Forbidden Feelings Ch. 5

“So... what d'ya want to do today? Don't you have school or something?”
Scootaloo snickered, “Don't be silly Rainbow! It's Saturday – I always go to our little clubhouse on Friday evenings.”
“Duh, I kinda forgot about school. It's been ages, heh. I could take you back to the clubhouse if you want to play with your friends?”
“Nah, Apple Bloom's busy with her big sister, something to do with apples. And Sweetie Belle's probably gonna be holed up in that big boutique with Rarity, helping her make dresses or something. I guess it's just you and me, if that's ok with you,” she finished looking up at Dash with a winning smile.
“I'd love that kid, I got nothing to do today anyway. Let's do what you want.”
Scootaloo paused, “Here's what we could do! Tell me a story!”
“Hmm. I would,” Rainbow said, momentarily taken aback, “but I don't really know any good stories... My parents didn't really go in for that sort of thing.”
“Oh, ok. How about you tell me a story about yourself?”
“But I already told you yesterday about my parents...”
“Tell me about your home! It's so big!”
Rainbow gave a deep sigh. She'd tried to skip over the topic yesterday, but there were no convenient excuses to get out of this one. Nor could she just clam up with the excuse of a traumatic past: her childhood seemed like a walk in the park compared to what Scootaloo must have been through.
She walked into the living room, plonked herself down on the sofa and waited for her young guest to follow before beginning her tale.
***
She'd arrived at the Cloudsdale jobcentre with her tears just about under control. Joining the queue, she had to wait a good 2 hours before someone could see her. What greeted the grizzled old pegasus assigned to meet her must have been a pitiful sight – a small cyan mare with rainbow hair, just about of age, with bloodshot cerise eyes, hooves brought up to her head and shaking slightly.
He'd seen this too many times to count: young pegasi who'd just declared their independence without actually being fully independent. As he made his way over to the mare, he shook his head in dismay. This was one of the shittier parts of his job.
He sat down heavily in front of her. “Right, kiddo. Let's hear it.”
The apparent indifference that the jobcentre employee was showing her managed to get through her fragile emotional barriers, and Dash started weeping openly. The employee got up and fetched her a wad of tissues. Not a single other pegasus in the building seemed to care about the distraught mare he was tending to. They'd seen it all a hundred times and more besides.
The male pegasus returned and handed the tissues to Dash, who slowly stopped crying, wiped her snout and made a visible effort to control herself. “You gotta tell me what happened, kiddo, or I can't help you. Make an effort. My name's Thunder Flash,” he proffered with a smile.
“Th-thanks Thunder Flash,” she said turning up the corners of her mouth.
He guessed that was the closest he was getting to a smile at this stage, and sat back while Rainbow slowly got through her tale with a halting, jerky voice. Although the years of dealing with similar cases had inured him to the harsh stories of pegasi growing up in broken homes, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of sympathy at the harshness of her situation. Her father obviously couldn't get over his own pride, a common symptom in those who'd almost, but never quite reached their aspirations in life and so thought they could live them out through their foals: not to this degree, though.
As Rainbow finally got to the part where she literally ran away from home towards the jobcentre, he gave a sigh and sat up in his chair. “Listen kid, that really isn't how the system is supposed to work. You're supposed to live with your parents, gain from their experience, find a job and once you have the skills and financial foundation necessary to live on your own, finally declare your independence.”
“Great. Thanks for the inspiration there, Thunder Flash. Really helpful,” she deadpanned, looking straight at him. She knew she could never go back – independence, once declared, was final by pegasus tradition.
As she stared at him, something triggered in Thunder Flash. This mare wasn't like the others. She had a certain... grit about her. Yes, a determination that he rarely saw in those who came to him. So many were listless, resigned to their fate of finding a shitty job, perhaps a deputy assistant janitor in a primary school, or a vice sewer maintenance worker, third class. He decided to push her further.
“So. You're here, at least. Tell me what you'd like to do in life.”
“Hah. That's easy! I'm going to become captain of the Wonderbolts!” she exclaimed proudly.
Thunder Flash burst out laughing, but quickly had to bite it back when he saw the murderous look she was launching at him. He composed himself, then said, ”No need for all those daggers you're launching at me, kid. Understand this. Most pegasi who come here do so in utter despair. They haven't the faintest idea even of what they could do, let alone a clear idea of what to achieve. You caught me off guard, is all. I respect your gumption.”
He paused, then went on. “I guess you like flying, then.”
“Oh Celestia, do I ever! I'm awesome at it, I can do so many tricks it would make your head spin!”
“Quite. Anyway, I might have a job for you.” He shook his head at the excitement  of the mare in front of him. “It's not gonna be that easy, kid. The head of the weather team in a small town called Ponyville is getting old, and he needs an apprentice. He's got high standards though: you've got to be an excellent flier, determined, and above all, committed. Plenty of pegasi older than you got rejected, but I think you're different. I see that spark in your eyes, I think you've got a real chance at this.”
Rainbow looked down at the floor, disconsolate. “Weather? But...”
In a harsh tone, Thunder Flash interrupted: “You think you have other options kid? You're free to walk out at any time. Don't be ungrateful. But, despite your disdain, it's not so insignificant as you might think. Weather is a serious job. It plays with ponies' livelihoods and even their very lives. It might not be as glamorous as the Wonderbolts, but if fields and trees aren't watered, ponies don't eat. If lightning isn't controlled, ponies die. It's a highly skilled job, and you'll get to do plenty of flying, shifting clouds around and making storms.”
Dash looked back up at him. “Heh, I guess you're right. I never thought of it that way.”
Thunder Flash rolled his eyes. “Yeah, the ignorance of youth. Plus I used to do the weather many years ago, if you couldn't tell by my name,” he winked with a chuckle. “I'll go off and get you the details.”
Leaving Rainbow Dash sat down, he trotted off to the back of the building, presumably where the offices lay. As she waited, she started thinking about the conversation she'd just had. It's true that weather wasn't exactly what she had been aiming for... then again, she didn't really know what she was aiming for in the first place. And the way Thunder Flash had explained it, it did have a certain attractiveness to it...
She was lost in a fantasy of frolicking through fluffy white clouds as the older pegasus came back with a few sheets of paper. “Head in the clouds, eh?” he cracked. “Ohohoho, that one never gets old.” Smiling back at the first true smile that he'd seen that day, he gave her the paper. “Good luck,” he said, shaking her hoof firmly. They both stood up, and as Rainbow walked out of the jobcentre with a newfound pep in her steps, Thunder Flash gazed out at her wistfully - the days were few and far between when he felt like he'd made a real difference in some poor pegasi's life. As the door closed behind the cyan mare, he turned back to the roomful of desperate ponies. Time to get back to work.
***
Rainbow Dash paused, choking on the words. “I just realised, I... I never went back to thank him! He was the one who allowed me to get my life back on track, and I never even went back to say thanks... Oh Celestia, I'm a horrible mare.”
Scootaloo's gaze was sympathetic, albeit uncomprehending. “I don't get it. What's stopping you from going now?”
Dash looked up with the same determination she'd shown all those years back at the jobcentre. “You're right... nothing. Let's go!”