• Published 23rd Dec 2011
  • 26,570 Views, 1,765 Comments

A Bluebird's Song - Ardensfax



Rainbow Dash is struggling against her own past. Is it time for her rising star to fall?

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In The Interests Of Harmony

A Bluebird’s Song

~~~
I need a place to hide
Before the storm begins
~~~

In The Interests Of Harmony

Rainbow Dash alighted on the porch of her cloud-house, still reveling in the new ways of flying that she could now achieve. Her entire return journey had been conducted with her wings tucked tightly to her sides, occasionally flipping upside-down for a while, giggling like a schoolfilly. She still preferred to have her wings spread, and indeed she thought it looked cooler to fly that way, but for the moment the novelty was irresistible.

She had been forced, reluctantly, to part ways with Twilight after they returned to town. The unicorn had needed to write up the details of the experiment into a formal report, and Dash had thought it best if she clocked in for a few hours with the weather team, to show that she was back on form.

To avoid awkward questions, she had made sure to fly normally during the cloud patrols, although she found it remarkable how redundant the flapping motions suddenly felt. They still came naturally, through force of habit, but at the same time were obviously unnecessary. They were not holding her back any more. It had occurred to her then how different the pegasus world could easily become if Twilight were to make their newly-discovered information public.

Now, it was nearing five in the afternoon, and Dash felt cheerful as she deposited her goggles on a table near the door.

What to do? She flopped down on the cloud-sofa, a few wisps of water vapour hissing out from under her, grabbing a back issue of Wonderbolts Weekly from the floor, but not making any attempt to read it. For a few minutes, she lay there, running back over the last few days in her mind. No matter how hard she tried to think seriously, however, her thoughts kept drifting back to Twilight.

Eventually, she realized that her stomach was growling, so she reluctantly hauled herself off the sofa, rudely interrupting the latest in a string of steadily more inappropriate fantasies concerning the unicorn, and trotted out into the cluttered hallway with a small yawn. It had been an active day, after all. She felt that she deserved a snack or five. Then, her ears pricked up.

Pegasi are perceptive creatures. They can tell when something is amiss. They can always tell, but sometimes, it comes too late.

Dash was walking through the hall, when she froze. The unmistakable fizzing sound of a spell being cast sounded behind her, and she felt warm tendrils of magic playing over her. She tried to whip around, but could not move. No matter how hard she tried, she could not so much as blink. Still, the silvery magic cocooned her, the immobilization spell being held in place by somepony standing directly behind her. Her eyes darted rapidly from side to side, in a panic, but she could not catch sight of the pony that had caught her.

“I’d say ‘don’t turn around’, but I suppose that might seem a tad redundant,” came a voice. It was male, relatively young, the affected Canterlot accent hinting at a privileged upbringing. It exuded a sense of confidence, an easy authority that always comes with well-controlled power.

“Let me make one thing perfectly clear, Miss Dash,” said the voice, calmly. “I would have no qualms whatsoever about picking you up, walking out of the front door, and dropping you off this cloud whilst you were still immobilized.” Dash’s heart was hammering, and her eyes were still moving feverishly, more in fear than in expectation of catching a glimpse of the speaker. She was not an easily-panicked mare under normal circumstances. Taking on dragons was fine in her book, but she could not stand this sense of trapped helplessness.

“I could do that, go home, and not lose a wink of sleep tonight. But I don’t want to, I’ve got nothing against you, besides the obvious. You just know the wrong things at the wrong time.”

Dash tried to cry out, tried to make any kind of noise, but it was impossible.

“So, I know what you’re thinking. You’re wondering if there’s any chance that I’ll just go away and leave you alone. Well, I’m a reasonable old colt, and I can tell you that the answer is yes. We never need to see each other again, on just a few conditions.” The voice’s owner cleared his throat. “Your little fillyfriend has been asking some interesting questions, and we think that she should stop. But for you, that’s another story. All that matters here is what she told you. What she taught you. So, here’s what I want. You will never tell anypony what Sparkle showed you. You will never use the skills she showed you again. You will never assist her in any future research into this subject.”

