Chapter 31 – It’s Time
Chapter 31 – It’s Time
A Few Hours Remaining…
~ Late of June (44th Week) ~
“Rainbow, come quick! You’ve gotta see this!” Ford Mustang says with an enthusiastic grin as he anxiously leads his wife to his studio upstairs.
And lumbering right behind him is Rainbow Dash as her 11-month pregnant belly looks like it's almost touching the ground. “What? What is it?” she asks with a keen chuckle.
“I’ve finished it! I’ve finally finished it!” he declares in bouncy fashion.
“Well, what exactly did you just finished?”
“This!”
And from his giddy announcement, he points out his surprise once they enter the studio room. Following the direction of stallion’s extended foreleg, Rainbow notices a big easel at the corner of the room with a blue sheet covering it.
From that observation, she makes a sarcastic remark as she grins shrewdly, “Oh wow… sheets. My favorite. You shouldn’t have.”
Following up on that sarcasm, he quips in return as he steps closer to the concealed easel, “Well if sheets aren’t to your liking, then I guess I’ll just have to remove them then, huh?”
“I guess so.” she shrugs mockingly.
With an eager smirk matching that with Rainbow’s, he uses his teeth to grab one end of the sheet before he mutters out his question with a toothy smile, “Ready?”
“Well come on!” she nods and grins excitedly. “Get with the unveiling already!”
And without further ado, he gives the sheet a mighty pull. And with the draw of the curtain, Rainbow silently gasps with awe at the reveal of Ford’s surprise. Standing on top of the easel is a very large portrait of the mare herself. The painting’s setting depicts a gorgeous sunrise with celestial, warm-colored rays beaming from above. And at the center of the painting is a full-body rendition of Rainbow Dash, hovering in an upright, proud manner with her trademark, winning grin stretching across her radiant face.
“Well, what do you think?” Ford ask his wife with an anticipating smile.
Despite hearing her stallion’s question, the gaping mare continues to remain awestruck as her big, astonished eyes are still glued to the vibrant, highly-detailed portrait of herself. And sooner or later, she pulls herself together so she can make her own critique to the exquisite artwork in front of her.
“Ford… this is… this is… the best portrait ever!” she grins with neverending, upbeat excitement. “I just can’t believe on how much you have improved since the last time you’ve done a portrait like this for me! Seriously, when are you going to start hosting a gallery already?”
After a short giggle over Dash’s exaggeration, Ford replies with an amusing smirk, “Hey, these things take time, Rainbow. Never rush on a work of art, that’s what I would say. Besides, I have no intention on selling this one as it’s a special gift for a very special pony.”
“Oh really?” she inquires with a witty smile. “And what led you to create this latest masterpiece in the first place?”
Mustang takes a brief pause from answering her question as he reflects back to his original intent with his recent creation. Truth be told, he wanted to create this as a memorial portrait, especially for the supposed funeral that may happen in just a matter of days. But since he doesn’t want to share that with his wife if it will make her upset, he decides to go with his second reason as a proper answer and as a cover-up with his original objective.
“Oh... just wanted to created something for our anniversary next month, that’s all.” he shrugs with an awkward smile. “But I was so excited once I completed it today, that I couldn’t wait any longer to show it to you myself. I hope I didn’t ruin the surprise already.”
Thankfully, Rainbow doesn’t question him any further as she wraps her forelegs around his body to pull him in closer before responding with a wide, gratifying smile, “Well it is a nice surprise, and it is an awesome present for that matter.”
As he beams with satisfaction, they openly express their appreciation for each other by sharing a nice, long kiss. Once they are contented with their latest act of affection, their lips gently part ways, and the stallion turns around to face the finished portrait while asking his wife behind him.
“So anyway, where should we hang this beauty? I was thinking we can should hang it over the fireplace. What do you think, Rainbow?”
However, he doesn’t receive a response from her, so he asks again as he turns back around, “Rainbow?”
But once he faces her, his expression is frozen with confusion and dismay as his wide eyes are locked on to his wife’s suddenly distressing position. Crouched on the ground, Rainbow Dash heaves greatly as she hunches forward while laying a fore hoof on her fully stretched belly.
Filled with increasing concern over his mare’s sudden, pain-stricken demeanor, he quickly leans toward her and asks in a soft, worrisome tone, “Rainbow, are you okay?”
In her shaky stance, Dash takes a moment to look up as she locks her poor, beseeching eyes with her concerning husband, and she utters in a desperate, whimpering voice, “M-M-Mustang… I think… it’s time.”
“I-i-it’s time?” he repeats in a stammering tone.
And after she lets out a high-pitched moan and a hasty nod in return, Ford’s dumbfounded gaze is soon directly downward as his eyes widen even further while his pupils shrink significantly once he finally notices the cause of Rainbow’s sudden plight. Right underneath her, is a very damp spot that slowly expands across the cloud-made floor, and it doesn’t take long for him to figure out on what just happened.
Her water just broke.
“OH GOD, IT’S TIME!” he panics on impulse before he quickly recomposes himself so he can maintain control of the dire situation, and he softly reassures his wife to the best of his abilities. “Okay! Okay okay okay! I’ve got this! I’ll get our things, and then I’ll be back for you! Okay?”
