Quick A/N: Hey guys! I'm so sorry for taking forever *as usual* to update this story... I've made this chapter extra long (HA, that's what he said) for you guys to make up for it all c: Have fun reading, and please be sure to leave comments! I would like to say thank you, and be sure to check out this awesome story called "Driving With a Lead Foot" by NSBbrony.

If you guys love action packed stories - check that story out. You won't regret it. And to let you know, it is in fact an MLP fic as well. Anyways... Without further ado, here's chapter eighteen! (:

I couldn't sleep. I kept stirring around in the blue sleeping bag I had set up for myself on the floor while my sister was sleeping soundly on my bed. She needed the rest more than I did... Especially after that attack. When I sat up, my face was still stinging me a bit... I might have gotten a piece of glass stuck in there, but oh well. That's the least of my worries.

I cleared my throat as quietly as possible then stood up off of the sleeping bag and stretched. When I looked at the alarm clock on my nightstand, it read three fifteen in the morning in blue. The more I thought about it, the more I came to realize that I was practically obsessed with that color. Damn. I need to chill.

I yawned, then walked over to my desk where my cell phone was charging. I disconnected it from the charger then stared at the lock screen which was of Fluttershy and I sitting close together with our tongues sticking out and our eyes crossed. Our tongues were green from the icing of the cupcakes we bought from Pinkie Pie that day... A smile slowly formed on my lips and I unlocked the phone only to be greeted by another photo of Fluttershy and I as the home screen. In this photo, unlike the other one, we were shown kissing each other, forming a heart with our fingers.

I scrolled through the apps on my phone until I came across the ED app. I opened it up, and checked to see who was online. There wasn't much activity going on in my news feed, but I noticed a small notification mark just above where the inbox icon. I pressed on it, and it showed my conversation list. At the top was a message from Monstarr.

Starr Power: Do you know what happened? There were police sirens going off around your neighborhood.

After reading the message, I noticed she had sent it at around one in the morning. Typical.

Rainbow Dash: Yeah... they came by my house.

Not even a minute went by, and she was already back online and responding to my message. I swear that girl is on her phone 24/7.

Starr Power: Wait - what?! What happened?

Rainbow Dash: My dad - no... I don't even consider him as a father - the bastard almost raped Scoots for the second time this year. I called the cops, and now he's gone. I don't know how long he'll be there, but I'm just worried that he'll be back for revenge or something.

Starr Power: About damn time you called them!

Starr Power: And how's Scoot doing? She okay?

Rainbow Dash: Yeah, she's fine... She's sleeping in my bed for tonight.. I've never seen her cry like that before...

Starr Power: Damn... Wait... Does your girlfriend know?

Rainbow Dash: I'm going to tell her tomorrow morning over some doughnuts.

Starr Power: All right, good. You should get some sleep then.

Rainbow Dash: Right back at ya. Aren't you seeing your girlfriend tomorrow as well?

Starr Power: As a matter of fact, I am! I can't sleep, and I have to skate to the airport in an hour... Speaking of which, I should probably start getting ready.

Rainbow Dash: Okay dude. I'm going to try to get some sleep

Starr Power: wAIT!

Rainbow Dash: What? xD

Starr Power: Uh.. Would it be okay if Silver and I can join you and Fluttershy?

Rainbow Dash: Yeah, I don't see why not! We're probably going to get there at Joe's at 7:30

Starr Power:... In the morning?

Rainbow Dash: Yes, the morning. I still have school unlike you, FYI >->

Starr Power: Ha! All right, all right.. I'll meet you two lovebirds there. Goodnight Dash! I've got your back for anything, don't forget that.

Rainbow Dash: I won't forget that, you asshole.

Starr Power: Aw, love you too, you shithead (:

I laughed, and finally logged out of ED, and plugged my phone back into the charger. I glanced over at the alarm clock and noticed that only twenty minutes went by. I stretched both hands, and winced at the pain after doing so. Looks like I need to take a break from my guitar for a few days...

For a few more minutes, I sat on the swivel chair in my room just looking down at my bandaged hands. I heard a few small snores coming from my bed, and I then pushed my hair back and stood up to return to sleep. Tomorrow is another day.

