• Chapter One: Nothing More •

…

A cyan pegasi filly trudged her way down the path, a cart fastened to her belly. Each hoof step made her feel uncomfortable. Being on the ground made her feel so vulnerable.

"Ha! Rainbow Crash can't fly so well so she has to be on the ground!" She heard the snickering and turned around to see the burly colts she had grown all too familiar to.

"Haha... Rainbow Crash!" Coughed another one. Rainbow Dash raised her eyebrow.

"Why don't you all tie your wings together, get lost in the Everfree Forest and jump off a cliff! Sounds like something you would do considering your brains are as big as your mouths." Rainbow Dash gave a swift flick of the tail, quite proud of her comeback and trotted off. The colts were stuttering for words but they couldn't come up with anything and quickly flew away out of embarrassment. Things weren't easy for Rainbow Dash. Her parents, she loved so much, had once been the most popular ponies of Cloudsdale. Rainbow Dash had lived an easy life, because many ponies idolised her, being the daughter of two of the most talented flyers. Some said that one day, Rainbow Dash was going to be the head of the Wonderbolts. Rainbow Dash had been happy, until Chrysalis came into rule. The changeling had made budgets too immense that Rainbow Dash and her parents were forced to sell their home. After that, they had went flying, looking for a new place to live until finally, they came across the most poorest town, Ponyville. Maybe their home on the side of an ally wasn't ideal, but Rainbow Dash had still been content. She was glad that she still had both her parents, and she was glad that she had managed to get a job... For towing carts. Her family barely had enough bits to pay for food and taxes however, which had pushed the her far above the limit. Rainbow Dash was forced to work her job double the amount of time, just to stay on the line, and it wasn't fun. Right now the cyan filly was in Cloudsdale, where all the rich pegasi now lived. She stopped at one of the homes, and grabbed a jug of milk, sitting it neatly on the earth in front of the home, before quickly trotting off.

"Rainbow Dash! Hey Rainbow!" Rainbow Dash looked up to the one responsible for the voice, but it was too late as the grey-blue filly with a golden mane and bubbles as a cutie mark went plummeting into Rainbow Dash.

"Uh!" Rainbow Dash cried, before she was kicked right in the belly.

"Sorry!" A voice gasped, Rainbow Dash could barely make it out though, because she went flying backwards, into her cart. The wood slammed painfully into her back, bending some of her feathers in sore angles. The cart rattled. Rainbow Dash was just getting over the dizziness in her head, before some of the jars of milk went toppling down from the cart.

"No!" Rainbow Dash cried, getting up, and flapping her wings vigorously towards the falling jugs of milk. Her bent feathers disagreed with the direction she wanted to go in however, and she went flailing a completely different way.

"I'll get them!" Derpy, the pony who had bumped into Rainbow Dash in the first place, went flying towards the falling glasses. Rainbow Dash didn't have any time to watch Derpy's attempt, for she slammed into another pony. The pony was pale blue, with a crazy dark blue mane.

"Sorry!" Rainbow Dash gaped at the colt she had bumped into. "Derpy!" She tried flying towards the filly again, but this time, her wings completely refused to flap. The colt she had slammed into peered down at her curiously.

"Here," he offered a hoof to help her get up. Rainbow Dash took it gratefully, stumbling up on shaky legs, giving him a nod, before galloping up to Derpy, who had dropped all the jugs which were now smashed on the ground, except one, which was wobbling dangerously in her hooves.

"Here," Rainbow Dash stepped forward to receive the glass, but before her hooves even touched it, it fell backwards and hit the clouds, falling through them. Rainbow Dash cantered over to the side of the cloud, and peered over at the glass of milk, falling to the ground and shattering into hundreds of pieces. Derpy and the colt trotted behind Rainbow Dash, and looked over at the glass below as well.

"Oops..." Derpy cowered a bit. To only make matters worse, a pegasi from down on the ground flew up. The pony had obviously seen the glasses fall.

"Rainbow Dash!" It snarled when it reached the top. To Rainbow Dash's horror, it was her boss.

"Ms Breeze Fly, I can explain..." Rainbow Dash choked out the words, and ruffled her damaged feathers.

"I do not care about your explanation. You're fired!" The pegasi ripped a badge/sticker off Rainbow Dash's chest, and tore it apart, throwing it at Rainbow Dash like confetti.

"But ma'am! You're going too harsh! It was me who bumped into Rainbow Dash and made her drop the cart!" Derpy stepped forward, peering at Ms Breeze Fly with her askew, pleading eyes. Mrs Breeze Fly wasn't even listening to the grey-blue filly though. She was just waiting for her to finish the sentence so she could talk.

"I do not care. I offered Rainbow Dash the job, and she has just proved to me she is not up for it. I mean, please, how is it possible to let every glass break? I mean, I can understand one or two, but all of them?"

