Chapter 35 – Altogether Now

It’s been a very long day for all those who were present at Canterlot’s Royal Chapel this morning. All them expected a grand funeral for the supposedly deceased Rainbow Dash. But all of their expectations were completely shattered when the widowed husband, Ford Mustang, performed an illuminated kiss, which miraculously brought Rainbow back to life while the risky procedure literally takes his breath away.

At Princess Twilight Sparkle's urgent beckoning, the medics immediately transported the unconscious Mustang away as the recently revived Rainbow Dash along with her friends and family follow closely behind. And from a glance, it looked like today’s funeral may not go to waste after all.

Hours later, at Canterlot Hospital, two Pegasi wait outside of a room with the door closed in front of them. And while Turbo Dash demonstrates as much patience as possible, his daughter is still on the edge over her husband’s grave situation as she carries on with her increasing restlessness by flapping back and forth.

As she paces frantically in the hallway, she continues to mutter in an increasingly grumpy tone, "Come on! Come on! Come on!"

"Dashie, please calm down." Turbo urges in a gentle voice. "You shouldn't get so worked up like that."

"But those doctors have been in there for too long!" Rainbow gripes out loud as she ceases her march to face her father. "What the heck is taking them to find out on what's been going on with Ford?"

"Dash, these things take time." he responds softly in a pleading manner once again. "You can’t rush these careful procedures."

"Hmph!" she replies simply enough with her fore hooves cross over one another to further demonstrate her annoyance of the situation.

"And neither should you for that matter." Turbo carries on with his insistence in a firmer tone. "You need to learn to take it easy right now."

"Dad, I already told you, I'm fine!" she retorts in a dismissive attitude. "The doctors already did a checkup on me, and I'm as healthy as a newborn filly! In fact, I feel better than ever!"

To demonstrate her point, the smirking Pegasus mare increases the flapping of her strong wings as she flies around in circles while doing a few simple, aerial tricks in front of her worrisome father.

"See, I've been out of commission for only two days, and look at me now! I'm already at the top of the game!" she boldly declares with an energetic, giggling grin. "Heh, wouldn’t the Wonderbolts be in for a surprise on what I can really--!"

"RAINBOW DASH, STOP!"

With a booming voice that could give the Wonderbolts' coaches and leaders a run for their money, Rainbow immediately ceases her tomfoolery. And from her father's stern command, she obeys him without question as she slowly makes her descent before coming to a soft landing. Once his daughter is much more submissive with her head lowered to the ground and her big-eyed, pouty expression showcasing on how truly sorry she is, Turbo inhales a deep breath in order to soften up before explaining himself in a gentler demeanor.

"Rainbow, you were pronounced dead for two days. And now seeing you alive and fully active is a bit... much for ponies to take. And that's what scares me." he admits in a faintly shaky voice.

"But dad, it's still me. The real me." she humbly says with great, big, beseeching eyes as she timidly steps forward to be closer to her father. "Y-you're not scared of me because of that, are you?"

"No no, of course." he reassures softheartedly as he wraps his daughter in for a comforting embrace. "You're still my one and only baby girl, and nothing will ever change that."

From dad's warm and protective embrace, Rainbow affectionately hugs him back as a broad, pleasant smile spreads across her muzzle. Being in the hooves and wings of her devoted father brings back some very fond memories from receiving the same kind of affection from her own mother in the heavens. Afterwards, Turbo breaks away from their hug momentarily so that he can get his daughter’s attention once again before he continues to make his case for her.

"But please, try to understand. No pony expected you to suddenly rise back from the dead. This is just something that's so unbelievable that not even the Princesses themselves have ever accomplished this in their lifetimes. I still can't tell you on how happy I am to have you back into my hooves." he reassures with renewed, emotional eyes and a joyous smile. "But please... for my sake... do take it easy for the time being."

From listening to her dad's heartfelt plea, she gives it some more thought compared to how careless she was acting earlier. So soon after that, she nods to Turbo’s request, and she answers in an emotional voice, "I'm sorry, daddy. I didn’t know it had such an impact on you. I'll take it slow from now on. I promise."

Happy to hear her compliance, the stallion pulls her daughter in for another tender hug as he whispers to her with a grateful smile, "Thank you."

Once again, they relish in their father-and-daughter embrace for a brief moment of peace together. But in the midst of their hugging, a smirk begins to creeps across her face as she remembers that she has a message to deliver to her father.

"By the way, mom said 'hi.' "

A bit taken back by that casual statement, he stares at Rainbow Dash with surprise as he stutters in response, "She... she did?"

"Yep. She wanted me to let you know that she stills love even to this day."

From hearing that, an overjoyed smile blossoms across his face as he gleefully inquires even further, "Anything else she said for me?"

And right on cue, she breaks into a crafty smile as she answers in a mischievous manner, "Yeah, she also said that you need to cut back on your little donut run every now and then."

From her grinning daughter revealing his long-kept secret, Turbo Dash's nervous eyes bulge slightly before they shift away from Rainbow’s inquisitive gaze as he stammers in response, "Uh well... I--!"

"And don't even think about using that excuse on doing it for the camp counselors." she adds sharply with a knowing smirk. "You may be retired, but you're still an upstanding flyer towards others, so act like one."

A bit speechless for a little longer by Rainbow’s sudden knowledge over his secretive sugar rush, he then lets out a hearty laugh before he comments with a chuckling smirk, "Heh, you really know on how to act like your mother sometimes."