Fluttershy's POV

I was woken up by the alarm I put on my cell phone. It was currently six thirty in the morning, and I forcefully dragged myself out of bed before I even had a chance to fall back asleep. I stretched for a bit then walked over to my closet to pick out my outfit for the day. After pulling down some grey skinny jeans, and a red t-shirt Rainbow Dash had given me a few days before. It was slightly baggy and had the words Blink-182 in white above a smiley face.

After changing into my outfit, I slipped on some white Converse, and walked over to brush my hair. Once I thought it was good, I opened a few drawers until I came across a grey beanie and put it on. By the time I was completely finished, it was already sixteen minutes past seven. I grabbed my phone and sent a message to Dashie, letting her know that I was ready.

I grabbed my backpack and pulled it on and walked out my bedroom to the kitchen where a plate of scrambled eggs and some toast were waiting for me... And surprisingly Featherweight was sitting at the kitchen table for the first time. His hair was practically a mess, but then again that's how he normally had it every time he went to school.

"Good morning, Shy," My mom said with a cheery voice.

"Morning," I pulled out the chair and sat down and already began to eat up the food even though I wasn't really that hungry... Plus, Rainbow had told me last night that we were going to go to some doughnut place for breakfast... Yeah, I probably should have told my mom before she went through all the trouble.

"Is Rainbow picking you up again, or are you going on the bus?" She asked, wiping some crumbs away from her mouth. I nodded in response. "All right... Feather, your bus is almost going to be here -"

"Yeah, I know," He got up from his seat and grabbed his piece of toast along with his backpack and began to walk out the door. "Love you guys. Later!"

My mom waved bye to him, and took a sip from her morning coffee. She was already dressed up and ready to go to her place of work which was at Ponyville's hospital. Lately, she's been a lot more busy there than usual, and it concerned me at times.

"So... You and Rainbow?" My mom suddenly said, smirking behind the white mug of coffee. A blush immediately formed on cheeks, and I looked down nervously trying to come up with a quick answer before she got suspicious.

"U-Um... What about me and Rainbow?"

"You like her?" She asked, with a small laugh. I inhaled slowly and bit my lower lip nervously. She set down the mug in front of her near her empty plate and continued to stare at me with an amused expression etched onto her face, "Come on... I can tell. And the way you're turning red doesn't help your case, so spit it out."

"Okay... Yes, I do." I said and a wave of relief washed over me as my mom laughed in response.

"I knew it. I totally called it." She slammed her hand down on the table, nearly scaring me to death, "YEAH!"

I wanted to hide away forever. She was acting like a teenager watching a movie where the guy finally confessed their love to the girl. My mom continued to let out small laughs and cleared her throat, trying her best to be serious, "Well... She better treat you right or else -"

She was cut off mid-sentence by the sound of a familiar motorcycle right outside the house. The sound it was letting out soon came to a halt, and all was silent once more. My mom and I exchanged looks at each other, and before I knew it she got up right from her seat and ran toward the front door. I swear...

I pulled on my backpack and followed my mom where she had already opened up the front door - and just in time too. There at the door was Rainbow Dash. She was wearing denim skinny jeans, black Vans, with a grey and yellow muscle shirt with the Batman logo printed on the front over a red flannel that was tied securely around her waist. Her rainbow hair was at its usual messy state, but the thing that stood out the most was the large gash on the side of her face. What happened?!

"U-Um... Good morning, Miss Forrest..." Her ruby eyes fell on me and she smiled nervously and waved, "Fluttershy..."

"Treat my daughter right, Dash. I got my eyes on you," My mom said defensively and allowed me to pass. Rainbow's eyes widened in surprise after I kissed her on the cheek and went walking toward her motorcycle after waving bye to my mom.

"O-Okay... I'll keep her safe - that's what I'm here for," I heard Dash chuckle awkwardly.

"Uh-huh... Get that bandaged up, by the way," My mom laughed and finally said bye to the both of us and returned inside the house.

Rainbow Dash turned towards me with an amused look on her face, and began walking towards me, "What was that about?" Once she was in front of me, she grabbed a helmet from the seat of her motorcycle and handed it to me. As soon as I grabbed hold of it, she leaned forward and surprised me with a short, but sweet kiss.

