Let's Rock!

by Takeo Moroi

Running away to apples and hot chocolate

Rainbow Dash looked at her new home with a feeling of both pride and disgust. The rent was dirt cheap, but for a reason, as every part of the flat and even the very well worn furniture screamed of disrepair. Still, she did not care, because it was now her home. For the first time she could lock the door and live how she chose to.

She sat down on an ancient couch and looked at the cloud of dust that now surrounded her. She looked back in her memories to her old bedroom, her old house, but she didn't feel any regret for abandoning the cushioned lifestyle. Rainbow did not need to take much when she left home. It was almost as though her entire life was really did fit in the small duffel bag placed now on her floor. There were no photos, no mementos, just some washed out clothes and her laptop. She felt very tired, having been on the road for so long, as she traveled across the state, as far as she could from her old home. She slept in seedy motels and on a road side under the sky, but carried on again at dawn to get as far as her motorcycle could carry her, but now, she found a perfect place to stay.

Ponyville was a tiny town down south, barely registered on any map. It was far away from everything, meaning visitors rarely crossed the border. It suited Rainbow just fine. She didn't want to be found for a while. In the meantime however her mind was just wondering off to sleep as the strain of the past few days finally settled in her body.

***

Rainbow woke up on the dusty couch cursing her own laziness. The first chance to sleep on a bed this week and I wake up with a neck cramp she thought. She slowly moved towards the tiny bathroom and at the sight of her own reflection she winced. Although Rainbow didn't like to admit it she always was viewed as attractive. Oh, who am I kidding. She was fully aware of the fact and loved herself and the attention she would get from crowds of both men and women chasing after her beauty. She was gifted with marble white skin, symmetric and cute features and one of a kind magenta eyes. She loved to run, and her perfectly sculpted muscles became an object of envy to anyone fortunate to have seen her bare skin. However she now only saw perfectly symmetrical bags under her bloodshot tired eyes. Her usually vibrant rainbow dyed hair clinged to her face covered with dust and grime collected on the road.

She immediately took off her old black t-shirt and ripped pair of jeans and jumped in the shower. The cold water pleasantly cooled her tired muscles and sore ribs as she watched the dirt of a week long travel flow down the drain. Rainbow was not looking forward to today, but she planned to make the best of the first day of real freedom in 18 years. Having finished her almost enjoyable cold shower, Rainbow jumped straight to the living room without even looking for a towel. She let the water droplets launch themselves in the air as she shook her hair in an attempt to dry them. Rainbow looked out of her window, looking over one of the Ponyville’s back streets, as the sun warmed her bare skin.

Today Rainbow was going to have to call on a favor from an old friend, something she would not do unless forced to. She had kept in touch with her old pal even after her family moved here due to her father’s transfer, and now she had to thank her for finding her a place to stay. They have not seen each other face to face for over 2 years, and this brought a small giggle from Rainbow’s lips. Although in bad circumstances, she was going to see her best friend, Fluttershy, again.

Rainbow Dash grabbed her bag and threw all its contents on her bed, picking up some black tight trousers, the only that were not ripped on the knees, and a white t-shirt. Don’t want to scare Flutters by looking my usual screwed-up mess. While remembering her friend during their childhood days, Rainbow could not help but smile. She picked up her leather jacket, picturing Fluttershy’s soft dark hair covering her face as the last border between her and the rest of the scary world. She remembered how Shy would jump hearing an unexpected noise and how easily she’d blush at the smallest remark from Rainbow.

By the time Rainbow Dash stopped reminiscing, she was already outside, holding her helmet in front of her pride and joy, the Sonic Rainboom. She had saved all the money from her part time jobs for individual parts of the cyan and black machine, and herself build, painted and tended to the masterpiece. She hand painted the thundercloud with a rainbow bolt on the tank, the same symbol as on her tattoo she got as a 16th birthday from her questionable but good friend Ink Crest. She touched her shoulder bearing the symbol, the same way she always did while worrying. Shy would not rat me out. Rainbow felt a wave of confidence radiating from her little ritual. There is no space for uncool things like doubt in my life. LET’S ROCK!

