest of the gang, or are we going to go for a round..?”
He chuckled. “You’re so silly, Firefly. Have I ever rejected a round from you?”
A female member of the large gang continued to thoroughly scrub Dashie’s mane. Whatever was keeping her multihued hair so stiff, the maid had no clue.
“Ugh? What the buck did your parents use on your mane? Glue or somethin’?”
Rainbow shrugged and the mare squirt a couple more ounces of shampoo into the filly’s mane and started scrubbing hard.
“Ugh! Damn kids!”
The lead stallion of the gang entered the washing room without knocking or any verbal warning he was entering. He was smiling with his usual painted-on smirk.
“How’s it going with that one?”
“Eh… she’s definitely a fighter. When I tried to bathe her, she squirmed and ended up kicking me in the nose. I was chasing her around for good five or ten minutes before she actually got into the bath.”
The stallion approached the little filly with a frown. “Were you giving this lovely mare a hard time?”
Rainbow’s cute smile was full of pride. “Yep!”
The stallion frowned at her for a moment. They stared into each other’s eyes for what seemed like an eternity before he finally smiled with a chuckle. “I like this one. She’s cute… With that attitude she’s definitely not going to be a maid.”
Dash smiled back, and then frowned. He called her cute… Daddy always called her cute. It’d been an hour or so since she’d last seen him, but she already missed him. She only hoped he was on his way to rescue her and bring her home where she belonged.
Rainbolt was nearly falling asleep before the two little ponies left the room they’d been in. How long had it been? A half hour? Forty five minutes? However long, it was way too damn long to be staring at a wall with nothing but one’s thoughts. He’d never been more relieved when he heard his apartment door whine as it opened.
“Now…” He heard the thick Manehatten accent start in a loud whisper. “I’m taking you to our ‘home’ and you’d better not tell anypony about it!”
“I won’t… I promise.” Firefly weakly agreed.
The two ponies’ hooves were loudly clanking against the smooth, stone floor. Luckily for Rainbolt, the sound was growing faint, and eventually faded to dull tapping. That was when he decided it was best to take action. He slowly tip-toed down the hall, being as quiet as he could in fear of getting caught. If he were busted, there’d be no way in Equestria to save his daughter. He’d been separated only a little over an hour and he already missed her. How could he have let this happen?
Rainbolt slowly poked his head around a corner as he watched the unicorn guide the mare down the stairs. This was his opportunity to just watch for a bit until further location. As the duo neared the bottom of the staircase, Rainbolt peaked out of the bars supporting the safety rails. There was a large patch of dull, anhydrous land before a tall wooden gate. The pair flew beyond one of the gates larger cracks. The stallion made it through the crack with ease, but Firefly had difficulties getting her right wing through. She struggled and flapped the feathered beauty until she was let through.
The two were beyond the wood fence… Was it safe to go yet? He watched a minute more, but had a hard time deciphering any movement behind the wooded fence. He took in a breath, and decided to take the chance. He slowly tip-toed down the stairs, occasionally taking glances towards the area behind the fence. He slowly made his way down, and surprisingly enough did it without making any noticeable sound. The bigger risk to take was crossing the barren field of dirt. He couldn’t see beyond the wooden wall too well, so neither could they…right?
Despite Rainbolt’s urge to stay in his place and hide like a coward, he pushed into the little field with all his will power and thoughts of his beloved Dash. He walked quietly, but with a semi-quick pace. His heart thump quicker and beads of cool sweat formed on his face and dripped down his nose.
Almost there, Rainbolt… He thought to himself. Just a few more steps and you’ll be there… by the end of the night, you’ll be holding Rainbow in your arms and kissing her goodnight… Just do it for her.
After what seemed like long hours, Rainbolt finally made it to the other side. He peered through the hole in the wooden fence. The stallion was sliding off the metal entrance to the sewer system below. Rainbolt watched as he saw him hop in with a nervous-looking Firefly. Rainbolt gasped. It had just got a lot harder for him! How was he supposed to fallow? Slowly, Rainbolt saw the metal lid being dragged back on top of the whole.
“Damn it!” Rainbolt muttered to himself.
He’d just have to wait a minute to fallow. He sighed, and reluctantly waited a long minute.