"I'll tell you when we get to that doughnut place, Dashie..." I said and pulled on the helmet, as Dash did the same and mounted her motorcycle. I climbed on behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist. "But you need to explain what happened to your face too."

Rainbow Dash sighed but agreed. She started up the vehicle and soon we were off the driveway, and down the main street of my neighborhood.

The motorcycle came to a slow halt, and when I looked up I found myself staring at a simple one story building. At the front of the structure was a massive sign that read "JOE'S" with a logo that consisted of a glazed pink donut with sprinkles all over. At the main entrance was a simple sign that read "Open", along with the closing hours below it.

Rainbow Dash and I carefully stepped off the motorcycle, and almost immediately she tangled our fingers together then leaned to the side to give me a small peck on the cheek. The action made me blush profusely and the rainbow haired teen beside me simply snickered.

The both of us carried our individual helmets under our arms as we walked inside. A small bell rung out from above us, but we dismissed it and looked around for a table. The interior of the doughnut shop had checkered red and white tiles, and several vintage like posters were hung up all around the shop, giving it a more old fashioned appearance. Only a handful of people - all were adults - were occupying some tables.

Dash led me to a red colored booth at the left side of the shop which was conveniently located near a window. We both placed our helmets down on the seat and looked up at one another. We gazed into each others' eyes for a few seconds before I averted my gaze to the gash on her cheek. I looked up at her again and raised an eyebrow then crossed my arms for an added effect, "Well?"

"Well, what?" Rainbow Dash replied innocently. I rolled my eyes then gave her a stern look. For a few seconds she didn't react to it and instead fiddled around with her fingers nervously.

"What happened to you?" I questioned. Dash bit her lower lip and scratched the back of her neck and then I saw it... The raw and bruised knuckles.

"Uh -"

"Who did you get in a fight with?" I asked, cutting her off. This wasn't normally like me, but for some reason a fire ignited inside of me when I saw the damage. There was a long pause between us, and Dash looked down at her lap and sighed. When she looked back up, her eyes were slightly teary.

"I got in a fight with my dad." My eyes widened, and as I was about to say something else she held a hand up, gesturing me to stay quiet, "Before you say anything, no, he did not cut my face... Since... You were being honest with me, I'll be true to you... When I was ten, my mom left us... I don't know why she did, but I always noticed that her and my... Dad... Continuously fought with one another just weeks before she left."

I nodded my head, and allowed her to go on, "She was apparently going to fly somewhere far away, but unfortunately she never made it. The plane's engine failed, and the crash killed tons of people. Since that day, my dad has been hurting Scootaloo and I. Since my sister was only eight at the time, I did my best to protect her no matter what... So, that meant that I would take all the beatings instead.

"It all got worse since my dad became an alcoholic and he would often come home really late, and whenever he had the chance, he would break into my room and hurt me - verbally, physically, and emotionally. Life sucked at that point... And well... Fast forwarding to what happened last night... After I drove home, I saw my dad's truck parked outside, and it was strange since he was never there at that time," Rainbow paused and breathed in deeply. Her jaw tightened and she turned to look outside the window. Whatever it was, I could tell that she wanted to punch someone.

"He... He tried to rape my sister again... Luckily I stopped him, but I kept punching him and hurting him. I was done with all his crap... Scootaloo hit the side of my face with a beer bottle my dad had with him, and it ended up cutting my face. She only did it because she thought I was going to kill him..." Rainbow sighed.

"Is Scootaloo okay?" I asked, resting my hand on hers. Dash squeezed my hand in reassurance and chuckled.

"She's fine, thankfully... My dad got arrested last night, so we won't be seeing him anytime soon." She smiled broadly and stroked my hand with her thumb. I weakly smiled. Don't get me wrong, I was beyond happy that her father was gone, but it just hurt since I knew I was too afraid to call for help when it came to my dad.

"Anyways... Your turn." Dash suddenly said with a smirk.

"What? What do you mean?" I responded confusingly. She laughed and gave me her famous side smile.

"What was up with all of that this morning with your mom?"