“Mm-hmm.” she answers with a simple nod in the middle of her first contractions.
Thankful over her patience and endurance, he gives her a quick peck and then says to her, “Be back in a flash!”
And right away, he shoots off like an arrow and darts toward the bedroom. Once there, he immediately spots his pre-packed saddlebags nearby, which were already made ahead of time for such a spontaneous emergency as of right now. After he quickly straps the saddlebags on, he then grabs the special teleportation necklaces that were lying on top of the chest of drawers.
“Okay, let’s see…” he mutters frantically over his mental checklist. “Got our bags… our necklaces. Just need one last thing.”
Hastily, he opens one drawer at a time as he screeches in a state of panic, “Come on! Where is it?! Where is it?!”
“Ford!”
A bit distracted from hearing Rainbow’s desperate outcry, he pulls the right drawer and finally finds the last item off his list: a scroll that’s wrapped in a red ribbon and fastened with a magical seal.
“Ah-ha! Found it!” he exclaims with a triumphant smile as he pulls it out.
“FORD!”
With another cry for help from Rainbow Dash, Mustang gets back on track and quickly presses the crucial scroll’s enchanted seal while responding to his agonizing mare, “Coming! Coming!” And as the urgent letter disappears in a flash of light and a puff of smoke, Ford immediately heads back to the studio room, where his hunched wife is still immobile from the constant pain she’s enduring.
“There we go!” he says with a soft smile as he gently fastens the magical accessory around the whimpering mare’s neck. “Now then…” And as he presses the icon on his own necklace, he swiftly makes his command in a clear voice, “Ponyville Hospital!”
Upon command, the necklaces transport both him and Rainbow Dash in flashes of light, and in an instant, they arrive in the hospital’s lobby. While a couple of attendances that are behind the reception desk are initially startled by the Pegasi’s sudden and unorthodox appearance, Ford breaks them out of their stupor as he frantically shouts out loud.
“HELP! MY WIFE IS GOING INTO LABOR!”
Right away, the attendances call for an additional help before they carefully settle Rainbow on one of the readied stretchers, and once the fully pregnant mare is secure in her method of transportation, the nurses briskly take her through the emergency room with her anxious husband following right behind them.
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Several Minutes Earlier in Canterlot...
“Alright then, let’s see your latest progress on your teleportation spell.” Twilight Sparkle asks of her student.
In the private sanctuary of her elegant room, the young Alicorn Princess waits for her trainee to get started as Trixie isn’t feeling like her Great-and-Powerful self when under the presence of her privileged instructor.
“O-oh, are you sure about this, Twilight?” she asks in a rare display of stage fright. “I seriously doubt I’ll hit it right on the marker this time.”
“It’s okay, Trixie.” she nods with a understanding smile. “That’s why I am to help you out along the way. Besides, I have a good feeling that you’ll nail it this time.” she reassures with a wink as Trixie bears a tiny, blushing smile in return.
But then Twilight adds with a sly smirk, “Or are you trying to tell me that the Great and Powerful Trixie isn’t up to the task at hoof?”
From exploiting over Trixie’s pride, Twilight’s clever ploy works just as she planned when Trixie retorts with her head up high and an egotistical smirk stretching across her face, “Nonsense! The Great and Powerful Trixie is always ready to take any challenge head-on!”
Happy to see her friend assuming her more confident persona, the grinning Twilight goads even further, “Prove it.”
“With pleasure!” she replies with a more determined smile as she preps herself for her latest test.
In front of the blue Unicorn is the target of her teleportation spell: a plushy pillow that’s several feet away. After she exhales out a soft breath for herself, Trixie closes her eyes and focuses on the targeted pillow through her mind’s eye. As she concentrates, her horn glows a pink aura of magic. And once she sets her mind on today’s objective, the concentrating horn enwraps the magician in a sphere of light before it instantly bursts like a popped balloon.
Immediately after that, Trixie reappears in a flash with her eyes still closed since the start of her latest spell. A bit hesitant at first, she peeks with one eye to verify on how close she came to her destination. But after that one peek, her eyes widen in amazement when she notices that she is standing right on top of the pillow she just teleported towards.
“I… I did it. I really did it!” she stammers with astonishment as she faces the grinning Alicorn next to her.
“Yes! I knew you would if you set your mind to it!” Twilight states with a giggling smile.
Despite her initial disbelief, Twixie begins to beam ecstatically as she hollers with tremendous joy over her latest accomplishment, “WOO-HOO! I did it~! I did it~!”
And as she bounces around while gleefully announcing her recent achievement, the jubilant mare begins to teleport around the room on impulse. Regardless on how happy she is for her friend, Twilight worries that the giddy Unicorn may be getting little carried away with herself.
“Trixie, slow down!” Twilight cautions her mildly. “You might ram into some--!”
But before she can finish up her warning, Trixie teleports right in front of Twilight and trips over her. From that mishap, the blue mare lays on top of the purple Alicorn. And once she snaps out of her dizziness, Trixie suddenly freezes in place when she realizes that she is inches away from her secret crush’s face… most notably her lips to say the least.
