Chapter 32 – The End of a Rainbow

The waiting room.

No one really likes to be stuck in the hospital’s waiting room. Especially when they feel so helpless and utterly clueless over their loved ones’ current medical conditions. So the idea on just waiting for countless hours on an update can be quite torturous for them. And this is no exception for Rainbow Dash and Ford Mustang’s friends and family gathering together at Ponyville General Hospital.

Collaborated by Ford Mustang and Twilight Sparkle long ago, the latter’s letters arrive nearly all at once just as soon as the stallion alerted the princess about his wife’s labor. In their own way, the ones who received those letters arrive at the hospital as soon as possible. But for those who live outside of Ponyville, their exceptional letters are attached with a special enchantment that allows them to be teleported to the hospital in an instant.

Amidst their agonizing waiting, the gathered ponies remain quiet and apprehensive with each passing minute. An example of such disheartening silence are the downhearted couples as they do their best to comfort their respective spouses. For Rarity’s case, she lays her melancholy face on Applejack’s lap as the orange farmpony soothingly brushes her wife’s lavish, purple mane. As for Fluttershy, who is six-months pregnant, she is just as distraught as her Unicorn friend as she clings onto her husband, Big Macintosh, who tenderly embraces her in return. As for the other expectant mare, Octavia, she distracts herself from her own worries by softly caressing her three-month pregnant belly, and soon enough, Vinyl Scratch places a comforting fore hoof on her wife’s curved stomach as they smile on the thought of having their own little foal someday.

And in one corner of the room, Gilda is sitting next to her usually unorthodox friend, Pinkie Pie. Normally, the lone griffon would expect to be annoyed by the pink party pony’s randomness and constant giddiness. However, considering that they all learned about Rainbow Dash’s grave premonition beforehand, Pinkie’s unintentional annoyance is far from what’s on Gilda’s mind right now. Instead, she is a bit concerned by how Pinkie is acting recently as the severely depressed Earth Pony keeps inflating and deflating her usually curly, puffy mane every time she huffs and snivels in-between.

“I must keep my promise. I must keep my promise. I must keep my promise.”

A bit distracted by Pinkie’s literally animated hair, Gilda tries to get the pony’s attention in an awkward manner, “Uhh… is your hair okay? It’s acting a lot weirder than you are right now.”

But her slight teasing falls on deaf ears as the absentminded Earth Pony keeps mutter to herself, “I must keep my promise. I must keep my promise. I must keep my promise.”

Disturbed by Pinkie’s fanatic chanting, Gilda tries to break her out by waving her claws in front of the pony’s face as she calls out to her, “Hello, dweeb! You in there?”

“I must keep my promise. I must keep my promise. I must keep my promise.”

Having enough of Pinks’ creepy talk, the annoyed griffon grabs the pony by the shoulders to forcefully face her before she gets her attention by slightly shaking her up and snapping in a firm, screeching tone, “Pinkie Pie, listen to me! Dash is going to make it! You hear?!”

Finally, Pinkie looks at Gilda with big, pitiful eyes as she responds in a hesitant whimper, “B-b-but… how can you be so sure? I-I mean… we were all prepare for this moment and--!”

“Hey, come on, Pinkie Pie!” she strongly reassures with a bold smirk. “This is Rainbow Dash we’re talking about here! Do you really think that she will keel over something like that? Trust me, that mare is as tough as they come!”

Much to Gilda’s relief, her encouragement seems to be working as Pinkie begins to smile at last while her crazy hair maintains some of its frizziness. Satisfied on her part, Gilda crosses her forelimbs and holds her head up with pride whilst concluding with a confident grin, “You’ll see. Dash will pull through this one.”

As Pinkie Pie feels more hopeful due to her friend’s bold reassurance, she wipes her nearly diluted eyes as she giggles with a tiny smile, “Y-you’re right. I guess I’m just overreacting here, huh?”

“Yeah, I'll say.” Gilda chuckles with a sly grin.

After having a mild laugh together, silence falls between them as Gilda looks the other way before Pinkie speaks up in a modest tone, “Hey Gilda?”

“Yeah?”

From Gilda facing her once more, the pink pony pulls the griffon in by surprise for a strong hug as Pinkie comments with a grateful smile, “I’m so glad that we’re friends.”

A bit flabbergasted by the pony’s sincere remark, Gilda gradually breaks into an earnest grin as she lightly wraps a gentle wing around her hugging friend before she states in a simple response, “Me too, Pinks.”