"Oh... That... Um..." I looked around the shop awkwardly, and noticed Dash looking at me curiously. "Well... She... She kinda figured out that you and I like each other. It kind of just happened unexpectedly and what not -"

"Do you think she'd be okay with us dating?" Dash said with happy tone of voice. I giggled and nodded. "Sweet!"

I nodded in response, and we finally grabbed the small menus placed neatly on the table and looked through it. Dash and I decided that I would get hot chocolate while she got coffee. Rainbow looked over to the counter of the shop and waved her arm, capturing the attention of a well built male who looked to be our age.

A pearly white smile formed on his face, and he casually walked over. He wore a white polo shirt with a nametag that had the name "JOE" carved onto the metal surface. A white apron was tied around his waist, and he quickly pulled out a small notebook and pencil. His ginger hair was scruffy but was being held in place by the white hat perched on his head. His lime eyes looked over at Rainbow and I curiously.

"Welcome back, Dash... Haven't seen you or your friends in a while, heh... Who's this?" Joe asked with a low voice, looking over at me.

"This is Fluttershy, my girlfriend," Rainbow answered happily, earning a surprised look from the waiter. Rainbow looked over at me, "Flutters, this is Joe. He runs and owns this place with his family."

"Nice to meet ya, Fluttershy," Joe reached over and shook my hand firmly. "So... What will you two have?"

"I'll be getting coffee - black... And Fluttershy wants a cup of hot chocolate... We're still waiting on two other friends, but I think they'll be here soon," Joe nodded and after writing the orders down on the notepad, he walked off back to the kitchen. My gaze fell upon Dash again in confusion and in surprise.

"What...?" She asked.

"Who else is coming?" I replied with a slightly worried voice. Rainbow chuckled and picked at her injured knuckles.

"Monstarr and her girlfriend, Silver Struck, are coming in a few minutes... Silver is Monstarr's girlfriend of over three years. She's been living in the dorms of her college back in Trottingham where she's from, and she's finally coming over to visit again," She answered with a smile.

A minute passed, and Joe returned with our drinks in his hand and placed them in front of us gently, "Here you go... Would you guys like a box of donuts while you're here?"

Rainbow chewed on her lip then nodded, "A dozen glazed donuts... I know how Monstarr and her girlfriend are." She muttered the last part as Joe walked off in a rush.

"What do you mean by that?" A small giggle escaped my lips and I looked down at my cup of hot chocolate. A large swirl of whipped cream was mounted on the drink, and even had chocolate sprinkles on it.

"Well... Let's just say they love to eat sweets... Kind of like Pinkie Pie," Rainbow laughed wholeheartedly, and the entrance of the shop opened once again. We both turned to see the new customers and sure enough found ourselves looking directly at Monstarr who was holding hands with her girlfriend.

The girl beside her had long jet black hair with blonde streaks that slightly covered her face. Her navy blue eyes shone brightly. She wore a simple red flannel with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows, along with some black shorts and a pair of black Vans. She had several rubber bracelets on each wrist, and had a tattoo of an owl just below her neck. Another tattoo of a multicolored snake circled around her leg and stopped mid-thigh.

Monstarr wore black jeans that were ripped from the knees, with some black high tops. She had on a blue flannel that was tucked in neatly with a pair of black suspenders. The sleeves of her flannel were rolled up as well, showing off her tattooed arms. Her blue and black hair was wavy compared to the last time I saw her, and the piercings she had on her lower lip were replaced with black colored lip rings, which seemed to suit her much more.

"Dash! Fluttershy!" Monstarr waved at both of us happily. Rainbow Dash got up from her seat, pushed her cup of coffee to the other side of the table and scooted in next to me as the couple sat in front of us. Dash draped her arm around me and held me closer, which I absolutely loved.

Monstarr sat in front of me while the other girl sat in front of Dash. She shyly waved at me and waved back. She messed around with her bracelets and the four of us were drenched in a wave of awkwardness. I looked out the window and watched as several cars drove down the street. My attention was focused back by the sound of Monstarr's voice. When I looked, I noticed Joe was standing there with his notepad and pencil. A white box sat at the center of the table, which I realized were just the glazed donuts Dash had ordered for all of us.