"Well, I do take after from two of the greatest flyers ever." she remarks with a witty grin.

Once again, the chuckling stallion pulls his equally amused daughter for a great, big hug as he replies with a proud smile, "Yes you do."

After a while longer, their tenderhearted moment is interrupted when somepony purposefully clears their throat to announce their arrival in a slightly shy yet familiar manner. From turning around, Rainbow Dash is a bit surprised from seeing the large gathering of her friends. And standing right in front of them with the same strangely eager smile as the rest of their friends, Fluttershy gleefully announces in a sing-song voice.

"Dashie~! Look who's here to see you~!"

And from her cheerful disposition, Fluttershy steps aside to allow her husband, Big Macintosh, to move forward. Once Rainbow Dash sees what the big, red stallion is carrying on him, she gasps mightily over what her dear Pegasus friend was referring to. For what's strapped to Big Mac's specially made double-harness saddlebags are two of Dash's most precious cargos imagined: her twin foals.

As Rainbow is completely petrified by the twins' sudden appearance, Fluttershy carefully removes her godfoals from their harnesses and places them up front. Then, with a gentle nudge of her nose, the godmother ushers the twins toward the still thunderstruck Rainbow Dash with a persuasive smile.

"Go on, little ones." she insists cooingly. "Go on over to mommy."

From there, it is nothing but silence as the attentive audience waits for the mother and her two foals to make the first move. With their mom remaining as stiff as a statue, the twins look back and forth between the anxious company and the motionless mare. But soon, they get up from the ground as they get a better look at their mommy.

As Rainbow constantly locks her wide gaze on her twins, fear begins to hold her back as she worries that despite her short absence, her babies may not recognize their mommy at all. But after an extensive stare-off between the reunited family, the twins gradually make their first steps forward with their stubby, little hooves. From practicing with what they learned from yesterday, they continue their march towards their ever-so speechless mom as they giggle along the way at a wobbly yet stable pace.

And from seeing her foals inching closer towards her as well as their big, toothless smiles, Rainbow Dash just couldn't take it any more as her heart hits a breaking point of overwhelming emotions. With irrepressible tears and an unbridled, trembling smile, Rainbow rushes for the approaching twins and immediately embraces them in a warm, motherly hug.

From their highly anticipated reunion, the tearful yet joyous mare snuggles with her twins very closely as she rubs her cheeks against theirs. She doesn't care if she's making a complete fool of herself by bawling in front of others with constant tears pouring out of her uncontrollable eyes. All that matters for Rainbow Dash at this point is that she is right where she belongs: with her two favorite foals in the world.

"Y-yes... that's right." she whispers to them with a quivering, affectionate smile. "Mommy’s back, babies. And this time... she’s not going anywhere."

As the tear-stricken Rainbow Dash is lost in the midst of her nestling with her beloved twins, her friends and family continue to observe this tenderhearted moment together with emotionally blissful smiles. From there, they embrace their respective loved ones as most of them begin to weep upon impulse; even for someone who acts tough like Gilda couldn’t help but shed a few tears of joys as she tightly wraps the equally emotional Pinkie Pie in a hug. But one thing is for certain: no one would even dare to break up this heartfelt reunion between a mother and her children.

Suddenly, the door to Ford's room begins to creek softly as it slowly opens up. And stepping out of the room is the one of the lead doctors in charge of his patient.

"Mrs. Rainbow Dash?"

From hearing her name called out, she hastily wipes away her relentless tears before turning away and facing the male practitioner whilst responding in a faintly sniveling voice, "H-h-how is he, doc?"

"Well, despite the earlier circumstances, your husband is stabilized and his breathing has returned shortly after he lost consciousness."

From receiving that comforting answer, Rainbow along with her company smile and sigh with bliss over Mustang’s current recovery. However, the Canterlot doctor's smile droops significantly as he has much more to say to them.

"However, I can’t say for sure on when he will wake up."

The additional statement causes most of Rainbow’s initial hope to diminish rapidly as she pulls her twins closer to her chest before she gulps and asks in a slightly trembling voice, "You mean... he's in a coma?"

"Honestly, it's hard to say." he admits with uncertainty as he looks back at his bedridden patient. "He could wake up at this very moment or in a matter of weeks. But rest assured, we will do everything we can to see to it that he will make a full recovery."

Feeling more at ease with the doctor's reassurance, she then asks, "Okay, well... may we see him?"

"Yes, of course." he nods to her humble request as he steps aside to let visitors through. "Please come in."

With her foals still held securely within her forelegs, Rainbow Dash hovers into the room first with her father and friends waiting outside. And once she sees her husband for the first time since her resurrection, she gasps quietly to herself as she stops in mid-air whilst laying her wide eyes on him.

Confined to his bed, Ford Mustang continues to lay there unresponsively as cords and tubes remain strapped to his motionless body. Along with being hooked to a heart monitor and an IV bag, the slumbering stallion has an oxygen mask fastened to his muzzle.

Once the doctors and nurses politely excuse themselves from the room, Rainbow and her accompanying foals steadily float over to her husband’s side. And after she gently lands right next to his bed, the first thing she did is offer his sleeping prince a simple, loving kiss on the cheek. And granted, despite how sappy that was, she had hoped that level of schmaltziness would be enough to coax him out of his seemingly endless slumber. After that sincere token of affection, Rainbow takes a moment to gather her thoughts while fixing her longing gaze on her still unconscious stallion.