Below the streets, Firefly grew nervous. How was Rainbolt ever going to catch up? He’d probably get caught or something. Oh, she only hoped they could get Dash out okay. She may not have had much of a connection to her, but she was only a foal. A sweet, innocent foal that didn’t deserve to be sucked into the vile life of a gang. The way she’d treated her even though she’d been a complete stranger… it warmed Firefly’s heart. Rainbow wouldn’t have given up on her, and there was no way in Equestria she was going to let down that little filly!
After a long, hard minute, Rainbolt took in a breath, and flew over the wooden fence. This was going to be very risky. He looked at the large, metal saucer and grew more nervous. He’d have to lift it up with very little sound for his plan to work. Slowly, the stallion grabbed the edges of the lid and flapped his wings as fast as they would go. Carefully and with little speed, he rose along with the heavy lid. It strained his back and wings to carry the flat, metal plate, but the thought of his daughter kept him off the ground, and allowed him to set the lid down gently. He let out a breath as he stepped back onto all fours. He stretched and his back popped. Man, did it feel good. Now… to fallow the stallion without being caught.
The pegasus slowly lowered his head into the hole. He saw the unicorn’s horn illuminating a soft shade of pink nearly twenty yards away. They were moving very quickly. They were at a moderate gallop, but a gallop nevertheless. Rainbolt slowly entered the sewer. It smelt like muck, filth, and mold. The stallion’s hoof instantly shot up to shield his nose. This was going to be a long trip.
The stallion’s pink horn illuminated as he removed the lid of the sewer.
“Here we are, finally!” He commented as he exited the smelly sewer.
The pretty, pink mare shot out and took in a wonderful gasp of fresh, midnight air. It tasted amazing.
“I am so, so glad to be out of there!” She stated with another long inhale.
“Don’t get too excited. Trust me; this won’t be the first time you go in there.”
Yeah…That’s what you think. Firefly thought within her mind.
Without another word, the stallion motioned Firefly to the entrance of the abandoned hotel. She went to the door with slight hesitation, but proceeded to enter, anyhow. He led the mare to the staircase of the large, abandoned building.
“Our hideout’s in the basement.” He explained. “We’ve never been caught, and we hope we never will be.”
“Yeah… that’d be a tragedy….”
“Wouldn’t it?”
The stallion guided the pretty mare downstairs and into the room. There were oddly colored curtains hanging from the entrance. Many small, round tables were scattered in the room with chairs. There were two large barrels filled with alcohol against the wall. There was an old stage with dusty, red curtains.
“Why would the theater of the hotel be held in its basement?”
“Hm… Not sure. It just was. Now come on, I’m taking you to the main room.”
Rainbolt at long last pushed the lid up and away from the sewer entrance. His coat smelt just as awful as his recent location. He took in gallons of the fresh air. Dull, lifeless air had never tasted sweeter. The stallion coughed as he flew out and examined his area.
“The…old hotel? Man, I remember when this thing was up and running!” He sighed. “Well… time to go to the police station…”
“Wow…” Firefly gaped at the impressive number of ponies in the main room. There must have been at least sixty stallions and mares roaming around, chatting, and showing off weapons to one another. “This place is huge…”
“It is, isn’t it?” The stallion said, looking out on his pride and joy.
Firefly was grabbed by her hoof and taken into the large crowd of ponies. She stared at the floor, not wanting to make eye contact of any kind with any of them. She was scared and a bit nervous for the task ahead. She knew it would be hard, but also worth it for the sake of Dashie.
It seemed like way too short of time before Firefly was being introduced to a brown-coated stallion. He seemed confident with himself and had determination in his deep, chocolaty eyes to prove it.
“This is, uh…” The unicorn whispered something in the stallion’s ears. Firefly knew what he said, and she felt very ashamed to know it. The brown-coated stallion smiled at the mare.
“Is that so?”
Firefly replied with a nod and the stallion chuckled. “No need to be shy, Sweetheart. Welcome home.”
Firefly sighed and nodded. “It’s aright… I’ve just… lost all my pride.”
Since it was Firefly’s first night even being in the hotel, she was granted an hour or so to look around, introduce herself, and get to know the place. However, the only thing Firefly was looking for was a little, cyan filly named Rainbow Dash. She searched all over for the little filly and grew increasingly worried each moment she couldn’t find her.
“Rainbow Dash!” She whispered over and over again. “Oh, Rainbow, where are you?”