Nearly distracted by her own infatuation, she hastily backs away from submitting to such an appealing thought as she blushes like mad while apologizing in an embarrassing manner, “Oh my goodness! Twilight, I’m so sorry! Are you alright?”
“Yes, I’m okay.” Twilight reassures with a pleasant smile as she accepts Trixie’s shaky hoof to get herself up from the ground. “Well done, Trixie.”
“Well what can I say?” Trixie smirks lightly to cover up her embarrassment earlier. “I have a good teacher.”
After the completion of Trixie’s latest trick, Twilight casually walks to her table to look over some of their books as the other mare remains completely still while she is lost in her own thoughts. For Trixie, she just couldn’t believe on how much time she has spent with Twilight since they met in Applewood weeks ago. But as much as she was enjoying the princess’s company, she can’t help but wanting more than just her friendship. So knowing that she can’t bottles these newfound feelings forever, she decides that now would be the perfect time to see if the oblivious bookworm share in those same feelings as well.
“Twilight?”
“Yes?” she responds with a leisurely smile as she faces her barely composed friend.
“I-I don’t believe I had the chance to thank you for that you have taught me in the past month or so.” she says in a strangely humble manner. “These new tricks will definitely come in handle for my next show.”
“Think nothing of it, Trixie. You yourself taught me some wonderful techniques as well, such as advanced puppetry and fireworks. Plus, it’s nice to have a study buddy that I can relate with.” she admits nonchalantly.
“Well… maybe I can treat you for some dinner sometime.” Trixie suggests subtly as a massive blush consumes her face once again.
“Hmm… yes, dinner sounds nice.” she nods to Trixie’s suggestion much to the latter’s surprise and immense, inner joy. “It’s been awhile since I went out to a nice restaurant. Ooo, maybe we can invite some friends to come along too!”
A bit speechless from Twilight misunderstanding her suggestive invitation, the flustered Unicorn attempts to clarify her true intentions despite her own hesitation, “A-actually… I was wondering if it’s just the two of us. You know… as a d-d-d--!”
“TWILIGHT! TWILIGHT!”
Not sure if that untimely interruption is a blessing or a curse, Trixie puts her invitation on hold as Twilight’s faithful assistant, Spike, enters the room unannounced. Like mad, he rushes toward the young princess as he frantically waves a scroll in his claws before he screeches to a halt in front of the two mares.
“Spike! What’s wrong?” Twilight asks over the young dragon’s urgency.
As he catches his breath, Spike shows her the important scroll that Twilight needs to see for herself. “Here! An urgent message from Ford Mustang!”
“What?!”
Immediately, she grabs the scroll from the short-winded assistant’s grasp with the use of her expertise magic. And with a quick eye, she recognizes the ribbon’s bright red color before she hastily unwraps it to see what it says. With the reveal of Ford’s letter, Twilight’s nerve-racking, pupil-shrunken eyes widen to drastic sizes as she reads just two simple words that hold a very heavy meaning behind her friend’s call for emergency.
It’s time.
“...Oh no.” she mutters lightly in horror.
As Trixie remains stupefied on what’s gotten Twilight and Spike so spooked all of a sudden, the small, purple dragon hesitates while nervously pressing his index claws together before he inquires to confirm his caretaker’s suspicions, “Twilight, is that what I think it is?”
Halfheartedly, Twilight gives him a slight nod and confirms in a mildly calm voice, “Yes, Spike... it’s time.”
Her assistant cringes and gulp on that subtle implication as Trixie gingerly steps in and asks with soft concern, “Twilight, is everything okay?”
“Sorry Trixie, I’ll explain everything along the way.” she says to her concerning friend with a somewhat composed smile before she sharply turns back to her awaiting assistant and instructs him in a more authoritative voice, “Spike! Send out all of the letters like we originally planned immediately!”
“Right! Already on it!” the faithful dragon complies without a second thought as he turns around to swiftly retrieve them right away. But then, he stops in his tracks and looks back while asking Twilight in slight puzzlement, “Umm… which one should I start out with--?”
“ALL OF THEM!”
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Hours Laters at Ponyville Hospital…
In one of the spacious maternity ward rooms, the silent yet uneasy Ford Mustang remains by his wife’s side as he glances once again at her current predicament. Reclined on her hospital bed with a green sheet covering her perfectly rounded belly, Rainbow Dash continues to remain in a completely sour mode with her forelegs impatiently crossed over one another and an unmistakable frown stretching across her pain-stricken face. Confined to her bed, she is also hooked up to a few wires that help keep track of her heart rate by a cardiac monitor along with a nasty IV needle stuck within her elbow joint on her left foreleg. At the very least, things have calmed for a while now since her last contraction, but that doesn’t do much with Rainbow’s patience running thin.
“H-how are you feeling, Dashie?” he inquires with a timid, sweet smile.
