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"Here you go, sweetie, here's a fresh one. Hold it up...good job." Twilight Sparkle said gently, handing the little draconequus a cold compress, filled with fresh ice. Athena winced slightly as he pressed it up again to her bruised eye, but then sighed in relief.
"Thanks, Aunt Twi..." she said quietly, handing her head. The purple filly beside her lifted a foreleg and wrapped it around her best friend, pulling her close and giving her a reassuring squeeze. The violet alicorn looked over her daughter, brow wrinkled in worry. "Dawn, are you sure you weren't hurt when he pushed you?"
"No, Mama. I promise I'm okay." Dawn replied, her tone matching the somber atmosphere of the castle. Twilight sighed quietly before looking up towards the colt who sat nearby. "Jetstream?"
"M'okay." He mumbled, tightening his crossed forelegs and keeping his eyes either on the floor or Athena. The princess frowned, and the four sat in silence for only a few moments longer before the two doors to the dining room were slammed open, and a familiar, disheveled-looking pegasus trotted in.
"Well, looks like they're right, Twi. I've got a group of newbies freaking out about runaway storm clouds." She shook her head. "Jet, what in the world were you thinking?" Rainbow Dash asked sternly, walking over to her son.
"I didn't mean to, honest! It just happened kinda...out of nowhere." Jetstream finished meekly. Rainbow rolled her eyes as she sat beside him.
"Uh-huh. And it doesn't have anything to do with the fact that you let Iron get under your skin, and you got into a fight?" She inquired, raising a brow. It was then, all of the children burst out into explanations all at once.
"Aunt Dash, he was only protecting us -"
"- not fair! He hit Annie first, and -"
"- Only after he pushed Dawn, then he -"
"Okay, okay, chatterboxes, one at a time." Rainbow Dash urged, holding up her hooves and wishing she'd taken some aspirin after her visit with her panicked team. The Wonderbolt looked to the alicorn for confirmation.
"All of their versions of the argument match up. Its just like I said in the letter, and....well, just look at Annie." Twilight Sparkle said with a sigh, glancing down at the draconequus who still held the compass to her eye. She looked down, appearing almost ashamed, and Twilight wrapped a comforting wing around the girls. "Jet and Dawn protected Annie after he pushed her, and it looks like things went...a little south." Rainbow Dash frowned and offered a sympathetic frown towards Athena.
"You okay, kiddo? Don't worry, I'll give his dad a good talking to. I figured you guys were telling the truth." She grinned. "Don't want Aunt Jackie to come and get'cha." The cyan mare said playfully before her smile dropped and she sighed. "And you guys won't ever let each other down, I get that. But Jet, you can't get into fights like this. Standing up for your friends is one thing, but hurting another creature is a whole other hoofball game." Jet then looked up at his mother, tears shining at the corners of his eyes as he slammed his hooves down.
"I didn't want to hurt him! I just want to, y'know, scare him. But I got so angry, and he kept saying the worstest things about us," Jet insisted (Twilight made a brief move to correct his grammar, but the look Rainbow gave stopped her). "I started feeling...I don't know, hot. Like, I was so angry, I felt hot and red inside. And a really...strong feeling in my chest, like a fire that didn't hurt. It was weird, but not bad...I didn't mean to steal your team's clouds. Can you tell 'em I was only borrowing 'em?"
The combination of Jet's question and his pleading look caused her to laugh wearily. "I don't think there'll be hard feeling, kiddo. With my team. Iron isn't going to be any nicer to you guys after this, but if you just ignore him, he's probably going to end up getting bored."
"Your mother is right. And especially if you're discovering some new talents and skills, we need to talk about refining those talents into something totally radical...not something that hurts other creatures." Twilight told her adopted nephew gently. She then quirked a brow towards her friend. Rainbow grimaced.
"I know you were protecting your friends, and I'm proud of you for that. But Iron did have to go to the hospital. He's okay, just needed some bandages and ointment, but that's something his parents now have to pay for. And his dad is a big name at the Weather Factory." Rainbow said.
"What can he do? You're a Wonderbolt!" Jet exclaimed.
"Yeah, that's true, and a pretty dang awesome one. But me and him, and my team and his team, we all need to work together to keep Equestria goin'. I don't want you to think you've made anything harder for me - I can take anything he can dish out - but Iron is a pony too, and we don't want to make it harder on him." Rainbow explained, holding up a hoof before he could protest. "I know he attacked Annie and Dawn first, and me and Aunt Twi here are going to be giving his dad a talking to, don't worry. But first, I think its time we go home. I had to get Annie's grandma to watch your brother, and I don't think 'Dinosaur Space Explorers III' was really holding his attenton, and we don't want to impose on Nana Petals."
Rainbow sighed again, visibly trying to not appear uncomfortable. "And...you're grounded. For fighting. You can use your words, not your hooves. Or your...uh, sparks." Jetstream groaned.
"Awww, how loooong?"
"Twooouuuuhhhhhfour days. Four days. Its a very important lesson to learn." Rainbow said firmly, with a small nod of agreement from Twilight (Rainbow Dash then gave a her son a small, subtle wink). "I'm guessing Fluttershy already knows about all of this."
"Yes. We've already written to Discord and managed to keep him from flying up here in a rag - ah, very protective mindset. I believe Fluttershy is going to check in on Iron and drop off a get-well card before coming here." Twilight affirmed. Rainbow frowned.
"Oh boy, I...wonder how that conversation will go..."