Meanwhile, on another side of the waiting room, Twilight Sparkle and Trixie are sitting right beside Rainbow’s father, Turbo Dash. Before the older stallion’s arrival, Twilight took the time to inform her Unicorn friend over what she knows regarding with Rainbow’s dire situation. From hearing all of this, Trixie just couldn’t believe on what may happened to one of Twilight’s dearest friend. Sure, Trixie and Rainbow started off as bitter enemies from their first two encounters, but everything seemed to simmer down between them since then, especially with Rainbow and Twilight’s visit at Applewood, so Trixie was kind of looking forward to getting more acquainted with the usually bold Pegasus. Unfortunately, from what she just learned over Dash’s predestined demise, that may never happen.

As for Turbo Dash himself, he’s been awfully quiet since his arrival at the hospital. Although he knows that his son-in-law will be at Rainbow’s side, he hates sitting on the sidelines while his only daughter is facing her own mortality. To feel so powerless to do anything for his beloved filly is truly excruciating for him.

“Mr. Dash, is there anything we can do for you?” Twilight offers in a gentle, hospitable manner.

A bit startled from his distressing silence be disturbed, he meekly replies with a small smile, “N-no thank you, princess. I’m fine as it is.” Then, he breathes in a heavy sigh before he softly laments to himself, “I just can’t believe I have to relive this moment all over again.”

From his own grief, he leans forward as he covers his gloomy face with shaky fore hooves. Trixie was about to question on what Turbo meant by “reliving that moment”, but then, she suddenly has a good idea on what that was implying, so she turns her ashamed face away in order to prevent herself from blurting it out unintentionally.

After gathering her thoughts, Twilight places a comforting hoof on Turbo’s shoulder and says in a tenderhearted voice, “I know it’s something we all don’t want to believe ourselves, but I just want to say on how grateful I am to have Rainbow Dash as one of my very best friends. Without her, I may not be where I am today.”

Once he regains some of his composure, he gazes at the benevolent princess and replies with a small smile of gratitude, “Thank you, princess. That means so much to hear you say that.”

“Please, call me Twilight, sir.”

“So long as you call me Turbo, ma’am.” he counters with a tiny, witty grin.

And just as the anticipating company start to feel more positive, their waiting comes to an end when Doctor Horse and Nurse Redheart step into the lobby, each bearing a subtly expressionless face. From just hearing the door swinging, the only awaiting ponies along with one griffon in the room rushes toward the medical practitioners as they anxiously prepare themselves for the inevitable results.

“Good evening, Princess Twilight.” Doctor Horse greets her with a light bow and a smile. “I take it that you are all here for Rainbow Dash this evening?”

“Doctor, tell me what’s going on?!” Turbo demands in a very frantic voice as he steps in front of everyone else. “How’s my daughter?! Is she doing okay?! What about the twins for that matter?!”

With so many questions thrown at him at once, the doctor decides to start with the good news first. “Their deliveries were a complete success, Mr. Turbo Dash. Your grandfoals are in perfectly good health, and they are now in the newborn baby nursery as we speak.”

From this uplifting announcement over the newborn twins, the group briefly casts aside their worries as they display breathtaking smiles over this wonderful news. Friends and family embrace one another in this moment of celebration as the staggered Turbo Dash displays a trembling, wide smile over his newfound status as grandfather.

As Gilda notices this positive change in the elder stallion’s attitude, she wraps him in a strong, forelimbed hug while congratulating him with a teasing smirk, “Congratulations, grandpa.”

From that typical playfulness, Turbo giggles right alongside his daughter’s griffon friend as he along with everyone else remain ecstatic in all of this. However, with one look at the deadpan doctor and nurse, Turbo’s happiness is eventually consumed by his fear over his daughter’s well-being, and from that grim reminder, he halfheartedly asks in a quivering voice.

“A-and Rainbow Dash? How is she doing right now?”

From Turbo’s soft inquiry, the rest of the gang ceases their cause for celebration as they nearly forgot something else that needs to be addressed before they can resume their jubilation. However, that fleeting moment may not come to pass once again as the apprehensive party notices the hesitation on the doctor’s face before he takes a deep breath and resumes his composed summary.

“Everypony… Mrs. Dash undergone postpartum bleeding in the middle of her second delivery. We did everything we can immediately after that, but I’m afraid that--!”

But suddenly, Doctor Horse stops himself as he gazes at the listeners’ faces. As a professional doctor, it’s his job to lay the bad news to the recently deceased’s friends and family. So he is used to seeing such overwhelming sadness on their faces. But from this recent tragedy, he sees something a little bit different in their grief-stricken faces. It is almost as if they were not only expecting this grave news beforehand, but they have already prepared themselves for the worst as well.

