I Always Wanted to be Like You – Part 7 – Happy Epilogue
Authors note: Out of boredom, I’m going to put in several references to groups. See if you can find them all. The first one is 2PM, that will let you know how hard they’ll be to find.
Post-story note: I only ended up putting in two. The references in the arcade don't count.
And, yes, the arcade “Flynt’s” is a reference to a movie.
‘This is so boring’ whispered Jecht
‘I know, but it’ll be worth it’ said Scootaloo
They had been signing forms for the past half hour. The Wonderbolts seemed to have an endless supply of paper for them to write signatures and initials on. A few were wavers saying that if they were injured, the team couldn’t be sued; while others were forms for free medicals from certain doctors. They had to give right to attorney to the captain of the team, along with signing their contracts. They would be given an exceptional amount of money. For every race they won, they would each receive a thousand bits, and for every event they went to in costume, they would receive 200.
The pile of sheets for them to sign was slowly dwindling, until at roughly 2PM they were finally done, and were allowed to leave for the day. They were told to be back at the Canterlot aerodrome by dawn the next day for drills.
‘Where to, then? Have you ever been to Canterlot?’ asked Jecht
‘No. I’ve only ever been to Ponyville and Cloudsdale.’
‘Well, I came along here once to see Spitfire. Dad made me. I know of some good spots to take you, so let’s go!’
Scootaloo followed Jecht along Canterlot, past the castle and out of the rich district. They were heading along the mane street with surprisingly few other Pegasus ponies flying. Then again, they had lived in Cloudsdale for so long, that Scootaaloo had nearly forgotten what it was like not having ponies flying everywhere, and Jecht couldn’t even remember what it was like.
There were shops for almost everything. There were several café’s, along with a few boutiques, and they wondered how a shop called Globus stayed in business that only seemed to sell maps and globes.
They touched down just in front of a café on Mane Street, then looked around. Just before walking Scootaloo called Jecht back.
‘Look over there. It’s the new Sugarcube Corner!’ she said excitedly.
‘Oh, yeah, I forgot. Your friend opened that didn’t she? Pink… what was her name?’
‘Pinkie Pie. I’m not sure if she’ll be here, since Rainbow woke up.’ She said, and then flinched. She wanted to be spending time with Rainbow now more than ever, but she wasn’t able to leave Canterlot. If she left, she ran the risk of being over tired at the next day’s training, or even not turning up at all from being a city away.
The new Sugarcube Corner looked just like the old one. It was a fair difference from the buildings surrounding it, which were mostly single story and grey. Sugarcube Corner had a constant stream of ponies walking in and out, yet none of them seemed to be ‘fancy’. Several small-time DJs were inside, along with every pony and their dog who didn’t live in the rich district.
There was a tremendous amount of talking going on inside, semi-drowned in electronic music. There were light flashing over to the left of the shop and a white mare with lightning blue mane was standing behind a turntable.
‘Oh my Celestia, that’s DJ PON-3!!’ shouted Scootaloo over the crowd and music. ‘What’s she doing here?!’
Mrs. Cake suddenly appeared next to them. ‘She agreed to do shows every week for a few months to promote business. Oh, I can’t thank Pinkie Pie enough for trying to boost business, but she could have chosen someone a little quieter!’ she shouted over the noise in the room. ‘I haven’t seen you in years, Scootaloo! Come with me’ she said, leading them into a back room and shutting the door. The noise of the other room subsided somewhat and she offered them both seats.
She left the room again, the noise coming back momentarily as the door opened, and they looked at each other.
‘Well, I was right. Pinkie isn’t here.’ Said Scootaloo
‘Well, duh, but who’s the mare?’
‘Oh, yeah. She’s Mrs. Cake. She and her husband started Sugarcube Corner in Ponyville and basically adopted Pinkie when she arrived. She’s always been nice to me, and tolerant to the Crusaders. Then again, I don’t think there’s a pony alive she hasn’t been nice to.’
After a minute, Mrs. Cake re-entered the room with a tray on her back. The tray had a brightly coloured two-story cake on it, surrounded by cupcakes with pink, swirly frosting on them.
She placed the tray on the table and told them to help themselves.