There was the sound of soft hoof-falls on the cloud surface, and Dash heard the door opening. She was sweating profusely, fearful for her own situation, but infinitely more terrified for Twilight. If this was happening to her, then what was happening to the unicorn right now? The sound of hoof-beats paused at the door.

“I expect you’re wondering why I don’t just throw you off the cloud anyway, you know, seeing as I’m going to such trouble to shut you up.” The stallion sounded almost guilty. “Well, my organization is all about protecting certain interests. In a way, we’re much like you; we’re protectors of balance, of harmony. You are the bearer of one of the Elements. I don’t doubt that the next time some monster or spirit shows up, it’ll be you and your friends bailing us all out. If you’re not here to do that, then that’s in nopony’s best interest. However, we do have our limits. If we need to silence you, we will. You get one warning, and this is it. Some things are too important. So, if you break our little agreement, we’ll know. Trust me on that. If we hear that you’ve been naughty, then I’ll pay you another visit.” The voice chuckled. “Then, after that, I’ll pay your lovely little Twilight a visit.”

A single tear formed in Dash’s eye and rolled down her cheek. A strangled, inarticulate yell somehow found its way up her paralyzed throat.

“I’ve not enjoyed our conversation, if it makes you feel any better. Necessity is not always pleasant. I hope we don’t have to see one another again, Rainbow.”

There was the sound of the door slamming shut. For a moment, there was silence. Then, the spell was lifted, and Dash collapsed to the floor, shaking uncontrollably due partially to the magic, and partially to the shock. Her heart was racing.

The moment she regained control of her legs, she leapt to her feet, and charged furiously out of the front door, ramming it out of the way in her anger.

“Come back here an’ say that again, ya bucking coward!” she screamed out, but knew that it was useless. She could smell a sharp metallic tang on the air, one that she had always noticed left behind whenever Twilight teleported herself. She knew that the unknown stallion was a skilled unicorn spellcaster, and that he could be anywhere by now.

I need to tell Twi’ about this. Whatever it is, she thought. Then, she suddenly panicked at the thought of her marefriend, alone and undefended in the library. Perhaps not alone.

Oh Celestia. “Twilight!”

She had never taken off so fast in her life. Hoping against hope that the unicorn was alright, she darted towards Ponyville, and the library, like a bolt of lightning.

*

A few minutes previously.

“Okay, last one.” Twilight magically seized a paperclip, and connected together the wedge of parchment that she had been working on. Now that she had first-hoof visual evidence that her theory was correct, she had formally written up her ideas into an essay, complete with diagrams and some rudimentary formulae. She smiled as she reread the title page.

The Sparkle-Dash Theory Of Pegasus Thauma-aviation.

She intended to construct three copies; one to keep for herself, one to send to the Princess, and one to submit to the Royal Canterlot University’s science journal. Obviously, further work was needed. She had evidence, but if she wanted to expand her ideas she would have to be a lot more precise in her experimentation. She wished that Spike were here to help with the tidying up, but he was out helping Fluttershy dig her garden over, or at least that was what he claimed. Twilight had noticed that he seemed a little shifty as he delivered this explanation on the way to the door, but had been too engrossed in her work to enquire further.

After magically cleaning off her quill and replacing the cap on the inkwell, she wandered idly up the stairs to clean up the bits of parchment that still littered her bedroom. The room was quite dark, the curtains still drawn and candles blown out. The bed was still messy from where the pegasus had been sleeping in it. She paused for a second in the doorway, sighing.

I wish Rainbow were here.

She shook her head, and started gathering up the sheets of parchment covering the desk and floor. Don’t be clingy, she chastised herself mentally.

Then, there was an almighty crash of breaking glass from downstairs, followed almost instantaneously by a second, louder one. Twilight jumped in shock, her head snapping up and the parchment pieces falling to the floor with a shower of leaves. She whipped around, and dashed down the stairs to see what the disturbance was. She ground to a halt at the base of the staircase, staring at the scene before her in limp surprise.

Somepony had hurled a brick through her window. The glass lay strewn across the floorboards and rug, covering her written work which, fortunately, appeared undamaged. The offending brick had continued through the air, crashing into an empty vase which had crashed to the floor, creating the second smashing noise. As Twilight moved closer, picking her way carefully around the shards of glass, still in a state of blank shock, she noticed the brick itself lying on the floor by one of the bookshelves. It appeared to have something wrapped around it, but she did not investigate any closer at the moment.

