A tale of two dreamers: a dream reached, and a dream lost. One will learn that dreams aren't always what they imagined. The other, that a dream unreached may not be a dream lost.
"I was not a fool to dream... I was a fool to believe it would lead me to paradise."
A tale of two dreamers: a dream reached, and a dream lost. One will learn that dreams aren't always what they imagined. The other, that a dream unreached may not be a dream lost.
Remember when you were young and wanted to be a doctor or a superhero when you grew up—some huge dream that you were sure you could achieve? Then, when you got older, you began to realize just how unlikely some dreams are. Things change, life gets in the way, and that dream slips further and further from your grasp until it’s nothing more than a distant memory.
There are some ponies who go to extreme lengths to make those old dreams reality. They get so close to that dream that until they can almost touch it. In that last moment, there’s nothing they won’t do in order to grab it.
Sometimes, they’ll grab it and hold on for dear life. Other times, they’ll miss, and plummet into the abyss.
***
Lightning Dust snapped out her sore legs and gave the mass of cloud below her a solid kick, bursting it apart. “Seven more of these clouds, then I’m out,” she mumbled to herself as she set off toward the next one. “For buck’s sake, nopony said cloud kicking would be this annoying.”
Her leg twinged as she dispersed it, and she took a moment to stretch and relax the muscle. Cloud kicking was always painful exercise. Well, when she showed up for work in the first place.
“Lightning Dust!”
She looked over her shoulder at the steel-grey mare shouting her name, then forced back a groan. It was Nirvana. Lightning really didn’t have the energy to deal with her boss today.
“Get over here, I need to talk with you real quick!”
There were several other weather ponies on duty, cleaning up from the morning storm, and Lightning did her best to not bump into any of them as she flew toward the cloud Nirvana was sitting on. Her co-workers somehow seemed to enjoy their jobs, though she supposed that mediocre flyers like them could get used to the monotony. The thought soured her mood even further.
Lightning forced a smile as she glided to a stop next to her boss. “Hey, Nirvana. You called?” She did her best to keep the snark out of her voice. Nirvana smiled. It was the smile of a friend with bad news. Lightning swallowed. She wasn’t looking forward to this.
“I noticed you were a bit late today,” Nirvana began casually. “Is everything going alright?”
Lightning ground her hoof into the cloud beneath to keep it from finding its way to her own face. Of course. Why had she expected anything else? “Look, Nirvana, I’m fine. And I’m sorry that—”
“Lightning,” Nirvana interrupted, shaking her head, “I know you’re going through a rough patch, and I’ve cut you some slack, but I don’t know how much longer I can keep you around.” Lightning opened her mouth to respond, but Nirvana kept going. “You can’t just skip your shifts. It’s not fair that everyone else has to fill in for you all the time.”
Lightning sighed. “I know, and I… I’ll try to do better.”
Nirvana winced. “Sorry, Lightning, but we need to talk about some… changes to our weather team.”
“Wait, what?” Lightning jolted in place. “What do you mean? Since when?”
The placating smile on Nirvana’s face faltered slightly. “Don’t worry! We’re just restructuring the team a bit. I’m not firing you. You’re just being moved over to the Cloud Pushers, just to shore up their win count and—”
“Cloud Pushing?” She hadn’t meant to interrupt her manager, but she couldn’t keep the words down. “Why can’t I stay on Cloud Kicking? I do my job!”
“That you do, Lightning. Well, when you show up in the first place, that is.” She reached out with one wing and rested it on Lightning’s shoulder. “Don’t worry. Cloud Pushing is just as challenging as kicking. You’ll see.”
Yeah, right. As if any job on the weather team could really be considered challenging. She shifted, letting Nirvana’s wing fall from her shoulder. “Boss, please be honest with me. If you’re demoting me ‘cause I’m late sometimes, then just say it.”
Nirvana sighed. “Fine. I’m demoting you because you’re almost never here.” She gave Lightning a sad look. “I like you, Lightning. You work hard, and I know you’re a good pony. If you start showing up on time—if you prove that you can be reliable—then I’d be thrilled to put you back on Cloud Kicking.”
Lightning Dust felt something stir inside her. “And if I prove myself, do you think I could be promoted again?” Nirvana froze. “You know, to Lightning Wrangler, maybe?”
“Uhhh…” Nirvana looked side to side, avoiding Lightning’s eyes. “Well, um…”
Lightning dropped her gaze and stared at the fluffy cloud beneath them. “Right. Never mind.” It always came back to that damn tornado.
An awkward silence stretched between them. Way to derail the conversation, Lightning. Nirvana looked like she was trying to think of something to say, but Lightning honestly couldn’t be bothered.
A few of their co-workers flew by. “See you tomorrow!” one called.
Nirvana seized the opportunity. “Heh, looks like I accidentally took up the rest of your shift. I’ll see you tomorrow. On time, right?” She winked.
Lightning offered a half-hearted nod and spread her wings, crouching for taking off.
Right as she was about to jump into the air, Nirvana spoke. “Lightning…”
The air tickled at Lightning Dust’s wings. She looked back up at her manager.
“If you need help… you know you can ask, right?”
Lightning dove off the cloud, shooting away as fast as she could so that she wouldn’t have to look at the pitying expression on Nirvana’s face.
The evening skies above Fillydelphia were warm and welcoming. There was no shortage of light despite the setting sun thanks to the glow of the thousands of streetlights and signs in the city below. She itched to pour on the speed, to leave the city behind. Instead, she dipped below the cloud cover and slowed, falling into line with the crowds of other pegasi that filled the lower atmosphere. She knew the grinding routine of this city like the back of her hoof. Her family had moved here when she was just a filly, and, as much as she wanted to get a fresh start, she had never been able to truly escape the first city she’d ever called home.
She rounded a towering skyscraper and angled herself down toward the crumbling lower district of the city, eventually touching down in front of her building and trudging up the three flights of stairs that led to her apartment. She nudged an empty plant pot that sat next to the paint-stripped door—she wasn’t sure if it had ever held a living plant—and fished her key out from under it.
At first glance, her living room didn’t look like much. A second glance didn’t help matters. A couch sat in the middle behind a coffee table covered in dust and half-empty beer cans. She flopped onto the couch and stared at the off-white ceiling. Home sweet home. At least it had hot water and electricity, and that was really all she needed. Which was good, since it was just about all she could afford.
She winced. Right. Those could soon be luxuries of the past. Cloud Pushers made quite a bit less than Cloud Kickers. Of course, neither made as much as a Lightning Wrangler. Or a Wonderb—
Crack!
She slammed a hoof onto the coffee table beside her and shook her head, taking a few deep breaths.
She needed a drink. She groped around the table blindly, feeling for a can with some liquid still in it. After knocking over half a dozen empties, she found a winner.
“Score,” she muttered, bringing the cheap can to her lips. She downed the warm beer and cringed. “Eugh, dear Celestia.” She shivered in disgust. Warm, tepid beer. She rolled onto her back and looked back at the ceiling.
A few long, tortuous minutes passed.
“Screw it.” Lightning sprang off the couch. She needed some proper beer. Now. Maybe even something stronger. She scooped up some bits from a dish on the coffee table and stumbled to the door.
***
The local bar wasn’t far from her apartment, and it happened to be her favorite dive in the city. The Stumbling Stallion was right on the coast, and too subdued for most tourists to bother peaking inside. A bar for Fillydelphians. One of the city’s little secrets. It wasn’t special or unique. It was just the Stumbling Stallion. A neon ‘open’ sign glowed in one of the small porthole windows by the heavy wooden door.
Lightning folded her wings and poked her head into the tavern. Empty tables and stools filled the room. There were a few ponies sitting quietly by themselves toward the outside of the room, and the only other occupant was sitting behind the bar, slowly wiping a wine glass. Ahh. Quiet. Just as she liked it. She trotted up to the bar and raised an eyebrow at the bartender.
“Ever thought about investing in a dishwasher?” she asked with a smirk.
The stallion chuckled, still rubbing at the glass. “Hell no, Lightning. Can you imagine what ol’ Rusty would do to me if I tried to replace him with a machine?”
“You’re damn right!” somepony shouted from behind a wall of assorted spirits.
Lightning forced a giggle. “Stanley, promise me you’ll never let this place change?”
The stallion nodded with a smile as he set the glass back down, then turned to the mare. “Well, that’s a promise I’m happy to keep,” he began, gesturing to the wall behind him, “What’s your fancy?”
Lightning eyed the vast selection. Stanley always somehow managed to stock good spirits at ridiculously low prices. She knew better than to ask how or why.
“Meh,” she shrugged. “Just the usual.”
Stanley nodded and spun away, grabbing a few bottles and a glass. He mixed them together and slid the glass in front of her in seconds. Nopony could deny that Stanley was good at his job. “Anything else you were needin’?”
“Nah, this should be it, for now. Thanks.”
Stanley nodded. “Okay, just holler when you need a refill.” He scooped up his perpetually dirty wine glass and left the bar for the backroom.
Lightning propped herself up with a foreleg and lifted the amber-filled glass to her mouth. Perfect as always. She let the drink's warmth fill her. It was as good as the rush of flight, really. Maybe better. She nursed her drink, letting the world wash away for a few minutes.
She raised the glass to her lips, then paused. Huh, empty already.
“Hit me.”
Another sip. More followed. Another glass. She was vaguely aware of patrons leaving, the bar slowly emptying around her.
“Hit me.”