With a deadpan glare, Rainbow shifts her gaze to her concerning husband before she scoffs in an increasingly cranky, sarcastic tone, “Well, let’s see… I’ve got a huge needle skewered into my foreleg, my stupid contractions keep going on-again-off-again, and by the end of this, I might wound up dead! But yeah, other than that, I’m just fan-buckin’-tastic!”
After wincing from her sharp, harsh response, he quietly apologizes on behalf of her continuing discomfort, “Sorry.”
“And where’s that blasted doctor?!” she continues her short-tempered griping. “He should have been here the moment I first arrived!”
“He’ll be here soon, Rainbow.” he meekly reassures her. “Nurse Redheart went to look for him just a moment ago.”
In response, the disgruntled mare lets out a subtle grump as awkward silence once again fills the room, minus the soft, steady beeping sounds of the heart monitor. Over time, Rainbow’s grumpiness begins to recede as a new feeling takes hold of her, so eventually, she shares it with her equally quiet stallion.
"Ford?"
“Yes, angel?”
“...I’m scared.” she whispers in a discouraging manner.
From seeing the fear in her big, expressive eyes, Ford lays a comforting hoof on Rainbow’s right foreleg and sympathizes by sharing his own fears in all of this, “I know, I’m scared too.”
“What do you have to be so scared about? You’re not the one giving birth over here!” she jokes halfheartedly to relieve some of the neverending tension.
“I meant… I’m scared on how I will hold up without you.” he rephrases in a quiet, disheartening tone while averting his eyes away from his wife in shame.
And after a momentary pause between them, Rainbow tilts her husband’s chin up so he can direct her shameful gaze back at her, and she reassures him with a small yet bold smile on her face, “You’ll do fine, Ford. You’ll make a great dad, with or without me.”
Weakly, he bears a warm smile in return for her strong faith in him. And after giving the mare’s caressing fore hoof a light kiss, he says with absolute devotion towards her, “Whatever happens, I will always love you, my beautiful, blue angel.”
From hearing those heartwarming words of his, Dash’s smile grows a bit bigger as she brings the stallion’s forelimb closer to her face just to nuzzle it a little bit longer before she replies in a heartfelt manner, “And I will always love you, my big, strong Mustang.”
Renewed with such earnest passion despite what’s to be expected from tonight’s inevitable turning point, the affectionate couple engage in a very romantic kiss. With their impassioned lips staying in contact for quite some time, an indescribably warm, soothing feeling is shared between the two of them, maybe it’s from Ford’s Draconian Magic, maybe it’s from their body heat radiating between each other, or maybe just a little of both. But whatever the cause may be, they try to hold on that immensely soothing sensation for as long as they can… especially if these are going to be their last moments together.
However, their passionate kissing gets interrupted by the appearance of Dr. Horse and his assistants, including Nurse Redheart, as he greets his patient upon his arrival, “Hello, Rainbow Dash.”
Annoyed by the doctor’s late arrival and for disturbing her tender moment with Ford, she abruptly ends their kiss as she glares with renewed intensity while snapping out loud, “What the heck took you so long?! I was practically dying over here!”
A bit startled by Rainbow’s apparent displeasure, the doctor explains himself in a professionally calm manner, “Umm… yes… sorry for the delay, Mrs. Dash, but I assure you, we are all set for tonight’s delivery.” And after clearing his throat, he then direct his attention to the only other stallion in the room. “Anyway… Mr. Mustang, if you would like, you can wait outside while we take care of things from here.”
But after sharing a knowing glance with his silent, beseeching wife, Mustang twists his head back to the doctor and firmly declares his decision in a stern tone, “No, I’m staying right here.”
“I understand, sir, but I think you should reconsider--!”
But then, Rainbow Dash gets her say in the matter as she reiterates on Ford’s behalf in a menacing growl, “HE SAID, ‘HE’S STAYING.’ ”
Assessing from Dash's threatening tone and unmatched death stare, Doctor Horse knows better than to agitate a pregnant mare, especially in regards of her own health during her most crucial hour. So, he abides the couple's wishes without any further persuasion and nods to their unwavering resolve.
“V-very well then… just… please let us do our jobs, sir.”
As Ford sighs with satisfaction from being here where he is needed the most, Rainbow on the other hand replies in a restless, cranky mood, “Well then, hurry up already! I feel like I’m going to burst any sec--! AH-AH-AAAHH!!”
But her latest outburst is abruptly cut short as another stronger contraction hits her like a thousand jolting cramps hitting her back and abdomen all at once. From noticing the patient’s unpleasant posture and agonizing reaction, Doctor Horse uses his Unicorn Magic to pull the green cover up, and he and the nurses examine down below to assess the situation before the medical practitioner states his current analysis on Rainbow's critical condition.
“Hmm, it looks like the dilation has expanded even further. Alright, stations everypony!”
Following their procedures, the other medical assistants get everything ready in a jiffy as Ford leans closer to his wife from the right side of her bed and offers some last words of encouragement to her before the delivery can begin. “You’re going to do great, honey. I just know it.”
Despite the ongoing pain she’s still dealing with, Rainbow is able to give her supportive husband a weak yet courageous smile before refocusing her efforts on the twins’ delivery. With everypony set, Nurse Redheart stands on the expectant mare’s left side and offers her instructions in a most composed manner.