Cold anger filled Twilight, and she swept the glass out of her way by magic as she trotted purposefully towards the front door, and rushed outside. She looked all around the library, but could catch no sign of anypony in the immediate area, certainly nopony who looked liable to throw a brick through a window.

“What the hay did you do that for?” she yelled in ineffectual frustration to the world in general, and headed back inside, fuming. She had insurance, but the prospect of getting the window replaced was irritating nonetheless. She focused her magic to specifically pick up glass, and a thousand shards rose up into the air, glittering like a dusty galaxy of stars around her. Had she not been so infuriated, the sight would have been almost beautiful.

With a snort, she clumped the glass together into a ball, and dropped it into the bin with a clinking crunch. Then, she remembered the brick, and more specifically, the thing that had been wrapped around it. Trotting over, she saw that it was a piece of parchment, and she unwrapped it with a flick of her horn.

It was ripped in a couple of places from its journey through the window, but was otherwise unharmed, and the writing upon it was still perfectly legible. She deposited the parchment on the table, spreading it out and dragging over a candle to read by. The writing was tall and spindly, strongly italicized with skillful penmanship, but clearly written in a hurry nonetheless. As she read it, her frown changed to a look of wide-eyed fear and incredulity.

Miss Twilight Sparkle,

I believe I have your attention.
Your research into pegasus magic ends now.
You will make no part of your research public.
You will not speak of your research to anypony.
You will conduct no further experiments.

If you do not concede to do this,
there will be recriminations.
We are both able and willing to carry these out.
Miss Dash will be able to testify of this.

In time you will understand us.
In time you may even wish to join us.
I hope that you will consider this.

Yours, with my apologies.

Twilight read the note through several times, her mouth hanging open a little. Her brain was churning feverishly. What was so dangerous about her research that these ponies were going to such trouble to put a stop to it? She had to do something, but had no idea what.

One line of the note stuck painfully in her mind. Miss Dash will be able to testify of this.

“Rainbow,” she whispered, horror-stricken. If something had happened to Dash as a result of her experiment, it would be her fault. She spun around, about to head straight for Dash’s house, but at that exact moment the front door burst open.

Twilight watched in amazement as Rainbow Dash charged into the library, looking furiously from side to side, her eyes scanning the room and catching sight of the unicorn.

“Where are they?” she yelled. “If they’ve put one hoof on you I’ll bucking kill them!”

“Who?” Twilight exclaimed, in confusion.

Dash paused, letting her breathing return to normal and allowing the feral instinct to defend Twilight drain from her system. Then, she ran across the room and grabbed the unicorn in a bone-crushing hug. “You’re okay… You’re okay. Thank Celestia.”

“Can’t… Breathe…” Twilight choked out, and Dash released her, still looking immensely relieved. “Does this have something to do with the brick? Rainbow, what’s the matter?” she wheezed.

“A unicorn,” Dash exclaimed, “some stallion, he broke into my house. Must’ve cast some kinda freezing spell on me, ‘cos I couldn’t move. He threatened me, told me if I had anythin’ else to do with this flying stuff you’ve shown me, he’d... he’d… oh, Twi’. I thought somepony was here, doing the same to you.”

Twilight was staring at Dash in horror. “He threatened you?” she asked, trying to keep her voice calm.

“Yeah, but what about you? Hang on, what brick were you talking about?”

It took Twilight a moment to remember her own problem, she was so angry on Dash’s behalf, at the invasion of her marefriend’s home and at the threats leveled at her. “Oh, yeah. Somepony bricked my window just now.” She gestured to the message spread out on the table. “It had this wrapped around it, it’s got to be the same ponies.”

Dash looked up at the remains of the broken window. She had noticed the chilly draft earlier, but had been too distracted to bother looking for its source. Shaking her head in disgust at the vandalism, she quickly skimmed the letter. “That’s pretty much what he said to me, too,” she remarked, “although I didn’t get an offer to join up with them. Why do ya reckon they’re doing this? Why’s your research such a big deal?”