The mare frantically searched all over in every room, scanning over and over again for the lost filly. Oh man, why did she have to be crying? If she wouldn’t have been wallowing in her own self-pity, then maybe none of this would have ever happened!
Firefly passed by dining rooms, social rooms, meeting rooms, heck, she even checked the restrooms, but the little foal was nowhere to be seen. Firefly was starting to consider the possibility that maybe the little filly hadn’t been taken by the gang.
Firefly flew all over, introduced herself to certain ponies quickly, and then continued her search. She finally found the cyan foal as she passed by a more minor room. She couldn’t see Dash, but she could hear her voice almost instantly.
“I just want to go home…”
“It’s okay…” A comforting mare could be heard saying. Firefly pressed her ear against the door. “The first few months will be the hardest, then you’ll almost forget you even had parents.”
The little filly’s voice was crackling and it was evident she was crying. “But… I don’t want to forget about my daddy… I love my daddy…”
Hearing the poor filly plead was heartbreaking to Firefly. The poor girl must be scared, sad, and lost.
“It’ll be okay, Sweetheart… A couple years from now, and you’ll never even think about him.”
“I-I just wanna go home…” Dashie said with a sob. “I-I wanna go home and go to sleep and see Daddy!”
The little filly then broke down into a mess of hot, running tears. She could be heard weeping heavily from the outside. Firefly’s own eyes began to tear up.
“That’s too bad, Sweetheart. This is your home.”
Firefly gritted her teeth in anger. How could you take a child from their home like that and be so inconsiderate? For what? So she can expand the gang? It was already far too large as it was.
“No! I want to go to my real home!”
“Don’t worry, Baby… You’ll be there real soon… I promise…” Firefly whispered quietly on the opposite side of the door.
It was then Firefly heard a loud shout and the opening of a door real quick.
“Nopony move!” Was all she heard in a loud, booming voice. It must have been…the police.
“Yes!” Firefly whispered to herself victoriously. “He did it!”
Firefly opened the door of the office and grabbed the little foal from the seat she was placed in. She barely had time to notice her surroundings as she shot out of the office and down the hall.
“Don’t worry! I’m taking you home!” Firefly whispered to the little filly.
Firefly frantically looked around in hopes there’d be some way to escape the mess of ponies without being stopped by the police. As she started near the opened door she heard loud gunshots. Rainbow covered her floppy ears and let out a cute squeal.
“Hey! You stop right there!” She heard an angry voice speak loudly.
Firefly’s eyes met a gray stallion who was galloping fast out of the room. Firefly looked at the filly. “Don’t worry, stay right here and don’t move an inch!”
The mare looked at the galloping stallion and with one quick motion, pounced on him. He instantly started to struggle beneath her.
“Hey! Let me go you stupid bitch!”
Firefly kept her hoof on his back securely and forced his head down near the floor.
“Not a chance.”
The stallion had never thought he’d be overpowered by a mare, but there he was, struggling beneath her and pathetically attempting to get out from her firm grasp. Dash watched in awe.
It wasn’t a moment later two police shot in and circled the stallion and Firefly above him. She smiled at the police and dismounted the squirming stallion, leaving his fate in the hooves of the officers.
“Uhh… thank you ma’am.” One of the police commented as he cuffed the victim.
“No problem, Officer. Just, you know, doing what I had to.”
Firefly grabbed Dash, who was only a few feet off the ground in her assigned corner.
“You know,” One commented as he lifted the criminal off the ground. “If you easily overpowered that stallion, I think you’d have a lot of potential to become a police.”
Firefly smiled. “Really? You really think so?” Her tone may have been a bit too giddy.
“Sure. I mean, our Equestrian police forces are always looking for new ponies willing to be police. It’s a lot of training, but it’s free to train, and then getting hired depends on how good you are when it all ends.”
Firefly smiled and her mind sparked. “Thank you, Officer… Thank you so, so much…”
As Firefly swooped down from the large hotel, she saw her ex coltfriend waiting for her with a smile. His eyes went wide with joy as he saw his daughter, smiling and unharmed.
“Daddy!” She chimed happily and swooped into her father’s chest. “I missed you so, so much!”
“I missed you, too, Sweetie!” He smiled at his sweet, little girl and gave her several kisses on her neck and head. “I love you so, so much…” He brought his hooves around her with a hug.
“Daddy… That mare saved me.”