Rainbow revved up her engine and shot down the tiny street, turning heads of the sleepy residents who just set about their daily ordeals. She was still unfamiliar with the town, and after the initial burst of speed, Rainbow slowed down and observed her new neighborhood with a childlike curiosity. The first thing to catch her attention was the town square, where a market was setting up for the day’s business. She parked the Sonic Rainboom close to one of the stalls and decided to look for a breakfast. The place was full of the most delicious smells of freshly baked pastries, perfectly ripe fruit and hand made sweets; all the scents usually lost in the city smog.

Just as Rainbow drifted off towards an awesome looking collections of hot doughnuts on one of the stalls, when she felt something hard hit her side, and the next thing she knew, she was on the ground and felt a rain of apples hit every inch of her body. A tall blonde girl in a Stetson hat soon followed the apple’s suit and fell straight onto Rainbow’s stomach, which punched the air out of her lungs. Rainbow cried out and the other girl groaned in pain, but upon seeing what she landed on, she quickly scuttled back on her feet.

“Pinkie, what in tarnation are ya doin’?! Ah’m so sorry Sugarcube. Here, let me help ya up.”

“Oww...” Rainbow quickly grabbed her ribs. She broke two of them a week ago in a fight with Gilda, and the bruising hasn't disappeared yet. The pain brought a tear to Rainbow’s eye, but after a while she sat up and looked straight into her assailant’s eyes. “Watch it blondie! What the fuck were you thinking?”

“Look, Ah’m sorry, but Pinkie Pie here has been causing a mighty lot of trouble by trying to help me set up the apple stall. Are ya okay? Ya seem to have gone pale.”

Rainbow lifted her shirt and checked her ribs, unknowingly showing her dark blue bruises spreading across the left side of her ribs, down to her hip bone. The pain was excruciating, but it had began to slowly fade. She gently stood up, dusted off her trousers and looked towards the now concerned Cowgirl, joined by a clearly sugar-fueled girl with a bouncing storm of pink hair. “I’m fine. Let’s just leave it, ‘kay?”

“Are you okay? You look really, really, really in pain right now. I know! You totally need something sweet right now! Like, when I had a broken arm, all the time it was just sugar and caramel and chocolate, ‘cuz it really made me happy, and happy and pain don’t mix, so you’d be left with just happy!” Pinkie Pie finally took a breath and continued the rapid fire of words. “But maybe you don’t like sweets. Nah, not possible, ‘cuz everyone likes sweets. Unless you never had nice sweets, or any sweets at all... You poor thing! I’ll show you how amazing they are! You’ll see, it’s like eating happiness! It’s gonna be awe...” At this point the blond girl silenced the hyperactive kid with her hand.

“Want me to call an ambulance for yah, Sugarcube?”

“No need! I mean... I have broken my ribs recently, but it’s fine now. Now, let me just get on my way.” Rainbow said and slowly limped towards her bike. Just as she sat on it and grabbed her helmet the cowgirl caught up to her.

“Ah’m very sorry. Here, it’s mah number if ya have any problems ‘cause of me. Just ask for Applejack. What’s yer name, Sugar?”

Then, she gave a radiant smile that caused Rainbow’s heart to skip a beat. She noticed for the first time that Applejack was very attractive, in a rural, country sort of way. She had a strong, tall statue with muscles sculpted by a lot of hard work. Her skin was tanned a golden shade, but her freckles still drew the attention to her face. The blond hair fell onto Applejack’s back in a loose ponytail, while the fringe covered her shining emerald eyes. Rainbow Dash felt her cheeks heat up as he mumbled a reply through her helmet.

“Rainbow Dash.”

And with that Rainbow fired up her engine and sped away from the Square in direction she hoped was Fluttershy’s home.

***

After about half an hour of looking, Rainbow Dash finally found the right address. She drove right up to a small country style cottage surrounded by an extremely well kept garden filled with delicate looking flowers. So like her Rainbow thought. She walked up to wooden door, knocked three times and stood back.