‘No, Mrs. Cake, we couldn’t do that!’ Scootaloo objected
‘Yeah we could, I’m starving…’ muttered Jecht
‘Oh, please, dearies. It’s no trouble at all. After hearing about you becoming a Wonderbolt, and also about Rainbow Dash waking up, you must want to celebrate somehow! Well, I’m no Pinkie Pie, but I can give you some sweets. Go on, have some.’ Said Mrs. Cake, and Jecht immediately grabbed a cupcake
‘Thif if bood!’ said Jecht, then swallowed. ‘This has to be the best cupcake I’ve ever had’ she repeated, Scootaloo nearly choking on her cupcake with laughter.
‘Well, thank you. Now, I don’t think I got your name- oh! Where are my manners? I’m Vanilla Cake, but you can call me “Mrs. Cake” if you wish’
‘Nice to meet you. I’m Jecht. All I’m wondering is why Scootaloo never told me how amazing your baking was! Heh-heh, amazing baking’ she muttered to herself, pleased with how it rhymed.
Scootaloo rolled her eyes. ‘Well, I suppose it slipped my mind. I was probably too distracted by a friend who is entertained by bad half-rhymes’ she said.
‘Well, it’s nice to meet you too. Now Scootaloo,’ she said, turning to her. ‘You must tell me all that’s happened since you left! The Cutie Mark Crusaders were devastated, the poor little dears. Well, they’re not so little, now, but they were quite downtrodden!’
Scootaloo, with the help of Jecht, began to tell of all she had done after leaving Ponyville, how she had met Jecht, trained with her, and won countless competitions by her side. Mr. Cake came in from time to time looking for something or other in the boxes off to the side of the room. After she had finished telling her story, Mrs. Cake had a tear in her eye.
‘That’s just so sweet.’ She said with a sniffle. ‘So you two are… together?’
Scootaloo and Jecht looked at each other, smiled, and nodded.
‘Oh, it’s so nice to know that two ponies can love, despite what the populous may think. Back when I was a filly, they would have sent anypony off to a camp if they’d even hinted at such a thing. It’s nice to see how people are becoming more loving and tolerant’ she completed.
‘Well, I’m sorry to cut this short, but the night rush is about to start. That loud Vinyl puts on her new tracks and everypony for three miles comes to listen. We’ve made more money since the shop opened than we have in the last 15 years in Ponyville, but all the same I miss the little shop. We still send letters to our old friends, and Pinkie assures the shop is running well, but, oh, what I wouldn’t give to be back in Ponyville’
On that note, she trotted out of the room and went to stand behind the front counter and serve customers.
‘Maybe we should go check out those other places you mentioned?’ said Scootaloo
‘Oh, yeah. Sure, let’s go… after one more cupcake… or two!’ Said Jecht, grabbing two cupcakes and taking a huge bite out of one.
Scootaloo rolled her eyes at her marefriend, but grabbed a cupcake herself, and walked out after her. They waded back through the crowd and noticed the sun had lowered. Jecht guessed they had two hours before sunset.
She finished her first cupcake, then took to the air, Scootaloo following, and angling toward the North end of the rich district, almost as far from the castle as they could go before hitting the middle-class district. Right on the corner to the middle-class district, there was a massive arcade with the word “Flynt’s” displayed in full-caps on the front. They walked in, and were greeted with 80’s music by the Eurithmares. Looking around, they saw a whole load of retro-style arcade machines.
Jecht looked like she was one step away from salivating. Scootaloo suddenly burst out with laughter, but Jecht payed no heed.
‘Is this not the coolest thing you’ve seen all day?’ Jecht asked
‘It is pretty cool… I haven’t ever been to an old arcade. I’ve wanted to, but I’ve never even seen one before. I didn’t know there was one in Canterlot.’ She said
‘Oh yeah, there’s one here, and another in Manehattan. I think they have about four spread all about Fillydelphia. Fillydelphia is the place that I always wanted to live in. Great place to have a family. Everypony’s friendly, there’s almost no crime, and there are loads of family places like the arcades.’
They walked in between the aisles of machines, watching ponies playing different games. Scootaloo didn’t recognise any of the games, but they looked interesting. They ranged right down from a pixelated unicorn eating red lines, presumably carrots, and running from four different coloured ghosts all the way to a game where there were two Pegasus ponies flying around releasing jet-streams behind them. The goal of that game was to go as long as possible while trying not to hit the jetstreams, but also trying to trap the other person’s character in it.