“Okay, Rainbow. Whenever you are ready, give us a big push.” Following on the nurse’s gentle command, the struggling mare replies with a shaky nod before Redheart gives further instructions on Rainbow’s first push, “On three. One… two… three!”
At once, Dash lets out an immense groan as she forces her body to push out her first foal from within. And after her first attempt, she takes a moment to catch her breath rapidly as Redheart waits until Rainbow Dash is ready once again.
“Again. One… two… three!”
For her next attempt, she puts a little more effort this time, but she is once again met with more pain than ever as it makes it more difficult to bear than the last time.
With another break in-between, Rainbow asks the doctor in the midst of her rapid breathing, “Anything yet?”
“Sorry, not yet, Mrs. Dash.”
“Ughhh! This is hopeless!” she exaggerates with her head reclining back on the bed’s pillowed headrest. “I don’t know how I’m going to keep this up! Somepony just cut me up already!”
“It’s alright, Rainbow.” Redheart reassures in a comforting tone. “Just take a break, and we can try it again."
In the middle of Rainbow’s timeout session, Ford is a bit shocked to hear such discouragement coming from his wife. So while she is still taking a breather, he does his best to provide some pep talk for her.
“Rainbow Dash, I’m surprise to hear that from you!” he says in a slightly firm manner. “I thought you were made out of tougher stuff than that!”
Unamused by her husband’s sudden shift in attitude, she glares at him and retorts with a tiring frown, “Hey, I have every right to gripe all I want from here, so I don’t wanna hear that from you!”
“Really? Sounds more like quitter talk if you ask me!” he quips with a tiny, sly smile.
“Good, ‘cause nopony was asking you! And who are you to call me a quitter?! I am no quitter!” she rebuts in a sharp whine.
“And how are you going to prove that then?” he implies shrewdly with a broader smile. “You’re going to give up just like that?”
Having a good idea on where Ford is going with this, Rainbow Dash smirks slightly in a cynical voice, “Oh, you really wanna go there, huh?”
“Yeah, so what are you going about it, hmm? Don’t tell you’re ready to quit before we even get to the second half of tonight’s match!”
“Oh-oh-hoo! I haven’t even begun to give it my all!” she proclaims with a much bolder, energetic grin.
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah! You’re about to see a real mare in action!”
Happy to see her confidence restored, Ford awards her with a loving peck and concludes his pep talk with a soft yet proud smile, “That’s more like it!”
Seeing how Rainbow is finishing up her latest break, Redheart mildly asks of her, “So, ready to try it again, Mrs. Dash?”
“Yeah, let’s do this!” she answers while feeling more zealous than ever.
“Okay then. Just as before. One… two… three!”
Once more, she pushes with all of her might as she lets out a very loud grunt. This time, she can feel something moving from within her womb as it slowly makes it way towards the exit. Feeling some progress at last, Rainbow redoubles her efforts as she keeps pushing harder than before.
“Good! Good! The head and fore hooves are coming out very nicely!” Doctor Horse comments as he sees the first baby’s tiny features sticking out from the expanding opening.
With Rainbow done catching her latest breath, Redheart continues to coach her through it, “Just need one more push, Rainbow. Ready? One… two… three! Push!”
With a even louder cry, Rainbow literally and figuratively pushes through all of the pain to make this one count as she greatly squeezes the foal out of the birth canal. And thankfully, her laborious efforts have finally paid off as not only is the birth of her first foal a great success, but she is acknowledged of its existence by hearing the newborn’s first cries of life.
Summoning up what’s left of her strength, Rainbow looks up as she and Ford try to have a look at their first newborn baby. Despite Rainbow’s somewhat inflated stomach being in the way, Doctor Horse eventually raises the tiny foal up so the anxious parents can get their first glimpse at it.
“Well done so far, Rainbow Dash! You first foal is a girl!” The doctor confirms with a smile as he proudly shows the couple their very own little filly.
Rainbow and Ford gasp simultaneously as they stare with immense awe at their beloved firstborn. Safely secured in Horse’s magically improvised cradle basket, the tiny filly bears a lovely midnight blue coat and a four-striped color pattern of violet, green, pink, and red in her smooth mane and tail. Altogether, her color scheme is almost similar to the shimmering lights of an vibrant aurora.
As Doctor Horse levitates the dark blue filly into the care of the nurses so they may clean her up thoroughly, Ford comfortingly rubs his wife’s shoulders as he exclaims with an uncontrollable smile, “Rainbow, did you hear that?! Our first foal is a baby girl!”
Despite her fatigue, she was equally as gleeful as her husband by displaying a wide, trembling smile and panting out a shrewd remark towards him, “There... see… I told you I could do it.”
Having no doubt of her brave efforts, Ford gives her a rewarding kiss as he replies with a smirk matching that with hers, “I knew you would.”
As Rainbow Dash take a long-deserved break with her first foal being born, Doctor Horse and his nurse carry on with their respective tasks as Ford helps out in his own way by wiping off some of the endless sweat from Rainbow’s brow with a clean, absorbent cloth.