Rainbolt peeked over his shoulder at his ex marefriend and sighed. She looked back at him and they both smiled genuinely. Firefly glided down and landed on the area next to Rainbolt. The stallion broke away from his daughter for a moment.
“Firefly…” He started. “I…I couldn’t thank you enough. I owe you my life. A-and…” He bit his lip and looked up to her. “I’d be happy to let you stay with me and Dash, if you’d like…”
Firefly giggled lightheartedly. “That’s fine. The only reason my parents…you know, kicked me out, was because I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I kept telling them I didn’t know, and eventually they kicked me out and told me to come back when I had a plan in life… I think I’m going to become a police officer.”
“Really?”
“Yeah… After they take me in for questioning, they said I’d be eligible, so…thanks, but I don’t think I’ll need your help.”
Rainbolt smiled. “Wel.l.. I…I’d like to apologize before we split ways forever… Sorry I was so rude to you before… I guess I was just being mean because I’ve never really gotten over it. I just… never… you know… You’re just…” Rainbolt couldn’t get the words off his lips, but was interrupted by a young filly, anyway.
“Daddy… Why are you sorry? And what’d you not get over?”
“I….I-It’s a long story… I promise to tell you one day, though…”
Dash frowned. “But I want to know now…”
Rainbolt rolled his eyes. “Trust me; some things are better to just know through time.”
Dash grunted and Rainbolt ignored her, once again turning to his ex and clearing his throat. “So…goodbye…. I… Thanks for everything…”
Firefly nodded and quickly embraced Rainbolt. He hugged her back and they broke away together. Without another word, the little mare smiled at him, turned, and spread her wings. She winked at Rainbolt before shooting off into the night.
“Daddy…” Rainbow quietly muttered.
“Yeah…?”
“Someday I want to be as brave as that mare…”
Rainbolt kneeled down lower and lovingly nuzzled his foal.
“Trust me, Sweetheart; You already are."
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Yay! Time to read !
Godspeed, Firefly.
GODSPEED
So Firefly redeems herself. Why do I see a triangle between Rainbolt, Surprise and Firefly in the future?
Also:
Shouldn't this be a Nightmare Moon statue?
Is Firefly staying in Rainbolt's house or not? I'm terribly confused about that
beside that very good chapter here, seems that Rainbolt got over for most of the part
3718026 Yes...it should... I will go change that.. Thanks.
Omg best chapter yet ! Great job pizzy !
3718043 No, she's not. Now that she's discovered a goal, she'll be going back to her parents until she can afford a place. Also, thank you very much!
I'm off to bed now thanks for the brilliant chapter. :)
Being a whore for that gang is a bit too good for her. How about a whore for feral animals instead?
3718112
That's assuming her parents will take her in. After all, she's done some things that are even more unsavory than just being a teenage mother, and I'm sure they probably found out by now, especially if Surprise is being vindictive.
If anything I wouldn't be surprised if she ends up staying at Rainbolt's house, and that's how (in my guess) the triangle between Rainbolt, Firefly and Surprise will begin.
That was...AMAZING!!!
You get 13 bigmacs for 13th chapter.
Nearly raped by a Peadophile and abducted by a gang? in the same year!? as a filly!!??
God she's gonna have some bad repressed memories....
3718185 xD
poor Firefly. I want to hug her
This is why Rainbow Dash is such a badass now, she had to deal with all this crap as a child.
3718313 No, it's not. It has sexual references, themes, and implying sexual actions at times, but there's no real sex in the story. I don't plan on making any in this story, either.
I pray that Firefly and Rainbolt rekindle their love.
3718454 kk thx 4 explanind.... and how did you do that? u re plyed on a different page than i
3707268 Where she ended up was too good for her really. Who wouldn't be happy finding out the cunt that abandoned you, to being a single parent while they try to better their life and possibly come waltzing back into your life like nothing happened, ended up as a used whore living in an alley I'd be ecstatic.
3718458 I hope Whorefly ends up killing herself while in police custody.
Worth the wait
3718599
forums.oce.leagueoflegends.com/board/attachment.php?attachmentid=3609&d=1378278373
Another awesome chapter
Not that I do't love this story or anything, but I'm beginning to see a lot of "Rainbolt looses RD, breaks down, outside force helps him find RD, day is saved".