Scootaloo turned around and Jecht was already deeply entranced and gaming away nearby. She went over to join her at a game called “Sky invaders” where an insane unicorn was trying to shoot down a flock of Pegasi that were all flying across the screen and slowly down.
---
After roughly an hour in the arcade, their saddlebags were a bit lighter. Well, 30 bits, to be precise. The sun was about half an hour from setting and Scootaloo asked where they were going next. Jecht seemed to come out of a daze and looked out the glass front door.
‘Oh! Wow, you should have said something earlier. I sort of drift off when I play games, hahah’ she said, idly rubbing the back of her head with a hoof.
‘Well, I know one more spot we can go before we head back to the hotel.’ She said
The two Pegasi exited the arcade and took to the skies. They seemed to be heading away from Canterlot, and just as Scootaloo was about to ask again where they were headed, Jecht began to bank down. They landed on a hill with a solitary tree standing on it.
They sat in silence under the tree, and Scootaloo spoke.
‘So, what is there to do here?... Jecht?’ she asked and turned to face her.
When she turned, she was met with a completely clear, orange sky. The sun was barely above the horizon and seemed to slowly be melting into the ground. They watched in silence for several minutes, and Jecht scooted up close and rested her head against Scootaloo’s neck. Scootaloo tilted her head over Jecht’s and they continued to sit in loving silence for several more minutes, before Scootaloo figured they if they didn’t head back soon, they would lose all light.
Scootaloo lifted her head and noticed that Jecht had a tear on her cheek.
‘What’s up?’ asked Scootaloo
Jecht stirred. ‘What?’ felt her cheek to be wet. ‘Oh. I guess… it’s just… we’ve come so far together. I’m glad Rainbow Dash is awake, but if she hadn’t been hurt so badly, we never would have met. Neither of us would have gotten to where we are and… well, I’ve never told anypony this before, but… before I met you, I didn’t want to live. I was always out shadowed by Spitfire and no one wanted to talk to me. They were scared that I was stuck up, or that I was so rich that I’d reject them… life was horrible. I… If I hadn’t met you, I never would have met anyone else ever again…’ she said.
Scootaloo was taken aback. She had never known Jecht to be this way. Jecht always thinks things through before making any decision… could she really have considered suicide? If it wasn’t for me… she… her thoughts trailed off.
She lightly pressed her muzzle to Jecht’s cheek.
‘I’ll always be here for you, Jecht. I never want to leave your side. The whole deal with the Wonderbolts proved that.’
‘I know. I love you, Scootaloo.’ She said
‘And I love you, too, Jecht.’ Scootaloo responded, softly.
---
Two weeks later
---
Scootaloo and Jecht had finally been allowed to take a few days off. The first bits of training were to make sure the two new recruits were up to the standard of the rest of the team. They were up to it, and above it, so they were given a week to themselves. They both wanted to go back to each other’s hometowns. Jecht wanted to get to know Rainbow Dash a bit better, and they both wanted to go and see their parents.
They had decided that since Cloudsdale was further away, they would go there first so they would have a shorter trip back to Canterlot when they were tired out from their week.
---
‘Welcome home, Jecht! You too, Scootaloo. How has your week been?’ asked their father.
‘Pretty good’ said Scootaloo
‘Yeah,’ said Jecht, ‘except for how boring it was! All we did was sign papers and fly in circles. Sure, a couple of them are talkative, but mostly they’re devoted to flying around the aerodrome. We’re being put in the speed division, so all we do all day is practise flying.’
‘Well, it still sounds good! I mean, how many ponies become Wonderbolts?’ he countered
‘Yeah, I guess. We’re getting a fair few bits for it, too, but it just doesn’t seem like it’ll be fun… maybe I’ll see if we can get into the fancy-flier division.’ Said Jecht
‘Come along, your mother just served lunch. You should have called ahead, we would have made more; maybe even something better’ said their father, and they walked to the kitchen.
‘Welcome home; Scootaloo, Jecht.’ Said their mother, nodding to each in turn.
‘Hey mum. I missed you’ said Jecht, hugging her mother. ‘So… about this lunch…?’
‘Always the hungry one.’ She said, then served out some boiled vegetables and bread. ‘Now, eat all of that and I have some sugar canes in the cupboard.’
‘Mum, I’m not 7…’ said Jecht
‘Yeah,’ said Scootaloo, ‘but that’s no reason to turn down some sugar cane!’