And to confirm his suspicions, Fluttershy is surprisingly the one to finish his grim statement in a delicate, dejected manner, “Sh-sh-she’s gone… isn’t she?”

“…Yes. I am so sorry.” he acknowledges dishearteningly as he and Nurse Redheart lower their heads to express their sympathies for them.

Once it is finally said, the devastated news take their toll on those who have been prepared for this ill-fated outcome for so long. Nearly all at once, they break down in the response to the tragic end of their beloved Rainbow Dash. For most of the couples, they have each other to hold and to comfort as they weep heavily over the loss of their dear friend. Even for those who were not married, like Pinkie Pie, she desperately felt the need to cry on someone’s shoulder as her hair loses its bright. warm colors and curly elasticity, which is in sync with her very expressive demeanor. So the surprisingly impassive Gilda offers her deeply troubled friend a wing, and the weeping Earth Pony gladly accepts the silent, friendly gesture as she buries her sniffling muzzle into the griffon’s feathery chest. But Turbo Dash took it the worse as he eventually collapses on the ground with countless tears pour of his pitiful eyes. Crying until no end, the heartbroken stallion mutters in self-pity and denial over the death of his one and only daughter.

“No. No. No. No. No.”

Sharing the same emotional pain as the older stallion, the remarkably calm and collective Twilight Sparkle sits right next to the hunched Pegasus and uses her wings and forelegs to wrap Turbo in a gentle, sympathetic embrace, to which he gradually accepts as he continues to pour out his sorrow onto the princess’s smooth coat. Trixie considers on giving the stallion a considerate hug as well, but she hesitates nervously as she feels it isn’t her place to offer her condolences like that.

After a great deal of time from lamenting amongst themselves, Twilight gently pulls the sobbing stallion away from their embrace as she turns to the doctor and asks of him in a softhearted voice, “Doctor Horse. May we see her please?”

“Of course.” he complies with a caring smile. “Nurse Redheart can lead you to her room.”

With an agreeing nod, Redheart says to Twilight and friends, “Please. Come this way.”

And in one huge line, the group follows the leading head nurse as they make their way towards the room of Rainbow Dash.

After a long, steady trek, the company finally reach the room where the fallen Pegasus still resides in. Once they reached their destination, Nurse Redheart gives them a light bow and excuses herself before checking on them later. Reluctant at first on what they know is behind that looming door, Twilight decides for herself to step forward and open the door for them. With a gentle push, the Alicorn Princess gingerly steps inside before she stops herself on such a heart-wrenching sight before her.

While the hospital room is nearly pitched black due to the fall of night outside, one source of light shines brightly from an overhead lamp as it casts its brilliance over the two Pegasi in the room. On the right side of the hospital bed is Ford Mustang, who is staring with a tired, fixated gaze at his recently deceased wife. And at the center of the spotlight is the lifeless body of Rainbow Dash with her once exhausted eyes still shut very tightly and a permanent smile plastered across her slightly pale face.

From finally noticing the presence of his friends and father-in-law, Ford turns his head around and stares at the arriving company with slightly startled eyes. Upon staring back at the lone stallion in the very dim room, the rest of the group can clearly see how much heartache he has been going through lately as his cheeks are stained with streaks of dried-out tears.

Soon after, Ford softens his heavy-lidded gaze as he welcomes them with a very faint smile, “Hello, everyone.”

“May we come in, Ford?” Twilight asks cautiously.

“Please.” he permits in the form of a whisper.

One at a time, they enter the dimly lit room and encircle around the mare's deathbed. From their gathering, they silently gaze for a lengthy period of time at their dearly departed Rainbow Dash. In the midst of this wretched silence, the ponies resume their soft lamenting as they hold close to their respective loved ones. The only exceptions during this moment of immense grief are Ford Mustang, who seemed to have run out of tears a while ago, and Gilda, who shakes feebly to herself as a toothy frown slowly spreads across her beak.

Applejack, who remains more composed than her grief-stricken wife, Rarity, takes a moment to walk over to Ford’s side and carefully place a foreleg around his shoulders before expressing her warmhearted sincerity to him, “Sugarcube, Ah’m so sorry. Ah hope you know firsthoof that we’ll always be here for ya.”

Inspired by AJ’s thoughtfulness, Vinyl Scratch approaches from the other side, she too places a hoof over Mustang’s other shoulder before concurring with an earnest grin, “Mm-hmm. That goes double for me too.”