"... I'll have a hot chocolate, and Silver here would like some coffee." Monstarr said in a confident voice. Silver was still silent, and I wondered if she was like me or not - personality wise. "Oh! And can you bring us some sweeteners and creamer for her coffee? Thank you!"

As Joe walked off, both Monstarr and her girlfriend grabbed hold of the box of donuts ferociously and tore the top off right away. While Rainbow Dash was laughing her head off, I was sitting there in complete shock. Those two were like animals!

"Cheers to a wonderful life in donut world!" The girl announced with a large smile, and with a British accent. I wasn't expecting that.

"That's the spirit!" Monstarr and her girlfriend both pretended the donuts in their hands were glasses and bumped them together before devouring the donuts viciously. After they were done, they burst out laughing together.

"Okay, okay... I'm sorry for being rude earlier... I'm Silver Struck - I haven't seen you before..." She was about to shake my hand before she pulled away, "Sorry... My hands are sticky."

"It's okay... I'm Fluttershy, nice to meet you." I replied quietly. Silver smiled, and that smile only widened when Joe returned with their orders.

"Would it be all right if I also order a dozen -"

"Make it two dozen!" Silver interjected.

" - two dozen donuts?" Monstarr finished, and flashed both Joe and Silver a smile. Joe stood there trying to comprehend the situation then laughed and nodded.

"Right away!" Joe stormed off into the kitchen, while Monstarr and Silver continued to eat the donuts in the box. Before Monstarr could get her fourth one, Rainbow smacked the top of her hand and glared at her.

"Wait for yours, woman! I'm starving," She said in a serious voice then chuckled as she took a sip from her coffee. The three of us laughed at the hurt look Monstarr had on her face. For the past hour, we were spent talking with the couple. I ended up learning that Monstarr was planning on becoming a tattoo artist as well as being the guitarist for The Neverlanders, while Silver was beginning to work as a special effects makeup artist for upcoming horror movies.

After we exchanged phone numbers, Rainbow Dash's phone alarmed, and it was already time to get going back to campus. We all said our good-bye's and grabbed the helmets. Monstarr offered to pay the tab, which we gladly accepted after we walked back to the motorcycle.

"Silver seems pretty nice," I said lightly. Rainbow nodded her head in agreement and mounted the vehicle after we both slipped on the helmets. I climbed in behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist securely.

"You have no idea," Rainbow Dash laughed and soon started up the motorcycle, and we were finally off back to school. All the while, I couldn't help but feel like something bad was going to happen. I just had that gut feeling...

We walked down the noisy hallways together hand-in-hand, and finally we made it to my first period classroom. I spun around and gave Rainbow a tight embrace and a quick kiss on the lips. We both smiled in the kiss and pulled away as soon as we said our bye's. When I entered the classroom, half of the class was missing as usual. They often showed up a few minutes after the final bell rung.

I walked over to my seat that was at the far corner of the classroom, away from the other students. I didn't seem to mind this, honestly. I seemed to do much better when I'm isolated...

"All right, class! Get a textbook and turn to page thirty seven... We'll be continuing our lesson where we left off with Tirek," Miss Cheerilee announced. She walked over to the board and grabbed a black dry erase marker and wrote down the objective for the day.

I pulled up my backpack and took out my notebook for the class along with a ball point pen. Before I could put my backpack on the ground, I felt a tap on my shoulder. When I looked up, I was facing a girl that had short, snow white hair with lavender tips. She gave a shy smile and looked down at the ground.

"Um... Sorry to bother you, but... Do you have a pen or pencil I can borrow?" Her amber eyes were unreadable, but I could tell that something seemed off. She wore a white muscle shirt, with small brown shorts and brown Doc Martens. A grey sweater was tied around her waist tightly, and she didn't seem to have a backpack with her.

"Yeah... Here you go," I answered while reaching back into the front pocket of my backpack and gave her a pen, along with a few blank pages of notebook paper.

"Thank you... You're a lifesaver... I just transferred here from Cloudsdale, and I totally forgot to pack up last night... I'm Gilda, by the way," She said with a friendly voice. I smiled back at her.

"I'm Fluttershy... And I'm pretty sure you're going to love it here, trust me." I said while looking back at my notebook.

"Oh, I will..."