Rainbow Dash was back in Ponyville. She found another cloud, and was laying on it, sobbing once again.
"Loyalty." Her ears pricked up at the voice.
"Princess Luna, I thought you were…" She stopped and looked confused, "But my friends said…" she stopped again, only to get a chiming laugh from the princess of the night.
"Rainbow Dash, yes, I am here. I am not Nightmare Moon."
"But how?"
A blue wing enfolded the mourning pegasus, Luna lay down next to Rainbow Dash and lay close to her. For a long time there was silence.
"It is strange, is it not? Everypony's life touches so many other lives. When she isn't around she leaves an awful hole, doesn't she?"
Rainbow looked down. "Yes. I never believed that I had such an effect on all of my friends lives."
"Everypony has a profound effect on those lives they touch. You, bearing an element of Harmony, and being the pony you are Rainbow Dash, have more of an effect than you will ever realize."
"How? How did you put me into this world?"
"Child, I may be a very powerful alicorn. I may be able to perform feats of magic that outstrip what any pony that you know can do." She stopped and sighed. "But putting you in a different world is beyond my abilities."
"I'm asleep, aren't I? This is all a dream?"
Luna looked at Rainbow Dash, after a long moment, she nodded.
"How real is this dream? It feels real."
"This dream is the best I could project of what would happen if you had never been born. Both through me observing the dreams of your friends, and learning the history of your life. I believe that the ponies you met in this dream would be a very accurate representation of how things would be if you had never been born."
Rainbow looked at Luna, tears in her eyes. "So, I'll wake up, and my friends will be back to normal?"
The wing around her tightened slightly. "They will be the same as they were. Because you are in their lives."
"And Scootaloo?"
Luna's ears fell. "During your adventure in this dream, I visited Twilight. She says she's done everything she can do. She is hopeful though. Young Scootaloo is a tough pony. She can survive this. I don't know any more than that."
"You say you can do magic that other ponies can only dream of. Can you help her?"
Luna smiled sadly. "I know healing magic, and so does Twilight. I showed her a few things that might make a difference, but the amount of difference is small. She is working on the young filly right now. But Twilight has had almost a worse time than you have. She hasn't slept the whole time, added in with the energy spent on healing you and Scootaloo, she is approaching magical exhaustion. And given her level of power, she will be days, if not weeks, recovering to full capacity."
"I wish there was something I could do for her."
"There is, Loyalty. When this is done, help her. Make her rest, she is too stubborn to just do it on her own. She needs you to make her do what she needs to do. Twilight would literally kill herself to keep you and Scootaloo alive. You need to make sure she rests."
Rainbow Dash looked at the midnight blue alicorn. "I promise, I will make sure that Twilight comes through this."
"Good, Loyalty. You so very often live up to your element. Now go."
Waking up on the cloud she had first started this crazy dream on, Rainbow Dash shook herself, "Twilight needs help. And I'm going to help her."
It was a short flight back to the hospital. She noticed the window she had crashed through was still broken, no pony had put any boards up for the window. She flew into her room, landing heavily. Her body still hurt.
"Ah, there yah are Rainbow, Twilight told me that you would be coming back soon. Somepony wants to say somethin to yah," Applejack said from the visitors chair. Apple Bloom stepped forward.
"Ahm sorry fer whut I said." Tears leaked from her eyes. "I was scared for my friend. I lashed out at you, and I really didn't mean it." Her words were cut off by Rainbow grabbing her and pulling her into a hug.
"She's your friend, and I'm sorry for hurting her." She held the trembling filly tightly. "She's my friend too. And I would trade places with her in an instant if it meant she would be okay. But our friend Twilight is doing her best for her. She will be okay." Rainbow sincerely hoped that her words would prove to be true. After several moments, the filly hugged her back, with every bit of earth pony strength that she possessed. Rainbow endured the pain and just concentrated on comforting Apple Bloom.
"I need to go see her, I need to help Twilight."
Applejack shook her head. "Twilight was very specific in her instructions. You are to stay here until she comes and gets you. She said she would tie you up and leave you even longer if you come before you are called."
Rainbow Dash sighed.
***
Near dawn Rainbow was woken by the sound of hoof steps in her room. The Apples had left hours earlier. She opened her eyes to the exhausted face of Twilight Sparkle.
"Twilight?"
"She's awake, and she's asking for you."
Spirits buoyed by the news she hopped off the bed. Only to steady her friend as she stumbled.
"Twilight, Princess Luna warned me about you getting magical exhaustion."
"I'll be fine, I am very tired, but I'm not to that point."
"Princess Luna told me you would be stubborn about it, she told me I needed to take care of you. And the first thing I'm going to do is make you get into bed and rest. I'll deal with seeing Scoots. I want you to rest."
"I'm fine, Rainbow."
"No, you are not fine, I can see it. Please Twilight. For me? Just take a nap, I'll come get you after I'm done seeing Scootaloo, then I'll take you home, okay?"
Twilight looked at her, and it was a measure of her exhaustion that she lowered her head and sighed, "Fine, Rainbow."
Taking a moment to help her friend into the bed, she made sure the covers were tight and her friend was breathing steadily in sleep, Rainbow trotted to Scootaloo's room.
She pushed the door open, Scootaloo's mother was laying down next to her daughter's bed, her head laying right next to the orange filly. She was sound asleep, the only pony awake was Scootaloo.
"Hey, kiddo, how are you feeling?"
The small filly whispered, "I'm sorry Rainbow Dash, I shouldn't have moved to see you better, I got right in the way."
Rainbow moved right up next to the bed. "Oh, no Scoots, it's all my fault. I turned my head away from the direction of flight, I broke rule number one of being a pegasus." And tears started to form, "and I hurt you in the process. I'm so sorry Scootaloo." She lay her head down next to the filly and cried.
She heard a sob, and jerked her head up. "Scootaloo, you don't need to cry."
"But you’re like a big sister to me, I can't stand to see you crying."
Rainbow crawled into the bed and held the filly, "Scootaloo, I'm the one who messed up. You should be mad at me."
Purple eyes filled with tears looked up at her, "Rainbow Dash, I'm not mad at you at all. It was an accident. I'll be okay."
"You might never walk again, you might never ride your scooter again."
"Rainbow Dash, Twilight finished her magic on me a couple of hours ago, the swelling is going down. I can't move my rear legs yet, but I can feel them. She even poked a pin in both of my hind legs and got a reaction, and I could feel it. I'm going to be fine."
Rainbow's tears turned to tears of joy, "You are going to be okay, Scootaloo, I'm so happy for you."