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Fanfic / What Rainbows Are Made Of

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Illustration by Drul.

What Rainbows Are Made Of is a My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic Fan Fiction, originally written in Russian by Silver Fox, translated by LinesPrower.

Scootaloo is about to take her final exam at the Flight Academy. Nervous about failing, she has a horrific nightmare about the Rainbow Factory. However, with a little reassurance from her friend Orion, she aces her exam. Eventually, Rainbow Dash invites her to the Factory for real; she's even asked to take part in the rainbow-making process. Fortunately, Scootaloo has nothing to fear.

The story is a re-write of Rainbow Factory, an infamous grimdark story.

A live reading can be found here.


This story contains examples of the following tropes:

  • Acid Reflux Nightmare: Pinkie Pie's "baked bads"— more specifically, a bad batch of cupcakes— were apparently responsible for Rainbow Dash's nightmare (as well as making her sick for a week, though the nightmare itself might have contributed to that).
  • All Just a Dream: Both Rainbow Factory and Cupcakes (Sergeant Sprinkles) (Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash's nightmare, respectively).
  • As You Know: An instructor explaining the flight exam.
  • Audience Surrogate:
    • Scootaloo's worries about the rainbow-making procedure mirror the reader's fear that the story might turn evil.
    • Earlier, there's Scootaloo's initial reaction to Rainbow Dash's nightmare, which consists of the events of Cupcakes (Sergeant Sprinkles). The narration notes that "the excessive amount of detail made her sick", a sentiment anyone who has read Cupcakes would likely share.
  • Bait-and-Switch: It seems like the fic is about to take a dark turn when Scootaloo visits the rainbow factory to take part in the rainbow-making procedure. Thankfully, it doesn't.
  • Disguised Horror Story: The story gets a bit ominous near the end, and it seems like it's building up to this. Subverted when it ends on a much more heartwarming note.
  • Fix Fic: To Rainbow Factory and, to a lesser extent, Cupcakes.
  • Heroic RRoD: Scootaloo undergoes one right after she finishes her final exam. She recovers after a relaxing shower.
  • Ironic Echo: Lots, the lyrics from the Rainbow Factory song and Scootaloo's comment on Rainbow Dash's eyes are just two examples.
  • Lampshade Hanging:
    • When Scootaloo and Orion meet at a staircase in the Flight Academy:
      For some reason, stairways weren't very popular in the Flight Academy, so the place seemed secluded enough.
    • Also, the absurdity of the Rainbow Factory story (in the form of Scootaloo's nightmare) gets pointed out.
  • Loose Lips: One of the researchers, Windbag, almost lets slip the reason why Scootaloo was asked to participate in the rainbow making process. Rainbow Dash stops him just in time.
  • Nausea Fuel: An In-Universe example— Scootaloo is revolted just from hearing the gory details of Rainbow Dash's dream. Given that said dream is based on Cupcakes (Sergeant Sprinkles), you can't really blame her.
  • Post-Victory Collapse: Scootaloo collapses from exhaustion right after her final exam due to overexerting herself.
  • The Power of Love: This ends up being the reason why Rainbow brought Scootaloo to take part in the rainbow-making process. Dash explains that strong emotions will cause one's heart to give off a glow that can be detected in extremely dark environments. Apparently, love is the only emotion that hasn't been tried yet, and the bond shared by Rainbow and Scootaloo is enough to make the experiment a success.
  • Song Fic: Just like this fic's source material, the Rainbow Factory song's lyrics are interspersed with the story. Only this time, they take on a whole new meaning.
  • Take That!: Aimed at Rainbow Factory and Cupcakes (Sergeant Sprinkles), two notorious "grimdark" stories.
    Rainbow Dash: Whoever dreams up these nightmares, that pony must be really crazy.
  • What Beautiful Eyes!: Just like Rainbow Factory, the story ends with Scootaloo telling Rainbow Dash that she has beautiful eyes.
    The deceitful dream had completely dispersed, leaving behind nothing but these true words.

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