A birthday present
“And then I’m looping a loop, accelerating to the break-neck speed, performing the ‘Sonic Rainboom’ and coming out of nosedive just above the heads of the excited watchers! Oh yeah! The stadium is in ecstasy. Thank you, thank you so much!”
My idol bowed right in the air before the imaginary stands filled with cheering ponies.
I watched all aerial acrobatics demonstrated by Rainbow Dash so intently I’ve never blinked during this time. Now my eyes were tearing. I wiped them with my hoof and began to stomp with my forelegs.
“Yoohoo, Rainbow, it was so… so… cool!” I cried.
The rainbow-maned pegasus dashed down like a stone, making me gasp. Spreading her wings and slowing down her half-flight-half-falling in the distance of a meter from the ground, she landed smoothly beside me. Now I understand she was acting like this just to impress me. Her flight trajectory was calculated to an inch, her routine was practiced to the last detail, and Dash just couldn’t make a mistake. There was no need in this show with a miraculous salvation. I was already fascinated by her stunning coolness.
“Are you scared, squirt?” She let out a laugh sounding so familiar to me, raised her foreleg and disarranged my fringe. Quite honestly, I nearly melted with happiness.
“I… I am… I’m not… I… ” My ability to think clearly disappeared with all the words smart or not. I could only look in her face with huge admiring eyes. The word ‘squirt’ and the way she treated me didn’t hurt me. No word coming from her mouth could hurt me.
My idol, my role model was here by my side! It hasn't been that long from those memorable camping Sweetie Belle, Applebloom, Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow and I went together. Rainbow promised me to take me under her wing. The unseen distance that separated us has suddenly vanished now, but I still couldn’t believe we became sworn sisters. I couldn’t get to the idea I can ask her for help in every moment, and she won’t refuse me, either. She remained awesome, unreachable for me, and that’s why my tongue refused to obey me, if I were alone with Rainbow. Just like now.
“Do you know what for I showed these mega cool things to you? Are you thinking this is only my dreams?” I shook my head, remaining silent. My tongue glued itself to the roof of my mouth. Rainbow made a small dramatic pause and announced solemnly, “Next week I’m taking a part in a representative performance of Equestria’s best flyers! With my own solo routine. And the Wonderbolts will be there too, of course.”
“Wow,” I couldn’t come up with more words. This was stunning. If Dash’s performing would be successful, her dream of becoming one of Wonderbolts could come true! If legendary Spitfire still hadn’t noticed her, so it was just an unfortunate mistake. This performance will make everypony speak about my hero!
I began to imagine Rainbow Dash within the ranks of the flight team. She looked so great in her uniform! In my dreams, I was already in the moment of the Rainbow’s promotion to the captain of Wonderbolts, and I was approaching her with a bunch of flowers to congratulate… No, with the new ‘Daring Doo’ series book, she’ll love it for sure.
“What are you thinking about? Hello! Earth to Scootaloo!” All my dreams burst like a soap bubble. There were no Wonderbolts and fans anymore. I found myself staring in Rainbow’s laughing eyes.
“By the way, squirt, I’ve almost forgotten. It seems to me your birthday is on the next week. Here’s a present for you.” She pulled a colorful card out of nowhere, from the thin air. Even if it was so, I wouldn’t marvel. Rainbow Dash was powerful and almighty for me.
I examined the card. What was it?
“Oh Rainbow, is that—”
“Exactly! This is the ticket for the show! The best place! Are you happy?”
Am I happy? That could be better than sitting in the first row of the Cloud Stadium and watching the best flyers of Equestria (one of them was now by my side) performing their routines? I couldn’t dream of such happiness!
However, Rainbow understood my silence in her own way. “It seems to me you’re not quite impressed yet,” the pegasus gave me a suspicious gaze. “What if I tell you about what it took to get this ticket? They were sold out two months ago!” She waved the ticket before my nose.
“That’s the greatest present I’ve ever had! Rainbow Dash, you’re awesome! You’re the best!” I cried and twined my forelegs round her neck.
“I’ve never doubted I’m the best,” Rainbow snorted, giving me a hug with one wing. “We can go for a walk afterwards. You’ve never been in Cloudsdale before, have you?”
“No, I haven’t,” I replied. Even though I’m a pegasus pony, I was born here in Ponyville and never visited the City-On-The-Clouds.
“Okay, that’s better. I’ll show you the most interesting places. You can count you have your own guide. And then we can drop by to my house.”
“I love you,” I whispered with my face buried in the sky blue coat at my sworn sister’s chest.
~***~
During a whole week remaining until my birthday, I was looking forward for the best day of my life. The Rainbow Dash’s performance, and then the walk through the city of my dream in her company … I thought about it permanently, imagined colorful pictures (the one was better than another) while I was sitting at breakfast, at dinner, at supper, cleaning my teeth, going to bed, waking up… I was lucky enough to have holidays, or I’ll get bad notes because I just couldn’t think about learning.
I pulled my ‘Rainbow Dash’s number one fan’ hat from my wardrobe. It looked just like my idol’s rainbow-colored mane. I expected it every day critically. The hat must look perfect or even twenty percent cooler because I was going to cheer for Rainbow Dash in it! And when I’ll appear on the tribune wearing this hat, all ponies will understand which pony I support.
But it happens often in this life so that our plans are breaking down because of the sad event. I didn’t get to Cloudsdale that time.
The day before That Very Day I woke up ill, my nose and my throat tickled. I realized what it was threatening to me, so I was hiding my illness from my parents as well as I could. But who can ever hide something from my mother?
She noticed I didn’t eat anything and told me to take the temperature. She disliked the result so much she told me to go to the bed again.