Derpy gave an embarrassed hoof at the clouds when Ms Breeze Fly said that. "You'd be surprised," she muttered under her breath. Rainbow Dash peered down, sadly. After Ms Breeze Fly had left, Derpy said her apologies, before flying an opposite direction.

"I think she did go a bit harsh," the colt mentioned, as Rainbow Dash trotted aimlessly across the clouds.

"I know right! Now I have lost my job, my wings, my dignity, and probably my home," Rainbow Dash muttered. The colt looked at her sympathetically.

"I'm Soarin, by the way," he smiled at her, offering a hoof to shake.

"Rainbow Dash," she replied, shaking the hoof and returning his smile.

He stepped back suddenly. "Wait... You're Rainbow Dash? You mean the Rainbow Dash?"

"Yeah. Why, have you heard of me?" She asked, giving him the same look as a celebrity would look at their fans.

"Everypony knows about you! Your parents are famous! Not to mention you being one of the greatest fliers!" He bounced up excitedly.

"I don't think I'd be a great flier right now... My wings are sort of damaged and I'm trying to work out a way to get down back to home." Rainbow Dash gave a snort. Soarin, again, looked sympathetic.

"How about I take you to get a smoothie or something, and then we can find a way to get you down," he offered kindly.

Rainbow Dash was still a bit concerned though. "I don't really have enough bits to pay for a smoothie..."

"Oh! Don't worry, I'll pay." Rainbow Dash decided that Soarin would be a good friend of hers.

"Thanks Soarin." She gave him a playful knock at the shoulder.

"No problem, Dashie," he returned the knock, before trotting across the cloud. Rainbow Dash trotted after him eagerly, until they reached a nearby café. A waitress instantly lead them to a table, which was meant for four, and they both sat on either side of it. There was a awkward silence for s few moments, before the waitress came back, delivering the menus. Rainbow Dash flipped through her's for a few minutes.

"Have you decided on what you want, yet?" Rainbow Dash jumped, not realising that the waitress had snuck up behind her. Soarin couldn't help but laugh at this, and Rainbow Dash gave a glare at him, but she couldn't help but chuckle too.

"Yes, can I have a chocolate milkshake?" Rainbow Dash and Soarin both said that at the same time, and again, the two burst into laughter. After the two had ordered, they began chatting, and it turned out they had more in common than they expected. For one, they both liked chocolate milkshakes! They also both wanted to get into the Wonderbolts when they were older, and they both wanted Cloudsdale to hold the Equestria Games. The Equestria Games was one of the only things that Chrysalis kept. After they received their chocolate milkshakes, which Rainbow Dash claimed were the best milkshakes she had ever had, they talked about more personal things.

Rainbow Dash explained how she lived on an ally in Ponyville, and how that job she had had, was basically all that kept her and her family alive. Rainbow Dash really didn't know what to do now. Now that she had lost her job, she could no longer earn bits, and without bits, her family could not pay for bills and food. She could try and get another job, but it would take forever to earn one, because jobs were very limited in Equestria and were incredibly hard to get. Rainbow Dash listened to what Soarin had to say too. He explained that he didn't have a dad, because his dad had been killed by a changeling when Chrysalis came into rule. Soarin was no more than a foal when that happened. He didn't have much of a mum either, because she was too afraid to step hoof outside her home because of what happened to his dad. Soarin explained that it was up to him to keep his family running. He said he had two older siblings which weren't so kind to him, but he said that usually he could avoid their physical blows, because he was quickest out of all the family.

The two of them finished their milkshakes, but they were still chatting for about an hour in the café until finally a waitress came up and told them they had to leave, because it was nearing the curfew (Chrysalis had put up a curfew. All ponies had to be inside their homes by 8:30 or else the changeling royal guards would be free to kill them). Right now it was 6:30. They trotted out of the café and across the cloud towards the edge.

"Now it's time to work out how to get down... With these." Rainbow Dash spread out her wings, with crooked feathers zigzagged across. Soarin cringed slightly at the sight.

"Do you think I'd be strong enough to carry you down?" He spread out his wings, observing the feathers, and flapping to the sky with a sudden burst. Rainbow Dash was surprised, and what he had said was true, he was a great flier. But Rainbow Dash knew it was difficult for any pegasi to fly with double the amount of their weight, even the most skilled fliers couldn't manage.

She shook her head, "I doubt it." She examined her wings, before looking at Soarin's ones which were flapping steadily, as he descended back down to the cloud.

"I have an idea!" She shouted, a bit too loudly, as some ponies turned their heads towards the cyan pegasi with the rainbow mane. Soarin tilted his head, and beckoned for her to speak.