"Ford, I hope you can hear me right now." she speaks to him in a soft, tenderhearted tone. "Because... well... just saying 'thanks' isn’t enough for what you've done for me out there."

Suddenly, she takes a moment to pause and compose herself as she starts to choke up over her own words of affection with a few tears seeping out of her unrestrained, emotional eyes. "You really are the sweetest, bravest sap of a stallion I have ever met, and there aren't enough words to tell you on how much I love you right now."

All of a sudden, the little, orange colt becomes restless in mommy's hooves, so she sets him down on the bed. Anxiously, the baby boy walks on top of his father’s belly and hops on it in a giddy manner. However, to his surprise, his childish antics aren't enough to wake up his father. So he looks at his mom and pouts heavily with emerging, tearful eyes.

Understanding her son's frustration, Rainbow gives him with a comforting nuzzle as she reassures him with a cool smile, "Don't you worry, kiddo. Your dad is as tough as they come. He'll pull through in the end. You'll see."

And after Dash ruffles the little boy's mane just for extra comfort, he begins to brighten up with a smile of his own. Then, a small chuckle escapes from her lips as she remarks with an amusing grin while she redirects her warm gaze towards her husband.

"Still, you better not take too long out there. 'Cause you already pulled that fake death stunt on me before, and it’s not going to work on me this time."

With a gentle fore hoof, she scoops up her son and brings him back into her tender embrace right alongside his twin sister before she wraps up her statement with a confident smirk, "And besides, you've got two wonderful foals waiting to see their daddy coming home with us, and we're not going anywhere without you."

It's hard to say for how long Ford Mustang lost consciousness since his literally breathtaking kiss. For all he knows, he could be dead at this point given the circumstances of his sudden weightlessness and lack of physical ground. But sooner or later, his eyes open up in order to verify his grim suspicions.

From opening his eyes, his blurry vision is greeted by splashes of soft, soothing colors and twinkling lights. As he gets himself up with his eyesight getting better by the second, his surroundings seem to be much clearer as the slightly bewildered Pegasus finds himself in the vast reaches of outer space. Yet for some strange reason, just staring at the cool-colored nebulae seems so nostalgic for him.

"Huh, this place... it's so familiar."

He can't quite put his hoof on it. He is certain that he has seen this mesmerizing scenery before.

But where?

"Yes, I believe this is similar to that one place near the end of the last episode you saw on Earth. What was it called again..? 'Magical Mystery Cure' was it?"

"Yeah, that's it--!"

Despite feeling pleased as punch from that reminder over the final episode in Friendship is Magic's Season 3, his merriment is abruptly put on hold when he realizes that his answer came from an anonymous, deep voice. Startled by the presence of an unknown visitor, Ford hastily looks around any sign of his unexpected guest.

"Wait! How did you--?"

In the midst of his search, he stops dead in his tracks as he sees something taking shape in the starry sky above. At a first glance, it looks like a huge cluster of stars. But soon enough, the stars move on their own as the living constellation makes its smooth descent while it gradually reveals more of its true form. First, bright lines magically connect the stars together to create the ginormous creature's outline. Next, bright colors fill in the empty space of the silhouetted figure. And from seeing the individual's distinctive features such as its colossal wings and shiny, golden scales, it didn't take long for Ford to figure out the creature's identity as the he stares with wide-eyed amazement while the towering beast comes in for a soft landing before boasting mildly with a clever, toothy smirk.

"Well... they don't call me the 'All-Seeing Dragon' for nothing."

As the grinning dragon waits for his friend's response, the Pegasus continues to remain agape by the giant reptile's sudden appearance. And steadily, his swollen eyes begin to fill up with so many reserved tears on standby as he starts to hiccup a few times before he lunges forward while calling out his name.

"Hindel!"

And in a flash, the sentimental stallion wraps his forelegs around the dragon’s neck and tightly embraces him. Though not as overly expressive as his pony friend, Hindel is equally joyful over their reunion as he lowers his large head to lightly nuzzle the embracing Pegasus on the back.

"It's nice to see you too, Ford. And I do mean that in a literal sense mind you." Hindel adds with a chuckling grin.

From hearing that amusing remark, Ford ceases his hugging to get a better look at Hindel. It takes a while for him realize it, but once again, he stares with amazement over the dragon’s most noticeable change. No longer are Hindel's eyes entirely blank to indicate his blindness. Instead, the whiteness in his eyes are replaced with black, slitted pupils and pure blue irises that showcase his gentle, cool demeanor.

"Oh wow! I can't believe it!" Ford exclaims over this revelation. "Hindel, your eyes...! You can actually see!"

"Yes, once you shed your mortal coil, blindness is no longer a hindrance to me anymore. Plus, I get to maintain a more prime physique for myself." he comments in a mockingly boastful manner despite the Pegasus not being able to tell the difference himself when facing the centuries-old dragon.

With a roll of his eyes, Ford responds back with a teasing smirk, "Yeah, but I bet you're still a heavy sleeper as you were in real life."

"Well, there's so much to do around here. Can you blame me if I need a day's worth of sleep every now and then. Besides, at least I don't have to deal with rude awakenings from a certain pony." the dragon implies with a very crafty smile.

"Yeah, until now that is."

From their exchange of shrewd remarks, the two friends share a good laugh together just like old times. But once their laughter dies down, Ford glances around to see the celestial heavens that completely surround him.