***
"Okay, alright, hold on a sec, I'm a very busy stallion!" A painfully familiar voice called from the other side of the door (acting like she'd pounded on it, when it was only three soft knocks). Fluttershy sighed, feeling that familiar cold tingle of anxiety in her nerves, but she stood firm. A steaming plate of cookies balanced expertly atop one wing. The door to the large cloud home before her flew open, a grumpy-looking stallion towering over her.
"Oh...uh, Mrs. Shy. Uh..." Dumbbell stuttered, obviously caught off-guard by the uncomfortable situation. "Uh, Cloudy isn't here right now, she's on her way. Uh, you could step inside and...wait for her, I guess." The burly stallion offered, awkwardly gesturing into his home with a wing. Fluttershy gave a small shake of the head, instead assuming an expression of parental sympathy.
"Oh, thank you, I appreciate it, but no. Give her my well-wishes, I need to get going. But, I know what happened, and I baked a fresh batch of my homemade chocolate chip cookies for little Iron. Having to go to the doctor on such a nice day isn't fun at all, so I thought a little treat might cheer him up." She said in a tone that was...a little too sweet for the yellow mare. Her former bully gave a bewildered chuckle, catching up with this turn of events.
"Uh, hey, thanks. Yeah, kid's an unhappy camper. No flying for a week, and grounded for just that long." Dumbbell said with a roll of the eyes. Fluttershy put a hoof to her chin, shaking her head.
"Oh, poor fella. Trying to keep these kids grounded is like trying to keep King Sombra in a cage! I hope these help him feel better." She said. However, she didn't move to hand over the plate of cookies, making Dumbbell's outstretched wing look at tad odd. He instead pretended to sweep his mane back. "Uh, so is your girl okay? Iron shouldn't have done that, we're having a talk, and...yeah. I mean, you know how kids are." He said, rolling his shoulders.
"Oh, I know. Just like you and I, right? Such fun times." The last bits of her sentence lost some of its sweetness, and Dumbbell was just smart enough to pick up on it.
"Now, c'mon, that was just fooling around. Me and the boys, we were just having a laugh, y'know? That's all past, right? We're adults here." The pegasus stallion replied, straightening his posture and assuming a more managerial tone to his voice. Fluttershy didn't flinch, but instead gave the stallion a wearied look.
"Oh, yes! All is past. After all, look at where we are! You, manager of the entire thunder and lightning division at the Weather Factory! A stallion named 'most promising businesspony' in last years' BusinessBrains magazine. And me! Little old animal-loving Fluttershy, finally got her sanctuary. And taught at a school...and became part of two royal courts...and was immortalized in history as one of the Saviors of Equestria. " With each sentence, her expression fell into shadow, brows pulling together as a storm gathered in her eyes. "And I am very close with all of the Princesses. Not to mention that my husband, former Lord of Chaos, is our nation's very powerful adviser. And he is very aware that our only daughter is hurt."
Dumbbell blanched or a moment, before scowling at the pink-haired mare. "That sound like a threat, and I don't like threats, Mrs. Shy. You're not the only one with connections."
"I didn't mean it as one, but interpret it how you wish. Discord is staying in Canterlot for right now, but it took myself, Princess Twilight, and Princess Celestia to convince him to. If Dawn had been hurt as well, we may not have been able to persuade him." Fluttershy said quietly. Dumbbell scoffed.
"You know, it was MY child that was sent to the hospital. I know it was Crash's boy who put him there, but how DID this all start? I was told that after Iron said something about her weird magic, that he was threatened with hexes and poison and whatever else your daughter can think up. Maybe you need to have a talk with your own spawn, Klutzershy." The brown stallion sneered. He didn't maintain his disdainful expression for long, though. The storm had overtaken Fluttershy's eyes, a raging turquoise sea within. Her face became hard as stone, ears pressed against her head.
"You listen to me, you bully. Your son is not to bother my Annie again. In fact, he doesn't need to speak to her outside of school, especially if he's going to claim such untrue things, like my daughter making threats. You are free to raise your colt the way you and Cloudchaser prefer, but he has no right to harass, not only my daughter, but a future Princess. And a Wonderbolt's son!" She scoffed. "And how many times did you tell Dash she'd never make it? That I'd never amount to anything?"
Fluttershy's voice remained dangerously even, her eyes boring into the stallion. "I have traveled to every corner of Equestria and beyond. I have dedicated my life to upholding my oath as the Element of Kindness. Her father and I aren't the only ones upset."
Her eyes narrowed further. "Every single animal in my sanctuary and this village loves Annie. Our crow flock has many friends and family members in the town's flock. And they absolutely adore gossip and tell me all kinds of stories..." A silence fell between the two ponies, Dumbbell wearing a dumbfounded expression. Before he could retort, Fluttershy's expression softened slightly. "I'm glad I've made myself clear, and that we've had such a productive discussion. Those PTA meetings are far too short."
She then handed him the plate of cookies, making sure to keep from thrusting it into his chest. He gave them a disgusted look.
"If you throw them away, all you'll be doing is depriving your son of a treat, which with you as...which it sounds like he needs right now. I hope he feels better, and I hope you have a pleasant week at work." With that, she gave a flap of her wings and soared off of the cloud without another word. After putting a few meters between them, she allowed herself a breath, heart racing. She chided herself - after all, she'd faced off much worse than a former bully (and when it came to her daughter, all bets were off). Fluttershy stole a final glance over her shoulder, catching the stallion sniffing one of his son's cookies suspiciously, then stuffing the entire thing into his mouth.
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