Deeply touched by the support of his two close friends, he wraps his feeble forelegs around the two embracing mares as he hugs them very closely while responding with a faint yet warm smile, “Thank you, girls. That means a lot to me.”

After that much-needed hug from the country mare and DJ-PON-3, Ford turns back to his deceased wife and joins alongside the other ponies as they continue to pay their respects for the fallen mare. A short time later, Fluttershy wipes some of her tears to get a better look at one of her oldest and dearest friends before she comments in a soft-spoken voice.

“She looks… so peaceful right now.”

From Fluttershy’s casual remark, Rarity also takes a break from her crying to thoroughly gaze at Rainbow’s frozen yet tranquil smile before coming to an agreement with her sensitive Pegasus friend as she smiles at last whilst complimenting in poetic fashion, “Yes, just like a beautiful angel.”

The ponies allow seamstress’s simple yet sentimental words to sink in before they each bear the same heartfelt smile as Rarity’s. But then, out of nowhere…

BANG!

…a loud slam shakes the room as it causes the rattled guests to enter a state of panic. Alarmingly, Ford and company turn around to see the cause of that abruptly loud noise as some of them exit of the room to see what the commotion is all about. But from peeking out of the doorway, Ford is especially shocked to see the one who caused that disturbance since she stepped outside of the room just a little while ago without anyone noticing it.

With her talons still clutched very tightly, Gilda continues to hold his instable pose fast as her shaky, clenched fist remains at rest on the nearby wall she just slammed it against. From her frozen stance, the severely emotional griffon continues to shake violently as her barely suppressed tears seep effortlessly out of her heavily shut eyes.

“Damn it, Dash!” she murmurs in a choked-up voice. “I thought you were stronger than that! I really thought you would pull through with this one! Why did you have to croak like that? Just… why…?”

In the midst of her own self-anguish, Gilda suddenly feels somepony touching her shoulder, and instinctively, she sharply turns around with a heavy, growling scowl to face the disrupting pony. But as the intimidating griffon maintains her messed-up demeanor, the heartrending Pinkie Pie retains a steady, comforting fore hoof on her friend’s shoulder while displaying a soft, understanding expression. From reading the subtle empathy on Pinkie’s face, Gilda gradually drops her guard and brings the Earth Pony in for a desperate hug with her strong forelimbs wrapping around the equally mournful Pinkie Pie as they shed a few more tears in-between.

As the latest, emotional scene plays out between the griffon and pink pony, Twilight Sparkle goes up to the Pegasus stallion and asks of him, “Ford, if you don’t mind, I just need a moment to contact the princesses about this.”

“Please, go right ahead.”

After giving a nod to show her thanks, Twilight Sparkle excuses herself before leaving the hallway while Trixie anxiously follows right behind her. Once Mustang goes back to the room, he sees that his father-in-law is still at his daughter’s side as he compulsively brushes the mare’s still colorful mane.

Hesitantly, Ford joins at his father-in-law’s side and apologizes in a fainthearted voice, “Turbo, I’m sor--!”

But in a swift move, Turbo shushes up the younger stallion with a feathery wing of his as he replies in a soft, reassuring voice, “Stop. You have nothing to apologize for.”

After complying with the older Pegasus’s meaningful gesture, Ford and Turbo resume their silent gazing at their beloved angel. In the middle of their respectful silence, Mustang looks back at the stallion next to him as he sees Turbo carrying with his own melancholy. From seeing Dash’s emotionally torn expression, Ford contemplates on how to relieve his some of his sorrows before he comes up with the best reassurance in mind.

“You would have been so proud of her, Turbo. She put up an amazing fight like you wouldn’t believe.”

Despite Ford’s initial worries over his choice of words, he then sees Turbo letting out a soft sigh before he confirms with tiring yet contented smile, “I am, Ford. I am proudest father in the world right now.” And he wraps up that sense of pride of his by brushing his daughter’s forehead aside and giving her a lovely kiss to show his deep, fatherly affection for her.

Happy to see a proud smile on the stallion’s face, Mustang wraps the smiling stallion with a foreleg around his shoulders and adds with a promising, witty grin, “And now, you’ll get to be the proudest grandfather in the world.”

From that favorable reminder, Turbo lets out a warmhearted chuckle as he agrees with an equally cheerful grin, “Yes, that’s true.”