"I can still fly really... It's just my direction which is a bit off. Maybe if I bite down on your tail, you can lead me in the right direction, while I just flap my wings?" She offered, and he nodded.

"Well that's the best idea we have so far... But don't rip out any of my tail, ok?" He raised an eyebrow, with a cheeky grin on his face. She just rolled her eyes, and clenched down on his tail. He began flapping his wings. She joined in, and soon they were both off the cloud. Rainbow Dash occasionally swerved to the side a bit, but she didn't go full out of control. With Soarin's balance, they both slowly flew closer to the edge of the cloud.

"Ready?" He asked.

"Ye," she replied, her voice muffled through his tail. To her surprise, he bounced of the cloud with a sudden whoosh, and went soaring at top speed down to earth. Rainbow Dash had to bite down hard, provided she didn't let go. Tears formed in her eyes, because of the wind whipping against her face. She flapped her wings vigorously, knowing that she still needed to help Soarin. She flapped a bit too hard, for at some point, she nearly slammed into him.

He turned around, with a goofy expression in his face. "Ha! They don't call me Soar-in for no reason!"

"I can fly well too! When these wings are better, we should have a race," Rainbow Dash suggested.

He smirked. "You're on."

"They don't call me Rainbow Dash for no reason!"

They eventually arrived in Ponyville. Soarin slowed down for Rainbow Dash, when they descended. As soon as her hooves touched the earth, she let go. He descended to the earth simultaneously, and peered around Ponyville curiously.

"This... Is Ponyville?" He asked in horror, looking at the cracked paths, and the rotted signs, and the closed shops. "This is where the most amazing filly in the world lives?"

She smiled slightly at the compliment, "pretty much, and if you think this is bad, you should look at my 'house.'" She trotted down the path, exchanging a quick glance with a few pedestrians. She heard hoof steps behind her to sign that Soarin was cautiously following. The two eventually reached an alleyway. Soarin obviously hadn't expected Rainbow Dash to turn there, for he stopped right where she had swerved.

"Do I have to go down there?" He scraped the ground nervously with his hoof.

Rainbow Dash grinned, "are you scared?" He shook his head a bit too hard.

"No. I'm not scared. Not one bit." He quickly scampered up to her, and stayed close, as they worked their way further down the ally.

"By the way, don't tell my parents that I lost my job... They might not react the best..." She told him with a serious expression on her face. He nodded.

Finally, Rainbow Dash stopped at a few trash bins, piled together, and on top of each other to shape out a small shelter. There was a blanket spread over the top of them to provide extra protection from any rain. Even with the protection, the home wasn't ideal. Breathing in trash so much couldn't be healthy, and there was dirt littered all on the ground. It was full of diseases, and to prove the matters, a rat swiftly scampered passed the two pegasi, before hopping on top of an open trash can and digging through all the food scraps. It was hardly believable that ponies could actually live here.

"Oh my..." Soarin stared at the broken down 'house,' building dust each second, with bits of rubbish littered all over the place. Rainbow Dash could tell it was a big shock for the poor colt. She trotted closer to the house, and peered through the opening.

"Mum! Dad?" She stepped forward, and called for them again, until finally, a pink mare with a blue mane stepped out of the shelter.

"Rainbow Dash! Me and your dad were getting worried about you... You're not usually late-" the mare stopped as she turned to Soarin. "Oh and you brought a friend! Who are you?" Rainbow Dash could swear she saw her mum give her a glance, mixed with surprise, amazement, excitement and... pride?

"Soarin..." He quickly replied, shuffling nervously on his hooves.

"Where is dad?" Rainbow Dash questioned, giving her mum a sideways glance.

"He's inside. Do come in, bring your friend along with you, I'm sure your dad would like to meet him." Rainbow Dash trotted after her mum, and beckoned a nervous Soarin to follow. As soon as Rainbow Dash entered her home, she was greeted warmly by her father, before the purple stallion with the rainbow mane turned to Soarin.

"Who's he?" Her dad asked curiously, peering over the cyan filly's shoulder.

"My friend, Soarin," Rainbow Dash replied. Her dad still seemed curious, and trotted up to the pale blue colt.

"Do you fly?" He asked Soarin, now narrowing his eyes.

"Yes, I am quite good at it," Soarin replied, anxiously, but with building confidence by each second.

Rainbow Dash's dad was still a bit suspicious. "Fast enough to beat Rainbow Dash?"

"You bet!" Soarin replied, less cautious now. Rainbow Dash slapped Soarin playfully.

"Oh, flying with wings like these don't count! You haven't seen anything yet," she grinned, spreading out her broken wings. This was when her parents noticed the twisted feathers.

"Ouch... What happened to your wings?" Asked her mum, rushing up, and running her hoof down the bent feathers.