‘It’s just the way she said it’
‘Oh, please. Aren’t mothers always meant to be like that?’
Jecht suddenly felt bad. She remembered that Scootaloo had never known her own parents.
‘Sorry, it’s just…’
‘What’s there to be sorry about? Come on and eat, I want some sugar cane.’ Said Scootaloo, sensing the turn in conversation before it happened.
They stayed in Cloudsdale for three days. Their parents were happy to hear of what had happened in the week since their departure, especially about what they had seen on stage, and in turn, referenced several stories they had of their years as husband and wife.
They left for Ponyville, after a teary goodbye from their mother, and arrived within 20 minutes. The wind was with them, so they only had to glide most of the way.
The town of Ponyville seemed to be throwing some sort of parade or ceremony. When they touched down, they found it to be for them and Rainbow Dash.
They were immediately greeted by a pink pony who began to speak very quickly.
‘Oh no, you’re not supposed to be here yet! Oh, it ruined the surprise!! We were going to throw you a whole-town celebration for becoming Wonderbolts, and also to celebrate Dash waking up, but you’re here to early and the surprise was ruined and-‘
‘Pinkie, I think they get it.’ Said Twilight from somewhere to their right. ‘We were told you would be leaving at midday, so we planned this for 12:30.’
‘Yeah, the wind was with us.’ Said Scootaloo.
‘Well, I guess we’re pretty much ready to start.’ Said Twilight. ‘Everypony was going to jump out and yell surprise, but I guess there wasn’t enough time to organise it. That would have been deafening, so I guess it wasn’t too much of a loss’ she joked.
A group of ponies began to play over at Mane Street as they trotted in. the mayor of Ponyville was waiting at the podium as they arrived.
‘Welcome, fillies and gentle colts, to a celebration for three special ponies. One has become a friend to many with her loyalty and determination to become a Wonderbolt. Rainbow Dash was injured in a flying accident and in a coma, and she had recently woken up. I’m sure I speak for us all when I give my warm welcomes back to her!’ she said, and the gathered crowd cheered.
Rainbow Dash trotted up onto the stage, a slight limp in her foreleg, and blushed. ‘Thanks, everyone.’ She said, then stood back.
The mayor continued. ‘The other ponies this is in celebration for are the two ponies Scootaloo, and Jecht. Scootaloo was raised in Ponyville, and quickly became friends with anypony she met. When she moved away, I’ll admit that the town became quieter, which was a bit better, but it was also emptier. She was one of a group called the “Cutie Mark Crusaders”, if I remember correctly, and they were the worst effected by Scootaloo leaving.
‘Now, we know that she had gone to Cloudsdale. She had trained, day and night, for months on end, until finally joining the Young Fliers Academy. She met Jecht, and together, they overcame every challenge they faced. We are celebrating their most recent victory, in becoming Wonderbolts!’ she said, and the crowd roared.
‘Scootaloo, Jecht, perhaps you’d like to say something?’ she asked.
They looked to each other and flew over to the stage. The crowd cheered again when they flew over.
‘Thank you, mayor.’ Said Scootaloo. She quickly explained all the training she had done, then listed the competitions she had won, but made special effort to make the point that she couldn’t have done it without Jecht. After she had finished her recount of the match, Rainbow Dash looked, for the first time in public, close to tears of happiness.
‘But… why did you do it? How did you do it? You surely didn’t just decide to become a Wonderbolt. Your cutie mark says that much. It’s just like mine.’ Said Rainbow Dash.
Scootaloo went and showed the crowd her mark, to a collective gasp, and spoke loud enough for the crowd to hear.
‘Well, Rainbow…’ she said, ‘I knew I could do it because… I always wanted to be like you…’
---
Dear Princess Celestia,
Today I learned an important lesson about the Magic of Friendship, and about life in general.
When Rainbow Dash was injured, I felt like my life would be over if I didn't complete her final wishes. I devoted all of my time to my training and I lost all of my friends. Life became terrible for me. As soon as I met Jecht, she helped me through this part of my life. We were able to train together, and what before seemed to only be done for Rainbow Dash now seemed to become my life goal, too.
With Jecht by my side, I overcame obstacles that I would never have been able to on my own. With a friend... I was whole.