With tensions relieved for the moment between the tender bonding of father and son-in-law, Octavia gently intervenes as she asks in a humble manner, “Umm, speaking of which… how are the little darlings doing right now?”

Nearly forgetting about his newborn twins, Ford eventually answers that with a question of his own as he presents a clever smirk, “Would you like to see them yourself?”

Following up with that necessary change of scenes, the gang eagerly follows right beside Ford Mustang as they are all led by Nurse Redheart once again. Soon enough, they make their way to the room they are all looking forward to: the newborn baby nursery. With his friends standing behind the glass window that separates the room, Ford enters the nursery as he brings Turbo Dash along to witness this wondrous occasion up-close and personal. As his friends stare anxiously from the other side of the room, the grinning Mustang waits no further as he gently unwraps the twins’ respective blankets so the guests can get a better look at their cute, little faces. And with the proper unveiling of his two, precious foals, everyone gasps and awes ecstatically over their naturally born cuteness.

In comparison to their brand-new coats, the now-sleepy twins are as different as night and day, with the filly’s nightly, cool blue and the colt’s bright, warm orange. The only things they seem to share in regards with their coloring are the two streaks of red and pink in their respective, four-stripe-patterned manes, whereas the filly’s other two stripes has violet and green in hers, the colt has yellow and orange instead. And yet, despite their differences, their individual colors shine just as brightly as their mother once did.

“Oh my stars, Ford… they’re just so… perfect!” Rarity sums in up with an overjoyed smile as her eyes lights up with amazement over such beauty.

Following up on that Unicorn’s admiration, everyone else beams with renewed, broader smiles as they continue to observe the absolutely adorable foals in front of them. For those who are heavy with foals like Fluttershy or Octavia’s case, they embrace their respective spouses as they too can’t wait to share this wonderful experience someday. And while Pinkie Pie is a bit unresponsive at first, the good-natured Gilda nudges the depressed Earth Pony slightly with an elbow so she can look up and see the twins for herself. From just a mere glimpse at the two tiny Pegasi wrapped in their snuggly baby blankets, Pinkie Pie manages to push aside her own gloom as she bears a wide, goofy smile while her once-straight mane inflates slightly to its original, curly shape. With her spirits raised up thanks to the sights of the adorable foals, the smiling, pink mare affectionately leans her head against the griffon’s shoulder as Gilda smirks from seeing her pony friend no longer depressed for the moment. As for Turbo Dash, one look at his newborn grandfoals, and already he’s grinning with so much pride while his irrepressible eyes shed a few more tears to demonstrate his overwhelming joy of them.

A while later, Vinyl Scratch asks the proud father of two, “So, have you given any thought to their names yet?”

From that casual inquiry, Ford pauses from his own jubilation as he gives it some deep thought before he lets out a soft, depressing sigh and answers in a dejected tone filled with shame, “I… haven’t even considered them just yet. I kind of hoped that Rainbow and I will get to decide on them together--!”

Unable to finish his melancholy response, Ford averts his ashamed eyes away from the group while Vinyl feels bad for asking that in the first place. So her wife, Octavia, comforts her with a gentle pat on the back while Turbo Dash also does the same by using his wing to gently pat his downtrodden son-in-law as he says with a reassuring smile.

“It’s okay, Ford. We’ve got a lot to do in just a few short days anyhow. You don’t have to decide on that right away.”

Feeling more at ease with his father-in-law’s mild suggestion, he smiles back and offers his soft-spoken gratitude for him, “Thanks Turbo.”

Then, Twilight Sparkle and Trixie rejoins the group, and the young Alicorn Princess calls out to Mustang in a tender tone, “Excuse me, Ford. But Princess Celestia and Princess Luna are here to see you right now.”

“Thank you, Twilight. I’ll be there soon.”

But before he exits out of the nursery, he turns back to his twins, who are still in the middle of their first ever trip to dreamland, and eyes them with a growing smile over their cutesy manner. And after taking the time to tenderly caress their soft manes, he gives each of the foals a kiss on the cheek before saying his simple farewells to them.

“Goodnight, my little Moon and Sun. Daddy will see you two first thing in the morning. I promise.”

And whether it was from his soothing words or those simple kisses he just presented, the little filly and colt display blissfully squealing smiles from their father’s affection as Mustang widens his heartfelt smile once he bears witness to the twins’ adorable reactions. And reluctantly, the blue-haired stallion takes his leave to meet up with the princesses.

Outside, on such a calm, cool night, Ford Mustang exits out of Ponyville General Hospital as he meets up with the two eldest princesses, Celestia and Luna, who were waiting patiently for the stallion’s arrival.