This one seemed duller. Stanley was overdoing it with the mixer. Oh well. She’d just have to drink a few more than usual.
With the passage of time comes change. Whether for the better or worse, life will never be constant and, thusly, neither are we. We change, our lives change, and the world around us changes. Sometimes, this is a good thing, bringing with it exciting new opportunities. Other times, change only brings with its sadness—either taking away that which we love or happening in a way we don’t want.
This change tests our ability to adapt; our ability to make the most of our situation. Some of us flourish while others are left in the dust. This change can only be truly gauged by the person it affects, as what you see on the outside may not be what is true on the inside. Appearances are always illusions, as we always portray what we want others to see.
***
Fleetfoot slumped back in her seat and glanced out the window as the small bumps from the railroad bounced the Wonderbolts’ train car. “It’s been raining for nearly two hours!” she complained. “Are we there yet?”
Spitfire shot her younger teammate a sideways glance, irritation plain on her face. “Can you still see the huge mountains outside?” she asked rhetorically. Fleetfoot nodded anyway. Spitfire scowled. “That means we aren’t even close!”
“Argh!” Fleetfoot groaned, throwing her hooves into the air. “Can’t this stupid thing go any faster? I’m getting bored and antsy sitting here doing nothing!”
“Oh, for Celestia’s sake, you're such a foal!” Spitfire fumed as she turned to fully face the mare.
Soarin chuckled from his seat as he watched the two mares exchange their hourly argument. It had become a sport of its own ever since they’d left Canterlot. “It’s like watching an old married couple,” he quipped.
Fleetfoot scoffed at him. “Married? Hardly! Old, on the other hoof…” She smirked at Spitfire. “What you think, grandma?”
“I am not old and you know it!” Spitfire retorted.
“Keep telling yourself that… grandma.”
Soarin watched on with mild interest.
“Don’t make me pull rank on you, Sargent!”
Fleetfoot sighed, clearly unconcerned. “Whatever...” she mumbled, returning her gaze to the window. “But, seriously, how long does it take to get from Canterlot to Filly?”
“Without delays, about two hours and ten minutes. With standard delays, two hours and forty-one minutes,” High Winds offered from her seat just opposite the arguing pair.
Spitfire and Fleetfoot both raised eyebrows. “How the hay did you know that?” Fleetfoot asked.
“Well, all I’ve had to read is this freaking pamphlet for the past several hours,” High Winds spoke, holding up the paper. “Left all my other reading material back at the hotel.”
“I told you to double check,” Soarin chided.
“Well,” High Winds began, holding the pamphlet up to wave in the stallion’s face, “did you know that this class train has been in commission for over three decades?”
Soarin gave his cousin a quizzical look. “How was I supposed to know that?”
“Well, now you do!” High Winds said proudly. Soarin rolled his eyes.
Spitfire smirked as she watched the pair, then she swung her eyes over to the one silent member of the team in the carriage. “Hey, Dash, you grabbing enough sleep over there?”
***
Rainbow opened her eyes, though only enough to take a glance around the cabin. “What did I miss?” she croaked as she wiped the sleep from her eye.
Fleetfoot chuckled as she looked over to the mare. “Besides Spits being an old granny, not much.”
“I swear, Fleetfoot, one more time…”
Rainbow shook her head playfully as she sat up and looked out of the carriage window she’d been leaning on, brushing her prismatic mane in the small reflection as she gazed upon the lighter sky that was beginning to overtake the gloomy clouds.
“Seems like the storms beginning to fade out. We must be getting closer, now,” Soarin noted to the team, which seemed to perk Fleetfoot up a bit.
“I’ll go inform the rest of the squad to start packing the gear soon,” Fleetfoot announced as she hoisted herself to her hooves and trotted out the door, leaving the compartment in silence the only sound coming from the light clacks of the train.
Rainbow rolled her eyes, then turned to face the window and took in the storm raging outside. She closed her eyes and listened to the sounds around her: the patter of rain against the side of the train car added to the already growing cacophony of hissing wind and the gentle thunder of far-off lightning. This natural symphony almost drowned out the mechanical squeal and rumble of train wheels on the metal track. For most ponies, the sound of the storm would seem threatening, possibly frightening. For a pegasus, however, the sound was calming, almost natural. It was the sound of the sky, a byproduct from their domain, and something that they felt responsible for.
Rainbow Dash smiled—she loved storms.
Storms were organized chaos, as any pegasus would say, and while it seemed that they controlled them, nothing could be further from the truth. Storms had a mind of their own once they were created; almost nothing could be done by pegasi or anything else once they gained enough power. Like this storm, for instance. At the moment, it appeared to be only a class three but, in an instant, it could grow to a class four, or even a class five—a storm too huge and wild for pegasi to tame. These unstoppable, almost sapient storms were rare, as pesagi usually did all they could to prevent them, but, when such storms did strike disaster always followed in their wake.
And in the wake of disaster: rebirth.
As harsh as nature can be, there is always a rainbow after the storm. After every storm, especially the destructive ones, comes a time where nature decides it’s time to rebuild. Flowers will bloom, trees will regrow, and nature will always replace what it lost.
Rainbow Dash frowned.
“Yo’, Dash, you in there?”
Rainbow snapped out of her daydream, letting out a little ‘yelp’ of surprise. She turned towards the direction of the voice, sighing when she noticed Spitfire sitting next to her, hooves up in innocence.
“Oops, sorry, Dash. Didn’t mean to scare you,” Spitfire said, putting her hooves down. “Just saw you spacin’ out and wanted to make sure you were okay…” She gave Rainbow a probing look. “You’re okay, right?”
“Don’t worry, Spitfire, I wasn’t scared,” Rainbow said in her gruff, scratchy voice. “More… surprised, than anything.”
“Uh huh?” Spitfire rolled her eyes. “You sure about that?”
Rainbow shrugged. “Yeah, I’m fine, just not used to doing this much travel, y’know? It’s just… everything’s changing so fast and I barely have enough time to enjoy it.”
Spitfire nodded. “I know what you mean, Dash. But, don’t worry about it. It’ll go away with time. It always does.” She gave Dash a light smack to the shoulder. “You’ll be fine, ya big softie.”
“Hey! I’m not soft!” Rainbow retorted.
Spitfire rolled her eyes. “Whatever you say, Dash.”
Rainbow stuck her tongue out at her as Spitfire got up from the seat and trotted back towards the front of the train car, most likely to check on the rest of the team in the next compartment. Rainbow pouted for a moment, then cracked a smile and let out a soft chuckle. Spitfire was right. All she needed was time…
***
The train screeched to a halt in the Fillydelphian station. It bustled with life—ponies of all races, cultures, colors and careers trotted about in a singular mass. Some ran to catch trains. Others waited impatiently for their own to arrive. It seemed like chaos on the surface, but the careful organization that kept the station running was plain to see.
The Wonderbolts filed out of their cars and fought their way through the crowd. They assembled in a small group on the far side of the platform.
“Listen up, team!” Spitfire shouted, addressing the group. “You all know the drill: today is yours, but tomorrow is for the team, so make sure that you’re all at least mostly sober by then. Practice and dry-runs start tomorrow at eight. Any questions?”
No one spoke up.
“Good. Now, off you go,” the Wonderbolt Captain finished.
The group dispersed. Spitfire, Rainbow, Soarin, Fleetfoot, and High Wind stuck together as they made their way out of the crowded station. Thankfully, almost everypony around seemed to be too preoccupied to recognize them, so they were able to escape uninterrupted.
They met up outside the front entrance. The storm had passed before they had arrived into the city proper, though the sharp scent of ozone and wet asphalt still hung in the air.
“Soooo…” Fleetfoot began, drawing the attention of the rest of the group. “Any ideas on what to do?”
Spitfire shrugged. “Not really. I sent one of the interns to check into the hotel for us, so we’re pretty much free to do whatever we want.” She turned to High Wind. “You guys got any ideas?”
Fleetfoot and Rainbow shrugged.
Soarin turned to his cousin. “Yo’, Windy, you live here, what do you suggest?”
High Wind nodded slowly. “A lot of stuff. You need to be more specific than that.”
Soarin scrunched up his muzzle. “Uhh… crap, I don’t know.” He looked up at the sky. “It’s getting dark, so… any good clubs or bars?”
High Wind thought for a moment, then turned to Soarin. “It’s Friday, right?” He nodded. “Okay, that means most of the clubs are out of the question. They’ll be packed as all hell. I don't know about you guys, but I’m too tired to tired of dealing with fans.”
Everyone in the group nodded in unison.
“Okay, so that just leaves bars…” Her eyes lit up. “Oh, I know! Here, this place is perfect, follow me!” she cried out, then took to the sky.
The rest of the group shared a glance, then flew after her.
***
“You sure this is the place?” Fleetfoot asked, looking up at the shoreline tavern. “It doesn’t look that… special.”
“Trust me, Fleetfoot, this place is literally the best!” High Wind declared. “It’s one of those… diamonds in the rough, y’know?”
Fleetfoot shrugged. “If you say so...”
High Wind opened the door, letting the rest of the group head in first. The inside of the tavern was… well, it wasn’t what anyone expected. “Tada!” High Wind motioned to the almost vacant interior. “Cool, eh?”
Each item that hung on the wall clearly held significance in the community. From a simple gift from a local legend to a signed item from a local who had made it big. The actual layout of the bar was simple: a bar counter on the right, tables and chairs in the center, and booths to the left.
The group shifted awkwardly.