Now that I've returned to Ponyville, that is becoming obvious more than ever before. Now, more than just Jecht, I also have Sweetie Belle and Applebloom there for me again. I was so glad when they accepted my apology... I guess true friendship never dies. I am eternally grateful to them.
Sometimes, even though we may want to believe otherwise, we do need to rely on friends for help. Even personal goals can be achieved with friends.
Sincerely, Scootaloo.
'C'mon, slowpoke! What's taking you so long?' called Dash from outside somewhere.
'She's writing a letter' came the voice of Jecht.
Scootaloo looked up through the window to see Jecht hovering and staring at her.
'Hi!'
Scootaloo squealed and jumped back in surprise.
'Don't scare me like that!'
'Well, I wouldn't need to if you weren't such a slowpoke' said Jecht, poking out her tongue.
'Come here and say that!'
'What's taking so long? It's just a letter!' called Rainbow Dash.
'Right. Going.'
She turned and walked downstairs. She and Jecht had been given a spare room at Sweet Apple Acres for the few days they were going to be in Ponyville.
'Mornin' Sugarcube,' said Applejack as Scootaloo walked down the staircase. 'D'you want somethin' for breakfast? It's a little late, but Ah could always use the leftover mix for some waffles and there's apple sauce in the fridge'
'Sorry Applejack, but as good as that sounds I really have to go. Jecht and Rainbow are waiting for me and I have to get this letter to Twilight so she can send it to-'
'Waiting for you? If there's waffles involved, we'll come to you! Fire up the stove, Applejack' said Rainbow, appearing in the doorway. In her short time since leaving the hospital she had learned to compensate for the limp in her foreleg, but her wing had never been completely healed. When she tried to fly she would get massive cramps after a short while, so flying had become a rare treat. The only upside to being grounded was being with her best friend, Applejack.
'Sure thing, Rainbow. Hoo-wee, with this many ponies all wanting some Ah might need to make more batter! Let's see... Macintosh is already out in the field and Applebloom is off in town today mindin' the stall. There's still four of us, though. Ah think Ah'll have enough...'
She retrieved a bowl from the refrigerator and began to pour some mix into a waffle iron, which she lowered into a wood-fire oven with her teeth.
'T'aint the fastest way t' cook, but it sure is the tastiest' she explained.
As Applejack began to serve out waffles one by one, conversation began to pick up. Rainbow was asking what the Wonderbolts were like, and Scootaloo couldn't help but notice that behind her smile, her eyes still held a deep sadness at having lost her chance to be one.
'Rainbow Dash, I've been meaning to ask for a while, now... Even if you can't... fly' Scootaloo began, awkwardly, 'maybe you could still teach us some of your tricks? I mean, we were taught by the same Academy you were, but maybe in your experience you have some good moves you could teach us!'
Jecht nodded her agreement, turning to face Dash with a grin.
Rainbow Dash looked like a hundred Pinkie Pie Parties had all just happened at the exact same time, and she immediately shouted 'YES!', followed by 'Oh, sorry Applejack... here, let me help with that...'
She had startled Applejack while she had been pouring the last of the mix, and the result was a puddle of goo on the floor. Appejack let her grab a cloth and begin to wipe. Applejack never knew what it was like to be a Pegasus, but she understood how sad Dash would be without flight. Applejack would do anything to make her feel useful again.
When she had finished, she was eager to be outside again. At her urging, the group migrated outside and started off toward the city. Applejack was going in to check on Applebloom anyway, so she stayed with the group until they reached the city.
Rainbow Dash rushed off to spread the word that she had been elected the new Coach of Scootaloo and Jecht to anyone who would listen, and the two Pegasi continued on to the Library to meet Twilight.
---
'Thanks for doing this, Twilight. I remember you used to send letters to the princess all the time about your studies on the magic of friendship, and so I thought that I'd write to her. I hope she won't mind...'
'No, not at all! The princess is probably looking forward to another letter. It's been over a month since my last one... I never thought I'd learn everything about friendship- and I still don't think I have!- but I'm only rarely learning anything new. Spike? There's a letter for the princess here, if you could send it for us.'
'Sure thing, Twilight!' called an excited voice from within the next room. The ponies heard a thump and a scurrying of feet and Spike was in the room.
'You didn't drop something, did you, Spike?' asked Twilight, worried he had knocked over a globe or worse.