Once most of the sweat is cleared off, Ford takes a moment to gently caress his wife’s even more wild yet still beautiful mane as he asks with a tenderhearted smile, “How are you holding up so far?”
For a moment, she stares at him with disbelief before she snaps in a spontaneous chuckle, “You’re seriously asking me that at a time like this?!”
“You know what I meant, Rainbow.” he emphasizes with a mild grin.
Being more serious now, does a quick evaluation over her own well-being before she gives her best answer while adding some sharp wit to go with that statement, “Well… I don’t feel like I’m dying just yet, so that’s a good thing.”
While mildly amused his wife’s dry sense of humor, Ford is at least relieved that things don’t look they are taking a turn for the worst. But his sense of hope is cut short when Doctor Horse has something important to share with the couple after he conducted a thorough checkup over her current condition.
“Mrs. Dash, there’s something we need to address with you before we proceed further.”
“Can’t it wait until after all of this is over first?!” she complains in a cranky tone as she hopes to get this over with.
“Mrs. Dash… we discovered a small tear in your uterus.”
This latest development renders both Rainbow Dash and Ford Mustang speechless as this is what they fear the most. And as the pregnant Pegasus remains silent by the possibly grim outcome she may face in the end, Ford is the one to speak on their behalf as he reluctantly asks the ultimate question.
“Is it… fatal?”
“No Mr. Mustang, for most pregnancies, it’s not. However… this situation is much different since Rainbow Dash is delivering two foals instead of one.” he admits this uneasily before continuing his educated assumption. “If she were to give birth to her second foal, then her tear will get bigger, and ultimately… her chances for mortality will increase significantly.”
“Isn’t there anything we can do to prevent that from happening?” Ford inquires in a pleading manner.
“Well for now, we can do a blood transfusion as a precaution, but it can only provide so much at such a steady flow. We could also provide medication to initiate clotting, but considering that she’s still in the middle of her labor with her second foal, it could make the final delivery more difficult.”
Disturbing silence fills the room as all eyes are turned to Rainbow Dash, waiting for her compliance. A bit startled by all of the stares she is receiving, she simply shrugs it off with a chuckle as she quips with a lighthearted grin, “Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s keep going.”
A bit surprised by Rainbow’s strong willingness, Doctor Horse wants to make absolutely sure before they continue with the rest of the procedure. “Then you are aware on what’s at stake here?”
“Hey, I’ve come too far to stop at this point, and as long as both of my foals are alive and well, I’m willing to see this thing to the bitter end!” she confirms with a very courageous smile.
“…Very well then. Nurse, commence the blood transfusion please.”
“Right away, doctor.” says one of the nurses as she gets bag of donated blood ready before a steady stream flows through the IV’s elongated tube and into the patient’s veins.
As the medical ponies reassume their proper stations, Ford holds on to Rainbow’s right hoof once again as he asks with a quick-witted smile, “Ready for Round 2, angel?”
“Always.” she replies with a confident grin.
With everypony ready once more, Redheart resumes her sweet-tempered coaching routine, “Once again, Rainbow. One… two… three! Push!”
Following on that command, Rainbow maintains her vigorous pushing just like before while ignoring the increasing amount of unimaginable pain. Of course, in the middle of this excruciating process, she can feel the accursed, bleeding tear gradually splitting apart even further, causing her more pain than ever. But that doesn’t matter right now. There’s no way to turn back at this crucial moment, and Rainbow Dash intends to give birth to her final foal, matter what happens to her in the end.
From her latest break to catch her breath from her pain-stricken labor, the doctor informs the backbreaking mare on her second foal’s progress, “You’re doing great, Rainbow. You’re almost there.”
“You hear that, honey?” Ford encourages her with an excited smile, “You’ve got this! Just one more big push!”
From feeling how close she is from completing her final delivery as the remaining twin’s head is sticking out in the open, Rainbow Dash gathers up all of her strength and courage as she announces with a big, bold smirk, “Alright, here it goes! Double time!”
And in the final stretch of her second delivery in a row, the worn out Pegasus pushes her last foal with all of her might as she lets out a bloodcurdling scream. And just when she’s reaching her extreme limits while also using her last ounce of strength, it’s finally over… Rainbow Dash has just giving birth to her remaining baby pony as the new infant’s cry reverberates across the now still room.
“Congratulations, Mrs. Dash!” Doctor Horse announces with a relieving smile over another successful delivery, “It’s a boy!”
Using his magic just like before, the Unicorn holds up the second newborn foal so that the proud parents can gaze at their little baby boy. Compared to his twin sister, he only consists of warm colors as his coat bears a bright orange. But like his slightly older sibling, he too has a four-striped pattern in his mane and tail, except they comprised of red, orange, yellow, and pink.
With an uncontainable, goofy smile over the sight of his baby boy, Ford openly expresses his overwhelming joy as he turns to his wife, “A boy! Can you believe it? We now have a boy and a girl! You did it, Rainbow! You finally did--!”