“This it?” commented Fleetfoot. “From how you played this up, well… I expected more, to be honest.”
“What?! But… but it’s all rustic!” High Winds pointed to the random sports memorabilia, old maritime machinery, and all sorts of other items that lined the walls.
Fleetfoot shrugged. “Meh.”
“Oh, come on! Half of them are signed by the Fillydelphian Phillies!”
“So? Mets are so much better…”
High Wind’s eye twitched, her saddened face falling into an enraged stare. “What did you just say?”
Fleetfoot took a step closer. “I said, the Mets is so much better.”
High Wind mimicked Fleetfoot's advance, the two now muzzle to muzzle. “I’m going to make you eat those words, you little--”
“I think that’s enough!” Soarin interjected, getting in between the two and pushing them apart. “How’s about not kill each other?”
The death stare continued, a permanent wall being formed between the two teammates.
Soarin sighed. “You'd think it'd be easy being surrounded by mares...”
“Okay, everypony, can we please calm down?” Spitfire finally spoke up. “You two can bicker about your sports all you want, and Soarin can deal with his masculinity issues later. Can we please just sit down and get drunk, already?”
“I thought you said you wanted us sober for tomorrow?” questioned Fleetfoot.
“That was before you two opened your mouths. I’m going to sit down, now, and you are all going to follow me. If you don’t, you’ll be running laps during tomorrow’s dry run.”
All inquire ceased at that last remark. The group headed over to the booth and sat down.
“So… do we get served or what?” Spitfire asked.
“Nah, Stanley doesn’t believe in waiters—says it makes his customers lazy or something. Just head over to the bar and order what you want.”
“Okay, and who is going to do that?”
“Not it!”
“Not it!”
“Not it!”
“Not it!”
All eyes turned to the remaining member of the group. Rainbow’s eyes went wide in realization, “Not—oh, nevermind! Scootch over, Spitfire,” Rainbow commented, squeezing past the mare.
“...and that should be it,” Rainbow finished to the bartender.
The stallion smiled. He placed the glass he’d been scrubbing down on the counter and turned to grab some clean ones. Rainbow made the mistake of looking directly at the glass and winced. It shone like the sun. “Alright, no problem, just give me a sec.” The stallion began mixing the requested drinks.
“Stanly! I need another hit!”
Rainbow watched the bartender sigh and shake his head slightly. “Sorry, I need to deal with this,” the bartender apologized, placing the half-finished glasses on the bar than walking down to the other end of the bar.
"Hey, uh..." Unbelievable. He just walked away. Rainbow looked over at the swaying, glazed over mare he was serving. She had to be pretty far into her cups already. "What the hay?" she called to the bartender. "I ordered first!"
The bartender either ignored or didn’t hear her as he didn’t respond to Rainbow’s outburst.
Rainbow studied the mare he was serving. Actually, that pony looked familiar. Opal coat striped gold and yellow mane… wait, she knew that pony.
“Lightning?” Rainbow spoke, louder than she had planned.
The mare grunted, her face turned down toward her empty glass. “Yeah, maybe.” Stanly slid a newly topped up glass in front of her, and she took a swig. “You?”
“... Lightning,” Rainbow said again, this time, more firmly.
Lightning groaned and turned toward her. She stared at Rainbow blankly for a moment before her eyes widened. “Huh. Well... buck.”
Rainbow opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. Lightning Dust… now that was a pony she had not seen in a long time. Hay, it had been years. If she remembered correctly, they hadn’t exactly parted on the best of terms. Part of her wondered if she should even talk to this mare. She had, after all, almost killed her friends.
“Uh… long time no see?” Rainbow managed.
Lightning turned back towards her glass. “You could say that…”
Rainbow bit her lip. She could end the conversation there. It didn’t look like Lightning was too interested in talking to her. She could just walk away. This is what she wanted to do, but... curiosity got the best of her. “Uh… how have you been?”
The opal mare snorted. “Absolute shit,” she replied in earnest, “but you wouldn’t care about that, would you?” Lightning removed her gaze from the glass and turned to face Rainbow. “You would rather stab your friends in the back and leave them to the wolves.”
Rainbow’s face contorted in confusion. “Lightning, what are you talking--”
“Oh, don’t play stupid with me!” She slammed her hoof into the bar, almost spilling her drink. “You know what I’m talking about! Unless you just didn’t care to remember the day your friend had their life ruined!”
Wait, what? What was she talking about? To relieve her confusion, Rainbow inquired, “What do you mean you had your life ruin–”
“Hey, Dash, what’s taking you so long with those drinks?”
A new voice. Rainbow turned to see Spitfire standing beside her. “Oh, sorry, Spitfire. I was just talking to–”
“You!”
Rainbow turned once again, this time back to Lighting. The mare currently wobbled next to the bar, her eyes unfocused but still shown with anger.
Lightning seethed. “You ruined my life!”
“What are you talking about,” Spitfire asked. “Do I know you?”
The opal mare’s eye twitched, anger clearly growing inside of her alcohol-clouded mind. “How can you not remember me?! I’m Lighting Dust!” She pointed to Rainbow. “I was her wing-pony before you expelled me!”
Spitfire’s eyes shown with realization, then annoyance. “Oh, right, you. Listen, I know you’re upset, but it’s not my fault: you did it to yourself. If you would have looked past that thick skull of yours for two seconds–”
“It’s not my fault!”
“–and think about other ponies, this wouldn’t have happened.” Spitfire continued, unfazed. “You decided it was better to only think about yourself and almost get ponies killed. I’m sorry, but that is just not something that we tolerate in the Wonderbolts.”
“What about disloyalty, huh? Do you tolerate that?!” Lightning turned to face Dash. “Like, I don’t know, sticking by your friends!”
“Don’t bring Rainbow into this!” Spitfire warned. “It was your fault. It was all your fault. Don’t blame other ponies for the mistakes that you make.”
“But it wasn’t my fault!”
“It’s all your fault, Lightning! You made those decisions, not Rainbow. You chose the path you took, and it leads you right out of the academy.”
Lighting looked like she was going to scream… but didn’t. Instead, her anger filled eyes began to soften as they filled with moisture. Before anyone could say anything, Lightning turned around and bolted out the door, stumbling slightly but still managing to exit.
Rainbow stood there for a second, shocked, then stood up and bolted for the door as well.
“Dash!”
Rainbow paused before she could exit the door, turning to face the owner of the outburst.
“Where the heck are you going?” Spitfire asked, clearly confused.
The sky blue mare took a deep breath, then opened the door with a hoof. “She was right: it was my fault,” she said, then ran out.
The door lead to the district right next to the Fillydelphian shoreline. Her head swiveled left and right, searching for a sign of the distressed mare. Not seeing anything, she immediately took to the skies to begin an aerial search. It yielded results almost instantly, and Rainbow dove down towards an opal dot in an alley not far from the tavern.
She landed hard but proceeded to trot gently forward. The sound of a soft sob echoed off the closely adjacent walls. Rainbow continued onwards until she spotted the cause of her search. “Hey, Lightning, you okay?”
Lightning sniffed from within her front hooves currently pressed up against her face. “Go away, Rainbow! Just leave me.”
The sky-blue mare stood her ground. “No, Lightning, I’m not leaving you again.”
“Why? After I almost killed your friends and--”
“You didn’t mean it, Lighting. Sure, you were being careless, but I know you didn’t do it on purpose.” She paused. “I should have stuck by your side the first time. I know what you did was wrong, but you still didn’t deserve to be expelled.”
Lightning went silent for a second. “Just go away, please.”
Rainbow sighed. This wasn’t getting anywhere. “Can I at least help you get home? I doubt you’d be able to in your current condition.”
“I’m fine, Rainbow. I don’t need your help.”
Rainbow shook her head, then leaned down and nudged Lightning up. The mare fought back lightly, but ultimately gave up and let Rainbow assist her to her feet. Rainbow trotted next to the mare. “Here, drape your wing around me so you don’t trip, okay?”
Lightning grumbled, refusing to make eye contact, but still complied. The duo began to trot out of the alley, Rainbow having to constantly correct her stumbling charge’s path as they continued onwards.
***
The pair (mainly Lightning) stumbled forwards down the seaside corner of Fillydelphia. Not being able to fly, Lightning had to verbally guide Rainbow the long way towards her apartment (which became even longer as Lightning’s still clouded mind lead them down several wrong turns). After a pretty tiresome journey, and several flights of stairs, both mare’s stood in front of Lightning’s apartment.
“Lightning, where do you keep the key?”
“It’s in the potted plant,” the opal mare muttered back, having a hard time keeping her head up.
Rainbow pushed aside the plant pot, retrieved the key, then unlocked the door. Before she could open it, however, her charge removed their wings from her and stumbled in first, closing the door behind her. Rainbow scrunched up her nose in annoyance. Rude, much. She turned to leave, but stopped when she heard a loud crash from within the apartment. Without thinking, she turned back around and opened the yet-to-be locked door.
“Lightning, are you…” She stopped when spotted Lightning curled up on the floor, shoring softly. She shook her head, figuring the sound was just her friend collapsing on the ground. She turned to exit but stopped when she realized that her… once friend(?) was still on the ground.
Rainbow helped the other pegasus up and onto the nearby couch. She smiled slightly at her handiwork. Her face soon scrunched up, however, when a realization popped into the forefront of her mind. She looked around and confirmed the thought: this place was a dump. It was dirty, small and only held furniture that had either come with the room or was just as old. Rainbow cringed at the thought of having to live somewhere so… horrible.