"So, I guess this is it, huh?" he comments in a surprisingly calm tone. "I'm officially dead, aren’t I?"

"Hmm... not necessarily true." Hindel acknowledges with a constant knowing grin. "This place we are standing in is merely a bridge between many realms, both for the living and for the dead. Your wife and her mother were here just a moment ago."

"Rainbow Dash was here?" Mustang inquires frantically over the mention of his wife. "Where she is?! Did it work or--?!"

"She's back among the living, safe and sound. All thanks to you, Ford." Hindel confirms with a nod and a comforting smile.

From receiving the answer he has hoped for, the startled stallion begins to shake up from this tremendous news before he eventually cools down and sighs with a broad, relieving smile, "Then it did work."

"Yes, you finally figured it out."

"Hindel... did you have something to do my visions?"

"No, not at all. You may have inherited my powers, but those visions were yours alone. Admittedly, I was worried at first if you were able to handle them yourself. But thankfully, you pulled through in the end as I knew that you would."

Although Ford feels a little pride over his latest accomplishment, he couldn’t help but be humble in all of this before he begins to show his appreciation in a slightly choked-up voice, "Hindel... I... don't know how to thank you for all of this."

"I didn’t do anything, Ford." he shrugs nonchalantly. "You the one who deserves all the credit yourself."

"I'm not just talking about that, Hindel." he gently shakes his head in response with an ever-so gracious smile. "I mean... it's because of your Draconian Magic that has gotten me here to where I am today. From arriving in Equestria... to defeating Arrogon... to saving the one I love most. I owe you everything for what you did for me."

Then, a faint sigh escapes the pony's lips as he expresses some regret in a softly somber manner, "I just only wish that I was able to save you back then."

Of course, Hindel isn't going to have any of that mopiness as he reassures his friend with a comforting grin. "Hey, that was my decision to make, and I was more than happy to give my life for that. Just like how you were willing to give up yours for Rainbow Dash."

Thankfully, the dragon’s encouraging words is enough to bring forth a smile across the stallion’s face. However, Hindel has much more to say as he displays a more serious demeanor for some reason.

"But listen to me, Mustang. There's something you need to know on what you did back there before you leave this place and return to the world of the living. No one has ever used that much Draconian Magic before in one breath, at least from a pony such as yourself. So by doing that, you may have completely exhausted what's left of it."

From listening attentively to Hindel's words, Mustang is a bit shocked over this startling disclosure as he inquires in a hesitant voice, "So... does this mean... I can no longer use Draconian Magic anymore?"

Reluctant at first, the dragon eventually admits in an halfhearted tone, "Afraid so."

As silence fills the endless, astral void, Hindel looks down at his much smaller friend with inexpressive yet canny eyes as he can see that Ford is lost in his own thoughts over what he just learned. Keenly, the elder dragon leans closer to the pondering Pegasus as he implies with subtle shrewdness.

"That's not going to be a problem, is it?"

Meanwhile, Mustang continues to contemplate over what he had to sacrifice in order to bring Rainbow Dash back to life. Strangely enough, he doesn't seem to express any regret or doubt over his noble decision, so of course, once he looks the awaiting dragon in the eye, his resolve remains steadfast as he replies with a confident, clever grin.

"Who even needs magic when I've got friends and family on my side?"

Not too surprised by Ford's crafty response, Hindel lets out a hearty chuckle before he answers back with a proud, acceptable smirk, "Heh, good answer."

Then out of nowhere, there is a shift in Ford’s spiritual form as he starts to glow all of a sudden. And to the stallion’s increasing puzzlement, he notices parts of his illuminated body disappearing gradually, starting with his tail and hind legs.

"Well, guess it's time for us to part ways then." the golden dragon remarks with a small grin.

Knowing that his time is short, Ford rushes in for one last hug from the big-hearted dragon as he warmly expresses his eternal gratitude one last time, "Thank you, Hindel... for everything."

With a softhearted smile, the dragon returns the heartwarming gesture by placing a gentle claw around the floating stallion whilst replying back in a heartfelt tone, "Take good care of yourself, Ford Mustang. You’ve got a wonderful life ahead of you."

With his vanishing body engulfed in light, Ford closes his eyes and lets out a faint chuckle to himself over Hindel's choice of words before he responds with a contented smile, "Yes... yes I do."

Slowly but surely, Ford Mustang opens his eyes once again. No longer does he feel entirely weightless or free of pain of discomfort. Instead, his extremely worn-out body feels like it weighs like a ton of bricks as his throat is nearly parched from thirst. So given the circumstances from feeling pain and soreness once again, it's pretty evident that he's back among the living.

With heavy, exhausted eyes, the stallion weakly opens them up to see where he is at this time. Little by little, his weak gaze becomes clearer as he verifies his new surroundings. First, he sees the ceiling. Then, he looks to his right to gaze at the tall glass windows with velvety curtains. From looking outside and noticing the dark, cool colors in his room, he realizes that it's nighttime right now.

Overtime, he hears two rhythmic sounds: a faint, raspy breathing and a familiar yet more soothing beeping noise than what he was used to in the past. It's quite clear that the first noise is coming from his own breath as a oxygen mask is strapped around his muzzle. And to confirm his suspicions on the second audible source, he looks to his left and sees a heart monitor with multiple patches stuck to his chest.