Twilight shook her head. “I’ve got no idea. I wonder why they spoke directly to you, but contacted me in this way?”

Dash shrugged, but then her face lit up momentarily as an idea struck her. “I think I know why,” she said with a small, wry smile.

“Why?”

“They’re cowards, that’s why. The stallion in my house was a unicorn, and whoever bricked your window was in with the same gang as him. They knew all about the Elements and everything. No unicorn in their right mind would go up against you magically, not if they know anything about you. You’d have wiped the floor with him.”

Twilight nodded. “Makes sense. I could have broken through that immobilization spell in a second.” She sighed. “This is crazy, why do they have a problem with us?”

Dash was clearly thinking hard. “Write to Celestia,” she said, at length. “She needs to know about this. Are you gonna carry on with your research?”

“Naturally I am,” replied Twilight, speaking as if it were a foregone conclusion. “If they want me to stop, they’re going to have to give me a better reason than threats and broken windows. I’m not caving in to blackmail.” She looked at Dash, conviction blazing in her eyes, then her face fell in concern. “Of course, I wouldn’t dream of involving you any further in this. I realize that I’m being stubborn here by not caving in, and I don’t want you to suffer for it. I can handle myself against unicorns, but I don’t want you putting yourself in harm’s way for the sake of my research.”

Dash shook her head, firmly. “Oh no, Twi’. I’m gonna be right here with you. If you’re keeping on with this, then I’m keeping on with it too.” Twilight opened her mouth to protest, but Dash cut across her. “It’s my choice, and I’m choosing to stick with you. I trust you to keep me safe, I hope you can trust me to do the same for you.”

Twilight realized that her eyes were a little damp. She could not adequately put into words how much Dash’s trust meant to her. She embraced the pegasus for a few moments, trying to put a great many unsaid things into it. She felt her love nuzzle her cheek. “I trust you too,” she whispered in Dash’s ear.

They broke apart, and Twilight began walking over to the writing desk by the wall. “You’re right,” she said, “I need to write to Celestia about this.” She magically reached for a piece of parchment and a quill, unscrewing the lid from her inkwell. She looked over her shoulder at Dash. “Oh, by the way,” she said with a grateful smile, “thanks for coming over to check on me. I really appreciate it.”

With that, she fell to writing. Dash sat down, resting her head on her forehooves, thinking hard and listening absently to the background scratching of the quill.

Unicorns… Why would unicorns want to stop another unicorn from researching? Why does pegasus flight even matter? Maybe they’re from a university and they don’t like private projects? Nah, that’s ridiculous. They wouldn’t go around making those kinds of threats. I hope Celestia has some answers.

“Okay!” Twilight declared after a couple of minutes. “What do you think?” She passed the letter over to Dash so that she could read it. To the back was attached her complete notes on pegasus flight. There was no time to make copies, she would just have to send her mentor the original, in case there was any chance it could shed some light on the unknown group’s motives.

Dear Princess Celestia,

I am writing to you with a matter of some urgency.
I have been engaged for some time in a private research project,
regarding pegasus flight, recently aided by my friend Rainbow Dash.
(Please find enclosed my notes and conclusions.)
Today, Rainbow Dash’s house was broken into,
and she was magically immobilized by the intruder.
She was threatened by an unknown unicorn whilst unable to move.
After making his threats, he departed. Dash never managed to look at him.
At the same time, a brick was thrown through the window of the library,
containing an equally threatening message intended for myself.
We were both given demands that we cease research into pegasus flight.
Neither of us intend to give in to this blackmail.
However, we thought that you would want to know about these events,
and we were wondering if you could offer any advice.
Do you have any idea who could be behind this?
If so, what might their motives be?

Your faithful student,
Twilight Sparkle.

Dash finished reading, looking up at Twilight. “Sounds fine to me, as soon as Spike gets back you can send it off. I’ve just got one query though.”

“What’s that?”

Dash winked at her. “Why’d you only describe me as your ‘friend’? I’m wounded!”

Despite the stress of the situation, Twilight chuckled. “I think we’re giving the Princess enough to worry about as it is.”