“Good evening, Ford Mustang.” Celestia greets with soft yet warm smile as she along with her younger sister bow before him.

“Princesses.” he replies in quiet humbleness whist returning the courteous gesture for them.

“Sir Mustang… we first would like to offer our condolences on what you and the others have been through recently.” Luna says in a meek, modest manner as she delicately steps forward before placing a fore hoof over her chest and lightly bowing once again. “You have our deepest sympathies.”

“Thank you, Princesses.” he accepts with a gracious smile. “I truly appreciate that.”

Then, he spots a very large, sophisticated wagon next to the princesses as it is being looked after by some of Luna’s famous Bat Pony platoon, the Night Guards. But what really grabs Ford’s attention is the precious cargo that the wagon has been carrying since its trip began. On top of the lavish cart is a very luxurious, golden casket with a crystal-clear glass lid closed shut. To Ford’s amazement, it’s hard to determine on how long it took to create such an amazing work of craftsmanship.

A bit distracted by the coffin’s exquisite beauty, Mustang turns to the princesses and asks the obvious question in a stuttering tone, “Is that… for her?”

“Yes, this glass coffin was specifically made to preserve her body in time for her funeral.” Celestia answers matter-of-factly.

“Rest assured, we will take very good care of her, Ford.” Luna adds with soft conviction. “You have our word.”

“Thank you once again for arranging all of this with us.”

“Of course. Tis our privilege to provide our services for one of our honored heroes.”

In a delicate manner, the two elegant sisters wrap the stallion up in a tenderhearted hug using their big, beautiful wings as Celestia whispers in a motherly tone, “Take good care of yourself, Ford. Your foals are going to need you now more than ever.”

With his gentle hooves around each of the princesses, Ford replies with a knowing grin, “Believe me, Princess. I wouldn’t trade them for anything.”

And after that lovely exchange, the Alicorn sisters use their magic to effortlessly lift up the glass coffin and they carry it with them whilst they enter through the hospital’s main entrance. And some time later, the rest of Ford’s friends meet up with him before they say their heartfelt goodbyes and offer their deepest sympathies once again.

As the downhearted ponies leave one by one, Turbo Dash approaches the younger Pegasus and asks with a sheepish grin, “Say, Ford. You don’t mind if I stay over for a while, do you?”

“Of course not, Turbo.” he answers with a welcoming smile. “You’re always welcome to stay at our house.”

Then, Gilda steps in-between them and asks for the same thing in an awkward, grinning fashion similar to the older stallion’s. “Hey, got room for one more? I kinda need a place to crash as well before the day of the funeral.”

But before Mustang can offer his opinion on how to accommodate his griffon friend’s need for sleep, Gilda suddenly feels a tug on her forelimb as she sees Pinkie Pie holding her firmly while she quietly offers her hospitality with big, pleading eyes, “Y-you can stay at my place… if you like that is.”

A bit surprised by Pinkie’s open invitation, Gilda couldn’t ignore the pony’s fainthearted plea, and she eventually complies with a tiny grin, “Sure, I’ll take you up on that offer. Thanks, Pinks.”

With everything settled, Gilda walks alongside the Pinkie Pie as they slowly make their way to Sugarcube Corner while Ford and Turbo follow the same motion by turning the other way and heading towards the younger stallion’s home.

At the now individually-owned cloudhouse, Ford finishes getting the bed all set up and notifies the other stallion about his now available guest room. After Turbo thanks him, Mustang begins to head out of the door. But then, he feels a gentle fore hoof stopping him, and he turns around to see his father-in-law bearing a soft yet reassuring smile for him.

“Hey. We’ll get through this together, Mustang. You’ll see.”

Despite feeling doubtful on Turbo’s well-meant reassurance, Ford is at least responsive by smiling just a little and replying in a discreet tone, “Right… well, goodnight Turbo.”

“Goodnight, Ford.”

After that little exchange, Ford heads towards his own bedroom in a slow, gloomy pace before he eventually reaches his destination and flops onto his bed without a care. Steadily, he gets underneath the covers and tries desperately to go to sleep. But as expected, sleep will not come so easily for him as he aimlessly stares at the ceiling above him whilst reflecting back to all the heartbreaking and emotional moments involving Rainbow Dash’s predetermined death.

Then, on a whim, he turns to his left and places a right fore hoof on the spot next to him. But from that impulsive gesture, Ford suddenly realizes that other side of the bed is completely empty. From staring at the unoccupied spot, the grim reality over his wife’s death hits him hard as he gradually breaks down with fresh tears seeping down his tiring, worn-out face… literally crying himself to sleep.