As he faces the other direction, he then sees a familiar pony watching over him. At a first glance, Ford thinks it might be his wife, Rainbow Dash, due to the rainbow-colored mane. But with better clarity than before, he then realizes that it's her father instead, Turbo Dash, as the older stallion stares back with huge, astonished eyes over his son-in-law's recent awakening.

"Ford! You’re awake already?" he bellows out in surprise before he bears a chuckling smile. "He-heh, you really are full of surprises today, aren’t you?"

"Turbo... where am I?" he asks in a feeble voice as he removes his oxygen mask before he tries to reach for some water.

Without causing Ford to strain himself, Turbo is more than happy to lend a helping hoof as he pour some water into a cup and hands it over to the younger Pegasus while answering his question, "You're at Canterlot Hospital."

With a few mighty gulps, his glass of water is enough to quench his thirst and clear his throat. Then, he anxiously looks around the room as he asks in a desperate voice, "Rainbow Dash... what happened to her? Is she..?"

"She's alive and well." Turbo replies with a soft, reassuring smile as he tries to gently push Ford to make him recline on his bed. "Thanks to you."

Once he received the confirmation he had hoped for, Ford plops back on his bed as he momentarily loses sensation in his body from the overwhelmingly ecstatic news. But gradually, his emotions escalate like an gushing geyser as tremendous tears pour out of his sentimental eyes while a quivering smile spreads across his face. From making such a pitiful expression in front of his father-in-law like that, the emotional stallion tries to cover his tear-stricken face with a foreleg as he snivels in a hushed yet extremely grateful tone.

"Thank God."

Shortly after that, Mustang recovers from his emotional breakdown while wiping away his overflowing tears and taking a few sniffles in-between. Once he is more composed, he sits back up while attempting to remove the heart monitor's patches from his chest.

"Wait, what are you doing?" Turbo inquires concernedly.

"What does it look like?" Ford sharply replies as he continues remove the sticky pads with his teeth. "I'm getting out of bed to see her."

After the removal of the patches, he set his sights on the IV needle stuck within his left foreleg. But before he does something irrational, Turbo presses a firm fore hoof on Ford’s chest to push him back on the mattress as he stops him in a mildly bossy tone.

"Whoa! No you're not! You need to get your rest first. You had a rough day as it is."

"Come on, Turbo! Let me up already!" he gripes out loud.

"No! You need to stay put until the doctors says so and that's that!"

"I don't care!"

As he begins to lose his patience and temper, Mustang puts up more of a fight to get out of bed while Turbo responds in full force to hold the younger Pegasus back. In their own variation of tug-of-war, both of the stallions try to overpower one another to determine if Ford will get out of bed or not.

"Stop... fussing around!" Turbo scolds in a parental manner. "You're making it worse for yourself!"

"Never!"

However, Mustang’s depleted strength couldn't measure up to his fiery determination to see his now-alive wife as Turbo Dash is able to achieve victory by pinning the younger Pegasus back on the bed with two strong hooves. In a desperate attempt, Ford tries wrestle himself free from Turbo’s grasp. But because of how weak he is from performing such a miraculous feat at the cost of his Draconian Magic, he is as helpless as an infant. Feeling utterly powerless and defeated, fresh tears seep out of his pitiful eyes as he makes a desperate plea to his father-in-law in a soft, heartbreaking manner.

"Please... I need to see her myself."

Understanding Ford's beseeching plight, Turbo eases up on his grip as he replies with a sympathetic smile, "Okay. If you stay put, I'll go fetch her in your stead." But just as Mustang starts to feel ecstatic over the older stallion's proposition, Turbo has something else to add in a more stern tone, "But I have to warn you: she may be a bit preoccupied at the moment."

"Huh, with what exactly?" he perplexes with an arched eyebrow and a tilt of his head.

Strangely enough, a noticeable blush consumes the older stallion's face as Turbo becomes hesitant to answer right away as he turns his face away before he responds in a very sheepish tone, "She's... ahem... nursing."

It takes a while for Mustang to process on what he just heard from the awkward stallion. But after letting that sink in for just a little bit longer, Ford's expression mirrors that with Turbo’s as a massive blush spreads across his face while he too shifts into an awkward, speechless manner.

"O-o-oh!"

"Yeah, we decided to bring the twins over as a nice surprise for our Rainbow Dash." Turbo explains further with an awkward grin. "And overtime, they got hungry, and Fluttershy offered to help her out, so... yeah."

After an uncomfortable moment of awkward silence between the two flustered stallions, Turbo Dash is the first to break that silence by clearing his throat and turning the other way while saying to Ford, "A-anyway, I'll be sure to be tell her about your awakening, and she'll see you once she gets the chance."

"Thank you, Turbo." he replies with a grateful smile.

Suddenly, the elder Pegasus freezes in place once he heard Ford’s gracious words. And after a slow turn to re-face the other stallion, Turbo charges head-on and pulls Mustang in for strong, appreciative hug, for there aren't enough words to express on how indebted he is towards Ford's actions for bringing his precious, little girl back to life. So for now, the eternally grateful stallion has to settle on a more simple response.

"No... thank you, Ford."

Within the embrace of his father-in-law, Ford returns the heartwarming gesture by wrapping his forelegs around the embracing stallion and giving him a few soft pats on the back. Once he is finished with his exchange of gratitude, Turbo lets go of the younger pony and excuses himself before he flies out of the room in search of his preoccupied daughter. All that's left for the bedridden Pegasus to do is wait.