'No, I was just on top of a ladder and... well... I didn't stick the landing. I'm okay, though! I'm really excited for a letter to the princess, the last one was sent thirty-six days ago!' he said in a rush, finishing by lifting up a small notebook to reveal a calendar with a star in the previous month.
'Well, it's good to know you stay on top of everything Spike!' Twilight praised, 'Except maybe the ladder...' she muttered to herself.
Jecht suddenly giggled a bit, and when Twilight realised she had heard, she laughed, too. Spike looked between the two, then glanced to Scootaloo.
'No idea,' she said, answering his thoughts. 'Here's the letter for the princess. I wrote it myself.'
He took the letter and upon Twilight's urging, and slight giggling, blew a flare of green smoke upon the letter, which flew off in the direction of Canterlot.
'Well, Rainbow Dash said she was going to hang out with us today. Oh, and she's also now our unofficial coach. Expect a lot of bragging. Well, we'll be seeing you, Miss Sparkle!' said Jecht
Twilight was somewhat startled by Jecht speaking so easily. She normally didn't speak to anyone she didn't consider close to her. Her heart was warmed by the thought that Jecht considered her to be a friend, and she nodded with a smile.
'Come along, Spike. I've almost caught up on last week's study.'
'Yes, ma'am!' he said loudly with a salute. Twilight rolled her eyes at this show of military respect and turned back inside, lightly closing the door with her magic.
'Bye!' said Spike quickly before the door closed.
---
Applejack had told them that Rainbow Dash would be waiting in the open field near the Everfree Forest and the local lake... That's where it happened... that's where Rainbow Dash... nearly died..., thought Scootaloo.
'What's up? Is that place important to you? Come on, you can tell me!' said Jecht.
Scootaloo immediately realised that her emotion must have been showing more than she thought and she immediately put on a grin, turning it real with a mental image of Opalescence having a bucket of water dumped on her, then receiving a patented Rainblow-dry from Rainbow Dash. 'Nothing's wrong, everything's fine!' she said.
'But I asked if it was important to you, not if anything was wrong. You just shot yourself in the foot there, Scoots.'
'Alight... well... it's the spot that Rainbow hit the ground... and... I don't really want to go back there...'
'Hey, come on. If Rainbow's okay with going back there, then you must be! Lighten up, Scoots. I'm here if you need support.'
That was what she wanted to hear. She knew that Jecht was always there when she needed her, but to hear her say it was still reassuring. She looked up into Jecht's sky-blue eyes and nodded. She quickly took to the air and began to fly to the indicated spot.
---
The first thing Scootaloo noticed while gliding over the field was a blue blob in a patch of dead grass. When she looked closer, she also noticed a rainbow mane and tail. Rainbow Dash jumped to her feet and flew up to meet them in the air.
'Hey, girls! I was beginning to wonder when you were going to get here. Come on; let's land so we can begin.'
Of course the lessons couldn't be held up in the air. Rainbow was obviously having enough trouble staying airborne for long enough to talk to them, let alone staying up for a whole lesson.
When they landed, she immediately began to tell them about her best moves and tactics, followed by precise instructions on how to execute them. The sun sank lower in the sky and when Rainbow Dash estimated they had half an hour left before night, she called them back in to land.
'That was awesome! Those moves took me weeks to perfect, but you've almost got some of them in a single day! Oh man, I really put my money on the right ponies here' she said beaming at the two. They blushed a bit at the compliment, but didn't know whether to deny it or not. Instead, Jecht changed the subject.
'What's with the dead patch you were lying in? It didn't look very comfortable... not compared to the green grass all around it, anyway'
'That's... that's where my life... ended.' she said. The magnitude of emotions weighing down on her right now was incredible. She was glad to be alive, and angry at herself for having been so stupid. She was sad at how she was not, literally, lame. That was the one thing Rainbow Dash wasn't! But she was. Finally, she was happy that from her accident, her prodigy was able to have discovered her life meaning, and made a life long friend. That alone made up for all the bad that had come of the incident.
Jecht immediately regretted bringing it up. Scootaloo didn't want to see her so put out. If one was going to look like a foal, the other was, too. 'Why hasn't it grown back?' she asked. Jecht immediately realised the ruse and smiled at her friend sticking with her, too.
'You know what? I really don't know.' Rainbow replied.
'I believe I might be able to answer that' came a regal voice that seemed to carry great authority.
