She Kills Monsters

by chiko

Rainbow Dash

"You should have seen her play," Rainbow Dash said, staring off into a soccer field. She rested her feet on the bleachers. "She was the only other kid who could keep up with me."

Coming from her, that was high praise.

"She'd give me this look." Rainbow contorted her face, half squinting. "And then we'd just book it down the field. She'd boot the ball to the edge of the field and I'd haul ass to catch it and make a break for it. Scored a lot of goals that way."

"I wish I went to a game at least once." Rarity hugged her knees. "I always told myself I'd go her senior year when I had the time."

Rainbow squeezed her friend's shoulder. "Hey, don't think like that. You were there in spirit."

Rarity looked up. "Hmm?"

"You bought her cleats, right?" Rainbow asked. "Day one of practice, and she shows up in expensive shoes. That's you written all over it."

Rarity laughed, yet it faded quickly. "So I spoiled her sometimes. That doesn't make missing her games alright."

"Those shoes meant a lot to her," Rainbow added, tugging at her socks. "Wouldn't play a game—wouldn't even practice without them." She chuckled. "One time, just to mess with her, I hid them in a locker, and she totally freaked."

The conversation halted. The pair watched the Canterlot University track team take a lap around the field.

"Thank you for telling me this." Rarity sighed. "It's good to know that you and the rest of the girls were better sisters to her than I ever was."

"Don't talk like that!" Rainbow scolded again. "No one's perfect. I was tough as shit on her."

Rarity tilted her head. "How so?"

"Made her run laps, push ups, you name it. I let her know when I thought I wasn't getting her best," Rainbow admitted. She rubbed at her chin. "She decked me pretty hard once when she found out I asked the coach to bench her."

Rarity let out a slight gasp "That's not like her."

"I didn't think she had it in her, either," Rainbow said with a laugh. "At first, I thought, 'this can't be Rarity's sister.' Then I remembered the look you got in your eyes whenever you got real focused."

"What do you mean?"

"Don't mean to sound corny, but when you get dialed in, whatever you're focused on becomes the most important thing in the world to you." Rainbow stretched out her legs. "That applied to people, too."

"Thank you." Rarity thought about what she had heard. "I'm learning new things about my sister every day."

Rainbow's phone went off. "Gotta go, Rare. Class starts in ten. Who woulda thought you'd be the drop out?"

"It's a leave of absence." Rarity rolled her eyes. "I don't think I can focus on school. Besides, my boutique's taken off. I have a storefront and everything. I don't think I need a degree."

Rainbow smirked. "Now you're sounding like me."

Comments

[Daedalus Aegle]

This is me acknowledging how every chapter is exactly 500 words but still feels like a substantive piece of just the right length.

[chiko]

9920586
Oh, thank god it's working. Lots of rewrites and editing went into this to get it just right, so thank you for the reassuring comment. I really appreciate it.

[Venerable Ro]

Besides, my boutique's taken off. I have a storefront and everything. I don't think I need a degree."

You really don't. Unless you have a specific plan/opportunity for post-collage work, it's like as not just a way to accrue a fantastic amount of debt really quickly.