“Yeah, fair point.” Dash lapsed back into silence, still thinking hard. “I’m still goin’ for that record, ya know,” she said, at length.

“Record?” Twilight asked, absently. This afternoon’s events had addled her brain a little, and at that moment she found it hard to think about anything else.

“My airspeed record, ya know,” Dash clarified. “I haven’t tried it out properly yet, but who knows how fast I can go if I’m not worrying about my wings. These ponies aren’t stopping me from getting my record back, no way.”

Twilight smiled, admiring the pegasus’ commitment. “Let’s wait to get a response from the Princess first, eh?”

“Sure,” Dash nodded. “Hey, Twi’, can we go upstairs? That window’s really letting in a draft.”

“Good idea,” Twilight noticed for the first time how cold the room had become. “I’ll try and get hold of some board later so I can block it up.”

Twilight tied a piece of string around her letter and notes, so that they would not fall apart, then jotted a brief memo for Spike, asking for him to send them all on his return. She dropped the stack of parchment onto the table, and she and Dash walked side-by-side up the stairs. Both of them had a sensation of slight unreality, as if the world were suddenly a little less safe. They had been through a lot in their time in Ponyville, and had become hardened to strange, frightening events, but somehow these cold, precise threats were different. They made Twilight’s blood run cold, although Dash’s presence was soothing. They were on the wrong side of a group of ponies who seemed quite ruthless in getting what they wanted, and suddenly their pleasant life in Ponyville seemed terribly fragile.

“Are you okay, by the way?” she asked Dash in a voice of concern. “You know, about earlier, that unicorn in your house?”

Dash shrugged. “It was pretty horrible at the time, I’m not gonna lie. But I’ve had worse in my life. It’s not gonna keep me up at night or anything. I just wanna know why they’re out to shut us up. Anyway, I bet the Princess’ll come up with something. She’s not gonna take this lying down, is she? Somepony threatening the Elements.” She met Twilight’s eyes. “How ‘bout you? That brick could’ve hurt ya badly, not to mention the threats.”

Twilight sighed, but smiled weakly. “I’ll be fine. Everything seems weird right now, but I’ll be okay. Nothing’s ever simple, is it?” She rested a hoof on Dash’s shoulder. “Besides, I feel safe with you here.”

Dash blushed. “That’s really nice of you, Twi’, but I never even saw that unicorn coming. If he turned up with his friends, you’d probably have to be the one looking out for me.”

“I tell you what, then,” Twilight whispered, a sudden smouldering heat flaring up in her voice. “Let’s look out for each other.”

“I like that idea,” murmured Dash, gazing almost hypnotized into her eyes. The atmosphere in the room had suddenly changed, as if an electric charge were hanging in the air between them.

Neither of them could quite tell how, or even why, but the next moment they were kissing. They both knew that this was hardly the right moment, considering the threat to their very lives that was hanging over their heads, but that just made it seem all the more important, all the more right. Twilight was backed against the bedroom wall, pressed up to it by Dash, their tongues locked together. Twilight’s hooves were stroking urgently through the tips of Dash’s outstretched wings, eliciting a low moan from the pegasus, whose knees sagged a little. They stumbled backwards, collapsing onto the bed in a tangle of hooves, never breaking eye contact, both knowing perfectly well where this was going.

It was as if their fear for each other’s safety had brought the extent of their feelings for each other into clearer focus. Twilight had felt the molten lava that had surged up inside her when she heard about the intruder in Dash’s home, and she had seen the way Dash had rushed straight for the library, even after undergoing such a traumatic experience herself. For the first time in her life, she felt love, and she felt truly loved in return.

Neither of them had any idea when the unknown ponies would return, and what might happen when they did. They did not know what Celestia could do to protect them. Suddenly, the future seemed dark and uncertain, the illusion of safety in everyday life had been shattered, and that knowledge had driven them closer. All they could be sure of was the present, and in the present they had each other.

It was more than enough.

*

Author's Note: I hate adding notes to chapters, but I think this is necessary. The reader attrition rate for this chapter is pretty high, I'm guessing because of the sudden shift in tone which seems to rub a lot of people up the wrong way. Just so you know; the story is still primarily a romance from hereon in. Fear not!