Upon seeing the princess the three Pegasi dropped to their knees and muttered 'princess'.
'Rise, my little ponies. I don't know how many times I need to tell you that you don't need to bow to me. I am a princess, yes, but I'm here as a friend. Please treat me as such.' she said, much to the confusion of the Pegasi. Rainbow noticed that the others were all a short way behind Celestia. The rest of the Element Bearers, and Spike, walked over and stopped in front of Celestia, beside Rainbow, Jecht, and Scootaloo.
'There are many types of magic in this world. There's the magic of unicorns and alicorns, there's the magic of the Elements, and there's the magic of Friendship and Harmony. There is also, however, the magic of emotion. This spot here is a site of great sorrow. I believe it hasn't grown back because of how sad the accident made everyone involved. Without happiness, this patch of grass has lost the will to grow and has wilted. I noticed this when I came to see the site of the accident personally nearly two years ago. I believed that when Rainbow Dash woke up it would have restored the plant. Surely the sadness of the incident dispersing and happiness of the ponies returning would have brought it back. But, alas, it is not so. I do not completely understand emotion, nor do I think I ever will, and as such I have no idea what has happened here.
'On a lighter note; Scootaloo, that letter was gratefully received. I'm always happy to hear what Twilight has learned about friendship, but to receive a letter from someone else was something of a surprise. Come along back to town and we'll discuss this further.'
---
The night came quickly, and time flowed even faster. It was only an hour into their meeting at the Library when a gold-clad Pegasus guard came in and whispered something in the princess' ear.
'My apologies, my little ponies, but running Equestria comes with a lot of paperwork. If I delay return to Canterlot for much longer, I fear the castle might burst with all of the documents and ponies waiting for my approval on something or other. I hope to speak to you, all of you, again soon. I look forward to the next letter about friendship, whoever it may come from. Good night, Spike' she called up to Twilight's room. A faint snore and mutter was heard in response, to which Celectia laughed softly; then took off.
---
The final day came for the two Pegasi, and Rainbow Dash couldn't help herself. She almost knew the answer would be no, but it wasn't as though she could do it for herself any more.... She wanted to ask Scootaloo and Jecht to speak to the Wonderbolts on her behalf. She had moves that some of them couldn't even imagine, and she was willing to do anything to be near the Wonderbolts, if not one of them.
'So if you could just speak to Soarin' for me, I... I don't know how to express how thankful I'd be.'
'Well, we actually wanted to ask if you wanted to come back with us to see them again.' said Jecht. 'When I was talking to Spitfire last I mentioned how much of an influence one my Scootaloo was, and you were on Scootaloo. She said that she knew you a bit and sort of wanted to talk... I'm sure they wouldn't mind if you came back with us.'
Rainbow Dash's jaw nearly hit the ground. Her eyes rolled up into her head and she toppled over backwards muttering to herself. 'The Wonderbolts... want to meet me... '
'I'll take that as a yes, then?'
When Rainbow recovered, their carriage was ready to take them. Scootaloo and Jecht had already packed their saddlebags at Sweet Apple Acres and were ready to leave. Twilight turned up right on time, followed by Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy. Twilight had been told of their plan beforehand and she had packed twin saddlebags in preparation. Rainbow took them and promised to return as soon as she could.
Pinkie was bouncing around Rainbow in circles letting out a constant stream of semi-incoherent words until Dash finally caught her and held her in place. 'Pinkie! I promise to return as soon as possible. Go and load your party cannon, and you can throw me a welcome-back party when I get home, okay?'
Pinkie Pie suddenly turned grey and stopped moving completely. 'Uhh, Pinkie... that's kinda creepy!' she said just as the grey Pinkie blew away in the wind and a pink blur could be seen heading toward Sugarcube Corner.
The entire group laughed at the randomness of Pinkie and bid their final goodbyes to Dash for her trip to Canterlot, however long it would last. Rainbow Dash boarded the carriage, followed by Scootaloo and Jecht, and one of the Pegasi that pull the carriage closed the door, then turned back to the reins. Dash gave a final wave out of the window of the carriage as it began to pick up speed and take off towards the capital of Equestria.
---
Applejack already missed Rainbow. She had only just gotten her best friend back, and now she was already leaving her again. Yes, it was only temporary, but Applejack was still sad about the sudden turn of events. She found herself walking aimlessly through ponyville on the third day since her departure and eventually made her way to the site of the crash and the patch of dead grass.