Oh well. Good chapter.
well i now have less hate feels towards Firefly...
good chapter keep up the good work
The character development of Firefly.....so good
Since I first read the word "Manehatten", I knew that they would meet Firefly
. Nice Chapter! (Even if Rainbolt & Firefly are a bit OOC for that specific situation)
Wow, amazing job you did there Pizzy
I have a small question though, you keep using wondering instead of wandering
and fallow unstead of follow. Is that intended or just a small mistake you've made?
This whole story is great for developing Rainbow Dash into what she is, I love it ^^
3719675 Today or tomorrow. It won't be nearly as long as this one. This chapter exhausted me, to be honest, but the hard work was worth it. I think I'll be aiming for a more cutesy-wootsy chapter instead of a darker one.
3719067 Rainbolt (as we know) had the whole parenting thing sort of drop on him. He didn't know what he was doing, and he still doesn't know some things he probably should. He may be a good father, but he has proved many, many times, that he's not too responsible, and that's something I like about him.
3718260 13 out of 13 for the 13th chapter? I see what you're doing.... Also, 13's my lucky number, so thank you!
3718185 Firefly abandoned her family at 16, an age where nopony is aware of their priorities in life. She was then tossed on the streets to be a prostitute for nearly 6-8 moths. She had a lot of time to think about everything, and how she ended up there. Not only that, but she too had a lot of emotional suffering, like Rainbolt. I honestly think the results were well-deserved, but that doesn't mean she should spend her whole life in misery. She was punished, but was forgiven, and got back onto her hooves. Raibow's no longer sad about not having a mommy and Rainbolt got over her at long last. Why should she continue suffering when everypony she hurt's hearts where at ease?
3720366 It was intended... I thought I was doing it right.... Now I must go rethink my entire life.
Congrats, I now consider this story on par with something like Past Sins and My Little Dashie.
I called her a bitch in other captrers but in this caprter she was a good pony
10 moustaches out of ten
That whole "You should be a cop!" thing came almost out of nowhere. And she was a grown mare n a gang house, did no-one think she could be a member too? Yes Rainbolt could have warned them about Rainbow and Firefly but did no-one question what she was doing there? <shrug> I am hoping Firefly ends up living with Rainbolt, and please do not tell me Surprise blindfolds herself whenever she's a client of Firefly?
There's a lot of WTFery on this site and that would be a little too much.
Rather exciting chapter, but you seems to forget that the sewer system doesn't smell of mold, muck and filth as much as sewage. I'm looking forward to the next chapter. I'm also interested in seeing the development with Surprise/Rainbolt/Firefly. Hopefully it will not be a complicated love triangle, but you've not let us down yet.
Closure! Now to ship that stallion with Gilda's mom or something in that line.
3721389 Gilda and her mom don't appear until Dash is 11-13,... She's still 5.
3721476
Curses, but I do hope it is Rainbolt and Gilda's mom in the end.
Great chapter.
Lets hope that Rainbow never goes to the city ever again. Also will the parents will ever reunite?
Firefly is a heck of a mother.
I have only one thing to say:
Firefly got one heck of a redemption.
3719469 Less? As in you still have some? Finally someone who is the same.....
YES! Good things happen to Firefly.
She's awesome. 
{A wonderful thing too. No one should have to be punished for stupid decisions at that age. I should know, I made quite a few...Not the parenting thing though, but still.}
Ah! Firefly is up in the bad-ass department! Still, I ship Rainbolt and Surprise at this point in time.
3724210 They're not getting back together. It would be rather pointless to have her go away in the beginning, only to have her return 10 chapters later.
3727289
Thats sad.
But im picturing another problem including the police, conveniently with Firefly. And the (Family?) triple will be together again!
If I have spoiled your plans, I am not sorry!
3727289
Aww : ( and after all the signs that they still love each other...it would be so sweet...
3727289
I'm going to kill klassicwubz :/
Aww, man, I need moar...MAOR I SAY.... If you don't mind, that is.
3738232 Don't worry, the next chapter will be up by the end of the day.
Put down the thesaurus and back away slowly. Nobody has to get hurt.
Anhydrous is the wrong word. Just say dry, and maybe put the 'dull' first. That 'or' should be 'of'. Also, 'tall wooden gate' would be better than 'wooden, tall gate' because nobody wants extra commas and weird word order.
I suggest you get yourself some prereaders. I am available, as are others.