Bedtime Stories

by Incredible Blunderbolt

Armor

The gentle tick-tock of the clock on the wall was the only sound anywhere near us, but it pervaded the room like an awful stench. I fought the urge to once again look behind myself as I carefully threaded my needle through the silky red fabric. The design—a sassy, look-at-me dress that just exuded confidence—was nearing its final stages of preparation. Soon, I'd be able to put it up for display in the shop—but that wasn't my problem.

A gentle shifting noise reached my ears and I could no longer fight it. I turned my head and took in the sight of my dear friend Rainbow Dash still staring at the floor in discontent. Frowning, I turned back to my work and sighed. As much as it pained me to see her like that, I'd already been informed multiple times that she didn't want to talk about it—whatever “it” was, remained a mystery, however.

As I pushed the needle back through the fabric, I wondered if there were any way I could get the normally brazen and cocky mare to open up to me. It was unusual for her to act like this. It was even more unusual for her to sit as still as she was for almost an hour without even saying anything! It was troubling to say the least.

The silence reigned supreme for an unknown number of minutes afterward. The ticking of the clock filled any gaps in the sheer noiselessness of the boutique. Every so often, I'd steal a glance back at Rainbow, who's eyes were still boring holes into the floor. I'd nearly finished sewing when she finally spoke up.

“Rarity?”

Her voice was so quiet I nearly didn't catch it. If it hadn't been so quiet in the store, I probably wouldn't have. I turned and looked back at her. She hadn't moved a muscle. “Yes, Darling?”

She took a shaky breath, ears drooping as she exhaled. I caught sight of her watery magenta eyes when she looked back up at me and bit her lip. “Am... Am I... pretty?”

My jaw dropped. Did she just... The needle and cloth hit the floor with a soft tink as I rushed to her side and seized control of her head. “Rainbow!” I cried, brushing a lock of orange hair out of her face. “Of course you are! What on earth brought this on?”

Rainbow's eyes closed tightly and she tried to pull away, but I wasn't about to let her go; much as she tried to hide it, Rainbow was rather sensitive. She was like a scared little filly hiding behind plate armor—alone and afraid of the world—and I could tell that a friendly embrace was exactly what she needed. I was proven right by the next, very melancholic, word to leave her mouth: “Nothin'...”

The sadness—the sheer, unadulterated depression that had managed to flow through a single word nearly split my heart in two. I know I have a tendency to over dramatize many things, but this Rainbow Dash was far from the high-flying daredevil prankster who'd I'd just yesterday scolded for slipping bright yellow dye into my shampoo. No, this was a side of Rainbow Dash I'd never seen before, and it made me want to hold her tight and weep alongside her.

“Now, come on,” I said, placing a hoof under her chin and raising her face to meet mine. “We both know that's not true.”

“I don't wanna talk about it...”

I bit my lip and wiped a tear from her cheek. “Rainbow...”

“It's none of your business!” she whined, pulling herself out of my grasp. Wings ruffling defiantly, she half-stomped toward the window and stared out at the world. The light of the midday sun happily reflected off of her bitter frown.

“Rainbow!” I said sternly, “You've just made it my business!” I walked over to the window and sat down beside her. She didn't try to move, so I took the liberty of wrapping my foreleg around her shoulders to make sure it'd stay that way. “How can you expect me to just turn around and walk away after a question like that?”

Her shoulders slumped instantly. “I... I don't...”

I tried to give her a comforting smile, but I couldn't tell if it made any difference. “Then tell me what's wrong.”

“I can't...”

“Whyever not?”

Her eyes screwed themselves shut again as her whole body tensed against my own. “'Cause you'll laugh at me...” she whispered.

A stabbing pain ripped through my heart as I proccessed her words. Was that how she saw me? Some callous, unforgiving mare who would laugh at her good friend's honeset-to-godness problems? By all rights, I should have been upset—but I simply couldn't stay angry at a pony who was already tearing up.

I tightened my grip on her. “I would never. Self-image is no laughing matter, Rainbow Dash.”

“But...” Her eyes fell on me and I shot her a no-nonsense eyebrow. “Fine,” she said, wings ruffling on the floor.

I smiled as she paused to collect herself. After a long moment and several deep breaths, she looked back up from the floor. “Twilight and I were hanging out, y'know? On this old dock at the lake...”

I nodded as her voice started to trail off. “And?”