As she lay down , she stopped feeling sad and forced her thoughts to become happier ones. She was happy that Dash was still alive, and happy that she was still chasing her dreams, despite recent physical setbacks. She smiled as she looked up at the bright, blue sky. There were a few clouds here and there. The new Pegasus wasn't very good at clearing clouds. She could be seen haphazardly flying in all directions, occasionally hitting a cloud- whether intentionally or accidentally was anyone's guess- and crashing every so often. She was the mailmare until she had lost her job. Something about dropping stuff out of a moving-truck and injuring a unicorn.
Applejack smiled as she recalled memories of cool Autumn days when Dash would fly by overhead bucking clouds just as she bucked her apples. She was at peace.
---
'Miss Rainbow Dash, I think that will work nicely. You are hired as trainer of the Wonderbolts' said Soarin'.
Rainbow felt something change inside her. In the deep recesses of her mind, where she hadn't even noticed anything, she felt... lighter. Her life goal had at last been achieved. She was one of the Wonderbolts! Well, the trainer, but that's close enough!
She gave out a cheer and leapt up into the air, doing fast spirals and flying around the entire stadium at break-neck speeds. She hadn't felt this free in forever!
Scootaloo and Jecht both gasped when they saw this, and it took Rainbow Dash a while to realise why everypony was staring at her. She was flying. She was flying, and she didn't realise it! Ever since getting out of hospital, she had felt depressed, and that was only made worse by not being able to fly; but she was flying now as freely as she ever had. There was not a trace of sadness, anger, or any other bad emotion in her mind as she soared around the stadium again, Scootaloo racing to catch up with her hero and Jecht racing to catch up with her friend. They were all laughing loudly as pure, unbridled joy showed on their faces.
---
The grass suddenly stopped prickling her underside. Applejack had been putting up with the discomfort because it was outweighed by being somewhere so important to Rainbow Dash.
She looked down at the grass around her, then leapt up and gasped. It was no longer dead; instead, the circle of dead grass took on a spiral pattern with a rainbow swirling into the centre. Even as she watched, the grass grew to being half a foot long, then suddenly stopped. She smiled broadly and immediately knew.
'Yeh did it, Rainbow. Yeh did it.'
She blinked away a tear of happiness and turned to run back to town and get her friends. They all needed to see it.
---
Two weeks later
---
'Get your pace up, Squirt! You think you'll ever be better than me when even Tank could beat you?'
Scootaloo kicked herself into overdrive. Rainbow was a mere two feet ahead, but was doing a Super-speed Strut just to taunt her. The finish line was coming up closer. Scootaloo was inching closer to Rainbow Dash. Rainbow suddenly stopped strutting and showed massive strain in flying forward as fast as she could. It wasn't enough. Scootaloo was closing the distance fast, and there was nothing she could do to stop it.
I. Will. Not. LOSE! Rainbow shouted in her mind, straining her wings harder to keep her in the lead. This worked just fine for Scootaloo, who had taken refuge in the slipstream immediately behind Rainbow Dash.
10 yards to the finish line, Scootaloo pulled out below and fired off in front of Rainbow Dash. She won by a whole two feet, and Dash was completely shocked. She had been beaten... by her own student!
'I'm-so-proud-of-you' said Rainbow between massive breaths. She may be one of the fastest ponies in Equestria, but she had also fallen out of practise in the two years since the accident.
Scootaloo looked up at Dash with gratitude in her eyes. Her hero was proud of her. She ran up and tackled Dash in a bone-crushing hug, tears spilling over as she could find nothing more to say than 'thank you'.
Author's Nore: SPOT THE GAME REFERENCE!
Hint: It's from Kingdom Hearts.
I only went through to change this because Dragon Smash on Facebook asked me if he could turn this into a video. Well, I was over the moon! (sorry, Luna) He asked if he could change the ending to RD and Scootaloo flying off into the sunset, which reminded me... Dash was lame, but I forgot to mention it! Why else would she have walked up onto the stage instead of flown, eh? But I digress. I hope you guys liked this epilogue better than the last one.
Oh, also, feel free to make use of that Magic of Emotion thing. I can see some really good stories coming from that, but I already have two fanfics on my plate right now.