Normally, Ford can be quite patient at times. But with all that he has been through in order to bring Rainbow Dash back to life, he's starting feel rather edgy over her anticipated reappearance. To him, one minute of waiting is the equivalent of one whole hour. Every second passing just keeps extending his self-induced agony. And just when he reconsiders to go look for her himself, a Pegasus swiftly appears at the doorway to his room, and it is the very pony he's been waiting for: Rainbow Dash.

Upon their long-awaited reunion, both of them share long, yearning stares for each other as they practically hold their breaths. As the wide-eyed Pegasi continue their longing stares, they each remain hesitant to approach one another, considering it's like looking at a ghost of their respective spouse appearing right before their very eyes.

Unable to hold back any longer, Ford is the first to steadily move from his spot. However, his wife beats him to it in one felt swoop by dashing forward at breakneck speed and tackling her startled husband with full force.

Upon contact, her ravenous lips collides with his as she tightly wraps her hooves around her beloved stallion. A bit stunned by Rainbow’s insatiable affection, Ford welcomes the much-needed embrace as he gladly offers the same amount of tenderheartedness in return. Through their passionate kissing, their eager lips keep pressing with one another as they barely gasp for breaths in-between. And in the midst of their lip-smacking passion, endless streams of tears pour uncontrollably out of their emotional eyes. But it doesn't matter how over-the-top their means to express their love for each other. They're back in each other’s warm embrace, and that's all that matters.

After an extensive time of making out with one another, they finally take a break as they respectively catch their breaths. While they continue to stare into each other’s eyes lovingly, Ford helps wipe some of Rainbow’s tears as both of them begin to giggle spontaneously. With broad, giddy smiles, Ford is the one to speak up first as he gently strokes his wife's soft, colorful mane.

"How are you feeling?"

"...I never felt more alive." she answers with a witty grin. "And you... how are you holding up?"

"...I felt like I died and gone to heaven." he replies back in the same cleverness as his wife.

"Haha... sappy as ever, I see." she chuckles heartily.

"You know it." he winks with a giggling smirk.

After sharing a good laugh, there is a brief moment of silence between them as they can hardly keep their eyes off one another. But after sharing another heartfelt kiss, Rainbow is the one speak up this time.

"Ford... how am I ever going to repay you for everything you've done for me today?"

"You don't need to even consider that, Rainbow." he reassures while gently caressing her emotionally smiling face. "You being here with me is more precious than any other gift I could ever receive. Well... with the exception of the twins, of course."

"Of course." she agrees with the same amusing smirk as her husband. But from the mention of their two children, she perks up with a bright smile as she adds, "Oh, that reminds me! Hang on for just one second!"

And after giving him a quick peck, Rainbow zooms out of the room and makes a sharp turn down the hallway. Ford is a bit unsure on what's gotten Dash so excited, but thankfully, he doesn't have to wait for too long as his wife comes back at a much slower pace with two special visitors secured in her hooves.

"Look who's here to see daddy~!" she announces gleefully.

From looking at what Rainbow is holding, Ford gasps lightly at the sight of their two precious foals, each of them fast asleep and cradled in their mommy's forelegs. Feeling highly emotional from seeing the twins again, Ford could barely control on how watery his sentimental eyes are getting as he displays a gushy smile over their loving presence. Once Rainbow sits next to her husband, she carefully hands the midnight blue filly to Ford while she holds on to the sunny orange colt.

"Sorry they couldn't be awake for this warm-fuzzy moment of ours." Rainbow explains as she grins over the foals' still sleepy faces. "These little guys are a bit tuckered out once they had their fill from yours truly."

"BURP!"

From hearing the slumbering colt’s unique means to express his compliment, Ford and Rainbow smile and awe over the baby boy’s first burp. And after that, Mustang then notices his little girl snuggling against her daddy's furry coat like it's her personal blanket. This causes the proud father to widen his smile even further over the twins' abundant cuteness.

With a soft giggle, the dewy-eyed stallion replies to his wife with a tenderhearted smile, "Not at all, Dashie. Right now, everything's just... perfect." And he demonstrates his schmaltziness by give each of his foals a kiss on the forehead.

As the reunited couple get cozy by snuggling closer to each other, Ford suddenly diverts his eyes away from Rainbow’s as he looks down at his own dragon-shaped Cutie Mark. From noticing her husband’s sudden absentmindedness as well as a fainter smile on his face, Rainbow seeks to find out on what's on his mind herself.

"Something up, Mustang?"

"Huh, funny. I thought my Cutie Mark would disappear once I woke up." he comments in a casual tone.

Confused, she inquires even further, "Why would you think it would?"

A bit hesitant at first, he explains himself in a mild tone, "When I met Hindel on the other side, he told me that I used up all of my Draconian Magic in order to bring you back to life. So with no more dragon powers, what's the point on having this Cutie Mark? I would be better off having a Blank Flank once again." he adds with a weak chuckle.

Not liking where this is going, Rainbow gives him a light, playful punch to the shoulder to snap him out of his supposed funk as she retorts with a sharp, lighthearted smirk, "Hey, you better not get all mopey on me over something like that."

Thankfully, there's no need for her to fret in the first place as Mustang reassures her with a more confident grin, "Don't worry. That's a thing of the past for me. Besides, I've got everything I need right here." he adds knowingly as he looks down at the ever-so adorable twins.