But his call for celebration is abruptly cut short when he sees his beloved mare’s poor state after delivering her twins, one after the other. From using up all of her strength in the very elongated process, Rainbow Dash could barely move a muscle as it was evident enough when she was unable to lift herself up to gaze at the newborn colt she just delivered. Along with that, her breathing has deteriorated rapidly as she desperately breathes for what little air she can gather into her system.
Fearing for what’s to come, Mustang tries to call out to her in sweet tone, “R-Rainbow?”
With no response from the seemingly lifeless mare, the grave situation becomes even worse as the dreadful beeping from the nearby heart monitor deceases gradually.
Alarmed by the patient’s weakening state, Doctor Horse knows that their work is far from over as he promptly call for assistance, “Nurse, get me the Oxytocin stat!”
As the doctor and nurses do everything they can to revitalize the fatiguing mare, the chilly fear continues to grip the helpless Mustang on what he can do in this grim situation he has dreaded since the first time he foresaw this. Then, from the realization that his wife hasn’t gotten the chance to see her newborn foals up close, Ford frantically calls out for the nurses’ aid.
“Quick, let her see the twins, please!”
Following on the stallion’s desperate plea, the nurses quickly finish up the colt’s cleaning, and then, they carefully place the twins to the mare’s motionless forelegs. With the fidgety foals secured in their mother’s hooves, Ford leans close to his extremely drowsy wife and lovely nuzzles her to hopefully get her to stay awake.
“Rainbow Dash, look!” he whispers to her ever-so sweetly as he continues to nuzzles her weary face. “Look who’s here to see their mommy!”
After Ford nestles with his wife some more, Rainbow slowly regains her consciousness as her exhausting eyes begin to open up in a flickering manner. With a barely half-lidded gaze, she peeks down to get a closer look at her two newborn foals. And once her eyes are able to adjust for better clarity, her tiring gaze widens from feeling such unquestionable adoration on this life-changing experience as she weeps fresh tears to showcase her indescribable joy for her beloved, little ones.
“Th-they’re beautiful!” she praises in the form of a raspy whisper as a quivering, proud smile spreads across her face.
As the tearful yet joyous mare takes a moment to cuddle with her twins, Ford smiles alongside his wife over her motherly affection. Almost forgetting about Rainbow’s grave predicament, they take the time to embrace this sentimental moment together over their newest family members.
Then, Rainbow slowly faces her equally beaming stallion and speaks softly to him with a warm yet wearying smile, “Mustang… thank you… thank you for everything.”
As Ford cringes over Dash’s subtle implication, he picks up the haunting beeping noise from the heart monitor as its rhythm gets slower by every second. Despite knowing what’s to come based off of the nightmarish visions he used to have, he is unable to accept this grisly outcome as he frantically calls out to his dying wife.
“D-don’t talk like that, angel! We’ve got so much to do after this! We’ve gotta give them names, welcome them to our home, and get them situated in their new crib!”
However, Rainbow’s eyes keep getting heavier, so Ford continues to list out on all of the wonderful things to look forward time with an increasingly shaky smile, “And of course, we’ve got a whole future to plan out for them… like taking them to school or helping them reach their own dreams! And before long, they might have their own families someday, and we’ll be grandparents before we even know it!”
But no matter how appealing his suggestions are on a more hopeful future together, they seem to go unheard as Rainbow’s could barely keep her eyes open while her breathing is reduced to nothing more that low-pitched wheezing.
In a last, desperate attempt, he pours his heart and soul into an immense plea for her while countless tears begin to pour out of his grief-stricken eyes. “P-P-Please, Dashie! Don’t give up just yet! Think about all of the ponies who will miss you terribly… you friends… your father… your twins… m-me! You have so much to look forward to with our newest family members! Don’t you want that as well?!”
As the hysterical stallion waits for a more promising answer from the unresponsive Pegasus, she is eventually able to break into a heartfelt smile to show her immeasurable love for her big, strong Mustang. And after inhaling a couple of short, raspy breaths, the smiling Rainbow Dash is able to come up with her hesitated response in just three simple words.
“That… sounds… awesome.”
With her exhausted eyes unable to hold up for long as they finally close shut, the infernal, beeping noise instantly transforms into a screeching flat line while the lifeless mare is still able to maintain that warm, earnest smile of hers.
And thus… it is finally over.
Rainbow Dash has just passed away.
With the beeping blaring out in an unbreakable pitch, Ford silently lets Rainbow’s death slowly sink in until finally he could not hold back any longer as he breaks down uncontrollably with endless tears streaming down his completely disheartened face. He still could not believe this is finally happening just as his vision foretold. He had pray nearly every night that this would turn out for the better and that this bleak premonition would never come true. But as of right now, his hope is completely shot down as the sniveling stallion lowers his constantly weeping head close to his recently departed wife while the newborn twins join in their father’s woe by crying instinctively alongside him.
As the recent tragedy plays out, the medical practitioners at present cease their hopeless efforts as they let the burden over the loss of life weigh heavily on them. With a hushed sigh, Doctor Horse turns to his head nurse and ask of her in a downhearted tone.
"Call it."