Was this her fault?
The thought passed briefly through the mare’s mind. But it lingered. Guilt began to build within the mare. She looked down at Lighting. The mare still slept.
Rainbow had to make things right. Whether or not it was truly her fault, she still felt guilty. She felt shame for abandoning her friend, for not giving her the benefit of the doubt. The mare wracked her brain for a solution. A plan. Something!
She had an idea.
Rainbow trotted quietly around the room. She eventually stumbled upon what she needed: a pen and paper. She quickly wrote down a note onto the paper and left it on the coffee table in front of the sleeping mare. She hoped she would see it.
With nothing else she could do but wait and pray, Rainbow turned around and exited the small apartment and locked it behind her.
Her head felt like it was going to explode — her stomach wasn’t faring much better. She groaned in agony. She wanted to remain on her couch and sleep off her hangover.
The bile rising in her throat would have none of that.
The opal pegasus rolled from her couch and sprinted to her bathroom. With pure luck, Lightning made it just in time, spewing what remained of her binge into the toilet. Three more heaves later, the mare wiped her muzzle and returned to her hooves. Her head still hurt, but her stomach felt marginally better.
After a quick shower, the now damp mare trotted out of the bathroom and back over to the couch. She flopped back down, snuggling her way back into the well-worn material. It was now that bits of the previous night finally came back to her. She remembered arriving at the bar. Then drinking. Then drinking some more. Then finally bumping into…
She blinked.
Rainbow Dash?
Lighting rose to a seated position on her couch, now taking an active effort to remember the night before. Focusing more, she remembered bumping into the mare. The argument they had. She growled. The argument she had with Spitfire. Then she remembered leaving… crying. Why was she crying? She had been angry at the mare, not sad. Why would she cry? Pushing past that, she remembered reluctantly accepting Rainbow’s offer for help. Why had she accepted? More importantly: why had the sky-blue mare offered?
The rest was a blur and seemed irrelevant, at this point. Mixed feelings filled the mare. Most of them stemmed from the flood of emotion that usually came when she was reminded of the Academy, but there were other, more distinct emotions that came with it. Confusion was one of the most prominent. Through the haze that was her memory, she remembered her former Wing-Pony being concerned for her, going as far as helping get her drunk-ass home. Why had she done that? Why had Dash cared?
Lightning shook her head. Did it matter? She was gone, now, probably never to return… right? She was a Wonderbolt, from what she had heard. Why would she waste time with somepony like her?
It was now Lightning noticed the small piece of paper on her coffee table — beer table, at this point. Curious, she picked it up and read.
Hey Lightning I’m sorry about what happened to you at the academy. I didn’t know. You were right I should have backed you up but I didn’t. I got angry and couldn’t see what was right in front of me. I know there is no way I can make it up to you but I want to try. Me and the rest of the ‘bolts are going to be performing the day after tomorrow. Wednesday, depending on when you wake up. I've arranged for you to have backstage access for the entire concert. I know I can't make it up to you and take back what happened, but at least I can make it feel like it didn't. Accept if you want or don't. It's okay either way. Just show this note to one of the attendants and tell them to get me.
To the attendant reading this. Yeah, she’s with me. Don't believe me? Then call my ass and I’ll prove it to you. I hear you didn't… you’re fired!
~ Rainbow Dash
Lightning read over the note several more time, then several more after this. Was she for real? Did she actually mean it? She wanted to believe it was real, but part of her just couldn't. A new thought popped into her head: did she want to go? Yes, the idea did seem tempting, but did she really want to go back? Those were the ponies who had ruined her life. Her dream. Everything she had held dear. She didn't want to see them again… right?
Lightning shook her head, her eyes scrunched shut. The mare crumpled the note in her hooves, then threw it half way across the room.
“Stupid Dash,” she muttered through clenched teeth, then pressed a hoof to her temple. “Urg, stupid hangover!”
Her tired mind was in no position to make a decision like this. Especially concerning that… pony. Anger flowed freely though the mare; the cause of which, she didn’t know. She was just angry, and it felt good for it to be centered at somepony other than herself. Plus, she had to go to work soon.
Lightning's eyes went wide, then scrunched shut as she let out another growl.
“Damn it…”
---
Nirvana stood on her cloud, watching the weather team set up for an up and coming storm. A small yawn escaped her lips, but a smiled never left her lips. Sure, she was tired, and definitely not a morning pony, but she still loved her job. That — and a huge cup of coffee — was all she needed to force herself from her comfy bed.
As she looked around and observed her team, she noticed something missing. An opal something. The mare sighed, her smile fading to a dull frown.
“Well, I guess Lightning isn't coming to work... again,” she said sadly, the realization a huge let down. In truth, she felt sorry for the mare. She had heard what had happened to her, and gave her slack for such, but there was only so much rope you could give somepony before you realize it's only to hang themselves with.
The mare shook her head sadly once more, but perked up when she heard the floosh! and impact of something landing on her cloud. Nirvana turned to see a surprising sight, but one she welcomed. “Oh, great, you’re here!” she said with a smile at the panting, winded form of Lightning.
The mare was panting, having flown from her house to the location as fast as she could. Her mane was a mess, and she still had her toothbrush in her mouth, stupidly, thinking she could fly and brush at the same time to save time. She spot out the plastic instrument into her hoof.
“I’m here, boss,” Lightning began, squinting in the early-morning sun . “Had a late night.”
Nirvana shook her head, looking at the, once again, hung over mare. “Lighting... ” the mare began, then thought better. It wasn’t worth it. She took a step back, then pointed with a wing to a group of pegasus. “Just go to your post, please.”
Dust look like she wanted to retort, only to nod and take to the air, flying toward her post.
Nirvana watched as the opal pegasus joined the rest of her assigned team with a sad expression. “I thought I was making progress...”
---
Lightning wiped the bead of sweat that had begun to build up on her brow. Although she still stood by her statement that cloud pushing was, well, worthless, she would have to admit that it wasn’t easy. Wasn't hard, either. More … monotonous and boring than anything.
The opal mare turned and observed the rest of her group, all of which seemed to be in better shape than her. A tinge of anger briefly flew through her head at this prospect, but was quick to fade when she realized that this meant her day was done. The mare smiled.
“Lightning,” called a voice from not far behind her, “can you come over her for a minute?”
Lightning sighed and shook her head. She turned to see Nirvana waving her over. Crap. Lighting flew over to her boss. “Yes…?”
“You were late today,” Nirvana said, matter-of-factly.
Lightning flinched. “Y-yeah…”
“And hungover.”
Lightning bit her inner cheek. “Yeah…”
Nirvan shook her head. “I thought we talked about this, Dust: I thought you were going to try harder.”
That one stung. It took all of Lightning’s effort not to scream out a response. She held her tongue.
“You disappointed me today.” Nirvana shook her head, her body finally softening. “Get out of her, Lightning. Try to be on time tomorrow.”
The opal mare gave a quick nod, then took to the air almost immediately.
---
Lightning arrived at her home not longer after, slamming the door behind her. She stomped forward and into the kitchen, throwing open the refrigerator. To her dismay, and continued anger, it was void of anything alcoholic. Damn. With a huff, she closed the refrigerator and stomped towards the couch, vaulting over the back and landing with a bounce.
“What the hell does she think she’s talking about?” Lightning growled, staring at the ceiling. “I arrived five minutes late… well, maybe a little more than that, but it ain’t a big deal! I got there!”
The mare wiggled as the tried to get comfortable in the old piece of furniture. It wasn’t working.
Nothing was working!
Lightning growled once more, now sounding more like an annoyed lion. She was angry, and didn’t have and booze to drown out her anger. She was broke, pissed, and demoted. She was worthless! The mare rose with a huff, her attempt to get comfy for naught. She rested her head on a hoof, staring at her coffee table.
Rainbow Dash flew back to the hotel from Lightning’s apartment, her mind racing as she tried to pull her head around everything that had just happened. The night air was cool and crisp. The smell of salt lingered in the air.
How had she not known that Lightning had been expelled? On top of that: what had she thought happened to the mare? After the incident, Rainbow had not seen hide nor hair of the opal pegasus. She guessed that now she knew why. Why hadn’t she asked questions?
The rainbow haired mare shook her head as she readjusted her course towards her target, having strayed off with her mental tirade.
She felt bad for the mare. Really bad. It was her fault all this had happened to her. If she had spoken up, or at least cared to check up on her friend, none of this would have happened… right?
Right?
Again, Rainbow shook her head as she dived down and landed on one of the nearly empty streets right in front of the hotel Spitfire had booked for the ‘Bolts.
She strode inside with purpose to the front desk, a tired blue unicorn mare barely awake sitting behind it, head resting on one of her hooves. She soon noticed Rainbow’s approach and snapped herself awake.
“Oh! Mrs. Dash, right?” the mare announced, a bright smile on her face.
Rainbow gave the mare a cocky grin, striking a pose. “The one and only!” she announced.
The mare chuckled, then lit up her horn and levitated over a key from behind the desk. “Here is your key, Miss. You’ll find your room and the rest of the Wonderbolts located on the top floor. Don’t be afraid to voice if there is anything we can do to make your stay more enjoyable.”
Rainbow took the key with her wing, tucking it underneath. “Thanks,” she replied, then headed over to the nearby elevator… only to pause and turn back. “Actually, I have a quick question.”
The mare nodded. “Yes?”
Rainbow bit her lip, mulling over her question. “Could you… which room is Spitfire’s?”