“But moom!” I tried to argue. “That’s nothing! I’ll be okay tomorrow!”
“I don’t want to hear nothing about that!” My mother said, stomping her hoof. “Your throat is red! Tell me, madcap, what were you doing with your friends? Trying to earn your diver cutie marks again? Or eating ice cream on a bet? What if you will lose your birthday?”
“No, mommy, not again! Me and Sweetie and AppleBloom didn’t do anything like this for a huge number of times!” It wasn’t so, but I couldn’t report my mom about everything, what do you think?
“Hmm, you had a bad luck, young miss,” the doctor called by my mother said after he barely looked at my throat. “No, no, that isn’t a cold, the ice cream is not involved, too. It’s a contagious infection, a lot of ponies are ill now. The sickness rate is highest just among young colts and fillies.”
“What can you advise, doctor?” My mom asked. I pricked my ears.
“Staying in bed, away from emotions, and I’ll prescribe you medications, too. This one is for lowering the fever. However, the raspberry tea suits too.”
“How long it takes?” I asked, my voice husky.
“If you’ll stay in bed and take all the medicine I’ve proscribed, so, well, I think, you will be on your hooves in a few days,” the doctor said, stroking my messy mane with his forehoof.
“A few days!” I gasped. “But I can’t! My birthday is tomorrow!”
“I know, that’s doubly unfortunate to stay in bed on your birthday, but there’s nothing we can do. Look, you’ve got this illness from somepony. We can’t let your friends fell ill too, right?” The doctor shrugged.
“No, that’s not it,” my mother interrupted. “Do you see, she has a ticket to the performance of Equestria’s best flyers–”
“My answer is still negative. Oh, it’s Cloudsdale… If she didn’t stay in bed, there always is a possibility of dangerous complications”.
My mom walked the doctor outside, and I curled under my blanket. I’m losing my very best birthday, that’s not fair!
“That’s not fair!” I said to my mother, when she came back into my room. “And Rainbow Dash, she–”
“I’m sorry, but this life isn’t fair,” my mother sighed. “Don’t be upset, my little one, I’m sure Rainbow Dash will understand everything.”
“Tomorrow I’ll run away to Cloudsdale anyway,” I informed gloomily.
~***~
The next day, however, I felt just as bad as yesterday, if not even worse. My throat was swollen and has become into a tiny opening, my nose was running, my eyes were watering, and I was literally chained to bed because of fever. I still wished I could go and watch Rainbow’s performance. But where could I go if I couldn’t even lift my head from my pillow?
I was looking out the window mindlessly. Somewhere in the blue sky Cloudsdale is located. And Rainbow Dash is performing there right now. The watchers are stomping, cheering, chanting… I alone have to stay in bed in my most important day!
I rolled over on my side. Scotaloo won’t shed a tear since Rainbow Dash never cries (I knew this for sure). The single stubborn teardrop fell from my eye. It was good there was nopony in my room, so nopony could see this teardrop.
Rainbow Dash… Her performing must be over already, I thought. Now she is looking for me in the crowd of watchers. She didn’t see me and leaves the arena, disappointed. Or, on the contrary, she’d almost forgotten about me, surrounded by her loyal fans.
I licked the teardrop from my cheek and peered out the window again. At first it seemed to me a fly flew in my room and settled on the windowpane. No, that wasn’t a fly. A tiny point showed up at the perfect-blue sky. It came closer and closer before I realized this was a pegasus.
Meanwhile, this point began to do very weird things: to fly backwards and forwards, up and down without any system. Then the rainbow trail showed up, it followed the pegasus as obedient as a tail. There was only one pegasus, who was able to create such a colorful rainbow!
I watched in disbelief the rainbow tail formed the gigantic letters tacking up the half of the sky. Before it wasn’t too late, I began to read by syllables the rainbow message, which was gradually vanishing: “G… E… T…”
‘GET BETTER SOON, SCOOTS!’
Writing an exclamation mark the pegasus accelerated to the breakneck speed. I rose from my pillows sharply, my jaw dropped. What's she thinking about? She's going to hit the ground!
Suddenly the pegasus levelled off, and behind her the rainbow wave occurred – just like circles at a water in the water surface created by the pebble dropped into the lake. The Sonic Rainboom! It played a part of a point of the exclamation mark, and it was the final accord in this sky show. It seemed to me, the sky itself shook under the pressure of the paints splashed into it.
Now the pegasus was flying toward me. In a few moments, I was sure that it really was Rainbow Dash and she was really heading straight for my home.
… My hero flew into my room and settled on the window ledge.
“Did you see anything? What do you think, squirt? Did you like it?” She asked.
“Are you kidding me? Of course I did,” I croaked. “And what about your performance?”
“My performance? And what ‘bout them? Everything is just fine, as always,” Rainbow examined her forehoof carelessly. “I did my routine quickly and flew here. Don’t be upset you’ve missed the show. It wasn’t the last one. I’ll get more tickets for you later. The main thing for you is to get well soon.”
“Yeah, I’m getting better… I’m not upset at all,” I said. And then I suddenly realized that I really didn’t care anymore. After all, the thing Rainbow did now was incomparably cooler. If only because this rainbow was created not for the crowd of the gapers, but in order to bring some happiness to her friend who was sick.
~***~
After a long time I knew Rainbow had no part in the show this day at all. Choosing between her performing and me she choose me without any hesitation and made a personal show for a sick filly.
Much time has gone since that very sad and very happy day of my life. But I still can’t forget about that marvelous, miraculous gift from Rainbow Dash – my very own rainbow blooming in the skies.