Despite her reluctance, Nurse Redheart nevertheless complies in soft, disheartening manner, “Time of death: 9:35pm.”
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And Tirek wil go in a wreck shit up...If you are to follow canon timeline.
Don't know why but duo cartoonish took down the original.
I find this song fit with its lyrics.
...
you're lucky I didn't react.
Normal
Time
Arrival
Fight
Failure
Complete
because it became true. Oh wait.
(PS: Did you know while I was thinking about this I coincidentally shut down my Spotify app as a sad piano piece was about to play?)
EDIT: This video is for you because you did it.
Just remember that RoyalRainbow did NOT add a 'Sad' tag to the story.
Pitchforks! Get your torches and pitchforks here!
6582503 *buys ALL of the torches*
BULLSHIT! There's still no tragedy tag! Therefore she's not fucking dead! I'm calling it right now, she's gonna wake up next chapter!
Oh no you didn't "readys an angry mob"
6582627
Get your pitchforks and torches from me
I have a feeling Ford will give up his powers or something similar to save Dash.
I will place all of my trust in you here RoyalRainbow and I will hold my comments as I have a idea and I do not want to spoil it for anypony.
Harts Fire
PS names we need names well at lest one name the filly is named. Arurora
Rainbow and Ford gasp simultaneously as they stare with immense awe at their beloved firstborn. Safely secured in Horse’s magically improvised cradle basket, the tiny filly bears a lovely midnight blue coat and a four-striped color pattern of violet, green, pink, and red in her smooth mane and tail. Altogether, her color scheme is almost similar to the shimmering lights of an vibrant aurora.
i like it and please have rainbow dash coming back to life in the next chapter if you don't then i will not be happy
6582634 alright I take an extra large torch and one jumbo rusty pitchfork
6582773
*hands over items* would you also like some rope also.
Wow...the feels.
6582503 *Buys EVERYTHING*
you.... you didnt.... you surely wouldnt.... would you??
mememaker.net/static/images/memes/530068.jpg
my reaction after reading.
global3.memecdn.com/feelcopter_fb_739285.jpg
I ready my fleet. An update better happen soon and you better fix this.
6582778 sure why not
next chapter better be not as long as the previous....
quickmeme.com/img/8d/8db7b0daa841e85849db55fc1a83bb0e4ce5cc91b66df11e8584093b3c9ec284.jpg
please don't let this be the end!
6582883 my carriers are on standby. Just give the order and I will deploy all available aircraft.
6582502
6582575
That's assuming it needs a sad or tragedy tag. It is sad/tragic, but one chapter doesn't mark a story for said tags in my opinion. All in all, this was handled very well and morbid as it is, I hope Rainbow Dash is dead. Not because I dislike her {she's best pone} but because of how RoyalRainbow has handled it in the story. There's a bittersweet realism to it and as a story I think bringing her back would hurt it significantly; it'd spit on the work up until now, in my opinion. "Something bad happened, well deus ex machina will fix it."
Nosirs, I hope the story stays as-is.
6582888
6582717
6582883
Worry not gents, in his blog posts he states:
Where the hell is the reformed Arrogon, because he realizes his mistakes, when you need him...
This by the way is a nice Birthday present, so thank you.
6583044 i hope Rainbow Dash is not dead
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO RAINBOW!
I still don't get why they didn't perform a C-section and suture the tear.
6582503 Heh, figures someone would pitch that up at some point.
6583673 yeah
6583785 I aim to please
My lord, look at that mob! Oh, wait.
6583785 Unintended pun is unintended, isn't it?
Are you a fan of Black Ops Zombies? I ask this because 9:35 seems like an oddly specific reference...
So....Damn, that's really all I can say. I had a feeling you'd do this so idk why I'm shocked.
R.I.P Dash
Well, time to go snivel and cry like a little bitch!
6583044
I agree, with you. She should stay dead but the author can do what he pleases...
And on her wings she will soar to the heavens above, where she will stay forevermore, to be in the land of the living nevermore. She left behind a legacy, a love, a family, all to see them grow, to become what they are destined for...
May they all find peace...
Pray, Wish, Beg, For her...And All
OH MY GOD. YES. This is the most depressing thing, lol.
Everypony's talking 'bout their feels And I'm just like:
img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130519224155/adventuretimewithfinnandjake/images/c/c1/Meh.png
6591314 lol, same
6591314 thank you I needed that laugh
Now if Rainbow Dash was still alive that'll be Legend... Wait til after I made my point... And does anyone know how the doctors could have easily prevented Rainbow Dash from dying in the first place?... I do! (Or I wouldn't have commented on this.) It's not having her GIVE BIRTH WHILE SHE'S LYING ON HER BACK! Now if they had her standing up right or lying on her side, it would have made giving birth a lot easier and would have prevented that tare in the first place. And there's another way how the doctors could have saved her after finding that tare is having her wait to birth the second foal until surgery is prepared to deal with it, then rush her to the OR. I think I made my point. ...Dary!
Edit 7/2/2021:
Wait how did it get so late? Shouldn’t it be am?
Just use your draconian magic.
All I could hear here is Chicago sing You’re the Inspiration.