---
Rainbow Dash shifted her weight from hoof to hoof, nervously looking at the door in front of her as if it would jump out at her at any second. For the past ten minutes or so, this had been her routine. She was trying to psych her up for what she was about to do, or even just get the courage to knock. It was just a door… why was this do hard?!
She took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. “Okay,” the Rainbow whispered to herself, “just go in there and say what needs to be said. That’s it.”
She took another deep breath, closed her eyes, and lifted her hoof and knocked a few times on the door. A minute passed without any form of response. Had Spitfire not heard it? Should she knock again? Louder? Call out her name? No, that might wake the rest of the—
Rainbow paused her mental tirade when she heard shuffling from somewhere behind the door. The mare suddenly stiffened, standing as straight as she could. Her heart pounded. Soon, the shuffling stopped just behind the door, followed by a loud yawn, and, finally, the door opened, the room’s occupant standing behind it.
Spitfire stood in front of Dash, her eyes half-lidded. The mare was currently dressed in fluffy PJ’s that reflected her official captain uniform, with generic slippers on her hooves. She let out another yawn, wiped her eyes with a hoof, then leaned against the door for support.
“Oh, it’s you,” Spitfire muttered, then stifled a yawn with her hoof. She shook her head a little, then turned around and headed back into the room with a wave of her hoof. “Come on in, Dash.”
Rainbow looked at her sleepy captain oddly, then shook her head and trotted into the hotel room, closing the door behind her with her hind hoof, only to wince as it shut louder then she had expected. The mare looked up to her captain—who was currently shuffling into the small kitchen—and let out a sigh when it appeared that her sleepy teammate didn’t seem to notice. The pegasus then briefly glanced around the room, taking it in. It looked pretty standard, what she had come to expect from her experience thus far on the tour: a single ‘living area’ with a couch and TV, a small kitchen behind that, and a slightly open door that she believed to lead to bedroom.
The mare shaped back to reality when she noticed Spitfire shuffling over to her with a steaming cup in hoof. “Take a seat, Dash,” Spitfire mumbled as she crawled onto the couch, setting down the cup of what Dash now smelled to be coffee, onto the small coffee table in front of her.
Rainbow nodded, then took a seat in one of the armchairs that sat next to the couch.
About a minute passed in silence; Spitfire trying not to fall back asleep, and Rainbow shifting awkwardly in her chair.
“So, what’s on your mind?” Spitfire finally spoke, breaking the silence. “I mean, I hope you didn’t wake me up in the middle of the night to just sit around.”
Rainbow’s eyes went wide. “Oh, no! No! T-that’s not it!” she sputtered, now afraid she had offended her boss.
To Rainbow’s surprise, the mare let out a soft chuckle. “I’m kidding, Kid. Relax,” she began, then took a sip of her coffee. “But, seriously, you look like you have something to say.”
“Y-yeah, I do.” She took a deep breath, keeping her head down. Come on, you can do it. “I just wanted to say that… well, after I left you guys at the bar, I ended up finding Lightning Dust and walking her home.”
“And?”
“And she said some things that made me think.”
“What kind of things?”
“Well, um… she told me that, after you kicked her out, things kinda went downhill for her.”
“And?” Spitfire asked, her voice now more awake. Rainbow looked up to see Spitfire looking at her, seemingly oblivious to what she was saying.
Rainbow scoffed, her nervousness now gone, replaced by disbelief. “And isn’t it kinda our fault she’s like this?”
Spitfire rolled her eyes, much to Dash’s annoyance, then took a large sip of her coffee. “No, it isn’t. I kicked her out because she was a danger and liability to the academy—what happened after that is completely on her.” She shook her head. “Seriously, Dash, I can’t control what ponies do after they leave my academy, especially after being kicked out.”
Rainbow was speechless. How could she see the problem? She shook her head. “I… how can this not bother you?”
The Wonderbolt captain shrugged. “Honestly, Dash, why should it? Lightning broke the rules and put ponies in danger—I had every right to throw her out.” She shrugged once again, then gave Rainbow a strange look. “Is this really why you woke me up? To talk about Dust?” She shook her head. “Don’t bother yourself with this issue. What’s done is done.”
Rainbow sat there with her mouth hung agape. “I… you…” she began, then shook her and replaced her shocked expression with an angered one. “Spitfire, I did the exact same things as her! I helped cause all that mess! Why didn’t I get punished like she did?”
“Because you showed me that you knew what you did was wrong, and actively showed both remorse and tried to fix it, while Dust didn’t.” Spitfire shook her head once more. “She was a bad influence on you, Dash. If I didn’t know about you before-hoof, I definitely would have kicked you out as well.”
Bad influence… she thought. Yes, Lightning had been a bit too... intense, but only because she wanted to be the best, something that Rainbow could relate too… and hadn’t Spitfire praised her for this behavior? The sky-blue mare’s eyes suddenly went wide, then she scowled. It all made sense, now.
“Spitfire,” Rainbow began, rising from her chair, which Spitfire rose an eyebrow too. “I know you are my captain, but this needs to be said: you screwed up.”
Spitfire's eyes narrowed into a cold glare. "Excuse me?"
Rainbow gulped, but she pressed on. “Y-you heard me: you messed up,” she repeated, them steeled herself. She was not going to back down. “You knew that Lightning was intense, and you encouraged it, but when she eventually went too far doing what you praised her for.” She scowled deeper and she pointed an accusatory hoof at her superior. “It’s your fault everything went to shit, and you threw Lightning under the bus!”
Spitfire’s left eye twitched, but she remained calm. She took a calming breath, obviously holding something back. “Dash, did you really wake me up in the middle of the night to yell at me? Look, I’m tired, you’re tired, so just go to bed before you say something you’ll regret. We’ll talk about this in the morning.” The mare stood up from the couch and turned towards her bedroom.
Rainbow blinked. Did Spitfire really think that she could just walk away from this? No, this needed to be said. Now! With a quick burst of speed, Rainbow flew passed her captain and into the bedroom doorway, using her wings to block the entrance. “No, Spitfire, we are talking about this now.”
“Careful, Dash,” Spitfire growled, “remember who you’re talking to.”
“I know,” Rainbow breathed, “that’s why this has to be said. You’re a great captain, Spitfire, but what you did to Lightning…”
“Was, and is, standard protocol. I don’t make the rules, Dash, I only enforce them.”
“Screw the rules!” Rainbow shot back. “What about what is right? Fairness? If you were such a stickler for the rules, then why didn’t you kick me out too? Huh?!”
Spitfire rubbed her eyes with a hoof and suppressed a yawn. “You’re more responsible than you give yourself credit for. Lightning Dust was, and apparently still is, a bad influence on you.” She turned around. “Go. To. Sleep.”
With a quick flap of her wings, Rainbow was once again in Spitfire’s face. “How are you so blind!” she shouted. “And how can you just expect me to fall asleep after this? Honestly! Your mistake ruined her life!”
Spitfire sighed. “Rainbow, stand down. I’m tired and not in the mood for this. What’s done is done. Lightning Dust is a grown mare. Even if this was my fault, which it isn’t, I am not to blame for what happened next. I lost control of her life the moment she left The Academy.” Spitfire pushed past Rainbow, making her way to the door. “Now, I think it’s time for you to get some sleep,” she finished as she opened the door.
To spitfire’s surprise, she didn’t hear a response, nor see the mare trot passed her. With a roll of her eyes, she turned back. “Seriously, Dash, you really gonna pull something like—”
“How can you be that blind…?” Rainbow muttered softly, a hurt expression on her face as she stood resolute in place at the other end of room.
Spitfire blinked. “What?” she replied, oblivious to Rainbow’s meaning.
“How can you not see past yourself and see that you ruined someone's life?” the mare elaborated, shaking her head softly.
“Dash, you’re tired, just go to—”
“How can you just stand there and just brush her off? She wasn’t just some name on a paper that you could just throw away.” Rainbow shook her head. “She is a pony, Spitfire! She had dreams, dreams that you crushed because of your pride. You don’t understand what happened to her! She was crushed! I dragged her drunk ass home and I got to see what became of her: a drunken mess!”
“The Wonderbolts Academy admits hundreds of recruits every year. A name on a paper is exactly what she was. I don’t know how many dreams I’ve crushed, and I don’t want to know.”
“And you’re happy about that?!”
“No, of course not, but not just anypony can become a Wonderbolt. I have to fail most of our recruits. That’s just the way it is.”
“Lightning Dust wasn’t a failure! She wasn’t a pony who couldn’t handle it, or didn’t have what it took, or any other excuse you can think up! She was a pony who you guided down the wrong path, then tossed away when she hit the wall at the end. She failed because you failed her.”
Spitfire’s mouth hung open, occasionally twitching as she seemed to search for a reply. Eventually, she closed it, anger spreading across her features. She slammed the door closed behind her and marched over to Rainbow, poking a hoof into her chest. “How dare you accuse me of neglecting any of my recruits! I give each and every one of them my all; it is only up to them if they should pass or fail!”
Rainbow didn’t flinch. “Is that really how you treat every recruit? No warnings, no second chance. One mistake and boom, you’re out? You were encouraging us to take risks, to push further and further. How did you not see her stunt with the tornado coming? It was only a matter of time!”