"Derpy bumped into me... again," Rainbow Dash replied, shrugging. Her dad got up, and trotted further down the house, before returning with a jar which held an aqua liquid in it.

"Drink up," he muttered, and Rainbow Dash slurped up the potion greedily.

"What does that do?" Soarin stepped forward curiously.

"Our family's secret medicine... It cures our wings in less than twenty minutes!" Rainbow Dash boasted.

Soarin looked amazed. "Wow. I wish I had have known about this last time I hurt my wings! I was in hospital for a whole week!" Rainbow Dash laughed, and sat down on a trash can, which was what they used as a chair.

"After my wings get better, Soarin and I are going to have a race," Rainbow Dash explained to her parents, feeling her wings vibrate slightly, as the bent feathers began to fall off, and new ones grew. Rainbow Dash watched for the whole twenty minutes, as her parents kept questioning Soarin. They asked him basically everything, but the colt seemed to be comfortable talking to her parents, much to Rainbow Dash's relief. She was even more relieved, at the fact her parents were smiling. They constantly laughed at things he said, and agreed with a lot of his dislikes and likes. Rainbow Dash wasn't sure if she could be any happier that her parents liked Soarin.

Finally, Rainbow Dash's wings were healed. "I'm better! Wanna race now?" She hopped up from the chair ecstatically, and showed off her new, perfect feathers.

Soaren smirked at her. "You're on!" The two pegasi flew out the home, waving good bye to Rainbow Dash's parents. They flew up to Cloudsdale again, where they trotted up to a race track, which was usually used for exercises at a gym.

"The time right now is 8:15. Do you think you'll be fast enough to beat the curfew?" Rainbow Dash questioned smugly.

"Of course. Are you?" She nodded, and stood in a take off stance. Soarin mirrored the stance. She gave a smug grin at him, before examining the track.

"3... 2... 1... Go!" He shouted, and the two of them shot off as fast as bullets. Rainbow Dash felt the iciness of the wind, whipping against her face, as she rapidly flicked her wings to match the direction of the breeze. She could feel her mane trailing behind her, leaving a rainbow blur spurting across the part of the sky she had just been in. She turned to the side, and to her surprise, Soarin was a few inches ahead of her. Celestia, he's fast. Ok, no more going easy on him! Rainbow Dash pushed harder than she ever had, colliding with a small cloud, but not caring the least, as it whizzed into several miniature clouds. She was now neck and neck with the colt. He turned and smirked at her.

"Given up yet, Dashie?"

"Over my dead body," she replied sassily. The two pegasi zipped through the agility course like fire, swiftly going through hoops of cloud, tunnels and many other obstacles. Rainbow Dash hadn't flown like this in ages. She felt so free, so alive! She loved it.

She squinted her eyes, and saw the finish line up ahead. She felt energy spazzing through her veins and flapped her wings harder than ever. The wind powered it's way over her face, and she felt tears forming, but she pushed harder and harder, until... Whoosh... She had passed the finish line, with Soarin right by her side. She sat down on the cloud, panting for air, and began to preen her feathers exhaustedly, in between breathes.

"I can't believe it was a draw!" Soarin breathed, equally as tired as her.

"I know right! I had it in the bags!" She replied cheekily.

"Did not!" He yelped, giving a flustered expression.

"Did too!" They both burst into laughter, lying down on the clouds, still catching their breathe until finally, she managed to get up.

"It's 8:29. One minute until the curfew. This was fun Soarin. See you tomorrow?" She questioned.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world," he replied, and they both went their separate ways.

…

When Rainbow Dash got home, her parents had seemed to be waiting for her, as they both stared at her, with the biggest grins of their faces. Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow.

"I'm so proud of you! My little baby girl is growing up!" Her mum squealed, flying up, and hugging her daughter, making Rainbow Dash crinkle her nose. She wasn't really the sort of huggable pony.

"What are you talking about?" She asked, but for some reason, she felt she already knew.

"He seemed very nice- definitely a keeper!" Her mum winked.

"Mum! We're not... Involved or anything! We're just friends!" Rainbow Dash complained.

"Oh, but you still like him!" Her mum wasn't going to leave her alone. Rainbow Dash blushed.

"No, I don't. Like I said... He's just my friend." Rainbow Dash trotted away.

"We'll pretend we believe that!" Called her mum over her shoulder, who then burst into giggles.

Rainbow Dash flew to her room, and got into her bed, which was basically a blanket on the cold, hard ground. She thought about what her mum had said. She thought, thought and thought. Maybe her mum was right. She might just like him the slightest little bit... Nothing more. He was more a friend though.

She went to sleep with a smile on her face that night, even though she had lost her job. Maybe this was the worst day of her life, but in anther way, it was the best.