While happy to see Ford not beating himself up, Rainbow feels compelled to assure him even further. "You know, just because you can no longer breath fire or do any of that cool dragon stuff, that doesn’t make you any less awesome of the stallion I fell in love to begin with. And besides, your magic isn't truly gone from this world."

A bit baffled by his wife's slightly cryptic statement, the grinning mare takes the stallion’s free fore hoof and places it on her chest. At first, he can only feel Dash's gentle heartbeat pulsating from within. But sooner or later, he detects something else in particular: a very familiar warmth that's radiating from the same location as her throbbing heart. Astonished by this phenomenon, the gaping stallion looks back at Rainbow with wide eyes, and she confirms Ford’s suspicion with a nod before clarifying for him with a softhearted smile.

"See? That part of you now resides within me. And just like your love, it now holds a special place... right here... in my heart."

Astonished at first by Rainbow’s encouraging yet sentimental words, Ford then lets out a lighthearted giggle before saying to her with a clever grin, "Wow, Rainbow. I never knew you had it in you to be this sappy. I'm so proud of you!"

And as he snuggles with his wife very closely, Rainbow flustered up as she replies with a sharp, amusing smirk, "Hey, don't expect that kind of sappiness from me anytime soon! That's your shtick, not mine!"

With another chuckle, he responds back in an ever-so witty manner, "I'm not going to hold my breath on that one. I already did it once, and look where that got me."

After sharing one more giggle together, Rainbow caps it off by bring her face closer to his as she says with a devoted smile, "Either way, I’ll never stop loving you, my big, strong Mustang."

Captivated as ever by the mare's mesmerizing, magenta eyes, Ford returns the favor by saying with a lovey-dovey smile, "And neither will I, my beautiful, blue angel."

And after that is said, the Pegasi share one more kiss to demonstrate their everlasting love for each other. From finishing their simpler yet still affectionate kiss, they then prepare themselves for a well-deserved good night's rest with the already sleeping twins nestled securely in their parents' forelegs. But before they turn in for the night, Rainbow has one last thing to address.

"You know... there's one thing we need do before we call it a night."

"What's that, angel?"

"Coming up with names for our two little angels of course." she acknowledges with a knowing smirk.

...

"D'OH!"

The Next Day in Ponyville...

Word spreads fast over Rainbow Dash’s revival since yesterday morning. And Ponyville especially is completely ecstatic over the miraculous return of their hometown hero. And while the townsponies make plans on collaborating on the ultimate welcoming party, Pinkie Pie of course is one step ahead of everypony as she along with her closest friends prepare a party of their own. With Rainbow, Ford, and the rest of their family still at Canterlot Hospital, Pinkie and friends gave themselves a head start and spent a good chunk of their time setting up one of Pinkie’s super-duper, patented surprise parties right inside the Pegasi’s cloudhouse.

Through the combined culinary skills of Applejack, Spike, and Octavia, they prepare quite an exquisite banquet, including party mixes, nachos, mini-pizzas, various sweets, and fizzy, fruit-flavored punch. Meanwhile, on one side of the room, Trixie is nearly finished with her special project by putting up a modest-sized theater for her upcoming puppet show thanks to the help of Twilight Sparkle, Rarity, and Big Macintosh. And in the middle of it all, Gilda, Fluttershy, and Vinyl Scratch are decorating the room with colorful banners, streamers, balloons and other essentials with Pinkie Pie leading the charge in energetic, bouncy fashion as usual.

"Ooo! I can’t wait for Dashie and Musty-Wusty to see what we have in store for them!" Pinkie Pie exclaims with non-stop excitement as she literally bounces around the room. "They are going to be in for a real treat once they see this super-duper, awesome surprise party!"

"I must say, a party does sound like a marvelous idea after all we have been through yesterday." Rarity agrees with a positive smile as she smoothes out any tiny wrinkles on the theater's curtains.

"Yeah, from a funeral on one day to a welcomin' party on the next. Just another typical day here in Equestria Ah suppose." Applejack chuckles mildly while shaking her head.

"Well, joking aside, I can’t tell you on how wonderful it is to have Rainbow Dash back into our lives." Fluttershy says with a radiant smile as she and Gilda grabs the last banner to hang up on the ceiling.

With his handy tools put away after the puppet theater's construction, Big Mac agrees in a hearty manner, "Eeyup."

"You can say that again." Gilda concurs with a grin while she and Fluttershy finish fastening the final banner.

Once the decorations are all set up, Pinkie looks around the room, and she praises everyone's efforts while saying with wondrous eyes and a feverish smile, "Wow-wee! Everything looks great, guys! Now we just gotta keep an eye out for Dashie and her family before we get into our hiding places and yell out--!"

"Surprise~!" a female, raspy voice calls out of nowhere.

With a small yet high-pitched "eep" from the lead party coordinator, the astonished guests turn around sharply to face the main entrance as they stare with startled eyes on who's at the door already. Standing at the doorway are a trio of adult Pegasi: Turbo Dash, Rainbow Dash, and Ford Mustang. And riding alongside their father thanks to the double-harness saddlebags Big Mac lent to him earlier are the parents’ precious twins.

"Wait a minute, you guys are already here?!" Pinkie shrieks in surprise. "B-but you're not supposed to be here for at least another hour!"

"Yeah, what gives?" Gilda asks sharply.

"Sorry everyone." Ford apologizes with a slightly sheepish smile. "The doctors at Canterlot gave us a clean bill of health before letting us go earlier than we've expected. So we just couldn't wait to get home with our little ones."