“She should have know!” Spitfire’s face twitched. “I can’t babysit over everypony and hold their hooves. I have to give them their freedom, space, and room to grow!” The mare fell back on her flank and growled into her hooves. “You know what? That’s it!” she screamed. “Rainbow Dash, I am hereby suspending you from the performance tomorrow! If I see you take one step into that stadium tomorrow, you might as well just go pack your things. Understand?!”
Rainbow glared daggers at her Captain. With a huff, she pushed passed Spitfire and threw open the door. She briefly turned around and shot one last angry glance at the yellow mare. “I thought you were better than that,” she muttered, then slammed the door behind her.
Spitfire could hear as Rainbow angrily trudged down the hallway, then open her room and slam the door. After that, the world was once again was engulfed in silence, leaving the mare alone to her thoughts. A brief frown befell her face, but it was soon replaced with a scowl. She angrily shuffled back towards her bedroom, even though she knew she wasn’t going to get any sleep that night.
Lightning let out a yawn as her eyes slowly cracked open. The mare stretched out her hooves, only to wince as she felt a jolt of pain shoot up her back. She winced. “I gotta stop sleeping on the couch,” she muttered to herself, then rolled off the couch and onto her forehooves. Much like a cat, Lightning stretched her back, sighing in relief as she back popped like a firecracker. After the grand finally ended, Lightning trudged herself over to her fridge and opened the door.
It was empty.
“Damn it,” Lightning sighed, then shook her head.
Her empty fridge was just another reminder of her soon to be empty wallet… which then reminded her of her job... which she was going to be fired from if she was late! Like actual lightning, the mare bolted towards the door, only to then smack her head against the door once she realized what day it was.
“Wednesday,” she muttered, “I don’t work on Wednesday.”
With an annoyed sigh, the mare turned around and slumped back over to her couch. She quickly flopped onto it and begun her fruitless ritual of trying to get comfortable. Something that the old, worn out springs would not allow. She soon gave up at around the five minute mark and let out, yet another, annoyed sigh.
This was her life.
She was too broke to go out do anything fun (like drinking), her cable had been shut off months ago, and she barely had enough money to grab anything decent to eat once the hunger pains got too much to bear. All that she could do was lay on her shitty couch and be alone with her thoughts, the worse part of her predicament.
Lightning sighed, something that she now realize had become a regular thing. What that what she had been reduced to: a sighing, broke mess? It sure felt like it. Another adjective popped into her head, but she shot it down. She was too broke to be an alcoholic. That was good, right?
She give a chuckle… followed by a whimper.
Seriously? What that the only good thing she had going for her? She was so pathetic that she couldn’t even drown her sorrows in alcohol? She wanted to say, ‘no’, but it was true.
Lightning held back a sigh.
Now, she was just a broke mess.
---
Several hours went by like a blur to the opal mare. She had tried to get some sleep to pass the time, but that hadn’t lead anywhere. Eventually, her stomach had started to growl, and she tried to ignore it. But after the tenth or so growl, she decided to listen to her body.
Lightning, once again, rolled from the couch, repeating her back-cracking routine. It wasn’t comfortable, but it had to be done.
“Okay, now, time to find some bits,” Lightning muttered, then began to search around the room with her muzzle to the floor. She ignored the smell.
Her search had eventually fruited four bits, with one more under the fridge if she could reach it. With her hoof being too big, Lightning decided to use her wing to try and grab the annoying piece of currency. She cringes at all the dust and crap that gets into her feathers, but it was worth it to grab that final—
“Gotcha!”
The opal mare pulls her wing out from underneath the fridge, smiling as the dusty, but still usable, but in her grasp. She cocks her head as she notices a crumpled piece of paper also caught in her feathers. She wiggles it out with a hoof and uncrumpled it, curiosity getting the better of her.
Her eyes narrow.
Lightning read through the note a few more times, the scowl remaining on her face. She wanted to crumple it up again and light it on fire, but part of her held back. For some reason she could not understand, she actually considered it. If memory served her correctly, the show would be starting in a few hours.
“Well, I guess it’s better than sitting here and doing nothing,” she muttered. “With luck, they’ll have free food.”
---
Lightning made her way down Main Street Filly. The road was packed, ponies of all shapes, sizes, races and ages trotting forward like a title wave of flesh. If there was any constant in the stream of bodies, it was that almost every single pony there had some sort of wonderbolt memorabilia on their person. From hats to shirt, sky blue and victory gold shone proudly.
Having gotten rid of all of her memorabilia after she was… well, after getting rid of anything that had even reminded her of the flying team, she was one of the few that trotted barren. Not like she would have worn anything anyway, she reminded herself. This was just a time-killer and possible free food.
The mare eventually made her way down the street and up to the actual stadium itself. Several lines that lead into the stadium proper and Lightning promptly slipped into one of the shorter one’s. It was slow moving, and she desperately tried to unwrinkle the note on the nearby wall while she waited. At this point, the mare was beginning to fear that her little note wouldn’t work, guessing that the attendant would just laugh at her and throw her out. A real possibility, given her luck.
Several more, painstaking minutes later, Lightning stood nervously in front of an elderly ticket mare. The mare looked over the note a few times, then passed it back to the pegasus.
“Please step out of line, miss,” the ticket mare said, pointing her hoof away from the coliseum. “I’d rather not make this a big deal.”
Lightning went to open her mouth, but a stern look from the attendant made the words die in her throat. She slowly slunk out of the line, then, when she was out of sight of the attendant, she stomped out of the stadium practically seething. It had been a lie, a trick, just to make her look like an idiot! Why had she thought that her former Wingpony would actually go through with something like that? Part of her wondered if Rainbow had stolen anything when she had walked her home that night, then remembered that she didn’t have anything to steal… and that Rainbow was probably rich since she was a Wonderbolt, now.
She made her way down the now empty street, grumbling to herself.
She made her way down the now empty street, grumbling to herself. She wasn’t working, and she didn’t have any money. That narrowed her selection of pass-times down to… zero, really. She had to admit that as petty and annoying as Dash’s little joke had been, at least she’d made it halfway through the day now without thinking about all of her other problems. Like food. And booze. And… it had been a few weeks since she’d checked in with her landlord, so it was probably safe to add ‘paying rent’ to the list. She gritted her teeth and took off from the sidewalk to cross a busy street. If she were a lightning wrangler, she’d be able to afford all of those things. Two out of three, at least. She touched down on the far side of the street and kept trotting in the vague direction of her house.
Sometimes it still baffled her how the Academy could keep on haunting her like this. How many other ponies had their whole lives trashed because of one slip up? She rolled her eyes, and something in the sky caught her attention.
A rainbow. She stopped walking. It hadn’t rained in days. As she watched, a flash of colour streaked across the sky before swerving around a high-rise and disappearing into the urban forest. She felt an urge to follow the rainbow contrail—an urge she squashed immediately. The last thing she wanted was to have another pathetic conversation with her. Besides, Dash was just flying to the stadium, where Lightning apparently wouldn’t be permitted. She grunted and kept walking, trying to think of something to do for the rest of the day. She could… read, maybe? Who was she kidding, she didn’t own any books, and she’d rather die than be seen in a library.
A flash of light filled the corner of her eye. She ignored it. Another flash on the other side. Keep walking.
She finally looked up when she heard screaming and shouting above her. A group of pegasi were hovering in place, and a rainbow contrail hovered between them. Several pegasi were clutching limbs or heads. What was Dash doing? Had one joke not been enough? She snorted. Was Dash stalking her? That was just typical. She started to turn her head back to the pavement when she saw a blue blur zigzag around a cluster of buildings, drop toward the earth and then shoot almost straight up. Was she insane? Doing manoeuvres like that in downtown airspace was a good way to get grounded. Maybe even arrested, considering the speed she was flying.
She bit her lip. She really didn’t want to do this. She took to the air with a sigh and flapped hard toward the end of the rainbow. It wasn’t hard for her to find the mare again, as she literally had an outline of her movements. She saw her former rainbow companion floating in the middle of an air traffic jam, yelling at some random pegasus.
“Get out of sky, you idiot!” one yelled to the sky-blue mare.
“Hey, you don’t own the sky,” Rainbow shot back, then turned her head to face another of her unwanted critics. Minturn, her and Lightning’s eyes met. Rainbow muttered something under her breath, softer than Lightning could hear, then turned and bolted in the opposite direction.
Cursing under her breath, Lightning bolted after the mare. She was able to keep pace for the mare as they weaved in between buildings, but she was soon to feel it’s toll on her for her lack of practice. She needed to catch Dash, fast.
A few more hairpin turns, and near misses, later, the chase finally came to a halt. Rainbow had accidently ran into a walled off alley, leaving her pinned. She promptly turned to fly back the way she came, but was unable too as an opal blur suddenly slammed into her side. She soon fell to the ground, her and the blur rolling to a stop, the blur ending up pinning her down.
Lightning let out a loud wheeze, her chest throbbing as she tried to get the oxygen she desperately needed back into her lungs. “Dash!” she gasped out, followed by a short coughing fit. “Stop, you idiot!”
Rainbow looked up at her capture, then squirmed and tried to worm her way out of her grasp.
Lightning would have none of that. She shifted her weight onto the mare’s hooves. “Will you stop squirming, you blue moron!”
This, somehow, caught Dash’s attention. She stopped squirming, looking up at Lightning.
“Good. Now, what the heck are you doing flying around like a bat out of tartarus? You could have hurt somepony!”
“I fly when I need to think, okay?” Rainbow replied. “And I had a lot on my mind, so it required a lot of flying.”