“Dashie~!”

“Dashie~!”

“…Nnnnghh.”

“Wake up, my Little Dashie~!”

"Noooo~! It’s too early~! Just five more minutes~!"

“Hehehe! You really are your father’s daughter. Though thankfully, you do inherit my brains and beauty to go with that brashness and speed of his.”

From that unfamiliar yet angelic voice, Rainbow Dash gradually wakes up from her rather pleasant nap. From her awakening, she experiences a lot of different yet welcoming sensations. For one thing, she feels entirely weightless, as if she’s as a light as a feather. For another, she is no longer in excruciating pain from her recent foal-bearing as she feels an indescribable warmth from within her inner being while it soothes her entire body.

And as her once-tired eyes retain some her vision, she begins to see color… lots of colors to be exact as the vibrant, rainbow specks dot the nightly, starry sky like splashes on the most gorgeous watercolor painting imagined.

But it isn’t the nebula-infused scenery that’s so distractingly beautiful, for in front of Rainbow Dash are huge blotches of pink and blue. Soon enough, the colors took shape as the blue coloring formed a pony’s stylish mane while two orbs of magenta expand across the lovely shade of pink. With her clarity getting better by the second, Dash can then see the formation of more refined details, especially the mysterious mare’s warm, magenta-colored gaze and angelic smile. In the midst of their gazing, Rainbow begins to feel a welcoming touch as the greeting mare continues to soothingly brush her multicolored mane with a gentle fore hoof whilst the blue Pegasus remains still on the other pony’s comfy lap.

And after Rainbow stares at the smiling, familiar mare for just a bit longer, her eyes widen with tremendous shock as she once recalls a mare that looks just like her, even if those memories come from photographic images and stories that her father have told to her on so many occasions when she was just a filly. Unable to keep her astonished eyes off the blue-haired, pink Pegasus, Rainbow steadily gets herself up, and from figuring out the identity of the angelic mare in front of her, she stumbles greatly over her immediate response.

“Y-Y-You’re… I-I mean… are you really…?”

And after a soft giggle, the beaming mare confirms the younger Pegasus’s suspicions with a nod and a smile, “Yes, Rainbow Dash. I’m your moth--!”

But her composed introduction gets interrupted when the Rainbow Dash rushes in and tightly squeezes the barely announced mare. As the startled Pegasus remains frozen in the younger pony’s tight grasp, Rainbow trembles tremendously as she refuses to let go of her before she finishes the reveal of the older mare’s identity in a very tearful yet overjoyed manner.

“M-Mommy.”

Despite the countless amount of tears running down her cheeks, Rainbow is extremely ecstatic over the reunion of her long-lost mother, Firefly. Enwrapped in all of the high expectations and emotions, literally and figuratively of course, Firefly gradually loses her once strong composure, and she too joins in the rapture by wrapping her severally emotional daughter up with her gentle forelegs and angelic wings.

“Shhhh… it’s okay, sweetie.” Firefly issues in a gentle, motherly tone as she holds her weeping daughter very closely to her chest. “Just let it all out. Mommy’s here for you now.”

Without wanting to pull away from her mother’s tender embrace, Rainbow continues to weep in immense, unrestrained joy as she whispers in a constantly sniveling voice, “I missed you so much, mommy.”

Unable to hold back anymore, tears start to pour out of her equally emotional eyes as Firefly affectionately nuzzles her precious daughter and replies back with a quivering smile, “I missed you too, Dashie. More than you will ever know.”

It’s hard to say on how long they hold in each other’s forelegs, but Rainbow Dash doesn’t care about that at this point. She doesn’t care if anyone else is present at the moment. Right now, nothing is getting in the way between Rainbow and Firefly’s long-awaited reunion as the former continues to savor this affectionate, motherly love for as long as she can.

Finally, they gradually pull away from their long-overdue hug as their moist, magenta eyes lock on to each other’s before Firefly comments in pure delight while stroking her daughter’s hair, “My goodness, just look at you! I can’t believe on how much you have grown since I last held you in my hooves!”

“Forget about me! Look at you, mom!” Rainbow exclaims with a chuckling grin. “You look like you haven’t changed at all!”

From that compliment, Firefly lets out a playful giggle as she touches her cheek like she is blushing over her own beauty before she responds in a clever manner, “Well, I guess it’s one of the perks on having an eternally young face.”