"Still, this is an awesome party you've planned out for us nonetheless." Rainbow Dash confirms with a pleased grin as she gets a good look at the party before them.

"But... we haven't even gotten to our hiding places yet~!" Pinkie Pie whines childishly.

With a giggling smile, Rainbow offers her sympathies to her pink, pouty friend, "Sorry, Pinkie. We should have known better than to show up early for one of your patented surprise parties. But hey, we've got a surprise of our own to share with all of you." she adds with a clever grin.

This perks Pinkie's interest right away as she gasps with a big smile, "Really?!"

"Yep. Two surprises in fact." Ford nods to his wife's claim.

With Turbo Dash's help, he unbuckles his grandfoals from their harnesses as Rainbow explains further, "Since last night, we finally came up with names for our two coolest foals ever."

Soon after, Turbo hands one foal to each of their parents, the dark blue filly for Rainbow and the light orange colt for Mustang. Side by side, the grinning parents could barely contain their enthusiasm as their equally excited friends gather around for the grand reveal of the twins' names. With everyone gathered together, Rainbow carries on with their big announcement with an increasingly passionate smile.

"So... without further ado..."

"Say hello to our newest members of the family!" Ford promptly says on cue as they unveil the twins' names together, starting with their little girl first.

"Midnight Dash!"

"And Apollo Mustang!"

Right away, the guests beam ecstatically over the twins' first official introductions with Rarity squealing with never-ending delight, "D'aww! What darling little names!"

"Yes, where did you two come up with such charming names for them if you don't mind me asking?" Octavia asks politely.

"Well, we did agree that each of us would pick a name for our foals. I call dibs on the filly, of course." Rainbow acknowledges with pride.

Then, Ford takes his turn as he explains himself in a humble manner, "And to go with the twins' motif on night and day, I thought of a name based from one of my favorite mythologies back from where I come from. Apollo is associated with many things such as art, music, and athleticism. But more importantly, he's well-known for his horse-drawn chariot that moves the sun around on a daily basis."

"Hey, kind of like Princess Celestia when she moves the sun and all." Vinyl states with a grin before she chuckles over an interesting idea in mind. "Heh, who knows. Maybe when Apollo's all grown up, he could take over for Celestia and give her a break every once and awhile."

"Well, I doubt I'm going to allow my son to fly that close to the sun. Otherwise I would have called him 'Icarus' instead." he giggles at his own joke much to Vinyl and some of their friends' confusion as he playfully pats Apollo on the head. "Either way, I know without question that Midnight and Apollo will make big dreams for themselves one of these days."

Chuckling alongside her husband, Rainbow lays a comforting wing over Ford as she nuzzles against his cheek whilst adding with an upbeat smirk, "And whatever they have in mind, we know that they’re going to be awesome!"

"Ah yes, big dreamers… just like their mommy no less." Turbo Dash comments warmly whilst hugging his equally proud daughter.

After the loving embrace between the Dash/Mustang family, Twilight brings this up before everyone's attention, "Well, now that everyone's here, I believe Trixie would like to have the honor of starting this party with a puppet show for Midnight Dash and Apollo Mustang. Isn't that right, Trixie?"

From being mentioned by her favorite princess, Trixie flusters for a brief moment while answering with a blushing smile, "Oh, Y-yes of course!" Immediately after that, she clears her throat to maintain her usual boastful persona. "Ahem! Gather around everypony and be amazed at the theatrics of the Great and Powerful Trixie!"

With a more confident smirk, the Unicorn entertainer makes her way to her little theater as Midnight and Apollo giddily follows right behind her once their amused parents place them on the ground. And as everyone else gets seated for Trixie's puppet show, something causes Pinkie Pie to stand completely still before she spontaneously laughs all of a sudden. As she is too caught up in her own case of the giggles, Gilda notices this from her snorting friend and feels compelled to ask.

"What's gotten you laughing all of a sudden?"

As most of her laughter dies down, Pinkie tries to explain herself with an emotional, giggling smile, "It's just that... I should have known that this will all end well with a happy ending."

"Yeah, what tipped you that off?" the griffon asks with a sarcastic smirk.

"Well duh! This story didn’t have a 'Sad' or 'Tragedy' Tag attached to it, remember?"

While Pinkie Pie bears a big, toothy smile, Gilda becomes completely flabbergasted by her pink friend's strange yet innocent remark as if it's supposed to be that obvious for her or anyone else for that matter. Of course, the staggered griffon recalls what her other pony friends used to say when it comes to processing one of Pinkie’s random statements. So without overthinking it, Gilda shrugs it off by shaking her head with a roll of her eyes and a carefree smirk. And with one of her big wings, she tenderly embraces the innocent-smiling Pinkie Pie as they direct their soft gaze towards Trixie's magic theater whilst Gilda replies with a simple, amusing grin.

"Heh, whatever you say, Pinks."

Author's Notes:

This chapter's featured illustration is commissioned by Mariacheat-Brony.

In the Author's Notes for Chapter 2. I stated that there's a special meaning behind the name "Delphi", which was the name of the island where Ford Mustang and Rainbow Dash had their honeymoon over there. Anyway, Delphi is referring to the ancient site in Greece, where it was held as place of worship for one of the famous Olympian Gods, Apollo. That was meant as a clue to one of the foals' names announced in this chapter.