Rainbow bit her lip. “And we started talking about... stuff,” she said evasively, shifting her eyes to the window. “Like... what kind of ponies we wanted to be with, y'know?” Her ears drooped and she she blinked hard. “She... she said she wanted somepony pretty...”

My back immediately straightened as every muscle in my body contracted. If I didn't have the proper control of a well-diciplined lady, I probably would have wound up screaming out the first thought that ran through my head: what?

Of course, in hindsight, I was surprised I hadn't seen it earlier—the way that Rainbow always seemed to have that awkward, dreamy, far-off look whenever Twilight was around, the way she always talked on and on for days whenever she spent the afternoon at the library or how she'd taken to reading like a starving griffon to a flock of chickens. In fact, it was so obvious that I mentally kicked myself for not being able to see it plain as day!

“Rainbow...” I said, a little unsure of what to do. It had never occurred to me that Rainbow Dash of all ponies would come to me for... for anything, really.

“Nopony ever calls me pretty...” she lamented, her head dropping like an abondoned puppet's. “Sure, they say I'm cool and I'm fast and stuff, but I'm not... th-they don't say...” Her voice cracked and, upon hearing the tragedy in her voice, I believe my own heart did as well.

I squeezed her even tighter in my forelegs. “But you are pretty, Rainbow,” I said firmly. “In fact, I often find myself quite jealous of your looks!”

Rainbow snorted at that. “Yeah, sure...”

“I'm being serious!” I cried, running a hoof down her multicolor mane. “I have to work for hours every day just to make myself look presentable—and even then, I cannot match you!” She raised an eyebrow. “You have something in you, Rainbow, this... this fire that pours itself into every aspect of your being, and it shows! I can see it in your eyes—in your step—in the way you talk or speak your mind, no matter the cost!

“It's a very admirable trait,” I said, smiling as Rainbow's face slowly transformed from an expression of depression, to one of what I hoped was humble pride. “And it's the most beautiful thing about you. Failing that, there's your mane, your wings, your eyes... You're a pretty mare, Rainbow. There's no denying that.”

Rainbow grinned. “You mean it?” she asked, ears perking back up. “You really mean it? You're not just saying that to make me feel better?”

I probably should have been upset that she'd think me so callous as to lie to her while she had an emotional crisis, but I just couldn't bring myself to be upset with her. “Of course not, Rainbow,” I promised. “And I'm sure that Twilight would agree,” I added with a wink.

She started, wings lashing out defensively and her face quickly reddening. “I-I...”

“Besides, I highly doubt that Twilight is a pony that cares much for looks,” I said, placing a hoof on my chin. “That doesn't sound much like her at all. I think she was just listing qualities she would like her ideal special somepony to have—not necessities.”

Shrugging, Rainbow pulled herself out of my embrace and wandered over to the window. The leaves of Golden Oaks rippled in the breeze like water. “Yeah,” she agreed. “But I think everypony cares about looks a little bit.”

“More than we'd like to admit,” I laughed, placing a hoof on her shoulder. “So it's a good thing you have them, right?”

The smile on Rainbow's face grew brighter. “Yeah...” She stood up and walked over to the door. “There's something I have to do,” she said, opening it. “Bye, Rarity!” She hesitated and, for a moment, I caught another glimpse of that terrified little filly hiding behind plate steel armor as she bit her lip. “And thanks. What you said... It... It meant a lot to me.”

I waved a hoof at her. “You're quite welcome, Rainbow,” I said with a smile. “Just don't let it go to your pretty little head!”

The response I got was a raspberry as Rainbow trotted out of the boutique and towards the library—and, once again, that scared little filly disappeared behind the armor. But now, I knew she was there.

And, somehow, I also knew that she wouldn't be so terrified for much longer.

Author's Note:

It's been a while since I updated this collection, so I made a new one!

Comments

[Siras-chi]

Wow, TwiDash without actually showing Twi. Sweet.

[Incredible Blunderbolt]

3457533

Curiosity is almost quadruple its size...

[SgtFrog]

Rarity knows a thing or two about "pretty", even though her special somepony doesn't give a crap about how she looks. *cough*Applejack*cough*

[kenny26]

That was really adorable. I like the theme and how it focuses on Rainbow Dash and her false bravado with lots of feels hiding underneath the surface.

[Kage no Brony]

3457928

Holy crap, Jarkes; That's not a prompt, that's a shove! Wanting a full one-shot. Psh.

That said, I wouldn't particularly be against reading a one-shot with that concept.