After sharing a good, hearty chuckle with her mom, Rainbow Dash takes the time to examine her surroundings. All around her, she sees nothing but space as the colorful atmosphere is filled with countless stars, shimmering nebulas, and faraway galaxies. And below them is an invisible, self-made bridge made up of small, illuminating orbs that share the same radiance as the twinkling stars above. Of course, to Rainbow’s amazement, she could hardly feel the cosmic bridge beneath them due to her weightlessness.

“So… I guess this is it, huh?” Dash inquires softly to confirm all that has happened to her recently. “I really bit the dust on this one, right?”

“Afraid so.” Firefly answers in a slightly reluctant voice. "Though I always wanted to meet you someday, I had hope you would enjoy your life a bit longer than that."

As the younger Pegasus continues to let this realization sink in, she thinks back to all of her friends and family she unfortunately left behind. She just knows it’s going to be hard for them to move on, especially for her husband, Ford Mustang, and their two children. But even so, she’s confident that they will pull through and not let her death be a heavy burden on them. So, once she accepts her fate, she lets out a heavy sigh before she displays a more casual smile towards her concerning mother.

“Well, not much we can do about that now, am I right?” Dash shrugs with a well-meaning grin. “But hey, at least I finally get to meet you like I always wanted!”

A bit amazed by the younger pony’s strong resilience, her mother bears an optimistic smile as she replies with an excited nod, “Yes, and we have so much catching up to do! And look at it this way, Rainbow… we now have all the time in the world. But before we start from the beginning, can you do something for me first?” she asks in a more steady tone.

“Of course, mom!” she compiles without question. “Anything!”

A bit hesitant at first, Firefly carries out her request in a bashful manner as she clasped her fore hooves together, “Could you… become a little filly just for me? You know, where you used to have such wild hair back then? Please?”

A bit shocked by Firefly’s sincere pleading as her big, expressive eyes maintain her persuasive gaze for a just little bit longer, Rainbow Dash gives in, but is unsure on how to fulfill her mother’s request. “I would if I could, mom. But I don’t know how to do that in first place.”

Happy to hear her daughter’s compliance, Firefly eagerly goes over simple instructions on how to make such an age-regressing transformation happen. “Well here in the afterlife, it’s quite simple actually. Just imagine it, and it will come to be.”

Following up on her mother’s advice, Rainbow Dash closes her eyes and concentrates really hard by thinking back to all of her fond, foalhood memories: going to flight camp, making her first friends, and all of the wonderful times she shared with her daddy. From reliving her own nostalgia, she can feel the gradual change within herself as everything starts to shrink around her. Once the shrinking process comes to an end, Rainbow opens her eyes and asks in a more squeaky, bashful tone.

“Like this, mommy?”

From Lil’ Dash’s startling transformation, Firefly remains completely still as she poorly tries to cover her wide, trembling smile with shaky fore hooves while her expansive, awestricken eyes is on the verge of breaking down into more heartfelt tears. And once she is unable to hold back any further, the lone, mature mare rushes forward and pulls her baby girl in for a great, big hug whilst she is unable keep her motherly emotions in check.

“Oh, yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!” Firefly squeaks with absolute delight as she continues to shake her much smaller daughter around in her tightly-woven embrace. “Oh, I’ve always wanted to hold you just like this! You really are just the cutest, little filly imagined!”

Unable to break away from her mother’s constant gushiness, the tiny, wild-haired filly starts to feel really embarrassed as she gripes in a loud, juvenile whine. “Come on, mom! This is embarrassing! Let go already!”

“Nope! Never!” she refuses in a giggling manner. “I’ve waited too long for this moment, and I’m never letting you go! Never ever ever!”

“Mom, seriously! You’re choking me to death over here!” Rainbow exaggerates greatly to an extent.

“Sorry, hon! That won’t work on me and you know it!” she counters lightheartedly with a playful, clever smirk.

From that counterargument, the flustered filly realizes the irony of the situation as it looks like it’s useless to break away from mommy’s grasp. But as she remains fastened to her mother’s warm, furry chest, Rainbow Dash foregoes of her own humiliation and gives in to this welcoming embrace. From this motherly affection, a broad, contented smile spreads across her adorable cheeks as she gratefully nuzzles against the smiling mare’s soft fur coat.

To be in held like this in her mother’s tender hooves… this is truly heaven.

Author's Notes:

Just want to say thank you to all of my faithful readers out there for your patience on the long awaiting chapters. This along with my previous stories wouldn't have gotten off the ground without all of your constant support.