Lightning rolled her eyes, then removed herself from Rainbow. “You are an idiot, you know that? Weren’t you going to, I don’t know, fly at the freakin’ performance.” She blinked, then tilted her head. “Actually, why aren’t you there?”
Rainbow rose to her hooves and brushed herself off. “I, uh…” The mare bit her lip, rubbing the back of her neck with a hoof. “I was, kinda… suspended?”
Lightning snickered. “Oh?”
“Y-yeah…”
Silence.
“You lied to me.”
Rainbow lifted her head, meeting Lightning’s pissed expression.
“Huh?” she asks in confusion.
The opal mare rolled her eyes, then motioned to the ally around her. “Do you notice where I am not right now?”
“Not right…” Rainbow’s eyes went wide and she cringed. “Oh...”
“Yeah, ‘oh’ is right.” Lightning sighed. “I can’t believe you’d really sink that low. Honestly, what do you have to gain? My life is shit already. And the one time I think something is going my way, it turns out to be just an old idiot reminding me how pathetic I really am.”
“I…” Rainbow sank down, her features deflating. “That’s not what happened, Lightning. I was serious in the letter, but… I kinda got suspended and couldn’t follow through.”
“I really want to punch you, right now.”
“Yeah, I figured.” Rainbow shook her head. “But, I’m telling the truth, I promise! If the whole thing was a trick, then why would I still be lying? You already fell for it, apparently.”
Lightning opened her mouth, but closed it soon after. That did make sense, she realized. “Even if that is true,” she adds, “I’m still pissed at you… and more than a little confused.” She cocked her head. “What the heck did you do to get suspended and drove you to practically suicidally fly into oncoming traffic. I mean, aren’t I the one with nothing left to live for?”
Rainbow cringed at that last remark. She fell to her flank and avoiding Lightning’s gaze. “I… I may have gotten suspended for…” She took a deep breath. “I told Spitfire off for what she did to you, and she suspended me for it.”
“Heh?”
Rainbow rolled her eyes. “I don’t know how I can be any clearer that that, Lightning.”
“No, I got what you said, just… why?”
Rainbow looked up from the ground to see Lightning staring down at her, an unreadable expression on her face. “It was the right thing to do, once I figured everything out. I… I’m half the reason why it happened to you. I didn’t stick by your side, and you payed for it.” Her body sagged.
A loud crack rang out as Lightning’s hoof made contact with Rainbow’s face. The assaulted mare toppled to the side with the force of the impact, momentarily stunned.
“No!” Lightning screamed, standing over Rainbow. Tears stung her eyes. “You can’t do all that to me and just flip flop around! You don’t get to do that! You can’t do that!”
Rainbow was quick to recover, self preservation kicking in as she shot up from the ground and tacked her aggressor. Lightning countered the mare’s advance, the two grappling in the middle of the abandoned ally.
“You ruined my life, you heartless bitch!” Lightning screamed, tears now free falling down her cheeks like twin rivers. Her assault began to wain; her blurred vision messing with her accuracy, her faltering resolve weakening her to half hearted slaps. “I hate you! I hate you!”
Rainbow had no trouble holding off the frantic mare, pushing her back as her anger, sadness, and sorrow lashed out in a blaze of tears. A sad frown remained on her face. Guilt weighed heavily on her mind.
Several minutes later, Lightning fell to her haunches and curled up into a tight ball, hugging her hooves tightly into chest. Tears continued to fall as she let out choked sobs. All of her anger had been released, leaving only sadness in it’s place. The mare soon felt something soft and warm press into her side, followed by the soft coo of hushed whispers in her ears.
“I hate you… I hate you,” Lightning muttered. Though the words came from her mouth, they held none of the emotion, no force. They were hollow.
Rainbow ignored them. She ran her hoof gently through the Lightning’s mane and held her close. She was going to be there for her, this time. She would not fail her friend.
Rainbow woke to the sound of the hotel shower sputtering to life. She winced, followed by a soft groan. The mare brought a hoof up to her muzzle and gently massaged rubbed the sleep from her eyes. With a brief mental battle between whether to return to sleep or waking up proper, Rainbow sat upright.
Being an elite flying team came with it’s perks. The Wonderbolts always stayed at the fanciest hotel in town when they were touring. The couch hadn’t even hurt her back that night. Her focus returned to sound of running water. She smiled. Lightning had definitely needed somewhere comfortable to sleep.
Rainbow stood up and stretched, her joints popping along her spine and down her legs. It felt great. She finished with a sharp twist of her chin. Her neck produced a satisfying crack. Her teammates were probably still in bed, recovering from the show’s after-party. In some ways, the parties were as much fun as the performance itself. This was the first one Rainbow had missed since joining the team.
She didn’t care nearly as much as she should have.
The hotel room kitchen--a sink, a mini-fridge, and two cabinets--hadn’t been touched since she arrived in Fillydelphia. VIPs like the Wonderbolts usually didn’t have to worry about room service fees or expensive restaurant dinners, but that morning her desire to avoid the outside world outweighed her impatience. She flipped the fridge door open and peered inside. Several bottles of soda and beer, what was possibly the world's smallest chocolate bar, and, right at the bottom, the largest sandwich she’d ever seen… in a mini-fridge. It was a pathetic excuse for a meal. It would have to do. The mare reached down, picked up the sandwich in her mouth, then turned around and kicked the fridge door. She trotted back to the couch, flopped back onto it’s surprisingly comfy material, then began to much on her hotel-grade sandwich. Tomato and lettuce. Not bad, all things considered.
Halfway through her sandwich, Rainbow heard the water stop in the bathroom. Not long after, Lightning trotted out of the bathroom and into the hotel room’s main room, her coat still damp. Her eyes soon met Rainbow’s own and she winced, almost as if she had forgotten that the blue mare had been there. Silence held as neither spoke; Lightning bit her lip and Rainbow chewed slowly.
“So...” Lightning muttered, “thanks for letting me stay here last night.” She fidgeted awkwardly. “I was a, uh, bit of a mess.”
Rainbow swallowed and nodded. “No prob’. I kinda owed you for the whole...”
“Yeah…”
“Right.” Rainbow sucked in a breath. “That.” Right. This was when she was supposed to say something. She shifted awkwardly as she tried not to look the opal mare in the eyes. Apologize. Make everything better. Something. Anything.
“Well, I better get going,” Lightning spoke, snapping Rainbow from her thoughts. “I gotta get to work later and stuff, so… yeah. Thanks.” She waited for a second, then turned and headed toward the door.
Shit! Rainbow thought. Say something! “Lightning!”
The mare turned and looked at her with a confused look. “Yeah?”
Rainbow fumbled for words in her head. What was she supposed to say? “I just, uh… wanted to know if you…” She cringed, then held out what was left of her sandwich in her hoof. “Wanted to have the other half of my sandwich?”
The opal mare looked at Rainbow, then at the half eaten sandwich. She gave her a weird smile. “Uh… yeah. No. No thanks,” she said, then trotted to the door.
The opal mare opened the door and walked out without a look back. As soon as the door clicked closed, the sound of Rainbow’s head hitting the coffee table echoed throughout the room.
---
Lightning exited the hotel lobby and into the streets of Fillydelphia. It was early in the morning, just after six, so the streets were mainly empty, safe for a small rush of ponies heading to their day jobs. Lucky for her, the sky was completely empty. The opal mare stretched her back and wings before taking off into the air. She flapped her way up into the city's sky-line and began her trip back to her apartment. When she made her way onto a familiar street and her mind went to autopilot, Lightning reflected her… experience with her old wingpony.
The entire thing had been surprising, to say the least. When she had broken down crying in front of the blue mare, the last thing she had expected from here was to invite her back to her hotel room. She had been even more surprised when Rainbow had offered her own bed and stubbornly taken the couch. It hadn't been much a choice on her part. But, the bed had been warm and comfy (unbelievably so) and the shower had been probably the best she had in years. She had lost most of the anger that she felt for the mare right there and then. Granted, she was still a little pissed about what had happened at the stadium, but she guess she could understand the circumstances. Sorta. Kinda.
Lightning shook her head, then took a banking turn down another street.
Everything after waking up and been awkward. Really awkward. It was waking up with after a one night stand. Neither of them seemed to know what to say to the other other than a ‘thanks’ and ‘goodbye’. Lightning shuttered briefly. None of this mattered. It was over now. Rainbow would be leaving the city soon with the rest of the Wonderbolts and she would return to her normal life. With luck, they would never see eachother again and all of this would be put behind her. Lightning found herself frowning at that, but she didn’t really know why. Well, that wasn’t entirely true. Despite everything, it had been enjoyable. It was nice to have someone care about her, for once.
She shook her head. Now wasn’t the time for thinking about crap like this. She had still had to get back to her apartment so she could get ready for her shift. She couldn’t be late, again.
With that, the rest of her flight back to her apartment was met with mental silence. Time seemed to go by faster and she was at the steps of her building in no time. Lightning entered her complex and made her way up the stairs. When she got door, though, her entire mood changed.
Lightning looked upon her door with both anger and sadness. Although the fine print would take her a moment to read, the large text in big red letters was hard to miss: Eviction notice. Lightning stood there, unmoving, not sure whether to scream, hit a wall, or curl up into a ball and cry her eyes out. Instead, she decided to read the rest of the notice that was taped to her door. Besides a lot of bullshit that was supposed to not make her feel as bad about being kicked out of her home, the note stated that she had twenty-four hours to leave with all of her stuff or else she would be forced out. Actually, it said that she had twenty-four hours to pay all her back rent, but if she was reading the amount right, it was as good as a ‘just get out.’
