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Description
Sometimes all it takes is a genuine repentance and intention to make amends for your actions to get back a long lost friend.

My submission for NATG XII, Day 24: "Draw a pony facing a mistake from their past / Draw a pony trying to make things right." With, woof, I have a lot of thoughts and feelings when it comes to this one. Although, I'm not sure I have time to talk about it all, since, as you may guess by the early posting, I have another busy day today. And I literally need to leave in the next few minutes 🙃 But I'll try my best. Lightning Dust has always been an interesting case. Unlike most other antagonists, she is purely a single antagonist for a single character in the show. Sure there's Flim and Flam and AJ, but even then all the Mane 6 were there to help, they all know and have had to deal with Flim and Flam's antagonistic shenanigans in one way or another. However, Lightning Dust is purely an antagonist to Rainbow Dash. This kind of puts Rainbow in the unique position of being the only pony that decides if Lightning Dust should be forgiven or redeemed. Whereas every other antagonist or villain redemption (as far as I'm aware) is at the hooves of the Mane 6 as a whole. That is to say, in order for Lightning Dust to have been redeemed or forgiven, she'd have to really accept the error of her ways and make it up to Rainbow Dash, and really show she's changed. Because, Celestia knows Rainbow is not easily forgiving the things she's done. They're arguably not as bad as, say, threatening all of Equestria. But Lightning Dust still put Rainbow's Friends and later Scootaloo, ponies Rainbow cares the absolutely most about, in mortal danger. That's not something you forgive easily. And if Rainbow decides that that's unforgiveable, well, personally, I wouldn't blame her.
And yet, I can see Rainbow, upon and truly redeemed Lightning Dust ... just being overjoyed to have her friend back, her "sparring partner" so to speak. Because, there's of course the pain of Dash almost losing her friends to Dust's utterly reckless actions. But not only that, but Dash did lose a friend back then. She lost the friendship of Lightning Dust herself. Arguably the only pony who gave Dash anything of a challenge to better herself against. Because from what we saw none of the other trainees we're even close to them. She lost something there. What could've been an "awesome friendship" perhaps to try put it in her words. And sometimes all it takes is a genuine apology, a genuine effort to make amends, and you may be surprised what lost friends are willing to have you back.

Anyhoof, yeah, I was thinking about Rainbow Dash and Lightning Dust a little recently, so this is why this was on my mind. I can't say if Lightning Dust genuinely should have been redeemed, like I said personally that's only a call Rainbow herself could make in my opinion. But, so, yeah, there's a little more emotion here than I expected for me, haha. Y'know, sometimes forgiving someone, even as their actions seem unforgiveable, is the most loving thing you can do.

Anyhoof, anyhoof, that all said, I'm not totally the happiest with this drawing. I think I got Rainbow alright, but I feel a bit like I totally butchered Lightning Dust's design And her face looks a little off or disproportionate, I'm not sure. Which is a shame, because if there's something I've always liked about Lightning Dust, it's her awesome hair-do! It took me several tries to get it looking decent, as I kept screwing it up 🙃 Looks like it turned out alright in the end, but yeah, that mostly obscured pose of Lightning Dust was kinda' difficult for me to pull off personally, haha

Description
Sometimes all it takes is a genuine repentance and intention to make amends for your actions to get back a long lost friend.

My submission for NATG XII, Day 24: "Draw a pony facing a mistake from their past / Draw a pony trying to make things right." With, woof, I have a lot of thoughts and feelings when it comes to this one. Although, I'm not sure I have time to talk about it all, since, as you may guess by the early posting, I have another busy day today. And I literally need to leave in the next few minutes 🙃 But I'll try my best. Lightning Dust has always been an interesting case. Unlike most other antagonists, she is purely a single antagonist for a single character in the show. Sure there's Flim and Flam and AJ, but even then all the Mane 6 were there to help, they all know and have had to deal with Flim and Flam's antagonistic shenanigans in one way or another. However, Lightning Dust is purely an antagonist to Rainbow Dash. This kind of puts Rainbow in the unique position of being the only pony that decides if Lightning Dust should be forgiven or redeemed. Whereas every other antagonist or villain redemption (as far as I'm aware) is at the hooves of the Mane 6 as a whole. That is to say, in order for Lightning Dust to have been redeemed or forgiven, she'd have to really accept the error of her ways and make it up to Rainbow Dash, and really show she's changed. Because, Celestia knows Rainbow is not easily forgiving the things she's done. They're arguably not as bad as, say, threatening all of Equestria. But Lightning Dust still put Rainbow's Friends and later Scootaloo, ponies Rainbow cares the absolutely most about, in mortal danger. That's not something you forgive easily. And if Rainbow decides that that's unforgiveable, well, personally, I wouldn't blame her.
And yet, I can see Rainbow, upon and truly redeemed Lightning Dust ... just being overjoyed to have her friend back, her "sparring partner" so to speak. Because, there's of course the pain of Dash almost losing her friends to Dust's utterly reckless actions. But not only that, but Dash did lose a friend back then. She lost the friendship of Lightning Dust herself. Arguably the only pony who gave Dash anything of a challenge to better herself against. Because from what we saw none of the other trainees we're even close to them. She lost something there. What could've been an "awesome friendship" perhaps to try put it in her words. And sometimes all it takes is a genuine apology, a genuine effort to make amends, and you may be surprised what lost friends are willing to have you back.

Anyhoof, yeah, I was thinking about Rainbow Dash and Lightning Dust a little recently, so this is why this was on my mind. I can't say if Lightning Dust genuinely should have been redeemed, like I said personally that's only a call Rainbow herself could make in my opinion. But, so, yeah, there's a little more emotion here than I expected for me, haha. Y'know, sometimes forgiving someone, even as their actions seem unforgiveable, is the most loving thing you can do.

Anyhoof, anyhoof, that all said, I'm not totally the happiest with this drawing. I think I got Rainbow alright, but I feel a bit like I totally butchered Lightning Dust's design And her face looks a little off or disproportionate, I'm not sure. Which is a shame, because if there's something I've always liked about Lightning Dust, it's her awesome hair-do! It took me several tries to get it looking decent, as I kept screwing it up 🙃 Looks like it turned out alright in the end, but yeah, that mostly obscured pose of Lightning Dust was kinda' difficult for me to pull off personally, haha