Fear Itself

by GTPGuy

Chapter 2

It was appropriate weather for a funeral. A light drizzle fell on the assembled ponies, nothing near as fierce as the storm that had killed the two pegasi that were being honored today. A pair of simple wood coffins stood at the head of the assembly-rivulets of water streamed down their surfaces, much like the tears that fell down the faces of co-workers, friends, and the one family member that was attending.

Spitfire, in a flowing black gown that had seen much use in the days following the storm, stood at the back of the somber assembly with a young pegasus alongside her. Rainbow Dash, fidgeting uncomfortably, curled up against Spitfire’s right forehoof.

“Do we have to stay here Spitfire? I really don’t want to be here…”

Spitfire lowered herself towards the filly, giving Rainbow Dash a fierce hug.

“Oh honey I know that this is uncomfortable for you, but this is just something we have to do out of respect. Your parents were very good ponies you know-their memory is something we should honor.”

Rainbow Dash’s voice dropped to a whisper. “But none of these people loved my parents. They’re just friends or less. None of these people REALLY care about my parents or me.”

“Rainbow that’s not true, many of the people here cared about your parents-hay, your mother was what inspired me to join the PRU.”

“Yeah, what a great bunch of help all these people were-they all cared about my parents! But appare-“ Rainbow choked back a sob. “Apparently they didn’t care enough to save them! Great work everypony, thanks!”

Spitfire was taken aback by Rainbow’s words. Trying to comfort the young pegasus, she reached towards Rainbow Dash to give her another hug, but her hooves were met with a surprising amount of force from the young filly, pushing Spitfire back.
“Come on Dashie… Don’t be like that, we’re here to-”

Rainbow Dash vibrated in rage. “Don’t call me that! Only my parents can call me that!”

Tears began to leak down Spitfire’s muzzle. “Oh sweetie I’m so sorry.”

Again, Spitfire moved closer to Rainbow Dash, but the cyan-colored pepgasus backpedaled away from Spitfire. Rainbow’s rose-tinted eyes were glowing with rage.

“Get away from me! I hate you! I hate all of you! You couldn’t care enough to save my parents, so why should you care about me?” And with that parting volley, the rainbow-maned pegasus galloped away from the assembly as fast as she could, disappearing into the dark and rubble-strewn streets of Cloudsdale.

Spitfire was shocked by the sudden outburst, and spent several agonizing seconds debating over whether or not she should pursue the distraught filly. Unfortunately, her mind was made up for her when the minister overseeing the funeral announced that they were ready.

A dry, magic enhanced voice rumbled over the murmurs of the assembled crowd. “Would all you good mares and colts please be seated, so that we may begin the service?” Spitfire fidgeted, still not able to decide if she should give chase or not-but with almost all the ponies at the service giving her pointed looks, she gave in and sat for a service that would most likely take an agonizing amount of time.

****20 Minutes Later****

Rainbow Dash huddled under a slab of cloud-formerly a table at her parents' favorite park, the place was now an abandoned wreck. Tears streamed freely down her muzzle, and the sound of Rainbow Dash’s sniffles echoed throughout the empty streets. A light wind ruffled the multicolor mane of the young pegasus, while raindrops lightly pattered against her newly-dirty coat. Soon, the energy drain from the emotional rollercoaster and sheer stress that had been exacted on the poor filly overwhelmed the last reserves of her energy, and she slid into a world of memories.

Rainbow Dash sat curled under a small table, taking respite from the brilliant sun that was flashing down on Cloudsdale. Gemini Dash gently prodded the young filly playfully with her hooves. On the other side of her, brilliant yellow fur covered the legs of Spectrum Dash-he wielded his hooves with unerring accuracy, managing to find a ticklish spot on his daughter without fail. High-pitched giggles often emerged from under the table that the two elder Dashes sat at, carrying across the colorful park, joining the medley of noises coming from the conversations of other pegasi all throughout the area. After a few minutes of adult conversation, Spectrum swung his head under the table, startling his daughter.

“Hey Rainbow, do you want to see Daddy fly?”

The little filly laughed and nodded her head enthusiastically. Seeing Rainbow’s reaction, Spectrum picked her up from under the table and set her down on Gemini’s back, where she nestled up against the brilliant red mane of her mother. Smiling at his little bundle of joy, Spectrum trotted over to the edge of the park before leaping off, his wings stroking powerfully against the air. Gemini’s wings fluttered as her husband showed his power, but managed to stay against her flanks with a bit of self-control. Rainbow, on the other hand, couldn’t contain her excitement and climbed up Gemini’s neck, adjusting herself to lay down on Gemini’s head for a better view. Her father streaked through the sky, leaving a multicolored trail behind him. A happy cheer escaped Rainbow Dash’s muzzle as she saw her father race through the sky.

Rainbow fidgeted under the cloud table, her body unable to remain still as she fell into a troubled sleep. The rain had started to come down harder, splashing down in a persistent drumming all around the cyan pegasus.

Rainbow dash was resting on Gemini’s neck, her arms wrapped around her mare’s neck. Gemini turned her head around towards her filly, affectionately nuzzling the little pegasus.

“Hey Rainbow, daddy’s going to meet us here in a few minutes and then you get to see him fly again-isn’t that exciting?”

The filly nodded energetically, a massive smile stretching across her muzzle.

After a bit more then a few minutes, Spectrum Dash landed in front of his family, but not in the best of conditions. His fur was slicked back by sweat along his flank, his mane was, quite frankly, a complete mess, and his wing feathers were having a bit of difficulty aligning themselves. As soon as Gemini saw his condition, she slid Rainbow off her back and put her next to a shady tree.

"Sorry Rainbow, I just have to talk to your father for a few seconds."

Gemini trotted over to where Spectrum had landed (and subsequently sat down), her unhappiness clearly evident, even to Rainbow Dash. Even from many feet away, the filly could hear the argument that her parents were having-snapping at each other, the two ponies were clearly unhappy with each other. Rainbow hid behind the tree in an attempt to keep away from the anger being unleashed by her parents, with a single sob escaping her before she could quell it.

The rain continued to pour down around Rainbow, droplets pelting the small pegasus and the area around her. However, the incessant rainfall was unable to awaken the troubled pegasus from her sleep. If anypony was around to notice, they would have seen her tossing and turning against the ruined cloud furniture around her. Unfortunately for the colorful pegasus, nopony saw her-and chances were that even if they did, they wouldn't care enough to investigate.

****

Spitfire, on the other hand, was extremely uncomfortable. She had been sitting at the funeral for well over half an hour, and was starting to worry because Rainbow Dash hadn't returned yet. At this point, the funeral had dissolved into those that had known the Dash family giving short, nonsensical speeches about how nice they were, and Spitfire's worry finally defeated her desire to remain. Jumping out of her seat, the fiery pegasus streaked into the sky, searching for the young filly that she had been taking care of for the past few days. She rocketed through the air, eyes tracking back and forth as she looked through the ruins of Cloudsdale for a tiny little pegasus.

When Spitfire finally found Rainbow Dash, her heart nearly found its way out of her mouth along with her breakfast. The bright blue fur and brilliant mane stood out against the grey clouds, but the colors also highlighted to lack of movement from the filly. Spitfire's tired wings found a burst of speed from the rush of fear that she experienced, and she descended as quickly as she could towards the motionless pegasus. Scooping the young filly onto her back, Spitfire raced towards the nearest hospital.

Comments

[GTPGuy]

Chapter 2 is up-c&c appreciated

[ArcaneTrex]

dun dun DUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUN
i wonder what happens NEXT

[lucky the dragon]

wright more plz!