Lightning took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. She had to remain calm. She needed to take this in stride. She had new this was going to happen. She had expected some type of warning first, but she still knew it was coming soon. She took another deep breath, then looked down to grab her key from the plant pot. To her surprise, she noticed a yellow sticky-note on the floor beside it. Must’ve fallen off the notice. Lightning reached down with a hoof, picked up the sticky and read what was on it. Her forced calm snapped.
“I tried to warn you yesterday and last night, but you weren’t here. Sorry it had to come to this,” Lightning grumbled to herself as she reread the note aloud. Why that little rainbow haired…! She then crumpled the piece of paper up in her hooves and threw it down the hall in barely contained rage. She proceeded to kick her plant pot, pick up her keys, unlocked her door and storm into her former apartment.
About five minutes later, Lightning stormed out of the room with her saddlebags jingling with the last of her bits. She stomped down the stairs and burst through her apartment door. The sun was still rising, which meant that most of the bars were still closed. Lightning would have lost it if she didn’t remember that even though the bars didn’t open till later, liquor stores were a different story.
---
It had been, what? Three or so hours since Lightning had left Rainbow’s hotel room. She had not really been keeping track of the time. She had yet to even move from her couch. The sandwich was long gone, though. The mare needed thinking fuel.
Rainbow Dash sat on the surprisingly comfy couch in her hotel room, seated in the exact same position she had been when her friend had left. In fact, ever since Lightning had left, Rainbow had been going over the conversation they had. She desperately tried to figure out what she should have said. Had she done what she should have, or did she screw it up? What was the ‘right’ or ‘good’ outcome for that conversation? Should she have gone after the mare? She hadn’t say anything bad, per se, but she had not done anything to help her cause. She wanted to help Lightning. That was it. She wanted to make up for what had happen at the academy. All of this had been her fault… and Spitfire’s… and probably a little bit her friend’s fault for visiting the campus while it was active. That was dumb, in hindsight. Wasn’t Twilight supposed to be the smart one, or something?
Rainbow sat upright and shook her head. “Focus!” she told herself.
There was a name for the feeling that Rainbow was… feeling. Exactly what, she was not sure. Conflicted? That sounded right in her mind, but not quite. The entire situation was strange. She felt responsible for what happened to Lightning, true, but Spitfire was right about something: it was Lightning fault for what happened after. She couldn’t be blamed for that, right?
The mare shifted awkwardly on the couch, then closed her eyes and sighed deeply.
Everything about the situation the pegasus had found herself in was weird. There seemed to be only wrong answers. Everyone seemed to be at fault, and she had no idea what it was she should, or should have, done. Should she do anything at all? Just stand back and let things happen?
“Ugg!” the pegasus let out in a cry of frustration. “That is it. I can’t take this anymore!”
The mare jumped to her hooves with a flap of her wings, then marched for the door. Too many things were on her mind at the moment, and she needed someone to talk to about it. Vent. Hopefully, the pony she had in mind for such a conversation would still be in his room. Rainbow opened her door and immediately trotted to the one across from her and pounded on the well painted wood.
“Soarin’, you idiot, you in there?!” Dash announced between pounds, then stood impatiently at the doors presupus, tapping a hoof.
It wasn’t long before the blue mare heard a loud groan from beyond, followed by a thump! and the trotting of hooves. Locks clicked and the door opened. A very tired, and clearly hungover, blue pegasus stood beyond. He blinked his squinted eyes, then hissed as if in pain. He mumbled something about the light. “Is that you, Rainbow?” he muttered in his gruff voice.
Rainbow awkwardly chuckled and rubbed the back of her neck with a hoof. “Hehe, yeah… forgot about the party.” She took a deep breath. “Mind if I come in?”
The stallion nodded, motioning inward with a small jerk of her head. He seemed to regret it. “Yeah, come in. Just be quiet and, if you could, would you make the coffee?” He looked to Rainbow hopefully. The mare nodded. He sighed in relief. “Good. I’ll be suffering on the couch until then. Need fuel if you want more words out of me…”
---
Soarin’ slowly nursed his cup of coffee, all but moaning as the warm liquid slid down his throat. It was doing wonders for his headache. Yes, his head still pounded as if there were newborn pegasi learning how to fly inside it, but that was still marginally better then when he had awoken. He would have thanked Celestia for its creation, but he was currently reflecting on his stance on the princess. She was the one responsible for sunlight.
He let out a soft groan as another pulse of pain beat through his head. He made note to never again challenge his cousin to anything that involved alcohol.
He took another sip of his coffee. It was a little darker than he liked it, but he didn't want to insult the mare that had brought him the heavenly liquid. His salvation. The stallion then flinched when he remember that he had a guest.
With a sheepish smile, the stallion lifted his gaze from his coffee and towards his guest, who sat a few paces in front of him. She seemed to be nervous and fidgety. The stallion hoped that wasn't because of him. “Sorry, Rainbow,” he croaked, “got lost in the coffee. My head is killing me.”
The mare regarded him for a second, then sighed and lowered her head. “Don't worry about it, Soarin’. I should be sorry for bursting in this early.” She bit her lip, then looked away. “I can come back later if you want?”
Her voice was hesitant and sounded as if something was troubling her, Soarin’ noted. This worried him. He tried to perk up himself up and not show his discomfort. “Nah, it's okay. I'm feeling better already, thanks to your coffee.”
Rainbow smiled, but it soon fell as well has her gaze. Her wings as well, the stallion noted. Both sat awkwardly for the next few minutes.
Soarin’ coughed to break the tension. “So… what brings you here? Got something on your mind?” he asked, but already knew the answer. Something was bothering the mare, that was clear. It was only a matter of what and if he could get her to say it.
Rainbow nodded weakly. “Yeah. It’s...” she sighed again. “It's about Lightning Dust.”
Soarin’ cocked his head. Lightning Dust? This piqued his interest. He thought back to the incident with her at the bar the other day. Was this about that? He remembered the shouting march and Rainbow flying after the mare. He never knew what happened after that. He decided to make his thoughts known. “Is this about what happened between you guys at the bar?”
Rainbow scrunched her nose. “Kinda?” she scrunched her muzzle. “It's a lot more complicated than that.” She looked up to face him. “How much do you know about her?”
Soarin’ shrugged. “As much as the rest of the ponies at the academy. I wasn’t there during the accident, but, well, word travel fast. Not every day a recruit gets kicked out that spectacularly.” Soarin’ paused when he noticed Rainbow flinch. He decided to continue with caution. “And, uh, I know you were her wingpony, for a time.”
Rainbow fidgeted. “Anything else?”
The stallion thought for a moment. “I guess? I mean, I heard her was a loose cannon. Exceptional flier, but reckless. Rude. Unpleasant.” He had heard some other… choice words for her from the other cadets later on, but he decided not bring them up now.
Soarin’ flinched when he heard Rainbow groan. “Ugh! Of course that's what you heard!”
“Pardon?”
Soarin watched as rainbow changed from nervous to mad. “Of course that's what they said. Did you hear anything about me around that time?”
“No, not really…” He thought for a second. “Well, ponies did say that they felt sorry that you had to deal with her. And about how you chewed her out in the end. Other than that, nothing.” He looked to her. “Why?”
Rainbow exploded. “Why?! Because that's all bullshit!” She began to pace. Soarin flinched in pain. They didn't mention that I did everything she did? That I was all part of the problem. That I never said or did anything until it was too late!” She took a deep breath. “Of course they didn’t…” Her head fell.
Soarin, after recovering from the outburst, looked to the mare, confused and worried. He kinda understood what she was saying. Apparently she had been doing the same thing as Lighting, yet had taken none of the blame. “So,” he began, “you feel guilty that you weren't punished?”
“Exactly!” she exclaimed. “See, it's all my fault!”
The stallion cocked his head. “What's your fault?”
“That she got kicked out!”
Soarin flinched. He almost dropped his coffee. Ir felt like nails were being driven into his skull. He let the mare relax and his headache subside before he responded, “No, Rainbow. It's not.” Rainbow opened her mouth, but Soarin raised a hoof. “Give me a second to explain, and please stop yelling.”
The winced and shrank a little. “Sorry. Forgot.”
Soarin waved her off and took another sip. “It's okay. And it's not your fault. She did what she did of her own free will. Not yours. You didn't force her to do all those things, did you?”
“But I--”
“You were following her lead, right? Not the other way around?” Rainbow nodded, slowly. Soarin’ smiled. “See? You were following her lead. She was your lead pony; it was your job to do as she she does. You were her wing. Her shadow. If that's what you did, then you did your job well.”
“But--”
“I'm not finished!” Soarin interrupted, only to wince in pain. He needed to stop that. “Yes, you should have said something earlier, but I can't fault you that much. She was your superior. You had no authority over her, and she had no reason to listen to you.” Soarin paused. A thought breached his mind. “Actually, now that I think about it, I blame whoever made her lead pony. I mean, if what they say is true about how reckless she was, only an idiot would have kept her lead pony. I would have made her wingpony to someone with discipline.” Soarin paused once again. “Huh. Now that I think about it, kicking her out was a bit harsh. I mean, the job of the Academy it to teach you guys discipline.” Soarin shrugged, then turned it face Rainbow. “So, no, it's not your fault. Sure, you should have gotten talked to about not reporting reckless behavior, but I can't fault you for the actions of your incompetent leader.”