The door opened just a few centimeters wide and Rainbow saw inside a pair of large teal eyes looking at the visitor. Upon recognizing who it was, Fluttershy immediately opened her door and jumped into her friend’s embrace. Rainbow felt a new wave of soreness run through her ribs but didn't even squeak as she returned the hug. Rainbow patted the soft brown hair of the slightly taller girl before speaking.

“Missed me Shy?”

“Dashie!” Fluttershy spoke gently, which for her quiet voice was the same as shouting. “I am so glad to see you. When did you arrive? Oh, I’m so sorry...” She released her childhood friend from her embrace. “How are you feeling... you know... with your parents and Gilda and all...”

Rainbow flashed her signature grin when answering. “Don’t worry about it Shy. My parents should by now have noticed me gone and probably called the police to say I was kidnapped or something, so I had to keep my cell switched off. Gilda however...” At this point a flash of sadness appeared in Rainbow’s eyes. “We fought. It looks like it’s over now.”

While saying the last sentence Rainbow felt her throat tighten. Gilda was by no means a good girlfriend to Rainbow Dash and even she realized this. Nonetheless she truly loved her the past three years they were together. Even when her friends warned her from the dark skinned ruffian that Gilda was, Rainbow couldn't help but keep coming back to her. The night she left home Rainbow went to Gilda’s flat with a surprise visit, only to catch her sleeping with some guy. She ended up punching Gilda square in the face, which led to a long fight and injuries on both sides. It was all too much for Rainbow. She hated her oppressive family and the only reason she had stuck at home for so long was Gilda, but with her gone, Rainbow finally left the life she hated so much.

When Rainbow Dash finished reminiscing, she realized a few tears fell from her eyes. Fluttershy wiped them before Rainbow had a chance to think of an excuse. She silently hugged her best friend and led her inside the house without breaking the contact. Fluttershy knew how much Rainbow sacrificed in order to stay with Gilda, and how this betrayal shook her very foundations.

Rainbow had mostly calmed down by the time she sat on Fluttershy’s bed. Her room was a perfect reflection of the owner; very calm and neutral colours provided a relaxing and warm surrounding. The few personal items scattered tended to be of cuddly nature, such as teddy bears or extra soft sweaters. Altogether the room felt like one big blanket, a feeling deeply appreciated by Rainbow right now. She looked towards the door through which Fluttershy was entering while holding two mugs of hot chocolate. She remembered Rainbow was never fond of tea as much as she was, and the drink always brought unpleasant memories of her parents. Hot chocolate on the other hand as all the readers know, is a cure for all known ailments, be it physical, or as in this case, also emotional.

They settled next to each other and talked about their life apart. Even though they kept in touch, it was a different experience hearing your best friend talking about her adventures in person. You saw all the small changes in expression, the cracking of her voice when she gets excited, though this was displayed by Rainbow only, and the small bursts of energy when words alone cannot convey the information, and had to be joined by chaotic hand gestures. At some point Fluttershy began to talk about her friends here in Ponyville and one name caught Rainbow’s attention.

“Hold on! What name was that?”

“Applejack. Why are you asking Dashie?” Rainbow took out the piece of paper she got from the cowgirl in the morning, and written on it in neat handwriting was the same name.

“I bumped... no, SHE bumped into me this morning. Got her number too.” She lifted up the piece of paper. “Seemed nice, of course apart from showering me in apples. There was another... pink hair, pink clothes and hell lot of energy.” Fluttershy chuckled at this description.

“This was most certainly Pinkie Pie. She is... well she is very nice once you understand what she is talking about.” Fluttershy visibly blushed, embarrassed by her own description of her friend. “I think you would get really well along with her Dashie. She loves to party even more than you and she is fond of pranks too.”

“Sweet! I was scared of getting bored in here, just trying to avoid my parents.”

“Do you want me to introduce you Dashie?”

“Nah.” Rainbow waved around the piece of paper with the phone number. “I think I got this one.”

Comments

[Slate the Pegasus]

I love itcan't wait till next chapter